Cut Arts Funding
The second greatest was making an attractive meme out of the thought. ~ We have been advised that there may be attempts to disrupt the show. If a disruption occurs, please remain in your seat until the situation is resolved. Be calm, and do not attempt to confront the person causing the disruption. ~ i am sort of an old fogey about drugs… retired drunk, quit smoking pot ten years ago, never did develop a taste for white powders or speed ~ And that’s why I’ve kinda quit paying attention to Atlanta sports teams. We’ve lost more hockey teams than we’ve won championships. ~ @bitchywaiter Dear Mother at Table 12: you’re not the only one being celebrated today. Chill your tits. ~ @TheKevinAllison @ozchrisrock ppl who pretend to be celebrities to push their bird brain ideas are worse ~ This is why the media is talking about racism. It is a diversion from economic issues. ~ The advertising is protection money. Corporate media will never criticize the lottery. ~ words ~ @ericarhodes confidence is overrated it’s always given to the wrong people. ~ @Flyswatter words hurt. Stop using them against people. @chamblee54 @Flyswatter I would add racist liberal conservative and any other label used in a derogatory manner we are all G-d’s children ~ @TheOnion Shell Assures Nation Most Arctic Wildlife To Go Extinct Well Before Next Spill @chamblee54 Does this include the Palin family? ~ This has been floating around for a while. Not everyone agrees with it. ~ @postcrunk those who seek power deserve it the least ~ Who Is Your Spirit Musician? ~ Georgia Says “Cloudy” Execution Drug Was Just Too Cold, But Expert Gave A Second Possible Cause ~ more words ~ defending golden mean ~ America’s Changing Religious Landscape ~ Terrorism: the most meaningless and manipulated word ~ quote that never was ~ debunking golden mean ~ When Winston Churchill was asked to cut arts funding in favour of the war effort, he simply replied, “then what are we fighting for? ~ Some of the information contained in this post requires additional references. Please edit to add citations to reliable sources that support the assertions made here. Unsourced material may be disputed or deleted. ~ This, and whining about police, are excellent distractions for the TPP ~ Thank you for expressing yourself without using the word shit. Feces is an important part of life. It also stinks. There are many ways to comment on unfortunate parts of our existence without referring to animal waste. ~ Are these quotes compatible with each other? (1) Yoko Ono wrote “A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality.” (2) Bob Marley wrote “Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our minds.” A line written by Ono many years before, and quoted by Lennon in December 1980, as quoted in All We Are Saying : The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono (2000) by John Lennon, Yōko Ono, David Sheff, p. 16. ~ “Redemption Song” is a song by Bob Marley … At the time he wrote the song, circa 1979, Bob Marley had been diagnosed with the cancer in his toe that later took his life. According to Rita Marley, “he was already secretly in a lot of pain and dealt with his own mortality, a feature that is clearly apparent in the album, particularly in this song”. ~ It is sometimes said that a missing person “is here in spirit.” It is tough to eat potluck food in spirit. ~ If I were an admin this post would already be taken down. ~ Mercury is in Gatorade. Or something. Everybody panic. ~ @WernerTwertzog One had to live in California in the early 70s to understand the grooviness of Chewbacca. spell check suggestions for grooviness: grogginess , grossness ~ @poetryduh Clearly Ru Paul recognizes a majority of this generation receives its drag entertainment from the Internet. ~ “my mom’s a total facebook stalker” That is a country and western song waiting to be written. ~ Yes, all lives matter but we’re focused on the black ones right now, ok? Because it is very apparent that our judicial system doesn’t know that. Plus, if you can’t see why we are exclaiming #blacklivesmatter you are part of the problem. ~ @MaraEastern Watching a couple of ducks waddling on a busy road, I’m wondering if they’re jaywalking or if they have the right of way. ~ pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”. ~ selah
He Lied
There is a discussion at Bloggingheadstv about the recent events in Baltimore MD. The featured speakers, Glenn Loury and John McWhorter, have been heard from before. This is a thought provoking discussion. If you are multi tasking, you might not get much done. The temptation to stop and take notes will be great.
At BHTV, you can create a sound bite, known as a dinglelink, when something gets your attention. This chat produced three dinglelinks. These serve to illustrate the points that are going to be made. There are other things that could be said, but most people have a limited attention span.
At 23:19, the men are discussing one of the witnesses to the Micheal Brown shooting. Dr. Loury starts to talk loud, and says “he lied.” This is a problem.
During the Ferguson fiasco, America was hit over the head with a lot of talk, often at top volume. There was the spectacle of a crowd of people walking into a funeral with their hands in the air. A great deal of the shouting was based on lies. If you question these lies, you can expect to be called a racist. The little boy said he saw a wolf.
If you think Dr. Loury gets worked up in the first clip, wait until he talks about the #Baltimoreuprising. Dr. Loury does not like the expression. He might have a point. The disturbance was a reaction from a population in pain. It was not the first step in a revolution.
One of the popular memes of this “conversation about race” is complaining about “media double standards.” Complaints about profit motivated media are popular with both liberals and conservatives. In the Baltimore banter, videos of white people misbehaving after sporting events are shown, and the stern voiced commenter wonders why the media does not treat these people as harshly as the Baltimore crowd.
With the #Baltimoreuprising hashtag, this media commentary goes up a notch. When drunken white sports fans act out, it is a riot. When poor urban people loot stores, it is the #Baltimoreuprising. There is no telling where this will end up.
The last clip shows Dr. McWhorter asking if poor people are going to demand, of their neighborhoods, “no more thugs.” It is apparent that Dr. McWhorter does not read the same people on facebook that others do. The word “thug” is now considered a racist slur. Instead of attacking the problem, twitter nation is attacking the word that describes the problem. Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
City Flags
Roman Mars recently gave a TED talk, Why city flags may be the worst-designed thing you’ve never noticed. Mr. Mars is the voice behind 99 percent invisible, a podcast about design. It is a magic moment when you see the face saying “This is 99% Invisible. I’m Roman Mars.”
You might wonder why a city would have a flag. It is a handy symbol for countries, especially during a war. States seem to all have them. Many cities do have flags, although they are not always displayed. In the case of Pocatello ID, this is an act of mercy.
The North American Vexillological Association has five principles of flag design. 1. Keep it simple 2. Use meaningful symbolism 3. Use two to three basic colors 4. No lettering or seals of any kind. 5. Be distinctive. Chicago, Denver, and Portland follow these guidelines and succeed.
One of the bad examples cited in the talk is San Francisco. They have a poorly drawn phoenix, over a ribbon. The ribbon has a saying in a language other than english. The words SAN FRANCISCO are displayed in big, ugly letters at the bottom. Most San Francisco residents instinctively understand why those letters are bottoms.
Another city with a phoenix flag is Atlanta. This unfortunate item is what “Vexillologists call … SOBs: seals on a bedsheet.” The seal of the city is installed in the middle of a blue bedsheet. The Atlanta city flag is seldom displayed. Many residents are unaware of its existence.
“Made from durable nylon, our authentic Atlanta flags are constructed to official specifications and available in assorted popular sizes. Each flag has two heavy duty grommets for easy display, though we also offer an optional pole sleeve and gold fringe for indoor display. These flags are “made-to-order” right here in America, so please allow about 10 days for your order to ship.”
The subject of government flags is controversial in Georgia. Up until a few years ago, the state flag had the St. Andrews Cross. To the right was a blue strip, impaled upon the state seal. This flag was an aesthetic disaster, with the state seal Frankenstein stitched onto the stars and bars. This flag violated what might be rule six of flag design: Do not offend a significant portion of the state population with a symbol. The good news is that the Georgia flag has been changed. The state seal remains.
Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
Cost Of The Death Penalty
A little while ago, Georgia was fixin’ to waste Kelly Gissendaner. It turns out the mystery drugs were “cloudy.” Using an “abundance of caution,” the execution was postponed indefinitely.
The drug involved is pentobarbital. This reporter does not know if the state planned on a deliberate overdose of pentobarbital, or whether the drug was to be used as a sedative in a multi drug process.
The manufacturer of pentobarbital does not want their product to be used in executions. The state uses a “compounding pharmacy” to make the pentobarbital used for executions. The name of the “compounding pharmacy” is kept secret, per state law.
At the time of what Mrs. Gissendaner’s attorneys call the “botched execution,” the state had an explanation for the cloudy apperance of the drug. “The most likely cause of this precipitation was that the drugs were shipped and stored at a temperature which was too low,” Corrections spokesperson Gwendolyn Hogan said in announcing the state’s findings. This gave the state an easy fix: don’t store the drug at as cold a temperature in the future.”
A new report has emerged: Georgia Says “Cloudy” Execution Drug Was Just Too Cold, But Expert Gave A Second Possible Cause. ““An additional possible cause could be if the pharmaceutical solvent used to dissolve the pentobarbital sodium had absorbed some amount of water or evaporated during the preparation process,” Dr. Jason Zastre, a professor at the University of Georgia said in his affidavit. “This may result in a lower concentration of solvent, ultimately impacting the solubility of the drug, which increases the possibility of precipitation.”
Others say there was a problem with the pH balance. “I think I would have characterized the drug differently than ‘cloudy,’” Dr. Larry Sasich told BuzzFeed News. … “It looked more like clumps of cottage cheese floating in the solution. … The first thing that came into my mind when I saw the pictures was the acidity of the product. And when I read through the testing lab results, I noticed that they didn’t report the pH of the solution.” … it’s difficult to say what the drug would do to a person if its pH level was dramatically off, because “nobody tests substandard drugs on human beings.”
Another issue here is the money Georgia is spending in the effort to poison Kelly Gissendaner. The identity of the compounding pharmacy is secret, as is the budget for the mystery drugs. Dr. Jason Zastre probably pulled down a healthy fee for his affidavit. This is in addition to the $18,000 that Georgia pays Rainbow Medical Associates to supervise an execution. All RMA does is supervise… a prison employee sticks the needle in.
Pictures from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
When The Killings Done
A few weeks ago, PG found a book by T. C. Boyle, When the Killing’s Done: A Novel. Mr. Boyle tells stories, which is what PG wants in a book. If PG becomes wiser, kinder, or wealthier as a result, this is fine. The first objective is entertainment. If the book does not tell a story, it is not worth your time. WTKD is a story. The commentary on serious issues is a bonus. Mr. Boyle is good at this sort of thing.
A handful of islands off the California coast have problems. They are mostly uninhabited. A few species managed to get aboard, and upset the balance. The government wants to eradicate the invaders, and restore the original inhabitants. A crew of noisy animal lovers stands in the way.
The primary bad guy is a millionaire animal lover. He is a bit of a cartoon character. In one scene, he has a date. The lady becomes his nemesis, in the environmental wars. They go to a restaurant, he orders the most expensive wine available, and declares it rotgut. The lady decides he is a jerk, and leaves. Later they are on opposite sides of a picket line.
The government lady has her own issues. She gets pregnant, and the daddy runs away. The lady goes looking for the abortion clinic, and gets lost. The baby appears in the last scene of the book.
WTVD is a page turner. Mr. Boyle is the master manipulator of the language. The story ends before you want it to. The contradictions of the millionaire animal lover show up several times. At one point, racoons are tearing up his carefully sodded, extravagantly watered yard. What to do with the eye shadow wearing rats? Dave (the animal lover) puts traps in his yard, and transports the critters to the embattled islands. This might not be in the best interests of the overall environment, but animals have a right to live. Later, government peeeps wonder how they got on the island.
Mr. Boyle drops in a reference for his fans. A Japanese merchant vessel is moving through the foggy channel waters, en route to a smashing WTKD finale. The vessel had a man go overboard off the Georgia coast once. Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”. These images have nothing to do with WTKD.
English Double Feature
Chamblee54 presents a double feature, borrowed from other sources on the internet. One is 21 Reasons Why English is Hard to Learn. (Link no longer works) There is a similar feature in the Chamblee54 archive. Part two is 10 Words You Mispronounce That Make People Think You’re an Idiot. The commentary is left out today, but is available by following the link. Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”. This is a repost.
01) The bandage was wound around the wound.
02) The farm was used to produce produce.
03) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
04) We must polish the Polish silverware.
05) He could lead if he would get the lead out.
06) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
07) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.
08) A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.
09) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
10) I did not object to the object.
11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
13) They were too close to the door to close it.
14) The buck does funny things when the does are present.
15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.
16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail.
18) After a number of injections my jaw got number.
19) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
20) I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
21) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?
ATHLETE
Incorrect pronunciation: ath – a – leet
Correct pronunciation: ath – leet
ESCAPE / ESPRESSO / ET CETERA
Incorrect pronunciation: ex – cape / ex – presso / ex – set – err – uh
Correct pronunciation: ess – cape / ess – presso / ett – set – err – uh
NUCLEAR
Incorrect pronunciation: nuke – you – lerr
Correct pronunciation: new – clee – err
PRESCRIPTION / PREROGATIVE
Incorrect pronunciation: purr – scrip – shun / purr – ogg – uh – tiv
Correct pronunciation: pre – scrip – shun / pre – rogg – uh – tiv
UTMOST
Incorrect pronunciation: up – most
Correct pronunciation: utt – most
CANDIDATE
Incorrect pronunciation: can – uh – dett
Correct pronunciation: can – da – dett
SHERBET
Incorrect pronunciation: sherr – berrt
Correct pronunciation: sherr – bet
AWRY
Incorrect pronunciation: aww – ree
Correct pronunciation: uh – rye
FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES
Incorrect pronunciation: “for all intensive purposes”
Correct pronunciation: “for all intents and purposes”
OFTEN
Incorrect pronunciation: off – ten
Correct pronunciation: off – en
#WhiteAppreciationDay
During the no holds barred twitterstorm over #WhiteAppreciationDay, PG found a comment … teen drug user @realprettydude Please let us all observe White Appreciation Day. It gets lost in the shuffle of systemic racism and oppression that sometimes I get sad. 4:24 PM – 8 May 2015. The tdu profile reads: “Gladly taking donations to become the world’s first professional penis shower.”
PG chose to follow teen drug user. The next day, there was an email from Twitter. The subject: Suggestions based on teen drug user. There were three accounts listed in the main body of the email, with the option of asking for more.
Some Guy Named Luke @HappyHiram My name is Lucas. I sing, act, and occasionally get my ass kicked at Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Sixth Circle, Hell
g @schweens wrestling and packers fan. aspiring dunker parts unknown
RavingSockMonkey @ravingsockmonky I am the RavingSockMonkey Louisville, KY Flickr
Erick E. @ErickErickscum Correcting teabilly myths and delusions, nationwide.
TomR2D2 @TomR2D2 My job is to clean the litter box. If I’m lucky, it’s that place where sand and feces meet. Swamps of Dagobah
Pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
Laughing Banzai
os osmium various abbreviations, vates poet, savvy shrewd, veridical truthful ~ @chescaleigh do you feel naked without your hood? @carringtonXD ~ @BibChr So yeah, how did that elect-a-totally-unqualified-biracial-guy-who-hates-America-and-what-it-stands-for-to-heal-race-relations work out? ~ Lots of white ppl on twitter abt #baltimoreriots ~ We will be doing system maintenance on our commenting platform starting Tuesday, April 28 at 8 p.m. ET. Comments may be unavailable through Wednesday, April 29 at 8 a.m. ET. ~ Whoa. That Was Worth The Time, Wasn’t It? ~ @TrivWorks Update: Kim Kardashian’s longtime request to sing the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ at a MLB game has been granted #Orioles ~ Maybe if lawyers made as much money on those other issues as they do working on marriage and divorce… ~ both sides call for justice, chunder under what lust is, disagree on what it means, weird morrison gold mine dreams, that’s why there is no peace, just go and break the lease ~ ppl whining about media coverage of sports fan riots compared to baltimorons are a bit dumber ~ how many of the players (police & protesters included) in #Baltimore are Jesus worshipers? Probably most of them ~ Did J. Edgar Hoover really hit on MLK and get turned down? ~ That is a parody account. That is not the performer. ~ The Mayday parade was cancelled for lack of communists. ~ Apparently Bernie Sanders does not have a middle name. He is left with unfortunate initials. ~ @storybandit We dare you to write a 29-word poem using the following words: spouses, desolate, cavern, fondness. #writingdare ~ @JoeMyGod http://www.positiveatheism.org/hist/twainwp.htm … read “Bible Teaching and Religious Practice” why do poc embrace a religion that enslaved them? ~ elbow sequentially laughing banzai ~ @storybandit We dare you to write a 29-word poem using the following words: filer, diddy, liberate, charities. #writingdare ~ Let’s retire the labels #liberal #conservative #terrorist #racist they are meaningless insults that divide and confuse ~ Harassment in the workplace including without limitation harassment based on race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, disability, or any other factor protected by law is strictly prohibited. Conduct that is prohibited includes, without limitation, unwelcome sexual advances or comments, racial or religious slurs, insensitive jokes told in person, by letter or email or other conduct that creates a hostile work environment. ~ @OhNoSheTwitnt The same people who said “not all men” abuse women and “not all cops” are violent racists are saying “yes all black people” are thugs. @chamblee54 @OhNoSheTwitnt who are “the same people”? do you have a link for anyone saying those three things? ~ Please Note: In appreciation of casting your vote, Newsmax will keep you automatically updated on poll results and other breaking news with FREE daily email alerts. If you wish to discontinue these updates, you are welcome to unsubscribe at any time. Invalid email addresses will not be counted in Newsmax polls. Your email address and personal information is confidential as stated in our Privacy Policy. Thank you. ~ Get the app It’s worth it. We promise. ~ teen drug user @realprettydude Please let us all observe White Appreciation Day. It gets lost in the shuffle of systemic racism and oppression that sometimes I get sad. ~ No comments to display ~ What should your parents have named you? ~ Whining about media coverage will not help to improve conditions in the hood. ~ Maybe it is time to call a moratorium on use of the labels racism and racist. Maybe if we focus on the real problems, instead of wondering what labels apply, then we can make some progress. ~ I am tired of the r words. I am living in a culture that is obsessed with those labels. ~ pictures from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”. ~ selah
#NationalDayofPrayer
Today is the #NationalDayofPrayer. This is a repost. Pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
Good Morning G-d. Please give me the slack I need to make it through this busy life. I had a birthday recently, and am getting older. Please give me less pain, both above and below the neck. Thank you for letting me get this far. Thank you for the gift of sobriety, and the memory of inebrience. The gift of moderation would have been appreciated. Help me to overcome body chemistry telling me to be unhappy. If this doesn’t work, help me hide it better.
Please tell the Jesus Worshipers to shut up. They make too much noise. Help me to forgive them. Give Jesus Worshipers a bit more humility. Help Jesus Worshipers to get over their confusion, and quit hating on gay people. Let people know that G-d does not write books. Let men know that A REAL MAN KEEPS CONTROL OF HIS TEMPER. Please tell the proud people praying today that it is better to listen than to talk, and that louder does not mean more true.
Please find a happy medium for Atlanta water. Let us have neither drought nor flood. It would help if the developers would move to North Carolina, and the politicians would grow a conscience.
G-d, please try to get along better with Allah. This is important. Maybe if you and her got along better, then all those religious crazies would hate each other less. Help white people and black people get along better. Please be good to the people who have already lived, and are now deceased. Please understand that I am not in a hurry to join them.
Help Mr. Obama with the mess this country is in. Help Israel get along with her neighbors, and live within her borders. Help the world solve the carbon dioxide problem.
Thank you for the birds that sing. Thank you for dogs, and dog owners who clean up. Thank you for earth, air, fire, and water. Thank you for the people who enjoy this prayer. Help those who are offended to get over it. Namaste, amen, all my relations, Good Bye.
PuffHo Logic
PuffHo recently had a tasteful piece of work titled 12 Powerful Responses To People Who Think The Baltimore Protests Are Unnecessary. If you want to see logical fallacies on display, this is the place to go. The header ad today features Selected Risk Information About JANUVIA.
Before we get started here, it should be noted that the residents of ghetto Baltimore have serious concerns. The Freddie Gray riot did not just happen. The same conditions of poverty, crime, drugs, and aggressive police exist in poor neighborhoods around America. People should not be surprised when this rage bubbles over into violence.
The palvering pundits of American media, both social and anti social, do not help matters with their explainations. There used to be a saying … if you can’t say anything good about someone, don’t say anything at all. This has been amended. The modern version reads if you can’t say anything good about anyone, complain about the media.
The logic party begins with an explaination. “These same people deflect the blame for poor police treatment on black communities rather than addressing the underlying systemic issues disproportionally affecting black lives. In so many words, Freddie Gray is responsible for his own death. Those troubling theories are exactly why the protests are necessary.”
The link is to “The classic Willy Wonka meme.” It shows Gene Wilder, with the words “You’re being treated poorly by police? Have you tried not breaking the law to see if that helps?” According to PuffHo, this is “exactly why the protests are necessary.” Maybe CVS should sue Willa Wonka.
There is another old saying … two wrongs do not make a right. Apparently, this too is obsolete. The fact that crowds of sports fans got out of control somehow justifies the destruction of property over police brutality. Not everyone makes the connection.
There are a few exercises in twitter logic. @MalcolmLondon *Media thoughts on Baltimore* “MLK is probably spinning in his grave right now!” Appropriate response: “…how’d he get into that grave?” chamblee54 The same way Malcolm X did.
@rachelzuckerm White privilege = getting to decide what type of violence is acceptable in our society #BaltimoreUprising
@OhNoSheTwitnt The same people who said “not all men” abuse women and “not all cops” are violent racists are saying “yes all black people” are thugs.
@tallblacknerd Sorry but im not gonna be upset over replaceable property when you don’t care about the irreplaceable lives
@_UrriYall worried about how we “look”. We are laid out in the street dead then handcuffed in cold blood. That’s how we look
Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
Responsible
It was a sunday evening, and there was nothing good to say. Rather than not saying anything at all, PG decided to go into his archive This post is from May of 2007. It is about responsible behavior, and a religion that does not encourage it. This repost might be hypocritical, but no one forced you to read it. Part two is another rerun. It is written in first person. The pictures, from “The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library”, need text between them.
It all started when a girl went to a back room with a former boyfriend. Her current bf stormed out of the party, and flipped his car when it went off the road. Being a star quarterback did not prevent the fatal consequences. The local radio whiner had a few things to say. Since alcohol was a suspected factor, the question became, “how do we teach teenagers to drink responsibly?”
PG is a retired drunk, and has a few dozen opinions on this issue. His wandering mind settled on a related subject…Jesus. G-d’s love baby is similar to alcohol. Both are legal, both have potential for good and ill, and neither works for PG. The thought occurred “How do we teach Teenagers to Worship Jesus Responsibly?” Now, this may be the first time those two concepts have been paired like that…Jesus and Responsibility…but it should not be the last.
A central concept in the world of Jesus Worship is the avoidance of responsibility…”Jesus paid the price for my sins on the cross”. While you may feel better to think you are forgiven, that does not help the person who was hurt by your actions. If star the quarterback had run into someone, G-d might forgive him, but this does not help with the medical bills.
Today’s seminar is about the Worshiping Responsibly. It is about having respect for your neighbors who do not agree with you, and do not want to hear about your “salvation”. It is about not creating ill will for Jesus with obnoxious behavior in his name. It is about not dragging Jesus into your personal quarrels, using his name in anger to hurt your neighbor. It is about Responsibility. Your actions have consequences, and just because you are doing it for Jesus does not eliminate that reality.
There are two big reasons why PG is not a Jesus Worshiper. The first one is, he simply doesn’t agree with the teachings. The Bible is not the word of G-d, Jesus was killed because he was a troublemaker. The death, and reputed resurrection, of Jesus has nothing to do with what happens to people when they die. If you don’t agree with the dogma regarding life after death, the Jesus worship church has little to offer you. Christianity is more a scheme for life after death than a religion.
The Second reason is the sorry behavior of Jesus Worshipers. This prevents PG from having a cosmetic, social oriented membership in a church. He does not want to pretend to worship a spirit which causes him misery.
Responsibility is not valued in the Jesus Worship community. Respect for non believers is seen as a sign of weakness. And, while not all Jesus Worshipers are fanatics, many admire and support the loudmouths who give their faith a bad name.
When it comes to belief, moderation is not valued. Fanaticism is admired. There is little responsibility taken. It is just the Jesus talking.
Christopher Isherwood once said, in a magazine interview, that the doctrine of a religion is not as important as the person who tells you that doctrine. (If anyone can find this quote on the internet, please leave a comment with a link.) It is a common belief that religions are about beliefs, but many find that it is the person who draws you into the community. A corollary of this is when you have a bad experience with a person who represents a religion. This person can drive you far away from wanting to have any participation in a religion. The idea that G-d would send a person to hell because he knew an offensive Jesus worshiper is tough to believe.
So much for world affairs. 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 doing quality control work on the local beer supply, I cheerfully joined in the discussion. This was the night when I realized that the Bible is not the Word of G-d, a concept that has been very handy in dealing with the clumsy efforts of our Jesus-mad culture to convert me.
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, Jesus Worshipers enjoy prayer as entertainment. When they bow their heads, you see them stretching and deep breathing, in anticipation of a good, lengthy, message to G-d.
My message 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.
Changing The Flag
This is a recycled post from 2008. It was written in first person. The issue discussed has mostly faded away, except for a few hardcore cranks. Politicians have found new issues to distract voters when they want to make crooked deals, especially when the Governor is a crooked Deal. Pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
In 1994 I was working in downtown Atlanta. I represented my company in a customer’s office, and there was often time with nothing to do. At the very least, there was no time clock and an hour lunch could slip into overtime with few consequences.
There was an issue in the news in 1994, along with some claims that I did not believe. This issue was whether, or not, to change the state flag. One day, I went to the library, and sat down with the microfilms of the Atlanta Constitution (Covers Dixie Like the Dew) for the Winter of 1956.
One of the fun things about doing research is the things you were not looking for. Elvis Presley made a personal appearance at the Fox Theater. Atlanta Blue opened a facility on West Peachtree Street. There was speculation about whether Dwight Eisenhower would have a different Vice President in the next election. Mr. President had a heart attack in 1955. Many did not want Richard Nixon to be President. 1994 was 20 years after Mr. Nixon resigned the Presidency in disgrace. You wonder how things might have been different if Mr. Eisenhower found a new Vice President.
1956 was two years after Brown vs. The Board of Education, and many were concerned about school desegregation. A bill was proposed in the legislature to make it a felony to advocate integration.
The Governor at the time was Marvin Griffin. Georgia Tech played Pittsburgh in the Sugar Bowl that year, in spite of the fact that Pittsburgh had a black player. The Governor strongly objected, but was overruled. The game was played without incident.
The State of Georgia changed the state flag that year. The new flag had the state seal on a blue stripe next to the St. Andrews Cross, the battle flag of the Confederate States of America.
In 1994 many wanted to change that flag. Some said that it was a symbol of slavery and oppression; others said it was a reminder of battlefield valor. A native southerner, I could appreciate both points of view. I was neutral regarding a change of the flag.
One thing that I did not understand was an argument made for changing the flag. The line in those days…first expressed by Governor Zell Miller and endlessly repeated by the local fishwrapper media … was that the flag had been changed as a protest against desegregation.
I did not believe that for a minute. The legislature in 1956 was not that smart. They were a bunch of white males who were, with a few exceptions, racist, alcoholic crooks. If someone had suggested a flag change as a stand of defiance against desegregation, they might have thought it a good idea, but I somehow doubt that anyone thought like that. This was 1956. The sixties, where protest became the new national pastime, were a few years away.
After a few minutes of searching through the department store ads and sports pages, I found what I was looking for…. the article announcing the flag change. There was no mention of a protest against desegregation. They announced it as a way of honoring the Confederacy. This is in keeping with the times. Georgia in 1956 was still recovering from the War, and the Cult of Honoring the Confederacy was strong. Fergit Hell!
The flag was eventually changed during the administration of Governor Roy Barnes. The new flag was even uglier than the old one, which I did not think was possible. Sonny Perdue defeated Mr. Barnes in his bid for reelection, in no small part because he proposed a referendum on the flag. He forgot this promise as soon as he got into office, but the flag was changed once again.
Chamblee54 
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