DIALOGUE

Thanks for the article. I avoided reading it this morning in the Times, as I thought it was pretty much what we are hearing and true. I'm not sure you can equate radical muslims to what happened with the Irish or any we discriminated against. The level of violence simply didn't exist. I don't care one way or another about the Mosque, other than they are damn insensitive. It is like a Jews for Jesus building next to the synagogue. Even that, however, in this enlighten world, they wouldn't be trying to kill the Jews. Conversion but not anything else. And, let's face it, you and others can make the argument anytime you want of our intolerance but the facts exist: 9-11; those who are trying to zap us now aren't named John, Bill, and Mary.

OK, that BS aside here is something to really hang your hat on, taken from the Old Testament, Ecclesiastes 12:1; and this is not somebody trying to zap us but the reason why we hang out at the gym, exercise, have plenty of sex, etc.-I am not sending this to Andy before his trip as it is too encouraging. LOL.

Don't let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and no longer enjoy living. It will be too late then to remember him, when the light of sun and moon and stars is dim to your old eyes, and there is no silver lining left among the clouds. Your limbs will tremble with age, and your strong legs will grow weak. Your teeth will be too few to do their work, and you will be blind, too. And, when your teeth are gone, keep your lips tightly closed when you eat! Even the chirping of birds will wake you up. But you yourself will be deaf and tuneless, with a quavering voice. You will be afraid of heights and of falling, white hair and withered, dragging along toward any death's door. And as you near your everlasting home, the mourners will walk along the streets.Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young, before the silver cord snaps and the golden bowl is broken. Don't wait until the water jar is smashed at the spring and the pulley is broken at the well. For then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.

F...ING Insensitive--Dialogue

Dang, Adam, you said it ten times better than me. The only comment I would add is that it doesn't have to be put in a Christian context but simply the way it is in America. An atheist, a Jew, a Baptist, a Hindu, a Buddhist, etc is free to believe or act how they want and the radical Muslim has to be held accountable as much as anybody. They do not get a free pass just because they threatened violence. And I am damn embarrassed and not a little pissed that the president and others, especially the military puts out a "could hurt the troops" bullshit because they are worried that some preacher has gotten the news media to give him his 15 minutes of fame and the radical Muslims will be violent which they will. Just because they will doesn't mean they get a free pass.


I personally have enough faith In Americans of every stripe who care when they wake up and realize how ridiculous that our leaders take this time for such bullshit, there will be a backlash. It won't be violent but will probably be at the ballot box which will even be worst for the Democrats. Damn. I have other things to do. Thanks Adam. {{{{{{{Jerry}}}}}


There is a big differece between burning some books because you find them "ungodly" and murdering people because they do not agree with you. Radical muslims are NOT the same as us. They do NOT countenance dissent. They do NOT believe in free speech. And if you turn the other cheek they will break your jaw. They believe thet the penalty of apostasy is death. The penalty of insulting the prophet is death. The penalty for adultery is death (oh..only if you are a woman). For these reasons we should NOT treat radical muslims (if we know they are radical muslims) the same as us. We should NOT assume that thay have the same values and are just misunderstood. Worst of all we should not allow double standards to prevail and freely allow any insult to the Christian religion while suppressing the same behavior directed at Islam. This is pure hypocrisy. At some point we have to stand up for what we believe in and not be ashamed of being a Christian-based nation with judeo-Christian ethics - or more importantly New Testament ethics. We should not be ashamed or afraid of wanting to keep our society the way it is and wanting to live in a society that we understand with people who think the same way. I am sick to death of moral relativism. At some point you have to grow a pair of balls and stand up for your own people, your own society and your own values.

I have seen what happens when you do not stick up for your values - even in this wonderfully even tempered country of England. There is a difference between tolerance and total capitulation to another culture - a culture that does not have your welfare at heart, but wishes to destroy it. Yes. destroy it. Sharia is not our law, neither is Leviticus. The old world - the books of Abraham etc - these are not the basis of the world we have created and that we want to live in. The New Testamant laid down the principles for a world where compassion tempered the rod of absolute power and the merciless application of religious law. If we do not stand up for these principles we could end up, by default, with a system of governments and laws that very few prople in the Western world would be happy with.

And it starts with little things. Here is a very small exmaple - hallal meals all round (and do you know how 'hallal' animals are killed?...) :


New Testament Christianity may be a flawed system but it is better than islam. So if it's them and us - then I vote for us!

I don't know if anybody has told you lately but this is America which means that anybody can be stupid and a certifiable nut if they choose. Any American can get on the rooftops and call the prez or anybody most anything and if they don't threaten, no sweat. Everyday in this City I see nutsos of various sorts. They would be happy to burn a Koran if they knew what it was. Every time some nut decides to anger the Muslims, we are suppose to lock them up. Bullshit, they didn't like the cartoons, they rioted. Then this radical Muslim killed Theo Van Gogh because his movie bad mouthed Mohammed. What is next? And, the idea that some unhinged preacher in Fl with 50 members of a church can spark this outcry should make us all take notice. Are these people like Petraeus, Gates, the Canadians. Even Sarah Palin, what have they been smoking? What and who is next. It might be you because you say some pretty outrageous things which border on bad mouthing America but thus far you have stayed clear of the Muslims which is pretty smart as they would be after your ass. This is f...ing crazy.

This Is Why Soldiers Get Disillusioned

A note from a retired friend. This is from my high school retired gunny friend-- this one I do believe. I simply don't trust the gov't who on Iraq and Afghanistan try and BS the American Public who care. love red***


From a soldier on the ground in Iraq.


Hey, everybody! I just want to send a quick update and give y'all the REAL story on what's going on over here with the troop withdrawal. The reason I'm sending this out is because a few people asked if I left Iraq. They're told that all of the combat troops are out. I want to let everyone know the real deal. It's kind of ridiculous how the news is saying that the last of the "combat" troops are out of Iraq because of President Osama's campaign promise. Take our Brigade for example. We were originally called a HBCT (Heavy Brigade Combat Team). Well, since Obama said he would pull all of the "combat" troops out by Aug, all they did was change our name from HBCT to AAB (Advise and Assist Brigade). We have the same personnel/equipment layout as before and are doing the same missions. The ONLY difference is that they changed our name. That's how he is getting away with saying that he has pulled all of the "combat" troops out. It is really ridiculous what he's doing and he has ticked a lot of people off. And it's funny how the media is buying all of it, too. So no, the last combat troops are not out of Iraq. We are still here. There are other Brigades just like ours that are doing the same missions that are still over here. Sorry for going on about it but we are just sitting over here watching, and are like "You've got to be kidding !" So anyway now you know the REAL story. That's why I'm not coming back early. You have to watch those creeps, they're sneaky! Anyways I hope everyone is doing well and that I'll stay alive.

A Disillusioned Soldier


***Note: Assuming this young soldier is "right on" and soldiers sometimes see, as we all do, things from their perspective and vantage point. To me, this is pretty straight forward. Soldiers aren't stupid, they see what is happening and in this case, I blame the military. To me, this is an ethical situation: the military leadership involved in politics. The flip side of the coin is that this might be a soldier's perception and his perception is his reality. I'm not sure. I would surely hate to think that the media would be complicity in this ruse. Stay tuned.

The Tea Partiers or Hypocrites--take your pick

Which brings me to the tea partyiers. What the heck are they so riled up about? Seems like a lot of them are people our age. What the squat do they have to complain about? Medicare? Social Security? I mean I hate to break the news to them but that's where a lot of our tax dollars go. Oh, and did I mention national defense? It seems to be that a lot of these people want the country to go back to "where it used to be." One of my conservative friends said something to that effect and I replied that if that were the case then we'd all be wearing powdered wigs and long white stockings, the NRA would be backing the ownership of muzzle loaders and some of us would own slaves. He said I was being a smart ass and that what he meant was people want the country to go back like it was when we were kids. Well, I said that just isn't going to happen. I mean the technology isn't the same for starters. Then there's the demographics. And so on. Things do not remain the same - ever.

Will You Hear My Confession

Here's a good one. I know you guys are right on the edge of your seat. I'm up at UC yesterday to drive this patient who is still taking chemo so I am waiting at the Infusion Center. I start talking to this lady and she says, "I understand you are a Priest." Before I could say anything, she said, "Father Jerry, I have met a great priest here and am going to mass everyday." I am looking for an opening to tell her that I'm not a priest. She keeps talking. She is from San Diego but came here at the rec of her doctor as he thought this was best Treatment Center in the country. She made her Mom a special rosary out of pearls. She is going to make the Priest one but he believes all rosaries should be black. It is her birthday. She is sixty. Very attractive but emotionally has the look of all breast cancer victims: "a deer caught in the headlights."

I finally decide that I have to confess. I tell her that I am not a Priest but a Presbyterian and am sorry we went on for so long but she was telling good stories. We laughed. She wanted to know if she could still call me "Father Jerry." Of course. I launched into a war story: "in Vietnam, guys would come to me all the time and want me to hear their confession. I would say to them that I am not a Priest. It would be like they didn't hear me, made no difference. I can't tell you the numbers of times I heard confession.

HEALTH

Jackie and I were recently discussing health issues as I was fondling a bottle of fish oil and she posed this question: at what age is it OK to forget taking fish oil, any supplement, eating right, exercise, etc, based on the idea that with the number of years left, you are not going to substantially be adding years to your life anyway. For example, the flax seed that Michael pours over his cereal--at this stage of his life, assuming that it is keeping his arteries unplugged, how much time is he really adding to his life span anyway. Take exercise, whatever. Stud muffin Larry, four hours a day working out: how much is he really adding to his life span? What if he stopped doing it? Started eating bacon and eggs, etc. At this stage, how much difference does it make? It might be different if pain is involved but the things we are doing that are hard to measure or if we can, it is only slight: cholesterol was 200, now 170, in terms of life span, at this age, what difference does it make?

Will all of the things we are doing substantially add to our number of years is a question. Does it make us feel better? A guy who is 90 and loves to smoke. Why not? Or, 82 and still smoking pot. Why not? One day this week I went to this gourmet restaurant in the City: the Lucky Penny and ate pancakes smothered in enough syrup to give me a sugar high for a week or the time Steve and I went to Haight and Fillmore and ate a cheeseburger to die for but if it didn't plug up our last arteries, we are safe forever. What if we did that stuff every day, would it make ant difference, shortened our years.

The essence of what I am saying: is what we are doing appreciably increasing our quality of life? We surely don't want fat bellies and we know that it appears that being overweight like fat Bob increases the chances of a heart attack. Many questions. Let's have some answers. Amen. {{{{{{{LP}}}}}}