Religion

The Middle Class Reacting To Romney-Ryan, And Their Promotion Of The Oligarchy

Both Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are being besieged by demonstrators at campaign events, who reject their attack on the middle class, and their promotion of the oligarchy, the top two percent, who already have more concentration of wealth than at any time in American history, including the Gilded Age and the 1920s.

It is clear that nearly 80 percent of the American people, based upon polls, do not want Medicare turned into a voucher system. It is also clear that women are not going to accept the limits on their rights that Republicans are promoting in Congress and in many Republican controlled state legislatures.

The growing feeling is that this Romney-Ryan team could be the most radical right wing combination we have seen in Republican Party history, with the exception of Barry Goldwater in 1964, and even he came out for an attack on social conservatism and the power of religion in the GOP, backing gay rights and abortion rights, in his older years.

It is not promising when Paul Ryan is revealed to have agreed with radio talk show host Glenn Beck that progressivism and liberalism was a “cancer”, in a radio interview in 2010.

In other words, what this author said over the weekend about the inflexibility and ideological extremism of Paul Ryan is not just theory, but based on evidence, not only in that radio interview, but in the dealings of the House Budget Committee majority under Paul Ryan’s leadership, adopting a budget with massive tax cuts for the wealthy, while cutting Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, Pell Grants, Food Stamps, and many other programs!

Notice that the popularity rating of the Congress, particularly of the House and its leadership, is at an all time low, hovering around 12 percent.

If Mitt Romney thought selection of Paul Ryan was going to invigorate his campaign, he was right in a certain sense. It has caused the beginning of the outrage of middle class Americans who are not going to allow the GOP team to destroy America as a land of opportunity, and the last great hope of mankind, and instead just promote the elite wealthy!

The Tea Party Movement had its opportunity to confront and challenge Barack Obama and his health care plan in 2009-2010, in a very vigorous and disruptive manner at political rallies and town halls.

Now, those who are opposed to the narrow mindedness of the Tea Party Movement are getting their opportunity to express their anger, as if we allow one side to be outspoken, the other side has the same opportunity. Freedom of speech and freedom of the press still exist, even for those who disagree with Glenn Beck and Paul Ryan! This is a democracy, not a dictatorship of the RIght!

Chick Fil A And Conservatives And Republicans: Again On The Wrong Side Of History!

Witnessing so many conservative Republicans going out of their way to support Chick Fil A’s owner in his anti gay contributions to various hate groups against gay rights and gay marriage boggles the mind!

It is NOT so much an issue of whether the Chick Fil A owner is against gay marriage based on his religious beliefs. It is the fact that he has spent millions in support of hate groups who wish the worst for gay men and women in their daily lives!

And for people such as former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Minnesota Congresswomen Michele Bachmann, and South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, along with Fox News Channel talk show hosts and Rush Limbaugh, to demonstrate that they have no issue with the hate groups against gay men and women, proves once again that conservatives and Republicans are on the wrong side of history!

The same element, much of it very “religious”, opposed women’s right to vote before 1920; demonstrated anti semitic views over a long period of time; fought against civil rights for African Americans with bloodshed and violence; and have been actively involved in promoting discrimination and hate against undocumented immigrants, particularly from Latin America.

Conservative Republicans and conservatives in the news media never seem to realize what they are doing–or do they? We would like to think they are “misguided”, but the more one thinks about it, the more one has to come to the conclusion that they clearly KNOW what they are doing, and that liberals and progressives must continue the fight for justice, humanity, and common decency, knowing that they are doing the will of any truly “religious” person in fighting against hate and prejudice and discrimination!

Trying To Decipher The “Republican” Brain: Crazy, Lacking In Reality And Ethics

Republicans used to be a reputable major political party, and have a lot to be proud of in their history of 158 years.

But there is little to be proud of in 2012, as Republicans seem to have lost their minds, their ethics, their morality, their ability to understand reality!

How else to explain the following:

A vast majority of Republicans believe Barack Obama was born in Kenya, is a Muslim, is a Socialist, a Fascist, a Communist, and wishes to destroy America.

The deficit issue began with Barack Obama, ignoring $2 trillion investment in failed wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and $1.3 trillion in tax cuts to the top two percent of the population under George W. Bush.

The Federal budget can be balanced with only program cuts, not tax increases ever again.

Global warming is a hoax, and evolution is just a theory, and God will always protect all of us from harm from the climate, and mankind walked the earth alongside dinosaurs.

Iraq caused September 11, and we found Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq.

Since there is no body, how do we know that Osama Bin Laden was really killed by US Navy Seals?

Contraception is evil, and knowledge to adolescents about sex is evil, and it is all a plot to promote gay sex and abortions.

All Hispanics and Latinos are illegal immigrants, and they are all criminal elements that must be deported en masse.

Barack Obama is easily the most corrupt President we have ever had in American history, including Richard Nixon, and George W. Bush.

The collapse of Wall Street in 2008 was due to too much regulation, and was caused by Democrats and liberals.

The entire New Deal and Great Society is unconstitutional, and needs to be repealed, and return us to the days of states rights, instead of a powerful national government.

America was designed to be a theocracy, and we are a Christian Republic, and if we follow Jesus Christ, we will be just fine.

Science is atheism, and should be dismissed as propaganda to turn America away from God and Jesus Christ.

The list goes on, but this is enough to tell any sane person that the GOP has gone amuck in its craziness about the real world we live in!

Florida Pastor Terry Jones: Religion Gone Too Far! The “Lynching” Of Barack Obama At His Gainesville Church!

Florida Pastor Terry Jones, who created an uproar over his plan to burn a Koran, causing widespread anti American riots in the Middle East, has now gone even further, and in a way that requires investigation by the Secret Service, the FBI, and the Justice Department for prosecution of a hate crime!

Outside his church in Gainesville, Florida, hangs an effigy of President Barack Obama being lynched, and this is NOT freedom of religion, and requires action, prosecution and prison time for this maniac pastor!

The lynching image of this effigy reminds us of the ugly past in Florida and other Southern, and even some Northern states, and we have passed the time when we can stand by and call it freedom of speech and freedom of religion!

This man needs to be put away because he incites hatred and bloodshed and violence, and is a very evil, sick man who needs psychiatric and psychological intervention, and a long stint in prison to take him off the streets, and stop poisoning congregants with his hate activity that advocates violence!

The Wisdom And Good Sense Of Colin Powell On Gay Marriage And Economic And Foreign Policy

Former Secretary of State and General Colin Powell is on a book tour, and he has made clear his views on issues that really matter.

For one, he has now endorsed gay marriage, saying he has no problem with it, as he knows gay couples who are bringing up children and creating a stable, loving environment. At the same time, he said he understands how some religious groups disagree, so he makes it clear that if a religious group is against endorsing gay marriage, that is fine, but that gays should be able to marry through civil legal authority.

Regarding foreign policy, Powell said that Mitt Romney is totally wrong in saying that the Russian government is no different than it was under the old Soviet Union during the era of the Cold War. He pointed out that Russia is now about half its size, and is working to provide better economic opportunity to its citizens, and that they have been cooperative over the years on many international issues, while at times disagreeing with American views. But in the course of normal diplomacy among nations, the fact that Russia does not always agree with America is not something to be alarmed over, and that Romney needs to realize the changed times, and be more cautious in making public statements that could undermine future diplomacy if he is President next year.

Powell also expressed the desire for better coordination between President Obama, Congress, and business leaders to help promote economic recovery sooner.

These views on gay marriage, Russian relations, and economic issues demonstrate that Colin Powell remains a very admirable figure, and one could only wish that others who call themselves Republicans would have the sensible views that the former Bush cabinet member has!

Pockets Of Opposition To Barack Obama In Democratic Presidential Primaries: What Does It Mean?

Barack Obama may be popular among most Democrats, and is ahead in many polls nationally against Mitt Romney, but there certainly are areas where he is extremely unpopular, a lot of it based on his race, but also on cultural issues affected by religious beliefs, including gay marriage, abortion rights, and the role of women, and also based on backing of gun rights in the hinterland of the nation, with fear that Obama is out to take away one’s guns.

So we saw Oklahoma and West Virginia strongly against him earlier, and last night, we witnessed Arkansas and Kentucky also having strong opposition against him.

However, this must all be seen in perspective, as the lowest percentage Obama has received is the 57 percent in Oklahoma. Obama gained 58 percent in Arkansas and Kentucky and 59 percent in West Virginia.

If anyone running for any office gains between 57% and 59% of the vote, that is considered a landslide by any measure. The fact that the next lowest percentage was 76 percent in Louisiana, 79 percent in North Carolina, and 80 percent in Alabama tells us Obama has nothing to be worried about.

With only seven states yet to vote in Presidential primaries, the likelihood of any of those states voting lower percentages than these seven states mentioned above is extremely low.

So, yes, Barack Obama is opposed in portions of the country, primarily the South and Appalachia, but that is not a measurement of his overall popularity nationwide!

An Historic Moment In Evolution Of Human Rights In America!

America’s history has been one of slow evolution toward reform and change, and toward the expansion of human rights!

Today, May 9, 2012, is one of those moments that will reverberate as a memorable day in our history, as President Barack Obama has finally declared his full support for gay marriage, after having promoted action to promote gay rights in other ways earlier, including the end of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in the military.

To gay and lesbian Americans, and those who believe in gay and lesbian human rights, it was a long time coming, but that fact will now be forgotten in the excitement that our President has taken a very moral stand on gay rights, that despite many religious objections, means that over time, the institution of same sex marriage will spread far and wide as a civil right that all other people have, and that gay Americans are entitled to have.

Barack Obama will be long remembered for this great initiative, and Joe Biden will be long praised for having prodded the President to move in the final direction of full acceptance of what he was arriving at in an evolutionary fashion.

The hate mongers, common among Republicans and conservatives, will fight tooth and nail, as they did in the case of Amendment One in North Carolina, to deny equality, even to those military people on bases in the state, a despicable action.

But eventually, there will be a move to have the US Supreme Court decide whether it is not a national right, that cannot be denied by the states, but also mandate that no church, synagogue or other religious institution, would be required to marry people they did not want to be involved in marrying. That would be left up to ministers and rabbis comfortable with the idea, or to the act of civil marriage.

If the Supreme Court could declare in Loving V. Virginia in 1967, that interracial marriages were constitutional, they can certainly do the same for same sex marriage!

To insure such a result, however, it is MORE urgent than ever before that Barack Obama win a second term in the White House, and be able to insure that the Supreme Court does not become more conservative than it already is, and continue to prevent progress and change!

The “New South” Of Bill Clinton And Jimmy Carter Clashes With The “Old South” Of Billy Graham And Franklin Graham

The American South, referring to the states of the Civil War which broke away from the Union, have been said to have changed in the years since the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965.

With African Americans given the right to vote, and civil rights being enforced by the federal government, we saw a switch of many white Democrats, who believed in segregation of the races, to the Republican Party, including a vast majority of state and national officeholders.

Those who remained Democrats were seen as “moderates” who wished to bridge the gap between the races, and keep the heritage of equal rights and social justice connected, and therefore, we saw the triumph of Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton winning the Presidency, reflecting a “changed” South.

But while Carter and Clinton were inspirational to many, the truth is that the majority of white southerners remain what they were before—unwilling to accept racial equality, resentful of Northern liberal influence on their section of the country, and using their religious views to oppose gay rights, labor rights, women’s equality, and immigrant rights.

So despite Bill Clinton backing the fight against Amendment One in North Carolina, putting traditional marriage alone in the state constitution, the amendment passed easily, most notably supported by the Reverend Billy Graham, now 93, who along with his preacher son, Franklin Graham, show us just how little progress has been made in North Carolina, the last “Old South” state to ban gay marriage in its constitution.

Even with the popularity of Bill Clinton nationally, and the fact of the victories years ago of both Clinton and Jimmy Carter, the “Old South” is still very much evident in what some attempt to consider the “New South”! The past is not yet past, sad to say!

The Problem Of Religion For Mitt Romney, And How He Deals With It: In A Demagogic Manner!

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has many problems on the road to the Republican Presidential nomination, and despite his wins tonight in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Wisconsin, his path to the Presidency is complicated, and it turns out, religion remains a major barrier.

Mitt Romney is a Mormon, a faith regarded by many Christian groups as a religious cult.

Mitt Romney was testy when asked a question yesterday about the tenets of his faith, regarding interracial sexual relations. He said he did not wish to discuss religion, but that is not going to make that issue go away.

When one looks at Gallup polls about how people feel about different religions, we discover that 7 percent say they would not vote for a Baptist; an equal 7 percent would not vote for a Catholic; 9 percent would not vote for a Jew; while 22 percent would not vote for a Mormon!

Only two groups rate higher in voter reluctance to vote for a candidate of that religion: 46 percent would not vote for a Muslim; and 49 percent would not vote for an atheist.

So what has Romney decided to do? Instead of arguing, as many demagogues of his party and in talk radio have done, that Barack Obama is a secret Muslim, Romney goes one better.

Romney is now claiming that Obama is promoting “secularism”, in other words, “atheism”, that Obama does not really believe in God!

How despicable and demagogic Romney has become, trying to label Obama as an atheist, due to the fact that the percentage who would not vote for an atheist is double and more that of those who would not vote for a Mormon!

Romney is exploiting religious prejudice and hatred, at a time when he has a religious problem of his own!

What could be more unprincipled? And it is clear that it will not work, and Romney, by bringing it up, deserves a walloping repudiation in November!

Joe Biden, Obama’s Greatest Asset And Emissary To Blue Collar Working Class, Comes Out Fighting In Toledo, Ohio

Vice President Joe Biden, who has been a great asset to President Obama in so many ways, started the national campaign in Toledo, Ohio, today with a speech before a labor group extolling the record of President Obama in saving the auto industry, and attacking the Republican Presidential candidates by name for the first time, since it is still not certain who the GOP nominee against Obama will be in November.

Joe Biden represents the blue collar working class of Scranton, Pennsylvania and Wilmington, Delaware, where he grew up. And being a commuter on Amtrak to work for 36 years of service in the US Senate, Biden has come across as an average guy, who cares about his neighbors and his country, and as sincere and dedicated to help those in the struggling middle class that was the story of much of his childhood.

Biden knows how to deliver a fiery speech and how to excite a crowd, and he will take the fight for the Obama Presidency all over America in the next eight months.

His rhetoric will be very supportive, and he will use all of the energy he possesses to advance a second term for President Obama. The President is very lucky to have him there by his side! Biden will help carry Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and other states in a tough battle against those who would use religion and resentment (as for instance Rick Santorum) against Obama. And if Mitt Romney is the nominee, Biden will attack him mercilessly for his refusal to back the bailout of Chrysler and General Motors.