Subliminally known for centuries, and surfaced dramatically and tragically on September 11th , is that religion is dangerous when it imposes its will on the political realm. There has always been religious lag, resistance and conflict with respect to modernity and democratization. Ironically, it was Christ who first introduced the concept of separation — "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s." Of course, religion can never be totally isolated...
Though I am not one of them, many believe that the policy of teachers unions is to put jobs, salaries and seniority ahead of educational quality, the remains of which is incompetent teachers and the chief reasons children are so poorly educated in public schools. This, of course, is sheer nonsense: some more powerful locals through out the nation have managed to negotiate better education at the table with their respective school boards. Only recently the teachers union in New York after y...
Since its inception diehard elected officials in the Republican Party have been against social security — except at reelection time. Now they try to hide behind “privatizing” the fund, though it is primarily a safety net for millions who depend on it. Along with these diehards are the wealthy of both parties who simply don’t get it. The vast majority of us underlings are Wall Street ignorant and except for those lucky enough to have retirement pensions and 401K’s they have no investments no...
The End Run Vogue in this era seems to be to skirt real issues and trump up lame excuses to thwart peace and prosperity. George W. Bush is the epitome of this — war of choice, tax-cuts. He learned from Sharon who quickly — what little hope there may have been in September 2000 — crushed six years of Clinton and George Mitchell’s efforts to bring peace to Israel by treading, with armed police, on the Temple Mount and/or Al-Haram al-Sharif, which was precisely the lame excuse on which both ne...
[1970] To play the heavy is as a rule a more difficult task than the role of protagonist on the side of righteousness. Rhetoric and oratory rely on the underpinnings of logic and ethics to persuade the enlightened; whereas sophistry relies on gyrations of half-truths, innuendoes and prejudice — no small task if deliberate, but ironically very simple if out of ignorance.Little wonder, then, that giants like Douglass, Walker and Garvey ring out through the ages as exemplars of style and persuasi...
Live & Let Live “Live and let live” is not an absolute. When Dirty Harry challenges his captive with “Make my day” and is counter challenged, then death is the result. If the Maryland snipers resisted arrest there would be no qualms if they were sent off in body bags. So with “let Muslims be Muslims” is prima-facie for religious freedom, yet does not mean they are free to hate, maim or kill. From the Dark Age to the Puritans, let Christians be Christians had to be qualified in face of fatal...
Globalization has been kicked around lately as it should be what with China trade dominance and NAFTA in shambles. In itself it is a positive because opening up trade routes since ancient times generated civilization. Yet globalization has always been controlled by thugs, such as in the slave trade and the exploitation of much poorer or less advanced countries. This has not really changed. Since China can exploit its own labor by offering western capital an attractive bottom line to produce o...
Does it make any sense to rebuild Iraq’s schools when millions of kids here are stuck in obscene portable classrooms? And how about the billions for Iraq’s infrastructure when we’re stuck with pre-WWII railways and inner cities?Why is it that Medicare is an exclusive club for the elderly when untold millions of average citizens can’t afford even basic health care, let alone major medical? Compassionate conservative is a misnomer; rather, it is reactionary with a passion. Nowadays liberal ...
John Nichols’ [The Nation, political magazine] “...Rural Strategy” is dead wrong for presidential candidates. On the contrary, “If they” [the farmers] ”pay serious attention” long enough to recognize their own distorted psyche, perhaps strides toward their interests will be reasserted. Nichols himself admitted that after the FDR improvement of the farmer’s status, the farmer in the 50s went back to his old rugged individualism ways and the Republican party. Of course, the same can be s...
I’m a believer in political dialogue and debate. There comes a time, however, when too much of a good thing must end, such as the over abundance of Democratic candidates. Sharpton and Kucinich have had their say but are going nowhere. As much as I admire Braun’s magnificent reason and balance, there is little hope for her, though surely if one of the candidates should become president, there will be a place for her. Lieberman with his hawkish posture and tendency to swivel at the slightest hin...
With all the violence rampant in the nation, I find it hard to understand why so many people object to gun control. After all, it has nothing to do with the farm lad or lass shooting down crows over a cornfield, but it does target the criminal mind or the ballistic hunter who wants military firepower. I doubt anyone would object to banning over-the-shoulder missiles to shoot down the bald headed eagle! Do we really want to go back to the mentality of slaughtering buffaloes? C’mon, you gun-l...
We have not been able to close the book on the Civil War in the wake of Confederate flag waving and racism still rampant in all sections of the nation. Nor will the chapter on Affirmative Action be concluded until we finally empathize with those of color and gender. In fact, another chapter on Affirmative Action must be drafted for unskilled workers who must be given every opportunity to better their lot. There has always been Affirmative Action for the privilege; for it is seldom what you ...
The Pledge of Allegiance Case, U.S. v. Newdow, is simply a waste of time. School children have been held hostage of this rote exercise since McCarthyism. This is not to say that children shouldn’t show symbolic patriotism on occasion, nor is it so terribly obnoxious to show as an aside of religion once in a while. The flag, however, has no — implicit or explicit — reference to God; it is simply an allegiance to Stars and Stripes, as is the national anthem, and its implicit sacrifice ma...
Ever since Roosevelt and Truman were shot down in their efforts to institutionalize health care, the US has been wary of “socialized medicine.” That Medicare in itself was passed is owed to JFK — nostalgia and legacy. Slowly, however, the nation is more wary of the monolithic determinism of the AMA, the pharmaceutical industry and insurance companies dictating the terms of health care. They abhorred Medicare because it acted as a check and balance against the laissez-faire profit motive in as...
Most of us think the stock market is the sole indicator of a good or bad economy. However, with so much investment going overseas, it doesn’t tell the whole story. More important is labor statistics. The top retailier, for instance always seems to lead the pack in job creation, but most of it is part time and roughly at minimum wage, but its greatest impact on creating jobs is abroad by importing tons of foreign made goods. There was a time when buying American was the patriotic thing to ...