Tuesday, November 27, 2007

If Christians don't get in the game...

Today I read the most unbelievably hateful article I have ever read in my life. As I read this article printed by the South Bend Tribune, I sat in astonishment that a publisher would print such hate. By the end of the article, my stomach was tied in knots, and I was sick. It is time to sound the alarm... This is fair warning to all who call themselves Believers in Jesus Christ. If you don't get off the sidelines, get into the game, and get involved, you will lose whatever freedom we have left in America. Persecution is coming QUICKLY if we don't regain the ground we have lost. As my hero in the faith; Janet Folger has stated, "There is a war going on for the future of our country. Most people know that. What they may not know is that if Christians lose, the result won't be just public policy with which we disagree; it'll be a prison sentence for those who disagree."

Yes, we have the right to remain silent, but if we use it much longer, we may hear those words being read to us just before we see the inside of a prison cell. ~Janet Folger


No matter who becomes the next president of the United States, the American people have already won a great victory — with the total disintegration of the once all-powerful religious right.
Starting in 1979, when Jerry Falwell founded the Moral Majority, Christian conservatives have been the most powerful voting bloc in the Republican party. Ironically, they began by casting out of the White House a born-again Christian who continued, as president, his life-long practice of teaching Sunday school, and replacing him with a divorced and remarried man who seldom stepped inside a church.
But of course, Jimmy Carter was a Democrat and Ronald Reagan was a Republican. And by staying united, the religious right has been able ever since to exercise its veto power over Republican candidates and dictate the issues — abortion, same-sex marriage, stem cell research and school prayer — they would campaign on. Until, that is, the presidential campaign of 2008.
Today, the religious right has splintered into as many different factions as O. J. Simpson has alibis. Unable to find one candidate who fits the bill of being both true-blue on the issues and electable, America's ayatollahs have divided their loyalties. Indeed, in some cases, they've even declared war against each other.
The National Right to Life League has endorsed Fred Thompson, even though he opposes a constitutional amendment to ban Roe vs. Wade and admits he only goes to church when visiting his mother — while James Dobson says he's not even sure Thompson qualifies as a Christian. Sam Brownback has endorsed John McCain, who once called Jerry Falwell an “agent of intolerance.” And Bob Jones III and Moral Majority Co-Founder Paul Weyrich have even endorsed a Mormon, because they think Mitt Romney is the only one who can beat Hillary Clinton.
Meanwhile, Mike Huckabee, the only ordained Baptist minister in the race, is almost totally ignored by his fellow Christians because, even though Huckabee scores 100 percent on the issues, they don't think he has a snowball's chance in Hell of winning. Huckabee's only evangelical endorsement comes from Tim LaHaye, co-author of the “Left Behind” novels — which may be the appropriate title for Huckabee's campaign.
And, in one of the most bizarre pairings in politics, Pat Robertson, who blamed gays for Sept. 11 and prayed for a meteor to strike Disney World's gay pride parade, has endorsed Rudy Giuliani — perhaps because he's counting on Giuliani to assassinate Hugo Chavez. James Dobson has said he will never vote for Giuliani, even if it means staying home. But the fact remains that, with Robertson's help, the Republican party could very well nominate for president a candidate who is twice-divorced, thrice-married, pro-choice, pro-gay rights and an occasional cross-dresser.
Merely entertaining Giuliani as a candidate demonstrates that, for many conservatives, political power counts more than Christian values. The religious right is dead. It will never again exercise the political clout it once had — which is bad news for Republicans, but good news for the republic.
While in the long-term, some moderate Republicans might welcome relief from having to genuflect in front of the pro-life movement and Terri Schiavo, the short-term political impact for the Republican party is a disaster. Christian conservatives probably won't vote for a Democrat. They're more likely just to stay home. But the result's the same: Overnight, Republicans have lost their biggest and most loyal bloc of support. It's the political equivalent of Democrats' losing support of the unions.
But for Americans generally, the demise of the religious right is good news. It means tolerance is back. It means we don't have to worry so much about efforts to turn the United States into a Christian nation. It means “secular” is no longer a dirty word. It means politicians will be judged by more important issues than how many times they utter the God word in one sentence. It means the list of moral issues will expand from abortion and gay marriage to include health care, a living wage, global warming, pre-emptive war and torture. In short, the dying influence of Christian conservatives means that people of all faiths, or no faith at all, will feel comfortable participating in the political process — and not just those who subscribe to the narrow-minded, intolerant, mean-spirited brand of religion espoused by Dobson and Robertson. And for that we collectively pray: Thank you, Jesus.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Memo To Rep. Terri Austin: We’re Not Going to Forget Your vote on SJR 7

From Hoosier Access Blog:
Memo To Rep. Terri Austin: We’re Not Going to Forget Your vote on SJR 7
It’s organization day and for SJR 7 supporters, like myself, that means we’re looking forward to what will undoubtedly be a tough battle to let Hoosiers vote on SJR 7-the marriage amendment. Last year Speaker B. Patrick property-tax-decrease Bauer (D-South Bend) failed to uphold his promise to allow a floor vote on SJR 7. Bauer can try to deflect the responsiblity for this failure by pointing out that it was the Rules Committee that ultimately failed to send it to the floor. However, he assigned it to that committee and he could have instructed Rep. Scott Pelath (D-Michigan City), to do everything he could do as committee chair to make sure it got to the floor.
Furthermore, it was the critical swing vote of Rep. Terri Austin (D-Anderson) that let Hoosiers down and partially let Bauer off the hook. In 2005 Rep. Austin had no problem voting for SJR 7. She even pointed out in the 2006 campaign that she was a strong supporter of SJR 7. A few months after her re-election though, Austin, probably under a lot of pressure from her caucus (ie: Bauer and Pelath) buckled and voted against bringing SJR 7 to the floor of the House.
With an election looming next November, the American Family Assocation of IN PAC has put up a banner near a major intersection in Anderson reminding constituents of Rep. Austin’s failure to support SJR 7. While I can’t speak for others, I do know that if Austin does end up having the chance to vote on SJR 7 in committee and ends up being the swing vote that allows us to get a floor vote, marriage amendment supporters will reduce the pressure they have put on her.
Here’s the AFA-IN PAC Banner:


Christianity is a Hate Crime.

At the moment most forms of Christianity are illegal in Islamic Nations and Communist nations (i.e. half of the earth). Adherents are imprisoned and/or put to death. Soon Biblical Christianity will be illegal in the Western World. This is because Christianity is about hatred;i.e.of evil. As child-killing and perversion is law, goodness is criminal.

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Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Rep Jackie Walorkski on the Harvest show


See Representative Walorski speak on the Harvest show about the Indiana Prayer Ban Victory!
Click here to view.