And now a word from our sponsor, Brand God.
Mon Apr 30, 2007 at 11:08:59 AM PDT
This is a trend I have been following since I saw Stripper years ago. Some kids are finding solace in hard-core fundamentalism in these post-industrial times; their only chance to attain a feeling of "belonging" in increasingly isolated social landscape. They grasp and drink the kool-aide to be part of a "group," even if it costs them their rational thought. While the info-tech age is opening up communication, on a standard deviation curve for any cultural trait there are a lot of people in the population segment who will never be able to adapt to the new emerging technology. So like a double whammy of legacy isolation from the post-industrial and being left behind by the new modes of communication, people along the bottom of the curve grasps for any threads that will lead them to believe they still belong to a social fabric.
And the lowest pits of Hell are served for those who are selling this fabric with God printed on the shirts. Brand God, and one of the biggest sellers is Ron Luce and his pre-packaged BattleCry movement.
'Teenage Holy War', From Rolling Stone : Luce's Angry Youth Army
Tue Apr 10, 2007 at 07:58:14 AM PDT
"This is a real war... I want an attacking church." - Ron Luce
On April 19, a new issue of Rolling Stone will hit news stands, and the timing couldn't be better, or worse :
Just as the American mainstream is waking up to the reality that the Bush Administration, contradicting David Kuo's claims on the administration's loathing for evangelicals, has actually packed the federal bureaucracy with partisan religious ideologues, "culture warriors" in professed battle with liberalism and secularism, Jeff Sharlet's new story in Rolling Stone, Teenage Holy War (link to 3 page excerpt of story) addresses a counterpart to the flap over Monica Goodling and her fellows from Regent University that concerns a cadre of partisan religious ideologues within the Bush Administration....
Rescued! Posts on the Religious Right from All Over
Sat Jan 06, 2007 at 01:19:51 PM PDT
We are long overdue for a rescue round-up but there certainly has been alot happening in the Greater Blogosphere regarding the religious right and what to do about it. No doubt, there is much I have missed.
But before we get to the more traditional rescue round-up, I want to note that lately, an influential faction in the Democratic Party that overlaps with the agenda and talking points of the religious right has come under fire. As I wrote here on Daily Kos, some fashionable political consultants think that candidates should jettison use of the phrase separation of church and state because, they say it sends up "red flags with people of faith." What ever the merits of the scriptwriters du jour, fortunately, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which has for 50 years been led primarily by "people of faith" brushes off such glib faddishness. Lauren Smith reminds us this week in their blog The Wall of Separation:
Ford's "Dominionist" Prayer - a firsthand account
Wed Jan 03, 2007 at 06:28:44 PM PDT
SusanG's diary last night singing Gerald Ford's praises as having allegedly kept his faith and his political acts separate finally crossed some threshold that pushed my partner, Mike Doughney and I, into commenting. We wrote for the first time about an event we were present for where Ford threw the full weight of his status as Former President behind one of many key groups in the Biblical American, or what some might term the "dominionist", youth movement; by personally appearing at Teen Mania's "Stand Up" event in Michigan, back in 2000.
This diary, then, are some of the details of that, and unlike almost most every other piece of writing I've seen since Ford's death, this is based on a first hand experience, it reflects an event that happened almost 7 years ago, not during the 1970's.
This has been exceptionally difficult for me to write out, the gravity of what we saw and how to bring information forward; ourselves, holding to some value of civility even as we have seen incredibly uncivil things. But ultimately, I think it's critically important to look at Ford's 'legacy' in light of his actual actions. So at this point, I'm just going try to write 'what I know', while incorporating some quotes from my partner, Mike.
Battlecry/ Teen Mania Ministries article plus an Ohio resource
Sun Jul 30, 2006 at 08:48:57 PM PDT
Militant Evangelical Youth Group Coming to 40 Cities this Fall
Fri Jul 21, 2006 at 08:52:21 PM PDT
Much has been
written about the militant evangelical youth group,
Battle Cry, organized by Ron Luce. While there has been a fair amount of
disagreement as to the nature of movement and what can be done it, (in ways that are somewhat reminiscent to me, of the debate about the Promise Keepers a decade ago), the group is nevertheless planning a series of events across the U.S. (and one in Canada) beginning on August first -- and stop the week before the November elections.
While the group insists that it is not political, and that the events are about increasing church attendance -- there is evidence that perhaps they doth protest too much.
Battle Cry Religious Movement? or Militant Army mounting up?
Tue Jun 27, 2006 at 11:10:15 PM PDT
Teen Mania Ministries is a great thing for our youth, or is it? To encourage teenagers to stand up to peer pressure and make sound decisions are what parents are for, but we all know safety nets are great for those who are less fortunate. What a lovely initiative whoever had come up with this Teen Mania Ministries. Well, that is what I thought at first.
Satan is a Nerd: How the Right Frames Secular Liberals.
Thu Jun 01, 2006 at 01:20:14 AM PDT
Please allow me to introduce myself. I'm a man of wealth and taste.
A Carnival of Theocrats
Sun May 14, 2006 at 09:48:17 PM PDT
Christian Brownshirts March into Philadelphia
Fri May 12, 2006 at 03:34:58 AM PDT
photo credit: Marley Griener
