And all you heathen Hindus better recognize or GTFO:
Christian activists briefly disrupted a Hindu invocation in the US Senate on Thursday, marring a historic first for the chamber and showing that fundamentalism is present and shouting in the US too.
Invited by the Senate to offer Hindu prayers in place of the usual Christian invocation, Rajan Zed, a Hindu priest from Reno, Nevada, had just stepped up to the podium for the landmark occasion when three protesters, said to belong to the Christian Right anti-abortion group Operation Save America, interrupted by loudly asking for God’s forgiveness for allowing the ”false prayer” of a Hindu in the Senate chamber.
“Lord Jesus, forgive us father for allowing a prayer of the wicked, which is an abomination in your sight,” the first protester shouted. “This is an abomination. We shall have no other gods before you.”
Democratic Senator Bob Casey, who was serving as the presiding officer for the morning, immediately asked the sergeant-at-arms to restore order. But they continued to protest as they were headed out the door by the marshals, shouting, “No Lord but Jesus Christ!” and “There’s only one true God!”
Zed, clad in saffron with a prominent tilak on his forehead, then nervously went through the invocation.
Lunatics. Remember who these festering scumbags are when the GOP engages in recreational gay-bashing in a few months to get their votes. This is playing real well abroad, btw.
Bubblegum Tate
Yes. His name is Ralph, He’s a head of lettuce, and He’s getting pretty pissed that you keep calling him the wrong name and insisting He had a kid named Jesus.
Seriously, those protesters sound like various wingnut bloggers. Are we sure this wasn’t a rudimentary Gathering of Eagles?
PaulW
As a Unitarian this depresses the hell out of me.
We had, as a nation, a perfect opportunity to demonstrate this is a nation of religious tolerance. And wouldn’t you know it, a very small very vocal minority had to act like a bunch of bullying a-holes.
The Hindu priest could have performed his ceremony and the Christians in the room could have maintained their faith in Christ. Honest men, like a true religion, are able to stay secure in their beliefs.
But then again it WAS Congress. Not that many Honest Men in the building to begin with…….
capelza
So I’m trying to figure out how come Hindus are so worrisome to an anti-abortion group. Has Planned Parenthood outsourced or something?
Yeah, religion in politics…such a splendid idea.
Andrew
I’m pretty sure that as soon as you yell something about Jesus in Congress, Congress is allowed to make as many laws about your religion as it wants.
Dreggas
Yeah their whackjob “leader” is “Flip” Benham, formerly the one who ran Operation Rescue and now runs Operation Rescue America. He’s a real winner this one. Fucking turd…
Andrew J. Lazarus
I think even the usual right-wing suspects will be leaving the kooks to their fate this time.
tBone
Stop picking on Christians. Don’t you know they’re OPPRESSED? Why, you can’t throw a rock on a crowded street in any town in America without hitting a dirty unbeliever.
What’s worse, you get in trouble if you continue to throw rocks at the filthy sinner, and urge nearby people to join in. See? Oppression.
capelza
“Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burned, tortured, fined and imprisoned. What has been the effect of this coercion? To make half the world fools and half hypocrites; to support roguery and error all over the world”- Thomas Jefferson ~ Notes on Virginia.
I’m not sure which founding father those nutjobs are saying would never allowed it to happen (from the article), but I got a feeling it wasn’t Jefferson. Who are they talking about, I wonder?
Will the usual suspects leave them to their fate? Guiliani sucks up to Pat Robertson…
Dreggas
“We would not ever encourage shouting in the gallery like that, we asked people to contact their Senators to show their disapproval.” – Tim Wildmon, president of the American Family Association
Eh not so much.
Bubblegum Tate
Oh yeah. I’m guessing the “official” response will be to disagree with the tactics but not the message.
Bruce Moomaw
Flip Benham has now been interviewed (see TPM “Election Central”): “When you stand up and are arrested, and the Hindu is allowed to go free, this country has gone upside-down.”
Anyone care to take bets on one of these fruitcakes taking a shot at the next Democratic President before his term is over? It really is a shame that the rest of the world can’t allow the various religious fundamentalists to heave nukes at each other with the rest of us standing safely out of the way.
Psycheout
What’s the big deal? Isn’t there a right to protest? Isn’t there a right to free speech? Only if you support it, I suppose.
Chris Johnson
“The Hindu is allowed to go free”?
So let me check something please. If it requires jail time, is not being a Christian a _felony_? Or just a misdemeanor? :)
Rome Again
Apparently the fact that the man giving the invocation is Hindu is his crime? Hateful man that Benham.
Tsulagi
And Romney thinks he has a chance with these loons?
According to a Southern Baptist leader, it varies from unlikely to no way in hell. Which is where they’re probably certain Mitty will be going. Maybe while strapped to the top of a station wagon. They just ooze with that Jesus love.
Grumpy Code Monkey
Interrupting a prayer is a tad churlish, don’t you think?
RSA
There’s a certain resonance in Benham’s statement, in that it shares some of the structure of Martin Niemöller’s famous poem. It certainly turns Niemöller’s warning upside-down.
nabalzbbfr
America is a Judeo-Christian nation, which recognizes the One True God, enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. We should not allow the corrupt immoral Democrat congressional leadership to foist their political correctness dogmas and defile our national heritage. This incident follows in the wake of earlier outrages, such as allowing congressmen to take the oath of office on unholy books such as the Koran.
Longshot
Mister Blogs for Brownback says:
What’s the big deal? Isn’t there a right to protest? Isn’t there a right to free speech? Only if you support it, I suppose.
… which tells me he may not be familiar with the concepts of order and decorum.
To say nothing of irony.
If someone had disrupted a protestant prayer in the exact same context, very likely Mr. Blogs for Brownback would be screaming for their fucking heads.
Psycheout
Well said, nabalzbbfr. I don’t understand why the American people are expected to put up with heresy.
Longshot
nabalzbbfr Says:
America is a Judeo-Christian nation, which recognizes the One True God, enshrined in the Declaration of Independence.
*ahem*
Fuck. YOU.
We should not allow the corrupt immoral Democrat congressional leadership
Been reading the news for the last oh, anywhere from 5 minutes ago to several years ago? Corrupt and immoral are words you might have heard about a zillion times recently applied to the GOP in whole and in its many hydra-headed parts.
to foist their political correctness dogmas and defile our national heritage.
That dogma being “We recognize no one dogma as applicable to everyone”? That one right there? The one that says “OK we’ve had Christian prayers on the Senate about 99,999,999 times, how about we get crazy and acknowledge that we have some NON-Christians in this country, and dare I say it EVEN IN THIS SENATE?”
This incident follows in the wake of earlier outrages, such as allowing congressmen to take the oath of office on unholy books such as the Koran.
*ahem*
On Thomas. Fucking. JEFFERSON’S. Koran.
Longshot
Hm. Maybe I should use the word “Fuck” a little less often in my comments.
Longshot
Mr. Blogs for Brownback says:
Well said, nabalzbbfr. I don’t understand why the American people are expected to put up with heresy.
Maybe because heresy isn’t a crime?
Rome Again
Wrong! Read the 7th chapter in Isaiah regarding “Immanuel” which starts with Isaiah having sex with “the Prophetess”, a sexual act which was witnessed and produced a child. Why? Because Immanuel is NOT Jesus, never was, never will be.
You want to know who Jesus is? Look up “Fear, the Pit and the Snare”. Your fisher of men, is none other than the snare.
jake
Normally I love living in the ‘burbs of DC.
99.999% of the time I can’t imagine living anywhere else.
Then shit like this happens and I remember this place draws freaks like road kill draws maggots.
I read earlier on TPM the three Talevangicals had come to DC to protest a hate crimes bill. Uh … yeah. Lord deliver us from the confused mother fuckers who follow you.
Chris Johnson
“On Thomas. Fucking. JEFFERSON’S. Koran.”
No way, really? That’s pretty cool, actually.
Dave
Obviously you’ve never bothered to read the Declaration of Independence. You also show a pretty shocking lack of knowledge of the history of this country.
Rome Again
No, you shouldn’t. The word “fuck” is one of God’s favorites. You just aren’t aware of it.
Everytime you get mad and yell “Jesus Christ”? God likes that too.
Isaiah 65:15 –
“65:15 And ye shall leave your name for a curse unto my chosen: for the Lord GOD shall slay thee, and call his servants by another name”
demimondian
Fixed.
J. Michael Neal
Well said, nabalzbbfr. I don’t understand why the American people are expected to put up with heresy.
Someone needs to learn the difference between heresy and paganism. Of course, he has to put up with heresy as well as Hinduism. Life’s so hard, he ought to get a helmet.
chopper
i’ve read the declaration of independence, and i don’t see jesus or the ‘judeo-christian god’ mentioned anywhere in it. i see the generic term ‘creator’, which of course includes hindu belief.
where’s this ‘one god’ mentioned?
oh, it was a drive-by dumbass? nevermind.
Bubblegum Tate
You follow Ralph, too? For a second, I thought you were one of those cabbage-worshipping heretics, but I’m glad to see you’re a true Ralpher.
norbizness
I think the Founders were Deeists, meaning that they either worshiped Dee Snider of Twisted Sister or Sandra Dee. Actually, I think that rift caused the Civil War.
Longshot
Chris Johnson says:
No way, really? That’s pretty cool, actually.
Yep :)
I’m surprised you don’t remember the controversy. Check it out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qur%27an_oath_controversy_of_the_110th_United_States_Congress
tBone
Duh. Invoking While Hindu is a felony in this country, moonbat.
tBone
I thought Dee Snider was the undead corpse of Sandra Dee, reanimated by the dark power of bitchin’ riffs.
Rome Again
Cite please?
Jill
If everyone left God in their house or just in their head the world would be a much more peaceful place. God ruins everything.
Bubblegum Tate
The famous Supreme Court case of Jesus v. Vishnu, in which it was decided that Jesus would totally kick Vishnu’s ass at Yahtzee.
Cain
He got one thing wrong, actual Hindu philosophy does not actually have a multitude of gods as is commonly thought. The gods are all part of the Mahabharata which whole reason was to explain life (Bhagavad Gita). But the core is Brahman. You can find out more here Common people find it easier to worship the multitude of gods because it’s easier to understand.
It’s kinda like “The Force”. Perhaps we really should have a Jedi Knight do an invocation. But unfortunately, he’ll have to dispose of the Sith Lord that presides over the Senate. :)
cain
Rome Again
Sorry, I don’t recall that case. Care to point me to the documentation?
Alan
What gets me is knowing these role-playing, pretend christians will tell themselves everyone hates them because they’re Christian. When in fact, everyone hates them because they’re stupid, role-playing assholes.
Sirkowski
Who’s stronger between Jesus and an elephant god?
Oops! Is that your messiah sqwished under my foot?
mark
hmmm, is there a first amemendment issue if a religious protest of another religion is halted by the government?? I hope the crack legal minds at Regent University are on the case.
mark
oops, amendment
The Disenfranchised Voter
Hmm…
Article 11 of the Treaty of Tripoli, reads:
“As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.”
The treaty was approved by President John Adams and Secretary of State Timothy Pickering and ratified by the Senate by a unanimous vote.
Another important note is that while the Declaration of Independence mentions a creator, the actual legal foundation of the United States is the Constitution. Considering that the founders deliberately chose not to make an mention of god, a creator, or a higher being, I’d have to say your statement that we are a Judeo-Christian nation is rather baseless.
tBone
The question is, which Democrat is going to be the one doing the Muppety frog-hopping around the Senate chamber? Nominate Dennis Kucinich, do I.
Longshot
Mark says:
hmmm, is there a first amendment issue if a religious protest of another religion is halted by the government?? I hope the crack legal minds at Regent University are on the case.
Somewhere in the vicinity of Virginia Beach can now be heard the sound of a few dozen fourth-rate legal minds being *blown*.
Cain
Jeezus, the movie in my head that ran when I read that… Good thing I wasn’t drinking anything!
cain
Nylund
RE: “America is a Judeo-Christian nation, which recognizes the One True God, enshrined in the Declaration of Independence.”
Actually, the Dec. of Ind. has only one reference to God, specifically, “Nature’s God”. If you know anything about our founding fathers (see Jefferson quote earlier in comments), you will know that they abhorred Christianity and did not consider themselves Christians, and purposely included that term “Nature’s” in reference to God to distinguish if from the common meaning of the Christian God, for, as is well known, they were Deists and did not believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ (although they did highly respect his moral teachings).
Enshrined in the Dec. of Ind. it is not. In fact, quite the opposite. Also, America is NOT a Judeo-Christian country. America is a country that allows the free practice of any religion, including, but not limited to Judaism and Christianity. The VERY FIRST line of the Bill of Rights:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof”
In that free exercise, I include the obnoxious behavior of the fundies earlier today. It is their right to express their religion, they just did it in a disrespectful way, not only to the institution of Congress, but disrespectful for the person also trying to have his right of free exercise of religion.
Plus, despite having a head start of a couple thousand years, Hindus have killed a heck of a lot less people than the followers of your “one true God”.
spoosmith
What’s with the prayer in the Senate anyway? Why doesn’t that creep anyone out?
dlw32
I often wonder if the folks causing all this ruckus have ever really read the Bible:
And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
— Matthew 6:5-6
btw, it’s hard for me to understand how you’d miss this passage, ’cause the next paragraph is the one where Jesus gives us the Lord’s Prayer (aka the Our Father).
Zifnab
The First Amendment gives you the right to worship as you choose. But in order to worship, you have to be praying to God. And since there is only one God, and Muhammad is his prophet, you’re not really worshiping if you’re not worshiping him. Ergo, those who do not pray to the property deity revoke their own First Amendment Rights and may be pulled at the rack, burned at the stake, and beheaded. QED.
PK
Hey Nabalzbbfr,
As a Hindu let me say go FUCK YOURSELF!!. Cut the Judeo-Christian BULLCRAP! According to your christian values the Judeos are all going to hell. By the way ASSHOLE, when I go to hell according to your oh so pious christian beliefs, at least I will be in the presence of Ghandhi and the Dalai lama. You can party with Jeffry Falwell and Hitler!
Zifnab
Although we’re officially a secular government, the vast majority of public officials are officially some religious denomination. And even our founding documents make numerous references to a “Creator” or “God” or some other higher power.
It’s the equivalent of having a politician throw out the first pitch at a baseball game. It’s a formality they’ve been doing for generations and when you start having Hindu Priests and Buddist Monks and Dahli Llamas giving the prayer, it becomes more political than religious anyway. I’m not bothered by it at all. I am bothered by it when wackos start slinging insults because they can’t handle the idea of mentioning Vishnu inside the Halls of Congress.
grumpy realist
Some of the newcomers don’t seem to realize the level of snark that usually occurs on this site….we’ve got a lot of “Modest Proposal” stuff, okay? (One of the reason I like visiting.)
As someone with a background in medieval law (both canon and secular) I find these Talibangical bozos hysterical. They’d be the first ones snapped up by the Inquisition and then gently turned over for punishments carried out by the secular gov’t….
Yeah, and there’s a great difference between heresy and paganism.
The US was founded by a group of rational men who were able to wrap a straitjacket around the religious lunatics that comprised the bulk of the populus. Now 200 years later, the nuts have managed to finally wriggle free…
carpeicthus
“In religion, all other countries are paupers. India is the only millionaire.”
–Mark Twain
Chad N. Freude
So do you work for the Bush administration?
Chad N. Freude
Not true! Every word posted here is deadly serious. Now, about shipping those Irish babies to countries experiencing famine …
les
I dunno–anybody see an anti-war t-shirt?
Ivan Awfulitch
Screw the Irish! The crimes these people have committed are completely unforgivable. Enter exhibit 1, the Potato. You can make wonderful hootch with this fine vegetable and these heavens eat it instead. These amatuers don’t know a damn thing about boozin’.
What this country really needs is a Potato Czar to nip this in the bud.
Rome Again
They only read what they’re told to, and apparently their eyes don’t wander at all. Robotic behavior, but I think that’s what ministers want. Chanting in front of robotic drones makes it easy when they say “give me your money”.
Andrew
Mr. Garrison says:
Cain
An excellent argument against ever praying as a group in any religion. Your brain turns off, and you turn into a robotic imbecile who repeats whatever is told to him. (kinda like how my marriage ceremony went, but we won’t go into that)
There is no inherent spirituality in it unless all of them are smoking weed. Then “like far out man, I think I can see God from here”.
cain
The Other Steve
I want everybody to go out and look at some flags.
Great Britain, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland in particular. When you look at those flags, what do you see?
It’s a cross.
Those are the flags of Christian nations.
Now look at Old Glory, and what do you see? Stars and stripes.
That’s the flag of America, the stars and stripes represent the union of divergent groups forming one nation.
Rome Again
It goes a little deeper than that.
The stars on the blue background signify the blueblooded Luciferians. The fact that they are in the top left corner means they come first (like reading from top left to bottom right)
The stripes are red and while, signifying the blood of the masses. This is the blood of the common people shed for the blueblood’s goals.
The symbolism was created by purpose, to those who understand such things.
By the way, the crosses on the other flags are also Luciferian, you’re just not supposed to know that.
ThymeZone
I think we should respect the protests of the Christians. After all, that Hindu was a threat to their sacred cow.
yet another jeff
Holy crap…I thought I was the only one that used that “What’s Happening” reference.
Dreggas
The puritans of course.
Tulkinghorn
Egads… now you mention it, I remember it too. “What’s Happening” was the last resort for Friday afternoon vegetating when one is too young for cars, sex, and drugs… Gott in Himmel it sucked to be 11.
louisms
The First Commandment:
“You shall have no other gods before me.”
That would, of course, include Vishnu. So those nuts were just trying to enforce God’s law, law that’s accepted and defended by the great majority of Americans.
And that’s why we godless heathens oppose displaying the 10 Commandments on public buildings.
ThymeZone
I think that a movie called “Godzilla Versus Vishnu and Jesus” would settle this thing once and for all.
binzinerator
Intolerant bigoted christianists, while attacking non-christians: ‘No Lord but Jesus Christ!’
Intolerant bigoted islamists, while attacking non-muslims: ‘There is but one God, Allah, and Mohammed is His prophet!’
NO FUCKING DIFFERENCE.
Everyone of them will insist on ramming their stupid fucking religion down everyone’s throat — on the point of a knife, if need be.
Blame the fucking Republicans. This was the poisonous vine they should not have watered. But they did. They watered it, fertilized it, and shielded it from the sun.
They carefully cultivated it and the mean and ugly tendrils have spread.
Is this what ‘social conservatism’ essentially comes down to? No Lord but Jesus Christ?
Chad N. Freude
Yes, but the stripes are actually components of crosses, neatly stacked until they are needed to form defensive crosses against heathen blasphemers and reestablish the the dominion of the alpha god of Christianity. And good ol’ ‘murrican Christianity, none of that heretical European stuff.
Chad N. Freude
Wasn’t it Godzilla who gave his only begotten egg for the salvation of mankind?
ThymeZone
Hey, stop poaching my jokes.
Chad N. Freude
I think it’s funny that TZ resents poached egg jokes.
binzinerator
PaulW:
The important thing we need to remember, always, is that is was indeed a choice. There were indeed many opportunites to show the finest qualities of this nation, and of its people.
The Republicans chose, deliberately and calculatingly, not to take those opportunites, not to go down that path. The Deciderator decided not to.
And many Dems followed like sheep. As did many citizens.
The Party of Personal Responsibility has brought us to where we are now. And they take no responsibility for it. Many still won’t even admit they led the nation into a moral swamp, all the while wrapped in the flag and bearing a cross aloft.
ThymeZone
You’re cracked, and beaten. Your message is scrambled. And if you keep this up, I’ll pepper you with endless rejoinders.
Face it, you’re toast. You’ve got a lot of crust AFAIC.
grumpy realist
Actually, medieval jurists (especially the more famous ones) were notorious for standing up to the local honcho/gov’t telling him/them that No, You Can’t Do Whatever You’re Trying To Pull Off.
I did my Master’s thesis on 5 cases of conspiracy in Florence, where one of the eager little beavers in the Florentine gov’t decided to see if he couldn’t bring post-mortem accusations of treason against the conspirators. (Would have been able to confiscate their estates if it had managed to go through.) Baldus, in a very long legal opinion, went though all the stuff from the trials, the relevant Florentine statutes and the Roman Law statutes for crimen laesae maiestatis, and after all of this, abruptly says: “No, you cannot. So what if you claim that Florence “has the rights and privileges of the Roman Republic”? Simply saying so doesn’t make it true. You lose.”
I’d much rather have a bunch of medieval jurists in charge of the DOJ than our present lickspittle Uriah Heep.
Chad N. Freude
TZ wins. I have to find shellter. Maybe in the Oval Office with that yolkel from Texas.
Chad N. Freude
What the Dickens are you talking about? Wait! I’m sorry. I should limit that kind of stuff to ThymeZone.
I have a lot of respect for people who study — no disrespect — obscure subjects, especially history, and I find material like that in your post really interesting. (Stay with me — we’re coming back on topic.) I have lately become enamored of the history of Spain and on a recent trip toured Andalucía, where Ferdinand and Isabella unleashed a bloody reign of religious terror. I think the Evangealiban would really like to follow their example.
ThymeZone
Good work.
capelza
Dreggas, Roger Williams was a Puritan. Even that early in the game, there were men, within their limitations, who began to understand the good idea that is separation of church and state.
Rome Again
Uhhh, Yes, were you unaware of this well-known fact?
Rome Again
Actually, it includes the Christed one too, if you knew the difference between God and Christ (Christ does lots of things his supposed Daddy told him not to do, such as tell people to drink blood, and if Christianists are to be believed, to eat pork (Paul said it, but he’s Christ’s right-hand man, is he not?) and finned creatures (fish) as well.
Speaking of the Ten Commandments: my problem with Ten Commandments sculpures are the fact that they are idols in and of themselves (and people did prostrate themselves before the statue in Alabama). There is a commandment regarding such sculptures indicating that the sculptures themselves are prohibited in the very Ten Commandments they advertise.
“Thou shalt not make of thee any graven image… ”
Christianists are idiots. Their entire New Testament (go figure, the first one wasn’t good enough for God, he needed to rewrite it) talks about how a certain group is made foolish, and they are the ones… they never realize it though. Funny shit, actually!
Pooh
Who wants to play “Throw the Hindu in the Well?”
Rome Again
Is that anything like “Beat up the Arab?”
Chad N. Freude
Off topic, but the Huffington Post is pointing to this most excellent video.
Dreggas
Or mutilate the Mexican?
HyperIon
i did not know this. from wiki on roger williams and his interesting ideas:
Chad N. Freude
Immolate the immigrant.
Dreggas
Bag the Brownie?
Chad N. Freude
That would be one heckuva job.
Dreggas
LOL yeah it would.
jenniebee
My favorite part:
This is ROFLMAO funny to me. To receive the meaning of that prayer, either you have to be previously familiar with the metaphorical phraseology, you have to be willing to meditate on the meaning (esp the heart of the earth, life of the sky bit), or else you have to be high. None of those three conditions are ever going to apply to the members of Operartion Rescue, and it’s charming that in the subcontinent there is an audience to which that truth is not self-evident.
JWeidner
Erm…personally I think Talibangelist(s) and Talibangelism sound a bit better.
:)
ThymeZone
Not bad, altho out loud, they sound a lot like televangelists and televangelism, which are sorta the same thing, but different enough to confuse some people.
I am just constantly entertained by the fact that those crazy, drunken fucks on TBN, with their white suits and women with huge hair, are really Taliban in disguise.
I mean, TBN is better than South Park.
Chad N. Freude
“Come Mr. Taliban, tally me banana, daylight come and me wan’ go home.”
The Disenfranchised Voter
And what founding documents would those be? There is a single mention of a “creator” in the Declaration and no mention of any “higher-power” in the legal founding document, the Constitution–so I’m having trouble understanding the assertion that there are numerous references to a “creator” or “god” in our founding documents.
Maybe I’m just misunderstanding you, so if you could clear this up that would be much appreciated.
Chad N. Freude
The original e-mails. Unfortunately they were inadvertently lost.
HyperIon
no, YOU remember. i never forgot.
good one.
binzinerator
Mine was a rhetorical question. Was yours too?
Dulcie
I think they might be on the RNC server.
ThymeZone
For me, there is and always will be No Yard Man but Jesus. MYM.
Rome Again
You mean the one you plan to put out of work when you purchase a condo? THAT Jesus YYM? That very one????? Hmmmmm!
Traitor!
LMAO~
Dreggas
well Jesus, NTZYM, did say blessed are the poor so maybe TZ is just blessing Jesus TZYM.
Krista
Prayer creeps me out if it’s anywhere non-private, frankly. So many people wear their faith on their sleeve and it doesn’t even occur to them that it might make others very uncomfortable. Even non-denominational prayers said at a public event make me want to be somewhere else.
Rome Again
Well, I’ll admit I try not to attend events where prayers or pledges of allegiance are said. If I find myself in that situation, I will sit down, or walk out before participating in them.
demimondian
Hmm. Does it make you uncomfortable that I’m religious? I’m pretty…blatant…about it, after all. Is it the existence of the faith that bothers you, the blatancy, or the content?
Krista
I won’t leave, but I don’t bend my head and pretend to pray, either, just to try to fit in. I now take it as an opportunity to relish a bit of silence, and the opportunity to check out what everybody else is wearing, knowing that they won’t be staring back at me. :)
demimondian
What she said, though, at least as far as secular events and prayer, or nor non-patriotic/military and pledges are concerned.
Krista
I don’t find you make me uncomfortable, because I don’t find you to be all that blatant. Were I to describe you, “religious” wouldn’t the first word to pop into my mind. And were I to go to dinner at your house, and you wanted to say a grace prior to dinner, I would absolutely respect that. I wouldn’t pray, but I’d bow my head and respect your moment. Were you hosting some sort of non-religion-based public dinner, however, and wanted to say grace, I would question the appropriateness of it. And then you’d probably tell me to piss off, and all would be well. :)
I don’t know if I could describe it as the existence, the blatancy or the content that bothers me. I think that in many cases, it’s the presumptiveness on the part of many religious people who I’ve encountered. There seems to be an assumption on their part that all others who they encounter share their beliefs, and a sense of such (sometimes offended) surprise when they find out that not everybody does share their faith. I don’t get that sense from you at all, because you’re very aware of other faith systems (or lack thereof). But in my neck of the woods, everybody just automatically assumes that you’re religious. And if you’re not, then you have to constantly defend your rationale behind your lack of faith. It’s damn tiresome.
BIRDZILLA
So now thats what the pagan damacrats idea is of relgion having a hindu wacko leading a new age pagan prayer what now will they do have some of those senators kneeling around a tree going OOOMMM OOOMMM OOOMMMM
ConservativelyLiberal
So it is Ralph is the guy who I believe in? Cool! I always wondered what his name was. God seems so impersonal, to me anyway. Like he is above us or something, and Ralph sounds like a person I would share a bong or beer with. I like that much better.
Now if Ralph could only let his other believers know that he does not like their interpretation of who he is, what he wants and what guy that we are to pay it to. If anything, Ralph needs to hit these mega-churches and get his cut of the take.
I hope they allow more denominations to say the prayer in the House & Senate. Not only is it the right thing to do, but listening to the Jeebus luvvers heads explode is better than watching the fourth of July fireworks. I have cruised a few of the nuttier sites that these religious
scrotumsnutsacksnutbags hang out at and verbally inbreed, and reading them has been providing me a lot of entertainment of the best sort. Free…Hey, I’m cheap!
On other good news, Friday the 13th has been a good one for my wife and I. Without prompting, a friend that I loaned $200.00 to about a year ago came over and paid me $300.00 for taking so long to pay me, and Phillip Morris is sending me a check for $45.00 because I can’t stand the taste of their self-extinguishing Marlboros. My wife had to go to a meeting at work in the morning, and she got two awards and two gold stars for her excellent work (cheaper than actually giving her money), and she was paid overtime for the meeting. Plus they had a dance contest, and she did the Time Warp from RHPS and won first place. Now we have a 32 inch Sony Bravia LCD TV in our bedroom! It was a floor model, but it is as good as new! And she won two door prizes, which were two $25.00 gift cards (good as cash!). So we gave our daughter our old (fairly new) TV from our room. We all made out like bandits today!
Damn, we need more Friday the 13ths like this one!!! :)
demimondian
See? This is evidence that Ralph loves you, and wants you to be happy. May the blessings of Ralph continue to rain down upon you, as he trickles them upon us all.
Hyperion
birdman, Hindus do NOT say “Om” or “OOOMMM”. that’s the Tibetan Buddhists.
Hyperion
birdman, Hindus do NOT say “Om” (or “OOOMMM”). that’s the Tibetan Buddhists.
ConservativelyLiberal
Yes, Ralph is good… ;)
Now, if Ralph can be this nice to me, I can only hope that he is nice enough to hand out some spines to the Democrats that we have in office now. And for the appropriate members, some cojones. Hell, cojones for all Democrats in office! Be generous with your gifts Ralph, we are in dire need of them…
One can dream, right? Anything is better than the nightmare we are living now.
RSA
Ad slogan for a new car powered by transcendental energy?
BIRDZILLA
Hyperion i was not mentioning the hindus i was squawking about the new age eco-wackos
Rome Again
Anything? How about if BushCo suspends the Constitution and dismantles Congress and “The Decider” decides 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is to be his permanent residence? Is that better?
LanceThruster
I have visited the Capitol and sat in the gallery for the opening of the Senate. As an atheist, I remained seated for the opening invocation (some Xian minister droned on about how we were all lowly scum unworthy even to be scraped from the bottom of Jesus’ sandal) and got a few looks. But when the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance took place, I stood proudly, and in a booming voice spoke the words originally written. When it came to the part “under God”, I omitted it and continued on, now out of sync with the rest of the gallery and clearly audible. The presiding officer that day, Strom Thurmond, shot me a look of contempt and I feared I might be forcibly removed myself. I returned his gaze unapologetically as I readied my defense in my head that I do not recognize the theistic change to the Pledge that made it unconstitutional. Thankfully I was not accosted but was glad to see Strom Thurmond distressed that someone did not buy into his mythological bullshit.
ConservativelyLiberal
Fixed. Is that better RA? ;)
BIRDZILLA
When seen will these demacrats be dancing in front of a golden calf?