Bulls, Bears, Donkeys and Elephants

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/10/14/opinion/20081014_OPCHART.html

Since 1929, Republicans and Democrats have each controlled the presidency for nearly 40 years. So which party has been better for American pocketbooks and capitalism as a whole? Well, here’s an experiment: imagine that during these years you had to invest exclusively under either Democratic or Republican administrations. How would you have fared?

As of Friday, a $10,000 investment in the S.& P. stock market index* would have grown to $11,733 if invested under Republican presidents only, although that would be $51,211 if we exclude Herbert Hoover’s presidency during the Great Depression. Invested under Democratic presidents only, $10,000 would have grown to $300,671 at a compound rate of 8.9 percent over nearly 40 years.

See the charts in the New York Times

Grandpa always said, "If you want to live like a Republican, you gotta vote for Democrats."

Fall in Iowa

Come let us reason together

I got another one of those emails this morning that claim that Obama is not just a Muslim, but also the Antichrist. This time I think my response is a little less vitriolic, tying to "speak the truth in love," and as usual, hit "reply all." This time someone send me back another email saying "I don't need to be preached to." Ever hearing and never listening, whatchyagonna do? But God says that His Word will not return to Him empty. People will believe what they want to believe. God help us.


"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear..."
~1 John 4:18

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God ; trust also in me." ~Jesus (John 14:1)

You want to vote against someone because of their stance on taxes, abortion, or the war, by all means, it is you duty to vote your conscience, but please, don't let your vote be decided by desperate last minute rumors and lies driven by fear or anger.

An anti-Christ is anyone who takes attention away from the true Christ.

Check out 1 John 4:1-3 (the same John who wrote Revelation)

"Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world."

Obama publicly acknowledges Jesus as his Lord and savior.

Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit." ~1 Cor 12:3

Please, prayerfully consider what emails you send, and what you believe and who (and in what spirit) they sent it to you. Or at least please take me off of your list of people you forward these things to.

I for one am praying that God will heal our country from the huge rifts being caused by how polarizing this year's election has become.

"But I tell you:Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" ~Matthew 5:44

Seems to me that whether your perceived enemy are Liberals, Democrats, Obama, or Muslims or Muslim extremists, our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces and the way to take captive hearts and thoughts is not by traditional dirty politics or letters to the editor or angry emails, but by prayer and by turning the other cheek, going the extra mile, giving them the cloack off our back (Matt 5:38-48)

In Jesus' hands and with His love and peace (Philippians 4:7)
Your brother in Christ and fellow American who respectfully disagrees with you.

What are we so afraid of?

"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear..."
~1 John 4:18

"Fear always springs from ignorance." Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Fear of something is at the root of hate for others, and hate within will eventually destroy the hater." -George Washington Carver

“Nothing is more despicable than respect based on fear.” Albert Camus

What are we afraid of? Muslims? Gays? Mexicans? Iran? A black President? Losing our "way of life?"

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God ; trust also in me." ~Jesus (John 14:1)

Columbus Day

"Teachers of children in the United States of America wrote this date on blackboards again and again, and asked the children to memorize it with pride and joy: 1492. The teachers told the children that this was when their continent was discovered by human beings. Actually, millions of human beings were already living full and imaginative lives on the continent in 1492. That was simply the year in which sea pirates began to cheat and rob and kill them." ~Kurt Vonnegut

When it is genuine, when it is born of the need to speak, no one can stop the human voice. When denied a mouth, it speaks with the hands or the eyes, or the pores, or anything at all. Because every single one of us has something to say to the others, something that deserves to be celebrated or forgiven by others.

- Eduardo Galeano,
The Book of Embraces

October

Poem about shutting up

There's been ink in my veins from an early age
but it seems like it wasn't meant to be
either I wasn't meant for it or it wasn't meant for me

I want to give it up
I want to do what you want me to

don't know if you're afraid of it,
or if it makes you not like me

I'm trying to give it up,
because I don't want to lose you

but I swear God made me this way
so what am I supposed to do?

I'm haunted by the ghost of Tom Joad

I asked God to take me away from me.
to make me silent and submissive like Winston Smith at the end of 1984
only without having to face the rats or betray Julia first

When will the truth finally set us free?

Recently someone forwarded an email to me warning that Barack Obama is the Antichrist because the book of Revelation says that his reign will be 42 months, the same as a U.S. Presidential term. Big mistake. I hit the "reply" button and preached that brother a sermon. Here's what I wrote:

It's not possible for the book of Revelation to claim the anti-christ is of Islamic decent, 1) Islam wasn't invented yet when it was written, 2) it's a religion not an ethnicity so you can't be of Islamic decent.

An anti-Christ is anyone who takes attention away from the true Christ.

I suggest you read the 1 John 4:1-3

"Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world."

Obama publicly acknowledges Jesus as his Lord and savior.

While you're at it, you need to bone up on your both your theology and your eschatology a little bit. Many fundamentalist strains of Christianity believe in a false doctrine called dispensationalism that is not truly found in Scripture, but rather was developed in 19th century America.

You're trying to frighten Christian voters into being afraid of Barak Obama, a devout Christian himself- not a Muslim or the anti-christ. This is NOT a Christ-like behavior.

1 John 4:18 tells us that "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." Besides, Jesus tells us in Matthew 5 and Luke 6 to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us.

What you're doing is "the ends-justifies-the-means." You're so afraid of Obama yourself, that you're willing to spread lies and propaganda about him to insure that McCain/Palin win. That's not Jesus- that's Machiavelli.

Dispensationalists pretend to be friends of Israel because they think that Jerusalem will be some kind of celestial star-gate for Jesus' second coming, when in reality they are anti-semitic, hating Jews and blaming them for killing Jesus. They can't wait for them to be "Left-Behind" and sent to Hell. Whereas, granted, Jesus may be the only way, truth and life (John 14:6) BUT- God does not WANT ANYONE to perish (2 Peter 3:9).

It's so unfortunate that politics makes such strange bedfellows because Catholics that are so adamantly opposed to abortion find quick and fervent allies among fundamentalist and evangelicals in the religious-right movement, yet many of these allies suspect the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church itself of being the Antichrist and/or the Beast!

How do we know that Jerusalem won't be a cosmic star gate for his arrival to usher in some millennial reign? Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4:22-24 that His true worshipers will worship in spirit and in truth, not in physical, geographical or political locations.

As for predictions and prophecies and televangelists who think that the market crash is a sign of the end times or Sarah Palin's prediction that Christians will find refuge from the tribulation in Alaska- Jesus tells us that he will return like a thief in the night in 1 Thessalonians 5:2 and in Matthew 24:36 He assures us that "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." We need to love and trust Him and not worry about signs or trying to help arrange things for Him politically. He doesn't need any help.
I know you mean well and I'm sure you truly love God and America, I'm sure you're a good person. But be careful not to be corrupted by politics and political messages, whether they're from the right OR the left. Don't be motivated by fear or anger. Be motivated by love and a desire to reconcile everyone to Jesus.

As God tells us in 2 Peter-
" 3His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

5For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins."
Thank God, He's granted us liberty and privilege to elect our own leaders in the United States. If you want to vote solely on social issues that are important to you so be it. This is your right. But please, don't be frightened into any choice based on shoddy theological assertions of people who seek to use religion as a means to assert their political agendas.

Remember Galatians 3:28- "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
Guess what- there is neither Republican nor Democrat, Independent nor Libertarian, Black nor White, Asian nor Hispanic, Urban nor Suburban, Metropolitan nor Rural, either. Believe it or not, there ARE Liberal Democrats who LOVE Jesus and America and want what's best for everyone. I'll even bet that when we get to Heaven, we might just find a few Socialists, Communists, and even Anarchists there!

When will we ever live up to our motto? "E Pluribus Unum"- From many, one.

Soon, I pray.

Please forgive me if I've come off as angry or condescending in either of these emails. I happen to love Jesus and to love America and I have been wounded and persecuted and attacked and alienated and ostracized and doubted, slandered and shunned because I disagree with other Christians who watch Fox News more than they read their own Bibles and I feel like I have to either take a stand like Luther or gradually be pushed away from my Savior by His own "sheep."

Please forgive me, but please, please, don't fall prey to fear, lies, or political propaganda, let alone to false prophecies, false doctrines, and foolish heresies. Read the Bible, not political email forwards. Share God's love and His good news of forgiveness, not fear and racism.

Who do we really serve?

Money remains the great untouchable subject. Especially in church. Every minister I know dreads the yearly stewardship campaign. For most people, money is a deeply private subject, one not to be shared—under any circumstances—with our neighbors, fellow churchgoers, or even family.

Beyond privacy, however, I’ve always harbored a suspicion that American Christians don’t readily discuss money because we might betray the fact that capitalism is really an alternative God. And, that pretty much on a regular basis, we violate the first commandment, “Do not have any gods before me.”

Read the entire article here

Ted's take- I think it was Republican President Calvin Coolidge was the one who said that "the business of America is business and the man who builds a factory builds a TEMPLE." No wonder FDR rebuked the "money-changers" in his first inaugural address. Does the Bible call homosexuality a sin? Sure, but it also calls charging interest on loans a sin! When are Christians in America going to wake up and see that War and Greed are just as wrong as abortion and we need to vote to stop them too!

A problem 30 years in the making

Back in the early 1980’s when John McCain first entered the Senate, the Reagan administration was encouraging savings and loans to compete with banks without having to abide by the same regulations that banks had to. It started a real estate boom fueled by cheap mortgages and risky investments. Commercial office developments sprang up in cities like Phoenix and Dallas and Denver like weeds, but they remained empty.

The Federal Home Loan Bank Board saw the potential for a mess and set rules to limit the amount and kinds of investments that S&Ls could get involved in. Lincoln Savings and Loan Association of Irvine, California, run by Charles Keating III was one of many S&Ls that choose to ignore the rules.

In 1985 Reagan appointed Edwin Grey, a friend of Keatings to the FHLBB. John McCain and four other senators (the “Keating 5”) meet with the FHLBB and the management of Lincoln S&L. Alan Greenspan and McCain both thought that Lincoln should be allowed to keep on conducting business as usual, ignoring the rules. They pressured the board to let Lincoln get by.

In 1987 Lincoln Savings and Loan Association failed, leaving at least 21,000 investors, mainly elderly and retired, loose their life savings. The Resolution Trust Company was formed by the Federal government to bail out Lincoln and hundreds of other S&Ls, The whole bail out cost us tax payers $125 billion.

One of the other S&Ls was Silverado S&L in Denver that cost $1 billion to bail out itself. Neil Bush, one of President George W. Bush’s brothers was on Silverado’s board of directors. Neil settled out of court when the FDIC filed a civil action against him for fraud and conflict of interest.

McCain and Keating were close friends for years. They took vacations together in the Caribbean on Keating’s private jet. McCain failed to report these trips until the Keating 5 came under investigation. Meanwhile, Keating and Lincoln S&L contributed as much as $112,000 to McCain’s senate campaign.

In 1999 Senator Phil Gramm of Texas (up until recently, one of McCain’s “senior” advisors) co-authored the Gramm-Leach-Billey Act which repealed important regulations imposed back in 1933 to control rampant speculation that led to the banking collapse in the Great Depression. Thanks to Gramm, banks could now get directly involved in the stock market and insurance and encouraged mass mergers so that banks like Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers could become “too big to fail.”

Within days of the Supreme Court declaring George W. Bush president in 2000, Gramm added the Commodity Futures Modernization Act into the budget bill. The Modernization Act was designed to keep regulators from controlling new financial tools described as credit "swaps,” like sub-prime mortgages bundled up and sold as securities. Under the Gramm law, neither the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) nor the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) were able to examine financial institutions like hedge funds or investment banks to guarantee they had the assets necessary to cover their potential losses.

Much of the Commodity Futures Modernization Act was written by lobbyists, including a loophole which exempted companies that trade energy futures, like Enron, from being regulated. CFMA also let banks accept lower down payments on homes and offer loans without having to run credit checks, salary checks or asset checks on customers first. Keep in mind that Phil Gramm has been John McCain’s chief economic adviser.

In 2003 Bush tried to privatize regulation of the financial industry, fortunately he couldn’t get it past the Republican majority held Congress. In 2005 John McCain sponsored a Senate bill which would have created an independent (private, non-government) agency to “regulate” the Federal Home Loan Bank Finance Corporation, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac. Once again, a Republican Congress knew better than to eliminate all regulation whatsoever.

Now the Bush Administration proposes spending $700 Billion to support banks. And John McCain throws a “hail Mary” by “suspending” his campaign and begging to cancel the Presidential debates.

Incidentally, as of last week, the Iraq war has cost us in the neighborhood of $557 Billion. By the way, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is the former CEO of Goldman Sachs. Could it be that or are the very people in government making these decisions looking out for their own personal wealth?

Paulson’s proposal to Congress insists that any decisions he makes with this $700 Billion must be “Non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court or law or any administrative agency.” What? Is he setting himself up to be the banking Czar?

Republicans should be appalled by the bail out proposal because it amounts to socialism, with the federal government taking control of billions of dollars of private assets. Democrats should be vigilant because that much concentrated power in the executive branch in the interest of corporations and billionaires basically meets all the criteria of fascism except the racism.

Be certainly do need to do something, but it should be carefully crafted in a bi-partisan manor and it needs to include more, not less oversight and regulation. CEOs shouldn’t be paid 500 times as much as workers and they certainly shouldn’t be entitled to millions of dollars in compensation packages or pensions when they’ve driven their banks into the ground.

Working stiffs facing foreclosure need to be helped more than Wall Street speculators. Trusting John McCain to get us out of this mess would be like trusting the fox to guard the hen house.

Taking a Leave of Absence

I think I'm going to go on hiatus for a while.

I have some new stuff that are posted as drafts that will pop up on here in the next couple of days, but frankly I think I'm ready to just hang it up. You can't convince anyone of anything this close to the election and there's not much use in "preaching to the choir" when there's no choir. Barely 4,260 people read the Mapleton PRESS and almost no one reads this blog.

Maybe I'm too much of a blue-stater living in about as red a district as they get and I'm tired of being a mutant, weirdo, pariah. Maybe if I quit writing and cartooning I can just try to fit in.

I love writing and cartooning, they're compulsions for me, part of who I am. But I may as well face that whatever dreams I may have had of being the next Mike Royko or Molly Ivins aren't going to materialize. Better to wake up and get dressed for work than to lay in bed and keep dreaming.