Tea Party Tries to Derail Health Care… Uses Language of “Southern Manifesto” and “Operation Rescue”

Read this:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101014/ap_on_bi_ge/us_health_overhaul_lawsuit

Two judges have opined, and their opinions are on strict party lines. Judge George Caram Steeh, a Clinton appointee, ruled the act legal in Michigan. Judge Roger Vinson, a Reagan appointee, is allowing the case to proceed in Florida. Nevertheless, Judge Steeh is not an extremist right-winger… he presided over a trial that convicted Paul Jennings Hill (the murderer of a doctor and a clinic aide, Hill got the spike in ’03… a richly deserved fate) and another trial of four sectarian nutters who claimed that their bombing of an abortion clinic on Christmas was “a birthday gift for Jesus”. Watch for him not to give a quick ruling… he’ll wait until after the election… he wouldn’t want the accusation that he was “playing politics”. In short, he appears to be a responsible conservative, not a Tea Party plaything.

Let’s not be squeamish… the Tea Party is using the racist rhetoric of the Southern Manifesto (“We reaffirm our reliance on the Constitution as the fundamental law of the land. We decry the Supreme Court’s encroachment on the rights reserved to the States and to the people, contrary to established law, and to the Constitution”) and the extremist playbook of Operation Rescue. They’re echoing Flip Benham, that Sectarian wingnut who called appeals for non-violence “pitiful”, who suggested that, unless there was a ban on abortion, “We’re in store for more bloodshed in the streets… the likes of which will sicken even the sturdiest among us”.

In short, this politically motivated lawsuit has no basis in legality. It means that the GOP/Tea Party is having trouble “rallying the troops” and/or they’re running out of money and steam three weeks before the election. Don’t forget… the Tea Party is by the rich, of the rich, and for the rich. Newt Gingrich approves of them… and we all know what that soulless bastard did to his first wife when she was sick in bed with cancer (and most of the people who support Newt call themselves “Christians”… what a travesty!).

The word is spreading… people are getting riled… they’re finding out that the Tea Party wants to turn the clock back to 1933. If the Tea Party is so popular, why haven’t they filled the Meadowlands or the Garden? They haven’t because you can fit their supporters in an old-fashioned telephone booth (relatively speaking). Only 18 percent of the electorate supports them, only 6 percent have been to a Tea Party event, and only 2 percent call themselves “Tea Party activists”.

Get out and vote in November… show the Tea Party that Real Americans still exist… and we reject right-wing hatemongering (and many of us who do aren’t lefties)! Yes… you CAN do it…

Barbara-Marie Drezhlo

Thursday 14 October 2010

Albany 2010

Orthodox Christians Celebrate Feastday of the Protection of the Holy Virgin

Blachernitissa icon of the Most Holy Mother of God, held in the Cathedral of the Assumption in the Moscow Kremlin, originally from the Church of Panagia Blacherniotissa in Constantinople.

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On this day, Russian Orthodox parishes will pray for prisoners and collect donations to help them…

Today, Orthodox Christians celebrate the feastday of the Protection of the Holy Virgin (Mercy and Compassion Day). This year is the 1,100th anniversary of the celebration. The history of this holiday goes back to the tenth century AD, when pagan Russians besieged Constantinople. As the account has it, on 1 October 910 (Julian Calendar), many citizens of Constantinople gathered in the Church of Panagia Blacherniotissa (the Holy Virgin of Blachernae) and prayed to God for deliverance from death in battle. During the evening services, one of those standing in the church, St Andrew the Holy Fool, had a vision that the Virgin, surrounded by numerous saints, walked through the air over the heads of the worshippers, took off her veil and stretched it over the congregation as a sign that she took them under her protection. His disciple, St Epiphanios, saw this as well. Soon after, the enemy departed, lifting the siege. One should note that “Greek” Orthodox Local Churches usually don’t mark this holyday, for many centuries, mostly “Russian” Churches celebrated it. It’s a pious belief that Russia is under the special protection of the Virgin, in consequence, this day has always held a high status in Russia. Many churches in Russia are dedicated to the Protection of the Holy Virgin, and the name of the festival (Pokrov) is a part of the name of many geographic features and places. Today, all parishes in Moscow will say special prayers for prisoners and collect donations to buy gifts for them. This facet of the celebration has been in place since 2004, after the Church established a Commission for Prison Social Services for the City of Moscow. The objective of the MP is to involve clergy and laity in this good work, to encourage people to participate more actively in the Church’s mission of spiritual care in the prison system. During the festal liturgy, a prayer will be added to the litanies, “For all imprisoned Orthodox Christians, committed to gaols and prison”. After the conclusion of the liturgy, at which trusted prisoners are scheduled to attend, the clergy and laity shall visit the gaols and prisons, to give holiday greetings to the prisoners and give them gifts. In addition, today, activists from the Moscow branch of Молодой гвардии (Young Guard) shall greet newlyweds at Moscow registry offices. This is now a tradition of some years’ standing.

14 October 2010

Interfax-Religion

http://www.interfax-religion.ru/?act=news&div=37783

The Virgin of Mercy

Lippo Memmi/Simone Martini

1308

There are no extant New Roman icons of the Protection, some scholars believe that the prototype for the iconographic portrayal of the Pokrov was inspired by the Western Madonna della Misericordia (the Virgin of Mercy), of which the earliest reliably-dated example is from 1280.

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Editor’s Note:

Firstly, this is the patronal feastday of the lovely bunch at POKROV. Cappy and Melanie have taken an enormous amount of bullshit from the hyperclericalist party for exposing crook clergy. They deserve our THANKS… reflect on this, the clericalists want to hide sexual abuse by priests and bishops “for the good of the Church”. I would remind a loud clerical critic of Sam Greene’s doings… the State of Texas confirmed that he was a paedophile (thus proving that there’s abusive clergy out there). If а cleric (or any other figure in the Orthodox Church) has abused you, Mel and Cappy can help you… here’s their contact. Don’t be silent… then, the bastards win. Don’t settle… then, they win twice. They not only get to hide the abuse, they get to silence you, too! Don’t be silent because it’s a cleric… they’re NOT special. They’re subject to the law, too. Remember Sam Greene, Gleb Podmoshensky, Panteleimon Metropoulos, and Pierre l’Huillier. We’ve paid DEARLY for concealing the activities of abusive clerics. If you’ve been hurt… sound the alert! There’s folks out there who’ll help you and protect you. If you keep silent… you spit on God and bow before Satan… it’s that simple.

Illegitimis non carborundum est! You shouldn’t let the bastards grind you down!

I bow in deep respect before Cappy and Mel… they’ve paid the price… and THAT’S worthy of respect. С днём ангела (Happy Angel Day) to both of you on Pokrov’s nameday!

BMD