Mystery: How Wealth Creates Poverty in the World

July 31, 2011

by Michael Parenti – Featured Writer Dandelion Salad www.michaelparenti.org

Originally published and crossposted from www.commondreams.org, February 16, 2007

There is a “mystery” we must explain: How is it that as corporate investments and foreign aid and international loans to poor countries have increased dramatically throughout the world over the last half century, so has poverty? The number of people living in poverty is growing at a faster rate than the world’s population. What do we make of this?

Over the last half century, U.S. industries and banks (and other western corporations) have invested heavily in those poorer regions of Asia, Africa, and Latin America known as the “Third World.” The transnationals are attracted by the rich natural resources, the high return that comes from low-paid labor, and the nearly complete absence of taxes, environmental regulations, worker benefits, and occupational safety costs.

The U.S. government has subsidized this flight of capital by granting corporations tax concessions on their overseas investments, and even paying some of their relocation expenses—much to the outrage of labor unions here at home who see their jobs evaporating.

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WHY WE ARE PAYING FOR THEIR CRISIS?

 SocialistAction.org:

Before the present Great Recession, working people in the U.S. had already suffered a decades-long assault.  Between 1973 and 2007 our real weekly wages dropped by 15%.  By 2008 the average worker spent 20% more time on the job than in the 1970s.  During this period, the amount we produced per hour increased by 50%.  Our public services and safety nets were shredded while our pensions and social security were looted.  We gave our blood, sweat and nerves in greater portions every decade for ever declining compensation.

But this massive robbery was not enough to keep the gears of profit turning.  Nor did the trillions of dollars spent on wars or gambled away in speculative ventures keep U.S. capitalism competitive.  After all the pain inflicted by the corporations and their political partners, the whole machine still broke down.

In what was supposed to be the final indignity, we were forced to shell out trillions of dollars to the same banks that helped usher in the dark ages.  The result?  Millions more of us are torn from our jobs to join a sea of the unemployed.  Over 20% of workers are now under or unemployed!  Our wages and benefits are slashed over and over again.  Our homes are taken out from under us, our credit is cut, our education and public services disappear before our eyes.  Those of us who still have jobs are working harder than ever to hang onto our remaining islands of security.

We are told by the president that it is time to tighten our belts.  Yet, the banks don’t tighten their belts.  The six biggest financial institutions paid their people $150 billion in 2009.  And instead of investing in jobs and providing for human needs they are throwing money at the same types of speculation that paralyzed the economy only a year ago.

The war machine does not tighten its belt either.  Instead it consumes record budgets and extends its terror deeper into Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Yemen, Haiti, Palestine, Latin America, Somalia, and beyond.  These wars and occupations are not waged to protect working people in the U.S. or to liberate other countries.  Their purpose is to defend the interests of the corporate elite.

The ruling rich cut our basic services and deprive us of employment, yet they find money to warehouse ever more of us in their prisons.  Connecticut’s bloated prison budget will grow from $691 million in 2009 to $709 million for 2010.   Already in 2008 the Pew center found that more than one in every 100 adults in the U.S. was in prison or jail – a record in U.S. history.

After all the promises of hope and change we are now told to expect less than ever before.  Where has all the wealth we have created gone?  Why, after all this, is our condition more desperate than ever?

The Great Municipal Religious Promotion of the 21st Century

by LAMAR HANKINS

Monday, 16 May 2011 05:24

Freethought San Marcos

The great municipal religious promotion of the 21st century

City councils have no jurisdiction over religion, yet throughout Texas and the rest of the country, they promote it, sometimes fervently. While city councils have no power to deal with religion, they love to use religion’s reflected glory to enhance their own status. When government officials meddle in religion, they lose all perspective and begin to see themselves as righteous and doers of God’s will, even in every zoning change they approve, every no-parking zone they create, and every pothole they order filled.

These council members reject Thomas Jefferson’s view that it is not in the “interest of religion to invite the civil magistrate to direct its exercises, its discipline, or its doctrine.” Ignoring this view, city councils are sponsoring prayer at the beginning of their meetings as though they have some ecclesiastical mandate to promote such religious exercise. They quarrel regularly with the author of the First amendment, James Madison, who stated, “There is not a shadow of right in the general government to intermeddle with religion. Its least interference with it would be a most flagrant violation.”

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Christians nationwide demand government support for their religion

by LAMAR HANKINS

Monday, 08 March 2010 03:19

Freethought San Marcos

Christians nationwide demand government support for their religion

For many years, city councils around the country have allowed their meetings to be used to promote Christianity, mostly of the evangelical kind. In 2009, we found a large number of challengers pushing back against this promotion of Christianity by local governments all around the country. They have been speaking up and demanding that such advancement of religion, mainly Christianity, by their local governments cease. They point out that the entanglement of local governments with religion violates the First Amendment as that is understood by the courts, including the Supreme Court.

In 2009, city councils challenged about their sectarian prayers ranged from Fresno (CA) to Wheaton (IL) to Lakeland (FL) to North Richland Hills (TX) to Cleveland (OH) to Roanoke (VA) Yucca Valley (CA) to Memphis (TN) to Lodi (CA) to Addison (IL) to Tehachapi (CA) to Tampa (FL) to Batavia (IL) to Houston (TX) to Turlock (CA) to North Kansas City (MO) to St. Charles (IL) to Twentynine Palms (CA) to La Crosse (WI) to Lompoc (CA) to Villa Park (IL) to Toledo (OH) to Joshua Tree (CA) to Chesapeake (VA) to West Chicago (IL) to Bakersfield (CA) to Shelby (OH) to Lancaster (CA) to Victoria (TX) to Philadelphia (PA) to Independence (MO) to Tustin (CA) to Elmhurst (IL) to San Marcos (TX).

The challenges have been supported by the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and the Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AU). The legal problem pointed to in every case is that the city councils promote religion, especially Christianity, either exclusively or primarily, in their prayers and invocations.

Many of these city councils have tried to avoid a religious entanglement problem by opening up the invocations to prayers from different religious traditions, including some that are outside of Judeo-Christian practices. A few have chosen to start with a moment of silence. A handful of city councils have chosen to defy the objectors by continuing with their exclusively Christian invocations.

Frequently, emotions have run high, with Christians arguing that this is a Christian nation and that beginning a meeting with a Christian prayer is, therefore, appropriate. Of course, this position begs the question. While most of the founders of this country were Christians of one sort or another, they chose to create a secular government. Not once in the Constitution they wrote did they mention God or Christianity.

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Ayn Rand Is The Perfect Icon For Conservatives and T-Baggers

Ayn Rand took government assistance while decrying others who did the same: “Noted speed freak, serial-killer fangirl, and Tea Party hero Ayn Rand was also a kleptoparasite, sneakily gobbling up taxpayer funds under an assumed name [note: it might have been her legal name] to pay for her medical treatments after she got lung cancer.”

Ayn Rand, staunch opponent of government programs, was a Welfare Queen: “….it was revealed in the recent “Oral History of Ayn Rand” by Scott McConnell (founder of the media department at the Ayn Rand Institute) that in the end Ayn was a vip-dipper as well. An interview with Evva Pryror, a social worker and consultant to Miss Rand’s law firm of Ernst, Cane, Gitlin and Winick verified that on Miss Rand’s behalf she secured Rand’s Social Security and Medicare payments which Ayn received under the name of Ann O’Connor (husband Frank O’Connor)”

Ayn Rand Railed Against Government Benefits, But Grabbed Social Security and Medicare When She Needed Them: “Ayn Rand was not only a schlock novelist, she was also the progenitor of a sweeping “moral philosophy” that justifies the privilege of the wealthy and demonizes not only the slothful, undeserving poor but the lackluster middle-classes as well. Her books provided wide-ranging parables of “parasites,” “looters” and “moochers” using the levers of government to steal the fruits of her heroes’ labor. In the real world, however, Rand herself received Social Security payments and Medicare benefits under the name of Ann O’Connor (her husband was Frank O’Connor).”

Tea Party Patron Saint Ayn Rand Applied for Social Security, Medicare Benefits

Atheist Fighting For Equality In The U.S.A.

Atheists ask that if the World Trade Center (WTC) cross be included in the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum, a memorial to the Godless should be included as well.

Source: http://atheists.org/news/american_atheists_object_to_wtc_cross__ask_for_equal_treatment

Atheists ask for fair and equal treatment

Monday American Atheists filed a complaint with the state of New York asking for fair and equal treatment by the National September 11 Memorial and Museum. Atheists ask that if the World Trade Center (WTC) cross be included in the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum, a memorial to the Godless should be included as well.

American Atheists argue that inclusion of the cross and the exclusion of representations suitable to non-Christians constitutes “a violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States, and is in violation of Sections 3 and 11 of the Constitution of the State of New York.”

American Atheists have repeatedly offered to fund a suitable memorial to atheists, freethinkers and other non-religious victims of the 9/11 terrorist attack, yet all such offers have been ignored. Hence the lawsuit. Atheists are asking that either the cross be removed from the memorial, or equal space be granted to a memorial for atheists, freethinkers and the non-religious.

Over 50% of the National September 11 Memorial and Museum is being funded by tax dollars. Many feel that to single out Christians for special recognition while ignoring the hundreds of victims who were not Christian is wrong. Many feel that Christians do not deserve or merit special treatment, and non-Christians do not deserve to be treated as second class citizens.

MORE:

American Atheists object to WTC cross, ask for equal treatment

Michael Stone, Humanist Examiner July 25, 2011

When Religion Restricts our Freedom

 by LAMAR HANKINS

Wednesday, 22 June 2011 04:42

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops recently revised its policies concerning the care for the seriously ill and dying. While the bishops’ views about aid in dying for the terminally or seriously ill apply only to Catholic health care institutions, the bishops want their beliefs applied to the entire society. They clearly state this position in “A Statement on Physician-Assisted Suicide” issued on June 16, 2011.

In their Statement, the U.S. bishops declared suicide “a terrible tragedy, one that a compassionate society should work to prevent.” Clearly, the bishops believe that the rest of our society should follow their beliefs on this subject. To underscore the primacy of their position, Cardinal DiNardo, quoted by the Catholic News Service, said the bishops were making a contribution to a “fundamental public debate” based on “our moral tradition and sense of solidarity with people.”

If that is all the bishops are doing, I would have no quarrel with them. I’m perfectly at ease with the Catholic bishops and cardinals telling their own believers how to behave, but they have no right to press upon non-Catholics the same behaviors and ethical standards that they accept within their religion, based on Catholic theology. My religious views and theological perspective lead me to conclusions about aid in dying different from those reached by the bishops.

The bishops begin their analysis of aid in dying by promoting their religious dogma concerning “Christ’s redemption and saving grace.” As one who holds different views, I don’t want our public policy to be based on Catholic theology. Only people who do not appreciate religious diversity and the freedom of religion would want to impose their religious views on others. The bishops fit into that category.

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The Christian Right’s Rigid Politics

July 25, 2011

“Exclusive: Christian fundamentalism is in the news after a right-wing Norwegian justified his slaughter of scores of people as a protest against European tolerance of Muslims. But the attack was only the most extreme manifestation of how the Christian Right has injected rigidity into the workings of democracy, as Richard L. Fricker reports.”

MORE: http://consortiumnews.com/2011/07/25/the-christian-rights-rigid-politics/

Pressure from Republicans Causes President Obama To Move To The “Right”, May Cause Him A Second Term

Rightward Tilt Leaves Obama With Party Rift

By Jackie Calmes, The New York Times

31 July 11

However the debt limit showdown ends, one thing is clear: under pressure from Congressional Republicans, President Obama has moved rightward on budget policy, deepening a rift within his party heading into the next election.

Entering a campaign that is shaping up as an epic clash over the parties’ divergent views on the size and role of the federal government, Republicans have changed the terms of the national debate. Mr. Obama, seeking to appeal to the broad swath of independent voters, has adopted the Republicans’ language and in some cases their policies, while signaling a willingness to break with liberals on some issues.

That has some progressive members of Congress and liberal groups arguing that by not fighting for more stimulus spending, Mr. Obama could be left with an economy still producing so few jobs by Election Day that his re-election could be threatened. Besides turning off independents, Mr. Obama risks alienating Democratic voters already disappointed by his escalation of the war in Afghanistan and his failure to close the Guantánamo Bay prison, end the Bush-era tax cuts and enact a government-run health insurance system.

“The activist liberal base will support Obama because they’re terrified of the right wing,” said Robert L. Borosage, co-director of the liberal group Campaign for America’s Future.

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“Politics and crime…..

….they’re the same thing.”

~ Michael Corleone in The Godfather Part III

“The question is, do you want a rock-ribbed constitutional, Christian conservative to represent you?

Conservative group seeks to sway La. lawmakers: pushing evangelical social and education positions

Updated: Jul 30, 2011 4:29 AM By MELINDA DESLATTE
Associated Press

“Emboldened by an increasingly right-leaning state Legislature, Christian conservative group the Louisiana Family Forum has sought to gain influence at the Capitol, pushing evangelical social and education positions.

The largely grassroots organization affiliated with preachers and ministers has had mixed success, helping to defeat gay rights initiatives and anti-discrimination legislation, but getting less traction with redistricting and budget recommendations.

No matter the outcome, the group has raised its profile and stance among lobbying groups, particularly in the more conservative legislative districts where lawmakers follow their score on a Family Forum annual report card. The next is due out shortly.”

MORE: http://www.klfy.com/story/15178487/conservative-group-seeks-to-sway-la-lawmakers

The $2.5 Trillion Tragedy: What America Has Given Up For 10 Years Of Bush Tax Cuts

By Zaid Jilani on Jun 7, 2011

Source: http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2011/06/07/237560/10-years-bush-tax-cuts/

Today marks the 10th anniversary of former President George W. Bush signing into law his 2001 tax cuts (he passed a second round in 2003). While doing so, Bush promised prosperity and growth, but the nation got neither.

The cost of these budget-busting 2001 and 2003 tax cuts was, as estimated by Citizens for Tax Justice, roughly $2.5 trillion through 2010. But America didn’t have to go down this route of cutting taxes and hoping for growth to miraculously appear. There were other policy options available to policymakers.

ThinkProgress, using data on various social spending projects from the National Priorities Project — which does these calculations for the cost of the Iraq and Afghan wars — has estimated ten other possible policies we could’ve paid for at the same $2.5 trillion price of the Bush tax cuts. While not all of these policies are currently performed by the federal government, they do represent an accurate calculation of the monetary tradeoffs, and each one individually would cost the same as the Bush tax cuts. Here are ten alternatives we could’ve pursued instead:

- Give 122.7 Million Children Low-Income Health Care Every Year For Ten Years

- Give 49.2 Million People Access To Low-Income Healthcare Every Year For Ten Years

- Provide 43.1 Million Students With Pell Grants Worth $5,500 Every Year For Ten Years

- Provide 31.5 Million Head Start Slots For Children Every Year For Ten Years

- Provide VA Care For 30.7 Million Military Veterans Every Year For Ten Years

- Provide 30.4 Million Scholarships For University Students Every Year For Ten Years

- Hire 4.19 Million Firefighters Every Year For Ten Years

- Hire 3.67 Million Elementary School Teachers Every Year For Ten Years

- Hire 3.6 Million Police Officers Every Year For Ten Years

- Retrofit 144.6 Million Households For Wind Power Every Year For Ten Years

- Retrofit 54.2 Million Households For Solar Photovoltaic Energy Every Year For Ten Years

The tradeoffs paint a stark picture. For the same price as the Bush tax cuts, which did little to help the economy, we could’ve sent tens of millions of students to college, retrofitted every household in America with the capacity to generate alternative energy, hired millions of firefighters and police officers, effectively ended our national shame of having kids who lack health care coverage, or put millions of more teachers into classrooms. But instead, Congress passed budget-breaking tax cuts, and then went on to pass even more in 2003. In 2010, Congress then went on to renew the Bush tax cuts for an additional two years, and the political will for the sort of public investments listed above appears to have dried up.

Reducing ‘collateral damage’ (Afghan Civilians) is seen as a ‘secondary consideration’ as the coalition prepares withdrawal

Published on Sunday, July 31, 2011 by the Independent/UK

Afghan Civilians Pay Lethal Price for New Policy on Air Strikes

Reducing ‘collateral damage’ is seen as a ‘secondary consideration’ as the coalition prepares withdrawal

by Brian Brady

Civilians are bearing the brunt of the international forces’ onslaught against the Taliban as the coalition rushes to pacify Afghanistan before pulling out its troops, it was claimed last night.

Human rights groups warned that civilians are paying an increasingly high price for “reckless” coalition attacks, particularly aerial ones. The Ministry of Defense confirmed last week that five Afghan children were injured in an air strike carried out by a British Apache attack helicopter.The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has found that the rate of civilian casualties has reached a record high, with 1,462 killed in January to June this year. But, while the number of civilian victims of “pro-government action” fell, those who died as a result of coalition air attacks were 14 per cent higher than in the same period in 2010 – despite the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) issuing “tactical directives” designed to minimize risk to civilians.

Internal documents from the MoD’s steering group on combat identification, obtained by The Independent on Sunday, show that efforts to limit the death toll have been relegated to a “secondary consideration”, behind work to reduce the number of troops killed by “friendly fire”.

Around 100 ISAF troops have been killed or injured by “blue on blue” attacks by colleagues since 2001, and the rate of such casualties has declined over the decade.

However, official estimates suggest that thousands of Afghan civilians have died as a result of coalition action since 2001. Although the Taliban have killed many more, international observers fear that the high numbers killed by ISAF forces could undermine the battle for hearts and minds.

MORE:

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/07/31-0

The Santa Delusion: Why ‘Religion Is Useful’ Is a Terrible Argument For Religion The argument from utility — the defense of religion, not because it’s true, but because it’s psychologically or socially useful — is freakishly common.

By Greta Christina, July 29, 2011

The argument from utility — the defense of religion, not because it’s true, but because it’s psychologically or socially useful — is freakishly common.

“But religion is useful. It makes people happy. It comforts people in hard times. It makes people better-behaved. And losing religious faith can be traumatic. So what difference does it make if it isn’t true? Shouldn’t we be perpetuating it anyway — or at least leaving it alone? Why do you want to persuade people out of it?”

Atheists hear this a lot. The argument from utility — the defense of religion, not because it’s true, but because it’s psychologically or socially useful — is freakishly common. If you spend any time reading debates in atheist blogs or forums, you’re bound to see it come up.

MORE: http://www.alternet.org/story/151833/

STOP THE MADNESS: THE DIARY OF A SOLDIER FOR PEACE – IN THE WAR TO TAKE BACK AMERICA

Rick Staggenborg, MD, November 26, 2009

PREFACE :

This book is a series of essays laying out the case that there is a way to end war by ending the domination of the American government by corporations through a process of passing a constitutional amendment through Congress and ratifying it by the states.

I argue that it is the international corporations with the money to pay for the obscenely expensive elections of our members of Congress that ultimately create the conditions in which war appears to be inevitable. The goal I have in writing this is to convince others that together we can and must restore democracy to America and bring about the change in the human collective consciousness such that war comes to be seen not as inevitable but as unthinkable.

Stop the Madness: The Diary of a Soldier For Peace in the War to Take Back America is my effort to explain my thoughts on the real meaning of America through a look at critical moments in its history. I offer an explanation of that history through a lens of basic psychological and scientific principles. I then use this to describe how I believe America fell from its position of a leader in the advancement of mankind to a place where it is now the chief threat to human existence.

Throughout the book I emphasize that this is part of a natural process of maturation of a democratic society that I fully expect to grow up and take responsibility for its behavior toward each other and other nations. One of the goals in writing this book is to  present ideas that may help the process accelerate, before the problems the people of the United States and the world desperately need to address become intractable.

MORE: http://takebackamericaforthepeople.blogspot.com/2009/11/preface.html

Conservative Christian , who believes the Bible is literally true, Steve Deace to return to radio:

Jennifer Jacobs

9:20 AM, Jul 29, 2011

Conservative blowtorch Steve Deace, who left WHO NewsRadio in February, will be back on the air on a syndicated radio program starting next month.

His voice, particularly influential with Christian conservatives in Iowa, hits the airwaves Aug. 12, the day before the Republican Party of Iowa’s straw poll in Ames – a development that won’t make life any easier for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

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Conservative blowtorch Steve Deace to return to radio

Who Commits Terrorism…..The Blue Eyes of Terror

Who Commits Terrorism?

July 27, 2011

Exclusive: A right-wing Christian nationalist has claimed credit for the terrorist attacks in Norway, killing at least 76 people. Though his writings show that Anders Behring Breivik was inspired by anti-Muslim extremists in the United States, that bigotry also made Muslims the early suspects in the U.S. media, Robert Parry reports.

Related:

The Blue Eyes of Terror

July 26, 2011

On Friday, as news spread of the ghastly terror attacks in Norway, U.S. cable news outlets jumped to the conclusion that Muslims must have done it. Many talking heads were stunned to learn that the confessed killer was a blond, blue-eyed Christian terrorist, as Danny Schechter reports.

$230,000 For a Guard Dog: Why the Wealthy Are Afraid Of Violence From Below

As inequality in the US grows, the ultra-rich are pouring their spare cash not just into private jets, but into private security. Think there’s a connection?

By Sarah Jaffe  July 29, 2011

“Violence in the streets, aimed at the wealthy. That’s what I worry about.”

That was what an unidentified billionaire told Robert Frank of the Wall Street Journal a while back. Rich people are scared of global unrest, Frank reported, citing a survey by Insite Security and IBOPE Zogby International of people with liquid assets of $1 million or more (translation: folks who have or can get their hands on $1 million in cash fairly easily) that says 94 percent of the wealthy are concerned about “global unrest” around the world.

MORE:  http://www.alternet.org/story/151837/

The Big Fat GOP Budget Lie

By Sam Perry
Sam Parry is co-author of Neck Deep: The Disastrous Presidency of George W. Bush
July 29, 2011, 

“Exclusive: At every turn of the debt-ceiling battle, Republicans repeat the talking point that Washington doesn’t have a “revenue problem,” but a “spending problem” – as if saying so makes it true. But the reality is that today’s debt crisis is driven more by George W. Bush’s tax cuts than anything else, as Sam Parry explains.” …. http://consortiumnews.com/2011/07/29/the-big-fat-gop-budget-lie/

How the Rich Won the Class War

ConsortiumNews.com, July 29, 2011

“Over the past several decades, the Right has convinced millions of Americans that Government is the source of all problems, that Corporations must have near-total freedom, and that the Rich must enjoy low taxes. The consequence has been a devastated middle class and fiscal chaos, writes Michael Winship.” ….. Continue: http://consortiumnews.com/2011/07/29/how-the-rich-won-the-class-war/

God, Palin and Politics

ConsortiumNews.com, July 31, 2011

“Pentecostalism, a non-rational form of Christianity whose adherents believe they speak directly to God and favor apocalyptic prophecies, is adding to the polarization of American politics behind the movement’s champion, Sarah Palin. Rev. Howard Bess explains the emergence of this distinctive brand of Christianity”

By the Rev. Howard Bess (The Rev. Howard Bess is  retired American Baptist minister, who lives in Palmer, Alaska.  His email address is hdbss@mtaonline.net.)

All Christians are theologians, but they do not think of themselves in those terms.  Most Christians think of their pastors as theologians and also gladly give that office to learned women and men who teach in colleges or seminaries, but they do not give the title of theologian to themselves.

When doing theology, mainstream Christian theologians consider Bible, reason and tradition in some sort of balance. However, Pentecostals break with this approach because the foundation of their faith is a direct, personal experience with God.

Tradition, reason, and even the Bible take a back seat to the personal experience of the Pentecostal believer. Pentecostal Christians are all theologians because they believe they have met God personally.

Thus, Pentecostalism is a non-rational, experiential religion. Note also must be made that Pentecostalism is non-rational, not irrational. What this means is that reason does not play a significant role in theological formations. Ultimate reality is based on an individual’s personal encounter with God.

Some observers suggest that Pentecostalism attracts the poor and the under-educated. However, research is showing that this is not true. Many highly educated and professional people are being drawn to this experiential faith.

Understanding Pentecostals on the American religious scene may be difficult, but their arrival on the political scene seems even more puzzling. Pundits have completely missed the difference between Pentecostal Christians and mainline Evangelical/Fundamentalist Christians.

While fielding candidates for every level of elected office, Pentecostals have produced one high-profile candidate for President of the United States. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is that Pentecostal.

As Sarah Palin has made unorthodox decisions, pundits have declared that she cannot handle politics in her independent manner and be a winner. But she will not go away. She has now said that she will make her candidacy intentions known in September.

When she makes her decision, it will not be at the encouragement of advisers or poll numbers. Her decision will be based on God whispering in her ear. It will be the same God who, she believes, has called her to be a special person in divine history.

Some pundits have compared Sarah Palin with declared presidential candidate Rep.  Michelle Bachmann of Minnesota, but they are very different. Michelle Bachmann is a member of a Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod church. Bachmann’s theology is based on a tightly held union of Bible and reason. It has zero space for the experiential faith found in Pentecostalism.

Sarah Palin stands alone as the representative of the fastest-growing religious movement in the United States. When she says “I can win,” she is not speaking with tongue in cheek. She is speaking out of a profound personal relationship with her God.

There have always been Pentecostal Christians, but church hierarchies have successfully contained their influence. However, America was the perfect seedbed for that pattern to be broken. Freedom to practice one’s own faith is a cardinal right of Americans.

The first great wave of Pentecostal Christianity has its root in a revival that took place on Azusa Street in Los Angeles in the first decade of the 20th century. It was a revival that lasted for three years. Yet, formal program structures were not apparent.

The Spirit reigned in uncontained freedom. The Azusa Street revival is considered the birth event of what is known as the First Wave. The impact was nationwide, but numerically insignificant.

The Second Wave developed after World War II and the advent of television. Pentecostals mastered television. They made religious television exciting. Pentecostal evangelists such as Kathryn Kuhlman, Oral Roberts, Rex Humbard, Jim Bakker, and Jimmy Swaggart led the way.

Each developed huge followings and Pentecostal numbers were no longer insignificant, though exact counts are difficult.

There are now over 1,000 Pentecostal denominations in the United States, but they hold very loose controls over their member churches and many Pentecostal churches are completely unaffiliated.  Current estimates are that 15-20 percent of American Christians are Pentecostal, and that one-quarter of the world Christian population is Pentecostal.

Some Pentecostals believe that the world is now in the early stages of the Third Wave. They believe it is the movement that will bring world domination to Pentecostals.

Agree or disagree, the waves of Pentecostalism have ushered in a new day in American politics.

Christian Jihad: More Extreme As America Grows More Tolerant, Right vs. Left Double Standard, etc….

Plutocracy: If Corporations and the Rich Paid 1960s-Level Taxes, the Debt Would Vanish: “By feeding the rich and their corporations one massive tax break after another, lawmakers have thrown a monstrous monkey wrench into our national finances.”

10 Things I’d Say to the Anti-Choice Fanatics Trying to End Access to Abortion: “Here are ten realities pro-choicers should throw in the face of opponents of choice they have the misfortune to get into arguments with.”

Why are Florida legislators rejecting federal child abuse prevention dollars? “Since federal health care reform was passed, Florida legislators have turned down millions in federal funds that would have gone to home visiting programs that aim to fight child abuse and neglect.”

$230,000 For a Guard Dog: Why the Wealthy Are Afraid Of Violence From Below – “As inequality in the US grows, the ultra-rich are pouring their spare cash not just into private jets, but into private security. Think there’s a connection?”

Christian Jihad? Why We Should Worry About Right-Wing Terror Attacks Like Norway’s in the US: “There is a growing movement in America that equates godliness with hatred of our government — in fact, hatred of our country.”

Why the Christian Right Becomes More Extreme As America Grows More Tolerant: “The political movement is “revenge”-based, rather than rooted in any particular Christian philosophy.”

The Santa Delusion: Why ‘Religion Is Useful’ Is a Terrible Argument For Religion: “The argument from utility — the defense of religion, not because it’s true, but because it’s psychologically or socially useful — is freakishly common.”

6 Ways Atheists Can Band Together to Fight Religious Fundamentalism: “What do atheists actually have in common? What’s the agenda for an atheist political movement? Here’s a proposal for the issues we can unite around.”

How to Rescue the American Dream from the GOP’s Nightmare: “The Republicans are redefining “democracy”–but it’s time to remember what the real dream of democracy meant.”

Exposed: Secret Memo Shows Cantor Proposed $53 Billion Cut in Medicaid/Medicaire: “TPM has obtained a memo listing Medicare and Medicaid cuts proposed by Rep. Eric Cantor at the White House debt limit meeting on Monday. The memo came from “a Democratic source.”

More Right vs. Left Double Standard: “Remember When Bill Maher Got Fired?”

Wisconsin DMV Tells Boy His Bank Account Doesn’t Show Enough “Activity” To Get a Voter ID

10 of America’s Most Dangerous Hatemongers: “Meet the firebrands stirring up anger and hate against the 0.6% of Americans who are Muslim.”

Former DHS Analyst: Agency Bowed to Pressure From Right-Wing Bloggers, and Now the U.S. Is “More Vulnerable”

After a report on right-wing extremism was leaked: “Right-wingers accused the DHS of painting conservatives as potential Timothy McVeighs. Eventually, the agency buckled.”

Ask Apple to Remove Itself From Homophobic “Christian Values Network”: CVN is used as a fundraising tool by several anti-gay, anti-women organizations like Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council.

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See how easily religion can take over the politics of a country.

Watch out Americans, we are already on the path:

‘Theologians Under Hitler: Gerhard Kittel, Paul Althaus and Emanuel Hirsch’ (http://yalepress.yale.edu/book.asp?isbn=9780300038897). By Robert Ericksen

“Robert Ericksen is a renowned historian of the Holocaust. His book Theologians Under Hitler (1985) was widely acclaimed, and was made into a documentary in 2004: ‘Theologians Under Hitler’ DVD: http://www.theocracywatch.org/theologians_hitler.htm

He maintains affiliations with the Humboldt Foundation and the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, and sits on the editorial board of Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte, an important German journal. He is currently professor of history at Pacific Lutheran University.” (Quote source: http://www.amazon.com/Robert-P.-Ericksen/e/B001HP7IYI/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1)

Conservative Ideology = Less Rights, Less Choice, Less Freedom, Less Money, Less Liberty, Less Happiness, Less Equality, Less EVERYTHING !

15 Years in Prison For Taping the Cops? How Eavesdropping Laws Are Taking Away Our Best Defense Against Police Brutality:

By Rania Khalek

“More and more people use their smartphones to record police misconduct. But laws against wiretapping are being used to intimidate and stop them.”

Over Memorial Day weekend this past May, residents of Miami Beach witnessed a horrific display of police brutality as 12 cops sprayed Raymond Herisse’s car with 100 bullets, killing him. The shooting provoked outrage in the surrounding community, not only because of the murder, but because of what the police did afterward.

Officers on the scene confiscated and smashed witnesses’ cell phones; later, when they were confronted by the media, the police denied trying to destroy videos of the incident.

But 35-year-old Narces Benoit removed his HTC EVO’s SIM card and hid it in his mouth. He later sold the video to CNN, placing the police in the awkward position of explaining why they lied about allegations of cell phone destruction. More importantly, the video showed at least two officers pointing guns at Benoit, demanding that he stop filming.

Police brutality takes many forms around the country on a regular basis, particularly in poor and minority neighborhoods. Sometimes, the only method of accountability is a victim’s word (if they are still alive) against that of an officer. Unsurprisingly, the police officer’s version of the story is often adequate for a judge to dismiss allegations of wrongdoing, unless there is hard evidence of misconduct, such as a video or audio recording, which can be useful to unravel conflicting versions of police-citizen encounters.

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Fox & Friends Outs CIA Agent…Again

Source: Yahoo Atheists’ Group

Jul 29, 2011 7:53 pm

Fox & Friends hopped into the wayback machine this morning to summon outrage about a post we published 23 days ago. They’re angry—like a lot of people—that we pointed to a man in photos distributed by the White House and AP as the likely head of the operation to kill bin Laden. In expressing that anger, they published a photo of a covert CIA agent. Way to go, Doocy.

Nearly a month ago, we published a photo distributed by the White House showing Barack Obama in the Situation Room during the operation to kill bin Laden. We noted that, based on circumstantial clues in an AP story about “John,” the anonymous CIA analyst who led the search for bin Laden, one of the men standing in the background was almost certainly “John.” (John Young at Cryptome was the first to point this out.)

People were mad! There were angry blog posts! Then the New York Observer announced that it had divined “John’s” identity and published more photos and potentially identifying details, but fell short of outing him. Then everyone continued going on about their lives.

Flash forward more than three weeks to this morning, when Fox News’ Steve Doocy for some strange reason invited former CIA agent Michael Scheuer on for a four-minute segment excoriating Gawker—”this lousy web site”—for “outing” a CIA agent. That’s not quite true, of course—we didn’t know the agent’s name and therefore didn’t publish it, so it was a partial outing at best.

But Doocy, as Mediaite patsy Tommy Christopher noted in the course of lecturing us on journalistic propriety, decided to publish the very same White House photo that we did. Which is an odd decision, seeing as how it features a photo of the very man he was upbraiding us for “outing.” (“We’re not going to identify who he is in that picture,” Doocy tells the audience, which certainly frustrated the efforts of any Islamist spook-hunters out there by keeping the list of potential suspects at an unmanageably high eight possible faces.)

Anyway, he’s there in the photo at the top of this post, right above the chyron reading “Pic of Suspected CIA Staffer Posted on Gawker.” He’s the tall one in the back. What’s worse, Doocy knowingly published an image of a covert agent. As the Observer story on “John” made clear, he was an overt, open, public CIA analyst at the time we published the White House photo featuring his face. His affiliation with the CIA was no secret. But after the Observer began making inquiries about his identity, the Agency suddenly moved him to covert status—apparently in an effort to intimidate the Observer and other news outlets pursuing his identity.

The Intelligence Identities Protection Act makes it a crime to engage in “a pattern of activities intended to identify and expose covert agents,” Steve, so be careful. This is your first strike.

As for our response to Doocy and Christopher’s charges, this disconcertingly fair story on the matter from FoxNews.com, which ran several weeks ago, sums up our arguments.

Moses and The Christian God Approve Of Raping Virgins, What kind of God approves of murder, rape, and slavery?, Once again God approves of forcible rape and more

Rape In The Bible:

“Rape is one of the most heinous crimes imaginable.  Yet few people know that the Bible often condones and even approves of rape.  How anyone can get their moral guidance from a book that allows rape escapes me.  Perhaps they have been lied to about the Bible and carefully detoured around all the nasty stuff in the Bible.

So grab your Bibles and follow along as I show you all the nasty rapes that your priests and preachers don’t want to tell you about.  Note that in many places in the Bible there are references to “taking a wife”.  Don’t be fooled into thinking that these were voluntary marriages.  This first quote clearly shows that murder and force were used to “take” these wives.”

1) Murder, rape, and pillage at Jabesh-gilead  (Judges 21:10-24 NLT)
So they sent twelve thousand warriors to Jabesh-gilead with orders to kill everyone there, including women and children.  “This is what you are to do,” they said. “Completely destroy all the males and every woman who is not a virgin.”  Among the residents of Jabesh-gilead they found four hundred young virgins who had never slept with a man, and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh in the land of Canaan.

The Israelite assembly sent a peace delegation to the little remnant of Benjamin who were living at the rock of Rimmon. Then the men of Benjamin returned to their homes, and the four hundred women of Jabesh-gilead who were spared were given to them as wives.  But there were not enough women for all of them.  The people felt sorry for Benjamin because the LORD had left this gap in the tribes of Israel.  So the Israelite leaders asked, “How can we find wives for the few who remain, since all the women of the tribe of Benjamin are dead?  There must be heirs for the survivors so that an entire tribe of Israel will not be lost forever.  But we cannot give them our own daughters in marriage because we have sworn with a solemn oath that anyone who does this will fall under God’s curse.”

Then they thought of the annual festival of the LORD held in Shiloh, between Lebonah and Bethel, along the east side of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem.  They told the men of Benjamin who still needed wives, “Go and hide in the vineyards.  When the women of Shiloh come out for their dances, rush out from the vineyards, and each of you can take one of them home to be your wife!  And when their fathers and brothers come to us in protest, we will tell them, ‘Please be understanding.  Let them have your daughters, for we didn’t find enough wives for them when we destroyed Jabesh-gilead. And you are not guilty of breaking the vow since you did not give your daughters in marriage to them.’”  So the men of Benjamin did as they were told.  They kidnapped the women who took part in the celebration and carried them off to the land of their own inheritance.  Then they rebuilt their towns and lived in them.  So the assembly of Israel departed by tribes and families, and they returned to their own homes.

Obviously these women were repeatedly raped.  These sick bastards killed and raped an entire town and then wanted more virgins, so they hid beside the road to kidnap and rape some more.  How can anyone see this as anything but evil?

2) Murder, rape and pillage of the Midianites    (Numbers 31:7-18 NLT)
They attacked Midian just as the LORD had commanded Moses, and they killed all the men.  All five of the Midianite kings – Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba – died in the battle.  They also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword.  Then the Israelite army captured the Midianite women and children and seized their cattle and flocks and all their wealth as plunder.  They burned all the towns and villages where the Midianites had lived.  After they had gathered the plunder and captives, both people and animals, they brought them all to Moses and Eleazar the priest, and to the whole community of Israel, which was camped on the plains of Moab beside the Jordan River, across from Jericho.

Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the people went to meet them outside the camp.  But Moses was furious with all the military commanders who had returned from the battle.  “Why have you let all the women live?” he demanded.  “These are the very ones who followed Balaam’s advice and caused the people of Israel to rebel against the LORD at Mount Peor.  They are the ones who caused the plague to strike the LORD’s people.  Now kill all the boys and all the women who have slept with a man.  Only the young girls who are virgins may live; you may keep them for yourselves. Clearly Moses and God approves of rape of virgins.

3) More Murder Rape and Pillage   (Deuteronomy 20:10-14)
As you approach a town to attack it, first offer its people terms for peace.  If they accept your terms and open the gates to you, then all the people inside will serve you in forced labor.  But if they refuse to make peace and prepare to fight, you must attack the town.  When the LORD your God hands it over to you, kill every man in the town.  But you may keep for yourselves all the women, children, livestock, and other plunder.  You may enjoy the spoils of your enemies that the LORD your God has given you. What kind of God approves of murder, rape, and slavery?

4) Laws of Rape   (Deuteronomy 22:28-29 NLT)
If a man is caught in the act of raping a young woman who is not engaged, he must pay fifty pieces of silver to her father.  Then he must marry the young woman because he violated her, and he will never be allowed to divorce her. What kind of lunatic would make a rape victim marry her attacker?  Answer: God.

5) Death to the Rape Victim   (Deuteronomy 22:23-24 NAB)
If within the city a man comes upon a maiden who is betrothed, and has relations with her, you shall bring them both out of the gate of the city and there stone them to death: the girl because she did not cry out for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbors wife. It is clear that God doesn’t give a damn about the rape victim.  He is only concerned about the violation of another mans “property”.

6) David’s Punishment – Polygamy, Rape, Baby Killing, and God’s “Forgiveness” (2 Samuel 12:11-14 NAB)
Thus says the Lord: ‘I will bring evil upon you out of your own house.  I will take your wives [plural] while you live to see it, and will give them to your neighbor.  He shall lie with your wives in broad daylight.  You have done this deed in secret, but I will bring it about in the presence of all Israel, and with the sun looking down.’

Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”  Nathan answered David: “The Lord on his part has forgiven your sin: you shall not die.  But since you have utterly spurned the Lord by this deed, the child born to you must surely die.”  [The child dies seven days later.]

This has got to be one of the sickest quotes of the Bible.  God himself brings the completely innocent rape victims to the rapist.  What kind of pathetic loser would do something so evil?  And then he kills a child!  This is sick, really sick!

7)  Rape of Female Captives   (Deuteronomy 21:10-14 NAB)
“When you go out to war against your enemies and the LORD, your God, delivers them into your hand, so that you take captives, if you see a comely woman among the captives and become so enamored of her that you wish to have her as wife, you may take her home to your house.  But before she may live there, she must shave her head and pare her nails and lay aside her captive’s garb.  After she has mourned her father and mother for a full month, you may have relations with her, and you shall be her husband and she shall be your wife.  However, if later on you lose your liking for her, you shall give her her freedom, if she wishes it; but you shall not sell her or enslave her, since she was married to you under compulsion.” Once again God approves of forcible rape.

8)  Rape and the Spoils of War (Judges 5:30 NAB)
They must be dividing the spoils they took: there must be a damsel or two for each man, Spoils of dyed cloth as Sisera’s spoil, an ornate shawl or two for me in the spoil.   (Judges 5:30 NAB)

9) Sex Slaves (Exodus 21:7-11 NLT)
When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she will not be freed at the end of six years as the men are.  If she does not please the man who bought her, he may allow her to be bought back again.  But he is not allowed to sell her to foreigners, since he is the one who broke the contract with her.  And if the slave girl’s owner arranges for her to marry his son, he may no longer treat her as a slave girl, but he must treat her as his daughter.  If he himself marries her and then takes another wife, he may not reduce her food or clothing or fail to sleep with her as his wife.  If he fails in any of these three ways, she may leave as a free woman without making any payment.   (Exodus 21:7-11 NLT)

10) God Assists Rape and Plunder (Zechariah 14:1-2 NAB)
Lo, a day shall come for the Lord when the spoils shall be divided in your midst.  And I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem for battle: the city shall be taken, houses plundered, women ravished; half of the city shall go into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be removed from the city.   (Zechariah 14:1-2 NAB)

Only a christian terrorist get special privileges while all others go to Guantanamo

Anders Behring Breivik Likely to Serve Time in Luxurious Prison

“Anders Behring Breivik, the convicted killer in last week’s Norway massacre, will likely serve time in a prison that is considered the world’s most luxurious, according to the Telegraph.”

More: http://www.christianpost.c​om/news/anders-behring-bre​ivik-attacks-memorial-serv​ice-held-to-mourn-victims-​of-terror-53047/

Conservatives In Congress Vote To Create A New Department To Push Christianity Onto Other Countries

HOLY WAR !!!!

Religious envoy bill approved in House vote

By Pete Kasperowicz – 07/29/11 03:52 PM ET

Members of the House on Friday afternoon approved H.R. 440, which would establish a special religious envoy position at the State Department. The envoy would help work with countries to limit religious discrimination in 31 Near East and South Central Asian countries.

The bill was approved easily in a 402-20 vote. All 20 “no” votes were Democrats.

The House also approved (418-1) one of several bills to rename post offices that have been considered this week, H.R. 2244.

Poll: God’s Approval Rating Barely Breaks 50 Percent

By Jack Jenkins

WASHINGTON (RNS) More than half of U.S. voters approve of God’s job performance, according to a new poll, making God more popular than all members of Congress.

The poll — which was conducted by the Democratic research firm Public Policy Polling (PPP) — surveyed 928 people and found that 52 percent of Americans approved of God’s overall dealings, while only 9 percent disapproved.

Questions about God were asked as part of a larger survey assessing American opinions of congressional leaders in the midst of the ongoing debt ceiling debate in Washington. ……….. MORE

The Lausanne Movement: Another Group Of Evangelical Christians Causing Problems All Over Africa

The Lausanne Movement is a horrible group of evangelical christians who are already causing problems all over Africa that needs to be addressed.

Close the Trillion Dollar Tax Loophole to Reduce the Deficit

Joel Wendland, July 19 2011

With all of the talk about the debt ceiling and deficit reduction, small business owners may just have a good idea to close the budget gap by $1 trillion over the next decade without cutting essential services or carving out benefits for retirees and the disabled.

U.S.-based multinational corporations avoid some $100 billion annually through the creation of offshore tax havens. The situation is fundamentally unfair to small business owners and hurts taxpayers now being asked to make more sacrifices to reduce the federal deficit, says a coalition of business groups behind a new campaign to force big business to pay its fair share of taxes.

“It’s obscene to put everything from the Small Business Administration to Medicare and Social Security on the chopping block while corporate tax dodging deprives us of major revenue,” said Scott Klinger, tax policy director of Business for Shared Prosperity.

“Today, large corporations as a group contribute just nine percent toward federal government bills – down from 32 percent in 1952,” he added. “It’s time to plug the trillion dollar hole in the U.S. Treasury from tax haven abuse.”

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of local economies. We pay our fair share of taxes and generate most of the new jobs,” said Frank Knapp, president and CEO of the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce.

“While our members are in South Carolina, small businesses across this country, from California to Washington DC, understand that while they are paying their taxes, many U.S.-based multinational corporations are not,” he added. “That’s not fair and it makes us angry. Why should we be subsidizing U.S. multinationals that use offshore tax havens to avoid paying taxes?”

Big companies who move their capital offshore to hide it from taxation in the U.S. still demand subsidies and benefits from taxpayer-funded programs, Klinger said.

MORE: http://www.politicalaffairs.net/close-the-trillion-dollar-tax-loophole-to-reduce-the-deficit/