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[Ya-ta Boy]

Obama denounces pastor's 9/11 comments

WASHINGTON - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Friday denounced inflammatory remarks from his pastor, who has railed against the United States and accused its leaders of bringing on the Sept. 11 attacks by spreading terrorism.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080314/ap_on_el_pr/obama_pastor

I don't see that Obama had any choice in the matter. When you are a presidential candidate, it just doesn't look good to have your minister saying: "No, no, no, God damn America, that's in the Bible for killing innocent people. God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America for as long as she acts like she is God and she is supreme."

It just doesn't sound like Billy Graham.

There is a larger issue here. If a president made a public speech on the stump, or before Congress, and took sides on sprinkling vs full immersion baptism, there would be a major hue and cry from every church in the land. And rightly so. But it seems to me that if it is forbidden for the State to meddle in theology, it should be equally verboten for Churches to meddle in politics. I know it can be a fine line, but I think the revocation of tax-free status of a few select churches might reign in some of the excessive meddling. Kill a chicken to scare the monkeys.

[Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee]

[ED209]

[Ya-ta Boy]

Why not all churches? Because the power to tax is the power to destroy, as someone a lot more significant than me said. You can't have freedom of conscience and religion if the state sets out to destroy churches. That isn't a desirable goal. I can see where a machete to the toe that crosses the line could be appropriate.

[Ya-ta Boy]

There is another dynamic at play in this year's election. Both Obama and Clinton are making efforts to reach out to religious voters. This is healthy. Historically, many churches have been very progressive on many issues. No need to leave the churches to be preyed on by the Right.