The Faces of Hatred

Take a long look at this woman. She is Arizona governor, Jan Brewer, and she is the face of hatred in Arizona and of the "new" GOP. She and her GOP run state legislature are leading the charge that is rapidly leading to the oppression of Latinos in this country. Interestingly, you can almost see the hatred in her expression. At the very least she doesn't look like a person that one could warm up to. Certainly not a sweet grandma.

We all are frustrated by the onslaught of Latin Americans, who are coming to this country illegally. It is stressing so many areas of public service and it is costing many tax dollars to provide services to their children, who are legally citizens of this country. Yet, in a free country with open borders there is little that can be done, short of building a concrete wall and staffing it with armed guards. Can you say Berlin? A round up of millions of people, which many Republicans seem to want, is impossible as well.

Then there is this man. He is Eric Johnson, a GOP candidate for Gov. of Georgia. I have had the distinct displeasure of meeting with this man on a few occasions. He is a rather unpleasant person. Now he is pandering to the Latinophiles in our state by making an example of a young Latina college student, who is the child of illegal immigrants. Read about this case here. The bottom line is that this young woman did not come here on her own. She came as a child and is trying to make something of herself. In other words she is doing it the American way.
Both Johnson and Brewer and many other politicians are starting to build their careers on the backs of people such as this young student and the many Latinos who are in the country legally. As they rail against undocumented aliens they build up resentment toward Latinos in general and encourage racist actions. In Arizona the GOP is working very hard to build its racist base and it will be using this base to build support mainly in the border states that have been hit the hardest by the illegal immigrant onslaught. Unfortunately, it is often in these states that racism is inherent, so such policies will be very popular.

The GOP does not seem to get the fact that there are millions of legal Latinos in this country and they will vote, especially if they are put down. But then, there seems to be little about reality that the GOP notices. It is the party of the negative, the racist, and the fundamentalist Christian. It appeals to the extreme right, but alienates the independent and the moderate. Unfortunately for the GOP, that is where the real power lies.

A Post That All Christians Should Read

John Shore says it all right here. I do not need to comment, except for the fact that I have felt this way for years.

Interesting Read on Perceived Religious Persecution

An interesting post from an evangelical Christian at Baylor University in Texas. It is interesting how these so-called religious leaders twist the truth to garner power within the political ranks. England is still, indeed, somewhat of a church state, and it was that church state that had become too liberal that the early Puritans left for the "freedom of religion" in the New World. They, as we know, wanted the "freedom" to persecute in their own way.

Franklin Graham is playing to the perceived fears of evangelical Christians in this country in order to continue to build his political power. Where his father ministered to presidents, he apparently wants to be a political minister. There is no persecution of Christians in this country. Every time I drive around town I see another empty store front that has been converted into a church, and I'm not exaggerating. Fortunately, as the blogger writes, we do have a constitutionally protected freedom of religion in this country. If it is in danger, it is because there are those like Graham, who would force a particular brand of religion into power in government. Then, like the Puritans and the Church of England, anyone who worships differently, will be in danger of losing that right.