And now for some greatly needed contrast

I think I speak for many when I say that this whole Reverend Jeremiah Wright kerfuffle (yes, I wrote kerfuffle) is growing a bit asinine. Asinine in the fact that the news outlets (or should I say "news anuses" because an anus is an outlet too and consistently more useful than most news organizations) have yet to properly hold up Reverend Wright's vituperative language and compare it to some of our nation's most well-known spiritual leaders who have chosen to align themselves with both candidates and presidents.

Let's start with the grand-daddy of them all: Reverend Billy Graham
Reverend Graham has of course known more presidents than any spiritual leader dead or alive. He is often a fixture at any function where a president has to look more Christian than he actually is. Well, it appears that ol' Billy had a friend in "tricky Dick" when it came to Jews in the media.



Now let's cut to a classic. The following video has not only Jerry Falwell, the founder of the "Moral Majority" a political movement credited with giving Ronald Reagan two-thirds of the white, evangelical Christian vote in 1980; but also former presidential candidate and Christian media mogul, Pat Robertson. Both "southern gentlemen" have seen the inside of the White House multiple times and are part of the Republican ring-kissing tour all candidates must endure (now minus Falwell since the good lord saw fit to punch the fat ass' ticket). Please ruminate on the last words Robertson says in this clip, "well, I totally concur".




Keeping in step with the past, Senator John McCain racked up a sizable posse of pudgy white preachers who got nothing but love for everyone as long as they're not gay, catholic, oh hell, as long as they're only white, straight and evangelical Christian.
The most recent addition was Reverend John Hagee of the 17,000 member Grace Church of San Antonio (11,000 more members than Reverend Wright's church) and enjoys a global reach of around 99 million homes with his radio and television programs. Reverend John has fired off some grand statements not really preaching tolerance. Here are some of the highlights:

"[Catholicism is] A Godless theology of hate that no one dared try to stop for a thousand years produced a harvest of hate."
source: quote from Standing with Israel by David Brog

"All hurricanes are acts of God, because God controls the heavens. I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God, and they are -- were recipients of the judgment of God for that. The newspaper carried the story in our local area that was not carried nationally that there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came. And the promise of that parade was that it was going to reach a level of sexuality never demonstrated before in any of the other Gay Pride parades. So I believe that the judgment of God is a very real thing."
source: September 18, 2006, NPR's Fresh Air

On former Secretary or Education, recovering compulsive gambler and self-proclaimed moral watchdog for America, Bill Bennet's radio show, McCain said he "repudiates" the Catholicism crack and believes Reverend Hagee when he says his words were "taken out of context". Well good, thanks for clearing that up so nicely Senator.

Now let it be said that Jeremiah Wright does not harbor and preach some poisonous ideas. But as Senator Obama pointed out in his speech we all should put down the stones we intend to cast because he is a type of person we all know or in fact could be related to. And instead of slinking, obfuscating and finessing the episode, Obama had the balls, temerity and intellect to stand before the country and condemn his pastor on live television and eloquently explain what so many white presidents, candidates, senators, congressmen and city councilmen never have had to explain or for that matter, endure.