John McCain's Adultery Comes Out

There's a great story up today, at the Daily Mail, concerning John McCain's first wife, and the way he callously dumped her to run around with Cindy. In fact, he didn't wait to dump her, but was having an adulterous fling with Cindy more than six months before.

The first wife isn't saying much against him now, because he has paid her medical bills over the years. But others have some choice comments concerning John McCain, and one of them is an interesting word: deceit.

Ted Sampley, who fought with US Special Forces in Vietnam and is now a leading campaigner for veterans’ rights, said: ‘I have been following John McCain’s career for nearly 20 years. I know him personally. There is something wrong with this guy and let me tell you what it is – deceit.

‘When he came home and saw that Carol was not the beauty he left behind, he started running around on her almost right away. Everybody around him knew it.

‘Eventually he met Cindy and she was young and beautiful and very wealthy. At that point McCain just dumped Carol for something he thought was better.

‘This is a guy who makes such a big deal about his character. He has no character. He is a fake. If there was any character in that first marriage, it all belonged to Carol.’

Even Ross Perot is in the mix, because as someone who supported prisoners of war, Perot helped with the bills for Mrs. McCain's surgery.

Perot says:

‘McCain is the classic opportunist. He’s always reaching for attention and glory,’ he said.

‘After he came home, Carol walked with a limp. So he threw her over for a poster girl with big money from Arizona. And the rest is history.'

Good Blog to Check Out: Flippism

Link.

Flippism is the Key. By Professor Batty.

With archives going back into 2004. Lots of cool graphics, things to do with music and culture. Must be a record collector because I see some posts on albums found, albums possessed. Just being there a few minutes, I can see, Beatles, Shaggs, Wilson Pickett, the Theremin professor guy, whose name escapes me, Chuck Berry, Donald Fagen, Sam Cooke; Bo Diddley.

Lots of stuff that is worth looking at.

The Secret Sun

From this site, "The Secret Sun is primarily inspired by the teachings of Carl Gustav Jung."

The blog's purpose: "to study the use and mechanics of symbolism and semiotics in pop culture and to chart the phenomenon of Synchronicity in everyday life."

"The goal of this study is to free the mind of the individual, to open up greater possibilities of reality, and to discover ways to use this knowledge to improve one's life experience."

It appears that Jung's work on Synchronicity is important here, with 45 posts tagged with it. But you get a huge sense of the blog's direction with some of its other big tags, UFOs, Occult, Mysteries, Sun Worship, Rock and Roll, Out Gods Wear Spandex, Mythology, Egypt, Ancient Astronauts. Some of the cultural things important here: Comics, X-Files, Jack Kirby.

I haven't watched those shows, I don't read comics, I don't care much about ancient astronauts, sun worship, or UFOs. And Egypt is borderline. But I like the idea of a blog "primarily inspired" by Jung.

Plan 9 From Outer Space

I re-watched Plan 9 the other day, and I forgot to pay close attention to one little issue I have, which is what their plan is supposed to accomplish. The reanimation of the dead. Maybe it's to make the earth people pay more attention to them, a demonstration of their power, or just cheap labor for carrying around fainted ladies.

The aliens are in the space ship, and the ruler asks which plan they'll be using. All the plans appear to have the goal of getting the earth people to wake up and recognize that aliens are not only here but they have a message for us.

Ultimately, it's a message that we must be stopped, so that we don't explode the particles of sunlight, thereby exploding the sun, thereby exploding everything in the universe that the sun's light touches. And that's pretty good logic from their point of view, and ours too, if only we weren't so "stupid, stupid, stupid" and could grasp it.

I like this movie, and I've seen it enough that it's an old comfortable shoe by now. I see there's a colorized version for sale, which would be fun to see. The supposed "bad" things about it, are of course now seen as good, or at least fun. All the day for night. And the weird continuity with Bela Lugosi and the stand-in to fill out his part. The footage of Bela in the country, holding up his cape, and all that, is pretty good footage. But it's very clear he's not exactly in character for the scene at hand. I like it quite a lot.

The rest: There's many great scenes. Inspector Clay, before he gets killed. Inspector Clay, after he's risen from the dead. Vampira with her big fingers and death stare. She certainly had a thin midsection. The cops trying to figure it all out.

The big climactic confrontation between Eros/Tanna and the pilot/colonel/cop drags a little. Eros probably needed a way of disarming them or neutralizing their guns. To just let them in and assume everything would work out for the best didn't seem so smart, for someone so many centuries ahead of us in intelligence. But I like the whole thing how Eros is describing the solarbonite, with interesting hand gestures. And of course saying, "Stupid, stupid, stupid." The pilot can't take much more of this! He needs to stick up for the intelligence of earth people everywhere by shooting randomly!

A couple other things to mention. I think the whole scene between the officers -- the general and the colonel -- is very good. How the general feels the colonel out, whether he believes in flying saucers, then tells him he might be court-martialed. But the colonel has a great comeback, basically, 'How could I hope to keep my command if I didn't believe in the things I was shooting at?' Real good point! One very funny thing about this scene is how, when they're playing the tape from the aliens, they're making all these facial reactions, like they're really insulted, like the pilot later on, that the aliens think so little of us. Don't take it so personally...

Fun movie to watch.

Larry Craig's Writing A Book

McCain Wants Hot Water for Dehydrated Babies

To Protect Glory

Here's an interesting religious posting, "Do We Take Heresy Seriously?"

The upshot is that heresy should be taken seriously. The writer, Steven Douglas, presents this as "a musing" on the subject. He makes the case for executing people for heresy.

First, he gives a definition of heresy, "the denial of substantiated doctrines of the church, even after attempted correction." Then the penalty, excommunication from the body of believers and the loss of communion with Christ. Is this a loving response? Yes, he says, for several reasons: 1) protects the honor of Christ; 2) protects the church from error; 3) does as the Bible directs.

He distinguishes between heretics, those who simply believe false doctrines, then those who actively spread heresies. These last ones, because they are "recruiters," they will be leading possibly millions to hell. Examples: Arianism, Sabellianism, Gnosticism and Open-Theism. "If we believe that hell is real, then we must see these proponents of heresy as mass-murderers, far more deadly than Hitler or Stalin ever were. To have executed them might have staunched the flow of their ideas."

Was Calvin wrong for executing Servetus? Maybe not. Because, "The reality is that God and much of the world take ideas seriously. Heresy is serious and deserves serious consequences. This may include, in some cases, execution. Execution is never glorious in itself, but I would say that it may sometimes be necessary to protect glory."

Now that's a extreme point of view! But I don't know where to begin. There might not be any good place to begin, since it's so removed from our normal thinking. It's almost heretical to the values we've had over centuries now. We might start with the Bible, because that seems to be a point of contact that hasn't been lost. Perhaps Jesus saying let the wheat and tares grow together till the end. The disciples' wanting to call down fire from heaven on the Samaritans, but Jesus forbidding it. Vengeance is mine, sayeth the Lord, I will repay. The suffering of the martyrs in Revelation, without them counseled to fight back. The example of Jesus going to the Cross for the world. Saying take up your cross and follow me.

And if the Bible examples aren't good enough, try common sense.

Or maybe do some comparative religious study. Do you endorse other religions' right to execute people -- including you -- for not believing what they say is true? Is this ability to execute based on the truth as you see it limited to a particular faith? I can see all kinds of difficulties. What if the rest of us don't want to be executed? Since there's a conflict, and we don't want to be executed, couldn't we turn and execute our opponents as well? That would have to be OK, because it's the principle that counts!

Of course I know it's all hypothetical. No church is going to get very far by executing people. Basically a ticket to extinction for themselves.

Progressive Christian Lectionary Blog

Kairos CoMotion Lectionary Dialogue

Comments on the texts of the Revised Common Lectionary from a Progressive Christian perspective.

Archives going back a few years.

Nine Maidens Press

A brand new blog this week, with a few posts and it looks promising, Nine Maidens Press.

From their description: Where liberal, naughty, sensual, and mystical bump thighs. "Nine Maiden Press is an independent publisher of traditional and electronic media, articulating the numinous art of being a lovely human. Founded a few days ago by two hopelessly bookish Liberals from New England and the Hudson River Valley, the work of the Press is to tickle the sensual and mystical interactions between culture, cuisine, politics, religion and sex, which together make up the life and history of the delighted and enlightened biped."

Today's first post is on Panties for Peace, concerning Burma.

Panties for Peace-Canada is a separate website they link to, a campaign to support the women of Burma.

Warnings From Heaven

I always find apparitions, visions, and prophetic warnings interesting, even if I'm not all that convinced that they're coming from beyond. I guess I'm not convinced really at all. But that there are things in the highest consciousness bubbling down from our heads and being filtered through our lower quadrants, including the shadow, ego, and mental faculties, I believe that's true. Such as how you remember, conceive of things, fantasize, and come up with inspirations.

The whole business of moods still presents a few mysteries in terms of behavior and what we're capable of. Like the guy who suddenly goes beserk and becomes a mass murderer. Or quick conversions from evil to good. Or clowns who proclaim their perversity loud and clear -- a cry for help? -- before acting it out. (I like clowns. I don't know that I'd like to be alone with one without a clear means of escape.)

Prophecies, though, tend to have a way of not happening. Then when they don't happen, there's some good reason, such as the repentance was sufficient to stem destruction. It's the destruction that happens, then is interpreted that is a lot handier; because it's obviously easier to attribute a reason for what's happened than to say what will happen and here's why.

Prophets, a word from heaven, even from the highest authorities... All this is interesting, fascinating really...

That said, here's a blog -- Apocalyptic Messages of Our Lady and Jesus -- that claims to bring the word from the Virgin Mary about what will happen, or maybe could happen, unless. We've all heard of apparitions of the Virgin. In those apparitions, she often has something to say. I've never studied it in an in-depth way, but I think the warnings have a basic pattern: There's sin, get rid of sin or else. Some of it's cryptic, some of it's in your face. This blog looks like it is filtering politics and political positions through the Virgin's declarations.

Today's declaration, "The end of this era is near at hand." The blog goes on to prophesy destruction for San Francisco over gay marriage. So, we shall see.

Tweety Plays Paintball

Very new blog, reviewing things, culture, TV shows, books, movies. Interesting graphic theme throughout, of Tweety (not Chris Matthews, but literally Tweety, the cartoon bird.)

Quick reviews, Mitch Albom, the show House, Jason Mraz's new album.

One Post: Enveloping Melancholy

I opened this blog, which as of this minute has one post.

But it has an interesting phrase, "seduced by my enveloping melancholy." He might have a knack for evocative phrases, since the title is, "Whispers of a Hesitant Muse."

Being seduced by enveloping melancholy is not my typical way. Although I have been known to speak of "enjoying" your depression, not a phrase that originated with me, by the way. Anytime you say it, though, people look at you like a crazy person. Ha ha.

Thinking of the shadow, and aspects of personality, there is something to "giving the devil his due," and having a happier, more well-rounded life. He, David Worrix, says, "I oftentimes encounter sanctuary and inspiration there."

Her Husband Wants a Booby-Dazzler

Her husband wants a booby-dazzler.

What a booby-dazzler is.

D-Day

Very good looking blog, liberal politics, what we need more of. Also a blog that has an extensive history and appears to be prospering nicely. D-Day.

One to bookmark and check into more!