Last night All Things Considered weighed in on the "lipstick on a pig" brouhaha by talking with Joel Salatin, a farmer from Swoope, Va., as he attempted to actually put lipstick on a pig. Of course, given that he was doing this on radio, we couldn't actually see anything. As it happens, I visited Joel's farm last summer... and have footage of the pigs (sans … [Read more...] about Polyface Pigs
Bizarrobama
As a child, one of the more amusing and yet disturbingly frightening characters for me in the cartoon pantheon was Superman’s strange doppelganger from the Bizarro world. This image is what finally helped to identify something which has been tugging at the back of my mind for nearly two weeks; I finally remembered where it was that I’d seen Sarah Palin before. It was the 2004 … [Read more...] about Bizarrobama
Part Three: Still More Revelations About Sarah Palin’s Incredible Lightness of Being
In Part One, we learned that Sarah Palin has taken stands opposite John McCain on open government and sex ed, feuds with members of her extended family, lies about little things as well as big things, has never expressed a conviction on a major issue, attends a church where some pretty weird stuff gets preached, as a true-blue Christianist effortlessly mixes religion and … [Read more...] about Part Three: Still More Revelations About Sarah Palin’s Incredible Lightness of Being
Sarah Palin: The ‘Seductress’ of the American Election – Iraqi News Agency
It probably won't come as a surprise that along with the rest of the world, Iraqis who aren't struggling every moment of the day and night to keep body and soul together are watching the American presidential race with great interest. This article from the Iraqi News Agency is as interesting for what it doesn't mention as for what it does. The writer, Sati' Noureddine, … [Read more...] about Sarah Palin: The ‘Seductress’ of the American Election – Iraqi News Agency
Palin: A Brilliant Selection … Until After Election Day – Excelsior of Mexico
Montreal Gazette It seems that both in and out of the United States, the things that concern people the most about Sarah Palin - John McCain's running mate - is her age, his age, and Palin's fundamentalist Christian upbringing. Cecilia Soto of Mexico's Excelsior newspaper lays out some of the concerns Mexicans have, not only about the McCain-Palin ticket, but with Mexican … [Read more...] about Palin: A Brilliant Selection … Until After Election Day – Excelsior of Mexico
McCain-Palin butchers FactCheck.org – supporters need to rebuke them
The latest McCain-Palin ad, on TV and their e-mail list to supporters, implies that FactCheck.org blamed the Obama campaign for "completely false or misleading" rumors about Sarah Palin. Curious to see what this report was, I visited FactCheck, associated with the Annenberg Public Policy Center, and saw they didn't appreciate the campaign's creative interpretation of their … [Read more...] about McCain-Palin butchers FactCheck.org – supporters need to rebuke them
PygPALIoN
Oddly enough, I am not referring to "pig gate," that asinine flap (or is it a kerfuffle?) developing between the two battling political camps over Barack's remark about the McCain program being "putting lipstick on a pig"... the Democrat apparently failing to recognize that Governor Sarah Palin using her stupidmean-spirited adorable joke noting that the difference between a … [Read more...] about PygPALIoN
We Don’t Like Ike
WEDNESDAY UPDATE Sorry for the lack of updates, been busy with work It looks like Corpus Christi will be getting hit by the weekend but the good news (no offense to our friends or my family in CC) is that it will avoid the oil fields for the most part. Latest track below. So far, the last few weeks have been something of a good-luck charm in terms of hurricanes. … [Read more...] about We Don’t Like Ike
Blog Addiction – What’s the remedy?
As we enter the height of the political season, I feel compelled to read every single blog under the sun. I feel the whole range of emotions as I read through blogs that pump up my candidate and show good news for him, just as I do blogs that tear him down or show bad news. It is much like the emotions I feel when I watch my favorite sports teams play. Yes, politics is more … [Read more...] about Blog Addiction – What’s the remedy?
The real problem with the media’s political coverage
Plenty has been said about the McCain camp's exploitation of this whole lipstick-on-a-pig thing—it's petty, it's divisive, and it's not the type of political conversation this country needs right now. I'm not going to get much further into that, but you can read some of my thoughts over at Ablogistan. The media's culpability in the whole matter, however, is something … [Read more...] about The real problem with the media’s political coverage
Politics Has No Place in the Pulpit
[This is a piece I just submitted to The Logan Daily News, the local paper in the community I serve as pastor. It's part of a continuing series to which local clergy are invited to contribute. It is overtly Christian, not, I hope, as a means of pushing my faith down people's throats, but to (a) let non-Christians see that many--I believe most--Christians do not believe that the … [Read more...] about Politics Has No Place in the Pulpit
Boxing Palin
Pat Bagley, Salt Lake Tribune … [Read more...] about Boxing Palin
Florida Judge Strikes Down Gay Adoption Ban
It's a local judge so it doesn't have value as a state-wide precedent, but it is a victory for equal rights all the same. At the moment, only Florida and Mississippi flatly prohibit gay adoptions, regardless of the normal best-interest-of-the-child standard. … [Read more...] about Florida Judge Strikes Down Gay Adoption Ban
Straight Talk Express No More
A strange and sad thing is happening in America. The more half-truths, untruths, fabrications, and misrepresentations---whatever you may want to call them---the McCain-Palin team tells, the more the Republican base is energized. In addition, the more the same old lies are repeated, verbatim, the wilder and louder the crowds cheer. For example, as of yesterday, Sarah … [Read more...] about Straight Talk Express No More
Roundup Hiatus
Hey all. As I prepare to start law school, I'm doing a bit of traveling, and a lot of packing. As a result, I'm going to put the civil rights roundup on hiatus for the next couple of weeks. I hopefully will be able to get in periodic blogging as I cross-cross the country (well, the mid-west anyway), but there is no realistic way I'll be able to keep up a regular enough schedule … [Read more...] about Roundup Hiatus
Obama’s Fight: Taking on the Lies and Smears of McCain, Palin, and the GOP Machine
Ever think you're living in some Matrix-like bizarro world -- you know, sort of like Jerry, George, Kramer, and Elaine? Ever think up is down, left is right, and so on and so forth? Well, that's how it feels with McCain-Palin surging out of the RNC, drawing even with Obama-Biden in the polls, and basically dominating the political landscape of late. Some things just don't … [Read more...] about Obama’s Fight: Taking on the Lies and Smears of McCain, Palin, and the GOP Machine
GOP Palin and Choice
Daryl Cagle, MSNBC.com … [Read more...] about GOP Palin and Choice
Biden Senate Succession Now Up In The Air
In an upset that has major implications for who might succeed Joe Biden in the U.S. Senate if he becomes Vice President, the state treasurer and Democratic Party maverick Jack Markell squeaked by Lieutenant Governor John Carney yesterday in a primary election that shattered Delaware turnout records. Carney had been expected to win, which meant that Governor Ruth Ann Minner, … [Read more...] about Biden Senate Succession Now Up In The Air
Beyond the Bailout
The Republican mantra--government bad, free markets good--is taking a beating in the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac bailout as both presidential candidates approve the Treasury's action to keep the housing and financial markets from going over a cliff but, in this personality-driven election, voters won't pay much attention to the issue. Barack Obama is understandably reluctant to … [Read more...] about Beyond the Bailout
We Don’t Need No Department of Education
See, this is what I'm talking about. Obama, like he should, is going after McCain on the issues -- not just on Iraq but on key domestic issues like health care, abortion, and, now, education: Our kids and our country can't afford four more years of neglect and indifference. At this defining moment in our history, America faces few more urgent challenges than preparing our … [Read more...] about We Don’t Need No Department of Education