July 20, 2022
Burning Man Not Observed
A Christian attempts to interpret Burning Man according to his own beliefs. It's like they say, "if all you've got is a hammer, everything looks like a nail." If the author ever really attended Burning Man, I have serious doubts he ever had a conversation with any other Burner.
permalink | July 20, 2022 at 04:28 PM | Comments (0)
March 21, 2022
Republican Candidate For California Secretary of State
California GOP Secretary of State candidate Rachel Hamm said today that she decided to run for office after her son found Jesus inside a closet in their home, and Jesus handed him a scroll telling her to declare her candidacy. pic.twitter.com/LdDLX1j8vS
— Hemant Mehta (@hemantmehta) March 18, 2022
“I’ve been a prophetic dreamer so I had spent a lot of 2019 and 20 having a lot of political dreams that I was in office,” said Hamm. “And because our youngest son Ezekiel is a seer I went and got him and I said, ‘Hey, can you look around and see what you’re seeing?’“Because I just really, I get a kick out of hearing him describe, you know, what he sees? And then he goes into the closet – which is where I had been when I was praying – and he said, ‘Whoa,’ and his eyes got like, big as saucers.
“And he kind of like started backing away, and then started bending down and he said, ‘You’ve got a really big guy in your closet, and his power is pushing me to the ground,’ and we had never had … he’d never had that reaction ever, to an angel.
“And so I’m like, is he’s for us, not against us, right? ‘He’s full of light, I can’t even see his face.’ And then he said, ‘and he has a scroll in his hand.’
“And so I was like, then he came with a message, what is the message, and the message was a commissioning. So at the very end, I asked him what his name was. ‘What angel is this?’ you know?
“And he said, ‘Immanuel,’ That wasn’t an angel. It wasn’t an angel that was Jesus himself. And so that’s why I’m running for secretary of state.”
Hamm has been endorsed by Michael Flynn and Mike Lindell.
permalink | March 21, 2022 at 07:27 AM | Comments (0)
January 29, 2022
Karen The Musical
Remix
permalink | January 29, 2022 at 04:15 PM | Comments (0)
January 16, 2022
On Broadway
Not my photo. This came in a recent email from the Museum of Neon Arts. Somebody shot this at the conclusion of the Jewish Lights Over Broadway Tour. I'm the one in the white sweatshirt wearing a pink cap. Left of me (on my right) is Edmon Rodman who led the tour. I think we lost three or four from the group at the mid-point of the tour, the Grand Central Market.
permalink | January 16, 2022 at 07:30 PM | Comments (0)
November 29, 2021
Phil Saviano Dead At Age 69
Phil and I met well before the time of the Boston Globe Spotlight stories, and I recall him telling me that personnel changes at the Boston Globe might finally make it possible for him to get his story out there.
From Facebook:
Wednesday, December 1: Wake from 4PM - 8 PM at Mann & Rodgers Funeral Home, 44 Perkins Street, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
Thursday, December 2: Wake from 4PM — 8PM at Jackman Funeral Home, 7 Mechanic Street, Douglas, MA 01516
Friday, December 3:” Funeral mass at 10AM at St Denis Church, 23 Manchaug Street, Douglas, MA 01516 followed by burial
permalink | November 29, 2021 at 09:08 AM | Comments (1)
October 31, 2021
Brazilians Organizing To Oppose Christian Missionaries
In the Javari Valley the first Indigenous lawyer has filed "what is believed to be the first lawsuit by an Indigenous group aimed at expelling Christian missionaries from their territory." In Brazil "the right to voluntary isolation is enshrined in the constitution and where it’s illegal to contact isolated Indigenous groups without government permission," the Christians seem to care little for the law.
permalink | October 31, 2021 at 12:44 PM | Comments (0)
October 26, 2021
The True Meaning of Halloween
permalink | October 26, 2021 at 05:25 PM | Comments (0)
September 30, 2021
Religious Exemptions
An interesting opinion piece in the Washington Post by Kate Cohen who has "a bachelor’s degree in comparative literature from Dartmouth College." IOW, a liberal arts major.
Opinion: If they’re going to keep passing religious laws, we’re going to need exemptionsOpinion by Kate Cohen
Contributing columnistReligious exemptions make no sense to me.
These escape clauses from our civic compact allow people to claim that such-and-such a law does not apply to them since it conflicts with their “sincerely held religious belief.”
A person can claim a religious exemption to the equal opportunity clause that’s required in all federal contracts; to the contraceptive coverage mandate of the Affordable Care Act; and, in some states, to the requirement that a child be immunized to attend public school.
This seems crazy. Obviously not everyone agrees with every law, but that’s the bummer about living in a society. In a democracy, if you feel strongly enough, you can set about finding like-minded people and try to change the law. Or, if that doesn’t work, and you truly believe it’s a sin to, say, fill contraceptive prescriptions, then (a) don’t be a pharmacist or (b) risk getting fired. Wouldn’t God appreciate the gesture?
If your religion won’t let you get vaccinated against the coronavirus, then don’t get the shot, but be prepared to suffer the consequences.
If your God-given anti-mask beliefs are sincerely held, then they’ll carry you through trying moments such as homeschooling your child and driving from Miami to Houston instead of flying. Martyrdom is supposed to be hard!
But ever since the Texas abortion ban went into effect, I’ve been rethinking exemptions. Maybe we actually need more of them.
If religious people can opt out of secular laws they find sinful, then maybe the rest of us should be able to opt out of religious laws we find immoral.
That’s right: immoral. We act as if religious people are the only ones who follow a moral compass and the rest of us just wander around like sheep in search of avocado toast. But you don’t need to believe in God or particular religious tenets to have a strong sense of right and wrong.
I am not a believer, but I have beliefs. Strong, sincerely held beliefs. Such as: A seven-week-old embryo — which is a week too old to abort according to the Texas law — is not a person. It’s the blueberry-sized potential for a person.
There is no moral component to aborting a seven-week-old embryo. None. But it is immoral to force people to bear children they do not want to have.
I realize that not all Texans would agree with me. But most Texans don’t agree with this law either. A majority even of pro-life Texans think that abortion should be permitted in the case of rape or incest, which the new law does not allow.
Shouldn’t there be some sort of exemption from that law?
Around the country, people are claiming religious exemptions from mandates that they be vaccinated. They want to opt out of laws that seek to protect their health and that of their neighbors.
Surely people should be able to opt out of a law that forces them to risk their health.
Let’s call it an un-religious exemption. Or no — since there are plenty of religious folk who object to the Texas law — let’s call it a rational exemption.
Rational exemptions could be used for religion-based laws with which people strongly, sincerely disagree. For example, a law that values the life of a quarter-inch embryo more than the life of a person carrying that embryo.
That’s clearly a religious law. It’s not based in science or public health or the Constitution or biological reality. It’s based on the idea that, as Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said on signing the bill, “Our Creator endowed us with the right to life.”
Religious laws are a part of our history, ranging in character from inconvenient (“blue” or “Sunday” laws) to unconscionable (laws banning interracial and same-sex marriage). But they are not a thing of the past. In fact, they seem to be enjoying a resurgence. There are laws that discriminate against trans people. Laws that permit or require schools to teach creationism along with evolution. Laws that require schools to teach abstinence but not contraception.
Such laws try to force 21st-century America into alignment with a first-century moral code according to some toxic combination of political posturing, fear-mongering and — sure, why not? — the sincere beliefs of a certain subset of people who adhere to a certain religion.
If they’re going to be making these laws, and the Supreme Court is going to let them, then the rest of us should be able to opt out.
In Louisiana, the attorney general helpfully offered language to parents in his department who object to school mask mandates: “I do not consent to forcing a face covering on my child, who is created in the image of God. Masks lead to antisocial behaviors, interfere with religious commands to share God’s love with others, and interfere with relationships in contravention of the Bible.”
For a rational exemption to the Texas law, may I suggest, “I do not consent to bearing a child I do not wish to have. Pregnancy and childbirth lead to assorted health issues up to and including death, and bearing a child interferes with my right to live my life and use my body as I wish, in contravention of both reason and morality.”
At least mine makes sense.
permalink | September 30, 2021 at 09:21 AM | Comments (1)
September 15, 2021
From The Man Who Brought Us "Corinthians Two"
Wow pic.twitter.com/MKyzsU6ZGk
— Eugene Scott (@Eugene_Scott) September 13, 2021
According to Snopes, the quote is actually from Isaiah 9:6, but "joint heirs" comes from Romans 8:17. The billboard (in Georgia) was taken down on September 13.
permalink | September 15, 2021 at 05:24 PM | Comments (0)
September 14, 2021
"Rightwing radio host who mocked AIDS victims dies of Covid after refusing vaccine"
Fuck this guy. I'm sorry, but I'm glad he's dead. And I'm glad he died the way he did. I hope he didn't suffer — really — but I hope he finally was able to see himself for what he was and had some time to think about what he did and felt some degree of remorse.
— Dan Savage (@fakedansavage) September 13, 2021
Bob Enyart, a Christian pastor who mocked AIDS victims, has died, unvaccinated, due to COVID. The mocking may now commence.
permalink | September 14, 2021 at 08:57 PM | Comments (0)
July 19, 2016
Public Nudity
A man who is so offended by casual public nudity, he slows down and engages with some naked men on the street in Toronto. I must point out that his Youtube username is "christsforgiveness."
On the website of christsforgiveness.com it says
CFM has evangelists all around the world that have been trained in the CFM style of Evangelism and are impacting souls and planting churches.
The cameraman who made the video above must be showing us some of "CFM style of evangelism." And they wonder why so many gays don't like Christian churches.
The law on public nudity in Canada is a bit unclear, but similar to the laws in much of the United States. If the naked person is not engaging in lewd behavior, then there's no problem.
Here's another video that shows Christ's Forgiveness Ministry preaching at Toronto gay pride. Observe the reaction of the people passing by. There is no reaction. He draws not a single listener. He might as well have been invisible and silent.
permalink | July 19, 2016 at 01:07 PM | Comments (0)
July 12, 2016
Problem Solved! Republicans Declare Coal To Be "Clean"
The word "clean" was not initially included in the Republican platform committee's coal statement. It was added by David Barton, an RNC delegate from Texas. Barton is the former vice chair of the Republican Party of Texas and an evangelical leader, popular for his claims that the U.S. Constitution is a biblical document.
From a 2012 NPR report on David Barton:
"You look at Article 3, Section 1, the treason clause," he told James Robison on Trinity Broadcast Network. "Direct quote out of the Bible. You look at Article 2, the quote on the president has to be a native born? That is Deuteronomy 17:15, verbatim.
The treason clause is is actually Article 3, Section 3:
Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court.The Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason, but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture except during the life of the person attainted.
I'm not even going to search for it, but if any Bible expert thinks they know where Article 3, Section 3 is in the Bible, I would be delighted to learn that amazing fact.
Article 2, Section 1, the requirement for the President to be a natural born citizen says this: "No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty five years, and been fourteen Years a resident within the United States."
Deuteronomy 17:15 in the Complete Jewish Bible: "In that event, you must appoint as king the one whom Adonai your God will choose. He must be one of your kinsmen, this king you appoint over you — you are forbidden to appoint a foreigner over you who is not your kinsman." King James: "Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the Lord thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother."
Clearly related, but I don't think Mr. Barton knows the meaning of the word "verbatim" nor the obvious fact that a verbatim quote from the Bible would never be in English.
permalink | July 12, 2016 at 11:22 AM | Comments (0)
December 9, 2015
Lifesaver
He was in the courtyard eating lunch with several of people near the corridor where he had been working as the shooting began. Daniel, always more concerned about everyone around him than himself, began screaming “Get out! Go! Get out now! Hurry!” He began pushing people out of harms way, urging them to the safety of the door before he was shot and killed.
permalink | December 9, 2015 at 04:56 PM | Comments (0)
October 7, 2015
Pastor Jesse Sanchez
These are the words of Pastor Jesse Sanchez of Living Word In The Desert, and is, BTW, the person responsible for creating the Brownstown gang.
Mayor Adam Sanchez considers Pastor Jesse Sanchez to be his pastor. He has recognized him officially at a City Council meeting and brought him to the Carl May Center to do the Mayor's swearing-in.
Jesse Sanchez
The gays will never take over because they cannot multiply. So they have to adopt children and teach him their perverted ways. I seen a video where gays are screaming saying we want your children I wonder why? To rape them to teach them perverted stuff to brainwash them from being a real man or a real woman. Now I have helped gay people and they have changed but the truth is the truth. Use some common sense. There is no babies without a woman they need a real man to make that happen. You don't see no gay dogs and you don't see no gay cats it's always male female. If you thrown in jail its for a good reason maybe now people wake up and believe ...Jesus said we will be persecuted for his namesake Jesus love people even gays. He died for the whole world sinners he's just waiting for us to choose his love sin is ugly. Most of they guys that talk to where molested or raped. So in their mind
This showed up on Facebook at some time (maybe yesterday?) and I did not see the original, but only this screengrab. If I'd seen the original I would have gotten you the full text, but there's enough here to establish his deep ignorance, bigotry and homophobia.
I've been reluctant to say, because I don't want to jinx it, but since I moved to Desert Hot Springs in September 2004 I have not been made aware of any homophobia, racism, anti-semitism or any other hatefulness in Desert Hot Springs. Which would be something of a surprise, if one were to judge us only on the way we fight among ourselves.
But now those silly naive 11 years are over, thanks to the Mayor's pastor spreading his Christian love. He reveals in his rant more than he intends. He, like most other homophobic bigots, forgets there are female homosexuals. It's not homosexuals he's against, it's homosexual men. If God thinks it's a sin (I'll just let you know right now that he does not) then he thinks it's a sin for both men and women. When Pastor Sanchez focuses solely on male homosexuals he reveals his own personal fears, not God's. And why is Pastor Sanchez so afraid of gay men? There's usually only one good explanation for that.
As far as I know, Mayor Sanchez has not addressed this issue. He still has Pastor Sanchez listed as an "Outstanding Citizen" on his website.
Here is Pastor Jesse Sanchez's Facebook page.
permalink | October 7, 2015 at 04:35 PM | Comments (14)
September 24, 2015
The Hunt Is On!
Kim Davis is playing the favorite game of bigots, this particular variation being "I have gay friends." She claims she has already denied a marriage license for a gay friend.
So the hunt has begun to find her gay friend(s). If you are her gay friend, major media want to interview you. If you are scummy enough, you can probably sell your story.
Maybe she met her gay friend(s) in jail, so I hope the media don't overlook that place.
permalink | September 24, 2015 at 04:28 PM | Comments (0)
July 30, 2015
Temple to "Mazu: Goddess of the Empty Sea"
Charlie Nguyen has organized a crew to build a Buddhist temple at Burning Man.
I'm sure there have been many temples for specific religions at Burning Man, but they may have been small or even located in the residential zone (you know how religious organizations like to ignore zoning restrictions), because I don't remember anything on this scale dedicated to just one religion. Thank goodness this first one is Buddhist so nobody freaks out.
permalink | July 30, 2015 at 09:46 AM | Comments (0)
July 9, 2015
Gettin' Their Hate On
Wikipedia (it's the god's truth, ya know?) tells us there are about 4,200 religions in the world. Just the list Abrahamic religions goes on for a few pages. Then there are the Indian religions (pages), Iranian religions (only a few), East Asian religions (a little more than a page), African diasporic religions, Mesoamerican religions, Indigenous traditional religions (pages), "Historical" polytheism (maybe the word "Historical" is to distinguish it from what goes on at Burning Man), Mysticism and occult, Modern Paganism (they use iPhones), New religious movements (there's room for more?!?!), Left-hand path religions (I never heard that term before, but it includes Satanism and Luciferianism - which I think is Satanism for the better educated), Post-theistic and naturalistic religions, Parody or Mock religions (even Pastafarianism, which is recognized by the IRS and Veterans Administration, I believe), and then "Others" (Deism, Eckankar, Humanism, Universal Life, etc.).
And who does Zack Hunt address his article to? Only one single religion. And in the comments on his article, where does the hate speech come from? Only from those who profess belief in this one single religion. "Is it Zoroastrianism," I hear you asking. No, no, it's not the Zs. It is, of course, Christianity - despite the fact that there certainly are lots of hardcore homophobic Jews and Muslims, but those religions seem to keep their objections within their own religions rather than taking them out in public and trying to literally beat them into others. Those who have been paying attention have seen how even the Latter Day Saints quickly adopted the way of the Jews and Muslims after the debacle of 2008. And don't we all love seeing the unofficial Mormon contingent coming in the Pride parades?
From a commenter:
I believe America will be judged the same way Sodom and Gomorrah was. In 2 Peter 2:6 it says and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; It doesn't get much clearer than that. When God flooded the earth He gave the rainbow as a promise that He would never destroy the earth with water again, but it says here He gave Sodom and Gomorrah as an example! I pray God would spare us judgement, but I believe we have gone too far.
So let's go to the King James version (the most error-laden popular translation, which might explain someone's misunderstanding).
9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:10 But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.
Mightn't one think that gay people who want to marry are godly and have suffered the temptations of a permanent unmarried life? Hasn't god, using the Supreme Court, delivered them from that? And those people who despise government, those people seem to be excluded from those who are godly. And the filth that they attempt to heap onto marriage? Isn't that speaking evil of dignities? Personally, it's all about as real as "Atlas Shrugged." A long, interesting story. But some people really believe in it, and then the trouble begins.
permalink | July 9, 2015 at 01:43 PM | Comments (0)
July 3, 2015
Hayes Valley Temple Video
San Franciscans doing the temple thing.
permalink | July 3, 2015 at 03:28 PM | Comments (0)
July 1, 2015
This Is How You Do It
Suppose you've got a government job which requires you to serve the public. You, however, have some sort of objection to dealing with what you perceive as certain classes of people. Suppose, for example, you are a diehard pacifist and you are too morally disgusted to provide your government service to military veterans. What to do? You could lobby your legislature to rewrite the laws to carve out a special little exemption for your special little belief, and to hell with those military veterans who might wonder why they get the second class treatment in order to spare the sensitivities of a government worker who is still getting full pay and benefits, courtesy of the taxpayers, including military veterans.
Or you could actually stand up honestly for your beliefs and quit your job. No problemo.
When I worked for the government I didn't get to refuse to take applications for Social Security Disability from those whose disabilities were, in some way, self-inflicted: failed suicide attempts, traffic accidents while DUI, organ failure due to substance abuse, morbid obesity, or (my personal favorite) emphysema due to tobacco smoke. During the interview I would ask the emphysemic applicant if their doctor told them to stop smoking - I never had to ask if they had been a smoker - they were all tobacco smokers. The answer was always that, yes, their doctor had told them to quit. So my follow up question was "Did you quit," and the answer was always (ALWAYS!) No. Okay, here's your check!
And did I write my Congressman (Tip O'Neill and then Joe Kennedy, I add just to be name-dropping) to ask them to carve out an exception to the law so that when someone with emphysema came into the waiting area I would be permitted to take an extra coffee break? Not hardly. Did I quit my job? Well, yeah, sorta, after becoming entitled to my pension. Not a moral decision. Just got tired of New England weather.
permalink | July 1, 2015 at 03:11 PM | Comments (0)
June 26, 2015
David Best's Hayes Valley Temple
Tonight, in Patricia's Green at Linden and Hayes Streets in San Francisco, David Best will open his Hayes Valley Temple to the public. It's the same temple that he constructed there in 2005. David Best built the first temple at Burning Man and has built the majority of temples there since then. I'm pretty sure they're not going to burn this one.
