Rap Sheet
Links on R&P from around the web
Fresh Violence in Myanmar Leaves Mosque, Monastery Burned
posted on October 25, 2012Violence between Roghinya Muslims and Myanmar Buddhists in the Myanmar state of Rakhine “killed three people and left more than 400 houses, a monastery and a mosque burned to the ground,” reports Kocha Olarn for CNN. The tension between the two groups has been escalating since June, when violence first broke out. The Rohginya, an ethnic Muslim minority, believe that “they have been persecuted by the Myanmar military during its decades of authoritarian rule.”
Look at Obama’s Faith Draws Criticism, Praise
posted on October 25, 2012At CNN, John Blake examines the large public reaction from his article posted last week in which he asked, “Why do so many people doubt President Barack Obama’s faith?” Many conservative Christians perceived it to be endorsing the President’s Christianity while some Democrats labeled the article a “hit piece on Obama.”
Mourdock: God at Work when Rape Leads to Pregnancy
posted on October 25, 2012In a debate on Tuesday, Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock stated that pregnancy from rape is “something God intended,” the Associated Press’ Tom LoBianco reports. The comment has already sparked intense debate, causing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney to distance himself from Mourdock. The Senate race in Indiana has been closely contested, and has large implications for which party controls the Senate in the next Congress.
Ohio Jews Tune Out Presidential Election
posted on October 25, 2012For The Jewish Daily Forward, Nathan Guttman investigates the Jewish vote in Ohio. Despite economic troubles, Guttman discovers that many in Ohio’s Jewish community are tired of the constant political ads, having already made their decisions. Guttman notes, “Stable voters in a swing state, most Cleveland Jews appear entrenched in their political views despite the fierce campaign around them and changing economic and social realities.”
Read at The Jewish Daily Forward
And God Spoke to Abraham (Lincoln)
posted on October 25, 2012For The New York Times, Edward J. Blum and Paul Harvey look at the significant role of religion in the Civil War, and particularly its impact on Abraham Lincoln. Blum and Harvey write, “Some believed that the events of the war were so momentous that they were themselves evidence of the work of Jesus and God on earth. Others hoped that by invoking the sacred–either through song or in the Constitution–they could gain the Almighty’s favor or empower men to continue to fight.”
Russell Means, Who Clashed with Law as He Fought for Indians, Is Dead at 72
posted on October 25, 2012For The New York Times, Robert McFadden reviews the life and impact of Russell C. Means, an American Indian activist who died on Monday at the age of 72. McFadden writes that Means “helped revive the warrior image of the American Indian in the 1970s with guerrilla-tactic protests that called attention to the nation’s history of injustices against its indigenous peoples.”
Debate’s Omissions Highlight Skewed World View
posted on October 24, 2012At The New York Times, Steven Erlanger provides a news analysis on Monday night’s presidential debate, which he writes, “presented a skewed vision of the world, even one defined by American national interests.” He continued: “Iran was mentioned more than 45 times, Israel and China more than 30 times each, Afghanistan 29 times and Mali at least four times. NATO was not uttered, and Europe was referred to only once … and the euro and its crisis were not mentioned at all.” Both candidates did express profound support for Israel, presumably hoping to influence the Jewish vote in Florida.
Poll: Religiously Unaffiliated Less Likely to Vote
posted on October 24, 2012The Washington Post’s Michelle Boorstein reports on poll released Monday from the Public Religion Research Institute. The survey shows that the religiously unaffiliated lean heavily towards President Obama, but they are also much less likely to vote in the election than the religiously affiliated. Latino and African American groups are similar in their overall support for Obama and they are also less likely to vote.
The Terrifying Rise Of Greece’s Nazi Party
posted on October 24, 2012Eliza Griswold writes for The New Republic about the rise of the Golden Dawn political party in Greece. It is “a kind of cross between Hezbollah and the Tea Party,” Griswold writes. “Golden Dawn supporters have assaulted immigrants with brass knuckles, knives and batons.” While Greece suffers economically, the Golden Dawn has found new popularity and is now the fourth most powerful political party in Greek government. Manolis Vosdoganis, a shop-owner in Athens, explains, “I don’t like Golden Dawn’s violence, but I support their policies. They’re interested in our country. We have to support Greek people first.”
Religion, Race and Double Standards
posted on October 24, 2012On his blog at The Daily Beast, Andrew Sullivan charges that the media treatment of Romney’s Mormonism has been different than the 2008 coverage of Obama’s faith and former pastor, Jeremiah Wright. In particular, he discusses the former racist teachings of the LDS Church. He writes, “I raise this because it is a fact that Mitt Romney belonged to a white supremacist church for 31 years of his life, went on a mission to convert Christians and Jews and others to this church, which retained white supremacy as a doctrine until 1978.” If this had been Obama, Sullivan asks, “Do you think this issue would not come up in a general election or a primary?”