Monday, May 07, 2007

Petty Party Politics

In news of the day, I understand that “W” is giving a “White Tie” Dinner for the Queen and that Senate Majority Leader and consummate partisan hack Harry Reid declined his invitation. I guess he is so poisoned by his hatred for the President that he won’t even accept a State Dinner invitation that honors the Queen of England. This strikes me as akin to the several Global South Primates refusal to take Communion with PBp. Schiori in Tanzania. The Global South Bps. exhibited a tremendous lack of grace in that action and Harry Reid, it appears, has now done likewise. No further comments are necessary and one can draw their own conclusions.

And in other news of the day:

“A tenured college professor is set to be fired for simply sending out an e-mail to colleagues containing George Washington’s ‘Thanksgiving Day Proclamation of 1798.’


On Nov. 22, 2006, the day before Thanksgiving, Walter Kehowski, a professor in mathematics in the Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) sent the e-mail containing Washington’s message to all MCCCD employees, using a district-wide service designated for ‘announcements.’”

(FYI Washington’s Proclamation read:

“WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANKSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and assign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed;-- for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish Constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;-- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge;-- and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also, that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions;-- to enable us all, whether in publick or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us); and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine.”

G. Washington)

“Within weeks, five MCCCD employees filed harassment charges against Kehowski, claiming his message was "hostile” and "derogatory.”

I'm assuming umbrage was taken in its decidedly religious context, though historically I am to understand that Thanksgiving was originally a religious holiday. I don’t see anything in this Proclamation that indicates anything about which almighty God Washington was referring to but I suspect it was the God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob (coincidentally the God of Jews, Christians and Muslims). The closest I can place this within a Christian context is his dating of the document as the 3rd of October (in the year of our Lord), 1789. Certainly the point could be made that the terms B.C. & A.D. both were common Christian usage at the time; therefore, his “in the year of our Lord” could be considered a reference to Christ but the point could be made also that common usage was common usage and such was how anyone would date a document at that time.

Folks, political correctness is working hard to drive the final few nails in the coffin of our founder’s experiment in government so that we can next kiss our constitutional freedoms goodbye.


Ain’t much else to say today. Y'all be careful out there.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home