Focus on the Family spent $3 million on a 30-second TV commercial aired during the Super Bowl. What a colossal waste of money! But I’m glad they did. Some will no doubt say, however, it must have worked, because here we are with bloggers like me still talking about them. Touche.

The ad itself was rather cute. You have little “Timmy” and his mom acting all creepy-lovee cuddly on each other. Ugh. I really don’t care to focus on that kind of family, thanks. 🙂

Some call the mom’s decision to carry Timmy to term “courageous” after doctors told her that doing so could put her life in danger. I call that dumb. When a doctor tells you that something can kill you we all know you go out and do the opposite. If you want to live, that is. What good would it be to her “family” of four other children if she died? What kind of focus on the family is that?

It’s awfully hard to focus when you’re dead.

But we all know how it worked out. She was courageous and had her baby and it all turned out to be fine and dandy. Of course, we never would have heard about her at all if it wasn’t for another American family value: football. Her son grew up to play the all-American position of quarterback and became a Heissman trophy winner. The fact that he likes to paint Bible verses on his face is just an added bonus piece of weirdness.

So, Focus on the Family. Some people call that Christian organization a “hate group.” Just what are the “family” values they espouse? They claim to support “Biblical truths.” How do they do that? I decided I wanted to learn a bit more.

• Focus on the Family was founded and is chaired by psychologist Dr. James Dobson, a man with no formal theological training.
• As a 501(c)(3) corporation, Focus on the Family is not permitted to advocate any individual political candidate. However, the group has a radio program that discusses things like politics and current events from a Christian perspective.
• During the McCain/Obama presidential campaign, Focus on the Family sent a “despicable” letter that said an Obama presidency would, by 2012, result in: “Terrorist strikes on four American cities. Russia rolling into Eastern Europe. Israel hit by a nuclear bomb. Gay marriage in every state. The end of the Boy Scouts.” And all this time I thought I was the Guru of Negativity! I’ve done been out guru’d!
• They support traditional marriage by taking a strong stance against homosexuality and the same-sex marriage movement.
• They would outlaw all “abortion” except when the life of the mother is threatened by continuing the pregnancy.

Isn’t America fascinating? We take this “freedom” thing, organize into our little groups, then, like industrious busy little bees, we spend our time and energies trying to tell each other how to live while we surf our own slippery slopes and attempt to control the freedoms of others based on our values and religious beliefs.

Apparently “family values” is another way of saying you’ll force neighboring families to live by your values.

The right loves concepts like free will and free market right up to the point when some morals written in a religious text get involved. Then they suddenly support governmental control of their neighbors based on their particular flavor of morality.

The funny thing is though, that is the exact opposite of freedom. Go figure.