Another thing worth drawing your attention to, in regards to our beloved culture war against the Religious Right. If you saw Time mag a few weeks ago, there was an article about how Biblically illiterate many Americans are. Anyways, there are increasing calls for the teaching of the Bible in a strictly historical, non-religious context, under the pretense that religion aside, it is an important historical book that should be taught as part of a well-rounded education.

See, the problem is finding teachers that are able to do that, for most that are willing to seem to be unable to inject the subtle or not-so-subtle proselytizing, as this LA Times article suggests, which is part of a larger article about the not-so-enlightened folks in Texas who are considering requiring Texas schools to offer this as an elective:

“When teachers don’t have solid training in biblical studies and 1st Amendment issues, then they fall back on what they know from prior knowledge,” Chancey told state legislators last week. “Courses end up being sectarian, often despite their best intentions.”

He said one teacher showed students a PowerPoint presentation titled “God’s Road Map for Your Life.” Included was a slide called “Jesus Christ Is the One and Only Way.” Another teacher taught students that NASA had found a missing day and time that corresponded to a biblical story of the sun standing still. One school showed “VeggieTales” videos, which feature computer-animated Christian vegetables that talk.

And interestingly enough, to get a better mindset of who is behind this, it’s Texas state congressman Warren Chisum (R). You might remember him as the nut who was passing around anti-evolution propaganda to his colleagues authored by an organization that believes that Copernicus was wrong, and the earth really is the center of the universe.

What’s really struck me is how many of the Religious Right really want this class taught. It doesn’t make sense, simply because nothing makes an atheist easier than when one analyzes and studies the Bible strictly from a historical context. It’s what sealed the deal for me. When one sees all of the glaring inconsistencies and the dubious nature of the circumstances of its authorship, it suddenly becomes a lot harder to take seriously, other than a work of historical fiction. That is not to say one cannot still find it inspiring, or that their religion is somehow invalidated (unless, of course, it’s one that takes the Bible literally, as many do). So those who say they want this in there for reasons other than subtle proselytizing are full of bunk.

At least WorldNutDaily columnist and action star has-been Chuck Norris is honest about the agenda. He describes it as “your first step to getting God back into public school”, and the big problem he has with it right now are these ‘five unnecessary changes’ that a mainstream liberal Christian group are proposing:

Mandate that teachers have appropriate academic qualifications and sufficient training on legal and constitutional issues surrounding instruction about the Bible in public schools.

Require rigorous, scholarly reviewed textbooks and other curriculum materials for all courses. 

Include strong and specific language that protects the religious freedom of students and their families by barring the use of Bible classes to evangelize or promote personal religious perspectives.

Require the Texas Education Agency to regularly monitor and report on the content of public school Bible courses to ensure that they are academically and legally appropriate.

Continue to allow districts the option to offer – or not offer – such courses.

Funny, because those are all the things that would actually insure that it is taught in an academic, non-religious context. It’s like the ‘Intelligent Design’ non-debate. They think that your kids should all think like theirs do, and they know what they advocate does not pass academic scrutiny whatsoever, so they try to put it under the radar. Makes me proud and relieved to live in the state with the second highest percentage of citizens with no religious affiliation (21%). And it is important to always remember that when these people accuse you of objecting because you fear that they may be right, make sure you correct them and let them know you fear them because they are wrong. Keep an eye out.

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crossposted at five before chaos.

As a contrast to the droolin’ fools who write the editorial page at the Caledonian Record, the Brattleboro Reformer came out with both guns ‘a blazin’ today: stating the obvious, that Bush is the worst president ever. And they’re not letting any of the the players in Vermont off of the hook, either:

History will not look kindly on House Speaker Gaye Symington for her insistence that her chamber must focus on “important matters” and that the House “does not have the time” to deal with impeachment.

History will not look kindly on Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin, who has talked loudly about impeaching Bush and Cheney, but won’t pursue the issue as long Symington says no.

History will not look kindly on Sen. Bernard Sanders, and his successor in the House, Peter Welch, as well as Sen. Patrick Leahy, for treating impeachment as if it were a barrel of toxic waste. Short-term political considerations apparently are more important than the Constitution, which they took an oath to uphold and defend.

Hear, hear! And of course, the editorial ends with the important question still as of yet unresolved:

Does Vermont want to go down in the history books as standing up to the worst president ever? We, the people of Vermont, have the chance to affect the outcome of this story. We must seize this opportunity.

Well, he doesn’t use that word, but he might as well have, regarding potentially damaging emails the administration claims to have lost. Powerful stuff, but again – is there anything anyone can do about it?

When reading the Caledonian Record for a laugh (which is the only other function I can find for it other than wrapping fish or lining a birdcage), I am often astounded at the sheer idiocy of the writers of the editorial page. Perhaps they really don’t think much of the intelligence of their readers, for just about every editorial parrots the same, discredited right-wingnut talking points. Zero fact-checking, and zero originality, really no different than what you’d read on some typical angry victimized white Christian male joe-shmoe wingnut blog (this guy really feels a lot of sympathy for poor Don Imus, if that tells you anything).

Today, it’s Is Nancy Pelosi Guilty Of A Felony? Typical hit piece like the one CNN has been pushing all week regarding Pelosi’s trip to Syria. And, as usual, no mention of  Congressman Darrel Issa (R-CA), in Syria right now. And also conveniently forgotten were Reps. Frank Wolf (R-VA), Joseph R. Pitts (R-PA) and Robert Aderholt (R-AL) who were in Syria 2 days before Pelosi. Also, no mention of then House Speaker and sweaty wrestling coach Dennis Hastert’s 1997 trip to Columbia, in which he  encouraged Colombian military officials to “bypass the U.S. executive branch and communicate directly with Congress.”

I’ve mentioned numerous times about Univ. of Manitoba’s Bob Altemeyer’s work on the ‘authoritarian personality’. If you read chapter 3 of his excellent free e-book, “The Authoritarians”, which is about how right-wing authoritarians think, a major attribute is the ‘double standard’, which is something the fools at the C.R. have gotten down to an art form.

Now, not like they care what us crazy moonbats think, but if you feel so inclined, give them a call at (800) 523-6397 or write them here and ask them if they feel that those Republican congressmen mentioned above (and Hastert) should be charged with treason as they say Pelosi should be.

crossposted at five before chaos.

I’d like to point you to a great piece by Paul over at Alien and Sedition today, called ‘It’s Not the Liberals Who Should Worry About Evangelicals’. I think that Alien and Sedition is one of those great blogs that really excels at serious, thoughtful analysis of the conservative movement from many angles, and I encourage you to add it to your list of daily reads.

Now, if you follow these kinds of issues like I do, you may have noticed in recent months a bit of a rift in the evangelical camp, between the war-mongering, xenophobic, sex-obsessed faction and the quieter faction who actually take Jesus’ philosophy regarding social justice seriously. Their side encompasses many things that many of us on the lefty side hold dear: environmental stewardship, world peace, and eliminating poverty. Granted, there are still fundamental differences, but there is at least some common ground.

Taking much from an article in the N.Y. Review of Books, Paul seems to believe that there is a coming rise of moderates from the evangelical side, who are not necessarily nutso fundamentalists. And, as someone pointed out in the comments of the Kos cross-posting of this article, if the Dems are able to appeal to those common ground issues, the Republicans truly have a lot to fear, because they are left with nothing but the extreme right-wing base, which is not exactly a sustainable way of keeping power. The key is for the Dems to not go overboard with the God talk, because then they’re going to lose the support of those who hold secularism and rational inquiry in highest regard.

It just goes to show how screwed up some of these people are when talking about the GOP ’08 roster, it still seems like a pro-choice candidate has no chance in hell of getting the nomination. With all the serious problems in the world that affect every single person, this obsession with holy wars, the well-being of pre-humans, and which orifice a penis ends up in may eventually do them in. Although they’re not dead and buried yet, and I still am not convinced the Dems are going to turn everything around (especially as long as the DLC types have any kind of influence, which, thankfully is also on the decline), I think what we are witnessing now is the beginning of another long trek into the political wilderness for the GOP, and the next time they come out of it, it’s going to be harder to pull this kind of stuff off. One can only hope.

( – promoted by gnome)

The national Democrats seemed to have some success with their “culture of corruption” message last year. They made the case that Jack Abramoff, Tom DeLay, Duke Cunningham etc, were part and parcel of a Republican culture that government needed to be cleansed from.

I’m wondering if we aren’t seeing some of that same dynamic here at home? Last week’s attempt to override Governor Jim Douglas’s budget veto generated two high-profile stories in this vein.

There’s the incident in which Transportation Secretary and Douglas advisor Neale Lunderville seemed for all the world to be attempting to bribe a Franklin County Representative to get his vote.

Then there’s the vote Montpelier’s Joe Lieberman – Jon Anderson – cast as well, which looked for all the world like payback for his appointment to the legislature. Anderson has denied that there was any sort of deal cut, but that’s not the word in town. Snarky Boy reported overhearing talk of such a deal. And I know Michael Colby might not be the most reliable source, but the truth is I know of one other person in town who has the same story – that Anderson was saying weeks before the Democrats met to choose names that he already had it. With corroboration to Snarky’s post like that, it’s hard not to assume that there was a deal and that Anderson wasn’t being very discreet about it.

So that’s two incidents in one high profile vote. Is it enough for a pattern? Has Governor Douglas has brought the “culture of corruption” to the Green Mountain state?

What’s in a domain name? Every now and then I bounce around the whois databses and see who’s grabbed what domain. It’s generally a disappointing time-killer. One interesting item that did pop up is that “DouglasforSenate.com” has been reserved by GOP activist Oliver Olsen. Is the Jamaica selectman and Revolt and Repeal enthusiast simply a hopeful guy, or is the Governor actually considering a rematch with St. Patrick in a few years? Maybe Olsen is just squatting in the hopes of a payday (he has been sitting on it for a while – we’ll have to see if he renews when the rights to the name are up on the 21st of this month)

The other domain oddity is that “shumlinforgovernor.com” has been grabbed – but not by Peter Shumlin. Whoever is sitting on this one has hidden their identity behind an anonymous, identity-hiding proxy service called Domains By Proxy. This is also the service Michael Colby used to register his Snarky Boy domain name in an attempt to keep his anonymity. Coincidence…? Mmmmnyehhh – could be, wabbit… rumor is that Colby Boy has been engaged in his media comeback in order to set up a statewide run of some kind himself. Maybe he wants a leg up on the competition?

A fellow blogger had to point my attention to it this evening, as I had just skimmed by it, but sure enough, it sure looks for all the world like Peter Freyne is blaming the sexual-indiscretions-with-a-subordinate scandal that led longtime Burlington City Attorney Joe McNeil to resign on – well, on McNeil’s wife:

it seemed to the old Irish-Catholic boy in me like a case of another old Irish-Catholic boy, determined to publicly transmit a very up close and personal message to the wife of all these years:

“Hey, Honey, I’m getting some!!!”

So – am I reading this correctly? Is Freyne brushing this aside as ‘ok’ because a fellow Irishman has a right to have an affair in order to send a message to his wife that she’s not putting out enough to suit him? And an affair with a subordinate? Half his age? Holy crap that’s offensive, Peter…

PS – Check out Rednalsi’s Vermont trivia post. Big fun. Here’s the link.

(This is a complete and utter shame. 20-30 years from now when the dust settles and we have a clearer idea about the Bush/Cheney administration, generations will wonder… why didn’t anybody do anything to stop the madness? More importantly, why didn’t the Vermont legislature act when they had the chance? Just like the “Good Gemans” of WWII that did not speak out against Nazi atrocities Peter Welch, Peter Shumlin, and Gaye Symington will all be remembered for their complicity. At least we can say Dan DeWalt gave it his best and that he acted more patriotic than Welch, Shumlin, and Symington ever will in their lifetime.

– promoted by Brattlerouser)

MONTPELIER- I went into the Vermont Statehouse cafeteria at noon on Tuesday, and found an empty seat at a table with three members of the House Judiciary Committee, which is where an impeachment resolution is currently stalled. As they explained all the reasons why they couldn’t bring up the resolution for discussion, it became clear that, while they are very interested in following protocol, and very worried about losing any votes on the floor, they were less concerned with the immediate Constitutional/military crisis that we are facing today, and not impressed with the fact that they may actually be able to do something about it.

Apparently, the only thing that will move them is a deafening roar from the populace. The representatives conceded that they have been hearing from Vermonters, just not the right ones. They have been hearing from Vermonters from every corner of the state. If they had been paying attention, they would have seen Vermonters in the streets earlier this year, calling for an end to the war and the impeachment of Bush and Cheney. They are surely mindful of the pro-impeachment votes of 40 Vermont towns.

We got a promise from the Judiciary chair that he would reconsider having a hearing, but that was the only positive outcome of that conversation. Just outside the cafeteria, a Burlington TV crew was waiting to interview me about my reaction to having Vermont impeachment the subject of Doonesbury this week – no questions about impeachment, just about the comic strip.

More below the fold.

After lunch, where I got to meet with some of other wonderful Vemonters who have been working on impeachment, it was back for another helping of Legislature Letdown, this time from the Senate side. Senate President pro-temp Peter Shumlin let us know right off that an impeachment resolution is not going to happen in the Senate. He shuts down the committees in three days and there is no time left. He complained that he should have heard from us in January or February so he could have passed it.

Historical note: I asked him to introduce a resolution in the Senate on March 1. He replied that he could but he would rather get it from the House. When pressed a couple of weeks later, he said it HAD to come from the House. When we showed him that indeed it didn’t, he said that he didn’t want to step on House Speaker Gaye Symington’s toes, and now that Symington says he can do what he wants, he says he’s out of time. (We should have been working earlier on other Senators, but this is an ad-hoc peoples’
movement that has just started to take shape, not a well organized lobbying machine.)

My day was capped off by an appearance on Vermont Public Radio’s Switchboard program, which is heard statewide. I was appearing along with Rob Roper, the head of the Vermont Republican Party to discuss impeachment. The listeners who called spoke overwhelmingly and persuasively in favor of impeachment. Even though Mr. Roper recited some of the same old tired Limbaugh litany during the show,he said “afterwards that we probably have more in common than one would imagine.”

It is becoming increasingly untenable for anyone to defend the actions of this administration any longer. We must make our representatives in Montpelier and Washington see that by refusing to take the actions that are available to them, they are aiding and abetting the illegal and unconstitutional actions of the Bush and Cheney administration. If they have to be hit over the head with floods of correspondence, then let’s contact them. Each one of us who chooses to do nothing, who doesn’t bother to call or email our representatives, is also aiding and abetting in the crimes of this administration. George Bush has said that everyone must choose; are you with us or against us? But that means with him and his war or against him and his war. Those who refuse to take action by now, are casting their choice for George Bush. Please don’t be one of them.

After yesterday’s politicking, today was spent cross country skiing along a Green Mountain watershed, crossing swamps and ponds crisscrossed with fresh tracks of snowshoe hare, otters, moose, coyote and even a beaver toboggan run. When we stop and look at the mountains surrounding us, we are always deeply moved and reminded of our incredible good fortune to live here, and of our responsibility to be active members of the landscape and community. Let us recognize the need to see the welfare of the nation and the sanctity of the Constitution in the same way.

The Vermont Democratic Party has launched a new excellent service called Speak Out which will allow Vermonters an easy way to send letters to the editor.

You just go here to start, click on “Participate” and you’ll see a box where you can enter your zip code to find the publications that are currently listed in the system.

I’ll let VDP Chair, Ian Carleton, do the talking on their first letter-writing campaign.

Speak out on the governor’s veto

We’ve  been confused for a couple weeks now about Governor Douglas’s — how  should we put this? — illogical and needlessly political veto of the  budget adjustment bill. We’re pretty sure you’ve read about the  governor’s reasoning: the budget adjustment bill doesn’t contain funding for scholarships, despite the fact that the governor himself  did not put funding for scholarships in his own proposal. This week,  we’re asking you to speak out on the issue.

The  good news for Vermonters is the legislature just passed the Next  Generation bill, which provides $4.4 million in scholarship funds,  along with workforce training funding for employers and workers eager  to fill high quality jobs. So, to review the governor’s logic: a budget  bill he didn’t propose scholarship dollars for was worthy of a veto  because it didn’t include scholarship dollars. All the while, a  separate bill did propose scholarship funding — the same amount the  governor requested — but the governor still decided to veto the budget  bill.

We’re not the only ones scratching our heads: the Rutland Herald, among other observers, noted that "It’s a lot of theatrics for a bill that enjoys wide support. But it  seems as if theatrics were part of the plan from the start."

Given  the governor’s hands-off approach to leading the state, we shouldn’t be  surprised that Douglas continues to choose theatrical politics over  substance. But we still can’t help thinking that Vermont deserves  better than a governor whose only interest seems to be playing the  tough kid in the sandbox.

So, write a letter to the editor and Speak Out!

crossposted at five before chaos.

One of the many things that helped bring the conservative movement into power was the ability of the operatives to give the illusion of broad grassroots support of a particular issue, when in actuality, it was basically a coordinated illusion. It’s still a rather popular technique today, hence we have front groups such as Working Families for Wal-Mart, or the power utilities-funded Citizens For Sensible Energy Choices. Since so much of that the cons try to do would fall flat on its face were it laid out for the public to see clearly, this is one of the most effective ways of getting support for an issue – giving the illusion that one’s fellow citizens support some toxic policy position.

RJ Eskow has a great piece over at Smirking Chimp that lays out a history of the war against universal health coverage, something that goes way back, complete with red-baiting from of all places, the American Medical Association (AMA). And this shouldn’t come as a surprise, but one of the pivotal figures responsible for laying down the foundations of this conservative nightmare we’ve been living through for the past two decades, Ronald Reagan himself, had a vital role in the initial fake grassroots campaign which eventual led to the demonization of ‘socialized medicine’ which is still a major impediment to serious healcare reform in this country.

As Eskow reports, the AMA has had a long history of opposing any sort of stet-funded medical system, all the way back to 1939. Harry Truman started to take action, but had to retreat due to a successful anti-Socialist campaign. So as the 1960’s started, a few programs were incrementally added. It was at this point that the powers that be started to get worried.

Enter Reagan and what was known as ‘Operation Coffeecup’, the original ‘front group”. As Eskow reports:

Enter the AMA. As Skidmore and Larry de Witt recount, Ronald Reagan was hired as part of a covert campaign to undermine support for Medicare and Medicaid. “Operation Coffeecup” was born.

Reagan recorded an LP (or “long playing” record), “Ronald Reagan Speaks Out Against Socialized Medicine.” The AMA sent it to the “ladies’ auxiliary” of the Medical Association in each county (unthinkable as it is now, medicine was so male and gender roles so different that each county had a “ladies’ auxiliary” for doctors’ wives.)

The “ladies” were instructed to “put on the coffeepot,” play the record for their friends and fellow physicians’ wives, and then get out the stationery (scented, no doubt) so that each of them could write personalized letters to their Senators and Congressmen. (Yes, they were called “Congressmen” then, even if there had already been some heroic women among them.)

There was no public announcement of the recording, or of “Operation Coffeecup.” The idea was to make it seem as if the letters were spontaneously written by distressed citizens. Portions of the recording were also reportedly broadcast as radio commentary.

Needless to say it was successful, and brought the term ‘socialized medicine’ into the public consciousness, replete with visions of Stalin wearing a stethoscope, and today the healthcare crisis is worse than ever. Not to mention the other horrible result of all of this:

The “Socialized Medicine” record was Ronald Reagan’s first venture into political speech. It didn’t just represent smart, well-funded political strategy. It also launched a career that in turn brought about the conservative revolution. Reagan’s efforts in “Operation Coffeecup” were so well-received that he was invited to give a speech for Barry Goldwater at the 1964 GOP Convention.