Bernie Sanders Insight

[KeithE]

[Haruo]

Oh, come on, Bernie, you know the reason the top 1% earn so much is because they have to, because otherwise taxes will eat up their income faster than they can spend it. They're desperate. Give 'em a break!

[Sandy]

That's a little bit different angle of the discussion of "American values." With all of the hand wringing, wailing and gnashing of teeth done in the wake of the election over the premise that re-electing President Obama represented a departure from "traditional American values," in light of this information, it would seem Obama voters are much closer to a genuine understanding of those values than the right wingers who think it just boils down to support for abortion rights and same sex marriage.

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." I Timothy 6:10

That's America's real values problem, and it is particularly the values problem of the religious right. It's glossed over with rhetoric about "voting values" but the bottom line is that the love and pursuit of money is the driving force behind the religious right leadership's political involvement, and it is motivated by self interest. Most of the religious right's leaders are in the top 1%. And when it came down to the bottom line, most of them were willing to sacrifice what little Christian credibility they had left to compromise their doctrine and theology in order to soft petal Mormonism so they could support a Mormon presidential candidate. There will be a high price to pay for that in terms of credibility for a long, long time to come.

[KeithE]

[Sandy]

When I speak about the leadership of the religious right, I'm talking about those individuals who are the influence peddlers, from whom the pastors and small church leaders take their marching orders. These are people like James Dobson, David Brody, Pat Robertson, Ralph Reed, Mike Huckabee, Richard Land, some of the more politically involved mega church pastors like D. James Kennedy (gone but still influential), Rick Warren, Ed Young Jr., Hagee and that bunch. They are 1 percenters.

[Ed Pettibone]

[Sandy]

I know many small church pastors and church leaders who do not take their marching orders from the more influential religious right leadership. But they generally do not associate themselves with the religious right, at least, not openly. On the other hand, I don't know anyone in a position of church leadership who is openly associated with the religious right who doesn't revere every word that comes out of their favorite spokesperson's mouth. Perhaps what I should say is that the most influential group of religious right wingers belong to the 1% of the wealthiest Americans.

[KeithE]

Let’s get back on Bernie Sanders and his wisdom.

[Sandy]