When Racism Trumps Christian Faith

Posted on October 21, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

Strange Bed fellows

by Benjamin T. Moore, Jr.

Disclaimer

First let me say by way of disclaimer, I am a devout Agnostic. You might say, “then you have no dog in this fight?” In one sense, that would be true. However although I do not subscribe to any system of belief, I live in a country where those in government not only do subscribe to systems of belief, but invite us to form opinions regarding their integrity and fitness for office based on their particular brand of faith. Since we are invited to use their professions of faith as a measuring stick for their fitness to lead us, it is only fair that we oblige them and examine, not only their beliefs, but how ardently they adhere to those beliefs. Likewise when people with the title of Evangelist share their faith with us, it is not beyond the pale to observe and examine their actions to determine if they actually believe in what they’re selling.

When Racism Trumps Christian Faith

Strange Bed Fellows Indeed

This past week “Evangelist to the Presidents,” Billy Graham and the heir to his ministry, Franklin Graham sat down with Governor Willard Mitt Romney. Mr. Romney is running for the office of President of these United States, so on the surface there is nothing strange or unusual about their meeting. Indeed the 93 year old Rev. Graham has met with every President since Eisenhower. What is unusual is what happened following that meeting.

On Rev. Graham’s website at that time there was a list of religious groups he considered to be “cults.” Mormonism was on that list along with Jehovah’s Witnesses, The Church of Scientology and others. Following that meeting, Mormonism was removed from that list. Why? What happened? What changed? When things seem unusual, it is often best to dig a little deeper. First, we need to take a step back and get a perspective on some things.

Moses Brings Down the Ten Commandments

Christianity has been a “no compromise” religion. If you trace it back through it’s roots in Judaism, the Christian God wrecked genocide on groups of people who did not believe in or worship him. The Old Testament of the Bible is rife with wars of aggression being waged against people for whom there was precious little mentioned in the way of provocation. You must remember, if you believe the whole “10 Commandments” thing with Moses, a mountain and God, the “10 Commandments” were given to the Jews, not the rest of the world. Thus, to punish people for not living up to a law they were never given in the first place, seems a bit peculiar does it not?

The Walls of Jericho Coming Down

It would be sort of like driving through a town in your shiny black truck, being stopped by the police, pulled out of your truck and then summarily shot! Why? Because driving a black colored vehicle is a crime punishable by immediate death in the town you’re driving through. Might have been nice to have known that before hand wouldn’t it? Remember the famous battle of Jericho? You know? Probably heard about it in Sunday School? People marched, trumpets blew, walls came crashing down, slaughter ensued… What did those people ever do to deserve what happened to them? If we’re going by the Biblical accounts, not a thing.

The Crusades

Saladin

Fast forward in time to the “Middle Ages.” You have the Crusades. If you drill down an actually analyze the issues, Saladin the Muslim Sultan of Egypt and Syria was an admirable person. He had no problem with Christian pilgrims coming to the “Holy Lands.” The problem was, the Roman Catholic Church simply could not abide the fact that Jerusalem was being controlled and run by people who were not Christian. Never mind the fact that the sites they considered holy were not being defiled but were equally revered by the Muslims. They had to go to war. Thousands of innocent people – civilians if you please – lost their lives for no good purpose. The wounds inflicted during the “Crusades” still haunt us today and influence the relationship between Islam and the West. Why all the bloodshed? Muslims believed differently than Christians. Same God. Same patriarchs but a different spin on things. Christians, Jews and Muslims all claim to worship the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Odd that with so much in common, they simply cannot get along.

Thirty Years War

European Involvement in Thirty Years War

Fast forward again to the “Pre-Colonial” period. One of the longest lasting and most destructive wars in recorded history was what is known as the “Thirty Years War.” This was a war between Catholics and Protestants. It involved most of Europe at one time or another. Again, same God, same basic beliefs, but because one group had a different spin on things, they had to go to war and people had to die. The cost in lives and resources was tremendous.

Indeed, all the denominations we have today, your Baptist, Methodist, Episcopalian, Lutheran, all of them Protestants, could be said to have had their genesis in the “Thirty Years War.” It was this war that helped to solidify the lines as it were and the differences between these groups. The question I continually ask is, “how can all these people, reading from the same book, the “Holy Bible,” all come away with something different?

Mormonism

[KJV] Galatians 1:8

But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

No, these are not really them. This is an artists depiction of what they might have looked like had they actually existed.

Mormonism in the grand scheme of things is a brand new man made religion with little to no basis in reality. It lacks the historical context that the other religions point to. Other religions regardless of how they interpret the archaeological data, at least have archaeological data they can point to. Mormonism does not. Those “Golden Tablets” supposedly delivered to Joseph Smith by the “Angel Moroni?” Well, supposedly they were taken back to heaven. Thus, they don’t exist. Even before they were magically transported back to heaven, you couldn’t see them if you were not a true believer. I don’t mean they wouldn’t let you see them. I mean you could be looking directly into the box they were supposed to by lying in. Only those who truly believed could see them. A delusion induced hallucination by any other name.

Mythical Battle Between the Lamanites and the Nephites

There is no archaeological evidence for any of the supposed battles claimed to have occurred between the “Lamanites and the Nephites.” No weapons, arrowheads, swords, shields all the things that we find from the sites of battles many thousands of years more remote in their historical context. What’s worse is, the science of DNA disproves the seminal Mormon claim that the Native Americans are actually descendants of lost tribes of Jews. Of course, Joseph Smith didn’t know about DNA or the science of genetics when he was making up his religion. Who did back at that time? He had absolutely no idea that a time would come when with just a simple cheek swab, we could pinpoint a person’s ancestry to almost any point on the globe. Not only that, but using DNA you can pull out all the different ethnic contributions that make up who you are.

Mormon Jesus with the Lamanites and the Nephites

We know that this never happened

The bottom line? The Native Americans are in no way, nor have they ever been related to Semitic people. Thus, they’re not some lost tribe of Jews. Of course, one never asks, how exactly do you lose a tribe of people? Has this put the lie to Mormonism? Of course not! Some people simply do not want to be confused with facts. When it comes to Judaism, Christianity and to some extent Islam, much of their lore is simply uncheckable. Can we prove that Abraham existed? No we cannot. We also cannot prove that he did not exist. Science and archaeological evidence strongly suggests it is all a myth, however the events occurred so far back in time that we can never be absolutely certain as to what happened.

Tom Green poses with his five wives after being recently released from jail

Tom Green – Mormon Polygamist with his five wives

Unfortunately for Mormonism, this is not the case. We actually have the records of Joseph Smith’s run-ins with the law on fraud charges. We have records of how he actually died in a gun battle trying to escape from being lynched in jail. We have records of his numerous infidelities with the wives of other men. How surprising that the religion he founds has as one of it’s primary tenets of faith, polygamy. In fact to become a God with your very own planet to rule, you had to take many wives. The more the merrier as they say.

Irreconcilable Differences

The differences between Mormonism and orthodox Christian teachings, is simply staggering. Put another way, wars have been fought and thousands of people have died over disputes in theology that look specious by comparison. Christians teach that Jesus is the only begotten son of God. Mormons teach that not only did God have other sons, Jesus and Lucifer are in fact brothers. Thus all humanity is caught up in a family dispute over a difference of opinions.

Poor Joseph God Was A Hard Act To Follow

Poor Joseph, God would have been a hard act to follow.

Christianity teaches that God is a spirit and those who worship him, worship him in spirit and in truth. Mormonism teaches that God has a physical body with which he enjoys endless celestial sex with his numerous wives. Christianity teaches that Jesus was born of the “Virgin Mary” who conceived through a move of the “Holy Spirit.” Mormonism teaches that God – Elohim – came down in a physical body and had sex with Mary. Of course, if she were a virgin, she wouldn’t have been after that.

Had Joseph Smith been around during the Inquisition his theology would have received a warm reception.

The most staggering problem with Mormonism and in essence, what ought to be the deal breaker for even serious consideration as a religion is this fundamental error in logic. According to Mormonism, Elohim was born a human being to as yet unknown, unnamed parents who were of course gods. Elohim was elevated to God status following his death because of his adherence to the teachings of Mormonism. Did you catch that? How could Elohim the supposed creator of this Universe and this planet have followed the teachings of Mormonism when Joseph Smith had not been born and of course had yet to invent Mormonism? You say it was given to him by the angel Moroni? Where did Moroni get it? The whole scam… er, scheme falls apart with the application of a few very simple questions. Had Joseph Smith lived during the time of the Inquisition – damn shame he didn’t – he would have been summarily burned at the stake.

When Racism Trumps Christian Faith

“In the face of a common foe, traditional enemies will unite.”

So what on earth could have bridged the gap between Christianity and Mormonism? Who could have brought these two diametrically opposed theologies together? Who is the “unite-er and not the divider?” Who on this planet has the power to upend 2,000 years of Christian beliefs? Beliefs held so strongly that people have been willing to die for them? Whom could possibly do this?

President Barack Hussein Obama 44th President of the United States

There is but one man on this planet with the power to perform such a miracle. His name? President Barack Hussein Obama. Yes, his very presence, his very existence has caused racist white people so much distraught that possibly for the first time in recorded history, they’ve stopped fighting one another over the basis of their theological differences and have come together in unity to fight against the very thought of our first Black President having a second term in office. This phenomenon is one that should be studied for years to come. It should be of interest to political science students and theologians as well. When you look back over recorded history and realize how many wars have been fought and blood spilt over such minor issues as to whether or not one group had their baptismal formula correct or whether or not one needed to be fully immersed in water or simply have water poured over one’s head.

“I am not at all bothered by the fact that Mitt Romney is a Mormon.”

The history of religion has been fraught with one war after the other over what a disinterested 3rd party would consider minor points of doctrine. After all, they all read from the same book, believe in the same God, who cares what comes first in a worship service? This is what makes these current events so damn miraculous! The differences between Mormon theology and Christian theology are not at all small. They’re huge! So, when Franklin Graham says he’s not at all bothered by the fact that Mitt Romney is a Mormon, there must be something else, some power working behind the scenes that can warp the very fabric of theological reality.

Racism

Klu Klux Klan attending a Sunday Morning Service

Racism has always been a part of Christianity

Our first clue to this mystery probably has to do with the fact that in spite of the fact that President Obama spent over 20 years in a Christian church, was baptized, there, married there, had his daughters Christened there, a portion of this nation still believes him to be a Muslim. In point of fact, there would be nothing wrong with him being a Muslim, but why do they insist on making him something he is not?

Islam is considered by many white people to be a religion for dark skinned people. Thus if they’re already racist, it carries a connotation when mentioned.

Islam is considered to be a religion for and of dark skinned people. When you say the word Muslim, in many white people’s minds, the word “Black” is inserted in front of it. Thus, Muslim becomes “Black Muslim.” The reality is, people of all races practice the Islamic faith. However, to know this, you’d actually have to study a bit and become familiar with what Islam is. There are approximately 1.6 billion Muslims in the world today. You would think with that many people practicing a system of belief, you might want to know a little about what it is they believe.

Christian pilgrims participating in a group baptismal ritual in the river Jordan. Of course they’re white people, but as with Muslims, they could have well been any race of people.

There are a little over 2 billion Christians in the world. The difference in those numbers is actually negligible in the grand scheme of things. When you have a billion people on the planet who think anything is important, it might be a good idea to become familiar with it. It is not so much what we say, not so much what people hear, the important things is what happens in their minds when they’re processing our words. Just as Islam is considered to be a religion practiced by dark skinned people, so too is Christianity considered to be the religion of white people. If I say to you, “he’s a good Christian man” when describing someone to you whom you’ve never met, what image pops into your mind? What race of person are you seeing? By the same token, if I were to describe someone as a good practicing Muslim, what image pops into your head? What is the race of the person you’re imagining?

Mormonism

Mormon Missionaries

The same is particularly true for Mormonism. If I told you to pick the Mormon out of a crowd, you would begin looking for a white person. Believe it or not, there are Black Mormons, nevertheless when you think of Mormons you do not consider Black people as being Mormon. The perception of a Mormon is a white male with no facial hair, wearing a white shirt, black slacks and a neck tie. If we were going to go all in on the stereotype, you’d be looking for a bicycle nearby. This is the image many people have of Mormons. At some point you were presented with it, probably can’t remember when or where and it’s been reinforced over time. Thus when you hear the word Mormons, that memory is automatically triggered.

Mormon Sister Wives

Of course there is the other popular image and that is of a group of women – “sister wives” – all with their hair similarly arranged, uncut, wearing shapeless, straight dresses that could easily be made at home. These are images which automatically come to mind whenever we’re presented with certain triggers. Is this true? Is this factual? It doesn’t matter. We operate from our perceptions. Racism flows from our perceptions. Our perceptions is where latent and often overt racism resides.

When Franklin Graham opines that President Obama may secretly be a Muslim, on what does he base his opinion? President Obama is rather fond of beer. Muslims like Mormons abstain from alcoholic beverages. President Obama is married to only one woman and has only been married to one woman. Many Muslims around the world just as do many Mormons, practice polygamy. President Obama believes the same gospel Franklin’s father has been preaching for over 63 years. Mitt Romney does not. Yet we now find these two as the strangest of bed fellows. Why?

It is clear that racial hatred long buried and obscured by the façade of Christianity has revealed it’s self at last. For your racial hatred to be so strong it will allow you to embrace with open arms what heretofore on your own website you called a cult. It must be strong indeed. Let’s be clear. Prior to this unholy alliance, had you asked either of the Grahams if there would be any Mormons in heaven, without hesitation they would of told you unequivocally no! Further they would have told you that anyone teaching the false gospel of Mormonism was leading people straight to hell and imperilling their immortal souls. If this is suddenly no longer true, then perhaps we ought to question the entire gospel the Grahams have been preaching all these years. Were they only in it for the money?

If you want to know what Mormons believe and teach, watch the following video presentation prepared by ex-Mormons based on their own documentation. If after watching this you conclude that people who sincerely believe the Christian message as outlined in the Bible, can embrace Mormonism as just another branch or denomination of the Christian faith, then all bets are off and we need to dispense with the Bible because it’s become meaningless psycho-babble.

What the Mormons Teach and Believe

ROUND #2 Post Debate Wrap Up

Posted on October 17, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

by Benjamin T. Moore, Jr.

Post Debate Wrap Up

The Author of the Rope-A-Dope

There is more than one way to “Rope-A-Dope.” Sometimes you do it by giving him enough rope to hang himself. Tonight We saw Mitt Romney, tie his own noose, place it over his own head, tighten it and take a flying leap into oblivion. Mitt, we hardly knew ya… No really! How can you know a man, who can reverse himself 3 times in the course of one sentence? In tonight’s debate, it finally caught up to Mr. Romney and just between you, me and the doorpost? I don’t think Mitt was very happy. It was a long night on Long Island at Hofstra University for Mitt Romney.

First Debate Revisited

One of the conversations I had repeatedly following the first debate was to reassure concerned Democrats regarding President Obama’s apparent lack luster performance. First I have always maintained that President Obama has been playing Chess while the Republicans were playing Checkers.

If you want to catch an Eel, you first have to put sand on your hands. Mitt Romney has been one slippery Eel. The genius of Mitt Romney’s campaign has been their ability to get so far without ever having to commit to anything! President Obama had to first make get Mitt to take an actual position. Heretofore, Romney has in essence been blowing smoke on all the issues. In a conversation following the previous debate, I asked the person with whom I was talking, “you just listened to Mitt Romney for an hour and a half, can you tell me even one position Mitt has?” After a moment of thought, he admitted that he could not. That has been the problem.

Getting a straight answer on Mitt’s policies is like trying to enter a rapidly spinning revolving door.

Getting to Mitt is like trying to enter a rapidly spinning revolving door. Attack his tax plan, the plan he’s been running on for the past year and a half, Mitt says, “that’s not my plan!” He smugly points out, “he has only suggested what he might do.” The real plan will be put together with a congress that is as yet unelected. Look at it this way, If you went to see your doctor about a problem and the doctor told you that you needed an operation, wouldn’t you want to know the details? If the doctor told you he was going to cut you open and figure things out once he took a look, I suspect you’d get up and go looking for a second and third opinions.

Mitt has actually gotten a lot of mileage by not taking an actual position on any of the issues. It makes it extremely easy for him to tailor his message dependent upon which group he’s talking to. Before you can knock him down, you’ve got to get the real Mitt to actually stand up!

Style Points

Debate Moderator Candy Crowley

It would be fair to say that the debate moderators have grown weary of Mitt Romney’s tactic of taking control of the debates. He got away with it during the Republican Primaries and had a great measure of success in his first outing against the lamentable Jim Lehrer. He comes off as a whiner. He complains about the order, who’s turn it is to speak… except when he wants to rebut a point that went against him. Then of course, “he must be allowed to respond.” Actually? No Mitt, you don’t get to explain it all away when you get caught in a lie. In my opinion, debate moderator Candy Crowley did an excellent job of containing Mitt’s antics.

Mitt, lying is not patriotic

President Obama had to walk the proverbial tight rope. Let us call a spade a spade. We live in a racist country. White people fear “the angry Black man.” His delivery had to be pitch perfect. He had to push back and cut Mitt’s throat with a smile firmly fixed on his face. He did just that. The difference between this debate and the last debate? President Obama called Mitt on each and every lie. Mitt simply didn’t know what to do. He began speaking condescendingly to Candy Crowley, he even went so far as to heckle the President in the middle of one of his answers. The American people saw Mitt unravel right before their eyes.

On The Substance

There were many topics covered I’ll give you a few of the highlights. Mitt Romney attempted to make points on oil production. His complaint was that the President’s administration has taken away oil drilling rights on public lands. Personally? I’m not real enthusiastic about oil derricks popping up in our National Parks, Nevertheless, this was yet another lie Mitt got caught in. In fact, it came back to bite him in the ass.

Coming to a National Park Near You?

Yes, the Obama administration has removed drilling rights. These rights were bought up and being sat on for years and not being used. Oil companies were in essence just squatting on our public lands. What the Obama administration did was take those drilling rights and re-let them out to companies who were willing to actually use them now. That of course is fundamentally different than the impression Mitt Romney was trying to portray.

Mitt Romney attempted to get some mileage by comparing the cost of gas today to the price it was when President Obama first took office. There were a couple of lies contained within this poison pill. First, if you buy into the supply and demand model of pricing, you would have to agree that the greater the supply, the less the demand, the lower the price. As it turns out, our oil production is at an all time high. Our demand is actually down. Yet, the price at the pump is high. The dirty little secret is, oil is considered a global commodity. The oil we produce here in the United States, goes directly onto the global market where it is mixed into the global supply. Since we only have 20% of the known global oil reserves, we simply cannot pump enough oil to have much of an effect on oil and gas prices.

President Obama turned the tables on Romney by pointing out that when gas prices were at $1.86 per gallon, our economy was in full meltdown. He then pointed out, that we could in fact get back to those prices simply by following Mitt Romney’s policies back to an economic collapse. The audience nearly cheered!

One of the other topics which I thought extremely important concerned “Women’s Issues.” President Obama pointed to his record on “Women’s Issue.” The first bill he signed after being elected to office was the “Lilly Ledbetter Act.” He pointed out how his”Affordable Care Act” covers women’s health care issues. He addressed the Republican plan to de-fund Planned Parenthood.

Really Mitt? You asked for a binder full of women?

Mitt Romney’s response was to tell some story from his days as Governor of Massachusetts. According to Mitt, he noticed the dearth of women represented in his cabinet and asked them to bring him a binder full of qualified prospective females to add to his cabinet. This rang hollow to me. Mitt is asking us to believe that he made it all the way to the Governor’s office before it occurred to him he ought to have female representation on his cabinet? A person who deals from whom they really are, has no need to worry about optics. Be who you are and the optics will take care of themselves.

The Libyan Incident

This issue may have been the end of Mitt Romney’s hopes at winning this election. Before the facts were in Mitt leapt out front to criticize the President’s administration. Before the bodies had been recovered. Mitt Romney was using this tragedy for political gain. On this night, he ran head long into a “hay maker” from the President.

The President’s Personal Punching Bag

Mitt Romney thought he was about to deliver a political kill shot. His criticism has been that the Administration was – for reasons unknown – trying to cover-up an act of terror against an American embassy which cost the life of an Ambassador and 3 military service personnel. Unfortunately for Mitt, he got “fact checked” right in the middle of the debate by not only the President but by the debate moderator. As it turns out there is video tape of the President of the United States, with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton beside him, in the “Rose Garden” calling what happened… “An Act of Terror.” Caught in a lie and embarrassed on national television with 65 million people watching. Poor Mitt. The President turned Mitt into his personal punching bag.

Things were already going down hill, but it was like the brake lines were suddenly cut. Mitt never recovered from this blunder. It was a telling moment. We got to see not only his character but the risk of having someone in charge who does not take the time to research an issue and know what he’s talking about before taking a position.

Immigration

This was yet another issue that hit Mitt right between the eyes. During the Republican Primaries, vowing not to sign the “Dream Act” may have garnered some points, but this is the General Election. Mitt tried to lie away his “Self-Deportation” comments, but the President held his feet to the fire. Mitt tried to distance himself from his statement that “Arizona’s Papers Please Law” should become the model for the nation. Mitt tried to explain that he only supported the “E-Verify” portion for employers. President Obama pointed out that Mitt’s advisor on immigration issues is the same person who wrote the “entire” Arizona bill. Mitt had nothing to say. Latinos are neither stupid nor naive. They do vote.

Conclusion

In the last debate, I gave President Obama the win on substance and Mitt Romney the win on style. The problem is, you really can’t lie your way to a win. That’s not debating. This debate was like night and day. President Obama called Mitt on each and every lie and pushed back hard. He tied Mitt to his positions and then used him like a punching bag. You could tell Mitt was getting frustrated because he kept appealing to the Moderator. I really expected him to say at any minute, “Candy save me!!!” No help was forthcoming.

You could tell who won at the end of the debate, by observing the dynamics of the crowd, the pundits in the spin room and how long they hung around. Mitt was up and out as soon as possible. President Obama stayed around to take pictures with fans, sign autographs and greet the public. Mitt gathered what was left of his dignity and limped off the field of combat.

In case you missed it? Here’s the complete debate for your viewing pleasure.

Abortion Myth-Direction. Playing the Pro-Life Movement for Political Gain.

Posted on October 16, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

by Benjamin T. Moore, Jr.

Ebers Papyus - Ancient Egyptian instructions for inducing abortions.

Ebers Papyrus. Ancient Egyptian Medical Text on how to induce abortions.

A brief history of abortion

Believe it or not, abortion is not new. It has been around for thousands of years. It was practiced in ancient Rome and the earliest reference comes from ancient Egypt. For those who’s views are informed by their religious faith, particularly the Christian faith, this is something to think about. Jesus would have of been familiar with the practice of abortions, yet he is not recorded as saying anything about it. As a matter of fact, Abortions do not even merit an honorable mention in the Bible.

We often believe that abortion is the result of modern medical advancement. Nothing could be further from the truth. Surprisingly enough, unwanted pregnancies have been occurring since people first began to make babies. Not long afterwards, they began discovering how to terminate those pregnancies. The irony is, some of the methods practiced in “Ancient Egypt” and other places, employed the exact same approach used today. They used certain plant based suppositories to cause a hormonal reaction which would end the pregnancy.

When does life begin?

When life begins depends on one's point of view

When life begins is largely dependent on the person answering the question.

The answer to this question depends on one’s subjective point of view. Does life begin at conception? Does it begin when the brain becomes active in the fetus? Does it begin when the baby takes it’s first breath? Does life begin before conception? Some people believe we live many lives. It might even be prudent to ask, “what exactly is human life?” The answer to this question truly depends upon the person being asked and the person asking the question. It could be argued in a variety of ways, with each position able to defend their points of view.

The problem is, it really comes down to the belief of the person asking the question and doing the answering. From the perspective of the Christian Bible, it is interesting to note, Adam did not become a “living soul” until he took his first breath from God. He was fully formed – presumably an adult – with all his limbs, organs, vital system etc., but he was not alive until the moment of that first breath. Thus, based on that passage in the Bible, I could sustain the argument that life does not begin until the moment a baby takes its first breath. I’m sure many will find this unsatisfactory because it goes against what they’ve been led to believe.

Of course, one could also use the Bible to argue that life begins before conception.

[KJV] Jeremiah 1:5
Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations

Note the the part about being known before being formed in the womb. This could support those who believe that we live many lives. To be known, one must exist. Actually there are numerous Biblical passages which suggest reincarnation and multiple lifetimes. However, dealing with that topic is for another day. It does raise an interesting question. To wit: If one is known prior to coming here and God is intimately involved in whom comes here and why, does it seem logical that God would send someone into a body that was going to be aborted? It is a question of faith, and it is worthy of thoughtful contemplation.

Abortions in the Bible

The Holy Bible

While the Bible does not mention abortion by name or seem to take issue with people practicing abortions, oddly enough there are passages in which either God causes an unnatural termination of pregnancy or authorizes a ritual to accomplish much the same thing. In the book of Hosea a curse is placed upon Ephraim. A part of that curse involves God causing miscarriages. This is without a doubt the ending of a pregnancy unnaturally. An abortion by any other name… except that the abortion provider in this case is God.

There are numerous passages where God demands the murder of pregnant women. If you murder the pregnant mother, you’re effectively aborting the fetus as well. Thus this notion of God being against abortions is actually unsustainable when one actually examines the Bible. Those who identify as Christian and oppose abortion for religious reasons, clearly have not read their Bibles.

Hypocrisy that knows no bounds

“Don’t tell me what you value. Show me your budget and I’ll tell you what you value.” __Joe Biden

Fertilizing of the egg. 9 months then you're on your own

Enjoy it while it lasts

It is high time someone called the “Pro-Life” movement on their blatant hypocrisy. Some of the same people who are out picketing Abortion Clinics will leave that protest, head cross town and join up with a TEA Party rally. Some of the same people protesting abortions, on the basis of being “Pro-Life,” believe in and support the “Death Penalty.” Where were they when we invaded Iraq? This sovereign nation had nothing to do with the attacks on September 11, 2001. They did not have any “Weapons of Mass Destruction.” Hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians, men, women and children lost their lives, where were these “Pro-Life” protesters?

Chart of cuts to education under Republican run States

Notice the difference between the Red and Blue States?

Life is more than just conception. It is more than just giving birth. It is providing shelter for your child, food, clothing, medical care, education, all those things Republicans are hell bent on cutting. They know the words, but they don’t know the music. They speak the “Pro-Life” language, but when you look at their actual policies, their words ring hollow.

Pro-Life? I do not think it means what you think it means.

The same people who are marching under the “Pro-Life” banner are some of the same people who are in the TEA Party. They complain about taxes they aren’t even paying. These are the same TEA Party Republicans who want to cut funding for education, want to do away with the “Affordable Care Act” which gives health care to millions of children who did not have it before. These are the same people who are against school teachers being given a raise. These are the same people who will vote for a candidate who has as much as promised a war with Iran if he’s elected. Yet they claim to be “Pro-Life.”

This shows what they value and it’s not Pro-Life

Make no mistake. Although resources are always limited and choices have to be made, when you vote to give $4 billion dollars in subsidies to the most profitable corporations on this planet – the Oil Industry – while at the same time cutting spending for “Head Start,” “School Lunch Programs,” “Pell Grants,” “Education,” “Health Care” and a host of other programs that provide quality of life and opportunity, don’t pretend to be “Pro-Life.” As Joe Biden says, “don’t tell me what you value, show me your budget and I’ll tell you what you value.”

The harsh realities of an Abortion decision

Surgical Suite – Most people tend to avoid these if at all possible

I am puzzled by those who have convinced themselves that getting an abortion is the equivalent – if not easier – of going to their dentist for a teeth cleaning. An abortion is an invasive medical procedure. It’s an operation. I know of few people if any who look forward to being operated on. You can die from an abortion and people have died. An abortion is not a woman’s first choice. There is a recovery period following an abortion. Complications, both physical and psychological are common.

It can and does happen

Consider your average 14 year old. Remember when you were 14? You had all the answers didn’t you? You were as good as grown, just waiting for the rest of the world to catch up with your epiphany. Yet, at 14 years of age, if your parents had put you out of their home, they would have been charged with child neglect. The State won’t give you a driver’s license because at 14? They know you don’t have good judgement. At 14, you may have thought you knew everything you needed to know. Yet, going to school was still mandatory. Even if you were industrious and got a job, your parents have to sign off on it. During the school year your employer, by law had to limit your hours.

At 14 you cannot vote, you cannot buy liquor, you cannot smoke and you cannot enter into a legally binding contract. The State understands this and protects the 14 year old from his or herself. Unfortunately, at 14 you can get pregnant. Rarely does a 14 year old get pregnant by following her parent’s instructions or advice. It was because of her lack of judgement that she got pregnant. A 14 year old doesn’t have the requisite judgement to drive, vote, end their educational career or work a full time job, but suddenly we’re going to pretend that she’s got the judgement to become a mother? This is insanity on a whole new level.

If she carries the baby to term now what? She cannot get a job because she cannot drop out of school. If she lives in poverty, her parent(s) may both be working. Which of them should quit their job to stay at home and care for their grandchild? They cannot afford child care costs and the cost for infant care is even higher. Currently? There are programs in place to offer some assistance. However, Republicans are going after those programs hammer and tong to dismantle and de-fund them. Many of these Republicans fly under the “Pro-Life” moniker. But are they?

What about giving the child up for adoption? That is a shotgun solution usually put forth by people whom have no idea what they’re talking about. First of all, it’s not that easy. It’s not that cut and dried. Even if it were, by the time that 14 year old carries her child to term, holds her baby just one time, there’s no letting go. It’s that whole judgement thing again. Guess what! The same courts who in their infinite wisdom have determined that a 14 year old cannot drive, vote, smoke, drop out of school, or drink beer… those same courts will suddenly determine that this same 14 year old who is too young to enter into a legally binding contract, has the right to keep her baby. Not only is she now condemned to poverty, but her child is as well. The thing about poverty? It becomes an endlessly repeating cycle. Children raising children. Like the sign over the gate to Hell, “Abandon All Hope Ye Who Enter Here.”

Often the pressures of parenting at such an early age cause young parents to become abusive. Thus we now add abuse to the poverty stew. Abuse begets abuse and often a child born under such conditions winds up in jail, a ward of the State or worse.

Understanding the statistics

At some point in the Abortion debate, the subject of acceptable exemptions comes up. Usually those who are moderate agree that Abortions should be available in cases of rape, incest or to protect the health of the mother. A disturbing trend has developed of late. Now, certain people are even discounting these as legitimate reasons to perform abortions.

Most rapes are never reported

According to The Center for Bio-Ethical Reform, 1% of abortions are due to rape or incest and 6% involve the health of the mother. There is a problem with that first statistic. Rape is one of the most under reported crimes there is. This comes from the Department of Justice and FBI studies. Out of 100 rapes only 46 are ever reported. 54% go unreported. There are many reasons for this. Oft times the rapist is someone the victim knows. It may be the boyfriend of her mother, it may be a brother-in-law and uncle or cousin. The fear of what would happen to family relationships should the victim go public is often enough to keep the victim silent.

This is the dirty little secret that resides in the dark, dank fetid corners of our culture. We do not want to talk about it. We pretend that if we do not acknowledge it, it will cease to exist. Question: If most women don’t report their rapes to the police, what are the odds they’re going to report it to the doctor performing the abortion? Would the doctor be required to report it? If a 16 or 17 year old gets raped by say her mother’s boyfriend, most will never tell their mother what really happened. They’re not going to tell the police and should they get pregnant, they’re not going to tell the doctor. Thus that 1% figure is an error. What should it actually be? I have no idea and I’m not sure anyone can accurately determine the true figure. All we know is that it is higher. Rape by it’s very nature is not a planned sexual encounter. I don’t think a rapist acting on the spur of the moment, stops to put on a condom. Thus because the sex is unprotected, there is a much higher chance of an unwanted pregnancy occurring.

Ramifications of reversing Rowe v. Wade

Reversing Rowe is not going to end abortions. Abortions have been going on since the time of the Ancient Egyptians. They will continue. What will happen is, they will go underground. No laws or regulations. No one to prevent late term abortions from occurring. No licensing agency. Think about it like the war on drugs. We all know how well that’s turned out.

“The morning after pill”

In fact, there would be an immediate black market created for the RU-486 pills. If you cannot keep cocaine, meth or an assortment of other narcotics off our streets and – dirty little secret – out of our prisons, do you think you’ll have better success with RU-486? Once that market is created, all sorts of people will rush in to fill that void. Some will produce fakes, others, lacking the technology or quality control will be pushing pills that are dangerous and in some cases deadly. Not a problem for you? Actually it may be. As parents, try as we might, we often do not know when our children become sexually active. Should a pregnancy occur, what might a daughter do to keep from disappointing her parents?

Something else to consider, what if a woman has a legitimate miscarriage? A woman discovers herself to be pregnant. The pregnancy is unplanned and she’s dealing with the ramifications of bringing a new life into this world. She begins seeing her doctor for pre-natal care. She shares her reservations with her doctor. So he knows she’s having some anxiety. One day while she’s at work, she begins having cramps. She runs to the bathroom and miscarries into the toilet. Does that toilet now become a crime scene?

Could this become a crime scene?

With Abortions becoming illegal it would also be illegal for her to have taken RU-486 or some other abortion inducing compound. If she’d taken something to cause a miscarriage, under the law she would have committed feticide. Would she be required to try and recover the fetal mass for analysis? Should she call the police so their crime team can come and recover the evidence? When she returns to her doctor, he’s going to know she’s no longer pregnant, will he be required to report her? Would this have a chilling effect on women seeking pre-natal care? These are things that must be considered.

Picking a place to be

Paying lip service to being “Pro-Life” does not make one “Pro-Life.” To be “Pro-Life” you must be supportive of all the systems that make life possible. Pre-natal care, post-natal care, health care for the child and the mother, nutritional support such as WIC programs, early learning, “Head Start” and other programs which aid parents and children, must be supported.

When you cut public assistance programs, you’re not just cutting adults, you’re also cutting the children that depend on those adults. When you do not support “A Living Wage” for people at the low end of the income scale, you’re not supporting the children they are responsible for.

Various contraceptive methods

When you refuse to support access to contraception for women or sex education in the schools, you’re increasing the number of unwanted pregnancies. Abstinence? Works great… right up until it doesn’t. When it comes to sex, we’re like a person with a carbohydrate addiction in a bakery. Eventually we’re going to eat something sweet. We are hard wired for sex from millions of years of evolution. The survival of our species depends on it.

“Agent Smith: I’d like to share a revelation that I’ve had during my time here. It came to me when I tried to classify your species, and I realised that humans are not actually mammals. Every mammal on this planet instinctively develops a natural equilibrium with the surrounding environment; but you humans do not. Instead you multiply, and multiply, until every resource is consumed. The only way for you to survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern… a virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer on this planet, you are a plague, and we… are the cure.”

We’re so good at it, we now have over 300 million living here in the United States and over 7 billion populating the entire planet. We are in the middle of a population explosion. The global population is growing exponentially. The resources on our planet are not. We have seen what happens in nature when a population of creatures becomes unbalanced. Their population explodes until they consume all available resources and then they die slowly, painfully from disease and starvation.

Farmers inspecting their withered crops

The reality is, we’re already beginning to see the signs of this happening to us already. When you see those commercials at night showing you starving and impoverished children, they live in places where the populations grew beyond the resources required to sustain them. Could anything like that happen here? What makes you think it couldn’t? This past year we had one of the worst and widest droughts since the “dust bowl” of the 30’s. It hit in our main agricultural belts. We will not fully understand the impact of this drought until this spring. It will take that long for whatever crops we were able to harvest to be turned into the staples we rely on for sustenance.

“Let them eat cake.” __Marie Antoinette

We no longer understand our relationship with the land. We go to grocery stores and super markets without ever stopping to ask “where does that produce come from?” We are living out the “let them eat cake” mentality that caused Marie Antoinette to lose her head. Her inability to realize that her people were starving was no doubt exacerbated by the largess she enjoyed. Her pantry was full. The supermarkets and grocery stores have become our pantries. It won’t hit home for us until we go to the store and find those shelves bare. What will we do?

Every choice, every decision carries consequences. If you want to decrease the number of abortions, but you object to providing access to contraceptions and sex education, you’re not “Pro-Life.” If you want to decrease the number of abortions but you’re against having your tax dollars go to support the programs and agencies that provide support and make it possible for struggling people to care for their children, you’re not “Pro-Life.” If you’re not concerned about planetary resources, preserving our environment and repairing our fragile ecosystems, you’re not “Pro-Life.”

If your concern for human life begins at conception and ends at birth, you’re not “Pro-Life,” you’re Pro-Fetus and that is something entirely different. Don’t get it twisted.

Has Affirmative Action Helped Black People?

Posted on October 13, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

by Benjmain T. Moore, Jr.

President Kennedy

The Question of “Affirmative Action” has been a contentious matter since it was first introduced in 1961 by then President Kennedy. The words “affirmative action” were first mentioned in Executive Order 10925. It was proposed as a method to redress the discrimination that persisted in spite of”Civil Rights Laws” and constitutional guarantees.

It is one thing to put laws in place. It is quite another thing to put in place mechanisms that make certain those laws are enforced. Unlike some of our more recent Presidents who are known for their unfunded mandates, President Kennedy took the next step. Criteria were established and enforcement mechanisms were put in place to ensure compliance with “Civil Rights” laws.

President Lyndon Johnson (LBJ)

President Lyndon Johnson continued President Kennedy’s legacy giving a speech defining “Affirmative Action” in March of 1965. In September of that same year, he signed Executive Order 11246 which enforced “Affirmative Action” for the first time. It required government contractors to hire minorities and treat them with the same considerations they gave their white employees. Equal pay for equal work, equal benefits and equal opportunities for promotions and advancements.

Has affirmative action helped Black people?

Shirt seen at a Mitt Romney rally. Racism is alive, well and out in the open.

Let us examine this critically. First, make no mistake the institutionalized racism upon which this nation was founded is as alive and well today as it was back then. In spite of what we’d like to believe, the election of our first African-American President has revealed the cancer which has been festering just beneath the surface of society. When grown men, whom we’ve entrusted with the responsibility of governing, are willing to commit the treasonous act of destroying our economy rather than work with a Black President for the betterment of all, imagine what things were like back in the early 60’s when racism didn’t have to slink in the shadows.

Those who opposed affirmative action were not without guile. The first thing they did was successfully connect it to the “woman’s suffrage” movement. The plan was ingenious. By having women classified as minorities, and folded up under the affirmative action umbrella, they effectively broadened the scope of the program to such and extent, loopholes and the opportunity for mischief were the inevitable results.

Since the number of females is roughly equal to that of males, by definition, being a female does not and should not qualify one for minority status. While any fair minded person would agree that women certainly have their own issues which need and deserve redress, the purpose and intent of the affirmative action program was to redress historic injustices against Black people.

Gaming the system

Unemployment rate for Blacks versus Whites

Employers were quick to realize if they hired a Black female, they got a two for one deal. They could double count her as two minorities. They could also pad their minority numbers by hiring white women. Thus, they effectively diluted the intent and effectiveness of the program. Black males who were the nominal “bread winners” in the Black family did not see the increase in jobs intended by the program. In addition, this role reversal created a destructive pressure on the Black family. Mothers are critical to family cohesion. When they began leaving the home to enter the workforce in greater numbers Black families began to destabilize. Children with mothers at home, do better in school, are less likely to get into trouble, do better and are more apt to become productive, contributing citizens.

Prospective employees at a jobs fair

Yet another technique was “malicious obedience.” This technique was designed to generate anti-affirmative action sentiment from the white workforce. This was the hiring of any warmed bodied Black person regardless of skill and qualifications. This of course meant that a skilled Black person did not get the job and white people developed resentment because it was clear that their unskilled co-worker was there merely because of his skin color. Employers were not at all bashful about pointing out, that they were being forced to hire Black employees because they had to meet their quotas.

I am not saying that these practices were the norm for every employer. There were many who appreciated the concept of “affirmative action,” and did all they could to carry out the provisions of the law to the best of their abilities. It only takes a few bad apples to spoil the bunch and there were considerably more than a few racist employers who did all they could to undermine and game the affirmative action program.

This classic misdirection was also used in our institutions of higher learning. In 1954 “Brown v. Board of Education” was heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. Prior to this case, the prevailing theory that you could have a duel track – now a track for each minority group – system wherein Black people could attend an all Black school and receive an equal education to their white counterparts, was a carry over from “Reconstruction” following the Civil War. Black people were no longer Slaves, but they were not welcomed into, and were denied access to the institutions and facilities used by white people.

A young Thurgood Marshall

The case argued by the NAACP’s lead attorney and future Supreme Court Chief Justice Thurgood Marshall, proved that for a variety of reasons, separate was not equal. Schools are funded by tax resources which are directed – just as they are today – based on political interests. Just as suburban schools receive the lion’s share of tax money, the all white schools receive more funding than Black schools. This disparity in resources means that two children, one white and one Black who applied themselves fully under this so called “separate but equal” system would come out with unequal educations.

From my own experiences, I attended an inner-city school up until the 4th grade. Leschi Elementary was experimenting with what was then the cutting edge approach of allowing students to progress at their own skill level. In 4th grade I was in a 6th grade reading class – the highest they offered – and I was taking what they called “5th grade Algebra.” I thought I was doing well. My grades were good and I was presumably advanced for my grade and age.

That year my parents bought a house in the suburbs. I was enrolled in an “all white school” – except for me – and I discovered very quickly there is a difference. Although I may have been advanced for an inner-city school, I was way behind the other white kids who were not experimenting with learning at their own pace. They were simply moving along as the curriculum required. It took me several months to get back up to speed.

Here’s the upshot. Had I continued on with the inner-city schools, I may have easily made the Honor Roll and graduated from high school with honors. The rude awakening wouldn’t have come until I sat down for my college entrance exams. Those exams weren’t geared toward inner-city applicants. They were designed to level the field across all schools regardless of privilege. My SAT scores would have been too low to merit consideration for most colleges.

This problem would not have been because I had not applied myself. Nor would it have been because I had not earned good grades. It would have been the result – ultimately – of some politician deciding to funnel money to the schools in the affluent white suburbs and not the largely minority inner-city. To then pretend that SAT scores are applicable across the board is an exercise in sophistry.

Colleges know this. There is a direct correlation to the amount of money spent and the quality of education received. If this were not the case, “Ivy League” schools like Harvard, Princeton and Yale wouldn’t be able to command the high tuitions they require. Students are willing to go into debt because they understand, you get what you pay for. Inner-city schools are no different. You don’t get what you don’t pay for.

The end result of this insidious perfidy – if allowed to go unchecked – would be the creation of a permanent underclass not unlike a stratified society based on a Caste system. India is thousands of years older than we are. They are an ancient people with records – Vedas – going back so far into history, they are considered by some scientist to be anachronistic works of fiction. Why aren’t they the World’s “Super Power?” I submit it has everything to do with the stratification of their society and their creation of permanent under classes. When you limit the potential of a segment of your population you’re cutting yourself off from the most important resource we have, the human mind.

Affirmative action for white people

The fact of the matter is, white people benefit from affirmative action all the time. They don’t call it that. They do not perceive it as affirmative action, yet that is exactly what it is. You’ve seen glaring examples of it lately. Michelle Bachmann, Sarah Palin, Rick Perry, Todd Akin to name but a few. All supposedly have college degrees. Two have been – one is – governors of are largest States – based on land mass – one is a sitting congresswoman and the other is running for the U.S. Senate. Need I say more? How did any of them even get into college let alone receive a degree?

By the time I entered high school – Todd Akin – I had a working understand of human reproduction. By the time I entered high school – Sarah Palin – I was very familiar with a “World Map and Globe.” By the time I entered high school I had a reasonable grasp of American history. I could recite the standard reasons for WWI and WWII I knew that the Russians had been our allies in WWII. I had a working definition of the differences between Communism, Socialism and Capitalism. I had studied the McCarthy era and black listing – the “Red Scare” – and had a reasonable understanding of the dangers of labelling people and why certain individuals and companies did so for their own gain. Yet, these people seem to be totally ignorant of the basic facts any high school student who’s paid attention in class should know.

Notice any minorities in this graduating class?

One of the programs used to provide affirmative action for white people with regards to education is the “Legacy Program.” If either of your parents or grandparents attended a University, you are given special consideration for admission to that University. In fact you will get more points for your legacy status than any consideration you might receive under affirmative action based on your race. Does anyone truly believe that George W. Bush truly got into Yale, graduated and then got into Harvard and received a legitimate MBA? I sincerely doubt he could graduate from the high school I attended. Yet because his father and grandfather attended Yale, he had no problem getting in. He took a seat that other, better qualified white people and minorities did not get.

The reverse discrimination argument

The theory behind this attack on affirmative action is that preferential treatment on the basis of race – 400+ years of discrimination to the contrary – is now a violation of various equal protection clauses in the law. It is actually rather clever however, it fails to take into account that affirmative action was put in place to address the already existing disparity in opportunity, education and hiring practices. I’ve already demonstrated that with the dilution of affirmative action provisions through the rolling up of women and other minorities under it’s umbrella, affirmative action has not truly been applied in the manner it was intended. Has affirmative action helped Black people? Not as it was originally intended to do.

The basis of these reverse discrimination law suits ironically by their very nature admit to an original existing discrimination. Hence the “reverse” clause. They are predicated on a sense of white entitlement and white privilege. Black people are only 12% of the total population. Just 12%. If you said that colleges had to set aside 12% of available slots for Black people that’s 88% of available slots for everybody else. Thus, white people already have their 88% and they’re now drooling with anticipation at getting our meager 12%. This would be bad enough if we actually had 12% set asides, which we do not.

I want to introduce you to Tim Wise. He is an activist and advocate for racial equality and he puts things in a manner that other white people can understand. The following is a 9:31min excerpt from one of his lectures. I believe you’ll find it enjoyable and enlightening.

Tim Wise on White Privilege

Defining affirmative action

A tale of two cubicles

Imagine two employees or two students. One has everything they need. They have a nice work cubicle with a powerful computer connected to the Internet via a high speed network. The other has only pencil and paper. If you give them similar assignments, whom would you expect to perform? You decide to “level the playing field” as it were by giving the employee with only the pencil and paper, a computer as well. However, you give him or her an old IBM-XT computer connected to the Internet over a 300 baud modem. Do you feel better? You did do something, but did you actually level the playing field? Of course not. Yet, in essence you gave out some affirmative action.

The game of life?

To use another analogy, consider a Monopoly Game. One that’s being played with real money, real property/land and what happens in the game happens to you in real life. Further imagine that this game has been going on for the past 1,000 or so years. There are hotels on Board Walk and Park Place. In fact there are hotels on all the properties. Whenever someone leaves the game – through death – one of their heirs takes their chair and the game continues.

The passage of the “Civil Rights” laws now means you get to play. We’ll give you your $200 dollar salary and let you roll the dice. Do you want to play? Would you play under these conditions? I’ve been involved in Monopoly games where I prayed to go directly to jail. At least I could sit out my 3 turns without worrying about having to pay anything.

Let’s sweeten the deal a bit for you. We’ll give you some”affirmative action.” We’ll give you Baltic Ave. No hotels. No houses. You’d need Mediterranean to put those up and we’re not sure we want to give you that much “affirmative action.” Besides, some of the other players are grumbling because we gave you Baltic Ave. How about now? Would you play with real money now?

This is what “affirmative action” is. It is an inducement to get you to play a game you can never truly win. Your objective is to merely survive. Has “affirmative action” benefited Black people? Truthfully? The Jury is still out.

2012 VP Post Debate Wrap Up

Posted on October 12, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

Vice President Biden vs. Congressman Ryan

by Benjamin T. Moore, Jr.

2012 VP Post Debate Wrap Up

Overall, great debate! We got to see two spokesmen for their respective points of view, champion their cause. Possibly because of all the resume padding done on Paul Ryan, I was prepared for a high level dissertation on the mathematics of our budget and economy. I had my pencil, paper and calculator all ready to go. Much to my surprise, none of it happened. As a matter of fact, none of the math was beyond what I could handle in my head. This makes me wonder what exactly was Paul Ryan talking about during his interview with FOX News’ Chris Wallace? I try – not always successfully – to keep an open mind. When Paul Ryan told Mr. Wallace that in essence, the math was too complex for the scope of their discussion, my plate was set for some complex whiz bang mathematics. The fact that none of this manifested during the debate makes me suspect that Congressman Ryan was dodging the question. When people dodge questions I become extremely curious. What was he trying to hide?

Early into the debate – I mean very early – it became apparent to me that Congressman Ryan was over matched, in over his head and out of his depth. I was extremely puzzled midway through the debate, by his quip, “when you don’t have a record to run on…” No you didn’t say that to Vice President Joe Biden? His record began before Paul Ryan was in high school! Experience showed. Congressman Ryan was talking theory. Vice President Biden was talking experience. Experience trumps theory every time!

Let’s look at what I thought were some key points.

Afghanistan

When you blow away the monkey dust Congressman Ryan was trying to throw in the air, the Romney-Ryan ticket says they will do the exact same thing the Obama administration is already doing! President Obama – and Joe Biden was very emphatic on this – will have us out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014. Congressman Ryan says that the Romney-Ryan plan is also to leave by 2014… but he’s against letting anybody know the date. New flash! You just spilled the beans Paul!

Social Security – Medicare

This argument was all Joe Biden. There were two key issues that Vice President Biden hammered home. The first was, when congressman Ryan talks about savings, those savings mean a reduction in benefits paid out to people who’ve already earned those benefits. You’ve paid for them over the course of your working life. Congressman Ryan kept throwing around the magic age of 54 and younger. In other words, if you’re 55 don’t worry because nothing changes under the Romney-Ryan plan for Medicare. Here’s the problem. IF you’re in your 20’s just starting your career, you can in fact plan for, less government assistance when you turn 65. You can buy insurance, annuities whatever you need to do to prepare. If however, you’re 40, 50 or 54, there is simply not enough time to restructure your retirement plans.

Romney-Ryan tax plan

Trust me!

This was the one where I put pencil to paper in preparation! In spite of Mitt Romney’s claims to the contrary, following the first Presidential debate, the fact checkers have confirmed that Mitt was lying. His tax plan does indeed cost 5 trillion – that trillion with a “T” – dollars. The moderator was right on point by holding congressman Ryan’s feet to the fire. The renowned Republican math wizard simply could not make the figures balance nor could he say how they would pay for it. I must confess to being somewhat let down. Well, not really! What it did was confirm to me that these two simply cannot be trusted under any circumstances. The only way to pay for their tax plan is to do away with the home owner deduction, deductions for sending your kids to college, in essence the very things that make the middle class possible!

When asked if people making less than 100k a year should be paying close to 30% or more in income taxes while Mitt Romney pays 14% on the $20 million he admits to making… congressman Ryan of course had no answer. Vice President Biden won this one hands down.

Libya

I’d call this one a draw if I did not have some idea of how things work. Surprisingly congressman Ryan feigned ignorance. When things are unfolding… particularly something as serious as an international event in which we lose one of our ambassadors, there exists what is known as the “Fog of War.” Things go dark. Reports begin coming in. The American people want to know what is going on and you have to tell them what you know at that time. You have a 50/50 chance of being either right or wrong. It is all based on what’s happening on the ground and many times you don’t know what’s going on until you actually get boots on the ground and collect evidence and tapes. Personally I was not pleased with the Romney-Ryan ticket using this tragedy in an effort for political gain.

Iran

Here again was an issue that did not play well for the younger inexperienced congressman Ryan. When the moderator asked what would a Romney-Ryan ticket do to keep Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon, congressman Ryan did not have any answer. There was nothing he could offer by way of any differences. Congressman Ryan seemed unaware of the magnitude of the sanctions already in place. He was unaware of the fact that the U.S. and Israel are on the same page. He did not seem to understand the difference in having fissionable material and having an actual weapon to deliver it in. He simply did not know. The only thing they could do differently that is not already being done is to immediately declare war on Iran. In a word, reckless! This one again went clearly to Biden.

Abortion

This one was interesting and we heard a clear difference between the two candidates. How you’d score this depends on your personal convictions. What was interesting was, congressman Ryan’s position is either different from Mitt Romney’s or he succeeded in pinning down Mitt Romney much to Mitt Romney’s dismay. Depending on the day of the week and the crowd he’s talking to, Mitt Romney is either totally against abortions in all cases or he’s for abortions in certain cases. The good thing about this is, we may here Mitt have to take an actual position, stick with it and clarify it.

Conclusion

In my opinion, Joe Biden won this debate walking away. It wasn’t even close. It is difficult to debate someone who was present and participated in history when all you’ve got is untried and unproven theory. I admire congressman Ryan’s scrappy-ness, but he was simply out of his league.

In case you missed it, here is the complete debate

Did Slavery Benefit Black People?

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

by Benjamin T. Moore, Jr.

Did Slavery actually benefit Black People? This silly narrative resurfaces from time to time, promoted by racist white people whom ironically enough, never seem to say this in the presence of Black people unless they’ve got security and strength in numbers close at hand. Presupposing this notion indicates not only an ingrained sociopathic racism, it reveals a paucity of historical knowledge and American history in particular. One might just as easily – in the spirit of a free exchange of ideas of course – ask if the Jewish Holocaust benefited the Jews? After all, they got the “Nation of Israel” out of the deal?

A beginning is a very delicate time… well, not really!

As with most atrocities in human history, this one too began with religion… the Catholic Church in particular.

“We grant you [Kings of Spain and Portugal] by these present documents, with our Apostolic Authority, full and free permission to invade, search out, capture, and subjugate the Saracens and pagans and any other unbelievers and enemies of Christ wherever they may be, as well as their kingdoms, duchies, counties, principalities, and other property […] and to reduce their persons into perpetual slavery.” __Papal Bull from Pope Nicholas V in 1452 known as the Dum Diversas

What the “Dum Diversas” did was usher in a new type of slavery. A type of slavery which had never before been seen in recorded human history. Chattel Slavery. Prior to this, Slaves had rights, they could own property, they could acquire skills or a trade, they knew the date of their release because slavery was not in perpetuity. They could even buy their freedom early if they were talented.

Under the aegis of the “Dum Diversas” once enslaved you were a slave for the rest of your life. You could never again own property. If you were born to parents who were enslaved, you were a slave merely by accident of birth. You were born without a future. Did slavery benefit Black people? Do you think being born into Slavery was a benefit?

One of the attendant myths is that most of the Slaves were sold to the slave traders by other Africans. Did any of this happen? To be sure, it did happen on occasion. However, when you look at the sheer numbers, it becomes immediately clear that the percentage of Slaves captured in battle and sold by other Africans becomes insignificant.

The enslavement of Africans was a booming business. As with all businesses, records were maintained. Profit and loss statements. From capture to being sold at auction was called “The Middle Passage.” During the 400+ years that Slavery was practiced in the Americas, by conservative estimates, over 100 million Africans lost their lives. These were Africans who never made it to the auction blocks to live out the rest of their lives under the misery and degradation of Slavery. Africans were considered expendable and replaceable.

Where the Slaves Went

The other thing to understand is, what became The “United States of America,” received no more than 4% of the Slaves. The bulk of the Slaves went to South America, the West Indies and a few went to Europe. The lions share of the Slaves went to the West Indies. Why? In a word, “Rum.” Slaves were brought in to work the sugar cane plantations. The sugar was used to make Rum. The Rum was sold back in Europe and in the United States. The drug of choice was alcohol in the form of Rum and just as with Cocaine today, the cost in human misery was staggering. Did Slavery benefit Black people? A lot of white people certainly got rich selling the Rum.

The Rum-Slave-Triangle

It was quite common for the slaves working the island sugar cane plantations to simply be worked literally to death. As far as they were concerned, they had an endless supply. No doubt it was the excessively harsh conditions that lead to the Slave revolts and uprisings that eventually led to the liberation which never occurred here. The Slaves in the islands had no choice. They were dead either way.

Slavery in these United States

Haitian Revolution – the beginning of the end of Slavery in the Caribbean

Had it not been for the Haitian Revolution, the Louisiana Purchase never would have happened. France needed the money to put down the Slaves who’d had enough in Haiti. Thus Napoleon made a deal with Jefferson which amounted to a little less than 3 cents an acre. The Louisiana Purchase solidified what was then only the seed of a notion. It was a concept that came to be known as “Manifest Destiny.”

Slaves clearing land for infrastructure expansion

Ask yourself, how did a budding set of colonies, leap forward, catch and surpass the much more mature and established industries of Europe? The simple answer is all the free labor provided by Slaves. The largest cost when it comes to expansion is in building your infrastructure. Your next concern is logistics. How do you supply “civilization” to those people who expand into newly opened territories? They will need food to get started, they will need axe heads, shovels, plows, saws, nails, hammers and a host of other things we rarely consider and take for granted.

Slaves with their children picking cotton.

The only reason the South was so ready to secede from the Union was, because they made heavy use of slave labor. They could always undercut European prices on quality textiles. Because of fear and the mechanisms of oppression and control, Slaves were denied access to educational opportunities. Thus, it was more difficult to make full use of them in the industrialized Northern States. The products of industry created in the North could not compete price wise with the older more mature industrial production in Europe.

10,000 Confederate bodies stretch into the distance. They’d rather die than work their own fields.

People forget that the entire reason for the Civil War had to do with trade tariffs. In order to protect the fledgling manufacturing industries from the predatory trade practices of Europe, the Government of the United States placed tariffs on incoming European industrial products. This levelled the playing field for American manufacturers. Europe in kind did the same thing which affected the price on textiles they were importing from our Southern States. Quite naturally this cut into the profit margins – which were already way out of line due to free labor – of the plantation owners and they went through the roof.

Picketts Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg

The reason they voted to secede was because they believed that they could then negotiate their old profit margins by claiming to no longer be part of these United States. The North disputed and that disagreement led to the Civil War. As the war went on and the body count rose, it became apparent to Abraham Lincoln and others, that the South could continue to fight – logistics – so long as they had a free labor source at home tending their fields, growing their crops and producing the goods and services they needed for their war efforts.

If you actually read the “Emancipation Proclamation,” you will note that it only applied to the Slaves in the rebellious Southern States. If you were a Slave in the North, it did not apply to you. Thus the notion that Abraham Lincoln freed the Slaves is specious on it’s face. His “Proclamation” applied to States he did not control.

Did Slavery Benefit Black People?

The stacking of human beings as though they were cargo.

One of the common arguments of racist is to compare the standard of living and the lifestyle of African Americans with people in various nations on the African continent. To be sure there is a remarkable difference. However, we need to examine some facts. In 1492 the entire European population was estimated to be at 60 million. Compare this figure to the 100 million Africans who lost their lives during the 400+ years the Atlantic Slave Trade was in business. There were more Africans murdered – never made it into enslavement – than the entire population of Europe. When you add to this slaughter, the number of Africans who actually were sold into Slavery, what we’re really talking about is an African genocide. This was the largest holocaust in recorded human history.

There is really only one true resource on this planet. It is the “Human Resource.” All the solutions to all our problems ultimately come from the human mind. They are applied through human ingenuity. Every white person who has ever lived in these United States, traces their ancestry back to Europe. You no doubt are familiar with the old time machine paradox? “Could you go back in time and murdered your grandfather before he met your grandmother?” The point acknowledges that if your grandparents never got together, you wouldn’t exist.

African children in poverty. Yet some white people say that slavery benefited Black people?

Keep this concept in mind when you’re looking at the African Holocaust. There were entire branches of the human family that were extinguished. Some of those minds that were aborted generations before they had the opportunity to be born, may have held the cure to death and ageing. They may have held the solution to a faster than light drive which would make interstellar and intergalactic exploration possible. They may have invented new forms of abundant, efficient clean energy. These marvels are not to be… or if they come may come too late.

Ever hear of “The Real McCoy?” His inventions were so good there were knock-offs.

Even with the racial discrimination that Black people – descendants of Africa – have faced here in America, their contributions have helped to make American society the society we enjoy today.

A few inventions by Black Inventors:

air conditioning unit Frederick M. Jones July 12, 1949
almanac Benjamin Banneker Approx 1791
auto cut-off switch Granville T. Woods January 1, 1839
auto fishing device G. Cook May 30, 1899
automatic gear shift Richard Spikes February 28, 1932
baby buggy W.H. Richardson June 18, 1899
bicycle frame L.R. Johnson October 10, 1899
biscuit cutter A.P. Ashbourne November 30, 1875
blood plasma bag Charles Drew Approx. 1945
cellular phone Henry T. Sampson July 6, 1971
chamber commode T. Elkins January 3, 1897
clothes dryer G. T. Sampson June 6, 1862
curtain rod S. R. Scratton November 30, 1889
curtain rod support William S. Grant August 4, 1896
door knob O. Dorsey December 10, 1878
door stop O. Dorsey December 10, 1878
dust pan Lawrence P. Ray August 3, 1897
egg beater Willie Johnson February 5, 1884
electric lampbulb Lewis Latimer March 21, 1882
elevator Alexander Miles October 11, 1867
eye protector P. Johnson November 2, 1880
fire escape ladder J. W. Winters May 7, 1878
fire extinguisher T. Marshall October 26, 1872
folding bed L. C. Bailey July 18, 1899
folding chair Brody & Surgwar June 11, 1889
fountain pen W. B. Purvis January 7, 1890
furniture caster O. A. Fisher 1878
gas mask Garrett Morgan October 13, 1914
golf tee T. Grant December 12, 1899
guitar Robert F. Flemming, Jr. March 3, 1886
hair brush Lydia O. Newman November 15, 18–
hand stamp Walter B. Purvis February 27 1883
horse shoe J. Ricks March 30, 1885
ice cream scooper A. L. Cralle February 2, 1897
improv. sugar making Norbet Rillieux December 10, 1846
insect-destroyer gun A. C. Richard February 28, 1899
ironing board Sarah Boone December 30, 1887
key chain F. J. Loudin January 9, 1894
lantern Michael C. Harvey August 19, 1884
lawn mower L. A. Burr May 19, 1889
lawn sprinkler J. W. Smith May 4, 1897
lemon squeezer J. Thomas White December 8, 1893
lock W. A. Martin July 23, 18–
lubricating cup Ellijah McCoy November 15, 1895
lunch pail James Robinson 1887
mail box Paul L. Downing October 27, 1891
mop Thomas W. Stewart June 11, 1893
motor Frederick M. Jones June 27, 1939
peanut butter George Washington Carver 1896
pencil sharpener J. L. Love November 23, 1897
phone transmitter Granville T. Woods December 2, 1884
record player arm Joseph H. Dickenson January 8, 1819
refrigerator J. Standard June 14, 1891
riding saddles W. D. Davis October 6, 1895
rolling pin John W. Reed 1864
shampoo headrest C. O. Bailiff October 11, 1898
spark plug Edmond Berger February 2, 1839
stethoscope Imhotep Ancient Egypt
stove T. A. Carrington July 25, 1876
straightening comb Madam C. J. Walker Approx 1905
street sweeper Charles B. Brooks March 17, 1890
thermostat control Frederick M. Jones February 23, 1960
traffic light Garrett Morgan November 20, 1923
tricycle M. A. Cherry May 6, 1886
tricycle M. A. Cherry May 6, 1886

Did Slavery benefit Black people? It sure benefited white people. The above list is but a few of the many things invented by Black people that we use every day. You probably are using something invented by a Black person right now. The typewriter for instance is what we call a “foundational invention.” Without the typewriter you wouldn’t have a computer keyboard. The typewriter had to come first.

What if there had been a European Holocaust?

The further back you prune a branch, the more leaves you remove from the tree. All those secondary and tertiary branches that split off, and the branches that split off from them are removed the closer to the trunk you make your cut.

1912 Ford Model T

If an ancestor of Henry Ford had died or Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, they would not exist. Imagine what the world would look like today. If an ancestor of the Wright brothers had been killed, would we have Jet airliners today? Think of some of the people who invented vaccines, or made earth changing discoveries, if their ancestors had been swept up and murdered, what

iPhone 5

would the world look like today?

When you look at Africa, you’re looking at a continent that was plundered of it’s most precious of all resources, the human resource. The things that Africans may have created and invented that would have benefited the entire planet have now been lost to racist greed and the capitalism of human bondage. We are paying for this today whether you realize it or not. I have listed but a few of the contributions that the descendants of Africa have made to Western Civilization… if we can call it that. Even so, imagine what contributions they might have made had they been treated equally, and had access to the same educational opportunities as their white counterparts. A mind is truly a terrible thing to waste. Remember this when some racist fool deigns to open his mouth and spew hate speech with a smile. The answer to the question is, “No, Slavery did not benefit Black people. It benefited white people and in the process may have mortally wounded humanity.”

Psychosis – A peek into the mind of Mitt Romney

Posted on October 9, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

Unacceptable!

by Benjamin T. Moore, Jr.

psy·cho·sis (s-kss)
n. pl. psy·cho·ses (-sz)
A severe mental disorder, with or without organic damage, characterized by derangement of personality and loss of contact with reality and causing deterioration of normal social functioning.

Psychosis – A Peek into the mind of Mitt Romney

The more you see of Mitt Romney, the more apparent it becomes that something is just not quite right. At first I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. He presents a very polished package. Someone called him, “the Presidential candidate from central casting.” If you were shooting a movie that called for someone to play the role of the President, if Mitt Romney showed up at the auditions, he’d be a “shoe in.” Perhaps that’s just it! It’s as if he’s playing a role. What are his positions? Depends on the script of the day.

Anorexia – Psychosis

A “layman’s” definition of psychosis is that state of being when your subjective reality does not align with objective reality. We sort of define objective reality as what you bump into while walking around with your eyes closed. Subjective reality is often defined by how you process objective reality in your mind. For instance, someone who is anorexic looks in their mirror and sees an obese person looking back at them… even though they only weigh 95 pounds. That is a rather obvious psychosis.

Some psychoses are not nearly so obvious. To be sure, the mental health field delineates and categorizes them based on various other headings related to treatment methodologies, how they manifest and a host of other areas beyond the scope of this discussion. Our working definition will focus on that schism between objective and subjective reality.

What do we really know about Mitt Romney? Actually precious little. Except for the broad overview of his life, there are only two records we can be fairly certain of. We have an idea of what he did at Bain Capital and we have a record from his time as Governor of the State of Massachusetts. The rest is anecdotal as supplied by Mitt. Unfortunately, it has become apparent that Mitt and the “truth” may not even be passing acquaintances.

Mitt Protesting FOR the Vietnam War

We really know more about his father, George Romney’s history than we do Mitt’s. We know he was given a million dollars at his birth by his father. I’ve also heard it was 100 million. We know he sat out the Vietnam war in France supposedly doing “missionary work” for the Mormon Church. We know he fully supported the Vietnam war going so far as to participate in counter protests. We know he holds a law degree and an MBA from Harvard. We know he is a “Bishop” in the Mormon Church. These are things we know… or think we know.

The reality is, what we have is a broad overview of Mitt Romney. It is much like reading the blurb on the back of the dust jacket of a book. Far too often, the synopsis on the back of the book exceeds the content contained between its covers. When it comes to someone running for the office of President, we need, demand a good deal more information. Given the number of people Mitt would have to of interacted with over his personal and professional life and careers, it has not escaped my notice that there are precious few people who have deigned to offer commentary on their experiences with Mitt, either growing up, in school or in business.

Bad Haircut

The most notable account we have of “Mitt the early years,” involves an act of viciousness which stretches the very definition of bullying. The incident concerns a young man at a boarding school Mitt was attending. This young man wore his hair in a manner Mitt found objectionable. Though unsaid, the flavor of incident implied that this youth may have been Gay. In any event, Mitt gathered a group of his friends, ran this kid down and forcibly cut his hair.

Although this incident occurred in his youth, it does give insight into his character. By the time you reach high school, your sense of right and wrong should be thoroughly developed. This pattern of preying on the weak would manifest time and again, later in his life. Indeed this philosophy became the business model for Bain Capital.

From what we’ve been told and what we can reasonably deduce Mitt enjoyed a life of privilege. Money, status and power were his by birthright. He enjoyed the best that money and power could afford. As the result of this it is apparent that he developed a sense of entitlement. In particular there was the world he lived in, the circles he moved in and then there was the rest of the world.

Consider his counter-protest in favor of the Vietnam war. Nobody in Mitt’s family as far as we know, ever served in the military. Mitt had no intention of going to Vietnam himself. Everyday the news showed the bodies of service men being returned home. There were people who had been to Vietnam, returning with missing arms and legs. Yet with the body count rising on a daily basis, Mitt Romney who could easily have volunteered, was taking issue with those students who were against the needless carnage of the Vietnam war.

Final voyage

In essence, Mitt was all for others sacrificing and dying for the Country, but not so much that he would risk his own life serving. When asked about this, I believe his statement was words to the effect, that he had more important things to do. There were a lot of young people who had more important things to do. However, they lacked the money, power and connections to avoid the draft by hanging out in France. Most people would have had that inner voice telling them, in a matter of life and death, such as war is, that the least you could do is remain silent.

Clearly to Mitt, the war was something to be fought and died in by those lessor than he. Privileged people such as himself, were above sacrificing and risking their lives. Only someone suffering from psychosis could compartmentalize the realities of the Vietnam war such that they could support the war, while refusing to participate in it. Personally, I find the insight this yields into Mitt’s character extremely disturbing. Empathy is extremely important for healthy human interactions. The inability to place one’s self in the shoes of another is a symptom if not the definition of a sociopath. Serial killers are sociopaths. They are incapable of being moved by the pain and suffering of others.

Connecting the dots

Poor doggy!

It might be easy to dismiss these types of events as isolated instances of bad judgement… but they keep occurring. You can draw a straight line from his bullying, to his view – paraphrasing – that war is great for the peasant class, but not for him, to the business model of Bain Capitol, to his comments about the “47%.” Even strapping the family dog to the roof of his car is evidence of a lack of empathy. When you cannot understand how others – even creatures – feel, your only true concern is what is best for you. Your focus becomes your own convenience. I submit, people who exist in this state are dangerous to be around. They are incapable of feeling responsibility for the welfare of others.

Etch-A-Mitt

Mitt’s ability to lie at the drop of a hat is further symptomatic of this type of pathology. My suspicions are, he could easily pass any polygraph test because he has no compunction against lying. These are not the 1950’s. Not only are most interviews by public officials video recorded, they’ve got this thing known as “YouTube.” You could spend a day watching Mitt debate himself. When it was politically expedient to be “Pro-Choice,” Mitt told a heart wrenching story about his sister-in-law who had died because of a botched, back-alley abortion. Had abortions been legal, she might still be alive today. Of course now that it is no longer politically expedient for him to be “Pro-Choice,” he’s now all for the overturning of “Rowe v. Wade” and promises to appoint Supreme Court justices who would.

The very subject of abortion evokes an extremely visceral reaction in those who oppose it. It’s not like waking up one day and deciding you like chocolate ice cream instead of vanilla. People have been murdered over this issue. The fact that Mitt can so easily change his position indicates not only a lack of character, but the inability to empathize with either side. He has no dog in the fight so – as Jon Huntsman so aptly put it – “like a well lubed weathervane,” Mitt switches according to the direction of the wind wherever he happens to be.

Of water heaters, ironing boards and tuna fish

Most of the outrageous things that have come out about Mitt Romney and his family have not been the result of investigative journalist going through their trash or putting them under surveillance. Most of it has come directly from Mitt or Ann Romney in interviews. The story about the dog strapped to the roof, that was from Mitt recounting a story he thought would be funny. I believe he foresaw our reaction going a different way. Anyone who loves animals simply cringed in horror and were dumbfounded with amazement that:

He did it in the first place.
He thought it was funny.
He would actually tell anyone about it.

In her efforts to kick their “common folk credentials,” Ann Romney spun some incredible – dare I say ridiculous – tales as well. “Rule of Thumb,” trying to sound like you’ve experienced “hard times,” is extremely offensive to those who actually have. When you’re married to a man who was born with millions of dollars, if you really want to try and pull off a “hard times” story? You’ll do much better going back into your own life before you met your husband.

I simply shook my head when Ann recounted her and Mitt having to rough it in one of their son’s unfinished basements. The story of eating tuna fish, using the ironing board as a table and using a door stretched across two saw horses for a desk… even that didn’t work. Why? Poor people have no use for desks! As I listened to her further efforts to humanize Mitt by relating a story to show how “cheap” – her words – he was, immediately I saw the similarities with the movie, “The Coneheads.” These people simply had no clue how normal people live, thus they were making things up out of thin air!

When Ann Romney recounted how Mitt would turn off the water heater each time they left home – she didn’t mention they were going to one of their other homes – I said to myself, who on earth does that? Really getting into the spirit of things, she then related how upon their return they’d have to take cold showers until the water got hot again. Were they on some sort of a forced schedule? From cold water to hot water only takes the average water heater about 45 minutes max. She put the icing on the cake by telling her audience that “Mitt said that a cold shower was good for them.”

The therapeutic value of cold water notwithstanding, She really made her husband into kind of an Ass! What type of man, who is worth millions, does these types of things to the people he claims to love? I love my wife and there is no way I’d have her eating tuna fish, like cat food from a can off of an ironing board in an unfinished basement. If Mitt will do these types of things to his own flesh and blood, what wouldn’t he do to you? He claims to love them. He doesn’t even know you. Perhaps this is why he found it so easy to destroy perfectly good companies, break them apart, send jobs overseas, rape the pension funds and fire the workers?

He as much as said the same to Jim Lehrer the night of the debate. Flippantly and with his famous smirk on his face, he told Jim that if he were elected, he and “Big Bird” would be looking for work. No thought about the actual human consequences. Rather than even consider raising the taxes on millionaires and billionaires, like the bully he is at heart, he goes after whomever he perceives to be weak and or vulnerable. Wall Street? Leave them alone. Sesame Street? Gut ’em! The Public Broadcasting Corporation hasn’t caused one family to lose their retirement or get their home foreclosed on. Wall Street on the other hand damn near brought the World to it’s knees. Good looking out Mitt!

Mitt and the Brown people

Because Mitt has truly been like a “well lubed weathervane,” taking his word on some position he is claiming at the time, doesn’t really seem prudent. We’ve pretty much established that he will say and do anything to achieve his ends. Thus, oft times we find more truth in studying the forces and institutions that contributed to shaping whom he has become.

What are the odds?

Central to Mitt’s narrative has been his Mormon faith. The problem is, when you look at the teachings of Mormonism you begin to understand why a Mitt Romney campaign rally simply does not look like the America most of us are familiar with. Mitt is surrounded by a sea of white faces. Yes, recently they’ve grabbed some Black and Brown people from somewhere and tried to position them in such away they’d be seen in the background pictures, the truth is, it’s all a set up fake. I saw one Romney rally where the hired minority didn’t even stay for the entire rally. He was standing over Mitt’s shoulder one minute and gone the next! Just long enough for a couple of photographs.

Caught!

The fact that Mitt has no clue about minorities was further evidenced by him appearing in “Brown Face” on Univision. Really Mitt? You think the only thing we care about is who’s skin tone is similar to ours? Indeed this is a classic case of projection and says so much about the psyche of racist white people. For them, skin color is all they see. Thus, they – Mitt – simply assumed that Brown people would respond similarly. “Wait until they get a load of me!” “A little touch of spray on tan, and I’ll have them eating out of the palm of my hand!” As it turns out, not so much.

The problem stems from the teachings of the Mormon Church. According to Church teachings, Black and Brown skin is the result of a curse from God. If you were raised from an early age believing this, how might such a belief affect your opinions and shape your dealings with people you were taught to believe were cursed? The following short video presentation lays these teachings out.

Banned Mormon Cartoon

Yes, I know Mitt recounted his reaction to hearing about his Church’s change of position regarding Black people. How he wept to the extent he had to pull over. I suppose it is equally fair to wonder, was he weeping for joy or weeping in dismay? Given his proclivity for coming down on both sides of every issue, we may never know.

Cracking under the pressure?

The problem with lying is, when you lie, you are really attempting to push a fabricated false reality off onto someone else. This actually requires some effort. You must remember the details and maintain the façade in order to sell it. The more lies you tell, the more this pressure mounts. At the rate and levels Mitt has been lying, the pressure is starting to show. Watch his eyes and watch his head movements.

What is Ann Romney trying to tell us?

“My biggest concern should Mitt be elected, is for his mental well being.”

In an interview given to KTVN in Reno Nevada on 27 September 2012, Ann Romney made this startling admission. What a peculiar thing to say. She’s not worried about the physical strain of the job. She’s worried about whether or not he could take the mental strain. Think about this for a moment. Ann Romney knows Mitt Romney better than anyone currently living on this planet.

Does he look well?

Given our rather bloody and violent history, one might think most women would be concerned for their husband’s physical safety. “I hope the Secret Service are as good as they say they are.” This would have been an expected response. Even something like, “my biggest concern would be that his policies take affect as soon as possible so we can turn this country around.” Even though I’m rather fond of the direction we’re heading, that response would have been a politically cogent response. But no, “speaking off the cuff” – aka from her heart – the very first worry she expresses is for her husband’s mental health. Hell! Now I’m concerned… even more than I already was!

We know the office of President of these United States is possibly the most intense, complicated and stressful job on this planet. All one need do is look at how our Presidents age before our very eyes. Chris Christie need not apply. He’d drop dead of a heart attack or a stroke within 6 months.

The Nuclear Football

Why is the President’s mental health so important? Along with all the daily stress of domestic and foreign events, at all times next to the President is a uniformed military officer carrying a black satchel. In this satchel is the power to alter the face of this planet or destroy it. I’m talking about the “nuclear football.” This is one of the things that brings a new President down to earth. It is a cold, hard and terrifying reality. Wherever he – or possibly she – goes, like a black shadow it follows them. Even when you see the President and First Lady out enjoying a romantic dinner, just out of camera range is a military officer standing nearby holding the fate of the world in his hands. It is an ever present and constant reminder of the seriousness of the job.

If Ann Romney is concerned, we should be too. The office of the Presidency of these United States is not some trophy you feel you’re owed. It is not the icing on the cake for an over padded résumé. You hold in your hands, not only the lives of every American, but the billions of lives around the globe. It would be nice to know that the person holding those lives, was a person who actually gave a damn! More importantly, it would be nice to know that their mental health was not in question and that their word actually meant something.

Why Republicans Say You Shouldn’t Vote For Romney

Posted on October 8, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

Republicans say you shouldn’t vote for Romney!

Write this down, you may never hear me say this again… There are times when we ought to listen to Republicans!

From their own mouths, “Why Republicans Say You Shouldn’t Vote For Romney.”

There’s nothing more that needs to be said.

VOTE EARLY!

Posted on October 8, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

Make Sure You Count!

VOTE EARLY! MAKE SURE YOU’RE COVERED!

CLICK HERE, and take care of all of this RIGHT NOW!!

1) REGISTER TO VOTE
2) CHECK YOUR REGISTRATION STATUS
3) FIND YOUR POLLING PLACE

4)WHAT ID TO BRING

http://www.canivote.org/

Information for All States.

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Post Debate Wrap Up

Posted on October 7, 2012 by Benjamin Moore

Round #1

by Benjamin T. Moore, Jr.

Have you ever taken a tumble, got back up, shook yourself off and felt just fine? Then a few days later you realize you must have twisted something? Perhaps you were in a minor “fender bender” and made an assessment of yourself and determined you were unscathed, then a few days, sometimes a week later you were at the doctors office being treated for back spasms or an aching neck? Often it takes a few days to fully comprehend the results of an event.

“Thrilla in Manilla”

As a child I remember “The Greatest.” Back before the days of Cable television, HBO, Pay-Per-View, we used to listen to Cassius Clay and then Muhammad Ali’s fights on the radio. Many of my readers may be too young to remember those days when we’d all huddle around the radio listening to Howard Cosell call the fight. We all developed a love hate relationship with Howard. He was so biased against Ali in how he called the fight that it became hilarious. Muhammad would be taking a terrible beating… right up until he knocked his opponent out.

Ali – Frazier

We could hardly wait until Saturday afternoon when ABC’s “The Wide World of Sports” came on, and we could watch it for ourselves. We were crestfallen when Muhammad refused to go to Vietnam. We understood his principal, and as the Black Community we had his back. Many of us had lost loved ones and also disagreed with the war and why it was being fought. When the boxing commission stripped him of his title we were further disappointed but we understood.

After 3 years when they gave him back his license – something to do with the money they were losing – we all eagerly anticipated him regaining his crown. The man currently holding that crown was “Smokin Joe Frazier.” Back then, most of us did not realize that he and Muhammad Ali were actually close friends. Muhammad got back to training and after a few preliminary bouts, a title match was confirmed. Almost every radio in the Black Community was tuned to the fight that night. It was to be the night that Ali reclaimed his glory and won back the title wrongfully taken from him by lawyers. Nobody and I mean nobody could take it from him in the boxing ring!

The fight went the full 15 rounds – that’s what they fought back then – and at the end, Joe Frazier was declared the winner by decision. We were dumbfounded and outraged. When they showed the fight on Wide World of Sports, we could see that the fix was in. Muhammad Ali clearly won the fight but they couldn’t give it to him because of all he represented.

Best Friends

After the fight, Joe Frazier was nearly unrecognisable. Both eyes were swollen shut. His lips were puffy and swollen and he had to spend two weeks in the hospital recovering. Muhammad looked none the worse worse for wear. A couple of bruises but he was giving interviews the next day. He was seen out at dinner and looking forward to the rematch. I submit, if you’re in a fight and you put your opponent in the hospital for a couple of weeks, and you walk away virtually unscathed? I don’t care what anyone says, you won that fight!

The Handshake

On 3 October 2012, Mitt Romney and President Obama met in Denver, CO for their first in a series of 3 debates. Although it should come as no surprise, I’m fully in the tank for President Obama. However, I tried to put my biases aside and listen as though I were an undecided, independent voter still trying to make up my mind. Of course there are some caveats to this. For one, I’m somewhat of a Political “wonk.” I’m retired and I watch the news all day long. My television pretty much stays on MSNBC. Thus, I am not like a casual viewer, unfamiliar with events.

Early on in the debate it became apparent to me – yeah I counted Mitt’s prepared, canned “zingers” – that Mitt was swinging for the fences, fighting for his political life and the truth was the first casualty. During the Republican primary debates, Jon Huntsman referred to Mitt as a “well lubed weathervane.” I saw what he meant. Essentially, President Obama was debating a “brand new Mitt.” Everything he’d said, every

Jon Huntsman

position he’d taken over the previous 18 months meant nothing.

If you were paying attention, you should have noticed Mitt catch himself. He almost let the cat out of the bag. When the subject of his healthcare plan was being discussed, Mitt turned smugly and disavowed it, coming just short of saying, you can’t discuss my health plan because I haven’t told anyone what it really is.

When pressed on his 5 trillion dollar tax cut – that is what it would amount to if you cut everybody’s taxes by 20% – Mitt denied the figure amounted to 5 trillion dollars. This is a relatively simple math problem. He had no answers other than to say his plan was deficit neutral. How? Why? “Because he said it is.” How will you pay for it? “I’ll pay for it by closing loopholes.” That sounds nice until you give it some thought. The problem of course is, there are not that many loopholes. 5 trillion dollars is a lot of money. When pressed, on whether he would take it out of the military budget his answer was “no.” In fact he plans to increase military spending.

I’m a grown ass man. I don’t accept, “trust me” any more. I need to know what it is exactly you’re going to do. Will you take away the home owner’s deduction? Mitt danced, dodged and said nothing. He did it with flair and conviction, but I’ve heard “corporate speak” before and can cut right through it. My vocabulary is at least as big as Mitt’s and I actually understand it when you say you’re going to blow smoke up my ass. You can call it incense enema therapy but I know what that means.

Mitt criticized the President on his alternative energy programs then in the next breath proclaimed that he was going to make America energy independent. Again with the smoke and mirrors! I was simply stunned when Mitt proclaimed he did not know corporations were given a tax break for shipping jobs overseas. I understand that people lie for various reasons. Actually I’ve come to expect it. All I ask is that you make it a good lie. Make it believable. Make it entertaining. When you don’t, you’re calling me stupid and I tend to get offended.

All together, Mitt told 27 lies in 38 minutes. Not too shabby. I’m not sure if that’s a record, but it at least deserves an honorable mention. President Obama stuck closely to the facts. To be sure any time you put forth a concept there may be other ways to approach it. Yet, the so called fact-checking sites had an extremely difficult time finding much President Obama said to be incorrect. I suppose the question is, can you win a debate by simply lying about everything? Can you lose a debate by being honest?

The point of a debate is for two opponents to set forth their best arguments and pick one another’s arguments apart. The operative word here is best argument. If we’re just going to make it up as we go along, we’re really having a competition in creative story telling. Ricky Gervais should run on the Republican ticket and reprise his role from “The Invention of Lying.” He’d be a shoe in.

It seems there wereat least 3 audiences watching the debate that night. The Republicans who thought that Mitt Romney simply mopped the floor with President Obama. The Democrats who were disappointed that President Obama did not put Mitt in check and call him on his lies. Then there were the pseudo-Independents who were actually trying to hear something informative. As you might expect, the reactions of all three groups were somewhat different.

Immediately following the debate, a poll was conducted of 100 people. I found the results interesting. 46 of them said that Mitt Romney clearly won it. 22 said President Obama clearly won the debate. I figured these two groups were probably fairly partisan in their views. 32 called it a draw. What does this mean? Remember this was prior to all the fact checking.

President Obama as the incumbent is like the champ. To take his title you must knock him out or beat him so decisively there is no question in the minds of the judges. The fact that 54% of those polled did not believe Mitt won the debate means that Mitt lost. At least with this group of people polled.

Does style win over substance? That depends on whether you want a President from “central casting” or a President who will perform competently? I for one am not in the market for incense enema therapy. Another real question which springs to mind, deals with a possible strategy being employed by President Obama.

Following the debate, Democratic Pundits were running around with their hair on fire saying, “why didn’t President Obama hit back?” “He didn’t even bring up the 47% comments!” “You’d do that on a bet!” A couple of things. First, Mitt Romney was expecting that. He was hoping for it. An estimated 70 million people were watching the debate. Mitt Romney was all prepared to offer his “mea culpa” and present his explanation with an apology. He didn’t get that opportunity. The evidence is, Mitt went on the Hannity show and gave his carefully practiced remarks. The difference of course is, Hannity has a much smaller audience. Those who watch Hannity are already going to vote for Mitt anyway. Thus, not bringing it up frustrated Mitt’s plans.

While the President may not have had the opportunity to get as much practice in as Mitt – he is running this nation after all – his advisors had thoroughly studied Mitt and probably predicted he would sprint towards the center by disavowing his previous positions. Since most people do not watch politics all day long, They needed to get Mitt to commit to his positions. They put the buckets with quick set concrete in front of Mitt and he stepped right in. In the next debate he gets pushed off the pier.

Jim Lehrer

There was an unexpected added bonus. Jim Lehrer was manhandled and pushed around so badly by Mitt Romney, all subsequent moderators will now come loaded for bear with all their fact checking done. When you want to catch an Eel, you’ve got to put sand on your hands or it will slip right through your fingers. Mitt is one slippery Devil. This concludes my post debate wrap up until the next time.

Disclaimer

When Racism Trumps Christian Faith

The Crusades

Thirty Years War

Mormonism

Irreconcilable Differences

When Racism Trumps Christian Faith

Racism

Mormonism

What the Mormons Teach and Believe

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Post Debate Wrap Up

First Debate Revisited

Style Points

On The Substance

The Libyan Incident

Immigration

Conclusion

In case you missed it? Here’s the complete debate for your viewing pleasure.

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When does life begin?

Abortions in the Bible

Hypocrisy that knows no bounds

The harsh realities of an Abortion decision

Understanding the statistics

Ramifications of reversing Rowe v. Wade

Picking a place to be

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Has affirmative action helped Black people?

Gaming the system

Affirmative action for white people

The reverse discrimination argument

Tim Wise on White Privilege

Defining affirmative action

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2012 VP Post Debate Wrap Up

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A beginning is a very delicate time… well, not really!

Slavery in these United States

Did Slavery Benefit Black People?

A few inventions by Black Inventors:

What if there had been a European Holocaust?

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Psychosis – A Peek into the mind of Mitt Romney

Connecting the dots

Of water heaters, ironing boards and tuna fish

Mitt and the Brown people

What is Ann Romney trying to tell us?

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Republicans say you shouldn’t vote for Romney!

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VOTE EARLY! MAKE SURE YOU’RE COVERED!

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