moderateBaptists.com

The UK Telegraph has published a story that fully reveals the desperation of the neo-conservative architects of American foreign policy. Here's a quote:

Opponents of military action were further alarmed last week when it emerged that Norman Podhoretz, one of the godfathers of neo-conservatism, used a 45-minute meeting with Mr Bush at the White House to lobby for the bombing of Iran's nuclear plants.

Mr Podhoretz disclosed that, when he said Mr Bush was just "giving futility its chance" by pursuing diplomacy, the president and his former aide Karl Rove had burst out laughing. "It struck me," Mr Podhoretz added, "that if they really believed that there was a chance for these negotiations and sanctions to work, they would not have laughed. They would have got their backs up and said, 'No, no, it's not futile, there's a very good chance'." He said he believed "Bush is going to hit" Iran before his presidency ends.

Mr Podhoretz is highly influential. His son-in-law is Elliott Abrams, Mr Bush's deputy national security adviser, who is regarded by US officials as a key advocate of bombing Iran. He was found guilty of withholding evidence from Congress over the Iran-Contra scandal in the 1980s.

Concern is also growing in the CIA and the Pentagon that the White House exaggerated intelligence used to justify an Israeli air raid on a suspected nuclear facility in Syria earlier this month, which some neo-conservatives hope is a precursor to war with Iran.

Bruce Reidel, a former CIA Middle East desk officer, said the neo-conservatives realised their influence would wane rapidly when Mr Bush left office in just over 15 months. "Whatever crazy idea they have to try to transform the Middle East, they have to push now. The real hardline neo-conservatives are getting desperate that the door of history is about to close on them with an epitaph of total failure."

How many American soldiers must die to salve the bruised ego's of those who led us into the war in Iraq?

A

In a recent interview with beliefnet.com, Arizona Senator and Republican presidential candidate John McCain professed to agree with a majority of Americans that the US Constitution "establishes a Christian nation." He also "feel(s) that [Christianity]'s an important part of our...

And we're back. Green Lake, Wisconsin was lovely. My golfing seemed to improve...if there is such a thing. Heh. Ah, blessed simplicity....

If you go here, you can visit the BGCT official blog. It gives good information, though you must understand that it is run by the Baptist Building.

Now, knowing this, you can see a report given over the past BGCT Executive Board meeting. I'm interested in one in particular. Go ahead and check it out.

I'll give you time, go read it.

Read it?

Did you notice this line: "Next time you hear anyone disparage our work, you ought not join in that criticism."

This caught me by surprise. They were talking about huge budget cuts, things that were going to cost some 30 people their jobs. And right in the middle of it, is this line.

Notice the word, "ought." To me it seems that they are being punished for what they "ought" not have done.

You see, concerning the departments that are getting hit the hardest; it isn't just because they were the largest departments. It wasn't because they had the most duties that could be coalesced into other positions. It seems that most of those the current ED believes were the most disloyal, were in those departments.

To think that budget cuts to Evangelism, Missions and other ministries are a form of punishment, is outrageous.

When will those that lead the BGCT from the Baptist Building stop making bad decisions?

Please, someone stop the madness... This kind of stuff makes me weep.

Tim Dahl

This is a article written in the Georgetonian, Georgetown College's student newspaper. This gives a look into Georgetown's Campus life. Enjoy and let me know what you think. That's the important thing.




Ah, Georgetown College in the fall. Nice to be back, eh? Some people happily greet the return of friends, schoolwork and busy schedules, while others despise the very thought of returning to school. Wherever you fall along this spectrum it’s great to see you’ve returned. New art adorns Georgetown’s Campus, there are new professors and most importantly, Georgetown College is going places.
President Crouch in his Convocation address spoke of a new green initiative, and to that I have to say, “It’s about time.” I praise the President for getting on board and taking action on an issue that, especially for Georgetown, has been long overlooked. However the idea of “Greening” the campus scares some and excites others. Change has descended upon us like fog in the night, and how great it is.
I could understand why some people fear this new change. We might have to actually be conscientious about the paper we are using, how we dispose of it and how we live our lives. It may seem too much to handle. But I want to suggest to you, the ever so faithful reader, that there’s a simple way to combat the evil forces of environmental degradation. Environmental degradation affects us all, regardless of where we call home or what we want to do with your life. It is inescapable. So what do we do? We can’t create policies that will change the world, we can declare that we will take down single-handedly the axis of evil that is environmental degradation. We have to be able to work within this community to effect change.
One of the largest weapons we have is to not consume. I am not going to bust out in an assault on consumerism and materialism altogether. I simply want to point out that by not consuming nearly as much as we would like, we have a better chance at putting a dagger in the heart of environmental degradation.
According to the United Nations, municipal waste companies collect an average of nearly 1647 pounds of waste a year. This is a rather large amount of waste (per person) to contribute. The startling fact is that China leads us only by 200 pounds. That’s startling when you consider how many people there are in China. The bottom line is that Americans consume entirely too much for their own good. From packaging to gas, from food to electricity, we want as much as we can get regardless of cost.
Some may say, “it’s the American Way,” and I have long laughed when I have heard this comment. There won’t be an “American Way” if we continue on the course we are currently staying. Yes, that includes you President Bush. Fact is that we cannot stay the course when it comes to our exuberant consumption. We fail not only ourselves, but the future when we consume time after time without a thought of what we are doing.
So, here’s to you Mr. John Mayer, I will not wait on the world to change. I know there’s a bunch of old men & women who appear to be doing horribly which they probably are. That doesn’t have to stop you from taking action locally. We have the opportunity on this campus and within this community to make changes that will last. Change is hard and we don’t like it. I am hoping you will look past all the political mumbo jumbo, of our President and negative attitudes and actually do something.
I think it’s about time our generation starts something. I am sorry, but I don’t want to be known as the generation that used all the resources. I don’t want to be known as the generation that sat around while the world fell apart. I want our generation to be the next Great Generation. This was the generation of our grandmothers, that pulled together and made something out of nothing. We’re not there yet, but if we don’t act now we will never be. President Crouch has already agreed and is putting words into action. Why can’t you?

This week at the Democratic Primary Debate in New Hampshire, nominees for president were asked by Tim Russert, "What is your favorite Bible verse and why?" Poor candidates. Practiced and rehearsed in so many things and this question seemed to catch them off-guard. Obama was asked first, he stumbled over "The Sermon on the Mount" which wasn't a bad choice, he just had a hard time articulating

First a prayer for folks over 50 who are cranky, then a story about prayer which will make you think, hopefully.

--- THE SENILITY PRAYER : Grant me the senility to forget the people I never liked anyway, the good fortune to run into the ones I do, and the eyesight to tell the difference.


---------------------
A voyaging ship was wrecked during a storm
at sea and only two of the men on it were
able to swim to a small, desert like island.

The two survivors, not knowing what else to
do,agree that they had no other recourse
but to pray to God. However, to find out
whose prayer was more powerful, they
agreed to divide the territory between them
and stay on opposite sides of the island.

The first thing the first man prayed for
was food. The next morning, the first man
saw a fruit-bearing tree on his side of the
land, and he was able to eat its fruit.

The other man's parcel of land remained
barren.

After a week, the first man was lonely and
he decided to pray for a wife. The next
day, another ship was wrecked, and the only
survivor was a woman who swam to his side
of the land.

On the other side of the island,there was
nothing.

Soon the first man prayed for a house,
clothes, more food. The next day, like
magic,all of these were given to him.

However,the second man still had nothing.


Finally, the first man prayed for a ship, so
that his wife and he could leave the island.
In the morning, he found a ship docked at
his side of the island.

The first man boarded the ship with his wife
and decided to leave the second man on the
island. He considered the other man unworthy
to receive God's blessings,since none of his
prayers had been answered.

As the ship was about to leave, the first man
heard a voice from Heaven booming,

"Why are you leaving your companion on the island?"

"My blessings are mine alone, since I was the one
who prayed for them," the first man answered.
"His prayers were all unanswered, and so he does
not deserve anything."

"You are mistaken!" the voice rebuked him.
"He had only one prayer, which I answered.
If not for that, you would not have received
any of my blessings."

"Tell me," the first man asked the voice,
"what did he pray for that I should owe him
anything?"

"He prayed that all your prayers be answered."
-----------

For all we know, our blessings are not the
fruits of our prayers alone, but those of
another praying for us.

In an interview for Belief.net, Sen. John McCain (R-NV), a candidate for U.S. president, claims that the Constitution of the United States establishes the country as a “Christian nation!” Needless to say, most Constitutional scholars would disagree with this and church-state separationists should worry about a McCain presidency. In the same interview, McCain says that Mitt Romney’s Mormonism is

A quick snap of our teetotaling President while he was visiting Germany.

This is exciting. Basically because I am learning to insert photos to my blog. Annette recently sent some picture from Thailand. I am only including two here:

On a weekend when seven teams ranked in the top 13 in the country lost, five of them to unranked teams, any win is a good win. And while the Rebels kept the game close until the third quarter, the Dawgs ended up winning by a wide margin. My preseason prediction was Georgia 28, Ole Miss 21. At least I got the winner right.

The most encouraging thing to come out of this contest was the productivity of Georgia's running game. Senior Thomas Brown ran the ball 16 times for 180 yards and three touchdowns. It's great to see him doing so well, especially coming off ACL surgery less than a year ago. Freshman sensation Knowshon Moreno rushed 14 times for 90 yards and one touchdown. I believe that I heard the Dawgs' radio team say that the 328 yards gained on the ground was the highest total for the team in sixteen years.

In next week's game, Georgia travels to Knoxville to take on the Volunteers, who have already lost to California and badly to Florida. Still, Neyland Stadium is a tough place to play. It's also the scene of some of the most memorable plays in Georgia football history, including freshman Hershel Walker's demolition of Bill Bates and the David Greene to Verron Haynes "hob-nailed boot" play.

Excellent score of the week: Auburn 20, Florida 17.

I realized this week that I miss reading. As a seminary student, I have my fair share of reading, don't get me wrong. And like a true dork, I enjoy theological reading (though not all of my textbooks this semester engage me...)

However, I have realized that as an English major, I was spoiled by my continual immersion into literature. Yes, it was work to read and analyze and write about all those books. But man, I read some good stuff. And I've been missing it, to the point where when I'm really bored I resort to reading fan fic online for various things (which is an interesting cultural study, but not exactly what you would call great writing). So I dug out the old library card, put a few books on hold, and early next week will be able to work through some fictional books again. Inspired by a good friend, I have compiled a list of books and authors that I want to pursue, though my rate of reading will vary depending on my work load.

I am a true English nerd. ;o)

In other news...I have a confession to make.

I watched Grey's Anatomy with a bunch of girls on Thursday. And maybe kinda sorta liked the show. Yeah, that's not like me, is it?! Watching something popular, especially something that girly and soap opera-ish. But I definitely liked the social aspect and the opportunity to get to know them more (apparently they get together every week). So, yay for that! Stay tuned for whether I become addicted to the show...

A few weeks ago I decided to be more respectable in my free-time reading choices, so picked up Middlemarch. But as I got further along, I started losing steam on it, until a couple days ago when Monk assigned me new reading.

Monk had read Eragon, the first book in a trilogy--a fantasy boy-and-his-dragon story. As soon as he finished reading it, he immediately passed it on to me: "Mom, you have GOT to read this." I figured there may not be too many more years when he wants me to read the same books he's reading, you know? So I'm making my way through the first book (much more slowly than he did) while he cruises through the second one. My boy.

Today has been astoundingly beautiful here. A wonderful coolness, even crispness in the air. It's simply Autumn, through and through. Honestly, I don't remember it ever feeling so fall-like here. And it makes me wonder if I've finally just gotten used to the subtlety of seasons here. Maybe. There's something wonderful about that. And something a little sad, too.