Looking for a Sign

Every Sunday I find myself opening my eyes and looking up during prayer time.

Why do I do this?

Well, for years I have taken a look around when I am supposed to have my head bent and eyes shut.

Image by Eduardo

Right after we share our joys and concerns and go into prayer, I am hoping for something that might be a glimpse of something glorified, something rare and beautiful.

I am hoping for a glimpse of God, Jesus or maybe just an angel.

We used to have a member at the church who drove me crazy. He prayed the loudest and always a half step in front of everyone when we did the Lord’s Prayer. The man was a sanctimonious ass, an uncompassionate Christian who made the other Christians look bad. And his goal was to never bring you into God’s love but to let you know he was a better Christian than anyone else.

That member bothered me because the Lord’s Prayer is one of the few times all members of the congregation are in lock step with each other, when they can take a minute to repeat a prayer and be in synch. We need to be able to do that, to know that there can be a moment when all are joined in worship of the same God.

But before we start that, when the pastor or lay speaker is giving up the joys and concerns, I open my eyes and look around. I want a glimpse, I want to see, I might still be looking for proof. I want to see what the glory looks like.

Image from Morguefile.com

And I do not have to push anyone out of the way to make that effort.

Will I ever see God while I live here on Earth? Some days I think so when I see the beauty of hoarfrost or a blooming rose or kids just running around being kids. I see it in the beams of light that come through the clouds towards the end of a day.

When I try to explore the metaphysical world, I see a man who looks like Jesus in his European form. I once saw a picture of Jesus with more Mid-East features and thought that man looked beautiful as well. But I have not seen them at church or during a prayer time.

Still, at each prayer I take a moment to look and see if I can find him.

You never know, one of these days, I just might.

How do you try to find God?

Voting With Faith and the Hope of Cooperation

Next week we will go to the polls.

Image by J. Durham

Next week, you and I will fill out ballots to elect school board members, town board members, state reps and senators, U.S. representatives and senators, and the president.

But here is the deal. Someone is going to lose. Maybe it is Obama, maybe it is Romney.

And when that happens we need to remember that if our guy lost, there is simply one thing to do.

Keep moving.

We have seen a nasty, nasty election season. So many hateful things have been said on both sides. But once the election is over, there is work to be done.

People want jobs which includes civilians and returning soldiers. Infrastructure, education, and healthcare need to be addressed. Foreign policy  requires a light hand and understanding.

So let’s ask those members of Congress to do something simple.

Work with your president.

Forget the B.S. that he is not your guy. Forget your platform or that the other side has to move to your side because that shit has not worked. It has been obstructionist and has caused the country to halt. While I am not saying turn a blind eye to obvious problematic issues – such as Benghazi – I am saying it is time we put the best interests of the country to the forefront.

You want to fight with the president because he is not doing exactly what you want. But then the Speaker of the House works out a deal where the POTUS concedes a few things and you concede a few things so that everyone can win. That is until Congress goes against the deal because it is not exactly what they want. Why did our bond rating drop? Because Congress would not work with the president.

Quite frankly, it makes our government look like a bunch of kids who take their baseball home because things did not goes their way. And you know where that leads, don’t you?

Out of office in the next election.

I am talking to the Tea Party members who have proven to be a big bunch of babies but it will include Democrats who can’t figure it out as well.

I don’t want to hear anymore stories about secret meetings that took place the day of inauguration in order to plan the downfall of the newly elected president. I do not want to see voting not happen because the plan wasn’t ‘their’ plan despite the fact it was based on their plan or that it will help the regular people of this country.

More importantly, I am tired of the fighting when solutions are needed. I can’t believe I am saying this but New Jersey’s Governor Chris Christie has become the example of working together during the aftermath of a major storm despite his negative rhetoric earlier in this campaign.  While that is the example to follow, come next election I will vote out every single one that I can who cannot be bothered to work with the other side.

Image by Expressive Grafix

Forget your petty squabbles, the need to be right. It is time to do the right thing for the American people. You know who they are, right?

They are the ones paying for your salary and that great health plan.

 

Till The End Of the Election Season, I Make This Vow

Let me make this statement right here, right now.

Until the end of this election season, I am not speaking to another person about politics if the conversation is going to be laced with name calling and blatant untruths.

I have seen Facebook posts with warning of “heil Obama” days to come. I have seen pictures with Obama’s head in a noose. I have read disparaging comments about he and his wife in regards to their privileged upbringings. Considering that Michelle Obama did not grow up in the rich black neighborhood of Pill Hill, that is a real laugh (sarcasm).

I have had enough of the negativity, the name calling and the flat-out untruths. I am tired of every conversation with a person on the other side of the aisle becoming a shouting match as they call the president a Muslim, anti-American, anti-colonist/capitalism, everything but the n-word. There are the words, spitted out in disgust, that we do not need a Harvard-schooled lawyer (like Mitt Romney).

I do not talk about how the Republican candidate believes in a sham religion that has drippings of Christianity but it all about the “tablets” Joseph Smith said he dug up and translated. I do not bring up the fact that Mitt’s dad was born in Mexico (but considered an American because his parents had dual citizenship) and that might not make Mitt a viable citizen. Does this mean that Mitt was an anchor baby for his parents?

Explain to me why I want to go back to the policies of the party that did their best to bankrupt our country during their last tenure, that did not do any work to make things better. Their goal for the last four years have appeared to be to block the president at every turn so that at this juncture they can say look at what Obama didn’t get done. 

See how easy it was to got ‘there?’ I felt a little power just then throwing out untruths or half-truths. No wonder Karl Rove loved/loves doing it so much.

If you have to call names and lie about your point in order to ‘win,’ do you really think that is a good reflection on your own character? You have just made yourself unnecessary in my eyes. When Fox News comes out and points out all of the inaccuracies in a Republican speech, there might be some issues with that party. When news agencies scour over Bill Clinton’s speech and cannot find any inaccuracies  there might be a reason why.

I don’t understand the over-top hatred for Obama unless you trace it back to racism or jealousy. Why jealousy you ask? Because Barack Obama did not come from a family of means. His family on his mother’s side can be traced back to Plymouth although not the Mayflower but it is not as if they are rolling in the dough. Like Bill Clinton, he was a nobody who through hard work became a somebody.

So if you are looking to have a reasonable discussion about presidential politics that will not degenerate into name calling, you can talk to me. If you are looking to goad me into an argument, well, I will try not to rise up to the bait. (Yes, I am talking about you, insert name)

And if you think thing are really worse now then they were four years ago, take a look at this story.

Meanwhile, I am going back to my la-la land of progressive thought where the shouting is in the form of  ’hurrahs’ and there are not crazy conspiracy theories that involve every county clerk in the nation keeping the right to vote from military personal with absentee ballots. That way, I will not get riled up, I will sleep better at night and have a peaceful frame of mind during the day.

How are you spending the rest of the election season?

 

 

 

Sticking My Foot Into It

The past few weeks, I have been seriously AWOL.

I have thrown up a post here and there. I have dropped in on a few of the other bloggers that I enjoy but the truth is I took a break from the blogging world.

So where have I been?

Image by Grafixer

First of all, we had County Fair. It was a great week in which the rabbits stayed at the fair grounds. We showed them and the guinea pigs. My daughter made a poster about her turtle and fishing. She already has an idea for her sports fishing project for next year. My son worked on a theater portfolio which made it as a state fair delegate.

A week later, we headed to the State Fair with another family so that four projects – fudge, cheese muffins, the portfolio and a paper collage project – could be judged at the state level.

The week following our State Fair trip I was working on the rummage sale for our church. We set up tables, organized items, priced them, and prepared for people to walk in on our preview sale for Friday Night and the regular sale on Saturday. Then there was the clean-up.

I bagged up clothes to put in a donation bin, shoes to go to Share Your Souls shoe charity, puzzles went to a senior apartment center and left over baked goods were served during our Sunday morning gathering.

What I have been doing is checking in on Facebook with updates of items we had for sale.  But then I allowed myself to join a conversation about a placard that stated 29% of military members were denied the right to vote.

Image from a facebook friend’s page.

I am not sure why it rankled me so much. Maybe it was because the placard did not tell the whole story.  Nor did the placard mention that the story initially broke in the fall of 2011.

So who is responsible for getting that ballot out? Well, that would be the county clerk’s job once a request has been made and those ballots have to be sent out 45 days before the election. Once you receive your ballot you have so much time to get it back and that depends on where you are stationed.

People not having the ability to vote taken away from them is bothersome. But this story is a year old. I want to know how or if this issue has been resolved because all of my searching found nothing new.

So I am asking all of you who know someone in the military fighting overseas if this happened to them. If it did, were they able to resolve the problems from the 2010 vote? Are you helping to ensure that your person in the military who is overseas is able to vote in the upcoming election?

You might question why I am asking. There is a part of me that wants to know if anyone tried to resolve the situation.  Another part of me wants to have the last word and say “See, this is not a conspiracy. This is bad behavior on the part of some 3,000+ county clerks.”

In the end, knowing the whole story is what I am after. Did this truly affect someone anyone knows? Did they make efforts to be able to vote in the next election no matter what? Do they need help from family members who are stateside in order to get their right to vote? Did the story that ran on Military.com make a difference at all?

You tell me.

 

 

 

 

The Unbearable Truth

What can you sleep with in the world?

Are there situations that are mildly bothersome or others that keep you up at night?

Some days when I watch the news, I get bothered and aggravated.

But the big issues that are getting my attention right now are Penn State and the Colorado  theater shooting.

Penn State supporters are crying foul over the results of the Louie Freed investigation. They are not sure if the investigation was done thoroughly enough. And the sanctions handed down by the NCAA seem overly punitive.

I guess losing $60 million, one year’s worth of income, along with $13 million that would have been received because of bowl game appearances seems like a lot of money. But keep in mind that this was money being earned for one single year. Paterno and other offiicials protected Sandusky since 1998 – that is thirteen years – so that their program would not get bad publicity and lose revenue.

13 x $73 million = $949 million

That is a lot of revenue. But compare that to the number of victims, compare that to the number of lives that were on the edge that were made more precarious. Sexual abuse is known to cause depression and other psychological  problems as an immature mind tries to rationalize what is happening.

We do not yet know the full number of victims but I am willing to guess that they do not think $949 million will ever make up for the pain this abuser caused those boys. What is apparent is that Joe Paterno knew his friend was doing bad and he is did nothing to stop it.

What has to hurt more, really stick in the craw of Penn State supporters is that Joe Pa knew. He knew about the 1998 investigation, he kept a close watch of it according to email records. The man who was hailed for running what was purported as one of the cleanest football programs turned out to be just the opposite.

He worked with local police to keep players out of jail. When workers at the college tried to do things the right way he had them fired. A janitor who witnessed abuse by Sandusky was terrified for his job if he talked about what he had seen.

These are FACTS that can be found in the Grand Jury indictment and the Freed report. I know there are people who question the validity of the former FBI director’s ability to really dig up information but who did you want to to the investigation instead? Mike Wallace?

Penn State supporters need to accept what has happened. Football became so big, so important that the lives of children were deemed disposable. A culture of deception was allowed to continue under the direction of a man whom the rest of the world thought was honorable.  If you accept these sanctions there is a chance Penn State could bounce back from this.

Otherwise, you look like a bunch of stooges who cannot accept the truth that your hero was a fraud. And that is not easy to accept.

Another set of stooges are the ones who honestly believe that the Colorado theater shooting could have been averted if guns were allowed into that theater, legally.

As most of us may know by now, Colorado is one of 49 states that allow conceal-and-carry gun ownership. Each state is different as to where they allow those guns and Colorado does not allow them in theaters. That particular theater company had signs posted stating no guns were allowed.

But let’s say there were guns allowed, for argument sake. Let’s imagine what might have happened. What if there were people carrying guns seated around the theater? How do you think it would have turned out?

With the smoke from the tear gas and people in various states of standing and sitting, it is my guess that it would have been difficult at best to train a shot on the shooter. I heard one person state on the radio “how hard would it have been? He was at the very front, he would have been illuminated by the screen.”

Maybe it would seem that way if the movie was projected from the back of the screen but movies are projected of the front from a window in the very back of the auditorium. The light would be on top of the shooter AND anyone else who was standing up. Now add in the smoke and jostling of the crowd.

Could you get a clean shot without being shot yourself or hurting another person?

Forget the arguments that we have become a cowardly people. Forget our gun culture or any conspiracy theories coming out. Think about that one question.

Think about that question in the context of random shooting, smoke and people moving you about. This is not a video game exercise or something that can be practiced at the shooting range. Could you do it and not hurt innocent people? What if you did kill a bystander in a shootout? Could you live with yourself?

How would you sleep at night?

 

Who Do The Snopes People Think They Are? Unbiased Reporters of Fact and Fiction?

Of all of the interesting stuff I have seen in regards to President Obama one of most perplexing out there is about Snopes.com.

For those of us who routinely get spam e-mail with bad information, Snopes.com has been useful in debunking the urban legends racing across the internet.

Image from snopes.com

I recently had it spat out at me that Snopes is funded by George Soros, a liberal rich guy who allegedly funds various outlets. Guess who started this one?

Wait for it!

One of our favorite conservative talkers – Glenn Beck. Or not.

Traces back to his show on May 31, 2010, Beck stated that Soros backs Snopes.com and therefore should not be trusted as this makes them a liberal shill. In the next statement, Beck states that he and his team uses Snopes.com all of the time for information, saying what a great resource Snopes can be.

Before that, Another source states this information as well in May 2010.  What this blogger fails to do is find out that Snopes co-founder Gregg Mikkelson is actually a register republican voter. And that his wife, Barbara is Canadian and ineligible to vote here. Truthorfiction.com found origins of the Snopes/Soros dating back to 2008.

The problem is there are many emails about Obama and what he said or did here or there. People who are politically opposed do not want to believe he is who he is. They can’t believe the paper work that is out there, the history that is out there. How can that not be his picture on a Columbia ID in a style that was not even used by Columbia before 1996.

According to the haters, Obama seemingly failed up the ladder after taking advantage of the affirmative action advantages available during his college years. And mixed in all of that are the fact checking sites which deny some of the crazier stuff.

So what have I found out? Media Matters is funded by Soros, Snopes is not. FactCheck is partially funded by Annenberg Foundation, whose head gave money to John McCain in his presidential run, but Snopes is not.  TruthOrFiction has verified that Snopes is who they say they say they are and not funded by Soros.

With that in mind I checked out how Snopes treated former President Bush. If they really are a liberal front, would they not make sure to print falsehoods about Bush such as using the word ‘feces’ instead of ‘fetus.’ Or holding a book upside down.

What I found is that Snopes was fair to Bush. Stories that would make him look like the village idiot or a racist were proven false. Some stories that put him high on a pedestal were proven false. And some that show him as a human with good qualities were proven true.

Then I checked to see what they have on Mitt Romney. Again, it looked pretty fair and balanced.

Snopes appears to tell the truth about democrats and republicans.

So what does that tell a person?

There must be a secret conspiracy somewhere. No media outlet could be that unbiased, could it?

 

 

When is a Blanket Just a Blanket?

While doing my morning skim of newspaper headlines and reading of any stories on interest, chances are I am going to be sucked into links of other stories.

One day last week I clicked onto Hospital Gives Newborns Handmade Blankets – Made by Prisoners! written by a Mary Fisher. The writer wanted to let us know that she felt this was the most disgusting idea to ever be hatched.

Imagine having prisoners do something useful, productive, that could benefit the community. This writer could only think in terms of how this was disgusting.

   “How cute and sweet do those blankets sound now? The idea of    wrapping your perfect little bundle of joy in something that   was created by a criminal is incredibly creepy. Newborn babies are the epitome of innocence, so the fact that they are being given something that was touched by prison inmates really kind of contradicts the whole birth experience.”

That’s right, we can rehabilitate those prisoners just so long as it never touches anyone. What about when Martha Stewart came out of her prison experience with a poncho made by a fellow prisoner? That set off a crafting craze as people wanted the pattern and exact yarn used to make Martha’s exit-wear.

So these prison inmates are crocheting blankets and hats and other items for newborns. Some of these families receiving these items may have nothing at all, others might be well equipped for a new baby. But learning a craft helps give a person focus. Combine that with knowing that the items are going to real people who will appreciate the items.

If that is not a powerful feeling for a person, I do not know what is.

According to The Republic  newspaper of Columbus, Indiana, there is one person to thank. Sister Dorothy Rasche of Connecting Link in West Terre Haute saw a need and was able to get donations of yarn to make the program possible. Some of the inmates are in for life while others have a limited sentence. I can only imagine what learning a simple craft can mean to someone. I cannot imagine how someone cannot see the good in it.

So I am wondering if Sister Dorothy needs more yarn for the project? I realize that there will always be people like Mary Fisher who sees this program as unseemly. But Jesus taught us that the least will be first and the first will be least. How wonderful that people who are the least in our society can help others.

How do you feel about a prison inmate making blankets, hats and toys for newborns?

Wagging the Dog

Sometimes when I watch the news and see what is going on, I have to admit I wonder what is the real story.

Picture by Grafixer

For the last few weeks, we have heard nothing but how birth control – and who pays for it – is a religious freedom. Women are not allowed to speak before the congressional hearing, only clergy who happen to be men. And Rush Limbaugh, in his infinite blast of nonsense, calls the female law student a slut, whore and prostitute because she wants to testify in the defence of birth control as a covered healthcare item. I wonder what that makes those men who take Viagra which is covered under most health insurance policies.

 See how easy it was to go into righteous indignation?

I am not saying birth control is not important. I am saying it is being used as a screen because the issue is so important to us. People are going to get fired up about birth control pills and devices – once again – being seen as a tool for easy sex and not how they help many women deal with endometriosis or heavy periods. Heck, some of the pharmaceuticals advertise that the pill does wonders for your skin.  

What we need to be asking is why this issue is being brought up – especially by the Republican party? What are they trying to hide?

I think the screen is coming up because the Republicans have no unifying voice and cannot find one presidential candidate to get behind. Mitt Romney is too rich and a Mormon. Rich Santorum has the looks but wants life to be the way it was in the 1950s. Newt Gingrich might have so good ideas but his baggage and bombastic personality is a turn off. Ron Paul, again with some good ideas, but who is he?

None of these guys seem to have that pizzazz, the touch with the regular guy, that sparkle that makes us want to follow him. Argue all you want about Herman Cain but his lack of foreign knowledge – and sexual baggage – made him a non-runner. Michelle Bachman was out of the race the day she promised gas prices back to under $2.00 a gallon. Rick Perry blew himself up by forgetting his own policy changes. Rick Pawlenti who?

The time before convention is shorter and shorter with no clear winner in sight. The GOP governor of Maine, Paul LePage, is calling for a dark horse to emerge during the convention that will take place in Tampa. The republicans need a superstar who can compete with Obama while setting forth an agenda the republican voters can rally behind.

Right now that is not happening. I am not sure why but they seem to want to alienate women voters the most. Every time I watch one of the candidates speak, they seem to try to push back time once more so that men are in control and women follow along. Guys, that is not going to happen anymore. Women have learned that a man will abandon them with kids who still need to be feed and clothed. Women have learned that they can support themselves and that a man completes their life, not make it. We don’t have to depend on you any more.

So the birth control screen is running rampant to help us not see those issues or forget the ones at the gas pump. A 70-cent increase in the last two weeks is going to kill those who have been struggling. But the possibility of having another child when that would wreak havoc with the family budget. Which is worse? That is a hard one but watching gas prices rise every other day is frustrating after you work your usage down, get a car with better mileage and give up the little extras because you need gas to get back and forth to work.

Want to get heated conversation going just ask “did you see how much gas is today?”  

We hear that it is Iran’s threats to block the shipping lanes is causing the higher gas prices. Another causal factor is greater demand around the world despite drop-offs of demand in the U.S. My favorite is that the speculators on Wall Street are causing the high prices as that one is the most logical. Then there are the industry insiders’ predictions of $5.00 a gallon by summer. Was that prophecy or just a way to prepare us for what the oil companies want to happen?

Picture by Karpati

I don’t have those answers but I do see a disturbing trend. When the bigger issue needs to be hidden, one that gets people’s’ ire going is brought to the forefront to take notice off the original issue. This is an old trick called “wagging the dog.”

So why is the dog being turned around? What is your theory?

 

 

I Say a Little Prayer For You…

Image by Kakisky

Now that the Biggee Game is over, we get to pick over the remains of the best ads, the worst plays and just what the hell Gisele Bundchen is thinking.

If you ask me, she looks like a wife who is concerned about her husband.

Last week one of the stories the press covered was the contents of an email in which she request that family members and close friends pray for Tom Brady, quarterback of the New England Patriots. She wants him to win and she wants prayers to make that happen.

First thing I want to know is who leaked the email. One story has her wondering the same thing as she states the email was only sent to  a small group of people.  I would not rest till I found out who was the leaker.

Secondly, I am wondering why she is getting crap for a private e-mail about praying that her husband does well at his job. How many of us wives do that at crunch time. Does the wife of a surgeon pray for him to be crappy at his job? Or a banker or accountant? I don’t think so. And how many of us pray for our husband’s safety at his job? Every time my husband says he is going ice fishing, I make sure to find out if he is going with someone.

While there have been too many athletes who make a big deal that God helped them win, too many who have thanked God giving their team the win, I think a wife asking for prays is a different thing. The former glorifies that person but the latter is a prayer for wellbeing.  When your husband comes home with a big ‘win’ at work, chances are it is better being with that person. And if he does not get hurt with a serious injury, that is even better.

The marriage vows say ‘for better or worse’ and if we can make it more better than worse, well then more power to that couple. I think Gisele was asking for the prayers in order to see her husband have continued success. For crying out loud, Brady is being compared to Joe Montana. What spouse would not want their husband to have another win under his belt to prove his greatness to the world?

Here is another thing to consider. The average lifespan of a football player ranges from 52 – 59 years of age. Perhaps her prayers were a desire for her husband to avoid a concussion. The NFL has been under fire for the amount of head injuries in the past year, and a number of players have pledged to have their brains studied upon their death in regards to the effects of concussions. Because I listen to more sports radio than a wife of a sports nut should, I routinely hear stories about former players who are suffering from brain injuries.  I routinely hear stories about how the NFL is changing rules to safeguard players.

So Gisele asked for prayers and support for her husband. She asked for positive vibes to come her husband’s way as he and his team prepared for the biggest game of the season, one that would determine contractual bonuses and endorsement deals. Maybe she just wanted that free trip to Disneyland for their family. Maybe she wanted a game to go well and his safety insured.

What I love is that she asked for prayers for her husband. In a portion of society that appears to push away faith as being ridiculous (look at how people make fun of Tim Tebow), it interests me that Gisele admits to praying and believing in a higher power. Maybe, just maybe, this will encourage others at her level to pray, to believe, to find a space in their heart for God.

And that should not be laughed at or dismissed.

Do you ask friends and family to pray for you or people in your life?

Where My Vote Is Not Going…

During the weekend, Newt Gingrich won the primary in South Carolina.

What does this do for the current election season?

In the short-term it makes the next primary a little more viable, it makes the primary that will happen in my state in the month of March possible relevant. Can I say I really hate our current primary system? While there is hope that the mid-March primary in the State of Illinois will have meaning, I honestly doubt that it will. The candidate will be solidified by then and our turn will not matter.

I once saw a schedule breaking up the U.S. in six parts which would make campaigning-traveling sense and even out numbers. The sections would be rotated so that no one section would have 1st vote dominance except when it is their turn to go first. Guess that is a dream.

The primary results also makes Newt Gingrich appear to be a viable candidate.

But the truth is, even if I was of a Republican bent, I could never vote for Newt.

Image from Wikipedia

I find the man despicable. The reason why comes before taking money from Freddie Mac in the role as a historian, before being the only Speaker of the House to have 80+ ethical violations. It comes before divorcing his second wife six months after she was diagnosed with a chronic illness and then marrying his mistress of the past six years.

My issues with Newt have everything to do with how he treated his first wife, Jackie. The story usually goes that he served her divorce papers as she lay dying with cancer. That is the one I have heard over the years. But the truth more disgusting than that.

Jackie had been diagnosed with uterine cancer. Even so, she campaigned for him and she worked hard as she had done throughout their marriage. Seven years older, she put Newt through school so he  eventually held a doctorate and become a college professor. They had two daughters together. When he decided to hold public office, she was there by his side.

But Jackie was not pretty or young enough. He wanted to run for president,  needing a ‘Jackie O’ by his side and not the frumpy woman who was his wife. He filed for divorce and right there on the papers dug up by CNN it states that she did not want the divorce. That part of the story is old news. There have always been male professionals who divorced the women who supported them through med school or whatnot.

So how does it get worse?

Jackie was not served divorce papers on her death-bed. Instead she was in the hospital after having a tumor removed. She was in her room when Newt and the girls stopped by to see how Jackie is recovering. She was still groggy from surgery when Newt pulls out a yellow pad with the terms of their divorce, demanding she sign it there and then. At least that is how the story goes from the original article in Mother Jones magazine in 1984 but FactCheck.org disputes based on accounts from three people in that hospital room.

But that is not the worst of it. The worst is when Jackie and the girls move back to their home in Carrollton. The house has no utilities, no heat, no water no electricity. Newt refuses to give Jackie any money to support the girls. Their home church held a food drive for the family, they asked members to donate money so Jackie and the girls can get back on their feet.

It is only when Jackie states she is going to take Newt to court that he relents. He gets everything up to date and must make monthly payments to Jackie. By making this legal agreement, he manages to avoid the jury trial Jackie had requested.

Why are the actions from a broken marriage 30 years ago relevant? Because this is a man who runs on a ‘family values’ platform. This is a man who judged Bill Clinton on his lack of ability to keep his business in his pants – publicly. This is a man who wants to judge you and me on our private lives. And yet his past behavior is vile and disgusting.

His role as a father should have been to make sure his children had a place to call home that was functional. They only had it after Newt was being taken to court. In my world, we call this kind of man a SCUMBAG. That is detailed in court records and something Newt or his daughter cannot deny. I find this behavior very hard to forgive.

Understand that this is a man who campaigns on ‘family values’ but does not live those values. This is a man who changes wives for younger models on a regular basis. This is a man who expects to call others on their deepest sins but gets upset when the tables are turned on him.

This is a man who will never receive my vote or respect.