politics

Guess That Means It's All Over

Posted October 30th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

Peruvian shamans send good vibes to candidates: Most foresee Obama victory

Quote:
The shamans whistled, chanted and rubbed both posters [of Barack Obama and John McCain] with Andean spirit-totems, crucifixes, a statue of a dark-skinned Jesus and other idols to scare away bad spirits and negative energies they said might prevent a fair and democratic election.

Uh...y-e-e-a-h.

Now THAT is a Statement Worthy of a Catholic Bishop

Posted October 28th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

Bishop Joseph Martino of the Scranton, PA Diocese issued this pastoral letter to his flock regarding the primacy of abortion as an issue facing voters:

Pastoral Letter on Respecting Life

No equivocation or wishy-washiness here. Bishop Martino makes it quite clear that some issues are far more important than others.

Quote:
Another argument goes like this: “As wrong as abortion is, I don’t think it is the only relevant ‘life’ issue that should be considered when deciding for whom to vote.” This reasoning is sound only if other issues carry the same moral weight as abortion does, such as in the case of euthanasia and destruction of embryos for research purposes. Health care, education, economic security, immigration, and taxes are very important concerns. Neglect of any one of them has dire consequences as the recent financial crisis demonstrates. However, the solutions to problems in these areas do not usually involve a rejection of the sanctity of human life in the way that abortion does. Being “right” on taxes, education, health care, immigration, and the economy fails to make up for the error of disregarding the value of a human life. Consider this: the finest health and education systems, the fairest immigration laws, and the soundest economy do nothing for the child who never sees the light of day. It is a tragic irony that “pro-choice” candidates have come to support homicide - the gravest injustice a society can tolerate - in the name of “social justice.”

Bishop Martino then backed this up when he unexpectedly dropped in on a political forum being held in one of his parishes. He particularly took issue with the fact that the forum was discussing a statement by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops and was not including discussion of his pastoral letter.

Bishop stresses abortion view at political forum

Quote:
Martino, who arrived while the panelists were stating their viewpoints, took issue with the USCCB statement, which was handed out to everyone at the meeting, and also that his letter was not mentioned once at the forum. “No USCCB document is relevant in this diocese,” said Martino. “The USCCB doesn’t speak for me.” “The only relevant document ... is my letter,” he said. “There is one teacher in this diocese, and these points are not debatable.”

That's leadership, people.

McCain and Obama at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Dinner

Posted October 17th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

Both of these guys are funnier than I thought they could be. Gotta hand it to their writers.

McCain, part 1


0

McCain, part 2


Obama, part 1


Obama, part 2


Steve Cohen, Super Genius

Posted September 11th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

Isn't it great when one of your elected officials puts your city on the map? I'm sure there are many people thinking about my district with questions like "How can they be so stupid as to elect this guy?"

My congressman, Steve Cohen. For years I've heard his supporters talk about how smart he is. Well, yeah, I see just how smart he is. Not only making with an idiotic analogy regarding Barack Obama and Sarah Palin, but lifting the idea from DailyKos! While watching the video, take a look at Mr. Cohen's hair. Undoubtedly, the tremendous heat generated by the workings of his massive brain is causing an updraft.


Quote:
I submit to you, Mr. Speaker, that the parties have differences, but if you want change, you want the Democratic Party. Barack Obama was a community organizer like Jesus, who our minister prayed about. Pontius Pilate was a governer. Thank you Mr. Speaker.

Where to begin? Even if you leave out the fact that Jesus is God and Son of God, there are a few points to make (to be fair, these are mostly culled from other people's comments and are not original with me):

  • Jesus was not a community organizer. He was an itinerant preacher with some devoted followers. His focus was on God and on relating to God properly. I'll bet you can't find one instance of him trying to help someone make contact with the government to get anything.
  • Where Jesus did address people bettering their lives, it was always in the context of what they should do, not in what they could get others to do for them.
  • If anybody was a "community organizer", it was Barabbas, the captured revolutionary who was freed while the enthralled crowd was chanting his name.
  • Pilate voted "present", and so allowed the innocent to die.
  • Jesus was bound to no organization. He clearly had a reform agenda, and wasn't afraid to stand up to his fellows.

Okay, that's enough. I need to get going.

Can She Really Be That Dumb?

Posted August 26th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

This past weekend, Nancy Pelosi said some mind-bogglingly stupid things about the Catholic Church's stance on abortion. In particular, she stated that the Church started condemning abortion around 1950, and that it's still a matter of controversy within the Church.

I would attempt to respond, but Archbishop Chaput of Denver put it much better than I ever could:

Quote:
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is a gifted public servant of strong convictions and many profession-
al skills.  Regrettably, knowledge of Catholic history and teaching does not seem to be one of them.

Archbishop Chaput's letter responding to Pelosi's comments is attached.

AttachmentSize
onseparationofsense&state_openlettercjc8.25.08.pdf53.28 KB

Scrappleface - Obama: Iran Needs to Know We Mean Talk

Posted July 25th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

Scrappleface - Obama: Iran Needs to Know We Mean Talk

My favorite line:

Quote:
“Iran needs to know that our words mean something,” he said. “During
the Obama administration, our words will mean that we are saying things
by combining those words into sentences to express ideas about how we
feel, using dramatic phrases and dynamic cadences. Iran must never
question our resolve to deliver…speeches.”

JibJab - Time for Some Campaignin'

Posted July 16th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

The fellows at JibJab are some of the funniest satirists going these days.



Send a JibJab Sendables® eCard Today!

The Candidates' Biggest Assets

Posted July 16th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

It seems to me that McCain's biggest asset in this campaign is that he's running against Obama.

Obama's biggest asset is that he's running against McCain.

Either of these guys would be pounded flat if they were running against a strong candidate.  Obama wouldn't have stood a chance against Fred Thompson in a debate.  McCain would have been outmaneuvered at every turn by Hilary Clinton.

I Miss Fred

Posted February 5th, 2008 by Mark Romer
in

A few weeks ago, I was excited about the presidential contest. There was a candidate in the race whom I was completely for. Fred Thompson was on the correct side of just about all the issues, and he could easily articulate and defend his viewpoint. He said all the right things, and I was electrified every time I heard him speak.

And then...he quit.

Gore Win Eviscerates Nobel Reputation

Posted October 12th, 2007 by Mark Romer
in

If there were any doubts about the irrelevance of the Nobel Peace Prize, the win by Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change should put them to rest. In its press release announcing the award, the only reference to "peace" is that "There may be increased danger of violent conflicts and wars, within and between states" because of possible environmental pressures brought about by possible climate change.

12next ›last »
Syndicate content