Say Anything Blog

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“If a conservative is still a republican after the last 13 years, he is blind to the fact that his party of choice has failed him utterly.” – Realitybasedbob

Huckabee believes that evolution is a myth. He should help lock up the science-hater vote.

If this turns out to be true McCain will be out of money the day after the convention.  No one will contribute to that losing duo!

McCain would be nuts to pick this guy. His poor showing in the primaries is one reason. Another is that, with Obama the nominee (and unless a miracle occurs that’s what’s going to happen) there will be hell to pay if McCain beats him in the general election, which he’s almost sure to do after Obama has managed to irritate the largets block of voters out there - blue collar white people.

If McCain and another white male win there will be cries of racism and accusations that a racist America wouldn’t vote for a black candidate.

McCain NEEDS a minority VP. I still think Condoleeza Rice is the one for the job. All bases are covered there: female, black, educated, brilliant, and experienced.

All the wind would be taken from the sails of those who cry all of the above, sexism, racism, lack of and education experience at every opportunity.

Election ‘08 - We Are So Screwed

If McCain and another white male win there will be cries of racism and accusations that a racist America wouldn’t vote for a black candidate.

McCain NEEDS a minority VP.

Pilgrim,

I disagree.  The cries of “racism” have already started, as we all knew they would.  But the only ones who pay any attention to that sort of ignorant yammering are the same ones who see nothing wrong or racist about the fact that over 90% of black vote for Obama in racial lockstep.

In other words, those who indulge in this sort of partisan race-baiting or are in any way influenced by it wouldn’t vote Republican any way.  Screw ‘em!

“Poverty of goods is easily cured; poverty of the mind is irreparable.”

Rice would be an easy target as a continuation of the current presidents’ failed administration. The former USS Condolezza doesn’t help much either.

Flipper John already has enough of a sink hole to run away from.

“If a conservative is still a republican after the last 13 years, he is blind to the fact that his party of choice has failed him utterly.” – Realitybasedbob

Rice would be an easy target as a continuation of the current presidents’ failed administration. The former USS Condolezza doesn’t help much either.

I’ll infer that you wouldn’t vote for a McCain/Rice ticket but you wouldn’t vote for _____/_____ (R) ticket anyway.  Not really helpful as a political barometer as you’d think. 

Rice is a poor choice for fleshing out the ticket because she’s more liberal than I like, closer to McCain on a number of issues.  But on a sheer, gut wrenching emotional level when she tore Robert KKK Byrd a new one I became an ardent fan.  Strength and intelligence. 

never mind, if she’s in, I’m in.  : )

Bat,

You’re right about a couple of points (especially the screw ‘em part) but I’d still like to see the rug yanked out from under them before they can make any more of an issue than they already do.

Election ‘08 - We Are So Screwed

Actually, a more intriguing question is who Barack Obama will choose as his running mate.

Of course the answer to that is easy… whoever his wife Michelle tells him to choose!

“Poverty of goods is easily cured; poverty of the mind is irreparable.”

FOTW, so you were against Rice before you were for Rice?

“If a conservative is still a republican after the last 13 years, he is blind to the fact that his party of choice has failed him utterly.” – Realitybasedbob

When was the last time the politics of a VP moved the politics of a Presidential candidate in the “right”, conservative, way?

Sorry, but my take is that with McCain-Lenin-Feingold, global socialism and warming, and such, McCain is far to the left of Huckabee on many issues.  That said, I don’t know that it matters terribly much--remember what happened to Joe Lieberman’s views when he got the veep slot, or for that matter, what happened to Al Gore when he was viewed for national office?  Both of them USED TO BE fairly sensible--Potomac fever cured that.

We are so screwed.

Another paper is reporting that Pawlenty (MN) is at the top of the list, if we look hard enough I’m sure we can find a third with someone else at the top.

Speculating is fun, but McCain’s not gonna do a thing to keep the republican base happy, he’s not interested.

BB,

Your reference to Gore and Lieberman’s respective “flip-flops” on major issues once they were given slots on a national ticket merely demonstrates the unreliability of a contemporary Democrat’s stated position on anything… except, of course, raising taxes.

“Poverty of goods is easily cured; poverty of the mind is irreparable.”

BB,

This also points out the price in personal and political integrity assessed by Democrats on their candidates.

Barack Obama will prove different only in that he is too much a rookie to have established any sort of long-term basic principles which he will later find expedient to abandon.

“Poverty of goods is easily cured; poverty of the mind is irreparable.”

McCain/Huckabee would make me reconsider voting for McCain even if Obama was teh nominee. Huckabee makes it next to impossible to stomach McCain.

Oh, Obama’s got principles.  He likes taxes and government, and he hates babies and guns.  If there were an anti-Bubba, that opposite of mine would vote for him.

I am planning on voting for McCain because he isn’t Barack or Hillary. If he names the Huckster, then screw it, I’ll do a right in for Romney. I will NEVER EVER support any ticket with Huckbee’s name on it.

I’ll say the same thing here I said at Hot Air. McCain has pandered to the left and if he names Huck, then it will be a huge pander to the far far right. McCain should be concentrating on us garden variety Republicans who want smaller government and lower taxes and a government that uses common sense with a touch of pragmatism rather than pandering to the extremists at either end of the spectrum. I won’t be supporting the religious bigots of the right anymore than I will support the religious/racist bigots of the left.

That’s “write in” not “right in.” Note to self, use Preview.

Even though this site is filled with people with bad manners who are uninformed, I am posting because some on here criticized a McCain/Huckabee ticket which is a shoe-in for a win!  The only thing you can come up with to “rationalize” your criticism is that Huckabee is not fiscally conservative enough. First of all, no one EVER picks a president because his vp is an economics whiz, but let me assure you, Huckabee is fully vetted. He left an 850M$ surplus in Arkansas, balanced his budget every yr.for 10 years and was cited by Time Magazine as one of their reasons for naming him one of the top 5 best Governors in the US that “he grew the state’s economy above the national average”. He ran the most fiscally successful race of any candidate, getting more delegates per $ spent. Finished his campaign in the black. Quite an accomplishment and a testimony to his fiscal expertise! Was re-elected twice in a democrat state, got 48% of black vote in his state and still has a 65% approval rating (those who know him best). They give credit, where credit is due...Why can’t you?????

Linda, sorry dear, I’m against the Huckster because he is a flaming religious bigot. Pure and simple.

Pal2Pal, perhaps you ought to NAME a single instance that would demonstrate this?  Sorry, but perhaps you ought to consider, like, you know, FACTS before pulling a “rectal data extraction” like you just did.

There are things that are debateable about Mike Huckabee; his tax record, spending, and his tendency to give too much authority to government.  However, I’ve yet to see any evidence of any bigotry on his part.

Also, those of you who would rather vote for Obama than a McCain-Huckabee ticket....my goodness, even if ALL of the claims about Huckabee being a big spender were true Huckabee would still be a Reagan compared to Obama’s Teddy Kennedy.  The same holds for McCain.

Pal2Pal, since when does being a former pastor make a man a “religious bigot?” Sorry, but if you want to make such claims, you’d better have some evidence.

I can say some things about Huckabee.  Yes, spending and taxes did increase while he was governor--we can honestly debate whether it was a good long term investment, or to what extent the courts were liable.  We can also discuss Huckabee’s tendency to see a government solution where libertarians certainly wouldn’t.

However, accusing him of “religious bigotry” is flat out libel.  Conservatives do themselves no favors by descending to unfounded allegations like this.

Bubba: I never said I would vote for Obama over McCain/Huckabee, I said I would do a write-in for Romney. And to answer your question, go back and read the threads that have long discussions about how Mormons aren’t Christians, etc. Huckster is a religious bigot.

Pal2Pal, not what he said, and even if he had said so, it’s the fact.  Mormon beliefs contradict orthodox Christian beliefs on any number of issues, and it’s not bigotry to point that out any more than it is to say that observant Jews or Muslims are also not Christians.

Get over it.  Huckabee has done things to give fiscal conservatives pause.  He’s not shown religious bigotry.

Ah, Bubba, the view from the inside out is always different from the view from the outside in. And be careful, I happen to be very supportive of the Mormon faith and lifestyle as my son and daughter are LDS and so was their Grandma before her death. I personally do not believe in any organized religion, preferring instead to keep my relationship to God on a personal level rather than using middle men to tell me what I’m supposed to believe because “they” have their truth.

Christ believed in the God of the Old Testament, the God of Abraham. The early Christian church were Messianic Jews. I like the direct route, not the route through Paul with all his manmade and arbitrary rules that have nothing to do with either God or Christ when you strip it down to basics.

There is one person McLame can bring to the ticket who would actually help his chances:  Gov. Bobby Jinday of Louisiana.  This guy was on C-Span a few days ago and, OMG, he out-"Obama"d Obama.  What a speaker!  And he’s, what, 40 years old?  And a minority!  And...conservative (shhh, better not let Ol’ Johnnie hear that or he’ll drop him off any list of possible VPs for sure).

A McCain/Huckabee ticket would be a possible winner.  But he would not get the mormon vote and I don’t know how big that vote is.  They are mad at him about that one off hand comment of his.  It is the ONLY one I heard that could lead to a question of bigotry but the mormons took a major offense to it.

Otherwise, I believe it would bring in pretty much all the evangelicals which is likely the calculation McCain is making.

John McCain must pick a VP candidate who will appeal to the broadest possible number of voters of every persuasion and serve as attack dog on the campaign trail.

"Here lies, in honored glory, an American soldier, known but to God.”

The stakes are high. Whether the issue is the economy, or energy, or the federal courts or national security, the right answers are coming not from the Democrats, but from the Republicans. The surge of operations that began a year ago is succeeding. The only way to lose this fight is to quit. Richard M. Cheney, Vice President, 30 May, 2008

Linda, putting forward that Time magazine loved him, and a heavily Democrat state voted for him TWICE means little to conservatives or libertarians.

As FactCheck.org notes, his claims of cutting taxes are lies. Tax cuts from previous administrations had gone through...and overall he RAISED taxes. He raised taxes and raised spending. Claiming that no one will care about this is foolish.

Couple that with a McCain open border-esque policy, terrible foreign policy, and support of the welfare state that would repulse even Clinton, and you have a campaign that will go down in flames.

Pal2Pal, you’re starting with the assumption that orthodox Christianity--the one that accepts the Bible as agreed upon at the Council of Nicea--is not orthodox Christianity.

Nice try, but you can’t lead your argument by denying what over a billion Christians accept as integral parts of the faith. 

And to the subject; let’s be serious.  The fiscal conservative’s worst nightmare is NOT McCain-Huckabee.  It is Obama & whoever.  Until we conservatives get that through our heads (where are all those guys advocating party discipline again?), we’re going to lose a lot of elections that we otherwise could have won. 

To use a sports analogy, Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler won a lot of games not by concentrating on the goal line, but on getting 3 or 4 yards closer to the first down.  Advancing the ball will eventually get you a score.

I am planning on voting for McCain because he isn’t Barack or Hillary. If he names the Huckster, then screw it, I’ll do a right in for Romney. I will NEVER EVER support any ticket with Huckbee’s name on it.

I agree with you P2P.  Huckabee is not even close to a ficsl coservative.  Huckabee tries to come off as a nice guy but wasn’t it his campaign advisor who said he would like to kick Romney’s teeth out?

There is one person McLame can bring to the ticket who would actually help his chances:  Gov. Bobby Jinday of Louisiana.

Although I would love to see Bobby Jindal run or get picked for the VP spot, he has all but said he wouldn’t accept the offer.  He wants to use the unique oppotunity right now to help clean up Louisiana.  He should clean up that state for the next few years and then try a presidental run in 2012 after he gets some more experience under his belt.

A political party cannot be all things to all people. It must represent certain fundamental beliefs which must not be compromised to political expediency, or simply to swell its numbers.

Pal2Pal, you’re starting with the assumption that orthodox Christianity--the one that accepts the Bible as agreed upon at the Council of Nicea--is not orthodox Christianity.

No, I’m starting from the premise that the original Christians/Christian church were all Jews. It wasn’t until Paul that the argument began as to whether you could be a Christian without first converting to Judaism and be circumcised if male. Peter, a Jew, presided over the “church” in Jerusalem, Paul, also a Jew, took his message on the road to the Gentiles. It wasn’t until 300 years later that the Bible was codified into what we know today and that was a bunch of old men deciding what you should and should not have access to. From that point until the invention of the printing press, Christians (Catholics), the only kind there were, were told what was God’s will and Christ’s words by their Pope, Cardinals and Priests. When the “people” could finally read for themselves in their own language and not Latin, the Protestant reformation began, which took many different forms as leaders rose to replace the Catholic doctrine with their own interpretations. Calvin, Luther, Fox, Williams, Smith, you name it.

In that case, what you are arguing is that the disciple of Gemaliel didn’t know squat about Yiddishkeit, despite the fact that Gemaliel is one of the premier commentators on Torah.  You claim, more or less, an absurdity.  The church fathers very early accepted Paul’s writings as canonical, and Paul’s apostleship as genuine.  To argue against Paul is to argue against orthodox Christianity.

Pal2Pal, you’re starting with the assumption that orthodox Christianity--the one that accepts the Bible as agreed upon at the Council of Nicea--is not orthodox Christianity.

Christianity is not about man-made religious organisms, it is those people that have accepted Jesus as their Savior and Lord and have become in Spirit the Body of Christ. Unfortunately, every Christian to varying degrees is walking around in their old sin-condemned flesh and when they give into the desires and thoughts of the flesh, versus perfect obedience to Christ in all things, they construct a liturgy, rituals, priestly class and all sorts of things not reflective of God’s Will. Huckabee, for good or ill, even as a Christian is just a man with plenty of faults, he is neither a saint nor the devil.

I think Huckabee would be exactly the wrong choice for a host of reasons and would insure a McCain defeat in the General Election. McCain’s VP cannot be white; he/she must have conservative credentials; must embrace conservative, evangelical social-moral values; must be able to play attack dog while not alientating independent minded voters with extremist views; and he/she must be better than average at conveying the ideals/goals of the McCain Campaign (whatever that is, which I don’t think even McCain knows).

Oh, my advice for McCain:

Construct an easy to understand, easy to express, national vision for the future with no more than 7 ways/programs to achieve that vision.

No matter the age or state of health, for a military man it is always glorious to tilt at windmills, rescue a fair Dulcinea and be a gallant knight in armor in a glorious cause.

I’m not arguing against Paul or any other religious leader. I’m saying that as a personal matter, I refuse to limit God/Christ to the small minds of men, most of whom have/had their own agendas. I believe God reveals to each of us what we are ready to receive and understand. I do not believe that I need a pastor, preacher, reverend, priest or politician to tell me about God (or Christ).

I do not believe that praying to a statue or hanging a cross around my neck on a chain advances that intimate knowledge of God. There are mainstream religions who preach that music and dancing are going to send you to hell, yet in Psalms we are told to “make a joyful noise unto the Lord.” And how many religions are there that do not understand that Communion is just an abbreviated version of the Jewish Passover ritual as practiced by Jesus all his life and at the Last Supper. You must understand the God of the Old Testament if you want to have even a chance of understanding the teachings of Jesus. He was a devout Jew and everything he taught was already there and those he preached to were well versed in those teachings and understood his meanings. Can’t say that is true today with most churches.

Pay2Pal: You were doing fairly well until you got here:

how many religions are there that do not understand that Communion is just an abbreviated version of the Jewish Passover ritual as practiced by Jesus all his life and at the Last Supper. You must understand the God of the Old Testament if you want to have even a chance of understanding the teachings of Jesus. He was a devout Jew and everything he taught was already there and those he preached to were well versed in those teachings and understood his meanings

Jesus taught Communion, as a remembrance of His broken body and shed blood for the remission of sin. The Passover was but a shadow of the reality found in and through Christ.

Indeed eveything Jesus taught was from the Word as presented in the Old Covenant, because only until His death and Resurrection could that Old Testament (Contract between God and man) be set aside in favor of the New Covenant (contract) of Grace. We should be careful not to mix in the Old Testament without being deeply concerned about how people are quickly and easily brought back under the Law which leads to death and away from pure Grace which only leads to life eternal.

While the Old Covenant of the Law was perfect and it and the many teachings of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament can be spiritually beneficial, we are no longer under the Law and we should never desire to live under that Law.

No matter the age or state of health, for a military man it is always glorious to tilt at windmills, rescue a fair Dulcinea and be a gallant knight in armor in a glorious cause.

The Passover is what Jesus was celebrating at the time he said what he said. Breaking of bread, drinking of the wine. Have you attended a Passover dinner? It is basically a prophesy of the Messiah. Jesus was telling his disciples that the prophecy is fulfilled through him. A very radical statement, when you think about it, and quite shocking to those who heard it. He was expanding on the lesson, not inventing a new lesson. That is my point.

Well my original point is more that neither God, nor Christ as God in the flesh, should be limited by the mind of man or the rules of man as I was relating organized religions of any faith.

There are basically two paths to salvation. One, absolute strict adherence to The Law, including blood sacrifice, and two, through Grace and the death and resurrection of Christ as a substitute for all of us as the blood sacrifice. Adhering to The Law is virtually impossible. Grace is simple. Say “I believe” and you’re in, according to many. Some add that “faith without works” is dead faith. Mormons believe everyone will have salvation, but your works and the state of your heart/spirit will determine the level of your salvation, i.e. Celestial, Telestial, etc. Catholics, if I understand it correctly, believe you spend some time in Purgatory and, again if I understand correctly, the number of candles paid for and lit on your behalf after your death can move you along.

Will God ignore or refuse those who have never heard the Gospel? I do not believe that can possibly be true. I could not believe in a God like that. I don’t think God cares if I go to some building once a week and listen to someone exhort me to pray and be good or tell me what God/Christ means. I have felt the presence of the Spirit, however, standing on a mountain top and in a sunlit clearing of a Redwood grove while I was all alone.

But, that’s just me, I don’t presume to tell others what to believe or how to believe, even when I think their beliefs are out in left field. None of us are equipped to judge the faith of another’s heart.

You can always tell who the Romney supporters are.  They are crass and insulting, and have no reasoning ability.  They write like spoiled brats who need to be spanked.

And John McCain is about to spank them by naming Mike Huckabee as VP.  It will be a winning move.

Will God ignore or refuse those who have never heard the Gospel?

Well, if you are a Christian and you accept the Bible as God’s inerrant Word, then only by Grace, through faith in Christ alone, will anyone be saved. If you reject that, then you reject God’s only plan for Salvation.

God sent His Son to pay the full penalty for every sin, ever committed by every human being that would ever live. No one needs to be lost and go into eternal punishing for their sin, they have all been paid for. God says here is the gift of Salvation, will you blame Him for those that reject His Free Gift?

A man in prison, facing the death penatly for murder was pardoned by the Governor; that is, treated as if he never committed the crime. The man, due to guilt, refused to be released and demanded the death penalty be carried out. The Warden and the Governor appealed to the Supreme Court in their state to guide them in what to do, a Justice said, “A pardon is not a pardon unless it is accepted!” The man was executed! In a similar manner God Himself paid for our sins and His justice being satisfied, offered a free pardon to every human being; but, a pardon is not a pardon unless it is accepted and everyone failing to gain Heaven will fail to go there by their own free will choice to reject God’s Pardon.

Who are you to tell God what He must do to meet your approval? When did God give you authority over Him? Will God ever do wrong, is He capable of doing wrong? If the answer is God cannot do wrong, we are left to trust Him to deal with those that have never heard the Gospel, with the full knowledge that on Judgment Day we will all say Amen, even those consigned to eternal suffering will have no complaint against God, they will absolutely know they deserve their punishment.

As to the nonsense about going to a building each week. First, that reveals a hatred of organized religion on your part, not all of which is unjustified. We are called to not forsake gathering together with other believers, even if just at home within a small group of believers, for communal worship and to have other believers to share our burden and to be used of God to meet our needs.

No matter the age or state of health, for a military man it is always glorious to tilt at windmills, rescue a fair Dulcinea and be a gallant knight in armor in a glorious cause.

Who are you to tell God what He must do to meet your approval? When did God
give you authority over Him? Will God ever do wrong, is He capable of doing
wrong? If the answer is God cannot do wrong, we are left to trust Him to
deal with those that have never heard the Gospel, with the full knowledge
that on Judgment Day we will all say Amen, even those consigned to eternal
suffering will have no complaint against God, they will absolutely know
they deserve their punishment.

The question isn’t who am I, as I have already said that I don’t believe in manmade rules and interpretations, but who are you (or anyone) to tell me what I must do to meet God’s approval? When did God give you authority over me where He is concerned?

I don’t hate organized religion, not at all. Some seem kind of wacky or terribly uninformed, but I’m much too much a live and let live person to get excited about what organized church someone wishes to attend. I just decided about 25 years ago that for me, I was eliminating the middleman. I made this decision after an exhaustive and intense 3 year Bible study period, attending on a week to week basis, every church listed in the Saturday newspaper church roster, taking several philosophy of religion classes and seminars, and having long talks with both pastors and rabbis all coupled with a whole lot of prayer and personal reflection.

I don’t accept that God stopped talking to us when a bunch of 3rd century men decided He’d said enough. My parallel studies of the “God concept” thru the civilizations since the cave men days and the Bible as an historical and archaeological reference also play/played a large part in my personal decision. I made sure my children had a solid religious grounding, but I encouraged them to make their own choices. My son is an active member of the LDS church, my daughter is active in a nondenominational church, my Granddaughter attends a Christian high school and is busy with a fledgling recording career in the Christian music genre using her voice that one reviewer called a “voice of the angels.” It must be because she sure didn’t inherit it from me or her parents. I’ve seen my Aunt and Uncle move from the Episcopalian church to a pentecostal “Bible thumping” church and then disown their own daughter because she converted to catholicism and cut off all communication with my Mother because she converted, at age 70, to LDS after being a self-proclaimed agnostic most of her adult life. Instead of celebrating their return to the arms of the Lord, they cut off two people they supposedly loved and told them they would be going to hell because they didn’t agree with the churches they chose. I think my Aunt was a far more likely candidate for hell because of the hate in her heart, than my Mother who, I’m sure, is very busy organizing committees of angels in heaven.

The only things I’m really sure of, in my heart, is that God is a God of love and forgiveness, not hate that there is power in prayer, especially collective prayer, and that church attendance is no indication of how much a person has been touched by the Spirit or lives in the Lord.