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"9/11, ten years later"
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On this day ten years ago I was fighting my way through morning rush-hour traffic, going to an out-of-town plant to work on some production issues. After getting through the worst of it, I stopped for refreshment and another motorist told me that a small plane had flown into the World Trade Center. I switched from the CD player to the radio, and listened the rest of the way as the horror unfolded. By the time I got live TV coverage, the towers had collapsed. The TVs at rest stops showed the smoking rubble all day. At my destination, people were desperately filling up every gasoline container they could find. I saw two men with a trailer full of brand-new 5-gallon cans, filling them all. I filled my car with enough fuel to get me through the week and home again. I had hoped to get a New York Times the following morning. I don't think I saw one that whole week. The lack of contrails in the sky was eerie. The agents behind the first (failed) WTC attack, and the suicide nature of the successful one, suggested strongly that it came from Islamists, specifically Al Qaeda. This was later proven; the attackers were from the Middle East, all Muslim, 15 of the 19 from Saudi Arabia. Our so-called "friends" there killed roughly 3000 people that day, mostly Americans, on American soil. Yet there was zero political response to this in Washington; while illegal Pakistani immigrants received a lot of attention and many returned home abruptly, the Saudi royal family was treated with kid gloves. Nothing has changed in that respect. The US government has, against all reason, expanded allowances for Saudi immigration. Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad was admitted to the US in 1999 (after the first WTC attack) and granted US citizenship in 2009! US immigration and citizenship policy is somewhere between reckless and suicidal. The question everyone should be asking is "Why?", followed immediately by "How do we fix it?" It's easy to see why. The answer is "oil money". We have done precious little to wean ourselves off oil since 9/11 (Congress and the Bush administration continued policies of guzzler promotion for years after the attacks), and all those dollars flowing to Riyadh and Caracas and Kuwait flow back as political influence. We're not buying oil with dollars or grain, we're handing over control of our government. It's imperative to cut US dependency on oil. The price of oil wouldn't matter to the economy if there wasn't an effective "petro-state tax" on most people just to get to work. I did what I could in 2004, when I cut my fuel needs by about 1/3. But today I'd find it hard to do that again. I'd need to get up to 60 MPG or so, and there are precious few vehicles sold in the USA which can do that. The Volt (sold out for months) is good for a couple iterations of this game and the latest Prius is in the ballpark, but the Fusion hybrid barely ekes out the mileage I often get today. We've done practically nothing. We've continued to hand money and power to the people who've proven they will use it to do us harm. If it were only our elites I'd say it was treason, but sentiment among ordinary Americans is the same. See no evil, and drain the retirement account to fill up the pickup to take the toy-hauler and the 4-wheelers out for a weekend on the trails. Fixing this requires a complete 180 in attitude. Oil must be treated as a necessary evil, but an evil. Guzzling vehicles and wasteful driving must be subject to both fines and social opprobrium. We need the PNGV or something like it back pronto, expanded production of all supply-chain components for hybrids and PHEVs (preferably all sited in the USA), feebates, higher gas taxes, the works. We can't manage a full war footing yet, but we need urgent action NOW. That attitude shift would help fix the flow of dangerous immigrants as well. We should have no Faisal Shahzads or Umar Abdulmutallabs or even Richard Reids coming into the USA. I don't see this happening. Anyone who advocates any of the necessary changes is immediately stigmatized as "anti-American" (like R. James Woolsey?) or "islamophobic" (which is only half a step from "racist"). There's a stone wall, maintained by both major political parties, against making the changes we urgently needed to make starting on that clear sunny day ten years ago. If this country doesn't wake up and get a clue, we're doomed.

posted by Engineer-Poet at 12:39 PM on Sep 11, 2011


Blogger opit said...

The worst part about domestic military influence on the narrative put in front of the public - and you might have a look at the latest sally about acceptable 'Talking Points' issued by the White House - is the resulting mindwashing makes informed debate impossible.
It is the complete antithesis of Scientific Method ; and intentional irony that such is painted as 'Conspiracy Theory' while Denying the existence any any reasonable alternative thought.
With your interests in nuclear power, for instance, you should be given a 'heads up' about Rand Corp.'s design of the NPT TRAP. My files in opitslinkfest.blogspotcom >Topical Index > Uranium can be used as a jumping off point for exploration.
Institutional propaganda is literally unthinkable for most people - who do not share the Russian view ' at least we KNOW our government lies to us.'
A look at the genesis of UNESCO and Julian Huxley's background is not a common occupation. Yet 'Perception Alteration' and the 'Foreign Policy' files ( FP means War by other means ) are nothing more than articles selected by the sort of criteria one might expect from a reader of George Orwell's 'Homage to Catalonia'.
And disinformation precedes action routinely. See the website and online movie 'Leading to War.'
Only then may you be willing to reflect on the novelty of an attack which caught 'defense' flatfooted yet for which an exhaustive explanation of the causes of immolation of perps and witnesses was issued well before the fires were out.
Down the rabbit hole.
General Wesley Clark explains Libyan invasion,Syria,Somalia planned years in advance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSNyPS0fXpU&feature=player_embedded
( Iraq and Iran too - but the NSA document is Secret. Post Saddam Iraq : Desert Crossing - a War Game. Tom Dispatch outlined it years ago. )
9-11 Who Really Did It ?
http://www.whodidit.org/cocon.html

9/13/2011 10:30 PM

Democrats.com Archive: Prescott Bush
The Bush Family Dynasty Is Based On Trading With Enemies - And REAL Treason 09-Nov-03 Prescott Bush. Investigative reporter John Buchanan broke 60 years of silence recently when he uncovered documents showing Prescott Bush's business was seized by Congress in 1942 for trading with the enemy.
democrats.com/preview.cfm?term=Prescott Bush

DownWithTyranny!: Why Weren't Fascist Coup Plotters Irénée ... Why Weren't Fascist Coup Plotters Irénée du Pont, J.P. Morgan And Prescott Bush Executed For Treason? > None ... Prescott Bush, George Herbert Walker and others operated the U.S. arm of Hamburg-American Line, seized herewith.
downwithtyranny.blogspot.com/2011/05/why-werent-fascist-coup-plotter...

BBC: Bush's Grandfather Planned Fascist Coup In America
A BBC Radio 4 investigation sheds new light on a major subject that has received little historical attention, the conspiracy on behalf of a group of influential powerbrokers, led by Prescott Bush, to overthrow FDR and implement a fascist dictatorship in the U.S. based around the ideology of
prisonplanet.com/articles/july2007/240707fascistcoup.htm

Guilty of Treason: A Nazi Banker - YouTube
Prescott Bush Was A Nazi Banker Guilty of Treason He should have been tried and sent to prison. His son and grandson would never have been elected and we would not have some ...
youtube.com/watch?v=1YfSLxsas5I

[http://www.talk2action.org]

---------------------------------------------------------Billy Graham Magazine: Mormons Aren't Christians By Bruce Wilson, 2012-10-13 15:26:00
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
"We heard from Christians who were once Mormons" -- from the subtitle of
an article published May 2008, in the Billy Graham Evangelistic
Association magazine Decision Are Mormons Christians? According to a 2008
article [http://www.billygraham.org/articlepage.asp?articleid=959] in the
Billy Graham Evangelistic Association's Decision magazine
[http://secure.billygraham.org/subscription.aspx?SOURCE=BD093SP15],
authored by the CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention's publishing wing
LifeWay Resources, the answer would seem to be "no". This new revelation
of high-profile evangelical anti-Mormon bigotry comes immediately in the
wake of an embarrassing discovery, by a gay rights group, that the website
of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association has also branded Mormonism a
"cult".

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/10/13/15260/703

----Marriage Law And Religion: Sectarian Lobbies Seek To Wed Church And State By Rob Boston, 2012-10-11 12:53:16
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: Gay Rights -->
Voters in four states will cast ballots on marriage equality next month,
among them my adopted home of Maryland. Polls show that the Maryland
measure, which allows same-sex couples to wed, just might pass.Religious
Right groups, of course, are doing all they can to ensure that doesn't
happen. They're mustering all of the arguments we've heard before:
Same-sex marriage will somehow harm families, it's condemned by the Bible,
it will lead to people marrying bicycles, etc.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/10/11/125316/90

----Sheldon Adelson Obliterates Democracy at Home and Abroad By Bill Berkowitz, 2012-10-11 10:39:10
<-- Section: Dominionism in the military, Topic: All Topics -->
"My political leanings are far to the right.... Attila the Hun was too
liberal for me." --Sheldon Adelson, 2010 If you've been paying any
attention to Election 2012, you have undoubtedly become familiar with
Sheldon Adelson. The casino magnate and Republican Party benefactor -
worth $20.5 billion according to Forbes magazine - is fully committed to
defeating President Barack Obama, and to that end has pledged to spend as
much as $100 million. Beyond Adelson's anti-Obama advocacy lies two
greater causes; un-wavering support for right wing Israeli politicians and
organizations; and, urging the US government to take more muscular action
against Iran. In addition to dumping boatloads of money into Republican
Party war chests, Adelson has almost single-handedly destroyed what has
historically been a pretty vigorous newspaper culture in Israel.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/10/11/103910/73

----Sunday Scofflaws: It's Time For The IRS To Crack Down On `Pulpit Freedom Sunday' By Rob Boston, 2012-10-09 12:10:50
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
As many of you know, on Sunday more than 1,000 pastors nationwide took
part in "Pulpit Freedom Sunday," an annual even
[http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/10/05/pastors-prepare-to-take-on-irs-o
ver-political-endorsement-ban/]t sponsored by the Alliance Defending
Freedom (ADF) to encourage clergy to openly violate federal law by
endorsing or opposing candidates.AU staffers spent the holiday weekend
fielding media calls about this. The Rev. Steven Baines, AU's assistant
field director for religious outreach, talked to several reporters.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/10/9/121050/909

----AR Republican Charlie Fuqua Advocates Stoning Rebellious Children, Per Deuteronomy By Bruce Wilson, 2012-10-08 16:11:51
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
"a child who disrespects his parents must be permanently removed from
society in a way that gives an example to all other children of the
importance of respect for parents. The death penalty for rebellious
children is not something to be taken lightly. The guidelines for
administering the death penalty to rebellious children are given in Deut
21:18-21" - Republican Charlie Fuqua, from his book God's Law "I think
my views are fairly well-accepted by most people" - Charles Fuqua, as
quoted
[http://www.sfltimes.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11280&I
temid=199] by the Associated Press It has rapidly migrated from the
Arkansas Times - which has broken
[http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2012/10/08/republican-candi
date-fuqua-endorses-death-penalty-for-rebellious-children#.UHLiD-xlx1I.fac
ebook] the story about a controversial book written by Republican
candidate for the Arkansas Legislature Charlie Fuqua - to the Huffington
Post
[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/08/charlie-fuqua-arkansas-candidate
-death-penalty-rebellious-children_n_1948490.html], but so far media has
not identified the most astonishing aspects of Fuqua's suggestion, in his
e-book [http://www.amazon.com/Gods-Law-ebook/dp/B007X0FWOO] God's Law: The
Only Political Solution, that rebellious children should be executed in
accordance with Deuteronomy 21:18-21.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/10/8/161151/104

----Billionaire Gambling Baron Stalks Jewish Voters for GOP By Bill Berkowitz, 2012-10-08 12:20:54
<-- Section: Dominionism in the military, Topic: All Topics -->
If Sheldon Adelson were an ordinary guy, some might say that he is
spending like a drunken sailor. But Adelson is no ordinary guy. The
billionaire right wing casino magnate who is committed to expending
perhaps as much as $100 million on this presidential campaign, is, as he
recently described it, merely putting his money where his mouth is. And
both his money and his mouth are writ large over the Republican Party's
campaign to win the presidency and grab total control of both houses of
Congress.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/10/8/122054/274

----Book From Alan Grayson Opponent Todd Long Features Falsified American History By Bruce Wilson, 2012-10-08 09:50:07
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
[note: part one in this series was In '05 and '08, Todd Akin Entered
Christian Nationalist History Lies in the Congressional Record
[http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/10/4/17488/9961/]] In honor of
Columbus Day, a federal holiday honoring the abundantly mythologized
Christopher Columbus, I'm again delving into falsified American history. I
knew Former U.S. Congressman Alan Grayson was running for a seat in
Florida's newly-created 9th District, but I didn't know a thing about his
Republican opponent [http://toddlong4congress.com] in the race. However,
I've just started a new series about how often, these days, Republicans
promote falsified Christian nationalist versions of American history, the
sort most notably promoted by discredited author David Barton. I had a
hunch that, given the odds, I might find Grayson's opponent, Todd Long,
promoting fake history too. Obviously, my hunch panned out.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/10/8/9507/41265

----

---------------------------------------------------------
This is the Weekly digest for Talk To Action [http://www.talk2action.org].

Christian Right, Targeting Gay Kiss, Is Ad It Again By Bill Berkowitz, 2012-04-20 14:38:56
<-- Section: Dominionism in the military, Topic: All Topics -->
The Broadway tune goes "Love Makes the World Go 'Round." For the Christian
Right, "Controversial ads make the cash registers sing." Less than two
months after launching its pathetically unsuccessful campaign to get the
retailer JC Penney to dump Ellen DeGeneres as their spokesperson, the
American Family Association's OneMillionMoms is attacking Urban Outfitters
for its April catalog featuring an image of two young women kissing.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, "The company's president and
CEO, Richard Hayne, is a known conservative and he donated over $13,000 to
the Rick Santorum campaign." Hayne also donated $10,000 to Republican Meg
Whitman's failed California gubernatorial run. Inquiring minds want to
know: Why would an conservative Christian group that calls itself
OneMillionMoms and has only 40,000 members, be taken seriously?

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/20/143856/075

----Of Grudem, Green Dragons And Dr. Seuss: The Religious Right's War On Environmentalism By Rob Boston, 2012-04-20 12:21:35
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: Environmental Issues -->
Sunday is Earth Day, a time when a lot of us will be thinking about how we
can better care for our planet to ensure it remains habitable for future
generations. Well, not all of us. Some people will be thinking about how
the Bible says it's all right to pretty much do whatever we want with the
Earth and not worry about a thing.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/20/122135/302

----Invisible Children Touts Ties To NOM & Proposition 8 Funders By Bruce Wilson, 2012-04-20 12:07:07
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
"A-1 Self Storage was one of the original donors who helped the founders
of Invisible Children travel to Uganda and make the documentary Invisible
Children: The Rough Cut which led to the creation of Invisible Children,
Inc the 510 C 3 non-profit organization... The contributions of A-1 Self
Storage have been crucial to the growth and success of Invisible Children"
-- quote from current Invisible Children web page
[http://dev.invisiblechildren.com/our-network], crediting the Caster
family business A1 Self Storage with providing crucial funding that
launched Invisible Children. The Caster family was one of
[http://zinniajones.com/blog/2012/04/nom-in-panic-after-whistleblower-leak
s-major-donors-john-templeton-knights-of-columbus-mitt-romney-and-more/]
the biggest donors funding California's Proposition 8 and has just been
exposed as one of
[http://zinniajones.com/blog/2012/04/nom-in-panic-after-whistleblower-leak
s-major-donors-john-templeton-knights-of-columbus-mitt-romney-and-more/]
the biggest funders, in 2008, of the virulently anti-LGBT rights National
Organization For Marriage. Today, Friday the 20th, two national human
rights efforts will hold awareness events in American schools. One, the
Gay, Straight, and Lesbian Education Network (GLSEN
[http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/home/index.html]) will hold its
annual Day Of Silence [http://www.dayofsilence.org/], to raise awareness
about anti-LGBT bullying and harassment in schools. The other effort,
Invisible Children [http://www.invisiblechildren.com/], is also holding an
event today, called "Cover The Night" [http://www.kony2012.com/]. While
IC, behind the KONY 2012 viral video, states
[http://blog.invisiblechildren.com/2012/04/09/justice-for-some-is-not-just
ice-for-all/] that it is pro-LGBT rights, the organization has extensive
ties [http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/16/223727/559] to the hard,
antigay politicized evangelical right; in fact, Invisible Children's own
website states that the organization was started with "crucial" seed money
from one of the top funders of both California's anti-same sex marriage
Proposition 8 and the anti-gay rights group the National Organization For
Marriage.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/20/1277/44008

----Invisible Children's "Cover the Night" is April 20 - on LGBT "Day of Silence" By Rachel Tabachnick, 2012-04-19 11:41:51
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
Invisible Children has an extensive history of funding and promotion by
anti-gay rights entities, summarized in this article. The annual Day of
Silence [http://www.dayofsilence.org/resources/],initiated in 1996, has
been observed in schools across the nation in an effort to protest the
bullying and harassment of gay and lesbian students. Since 2000, the
annual event has been sponsored by the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight
Education Network (GLSEN), and since 2005 Religious Right
organizations have sponsored very visible and widely-criticized efforts to
counter this event. This year the Day of Silence is competing with a
different type of event - Invisible Children's week
[http://blog.invisiblechildren.com/2012/04/04/cover-the-night-engage-your-
leaders/] of activities closing with "Cover the Night," also on April 20.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/19/114151/936

----Invisible Children: A Trojan Horse for the Religious Right By Bill Berkowitz, 2012-04-19 07:39:54
<-- Section: Dominionism in the military, Topic: All Topics -->
In early March, Invisible Children burst onto the world stage with its
KONY 2012 video promoting its "Stop Kony" campaign. The video focused on
Joseph Kony, the Uganda warlord and leader of the Lord's Resistance Army,
a guerrilla group with a long and violent history that includes turning
kidnapped children into child soldiers. The KONY 2012 video went
mega-viral; surpassing 100 million views in six days and breaking previous
records set by Susan Boyle's April 2009 appearance on the television
program "Britain's Got Talent," which hit that mark in 9 days, and Lady
Gaga's Bad Romance video, which took 18 days to surpass 100 million views.
Not long after the organization became a social media phenomenon, its
co-founder Jason Russell was captured on video running naked along a busy
San Diego street, cursing and ranting about the devil. That video also
went viral. While the video, and Russell's mental breakdown, have been
extensively reported on, Invisible Children's broad connections to the
Religious Right have not received much media attention.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/19/73954/2781

----Bully Pulpit: Religious Right Howls Over Student `Day Of Silence' By Rob Boston, 2012-04-17 13:03:40
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: Gay Rights -->
This Friday, students all over America will choose to remain quiet in
school. They'll be participating in the Day of Silence
[http://www.dayofsilence.org/], an annual event designed to protest the
bias and bullying that often silences gay, lesbian, bisexual and
transgendered students. The premise behind the event is simple: Students
attend classes but do not speak for the entire day. The Day of Silence
isn't sponsored by the schools. It's run by students, often through a
Gay-Straight Alliance Club that many schools now have. (Ironically, these
clubs exist thanks to a federal law backed by Religious Right groups
[http://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/equal-access-how-the-religious
-right-helped-launch-gay-straight-alliance], which were eager to get
Christian clubs into public schools.)

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/17/13340/9334

----KONY 2012, Invisible Children, and the Religious Right: The Evidence By Bruce Wilson, 2012-04-16 22:37:27
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
[UPDATE: also see Invisible Children Touts Ties To NOM & Proposition 8
Funders [http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/20/1277/44008] and
Invisible Children's "Cover the Night" is April 20 - on LGBT "Day of
Silence" [http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/19/114151/936], by Talk
To Action contributor Rachel Tabachnick.] Since the eruption of
Invisible Children's record-breaking KONY 2012 viral video in early March,
a considerable body of evidence has emerged which ties the nonprofit, and
its leadership, to the American Protestant evangelical right. This is a
summary of that evidence - which includes the recent revelation
[http://www.truthwinsout.org/blog/2012/04/24158/], by LGBT rights group
Truth Wins Out, that in 2007 Invisible Children officially applied
[https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&amp;q=cache:M81VALKPKwQJ:www.barnabasg
roup.org/uploads/document_library/tbg-files/TBG%2520Ministry%2520Report%25
20-%2520Invisible%2520Children.pdf+&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&src
id=ADGEESin2TX6NAVOkA_5ffQNB9I8k_kdXSC1lq9wrtSjyojzRkJ3012rH_6-Kfcj4lK29Qm
SfCMRiCi9LFrml9bZhys9cg-QBrb1JPdeCKDZYj2RCSTeOa9pimkkR69pMBbs80TaHBhH&
sig=AHIEtbQ8UO84PGXkT3wtDpLNn-sBj_QxkA] to be one of the Christian
ministries supported by an evangelical right-wing nonprofit called the
Barnabas Group.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/4/16/223727/559

----

---------------------------------------------------------
This is the Weekly digest for Talk To Action [http://www.talk2action.org].

This is the Weekly digest for Talk To Action [http://www.talk2action.org]


---------------------------------------------------------The Virginia Declaration of Rights By George Mason, 2012-01-20 23:56:49
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: History -->
As part of our continuing celebration of Religious Freedom Day
[http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/13/155525/038/Front_Page/Religiou
s_Freedom_Day_2012], we are honored to welcome George Mason
[http://www.gunstonhall.org/georgemason/] as a guest front pager.
Mason is the principal author of the The Virginia Declaration of
Rights
[http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/virginia_declaration_of_rights.
html], which was unanimously ratified by a Virginia revolutionary congress
in 1776 just prior to the American Revolution. The Virginia
Declaration was influential in the thinking and the language of the
Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom
[http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/13/1518/91543/Front_Page/The_Virg
inia_Statute_for_Religious_Freedom], as well as the Declaration of
Independence, the Constitution, and the First Amendment. -- FC

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/20/235649/888

----Eight Reasons Newt Gingrich is Emerging as the Religious Right's Anybody-but-Mitt Candidate By Rachel Tabachnick, 2012-01-20 16:12:14
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
It appeared that the contest for anybody-but-Romney might swing Rick
Santorum's way following support of major Religious Right leaders at the
Texas conclave last weekend. But news quickly leaked out of the continuing
division
[http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/01/19/evangelicals-in-an-uproa
r-over-rick-santorum-endorsement.html] among the attendees of the Texas
gathering, including charges that the published results did not accurately
reflect the strength of Ginrich's support. Following are seven
reasons why the thrice-married Newt Gingrich has much more support among
the Religious Right than might be expected.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/20/161214/253

----Doubting Thomas: Prayer Breakfast Theocrats Try To Baptize Jefferson By Rob Boston, 2012-01-18 11:25:33
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: Analysis of Christian Right -->
The 60th annual National Prayer Breakfast will take place Feb. 2 here in
Washington, D.C. This event is privately sponsored by a shadowy
fundamentalist Christian group called "The Family" (also known as the
Fellowship Foundation). You might remember them from a few years ago, when
a nasty sex scandal erupted over their infamous "C Street House" and the
rowdy escapades
[http://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/family-values-secretive-c-stre
et-band-is-wild-and-not-so-innocent]of some of its residents.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/18/112533/495

----NAR Leaders Publish Statement of Belief as Apostles Gain Influence in Religio-Political Right By Rachel Tabachnick, 2012-01-17 15:22:30
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
The New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) was temporarily in the spotlight
following the endorsement and participation of leading apostles and
prophets in Rick Perry's Houston prayer event in August. Interest in the
NAR dwindled as Perry's campaign failed, but the movement is still making
significant inroads with apostles and prophets touted as emerging leaders
in a Religious Right increasingly dominated by the Pentecostal/Charismatic
sector. It is inside the larger evangelical and Charismatic world that NAR
leadership has been working aggressively to defend their movement
[http://www.globalspheres.org/], not to a general public mostly unaware of
its existence. Attempts to prove that the NAR adheres to "classic
Christian creeds," has included publishing a statement of belief.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/17/152230/031

----Santorum's Second Song By Frank Cocozzelli, 2012-01-17 10:52:40
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: Neoconservatives -->
Many of us thought that Rick Santorum's (R-PA) political career was over
when he lost his seat to to Democrat Bob Casey, Jr. in 2006. But
recent events suggest Santorum is enjoying an historic comeback. His
second place finish in the Iowa caucuses and the backing
[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/post/santorums-path-out-of
-the-pack/2012/01/14/gIQA1b3GzP_blog.html] of 150 national Religious Right
leaders seeking to unify behind a single candidate may make him the main
conservative alternative to Mitt Romney. But all this may signal not only
a revival of Santorum's political career, but the neoconservative
philosophy.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/17/105240/043

----Gathering of Religious Right Leaders Voted Santorum (85) over Gingrich (29), Tea Party Meets in SC By Rachel Tabachnick, 2012-01-16 09:53:15
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
A group of Religious Right leaders met in Texas this past weekend in order
to consolidate their support against Mitt Romney prior to the South
Carolina primary. Much to their surprise, they succeeded.
"What I did not think was possible appears to be possible," said the
group's spokesperson, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council.
However, the group will not be
[http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/us/politics/conservative-religious-lead
ers-seeking-unity-vote-to-back-rick-santorum.html] asking Rick Perry or
Newt Gingrich to drop out of the race.Today, Santorum, Gingrich, and Ron
Paul are scheduled to speak at South Carolina's first statewide Tea Party
convention.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/16/95315/5895

----Randall Terry's Superbowl End Run By Frederick Clarkson, 2012-01-16 01:06:32
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: Analysis of Christian Right -->
Last year, Republican anti-abortion militant Randall Terry changed parties
and announced [http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/1/23/225125/340] that
he would run in the Democratic primaries against Barack Obama. His
aim was to exploit a provision in federal law
[http://transition.fcc.gov/mb/policy/political/candrule.htm] that requires
television stations to air uncensored ads for candidates within 45 days of
an election. Terry, acting as campaign manager for a GOP candidate for
Delegate from the District of Columbia had previously tested
[http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/1/18/162226/520] the situation and
had been able to air gory fetus antiabortion ads in the DC market. His
stated goal was to be able to air similar ads during the Super Bowl.
He has already aired a few ads in Iowa, New Hampshire, and Boston --
and wants to run ads during the Super Bowl in 40 cities in 17 states where
there will be Democratic primaries and caucuses within the 45 day window.
(In a fundraising letter (PDF)
[http://www.terryforpresident.com/documents/tebow.pdf] he names the
stations in the cities where he would like to be able to buy ads.)

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2012/1/16/1632/95100

And the Winner of this Year's Coughie Award is... By Frank Cocozzelli, 2011-12-30 19:47:36
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: satire -->
It's that time of year once again, to announce the recipient of the
Coughlin Award -- presented annually to the person who best
exemplifies an exclusionary, strident interpretation of the Catholic
faith. The award is named for Father Charles Coughlin, the notorious radio
priest of the 1930s who is the role model for today's Religious Right
radio and television evangelists and other conservative media
personalities. This year the bride's maid finally takes his walk down the
aisle. This Coughie is for you Bill Donohue!

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/12/30/194736/67

----Ron Paul's Vision of the Nation By wilkyjr, 2011-12-30 09:45:37
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: Christian Right Moral Relativism ? -->
Author Kim Barker wrote the best seller, The Taliban Shuffle. She
noted her impression of the Afghanistan country after a few days of
travel. She wrote it was full of bearded men riding around in
pickups with plenty of weapons and hatred for the country. She
proclaimed it was just like Montana!

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/12/30/94537/538

----American Family Association's Don Wildmon Endorses Gingrich By Bill Berkowitz, 2011-12-29 13:52:07
<-- Section: Dominionism in the military, Topic: All Topics -->
His public confession on Dr. James Dobson's radio program nearly five
years ago, the speech at the graduation ceremony of Jerry Falwell's
Liberty University, his much publicized conversion to Catholicism, his
insistence on writing, making films and speechifying about the threat of a
secularized America, may all have contributed to re-branding Newt
Gingrich, from womanizing miscreant to redeemed sinner, in the eyes of the
Religious Right. Now, the personal endorsement of his run for the
Republican Party's presidential nomination by the Rev. Donald Wildmon, the
founder and chairman emeritus of the Tupelo, Mississippi-based American
Family Association -- one of the most powerful Religious Right
organizations in the country -- and the founder of American Family Radio,
may indicate that the disgraced former Speaker of the House's long hard
slog through the minefields of the Religious Right may be over.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/12/29/13527/633

----Will Ron Paul Fall after his Surprise Rise? By Frederick Clarkson, 2011-12-28 13:06:05
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: Analysis of Christian Right -->
Rep. Ron Paul has broken out of his seemingly permanent
less-than-ten-percent in the polls -- to emerge as a contender in next
week's Iowa Republican caucuses. This is in no small part thanks
[http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/12/9/165231/581/Front_Page/Ron_Paul
_s_Fresh_Faith_Outreach_in_Iowa] to his faith outreach consultants who
have sought to help him craft a more decidedly evangelical approach while
seeking a bigger share of the Religious Right vote. Along the way,
Paul has sought to emphasize the Biblical roots of his public policy
ideas. Paul also owes considerable thanks to national media that have
not devoted much serious reporting to his campaign, perhaps because of his
standing in the polls, was not taken seriously as a candidate.
Meanwhile, in a remarkable election year twist, his libertarian
anti-drug war, and old time isolationist foreign policy views have been
taken by marijuana reform and anti-war progressives as a reason to
crossover and support Paul in Iowa and elsewhere, while down playing or
ignoring his unsavory views
[http://www.alternet.org/teaparty/152192/5_reasons_progressives_should_tre
at_ron_paul_with_extreme_caution_--_%27cuddly%27_libertarian_has_some_very
_dark_politics?page=entire] that are consistent with the depth and breadth
of his support from the far right in the U.S.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/12/28/1365/7512

----Mikey Weinstein, A Traitor in the War on Christmas By Chris Rodda, 2011-12-28 12:16:02
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: All Topics -->
Over the past few months, I've been faced with the utter irony of
splitting my time between dealing with the steady stream of lies about my
boss and the organization I work for being part of the so-called war on
Christmas, and having numerous conversations with that same boss about
helping to send toys to kids for Christmas. One minute I'd be writing
about the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) spreading lies about
our organization, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation
[http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/] (MRFF), trying to stop Air
Force Academy cadets from participating in Franklin Graham's Operation
Christmas Child, which, as I wrote in a previous post
[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-rodda/the-psychological-project_b_113
2579.html], isn't exactly what happened, and the next minute I'd be on the
phone coordinating MRFF's participation in a Christmas toy drive run by a
student group I work with here in New Jersey.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/12/28/12162/061

----What Is Truly At Stake In Kansas City-St. Joseph? By Frank Cocozzelli, 2011-12-26 10:25:58
<-- Section: Front Page, Topic: child abuse -->
The saga of Bishop Robert Finn, (the outspoken Opus Dei prelate who is in
hot water over his alleged failure to report to police, evidence of a
pedophile priest under his diocesan authority) continues -- as does
consideration of the fallout of his criminal indictment. A faction
of the Catholic Right that intersects Opus Dei, the Catholic League and
the neoconservative movement has risen
[http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/12/12/132959/11] to the bishop's
defense, suggesting that the Catholic Right believes they have more at
stake than the legal or institutional fate of one negligent bishop.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2011/12/26/102558/67

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