Religion – Page 17 – Politics Plus

Open Thread–5/16/2015

Posted by TomCat at 11:54 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

May 162015

It’s another thoroughly busy day. I pulled out my old notebook computer. It’s been sitting in the suitcase without being touched for the last six months. So far, I’ve updates my AV program, Firefox, Flash, Java, CCleaner, Glary Utilities. Then Microsoft Update stared, and that might take a couple days. I figure it will take six days of wok to use it on a three day trip. ARGH!!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today‘s took me 3:21 (average 4:43). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Upworthy: This reporter turned the tables on a group of men who tried to disrupt her work, and it’s awesome.

And I thought Canadians were so polite! 😉 They acted like Republicans.

From Daily Kos: What does it take to make Republicans want to keep religious leaders out of politics? A pope who disagrees with them, apparently. Pope Francis’ recognition of a Palestinian state is just the latest of the pontiff’s positions that have Republican politicians trying to put him in his place.

“It’s interesting how the Vatican has gotten so political when ultimately the Vatican ought to be working to lead people to Jesus Christ and salvation, and that’s what the Church is supposed to do,” said Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.), a hawkish defender of Israel.

So … Republicans get to use religion as a political club, but actual religious leaders should stay the hell out. We’ve got Texas Republicans trying to block marriage equality from being enacted, whatever the Supreme Court decides. We’ve got House Republicans passing yet another anti-abortion bill based more on religion than science. We’ve got an avalanche of bills legalizing discrimination in the name of religious freedom.

Republicans object to political action that stems from authentic faith, especially when it counters their own hatred. It is legal, because it is not imposed on others. Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christianity is the polar opposite.

From NY Times: The Miami-Dade state attorney’s office is combing through more than 150 criminal cases of black suspects arrested by Miami Beach police officers who wrote or received racist emails, the latest in a series of high-profile episodes around the nation that have raised troubling questions about the relations between the police and the communities they serve.

Two ranking officers at the Miami Beach Police Department sent about 230 emails that contained racist and sexist jokes and pornography from 2010-12, Chief Dan Oates announced Thursday. A former police captain, who had been demoted to lieutenant, was fired, and a major retired before the investigation was made public.

Fourteen other officers received the emails, the police department said.

Police Officer is clearly too responsible a position to give to Republicans like these.

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Last Week’s Nonsensical Republican Moments

Posted by TomCat at 12:37 pm Politics, Religion

May 112015

Almost every week, Republicans join a competition to see who can say the most outlandish things, and in the process, they push the envelope on just how nonsensical InsaniTEA can become. I trust that you will believe it, when I tell you that last week was no exception.

Jeb Bush accuses Obama and progressives of intolerance …because religious people can’t discriminate.

Jeb Bush made various veiled references to the apparently unstoppable progress of same-sex marriage and the horrific blows dealt to the "religious freedom" of those who want to discriminate against gay couples during his commencement address Saturday at Liberty University, a Christian school in Lynchburg, Virginia. The former Florida governor and presumptive GOP presidential frontrunner campaigned by slamming the Obama administration for its war on good Christian poeple [sic].

"As usual, the present administration is supporting the use of coercive federal power," Bush reportedly said. "What should be easy calls, in favor of religious freedom, have instead become an aggressive stance against it."

And no, we’re not exactly sure what he is talking about either. Wait, could it be same-sex marriage?

"Somebody here is being small-minded and intolerant, and it sure isn’t the nuns, ministers and laymen and women who ask only to live and practice their faith," Bush continued nonsensically. "Federal authorities are demanding obedience, in complete disregard of religious conscience — and in a free society, the answer is no."

Wait, what was the question?

It’s those old devil progressives again, always trying to move things forward. Hate that.

"The stories vary, year after year, but the storyline is getting familiar," Bush said. "The progressive political agenda is ready for its next great leap forward, and religious people or churches are getting in the way. Our friends on the left like to view themselves as the agents of change and reform, and you and I are supposed to just get with the program."

Yeah, and so what’s the problem with that?

Inserted from <Alternet>

Strike Three’s demand that Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christians have the right to deny the rights of people who do not adhere to their goose-stepping dogma is only the fifth of five nonsensical Republican moments from last week alone. Click through for the other four.

Open Thread–5/10/2015

Posted by TomCat at 10:51 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

May 102015

My day off seems to have helped. I’m still tired and swamped, but not so much so as to render me unable to function.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today;s took me 3:14 (average 4:59). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Huffington Post: More Americans feel comfortable with a presidential candidate who identifies as gay or lesbian than with one who identifies as an evangelical Christian, according to a new poll.

The latest WSJ/NBC poll listed a series of qualities in a potential presidential candidate and asked respondents whether they’d "be enthusiastic," "be comfortable with," "have some reservations about" or "be very uncomfortable with" a candidate with each of those qualities.

The results revealed that Americans are actually quite open to having a gay presidential candidate. Sixty-one percent said they would be either enthusiastic about or comfortable with a gay or lesbian candidate, while only 37 percent said they would have reservations or be uncomfortable.

That’s not a hard choice. Gay is certainly preferable to evil, a word that identifies Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christianity.

From Daily Kos: Own man, my foot. From The Washington Post:

When asked this week at an exclusive Manhattan gathering about who advises him on U.S.-Israel policy, Jeb Bush surprised many of the 50-plus attendees by naming his brother, former president George W. Bush, as his most influential counselor.

“If you want to know who I listen to for advice, it’s him,” Bush said Tuesday, speaking to a crowd of high-powered financiers at the Metropolitan Club, according to four people present.

That’s strike 4 on Strike 3!

From Alternet: As we’ve learned through the course of the month, David Letterman’s departure means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. For Americana musicians, it means saying goodbye to one of the genre’s biggest champions. For POTUS, it means losing an “escape” after a long day at work. And for the 20-time visitor of the show, Tina Fey? It means saying sayonara to gendered expectations of wearing fancy dresses.

I came to love Tina, as faux Palin. I bet Drill Baby Dingbat, aka Bloody Bullseye Barbie, is green with envy!

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0510Cartoon

Open Thread–5/4/2015

Posted by TomCat at 1:17 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

May 042015

Would you believe me if I told you that I’m still completely swamped with tasks?

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:06 (average 5:00). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Upworthy: Have you ever heard of the West Virginia mine wars?

Maybe they were mentioned in your high school history class, or maybe they were skimmed over, or even left out entirely for one reason or another. Too often, these stories are deemed not "important" enough to warrant the time and attention they deserve.

But the West Virginia mine wars are critical to understanding the history of the labor movement in the U.S. — and soon a new museum will be open to tell the story.

The Battle of Blair Mountain, for example, was — and still is — the most violent labor confrontation in history, in which union-supporting coal miners fought against local government and a coal company-funded militia, eventually involving the U.S. Army.

Click through for the history of what happened. If Republicans gain complete control, it will happen again.

From Boston Globe: …A live video stream of the Garland event on the organizer’s website recorded the moment when the crowd was interrupted by a private security guard in military fatigues, who bounded onto the stage to announce that there had been a shooting outside. “Were the suspects Muslim?” a man shouted.

“I have no idea right now,” said the man in fatigues.

Geert Wilders, an anti-Islam leader in the Netherlands for the Party for Freedom, attended the event and delivered a speech. After the attack, he wrote “never surrender to terrorism!” in a Twitter post, and he posted a picture of himself with what he said were SWAT forces taken before the gunmen opened fire.

Pamela Geller, an organizer of the event who runs a website that attacks Islam, said the group decided to hold the event in the Curtis Culwell Center because members had heard that a Muslim group had a conference in the same room after the attack on the Charlie Hebdo office.

Geller described Sunday’s event as pro-free speech, and said that Muslims had become a “special class” that Americans were no longer allowed to offend.

“The media is self-enforcing a Shariah,” she said, referring to Islamic law. “Under the Shariah you cannot criticize or offend Islam.”

Don’t you know that a hateful gathering of Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christians performing offensive insulting acts will draw equally hateful Replican Supply-side pseudo-Muslims? Authentic Christians and Authentic Muslims coexist together in peace.

From NY Times: G.O.P. Hopefuls Now Aiming to Woo the Middle Class

RepubliSpeak Dictionary
Woo: lie to, hoodwink, deceive, bury in BS

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Last Week’s Most Insane Republican Moments

Posted by TomCat at 11:22 am Politics, Religion

Apr 262015

Almost every week, Republicans join a competition to see who can say the most outlandish things, and in the process, they push the envelope on just how insane InsaniTEA can become. I trust that you will believe it, when I tell you that last week was no exception.

Franklin Graham: Don’t persecute Christians. Save that for Muslims.

Franklin Graham visited Fox’s Eric Bolling for a little Obama-hating, Muslim-bashing and general over-the-top fearmongering session this week. The president, they lamented, is being silent on the persecution of Christians everywhere. They were picking up on a theme espoused by Bill O’Reilly last week, and well, every week—the War on Christians and how our secretly Muslim commander-in-chief is A-OK with that.

“Why is Obama so silent on all the atrocities going on against Christians around the world?” Bolling asked Rev. Graham.

Graham said he could not answer the question, and then answered the question by pointing out that Obama is a Muslim.

"His father was a Muslim. His stepfather was a Muslim, he went to Muslim schools growing up, his impressions as a young man came from Islam, not the Christian faith," Graham said. “That might have something to do with it, I don’t know.”

Sounds like he does know, though, doesn’t it? Sounds like he’s pretty cocksure.

The mess in Iraq? All Obama’s fault. Bolling and Graham (two former military commanders, after all) know for a fact that Obama pulled troops out of Iraq too early.

But back to that Muslim-bashing thing.

“As a Christian, I want to emulate Christ,” Graham said. Then in very Christlike fashion, he went after Muslims. “The Muslims want to emulate their prophet Mohammed. Mohammed raped, he murdered, he killed and so we’re seeing the followers of Islam emulate the prophet Mohammed."

Muslims are bad everywhere, according to Graham, but especially here. We need to get rid of them. “We have to be careful of the Muslims in this country. We need to stop the immigration… of Muslims coming to this country from countries that have active terrorist cells."

He’s really got that Christ-like behavior down pat, doesn’t he?..

Inserted from <Alternet>

If I were to emulate Christ, as Graham suggests, I would make a lash of cords and use it to drive out Graham and the rest of the Republican Supply-side pseudo Christians. That’s what Jesus did with the Republicans of His day.

This is only one of five insane Republican moments from last week alone. Click through for the other four.

Open Thread–4/21/2015

Posted by TomCat at 11:09 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

Apr 212015

I’m still quite tired after doing the dreaded task and another noisy night, but I did get some daytime sleep yesterday.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:06 (average 4:58). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: Notoriously addled butt munch Pat Robertson took a question today from a woman worried about her 11-year-old son who "started listening to music that speaks of the ‘beast within’ and the ‘infection in people.’" Consequently, his behavior has this poor woman "to the point of me giving up trying to parent him." Thank goodness she took her concern to that master oracle of parenting advice, good ol’ Pat.

Barf Bag Alert!!

Robertson remains the poster boy for Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christianity (the exact opposite of authentic Christianity).

From The New Yorker: Delivering a stirring populist message at a campaign appearance in New Hampshire, Hillary Clinton vowed that as President she would help everyday Americans obtain large cash payments from foreign governments.

“Like a lot of everyday Americans, many of you are struggling to pay your bills,” she told an audience here. “As President, I will work tirelessly to help you make ends meet—by getting foreign governments to pay you.”

“In cold, hard cash,” she added, to a standing ovation.

Growing emotional, the former Secretary of State spoke of the “transformative power of foreign money,” calling it “nothing short of magical.”

Andy is back to satire for a change. The people behind the foreign money meme have a repeatedly demonstrated resume as liars.

From Alternet: Forget the top one percent, the top 0.01 percent of Americans gave nearly 42 percent of all political donation dollars in the 2012 election cycle. Just over 30,000 individuals contributed nearly half of all money. It is no coincidence that this proportion has increased steadily as economic inequality has increased. In 1990 when I was born, the figure was just under 13 percent. If we expanded the scope to the full one percent, you can be damn sure they gave the overwhelming majority of dollars in recent years.

And don’t forget that this does not even include the $billions more in secret donations to bogus Republican 501(c)4 organizations.

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Republicans on Parade–4/14/2015

Posted by TomCat at 12:21 pm Politics, Religion

Apr 142015

RepublicansOnParade2

Here is the sixty-eighth article in our Republicans on Parade series, featuring individuals who personify what the Republican Party has become. Today’s honoree is RNC Member Tamara Scott. She is so honored for the Republican way in which she addresses people with different religious beliefs.

Last year, the Religious Right largely celebrated the Supreme Court’s decision in Town of Greece v. Galloway, in which the court ruled that municipalities can open meetings with sectarian prayers as long as minority faiths aren’t excluded and attendance isn’t mandatory.

But the protections for minority religions don’t seem to have completely sunk in for everybody in the movement, as was made clear last week at a Republican presidential forum hosted by the influential Iowa conservative group The Family Leader. As we noted earlier, the message at the forum centered on claims that conservative Christians are losing religious liberty in America, but that didn’t stop The Family Leader President Bob Vander Plaats from warning that a Wiccan prayer at the Iowa statehouse that morning might cause God to withdraw His blessing from America.

Tamara Scott, an Iowa member of the Republican National Committee [GOP delinked] who is also a lobbyist for The Family Leader, struck a similar note in her remarks to the forum, saying that the Wiccan prayer and the invocation delivered by a Muslim imam the previous day showed the need to teach Christian-nation history in public schools.

Scott joked that she had prayed for a storm to greet the Wiccan woman that morning, before telling the audience that the non-Christian prayers at the statehouse showed that “when we’re not willing to defend our God in the public square, we shouldn’t be surprised when others try to replace Him.”…

Inserted from <Right Wing Watch>

Barf Bag Alert!!

As an authentic Christian, I welcome and honor your beliefs, no matter what they are (or aren’t), with one exception. I will not honor intolerance to others’ beliefs. This women exemplifies that intolerance with her Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christian bigotry.

Open Thread–4/11/2015

Posted by TomCat at 11:27 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

Apr 112015

I’m feeling quite tired after yesterday’s trip to the doctor, so I’ll be brief. Expect me to be scarce for the next few days, because something has been sitting on the back burner for too long, due to illness, and I need to get it done this weekend. I’m referring to my annual battle with the Infernal Revenue Service.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 2:58 (average 5:30). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From NY Times: The prolonged prologue to Hillary Rodham Clinton’s second run for the White House will reach its suspenseless [sic] conclusion on Sunday: The former secretary of state, senator and first lady is to announce that she will indeed seek the Democratic nomination for president.

She’s running? Oh MY! I’m sooooooo surprised!! 😉

From Crooks and Liars: Real Time’s Bill Maher took on religious fundamentalists of all stripes during his New Rules segment this Friday night, and has this to say about the recent dust up in Indiana and their so-called "religious freedom" law.

While I can’t say I agree with everything Bill said, when he got evangelical about his atheist faith, he is still hilarious.

From Daily Kos: If anyone was curious if Rick Santorum would pull back a wee bit on publicly hating teh gays in his perennial run for president, his remarks during a meeting with Iowa state legislators yesterday should put any question to rest.

Noting his opposition to the 2003 Supreme Court decision striking down laws against sodomy, Rick thinks that all that frothing he did back in the day provides him all the gravitas needed to be handed the keys to the Oval Office.

The video first posted to the conservative blog Caffinated Thoughts [froth lovers delinked] and later picked up by Right Wing Watch, shows Santorum at his whiny, victimized best. He gnashes his teeth and rends his garments over the press reporting his bigoted and extremist views in practically every race he has ever entered.

Froth Bag Alert!!

Rick "Google Me" Santorum will assure that there is no shortage of GOP hate. Google has cleaned up a lot of the froth, so Google “Santorum definition”.

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