Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN) had an affair with a part-time staffer named Tracy Jackson, Fox is reporting. Jackson played the role of interviewer for a Souder Web video show on the issues of the day -- including one on the value of abstinence.
The fact that it was reported by Fox News is ridiculous enough, I guess. When you're so stupid in your hypocrisy that even Fox has to show it... Anyway, stay tuned.
Below the thunders of the upper deep;
Far far beneath in the abysmal sea,
His ancient, dreamless, uninvaded sleep
The Kraken sleepeth: faintest sunlights flee
About his shadowy sides; above him swell
Huge sponges of millennial growth and height;
And far away into the sickly light,
From many a wondrous grot and secret cell
- from The Kraken, by Alfred, Lord Tennyson
OK, I got the idea for the title from Jon Stewart's take on the Right's reaction to the nomination of Elena Kagan for the Supreme Court. Watch it below. He is, as always, spot on. Any fan of fantasy and science-fiction films is familiar with The Kraken, a mythical beast of the sea sometimes physically depicted as a giant squid. The Right takes Kagan's nomination as an attack, directly hitting its "left" flank in the culture war.
But the Right seems confused in its counterattack: lesbian? no experience? anti-military? Harriet Miers? Intelligence? As Stewart put it: "She's a recordless entity with no paper trail."
The comparisons to Harriet Miers are, of course, ridiculous: Miers committed THE public relations suicide of the decade when she said of George Bush, "He's the most brilliant man I have ever met." So much for judgment. She also received her law degree at Pat Robertson's Regent University, so you could pretty well determine the direction of her stances, especially concerning gay rights. Anyway, after her fifteen minutes, she was put back in her cage for two years, during which she was constantly pressured by Johua Bolton to resign. She now works for the Dallas law firm known as Locke Lord Bissell Lamp, Liddell.
Any comparisons come from desperate Right wingnuts or people who get their news from Fox.
We Fear What We Don't Know
The Judicial Crisis Network is just coming out with an ad requesting that the Obama administration make every effort to make all of Kagan's records (and thoughts) from the Clinton administration public. They are obviously scared of what they don't know. That's understandable. What's not understandable is taking a "pre-emptive strike" stance by unleashing a video that calls into account her limited experience and her stance against military recruitment on college campuses. The latter is akin to a tempest in a teapot. Her knowledge of the Constitution and American law are never questioned.Neither are her presentations to the Supreme Court as Solicitor General.
The Intelligent Lesbian
The moment I saw a picture of Elena Kagan, I thought "Well, this will be interesting." Afterwards, I was struck by her impressive background and realize that Tony Perkins had a right to be afraid of her: she might become the most intelligent of the justices. Say what? An intelligent President picking an intelligent SCOTUS justice? Horrors!! OMG! She's a shorter, stouter Rachel Maddow! What will become of us!
So with the looming passage of ENDA, the Christian Right has come forth in battle armed with the question of moral fitness: Elena Kagan is gay and she'll swing the Supreme Court towards acceptance of gay marriage and gay rights in general. It makes no difference that Kagan has already been quoted as saying she does not believe that the Constitution supports gay marriage, but the mere possibility that she might be gay makes her totally unfit in their eyes. And any position that she has taken is skewed toward the far left:
"As the Harvard Law School Dean, Elena Kagan tried to bar the military from recruiting on her law school's campus during the height of the Iraq War based on her opposition to the federal law restricting homosexuals in the military.
"...Ms. Kagan's incredibly hostile view of the military suggests she is out of touch with mainstream sensibilities and obedience to the rule of law. President Obama promised a nominee committed to the 'rule of law,' but, instead, he appears to have nominated a hard-left activist to the Supreme Court.
... [They want] an activist on the bench, a crusader, and knows that a homosexual judge will tilt the playing field on behalf of the legalization and social endorsement of sexually aberrant behavior.
The day a homosexual is elevated to the bench, the end will have come for the principle of sexual normalcy, the rule of law and the supremacy of the Constitution. That's too big a price to pay.
So left, center-left, center, center-right? Like a chess player who can't make up his mind, the Right is all around the board with Kagan. The problem the Right has is that some of their clan support Kagan's nomination: she has been sympathetic to the woes of big business. The Court might find itself in the position of deciding regulation or deregulation of businesses like British Petroleum, so the fate of the environment can rest in Kagan's decisions.
And then there's Pat Buchanan's take on the nomination: not enough African-Americans on SCOTUS and too many Jews:
If Kagan is confirmed, Jews, who represent less than 2 percent of the U.S. population, will have 33 percent of the Supreme Court seats.
So there we have the Right's precise, well-informed, analysis of Elena Kagan's nomination to SCOTUS: she's a too-intelligent, military-hating, allegedly lesbian Jew who never saw the inside of a courtroom.
But on his CNN program, Anderson Cooper 360, taught me a valuable lesson: good journalism concentrates on the truly important things. At times, those things may seem frivolous, even salacious, but they are important for people to know.
As I watched his fervor in relating what the city of Nashville was going through and the determination of its people to immediately help one another to recuperate and rebuild, I realized that he was doing what he believed should be done: tell the rest of us about the whole story no matter how horrendous or tragic, mawkish or even numbing it may seem. By now, everyone knows that Cooper loves being in the middle of the conflict or disaster: his coverage of Haiti continues even though some news sources have dropped it all together. Cooper's coverage, however, does not go for the sensational, but instead earnestly attempts the real.
I covered the George Rekers scandal from the moment I read Wayne Besen's account. Wayne's report came immediately after the Miami New Times piece (within one hour, actually) and I submitted mine to OpEdNews within the next several hours. I looked anxiously for any other news sources. Over a period of 24 hours, I found only Joe Jervis (Joe.My.God), Alvin McEwen (Huffington Post), and Stephen Colbert. The Miami New Times gave updates, followed immediately by first-hand interviews by Joe Jervis. I waited another 12 hours and discovered Jay Leno, Craig Ferguson, Rachel Maddow, and Joy Behar along with continuing updates by Besen and Jervis upon which I wrote another piece and submitted it to OpEdNews. However, I was getting frustrated. I must have googled "George Alan Rekers" a thousand times in 24 hours, almost always coming up with nothing (yes, there was a small interview with the gay online magazine, Unzipped, but it wasn't publicized very well) Then I found out that Rekers' rentboy, Julien, acquiesed to an interview on Anderson Cooper 360.
I was definitely anxious to see how the scandal and the rentboy would be treated. I was not let down: the story was told in a very straightforward manner, Julien was treated with respect and Cooper's ending included the formal statement by the Family Research Council. Yes, it was fair and balanced (ahem).
Watching CNN's other stories impacted me in a way I had not expected: Cooper and CNN gave as much time and attention to Rekers' story as they did to the looming epidemic in Haiti and the murder of UVA student Yardley Love. And while the reporting was done in several different styles (Julien's interview was with CNN's Randi Kaye), each report was given its own impetus ... and its own stature among the rest. The message was clear: this was an IMPORTANT story and people should know about it. The focus was not placed entirely on Julien. That would have been too tempting for any other newscast; instead, the focus was on Rekers and his hypocrisy.
And here I thought that only a few investigators and late-night comics considered it newsworthy.
Of course, other people (namely people like Tony Perkins and James Dobson) will put down CNN and Cooper because they consider anyone placing them in a bad light (or under a microscope) to be "anti-Christian." Janet Porter will point out that it's another reason why America's Christian community should have "dominion" over the media. Lou Engles will try to blame Julien and all gays. And Pat Robertson will say, well, ah, something stupid.
Joe Jervis thought that CNN's coverage of the scandal (including Lucien's interview) was a disappointment and that Rachel Maddow's comments rocked. I liked both: Cooper 's job was to present the news while Maddow's job was to analyze the news and comment on it.
Inmany case, the story is now "world class" thanks to sound investigative reporting. BTW, FOX "News" has not covered it. Go ahead and google it. Go to Fox's website and search. Unless it has done something between the time that I'm writing and the time you're reading, I'll venture a guess that you will find ... nothing.
It doesn't matter, really. You know that FOX will end it with their (now) ubiquitous, but lame piece of political philosophy: "Blame Obama."
Tony Perkins smells scandal and quickly runs away:
"In the past 24 hours FRC has received calls regarding Dr. George Rekers and his connection with the Family Research Council. After reviewing the historical records we did verify that Dr. Rekers was a member of the original Family Research Council board prior to its merger with Focus on the Family in 1987.
"Reports have been circulating regarding Dr. Rekers relationship with a male prostitute. FRC has had no contact with Dr. Rekers or knowledge of his activities in over a decade so FRC can provide no further insight into these allegations.
"While we are extremely disappointed when any Christian leader engages in the very activities that they 'preach' against, it is not surprising. The Scriptures clearly teach the fallen nature of all people. We each have a choice to act upon that nature or accept the forgiveness offered by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and do our best to ensure our actions, both public and private match our professed positions."
Look at the second sentence again. The FRC website had Rekers' name in it as recently as 3 days ago. Secondly, if Perkins was any kind of FRC leader, he would have known who Rekers was immediately and not have to go down into the basement to look for old records.
I'll bet some shredders at FRC were working overtime.
Yes, I'm another one of those vile, liberal predators of any scandal-worthy "Man of God." I certainly had fun skewering Ted Haggard. So when the story of Rev. George Rekers and his "rent boy" came out, I couldn't get off my feedback fast enough. But now I've had enough time to reflect on the situation and I've come to some sobering questions: what will happen to his adopted son? Did he know what his dad was doing? Was he a hustler when he was adopted? Has he ever met "Lucien"/Geo?
Let's give Rekers Jr. the benefit of a doubt and assume that he is not as stupid as his father. He knows what his father has been doing, at least in payments to young men to be his "attendent." He was "found" on Facebook by Joe My God, but has not responded to any inquiries. His statement (when it does come out - and it will) will be revealing in what it will say ... or what it won't say. If he spouts Scripture too frequently, then Reker Sr. may be in for some furious accusations of religious brainwashing. If his son's statement seems too forced (or too short), then the public will assume that he's hiding something. In any case, there is way too much pressure on him.
Rekers' career as a professional ex-gay "professional expert" and NARTH leader may now be over. The Family Research Council has already erased any mention of his being a co-founder along with Christian Right icon James Dobson. It's a wonder that he wasn't exposed earlier, but titles and employments can shield a man from scrutiny: here is a man whose curriculum vitae looks as if it were stuffed too full with pristine qualifications for any anti-gay and homophobic group not to salivate over. He has a doctorate in neuro-psychiatry, a Doctor of Divinity degree, a kind of "Dr. Phil" for confused teens (just look at his website), and has many book titles and papers under his name. True, some of his associations deserve a second look, (American College of Pediatricians may be bogus) but most of his connections have been beyond reproach.
Until now.
Now Dr. Rekers has taken his 10+ image and turned it into one of a man who (according to rent boy Geo) surrounds himself with barely legal boys for motives other than sound Christian ministering. Is he so stupid that he thinks people will fall for his I'm-just-like-Jesus-surrounding-myself-with-sinners take on the affair? How many ministers does he know who PAY for the privilege of ministering to hustlers?
And what will Geo do? Will he be able to stand the noteriety? Will he know how to handle all the salacious media requests? Will he be able to pull off a kind of Levi Johnston?
Massage, good times, Travel, escort for days, nights and weekends, My name's Geo. 20 year old, 5'9'', 130 pounds, 28'' waist size,8x6" UNCUT, VERSATILE, NICE ASS. Puerto Rican, fair/light-Skin, blond hair, blue eyes and athletic/muscular built. I'm a college guy, masculine, educated, really of the easy-going, great to get along with, can hold a conversation and passionate You could just say I love to have a good time. Very clean, professional, HIV and Disease FREE. For a sensual meet or companionship. Will do anything you say as long as you ask ;D Repeat encounters are always more exciting for me and make it more casual and comfortable for you as well. Call or text anytime.
Dr. Rekers, how much DOES it cost for ten days with a barely legal, blond, hung, uncut, bisexual Puerto Rican who is happy to spank you and shove it up your gelatinous vile bigoted ass?
Good question. What would a good "vacation" with a rentboy cost? Someone of Lucien/Geo's caliber could be $300 for an evening. Hmmm...
Cost of rentboy for 10 days: $5000
Airfare: $2500
Accomodations in London: $3000
Sightseeing and eating out: $2500
Going to bed with someone 42 years younger than you: priceless.
And it was not the only time Rekers had traveled with "Julien." An email read: "I'd like to propose another trip to Rome, Italy, for a week or more."
Was his first trip to Rome before or after his "surgery"? Too many questions unanswered. Too many motives to consider.
About the only thing that is certain at this point: three lives have been ruined.
Civil War. Culture War. Immigration War. Race War. Genocide. Regicide.
Pick one...or all.
You'd think that George Bush's taste for war would have slated any hawk's thirsty aggression, but it seems that our American species of hawk is never really satisfied. We gave them Iraq and Afghanistan to drink from, but besides an enormous bloodlust, hawkish Right-wingers have a kind of ADD that affects their leaders and journalists: "Wars? What Wars?" When's the last time you saw FOX News carry anything substantial about the Middle East NOT involving Israel or Iran?
Come to think of it, have you ever known a rabid Right-winger who was not a hawk? Maybe it's in the genes: close-minded aggression seems to ooze from their pores. They were meant to bark orders as well as take them. Maybe it's in their traditions (check out the elite all male Hampden-Sydney College to get a taste of the mawkish-but-hawkish preppy life that has managed to survive).
Arizona Do Or Die
Today's most fertile ground for aggression is, obviously, the southwestern state of Arizona. And the war zone's headlines for today were truly chilling: it's new "papers or else" law is old news. Now it has gone as far as banning ethnic studies and firing teachers who have heavy accents. And the Southern Poverty Law Center has discovered that the lawyer who drafted Arizona's new racial profiling law is himself part of an anti-immigration hate group. The group is, ironically, called FAIR (Federation for American Immigration Reform), but has nothing to do with fairness: some of its employees are registered members of the Pioneer Fund and various other white supremicist groups. The lawyer, Dan Stein, went head-to-head with Rachel Maddow, so it wasn't really a "fair" battle, and he came out looking very angry and on the "you're just trying to smear us" defensive. Maddow's determination to get to what FAIR was founded upon is truly is awesome. Watch it below.
Battlecry for Texas: "Nullification First!"
Say what you will about the Right's "war fever, " it's systemic in some states. One year ago, Governor Rick Perry said this:
We've got a great union. There's absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, who knows what may come of that? But Texas is a very unique place, and a pretty independent lot to boot.
But today's Texas-line-of-reasoning from the website, Texas Secede! is more cautious (but nonetheless sinister):
Right now, unlike any other time in US history, a nullification movement has taken hold — and is growing — in most of the US states, including Texas. This means there is a strong, public-centered, and legally-informed opposition to the bloated despotism reigning in Washington, and a growing intent to invoke the Consitution itself to tell both the White House and Congress that their "federal laws" are null and void wherever they cross the line drawn by the Tenth Amendment.
A Rasmussen Reports poll found that 48% of Republicans in Texas favored secession. Polls of the nullification movement should prove to be even more enlightening.
Righteous Assasination
Lately, the rhetorical weapon espoused by the new "social conservatives" is anything but conservative: Republicans are calling President Obama everything from "monster" to "Anti-Christ." Ministers have openly prayed for the death of Obama and Supreme Court Justices as well. Name-calling, however, is probably the most cowardly weapon of choice for today's Right: when violence actually does ensue, they conveniently (and ludicrously) look the other way. The fact remains, however: rhetoric can kill. Today's legal minds have a name for the results of purposely inflamatory speech: righteous assasination.
"I am dedicating my life to the death of Obama and every employee of the federal government," the posting said. It ended with a call to arms: "This is war. Join me. Or don't. I don't care. I'm not laying down anymore."
This message was posted on Craiglist under the heading "Obama Must Die" by one Brian Dean Miller of Dallas, Texas (what is it with Texas?) He later stated that it was "fiction" but the Secret Service has not treated it as such. His mother has stated that Brian suffers from depression.
And on Twitter, several weeks ago, self-styled conservative blogger Solly Forrell openly called for the assasination of Obama, but then backtracked immediately to correct the act.
Both threats were supposedly based upon the authors' disapproval of Obama's efforts on healthcare reform. Neither of them had read anything about the reform bill except from posts by right-wing activists.
If You Don't Like 'Em, Deport 'Em, Or ...
By now, everyone knows that the American Family Association's Bryan Fischer wants to see every Muslim in the U.S. deported (including ones who are U.S. citizens), but he has also come out with a statement that Arizona's new immigration law is ...Biblical. That's right. God has sanctified it:
Arizona's governor Jan Brewer explained to Greta Van Susteren this week that she signed this bill into law because, as governor, she has a responsibility to protect the safety and security of Arizonans. You can't get any more biblical than that.
Now, use of the Bible as a weapon in warfare is almost as old as the Bible itself, but like incendiary rhetoric, it's very cowardly. Simply put, it's a don't-blame-me-blame-God defense against critics of aggression. The problem that humanity now faces: the Right's religious battalion has been exporting its aggression to Africa. The "kill-the-gays" bill of Uganda has emboldened Pat Robertson's American Center for Law and Justice to assist Zimbabwe and Kenya in re-drafting their constitutions. In the matter of abortions. As in no legal abortions even if the mother's life is in danger.
And The Greatest Weapon of All: FEAR
As early as next week, the House Education and Labor Committee will start debating a bill that could do permanent damage to American liberty as we know it. Under this bill, the government will order businesses, including religious ones, to stuff their personal beliefs and hire gays and lesbians--even if the organization considers the lifestyle immoral. .... At the very least, it will force people out of business. At its worst, it will bully into silence every American who disagrees with homosexual behavior.
Tony Perkins may have made his mark upon English literature with such awful-pun-headlining, but he is still considered by the Christian Right to be its knight in shining armor. In fact, his image will probably be immortalized on the side of a mountain (does it matter which one?) depicted as the valiant St. George slaying the dragon (Barack Obama). His daily missives have been full of sturm und drang about everything liberal, everything Obama, everything homosexual. And he knows that abject fear is the best source of donations. His acolytes, however, are even more virulent (and ultimately more violent?): Bill Donohue, Bryan Fischer, Peter LaBarbera, Janet Porter, and the ever-hoarse Lou Engle.
What happens when unabashed Reconstructionists and Right wingnuts who are waging war with the rest of the world get together? They usually stand in front of government buildings and scream at them and the people who are in them (in this case , the backdrop was the Lincoln Memorial - go figure). They then ask God to rain down fire, brimstone, frogs, locusts, pestilence and anything else vial enough to make the American public go ape-sh*t with awe. They look like idiots, but we must always remember that they are very dangerous idiots who love war, need war.
The clip below is very revealing: they might be "repenting" of sins like electing a Muslim to Congress, but it's clear that they won't repent of the abject hatred for anyone who disagrees with them. BTW - two things marred the event: poor attendance and poor MSM coverage. We'll see who inflates the numbers first.
And so it is: the Right is at war. Their enemies: all liberals, all immigrants, all homosexuals, all Muslims. Their current battle sites: Arizona, Texas, Washington, the entire Middle East, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda. Their rhetoric, their fervor, their money will create more wars.
Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.
Mark Twain
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