October 2004 Archives

I am now a version 3.1.21 Movable Type Blog. I did a new install in a different directory, my ISP did a configuration (mapping the perl cgi handler to the Windows version) and that fixed a long, nagging problem with Pragma - No Cache Errors I had been getting.

The comments feature is improved, so that I can require Type Pad logins to authenticate , to keep the spammers out....I still have to think over that one. I don't want to squelch anything. Anyway, all looks good. It still uses my old template, so the home page still looks the same. I'll be exploring ways to improve as I learn the changes.

I read the folllowing in comments responding to Professor Stassen's rebuttal of the National Right to Life Committee's rebuttal of his intial article. I find THEIR "rebuttal" to be beside a mjor point to the FACTS of this study: that there HAS BEEN an increase under the Bush administration. This, for me, is sobering evidence for the "Right-to-Lifers" who extoll the virtues of their "anti-abortion" candidates who, as this study shows, have nothing but a slow, negative effect on what they are attempting to influence. Their political efforts result in a net-loss of the statistics they aim to better. Read thier rebuttal (from which I quote below, and see the post where Stassen's reply to their initial rebuttal is posted-- and there is a link to the original article by Stassen)

Between Two Worlds: Prof. Stassen Responds

Ramesh Ponnuru at National Review:

For example, he does not deal with NRLC's point that abortion rates and unemployment rates don't appear to correlate with each other among states. Nor does Stassen attempt to deal with other factors that might have affected the data. Stassen also leans too much on his own family's experience, in a way that attempts to guilt-trip people out of disagreeing with him.

I don't really rely on the "other factors". I tend to want to lay out the statistics on their own merit, and ask "So what are the actual "real-life" effects of this "political movement" that purports to be such a morally important stance, so much so that it seems to be the prime factor in their determining the "moral scorecard" of the candidate. These figures cast a very practical doubt upon this. Stassen sites the study becuase the abortion issue itself depends largely upon OTHER factors aside from the legality of certain procedures. The Bush administration hhas been abysmal in its response to nearly every legitimate social cause. If his "results" are not only NOT improving the situation, but also "turning the trend that was dropping around so that it now begins to increase once again, then the actual merits of their "moral" argument are supsect on practical grounds. If it's really the actual instance of abortions that they are concerned about, then these statistics should give them great pause, that is, if they are interested in actually SOLVING the problem. My take is that a very small portion of these "morally outraged" about abortions actually will be moved at all by these figures (aside from the fact that most of them will simply discount the legitimacy of the study anyway, and do so becuase they've DECIDED PRIOR TO any results that nothng will dissuade them from assuming the rigtheousness of their candidates, based on simply rhetoric.

Bush says "YOu know my record, and I run on my record". The first part is doubtful -- most do NOT know his actual record----- the second is true in that he is running on the only record he actually has: his mouth. His actual MO is something completely foreign to his claims on the stump.

This is the stuff we don't hear. Although we know (or should know) that "precision bombing" is one of those Orwellian adverbial phrases that is more PR than objective fact. This piece from Juan Cole is referred to from within his more recent comments on the results of Lancet Study that speculates some 100,000 dead Iraqi's sinced the fall of Baghdad.

Informed Comment : 08/01/2004 - 08/31/2004

The US Air Force bombed Kut overnight, killing some 84 persons and wounding about 176, according to the Al-Zahra Hospital. Kut is a Shiite city of 420,000 southeast of Baghdad and east of Najaf, which has seen fighting between Mahdi Army militiamen and police. The Kut hospital director, Khidr Fadl Arar, said that many of the dead and wounded were women and children.

I hadn't heard anything about US warplanes bombing Kut on US television news on Thursday. It is useless, but I would like to point out that bombarding al-Sharqiyyah district because it has Mahdi Army fighters is inhumane and probably illegal. Civilians live there, and they will inevitably be hurt by the bombing. Unfortunately, there are no mechanisms for enforcing international law. Apparently, the American public will not even be told by their mass media that the US is behaving in this way.

Amusing comment on David Weinberger's blog , JOHO:

Prayers of Mass Destruction

I personally pray the Rapture comes before Nov. 2 and that it takes Bush and his cronies to Hell to do some nation-building

Married women vote for Bush, single women for Kerry. They say they figure that "security" is important. Realize this, whatever percentage of married women who think we are "safer" under Bush......HELLO! The guy is CLUELESS, inept, dishonest, and doesn't give a rip. He considers it more important to go on vacation than talk to his people about the "system that was blinking red" in August of 2001. NO meetings whatsoever of security council staff. The president was ASLEEP. He is a DANGEROUS person in whom to trust, as are his closest advisors. Don't be fooled. PLEASE. I am afraid of this group. I have a 15-year old son. If Bush is re-elected, he will be in dire danger of having to go to Iraq or some other quagmire, or else get America attacked in horrific ways (ie Nuclear, and if that happens, God help us all (the rest of the world), for they know no other reaction than "proportinal response", or worse. Consider that, mothers who worry about thye security of our nation and your children. I , as a Father of two, worry quite a bit about that.

I have to turn comments off for a while...they shut me down today...

The Seattle Times: Politics: FBI investigating how Halliburton got contracts

The FBI has begun investigating whether the Pentagon improperly awarded no-bid contracts to Halliburton Co., seeking an interview with a top Army contracting officer and collecting documents from several government offices.
The line of inquiry expands an earlier FBI investigation into whether Halliburton overcharged taxpayers for fuel in Iraq, and it elevates to a criminal matter the election-year question of whether the Bush administration showed favoritism to Vice President Dick Cheney's former company.

No comments neccessary-- these clips reflect exactly what scares me:

CORNEL WEST--DEMOCRACY MATTERS IN OUR TIME: LOGOS SUMMER 2004

Free-market fundamentalism--just as dangerous as the religious fundamentalisms of our day---trivializes the concern for public interest. The overwhelming power and influence of plutocrats and oligarchs in the economy put fear and insecurity in the hearts of anxiety-ridden workers and render money-driven, poll-obsessed elected officials deferential to corporate goals of profit, often at the cost of the common good. This illicit marriage of corporate and political elites--so blatant and flagrant in our time--not only undermines the trust of informed citizens in those who rule over them. It also promotes the pervasive sleepwalking of the populace, who see that the false prophets are handsomely rewarded with money, status, and access to more power. This profit-driven vision is sucking the democratic life out of American society.

Democracy matters are frightening in our time precisely because the three dominant dogmas of free-market fundamentalism, aggressive militarism, and escalating authoritarianism are snuffing out the democratic impulses that are so vital for the deepening and spread of democracy in the world. In short, we are experiencing the sad American imperial devouring of American democracy. This historic devouring in our time constitutes an unprecedented gangsterization of America?an unbridled grasp at power, wealth, and status. And when the most powerful forces in a society?and an empire?promote a suffocation of democratic energies, the very future of genuine democracy is jeopardized.

Are there enough democratic energies here and abroad to fight for and win back our democracy given the undeniable power of the three dominant dogmas that fuel imperial America? Or will the American empire go the way of the Leviathans of the past--the Roman, Ottoman, Soviet, and British empires? Can any empire resist the temptation to become drunk with the wine of world power or become intoxicated with the hubris and greed of imperial possibilities? Has not every major empire pursued quixotic dreams of global domination--of shaping the world in its image and for its interest--that resulted in internal decay and doom? Can we committed democrats avert this world-historical pattern and possible fate?

This article is an excerpt from his book Democracy Matters from Penguin Press

More McClaren on Preaching: Church Marketing Sucks: A Conversation with Brian McLaren

If I'm Joe Pastor at the corner church, what can I do to foster a generous orthodoxy?

Then I think what has to happen is that it can't be up to pastors, church members have to speak up and say, 'I see things differently than you, and I hope you can love and respect me and I'll treat you with love and respect.' We need to create space for dialogue. When there's only monologue nothing changes.

The bolded closing words to that quote (my emphasis) points out how the Church is missing the voice of dissent, which only adds to the impression that Christianity is dominated by culture, and that the "dialogue" that needs to happen is dependent upon an outpouring of the Spirit (I'm sounding quite Pentecostal there, huh? But my "liberal theology" is also a believer in the prescence of God, and the work of that amongst us. The missing dialogue occurs not only between us, but with God who is also wityh us, and among us. We need a good dose and revelation of the truth to blow amongst us, and to encompass a wider spectrum of the Church.

Church Marketing Sucks: A Conversation with Brian McLaren

We've got to frustrate people and say the brand identity of Christianity that you are presenting is a terrible portrayal of who Jesus is and what Jesus is about. So that will cause some frustration. That will then require education and some motivation. Those are three good words from your web site—frustration, education and motivation. I very much agree that's what we need.

McClaren raises the question of how far is too far, and I suspect that this is coming from a place where he is convinced that we already have, but he wants to get the Religious Right (and others further to the left who stil support this "war on terror") to realize that there are limits, rather than unquestioning allegiance and support.

Church Marketing Sucks: A Conversation with Brian McLaren

The Assyrians and Babylonians and Persians were the superpowers. They had the horses and chariots. But David felt he was better off without horses and chariots as long as he was trusting God. It's ironic. We Christians in America don't realize we may be more like Goliath than David, more like the Assyrians than the Jews. Even Christians who are completely confident about our country's decision right now should at least remember that it's possible for us to go too far, to go wrong, to trust our weapons and strength rather than the Lord ... and we need to be ready to address that.

From an interview with Brian McClaren

Church Marketing Sucks: A Conversation with Brian McLaren

Right at the heart of Jesus' teaching is this radical idea that the kingdom of God doesn't come through human force. We're always tempted to use human force. In order to see the kingdom of God come without human force, we have to be willing to suffer. But with force we have to see others suffer.

The suffering of others is rarely discussed, if EVER, by these dear Christians of the Religious Right, and this is desdpicable. How do they MISS this clear message of the gospel? They read a very different gospel, and worship a very different God. Meanwhile, "Christ stands at the door and knocks".

It's taking a long time for followers of Jesus to believe he's right about the kingdom of God. I'm not saying there's no place for armies and weapons, I suppose there is in our world. I think I might have said in the book, Psalm 20 says that some trust in horses, some trust in chariots, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. But when you have a lot of horses and chariots as we do, it's easy to trust in them.

Psalm 20 provides a clarity of vision into the minds of the Bush administration. They "trust in chariots" (the modern variety, and also , not-so-modern)

also via The Other JournalAn Interview with Stanley Hauerwas by Dan Rhoades

Hauerwas talks about Bush's "faith":

I mean, I'm sure he's very genuine in his religious faith, I just don't think very much of his faith. For someone like me to say that, you think well that's very arrogant. And its true, it is very arrogant. And I think that one of the things that we suffer from in America is that religious people thinking secularity is such an enemy, that any religious faith is better than no religious faith. That is a deep mistake! There are very perverse forms of religious faith, that, give me a secularist any day compared to some of the forms of religious faith. And I must say, I think that Evangelicalism bares the brunt of a lot of this. I think that it is far to a-ecclesial and Evangelicals tend to turn the gospel in a system of belief rather than a body of people through which we are embraced through God's salvation that makes us different.

The problem here is the almost compliete assimilation of a "Republican" stance as opposed to a distinctly Christian stance. A sad number of people see very little difference. As Camplo stresses in this interview, the justice issues clearly proclaimed in the Bible shows the Republicans to have an abominable record, and that makes them, well "Heretics".

Campolo also points out, the Democrats have problems too. They have problems with the whole siding with "a woman's right to choose" thing, as if it's all a matter of "preference". No, it's responsibility for ALL life, and I abhor the cavalier attitude which encourages women to see these choices as more "career choices" than "life choices". Where I side with Democrats is that there are OTHER factors which contributre to abortion rates than simply saying you're against it. The rates have gone UP under Bush. They're missing something here.

An Interview With Dr. Tony Campolo by Brian Munz

I think that religious radio and religious television has tendency to be more American than Christian, and there has been an uncritical support of national policies. Please don't get me wrong, I think that in times of crisis we should support our nation, but to do so uncritically, and to not raise questions, and to be totally uninformed is not right for Christians.

I am amazed at what people settle for in terms of information. I am appalled at how many do not recognize how Fox News preaches to the choir (Rupert Murdoch's choir). I have read some 13 books since July 4, and countless articles from major news sources. It is amazing how so many can now summarily dismiss sources that cover stories unfavorable to the Bush administration.

It's embarassing how little has been investigated by the Bush suipporters, or have accepted the Murdoch empire view of reality (or Limbaugh, or Bush himself--- which is really scary when people place their trust in someone who still seems to carry over his drastically stunted sense of curiosity about things which SHOULD concern a president of the United States.

Most Christians, studies have indicated, believe that Iraq was involved in 9/11, and this becomes justification for going to war. More than 50% of American Christians believe that we actually discovered weapons of mass destruction. When Christians are that ill-informed and are making judgments and voting without knowing the facts, I think they are guilty of being poor citizens, so far as being Christian citizens are concerned.

More Campolo, from the article at The Other Journal

An Interview With Dr. Tony Campolo by Brian Munz

I think that one of the real fears that we have after 9/11 when our love for America became so intense, is that we tend to forget that our ultimate obligation is not to the United States of America, but to Jesus Christ and to the Kingdom of God. The Bible is quite clear. As Christians, we are sojourners here. We are called in the Bible "ambassadors from God." That is to say that we are in this world, but not of it. And when in fact our patriotism takes precedence over our spiritual commitments, we have to take a good look at ourselves and ask whether or not we have become idolatrous. I think we are on the verge of that in this country.
There's a big argument right now as to whether American Flags should be in churches. Brethren churches and Mennonite churches historically have not had American Flags in the church because they sense the tendency to idolatry that is in patriotism. Now I find that there are Brethren churches that are beginning to put flags in churches. I don't have any problem if you put the flag of every nation in the world in the church, but to single out one nation is to say that this Jesus that we worship calls us to loyalty to one nation above all others? Because I've got to tell you, I am committed to justice for all people,

Emphasis mine--- We -- the Church in America -- are not engaged in being a Confessing Church--- and therefore heretical, and failing to BE the Church.

On flags, I refuse to fly an American flag, or wear it, unless accompanied by , say, other nations flags ---I have a Citizen of the World t-shirt that is covered , front and back, with the flags of most of the nations of the world. I am a WORLD patriot, and the people of the earth are my "nation", as it should be under the "Kingdom of God", and not swept up in nationalistic euphoria. Our alleginace is to a larger power.

via Eric, via The Other Journal
Campolo is one that I wish would do some extensive Bible commentary---or pull together a collection of sermon and book explorations of Scripture. His is a "sociological" theology on which I place a very high value.

An Interview With Dr. Tony Campolo by Brian Munz

Campolo:
I think He would come down hard on the Republicans because they are not committed to justice for the Palestinians, they are so pro-Israel that they forget that there are Palestinian people who are getting their teeth kicked in. I think that they have in fact made patriotism into something that is idolatrous. I really raise questions about the militarism. I really feel that the Evangelical community is overwhelmingly in favor of Capital Punishment, and the Republican Party is there. I believe in a Jesus that says, "Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy."

I think that the Evangelical Community does not ask enough questions about war, and I'm not talking about whether we should have gone to war or shouldn't have gone to war with Iraq, primarily because I think the time has come to raise questions about whether or not a just war is even possible.

Emphasis mine. And no, I don't believe it is, whcih should be the dominant moral consideration for avoiding war at all costs (otherwise, we come to bear with costs unforessen, consequences unforseen, and increased world insecurity. And throw into that mix the insane Neocon administration's "tough talk" and suggestions that we would use them (at a level of suggestion unoprecedented ), then we have a dangerous scenario set up for us by these war-lovers. Yes, I do believe they love it, because they love the money, and the power.

Back to Campolo where I left off:

I mean, I'm not even talking about whether this was a just war, that's for the politicians to argue over. That's not the issue. Can there be a just war if a just war means that innocent people don't die, only combatants die?

The Republicans have this new budget which gave an incredible tax cut to the rich. In order to bring about that new budget, 500,000 boys and girls in inner city tutoring programs lost their tutoring slots. I would think that every Evangelical Christian would be irate. How can they support a party that does such terrible things to the poor?

Becuase they have severely TRUNCATED the gospel. They've "sniped out" whole sections of procalmati on of jubilee, calls for justice, emphases in Jesus' own words to minister to the "least of these". They have replaced the Scriptures with an American Bible (proclaimed by Americans who seek instead the comforts and materialism of the world, but justify it by ignoring large chunks , and therefore bascially all of it.

The environment as a Sacred Trust:

On environmental issues, this administration has been abominable, and I'm asking a very serious question: how can Christians support a party that is reducing all the regulations on the environment to such a degree that we have to worry about our future?

Abominable is the right word. Downright scandalous, and most Republicans who WOULD care about such wholesale gutting of the regulations, and rewarding contributors with regulatory responsibilities. This is like handing over the protection of our Children from excessive negative TV influence over to the advertisers who want to exploit children for their own purposes. Bush handed over responsibility to the former lobbyists for the very industries the EPA was designed to protect us from in their irreponsible tendencies to forgo the public good for the sake of profit.

More:

When it's available, I'll post the link to the archive of the show (from airamericaplace.com) or listen live at airamericaradio.com at Noon Eastern.

Air America Radio | The Al Franken Show

We'll kick things off with Baptist minister Tony Campolo, author of Speaking My Mind. He'll weigh in on the election, and talk about why devout Christianity and right-wing politics don't need to go hand-in-hand.

Makes my blood boil every time these incompetent , corrupt people talk about how they are the ones who will protext us, and when I see polls that show people rate the Bush administration higher on "The War on Terror". The Bush Administration was too busy downplaying Al_Quieda because they thought it was a "Clinton thing" (since the Clinton Administration and Richard Clarke passed to the Bush administration all of its intelligence on Al-Quieda, and Bush's intelligence agency boss, Ashcroft, told an intelligence briefer that he "didn't want to hear any more about Al-Quieda." They were , and they still ARE, clueless. They talk a tough talk, and do absolutely nothing, except deceive us into a war that had nothing to do with 9/11. As I've been saying, show these jerks; these criminally negligent crooks the door on '04)

The 9/11 Secret in the CIA's Back Pocket

It is shocking: The Bush administration is suppressing a CIA report on 9/11 until after the election, and this one names names. Although the report by the inspector general's office of the CIA was completed in June, it has not been made available to the congressional intelligence committees that mandated the study almost two years ago.

"It is infuriating that a report which shows that high-level people were not doing their jobs in a satisfactory manner before 9/11 is being suppressed," an intelligence official who has read the report told me, adding that "the report is potentially very embarrassing for the administration, because it makes it look like they weren't interested in terrorism before 9/11, or in holding people in the government responsible afterward."

David Aikman writes on Beliefnet. I don't know who he is (but he did write a book with Bush A Man Of Faith : The Spiritual Journey of George W. Bush)

I am not prepared to say Bush is not a Christian, but I have grave doubts about whether it should be said that this is "clear" as Aikman puts it. What would make it "Clear" is if it showed in his policies, if he went to church, and if he showed the slightest bit of actual depth of understanding of Scripture. Instead, he applies verses that speak of "The Light of the World" to "The American People". When asked about his "Bible Study", he changes the subject. For someone so "willing to talk about his faith", he seems to be opposed to giving ANY specifics. I have had his supporters tell me that he coudldn't do this "for political reasons". That doesn't wash with me, nor is it consistent with the expectations of a tytpical conservative evangelical, who are expected to be "alwasy willing to give a reason for the hope that is within them". It is insufficient to merely stop at "Christ changed my heart".

Christianity Makes Bush a Better President -- Beliefnet.com

He reads the Bible daily and he prays intensely many times a day. He is, quite simply, one of the godliest chief executives ever to occupy the Oval Office. He is human, and he would be the first to admit he is fallible. But he is, very clearly, a follower of Christ.

Yet more from the Gore speech, on the massive defection taking placer among arc-conservatives who are beginning to notice (or finally speaking up after having enough of it)

Blog for America

An increasing number of Republicans, including veterans of the Reagan White House and even the father of the conservative movement, are now openly expressing dismay over the epic failures of the Bush presidency. Doug Bandow, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and a veteran of both the Heritage Foundation and the Reagan White House, wrote recently in Salon.com, "Serious conservatives must fear for the country if Bush is re-elected…based on the results of his presidency, a Bush presidency would be catastrophic. Conservatives should choose principles over power." Bandow seemed most concerned about Bush's unhealthy habits of mind, saying, "He doesn't appear to reflect on his actions and seems unable to concede even the slightest mistake. Nor is he willing to hold anyone else responsible for anything. It is a damning combination." Bandow described Bush's foreign policy as a "shambles, with Iraq aflame and America increasingly reviled by friend and foe alike."
The conservative co-host of Crossfire, Tucker Carlson, said about Bush's Iraq policy, "I think it's a total nightmare and disaster, and I'm ashamed that I went against my own instincts in supporting it."
William F. Buckley, Jr., widely acknowledged as the founder of the modern conservative movement in America, wrote of the Iraq war, "If I knew then, what I know now about what kind of situation we would be in, I would have opposed the war."

Andersen and many other Republicans are joining with Democrats and millions of Independents this year in proudly supporting the Kerry-Edwards ticket.

Blog for America

The Bush-Cheney administration is a rarity in American history. It is simultaneously dishonest and incompetent.

Yep.

Of course, most of us have heard these reports, via such sources as the 9/11 commission, Richard Clarke and his account in "Against All Enemies" and Bob Graham, Bob Woodward, and others. But Gore tells it here in a powerfully condensed form, and I thought it worthy of another quote. Read the whole article though. Really good.

Blog for America

We know from the 9/11 commission that within hours of the attack, Secretary Rumsfeld was attempting to find a way to link Saddam Hussein with 9/11. We know the sworn testimony of the President's White House head of counter-terrorism Richard Clarke that on September 12 th - the day after the attack: "The president dragged me into a room with a couple of other people, shut the door, and said, 'I want you to find whether Iraq did this…I said, 'Mr. President…There's no connection. He came back at me and said, "Iraq! Saddam! Find out if there's a connection…We got together all the FBI experts, all the CIA experts…They all cleared the report. And we sent it up to the president and it got bounced by the National Security Advisor or Deputy. It got bounced and sent back saying, 'Wrong answer. ... Do it again.' …I don't think he sees memos that he doesn't-- wouldn't like the answer."
He did not ask about Osama bin Laden. He did not ask about al Qaeda. He did not ask about Saudi Arabia or any country other than Iraq. When Clarke responded to his question by saying that Iraq was not responsible for the attack and that al Qaeda was, the President persisted in focusing on Iraq, and again, asked Clarke to spend his time looking for information linking Saddam Hussein to the attack.
Again, this is not hindsight. This is how the President was thinking at the time he was planning America's response to the attack. This was not an unfortunate misreading of the available evidence, causing a mistaken linkage between Iraq and al Qaeda, this was something else; a willful choice to make the linkage, whether evidence existed or not.

This is not negligence, this is deception.

Reading this speech is painful, since it reminds me of what kind of president we COULD have had, as opposed to the imposter we DO have. Bush is embarassingly inept.

Blog for America

Bush has stolen the symbolism and body language of religion and used it to disguise the most radical effort in American history to take what rightfully belongs to the citizenry of America and give as much as possible to the already wealthy and privileged, who look at his agenda and say, as Dick Cheney said to Paul O'Neill, "this is our due."

IN one fell swoop, Bush has hijacked Christianity and Democracy for his neocon dreams (and our nightmare)

Gore goes on:

Blog for America

The essential cruelty of Bush's game is that he takes an astonishingly selfish and greedy collection of economic and political proposals then cloaks it with a phony moral authority, thus misleading many Americans who have a deep and genuine desire to do good in the world. And in the process he convinces them to lend unquestioning support for proposals that actually hurt their families and their communities.

Blog for America

The two most important blocks of this coalition are the economic royalists, those corporate leaders and high net worth families with vast fortunes at their disposal who are primarily interested in an economic agenda that eliminates as much of their own taxation as possible, and an agenda that removes regulatory obstacles and competition in the marketplace. They provide the bulk of the resources that have financed the now extensive network of foundations, think tanks, political action committees, media companies and front groups capable of simulating grassroots activism. The second of the two pillars of this coalition are social conservatives who want to roll back most of the progressive social changes of the 20th century, including women's rights, social integration, the social safety net, the government social programs of the progressive era, the New Deal, the Great Society and others.

What a difference in intellectual capacity and insight between our present President and the one who was righfully our choice, were it not for the massively fraudulent purging of voter registration roles in Florida, among the many other glaring injustices that took place.

Bush would just look at the above quote from Gore and say "Huh? Uhhh... freedom and liberty!"

Al Gore spoke to Georgetown U.

Blog for America

And while I have no doubt that his religious belief is genuine, and that it is an important motivation for many things that he does in life, as it is for me and for many of you, most of the President's frequent departures from fact-based analysis have much more to do with right-wing political and economic ideology than with the Bible.

Most of the problems he has caused for this country stem not from his belief in God, but from his belief in the infallibility of the right-wing Republican ideology that exalts the interests of the wealthy and of large corporations over the interests of the American people. Love of power for its own sake is the original sin of this presidency.

I would say that his "immature faith" makes him easy prey for the Neoconservative, greedy politics to use Chrisatianity (and in the process, severely distort) for their own ends.

I also feel that his lifelong tendency to avoid looking deeply into too much of ANYTHING is also a factor.

The previous post I mentioned how I blog because of how CONNECTED I believe ALL of this to be. Politics, communications, economics, ALL of it is a part of the whole picture which affects our lives. The Church has a huge stake in this, since I believe it is the CALL of the Church to be a community where we leran with each other how to make sense of it all. Politics is crucial becuase I believ it represents THE MOST tangible intersection between what we believe about the world and how we implement som of it IN THAT world. Politics and government, I believe, in THIS country and in THIS democracy (at least what it SHOULD be), is a way to collaborate on the stuctures which we hope will enable a more just ordering.

The Church community is to be a spirtitual and social structure for seeking God's call on us TOGETHER. We need each other for enabling of one another to find what it is that God is calling us to do, and to find a way to mold these divergent calls into mission. Government is a way that our republic has historically instituted a civic structure to protect its people and to promote the common good. That call has become increasingly global in the last century, and certainly in the last decade/ The Church is also global, and has a unique voice in standing up for the "least of these" amongst its nations, and to be a voice for justice among the nations.

When one country, such as ours, has leaders who abandon the higher callings to work for the common good, and instead pursue the things of profits and self interest, there is a dire need for its Churches to speak the truth to power. So blogging, I believe, has been a valuable conduit for the voices of dissent in the Christian Church in America, to proclaim , as Jim Wallis calls it, a new Confession of Christ (or a refocusing on THE confession to which we are spirtitual heirs.

It is crtucial that there are Church communities to contain and care for the ones who are deeply concerned about the direction of this country under the Bush administration, as well as the heresy of the Church in keeping silent, a nd the deeper heresy of aligning themselves with the forces of darkness which proclaim Christ with their lips but are approving of the things which Christ condemned. We need oases of dialogue in the Churches, but it has been the blogosphere where I have found my "catacombs" of Christians who need each other to celebrate the truth amongst all the madness.

We ALL need the Church to be a place where we can share our stories, and to listen as others share theirs, and in that communion, happen upon our gifts, and our call. And to intnetionally structure things in our Churches to enable that commitment to be committed to the Christian formation of each other; to be "accountable" to each other and responsible to keep each other aprised of our latest journey-events.

Blogs have given me an indication that there is much of a very personal nature that can be "mined" from all this passion, and all this personal reflecti on. MOre of it is going on in the blogosphere than I have seen in most Churches. And this should not be. In fact, we need to lift up the blog as a ready resource for peeking into one another's lives, to see what others are concerned and passionate about.

As a Christian, I take issue with this writer On Talking Faith in the Context of Politics. I do this blog because of my deep seated theololgical belief that all of our resources as a nation are to be purposed for the common good. Churches must heed the call they receive as stewards of the call to evanglize by working tirelessly for the enabling of a society where ALL have better opportunbities to realize their own calling, to participate in that larger work.

Talk That Diminishes Faith (washingtonpost.com)

While I agree with Wallis's call for a broader national conversation about religion and politics, I think the Democratic presidential nominee, as well as the Republican, ought to keep religious talk out of the campaign. Voters for whom religious faith makes a difference can have good reason to distrust candidates' talk about their faith. When candidates talk thus they diminish the dignity of faith itself by reducing it to a pious confession of conviction, humility or concern, a mere uttering of earnest words. A thick respect for the mystery of God, for the inability of God to be domesticated to one program or party -- a respect that should be proper to the Christian faith of our presidential candidates -- cannot be honored by such faith-talk in an election season.

This writer should read and listen more to such folks as Jim Wallis (whom he quotes) and Tony Campolo (who, by the way, is going to be on Al Franken for at least the second time--- this is how I got introduced to the Al Franken show on Air America, before later reading Franken's book, Lying Liars) who speak fluently on the inseparability of faith and the calling of politics, which is to serve the public good and be a part of the representative government whose job it is, in my estimation, to be a responsible resource and conduit for activity and discourse for the common good, and to raise awareness of the issues people face, and how to educate ourselves on the major things like economics (which we need so desperately now as people are being sold a bill of goods that nearly every economist I've heard of thinks is absolutely reckless and dangerous), environment, education, health. This president is absolutely unqaulified to be any kind of a host of such discourse, being absolutely unfit for it due to his background of "complete lack of curiosity about civic matters" throughout most of his life (and then on into his actual political offices, becoming known as a "plain spoken man" who "doesn't read much", and talks like someone who fits that bill).

This president is unfit to lead. Aside from his lack of credentials, his performance is even more disturbing, giving every indication that his presidency is all about "seeming to be presidential" all the while being entirely negligent abd outright treasonous by not only not working on maintaining minimal public protection from coiroporations who would put profit over public welfare, but actually helping them to do so. He has become and continues tgo champion the cause of the corporate elite over the rest of the people of the United States. Most of the people who are voting for him do not see how sold out he is to the people who care nothing for them. It's disgusting.

I look forward to seeing this:

CBSNews.com

"The Daily Show" comedy anchor Jon Stewart rails against conventional news, in a 60 Minutes profile that helps explain his recent incident on CNN's "Crossfire." He talks to Steve Kroft, Sunday at 7 p.m.

They have a video of a CBS MOrning show prviewing the 60 minutes piece - real video or Windows Media

He's also going to be on CSpan tonight at 9 ET. He's making the media rounds on his "Book Tour" for America: The Book

Brad writes on providing a place for "evangelism" that brings the journey amongst friends into the focus, which , is as it should be , and MUST be. With the way in which Brad and his Church have taken to Elizabeth O'Connor's writings, and the ideas that the Church of the Saviour has lived inbto their story over the past 57 years in D.C., and the "living room" welcoming, relaxing atmosphere Brad describes here, I am envious, but happy that such a lived story takes place down there in Texas.

A Jewish God-fearer in a room full of Christians: Part 4 - Church, people, missions and evangelism

....providing a resource for spiritual and emotional growth, and helping them realize their full potential, or rather empowering them to become the person that God created them to be.

Our "evangelism" is lived out, focused on truly creating friendships with people and helping them, really ministering to them. Their are no agendas except to really be a friend. It's amazing how open people have been, and even eager to further their journey towards finding who God truly is, just because of the trust we win with them by merely wanting to be a friend, resource, and help. I think in this way we have seen many become students ("disciples"), as opposed to just converts. It places salvation and redemption back into their original contexts, that of a starting point and a long journey of growth.

I find particular resonance in the Living Room model....the welcoming, relaxing, encouraging discussion and story telling atmosphere where stories illuminate a common journey where calling can bubble to the surface, and people can be Loved Into realizing who they were meant to be; to realize the potential for which they were brought into being; their "place" in creation and in the ongoing work of the Kingdom.

Thanks, Brad , for sharing this.

This "new confession" is not NEW at all (which I'm sure Wallis will agree....I know what he emans , though. We need a new emphasis and New attention to these things which are so easily set aside in haste to respond , but such responses are indeed why we need to be dedicated to the discipline of constantly reminding the world what being a follower of Christ is about, and certainly the way of peace is among the "requirements" to be considered "walking as Jesus walked", and asking "What Would Jesus Do?" Are the majority of purchasers of WWJD paraphanalia asking this question of their fellow countrymen in this time of war? I think not, and so Wallis here asks EXACTLTY the right questions, a nd points EXACTLY to the right teachings. And he asks, at the close of this, to "Share this with friends", and so , as a blogger, I bring it.

Sojourners : SojoMail : Back Issues

In this time of crisis, we need a new confession of Christ.
1. Jesus Christ, as attested in Holy Scripture, knows no national boundaries. Those who confess his name are found throughout the earth. Our allegiance to Christ takes priority over national identity. Whenever Christianity compromises with empire, the gospel of Christ is discredited.
We reject the false teaching that any nation-state can ever be described with the words, "the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it." These words, used in scripture, apply only to Christ. No political or religious leader has the right to twist them in the service of war.
2. Christ commits Christians to a strong presumption against war. The wanton destructiveness of modern warfare strengthens this obligation. Standing in the shadow of the Cross, Christians have a responsibility to count the cost, speak out for the victims, and explore every alternative before a nation goes to war. We are committed to international cooperation rather than unilateral policies.
We reject the false teaching that a war on terrorism takes precedence over ethical and legal norms. Some things ought never be done - torture, the deliberate bombing of civilians, the use of indiscriminate weapons of mass destruction - regardless of the consequences.
3. Christ commands us to see not only the splinter in our adversary's eye, but also the beam in our own. The distinction between good and evil does not run between one nation and another, or one group and another. It runs straight through every human heart.

Take action: Share this important theological statement with your friends, family, pastor, and church!
Use the button below to send this critical message - signed by more than 200 theologians and ethicists from across the theological spectrum - to as many people as possible. Spread the word that as Christians, our allegiance to Christ takes priority over any national or political identity

Chilling account of the Project for a New American Centry, signed on to by several of the Bush administration's core group of advisors.

This is old news, but strikingly chilling asthe "first step" in their plans unfolds in Iraq (or what they had naively assumed would be the first step).

t r u t h o u t - William Rivers Pitt | Blood Money

The Project for a New American Century, or PNAC, is a group founded in 1997 that has been agitating since its inception for a war with Iraq. PNAC was the driving force behind the drafting and passage of the Iraqi Liberation Act, a bill that painted a veneer of legality over the ultimate designs behind such a conflict. The names of every prominent PNAC member were on a letter delivered to President Clinton in 1998 which castigated him for not implementing the Act by driving troops into Baghdad.
PNAC has funneled millions of taxpayer dollars to a Hussein opposition group called the Iraqi National Congress, and to Iraq's heir-apparent, Ahmed Chalabi, despite the fact that Chalabi was sentenced in absentia by a Jordanian court to 22 years in prison on 31 counts of bank fraud. Chalabi and the INC have, over the years, gathered support for their cause by promising oil contracts to anyone that would help to put them in power in Iraq.
Most recently, PNAC created a new group called The Committee for the Liberation of Iraq. Staffed entirely by PNAC members, The Committee has set out to "educate" Americans via cable news connections about the need for war in Iraq. This group met recently with National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice regarding the ways and means of this education.

Evangelical is literally "telling the good news", which is the news that Jesus had come and had announced the arrival of the Kingdom of God, and that he is risen and is active in the present. And yet , Bush supporters would have us believe that what is happening now is somehow reconcilable with that good news. The other option is, is that the claims of the Bush camp to be "in sync" with the "evangleical community" is all politics. A quick scan of the New Testament certainly yields results that not only do NOT lift up "war as a holy thing", worthy of full "Christian support" for the agents who wield it, but also seem to speak against the use of war as a "tool". For people to believe that this war will be good for Muslims (usually meaning, in Religious Right dogma that they wil be converted), is the height of folly, and opening the door to the ultimate in evil (ie. demonizing the "other" whom we have targeted as "enemy", and therefore we have "God's sanction" to do , well, basically WHATEVER the "people in charge" say is "the right approach".

NO, this Bush administration is the OPPOSITE of evangelcal. It is bringing death and conflict, all because this group of neoconservatives bent on dismantling democracy in favor of tyraany of the rich and powerful , have decided that one of their dogmas is to "settle" this Middle East conflict once and for all, by force, and on the disturbing notion that our "way of life" is the only solution to "stabilize" this situation, which will "unfortunately" cost thousands of lives as we "show them" who's boss, and seek to install a propped up regime friendly to our economic interests. It's all there in the neocon document, Rebuilding America's Defenses. (articles on it here from an antio-war perspective, and another website summarizing the project (Project For a New American Century) for which this document written

RollingStone.com: News - John Kerry

A few minutes later, we were ushered up to Kerry's suite, where the candidate was tucking into a huge lunch. Gone was the crisp blue suit. He'd changed into khakis and running shoes and had dropped the formal manner. By the door stood a battered guitar case. Through an open door, one could see a framed picture of his wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, on a bedside table. For the hour that we spoke with Kerry, he was conversational and forthright, relaxed but clearly wearing his game face.

I watched a bit of this on CSpan last night

Pentagon official distorted intelligence, report says: printer friendly version

Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee

Among the findings in the report were that the CIA had concluded by June 2002, earlier than has been previously known, that it was skeptical that a meeting had taken place in April 2001 between the Sept. 11 hijacker Mohammed Atta and an Iraqi intelligence official. But Feith and other senior Bush administration officials, including Vice President Dick Cheney, continued at least through the end of 2002 to describe the alleged meeting as evidence of a possible link between Iraq and the Sept. 11 attacks.

Again, still yet another member of the Congress, aside from all those "loonies" out there writing and speaking blasphemy against Bush, which lends credance to the idea that maybe this is a substantial growth of people actually "waking up" and "speaking out" aginst the massive deception, distortion, lying, dragging us into a war that would otherwise be "un-justifiable" (unless massive lies and mass spreading of fear and anxiety based on all those lies were told and accomplished).

Again, these people are dangerous, and diabolical.

At a funeral for the fallen Americans, Bartlett reads from the gospel "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the Children of God". I thought, now there's a verse I don't believe Bush has ever quoted. Not "battle" oreineted enough. The opening episode showed Bartlett having the military response ready and waiting for a signal, but earnestly seeking to bring the Palestinians and the Israelis to the table, while Congree drafts a strongly worded resolution calling on the President to act militarily.

When a delegation for Congress confronts him at the White House, Bartlett leaves the room and tells the delegation leader: "I'm seeking a peacful resolution to this, and when it happens, you're going to have to go and televsion and say why you opposed it.

Renewed in my mind is a post I made a year or so ago, where I lamented how we have such a clueless, militaristic, unarticulate, weak president who has a machine around him convincing a scary amount of people that he's strong and "doesn't waver".

As a Christian, I believe the hesitancy Bartlett showed to military action, and the forethought about consequences, and the urgency to avoid inevitable quagmire, is the choice and the stance of the sound and the moral mind. Bush is NONE of these. On top of those, his MO seems to be that it is all in order to hand control over to the corporations, making their desires policy, and laying a thick layer of nationalistic theocracy over top of it to convince the shallow that this is a "righteous" campaign. I had a friend respond to my lamenting how I wish we had a president who was truly respectable, intelligent, articulate, and moral, truly caring about the country, by saying the obvious: It's just TV, and our REAL president (he's a Bush supporter) has to deal with REALITY. Yeah. He does that SO WELL. I truly believe that Martin Sheen himself has more credentials to be a good president than Bush, who basically has NONE of those qualities, nor does he have the background or prior interest in the intricacies of government, and this is the person that is in the White House.

The level of irresponsiblility, lack of ability to weigh the possible outcomes (and refusing to listen to people who do and who warned him) is , instead, a sign of a dangerous and lethal president. He needs to go.

This opinion piece in Louisville's Courier Journal by Marlow W. Cook, a Republican formerly of Louisville, who was Jefferson County judge from 1962-1968 and U.S. senator from Kentucky from 1968-1975

'Frightened to death' of Bush

I shall cast my vote for John Kerry come Nov 2.
I have been, and will continue to be, a Republican. But when we as a party send the wrong person to the White House, then it is our responsibility to send him home if our nation suffers as a result of his actions. I fall in the category of good conservative thinkers, like George F. Will, for instance, who wrote: "This administration cannot be trusted to govern if it cannot be counted on to think and having thought, to have second thoughts."
I say, well done George Will, or, even better, from the mouth of the numero uno of conservatives, William F. Buckley Jr.: "If I knew then what I know now about what kind of situation we would be in, I would have opposed the war."

I am not enamored with John Kerry, but I am frightened to death of George Bush. I fear a secret government. I abhor a government that refuses to supply the Congress with requested information. I am against a government that refuses to tell the country with whom the leaders of our country sat down and determined our energy policy, and to prove how much they want to keep that secret, they took it all the way to the Supreme Court.

I pray to God that more and more honest and logical Republican Americans begin to notice how many of their number are breaking ranks and seeing the signs of an illegitimate, inept, reckless, arrogant, greedy, unscrupulous and dangerous President we have in the White House.

I am quickly recognizing that hardly a paragraph goes by in this article by Wallis that I don't want to quote in full --- but blogs are for conversation, and this is a GROUP reading with lots of meat in it for us to bandy about and lift up for reflection. Good stuff.

Biblical Budgets seek to help realize the resourcing of jutice-making, in a host of areas. The Republicans say this is not meant to be the job of government. Is it the job of Churches? You bet. But is government ideally a partner? You bet. Can government help in the "making visible" and "bringing together"? You bet. I believe that the work of justice is not an exclusively religous issue. All people can

High Stakes For Church and State, Sojourners Magazine/November 2004

A budget based on a windfall of benefit for the wealthy and harsh cuts for poor families and children is an unbiblical budget. The good people who have run the White House faith-based office were clearly not the ones making policy and budget decisions for the Bush administration. One result of the lack of White House leadership has been the steady rise of the number of people, families, and children living in poverty in each of the last three years, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. And that is a religious issue.

The poll is as one would expect, given the general "popular religion" notions that the one who "talks the talk" is preferrable to one who "walks the walk". Bush got 68% of the votes. Obviously, people look to piety over policy as more reflective of "morality".

To those of us who see the gospel as taking the words of Jesus seriously, the social dimensions of the gospel are unavoidable and clear.

The Moral Urgency of Electing John Kerry -- Beliefnet.com

Despite Americans' readiness after September 11 to sacrifice for our country, our president cut taxes on the rich and on corporations. To do so, he dumped the largest tax hike in history on our children and theirs, squandering a $5.6 trillion surplus and creating a $5.2 trillion deficit. The number of people without health insurance and children in poverty has risen every year under this president.
The post-September 11 period was an historic opportunity to face the great challenges of eradicating global poverty that kills 30,000 children every day, addressing climate change, insuring every American, and checking corporate influence on governance. But that required real moral leadership.

I agree with Mike when he says this article by Wallis is so good, it's "un-excerptable", but as Mike did, I tried as well, but ending up quoting something from nearly every paragraph. This is a great resource for serious contemporary Bible Study that is relevant and confronting. We SO NEED a Confessing Church. But then, again, that would "keep our numbers down", since it's not exactly a popular thing.

Tread lightly: Interesting links: October 2004 Archive

This article is so consistently on the mark IMO that it’s almost unexcerptable. I’m trying anyway: these segments stand out the most to me, and serve maybe as an overview, but do read the entire article for its full effect.

Air America Place - The Al Franken Show Archives

Then we enter the blogosphere, to talk to the author of the excellent TalkingPointsMemo.com, Joshua Micah Marshall. Marshall will bring us his latest discoveries from the outer reaches of the sphere. Recently Marshall has been at the forefront of the fight-back against Sinclair’s plans to air an hour long Swift Boat ad in the guise of a news program and has been all over the Republican attempts to undermine democracy by suppressing the vote.

Listen to the AirAmericaPlace.org archive-- second half of the show---starts with Josh

An accurate assesment when it comes to power, and that there are LESSERof two evils-- in this case.....MUCH MUCH less. Even something of a chance that Kerry (for me) will show some of his previously shown courage and "investigative" exposure of deception.

The Gutless Pacifist

Our concern "for the least of these" may be a compelling reason to support Augustus over
Nero in the quest to be Caesar-not all versions of imperial power are the same. But our enthusiasm for imperial politics should always be tempered by a certain restlessness and dissatisfaction, a wariness and dispassion. Jesus Christ is not only our beginning, motivating us to undertake political acts, but he is also our end, a place far beyond where politics can ever take us.

Unwittingly, Dobson gives us a great ironic joke:

The Gutless Pacifist: Right-Wing Christians Fear The MTV Vote

Dr. Dobson warned, "If you watch MTV today, you will see they are registering those kids who have been filled with propaganda."

So, they should listen to the Christian Right, who can give them the unadultrated truth, free of that "propaganda"? Uhhhhhh. Right.

Good for MTV. Good for Jon Stewart. Take a hint , Network News. You have to work for the truth. It's your job. Equating "inconsistencies" and "misleading statements" as if they are equal is, in itself, misleading. Tell us the truth on the things that matter most.

The "Very" right wing Tampa Tribune said it cannot endorse Bush (they don't like Kerry either, but that they reject Bush is noteworty)

Why We Cannot Endorse President Bush For Re-Election: From The Tampa Tribune

As stewards of the Tribune's editorial voice, we find it unimaginable to not be lending our voice to the chorus of conservative-leaning newspapers endorsing the president's re- election. We had fully expected to stand with Bush, whom we endorsed in 2000 because his politics generally reflected ours: a strong military, fiscal conservatism, personal responsibility and small government. We knew him to be a popular governor of Texas who fought for lower taxes, less government and a pro-business constitution.
But we are unable to endorse President Bush for re- election because of his mishandling of the war in Iraq, his record deficit spending, his assault on open government and his failed promise to be a ``uniter not a divider'' within the United States and the world.

The following is a quote from the last few sentences of a great post on The Village Gate (formerly The Right Christians)

An Open Letter to Christian Conservatives | The Village Gate

You may not feel comfortable in the Democratic Party, and I am not saying you should. But it is painful to watch you be used over and over again by the kind of haughty, arrogant people whom Jesus would have castigated. Wake up and see what wolves you've been allying yourselves with.

Limbaugh: "The left is scared to death of God" ... [Media Matters for America]

From the October 18 edition of The Rush Limbaugh Show:
LIMBAUGH: The left is scared to death of God. They think Bush is a believer, and they got quotes from people that say Bush doesn't think, he just follows his instincts based on how he feels after he prays. He's just -- "this is horrible." They're out there and they're scared to death because they don't understand God. They don't understand a personal relationship with God. They can only think it's trouble.

But, we can see trouble in CLAIMS to be led by God into the horrors Bush has, and still has in store for us if he's not voted out. He's already hoodwinked millions of clueless and frightened Christians who actually trust him (and obviously read only what verifies what they already believe---- Kind of like Bush himself)

Yeah, Rush, I know about personal relationship with God, and none of it gets much coverage our find much in common with the Bush White House. You see, Rush, a "personal" relationship with God, and with Christ, is MUCH more than talk, and musch more than piety. Jesus said that, Rush. And the God with whom we commune at God's inviting calls us to Make a Difference. I've always believed that government is one part of that community of humanity to whom God beckons to do justice and walk humbly.

Jon Stewart, Again in the Crossfire (washingtonpost.com)

"Let me say something about Jon Stewart. I don't think he's funny. And I know he's uninformed," Novak said, peering meaningfully at the audience.
"I think he's funny," said Carville. "I just think he's a pompous ass."

Novak is not much of as judge of comedy, and Carville should talk (although I tend to agree with him most of the time). Stewart has beccome a cult hero for this. He expressed what so many in the progressive community have been wanting to say.

Good to see such (via Mike):

Church Folks for a Better America

We grieve that our nation is not standing for “liberty and justice for all,” nor treating Iraqis as we would be treated. We believe that accountability begins at home, that wise leaders know their mistakes, and that honest leaders admit them. Fear and resentment will never guide us to a just and lasting peace. Any nation that hopes to be “under God” must live for a positive vision of world community, not a blind response to terrorism that tragically makes others see us as if we were terrorists ourselves.

So