Religious scholar Reza Aslan said American conservatives are basing their criticism of recent comments made by Pope Francis on a “profoundly unhistorical view of Jesus.”

The pontiff has ruffled the feathers of U.S. conservatives with comments suggesting the church has focused too much on social issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage and contraception, rather than helping the poor.

But his first Apostolic Exhortation released earlier this week, in which the pope denounced the sacred economic theories of the American right – trickle-down economics and an unfettered free market – seems to have been the last straw for Rush Limbaugh and Sarah Palin.

“These two paragons of the far right – both of whom regularly invoke the teachings of Jesus to bolster their own political views – have suddenly turned their backs on the man whose actual job description is to speak for Jesus,” Aslan wrote in a Washington Post column published Thursday.

The Iranian-American scholar noted Palin’s complaint that Pope Francis sounded “kind of liberal” when he decried the growing global income gap between the rich and the poor, although the former vice presidential candidate and reality TV star has since apologized.

But Limbaugh accused the pope of promoting Marxism in comments that had undoubtedly been written by someone else or forced upon him.

“Somebody did get to Pope Francis,” Aslan wrote. “It was Jesus.”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/11/29/muslim-scholar-reza-aslan-rush-limbaugh-and-sarah-palin-would-call-jesus-a-marxist/

Pope Francis is a pontiff who has constructively broken all the rules of popery – so far to widespread acclaim. He’s faulted the Catholic church for its negative obsession with gays and birth control, and now he has expanded his mandate to economics with a groundbreaking screed denouncing “the new idolatry of money“.

As the Pope wrote in his “apostolic exhortation“:

The worship of the ancient golden calf has returned in a new and ruthless guise in the idolatry of money and the dictatorship of an impersonal economy lacking a truly human purpose. The worldwide crisis affecting finance and the economy lays bare their imbalances and, above all, their lack of real concern for human beings.

His thoughts on income inequality are searing:

How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points? This is a case of exclusion. Can we continue to stand by when food is thrown away while people are starving? This is a case of inequality.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/11/27/pope-francis-understands-economics-better-than-most-politicians/

 

Saudi Arabia cautiously welcomed Monday a deal reached between world powers and Iran, describing it as a possible initial step toward reaching a comprehensive solution for Tehran’s nuclear program.

The statement by the Saudi Cabinet was the first official reaction from the kingdom to Sunday’s deal. Saudi Arabia, the Gulf’s main political power, has previously expressed unease about U.S. outreach to Iran, and Gulf countries generally view any normalizing of ties between Tehran and the West as a direct threat to their own stability.

The Cabinet statement, released by the official Saudi Press Agency, said that if there is “goodwill” then a comprehensive solution would also entail a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction, a reference to Israel’s presumed arsenal.

“If there is goodwill, then this agreement could be an initial step toward reaching a comprehensive solution for Iran’s nuclear program if that leads to the removal of weapons of mass destruction, especially nuclear weapons, from the Middle East and Arab Gulf,” the Saudi government said.

The government added that it hopes the agreement is succeeded by “important steps” that ensure the rights of all countries in the region to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have already issued statements welcoming the nuclear deal.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/saudi-iran-nuclear-deal-step-21002574

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST: But first, here is my take. If you’re trying to decide what to think about the deal struck between the major powers and Iran, here’s a suggestion. Imagine what would have happened if there had been no deal.

In fact, one doesn’t have to use much imagination. In 2003, Iran approached the United States with an offer to talk about its nuclear program. The Bush administration rejected the offer because it believed that the Iranian regime was weak, had been battered by sanctions, and would either capitulate or collapse if Washington just stayed tough.

So there was no deal. What was the result? Iran had 164 centrifuges operating in 2003. Today, it has 19,000. Had the Geneva talks with Iran broken down, Iran would have continued expanding its nuclear program.

Yes they are now under tough sanctions but they were under sanctions then as well. And yet, the number of centrifuges grew exponentially. Despite all the sanctions, keep in mind, the costs of a nuclear program are small for an oil rich country like Iran.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has been opposed to a deal. But is it in Israel’s interest that Iran’s program keep growing in size and scope?

That’s a strategy that assumes that either Iran is heading for collapse, or that a military strike will take place that would permanently destroy Iran’s entire nuclear program and it wouldn’t get rebuilt. This seems more like wishful thinking than strategy. The agreement that the major powers have gotten in Geneva essentially freezes Iran’s program for six months and rolls back some key aspects of it while a permanent deal is negotiated.

In return, Iran gets about $7 billion of sanctions relief, a fraction of what is in place against it. The main sanctions against its oil and banking sectors stay fully in place.

This is a sensible deal signed off on by France, Britain, Germany, Russia and China, as well as the United States and Iran. But it is just an interim deal and not a historic rapprochement and that’s why so much of the opposition to it is misplaced.

Washington has many points of disagreement with Tehran, from its opposition to Israel and its support for Hezbollah to its funding of Iraq militias. This is not like Nixon’s opening to China. It’s more like an arms control deal with the Soviet Union, with two wary adversaries trying to find some common ground.

Many countries in the Middle East, from Israel to Saudi Arabia, have legitimate concerns about Iran. But many of these countries have also gotten used to having a permanent enemy against whom they could rail, focusing domestic attention, driving ideological and sectarian divides, garnering support.

The Middle East is undergoing so much change. Perhaps this is one more change. Perhaps Iran will come in from the Cold. For now though, it is just one step, not a seismic shift. But it is a step forward.

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1311/24/fzgps.01.html

President Obama “Good evening. Today, the United States — together with our close allies and partners — took an important first step toward a comprehensive solution that addresses our concerns with the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear program.

Since I took office, I’ve made clear my determination to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. As I’ve said many times, my strong preference is to resolve this issue peacefully, and we’ve extended the hand of diplomacy. Yet for many years, Iran has been unwilling to meet its obligations to the international community. So my administration worked with Congress, the United Nations Security Council and countries around the world to impose unprecedented sanctions on the Iranian government.

These sanctions have had a substantial impact on the Iranian economy, and with the election of a new Iranian president earlier this year, an opening for diplomacy emerged. I spoke personally with President Rouhani of Iran earlier this fall. Secretary Kerry has met multiple times with Iran’s foreign minister. And we have pursued intensive diplomacy — bilaterally with the Iranians, and together with our P5-plus-1 partners — the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia and China, as well as the European Union.

Today, that diplomacy opened up a new path toward a world that is more secure — a future in which we can verify that Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful and that it cannot build a nuclear weapon.”

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Text-of-Obama-statement-on-nuclear-deal-with-Iran-5007012.php

I had a great time seeing Thompson Gunner last night at Radio Bean. I worked 2-10:30 and somewhere around 7 I looked out the window and the snow was flying like crazy. I quickly walked the icy sidewalks home, did a quick turnaround, swapping sneakers for the boots, and headed downtown.

I walked in around 11:15 and Thompson were just about to go on. Dave Anderson was not there, but the rest of the guys were set up and ready to play. The lit in with country tinged rock and roll and played a great set . They slowed things down a little for a couple of songs, but most of the set just rocked. Caleb Thomas sang deep gritty vocals and played rhythm guitar, Conor McQuade did a bit of guitar shredding and played some cool electric piano, Jeremy Woods rocked the bass, I forgot the name of the new solid rocking drummer, and Aiden Lenihan played more of a lead guitar pedal steel. They played great versions of The Rutland Song, California’s Burning, and Dead Summer. They played a new song that was a bit more country, but at a rock pace and volume. They tossed in the cover of 16 Tons and they wrapped the night with a killer Empress Of Ireland. You would think with all of the guitar, that Dave’s lead guitar playing wouldn’t be missed much if at all. If you did not know the parts he played, you likely had a great time. I missed his leads and harmony vocals dearly, but still had a great time anyway.

After they finished, I grabbed my coat, said a couple of quick goodbyes and took the icy walk home. The ice was nice and chunky, so I kept a good pace, while singing Dead Summer in my head.

Bill Maher “Apparently, we are not leaving the region anytime soon. Barry, what happened? I thought we were getting out of Afghanistan. Well, the news this week is we struck a security deal to keep troops there until 2024. But, Obama said he made a promise to the Afghans, he said if you like the war you have, you can keep it.”

Jon Stewart ” I don’t know if you happened to be near a television set today, although clearly you’re at one right now, but you might have heard the big news out of the Senate.”

Reporter (CNN) “Harry Reid is poised to launch the nuclear option.”

Stewart “Nooooooo!!!!! No Harry, don’t, there’s still good in this world. Don’t kill us all. What is the nuclear option, by the way?”

Reporter “The nuclear option means that it would only take 51 votes, a simple majority, to get, overcome this filibuster threat.”

Stewart “Ooooooh! So, deciding to allow majority rules, to incrementally increase governmental efficiency in Presidential appointments is so unthinkably extreme it’s the nuclear option? It’s just like Hiroshima, of voting.”

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-november-21-2013/dem-nukem

WBKM CREW

 

http://www.wbkm.org/

I just got back from my local music, internet only, radio show on Wbkm Dot Org. The show had a bit of a theme.

Song before: Every 10 Seconds Before – Active Heed

promo

intro

From our small city, to the great big wold, these are the Sounds Of Burlington. It’s getting colder, but there were still people walking around Church st. They were playing music on the street and in the bars. Last week I opened with a song about California by Joshua Glass. Tonight let’s start with New York, My Lovely on WBKM, and this is Burlington’s kind of music.

1.) New York, My Lovely – Josh Glass
2.) Lonely Man – Ana Pardenik
3.) Die A Little – Satori Bob

John Baumann and Satori Bob used to play Burlington all the time. He moved out west but this song has the great Robert Gagnon on it. Bob is such a great player and has a wonderful Vermonter dry wit. Best Facebook poster ever? I love Anna’s songs and that one seemed to fit the mood of the day. Next up is another of those staggeringly great players in Burlington.

4.) The Ground Is Giving UP – Aaron Flinn and Salad Days
5.) Monarch Butterfly – Jenny Montana
6.) My Atom Girl – The Dirtminers

That’s a great song by the Dirtminers about the father of the Pakistani atomic bomb. Here in Burlington we like to look at, and listen to, the events of the world and try and make sense of them. Raph Worrick and Jeff LaBossiere and company do a great job of it on that song. It’s really catchy too. Jenny used to play a bunch of the Women Exposed in Fold Fashion and Rock And Roll shows, that Gabrielle Douglas used to always be a part of. I love that song from Jenny. Next up is the next song from the great album, To A Star In The Yard.

7.) Keeping You Wild – Alice Austin
8.) On The Radio (?) – My Other Friend
9.) Dead Summer – Thompson Gunner
10.) The Blackout – The Static Age

Static were an ’80’s band in the 2000’s that gave us the mega talented Bobby Hackney Jr. on drums who went on to front ROUGH FRANCIS and Marie Claire Johnson who rocked hard with Fire the Cannons, wrote some great solo piano songs that I really miss and would love to play, and met up with Mike Gordon for a tour. She often plays at Honky Tonk Tuesdays at Radio Bean. I had a great time at the Bean last week seeing Blue Button and Rough Francis on Saturday and Hana Zara on Sunday. This Saturday Thompson are playing. My Other Friend came to town once and I bought their three song CD that has no song titles. Great stuff though.

Tomorrow is the 50th anniversary of the assassination of JFK. A lot of people have a lot of opinions, but the fact is it was a tragedy that stunned the nation and effects us deeply 50 years later. People in Burlington like to think things through and try to organize thoughts to make sense of worldly events. Black Rabbit do a great job of it on this song about that horrible event in our history.

11.) Mark My Words – Black Rabbit
12.) Ruffians – Rough Francis
13.) Destroying Everything They See – Blue Button
14.) I’m Sick Of It – Shark Victim

SV are always fun. BB and RF rocked the Bean hard on Saturday. Thanks guys!! I hope you enjoyed checking out the music of our town, let’s do it again next week, shall we?

outro

promo

Song After Blind To The Beautiful – Fish

By JENNIFER EPSTEIN |

11/19/13 4:32 PM EST

President Obama on Tuesday dismissed critics who call him a “socialist,” suggesting they meet some real socialists if they think he’s one.

“People call me a socialist sometimes,” he said at the Wall Street Journal CEO Summit, addressing 100 top business leaders.

“But, no, you gotta meet real socialists. You’ll have a sense of what a socialist is,” he said to laughter from the crowd.

“I’m talking about lowering the corporate tax rate, my health care reform is based on the private marketplace, stock market’s looking pretty good last time I checked,” he said, listing his capitalist bona fides. “And, you know, it is true I’m concerned about growing inequality in our system, but nobody questions the efficacy of market economies in terms of producing wealth and innovation and keeping us competitive.”

http://www.politico.com/politico44/2013/11/obama-scoffs-at-people-who-call-him-a-socialist-you-177886.html?hp=l11