Dan Patrick was a right-wing radio blowhard in Houston, and Rush Limbaugh wannabe. This is 100% of what he brings to the table. He's Rush Limbaugh without the towering intellect. Since he only adheres to the King James Version of the US Constitution, it's unlikely that he's seen that part of our foundational document that bans religious tests for holding office in the United States. Dan Patrick is a dangerously stupid excuse for a human being.
And here is why. To all of them, the Establishment Clause means almost nothing. They want to make Christianity mandatory. If they can push SCOTUS to declare the Establishment Clause to mean that congress is only prohibited from declaring one individual sect the official Church of the United States, they will immediately try to declare Christianity the official religion. And then it would be only a matter of time before the government definition of Christianity gets narrowed down to their preferred types.
Does Mr Patrick want the Troubles? Because that's how you get the Troubles.
I want to see this go to court if for no other reason than to know that Patrick gets his ass lectured from the bench about wasting the court's time, money, and PATIENCE with his bullshit. I want to know that he gets dressed down so severely that he can't meet the judge's eyes when it happens.
Yeah, I know that he has no shame about this. I still can't help but think that such a situation would have no small amount of impact.
Could be ... but there are judges out there who have demonstrated their impatience with frivolous lawsuits and bullshit like what Patrick is spouting. Yeah, maybe I'm indulging in wishful thinking here.
And if the judges aren't there, then the FFRF and Americans United and American Atheists ARE there ... and they've shown me again and again that there's no quit in them.
I am from Massachusetts, insulated from this nonsense by the relative sanity surrounding me, so when TX, FL, OH, etc. pull these anti democratic or theocratic stunts, I naturally feel there is little to no sanity there…but I also know there are lots of people struggling to break the stranglehold on political power held by the GOP and the Xtian Nazis in those states, and that ACLU, AU, FFRF, and PFTAW are at the forefront.
Ohio (my home state) USED to be reasonably sane ... and then we had Kasich in there and now DeWine, along with a Christian Cast of Caustic Characters who seem to be bound and determined to follow Trump's lead and screw things up beyond all recognition.
Hell of it is, I LOVE where I live and all the neat stuff around me. I HATE the current government.
christians never condemned other christians' sects for heresy, never killed anyone and never fought wars in Europe. From david farton last paper brick.
True Christians know that you can't kill anyone, enslave anyone, commit atrocities and genocide, colonize other's countries - it violates the commands in the New Testament, Jesus Christ himself have those orders, believers are held to the higher standard. Europe hijacked Christianity and Jesus, turning him into an American with a musket or an AR-15. Blond hair,blue eyes. What the European colonizers did is un-Biblical, caused harm ,not good. White Supremacy and Christianity are basically incompatible. And the Cans don't like to talk about this, because then they'd have to admit they're wrong. Especially the last 500+ years.
If the rethugs succeed in getting christianity declared the official US religion, the Catholics and the Baptists will each declare new crusades against the other. Gilead will descend into internecine warfare very quickly.
Every gets the freedom to celebrate Christian in his way. Because I am sure that if you say Christianity does support his world view 100%, he will throw a shit fit.
'I'm right here': Trump struggles to find foreign leader sitting in front of his face
"President Donald Trump flubbed the introduction of Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Monday during the meeting with European leaders who support Ukraine.
Trump was announcing each leader, who then would make a comment or thank him for the invitation. He gave each official a little compliment.
As he announced Stubb, however, he appeared not to realize that the Finnish president was sitting right in front of him.
"President Stubb of Finland. And he's somebody that — we're all here, we're, we're," he looked around the room, seemingly confused.
"I'm right here," said Stubb.
"Oh, you look better than I've ever seen.President Donald Trump flubbed the introduction of Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Monday during the meeting with European leaders who support Ukraine.
Trump was announcing each leader, who then would make a comment or thank him for the invitation. He gave each official a little compliment.
As he announced Stubb, however, he appeared not to realize that the Finnish president was sitting right in front of him.
ALSO READ: 'It's wrong': 94-year-old Republican warns of GOP crisis after losing seat to gerrymander
"President Stubb of Finland. And he's somebody that — we're all here, we're, we're," he looked around the room, seemingly confused.
"I'm right here," said Stubb.
"Oh, you look better than I've ever seen. You look — but you've done a great job, and we wanted to have you here because you're somebody that we all respect," Trump continued."
It is all about appearance. Trump and his attack dog made that clear in February. Zelensky in his sweatshirt looked every bit the statesman, certainly compared to the 2 suited and booted assholes.
Then the red carpet and military flyby for the dictator who invaded Ukraine.
Patrick really seems as though he wants a confrontation and/or an excuse to 1) be the bully that he so longs to be and 2) play the persecution card if someone calls him on his bullying. In this regard, Hemant's suggestion to pack the gallery with those who continue to sit during the i̵n̵v̵o̵c̵a̵t̵i̵o̵n̵ bloviation is completely on point. It is indeed time to make some "good trouble," to indulge in more than a little civil disobedience in the face of Patrick's utterly improper behavior.
If the fool follows through on his threat and has those people removed? FFRF, ACLU, Americans United et. al. will have the lawsuit filed before the first person is forced across the threshold.
All of the above with only white men. Sorry for the women and non-white who served their country but with the double standard, it would garner more outrage if it was done to white men.
"Patrick’s behavior reveals something about the broader strategy of Texas Republican leadership: There’s a relentless insistence on controlling public spaces, public expression, and public conscience to serve their own ideological agenda."
What a Republican conservative Christian is a hypocrite? As soon as he realizes this I am sure he'll die of shame. Of course he'll have to get a sense of shame in the first place. Also he'll have to be self-aware enough to be able to realize his hypocrisy. And considering he hasn't developed a sense of object permanence, we might have a way to go. But I am sure that as soon as Dan Patrick, gains object permanence, becomes self aware and gains a sense of shame, he will become potty trained. I meant embarrassed that he is a hypocrite, who shits in his pants.
Republicans, no matter where they are, are not at all concerned with the constitution, right or wrong, good or evil, their only concern is get the most power and money for the most harm possible. Just look at how they responded to the democratic representatives when they broke quorum. That was constitutionally protected, and the republicans threatened arrest, tried to hunt them down, agitated enough to inspire a bomb threat on the hotel the dems were staying in, and once they were back in session demanded infantile “permission slips” and guards, resulting in holding one representative hostage because she protested the ridiculous demands. Fucking republicans have decided that the constitution and democracy is in their way, so they must go. But we can’t let them get away with it. Constituents should go to the legislature and sit for the invocation. Every day until he retracts or has an aneurysm. You cannot compel people to believe. You cannot compel people to obey. These threats don’t work. Make it backfire in his face.
Don’t confuse republicans with conservatives. What the current Republican Party is, is not conservatism, it’s reactionary and oligarchy. There are plenty of conservatives in the Democratic Party that will become the new right wing party. The Republican Party has left the idea of governing a long time ago. They mean to rule. They’ve meant to rule long before even Reagan, but he was the tool they used to start the process. (Only because they got caught with Nixon) At any rate, your quote is accurate regarding the Republican Party. Conservatism is something else altogether.
Nixon was also one given to pomp and self-aggrandizement. He wanted royal guards in ridiculous uniforms at the White House just like all those European leaders had at their palaces, but the press and public roundly trounced him for it and it was short-lived.
Now Trump unveils plans for a grandiose gold-plated ballroom and nobody bats an eye.
"If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein."
--Justice Robert Jackson, WV State Board of Education v Barnette, 1943.
Dan Patrick needs to learn this. And if he publicly learns it and refuses to apologize for his actions, he needs to be questioned, on the record, as to why he wants to violate the Constitution.
Recall elections are exclusive to municipal governments in cities with a home-rule charter, which grants them the authority to establish their own governing rules, including provisions for recalls.
In home-rule cities, citizens can initiate a recall election by submitting a petition. This option applies to various elected officials, including mayors, city council members, and other municipal officers.
That’s exactly what I planned to say. This is Texas. I remember my first day of school, when I was asked several times (by other 6-year-olds and a couple of teachers) what church I went to. I said Methodist and was met with shocked silence. Southern Baptists aren’t traditionally open minded. In Texas, right-wing conservative Christianity has been pounded into all our heads. It takes awhile to get it out. Some of us, like Dan Patrick, never do.
These days, it depends on how one defines the word, "Christian." There seem to be more than a couple camps as it comes to that, and they agree on not bloody much.
My pastor describes himself now as a "Jesus follower" to distinguish himself from those who call themselves Christians while vociferously opposing the actual teachings of Jesus.
I often come back to the Flannery O'Connor story, "Wise Blood." The protagonist, Hazel Motes, was raised in a household where his parents made him walk with sharp rocks in his shoes so that his every step would remind him of the pain and suffering of Jesus. Because the only Jesus he knew was associated with pain and suffering, he begins proclaiming the Church of God without Jesus, which he sees as liberating good news for all those who have been in pain.
Similarly, because "evangelicals" have been the loudest voices in the room, the only Jesus that many Americans know today is about self-righteously bashing LGBTQ people, spreading lies about immigrants, throwing people in torture gulags, treating women as second-class human beings, and worshipping earthly power. The label "Christian" has become so toxic that the faith needs a rebrand that involves something other than being associated with US "Christians."
Your pastor sounds like David Graf. A Chritian commenter on this newsletter who thinks himself to be a follower of Jesus yet ignores what Jesus said to those who call themselves his followers,
Dan Patrick is a prime example of a Christian. A petty, arrogant, and intolerant control freak. Blasphemy does not apply here. This is the performative piety of a wanna-be kkkrister dictator, a man who sees himself as a ruler, not a leader, and when he lays down the law with a crack of his metaphorical whip, you better stand/sit/kneel in supplication to him and his imaginary god --- or there will be consequences.
Today, it'll be throwing you out of the chamber. Tomorrow it will be arrest and detainment.
If your imaginary friend in the clouds has such a problem with people not standing for prayers to it then let it get off of its sofa, come down here and try to make an issue of it itself.
Until that happens? Fuck off. Instead of worthless invocations, how about simply getting to work?
Granted that it's intuitively obvious to us, but yeah ... Yahweh NEVER personally gets bent about his creation dissing him. It's always his putative representatives that get their panties in a twist.
I don’t think so! We have the FREEDOM to stand, sit, kneel, or walk out!! I pastor a small church, and would never demand folks stand. We say “stand if you like” to allow for freedom, and acceptance that some might not want to. Some may not be able to, and some are tired. Mr Patrick - Leave people alone!! It’s not your job to force faith on anyone. Not even God does that!!
The problem with Patrick is that he's a little man with an ego that can only contain himself and cannot consider the sensibilities of another. Worse, he's an insecure Christian who can only salve his insecurity by getting EVERYONE to agree with him and believe as he believes.
Which is all the more reason to DISAGREE with him, publicly and vocally and to make sure HE KNOWS IT.
Hmm. What would this asshole do if his asshole boss (who cannot stand) were there and failed to stand as he demanded? Is he really going to have his asshole boss dragged out of the chamber? Get me some popcorn, I want to see this!
Nothing because “you know what I mean.” That’s his excuse. We should know that he doesn’t mean people who are incapable of standing up, but only those who are obviously disabled, of course.
But then again, the republicans have been handcuffing old disabled veterans in their chairs and carts and manhandling them for no reason whatsoever. So maybe I’m wrong. Maybe they will expect wheelchair bound people to stand. What do I know.
What can this gasbag do to the people that don’t stand? Have them arrested or ban from coming to the chambers (what charges will this gasbag charged those who don’t stand), people are allowed to go to their government offices for any number of reason. That is what the term (I know MAGAS understanding of phrases and words is limited) representative democracy means that you, Mr gasbag represent the people that live in your district and those people (even the people you hate) have the right to see their representatives at work.
I realize you (asshole) think you get your mandate from goddybitch and jeezyboy, but you don’t. It comes from the people, ALL THE PEOPLE in your district.
Patrick would disagree. Since his power and authority come from gawd (he thinks) it supersedes "the law of man," "the will of the people," etc. They do not recognize mandates from the people.
There is a simple solution. Get rid of it. Why do you have to make an invocation before you do your job every day? It is a pointless ceremony. Just like playing the national anthem at every damn sporting event.
There never would have been any fuss at kneeling before NFL games either.
There should be no place for a religious invocation of ANY sort. Just say 'welcome, here is the first agenda item'.
Dan Patrick was a right-wing radio blowhard in Houston, and Rush Limbaugh wannabe. This is 100% of what he brings to the table. He's Rush Limbaugh without the towering intellect. Since he only adheres to the King James Version of the US Constitution, it's unlikely that he's seen that part of our foundational document that bans religious tests for holding office in the United States. Dan Patrick is a dangerously stupid excuse for a human being.
Rush Limbaugh's "towering intellect" is an anthill.
Here's hoping.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyTqrtZFWeQ
I wonder how Rush's corpse is doing these days.
https://postimg.cc/pm0Ry0Hj
Looking for brains.
WADAMINIT! Rush Limbaugh had a "towering intellect?!?" SINCE WHEN?
I was hoping the sarcism would be impossible to miss. lol
Aaaah, don't mind me. Sometimes I'm slow to cop a clue. 😝
I'm old and often forget who I've said what to.
No worries, my friend. You're in good company.
Compared to Dan Patrick.
That's the kind of comparison that could induce reverse peristalsis!
This is irony and sarcasm. Some of us who live by sarcasm don't always understand that many others do not.
And therefore a rising star in the Republican party.
He's too old to be a rising star, which I see as a good thing.
Like Trump…
𝐼𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢’𝑟𝑒 𝑘𝑒𝑒𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑒, 𝑃𝑎𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑘 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑡’𝑠 𝑜𝑘𝑎𝑦 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑎𝑣𝑜𝑖𝑑 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑎 𝑀𝑢𝑠𝑙𝑖𝑚 𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑝𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑐 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛 𝑡𝑜 𝑎 𝐶ℎ𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑛 𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑏𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑢𝑝 𝑡𝑜 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑜𝑟 𝑒𝑙𝑠𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦’𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑦 𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑜𝑜𝑚.
Pissing on the Constitution. Again.
𝐼𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦, 𝑃𝑎𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑘 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐶ℎ𝑎𝑖𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑊ℎ𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝐻𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑒’𝑠 “𝑅𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝐿𝑖𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑦 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛.” 𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝐶ℎ𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑛 𝑁𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑠 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑃𝑎𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑘, ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟, 𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑑𝑜𝑚 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑠 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝐶ℎ𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠.
And here is why. To all of them, the Establishment Clause means almost nothing. They want to make Christianity mandatory. If they can push SCOTUS to declare the Establishment Clause to mean that congress is only prohibited from declaring one individual sect the official Church of the United States, they will immediately try to declare Christianity the official religion. And then it would be only a matter of time before the government definition of Christianity gets narrowed down to their preferred types.
Does Mr Patrick want the Troubles? Because that's how you get the Troubles.
I want to see this go to court if for no other reason than to know that Patrick gets his ass lectured from the bench about wasting the court's time, money, and PATIENCE with his bullshit. I want to know that he gets dressed down so severely that he can't meet the judge's eyes when it happens.
Yeah, I know that he has no shame about this. I still can't help but think that such a situation would have no small amount of impact.
Patrick is your typical TX authoritarian patriarch. He is right and everyone else is wrong.
All the more reason to clobber him PUBLICLY and unrelentingly.
What court in TX would give him this dressing down? Aren’t TX courts chock full of judges who think like he does?
Could be ... but there are judges out there who have demonstrated their impatience with frivolous lawsuits and bullshit like what Patrick is spouting. Yeah, maybe I'm indulging in wishful thinking here.
And if the judges aren't there, then the FFRF and Americans United and American Atheists ARE there ... and they've shown me again and again that there's no quit in them.
I am from Massachusetts, insulated from this nonsense by the relative sanity surrounding me, so when TX, FL, OH, etc. pull these anti democratic or theocratic stunts, I naturally feel there is little to no sanity there…but I also know there are lots of people struggling to break the stranglehold on political power held by the GOP and the Xtian Nazis in those states, and that ACLU, AU, FFRF, and PFTAW are at the forefront.
Ohio (my home state) USED to be reasonably sane ... and then we had Kasich in there and now DeWine, along with a Christian Cast of Caustic Characters who seem to be bound and determined to follow Trump's lead and screw things up beyond all recognition.
Hell of it is, I LOVE where I live and all the neat stuff around me. I HATE the current government.
Even if they could find a judge, count on paxton to use any mean, legal and illegal, to have it dismissed.
christians never condemned other christians' sects for heresy, never killed anyone and never fought wars in Europe. From david farton last paper brick.
True Christians know that you can't kill anyone, enslave anyone, commit atrocities and genocide, colonize other's countries - it violates the commands in the New Testament, Jesus Christ himself have those orders, believers are held to the higher standard. Europe hijacked Christianity and Jesus, turning him into an American with a musket or an AR-15. Blond hair,blue eyes. What the European colonizers did is un-Biblical, caused harm ,not good. White Supremacy and Christianity are basically incompatible. And the Cans don't like to talk about this, because then they'd have to admit they're wrong. Especially the last 500+ years.
If the rethugs succeed in getting christianity declared the official US religion, the Catholics and the Baptists will each declare new crusades against the other. Gilead will descend into internecine warfare very quickly.
Every gets the freedom to celebrate Christian in his way. Because I am sure that if you say Christianity does support his world view 100%, he will throw a shit fit.
OT:
'I'm right here': Trump struggles to find foreign leader sitting in front of his face
"President Donald Trump flubbed the introduction of Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Monday during the meeting with European leaders who support Ukraine.
Trump was announcing each leader, who then would make a comment or thank him for the invitation. He gave each official a little compliment.
As he announced Stubb, however, he appeared not to realize that the Finnish president was sitting right in front of him.
"President Stubb of Finland. And he's somebody that — we're all here, we're, we're," he looked around the room, seemingly confused.
"I'm right here," said Stubb.
"Oh, you look better than I've ever seen.President Donald Trump flubbed the introduction of Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Monday during the meeting with European leaders who support Ukraine.
Trump was announcing each leader, who then would make a comment or thank him for the invitation. He gave each official a little compliment.
As he announced Stubb, however, he appeared not to realize that the Finnish president was sitting right in front of him.
ALSO READ: 'It's wrong': 94-year-old Republican warns of GOP crisis after losing seat to gerrymander
"President Stubb of Finland. And he's somebody that — we're all here, we're, we're," he looked around the room, seemingly confused.
"I'm right here," said Stubb.
"Oh, you look better than I've ever seen. You look — but you've done a great job, and we wanted to have you here because you're somebody that we all respect," Trump continued."
https://www.rawstory.com/trump-finland/
But Biden's Old!!!!!
The surprising thing is that he flubbed only one introduction.
Don’t you know rules are for those “other” people, not for true Christian nationalists fascists like Trump and his asshole supporters.
As someone else said on another site about this, Trump is WAY too vain to get glasses or to even wear contacts.
It is all about appearance. Trump and his attack dog made that clear in February. Zelensky in his sweatshirt looked every bit the statesman, certainly compared to the 2 suited and booted assholes.
Then the red carpet and military flyby for the dictator who invaded Ukraine.
Apparently he’s been playing golf with Mr Stubb. It’s another sign that he’s losing his marbles.
Or wanted to demean him. Perhaps he won too many rounds.
And Com-mu-nist-ic....
Patrick really seems as though he wants a confrontation and/or an excuse to 1) be the bully that he so longs to be and 2) play the persecution card if someone calls him on his bullying. In this regard, Hemant's suggestion to pack the gallery with those who continue to sit during the i̵n̵v̵o̵c̵a̵t̵i̵o̵n̵ bloviation is completely on point. It is indeed time to make some "good trouble," to indulge in more than a little civil disobedience in the face of Patrick's utterly improper behavior.
Congressman John Lewis would expect nothing less.
If the fool follows through on his threat and has those people removed? FFRF, ACLU, Americans United et. al. will have the lawsuit filed before the first person is forced across the threshold.
Seems to me that Danny-boy has run afoul of the FFRF before now. Dumbass hasn't learned his lesson ... YET.
The Christian skull are to much bone, and a very small mind!
Fill the gallery with people in wheelchairs for a more embarassing moment.
FUCK, YEAH! Wheelchairs and crutch users!
Veterans who use wheelchairs and crutches.
Veterans wearing their uniforms and medals while using wheelchairs and crutches.
All of the above with only white men. Sorry for the women and non-white who served their country but with the double standard, it would garner more outrage if it was done to white men.
"Patrick’s behavior reveals something about the broader strategy of Texas Republican leadership: There’s a relentless insistence on controlling public spaces, public expression, and public conscience to serve their own ideological agenda."
Nailed I again, Hemant--like Jesus to the cross.
The Stupid shall inherit the earth.
What a Republican conservative Christian is a hypocrite? As soon as he realizes this I am sure he'll die of shame. Of course he'll have to get a sense of shame in the first place. Also he'll have to be self-aware enough to be able to realize his hypocrisy. And considering he hasn't developed a sense of object permanence, we might have a way to go. But I am sure that as soon as Dan Patrick, gains object permanence, becomes self aware and gains a sense of shame, he will become potty trained. I meant embarrassed that he is a hypocrite, who shits in his pants.
Republicans, no matter where they are, are not at all concerned with the constitution, right or wrong, good or evil, their only concern is get the most power and money for the most harm possible. Just look at how they responded to the democratic representatives when they broke quorum. That was constitutionally protected, and the republicans threatened arrest, tried to hunt them down, agitated enough to inspire a bomb threat on the hotel the dems were staying in, and once they were back in session demanded infantile “permission slips” and guards, resulting in holding one representative hostage because she protested the ridiculous demands. Fucking republicans have decided that the constitution and democracy is in their way, so they must go. But we can’t let them get away with it. Constituents should go to the legislature and sit for the invocation. Every day until he retracts or has an aneurysm. You cannot compel people to believe. You cannot compel people to obey. These threats don’t work. Make it backfire in his face.
Val, I hope you don't mind if I put this out there again, mostly because it's not just true, but so damned evident in the here and now:
𝑀𝑎𝑦𝑏𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑑𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑚𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑢𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑅𝑒𝑝𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑃𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑦. 𝑌𝑜𝑢 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑. 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑏𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑢𝑠. 𝐼𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑐𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑎𝑏𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑜𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑠𝑚. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑑𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑐𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑦. 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑠𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑡𝑦 𝑑𝑒𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠’ 𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑡𝑜 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑎 𝑤𝑎𝑦 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑇𝑟𝑢𝑚𝑝 𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑒𝑛𝑑, 𝑡𝑜𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑎 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑠𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑜𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑛 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑔𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑛 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑦, 𝑎 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑠𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑛, 𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑙𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑒𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒, 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑢𝑝ℎ𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑠 𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑒𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑡 ℎ𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑈.𝑆. 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑝 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦.
-- David Frum, Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic
Don’t confuse republicans with conservatives. What the current Republican Party is, is not conservatism, it’s reactionary and oligarchy. There are plenty of conservatives in the Democratic Party that will become the new right wing party. The Republican Party has left the idea of governing a long time ago. They mean to rule. They’ve meant to rule long before even Reagan, but he was the tool they used to start the process. (Only because they got caught with Nixon) At any rate, your quote is accurate regarding the Republican Party. Conservatism is something else altogether.
Nixon was also one given to pomp and self-aggrandizement. He wanted royal guards in ridiculous uniforms at the White House just like all those European leaders had at their palaces, but the press and public roundly trounced him for it and it was short-lived.
Now Trump unveils plans for a grandiose gold-plated ballroom and nobody bats an eye.
"If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein."
--Justice Robert Jackson, WV State Board of Education v Barnette, 1943.
Dan Patrick needs to learn this. And if he publicly learns it and refuses to apologize for his actions, he needs to be questioned, on the record, as to why he wants to violate the Constitution.
WOOF! Excellent quote (cut-paste! 😁)
Can Patrick be recalled or forced to resign? Guys like him only get worse over time.
No.
Recall elections are exclusive to municipal governments in cities with a home-rule charter, which grants them the authority to establish their own governing rules, including provisions for recalls.
In home-rule cities, citizens can initiate a recall election by submitting a petition. This option applies to various elected officials, including mayors, city council members, and other municipal officers.
https://texapedia.info/recall-election/
Keep in mind, this is TEXAS. They LIKE their religious bigots in Texas ... mostly.
That’s exactly what I planned to say. This is Texas. I remember my first day of school, when I was asked several times (by other 6-year-olds and a couple of teachers) what church I went to. I said Methodist and was met with shocked silence. Southern Baptists aren’t traditionally open minded. In Texas, right-wing conservative Christianity has been pounded into all our heads. It takes awhile to get it out. Some of us, like Dan Patrick, never do.
The true act of blasphemy here is Dan Patrick calling himself Christian.
These days, it depends on how one defines the word, "Christian." There seem to be more than a couple camps as it comes to that, and they agree on not bloody much.
My pastor describes himself now as a "Jesus follower" to distinguish himself from those who call themselves Christians while vociferously opposing the actual teachings of Jesus.
I often come back to the Flannery O'Connor story, "Wise Blood." The protagonist, Hazel Motes, was raised in a household where his parents made him walk with sharp rocks in his shoes so that his every step would remind him of the pain and suffering of Jesus. Because the only Jesus he knew was associated with pain and suffering, he begins proclaiming the Church of God without Jesus, which he sees as liberating good news for all those who have been in pain.
Similarly, because "evangelicals" have been the loudest voices in the room, the only Jesus that many Americans know today is about self-righteously bashing LGBTQ people, spreading lies about immigrants, throwing people in torture gulags, treating women as second-class human beings, and worshipping earthly power. The label "Christian" has become so toxic that the faith needs a rebrand that involves something other than being associated with US "Christians."
All religions rot the mind! Makes people stupid and gullible!
Your pastor sounds like David Graf. A Chritian commenter on this newsletter who thinks himself to be a follower of Jesus yet ignores what Jesus said to those who call themselves his followers,
Well said!!
Dan Patrick is a prime example of a Christian. A petty, arrogant, and intolerant control freak. Blasphemy does not apply here. This is the performative piety of a wanna-be kkkrister dictator, a man who sees himself as a ruler, not a leader, and when he lays down the law with a crack of his metaphorical whip, you better stand/sit/kneel in supplication to him and his imaginary god --- or there will be consequences.
Today, it'll be throwing you out of the chamber. Tomorrow it will be arrest and detainment.
Hey, Patrick...
If your imaginary friend in the clouds has such a problem with people not standing for prayers to it then let it get off of its sofa, come down here and try to make an issue of it itself.
Until that happens? Fuck off. Instead of worthless invocations, how about simply getting to work?
Granted that it's intuitively obvious to us, but yeah ... Yahweh NEVER personally gets bent about his creation dissing him. It's always his putative representatives that get their panties in a twist.
WHYIZZAT??? 😁
I don’t think so! We have the FREEDOM to stand, sit, kneel, or walk out!! I pastor a small church, and would never demand folks stand. We say “stand if you like” to allow for freedom, and acceptance that some might not want to. Some may not be able to, and some are tired. Mr Patrick - Leave people alone!! It’s not your job to force faith on anyone. Not even God does that!!
The problem with Patrick is that he's a little man with an ego that can only contain himself and cannot consider the sensibilities of another. Worse, he's an insecure Christian who can only salve his insecurity by getting EVERYONE to agree with him and believe as he believes.
Which is all the more reason to DISAGREE with him, publicly and vocally and to make sure HE KNOWS IT.
Hmm. What would this asshole do if his asshole boss (who cannot stand) were there and failed to stand as he demanded? Is he really going to have his asshole boss dragged out of the chamber? Get me some popcorn, I want to see this!
Lawsuits raining down on Dan Patrick's head in 3 ... 2 ... 1 ...
Followed by cries of "PERSECUTION!!" in 3...2...1....
Nothing because “you know what I mean.” That’s his excuse. We should know that he doesn’t mean people who are incapable of standing up, but only those who are obviously disabled, of course.
But then again, the republicans have been handcuffing old disabled veterans in their chairs and carts and manhandling them for no reason whatsoever. So maybe I’m wrong. Maybe they will expect wheelchair bound people to stand. What do I know.
Then I demand the right to stand for prayers conducted by those rabbits in Colorado that are growing horns.
Some say it's a viral infection that will be knocked off by the bunnies' own antibodies.
I say those horns are A MANIFESTATION OF THE DEVIL ON THIS EARTH!
THEY INSTRUCT US TO KNEEL BEFORE HIS SATANIC MAJESTY, AND BY THUNDER, I WILL!
Reminds me of an old friend:
https://ibb.co/Z1mXPQfp
Lol. The ex hubby had one mounted in his office. I felt so sorry for the poor rabbit that died to make that monstrosity.
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2spu2h
The Great American Jackalope.
What can this gasbag do to the people that don’t stand? Have them arrested or ban from coming to the chambers (what charges will this gasbag charged those who don’t stand), people are allowed to go to their government offices for any number of reason. That is what the term (I know MAGAS understanding of phrases and words is limited) representative democracy means that you, Mr gasbag represent the people that live in your district and those people (even the people you hate) have the right to see their representatives at work.
I realize you (asshole) think you get your mandate from goddybitch and jeezyboy, but you don’t. It comes from the people, ALL THE PEOPLE in your district.
He sounds like he'd have people who don't stand up taken out and shot,if he could. In the future,if things aren't fixed he may get his wish !
Patrick would disagree. Since his power and authority come from gawd (he thinks) it supersedes "the law of man," "the will of the people," etc. They do not recognize mandates from the people.
Stand up and turn your back…
Then sit back down again! Turn chairs around if necessary!
There is a simple solution. Get rid of it. Why do you have to make an invocation before you do your job every day? It is a pointless ceremony. Just like playing the national anthem at every damn sporting event.
There never would have been any fuss at kneeling before NFL games either.
There should be no place for a religious invocation of ANY sort. Just say 'welcome, here is the first agenda item'.
Oh, but we HAVE to have Yahweh's blessing on our proceedings because ... because ... because ... REASONS!
[Mostly because they're trying to please something that doesn't exist. 😝]