My liberal friends seem concerned with the stewardship of our Earth. It is a place of limited resources that can be squandered in the name of economic development. A decision to mine or drill or pollute is not reversible. It seems to my liberal friends that irreversible decisions should be carefully made with one eye on future generations and little view to economic interests.

Truth be known, both ends of the political continuum tax and spend. The conservatives in power have racked up a deficit with no end in sight. The conservatives are concerned that taxes not limit business and hope that the wealthy will employ more poor people at higher wages with the money saved in taxes. This wishful thinking has not proven correct in practice. Liberals, on the other hand, suggest that the wealthy need to better subsidize social services like health insurance with a higher tax rate. Ultimately we are all responsible for the poor among us.

The liberals I know recognize that we are the wealthiest nation on the planet. Our wealth obligates us to help the poor with better health care and superior publicly funded education. If businesses want a healthy and productive work force, let them help insure their employees. If we want to spend less on prisons, welfare and law enforcement, the best investment we can make is in education.

Those who vote because of values could well consider liberal values as an option. Liberals I know oppose war, the death penalty and abortion. They favor a stewardship of the Earth that preserves resources for the future. They favor a compassion for the poor, needy and defenseless that includes good deeds like health insurance and welfare. And yes, they even favor decisive self-defense.

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Roger Baker is an associate professor of English at BYU.