Nut-job Robertson calls for assassination of Venezuelan president

Pat Robertson, far-right televangilist and basic Republican nutcase, called for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chaves on Robertson's "The 700 Club" show on the U.S. Christian Broadcasting Network yesterday. While seemingly not a very Christian sentiment, it's hardly surprising coming from a Republican spokesman who has in the past, along with fellow far-right whacko, Jerry Falwell, blamed the ACLU, pagans and gays for 9/11.

If such talk wasn't so dangerous we could simply see it as more whacky entertainment coming from the flat-earth people, but the fact of the matter is that the present government in Washington really DOES want Chaves gone. The White House and their rightwing extremist friends in DC have, as you probably know, attempted to remove Chaves in the past. Robertson's inflammatory over-the-top preaching adds more fuel to the fire. And, of course, Chaves IS sitting on some very big oil reserves and we all know what that means in terms of geo-politics.

As in the past, Robertson will perhaps backtrack or offer some sort of vague apology, but that's merely part of the man's game. He makes such controversial statements initially to inflame the reactionary extremist elements in U.S. politics. Retractions garner much less notice. In the final analysis it's simply more bomb-throwing from the rightwing Republican pulpit; more inspiration for the zombies. God help us all.

The Pagan Peace Plan

With the Gaza pullout dominating the headlines, I thought it might be a good idea to reexamine this:

Pagan Peace Plan


There are few issues as contentious and frenetic as the crisis between the Israelis and the Palestinians in the Mid-east. I guess when folks begin mixing monotheistic religion with politics and then some water rights and land issues get thrown in, we can expect things to get completely out of hand. But I’ve figured out a way to get past some of this, and today I’m taking the opportunity to present my own peace plan: a Pagan Peace Plan for the land once known as Canaan.
Before there was an Israel, before there was a Palestine, the area in question was known far and wide as Canaan. It was inhabited by Canaanites. It’s said by a good number of archeologists and historians that they weren’t Jews and they weren’t Arabs. They were Canaanites and they were there first.
The Canaanites were, much to the rabbis’ dismay, pagans. Remember the Battle of Jericho where “the walls came tumbling down”? Those guys were trying to kill all the Canaanites, every man, woman and child. Supposedly, Joshua and company were under orders from, you know, the ONE God. What kind of god demands such genocide, you may ask? Folks are arguing that point to this day. A god with…um..serious social skills issues? I guess!
In any case, I’m not going to bore you with all the biblical details. Who knows if they’re true anyway. The Canaanites had gods, but more importantly goddesses of their own to contend with. First, there was Asherah, the Mother of the Gods. It’s said she had 70 children and that kings were nourished from her breasts. She was very cool. One of her children apparently was Astarte, Queen of Heaven. Another was Anath, Goddess of the Underworld, Goddess of War. Some believe these two were one-in-the-same, sort of bi-polar. But the deal with Anath is that she really kicked butt. It’s said she wallowed in human blood up to her thighs. Yuck!
But, along came the Hebrews and the Arabs and soon enough the Canaanites are out of luck: their cities sacked, their homeland invaded and occupied, their children terrorized. Flash forward a few millennia and what have you got? More blood and guts! The two invaders of Canaan at each other’s throats; they both think the place is theirs, that THEY are the chosen people. No way! They’re both trespassers on Canaanite soil! In fact, if I were Ariel Sharon or some Hamas leader, I’d watch my ass. Who wants to piss off Anath??
But hey, seriously, it’s the 21st Century and we’re all civilized people now, right? Let’s let bygones be bygones. Why don’t both parties simply admit they don’t REALLY own the place and figure out how best to live in what’s actually a sort of squatter situation? Perhaps a little reality check like that might bring those flaming egos and all that vengeful anger down a notch or two. After all, it’s the original inhabitants and their gods and goddesses who actually OWN the land. The people making a mess of things today are just their guests, and at this rate they’ve about worn out their welcome.

Karl Rove rescued by space shuttle

With the recent news of the space shuttle's adventures in the final frontier, and now the Israeli pullout operations in the Gaza Strip, Karl Rove gets a brief reprieve from the national headlines. However, his rescue may be short-lived since the fourth estate appears to have at least temporarily snapped out of its usual zombie daze and, in the past few weeks, started to smell blood. References of possible involvement by the Boy emperor in the scandal has lead to some stonewalling of late.

Meanwhile, last week out here in the land of constant buzz and endless speculation, a questionable piece indicating the Fitzgerald investigation might pull down the entire Bush regime started to circulate. Wishful thinking? Probably. This was followed up by Wayne Madsen's report that Fitzgerald would be side-lined Watergate style. With the so-called blogosphere all tied up in knots over "Rovegate", and lefty talk radio refusing to let the story die, it's not likely the corporate media can ignore the scandal much longer. Hey! it's vacation time, right? Even dwellers of the dark side like Karl Rove deserve a short vacation, no?

More Dead in Ohio

By the time you read this commentary the bodies of more Ohio residents will be on their way back home from the Bush regime's disastrous war in Iraq. The pain of losing those young soldiers will be felt by many of your neighbors. It's the same pain that was felt by so many of their parents who lost sons, daughters or friends in the Vietnam War. It's a pain compounded by the questions and uncertainties that are always associated with wars waged in far away places, wars that seem to have no relevance to life here at home, wars that so many people in this nation believe should never have been waged. Wars built on lies and deception.

The loss of those young people, many of them having joined the service simply to get a leg up on life, to get a good education or career, should never have taken place. Their blood is on the hands of powerful politicians who never saw war themselves, whose own sons and daughters will never serve in the military. Their blood was spilled for geo-political gain, for corporate profits, and no one in the White House and few in Congress really care all that much. These deaths don't effect their lives at all. Young soldiers are merely pawns on the chessboard of political power. What a sin.

I'm sending my condolences here to all those grieving families. Their loss was unnecessary and thus, all the more tragic. Perhaps ,given time, the pain can be transformed into a determination to stop this madness, this waste of lives, and save other families from similar loss.