We Americans have no idea that American labor union members in Chicago fought and died for the right to work no more than an 8-hour day, and their sacrifice is remembered the world over and commemorated on May Day. A policeman died, too – but although he may have been there to protect strikers and strikebreakers from each other, he was identified with the kind of thugs corporations send to break up labor disputes. Actually, several policement and an unknown number of workers died, all told. Utah Phillips speaking at the Haymarket Martyr’s Memorial for the 100th anniversary We Americans…
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Do you really want to elect someone to national or local office who actually believes in witches, and that angels and demons are constantly at war, kept at bay only by the actions of prayer warriors? Do you think that people with such extreme religious views should dictate whether you can marry the person you love, or whether you or your female partner should be forced carry every potential pregnancy to term, even if it’s against her will? Do you think it’s a good idea for a large number of voters to be so willfully and deliberately mal-informed, by just…
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The unchurched in America are probably not buying what #Beckapalooza was flogging, either – A lot of them are conservative, but hurt by “The Church.” The Barna Group – Millions of Unchurched Adults Are Christians Hurt by Churches But Can Be Healed of the Pain Other interesting insights into the self-identified Christians who have distanced themselves from a conventional church relate to their beliefs. Two-thirds (68%) hold a biblical view of God – that is, He is the all-knowing, all-powerful creator of the universe and He still rules that universe today. However, only one-third (35%) agree to any extent that…
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Why @GlennBeck’s campchair revival meeting on the National Mall will probably turn out to be irrelevant, even with the Theocratic Right’s deep pockets. Barna: How Teenagers’ Faith Practices Are Changing The most striking change was the fact that teenagers today seem much less inclined to have spiritual conversations about their faith in Christ with non-believers. The survey question specifically asked if the survey respondent had “explained your religious beliefs to someone else who had different beliefs, in the hope that they might accept Jesus Christ as their savior.†Among born again Christian teenagers, the proportion who said they had explained…
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Beck’s team got a permit for 300,000, about 87,000 showed up. Via @KeithOlbermann Glenn Beck Rally Attracts Estimated 87,000 – Political Hotsheet – CBS News An estimated 87,000 people attended a rally organized by talk-radio host and Fox News commentator Glenn Beck Saturday in Washington, according to a crowd estimate commissioned by CBS News.
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“Don’t make me come out there.” What the hell, I ended up live-blogging the whole damn thing. I took this photo a few years ago on a trip to Washington DC, with the “good camera” that’s been sent off to Canon for possible repair, or I’ll be in the market for a refurbished 30D. I Tweeted a lot of my Lincoln Memorial photos last night after getting irked at all the Beckamania co-opting of the imagery of Lincoln, Dr King, and all the hoo-ha about reclaiming the nation’s honor. It bugged me that the national honor so much in need…
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Of all the many tributes and stories remembering the life and career of Dan Schorr, Scott Simon’s was the one that that moved me most. Schorr wasn’t a teddy bear; he pissed presidents and premiers off, as well as colleagues, columnists, and Congressmen. NPR’s Scott Simon Remembers Daniel Schorr : NPR No other journalist in memory saw as much history as Daniel Schorr. He was born the year before the Russian Revolution and lived to see the Digital Revolution. He was there before the Berlin Wall went up and there a generation later when it came down. He was born…
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Rep. Mark Kirk, R-In The Navy, candidate for Obama’s former Senate seat (Roland Burris who???) has been outed. Not only did he over-inflate his military service and awards, as a Navy Reservist he voted against repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. Say buh-bye to your base and that office in the Senate office building now, Rep. Kirk. That ship has sailed Tippa da hat to Pam’s House Blend. BlogActive: Real Truth, Direct Action It was early 2004 when I was at a social gathering on Capitol Hill. I’m guessing there were 35-40 people present, including the guy who brought me as…
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Candidate Tim D’Annunzio, running for Congress in NC, is so far gone in religious mania that the local GOP is circulating docs from his divorce to show how much crazy he brings. His prayers were not answered, he’s in a runoff, we’ll need more popcorn. Christ’s War: A Simple Choice. Most of his blogposts consist of lengthy Bible quotes, but his beliefs tend toward the “watched too much Stargate while obsessively highlighting texts in the KJV” end of the spectrum. His political statements are quite possibly the most seriously disturbing views I’ve ever seen made public by a viable candidate.…
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It’s harder than I thought to donate my recently-shorn hair to the charity that turns hair and pet fur clippings into oil-spill booms. They require that you sign up first, then wait to be sent an address for shipping. And they really discourage individuals from donating; they prefer bulk shipments from salons and groomers. Meanwhile their storage facilities are getting backed up near the Gulf, as BP didn’t want to accept the donated booms. The hell? So maybe they’ll send straight to the Louisiana Wetlands people? Welcome to Matter Of Trust.