politics and Christianity

So, six weeks of Australian political procedure comes to an end this Saturday.

Our choices for leader of the country are 'Bad' and 'Not Much Better'.

There have been moments of hilarity, yes: the no-good terrible awful Tradie Ad and all the attendant mockery.

And while most people don't care much about the House of Reps (the leader of the party in power there becomes our Prime Minister - kind of equivalent to the US President), the Senate ballot is a tablecloth. At least the options have become simpler in the last year.

Of course, then there's the question of which party to vote for and what do they all stand for anyway? To say nothing of how to vote.

We do love a good laugh at our politician's expense.

I suspect most Australians don't really know who they're voting for; but we do have to make a decision at the polls on Saturday - even if that decision is just to go into the booth, wait for an appropriate minute or so, then walk out and post our ballots in the voting boxes without having put a mark on the paper. You just have to turn up to vote; you don't have the participate. However, I'm of the opinion that once you're there, you should vote.

And that you should vote, even if you don't like the options. The lesser of two weevils as the joke goes in 'Master And Commander'.

Why Should A Christian Vote For The Greens? (The Greens are the major left-wing, liberal party, who get at most a seat or two in the Senate, and a handful in the House of Reps. They're not the usual choice for most conservative Christians.)

The Christian Vote: Faith, Hope, And Love.

Mixing Faith And Politics.

Help! I'm a Christian, and I vote!

There was a very interesting article I read in the New York Times, by an American, who talked about the loss of faith for the white working class - Donald Trump's key group - and how the politicising of the Christian landscape in the US has resulted in the exclusion of the people the church is supposed to be serving. It intersected (for me) with the article by an abortion provider, who spoke about his struggle, and why he chooses to perform abortions - that the Good Samaritan was marked out for the suffering he chose to alleviate, never mind the way he might appear to others (as the religious leader and the civic leader in the parable chose to be concerned about).

writing writing writing

For a while there, I was really powering along. Of course, with the onset of June and winter, the waveform has collapsed somewhat.

Next Maria-POV section of To The End Of Love is up, and I'm pretty much just self-indulgently spewing words right now. It feels wrong, but I kind of want it out of my head so I can move on (properly) to other things. mcu_aufest is coming along in bits and bobs. It needs a better ending, but the one I planned isn't quite right, and the one I've written doesn't feel correct.

not_primetime assignment is...hung. It's two characters that I really like, but which I simply can't write together. At least the Gecko & Franzi's Friend-Ficathon is easier: that's a pairing I like to write. And there's everywoman which seems doable now, but I have a sneaking suspicion it'll be an in-the-last-48-hours fill.

And waiting on my femmeremix assignment. *gnaws nails*

Too many ideas! Too many thoughts! Too many WIPs!

Plus, half a mouthful of stitches might be a little easier to bear than a whole mouthful of stitches, but it's still damned uncomfortable. (And causing scalp aches and, I think, other issues.)

In the meantime, have a Morning marriage: an inconvenient time of day (Natasha/Bucky)

And, for the sedoretu itself: ( the angsty version )