Christianity

Keith Olbermann: Brilliant Statement About Progressivism And Meaning Of Life!

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Keith Olbermann, in his closing commentary last evening on his CURRENT channel show, truly expressed the argument for progressivism, and the true meaning of why we are here on earth.

Troubled by reports that President Obama seemed ready to sacrifice the social safety net of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for a deal on the Debt Ceiling controversy that is raging right now in Washington, DC, Olbermann made it perfectly clear that such an eventuality would be a deal breaker for him and many progressives.

As Olbermann stated, the point of life, since we all die and eventually are only remembered by those who have been affected by our life on this earth, is to have concern about others, not just those we personally know.

Is life designed only to acquire wealth, fame, power and publicity, or is life meant to have an effect on other people’s lives?

Olbermann said that our impact on other people matters much more than the acquisition of wealth and power for its own sake, as it is what we do for others that will make us memorable after we are gone from this earth.

Therefore, to help the needy, the poor, the disadvantaged, is being the best we are capable of. To concern ourselves with our fellow human beings, not just our own selfish selves, is the point of life. To help eradicate poverty, suffering, and disease is the purpose of our existence.

Our common humanity is what should drive us in our daily lives, not just how we can become wealthier and more powerful, and to gain more publicity and a heightened ego.

What Olbermann stated is the true meaning of what it is to be a progressive or a liberal, and as the author listened to him, he had tears in his eyes as it really hit home that true evil is the concern only about oneself, and demonstrating selfishness, greed, and lack of concern of others. It is exactly what Christianity condemns, and yet there are so many “good Christians” who claim these as virtues, the height of hypocrisy!

Thank you, Keith Olbermann, for reminding us why we are progressives, and the pride I feel about my strongly held value system and beliefs!

Potential “First Man” Marcus Bachmann: His Controversial View On Gay Americans!

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Congresswoman Michele Bachmann of Minnesota is scary enough on her own, based on her past statements and actions, but now we have to deal with potential “First Man” Marcus Bachmann as well, and that is literally terrifying!

Not only is Marcus Bachmann accepting federal funds for his counseling center which works with gays trying to make them “ungay” through Christian “intervention”, but also he had gained funds to help people with drug addiction, chemical dependency, and mental illness diagnoses! A total of at least $137,000 in Medicaid payments has been paid to Bachmann’s counseling center!

Meanwhile, Marcus Bachmann has stated that gay people are “barbarians” who need to be disciplined and educated to understand that just because one has feelings and thoughts does not mean that they have to follow through on such feelings and thoughts.

Marcus Bachmann is trying to say that being gay is simply a choice, when there is much evidence that it is inborn, innate, and that denial of one’s sexuality can cause depression and suicide.

The thought that such an individual could become the “First Man”, rather than Bill Clinton would have been if Hillary Clinton had won the Presidency in 2008, is another reason to oppose Michele Bachmann as a divisive figure who would cause further division in this country, at a time when we have too much division as it is!

A New Attitude On American Muslims Needed After Death Of Osama Bin Laden

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Now that Osama Bin Laden has been removed from the scene, it is important that our politicians, news media, and the American people reassess their attitude on American Muslims as part of American society.

The Islamic faith is as divided as Christianity is, and while it is important to remember there are extremist and radical Muslims, including those who have attempted unsuccessfully to commit terrorist acts on American soil, that does not mean we should stereotype or scapegoat the vast majority of American Muslims, who are just as patriotic and committed to our democracy as any Americans of other ethnicities.

The hate mongers must be condemned, at the same time that our intelligence agencies must be thorough in their search for those rare Muslims in America who wish us ill!

But let’s remember that it was not only Christians and Jews and Hindus and Buddhists who died on September 11, and in the various terrorist attacks worldwide since September 11, and even before that date. It is clear that it is actually Muslims who have been the greatest number of victims worldwide, because of the murderous intent of Al Qaeda and its supporters as led by Osama Bin Laden.

Just as any other minority group, American Muslims can and will be assimilated into America, with always, however, a watchful eye on those who choose to commit crimes in the name of their God, and working to stop them before they succeed, and putting on trial those who are apprehended, in the most strict terms possible!

Gainesville, Florida Pastor Terry Jones, The Burning Of The Koran, And Mass Murder In Afghanistan!

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Gainesville, Florida Pastor Terry Jones threatened last September that he would burn a copy of the Muslim Koran in public to protest the hate that he said the Islamic faith represents. After an uproar and plenty of publicity that he actively sought, he backed away from such a despicable act!

Now, six months later, with far less publicity, Jones went ahead and did the dastardly deed, and the result was to provoke violence in Afghanistan, with the resulting massacre of United Nations staff and others!

This tragic event is easily condemned, but was avoidable by a wise decision, not taken, to avoid showing disrespect for a holy book of another religious faith!

For a Christian pastor to do such a disgraceful act should be roundly condemned, and he should be held morally responsible for the violence visited upon those unfortunate victims in Afghanistan!

When a man of God chooses to promote hate and disrespect for others, he is no better than a terrorist himself, and anyone decent should roundly deplore his right to be called a man of God!

This is an example of the hypocrisy of many so called clergy who hide behind a collar, and they deserve not one iota of respect or deference!

Why Does The “Average Citizen” Vote Republican?

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It is mystifying why the so called “average citizen” so often votes Republican! The Republican Party has no real interest in the lives of average Americans, as they only care about PROPERTY and WEALTH, not PEOPLE, as stated in an earlier entry on this blog!

So why do people vote against their own self interest as middle class or poorer people?

1. Fear, instilled by the Republican Party–fear of “illegal” and legal immigrants; fear of Muslims; fear of African Americans; fear of Latinos and Hispanics; fear of native Americans; fear of Asian Americans; fear of liberals and progressives; fear of labor unions; fear of socialism; fear of communism and Marxism; fear of educated people; fear that guns will be taken away from them!

2. Belief that Christianity must rule the nation, so as to outlaw abortion rights for women; forbid gay relationships; condemn those who are other than “good” Christians, meaning including Catholics and Mormons and only accepting Judaism in the guise of the protection of the Holy Land from the infidels, but advocating that unless Jews accept Jesus Christ, they are going to hell; promoting their sense of morality, despite how hypocritical it is; claiming to have all right on their side!

3. Promoting America as a special nation, better than all others, and therefore, promoting extreme nationalism, jingoism, and imperialism in the name of defending America from evil forces overseas, and therefore, connecting big business industrial interests to the military, what President Eisenhower warned against–the military-industrial complex! So patriotism is a major method to gain public support, with many of the middle and poorer classes being sent as cannon fodder for our military adventures overseas, which enrich the military-industrial complex!

4. Lack of education about government, which allows Republican propaganda to mislead people and get them to vote for what is against their self interest, and the goal is NOT to educate people properly, as ignorance benefits the GOP! They want to “pull the wool” over people’s eyes, and they are very effective in that regard!

The hope is that soon the middle and poorer classes will come to realize that it was the Republican Party which got us in this economic mess, and that it is time for the wealthy and corporations to pay up their fair share of taxation, and stop exploiting the masses and making them pay for the corrupt policies of Republicans on the national and state levels!

The Significance Of National Public Radio: Thoughtful, Incisive Coverage Of News And International Affairs, NOT Propaganda As Conservative Talk Radio Is!

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The Republican Party is out to destroy National Public Radio, which receives a small amount of its support from the federal government, but has been a major asset to the nation in all the years it has existed since Lyndon Johnson first promoted the concept in 1965!

National Public Radio offers thoughtful, incisive coverage of news and international affairs , not the propaganda and distortions of Conservative Talk Radio!

Listening to Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reilly, Michael Savage, Mark Levin, and the other hate mongers who promote division and falsehoods over the airwaves, offers nothing but ignorance and distortion of the world we live in, and all hate anything foreign and prefer to promote narrow minded Christianity over open mindedness and tolerance. These despicable talk show hosts would rather enrich themselves than educate the American people in basic values and principles of our American democracy, or to assist them to appreciate the contributions of civilizations and societies around the world!

National Public Radio regularly gains massive financial support from thoughtful, educated listeners, who understand how important it is to civil discourse!

If we did not have National Public Radio, we would not have as much knowledge and insight into world events as we do, as many news organizations have cut back on coverage outside the United States because of budget cuts.

National Public Radio offers us the ability to interact with the world in a way that enriches every person who listens!

President Obama and the Democratic Senate will insure that National Public Radio remains available in smaller media markets where there are fewer media outlets, but the budget cuts will make the job of NPR more difficult to disseminate its quality coverage.

For the GOP to attack NPR, and also the educational contributions of PBS at the same time, is a opportunity to look into their souls and see just how narrow minded and bigoted and evil the Republican Party of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Dwight D. Eisenhower has become!

Not for a minute would any of these outstanding Republican Presidents tolerate such a narrow minded and jaded view as the leaders of the party have presented themselves in today’s environment! This attack on NPR is an attack on education and tolerance and everything good in human beings, and the promotion of an agenda that could rightly be called an attempt at “mind control” by the plutocracy that now controls the Republican Party establishment, as it assaults human rights in the name of profit!

The GOP War On Women and Children: Despicable And Disgraceful! :(

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Associate Justice Antonin Scalia, appointed by President Ronald Reagan 25 years ago, and arguably the most conservative Justice in more than half a century, recently stated that women were not protected in the Constitution.

That shocking statement seems to be working itself out in the attack of the Republican Party, in Congress and in the states, on the rights and freedoms of American women and children.

Witness the following:

Republicans are trying to reduce women’s access to abortion care, and have been also trying to redefine rape, so as to lessen the opportunities or reasons for abortion.

A South Dakota legislator proposed a bill to make the murder of an abortion doctor justifiable homicide.

The party in Congress is trying to eliminate one billion dollars aid, including food, to low income pregnant women, mothers, babies, and children.

The party in Congress has proposed that hospitals be able to reject an abortion for a woman in danger of dying as a result of medical problems from the pregnancy.

Head Start, started under President Lyndon Johnson nearly fifty years ago, has been marked for a billion dollar cut in funding, eliminating spots for 200,000 children.

The Republicans want to cut spending on employment services, meals, and housing for senior citizens, with two thirds of them being women.

The GOP called on Friday for elimination of all federal funding for Planned Parenthood health centers, which promotes responsible family planning.

And this series of actions against women and children are sponsored by people who profess to be “good Christians”, religious people who demonstrate absolutely no concern for life once it is born, and are mean spirited and nasty in their vicious attacks on women’s rights! 🙁

The Republican women in Congress, as a group, make one wonder how women could be so uncaring and lack compassion for those less fortunate, whether poor, young, or elderly. In many ways, they are actually worse than the Republican men! There is no way that Jesus Christ would approve of these “true believers”, who he would consider hypocrites in the extreme! 🙁

“Death Panels” And “Pulling The Plug”: The Ultimate GOP Hypocrisy! :(

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During the long debate over the Obama Health Care reform legislation, the nation heard from Iowa Republican Senator Chuck Grassley and former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, among others, that President Obama was promoting “death panels” and “pulling the plug on Grandma”! These were, of course, totally false accusations, but since when does the GOP care about the truth? 🙁

But now, it turns out that the state of Arizona is indeed promoting the equivalent of “death panels” and “pulling the plug” in order to cut Medicaid services for their poorest citizens! 🙁

The cut involves withdrawing Medicaid coverage of certain kinds of transplants as a way to save the state money. But it is also saying life is not important if you are poor and cannot afford such surgery because you lack the ability to pay for health care coverage! 🙁

Suddenly, the “right to life” comes after saving money, but do you hear Senator Grassley or former Governor Palin or Arizona Senators John McCain or Jon Kyl speaking up in outrage? 🙁

Does one hear Governor Jan Brewer show any concern about the death warrant the cut in Medicaid services brings? 🙁

There is a 32 year old man in Arizona who desperately needs a liver transplant, has a wife and four children, but lost his job and medical coverage, came under Medicaid, and now is told he can only have transplant surgery if he comes up with $200,000 as a deposit to the hospital! 🙁

Is this the kind of country we want to become, where money stands in the way of saving lives? Are we comfortable with a young man in his thirties with children to have to die while the government stands by and does nothing for him? 🙁

A thought crosses the mind, considering we are talking about Arizona! Could it be that there is lack of concern in that state, the infamous one of the new illegal immigration law designed against Latinos now being contested in the courts, BECAUSE the young man in his thirties is a Latino? Good question to wonder about, heh? 🙁

And what about all those “good Christians” out there who claim to care about life, and are not yet rushing to provide financial support for this young man? How about it, don’t just preach and moralize, and take some action to back up your rhetoric! Don’t bet on it! 🙁

What a total example of hypocrisy by Republicans, conservatives and “good Christians” who claim to be against so called “death panels” and “pulling the plug”! 🙁

Christianity And Science: The Pope Sets An Example!

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Pope Benedict XVI spoke up yesterday in the Vatican in support of science and scientists, although he insisted that God created the universe!

This is a step forward by an important organized religion leader, and it should set a standard for other Christians to emulate!

Unfortunately, there are too many evangelical Christian sects who reject science, and preach a narrow view of religion which has, in the past, included a belief in slavery and racial segregation, and now includes anti gay rhetoric in many of these churches! 🙁

Even more unfortunate is the fact that many Republican and conservative politicians and talk show hosts have adopted an anti science view, including refusal to consider the validity of evolution and the reality of climate change and global warming!

There is no reason why one cannot believe in God, but also believe in science, and also see the evil of promoting hate and narrow mindedness in the name of God! Promoting ignorance and hate is a sacrilege in itself! 🙁

Arkansas School Board Member Clint McCance MUST Be Removed For Anti Gay Hate Mongering! :(

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Clint McCance, the Vice President of the School Board of the Midland school district in northern Arkansas, who claims to be a “good Christian” has stirred up a tremendous outrage among decent people by issuing an anti gay tirade on his Facebook account! 🙁

Calling gays “fags” and “queers”, McCance asserted that he is disgusted that there is so much sympathy being expressed for gay kids who have committed suicide in recent weeks!

He said it would be best that all gays commit suicide, and that it was good that gays cannot procreate!

He also said that if his kids were gay, he would disown them, but that they were aware that they could not expect his love and support, were they to reveal themselves as gay!

It is horrible enough that such an excuse for a human being exists, and that he would treat his own children in such a despicable way, were they to be gay!

But it is absolutely unacceptable for such a hate monger and bigot to be involved on a school board which deals with the growth and development of children and adolescents, with the certainty that some are already, or will discover that they are gay!

No school board should contain people who promote such hate and narrow mindedness!

There must be a recall movement to remove this scum from the school board! Find another career, Mr. McCance, but not around children who will become your victims, and not around children who will feel they have an endorsement to bully other adolescents who might be gay!

What a disgrace and a commentary on supposedly “good Christians” who promote hate and prejudice in the name of Jesus Christ, who would not approve of such behavior!