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May 25, 2012
Mark Clayton: Is Hillary's State Dept. hacking Al Qaeda? Not quite
Erika Bolstad: Temple cancels Wasserman Schultz speech
The Kosher Gourmet by Ethel G. Hofman: The former president of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, whose members included the likes of Julia Child, is back with contemporary Shavous cuisine: Ruby Fruit Soup, Sweet Noodle Kugel with Cheese, Key Lime Curd, Calsone Casserole Frittata with Wild Mushrooms, Sun-dried tomatoes and Olives, Baked Tilapia with Pepper Cheese Cream and Brown Sugar Shortbread
May 24, 2012
Jeff Jacoby: The peace process battered Israel's reputation
Michael Muskal: 'Pro-choice' position hits record low, according to poll
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The Kosher Gourmet by Penelope Wall: PHILLY CHEESE STEAKS --- hold the steak!
May 23, 2012
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The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen:A simple way to do fish right
May 22, 2012
Warren Richey: Can US group challenge overseas surveillance act? Supreme Court to decide
Thomas M. Anderson: Walking Away From a Mortgage
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: Enjoy a celebration of the most rich and layered flavors: Black bean, sweet potato and quinoa chili
May 21, 2012
Mark Clayton: Cybersecurity: How US utilities passed up chance to protect their networks
Howard LaFranchi: NATO summit: Who will foot the bill for long-term Afghanistan security?
Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Stephen Whiteside, Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Social anxiety disorder --- or just shy?
Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: Famed chef's veal shoulder farsumagru: A festive meat course for late spring
May 18, 2012
Rabbi Berel Wein: Striving: The People of the Book's Book for (All of) the People
Steven Goldberg: 5 Great Stock Picks and the Exchange-Traded Fund that Owns Them
Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
Steven Goldberg: Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Amina Khan: Research links coffee to lower death rates
The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
Carmen Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: A variety of exercises can help improve balance
Melissa Healy: National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025
The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
Pat Mertz Esswein: Homes are now affordable again and mortgage rates are low. What you need to know before you buy
Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
Sue Hubbard, M.D.: The Kid's Doctor: Lactose intolerant young child? Check again
The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Hunt: Spread a Little Excitement with EXOTIC CONDIMENTS (4 RECIPES)
May 14, 2012
Lisa Gerstner: How to Protect Your Identity, Finances If You Lose Your Phone
Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
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The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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Jewish World Review
Sept. 2, 2011
3 Elul, 5771
The Almighty, Politics and Rick Perry
By
Suzanne Fields
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
G0d will not be mocked, as the Scriptures tell us, but the pundits and politicians keep trying. Rick Perry is bringing out both the believers and the scoffers. This is a phenomenon that seems to happen with the presidential cycles. Jimmy Carter was born again, Barack Obama was once the messiah, and his followers — millions of them — thought he could walk on water. Now not even Michelle is sure he could walk to Alexandria without getting wet to the knees. All that is gone with the wind and Irene's rain.
Perry, who has turned the Republican primary race upside-down overnight, is scaring the Sunday-school dropouts. John Sharp, the Democrat who lost when Perry was elected lieutenant governor of Texas in 1998, offers glum testimony to the Perry prowess. "Running against Perry is like running against G0d," he says. Everything breaks his way.
"I don't know if G0d is calling Rick Perry to run for president, but if he runs, the other candidates are going to need a big dose of magic and a lot of shoe leather," Sharp told Texas Monthly magazine. The Harry Potter generation should understand.
The more serious rap on the governor is that he exploits his faith for political purposes, that he puts it too much on display. His big prayer rally in Houston in August, held just before he announced his bid for the Republican nomination for president, was advertised as a call for Christians to pray for a nation in crisis. What could be wrong with prayer? But some of the people praying with Perry have raised the eyebrows — and the high dudgeon — of skeptical pundits.
Perry's prayer meeting was joined by followers of something called the New Apostolic Reformation, including believers who call themselves "Dominionists," who see themselves as modern prophets who receive instructions for political action directly from G0d. That sounds elementary enough to churchgoers, but for these followers, writes Forrest Wilder in the Texas Observer, a liberal weekly in Austin, that means "infiltrating politics and government" with G0d's message.
"The new prophets and apostles believe Christians — certain Christians —are destined to not just take 'dominion' over government, but stealthily climb to the commanding heights of what they term the "Seven Mountains of Society, including the media and the arts and entertainment." This worries the mainstream media worriers.
"I care a lot if a candidate is going to be a Trojan horse for a sect that believes it has divine instructions on how we should be governed," writes Bill Keller, outgoing executive editor of The New York Times.
It's not clear how someone can be stealthy and devious while proclaiming from the pulpit what he's trying to do. Tom Schlueter, an Apostolic Reformation pastor who regarded the Houston rally as "divinely inspired," told his congregation that G0d has given him the authority to "infiltrate the governmental mountain." It's not clear how he plans to do that, either.
Michelle Goldberg of the Daily Beast frets that members of the New Apostolic Reformation "see Perry as their ticket to power." She quotes George Grant, a former executive director of Truth in Action Ministries, that "it is dominion we are after. Not just a voice. ... Not just equal time. ... World conquest." Rick Perry as Ghengis Khan? Unlikely, it seems to me, but that's the nightmare disturbing the sleep of some of the pundits.
Christopher Hitchens, the celebrated atheist, appreciates Perry in comparison to Michele Bachmann, whose religion he calls close to "crackpot." He thinks Perry probably doesn't trouble himself with doctrinal matters or "personal saviorhood" but is playing it up big for the rubes.
Aye, and there's the point. The criticism of Perry's religion isn't really about fear that he would plant a theocracy in America, but that he speaks to the unsophisticated — and in a democracy even the unsophisticated can vote. The Perry detractors in Texas call him "George W. without the brains." The proof is that George W. went to Yale and Perry went to Texas A&M.
Earthiness in plain speech comes naturally to the Aggie, whose parents were tenant farmers. He grew up in a part of Texas his father called "the big empty." His roots are rural, and he's proud of it, and his enemies in the fierce politics of Texas learned the hard way not to underestimate him. He likes being misread and making his critics pay for it.
His religion, like everything else about a candidate for president, is fair game for questions and comment. Candidates before him have had to answer questions about their faith — John F. Kennedy and his Roman Catholicism, Carter's being born again, Obama's membership in the church of an incendiary pastor in Chicago. Obama scolded liberal skeptics who "dismiss religion in the public square as inherently irrational or intolerant." He prescribed a serious debate to "reconcile faith with our modern, pluralistic democracy." Some things don't change.
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© 2006, Creators Syndicate, Suzanne Fields
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