Posts Made By: Joe Lentz

I think Mel Gibson has a screw loose. Why should the spiritual message of Christ
take a back seat to Mel's obsession with violence and torture? (and don't kid
yourself, it started before THIS movie) Yes, I know, Christ suffered and was persecuted,
but Mel's vision is really beyond the pale. How much do you think Christ would
appreciate gratuitous violence and torture being used to make Mel millions of dollars?
And speaking of pale, why are all the main players white? If this was supposed to be
such a realistic portrayal (yeah, right...) then why not the casting of middle
eastern people? The passion, the suffering of Christ, is it really honored in this film?
Is Christ's message being spread here? Oh heck, I must be wrong, go ahead, see the film,
buy some popcorn to munch on while you see the guy have the his skin flayed off.
And I promise you, there will be people in there filling their faces while they
watch this. Give me a flippin break... Look, I'm sorry if I sound angry about his,
but I have just enough respect left for the tradition of the new testament to not
want to get on board this train.

Ditto what Dimitry said. Given all the pieces that need to be picked up in the wake
of W's attempt at being president, the more liberal the better. In reality though
(you guys remember reality don't you? Kerry's presidency will likely be moderate;
it will only seem liberal to those who set a standard based on the likes of Rove,
Cheney, Bush, Rumsfeld, etc.

Ya got that right Mike. You would think folks would be more interested in paying
attention to the present, where things are actually happening (or not happening,
as the case may be). Obsessing about Clinton at this point in time makes about as much
sense as obsessing about FDR. ;-) Particularly since his sins are so pedestrian compared
to those of the man who currently (yes kids! GWB is president NOW!) occupies
the white house. It amazes me how much some folks are willing to forego loyalty
to the country in order to maintain loyalty to party. We have to be the dumbest
species on the planet (as well as the most destructive). It's so easy to digress
in a thread like this..

When the Bush administration came in, they were thoroughly briefed about the increasing
dangers from terrorism. Yet they chose to focus their energies on tax cuts
and other pet projects that they found more important than national security.
They dropped the ball. Period.

So Joe, what do you think is going to happen to Iraq after June 30th? (My guess is that
you don't care.) Do you really think the US is going to be better off for having engaged
in Bush's (PNAC) dream of a foreign policy? No doubt you think we'd all be better off
if we accepted this administration's agenda without applying any critical thought
of our own.

Heck, it's no wonder you think there ought to be more restrictions in
the first amendment. (Maybe you can help John Ashcroft work on this.) Fortunately, the
citizens here aren't quite as dumb as you would like them to be. Sure, they can be
slow to get a clue, but once they realize how much they've been lied to and how
thier trust has been exploited, they will turn on your little Texas boy fast enough.
Afterall, WE are the govt., not your part-timers in Washington...
or have you forgotten that?

Of course this administration will continue trying to
manipulate public opinion through their campaign of fear and misinformation, because
their (and perhaps your) loyalties are to party first, country second... but even
those tricks will have failed them by November. Your hardcore rightwing partisans
are on their way out Joe; you might as well put a Kerry sign in your front yard.

I'm guessing that the ad was a reaction by someone to the glib and disassociated way
Rumsfeld (and Bush too) talks about the way troops are being killed and wounded in Iraq.
It's particularly offensive to people who have actually served, which Rumsfeld hasn't.
It's all about context.

>>>>What would you do if you knew that OBL was reading each one of our posts on this forum?<<<<

I wouldn't do anything differently, except perhaps to affirm that OBL WILL burn in hell,
and the sooner the better. The desire to get rid of him and his ilk is no stronger
in one party over the other AFAIC. Different methods and repercussions I reckon,
but the same outcome, at least so far as OBL is concerned.

Funny thing, when I first read the header, "Divide and conquer", I thought the thread was
going to be about how GWB has succeeded in polarizing the electorate so drastically.
The "conquer" part didn't really fit though.

It amazes me the lengths to which republicans will go in order to attempt rationalizing
the actions of GWB. Making comparisons between Bush and John F. Kennedy is an indication
of their desperation, as most folks who have a brain fragment lodged in their skulls
realize that Bush is half the man JFK was.

Kerry I hope. Is he perfect? Of course not, but he isn't as bad as the elaborate
(and often successful) smear tactics would suggest. Bush has been terrible for
our country in so many ways. Any honest, objective, and informed citizen has to
be aware of that; which is to say, concerns about another Bush term should transcend
mere partisanship. But human nature being what it is, I won't be surprised by
whatever happens. Too many folks are easily influenced by lies and propaganda in
this country, to the extent that they often don't even know when it's happening;
and THAT is precisely why such tactics are being used.