Month: August 2010
Franklin Graham Says Obama’s ‘Problem Is That He Was Born a Muslim’
The depth of ignorance among these Christian extremists is unbelievable:
“I think the president’s problem is that he was born a Muslim, his father was a Muslim. The seed of Islam is passed through the father like the seed of Judaism is passed through the mother. He was born a Muslim, his father gave him an Islamic name … Now it’s obvious that the president has renounced the prophet Mohammed and he has renounced Islam and he has accepted Jesus Christ. That’s what he says he has done, I cannot say that he hasn’t. So I just have to believe that the president is what he has said.”
First of all, the president’s father and mother were both atheists. Secondly, the president was named after his father, Barack Hussein Obama Sr.
Third, and most important, it is wildly inappropriate (not to mention a serious sin) for purported Christian leaders, even ones who achieved their leadership the old fashioned way — by inheriting it — to cast doubts on a professed Christian’s faith, even if it’s done by using weasel words like “he has renounced Islam and he has accepted Jesus Christ. That’s what he says he has done, I cannot say that he hasn’t. So I just have to believe that the president is what he has said.”
Franklin Graham’s problem is that he is a hateful bigot who is hellbent on destroying the semi-moderate legacy of father, Rev. Billy Graham, 91, while his father is still alive. Franklin is doing this by pallin’ around with the likes of Sarah Palin, and by spewing hate speech against New Orleans, gays, Hindus, Muslims and others.
Verbatim
Sarah Palin’s tweets resemble something scribbled by a ninth-grade cheerleader. Is it asking too much for a reputed American political leader to communicate in complete sentences? … Even worse, she deploys her vacuity to defend an acerbic talk-show host who just detonated herself.
— Conservative columnist Deroy Murdock, writing in the Daily Beast, in response to Sarah Palin’s Twitter posts in defense of Dr. Laura Schlessinger’s N-word melt-down and subsequent smack-down.
Prez Vacays: Obama 70 Days; Bush 225 Days at This Point in His First Term
This is Mr. Obama’s 9th vacation since taking office. As of today, he has spent all or part of 38 days on “vacation” away from the White House. He has also made 14 visits to Camp David spanning all or part of 32 days. It brings his total time away to all or part of 70 days…
As of this point in his 1st term, Mr. Bush had made 14 visits to his Texas ranch spanning all or part of 102 days. He also made 40 visits to Camp David spanning all or part of 123 days. His “vacation” total at this point in his presidency was all or part of 225 days away.
For example, Bush was on vacation on Aug. 6, 2001, when he and Condi Rice received the intel briefing titled, “Bin Laden determined to strike in US.” Bush curtly replied to his briefers, “You’ve covered your ass now,” and went back to working on his abs. He and his team ignored the warning, and, of course, bin Laden did attack four weeks later, on Sept. 11, 2001.
9/11 Protest: Bible-Burning Mosque Vows to Proceed Without Permit … Oh, Wait…
Fire officials in Gainesville, Fla., have denied a permit to a church that wants to burn Qurans on Sept. 11, but church officials said they’ll go ahead with the protest that has garnered worldwide attention.
Leaders of the Dove World Outreach Center say “Islam is of the Devil” and plan to burn copies of the Islamic holy book on the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Gene Prince, interim chief of Gainesville Fire Rescue, told The Gainesville Sun that he informed the church on Tuesday (Aug. 17) that the protest violates local fire-prevention laws, which include rules against burning corrugate cardboard or office paper, which includes books.
“It wouldn’t matter what the book is they’re burning,” Deputy Chief Tim Hayes told the newspaper.
H/t Glenn Greenwald on Twitter. Reverse the role of the factions here and imagine the hysteria it would create: http://is.gd/epFsX
Verbatim
I’m stunned — couldn’t the Republican Party find one competent female with adult children to run for Vice President with McCain? I realize his advisors probably didn’t want a “mature” woman, as the Democrats keep harping on his age. But really, what kind of role model is a woman whose fifth child was recently born with a serious issue, Down Syndrome, and then goes back to the job of Governor within days of the birth?
— Dr. Laura Schlessinger in 2008, in response to Sarah Palin being chosen to be John McCain’s vice-presidential running mate.
Verbatim
Steps aside bc her 1st amend.rights ceased 2exist thx2activists trying 2silence”isn’t American, not fair”
— Sarah Palin, posting on Twitter and playing the old “not fair” card in defense of Dr. Laura Schlessinger who is quitting her radio talk show after catching well-deserved flack for using a racial epithet 11 times in five minutes on the radio.
Most Americans Who Believe Obama is a Muslim Got It from the Media
6 in 10
— Number of Americans who mistakenly believe Pres. Obama is a Muslim who also report they were told this by the media, with 16 percent (the largest segment) attributing it to television. Another 11 percent say they figured it out themselves from the president’s “behavior and words.”
More Americans Believe Obama is a Muslim
1 in 5
–The number of Americans (18 percent) who mistakenly think Pres. Obama is a Muslim, according to a Pew Research poll conducted before his comments on the Islamic community center in downtown Manhattan. A Time Magazine poll taken after his comments showed 25 percent of Americans now think Obama is a Muslim.
Bolton Pushing Israel to Bomb Iran Nuclear Plant
Remember former interim U.N. Ambassador John Bolton? You know, the guy with the bad mustache and worse attitude.
According to the Jerusalem Post, it appears that Bolton is encouraging Israel to blow up Iran’s Bushehr nuclear facility before the Russians install the nuclear fuel:
Israel has only mere days to launch an attack on Iran’s Bushehr nuclear reactor if Russia makes good on its plan to deliver fuel there this weekend, former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton warned Tuesday.
He said that once Russia has loaded the fuel into the reactor — slated for Saturday — Israel would no longer be willing to strike for fear of triggering widespread radiation in an attack.
“This is a very, very big victory for Iran,” Bolton told The Jerusalem Post. “This is a huge threshold.”
Bolton, who also once oversaw US non-proliferation policy, said that when Russia announced the plans to load the fuel last Friday, “the element of surprise was essentially taken away” from Israeli calculations.
Bolton noted that he doesn’t “have a clue” as to whether Israel would actually attack, but he said, “If Israel was right to destroy the Osiraq reactor, is it right to allow this one to continue? You can’t have it both ways.”
It’s pretty clear now why Bolton was never confirmed as our ambassador to the United Nations.
