Obama's Taunt

People who subscribe to the conservative political philosophy have gone berserk over the recently enacted health care reform. “It’s the end of the world,” they say, “Armageddon, a dark day for America. He (Obama) is trying to destroy the nation.” And those are some of the nicer things they are saying about the situation.

Obama recently responded to these cries of anguish in a speech to an Iowa audience. “After I signed the bill,” he said, “I looked outside and didn’t see any asteroids falling on the earth.” He continued to joke about predictions of Armageddon, the last great battle in the history of the world. Republican response has been predictable. “It is just wrong that the president would taunt us and make fun of us,” whined one caller to C-SPAN’s popular Washington Journal.

From my perspective, those who engage in such inflammatory language by comparing the health care reform to “Armageddon” deserved to be taunted. If you engage in such hyperbole you are inviting your opponents to consider you as a joke. So, live with it.

Social Justice

In a recent tirade Glen Beck, spokesperson for political conservatives in America, treated us to a major rant against social justice. He specifically targeted religious institutions which support the concept as a part of their religious teachings. “I beg you look for the words social justice or economic justice on your church website,” he said. “If you find it, run as fast as you can.” And to make it more specific he declared, “if you have a priest that is pushing social justice, go find another parish.”

As if to second Glen Beck’s statement against social justice, Mary Matalin a major political strategist for the Republican Party, relied on the words of Jesus. In an interview on the Cobert Report she claimed that Jesus taught “teach them how to fish, don’t give them fish to eat.” And further she stated, “Jesus said if you don’t work you don’t eat.” I have searched the Scriptures and could not find where Jesus said any such thing.

If this is the official position of the Republican Party, I suggest that a delegation of Christian theologians visit Republican headquarters to give them a lesson on proper biblical exegesis. From my perspective, they have totally distorted the message of the Messiah which borders on blasphemy. A dangerous situation indeed!

Where Was Dad?

A Massachusetts gun club recently pleaded guilty in the case where an eight-year-old boy fatally shot himself with a Uzi machine gun last October. His father had brought him to the gun club as a special treat. He was assured that a qualified assistant would supervise the boy as he enjoyed the pleasure of machine-gunning a target. The father stood nearby and watched in horror as the boy shot himself in the head when he couldn’t handle the recoil from the high-powered weapon.

It’s an interesting commentary on contemporary life in America that everybody involved has been charged with liability in the case except the father. From my perspective, he bears a majority of the blame for the tragic accident. Where was he when this took place? While he was standing a few feet away you’ve got to wonder where his head was.

I make this comment not from an opposition to children learning how to use guns, but from a matter of just plain common sense. My father taught me how to use a gun shortly after my 12th birthday. But he certainly didn’t place a machine gun in my hand. Rather he gave me a single shot bolt action 22 caliber rifle and then carefully instructed and guided me in its use. Too bad the boy in Massachusetts didn’t have a father as sensible as mine.

The Joke is on Glen

Recently, former Congressman Eric Massa, who resigned his position because of charges of improper behavior with his staff members, was interviewed on the Glenn Beck show. Beck, who is a mainstay of the Fox News network, is well-known for his intense dislike of all things related to the Democratic Party and especially President Obama. Beck pleaded with Massa to reveal some scandal regarding his relationship with the White House. Massa was unable to do so. In fact he repeatedly admitted his own improper behavior. By the end of his program Beck was notably disturbed and apologized for not being able to bring his readers new reasons to hate Obama.

From my perspective, the joke is on Glen Beck. It demonstrates once again the total lack of balance on the Fox network and intellectual dishonesty of Glen Beck, the right wing news broadcaster. Too bad the Republican Party does not have enough courage to repudiate him as a spokesperson for their cause. Unfortunately, many Americans believe everything Beck says to be absolute truth. So, ultimately the joke is on them.

Sarah's Joke

Sarah Palin, former governor of Alaska and darling of conservative Republicans, appeared on the Jay Leno show this week. After an interview with Leno she did a brief stint as a stand up comedian. I was impressed that her delivery of the cute little joke she told.

More interesting, from my perspective, was the preliminary interview where Sarah and Jay engaged in easy-going banter. When asked about her continual confrontation with the mainstream media she pointed out that the media had a hard time separating the facts of the story from the reporter's biased opinion. "That is why I signed up with Fox," she said. That's the only media outlet that has a fair, and objective reporting of the news, she indicated.

The audience immediately burst into laughter. Obviously they thought she was telling a joke and only realized later that she was dead serious. Anyone who is watched even a small amount of Fox news can attest to the fact that there news anchors are unrepentantly biased in favor of conservative Republicans. In response to an accusation that he found only bad things to say about president Obama, one anchor recently stated, "I will say something good about Obama when he resigned!"

There is nothing fair or objective about the Fox news Channel and the fact that Sarah Palin has not s noticed that indicates something about the status of her intellectual capacity. Yet, she is taking conservative wing of the Republican Party by storm!