The TPI Morning Gazette: Trump, Jindal, Survivor, R.E.M. Huckabee

Non-Progressive News...

Bobby Jindal never ceases to amaze. His comments about a potential running mate for Donald Trump is beyond comprehension. Of course if you are a closer watcher of US politics, what you are about to read may include a breathe of fresh air. Maybe one of Rience Priebus's clown show has groveled and accepted he will not win the GOP nomination.

Of course, a cocaine addict! https://t.co/coH0lAL6hP— The Pardu (@ThePardu) September 9, 2015  

So, do you still feel there is sanity in the GOP nomination process?

Let's move to another "will not win the nomination" candidate. 

When a candidate is as a fringe prospect for the GOP nomination, the candidate must to great lengths to secure attention among 16 rivals. If one candidate is a consummate showman reality show WWE carnival barker, some of the 16 who also seek the nomination must go ballistic insane with attention garnering nonsense. Mike Huckabee has taken his brand of evangelicalism to new heights with the uncloaked on Kim Davis as an anti-same sex marriage bigot.

The following is a two-fold offering of Mika Brzezinski taking Huckabee's bigotry apart.  If you prefer verbiage with the video, click the red link below.  If you, like me, do not need the verbiage, the video link and embed are posted below. 

Watch Mike Huckabee’s ‘Biblical’ support for Kim Davis get dismantled on live television - http://t.co/JalQC8QL9Q pic.twitter.com/6YkM1MKAXS— Zack Ford (@ZackFord) September 9, 2015

 https://youtu.be/GE8eew80XJk

Conservative bigotry is so very superficial and dangerous to the greater society. 


The per general election admonishment from noted Rock Music bands when GOP candidates blast their songs as a campaign prop.  As far back as I can recall ad with each general election a GOP candidate has been warned to "cease and desist." 

A few days ago as Mike Huckabee sauntered up on stage for a campaign boost via Kim Davis and her brand of religious bigotry the show was highlighted with a 1982 popular rock anthem: Survivor's 1982 hit "Eye of the Tiger." The first 41 seconds of the spectacle here. The song's co-writer and co-founder of the 80s band responded to Rolling Stone Magazine in this manner.

"I do not like mixing rock and roll with politics; they do not go hand in hand," Sullivan says. "What upset me most was that, once again, my song was being used to further a political agenda – and no one even bothered to ask for permission."

Sullivan also told Rolling Stone that Newt Gingrich's 2012 campaign was sued for their unauthorized use of "Eye of the Tiger." At last report, Sullivan indicated he hoped his request to stop with the prop would end the charade.  Band member Jim Peterik also adroitly avoided a CNN hosts attempt to corner him on whether or not he supported Davis's position regarding same sex marriage.

"I have not authorized the use of Eye of the Tiger for use by Kim Davis and my publisher will issue a C&D (cease and desist order). This does not reflect my views," Peterik wrote on Twitter.

Jim Peterik @jimpeterikI have not authorized the use of Eye of the Tiger for use by Kim Davis and my publisher will issue a C&D. This does not reflect my views.9:29 PM - 8 Sep 2015

Peterik told CNN that the use of the song caught him by surprise.

"I was gobsmacked," he said. "We were not asked about this at all. The first time we saw it was on national TV."

As the adage goes, "low and behold" within days another Republican campaign team reached into the annuals of Rock Music and absconded an R.E.M. tune: “It’s the End of the World.” Band Member Mike Mill quickly responded to Trump's unauthorized use of the song: Mediaite.

R.E.M. to Donald J. Trump: "Cease and desist."
Posted by Mediaite on Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Michael Stipe, frontman for R.E.M was a bit more emphatic in his response to Trumps use of the song:

"Go fuck yourselves, the lot of you—you sad, attention grabbing, power hungry little men," Stipe said via Twitter. "Do not use our music or my voice for your moronic charade of a campaign." 

One more...Trump apparently also grabbed "Rockin in the Free World." (1989 Neil Young song). Well, Young doesn't approve:  The National Memo.

Two questions about the tendency for regressive people grabbing progressive music as political anthems. First, why does the GOP feel a musical genre born of social unrest in the late 50s through today (with major formation during the mid to late 1960s) best suits their stage shows? Can the party simply accept it is not cool in the minds of million upon millions outside of its core constituency. Second, why not simply seek permission? One last point. I find it intriguing The Rolling Stones haven't come forth with any level of chagrin regarding Donald Trump's use of "You Can't Always Get What You Want" during his fly-over the Mobile Alabama stadium a few weeks back. Maybe, Trumps life style and over all aura suits the Stones.  

In fairness both Charlies Crist campaigns (One half a Democrat) and the Obama team were asked to refrain from use of their songs. However, according to The Daily Kos neither use of songs by Crist and Obama met resistance based in ideology differences. 

Trumpism! How about a bit of perspective that will not surprise some, will totally surprise others, and for most will make no difference in their reverence for the candidate. Trump may have lineage that is disturbing.

 “Used with permission from the TPM websites, a service of TPM Media LLC.”

TPM LIVEWIRE

Report: Trump's Dad Was Arrested In 1927 Ku Klux Klan Brawl With Police

AP Photo / ASSOCIATED PRESS

ByCATHERINE THOMPSONPublishedSEPTEMBER 9, 2015,

A newly surfaced report from a 1927 edition of the New York Times suggests Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump's late father may have had a connection to the Ku Klux Klan.

A man named Fred Trump was among those arrested in a massive brawl between KKK members and police at a 1927 Memorial Day parade in New York City, according to a contemporaneous Times article surfaced Wednesday by the blog Boing Boing.

The Times article listed the arrestee's address as 175-24 Devonshire Road in Jamaica Estates, Queens. Past local news reports noted that the Republican presidential frontrunner's father (pictured above, third from the left) lived at that address. Donald Trump's German immigrant grandfather, who anglicized his own name to Fred Trump, died nine years before the incident occurred.

While six other men arrested in the brawl faced charges, the Times report noted that Fred Trump was discharged. All seven of the men who were arrested were represented by the same team of two lawyers, according to the Times report.

The Times reported that police said the brawl broke out because the Klan reneged on an agreement not to wear any of their symbols to the parade. The Klan members, for their part, accused the police of exceeding their authority in trying to keep them out of the parade, according to the report.

READ MORE

TPM LIVE EMBED

Image: Donald Trump, left, talks with his parents, Mary and Fred and his sister, U.S. District Court Judge Maryanne Trump Barry, at the opening of Trump's Taj Mahal Casino Resort in Atlantic City, N.J., Thurs., April 5, 1990. (AP Photo)

END TPM LIVE

BoingBoing 

1927 news report: Donald Trump's dad arrested in KKK brawl with cops

By Matt Blum at 9:26 am Wed, Sep 9, 2015

According to a New York Times article published in June 1927, a man with the name and address of Donald Trump's father was arraigned after Klan members attacked cops in Queens, N.Y.

 

In an article subtitled "Klan assails policeman", Fred Trump is named in among those taken in during a late May "battle" in which "1,000 Klansmen and 100 policemen staged a free-for-all." At least two officers were hurt during the event, after which the Klan's activities were denounced by the city's Police Commissioner, Joseph A. Warren. 

“The Klan not only wore gowns, but had hoods over their faces almost completely hiding their identity,” Warren was quoted as saying in the article, which goes on to identify seven men “arrested in the near-riot of the parade.” 

Named alongside Trump are John E Kapp and John Marcy (charged with felonious assault in the attack on Patrolman William O'Neill and Sgt. William Lockyear), Fred Lyons, Thomas Caroll, Thomas Erwin, and Harry J Free. They were arraigned in Jamaica, N.Y. All seven were represented by the same lawyers, according to the article. 

The final entry on the list reads: “Fred Trump of 175-24 Devonshire Road, Jamaica, was discharged.”

Editor's Choice

13.1 Million private sector jobs in 66 months. Unemployment rate 5.1% Checkmate. Repubs Lose. Thanks Obama! #LaborDay pic.twitter.com/lbAASg4TAE

— Benny (@BRios82) September 7, 2015

Connect The Dots USA: Medicare Hypocrites

Kudos to Connect The Dots USA and we thank the site Administrator for allowing Connect posts on the TPI. 

Connect The Dots USA

August 23 

Now as much as I love Medicare, the truth is only about 50% of it can be called an “earned benefit.” Most folks don’t realize that since Medicare’s inception, the payroll tax (2.9% for most workers; and recently 3.8% for high income over $200,000 single/$250,000 married) funds only the Part A hospital insurance portion. Thanks to provisions in the Affordable Care Act, the Part A trust fund was extended by 13 years so the program is projected to be able pay out full benefits until 2030. After that, if nothing is changed, the Part A payroll tax will only cover 86% of benefits.

You can see from the most recent Trustees’ report that the Part B doctor/outpatient portion and especially the Part D prescription drug portion get most of their funding — a whopping $189 Billion and $58 Billion respectively in 2014 — from general tax revenues. That’s the same pot of money that funds other important priorities like education, infrastructure, defense and food stamps.

For 95% of Medicare enrollees — those make less than $85,000 single or $170,000 married — the $105 Part B and average $35 Part D premium are calculated to cover only about 25% of the actual average per person cost. So the typical Medicare beneficiary is getting government “welfare” of the other 75% — about $460/month or $5,520/year — to cover the true cost of the premiums.

Even high earners in the top means-tested tier with INCOME of $214,000 single/$428,000 married are still getting govt welfare to cover about 25% of the actual costs of Part B and Part D = about $160/month or $1,920/year. Why are we giving these very high earning seniors any govt assistance at all?

While Part B and Part D are not earned benefits, the good news is they can never run short on money, as the Social Security or Medicare Part A trust fund can. By design, the programs will just keep pulling more money from general tax revenues to cover the annual costs. The bad news is, they will eat up an increasingly larger part of the overall budget if costs are not kept under control — rather like the Pentagon budget!

In short, no one enrolled in Medicare has any moral high ground to criticize someone receiving food stamps, Medicaid or the Affordable Care Act subsidies. Nobody “paid in all their life” to Part B or Part D. Heck, the Part D program did not even exist until 2003, with benefits starting in 2006. 

Chew on that all you ungrateful, Medicare-loving, Tea Party hypocrites!

Medicare's 50 Years

Medicare is 50 years of age today.

In Independence Missouri, these two famous Democrats signed Medicare into law. 

Images via Twitter Michael Beschloss ‏@BeschlossDC

Johnson arriving at airport to meet with Truman.

American Freedom by Barbara (Conservative webpage with honest reporting)

Johnson signed the bill, he did so alongside an elder Harry Truman -- who, two decades before that, had become the first sitting president to pursue universal health care seriously. On November 19, 1945, only 7 months into his presidency, Harry S. Truman sent a Presidential message to the United States Congress proposing a new national health care program. 

Medicare, Johnson promised, would help realize Truman’s dream for the nation’s elderly: 

“No longer will older Americans be denied the healing miracle of modern medicine,” Johnson said. “No longer will illness crush and destroy the savings that they have so carefully put away over a lifetime so that they might enjoy dignity in their later years.”

Medicare was born 50 years ago today and its stillunder-attack_55b93d85e4b095423d0db7f9? 

Posted by Eric Smith on Thursday, July 30, 2015

The 1965 Medicare vote looks like this:

President Johnson signed the bill into law at a special ceremony in Independence, Missouri on July 30, 1965.

Summary of Party Affiliation on Medicare Vote
SENATE	YEA	NAY	NOT VOTING
Democrats	57	7	4
Republicans	13	17	2
HOUSE	YEA	NAY	NOT VOTING
Democrats	237	48	8
Republicans	70	68	2

In 2009 or early 2010,  MedPage published a piece regarding healthcare as integral to life prior to Medicare.  Let's consider a few excerpts.

"The program — which provides insurance for some 43 million elderly and disabled people — is considered both a huge success that has markedly improved the health of the nation’s elderly and an unbelievably complex, unsustainable program that accounts for an ever-increasing portion of the federal budget."

 Most patients who are enrolled in Medicare like the program. “It’s been very successful in getting seniors access to care that they hadn’t had before the program,” explained Gail Wilensky, an economist at the Galen Institute and administrator of the Health Care Financing Administration in the early ’90s. 

Before Medicare was created in 1965, only about 55% of seniors had health insurance, said Stuart Guterman, an economist at the Commonwealth Fund.

The piece also includes detailed comment about how Medicare has developed to an expensive social program. I also found arguments against Medicare in the piece. 

AS the GOP goes about it mission to kill Medicare in its current form and as the Koch brothers salivate about the prospect of millions at the mercy of greedy insurance companies, The Heritage Foundation offers graphics that illustrate their arguments. 

Longer Life Expectancy Means Longer Enrollment in Medicare

Created on July 30, 2015

The average life expectancy in the United States has increased since Medicare was created, but the program’s eligibility age has remained constant at age 65. As a result, seniors collect benefits for almost three times as long compared to when the program started.

Despite my non-economist and non-actuarial background I question the reasons for the increase in life expectancy since 1965. We can assume that life expectancy has increased since the early 1900s; the increase post Medicare could be attributed to the life sustaining program. If we simply settle for the chart above, the increase seems virtually exponential.

The answer for many conservative politicians: raise the eligibility age from 66 to 70 with an incremental stop at age 67. 

US News Dot Com

Health is also far from post-racial. While America has made progress on this front, including through the Affordable Care Act, many gaps persist between blacks and whites.

Issues in health and health care that lead to a shorter life span for black Americans start before birth. The average black baby enters the world under different circumstances than the average white baby, and the gap only grows between birth and death.

In 2012, about 13 percent of babies born to black mothers had low birth weights (less than 2,500 grams), compared with 7 percent of babies born to white mothers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While the infant mortality rate for white America is 5.2 infants out of 1,000 births dying before age 1, the infant mortality rate for black America is much higher – 11.5 per 1,000 – putting the population subsection nearly on par with Mexico. 

Cancer-related deaths also account for part of the life-expectancy gap between blacks and whites – accounting for 0.634 years' worth of lost life expectancy for blacks. In terms of years lost before age 75, black Americans lose nearly 1,796.7 years per 100,000 members of the population due to cancer deaths, while white Americans lose 1,420 years. Although genetics may be somewhat responsible for such differences, socio-economic factors such as diet, lifestyle and a lack of preventive care are far greater contributors. Of the U.S.’ racial and ethnic groups, black Americans have the highest cancer-related death rates and the shortest survival for most cancers, according to the American Cancer Society.

Let's consider the GOP wins the Oval Office and retains the current congressional census; younger Americans could suffer the ravages of the insurance and healthcare providers. Let's extrapolate the consideration a bit more. If you are African American or Hispanic you may very well see Medicare eligibility established well beyond your potential (actuarial) life.  

Why the charts and graphs related to mortality regarding specific illness and mortality from birth? While, many white American cannot care less about mortality in minority communities, Medicare shouldn't exist with even remote prospect of unintentional discrimination regarding eligibility and benefit cycle. If mortality rates are accurate ad the GOP has its way with Medicare, should we assume the reality of aging would come with a pre-established abandonment of minorities. Would the GOP set eligibility with adverse impact on African-Americans and Hispanics.  

Well, something tells me the GOP would not hesitate.

Happy half century Medicare!

Bush Wants To Do What To Medicaid And Medicare?

What issues do the Koch brothers and the GOP have against Americans who sustain life via Medicaid and Medicare?

A quick glance at the two Human Services programs.

For sake of time (our time and your time) we will not dig deeper into the demographics.

In the past few days Jeb Bush has tickled the Koch brothers with talk of eliminating Medicaid and "Phasing out" Medicare. Imagine you and me at the mercy of insurance companies and horrific hospital administration without aid for older Americans?

And this comes from a candidate who claims to be a moderate...
Posted by Salon on Friday, July 24, 2015

How about a look and read o the Koch brothers agenda for America via the Bernie Sanders (I-VT) webpage.

In 1980, David Koch ran as the Libertarian Party’s vice-presidential candidate in 1980. 

Let’s take a look at the 1980 Libertarian Party platform. 

Here are just a few excerpts of the Libertarian Party platform that David Koch ran on in 1980:

“We urge the repeal of federal campaign finance laws, and the immediate abolition of the despotic Federal Election Commission.”
“We favor the abolition of Medicare and Medicaid programs.”
“We oppose any compulsory insurance or tax-supported plan to provide health services, including those which finance abortion services.”
“We also favor the deregulation of the medical insurance industry.”
“We favor the repeal of the fraudulent, virtually bankrupt, and increasingly oppressive Social Security system. Pending that repeal, participation in Social Security should be made voluntary.”
“We propose the abolition of the governmental Postal Service. The present system, in addition to being inefficient, encourages governmental surveillance of private correspondence.  Pending abolition, we call for an end to the monopoly system and for allowing free competition in all aspects of postal service.”
“We oppose all personal and corporate income taxation, including capital gains taxes.”
“We support the eventual repeal of all taxation.”
“As an interim measure, all criminal and civil sanctions against tax evasion should be terminated immediately.”
“We support repeal of all law which impede the ability of any person to find employment, such as minimum wage laws.”
“We advocate the complete separation of education and State.  Government schools lead to the indoctrination of children and interfere with the free choice of individuals. Government ownership, operation, regulation, and subsidy of schools and colleges should be ended.”
“We condemn compulsory education laws … and we call for the immediate repeal of such laws.”
“We support the repeal of all taxes on the income or property of private schools, whether profit or non-profit.”
“We support the abolition of the Environmental Protection Agency.”
“We support abolition of the Department of Energy.”
“We call for the dissolution of all government agencies concerned with transportation, including the Department of Transportation.”
“We demand the return of America's railroad system to private ownership. We call for the privatization of the public roads and national highway system.”
“We specifically oppose laws requiring an individual to buy or use so-called "self-protection" equipment such as safety belts, air bags, or crash helmets.”
“We advocate the abolition of the Federal Aviation Administration.”
“We advocate the abolition of the Food and Drug Administration.”
“We support an end to all subsidies for child-bearing built into our present laws, including all welfare plans and the provision of tax-supported services for children.”
“We oppose all government welfare, relief projects, and ‘aid to the poor’ programs. All these government programs are privacy-invading, paternalistic, demeaning, and inefficient. The proper source of help for such persons is the voluntary efforts of private groups and individuals.”
“We call for the privatization of the inland waterways, and of the distribution system that brings water to industry, agriculture and households.”
“We call for the repeal of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.”
“We call for the abolition of the Consumer Product Safety Commission.”
“We support the repeal of all state usury laws.”


In other words, the agenda of the Koch brothers is not only todefund Obamacare.  The agenda of the Koch brothers is to repeal every major piece of legislation that has been signed into law over the past 80 years that has protected the middle class, the elderly, the children, the sick, and the most vulnerable in this country.

Jeb Bush is outpacing all 2016 candidates for the presidency ad he hasn't yet officially declared as a candidate. The fact that he is avoiding a declaration to skirt campaigning financing issues is nefarious to put it mildly.

Ezra Klein's VOX published the stark reality and result of Bush's political subterfuge: Campaign Finance Visualized.   

It seems the Kochs are driving the 2016 run for the presidency just as they boasted. Bush with his attacks on Medicaid and Medicare seems to be the perfect stooge Oval Office holder.

Eric Wattree.Beneath The Spin: So What Do Progressives Do Now

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 06, 2014

So What Do Progressives Do Now, In Response To The 2014 Midterm Disaster?

Beneath the Spin * Eric L. Wattree   

So What Do Progressives Do Now, In Response To The 2014 Midterm Disaster?

There’s an old axiom that says, "When the going gets tough, the tough gets going." I would like to modify that to say, "When the going gets tough, the tough gets tougher," and that’s exactly must happen now that the Corporate/GOP Alliance has taken over congress if we’re going to save America.

What we saw in the last election was the victory of ignorance over knowledge. That should never happen, and the only reason it did was because the knowledgeable didn’t assert themselves forcefully enough. One of the biggest problems that knowledgeable people often have is making the assumption that everyone can see what they can see. But that’s far from true. I warned my son and daughter about it as teenagers - NEVER assume that everybody can see what you see. The reason for that is, the knowledgeable are only knowledgeable due to their intellectual predisposition. They base their perception of reality ON reality, by giving truth, facts, and logic priority over what makes them feel most comfortable.

But there are many people in this world who don’t base their perception of reality on truth, facts, and logic. These people tend to be FEELERS, rather than thinkers, so they invariably give ideology priority over truth. When such people are faced with an inconvenient fact, instead of accepting that fact and using it to modify their perception, they’ll do whatever they have to do to contort truth into a configuration that fits comfortably into what they WANT to believe. We can see that tendency at work in the conservative claim that, "President Obama is un-American - he’s engaged in a socialist plot to insure my family against catastrophic illness." That assertion sounds ridiculously funny to most of us, but to FEELERS who feel a desperate need to hate Obama, it represents perfectly sound logic, and the failure of progressives to recognize that fact, and act on it, is what led to the 2014 midterm disaster.

In my article, "The 2014 Midterm Election - A Towering Testament To Monumental Stupidity,", I allude to a letter that I sent to President Obama back in February in an attempt to avert this midterm disaster. In the letter I point out the following:

"So while I think you, personally, should continue in the mode that you’ve established, at the same time, you should create a staff - housed right next door to the Oval Office - whose sole purpose is to debunk Republican disinformation. Then, whenever any Republican appears on the news to distort reality, he or she should be able to look forward to the next day’s news cycle being flooded with information not only debunking his or her words, but also, examining every action that he or she has engaged in during their career that tends to be in conflict with their current position. In short, you should parade their hypocrisy before the American people.

"If you would take that simple action, Mr. President, you would not only drive home to the people the GOP’s hypocrisy, but you would cause individual Republicans to run away from the cameras instead of stumbling all over one another to be the first one to present the latest Republican assault on reality. In addition, it would appease the thirst for blood among the people in your base, provide writers like myself with grist for our mill, and also give us an indication of what areas of investigation would bear the most fruit."

I go on to point out that "Since much of the GOP’s popularity and success is based upon the complete ignorance of a sizable percentage of the American electorate, I’m convinced that if the President would have followed my advice and educated the American people to what they’re actually dealing with in the GOP, he could have done an end run around what we witnessed last night."

But the President didn’t choose to take my advice, and since, for some reason, our Democratic politicians don’t see fit to confront GOP lies and disinformation, as progressives, WE’VE got to become the staff that I spoke to the President about establishing. WE can use the internet to do the research, and WE can, and MUST, go on a single-minded mission to debunk GOP lies, and push TRUTH down America’s throat. If we don’t, the Corporate/GOP Alliance is going to attack, and try to reverse Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, unemployment insurance, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the minimum wage, the Voting Rights Act, and everything that’s been put into place to protect the poor and middle class America since the New Deal. That, is their agenda - to enslave the American people by leaving us totally dependent upon Corporate America.

Please start your research with the issues presented in the articles below. The information therein represents many hours of research, and provides posters that makes the information easily digestible. They'll give you much perspective, and will allow you to hit the ground running. Providing sound and irrefutable facts and knowledge is the key to getting America to open its eyes - and this may be our last chance to do that. Consider this. If the Corporate/GOP Alliance wins both the presidency and both houses of congress in the next election, the American experiment in democracy, is over.

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RELATED ARTICLES

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FELLOW AMERICANS, DON’T LET OUR IGNORANCE DESTROY US

http://wattree.blogspot.com/2014/07/fellow-americans-don’t-let-our-ignorance.html

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Demographics Are Against the GOP, So They’ve Become Dangerous

http://wattree.blogspot.com/2014/04/demographics-are-against-gop-so-theyve.html

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THE GOP: A ONE HUNDRED YEAR RECORD OF SWINDLING THE AMERICAN PEOPLE 

http://wattree.blogspot.com/2010/10/gop-one-hundred-year-record-of.html

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Is Cornel West A Judas Goat - When Was The Last Time You Heard Him Attack A Conservative Republican?

http://wattree.blogspot.com/2014/10/is-cornel-west-judas-goat-when-was-last.html

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Eric L. Wattree
http://wattree.blogspot.com/
Ewattree@Gmail.com
Citizens Against Reckless Middle-Class Abuse (CARMA)
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Religious bigotry: It's not that I hate everyone who doesn't look, think, and act like me - it's just that God does.