Tattooed Christians are Doomed

A site by the name of Rapture Ready is saying real Christians shouldn't have tattoos. Here's the reference:

Lev. 19:28 says, “Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.” Yet RR adds that DEATH is the number one tattoo.

Continuing, "it's not Christian, it is associated with paganism, demonism, Baal worship, shamanism, mysticism, heathenism, cannibalism and many other pagan beliefs."

RR says the Bible also condemns all rebellion, which is only realistic in a perfect world, not the kind we live in today. Further, "the tattoo has always been an indication of a spirit of rebellion and deviancy on its wearers," claiming that the Biblical passages "declare that rebellion is as bad as witchcraft."

Okay, I personally know several people who profess to be good Christians that have multiple tattoos. The site reiterates over and over that the tattoo has its roots in beliefs and practices that are demonic and pagan, continuing..."it is intended to put the human soul in harmony with supernatural forces."

I am sure the tattooed Christians I know have no idea they are headed for hell and damnation, but even the strongest of believers should wonder about some of the statements made on this site. Rapture Ready claims the end is very near so you tattooed Christians had better start scrubbing today.

Chris Christie Just Raised Democrat Chances in 2016

No matter who runs as the Democratic candidate in the 2016 General election, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a potential Republican candidate himself, just moved the Democrats closer to the presidency. Christie said, “Listen, first off, I thought that Elizabeth Warren wasn’t running for president. But when I listened to Hillary yesterday, it sounds like liberal political consultants put together that speech.” What this means is that both Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have moved Clinton further to the left where the Democratic voters will be in 2016.  Warren still claims she is not running but Bernie is hot on the trail and very close to being a highly competitive candidate to win the primary.

In the MSNBC article Christie questions whether Hillary Clinton really understands the everyday issues Americans face. She doesn't listen to them and she never answers questions he claimed. In a recent interview with NBC reporter Andrea Mitchell, Bernie Sanders made the remark that he didn't understand how anyone could run for president without answering questions. Bernie thrives on making it known what he stands for by being responsive to the public and the press. The big difference here seems to be that Hillary Clinton is carefully orchestrating her campaign with limitations that sometime reflect negatively on the candidate. Bernie Sanders, on the other hand, says simply this is what I am, what I stand for and ask me if there is anything you don't understand. Then, he answers them.

Bernie Sanders Shocks With New Poll

New Hampshire: BREAKING NEWS

Bernie Sanders comes withing ten points of Hillary Clinton in latest New Hampshire poll. Clinton 42%, Sanders 32%. Bernie is on the roll!

Bernie Sanders Talks Obscene Wealth

In Iowa on Saturday Bernie Sanders talked about the obscene wealth in America. He was referring to billionaires like the KOCH Bros. that just keep taking but never really giving in return. Yes, I know about the KOCH family foundations but what they offer there is far smaller than what they suck out of this nation. And part of their philanthropy is no doubt to benefit their many conservative causes which lobby against issues like universal health care and climate change. KOCH industries is the top water polluter in the U.S. with three lobbying organizations that have a key influence on U.S. public policy, which accounts for a bought and paid for Republican Congress and some Democrats.

Here are the wealthiest in the U.S., but with distinct differences in character. There is Bill Gates, #1 at $79.4 billion followed by Warren Buffett #2 at $68.9 billion, then Oracle founder and former CEO, Larry Ellison, $54.5 billion. These three are followed by the dregs of billionaires, Charles and David Koch worth $41.6 billion each. And then comes the difference. Don't know much about Ellison but do know that Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have both pledged half of their fortunes to charity. And they have done it without attempting to take over the political reins of the United States and run it as a part of KOCH Industries. And that is what Bernie Sanders was talking about to large crowds this last Saturday in Iowa.

IKEA to Invest Billion Dollars in the Environment

The Scandanavians are in the news for investing big in cleaning up the environment. IKEA, based in Sweden, announced it will spend one billion euros (1.13 billion dollars) over the next five years to address climate change. While in the U.S. a Think Progress analysis found that "over 58 percent" of congressional Republicans refuse to accept the science of climate change. Go figure. IKEA's decision was partially the result of a survey taken last year with the finding that 41% of the store's customers think the company “takes social and environmental responsibility.” Now that's a refreshing change to some American companies that simply concentrate on polluting the environment.

Forbes magazine has published an article with 11 U.S. companies that are considered best for the environment. Among them are Seventh Generation and Go Lite, but there is also the other side...our country's big polluters. Just recently Environment America released "Polluting Politics" a report that analyzes spending on federal lobbying and campaign contributions by companies releasing the most toxic chemicals into U.S. waterways. Guess who tops the list of water polluters who spend the most politically to prevent environmental policies? KOCH Industries. But they are just one; others include Tyson Foods, Dept. Of Defense, Cargill, U.S. Steel and Phillips 66. And these are only water polluters.

The environment has taken a series of hits that many climate scientists have said we cannot recover from if we don't do something now. With a GOP Congress that won't pass any laws opposed by big business, there is little hope we will ever clean up this mess.

Colin Powell Talks Republican Racism...Again

Former Sec. of State Colin Powell accused the Republicans in Jan. 2013, of having "... a dark vein of intolerance in some parts of the party." It was former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin who used the term to say that the president is "shuckin" and "jivin," referring to Barack Obama. I grew up in the South and that's about as racist as it gets. But coming from a double-digit IQ like Sarah Palin, well, what do you expect? Powell doesn't mention it by name but during that period of time the far right conservatives responsible for racial attacks were the Tea Party.

Move ahead to March of 2015 and Colin Powell again speaks out against the GOP and its continuing racist views. It was in a "This Week" interview when he said “I still see it. I still see it in the Republican Party and I still see it in other parts of our country. You don’t have to be a Republican to be touched by this dark vein. America is still going through this transformation from where we were just 50 or 60 years ago.” I lived in the South in the 50s and 60s when the phrase "shuckin" and "jivin" was only one of the offenders to black folks. They had to live with the "N" word every day, and not just behind their backs, but face to face in a confrontation they knew they could not win.

Racist have cleaned up their act slightly, mostly due to a somewhat less tolerant public, but the seething hatred is still there with little hope it will go away.

More Tea Party Lunacy

We know those in the Tea Party live in their own fantasyland of an ideology that if satisfied would close down America. Thank God they have been herded into their own corral and as long as we keep them there, all should be fine. What we can't prevent is their incessant blather carping about everything from Barack Obama to gun rights. Here are some examples:

• In a recent post from their site, former Congressman Frank Wolf implies that Christians could be going to prison in the future for their beliefs. 
• Next, the end of this month the TP newsletter exclaimed that the government was preparing to seize 401 (k) pensions setting the stage for “economic totalitarianism.” 
• TP newsletter headline: "What Obama Hates About Jesus." 
• The chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, Roy Moore, said he believes that if the U.S. Supreme Court rules in June that homosexual marriage is a Constitutional right, it “will destroy our country,” and added that “there are people who would like to see this country destroyed.”
• And finally, back to 2014, fired former Gilberton, PA, police chief Mark Kessler said, that he is a DHS/FBI plant. He was deemed psychotic for his 2nd Amendment lunacy.

The tea Party never lets up but it does provide us with a wealth of laughter in an otherwise sometimes dismal world.