Washington Is Broken… But How To Fix It???

 

Source:  Deal or No Deal, Washington Debacle Will Linger Into New Year – ABC News.

StormyWashington is now broken beyond the point where bold individual leadership can even fix it. The forces at play are bigger than the ability of the president, House Speaker John Boehner, or any other person or persons to turn them around without the certain promise of a revolt in the party ranks that would leave them out of effective power.

The cliff metaphor suggests a jump into a void, but at least one that has a bottom. Yet as the nation watches this slow-motion wreck, the depths of dysfunction have yet to be fully explored.

I didn’t think it was possible to find someone who has a darker attitude towards those in Washington than I do but Rick Klein who wrote the above article certainly seems to beat me at that game. I have been accused by some of putting all the blame for the current dysfunction on the Republicans but I realize that it takes two to play the idiotic games they play in that city.  But I must insist that much , but certainly not all, of the blame belongs with the GOP and that is because of their adamant fixation on one word, “never”.   The other fundamental part of the problem is the lack of great leaders.

Continue reading “Washington Is Broken… But How To Fix It???”

Being Told What To Believe……

This is a continuation of my mini-project to strike down some of the myths around Thomas Jefferson. The myth at hand is that he intended the United States to be a Christian nation.  If anything can clear up the misconceptions of Jeffersonian history, it must come best from the author himself.  Here are some of his words about things religious: About Heresy Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity. -Thomas Jefferson, Notes on Virginia, 1782 Anyone who has visited … Continue reading Being Told What To Believe……

Being Deaf….

Source: DO NOT OPEN « creativetidalwave. Working in a deaf school for many years I learned the value of incidental learning. So many students lacked a lot of common knowledge often taken for granted. We are constantly learning from events and situations that are going on around us though we are often not aware or participating in them directly. Being deaf cuts one-off from a more experiences than most are aware. They are often clueless of what is happening around them because they are not alert to turn to observe due to a lack of being able to hear to know something … Continue reading Being Deaf….

Grover Predicts….. And So Do I….

Source: Norquist: Tea party resurgence if no “fiscal cliff” deal – Political Eye – CBS News. Grover Norquist is predicting that President Obama will be the political target of tea partiers if a deal on averting the “fiscal cliff” fails to materialize. No this quote from the article is not a joke.  But it sure should be. As if the tea partiers will suddenly love the president if he averts the fiscal curb. We will see pigs fly before that group has more than four letter words for our president. Grover seems to want to predict the future and so do … Continue reading Grover Predicts….. And So Do I….

Mary Dyer….. Heretic… Quaker….

I am a regular reader of a Quaker blog called Quaker Quaker. On a recent posting  by Mac Lemann I learned a little about Mary Dyer. Here are some of his words from that post: I had recently re-learned, at Pendle Hill from Marcelle Martin, the story of Mary Dyer and the other Quaker martyrs hung on Boston Common. Mary was a follower of Anne Hutchinson (see the Antinomian Controversy) who preached that every Christian believer could read, interpret, and preach the word of God and that the Grace of God is freely given. Mary was later convinced by George Fox … Continue reading Mary Dyer….. Heretic… Quaker….

The Pro-Scrooge Christmas Story….

Source:  Conservatives urge GOP leaders to be bold, prepare to go over cliff – The Hill’s On The Money. “I think Obama is very mindful of his legacy and is horrified of going over the cliff,” said Andy Roth of the Club for Growth. “Going over the cliff might be a signal that needs to be sent to the president, that he needs to play ball.” He argued that President Clinton was forced to become a less liberal president after Speaker Newt Gingrich shut down the government in 1995. “Clinton would not play ball with Newt until Newt shut the … Continue reading The Pro-Scrooge Christmas Story….

The Words of Jesus….

This is a continuation of the previous post about the words of Jesus taking front and center in Christian living.  Last time we talked about  how the red letters came about in our Christian bibles and about an organization dedicated to putting them back in their proper place in Christianity.  This time I want to tell you about a couple of books that put the red letters front and center. The first is a book by Phyllis Tickle entitled The Words of Jesus. This book which was published in 2008 was the first time I have come across something dedicated … Continue reading The Words of Jesus….

Good At Complaining But Not Good At Solutions….

  “The devil is in the details” is a well-known quote that definitely applies in all this “fiscal cliff” talk going on recently. The congress in our version of government has the power of the purse. They determine where the money is spent and where it is cut. So, I find it strange that Mr. Boehner insists that the president and not him is responsible for identifying what would be cut from the budget in order to appease the GOP base. As mentioned in the article below Republicans do relatively well with the American people when they talk broadly about … Continue reading Good At Complaining But Not Good At Solutions….

To Be a Christian….

To be like Christ is to be a Christian  – 1718   William Penn’s last words   Although I have never attended a meeting I feel quite close to the Society of Friends known as Quakers. They are so throughly grounded in “being” a Christian instead of just proclaiming a set of beliefs.  To see William Penn’s last words here it is obvious that he was a faithful Quaker. Continue reading To Be a Christian….

Institutional Purity…..

The primary reason there are 39,000+ Christian denominations is that each are trying to maintain “purity” of beliefs. Here is how that logic usually plays out: ” If we allow differences of opinions among us then we will soon reach a slippery slope where we will slide into heresy. For that reason we must be on the constant watch to exclude anyone among us who asks the ‘wrong’ questions or dares to disagree any of our creeds or beliefs.” I have personally felt the stink of one of these churches. But what these church authorities espousing this view overlook is … Continue reading Institutional Purity…..

Taxes, Its All Relative…..

Source: Most Americans Face Lower Tax Burden Than in the 80s – NYTimes.com. But in fact, most Americans in 2010 paid far less in total taxes — federal, state and local — than they would have paid 30 years ago. According to an analysis by The New York Times, the combination of all income taxes, sales taxes and property taxes took a smaller share of their income than it took from households with the same inflation-adjusted income in 1980. Households earning more than $200,000 benefited from the largest percentage declines in total taxation as a share of income. Middle-income households benefited, … Continue reading Taxes, Its All Relative…..

Remaking Ourselves….

As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world — that is the myth of the atomic age — as in being able to remake ourselves. — Gandhi When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood  behind me.  — 1 Corinthians 13 Looking back on my life Gandhi’s quote above inspires me with its wisdom and the second quote from the Bible mirrors the same message.  Being able to see … Continue reading Remaking Ourselves….

Following the Examples of Jesus….

Here is a quote by Philip Gulley in his book entitled The Evolution of Faith – How God is creating a better Christianity that will be used for this discussion. To be sure, if one believes Christianity is primarily about worshipping Jesus, a faith that incorporates other religious traditions will be considered heretical. But if one believes Christianity is primarily about following the example of Jesus, then it is easy to imagine a faith informed by men and women of goodwill, though of diverse traditions. If the future of the Christian faith is creedalism and believing the right things about … Continue reading Following the Examples of Jesus….

Eternal Peace…

Several years ago I came across a small book entitled Quaker Spirituality – Selected Writings. I’m still not sure what made me pause on the title but I am glad I did. Inside that book was an essay by Thomas R. Kelly (1893-1941) talked about the “Eternal Presence”. I didn’t know it then but this essay put me on the path to learning much more about Quakers. It gave me the most complete understanding of who God was that I have ever had in my life up to that point. Here are some of the words from that essay. I am … Continue reading Eternal Peace…

Eternal Presence….

Several years ago I came across a small book entitled Quaker Spirituality – Selected Writings. I’m still not sure what made me pause on the title but I am glad I did. Inside that book was an essay by Thomas R. Kelly (1893-1941) talked about the “Eternal Presence”. I didn’t know it then but this essay put me on the path to learning much more about Quakers. It gave me the most complete understanding of who God was that I have ever had in my life up to that point. Here are some of the words from that essay. I am just … Continue reading Eternal Presence….