The Media's Continuing Adoration of Barack Obama

The good folks over at the Media Research Center has issued a special edition report containing various media quotes concerning BHO. The report is entitled Still Slobbering Over Barack Obama, and documents the "media’s continuing love affair" with BHO.

As the article points out, "Any other President with BHO’s record — high unemployment, record deficits, and scandals such as Fast and Furious and the leaking of our nation’s intelligence secrets — would face withering scrutiny from the press". We can only imagine the around-the-clock hysterical coverage if these issues had occurred during GW Bush's term.

Please see the link above for the entire article, but here are a few example quotes from the report (bold emphasis added). As a public service, we must advise our readers to put away any hot beverages or sharp objects prior to reading. An on-hand supply of nausea medicine and barf bags might also come in handy.

Time’s Nancy Gibbs, November 17, 2008 cover story on BHO's election win:

"Some princes are born in palaces. Some are born in mangers. But a few are born in the imagination, out of scraps of history and hope....Barack Hussein Obama did not win because of the color of his skin. Nor did he win in spite of it. He won because at a very dangerous moment in the life of a still young country, more people than have ever spoken before came together to try to save it. And that was a victory all its own."

ABC’s Bill Weir talking about Obama’s inauguration on World News, Jan. 20, 2009:

"We know that wind can make a cold day feel colder, but can national pride make a freezing day feel warmer? It seems to be the case because regardless of the final crowd number estimates, never have so many people shivered so long with such joy. From above, even the seagulls must have been awed by the blanket of humanity."

ABC’s Terry Moran to Media Bistro’s Steve Krakauer in a February 20, 2009 Morning Media Menu podcast talking about how the presidency is actually a demotion for BHO:

"like to say that, in some ways, Barack Obama is the first President since George Washington to be taking a step down into the Oval Office. I mean, from visionary leader of a giant movement, now he’s got an executive position that he has to perform in, in a way."

Host Christiane Amanpour to White House advisor David Axelrod on ABC’s This Week, September 26, 2010, after the reality had set in with some supporters that BHO was in way over his head:

"People from all over the world, frankly, say to me, here comes a President with a huge mandate, a huge reservoir of goodwill, huge promises to change, and, with all of that, his popularity is down. People don’t appreciate some of the amazing legislative agenda that he’s accomplished."

Newsweek’s Evan Thomas to host Chris Matthews on MSNBC’s Hardball, June 5, 2009:

"Reagan [at the 1984 D-Day commemoration] was all about America, and you talked about it. Obama is, ‘We are above that now. We’re not just parochial, we’re not just chauvinistic, we’re not just provincial. We stand for something.’ I mean, in a way, Obama’s standing above the country, above — above the world. He’s sort of God. He’s going to bring all different sides together."

The Huffington Post’s Howard Fineman, May 2, 2011:

"By calmly and meticulously overseeing the successful targeting of Osama bin Laden, President Barack Obama just proved himself — vividly, in almost Biblical terms — to be an effective commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the United States."

Stephen Marche in a column for Esquire magazine’s August 2011 issue, entitled How Can We Not Love Obama? Because Like It or Not, He Is All of Us:

"“Can we just enjoy Obama for a moment? Before the policy choices have to be weighed and the hard decisions have to be made, can we just take a month or two to contemplate him the way we might contemplate a painting by Vermeer or a guitar lick by the early-seventies Rolling Stones or a Peyton Manning pass or any other astounding, ecstatic human achievement? Because twenty years from now, we’re going to look back on this time as a glorious idyll in American politics, with a confident, intelligent, fascinating president riding the surge of his prodigious talents from triumph to triumph....‘I am large, I contain multitudes,’ Walt Whitman wrote, and Obama lives that lyrical prophecy....Barack Obama is developing into what Hegel called a ‘world-historical soul,’ an embodiment of the spirit of the times. He is what we hope we can be."

Nope... no bias to see here folks. Move along.

Happy Independence Day 2012

We'd like to wish all our readers a very Happy Independence day. While most modern liberals spend the day bashing America and complaining about the flags flying, there are still a great many folks who love our nation. We'd especially like to send out a thank you to those who have sacrificed so much from our beginning until today, so that we can enjoy our freedoms that were bought with such a cost.

At the same time, we're only a few days removed from the Supreme Court decision upholding ObamaCare, or at least the bill as re-defined by Chief Justice Roberts. I can't help but think about the contrast between today's liberal court and our original court. Consider the words of John Jay, the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court:

“Unto Him who is the author and giver of all good, I render sincere and humble thanks for His manifold and unmerited blessings, and especially for our redemption and salvation by His beloved Son.”

It's ironic that the words of our first chief justice would probably be considered unconstitutional to utter in a public building by today's court. Still, even with this unprecedented power grab by the feds at the expense of local, state and individual rights, America remains one of the best countries on this earth.

We as Christians must continually work to bring back the Biblical principles on which our country was founded, including rights to life, religious freedom and personal liberties. Yet, we must not lose sight of the fact that this is not our true home. We must seek first the Kingdom of Heaven (Mt 6:33) and carry out the Great Commission (Mt 28:18-20). Only when hearts are changed can we expect a permanent change in our society.

Yet, we don't have to reform all of society to bring God's blessing on our country. When we quote 2nd Chronicles 7:14, “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land”, we often think first of reforming unbelievers in government, Hollywood, the media etc. But notice that this promise begins with "if my people", so it is contingent upon the heart and mind of the church, not on unbelievers. If we merely reform ourselves, our nation will be blessed (See our article, Can America claim the promises of 2Chr 7:14, or are they reserved exclusively for Israel? for additional information on this topic).

We'd also like to share one of our favorite videos on this Independence Day. Many have probably viewed this (it has almost 2 million viewings as of this writing), but it's always worth watching again. It is Red Skelton's Pledge of Allegiance and a great testimony of a time when the majority still respected the flag.

Mid-Year 2012 Review

We had planned to post a series of reviews of the first six months of 2012, featuring the talents and wits of many gifted and talented artists. We were to begin this series with a brief summary or overture of many of the events and issues, followed by additional posts on the various subjects over the next few weeks. After getting swamped on other projects, we decided to do a review of the full year instead. So, we're posting a preview at this time, and will be add the others toward the end of the year.

As we view these posts, we who are Christians should bear in mind that, even though we have the right to express our opinions, we should also pray for our government leaders and keep these issues in perspective. The Psalmist writes “Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them -- the Lord, who remains faithful forever.” (Ps 146:3-6)

We should also remember that, our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph 6:12). Finally, we should not forget that it is only the grace of God that separates us from the unbelievers. The apostle Paul addresses believers: As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. (Eph 2:1-7)

That said, enjoy the cartoons.

No, this is not all of the toons. In order to to post a greater number without interrupting the flow of the main blog pages, we are now loading our toons on a separate page. So, please see our Mid-year Toon Review page for additional toons on the economy, election year, religious freedom, Israel, foreign policy, right to life, jobs, healthcare, military, the media, energy and other topics.

Ramblings about College Days and Cartoonists

It is no secret to our regular readers that I greatly admire the talents of many cartoonists. It began back in college, where one on my best friends from our tennis team was an art major. He was into everything, from drawing to painting to sculptures. Eventually, he talked me into attempting some of these tasks, all with disastrous results with the exception of one. I found that I was somewhat blessed with a passable knack for drawing and shading with pencil or charcoal. I have since loaded some of my attempts in the Artwork Section of our main site.

Given an hour or so, I could make a decent replica of what I observed, but I was fascinated by a few students who could quickly sketch out a caricature of a person or thing in a matter of minutes. Years later, while managing our computer graphics and print shop, I often needed a catchy piece of art for a school-fundraiser, safety promotions for an industrial client, or for various other types of programs. I sometimes did my own, but in most cases, I would turn to a couple of friends for the artwork. One worked as a cartoonist for an area newspaper and the other was the minister of education/music at a local church who did freelance art on the side. I was continually amazed at the detail, the range of expressions, the depth of a story that these artists could portray with just a few strokes of the pen.

Since it usually takes me a page or two to say what a good artist can communicate with a simple sketch, I often employ these toons as a means of reviewing events of interest to our readers (not to mention the fact that it’s also much more fun). So, as we pass the halfway point of the year 2012, we’ll be posting a series of reviews featuring many gifted and talented artists. The first, which will be uploaded in the next day or two, is intended to be a summary or overture of many of the various events, subjects, controversies and commentaries on our current society from the past six months. The other review posts will primarily be grouped by subjects, and will be loaded later, along with some other articles. We hope you enjoy them.