A Christian View Of Racial Pride

by:  Dr. Brian James Shanley

08/26/2009

 

[THE FOLLOWING IS AN EXCERPT FROM THE TRANSCRIPT OF A LECTURE I GAVE ON SATURDAY, AUGUST 30TH, 2008 IN MINNEAPOLIS, MN.  THE SUBJECT WAS "AN INTRODUCTION TO BLACK SEPARATIST CULTS, SESSION # 6".  IT HAS BEEN OVER A YEAR.  I AM CURRENTLY TAKING THE TRANSCRIPTS AND PUTTING THEM INTO BOOK FORM.  DURING A QUESTION AND ANSWER PERIOD, I WAS CALLED UPON TO ANSWER A QUESTION THAT MANY WOULD RUN AWAY FROM.  HERE IS MY SMALL, HUMBLE ATTEMPT TO TACKLE THE ISSUE.]

 

“IS THERE A PROBLEM WITH ME BEING PROUD TO BE BLACK?”

     This is great handwriting, by the way!  I will answer that question.  Keep in mind that you’re asking what the secular world would classify as a “white dude“.  I’m going to give you my take as a minister.  Not as a white man.  Not as a black man.  But as a human being.  As a preacher.

     Is there a problem with you being proud to be black?  No.  There’s not a problem with that at all.  Should your whole self-esteem and self-image rest on that?  Should your skin color be the dominant thing that makes you who you are?  Should your skin color be the source of your identity?  I would say that this would be pretty dangerous.  And I don’t recommend falling into that way of thinking.

     But if you are from a long line of people who achieved something great, like you’d hear someone say “We come from a long line of good hockey players” or “I come from a family that has a lineage which is famous for such and such a thing“, there’s nothing wrong with acknowledging that great people have come before you with whom you share blood.  Grandpa built the aligator pit at the zoo or whatever.  No problem in pointing out that historical fact.

     There are times when you can enter into an area where this can be taken too far, however.  It can become dangerous.  Here are those times.

     #1  -  When you lean on it (your skin color and your heritage) to the point that your sole basis of self-esteem and your sole identity has to do with this external appearance and this group that you descend from.  If that’s the basis of your self-esteem, then you have no self-esteem.  If that’s the basis of your self-image, then you have no self-image.  What you have is a hollow sham.  And ultimately when the tough times of life come against you, you’re going to be in big trouble.  Most of the people who have this extreme mentality (that who I am is defined by my skin color, it is the source of my pride and my self-worth) end up going really crazy directions in life.  You’re putting too many eggs into the wrong basket.  You’re setting yourself up for a fall.

     #2  -  Being proud of being black (this principle can be applied to anyone of any external appearance) has the potential to become unhealthy in another instance as well, specifically when a pride in who you descend from or what you look like ends up producing a superiority complex.  When you enter into a way of thinking which says that, “Everybody who does not share this external appearance of who does not descend from my ancestry or who does not belong to my group of people is ontologically inferior to me“.  You might be thinking that this does not happen.  Oh, yeah.  I’ve seen it a thousand times.  Thinking that the sun rises and sets for you alone can infect the mind of a white person, a black person, or anybody.

     And to be honest, there are many instances in which the supplier of that arrogance is a religious leader.  It can be Farrakhan, Hitler, or the Grand Imperial Wizard of the KKK.  Hatred does not discriminate.  It can get to anyone of any ethnicity.  But usually the speeches or the writings of a black separatist cult leader gains an influence over someone’s mind and pushes him or her over the edge, taking them beyond pride and into an area of superiority and hatred.  At that point, it has went too far.  That’s why we’re dealing with the major cults that specifically target black folks in this series.  You need to be on alert so that you are not tricked or conned by either the devil or one of the devil’s ministers into becoming something that many people in this room’s parents and grand parents marched against in a previous generation.  A white hood is not the only clothing an evil racist wears.  Sometimes he wears a bow tie.  Or a leather hat.  Or a pinstripe suit.  Or a beret.  Or a medallion of Africa on it, with Marcus Garvey’s colors across it.  Evil comes in all packages, and Satan packages it in whatever will be the most attractive to the person he is trying to conquer.

     Becoming a supermacist with a superiority complex can become dangerous intellectually.  In the name of “I hate racism” and “I think racism is a bad thing that needs to be wiped off the map“, how are you going to respond to it?  By becoming a racist!  In logic, we call that self-refuting.  It’s like saying “I hate crime” and responding to it by committing crimes.  Or like saying “I hate theft” and answering the problem by stealing.  It’s hypocritical and self-defeating to answer a problem with itself.  If racism is such a bad thing and racists are so evil, then why respond to the problem by becoming a racist?  It doesn’t get much dumber than that, folks.  If racism is such a bad thing when a “white guy” is doing it to a “black guy“, then in order to remain consistent we must see racism as a bad thing universally, without regard to who the perpetrator is  -  even if the one doing it is a “black man“.  And even if the one being discriminated against is a “white man“.  If you are thinking straight, then you must be consistent and see racism as bad across the board.  But in the black separatist cults the followers are trained by their masters, prophets, bishops, brother ministers, and so forth to see racism as good, so long as it’s only one group of people (non-whites of any shade) doing it to another group of people (whites).  As long as the racist and the victim of the racism are the right color, it is applauded.  A person who accepts this way of thinking has fallen into a trap of Satan and become a racist. 

     But in answer to the question at hand, what the secular world would call “Black Pride” or “Black Consciousness” is a good thing.  It’s good to know that America has taken positive things from multiple cultures, be it Italian, Irish, German, or whatever.  This includes black.  The black population of America has brought just as much to the table as any other group.  For you to be aware of and point out to others the fact that black culture made valuable contributions to America in order to make it what it is in the world is totally fine.  I say it should be done, and maybe should even be done more than it currently is.

     #3  -  One of the other ways that danger can manifest itself through “Black Pride“, however, os when it is taken to the extreme.  When your “blackness“ in its extreme form conflicts your Christianity, it creates a struggle.  You have to decide.  When my blackness and my Christianity conflict, which one wins?  Which one gets to be the basis of my opinion on a particular subject?  Tragically, I have seen many a case in which a young brother or sister will encounter this very stuggle in their own lives, and his or her so-called “blackness” will win out.  He or she will choose an element of black culture that is clearly in contradiction with Scripture.  The excuse that will be provided is usually along the lines of “Hey, this is my people” or “This is my culture“.  To abandon what God who created the universe has said about a particular subject based on something as silly as “my culture” is a little on the lame side.  It leans a little in the direction of pathetic.

     So you’ve got to ask yourself the hard questions.  If your Christianity and your Black Pride contradict one another, do you have the courage to speak the truth about this aspect of what the secular world would call “black culture“?  Do you have the guts to choose the word of God over the word of man?  Do you have the strength to be a leader and not a follower?

     I have had to ask my own self similar hard questions down through the years.  The Roman Catholicism, the Celtic paganism, and other such things that my Irish family background have in them clearly contradict Christianity.  I never set Jesus aside for a leprechaun.  I never set the cross aside for a four-leaf clover.  I never tried witchcraft, superstition, or magic instead of the power of God’s Spirit.  I decided that, even though it was part of my family’s history and heritage, it was still false according to the word of God.  I had to shed off the family history of Popery, Maryolatry, saint statue worship, and wafer worship that Catholicism had trapped my ancestors in.  Jesus Christ is the only way to have a living relationship with God.  None of this other stuff is necessary.  In fact, much of it is very dangerous to a true understanding of the true Christian faith.

     Do you worship your culture to the point that you’re willing to allow it to interfere with your Christianity?  Are the customs of your great-great-grandparents chains keeping you in slavery to non-Christian ways of thinking and living?  I know that these are hard questions, folks.  They are tough to wrestle with, especially in today’s multi-culturalist world in which we are told that the fact that our ancestors made a hut in the desert out of rat and bird poop  with tools made out of sharpened rocks or something is THEE reason for us to believe that we are worth anything today in 2008.  Abandoning the position that your forefathers stood for is viewed almost as a crime against your own family.  You are seen as a traitor.

     There is a lot of pressure to stay in the box that previous generations have created for you.  I have friends who won’t leave their American Indian paganism or their Eastern Occultic religions for this very reason.  The feelings of guilt and obligation keep them held prisoner to a bankrupt, useless, and heathen non-Christian religion and culture.

     Do you have such feelings inside of you holding you back from accepting Jesus?  Was grandpa a Muslim, daddy a Muslim, and now you feel that considering anything else might be like spitting on them?

     Do you have feelings inside of you that stunt your spiritual growth?  Are you continually choosing ignorance, superstition, and paganism over Jesus Christ simply because of the position of your family and your community going back several generations?

     When you take on Black Pride in its most radical and extreme forms, you open yourself up to systems of belief, life practice, and ways of thinking that will keep both your soul and your intellect trapped in the dark ages.  You will be constantly called upon to take stands on issues that are non-Christian.  And sometimes you will be pressured to hold to positions that are even anti-Christian, as well as anti-American.  Peer pressure in these circles is very strong.  If you do not conform to the opinions of the movement on all issues, you risk being labeled as an Uncle Tom, a house nigger, or worse.

     Do you have the courage to be willing to be called these names and more for the name and honor of Jesus Christ?  Do you have the guts to stand for truth  -  even if it means standing alone?  Even if it means standing against people that you love and respect?  Even if it means people turning on you?

     While Paul was writing letters to the churches, he would refer to the Jews as his “brothers“ and “of my own race“ [ROMANS 9:3].  It is okay to acknowledge the brotherhood of the people with whom you share a common ancestry.  But as a Christian you ought to have a broader perspective on what the secular world would call “race relations” than non-Christian people.  Remember that because of Adam all human beings without regard to external appearance or geographical location have a common ancestry.  Thus, we are all brothers and sisters.

     Atheists deny Adam’s literal historical existence.  So on what basis do they preach racial integration, unity, and equality?  They have no basis.  They just sing “We Are The World“, light a candle, hold hands, and hug a tree.  This is why they never convince anybody, even themselves.  The human mind and the human heart are more thirsty than that.  It takes more to satisfy us.

     Christianity teaches that all human beings are brothers and sisters.  And I believe with everything that I have within me that it is the only world and life view which gives you a basis for pronouncing the man sitting next to you your brother.  He may be Hispanic or Latino, or Mexican, or whatever.  He’s your brother.  He may be Chinese or Asian.  He’s your brother.    He may be black.  He’s your brother.  He may be white.  He’s your brother.  He may be blue, a Smurf.  He’s your brother.  The only philosophical or belief system out there that leads you to say that without either seriously contradicting yourself of flat-out lying (like the secular diversity / tolerance movements and things) is evangelical protestant Christianity.  When my view of you have been radically transformed so that I no longer look at you and see a racial distinction between you and me.

     Don’t get me wrong now.  I’m not talking about producing a false blindness.  I’d see your external appearance.  I’ll see that your skin is black in the same way that you can observe my hair being light brown, or that I have Nikes on.  Refusing to make an ontological racial distinction is not the same thing as ignoring someone’s physical description.

     The Star Tribune has no business saying, “The bank was robbed by a male approx. 235 lbs.” and leaving out his skin color for fear of being labeled as racist.  Tell the whole truth.  Show the mug shot.  Don’t tell me to look for a 235 lb. man.  That does not exactly narrow it down.

     And to my black brothers or sisters in here, which is everybody pretty much except me, don’t be offended when the news points out what a robber or whatever looks like.  The news ain’t saying it was you personally.  When they say it was a white man in his early 30’s, I don’t fly off the handle and get offended.  Do you know why?  Because I know that I personally did not do it.  You need to take the same kind of comfort in the knowledge of the fact that the article or the report is not about you.  It is about the criminal.  He needs to be caught before he hurts someone else in the community.  But he is not going to be caught if the public does not know the full physical description of what he looks like.

     But people think that ignoring someone’s outward appearance is the same as not being racist.  And observing outward appearance is on the same level as being racist.  This is stupid and irrational.

     I have encountered many a white liberal who has said some lie along the lines of, “I didn’t even pay attention to the person’s appearance.”.  Yes you did, idiot.  How many of you have heard them say something like this?  They think that acknowleding that a person has red hair, a Bulls sweater, or black skin is somehow discriminatory.  No.  It’s called paying attention to the person you are talking to.  Being observant.  They think that pretending to be non-observant is going to win them some brownie points with the black community or something.  Lame, lame, lame.

     Myself and my wife were talking to a white liberal homosexual male.  Somehow or another the idea that she (my wife) was black came up.  Do you know what his response was to the very mention of a non-white physical description?  I kid you not.  Are you ready?  He said to her, “I didn’t even notice that you were black until you told me just now.“  Really?  You weren’t looking her in the face?  Jackass!

     The world is full of people like this.  They are so fake that it boggles the mind.  I cannot stand people like this.  They are so tough to deal with, because they live in a fantasy fake world.  They are so stupid that they cannot see how transparent this behavior and speech is to all.  Who do they think that they are kidding?  The only one that they fool are themselves.

     The white liberal crap that you see and hear in the secular workplace, at the diversity seminars, in the schools, on the TV, in the secular universities, on MSNBC, that is all fake!  Do you hear me?  Fake!  Liars.  A sham.

     Reciting a bunch of one-liners, soundbites, slogans, and catch-phrases doesn’t change people’s hearts.  The hippee drug addict message of the 1960’s doesn’t produce brotherhood among the human race.  Brotherhood among the human race is produced by The Gospel!

     The Gospel produces an attitude of, “Hey!  This guy sitting next to me is a human being who has been made in the image and likeness of the God I love  -  the God who saved me.  Externally, do we look a little bit different?  Yeah.  I’d be foolish and a liar to say that I did not notice it.  But do you know what?  Those external differences are no different than me having a 6th toe, or you having a belly button that is an outie, or my neighbor having a longer middle finger, or whatever.  That is how insignificant our difference in skin color actually is.“

     Christianity is the only belief system or way of thinking that will revolutionize your mind in this way.  It is the only way of seeing the world that will wake you up to the reality of humankind’s unity and equality.  Everything else will make you sleep on this beautiful truth, and you’ll either end up missing it or (even worse) you’ll end up being taught the polar opposite by a crooked cult leader or community activist / race hustler.

     The black separatist cults that we are confronting in this series are a prime example of someone seeking to take us away from the truth about humankind’s unity and equality.  They want separatism and supremacy.  Their leaders crack me up.  They are idiots who make me laugh when they vomit out their tired old saying, “I’m trying to wake black people up!“.  Then why are you putting them to sleep?  Dummy.

     Whenever you hear the phrase, “I’m trying to wake up the black community” or “Joe Blow on the corner is trying to wake up the black community” or “I’m following Jimmy X from around the way because he’s trying to wake up the black community” or ”Tommy Shabazz who works at McDonald’s is trying to wake black folks up“, let that phrase or others like it be forever etched into your mind as a red flag phrase.  The moment that you hear it, an alarm inside of you should be sounding an alarm which puts you on high alert and vigilant cult watch.  If you’re not at that place in your spiritual discernment yet, get there as quickly as you can.  Time is not on your side in these evil days, brothers and sisters.  The wolves are moving in quickly, devouring sheep daily.  You and your family are their desired prey.

     What they really need to do is admit that in the name of “I’m waking black people up“, they’re actually putting them to sleep.  How?  By changing they way that black folks think and turning them into blind, unquestioning robots who are hateful anti-white racists.  But you’ll never hear the black separatist / supremacist cult leader confess this because the cash cow would be interferred with.  Their power over people’s lives and over the community would disappear.  And they can’t have that.

     Christianity will set you free from their enslavement.  It will wake you up in the true sense of the phrase, and allow you to see the man sitting next to you for who he really is  -  your brother.

     The true message that will awaken the black community is the message of the cross.  Can you imagine this neighborhood breaking out into a huge revival?  I get excited just thinking about it.

     Anyway, that is just the preacher in me.  I don’t know when to shut up once I start flowing.  And if you ask a question, sometimes you have to tolerate a long-winded answer.  Consider your question the red cape, and consider me the bull.  You just got the horns.  But I hope something was said that helps you along your journey.

 

DR. BRIAN JAMES SHANLEY

 

[THIS IS JUST ONE EXCERPT OF AN ENTIRE LECTURE.  AND THAT LECTURE IS JUST ONE SESSION IN AN ENTIRE SERIES.]

[FOR A FULLER TREATMENT OF THE SUBJECTS COVERED HERE AND MORE, CONSULT MY FORTHCOMING BOOK, "THE TRICKNOLOGY OF THE DEVIL, VOLUME 6"]

[THE TRANSCRIPTS WILL ALSO APPEAR IN A SINGLE-VOLUME ENTITLED "DROPPING SCIENCE".]

[AN ADBRIDGED, EDITED-FOR-TIME VERSION OF THE SERIES IS AVAILABLE ON THE AUDIO CD SERIES, "AN INTRODUCTION TO BLACK SEPARATIST CULTS"]

 

[THE WORLD, THE FLESH, THE DEVIL, AND THE APOSTATE CHURCH WOULD LOVE TO SCARE US INTO SILENCE AND KEEP US FROM HONEST AND OPEN DIALOGUE ABOUT THE ISSUES OF THE DAY.  MAY GOD EMBOLDEN US TO EXCHANGE IDEAS IN BROTHERLY LOVE.]

Woman Waiting For Abortion Dr. To Enter Room Accidentally Gives Birth While Waiting; Live Newborn Placed In Plastic Bag And Tossed Into The Trash

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29037216/

 

Doctor investigated in badly botched abortion

 

Woman waiting for procedure gives birth; baby placed in bag, thrown out

 

TAMPA, Fla. – Eighteen and pregnant, Sycloria Williams went to an abortion clinic outside Miami and paid $1,200 for Dr. Pierre Jean-Jacque Renelique to terminate her 23-week pregnancy.

Three days later, she sat in a reclining chair, medicated to dilate her cervix and otherwise readied for the procedure.

Only Renelique didn’t arrive in time. According to Williams and the Florida Department of Health, she went into labor and delivered a live baby girl.

What Williams and the Health Department say happened next has shocked people on both sides of the abortion debate: One of the clinic’s owners, who has no medical license, cut the infant’s umbilical cord. Williams says the woman placed the baby in a plastic biohazard bag and threw it out.

Police recovered the decomposing remains in a cardboard box a week later after getting anonymous tips.

“I don’t care what your politics are, what your morals are, this should not be happening in our community,” said Tom Pennekamp, a Miami attorney representing Williams in her lawsuit against Renelique and the clinic owners.

Hearings and allegations
The state Board of Medicine is to hear Renelique’s case in Tampa on Friday and determine whether to strip his license. The state attorney’s homicide division is investigating, though no charges have been filed. Terry Chavez, a spokeswoman with the Miami-Dade County State Attorney’s Office, said this week that prosecutors were nearing a decision.

Renelique’s attorney, Joseph Harrison, called the allegations at best “misguided and incomplete” in an e-mail to The Associated Press. He didn’t provide details.

The case has riled the anti-abortion community, which contends the clinic’s actions constitute murder.

“The baby was just treated as a piece of garbage,” said Tom Brejcha, president of The Thomas More Society, a law firm that is also representing Williams. “People all over the country are just aghast.”

Those who support abortion rights are concerned about the allegations.

“It really disturbed me,” said Joanne Sterner, president of the Broward County chapter of the National Organization for Women, after reviewing the administrative complaint against Renelique. “I know that there are clinics out there like this. And I hope that we can keep (women) from going to these types of clinics.”

Malpractice payments
According to state records, Renelique received his medical training at the State University of Haiti. In 1991, he completed a four-year residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Interfaith Medical Center in New York.

New York records show that Renelique has made at least five medical malpractice payments in the past decade, the circumstances of which were not detailed in the filings.

Several attempts to reach Renelique were unsuccessful. Some of his office numbers were disconnected, no home number could be found and he did not return messages left with his attorney.

Williams struggled with the decision to have an abortion, Pennekamp said. She declined an interview request made through him.

She concluded she didn’t have the resources or maturity to raise a child, he said, and went to the Miramar Women’s Center on July 17, 2006. Sonograms indicated she was 23 weeks pregnant, according to the Department of Health. She met Renelique at a second clinic two days later.

 Renelique gave Williams laminaria, a drug that dilates the cervix, and prescribed three other medications, according to the administrative complaint filed by the Health Department. She was told to go to yet another clinic, A Gyn Diagnostic Center in Hialeah, where the procedure would be performed the next day, on July 20, 2006.

Williams arrived in the morning and was given more medication.

The Department of Health account continues as follows: Just before noon she began to feel ill. The clinic contacted Renelique. Two hours later, he still hadn’t shown up. Williams went into labor and delivered the baby.

“She came face to face with a human being,” Pennekamp said. “And that changed everything.”

 

Investigation under way
The complaint says one of the clinic owners, Belkis Gonzalez came in and cut the umbilical cord with scissors, then placed the baby in a plastic bag, and the bag in a trash can.

Williams’ lawsuit offers a cruder account: She says Gonzalez knocked the baby off the recliner chair where she had given birth, onto the floor. The baby’s umbilical cord was not clamped, allowing her to bleed out. Gonzalez scooped the baby, placenta and afterbirth into a red plastic biohazard bag and threw it out.

No working telephone number could be found for Gonzalez, and an attorney who has represented the clinic in the past did not return a message.

At 23 weeks, an otherwise healthy fetus would have a slim but legitimate chance of survival. Quadruplets born at 23 weeks last year at The Nebraska Medical Center survived.

An autopsy determined Williams’ baby — she named her Shanice — had filled her lungs with air, meaning she had been born alive, according to the Department of Health. The cause of death was listed as extreme prematurity.

The Department of Health believes Renelique committed malpractice by failing to ensure that licensed personnel would be present when Williams was there, among other missteps.

The department wants the Board of Medicine, a separate agency, to permanently revoke Renelique’s license, among other penalties. His license is currently restricted, permitting him to only perform abortions when another licensed physician is present and can review his medical records.

Should prosecutors file murder charges, they’d have to prove the baby was born alive, said Robert Batey, a professor of criminal law at Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport. The defense might contend that the child would have died anyway, but most courts would not allow that argument, he said.

“Hastening the death of an individual who is terminally ill is still considered causing the death of that individual,” Batey said. “And I think a court would rule similarly in this type of case.”

 

 

B.H.O.’s 1st Press Interview Following His Presidential Election: Not Surprisingly, It Goes To Al-Araybia’s Hisham Helhem

Q Mr. President, thank you for this opportunity, we really appreciate it.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you so much.

Q Sir, you just met with your personal envoy to the Middle East, Senator Mitchell. Obviously, his first task is to consolidate the cease-fire. But beyond that you’ve been saying that you want to pursue actively and aggressively peacemaking between the Palestinians and the Israelis. Tell us a little bit about how do you see your personal role, because, you know, if the President of the United States is not involved, nothing happens — as the history of peacemaking shows. Will you be proposing ideas, pitching proposals, parameters, as one of your predecessors did? Or just urging the parties to come up with their own resolutions, as your immediate predecessor did?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think the most important thing is for the United States to get engaged right away. And George Mitchell is somebody of enormous stature. He is one of the few people who have international experience brokering peace deals.

And so what I told him is start by listening, because all too often the United States starts by dictating — in the past on some of these issues — and we don’t always know all the factors that are involved. So let’s listen. He’s going to be speaking to all the major parties involved. And he will then report back to me. From there we will formulate a specific response.

Ultimately, we cannot tell either the Israelis or the Palestinians what’s best for them. They’re going to have to make some decisions. But I do believe that the moment is ripe for both sides to realize that the path that they are on is one that is not going to result in prosperity and security for their people. And that instead, it’s time to return to the negotiating table.

And it’s going to be difficult, it’s going to take time. I don’t want to prejudge many of these issues, and I want to make sure that expectations are not raised so that we think that this is going to be resolved in a few months. But if we start the steady progress on these issues, I’m absolutely confident that the United States — working in tandem with the European Union, with Russia, with all the Arab states in the region — I’m absolutely certain that we can make significant progress.

Q You’ve been saying essentially that we should not look at these issues — like the Palestinian-Israeli track and separation from the border region — you’ve been talking about a kind of holistic approach to the region. Are we expecting a different paradigm in the sense that in the past one of the critiques — at least from the Arab side, the Muslim side — is that everything the Americans always tested with the Israelis, if it works. Now there is an Arab peace plan, there is a regional aspect to it. And you’ve indicated that. Would there be any shift, a paradigm shift?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, here’s what I think is important. Look at the proposal that was put forth by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia –

Q Right.

THE PRESIDENT: I might not agree with every aspect of the proposal, but it took great courage –

Q Absolutely.

THE PRESIDENT: — to put forward something that is as significant as that. I think that there are ideas across the region of how we might pursue peace.

I do think that it is impossible for us to think only in terms of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and not think in terms of what’s happening with Syria or Iran or Lebanon or Afghanistan and Pakistan. These things are interrelated. And what I’ve said, and I think Hillary Clinton has expressed this in her confirmation, is that if we are looking at the region as a whole and communicating a message to the Arab world and the Muslim world, that we are ready to initiate a new partnership based on mutual respect and mutual interest, then I think that we can make significant progress.

Now, Israel is a strong ally of the United States. They will not stop being a strong ally of the United States. And I will continue to believe that Israel’s security is paramount. But I also believe that there are Israelis who recognize that it is important to achieve peace. They will be willing to make sacrifices if the time is appropriate and if there is serious partnership on the other side.

And so what we want to do is to listen, set aside some of the preconceptions that have existed and have built up over the last several years. And I think if we do that, then there’s a possibility at least of achieving some breakthroughs.

Q I want to ask you about the broader Muslim world, but let me — one final thing about the Palestinian-Israeli theater. There are many Palestinians and Israelis who are very frustrated now with the current conditions and they are losing hope, they are disillusioned, and they believe that time is running out on the two-state solution because — mainly because of the settlement activities in Palestinian-occupied territories. Will it still be possible to see a Palestinian state — and you know the contours of it — within the first Obama administration?

THE PRESIDENT: I think it is possible for us to see a Palestinian state — I’m not going to put a time frame on it — that is contiguous, that allows freedom of movement for its people, that allows for trade with other countries, that allows the creation of businesses and commerce so that people have a better life.

And, look, I think anybody who has studied the region recognizes that the situation for the ordinary Palestinian in many cases has not improved. And the bottom line in all these talks and all these conversations is, is a child in the Palestinian Territories going to be better off? Do they have a future for themselves? And is the child in Israel going to feel confident about his or her safety and security? And if we can keep our focus on making their lives better and look forward, and not simply think about all the conflicts and tragedies of the past, then I think that we have an opportunity to make real progress.

But it is not going to be easy, and that’s why we’ve got George Mitchell going there. This is somebody with extraordinary patience as well as extraordinary skill, and that’s what’s going to be necessary.

Q Absolutely. Let me take a broader look at the whole region. You are planning to address the Muslim world in your first 100 days from a Muslim capital. And everybody is speculating about the capital. (Laughter.) If you have anything further, that would be great.

How concerned are you — because, let me tell you, honestly, when I see certain things about America — in some parts, I don’t want to exaggerate — there is a demonization of America.

THE PRESIDENT: Absolutely.

Q It’s become like a new religion, and like a new religion it has new converts — like a new religion has its own high priests.

THE PRESIDENT: Right.

Q It’s only a religious text.

THE PRESIDENT: Right.

Q And in the last — since 9/11 and because of Iraq, that alienation is wider between the Americans and — and in generations past, the United States was held high. It was the only Western power with no colonial legacy.

THE PRESIDENT: Right.

Q How concerned are you and — because people sense that you have a different political discourse. And I think, judging by (inaudible) and Zawahiri and Osama bin Laden and all these, you know — a chorus –

THE PRESIDENT: Yes, I noticed this. They seem nervous.

Q They seem very nervous, exactly. Now, tell me why they should be more nervous?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think that when you look at the rhetoric that they’ve been using against me before I even took office –

Q I know, I know.

THE PRESIDENT: — what that tells me is that their ideas are bankrupt. There’s no actions that they’ve taken that say a child in the Muslim world is getting a better education because of them, or has better health care because of them.

In my inauguration speech, I spoke about: You will be judged on what you’ve built, not what you’ve destroyed. And what they’ve been doing is destroying things. And over time, I think the Muslim world has recognized that that path is leading no place, except more death and destruction.

Now, my job is to communicate the fact that the United States has a stake in the well-being of the Muslim world, that the language we use has to be a language of respect. I have Muslim members of my family. I have lived in Muslim countries.

Q The largest one.

THE PRESIDENT: The largest one, Indonesia. And so what I want to communicate is the fact that in all my travels throughout the Muslim world, what I’ve come to understand is that regardless of your faith — and America is a country of Muslims, Jews, Christians, non-believers — regardless of your faith, people all have certain common hopes and common dreams.

And my job is to communicate to the American people that the Muslim world is filled with extraordinary people who simply want to live their lives and see their children live better lives. My job to the Muslim world is to communicate that the Americans are not your enemy. We sometimes make mistakes. We have not been perfect. But if you look at the track record, as you say, America was not born as a colonial power, and that the same respect and partnership that America had with the Muslim world as recently as 20 or 30 years ago, there’s no reason why we can’t restore that. And that I think is going to be an important task.

But ultimately, people are going to judge me not by my words but by my actions and my administration’s actions. And I think that what you will see over the next several years is that I’m not going to agree with everything that some Muslim leader may say, or what’s on a television station in the Arab world — but I think that what you’ll see is somebody who is listening, who is respectful, and who is trying to promote the interests not just of the United States, but also ordinary people who right now are suffering from poverty and a lack of opportunity. I want to make sure that I’m speaking to them, as well.

Q Tell me, time is running out, any decision on from where you will be visiting the Muslim world?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I’m not going to break the news right here.

Q Afghanistan?

THE PRESIDENT: But maybe next time. But it is something that is going to be important. I want people to recognize, though, that we are going to be making a series of initiatives. Sending George Mitchell to the Middle East is fulfilling my campaign promise that we’re not going to wait until the end of my administration to deal with Palestinian and Israeli peace, we’re going to start now. It may take a long time to do, but we’re going to do it now. We’re going to follow through on our commitment for me to address the Muslim world from a Muslim capital. We are going to follow through on many of my commitments to do a more effective job of reaching out, listening, as well as speaking to the Muslim world.

And you’re going to see me following through with dealing with a drawdown of troops in Iraq, so that Iraqis can start taking more responsibility. And finally, I think you’ve already seen a commitment, in terms of closing Guantanamo, and making clear that even as we are decisive in going after terrorist organizations that would kill innocent civilians, that we’re going to do so on our terms, and we’re going to do so respecting the rule of law that I think makes America great.

Q President Bush framed the war on terror conceptually in a way that was very broad, “war on terror,” and used sometimes certain terminology that the many people — Islamic fascism. You’ve always framed it in a different way, specifically against one group called al Qaeda and their collaborators. And is this one way of –

THE PRESIDENT: I think that you’re making a very important point. And that is that the language we use matters. And what we need to understand is, is that there are extremist organizations — whether Muslim or any other faith in the past — that will use faith as a justification for violence. We cannot paint with a broad brush a faith as a consequence of the violence that is done in that faith’s name.

And so you will I think see our administration be very clear in distinguishing between organizations like al Qaeda — that espouse violence, espouse terror and act on it — and people who may disagree with my administration and certain actions, or may have a particular viewpoint in terms of how their countries should develop. We can have legitimate disagreements but still be respectful. I cannot respect terrorist organizations that would kill innocent civilians and we will hunt them down.

But to the broader Muslim world what we are going to be offering is a hand of friendship.

Q Can I end with a question on Iran and Iraq then quickly?

THE PRESIDENT: It’s up to the team –

MR. GIBBS: You have 30 seconds. (Laughter.)

Q Will the United States ever live with a nuclear Iran? And if not, how far are you going in the direction of preventing it?

THE PRESIDENT: You know, I said during the campaign that it is very important for us to make sure that we are using all the tools of U.S. power, including diplomacy, in our relationship with Iran.

Now, the Iranian people are a great people, and Persian civilization is a great civilization. Iran has acted in ways that’s not conducive to peace and prosperity in the region: their threats against Israel; their pursuit of a nuclear weapon which could potentially set off an arms race in the region that would make everybody less safe; their support of terrorist organizations in the past — none of these things have been helpful.

But I do think that it is important for us to be willing to talk to Iran, to express very clearly where our differences are, but where there are potential avenues for progress. And we will over the next several months be laying out our general framework and approach. And as I said during my inauguration speech, if countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fist, they will find an extended hand from us.

Q Shall we leave Iraq next interview, or just –

MR. GIBBS: Yes, let’s — we’re past, and I got to get him back to dinner with his wife.

Q Sir, I really appreciate it.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you so much.

Q Thanks a lot.

THE PRESIDENT: I appreciate it.

Q Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you.

[PROVIDED TO THE PRESS BY THE WHITEHOUSE]

Singing Group Makes Video Using “THE KARATE KID” As A Theme

Fri. 01-16-2009

www.sweeptheleg.com

Pat Morita is gone, but it is good to see Ralph Macchio and much of the original cast again!

You need to click on the link and watch this video.  It’s very funny, and pretty well done.

 

BJS

MSN Sports Article: Kurt Warner’s Faith In Jesus Christ Motivated Him To Lead The Arizona Cardinals To The NFC Championship Game

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/9084852/Faith-driving-Warner-in-another-Super-Bowl-pursuit?MSNHPHMA

 

This article is not religious in nature.  It is from the sports section.  But it makes a good observation about how an athlete’s belief in SOMETHING or SOMEONE sacred, higher than themself, can provide energy and drive that those who lack a religious world and life view do not have.

I thought it was interesting.

Shanley On The TV Show “American Idol”

Wednes. 01-14-2009

There is no motive to want to be on it or win it. Who walks around playing Fantasia’s CD? Who walks around singing one of Reuben Studdard’s songs? The only winners to ever make a dent into the culture are Kelly Clarkson and the blonde country chick (I don’t know her name).

So since this is the absolute top possibility for the winner, who cares about watching it? So someone can win and everybody forget their name in a few years?

The show was over a long time ago.

That is my “take”.

List Of Audio CD’s Available

AUDIO CD’s

 

01.  09/11:  The 4-Year Anniversary

02.  09/11:  The 5-Year Anniversary

03.  Can A Christian Go To The Movies?

04.  Charting The Course

05.  Confronting Prosperity Theology, Disc 1

06.  Confronting Prosperity Theology, Disc 2

07.  Confronting Prosperity Theology, Disc 3

08.  Confronting Prosperity Theology, Disc 4

09.  Confronting Prosperity Theology, Disc 5

10.  Council Of Nicea, The

11.  Course In Theology, A

12.  Dare To Tell The Truth (No Matter What)

13.  Holding On During Times Of Persecution

14.  Messenger Of YHWH, Disc I

15.  Messenger Of YHWH, Disc II

16.  Minneapolis Bible Class, 11/17/2007:  The Christian On Mars Hill

17.  Minneapolis Bible Class, 12/01/2007:  Killing 2 Birds With One Stone

18.  Minneapolis Bible Class, 12/15/2007:  The Unanswerable Argument

19.  Minneapolis Bible Class, 03/15/2008:  Black Separatist Cults Part I

20.  Minneapolis Bible Class, 04/19/2008:  Black Separatist Cults Part II

21.  Minneapolis Bible Class, 05/30/2008:  Black Separatist Cults Part III

22.  Minneapolis Bible Class, 06/28/2008:  Black Separatist Cults Part IV

23.  Minneapolis Bible Class, 07/26/2008:  Black Separatist Cults Part V

24.  Now Is The Time To Accept The Truth

25.  Shanley & Kidd

26.  Shanley Under Fire Disc I

27.  Shanley Under Fire Disc II

28.  Shanley Under Fire Disc III

29.  Trinity Under Attack, The

30.  Trinity Under Attack II

31.  Truth Divides

 

 

 

 

NORMALLY  =  $10.00 ea.

 

THE ECONOMY IS REALLY BAD

SPECIAL PRICING:  $5.00 ea.

MOVIE REVIEW: “EXPELLED: NO INTELLIGENCE ALLOWED”

Tues. 01/06/2009

The documentary “Expelled” is out on DVD and Blu Ray now. I have checked it out, and am going to share my observations and thoughts with those who care to see them.

The film is narrated and hosted by Ben Stein. He is best known as the high school teacher in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” who continually repeats himself: “Anyone? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?”. Everyone has copied this line and used it in their own comedy. Right? Don’t tell me I am the only one that steals that line.

Anyway, the film is a documentary that is seeking to communicate the message that academic freedom in our institutions of learning is being suppressed by those in charge. The freedom to hold to your own views could potentially bring about consequences, such as the loss of your job and the destruction of your reputation. The students are taught dogmatically that Darwinian evolution is the ONLY acceptable philosophy. If you observe a hole or an inconsistency in the theory, pretend that you do not see it. Ask no questions of it. Offer no criticisms of it. Just blindly receive it by faith. A comparison is made between this method of teaching and the indoctrination camps of some pretty bloody regimes in world history.

The film shows excerpts of interviews with university professors who have been terminated because they have, while teaching biology or a related subject, pointed out in passing that Darwin’s theory is not without some very serious problems. They went on to instruct their young people as to what those problems are specifically. Because they have done the duty of making the students aware of the existence of these issues, steps were taken to silence their voices. Thus, the information that students have access to is being restricted by the powers that be in the world of academia.

There are also excerpts of interviews with well-known professors and thinkers who are devout anti-theists. These interviews are very revealing, because you can see that the forwarding of this very shaky theory (Darwinism) is energized and pushed forward by some strong underlying philosophies and presuppositions. The terminology that they use about Creation Science and the people that hold to it is absolutely nasty. I’ll put it to you like this: If such wording was used about any other group of people, these folks would be viewed as bigoted and in need of tolerance education and diversity training. But since it is used of Intelligent Design people, it is acceptable in their eyes.

As far as they are concerned, religious people are like big children who never stopped believing in goblins, ghoulies, elves, leprechauns, etc. They clearly hold to a Platonic dichotomy or distinction – a wall of separation – which separates the realm of the religious from the realm of science. They hold to ideas that religion and science are mutually exclusive. In their eyes you can be a man of one, or a man of the other. But you cannot be a man of both simultaneously.

One of the more powerful scenes is when Stein (who is Jewish) visiting a concentration camp that has since become a museum and memorial. An interview with a lady there reveals how commonly known it is outside of America in other places that Hitler and his Naziistic philosophy owe a great deal to Darwinian evolution and philosophical naturalism. The holocaust was Germany living out “The Origin of the Species” to its fullest conclusion. The liquidation of the “unfit” so that the “fit” could survive and move humankind forward was one of the dominant ideas in Hitler’s “Mien Kampf”

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Mein-Kampf/Adolf-Hitler/e/9780395925034/?itm=1

He was seeking to help humankind evolve to the next level by inserting himself into the process and pushing it along. Thus, Darwinism has an unpaid bill of 6 million lives according to the thesis of this film.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_darwinism

The link is shown between Nazi eugenics in Germany and Planned Parenthood in America. It does highlight how Margaret Sanger, Planned Parenthood’s founder, wanted to get involved with and restrict the reproductive rights of those whom she viewed as “unfit to breed”. Again, Darwinism being applied to daily life as a philosophy. In this film, Darwinism as a world and life view takes you down the road to a very dark place filled with abortion, infanticide, and euthanasia.

The movie has both pros and cons.

The pros are #1 that after having to endure documentaries by the likes of Michael Moore and such, finally a documentary is out there that has taken time to get its facts right. Finally there is a documentary whose goal is to build up as opposed to tear down.

#2 I can tell that money was spent on it, as Ben Stein often travels to different states and even to different countries to interview authorities on this subject.

#3 I feel that the message, which is a call to action – it is a call to question and a call to think – is very relevant in our time in which education has become little more than indoctrination. Kids who question the status quo usually wind up in detention until they either conform or keep quiet. There is a mass exodus taking place as more parents become hip to this and rush to get their kids into home schooling and private school.

#4 Getting a movie like this into the mainstream box office is a coup, especially in a Hollywood dominated by socialists, one world multi-culturalists, and homosexuals.

#5 Ben Stein is to be applauded for his courage. He has put his career on the line. He is now a marked man, sure to be black-listed in many circles in which he once enjoyed membership. He has put convictions before reputation, and is willing to become unpopular for those convictions.

The cons are that #1 For those who have been familiar with the Naturalism / Supernaturalism or Creation / Evolution debate down through the years, there is not much new here. We have heard or experienced anti-theistic bigotry in education and employment before. We have read of the link between Darwin, Hitler, Stalin, etc. before. We have seen the weaknesses of Darwinian theory before. We have seen atheists and evolutionists turn red, shout, and become emotional about this before – all while calling us irrational. We have lived that many times over. In other words, while it put in film format some of the things we have always known about and experienced, not much new ground has been broken. But through the eyes of someone who has never seen this before, this film might look different than it did to me.

#2 One cannot control how a discussion unfolds or develops. So this was not within the realm of the filmmaker’s control. But I am just throwing it out there. There is a lot of use of specific jargon and terminology that only those who have read up on this subject will understand. But to those who are looking at this subject for the first time, since no effort is ever made to define these terms, it may be difficult for the average Joe to follow at times. This will limit the movie’s appeal to a niche crowd, those specifically trained with knowledge of the terminology involved. In other words, the film is not at the level of “Beginner”. It is at the level of “Intermediate”. So “Beginners” at this subject may be lost at times during their viewing of this film. A kindergartener cannot do algebra because they have not yet worked their way up to that point.

Overall, I give this film my recommendation. It brings things to the forefront that people are thinking about but are afraid to talk about. It encourages open dialogue, against the current way of doing things which seeks to silence open dialogue and force-feed people only one view. It is polarizing. You will either really love and feel inspired by it, or you will violently oppose all that it stands for and be angered by it. But if you are a student of the issues involved in Creationism vs. Evolution, or if you are a student of civil rights and academic freedom, this is a can’t miss movie.

As far as documentaries go, is it the best one that I have ever seen?  No.  But it ranks right up there!

 

 

bjshanley@hotmail.com

 

http://www.amazon.com/Expelled-Intelligence-Allowed-Ben-Stein/dp/B001BYLFFS/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1231263246&sr=8-1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DVD – SHANLEY VS. MUHAMMAD: THE DEBATE THAT NEVER HAPPENED

Tues. 01-06-2009

In response to the number of emails I have gotten about my August 2008 proposed debate with Terry Muhammad of the Nation of Islam, let me just briefly address the most frequently asked questions:

#1, No, Terry Muhammad did not show up. He was told by the hierarchy in the Nation of Islam that he was forbidden to debate me. NOI ministers are puppets, and the headquarters in Chicago pulls the strings.

#2, Yes, I still went onto the talk show and addressed the Nation of Islam as a religion. Some mild opposition was provided by a panel, but it was not the debate that the people had been promised.

#3, No, it is not yet available on DVD. To be honest, the show has yet to give me a copy of my appearance. I have no clue how it turned out. 5 months have elapsed, but I have never seen it. Trying to get my hands on a copy is an ongoing thing.

#4, No, there is no deliberate attempt being made by any pro-Muslim group trying to suppress the appearance. The talk show I appeared on does not have any bias towards any particular world view. It has not been released to me yet do to some legitimate technical difficulties the talk show is experiencing. I am still in contact with the host and his technical folks. Hopefully it will be figured out soon.

#5, Yes, the challenge still remains open. I am willing to debate any Nation of Islam member or leader (leader preferred) that feels that the Black Muslim Movement is capable of a rational and intelligent defense.

#6, Yes, I plan to have my lecture series “AN INTRODUCTION TO BLACK SEPARATIST CULTS” appear in audio format as extra bonus features on the DVD. The media company says that this can be done easily.

These are the top questions about the issue. If I missed one you have, my email is bjshanley@hotmail.com

Respectfully:

BJS

WIN OR LOSE IN THE PLAYOFFS, THE VIKINGS HAVE ALREADY EXCEEDED MY PRE-SEASON EXPECTATIONS! PRAISE THE STRENGTH AND COURAGE OF CHILDRESS AND TAVARIS FOR HANGING IN THERE!

Tues. 12-30-2008

I have lived in Minnesota all my life. And the sports crowd up here has changed over the last couple of decades. Today’s supposed fans are somewhat schizophrenic. It’s like Dr. Jekyl & Mr. Hide.

WHEN THE VIKINGS ARE WINNING: “We’re going all the way to the Super Bowl this year!”

WHEN THE VIKINGS ARE LOSING: “The owner is an idiot! The offensive line is terrible! Get a new quarterback! Fire the coach! Move the team to Los Angeles!”

It is extremism. We are either extremely FOR the team, or we are extremely AGAINST the team. Both of the extremes in this bipolar fanbase are radical, unrealistic, and unhealthy.

Sometimes the fans’ disappointment in a team is justified, such as that with Kevin McHale and the Minnesota Timberwolves. That is an example of an organization that has been on a downward spiral all of my adult life. We had a future NBA Hall of Famer in Kevin Garnett, but we allowed him to squander the prime years of his playing ability on a team that was headed nowhere. Thank God he found his ring elsewhere, because he certainly wasn’t going to get it here in MN. Calling for the removal of the Timberwolves’ leadership in this instance is justified because of the length of time and the extraordinarily bad results that have been achieved with that time. McHale’s dismissal is coming, and will be a celebrated day in Minnesota history.

Sometimes the fans’ disappointment in a team is the result of having the mentality of a 6-year-old and is totally unwarranted. This has been the case with the Vikings. When fans don’t get instant gratification, sometimes they begin to whine and complain. They don’t look at the small gains that are made, or at the long-term, or at the big picture. They are like Janet Jackson and only ask, “What have you done for me lately?”.

The Twins and the Wild seem to be exempt from this for the most part. Gardenhire gets results out of what seems like nothing, and he has done it consistently for a long time. People are realistic with the Twins. They enter the season with low expectations. And when they win, it is like an unexpected bonus. And Jacques LeMire gets a free pass because so many people up here remember what it was like to have no hockey team at all. Although I was listening to an interview with Jacques and it was difficult. I was thinking how I’d rather be having dental surgery right now than listening to this dude try to cut an interview. He is a horrible speaker. Only a true fan with the highest sense of duty could suffer through it.

As a head coach, Brad Childress was 6-10 in year #1. He was 8-8 in year # 2. And in year # 3, he is 10-6. Do you know what we call that? Progress. It is tangible, demonstrable results. And in the NFL there are more than a dozen teams who would give anything for such visible progress. Many teams have been sent home. But we are in the playoffs! How many other teams would love to be playing in January? A lot of fans in other cities would appreciate having a team that has gotten itself among the elite few who get to enter into the post-season. We won our division! Only 6 teams out of the entire 32 can make the same claim for themselves.

So why do our fans whine so much? We don’t like progress? We don’t like the playoffs? We do. But we like it IN OUR TIMEFRAME. The illustration of the 6-year-old I used earlier works perfectly. We started the year 0-2, and all of the blogging idiots in the world hit up the internet saying “Fire Childress!” and “Get a new quarterback!” and “Move the team to Los Angeles! Good riddance!”. Why? Because the team was not a contender fast enough. Because Tavaris Jackson (who has the gift) was not developed instantly. They forgot that NFL quarterbacks need time to develop. In year #1 in Eli Manning’s career, did you hear the NY Giants’ fanbase calling for him to be benched? No. But we do.

All of this came from over-blown preseason expectations. Because we made a few off season signings of free agents, people started talking about the Super Bowl. Really? I guess because the Vikings are the only team that makes off season adjustments to their roster, right? Wrong. But people are stupid sometimes. I have lived in Minnesota all my life. And every August during training camp people always say, “We made such and such a change. We got a certain player. This year is the Super Bowl for sure!”. It never fails. People set their expectations higher than reality dictates. And the higher the expectation, the greater the fall.

When the unrealistic expectations that they have set do not materialize, it is somehow the coach’s fault. It is the owner’s fault. It is the quarterback’s fault. It’s the offensive line’s fault. The person who feels let down never blames themself for jumping to unwarranted conclusions and having Super Bowl fantasies without just cause to do so. There has to be somebody else to blame for their sadness and disappointment.

The culture in MN has always been weird. It is full of liberal people who lead with the emotions as opposed to the brain. You could tell somebody, “The sky is blue” and they will respond and say, “So what you’re really trying to tell me is that the sky is red”. No, dummy. I meant what I said, and I said what I meant. “But I’m getting the impression that you are basically saying that the sky is green”. Retards.

If you live and work here, you deal with beaming idiocy on a daily basis. You could tell someone, “Hello”. And they could go to people in authority, like the school principal or the boss at work, and somehow twist that “hello” into you harrassing and offending them. Next thing you know, you’re in trouble based on someone’s mental and emotional problems. Asking someone a question could result in them snapping on you. And their personality problem is somehow your fault. In their world, it cannot possibly be theirs.

You’re telling yourself that it cannot possibly be true. There cannot possibly be a place where that is the culture and the way of doing things. I have seen it on too many occasions to count. The term “Minnesota Nice” is the biggest myth I have ever heard. It was probably coined by someone wanting to attract tourists. But anyway, I have gotten off onto another unrelated tangent here. This is a topic for some other post.

There is a large segment of the population up here who are slaves to their emotions. They cannot function independently of them. This produces a culture where, if you don’t give them their way when they want it and how they want it, you will have to tolerate some whining, crying, and complaining.

Brad Childress has been a trooper through it all. Has he made decisions that I don’t agree with? Absolutely. Fining a guy for attending his grandmother’s funeral, calling certain players out publicly in front of the cameras, blaming the punter alone for Special Teams giving up punt return touchdowns, benching your quarterback of the future just because of 2 loses, etc. But to call for his job based solely on how he is doing according to my own personal agenda would be childish and stupid. When the smoke clears, are there results? Yes. So I must keep my mouth shut. The facts force me to. He is doing the job, and he is producing.

I admire the way he has suffered all of the nastiness and the criticism that comes with being a coach of a pro sports team in MN (except the Twins and the Wild). I admire how he has stuck to his game plan. When people called for his firing last year, I said that he had not been given sufficient time and it was too early to make such a judgment. But Childress supporters like myself were seemingly in the minority. My knowledge of the game of football as well as my devotion to my team were called into question by some because I was not critical enough of the coach. How backwards is that? I’m not talking enough trash about the team, therefore I must not be a true fan. People are stupid.

As we approach Sunday January 4th, the Vikings will be hosting a playoff game here in the Metro Dome against the Philadelphia Eagles. Vegas oddsmakers have the Eagles favored by 3 points. Philladelphia newspapers are talking like this is a game that they automatically expect to win. Oh, well. Keep on underestimating our team.

I say that win or lose, Brad Childress has made a case as to why he not only belongs as a head coach in the NFL, but he belongs as coach of the Vikings. Sure, anything short of a Super Bowl win will have our 6-year-old crying fanbase calling it a dissapointing season.

This is the same fanbase who whined and complained about one of the winningest coaches of all time (as well as one of my personal favorites), Dennis Green. This is the same fanbase that turned on Randy Moss, one of the greatest receivers of all time and also a charitable guy who did social good in the community, just because he showed a little bit of personality in his interviews. This is the same fanbase that did not even want to give Mike Tice a chance to coach the team. This is the same fanbase that turned their backs on Daunte Culpepper because he hurt his knee. This is the same fanbase that is now beginning to call for the benching of Adrian Peterson! Are they insane? Yes. They go too far. And this is the same fanbase that is led by the nose by our liberal local media, some of which are staffed by people from other towns who hate the Vikings.

Many people in MN do not think for themselves. They allow the media and the public school system to do it for them, and just accept the opinion communicated by those sources. It is kind of sad. But when the reporters decide to bury a once-loved athlete up here, you should see how the fans do a complete 180 on him and go from loving him to hating him. When you ask them the reason for their changed opinion, they say, “Didn’t you see the news?”.

But as for me, my preseason prediction of “lucky if we go 8-8″ has been surpassed. Winning the division was not on my radar. Being in the playoffs was not an expectation. I have to say that once they reached 9 wins, I told one of my pals, “Anthing that they do beyond this is gravy”. That is how we should see things. Not in the world we would like according to our own fantasies and wishes. But accoring to the world in which we actually and factually live.

Childress, well done. You have silenced the critics and led the team through adversity to a divison title. Without regard to future performance in the playoffs, as of today’s date I and several other fans out there agree that you deserve to be where you are. And we are glad to have you as coach. Keep doing what you are doing.

Tavaris, many of us out here see the gifting and the talent. We know what will be, and it excites us. Don’t let the excesses of nutcases get you down. You are NFL-caliber. And I look forward to the day when you make them all eat their words.

This is an article no media person in Minnesota has the guts to write. So I had to.

I love the Vikings. Win or lose, just give 100% and make a good showing in the playoffs!

 

 

bjshanley@hotmail.com