From The Mouth Of Biden.

Obamanomics, on parade:

"You’re telling me we have to go spend money to keep from going bankrupt?” Biden said. “The answer is yes, that's what I’m telling you.”

This is the level of economic acumen currently mortgaging us to the Chinese in a bid to buy perpetual one-party rule running our country. If George Bush had said something this stupid, this insipid, this insulting, we would never hear the end of it. But Biden, most certainly, will be given a pass by the MSM.

"The Socialist Workers Party At Prayer."

Once, The Episcopal Church (tm) was jokingly called "The Republican Party at prayer." Not anymore, Comrades:

In stereotypes from another era, snooty Episcopalians once practiced anti-Semitism lite, keeping Jews out of their country clubs and not mixing socially. Later, many Episcopalians fought hard to overturn the reality behind those stereotypes. In the 1950's and 1960's, Episcopal leaders were in the forefront of defending Israel's existence. Then in the 1970's and 1980's, much of the church endorsed Liberation Theology, which portrays Palestinians as innocent victims and Israel as the Western oppressor. Today, some Episcopal elites seem determined to return to earlier days, when the modern descendants of the ancient Hebrews were regarded with distaste.

There are no resolutions currently before this year's Episcopal General Convention directly criticizing any government in the world, except two: Israel and the United States. Resolutions mention human rights abuses in the Philippines and strife in southern Sudan but decline to criticize governments there, though surely Sudan's Islamist regime, dripping with blood of millions of victims, might merit some disapproval. There is no criticism of any Muslim or communist dictatorship around the world, though Cuba's Marxist regime is portrayed by one resolution as the victim of U.S. sanctions. In contrast, about a half dozen statements for consideration before the General Convention are aimed at Israel.

Hattip: Maggie's Farm.

UPDATE: Except, of course, TEC gets all worried about the plight of Jews when they can be used as a vehicle to bash the traditional Church...

Thursday Must See Funny.

This. (Hint: Wait a few seconds for it to play.)

Your Health Care Future.

Remember, this is to help you. Riiiiight.


UPDATE: The RSR alternative:



UPDATE II: But wait, dear readers, there's more! Remember all those Team Hopenchange promises about keeping your private insurance? Well, technically, they're correct - but you better get than plan in place before "the first day of Y1", and you better not lose it - because after that day you will not be able to get a new private plan. They will be illegal. Really:

(A) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in this paragraph, the individual health insurance issuer offering such coverage does not enroll any individual in such coverage if the first effective date of coverage is on or after the first day of Y1.

Make no mistake. dear readers; President Obama and his yes-persons in Congress don't give a rat's ass about you, or health care, or competition, or affordability, or freedom of choice. This legislation isn't about any of that. It's about gaining and maintaining control. It's about making sure our very access to health care is dependent on government, and in particular making sure our very lives are dependent on keeping a certain group of people in power in government. Y'know, those "caring" elites. It's about giving those elites, who are certain they know what's better for us than we do, a mechanism to make sure we make those "better" choices in our lives they decide for us, and a way to keep them in power. We will have no choice.

Hattip: Pat Austin.

UPDATE 16JULY09: Others are noticing this little making private insurance illegal thing, although one of Instapundit's readers says that the language is only part of the story - it makes private insurance illegal unless (further down in the bill) it goes through a government-controlled "Health Insurance Exchange" with government mandated coverage and limits. Same difference, in my humble opinion.

Saying "Where I Am Now."

At it's ongoing General Convention, The Episcopal Church (tm) has been all about stating "where we are now", and something called Public Narrative. OK, I'll play. Being from Louisiana, and especially from New Orleans, food, and the culture of food, is something I can relate to and understand. So let me put my sentiments about “where I am now” with respect to The Episcopal Church ™ in a culinary parable:

A man - we'll call him John - was a regular at a local restaurant - which we'll call Leonidas. It was a quintessential New Orleans neighborhood eatery - a fixture and a focus for the neighborhood and it's people, inhabiting the same corner for generations. John first went there as a child, and it was as much home as was his house. When he married, John brought his wife and children there, just as his parents and grandparents had done before him. John knew the place intimately - the food, the atmosphere, the staff and the other patrons - and they knew him likewise. He never needed a menu, and the staff knew if he came in on a certain night what he would order. In a world of uncertainty, this place was a familiar and comforting constant.

But several years back new owners took over. Soon, John noticed that old favorites started disappearing from the menu, or were being replaced by something entirely different under an old name. The fried trout and the turtle soup were no longer offered, and the seafood gumbo had become a tofu gumbo. A sprout salad appeared on the menu. The owner said that putting new things on the menu would bring in more people, and tourists found the old dishes just too spicy. They had to change to fit the times.

John didn't object. He wasn't against change, per se, (he actually liked salads) and for the most part the things on the menu he preferred had been left alone. Besides, Leonidas was “his” place.

John did notice a few new patrons coming in, but he also noticed more and more of the old familiar faces were not stopping by; nor were their children. The line at the door at dinner got shorter and shorter over time, until recently you could walk in and seat yourself. When John mentioned this to the owner, they replied it was a demographic thing; and anyway, it was a plus - it made more room for newcomers.

John and his family kept goinr to Leonidas none the less. So much of their life was invested in this place; so many memories. The thought of going somewhere else was unthinkable. This is New Orleans – home is where your memories are. When the old pictures on the walls were “relocated,” John kept coming. When those pictures were tossed out and replaced by trendy artwork, John kept coming. When the owner's focus on vegetarianism became obsessive, John kept coming. When the 100-year old tables and chairs were replaced by “green” furniture, John kept coming. When the owner sued several former patrons because they had opened up a competing restaurant down the street – we'll call that one Cranmer’s - and serving the old traditional recipes Leonidas used to serve, John kept coming. Even when little on the menu satisfied him anymore, John still kept coming.

As he crossed the neutral ground to go to dinner, nowadays John could see both Leonidas and the new restaurant, Cranmer’s, just down the street. The sounds and smells coming from Cranmer’s were strong and familiar, while those from Leonidas were now dim and alien. But John always walked on.

Then one night John saw the old neon “Leonidas” sign above the door had been replaced with a new multi-colored sign announcing, “Mama Kate's Traditional New Orleans All-Vegetarian Cuisine.” The menu had been completely redone, and the last traditional New Orleans dishes as John knew them were now gone.

John realized he had to make a decision - Loyalty or Honesty. Eat at Mama Kate’s, where nothing related to him anymore (they even apologized on their new menu for having once served meat and seafood) and the current patrons scorned him; or go down the street to Cranmer's, where the food was good, and the patrons, familiar. What John wanted so badly right then was to go to Leonidas, but it wasn’t there. The building was there, but the place was gone. He hadn’t left it; it had left him.

John realized he was clinging to something that didn'e exist anymore on that corner. And no matter how much he wanted it to be otherwise, it never would again.

And so, with a heavy heart, John decided the folks at Mama Kate's could keep it. It was their's now. John kicked the dust off his shoes, got out his wallet, and began walking toward Cranmer’s. John wanted to eat and be satisfied.

The Episcopal Church - What's The Point?

The following statement was put to a vote at the ongoing General Convention of The Episcopal Church (tm):

Resolved, the House of _______ concurring, That this 76th General Convention of this church affirm the conclusion of the Church of England at its February General Synod and direct the House of Bishops' Committee on Theology to report back to the 77th General Convention on "their understanding of the uniqueness of Christ in the United States multi-faith society, and offer examples and commendations of good practice in sharing the gospel of salvation through Christ alone with people of other faiths and of none."

It was... defeated. Apparently, because a majority of our Deputies did not agree with the the phrases in bold above - the ones affirming the uniqueness of Christ.

I mean, honestly; why bother with the Christian label anymore?

Today's Required Viewing.

Why you don't want a single-payer, government-run health care system: Take a look at Canada's.

Yes, the video is long, but watch it all. This is the kind of health care system Team Hopenchange want to force all of us into. If you think health care costs you a lot now, wait till you see what it will cost you once it's "free."

Stuck On Blanco.

Words fail me:

Weeks after Hurricane Katrina slammed New Orleans and worsened the medical plight of the city's poor, then-Gov. Kathleen Blanco said the publicly run Charity Hospital would not reopen, even though the military had scrubbed the building to medical-ready standards, the retired Army general who oversaw the work said.

In a recent interview with The Associated Press, Lt. Gen. Russel Honore said Blanco told him in late September 2005 the 20-story building that served the region's poor residents would not reopen.

"'Ma'am, we got the hospital clean, my people report ... if you want to use it,'" Honore recalled telling Blanco. "Her reply to me: 'Well general, we're not going to open it, we're working on a different plan.'"

Honore's revelation raises questions of whether state officials used Katrina as an excuse to leverage federal financing for a new public hospital.

Regular readers (those of you left -ed.) know that I have NO love for FEMA. But in this case I think FEMA has reason to feel like they are being scammed.

This shows - as if more proof was needed - that Blanco was the worst governor this state has had in many, many years.

OK, I'm Baaaack.

I apologize again, dear readers, for the dearth of postings. I've been in that "funk mode" for a bit now, but I need to get past it.

My Anglican / Episcopal readers may be wondering why no Simple Country Bishop Drinking Game updates, or posts about The Episcopal Church (tm) General Convention. Honestly, I've just given up. It's useless to make a point with parody when the object of your parody is already a parody of itself. I will have more to say about the goings on with The Episcopal Church (tm), and my reaction to it, later.

On the national scene, where to begin? I guess TOTUS tried to commit suicide yesterday on national television is a good place to start.

On the state and local level, pickings have been slim. But I saw something earlier that has shaken me out of my funkyness. See the next post above.

Simple Country Blogger Watch - Anaheim Addition

I know, I know. I promised. And I'm sure some of you were sitting there last night, bottle in one hand and mouse in the other, waiting for the first Simple Country Bishop Drinking Game! of General Convention. So let's make up for lost time. The RULES: You take a sip or swig (depending on the quality of libation you are drinking) each time The Simple Country Bishop uses the following words in his blog for that day: I, me, we, and mine. And each time he uses these words: God, Lord, Jesus, or Christ, you get to skip the next sip/swig.

Unlike Lambeth, I won't be commenting on the content of the posts, unless they are REALLY fisky - this time I'm just posting the results.

Results from yesterday's post were rather disappointing:

I: 4
We: 7
Me: 6
Mine: 1

Total: 18

and:

God: 3
Lord: 0
Jesus: 0
Christ: 1

Total: 4

And today's post was worse, players; but the good news is the "skip" words have doubled:

I: 7
We: 5
Me: 1
Mine: 0

Total: 13

and:

God: 3
Lord: 2
Jesus: 2
Christ: 1

Total: 8

Back tomorrow.

You're.... Outta Here!

Well, the 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church (tm) is barely a day old, and already you can just feel the inclusion and diversity pouring fourth, dear readers. The Presiding Bishop didn't waste any time in her opening address declaring folks like me heretical idol-worshippers who are not in a "right" relationship with God. Because in The Episcopal Church (tm) Salvation doesn't take a Resurrection anymore - it takes a village:

The overarching connection in all of these crises has to do with the great Western heresy – that we can be saved as individuals, that any of use alone can be in right relationship with God. It’s caricatured in some quarters by insisting that salvation depends on reciting a specific verbal formula about Jesus. That individualist focus is a form of idolatry...

How diverse, how understanding, how inclusive, how... Episcopalian! Expect much more of the same in the coming days.

Some have wondered if The Simple Country Bishop Drinking Game will make a reappearance. Mmmmmmmaybe. Busy day at work, so stop back later for an update. Especially you, Norris.

Baton Rouge Fourth of July Tea Party.

We had ourselves a little party on the steps of the State Capitol, and about 1,500 showed up:





(images by Red Stick Rant)

If you want to know more about the Tea Party movement in Baton Rouge, go here. And if you want to host your own "mini-Tea Party," we have info for that, too.

Yes, I Am Proud.

And humbled, too.

If you live in the Baton Rouge area, don't forget tonight's festivities. If one of the scheduled speakers doesn't show, yours truly may be speaking to the assembled multitudes.

Today's Required Video.

Web Site Story. Watch it all.

The New Junior Senator From Minnesota.

After Kennedy, Dodd, Byrd, Reed, Vitter, et. al., Al Franken should fit right in.

In Memory of Billy Mays.

The ultimate pitch.

A Personal Note.

It’s been more than a week since my last post. (I was going to put up some snarky excuse about hanging out with Gov. Mark Sanford, but after the truth was revealed I’m glad I didn’t. I mean, I'm not Argentinian...) I wish I could tell you there was some extenuating circumstance for the lack of things to read round here, but there isn’t. I just haven’t wanted to post.

Call it burnout. Call it blogger’s fatigue. Call it… whatever you want. I’m in a funk.

Why? Well, first, our country is going to hell and there doesn’t seem to be a damn thing we can do about it. Voicing your opinion gets you ostracized and ridiculed; protesting gets you labeled a “domestic terrorist.” Our Rights as Citizens are being taken away in the name of some amorphous greater good provided by the State which - in light of all evidence to the contrary – our leaders promise will somehow provide that good at a higher quality and lower cost than what we can currently choose for ourselves without government control. And the same leaders pushing this are also spending all of us, and our children, and our grand-children and our great-grand-children into the poor house – again in the name of some amorphous greater good provided by the State. Not that I’ve become a Ron Paul conspiracy theory zombie – those folks seem to be a putsch looking for a beer hall – but I guess I’m tired of yelling “It’s a cookbook!”

And as for my home state, what do you do when something becomes a parody of itself? For me, this pretty much about sums up the state of my home state:



Watch it all. It shows an up-and-coming rapper - one Hurricane Chris - serenading the Louisiana House of Representatives and our State about, well, wanting to fuck Halle Barry. (A harsh, but I think accurate, description. Look at the words, dear readers – that ain’t a love song.) They even gave this young wordsmith a commendation for his efforts. And the reason he was given this opportunity? He is the godson of the legislator who introduced him. Clifton Chenier is whirling in his grave.

So much for the mortal side – but the spiritual side ain’t much better. As an orthodox and Anglo-Catholic Episcopalian, I have watched for the last 30 years or so as The Episcopal Church ™ slowly jettisoned 2,000 years of Christian understanding and values in the name of some non-specific feel-good secularism. They are now worried more about my political values and who I have sex with, than my mortal soul. That trend has gone from a trickle in 1979, to a flood in 2003, to a torrent in 2006. And in few weeks The Episcopal Church ™ will gather in it's General Convention, and jettison the last remnants of what I value - like scraping so much shit from their shoes - and fully embrace their "new thing" secular theology of “inclusiveness” and the Millennium Development Goals. I’m tired of being told I’m only welcome at the Episcopal table if I keep my mouth shut and my checkbook open.

So that’s where I am right now. I’m still in the fight on all these things, but not anything I feel like blogging about right now.

Maybe a little hiatus will do me good. I started Red Stick Rant as a “training blog,” but it got discovered and well, that was that. Compared to blogs that I admire, I’ve always thought RSR lacked focus (or, more accurately, reflected my lack of focus), and for some time I have wanted to refine it’s focus and maybe restructure it’s format. Maybe even a new name. Maybe I should take the time now and do that.

But do not despair, dear readers, I ain’t leaving the fight, and I will be back in a few weeks. I just need some time off the front lines. This blogging thing takes up a lot of time – seeing what’s out there, looking up facts and figures, writing posts – and that’s time away from work, family, and the other things that make up our lives. In the interim, I will still be posting occasionally; and you can still find me (sometimes) on Twitter at @redstickrant.