Libertine Liberal

Once again, Alternet has given me something to write about. In the article, Progressive Religious Leaders Drowned Out in Conversations About Sex, the author refutes the idea that progressive sex and family values don't mix.

However, one thing the author wrote made me leave a comment that questioned an assumption made even by many liberals: "...the false moral dichotomy of today's manufactured narrative that equates values with conservatives and liberals with libertines."

My response to this was:

I AM a Libertine Liberal

But that doesn't mean I have no ethics, principles, or morality. It's just that I don't accept that to be a moral person that I must live a monogamous lifestyle -- in my book monogamy isn't synonymous with morality.

I'm honest and open about my non-traditional life. I practice what I preach, unlike some of the hypocrites in the so-called "family values" crowd.

Though I don't care about what consenting adults do in their bedrooms, as the "family values" crowd thinks moral people ought to be concerned about, I am concerned with the issues of poverty, health care, the environment, education, and other truly moral issues.

I also raised a child to responsible adulthood as a single parent, with whom I now enjoy a good relationship, so they can't tell me that I don't care about children just because I don't live like Ned Flanders.

I don't want to hear it from either side that I can't be a moral person because I'm a libertine. True morality isn't about what you do in the bedroom, anyway. It's how you treat people in general.

Morality for me is deceptively simple: "Treat others as you would wish to be treated". If that's all a person takes away from religion, then they're doing well in my book.

Thoughts?