What Do You Want For Your Birthday, Stephen Colbert? How About Secretary of State?

Or might that be closer to a Christmas Present?

Happy Birthday Stephen
Colbert!

Dear Stephen:

Like your grandmother, Claudette, you have a way of coaxing things out of the American public (her portrayal in It Happened One Night helped get the shirt off Clark Gable). Why, she was the ORIGINAL Cleopatra! (Well, at least according to Cecil B. deMille - who really was God!).

You've captured the true American spirit (whatever that is) and you've become a beacon.

If our nation can't have you to lead the nation, then you should do us the honor of at least taking up the rear as Secretary of State. You could repair 8 years of undiplomacy by reminding the world that we stopped killing injuns years ago and that tourists can no longer see the actual Salem witchcraft burnings. (Truthfully, though, they did draw a big crowd. Could we transfer them to Crawford, Texas?). You could really make our homeland inviting to dignitaries by insisting they wear protective masks and mobile GPSs to help them stay away from Dick Cheney or Halliburton (which is which?).

We know how swiftly and determinatedly you would act on today's current crises: you would swiftly quiet the rumors about quieting the rumors surrounding Iraq's current administration of corruption. And you would FORCE Myanmar or Burma or whatever to take the U.S.'s generous offer of 12,000 tons of nutritious Hostess Twinkies (some even deep-fried!). You might even come up with a brilliant idea like, well, "If they provide the land, we'll provide the McDonalds." Generous, yet so, so American! And your "campaign master" efforts (shown below) on behalf of Barack Obama to keep him and Rev. Jeremiah Wright in the news 24/7.

Yes, we wish you could bring the U.S. out of its diplomatic malaise. Please do it for the country, if not for yourself!

On this your day of days, we would also like to congratulate your being well hung...in the National Gallery, that is. We just found out about it (after we found out about the discontinuation of the witchcraft trials). So here, for your birthday, is a photo of that esteemed painting and a photo of the throng of people taking a picture of the picture (notice that Washington's portrait in the background has no one taking its picture!)
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Happy Birthday, Stephen Colbert!
Rev. Wright and ....GRANNY!

Who's Your Mommy?

Happy Mother's Day!

There are mothers and then there are...MOTHERS!

From Medea and Hetty Green to St. Ludmila and Boudicca, there have been mothers to be adored, shunned, admired, feared, sainted, loathed and simply... loved.

I won't write any mushmouthed words to make you sigh, because I'd just like to take you through a panoply of rather distinctive mothers on this day. No rhyme or reason, just ones that come to mind.

Boudicca

She was Queen of the Iceni in an ancient Britain occupied by Romans. They killed her husband, flogged her and raped her daughters. So she fought back: she gathered tribes to drive out the Romans and attacked every Roman stronghold she could find. Her harassment was so thorough that Emperor Nero almost thought of abandoning the territory of Britain. She was defeated, but she made such an impression that today, Britans taut her as their first ruler.

Medea

What can be said about filicide? Truth is, the tale of Medea had many variations in Greek drama and legend. Euripdes' play was the one that lasted the longest. (From Wikipedia):

The tragic situation of Medea, abandoned in Corinth by Jason, was the subject matter transformed by Euripides in his tragedy Medea, first performed in 431 BCE. In this telling, Medea resorted to filicide before her flight to Athens. Euripides was revolutionary in his retelling of Medea's myth because he was the first one to show that she hadn't killed her children because she was mad or a barbarian, but because she was extremely distressed and furious at Jason for leaving her to marry a princess. Fueled by a need for revenge, she sent Glauce a poisoned dress and crown that burned her to death. Creon found her corpse and clutched it in mourning, crying, "Let me die as well." The dress was poisoned so as to kill anyone who touched the girl. It killed him as well. After some hesitation and self-debate, Medea then killed her two sons, Mermeros and Pheres, to hurt Jason.

Hetty Green

Hetty was known as the "Witch of Wall Street". In the Gilded Age (1880-1900), when having a cool million could get you invited to Mrs. Astor's house, Hetty was worth $40 million. Men swore that all her money was on her person, under her (always) black cloak. She was not only the country's wealthiest (independent) woman, but considered the meanest (from wikipedia):

Her frugality extended to family life. Her son Ned broke his leg as a child, but Hetty took him away from the hospital when she was recognized. She tried to treat him at home, but the leg contracted gangrene and had to be amputated – he ended up with a cork prosthesis. When he moved away from his mother to manage the family's properties in Chicago and, later, Texas, he became an ardent philatelist, who assembled one of the finest stamp collections ever in private hands. In middle age, he returned to New York; his mother would pass her final months with him. Ned ultimately married his long time "housekeeper", Mabel, of whom Hetty wholeheartedly disapproved.

Bess of Hardwick

In an age when the daughter of an insignificant country squire could only pray for a good husband, Elizabeth of Hardwick did more than pray. Some might even say that she "preyed": she married four times. Her first husband was a teenager (Bess was only thirteen at the time) who never even consumated the marriage, but left her with a small widow's pence. Her cousin at court obtained for her a position as lady in waiting to a countess. Her second husband was a man much older than she was who already had eight children. He was William Cavendish, a talented courtier who became Henry VIII's "Clerk of the Works" - a position he took great advantage of when Henry's dissolution of the monasteries meant that land and buildings would be given to the right people. He and Bess lived well enough for them to build Chatsworth (now known as "the Palace of the Peak" in Derbyshire, England). When William died and left one half of the estate (by law) to Bess, she wasted no time and went right back to court for another husband. He was William St. Lowe, Elizabeth I's Grand Steward of England. By the time Bess was widowed again and only 40 years old, she was considered the richest woman in England (besides Elizabeth I). Her fourth and final husband was the Earl of Shrewsbury - and the richest man in England. Bess was a considerate (if not overly loving) mother. The conditions of the marriage contract which she herself drew up: ALL of her marriageable children had to marry all of his marriageable children. Bess not only managed to keep all of the money in the family, but at the age of 70, built Hardwick Hall (shown here). You'll note that on the very top of the house (which she also designed) instead of plain railings, she had carved all around the top: "ES" - Elizabeth of Shrewsbury. Her children and grandchildren were rather intimidated by her, but were forced to admire her nonetheless.

Auntie Mame

Alright, she wasn't a mother, but so many people wish she were THEIR mother! Underneath all of the craziness, she thought first and foremost of her nephew Patrick. Rich or poor, Mame exhibited a joy of living that could only be contagious. When escorting Patrick's young son, Michael, up her Beekman Place staircase, Mame waxes poetic on India where she will be taking him..."...and the monks of the monastery atop the mountain are very good friends of your Auntie Mame's and maybe they'll let you ring the temple bells to call them to evening prayer..." Michael's mother sighs and says, "I give up, she's the Pied Piper!."

Saint Ludmila

O.K., what if your mother wasn't the best, but your grandmother was a bonefied saint? Such was the case with "Good King (also Saint) Wenceslaus" of Bohemia (and the Christmas carol):

Wenceslaus' mother Drahomíra became jealous of Ludmila's influence over Wenceslaus. She had two noblemen murder Ludmila at Tetín, and part of Ludmila's story says that she was strangled with her veil. Initially Saint Ludmila was buried at St. Michael's at Tetín. Then buried in the Royal Chapel of St. Vitus Cathedral.

Jenny Jerome Churchill

Victorian women in England were definitely to be seen but not heard and certainly not to be considered "vivacious". But Jenny Jerome was an American and she was so beautiful that most men forgot that she was Randolph Churchill's wife, heiress to an American fortune, and the sister-in-law of Consuelo Vanderbilt, the Duchess of Marlboro. And she was just as scandalous as her political husband (both of them had extramarital affairs), but she was more of a stern friend than a Victorian mother to her son Winston. Churchill always credited his mother for his tenacity and will power. And he always knew what it was like to be considered just slightly outside society's upper class.

Evelyn Sylvia Vojir (nee Mrazek)

Yes, I'm putting my own mother amongst these notables. Hey, it's my blog, after all! She was as vivacious as Jenny Jerome, as practical as Bess of Hardwick, as loving as Saint Ludmila and (when needed) as headstrong as Queen Boudicca. While she taught me some valuable lessons about the Great Depression, she didn't let it define her. She told me about the times she had to cadge coal from behind the railroad trains so her family could have heat that day. She also told me how she maneuvered guys into taking her home from the Aragon Ballroom (Chicago), primarily because she didn't have the trolley fare home (a nickel). She trained my pet parakeet to talk, dance and play dead (don't ask) and she loved to get her fortune told - by her own mother (goods times in the north woods of Wisconsin).

She wasn't a paragon of motherhood, but she always did the best she could. Who couldn't love a mother like that?

Who Are the Christian Terrorists of Today? Are They All Mark David Uhls?

Or...Where There's Satire, There's FIRE!

"Oh, he's using that ultra pinko liberal erroneous Wikipedia.com again."

Yes, I am.

While researching the subject of book burnings (don't you just love 'em?) I came across a link I had never seen, nor even imagined before: Christian Terrorism.

Huh? Yes, Christian Terrorism. Not withstanding the Crusades which I thought to be THE act of Christian terrorism, or the Holocaust which I knew to be the biggest passive-aggressive act in history (by not saying anything!) I was surprised to find out how many terrorist groups consider themselves Christian. "Oh, (sigh of relief) you're writing about those people. They're not Christians."

Well, they consider themselves Christians and 5 of the 8 largest groups in the United States have "God" or "Christ" in their names:

Army of God
Christian Identity
Aryan Nations
Christian Patriots
Lambs of Christ
Ku Klux Klan
Sons of Freedom (Canadian)
Christian Patriots

They also grew out of distinctly Christian environments, even in foreign countries. There are similar groups linked to Christianity in India, Burma, Lebanon, (former) Yugoslavia and Russia.

Small (yes) but dangerous byproducts of Evangelical and Fundamentalist ideologies. Many of them, in fact, have their roots in an ideology that has now raised its ugly head with impunity: Reconstructionism. Yes, the same Reconstructionism held to be the base of people like Pat Robertson, James Dobson and Rod Parsley. Reconstructionism also leads to absurd forms of censorship.

Yes, like book burnings.

(From: Religious Tolerance.org)

Pennsylvania: Members of the Harvest Assembly of God Church in Butler County, PA. had a book burning at their church on 2001-MAR-25: Thirty-five people brought books, CDs and tapes that they felt were not in keeping with their faith. Included were videos such as Pinnochio and Hercules, CDs by Pearl Jam and Black Sabbath CDs, pamphlets from Jehovah's Witnesses, and lots of Harry Potter books. Rev. George Bender said: "There's no such thing as a crusade to deal with other people's things. That's their business. We believe in the First Amendment, the Second Amendment, and the First Commandment and Second Commandment." He objected to the Harry Potter books: "We believe that Harry Potter promotes sorcery, witchcraft-type things, the paranormal, things that are against God...That is really bad."


New Mexico: Pastor and members of the Christ Community Church in Alamagordo NM plan a "holy bonfire" on 2001-DEC-30 to burn Harry Potter books. Pastor Jack Brock, 74, has not actually read the books or viewed the movie. However, he believes that the books teach Wicca, a rapidly growing Neopagan religion. He is certain that: "These books encourage our youth to learn more about witches, warlocks, and sorcerers, and those things are an abomination to God and to me...Harry Potter books are going to destroy the lives of many young people."

An Internet humor/satire site, The Onion^®, specializes in writing sensational stories of fiction to amuse their readers. They publish a disclaimer on their website, stating that they use "...invented names in all its stories, except in cases when public figures are being satirized. Any other use of real names is accidental and coincidental." One of their works of fiction involved interviews of children in Lock Haven, PA, who had been reading the Harry Potter books. One Christian, going by the name of Roger Lynn, circulated an E-mail quoting The Onion's article as if it had reported an actual event. He writes that J.K. Rowling's series of books: "...openly blasphemes Jesus and God and promotes sorcery, seeking revenge upon anyone who upsets them by giving you examples (even the sources with authors and titles!) of spells, rituals, and demonic powers. It is the doorway for children to enter the Dark Side of evil." Lynn did not reveal that it was a satirical work of fiction.

A satire of book burning taking place at Jerry Falwell's Liberty University really took a ludicrous bent:

As usual, Rev. Jerry lit the books ablaze. "It may be the most amazing event of the year," said Ig Noramus, a junior, "This is certainly an event that sets us apart from a normal college with boring parties." Many different books were thrown in the fire. This year's most popular books appeared to be Bill Clinton's Autobiography, any of a number of books by Michael Moore, Playboy Magazines, Darwin's Theory of Evolution, and cookbooks.

A special guest to the ceremony was John Ashcroft, former Senator and Attorney General. "Ah! Nothing like a book burning," commented Ashcroft as he threw into the fire a copy of Dante's Inferno.

To prevent mishaps, like what happened in 1987 when the bonfire burned into a three alarm fire that burned down a trailer park, a plan of action was put in place. "We made sure the fire departments were all here to help out, and they even brought books to burn," said Chief Bart Bock, head of campus safety.

All in all, it was estimated that 10,000 books were burned for the bonfire.

Great satire - horrible commentary on our times. The horrible thing about satire is that it's based in reality and, let's be realistic, people, can't you see some Christian militants doing things like burning books? Or having a burning desire to become a killer for Christ?

The Case of Mark David Uhl:

Mark David Uhl, a student at Liberty University, planned to bomb and kill members of the Westboro Baptist Church at the funeral of Jerry Falwell. Max Blumenthal called Uhl a "Christian terrorist", "a devout evangelical Christian who advocated religious violence in the name of American nationalism". On Uhl's MySpace page he called on Christians to die on the battlefield for "Uncle Sam." He quoted Biblical passages to justify his call to arms, and wrote "Christians, we have been given life after death and we should help others receive it and not sit here in our big buildings and sing to ourselves so we can go home and feel good about ourselves... Christians, fear of death, fear of death. The fear of death shows you don't believe. God needs soldiers to fight so his children may live free. Are you afraid??? I'm not. SEND ME!!!"

"Oh, he was just a crazy mixed-up kid." O.K., but where do crazy mixed-up kids come from?:

In the 2006 documentary Jesus Camp, Pastor Becky Fischer called on American Christians to become more radicalised. The Guardian wrote, "Pastor Fischer equates the preparation she is giving children with the training of terrorists in the Middle East. I want to see young people who are as committed to the cause of Jesus Christ as the young people are to the cause of Islam, she tells the camera. I want to see them radically laying down their lives for the gospel, as they are over in Pakistan and Israel and Palestine."

O.K.: Militarism leads to Reconstructionist ideologies which lead to censorship which leads to book burning which leads to... It all may be farfetched.

At least I hope it is.

Pro-Birth - Pro-Life - What's the Difference? And Who Cares?

Or: "Hey, We're PRO-LIFE!
But Once a Kid's Born, It's Not OUR Responsibility!"

Exactly WHO is Pro Life?

One nun interviewed on television (Benedictine Sister Joan Chittister, a prolific author and lecturer, on an Easter Sunday installment of NBC's "Meet the Press.") said of pro-life people: "You must remember that these people are Pro-Birth, not necessarily pro-life which includes everyone AFTER birth." I thought that she was pretty savvy, for a nun (read post to June 21, 2007)

From: Tidings Online:

Many, but surely not all, in the so-called pro-life movement are politically and socially conservative on issues affecting the quality of human life after birth: child care, health insurance, education, housing, safety standards in employment, a clean environment, immigration, non-discrimination based on race, religion, ethnicity and sexual orientation, the right to unionize, equitable tax policies, capital punishment, war and peace.

I have always adopted the philosophy of my (adoptive) mother: "If ya can't afford 'em, don't have em'!" While I can't quote her views on abortion, I'm pretty sure she would have been pro-choice, even though I was a constant reminder someone who may have been pro-life. (I say "may have been" because abortions weren't as readily available to women of the late 1940's and the poorest women just had to weather pregnancy out at a relative's home.) And I know she was all in favor of birth control.

Today is the 48th anniversary of the FDA's approval of birth control.

Pope Benedict XVI marks this day as a day of mourning, I'm sure. So does Focus on the Family and Family Research Council, since they, like the pope, have severe abstinence-till-marriage issues and view condoms as baby-killers. But they all voted against SCHIP - go figure.

But if they're soooo pro-life, they surely must encourage adoption.

Huh? Guess again. There are 146 million orphans in the world and the policies on adoption by every country concerning foreign adoptions are complex:

...policies for each country vary widely. Items such as the age of the adoptive parents, financial status, marital status and history, number of dependent children in the house, sexual orientation, weight, psychological health, and ancestry are used by different countries to determine what parents are eligible to adopt from that country. (www.bastard.org)

Our own restrictions? Well, let's say that James Dobson has such a big heart:

In May, 2007 Evangelical Christians organizations such as Focus on the Family and pastors from across the nation held a three-day summit in Colorado. members of to promote adoption via a media blitz.

Focus on the Family founder James C. Dobson, a major player in this new path of evangelism, and present at the summit, expressed concern that foster parents typically are permitted to take children to church but cannot force religion on them. They must adhere to other state guidelines as well, some of which may contradict their faith such as parents “disciplining” their children physically with switches as taught by Dobson, a child psychologist.

Reminds me of Dwight Babbit/Babcock's line in Patrick Dennis' Auntie Mame: "I'm gonna make this kid into a God-fearing Christian if I have to break every bone in his body."

So, according to Dobson, he wants to see adoptions by Christian families ONLY.

To the right: Some of James Dobson's Honorary Doctorates (he has 19 of those colored scarves - what a queen!). Since most of them are from Bible-Thumper Colleges, all I can say is that Dobson must have eaten a LOT of Cracker Jack!

During the enormous Duplessis Orphan Scandal (again, see my post for June 21, 2007), it was brought to light that while there were thousands of adoptable orphans in Montreal's orphanages, no Jewish families were ever allowed to adopt the children. Those orphanages were so pro-life. And it was only a few decades (alright, about 60 years) ago that orphanages stopped stamping "ILLEGITIMATE" on birth certificates. Focus on the Family certainly wouldn't have disapproved!

And as far as foreign adoptions are concerned, remember: whatever the age of the child, if they are of a different religion, THEY MUST BE CONVERTED! Or you can obtain a child from any one of the APPROVED Christian missions who will make sure that you get a Christian child.

Gay adoptions? Huh?

You've got to be kidding. Let the child starve to death before it's exposed to an evil lifestyle!

Pro Life? Pro Birth? Or ...Pro Christian ONLY?

Would Robertson, Hagee, Parsley, Osteen, Falwell, Have Been Able To Compete With This Man Today?

"God, God, God, Bible, Bible, Bible,...Send Money!"

The Very First Televangelist

This is a rather complex post for me. I grew up with the subject in my own living room. He was the epitome of the word "charismatic" (definitely not the same definition of the word today in church circles). Someone said that Bishop Fulton J. Sheen could have been a great Shakespearean actor. YouTube.com has some of his most forceful sermons. He was, of course, steeped in Pope Pius XII catechism - his hatred of Communism was fierce - but in other areas, I thought he might have been swayed. It took some research to find out that I was wrong.

When I viewed him as a boy, Sheen seemed to be steeped in something today's evangelists don't try to pull off: reason. The reason he protested the Vietnam war was simply because it wasn't , well, reasonable. But Sheen could be harsh when it came to some ideas. As you'll see from the video below, he thinks America's "compassion" has been displaced. This is one video the televangelists wouldn't mind playing over and over again.

From a website (sadly extinct) about religion in the news:

Sheen was the first televangelist. He hosted such TV programs as Life Is Worth Living which began broadcasting in 1952, and The Bishop Sheen Program which aired from 1961 to 1968. Before TV, he was a regular on a popular radio show: The Catholic Hour. In his broadcasts, he spoke of theological as well as social issues. He said that democracy could not survive without religion. He argued against communism and atheism. He quipped: “An atheist is a man who has no invisible means of support.”

In 1952, Archbishop Sheen wrote The World’s First Love, one of some 60 books he authored. In it, he reminded his followers that, “Europe barely escaped destruction at the hands of the Moslems,” and he warned them that, “the Moslems are beginning to rise again.” He said that Islam was founded on a simple misunderstanding, and that it was imperative that Moslems be converted to Catholicism.

“At the present time, the hatred of the Moslem countries against the West is becoming a hatred against Christianity itself. Although the statesmen have not yet taken it into account, there is still grave danger that the temporal power of Islam may return and, with it, the menace that it may shake off a West which has ceased to be Christian, and affirm itself as a great anti-Christian world power,” he said.

Like Sheen, today’s evangelists are preaching against the infidels: the Moslems who cling to a simple misunderstanding, who won’t accept Christ, and who prefer a dumb religion based on a poorly-written book.

I concur.

When you look at the following video and others of Bishop Sheen, you'll notice the "seeds" of hate speech, of course cloaked in "Jesus Loves You."

One thing Sheen didn't do that would've absolutely riled any self-respecting televangelist today: he never had a telethon. In fact, he rarely ever asked for money - for anything! SHAME!!

Ball Busters Hall of Fame: Boudicca - Eva - Joan - Regina - and...

Hillary Clinton?

There have been women in history who have been considered so fierce and forceful, that they have been admitted into the arguable but still interesting Ball Busters Hall of Fame. Since she has kept so long in the Democratic Nomination race for President, it might seem that Hillary Rodham has a good chance of joining those incredible women of history.

Buts let's look at some of them to see if she fits any of the criteria of being a true "ball buster".

Boudicca - Queen of the Iceni

One of the original women who scared the pants off of men was Boudicca, Queen of the Iceni. While no one knows what she looked like, there being no 4 photos for $1 booths in Roman occupied Britain of the first century, we do know that she was fierce, especially after she was flogged and her daughters raped.

Her husband, Prasutagus, an Icenian king who had ruled as a nominally independent ally of Rome, left his kingdom jointly to his daughters and the Roman Emperor in his will, but when he died his will was ignored, possibly because the Romans, unlike the Britons, did not recognise daughters as heirs. The kingdom was annexed as if conquered, Boudica was flogged and her daughters raped, and Roman financiers called in their loans.

This all left Boudicca a bit pissed and she attacked Roman forts and garrisons to the point that Nero thought of calling off all occupation in Britain. She was eventually defeated, but she was remembered enough to have a statue of herself leading a charge against London's Trafalgar Square.

Eva Peron

Admittedly, Peron might be considered an opportunist, but what an opportunist! Ball Buster might not seem the proper description for someone swathed in Christian Dior, but while Juan Peron wasn't afraid of her, the rest of the military and political clime of Argentina were. To this day, there are people in Argentina who consider her a saint - and people who consider that she was demon spawn. Whatever, the woman definitely ruled men her way.

Regina Giddons

Women in fable and literature deserve to be in the BBHF, simply because they inspire other women. Maybe the woman to be admired is not at all ethical, like Regina Giddons of The Little Foxes, but does that matter to a true Ball Buster? Giddons was almost without peer for ruthlessness, but she summed up her character in the lines said to her consumptive husband: "I hope you die. I hope you die soon. I'll be waiting for you to die."

When Bette Davis played the role for the silver screen, makeup artist Perce Westmore made her look like some beautiful but cold piece of porcelain, more like a doll's head. The face had no wrinkles - none. It showed true lack of conscience. Regina treated every man, including her own brothers and nephew as enemies.

And she always won. Always.


Zena, Warrior Princess certainly exuded ferocity and courage in warfare, but she did have a heart. Fortunately though, that heart was always encased in a steel body into whom no man could enter. Was this ferocious amazon a lesbian? Who cares? Her kind of ball-busting was very, very entertaining. The character was so full of fury that she literally blazed across our TV screens.

This was one warrior princess who rarely took any prisoners.

Hillary and Joan of Arc:

The image at the right is not quintessential Ball Buster. dYes, the real Joan of Arc led armies to save France. She led a charge after she was stricken with an arrow through her shoulder. And too, she may have been a bit creepy to deal with since she said that "voices" told her to lead the military. Just how do you accept a commander who is :a. a woman and b. someone with authority that seems other-worldly.

For a moment, an image of Hillary Clinton flashed through your mind. She has always said that her mentor was Eleanor Roosevelt. But now that Hillary sees victory within her grasp (as the Democratic Presidential Nominee) she thinks of herself as a soldier- saint. Yes, in the previous post I stated that she fell into the trap of the American Machismo, but now Hillary will have to make the most of her swagger and stance: "I'm here (like Joan of Arc) to save this country from our enemies, be they Muslims or Republicans."

OBLITERATING PEOPLE: Is Hillary Now a Follower of Rod Parsley? Or Is She Just Bowing to American Tradition?

Or Maybe Hillary Fell into the
Trap of the American Machismo!

Is Hillary Clinton being mentored by Rod Parsley? They both use the term "obliterate" when referring to Iran and Islam. Could her rough and tough rhetoric become an albatross as heavy as Jeremiah Wright?

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Hillary Clinton's muscular talk on Iran puts her well to the right of her Democratic challenger Barack Obama in their heated White House rivalry, but could also presage a new US policy of containment.

Clinton on Monday stood by her threat made last month to "obliterate" the Islamic republic should it use nuclear weapons on Israel, whose U.S. backers form one important constituency in the Democratic nominating race.

Obama accused the New York senator of taking a page out of President George W. Bush's assertive foreign policy, but Clinton herself insists she is not being bellicose, but rather trying to deter Iran from taking a step too far.

Sorry, Hillary, but you are being bellicose and trying to prove how butch you would be if elected President. Unfortunately, this stance is not what America needs right now. Bush "obliterated" the image of the U.S. in the eyes of the world with his "cowboy" diplomacy (which is, in fact, no diplomacy). How many other nations need to be obliterated?

Clinton has fallen for what people used to call The Myth of the Masculine Privilege. She wants Americans to see her as a fully male president in order to skirt the feminist issue. This is a trap set by Republicans: "play up the strong woman facade so that she'll embrace the War in Iraq and seem no different than George Bush. "

I think the trap worked.

Now Clinton seems as vengeful as McCain's own mentor, Rod Parsley, who wants America to wake up and smell the the charred flesh of Muslims:

I do not believe our country can truly fulfill its divine purpose until we understand our historical conflict with Islam. I know that this statement sounds extreme, but I do not shrink from its implications. The fact is that America was founded, in part, with the intention of seeing this false religion destroyed, and I believe September 11, 2001, was a generational call to arms that we can no longer ignore.


And with all this talk of genocide, candidates (as well as their preachers) show very little sense of history. Ignoring history can be just as harmful as revisionist history. When we speak of annihilating people, many Americans suddenly develop ADD: we obliterated Native Americans and their source of food. One hundred thirty-one years ago (today), Chief Crazy Horse surrendered to U.S. Troops. The Sioux then trekked the Trail of Tears to the alien Oklahoma Territory.

We almost exterminated many Chinese-Americans with our Chinese Exclusion Act (see sidebar This Day in History): for well over sixty years, we not only prohibited Chinese from immigrating to the U.S., but prohibited the ones who were here from bringing over their families. Like many migrant laborers today, Chinese were given jobs Americans did not want to do: they had to dig their own graves - troughs alongside the tracks of the Union Pacific Railroad.

Of course, Clinton was talking about nuclear genocide.

I wonder, however: what's the difference?












And the genocide continues: every year 1500 bison that
stray from Yellowstone Park in search of food are
destroyed.

A bas relief celebrating the victory of white
settlers over Native Americans

Has anyone seen this man lately?

A Monument to the Chinese American laborer.