Catholics

Fear, Racism, Hatred Toward Latinos And Muslims: New Generation Of What Native Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, Jews, Catholics Faced In Earlier Generations!

Ronald 8 Comments

The fear, racism, and hatred now being exhibited toward Latinos and Muslims in America is part of the same right wing nativist mentality so much a part of American history!

In the past, it was Native Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, Jews, and Catholics who suffered from such despicable mistreatment! Sadly, much of that same mistreatment often exists for members of these groups.

There seems to be something in the American psyche that we need to place our fears, racism, and hatred on one different group after another, and often it is people of earlier groups who have been discriminated against, who end up mouthing and mimicking much of the same behavior, sort of like the psychological trick known as “transference”.

This author has heard people who have voiced disgraceful statements and prejudice toward people of Spanish ancestry, and of the Muslim faith, stereotyping whole groups of people, rather than making judgments based on behavior of individuals!

Only education and good parental upbringing can overcome this promotion of fear, racism, hatred, and stereotyping, but unfortunately, there is so much work that needs to be done in this regard!

The Argument For A Midwestern Governor For The Republican Party In 2016 Presidential Race!

Ronald 2 Comments

There is a growing feeling in the Republican Party, and among prognosticators, that the pool of GOP candidates for President in 2016 is lacking in so many ways.

Chris Christie is in trouble due to the scandal over the George Washington Bridge, and his handling of Hurricane Sandy money.

Scott Walker is in trouble over charges that he was involved in corruption during the 2012 recall campaign in Wisconsin.

Ted Cruz has made enemies every time he opens his mouth, and his push to close down the government in 2013 backfired, and caused division within Republican ranks.

Rand Paul is leading a fight against the “Establishment”, and is unlikely to be able to win support to be the nominee, with his libertarian and isolationist views.

Marco Rubio made enemies with his immigration reform plan, and is seen as having floundered ever since.

Paul Ryan has come across as someone who has no understanding of what middle class people go through, and with little compassion for the poor, and even fellow Catholics are often critical of him.

Bobby Jindal has come across as insincere, uncaring about his own constituents, and has lost whatever luster he once had.

Rick Perry may have gained classy glasses to wear, but he is still a horrible candidate in so many ways.

Rick Santorum is trying to reform his image as well, but he is still a former Senator who lost his seat ten years ago.

Mike Huckabee is an also ran from the 2008 Presidential campaign, and has sounded more looney than ever each month as his Fox News Channel show pushed him much further right than he had been in 2008, when he actually sounded reasonable.

Jeb Bush looks much better by comparison with other Republicans, but he is still a Bush, and has supported immigration reform and the common core education curriculum, both unpopular with his party, and besides, he certainly represents the “Establishment” more than anyone.

Mitt Romney claims not to be interested at all in running again, but yet he is seen by many as the fallback choice, despite his losing the Presidency in 2012.

Jon Huntsman, arguably the best candidate possible, seems to have absolutely no chance to convince the Republican Party that his moderate, practical conservatism is the right path.

The more one thinks about it, it makes sense that the Republican Party should seriously consider finding a candidate, preferably a Governor, from the Midwest, which is the true battleground of the Presidential Election of 2016!

None of the above mentioned candidates for the Presidency are from the Midwest, except for Ryan and Walker, both from Wisconsin, but both have fatal flaws hard to overcome.

But all of the Midwest, except Illinois, is arguably a battleground, although only Indiana and Missouri went Republican in 2012, and only Missouri in 2008!

Ohio and Iowa are true battlegrounds, and Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota are potentially up for grabs by either party.

So what seems to make sense is to give a hard look at two Midwestern Republican Governors, both of whom have served in Congress, and understand Washington, DC, but have also governed key states that are good models for preparation for the White House, at least in theory!

These two Governors are:

John Kasich of Ohio

Mike Pence of Indiana.

A lot more attention will be given to these two men as we get closer to the real beginning of the Presidential race at the end of 2014 and going into early 2015!

The Ultimate Legacy Of American Presidents

Ronald Leave a comment

American Presidents deal with dozens, if not, hundreds of issues while in office, and they have ups and downs, highs and lows, unavoidably.

But, ultimately, they are remembered for one action in office that either puts them in the great, successful category, or in the disastrous, unsuccessful category, and they may be praised or bitterly criticized for others, but they will always be remembered for one specific policy or event, which has the greatest effect on their legacy.

So when we look at Presidents since FDR, what stands out as their primary legacy?

Franklin D. Roosevelt–his New Deal programs that saved millions of Americans, and gave them hope for the future.

Harry S Truman–his courage in his dealings with the Soviet Union through the Cold War policies.

Dwight D. Eisenhower–the steadfastness of his Civil Rights policies, enforcing court orders and promoting the end of racial segregation.

John F. Kennedy–his forthrightness in dealing with the greatest threat in world history, the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Lyndon B. Johnson–his Great Society programs that advanced civil rights, education, health care, and a war on poverty.

Richard M. Nixon–his paranoia and illegal activities, leading to Watergate and his resignation.

Gerald R. Ford–his appointment of Justice John Paul Stevens, who became a giant on the Supreme Court for 35 years.

Jimmy Carter–his promotion of the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty, the Camp David Accords, which have brought peace for 35 years.

Ronald Reagan–his tripling of the national debt through excessive military spending and massive tax cuts to the wealthy.

George H. W. Bush–his exceptional conduct of the crisis of the Persian Gulf War.

Bill Clinton–his promotion of the Northern Ireland peace agreement, between Anglicans and Catholics, and with Great Britain.

George W. Bush–the prosecution of the Iraq War, a war that was based on falsehoods, undermining the Middle East and emboldening Iran.

Barack Obama–the promotion of the Affordable Care Act, giving millions of Americans their first time coverage for health care.

Religion And Prejudice: Again Evident In Reaction To Boy Scout Decision to Admit Gay Youths

Ronald 11 Comments

The news that the Boy Scouts Of America will allow gay youths as members is a half step, as it still bans gay youths once they reach 18, and gay scout leaders, and that will have to be adjusted over time.

But it is extremely disturbing to see Religion being utilized to promote prejudice, bias, hate and discrimination against gays, as if they choose to be gay!

So we see the Mormon Church, the Catholic Church, and evangelical Christians employing very “Unchristian” values, and also Orthodox Jews and Orthodox Muslims, refusing to recognize how many of each religious group are gay, including some of the protesting leaders, who are “in the closet”, and are true hypocrites!

And it is disturbing that one family, as an example, with five sons, is removing all of them from scouting, as, supposedly, the children asked to be removed, and if that is so, that means they have been taught to hate and to despise gay people, when they will have to cope with plenty of them over a lifetime!

And who can be sure that some of these kids, or others, are secretly gay, and totally paranoid and fearful of being found out, and might cause them to commit suicide because of their guilt and their burden that they know they will NOT be accepted by their own parents and other family members?

This is all very sick and disturbing, but after all, we all know that elements of organized Christianity were infamous for nativism, racism, sexism, and antisemitism in american history! So what else is new?

Fortunately, the number of young people who accept gays is a clear majority and growing, and organized religion is losing adherents rapidly, so when the more devout and older bigots in society pass from the scene, we will have a much more tolerant and open minded society, free of their prejudice, hatred, and bias!

The Film “42” About Jackie Robinson A Brilliant Portrayal, And Reminder Of How Much Is Left To Do About Discrimination!

Ronald 2 Comments

The new film that made its debut this past Friday, “42”, about the challenge faced by the first African American player in major league baseball, Jackie Robinson, 66 years ago tomorrow, is a brilliant portrayal of the racism and prejudice faced by Robinson, and how he overcame it with brilliant performance and tremendous personal dignity.

It is a good lesson for the many people in America who have no personal memory of Jackie Robinson, with many not even knowing who he is, due to our poor education in the field of history and public affairs, causing many Americans to have no clue on the past, as well as present day issues.

We are now in the midst of another massive revolution on the issue of acceptance of sexual orientation, which has caused just as much, if not more, violence and mistreatment of gays and lesbians over many years, than even that faced by the African American, Hispanic and Latino, Asian American, Jewish, and Catholic population, as each group has struggled to be treated equally under the law.

The issue of discrimination against gays and lesbians is reaching its peak, as the Supreme Court will soon determine the issue of gay marriage rights, and at the same time, bullying and actual physical attacks on gay and lesbians has been encouraged by so called “religious” preachers who claim to be true believers, but with the reality that their ancestor preachers promoted racism and bigotry in the past generations of American history against the various ethic and religious groups mentioned above.

But the pace of progress is moving forward, as it did for other groups, and no matter what the Court decides, change is coming to America, and will not be stopped by bias, prejudice, and narrow mindedness!

And this includes the likelihood of organized sports, which took a long time to integrate, soon to see gay athletes declare themselves, and start to change the image of narrow mindedness of American sports, and the conclusion that everyone should be judged by their performance and skills, not their religion, race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation!

Associate Justice Antonin Scalia Compares Gay Marriage To Murder! Totally Reprehensible!

Ronald Leave a comment

Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia has never hidden his ideological agenda on the Court, any more than Associate Justice Clarence Thomas.

Both men, the most ideologically right wing of the past century, are clear in their prejudices and biases, and desire to bring America back to the 18th century, the time of the Founding Fathers, and the much promoted concept of both Justices known as “originalism”

The fact that the Founding Fathers included slave owners, treated women as second class citizens, and did not trust the masses of citizens so as to give them the vote for President or the US Senate, and limited the right to vote for white males to those who owned property in that time period, does not have any effect on either Scalia or Thomas.

If it was up to them, nothing would have changed, despite the fact that Italian Americans, such as Scalia, and African Americans, such as Thomas, were not considered human beings by most of the WASPS who dominated American government, and mistreated both ethnic groups well into the 20th century! The fact that Scalia is the first ever Italian American Justice, and that Thomas is the second ever African American Justice, seems not to have made them pause and realize the nature of progress and change!

So we know the narrow mindedness of both men, but to have Justice Scalia, who claims to be a great intellectual, and loves himself publicly, to compare gay marriage and gay rights to the horrors of murder, makes one think he is losing it completely, and needs to announce his retirement from the Court this coming June, after being in the hateful minority with Thomas on discrimination against a group, gay Americans, which has suffered more hate and prejudice than any other group in the history of the world, simply because of their sexuality, when that is none of anyone’s business!

If it is alright to have interracial marriage, or marriage between Catholics and Protestants, or Christians and Jews, all groups which have had to fight for their rights to marry, then it is alright to have two men or two women who love each other and wish to commit their lives to each other, to marry and have the benefits and security of marriage, and no prejudice, bias or hate should be allowed to get in the way of their commitment!

Scalia looked like a fool when answering the question of gay Princeton University freshman Duncan Hosie, who demonstrated great courage and dignity in his approach to Scalia, in front of a large audience.

No one is claiming that any person is free of prejudice and personal opinions, but it is totally inappropriate for a member of the Supreme Court to be so openly hostile and antagonistic as Scalia is on gay rights and gay marriage, and his behavior gives license to religious freaks and other hate mongers to continue to encourage actions and violence against gay Americans, and their and his behavior is therefore, morally reprehensible!

Conservatives, Republicans, And Basic Knowledge: Science, Mathematics, History, Economics, Spelling And Grammar, World Diplomacy

Ronald 1 Comment

Many Republicans and conservatives, whether in Congress, the news media, think tanks, or just ordinary citizens, have a real and fundamental problem with basic knowledge. It makes one wonder where they were when they were young, and supposedly being educated, and the indications that they have learned nothing new as adults.

Consider the field of Science, with many of the Republicans and conservatives believing in creationism, the BIble theory of creation, that claims the earth is maybe 10,000 years old at the most, and that dinosaurs walked with man, with a Creationist Museum open to the public in Kentucky, near the border with Cincinnati, Ohio. There is complete denial of Charles Darwin, to the point of total craziness.

Also, there is the failure of these people to accept that there is global warming and climate change, despite so much evidence that there is a problem, and refusal to plan for the future on the basis that we are facing a long range threat, with Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma being the political leader of the “deniers”.

But also, many Republicans and conservatives seem to have their own version of the process of pregnancy and what is a rape, as for instance, defeated Senate nominees Todd Akin and Richard Mouroick.

But let’s move on from Science to Mathematics, and we are talking here about basic math, arithmetic, not geometry, trigonometry, or calculus. Many members of the GOP, including Paul Ryan, claim a magical system of numbers to come up with their budget plans, but as Joe Biden said to Paul Ryan in the Vice Presidential debate, it does not add up!

Then we move on to history, and the image that America is the greatest nation in history, and has never made a mistake, never needs to apologize, has no faults or shortcomings that anyone needs to learn about. And our exceptionalism is enough to wave in the faces of all nations around the world. Why should we teach or learn about slavery, mass murder of native Americans, discrimination against Jews and Catholics and other immigrants, the exploitation of labor by corporations, the destruction of our environment, the corruption of many politicians over our history, the war crimes committed by our troops in many wars, and so on? NO, that is unpatriotic, and instead we must sanitize all historical learning!

And the field of economics is another area of believing that the best system is NO regulation, and the promotion of Adam Smith’s Laissez Faire economics, expressed in the Wealth Of Nations, and if there is poverty or other human suffering, that is the way it was intended by God, so the promotion of Social Darwinism, the one time Darwin is utilized by these KNOW NOTHINGS!

Spelling and grammar do not matter, as many Tea Party radicals who hold rallies show their total ignorance of all subject matter, and cannot express themselves appropriately, and in a respectable manner! They march with signs that are misspelled, as with the Secession signs now being brandished by many of these characters, who are upset with the Obama victory last week!

World Diplomacy, the whole idea of trying to relate to other countries in a respectful manner, is also insignificant to many, who believe the answer is to BOMB everyone you do not agree with, throw our weight around, and not give a damn about how the world perceives us!

This ignorance and stupidity is totally unacceptable, and the Republican Party and the conservative movement needs to purge itself, or go into the dustbin of history!

What Is It With Republicans And Women’s Rights?

Ronald 2 Comments

The Republican Party of 2012 is absolutely crazy and loony when it comes to the rights of women.

Just look at Richard Mourdock of Indiana and Todd Akin of Missouri, both running for the Senate, and sounding like coming from past centuries, and medieval religious ideas And see how Mitt Romney endorses and supports them, showing no guts to defend women’s rights. But then again, remember he is a Mormon, a religion which promotes inferiority of women, so why should he have an open mind?

Republicans want to deny women equal pay at work.

Republicans want to deny women the right to contraceptives being covered on employer health plans.

Republicans want to deny women the right to control their own reproductive lives, and have the nerve and gall to justify rape as ordained by God, and force women to have babies born out of violence.

Republicans want to deny women the right to decide they do not wish to have a baby caused by incest of a sibling or parent or other relative.

Republicans want to deny women the right to their own life, if the life of the baby can be saved.

Republicans want to deny women the respect that allows them to decide their own futures, and instead allow religious zealots, whether Catholic, evangelical Christian, Orthodox Jews, or Muslims, to dictate to them, and treat them as second class citizens who must obey their husbands and fathers, and have no free will.

Republicans want to deny women the right to an education and professional or business career, preferring they go back to the image of women in the 1950s—obedient, barefoot and pregnant too many times, and good housewives and cooks who remind men how wonderful they are as the head of the household. They want the era of Father Knows Best, Ozzie and Harriet, and Leave It To Beaver!

Well, intelligent women are NOT going to tolerate such abuse any longer, and it is time for even “religious” women to realize they are being controlled and dominated by the men in their lives, and make it clear that they will NOT be dictated to about their work or educational lives, their sex lives, and their reproductive lives!

The days of obedience and submission of women to men is over, and the Republican Party needs to be taught a punishing lesson this November, that their attempt to go back in time, and show lack of respect and equality for women, will be punished severely by elimination from our political system.

Also, there is a need for churches and synagogues and mosques to forget “tradition”, and recognize we are in the 21st century in the most advanced nation on earth, and modernization and change are not an option, but rather essential and pronto!

We are not a backward nation of the “third world”, and it is time for women to be treated with dignity and respect!

There are a total of FIFTEEN Republican Senate candidates wishing to deny rape victims the right of abortion, and all of them need to be soundly defeated!

Speculation Seriously Begins On 2016 Presidential Competition

Ronald 2 Comments

Eight weeks away from the Presidential Election of 2012, but with the obvious trend toward Barack Obama emerging, political pundits are starting to speculate on who might compete for the Democratic and Republican Presidential nominations in 2016, when if Barack Obama is reelected in 2012, we will be certain to have a new President.

The field of potential nominees is long in both parties. Among those being discussed are the following:

Democrats

Vice President Joe Biden from Delaware
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton from New York
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo
Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick
Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer
New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar
Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill
Virginia Senator Mark Warner
Newark New Jersey Mayor Cory Booker
Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren

Republicans

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush
Florida Senator Marco Rubio
Kentucky Senator Rand Paul
Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown
Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum
Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal
South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley
Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker
New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte
South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham
South Dakota Senator John Thune

So there are, theoretically, 12 Democrats and 14 Republicans who can be seen now as possible competitors for the Presidential nominations, but of course, some of these conceivable candidacies are based on election results yet to occur, including whether Senators Claire McCaskill, Scott Brown, and Lindsay Graham are reelected, the first two this year, and Graham in 2014; whether Cory Booker runs for New Jersey Governor and defeats Chris Christie, with the result eliminating one of those two candidacies; whether Elizabeth Warren can defeat Scott Brown, which would eliminate one or the other of those two candidacies; and whether the “old timers”—Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and Jeb Bush—decide to run or stay out of the race, leaving the battle for the nominations to the “new generation” of leadership that is emerging in both political parties.

As of now, there is plenty of diversity in the potential race, with the following statistics:

7 women in the race–Hillary Clinton, Amy Klobuchar, Kirsten Gillibrand, Claire McCaskill, Elizabeth Warren for the Democrats, and Nikki Haley and Kelly Ayotte for the Republicans.
2 African Americans in the race—Deval Patrick and Cory Booker for the Democrats.
1 Hispanic-Latino in the race—Marco Rubio for the Republicans.
2 Asian Americans in the race (both of India heritage)—Bobby Jindal and Nikki Haley for the Republicans.

On the Democratic side, there are three potential candidates from New York—Hillary Clinton, Andrew Cuomo, Kirsten Gillibrand; one from New Jersey (Cory Booker); one from Delaware (Joe Biden); one from Maryland (Martin O’Malley); two from Massachusetts (Deval Patrick and Elizabeth Warren)–a total of eight of the 12 potential candidates from the Northeast, with one from the South (Mark Warner of Virginia); two from the Midwest (Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Claire McCaskill of Missouri); and one from the West (Brian Schweitzer of Montana).

On the Republican side, there are four potential candidates from the Northeast—Chris Christie of New Jersey, Scott Brown of Massachusetts, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, and Rick Santorum from Pennsylvania; seven from the South and border states—Bob McDonnell of Virginia, Nikki Haley and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio of Florida, Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, and Rand Paul of Kentucky; and three from the Midwest—Paul Ryan and Scott Walker of Wisconsin and John Thune of South Dakota.

Additionally, there are many Catholics running, startling when one considers that this nation has only had one Catholic President (John F. Kennedy), and one Catholic Vice President (Joe Biden).

Also, the Democrats have four Governors, one Mayor, and seven former or sitting or potential Senators on their list; while the Republicans have six Governors or former Governors, seven Senators, and one Congressman on their list.

Speculation starting already makes the 2016 Presidential race seem ever closer even though it will not begin in earnest until mid to late 2014, and particularly so after the midterm elections of 2014!

Joe Biden: The Major Jewel And Treasure Of The Obama Re-Election Campaign!

Ronald Leave a comment

Vice President Joe Biden is a true jewel, a true treasure, for the Barack Obama re-election campaign, and insures that we will have a second Obama term in the Presidency!

Critics point out that Joe Biden sometimes “puts his foot in his mouth” and makes comments that are embarrassing or awkward. The answer of this blogger is “so what?” as no one is perfect, and Biden has never harmed anyone, including Barack Obama, by his blunders, only at times embarrassing himself!

Joe Biden is a dedicated, highly experienced public official, who now has FORTY years in government, 36 as an outstanding Democratic Party United States Senator, and now four years as Vice President!

He knows foreign policy and constitutional matters in a way few do, as he was intimately involved as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee at crucial times in the past four decades.

He has been a very dedicated Vice President, very close to the President, and Obama himself has stated that Biden helped get the economic recovery program begun, and also helped to bring about the logistics to end the war in Iraq. He has given more advice to Obama than just these areas, has not always carried the day, but is highly valued for his expertise and wisdom.

Biden has added distinction and decency to the Vice Presidency, after the arrogant and scandalous Vice Presidency of Dick Cheney!

One could make the case that Biden has been more significant in a positive way to Barack Obama than any Vice President, and competes for influence with Al Gore under Bill Clinton and Walter Mondale under Jimmy Carter. Obama and Biden have great respect and affection for each other, which is also very important!

Biden gave a rousing, fantastic speech for the President at the Democratic National Convention, and he will matter more than anyone in the re-election campaign, as he has the ability to appeal to white blue collar workers, Catholics, labor, and women, due to his close association with these groups during his years in the Senate, and the reality that he is a rare politician, a truly genuine, sincere spokesmen for those who are not wealthy, and just want a fair shake in life!

The upcoming Biden-Paul Ryan Vice Presidential debate on October 11 will give the nation a clear cut image of a fighting Vice President who is nearing 70 years of age, but is still vital and alert and brilliant in his oratory and commitment, against a young 42 year old ideologue, who probably will come into the debate with a cockiness and arrogance and assumption that he will “win” the debate, despite his constant lying about his record on so many issues. Biden will teach Ryan to “respect his elders”, and show how dangerous it would be for the Wisconsin Republican Congressman to be a heartbeat away from the Presidency!

And yes, Joe Biden is interested in seeking the Presidency in 2016, when he would hit the age of 74, and although there will be a long list of potential Democratic nominees a generation or more younger, don’t ever underestimate Joe Biden and his future, as he has often shown the ability to surprise people with his ability to overcome adversity in his life!