Author Archives: editor

May 07

BAD RELIGION: BECAME NATION OF HERETICS?

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Ross Douthat, op-ed columnist for The New York Times, contends that Christianity in America has devolved from a once traditional practice to a shadow of its former self, which, according to the author, praises its followers’ self-interests and greed.
Mr. Douthat argues that this concept of “bad religion,” has hurt America’s political and social landscape and posits that heresy has usurped long-held religious beliefs.
Ross Douthat speaks with Barbara Bradley Hagerty, religion correspondent for National Public Radio and Michael Gerson, op-ed columnist for the Washington Post at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.
HEAR AND SEE MUCH MORE: http://c-spanvideo.org/program/BadR
May 06

IMPORTANT ENGLISH NEWS FROM EUROPE, etc.

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THIS SITE IS DIFFICULT TO REACH. USE THE LINK BELOW TO REACH IT NOW. It covers Europe and the Middle East in English. It is important news that is NOT carried much in USA. You can find it on Directv on channel 375 3 times daily. You can also reach it at democracynow.org but the quickest way is through the link below. You can also reach it on FaceBook at DEMOCRACY NOW but it is not updated frequently.-mackie

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France has crowned Francois Hollande as its first Socialist president in nearly two decades, marking a shift to the left at the heart of Europe.

Hollande unseated Conservative Nicolas Sarkozy in a heated election on Sunday, making the incumbent France’s first one-term president in 31 years since Valery Giscard d’Estaing lost to Socialist Francois Mitterrand in 1981.

Hollande gave a rousing victory speech in Tulle, focusing on uniting France on several issues.

“To those who haven’t voted for me – let them know that I hear them, and that I will be president to all. There is one France, united in the same destiny,” said Hollande, who vowed to be dedicated to the causes of justice and youth. 

“We will never be apart – how beautiful life is tonight!” he said before heading off to Paris.

Al Jazeera’s Andrew Simmons in Tulle, said that there are high expectations of a man who “has never even held a junior ministerial post”.

“He’s certainly proved popular despite a background that really is pretty boring, politically.”

For this and other stories click on:
May 06

TOP 7 ON SUNDAY FOR Y0U:5/6/1:45pm

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MACKIE BAZEN@Mackiebzn http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jh2jJSsncHQ WE MUST WORK WITH CHINA, Romney 4yrs ago. We should work with all nations, instead of threats. But whats he saying now? +Feds: Alabama immigration law will have ‘continuing …and lasting’ consequences http://huff.to/IvZK1O +George Lindsey, known as Goober Pyle, dies http://on.msnbc.com/K4azMf   +Opinion: Intolerance of #Islam is increasing in #Europe, says Muhammad Abdul Bari. Read more here: http://aje.me/ICKqUU +Tom Brokaw: The White House Correspondents Dinner is bad for the press http://huff.to/IvZ38K +François Hollande appears to have won the French presidential election, ousting Nicolas Sarkozy, according to exit polls – @wsjbreakingnews   +Chen says U.S. diplomats, friends still barred from visiting him http://wapo.st/J9xbXg -more later
May 06

BALANCED VIEW OF NEWS-Try it now…

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I highly recommend this sight. Atheist-liberal-Conservative-Fundalmentalist-all for you!-mackie-Dmn
 Full Show: Between Two Worlds — Life on the Border
May 4, 2012
No writer understands the border culture between Mexico and the United States more intimately than Luis Alberto Urrea, whose life is the stuff of great novels. Son of a Mexican father and Anglo mother, Urrea grew up first in Tijuana and then just across the border in San Diego. Over the years he has produced a series of acclaimed novels, including The Hummingbird’s Daughter, The Devil’s Highway, and his latest, Queen of America — each a rich and revealing account of the people of the borderlands that join and separate our two nations.
Three of Urrea’s books were among scores of others removed from classrooms earlier this year when the Tucson school district eliminated Mexican-American studies on the accusation it was “divisive.” But there’s no ban on ideas in Bill’s studio, and Urrea talks with Bill Moyers about that episode as he unfolds the modern reality of life on the border.
For more click on:  http://billmoyers.com/episode/full-show-between-two-worlds-life-on-the-border/    to read or print it, click on “Transcript” on same site.
May 03

HONORING MY 2 MOMS…….

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Wahls, pictured left testifying before the Iowa State Legislature, is an engineering student at the University of Iowa.  He celebrated the marriage of his two moms in 2009.

The message below went out to Standing on the Side of Love supporters on Thursday, February 10, 2011. You can sign-up for these emails here.

Two weeks ago, I took a stand for equality, and for my family.  Taking time away from classes at the University of Iowa, where I am an engineering student, I testified before the Iowa House of Representatives in opposition to a proposed constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.  “I was raised by a gay couple,” I told lawmakers, “and I’m doing pretty well.”

A young Zach Wahls and his family at his moms’ 1996 commitment ceremony.A young Zach Wahls and his family at his moms’ 1996 commitment ceremony.

More than one and a half million people have now viewed my testimony on YouTube, and a lot of people have heaped an inordinately large amount of undeserved praise on me.  As a Unitarian Universalist, my testimony was simply what I was raised to believe – that we all should stand on the side of love.

A few days ago, I found out that the Standing on the Side of Love campaign was launching a new, online map of “courageous love” to mark National Standing on the Side of Love Day and had posted my testimony before the legislature to the map.  I am humbled that someone thought my family’s story might be an inspiration to others across the country and have been truly touched by the outpouring of support not just for my family, but for families like mine all across the world.

So, let me ask you — who in your life and your community would you like to honor for the tremendous ways in which they stand on the side of love?

 

Click on: http://www.standingonthesideoflove.org/blog/honoring-my-two-moms/

May 03

UNDERSTANDING HOMOSEXUALITY…

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WE NEED TO BETTER UNDERSTAND HOMOSEXUALS. THEY COULD HAVE BEEN BORN THAT WAY.

The pairing of same sex couples had previously been observed in more than 1,000 species including penguins, dolphins and primates.

However, in the latest study t…he authors claim the phenomenon is not only widespread but part of a necessary biological adaptation for the survival of the species.
They found that on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, almost a third of the Laysan albatross population is raised by pairs of two females because of the shortage of males. Through these ‘lesbian’ unions, Laysan albatross are flourishing. Their existence had been dwindling before the adaptation was noticed.
Homosexual behaviour widespread in animals according to new study – Telegraph soc.li
Homosexual behaviour is a nearly universal phenomenon in the animal kingdom, according to a new study.
For more Click on:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/5550488/Homosexual-behaviour-widespread-in-animals-according-to-new-study.html
May 03

LOVE NEVER FAILS…IT SLOWS SUICIDES

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FROM ATHEIST TO CONFUSED TO FUNDAMENTALISTS:

LOVE NEVER FAILS FOR YOU AND OTHERS: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjTKb9nrqmQ&feature=related

Donald J. Leonardo‏@VETERANSCANADA
As soldier suicides rise, National Defence slashes suicide prevention staff. The DND statistics also don’t reflect… http://fb.me/TnvUhTLn
In light of the recent suicides…sit back, look at your life, appreciate what you have. It could all change in a second. #blessed

As soldier suicides rise, CPC slashes suicide prevention staff http://zite.to/J1H5gH Harper again not looking out for soldiers #cdnpoli

Five Vidarbha farmers kill themselves; 332 suicides so far this year http://bit.ly/IwOW60 #GMO cotton has pushed up input costs

So 2 NFL player suicides and we must do something ASAP, but VA officials estimate that 18 veterans kill themselves each day. #WAKEUP

Don’t laugh about death or suicides.. Chill. It’s serious

VERY disturbing trend among ex-NFL players: Suicides in past 15 months of Junior Seau, Dave Duerson and Ray Easterling.

Suicides of NFL players due to brain-related injuries? http://bit.ly/IJUKVo #LethalConcussions
May 03

BEST 1 MINUTE MOTIVATIONAL VIDEO EVER…….?

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  I don’t know who created this 1 min. video. There are several well known people that are in it that will surprise you. Here is one comment: ‘When I was a kid, downhill skier Ken Reid (Crazy Canucks) said:
“If you don’t fall down, you are not trying hard enough”. I have never forgotten that.’
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       Want to change your city, state, country and world? Following is your best way:   CALL YOUR CONGRESSPERSONS: http://www.contactingthecongress.org/ Even if you get a voice mail, leave a message for they count the “For/Against.” Vote for the candidate who WILL BE FAIR TO ALL, OK?
HELPING OTHERS HELP THEMSELVES HELPS YOU!
May 02

Stealing Jesus: How Fundamentalism Betrays Christianity

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I am sending this to you to help those who have left fundamentalist churches that preach damnation, hatred, fear and “you’re not a Christian if you don’t believe like me.”  Many have turned against the church and never came back, or just ran away from strict preachers, parents, teachers, etc. and never looked back to find a loving, caring church, group, club, etc.  I like a church sign down the road from me that states:
“We Welcome Sinners and Backsliders Like Us.”  You’ll find some good ideas from the summary and the reviews shared from others who have had a similar experience.-mackie
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From the author of the widely acclaimed A Place at the Table, this is a major work, passionately outspoken and cogently reasoned, that exposes the great danger posed to Christianity today by fundamentalism.
The time is past, says Bruce Bawer, when denominational names and other traditional labels provided an accurate reflection of Christian America’s religious beliefs and p…moreFrom the author of the widely acclaimed A Place at the Table, this is a major work, passionately outspoken and cogently reasoned, that exposes the great danger posed to Christianity today by fundamentalism.
The time is past, says Bruce Bawer, when denominational names and other traditional labels provided an accurate reflection of Christian America’s religious beliefs and practices. The meaningful distinction today is not between Protestant and Catholic, or Baptist and Episcopalian, but rather between “legalistic” and “nonlegalistic” religion, between the Church of Law and the Church of Love. On one side is the fundamentalist right, which draws a sharp distinction between “saved” and “unsaved” and worships a God of wrath and judgment; on the other are more mainstream Christians who view all humankind as children of a loving God who calls them to break down barriers of hate, prejudice, and distrust.
Pointing out that the supposedly “traditional” beliefs of American fundamentalism–about which most mainstream Christians, clergy included, know shockingly little–are in fact of relatively recent origin, are distinctively American in many ways, and are dramatically at odds with the values that Jesus actually spread, Bawer fascinatingly demonstrates the way in which these beliefs have increasingly come to supplant genuinely fundamental Christian tenets in the American church and to become synonymous with Christianity in the minds of many people.
Stealing Jesus is the ringing testament of a man who is equally disturbed by the notion of an America without Christianity and the notion of an American Christianity without love and compassion.
For more click on:
May 02

Facebook Password Amendment Rejected by Congress….

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(Many loyal Republicans fear Democrats might take over House because of Tea Party)

“The amendment was deemed unnecessary by the Republicans, and was voted down 236 to 184. Only one House Republican voted in support of the amendment, while only two House Democrats voted against the amendment. Republicans argued that while the proposed legislation wouldn’t help the situation, they were willing to work on new legislation in the future.”

The House of Representatives has rejected an effort to give the Federal Communications Commission the power to stop employers from asking job applicants for their password to Facebook and other social networking sites.

The effort was an amendment, proposed by Representative Ed Perlmutter of Colorado, added to legislation to reform the FCC.

“What this amendment does is it says that you cannot demand, as a condition of employment, that somebody reveal a confidential password to their Facebook, to their Flickr, to their Twitter, whatever their account may be,” Perlmutter said during a speech on the House floor.

The amendment would have added the following paragraph to the Federal Communications Commission Process Reform Act of 2012:

“Nothing in this Act or any amendment made by this Act shall be construed to limit or restrict the ability of the Federal Communications Commission to adopt a rule or to amend an existing rule to protect online privacy, including requirements in such rule that prohibit licensees or regulated entities from mandating that job applicants or employees disclose confidential passwords to social networking websites.”

The amendment was deemed unnecessary by the Republicans, and was voted down 236 to 184. Only one House Republican voted in support of the amendment, while only two House Democrats voted against the amendment. Republicans argued that while the proposed legislation wouldn’t help the situation, they were willing to work on new legislation in the future.

Click on: http://www.pcworld.com/article/252837/facebook_password_amendment_rejected_by_congress.html