The National Intelligence Council and the Global Future

[Image from National Geophysical Data Center]

Richard Weitz, in an article for World Politics Review titled "Global Insights: Charting the Global Future," discusses a National Intelligence Council report released about a month and a half ago.

The report is called "Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World."

Weitz notes that those involved in this report do not attempt to predict the future, or suggest a "preferred vision of the future," but "Instead, they aspire to describe the key driving factors that will influence international developments during the next two decades."

But, the NIC analysts "clearly seek to help shape the future rather than simply describe it ... [and] hope to encourage U.S. and foreign policymakers to intervene in ways that promote the most benign outcomes and avoid the most adverse scenarios."


In this particular NIC report, the fourth they have published, the analysts "identify globalization, demographics, the rise of new powers, the decay of international institutions, climate change, and the geopolitics of energy as some of the most important drivers of international change."

One important trend identified is "the growth of 'state capitalism.'" Instead of following the "dominant Western liberal model of development, which seeks to constrain the government's role in economic policy ... the state capitalist paradigm allocates a wide role for government intervention to promote national economic development."

We have already seen this model at work in the US as our economic institutions have been taken over by the government in the wake of their crashing under the unregulated weight of greed and avarice.

The kicker is that for the most part, countries that practice state capitalism tend to be of a totalitarian nature. That, too, we have seen here as the administration of George W. Bush has moved the US closer to a totalitarian state.


Secondly, this NIC report expects that relative to the US, "China, India, and perhaps Russia or other countries" will gain strength due to "ongoing globalization, the diffusion of military technologies, 'an historic shift of relative wealth and economic power from West to East,' and other factors."


Ironically, says Weitz, the NIC report suggests that, as the globe undergoes a variety of power transitions, other countries might continue to look to the US for leadership "to balance threatening great powers, curb terrorism and WMD proliferation, and lead efforts to manage global problems like climate change."

The reason for this is that a "diffusion of power among individual national governments" is expected and nongovernmental organizations will not be able to carry the load. This will lead to a "global governance deficit," which will be addressed by multiple entities:

"Current trends suggest that global governance in 2025 will be a patchwork of overlapping, often ad hoc and fragmented efforts, which shifting coalitions of member nations, international organizations, social movements, NGOs [nongovernmental organizations], philanthropic foundations, and companies."


All of the above portray an "unstructured multilateral world ... bound to be more complex and probably more problematic."

It is possible that "three 'quasi-blocs'" will emerge "in Europe, East Asia, and North America, which would provide the basis for regionally-centered financial and trade arrangements that might extend into the security realm.

But the NIC is worried, "particularly about possible resource conflicts among states, a nuclear arms race in the Middle East, and the heightened prospects of adverse 'discontinuities, shocks, and surprises.'"

We should all be worried, for in fact we see those things happening now: the war in Iraq was a "resource conflict": the Bushites wanted Iraq's oil, or at the least wanted to ensure it didn't fall into the "wrong" hands. A Middle East nuclear arms race is incipient. And much of what we've experienced in the past eight years comes under the umbrella of "adverse 'discontinuities, shocks, and surprises.'"


The report ends with the hope that good leaders will be able to mitigate the worst scenarios. That hope grows as Bush and his cronies move out to pasture taking their stupendous incompetence and ideological idiocy with them.

The NIC says "Bad outcomes are not inevitable." And as Mr. Weitz says, that "should reassure the Obama team, many of whose expected members have both offered similar assessments of global trends as the NIC and suggested ways to manage them."


There's much more to Weitz's article. Click here.

Turning water into wine

Ah, Italy! The land of miracles, where celibate men of many years don skirts to propound on god, life, eternity, salvation and sex, certain that what they say has the imprimatur of the deity herself, and where water turns to wine!

Marino is a wine town south of Rome. Each year, the folks of Marino celebrate Sagra dell' Uva - the annual wine harvest. The center of attraction is the Fountain of the Four Moors where at a particular moment in the festivities, new wine gushes forth from the fountain and residents rush forth to fill their jugs and beakers.

It's all done, explains Richard Owen at timesonline, via "creative plumbing somewhere below the streets."


Not this year. This year, when the time came, people gathered expectantly holding their wine jugs, but nothing happened. No water turned to wine!

An investigation was launched immediately. Ten minutes later, gurgling was heard and the folk's faces grew expectant. But, nothing!

Except for nearby homes. In those places many surprised housewives turned on the taps to find wine flowing freely. Some were smart enough to grab every container handy and fill them to the brim with the sweet fruit of the grape.


Didn't last, though. The plumbers quickly fixed the problem. Darn.

I wonder. Were there any plumbers in Jesus' cadre of followers?

Papal Kitsch No. 4

Papal Cake! Doesn't this look yummy? Only 330 calories per slice!
And look, there's a picture of the Vatican!

Click here to purchase.

A devotional on Christ and his bride

The Holy Ghost - Hear him coo, calling you!

[Photo by Oleg Babinets]

I apologize to all my readers for printing this. But after about two seconds of internal debate, I concluded that it is important for reasonable people to try to understand the mind of the christianist wingnut.

Of course, reading this will not help you understand the mind of a christianist wingnut. But it will, I believe, confirm in your own mind that christianist wingnuts live in their own little wingnut world, and should wear badges that proclaim them to be of the wingnuttery clan.

What follows is a "devotional" by Maria Woodworth-Etter, who is no doubt a true christianist and a good person. That does not, however, excuse this so-called "devotional." Perhaps if you took a little Pepto-Bismol before reading...whatever, here it is:

"Christ is Preparing His Bride

"The King of Glory will be married to His Bride. Don't you know that every good thing the world enjoys, God is going to let us enjoy ten-thousand fold? There will be the greatest banquet, the most wonderful occasion ever heard of, when we shall eat bread and drink wine in the kingdom. The bride is now in training. The Holy Ghost is the dove.

"The singing is the cooing of the dove before the storm. Did you ever hear the doves before the storm, call to their mates to seek shelter? So the Holy Ghost is cooing and chirping, calling us to seek shelter from the tribulation storms that are coming upon the earth. The Lord has us in training, making our bodies light and supple so that we can go up.

"May the Lord help us to be filled with the Holy Ghost so that we can rise. It is the only moving power in the church of Christ, His mighty agent. He wants us to carry on His business through His body. Let us get the fire from heaven that will enable us to do business for God, and be careful that we do not attribute the power of God to the devil, lest we commit the unpardonable sin."


What can possibly be said about that?

[Above devotional from Charisma magazine]

Financial Armageddon by John Hagee

The christianist TV evangelist, war-monger, Iran bomber, rapture ready, Jew-hater John Hagee has, for reasons unknown, put the spiritual Armageddon on the back burner and has come out with a new work titled "Financial Armageddon."

It's obvious that Hagee isn't too worried about the spiritual Armageddon any more, because if he thought it was imminent he would not be writing about surviving "the devastation of an economic collapse."

It is also likely with Mr. Bush soon to leave the Oval Office (not soon enough, however) Hagee's dreams of a war between the U.S., Iran and Israel which he believes the precursor to the end of the world has been postponed. Obama is not as likely to be taken in as Bush was by Hagee's insane rantings.

And a man's gotta make a few million out of whatever crisis is at hand, right? Yup. So ol' John wrote this new book and because "We are in a battle for our very survival," he's gonna tell you what you need to know. In this tract, you will:

1. Discover how oil will become the ultimate weapon of war. (that's from the Song of Solomon, I think - body oil?).

2. Learn the four events that will cause the West to implode. (the Rose Bowl, Citrus Bowl, Cotton Bowl and the Super Bowl).

3. Keep your investments from funding the enemy's advance. (send your money directly to John Hagee's account at the San Antonio National Bank, #555478777666 - I'magettit).

4. Why energy independence is key to our survival. (drill, baby, drill).


Now you can treat yourself to a download of this important stuff by clicking here which will bring you to the christianist Charisma magazine site.

Just try not to get too excited if you read the Song of Solomon. Bring your own oil.

Bush wants Australia to resettle Gitmo detainees

[Photo from DPA]

Welt Online is reporting today that Australia has rejected requests by the Bush administration to resettle Guantanamo Bay detainees in that country.

The Bushites asked about a month ago and were turned down. They made another request yesterday which was also rejected by the Australian government.

"Those resettlement requests have been considered on a case-by-case basis, against our stringent national security and immigration criteria" and they did not meet that criteria, said Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

Over 100 countries have been asked to take Gitmo detainees by the Bush administration. There was no information as to how many have agreed.

Read the entire article here.

Bush's war is now illegal

According to Bruce Ackerman and Oona Hathaway, "The Bush administration's infatuation with presidential power has finally pushed the country over a constitutional precipice. As of New Year's Day, ongoing combat in Iraq is illegal under US law."

Ackerman and Hathaway note that in 2002, Congress authorized a two-purpose invasion of Iraq: first it was to "defend the national security of the US from the threat posed by Iraq," and secondly, to "enforce all relevant UN Security Council resolutions."

Any supposed threat from Iraq is long gone. "Our continuing intervention has been based on the second clause of Congress' grant of war-making power. Coalition troops have been acting under a series of Security Council resolutions athorizing the continuing occupation of Iraq."

Bush, however, let the UN mandate expire as of December 31. "At precisely one second after midnight, Congress' authorization of the war expired along with this mandate."


So, why are coalition troops still in Iraq? Ackerman and Hathaway report that "Bush is trying to fill the legal vacuum with the new Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) he signed with the Iraqis. But the president's agreement is unconstitutional, since it lacks the approval of Congress. Bush even refused to allow Congress access to the terms of the deal." [My emphasis]


What to do?


Read all of what Ackerman and Hathaway have to say here.

Another Palin Power Play?

You may have realized over the course of the past several months that Palin has a perverse relationship with the truth and tends to stretch personal and political parameters in her favor.

Dan Fagan, in a commentary at the Anchorage Daily News, asks this pertinent question: "Have you noticed how our governor seems to have convinced herself only some of the rules apply to her?"

He's referring to the fact that Palin's daughter's boyfriend, Levi Johnston, is working as an electrical apprentice on the North Slope.

Levi has not completed his high school education. Palin, pissed at media coverage which indicated Levi is a high school drop-out, put out a statement claiming that he is not a high school drop-out as he is "continuing his online high school work in addition to working as an electrical apprentice on the North Slope."


Problem No 1. How did Levi get into the apprentice program? As Fagan notes, according to federal regulations, all apprentice folks must have a high a high school diploma.

Problem No 2. How did Levi jump to the head of the line? Fagan writes that "Rebecca Logan, executive director of Associated Builders and Contractors, an organization that also has an electrical workers apprentice program, says waiting lists always accompany apprenticeship programs. Her organization's electrical apprentice program, one of only three in the state, has a waiting list of 100 people."

Problem No 3. Did Palin pull some strings and skirt the rules to get Levi "favored person" status?


Palin tends to pull lots of strings which work to her benefit, like charging the state to fly her family around the country, and charging the state to work at home when she has a perfectly good office in Juneau, and using her office to pursue a personal vendetta against an ex-brother-in-law.


Dan Fagan's entire article is here.

The bioethical Vatican document

[Representatives of the "updated" Roman Church]

About a month ago, the Vatican put out a document defining its stance on various bioethical issues.

The following are immoral, according to God's poohbahs in Rome:

Artificial insemination (and other fertilization techniques)

Human cloning and freezing embryos

Embryonic stem-cell research

"Morning-after" drugs (or any drugs that block a pregnancy, such as the RU-486 drug). Such drugs, as well as the IUD, are considered "within the sin of abortion."


You will be glad to know that the Vatican document, known as "Dignitas Personae, an Instruction of Certain Bioethical Questions," is the Vatican's method of bringing the Roman Catholic Church "up to date with recent advances in science and medicine."

Heh. Heh.

Papal Kitsch No. 3

For your drinking pleasure - Papal Beer!

Click here to purchase.

Biblical marriage

[Image of King David at pbase.com]

Leaders of the christianist right are, so far as I can tell, without exception, against same-sex marriage.

Also, without exception (so far as I can tell), they base their opposition on the Bible - the Christian version of "Old" and "New" Testaments, citing a couple of chapters and verses.

Many, if not most, of these christianist rightists, complained mightily about the Newsweek article by Lisa Miller which suggested that the Bible does not condemn homosexuality or same-sex marriage.


Opposition to same-sex marriage is invariably posited on the claim that the Bible speaks of marriage as being between one man and one woman. The nutcase that runs the Traditional Values Coalition, Lou Sheldon, writes that "Miller falsely claims that the Bible and Jesus talk about love and family, but never explicitly define marriage as a union of one man and one woman. This is clearly untrue as evidenced by Genesis 2:24-25 and the teachings of Jesus in Matthew 19:1-8."


Without getting into an exegetical discussion over a few verses that may or may not say what Sheldon would like them to say, I thought it would be interesting to look at one particular example of marriage as defined by the Bible, the example of King David, the ancestor of Jesus.

(Remember marriage is the union between one man and one woman - according to the Christian right.)

"David first wed Ahinoam, a Jezreelite, who may have first married King Saul. David then married Abigail, a widow, but only after threatening her then-husband's life. He then wed Maacha, a foreign princess, simply to facilitate a treaty that protected Israel's northern border. He then wed Haggith, and then Eglah. He then formally married Michal, the younger daughter of King Saul, who although once betrothed to David, was by then wed to a loving husband, by kidnapping her from her spouse to give David a better claim to the throne.

"As the king in Jerusalem, David, seeing Bathsheba naked while bathing, was seized with overpowering lust and, heedless of the consequences, slept with Bathsheba, who was the wife of Uriah the Hittite, one of the officers in David's army. When David could not hide the fact that he had impregnated Bathsheba, he had her husband killed, married her, and made her his queen."

In his later years, "...King David was old and stricken ... and they covered him with clothes, but [his body] gat no heat....So they sought a fair damsel ... and brought her to the king. And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king and ministered to him: but the King knew her not."
(I Kings 1)

It could be he didn't have sex with her because of all those older, very jealous wives, hanging around waiting to dispatch him to the happy hunting ground if he did!


This is a biblical marriage. One man and one woman?


[The section on King David comes from an article by Fred Simmons, "A New Look at King David, 1010-970 B.C.E.," which appears in the magazine of Humanistic Judaism, Autumn 2008.]

Hamas hypocrisy

[Iraqi children killed by U.S. Marines]

Pundits around the world have called in to pronounce Israel guilty of over-reacting to the acts of Hamas. Protestors are marching in a number of cities, demanding the militant Israelis stop their attacks on Gaza.

While others, directly involved in this latest Israeli-Gazan violence, and much more knowledgeable than I, have defended the Israeli action with some cogency, I would raise a question with the naysayers: Where were all these protesters five years ago when the United States invaded Iraq setting off a conflagration which has left hundreds of thousands of Iraqis dead (many of which were civilians, including women and children), and millions more fleeing the country?

And how is it that we are treated to multiple photos of dead and dying Gazans but our media has conveniently forgotten to show us images of the havoc wreaked by our own forces in Iraq?


Israel has been under daily assault by Hamas for years. Israelis, for years, have lived with the threat, not only of rockets which appear suddenly and without warning over and over again, but also suicide bombers which turn Israeli marketplaces into bloody scenes of death.

Hamas denies Israel's right to exist, and in turn exists ONLY to drive Israel into the sea! Hamas is dedicated to the death of Israel. Hamas turns its resources into weapons and fires those weapons at Israel.


In 2003, the United States invaded a sovereign nation that posed no threat to us whatsoever! Iraq never attacked us! Iraq never attacked our allies. We attacked Iraq, leading to the destruction of the country, damage that has been been massive and pointless. Dead bodies, including those of women and children continue to litter the streets.

We not only do not see such things on the evening news, we are not allowed by our leaders to even view the caskets of our dead soldiers as they are brought back home for burial. Such sights might make people wonder if maybe God didn't tell Bush and company to take out Saddam.

Those who wish to protest what they feel is unnecessary war and gratuitous violence should head to Washington, D.C. and lead marches against the Bush administration and all of its subdivisions, which created the world's largest killing machine and which, for the past five years, has used that killing machine to extend American hegemony over the Middle East.

Unfortunately, that killing machine not only killed Iraqis who stood in the way of the Bushite dream, but is responsible for the murder of hundreds of thousands of innocents men, women and children.

Peter, Paul & Mary - "Where Have All The Flowers Gone"

This song was always one of the most popular and emotional numbers at a Peter, Paul & Mary concert.

Peter, Paul & Mary - "Early In The Morning"

A hit from the early days.

Peter, Paul & Mary - "In The Early Morning Rain"

Here's the trio in 1966!

Peter, Paul & Mary - "The Times They Are A-Changin'"

Heading into 2009, here's Peter, Paul & Mary, not so long ago, singing Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin'."

Paul Krugman on the Republican Meltdown

Referencing a quote from the infamous Repugnican nogoodnik, Phil Gramm, Paul Krugman, writing in The New York Times, says the Republican Party has become "a party of whiners."

Krugman, incredulous, takes notice of the former AG, Alberto Gonzales, who said he considered himself one of the casualties of the war on terror. Then there's Rush Limberger who suggested "that the financial crisis was the result of a conspiracy, masterminded by that evil genius Chuck Schumer."

More importantly, says Krugman, the Republicans are whining "that the Bush administration's failure was simply a matter of bad luck."

Heh, heh.

Luck, good or bad, says Krugman, had nothing to do with the Republican meltdown!

"The fault ... lies not in Republicans' stars but in themselves. Forty years ago the G.O.P. decided, in effect, to make itself the party of racial backlash. And everything that has happened in recent years, from the choice of Mr. Bush as the party's champion, to the Bush administration's pervasive incompetence, to the party's shrinking base, is a consequence of that decision."

The heart of the Republican party was rotten - resting "on contempt for government in general."

It all goes downhill from there.

You can read all of Krugman's article here.

h/t to BuzzFlash

An Israeli speaks out on Hamas

[Jerusalem - the Old City]

A guest post by Bob Poris.

This derives from an hospital administrator in Jerusalem.

Our speech at the UN

Members of the United Nations, Democracies, dictatorships, republics, and the honorable secretary-general:

Within a few hours, media outlets in your countries shall present horrific photos of blood, fire, and rubble from the Gaza Strip. The Palestinians will be screaming, in front of the cameras, about the massacre undertaken by the State of Israel. Initially, you may show understanding for our operations in the Strip, yet once the photos of wounded civilians reach you, you shall press us, as is your custom, to stop defending ourselves.

The first signs of this phenomenon can already be seen. Calls to "end the violence" from across the world are being heard loud and clear - yet they are only being heard now, after years of violence, and after Israel finally decided to respond. The European Union already rushed to declare that it condemns Israel's "disproportional use of force." Several news networks have brought together panels whose members are scrutinizing the law books at this very moment in order to ascertain whether the Jewish State violated some international law.

I do not intend to deal with the question of where were these condemners and critics for the past seven years, when Hamas' murderers set the timers of their rockets to coincidence with the end of the school day in Israel, because of a declared aim to kill as many children as possible.

The question we should be discussing at this time is as follows: Why do the countries of the world and global media outlets obsessively engage in strict criticism that is only directed at Israel? After all, there is not even one country out there that is required to adhere to the moral criteria which the world demands of us - of us of all people, the ones who as opposed to the rest of the world face threats of extermination.

Our Arab neighbors are well familiar with this double standard vulnerability. On their part, they are not bound by any kind of moral code.

And so, they learned to exploit the international strictness towards Israel. A long time ago, they already understood that they cannot face the State of Israel on the battlefield. Indeed, when it comes to photographs and videos, they boast uniforms and weapons, yet once the fighting gets underway, they are quick to take off their uniforms and assimilate among women and children used as human shields. They also make sure to place their arms depots in hospital basements and to fire rockets at population centers out of schoolyards.

Their great hope is to elicit an Israeli response that would unintentionally hurt a few children. Once that happens, they will wave their bodies before the cameras and cry out to the world for help.

This was the case in Lebanon, and this may happen tomorrow in the Gaza Strip.

Easing Europe's conscience the states demanding that Israel adhere to certain moral standards do not even dream of asking the same of her enemies.

After all, we are dealing with theocracies and dictatorships, where homosexuals are publicly hanged, where women are regularly stoned for undermining their "family's honor," and where children suspected of theft have their arms severed.

What do these states have to do with the value of human life?

We should therefore ask representatives of global opinion: Be honest with yourselves - Do the lives of humans being butchered daily in Iraq, Afghanistan and Darfur arouse you into similar action?

Reality indicates this is not the case. My answer to the question regarding the obsessive preoccupation with the actions of the Jews is purely sociological.

Many of you, the shapers of public opinion, and mostly the Europeans amongst you, are interested in easing your conscience: If only can only show that the Israelis-Jews are not so moral or innocent, perhaps they deserve everything you did to them before they were able to establish their state? After all, here they are, occupying and butchering the poor Palestinians; they are certainly no better than us!

To that end, you are willing to help out the lowliest terrorists. Therefore, you bought into their slanderous Mohammed al-Dura tale, and therefore you will rush to buy into various blood libels in the coming days.

Those who launch missiles and mortar shells into kindergartens know that they will always enjoy a protective umbrella from you.

They draw their self-confidence from the intolerable ease with which they enlist your public opinion in their favor.

Therefore, you would do well to think twice before you move to stop the punishment they lawfully deserve.

After all, you are the only lifesaver that can spare this radical terror group the measure of justice hovering above it.

Update from another Israeli:

Today the new Consul General for the Pacific Northwest was on  a local talk
show.  When questioned about the civilian casualties, he replied that
before targeting the Hamas headquarters in Gaza, Israel made 90,000 phone
calls to Gaza residents warning them to remove themselves from that area.
Do other nations do that? 

---

Italy, the Vatican and the Devil

[Photo of Fr. Gabriele Amorth]

I almost laughed out loud. The question was: "Is the Devil Gaining a Foothold in Rome?" That's the title of a CBN article. One wonders if the author has a clue as to the history of the Catholic Church over the past 2,000 plus years.

But it's a serious article, and yes, the Devil is gaining a foothold in the Holy City. We've written about the Vatican's chief magician (exorcist) previously, but Father Gabriele Amorth, pontificates that "There is a greater openness towards the devil."

Would you believe that Rome is "the most satanized city in Italy"? Hell, what a disappointment. I had always been told and believed it was the most "sanitized" city in Italy, although when I visited there a number of years ago, it seemed kinda old and dirty.

Father Pedro Barrajon, a Roman priest, claims "Satanism and the occult are in fashion."

How could this happen in the seat of Catholicism? Doth not the Vatican and the Pope and the Papal Poohbahs have any power whatsoever?


Then there's an "evangelical" clergyman, Silvano Lilli, also an inhabitant of Rome, who says there are "an estimated 800 satanic cults operating in the country, with more than 600,000 followers."

And, says Lilli, the situation is getting worse by the day. "The devil's diabolical influence is growing is so many areas of our society. He needs to be driven out."


I don't have a clue where Lilli gets his statistics, and he doesn't say, but they sound good (or bad). And I'm not sure what he thinks about Father Amorth (Amorth being of the Roman priestly caste) who has his little exorcist room not far from the Vatican to shoo the devil out of the demon-possessed. The violent ones are the worst, says Amorth. They have to be tied down.

But the good Father doesn't want any tape-recordings of his exorcisms. I wonder why? Especially since he insists that "exorcism is God's true miracle" (as opposed to what - God's false miracle?), and "Medicine and science have cases they can't solve but which are instead solved by exorcism."

Hmmm. Maybe we could try that on Bush and Cheney?


Seriously, there are all kinds of satan-related crimes in Italy. "Many Italians are forsaking priests for magicians, fortunetellers and faith healers."

Hmmm, again. Sounds like priests to me!

It's so bad, though, that law enforcement has enlisted the assistance of Catholic priests to help solve violent crimes.


That should do the job.

They need a prayer box in Rensselaer, Indiana

[Image from Davidmacd.com]

Can't pray without a prayer box? Of course you can! But a prayer box helps!

But 'tis a problem in Rensselaer, Indiana. Local pastors in that city asked the city government to install a prayer box in City Hall in which they could deposit their prayers. Prayers for what? Better city council members? Less taxes on the rich? Put the homeless on buses out of town?

I guess they figured with the entire city council comprised of Repugnicans, and because Repugnicans like to nod to god, they would have no problem getting a prayer box installed at the center of the city's government.

Not to be. The Repugnican city council members are afraid they'll get sued by people like the ACLU or other atheistic, agnostic nasties.


Rensselaer is the place to go, though, if you are a devoutly desperate. According to the Rev Garry Wickert, there are prayer boxes all over the city in which people can deposit "notes with requests for prayers." Someone comes by weekly and collects these prayer notes and gives them to local churches. I'd guess the pious in the churches then pray the prayers on the prayer notes.

Back a few years ago, someone (probably the Gideons) had a policy of handing out bibles to all the public school 5th graders. Someone sued. That policy was abandoned.


That's the trouble. Damn near every time you try to do something to help God out in this world, the nogoodniks show up with a lawyer. If only we could get rid of our Constitution! What were our Founding Fathers thinking not to even so much as mention god in our Constitution? How can we be good people and do good things without a constitutional god?