A Symbolic Gesture

I can’t say that I wasn’t warned about discussing religion and politics.  A large chunk of the responses I have received when have I written about those topics has been discouraging. It was not because people disagreed with me, but because they obviously did not read the entire post or… Continue reading

Mirror Universe

Plague / Conspiracy Caution / Frivolity  Fear / Foolishness Scientists / Politicians Facts / “News” Reality / Spin Gaff / “Clarification” Understanding / Accusation Poor / Lazy Caring / Bleeding Hearts Honest / Racist  Rule of Law / Trending Topic  Comply / Refuse Rant / Resolve Snarky / Civil Demonize… Continue reading

O, Kenosha

Kenosha, Wisconsin (pop.100,164, about 150,000 with suburbs)) is our nearest city at about 10 minutes away. We are there several times a week. It was a manufacturing city that has successfully re-invented itself as a distribution center and tourist destination. It’s growing. The downtown is rapidly redeveloping and the Lake… Continue reading

Observations

Change We never really know what the future holds. Life can quickly change very unexpectantly. Irony A microscopic virus, a cousin of the common cold, killed thousands, crippled the economy, and confound the nations of the world. Its manner of spreading, coughing and sneezing, and its manner of abatement, handwashing,… Continue reading

Responses

Response: any behavior of a living organism that results from an external or internal stimulus. What do our responses to this pandemic and our staying at home to lessen its impact tell us about ourselves?  Honestly,  I believe we tend to have an initial knee-jerk reaction that is more related to… Continue reading

How Are You Doing?

Our lives have suddenly changed in unexpected ways and it’s been unsettling. Even though we are more separated from one another, we realize that we are all in this together. That fact has generated a spirit of compassion. People are asking one another, “How are you doing?” So, how are… Continue reading

Disagreeing Without Being Disagreeable

Recently, I was face-to-face with someone I thought highly of and we were in the midst of a serious disagreement about political issues. It has happened several times with several people. While I enjoy a good open discussion, I don’t enjoy these encounters. In these situations, I am usually shocked… Continue reading

Who Can You Believe?

When Fox News anchor Shepard Smith was asked about the opinion side of Fox News in a recent Time Magazineinterview he ruffled some feathers when he replied: “We serve different masters. We work for different reporting chains, we have different rules. They don’t really have rules on the opinion side.… Continue reading

The Pathway Out of Partisanship

Our nation has had only one independent president. That’s right, only one who stayed out of the partisan fray and refused to be locked into a political ideology. He certainly had his principles and stuck to them, yet he understood the value of moderation. While non-partisan, he was far from… Continue reading

It All Comes Down to Relationships

On March 3, 1991, in the wee hours of the morning three friends who had spent the night watching basketball and drinking were speeding on Interstate 210 in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. A California Highway Patrol unit gave chase, but the driver refused to pull over. The… Continue reading

Do Evangelical Christians Have Any Moral Authority Anymore?

    “After telling me how to live my life, who to love, what to believe, what not to believe, what to do and what not to do and now you sit back and the prostitutes don’t matter? The grabbing the you-know-what doesn’t matter? The outright behavior and lies don’t matter? Just… Continue reading

Help for a Polarized Nation

This was my column in the Kenosha News in February, but is still very relevant. We have a very energetic president who currently lives alone, doesn’t require much sleep, works weekends, and tweets before most people are awake. So, there is no telling what may have happened in the intervening… Continue reading

How Can You Reject So Many People in the Name of Diversity?

How did this happen? How did Donald Trump get elected? Certainly, we were presented with two historically unpopular candidates in the general election. It appeared that a good many of the votes cast for these candidates were really expressions of opposition toward the other candidate. I have lost track of how… Continue reading

Christians in the Age of Trump

How does a follower of Christ respond to a President Donald Trump? What is the role of church in the age of Trump? The evangelical leaders who endorsed Trump looked oblivious and uncaring because he so obviously violated Christian values and even common decency back when he was candidate Trump.… Continue reading

Half and Half Nation

The inauguration ceremony just wrapped up, but many Americans feel the nightmare is just beginning. About the same number of citizens, think they have finally been heard. How in the world can this nation find a way forward when one half disdains, belittles, and shuts out the other half, and… Continue reading

Was 2016 A Really Bad Year?

There seemed to be a collective sigh of relief as 2016 wound down last Saturday. Good riddance weird and surprisingly awful chunk of time. Thirty-three percent of Americans felt the nation got worse over the course of the year. The Top Ten news stories of 2016 were: U.S. election Brexit… Continue reading

More Important than the Election

Tomorrow is the big day when Americans will vote for a terrible person so the other more terrible person does not win. The political parties, the media, and the special interests got what they wanted. They have propagandized people so their supporters think those who differ with them are idiots.… Continue reading

Neither

I am openly proclaiming my total and complete lack of support for Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton. Clinton has proven herself to be untrustworthy and Trump and proven himself to be reprehensible. Though every election is touted to be historic, this one certainly is. It is historic in relationship to… Continue reading

Have We Lost Our Ability to Have a Conversation?

It’s a good idea to keep our eyes, ears, and minds open because beauty, truth, and insight will pop up in strange places. On of those strange places was the May 26th episode of comedian Craig Ferguson’s History Channel show, Join or Die. Craig hosts a panel of colorful characters… Continue reading

Becoming the Monster so the Monster Will Not Break You

  There was no verbal response. I simple shook my head back-and-forth in shock and sorrow as the details were unfolding about the shooting at the Orlando nightclub. It is the same response I had upon hearing of the Sandy Hook shooting deaths of the twenty 6 and 7-year-old children.… Continue reading

A Dark Day in America

“It’s a great day in America.” That’s how, Craig Fergusson, former host of the Late Late Show, usually began his ad-libbed comedy monologue. After all, the Scottish immigrant became an American citizen by choice. But it’s not; i.e., a great day in America. It’s a dark day in the U.S.A. I… Continue reading

You Can’t Force Values on People

I don’t like being told what to think. Who does? It’s a domineering for someone to be so convinced they are right, that they believe that you and everyone else must get in lockstep with their way of thinking. If you don’t; you’re inferior. That attitude is arrogant, disrespectful, and… Continue reading

That’s the Best We Can Do?

My world is already split in two. Most of my Internet friends lean liberal, and most of my real life friends are conservatives. I vacillate between perspectives, and sometimes, opt out, in frustration of a broken system.  Please, pull back from the fray for a moment. Let’s get an aerial… Continue reading

Why Did the Royals Win the World Series, and Why Does It Matter?

The Royals are atypical champions. They have no pitching ace, no huge power hitter, and no superstar. Two years ago, they were bottom dwellers. How did they become world champions? They built on the right foundation. (Character) Everybody has values and those values determine what you do, and how you… Continue reading

Pro (All of) Life

This post is part of the July 2015 synchroblog that invited bloggers to write about “What It Means To Be Pro-Life.” My fifty-seven year-old friend has been fighting for her life for over a month and half, after having emergency surgery to repair complications from a previous surgery. She is… Continue reading

Love Wins

This post is part of the July 2015 synchroblog that invited bloggers to write about “Gay Marriage.” Honestly, I have been able to avoid this topic. So, what you read here is me “writing out loud,” trying to “process” my way through it. Is it right or wrong? Many Christians,… Continue reading

Implicit Prejudice

I first heard the term this morning on a radio show. It is a subconscious prejudice that is inadvertently expressed. The topic captures my attention for several reasons. I grew up being influenced by the accepted racism of my parents’ generation. As a pastor, I finally had my eyes opened… Continue reading

If I Were King

I would abolish political parties. The founding fathers warned against them. They polarize the nation and corrupt politicians who have tow the party line to get the funding necessary to win an election. I would allow legislators to organize around coalitions, permitting them to work together on a couple of… Continue reading

Can We Even Talk About Racial Issues?

As I thought about this month’s topic which is focused on race, violence, and the need to talk about it, four really big issues came to mind. Working on them has to be part of a way forward that moves us away from violence and obliviousness toward understanding and action.… Continue reading

Two Great Ideas

Here are three quick observations about politics in America. We are obviously so polarized that we are paralyzed. Holding onto power is more important representing the people. There is a monumental lack of leadership and courage to lead the way to serious negotiation and resolution. Our two major political parties… Continue reading

The Oblivious and the Extremist

This post is part of the September  Synchroblog, entitled, “Loving Nature: Is God Green?” Links to the other contributors articles are listed at the end of this post. The Oblivious I have some interesting mental images of how certain unnamed family members, friends, and neighbors have violated my environmental sensibilities. It’s… Continue reading

What Can We Learn from Scandals?

The vast array of scandals we have experienced the last few months has captured my attention like it has for so many other Americans. Here is the scandal roundup; at least some of the bigger, more recent ones. Former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford bested Elisabeth Colbert (sister of comedian… Continue reading

Was Jesus Political?

The Evangelical church became a political force in the eighties. Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson and James Dobson began articulating a “Christian position” on issues of national interest. Interestingly, it was always the same as the Republican position. They began with moral issues, moved on to “family values”, and eventually had… Continue reading

Donkeys and Elephants

Assumptions “It seems to me Democrats (Liberals) want to help people and Republicans (Conservatives) want to help people help themselves.” That’s how it was summed up by someone who was, I think, pretty wise. But when I am in a bad mood, it seems to me that liberals are paternalistic… Continue reading