The Counterfeit Promise Of Dominionism Doctrine

Many people in America did not and still do not know that president George Bush II was a dominionist. In fact, ever since his election to office the Republican Party has been inundated with political candidates that prescribe to its doctrine. For example, George Bush II while in the White House surrounded himself with these so-called. " Promise Keepers." This group was nothing more than dominionist.

Who Are The Promise Keepers?

Promise Keepers is a Christian organization for men. While it originated in the United States, independent branches are established in Canada and New Zealand. It is self-described as "a Christ-centered organization dedicated to introducing men to Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, helping them to grow as Christians".^[1]Promise Keepers is a non-profit organization, not affiliated with any Christian church or denomination. Their most widely publicized events tend to be mass rallies held at football stadiums and similar venues. They also sell a variety of promotional products to "help men keep their promises," including clothing, books, and music. Dr. Bruce Wilkinson developed the widely used video curriculum, Personal Holiness in Times of Temptation, as a part of "The Biblical Manhood" series for Promise Keepers.[Source: wikipedia.org]

This organization had a profound effect on the presidency of George Bush II. They introduced Bush II to a whole new philosophy of politics. A religious one not an economic one. One of those tenets where for men to take dominion over their wives. After Bush II, came John McCain. ( R-AZ) There have been times in McCain's past that people by and large considered him a sensible and reasonable person. With his appointment of Sarah Palin, a card-carrying dominionist to be his running mate in the 2008 presidential race shattered that perception. In fact, John McCain openly embraced and gathered dominionist around him. For example, Pastor John Hagee and Rob Parsley. What was transforming was the merging of the business right with the religious right. We have seen Republican Party governors like Rick Perry from Texas become closely aligned with Dominionists groups. In the case of Rick Perry he involved himself with one of the most radical Dominionist groups in the country. The New Apostolic Reformation. (NAR) 

 Rachel Tabachnick

Respected political researcher Rachel Tabachnick wrote:

"Perry's endorsers are not just a random group of radical evangelists making outrageous statements. These are the 'apostles and prophets' of the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), the biggest international religious movement you never heard of."

Forrest Wilder, an investigative reporter for the Texas Observer, wrote around this same period:

"The NAR's intellectual godfather, C. Peter Wagner, one of Perry's early endorsers, brags that NAR is the most significant change in how Christianity is practiced since the Protestant Reformation ... With hundreds of millions of followers worldwide, the NAR's stress on Godlike 'prophetic' and 'apostolic' powers, its revisions of end-time prophecies, its methodology of 'spiritual warfare,' and its agenda of theocratic dominion over all aspects of society are threatening to modern democracy." 

In this writer's view, it is paramount that we inform ourselves on this twisted theology called Dominionism. Dominionist advocates a doctrine that envisions a takeover of the world by a form of religious zealots as a fore-runner to the second-coming of Christ. This false religious viewpoint endorses a political/religious concept called the. " Seven Mountains Of Culture." These seven mountains are 1-business, 2-government, 3-media, 4-arts and entertainment, 5-education, 6-family, and 7-religion.

The Seven Mountains Of Culture Explained By A Dominionist.

There is an extreme downward slope into religious nonsense here. To ignore this progression into religious myth would be to do so at one's peril. Think about it for a second. For the most part, America is still reeling from the economic crisis of the Bush II administration. The confidence of the American people in our government is at an all time low and similar to that of Germany in the 1930's.[See Article] It was these type conditions that propelled the people of Germany in 1933 to take leave of their senses and vote Hitler into power.[See Article] During the 2012 Republican primary for president, no candidate exemplified what a dominionist president might look like than Rick Santorum. Rick Santorum is an extreme Roman Catholic dominionist. Santorum is also a member of a religious faction known as the Opus Dei.

Opus Dei is controversial, and many claim it to be a cult.

Alexander Cockburn writing for the Independent Investigative Journal Counterpunch, commented:

"Surely Rick Santorum is the most fanatical Christian to run for the Republican nomination in the modern era, maybe any era."

Can you picture in your mind in these modern times or any time an Untied States president whipping himself in the White House?  This connection of Santorum to Opus Dei coupled with the fact this guy was a Republican front-runner at some point in the 2012 presidential race sends shivers down this writer's back. What is an important factoid about Opus Dei is the religious groups philosophy has been embraced by  many of the fascist governments over the last 100 years.

Opus Dei is " A Mafia Shrouded In White."  

Opus Dei is very clear in its mission. Their goal is to influence society to direct itself [society] to the Catholic world-view. This world-view is a very radical right-wing one that inserts its members into key positions in government. Dominionism and Opus Dei are religious cousins. These spiritual philosophies work to advance their members at whatever the cost and with the goal of placing as many as they can at the highest levels of government. Many of these modern day radical spiritual doctrines came into existence with the emergence of socialism and communism. Many within these denominations view this as a death-struggle between good and evil, God and Satan. 

The Christian Right in America has taken this presumption and made political hay with it. They have steadily tried  to circumvent the separation of " church and state." clauses in the constitution. They claim the Christian West is under attack by secular-humanism and that self-indulgent forces are trying to destroy Christianity and drive God from the public sphere. Rick Santorum rode this donkey in his 2012 presidential bid.

Rick Santorum Satan Has His Sights On America Speech

Satan is attacking the great institutions of America!  Using the vices of pride, vanity, and sensuality to destroy and break-down these so  embedded great American traditions. Does the condition paranoia ring a bell? [Source: See Article]

A Rebuttal.

According to the Dominionist,the opening salvos against Christianity began in the late 1960's with what has become known as the Woodstock Generation.  I was in my early teens during this period and remembered the conservative grown ups talking how these long-haired hippies were ruining our country.

The dominionist believes that America went to " hell in a hand basket," when the. ' love-generation' manifested itself. They [Dominionist] contend that this generation of people has become the Democratic Party. Democrats are the. ' party of Woodstock.'
Their contention is Democrats are all about primal lusts, [sex] and the whole abortion culture is not about life, but sexual freedom. That it's about Homosexuality and now, today, same-sex-marriage. According to Rick Santorum and other Opus Dei and Dominionist members Woodstock is America's new religion.  Where does the president Barack Hussein Obama fit into this spiritual facade?

Millions of so-called Christians on the radical Christian Right agree.   

 "Many ... Evangelical Christians ... take it as an article of faith that President Obama is merely the public face of a secular conspiracy intent on altering their country beyond recognition." [Source: John Cassidy The New Yorker]

These religious zealots point to the contraceptive mandates in Obamacare as an example and we saw the Hobby Lobby insanity play out this year in the highest court in the land. This writer makes no bones or apologizes in my contention that following the path these Christian zealots, and the political crackpots they influence like Rick Santorum would lead us down a dark path.

Are the Dominionist and Christian Right, Right?

To truly answer this question with a sense of fairness, we must do what any empirical research entails a look at the history concerning the matter. We begin the study with the introduction of probably the first real American historian Charles Thomson. 

Charles Thomson

 Thomson was the man who made the final decision on the " Great Seal," of the Untied States. During the American Revolution, Thomson kept a detailed account of the events of the day. By doing so, he was privy to all the behind the scenes activities pertaining to some of our countries most celebrated figures. Many factions during his lifetime compelled him to publish this history Thomson refused. 

" No...I ought not, for I should contradict all the histories of the great events of the Revolution."[The Hidden Faith of the Founding Fathers]

Thomson went on in his explanation:

" Let the world admire the supposed wisdom and valor of our great men."  

Thomson ultimate position was that he would not take part in what he felt would undeceive future generations. As a result, Thomson destroyed the manuscript. This action created a lost of what may have been the truest account of the American Revolution.[See Source] The larger question here is what did Thomson mean by his statement that he would not be responsible for undeceiving future generations? Moreover, we are that generation and I for one want to know what was Thomson hiding. To the point, the founding fathers of our country are some of the most famous people to walk this earth. They set up a new form of government never before practiced on earth. This state system has by in large been the marvel of the modern age. But the real question that is at issue here was America founded as a Christian nation. In an article recently published here at the House of Public Discourse, we pose the question;[ Is America Really A Christian Nation] today. 

It is evident today that many factions in this country Dominionist being one that co-mingle patriotism with a form of patriotic Christianity. Patriotic Christianity is the idea that America was founded as a Christian nation. So, with this assumption radical Christian dogma's like Dominionism and their followers feel compelled to push this agenda based on the perception that the founding fathers were Christian men. This belief has led their leaders to advance this agenda in the political arena. It is men like David Barton and others who want to spring-board this idea throughout the electorate and convince everyone that its the Republican Party and the Christian Right that are ones favorable to God and to vote for the Democrats is to vote for the party of Woodstock. The dominionist justifies their involvement in political activism for this theory and their so-called patriotic Christianity. 

What is very troubling is that these spiritual organizations are indoctrinating their children with these set of values and conceptions and in affect brainwashing these souls from birth. The known racist Libertarian Ron Paul has jumped into the home-schooling business to bring up good-little Libertarian boys and girls.[See Article]  Also, what is happening is these children are being taught that our founding fathers Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Franklin and others were all good Christian men. 

Were The Founding Fathers Good Christian Men?  

Just weeks ago while doing some research I came across one Thomas Paine. Much to my surprise, I was fascinated that this moderate and some - what unsuccessful man finally found his passion in life. Thomas Paine went on to write one of the most read literary works of all time, Common Sense. I was so interested in his story that I wrote an article about him.[See Article] He[Paine] and his work Common Sense has been credited as being one of the jump-starts to the American Revolution. In fact, the writings of Thomas Paine in Common Sense created the model for which sculpted the Declaration of Independence. 

Thomas Paine wrote in Common Sense.

Thomas Paine

        "... Nothing can settle our affairs so expeditiously as an open and determined declaration for independence."    

What is so interesting is at the time of his writing this pamphlet Thomas Paine was an immigrant. He was not an American citizen. He was an Englishmen, who Benjamin Franklin sponsored to America.  The reason I identify with Paine cause he was a writer but a " jack of all trades," who until he was able to write he was a lost man. He had failed at just about every endeavor he undertook. However, Ben Franklin, who was a printer, loved Paine's writing style and encouraged him to write Common Sense. Putting things into perspective from a literary standpoint Thomas Paine contribution to the American Revolution was equal to that of George Washington. It was Thomas Paine who coined the phrase " Untied States of America." So, with all this said, why has American history marginalized Thomas Paine?  The short answer, after the revolution Thomas Paine, published his feeling about Christianity and the Bible.

In Paine's literary work, " Age of Reason," he wrote:

" When I see through the greater parts of this book[The Bible] scarcely anything but a history of the grossest vices... and collection of the most paltry and contemptible tales..." 

Many historians and people of the time's claimed Thomas Paine was an atheist, but; his defenders say he believed in a God but not the one in the King James translation of the Bible. What is painful and powerful here is that Thomas Paine, a champion of the American Revolution. That many of the founding fathers themselves give equal credit for the success thereof would not be considered a Christian by the likes of modern day politicians like Rick Santorum and Texas Governor Rick Perry.

Thomas Paine went on to write that he did not believe in the creed professed by any church that he knew. According to Thomas Paine, his mind was his church.[See Source] Furthermore, Thomas Paine made it clear that he detested the Bible. In fact, Thomas Paine utterly denounced Christianity. He [Paine] called Christianity a " fable and fraud." This publication the 'Age of Reason,' sold thousands of copies. And, clearly shows that one of America's founding fathers was not a good Christian man. 

The Success of The Age of Reason Sparked Further Questions.

With the now well-distributed text of the Age of Reason by a well-read author of his day Thomas Paine, the people of America started to ask questions in the town square for lack of term. Paine, who was close with Washington, Jefferson, Adams,and Franklin and this is what Paine believes and advocates what do these American icons believe? With this conundrum  being the case, the public began to question the viewpoints of these aforementioned men. Contrary to modern- day Christian dogma's like dominionism the founding fathers were carried by a sense of reason as opposed to theology. 

    

John Adams wrote:

" When philosophical reason is clear and certain by intuition or necessary induction ... no subsequent revelation supported by prophecies or miracles can supersede it." 

When you break Adams statement down and put it in context, what is Adams saying. When making important decisions your sense of reason [common sense] and intuition [ gut feelings], and induction of scientific study should always supersede the fable and fairy tales of prophecies and reliance on miracles. In a nut- shell, John Adams is voicing the nature of human reasoning should override the word of God that speaks of things in a prophetic nature and is determinate of some freak miracle. This attitude today would land one of our main-stay founding father way left of center with the now radical Christian Right. And, moreover, if any modern-day politician  proclaimed this sentiment he would most definitely not be considered a good Christian man. 

It was this factor of human reasoning that led Thomas Jefferson to write in the Declaration of Independence :

" We hold these truths to be self evident..." My research has led me to conclude. That these word were specially engineered to reject any idea that revelation or Biblical prophecy were to have any authority whatsoever in this new government that has been a marvel to the world. Instead, this new government was to be guided only by the philosophic understanding which is self-evident in the minds of men. 

For the Christian, this is an important issue cause the Bible warned in Colossians 2:8. 

In my exhaustive study of the Bible, I can say without pause I left no stone uncovered. I don't think there was one verse that I did not check commentary on and cross check it with another. I can say with all conviction that three different commentaries from three different translators no matter what era could have three different viewpoints on any given verse. But, one constant theme among Christians is that the. " wisdom of God is greater than man." What is important to point out here is that in the Bible, the inspired writers we speaking of spiritual things not what man's wisdom teaches. The Bible teaches what the Holy Spirit teaches comparing only spiritual things with what is spiritual. See, according to God's word the natural man cannot receive what is spirit cause what is spirit is foolishness to man. As a writer of politics and a past study of the Bible, I am adamant that this reality explains more vividly what Jefferson's self-evident comment was all about. Our founding fathers shaped this country on human reasoning and where entirely  implicit on leaving religion out of the equation.  The Bible tells use that ' man rules man to his on injury,' and that we should in fact, separate ourselves from the world. Jesus at no point in his earthly ministry conveys a sentiment of political involvement by the church. For the most part, our founding fathers were adherent to the enlighten thinkers of the time. Unlike Thomas Paine, who let it all out and had no transparency in his views on Christianity the other founding fathers were more discreet and less transparent than Paine.

However, if you dig in your research and see what the majority of the founding fathers wrote and what their viewpoints were you would find that most of them were in the same mindset as Paine. Thomas Paine and many of the founding fathers were members of the secret societies of the day. It was undoubtably from these clandestine organizations that  much of this enlighten doctrines spun forth. These theories and realities can be overwhelming. But the major point is that our founding fathers were not good Christian men as the Christian Right, and Dominionist would have us to believe. And it is clear this nation was not founded on Christianity. And, that is why we have a church and state doctrine within our Constitution.    

The Counterfeit Promise Of Dominionism Doctrine

The main reason for the look back to the intentions of our founding fathers was to point out the central counterfeit promise of dominionism. That the founding fathers were good Christian men whose intent was to form our government based on Christianity. Let us examine this in our present time. There is no doubt that dominionism is growing in the religious right ranks. These self- proclaimed apostles and prophets are drastically changing the structure of many churches. In fact, it is in the Bible that the church is warned of just this very thing.

"Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them" (Matt. 7:15-20). 

The major factor of this spiritual movement is the insistence on taking dominion over government and society, This insistence is, in fact, unbiblical.

Pilate replied: “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What did you do?” 36 Jesus answered:+ “My Kingdom is no part of this world.+ If my Kingdom were part of this world, my attendants would have fought that I should not be handed over to the Jews.+ But as it is, my Kingdom is not from this source.” [John 18: 36]

These dominionist religious crackpots advocate they must take dominion over our government so that Jesus will be free to return. There has always been the end- time watchers in our society. How many times have we the public been subjected to these last-days scenario?  As previously stated in this article, the dominionist have created this doctrine of the Seven Mountains. Nowhere and I mean nowhere is this principle mentioned, explained, taught, or anything else, in the Bible.

For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.[Matthew 24: 24]

In America, these drastic religious doctrines have exploded in the last 40 years. My research has suggested the reason. The emergence of the Christina Right and its influence within the Republican Party. Dominionism is the end product of these drastic new theologies all wrapped up in one. It's, " the false doctrine super-pill." What makes dominionism so dangerous is its conception that it must place key members in key societal positions to manifest it control over all of us so Jesus will be free to return. In short, "these people are batty."   

 In closing, it would do us all an excellent service to take a deep inhale of breath here, and focus on the realities that history teaches us. (1) The governmental guidelines established by our fore-fathers were based on human reasoning, not religious doctrine. (2) The Bible, the inspired word of God, left for us as God's way of communicating his will clearly instructs us that God's way and percepts and his kingdom are not of this world. " It's Written In The Red Writing." 

Moreover, the Bible warns us of these false so-called religious organizations that would present themselves as a light, but, in fact, be forces of the dark. And, one must remember that these organizations are people. And, the Bible gave us a clear indication and a stern warning about the overall nature of man throughout the generations. Few would argue that man is worst now than at any other time in his history. The point is debatable, but the actions we see  played out in front of us every day now are undisputable.  

The Christian Right Returns To Its Racist Past

The Religious Right Has Tried for Years To Lose Its Racist Image.

With the emergence of the Tea Party and its overtly racist attitudes, one can't help but be reminded of another so-called Christian organization the KKK. Over the years, the Christian Right has tried to wash itself clean from its racist past. In  his 1996 Book titled Active Faith, conservative Christian activist  Ralph Reed, Jr admitted that Christian conservatives had been on the wrong side of the civil rights movement.

“The white evangelical church carries a shameful legacy of racism and the historical baggage of indifference to the most central struggle for social justice in this century, a legacy that is only now being wiped clean by the sanctifying work of repentance and racial reconciliation,” [Ralph Reed,Jr] 

"Racial Reconciliation" has become a buzz word for the Christian Right. 

During the Bush, Jr years, factions of the anti-gay and anti-racism were co-mingled in a weird way. In 2006, at the Greater Exodus Baptist Church.  An African-American church in Philadelphia leaders of the religious right invoked the words of Martin Luther King, Jr and Rosa Parks on behalf of gay-marriage bans and Bush judicial nominees.[See Article] All this played into the Bush compassionate conservative narrative that he ran on in 2000. According to an article in Progressive Values. Org what a difference an election makes.

'Even if you believed that compassionate conservatism was always a bit of a con, it’s amazing to see how quickly it has vanished, and how fast an older style of reaction, one more explicitly rooted in racial grievance, has reasserted itself.'

"Today’s grassroots right is by all appearances as socially conservative as ever, but its tone and its rhetoric are profoundly different than they were even a year ago. For the last 15 years, the right-wing populism has been substantially electrified by sexual anxiety. Now it’s charged with racial anxiety."

 No sooner than Democrats took office the anti-government, and religious right screwballs began their demagoguery. However, with the recent explosion of GOP sex scandals and other scandals the right has had to take a break from their incessant moralizing. To compensate, we have seen the right-wing politicians and pundits, and their media echo chambers shift gears to a relatively new term, " Producerism."

What is Producerism?

According to the article, 

"Producerism sees society as divided between productive workers — laborers, small businessmen and the like — and the parasites who live off them. Those parasites exist at both the top and the bottom of the social hierarchy — they are both financiers and welfare bums — and their larceny is enabled by the government they control."

This shift in gears plays well with the personality traits of the racist right-wing wing extremist and religious zealots.  The article when on to point out that during economic distressed times when people have a sense of " getting screwed," these sentiments of  racism and anti-Semitic are embolden.  So, the occasion of having our first black president elected to office has given these factions a green-light to flood our existence with this tomfoolery. 

"It’s not, after all, as if the Christian right was something completely removed from the old racist right — rather, as Reed acknowledged all those years ago, they were initially deeply intertwined." [badattitudes.com] 

Tony Perkins, before he immersed himself in homophobic interracial amity once paid Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke $82,500 for his mailing list.[Source: The Return Of The Repressed] In 2004, David Barton, president of the Texas GOP at that time  spoke at an event featuring white preachers and ministry workers dropping to their knees before their black brethren to plead for forgiveness.[Source:The Return Of The Repressed] Barton, years earlier was a keynote speaker at a Christian identity movement. At this event, Barton was on narrative of this movements mantra that. " blacks are sub-human, ' mud-people." The bottom line as blacks have become more politically active. And a force in the electorate. The factions on the right like this so-called Christian Right front have had to change their tune of racism and bigotry towards gays and lesbians and immigrants. But, the old truism, " you can't teach an old dog new tricks," is a valid one in that with the election of a black president these deep-seated prejudices have festered once again. Hence, in this writer's view the Christian Right has returned to its racist past.

Written By: Johnny Hill

Research By: Roni May

Guess What? Republican Tax Cuts Don't Work, And The Only Thing That Trickles Down Is Deficits!

Guess What? Republican tax cuts don't work, and the only thing that trickles down is deficits. In the 2010 mid-term elections, the Republican Party had a field day. Due to lack of involvement the Democratic Party took the election off and will pay dividends for years because of it. Not only has it allowed for stalemate in our national and state-wide governance it has created a helpless state of gerrymandered safe-zones for Republicans.

It was about this time last year, when the GOP was ranting and raving about the unemployment, the ill effects of Obamacare, and how it was ruining our economy. And, of course, the deficit. Quite frankly, with a politically uneducated American electorate the GOP was salivating with talking points for the now nearing 2014 mid-term elections. What a difference a couple of good financial reports, in the last several months has had on erasing those aforementioned talking points. See, time is a revealer of the truth. As reported earlier this month, in a historically right-wing financial Bible for lack of term, "Forbes," it was indicated that, in fact, Obama has out-performed Reagan on jobs, growth, 

investing and the deficits. 

There is an example after example of how Republican ideology fails not just in the social arena but in the financial realm as well. Cases in point. In 2010, Kansas voted Republican Sam Brownback as its governor. He got right to work cutting taxes. One of the biggest realities that the Republican Party and its adherents tend to overlook is that when you cut taxes-"taxes get cut." Subsequently, revenue could not keep up with expenses that will create a shortfall of about $900 million by fiscal year 2019. [Source: Bloomberg Business Week] This action by the so-called Tea Party favorite Brownback got the states credit rating downgraded by Moody's Investment Services which stated it was the states tax plan that was the main reason for the downgrade.[Source: Washington Post] 

In 2010, a Republican Governor took over in the state of New Jersey. Chris Christie. You know the one-time Republican front-runner for president before." Bridgegate."[See Article] One of the first things Christie did once in office was to cut taxes. Once again, seemly shocked to realize that by cutting taxes you cut revenue the state had a whopping $807 million revenue shortfall which added yet another self-imposed misery on the  wonder-boy of the Republicans.[Source: NJ.Com] 

What is apparent to this writer is this is a trend. These are not isolated occurrences. In 2010, North Carolina elected Republican Pat McCory to be governor of that state. In step, with his republican ideology he gives the wealthy a tax cut which in turn blows up the state's budget. These tax cuts created a deficit to the tune of $445 million. [Source: WRAL.com] Once again, its like a reoccurring nightmare that will not go away. Tax cuts wreck economies, slowdown growth, and wipe-out job creation. In fact, as I reported back last year in a Liberal America article  the good Governor raised taxes on the poor and middle-class to attempt to soften the blow, which in practice gave many of the very people who voted for him in that state a tax hike.[See Article] What were the reasons for these failures? According, to these governors, it was Obama's fault. Right, blame it on the black guy. 

While these Republican Governors were busy blaming Obama for their failures, a report was released on a budget that Obama was the overseer of " The Federal Budget." which indicated a 107 billion dollar surplus.

“Compared to the size of the economy, the deficit in 2013 is much lower than in 2009, when Obama took office. The deficit will be 5.3 percent of gross domestic product this year, nearly half the 10.1 percent of GDP in 2009.” [Source: Forbes]

 Republican's, Have Tried To Focus Their Media Echo Chambers On False Scandals To Avoid The Reality Of Falling Deficits Under The Obama Administration. 

Deficits Have Lowered At A Historic Rate Under President Obama's Term.

Republicans have purposely ignored these historic reductions in our nations deficit under Obama. Over the course, of the last two years and the entire Obama term Washington has been eaten up with fake scandals and left field conspiracy theories. To be honest, it would be hard for the most dedicated political study to keep up with them all much-less a causal follower of politics. While the Republican Party was blowing our tax dollars trying to repeal Obamacare a law that the majority of Americans are in favor of and voted for in the last two elections. Is it not clear that the Republicans are suffering from a new form of political dysfunction called the ' Deficit Attention Disorder." In English,what this means is that the GOP does not want to face the music that the deficits are falling at a historic rate under Obama. This drop has been unexpected. And, the truth is it has caught the Republicans off-guard. One of their most relied talking points for the 2014 mid-terms has evaporated. In a Washington Post report, the Congressional Budget Office[CBO] claims the deficit problem has been solved for the next 10 years.  

The conundrum for the Tea Party, Republican Party, and Libertarian's is their mantra of public discourse, they're tried and true rallying cry, of how liberal and progressive policies,  are unsound  has been discredited by facts and empirical data. It's as if the. "carpet has been jerked from underneath their feet." All we have heard from the right from politicians like Sen. Paul Ryan (R-WI) is how Obama refuses to do anything about the debt crisis. A picture of the egg in the face comes to this writer's mind. Where are the Republicans celebrations? Where are the front page headlines? Where is Fox News telling us what a great day it is to be an American. Any logical person would think this economic upturn would draw praise from the right. But, the realities of this polarized world we live in comes into focus. All we have heard from the right is Benghazi-Benghazi-Benghazi.

As a writer, my goal is to make one think and ask questions. What were Republicans doing when all this good news about our nations economy hit? Trying to repeal Obamacare for the umpteen thousand time at a dastardly cost  of millions to We The People. We The People voted overwhelmingly for Obamacare, and to see it start to pay dividends and be a positive influence on these very deficit reductions brings the ole ' please pass the jelly," commercial to mind.

What is Obamacare?

One of the biggest determinants to our debt as a nation has been health care. With the implementation of Obamcare between 2009 and 2011, total health care spending grew at the slowest rate in the last five decades, at just 3.9 percent per year.[Source; New York Times]  Health care cost are coming down which was one of the goals of Obamacare. Where is the " that a boy,'" from the Republicans? As a student of politics all my life, this writer has insights on this question. When politicians in Washington are talking about deficits, in fact, they are not. Truth is republicans don't care about the deficit and haven't for a long time especially since Reagan. The reason the republicans are not lauding the president for lowering the deficit is that they don't care.

There Has Been One Person In Washington For Sure Who Cares About Deficits And He Now Has The Stats To Back It Up. 

What the Republican Party has done for decades now is use the deficit as a cloaking issue. As the House of Public Discourse reported just last month, the Republican Party relies heavily on  poor, uneducated white people for votes. They use this issue to get the base all riled up knowing that most of their constituents don't know or care that they the Republicans have been the biggest villains in terms of driving up our nations debt. George Bush, Jr ring a bell. If not, do a Google search on the growth of our nations debt under Reagan. What the Republican Party is sayings is they want to cut spending on social safety net programs and  first-step help initiatives to compensate for their giving the wealthiest members of our society tax cuts. These are the very tax cuts that have driven downgrades and revenue short- falls in mostly red states.

What is paramount in the now, is that the Republican Party once thought to be a shoe-in to take back the Senate and House and pick up more Governor seats is in serious jeopardy. With these vanishing talking points, the only real hope for  Republican's is a low voter turnout like in 2010. Many are predicting that to be the case. As a liberal progressive writer, I harken back to the ole baseball saying " say it isn't so, Joe." We will see if these predictors hold true. But, this writer is an optimist and Guess what? Republican tax cuts don't work, and the only thing that trickles down is deficits.

     

Personality Traits Of The Right Wing Extremist

There are many facets to the personality of a right-wing extremist. There have been many studies conducted on the issue. As a starting point, The Authoritarian Personality (1950) by Theodor Adorno, explored the connection between personality and fascist orientation. This study identified a personality connection characterize by a dynamic between authoritarian aggression and authoritarian submission. The study also found a common thread of anti-semantic and  anti-liberal sentiments existed in the right-wing extremist. However, much of this early study has given way to more recent research. But, the one constant factor remains, most right-wing extremist hold prejudices against minorities and any behavior that does not conform to the perceived values of the group.

In recent times, right-wing extremist have been re-labeled right-wing authoritarian followers.   

In a sense, these attitudes are broad social, and political predispositions and feelings towards people who are outside the authoritarian belief patterns.  Recent research has focused on exogenous personal dispositions, in order to identify and explain individual differences and political orientations and behaviors.

These dispositions or traits are;

• Openness to experience.
• Conscientiousness.
• Extraversion.
• Agreeableness.
• Neuroticism (or emotional instability)

People who score high on openness are curious, open-minded, creative and value novel stimuli. The conscientiousness person loves for there to be an order and obedience to norms and rules. Impulse control and task orientated goals are paramount. Extraversion implies an out-going personality and approach to life. Traits such as sociability, assertiveness and positive emotionality are common in extraversion personalities.People who score high on agreeableness are modest, trusting, altruistic and tender-minded. Neuroticism describes a pattern of negative emotions. That is related to feelings of anxiety, vulnerability and uneasiness.

There has been an ever increasing bevy of empirical data on these personality traits which investigates attitudes towards out-group members, especially immigrants. This new evidence has clearly shown that openness to experience is the most important predictor for differences of prejudice towards these out-groups. This attitude differs from the right-wing authoritarian who tends to feel they have a social dominance over these so-called out-groups. They tend to have a superior sense of morality for example. Similarly, agreeableness persons show a high disregard for right-wing authoritarianism and their views of social dominance and negatively reject right-wing extremist orientations. By contrast, conscientiousness people have shown a severe disdain for minorities and immigrants according to the study. They embrace right-wing authoritarian viewpoints, and many either agree with or find an excuse for right-wing extremist actions. Neuroticism [Neurotic] relates solely to right-wing authoritarian views and makeup a majority of people who join or participate or sympathize with right-wing extremist groups. The Extraversion [ Extrovert] exhibits no systematic association with out-group derogation or right-wing extremist elements.

Right-Wing Extremist

Based of this research, this writer contends that people who tend to be opened-minded to experiences are tolerant to others from  perceived out-groups. People from another background are interesting to the open-minded person.  Moreover, this open-mindedness fosters appreciation for their different ideas and opinions. This reality makes them less likely to advocate anti-pluralist political ideologies.  For this reason, most open-minded people are demagogued by the right-wing extremist as being such things as socialist, communist, do-gooders, and lastly, liberal swine. In fairness, the open-minded person tends to feel that the right-wing extremist are uneducated derelicts of society. People who score high in agreeableness approach others with trust and are sociable and don't tend to get caught up in group boundaries. Moreover, agreeable persons are altruistic and advocate equality rights and support democratic ideas rather than laws of the strongest and go fend for yourself mentalities of the right -wing extremist.

However, people high in conscientiousness show a deep hate and fear of those in the out-groups. They challenge their established group relations, traditions, and social norms. In addition, their love for order makes them more comfortable with authoritarian political beliefs. With the Neurotic, who tend to be emotionally unstable they feel threaten by those in the out-groups. They show the condition of  institutional racism and exhibit superiority attitudes towards minorities and immigrants alike. These attitudes serve as compensation for their paranoia, and feelings of uncertainty. Therefore, they are attracted to right -wing extremist beliefs.  For the Extrovert, relationships can be ambiguous. They value self-expression and self-enhancement which results in a view for the obvious, " freedom of expression." However, this sense of freedom coupled with their dominant focus on their personal advantage some extroverts draw to the hierarchy-based beliefs of the authoritarian and can lead them to right-wing extremism.  
         

  

Separation Of Church And State, Unplugged.

In America today, there is no more polarizing issue than the separation of church and state clause in our Constitution. The issue was highly debated at the inception of our country, and the debate continues today.

What does the Constitution say?

The phrase " separation of church and state," has been bandied about in our society for so long most people are dumbfounded to learn that neither the phrase or its concept as it is presently used can be found anywhere in the founding documents of the United States of America.   The phrase " separation of church and state," doesn't appear in any government document of the United Sates. Not the Declaration, Constitution or the Bill of Rights. This reality being the case, what do these documents have to say about freedom of religion? In the 1st amendment we see mention of religion. Congress shall make no law; (1) respecting an establishment of religion, or (2) prohibiting the free exercise thereof. So, this 1st amendment is a very important part of both our Constitution and our constitutional law. These two aspects of the 1st amendment came the phrase " separation of church and state." 
Many constitutional scholars debate this claim. Firstly, the governing branch of this issue is identified. Congress. Secondly, it defines the activity that Congress is forbidden to do. Make no laws, respecting religion or the freedom to practice or not to practice. Let's take a moment to explore what this means. In this writer's view, these proclamations were  placed first for a reason. Freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom to assemble are all basic tenants of our culture. With that said, it's also important to understand there are two parts to this equation. Not to establish and not to stop the exercise of religious views one way or the other.

Its important to note that there were other variations under consideration at the time these issues were being debated by our founding fathers.

• No religion shall be established by law. (House Select Committee-7-28-1789)
• Congress shall make no law touching religion. (Proposed during House debate- 8-15-1789)
• Congress shall make no law establishing articles of faith or mode of worship or prohibiting free exercise of religion. (Senate Version 9-9-1789)

What is very evident with any fair evaluation of the data and history is that Congress would not set up any national religion, denomination, or church. Moreover, that Congress would not set up any "state controlled " church. There is no ambiguity concerning these matters our founding fathers were empathic that government was to stay out of religion and vice versa. The scope here is specific. The Executive branch nor the Judicial branch were even mentioned.  And, here is why. If no laws are to be passed by Congress then, there will be no laws for the President to enforce, and no laws to be interpreted by the courts. The bottom-line is the Federal government has no jurisdiction to intervene of matters of religion and for the most was left to the States, Cities, and local communities.  Nor, does religion or religious factions have jurisdiction to intervene is the affairs of " We The People." [Government]

Conservatives Want to Redefine Religious Freedom To Suite Their Political Ideology.

Conservatives in America want to expand the power of religion and their religious organizations. The facts have shown they do this with no regard they are undermining the basic principles of religious freedom.  Religious freedom is not a general liberty to conservatives. To them it's not a matter of one's personal conscience; they won't religious freedom to be some unique type of liberty. Conservatives claim they deserve special treatment and favor unavailable to others who do not share their religious convictions. Yes, it is clear that the founding fathers wanted government to stay out of religion, and it is also clear they wanted religion to stay out of government as well.