@Lookout
I was listening to an interview of a mother, I think from El Salvador who has had her young son taken from her at the border. Most boys where she is from are basically kidnapped by violent gangs. She herself could easily have been killed in El Salvador. It was a desparate decision to try the very dangerous journey to the US. When she got here her son was taken and held, probably in a cage, with this insane cruelty to good, desperate people. When fascists are confronted with their own irrational cruelty, they walk away.

#2

Can't argue with someone who doesn't use nor accept facts. Sometimes you just have to accept limitations and put your energies into those efforts that move the needle.

The faux resistance is designed to distract, but attracts the most interest. The Anti-Trumpism movement refuses to look at the decades long history of immigration horrors perpetrated by the US. Nor the coups supported and promoted by the dims.

The fellow interviewed in the clip below Roberto Lovato was from San Salvador and has a deep understanding of the issue.

@Lookout

Scripture is fine and necessary in churches, at religious functions, and for personal use in religious or spiritual explorations. So is prayer and meditation. None of those are offensive to me, unless it’s the hateful homophobic scripture or the forced birth scripture or the ... well, I could go on for awhile here. But the point was never that religion or scripture is necessarily and always offensive. As far as I saw, the word offensive was never used by anyone except you.

What some of us have expressed discomfort with, or disagreement with, is using religion and scripture as the basis of a political movement to elect certain politicians and enact public policy based on their religious views.

It’s about separation of church and state. (An idea you seem to have little tolerance for.)

And before you say again that rev barber is not about electing democrats, no need, because I read up on him a lot more since our previous discussion. I had asked what his goals are. That means, desired outcomes. Since the press release you provided didn’t answer that, I spent two days researching this movement and rev Barber. Which, by the way, I did because I was curious and wanted to know (kind of the definition of open minded), and because you and a few others here kept posting about him and telling people to check him out. I have been perfectly happy for the past years to pay it no mind. Just like any other religious thing, I just don’t care about them — unless they are rolling back reproductive rights or marriage equality by sticking their nose into the government.

Anyway, you asked people to listen to him. I tried to do so, but as I said, for personal reasons I can’t listen to preachers reading the Christian Bible, and I didn’t really want to expose more about why. Because it’s painful, and personal.

Someone I loved a lot is dead now, by suicide, because of southern preachers bashing him with scripture, and his ultra-religious family and community used the Bible and scripture to justify extreme cruelty and they destroyed his mind and made him terrified of his own life. “Offensive” is not the word for how it makes me feel... that is me, and no it doesn’t mean all scripture is offensive.

But scripture and religion, fine for what they are except when hurting others, still do not belong in politics. That’s an opinion. One which I hope there can be tolerance for.

Oh, back to the goals of the PPC and Rev Barber. Yes, it is a political movement. I really did not know anything about it until you prompted me to research it, and I had decided not to say anything more on what I found, because it wouldn’t be popular. But. Since you brought it up.

First I found he was a speaker at the 2016 Dem convention, where he said:

“When I hear Hillary’s voice and positions,” Barber said, “I hear and I know she is working to embrace our deepest moral values, and we should embrace her,” he said.

Hum... ok, so this is the moral leader we need to follow? Sorry, but no. Not for me.

PPC was formed about 6 months after Trump was elected. It’s goal as it turns out, is voter registration and mobilization. There are numerous articles that show this, the next phase after the 40 day’s of protests, is focused on GOTV for the mid terms. Here’s one, from yesterday.

Poor People’s Campaign rally ends with vows to keep organizing and protesting

Barber, a Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) minister known for his “Moral Mondays” rallies in North Carolina, said the campaign was nonpartisan but speakers decried Trump administration policies — especially its recent separation of migrant families at the U.S. border — among the lists of problems in the country.

Civil rights veteran Jesse Jackson, a leader of the original Poor People’s Campaign, urged the granting of asylum for children and families that had been separated at the border and stressed the importance of Election Day.

“We have the power to take our nation back in November,” said Jackson, as he asked the audience to repeat: “I can vote. I will vote. I must vote.”

The Rev. Traci Blackmon, a member of the campaign’s national steering committee and United Church of Christ justice leader, pointed to the Capitol as she advised people on how to continue organizing back home.

“We are not just here to march; we are here to mobilize,” said Blackmon, the United Church of Christ’s executive minister of justice. “November is coming and you’re either with us or you are evicted from the house. We are marching now to serve notice: They have just a little while to get on board or find somewhere else to live.”

So in closing: the PPC talks about some very important issues. They are rallying and mobilizing the electoral resistance to Trump and the republicans. And getting people talking about poverty and the needs of the people that are most ignored. The last part, I agree with.

The rest, not so much. That’s again my personal views, which is I disagree with the goal of focusing on electoral politics as the solution, and I disagree in principle with using any scripture or religion as the basis of government policy or laws.

With the current erosion of reproductive rights and personal freedoms already under assault by religious people who want to force their version of morality on us all via the government, I would think anyone could see why that’s problematic.

So we can agree to disagree about the PCC, that’s fine, but I wanted to more fully explain my position on it. I reject the charges of being closed minded. I just have a different opinion on it. Let the tolerance flow.

#3

I think today it is sports. As I said i'm not religious, but I see sincerity in some peoples beliefs. The Dali Lama for example who describes his religion as kindness. MLK and Dr Barber are I think sincere as well. Which scripture is an important question rather than the idea that any scripture is bad. Being open minded is always a good idea from my view.

Thanks for stopping in with your kind comments.

@Lookout of two completely corrupted and controlled political parties has to be challenged and changed. I think as the election gets closer, the partisans on here are viewing that message as "burdensome" because it challenges their continued support for the duopoly.

I don't think you're with me Lookout, but that's ok. It's a non-partisan blog, you can shill for dem party politicians and I can rail against them. Although at this point, the radicals on here are getting pushed out by the dem party partisans. As the election gets closder, I'm trying to spend less time here so don't worry, you'll have the echo chamber you seem to want.

Btw, that's another one I've heard many times: "So I'll ask again "What are you doing to move us forward?", with the obvious inference that if I'm not voting for democratic party politicians I must not be doing anything productive.

#8

I ain't dim nor rethug. I've repeatedly said I fear politics plays no role at all, that the CIA et al is really running the show. What I'm complaining about is the attitude that I'm to pure to listen if someone quotes scripture...I'm too pure to read a piece from the intercept. It's not perfect so I'm not helping. And friend you typify what I'm driving at.

I respect you and your views and I've learned much from you, but the chip on your shoulder become burdensome at times. So I'll ask again "What are you doing to move us forward?"

@Lookout
I had to finish watching Russia's upset victory over Spain in the World Cup first.
I thought Lee Camp's segment on the Eight Great Myths was outstanding. I'll try to pass it along. Jimmy Dore has been a bit petty of late. Basically, he's pissed at Bernie because he won't come on his show. He really went off on Bernie during last Saturday's Solid Chat. There was no Solid Chat yesterday. Sometimes they do one on Sunday instead, watch YouTube if you're around today at 2:00 pacific.

#9

Will they hear us if we speak with civility? I'll look forward to the clip.