Another gem from the “Impossible to Predict” Department…
Are we through with this mess yet? Are we really going to endure this “evaluation period” for 3 more months?
It never ceases to amaze me how much our president reminds me of a 6 year old. He’s been told to stop playing the video game, repeatedly. “5 more minutes,” he negotiates without taking his eyes off the screen. And Congress, like the pushover parent that should’ve bent him over her knee a long time ago, acquiesces. No doubt, his threat to throw a presidential-sized tantrum made the passive parents avoid the confrontation.
It’s about time! Finally, someone has offered to help the seriously afflicted, like Jackie Chan, and Margaret Cho, and maybe part of Soledad O’Brien (who knows? I mean, really).
Thankya Jeeesus!
“Curing” Ted Haggard in three weeks, instead of the usual 4.5 years, has emboldened Christians, and they now have the balls to think they can counsel the genetics right out of you. I can’t wait to see the first success story!
Actually, to be honest, the billboard above was probably changed to illustrate the fact that homosexuals don’t choose to be gay any more than Asians choose to be Asian. Both people who read this blog are already aware of that fact, so I’ll refrain from pulling out the multiple sources that show it’s a natural ‘phenomenon’. That’s a moot point anyway.
What really needs to be done is to get people to stop thinking solely in terms of sexual activity when it comes to homosexuality, as if that’s all that matters in a homosexual relationship. A lot of people, especially those that have a problem with it, think of it as a kind of hedonistic orgy of rebellion and sexual hegemony, but never bother to consider any other kinds of attraction that two people can have between each other. Their problem with homosexuality isn’t that two people are emotionally, psychologically, and physically attracted to or in love with each other. Their problem is that they act on it, like any heterosexual couple would, by having sex.
In other words, it’s okay for two men (or women) to love each other, as long as they don’t have sex (or get “married” in the eyes of the state). Sure they’ll find a euphemism for their motive, like “traditional family values”, but to those that have a problem with it, it’s all about the sex. And as long as that is allowed to continue, homosexuality will be brushed off, subjugated, and easily classified as less genuine than heterosexual relationships. And people like those in the Truth Ministry will continue to think it’s something to be cured.
This is one of many questions from a survey by Newsweek, conducted June 18-19, 2007. Yes, 2007! The people who answered this question are over 18, and part of the voting public.
Yes, that’s a warning.
Not only are 41% of people completely ignorant, but that’s up 5% since 2004.
“The United States of America have exhibited, perhaps, the first example of governments erected on the simple principles of nature; and if men are now sufficiently enlightened to disabuse themselves of artifice, imposture, hypocrisy, and superstition, they will consider this event as an era in their history. Although the detail of the formation of the American governments is at present little known or regarded either in Europe or in America, it may hereafter become an object of curiosity. It will never be pretended that any persons employed in that service had interviews with the gods, or were in any degree under the influence of Heaven, more than those at work upon ships or houses, or laboring in merchandise or agriculture; it will forever be acknowledged that these governments were contrived merely by the use of reason and the senses.”
- John Adams, A Defence of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America
Who was Cain afraid would kill him when your god put him out of the Garden for killing Abel? I mean, the entire population of the planet consisted of his mom, dad, brother and himself at the time.
If my South African and Tierra Del Fuego-an readers will excuse me for a moment, it’s June 21st, the Summer Solstice. It’s the beginning of summer in the Northern hemisphere, because, well… The Earth begins tilting back in the other direction today (at least in relation to the Sun). Rumor has it that it actually happened at 6:06pm GMT, which is about the time this was posted.
Today is a religious holiday (Litha or Midsummer) for modern Pagans. No doubt many of them gathered at Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England this morning to watch the sunrise in alignment with its axis. Much to their delight, I’m sure, this is one of the few Pagan holidays that Christians have yet to commandeer, re-brand, and re-package for consumption by the masses. That is, unless you count the feast day of St. John the Baptist on June 24, in which case the Christians did a particularly poor job of re-branding when you compare it to the monumental success of Christmas. But then again, that is Jesus’ day.
But Pagans aren’t the only ones to hold this day in high regard. Native American tribes had many celebrations, and harvests, and feasts related to this day.
Probably the most famous Native American homage to the Summer Solstice is The Bighorn Medicine Wheel near Sheridan, Wyoming in the Rocky Mountains. It’s one of many wheels, most of which are located in Canada. At Bighorn, the center of a small cairn (which is external to the main wheel) lines up with the center of the wheel and the sunrise. It really has little to do with Medicine though. The term “medicine wheel” was invented by Pilgrims. “Medicine” was a term used to describe anything native that white people didn’t understand.
Ancient Romans were also fond of this day. The festival of Vestalia was held in honor of the Roman Goddess of hearth, Vesta, and it lasted from June 7th to June 15th. During this time, married women were allowed to enter the shrine of Vesta, whereas during the rest of the year only the vestal virgins were permitted inside.
Not to be left out, Ancient China had their own Summer Solstice ceremony, during which they celebrated the Earth, the feminine, and the yin forces. This complemented the Winter Solstice which celebrated the heavens, the masculine, and the yang forces.
So don’t discriminate, pick your favorite, and go out and celebrate today! And if you don’t like all this religious and mythological mumbo jumbo, that’s okay… it’s also World Humanist Day! See? Something for everyone.
By now, it’s no secret that I have been curiously intrigued by Ron Paul. He is running for President, and hasn’t a Jesus’s chance in Hell™ of getting the Republican Neocon party nomination. I continue to follow his thoughts and comments on all of the issues, and I must say that one commenter on my first Ron Paul post was right; the more I learn, the more I like him as a candidate for President.
The video below is an inspirational (at least for me) compilation of Ron Paul moments and quotes. He sincerely understands what so many people ignore in these elections, the role of a President: To protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
The completely irrational part of my brain holds onto a small hope that current polling frontrunners, Giuliani and McCain, are 2008’s Howard Deans, while Ron Paul is come-from-behind-Kerry in the primaries. But current polls still put Ron Paul at nothing above 2%, which is behind, at least, a mormon, an actor that hasn’t done any campaigning or debating, and a son of a preacher - living in the 21st century - who thinks evolution is a bunch of crap.
There have been numerous slights against Ron Paul by the media. Comments on message boards deleted, entire pages removed, polls changed after the fact, etc. In explanations of these actions, most of it is blamed on so-called Ron Paul spammers, who allegedly bombard message boards and online polls, and skew the results and the conversation. I mean, these would have to be some highly organized groups of individuals operating with military precision and an empire’s reach. There’s a virtual plethora of conspiracy theories coming from both sides - Ron Paul supporters claiming a conspiracy among Mainstream Media (MSM), political parties/groups, and corporate America, and Neocons and Media claiming a conspiracy among a small group of Ron Paul supporters and campaign lackeys…
One thing is for sure: Ron Paul supporters are effective at coordinating and mobilizing online quickly. For the three GOP debates so far, Paul has won or placed high in most of the unscientific online surveys including ABC’s, MSNBC’s, FOX’s, and unscientific polls conducted on a number of blogs.
Of course!! This is the only explanation. It can’t be that the people who are actually paying more than a fruit fly’s amount of attention to what’s being said are finding Ron Paul to be the clear winner. Scientific polls that survey the willfully ignorant and party faithful (a truly significant statistical sample) will tell us who really articulates the best message in the debates.
While all this is going on, everyone is failing to acknowledge the 800 pound gorilla in the room, in the form of the self-fulfilling prophecy.
Nobody really knew about (or remembered, depending on your age) Ron Paul until his explosive and thought-provoking comments in the first Republican Primary debate. In a field of 10 candidates, he is afforded unequal and minimal time to express those comments by moderators (read: MSM). Why? Well, the scientific polling that is done by organized pollsters shows Ron Paul consistently around 1 or 2 percent. So the MSM debate moderators use this as an excuse to devote more time to those with higher poll numbers. Are you seeing the circle developing?
In an effort to break into mainstream American consciousness and get higher in the polls, candidates need high poll numbers to begin with. You see, in order to get higher poll numbers they need to be covered by the MSM, but in order to be covered more by the MSM, they need higher poll numbers.
So the self-fulfilling prophecy is the idea that they don’t need to cover someone like Ron Paul, because he is not getting very high poll numbers, and when they don’t cover him, less people become aware of him and his message, and his poll numbers stay low. Failing to acknowledge their own role in affecting knowledge, awareness, and ultimately, poll numbers, the MSM simply perpetuates their image as a mouthpiece for the establishment, powerful, and elite.
Barring a catastrophic event, on the order of 9/11, that thrusts Ron Paul into the national consciousness, the MSM can simply wash their hands of him (how dare I suggest that Saint Rudy benefits from “the attacks” more than anyone else). Unless they are forced to cover him, they won’t.
Is Exposure Good for Ron Paul?
That being said, perhaps the scrutiny that comes with more exposure is not what Ron Paul needs or wants. For someone like me, who only started paying real attention to politics shortly before he/she was able to vote, Ron Paul’s run for presidency in 1988 is a virtual non-event. And the relative isolation he has endured (or enjoyed) in a small district in Texas since then is working in his favor, in a way.
He is being attacked from the right, by the likes of hate-monger Michelle Malkin. He is being attacked from the left, by phenry on Daily Kos.
Both sides are misconstruing or misunderstanding Ron Paul’s libertarian bent. And both authors fault Ron Paul for the people that come out in support of his candidacy or ideals, or otherwise find him appealing. Malkin for the “9/11 conspiracy theorists” and phenry on Daily Kos for the likes of Larry Pratt, “secessionists“, and being on the same radio program as Prussian Blue once was.
I say that they are misconstruing his position because they repeatedly equate giving an interview or a speech to questionable or fringe groups as reason to question Ron Paul himself. And yet, people at Daily Kos aren’t at all bashful about attacking BushCo when they do the exact opposite - refuse to allow certain people (read: anyone who might disagree with them) access to them, their speeches, or their interviews. After at least 7 years of that nonsense, pontificating your message in front of any free person willing to listen is, apparently, a wholly unfamiliar concept.
As another example, phenry at Daily Kos, willfully ignores Ron Paul’s reasoning on the Defense of Marriage Act, and unnecessarily simplifies the issue to a fault, by attacking him for supporting it. Phenry doesn’t care that his priority, limiting the power of (federal) government, is a more appropriate concern with regard to that act than changing the definition of marriage as currently recognized by the states. Phenry also uses this as a reason to attack Ron Paul on the issue of gay rights, but oddly, does not applaud Paul for his apparent defense of gay rights when he refused to support the constitutional amendment that would have abolished same-sex marriage. I mean, as long as you’re oversimplifying the issue, it seems that applauding him for this would be the only logical reaction. No?
One thing that is unavoidable is that people will buy the oversimplified crap that these guys are selling. Just like Iraq “had ties” with Al-Qeada, Ron Paul has or had “ties” with some questionable organizations, publications, and people. And when it comes to your image in front of the American people, as we have seen in the past, the frailty of these ties does not seem to matter. The order of magnitude or degree is unimportant, it is a yes or no question, black or white.
And if that’s the case, will Ron Paul be able to hold up under that scrutiny should he become a central figure in the race for President?
It is worth mentioning that some have accused Ron Paul of making some highly questionable racist comments in the past. They cite mostly second or third-hand sources. And the comments seem diametrically opposed to even some comments that appear in the video above. But Ron Paul’s explanation, as given by the people attacking him, doesn’t seem to answer the questions that would undoubtedly grow in number and ferocity should he break through as a candidate to be reckoned with. But it is my suspicion that this may fall into the same category as the other fallacious arguments put forth by those on the attack.
Here’s hoping he reaches a level where the MSM and the people feel it worthwhile to ask him those questions, make him answer, and feel it worthwhile to really listen when he does. We’ll see.
This will be the beginning of a ongoing series of questions for Christians to answer. However, anyone may feel free to answer such questions, as my curiousity is not satiated only by those who hold the human edited, translated, compiled, and annotated word of “God” as absolute truth.
So without further adieu, Question #1:
Why would your god stop the Earth for a day just so Israelites could finish up a genocide against their enemy? I mean, I can see stopping it so there is more time to help the poor, or plant crops, or love your neighbor, but more time to kill???
Note: When I say questions for Christians to answer, that doesn’t mean with dismissive comments, like “the lord works in mysterious ways”. I would like to see actual answers. If you don’t know, simply say that you don’t know.
Apparently, my lack of remorse for doing the things I want to do is earning me a ticket to the second level of hell. Who knew?
Or perhaps it was that weekend at the zoo, hhmmmm.
The wretched King Minos has decided your fate. His tale wraps around his body 2 times.
The sweet light no longer strikes against your eyes. Your shade has been banished to… the Second Level of Hell!
The Dante’s Inferno Test has banished you to the Second Level of Hell! Here is how you matched up against all the levels:
Loading ...
