Blog

One of the most controversial Right Wing Radio Commentators is Rush Limbaugh and I believe that he is the de facto head of the Republican Party.  Not only does he consistently spew racist comments during his radio program but also appears to have considerable influence on the operation of the Republican Party.  For example, on Wednesday, August 31, 2011, White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley called House Speaker John Boehner and asked that a joint session of Congress be assembled the following Wednesday night.  And, according to the White House, Boehner said “okay” to Daley’s request for the Wednesday evening date.  Then things quickly unraveled.  Apparently not everyone was as upbeat as Boehner with the notion that a Democratic president was going to step on a Republican debate.  Shortly after Daley’s telephone call, the White House tweeted the news about the joint session and then “Rush Limbaugh beat Boehner up.”  This is what Limbaugh said on his talk show:  “What he oughta do is say ‘no’ and offer September 6th, September the 8th, September the 9th, September the 10th…whatever, but he doesn’t get September the 7th. He should do this. It’s very simple. He says to the president, ‘you did not consult me before you publicly issued the date. You were obviously trying to disrupt the plans at the Reagan Library. You’re going to have to learn that if you really want to work together as you repeatedly claim, Mr. President, I’m gonna show you how it’s done. Here are the dates that you can have.”   Boehner was so terrified that Limbaugh called him out that he did exactly what Rush told him to do.

Limbaugh claims that he is not a racist but here are some verified statements that he has made.  You be the judge as to whether or not they are racially tinged:

• After Obama’s inauguration, Limbaugh said during an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News that “[r]acism in this country is the exclusive province of the left. We’re witnessing racism all this week that led up to the inauguration. We’re being told that we have to hope he succeeds, that we have to bend over, grab the ankles. Bend over forward, backward, whichever, because his father was black, because this is the first black president. We’ve got to accept this. The racism that everybody thinks exists on our side of the aisle has been on full display throughout their primary campaign. So I think they’ve done a great job, the media has, of covering up his deficiencies.”

• On September 15, 2009, Limbaugh said “It’s Obama’s America, is it not? Obama’s America, white kids getting beat up on school buses now. I mean, you put your kids on a school bus, you expect — you expect safety. But in Obama’s America, the white kids now get beat up with the black kids cheering, ‘Yay, right on, right on, right on, right on.’ And of course everybody says, ‘Oh, the white kid deserved it. He was born a racist, he’s white.’ Newsweek magazine told us this. We know that white students are destroying civility on buses. White students destroying civility in classrooms all over America. White congressmen destroying civility in the House of Representatives. We can redistribute students while we redistribute their parents’ wealth. I mean, we can just redistribute everything. Just return the white students to their rightful place, their own bus, with bars on the windows and armed guards. They’re racist. They get what they deserve. Newsweek magazine told us this — post-racial America. I mean, I wonder if Obama’s going to come to the defense of the assailants the way he did his friend Skip Gates up there at Harvard.”

• After reading extensively from an American Thinker column smearing Obama, Limbaugh said on June 26, 2009, that Obama is “more African in his roots than he is American” and is “behaving like an African colonial despot.”

• On January 24, 2007, Limbaugh referred to Senator Obama and actress Halle Berry as “Halfrican-American[s],” stating that “Barack Obama has picked up another endorsement: Halfrican-American actress Halle Berry.” Limbaugh then said: ” ‘As a Halfrican-American, I am honored to have Ms. Berry’s support, as well as the support of other Halfrican Americans,’ Obama said.” Limbaugh then conceded that Obama “didn’t say it.”

• On March 21, 2008, Limbaugh said of Obama’s handling of the controversy surrounding remarks by Rev. Jeremiah Wright: “It is clear that Senator Obama has disowned his white half, that he’s decided he’s got to go all in on the black side.” Limbaugh had earlier said: “[Y]ou know, opening these race wounds like this, taking us back 30, 40 years, making it look like no progress has been made — what Barack Obama has done — I’m going to say something here that might offend — or not offend — but might make some uncomfortable. But it is clear to me that there has been a major transformation in Senator Obama.”

• On May 26, 2009, Limbaugh said then-Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor is a “reverse racist” and that liberals are wrong to assert that “minorities cannot be racists” because Obama is the “greatest living example of a reverse racist and now he’s appointed one.” On his May 29 show, Limbaugh compared Sotomayor’s nomination to nominating David Duke, a former Ku Klux Klan member, and said the way to “get promoted in the Barack Obama administration” is “by hating white people.”

• On August 24, 2009, Limbaugh said he “finally figured out why it is Obama’s pushing so hard on this health care bill.” He asserted: “He just wants us to have the same health care and plan that he had in Kenya. And look, you know, economic anxiety is necessary if you want to become the next black FDR, which is — well, the black FDR. That’s what he wants. He wants to be the black FDR, the next FDR, and FDR fed off of economic anxiety.”

• On March 19, 2007, Limbaugh highlighted a Los Angeles Times op-ed that described Obama as “running for an equally important unelected office, in the province of the popular imagination — the ‘Magic Negro’ ” — a term used by critics of pop culture to describe certain benevolent African-American characters. Limbaugh stated: “The term ‘Magic Negro’ has been thrown into the political presidential race in the mix for 2008. And the term ‘Magic Negro,’ as applied to Barack Obama has been done by an LA Times columnist, David Ehrenstein.” Limbaugh later asserted: “I’m going to keep referring to him as that, because I want to make a bet that by the end of this week I will own that term,” adding, “If I refer to Obama the rest of the day as the ‘Magic Negro,’ there will be a number of people in the drive-by media and on left-wing blogs who will credit me for coming up with it and ignore the LA Times did it, simply because they can’t be critical of the LA Times, but they can, obviously, be critical of talk radio.” Limbaugh continued to refer to Obama as the “Magic Negro” throughout the broadcast — 27 times, to be exact — and at one point sang “Barack, the Magic Negro” to the tune of  “Puff, the Magic Dragon,” Limbaugh defended his use of the song, stating, “Well, that’s what we always do here. We do parodies and satires on the idiocy and phoniness of the left.”

• On April 14, 2009, Limbaugh suggested the “correct” way to look at a situation in which Obama sent the military to retrieve American hostages from Somali pirates was that “if only President Obama had known that the three Somali community organizers were actually young, Black Muslim teenagers, I’m sure he wouldn’t have given the order to shoot.”

• Referring to GOP ads comparing Obama to Britney Spears during the presidential campaign, on August 20, 2008, Limbaugh said: “It’s — you know it’s just — it’s just we can’t hit the girl. I don’t care how far feminism’s saying, you can’t hit the girl, and you can’t — you can’t criticize the little black man-child. You just can’t do it, ’cause it’s just not right, It’s not fair. He’s such a victim.” The previous day, Limbaugh had said that “it is striking how unqualified Obama is and, and how this whole thing came about with, within the Democrat Party. I think it really goes back to the fact that nobody had the guts to stand up and say no to a black guy.” Limbaugh went on to say, “I think this is a classic illustration here where affirmative action has reared its ugly head against them.”

PS. If you want a simple step by step way to build a list in online presence and make money from social media, Click Here to learn about the only government approved way to make money on Facebook. (You will need to authorize the app to view the presentation.)

PPS. If you are interested in getting more information on acquiring wealth through the accumulation of silver click here to view the video.

Sunday once again and here is Part II on “Is There Really a Hell?” Your feedback is always welcomed.

Revelation 14:10 says, ” . . . and he shall be tormented with fire and BRIMSTONE . . .” And Job 18 describes the ” . . . PLACE of him that knoweth not God” (vs 21), in verse 15 as, ” . . . BRIMSTONE shall be scattered upon his habitation.” Do you know what brimstone is? It’s sulfur. And do you know where sulfur or brimstone is found? INSIDE THIS EARTH! According to the book Volcanoes by Pierre Kohler (p. 43), when Mt. St Helens erupted in 1980 — 150,000 tons of sulfurous gas was ejected! Job is the oldest book in the Bible, written over 3,000 years ago, and yet Job knew what science wouldn’t know for years — inside this earth is BRIMSTONE!

Sheol (Hell) – It is the non-permanent place or temporary address of the disembodied souls of dead. It is not the grave or sepulcher, nor is it the eternal location of the souls of the dead. It is the same as the Greek word “Hades”, which we will look at in a moment. Prior to Jesus Christ’s resurrection, both the souls of the evil and the righteous went there after death. It is translated “grave” 31 times, “hell” 31 times, and “pit” 3 times in King James Version (KJV) of the Bible.

Sheol (or Hades) has two separate halves. One side was and is reserved for the torment of the evil, while the other side, called “Abraham’s Bosom” in Luke 16:22, was for the comfort of the righteous. There is and impassable canyon, or gulf, between the two halves. When Christ was resurrected, he led the righteous out of Sheol to Heaven. Many (probably not all) of the Old Testament saints were resurrected into their immortal bodies at that time (Matthew 27:51-53). Since then, the souls of all of the saved people go directly to Heaven when their bodies die. The lost people still go to Sheol and join the lost people of the Old Testament in torment on one side of the canyon when they die. The other side of Sheol formerly known as Abraham’s Bosom has been vacant since Jesus Christ led the saints within it to heaven after His resurrection.

The English word “Hell” refers to a place of eternal punishment for the wicked. Its meaning does not distinguish between the two separate places for the wicked to be punished, one temporary for the soul, and the other, the Lake of Fire, permanent for the soul and body. Nor does its meaning include the place of comfort for saints prior to Christ’s resurrection. In normal English conversation, “Hell” is used only in the negative sense, with no saved people ever going there.

This caused some inadequate translations of “Sheol” and “Hades”. Often these words are translated “Hell”, which, as just explained, is rather ambiguous and non-descriptive. In many other places “Sheol” and “Hades” are translated as “grave”, but the grave is only the place for the body after death, not the place for the soul. This confusion often occurs when the verse refers to a righteous man going to “Sheol”, such as men like Jacob, Joseph, (Genesis 37:35) and Job (Job 14:13). Of course, these men did not go to a place of torment, but to the comfort side of Sheol (Hades), called Abraham’s Bosom.

Hades (Greek) – It is identical to Sheol (Hebrew). It is the non-permanent place or temporary address of the disembodied souls of dead. It is not the grave or sepulcher, nor is it the eternal location of the souls of the dead. Hades is translated “Hell” 10 times and “grave” once by KJV. It is the place for the soul, not the body.

Gehenna (Greek, but originally from a Hebrew name) – translated “Hell” all 12 times in KJV It is the permanent place for destruction of the “… soul and body …” (Matthew 10:28). It is a place of “… fire that never shall be quenched” (Mark 9:45). In most of the references, it is clear from the context that those who enter Gehenna, do so in their bodies, not merely as bodiless souls. For this to happen, it must occur after the resurrection of the damned at the great white throne of judgment. Therefore, Gehenna is the Lake of Fire described in Revelation 19 and 20. It is presently uninhabited, but the Beast and the False Prophet will be cast into it at the end of the tribulation (Revelation 19:20). One thousand years later, Satan will be cast into it (Rev 20:10) and will be followed shortly by the lost people of all previous time periods (Revelation 20:15). They will all enter Gehenna together, in there resurrected bodies, where they will remain in torment for all eternity.

The future destruction of the wicked is symbolized by the Valley of Hinnom to which Gehenna refers. It is a place south of Jerusalem where the bodies of dead animals and rubbish were taken to be burned. The Valley of Hinnom was also the site of much human sacrifice to the pagan god Molech (2 Kings 23:10, 2 Chronicles 28:3, 33:6, Jeremiah 32:35). The fire burned constantly in the valley since additional fuel was frequently being cast into it.

“And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my heart. Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be called Tophet, nor the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter: for they shall bury in Tophet, till there be no place” (Jeremiah 7:31-32). Here we see that in the Valley of Hinnom is a place called “Tophet” whose name means “place of fire”.

“For Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; he hath made it deep and large: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it” (Isaiah 30:33).

According to my understanding of the Bible, Hell is a place for persons who do not accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  There are some, however, that do not believe in a salvation plan nor do they believe there is a place call “Hell.”  As a Christian, I believe in Hell and therefore, I have accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior.  Just suppose, however, that the “non believers” are right; that there is no salvation or Hell, then what have I lost being a Christian? Nothing.  But just suppose that the Bible is correct and there is a “hell,” then the non-believers have lost everything.  It’s all just a matter of choice.

If any non-believer desires to join the family of Christians and avoid Hell, the following is a suggested prayer.  All you have to do is to say a prayer similar to the following and you will be saved (see Romans 10:9).  If you make this decision, email me at rotay@verizon.net and let me know.  If you like, I can give you some information on what to do next.

Dear Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner and I am sorry that I have sinned against you. I believe that you are the Son of God, that you died for my sins that I would have eternal life.  I invite you now to come into my life as my Lord and Savior.  Amen.

PS. If you want a simple step by step way to build a list in online presence and make money from social media, Click Here to learn about the only government approved way to make money on Facebook. (You will need to authorize the app to view the presentation.)

PPS. If you are interested in getting more information on acquiring wealth through the accumulation of silver click here to view the video.  If not, just delete.

Well Congress will be back in session after its five (5) week vacation and I would guess that the politicking and position jockeying will start again.  Actually, it started before the Republicans in Congress adjourned because they pulled a “parliamentary trick” to prevent President Obama from making any recess appointments.  They obviously hadn’t read Article II of the Constitution, Section 3, “State of the Union, Convening Congress.”  This provision provides, among other things, that the President “shall from time to time give to the Congress Information on the State of the Union, and recommend for their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment, he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper; he shall receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers; he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United States.” As with everything, however, there are caveats such as what constitutes an “extraordinary occasion” and getting the Congress (House and Senate) to both disagree about the time of the adjournment.  But, in all fairness, the Democrats were guilty of similar parliamentary maneuvers during the Bush administration.  I guess all’s fair in love and politics, or is it?

In my view, one of the major issues that have already surfaced is the position that Eric Cantor is taking with respect to providing disaster relief for Hurricane Irene’s devastation.  There has never been an occasion in Congress where spending cuts were required before disaster relief is approved.  But spending cuts had never been required to raise the debt ceiling either and that didn’t stop House Republicans from creating a crisis that caused the Standard and Poor’s downgrade.

In case you didn’t know, Cantor has a history of calling for offsets in exchange for federal disaster aid.  After the tornadoes in Joplin, Missouri, Cantor said, “And also we see in the healing process that there is an appropriate federal role. Congress will find the money and it’ll be offset.” However, this same offset standard doesn’t apply to Cantor’s own district.  After the recent earthquake that was centered in Cantor’s district, he promised that federal aid would be given and did not mention a word about spending cut offsets.  In addition, after Tropical Storm Gaston hit the Richmond, VA area in 2004, Cantor appealed to President Bush and Department of Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge for disaster assistance and even took credit for securing federal funds when they became available.   If that’s not being hypocritical, I don’t know what is.  This should not even be an issue and was never an issue under previous administrations.  This is just another Republican political tactic for trying to make McConnell’s pledge of making Obama a one-term President realized.

FEMA is running out of money and early estimates suggest that damage from Irene could exceed $10 billion.   Cantor and the rest of the GOP leadership in Congress seem to agree that more funds are needed but they refuse to budge until President Obama and the Senate agrees to more budget cuts.  Recently on Fox News, Cantor made clear that he would not support any additional funding unless matched with “savings elsewhere.”  Cantor also said on Fox that he supports $1 billion in disaster relief funding as part of the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill which contains massive cuts to FEMA and first responders.

This past July, Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) detailed the draconian problem with the legislation Cantor favors:  The House bill slashes funding for grants to equip and train first responders by 40 percent.  This is on top of the 19 percent cut in FY 2011.  The House defense appropriations bill provides $12.8 billion to train and equip troops and police in Afghanistan — yet the House provides only $2 billion for first responders here at home.  The proposal also slashes FEMA by 6 percent at a time when the agency has never been busier.  Does it really make sense to pay for response and reconstruction costs from past disasters by reducing our capacity to prepare for future disasters?

Cantor’s budget cut hang-ups have only been an issue under this President.  In fact, during the Bush administration, Cantor and the rest of the Republicans of Congress, supported the Bush tax cuts, the Iraq war, and raising the debt limit five times without a penny in spending cuts.  Yet Cantor calls himself a patriotic American.  I sure hope that the folks in his district realize that he is not representing his constituency by trying to take America hostage once again.  You would have thought that the debt limit fiasco would have been enough.

PS. If you want a simple step by step way to build a list in online presence and make money from social media, Click Here to learn about the only government approved way to make money on Facebook. (You will need to authorize the app to view the presentation.)

PPS. If you are interested in getting more information on acquiring wealth through the accumulation of silver click here to view the video.