The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age

    Earthquake - A Warning to Republicans?

    By NCD on Thu, 08/25/2011 - 8:11pm |

    Pat Robertson speaking today:

    ".... it seems to me the Washington Monument is a symbol of America's power, it has been the symbol of our great nation, we look at that monument and say this is one nation under God," he continued. "Now there's a crack in it, there's a crack in it and it's closed up. Is that a sign from the Lord? Is that something that has significance or is it just result of an earthquake? You judge, but I just want to bring that to your attention.."

    I agree, there may be clear evidence of a sign from above.

    The earthquake shook the ground 38 miles from Richmond friends. Do you know Richmond, its history?

    Richmond was the capitol of the Confederate States of America.  Blood of Americans flowed like rivers in its streets.  Richmond was the site of many battles, it saw the last battle of the Civil War and the surrender of Lee to Grant.  I need not tell you that that evil war took hundreds of thousands of American lives and shook this nation to its core.

    If the quake was a 'sign from the Lord', do you really believe that God would choose that hallowed ground to shake by accident? Do you believe, as Rev. Robertson muses, that The Hand that shook Richmond on August 23rd may have been sending a message? A message that reverberated through American soil all the way to the nation's capitol?  To the place where the premier monument to the Father of our Nation, has now been damaged, and is now closed!

    Was it a chance event? Or a message to those who would divide this nation again today!

    Is God warning the Republican Party that the ghosts of Richmond must not be raised anew? Eric Cantor and his cabal of demagogic rabble take pleasure in risking the future of this nation and its solvency, they appear to want to plunge it into the abyss with their 'rule of the minority', their lies, their unconstitutional pledges to extremists like Grover Norquist.

    Why an earthquake on August 23rd? Is it a coincidence that August 23rd was the date that the first Confederate Minister of War left this world?

    Leroy Pope Walker, under Jefferson Davis, personally ordered the bombardment of Fort Sumpter, the violent act of war that started the War Between the States, the Civil War.  It was his acts that sought to forever divide this nation in two. We know, as Lincoln said in 1858 when the opportunity to avoid war was still alive, 'a house divided against itself cannot stand'.  That is a fact that is as true today as it was then. It is also well known other countries, like Britain, supported the Confederacy because they knew that a divided America would be weak.

    The Republicans today have not learned from this history.  They are once again talking secession, their leading candidate, Rick Perry, has proposed it for the state of Texas.

    Enemies of this nation are licking their chops and biding their time, hoping that the crack that was rendered in Washington, DC, propagates and expands across this nation and its government, destroying this country from within. Only by seeking compromise and unity can this nation, the greatest the world has ever seen, survive and prosper in these difficult times.

    Comments

    As a Charlottesvillian, I want to share this Haiku:

     

     

    Tuesday the Earth moved
    We ran downstairs and outdoors
    To be close to it.

    Thanks.  I just needed to share this.


    by CVille Dem on Thu, 08/25/2011 - 9:08pm

    Well  done.


    by Oxy Mora on Thu, 08/25/2011 - 11:06pm


    by Richard Day on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 6:16pm

    Big picture:  Pat Robertson is an ass-hat.

     

    Has this charlatan ever noted a positive thing that might be the G Man rewarding us?  If god is so almighty and all he can do is crack the Washington Monument, he seems like pretty much of a pussy to me.

     

    Just saying

     


    by CVille Dem on Thu, 08/25/2011 - 9:14pm

    Of course if the GOP gets their way, we will see more damage done to the country and the world than even Robertson can conjure up in his bigoted greedy little mind.


    by NCD on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 12:09am

    If there was a message it would be,
     
    You have failed to take care of the widows and the orphans as I commanded you.
    You have failed to care for my sheep.
    You have perverted justice.
    You in high places have refused to care for the needy.

    Vengeance is mine.

    I will cause great shaking to occur, I will release the four winds because you have disobeyed.

    Your deficit excuses do not sway me, you had money for wars.

    You gave big tax breaks and punished the needy.

    What do you say to that, Pat the Robber.


    by Resistance on Thu, 08/25/2011 - 10:08pm

    George W: "" Holy Shit, there's a crack in my dick!"


    by jollyroger on Thu, 08/25/2011 - 11:25pm

    Reminding me of the Tower of Babel

    Washington DC

    "let us build a phallic tower, clear to the heavens, so we will be remembered"  


    by Resistance on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 12:52am

    Actually, I've been thinking (hypothetically, of course) about what you said about how God doesn't cause evil, he just decides whether to protect us from it based off whether we're following him. (I'm not trying to misrepresent what you said, so correct me if you think I got that wrong.)

    Based off that measure, God's message with the earthquake must have been, "Hey, y'all are doing an awesome job down there. Keep up the good work!" After all, there were no casualties (that I'm aware of), and damage (including to monuments) was actually quite minimal, especially considering that we don't build our buildings to be earthquake-ready.


    by Verified Atheist on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:20am

    God always warns of an impending doom. 

    So don't ignore the warning. 


    by Resistance on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:10am

    So, He did create the earthquake then? Or, did He protect us from it? I thought your previous point was that He protected us from evil but that He never created it.


    by Verified Atheist on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:15am

    I guess I'm not understanding what you are driving at.

    Yes God created the Earth, along with it's ability to transform itself.

    The fault lines are a part of that creation,

    Volcanoes are too, Some say Hawaii is a paradise, a beautiful creation with a violent beginning.   

    If you choose to live on the fault line, don't blame God when the Earth moves and swallows people up, or Pompeii explodes.

    What are the odds that Mt. Rainer is finally awakened and explodes?

    Do you choose to live in it's shadow?

    If it does explode , who you going to call to for help?     

    As for protection;....... people report miracles all the time.  

    I found it interesting, the animals showed signs, to us humankind, that something was about to occur. 

    Same as the tsunami event, the elephants became agitated and moved to higher ground.

    Moving to higher ground was evidently a good protection for those living along the coast.

    The Eastern coast of the US is no more than a foundation of settled eroded materials extending into the Atlantic.  

    Don't be surprised if one day,  the coastal region slips into the abyss. Don't blame God because you acted foolishly and built your house;  not on the rock mass; but instead, on the beach, while the tide was out.

    If something worse happens along the coast, could we look back and say we should have seen this coming, we should have heeded the warning?  

    First you get a an earthquake, A WAKEUP CALL with no fatalities? Then you folks along the coast get a hurricane to blow you off of the beach, since you seem to be blind or stupid; what are you sticking around for?  Are you waiting for a large fatality number to wake you up?

    Would you prefer God hits you alongside the head with a 2x4, when he's told you to observe the signs?

    Instead he warns us, "when you see these things occur. take action".


    by Resistance on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 3:46pm

    Wouldn't it be a fitting symbolism, Manhattan built on a garbage heap;......sinks

    "get out of her my people, if you do not want to receive her judgment"


    by Resistance on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 3:52pm

    Maybe I'm not understanding you. From my perspective it seems like you're alternating between "people should use common sense (don't build your house on a fault line or in the path of a hurricane or on shifting sands) and shouldn't blame God for natural disasters" (something I wholeheartedly agree with) and "this earthquake is a sign from God". I don't see how something that should be anticipated can also be seen as a "sign from God".


    by Verified Atheist on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 4:39pm

     something that should be anticipated

    It's a sign from Jerry Garcia ("Trouble ahead, trouble behind...)

     

     


    by jollyroger on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 5:22pm

    I'm taking it as a sign that the nation's premier phallic symbol should have used a condom.


    by wabby on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:35am

    Texas remains in a drought despite Perry's prayer for rain. The epicenter of the quake was in Eric Cantor's district. The take home message for Republicans will be that this is only happening because Barack Obama is President.


    by rmrd0000 on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 8:52am

    The speech that Rev Dr King was to have given in Memphis, before he was slain, was titled "Why America May Go To Hell. The speech details how the rich look past the poor and how that may lead to the spiritual demise of the nation.

    http://fashionboyny.wordpress.com/2008/04/29/rev-dr-martin-luther-kings-...

    Pat Robertson cannot see how the events he laments may be the consequence of how his ministry encourages the US government to behave.

    To be "fair and balanced", I will link to Cornel West's op-ed in the NYT on how Dr King would feel about how the country treats the poor today. West contends King would want a revolution, not a memorial.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/opinion/martin-luther-king-jr-would-wa...


    by rmrd0000 on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 9:42am

    Well put by Mr. West: 'Clever gimmicks of mass distraction yield a cheap soulcraft of addicted and self-medicated narcissists.'

    After the catastrophes brought on the country and the world by the GOP and George W. Bush, the lies, wars, death, torture, ruined lives and his administrations final cataclysmic denouement, the financial collapse, that 2 years later so many voters would zealously flock to the GOP for solutions to the problems Republicans created, describes, as I've said before,  a population that to a large extent is both morally and intellectually bankrupt.


    by NCD on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:13am

    "A house divided....cannot stand"

     

    I totally agree, well sort of:

     

     


    by mageduley on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 5:01pm

    I thought a house divided was what happened when you built right on the fault line...


    by jollyroger on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 5:15pm

    Only if it is a manufactured double wide house. wink


    by mageduley on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 6:05pm

    >They tell me the fault line runs right through here....">


    by jollyroger on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 6:54pm

    I didn't catch the reference (a slight bit before my time) although I love Mama Cass. Very prophetic tune Jolly. Thanks for sharing.


    by mageduley on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:28pm

     before my time

    Uh, yeah, before mine too...but, y'know, those implanted memories, yeah, that's the ticket...A great voice stilled .

     

    (not by the ham sandwich she didn't finish, but by all the prior ones that she did...)


    by jollyroger on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:44pm

    Does this video tickle your ears?

    "Lord, Lord did we not prophecy and perform many powerful works in your name?"

    and the lord will say to them  "get away from me you workers of LAWLESSNESS, I don't know you".  

    Satan the liar, is like a hunting lion, who uses confusion to get his prey.

    If all these religions confuse you, you'll end up being the prey.  

    "This means everlasting life....... Those taking in ACCURATE KNOWLEDGE"

    If you want your ears tickled, you'll find a church to tell you what you want to hear.

    It won't be the whole truth and nothing but the whole truth,  or accurate knowledge, but you'll be satisfied.

    But you'll sure be surprised when you say "Lord Lord did we not do many powerful works in your name ..........

    You'll find out, the house of worship you went to, was a part of the divided house, that will not stand.

    VINDICATION, the liars will be exposed.

    Do you have an insurance policy, in the event you find out you made a wrong choice?

    Lord, Lord we didn't know, because we were too lazy to do the research; we loved the lie instead, besides it made our ears feel good ?  

    We didn't know we were working against your arrangement. we didn't know we were promoting disharmony.   


    by Resistance on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 6:57pm

    Satan the liar

    I'm gonna name my next son Lucifer...jus' sayin'

     

    ("Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven...")


    by jollyroger on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:03pm

    “On August 9, 1995, at 4:23 am, Garcia's body was discovered in his room at the rehabilitation clinic. The cause of death was a heart attack. Garcia had long struggled with drug addiction, weight problems, and sleep apnea, all of which contributed to his physical decline”

    It appears Garcia got his wish, grateful dead……  DEAD 

    Had he listened to the counsel from above, he might have added more years to his life; he might have even had his name recorded in the book of life, but instead he chose Death, he got his reward.  

    No ruler ship in the grave, just worms

    “Two live dogs is better than one dead lion”

    At Sinai, Moses told them “I place before you life or death;….. choose life”


    by Resistance on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:20pm

     

    “On August 9, 1995, at 4:23 am, Garcia's body was discovered in his room...

     

    You know how to hurt a guy...( I know, I as much as asked for it...)

    Jerry could have done just fine without ever discovering the dubious joys of heroin.


    by jollyroger on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:30pm

    No offense to you, but I think this also goes back to my previous point about common sense.


    by Verified Atheist on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:32pm

    53, fer crissakes!


    by jollyroger on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:39pm

    So stick around Jolly, if the chance should happen and you get to meet a girl named Angela, what good is it if your Dead or dying? 


    by Resistance on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:33pm

    I'm pretty sure I already referenced this here, but if not, be informed that it is my firm intention to live forever...y'all other fellas, I'm sorry bout your luck...


    by jollyroger on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 7:37pm

    Hi Resistance. How are you this evening? :) The question you posed:

    Do you have an insurance policy, in the event you find out you made a wrong choice?

    Sounds alot like Pascal's Wager to me. The answer seems quite obvious. Wouldn't an All Knowing God™ be able to read my mind and know that I did not really believe but was only attempting to as an insurance policy?


    by mageduley on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:09pm

    Absolutely, that's why he reads and judges the heart.


    by Resistance on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:27am

    should thy house be flooded for thy neighbor's sins (lack of insight - ie not getting flood insurance)


    by Elusive Trope on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:31am

    Great vid.  It made me think of a bumper sticker on this truck (that I have been stuck behind at a stoplight twice in two weeks - is it a sign?): "if it ain't King James 1611, it ain't bible."

    Similiar to this

    Others out there it seems have been inspired to comment on a similar encounter, such as this blog that began: "If it ain't King James, it ain't no Bible: A parting bumper sticker gift from some overly zealous, or possibly hilariously ironic, Chicago-land driver on my way to the airport Monday..."

    I guess it would just show that any religion that seeks to find the true divine interpretation through committee is going to be divided.


    by Elusive Trope on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:01pm

    There's the problem, if it's not the African Heritage Study Bible then it's not a real Bible :)


    by rmrd0000 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 12:24am

    Another bumper sticker is born.  I'll buy one.


    by Elusive Trope on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:01am

    A parting bumper sticker gift from some overly zealous, or possibly hilariously ironic, Chicago-land driver on my way to the airport Monday…

    I take it as humorous hyperbole from someone who appreciates (as do I) the Shakespearean qualities of the King James Bible. Although one cannot rule out an earnest seriousness, I do not find it likely.


    by Verified Atheist on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 7:40am

    I think the bumper sticker represents a deep felt belief. There is a faction that believes the King James version is divinely inspired. The KJV is called the AV, or authentic version. Some King James Only folks can be pretty rigid.

    http://www.tentmaker.org/Biblematters/King-James-version.htm

    Not every Christian has the same interpretation of the Bible(s), just as Constitutional experts can disagree on aspects of federal law.


    by rmrd0000 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 9:16am

    I actually have encountered a couple of these people, but it was long ago, and I had forgotten about it until reading what you posted. Even if I were a believer, knowing the history that I know now, John 5:4 would be enough to convince me that God was not guiding the translators of the KJV, or else they would've omitted that verse that was not present in older texts. 

    John 5:4 is of special importance to me because it was while I was reading this and struggling with my then-Christian beliefs that I began my transformation to atheism. At the time I did not know the provenance of this verse, but I did find it incredibly silly. If one chose to believe in God, one might find this evidence of that one should support the anti-Pascal's wager.


    by Verified Atheist on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:21pm

    The Church for the Churchless link argues that because Christians live in the unreality of an afterlife, they lose the ability to deal with the here and now. It would seem that if the only focus is on the here and now, maximizing profits to maximize creature comfort would be the best option. There would be nothing to lose by that type of lifestyle. Caring for the poor etc. would seem to be a waste of time. Ayn Rand would be proud.


    by rmrd0000 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 3:01pm

    Sorry, they're not my cup of tea, either. I hadn't really explored the web-site other than the short bit on the wager. I was only searching for a quick explanation of the anti-Pascal's wager for those who might be unaware of it. I probably could've found a better one. Of course, the anti-Pascal's wager might be said to require a certain amount of self-delusion since the "infinite loss" is predicated on the existence of an entity one is not allowed to believe in—if one wants to avoid the infinite loss.


    by Verified Atheist on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 3:07pm

    Once the human brain has committed to a position, religious or political, we are hard wired to defend our position even in the face of what others consider to be conclusive evidence of the opposite :)


    by rmrd0000 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 3:32pm

    True enough, which is why I think it's very important to pick one's battles. I'll never try to "convert" someone to atheism, but I will try to convince them that we're not evil and that we have consciences (if you remember a discussion I had a while back with someone else). I do get a little more upset than is perhaps rational when a certain breed of religious type disparages evolution, global warming, or other items I consider to be scientific "truth". (That's not to say that we know the final word on any topic, just that I prefer that "truth" to the ones usually proffered as alternatives.)


    by Verified Atheist on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 3:36pm

    Science asks if God created the universe, who created God? Christians ask if in the beginning there was nothing, how did something come about. Does 0 = 1?

    The spiritual search is an individual thing. Catholics have differences with Baptists. Some churches believe in making a joyful noise and dance and sing to Mary Mary, Kirk Franklin and the Winans. Other churches feel that the joy-filled churches are blasphemers and only chamber music is appropriate.

    Pick your comfort zone.

     

     


    by rmrd0000 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 10:01pm

    My comfort zone tells me I don't  need to know how he came about, My curiosity wouldn't change my perception, that he is powerful. 

    Maybe someday we will learn more about him.

    On a need to know basis?

    I know from observation  Every house has a builder.

    I know; I base my clocks and calendars on his schedule.

    Mariners trust his placements of the stars. I know the Earth is placed at the correct distance from the sun to sustain our lives

    It's rotation and tilt are perfect.

    I understand without the LAWS of GRAVITY we wouldn't be around

    The Universal Sovereign,  is a God of order

    I don't know of inanimate objects, creating living objects.

    Life begets life.

    Human KIND. may never understand his KIND.

      


    by Resistance on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 10:29pm

    Obviously I disagree with you, Resistance. Still, I can appreciate the concept of an intelligence beyond what we can understand. Here is an excerpt from Star Trek: Voyager that you might appreciate (taken from IMDB):

    [da Vinci is baffled by the "magic" technology he has encountered]
    Captain Kathryn Janeway: Let me ask you something. If you were something other than a human being, if you were a different kind of animal... If you were a small bird, a sparrow - what would your world be like? 
    Leonardo da Vinci: I should make my home in a tree, in the branch of an elm. I should hunt insects for food, straw for my nest, and in the springtime, I should sing for a companion. 
    Captain Kathryn Janeway: And you would know nothing of the politics of Florence - the cutting of marble or mathematics. 
    Leonardo da Vinci: Of course not. 
    Captain Kathryn Janeway: But why not? 
    Leonardo da Vinci: My mind would be too small. 
    Captain Kathryn Janeway: As a sparrow, your mind would be too small, even with the best of teachers? 
    Leonardo da Vinci: If Aristotle himself were to perch on my branch and lecture till he... fell off from exhaustion - still the limits of my mind would prevent me from understanding. 
    Captain Kathryn Janeway: And as a man, can you accept that there may be certain realities beyond the limits of your comprehension? 
    Leonardo da Vinci: If I could not accept that... then I would be a fool. 


    by Verified Atheist on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 7:55am

    Well said, rmrd000. I don't believe that anyone has all of the answers, and what is perhaps most frightening is when people in any camp (atheist, Muslim, Christian, or other) insists that their answers should be accepted by everyone. I know that my "faith" has a missing gap (the one you mention in your first paragraph), and although many people have provided decent explanations for it, some of which dovetail and some of which contradict, none of those explanations really answer the ultimate origin question. Obviously, I believe my "faith" is true and I have great certainty in it, just as you believe yours to be true (IIRC you are not an atheist). That doesn't mean we can't treat each others faiths with respect while explaining what we believe and why we believe it, although I admit I sometimes fall short in that regard the further that faith differs from mine. I don't recall you ever doing that, however, and I do appreciate it.


    by Verified Atheist on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 7:48am

    Thanks


    by rmrd0000 on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 3:09pm

    There would be nothing to lose by that type of lifestyle.

    That is so true.

    Those who believe in god elevate him above all authority.

    Live your lives in harmony with his will or face the final JUDGE of all matters.

    If all people lived according to the perfect law, there is UNIVERSAL HARMONY

    Those who refuse to follow the laws are like a cancer, killing the whole body.

    Who has the real authority to remove the cancer? GOD

     

    In the Universal plan;

    it's time to choose; either your a good cell or you're a cancer cell.

    Good cells act in a way to benefit the body, cancer cells destroy

    After 6000 years of mans ruler-ship and domination over one another,theres is not to much, that hasn't been tried, that compares with the Universal Sovereign' plan.

    Live in peace and harmony or be removed.   

    Free will

     

     


    by Resistance on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 9:08pm

     Shakespearean qualities of the King James Bible

    Without peradventure, the best book ever written by a committee...

    . 


    by jollyroger on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 6:02pm

    Ron Paul thinks that FEMA should not exist. The US should return to what happened in Galveston in the 1900s. Neighbor helped neighbor without federal help. We can make the Bush response to the early days of Katrina the new national standard.

    http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/08/26/ron_paul_hurricanes

    Eric Cantor whose district includes the epicenter for the recent earthquake believes that federal s[pending on Hurricane Irene should only come if spending cuts can be found.

    http://www.rollcall.com/news/eric_cantor_would_offset_earthquake_aid-208...

    The GOP believes that government doesn't work. When they are elected to office, they make decisions that confirm their point of view.


    by rmrd0000 on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 8:33pm

    Ron Paul thinks that FEMA should not exist

    Right. And management should be allowed to nail  fire exits shut again. . That'll solve the immigration problem 

    Why am I tempted to write that I think that Ron Paul should not.........................


    by Flavius on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 10:15pm

    We should cut wasteful government laws and services like flood control, Coast Guard, police, National Guard, Corps of Engineers projects, national parks and monuments, airport security, FAA controllers, pollution control, toxic waste disposal restrictions, interstate highways, child labor laws, worker safety, all Medicare reimbursement and Social Security checks and close all military bases and federal facilities in Virginia to cut the deficit.

    Wasn't it Sanders that said the Republicans say government doesn't work, and then they run for election to prove it?


    by NCD on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 10:20pm

    Putting someone like Brownie in charge wasn't a mistake, it was very deliberate.  It allowed "them" to point to the consequences and say "see, government doesn't work."


    by Elusive Trope on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 10:39pm

    Excuse my grammar as I vent:

    Robertson is a money grubbing lying bastard motherfucker who is to the Soul of Christ as Attila the Hun was to the tenets of a Roman Republic or Hitler was to the symbol of the Sword of Justice.

    That Uncle Pat is not in prison for fraud is beyond my understanding and extinguishes all hopes of justice in this country.

    Ironically, this bastard has me yearning for an after-life just so that I will see him rot in hell's fire for an eternity.

    the end


     


    by Richard Day on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:13pm

    you have a life time excuse when you want to vent, sir.  the end.


    by Elusive Trope on Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:28pm

    Richard, remember when Bush put Robertson's 'charity' Operation Blessing near the top of the list for the Katrina disaster? Well, surprise, FEMA still has that page here.

    Robertson gets blessed with every dollar sent, some of which then goes to God's Own Party to ensure another catastrophe isn't long in coming.

    Bush and McCain probably thought that one up at the birthday party Bush was having for John while NO residents were stranded in the flooded streets, trying not to be MRE's for gators. Robertson must have made millions on Katrina.

    Op. Blessing was also handy when Pat used its aircraft to fly illegal diamonds out of international war criminal Charles Taylor's Liberia.


    by NCD on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:10am

    So now you have me seeing red in the early morning hours wishing for blood vengeance. hahahahahah

    What a pig!

    God I hate that guy.

    He makes those tent reverend grifters from the 19th century look like Apostles of the Christ!


    by Richard Day on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:13am

    My first reaction is: we can't being seeing red.  We need to see clear.  I don't know what that exactly means.  And then this version of Cohen's version of Bird on a Wire comes to mind. I don't know why. 

    we are some kind of crossroads. peace.


    by Elusive Trope on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:35am

    I see your Bird, and raise you an I'm Your Man, particularly for the weird guy who moans "please"...(2:36)

    Here I stand...

     

    (Parenthetically is Leonard fucking 1, 2, or all 3 of the girl backup singers?  My vote:all 3, (at once.)


    by jollyroger on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:27am

    And, specially for Res

     

    ( Man, talk about your top-shelf pussy!...(also Rufus Wainwright is his daughter's babydaddy)


    by jollyroger on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:37am

    Klaatu: I am leaving soon, and you will forgive me if I speak bluntly. The universe grows smaller every day, and the threat of aggression by any group, anywhere, can no longer be tolerated. There must be security for all, or no one is secure. Now, this does not mean giving up any freedom, except the freedom to act irresponsibly. Your ancestors knew this when they made laws to govern themselves and hired policemen to enforce them. We, of the other planets, have long accepted this principle. We have an organization for the mutual protection of all planets and for the complete elimination of aggression. The test of any such higher authority is, of course, the police force that supports it. For our policemen, we created a race of robots. Their function is to patrol the planets in spaceships like this one and preserve the peace. In matters of aggression, we have given them absolute power over us. This power cannot be revoked. At the first sign of violence, they act automatically against the aggressor. The penalty for provoking their action is too terrible to risk. The result is, we live in peace, without arms or armies, secure in the knowledge that we are free from aggression and war. Free to pursue more... profitable enterprises. Now, we do not pretend to have achieved perfection, but we do have a system, and it works. I came here to give you these facts. It is no concern of ours how you run your own planet, but if you threaten to extend your violence, this Earth of yours will be reduced to a burned-out cinder. Your choice is simple: join us and live in peace, or pursue your present course and face obliteration. We shall be waiting for your answer. The decision rests with you


    by Resistance on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 9:25pm

    Klaatu, really ????

    How about the personal examples given by Martin Luther King Jr, Father Pfleger and a host of others?

    If we are using Hollywood movies as examples, how about "The Shoes Of The Fisherman" where the Catholic church sells it's riches to feed a starving nation?

    Who will be in charge of the religion driven nation, The Jews, The Methodists, the Baptists? Each denomination has a different opinion on how to worship God.


    by rmrd0000 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 10:08pm

    Who will be in charge of the religion driven nation,

    Who will be in charge of the........ Spiritual Earth .........Jesus Christ

    As opposed to the false shepherds of the ANTICHRIST..

    It's easy to identify the liars, once you know what Jesus taught.   

    Did Jesus tell his followers to pick up the sword?

    His followers pray "Let your kingdom come on Earth, just as it is in heaven" 


    by Resistance on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 10:44pm

    klaatus speech taken in the light of mankinds understanding, that something seriously needs to be done to stop the violence. To the godless, the threat of an enforcer should give pause.

    To the Christian; Gods heavenly organization made up of billions upon billions of angelic forces, will be the enforcers.


    by Resistance on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 10:50pm

     

    A robot enforcer comes to Earth in a flying saucer. I am capable of suspending my disbelief and enjoying that movie.

    The Catholic Church sells its riches to feed a starving nation? Come on, you buying that?

    Oh, and if you sincerely want to know who will be in charge when Jesus makes a comeback, it will be Jews + The Raptured. Apparently that's happening very soon, so you will have the opportunity to see for yourself.

    Be prepared to make nice with the Jews + the Raptured dudes and dudettes. You will need guns and gold. If you can't afford gold buy silver half dollars now.

    I have this on very good authority from my brother-in-law, believer in the absolute infallibility of the KJV, provided (if you're gentile) you pay real close attention to what Paul wrote, some years after the fact, and don't trouble yourself with what Jesus said or those pesky 10 commandments.

    It's a remarkably flexible religion, Christianity. The perfect authoritarian fable for everyone from Rev. Ike to the Little Match Girl. Everyone gets to feel chosen and discriminated against simultaneously. Secrets of its durability, I suspect.

     

    by Red Planet on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 10:59am

    ......A robot enforcer comes to Earth in a flying saucer.

    That's somewhat closer to Elijah Mohammed's vision given to the Nation of Islam. Except that I think it's an alien not a robot. If you see clips of the Million man March you may pick up that most of the audience was talking amongst themselves and ignored the speaker when Louis Farrakhan began detailing this story. It's a message for a select group.

    I'm in no way ashamed of Christians like MLK Jr. or Father Pfleger. Cornel West's passion is informed by his Christianity. I'm proud to be a Christian.

    Reverend Jeremiah Wright was vilified during the 2008 election. You might be interested in the work that his former church did and continues to do in helping the poor in South Chicago. Bill Moyers new book "Bill Moyers Journal: The Conversation Continues" contain an enlightening interview with Wright, it may give you a window into how some Christians view their role.


    by rmrd0000 on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 3:08pm

     

    I vented above, unnecessarily and inappropriately, rmrd0000. Dr. King is a hero and I am an admirer of Cornel West. 

    Any beef I have is with theocracy (Christianism and Christian Dominionism in this context), the nexus of political power, money and concretized belief, and with the spiritual arrogance of those who know they know the truth. Clearly, that's not you nor is it the examples you cite.

    I was moved to have a little fun comparing The Day the Earth Stood Still with The Shoes of the Fisherman, but extended my remarks to cover some frustration over comments I'd read upthread, and attitudes I face within my own family circle. Again, those extended remarks were not properly included in a response to your thoughtful comments here.

    Bill Moyers is another hero, by the way. He and Joseph Campbell grabbed me with The Power of Myth back in the mid-'80s and never let go. As did Alan Watts with his little books, especially The Book and The Wisdom of Insecurity.


    by Red Planet on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 6:22pm

    In my lifetime, I've never felt so cut to the heart, when I  heard, that Dr king had been murdered.

    I thought about The Day the Earth Stood Still  and it was suggested I should read a book (renamed by me) The Day Hell Freezes Over

    Fear of Hell, has made the Churches Rich. 

    Luther knew this, but backed off.

    Evidently riches stored on Earth was better than treasures stored in heaven?

    The Truth does set us free.


    by Resistance on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 6:56pm

    Pastor John Hagee said that NOLA was destroyed by Katrina because of a Gay Pride parade. Pat Robertson links Katrina to abortion. Michelle Bachmann says the following:

    "I don't know how much God has to do to get the attention of the politicians. We've had an earthquake; we've had a hurricane. He said, 'Are you going to start listening to me here?' Listen to the American people because the American people are roaring right now. They know government is on a morbid obesity diet and we've got to rein in the spending."

    Do you believe that God is upset about US fiscal policy? This same triumvirate would have called Martin Luther King Jr blasphemous for taking the Christian message to the streets.

    We always have to question whether a single act of nature is an "Act of God" just because it fits our human perception of what God's message should be.

    http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/national/hundreds-turn-out-for-bac...

    (Edited to add link to story containing Bachmann's comments)


    by rmrd0000 on Mon, 08/29/2011 - 9:24am

    Venting is good for the soul. After venting, you can focus on the important work to be done.


    by rmrd0000 on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 10:13pm