Lubna Hussein

Beginning in the Roaring 20s, when many things began to change, tennis clothes and sportswear influenced female fashion so that by 1926 Hollywood actresses began a trend of wearing pants. By 1930, Greta Garbo, Ina Claire, Marlene Dietrich and Katharine Hepburn were causing sensations by wearing pants. Shortly thereafter, if not before, women were wearing suits. Traditional opinions of the day were against this trend, and a number of “experts” were paraded forth to explain that women secretly wanted to be men, and to complain that femininity was being lost.

But for all the controversy they caused, Hepburn, Garbo, Lombard and Dietrich never had criminal charges filed against them for wearing trousers—especially a crime that carried a punishment of forty lashes.

Right now in Sudan, Lubna Hussein (the woman pictured above) is preparing to stand trial for wearing pants in public in Sudan. Perhaps many of you already know the story. If not, Lubna Hussein worked for the United Nations and would have been exempt from the charge. But, Ms. Hussein wanted to go to trial because she wanted to challenge the law she was accused of breaking—a decency law—for which she has quit or will soon be quitting her job. The world needs more brave souls like her.

It is very unwise and illogical to lump all Muslim countries—and the cultures they contain—into a category one conveniently labels as “standard Islam”. There are differences from country to country—and perhaps even from region to region within countries. If decency for women in Afghanistan is a burqah, or Saudi Arabia a chador or elsewhere a hijab, or in Iran simply jeans and shirt like Neda Soltan, the woman killed in Teheran a month ago whose video became world renown on YouTube and elsewhere on the Internet, and whose 40th day of mourning was yesterday.

I have long been interested in the struggle of equality for women in Islam. From all of my reading, I believe that Muhammad never intended women to be regarded in Muslim society as they have throughout history. I also don’t think Jesus intended women to be regarded as second-class citizens in Christian society as they have throughout history.

With the mourning anniversary of Neda yesterday and the approach to trial next week, both because of strict fundamentalist interpretation of Islamic law and lust for power and control, it is interesting to observe today is the anniversary of the death of Ahmad ibn Hanbal in 855 CE. Ibn Hanbal was a Muslim scholar and theologian who refused to accept the view of Caliph Al-Ma’mun who decreed that the Quran was a creation of God.

The Caliph demanded that ibn Hanbal and another Imam, Muhammad ibn Nuh, to accept his decree but they refused “to acknowledge the literal creation of the Quran as created like other of Allah's creatures.”

They were sent in irons to al-Ma’mun to be punished. In transit, ibn Hanbal prayed to Allah so that he would not meet al-Ma’mun. Suddenly, al-Ma’mun died and ibn Hanbal and Muhammad ibn Nuh were both sent back. On their return journey, ibn Nuh died and ibn Hanbal was left to prepare his funeral and bury ibn Nuh.

Ibn Hanbal was later flogged by al-Mu’tasim, the half-brother of al-Ma’mun, who succeeded him, for not accepting the Quran-as-God’s-creation and was banished from Baghdad by al-Wathiq, the son of al-Mu’tasim and successor as Caliph.

So you see, there is honor in what Lubna Hussein is doing from a historical perspective as well as a feminist perspective. Many scholars and theologians in Islam have rebelled against the more power-hungry fundamentalists throughout history as Islam has struggled to define itself then just as it continues to do so today.

I am a westerner trying to learn as much about Islam as possible for peaceful purposes. To paraphrase Richard Pryor at the beginning of his monologue, hosting Saturday Night Live back in December 1975, “Hope I’m successful.”

This is a link to Lubna Hussein’s Facebook page (not to be confused with Lubna Hussain with an “a”) for anyone who wants to offer her support.

Congressman Christ – Episode Two - Monday

Join us Monday for the next thrilling and rapturous episode of Congressman Christ on the Jim Buck Blog.

Same Christ time. Same Christ channel.

Pig Fucking

In the movie “All the President’s Men”, the actor Robert Walden, as real-life Nixon White House political operative Donald Segretti, told Dustin Hoffman as Carl Bernstein that the pranks they carried out to keep McGovern and Muskie from gaining traction in the election was called “rat fucking”.

Donald Segretti was role model for Lee Atwater, Bush 41’s campaign manager who carried out the Willie Horton ad which helped insure Bush 41’s victory over Dukakis, and served as architect as a strategist to the modern Republican Party. Karl Rove also learned from Segretti.

Massive lying, and twisting and exaggerating some small measure of truth is the backbone of American politics. Using these tactics to smear political opponents is a long-honored tradition. You don’t need me to tell you that. The Birthers, the Deathers, et al are evidence of those lessons learned.

Before America elected a black president, racism and race-based attacks had never been really seen beyond local elections on the political level—the most blatant example of which was Jesse Helms’ 1990 campaign against his former two-time African American opponent Harvey Gantt.

What Glenn Beck said yesterday that Obama is a racist who hates white people is pig fucking, which is an amped up, 21st century version of rat fucking.

What Limbaugh says everyday is also pig fucking. They have stirred racism among their audiences over the Gates issue, the Sotomayor nomination, the birth certificate issue and during the campaign claiming Obama was secretly a Muslim, etc..

On election night I watched MSNBC. When Keith Olbermann announced that Obama would be our next president, I became choked up that we actually had elected a black president.

As a 51 year old, I lived through the recent racial history of America. While many people, especially blacks, would quickly say that America would never elect a black president, I always believed we would. And I also believed it would happen in my lifetime. I just thought I would be older. Electing Obama made it seem that we had overcome some issues and had reached a milestone in the collective psychic pain in our country that gave a sign we were healing.

Now, I do not mean to suggest we overcame racism by voting for Obama. That assumes racism is something that can be healed so easily. It can’t. Almost nothing is that simplistic. As someone who quit drinking, quit smoking and quit drugs, all without twelve step programs, and regularly goes to therapy for mental maintenance, I believe there is some benefit to all the racism talk in the air.

Obama’s presidency is obviously about the immediate. But more importantly, his presidency is about those who are too young to vote. He is their childhood president. They are hearing all the racism of the Becks and Limbaughs and all Obama’s race-based detractors in a negative context and they are absorbing it and, I believe, they are being repulsed by it. We have a handsome, articulate young black president being called a racist by a fat, ugly, obnoxious white racist and an obnoxious, weepy, goofy racist. We need them to keep talking and making fools of themselves and forcing all of us to confront and deal with it to expand the long-overdue discussion. Time for therapy. And we need to have it not really for us, but for our children. They need to learn to confront their own and other’s racism and heal from it.

When quitting an addiction, one must talk about the emotional issues which started and fueled the addiction. We are addicted to power in America through our individual consumerism and our standard of living and our racial and cultural identities. The emotional issue of racism fuels our addiction to power on a national level, cultural level and, most importantly, a personal level because we do not want to lose what e have.

I am certain that many reading this will agree with the following statement that many times we all feel powerless and hopeless not just in global and national issues, but in our everyday lives.

I believe that espousing racism reveals a deep flaw in one’s character and emotional make-up. It reveals their fear of loss of personal power and hope.

But some wear racism as a badge of honor just as an alcoholic, wife-beating man wears drinking as a badge of honor. It reinforces his image of his own manhood and male mentality. However, I believe it is a fear and weakness that one should be embarrassed about and work to correct like spousal abuse and child abuse.

We have to talk about racism so our kids will talk about it and begin to solve it as an emotional issue as they grow into adulthood. Kennedy was my first president when my young consciousness was being formed, as did LBJ and Nixon later. The same is true with today’s kids and Obama.

Who remembers former Alabama Governor George Wallace’s words at his 1963 oath of office: “In the name of the greatest people that have ever trod this earth, I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny, and I say segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever.”

Little did Wallace know, the first black president who would desegregate the White House was then one year five months and ten days old.

Do we have what Wallace wanted—a segregated America? No. Wallace even later changed and apologized to civil rights leaders and, during his 1983-87 term as governor, appointed many blacks to state government jobs.

George Wallace is proof that a person’s racism can change.

Would Beck and Limbaugh also one day change? The difference between them and Wallace is they are commentators not politicians. The other difference is Wallace became a born-again Christian perhaps largely as a result of the paralysis he suffered due to the assassination attempt by Arthur Bremer in 1972.

I am not suggesting that for Beck or Limbaugh by any means.

Beck’s stupidity will make him irrelevant in time. Anyone remember Morton Downey Jr? Beck is so stupid that he completely contradicted himself within 75 seconds yesterday. First he said Obama is a racist who hated white people then when confronted about the reality of the whites in Obama’s administration, he said, “I’m not saying he doesn’t like white people.”

Perhaps the guy is a complete idiot, or perhaps I don’t understand the subtle yet logical shift he meant, or perhaps he is just pig fucking.

But Beck, Limbaugh and the rest have not yet learned the hard lesson that Wallace did. They must think their tactic will eventually win over the race traitors who voted for Obama.

But it won’t work. As the photo above suggests, they are not fucking America, they are fucking themselves.

Just because I always believed America would elect a black president does not mean I ever thought it would be easy. Just because a rock climber is able to grab hold of the next rock above does not mean their arms do not strain to pull themselves up.

Perhaps one positive aspect to all of this is that Beck and Limbaugh will keep drawing that racist poison out of us where it will dry up and turn to dust in the hot light of day and blow away in the wind—in another generation maybe??

My Blog Was Vandalized

Oh my god, my blog was broken into and vandalized! I don’t know how it happened. I was all set to post tonight’s blog and when I signed in and I saw everything was thrown all over the place (see below). And then I saw the graffiti (see above). I called blogspot.com and spoke to their security people and they came over to my blog and looked around.

They said I had been vandalized by a blog gang called the Blogguerillas. They said the Blogguerillas are one of several blog gangs that have emerged in the past few years.

Blogspot.com security officials say they think the vandalizing of my blog was a random act because my blog happens to post on Blogguerillas’ their turf and they were just marking their territory because I am new.

Thanks for that. I thought I had been hit by the CIA for some of the stuff I have written about Iran-Contra cocaine or yesterday’s blog about the overthrow of Honduran president Zelaya.

Blogs are new to me. And obviously, blog gangs are even newer. No one has warned me about blog gangs.

I want to say to my readers—all seven of you—that I will not be intimidated nor succumb to threats, despite the fear. I am feeling a little vulnerable, but I will carry on tomorrow in spite of this criminal violation—I promise.

blogguerillas

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Zelaya Coup

I usually don’t take requests. I’m not a lounge singer or a disc jockey or a dish washer (“More sauté pans, please!”). I’m in a more noble profession. I am a blogist—the artistically correct term for one who writes blogs. One who creates art is an artist. Therefore one who creates blogs is a blogist.

However, I also usually don’t get any emails either. So when my first email asked for my thoughts on the coup in Honduras, I was a bit frightened. Since Michael Jackson did not die in Honduras, I must admit I have not paid any attention to news reports about the Zelaya coup.

However, much of what I have read believes the coup was CIA orchestrated like the one attempted against Bolivian president Evo Morales last September. I do not doubt it one bit.

So the guy who used words like “hope” and “change” to get elected, is president of a coup and CIA-instigated destabilization throughout Latin America. Is this something he inherited like Kennedy and the Bay of Pigs or did he know before hand? Reportedly, the groundwork for this coup was laid by John Negroponte last year.

Also reportedly, soldiers going to Iraq are trained in Honduras for exterminating the populations of towns and villages. Hard to believe? George Washington, the father of our country, was called the “town destroyer” and “town burner” by the Iroquois because he burned Indian villages during the Revolution. Apparently America has a long history of this.

Some see this coup and the tensions between the militaries and civilian governments of other countries throughout Latin America as a return to the military dictatorships of the 70s. That should concern us all. Given the fact that the U.S. established military bases in Honduras during the Contra war and that drug trafficking is entrenched in Honduras says the United States never intended to let Honduras be truly free from our domination.

Clinton called Zelaya “reckless” when he stepped one foot inside Honduras from the Nicaraguan border to declare he will return to power. What the hell was that supposed to mean? I can only imagine what Jesse Helms would say and do in the face of this coup—he would rejoice and call Zelaya a communist. Far from the ferocity of Clinton’s comment.

What I find curious in all this is the reaction of Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez. He is against the coup, but he himself attempted a coup in 1992 against former Venezuelan president Carlos Andrés Pérez. Chavez and Bolivian president Evo Morales think it may have even been a CIA job like the attempt to overthrow him last September.

With the news that Dick Cheney wanted to send troops to Lackawanna, New York to arrest Yemeni-Americans rather than the FBI makes me wonder if there is a momentum of burgeoning right-wing militarism right here that may become more apparent especially in the next Republican president cheerleaded on by Cheney.

After all, Cheney and Helms (who was perhaps America’s biggest champion of right-wing South American military dictatorships) were good friends, both believed in doing what they wanted and in letting Congress or the courts deal with their illegalities which went uninvestigated and unpunished.

For me, the litmus test in any leadership question in the Western Hemisphere (including the U.S.) is how they treat their indigenous peoples. Apparently, Chavez’s socialism doesn’t extend to them.

However, Honduran indigenous leaders are calling for Zelaya’s return to the presidency, saying the referendum was meant to rewrite the Constitution and give them greater political power. That seems to me to be a gold embossed invitation for the Honduran military to overthrow Zelaya, I don’t know.

Further, a press release by the Indigenous Coordinating Body of Mesoamerica and the Caribbean (CIMCA) says that the coup is a throwback to a darker time:

“The military during the ’80s lead abominable operations against the civil populations, as is being done now by coup President Micheletti who is calling on these same men to be his advisors. This means that there is a latent and serious danger to the lives of all indigenous leaders and those of others in the social movements.”

South and Central America will obviously never become stable until America truly changes. But how can America change when those of us who elected our current president for the purpose of change don’t really trust him now?

This is intriguing. More about Obama’s CIA adventures in the coming weeks. .

I have come to the conclusion that returning Zelaya to power is something for the Impossible Missions Force.

Your mission, Jim, should you decide to accept it, is to weaken the Honduran military and return Zelaya to office.

For those who need to hear it, here it is: the Mission Impossible opening, an extended version.

Pay close attention at 00:18. It looks like someone is about to be water boarded. Someone is holding a nose and shoving a cloth into an open mouth.

Congressman Christ: Episode One

Christ has returned to Earth for his Second Coming. In 2008, he ran for and won election to the U.S. House of Representatives from the 27th Congressional District of Texas in Corpus Christi.

In Episode One, we find Congressman Christ is being sworn in.

The air was tense as the other Congresspersons standing before Speaker Pelosi for their swearing in condemned Christ’s presence in secret whispers to each other at the ceremony because not one politician or news organization believed he was really Christ.

The world, with some exceptions, believed that Congressman Christ was a fraud, although fairly and legally elected by the people of Corpus Christi—a natural place for Christ to show up for his Second Coming, don’t you think?

In fact, in a 1999 PTL Club survey of the places Christ would appear for his Second Coming, Corpus Christi ranked just above Messiah, Indiana.

January 20, 2009 was a cold day in Washington as the newly-elected Congresspersons arrived in a steady procession of black Lincoln Towncars. Congressman Christ, however, just seemed to appear from out of the clouds.

The media was obsessed with Christ’s election, given that he ran as Christ and was elected as Christ. But because he was elected by a bunch of right-wing, Bible thumping, secessionist Texans, no one seriously believed he was Christ. The media viewed him as a fraud to be disproved with more fervor than they used when they blindly accepted and echoed President Bush’s call for war in Iraq. Perhaps because Texans elected Bush as governor, which led to him running for president, the country believed those Texans in Corpus Christi fell for another fraud.

CNN’s Wolf Blitzer ran a report titled “From Ezekiel to Electiel”. MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow interviewed Rick Warren who said he believed Congressman Christ was shorter than the “Christ” imprinted on the Shroud of Turin, and Fox News’s Julie Banderas proclaimed Congressman Christ “looked like he needed a bath and a haircut”.

As Congressman Christ ascended the steps of the U.S. Capitol, the reporters shouted at him questions, asking if he was really Jesus. And Congressman Christ turned to them and said, “An evil and adulterous generation shall seek after a sign, but there shall no sign be given unto it, except that Bill O’Reilly shall be cancelled.”

And lo, the media was skeptical. But Congressman Christ did not care. He quietly blessed all the children who joined Speaker Pelosi at her rostrum while John Dingell, the Dean of the Congress, administered the oath to Speaker Pelosi so that she, in turn, could swear in the new Members of Congress:

“Do you solemnly swear or affirm that you will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic, that you will bear true faith and allegiance to same, that you will take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion and that you will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which you are about to enter, so help you God.”

At that point many turned to see how Congressman Christ would respond. He simply said, “I do,” just as all the other newly-elected Congresspersons did.

“Congratulations, you are now Members of the 111th Congress,” Speaker Pelosi responded. Raucous applause and cheers followed.

Moments later, while Congressman Christ waited to have his photo taken with Pelosi (see above) a few Members of Congress came to ask if he would bless their careers. One of them was Michelle Bachmann, who asked Congressman Christ to expose the anti-Christians and anti-Americans. Congressman Christ obliged, which drew snickers from some of those assembled.

Finally, Congressman Christ was face to face with Pelosi. A nervous smile streaked across her face and a trembling, “You know I am Catholic,” crept from between her lips.

Congressman Christ nodded silently.

Pelosi sputtered, “Are you real?”

Congressman Christ nodded silently again.

Pelosi muttered, “I’d be happy to let the Pope know you’re here.”

Congressman Christ just looked at her. Finally, she could not control her nervousness.

“Am I…am I going to hell for…voting against the partial birth abortion ban?”

Congressman Christ looked away. Pelosi trembled, her knees weakened.

“What did I say about abortion the last time,” he queried.

“I—I don’t know. Thou shalt not kill?”

“That is what our Heavenly Father said.”

“What are we, uh, what are…we supposed to do, uh…about it—abortion?”

“That is why I have returned,” He said. They posed for the photo. The camera flashed and they turned to each other.

Pelosi looked at him with a hint of disbelief. Suddenly, Pelosi and Congressman Christ were in the desert. Pelosi was shocked and she turned to Him.

Suddenly, Newt Gingrich stepped before her and smiled. Horns protruded from his head. Pelosi was baffled then Gingrich made her see the whole world as if from a high mountain.

“All this I will give you if you will bow before me and, uh…give me your gavel.”

Pelosi looked at Congressman Christ, shaken and bewildered. Suddenly, they were back in the House Chamber.

Congressman Christ looked at her. “Satisfied,” He said. Pelosi was still shaken, but tried to maintain her composure knowing all eyes were on her. He looked at her, then turned and walked away.

Others, noticing Pelosi was visibly upset, became concerned. Soon, those who overheard their exchange started a flood of whispers about it as Congressman Christ walked up the aisle to the door, where he turned and said:

“Fear not my children. I have come to set the world right in the eyes of God.” And with that, He turned and left. Light laughter ensued, some nervous.

Join us next week for another rapturous episode of “Congressman Christ” when Jesus meets Michele Bachmann and gets his committee assignments.

Jesus-istas: A Jim Buck Blog Special Report

What are the similarities between the two men pictured above? They both have long hair and beards. Nice eyes too. They both have had tremendous impacts on the world we live in today. They both have philosophies named after them which seem to scare some people, and they both thought that the poor deserved a better break.

With this resolved, we can now ask other questions.

How would Jesus have embraced the Sandinistas? He drove the money changers out of the temple, would he also have driven out the Somoza dynasty? Impossible to say. Some believe Jesus was a political radical against the Romans and the corrupt Jews who supported them.

Would Jesus have taken up arms against the Somocistas and the Contras? Very doubtful. Jesus would have arguably suffered the same fate as Oscar Romero, the Archbishop of San Salvador who was killed by right-wing thugs for speaking out for human rights and the poor. After all, wasn’t Jesus killed too for speaking out?

But would Jesus have been a socialist? Well, obviously socialism was not invented when Jesus lived. Socialism, according to Marx, was the transition between capitalism and communism.

Too often in this country, socialism seems to be associated with a “welfare state”. These were generally attacks against Obama during last year’s election and presently in trying to pass health care reform. Socialism was also compared the New Deal, especially last September when the financial meltdown began when taxpayer (public) bailout (ownership) of Wall Street was the solution arrived at. Jesus would probably have taken issue with then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson provision that no one not even he, was to be held accountable.

There would not have been a Jesus Marx. However, inherit within Christianity, and in Judaism, is an obligation to help the poor by giving 10 percent of their net income to charity. It is called “tzedakah”. The word means righteousness, justice and fairness. This may be the closest thing to a version of socialism in the ancient world.

Jesus picked up the mission to help the poor:

Luke 18:22
Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him [a certain ruler], Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.

Luke 14
12 When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee. 13But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: 14And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.

It is no surprise, given that the majority of visible Christianity in America has long forgotten Christ’s teachings on tolerance, have also forgotten his economic message of share, give, care.

The mission of the Church was to minister to the poor. Mother Teresa is a great example. However, socialism came about at the rise of industrialization when we moved from agrarianism and the merchant class to a more structured and organized society with an increased gulf between the wealthy and the poor.

We all know Jesus famous quote about the rich: “A rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” (Matthew 19:23-24).

Jesus had “compassion” for the five thousand people who had come to see and hear him preach. Compassion is what is missing from our so-called Christian country. Compassion for each other.

For this to become reality we need to eliminate all that prevents compassion. These things are racism, sexism and all the other isms. Another thing is greed. This is very apparent in the most rabid capitalist country in the world. What supports this rabid capitalism is the rabid greed of right-wing Christianity.

The test to know this is true is pay attention to their actions compared to what they say and what Jesus said and did. They have corrupted Christianity to support the rich and powerful. This is exactly what Abraham Vereide, the founder of the Family claimed that god said in his “vision” back in the 30s that concern for the poor was not what he had in mind. To believe that god did not mean that means that Jesus got it wrong. If they really believe Jesus got it wrong, they cannot really be Christian.

Right-wing Christians have embraced the Moonies through various presidents like Ronald Reagan, George HW Bush and George W Bush as well as many politicians, usually always rabid conservatives like Jesse Helms, Orrin Hatch and others. The Moonies vowed to take over America. If memory serves, so did communists. Why would real Christians believe that Moon is the second coming of Christ? Because they have become corrupted.

What is the Christian Right’s fascination with all these false prophets? These may the End Times for the Christian Wrong, but I think the rest of us will go on quite nicely.

Jesus believed that humanity was like fruit that was ripe and ready on the vine. If Jesus were here today he would believe that many of those who follow the religion that bears his name has been reinvented over and over again so that they have rotted on the vine.

Beginning Monday we are launching a new serial to deal with this very issue.

“Congressman Christ” explores Jesus elected to Congress, battling daily with those evildoers who use his name to deny the poor and other enemies of mankind who believe their politics are the same as his.

Join us Monday for the thrilling adventures of “Congressman Christ”!!

Twins

Like Bush, Schwarzenegger has succeeded in failing.

Ah, no ld will go down in history of California’s version of W. With glee he stood before the press to announce the budget impasse was fixed. It takes an idiot or a conman to do that. He is probably both.

Why is California filled with Democrats who have no backbone to take their argument to the people and stand up for what is right?

Schwarzenegger’s recent knife as-a-symbolic-prop video will be looked upon with scorn and ridicule in a few years, when the full effect of his selling out of the citizens of California in favor of gutting education, corporatizing pensions and giving away off-shore drilling rights and robbing local governments of their money is realized. Why is the mainstream media not more critical?

Schwarzenegger has set California on the path to becoming a third world country. In ten years, California will be in such bad shape even Mexico won’t want it back. Just wait until Californians rise up.

Schwarzenegger’s California will be seen like Bush’s America—robbed. When are Californians going to realize that thieves like Schwarzenegger should never be elected because of stardom and false promises?

He and his do not have the interests of California in mind, only corporations and the rich.

I know what he can do with that knife.

Day Off

Iran Some More

I haven’t used this space to express my solidarity with the people of Iran in about a month. Apologies.

I remember back in the early 80s many of us wore a Solidarnosc button and then there were the CISPES (Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador) stickers. There doesn’t seem to be the same thing going on right now for the benefit of the people of Iran. And now is when there should be some form of solidarity.

I may be wrong, but it seems like things may have shifted momentarily to a somewhat more positive set of circumstances in Iran. Ahmadinejad picked a First Vice President even the hard-liners don’t like, Rafsanjani seems to be getting into the middle of things which may be keeping Khamenei sort of off balance by injecting some sense into the situation, having stated that many have doubts about the June 12 election results, and, most importantly, the will of the Iranian people has not been beaten. They keep coming back to protest despite threats of the police forces and the Basij.

At the end of Rafsanjani’s speech last Friday, when the traditional chant of “Death to America” is usually called, many chanted “Death to Russia”, according to the New York Times, because Russia accepted the disputed election results.

Recently, Mohsen Rezai, a conservative political candidate warned that the rupture in Iranian society attributed to protests over the election results could lead to the disintegration of Iran.

We Americans need to do as much as we can to support those in Iran at war with their government. We must do everything possible as people to bring peace before the neo-cons can figure out an angle to go to war with Iran. It seems they may be stymied now, but neo-cons don’t need reasons other than those they can invent and tout by lying to the American people.

Thankfully this happened when Bush was out of office because he and his neo-conmen would use this as an opportunity to inflame the situation as a prelude to war.

It seems that this is a perfect opportunity for the youth of Iran and the youth of the U.S. to strengthen ties. We may need to learn their lessons one day, especially when Schwarzenegger and the Legislature keep screwing things up that we have to take back California from the politicians who are ruining it. Schwarzenegger is California’s version of Ayatollah Khamenei, refusing to look at reality. More on that tomorrow.

But back to the larger issues: I see these developments in Iran as an opportunity for Americans to reclaim our country as well, by honoring the anti-tyrannical, anti-oppression efforts of the Iranian people against their leaders. These are well-respected principles in America. It is exactly what our own Revolution was about 233 years ago.

Plus, we can exert our own foreign policy to become friends with the Iranians. American is hated by many throughout the Muslim world because of our country’s support for Israel at the expense of the Palestinians and because of our overthrow of this democracy for oil and this other hypocrisy between what we say and what we do and our--you get the idea.

But, more importantly, we the American people need the Green Revolution to help straighten up Iraq when that starts failing. Because when it does, the neo-cons will pressure Obama to do some stupid things just as they are doing now with Afghanistan.

Here are some websites to become involved. NedaNet, Anonymous Iran, StopAmadi, and Persia.org.

I don’t watch much TV news. The only exception is MSNBC at night after work when I begin writing, but before escaping into the original SNL to regain some balance from the stress of the day.

I don’t understand what happened with MSNBC’s coverage of Iran. It was massive until Michael Jackson died.

Perhaps if Iran’s protestors all wore white sequined gloves or suddenly did the moonwalk they might just be back on.

Ahmadinejad’s choice for vice-president, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie, is reported as insisting on serving as VP. This brings American and Iranian people closer to together through the obvious similarity: we also had a vice-president who insisted on serving—Dick Cheney. He was only on the vice-presidential search committee and purposefully found no one so he could be VP.

Let’s hope the new round of demonstrations in Iran yesterday keep widening the cracks the protestors have already begun to make in their oppressive government.

Moonspiracy Theories

Forty years ago today, Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin left the safety of their Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), the Eagle, and stepped out onto the surface of the…Hollywood soundstage.

WHAT??!!??

Since 1969 a number of people have come forward and offered a variety of theories that Armstrong and Aldrin did not land on the moon and that NASA faked our nation’s milestone in space. Having looked at all available evidence I’ve discovered many hoaxes in the moon-landing-was-a-hoax field. Here are four:


Perhaps the quickest moon landing hoax theory to be debunked was the one taken at Crater National Park and touted by Bob Jennings, former soup kitchen entrepreneur and chief of staff to Nevada Senator Harry Reid, who claimed the moon landing was faked because a “NASA photo” showed a discarded Marlboro pack he said belonged to one of the hoaxers while Jennings himself forgot to Photoshop out the moon from the sky of the “moon”.


Fisher Bartholomew, a former security guard from the Goddard Space Flight Center janitorial supplies warehouse, claimed to have built his own mock-up of the LEM in a desert in New Mexico to show that it could be done. But closer examination of the photo shows it was actually taken in a vacant lot near a K-Mart in Mormontown, Utah using trick photography and toys bought during that day’s Blue Light Special.


Buddy Ebsen Jr, son of the famed “Beverly Hillbillies” star and a one-time Elvis impersonator, claimed to have overheard Neil Armstrong bragging they deceived the world at a Denny’s in Fresno and uses the light and shadow dimensions on the above photo to argue the moon landing was a hoax. But the photo actually shows Ebsen, in full Elvis costume, giving hoax to his own hoax claim.


Perhaps the most disgusting of the moon landing hoaxes is this doctored photo by “Buster” Solzhenitsyn, a former Cincinnati 7-11 cashier and illegal Russian immigrant seeking to damage the Capitalist winners of the Cold War’s Space Race, who claims Buzz Aldrin drank so much Tang that he urinated on the set of the soundstage moon because he’d been holding it for so long in the unmanageable space suit that he could not wait to get to the bathroom.

Next 50 Years: The Men Landing on Mars Was A Hoax Theories Debunked

Apollo 11

One of my favorite TV shows as a kid was “Star Trek”. It was about hope and possibility and a future in space during a time that seemed difficult and dangerous while we were beginning the space program to meet Kennedy’s goal of getting to the moon before the end of the decade.

I was born the first full day of the space age. My first memorable introduction to the space program was being told about John Glenn orbiting the earth back in February 1962. I was only four years old but I still recall the feeling of wonder I had. I may even have seen something about it on TV to feed that wonder.

America’s early space program has been detailed in many documentaries, HBO’s “From the Earth to the Moon” and Tom Wolfe’s “The Right Stuff”. Right now we have a shuttle in space and a permanently-staffed (I avoided using the word “manned”) space station. In fact, yesterday they were having toilet problems. My how our technological prowess has declined—they never had that problem in the LEM. We also have a space telescope, plans to go back to the moon and on to Mars, perhaps we or China landing a human there sometime in the next fifty years.

As I wrote in this space for father’s day, my father woke me and my sisters up in a motel room in Tennessee to see the moon walk live. I still remember that. What moves me most about that event is video of people around the world watching at the same time. We were truly one world during that moment, fascinated by the achievement. Perhaps through space exploration, we will be afforded an opportunity to become one world again.


This is a photo of a sunset on Mars, which fascinates me tremendously. I am also fascinated by the Times Square Cam that enables me to see Times Square live. So to have at least one photo of a precious in moment like a sunset—but on Mars!—thrills me.

I may sound nuts, but I believe there will come a time, perhaps in a hundred years, when humans will begin colonizing Mars and begin exploring Venus with the possibility of living there some time later. I believe humans will one day occupy three planets in this solar system.

Perhaps the technology this and subsequent generations will have to develop to reverse or control global climate change will be the foundation of the theoretical technology called terraforming which will be needed to make Mars and Venus habitable to humans. The technology required to transform Venus is obviously outside our present realm of knowledge, but technology to get to the moon was obviously outside our realm a hundred years ago or so when people first began fantasizing and speculating about it.

Perhaps in two centuries, or less, we will have developed the technology to travel to other solar systems.

“Star Trek” had been cancelled by the time of the moon landing, but the space program continued. Many scientists in the space program and in consumer product technology were also fans of “Star Trek” as kids. They shaped the computer/cell phone world we live in.

With the various incarnations within the “Star Trek” franchise and the possibility Paramount will keep churning them out for fifty more years or so, future kids will be able to enjoy them and perhaps the vision of an inter-galactic human reality, inspired by “Star Trek”, will become reality because of it.

There is hope for humanity. We simply have to rise to the challenge of global climate change. If there is anything the space program has taught us, it is that we can rise to challenges like we did with Kennedy’s and achieve great things for all humanity.

Unlucky for us, we now have some very serious challenges to rise to.

Tomorrow: Debunking the Biggest Moon Landing Hoax Theory Hoaxes

Walter Cronkite

The greatness of the Twentieth Century began, perhaps, around 1920 when those men and women who shaped it were very young or soon to be born. As America went through the Great Depression and then World War II they all, like Walter Cronkite, pioneered everything that the Twittering, texting, Facebook generation may well be taking for granted.

Perhaps Tom Brokaw’s “Greatest Generation” explained it best as those who grew up in the Depression, fought WWII and came back to the States after the war to change America over and over again through entertainment, science, technology, politics, medicine, business and the expansion of America through suburban development and the building of an infrastructure of freeways and communications technology.

For so many things, from our current national security state to the feminist and civil rights movement, World War II was the incubator. The generation that changed America in the 60s, themselves now in their 60s, were born during WWII. Those who carried on those changes through the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s were born immediately after WWII. And it is those people who are responsible for significant changes while the generation before them brought about some of our greatest achievements.

As we approach the 40th anniversary of the first man on the moon, perhaps the greatest of those many of humankind’s achievements, kids today have no idea what a world-uniting moment that was, not to mention the triumph of technology for live television—not from another coast or another continent, but from another celestial body.

The space program of the 60s was one of the most exciting things that a kid in the 60s could grow up with. More about that in Monday’s post for the Apollo 11 anniversary.

Cronkite was one of those greats because he developed his personal strength and toughness and journalistic ideals and ethics during very difficult times and went on to pioneer nightly network television news broadcasting.

Cronkite took over the CBS Evening News a little less than six months before Johnny Carson took over as host of the “Tonight Show”. Like Carson, Cronkite took us through the turbulence of the 60s, beginning most notably for Cronkite with the live, on-air announcement of President Kennedy’s assassination. He guided us through one of the most difficult periods in American history—the Vietnam War, the assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy, Watergate and various Cold War developments.

As someone about to turn 52, I remember a good portion of the 20th Century—at least the last 35 years of it. As a kid during the 60s and 70s, Cronkite was one of those who made the scary world seem less scary just because he was there. It may sound maudlin, but I felt that no one like Walter Cronkite would let anything bad happen to us—as if they had the power to protect. I was young.

Cronkite was voted as the most trusted man in America in 1971. Trust is one of those attributes that does not seem as prominent in adults today as it did to me then, given recent news of the deceit of the Bush-Cheney administration, the rise of neo-conservatism and the squirm of the Christian Right. What kids may not realize today—as many did not during the Nixon era—is that trust can go a long way in the positive development of the world view of our country’s youth, who are our world’s future.

Every generation believes they have it better than their parents. Let’s hope that is true for this generation. But let’s hope that they have not become so comfortable that they have become weak and apathetic. On the other hand, perhaps I am simply getting older and more crotchety, and it is easier to deride younger generations rather than understand just as I witnessed the Generation Gap or the war between the generations in the 60s and 70s when I was a kid.

Cronkite’s death is one of those events that makes people like me want to put things into perspective.

Many times I bemoan the state of popular music now, of today’s television, of modern journalism, and of contemporary politics and even comedy compared to the explosions of their predecessors, some of which began in the 50s, some long before, that grew in the 60s and on through the 70s.

If you can imagine, we had what seemed like the best of everything in the 70s. Walter Cronkite was doing the news every night, Johnny Carson hosted the “Tonight Show” almost every night, the original “SNL” was on every Saturday night, CBS’s Saturday night line-up at one point began with “All in the Family”, followed by “M*A*S*H”, Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart and Carol Burnett—all classics in their own right in one night. What a great time to grow up.

Comedians like Steve Martin, Andy Kaufman, Richard Pryor and George Carlin were in their prime. Monty Python was becoming known in America. Rock n roll, punk and country produced some great music and musical events during the 70s. Watergate gave us one of the greatest political scandals—and a first for television—and, in movies, daring, personal and gritty cinema came of age and a new generation of young filmmakers: Coppola, Spielberg, Scorsese and Lucas changed everything. And through it all there was the continual threat of the Cold War. But every night Walter Cronkite told us what we needed to know of our world’s milestones and developments.

Many prominent people from our “golden era” have been dying recently—Michael Jackson, Karl Malden, Ed McMahon and now Walter Cronkite.

Perhaps a good analogy of the “golden era” which many of us experienced, like the 70s, is the sun shining brightly overhead. People like those above whose greatness is responsible for, or identified with, our golden era; their leaving is like the diminishing light of a sun that has set. With each person who passes on, more of that light disappears from the sky because the sun has dropped even lower below the horizon. With Cronkite’s passing more of that brightness is gone and we are heading, it seems, toward greater darkness. But, perhaps I’m just being a little too pessimistic about tomorrow.

As this and future generations face problems like global climate change, the “war on terror”, and increasing over-population and diminishing resources, the only consolation I can think of is maybe another golden era will come or that they see this time as their golden era.

If they’re lucky they will be told everything they need to know, not on Twitter or Facebook, but by someone like Walter Cronkite.

Controversial Ancient Horoscope Discovered

The photo above is of an ancient clay tablet that became of the center of a religious controversy last week. According to Tel Aviv University Professor of Archaeology, Avram Goldberg, the piece of clay with Aramaic writing on it is proof that ancient Hebrews dabbled in astrology.

Professor Goldberg says the clay tablet is a prediction for anyone of a particular astrological sign; in this case Capricorn. Professor Goldberg also claims to have carbon dated the clay tablet to the third week of March 33 CE.

Christian Evangelists along with the Catholic Church offered to purchase the clay tablet sight unseen from Tel Aviv University because they claim it pertains to the last days of Jesus Christ.

An independent translator hired by the Pope Benedict XVI has been allowed to view the clay tablet and has offered this translation of what many believe to be Jesus’ last horoscope:

“Next week you will come into a lot of shekels. Be sure to take time out to enjoy yourself and get plenty of rest. You deserve it. Friends tell you that family planning is a good way to spend the next few days. Listen to them. Your Sun in Virgo says it is a good time to buy a new pair of sandals.”

Professor Goldberg says that while ancient Hebrews wrote predictions commonly known today as horoscopes, he hastens to add that just because these astrologers were ancient does not mean they did not also write their horoscopes for entertainment purposes only.



The Jim Buck Blog Christmas in July Special Report

Join us on Christmas-in-July Day, July 25th, for our special investigative report that explores the questions, “Was Jesus a Socialist?” and “Is the Christian Right Wrong on Christ?”

Makes the Christian Coalition seem like the Moral Majority.

Rebuild the Twin Towers

Although Liz Cheney claims Obama and the Democrats are making America less safe because they are timidly, in my opinion, asking questions about Cheney, Bush and the CIA, this post deals with the result of how the Bush-Cheney Administration failed to keep America safe. How conveniently they forget.

The photo above was taken in 1982. It was the view out of the window of the first apartment Dennis Perrin and I lived in on Manhattan’s lower eastside—back when people with no money could still live in Manhattan. Can you imagine that?

When it comes to rebuilding Ground Zero, they just can’t seem to get it together. A June 9, 2009 New York Times article stated that Mayor Bloomberg’s deadline for Ground Zero lessee and developer Larry Silverstein and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to come to an agreement on the construction of three office buildings passed without them agreeing.

Further, the Freedom Tower still has its same old freedom from being anywhere near completion, with an expected opening in 2013. That’s twelve years after the Twin Towers’ destruction!

When I first visited New York in June 1982 for the big anti-nuclear rally, the first thing I saw of New York City while driving on, I believe, the Jersey Turnpike, was the tops of the Twin Towers. I was thrilled.

My first apartment in New York was on the Lower Eastside and I would lie in bed at night and look out at the red blinking light atop the TV tower.

Whenever I was in the village, particularly Washington Square Park, you could easily look up and see them. I had been to the top of the WTC twice—once by myself just for the hell of it and once with my family who were visiting me.

Everyone has their own fascination and appreciation for the Twin Towers. Last year I discovered a movement to rebuild them and I signed the petition and sent emails out to friends and family.

This is a video from 2005. The models of the Twin Towers are enough to evoke some powerful emotions.



This is another video where MSNBC’s David Shuster rips into former New York Governor George Pataki, almost accusing him of corruption and cronyism for pushing the Freedom Tower design when most Americans—an certainly most New Yorkers—want the Twin Towers back. Pataki becomes visibly upset.



The Twin Towers can be rebuilt stronger and with a more modern look, sort of like the new Mustang compared to the old Mustang. And it’s not too late. Here are the models. Bring up any emotion?



They could occupy the space beside the footprints of the old WTC, which would honor their memories and the memories of those who died in the attack in a much more fitting way than a completed Freedom Tower.

Not only are there conspiracy theories about the destruction of the Twin Towers, but now there are conspiracy theories about them not being rebuilt.

For those interested in a bit of nostalgia about the Twin Towers, this is the first of a two-part documentary are their construction.



Rebuild the Twin Towers even if Donald Trump has to do it. And when they’re completed, force Liz and Dick to occupy offices on the 100th floor of each tower. They can wave to each other to allay their fears of our unsafe-ness.

Kurdish Constitution & the Rights of Iraqi Women

Is this photo disturbing? Well, if you read my post yesterday about Liz Cheney, you will have noticed that I derided Dick’s daughter for her America-is-on-the-side-of-democracy-and-human-rights-and-judge-us-by-our-actions bullshit. She definitely has her father’s gift for meaninglessness.

What I took issue with was her work for Bush and her father’s re-election in 2004 from a woman’s perspective claiming that women have enlarged their scope of political issues and yet supported a controversial draft of the Iraqi constitution in her position of Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs.

As I mentioned yesterday, the Iraqi constitution diminishes the rights of women. There is an obvious contradiction here. She works for Republicans and attempts to get votes by claiming voting for Bush-Cheney in 2004 enlarges the role of women and could care less about the role of women in Iraq.

Let’s say in the near future, some foreign power, like the U.N., only a super-militarized version, tried to force through war, the U.S., Mexico and Canada, into becoming one single country and wanted to change everything we believed.

As you may have gleaned from my July 1 post, I spent some time back at the beginning of the Iraq war kind of working toward the goal of Kurdish sovereignty. Back then I believed the Kurdish region in the north should be an independent, autonomous and sovereign country. I still do. Given how America’s protection under the No Fly Zone under Clinton and Bush allowed the Kurds some large measure of self-determination, we saw what the Kurds developed. I still believe real democracy in the Middle East is the best way to stabilize the region and prevent American and war profiteering on the bloated corpses of Iraqi and Kurdish children, women and men.

Given some of the press last week, there seems to be some alarm brewing that Kurds in Iraq are looking at having their own constitution. But the Kurds have had a federal constitution for many years now—even before there was ever any hint of the Iraq war. This is not a new development. The Kurds’ constitution is not a reaction to or a development out of America’s war in Iraq.

Perhaps their constitution is different from the one I always new. Despite the rash of honor killings among Iraqi Kurds recently, the Kurdish constitution I had several years ago guaranteed the rights of women, whereas the Iraqi constitution, which would be binding on the Kurds, is about destroying the rights of women, according to Iraqi women’s rights activist Yanar Mohammed.

The history of the Kurds is important in understanding their deserved quest for independence and democratic institutions as Kevin McKiernan’s book, The Kurds: A People in Search of Their Homeland will tell.

The U.S. twice encouraged the Kurds to rebel against Saddam Hussein only to abandon them, which resulted in Saddam persecuting the Kurds mercilessly, which later—finally—resulted in some protection for the Kurds via the No Fly Zone. And despite the genocide when America betrayed them, the Kurds still love America. But the Kurds do not trust Baghdad.

America wants one central government to make it easier on America, and with which to have access to all the oil in the region. They do not want independence for Kurds because then the Sunnis and Shiites will want independence and that may invite sanctuary for Al Qaeda or Iran will begin controlling, depending on who you listen to.

The more immediate problem is the growing distrust between Kurdish people and the corruption of the two major political parties: the PUK, headed by former Iraqi president Jalal Talibani, and the KDP, led by Massoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Regional Government, and son of the now-deceased former Kurdish nationalist leader Mustafa Barzani.

At the beginning of America’s founding, was there not more than one faction that sought to determine the very type of our existence? Kurds are faced with the same questions and reality.

My fear is the U.S. will subvert the PUK and the KDP, and then the Kurdish people’s will toward democracy will be left to rot and languish. Apparently Noam Chomsky feels the same. This Chomsky linked story is very brief. Anyone wanting a longer and relatively recent interview with Chomsky about Kurds should click here.

In fact, a New York Times story last Thursday states that Joe Biden went to Iraq to handle this emerging threat to America’s Iraq and tried to talk the Kurds out of it.

The U.S. has done worse to the Kurds than just prohibit or interfere with autonomy, independence and democracy. My belief, and that of Chomsky’s, is that the Obama administration will be the same toward the Kurds as Bush was.

Democracy is good for convincing the American public to go along with war when it is only bandied about as a word or abstract concept (think lie), but as we all know any legitimate move toward true democracy will be crushed by America in favor of oil companies, and the profits of KBR, Halliburton, etc., and the multitude of military bases in Iraq.

The New York Times story also states that the constitution creates in a Kurdish national leader, an “’absolute’ ruler”. But isn’t that just like American democracy recently? George Bush isn’t elected as much as steals elections twice and subverts our constitution to spy on us (and commits worse crimes) using terrorism as an excuse. And the guy we vote for after Bush decides not to fulfill his campaign promises, instead perpetuating some of Bush’s same old policies without offering any reasoning.

A people at odds with their corrupt but democratically elected leaders…?

For shame! Yes, we as America must prevent that! How dare it be allowed to happen in any country other than America?!

As I’ve stated before in this space, John McCain admonished Obama for not being vocal enough about siding with the will of the Iranian people in their recent efforts to change their government, but would McCain insist on the U.S. being the “moral leader of the world” with regard to the will of the Kurdish people?

I think not.

Happy Bastille Day

Happy Bastille Day, France. I was in Paris in 2004 and I loved the city long before I arrived there. In 1984 I had wanted to move to Paris, speak French and sit in cafés drinking wine and discussing Andre Breton and surrealism. It never happened. Vive France!

Fun With Dick & Liz

It’s actually Dick and Jane. But this post is about Dick and Liz. And I don’t mean Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton either.

On the Moonie paper’s radio show interview, Liz Cheney says she may run for political office. Is there any crime she can be charged with before that irradiated creature grows into a 50 foot monster?

I’d love to see Dick and Liz go to jail together, but Obama probably won’t allow it. He’s weird that way. He bought a car and had mechanics remove the reverse gear. He doesn’t need to parallel park or get out of a driveway or parking spot now.

As Philosopher, poet and humanist George Satanyana said: those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

Obama’s doomed.

Liz—the long “i” vowel sound version of her name being appropriately, “lies”—was appointed in 2002 by Colin Powell (who told him to do that, I wonder?) as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs. She left that post in 2003 to work for the Bush/Cheney re-election campaign, working in a female aspect of the campaign called “W Stands for Women” to attract female voters and, reportedly “Spoke often of how women have enlarged their scope of political issues, invoking the September 11 attacks (Dick probably told her about the attacks before they happened) and “security”. Oh, what a surprise!

In 2005 her old position had been enlarged to Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs where she supported a controversial Iraqi constitution which [emphasis added] DIMINISHES THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN!!!

Do people like Lies Cheney go through life so privileged that they are so disengaged with the work they are doing??!! Are they so disengaged from reality working in a bubble that they think we believe them or care what they have to say (sort of like me writing this blog)? No, they have an agenda and arrogance and they lie, lie, lie!

In an interview with Turkish CNN she was asked a question based in skepticism about American commitment to democracy and human rights after a Washington Post story about black sites. Part of her response was the pathetic and predictable, “Judge us by our actions.” Brilliant!

She continued, “Judge us by the extent to which we really are standing with the people who are working for freedom.” The Iraqi constitution is based on Sharia Law—the very same application of social control that Pakistan is trying to prevent the Taliban from imposing in the Swat Valley.

How great that Lies Cheney can lie like her father! I’ll have a post on the Iraqi constitution later this week.

In 2006 she headed the Iran Syria Policy and Operations Group (ISOG) within the Bureau of Near East Affairs which was, according to a story in the New York Times, administering grants with a Republican foundation that critics said was plotting covert acts which could escalate into war with Iran and Syria.

Remember the late-60s anti-smoking PSA where the father and son are sitting under a tree and the father lights a cigarette and his six year old son picks up the cigarette pack and looks at it? Well, that’s Dick and Liz.

But instead of smoking, the bad habit she picked up from dad was lying, arrogance, scare tactics, illegal activities, obstruction of justice and subverting the Constitution. At least she can’t get cancer from it.

Her father was elected to Congress from Wyoming after working for Nixon and Ford during and after Watergate. She worked for Bush and probably internalized the vilification hurled at W like her father internalized the same about Nixon. What that means, under the principle of like father like daughter, is she will become the first female vice-president under president Mitt Romney in 2016 because she has foreign policy experience. And we will be treated to more lies.

With everything coming out now about Dick’s secret CIA “activities”, and Liz’s ISOG “activities”, I hope she gets elected to Congress, gets involved in a scandal and is investigated.

Have you noticed recently that the U.S. has a disproportionate share of nutcases in political office? I offer a possible solution in a post next week.

But for the near future, picture this: Liz is handcuffed and manacled in an orange jump suit, pushing the wheelchair in which her father sits also in an orange jump suit, handcuffed and manacled, escorted by U.S. Marshals with shotguns, as they enter Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary.

The Family

Skull and Bones, the Masons and now The Family. How many more secret societies that benefit the powerful and corrupt America are there in Washington?

On Rachel Maddow last week, in the context of the Ensign Affair-affair, The Family: The Secret Fundamentlaism at the Heart of American Power author Jeff Sharlet spoke about The Family. I was horrified. Sharlet gave an interview last year that may be illuminating (not to be confused with Illuminati-ating) to some. Another interview Sharlet did in 2003 with AlterNet about The Family may be equally fascinating (not to be confused with fascist-nating) to some.

Sharlet also appeared on Rachel Maddow last week for two nights. Check him out on Thursday and Friday. These links should take you right to the segments, if not, they are on the same scroll.

These people idolize Hitler for how he got things done. They want to use tools of Nazi rule to turn people to Christ—but their version of Christ. Aside from the obvious Jesus-was-Jewish argument about not mixing Christ with Nazis, don’t they see a philosophical difference between Nazis and coming to Christ? No, because they, like all these others, are only using Christ as a tool to attract. They brainwash later.

This collection of nutcases reminds me of the Moonies and Scientologists because they all want to connect to the seats of political and corporate power and all have built followings based on religions—although the Scientologists have L. Ron Hubbard rather than Jesus as their Messiah.

Reportedly Hillary Clinton used The Family’s leader Douglas Coe as her spiritual advisor. Barack Obama gave a speech at their National Prayer Breakfast where he adopted former British Prime Minister Tony Blair as his First Friend

According to the Wikipedia article on The Family, “Senators who have been cited as members of the organization include Don Nickles and James Inhofe of Oklahoma, Charles Grassley of Iowa, Pete Domenici of New Mexico, John Ensign of Nevada, Bill Nelson of Florida, Conrad Burns of Montana. Members of the House who have been cited as participants include Frank Wolf of Virginia and Joseph Pitts of Pennsylvania. South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford is also a member of The Family.”

Also connected to The Family through having lived there are Jim DeMint of South Carolina and Sam Brownback of Kansas. And, as we know from the Ensign scandal, Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn is also affiliated with The Family.

Their mission statement is against what their founder said was the vision he had of God when he founded The Family.

To develop and maintain an informal association of people banded together, to go out as "ambassadors of reconciliation," modeling the principles of Jesus, based on loving God and loving others. To work with the leaders of other nations, and as their hearts are touched, the poor, the oppressed, the widows and the youth of their country will be impacted in a positive manner. It is said that youth groups will be developed under the thoughts of Jesus, including loving others as you want to be loved.

Obviously the bit about the poor and oppressed were not to be confused with the oppressed under their one-world rule, as son-of-founder David Coe has stated. Their founder, Abraham Vereide, had a vision from god in 1935 wherein god told him concern for the poor was not what he had in mind. Vereide was a traveling preacher. So was Jim Jones. Does anyone remember Jonestown?

There was a story on Huffington Post last week about attempts to Christianize the U.S. military. The Family has held prayer meetings inside the Pentagon and the Department of Defense. They are also said to have connections to the CIA. Talking Points Memo ran a bit about Christianizing the military back in August 2007 titled “Onward Christian Soldiers” which detailed attempts to fight against the process. You will have to scroll down several items.

U2 front man Bono spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast back in 2006. His remarks seemed to rail against everything The Family stood for. I hope he was trying to tell them how full of shit they were.

C Street, the Family’s “church” (according to the IRS), where Ensign, Sanford and Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn live seems to violate the separation between church and state. How can it be a church if U.S. Senators live there? Let’s hope after Attorney General Eric Holder investigates torture, he launches a probe into these whackos.

The recent scandals of Senator John Ensign and Governor Mark Sanford have brought public awareness to The Family. Let’s hope sometime soon that the public becomes more than aware and becomes outraged.

Nah!!

The Jim Buck Blog Christmas in July Special Report

Join us on Christmas-in-July Day, July 25th, for our special investigative report that explores the questions, “Was Jesus a Socialist?” and “Is the Christian Right Wrong on Christ?”

Guaranteed to make The Family seem like The Addams Family.

They’re creepy and they’re cooky, mysterious and spooky. They’re altogether ooky, The Fami-Family.

Oscar Mayer 1914 - 2009

Our bologna had a first name,
It was O-S-C-A-R,
Our bologna had a second name,
It was M-A-Y-E-R,
Oh, we used to eat it every day,
But it won’t be the same, know what I say?
Cause Oscar Mayer died Monday,
From O-L-D A-G-E A.…

Funeral goers say that in keeping with the wiener mobile design, Mayer was laid out in a coffin made like a bun and adorned with a little mustard and sweet relish.

Anybody remember the classic?