Troy and Jessica Thompson

It appears that Dr. Bob Jones III and Dr. Bob Taylor of Bob Jones University are actually human beings capable of making independent decisions of their own free will! This will come as a shock to many, but these two men actually have opinions about the presidency of the United States of America and had the audacity, the nerve, the chutzpah to actually state their opinions in such a way that people heard them! What is this world coming to? Before you know it, people all over the country might actually start having their opinions known!

So here's mine.

Whilst a student at Bob Jones University, I had the privilege of taking a short story writing class from a university faculty member not named Bob. He conveyed to the neophytes under his charge the classic advice:

"When writing a story, you must strive to answer the reader's inevitable question: 'So what!?'

Before I even heard or cared that The Bobs had an opinion, I got this email from bju.edu itself on October 18, 2007:

Bob Jones University Statement on Political Endorsements

Over the past two election cycles, Bob Jones University has become much more of a media focus than we would have chosen to be. Given that media fascination, BJU is in the news again—this time with yesterday’s endorsement of Gov. Mitt Romney for president by Dr. Bob Jones III and Dr. Bob Taylor.

Bob Jones University has never officially endorsed political candidates, and that policy remains unchanged. Each of us as U.S. citizens has the privilege and responsibility before God to examine the candidates and come to a decision of conscience about how we will cast our vote. It is in that role as private citizens that Dr. Jones III and Dr. Bob Taylor have chosen to cast their vote for Mitt Romney. Other faculty, staff and administrators will choose otherwise. In each case, however, their decision reflects only their personal choice and does not represent BJU as an organization.

And you know, that pretty much sums it up. The Bobs endorsed Mitt Romney; to this I say, "so what?"

The problem seems to be that it's not possible to be affiliated with Bob Jones University in any way and have an opinion without drawing fire--and in this case, from multiple sides.

• The ultra-right wingers will shout, "Heresy!" and accuse Bob Jones University of selling out to Mormons.
• The far-left segment who's educated about the difference between traditional Christianity and Mormonism will cry, "Hypocrite! What's next? You're gonna vote for a Catholic?"
• A good number of folk will simply claim they'd rather not vote than vote for a Mormon.
• And then there's the folk who say we shouldn't vote because the Bible doesn't say anything good about voting. Just don't follow that line of logic too far, or you'll be living in a hut in the middle of nowhere with no electricity because the Bible never said that copper wires were holy.

The majority of the great unwashed sheeple in the United States will say, "Bob who?" I say, join them. We're electing a president, not a pope, and not a pastor. In fact I'm willing to bet that most folks who are just casually aware of BJU and Mormonism will assume Mitt Romney attended Bob Jones University.

Hm, sounds like a new rumor to add to my rumor page about Bob Jones University...