Jerry Falwell dead at 73
POSTED BY: Geezer
UPDATED: Sunday, May 20, 2007 16:55
VIEWED: 18266
PAGE 8 of 17
Quote:Yeah you've lost me. I don’t think you’re pointing that out very well. Certainly not in any way that makes sense to me. And I'm not even sure what generalizations have to do with what we're talking about.
Originally posted by SignyM:
Case by case... like abortion? I'm just pointing out that sometimes you yourself make rather broad generalizations, and at other times you decide it's case by case.
Nihil est incertius vulgo, nihil obscurius voluntate hominum, nihil fallacius ratione tota comitiorum.
Nothing is more unpredictable than the mob, nothing more obscure than public opinion, nothing more deceptive than the whole political system.
-- Cicero
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Quote:Why would the Mossad want to assassinate Jerry Falwell?
Originally posted by oldenglanddry:
How long will it be I wonder (if it has'nt already happened, that is) before his death is claimed as an asasination "perped" by Mosad or some other Jewish backed "satanic" conspiricy.
You'd really need some pretty dumb people to believe that. And while there are probably people that dumb in isolated pockets, I don't know that the communications between them is consistent enough to spread that conspiracy theory too far.
On the other hand, I'm generally wrong about how dumb people can be. Maybe I have too much confidence in people.
Nihil est incertius vulgo, nihil obscurius voluntate hominum, nihil fallacius ratione tota comitiorum.
Nothing is more unpredictable than the mob, nothing more obscure than public opinion, nothing more deceptive than the whole political system.
-- Cicero
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Please, before any more anger is expressed, I plead with y'all to look at this:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2007/05/16/falwell_tinky/index.ht
ml?source=rss
It sums up how many might feel deep down...
(Courtesy Moby Vic, Serenitymovie.org)
Chrisisall
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Quote:
Originally posted by SignyM:Quote:Case by case... like abortion? I'm just pointing out that sometimes you yourself make rather broad generalizations, and at other times you decide it's case by case.
That's generalizing quite a bit. Radical Muslims and Communists may describe people with philosophical or religious views. Child molesters imply something more hands on. So of the three child molesters seem most likely to draw the least sympathy from me. But it’s a case by case thing.
---------------------------------
Always look upstream.
I think Finnwill just take whichever stance allows him to act self-righteous, and attack certain posters.
But it doesn't really matter. I don't care if I have Finn's approval.
A bad man is dead and I'm totally cool with that.
"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."
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Quote:
Originally posted by Finn mac Cumhal:Quote:Why would the Mossad want to assassinate Jerry Falwell?
Originally posted by oldenglanddry:
How long will it be I wonder (if it has'nt already happened, that is) before his death is claimed as an asasination "perped" by Mosad or some other Jewish backed "satanic" conspiricy.
You'd really need some pretty dumb people to believe that. And while there are probably people that dumb in isolated pockets, I don't know that the communications between them is consistent enough to spread that conspiracy theory too far.
On the other hand, I'm generally wrong about how dumb people can be. Maybe I have too much confidence in people.
Nihil est incertius vulgo, nihil obscurius voluntate hominum, nihil fallacius ratione tota comitiorum.
Nothing is more unpredictable than the mob, nothing more obscure than public opinion, nothing more deceptive than the whole political system.
-- Cicero
There is many a dumb person out there willing to believe just about anything if you put the words "Jew", "Isreal" and "Conspiracy" in the same paragraph.
Watch this space (or indeed "myspace" ), I'm sure keyboards are a-clicking even now.
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Quote:
Originally posted by fredgiblet:
Don't know if it's real or not but...
http://go.fark.com/cgi/fark/go.pl?i=2807481&l=http://tinyurl.com/2lwod
x
Almost certainly real, but what the Hell does "irrefragable" mean? Is it even a word?
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Quote:Impossible to refute.
Originally posted by oldenglanddry:
Almost certainly real, but what the Hell does "irrefragable" mean? Is it even a word?
Nihil est incertius vulgo, nihil obscurius voluntate hominum, nihil fallacius ratione tota comitiorum.
Nothing is more unpredictable than the mob, nothing more obscure than public opinion, nothing more deceptive than the whole political system.
-- Cicero
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This never happened!
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Finn double posts... my world view is shattered!
I'll be in the pub.
Questions are a burden to others. Answers are prison for oneself.
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Check back in a couple decades. It'll take that long before the winners write the history. The short answer, to bastardize a popular tune, is that Falwell was dominionist before dominionist was cool.
If the dominionists win, and the United States has moved closer and closer towards no separation between church and state, then Falwell will be seen as a trailbreaker. A maverick. The man who led us out of the wilderness. And if the Southern Baptist Convention manages to establish itself as the offical denomination of the United States, then Falwell's statue, and not monuments to the 10 Commandments, could become de rigeur at courthouses across the land. Or at least he will be seen as the patron saint of the American version of the auto-de-fe.
If the dominionists fail then Falwell will be seen as a charlatan, a two-bit huckster who shilled millions out of their hard earned cash on empty promises.
In terms of eulogies, I think Sara Robinson at Orcinus has penned the best one:
Quote:
excerpted from http://dneiwert.blogspot.com/2007/05/that-old-time-religion.html
...
But the glory faded through the 80s, as Falwell turned from churchbuilding and kingmaking to petty libel battles (most notably the one with Larry Flynt); as the press and the courts began to take notice of the ways in which he blurred the lines of church and state separation; and as politicians turned out to be very happy to take the Moral Majority's money, but less enthusiastic about enshrining its morality as federal law. His attempted turnaround of Jim Bakker's Heritage USA enterprises ended in bankruptcy court; and in 1989, the Moral Majority was absorbed into his friend Pat Robertson's Christian Coalition.
Falwell himself was never much of a political or cultural force after that. But it's arguable that if there's one person without whom the religious right would never have risen -- and the GOP's hegemony would never have been possible -- Jerry Falwell was that guy. By organizing traditionally apolitical Evangelicals into the country's dominant political force, he provided the GOP with the essential base of support that's undergirded everything they've done in (and to) America over the past 27 years.
...
As Mrs. Robinson points out, there were plenty of tele-evangelists who were more successful. And plenty of Christian political College founders who were more successful (we only have to look at the Regent University alumnists hired by the Justice Department to see how affirmative action can benefit third tier college graduates - Monica Goodling, we bow to thee, and swear fealty).
Falwell peaked in the eighties. But he served a useful purpose in the anti-Enlightenment crusade of redefining what was acceptable for ultra-conservatives re: politics.
His biggest sin, in terms of tactical mistakes, was trying to start the endgame too early. He failed to recognize the potential in September 11, 2001. In his statements that the US deserved the 9/11 attacks because of our acceptance of homosexuality and abortion he tipped his hand that the overall goal was a purge. The actual approach that was used by the Republican Party - move towards one-party rule and brand anyone who disagreed as a traitor - was much more effective because it built off the "rallying around the flag" impulse. In short, Falwell was so fixated that he was unable to modify his positions and take advantage of the opportunity.
He was, to paraphrase TRex at FDL, a rock throwing villager who gained a national platform. In earlier times, he would've been the one leading a mob of torch bearing pitchfork wielders intent on burning one person at a stake. Scary if you're that person, but not a threat if you live far way from that village. In our times he became the leader of a multi-million dollar empire with a national platform and the ear of Presidents and a threat to everyone he deemed a sinner.
Like the hydra, there are nine more chomping to take up the bit.
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