Obama and the Infernal Serpent

From American Thinker

By Jeffrey Folks

The president may not be aware of it, but envy has always been regarded as a sin.  Envy of the rich is actually one of the seven "deadly sins," according to Christian belief.  The idea that envy is "deadly" is so deeply rooted in Western civilization that only a politician profoundly ignorant of that tradition, or dismissive of it, would fail to regard envy as wrong. 

For the ancients, envy was such a harmful instinct that it was represented as a mythological figure of destruction.  One of the earliest Greek writings, Hesiod's Works and Days, describes envy as nasty-mouthed, physically repulsive, and rejoicing in human suffering.  It is the sort of evil that Hesiod associated it with the decline of civilization ruled by a corrupt race of "iron" men (not the gold or silver of the past).  Even 2,800 years ago, it was understood that envy is an evil that arises in the late stages of great civilizations, when political life begins to focus on how to redistribute goods rather than how to produce more goods.  Great writers have always understood this fact.   

God and Jerusalem Divide Democrats

Responding to a public relations fiasco, a corrupt and Godless party rammed "God" and support for Jerusalem as the capital of Israel back into their platform.  That their candidate doesn't believe in at least one of those concepts doesn't seem to matter.

 

From Breitbart.com

By Ben Shapiro

Tonight, the Democratic National Committee suspended the rules of the convention and inserted language regarding God and the State of Israel back to its platform. They had to vote three times to do it -- and they had to lie to deem it passed, even though it was clear that the measure did not pass a voice vote in the chamber. The original 2012 Democratic Party platform had excised all mention of God and Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel.

Governor Ted Strickland of Ohio made the motion to change the platform:

"This summer, I was proud to serve this party as the platform drafting committee chair. I came before you today to discuss the two important matters related to our party's national platform. As an ordained United Methodist Minister, I am here to attest and affirm that our faith and belief in God is central to the American story and informs the value we have expressed in our party's platform. In addition, President Obama recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and our party's platform should as well. Mr. Chairman, I have submitted my amendment in writing and I believe it is being projected on the screen for the delegates to see. I move adoption of the amendment as submitted and shown to the delegates."

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles, the head of the Democratic National Convention, got up and asked for a two-thirds vote on the amendments to the platform. He took a voice vote, with people stating aloud "aye" and "nay."

The first time, he couldn't determine if two-thirds of the voters had said "aye"; a loud "no" vote was heard. He asked for a second vote.

The second time, he couldn't determine whether the voice vote had passed. Again. Villaraigosa looked around in confusion.

Finally, on the third attempt, Villaraigosa took a voice vote and simply declared, in the "opinion of the chair," that it had been passed. There were widespread boos in the convention hall to the renewed inclusion of God and language about Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. And Villaraigosa was lying, in any case -- there is no way that the voice vote had passed. Opponents stood up and protested, waving and shouting. The fix was in. The Democratic leadership had to ram a mention of God and a mention of Jerusalem through, violating their own rules, to avoid the fallout within their own ranks.

UPDATE: Multiple sources are reporting that this means that the Democrats will reinstate their 2008 language, which reads:

"The United States and its Quartet partners should continue to isolate Hamas until it renounces terrorism, recognizes Israel's right to exist, and abides by past agreements. Sustained American leadership for peace and security will require patient efforts and the personal commitment of the President of the United States. The creation of a Palestinian state through final status negotiations, together with an international compensation mechanism, should resolve the issue of Palestinian refugees by allowing them to settle there, rather than in Israel. All understand that it is unrealistic to expect the outcome of final status negotiations to be a full and complete return to the armistice lines of 1949. Jerusalem is and will remain the capital of Israel.The parties have agreed that Jerusalem is a matter for final status negotiations. It should remain an undivided city accessible to people of all faiths."

Sources also report that the language was changed "to reflect the president's personal view." This is bull. President Obama has never recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital, and neither has his spokesperson or State Department. He has never taken a public position against the so-called "right of return," which would destroy Israel as a Jewish state. And he has publicly stated that Israel should use the 1949 armistice lines as the baseline of any future negotiations. This was obviously a political move designed to prevent disillusioned Jewish voters from leaving the Democratic voters in droves. If Jews are smart -- and if they watch this tape -- they'll realize that the base of the Democratic Party simply does not support Israel, even if the DNC quashes their votes.

Democrats Remove Any Mention of God From DNC Platform

From LifeNews.com

By Steve Ertelt

Democrats have removed any mention of God from their party platform, dropping language from the 2008 version that at least had a passing reference to the Creator whom the founders of the nation explained grants the rights we enjoy.

Eagle-eyed reporter David Brody of CBN News discovered the omission.

“Guess what? God’s name has been removed from the Democratic National Committee platform,” he writes. “The Brody File has calls into DNC to explain why God’s name has been dropped from the platform. Some critics will suggest that when you have planks in your platform that support abortion rights and gay marriage then it’s no wonder that God’s name would be dropped as well.”

This is the paragraph that was in the 2008 platform:

“We need a government that stands up for the hopes, values, and interests of working people, and gives everyone willing to work hard the chance to make the most of their God-given potential.”

Now the words “God-given” have been removed. The paragraph has been restructured to say this:

“We gather to reclaim the basic bargain that built the largest middle class and the most prosperous nation on Earth – the simple principle that in America, hard work should pay off, responsibility should be rewarded, and each one of us should be able to go as far as our talent and drive take us.”

Thomas Peters of CatholicVote also noticed Brody’s report on the change and responded:

“Yet another step in the secularizing evolution of modern progressivism,” he said. “You can see the draft of the 2012 DNC platform here and, sure enough, there is no mention of “God” anywhere in it. The 2012 GOP platform, meanwhile, mentions “God” 12 times, including in this Preamble (penned by Catholic Chairman Gov. Bob McDonnell):

“…Reaffirm that our rights come from God, are protected by government, and that the only just government is one that truly governs with the consent of the governed…”

“…May God continue to shed his grace on the United States of America.”

Mr. Scam Man

We don't expect the Democrat National Convention will have the audacity to feature the party's theme song, Happy Days Are Here Again, in the wreckage of the Obama regime.  So here's a song with which millions of Americans can identify.

BBC Reports on the Diocese of Charleston's Social Media Outreach for Priestly Vocations

The Catholic Diocese of Charleston has been featured in a BBC News Magazine video report on how the Church is turning to Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare in the quest for priestly vocations (video).

Group Says It Found 30,000 Dead North Carolinians Registered to Vote

Voter Integrity Project has no evidence of any ballots cast in their names.

 

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/09/02/3497857/group-says-it-found-30000-dead.html#storylink=cpy

A Raleigh-based group devoted to reducing the potential for voter fraud presented the N.C. Board of Elections on Friday with a list of nearly 30,000 names of dead people statewide who are still registered to vote.

The Voter Integrity Project compiled the list after obtaining death records from the state Department of Public Health from 2002 to March 31 and comparing them to the voter rolls.

“Mainly, what we’re concerned about is the potential [for fraud],” said project director Jay DeLancy. “Since there is no voter ID law in North Carolina, anybody can walk in and claim to be anyone else.”

Read the rest of this entry at The Charlotte Observer >> 

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/09/02/3497857/group-says-it-found-30000-dead.html#storylink=cpy

Hillsdale College Forum - "What Makes Classical Education Different"

Several days ago we posted another excellent talk, "Undoing Dewey," presented at this 2012 Charter School Conference held at Hillsdale College in June 2012.