CephasWorld

William Flippin Jr.

2011-12-19T13:35:00.002-05:00

Margaret Aymer

2011-12-12T16:38:00.002-05:00

Princeton Irvin Parker

2011-12-03T09:36:00.003-05:00

Alisha Gordon, M.Ed.

2011-12-03T09:36:00.000-05:00

Otis Moss III

2011-12-03T09:35:00.002-05:00

Lamar's

2011-11-14T09:25:00.002-05:00

N.T. Wright Simply Jesus

2011-11-07T12:11:00.002-05:00

Day1

2011-10-20T09:06:00.001-04:00

Joshua Case

2011-10-06T15:21:00.002-04:00

Redbird

2011-09-14T15:51:00.002-04:00

Tracker

2011-08-22T09:43:00.002-04:00

Wordle - The Help

2011-08-13T10:18:00.002-04:00

Keep the Faith Peachtree Road Road

2011-07-06T08:58:00.002-04:00

Photo by Carroll Sterne

Come visit Pete's World

2008-08-15T08:57:00.000-04:00

After maintaining two separate blogs, one focusing on politics and faith, and the other on pop culture, I've decided to save myself some hassle and combine everything at one site, now called Pete's World. Come visit!

Bookmark peedub.com and see what we're up to!

Living Loved Trailer

2007-08-17T13:42:00.001-04:00

My new book: Living Loved

2007-07-09T10:41:00.001-04:00

Here's the publisher's page on my new book, LIVING LOVED, out any day now.

And here's what some people are saying already about it...

Praise for Living Loved-

"An open-hearted book on knowing, experiencing and sharing love. Peter Wallace has thoroughly studied the Gospel of John, and he brings to us fresh words and loving insights."
Nora Gallagher, author of Changing Light

"Peter Wallace's wonderful book Living Loved teaches us how to do just that. With touching examples and personal stories he interprets the sometimes abstract language of the gospel of John to help us feel and experience the love we so desire.
Edward L. Beck, author of God Underneath: Spiritual Memoirs of a Catholic Priest

"With the Beloved Disciple as his muse, and using Eugene Patterson's ear-catching translation of John's gospel, Peter Wallace reminds us that 'the Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood."
Martha Sterne, author of Alive and Loose in the Ordinary

"Peter Wallace takes us on a breathtaking voyage, seeking along the way the kind of love that doesn't pander to sentiment, but puts wind in our sails and sends us out into the deep sea of meaning and service."
Thomas G. Long, Candler School of Theology, Emory University

"Encounter by encounter and phrase by phrase, I was led into the presence of Jesus and his love. Living Loved is a profound meditation on scripture, accessible to anyone who hungers and thirsts for the abundant life."
Kenneth H. Carter, Jr., Providence United Methodist Church

NYT Mag: Narrowing the Religion Gap? - Gary Rosen - New York Times

2007-02-18T16:22:00.000-05:00

The Way We Live Now - Narrowing the Religion Gap? - Gary Rosen - New York Times: "Try a quick political thought experiment. First, form a mental picture of the Democratic front-runners for president — Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Now do the same for the leading Republican contenders — John McCain and Rudy Giuliani. Next (and this is the key step), imagine each of them in church, sitting in a pew, head bowed, or better still, at the pulpit, delivering a homily or leading the congregation in worship.

Strange, no? It’s not hard to envision Clinton and Obama among the faithful. She is a lifelong Methodist and self-described “praying person,” and he belongs to a church where some years ago he found himself (in his own words) “kneeling beneath that cross” in submission “to His will.” Both slip easily into the earnest, humble-of-the-earth mode of liberal God talk.

But McCain and Giuliani? You somehow imagine them fidgeting during the hymns and checking their watches. The senator is an Episcopalian, the former mayor a Catholic, but neither man, you have to think, would be caught dead in a Bible-study group or could possibly declare, �la George W. Bush, that his favorite philosopher is “Christ, because he changed my heart.” In the piety primary, the Democrats win hands down."

A Symbolic Vote Is a Sign of Bitter Debates to Come - New York Times

2007-02-17T08:13:00.000-05:00

A Symbolic Vote Is a Sign of Bitter Debates to Come - New York Times: "The symbolic House vote on Friday opposing the American troop buildup in Iraq was an act of Congressional defiance that lays the groundwork for an even more bitter and ultimately more consequential clash over whether and how lawmakers might restrict President Bush’s authority to prosecute the war."

A Divided House Rebukes Bush on Iraq - New York Times

2007-02-17T08:12:00.000-05:00

A Divided House Rebukes Bush on Iraq - New York Times: "A sharply divided House of Representatives passed a resolution on Friday formally repudiating President Bush’s decision to send more than 20,000 new combat troops to Iraq."

U.S. Anglican Leader Met With Boycott - washingtonpost.com

2007-02-16T14:31:00.000-05:00

U.S. Anglican Leader Met With Boycott - washingtonpost.com: "Seven conservative Anglican leaders refused Friday to take Holy Communion with the head of the U.S. branch of the church, who supports ordaining gays and blessing same-sex unions, as the fellowship struggles to avert a split.

The boycott came at the six-day meeting of leaders of the 77-million-member Anglican Communion.

"We are unable to come to the Holy Table with the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church because to do so would be a violation of Scriptural teaching and the traditional Anglican understanding," the archbishops said in a posting on the Church of Nigeria Web site."

Disgusting pettiness. How Jesus must weep.

E&P: 'Wash Times' Fails to Correct Fabricated Abraham Lincoln Quote -- Now a Congressman is Using It

2007-02-16T06:58:00.000-05:00

'Wash Times' Fails to Correct Fabricated Abraham Lincoln Quote -- Now a Congressman is Using It: "More than two days after an inflammatory quote used by a regular Washington Times columnist was shown to be fabricated -- it was attributed to Abraham Lincoln, no less -- the newspaper still has not removed it from the article, nor carried a correction.

That's one reason Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) cited the quote on the floor of the House today in the debate over the Iraq war 'surge.' He took it to be true, apparently. Rep. Young added, referring to Lincoln: 'He had the same problem this President has, with an unpopular war. The same problem with people trying to redirect the commander in chief.'

Young's spokeswoman, Meredith Kenny, said the congressman took the quote directly from The Washington Times column. 'Now that he's been informed these are not the actual words of Lincoln, he will discontinue attributing the words to Lincoln. However, he continues to totally agree with the message of the statement,' Kenny told The Washington Post.

On Wednesday, E&P and some political blogs pointed out that conservative Frank Gaffney, Jr. opened his latest column on Tuesday morning with this: 'Congressmen who willfully take actions during wartime that damage morale and undermine the military are saboteurs and should be arrested, exiled, or hanged.' — President Abraham Lincoln."

NBC re-signs Olbermann

2007-02-16T06:53:00.000-05:00

NBC re-signs Olbermann | ajc.com: "Keith Olbermann will continue to be a thorn in Bill O'Reilly's side for at least four more years.

NBC News announced Thursday it had agreed to a 'second term' with the MSNBC 'Countdown' host. The extension will take him into 2011.

Besides feuding with Fox News Channel's O'Reilly, Olbermann has become a liberal hero. He has seen his ratings increase since launching a series of anti-President Bush commentaries last summer.

His prime-time program averaged 715,000 viewers in January, according to Nielsen Media Research. While his audience is often less than a third of O'Reilly's in the same time slot, Olbermann's viewership is up 85 percent over January 2006."

ABC News: Bush guru says bond with Americans lost

2007-02-15T13:49:00.000-05:00

Political Radar: "In the forthcoming issue of Texas Monthly, former Bush strategist Matthew Dowd writes that President Bush's 'gut-level bond' with the American people 'may be lost' and that 'wholesale change' is needed in Iraq.

'Sending in a small contingent of troops is likely going to be seen as not helpful,' Dowd writes. 'He'd be much better off with the public if he said, 'This is a mess, we made mistakes, and the only way to fix it is a wholesale change.' And that could mean either a serious increase in troop strength or withdrawal.'"

Boedeker on Fox News's new conservative comedy news show

2007-02-15T07:28:00.000-05:00

Orlando Sentinel - Fox News Channel bombs with comedy show, by Hal Boedeker: "Jon Stewart knows how to do slashing comical commentary. He weighs in on what's happening, such as the media's bizarre coverage of Anna Nicole Smith's death.

David Letterman knows how to do slashing comical commentary. He takes President Bush's awkward speeches and contrasts them with the lasting words of John F. Kennedy and Franklin Roosevelt.

Fox News Channel does not know how to do slashing comical commentary. The channel debuts 'The 1/2 Hour News Hour' at 10 p.m. Sunday and repeats it at 10 p.m. Feb. 25. This show was meant to be a conservative version of 'The Daily Show.' It is a botch.

'The 1/2 Hour News Hour' does not comment on what is happening; it simply takes swipes at people. These people include Howard Dean, Hillary Clinton, Dennis Kucinich, Barack Obama and Ed Begley Jr. Other joke topics are the ACLU, Time magazine, children's books and global warming.

Laughter, of an awfully canned variety, greets all the gags. Nothing happening on screen justifies these outbursts.

Hey, I'm all for a good dig at the high and the mighty. But these satirists fall short of hitting their targets with wit, timeliness or punch."

AP: Franken runs for Senate

2007-02-15T07:00:00.000-05:00

Comedian plans bid for Senate | ajc.com: "Al Franken announced Wednesday that he will run for the U.S. Senate in 2008, making it clear that the comedian and author of 'Rush Limbaugh Is A Big Fat Idiot' wants to be taken seriously as a political figure.

Franken, 55, said he would seek the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican incumbent Norm Coleman and immediately acknowledged the doubts voters may have about electing a former 'Saturday Night Live' performer.

'Minnesotans have a right to be skeptical about whether I'm ready for this challenge, and to wonder how seriously I would take the responsibility that I'm asking you to give me,' Franken said in a video on his Web site."

As a regular listener to Franken on Air America (including his swan song show yesterday), I'm peeved at the slant of the AP article that he's just a "comedian" running for Senate. Any listener, any reader of his books, knows he's a brilliant, thoughtful, concerned, active person who supports the troops but disagrees with the war. Bless him.

Skeptics Doubt U.S. Evidence on Iran Action in Iraq - New York Times

2007-02-13T07:13:00.000-05:00

Skeptics Doubt U.S. Evidence on Iran Action in Iraq - New York Times: "Three weeks after promising it would show proof of Iranian meddling in Iraq, the Bush administration has laid out its evidence — and received in return a healthy dose of skepticism.

The response from Congressional and other critics speaks volumes about the current state of American credibility, four years after the intelligence controversy leading up to the Iraq war. To pre-empt accusations that the charges against Iran were politically motivated, the administration rejected the idea of a high-level presentation, relying instead on military and intelligence officers to make its case in a background briefing in Baghdad.

Even so, critics have been quick to voice doubts."

Mystery Illness Wipes Out Bee Colonies

2007-02-12T14:22:00.000-05:00

Top News- Mystery Illness Wipes Out Bee Colonies - AOL News: "A mysterious illness is killing tens of thousands of honeybee colonies across the country, threatening honey production, the livelihood of beekeepers and possibly crops that need bees for pollination."

Why Are the Pacifists So Passive? - New York Times

2007-02-12T07:11:00.000-05:00

Why Are the Pacifists So Passive? - New York Times: "The fact is, Congress has every power to end the war — if it really wanted to. It has the power of the purse. Its British forebears in Parliament micromanaged the monarchy quite a bit, for instance by making money (the “sinews of war”) contingent on attacking one country and making peace with another. And there is more direct precedent: In 1973, Congress affirmatively acted to cut off funds for Vietnam. It also cut off money for the Nicaraguan contras with the Boland Amendment in 1982.

Not only could Congress cut off money, it could require scheduled troop withdrawals, shrink or eliminate units, or freeze weapons supplies. It could even repeal or amend the authorization to use force it passed in 2002."

For Clinton and Obama, Different Tests on Iraq - New York Times

2007-02-12T07:08:00.000-05:00

For Clinton and Obama, Different Tests on Iraq - New York Times: "Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton was challenged on Iraq from corner to corner of New Hampshire this weekend, while Senator Barack Obama drew cheers in Iowa for his opposition to the war."

AJC: Political language can be meaningless

2007-02-12T06:55:00.000-05:00

POLITICAL LANGUAGE: Dump 'Free World' in sea of dated words | ajc.com - Walter Minot op-ed: "Along with our great literary writers, journalists should be the guardians of our language, especially our political language. But are journalists really performing their duty when they either refer to President Bush as 'the leader of the Free World' or allow White House representatives to do so with impunity?

In examining and criticizing political language, journalists would do well to read George Orwell's analytical essay, 'Politics and the English Language,' in which Orwell defines and illustrates a number of abuses of political language. Imagine what Orwell would say about George Bush's phrase 'the axis of evil.' The phrase doesn't really make sense in describing the relationship existing among Iraq, Iran and North Korea. If we use a definition from 'The American Heritage Dictionary,' those countries do not fit the metaphorical political definition of an 'axis,' that is 'an alliance of powers . . . to promote mutual interests and policies.' Iraq and Iran were, not so long ago, enemies in a protracted war, and North Korea has remained politically isolated, without a strong alliance with any other nation."

New Episcopal Leader Braces for Gay-Rights Test - New York Times

2007-02-11T07:53:00.000-05:00

New Episcopal Leader Braces for Gay-Rights Test - New York Times: "In an interview in her office last week, Bishop Jefferts Schori said the conflict was more about “biblical interpretation” than about homosexuality.

“We have had gay bishops and gay clergy for millennia,” she said. “The willingness to be open about that is more recent.”

She said that what she wanted to convey to her fellow primates was that despite the highly-publicized departure of some congregations (a spokesman said 45 of 7,400 have left and affiliated with provinces overseas), the Episcopal Church has the support of most members, who are engaged in worship and mission work, and not fixated on this controversy."

Episcopal presiding bishop may face snub | ajc.com

2007-02-11T07:50:00.000-05:00

Faith & Values: U.S. bishop may face snub | ajc.com: "International church conferences tend to be subdued affairs, but a meeting of Anglican Communion leaders next week could lead to an ecclesiastical smack-down of the Episcopal Church's new leader.

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori is scheduled to meet some of her harshest critics Wednesday at a six-day gathering of Anglican primates —- or regional leaders —- in Tanzania. The Episcopal Church is a member of the Anglican Communion, a 77 million-member global network of churches.

Primates at the regularly scheduled meeting are supposed to share worship and discuss the mission of the communion. But some African primates already have said that they may not even sit at the same table with Jefferts Schori because she supported the Episcopal Church's decision to consent to the election of an openly gay bishop in a relationship."

No discipline for gay Lutheran minister | ajc.com

2007-02-08T18:11:00.000-05:00

No discipline for gay Lutheran minister | ajc.com: "The Rev. Bradley E. Schmeling of St. John's Lutheran Church in Atlanta learned Thursday that he faces removal from the denomination he's loved since he was a kid.

But the news didn't discourage him or some of his biggest supporters."

"The more I think about it, the more hopeful I am that the conversation is continuing," Schmeling said in an interview after the decision was released. "They could have chosen to remove me immediately, but they clearly want the church to change the policy."

An Evangelical Lutheran Church in America jury Thursday called for the removal of Schemling from the clergy roster for defying church policy that bans clergy from same-sex relationships. Schmeling's removal takes effect Aug. 15 -- four days after the ELCA has a chance to debate the policy at its church wide assembly in Chicago.

Yet a detailed reading of the decision -- and even the timing of Schmeling's removal -- convinces the 44-year-old pastor and his supporters that he eventually may be vindicated.

Schmeling and his supporters pointed out that a majority of the 12-member jury concluded that "no discipline of any sort" should be imposed against the pastor. The jury, noting the growth in St. John's congregation and its support for Schmeling, also called for the ELCA to change its ban on sexually-active gay clergy at its church wide assembly, supporters said.

"They were so clear that my [same-sex] relationship didn't interfere with my ministry and even more, they said the policy was bad and unconstitutional," Schemling said. "That was a courageous and bold decision."

It’s the War, Senators - New York Times

2007-02-07T06:32:00.000-05:00

It’s the War, Senators - New York Times editorial: "It is not an inspiring sight to watch the United States Senate turn the most important issue facing America into a political football, and then fumble it. Yet that is what now seems to have come from a once-promising bipartisan effort to finally have the debate about the Iraq war that Americans have been denied for four years.

The Democrats’ ultimate goal was to express the Senate’s opposition to President Bush’s latest escalation. But the Democrats’ leaders have made that more difficult — allowing the Republicans to maneuver them into the embarrassing position of blocking a vote on a counterproposal that they feared too many Democrats might vote for."

New Wilberforce film inspires new abolitionist movement

2007-02-06T13:35:00.000-05:00

Amazing Grace Sunday: News from the National Council of Churches.

Two hundred years after the British Empire abolished slavery – and 144 years after the Emancipation Proclamation – an estimated 27 million people around the world are living in slavery.

This winter, as a new film tells the story of Amazing Grace, the hymn written by a reformed slave trader, a new abolitionist movement is being mounted to end slavery forever. Tens of thousands are planning to launch this effort February 18 on Amazing Grace Sunday.

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the British Parliament's act to end the sale of human beings in its empire. The act did not end the slave trade between Africa and the Americas but it set a political precedent and a moral standard for the rest of the world.

Haggard Now "Completely Heterosexual" | ajc.com

2007-02-06T11:39:00.000-05:00

Haggard Now "Completely Heterosexual" | ajc.com: "One of four ministers who oversaw three weeks of intensive counseling for the Rev. Ted Haggard said the disgraced minister emerged convinced that he is 'completely heterosexual.'

Haggard also said his sexual contact with men was limited to the former male prostitute who came forward with sexual allegations, the Rev. Tim Ralph of Larkspur told The Denver Post for a story in Tuesday's edition."

This would almost be funny if it weren't so pathetically sad.

USA Today on Jefferts Schiori

2007-02-05T14:21:00.000-05:00

Episcopal church's new dawn - USATODAY.com: "The long-simmering tensions between those who adhere to a strict interpretation of the Bible and those who read it less literally came to a boil in 2003. That's when the church's governing body approved the election of the church's first openly gay bishop, the Rev. V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire.

Jefferts Schori has been excoriated by conservatives for her theological views. Some primates say they won't sit in the same room with her at her first meeting of the primates in Tanzania next week.

Yet, despite 'white-hot animosity thrown at her, she's unflappable,' New York Bishop Mark Sisk says.

Confronted with seemingly intractable conflicts, Jefferts Schori smiles like someone well versed in Matthew 6:25's refrain: 'Be not anxious.' The world is all of God, she says, so go forward."

Dalai Lama named professor at Emory | ajc.com

2007-02-05T13:38:00.000-05:00

Dalai Lama named professor at Emory | ajc.com: "The Dalai Lama, a Nobel Peace Laureate and leader of the Tibetan exile community, has been named a presidential distinguished professor at Emory University, school officials said Monday.

It is the first time the Dalai Lama has accepted a university appointment, Emory officials said.

He will deliver his inaugural lecture during an Oct. 20-22 visit where he will participate in a conference on science and spirituality, and an interfaith session on religion as a source of conflict and a resource for peace building."

C&L's Nicole Belle on that car-bumping Hummer video

2007-02-05T07:08:00.000-05:00

Crooks and Liars - Winning Hearts & Minds: If you haven't seen the video, check it out; Keith Olbermann featured it Friday night, but Nicole Belle had some pertinent thoughts on it: "There is so much about this that bothers me. First, the very reality that the reason the Humvee driver is driving this way is because they are afraid of an attack if they slow down. Listen at the end of the video to the disdain one troop member expresses towards a pedestrian: '…as if he hasn't got a care in the world.' Because these guys are aware that every day–every assignment–could be their last. Can you imagine what the constant state of stress like that has done to our troops, especially after two, three, four tours? And now with Bush's escalation, the likelihood that their tours will be extended again. PTSD doesn't begin to cover it. And yet, the Bush Adminstration has made it harder to get a diagnosis of PTSD and reduced vet benefits on top of that.

And then my thoughts go to the Iraqis. Can you imagine having your country occupied by another nation and be subjected to this kind of bullying behavior every day? Watch as the Humvee runs into car after car to force them to pull to the side and narrowly misses pedestrians. Is this the liberation we promised them? Are our actions in Iraq winning their hearts and minds to the benefits of a democracy?"

Solution elusive as churches weary of gay clergy debate | ajc.com

2007-02-05T06:49:00.000-05:00

Solution elusive as churches weary of gay clergy debate | ajc.com: "Ron Miller is a member of Druid Hills Presbyterian Church in Atlanta who says he would have 'no problem at all' accepting a gay pastor.

But the genial church elder says he'd rather focus on something else —- and so should other churches.

'A lot of time and energy is being spent by governing bodies and individual churches over this issue,' Miller says. 'That time could be devoted to the real mission of the church: helping the poor, the homeless, the community at large.'

Miller's frustration reflects the weariness in several Protestant denominations. After years of fighting over the acceptance of gay clergy, some church leaders say they're exhausted. The nonstop battles are draining the life from their congregations and driving members away."

A Bleak Assessment on Iraq - New York Times

2007-02-05T06:37:00.000-05:00

A Bleak Assessment on Iraq - editorial in New York Times: "There isn’t much encouraging news in the new National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq. Ethnic and sectarian identities are hardening and violence is spiraling, as shown again in Saturday’s horrific Baghdad market bombing. Iraq’s new governing institutions are weak and leading politicians have a “winner-take-all attitude” that can only make matters even worse."

AJC: Churches improve marketing efforts

2007-02-03T08:48:00.000-05:00

Faith & Values: Church's campaign isn't subtle, but it is personal | ajc.com: "Mara Einstein, associate professor of media studies at the City University of New York and author of the forthcoming book 'Brands of Faith: Marketing Religion in a Commercial Age,' says churches are being forced to devise new marketing techniques.

She pinpoints the problem: Churches can no longer rely on brand loyalty. There's no longer social stigma attached to skipping church, and people feel no obligation to attend the church of their parents, she says.

'Religion has become a product just like everything else,' she says. 'Churches have to become brands because brands are quick pieces of information that people don't have to think about but they can identify with.'"

Iraq at Risk of Further Strife, Intelligence Report Warns - washingtonpost.com

2007-02-02T11:39:00.000-05:00

Iraq at Risk of Further Strife, Intelligence Report Warns - washingtonpost.com: "A long-awaited National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq, presented to President Bush by the intelligence community yesterday, outlines an increasingly perilous situation in which the United States has little control and there is a strong possibility of further deterioration, according to sources familiar with the document."

C&L: Olbermann on Iran

2007-02-02T11:36:00.000-05:00

Crooks and Liars - Iraq War! Part Deux: "After rummaging through the old tape bin last night, Keith [Olbermann] compares the eerie similarities between Bush's 2002 Iraq rhetoric and his 2007 Iran rhetoric and puts together a pretty compelling case that should worry us all." Check out the video.

Milbank: Kissinger says Bush has secret plan for Iraq?

2007-02-01T11:50:00.000-05:00

Dana Milbank - Wherever a Senator's Question Leads, Kissinger Gamely Follows - washingtonpost.com: "So now it can be told: President Bush has a secret plan to end the war in Iraq.

Henry Kissinger, who as Richard Nixon's secretary of state learned something about secret plans, went before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday to argue that Bush, too, has such a proposal.

'I am convinced, but I cannot base it on any necessary evidence right now,' Kissinger told the senators, 'that the president will want to move toward a bipartisan consensus' to stabilize Iraq through diplomacy."

Al Gore Nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

2007-02-01T11:47:00.000-05:00

Al Gore Nominated for Nobel Peace Prize | ajc.com: "Former Vice President Al Gore was nominated for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his wide-reaching efforts to draw the world's attention to the dangers of global warming, a Norwegian lawmaker said Thursday.

'A prerequisite for winning the Nobel Peace Prize is making a difference, and Al Gore has made a difference,' Conservative Member of Parliament Boerge Brende, a former minister of environment and then of trade, told The Associated Press."

Franken to run for Senate in Minnesota - USATODAY.com

2007-02-01T10:37:00.000-05:00

Franken to run for Senate in Minnesota - USATODAY.com: "Comedian Al Franken has decided to run for the U.S. Senate from Minnesota in 2008, a senior Democratic official from Minnesota said Wednesday.

Franken told the official, who did not want to be identified because Franken has not made an announcement, that he had decided to run in a recent conversation."

Writer Molly Ivins dies

2007-02-01T07:12:00.000-05:00

Writer Molly Ivins dies of cancer at 62 | ajc.com: "Best-selling author and columnist Molly Ivins, the sharp-witted liberal who skewered the political establishment and referred to President Bush as 'Shrub,' died Wednesday after a long battle with breast cancer. She was 62."

Very sad news. Rest in peace, Molly.

Here are links to some tributes to Molly:
John Nichols column in the Nation -- http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/020107J.shtml

Texas Observer -- http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/013107U.shtml

Thursday’s Austin American Statesman -- http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/02/01/1ivinsobit.html

Thursday’s New York Times -- http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/01/washington/01ivins.html

Washington Post -- http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/31/AR2007013101767.html

Salon.com reprint of 2000 profile -- http://dir.salon.com/story/people/bc/2000/12/12/ivins/index.html

NYT: Bush bullying Iran

2007-02-01T06:52:00.000-05:00

Bullying Iran - New York Times: "Given America’s bitter experience in Iraq, one would think that President Bush could finally figure out that threats and brute force aren’t a substitute for a reasoned strategy. But Mr. Bush is at it again, this time trying to bully Iran into stopping its meddling inside Iraq.

We have no doubt about Iran’s malign intent, just as we have no doubt that Mr. Bush’s serial failures in Iraq have made it far easier for Tehran to sow chaos there and spread its influence in the wider region. But more threats and posturing are unlikely to get Iran to back down. If Mr. Bush isn’t careful, he could end up talking himself into another disastrous war, and if Congress is not clear in opposing him this time, he could drag the country along."

U.S. Agency Finds New Waste and Fraud in Iraqi Rebuilding Projects - New York Times

2007-02-01T06:48:00.000-05:00

U.S. Agency Finds New Waste and Fraud in Iraqi Rebuilding Projects - New York Times: "A federal oversight agency reported Wednesday that despite nearly $108 billion that had been budgeted for the reconstruction of Iraq since the 2003 invasion, the country’s electrical output and oil production were still below prewar levels and stocks of gasoline and kerosene had plummeted to their lowest levels in at least two years."

Biden Unwraps His Bid for ’08 With an Oops! - New York Times

2007-02-01T06:47:00.000-05:00

Biden Unwraps His Bid for ’08 With an Oops! - New York Times: "Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, who announced his candidacy on Wednesday with the hope that he could ride his foreign policy expertise into contention for the Democratic nomination, instead spent the day struggling to explain his description of Senator Barack Obama, the Illinois Democrat running for president, as “the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.”

The remark, published Wednesday in The New York Observer, left Mr. Biden’s campaign struggling to survive its first hours and injected race more directly into the presidential contest. The day ended, appropriately enough for the way politics is practiced now, with Mr. Biden explaining himself to Jon Stewart on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.”"

C&L: Imus on O'Reilly's sales gimmick

2007-01-31T11:08:00.000-05:00

Crooks and Liars - Imus on O'Reilly: "Imus: Here's what a disgrace O'Reilly is. Olbermann can't kill him enough. Here's what O'Reilly's doing. You are not going to believe this. This sonofabitch actually went on that falafel thing of his and he said—–if you'll buy a copy of his book—for every copy of his stupid book, he'll send a copy to a soldier in Iraq or Afghanistan. I mean I don't know where to start. That's his contribution to the men and women who are fighting and dying in this idiotic war for this country."

Millions wasted in Iraq rebuilding

2007-01-31T07:36:00.000-05:00

Millions wasted in Iraq rebuilding - Conflict in Iraq - MSNBC.com: "The U.S. government wasted tens of millions of dollars in Iraq reconstruction aid, including scores of unaccounted-for weapons and a never-used camp for housing police trainers with an Olympic-size swimming pool, investigators say.

The quarterly audit by Stuart Bowen Jr., the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, is the latest to paint a grim picture of waste, fraud and frustration in an Iraq war and reconstruction effort that has cost taxpayers more than $300 billion and left the region near civil war."

NYT Op-Ed: Bush Is Not Above the Law

2007-01-31T06:57:00.000-05:00

Bush Is Not Above the Law - New York Times op-ed by James Bamford: "Last August, a federal judge found that the president of the United States broke the law, committed a serious felony and violated the Constitution. Had the president been an ordinary citizen — someone charged with bank robbery or income tax evasion — the wheels of justice would have immediately begun to turn. The F.B.I. would have conducted an investigation, a United States attorney’s office would have impaneled a grand jury and charges would have been brought.

But under the Bush Justice Department, no F.B.I. agents were ever dispatched to padlock White House files or knock on doors and no federal prosecutors ever opened a case."

Global warming report ominous

2007-01-30T13:57:00.000-05:00

BREITBART.COM - Global warming report ominous: "Earth's surface temperature could rise by 4.5 C (8.1 F) if carbon dioxide levels double over pre-industrial levels, but higher warming cannot be ruled out, according to a draft report under debate by the UN's top climate experts.

The draft -- being discussed line by line at the four-day meeting of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) -- grimly states that the evidence for man-made influence on the climate system is now stronger than ever.

"

Bush Directive Increases Sway on Regulation - New York Times

2007-01-30T13:53:00.000-05:00

Bush Directive Increases Sway on Regulation - New York Times: "President Bush has signed a directive that gives the White House much greater control over the rules and policy statements that the government develops to protect public health, safety, the environment, civil rights and privacy.

In an executive order published last week in the Federal Register, Mr. Bush said that each agency must have a regulatory policy office run by a political appointee, to supervise the development of rules and documents providing guidance to regulated industries. The White House will thus have a gatekeeper in each agency to analyze the costs and the benefits of new rules and to make sure the agencies carry out the president’s priorities."

C&L: Jon Stewart Rips Apart FNC

2007-01-30T13:52:00.000-05:00

Crooks and Liars � Jon Stewart Rips Apart FNC: "You knew it was only a matter of time before The Daily Show weighed in on FOX's Obama smear and boy, was it a doozy." They got the video.

HuffPo: Air America Rescued, but Franken Out

2007-01-30T07:34:00.000-05:00

Exclusive: Air America Rescued | The Huffington Post: "Air America Radio, in Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings since October, will be rescued at the 11th hour by Manhattan real estate developer Stephen L. Green."

Al Franken announced that he'll leave Feb. 14 to pursue a run for the US Senate. Thom Hartmann will reportedly replace him in the midday slot.

Church study finds diversity, lack of discord boost growth | ajc.com

2007-01-29T06:59:00.000-05:00

Church study finds diversity, lack of discord boost growth | ajc.com: "A major study on church growth discovered that thriving congregations tended to be multiracial, embraced vibrant worship services and avoided major conflict.

The 'FACTs on Growth' report, based on a 2005 survey of 900 congregations and online at fact.hartsem.edu /products/index.html, is the culmination of a five-year study that attempts to answer why some congregations grow and others decline.

The findings, recently released by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research, challenge the conventional wisdom that only conservative suburban congregations are growing."

Falsani: Evangelical? Obama's faith too complex for simple label

2007-01-26T11:46:00.000-05:00

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES - Cathleen Falsani: Evangelical? Obama's faith too complex for simple label.

While on the presidential campaign trail 30 years ago, someone asked Jimmy Carter a rather indelicate public question:

Are you born again?

Carter said he was. And the next thing he knew, various media creatures were accusing the Southern Baptist peanut farmer of implying that his political aspirations had a divine imprimatur.

"I truthfully answered, 'Yes,' assuming all devout Christians were born again, of the Holy Spirit," Carter wrote in his 2005 book, Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis.

In 1976, most reporters didn't know born-again from over-easy. But times have changed and so has the public conversation about politics and religion. Terms such as "fundamentalist," "evangelical" and "born-again" are part of the media vernacular.

That doesn't mean, however, that such terms are particularly helpful by themselves in describing, much less defining, anyone -- be they politicians, presidential candidates or private citizens.

Perhaps that's why, back when I interviewed Barack Obama about his faith in spring 2004 a few days after he'd won the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, I didn't ask him something I've remained curious about since:

Does he consider himself an evangelical?

On Faith: John Bryson Chane: Mid-Term Elections Showed Electorate Anger at Misuse of Religion

2007-01-25T16:03:00.000-05:00

On Faith: John Bryson Chane: Mid-Term Elections Showed Electorate Anger at Misuse of Religion:

Candidates have used their personal religious views in past presidential campaigns and I see that this election will be no different. Candidates will continue to do so at their own peril however.

For better or worse, such discourse has been at the heart of the American political scene since the beginning of American politics.

But Americans are quite sensitive these days, given the misuse of religion and religious rhetoric and the way it has been exercised by some in the current Administration and in Congress. Using moral imperatives from a narrow Christian perspective in informing legislation and defining public policy has lost traction with many faithful Christians and has been received with anger by a large number of non-Christians.

The most recent mid-term election results are a prism of this sensitivity and anger. Presidential candidates beware!

Alter: A Powerful Response

2007-01-24T14:28:00.000-05:00

Alter: A Powerful Response - Newsweek Between the Lines - MSNBC.com: "Something unprecedented happened tonight, beyond the doorkeeper announcing, 'Madame Speaker.' For the first time ever, the response to the State of the Union Message overshadowed the president's big speech. Virginia Sen. James Webb, in office only three weeks, managed to convey a muscular liberalism—with personal touches—that left President Bush's ordinary address in the dust. In the past, the Democratic response has been anemic—remember Washington Gov. Gary Locke? This time it pointed the way to a revival for national Democrats."

Clinton’s Announcement Makes Waves in ’08 Field - New York Times

2007-01-20T18:24:00.000-05:00

Clinton’s Announcement Makes Waves in ’08 Field - New York Times: "Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s entry into the 2008 presidential contest this morning set off rounds of e-mail and conference calls among both her allies and opponents, some of whom were shaking their heads that a major political event was happening at 9:30 on a Saturday morning."

O'Reilly on Colbert

2007-01-19T16:23:00.000-05:00

YouTube - O'Reilly on Colbert

Colbert on O'Reilly's Show

2007-01-19T16:21:00.000-05:00

YouTube - Colbert on O'Reilly's Show

CNN.com: Mission accomplished in House

2007-01-19T07:02:00.000-05:00

CNN.com - CNN Political Ticker: "House Democrats brought their '100-hour' legislative agenda to a successful close Thursday evening with passage of legislation designed to force oil and gas companies to pay more royalties on some offshore leases and end subsidies and tax deductions they have been receiving amid record prices for crude.

The final vote on the bill -- the sixth of six items Democrats had vowed to pass in 100 hours of legislative action -- was 264 to 163, with 36 Republicans crossing the aisle to support the Democrat-sponsored bill.

The House finished work on all six measures in about 42 hours of floor time, less than half the limit set on their self-imposed clock. However, the legislation must still navigate the Senate, which tends to operate at a more leisurely pace, and could also face President Bush's veto pen."

AP: Cheney rejected Iranian concessions in '03

2007-01-19T06:50:00.000-05:00

Report: Cheney rejected Iranian concessions in '03 | ajc.com: "An Iranian offer to help the United States stabilize Iraq and end its military support for Hezbollah and Hamas was rejected by Vice President Dick Cheney in 2003, a former top State Department official told the British Broadcasting Corp.

The U.S. State Department was open to the offer, which came in an unsigned letter sent shortly after the American invasion of Iraq, Lawrence Wilkerson, former Secretary of State Colin Powell's chief of staff, told BBC's Newsnight in a program broadcast Wednesday night. But, Wilkerson said, Cheney vetoed the deal.

'We thought it was a very propitious moment' to strike a deal, Wilkerson said. 'But as soon as it got to the White House, and as soon as it got to the vice president's office, the old mantra of 'We don't talk to evil' . . . reasserted itself.'"

Colbert, O'Reilly Face Off on Both Shows | AccessAtlanta

2007-01-19T06:48:00.000-05:00

Colbert, O'Reilly Face Off on Both Shows | AccessAtlanta: "'The Colbert Report' and 'The O'Reilly Factor,' the top-rated program in cable news, were taped one after another early Thursday evening, with 'The Factor' airing at 8 p.m. EST and 'The Report' at 11:30 p.m. EST.

Once inside Colbert's studio — decorated for the occasion with a large 'Mission Accomplished' banner and a portrait of O'Reilly placed fireside — O'Reilly seemed to be regretting the decision.

'This was a huge mistake, me coming on here,' he muttered.

It may have been a greater error allowing Colbert into the Fox News headquarters, located near the 'Colbert Report' studios in Manhattan. There, Colbert smuggled a microwave out of the green room, a bounty which he proudly displayed at the conclusion of his show.

A spokesman for Fox News confirmed that Colbert stole the microwave, but said it was all in good fun."

Evanier on Colbert & D'Souza

2007-01-18T15:08:00.000-05:00

news from Mark Evanier: "I haven't read the new book by Dinesh D'Souza that blames 'the left' for 9/11 but I keep catching appearances on his book tour. Mr. D'Souza is obviously a smart enough guy to know that much of the promotional hype for his book is just indefensible red meat. You can see him struggling to sound reasonable, trying to back away from his own jacket copy and the claims of his publisher while still reaping the potential sales benefits from that line.

He wasn't smart enough, however, to know he shouldn't go on The Colbert Report. Last night, Stephen Colbert eviscerated the guy so thoroughly, I'm not even sure D'Souza realized he'd been fileted wide open and had his innards removed. It was such an amazing piece of surgery that I once again take my life in my hands by embedding not one but two video links from the functionally-insane Comedy Central website. I think this will show you the two parts of the interview. If Colbert was just warming up for this week's reciprocal guest appearances with Bill O'Reilly, it's going to be brutal."

He's got the video from Comedy Central loaded for you.

George Stephanopoulos - New York Times

2007-01-18T13:02:00.000-05:00

George Stephanopoulos - New York Times: Interesting piece on one of the better TV news guys these days.

Republicans Halt Ethics Legislation - washingtonpost.com

2007-01-18T11:23:00.000-05:00

Republicans Halt Ethics Legislation - washingtonpost.com reports that the GOP's first filibuster squashed reform...are we surprised? "Senate Republicans scuttled broad legislation last night to curtail lobbyists' influence and tighten congressional ethics rules, refusing to let the bill pass without a vote on an unrelated measure that would give President Bush virtual line-item-veto power.

The bill could be brought back up later this year. Indeed, Democrats will try one last time today to break the impasse. But its unexpected collapse last night infuriated Democrats and the government watchdog groups that had been pushing it since the lobbying scandals that rocked the last Congress. Proponents charged that Republicans had used the spending-control measure as a ruse to thwart ethics rules they dared not defeat in a straight vote."

Columnist Art Buchwald dies

2007-01-18T11:15:00.000-05:00

Columnist Art Buchwald dies at age 81 - Yahoo! News: "Columnist and author Art Buchwald, who for over four decades chronicled the life and times of Washington with an infectious wit and endeared himself to many with his never-say-die battle with failing kidneys, is dead at 81."

Evangelicals join in climate warning | ajc.com

2007-01-18T06:51:00.000-05:00

Evangelicals join in climate warning | ajc.com: "Evangelical leaders and climate scientists issued a joint 'call for action' Wednesday, telling President Bush and members of Congress that 'business as usual cannot continue yet one more day' on such issues as global warming.

The statement, formulated during a three-day retreat late last year at South Georgia's Melhana Plantation Resort in Thomasville, was signed by 28 evangelical and scientific leaders.

Some environmentalists saw the statement as the latest indication that opposition to government action on climate change may be melting away."

BBC: Americans embrace politics online

2007-01-18T06:23:00.000-05:00

BBC NEWS | Technology | Americans embrace politics online: "Americans are increasingly using the internet as their primary source of political news, a study has found.

The report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project also found that more people are contributing to political debate via their own blogs.

While it stops short of claiming the net has politicised Americans, the report sees a growing online influence on how people think about civic issues."

Boehlert at MM: What's up at ABC?

2007-01-17T22:10:00.000-05:00

Media Matters - Spocko, Glenn Beck, and ABC: "President George W. Bush's popularity has fallen to new lows, Democrats have been swept into office, and a strong majority of Americans now opposes the war in Iraq, but ABC has decided the time is right to beef up with more conservative pundits on staff and to strike out against a liberal online critic who raised questions about the network's policy of broadcasting hate radio."

Give us guns and troops can go, says Iraqi leader

2007-01-17T21:29:00.000-05:00

Give us guns - and troops can go, says Iraqi leader - World - Times Online: "America's refusal to give Baghdad's security forces sufficient guns and equipment has cost a great number of lives, the Iraqi Prime Minister said yesterday.

Nouri al-Maliki said the insurgency had been bloodier and prolonged because Washington had refused to part with equipment. If it released the necessary arms, US forces could 'drastically' cut their numbers in three to six months, he told The Times."

AJC: Lutheran church trial about to start

2007-01-17T07:02:00.000-05:00

LUTHERAN CHURCH TRIAL: Converted critic - John Blake in the AJC: "James Mayer is a 70-year-old truck driver from South Carolina who calls himself a 'tough Lutheran.'

But when he talks about what's happened to him during the past six years, his eyes well up. He swallows hard and sighs. Then the tears come.

'Look at me,' he says with a sheepish smile. 'This is who I am. I'm not ashamed of it.'

Six years ago, Mayer was an angry man. St. John's Lutheran Church had elected the Rev. Bradley Schmeling, an openly gay man, as its new pastor. Only six people out of the then 250-member congregation voted against Schmeling. Mayer and his wife were two of them. He vowed not to return.

This is the worst thing that could have happened to the church, Mayer thought. They're probably going to close the doors.

St. John's doors remain open %u2014- but Schmeling's future is now in doubt.

Bishop Ronald B. Warren of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America filed charges in August against Schmeling after the pastor told him that he had entered into a relationship with another man. ELCA policy permits gay clergy —- only if they're celibate. Schmeling's trial starts in Atlanta on Friday. He could be expelled from the ELCA.

The Midtown church has since rallied around Schmeling —- and so has Mayer. He has not only returned to the church but contributed money to Schmeling's legal defense. He tears up at the prospect that "Pastor Brad" may no longer lead his church."

Obama confirms run for president

2007-01-17T06:50:00.000-05:00

Obama confirms run for president - NYT: "Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois took his first step into the Democratic presidential race Tuesday by opening an exploratory committee to raise money and begin building a campaign designed 'to change our politics.' He said he would make a formal declaration Feb. 10 in Illinois.

'Running for the presidency is a profound decision -- a decision no one should make on the basis of media hype or personal ambition alone,' Obama said in a video address e-mailed to his supporters. 'So before I committed myself and my family to this race, I wanted to be sure that this was right for us and, more importantly, right for the country.'

Obama disclosed his decision on his Web site. He spent the rest of the day phoning Democratic leaders in Iowa, New Hampshire and other states with early contests in the 2008 nominating race."

Evanier: So who's following Colbert at the WH Correspondents' Dinner?

2007-01-16T14:16:00.000-05:00

news from me: "Okay, let's play a game. Let's say you're the guy who has to select the entertainment for the annual White House Correspondents Dinner. Every year, they bring in some comedian to perform and for the event scheduled for this April 21, you have to pick someone.

Last year, it was Stephen Colbert. The star of TV's The Colbert Report pulled few punches and really let both the assembled members of the press and George W. Bush have it. Many people found him hilarious. Others felt he bombed. Some were angry. (Here's a link to the video of what Colbert did that night, just in case you need any reminding.) A number of people complained, Bush looked unamused and there was much controversy, which is probably not what you want.

So you're in charge of picking someone to perform at this year's dinner. Who do you pick?"

[Answer..... Rich Little. Hmmmmmmmmm]

Mark Taylor on The Devoted Student

2007-01-16T13:57:00.000-05:00

H/T The Light newsletter:
Mark Taylor is a religion and humanities professor at Williams College.

"The Devoted Student"
By Mark C. Taylor

More college students seem to be practicing traditional forms of religion today than at any time in my 30 years of teaching.

At first glance, the flourishing of religion on campuses seems to reverse trends long criticized by conservatives under the rubric of "political correctness." But, in truth, something else is occurring. Once again, right and left have become mirror images of each other; religious correctness is simply the latest version of political correctness. Indeed, it seems the more religious students become, the less willing they are to engage in critical reflection about faith.

The chilling effect of these attitudes was brought home to me two years ago when an administrator at a university where I was then teaching called me into his office. A student had claimed that I had attacked his faith because I had urged him to consider whether Nietzsche's analysis of religion undermines belief in absolutes. The administrator insisted that I apologize to the student. (I refused.)

My experience was not unique. Today, professors invite harassment or worse by including "unacceptable" books on their syllabuses or by studying religious ideas and practices in ways deemed improper by religiously correct students.

Distinguished scholars at several major universities in the United States have been condemned, even subjected to death threats, for proposing psychological, sociological or anthropological interpretations of religious texts in their classes and published writings. In the most egregious cases, defenders of the faith insist that only true believers are qualified to teach their religious tradition.

At a time when colleges and universities engage in huge capital campaigns and are obsessed with public relations, faculty members can no longer be confident they will remain free to pose the questions that urgently need to be asked.

For years, I have begun my classes by telling students that if they are not more confused and uncertain at the end of the course than they were at the beginning, I will have failed. A growing number of religiously correct students consider this challenge a direct assault on their faith. Yet the task of thinking and teaching, especially in an age of emergent fundamentalisms, is to cultivate a faith in doubt that calls into question every certainty.

Any responsible curriculum for the study of religion in the 21st century must be guided by two basic principles: first, a clear distinction between the study and the practice of religion, and second, an expansive understanding of what religion is and of the manifold roles it plays in life. The aim of critical analysis is not to pass judgment on religious beliefs and practices — though some secular dogmatists wrongly cross that line — but to examine the conditions necessary for their formation and to consider the many functions they serve.

It is also important to explore the similarities and differences between and among various religions. Religious traditions are not fixed and monolithic; they are networks of symbols, myths and rituals, which evolve over time by adapting to changing circumstances. If we fail to appreciate the complexity and diversity within, and among, religious traditions, we will overlook the fact that people from different traditions often share more with one another than they do with many members of their own tradition.

As religious faith rises, understanding of religion falls.

If chauvinistic believers develop deeper analyses of religion, they might begin to see in themselves what they criticize in others. In an era that thrives on both religious and political polarization, this is an important lesson to learn — one that extends well beyond the academy.

Since religion is often most influential where it is least obvious, it is imperative to examine both its manifest and latent dimensions. As defenders of a faith become more reflective about their own beliefs, they begin to understand that religion can serve not only to provide answers that render life more secure but also to prepare them for life's unavoidable complexities and uncertainties.

Until recently, many influential analysts argued that religion, a vestige of an earlier stage of human development, would wither away as people became more sophisticated and rational. Obviously, things have not turned out that way. Indeed, the 21st century will be dominated by religion in ways that were inconceivable just a few years ago. Religious conflict will be less a matter of struggles between belief and unbelief than of clashes between believers who make room for doubt and those who do not.

The warning signs are clear: unless we establish a genuine dialogue within and among all kinds of belief, ranging from religious fundamentalism to secular dogmatism, the conflicts of the future will probably be even more deadly.

Reprinted from The New York Times Copyright © 2006

BBC: UN marks soaring Iraq death toll

2007-01-16T06:25:00.000-05:00

BBC NEWS | Middle East | UN marks soaring Iraq death toll: "More than 34,000 civilians were killed in violence in Iraq during 2006, a UN human rights official has said.

The envoy to Iraq, Gianni Magazzeni, said 34,452 civilians were killed and more than 36,000 hurt during the year.

The figure is nearly three times higher than calculations previously made on the basis of Iraqi interior ministry statistics for 2006.

Accurate figures are difficult to acquire, and previous UN estimates have been rejected outright by Baghdad.

Mr Magazzeni said his figures were compiled from data collected by the Health Ministry, hospitals, mortuaries and other agencies."

AJC: King's words still apply | ajc.com

2007-01-15T15:18:00.000-05:00

AJC editorial: King's words still apply | ajc.com: "In time to mark the national observance of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr's birthday, a new exhibit of his papers is opening at the Atlanta History Center. Separately, work is under way for a monument honoring him in Washington. While both will help enhance our understanding of the slain civil rights leader, the true significance of the man cannot be fully captured on paper or in stone.

King has left a living legacy that still has much relevance in contemporary America. While we've made progress toward the goals he championed, some of the ills he worked to cure during his lifetime have, in fact, metastasized.

At the risk of taking King's words out of context, it's instructive to see how elements of the philosophy he articulated a generation ago might apply to the problems and personalities shaping our world today."

Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Time to Break the Silence

2007-01-15T08:58:00.000-05:00

American Rhetoric: Martin Luther King, Jr. -- A Time to Break the Silence (Declaration Against Vietnam War). Text and audio of a very timely message from Dr. King.

AJC: Chris Hedges interviewed; author of American Fascists on Dominionist Christians

2007-01-14T19:15:00.000-05:00

Commanded to rule | ajc.com: "When Pat Robertson calls for the assassination of the president of Venezuela, and James Dobson declares that 'the homosexual agenda is a beast -- it wants our kids,' and Benny Hinn announces that one day he will raise the dead if their coffins are placed in front of the TV, a certain segment of the population may grin, or wince. But a different segment of the population is listening intently and not laughing at all.

'For those of us who find all this sort of laughable and buffoonish, it's hard for us to take it seriously, and I think that's our great failing,' says author Chris Hedges 'These people are extremely dangerous.'

Hedges, an award-winning war correspondent, is the author of 'American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America,' in which he claims that Robertson, Jerry Falwell et al. want to take over the country and replace our liberal democracy with a rigid theocracy."

Here's the link to the interview.

C&L: Joe analyzes Bill O

2007-01-14T09:05:00.000-05:00

Crooks and Liars: "The ongoing feud between Bill O'Reilly and NBC (and Joe Scarborough in particular) is a riot. Bill carried his obsession to a new level the other night, contacting a body language expert to analyze the movements of NBC commentators and concluding, in a broad, sweeping generalization, that the entire network has a deep-seated Bush hatred. Joe responds with an expert of his own to analyze O'Reilly's mannerisms. The results are not surprising." Check out the video.

Letterman's Top 10 Favorite George W. Bush Moments

2007-01-14T08:57:00.000-05:00

Poll: Americans oppose Iraq troop surge

2007-01-12T07:16:00.000-05:00

AP: Poll: Americans oppose Iraq troop surge: "Seventy percent of Americans oppose sending more troops to Iraq, according to a new poll that provides a devastatingly blunt response to President Bush's plan to bolster military forces there.

All sides in the Iraq debate are keenly aware of mounting public dissatisfaction with the situation: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday it's one thing on which all Americans %u2014 including administration officials %u2014 are united.

Yet the Associated Press-Ipsos poll found widespread disagreement with the Bush administration over its proposed solution, and growing skepticism that the United States made the right decision in going to war in the first place.
Just as 70 percent of Americans oppose sending more troops to Iraq, a like number don't think such an increase would help stabilize the situation there, the poll suggested. When asked to name the most important problem facing the U.S., 38 percent of those polled volunteered war, up significantly from 24 percent three months ago."

Washington Note: War against Syria and Iran?

2007-01-12T07:15:00.000-05:00

The Washington Note: "Did the President Declare 'Secret War' Against Syria and Iran?

Washington intelligence, military and foreign policy circles are abuzz today with speculation that the President, yesterday or in recent days, sent a secret Executive Order to the Secretary of Defense and to the Director of the CIA to launch military operations against Syria and Iran.

The President may have started a new secret, informal war against Syria and Iran without the consent of Congress or any broad discussion with the country."

Jim Wallis on Bush's escalation

2007-01-11T15:57:00.000-05:00

God's Politics - Jim Wallis: "When the American people make it clear in the election, and in every public opinion poll, that they want an end to the war in Iraq, he ignores them. When the central recommendation of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group is 'new and enhanced diplomatic and political efforts%u2026that will enable the United States to begin to move its combat forces out of Iraq responsibly,' he ignores them. When Republican Senators across the spectrum -- from Susan Collins (ME) and Olympia Snowe (ME) to Sam Brownback (KS) and Gordon Smith (OR), and respected foreign policy expert Chuck Hagel (NE) -- oppose his plan, he ignores them. ('...a dangerously wrongheaded strategy that will drive America deeper into an unwinnable swamp,' says Hagel.) When the top U.S. military commanders in Iraq question the strategy, he replaces them."

AMERICAblog: A little Blackadder deja vu

2007-01-11T06:59:00.000-05:00

AMERICAblog's John in DC: "Chris in Paris was telling me that Bush's 'new' plan for victory in Iraq reminded him of an episode of the hysterical BBC comedy 'Blackadder.' With a little sleuthing, Chris was able to find the episode in question. The relevant part begins about 2 minutes into the video - I've transcribed the dialogue, but you can find the video itself at the end of this post."

Arkin in WaPo: War with Iran and Syria?

2007-01-11T06:55:00.000-05:00

War With Syria and Iran = Peace With Iraq? - Early Warning: "Seek out and destroy.

If there's anything in the President Bush's remarks tonight that we didn't already know or didn't anticipate him saying militarily about Iraq, it is his evident willingness to go to war with Syria and Iran to seek peace.

Speaking about the two countries tonight, the president said that the United States wiill 'seek out and destroy' those who are providing material support to our enemies.

It is only a threat. But it is a far cry from the diplomatic proposals floated just last month for making Syria and Iran part of the solution. Can the president really be saying that we are willing to risk war with the two countries, and even attack elements inside them, to achieve peace in Iraq?"

Most say no to Iraq buildup - USATODAY.com

2007-01-10T06:56:00.000-05:00

Most say no to Iraq buildup - USATODAY.com: "President Bush will outline his 'new way forward' in Iraq on Wednesday to a nation that overwhelmingly opposes sending more U.S. troops and is increasingly skeptical that the war can be won.

A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll taken Friday through Sunday shows a daunting sales job ahead for the White House, which is considering a plan to deploy up to 20,000 additional U.S. troops to Iraq."

MM: ABC shut down blogger who criticized violent rhetoric on one of its radio stations

2007-01-10T06:46:00.000-05:00

Media Matters - ABC shut down blogger who criticized violent rhetoric on one of its radio stations: "The mainstream media have yet to report on the story of a blogger whose website was shut down after he began
spotlighting inflammatory rhetoric common to several talk radio hosts on KSFO,
an ABC Radio-owned station in San Francisco."

Check out the whole story.

Carter, Clinton woo Baptists to new convention | ajc.com

2007-01-10T06:39:00.000-05:00

Carter, Clinton woo Baptists to new convention | ajc.com: "Former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton announced in Atlanta on Tuesday the creation of a Baptist organization they said would counter what they say is a negative image of their faith.

The New Baptist Convention was announced at the Carter Center by representatives of about 40 moderate Baptist groups that have distanced themselves from the conservative Southern Baptist Convention. Carter and Clinton - both Baptists - said the New Baptist Convention will look for solutions to problems such as poverty and racism. Carter and Clinton said they want to counter concerns that Baptists have been 'negative' and 'exclusionary' and promised an inclusive organization willing to debate openly all issues.

But an official with the Southern Baptist Convention- the largest Protestant denomination in the country - countered that the two presidents have fallen out of step with their church and are angry most conservative Baptists do not support their politics.

Tuesday's announcement stems from a long-running battle between conservative and moderate Baptists."

Gag me: Glenn Beck on GMA

2007-01-09T16:07:00.000-05:00

TV Week: "'Good Morning America' has hired conservative radio and CNN Headline News talk-show host Glenn Beck as a contributor.

"Glenn is a leading cultural commentator with a distinct voice," Jim Murphy, "GMA" senior executive producer, said in the announcement Tuesday.

Mr. Beck's eponymous show on CNN Headline News was the fastest-growing program in cable news in fourth quarter 2006, drawing an average 274,000 viewers at 7 p.m. weeknights and 329,000 at 9 p.m."

TPM: Marshall on Bush's Wed. Night Speech

2007-01-09T07:13:00.000-05:00

Talking Points Memo: by Joshua Micah Marshall: "The president's 'surge' plan is at best supported by a minority of generals, military affairs experts, foreign policy hands, etc. In fact, that's generous. And it is overwhelmingly opposed by the American people.

Now, 'experts' aren't always right. And popular ideas aren't always good ideas.

But going back now some four years, who can point to even a single Bush administration decision in Iraq, either strategic or tactical, that didn't turn out to be either a bad idea or a complete disaster? Anything? One good call?

When the president goes before the people on Wednesday, he is basically saying, trust me.

It's never really possible to know what the future will bring, especially for most of us who may have gut level instincts about military strategy but little detailed operational knowledge. But given the track record and the fact that few people outside the White House seem to think this is a good idea, what possible basis is there to put any trust in Bush's latest gambit?"

BBC: US Somali air strikes 'kill many'

2007-01-09T06:28:00.000-05:00

BBC NEWS | Africa | US Somali air strikes 'kill many': "The US is carrying out further air strikes in southern Somalia against Islamist fighters, who the US believes include members of an al-Qaeda cell.

The targets were reported to have been tracked by aerial reconnaissance and then attacked by a US gunship launched from a US military base in Djibouti.

The US says Somali Islamists sheltered al-Qaeda operatives linked to the 1998 US embassy bombings in East Africa.

The Somali transitional government says many people were killed in the raid.

The air strikes are taking place just a few days after the Union of Islamic Courts, which had taken control of much of central and southern Somalia during the past six months, was routed by soldiers from Ethiopia and Somalia's transitional government."

SoJo: The Gospel of Bling, by Dr. Robert Franklin

2007-01-08T16:09:00.000-05:00

Sojourners Magazine has an excellent article on the prosperity gospel by Dr. Robert Franklin of Candler School of Theology at Emory University: "I am convinced that the single greatest threat to the historical legacy and core values of the contemporary black church tradition is posed by what is known as the %u201Cprosperity gospel%u201D movement. That movement, however, is only symptomatic of a larger mission crisis or %u201Cmission drift%u201D that has placed the black church in the posture of assimilating into a culture that is hostile to people living on the margins of society, such as people living in poverty, people living with AIDS, homosexuals, and immigrants.

This is not a new challenge. Christians have grappled with their relationship to material goods and opportunities in this world since the first century. But in our era something new and different has emerged. Today, prominent, influential, and attractive preachers and representatives of the church now are advocates for prosperity. Perhaps this could only occur at a time and in a place where two conditions exist. First, Christianity is the dominant faith tradition; second, the nation permits and rewards extraordinary inequalities of wealth and power."

E&P: FBOFW will continue as old/new hybrid

2007-01-08T14:32:00.000-05:00

Popular Cartoon Will Stay On -- As Old/New Hybrid: "Millions of readers will breathe a partial sigh of relief when they learn that Lynn Johnston won't completely end 'For Better or For Worse' around the time it turns 28 this September. Instead, the strip will continue as an old/new hybrid that has little precedent in cartoon history.

'I'll be flying by the seat of my eraser,' joked Johnston, whose comic is one of only five with more than 2,000 newspapers. Details were still being worked out when Johnston spoke to E&P, but it's possible the hybrid 'FBorFW' will focus a lot on Michael Patterson and his family, who are about the same ages Elly Patterson and her family were when the comic started in 1979. Elly is the mother of Michael, who was a little boy in the early days of 'FBorFW.'

In the hybrid, many previously published "FBorFW" strips and scenes will be reprinted. The jumping-off point for those comics (which could include some redrawn and recolorized content) might be Michael looking at old photos or scrapbooks.

Johnston will also offer a certain amount of new material about Michael; his sisters, Elizabeth and April; his parents, Elly and John; and various other major and supporting characters. But one of the signature elements of "FBorFW" — the gradual aging of its cast — will come to a halt. "What I'd like to do is freeze the characters at the ages they are now," said Johnston, who turns 60 this May. "No people will grow older. No dogs will grow older and pass away.""

Sullivan: The Naturalness of Homosexuality

2007-01-08T13:31:00.000-05:00

Andrew Sullivan - The Daily Dish Sunday, Jan. 7: "Homosexual bonding and sex are ubiquitous in nature, despite the ignorant attempts of the far right to describe it as 'unnatural'. A new exhibition in Norway finally presents the evidence in full, inspired by Bruce Bagemihl's ground-breaking book, 'Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity.'"