Oh! How NOBLE Sarah Palin Is!!!

For what is Palin's choice as VP running mate based upon but her nobleness of character in not having an abortion after knowing that the child would be born with Down's Syndrome?

The Office of the Vice Presidency of the United States is no longer an adornment attached loosely to the president's ankleChristion in order to secure votes from a particular state (like Dan Quayle); nor is it a glorified schoolhouse. It cannot afford the luxury of home-schooling. Four years of political life in Alaska does not prepare you for the vicissitudes of Washington. Richard Nixon learned the hard way, but our next V.P. will be under stress Nixon never dreamed about: war in not one but two countries, warmongers and pacifists galore, the past president and vice-president possibly being cited for war crimes, an economy that's barely treading water, the increasing (economic) powers of China and India and a band of Christianists who will scream about morality at all levels and all sectors of the country.

Is Palin able to meet with foreign dignitaries on the first day of office without making a serious blunder? The Vice-Presidency suffered Dan Quayle's gaffs, but Dick Cheney has made the office more powerful, hence there can be no mistakes. And today's V.P. has to hit the ground running. Unless she plans to be a part-time V.P., her image as soccer mom will be replaced by the image of someone on the go and always at meetings. Speaking of which, will she be able to be as secretive as Dick Cheney in her deals with energy moguls?

Or will she be a puppet for McCain as he will be of another power: the Republican Party, if he wants to be effective enough in enacting legislation he promises.

She stated that she does not believe that climate change is man-made. Then why vote for reducing gas emissions? There's no reasoning here.

Palin is a life-time member of the National Rifle Association, and is popular among gun rights activists. Sandra Froman, a member of the NRA Board of Directors, described McCain's selection of Palin as "outstanding" In other words, the NRA loves her to pieces.

Her political stances are either dichotomous or anemic. Is there a politically correct name for a political bimbo?

Just a thought.

A First: "...Our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters"

"...surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination."

All hail the radio! It helped me multitask. And think. Much better than TV. While Obama spoke, I took notes and wrote down feelings as I never could while watching him on television. I was able to focus on what he had to say rather than be distracted by how he said it. I had seen him enough times to envision all the motions (and emotions) coming from this man. And I just wanted to hear the words. I knew that his speech would be well thought out and I intended to give it the same amount of thought that it, in turn, deserved. I listened, tapping at my keyboard occasionally. When it was over, I did my laundry and worked out a little. I kept trying to remember the words that sank in the most.

Some of them sunk in. Some didn't. For the ones that didn't, I read a transcript of his speech. To me, it was not awe-inspiring. Michelle Obama's speech was far more heartfelt in that respect. Yes, it was well thought out. But most of all, it was what it NEEDED to be: clearer about his policies than he has been before, forthright and a little bit demanding. O.K., a whole lot demanding. It did not paint John McCain as someone completely on "the other side," and therefore, wrong in everything. Rather, it implied that McCain is out of touch with reality, just like the Bush administration has been these part eight years. The speech also reminded Democrats what they were: fighters for a better world view, equality, compassion and reason. He said "We're the party of Roosevelt. We're the party of John F. Kennedy."

Other phrases that stand out:

• "Failure to respond" - an outright indictment of George W. Bush's whole presidency
• "Change doesn’t come FROM Washington, it comes TO Washington" - a good catchphrase for his campaign.
• "This election is about YOU." - a throwaway line that nonetheless arouses people's sense of entitlement.
• "...deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital...live lives free of discrimination." Of course that hit home. I don't think the phrase "gay brothers and sisters" has ever been used before in a major political campaign. "Brothers and sisters" gives people an acknowledged equality. But it's an equality some people will deride as giving "perverts" or "sinners" the same rights that "normal" people have. He's definitely going to get a lot of flack from that one remark. Malkin, Coulter and Limbaugh will have a field day with it, not to mention Parsley, Hagee, Robertson, Graham, Perkins, Dobson, etc
  

And then there's -

"We are more compassionate than a government that lets veterans sleep on our streets and families slide into poverty; that sits on its hands while a major American city drowns before our eyes."

There was only one wrong note in the speech that, to me, stuck out vividly:

"Our universities and our culture are the envy of the world..."

I doubt that. Our "culture" is being scorned or laughed at by many countries who keep a close eye on American politics, religion and sociology. We have become what we have craved and continue to crave: entertainment. The lack of diplomacy, erudition, compassion and reason that have come out of the Bush administration is causing us to look like Keystone Kops chasing after the hero and heroine. It will take years of diplomacy and "good will towards men" to heal the wounds of a selfish yet righteously arrogant administration. A large, socially uneducated segment of our society believes that we should embrace what many would consider to be a theocracy. The separation of church and state was one of the wisest of ideologies coming from men who saw the tyranny of government to religion as well as the tyranny of religion to the people.

O.K., I'll get off the soapbox. It was a good speech that NEEDED to be spoken.

Before I sign off tonight, I "discovered this great site called "Wordle.net" (I shouldn't say "discovered" because it's obvious from the site that a lot of people know about it!)You can paste any speech you want in it and it will come up with the most used words in the speech. You can edit it any way you wish. It's fun and very revealing about the speech. I created one for Obama's speech - just click on the link below:

I Have A Dream Of A Culturally Diverse...Camelot

Of course it was timed, but whether intended or not, Obama's speech tonight will mark the 40th anniversary of Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech in the Capitol Mall on August 28, 1968. And his speech will be poked, prodded, built up, torn down and repeated. Everything you can think of with a timely speech. There is one thing, however, that it will not be: ignored.

Most of the rhetoric of the DNC has been rousing, even inspirational: Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton. Joe Biden. Liberal critics lauded them, and conservative critics, well, criticized them. There are some pundits you don't have to read or listen to because you know - word for word - what they have to say. (I certainly don't want to listen to or read Michelle Malkin. Her rants are way too loud for eardrums - or eyes!). So what will Obama come up with? Will the speech be uniting? Inspirational? Uplifting? Will it condemn the last eight years of the Bush administration? Put it this way: Obama's sheer presence as the Democratic Nominee for President of the United States will condemn it. While McCain will defend (to an extent) the current course, Obama will be shouldering through a crowd of skeptics and, yes, bigots, to lead the people through a different course.

At least, we all hope it will be different.

We hope to God it will be different.

Just a thought.

Something Encouraging, But Be Careful: An Answer From the AIDS Care Unit at Saddleback Church

If you haven't done so, read the post for August 23rd: An Open Letter to the Mrs. Rick Warrens of the World. I then forwarded the post to Ms. Elizabeth Styffe, R.N.M.N. of the AIDS Care Unit at Saddleback Church. Ms. Styffe works closely with Kay Warren. I didn't think I would get a response, but I did. Here it is:

Dear Dan Vojir,

Thanks for your email. You have said so many things that resonate with me...exactly! I particularly appreciate your last sentences, "It's just that people do not know how it rankles me to know that people in foreign countries have garnered more "Christian charity" sooner - and with more compassion - than my neighbors." I hear you and hurt for the terrible ways that people have suffered alone. Meeting you, a person living with HIV, is what I love to do everyday. And you're right, churches with an HIV ministry are tragically rare and were horrifically absent early on in the Pandemic. (my emphasis)
We're trying to change that reality and are giving our lives to help mobilize the church...and people everywhere to care and act and engage.

My personal story is that I was caring for people who were living and dying with AIDS in the early 1980s (I am an RN and very involved early on....you and I both know too many people who suffered and died...we both have shed many tears.) Even though I was involved, I did not act enough. I was wrong.

Sadly, I didn't care at all about any other place in the world (I was wrong and ignorant)...I thought AIDS was "solved" with the introduction of HIV medications and I was absolutely wrong and ignorant regarding stigma and the other ways people who are positive suffer. If you've read things from Kay Warren, you'll know that we own the truth of what you're saying regarding "too little, too late". I hope you've also read that we're changing that. After Kay's first trip to Africa, she realized that whatever we were doing in Africa, we needed to also do at home. We launched together the HIV/AIDS Initiative at Saddleback Church which focuses both locally and globally.

I agree with you on so many things you've offered...you are not alone in believing that the United States needs a focus and passion, not only from the church and the evangelical....but from everyone. I'm giving my life to these goals. We do care about people living with HIV in Africa, but we have an equally strong local HIV ministry and charge every church with doing the same. We do not believe you can care about global HIV until you also care locally. We have a very active HIV Initiative that mobilizes people to care in very practical ways both locally and globally. I'd be interested in hearing the ways you think we can improve, change and grow. I'm in this for the long haul. As a member of the Orange Country HIV Planning Council, I am constantly learning and working with Kay to make an impact and care and engage others in doing the same. We want your feedback...people living with HIV are our passion.

I would really relish the opportunity to talk with you. If you'll offer your phone number, I'll call you. It's difficult to convey all I long to convey in email. You're also welcome to call me at ______________. You matter to us. Your opinions are important. If you haven't yet visited our web site....consider visiting www.HIVandtheChurch.com

Warmly, Elizabeth

Elizabeth Styffe RN MN

Saddleback Church

Director HIV/AIDS & Orphan Care Initiative

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the first time I've ever experienced an apology (of sorts) from anyone attached to a religious community. (The pope crying at the Wailing Wall of Jerusalem's Temple doesn't count.) I truly believe this letter to be heartfelt and I encourage people who want to connect with a faith-based AIDS initiative to investigate this.

No, I'm not sold on the likes of Rick Warren. No matter how hard he tries to provide a place for the "unchurched," I will always be suspicious. Remember, he's something of an inerrantist, and his use of the Bible, while not as a weapon, still has some hard edges to it. And I would like to have access to full accountability of his ministries.

Just a thought.

Meanwhile, At The American Legion Convention...

Cheney: His secret is that he has more secrets than we can imagine!

Cheney Stumps For McCain
Without Stumping For McCain

Got that? Actually, Cheney is quite true to form in his enactment of Tricky Dick Redux. From ThinkProgress.com:

I realize the Annual Convention of the American Legion is not a political event, and I will not speak this morning about the presidential campaign.

Moments later, he said:

President Bush stood firm, along with a number of notably courageous members of Congress, some of them from Arizona. They knew a surge of operations was our big chance to get things right.

Secrecy. Deals. Lack of diplomacy. 144 days left.
They can still do a lot of damage. (Like the photo below)

Evidence of Dick Cheney's Arrival on Earth!

Thanks to Flickr and "Tony the Misfit." for this marvelous photo and caption.
I couldn't have labeled it better myself!

McCain's Vice President: Just Don't Pick Cheney!

One of These Three? Where's Huckabee?
...And Where's the Logic?

I fell sorry for John McCain. Obama had some incredibly dynamic people to chose his running mate from. They all had the potential to unite the party. Yes, even Hillary. The decision of Joe Biden was, after analysis, very wise and thought out, reflecting Obama's personality as well as his intentions.

But what or whom is McCain going to settle for? And he HAS to settle for someone less than popular: Romney? Lieberman? PAWLENTY??? And there's been no mention of Huckabee. Why not? I wonder...

O.K., sticking to the top three:

Romney is a little bit too risky. The whole question of his Mormonism distances him from many people. His wealth also works against him: McCain (or rather, Cindy) has enough money as it is: how many houses does Romney own? With him, the party will certainly seem plutocratic. McCain may try to mold himself into "man of the people," but Bush already tried that. Didn't really work. He couldn't channel Will Rogers.

Lieberman is the meek-sounding hawk people can't just pin down: he's given an 88% approval from the Human Rights Campaign, but he's against same-sex marriage. His stance on abortion is rather wishy-washy. The strongly Republican NRA hates him. McCain's "maverick" image is slipping and he may want to shore it up with another maverick, but Lieberman has still too much Democratic dust on his coattails.

Who the hell is Pawlenty? The Washington Post has called him the most conservative Minnesota governor since Governor Theodore Christianson in the 1920s. He ran his gubernatorial campaign on the premise of a balanced budget. He slashed government spending to the point of damaging its infrastructure. His appointments for health commissioner and transportation have been disastrous (literally). Although he swore he would never raise taxes, he placed high fees on government agencies and services (like university fees). He won his second term by 1% of the vote.

Added to these three is the speculation that McCain has considered picking a running mate who is primarily pro-choice! McCain has too many sides to his party to make happy, but choosing a pro-choice vice-presidential candidate would spell disaster for his Republican campaign.

Now, if he were a Democrat...

So, Romney, Lieberman, or Pawlenty?
For the Republican Party, it may be "None of the Above." For McCain, it might be "who should I be stuck with?"

Just a thought.

The Passing of Del Martin: One of "Those Lesbians!" Whom The Christian Right Fought For Over 60 Years!

And the Christian Right thinks we have no commitment to each other! Readers: I just received this email about the passing of Del Martin yesterday. She will be so missed because she was so loved! Dear Friend, In Memory of Del Martin 1921 - 2008 To day, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community lost an iconic leader and a beloved friend. Del Martin, 87, passed away in San Francisco with Phyllis Lyon, her lifelong partner and spouse, by her side. Del was one of the nation's first and most visible lesbian rights activists who dedicated her life to combating homophobia, sexism, violence and racism. Del's many contributions to the LGBT movement will resonate for decades to come. Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon were the first gay or lesbian couple to be legally married in Northern California, on June 16, 2008 after 55 years together. As was her wish, in lieu of flowers, gifts can be made to honor Del's life and commitment by defeating the California marriage ban. To make a gift, please click here: http://www.NoOnProp8.com/contribute With Del's passing, we mourn the loss of a champion not only for LGBT rights, but also for the basic human rights due to all people. Del will always be an inspiration to those of us who follow the path to equality she blazed. We sincerely thank her for this final, selfless contribution to the rights that she and Phyllis fought so long for. Del, we will miss you. Sincerely, Dale Kelly Bankhead Campaign Manager No On 8, Equality For All

California's Christofascists Are On the Warpath!!

And They Want More Than Just Our Scalps!
They Want Our Dignity, Our Rights AND Our Souls!

The very moment anyone creates an "us" and "them" situation, they open the door to hate. Too simple? Maybe, but there are people who avoid that situation by accepting and including everyone and there are those who fan the flames of hatred by segregating people and actively labeling people as outcasts or "lepers". It's an open or closed heart thing. It's an open or closed mind thing.

What about associations and clubs? Some clubs are formed to assemble people with common interests. But other clubs are formed to keep people out. Kids have done the latter since the dawn of time: "Keep out" and "members ONLY" were common when I was a kid and I'll bet they're still around now. In a sense, gangs are violent clubs.

Religion can be both inclusive or exclusive. It cannot, however, be both at the same time: you're either "in" or you're "out". You either believe a certain doctrine or you don't. If you don't toe the line and do everything exactly as your leader tells you, or a higher power tells your leader who tells you, you are a sinner...or an apostate... or an atheist...or a "poor, confused" person to be pitied. Or, as Rick Warren would tell you: "unchurched."

The most hypocritical phrase uttered in the next coming weeks will be "but we're not bigots or homophobes! That's what THEY want you to think!" But in the situation of same-sex marriage, it will certainly be "give 'em an inch, they'll take a yard." Bigotry will not stop with the passage of a proposition to "protect" marriage.

Civil unions will be next. Ballot initiatives will crop up to eradicate them. Donations will pour in from outside each and every state to help support those initiatives.

"But we're not bigots or homophobes!"

Propositions will be passed to give "faith-based initiatives" more money. Religious institutions will be given a mandate in hiring and firing. "You're not one of us. You're not part of the club!"

"But we're not bigots or homophobes!"

People will be afraid to come out of the closet more than ever.

"But we're not bigots or homophobes!"

Laws will be passed making certain actions a crime or re-instating old laws.

"But we're not bigots or homophobes!"

And as men and women all over our country are being bashed and killed, we will still hear: "But we're not bigots or homophobes!"

Just a thought.

If you want to help stop the "slippery slope" before it starts, please vote NO on Proposition 8. If you're not in California, go to this site and find out how you can help.

www.NoOnProp8.com

If The Gun's Smoking, Hurry Up and Put Handcuffs On 'Em!!

From today's Washington Independent:

The district court’s July 31 ruling compells Harriet Miers, the former top White House counsel, to honor a House Judiciary Committee subpoena to give sworn, public testimony. The judiciary committee has for more than a year demanded Miers discuss White House involvement about the dismissal of nine U.S. Attorneys. The committee has also subpoenaed documents from White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten on the attorney firings.

This could also affect those other "executive privilege" cowards Rove, Mukasey and Johnson. It might even affect "W" himself.

I must say that it will be very entertaining to see Miers testify. She did, after all, say that George Bush was "the most brilliant" man she'd ever met. It could well be that the clowns will have the center ring for a change - something they've deserved for a long time.

If McCain Can Distance Himself From Parsley and Hagee, Why Not Scheunemann?

Is John McCain
Clueless
ON ALL COUNTS?

So John McCain doesn't know how many houses he has. Fine. He doesn't know about the doctrines of Rod Parsley or John Hagee. O.K. Now he seems to know nothing about one of his top advisers. He's looking clueless.

We've talked about Randy Scheunemann - Sen. John McCain foreign policy adviser- before, but let's recap:

Schueneman's scorecard to date:

• President of the Committee for the Liberation of Iraq created by Project for New American Century
• Board member of New American Century
• Former Security Aide for Trent Lott
• Associated with Iraqi exile Ahmad Chalabi
• Adviser to former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld
• Co-owner of Washington Lobbying firm Orion Strategies which lobbied for Caspian Alliance and the NRA
• Paid lobbyist (5 yrs) for Stephen Payne who is being investigated for soliciting meetings with Dick Cheney and Condoleeza Rice in exchange for donations to the George W. Bush Presidential Library.
• Registered lobbyist for the Republic of Georgia and under a $200,000 contract when Presidential hopeful John McCain was encouraged to speak to Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili

NOW THE LATEST:

In 2007, when Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), introduced a bill prohibiting gun sales to suspected terrorists, Schuenemann lobbied against the bill on behalf of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (a gun-maker’s association).

Hinting at yet another conflict of interest, the McCain campaign “refused to answer questions about whether the senator supports or opposes the White House plan to close the loophole” giving expanded gun rights to terrorists, reports Newsweek.

John McCain doesn't seem to know anything about the people who endorse him nor about the people who are his advisers.

Clueless.

Just a thought.

And if he's gonna be "McSame",
he's certainly gonna be CLUELESS.

It's Idaho For Crissakes!

One Hallmark Card You Won't See... In Idaho!

Last week, Hallmark began producing greeting cards that recognize the unions between same-sex couples. Soon after, the American Family Association announced that it was launching a protest of Hallmark, claiming that the company was “promoting a lifestyle” that is “unhealthy.” Now, the AP is reporting that seven Hallmark stores in Idaho are refusing to carry the new same-sex marriage card.

C'mon people! We're talking IDAHO! The state's so backward even Bo Gritz was forced to leave it for Nevada!

And Idaho Senator Larry Craig...need we say more?

The American Family Association also has a rather jaundiced view against gays: In 2007, the AFA spoke out against IKEA for featuring homosexual families in their television ads.

(NOTE: The founder of the AFA, David Wildman, has been cited by The Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Congress as extremely anti-Semitic and the California AFA leader, Scott Lively, is co-founder of Watchmen on the Walls, an extremist group that promotes violence against gays)

Michelle Obama and the WOW Factor: Is She TOO Intelligent?

O.K., most of us (I'm including Republicans and Christofascists in this too) agree that Michelle Obama is not just a good speaker, but a GREAT speaker. As a consequence, however, her intelligence, came through as well. The American public has long had a love/hate relationship with very intelligent people: they are keenly suspicious of them. Intelligent people (and intellectuals - a slight difference there) are set aside by their intelligence - or, rather, set ABOVE others in their intelligence. One of the reasons we have such a dimwit of a president is that people thought that Al Gore was too intelligent for them. Bush's (fake) folksy stance seemed more familiar. The guy's been trying to channel Will Rogers now for eight years. It's a good thing Will is dead, or he wouldn't take kindly to the insult. It's correct to say that Michelle Obama won many, many African-American hearts (and voters) because she addressed 50% of the speech to them - in a positive way. So far, the Obama campaign has been at least 75% positive. That might change. Let's hope not. McCain has run some very negative ads and here's what he said tonight on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno:

McCain: Look, we all don’t like negative ads. I thought the ads we put up were an attempt to be humorous — and I thought they were very funny — and also differentiate between Sen. Obama. I think that the tone of this campaign is very rough, I think we all agree

HUMOROUS? Senator McCain, humor in a presidential campaign cannot be handled lightly. Mark Twain told us that the most effective weapon in the world is humor. Treating a serious situation (like the election of a president) with humor smacks of carelessness - like a kid playing with matches or knives. And I haven't yet run across anyone who thought your campaign ads were funny. Paris Hilton certainly didn't appreciate one, because it belittled her. And she shot back - with real humor, and a great amount of style.

Michelle Obama has style as well, but it's a style comfortable with intelligence: graduate of Princeton, Juris Doctor from Harward Law School, Associate Dean of Student Services at the University of Chicago, 58th of "The Harvard 100," a list of the prior year's most influential Harvard alumni (Her husband was listed as #4)

Jennifer Hunter of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote about one speech of hers in Iowa,

"Michelle was a firebrand, expressing a determined passion for her husband's campaign, talking straight from the heart with eloquence and intelligence."

Again, the "I" word.

God, this is going to be a frustrating race!

Just a thought.

Watch this video about how FOX "News" treats Michelle Obama. They must really despise her intelligence.

Another Republican Dimwit

Ouch! Her Jubilation Must Have Hurt!

And You Thought Bush Had Cornered the Market!

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) told OneNewsNow that the U.S. doesn’t need environmental advocates such as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) because Jesus saved Earth already:

[Pelosi] is committed to her global warming fanaticism to the point where she has said that she’s just trying to save the planet. … We all know that someone did that over 2,000 years ago, they saved the planet — we didn’t need Nancy Pelosi to do that.

Besides hitting the Speaker of the House over the head with religion, Bachmann proved that she needs to go back to grade school for her awful grammar and reasoning:

1. "Just trying to save the planet" has no longer been considered a "fanatical" term. It's used very commonly and in no way connotes exclusivity or bravado.
2. Jesus saved SOULS, not the physical earth. When Nancy Pelosi speaks of the earth, she is speaking about that big round ball (O.K., not quite) we live on, the one Bachmann's ancestors, as well as everybody else before her, have ruined.
3. "Someone" and "they", while mildly correct is very awkward. Instead, it should be "Someone" and "He"
4. Unless Nancy Pelosi lived 2,000 years ago, the proper form would be "we don't need Nancy Pelosi to do that."

Besides trying to sabotage the English language and belittling Pelosi about a subject even Christofascist Pat Robertson agrees with, Bachmann should being home studying and trying to pass the sixth grade.

Another reason I wouldn't want to be in her district:

Joseph Wright of Derby - Vesuvius from Portici - Detail

Joseph Wright of Derby - Vesuvius from Portici - Detail
Originally uploaded by Marshall Astor - Food Pornographer

Mount Vesuvius' eruption on Aug. 24, 79 CE was not the most destructive of any volcano in history. That title goes to the volcano located on the Greek island of Thera. Hundreds of megatons of ash and debris darkened every island and country within a radius of 1000 miles.

So if Vesuvius is not technically the worst eruption, why is it so important in history?

It is a reminder that people, cities, whole cultures can be erased from the earth almost without a trace. Vesuvius buried Herculaneum for so many years that the existence of the small city past into the realm of legend. Maybe that can never happened again: TV crews would be on hand to recording everything.

Dick Cheney: Scandals Up, Approval Ratings Down - Past Dan Quayle Level

Honestly, The Scariest T-Shirt I've Ever Seen!

Oh, The Humiliation!
He's Even Lower Than Dan Quayle!

For years, I thought George Bush was really Dan Quayle in disguise. Of course, that is an insult to Quayle. But now, Dan Quayle has something to chirp about (since quayle don't crow): a new scandal may push Dick Cheney down past Quayle's dismal approval rating!

Newsweek reports that in a conversation “secretly tape-recorded by the FBI on June 25, 2006,” Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) “discussed ways to get a pipeline bill through the Alaska Legislature with Bill Allen, an oil-services executive accused of providing the senator with about $250,000 in undisclosed financial benefits.” Stevens promised Allen, “I’m gonna try to see if I can get some bigwigs from back here and say, ‘Look … you gotta get this done’.” Two days later, Vice President Cheney undertook the unusual move of writing a letter to the Alaska Legislature urging members to “promptly enact” a bill to build the pipeline.

NYT July 7, 2007:

Vice President Dick Cheney’s popularity has hit an all-time low, with recent polling by The New York Times and CBS News suggesting that he has replaced Dan Quayle as the most unpopular vice president in recent history.

Immunity Is Cheney personally immune to all of the links to skullduggery? Doesn't he care what people think? Crazy me to even ask such a question. One look at Cheney and you realize that he really doesn't care much about anything. Even in 2004, when Kerry made an inocuous comment about Mary Cheney's sexual orientation, Lynne Cheney blew up, the press ate it up and Dick Cheney didn't look as if he felt much of anything.

An extremely secretive man who shows bursts of anger but only spots of passion can be a very dangerous person: to look at Cheney is to ask: "What is he NOT telling us?" He is scheming the grand coup de tat, isn't he?


A note on Dan Quayle
He does have a somewhat strange legacy: read this from wikipedia:

The United States Vice Presidential Museum at the Dan Quayle Center is the only Vice Presidential museum in the United States. It is located in Huntington, Indiana, one of the towns where Dan Quayle grew up. The Museum is downtown in a renovated church, the former First Church of Christ, Scientist, Huntington, Indiana, and has two floors, the first featuring the history of all the Vice Presidents, and the second housing memorabilia and a theater.

And one last quote I couldn't resist, by the inimitable John Cleese:

If life were fair, Dan Quayle would be making a living asking "Do you want fries with that?"

Now, come on, do you actually think he wrote it?

Is It Possible To Be Dumber Than Dubya? Dick Morris is Certainly Trying To Be

No, Morris' Reasoning Is More Twisted.

Besides being the author of a book with the world's longest title* Dick Morris is a conundrum. Actually, he started out as a conundrum, then evolved by stages into a convoluted conundrum and now has become a rather comic convoluted conundrum with schizophrenic tendencies. He started political life working for the Clintons in Arkansas, refused to advise Bill Clinton during his first campaign, got involved in the second campaign, let a hooker listen in to his conversations with the President to impress her, then became a political "pundit" with no direction whatsoever. He also prides himself as a political prognosticator of sorts but has yet to be completely accurate about any of his predictions. He once predicted that the 2008 race would be between Hillary Clinton and Condoleeza Rice.

He's been described as "the most ruthless political consultant" (BBC). He's either a Jewish Catholic or a Catholic Jew, but neither religion is talking. He came up with the political strategy of "triangulation" - appealing to a diverse group of voters while distancing one's self from either party.

He now says that Obama is weak on foreign policy because:

"Where he’s wrong is that we went into Iraq at the invitation of the government, not as an invasion."

If you don't believe me, see it for yourself (below). I have the strangest feeling that he's an implant from aliens designed to keep them in stitches about our politics.


*Fleeced: How Barack Obama, Media Mockery of Terrorist Threats, Liberals Who Want To Kill Talk Radio, The Do-Nothing Congress, Companies That Help Iran, And Washington Lobbyists For Foreign Governments Are Scamming Us...And What To Do About It

Bottom of the Ninth: Politics - 2, Christofascism - 1

2007's Values Voters Summit - God's Warriors

(psst! notice: the guy in front doesn't have a flag lapel pin! - he must be a secret Obama supporter!)

The Culture War Will Be Heating Up Again... After America's Evangelicals sees the new Pew Report on Religion and Politics:

Some Social Conservative Disillusionment

August 21, 2008

The new national survey by the Pew Research Center reveals that most of the reconsideration of the desirability of religious involvement in politics has occurred among conservatives. Four years ago, just 30% of conservatives believed that churches and other houses of worship should stay out of politics. Today, 50% of conservatives express this view.

As a result, conservatives' views on this issue are much more in line with the views of moderates and liberals than was previously the case. Similarly, the sharp divisions between Republicans and Democrats that previously existed on this issue have disappeared.

The numbers above spell big worries for people like Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council and his spiritual owner James Dobson. My guess is that the exploits of people like Pat Robertson, Rod Parsley and John Hagee have been more detrimental to their cause than they thought possible. When you’re marketing religion (as well as hatred), you’d better take into account a global economy. Even Bush knew that when he went to the Olympics. But he stupidly tried to do several things at once: create a positive American presence and castigate the host country for human rights violations. Unfortunately, he’s so inept at doing even one thing at a time that he placed our diplomatic rating in China back down to zero.

The Fudds and the Gantrys will be angry about this new trend. It's significant: Christofascists don't have as much power as they had 4 years ago. But "be afwaid, be vewy, vewy afwaid. heheheheheh!" Like cornered animals, they will lash out with every means, reasonable or unreasonable, they can. Watch/read/imbue what they say at the "Values Voters Summit"

Check out People For The American Way Sept. 12-14 and what they report about the Submit, ah I mean "Summit."

This may yet be the Christofascist view of America:

Rich: When You Can't Tell How Many Homes You Own!

Terminator Plus Madame? Nah!
But Cindy Better Get Used To Being At The Wrong End Of Publicity!

Cindy McCain Should Have Answered The Question About
the Number of Houses They Own

Cindy McCain: very rich, very philanthropic and very volunteer-driven and ...very vulnerable.

So why isn't she being hunted down like Teresa Heinz Kerry? Or Michelle Obama? Or is she just a wealthy Pat Nixon? Has she even found her campaign personality yet? Obama found hers a while ago. Read the wikipedia.com bio of Mrs. McCain here. Apparently, except for a few "lapses in judgment" (my phrase), the only word for this woman is "paragon":

She has stated that the American public wants a First Lady of the United States who will tend toward a traditional role in that position. She would not attend Cabinet meetings, but would continue her involvement in overseas non-profit organizations and would urge Americans to do the same globally or locally; she envisions herself as a possible figurehead for humanitarian work, along the lines of Diana, Princess of Wales.

She's been on or is on the board of so many charities and causes that she seems positively surreal. She's even an amateur pilot and race car driver! (26 years in NASCAR!) She's the wealthy Mary Haines* of the 21st century!

Ironically, the image that she has built up for the last 30 years may be her biggest problem: the American public really loves to push people off pedestals. She's overdue for a National Enquirer expose. It may come in the form of prescription drug addiction (which she has admitted to, but if the image of "addict" clings to Rush Limbaugh, it will probably cling to her as well). It may come in the form of an "affair" to offset the fact that she was essentially McCain's "mistress." Or it may come in the fact that her money was involved directly in the "Keating Five" scandal.

As to the reason why she has been conspicuously absent in the last week? Is it REALLY carpal tunnel or something more sinister? Hey, the tabloids have to make a buck!

Seriously, she seems like a wonderful, wonderful woman. And sophisticated enough to make Laura Bush look positively dowdy (or does Cindy have a love affair with one-color pantsuits too?).

I wish her luck. She'll need it.

*The almost flawless Park Avenue wife and mother in Claire Booth Luce's The Women.

Rod Parsley's Xian Warriors

Xian Warriors
Originally uploaded by nickeeeast

Do you think that when Rod Parsley dies, he'll have clay models of all his "warriors" made so that they can be with his soul in the afterlife?

Just a thought.

Onward Christian (Only) Soldiers: Spirituality According to Gen. "Proslytizing" Petraeus

"When Soldiers Need Spiritual Energy."

Sounds like an ad for a caffeinated power drink.

August 20, 2008

Military.com, by Bryant Jordan

Gen. David Petraeus is used to controversy surrounding the war in Iraq, but his publicized thoughts on an Army chaplain's book for Soldiers put him squarely in the middle of the ongoing conflict over religious proselytizing in the U.S. military.

The book is "Under Orders: A Spiritual Handbook for Military Personnel," by Army Chaplain (Lt. Col.) William McCoy, and according to Petraeus' published endorsement of the work, "it should be in every rucksack for those times when soldiers need spiritual energy."

Mikey Weinstein, head of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, said it "strains credulity" that Petraeus never knew that his private written endorsement of the book was in the public domain since last year.

This latest brouhaha over religion and the military reminded me of a more audacious incident with one Lt. General William Boykin. Remember him? "My God was better than his god."

(AP, Aug. 19, 2004)

Islamic and religious freedom groups, as well as some members of Congress, criticized Boykin when news reports surfaced last October of remarks he made in several speeches at evangelical Christian churches. Boykin said the enemy in the terrorism fight was Satan and that God had put President Bush in the White House.

General Boykin (retired) is now a "professor" at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia (just what he teaches, I don't know - yet). Hampden-Sydney College's profile is that of the last all-male "make you into men" colleges. His April 8 speech to Epicenter 2008, a conference sponsored by Israel sounded like he had never left the battlefield:

One day, we're going to stand before the gates of Heaven. Some of us want to be able to walk up there in a white robe and we want to sing Abba Father and Amazing Grace and we want to say to the Lord, "I worshiped You." But I want you to think about this: Heres the way I want to enter the gates of Heaven. I want to come skidding in there on all fours. I want to be slipping and sliding and I want to hit the gates of heaven with a bang. And when I stand up and I stand before Christ, I want there to be blood on my knees and my elbows. I want to be covered with mud. And I want to be standing there with a ragged breast plate of righteousness. And a spear in my hand. And I want to say, "Look at me, Jesus. I've been in the battle. I've been fighting for you." Ladies and gentlemen, put your armor on and get into battle. God bless you.

A "breast plate of righteousness"? "I want there to be blood on my knees and my elbows" - notice he doesn't say whose blood. Why do I think that Jesus would have rebuked him? Or a least said, "Boy, you're a schmuck!"

And as to God having put George W. "lowest-approval-rating-ever" Bush in the White House?

If there is a Satan, he's doubling over in laughter right now.

"You're a Bush!" - The "W" Trailer Makes Bush's Life Look Wasted and Irrelevant

Which It Is.

Oh, well. I guess it's SOME form of "legacy."

Josh Brolin: "This is NOT a political movie! It's a biography!"

But it looks like a made-for-TV comedy special, especially when you see who's cast in it. Com'on, Richard Dreyfus as Dick Cheney? Ellen Burstyn as Barbara Bush? And Josh Brolin as a party-hearty young (and middle-aged) George Bush?

(Red State Update)

"Who's Josh Brolin?"
"He's Barbra Streisand's stepson."

But seriously, it takes balls for someone to make a movie about a bumbling idiot of a president - while he's still alive. Remember my phrase: "Fudd's the one with the gun." Oliver Stone might think he's Bugs Bunny having a rollicking good time at GWB's (Fudd's) expense, but if McSame becomes President, Oliver might realize that Bushes have thorns.

Even the ads for the trailer are ruinously funny. Read (if you can) the "teaser" poster for the trailer, then watch the trailer.

Is This the Portrait of the Most Effective Serial Killer in History?

elizabeth-bathory-tm
Originally uploaded by yehandhow

Countess Elizabeth Bathory had a terrible effect on young women: they always seemed to wind up being tortured and/or dying. She was charged with 80 murders, but legend had the number slightly higher: 650. So very many women went missing in areas of Slovakia, Hungary and Austria that it was rumored that she bathed in blood to keep her youth and beauty. After she was charged (there was no formal trial) she was imprisoned in her bedroom - actually walled up in it with only a small door to pass food. She died mysteriously four years later (there were days of untouched food in the room).

Her legacy was to become a kind of "Countess Dracula" because of the bathing legend. Below is the ironically named "Iron Maiden" - one of Elizabeth's (supposedly) favorite toys.

Fallout From Rick Warren's Faith Forum?

And What About Other Uber Christians?
Then Again, With Friends Like Ralph Reed,
Who Needs Enemies?

Last week, news broke that Ralph Reed, former Christian Coalition director and crony of Jack Abramoff, would be helping to raise money for Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) fundraiser in Atlanta. Reed “touted himself as a member of McCain’s ‘Victory 2008 Team’ in an e-mail that solicited donations on McCain’s behalf,” and public watchdog organizations called on McCain to denounce Reed. The Wall Street Journal now reports that Reed was a no-show at tonight’s Atlanta fundraiser.

This now makes THREE prominant conservatives John McCain has had to distance himself from. Whose idea was it to invite Reed anyway? But is McCain distancing himself from Reed, or is Reed distancing himself from McCain? Maybe Reed is being paid NOT to have a relationship with John McCain. Hey, that would be pretty nifty - being paid NOT to endorse a candidate! Sort of like farmers who are paid NOT to grow things.

Who the hell would have requested the presence of Ralph Reed anyway? It shows that the McCain camp is slipping when it comes to endorsements and support. Reed's curriculum vitae is terrible:

• His religious experience was at a Washington bar when the Holy Ghost himself "demanded me to come to Jesus."
  
• His college activist group was supported by Jesse Helms
• He headed his own political consultant firm and had clients like Enron, Microsoft, eLottery and The People's Republic of China.
• He helmed The Christian Coalition and left underneath a shadow of scandal and investigating by the IRS and the Federal Election Commission.
• Then he got together with Jack Abramov.

The person who invited him to the Atlanta fundraiser obviously doesn't have a brain.

There will be other fallouts from the Faith Forum and John McCain's answers: evangelical leaders, for example.

“I don’t think it’s right for pastors to endorse [a political candidate] in the first place,” Warren said on a recent CNN interview when asked if he thinks McCain was right to disavow controversial pastors John Hagee and Rod Parsley.

From Michelle Malkin (before the Forum):

Both candidates will uh and um and blather their way incoherently with vague platitudes about religion throughout this two-hour event.

That's how important religion is to Malkin. I think she was denegrated for her wildly spectulative view.

From TIW by fringe blogger Bruce Tyson:

Rick Warren: pathetic false teacher meddling in politics

Rick Warren is no longer “hip.” In fact, he never really was. Instrumental in building a mega-super church for the express purpose of damning souls to Hell in the name of religion, Warren is again sticking his nose into politics, offering to legitimize evil men (Barack ObamaBarry Soetoro Barry Dunham and Juan McCain) through his imprimatur.

In fact, you might just call Rick Warren the “Lindsey Graham” of false religion.

I'll see what kind of fallout there was on the Obama side tomorrow.

From Hippocratic to Hypocritical: Court Orders Compassion from California's Doctors

Beware of the Oaths You Take
They May Require That You Do Something Against Your Faith
- Like Be Compassionate

(From AP)

California’s high court has ruled doctors cannot withhold care to gays or lesbians based on religious beliefs.

The case stems from a San Diego-area lesbian’s claim that a private fertility clinic refused to inseminate her because of her sexual orientation.

A unanimous state Supreme Court said that California’s civil rights law barring sexual orientation discrimination extends to medical care.

An Open Letter to the Mrs. Rick Warrens of America

While sifting through the whole Saddleback/Warren/McCain/Obama brouhaha, I came upon this page on Saddleback's sebsite. I was rather struck by it, but for reasons other than what the site wanted to project.

Why care about HIV/AIDS?
Why should we care about HIV/AIDS? Why not focus on cancer, tuberculosis, diabetes, or heart disease? For a very simple reason: HIV carries a stigma that other diseases don’t carry.

No one ever gets banished from her village because she’s infected with tuberculosis. No one loses his job simply because of malaria. Husbands don’t beat or divorce their wives for developing the flu, diabetes, or cancer. No relatives refuse to care for children whose parents were killed in an accident. But all of those things and more happen on a daily basis where HIV/AIDS is involved.

I then sent a letter to Elizabeth Styffe, R.N. M.N. who works for Kay Warren and who is listed as a principle contact. I've had no reply. (Was I so audacious as to think I would receive one?). But here it is, and I would like to consider it an open letter to the Kay Warrens of America who always seem to think that AIDS is far away in third world countries (or that we in America have enough AIDS agencies).


Dear Ms. Styffe:

Please excuse this intrusion on your time, but I was surfing the net researching some information about Saddleback Church and realized that it actually has an AIDS/HIV ministry.

Something bothers me a great deal and maybe you could help for sake of clarity. I am an older (61) gay man who has been fortunate enough to live with HIV for 28 years (yes, that's right). I was also privileged to live in one of the most compassionate communities in the country - San Francisco - and VERY privileged to be a part of the AIDS Emergency Fund (3 years as client intake - 1990-93 and 3 years on the working Board of Directors). During the time I did client intake, I believe I saw the worst of the worst: men, women, and children who were, for lack of attention, literally dying in the streets.

Oddly enough, there were also people who were dancing in the streets: the Falwells, Robertsons, Thurmonds and Helmses were thanking God that a wonderfully hideous disease had been showered down upon the people they loved (and lived) to hate.

It was at this time I had an epiphany of sorts: I saw tens of thousands, knew of hundreds of thousands of people who were giving their time, their money (!!) and their very lives to help PWAs. And I realized that those people were by far the truest "Christians" and a million times more human than all the Falwells, Robertsons, etc. combined.

Several years ago, in doing research for a book (still ongoing), I posed a question to many denominations and ministries: what/where was the first faith-based AIDS agency outside of San Francisco? Many answers came back: they didn't know. Period. Finally I received a comprehensive portrait of the Episcopal Archdiocese of Los Angeles - they had reached back into their records and told me that, to their knowledge, they were the first - in 1986.

By 1986, 65,000 people had died.

I've researched, in particular, the Southern Baptist Convention and their members. To this day, they have no AIDS agencies/ministries outside of Africa.

That begs the question: WHY?

Look at it this way: what could have been Christianity's finest hour was passed by. "But we all thought it was communicable!" So? Did Father Damian live on Molakai for his health? Besides, scientists proved fairly early on that toilet seats were not dangerous. More dangerous were the people who believed they were.
And the people who taught them to believe that way were even more...

So now I see that Kay Warren has an intense interest in AIDS in Africa. How old is she? Perhaps she was too young in the 80's and 90's to care about other people as she now does.

Again, I'm so very sorry to have taken up your kind attention and time. It's just that people do not know how it rankles me to know that people in foreign countries have garnered more "Christian charity" sooner - and with more compassion - than my neighbors.

Sincerely,


Dan Vojir
Proudly,
from San Francisco
http://thedevilanddanvojir.blogspot.com