Evangelical movement touts 'Jesus for president'

Spiritual misfits and rabble-rousers...sounds a lot like the prophets of old and the son of man?! When power speaks too many lies and wastes too many lives...the Lord calls to freaks to speak truth to power! Thanks be to God...


(Picture not from CNN)

By Eric Marrapodi and Kate Bolduan

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- They're spiritual misfits. Rabble-rousers. They packed the shell of the old Baptist church on Negley Avenue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to hear author, Christian activist and fellow misfit Shane Claiborne stump on the campaign for a third party candidate, Jesus.

The dreadlocked Christian activist from Philadelphia and his team parked a black school bus around the back. The hand-painted gold letters on the side read "Jesus for President."

The bus runs on vegetable oil and, yes, it's a political statement.

"It'll be a long time before we fight a war over used veggie oil," says Claiborne with a sly smile.

Claiborne is touring the country, packing churches and community centers, in support of the book he and Chris Haw co-authored, "Jesus for President."

"This whole project is about the political imagination of what it means to follow after Jesus," Claiborne said. "The language of Jesus as Lord and savior is just as radical as it would be to say 'Jesus as our commander in chief' today."

Young evangelicals represent an important swing-voting bloc. They're not a lock for Republicans as their parents were. Their feet are firmly planted on issues dear to both parties. Traditional family values are, as they have been in the past, an important issue.

But these voters say views on abortion and homosexuality won't define them in November. The environment and social justice are moving to the forefront of their discussions.

About 26 percent of the United States identifies itself as evangelical Christians in the Protestant tradition, according to the latest U.S. Religious Landscape study by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. In 2004, more than 75 percent of evangelicals cast their vote for George W. Bush.

"They delivered for him in some key states, like Ohio, without which he could not have won," said CNN's Bill Schneider, senior political analyst. "It was the rallying of the evangelical base that Karl Rove developed as a strategy, maximizing turnout among your base voters, not worrying about independents or swing voters."

But polls have shown that evangelicals as a whole, following national trends, are disaffected with Republican leadership and increasingly up for grabs.

Thursday was the fifth night of the tour and it has already seen hundreds show up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Indianapolis, Indiana.

It was a hot, muggy June day in Pittsburgh. About 250 people came through the doors to find there was no air conditioning in the old church-turned-community center. They ran out of chairs so people took to the floors and leaned against the walls.

There were voters from across the board: Republicans, Democrats and independents. Most were young, Christian by background, evangelical in theology, and they say they're hungry for something more than partisan politics.

Steph Walker and Amanda Widing had to settle for seats in the back.

"I would say that social justice and issues like that have definitely arisen as an important part of my faith and, because of that, it affects how I vote and think of those things definitely," said 21-year-old Walker.

She grew up in a Republican household but has switched parties and will vote for Sen. Barack Obama in November.

Widing, 20, is a registered Republican but unsure who she'll vote for.

"There are certain issues where I identify more with Republicans and other issues where I identify more with Democrats, so I really am completely undecided at this point," she said.

Eric Sapp is a founding member of the Eleison group focused on getting people of faith out to the polls for Democrats. He sees younger evangelicals as prime targets to swing.

"These voters are starting to become independent swing voters instead of a lock for either party," Sapp said. "For Democrats, also, it's a successful place because when a group had been voting four out of five Republican and they start becoming a swing constituency that also has significant electoral implications."

Back on stage Claiborne takes the crowd through a multimedia presentation.

"With the respectability and the power of the church comes the temptation to prostitute our identity for every political agenda."

Controversially, he quotes Harry S. Truman and Adolph Hitler, saying each used Christianity to support their ideologies.

The speech is fiery at times, pensive at others. It emphasizes caring for the poor and the downtrodden.

He talks about war and the environment. He also talks about how Jesus stood up to the Roman Empire, a message he believes is relevant to the United States now.

"For many of us, Caesar has colonized our imagination, our landscape and our ideology," he says while a picture of Mount Rushmore flashes behind him. On the screen "Vandalism" pops up in black letters.

Trading lines back and forth from a script with Haw, they save the most wrath for Christians who they say have missed the point of the cross.

"We've profaned the blood at the foot of the cross and turned it into Kool-Aid and marketed it all over the world. We'll make an art and a business out of taking the Lord's name in vain," Claiborne says as images of Christ on the cross and the American flag flash behind him.

They endorse no candidate and make no effort to sway the voters for one party or another.

After the speech in an interview with CNN, Claiborne said, "This is not about going left or right, this is about going deeper and trying to understand together. Rather than endorse candidates, we ask them to endorse what is at the heart of Jesus and that is the poor or the peacemakers and when we see that then we'll get behind them."

Claiborne says the movement of younger evangelicals is growing and looking at the Bible in more holistic terms. He is quick to say the call of Christ has more to do with how people live their lives on November 3 and 5 than how they vote on November 4.

"It's certainly easy to walk into a voting booth every four years and feel like you're going to change the world but that's not going to do it."

After the interview, Claiborne, Haw and the band pack up and head to a local restaurant in search of more grease to power the bus. They find it at a Chinese restaurant a few miles away.

At 11 p.m. they're on the road again. They drive through the night to Washington, sleeping in the retrofitted bunks in the back of the school bus.

The next night in the nation's capital they hit the stump again, calling for young evangelicals to vote "Jesus for President."

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/06/29/evangelical.campaign/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

© 2008 Cable News Network

Five FEC nominees finally confirmed by Senate

It is about freakin' time! What do you get when you combine the worst qualities of an elephant and a donkey? A whole lot of crap!



WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate on Tuesday confirmed five nominees for the Federal Election Commission, breaking a prolonged partisan logjam and allowing the agency to resume functioning.

The nominees were confirmed without dissent after drawn-out talks between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, and a last-minute hang-up over a demand from Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., a campaign finance crusader, to meet with all five nominees.

Though the FEC staff has been at work, the six-member commission has been inactive because it has not had a quorum to conduct business. The commission is the agency that regulates federal elections and campaign finance matters.

"Our nation's campaign finance watchdog was off the beat," Reid said.

The newly confirmed commissioners are Democrats Cynthia L. Bauerly of Minnesota and Steven T. Walther of Nevada, along with Republicans Caroline C. Hunter of Florida, Donald F. McGahn of the District of Columbia and Matthew S. Petersen of Utah.

McConnell called the action "long overdue," adding that the agency "can now resume its critical role of enforcing election laws and ensuring that this election season is fair and equitable to all who are involved."

A key breakthrough came last month when the White House nominated Petersen, the Republican chief counsel on the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, to the commission, replacing another candidate who withdrew after coming under Democratic fire.

Petersen replaced Hans von Spakovsky, a former Justice Department official whose oversight of voting rights matters had angered Democrats. Von Spakovsky served on the FEC under a recess appointment.

The commission consists of three Democratic and three Republican appointees. Any commission action requires a four-vote majority, no matter what size the quorum.

Since the beginning of the year, the commission has only had two members: Republican Chairman David Mason and Democrat Ellen Weintraub.

Earlier this month, President Bush decided to withdraw Mason's nomination, prompting a protest from Reid and from watchdog groups.

Mason has on few occasions voted with Democrats on regulatory matters. Earlier this year, he angered officials in Republican John McCain's presidential campaign by raising questions about a loan McCain obtained and by informing the campaign that it needed a vote of the commission before withdrawing from the primary's public financing system. Earlier this year, the Democratic National Committee filed a complaint with the FEC over McCain's loan and on Tuesday it sued in federal court to compel the FEC to investigate the matter.

McCain has another matter before the commission. He plans to accept $85 million in public money for his general election campaign — a step that requires the approval of the commission. Without an operating FEC, McCain would be unable to collect the money.

The FEC faces unfinished business that includes final action on regulations governing candidate air travel as well as new rules on lobbyist fundraisers and joint advertising by national parties and federal candidates.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/06/24/five-fec-nominees-confirmed-by-senate/

© 2008 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved.

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The Four Agreements

I really like the premise of this article...simple and common-sensible.

Our agreements with ourselves determine how we behave, what we believe is possible and impossible. We have many agreements with ourselves, the only problem is many of these agreements go against us. Self-limiting beliefs rob us of our freedom. We can blame the state of our lives on others, society, or our environment, but we will never be free unless we take responsibility for own freedom.

The agreements you’ve made with yourself can either be an elevator or a cage. Our doubts and fears are not true in themselves. Our deepest beliefs about ourselves and the nature of our world are not true in themselves, but our thinking makes them true in our experience. We can change our thinking and change even our deepest core beliefs.

In the book The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz offers four simple suggestions to change the agreements we have with ourselves, and recover our personal freedom.

1. Be impeccable with your word.

What does impeccable mean? It means to be without sin (no I don’t mean not committing adultery or coveting your neighbor’s bmw). If you look up the root of sin, you’ll find that it means “to go against.” Being impeccable with our word means we don’t use our word against ourselves. If we don’t like what someone else has to say, we can walk away. But if we don’t like what we have to say to ourselves, we can’t walk away. Doesn’t it make more sense to use our word to go with ourselves, instead of against us? Just with this first agreement alone, we can transform our relationship with ourselves.

2. Don’t take anything personally.

We all have a feeling of “personal importance.” We think that when others do something, it has to do with us. In reality, others actions are based on their own internal world. When we realize that nothing others do has anything to do with us, we become immune to their words and actions. Even if someone shot you in the head, it was nothing personal. It had nothing to do with you, it was because of their own beliefs and fears.

3. Don’t make assumptions.

How many times we do we get upset at our loved ones or friends when they do something that offends us. We think “they should have known.” The truth is, no one knows the contents of our minds. When we make assumptions, we create a whole lot of unnecessary drama. Instead we can ask questions, and have the courage to tell others how we feel. If you’re not sure of how another person feels, ask them. If we have the courage to ask others questions and be open with our feelings, we can save a lot ourselves a lot of pain and suffering.

4. Always do your best.

Realize that your best will be different depending on different circumstances. When you’re healthy your best will be better than when you’re sick. Whatever your situation, always do your best. The first three agreements are about changing your agreements with yourself. The fourth agreement is about putting them into action. If you always do your best, you can free yourself from the judge and the victim in your mind. Even if you fail, you’ll know at least you did your best.

Learning From Great Teachers

Whether they knew it or not, many great thinkers and teachers followed these agreements to some degree. Thomas Edison proclaimed “Hell, there are no rules here– we’re trying to accomplish something.” He knew that if there were too many rules, their creativity would be limited.

Gandhi was a master of not taking things personally. He knew that if he responded with violence, he would only promote more violence. He was able to see that their oppression was the result of their own beliefs, their own agreements.

When I think of someone who didn’t make assumptions, Jesus Christ immediately comes to mind. He didn’t judge others for their actions, he had the courage to ask questions and clarify his beliefs.

Albert Einstein knew that if he failed, there was simply another incorrect possibility eliminated. He could have easily become frustrated and given up. But he used the power of his word to go with himself.

Returning to Uncommon Sense

Most of these agreements might seem like common sense at first glance. But they are entirely the opposite. They are uncommon sense. When I first read this book, I thought “My god, how could I have not realized this before?” It’s so deceptively simple.

Implementing these agreements into your life, on the other hand takes hard work. Make the agreement to practice them just today. The more we practice these agreements, the more we’ll regain our personal freedom. We’ll unclutter our inner world save ourselves a lot of drama. Not only with ourselves, but with others as well.

By practicing these agreements, we can chip away at all the self-defeating beliefs we’ve created within us. We can recover our personal freedom.

Copyright Illuminated Mind 2008 | Design by Jonathan Mead

Original article here.

On the Church Bulletin...

The resurrection is an event of its own kind, occurring in history yet defying the current canons of the study of history; it is, in the full sense of the words, an act of God. If it did not happen, Christian faith is false and the Christian lives out a lie; since it did happen, all our standards of judgment, and we ourselves, are profoundly called into question, but Christ is fully alive, and there is hope for us who can wonder, doubt -- and believe.

James William McClendon, Jr.
(1924-2000)

Republican Chuck Hagel a good choice for Obama V.P.?

I think Jack Cafferty may be on to something here...but, is it something that Senator Obama is capable of hearing? We'll see.



Posted: 02:22 PM ET
FROM CNN’s Jack Cafferty:

Barack Obama has already made history in this campaign, but what if he does it one more time by picking a Republican as his V.P.?

Salon.com reports about the buzz surrounding GOP Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska as a potential choice for Obama. Hagel admittedly is a long shot for the job. Just imagine the symbolism: Obama could truly hit home the message that he’s serious about changing the way Washington works by running with a Republican.

And there’s no better Republican for him to run with than Chuck Hagel. Hagel is retiring at the end of his term. He has been very tough on President Bush when it comes to the war in Iraq. Last year, Hagel said that Bush was “not accountable anymore” and that “before this is over, you might see calls for his impeachment.” Hagel was also recently critical of his longtime friend, John McCain… particularly some of McCain’s comments about Iran. Hagel said he thinks McCain “is smarter than some of the things he is saying.”

The article points out that although many tout Hagel as a moderate Republican who’s willing to reach across the aisle, he’s still a conservative. And there’s the rub. Former Sen. Bob Kerrey, a Democrat and friend of Hagel’s, says it would be hard to imagine his party backing someone who’s anti-choice, anti-civil rights for gays and anti-gun control, adding “It’s not impossible, but it’s bumping right up on the edge.”

For his part, Hagel has yet to endorse John McCain. It’s been reported that Hagel’s wife gave Obama $500 in February. And, in a CNN interview last month, Hagel himself laughed off a question about being Obama’s running mate, but he didn’t rule it out saying he’s “going to try and find some honest work.”

Here’s my question to you: What message would it send if Barack Obama picked Republican Chuck Hagel as V.P.?

© 2008 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved.

476 F. 3d 981, reversed and remanded.

Boo Yeah! Not so fast Mr. Bush...looks like your unitary, tyrannical powers just got checked! Blessed be the Supreme Court of the United States of America. Habeas Corpus is no longer resting in peace! Live free or die! Speak truth to power!



Syllabus

KENNEDY, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which STEVENS, SOUTER, GINSBURG, and BREYER, JJ., joined. SOUTER, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which GINSBURG and BREYER, JJ., joined. ROBERTS, C. J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which SCALIA, THOMAS, and ALITO, JJ., joined. SCALIA, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which ROBERTS, C. J., and THOMAS and ALITO, JJ., joined.

Teen Shot, Killed In Hunting Accident by Grandfather with AK-47

W.T.F?! Why in the hell would you go hunting with an AK-47 assault rifle? That is not sport. That is not game. That is not honoring the spirit of the hunt. That is not stewardship of creation. What a waste...sigh.



LAVACA COUNTY, Texas -- A 14-year-old boy was accidentally shot and killed in a hunting accident by his grandfather, investigators said.

According to the Lavaca County Sheriff's Office, Taylor Michalec's grandfather said he was walking behind the teen when the trigger on his AK-47 assault rifle snagged a branch and discharged, striking the teen in the back.

The shooting happened Wednesday afternoon near County Road 290, about five miles west of Moulton, Texas, about 100 miles east of San Antonio.

Both his father and grandfather tried to administer CPR, but when EMS responders arrived, the teen was pronounced dead. Michalec had just completed his freshman year at Steele High School, where he was a member of the football team.

Lavaca County investigators said they will not file any charges on the boy's grandfather because the shooting appeared to be an accident.

POSTED: 3:36 pm CDT June 12, 2008
UPDATED: 5:47 pm CDT June 12, 2008

Copyright 2008 by KSAT.com All rights reserved.

4 teens remembered as model Scouts

I post this simply to honor the fallen...no other words.



(CNN) -- Four Boy Scouts who died Wednesday when a tornado swept through a wilderness camp were remembered for the very qualities that had brought them to the camp in the first place.

Josh Fennen, 13, Sam Thomsen, 13, Ben Petrzilka, 14 , and Aaron Eilerts, 14, were among 93 Boy Scouts who were chosen by their troop leaders to attend leadership training this week at the Little Sioux Scout Ranch outside Omaha, Nebraska.

In addition to the deaths, 48 scouts and staff members were injured.

Friends and relatives on Thursday described the fallen scouts as multitalented, dedicated teens whose enthusiasm for life was matched only by their passion for scouting.

As a member of the Humboldt Boy Scout Troop No. 108 in Eagle Grove, Iowa, Aaron Eilerts used his own money to make pillowcases for hospital patients, according to a story that was published in the Eagle Grove Eagle last year.

He tried to donate the pillowcases to hospitals during a family vacation to Memphis, where he visited the home of Elvis, one of his heroes, the newspaper said in an article that was reprinted Thursday.

Aaron extended the same dedication to making fleece blankets for the Humane Society, according to the Omaha World-Herald.

"He embodied everything Scouting stands for," Dawn Sievertsen, principal of Robert Blue Middle School in Eagle Grove, Iowa, told the newspaper. "He would start these projects to earn badges, but took them very seriously and would continue them long after he earned the badge."

People who knew Josh Fennen of Omaha said he used many of the skills he learned in scouting in everyday life.

"We'd go hiking. He was a good hiker. He knew what to do, how to start fires and good with pocketknives," Josh's best friend, Jack Cormaci, told affiliate KETV. "He'd always be there when you needed him, always playing outside."

Jeff Alfrey, the principal at Andersen Middle School, where Josh recently finished eighth grade, described Josh as inquisitive and confident, with natural leadership qualities, according to the Omaha World-Herald.

"He was a good student, a hard worker, and he was always trying to be creative," Alfrey told the newspaper.

Sam Thomsen, who was days away from his 14th birthday, divided his time among the Boy Scouts, sports, home-schooling and the Southwest Church of Christ, according to the Omaha World-Herald.

Sam's Facebook page, where he last wrote, "Sam is ready for a week in the great outdoors," lists his interests as Jesus, football, video games and the Roadrunners, a basketball team for home-schooled children, according to the newspaper.

"He's just a great kid," Dr. Jim White, pastor of Southwest Church of Christ, told the newspaper. "He was a typical teenager, always has a smile on his face. He was just a joy to be around."

Ben Petrzilka, who just finished seventh grade at Mary Our Queen Catholic School, was remembered as kind and caring.

"He always gave it his best effort. It is a very devastating loss to the school," principal Kayleen Wallace told the newspaper.

A candlelight vigil was scheduled for Thursday evening at the Durham Scout Center in Omaha, the Boy Scouts said.

Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/weather/06/12/scouts.tornado/index.html

© 2008 Cable News Network

What song is this?

Now that is quite impressive!

Website Lets Christians E-Mail Friends After Rapture

I have to thank my pastor, Stan Wilson, for letting me know about this important communication tool. I told him that he should put me on his list so that I can cover at church for him. I am sure that most of the members will still be around!



Christians who believe they might one day be physically swept up to heaven in the Rapture will be able to send e-mails to loved ones left behind on Earth nearly one week after the apocalyptic event takes place, thanks to a new website.

YouveBeenLeftBehind.com lets subscribers send an e-mail message to up to 62 people exactly six days after they've disappeared from the face of the Earth, Wired Magazine's Threat Level reports.

The website, run by Mark Heard along with four other Christians, dispatches the e-mails when at least three staff members fail to log in for six consecutive days. Its main purpose is to give Christians one final shot at evangelism.

"You've Been Left Behind gives you one last opportunity to reach your lost family and friends for Christ," states the website.

The site is predicated on one interpretation of Christian theology that puts the day of Rapture as the beginning of The End Times or Armageddon. Believers, according to this viewpoint, would be physically lifted up to heaven while those who have not accepted Christ would be left behind to suffer seven years of Tribulation under a global government headed by the Antichrist.

In addition to the e-mail function, users of YouveBeenLeftBehind.com can also store personal and financial documents on the site. Up to 150 megabytes of information would be sent to up to 12 people after the presumed rapture.

"In the encrypted portion of your account you can give them access to your banking, brokerage, hidden valuables, and powers of attorneys," explains the site.

"There won't be any bodies, so probate court will take seven years to clear your assets to your next of kin. Seven years, of course, is all the time that will be left. So, basically the Government of the Antichrist gets your stuff, unless you make it available in another way."

The services offered by the site cost $40 a year. Heard told Threat Level that he already has paying subscribers.

Some Christians have praised the idea.

"I do believe in the rapture. As far as the website goes I think it’s a great idea, because if you believe in the rapture (like me), you know that the time remaining on earth is short and is going to be the worst days the world has known. However, those left behind still will have the opportunity for salvation which is the message I would want to get across," wrote one Christian identified as "skinthemboys" on a forum site for Washington Redskins football fans.

But the site also has plenty of critics that include both Christian and non-Christian bloggers. Some call the site "ridiculous" and "disgusting."

"In a world where only 16% of 16 to 29-year-old non-Christians express favorable view of Christians (Barna, 2007) , and only 3% of 16 to 29-year-old nonChristians express favorable views of evangelicals... we Christians should try to avoid doing stupid stuff like this," vents Jonathan McKee, president of The Source for Youth Ministry, on his blog.

Heard told Threat Level that he has politely responded to some of the site's critics and has turned their negative comments into "constructive criticism" for improvements to the site.

Elena Garcia
Christian Post Reporter
Sun, Jun. 08, 2008 Posted: 11:55:48 AM EST

Obama beats back criticism over head of VP search

Mr. Obama, you must always speak truth to power...even if you are that power. Jesus said, "Why do you see the speck in your brother's eye but fail to notice the beam in your own eye?" Matthew 7:3. I personally do not expect perfection...only your best! Yes, you can...speak truth to power!



(CNN) – Barack Obama on Tuesday brushed aside the notion that the head of his vice presidential search committee, Jim Johnson, contradicts the campaign's message because he has received favorable loans from Countrywide Financial — one of the companies at the center of the nation's mortgage crisis.

"I am not vetting my VP search committees for their mortgages," Obama said during a press conference in St. Louis, Missouri. "I mean this is a game that can be played — everybody you know who is anybody who is tangentially related to our campaign I think is going to have a whole host of relationships."

The comments come two days after the Wall Street Journal reported that Johnson was the recipient of over $7 million worth of home loans from Countrywide, made available through a program for friends of the company's chief executive officer.

Countrywide has taken a big hit during the current subprime loan crisis. Obama has often taken aim at the practice of issuing subprime loans.

The Republican National Committee immediately seized on that report, saying Johnson's appointment "raises serious questions about Obama’s judgment." Presumptive Republican nominee John McCain also criticized Obama, saying Monday that Johnson’s role "suggests a bit of a contradiction, talking about how his campaign is going to be not associated with people like that."

Obama tapped Johnson, a longtime Washington insider, to head his vice-presidential search late last month. Johnson held the same role for then-Democratic Presidential Candidate John Kerry in 2004. He has long been known for keeping a low profile while holding some of Washington's most powerful posts, including heading up mortgage giant Fannie Mae and the Brookings Institution.

Johnson is currently a vice chairman of Perseus LLC, a private banking firm.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Obama suggested Johnson's past loans are irrelevant to his current position with the campaign.

At some point you know we just asked people to do their assignments," he said. "These aren't folks who are working for me. They are not people you know who I have assigned to a job in the future administration, and ultimately my assumption is that this is a discreet task that they are going to performing for me in the next two months."

McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds said it is "preposterous" for the Illinois senator to claim Johnson isn't working for him.

"Barack Obama has castigated Countrywide Financial, but now that Jim Johnson has been exposed for taking sweetheart deals from Countrywide’s CEO — Obama is in a state of denial," Bounds said. "It’s that brand of weak leadership and hypocrisy that shows why Barack Obama has no record of taking courageous stands or making change in Washington.”

June 10, 2008
Posted: 01:00 PM ET
From CNN PoliticalTicker Producer Alexander Mooney

© 2008 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved.

Kucinich introduces Bush impeachment resolution

I wish to be officially on record in support of the impeachment of President Bush. My previous blog posts will serve as my own justification for this severe, yet constitutionally, proscribed legal remedy. Our Republic means nothing if we allow the actions and crimes of George Bush to stand without sanction. Come on my fellow Republicans and Democrats...don't be so feckless and do what your job requires of you!


WASHINGTON (CNN) — Rep. Dennis Kucinich, a former Democratic presidential candidate from Ohio, introduced a resolution to impeach President Bush into the House of Representatives Tuesday, having the clerk of the House read the 35-article document in its entirety.

Kucinich, who last year introduced a resolution to impeach Vice President Dick Cheney, announced his intention to seek Bush’s impeachment Monday night when he also read the lengthy document into the record.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has repeatedly said she would not support a resolution calling for Bush’s impeachment, saying such a move was unlikely to succeed and would be divisive.

Most of the congressman’s resolution deals with the Iraq war, contending that the president manufactured a false case for the war, violated U.S. and international law to invade Iraq, failed to provide troops with proper equipment and falsified casualty reports for political purposes.

Kucinich also charges that Bush has illegally detained without charge both U.S. citizens and “foreign captives” and violated numerous U.S. laws through the use of “signing statements” declaring his intention to do so.

The CNN Wire
June 10th, 2008
Posted: 10:29 PM ET

© 2008 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved.

‘Anything Not to Go Back’ to Iraq

Even a "good" or "necessary" war (if such a thing really exists) is physically and emotionally violent; but, when that violence is combined with a growing awareness and realization that the current war in Iraq is neither good nor necessary, the distress and fear can be too great to handle...even for the great American soldier. I hope you feel this distress and fear too, Mr. Bush! This is the reality of war; this is why I follow in the Way of a Peacemaker. Speak truth to power!



By Tony Dokoupil
NEWSWEEK
Updated: 12:12 PM ET Jun 7, 2008

As an internist at New York's Mount Sinai Hospital, Dr. Stephanie Santos is used to finding odd things in people's stomachs. So last spring when a young man, identifying himself as an Iraq-bound soldier, said he had accidentally swallowed a pen at the bus station, she believed him. That is, until she found a second pen. It read 1-800-GREYHOUND. Last summer, according to published reports, a 20-year-old Bronx soldier paid a hit man $500 to shoot him in the knee on the day he was scheduled to return to Iraq. The year before that, a 24-year-old specialist from Washington state escaped a second tour of duty, according to his sister, by strapping on a backpack full of tools and leaping off the roof of his house, injuring his spine.

Such cases of self-harm are a "rising trend" that military doctors are watching closely, says Col. Kathy Platoni, an Army Reserve psychologist who has worked with veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. "There are some soldiers who will do almost anything not to go back," she says. Col. Elspeth Ritchie, the Army's top psychologist, agrees that we could see an uptick in intentional injuries as more U.S. soldiers serve long, repeated combat tours, "but we just don't have good, hard data on it." Intentional- injury cases are hard to identify, and even harder to prosecute. Fewer than 21 soldiers have been punitively discharged for self-harm since 2003, according to the military. What's worrying, however, is that American troops committed suicide at the highest rate on record in 2007—and the factors behind self-injury are similar: combat stress and strained relationships. "It's often the families that don't want soldiers to return to war," says Ritchie.

Soldiers have long used self-harm as a rip cord to avoid war. During World War I, The American Journal of Psychiatry reported "epidemics of self-inflicted injuries," hospital wards filled with men shot in a single finger or toe, as well as cases of pulled-out teeth, punctured eardrums and slashed Achilles' heels. Few doubt that the Korean and Vietnam wars were any different. But the current war—fought with an overtaxed volunteer Army—may be the worst. "We're definitely concerned," says Ritchie. "We hope they'll talk to us rather than self-harm."

URL: http://www.newsweek.com/id/140478

© Newsweek 2008

A Response to Cal Thomas' Assertion that "Barack Obama Is Not a Christian"

Ah yes, the Joy of Cal Thomas! I do not find Cal Thomas to be an evil man...I have agreed with some of the things he has said in the past; however, his recent blog post (full text below) on The Fox Forum neatly captures the pitfalls of fundamentalism. No one will ever be morally clean enough or doctrinally pure enough to satisfy the insatiable appetite for souls and reputations that modern day Pharisees live off of! And, in the end, doctrine and pure faith are not really what fundamentalists seek…they are seeking power for themselves in an effort to militaristically impose a false gospel of might makes right and divisiveness onto those who have already been abused by sin and ruined by religious hypocrisy.

On the contrary, our true gospel rejects fear, demands selfless giving even to the point of death, elevates love to the highest level of character and motive, embraces sinners, sounds the call to social justice, speaks truth to power and to self, makes disciples that know and live all of the words of Jesus, judges actions and fruit rather than doctrinal distinctives and flashy foliage, struggles towards redemption, encourages us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling, and cares more for the one lost than the 99 saved.

I have one Lord whom I personally call Jesus. My knee bends only to him. I do not embrace our political leaders as my religious instructors and do not expect them to fit my enigmatic belief structure. We are not calling a pastor to serve and equip the flock, we are electing a president to execute the laws of the nation according to our Constitution. To be completely honest, I currently doubt whether a disciple can be equally faithful to Jesus and to the American flag. There is only one rule and realm of life that we can seek first…so I will seek the rule and realm of a gracious God and his faithful son, and then give to Caesar that which is Caesar’s.

Finally, I wonder if Cal Thomas, and those of his ilk, are willing to allow others to pick their faith and actions to pieces like vultures on a carcass. I know that I could not stand-up to such…my heresies are numerous and my feet are fissured clay! What president would he like to bring forth as our exemplar for Preacher and Priest-in-Chief? Ronald Regan…who heard counsel from his wife’s astrologer and divorced his first wife? Of course not Bill Clinton…who tried to mount everything that moved; but, publicly confessed his sin once caught in the snare of his lies. What about the great General Eisenhower…oops, he kept a mistress and warned about the tyranny of military-industrial power. President Lincoln was a man of faith and action…but during the Civil War he egregiously circumvented the Bill of Rights and expressed distrust of the profiteering capitalists of industry and their trampling of the poor workers. The great defender of religious liberty, Thomas Jefferson, sired children with a slave and pen-knifed the miracles of Jesus out of his Bible. Do the deistic, Masonic doctrinal distinctives of George Washington negate the service, character, and greatness of our first president? Sheesh...

Speak Truth to Power!




By Cal Thomas
Posted on Monday, June 2nd, 2008 at 4:14 pm
Syndicated columnist/FOX News Contributor

Religion is a topic that makes most journalists uncomfortable, unless they can expose hypocrisy — as in preachers who speak of virtue while carrying on an affair — or outrage such as Rev. Jeremiah Wright and the doings at Barack Obama’s now former church in Chicago. Most journalists think taking religion seriously might require them to study the claims of various faiths and too many of them have already decided this might lead them to a faith higher than themselves or politics and they don’t wish to take such a journey of personal discovery.

That is too bad, because such an attitude exposes one of the main gaps between most Americans — who believe in God — and most journalists, who don’t.


An exception is Chicago Sun-Times columnist Cathleen Falsani, who interviewed Obama in 2004 for her book, “The God Factor: Inside the Spiritual Lives of Public People “and asked him specific questions about his religious beliefs.

“I’m rooted in the Christian tradition,” said Obama, who has declared himself a Christian. But then he adds something that most Christians will see as universalism: “I believe there are many paths to the same place, and that is a belief that there is a higher power, a belief that we are connected as a people.”

Falsani correctly brings up John 14:6 (and how many journalists would know such a verse, much less ask a question based on it?) in which Jesus says of Himself, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” That sounds pretty exclusive, but Obama says it depends on how this verse is heard. According to Falsani, Obama thinks that “all people of faith — Christians, Jews, Muslims, animists, everyone — know the same God.” (her words)

If that is so, Jesus wasted his time coming to Earth and he certainly did not have to suffer the pain of rejection and crucifixion if there are ways to God other than through Himself.

Here’s Obama telling Falsani, “The difficult thing about any religion, including Christianity, is that at some level there is a call to evangelize and proselytize. There’s the belief, certainly in some quarters, that if people haven’t embraced Jesus Christ as their personal savior, they’re going to hell.” Falsani adds, “Obama doesn’t believe he, or anyone else, will go to hell. But he’s not sure he’ll be going to heaven, either.”

Here’s Obama again: “I don’t presume to have knowledge of what happens after I die. When I tuck in my daughters at night and I feel like I’ve been a good father to them, and I see that I am transferring values that I got from my mother and that they’re kind people and that they’re honest people, and they’re curious people, that’s a little piece of heaven.”

Any first-year seminary student could deconstruct such “works salvation” and wishful thinking. Obama either hasn’t read the Bible, or if he has, doesn’t believe it if he embraces such thin theological gruel.

Obama can call himself anything he likes, but there is a clear requirement for one to qualify as a Christian and Obama doesn’t meet that requirement. One cannot deny central tenets of the Christian faith, including the deity and uniqueness of Christ as the sole mediator between God and Man and be a Christian. Such people do have a label applied to them in Scripture. They are called a “false prophet.”

I hope some national journalist or commentator with knowledge of such things asks Obama about this and doesn’t let him get away with re-writing Scripture to suit his political ends.

http://foxforum.blogs.foxnews.com/2008/06/02/barack-obama-is-not-a-christian/

© 2008 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved.

Mississippi Country Roads

Today, my friend Chris and I drove the back roads from Jackson, MS to Ellisville, MS for a Make-A-Wish Foundation of Mississippi news conference. Along the way, we saw some beautiful rural scenery; but also some amazingly disturbing and provocative examples of religious expression...at least in our opinion. I wonder how Alexis de Tocqueville would muse about the state of American faith and polity today?! Chris and I would like to share our pictorial discoveries with you.




Did Aaron's golden calf grow up?



Yes, I would like a Happy Meal and could you please sodomize the fries, please.



Also, be prepared to stop for people preparing to meet their God!



This is just plain wrong?! Sheesh! If you knew baptists like I knew baptists, you would be experiencing shock and awe!



Thanks again, Chris, for providing the pictures on your Flickr Photostream! Any rights associated with these pictures are reserved by Chris Kennedy.

How to harvest solar power? Beam it down from space!

Man, this is way out cool! Don't freak out...think it out!



LONDON, England (CNN) -- Jyoti is the Hindi word for light. It's something Pranav Mehta has never had to live without. And he is lucky. Near where he lives in Gujarat, one of the most prosperous states in India, thousands of rural villages lack electricity or struggle with an intermittent supply at best.

"We need to empower these villages, and for empowerment, energy is a must," Mehta said. "Rural India is suffering a lot because of a lack of energy."

By 2030, India's Planning Commission estimates that the country will have to generate at least 700,000 megawatts of additional power to meet the demands of its expanding economy and growing population.

Much of that electricity will come from coal-fired power plants, like the $4 billion so-called ultra mega complex scheduled to be built south of Tunda Wand, a tiny village near the Gulf of Kutch, an inlet of the Arabian Sea on India's west coast. Dozens of other such projects are already or soon will be under way.

Yet Mehta has another solution for India's chronic electricity shortage, one that does not involve power plants on the ground but instead massive sun-gathering satellites in geosynchronous orbits 22,000 miles in the sky.

The satellites would electromagnetically beam gigawatts of solar energy back to ground-based receivers, where it would then be converted to electricity and transferred to power grids. And because in high Earth orbit, satellites are unaffected by the earth's shadow virtually 365 days a year, the floating power plants could provide round-the-clock clean, renewable electricity.

"This will be kind of a leap frog action instead of just crawling," said Mehta, who is the director of India operations for Space Island Group, a California-based company working to develop solar satellites. "It is a win-win situation."

American scientist Peter Glaser introduced the idea of space solar power in 1968.

NASA and the United States Department of Energy studied the concept throughout the 1970s, concluding that although the technology was feasible, the price of putting it all together and sending it to outer space was not.

"The estimated cost of all of the infrastructure to build them in space was about $1 trillion," said John Mankins, a former NASA technologist and president of the Space Power Association. "It was an unimaginable amount of money."

NASA revisited space solar power with a so-called "Fresh Look" study in the mid-90s but the research lost momentum when the space agency decided it did not want to further pursue the technology, Mankins told CNN. By around 2002 the project was indefinitely shelved -- or so it seemed.

"The conditions are ripe for something to happen on space solar power," said Charles Miller, a director of the Space Frontier Foundation, a group promoting public access to space. "The environment is perfect for a new start."

Skyrocketing oil prices, a heightened awareness of climate change and worries about natural resource depletion have recently prompted a renewed interest in beaming extraterrestrial energy back to Earth, Miller explained.

And so has a 2007 report released by the Pentagon's National Security Space Office, encouraging the U.S. government to spearhead the development of space power systems.

"A single kilometer-wide band of geosynchronous Earth orbit experiences enough solar flux in one year to nearly equal the amount of energy contained within all known recoverable conventional oil reserves on Earth today," the report said.

The study also concluded that solar energy from satellites could provide power for global U.S. military operations and deliver energy to disaster areas and developing nations.

"The country that takes the lead on space solar power will be the energy-exporting country for the entire planet for the next few hundred years," Miller said.

Russia, China, the European Union and India, according to the Pentagon report, are interested in the concept. And Japan, which has been pouring millions of dollars into space power studies for decades, is working toward testing a small-scale demonstration in the near future.

But a number of obstacles still remain before solar satellites actually get off the ground, said Jeff Keuter, president of the George C. Marshall Institute, a Washington-based research organization. "Like any activity in space, there are enormous engineering challenges," he said.

One major barrier is a lack of cheap and reliable access to space, a necessity for launching hundreds of components to build what will be miles-long platforms. Developing robotic technology to piece the structures together high above Earth will also be a challenge. Then there is the issue of finding someone to foot what will be at least a billion-dollar bill.

"It will take a great deal of effort, a great deal of thought and unfortunately a great deal of money," Keutersaid. "But it is certainly possible."

And Miller, of the Space Frontier Foundation, said he thinks it will be possible in the next 10 years.

"We could see the first operational power satellite in about the 2020 time frame if we act now," he said.


By Lara Farrar

Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/05/30/space.solar/index.html

© 2008 Cable News Network