Everything that you find misogynist and repulsive in Christianity or Judaism is distilled and concentrated in Islam – ultimate paragon of the Abrahamic religions.

No, I am not here as the advance scout of another raid on your blog… I just came across this entry title while researching bits for my own blog.

“Wow. If half the people here knew half of what they were talking about (ferret-like Krugman included), we might have something…”

Kaytee, the proper term for ‘truthful’ is ‘shrill’, ‘not ferret-like’.

“but as of now, we don’t. I’m conservative (because I think and reason), but am not a Christian. I’m nothing really, but I do believe in God, due to my continuing studies in science.”

Because you think and reason. Let me guess – Intelligent Design?

First, you are being critical, which I appreciate, because being critical and saying that you’re not gives me information to judge your words by.

Second, Paul Krugman has been one of the better sources of information about the GOP and the administration; certainly better than any supporters.

When I found out McCain was the speaker and told my family, we all started laughing. I think McCain’s a nice person, but he’s no conservative. I don’t want him as the nominee. His pandering is transparent, I agree. Where people show their ignorance is on Falwell. I used to be the same way: I thought of him as a crazy Christian; didn’t like him. After experiencing having siblings at the university, however, I’ve seen sides of him that most people haven’t. You’d be surprised, he’s actually a joker with quite a mischievous sense of humor. Plus, I’ve learned about all the good he does for the community. You have no idea how much money he’s poured into helping so many different sectors. He believes deeply in his faith, and that bothers some, but, look, it’s not like he pulls it out of his butt, it’s what his faith tells him. I respect him for it, just as I’m told I should respect Islamists for their f’ed up beliefs (I don’t- because those people are crazy, and because the people who tell me to do so are less intelligent than me.)
I still wouldn’t like conforming to all of his beliefs, e.g.; at my university there’s no dress code, there is at Liberty, but, if you don’t like it, you don’t go there. Notwithstanding, my brother and sister do not have an abnormal college life. They probably don’t get trashed as often (they still do though, as I said, my parents are the Christians, the other kids just aren’t as upfront about telling them what they’re going to do as I am), but who gives a crap? Students go to college to get an education, I’m at my school for that reason, and if it cramps your style you go somewhere else. It’s not like you’re not aware. The point is, sometimes if you don’t have all the facts it’s better not to opine, and to wait until you have a better knowledge of things, thus avoiding looking foolish.

Is it possible in today’s GOP for a pro- abortion rights candidate to win the party’s nomination?

Is it possible in today’s GOP for an openly agnostic or atheist person to win the party’s nomination for President?

You write

Six years of Republican presidency (with two to go). Four years of Republican Congress. And yet, stem cell research is still legal. Abortion and contraception are still legal. Homosexuality is legal. Teaching evolution in schools is still legal. (Those are the four things I think Chicklet was addressing when she listed science, medical policy, individual freedom and education.)

This just shows that these things can survive four to six years of Republican control with the socially liberal year 2000 as the base year. If you had asked in 2000 whether “teaching evolution in schools is legal” would in 6 years become a topic seriously discussed, people would have thought you were crazy. Yet here we are seriously discussing it.

Bush and the religious right have always known that if they go too far on the above issues prematurely, they risk a backlash that would cripple their narrow majority. That’s the lesson they took from Newt Gingrich and failures of the mid-1990s. Yet it would be obviously false to say the right has given up, and naive to suppose that supporting candidates like McCain who are now beholden to them would have no consequences.

If you chose “neither one,” then you win the ribbon.

1. Barriers and restrictions have made reproductive freedom an illusion in many areas of this country.
2. Pharmacists can refuse to do their jobs.
3. Catholic hospitals can impose the church’s institutional misogyny on rape victims while still taking tax dollars.
4. “Intelligent Design” aka religious indoctrination in sheep’s clothing, is actually treated as an “alternative view” to serious, logical scientific inquiry and practice.
5. “Faith-based” initiatives, like “True Love Waits,” get our tax dollars thrown their way despite no record of success, and minimal accountability to the government or taxpayers.

Indeed. A sweeping success for theocracy. Given another 50 years in office, the Republicans (dancing for the Christian puppetmasters, of course) should just have that whole “Glorious States of America” thing all wrapped up.

And yet you folks are insisting that the Christian Right has the Republicans by the balls. In fact, you can’t get elected in this country unless you pander to extremists, right?

Were I a Christian extremist I would ask for my money back.

I also question whether a “theocratic view” has been imposed on science, medical policy, individual freedom and education. No doubt, Christian extremists want to impose on those things (and more). It just hasn’t happened yet.

While abortion and contraception may be technically legal, the Republican Party in power, dancing to the tune from the Falwells of the Right, have created barriers and restrictions to make reproductive freedom an illusion in many areas of this country. Pharmacists can refuse to do their jobs. Catholic hospitals can impose the church’s institutional misogyny on rape victims while still taking tax dollars.

“Intelligent Design” aka religious indoctrination in sheep’s clothing, is actually treated as an “alternative view” to serious, logical scientific inquiry and practice.

“Faith-based” initiatives, like “True Love Waits,” get our tax dollars thrown their way despite no record of success, and minimal accountability to the government or taxpayers.