September 20, 2011

Real History Of The Israeli Palestine Conflict


H/T Elder of Ziyon.

I'm sort of tired of the anti-Israel stance taken by many free thinkers. I really don't think half of them know much of the history of the conflict, nor do they give Israel any room when it comes to the fact that almost every country on this planet began through might and/or negotiations. Thus, I put up this video, though admittedly one sided, it is full of real history, not rhetoric.

Also, the false idea about Palestinian land is a non starter to me. Land has no DNA, and the land between where two Arabs live is not Arab land by default. Especially when we are talking about non sovereign land, which was the case in Israel prior to 1948 and still is the case in the West Bank and even Gaza today.

I don't get the shot at Obama at the end of the video. Using the 1967 borders (which really never existed) as a starting point isn't a new idea. George Bush Jr. used the same line of thinking when he wanted to come to a solution.

I still believe the settlements were a mistake. But the Palestinians have never shown a desire for a lasting peace either. The settlements are pretty much a diversion, as the ethnic cleansing of Jews in Gaza showed.

However, with the world getting smaller, this perpetual conflict cannot last very much longer, at least when it comes to definable borders. Something is going to have to give, and very soon.

Finally, I really think the support coming from the GOP (which is blaming Obama for the upcoming UN vote...somehow) is not helping when it comes to overall support of Israel by the West, right now.

The GOP is despised at this time by the majority, while Obama is someone who squandered his ability to lead the way he wanted to. The GOP is doing a great job of alienating the middle and lower class by emphatically stating that they won't cut taxes on the rich, while they are for doing away with the payroll tax credit (thus taxing the lower classes more). They are also viewed as the anti-science/anti-progress party.

Today, both Romney and Perry brought up their undying support for Israel. This could lead to a lot more Americans rethinking their support for Israel. The cognitive dissonance that goes on when someone you disagree with on very important issues (the government and the economy) makes any statement regardless of whether they are bringing in good points or not, can cause people to change their minds about what were lesser issues (like supporting Israel to the average American). This could even spill over to Europe and Canada as well.

September 4, 2011

Dominionism: The Christian Taliban (Perry and Bachmann Are Members)

I just learned about a new movement today: The Dominionists. Sounds benign enough, but the goals are not, and with Perry leading Obama in some polls right now, it is downright scary.

Here are a few snippets:

Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry aren't just devout—both have deep ties to a fringe fundamentalist movement known as Dominionism, which says Christians should rule the world. Ed Note: Sounds like what I believe Islam wants to, except it wants Muslims to rule the world.

....Rick Perry examined his relationship with the New Apostolic Reformation, a Dominionist variant of Pentecostalism that coalesced about a decade ago. “[W]hat makes the New Apostolic Reformation movement so potent is its growing fascination with infiltrating politics and government,” wrote Forrest Wilder. Its members “believe Christians—certain Christians—are destined to not just take ‘dominion’ over government, but stealthily climb to the commanding heights of what they term the ‘Seven Mountains’ of society, including the media and the arts and entertainment world.”

In many ways, Dominionism is more a political phenomenon than a theological one. It cuts across Christian denominations, from stern, austere sects to the signs-and-wonders culture of modern megachurches. Think of it like political Islamism, which shapes the activism of a number of antagonistic fundamentalist movements, from Sunni Wahabis in the Arab world to Shiite fundamentalists in Iran.

Dominionism derives from a small fringe sect called Christian Reconstructionism, founded by a Calvinist theologian named R. J. Rushdoony in the 1960s. Christian Reconstructionism openly advocates replacing American law with the strictures of the Old Testament, replete with the death penalty for homosexuality, abortion, and even apostasy. The appeal of Christian Reconstructionism is, obviously, limited, and mainstream Christian right figures like Ralph Reed have denounced it.

"Dominionism is simply that Christians of this belief system must take control over the various institutions of society and government. Some things that make this group unique is that they have some unusual concepts of what they call spiritual warfare that have not been seen before in other groups. Spiritual warfare is a common term in evangelicalism and in Christianity but they have some unique approaches and some unique spins on this that distinguish them from other groups."

On the topics at Rick Perry's rally

"The major topics at these events [are] anti-abortion, anti-gay rights and the conversion of Jews in order to advance the end times," she says. "And this was very visible at Perry's events as these Apostles led all of these different prayers and repentance ceremonies at [his rally].'"

Have a listen here. Rachel Tabachnick is an expert on the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), which is the Dominionist Movement. Tabachnick was raised a Christian Fundy but converted to Judaism because of marriage.

I still strongly believe that the Religious Right is a marginalized group, so once an actual GOP candidate is announced, and if the ticket includes either Bachmann or Perry or Palin, I believe that Obama will win be a landslide. What bothers me is that I could be wrong.

No matter what, it seems Perry and Bachmann are on a mission. The idea of converting Jews to fast track the second coming is really disturbing.