I Bite My Tongue...with a Caveat

Since I have used him as an example of righteous zeal on numerous occasions, I knew that I could not allow the death of Rev. Jerry Falwell to pass without comment. I will not, however, repeat or join in with any of the people who are already expressing their satisfaction with today's news.
Though he enjoyed popular support among many evangelicals, the vast majority of thinking people (believers and non-believers alike) had grown tired of his scathing, thoughtless, and disrespectful one-liners directed towards women's rights groups, homosexuals, and other 'secularists.' His death, therefore, should not be seen as a victory or success for anyone. As despicable as his views were, there is a family in Virginia grieving the loss of a father.
I know that many news outlets will focus on his founding of the Moral Majority and his role in getting "values voters" to the polls. But since one's death does not make one a "better" person, but simply a "dead" person, I hope that reporters will not shy away from giving adequate airtime to his numerous offensive statements, and the high-level politicians that still sought his counsel. Having advocated such divisive and unsustainable morals, I am confident that history will not be kind to the narrow moral absolutism of which he was so proud.

More Morsely Morsels

Dirk may have been the best in the regular season, but if he's the best player on his team, the Mavs will never win it all. I agree with everything JJT has to say.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/columnists/jtaylor/
stories/050407dnspotaylor.3dda6d5.html

Or, for a little encouragement, read Bill Simmons' take.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/blog/index?name=simmons

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Is anyone else frightened by the fact that 3 grown men running for president of the United States readily admitted on live TV that they do not believe in evolution? I guess I'm actually frightened by the fact that their rejection of 150 years of biological study will actually HELP their campaigns in many corners of the country.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/05/us/politics/05repubs.html

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Take a second to laugh. Check out McSweeny's. Start here, then make your way to the lists. They're pure gold.

http://www.mcsweeneys.net/2007/5/3hutchinson.html

Ironic Bedfellows

Does it strike anyone else as ironic that the US and Sudan have nearly identical views on the International Criminal Court?

Here is Stephen Hadley, W's deputy national security advisor, in 2002:

"President Bush is determined to protect U.S. citizens from the ICC. An effort by the ICC to detain an American would have serious consequences. No one should underestimate Bush's commitment on this issue."

Here is Sudan's Justice Minister, Mohamed Ali Al-Mardi, today, in response to two warrants issued by the ICC:

"We do not recognize the International Criminal Court ... and we will not hand over any Sudanese even from the rebel groups who take up weapons against the government"

For the record, other non-participating countries include China, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Qatar and Israel.

If we ever need moral support, it's good to know that Muammar Qadafy will have our back.

More seriously, this is something that Clinton got wrong in 1998 that Bush has made even worse during his administration. Maybe if our troops were held accountable to international standards, they'd quit torturing people so readily (or at least photographing it when they do). Even though we act as though we are above the law, it's high time that we agree to play by the rules.