I feel betrayed...

Truth be told, I slept very little last night - and I prayed that President Obama slept very little as well - and frankly, I don't spend a lot of time praying these days. But I did last night, that President Obama would toss and turn at least as frequently as I did.

While the news of President Obama's decision about escalating the war in Afghanistan did not flood the trending topics on the most contemporary gauge of current news (twitter), there is no doubt that thousands of people in this country are dragging themselves out of bed with an all too familiar feeling of hopelessness and disillusionment about our country and the leader of our country.

I am one of those people. When I first heard the news from White House officials yesterday morning, I fluctuated between shock, anger and disbelief at what would be officially announced later that evening. I found myself hoping he would hear of the outrage and change his mind. He could, I kept telling myself. THIS President could.

Please understand, it was his stance on THE war that was my deciding factor in strongly supporting him as a candidate. His consistent language and stance was anti-war with only an occasional tip towards the real war Afghanistan, and usually a dig or taunt at Bush and his considerably bad decision making. Let's face it, much of the campaign was about the war. Obama very frequently repeated claims of being the only candidate to vote against the war, etc., etc.

To those who today say that his criticism was for Iraq not Afghanistan - those who believe he told Americans he would continue fighting in Afghanistan - I say ok, technically, you are right: I did find a quote where he said, in fact, that he wanted to end to the war in Afghanistan. That quote did not say he wanted to escalate it - nor did it say the escalation of 30,000 more soldiers would be announced three weeks before Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanza, a time most Americans reserve for reflection, for hope, for thanksgiving and good will.

President Obama's escalation will bring the total number of our people in Afghanistan to 100,000. That's nearly the entire population of Flint, MI, the fourth largest city in Michigan. Afghanistan is a country where conflict has reigned supreme since the late 1970s. We've been there in full force since the 2001 US-led invasion toppled the Taliban government.

And we are still there.

I voted for Barack Obama because he gave me hope that real change could happen - that real change would happen. I firmly believed he would do things differently than W regarding the travesty of ALL the wars. It's no longer about 9-11 to me. The horrible truth is that more than 250 times as many people have been killed in Afghanistan and Iraq than in the ghastly attacks of September 11, 2001. More than 20,000 people have died in Afghanistan alone including more than 700 of our own troops. Another 50,000 people have been injured.

That's too many people - way too many people. How many people is enough?

Since the election of Barack Obama, I have felt a freedom from fear. I have felt that decision were being made with intelligence and accurate information from good-hearted people. I have been proud that we no longer lived by the whim of a cowboy president spoiling for a fight based upon his whim or any of his hawkish advisors.

President Obama invited that fear-based decision-making back into my life last night.

Finally, as I tossed and turned last night, I kept envisioning a somber President Roosevelt on that black and white tube television telling the country that America was at war with Japan. I remember hearing and seeing footage of how the country gathered around the television sets to hear what the President would tell his people. He delivered the news - from the White House - perhaps even from his office. It was not a show. He didn't fly anywhere to get the perfect backdrop. He showed us - true or not - that he was taking time from his very serious work at the White House to deliver news that would forvever change the world.

I am troubled that President Obama used the members of his administration to leak/provide HIS troubling news many hours prior to his speech that night. He had members of administration deliver the news. I believe he should have shown the leadership and responsibility in providing news of this magnitude to his country - if not the world. Instead, like W, he chose to float it to test public sentiment, to gauge support, to determine what should be said rather than speak from his own heart.

I expected more.

I have always considered Barack Obama to be a man of intellectual courage and integrity, fearless in the face of his enemies, hopeful even when the days were dark - a protector of the dreams for our country. He should have been the one to deliver the news to our country. No leaks. No embargos. No one but himself facing the cameras as he told the country his decision we all must now live with.

I am disappointed. I feel betrayed.

And I wish I didn't.

Obama as the anti-Christ?

It's truly unbelievable how many conversations I have had with conservatives who seriously question, if not believe, that Barack Obama is the anti-Christ. The first time came in my own car when a passenger suggested that it was so. My head spun around (not like Linda Blair's head in the Exorcist-which would be something an anti-Christ could do no doubt) and I had to look to see if the person was joking. She wasn't! This fairly intelligent person went on to explain her position - at least I think she did. Honestly, I quit listening.

Most recently, the topic reared its ugly head (again, I think "reared its ugly head" is a reference to something anti-Christ) after I commented that I thought Obama was considering a way to bail out the automakers (I cannot figure out why the first bail out didn't seem to be a move of the anti-Christ and this one is!). The person went on to say that he thought Obama's promise of "peace and safety" was a signal that he could quite possibly be the one. He suggested that at no other time in history has there been such universal "worship" of a political figure.

Worship??

What about Ronald Wilson Reagan (six letters in each of his names??!)? In fact, this "theory" was so widely distributed, by bitter Democrats no doubt, that there is LOTS of stuff on the web about it (check this out if you are interested - http://home.mcn.net/~willfree/coincidence/reagan.htm). What about Adolph Hitler? Surely he was far more anti-Christ than Barack Obama. Frankly, I think it's fairly easy to come up with more diabolical leaders than the new President-elect.


What a strange time we live in when Christians, both conservative or liberal, begin judging the characteristics of God and Jesus himself as anti-Christ. Why would it be that after five years of a war where thousands of people have died needlessly, a politician who brings hope (a characteristic of Christ) wants to end the war (also a characteristic of a peace-loving Christ) would be seen as anti-Christ? How is it that we can be so divided on someone who wants to do a better job of taking care of the poor (a mandate of Christ or socialism?) while others embrace leaders who want to reward the rich (described by Christ himself as the most difficult group to enter the gates of heaven)? Why is it a family-loving man of one wife (again, supposed Christ values) can be seen as anti-Christ while an admitted adulterer (anti-Christ no doubt) can be hailed as the leader of an evangelical movement (someone told me he repented, by the way).

I am not trying to make a case for the Obamessiah (a term conservatives likely created). I do not believe he is a perfect man who will deliver this world from all harm. And, I'm not trying to be antagonistic (though I play one on tv). In fact, I am attempting to make a serious statement about the way "Christians" are judging what/who is anti-Christ today. I think it is dangerous. What are we teaching our children about Christian values and the person of Jesus Christ? When we call something good bad and bad good (peace/war, poor/rich) what foundation is being laid for the future?

At the risk of sounding right-wingy, the Bible says "Hope deferred makes the heart sick." "Seek peace and pursue it." 1 Corinthians 13:13 says, "Right now three things remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love."

(I know I am losing some of you - I can see your eyes gloss over! For those of you who want to skip the sermon, please jump to bottom paragraph ; )

The whole socialism thing - man, it's hard for me not to see that line of thinking as soooo anti-Christ. Again, the Bible says, (Luke 12:33) "Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves purses which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near, nor moth destroys." (Luke 3:11) And [John the Baptist] would answer and say to them, "Let the man with two tunics share with him who has none, and let him who has food do likewise." (Mt. 5:42) Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

Finally, (if you are not yet asleep - you can still skip to the bottom!!), the word "antichrist" is only found in four passages in the Bible, apparently where the conservatives are selectively pulling their authority these days. All were penned by Apostle John within the books of first and second John. (1 John 2:18-19) "Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have arisen; from this we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, in order that it might be shown that they all are not of us."
(1 John 2:22-23) "Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also."
(1 John 4:2-3) "By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; and this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world."
(2 John 1:7) "For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist."

Barack Obama has not denied the Father and the Son. In fact, he has stated publicly many, many times that he is a Christian. In fact, I have enclosed a link to an article in Christianity Today (is that publication considered the elite liberal media?) where he talks about his devout faith at length: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2008/januaryweb-only/104-32.0.html I invite those who are STILL reading to read it also, but especially one of my Facebook "friends" who indicated that she was praying for Obama's conversion - conversion to what??

Sermon skippers can pick up the commentary here:
Good Lord! All of this is so confusing. This I know: All of us - you and me, and her and him - portray something to this world. Our words reflect our thoughts. Our actions should reflect our words which mirror our thoughts. May each of us portray the character of Christ and His principles in a world that needs his example more than ever.

(And for those who read the sermon, may we protect ourselves from becoming one of the many antiChrists that have already arisen.)

Do Pastors truly validate Presidential competency?

So let me get this straight... In the court of public opinion, I can be judged competent or incompetent by what the Pastor or Guest Speaker says while speaking at the church where I currently have my membership? Seriously? Is this for real??

This has so many ramifications in an already historical political drama. I tried ignoring it some months ago after jotting down some thoughts following Round One with Rev. Wright.

Then Sarah - gosh darn her - brought it up again - and again - which is truly remarkable considering the videos of her being circulated on YouTube. The Church were she was raised has provided a pulpit to at least one unusual Guest Speaker, to say the least. Through his thick accent, he proudly describes his own encounters with witchdoctors and casting out demons. Other taped presentations show her professing her belief that God wants her to pursue a pipeline and other initiatives, likely hers alone but she needed a little credibility from the Guy Upstairs in order to sell it. I'm not even mentioning her church connection to the infamous Jesus Camp, the focus of a documentary several years ago that trained young kids to be Jesus Warriors with some horribly unorthodox methods.

And the Pastor of Obama's church is scary??

Rev. Wright, one of the most highly regarded African American pastors in America, speaks out about something he believes and suddenly the Democratic Candidate is under scrutiny for similar beliefs - I guess that is the implication. Who doesn't agree that "The government gives them (African Americans) the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing 'God Bless America?' "

That must not be the controversial part - because we know that it is true. It must be the remaining part of the 2003 sermon (it's 2008, Sarah supporters): "No, no, no, God damn America, that's in the Bible for killing innocent people. God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America for as long as she acts like she is God and she is supreme."

Maybe he shouldn't have said damn in church - wait, the Bible does talk about damning people to hell. In fact I have been in plenty of services where preachers of all stripes and denominations talk of God's wrath (is that a whiter version of damnation?) due to any number of "sins" be it abortion, homosexuality or yes, stern warnings against voting for a "baby killer." In fact, judging from the tapes, I would be willing to bet a hundo that Palin's church has espoused similar damnation.

I was in a service once where the Guest Speaker encouraged hundreds of people to turn off their minds, not unlike a hypnotist attempting to get another message past the gates of normal thought processing. And though I wasn't in attendance at one particularly "interesting" service, I was told that God had replaced the silver fillings of some folks with gold.

Good Lord, could any of the members of that church ever run for President?? Wait, in fact, I understand that Palin's church had a similar experience in her congregation. Let's check her teeth!

When I heard that the preaching of Obama's Pastor had caused such an uproar, it was hard not to reflect on what has been said from the pulpit at the church where I attend. I have to believe many of us felt the same way. I trust that everyone reflected on all the services, even those dating back to 2003, and came up feeling good about what is being taught during every service. (Those who now have gold teeth instead of silver probably feel even better than the rest of us!)

And therein lies the rub for me (I love that saying!): If we didn't feel proud of what was said on that one Sunday in 2005, what are we going to do when the reporter shoves the microphone in our face asking our thoughts? Are we going to risk hurting the pastor who married us, the nursery workers who tended to our babies?

I personally like the way Obama handled it. "I don't think my church is actually particularly controversial." He said. I suspect Palin would say the same. Rev. Wright/the Witchdoctor Chaser "is like an old uncle who says things I don't always agree with."

Let's not forget, however, that he did end up leaving that church - AFTER a guest speaker came and ridiculed Sen. Hillary Clinton from the Trinity pulpit. Obama said he then had to make what he refers to as a sad decision; he and his family withdrew their membership at Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ.

Obama cut the cord to the church where he found Jesus Christ, where he was married, where his daughters were baptized--and whose pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, gave him the title of his best-seller, The Audacity of Hope. "Our relations with Trinity have been strained by the divisive statements of Reverend Wright, which sharply conflict with our own views."

This is the kicker for me: "But it's clear that now that I am a candidate for president, every time something is said in the church by any one associated with Trinity, including guest pastors, the remarks will be imputed to me even if they totally conflict with my long held views, statements and principles," Obama said.

Should we truly be judged by our Pastors? What does it say about John McCain that he had publicly endorsed the ministries of John Hagee and Rod Parsley? Does it say anything at all?

I think it says very little. People make their choices to attend a particular church for all kinds of reasons. Maybe John McCain needed Hagee's congregation to support his run. Perhaps Obama had a loyalty to the people with whom he worships every Sunday. Maybe Sarah ... Well, I'll let it go at that.

I will add, however, that unlike Obama, Palin has not yet cut ties with the Witchdoctor Chaser or her church leadership. It's with that in mind that I think Palin should simply quit imputing Obama unless she wants to be imputed upon.

On my mind...

Don't care...... that Suri Cruise is still drinking from a bottle! She's 2 and 1/2! Why in the world would anyone care?? As if potential speech and dental problems are the only challenges facing the child of the Scientology Puh-Bah. Her daddy thinks we came from aliens!

DO care ...
... that Flint police foolishly bragged about a decline in violent crime one day and the next four days there are four homicides! Strangely, Super Chief-y still claims the number of homicides in the city is still less than last year at this time. Didn't we learn we don't brag when there is still time on the clock?? Shut up and play! Gotta back up the smack, fellahs! Pride comes before the fall...

... that a Celebrity Chef published a potentially fatal mix-up during a magazine interview when he recommended wild henbane as a great addition to salads. The Chef said henbane, but he meant fat hen. Fat hen is a weed. Henbane extract was the poison famously poured into Hamlet's father's ear, also often called nightshade. Seems like a pretty serious mix-up. Is he a government scientist??
... Care more because I think we have some nightshade in our backyard! Do we not have a more current example - or non-fictional account actually - of the danger of Henbane? Am I on Punk'd??

... that Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has been released on a tether after a night in jail and after facing a felony assault charge today. I think it is a shame that he is the first sitting mayor in Detroit's 307-year history to spend a night behind bars. The Dude is having a BAAAAADDDDD year. I hate to see this happen to anyone let alone an up and coming young leader. What is going to happen to Kwame?

... that John Edwards is being accused of doing a campaign worker who eventually has his kid. I have always loved John Edwards. Now, his lack of media response is threatening his role at the convention! Tell 'em John! We need you. Repeat after me, I did not have sex with that woman!

... that Racist Groups Eye Boost If Obama Elected. Former Louisiana State Rep. David Duke has said publicly, 'We Have Lost Control Of Our Country.’ I remember when the former Ku Kluxer tried convincing folks he had changed the color of his ugly spots. Duke said Obama would be a "visual aid" to the idea that whites have lost control of America. Back in June, he posted an essay on his Web site entitled, "Obama Wins Demo Nomination: A Black Flag for White America." Obama "will be a clear signal for millions of our people," Duke wrote. "Obama is a visual aid for White Americans who just don't get it yet that we have lost control of our country, and unless we get it back we are heading for complete annihilation as a people." This just in out of Pearl, Miss., "They're not exactly rooting for him, but prominent white supremacists anticipate a boost to their cause if Barack Obama becomes the first black president." A Mississippi "scholar" said, "Instead of this so-called civil rights bill, for example, that says you have to give preferences to minorities, I think the American people are going -- once they see the 'Obamanation' -- they're going to demand a tweaking of that and say, 'You have to put the majority into office.'"
... Care more because while most Americans have little or no direct contact with white supremacists, organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center keep close tabs; the law center estimates some 200,000 people nationwide are active in such groups. That's 200,000 folks who are crazy enough to be proud of their association with supremacist groups. How many invisible members do they have?

... Finally, for the moment anyway, I ask this question: Is John McCain campaigning FOR Obama? I don't get his strategy of portraying Obama as a celebrity, comparing him to a rock star. I think it is further proof that the Old Guy doesn't get America! Dude, we love our celebrities and rock stars! Comparing him to Paris and Britney - calling him the biggest celebrity in the world? Dude, seriously, what are you thinking?? Hello ... Ronald Reagan?? Arnold Schwarzenegger? You could only dream of that much appeal!! Fire the old Dude whose creating the ads; he's a spy for Barack.
... Wait, is John McCain on Punk'd??