Religion & Media

MY LAST POST... some comic relief.

2007-11-22T23:17:00.000-08:00

A little comic relief after all the serious talk I had these past 39 entries. A great sum-up of everything I was able to point out regarding religion and politics in the United States, thanks to Bill Maher. I hope you enjoy this. Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blabbering and to somewhat acknowledge my opinions, no matter how weird or "out-there" they may be. Enjoy and take care!

Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i78sSduUW2Q

Religion in American politics

2007-11-21T15:11:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmTvdsGXEXw

Great video. Religion is slowly seeping more into our government year after year. This whole war on "Terrorism" has to do with Christian faith. It's kind of funny that President Bush continuously preaches so much about religion and ends every public speech of his with "God Bless," and we claim to live in a secular country where there is a strict separation between church and state. I think not. America needs to take a step back and re-evaluate its agenda and its hypocrisy before going out and insulting and criticizing other nations like Iran for being extremely religious and imposing strict religious ideologies on its people. While America is certainly not to that extreme, it definitely is a mild version of that and it's interesting that no one really, remotely acknowledges that. I believe before America points its fingers at other nations for being "racist," or "extremists," or whatever else... America needs to take a look at itself, within its own borders, and fix its own problems before commenting and insulting other nations' ideologies.

Our Founding Fathers

2007-11-20T12:01:00.000-08:00

So, I just wanted to touch a little bit on the lecture a few weeks back regarding the Founding Fathers and their religious views and beliefs. This is a little bit about what was covered which I thought would be interesting to share. Jefferson was known to have cut up certain passages from the Bible and was a Deist who didn't believe that the son of God was Jesus. Paine attacked Christianity and was an atheist who sought a government based on reason, not faith. Adams was strongly religious but in contrast, Washington would not kneel to pray, was mused about becoming a preacher, and was the first inter-religious promoter. Finally, Franklin was very eclectic regarding his religious views and doubted the divinity of Christ. So, these facts are kind of interesting in that we have proof that our nation was not necessarily built upon Christian ideals and values and that most of this religion "bs" that candidates are so concerned with today are really just made up stuff that came about these past few years!

OO Richard Dawkins...

2007-11-19T21:54:00.000-08:00

Video: "Top 10 Reasons I hate Religion"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8UxcGt04zg

After watching this video,despite how slanted it is,any rational person would reject both atheism and christianity. Any dogma,weather secular or religious, when aligned with the state, always will be antithetical to human life and liberty. While this video is slightly stupid in its own rights, when it comes down to it, Dawkins sort of has a point. The way it is presented is certainly erroneous and absurd, but there is some truth to it. Religion is taking over our lives and affected every aspect of our society and it has crossed a very fine line. We need to take note of this and make sure that it doesn't delve deeper into the basis of our lives.

French racism

2007-11-16T14:53:00.000-08:00

The French law on secularity and conspicuous religious symbols in schools bans wearing conspicuous religious symbols in French public (i.e. government-operated) primary and secondary schools. The law is an amendment to the French Code of Education that expands principles founded in existing French law, especially the constitutional requirement of laicite: the separation of state and religious activities.
The bill passed France's national legislature and was signed into law by President Chirac on March 15 2004 and came into effect on September 2, 2004, at the beginning of the new school year.
The law is a great example of a modern, industrialized society and its capability and ability to still invoke racism and ban such a religious symbol in a so-called free and democratic nation. It's funny how France, among other nations, claims to be this modern, democratic society with so many freedoms and rights given to its people, but at the very next instance, they ban such a thing from schools and expect people to cooperate. Truly idiotic!

Mapping Muslims

2007-11-15T23:30:00.000-08:00

Article: http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2007/11/16/41735.html

A plan by the Los Angeles Police Department's counter-terrorism bureau to map Muslim groups in the city has angered civil rights activists and community leaders, it was reported Friday.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the LAPD wants to create a map of Muslim groups in order to help communities avoid the influence of radicals seeking to incite "violent, ideologically-based extremism." With an estimated 500,000 Muslims living in the greater Los Angeles area, it seems crazy to even think of doing such a thing. This will just continue increasing the tensions among the Muslim community and create more feelings and sentiments of hate. What else with the American authorities come up with next?

Our screwed up society

2007-11-14T21:29:00.000-08:00

Something like 65 percent of America say that they would never vote a non-believer into office. even though we make up at least 10 percent(more than Jews and Muslims). Our mere belief system about the cosmos completely disqualifies us from being elected and you think your persecuted? I've heard from scholars that the religious are the biggest callers of censorship and I guess this is vitally important within our society today and has impacted many features of our lives. We can only hope that this will soon change and we will have a different view of religion.

Do Christians face persecution in America today?

2007-11-13T09:28:00.000-08:00

http://youtube.com/watch?v=oDeIg-mp5eo&feature=related

Funny video summing up the role of religion in American society and politics today.

Republicans and 2008 Presidential Elections

2007-11-12T23:05:00.000-08:00

In recent Pew surveys, roughly one-third (32%) of all Republican and Republican-leaning registered voters say they would prefer to see Rudy Giuliani atop the Republican ticket in 2008. John McCain and Fred Thompson have about equal support among this group (17% and 19%, respectively). One-in-ten Republicans prefer Mitt Romney, with Mike Huckabee generating nearly as much support as Romney in recent surveys. (A separate analysis of the surveys finds that Thompson's support declined slightly between September and October, while Huckabee's support rose slightly during the same period.) Giuliani fares better among other religious groups than among white evangelicals. White Catholics, for instance, prefer Giuliani over his competitors by more than a two-to-one margin; among white mainline Protestants, he has a 15-point advantage over Thompson, his closest competitor. This is interesting to compare with the democratic candidates’ effects on religion and voter turnout.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/youdecide2008/index.html?CMP=KNC-YahooPI

Democrats and 2008 Presidential Elections

2007-11-09T14:24:00.000-08:00

Overall, the contest for the Democratic nomination has been fairly stable, with Clinton leading her opponents by wide margins in most recent surveys. An aggregation of surveys conducted by the Pew Research Center in September and October finds that Clinton is the clear front-runner among all Democratic and Democratic-leaning registered voters, with close to half (44%) of this group saying that they would most prefer for Clinton to be the nominee in 2008. A quarter prefers Barack Obama, while slightly more than one-in-ten (13%) favor John Edwards. But support for the three leading candidates varies considerably among certain religious traditions. It’s interesting to compare the differences among republican and democratic voters and each party’s emphasis on religion and its effects in voter turnout.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/youdecide2008/index.html?CMP=KNC-YahooPI

Faith and Elections of 2008

2007-11-08T14:23:00.000-08:00

The personal faith of candidates has become a very public part of the 2008 presidential campaign. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama have hired strategists to focus on reaching religious voters. Democrats in general are targeting moderate Roman Catholics, mainline Protestants and even evangelicals, hoping to enlist enough voters for whom religious and moral issues are a priority to put together a winning coalition. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has been questioned so much about his Mormon faith. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a Catholic who says he gave serious consideration as a young man to becoming a priest, is fending off critics who say he should be denied the sacrament of communion because he supports abortion rights. Religion has become such a common element of presidential politics that during the first televised debate among the 2008 Republican candidates, a reporter asked if any did not believe in evolution three Republicans raised their hands: Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo. Crazy how religion has played such an impact in politics today.

McCain and Christianity

2007-11-07T23:18:00.000-08:00

Article:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/01/mccain.christian.nation/index.html?imw=Y&iref=mpstoryemail

Muslim and Jewish groups on Monday sharply criticized Sen. John McCain's comments that he would prefer a Christian president to lead the United States. And they have every right to think that way. We claim to be such a democratic country based on democratic principles and based on diversity and so forth but then we have an individual, with such an esteemed, respected position, come out and say that this country would be better off with a Christian president. That is a direct blow to the nature of this country and to the ideals and values that America is supposedly based upon. Even if McCain does think that, and he has every right to since we are a nation based on the freedom of speech, he should understand that his position comes with a certain level of understanding and he has to understand that this will insult people and is a completely inappropriate and offensive remark.

Importance of Religion on Presidential Candidates

2007-11-06T15:19:00.000-08:00

In response to the article regarding John McCain and his commentary about presidential candidates and religion, I just wanted to talk a little more about that because it’s truly something that I can’t seem to comprehend. Is religion really so important in American politics? Is it really impossible to ever elect a president who is not a Christian? These seem like such unlikely questions but the reality and the truth is that these questions are truly valid within American society today. I hate to say it but in some ways, America, or at least American politics, is somewhat racist and that just doesn’t seem to be okay… I’ll expand on this idea a little more in the following weeks.

Bill Maher on Voting and Religion

2007-11-05T23:16:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QKhC1lI0b0

The YouTube freak that I am, I came across this video with Bill Mahr and found it to be hilarious. A comic in his own right, Mahr discusses the effects of religion on our lives today, especially in politics. He calls for a so-called "Religion Test" for our country and bashes several of the presidential candidates, including Mitt Romney. This was definitely a fun little alternative to the serious and bias commentary from the bigger news media outlets. Thank you Bill Mahr, thank you.

More on Mitt Romney

2007-11-02T20:13:00.000-07:00

Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/us/politics/08romney.html?ex=1328590800&en=3c8c164179e6c40c&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

So there are continuous questions being asked as to whether as a Mormon, Mitt Romney has the slightest chance of being elected President. I decided to write a little bit about Mormonism and I'll let you guys decide... does it really change or decrease the qualifications of a presidential candidate? You let me know!

Mormonism was founded in 1830 by J. Smith and has about 11 million members. It is the fastest growing denomination in the world by some accounts and some of its beliefs include that a lost tribe of Hebrews settled in Ancient America, not Native Americans. Mormons believe that the Garden of Eden was in Missouri and that the second coming of Christ will appear there too. They believe that Mormonism is the true Church and the rest of Christianity is way off course. Mormon temples are off limits to non-Mormons and they have certain very strict codes of conduct and restrictions. So now that you know more about Mormonism... does it affect how you're going to vote? You decide.

Is Obama Muslim?

2007-11-01T10:51:00.000-07:00

Article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/28/AR2007112802757.html?hpid=topnews

So Barack Obama was once a Muslim? The article states that Obama was, during some time in his life, a Muslim because he was trained as a young child in Indonesia. The article states "Since declaring his candidacy for president in February, Obama, a member of a congregation of the United Church of Christ in Chicago, has had to address assertions that he is a Muslim or that he had received training in Islam in Indonesia, where he lived from ages 6 to 10. While his father was an atheist and his mother did not practice religion, Obama's stepfather did occasionally attend services at a mosque there." In campaign appearances, Obama regularly mentions his time living and attending school in Indonesia, and the fact that his paternal grandfather, a Kenyan farmer, was a Muslim. Obama invokes these facts as part of his case that he is prepared to handle foreign policy, despite having been in the Senate for only three years, and that he would literally bring a new face to parts of the world where the United States is not popular. Controversies arose regarding this and Obama has had to make it clear and make continuous statements that these allegations are false. It really is truly sad that it has come down to this. For a presidential candidate to intensely and aggressively deny such a fact... what has America come to.. honestly.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

2007-10-31T14:08:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween everyone... I think it's safe to say that I can take a one-day break because of this great holiday... but in case you guys are still grading today's posts, I might just dress up as one of the founding fathers or one of the presidential candidates and that way get credit for today? Would that be OK? haha I'm not even kidding... :)

McCain prays... thank god.

2007-10-30T13:45:00.000-07:00

Article: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,996351,00.html

In an article by Time magazine I came across titled, "McCain's faith: 'I Pray Regularly'," a religious background and overview of presidential candidate and Senator John McCain is provided, along with news that he prays. Well, thank the lord... John McCain prays regularly. I guess that's definitely something very news-worthy and definitely worth a 2-page article... NOT! More and more I'm coming across these articles and the more absurd it gets... wow.

A follow-up to my last post

2007-10-29T22:41:00.000-07:00

Interestingly enough, as I was browsing through the amazing website I found last week... I came across a section that provides detailed candidate profiles. Among information like hometown, political experience, and so forth... was, yes you guessed right, religious views. Are you serious? Is it really that big of a deal that I know that Hillary Clinton is a "United Methodist" and John McCain is a "Baptist?" BIG DEAL!!

JACKPOT!

2007-10-26T14:39:00.000-07:00

I think I just hit the jackpot when I came across this website... it links the connection between religion and the upcoming 2008 elections and the influence of religion on this coming election. It has a multitude of articles and is really amazing!

http://pewforum.org/religion08/

Immigrant Connection

2007-10-25T22:36:00.000-07:00

Many constitutional experts, among them Vincent Munoz of Tufts University, argue the separation of church and state crafted by the Founding Fathers ensures that religion is not saddled with problems that come with political partisanship. "When the Constitutional Convention put in the provision to say no religious test for office, that was objected to by people who opposed the Constitution. One of the arguments was that if we don't have a religious test for office, Jews or Catholics or Muslims might be elected," explains Munoz.
Munoz adds, "James Madison's response was,'Well, if the people of America want to elect a Jew or a Muslim or a Catholic for office, that's fine.' And so, yes, it is true that at the time of the founding we were a more homogenous nation, but it doesn't mean that the Founders didn't anticipate much of the religious diversity we enjoy today in America."
And most analysts says the role of religion in public life will likely continue to be an integral part of American politics.

Article: http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2007-03/2007-03-16-voa63.cfm?CFID=227530160&CFTOKEN=33203774

Faith at the Ballot Box

2007-10-24T20:34:00.000-07:00

While religion has always mattered in American politics, some analysts say that in recent years, it has taken on a more prominent role in national elections.
John Green, of the Washington-based Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, points to President Bush's victories in 2000 and 2004, for example, which in part were due to his successful appeal to conservative religious voters. But Green says voters casting ballots in keeping with their religious beliefs dates back decades. Green says America's two leading political parties - - the Democrats and the Republicans - - are often at loggerheads over social issues because of their different religious constituencies. "In the Republican Party, it tends to be white Christians, particularly white evangelical Protestants, but also Christians of other backgrounds. The Democrats have a more complicated religious coalition that includes African-American Protestants, Hispanic Catholics, liberal Christians, Jews, Muslims and Hindus, as well as non-religious people," says Green.
Green says the Republicans tend to talk more openly about religious questions because their coalition is not as diverse. In the Democratic Party, politicians do talk about religion, says Green. "But they are much more cautious because of the religious diversity of the Democratic Party."

Christianity in America

2007-10-23T19:20:00.000-07:00

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3658172.stm

An interesting article about the influence of Christianity in America. The article states the fact that although the United States has a constitutional barrier separating church and state, the vast majority of Americans want their leaders to be religious. A quite fascinating article and a great read!

Religion and Politics

2007-10-22T22:19:00.000-07:00

A little exerpt from my paper...
The question of religion and politics is not the same as the question of church and state. Failure to make this distinction results in confusion. The problem of church and state has to do with institutions and practices. Neither must trespass the boundaries that define their legitimate sphere of influence. Here the concept of separation is valid. Thorny problems arise in two particular areas. 1. The first involves trying to steer between avoiding an establishment of religion and permitting its free exercise. Prayer in public schools and is among the most contentious. 2. A second range of problems arises when religious belief and practice conflict with secular law.
The problem of religion and politics defines another set of issues. Church and state deals with the relationship of institutions that are independent of each other. Religion and politics has to do with two spheres of activities in the life of the same persons. Citizens who belong to religious groups are also members of the secular society, and this dual association generates complications. Religious beliefs have moral and social implications, and it is appropriate for people of faith to express these through their activities as citizens in the political order. The fact that ethical convictions are rooted in religious faith does not disqualify them from the political realm. However, they do not have secular validity merely because they are thought by their exponents to be religiously authorized. They must be argued for in appropriate social and political terms in harmony with national values.

The politics of UCI

2007-10-19T19:37:00.000-07:00

A little interesting twist to my other posts.... The politics of UCI. Yes, they really do exist. So, I moved from the east coast and just coming to the west coast was such a huge change for me and when I came to UCI, I really found it so interesting as far as the politics that exist on this campus. It's worse than high school. The cliques are undeniably there and undeniably exclusive. We have the Greeks. We have the athletes. We have the non-affiliates. We have the Persians. We have the Arabs. And the list goes on... but honestly, it's so interesting to stop and look around and just acknowledge that so many groups and cliques exist on this campus. Now, don't get me wrong, I am part of a sorority and part of the Greek life here. The only reason being that I moved from the east coast and realized that the best way for me to meet people and network was to join a sorority. And undoubtedly, it helped and I have no regrets but rarely do I surround myself with people in the Greek life. I have found a few amazing friends in different sororities and fraternities, but otherwise Kappa Kappa Kappa's annual "wear no clothing" party is not my cup of tea... My point is that the drama is still here. I thought that coming out of high school, where so many cliques existed and drama was all over the place and it was top news of the day if Popular Sally's jock football player boyfriend left her for Ugly Nerd Betty, that this would be gone and it would no longer exist but boy was I wrong! Now, I don't know if this still exists on every other college campus but I really don't like it. I thought college was a place AFTER high school where everyone is more mature and more acknowledging of others and all the stuff you hear... but is it really? Is it only in our minds and dreams that we have painted college to be some euphoria of diversity and mixing of cultures and peoples? Unfortunately, yes... yes it is. The cliques are still there. The drama is still there. Sad.