Here’s a picture that seems more in touch with reality and world opinion.

 President Bush’s values and appeal to nationalism and patriotism are so much more in line with Hitler than any “terrorist-appeasing” Democrat.  Both men resorted to insisting on wars of aggression to deal with “potential threats”.  Both led a movement that divided people based on nationality, party lines and patriotism.  The men are easily among the most delusional we’ve seen reach the highest levels of government and that includes Saddam Hussein.

If you want a bit of more delicious irony, George W. Bush actually has ties (his grandfather) to Hitler’s rise to the top.   I guess the bottom line is this: Bush, no one cares what you have to say, please go to your ranch, get old and die so the rest of us can move on with our lives.

California Ban On Gays Overturned

The news should take away some of the attention from the national election to the issue of gays and marriage.  The California Supreme Court has overturned the ban on gay marriage, setting a precedent for other states to potentially follow their lead.

According to CNN, the California Supreme Court struck down the State’s ban on same-sex marriage as unconstitutional.  The case came about when several gay couples joined the city of San Francisco and gay activists in suing to overturn the state law.  The law allows marriage to exist only between a man and a woman.  Essentially, it defined marriage as consistent within the religious meaning of the word rather than one based on individual rights.

Can gay rights make it passed the more recent blurring of church and state lines?

There should be plenty of resistance to this outcome from religious and conservative groups seeking to “preserve the sanctity of matrimony.”  This creates a very interesting political question because it pits two constitutional concepts against one another.  (Religious Freedom vs. Privacy)

Looking at this issue from a religious perspective, the problem with creating a law that defines marriage as anything but a man and a woman goes contrary to biblical teachings.  That is because homosexuality is deemed a sin as per Christian teachings and if the state allows an act illegal in “the eyes of God” then the State Law is contrary to biblical law.

Equality for all, live and let live?

The secular response of course is that religion should have no place in development of laws that govern the people.  This is the stance I’d take, particularly because I appreciate more of a “live and let live” philosophy.

Despite the partisan dialogs that will inevitably take place, should religious leaders simply denounce such unions and move on?Why do religious advocates insist upon government intervention on this issue?  If non-Christians and a part of the Christian base believe the state should stay out of the bedroom and/or provide equal rights for everyone, including gays, why are we so behind as a society on this issue?

At NATO, this picture is very telling of his popularity world-wide.

It isn’t just his reputation that is in the gutter, the United States is the laughing stalk of the global economy and if not for our history and “super power” status, we’d be lucky to be invited to world events.

Mr. Ventura spent most of the interview trying to turn the conversation to revolution and the sham that has become our political system.  He called for destruction of all political parties and said people shoud run on their own merits and that it is the two-party system that has harmed our country, he pointed at the economy and war in Iraq as a joint effort by both parties and insisted that he would never participate as long as the only options for president are Republican or Democrat.

“I never vote Democrat or Republican,… I will pick someone else, a libertarian on the ballot. Someone else. I will not vote for a republican or democrat. I don’t do it every election — I wish they would allow none of the above on the ballot.”

Ventura says he won’t run for President because the bar has been set too high for independents.

 ”they make an independent like me jump through 50 different hoops,… every state has different things you have to do to qualify to get on the ballot”

In addition to the criticism of our democratic system for being unfair to independent thinkers, he insisted that he wasn’t bitter about his prior withdrawal from politics.  His wife was suffering from illness at the time and he said he would put his family before anything, it was a no brainer he contended.   In all, Jesse Ventura looked like a strong prospect for an independent or libertarian run.

Ventura was certaintly not lacking in enthusiasm, although some of the analysts brought a bit of their ideology to the debate and it did take some of the wind out of his sails.  He wanted no part of the Hillary Clinton / Barak Obama primary discussion, although he did say he respected and admired Hillary Clinton as an intelligent politician, he had no interest in talking about the system in place.

Is it possible that Jesse Ventura will run for President?  No, not very likely, but he did say that if the sham system were replaced with something fair that no candidate would stand a chance.  He called Republicans and Democrats afraid of him because they know that he could beat them with his hands tied behind his back.

Families, friends and loved ones are furious with President Bush and the majority of Americans that haven’t fallen prey to our partisan propaganda believe Bush’s time is up.

If you need motivation, just take a look at what happens, war is real it isn’t a fantasy: