Son House - John The Revelator

What is to be done: Reflections on the Mother Emanuel shooting

At left: the victims of white supremacist Dylann Roof, all members of the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church (known as "Mother Emanuel") in Charleston, South Carolina.


Left to right, from top: Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, Reverend Clementa Pinckney, Tywanza Sanders, Daniel Simmons, Ethel Lance, Cynthia Hurd, Susie Jackson, Reverend Depayne Middleton-Doctor, Myra Thompson.









When the shooting in Charleston happened (June 17), I nearly had a nervous breakdown.

All the work we have done towards racial reconciliation here in the South, all the dialogue, all the reaching-out, making alliances, supporting one another and going the final yard... POOF--I felt it all go right up in smoke, the smoke of gunpowder, the permanence of death. Holy God... REVEREND PINCKNEY???? I thought I would faint right there on the spot. No, I thought, panicked, please, NO, not Reverend Pinckney. I had to go on the radio and report this horror, and what possible words could there be? On the air, my voice quavered, and I said as simply as I could, this was exactly like a hard, sharp blow. On the head.

My co-hosts, looking stricken, just nodded silently along with me, encouraging me to go on. I was speaking for them too.

And I asked, how can white activists talk about this and not make it "about us"? Because its not about us.

One of my co-hosts, the amazing Double-A, disagreed. Of course this is about us. A self-identified white supremacist shot these people and we are white. We must always make it clear that this person does not speak for us, that this person is a dangerous renegade. He is the proverbial LONE GUNMAN.

Yes, okay. That is true... but of course, we do not want to claim him as one of us. And we don't have to, that is one of the main privileges of whiteness, isn't it? White sociopaths are... sociopaths first. Black sociopaths are... black first. Black criminals represent their race, while white criminals are just anomalies, outliers, sicko-crackpots safely apart from the rest of us... surely they do not represent the entire white race.

Do they?

Some black children will be afraid of us now. They are already afraid; they do not stop to ask, are all whites dangerous? They already know the answer to that by what they have seen. They act accordingly. They will avoid us, cross to the other side of the street when a group of us approach. They are looking at the record, they see what is right in front of them.

I wept passing the local historic black church close to my home, Reedy River Baptist, when I saw the marquee out front advertising Wednesday night Bible Study. YOU HAVE RUINED THIS FOR US, YOU MISERABLE FUCK DYLANN ROOF... At this point, I would no sooner walk in there for Bible study than I would go to Mars. A white person was welcomed for Bible study, and he drew his gun. On the air, I recalled the warmth and kindness of folks when I first moved South over 28 years ago, didn't know the neighborhoods and ended up at an all-black AA meeting. I was welcomed as one of their own, although they did wryly ask where I was from. Their kindness hit me hard, because I knew in the reverse situation, the black person in an all-white AA meeting would not be welcomed warmly, but probably just ignored or possibly chatted with on a superficial level (and *I* would be the one to do that). I was ashamed of what I knew then, and now.

The next time one of us strays in, or deliberately goes in, what will be the response? If it is suspicious and/or hostile, can we blame them? Maybe the response SHOULD be suspicious and/or hostile.

Even as I wept after the news of the shootings, the arraignment of Dylann Roof nearly drove me under. All that incredible, unbounded forgiveness reminded me of why I flunked out of Christianity so spectacularly. I have a hard time with forgiveness. (Irish Alzheimer's: you forget everything but the grudges.) Their incredible examples of humanity and decency made me sob with recognition, this is what we were taught: SHOW MERCY. I would have had none, and that made me cry even harder. Perhaps my own privilege is the reason I am unable to show mercy? My white arrogance somehow tells me the wrongs committed against me are of paramount importance... I can't let them go.

I decided the next time I needed to forgive, I would remember the words of these family members, forgiving Dylann Roof. I will remember and I will take them as my model, the spiritual heights that mere humans are capable of reaching when they dedicate themselves to the very highest principles, these truths we hold to be self-evident.

They felt sorry for him. He wasn't right, he was tormented and lonely... and they saw this. So did I, but... no sympathy.

I decided I wanted to be like them.

And so, the event changed me. This is why it has been so difficult to write about. As a white resident and political activist of South Carolina, the actions of Dylann Roof pierced my soul, and the forgiveness of the people he wronged set that same soul on fire. DO YOU SEE WHAT YOU MUST DO?--my inner self asked me, the voice I have always attributed to the Blessed Mother, whom I love. DO YOU SEE NOW?

Yes.

~*~

How to write about these things and be respectful? Specifically: How not to excoriate the opportunistic Southern politicians who suddenly came out of the woodwork to claim... I dunno, something. They came fast and furious, babbling and talking about prayer. Finally, Governor Haley decides the confederate flag must be taken down from the South Carolina State House, after defending it nonstop for two terms. Liberals threw spitballs, but she emerged looking good; she was all ready for her close-up, Mr DeMille! It was hard not to get mad all over again, as our very conservative, nonwhite governor decided to be nonwhite for the networks, and make a name for herself at long last. CABINET POSITION, she was whispering to herself... along with THIS IS MY SECOND TERM, THE RACIST LOONIES CAN'T VOTE ME OUT.

And so, Governor Haley signed the order and I waited around for hell to freeze over solid. She also attended every funeral, wearing her pricey, trademark designer duds. She even hugged Al Sharpton forgodsake. Luckily, cameras were around constantly to catch her dabbing at her eyes.

Believe me, this was hard to take.

Senator Lindsey Graham distinguished himself during the proceedings, talking not to the Masses but straight to South Carolina conservatives (his base) when given two minutes on any network: Please you guys, this is not the time to protect the flag... I understand how you feel, BUT THIS IS NOT THE TIME. Etc. He sounded like a kindergarten teacher trying to soothe an ill-behaved child who had locked himself in the utility closet with a rifle. Maybe that IS who he was talking to. The whites who feel wronged, left behind, their folkways and customs made fun of in international media, the southern whites who have felt the mass contempt of the world, sitting in their trailer parks, daily shit on by the rich. Angry, because its one more thing "they" are telling the poor whites they must leave behind, one more thing the liberals on the coasts have decided they can't have. Their resentment percolates, and in some times and in some places it is so pronounced, you can feel it.

And I watched confederate flags unfurl in the week the flag was removed. Many in the rural areas are still waving. One guy in a pickup was driving all over Woodruff Road with a stars-and-bars the size of Saskatchewan. But I looked around, and I saw other drivers pointing at him. Some shaking their heads in open disapproval. Its one thing to wave your flag before the NASCAR race, but another to wave it after someone has shot nine people to death, waving it in selfie after selfie. That wasn't cool, and even conservative SC citizens could clearly see that.

Progress of a sort. I wondered, does blood have to be shed before there is PROGRESS? Must we have martyrs before there is any damn PROGRESS???

More tears, more inability to write.

As you can see, it has taken me months.

~*~

Our Confederate Memorial Day state holiday remains untouched, as I reminded the kids on tumblr. In addition to South Carolina, there are official "Confederate Memorial Days" in Texas, Tennessee, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, Alabama, Kentucky, Georgia and Louisiana. (Virginia and Arkansas appear to have escaped this fate somehow, and good for them.) What are we going to do about that, anything?

Certainly, eradicating Confederate Memorial Day just doesn't have the ready-made media optics of taking down a flag, so maybe nobody cares? Except of course for the state workers insulted by the holiday. Do they count?

I say, lets get rid of it. And all those statues of John C. Calhoun? Calhoun Street, where Mother Emanuel is? Wade Hampton Boulevard, within spitting distance of me, also the name of a local high school? The entire South is named after slave-owners and confederate heroes. We have our work cut out for us.

As an American, I always believed the Germans went way too far, outlawing nazis, naziism and nazi paraphernalia for good. You know, free speech and alla that blahdeblah First Amendment bullshit I was raised with. But see, NOW they don't have to deal with this--they don't have towns, streets, boulevards and schools named after dead nazis, and that is the reason why. I stand humbled, and I officially apologize to the German people. You saw what needed to be done, and in your shame, you did it. Good for you.

Our turn now.

The Margaret White award for zealous Christian witness goes to...

Yes, you know who it is.


BOB JONES UNIVERSITY!



Specifically: Stephen Pettit, head flunkie in charge.


Back when Pettit "took over" BJU (and as we see, he didn't really), I wondered aloud if this was going to be a Soviet-style puppet regime with the Jones faction still running things behind the scenes, or if Pettit might really be an improvement.

Alas, now we have our answer. (I wonder where they put the gulags? Wait, getting ahead of myself.)

First, let's have the AWARD CEREMONY.

Stephen, you have hereby been SELECTED for Dead Air's very first and highly coveted MARGARET WHITE AWARD FOR ZEALOUS CHRISTIAN WITNESS. As one not permitted to peruse popular culture (although I know you secretly do), you will undoubtedly feign ignorance and pretend you never heard of the infamous Mrs Margaret White. Well, I have a quick tutorial below. Let's just say, the Mrs Whites of the world do not waste time with politeness and southern pleasantries, they just get it done, people.

Mrs White, the famous Mrs White. The one who uttered those immortal lines, I CAN SEE YOUR DIRTY PILLOWS!

I refer to legendary actress Piper Laurie, Carrie White's mother, one of Stephen King's most amazing, enduring and (as we have learned from the Jones boys) REALISTIC inventions.



Eve was weak! Eve was weak! SAY IT!

~*~

I don't have the time or patience to delve into the theological question of whether Christianity is misogynist at base. That particular case was already made a long time ago, by Mary Daly. Is there even the possibility of respect for women in a religion that constantly reminds us EVE WAS WEAK? The Biblical literalists are among the most deeply-sexist of Christians, because after all, it IS right there in the text. They didn't make it up. Mrs White is offering the interpretation that I basically grew up with, only she's doing it with ZEAL. And hey, aren't all Christians supposed to witness with ZEAL??? Because (I wish I had a dollar for every time one of them SPAT this one out at me): IF YOU ARE LUKEWARM, HE WILL VOMIT YOU OUT OF HIS MOUTH (and ohhh how they love that verse.)

The G.R.A.C.E. report, about the treatment of sexual abuse survivors at BJU, came out late last year and laid out BJU's sins in detail. The Greenville News (finally!) excoriated them on their editorial page (its only taken 67 years!) and the internet was abuzz with accusations and counter-accusations. I deliberately took a hands-off approach, because I have tried hard not to join the nasty internet habit (that I once had) of kicking people when they are down. That ain't nice, I decided. Give peace a chance! And so I did.

About a week later, I drove past a BJU-affiliated church here in town (they got dozens of em), amusingly positioned right across the street from some "liberal" (compared to BJU) Baptist church... and the marquee on the "liberal" church just read, simply: GRACE.

I instantly recognized this as an in-your-face gesture. Obviously, these liberal Baptists didn't expect SHIT from BJU. Hm, I thought... these Baptists know the BJU-people far better than I do. And I decided this was NOT a good sign.

The liberal Baptists called it. Credit where it is due.

Stephen Pettit has finally spoken. Its mostly in the Christian vernacular, so some of you may have trouble understanding it. I will therefore translate into standard American English that you will easily understand:

FUCK YOU.

Yes, that is the gist of Pettit's speech, one long, gooey preacher-boy, grinning FUCK YOU.

I have not actually decided if this is one loooooong fuck you, which would be FUUUUUUUUCK YOOOOOU!!!!! -- or is it a series of small, nasty little fuck yous?

Make no mistake though. It is a big, giant, brazen, nasty, vicious FUCK YOU.

Amen.

~*~

G.R.A.C.E. stands for Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment.

I like the acronym and the name, because it reminds me of one of Christianity's greatest moral strengths: in humbling ourselves to admit our faults and face our mistakes, we are granted grace. Everything changes, everything is made new. It takes GRACE to admit you are wrong, GRACE to admit you need help. And in doing so, the light dawns, the clouds clear.

The old hymn AMAZING GRACE sums it up: I was blind but now I see.

In other words, preacher Pettit, you had an incredible opportunity given to you, an opportunity for what you claim to want: GOD's GRACE. This was your chance. You could have stood up, taken a deep breath and apologized. You could have. I was hopeful that this crisis might make a lasting impact. Like we used to say in Alcoholics Anonymous, you were provided with a priceless, clear MOMENT OF CLARITY. These moments, these realizations are usually regarded as GIFTS from God, in most religious traditions. This is the meaning of the acronym G.R.A.C.E., which I thought meant you might actually PAY ATTENTION this time, and do the right thing.

Ha. Dream on.

In the weeks that followed the release of the report, The Greenville News talked with one of the survivors, blogger Cathy Harris. I was so profoundly disgusted by this article, I went on the radio and announced the Margaret White award was imminent, and I would be taking nominees. "But so far," I said, "there isn't any contest."

WHAT made me decide on Margaret White?

THIS PASSAGE:

[BJU counselor Jim] Berg also asked whether [Cathy Harris] felt any pleasure during any of the [childhood sexual] abuse and, if she did, she needed to repent, she said.

During one session, she said Berg told her he wanted to do a trust exercise. He pulled a rat trap from his desk, set the hammer and put a pencil on it. The trap broke the pencil into pieces.

She said he then told her to put her finger on the trap. When she refused, he got angry and put another pencil in. The trap did not snap shut.

If she couldn't trust the people God put over her, how could she trust God? she recalls him asking.

"I kept being told how unspiritual I was," she said.

The counseling ended when he told her he couldn't help her and God couldn't help her either.

"His counseling was more harmful than the abuse," she told The News.

In his interview with GRACE, Berg acknowledged that his counseling was often hurried due to his heavy workload and that he did not have extensive training in counseling sexual abuse victims. He said he did not know until 1992 that South Carolina had a law that required certain professionals, including educators, to report abuse, despite the law having been passed in the 1970s.

Really? Because *I* knew, and I think most people know, due to LAW AND ORDER SVU reruns... which I forgot, they are not allowed to watch over there.

That finger-in-the-rat-trap game is something worthy of Carrie's mom, doncha think? (ASIDE: Cathy, if this scene ends up in a horror movie, as it surely will, you could probably sue for copyright violation and make some bucks.)

This passage, Cathy Harris' harrowing horror-movie counseling session, is like Bette Davis serving Joan Crawford a rat for dinner in WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE; it is definitely in the same neighborhood as Margaret White yelling that Eve was weak! Eve was weak!

~*~

Stephen, if you ever want this done up properly, let me know. We might be able to take some donations and rustle something up, like a plaque, certificate or whatever, you know, for your wall. I am sure you are proud of this award and will want to show everyone, so I will do my best to make it pretty. I mean, you do want to impress your new right-wing politician friends, doncha?
Congratulations!

Just remember something.

The end of the film instructs us: "Carrie White burns in hell."

And whose fault was that? Will Margaret White burn there too, for driving her daughter crazy? I think that's an easy call, even for you.

Take heed and repent, Pettit.

~*~

Warnings for graphic violence, probable heresy and so on.



You knew I couldn't resist posting that... dirty pillows at 20 seconds!

~*~

NOTES

1) Please see Camille Lewis' refutation of Pettit's lies/fuck yous. As usual, Camille is the go-to on this subject, as one who knows where all the bodies are buried.

2) All photos in this post are from THE ORIGINAL Brian DePalma version of Carrie--except no substitutes, especially inferior remakes of perfect horror movies.

Unbelievably, I started writing this just as AMC decided to show CARRIE, which I take as a sign of divine intervention, just so I could get some good shots.

Tales from the Swamp

All photos in this post are of the Lake Conestee, SC nature preserve.

~*~

I have not been updating regularly since I have been hanging out in the swamp. Hope you like my photos of Lake Conestee swamps! It is an amazing and beautiful place. (As always, you can click all photos to enlarge.)



I decided my whole motif would be SWAMPS, since I realized, SWAMPS is where its at. As we used to say.

Which swamp should I cover first?

First up, the swamp of the kkk, which has been organizing here in South Carolina. They scheduled a rally for July 25th, so we had a "counter-rally" here in Greenville--although I would have preferred going down to Abbeville, where they are. Scary, but not so bad if we went in a large group. As I have written here before, I have disrupted one kkk rally (where I also got on the History channel) and nearly got killed at the second one (mentioned in passing here), so I appreciate the importance of traveling in a large group.

But the peaceniks organizing the rally didn't want any possibility of violent altercations. This is totally understandable, but... meh. Hey, the kkk invited everyone to come, didn't they? That is accepting an invitation, not starting an altercation. But yes, I guess that's quibbling.

It was a good protest rally, extremely well-behaved, where I saw the wonderful Camille Lewis and we did a selfie together. I was pleased by all the positive vibes, but I was aggravated that anyone believed the kkk would care what we were doing. I would like to MAKE THEM CARE. Like that guy years ago who drove his car into the Redneck Shop (kkk outpost) in Laurens County. Okay, maybe not that extreme, but something to garner serious media attention.

It is interesting that when I posted about the uptick in kkk activity on Tumblr, I was ignored. (I guess the kkk is just too "Mississippi Burning" for their taste? Old school. Not hip-hop enough.) At least they do seem to care about the recent racial unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, which is pretty bad. The police shooting of Michael Brown has ignited days of turmoil and rioting. The National Guard is there now, and it isn't any quieter.

No Justice, No peace.

The conservatives often claim that slogan is a "veiled threat"--but actually, it is simply a naked fact.



One of the pieces I was working on was about the last year I have spent on Tumblr, which is most assuredly one of the major cesspools of the world wide web. My time there is fast winding down, although I still enjoy all the photos of baby goats, weird art and old rock stars. (Not to mention stunning photos of LIZ!)

My consigliere Gregg asked me, live on the radio* even, why I went to a place that drives me crazy, and I answered honestly: because its where all the "social justice warriors" are now, and as a lefty, feminist, vegetarian (etc), I felt that it was my JOB; I needed to keep tabs on the place. And of course, I got sucked right in... swamps can be dangerous, especially when they FLOOD ALL OVER THE PLACE. Yigh!

Some of the arguments I engaged in were fairly predictable, especially after I posted THIS about one of the main Tumblr stars who is likely a cop (or equivalent), and after I figured out who some of the primary shit-stirrers are over there. Lo and behold... this gang includes people from Salon Rose, that old email list I was on. I am not surprised at all, since I could spot some of the same arguments that were first presented on the list, arguments I once decided were far too outlandish to be taken seriously. These arguments are now considered acceptable, i.e. you shouldn't say penises are male, since (some) trans women have them too. This is patently ridiculous. (Some humans don't have legs, so should we not say humans have legs? And there are far more humans missing legs than trans women with penises.) The recent article by Michelle Goldberg in the New Yorker about radical feminism vs trans feminism got everybody all worked up again. Lots of people who didn't know how "bad" the whole feud had become, are now reading this stuff for the first time. Tumblr is the incubator for most of this madness.

I found it well-nigh impossible not to get pulled into the swamp, since due to the email list, I know the colorful (and constantly-rewritten) personal histories of many of the instigating parties. Many are fakes; some are "trans women" not even living as women at all (but that doesn't stop them from knowing absolutely everything about womanhood). They have repeatedly told me they are far more woman than I could ever be. When I ask them what "woman" means, no answers. None will define this thing, WOMAN, that they claim they are. So I guess they ARE more woman than me, since it is apparently whatever they say it is.

In addition, there was the rape of a trans woman that has been covered up, and the rape-apologist squad have acted exactly like any other marauding gang, denying any responsibility towards the mentally ill person who was targeted. This made me furious, and when I mentioned it (and asked why are they covering it up), they accused me of trying to use this person's rape as a weapon to hurt trans women, which infuriated me even more. (The details, including names, links and circumstances, are in comments on this post.) I guess when a trans woman is ACTUALLY harmed, well, that is of no real consequence. Why are cis women supposed to take violence against trans women seriously, when the trans women themselves won't do it? Oh wait, did I mention the perp is another trans woman, a popular, charismatic organizer of conventions? Of course she is. And she has the enthusiastic backing of other trans women, so the violence perpetrated against Elle doesn't really count.

It only counts when they say it counts.

Forgive me if I don't take your bullshit seriously, gals.



But even as I argued with people who are (obviously) far more woman than me, I also argued with people who know feminism better than I do. The self-described "Michael Jordan of radical feminism", Nextyearsgirl, announces (regularly) that anyone who is in favor of rights for sex workers is anti-feminist.

This is like saying whoever is pro-unions cannot also be anti-capitalist; it makes no sense.

I asked her (without a single cuss word and totally respectfully) if she realized that for some women, sex work is a step UP the economic ladder? Is working a grueling and horrific 48-hour work week in a textile mill REALLY better than 3 hours of web-cam work, if you make the same amount of money? I had extensive varicose veins surgery for standing on my feet at work for hours, days, weeks, months, years. Why is that supposed to be ethically superior to a couple of hours dancing in the buff or showing one's body parts on a webcam, anonymously? Both are exploitative occupations--is one really more exploitative than the other? And why? I went from scrubbing toilets to dancing wearing pasties (it was against the law to be totally naked in those days, she said, sounding terribly old) and made 3 times the money. Which work do you think was harder? (Are more hours supposedly more holy or something?)

Of course, nextyearsgirl is an upper-middle-class college girl who has been supported by her parents and has never had to make these kinds of choices. She has no children and no worries, and didn't answer a single one of my questions listed in the above-paragraph, which were asked honestly and in the spirit of feminist debate. She simply made fun of me for even asking. Unbelievably, this is a heavy theory-head too, this is no rude adolescent. I am a feminist activist of over 40+ years standing, one of the people responsible for many of the changes she takes utterly for granted. And yet, she told her followers to unfollow me en masse since my mind was "scrambled by drugs decades ago." (about 20 of her followers obediently took her orders and instantly made me persona non grata--she is obviously a very important Tumblr swamp feminist, which should probably not be confused with real feminism. More about which in due course.)

And by the way, did you catch that?

Yes, nextyearsgirl claims to "care" about the sex workers, but then makes fun of a drug addict who quit 32 years ago. I wonder what she thinks of women who are still suffering from addiction? Wait, she told us, didn't she? They are not to be listened to.

Since it is estimated that drug addiction among sex workers is very, very high (figures range from 75-95%), nextyearsgirl makes it very clear she doesn't think sex workers with addiction issues should be listened to. I mean, *I* don't even qualify as worthy of listening to, and I am a 56-year-old grandma/Second Waver, my drug abuse safely 32 years in the past.

I think we know what she must think of drug addicts in the PRESENT, and by extension, what she thinks of sex workers with these problems: NOT TO BE LISTENED TO. BRAINS SCRAMBLED.

These are the "feminists" who purport to care about sex workers. Scratch the surface, and observe the unbridled contempt bubbling to the surface.

Swamp, I say, swamp.



I was also working on a companion piece titled "How fundamentalist Christianity gave birth to Tumblr's Social Justice Activists"--so I could finally explain the whole thing to Tumblr-skeptics like Gregg, but then decided it wasn't worth it.

Besides, I realized I could say it in a paragraph or two, during my many conversations with South Carolina Boy about the entire phenomenon. (He went to a southern Christian college, so he knows this stuff.)

~*~

As Harold Bloom said in The American Religion, there is a heavily-gnostic strain in American Christianity. The Reformation abolished sacraments (for the most part) as arbiters of belief or religious devotion. No intermediaries between Man and God! The result: A Christian was no longer who the Church said it was, a Christian is whoever claims they are one.

This is how we have arrived at the unfortunate point where we have Christians who are pro-global warming and pro-war. Because Christian is whatever they say it is, they are answerable to no one. If some preacher gives them static, they just move on to another one. And if that preacher wants their money/donations, he will not challenge them when they do unChristian things or offer unChristian politics. He will look the other way.

Fundamentalist Christianity owes no one anything, it is entirely internal. "You ask me how I know He Lives/He Lives within my heart!" goes the Protestant hymn. It is about your state of mind. You can now do whatever you want, short of living openly as gay (although many Christians do, and see no contradiction in doing so) and/or being a pimp or dope dealer (ditto). Divorce, carousing, drinking, gambling, porn, all is fine as long as nobody sees you (and sometimes, even if they do). Your politics can defy Jesus' orders to feed the poor and visit the imprisoned; in fact you can spit all over the poor and KILL the imprisoned, and its all okay, just as long as you call yourself a Baptist.

And now we have the same thing with those magic words, SOCIAL JUSTICE ACTIVIST.

People say they are, so... they are. Poof. No work required. In fact, nothing is required, that I can see.

The actual words though? Social justice? What does that mean? And WHERE (pray tell) is this mythical ACTIVISM? Answer: there isn't any. If you want to shut the kids up on Tumblr, just ask what they have actually DONE in real life. (Some of them reply with really offensive crap such as, "That's ableist to ask what we've done!"-- as if disabled people didn't build one of the most successful social justice activist movements of ALL TIME!!!! Yeesh.)

So we now have a collection of "social justice activists" who have no actual experience in activism. None. Zip. And when you refer to the failures and successes of past social justice activism, they have no clue what you are talking about (this is how I figured out they were mostly posturing fakes). This is why we have someone claiming to "care" about sex workers and yet doesn't hesitate to show their class contempt and open derision for drug addicts... no actual experience on the ground. Or she would KNOW who the sex workers are and she wouldn't say something that makes her look like a society-girl dilettante. Michael Jordan, indeed.

And that's how fundamentalism impacts social justice: you think, therefore you are. You are not required to actually do anything, but think the right thoughts. Use the right language and position yourself the right way. Follow the right people on Tumblr. Reblog the right people. But actually get out in the streets and DO anything?

No. They don't know how. They are resoundingly ignorant of even their own streets and neighborhoods. They can't organize the people on Tumblr who already talk exactly like they do and recognize all of their arcane cultural references, so how do they think they will organize people who don't think like they do and don't understand what they are talking about?

Answer: They don't plan to do any such thing. They simply type their deep thoughts and heavy theory on Tumblr, and hopefully, some grunt will do the job. Is that what they expect to happen?

And after thinking about this awhile, that's when I remembered Shelby Steele.



Author Shelby Steele wrote about his experience as a black teacher who opposed Affirmative Action, which he believes actually harms black kids. His proof was that many (most?) black students drop out of college in their 2nd or 3rd year. He felt these students were not fully ready for academic life, since the poor-to-mediocre public schools they came from were not up to par in the first place. Further, he believes their "failure" in college set them back psychologically, made them feel worse than it would have if they had not been given any extra help. This is the old argument about how charity can be harmful, only this time, he was talking about his own kids and his own observations as a college professor. He also wrote about being raised under Jim Crow, and what it was like to attend segregated schools himself.

So what happened?

Well, after Steele started to label himself a conservative, nice liberal white people refused to sit next to him at upscale dinner parties. (Apparently, the irony of this situation was totally lost on the whites, if not on Steele.) His opinions were beyond the pale, you should pardon expression. White liberal students from places like Beverly Hills and Central Park West started screaming at him during speaking engagements. Whites not allowing a black man to speak, now where have I heard THAT before? But its okay, since this is a conservative black man they are policing.

So we have spoiled brats who have been pampered since they were in utero, screaming "Racist!" at a black man who was raised under Jim Crow. An appalling and sordid spectacle, but it describes Tumblr social justice perfectly. I can think of no better illustration.

How does this situation happen, asked Steele, in his book A Dream Deferred: The Second Betrayal of Black Freedom in America. He has facts and figures suggesting that Affirmative Action is an overall negative and he is ready to debate the subject with whomever is willing. Blacks will, he said, but whites won't. Why not?

Steele says that for white people, being in favor of Affirmative Action is not about what is good for black students. They have no idea what is good for black students; they probably don't even know any. For whites, taking the correct liberal position is about LOOKING GOOD TO OTHERS. If you are white, to declare oneself anti-racist is to be A GOOD PERSON. It doesn't mean actually doing anything or thinking about things in depth, it means having the correct opinions and thereby proving you are on the side of the angels. It means posturing. Because if you argue, you might say the wrong thing, you might give yourself away as not having a clue... since you likely don't. Better to pretend you know everything, repeat the popular boilerplate, and shut up.

And so it is now with the Social Justice crowd on Tumblr. It isn't about honest and well-meaning debate, as I tried to discuss things reasonably with nextyearsgirl. It is about HAVING THE CORRECT OPINIONS. It is about LOOKING GOOD and being A GOOD PERSON. If you actually compromise yourself (as I have, as Shelby Steele has) and DO THINGS, well, you leave yourself open to criticism. You also garner some real experience and make observations, as Steele did over a lifetime of teaching African-American students. Disagree with him all you want, but he is the father of black kids and has taught black kids for eons, and was one himself; he knows his stuff. He speaks out of concern for the educational system and how it impacts African Americans in general. Show respect for his process, if you want respect for yours, and MAKE THE ARGUMENTS.

If you can't, he has won, and you should have the good grace to admit it.

~*~



But this is the swamp. Where they dump dead bodies and stuff. Its muddy, the water isn't clear. Strange noises and gurgles. We can expect more of the swamp as long as fakes and frauds contaminate the internet. At least, we can keep the troublemakers confined to their gurgling, oozing swampy spaces. As long as Reddit and Tumblr exist, perhaps it will keep the lunatics away from the rest of us.

Or does it just emit that nasty swamp gas that covers everything with its stench? Ewwww.

~*~



I have to thank the wonderful HBO series, TRUE DETECTIVE, which also inspired my recent swamp fixation. My spouse and I recently binge-watched the whole first season (Matthew McConaughey is a revelation! Who knew he could do that shit?) and it was terrific. After our binge-watching, I even dreamed about swamps... and the next day, my husband announces that he has located a real one. The rest, as they say, is history. We have spent a lot of time there since.

My apologies for a month-long unannounced blog-break. I will try not to let it happen again. But just look at these photos! Wouldn't YOU get distracted by such a beautiful swamp?

*GOOD NEWS: We are back on WOLI radio! Our show (still called "Occupy the Microphone") is on every Monday at 8-9pm, so we are not doing the daily thing at the present time (which simply exhausted everyone trying to come up with appropriate and timely topics). We don't have a podcast up and running yet, since we are still getting our radio-selves together. In addition, Gregg's mother-in-law passed away at home this weekend after a long illness (see this post for more).

Rest in peace, Martha.

Our best wishes are with Gregg, his spouse and children; as well as Martha's caregivers, Krystine and Josh, both beautiful people. (this being a small town, I once worked with Josh elsewhere too.) I can only hope to be able to depend on such gentle, sweet souls when I am old and frail.

BJU Reengages GRACE To Complete Independent Sexual Abuse Review

From the official Bob Jones University website:

Greenville, S.C. (February 25, 2014) – Bob Jones University today announced that it has reached agreement with GRACE to complete the independent review of the University’s response to sexual and other abuse. The independent review was initiated by the University in response to a series of national news stories about abuse at other institutions. The purpose of the review was to assess past responses by the University in support of victims and identify policies and procedures that could be enhanced.

Bob Jones University suspended the review on January 27, 2014. Bob Jones University met with GRACE on February 18-19, 2014, to discuss any issues that might stand in the way of GRACE’s completion of thorough, transparent and objective review. GRACE satisfactorily addressed the University’s concerns and Bob Jones University is confident the review can be completed in a timely and professional manner. To be clear, GRACE and BJU are united in their commitment to a review that is thorough, transparent and objective. As the process moves forward, regular updates will be provided.

I like to think I had a small part in that decision.

More here, here, here and here (full disclosure/beware the source: that last link is to WORLD, an evangelical website).

Question: Have they ever caved before? On ANYthing? This may be a first!

Stay tuned, sports fans.

As Matt Drudge would say, developing...

Bob Jones University cancels sexual abuse investigation--why?

As we reported on Friday's radio show, Bob Jones University has canceled the sexual abuse investigation being conducted by the organization GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment). According to our radio show-guest Christopher Peterman, there have been over 80 interviews conducted by GRACE, and their final report was due next month. BJU decided to cancel at the very last minute, maybe hoping no one would notice?


My deepest apologies for not posting this sooner.... I have been too angry at the ultra-careful, kid-gloves treatment of BJU, to settle down and post properly. (I initially wrote two other posts that degenerated into rather mindless cussing/fussing, so I decided to start over.) I got so upset on Friday, I heard myself YELLING (what? me?!?) on the air... and I didn't even realize I was doing it.

Although Peterman was very supportive and respectful of GRACE (and I am sure they are nice folks and all that), some of us thought this should be a matter for law enforcement, from the git-go.

But of course, BJU-tentacles reach everywhere in upstate South Carolina (actually, all over the state), and I have heard that this includes law enforcement.

So, what next? Do they get a free pass to ignore multiple-sexual-assaults on their campus and at their institution? Apparently, they are counting on just that. There is no other follow-up pending. Like the Catholic Church before 2000, BJU is permitted to do whatever they please and destroying the lives of the youngest, most vulnerable faithful? No biggie. Around here, they ARE as powerful as the Catholic Church is in Boston... and you remember how many years THAT took.

Perhaps it's time for lawsuits. Money talks, bullshit walks.

That's probably the only thing they will truly understand, being hit in the pocketbook.

From their website:

Greenville, S.C. (February 6, 2014) – In the fall of 2011, the national news was filled with a steady stream of heart-breaking revelations of sexual abuse on college campuses. These events prompted Bob Jones University to evaluate its processes and procedures for responding to reports of sexual abuse and specifically to ensure the University maintained best practices for a legally compliant and loving, scripturally based response to such reports.

Let's translate.

In these parts, these 'heartbreaking revelations' came PRIMARILY from BJU, who had the highest number of sexual assaults of any school in the area. As battle-weary Catholics can tell you, this makes sense: these freaks go where they know they can get by with it. THEY HAVE A NETWORK. The more there are, the more there are. They are ATTRACTED to cloistered, safe environments where nobody talks about sex, since it is much easier to get away with.

Obviously, there is even a track record proving it.

Either deal with the freaks, BJU, or accept that you will attract MORE AND MORE of them. You simply can't ignore this now.

But hey, watch em try:

To accomplish this, the Board of Trustees appointed a committee external to BJU to review our policies and procedures. The committee recommended some policy revisions and also that the University appoint an independent ombudsman to review past instances in which it was alleged that the University may have underserved a student who reported they had been abused at some point in their lives.

Sounds like just ONE student, doesn't it? Nice spin. In fact, as stated above, there were over 80 interviews conducted by GRACE.

And finally:

Over the last several months, we grew concerned about how GRACE was pursuing our objectives, and on Jan. 27, 2014, BJU terminated its contract with GRACE. It is BJU’s intention to resolve its differences with GRACE, and we are disappointed a resolution could not be reached before our differences were made public. Both BJU and GRACE desire to raise sexual abuse awareness and minister to victims whose lives have been ravaged by abuse. GRACE has been helpful in assisting us in focusing our efforts in this area.

Did GRACE threaten to go to law enforcement or what? WHAT are these "differences" they are describing here? Hm?

GRACE gives their version HERE (pdf). The investigation started 13 months ago, and GRACE was given no notice or indication of any kind, that BJU was getting ready to terminate their investigation-agreement. They claim not to know why the investigation was terminated, but I bet they do.

Who was named? How far up the organizational-ladder do the perps go? Were personnel shuffled around, school to school, department to department, Catholic church-style, rather than outright fired, defrocked and/or dealt with?

And why?

Does the name CARDINAL LAW mean anything to you?

This story is so hot, even Wonkette and the mainstream big blogs are getting in on the act. AND I AM SO PLEASED that our little corner of the Bible Belt is at last getting some much-needed national attention. (Now, if we can successfully shame Senator Tim Scott for planning to speak at Bob Jones University in April, that will be excellent.)

Please folks, keep the heat on.

~*~

EDIT 2/12/2014: THE NEW YORK TIMES! The freaking NEW. YORK. TIMES. has covered this story. Woo hooo! (high-fives to every lefty in the upstate) And my friend, BJU-survivor and former faculty member Camille Lewis got her photo in the Times!

I hope this means the place is down for the count... but of course, I have believed that many times before. (eternal optimist) Again, we just have to keep the heat on. If you have a blog, consider linking to one of these stories. Spread the word and kill the enrollment.

Altruism and Angels

Above, from left to right: Rabbi Mark Wilson, Rabbi Joshua Lesser, Rev. Jerry Hill, Rev. Donna Stroud, and Jayce Tromsness (director of the upcoming ANGELS IN AMERICA at the Warehouse Theatre). As always, you can click the photos to enlarge.

It was really great to listen to ALL of their varied experiences!

~*~

A week ago today, on Martin Luther King day (January 20th), some of us from Occupy the Microphone radio show attended a Warehouse Theatre event, one of a series of community discussions/dialogues titled Altruism and Angels: A Community in Conversation. The one we attended was titled Religion: Blessing, Curse, Irrelevant? A Discussion of the Impact on the Spirit, Advocacy and Vision of the LGBT Community. (This special series of discussions is part of the larger "Year of Altruism" that will be a religious focus here in Greenville during 2014.)

It was one of those evenings that caught me off-guard... one of those things where I thought I knew everything already, but the discussion took me in surprising and unanticipated new directions. The discussion wasn't a modest one, with God-loves-everybody platitudes, but instead went right for the jugular. It wasn't just about the fundamentalists, everybody's favorite whipping-boy, but about the ongoing moral struggle now faced by the "mainstream" denominations, when they grapple with issues like gay marriage and adoption.

For that reason, I didn't know how to write about the event, since I had mixed feelings about it.

To wit: Is religion one of the main causes of pain and anguish in the lives of LGBT people? Listening to some of the stories, it sure sounded like that to me.

Is this fact due to some intrinsically-negative factor about religion/spirituality in and of itself, or a separate thing, religious dogma specifically?

Can we separate the spirituality/comfort of religion, from the dogma that provides its ultimate psychological wallop, as ultimate truth and metaphysical certainty?

Isn't the fact of unchanging dogma one of the things that comforts us when we need it? If not (and I've never found dogma by itself particularly comforting, but I realize others do), then what is it that we grasp for in times of spiritual need?

At left: Some of the discussion participants. It was a lively conversation.


These are the things we talked about. Very intense. I did not necessarily come to the conclusion that religion should be let off the hook, although I did come to the conclusion that it is probably not an unqualified good, which is something I have always believed on some level. Religion done properly, I would say, is a good thing. Done improperly, it's a bad thing.

I am now wondering if that truism (which I never fully realized I subscribed to in the first place!) is simply mythological. One of those just-so stories we tell ourselves so we can get along with all of our religious neighbors.

As I said, intense discussion. So intense, I could not fully deal with it until today, so thanks for hanging around while I try to figure things out.

~*~

I recently went on a bit of a screed over at Tumblr, ranting about the kids who won't do activism. (And like most kids, they shrug, roll their eyes, and go on about their bizness.) But seriously, I do realize this phenomenon is one big reason why people avoid activism... or start like gangbusters and then fade out over time:

People have cherished ideas they bring with them into their activism and then, BLAMMO, something happens (like this discussion) and we end up questioning what we think we know, what we tell ourselves we already believe. And stuff like this can sneak up on you and leave you too winded to deal with what is right in front of you. I probably should warn the kids about life-altering moments like this, if indeed they do ever decide to engage in some real activism.

Then again, nah. Let em all find out for themselves. ;)

Daisy's Duck Dynasty rant (from Thursday's show)

Gregg and Scotty, my amazing producers, made it into a YouTube clip! :) (The whole show is at the radio blog.)

Another one bites the dust

My always-vigilant, intrepid spies tell me the fundamentalist Christian world has been rocked by still another scandal. In addition to the hoopla brought about by Stephen Jones resigning the presidency of Bob Jones University, we learn that Vision Forum Ministries will be permanently shutting down.

And the hits just keep on comin.

Christian Post reports that misogynist nuisance Doug Phillips resigned from heading up Vision Forum, because (nah, go on!) he couldn't keep his hands to himself. As a response, Vision Forum is calling it a day. Good riddance!

But hey, that's a lotta dough:

According to Vision Forum Ministry's 2011 tax returns, the nonprofit wing of the organization, its total revenue was $3,345,150, while its total expenses were $1,734,985.

Phillips announced his resignation at the end of October, describing it as "inappropriately romantic and affectionate," though he denied any sexual relationship between him and the woman, asserting that he had not known her in a "biblical sense."

Yes, we all know what this means... another powerful man who doesn't know what the meaning of IS, is. ;)

(For more, check out Jen's blog; she properly clocks his worthless ass and has been for some time now.)

Phillips is well-known in fundie circles for his infamous "Tenets of Biblical Patriarchy" a guide popular among Quiverfull households. (Phillips and his spouse Beall have 8 children.)

Religion News reports:

Phillips is a leader among conservative Christians who reject birth control and believe that large families are a sign of God’s blessings, as seen in his friends Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar’s family on TLC’s “19 Kids and Counting.” He preaches a message of “biblical patriarchy,” in which a man is called to “rule over his household” and “the God-ordained and proper sphere of dominion for a wife is the household.”

Phillips also takes a dim view of women in the public sphere, saying it is not “the ordinary and fitting role of women to work alongside men as their functional equals” outside the home in business, government and the military.

The damage done by these oppressive, repressive charlatans is hard to quantify, but here is one such example, from Spiritual Sounding Board:

I don’t know where to begin…as I have read through so many of the posts about the [Doug Phillips] mess, I have been forced to reevaluate my own life. Let me state from the beginning that we are not a part of any Integrated Church, and not a part of the “patriarch movement”…but we did, long ago, embrace some of their teachings….like having a large family, homeschooling, courtship, and such.

We have ten children. Six of them are out on their own, five of those are married. Not a single one married with our blessing/agreement….three lived with their spouse before marriage. One son is involved with drugs…one daughter is tattooed like crazy….two remain active in “church work” ……but none “honor” their mother and father…and this is where I find myself…in a time of really re-evaluating what I believe. I feel that for our older six to be who they are must be connected to our wrong beliefs….at least to an extent.

As painful as it is to admit, I am beginning to see that we fostered some pretty difficult beliefs upon our older children all in the name of “protecting” their futures.
We are a divided family now, and my hope that there will ever be a time that we can be all at peace with one another wanes with every passing day.

This Thanksgiving…the children are celebrating without mom and dad…as I just couldn’t host another holiday with all this underlying pain/issues.

My request is to pray for us…as we face this holiday season, as I work through this season of looking at myself and what I believe squarely in the eye…that I will find real answers….maybe for the first time in a long, long time. Thanks for a safe place to express these rather painful admissions.

When I get mad at the Bob Jones people for messing up this town for so long, I try to focus on what I know must be the internal damage that is not readily apparent to the rest of us. This passage, from this mother in pain, reminds me to be compassionate and remember that there is so much more going on than meets the eye. The seemingly-united front and moral superiority that they unfailingly present to non-fundamentalists can be shattered in an instant... because much of it is based on the egos of these selfish, hypocritical religious shysters, who created their empires for themselves, not for God.

And humans are fallible. There is not one righteous. No, not one.

SC State senate subcommittee meets on Obamacare "nullification"

... and our local Greenville News was nowhere to be found. Does this mean it's a non-issue? We can only hope.

At left: The big meeting last night at the downtown library to discuss H.3101, which would nullify the Affordable Care Act under the Tenth Amendment, which (white) South Carolina has loved since that fateful December day in 1860. (As I have reported here before, our Governor has proclaimed the Tenth Amendment is the essence of the Constitution and "State Rights trumps everything".)

Gorgeous Gregg, our radio consigliere, spoke at the meeting and was characteristically fabulous. And as a bonus, Mrs Consiglieri (she actually prefers the term Mrs Gorgeous) also addressed the committee. That made two radicals. Two. In addition, there were maybe three well-mannered liberals, pleading with the good Christians for health care. The rest?

This being Greenville, I think you know the answer to that one.

~*~

The good news, as I will share on our radio show today, is that socialism in America is A DONE DEAL!

Yes, I know. You're shocked. Ohhhh, me too. I am STUNNED it will be this easy.

Some of us were schooled that a socialist revolution would be at the barrel of a gun... Che Guevara, Vladimir Lenin, Rosa Luxemburg, Fidel, Trotsky, Mao... you know, all of those people. They agreed on this fact, if little else. I had long ago given UP on the idea of socialist revolution, since as you all know, I am a bubbleheaded Buddhist peacenik vegetarian who gets agitated even when killing insects... and I try to transfer this unpleasant task onto my cats. (Very recently, I cried over the CNN documentary about SEA WORLD whales, forgodsake.) No violence!--sobs hippie grandma. I like to watch horror movies and suchlike, but that's make-believe, and not real. Authentic violence/brute force is something I do not endorse. I don't endorse it by MY government, and I don't endorse it from the Left. Collateral damage is a horrifying turn of phrase.

Well, all of that is MOOT. Yes, MOOT, do you hear me? Fuhgettaboudit, as the New Yorkers say.

SOCIALISM IS HERE. <----- I heard this sentence about a dozen times, from a dozen angry SC-citizens last night. In fact, the ideological lockstep was striking, the choice of words almost precisely the same in several cases. Did they crib it all from Glenn Beck? Are they unable to think for themselves? It sounded exactly like a script, like programmed androids. Mr and Mrs Gorgeous were notable for the fact that although connected in holy matrimony, they actually sounded markedly different from each other, whereas many of the speakers who supposedly were not acquainted and/or lived at significant distances from each other... sounded virtually identical in their phrasing. Brazen Tea Party lockstep gave me the major creeps. (I toyed with naming this post THE STEPFORD TEA PARTY and realized that title has probably already had its heyday.) In that sense, it was a lot like the Town Hall meeting I attended in the summer of 2009.

So, just to clarify--

You thought President Obama gave in to the health insurance industry; you thought Obama staged one of the biggest tax-giveaways to (decidedly unsocialist) Wall Street in history. No, no, NO. Obama is a socialist. In fact, the passage of Obamacare will SOLIDIFY socialism in our government as NOTHING BEFORE IN HISTORY. It's THE INSTITUTION OF SOCIALISM. It will happen, unavoidably and unequivocally. We listened to Tea Partier after Tea Partier gibbering madly about SOCIALISM.

I am now wholly and completely enthusiastic about Obamacare. I was admittedly rather tepid before, since I greatly-preferred the Green Party program of Medicare for all. But this was obviously before I attended last night's meeting and learned THE TRUTH. INSTANT SOCIALISM! Wow, is that GREAT or what? NO VIOLENCE, a totally peaceful transition! I am wondering what the Socialist Workers Party and the Revolutionary Communist Party and that whole red crowd I used to hang with, is thinking NOW. I guess they will be disbanding? Nothing to complain about now! Wall street, shmall street!

And that ain't all, sports fans.

A strange piece of paper was foisted on me as I entered the aforesaid meeting. It is authoritatively titled SIXTEEN FACTS ABOUT NULLIFICATION and was ostensibly written by the bill's sponsor in the SC State House, Bill Chumley, a proud member of Sons of Confederate Veterans. (Hey Bill, guess what? My Confederate ancestor was smarter than yours! And as we see, we have both inherited our respective CSA-ancestors' intelligence. Excuse me, I digress.)

First, we get all the (cough) 'facts' about nullification, but at the bottom, there are some fascinating editorial comments:

South Carolina will become the first state to nullify Obamacare by making it illegal for the state or any local government or agency to enforce that law. Also, the path will be cleared for further actions to resist the federal bully by indicating that this state will defend her constitutional rights by, if necessary, criminalizing FEDERAL enforcement of unconstitutional laws within our borders.

Mark my words, unless the precedent of defiance is set, the feds will try to force homosexual marriage on us while taking our guns AND our right to public prayer.

DO YOU SEE THAT??? DO YOU???

Obamacare will usher in gay marriage, gun control and abolish public prayer! POOF! Just like that, just by existing. Is that some magic hoodoo shit or what?

More reasons to love Obamacare! No more of this state-by-state bullshit with gay marriage, sports fans! It will just...
HAPPEN BY FIAT. ABRA CADABRA! Obama has reached out to grabya.

I never knew it could be this easy. I was ready for a long battle. And I am assured by Bill Chumley that NO, its just going to HAPPEN, BY SOME MAGICAL POLITICAL OSMOSIS!

I woke up in a great mood today, since I realize now that a bloodless socialist revolution is imminent. Damn, do I feel GOOD! ITS MORNING IN AMERICA, yall!

And oh yeah, this was at the bottom of Chumley's screed:

Contact your senator and ask your friends and family to do the same. Tell him you want the senate to approve H3101. Also, attend the town hall meeting in Greenville, being held by Sen. Tom Davis on Nov 5th, to discuss nullifying Obamacare.

I truly believe the survival of our republic depends on two things: a return to Christ and the Scriptures; and, reestablishing States’ rights and state sovereignty as our political foundation. Feel free to contact me anytime at (864) 303-2726, with any questions or comments. I’d love to hear from you.

Do you think Bill really wants to hear from me? I am skeptical of his sincerity.

Bill's Rebel ancestor would be so proud of him. And mine would be so proud of me. This is the week we traditionally honor our ancestors, and I am proud to honor mine, by abandoning the backward Confederacy, once again. I love you, Thomas Hatcher... thank you for passing onto me the DNA to think for myself in the midst of racist, classist, reactionary insanity.

And I was extremely conscious of this fact, as I listened to the veritable parade of Tea Party speakers, that herd of independent minds using the exact same phrases and paragraphs, recited as a child recites from the Gospel of John in Sunday School. Independent-thinking was a trait in very short supply last night. They are still afraid of their boogeyman, whom they have erroneously confused with Jesus Christ.

Since as we all know, Jesus was a socialist who said, SELL EVERYTHING YOU OWN AND FOLLOW ME.

(((goes off to whistle the Internationale)))

#WhenIseeaObamabumpersticker brings out the vicious, good Christians

(you can click all Tweets to enlarge)

As many of my regular readers know, I have nearly been run off the road several times for my (old, obsolete) Obama bumper stickers... and I did not even vote for Obama in 2012 (voted for Green Party candidate Jill Stein instead). Nonetheless, those scary bumper stickers remain, because I refuse to be intimidated, and my car is old besides (but paid for!). Thus, when I saw the Twitter hashtag #WhenIseeaObamabumpersticker (excuse bad grammar, but what did you expect?), I admit that I reacted very strongly to the right-wing, racist bullies who came out of the woodwork to trumpet their bullying... the kind of bullying I have been dealing with for 5 years now.

Not surprisingly, they are damned proud of themselves.

When called on it, haha, it's suddenly a 'joke'--although at least some of them admit they are dead serious.

I know that the people who have repeatedly tried to run me off the road, tailgate me dangerously on interstates while shooting the bird, etc, are/were VERY serious, and not at all joking. And as they angrily pass me, they often show me their Dubya/Romney/anti-abortion/pro-NRA/anti-gay marriage (et. al.) bumper stickers as well--just in case there is any question WHY they feel moved to behave like maniacs.

Needless to say, I have never tried to run any of THEM off the road, nor flip them off, nor in any way act like a goon simply because they disagree with ME. Nor would I. But then, I am not a bully, and I have never understood the psychology of bullies. They really would have been quite at home in the old Soviet Union, which jailed all dissenters. They value ideological lockstep.

Further, I noticed that when I checked out several of these people's self-descriptions... virtually all of them claim to be BIBLE-BELIEVING CHRISTIANS! Do you believe that?!? (well, of course you do) They trash the poor while claiming to believe in the Messiah who said Blessed are the poor and the poor we always have with us. The Messiah who said, as ye do to the least of these, so have you done to me. The One who said, The Last shall be first. When I dared comment on this gross theological discrepancy, they found it amusing and re-tweeted me. HAHA!--this bitch expects me to actually LIVE WHAT I CLAIM TO BELIEVE, IS THAT FUNNY OR WHAT?!

Yes, I suppose it is.