Republicans hate America 16: The Satanic Panic

Batzel is the executive director of
The American Majority

As Republicans continue to use Magic Words as defense for their intolerance and oppression of the American people they’ve come to utter the trite phrase ‘It’s freedom OF religion not FROM’…. Ho ho ho oh so clever!

 But, the sad reality is Republicans don't believe in freedom of religion either.   Republicans are getting really comfortable with imposing their beliefs on others.  

In Wisconsin, a "Satanic Temple Christmas tree" had conservatives and current and former Wisconsin Republican Congressmen outraged.

"I think it's impossible to overstate how offensive this is to Christians," US Representative Mike Gallagher who spent time in Iraq as a Marine Corps Officer and apparently thinks his feelings are greater than the United States Constitution.

In Iowa, The Church of Satan (a tongue-in-cheek group if every there was one) erected a display in the State Capitol in Des Moines.  This was done in accordance with law.  But, conservatives don't believe in the Rule of Law but, the Rule of Man.  Ron DeShrimpus attacked the display and multiple other elected Republicans expressed their anger in their epistemically closed rightwing media which prompted former Naval Aviator and failed Republican candidate for elected office Michael Cassidy, 35, of Lauderdale, Mississippi, to completely destroy the religious display. Cassidy was charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief, on Friday.

It should be noted that from Ron DeSantis down to criminal Michael Cassidy to any of these hundreds of Republican officials they have all sworn an oath to support and defend the Constitution.  But, much like their religious beliefs that oath is a hollow phrase and a sham to dupe journalists and hide their true agenda. 

For a long time the goal of Fascist Fundamentalists has been to advance religious liberty arguments into the Federal Government (especially the Judiciary and Supremacist Court) where those arguments can be cleverly ensconced into Law.

In Late Antiquity, Christian Terrorists vandalized and destroyed the much of The Great Library of Alexandria and did everything they could to infiltrate and take over the Roman Empire.  We've been warned that infiltrating and radically altering the United States into a White Supremacist Evangelical Theocracy was the goal of the modern Christian Terrorists for 60 years even from The Godfather of Modern Conservatism Barry Goldwater.  Now, we have several Catholic Dominionists and lower courts and Federal Government is seeded with evangelical terrorists supporting nakedly religious edicts being substituted into law and undermining the secular foundations of the Country, especially the separation of Church & State

"The separation of church and state is a misnomer.  People misunderstand it.  Of course, it comes from a phrase that was in a letter that Jefferson wrote. It’s not in the Constitution. And what he was explaining is they did not want the government to encroach upon the church — not that they didn’t want principles of faith to have influence on our public life. It’s exactly the opposite."- Speaker of the House Mike Johnson

It's exactly the opposite that little snake Mike Johnson says... People of faith get to encroach on the Government as much as they wish.  You have the august and cherished right to believe in Christianity.  Even Catholics are accepted for now, as long as far-right Catholic Cardinals attack prominent Democratic leaders who are catholic like Nancy Pelosi, John Kerry, or President Biden.

What Republicans could not possibly be making any clearer is they have no duty to respect your Religious Freedom and will blatantly violate your rights under the law because they feel ascendant.  It's hard to keep up with all the bad faith, crime, terrorism, perfidy being conducted by Republicans these days but, now that Republicans have successfully ended Roe v. Wade, their next target will be to destroy religious freedom and re-interpret the First Amendment to make sure you have the Freedom to follow their Religious Laws and Edicts.

Mullah Kacsmaryk auditions for America's Next Top Mullahs

Boston Hospital Bombing Fan
Mullah Matt Walsh

“I have acted without bias and after extensive prayer, to allow these bills to become law,” Mullah Mark Gordon wrote in a letter to Wyoming’s secretary of state released on Friday evening.   His religious choices on medical procedures are binding on you.  And Republicans plan to use their Religious Liberty to further bind and control America.

I'm finally beginning to understand the post 2020 Republican effort to overthrow the election prior to the Jan6th Insurrection;  Republicans were trying to pull off "That One Weird Trick" by Judge-shopping for that some rightwing wackaloon Judge who would declare Trump the winner and then Rightwingers would assert that podunk Judges' ruling binds the entire Nation.

Matthew Kacsmaryk's ruling on mifepristone has been dissected for being based on rightwing lies, religious nonsense, brought forth by people without standing, and rife with utter tripe in the place of any legal concepts.  Remember Religious Liberty to a Republicans means they have the power and liberty to dictate what you can and can not do. 

Kommen sie Herr Fräulein

Republicans can not win elections and have no policies to win more voters to their agenda.  The only policies Republicans offer up are Lower Taxes on Rich people and More Guns.  Their only Agenda is Hatred & Fear.

That's why Republicans gerrymander states like Wisconsin.  That's why Republicans suppress voting in Georgia.  That's why Republicans rely on the Electoral College to gain the Presidency.

Now, in conjunction with ignoring, undoing, stopping the will of the Voters (writ large) has been the stacking of courts with ideological villains who mouth the appropriate words of impartiality and respect for the law, but who in actuality are rigid Reactionary authoritarians who use their benches to call balls strikes and strikes balls.

This "ruling" from Kacsmaryk isn't rooted in any foundation of law.  Everyone knew what his decision was going to be when the disingenuous plaintiffs sought him out with their standing-less suit.  Even the Corporate Media understood how this little Nazi buffoon was going to rule, but the Corporate Media's job is too make fascism palatable to the masses, to "grudgingly" accede to majestic majesty of the law which unfortunately means one piss-ant Judge in Texassistan decrees what goes for everyone.

Now, in response President Biden directed the DoJ to bring a counter-suit and a Federal Judge in Washington issued an injunction.  This is good but, we approaching a point when the pushback against these rightwing rulings will face an inflection point; namely will a Democratic President or Legislature ignore a such a future ruling?  Because each ruling by these rightwing "judges" is designed to build pressure, to push for a reaction, because Republicans believe in a One-Party Rule and Fascism.  And Fascists use the system right up until they can no longer do so and then comes the violence and death camps.  Republican Judges believe that they can make these rulings precisely because they expect society bow down and take it.

This poppycock ruling is designed cause confusion and concern in the Pharmaceutical companies which manufacture this drug (and others) because the explicit threat from Republicans is if you don't acquesise to us we will use the awesome power of the Government to bankrupt you and subject various people in your company to arrest, lawsuits, and congressional investigations.

Mullah Tim Pool
"I want Restrictions!" 
on women

This is precisely why Republicans under Gym Jordan have launched their "Weaponization of the Department of Justice", the Republicans are broadcasting their intentions and making clear this is what they will do and how they will govern.

Because Republicans know that Corporations hate uncertainty and risk, and would rather side with restrictive Republican Policy.  Remember Walgreens preemptively caved to this ruling before Mullah Kacsmaryk even made it.

That's a key weapon Fascism wields getting people to surrender before even fighting.  Fascism succeeds when people acquiesce before hand additionally, Fascists use "legal rulings" to sow discord and confusion because they know good people who believe in the rule of law will attempt to follow the rules sent down to them, no matter how confusing, immoral, or outright unlawful they are.

It's Time to Cancel Christmas

The bomb cyclone and deep arctic freeze which settled over the midwest snarled and cancelled the Christmas plans of many people.  My flight was cancelled as Chicago endured -35 wind chill, although the snow totals were far lower than at first predicted as the low pressure system settled in Quebec instead of southern Illinois,

"We've been getting questions about 'what happened to all that snow?'" the National Weather Service out of Milwaukee/Sullivan tweeted early Friday. "The main reason is due to where the low pressure system tracked and deepened. Earlier this week, it looked like the low would be deepening just to our south. Now, it's doing that in Quebec. We had a number of days in a row earlier this week and over last weekend which was showing us the more favorable track. Over the past few days, that started to trend further east which then led to less of a chance of high snow amounts."

But, what this indicates is trying to move 100,000,000 people during the beginning of Winter is sub-optimal plan especially as the effects of Climate Change continue to exert themselves with these "Once-in-a-Generation" Storms which happen every year, so we should simply move the Christmas Holiday to late June.  I've thought mid-June was a perfect spot for a Federal Holiday but, last year the US Government under Joe Biden and a Democratic Congress approved Juneteenth as a Federal Holiday.  So perhaps we could set New Xmas between Juneteenth and the 4th of July or set it for late July, that would be a great time to have people get together.

Christmas being in December is a christian plot anyway.  The young Hebrew rabbi known as Yeshua ben Nazareth who claimed to be the physical son of God never existed.  Many of the stories, miracles, and anecdotes of "Jesus" were cribbed from previous Pagan deities.  This was specifically decided by early church leaders to make Jesus similar to Pagan myths and ease the transition from Pagan to christian in the Ancient Roman world.  And the choice of late December was directly copied from the Winter Solstice and Io Saturnalia.  Now, of course I don't expect any change of Christmas to every occur.  Eventhough I'm an atheist I'm not "Militant" as the christians throw that modifier on to anyone who points out the correct historical understanding of the early church.

In many ways, the religious fanatics in America are similar to their counterparts in Iran or the Taliban of Afghanistan.  Here in the United States, they are constrained and unable to enforce the religious dictates backed by State violence as opposed to those Muslim fanatics.  But, fear not the Religious Zealots on America are working on that!  And they will do so via the Courts.

"My Sincere Religious Beliefs" is the vehicle by which christians will destroy the United State of America.

They tried to use "Religious Liberty" as a mechanism to shut down Civil Rights in the 1950's and 60's but didn't have the established legal precedents to call upon.  But, since the 1971 Justice Lewis Powell Memo rightwing organizations especially the Reagan Era Federalist Society have slowly ensconced religious wackos on the Bench and built up a body of Case Law enshrining religious beliefs into various levels of government. 

Now I know there's a lot of #NotAllChristian apologia whenever it's revealed that high level religious zealots have the ear of Sammy di Puzzi Alito and other members of The Supremacist Court or when podunk State legislators make secular laws based on biblical teachings or when secret recordings of fundamentalist fanatics outlining their completely disingenuous arguments to abolish all Abortion are released, it all comes back to what christians in America want; total control of peoples' lives and State backed power to force you to live by their religious precepts.  And they are going to call this realm of death, oppression, and persecution the Land of Liberty defending the Freedom of Religion.

Two US Navy Ships : Two different Presidents : Two different Reactions to Covid

Back in March 2020, US Navy Captain Brett Crozier complained about the US Government response to the Covid outbreak.  Capt. Crozier commanded the USS Teddy Roosevelt, an aircraft carrier and thus the Capital ship in the Navy.

A Rapist of All Things

Well that was the Trump government and while Traitor Trump knows nothing about anything, he does know PR, and while Trump will gladly hump a flag he wasn't going to let anyone sully his image of being loved by the military.  Trump imitator, in more ways than one, Thomas Modly* flew out to the Teddy Roosevelt and told the Ships' crew Crozier had to be fired because... reasons...  Trump Secretary of the Navy Kenneth Braitwaite** then laughably declared Crozier did not do enough to stop the spread of Covid amongst his crew.  So, on April 2, 2020 Crozier was sacked by Trump sycophants.  Fortunately, Crozier is retiring this month after 30 years service a career conservatives lustily spit upon for Trump.

Now it's 2022, and Joe Biden is President.  So, let's remember the dynamic; conservatives have draped themselves in the flag and assumed the mantle of Real America for a long, long time.  As a corollary, conservatives have long cloaked their cowardice in the patriotism of others and assume the military is staunchly rightwing.  

So, when an unnamed Commander of a missile destroyer declared he wasn't going to have anything to do with this Covid Vaccination, a rightwing Federal Judge could not rule quick enough that the US Navy can't touch him.

In a 48 page ruling, Judge Steven Douglass Merryday ruled USN Commander John Doe 'harbors' a sincere Religious Exemption to vaccination and the US Navy are enjoined from any adverse or retaliatory action against the Commander (a Lt Colonel also involved in this suit).

So, is President Joe Biden the CinC or not?  

During, the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress (abetted by several Gentlemen who sought Washington's command and were friendly with the British) hamstrung, micromanaged, and interfered with operations until the crucible of Valley Forge and Washingotn's determination enabled him to get breathing room and push for Nathanael Greene to be assigned Quartermaster General.

But, once again we see how deep the rot of rightwing propaganda has seeped.  Judge Merryday was appointed in 1992 and 30 years on the bench has no doubt convinced him his not opinion only is better than the US Navy but, especially when a DemocRAT President is trying to enforce unlawful orders on the Military... like vaccination...  

In court declarations two US Navy Officers testified the following about Commander Doe,

Vice Admiral D.W. Dwyer and Captain Frank Brandon explained that Doe’s anti-vax beliefs are part of a broader pattern of insubordination. Brandon testified that last November, he spoke with Doe on Doe’s ship one day before its scheduled departure. Doe was experiencing multiple symptoms of COVID, and appeared to have a relatively severe case; he could, Brandon recalled, “barely speak.” Yet Doe refused to get tested—a clear violation of protocol—and attended a briefing in a cramped room with about 60 other people. Brandon ordered Doe to get a test, which revealed that he did, indeed, have COVID, and exposed dozens of others to the virus.

Doe engaged in other deceptive behavior. For instance, when requesting leave, he concealed the fact that he was flying to another state, which would have triggered a mandatory risk assessment. After Brandon discovered this subterfuge, he learned that Doe had traveled to a high-risk area, requiring five days’ quarantine upon return.

But, of course IOKIYAR.  Because conservatives have turned the United States into a Nation of Men*** not Laws. 

I am certain rightwing Media and Judge Merryday would love to have Biden intervene and order the recalcitrant Navy Commander to take a hike, they would have another 'bloody shirt' to wave.  As when, Marine Corps jack wagon Stuart Scheller, who "inexplicably", placed the whole blame for Afghanistan upon the shoulders of President Biden and then was feted and treated to the time-worn rightwing media parade, USN Commander Doe would be lauded for his convictions while Tucker Carlson and all the other conservative chickenhawk couch-borne commandoes cast fie**** upon Joe Biden...

*- Moldy with trump inspired hair??? really the screenwriters have gotten so lazy.  Modly had to resign after he flew onto "The Big Stick" to address the crew about firing Crozier and stated Crozier, "is either too naive or too stupid to be a commanding officer of a ship like this [or] he did this on purpose."

**- Braithwaite, like all rightwing grifters, stole huge amounts of money from the government.  Braithwaite spent over $2 million traipsing the globe during his 8 month appointment.  But, Fraud, Waste and Abuse never really matters to conservatives if a Republican Champion who "Owns the Libs" does it.  Nah, holiday junkets to Norway, Greece, Italy, Wake Island, Hawaii by Braithwaite are payment for a job well done...

***- as long as those men are right-wingers and not antiwar squishes like Lt. Col Alexander Vindman 

****-  as evidenced in the fetid and rancid comment sections of news stories, Fashbook, the Twitter cesspool, or any platform deplorable conservatives hurl all sorts of invectives at Presidents when they are Democrats (and at all officials associated with Democratic Presidents) 

There's more than corn in Indiana, there's also the Right-to-Discriminate and be a Christian Bigot (Updated)

Are there any queers in the theater tonight?
Get them up against the wall!
There's one in the spotlight, he don't look right to me,
Get him up against the wall! - In the Flesh , Pink Floyd, The Wall (1979). Adopted by the Indiana Republicans as marching orders.

Republicans are going to force you to become christians. Not "Papists" mind you, because as Sarah Palin elucidated, Pope Francis sounds "too liberal" and the Republicans in Congress cancelled a Ceremonial Bill honoring the Pontiff because his Papal pronouncements too closely aligned with President Obama.

Now, we've listened to Phil Robertson fantasize about a horrific torture/murder spree he'd like to unleash on atheists which included raping little girls, beheading women and cutting dicks off now we have the Indiana Republicans and Republican Governor Mike Pence ramming through a Religious Discrimination Bill.

98 of the 103 Republicans in the Indiana State Legislature voted to allow Christian Bigots to discriminate against you because they feel like it. Like all illegal shameful laws passed, Governor Pence could not do this in the light of day but, had to slink into a secret room to affix his signature to the euphemistically titled Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

We've seen the Hobby Lobby Scotus decision empower business owners to dictate what you can and can not do with your healthcare, opening the floodgates for religious bigots to be able to tell you that you can not use your salary, your pay, or your benefits as you see fit.

This isn't about restoring the free exercise of religion or what a person does in the privacy of their own home or the practices of their church but, another step towards allowing businesses to discriminate.

The unfortunate truth is if you wish to operate a company in America you need to accept each and every customer regardless of whether you agree or disagree with their personal beliefs. You recall all the onerous regulations stifling business according to republicans? The Civil Rights Act of 1968 which outlawed Discrimination is what Republicans and Conservatives find onerous.

And what the Republicans are doing through the passage of these Unconstitutional and Illegal Laws is to build a case brick by bigoted brick to eliminate The Civil Rights Act.

As more laws are passed its getting closer and closer to the day when the political system which comes wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross triumphantly lays claim to the United States.

Update:
Fortunately, there has been a strong push back on Twitter/Facebook and On-line. Unfortunately, what the Clicktavists don't understand is Republicans Do. Not. Care. because they know most people don't vote and even if one Republican (Mike Pence, for instance) loses his position in Government a whole cadre of Republican stand ready to use the Awesome Power of Government to enforce their Bigotry.

Update 2:
So, a Right-Winger in Arizona pushed for mandatory church attendence across the Nation. Big Deal, you might think, until you realize the Right-Winger is an elected State Congresswoman who is willing to use the Power of Government to force you to attend a church.

Then again you might shrug and dismiss it as some local po-dunk backwater Teabagger with little power until Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and 2016 Presidential Aspirant has called for a Big christian Tent Revival to regain America's lost morality.

Life and Liberty in America is for (Straight) Christians Only, everybody else can go to Hell

Right Wing Freedom of Religion is the freedom to use their Religion to impose their will upon all of Us. Because America is for Christians only.

The same mindset which fuels the Zealotry of the ISIS/ISIL fuels the Religious Loons in the United States.   It, of course, doesn't mean Americans Religious Nuts are the Same as the Islamic Religious Nuts because the muslim extremists are by far more honest and more open about their goals whereas the American extremists lie and try and use back-door illegal channels to get their Christian Fascism ensconced into Law.

Ben Sasse, the Republican nominee for US Senate in Nebraska believes, Religious Liberty gives him and other Christians total immunity to break laws with impunity.

Government cannot force Citizens to violate their religious beliefs under any circumstances...

Of course, we are talkin' bout Real Religion not "neo-pagan and polytheistic, pre-Christian deities,” and therefore it does not fall within “the Judeo-Christian tradition" distinction which Chesterfield County in Virginia proclaims are the only true religions and therefore the only ones allowed on their official county list.

Senator Orrin Hatch says if the SCOTUS doesn't give him the power to Oppress people using Religion he'll change the Constitution to make sure it does. 

"I hope the Supreme Court doesn’t screw that up is all I can say. Because if they foul up the First Amendment again, we are going to have a constitutional amendment," Senator Hatch said during a Memorial Day Speech, when asked about the pending Hobby Lobby Case before the Supreme Court.

These aren't fringe weirdos like Reverand Terry "Muttonchops" in Florida and his quran burning obsession. These are the erstwhile Leaders of the Republican Party elected to State and Federal Offices.

Republicans also routinely claim to be modern prophets. Ben Carson, claims The Lord GAWD had delivered unto him a message,

"I realized that God probably had something special he wanted me to say,” Carson explained. “But I didn’t know what it was until the morning of the prayer breakfast." 

"After a while of wrestling with it, I just said, I’m leaving it alone, the Lord will tell me what to say," he continued. "And that morning, it was so clear in my mind what I was supposed to say."

And that message? Healing the Sick? Helping the Poor? Aiding the Afflicted? Nope. America must have a Flat Tax!

Because Supply-Side Jesus teaches us, it is easier for a Rich Man to pass into Heaven seated comfortably on the back of a camel than for a poor man to pass through the eye of a needle.

GOP Congressional Candidate James Lankford in Oklahoma has let it be known far and wide that Gawd Himself! has called upon him to run for the U.S. House. Now, how can you vote against a White Male Christian and consider yourself a good and true America? You can't libtard!

But, what this bible-thumping and proclamations of persecution leads to; is Violence in the name of the Lord.

The latest NRA-supported shooter of the 74 School Shootings since the Pro-2nd Amendment Massacre at Sandy Hook, Jared Padgett in Oregon was indoctrinated by Mormon Religious Fanatics and was highly regard by Church Elders for his spirituality.

He expressed his desire to cleanse the world of Sinners. Get 1000 of the same thinking types together, give them a Religious Demagogue to lead them and you have the ISIS/ISIL.

But, don't worry because before the Christian Zealots can begin their pogroms and attempted overthrow of the Government the Conservative Domestic Terrorists will have launched their Insurrection and attempted Coup.

From Right Wing Watch comes everybody's favorite fake Historian and Fabricator David Barton. Who explains how the bible teaches us to Vote based on Gawd's Top Ten List: