News and commentary (News & Commentary) 

House of Representatives, liberal Democrat Congressman Steve Cohen (Memphis) (Video 17s) equated Barack Obama to Jesus, thereby furthering liberals’ absurd belief that Obama is the Chosen One sent to save the world. Then Cohen outrageously compared Sarah Palin to Pontius Pilate.

Obama And 9/11 - In an opinion piece in Commentary magazine, writer Abe Greenwald commented on Obama's belief that the 9/11 attacks were rooted in poverty and despair. "Strange," he called it, "considering our attackers were wealthy and educated, connected and ecstatic." As Greenwald put it, Obama "could have asked (terrorist and colleague) Bill Ayers, 'Bill, did your 'failure of empathy' stem from your impoverished upbringing as the son of the CEO of Commonwealth Edison?" Did poverty and despair also cause the Weather Underground member and host of Obama's first fundraiser to bomb government buildings? Fact is, the roster of terrorists and their handlers reads like a list of of Ivy Leaguers:

Healthcare: What's the Best Prescription? By Wendy Griffith and Dale Hurd - CBNNews.com - Polls show most Americans think America's healthcare system has serious problems. But what should be done about it? The presidential candidates have suggested several solutions, with the Democrats pushing the kind of universal or national healthcare that exists in most other wealthy nations. Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama vowed, "We are going to have universal healthcare for every single American in the United States." But is national healthcare a good model for America? Close examination of the healthcare systems in Europe and Canada reveals a disturbing reality. ...Some 850,000 Britons are on hospital waiting lists right now. Roughly 40 percent of British cancer patients never get to see a cancer specialist. And over half of British men with prostate cancer die from the disease - that's three times the U.S rate. Britain's National Health Service pledges to get wait times for care down to four months -next year. The Scotsman newspaper reports that Britain's National Health Service is denying cancer patients a drug that could prolong their lives, because it's too expensive. It quotes a cancer specialist who said, "If you lived in North America you would get these drugs, but not in Scotland." How about France's national healthcare, which the UN ranks best in the world? Even the left-leaning BBC has reported that France's national health system is "appalling", in "grave crisis," and "heading…toward disaster." ..."One out of every seven Canadian doctors sends a patient to the United States for treatment every year," Tanner said.

John McCain's Vision for Health Care Reform - John McCain Believes The Key To Health Care Reform Is To Restore Control To The Patients Themselves. We want a system of health care in which everyone can afford and acquire the treatment and preventative care they need. Health care should be available to all and not limited by where you work or how much you make. Families should be in charge of their health care dollars and have more control over care. Making Health Insurance Innovative, Portable and Affordable.

Why Americans must return to the principles of freedom and constitutionalism - Freedom versus socialism in America - Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) - I'm afraid that America is sliding towards socialism. Government is now the nation's largest property owner (controlling nearly 1/3 of the land mass), it effectively owns more than 1/3 of the profits of all businesses and more than 1/3 of the incomes of most working Americans. Government controls the majority of education and healthcare services in America. It owns the primary retirement income plan for most Americans (Social Security). The federal government, through a burdensome regulatory system and undecipherable tax code, effectively controls a significant portion of the nation's economic development and business activity. And now the government has gotten into the mortgage business! America's style of socialism is more subtle and, on the surface, appears more benign than early twentieth century European socialism. America's federal government has not yet taken over or nationalized any industry, but it has increasingly expanded control through regulation, increased government ownership through confiscatory taxes, and in the case of healthcare, expanded control through fixed prices and mandatory service requirements. Many on the Left now openly discuss socializing medicine and the energy industry, he warns. So what's the antidote? You'll need to read his full remarks for his answer.

Muslim Cabbies Lose Court Case in Minneapolis - I traveled to Minneapolis last year to investigate the growing demands of Islamic groups there, including attempts by Muslim cabbies to bar passengers from carrying alcohol (watch my story here). It looks like those cabbies' attempts are failing. Here's an update, from the Star Tribune: Muslim cabbies whose religious beliefs go against driving passengers who carry alcohol have lost another round in Minnesota courts.

Muslim Swift workers sacked after walkout - More than 100 Muslim workers were fired from a Greeley slaughterhouse Wednesday after refusing to report for work a day earlier in protest of the company's refusal to allow a prayer break during the work shift. Another 120 workers — most of them Somalis — broke ranks with the protesters, went back to work Tuesday and kept their jobs, JBS Swift & Co. officials said in a statement. "This action is a direct violation of our collective-bargaining agreement," Swift said of the walkout in a statement. "Employees were told . . . failure to report to work when recalled would result in their immediate termination."

Homosexual U.K. Documentarian Says Gay Lifestyle a "Sewer" of Casual Degrading Sex, Drug Abuse and Misery Simon Fanshawe is a writer and broadcaster who created the documentary "The Trouble With Gay Men" after becoming increasingly alarmed at the shallowness and destructiveness of the "gay lifestyle." The film, made for BBC 3 television, questions the emotional and psychological immaturity, narcissism, nihilism and self-destructive tendencies of many in the homosexual community. Fanshawe says he wants homosexual men to "grow up" and get beyond their state of "extended adolescence." ...Extreme vanity" he says, has been "sewn into gay culture." It "is now so mainstream in the gay community that otherwise intelligent young men are happy to be treated as sex objects on a demeaning meat rack." ...The documentarian asks the proprietor of a gay sex bath house, "Paul", who had just related some graphic stories of group sexual encounters in the establishment, "Are we just swimming around in a sewer which we're just sort of saying is normal?"...Fanshawe says he is horrified at the lack of emotional involvement and at the willingness of men to engage in "unsafe sex." The film includes statistics that show the deadly consequences of the homosexual lifestyle. One in nine gay men in London is HIV infected and new cases of HIV have doubled in the city in five years. Incidences of syphilis have increased in the same time period 616 per cent. "Unsafe" sex, he says, is not the only way in which gay men are self destructive. "If there's a new drug, gay men will find it and take it," he states. At one point Fanshawe interviews a homosexual man who has "done all the drugs" and now campaigns in gay clubs against the growing use of crystal methamphetamine. The man, who could not be identified for fear of reprisals from drug dealers, said that crystal meth is preferred in the gay community because it reduces the inhibitions and allows sex to be brought to an "animalistic" level "devoid of emotion." The film says that one in five gay men in London use crystal meth.

Dear Citgo and Joe...

Feinstein ‘Not Concerned’ About Russian Bombers in Venezuela (CNSNews.com) - Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), a senior member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, told CNSNews.com Thursday that she is not concerned about Russia’s announcement on Wednesday that it had moved two long-range bombers to a base in Venezuela, a South American country just over a thousand miles from Florida. “I don’t think Russia would launch attacks on the United States.” Other senators, however, both Republican and Democrat, were less optimistic about Russia’s action.

Chavez Expels US Envoy, Pledges Military Support for Bolivian Ally (CNSNews.com) – Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Thursday gave the U.S. ambassador 72 hours to leave the country, and he recalled his own ambassador from Washington. He described the move as an act of solidarity with fellow leftist Bolivian President Evo Morales.

Election 2008 (Voting Resources) 

EarsToHear.net Commentary: As already pointed out by several pundits, since the DNC nomination, Obama has began fake right, necessary for him to deceive and gain votes from uninformed naive voters. The O'Reilly interview highlighted the spin in the "no spin zone." Of course if Obama is elected O'Reilly will discover Obama's fake right was just that and we will all become acutely aware of his left leanings and socialistic vision for America.

Hope and Change in the Land of Oz By Mark Alexander - “You can’t just make stuff up. You can’t just recreate yourself. You can’t just reinvent yourself. The American people aren’t stupid.” Who said it? Ah, yes, more words of wisdom from that holy man of hypocrisy, the high priest of Hopenchange, Barack Hussein Obama. ...Obama’s close association with Marxist mentors and convicted terrorists like Frank Marshall Davis, William Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn is reason enough to disqualify him from ever receiving any security clearance, much less holding public office. And his 20-year spiritual mentorship under the racist reverend Jeremiah “G-D America” Wright defines Obama to his core.

Comparing McCain and Obama (pdf)- A new resource from Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee compares the political positions of the presumptive presidential candidates for the Republican and the Democrat parties on abortion and same-sex "marriage."

Free download: FRC Action's 2008 Presidential Voter Guide

Liberty Counsel Non-Partisan Voter Guides for 2008 General Election

“We the People….” by Dr. Norman L. Geisler* -  “We the people” are not all registered to vote. 35% of eligible Americans are not registered. So, the people who don’t vote decide almost all the elections. Yet “we the people” complain about our government when we have not all even participated in it. The truth is the “we the people” who don’t vote could change America.  Further, “We the people” who are registered do not all vote. In 2004 only 64% of us voted. And in the off presidential year of 2002 only 43% voted. That is minority rule. But if we don’t vote, we don’t have a voice—and should not voice a complaint!

Why I'm Voting for John McCain by Burt Prelutsky - Frankly, I’m amazed that the Democratic party is anything more than a cult. How in the world do they garner more votes than the Libertarians or the Greens? They are beholden to trial lawyers, teachers unions and the ecological crazies. So, why is it that upwards of 55 million Americans are ready, even anxious, to vote for Barack Obama in November? It’s a scary thought. ...The fact remains that Barack Obama is 47 years old and he doesn’t have a single friend, associate or religious mentor, who isn’t the sort of creep that most of us would cross the street to avoid.

Obama vs. McCain - A Clear Choice by Larry Elder - A matter of "neighborliness." That's how Democratic presidential aspirant Barack Obama justified raising taxes. Obama compared the circumstances of a person who is "sitting pretty" with that of a waitress. The waitress struggles, said Obama, while the rich can, and should, pay more. Nothing more, really, than a standard soak-the-rich plan, redistributing the wealth from the haves to the have-nots. But does Obama practice his own "neighborliness"? ...Of the 18 so-called Iraqi government benchmarks demanded by Congress, the Iraqi government has met or is close to meeting nearly all of them. Of the 18 provinces in Iraq, the Iraqi military and police now control 11 of them. ...Under President Bush, the economic pie grew. Tax receipts grew by 20 percent, to the highest level in our nation's history. And remember, Bush inherited an economy going into a recession. ...Obama recently said he may delay tax hikes in the event of continued economic sluggishness. Obama thus admits that higher taxes negatively affect the economy during hard times. But during good times, higher taxes affect the economy positively? ...Democrats attack McCain and his image as a "maverick" by claiming that the Arizona senator voted with President Bush 90 percent of the time. But Sen. Barack "hope and change" Obama, in the past three years, voted with his party nearly 97 percent of the time. Americans, in the final analysis, want a strong economy and wish to live in safety and security. So the choice is simple. It's McCain.

Senate Dems Claim Recession Despite 3.3 Percent Economic Growth (CNSNews.com) – Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and leading Senate Democrats told CNSNews.com on Tuesday that the U.S. economy is in a recession despite the fact that the economy grew by 3.3 percent during the second quarter of fiscal year 2008. One Republican congressman suggested that Democrats are downplaying the state of the economy to boost their chances in the elections in November.

Unemployment sparks call for bigger gov’t Name that year: Average hourly earnings were up 4.3 percent over the summer months; almost 49 percent of U.S. industries reported adding jobs; the economy grew by 3.3 percent in the second quarter, and productivity swelled by 4.3 percent. If you said 2008, you are not only correct but also unwelcome in the mainstream media—and in Democrat politics (but we repeat ourselves). Amid continued rants over the “recession that wasn’t” (and still isn’t, to date) the Left is intent on pounding the 6.1 percent unemployment rate, which, while accurate and higher than last year’s five-percent rate, actually equals the nation’s average unemployment rate for the past 38 years. Still, Democrats in Congress are already pushing for a second $50-billion stimulus package. Did we point out that the unemployment rate really started going up after the first stimulus package?

The Democrats' Depression by Emmett Tyrrell - Yes, with gasoline pushing $4 a gallon and fuel oil at historic highs as we face the winter, there is reason to be apprehensive. Moreover, there are widespread declines in home prices. Financial institutions are failing. The equity market is down. And inflation is inching up. Yet that does not warrant describing this economy as being in "depression," as Joe Stiglitz, the Clintonista, has said it is. Nor is it even in recession, as the Prophet Obama and his amiable sidekick, Sen. Joe Biden, believe it to be. In point of fact, we are living through the third-longest peacetime expansion since 1857, which is about as far back as such calculations have been made. The growth continues. Last quarter's growth now has been revised upward, from 1.9 percent to a healthy 3.3 percent. Milton Friedman calculated that real gross domestic product grew at 3.25 percent annually since World War II, about the same as it has grown from the middle of the 19th century. At the present, the economy's growth is relatively healthy, and its prospects are good. Sure, catastrophe could strike, but it will have to be one whale of a catastrophe, say a big taxer in the White House surrounded by people with Saul Alinsky's vision of economics, which was socialism -- assuming that the old radical had any economic vision at all. Alinsky was the community organizer who inspired the Prophet. Incidentally, there is no evidence that Obama has had any managerial experience. Nor has he managed budgets of any size. 

Moms Say Palin Is Role Model for All Women Fairfax, Va. (CNSNews.com) - Many of the more than 15,000 people who gathered at a McCain-Palin campaign rally in northern Virginia Wednesday were mothers who challenged the notion that Sarah Palin cannot be a good parent and help govern the country at the same time. “I think it’s disgusting what they are saying about her, absolutely disgusting,” Vicki Doyle of Crystal City, Va., told CNSNews.com. “They wouldn’t begin to say that to a man. She can do it all, just like the men have done all these years.”

Last Chance -- For Life by Patrick J. Buchanan - Near the end of a town hall meeting in Johnstown, Pa., a woman arose to offer a passionate plea to Barack Obama to "stop these abortions." Obama's response was cool, direct, unequivocal. "Look, I got two daughters -- 9 years old and 6 years old. ... I am going to teach them first about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don't want them punished with a baby." Punished with a baby." Obama sees an unwanted pregnancy as a cruel and punitive sanction for a teenager who has made a mistake, and abortion as the way out, the road to absolution and redemption. The contrast with Sarah Palin could not be more stark. At the birth of her son Trig, who has Down syndrome, Gov. Palin said: "We knew through early testing he would face special challenges, and we feel privileged that God would entrust us with this gift and allow us unspeakable joy as he entered our lives. "We have faith that every baby is created for good purpose and has potential to make this world a better place. We are truly blessed."

Consider Judges When You Vote in November - As citizens consider their options for the President this November, as well as members of Congress, they will be weighing many issues. One of chief concern to CWA is the selection and confirmation of judges. Mario Diaz, CWA's Policy Director for Legal Issues, has more on the importance of this issue to every other issue we care about. Listen | Download

How the Candidates Compare on Judges Seldom-Discussed Issue of Judicial Appointments Could Be the Most Consequential Result of This Election - Question: What is the most lasting effect that a President has upon the nation? In some cases, wartime leadership is obviously a President’s most enduring legacy. But in most instances, a President’s Supreme Court and other judicial appointments constitute his – or someday, her – most lasting effect. ...Most notably, Senator McCain voted to confirm both Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito. In contrast, Senator Obama voted to reject both nominees. On other occasions, Senator Obama has suggested that he would nominate people similar to Justices Souter or Breyer, whom he considers “moderate.” For his part, Senator McCain has suggested that he would nominate jurists more similar to Justices Roberts, Scalia or Thomas. It should also be noted that Senator Biden played a critical role in opposing the nominations of Judge Robert Bork in 1987, as well as Justice Clarence Thomas in 1991.

The Parties on the Courts: A Judicial Confirmation Network Analysis of Party Positions

The Judicial Confirmation Network (www.judicialnetwork.com) today released "The Parties on the Courts," a chart (below) comparing the positions of the Democratic and Republican parties on federal courts and judges.

The chart is based upon the positions outlined in the two parties' respective platforms from their conventions, as well as the statements made by the presidential candidates for each party.

"There is perhaps no clearer distinction between the Republican and Democratic parties than their positions on judges, and particularly the appointments that each candidate would make to the U.S. Supreme Court," said Wendy E. Long, counsel to JCN. "Because the next President is likely to choose Justices that will determine the outcome of important cases for the next generation, the stakes for the Supreme Court could not be higher than they are in this election.

"John McCain and the Republican platform identify judicial activism as a threat to self-government and reject judges legislating from the bench. Barack Obama and the Democratic platform do not, which is not surprising given that Obama has said he prefers liberal activist judges and would not appoint those who practice judicial restraint.

"The Republican platform condemns the Court's erosion of private property rights, its granting legal rights to enemy combatants, its interference with the death penalty, its intrusion into the realm of abortion policy, its undermining of traditional marriage laws, and its injection of foreign law into American jurisprudence. The platform is clear and specific about the problems of the courts and what the model of the judiciary should be.

"The Democrats are silent about all of this. Instead, their platform recites self-evident propositions that fail to illuminate the differences between the parties, including statements such as: 'Our Constitution is not a nuisance.' It's odd that anyone would even evaluate the Constitution in such terms, but the reason the Democrats don't consider the Constitution a 'nuisance' is that they have no qualms about running around it in order to impose liberal policies on the American people."

Indoctrination: "Mainstream" Media, Hollywood,& Education? - (Media, Hollywood, Secular Education) The good, the bad, and the ugly...Without a Heritage every generation starts over  Will our descendants know moral virtue? The primary responsibility of education DOES NOT belong to schools.  (Deuteronomy 6:5-7)

"Knowledge unenlightened by the truth of God is dark knowledge. We may have a B.S., an M.S., and a Ph.D., but without the Lord all we have is dark information. It may help navigate us in the world of darkness, but by itself will never lead us to the truth. Apart from the revelation of the Spirit of God, none of us could ever find our way into the light. Darkly educated people are like those whom Paul described to his young protégé', Timothy, as 'always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth.'" (2 Timothy 3:7) Rediscovering the Kingdom by Myles Munroe

By 5-to-1 Public Thinks Most Journalists Trying to Elect Obama A week after a Rasmussen Reports survey discovered that by a ten-to-one margin the public believes the media are trying to hurt Sarah Palin, a new Rasmussen poll of 1,000 likely voters, briefly highlighted Wednesday night on FNC's Hannity & Colmes, determined "69 percent remain convinced that reporters try to help the candidate they want to win, and this year by a nearly five-to-one margin voters believe they are trying to help Barack Obama." Specifically, "50 percent of voters think most reporters are trying to help Obama win versus 11 percent who believe they are trying to help his Republican opponent John McCain" with 26 percent saying "reporters offer unbiased coverage."

You may now kiss 'Party A' Those who wish to be married in California and be called "bride and groom" will have to wed in another state.

Extra, Extra...

Sarah Palin Facts a new tongue-in-cheek Web site

27 million Bibles distributed during 2007 by Bible Societies worldwide - Jesus Racing Gospel a hit with Aussie kids - Bible Society announced this week that there had been a world-wide growth of five percent in Bible and scripture portion distribution in 2007. Maintaining a consistent trend from the previous year, the number of Bibles distributed by Bible Societies rose by around five per cent to almost 27 million (26,996,323). Bible Societies also distributed vast numbers of Testaments, Portions and Selections (the latter designed to convey the essence of the Gospel succinctly or tailored for people in a particular situation). Altogether, the number of Scripture items distributed totaled 391 million.

ABRAHAM'S ENCOUNTER WITH THE TRINITARIAN GOD Genesis 18 - "Then the Lord appeared to Abraham by the terebinth trees of Mamre as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground ... Then the men rose from there and looked toward Sodom, and Abraham went with them to send them on the way ... And the Lord said ... I will go down now and see whether they (men of Sodom) have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me ... Then the men (two of the three) turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom."

In this Scripture, God reveals Himself to Abraham singularly as Lord, then as three men, and finally as two angels. In the limits of our present 3-dimensional realm, plurality and singularity are not possible at the same time. But our incapacity to conceive does not affect God’s capacity to be. To theologians–Jewish and Christian–the importance of Abraham’s encounter with God cannot be overemphasized. Observe the Genesis 18:1, 2, 22 account carefully:

1. The Lord (singular) appeared to Abraham.
2. But, He came in the appearance of three men (plural).
3. God said, "I (singular) will go down to Sodom.
4. Two of the three, as angels (plural), went to Sodom.
5. After the departure of the two, "Abraham still stood before the Lord" (singular).

See also: Trinity