Dogon Village News Alerts

Interesting piece by Frank Schaeffer, Huffington Post --

Obama's Minister Committed "Treason" But When My Father Said the Same Thing He Was a Republican Hero

When Senator Obama's preacher thundered about racism and injustice Obama suffered smear-by-association. But when my late father -- Religious Right leader Francis Schaeffer -- denounced America and even called for the violent overthrow of the US government, he was invited to lunch with presidents Ford, Reagan and Bush, Sr.

Every Sunday thousands of right wing white preachers (following in my father's footsteps) rail against America's sins from tens of thousands of pulpits. They tell us that America is complicit in the "murder of the unborn," has become "Sodom" by coddling gays, and that our public schools are sinful places full of evolutionists and sex educators hell-bent on corrupting children. They say, as my dad often did, that we are, "under the judgment of God." They call America evil and warn of immanent destruction. By comparison Obama's minister's shouted "controversial" comments were mild. All he said was that God should damn America for our racism and violence and that no one had ever used the N-word about Hillary Clinton.

Dad and I were amongst the founders of the Religious right. In the 1970s and 1980s, while Dad and I crisscrossed America denouncing our nation's sins instead of getting in trouble we became darlings of the Republican Party. (This was while I was my father's sidekick before I dropped out of the evangelical movement altogether.) We were rewarded for our "stand" by people such as Congressman Jack Kemp, the Fords, Reagan and the Bush family. The top Republican leadership depended on preachers and agitators like us to energize their rank and file. No one called us un-American.

....The hypocrisy of the right denouncing Obama, because of his minister's words, is staggering. They are the same people who argue for the right to "bear arms" as "insurance" to limit government power. They are the same people that (in the early 1980s roared and cheered when I called down damnation on America as "fallen away from God" at their national meetings where I was keynote speaker, including the annual meeting of the ultraconservative Southern Baptist convention, and the religious broadcasters that I addressed.

....Both the far right Republicans and the stop-at-nothing Clintons are using the "scandal" of Obama's preacher to undermine the first black American candidate with a serious shot at the presidency. Funny thing is, the racist Clinton/Far Right smear machine proves that Obama's minister had a valid point. There is plenty to yell about these days.

Read the full blog at Huffington Post:

Born on September 22, 1941, in Philadelphia, PA; son of Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Sr. and Dr. Mary Henderson Wright; married Ramah Reed; children: Janet Marie, Jeri Lynne, Nikol, Nathan, Jamila
Education: Virginia Union University, 1959-61; Howard University, BA, 1968, MA, 1969; University of Chicago School of Divinity, MA, 1975; United Theological Seminary, DMin, Black Sacred music, 1990.
Religion: United Church of Christ.
Military/Wartime Service: U.S. Marine Corps, private first class, 1961-63; U.S. Navy, hospital corpsman third class, 1964-67.
Memberships:
Selected: Ministers for Racial and Social Justice, United Church of Christ, 1972-; Black Theology Project, Board of Directors, 1975-95; Evangelical Health Systems, Board of Directors, 1986-89; Chicago Theological Seminary, Board of Trustees, 1999-2000; Virginia Union University, Board of Trustees, 2001-.

Career

Zion Church, interim pastor, 1968-69; Beth Eden Church, assistant pastor, 1969-1971; American Association of Theological Schools, researcher, 1970-72; Trinity United Church of Christ, pastor 1972-. Chicago Center for Black Religious Studies, executive director, 1974-75; Chicago Cluster of Theological Schools, lecturer, 1975-77; United Theological Seminary, professor, 1991-97; Chicago Theological Seminary, professor, 1998; Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary, professor, 1999.

Awards

Selected: Howard University, Dean's List, 1968; The Fund for Theological Education, Rockefeller Fellowship, 1970-75; three Presidential Commendations from L.B. Johnson, 1965-66.


Life's Work

Reverend Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. is one of the most widely acclaimed black preachers in the United States. Combining social concern, spiritual growth, and political activism, Wright, who preaches in a black traditional style, brings a message of hope, redemption, and renewal. In 1972 he became pastor of a small United Church of Christ congregation in the inner city of Chicago. After over 30 years in the pulpit, his congregation has grown to 10,000 and is the largest United Church of Christ congregation in the United States.

by ZZ Packer , Huffington Post - So, forty-three white male presidents to date, and Geraldine Ferraro says Obama's gotten where he is because he's black?

If you've been following the latest statement by Geraldine Ferraro in which she said "If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position," you might also be operating under the assumption that our last 43 presidents have been black, or that blacks overwhelmingly make up the bulk of Fortune 500 CEOs, or for that matter, the majority of Andover kids whining about the lack of locales for spring break or the cast of The OC.

Just at the beginning of his campaign it seemed like an absolute long shot because of his race. Now, having overcome all this and other these obstacles--including the ones that contribute to high percentages of black men who are jobless, in prison, or dead by the age of 25--he is where he is because of race?

The horrible double standard is obvious. According to those of Ferraro's ilk: if you're a poor black man, or incarcerated, or jobless or homeless, you are where you are because of your own ineptitude and should take responsibility for your actions. However, if you've excelled at one of the top schools in the nation, then later on became a star attorney and later become a senator who inspires millions, then you're only there in spite of your ineptitude and you really shouldn't take responsibility for it. Talk about movin' on up. Read the full article

By Sherry F. Colb - On March 11, New York Governor Eliot Spitzer's fall from grace topped the news. Federal investigators had caught Spitzer -known to them as "Client 9" -- arranging for a prostitute named "Kristen" to meet him for an assignation at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington.

Ten years ago, in 1998, as readers will doubtless recall, a different sex scandal made headlines across the globe. Then, it was President Bill Clinton who stood in the glare of the cameras. As he finally admitted, months after the allegations first surfaced, he had engaged in an inappropriate (i.e., sexual) relationship with Monica Lewinsky, a White House intern in her early 20's...

Spitzer's Fall

As Attorney General, Spitzer had pursued the prosecution of sex rings. As governor, he played a pivotal role in passing a human trafficking law that would punish prostitutes' clients. In so doing, he had evidenced an understanding for the claims of human rights organizations that sex traffic begins with demand, and that criminal penalties must therefore target consumers rather than sex workers.

As it has emerged, however, following the shocking announcement on March 11, Spitzer had himself contributed to the demand that fuels the sex trade - an industry that Spitzer had called "modern-day slavery" - and had spent tens of thousands of dollars purchasing the services of the Emperor's Club V.I.P., an online prostitution ring. ...

Clinton's Fall

Like Spitzer's, Clinton's admission of sexual misconduct included an acknowledgment of the pain that his behavior had caused his family. Clinton also indicated that his actions were wrong. He did not, however, resign from office and allow his vice president - Al Gore - to continue the important work of running the country.

A Republican-controlled House of Representatives subsequently impeached Clinton for perjury and obstruction of justice ...

...The Senate, however, acquitted Clinton of the charges, and he continued in office until the end of his term, though he had his license to practice law in Arkansas suspended and his membership in the U.S. Supreme Court bar revoked in the aftermath of the trial.

Similarities and Differences Between the Spitzer and Clinton Scenarios

...First, though both Clinton and Spitzer appeared to have been repeat players in the marital infidelity game, Clinton's conduct generally did not violate the criminal law, while Spitzer's did. I say "generally," because one woman did accuse Clinton of raping her in a hotel room in 1978, an allegation corroborated by a friend who had met with the woman immediately after the alleged attack. Clinton denied the accusations, which never faced the test of a trial. Other alleged Clinton relationships, however, appeared to qualify as consensual, at least for purposes of the criminal law (sexual harassment does, of course, raise some issues of coercion).

... For the most powerful man in the world to have sexual relations with an intern (who was apparently in love with the President) might be consensual, but it does exploit a power imbalance that could hardly be more stark. Similarly, we have no evidence that Spitzer compelled Kristen or other sex workers to engage in conduct against their will. Nonetheless, the role of a prostitute - being offered to a client for his sexual gratification in exchange for money (in this case, at least $1000 an hour) - does not exactly place the man and the woman in the relationship on reciprocal footing. Read the full story here



Sherry F. Colb, a FindLaw columnist, is currently a Visiting Professor at Columbia Law School and will be joining the Cornell Law School faculty in the fall. Her book, When Sex Counts: Making Babies and Making Law, is currently available on Amazon.

I have to admit, if the issue for the 2008 election becomes national security and not the RECESSION, John McCain can't be beat. If the democratic candidates don't stop squabbling and get back to the challenges American's are facing daily McCain will be well positioned to become the next president. He's talking about the issues, he has experience, and he's a likeable guy.

Democrats need to realize that the spiraling cost of gas, food, and education, livable wages, and healthcare are more important than where Obama goes to Church or the fact that Ms. Ferraro thinks the only reason she was a candidate for vice president is because she was a women. Obama's minister is retired, and if Ferraro is not, with her low self-esteem, she might as well be retired.

Here's a thought-provoking comment from ABC News made by former presidential candidate Mitt Romney. He makes an excellent argument about Clinton's "3 am" ad

"that was the best ad that the McCain campaign could have ever hoped for, because listening to Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama talking about experience in a national security crisis is like listening to two Chihuahuas arguing about which is the biggest dog. When it comes to national security, John McCain is the big dog, and they are each the Chihuahua." Visit ABC News

Rush Limbaugh talks at length about the chaos in the democratic party-which he takes a little credit for. It's scary when Rush is making this much sense.

The Philadelphia Inquirer, Dick Polman, columnist: "'Archie Bunker at the Kitchen Sink.' Now consider Ferraro's remark. By attributing Obama's strong position to the color of his skin, she is denigrating his rare political gifts -- all of which have actually enabled him to transcend the de facto color barrier that, until now, has prevented black candidates from ascending to the top tier. Or look at it this way: If Obama is indeed well positioned in this campaign primarily because he is black, why is it that no black has ever achieved this position before? It's tragic," writes Dick Polman. I love this. These people are imploding all around. "It's tragic for the Democratic party that one of its pioneer feminists would sound like Archie Bunker in his easy chair on All in the Family, grousing about affirmative action, about how blacks are getting a leg up solely because of their race. Because this is the message of reverse racism, widely embraced by whites who believe that they're getting a raw deal in an unfair modern world. (Witness Ferraro's anger at being criticized for her Obama remark; her latest retort is, 'I really think they're attacking me because I'm white.')" Gosh, folks. Do you understand how wonderful this all is?

This bunch of liberals, George Neumayr said it perfectly yesterday in the American Spectator, they are being devoured by their own policies. They gave us the concept of affirmative action, and now, the Clintons, the rest of the party hierarchy, bigwigs sitting around in their private rooms, and they can't believe, "What the hell, we got a rookie black guy, and we can't say anything," and they're cursing up a storm and they're devising stratagems and strategeries to get rid of this guy. If they were true to their word, if these liberals really meant all of this, Hillary would have got out of the way, Edwards would have never got in, and they would all be unified behind Obama, and they'd be carrying him around on a throne to see to it that he was elected president, because that was their promise to so many in their party and so many of their voters, particularly black voters, "We're going to emancipate you. We're going to save you. We're going to get you from out under the thumb of those racist Republican white bigots. We're going to make sure you get a fair shake. We're going to make sure you don't get pulled over at three in the afternoon because you're driving a car that looks like you can't afford."

All the promises, nothing changes, nothing changes. Bill Clinton has morphed into Bull Clinton. We named him after Bull Connor. Now they want a Jim Crow election. Only the blacks should go for Obama, only the women should go for Hillary. This party is demonstrating exactly who they are and what they're all about. They are just being devoured by their own policies. I can't tell you, to see Geraldine Ferraro be so offended. It's tragic. It's tragic. Here, we have some Ferraro sound bites. Why, what timing. These things just don't happen by accident, folks. This is the result of broadcast excellence, highly trained broadcast specialties that I have learned. Last night, Hannity & Colmes, Fox News Channel, Alan Colmes says in reaction to Hillary Clinton's comment, "I don't agree with it, it's regrettable that one of our supporters said this."

MoveOn.org announced the launch of a positive ad contest to help Barack Obama win the nomination and to profile the creativity he inspires. If you have writing, acting, or video editing talent, and this is your chance to use help Obama win and maybe even get your ad aired.

The winning spot will air nationally and the winner will get a $20,000 gift certificate for a camera and editing package.

MoveOn.org boasts over 3.2 million members across America working together to find their political voice in a system dominated by big money and big media. The organization organizes quick action on other timely issues that that their members care about including an anti-war campaign.