A Day In The Life Of The Irrational Right

Yes, most of the reports I get for posts are from The Washington Independent and ThinkProgress.org. Sometimes they overlap, but not often, and the news is VERY current, usually within 5 hours, sometimes within 15 minutes. The shenanigans of Christofascists, Right Wing politicians and the "Republican-friendly" media are mostly scary, but there are days when, put together, they show a bunch of clowns ineptly using fear and hatred - sometimes to no avail and oftentimes to their own embarrassment. Today was one of those days.

Media Matters reports that in the month before the election, Fox News pundit Dick Morris “repeatedly used his columns and Fox News appearances to promote and raise money for the National Republican Trust PAC without disclosing that the organization has paid $24,000 to a company apparently connected to Morris, according to FEC filings.”

Hasn't Morris ever heard of "paper trails?" With "accountability" in the news you'd think that he'd learn from all the Republican mistakes. Of course, he's attached to Fox News, so that should tell us something. Bush's staunchest supporters are folding too:

(from wikipedia)

Freedom's Watch is supportive of the Bush administration's positions in the War on Terror and of Republican Congressional candidates. The group is run and supported, in part, by several former officials of the Bush administration. The organization states that its goal is "educating individuals about and advancing public policies that protect America’s interests at home and abroad, foster economic prosperity, and strengthen families."

It must have been the "fostering economic prosperity" that did them in. Were they part of Bush's 27% approval rating? I don't think anyone in the country can fully understand it (after Wall Street's meltdown, it should have been lower). Crawling out of the woodwork, single-wides, pulpits and Colorado Springs is sneaky and underhanded and makes the Republican electorate look, well, a bit seedy. Speaking of seedy: since the election, some people from the woodwork and single-wides are stock-piling guns before Barack Obama takes office:

One vendor with Liberty Firearms was wearing a button with Obama’s name crossed out and warned a couple, “Get ready for the Obamanation.” He told us that he was actually having trouble restocking and ordering new wares because suppliers were canceling orders and getting ready to dramatically increase prices to take advantage of the hype, as they did in 1994. The man selling the “NObama” shirts said that his business was also way up. “People are afraid,” he said.

Actually they really do need those AK-47s to shoot ducks.

Jusgt a thought.

So Who's To Blame For Young Abraham Biggs Online Suicide?

How About St. Augustine?
(Purveyor of Original Sin)

"I have let everyone down and I feel as though I will never change or never improve. I am in love with a girl and I know that I am not good enough for her. I have come to believe that my life has all been meaningless. I keep trying and I keep failing. I have thought about and attempted suicide many times in the past. I used to think of my failure as some mystical way of telling me that I was really meant for something meaningful."

- Abraham Biggs - from his online suicide note

That Abraham Biggs died thinking he was a failure was no fault of his own. His cries for help on the internet yielded very little. Although some people tried to help him, most ignored his cries while in utter fascination of viewing a suicide. Some people taunted him and called him "faggot." The 19-year old college freshman wanted to succeed, but some overwhelming feeling prevented him from achievement. Could that feeling have been guilt? Guilt planted from infancy? "We are all born in sin." In other words, we are imperfect and tainted before we take our first breath.

I cannot tell you how sorry I am for ending my life the way I did. I hope that you can all find it in your heart to see it as way for me not suffering anymore and that I am finally at rest with myself, for being at rest with the guilt that constantly ate at me for so long.

"See what you did!?" "Aren't you ashamed of yourself?" A parent's frustration lashing out. "Jesus Christ died for your sins!" A purposely malevolent (but oh so righteous) way of making you feel guilty.

From GotQuestions?org:

The Bible mentions five specific people who committed suicide: Abimelech (Judges 9:54), Saul (1 Samuel 31:4), Saul's armor-bearer (1 Samuel 31:4-6), Ahithophel (2 Samuel 17:23), Zimri (1 Kings 16:18), and Judas (Matthew 27:5). All of them were wicked, evil, sinful men (not enough is said regarding Saul's armor-bearer to make a judgment as to his character). ... The Bible views suicide as equal to murder – that’s what it is – self-murder. God is the One who is to decide when and how a person should die. To take that power into your own hands, according to the Bible, is blasphemy to God.

Isn't it strange that the entity (the Christian Church) that tells you that you are wicked, evil, sinful even when you're born, should tell you that it is also a sin for you to end your life? So many "religious" people profess to be "pro Life" but are they encouraging life? I think not. Abraham's video lasted twelve hours. During that time, there were approximately 1500 hits to the site, but of those 1500, 185 were in almost continual contact with young Biggs. Of those 185, which of them were born believing that they were sinners? Which of the taunters used their own anonymity to tell Biggs that he was no better off than they were: he was "born in sin" just as they were. He was just as guilty of sin as they were. And which of them, in watching him die, saw their own selves dying?

Teen suicides are up. Christian ministers and churches may point with pride at their "teen counseling" programs, but they're in denial. The programs aren't working. Gay teens are especially high in teen suicide statistics. To them, they're not only born in sin, but the essence of who they are is sinful. Yes, St. Augustine is to blame for Abraham Biggs' suicide as much as the ones who taunted Biggs online. He's the one who propelled the concept of Original Sin to the forefront of Christianity. He's the one who made the sin all inclusive and non-discriminatory:

Guilt for Everyone!

Spread it around!

Just a thought.

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Will It Take Another Civil War for Georgia To See Red?

It’s imperative that we continue down the road of putting liquidity, integrity and confidence back in the financial marketplace so that we can see the credit market free up and people having the ability to borrow money to to operate and expand their businesses.

- Georgia Senator Saxby Chambliss in a campaign speech last Thursday (he is in a run-off election against Democrat Jim Martin.

From Think Progress:

However, Chambliss was so busy campaigning that day that he actually skipped the Senate’s vote on the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2008, which extended unemployment benefits “by 13 weeks in states with an unemployment rate of at least 6 percent.” (Georgia's is 7%)

The Georgia U.S. Senate race has now become one of the biggest cause celeb events almost as contentious as the Presidential election. It seems that Chambliss is not new to openly running severe attack ads against opponents: when Chambliss first ran against Democratic Senator Max Cleland - a triple amputee from the Vietnam War, he ran an ad that included Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein and accused Cleland for being soft on terror.

Since Chambliss himself had not served in Vietnam (shades of G.W. B**h) he drew harsh words from both Republican and Democrats.

Yesterday, a PAC called Freedom’s Watch released an attack ad Chambliss' opponent,HJim Martin saying he “failed to look out for Georgia’s families.”

The problem? Martin’s own daughter was kidnapped when she was eight years old. In a new ad, he states,

You never forget the horror of coming face-to-face with violent crime. … I never forgot the way she trembled when she faced her kidnapper in court. That’s why I fought so hard to crack down on violent crime.

John McCain has now gone to Georgia in support of Chambliss while President-elect Barack Obama has cut a commercial for Martin.

Chambliss is also backed by Family Research Council. As far as civil rights legislation is concerned, however, the ACLU rate Chambliss with a very low 27% (out of 100%).

So how nasty will Chambliss get to retain his seat? Who knows?

Stay tuned.

And This Is What They're AFRAID OF?

gay-dragon
Originally uploaded by DiscoWeasel

As Knights of the Right, Family Research Council and its fearless Prince Anthony are always looking out for terrible dragons to slay. Their standard is actually "Slay Gay."

O.K., I saw this and couldn't resist. It's a bit of Japanese art that you can find at Flickr.com along with other LGBT dragons, demons, ghosts and frightful things Tony Perkins and his pals don't want you to see.

FRC: get a life!

FRC and The Dating Game: Forsooth! A Battle Lost!

eHarmony is a cowardly TRAITOR!

Family Research Council constantly sees itself as the brave knight waging the war against the demon of homosexuality and its "agenda". While it considered Proposition 8 to be a battle won, it immediately discovered the treasonous act of what it thought was one of its staunchest warriors.

The surest way to lose the culture war is refusing to fight. Unfortunately, no company illustrates that better than eHarmony, whose shocking concession to the homosexual movement is sending tremors through the faith community...To those of us in the pro-family movement who hailed eHarmony's commitment to the virtue of traditional marriage, the company's actions are distressing and damaging.

"Shocking concession...sending tremors through the faith community...virtue of traditional marriage." Tony Perkins is definitely in a Gothic phase. If only the rest of the country would take him seriously. Oh, some do, to be sure: his boss, James Dobson for one. However, this latest phase makes Christofascist FRC look, well, medieval.

He shares this Gothic obsession of knights and fair damsels with other "knights" around the country. Unfortunately, the castle those knights are besieging is the citadel of civil rights. Tony doesn't think he's a member of these groups, but many of their members are FRC members.

Oh, and as appropriate to chivalrous knights, they all wear white...sheets.

And a Monumental Change for American Diplomacy! And A Change of Scene for George W. B**h (Paraguay)

The American Diplomacy Dream Team

Sometimes, when you go to a site for a collection of photographs (like Flickr), it's amazing what you DON'T see: I searched Flickr.com with the word "diplomacy." I looked at several hundred photos and cartoons, before I found an image of George W. B**h. The image wasn't very flattering. I then searched for "cowboy diplomacy." Of the 10 possible photos, two were referenced to B**h. Neither were flattering. Yesterday we posted a piece about B**h's "gauntlet of shame" at the G20 Summit. In the attached video, you can see particular scorn by Chancellor Angela Merkel (Germany). Whenever I see her, I think of Georgie's impromptu "neck rub" of Merkel and her bewildered (almost frightened) look. The Diplomatic Dimwit had struck again. Even today, you can see in B**h's eyes the look of cluelessness. "Why don't people like me?" Georgie, it's probably because you're considered the source of everything that went wrong in the last eight years.

• You intended war the day you became President.
• You used a national calamity as an excuse to unseat another head of state.
• You lied about "weapons of mass destruction."
• You constantly placed inept cronies in positions of responsibility.
• You depended on the advice of only one man.
• You did not heed the advice of the rest of your advisers.
• You did not listen to the voice of the people.
  
• You constantly placed big business and big oil ahead of the rest of the nation.
• You studiously (but not judiciously) deregulated almost everything in site.
• You conducted official duties in utmost secrecy.
• You kept "suspected" terrorists in confinement without due process.
• Your foreign policy "Doctrine" was composed entirely of pre-emptive strikes.
• You approved of torture.
  

And you were arrogant about it all.

Get thee to Paraguay, George B**h, before the public storms your obscenely expensive "Memorial Library" in hopes of finding out the truth: just how inept and corrupt you really were. Or storms your father's Library to find that your old records as Governor prove you were inept and corrupt back then.

On January 20, 2009, the 44th President of the United States will take the Oath of Office. His proposed cabinet members will undergo scrutiny and (hopefully) approval by the Senate. One of those cabinet members will be our new Secretary of State: the highest ranking ambassador and diplomat our country has. With the world in such precarious unrest - unrest which George B**h fulminated and abetted - the pressures upon the Secretary of State will be incalculable. The Secretary will try to patch up the wounds inflicted by bad diplomacy or, in most cases, no diplomacy at all. It will take years for America to stand proudly with other nations and not be looked upon as the big bully the 43rd President made of it.


Yesterday, strong rumors went about that President-elect Obama was going to offer the post of Secretary of State to Hillary Rodham Clinton. The objections from the Right, of course, came swiftly: her husband, former President Bill Clinton has too many irons in the fire with his Foundation and his connections to world leaders.

I say: GREAT! To repair the damage of the last eight years will take a strong, strong team: Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton and Bill Clinton. If Bill Clinton gives strong evidence that he has given up all financial benefits from his connections and that he will not interfere with Obama's policies, but instead upholds them, this could be the team that could not only set the course for a better, more diplomatic America, it could also be a force which installs peace to the Middle East and Africa as well. Adding incredibly intelligent and sophisticated spouses to the team will help to solidify their efforts.

Just a thought.

Honest diplomacy doesn't need to look pretty, but it DOES need to look sincere.

A MUST Read!: The Most Touching Letter About The Rights of ALL Loving Couples!

You Can Only Feel Love and Devotion From This Man!

This letter is from a reader of Andrew Sullivan's columns. Sullivan is unabashedly gay and has just been married to another wonderful and insightful man (Sullivan would marry no less!). I hope Andrew doesn't mind my posting it in its entirety (he's very difficult to contact - such a busy, busy queen!). I think this letter should be copied and sent to every person who voted "Yes" on Proposition 8:

I am a 26 year old heterosexual, white male who is in the best relationship of my life. She is a 26 year old Egyptian woman. We're very happy and recently she met most of my family and extended family. They loved her as well. We even hope to marry someday. I am so grateful that I live in a country that would honor that bond. As you know, it wasn't too long ago that our relationship would not be recognized in many states. That being said, I've taken the stand that I do not want to join the institution of marriage until it is one that allows ALL loving couples to join.

This has been met with raised eyebrows by some in my family. It's not really understood why I would care so much about an issue that doesn't affect me directly. But as an American - it absolutely does. I live in a country that will recognize my relationship but won't recognize another.

The reasons are endless. Gay marriage threatens "traditional marriage" (so did my inter-racial relationship once upon a time). The Bible said man should not lie with man (guess what the Bible thought of me being with an Egyptian -yikes). I've had family, whom are genuinely good people, say that it just weird's them out, they are old-fashioned, it's not the way marriage has been for thousands of years (again - look at my relationship - the same was said about couples like us). So it does affect me. The parallels are numerous. I am so lucky I was born into a generation that approves of the love I feel towards her. Yet, I live in the same generation that doesn't approve of yours - at least in the eyes of the State. But we're getting there.

I was once of the same mindset of most of my family. Being gay was wrong. Then I went to The Ohio State University, and guess what? I met gay people. They were nice, they were jerks, they were shy and they were outgoing. My God, they were like me. Familiarity was the key. It was ok for me to accept that lifestyle because it wasn't "foreign" anymore. Progress, as you have said, will be made in not by litigation so much but in our living rooms, with friends and family. I speak very openly on this issue with my family now. They are great people that, frankly, maybe fear what they don't understand. But maybe I can be that connection to an understanding. Maybe seeing how I feel and how it hasn't destroyed my relationships will help them realize - it's ok. They can in one moment look at my girlfriend and I and hope to see us marry - then in the next moment disapprove of another loving couple wanting to do the same. I wish they looked at your love the same way they look at mine.

There's no need to be afraid. Gays aren't here to destroy marriage. They just want to enjoy it, stress about it, succeed at it, fail at it - as much as the rest of us. As a son of divorce, I need something to re-instill my faith in marriage. I hope to marry someday, maybe when all 50 states allow Gay marriage, maybe when my home state of Ohio does, I don't know exactly. But I do know I need to see something. Something that says this institution of marriage isn't of the mindset of your local country club's "white's only" policies. I love golf. Can you imagine me, a man with a Middle-Eastern partner, joining a "Whites Only" institution? Me neither. Once that "sign" comes down - I'll be the first to join. Know hope.