The US Military Needs To Be Christian In Order To Win Battles????

You know what I don't understand?  I don't understand why the Christian Right in this country absolutely refuses to recognize the fact that not everyone in America is a Christian.  Examples of this abound, but the latest comes from Bryan Fischer, a director of the American Family Association and host of its talk radio program Focal Point.  Fischer declared in a recent radio address that in order to win battles, the US military must be composed of "men of Christian faith, who are in touch with God and with the spirit of God."

US Military Must Be Christian In Order To Win Battles

This is pretty light fare for Fischer as he has often referred to gays as "Nazis" and seems to have the misguided opinion that the freedom of religion guaranteed by the First Amendment only applies to Christians, but once again I digress.

My point is this.  Why are these people of the opinion that everyone should believe as they believe?  Are there no Muslims, Jews, Wiccans, Atheists, etc. serving honorably in the US military?  Of course there are.  Was the US military that won WW II a Christian military?  Absolutely not.  While our country was not as diverse in the 1940s as it is now, to suggest that everyone who fought for our country against the Axis was Christian is ludicrous; and to suggest that our present day military needs to be Christian in order to victorious is equally inane.

You know, I have no issues with anyone who practices any religion, but I do have issues with those who practice religious bigotry.  I realize that every religion says their way is the one and only way, but this is the United States of America.  Can we not accept people of all faiths and no faith at all as honorable, capable members of the armed forces and as productive members of society? 

The Islamic terrorists that attacked us on 9/11 have framed this conflict as a Holy War.  It would seem that Fischer is playing right into their hands by suggesting that our military consist only of Christians.

Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.

Twatwaffles Of The Week

And away we go..............................


First, we have a returnee to the list this week, but he only qualifies for Dicknozzle Of Douchebaggery dishonor.  Yes, Rush Limbaugh has made the wall of shame again this week.  What thoughtful, enlightened commentary has brought the Ol' Rushter this dishonor?  Well, this time, he has suggested that the riots in the UK were caused by the policies of the Democratic Party.  Yes, the Democratic Party in the US is to blame for riots in the UK. 


Limbaugh of course blames "entitlements" and "liberalism" for the unrest in the UK while totally ignoring the fact (Rush has never been terribly concerned with facts.) that the underlying causes of these riots were a police shooting, which many or may not have been racially motivated, and  the austerity and growing economic inequality in the UK.  Limbaugh also apparently doesn't realize that there is no UK equivalent to the Democratic Party here in the US.  The Labour Party comes closest, but they certainly aren't carbon copies of Democrats.  He is also, it would seem oblivious to the fact that the current government in the UK is a Torrie (conservative) majority.


Rushmiester also falsely claims that the Democrats fought against desegregation of the US military while ignoring the fact (There is that word again.) that Harry Truman a Democratic president desegregated the armed forces via Executive Order 9981 on July 26, 1948. This action along with LBJ’s signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 pushed the pro-segregation/racist Southern Democrats out of the Democratic Party and into the Republican Party where they currently reside today.


Rush Limbaugh Blames Democrats For UK Riots


Number Five:  We have a tie for fifth place this week.  Bradley Bickett and Gerald Kirby, Aurora, CO police officers, who were cited for allegedly drinking and driving and throwing trash from an Aurora Police cruiser during a ride through Goshen County,Wyoming.  Bickett was booked into the Goshen County Detention Center for charges of Driving While Impaired, Careless Driving and Speeding.  Kirby was cited for littering.


It seems these two fine members of the thin blue line were driving through Wyoming on their way to South Dakota for a funeral for a law enforcement officer who had been killed, I assume, in the line of duty when they were spotted allegedly driving at speeds over 100 mph, throwing beer cans out of the window of the cruiser, and using their emergency lights to get through traffic.  A cooler full (well, not quite full, I guess) of beer was found in the police car.


Yeah, that's great guys.  You're on your way to a funeral for an officer who gave his life in the line of duty, and you two jackasses decide to tie one on as your driving to the service.  And all the decent cops out there wonder why the public has issues with law enforcement officers..........


Police Officer Arrested For Drinking And Driving In Police Car


Number Four:  Republican Indiana State Representative Phillip Hinkle whose emails suggest that he offered a young man $80 plus tip to spend time with him Saturday night at the JW Marriott hotel.
The emails, sent from Hinkle's publicly listed personal address, ask the young man for "a couple hours of your time tonight" and offer him cash up front, with a tip of up to $50 or $60 "for a really good time."  The emails were prompted by an ad on Craigslist from a young man in the men seeking men for casual encounters section.  The details of this incident are rather salacious and may be read in the attached link.


Quite frankly, I couldn't possibly care less if this man is gay and is looking for companionship on the Internet, save two things.  First, he is married with children.  Second, he has railed against gay rights and gay marriage.  He also often spoke in favor of Indiana's thus far failed attempts to amend its state constitution to prohibit same sex marriage.  Another "family values" Republican hypocrite?  It would certainly seem so.


Anti-Gay Indiana Assemblyman Seeks Gay Sex On The Internet


Number Three:  We have a three way tie for third place this week.  Asusena Gonzalez, Maria Gonzalez and Sergio Almeida who were charged with child neglect after a five year old girl was found locked in a closet.  The girl weighed 19 pounds when she was discovered.  The girl had allegedly been locked in the closet, beaten, and starved while seven other children in the house were not abused and were healthy. 


A second Dicknozzle Of Douchebaggery goes to defense attorney, Frank Kirk, who suggested that the malnourished girl only weighed nineteen pounds because of "genetics" and because her mother "has a small frame".


Week in and week out I say it, folks.  I don't make this stuff up.  I just report it.


Nineteen Pound Five Year Old Found Locked In Closet


Number Two:  Former Luzerne County, PA Judge Mark Ciavarella Jr. who was sentenced Thursday to 28 years in federal prison for taking $1 million in bribes from the builder of a pair of juvenile detention centers in a case that became known as "kids for cash." 


Essentially, this fine example of the judiciary sentenced juveniles who had been convicted of petty crimes to serve time in detention centers in exchange for kickbacks from the detention center developers.  Over 4,000 convictions were overturned as a result of this case. 


So again, someone in a position of authority uses his power to line his own pockets while treating some of the most vulnerable children in society.  Stomach churning, isn't it?  Let's hope this man never sees the light of day outside of a prison cell again.


PA Judge Gets 28 Years In "Kids For Cash" Case


Number One:  Edward Lay, 37, of Indianapolis who was a shooting rampage over a loud stereo that resulted in the deaths of two women and critical injuries to another man.


The victims were identified as Mary Swift, 37, of Indianapolis, and Kelly Jinks, 33. The man who was shot was identified as Ronald Kortz II, 40, of Indianapolis.  Kortz underwent surgery Friday and was listed in critical but stable condition at Wishard Memorial Hospital.


Swift, who was Lay's girlfriend, and Lay argued over the volume of a stereo.  During the exchange, Swift was shot multiple times.  Jinks and Kortz were shot when they tried to intervene. 


I don't possibly know what else can be said about this.  Such is American society in 2011.


Loud Stereo Leads To Killing Of Women


Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.

Ann Coulter: A Voice For Civility?

You know what I don't understand?  I don't understand how right wing windbag Ann Coulter can have the audacity to accuse liberals of lacking civility.  I assume she actually said this with a straight face.  The hypocrisy of this nonsensical blowhard is just astounding, dear readers. 

Before any of you point it out, I realize I am taking a very uncivil tone about Coulter; but, much like Sarah Palin, she has done nothing to warrant being treated with respect or civility.

"Michael Moore, Keith Olbermann and James Carville -- they can walk any place peacefully. No one attacks them," Coulter said Saturday in an Interview with the Daily Caller." Karl Rove can't have a book signing with these crazed women or liberals running at him. George W. Bush had to cancel an event in Europe recently. Will any former Democratic president ever have to cancel a speech because of the conservative mobs that are creating danger?"

Really, Ann?  The conservative mob that most concerns the most at this point is the Teabaggers, I mean---Tea Party, but that is a discussion for another time.  In the interim, let's review some of this acid tongued harlot's more notorious examples of her civil conduct.

Besides the incidents where she so intelligently told a college student of Arabian decent to "get on her camel and ride back home" during a question and answer session at a Canadian university a few years ago and when she civilly and politely referred to now disgraced Democratic presidential candidate, John Edwards, as a "little faggot", here are some of her more thoughtful, well spoken quotes from her recent history:

"Ironically, since Obama was elected, for the first time in my life I'm sometimes not proud of my country."

"Liberals become indignant when you question their patriotism, but simultaneously work overtime to give terrorists a cushion for the next attack and laugh at dumb Americans who love their country and hate the enemy."

"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity. We weren't punctilious about locating and punishing only Hitler and his top officers. We carpet bombed German cities; we killed civilians. That's war. And this is war."

"We've finally given liberals a war against fundamentalism, and they don't want to fight it. They would, except it would put them on the same side as the United States."

"Whether they are defending the Soviet Union or bleating for Saddam Hussein, liberals are always against America. They are either traitors or idiots, and on the matter of America's self-preservation, the difference is irrelevant."

"While the form of treachery varies slightly from case to case, liberals always manage to take the position that most undermines American security."

Yes, Ann, your civility is certainly obvious from your tolerant, inclusive, enlightened remarks.  You certainly are a spokesperson for decorum.

Oh, and while we are on the subject, let us review the tactful titles of some of Coulter's books:

Guilty: Liberal Victims and Their Assault on America (January 2009)

If Democrats Had Any Brains, They'd Be Republicans (October, 2007)

Godless: The Church of Liberalism (June 2006)

How to Talk to a Liberal (If You Must)(October, 2004)

Treason: Liberal Treachery From the Cold War to the War on Terrorism (June 2003)

Slander: Liberal Lies About the American Right (June 2002)

I, for one, can certainly see that Coulter is an expert on civility since she has never used any as near as I can tell.  The frightening part is that this poster child for boorish behavior continues to worm her way onto the national stage and sell books. 

Coulter and her minions are like bullies on the playground who whine to the teacher when the target of their bullying finally gets pushed to the limit and jacks their jaws.   It's intellectually dishonest to declare certain words as "profane," while speaking as venomously as you wish, so long as you say "please" and "thank you". "F bombs" never blew anything up, but George Bush and Karl Rove certainly did. When is Coulter going to learn that she and her cohorts can't purposely incite anger without consequence?

That's how it is with Republicans and Democrats. We all take unwarranted pot shots at the other side, including me. And it's not conducive to civility. So surely, there is a point to be made for finding a way to be more civil despite our differences. But the idea of Ann Coulter as the spokesperson for civility is absurd. What a hypocrite! 

This is a woman who refers to Arabs as "a description of the suspect" and says "Canada is lucky that we allow them to exist on the same continent." Ann, we'll tone down our "uncivil" rhetoric as soon as you tone down yours. Until then, shut your mouth, please.

Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.

Thank The Liberals

And for the latest installment of my semi-regular feature that I like to call "Thank the Liberals".............

Do you like National Parks?  Thank the liberals,

 Do you like National Forests?  Thank the liberals.

 Do you like the Interstate Highway System?  Thank the liberals.

Do you like the GI Bill?  Thank the liberals.

 Do you like Labor Laws and Worker’s Rights?  Thank the liberals.

Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.

Are Young White Supremacists On The Rise?

Friends, I recently attended a music festival, and I was utterly appalled by something I observed.  I was flabbergasted by the number of young men who were wearing T-shirts with "White Power" and other racially charged slogans on them.  I was equally dismayed by the number of people who had swastika tattoos.  It was incredible, and not in a good way.

This led me to a couple of questions.  The first of which is are young white supremacists on the rise?  I wrote a column a few months ago about the rise in racist groups, especially after President Obama's election.  Might this have been first hand evidence of the increase is these kinds of groups?  I have to say that I was quite disturbed by this.  As is often discussed in this space, where did these young adults learn these obviously racist attitudes?  Why do we always think the next generation will be the one to finally understand that all people are equal, and why are we always proven wrong?  I ask one more time, dear readers, how do we finally put a stop to racism and bigotry?

Another thing I wondered was if those who had swastika tattoos actually have a true grasp of the unbridled evil that the Nazis unleashed on the world under the swastika flag?  Is this something that has been somewhat lost as history has progressed?  Why would anyone want to identify with a group that butchered over six million innocent people?  Do they really understand what they are identifying with and promoting?  Quite honestly, folks, it was bone chilling.

This is America.  We have a right to free speech and freedom of expression, even when it is patently offensive.  These folks have the right to put anything they want on their bodies or their clothing.  The deeper issue here is how to prevent racism and prejudice from poisoning another generation of Americans. 

Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.

Twatwaffles Of The Week

And away we go.........................

First, a Dicknozzle of Douchebaggery:  Richard Handl, 31, from Angelholm in southern Sweden who tried to build a nuclear reactor in his kitchen, and, of course, tracked his progress on, among other things, his Facebook page.  "The boiling explosion was about 3 or 4 months ago and the police came two weeks ago," he said.  After the incident, which he tagged "The Meltdown" on his blog, he said he "cleaned up the mess on the cooker and then I bought some more radium and continued the experiment."  After authorities raided his apartment, and discontinued the "experiment", he, in the understatement of the year, logged "Project Cancelled" on his blog.  In the future, might I suggest a safer hobby like lion taming volunteering for the bomb squad?

Swede Tried To Build A Nuclear Reactor In His Kitchen

Number Five:  One of our favorite windbags, Rush Limbaugh, makes a return appearance this week.  What inane thing did he say to warrant a return trip to our twatwaffle list?  After a a moronic rant about how President Obama essentially wants to destroy everyone's savings, and I can only assume that the president is happy about the recent stock market slide and tonight's announcement of a credit downgrade, at least in Rush's rather distorted view, he then compared President Obama to strongman Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe.  Rush seems to think that President Obama will soon be seizing white folks' farms here in the US, much like Mugabe did in Zimbabwe.  Yes, once again, Rush's ignorance of world events and racial insensitivity are on full display again.  In his defense, maybe he was stoned on pain killers.  Just sayin'.

Limbaugh Says Obama Economic Role Model Is Robert Mugabe

Number Four:  Texas Governor Rick Perry, who is also an on the fence Republican presidential candidate.  As previously noted in the column, Perry is attending a prayer gathering in Houston on 6 Aug 11, which seems innocuous at first until you hear the types of ministers who will be attending this rally.  Among the more (ahem) interesting statements put forth by these wonderful examples of Christianity at it best are that God sent Hitler to Earth to hunt Jews and force them into Israel, the repeal of Don't Ask; Don't Tell caused a bird kill in Arkansas, the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of religion only applies to Christians, the Statue of Liberty is a demonic idol, and that the Japanese stock market has remained stagnant because the Emperor of Japan had sex with the "Sun Goddess".  I wish I were making this up, but I am not.  Really, Rick, you should watch with whom you are seen.  Folks might think you are as loony as these "pastors", nor maybe you are.  Regardless, I hope the American people take this type of thing into consideration before possibly electing you as the most powerful man in the world.

Rick Perry Pals Around With Pastors Who Warm About The Perils Of Sex With Demons

Number Three:   Mark Bausch of DeLeon Springs, FL, who allegedly forced his way into a blind woman's home and stole a parrot that he previously traded to the woman in exchange for fifty dollars and a computer.  It seems Mr. Bausch decided that he missed the bird and the computer ran too slowly, so he wanted the bird back.  When the woman refused, he accosted her and took it anyway.  I bet you are as impressed as I am, aren't you, dear readers?  There is something particularly sickening about the disabled being physically assaulted, isn't there?

Man Shoved Blind Woman; Stole Her Parrot

Number Two:  Gerardo Martinez, 30, of Council Bluffs, IA, who  has been charged with animal torture, bestiality and indecent exposure after he allegedly attempted to have sex with a cat and then threw it out a window, along with a pornographic DVD.  The cat later died, and Martinez admitted to using meth before the incident.  I say it every week, folks.  I don't make this stuff up,  I just report it. 

Man Admits To Sex With Cat Before Throwing It From A Window

Number One:  We have a 72 way tie for Twatwaffle Number One this week.  They are the 72 people who were recently charged in an online child pornography ring.  More than 50 members of a child pornography ring who engaged in what authorities describe as "horrific" and "unspeakable" crimes have been arrested for sexually exploiting children from 12 years old to as young as infants.  Seventy-two members of the online site called Dreamboard have been charged in the United States. Officials said 52 of them have been arrested in the U.S. and abroad. The identities of the remaining 20 are unknown at this time.  "In order to become part of the Dreamboard community, prospective members were required to upload pornography portraying children under 12 years of age or younger," said Attorney General Eric Holder at a Justice Department news conference. "Once given access, the participants had to continually upload images of child sexual abuse in order to maintain membership. The more content they provided, the more content they were allowed to access. Members who created and shared images and videos of themselves molesting children received elevated status and greater access," he said.  What particularly horrified investigators were "super-hardcore" posts that involved adults having violent sexual intercourse with "very young kids" who were being subjected to both physical and sexual abuse.  Holder said, "Some of the children featured in these images and videos were just infants and in many cases, the children being victimized were in obvious and also intentional pain, even in distress and crying, just as the rules for one area of the bulletin board mandated. They had to be in distress and crying." 

Friends, I often try to have some fun with the Twatwaffles

Seventy Two Charged In Online Child Porn Ring

Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.

Can We Please Stop Using The Word "Nigger"??

You know what I don't understand?  I don't understand why people insist on using the word "nigger".  And, yes, I am going to write it out instead of using the term "the N-word", so it comes through as bloody offensive as it actually is. 

I mean seriously, people.  Is this 2011 or 1955?  Must people continue to use this vile, derogatory, disgusting word?   Must a certain segment of our population insist on being bigoted against black folks.  Why can't black folks be called "African American" or "black"?  Why can't it be understood that blacks, and everyone else for that matter, are equal to whites?  When will we realize that we all are brothers and sisters, we all come from the same God, and we are all equal?

In the last month, I have heard "nigger" used in general conversation at least ten times; and, quite frankly, it makes me ill.  I suppose I should call people out on it; but if they are ignorant enough to say it, is there any point in trying to reason with them?  I just find it incomprehensible that these racist attitudes still exist.  When will it stop?  Of course, as noted before in this column, I am aghast at the thought of these people passing these prejudices on to their children.  Dear readers, I ask you.  Do you find this as horribly offensive as I?  If so, what can we do to stop not only the use of "nigger", but the bigotry behind it?

Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.

FOX News Is At It Again

Once again, the fair and balanced bastion of journalistic excellence that is Fox News has shown its true colors by blatantly lying about President Obama's supposed lack of an "Easter Proclamation" after the president issued a statement marking the beginning of Ramadan yesterday. 
Some of the lowlights, if I may:

Fox & Friends co-hosts falsely declared that he issued a "proclamation" in honor of the Ramadan.  He issued a statement in honor of the holiday, but he did not issue a proclamation.

A presidential proclamation is "an instrument that states a condition, declares a law and requires obedience, recognizes an event or triggers the implementation of a law (by recognizing that the circumstances in law have been realized)" (Cooper 2002, 116). In short, presidents "define" situations or conditions on situations that become legal or economic truth. These orders carry the same force of law as executive orders - the difference between the two is that executive orders are aimed at those inside government while proclamations are aimed at those outside government. The administrative weight of these proclamations is upheld because they are often specifically authorized by congressional statute, making them "delegated unilateral powers." Presidential proclamations are often dismissed as a practical presidential tool for policy making because of the perception of proclamations as largely ceremonial or symbolic in nature. However, the legal weight of presidential proclamations suggests their importance to presidential governance.  (Thank you to the American Presidency Project.)

Reviving their attack on Obama for not issuing an Easter proclamation,  the co-hosts acknowledged that Obama hosted the White House's annual Easter Egg Roll, they suggested that the rest of Obama's official recognition of the holiday was limited to a brief "mention ... in his weekend address." In fact, in addition to the Easter Egg Roll and his weekly address, Obama hosted an entire Easter Prayer Breakfast in which he discussed how the "resurrection of" his "savior, Jesus Christ ... puts everything else in perspective." In his very personal speech, Obama quoted the Scripture and said of Jesus' "slow march up that hill" and "the pain and the scorn and the shame of the cross" Jesus was subjected to.

Fox News Lobs False Attacks After Obama Ramadan Statement

It seems to me that this begs the question of whether Faux News is once again trying the gin up those who insist that President Obama is a Muslim when he obviously is a devout Christian.  I should like to point out, once again, that despite the president's obvious Christian faith, Muslims are not precluded from the presidency or any other elected office; so even if the man were Muslim, why would it matter?  Is Fox attacking the president's faith?  It would seem that this is their intent.

Why does Fox News continue to spread lies about the president?  I would assume for the same reason that they interviewed three times more Republicans than they did Democrats regarding the just resolved debt ceiling crisis.  They are nothing more than the propaganda wing of the Republican Party.  Fair and balanced indeed.  I realize that there are media outlets that exhibit a leftist bias as well.  Newsweek, which I read religiously, and MSNBC, whose news coverage or commentary I would not watch if they paid me, come to mind immediately, but I have never seen either of these outlets tell bold faced lies about elected officials like Fox consistently does.  Again, fair and balanced, indeed.

Fox likes to say "(They) report, you decide".  Well, I have decided that they are a a sodding joke and an insult to serious television journalism worldwide.  Maybe they will go down in flames next to "The News of the World".............  We can only hope.

Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.

Two Stories Of Human Courage

Today, let's review two stories of extreme human courage.  You know, when there is so much selfishness and so many "woe is me" pity parties out there, we all need to hear about people like these next two courageous ladies to show what true human strength really is. 
Our first inspirational lady is Iranian Ameneh Bahrami, 34, who lost her eyesight and suffered horrific disfigurement after acid was thrown in her face by Majid Movahedi.  Mr. Movahedi was angered because Ms. Bahrami rejected his marriage proposal, so he threw acid in her face, which ultimately cost the young lady her sight as well as causing horrible burns on her scalp, face, and body. 

A court ruling had allowed Bahrami to have a doctor pour a few drops of the corrosive chemical in one of Movahedi's eyes as retribution based on the Islamic law system of "qisas," or eye-for-an-eye retribution.  However, as the procedure (for lack of a better word) was about to begin, Ms. Bahrami announced that she had forgiven her attacker, and his eyesight was spared.

Iranian Blinded By Acid Pardons Her Attacker

Now, stop and think about that, folks.  How many of us, had we endured such agony and permanent disability, would not have welcomed the chance to have our attacker face a similar fate?  How many of us would have been overcome by a desire for revenge or retribution under such circumstances?  Deep down, I think most of us would, if we had gone through what this lady went through, yet she was able to forgive the man who assailed her.  She forgave the man who burned away her eyesight and her face.  Again, think about that for a minute, folks.  We all should have such courage and be so willing to forgive transgressions, large and small.

Our second brave lady is Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ), who appeared on the floor of the House of Representatives this evening to cast a vote in favor of the debt ceiling compromise after being shot in the head and severely wounded in January of this year. 

Giffords In House For First Time Since Shooting

This intrepid public servant, after nearly being killed less than a year ago, and after undergoing countless hours, days, weeks, and months of surgeries, rehabilitation, and therapy, took to the floor of the House to cast a vote to a standing ovation of her colleagues on both sides of the aisle.  It take a great deal of inner strength and an extraordinary will to survive and recover to overcome such a grave wound.  Regardless of your party affiliation, her persistence in reclaiming her life should be an inspiration to all of us. 

Peace and love, my brothers and sisters.