The Mirror of The Culture War: Biden vs. Palin

Or Good vs. Not-So-Good

I know that some of this ground has been covered before, but after the Biden-Palin debate, I wanted to revisit it, research it, and emphasize it. I believe that Obama picked Biden for his forthrightness and knowledge of foreign affairs. I also believe that Palin was hastily chosen as a "sign" to the Right Wing Christians. The rallies for McCain-Palin have proven that the radical right needs to vent its frustrations, and not in any respectful way. The rhetoric that McCain and Palin (especially) has used in the campaign, the tone of the campaign's ads, the accusations and implications have given rise to a kind of "mob mentality." Now it has come as a shock to McCain (Palin is clueless) that if you pander to Right Wing Christian leaders, you will inherit their flocks of simple-minded sheep. When he had to correct an elderly lady's impression of Obama as an "A-rab" McCain realized that the victim of his attacks on Obama was not Obama, but the millions of people to whom he was reinforcing negative images.

The difference in the make-up of each side of the campaign has been noted before, but I think it came out strongest at the Biden-Palin debate. It was the culture war come alive. It was the distrust towards intellectuals (or for anyone overtly intelligent for that matter) that exhibited itself in 2000. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that it REALLY became blatant in 2004. It was the culture war, not politics, that gave rise to the term "swiftboating".

(Pew Research - Todd Gitlin*, October 8, 2008)

French philosopher Ernst Renan famously said that a nation was a daily plebiscite. In America, we have a quadrennial plebiscite: who are we? And that’s to be determined in a month. Remember that America was defined from the start as the fruit of an ideology, not a nationality. Therefore, America is particularly prone to culture wars. There is no American nationality. So the question of what holds the nation together, of who belongs here, of what this stands for, is a matter open to debate. America is a way of life, in other words, a culture.

Right Wing Christianity is trying to make itself the sole American Culture. I pity America if it does.

*Todd Gitlin is professor of journalism and sociology at Columbia University, where he also oversees the Ph.D. program in communications.

God As Umpire: "Three Strikes, You're Out, McCain!"

If John McCain Could Have Clicked On This Website,
Things Might Be A Bit Different Now

Let's see: first Hagee, then Parsley, now Conrad. THREE crazy pastors! God is trying to tell John McCain something. And Palin's been nailed with One and a Half (the witch hunter was only a guest speaker). Why not have General Boykin sing your praises too? Poor Barack Obama must be jealous since he was only burdened with Jeremiah Wright.

The Iowa Independent reports that a minister who spoke at John McCain’s rally in Davenport, IA today injected a divisive statement into his invocation. Here’s what Pastor Arnold Conrad said:

I would also add, Lord, that your reputation is involved in all that happens between now and November, because there are millions of people around this world praying to their god* — whether it’s Hindu, Buddha, Allah — that his opponent wins, for a variety of reasons. And Lord, I pray that you will guard your own reputation, because they’re going to think that their god is bigger than you, if that happens. So I pray that you will step forward and honor your own name with all that happens between now and election day.

Forget the obvious theological gaffs about "Hindu" "Buddha" and "Allah." If millions of people around the world are praying that Barack Obama wins, what does that say about John McCain? Could their prayers be telling us that they don't want the U.S. to have a president who is the same as the present one? Maybe they know something about McCain that we don't. Like it or not, some of those people have a good grasp of U.S. politics and politicians. They may also have the perspective that the U.S. is no longer a peacekeeping, diplomatic country. Eight years of history's greatest diplomatic dimwit has certainly taken its toll on our image.

If you go to Grace Evangelical Free Church of Davenport, IA, you'll see that Conrad's former church is challenged by grammar:

"Our missions is to help people become authentic followers of Jesus Christ."

Why are McCain's "pastors" so (I hate to say it) illiterate and theologically challenged? Hagee strenuously accounts why Israel needs to be whole again and says that God purposely caused the Holocaust. Rod Parsley uses military language in every sermon because he REALLY wants the U.S. to destroy Islam!! And McCain's latest, Pastor Conrad, needs courses in history and comparative religions. He also needs a course in religious tolerance.

Poor McCain. Poor God.

* The words in green are errors in grammar or logic:
"god" should be plural "gods"
"Hindu" is a religion, not a god
"Buddha" is not a god
"Allah" is really the same Abrahamic god of the Bible.
"their god" should be parallel - "gods"
"honor your own name" is theologically ridiculous - God does not have to honor anything. He's God.
Notice that Conrad never says that there are NO OTHER GODS. He makes it sound as if God is in competition with other people's gods.

Beware: Pitbull Palin and "Maverick" John McCain Will Be Feeding The Hate-Hungry Lions of Virginia Beach!

On Monday, Oct. 13

Sarah Palin's remarks about Barack Obama have incited rallies that shout "Kill him!" Of course, she may be too stupid to realize what her rhetoric is doing. If she is aware of its reaction, she's acting the part of a terrorist more than anyone she points to. She has assassinated Obama's character ad infinitum and it seems that she will not be silenced until Obama himself is assassinated.

I looked at the McCain-Palin schedule which panders to key states, but has also gone where hate group numbers and ratios are high.

One of the highest concentrations of hate groups in the country is Pat Robertson's area of Virginia Beach. There are 4 Neo-Nazi groups, several white nationalist groups and even TWO "radical traditional" Catholic groups (Sedevecantists). This area will be host to both John McCain and Sarah Palin on October 13th.

OMG! Add in Pat Robertson and the other 30 hate groups in the state (it's possible), this event might be more than just an Obama-bashing contest. Some students from Bob Jones University might also come to see the show with beer kegs and nooses in tow.

McCain-Palin rhetoric has unleashed a Pandora's box of people who hate the left, people who hate African Americans, people who hate gays, and just...people who hate.

(AP) "Senator Obama has a clear radical, far-left, pro-abortion record," McCain said after being asked about an issue.

The answer prompted a shower of boos from the crowd members. They booed again when he mentioned William Ayers, who bombed U.S. facilities to protest the Vietnam War as part of the domestic terrorist group the Weather Underground. They booed again at the mention of Rep. Barney Frank, a liberal from Massachusetts. (Who happens to be gay)

The crowd showed equal disdain for the media, fueled by comments from Palin, who encouraged the Republican supporters to take the campaign's message around the media. "I can't pick a fight with those who buy ink by the barrel," she said. "It's dangerous territory whenever I suggest the mainstream media isn't asking all the questions." (Aside: "mainstream" media can't ask HER questions because she's been made "off limits" by her own campaign)

That message was clearly shared among the crowd. Mike Payne, who traveled from Madison, Wis., for the rally, rejected the idea that McCain's supporters are angry, preferring to use the word "frustrated."

"It might have something to do with you guys," he told a reporter.

Ironic, isn't it? These are the very same people who scream "Why do you think every Republican's a rascist, homophobic, sexist hate-monger?"

Serious warning: reporters should wear protective gear if they're covering the McCain-Palin appearance in Virginia Beach, home of, well, a lot of Republicans.

I'm afraid. I'm very afraid.

Connecticut Joins Civilization

Hartford condos before gay marriage

....................and after!

Hey, Virginia, What's Keeping You?

(AP) HARTFORD, Conn. - A sharply divided Connecticut Supreme Court ruled Friday (Oct. 10, 2008) that gay couples have the right to get married, saying legislators did not go far enough when they approved same-sex civil unions that were identical to marriages in virtually every respect except the name.

Boy, will Tony Perkins be pissed! I'm sure FRC (Family Research Council) will fire off a fundraising newsletter about "activist judges" as soon aspossible!

"...identical to marriages in virtually every respect except the name." I love that. So what's in a name? Idea: maybe James Dobson of Focus on the Family should tell his followers to have their legislators RE-define one-man-one-woman marriages as "Pre-Gay Marriages"

"We perform only Pre-Gay Marriages at this church!"
"No, we decided on a Pre-Gay Marriage, didn't we honey? ...Honey?"
"Our event planners are experienced in both Pre-Gay and Gay Marriages!"

Seriously, Perkins et al keep saying that the "gay agenda" would re-define traditional marriage. I think he's scared that gay marriages might wind up lasting longer than straight ones. How would it re-define anything? Marriage is a commitment between two people who love each other. The one-man-one-woman "in love" concept has only been around for several hundred years. Two human beings committed to each other because of their love for one another has been around a lot longer.

Since the dawn of time.

Just a thought.

The Anti-Gay Christian Right: "Just Sit Back and Let the Hate Take Care of Them All!"

We have just enough religion to make us hate,

but not enough to make us love.

~ Jonathan Swift

One Of The Seven DEADLIEST Sins:
THE SLOTH OF THE CHURCH!

Almost 90% of hate groups in our country target homosexuals - and Right Wing Christians do nothing to stop their terrorizing gay men and lesbians. While bashing can be related to how active a church is against gays (like Lou Sheldon's Traditional Values Coalition) hate groups can still flourish with a church's blessing... by being purposely noncommittal. Actually, the malaise of the churches in this respect is more like laziness: "Why should we bother to act against homosexuals, when the hate groups can do all the work for us?"

O.K., so no church would admit to anything like that, but they surely must be held accountable for another kind of sloth - NOT waging war against the hate groups.

"But groups like the KKK* don't have any significant number of members!" Each hate group might seem small in comparison to a church's congregation, but the members of these hate groups are fired up more with hate than the Holy Spirit.


Let's look at the current "perfect storm" of anti-gay hatred taking place: California's Proposition 8 - the attempt to ban same-sex marriage. According to the hate group watchdog Southern Poverty Law Center there are actually 80 hate groups in California - more than any other state. Second is Texas with 64 (should we be surprised?) and third is Florida with 49.

Listed as hate groups in California for being anti-gay: Traditional Values Coalition (Anaheim, CA led by Rev. Lou Sheldon), Abiding Truth Ministries (Temecula, CA) and Chalcedon Foundation (Valecito, CA). There are 5 groups of the KKK, 11 neo-Nazi groups, 15 racist skinhead groups, and even one Radical Traditionalist Catholic Group (In Los Angeles - Tradition in Action - an anti-Semitic, Sedevecantist group with close ties to Mel Gibson).

And they're all eligible to vote.

The leaders of Right Wing Christianity count on it.

Recently, in a suburb of Kansas City, MO:

Black Gay Couple Receives KKK Death Threat

KCTV News

October 3, 2008

Three months after moving into the Whispering Hills apartment complex, a black gay couple received a flier with the image of a hooded Klansman and the message “Nigger Fags, Leave Or Die.” The African-American couple, who said they are gay and in a committed relationship, said they didn't feel safe at Whispering Hills anymore. Overland Park police are investigating, but said they don't have many leads.

Of course not. Missouri has 29 hates groups. And it's tauted as a VERY Christian/religious state. A full 63% of all hate groups in the country (898) are in only 18 states. Those states usually listed as "The Most Religious" and having the most churches. See how other states rate (Hawaii and Alaska are left out because they ostensibly have no hate groups listed by the Southern Poverty Law Center.



Number of Hate Groups by State (with special emphasis on the top 20):

Alabama - 24, Arizona - 17 , Arkansas - 18, California - 80, Colorado - 12, Connecticut - 6, Delaware - 2, District of Columbia - 8, Florida - 49, Georgia - 42 Idaho - 8 , Illinois - 23, Indiana - 18, Iowa - 14, Kansas - 7, Kentucky - 13 Louisiana - 22, Maine -1, Maryland - 7, Massachusetts-9, Michigan - 26 Minnesota - 7, Mississippi - 28, Missouri - 29 , Montana - 6, Nebraska - 11, New Hampshire - 4, New Jersey - 34, New Mexico - 2 New York -26, North Carolina - 28, North Dakota - 1, Ohio - 28, Oklahoma - 13, Oregon - 11, Pennsylvania - 33, South Carolina - 45, Texas - 67, Utah - 2, Vermont - 1, Virginia - 34, Washington - 20, West Virginia - 7, Wisconsin - 12, Wyoming - 2

The place with the highest number of hate groups per 1 million residents:
District of Columbia

Since when is the last time you heard a sermon targeting a specific hate group in your area?

Just a thought.


*Over the years since it was formed in December 1865, the Klan has typically seen itself as a Christian organization, although in modern times Klan groups are motivated by a variety of theological and political ideologies.

The "Heart of Republican Darkness" Pt 2: The Christian Right At War!

One of the problems with the Republican Party (but not all Republicans) is its obsession with the Christian Right (mostly Christofascists) and its votes. The Southern Baptist Convention controls the religious views of up to 14 million people. And what the Southern Baptist Convention wants is what Republican politicians must deliver: total legislative obedience.

Of course, The Christian Right is made up of factions other than the SBC, like James Dobson's Focus On The Family, it's offshoot (actually minion) Family Research Council and various other groups disguised as benevolent foundations, research institutes, think tanks and the like. They believe they own the corner on marriage and the family in America. And they will do anything to keep that power as well as extend it.

And they are subversive.

With the campaign in full swing, Christofascists are placing all their weight for their political pawn, Sarah Palin. It's sad, really. They didn't trust John McCain enough to bow to their wishes. He had to deliver a "sign" to them (represented by Franklin Graham, the son of evangelist Billy Graham) and that "sign" was Palin. (Graham was the first to call her - on her pastor's cell phone - to congratulate her after her momentous RNC speech). She seems as clueless about this as she is about her image as Mrs. Mooseburger.

Of course, this month of October for Christofascists is fraught with terrible, terrible battles to wage and win. The one that stands out the most, however, is California's Proposition 8 which would ban same-sex marriage constitutionally and recognition of those kind of marriages from other states. Over $25 million has been spent on negative campaign ads. They mobilized 15,000 sheeple to go door-to-door in Southern California (Orange County) and spew the following:

1. Children in public schools will be taught that both traditional marriage and same-sex marriage are okay. Of course, they'll also be taught that people who love each other can make a mutual commitment and can celebrate that commitment.
   
2. Churches will be sued if they refuse to allow same-sex marriage ceremonies in their religious buildings that are open to the public. Not true. They can post any discriminatory thing they want and tell people that their church does not marry same-sex couples.
   
3. Religious adoption agencies will be challenged by government agencies to give up their long-held right to place children only in homes with both a mother and a father. Some Catholic agencies refuse to place children in Jewish homes. They prefer the "right" religious doctrine to a loving home.
   
4. Religions that sponsor private schools, and which provide housing for married students, will be required to provide housing for same-sex couples. Just as they would for interracial couples.
   
5. Ministers who preach against same-sex marriages will be sued for hate speech. "Hate speech" is the operative term here. Preaching against "sin" is one thing, but preaching against people or a group of people is immoral.
   
6. It will cost you money. A change in the definition of marriage will bring a cascade of lawsuits. The "definition of marriage" is debatable. For centuries, it meant one thing for men and another for women. Marriage should be a lasting commitment between two people who love each other and want to spend their lives with each other. The Christian Right has a higher rate of divorce than the national average. Is it possible that their "definition of marriage" doesn't work?

Where will it end?
It's your children,
your grandchildren,
your money... and your liberties!

Yes, some Republicans will allow this kind of hatred...as long as it gets them votes. And when will the hatred end?

I don't know.

"The Terminator": If It's Good Enough For California's Business, It's Good Enough For Me!

Terminator! We Need You Now!

Meet The Press, June 29, 2008:

TOM BROKAW: You have a lot of propositions on the ballot again this fall. One of them would mean a constitutional ban on gay marriages. Do you support that?

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER: No, not at all. As a matter of fact, I think the Supreme Court made a decision there. It was apparently unconstitutional to stop anyone from getting married. It's like 1948, the interracial marriage, when the Supreme Court of California has, you know, decided it was unconstitutional and then later on the Supreme Court of the United States followed, I think 10 or 12 years later. So I think it is, it's good that California lead -- is leading in this way. I personally believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman. But at the same time I think that my, you know, belief, I don't want to force on anyone else, so I think we should stay with the decision of the Supreme Court and move forward. There are so many other more important issues that we have to address in California. So I think to spend any time on this initiative I think is a waste of time.

Also:

You know, I’m wishing everyone good luck with their marriages and I hope that California’s economy is booming because everyone is going to come here and get married.

The San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau also expects a tourism boom, and its website now “promotes a gay travel section” and “explains that same-sex couples are ‘officially allowed to marry in the state of California.’” Schwarzenegger has promised to oppose any amendments banning gay marriage.

"I respect the Court’s decision and as Governor, I will uphold its ruling. Also, as I have said in the past, I will not support an amendment to the constitution that would overturn this state Supreme Court ruling."

Governor Scharzenegger: We need you. Marriage equality is at stake. People are trying to ban our love for each other.