Quicksilver Commentary

Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones...

It has come to my attention that I need to clarify my beliefs for some of my friends, who seem to fear that I've abandoned the Conservative cause in favor of Liberalism.  So, in order to defend myself from accusations that I am a pansy, Liberal, Democrat, Commie or any other such word that Republicans use for "wimp genuinely cares for people who are hurting," I have decided to briefly describe my views for you all.

First and foremost, I am a Christian.  I believe in salvation by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone, and I would like to think that I lean toward theological Conservatism.  This has not changed, nor will it ever.

I believe the Bible is true in its entirety, and I believe that we as Christians are called to live upright lives, which means that I am morally Conservative. In accordance with scripture, I believe that abortion is in fact murder, and the homosexual lifestyle is in fact wrong, just in case you were wondering.

I believe that since the Bible is true in its entirety, and in the Bible we are commanded to be imitators of Christ, we as Christians have a duty to care for people who are hurting.  Oddly enough, this includes women who are contemplating abortion, girls who are too young to carry and have a baby, and people who struggle with homosexuality.  I'm a little confused on where this puts my social beliefs, but it is rather clear to me that the majority of Conservatives agree with me only in principle, not in action.  They say they care for the starving children in Africa, people with AIDS, and pregnant girls who were raped, but they in the end they only offer these hurting people un-Christian advice like "Life's hard, suck it up."  On the flip side, most Liberals are willing to care for these hurting people, but do so for the wrong reasons, and in the wrong way.  Government welfare is the WRONG way to help the poor, and abortion is definitely the WRONG way to help a girl who is too young to be a mother.  So I guess that makes me a social Moderate.  Please note that this does not have any bearing on my moral beliefs, which are Conservative.  I believe wholeheartedly that abortion and the homosexual lifestyle are wrong, but I am quite positive that legislation alone will not fix these problems, so I am afraid I'm a bit distanced from the Republican Party in terms of my social views. 

Though I can't say for sure what I believe politically right now, I'm wondering if I'm a political Libertarian (please note that there is a sharp distinction between political libertarianism and moral or social libertarianism).  I do not believe that so-called "victimless crimes" are harmless, but I may in fact believe that victimless crimes cannot be legislated against.  I'm not sure yet.  I know that I do believe that the government should be much smaller than it is, with much lower taxes.  I do not believe that government officials should be paid for what they do, and I believe that the government exists solely for the purpose of ensuring that everyones' individual rights are protected. 

Now I have briefly described for you my religious, moral, social and political views, and not one of them could be described as Liberal.  Believe it or not, Hillary Clinton is in no danger of receiving my vote in 2008.  My focus has perhaps changed in some areas since I blogged at Strangely Normal, but my allegiance has not.  But to quote Derek Webb:

"My first allegiance is not to a flag, a country or a man... And my first allegiance is not to democracy or blood... It's to a King and a Kingdom."

That is where my heart lies.  That is whom I serve and seek to please, and if I occasionally have to break ranks with Republicans in order to serve and please God, then so be it.  For I'd far rather please God than be accepted by men, even if they are Conservative.

Why Quicksilver?

Hi everyone, thanks for checking out Quicksilver Commentary.  I'm Jacob Thrasher, though you might also know me as "NeoFascist?" if you happen to pay attention to small and unimportant bloggers who never post.  I used to blog about politics and culture over at Strangely Normal, but I got tired of that, hence the fact that I practically stopped posting, so now I've decided to change my focus (and blog service) and take up even more of your time by writing things that other people could most likely say more eloquently and convincingly than I. 

If you're wondering why I chose the name "Quicksilver Commentary," then assuming your question involves the "Quicksilver" part of the name rather than the "Commentary" part, I would consider offering you an explanation.  Should I deem you worthy of such an explanation, it would most likely go something like this...

Quicksilver is another name for Mercury, symbol Hg on the periodic table.  In color it resembles silver, but it is far from being the precious metal from which it takes its name; whereas silver is solid, valuable, and will only kill you if a large slab of it were to strike you in the head with great force, quicksilver is liquid at room temperature, worthless, and is can cause poisoning if inhaled, ingested, or even if it makes contact with our skin.  As you can see, the only real similarity between Quicksilver and its namesake is in its shining appearance.

Now, if I may wax metaphorical for a moment (and do so poorly), the things of this world are quicksilver, turning our attention away from that which is truly of worth, and poisoning us all the while.  We see the glittering attractions of quicksilver and we refuse to look any deeper, assuming that simply because the object of our interest reflects light like a precious metal, it must be true silver.  The truth, however, is that we are pursuing a worthless poison, a mere shadow of what can truly bring us pleasure, and rather than recognizing that we have nothing real to show for our pursuit, we choose to settle for something that is far less than what is intended for us.  We as Christians should not be so easily pleased.

That is the meaning behind the name of my blog.  I do hope the explanation is satisfactory and understandable, as the success of a blog depends on the interest and comprehension of its readers.  If there is anything I can do to make your stay more comfortable, let me know.  I don't know if I'll do anything, but your complaint will have been heard. 

If you want to know where I got the inspiration (if you can call it that) to name my blog "Quicksilver Commentary," look no further than Reese Roper's band... uh, Roper.  Reese is an awesome singer and songwriter, and he wrote a song called "Quicksilver" which references the same metaphor I spoke of earlier.  And in my defense, I figured out the metaphor on my own, and had not listened to this sample until after I wrote the above paragraphs.  Seriously. 

Okay, I think that's about all I have for now... I always was good at finding a way to conclude my posts.  Hope you enjoy your stay at Quicksilver Commentary.

(Can you tell I enjoy saying "Quicksilver Commentary?")

EDIT:  As you might have noticed, I attempted to transfer the "Sidebar of Doom" concept from my old blog to this one.  However, on this new blog, the Sidebar of Doom has multiplied, and I am left with a dilemma:  What shall I call my new Sidebars of doom?  Neither one of them is greater than the other (for all sidebars are created equal), so neither can have the sole title of "Sidebar of Doom."  Nevertheless, they need names, so I ask you:  What shall I name them?  Please, I need some help, I'm running out of creativity here...