Is Prayer That Great?
This content was posted July 12, 2008. … Prayer is not always a good idea. Somebody has to say it, even though it is the National Day of Prayer.
Many of my objections are in the phrase, Prayer is talking to God, and Meditation is Listening. We love to talk, and don’t have time to listen. Talking is yang, active, power. Listening is ying, receptive, passive, and indicates respect for the person you are paying attention to. No one ever says I am going to meditate for you. Although maybe you should.
Prayer is used as an aggressive weapon. “I am going to pray for you” is the condescending conclusion of many religious arguments. I have had it shouted at me like a curse.
There is also the matter of prayer as entertainment. While this may be cool to those who are on the program, it can be repulsive to others.
Now, prayer is not a completely bad thing. One of the cherished memories of my father is the brief, commonsense blessings he would give before meals. In the context of a church service, prayer plays a useful function. Some famous prayers are beautiful poetry. In Islam, the daily prayers are an important part of observance. Who am I to say it is wrong?
When someone is in a bad way, people want to think they can help. While it does not hurt to pray for someone, it is nothing to boast about.
The problem is when people are proud of their prayers. There are few as prideful as a “humble servant.” While it may mean something to you, not everyone is impressed. And in a religion devoted to converting others, you should care what people think.
Matthew 6:5-8: “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”
This content was posted June 14, 2007. … It is time to tell a story, with no moral, and no redeeming social value. In 1980, I was staying at a place called the Sea Haven Hostel, affectionately known as Sleaze Haven. This was in Seattle WA, as far as you can get from Atlanta, and still be in the lower 48. I was working through Manpower, and staying in a semi-private room for $68 a month.
There was a Christian group that met in the basement on Sunday Night. Now, as some of you may know, I am a recovering baptist, who hasn’t been to church since 1971. However, the lure of a free meal was hard to resist, so I went to a few meetings.
One night, after sampling the neighborhood beer supply, I cheerfully joined in the discussion. This was the night when I realized that the Bible is not “the Word of God.” This concept has been very handy in dealing with the ravings of our Jesus-mad culture.
They seemed to like me, though, and welcomed me back. Maybe it was the southern accent.
One Sunday, after the dinner was finished , it was time to have a prayer to begin the meeting. I raised my hand. Now, believers enjoy prayer as entertainment. When they bow their heads, you see them stretching, in anticipation of a good, long, message for God.
My prayer was a bit of a disappointment. Instead of a long winded lecture about Jesus and the magic book, I said what was on my mind. “Lord, thank you for letting us be here today.” What else do you need to say? … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Miles F. Weaver took the social media picture June 15, 1924. “Jewell Pathe’s Bathing Beauty Pirates capture Vitagraph Ships for “Captain Blood”, Balboa Beach, California.” ©Luther Mckinnon 2026 · selah
The Void
This content was published April 23, 2008 It is a feminist saying that Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did. Only, she did it backwards and wearing high heels. What they don’t say is that she rehearsed her routines backwards and in high heels. That was dancing to her. If she had to lead in flat shoes she would have been lost. … I saw Ginger Rogers make a personal appearance once. I was working on the mall maintenance crew at Northlake Mall. Ms. Rogers made an appearance to promote Gaymode Pantyhose. Fred Astaire was not there to lead, and she did not speak backwards. Someone asked how old she was, and the inevitable answer was “That is none of your business”.
What a great, honest answer. To me, the high point of this wretched political mudbath was when someone revealed his lack of class by asking Chelsea Clinton about her daddy’s bimbo problem. To which the former (and possibly future) first daughter replied “That is none of your business”. … There is one other saying that is appropriate for all occasions. The story goes that a Persian king asked his men what he could say that would always be so. The wise men thought, drank, fought, consulted sages and prostitutes, and gave the king this message. “These things too shall pass away.”
This content was posted April 24, 2008. … Freedom of speech and freedom of religion are two elements of the Bill of Rights. The combination of the two on roadside message boards was not foreseen by the founding fathers. … There is a little church on Fairground Street in Marietta. Their message these days is “Let Christ fill the void”. The first time I saw that, I was tired. My body chemistry was telling me to be unhappy. My first thought was that I don’t have a void, and how dare those Jesus Worshipers assume that I do. My second thought was that I would rather have a void than the pain Jesus has caused me. … So today, I was on South Cobb Drive when an old Buick drove by. With white shoe polish, the words “Have Jesus John 3:16” were on the back window. Like injecting a dead virus will inoculate you from a disease, that served to alert me to ignore the Jesus messages for a while. When I went by the “Void” church, It didn’t have any effect on me.
When I got home, I turned on the computer and looked at the sites in my “frequent” folder. Mostly Media had a story from South Carolina. Jonesville Church of God has a sign that says “Obama Osama Hmm Are they Brothers?”. … Now, Barrack Sr. got around, so this can not be dismissed. … Senator BHO has had a tough time with religion. First the pesky Muslim rumors, then those repulsive snippets from the man who introduced him to Jesus. … My father was from Eastern North Carolina, just north of South of the Border. When I was a kid we used to go to the farm. This was in the days before interstate highways and air conditioned cars. South Carolina is the biggest, hottest place on earth.
This content was published April 24, 2008. … Neal Boortz was discussing Hatem El-Hady, a man who raises funds for Barack Obama. Mr. El-Hady was involved with an organization called “Kindhearts”. Mr. El-Hady says his group provides assistance to those in need. The U.S. Government says he is a fund raiser for terrorism, and shut down the group. … Mr. El-Hady has a “dedicated page on Barack Obama’s official website”. Mr. El-Hady has raised $60 for the campaign.
A few thoughts are in order: 1 – Mr. Boortz is quick to mock the government when it involves education or the environment. However, when it suits his needs, he believes what they say without question. A regular feature on his show is the “Government Outrage of the Day.” To this reporter, the biggest outrage in recent memory is the deployment of 160k troops eight time zones away. This is destroying our economy and has rendered us more vulnerable to terrorism. 2 – Those who condemn Islamic Terrorism seldom make the distinction between Sunni and Shia. This division is real and important. Al Queda is Sunni, and considers Shia to be more of an enemy than the United States. Could it be that a Shia rival of Kindhearts ratted them out as terrorists? 3 – In the wake of 9-11, the Government went into full terror hunt mode. Is it possible that legitimate charities were swept into this dragnet? 4 – To be totally fair, it is possible that the Government is telling the truth and that Mr. El-Hady is a terrible person. In this case Mr. Obama should return the $60. … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress Russell Lee took the featured photograph in February 1940. “Wife of Pomp Hall, Negro tenant farmer, threading sewing machine. She makes practically all of the clothing for her family with the exception of such things as overalls, sweaters, etc. Creek County, Oklahoma.”
©Luther Mckinnon 2026 · selah
Elvis Presley And Robert Goulet
This content was published April 30, 2008. … I found a site called Dead or Alive? The concept was to show a list of famous people, whether the lines were flat or wiggling, and the date of the passage. There was one obvious name to check out. DOA supports the notion that Elvis Presley is dead. …
DOA had a list of people who died in the last six months. The Fabulous Moolah, Earl Butz, and Robert Goulet were the surprises. … “It’s part of Elvis Presley lore … the time Elvis filled the screen of his 25-inch RCA TV full of buckshot. Because of Robert Goulet. … Apparently, in the late 50s, when Elvis was in the army and stationed in Germany, his girlfriend at the time, singer Anita Wood, was performing with Robert Goulet and comedian Buddy Hackett. Wood dutifully wrote to Sergeant Presley and, apparently, Goulet added a note to one of her letters, informing Elvis that he was personally “taking care” of Wood (wink, wink). Elvis didn’t appreciate Goulet’s randy sense of humor and carried a grudge the size of Graceland, for years. In 1974, Elvis was relaxing in his swanky penthouse suite at the International Hotel in Vegas when he spotted Goulet on the tube. (The crooner was appearing as a guest co-host on The Mike Douglas Show.) Supposedly, Elvis yelled, “Get that s**t outta my house!” And with that, he aimed and fired.”
Mr. Goulet and Ms. Moolah were part of a phenomenon. These are people who I don’t know if they are dead or alive, until I hear that they have died. Other examples would be Anita Loos and Lowell Thomas. And now, Albert Hofmann, the man who first synthesized LSD. Dr. Hofman was 102, and seemed to have mixed feelings about his discovery. He deplored the excesses, but did not support criminalization. … I had a high school geometry teacher who took part in some of the army LSD experiments. She said a good shot of whiskey would do more for you.
This content was published April 25, 2008. … John McCain has done it again. He condemned an ad by North Carolina Republicans, and gave the ad a lot of publicity in the bargain. What a deal. … The ad shows Jeremiah Wright screaming, and says that Barack Obama enabled his screaming for twenty years. We all knew this. It gets creepy at this point. It seems as though Richard Moore and Beverly Perdue are Democrats running for North Carolina Governor, and they have endorsed Mr. Obama. This makes them “Too Extreme for North Carolina”.
When I heard this ad (on radio, without the visuals) it made me sick, and more than a bit sad. This ad is mean and sleazy. It says more about the party that runs it than it does about the two candidates for governor. This ad is the kind of pointless negative advertising that makes people replulsed by politics. Ads like this make me dread elections. Mr. McCain is correct in denouncing it. … What has been the interesting is the reaction of talk radio. Laura Ingraham was having convulsions…we can’t have fun trashing people, and we won’t support you later because of this. You took our toy away. WAAAAAAA.
Mike Gallagher said there was nothing wrong with the ad, that it was the truth. (2026 Disclosure: The Gallagher and Ingraham quotes are from memory, and do not have a link.) Just because it is the truth doesn’t mean you have to say it, or make it any less distasteful. I get the impression that many conservatives are amused by this sort of guilt by association ad. And they wonder why many people think they are a bunch of jerks. Two wrongs do not make a right. Somebody needs to be the better person, not merely the loudest or most aggresive.
North Carolina Republicans would be doing themselves a favor to take down the ad. It says more about them than it does the Democratic Candidates. It also is giving name recognition to the two Democrats. Someday politicians will learn to be smart and quit offending voters. I am not holding my breath. … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Russell Lee took the social media picture in April 1941. “ Mother and children at home. Chicago, Illinois” ©Luther Mckinnon 2026 · selah
Emergency Bilderberg Meeting
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3 biggest lies · relapse · sexlectics · splc · letter
tucker carlson · david allan coe · dick flash · melanoma · h015 0316h
bars · red pill · ponce street names · h142 1126h · h143 1126hh
ramones · mcinerney · h086 0812h · h087 0812hh · red pill
#nationalpoetrymonth 27/30 · #nationalpoetrymonth 28/30 · #nationalpoetrymonth 29/30
#nationalpoetrymonth 30/30 · This is your monday morning reader for day 27 of #nationalpoetrymonth. I got spoiled by copy/pasting poems, and not producing text content. While I was out, WordPress changed, and caused confusion. It’s all part of the game · if you’ve got hiv say aids told her, go say you’re pregnant if you are a girl, if you’re young say younger old say older, hardly even there so give it a whirl · @ComicDaveSmith I am a fan of yours, particularly when it comes to our “chosen” wars. With the exception of @DouglasKMurray , I have not heard any of your debates. Debates are not useful, semantic tricks and logical fallacies to impress the combatants. We should debate less. · flirt like a german unitarian, eliminate like a dog on exlax, belch like you’re the last vegetarian, drink like you don’t know how to relax · an alcoholic is one you don’t like, who drinks as much as you confess, old age cafeteria morphodite, he who seeks work will find a rest · there is a creek across the street. every year ab out this time, i put my creek shoes on, wade in there, and cut back vines . i have been putting it off during the drought because the creek is so gnarley. i don’t have an excuse now · “The KKK” does not exist. What does exist is a collection of Klan groups, which mostly do not like each other. Does anyone know specifically which Klan group @splcenter gave money to? Google has not been helpful. · “There was a time when violating international humanitarian law required at least some effort at justification. That pretense is eroding fast. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine without meaningful consequence sent a signal heard around the world: the rulebook can be discarded, and nothing will happen. What followed has been a cascade. In Gaza, entire residential blocks were leveled with explanations that grew thinner each time. In Iran, over 82,000 civilian structures have been documented as destroyed. Senior officials have made public statements treating civilian protections not as legal obligations but as obstacles to victory. The targeting of civilian infrastructure has become strategic. Media towers, internet cables, power grids, water systems: these are now first-day targets, not collateral damage. In Ukraine, Russia has systematically attacked the energy grid through multiple winters, weaponizing cold against the civilian population. The line between military target and civilian infrastructure has not blurred. It has been deliberately erased.” · medical hack so your doctor ordered a test or treatment and your insurance company denied it · What’s True – HIPAA laws entitle patients to access to their medical records (with limited exemptions), and insurers unable to document adherence to healthcare laws could conceivably reverse a denial decision to avoid hassle. … What’s False – Insurers are not required to designate a “HIPAA Compliance Officer,” nor are they obligated to provide the names and credentials of everyone involved in a coverage decision. · Is that the kind of refrigerator door that kids would play with, and lock themselves inside and suffocate? · “On ITV and BBC they talk about the curse, Philosophy is useless, theology is worse” Mark Knopfler, “Industrial Disease” · The Mighty Man Shall Be Humbled, The Mean Man Shall Be Brought Down, Woe Unto Them That Call Evil Good, And Good Evil That Put Darkness, For Light And Light For Darkness, That Put Bitter For Sweet, And Sweet For Bitter Woe Unto Them, That Are Wise In Their Own Eyes, Based On Isaiah 5:15-21 · i have behaved poorly. i have behaved bravely. val kilmer · Med club … This is a test. I have never journalled on my phone. It is slow but manageable. I had to move to another part of the couch, bc the neighbor was shining a sotlight in my face. I think of Shelby Foote writing with an old fashioned inkpen, how that makes his writing much more laborious and thought intensive. Some typers move so fast as to be ahead of their thoughts. Getting back to this … I only use one thumb. I envy the kids who blaze away with two thumbs. Maybe someday with enough practice i can do that. I am already much better than before. This is the second time on the porch. I85 never stops making that racket, nor should it. I wonder if people have background content of this, like waves crashing. · 34 years ago, a jury in California acquited the policemen accused of beating up Rodney King. There was a great deal of anger. At the time, I was working in the Healey Building downtown. When this anger erupted in Atlanta, I had a ringside seat · This is an clickbait tribute to a recently deceased performer. The AI voice calls him co EE · This content was published April 28, 2025 · This time last year, I listened to Fear & Loathing in the New Jerusalem, a 27 hour podcast series about the Zionist movement from 1894 to 1982. I became a huge @martyrmade fan. The events of the last year have only reinforced this · Hasanbara – Content that supports the State of Israel by attacking the character of her critics. @hasanthehun @martyrmade @NickJFuentes @jessesingal @brad_polumbo @CNN @FoxNews @MSNOWNews · fiction is the truth inside the lie · On any given night at the Watering Hole, someone would play the perfect country western song on the jukebox. Last week, David Allan Coe left this planet. It is a good time to tell a story · Pictures today are from The Library of Congress Jack Delano took the social media picture in October 1940. “Workmen at the Woodman Potato Company just finishing lunch in a small room at the store house that serves as a lunchroom. Caribou, Maine”
©Luther Mckinnon 2026 · selah
Watering Hole Story
This content was published May 27, 2008. … Last week, David Allan Coe went to the perfect country and western song in the sky. This is a good time to tell a story.
PG and his neighbor DA went out to drink beer and shoot pool. The destination was a place called the Watering Hole, formerly a Veterans of Foreign Wars. There had been a TV repair store next door. When the county legalized bars, the VFW went somewhere else, and the Watering Hole was born. The TV repair store became the game room. You could see on the floor where the counter used to be.
This was a weeknight. The only other customer was an intoxicated gentleman. The drunk was fussing with the bartender when PG and DA walked in. A few minutes later, PG got lucky and hit a good shot on the pool table. He got a bit cocky and said And now for my next trick. The drunk staggered into the game room, and lay down on an empty pool table. DA replied, Is that your next trick?
Before long, it was time to go home. As PG and DA were leaving, the drunk was arguing with the bartender. He wanted to buy a twelve pack to take home with him. He won the argument, and started walking up Clairmont Road with his prize.
PG got a block or so away from the place, and realized what was going on. He turned around, and saw the drunk sitting in front of a 7-11 store, drinking a beer. PG drove in front of him and stopped the car. DA got out, walked over to the curb, picked up the eleven pack, and walked over to the car with it. The drunk stood up and yelled obscenities as the car pulled off into the night.
Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Jack Delano took the social media picture in October 1940. “Tractor-drawn potato digger in a field near Caribou, Maine” ©Luther Mckinnon 2026 · selah
Letter To Darryl Cooper
This content was published April 28, 2025. … I recently finished listening to Fear & Loathing in the New Jerusalem parts 1-6. I listened to part 7 shortly after October 7. I only listened to 1-6 after the Douglas Murray went on JRE to promote his new book. I have a few thoughts about this intense experience. If you could find the time to read this, I would be honored. I also plan to post this letter on my blog, chamblee54.WordPress.com, and at r/martyrmade. I have made 4 blog posts about listening to FLNJ. 041525 041825 042325 042625
We have never met in person. However, after listening to 22:54:47 of FLNJ, I do feel a connection. Listening to FLNJ is intense. I appreciate Douglas Murray’s reluctance to take this journey. This is the same person who said “So what. 30 plus hours of podcasting, you do that in a week”
The most obvious comment is about the insanity of forming opinions about Darryl Cooper based on a few comments on the Tucker Carlson show. FWIW, I disagree with the idea that Winston Churchill was the true villian of WWII. This was not the first time I had heard these ideas. For some bizarre reason, I read Pat Buchanan’s book a few years ago. I generally prefer fiction, and honestly don’t know what drew me to that book.
Winston Churchill is an actor in FLNJ. He was an enthusiastic supporter of Zionism, for whatever reason. I did do some digging into Mr. Churchill, and found a copy of his editorial Zionism Vs Bolshevism. I also found a quote: “As prime minister, in 1941, he proclaimed that “I was one of the authors” of Zionist policy. Indeed, among the lengthy catalogue of criticisms of Churchill was that “He was too fond of Jews.” My irony meter went crazy while listening to FLNJ.
There are many whatifs in the FLNJ story. One is the Ottoman Empire. What if OE had allied with the Allies, rather than the Central Powers? Or better yet, remained neutral. From my Wikipedia level view of history, it seems as though Germany simply made a better offer than France. That would have changed a lot of things.
Another missing link is the history of communism and Judaism. At one time, communism was seen as being a Jewish movement. Over the years, this evolved to the point where Israel is seen as being the enemy of communism. In the eighties, we heard a lot about the need to rescue Jews from anti-semitic persecution in the Soviet Union. How/when did this change take place?
On a related note, here is a quote from part two part two of the chamblee54 commentary. “While driving back, I heard the last few minutes of FLNJ-4. Darryl mentions something I had never heard before. At some point in this era, the United States and Great Britain restricted Jewish immigration. Darryl says the fear was about communist revolutionaries coming into the country. At this time, most of the Bolsheviks were Jewish, and the Russian revolution was seen by many as a Jewish revolution. When I try to find out more about this, the only google results are to sources concerned with anti-semitism or the holocaust. Any information about communism being a motivation for restricted emmigration is are very difficult to find.”
FLNJ-5 and FLNJ-6 are difficult to listen to. There are a lot of things I had never heard about that era. The Arab rebellion, the Zionist terrorism against the British mandate, the dirty business of getting the UN to approve the partition were all new to me. While I had knew that the Nakba existed (contrary to what some propagandists tell you today) I had no idea about the details. There is a saying about making laws and making sausages … you don’t want to be there when either one takes place. The same thing could be said about “nation building.” God is in the details, or maybe it is the Devil.
It is obvious that a 2016 show about Israel/Palestine is going to sound very different in 2025. It is a fitting irony that one of the last things you mentioned in FLNJ-6 was the quote from Refaat Alareer. “Sometimes a homeland becomes a tale, We love the story because it is about our homeland, and we love our homeland even more because of the story.”
On December 7, 2023, Dr. Alareer “was killed by a strike in Shajaiya, in northern Gaza … He was staying with his brother, his sister, and her four children, who were also killed.” Shortly before his death, Dr. Alareer had been in a twitter squabble with Bari Weiss. The IDF saw this as sufficient reason for a targeted assassination.
Anyway, thank you for the hard work you put into FLNJ. It took me 13 days to listen to it. If listening causes this much brain damage, I can only imagine how tough it would be to create those 23 hours. Thank you. … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Jack Delano took the facebook picture in December 1942. “Chicago IL An unusually heavy fog in the early afternoon”
April 30, 1992
This content was originally published April 30, 2012. … Doug Richards is an Atlanta tv news reporter. He writes a blog, Live Apartment Fire. He was on the scene thirty years ago. There was a riot downtown. Mr. Richards had a bad night.
I was working in the Healey building that day. I ran an RMS, or reprographic management service, in an architects office. I had a blueline machine, and ran jobs for the customer. In my free time, I enjoyed the various events downtown. On April 30, 1992, there was an event I did not enjoy.
The day before, a jury in California issued a verdict. Four policemen were acquitted of wrongdoing in an incident involving Rodney King. The incident had been videotaped, and received widespread attention. The verdict of the jury was not popular. The dissatisfaction spread to Atlanta.
Sometimes, I think I have a guardian angel looking over me. If so, then this thursday afternoon was one of those times. I went walking out into the gathering storm. I was a block south of the train station at five points, when I saw someone throw a rock into a store front. The sheet metal drapes were rolled down on the outside of the store. Irealized that I was not in a good place, and quickly made my way back to the Healey building.
A group of policemen were lined up in the lobby of the building, wearing flack jackets. One of the police was a white man, who was familiar to workers in the neighborhood. A few weeks before the incident, he had been walking around the neighborhood showing off his newborn baby.
There was very little work done that afternoon in the architect’s office. Someone said not to stand close to the windows. Fourteen floors below, on Broad Street, the window at Rosa’s Pizza caught a brick. There were helicopters hovering over downtown, making an ominous noise.
There was a lot of soul searching about race relations that day. The Olympics were coming to town in four years, and the potential for international disaster was apparent. As it turned out, the disturbance was limited to a few hundred people. It could have been much, much worse. If one percent of the anger in Atlanta had been unleashed that day, instead of .001 percent, the Olympics would have been looking for a new host.
After a while, the people in the office were called into the lobby. The Principal of the firm, the partner in charge of production, walked out to his vehicle with me. The principal drove an inconspicuous vehicle, which made me feel a bit better.
I usually took the train downtown. As fate would have it, there was a big project at the main office of Redo blue, on West Peachtree Street. That is where my vehicle was, in anticipation of working overtime that night. The principal drove me to this building. I called my mother, to let her know that I was ok. The Atlanta manager of Redo Blue talked to me, to make sure that I was not hurt.
If I had not gone downtown the next day, I might not have ever gone back. I was back at the West Peachtree Street office, and was assured that it was safe to ride the train into town. The Macy’s at 180 Peachtree had plywood nailed over the display windows. A gift shop in the Healey building had a sign in the window, “Black owned business”. Friday May 1, 1992, was a quiet day. … Pictures today are from Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library. The social media picture is “Undated, but after 1964”. “Marietta Street and Broad Street.” ©Luther Mckinnon 2026 · selah
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