This weekend’s conversation had me thinking on the consumerism that has run amok in our country. More and more I hear people being labeled as ‘consumers’ in inappropriate ways, not just in relation to buying products, but as though it were their very identity. On Saturday I was listening to the radio and out of the blue the gal referred to people as consumers—-she said something like ‘consumers walking in the park have a sunny day’. We are not consumers of sunlight and parks! We’re people created in the image of God We are created with purpose—to have families, to work, to develop character, to serve God and each other, to love, and even to suffer–but not for consumerism!
It was very jarring and disturbing, and all the more so because it is something I have seen increasing in the media. And the church has been influenced as well. This piece from Christianity Today articulates some very relevant truths about consumerism and the church. It was written before Trump. It was written before Obama. This article was written in 2006 when George Bush was the president, yet, it’s more relevant today than ever.
Christian critiques of consumerism usually focus on the dangers of idolatry – the temptation to make material goods the center of life rather than God. This, however, misses the real threat consumerism poses. My concern is not materialism, strictly speaking, or even the consumption of goods – as contingent beings, we must consume resources to survive. The problem is not consuming to live, but rather living to consume.
It occupies a role in society that once belonged only to religion – the power to give meaning and construct identity. Consumerism, as Pete Ward correctly concludes, “represents an alternative source of meaning to the Christian gospel.” No longer merely an economic system, consumerism has become the American worldview – the framework through which we interpret everything else, including God, the gospel, and church.
When we approach Christianity as consumers rather than seeing it as a comprehensive way of life, an interpretive set of beliefs and values, Christianity becomes just one more brand we consume along with Gap, Apple, and Starbucks to express identity. And the demotion of Jesus Christ from Lord to label means to live as a Christian no longer carries an expectation of obedience and good works, but rather the perpetual consumption of Christian merchandise and experiences …..
….Roger Finke and Rodney Stark, co-authors of The Churching of America, 1776-1990, argue that ministry in the U.S. is modeled primarily on capitalism with pastors functioning as a church’s sales force, and evangelism as its marketing strategy. Our willing indoctrination into this economic view of ministry is so complete that most pastors never question its validity or recognize how unprecedented it is within Christian history.
According to Finke and Stark, the American church adopted a consumer-driven model because the First Amendment prohibited state-sanctioned religion. Therefore, faith, like the buying of material goods, became a matter of individual choice and self-expression. And “where religious affiliation is a matter of choice, religious organizations must compete for members and . . . the ?invisible hand’ of the marketplace is as unforgiving of ineffective religious firms as it is of their commercial counterparts.”
This explains why corporate models, marketing strategies, and secular business values are pervasive in American ministry – we are in competition with other churches, and other providers of identity and meaning, for survival. To appeal to religious consumers we must commodify our congregations – slapping our church’s logo on shirts, coffee mugs, and bible covers. And we strive to convince a sustainable segment of the religious marketplace that our church is “relevant,” “comfortable,” or “exciting.”
Debra, From last night. Christian young people are not focused on Trump’s Twitter feed or his sexual history. Like most intelligent people, they have understood who and what Trump is for a long time now. They are focused on their parents and their uncles and aunts and the parents of their friends at church. And they ask a variation of Bob Buckles’ question: Stupid or hypocritical? Whatever the answer, their elders have lost their moral authority.
Ricky @7:18, what are their parents saying to provoke such a reaction?!
It is always possible that people have become too closely identified with politicians–any politician, almost like football teams, so that when your team is up, you cheer them on no matter which direction they’re running in. Also, Republicans tend to want to sanitize their politicians, and whoever cannot be properly sanitized, gets booted. George Bush, for example, got a real makeover by Karl Rove. He was distanced from his profligate behavior, and taught to dress, speak and swagger like a Texan. And it worked. Of course he defected to Hillary this time around, but that was after 8 years of presidential damage, which is most easily seen in hindsight. Unfortunately.
Their parents are saying the same things we read here every day. They are mindlessly parroting Hannity and FoxNews. They are defending the lies, the dishonesty and the moronic behavior of Trump. We are in a world of The Emperor’s New Clothes. The kids (along with liberals, moderates and true conservatives) see the guy is naked. FoxNews and the Trumpkins brag about his wardrobe.
I learned something this weekend. Even if a person has very reluctantly voted for a flawed candidate, he tends to become loyal to that candidate and blind to his faults and failures, lest he be accused of making a mistake when he cast his ballot.
Do we have any prominent Republicans being accused of sexual harassment.
Besides Trump.
But Trump isn’t a Republican. That’s part of his problem now.
He is an industrialist/entrepreneur who decided to run for president.
Much as Roos Perot, who caused Bush to lose to Clinton.
It was a personal thing with him. Perot didn’t want to be president, he wanted Bush defeated.
Ricky, are you saying this based on what you have observed about Christian parents, or read?
Admittedly, I live out here in California where more Conservatives live than you would guess, but no one ever talks like that among my believing friends. They’re concerned about their children’s faith but no one supports Trump’s behavior–or even him–among my friends.
When politics is mentioned, it’s anti-Clinton never pro-Trump and I’m not sure I’ve ever heard anyone express support for him “despite __________ (fill in your own blank).”
I think the Republican/Democrat divide as we know it is softening substantially. I see that as a good thing, because truth does not have a political party. I am still hopeful that better thinkers than I am will be able to articulate a more reasonable way forward. Trump is just the tip of the spear—and that’s where the tearing happens.
In the end, nothing will solve problems like revival. Although….it is important to remember that revivals do tend to have economic and even policy consequences.
Michelle, I have observed it. The pastors of three of the biggest churches in D/FW are rabidly pro-Trump and they are a reflection of their flock. Almost all of my friends who don’t have a college degree are rabidly pro-Trump.
We are tribal, and white Texans aren’t going to choose the Hillary, Obama, Kaepernick tribe. Those with college educations are split. A few are also full fledged Trumpkins. Many are appalled by both sides, but stay silent lest they be mistaken for being a leftist.
Our kids who are in college or have college degrees have their eyes wide open, and they are taking it all in.
Ricky, people have been mindlessly (and wrongly in some cases) parroting FoxNews and Hannity for a long time. This is where they have been ‘educated’ and often mis-educated on the nature of economic issues for almost 30 years. Why would they suddenly look for another source?
And Republicans have been driving this train for years. A couple of weeks ago my husband, Cyrus, was talking about a book he read, in the ‘90s I believe, written by Elizabeth Dole. She was writing about how she saw Evangelicals first come to the Republican party. Before they came, the Republican players all knew each other; they knew each others businesses and interests. She describes an event where suddenly she saw a line of buses coming. As they stopped and disembarked, she began to greet them, and as she did so she realized that each bus was not filled with people from different cities, but with families—mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins—all related. They poured into the Republican party: Hi, I’m Billy Bob [or whatever] and this is my family. We’re here to get things done.
They didn’t come because they had great economic knowledge. They came because they were invited. Their pastors and religious leaders told them this was what they needed to do to defend their cultural existence from the government—to maintain control of their own lives and faith practices. And to some extent, given the over-reach of the courts, that was true.
Debra @7:07 regarding Wells Fargo. Answer: NONE of them. They will pay the fine with OUR money and continue business as usual. There are bankers who deserve to be, not IN prison but buried under them. I am beginning to see some of the same policies and actions and banking that led up to “the bust”.
Do we not learn from our past mistakes?
May I remind you that Roy Moore was removed from the Alabama Supreme Court not once, but twice by his Republican peers? Even one of his law school professors has written an article against him. He will make Alabama even more of a laughing stock than we already are.
I don’t know if the accusations from the women are true or not. I just know that I will NOT be voting for him.
Quite frankly, I will admit to saying this most of 2016–If will not bother me at all if the Republican Party as we know it crashes and burns. My hope is that something better than what we have right now will rise from the ashes.
Just to be fair, I feel the same way about the Democrats.
“When retired Marine Col. Lee Busby read it was too late for a write-in candidate for the Alabama senate race, he said, “Hold my beer, we will just see about that.”
Busby told The Daily Beast on Monday he is launching his long-shot bid to stop Republican nominee Roy Moore from reaching the Senate.
“I have no idea if the allegations against him true or not, but I don’t see anything within his experience as a judge that qualifies him for the job.”
Busby said his state needs a choice other than Moore or Democrat Doug Jones.
“Alabama is not happy with the two choices we have down here. They are not appealing.”
Busby said he spent 31 years in the Marine Corps and on his last tour of duty was vice chief of staff to then-Gen. John Kelly, who is now White House chief of staff.
Since retiring, Busby has been the CEO of his own business and worked as a defense consultant and investment banker. At the same time, Busby has been honoring fallen Marines with sculpture like the one he was working on in his garage prior to his Senate announcement.”
————————-
Oh brother. How many anti-Christs can we possibly process before we devolve into madness. [Don’t answer that Ricky, I know you think we’re already there.] :–)
“At RedState, there has always been one hard and fast rule: Oppose abortion at all costs. Jones supports abortion right up until the baby is out of the womb, and even then it’s probably debatable for him. If you vote for Jones, you are not a conservative, and you cannot claim to be one.
This is not up for debate. Under no circumstances should you support, endorse, or vote for Doug Jones. Which seems to be what Jeff Flake, among others, is doing.
“Jeff Flake
✔
@JeffFlake
After what we know, for Republicans to support Roy Moore over Doug Jones is political tribalism at its worst. We shouldn’t succumb to it”
Sorry, Senator Flake, but that’s a load of crap. There are going to be plenty of people who will vote for Moore because he isn’t in favor of murdering babies. That’s not tribalism, that’s rationalizing.
Am I endorsing Moore here? Of course not. Plenty of folks will accuse me of it, naturally, but I don’t encourage anyone to vote for Moore. He is unfit for the office, but the issue of abortion – the actual murder of children – makes Jones just as unfit in my book. Sorry if I don’t want people murdering OR touching kids. I’m picky like that.
What I suggest, and it’s probably frowned upon for me to do so (FYI: I do not speak for all of RedState when I write this), is that people just don’t vote in Alabama. Don’t go out of your way to have to make a choice on the lesser of two evils. Don’t vote for evil at all.
It’s the same as 2016 for me. Did I want Trump? No. Does that mean I wanted Hillary? No. I refused to vote because I was dead set against voting for a bad person just because they were less bad than the other. Alabama’s vote is exactly the same situation.”
Well, as if to emphasize my previous point about consumerism, I sat in on a teleconference earlier this morning (as a non-participating note-taker). A certain government agency wants all references to ‘client’ or ‘recipient’ removed from the paperwork and software. They want it replaced with, yep, ‘consumer’. So a person may be so debilitated they can’t cut their own food or go to the bathroom without supervision, but they are now considered ‘consumers’. It looks like we may have lost our collective mind—perhaps it’s hiding in some dark alley with our soul. :–/
Why all the outrage over Moore? He wouldn’t be the first, and won’t be the last with allegations such as these. Why single him out amidst a herd of like minded animals?
Because a Dem pick up or 2 could flip the Senate. That’s why.
“Capitol Hill veterans expect that “a lot more” sexual-harassment settlements by lawmakers will be uncovered. So now there’s a race to strengthen workplace rules that are scandalously archaic.
The big picture: The existing system is a racket. Settlements are secret, and the Ethics Committee is notorious for protecting its own. We — as in all of us taxpayers — pay the hush money, because that’s who foots the bills for these settlements. Only a few lawmakers have publicly pushed for broad, quick change.
Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the House’s longest-serving member, is being allowed to go slowly after accusations became public. Conyers announced that he’s stepping aside as top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee while he’s investigated by the Ethics Committee.
Congressional sources say there’s no chance he’ll return to the post. He may even leave Congress after the Ethics Committee completes its investigation.
This is bicameral: Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) is going back to work today.
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi complicated her party’s position by making supportive comments about Conyers during a live appearance on “Meet the Press” (“an icon in our country. He has done a great deal to protect women”), and even questioning the accusers: “I don’t know who they are. Do you?”
She later added on Twitter: “Zero tolerance means consequences. … No matter how great an individual’s legacy, it is not a license for harassment.”
A senior Democratic aide said Pelosi had worked with Conyers for five days to lay a path where he would step aside as ranking member.
Pelosi had the complication of dealing with someone who “has often appeared disoriented,” according to the N.Y. Times, and showed up in pajamas on “at least two separate occasions — once at a United Automobile Workers event in Michigan and once at a meeting of top Democrats on Capitol Hill.””
———————–
I was a little confused at the end there, wasn’t sure which they meant. Pelosi often appears disoriented as well, McCain too. There’s a national discussion on others we should have too. Term limits would help weed that out.
As to being a “Trumpkin”, I am so glad that we don’t have Hillary that I try to keep my mouth shut about Trump. Does that mean that I am on his side? I like lots that he has done; Judges, illegal executive orders rescinded, asking the legislature to make laws, following laws with respect to illegal border crossers, foreign affairs. But i don’t like him “Tweeting” or posting on Facebook. He should just smile and wave when asked about cases in court. As we used to sing when we were kids, “He talks too much!”
God was good when HE had Hillary lose. When Trump won, I knew that I should put my political trust in the LORD, not in Trump or Republicans. They would let us down, and they have. I do not respect Democrats, they are “Ridin’ Dirty.” Republicans are marginally better. But the general philosophies of the 2 parties are different. I see nothing good from the Democrats. Republicans have trouble following their desires: following laws is often harsh on people. Putting someone in prison for 20 years to life is mean, but then so is raping a woman or beating someone just because they don’t give you their money quick enough.
Please explain to me why California has 10% of the population of the US but 30%-50% of the welfare population of the US. Why should I pay taxes to support them?
We have trolley cars but our houses are, at most, 2 stories high. It is hard to keep taller ones from falling down in an earthquake. We can’t get the population density to make commuter trains viable. Why should I pay for a bullet train that I have to drive 8 hours to get to one end of? Oh, and why pay for a right of way when 30 miles away is the center divider of I-5?
Friends can deeply disagree even about issues they profoundly care about, yet continue to respect and even admire each other. We once knew that. We had better relearn it before we destroy this great experiment in republican government and ordered liberty. #civicsolidaritymatterspic.twitter.com/ImxguaB92M
There are other issues besides abortion. Am I for slaughtering innocent babies who didn’t ask to be conceived? NO. I am not. They are innocent in all of this.
Roy Moore isn’t going to single handedly overturn Roe v. Wade. We need to be worried about more than the abortion issue right now.
Just about anyone would be better than Roy Moore. I LIVE HERE. TRUST ME ON THIS.
I lovingly disagree. Democrats are not better than Roy Moore. Vote for him and let the Senate not accept him. Go for another election.
I spent over 20 years having to fight paying for “only” my “Fair Share” union dues. I know that Democrats are NOT for the “little people.” They are greedy thieves, looking to get theirs. They have no honor. They do not know how to do right. They will do whatever they can to do wrong. They are those that GOD warned the Children of Israel about when they wanted a king like everybody else had.
There is nothing good about Democrats. I live under them. They are just giant straws; they SUCK!!!!
Here is something to think about. If Roy Moore wins and is not expelled, the Democrats are going to run against him and Trump in 2018. When I say run against him, I mean Democrat Senate candidates from Maine to California are going to be running against Roy Moore – to take back the Senate to keep him from being a subcommittee chairman.
Moore is much like Trump. In the short run he will likely be better (more conservative) than his opponent. However, when you nominate and elect people who are morally, intellectually and emotionally unfit to serve, the long term costs to the party and the country can be high.
Sometimes I think he does this on purpose, because trolling the media, and Fauxahontas, amuses him, and the outrageous setting for doing so is always just part of the gag. 🙂
Wanna see me make the press go nuts? Watch this……
And if Pocahontas is now a racial slur instead of a name, will Disney be changing the movie title, in the name of cultural civility and sensitivity?
Here’s your quote of the day. From Sanders-Huckabee when asked if it was offensive.
——————————
“Pocahontas” is not a racial slur.
“I think what most people find offensive is Sen. Warren lying about her heritage to advance her career,”
——————————-
I can remember that Coyote Blue was pretty outraged that Warren had lied about her heritage to get her job at Harvard. Warren can whine all she wants. Trump and Sarah Huckabee are right on that one.
“Elizabeth Warren is not Native American. Yet she claimed to be Native American while climbing the law school professor ladder to Harvard Law School.
The details of what Warren did, and how she tried to conceal it, are set forth at Elizabeth Warren Wiki, a website we created to put in one place the research documenting Warren’s deception. It’s all there, including the rundown of her highly questionable, if not downright debunked, family lore stories.
Here are the subheading links on the Elizabeth Warren Native American / Cherokee Controversy page:
1 Warren initially denies knowing why Harvard touted her as Native American
2 Bloggers and Reporters uncover Warren’s history of claiming to be Native American for employment purposes
3 U. Penn and Harvard Made Federal Filings Based On Warren’s Represenations
4 The Genealogical Evidence Shows Warren Has No Native American Ancestry
5 Warren Did Not Start Claiming To Be Native American Until She Was In Her 30’s
6 Warren Story About Her Parents’ Elopement Cast In Doubt
7 Warren’s Aunt Bea and High Cheekbones Story Cast In Doubt
8 Warren Never Associated With Native Americans
9 Boston Globe Defense of Warren
10 Related Pages At Elizabeth Warren Wiki
11 References”
—————————–
Wandering Views 
I wonder which high level executive is going to jail for this massive fraud. Or what high level executive bonuses are going to pay the fines. :–/
https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/09/08/493130449/wells-fargo-to-pay-around-190-million-over-fake-accounts-that-sparked-bonuses
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This weekend’s conversation had me thinking on the consumerism that has run amok in our country. More and more I hear people being labeled as ‘consumers’ in inappropriate ways, not just in relation to buying products, but as though it were their very identity. On Saturday I was listening to the radio and out of the blue the gal referred to people as consumers—-she said something like ‘consumers walking in the park have a sunny day’. We are not consumers of sunlight and parks! We’re people created in the image of God We are created with purpose—to have families, to work, to develop character, to serve God and each other, to love, and even to suffer–but not for consumerism!
It was very jarring and disturbing, and all the more so because it is something I have seen increasing in the media. And the church has been influenced as well. This piece from Christianity Today articulates some very relevant truths about consumerism and the church. It was written before Trump. It was written before Obama. This article was written in 2006 when George Bush was the president, yet, it’s more relevant today than ever.
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Debra, From last night. Christian young people are not focused on Trump’s Twitter feed or his sexual history. Like most intelligent people, they have understood who and what Trump is for a long time now. They are focused on their parents and their uncles and aunts and the parents of their friends at church. And they ask a variation of Bob Buckles’ question: Stupid or hypocritical? Whatever the answer, their elders have lost their moral authority.
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Pelosi seems to be on Debra’s payroll, trying to assist her in winning our bet by snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/11/26/politics/pelosi-conyers-icon-mtp/index.html
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Ricky @7:18, what are their parents saying to provoke such a reaction?!
It is always possible that people have become too closely identified with politicians–any politician, almost like football teams, so that when your team is up, you cheer them on no matter which direction they’re running in. Also, Republicans tend to want to sanitize their politicians, and whoever cannot be properly sanitized, gets booted. George Bush, for example, got a real makeover by Karl Rove. He was distanced from his profligate behavior, and taught to dress, speak and swagger like a Texan. And it worked. Of course he defected to Hillary this time around, but that was after 8 years of presidential damage, which is most easily seen in hindsight. Unfortunately.
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Their parents are saying the same things we read here every day. They are mindlessly parroting Hannity and FoxNews. They are defending the lies, the dishonesty and the moronic behavior of Trump. We are in a world of The Emperor’s New Clothes. The kids (along with liberals, moderates and true conservatives) see the guy is naked. FoxNews and the Trumpkins brag about his wardrobe.
I learned something this weekend. Even if a person has very reluctantly voted for a flawed candidate, he tends to become loyal to that candidate and blind to his faults and failures, lest he be accused of making a mistake when he cast his ballot.
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Do we have any prominent Republicans being accused of sexual harassment.
Besides Trump.
But Trump isn’t a Republican. That’s part of his problem now.
He is an industrialist/entrepreneur who decided to run for president.
Much as Roos Perot, who caused Bush to lose to Clinton.
It was a personal thing with him. Perot didn’t want to be president, he wanted Bush defeated.
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I’m not sure I would describe Roy Moore as “prominent”, but unfortunately he is a Republican.
However, I think Chas may be on to something. Trump was a Democrat when he molested all those people.
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Ricky, are you saying this based on what you have observed about Christian parents, or read?
Admittedly, I live out here in California where more Conservatives live than you would guess, but no one ever talks like that among my believing friends. They’re concerned about their children’s faith but no one supports Trump’s behavior–or even him–among my friends.
When politics is mentioned, it’s anti-Clinton never pro-Trump and I’m not sure I’ve ever heard anyone express support for him “despite __________ (fill in your own blank).”
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I think the Republican/Democrat divide as we know it is softening substantially. I see that as a good thing, because truth does not have a political party. I am still hopeful that better thinkers than I am will be able to articulate a more reasonable way forward. Trump is just the tip of the spear—and that’s where the tearing happens.
In the end, nothing will solve problems like revival. Although….it is important to remember that revivals do tend to have economic and even policy consequences.
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Michelle, I have observed it. The pastors of three of the biggest churches in D/FW are rabidly pro-Trump and they are a reflection of their flock. Almost all of my friends who don’t have a college degree are rabidly pro-Trump.
We are tribal, and white Texans aren’t going to choose the Hillary, Obama, Kaepernick tribe. Those with college educations are split. A few are also full fledged Trumpkins. Many are appalled by both sides, but stay silent lest they be mistaken for being a leftist.
Our kids who are in college or have college degrees have their eyes wide open, and they are taking it all in.
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Ricky, people have been mindlessly (and wrongly in some cases) parroting FoxNews and Hannity for a long time. This is where they have been ‘educated’ and often mis-educated on the nature of economic issues for almost 30 years. Why would they suddenly look for another source?
And Republicans have been driving this train for years. A couple of weeks ago my husband, Cyrus, was talking about a book he read, in the ‘90s I believe, written by Elizabeth Dole. She was writing about how she saw Evangelicals first come to the Republican party. Before they came, the Republican players all knew each other; they knew each others businesses and interests. She describes an event where suddenly she saw a line of buses coming. As they stopped and disembarked, she began to greet them, and as she did so she realized that each bus was not filled with people from different cities, but with families—mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins—all related. They poured into the Republican party: Hi, I’m Billy Bob [or whatever] and this is my family. We’re here to get things done.
They didn’t come because they had great economic knowledge. They came because they were invited. Their pastors and religious leaders told them this was what they needed to do to defend their cultural existence from the government—to maintain control of their own lives and faith practices. And to some extent, given the over-reach of the courts, that was true.
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Debra @7:07 regarding Wells Fargo. Answer: NONE of them. They will pay the fine with OUR money and continue business as usual. There are bankers who deserve to be, not IN prison but buried under them. I am beginning to see some of the same policies and actions and banking that led up to “the bust”.
Do we not learn from our past mistakes?
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May I remind you that Roy Moore was removed from the Alabama Supreme Court not once, but twice by his Republican peers? Even one of his law school professors has written an article against him. He will make Alabama even more of a laughing stock than we already are.
I don’t know if the accusations from the women are true or not. I just know that I will NOT be voting for him.
Quite frankly, I will admit to saying this most of 2016–If will not bother me at all if the Republican Party as we know it crashes and burns. My hope is that something better than what we have right now will rise from the ashes.
Just to be fair, I feel the same way about the Democrats.
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How come no one has raised the question that maybe he’s the anti-Christ?
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🙄
Now you went and did it.
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An out for Alabama voters?
You could skip the probable perv and the rabidly pro-abortion Dem.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/marine-col-lee-busby-announces-hes-running-against-roy-moore
“When retired Marine Col. Lee Busby read it was too late for a write-in candidate for the Alabama senate race, he said, “Hold my beer, we will just see about that.”
Busby told The Daily Beast on Monday he is launching his long-shot bid to stop Republican nominee Roy Moore from reaching the Senate.
“I have no idea if the allegations against him true or not, but I don’t see anything within his experience as a judge that qualifies him for the job.”
Busby said his state needs a choice other than Moore or Democrat Doug Jones.
“Alabama is not happy with the two choices we have down here. They are not appealing.”
Busby said he spent 31 years in the Marine Corps and on his last tour of duty was vice chief of staff to then-Gen. John Kelly, who is now White House chief of staff.
Since retiring, Busby has been the CEO of his own business and worked as a defense consultant and investment banker. At the same time, Busby has been honoring fallen Marines with sculpture like the one he was working on in his garage prior to his Senate announcement.”
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Oh brother. How many anti-Christs can we possibly process before we devolve into madness. [Don’t answer that Ricky, I know you think we’re already there.] :–)
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Sadly, like the last election, there are no good choices here for Alabama.
https://www.redstate.com/joesquire/2017/11/27/no-excuse-justifies-voting-doug-jones-alabama/
“At RedState, there has always been one hard and fast rule: Oppose abortion at all costs. Jones supports abortion right up until the baby is out of the womb, and even then it’s probably debatable for him. If you vote for Jones, you are not a conservative, and you cannot claim to be one.
This is not up for debate. Under no circumstances should you support, endorse, or vote for Doug Jones. Which seems to be what Jeff Flake, among others, is doing.
“Jeff Flake
✔
@JeffFlake
After what we know, for Republicans to support Roy Moore over Doug Jones is political tribalism at its worst. We shouldn’t succumb to it”
Sorry, Senator Flake, but that’s a load of crap. There are going to be plenty of people who will vote for Moore because he isn’t in favor of murdering babies. That’s not tribalism, that’s rationalizing.
Am I endorsing Moore here? Of course not. Plenty of folks will accuse me of it, naturally, but I don’t encourage anyone to vote for Moore. He is unfit for the office, but the issue of abortion – the actual murder of children – makes Jones just as unfit in my book. Sorry if I don’t want people murdering OR touching kids. I’m picky like that.
What I suggest, and it’s probably frowned upon for me to do so (FYI: I do not speak for all of RedState when I write this), is that people just don’t vote in Alabama. Don’t go out of your way to have to make a choice on the lesser of two evils. Don’t vote for evil at all.
It’s the same as 2016 for me. Did I want Trump? No. Does that mean I wanted Hillary? No. I refused to vote because I was dead set against voting for a bad person just because they were less bad than the other. Alabama’s vote is exactly the same situation.”
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Well, as if to emphasize my previous point about consumerism, I sat in on a teleconference earlier this morning (as a non-participating note-taker). A certain government agency wants all references to ‘client’ or ‘recipient’ removed from the paperwork and software. They want it replaced with, yep, ‘consumer’. So a person may be so debilitated they can’t cut their own food or go to the bathroom without supervision, but they are now considered ‘consumers’. It looks like we may have lost our collective mind—perhaps it’s hiding in some dark alley with our soul. :–/
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The next, next shoe to drop…..
Why all the outrage over Moore? He wouldn’t be the first, and won’t be the last with allegations such as these. Why single him out amidst a herd of like minded animals?
Because a Dem pick up or 2 could flip the Senate. That’s why.
https://www.axios.com/there-are-more-hill-harassment-scandals-coming-2512901235.html
“Capitol Hill veterans expect that “a lot more” sexual-harassment settlements by lawmakers will be uncovered. So now there’s a race to strengthen workplace rules that are scandalously archaic.
The big picture: The existing system is a racket. Settlements are secret, and the Ethics Committee is notorious for protecting its own. We — as in all of us taxpayers — pay the hush money, because that’s who foots the bills for these settlements. Only a few lawmakers have publicly pushed for broad, quick change.
Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the House’s longest-serving member, is being allowed to go slowly after accusations became public. Conyers announced that he’s stepping aside as top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee while he’s investigated by the Ethics Committee.
Congressional sources say there’s no chance he’ll return to the post. He may even leave Congress after the Ethics Committee completes its investigation.
This is bicameral: Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) is going back to work today.
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi complicated her party’s position by making supportive comments about Conyers during a live appearance on “Meet the Press” (“an icon in our country. He has done a great deal to protect women”), and even questioning the accusers: “I don’t know who they are. Do you?”
She later added on Twitter: “Zero tolerance means consequences. … No matter how great an individual’s legacy, it is not a license for harassment.”
A senior Democratic aide said Pelosi had worked with Conyers for five days to lay a path where he would step aside as ranking member.
Pelosi had the complication of dealing with someone who “has often appeared disoriented,” according to the N.Y. Times, and showed up in pajamas on “at least two separate occasions — once at a United Automobile Workers event in Michigan and once at a meeting of top Democrats on Capitol Hill.””
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I was a little confused at the end there, wasn’t sure which they meant. Pelosi often appears disoriented as well, McCain too. There’s a national discussion on others we should have too. Term limits would help weed that out.
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Careful, AJ. People are going to start bringing up the 25th Amendment again.
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As to being a “Trumpkin”, I am so glad that we don’t have Hillary that I try to keep my mouth shut about Trump. Does that mean that I am on his side? I like lots that he has done; Judges, illegal executive orders rescinded, asking the legislature to make laws, following laws with respect to illegal border crossers, foreign affairs. But i don’t like him “Tweeting” or posting on Facebook. He should just smile and wave when asked about cases in court. As we used to sing when we were kids, “He talks too much!”
God was good when HE had Hillary lose. When Trump won, I knew that I should put my political trust in the LORD, not in Trump or Republicans. They would let us down, and they have. I do not respect Democrats, they are “Ridin’ Dirty.” Republicans are marginally better. But the general philosophies of the 2 parties are different. I see nothing good from the Democrats. Republicans have trouble following their desires: following laws is often harsh on people. Putting someone in prison for 20 years to life is mean, but then so is raping a woman or beating someone just because they don’t give you their money quick enough.
Please explain to me why California has 10% of the population of the US but 30%-50% of the welfare population of the US. Why should I pay taxes to support them?
We have trolley cars but our houses are, at most, 2 stories high. It is hard to keep taller ones from falling down in an earthquake. We can’t get the population density to make commuter trains viable. Why should I pay for a bullet train that I have to drive 8 hours to get to one end of? Oh, and why pay for a right of way when 30 miles away is the center divider of I-5?
Stupidity? No, just Democrats!
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Back to court for Little Sisters of the Poor.
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/for-the-love-of-god-why-cant-democrats-leave-the-little-sisters-of-the-poor-alone/article/2641591
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There are other issues besides abortion. Am I for slaughtering innocent babies who didn’t ask to be conceived? NO. I am not. They are innocent in all of this.
Roy Moore isn’t going to single handedly overturn Roe v. Wade. We need to be worried about more than the abortion issue right now.
Just about anyone would be better than Roy Moore. I LIVE HERE. TRUST ME ON THIS.
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Dear Kim,
I lovingly disagree. Democrats are not better than Roy Moore. Vote for him and let the Senate not accept him. Go for another election.
I spent over 20 years having to fight paying for “only” my “Fair Share” union dues. I know that Democrats are NOT for the “little people.” They are greedy thieves, looking to get theirs. They have no honor. They do not know how to do right. They will do whatever they can to do wrong. They are those that GOD warned the Children of Israel about when they wanted a king like everybody else had.
There is nothing good about Democrats. I live under them. They are just giant straws; they SUCK!!!!
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Here is something to think about. If Roy Moore wins and is not expelled, the Democrats are going to run against him and Trump in 2018. When I say run against him, I mean Democrat Senate candidates from Maine to California are going to be running against Roy Moore – to take back the Senate to keep him from being a subcommittee chairman.
Moore is much like Trump. In the short run he will likely be better (more conservative) than his opponent. However, when you nominate and elect people who are morally, intellectually and emotionally unfit to serve, the long term costs to the party and the country can be high.
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Sometimes I think he does this on purpose, because trolling the media, and Fauxahontas, amuses him, and the outrageous setting for doing so is always just part of the gag. 🙂
Wanna see me make the press go nuts? Watch this……
And if Pocahontas is now a racial slur instead of a name, will Disney be changing the movie title, in the name of cultural civility and sensitivity?
Here’s your quote of the day. From Sanders-Huckabee when asked if it was offensive.
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“Pocahontas” is not a racial slur.
“I think what most people find offensive is Sen. Warren lying about her heritage to advance her career,”
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This should keep the press occupied for days……….
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I can remember that Coyote Blue was pretty outraged that Warren had lied about her heritage to get her job at Harvard. Warren can whine all she wants. Trump and Sarah Huckabee are right on that one.
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And in case anyone thinks he’s being too hard on Warren…….
https://legalinsurrection.com/2017/11/its-time-for-elizabeth-warren-to-apologize-for-her-native-american-deception/#more-234276
“Elizabeth Warren is not Native American. Yet she claimed to be Native American while climbing the law school professor ladder to Harvard Law School.
The details of what Warren did, and how she tried to conceal it, are set forth at Elizabeth Warren Wiki, a website we created to put in one place the research documenting Warren’s deception. It’s all there, including the rundown of her highly questionable, if not downright debunked, family lore stories.
Here are the subheading links on the Elizabeth Warren Native American / Cherokee Controversy page:
1 Warren initially denies knowing why Harvard touted her as Native American
2 Bloggers and Reporters uncover Warren’s history of claiming to be Native American for employment purposes
3 U. Penn and Harvard Made Federal Filings Based On Warren’s Represenations
4 The Genealogical Evidence Shows Warren Has No Native American Ancestry
5 Warren Did Not Start Claiming To Be Native American Until She Was In Her 30’s
6 Warren Story About Her Parents’ Elopement Cast In Doubt
7 Warren’s Aunt Bea and High Cheekbones Story Cast In Doubt
8 Warren Never Associated With Native Americans
9 Boston Globe Defense of Warren
10 Related Pages At Elizabeth Warren Wiki
11 References”
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