I think part of the reaction to "woke" ideology is the term itself. It comes from a variant of English spoken primarily by blacks and the word itself raises hackles on the backs of a certain segment of whites. Seriously. I think the right has turned it almost into a swear word in a way they couldn't have been able to do if it was referred to as "awake" instead.
And this distracts and diverts from the issue at the center, which is the institutional racism existing in parts of American life. Witness the story of a member of a certain party bragging of success in suppressing black voter turnout in Milwaukee during the last midterm election in Charlie's column, or JVL's list of state holidays in his column.
We love football, but are distressed by certain aspects of it -- not merely the violence, but also the commandeering of the college campus with it. It may be good to evolve football closer to its Rugby roots -- helmetless grapplers moving the oblate-sphere down field. By way of mixing two stories: I wonder if Rufo et. al. will eliminate those non contact sports at New College (Sailing; Rowing; Rock Climbining; Tennis; Swimming) and install Fooball in their place. That would cement the conversion, wouldn't it?
Re: football, I feel this deeply. I don't love the game for its violence, I love it for its complexity. But violence is no doubt a big feature. I'm actually really interested to watch the Pro Bowl this year bc they are doing flag football. Should be fascinating.
Re; MLK--growing up a white evangelical, I heard way, way, WAY more about MLK's sexual sins than his incredible religious teachings and their implication for both our public and private lives. That tells you a lot. I read a book of his sermons as an adult and was blown away. I'd also point you to the work of Joao Chaves on the religious dimensions of the Bolsanaro movement in Brazil. White evangelicals have exported problematic theology as well as politics in this case, and probably others.
PER: Rufo on public education: "...it as the first step in a broader plan for conservatives to “reconquer public institutions all over the United States.”
The big problem Rufo will have is that liberals are willing to work for less compensation for causes they believe in, while too many conservatives will pooh, pooh the "beneath their salary expectations" and will not take the roles in the public sector.
But then Demonic DeSantis will demand that the "conservative" legislature to up the pay for certain positions in state institutions.
Re: The New College. It's meant to be modeled on Hillsdale College, a *private" Christian fundamentalist institution. Will DeSantis next want to model the University of Florida on Bob Jones University? He may, if he gets away with this one.
There’s an aspect to love that MLK and Jesus didn’t get in to for some reason - the need to protect yourself from some people. Maybe you can turn it around to say - I love you so much I’m not going to let you hurt me. It can be on a physical or an emotional level but somewhere in all that unconditional love, there has to be self care. You can love somebody a whole lot but realize you just can’t keep living with them. Letting yourself be a martyr is not a form of love.
It’s a dynamic I don’t remember being a part of the Bible. Wouldn’t it be great to have an unexpurgated collection of the words of Jesus Christ? Even the Gnostic writings are incomplete. The early Christians left a lot on the cutting room floor.
RE: Christianity's impact on American politics 'then and now'
Then: In the sixties, I sat in a Christian congregation and sometimes heard sermons about 'loving one's enemies' and neighbors.
Now: Some "Christian" churches raffle off AR-15s (Want a link? Just Google it. Plenty to choose from.)
Impact? Or Sudden Impact? Go ahead, make my day. Tell me 'loving one's enemies' is a concept that's alive, vibrant, fostered and widely and broadly spoken of in American Christianity today.
Then: There was a nascent ecumenical movement in my area.
Now: It's circle the wagons as denominations continue to splinter and divide over issues involving loving one's enemies and neighbors, forsaking Christ's admonition to do so, the local church of my youth being but one of the examples.
Too broad a brush? Maybe. But no broader than far, far too many of my fellow Christians, no matter their denomination, use against those they see as their 'enemies' for one reason or another. And not content to paint within the walls of their own churches, they spread their strokes in the institutions of our government through the politicians they support and help to elect.
Loving one's enemies is indeed hard. Even harder when attempted at gun point, or in the face of ignorant and unwarranted fear and hate and rhetoric ginned up from an identity crisis that says You're either with us or against us. Maybe if more attempted to practice what they once at least occasionally preached, a few more folks would be the former instead of the latter. As for myself, I'm neither, since I believe in anyone's right to practice their religion as they see fit within the confines of their own house of worship and home. And in the entirety of our nation as long as that practice remains lawful and not an undue burden on others. But that doesn't mean I have to agree with that practice.
An awful lot of those identifying as Christians would do well to contemplate that, in point of fact, Jesus Christ was not a "Christian". And he was not Caucasian. And he sure as hell wasn't an American. If they came to terms with Christ's actual identity, perhaps they'd be more able to come to terms with their own. And while loving one's enemy, or at least attempting to, probably wouldn't be much easier if they did, perhaps it might be seen as at least as a more worthwhile endeavor. And then Christianity's impact on our politics might be seen as more worthwhile as well.
Does anybody notice that we a special counsel is appointed to investigate a Republican, they always have Republican connections to allegedly prove "fairness."
But when there's one to investigate a Democrat... they always have Republican connections to prove it's "serious."
9:03 PM · Jan 12, 2023
·
Assuming that AG Garland knows much more now than we ever may about both document breaches, what are the chances (spoiler alert: I think, Good) he has seen enough to conclude
1) Biden's situation is not criminal, and he has enough confidence in the fairness of the special counsel he has appointed, hard-nosed or not, to know that he will not recommend a criminal referal, and his being a Republican oriented person, that makes the case for no political interference even stronger while,
2) he also has confidence that anyone, R or D, who is a fair, experienced special counsel will have almost no choice concerning a criminal referal for the obstruction of TFG.
BTW, I am not of the JVL mind-set: I am an optimist, but I believe a realist, too.
George Santos also wears a $7800 Santos de Cartier watch. FWIW, named for Brazilian aviator Alberto Santos Dumont. The original was created back in 1904 and was one of the first men's wrist watches.
Regarding George Santos,he now claims that he had two knee replacements while playing volleyball in college.To which I ask,WWRW(what would Rick Wilson do?) The answer is to brand the GOP the party of Santos,Gaetz,Green,Bobert and Gosar over and over and over again. DY
Thanks Charlie for posting Romans 7, which is a necessary prelude to the exhilarating promises of Romans 8, and one which American evangelicals have largely discarded in favor of the perspective of the Pharisee in front of the Temple "praying": "I thank you Lord that I am not like other "woke" people-swindlers, evildoers, adulterers..." Luke 18:11
THANK YOU for including Dr. king’s powerful “love thy enemy” sermon!
I'm guessing we are going to find out that George Santos's real name is Tommy Flanagan. (Yeah, that's the ticket!)
I think part of the reaction to "woke" ideology is the term itself. It comes from a variant of English spoken primarily by blacks and the word itself raises hackles on the backs of a certain segment of whites. Seriously. I think the right has turned it almost into a swear word in a way they couldn't have been able to do if it was referred to as "awake" instead.
And this distracts and diverts from the issue at the center, which is the institutional racism existing in parts of American life. Witness the story of a member of a certain party bragging of success in suppressing black voter turnout in Milwaukee during the last midterm election in Charlie's column, or JVL's list of state holidays in his column.
That's a beautiful quote from Dr. King. I wish more people, including myself, could practice it better.
I love the piece about love. Thank you for writing it. You made my day.
I admire and appreciate all the space you gave for MLK’s 1957 sermon. It’s what I needed to read today. What a leader he was.
We love football, but are distressed by certain aspects of it -- not merely the violence, but also the commandeering of the college campus with it. It may be good to evolve football closer to its Rugby roots -- helmetless grapplers moving the oblate-sphere down field. By way of mixing two stories: I wonder if Rufo et. al. will eliminate those non contact sports at New College (Sailing; Rowing; Rock Climbining; Tennis; Swimming) and install Fooball in their place. That would cement the conversion, wouldn't it?
Re: football, I feel this deeply. I don't love the game for its violence, I love it for its complexity. But violence is no doubt a big feature. I'm actually really interested to watch the Pro Bowl this year bc they are doing flag football. Should be fascinating.
Re; MLK--growing up a white evangelical, I heard way, way, WAY more about MLK's sexual sins than his incredible religious teachings and their implication for both our public and private lives. That tells you a lot. I read a book of his sermons as an adult and was blown away. I'd also point you to the work of Joao Chaves on the religious dimensions of the Bolsanaro movement in Brazil. White evangelicals have exported problematic theology as well as politics in this case, and probably others.
PER: Rufo on public education: "...it as the first step in a broader plan for conservatives to “reconquer public institutions all over the United States.”
The big problem Rufo will have is that liberals are willing to work for less compensation for causes they believe in, while too many conservatives will pooh, pooh the "beneath their salary expectations" and will not take the roles in the public sector.
But then Demonic DeSantis will demand that the "conservative" legislature to up the pay for certain positions in state institutions.
Re: The New College. It's meant to be modeled on Hillsdale College, a *private" Christian fundamentalist institution. Will DeSantis next want to model the University of Florida on Bob Jones University? He may, if he gets away with this one.
There’s an aspect to love that MLK and Jesus didn’t get in to for some reason - the need to protect yourself from some people. Maybe you can turn it around to say - I love you so much I’m not going to let you hurt me. It can be on a physical or an emotional level but somewhere in all that unconditional love, there has to be self care. You can love somebody a whole lot but realize you just can’t keep living with them. Letting yourself be a martyr is not a form of love.
It’s a dynamic I don’t remember being a part of the Bible. Wouldn’t it be great to have an unexpurgated collection of the words of Jesus Christ? Even the Gnostic writings are incomplete. The early Christians left a lot on the cutting room floor.
RE: Christianity's impact on American politics 'then and now'
Then: In the sixties, I sat in a Christian congregation and sometimes heard sermons about 'loving one's enemies' and neighbors.
Now: Some "Christian" churches raffle off AR-15s (Want a link? Just Google it. Plenty to choose from.)
Impact? Or Sudden Impact? Go ahead, make my day. Tell me 'loving one's enemies' is a concept that's alive, vibrant, fostered and widely and broadly spoken of in American Christianity today.
Then: There was a nascent ecumenical movement in my area.
Now: It's circle the wagons as denominations continue to splinter and divide over issues involving loving one's enemies and neighbors, forsaking Christ's admonition to do so, the local church of my youth being but one of the examples.
Too broad a brush? Maybe. But no broader than far, far too many of my fellow Christians, no matter their denomination, use against those they see as their 'enemies' for one reason or another. And not content to paint within the walls of their own churches, they spread their strokes in the institutions of our government through the politicians they support and help to elect.
Loving one's enemies is indeed hard. Even harder when attempted at gun point, or in the face of ignorant and unwarranted fear and hate and rhetoric ginned up from an identity crisis that says You're either with us or against us. Maybe if more attempted to practice what they once at least occasionally preached, a few more folks would be the former instead of the latter. As for myself, I'm neither, since I believe in anyone's right to practice their religion as they see fit within the confines of their own house of worship and home. And in the entirety of our nation as long as that practice remains lawful and not an undue burden on others. But that doesn't mean I have to agree with that practice.
An awful lot of those identifying as Christians would do well to contemplate that, in point of fact, Jesus Christ was not a "Christian". And he was not Caucasian. And he sure as hell wasn't an American. If they came to terms with Christ's actual identity, perhaps they'd be more able to come to terms with their own. And while loving one's enemy, or at least attempting to, probably wouldn't be much easier if they did, perhaps it might be seen as at least as a more worthwhile endeavor. And then Christianity's impact on our politics might be seen as more worthwhile as well.
RE:
Elie Mystal
@ElieNYC
Does anybody notice that we a special counsel is appointed to investigate a Republican, they always have Republican connections to allegedly prove "fairness."
But when there's one to investigate a Democrat... they always have Republican connections to prove it's "serious."
9:03 PM · Jan 12, 2023
·
Assuming that AG Garland knows much more now than we ever may about both document breaches, what are the chances (spoiler alert: I think, Good) he has seen enough to conclude
1) Biden's situation is not criminal, and he has enough confidence in the fairness of the special counsel he has appointed, hard-nosed or not, to know that he will not recommend a criminal referal, and his being a Republican oriented person, that makes the case for no political interference even stronger while,
2) he also has confidence that anyone, R or D, who is a fair, experienced special counsel will have almost no choice concerning a criminal referal for the obstruction of TFG.
BTW, I am not of the JVL mind-set: I am an optimist, but I believe a realist, too.
The $520 scarf is only the start.
George Santos also wears a $7800 Santos de Cartier watch. FWIW, named for Brazilian aviator Alberto Santos Dumont. The original was created back in 1904 and was one of the first men's wrist watches.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacheverson/2023/01/04/george-santos-cartier-santos-watch-is-worth-7800-unless-its-a-fake/?sh=3d3e6e2a639f
https://www.cartier.com/en-us/watches/collections/santos-de-cartier/santos-de-cartier-watch-CRWSSA0047.html
Regarding George Santos,he now claims that he had two knee replacements while playing volleyball in college.To which I ask,WWRW(what would Rick Wilson do?) The answer is to brand the GOP the party of Santos,Gaetz,Green,Bobert and Gosar over and over and over again. DY
Thanks Charlie for posting Romans 7, which is a necessary prelude to the exhilarating promises of Romans 8, and one which American evangelicals have largely discarded in favor of the perspective of the Pharisee in front of the Temple "praying": "I thank you Lord that I am not like other "woke" people-swindlers, evildoers, adulterers..." Luke 18:11
scottcleveland.substack.com