During the 2004 National Democratic Convention's keynote address, Obama spoke of the slicing and dicing of the American people into categories.  You know, the separating of citizens into groups by attaching adjectives to their votes?  The Red Vote.  The Blue Vote.  The Gay Vote.  The Black Vote.  The Working Class White Vote.   And on and on.  During this national election cycle, the slicing and dicing has become even more descriptive than ever.  The Pantsuit Vote.   The Bitter Vote.   The Latte Drinking Birkenstock Wearing Prius Driving Vote.   This practice has always been part of the political process.  Because, in the end, it's all about the vote.  Isn't it?

My blood pressure is so high up at this moment. I just read an outrageous article by the AP.

NY priest pleads guilty to raping 3 teenage boys

A Franciscan priest admitted raping 3 boys in the 70s and 80s. BOSTON - A Franciscan priest from New York pleaded guilty to raping three teenage boys during overnight trips to Boston in the 1970s and 1980s and was ordered Tuesday to serve time on probation.

The Rev. Frank Genevieve avoided prison time as a Suffolk Superior Court judge sentenced him to a suspended sentence of eight to 10 years, with five years' probation.

Where is the fucking justice?

I recently read Richard Dawkins :The God Delusion," which has made me rethink some things.

I am going to piss off some people I respect here, but I think PZ's conduct is reprehensible.

Temptation comes in many forms, some fair of face, and some foul.  In this case, it was my younger sister and her brand new doll.

There is nothing as good in America as a Whiteman that speaks the truth, even when it will not benefit him directly and temporarily.  That is not only a man and a true Christian, but also a true American soldier for the war that brings genuine racial reconciliation to America.  

Bill O’Reilly, Geraldine Ferrero, and other Catholic are mad at him and are calling for his head from the church.  If half of White Americans were as bold as Pfleger in the areas of fairness and truth, racism would have long been removed from the fabric of our great nation.  Instead, we pretend to act like racism is long dead and forgotten.  Are the Clintons and Fox News not playing the race card to make Obama look un-presidential?  Even at a time when McClellan is claiming that Bush and the White house made him lie, racist O’Reilly and Ferrero are still focusing on Obama’s Church instead of questioning the Republicans and McCain’s dream of continuing this Bush agenda.

Check out these two videos of Fr. Jim Lasante from Diocese of Rockville  Center:

http://deacbench.blogspot.com/...

http://www.youtube.com/...

Cardinal George put out a statement today that indicated he gave a  warning and strict instructions to Fr. Pfleger regarding partisan activity.  Will Bishop Murphy follow suit regarding Fr. Jim Lasante?

Bill Roth
Catholic Democrats

Governor Sebelius is under attack by fringe groups that want to re-write the constitution to exclude your right to privacy.

Hillary Clinton and John McCain have fed the media a diet of scandal and innuendo and kept feeding it to the point where it has become a monster that will consume them both.

Today, as the severity of Senator Kennedy’s condition became more apparent, I found myself, once again, back in seventh grade. I am in a large hall, waiting in line. I am not sure what the line is for, and for some reason the line can’t seem to form properly. We seem to be waiting to go into an auditorium. Words are migrating from student to student. It is November 22nd, 1963. The President has been shot. Next to me stands a sweet looking young girl. Shoulder length dirty blond hair. Delicate features. And she says, "I hope that he dies." This was the President who had taken us through the Cuban Missile Crisis, who spoke of civil rights, and who had two young children. And she wanted him dead. Her hatred was palpable and irrational. In retrospect, given the times, I have always wondered whether her enmity was due to the fact that he was a Catholic, and one who supported civil rights.

No one seriously expects that campaign coverage by the major U.S. media will focus on issues that actually matter to people. Health care, the environment, the economy, government-sponsored torture, war and peace, etc., are too boring for any extended debate, at least in the minds of the media. Instead, its about personality and scandal, real and imagined.

The Democratic Party is in danger of losing a coalition partner that has been among it's most loyal if it nominates Hillary Clinton. Her surrogates have injected race into this contest in a very negative fashion with Geraldine Ferraro, and more recently Bob Johnson, and now she re-iterates to Black Americans of faith  how she really feels.

Here's a Fox News interview with a (white) Catholic priest who supports Rev. Wright by comparing him to Jesus.

What if we took 30-second film clips of Jesus overturning tables in the temple? Or saying you must hate your parents in order to love me? We would have thought him a crazy man.

Well worth watching and spreading:

http://www.foxnews.com/...

Kossacks -

Here is a draft of a letter I'm working on, targeted to Catholic voters in Pennsylvania.

If anybody has any thoughts about this letter, please share them.

A Catholic priest and a member of London's Catholic worker movement were sentenced to days in prison for a protest at one of the world's largest arms fair. They refused to pay the fine involved.

They were charge with using fake blood to depict their opposition to the event.

The full story can be found here.

Well, that’s not exactly true.  It’s more the concept of a mother that I miss – not that I really have a handle on what that is, exactly; never having had a functioning model to pull from.  Yesterday I watched a program featuring teasing exchanges between adult siblings.  I realized I had no idea how that felt – to speak to a family member without rancor; no underlying hatreds or agenda - no hysteria, violence or tears.  It was strange.  Of all the relatable human experiences – family life should be a constant.  That’s why silent movies were so universal.  The language of pattern and form: smiles, tears, warmth, laughter.  A woman appears; next to her stands a child.  The image resonates, we all know what that is, what it signifies – only I don’t.  There is no warm rush of emotion, no opening of the heart.  I am lost – at sea: alien.

i just couldn't take it anymore so i wrote a letter to the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram.

the MSM is making such a fuss over the Reverend Wright's comments and Mr. Obama being a member of Wright's congregation and giving mccain a pass.  i'm still wondering if this is because mccain is a rich white male or because mr. obama is perceived as dangerous because he's not a rich white male.

The text is below the fold.

I had posted a Chesterton quote on being a progressive earlier and appreciated the response. I thought I'd go into a bit more on Chesterton.

I also titled this in this way since I have been irritated by some anti-Catholic ranting by some posters here. Most are very genial, and if they say something incorrect, they accept a bit of insight. I am inviting those interested along this diary as I contemplate writing a more extensive diary later. I'd just rather avoid ignorant trolls for this moment.

It seems the MSM is to be distrusted about all things Democratic and progressive, yet it is the gospel [ahem] truth about the Catholic Church. Rubbish. I never knew the definition of a hero as one who trumpeted conventional wisdom. And G. K. Chesterton turned it on its head.

Fellow Kossacks who support Obama -

One of the most impressive aspects of Daily Kos is the wealth of information I come across every day.  I am trying to help Senator Obama's campaign in Pennsylvania.  

I have been disappointed to read that my fellow Catholics in the Keystone state seem to favor Hillary Clinton.  I would very much like to pursuade them to consider Obama.

Can any Kossacks help me gather information about voting record differences (or other policy differences) between Obama and Clinton, particularly differences that might conflict with Catholic ideas?