The week before last there were 45 articles and opinion pieces on religion and politics. This past week, there were 101. The Los Angeles Times (18), the Washington Post (16) led the way, with the New York Times (9) and USA Today (8) distant seconds.

Two kinds of stories drove this minor explosion in coverage, contestation and violence in the Islamic world, and the role of Christianity in the US presidential campaign. There were also more opinion pieces and letters to the editor, a number of them arguing for and against stem cell research and others commenting favorably or not on the attention paid to the religious side of presidential candidates.

The political violence in Palestine between Hamas and Fatah received attention all over the country (Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Seattle Times, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Newsday, the Christian Science Monitor, and the Baltimore Sun). Hamas has ousted Fatah from Gaza and now Palestine is not only two geographic parts, its governed by two different parties. The Washington Post gave it the most coverage, with stories from the 14th through 17th, reporting on Hamas’ opening moves, Palestinian Prime Minister Abbas’ response, and then the split between his party, Fatah, and Hamas, then the Post’s analysis of what they called a “civil war.”

This analysis gives useful thumbnail histories of Hamas and Fatah and provides some reading suggestions. There’s not much explanation of this current battle between the two factions except to echo the US and Israeli position that given its terrorist past, and the seeming commitment to jihad against Israel, the rise of Hamas in Palestinian politics is bad news.

A Newsday analysis notes the conflict in part lies in Fatah (the successor to the PLO) has lost legitimacy due to rampant corruption and apparent inability to govern his own forces.

Many of the other stories on Islam (11) were about the government crackdowns on Islamist parties in Pakistan and Egypt, two countries trying to maintain the façade of democracy draped over authoritarian regimes. Perhaps the irony encouraged all the attention. While the US touts democratization efforts in Iraq, it can only mutter about the political oppression these two US allies routinely practice. For Egypt, see this Washington Post article, and see USA Today’s coverage of Pakistan.

The bulk of news on religion and politics addresses Christianity, and all of that in the US. I’m not all that surprised, but I would have thought that at least a couple of stories would pop up about Christianity and politics in other countries, like the Pope’s visit to Brazil. I guess we Americans are just awfully parochial.

Anyway, like the prior week, most of the stories were about the presidential campaign, with belated reactions to the matter of some Republican candidates disbelieving evolution (Brownback, Huckabee, and Tancredo), and the Democrats’ public chat about their faiths. Romney’s Mormon faith also got some attention. The Boston Herald and LA Times (free registration required) tell us about Romney’s successful fundraising, and according to the USA Today’s recent polling data, his Mormonism is causing little stir among most voters. Go here or here for analyses of all the candidates.

Republican S.C. state treasurer Thomas Ravenel has been suspended over an indictment accusing him of distribution of cocaine.

The investigation started before Ravenel was elected, but State Law Enforcement Division officers didn’t have enough evidence yet to charge him.

He is accused of purchasing drugs from Michael Miller and wasn’t selling the drugs, but rather, was giving them away.

A quote from Governor Mark Sanford, also a Republican:

“Given the grave nature of these charges and what is alleged in this indictment, we’re left with no choice but to suspend Treasurer Ravenel immediately,” Governor Mark Sanford said in a written release. “These are obviously very serious allegations that we’re constitutionally bound to act upon, and they’ll ultimately be decided by the courts.”

The governor quoted Article VI, Section 8 of the South Carolina Constitution, giving him the power to suspend statewide, county or city officials indicted on criminal charges for crimes of “moral turpitude,” generally understood to mean crimes that involve acts of fraud, deception or other morally culpable conduct.

Sanford said he plans to make a decision on an interim appointment as soon as possible.

The Ravenel name is well-known in the Palmetto state, as I remember hearing the name in elections going back to when I moved here.

Ravenel was Giuliani’s campaign manager in South Carolina.

A comment from the Republican party spokesperson:

State Republican Party Chairman Katon Dawson released the following statement:

“The charges brought against State Treasurer Thomas Ravenel today are very serious. This is a personal matter that will be dealt with through appropriate legal channels. We hope this unfortunate situation is resolved quickly.”

Here is the Democratic party’s response:

“In only a few months, Thomas Ravenel has gone from spoiled rich kid buying his way into office to common street criminal. He is an embarrassment to the state and an embarrassment to the Office of Treasurer. It’s a shame that Grady Patterson - an absolutely honorable man and a true patriot - was replaced by Thomas Ravenel as State Treasurer.”

Note to the Democratic Party: He may very well be found guilty in court, but at this time our constitution presumes him innocent until proven guilty and you should correct your statement to reflect that.

Fleeing Gazans, trying to get to the Israeli side of the border, have been holed up in a tunnel of two walls ten feet apart.

On one end are the Hamas and on the other are the Israeli soldiers. They are in what is really known as a no-man’s land.

Living conditions are horrible, as people are using the walls for toilets, nerves are frayed and they are fighting over food.

About 200 Gazans, petrified by the chaos in the Hamas-controlled coastal strip, have been camped out for six days in a tunnel reeking of trash, urine and sweat on the Palestinian side of the Erez crossing with Israel, pleading with Israeli authorities to grant them safe passage to the West Bank.

Hamas’ defeat of security forces from the rival Fatah faction has left many Gazans anticipating further chaos and violence. Some in the tunnel feared for their lives because of their Fatah loyalties; others sought a better life than volatile Gaza can offer.

Among them were people wounded in gunbattles between the rival factions.

On Wednesday, Barak instructed officials to let in “humanitarian cases” at the crossing, the Defense Ministry said.

No numbers were specified, and specific guidelines for determining urgency were not released.

On one end is freedom; on the other is oppression by their own countrymen.

Ehud Barak has agreed to allow foreign nationals and Gazans who need medical attention to enter Israel for humanitarian purposes.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak ordered the army on Wednesday to allow into Israel any of the hundreds of Gazans holed up at a fetid crossing who might desperately need medical treatment.
A teenager with leukemia was on his way through shortly after, the military said. Additionally, Israeli officials allowed all foreign nationals in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip to cross over to Israel.

In related news, Israel’s Supreme Court was hearing a petition Wednesday by a human rights group, demanding that Israeli authorities offer immediate medical treatment to 26 critically ill Palestinians hospitalized in Gaza.

I pray the Israeli government is as compassionate as possible and will allow those they determine not to be a risk to their safety into their country.

Guss Adds: If roles were reversed, I wonder how many Israelis would be let into Gaza.
This is a very interesting story that I am following with enthusiasm, just to see how things are going to turn out.

Yahoo News is reporting the sheriff went to Mike Nifong’s house Tuesday to relieve Mr. Nifong of his office keys and badge to get into the prosecutor’s office in Durham, NC.

There is probable cause to believe that Nifong “has engaged in willful misconduct in office and conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice, which brings the office into disrepute,” Superior Court Judge Orlando Hudson wrote in his order.

Durham County Sheriff Worth Hill went to Nifong’s house with a deputy to serve the order Tuesday morning.

“We took his keys and his badge that gave him access to the building,” Hill said. “We’ll make arrangements to help him get his personal belongings later.”

There is speculation the formerly accused Duke lacrosse players will bring suit against Mr. Nifong, but what they will get is questionable since he has nothing but his home, some land in western North Carolina and his retirement.

There is also speculation Mr. Nifong will be brought up on criminal charges for what he did during this terrible time.

Is jail appropriate? He’s already lost his livelihood and the biggest part of his income. When his pension kicks in is something I don’t know. Maybe immediately or maybe when he reaches a certain age.

We do need to consider the fact he was willing to send three innocent people to jail for a crime that was not committed, and if the DNA case hadn’t fallen apart by accident, they would have gone to jail.

So, should he go to jail for his legal malpractice and malicious prosecution, or should he be allowed to remain free on probation for his acts?

This story in Indian Country gives me great pride in my tribe and in mine and Guss’ grandmother’s nephew, our mothers’ first cousin.

I didn’t know all of this about Charles Shay, and Melvin Neptune, but my heart swelled with pride as I read the article.

AUGUSTA, Me. - On the eve of June 6, 1944, Charles Norman Shay, a 19-year old Penobscot serving with the 16th Regiment of the 1st Infantry Division, ran into his friend Melvin Neptune, a fellow Penobscot and member of the division’s 26th Regiment. They were on the ship that carried the troops to their rendezvous with German forces the next morning on what would become known as D-Day.

The two men did not see each other again until they returned home to Indian Island reservation after the war.

But 63 three years later, Shay, now 83, paid homage to the late Neptune during a ceremony at which Maine Gov. John Baldacci honored Shay and all of Maine’s Native veterans with a proclamation naming June 6, as Native American Veterans History Day.

”We did not discuss the campaign that was about to take place,” Shay recalled of the night before the historic allied invasion of France, ”but instead we talked about home and the young men and boys we grew up with and were wondering where they were and what they were now doing. From our small community of 500 individuals, 85 young men and women had volunteered for all branches of the military to fight for this country”

Shay’s unit was among the first to make the difficult landing on Omaha Beach. Pre-landing air bombardments and naval gunfire had not dislodged the German defenses from their positions on bluffs as high as 170 feet above the beach. During the hard-won battle that day, Shay’s division lost about 1,000 men.

Shay earned a Silver Star for his unselfish heroism that day, subordinating ”personal safety to the welfare of his comrades, [having] plunged repeatedly into the treacherous sea and carried critically wounded men to safety,” Baldacci read from the proclamation.

It’s no wonder Uncle Leo and Auntie Florence were so proud of their son.

Please read the entire story to see what this man has done in service to his country and is doing now to get Native Americans the recognition they deserve for serving our country.

I’m proud of you, Charlie! And I’m sure Guss is too.

As a side note: my mother’s funeral had to be put off one day due to Melvin Neptune re-marrying and using the church facilities. That’s fine since he was a hero too.

I read this abc news piece last night, saying Al Qaeda has suicide bombers ready to come to the US, Canada, Great Britain and Germany.

I went to bed praying they don’t succeed, but if they do what would the reaction be by the American people if someone made it into our country and got inside a shopping mall’s food court at a busy time and blew themselves and numerous others up at the same time?

What would be the reaction of the American people if a car bomb were driven into a building where there is a crowd of people?

How about if they got into a speedboat and attacked one of our ships docked in San Diego or any other Naval base, killing who knows how many people?

Sadly, my conclusion was this: People would say it was because we are in Iraq. Remember we hadn’t gone into Iraq when Mogadishu, the USS Cole or 9/11 happened, to name just a few recent terrorist incidents.

They’d blame Bush for not keeping us safe, forgetting how many attacks have been thwarted since 9/11.

Congress would surely have investigations, especially if the government buildings such as the Capitol were attacked—just as soon as they came out of hiding and changed their underwear.

And of course they would blame the porous borders, which probably would be a factor, but the blame for that can be shared by everyone—especially the far right wing of the Republican party. By far right wing I mean the Calebs of this world and Big Mo knows what I’m talking about. The ones who are so pure in their ideology they are not willing to even consider a compromise that can be improved upon later.

So, to the readers and bloggers on the right and left who frequent this site I ask you to think about this hypothetical and tell me, after searching your souls, what your reaction would be, other than maybe anger?

My first urge after the anger and sadness would be to go after the animals who ordered this no matter where they are and no matter what government supported them.

It certainly wouldn’t be to psychoanalyze them to see why they are angry at us, because it doesn’t take too much to work up the radicals.

Remember this is a debate and not a fight so no one should take personally what anyone else says.

Army Reserve Chaplain Higgins shares an experience he witnessed while stationed in Balad, Iraq. As I read, I felt the pride I often do when one writes about our brave young men and women in the US Military.

I recently attended a showing of “Spiderman 3″ here at LSA Anaconda. We have a large auditorioum we use for movies as well as memorial services and other large gatherings. As is the custom back in the States, we stood and snapped to attention when the National Anthem began before the main feature. All was going as planned until about three-quarters of the way through the National Anthem the music stopped.

Please read the complete story. It is relatively short but speaks volumes.

Duke University has come to an undisclosed financial agreement with the three wrongfully accused lacrosse players and runaway prosecutor Mike Nifong, now disbarred, has been ordered by a judge to cease being District Attorney immediately.

DURHAM, N.C. — Duke University has reached an undisclosed financial settlement with three former lacrosse players falsely accused of rape, while a judge said late Monday he would order the disbarred prosecutor to leave office immediately.

Duke had suspended Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty and Dave Evans after they were charged last year with raping a stripper at an off-campus party. The university also canceled the team’s season and forced their coach to resign.

“We welcomed their exoneration and deeply regret the difficult year they and their families have had to endure,” the school said Monday in a statement. “These young men and their families have been the subject of intense scrutiny that has taken a heavy toll.”

How big of them, especially since the president of Duke judged them guilty at the time of the arrests and 88 faculty members signed a letter saying they were guilty and charging them with racism.

I hope they got a tidy sum, and I wish they would get an apology from the 88 faculty members, but I won’t hold my breath on that.

Disbarred and disgraced prosecutor Mike Nifong thought he had an agreement to stay on as District Attorney until July 13. I don’t know how, since he’s no longer a lawyer.

Earlier Monday, Nifong said he planned to leave office next month in a resignation letter to Gov. Mike Easley and to Superior Court Judge Orlando Hudson, who is overseeing a pending request to remove Nifong from office.

“It is my fervent hope that this action will spare this community the further anguish a removal hearing would entail and will allow the healing process to move forward,” Nifong wrote.

But Nifong’s July 13 departure date wasn’t soon enough for Hudson, who decided late Monday to suspend Nifong from office.

As part of the suspension, Hudson said he would order the sheriff on Tuesday to prevent Nifong from carrying out any duties of the district attorney.

“I have thought about the situation, and this is way I wish to proceed,” said Hudson who initially agreed to allow Nifong work until next month.

Seems reasonable to me.

Nifong will still be able to collect his pension and health benefits earned while working in the DAs office for 30 years.

Even if the exonerated and innocent former Duke students sue Nifong I think his pension is safe from seizure. If reader David happens to read this maybe he can tell us for sure.

Look for the lawyers to press for criminal and/or civil charges against Nifong and the city of Durham to retrieve the fortune that was spent defending these men.

What would have happened if they had not come from families that had the money or friends from whom to borrow the money for their defense?

They probably would have had to cop a plea to something they didn’t do in order to stay out of jail for 30 years. This is something they themselves have mentioned.

No matter ones personal feelings about Senator Robert Byrd when I saw this picture with its description it made me stop and think.

Does someone who has obvious limitations due to age and illness serve his constituents well? The Senator has always been known to bring home the bacon for West Virginia but as I read the accompanying story I questioned who was actually doing the heavy lifting for his home state.

At 89, the longest-serving senator in history and third person in the line of presidential succession has ceded major duties — such as handling appropriations bills on the Senate floor — to younger colleagues and aides.

Well, many Senators use their aides to do an abundance of their work, however:

When Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, asked, “Have you already voted on allocations” for the homeland security spending bill, Byrd did not respond. After an aide whispered to him, Byrd said, “Tomorrow afternoon.”

Moments later, when Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., sought permission to speak, Byrd looked at him blankly. Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., sitting next to Byrd, said softly, “Senator Lautenberg,” and the chairman repeated the name in a robust voice. Later, when the room fell silent, an aide slipped Byrd a note prompting him to declare the meeting adjourned.

Arguments for term limits have been offered in various quarters for some time now and while the Senator Byrd has served his state well, perhaps the above is yet another example of why that is an idea whose time has come.

In the past I’ve always thought it was important to give my loved one as good a casket as possible, spending a lot of money in the process.

I’m beginning to rethink that policy as I have read about the plain plywood coffin made for Ruth Graham, along with one made for her husband when he leaves this life.

The coffins were made by hand by prisoners in Louisiana for themselves and other prisoners whose families wouldn’t be able to afford something more luxurious.

The lining is foam covered with cloth.

Shortly before he died, convicted murderer Richard Liggett was asked to make two of the simple plywood coffins he meticulously crafted for fellow prisoners. Except the caskets would be for Billy and Ruth Graham.

“He was honored,” said Burl Cain, warden of the Louisiana State Penitentiary. “He told me, of everything that ever happened in his life, the most profound thing was to build this coffin for Billy Graham and his family.”

Ruth Graham was buried in one Sunday at the foot of a cross-shaped walkway in the Prayer Garden at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte.

Since the body is only the shell left behind when a person dies I have realized trying to make the body “comfortable” is something I have done for myself as those who are in those coffins feel nothing. Their souls have left the body, and it is the soul that is the person.

One day the soul will be reunited with a glorified version of the old body.

When my beloved neighbor died in March I marveled at the beauty of the coffin bought for her.

When I saw the coffin of Ruth Graham on television the other day I thought it was a very nice and expensive coffin, and almost remarked on how beautiful it was except I didn’t want to miss hearing what was being said.

I was very surprised to learn it was made of plywood, and now want to check into purchasing such a coffin for myself and my husband for when our souls depart our bodies.

The problem is I won’t be able to store them anywhere so I need to check and see if the local funeral home can get these when needed.

Let the money that would be spent on a fancy coffin go to someone alive and who needs that money in order to better his or her life.

For those following Michael Yon’s series Death or Glory, part III is now available. This one is chock full of tremendous photography as well as his ever insightful commentary.

The Brits are in for a scorching summer in the deserts of Maysan Province. By the time I left, the sleeping bags weren’t necessary, though nights were cool. The soldiers are living out there on cots under mosquito nets, and their outhouse is a shovel. This past winter, the rains and cold created an opponent in the form of mud. The Iraqi mud—I know it well—is a special kind that sticks to boots and adds about five pounds to each foot.

Every time I read Michael’s work, I realize how fortunate we are to be with our families and simply going about our daily lives.

Take it for what it’s worth to you, but this Washington Times article by Donald Lambro, suggests the chances for Republicans regaining seats lost in the House in ‘06 are looking brighter for ‘08.

Republican campaign strategists and independent election analysts say that after five months of contentious House Democratic rule, the Republican Party’s once-bleak congressional prospects for 2008 have markedly improved.

The Democratic Congress’ job approval score is now worse than President Bush’s, plummeting to 23 percent, a drop of eight points since April. House Democrats have been forced to retreat in the face of a furious assault by Republicans on pork-barrel spending, an issue that hurt the Republican Party in November. And Republican recruiting has produced plenty of candidates eyeing weak Democratic freshmen in Republican-leaning districts that swept them into office last year.

“Republican recruiting seems to be progressing at a reasonable pace. GOP strategists have about half a dozen seats that they know the party should never have lost … and eight of the nine most vulnerable House seats currently are held by Democrats,” elections analyst Stu Rothenberg wrote last week in his Political Report newsletter.

Strategists at the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) confirm that a larger than expected number of House seats are now being targeted by the NRCC and that a surprisingly larger-than-expected number of seasoned candidates from state legislatures and other elective offices are coming forward to challenge Democrats who took over Republican districts.

Not so fast, say the Democrats: (more…)

I went to bed early last night and awakened after 8 wonderful hours of blissful rest.

I checked my email and saw that Sue had written to say her aunt in Delaware has suffered a massive stroke and she had been asked by her cousin to be with her cousin and uncle.

The next 48 hours are the touch and go hours and I ask all our readers and bloggers to say a prayer for Sue’s aunt and family and for Sue and her husband as they travel back and forth to visit with them during this difficult time.

I was just reading this post in the Politico that is discussing political reasons for President Bush to pardon or commute Scooter Libby’s sentence.

The all-important base is against President Bush, and according to this post, it will improve the president’s popularity with the base.

The post also talks of the president’s famed loyalty and uses it as a reason for a pardon or commutation of sentence.

I disagree with this thinking completely.

Don’t get me wrong; I believe the president should ideally commute the sentence to drop the jail time and leave in the fine and probation so Libby will have the chance to appeal his case and clear his name, and if he fails at that, he will not have to serve time in jail which seems to be an excessive considering the rest of the punishment.

The president may just do that as soon as he hears whether or not the appeals court will allow Libby to be free while appealing his case and then pardon him or commute his sentence before leaving the White House if necessary.

But it should be done because the president thinks it’s the right thing to do and not the right political thing to do.

He’s not running for office ever again, so what more can the base do to him? Besides, as rabid as some are about the president it will be like tossing a bare bone to a dog. The next day they’ll be barking at him for more and will like him no more than they do now.

This president has been loyal to a fault. There is nothing wrong about loyalty, but the loyalty of this president has given us an Attorney General who is bringing more and more disrepute on the president and the Justice Dept., while the Attorney General takes advantage of it to stay in power.

Confirmation hearings for a new AG would be contentious, but with the amount of time left in this presidency, we could get by with an acting AG while we wait to get someone confirmed, even if it takes the rest of the term.

I sincerely hope Libby doesn’t go to jail and has the opportunity to clear his name. If the Appeals Court doesn’t let him stay out on bail while his appeal is pending, I think the president should do what is right humanely, and let Libby be pardoned or, preferably commute his sentence.

After reading Ayschlay’s excellent post on our pre-conceived notions of the major media today I went to the New York Times to see what was free on their site and to look at some of the articles that interested me.

Since I’m not much of a television viewer I noticed an article talking about the guests on this morning’s network news talk programs.

It seems all of them will be talking about Iraq.

I then went to the comments section, and instead of talking about the news shows people started bashing Cheney for wanting to go to war in Iran.

It disintegrated into this:

4.June 17th,
2007
2:55 am A rare treat is in store for those who abandon the pew for the arm chair this morning.The backslidden can watch Mitch [ Mitchell ] Mc Connell on Face the Cretins, aka face the Nation.
Mc Connell who looks like a crew man on the Flying Dutchman of Caribbean Pirates fame is with out a doubt the most unctous villian in all politics. He is the most partisan of all republicans. He never deviates from the White House line. He opposes any kind of campaign finance reform
not because of any deep seated constitutional foreboding but because it would harm the stranglehold the republican party has on the nation. If they can`t throw big business money around they can`t hood wink and scare the sheep people of the red states into locking stepping freedom down John Crapper`s invention.
He has not a single redeeming social skill that I have ever heard of. He is arrogant, boring, and condescending; in short the perfect reason Kentucky languishes in the back water of reality. His number two, a pretty decent guy, Jim, no-hit Bunning, has to go along or the Mc Connell juggernaught will bury him on some Fisheries and Brothels committee.
When you watch him you can almost see the smoke of Baghdad circling around his fat face like the smoke from his state`s number one agricultural product that he maakes certain will have government support. We should have an anti-Mt. Rushmore somewhere on an abandoned building in some rotten ghetto that he helped create. His but ugly puss should be right there next to Justice Taney, Charles Manson, Al Capone, and John Wilkes Booth.
Charles B. Tiffany
Kissimmee, Florida

— Posted by Charles B. Tiffany

This is the kind of reading I would expect from any of the far wing blogs on either side, but not published in a major newspaper.

This is nothing but an ad hominem attack, mostly on Mitch McConnell, and has no place in the public discourse.

This is a prime example of why our country is so divided right now. People cannot argue without making it personal, and they do that only when they really have no point to make.

It reminds me of a five year old saying, “You’re a poo-poo head.” It accomplishes nothing and contributes nothing to the debate, but it makes the writer feel better that he has publicly opened his thoughts and confirmed what people who know him probably already know.

We are a small blog trying to bring our country together as a people. We disagree on the methods of governing and even on the priorities of our government, but I can proudly say not one of our readers’ comments has had to be censored due to this kind of discussion or any other reason except to clean up some profanity occasionally.

This is a credit to the people who engage in dialog on this site and to the bloggers themselves.

This blog is a little experiment to see if liberals and conservatives can have discussions and debates over the issues and still walk away from the discussion with respect and friendship of the others.

We, as a whole, are not ideologically pure in the sense we are an echo chamber for one side or the other.

I deliberately set out to find liberals as well as conservatives so we can publish both points of view in one place for people to read and discuss.

I’m very proud of our blogging team and I’m very proud of our readers who have kept this site pleasant to visit. It’s a breath of fresh air compared to some blogs I’ve visited.

Every blogger on this team is a person who loves our country and wants only what he or she feels is best for it. We are all patriots.

And that is what this blog is.