Odds and Ends

Starting with the Supreme Court situation in which President Obama once again proves supremely capable of trolling Republicans. I was a little concerned when I heard that Sandoval was a Republican because I wasn't aware that there were any sane ones left.

Sandoval is a well-regarded governor, Hispanic, and he's a Republican, although if he accepts this nomination, he's likely to be read out of the party forever. Opposing him would be blind and stupid. Sandoval has a reputation among many people as a devoted member of that ever-dwindling faction of the Republican Party that fairly can be called Not Insane. He is moderately pro-choice, considers marriage equality to be a done deal, signed the largest tax increase in Nevada's history, largely supports the president's position on immigration reform, and even has fought against his state legislature's attempts to enact tort reform. He also has sought to pry Nevada's economy loose from its dependence on the gaming industry. 

And here's a piece on why Jesus may no longer love us quite so much. 

In Matthew’s gospel (chapter 25) readers are taken to the time when God judges all the nations of the world. It is a rather terrifying scene because many of the people present are convinced that they are the legitimate inheritors of the Kingdom of God.

But God is not fooled. God simply asks: Did you feed the hungry, offer drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, care for the sick and visit those in prison?

How will America fare in this time of judgment, especially when we admit as evidence the  millions of Americans (many of them children and the elderly) who do not have enough good food to eat, or the millions of Americans who have to drink water polluted with lead and industrial/agricultural pollutants?

What about the refugees and immigrants who are being refused at our borders and made to feel unwelcome in our land, or the homeless (many of them ill) who do not have a home and proper protection from the elements, or the prison inmates (many of them African American) who are treated like the garbage of society?

God is asking the nations about their public policy, not their verbal piety, because the true test of Christianity has only ever been the test of love.

I'm surprised He hasn't already come back to boot our asses off the city on the hill. 

And here's something that's absolutely no surprise. Students are not flocking to Texas schools with mad abandon knowing that they are now beacons of second amendment freedom. As well, educators at schools in the state are sending out their resumes to universities in areas where they might not be threatened at gun point for an "A." Go figure!

The faculty senate at the University of Houston prepared a slideshow for recent faculty forums warning that academics may want to “be careful discussing sensitive topics; drop certain topics from your curriculum; not ‘go there’ if you sense anger; limit student access off hours; go to appointment-only office hours; only meet ‘that student’ in controlled circumstances.”

A slide provides potential arguments against the policy, such as “most parents don’t want their underage children to attend a gun-enabled campus” and “The MILITARY doesn’t allow guns in barracks and classrooms (outside of weapons training), why should there be guns in dorms and classrooms?”

Hat tips to Shaw and Infidel753 for this: