by La Shawn on August 28, 2008
in Playlist
I won’t be watching Barack Obama’s speech tonight (no TV and wouldn’t watch it if I had one), but I may watch a video clip and blog or write an op-ed about it next week. Feel free to discuss his speech and anything DNC-related in the post below.
The next few days will be extraordinarily hectic for me, so this completes my blogging for the week. I’m making a pit stop in SC to visit family for a few weeks, then heading to Las Vegas for GodBlogCon September 19-21, then flying out to the West Coast, my new home, the first of October. Based on e-mail and comments since I announced I was moving, readers want to hear more about why I decided to move. I’ll fill you in.
Until then, have a restful Labor Day weekend, everybody. And thanks for reading my blog. 
(Today was overcast and drizzly and dreary. I won’t miss this weather!)
This one, too:
by La Shawn on August 27, 2008
in Liberals
I give up! Just for today.
Between packing for the big move, taking care of clients who pay the bills, and doing miscellaneous other things to retain a sense of normalcy in the middle of a life-altering event, I can’t settle on a post idea. So I give up, sort of.
I’ve posted future First Lady Michelle Obama’s speech at the DNC so you can discuss it if so inclined. I mean, everybody who’s anybody is blogging and talking about the convention, right?
This Washington Post guy said M. Obama sounded too traditional, which was “sad” to him. A woman speaking glowingly of being a wife and mother makes the liberal sad.
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by La Shawn on August 26, 2008
in Lunacy
Help! I’m up to my nose in boxes. Man. You never realize how much stuff you accumulate in 10 years. And the books. They’ve been breeding! (I’m moving to California, by the way.)
Anyway, I’m breaking briefly to blog about Barack Obama’s choice of vice presidential running mate, Senator Joe Biden. I couldn’t resist reminding you about Biden’s “controversial” remarks.
Last year, a journalist asked Biden what he thought of his opponent (Biden had recently announced his candidacy for president), and this is what he said about Obama:
“I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”
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by La Shawn on August 22, 2008
in General
I’d planned to do a big post next week with a long list of reasons why I’ve decided to do this radical thing. Too much work, so here’s a short post now.
Every once in awhile, I’m motivated to take a risk, and the urge usually centers around my age. The older you become, the more you realize you have less time to pursue your dreams or reach that goal or do the hard thing you’ve been avoiding. For me, getting older has meant less lip service and more action. Time’s running out!
Well, it’s time to take another plunge, to give up one thing in order to gain another. Readers, I’ve decided to…
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Thursday, October 23: Google visitors, see the latest post: Crystal Mangum Claims Assault.
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Update III (8/25): Here’s the press release that arrived in my inbox on Thursday night:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 22, 2008
Publication Date: October 1, 2008
Media Inquiries: Vincent Clark
vince@firefilmz.com
greenecourt@aol.com
919.630.3806
Michael Denisoff
MDenLA@oal.com
949.293.2797
http://www.firefilmz.com
http://www.denisoffconsulting.com
Poignant Memoir Reveals Details of a Difficult Life
(Los Angeles) - The Duke Lacrosse case is no longer the lead story on the network and cable news shows, but there is one central figure, who was there on the night in question and who’s voice has been silent. She’s been called an exotic dancer and a prostitute, and the public was led to believe she wanted to frame some “good college students” from Duke and put them in jail. Although most of the questions appear to be answered in the Duke Lacrosse Case, one still remains. Who is Crystal Gail Mangum? During the investigation and in its aftermath, she never spoke publicly, that is until now.
The Last Dance for Grace: The Crystal Mangum Story is the only definitive account of the life and struggles of the woman at the center of the Duke Lacrosse case, the alleged accuser. Were it not for the Duke Lacrosse Case, she likely would be described as a bright, young woman from Durham, North Carolina, who has had a difficult life. Like so many of us, Crystal has made mistakes and has struggled to make amends. Her biggest mistake just happened to lead to one of the most controversial legal cases in American history.
Published reports throughout 2006 and 2007 portrayed Crystal as a gold-digging hooker searching for a big payday or as a unstable, troubled young woman.
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by La Shawn on August 20, 2008
in General
The Telegraph reports that George Obama, Barack Obama’s half-brother, subsists on less than a dollar a month in a hut in Nairobi, Kenya. He says he’s ashamed of his poverty and doesn’t tell people he’s related to America’s first black major party presumptive presidential nominee.
Assuming he didn’t know how his brother was living (benefit of the doubt, and all that), I wonder what Barack Obama will do to help him now, in light of his “we still don’t spend enough time thinking about the least of these” lecture on Saturday at the Saddleback Civil Forum.
I’ll be watching and waiting.
Later…MM says: “Actually, this may be one of the few times Obama did taxpayers a favor — by not bringing his unemployed brother here to live off the welfare state.”
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A gathering of Christians working to advance the Kingdom through blogging + internet technologies.
I’m headed back to Vegas!
I’m returning to the God Blog Convention, sponsored by Biola University in La Mirada, California. This year’s convention will be held at the Blog World and New Media Expo on September 20 and 21. (Last year’s GodBlogCon was in Vegas, too.)
Why a Christian blogging convention in Vegas? Blog Expo founder Rick Calvert wanted to organize a sort of blogging tradeshow where all kinds of bloggers (faith, tech, business, etc.) could gather and network. He asked the GodBlogCon organizers if they’d consider holding their annual gathering at the Expo, and they were happy to do so.
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In the spirit of charitable giving, Christian or otherwise, I’m starting a monthly feature here at LBC for those who want to give. If you read this blog, like it, and want to contribute a little toward the LBC Bandwidth Fund, click the Pay Pal button below:
Thanks for reading!
Cal Thomas (emphasis added):
“Obama and others on the evangelical left see government, not individuals or the church, as the instrument by which the commands of Jesus are implemented. In such a doctrinal interpretation, government serves as a kind of “lesser God,” intruding on believers and their commission to do good works, as a means of sharing the gospel message, and concentrating not on the message, but on the implementation of the work itself, which only helps in this life, not the next.”
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A graduate of the John Kerry Bible College, Barack Obama is true to form. Like his mentor, Obama cites Scripture to bolster his socialist view of the world and make himself seem more “Christian.”
Unless you live in a cave, you heard about Saturday’s Q&A between Rick Warren of “mega-church” Saddleback and presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama. For this post, I want to focus on a few statements Obama made (from an unedited transcript - emphasis added):
“I think America’s greatest moral failure in my lifetime has been that we still don’t abide by that basic [p]recept in Matthew that whatever you do for the least of my brothers, you do for me. And notion of — that basic principle applies to poverty. It applies to racism and sexism. It applies to, you know, not having — not thinking about providing ladders of opportunity for people to get into the middle class. I mean, there is a purvasive [sic] sense I think that this country is wealthy and powerful as we still don’t spend enough time thinking about the least of these…”
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Last April, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a ban on a heinous act euphemistically called partial birth abortion, which LBC readers know as infanticide or more precisely, murder.
In response, pro child-killing politicians went into action. They drafted a bill called the Freedom of Choice Act, which would nullify federal and state limitations on abortions. Read more about it at the National Right to Life Committee.
Partial birth abortion is a procedure in which “doctors” pull the baby down the birth canal, partially delivering him to avoid murder charges, and inserting a probe or scissors into his skull, killing him. (Update: Forgot to mention this. The “doctor” suctions out the dead baby’s brain to collapse the skull and make it easier for him to pull out the dead baby.)
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by La Shawn on August 13, 2008
in Faith
And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings. – Acts 17:26
Why No Kumbaya, My Lord?
One would think churches are places where people make an extra effort to erase the lines of racial division, to serve as examples of unity in Christ to an unbelieving world. After all, we are brothers and sisters in Christ, members of the same family, heirs of God, co-heirs with Christ.
But Christians are fallen (although forgiven) humans, and sinners all, and we still carry impure preferences and prejudices. Generally speaking, blacks prefer to be around blacks, whites prefer to be around whites, and [insert group here] prefer to be around [insert group here]. The “can’t we all just get along” refrain is noble and well-intentioned. We can try, but differences will always be obvious. These differences don’t have to divide, but too often they do.
According to a CNN article titled, “Why many Americans prefer their Sundays segregated,” interracial churches (at least 20 percent of members belong to a racial minority group) are rare. Nothing new there. Most people prefer being around their “own kind.”
Why? Because it’s just easier. And less stressful. And easier. No matter what we say publicly, we have an affinity for people who look like us.
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When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"
So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven." – Matthew 16: 13-17
Who do you say Jesus is?
The foundation of the Christian faith is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches and people indwelt with the spirit of God believe Christ is the Son of God. He was fully man and fully God. He is God. There was never a time he didn’t exist. He’s always existed with the Father and the Holy Spirit. He is Creator. He is Savior. He is the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world, the Lamb who will return to deliver God’s wrath.
To an unbeliever, some of these things seem contradictory or just plain silly. How can Jesus have been human and deity? How can Jesus be the Son of God and God? What do these things mean? Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – what is that about?
For short and oh-so-sweet answers, follow the links:
Who do you say Jesus is?
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One thing Barack Hussein Obama’s got going for him in the presidential race is the color of his skin. No matter how many verbal gaffes he makes, including inane inconsistencies that pop up in every speech, his ethnicity is his bargaining chip, and he pulls it out whenever he needs it.
You’ve been reading the news. BHO recently accused the McCain camp of playing the race card, then backtracked. But the backtracking didn’t matter. Putting accusations out there causes more than enough damage, even if you change your mind. It’s quite frustrating for me, as a voice in the wilderness, keenly aware of what BHO is doing and how effectively he’s doing it. Bah!
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by La Shawn on August 5, 2008
in General
One day, if I ever get a book published, I’ll write about the process of trying to get a book published for other aspiring book authors.
Today, I want to update you on something I’ve been dropping hints about. I’m being obscure on purpose, because everything is so…uncertain.
In June, I told you I sent out a book proposal. The book idea is outside-the-box and something people who know me wouldn’t expect from me. But I was feeling bold and inspired and took a chance.
Most agents responded to my query letter with, “Sorry, not for us.” Two responded favorably and requested the proposal. Still waiting for responses. But get this: one agent didn’t like the idea, didn’t want to see the proposal, but liked my writing style based on the query and the fact that I’ve had some media exposure, writing experience, a kind of well-known blog, etc., and he wants to see a different proposal. He called me. Only writers know how big a deal that is. Agents typically don’t call writers to turn them down when they can e-mail or not reply at all.
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