Saturday, December 04, 2004

Wizbang....Vote or Die.

Guys please go vote over at Wizbang for best blogs. You can vote once a day in the various categories. Protein Wisdom sooo deserves best humour blog. He is a very very bad boy, but he is freaking hilarious. Go vote for him. Politburo Dikat deserves your vote for best top 100 blogs. He's a commie that rocks. Best military blog goes to 2slick because...well...he is too slick. Best Blog Design should go to Cold Fury. Best of the top 100-250 blogs should be blogoSEFERICS cuz he is funny, but serious. Best overall blog to me goes to Powerline. And finally The Kerry Spot for best new blog. Both for all the news before anyone else had it.

Diggers Realm linked to a story that Michelle Malkin did on a sweet and nice obituary written for a man that killed his two kids. Digger's entry was entitled "How Would You Write An Obituary For A Child Killer?
http://www.diggersrealm.com/mt/archives/000491.html

This man killed his 2 daughters before killing himself in a nasty custody dispute. It's disturbing to be sure. Digger wanted everyone to know that the little girl's memorial services are today. Keep their mother especially in your prayers.

Sometimes this world just sucks.

Late Night's Top 10 Politically Incorrect.

Among the top 10 list of politically charged words and phrases, issued by the word usage group Global Language Monitor the computer term "master/slave," (referring to primary and secondary hard disk drives) was chosen as the #1 politically incorrect term. It was banned as racially offensive by a Los Angeles County purchasing department. (So there's proof)
Also in the top 10 were "non-same sex marriage" to describe heterosexual unions, "waitron" for waiter or waitress and "higher being" for God, a term some people found too religious. (Seriously, could it get any less religious than "higher being?") Also on the list this year were "Red Sox lover," to use in place of "Yankee hater," "progressive" for classical liberal, "incurious" rather than more impolite invectives for President Bush, (What?? no Bushitler???), "insurgents" instead of terrorists in Iraq , "baristas" for waiters, and "first year student" rather than freshman. via Yahoo News
I'm surprised "moonbat" didn't make it.

Come lay on the couch and tell me your problems...or scream....whatever.

I had heard of the therapy sessions going on in Boca Raton Florida where people had been tramatized by the elections, but I still thought this article was a joke at first. Here's a few excerpts:

"Twenty John Kerry supporters met for their first group therapy session in South Florida Thursday, screaming epithets at President Bush as they shared their emotions with licensed mental health counselors. The first of several free noontime therapy sessions at the American Health Association in Boca Raton was designed to treat what mental health counselors have dubbed Post Election Selection Trauma (PEST).

Robert J. Gordon, AHA executive director, told the Boca News after the session. “It’s no joke. People with PEST were traumatized by the election. If you even mention religion, their faces turn blister-red as they shout at Bush.”

“I’m scared,” said one man. “Democracy is at stake and nobody is rising to protest this president.” “I want to be a patriot, but it’s impossible to be a patriot in an immoral war,” said another participant, a woman. “Bush is breaking up marriages and dividing families by keeping our troops in Iraq.”

“The media outlets, especially Rush Limbaugh and his ilk on talk radio, scare our patients to death,” said Gordon, facilitator for the meetings. “More than anything else, people with PEST tremble physically.”

“In psychology, we call it ‘learned helplessness.’ After you zap a caged dog twice, he stops moving because he knows there is no place to go. That’s what happened with these Kerry voters. They’ve been zapped so many times that they’re on the verge of giving up on politics.”

Cooperman, also a practicing psychic, added, “One person today said he thinks the country is now run by fascists."

Perhaps instead of therapy sessions, these people need reality sessions. For instance....a belief in smaller government, lower taxes, and moral values is NOT FASCIST! (Despite what any highly respected psychic might say)

You know, yelling and cursing at the President of the United States might not be the most mature way to handle your concern. It just makes you look like a loon.

And Rush Limbaugh is not scary. He is just very very rich. Seriously, he is just a voice on the radio, unlike the ones in your head, you don't have to do what he tells you to do.

If mentioning religion causes your face to turn blister red there might be an exorcism in your future. And once we get this whole democracy thing turned around into the theocracy that we plan, you can bet your little beezlebub you'll get one.

Wait....did I say that out loud?..Oops.

Anyway, the only thing more ridiculous than these therapy sessions is the fact that these loonie's insurance companies are paying for it.


Friday, December 03, 2004

I don't know who is hosting for Rush today, but they just read the parody article I posted Wednesday on "Canada busy sending back Bush-Dodgers." (which was e-mailed everywhere) and he could not have read it in a less funny way. Somethings just need to be read, not said.

I guess the President listened to me and picked Bernard Kerik for Homeland Security. I also strongly recommended Condi for the Sec. of State thing as well. What? You don't think he reads this blog? I just got a Christmas Card from him and Laura yesterday..... so there. (I really don't think they send out many of those...;-)

Jeff at Beautiful Atrocities has this on Barbara Boxer's novel "Lucky Bitch." Someone please tell me that is a joke or something because one could seriously be misled into thinking it was a autobiography.

Jeff also has this from Erotrash:

"Every morning I walk along the streets of New York & there are all these women who tie their scarves just so. In exactly the same way. Round the neck once & tucked into the coat. Like they're Jennifer Aniston. Like that's someone you'd actually want to be. They're buffed, toned, entirely hairless, manicured, pedicured, facialed, plucked, waxed, moisturised, walking talking perfectly made-up shiny-haired automatons from hell."

Everytime I go to NY and see these women I feel the same way. They are all Katie Couric/Kathie Lee Gifford clones. I use to listen to Kathie Lee go on and on about her kids on her morning show. Let me tell you, being a former actress, I know what it takes to look that perfect. A HECK of a lot of time. From hair to nails to waxing to facials. Do all that and do your job and you don't have jack time for kids, I can tell you that. Not to mention the constant self promotion that eats up their days. Not to be harsh, but come on. Any one of us who have had little ones knows that taking care of them is wonderful, but also alot of work. How many moms out there reading this can tell me how many times when you were taking care of your little ones you looked at the clock and it was 1:30pm and you realized you hadn't taken a shower or brushed your teeth??? Forget facials and manicures, if I got through the day showered, supper cooked, and with the kids still alive, I called it victory!

When Eurotrash wondered where he could live where things were different, this one commenter struck me as a true optimist.

16: Face it, everywhere's sh*t. It's either beautiful countryside full of ignorant superstitious peasants, brain-sucked suburbs with parents on Valium and kids bored enough to smoke glue, or miserable cities full of needles, sarcasm and tw*ts. There is no "where", this is all you get.
Posted by
fridgemagnet at 1:08 pm on 12.01.04

Wouldn't you love to work with this guy? I'm thinking he is a boatload of fun!
I kinda resent the brain-sucked comment, but the Valium is not a bad idea....;-)

Thursday, December 02, 2004

The journalism of blogging.

N.Z. Bear has a interesting article at Tech Central about bloggers and journalism. He ends the article with this:

"To the die-hard old-media types who sneer at "blogging as typing" and bloggers as pajama-clad losers, then, we can quite simply say: laugh while you can. Time is not your friend, because before long, people like us will have your jobs -- and people like you will be a fading memory, shuffled away to the same journalistic dustbin as and black-and-white photos on the front page of the Times."

Hat tip to The Asylum who also has his take on the blogging world.

I have been reading alot about bloggers in general and I find it interesting (and I don't know if anyone has really noticed this) but right leaning journalists seem to love bloggers, while left leaning ones are the ones with the sneering comments.

I also never hear left leaning journalists praise left wing bloggers in any way. But I could have missed it, seeing I tend to avoid reading left leaning journalists. Maybe it is because of the Right's love of freedom opposed to the Left's love of knowing what is best for all of us.

I happened upon the blogging world just before the Dan Rather story hit. I watched AMAZED that day as LGF , Hugh Hewitt , Instapundit, and Powerline and others took off with the story that seemed too incredible to be true. Could a mainstream television news network actually be putting out a false document that demeans the President in such a way that it may affect the election? I mean we all understood that a democratic operative would do that, but a highly respected news anchor??? Agree or disagree with Rather, it was astonishing to me what the bloggers were uncovering.
I remember linking them that day and saying ,"It doesn't look good for Rather," and a leftie commenter saying "let it go....you are all going to look like fools."

Well, we all know now who looked like a fool and it sure as heck wasn't the bloggers. I have to wonder if and when Fox news would have caught on to this story. (Lets face it, the others wouldn't have even tried) But even Fox might not have, assuming as most did, that someone like Dan Rather would never put out there a completely false document. But even then, by the time Fox News got the typography expert and the story together, would the damage already have been done to President Bush?

I guess we will never know. Would it be too dramatic to say that the bloggers may have stopped the political destruction of Bush and because of that we are not looking at a Kerry presidency?

I know that I am grateful to the bloggers who grabbed onto this story and hung on like a pit bull in a fight. It was a turning point in the way news is made, if only that the MSM now know that there are fact checkers looking over their shoulder, not for a paycheck, but for love of country. The bloggers will make sure the story is true and that it is being told fairly.

I don't think bloggers have much of an influence outside of the computer and journalism world though. Even though the bloggers are getting more recognition, most people I know don't even know what a blog is. The only reason bloggers were able to make an impact, even with the Rather story was because Fox News picked up the story. If there was no Fox News, the story probably would have slowly leaked out into places like National Review and maybe finally U.S. News and World Report. Probably too late.
Who knows ?

The future of blogging will be interesting to watch. Will it grow and become totally mainstream or will it just be a helping hand to journalists? All I know is that I am glad they were there when it was critical to be there.

My top pick for replacing outgoing Sec. of Homeland Security Chief Tom Ridge is Bernard Kerik, the former New York police chief during 9-11 who is presently training Iraqi police.

Before becoming NY's police chief, Kerik was a fearless narcotics detective. He went undercover to buy drugs in Harlem, seized millions of dollars of cocaine from the druglords of the Cali cartel, and was awarded the Police Department's Medal of Valor for saving the life of a fellow officer.

He impressed me during 9-11 with his calm but firm demeanor and determined leadership qualities. I read his memoirs, "The Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice," a beautifully written story of a tragic life turned around for good.

Any of you who read the post about my father knows that that kind of story truly touches my heart. People who overcome adversity and become great men (or women) seem to always be the kind of person you want in leadership. It is the kind of leader who understands what life can do to us and how to rise above it. In Iraq, he is dubbed the "Baghdad Terminator" for his no-nonsense style in rebuilding the city's police force.

The day before the election Kerik wrote a piece in the NY Post on why he was voting for Bush. Go read it, it will make you even more proud of your vote.


And then in the not so important news category, Caroline Kennedy is once again auctioning off some Kennedy items with Sothby's auction because " I found myself again with more houses and belongings than I could possibly use or enjoy." I feel that way all the time. Don't you? I even have some of the 'stuff' she is auctioning off. Thats right, lil ole me, one of the masses. I never make quite that much for my stuff at my garage sales though. Here are a few of the items:

"A fibreglass kitchen tray, some old suitcases, chipped china and a few tumblers.
A pair of folding suitcase racks described as "mid-20th century" and incomplete sets of crockery ($150-$200) as well as tables with nicks and what the New York Times describes as "painted pieces [that] are missing some of their paint". From The Gardian

The last Kennedy auction earned 7 times what they estimated, netting $34.5m (£18m), earning it the title "the sale of the century".

This recent auction just strikes me as wierd. I don't know why. I just don't see why she doesn't donate to some museum or even give it away. It isn't like she needs the money. And these items aren't the quality stuff her mother had that brought so much money in last time. Oh well, her stuff, her life.

And finally, leave it to Jeff at Protein Wisdom to make a really sick news story into a really sick funny news story as only Jeff can. This is a take on the teacher, Debra Lafave, who had an affair with her 14 yr old student you might not have thought of. (warning---naughty alert).

Wednesday, December 01, 2004

Sister Support. Not.

Frankly I don't see how Condi Rice stands all that is thrown at her. I hope she doesn't read articles like this from BlackAmerica.com. Once again the smug liberal condescension raises it's ugly head. This from another black successful woman:

"Although I have not been a fan of yours, I offer my sincere congratulations on your nomination to be U.S. secretary of state. What an honor to ascend to one of the most prestigious posts in the world’s most powerful government – fourth in line to the presidency! – and to present “America’s face to the world,” as President George W. Bush put it, as that of a black woman.
Of course, you can expect some tough questioning – especially about your role in thwarting terrorism as the president's national security adviser – a role which, among others, former White House terrorism czar Richard Clarke says you essentially blew. Unless someone slips some sodium pentothal into the White House Kool-Aid, we’ll never know will we?"


Oh, it gets better....

"As you no doubt realize, yours is an amazing opportunity. Not only can you help repair the damage done to our national image by your boss’s intransigence, arrogance and smugness ensconced in his policy of pre-emption and unilateralism, but you can help repair the rift between the administration and 50 million Americans who voted against him.
Having spent the last four years or so cozying up to Bush and carrying his water, you’ve won his confidence and favor."


"...... You can use the political capital you’ve collected over the years to move Bush toward a wiser course. Put that able mind to work for truth and reality, not in service to some pompous ideology based on ethnocentrism, supremacy, hegemony, daddyism – “we know what’s good for you” – or bullyism – “my way or the highway.”

She ends on the usual liberal high note.

Now, I must admit, that I will be astonished if you step up on these matters because, frankly, your record of speaking truth to power is not very good. Certainly, it would come as a surprise to your patron to find that his favorite girl is no longer a yes-woman, willing to go along with ill-timed, ill-informed and perhaps even treacherous plans. But, seize the day. Show ol’ Dick Cheney what’s what.

This was written by Deborah Mathis, who is a nationally syndicated columnist and former White House correspondent for the Gannett News Service. (Yet another example of 'objective' white house news reporting, I'm sure.) She is the author of two books,
"Yet A Stranger: Why Black Americans Still Don't Feel at Home "and
"Sole Sister: The Joys and Pain of Single Black Women."

I can't imagine why she is single. If she talks this way to successful black sisters, imagine how she must talk to the men in her life.

You Big Mouth, You! blog is asking for a blogging challenge to help in raising money for Spirit of America. "This program answers requests by the United States military and civilians for goods and services that will improve the lives of ordinary Iraqis and Afghanis. All funds donated through this blog will go to the Iraqi Project Fund. There's no overhead. 100% of your donation goes to the project."

It seems it is basically helping our soldiers help others. Listed as one of the things provided by this charity is that they contributed equipment to Iraqi-owned television stations to establish a better alternative to Al Jazeera. That alone is worth it to me.

I got this in an e-mail. It may be all over the net, but I thought it was funny:

Canada busy sending back Bush-dodgers.

The flood of American liberals sneaking across the border into Canada has intensified in the past week, sparking calls for increased patrols to stop the illegal immigration.

The re-election of President Bush is prompting the exodus among left-leaning citizens who fear they'll soon be required to hunt, pray and agree with Bill O'Reilly.

Canadian border farmers say it's not uncommon to see dozens of sociology professors,animal-rights activists and Unitarians crossing their fields at night. "I went out to milk the cows the other day, and there was a Hollywood producer huddled in the barn," said Manitoba farmer Red Greenfield, whose acreage borders North Dakota.The producer was cold, exhausted and hungry. "He asked me if I could spare a latte and some free-range chicken. When I said I didn't have any, he left. Didn't even get a chance to show him my screenplay, eh?"

In an effort to stop the illegal aliens, Greenfield erected higher fences, but the liberals scaled them. So he tried installing speakers that blare Rush Limbaugh across the fields. "Not real effective," he said. "The liberals still got through, and Rush annoyed the cows so much they wouldn't give milk."

Officials are particularly concerned about smugglers who meet liberals near the Canadian border, pack them into Volvo station wagons, drive them across the border and leave them to fend for themselves. "A lot of these people are not prepared for rugged conditions," an Ontario border patrolman said. "I found one carload without a drop of drinking water. They did have a nice little Napa Valley cabernet, though."

When liberals are caught, they're sent back across the border, often wailing loudly that they fear retribution from conservatives. Rumors have been circulating about the Bush administration establishing re-education camps in which liberals will be forced to drink domestic beer and watch NASCAR.

In the days since the election, liberals have turned to sometimes-ingenious ways of crossing the border. Some have taken to posing as senior citizens on bus trips to buy cheap Canadian prescription drugs. After catching a half-dozen young vegans disguised in powdered wigs, Canadian immigration authorities began stopping buses and quizzing the supposed senior-citizen passengers. "If they can't identify the accordion player on The Lawrence Welk Show, we get suspicious about their age," an official said.

Canadian citizens have complained that the illegal immigrants are creating an organic-broccolishortage and renting all the good Susan Sarandon movies. "I feel sorry for American liberals, but the Canadian economy just can't support them," an Ottawa resident said. "How many art-history majors does one country need?"

In an effort to ease tensions between the United States and Canada, Vice President Dick Cheney met with the Canadian ambassador and pledged that the administration would take steps to reassure liberals, a source close to Cheney said. "We're going to have some Peter, Paul & Mary concerts. And we might put some endangered species on postage stamps. The president is determined to reach out."

Tuesday, November 30, 2004

The Belmont Club has this:

"Senator Norm Coleman has called for the resignation of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan for his role in the maladministration of the U.N. Oil-for-Food program. Coleman, who chairs the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and a member of the Foreign Relations Committee charges that Annan allowed the Oil-for-Food program to become a covert program for subverting the very sanctions they were intended to enforce."

They have much more and really covers this whole scandal. I just cannot believe that Kofi Annan has not been asked to step down before now.
But I have to say it concerns me that Clinton wants this job. I wonder what the chances are that he could actually get it?


WND has an article about a Principal at a Georgia High School who recited a parody prayer over the intercom that has circulated the internet for years. Of course the usual "offended" parties called in. Here's the prayer:

Now I sit me down in school
Where praying is against the rule.
For this great nation under God

Finds mention of Him very odd.
If Scripture now the class recites,

It violates the Bill of Rights.
And anytime my head I bow

Becomes a federal matter now.
Our hair can be purple, orange or green,

That's no offense; it's a freedom scene.
The law is specific, the law is precise.

Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.
For praying in a public hall

Might offend someone with no faith at all.
In silence alone we must meditate,

God's name is prohibited by the state.
We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,

And pierce our noses, tongues and cheeks.
They've outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.

To quote the Good Book makes me liable.
We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,

And the "unwed daddy,'' our Senior King.
It's "inappropriate'' to teach right from wrong,

We're taught that such "judgments'' do not belong.
We can get our condoms and birth controls,

Study witchcraft, vampires and totem poles.
But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,

No word of God must reach this crowd.
It's scary here I must confess,

When chaos reigns the school's a mess.
So, Lord, this silent plea I make:

Should I be shot, my soul please take!
Amen.


Maybe not the best thing for a Principal to read, but there isn't a thing in there that isn't true and that is the saddest thing of all.



Rolling Stone has a interesting article on why Bush won. David Gergen points some voting trends about the democrats that I wasn't aware of:

"The Democrats are in danger of sliding down. They haven't won a majority of the white vote since 1964. They haven't won fifty percent of the national vote since 1976. And in the last six congressional elections -- starting with 1994 -- they haven't cracked 48.5 percent of the national vote. This is a party that needs to have some deep rethinking -- not simply go out and turn a few dials."

Although I find this encouraging, I don't see how the democrats can really 'rethink' things. They are who they are. What the elections depend on is who the voters want. My guess is that they will do the only thing that can be done. Sound centrist, but govern to the left when they get there.


U.S. News and World Report Dec. 6th edition says that Top officials expect that the marine under investigation for shooting an unharmed insurgent (the whole Kevin Sites thing) will be cleared despite the media outcry. ( and it WAS just the media) The officials argue that the soldier knew about booby-trapped bodies and he felt he had less than a second to shoot or be killed. One official suggested that the public would support a decision not to prosecute.

Can I have a AMEN?

The Writ of Wisdom has some more "I'm sorry" pics with hilarious captions. He even has a bad girl..but guys, come back here, ok???

This from Fox News:
CHICAGO — Mayor Richard Daley's (search) 29-year-old son has enlisted in the Army and will soon report for duty in the airborne infantry.

I don't know why I find this interesting except for the fact that the Daley's have long been known as a democrat dynasty and you have to know that it is not exactly the first choice of a career that he would want for his son. Listen to this..umm...not so ringing endorsement:

"Asked about his own feelings toward the war in Iraq , the Democratic mayor said: "You stand by the president; you stand by the men and women of the military."

I wish the best of luck to Daley's son, who could be sent to Iraq within a year.

I suppose you saw the NBA's Piston/Pacers brawl on TV, since they showed the clip every five minutes! I happen to come across this quote from columnist Clarence Page.

" the jaw-dropping footage has aired over and over again like an ad for some sort of a "Negroes Gone Wild" video."

Yow! Only a liberal black journalist could get away with saying that. Yet, ironically in the same column Page sneers at Rush Limbaugh for saying this (among other things):

"This is the hip-hop culture on parade. This is gang behavior on parade minus the guns. That's the culture that the NBA has become."

I guess Page has a "your a liberal black, you can say anything" card.

I found the column interesting because all I could think of during the brawl was how stupid everyone involved in it was. The basketball players for losing it and the fans for throwing beer on someone who could probably snap their neck in a matter of seconds. The color of the idiots never occurred to me. I blogged on the incident earlier and felt that sports itself, from little league to the big leagues was out of control. It all starts with the parents. Just like everything else. I just found this take on color a little strange.

Sunday, November 28, 2004

MSM, where is this story?

Ok, I promise not to quote from 2slick's blog every single day, but he received an e-mail from Army officer serving in Task Force 2-7 CAV. His unit went into Fallujah on Nov. 8th and in the e-mail he describes it. It is a fascinating discription of the battle. But I found these points interesting:

"They (the Marines) also found unbelievable amounts of drugs, mostly heroin, speed, and cocaine. It turns out, the enemy drugged themselves up to give them the "courage" and stupidity to stay and fight.The enemy tried to fight us in "the city of mosques" as dirty as they could. They fired from the steeples of the mosques and the mosques themselves. They faked being hurt and then threw grenades at soldiers when they approached to give medical treatment. They waived surrender flags, only to shoot at our forces 20 seconds later when they approached to accept their surrender."

So..... drugged up idiots would throw grenades at our guys even as the Marines were attempting to give medical care to them. And yet again we hear about "faking." I swear if that Marine that NBC's Kevin Sites exploited gets into ANY trouble over what he did, it will be wrong and unjust.

" Soldiers took fire from heavy machine guns (.50 cal) and came across the dead bodies of fighters from Chechnya, Syria, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Afghanistan, and so on...no, this was not just a city of pissed off Iraqis, mad at the Coalition for forcing Saddam out of power. It was a city full of people from all over the Middle East whose sole mission in life was to kill Americans. Problem for them is that they were in the wrong city in November 2004."

In other words, we killed thousands of these monsters from all over the middle east and he says we have 900 in custody who seem pretty willing to talk. Weren't we always asked "Why go into Iraq? They didn't attack us on 9-11." What Bush understood was that no country attacked us on 9-11. Hate and bigotry attacked us and it had no country. Our boys just killed thousands of those hate filled fanatics who had the weapons, the plans, and certainly the inspiration to kill us. Now we have some singing as well.

Do you think it is possible for the critics of this war to now see that we needed to do this? That those fanatics will never hurt or kill Americans now? That we will uncover plans and bring down what is left of these enemies of ours? Is it possible? Perhaps it could be if what this soldier wrote about is told. If Americans can see the whole picture and get a clear understanding of all that we have accomplished here.

The Army officer also says:

"It was amazing to see how the American military had brought the world's most evil city to its knees."

I want to see that too. Don't you?

God, I hope we do.




Vote the right way...or God gets mad. Did you know that?

Is there is anything more condesending to read than the MSM writing about Christians, especially evangelical Christians? (of which I am not one, but I know many) In this ABC news article this is the very first "Christian" quote:

"I believe Our Lord elected our president and I believe he put him in office and it is my prayer that he will sustain him in office," said one woman at the Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

The ABC article goes on to say this about those Christians:

"They believe that if their agenda is not implemented quickly — if their concerns are not addressed in a timely fashion — God will be angry."

We do??? Notice he didn't say "many Christians" or "some Christians." He used the word "They" to imply all Christians.

Then the ABC reporter asked the pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church about the millions of Americans who are not Christian, or have a different interpretation of Christianity, Kennedy said with another laugh: "I couldn't care less. It's true."

I wonder how long it took this reporter to find a church where he could make sure the pastor and the parishioner sounded kooky enough. One woman, not even named, speaks for all evangelicals I suppose. And of course the Pastor HAS to sound intolerant and dismiss what others think by saying " I couldn't care less."
How many pastors do you know that would say something like that? I grew up in the deep south, raised in the Methodist and Baptist Church. Why is it that I never heard this kind of "I speak for God" talk?

I have about had it with this kind of smug reporting. Do Christians ( and other religions for that matter) believe that God listens to prayers and moves to answer prayers? Yes. Are those prayers always answered in the way we want them to be? No. They are answered in the way God wants them to be.

I don't think many Christians believe that God elected Bush. The people of America elected Bush. Did prayer sustain Bush during the election? Did prayer move people to vote? Did prayer change people's hearts? I'm sure it did. Prayer is powerful, believe me, I know. But I also believe that God does not care about politics. He cares about us.

The media likes to portray Christians in this backwoods church kind of way because that is the way most of them see us. My entire family from cousins to Aunts to Grandparents are all college educated, many with post graduate degrees, doctors, teachers, and lawyers, and they are all Christians as well.
What the media does not understand is that faith is the foundation of our lives therefore it does affect the way we vote, but it does not prevent us from reasoning and deciding certain issues in an intellectual way.

Finally the reporter ends the story with this:

"Evangelicals say Kennedy may seem intolerant, but there's no greater love than upholding the will of God."

Evangelicals say that? As a group? Is that written some where? No greater love than upholding the will of God? WHAT???? I've been a Christian for 30 yrs and I have never heard that one.
Imagine this reporter writing something where he speaks for all blacks, or all Jews, or even all Texans??? These blanket statements are not only unfair, but untrue.

The media doesn't have to be a Christian to understand our concerns. It doesn't have to agree with those concerns. But a little respect might be nice.


One interesting side note: I noticed in the ABC article mentioned above it says:

"By one measure, conservative Christians comprised 12 percent of the electorate this year — the same as four years ago."

Yet in a related ABC article , ( from Rueters, but it is from the same ABC news page) it says this:

"Unprecedented turnout by evangelical Christians was a key factor in ensuring Bush's narrow victory over Democrat John Kerry in the election."

So which is it? Was it an unprecedented turnout or the same as four years ago? Someone want to call ABC and check? Because it seems that whichever spin fits the story is the one they go with.

Gloria Borger with U.S. News and World report has a interesting article on why democrats lost. I know this topic has been run into the ground, but this part really says it all:

"When did the party of the little guy, the middle class, and working moms become the party of the intelligentsia, of Hollywood moguls, of left-wing billionaires?"

The answer to that is simple of course. The democrats became that party when they starting sharing the same values (or lack thereof) of the intelligentsia, Hollywood moguls, and left-wing billionares.

Sometimes we have to face the mirror and change what we know to be wrong. Not that I want to give democrats advice, but it is time for them to return to at least looking out for the little guy. At least then I could have some respect for them.