tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-110186592007-09-25T16:39:27.125-04:00Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comBlogger309125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1142332468935590902006-03-14T05:31:00.000-05:002006-03-15T10:24:03.026-05:00

Well, I've had it up my sleeve for a while now and I can no longer keep a secret. I now officially join the "Big Boys Club" with my own independent website. No more waiting for Blogger to get the stuff in a sock! Yay! Take a look at http://www.xpatriatedtexan.com ! I'll continue to use this place for archival purposes. Thanks to everyone who has stopped by along the way.

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1142259910702397702006-03-13T09:25:00.000-05:002006-03-13T09:25:10.753-05:00

Regardless of political or religious affiliation, the news that programs funded through President Bush's faith-based initiatives office should be celebrated. The success of such projects shows that they are badly needed and that America truly does have the compassion to reach out to those within our society that are suffering or in need. It shows that we have not left "the least among us"

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1141932090710270252006-03-09T14:21:00.000-05:002006-03-09T14:21:30.826-05:00

The Reverend Billy Graham once said, "Heaven is full of answers to prayers for which no one bothered to ask." Thanks for that, Billy. I'm sure it's real comforting for people to know that things will be better when they die. Honestly, that's only a half-snarky comment. After all, the promise of salvation is no rubber chicken consolation prize. But we don't live in heaven, and we are

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1141828235820855912006-03-08T09:30:00.000-05:002006-03-08T09:30:35.930-05:00

Regular readers (both of you) will have noticed a steep drop in the number of postings here. While no one has written and asked why, I've taken it upon myself to explain. Mostly to assuage my sense of guilt over being a slacker, but also to promote some other things I'm doing that prove I'm not really a slacker. Gee, I've been studying politics too long. First, as you've probably noticed,

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1141693134656582012006-03-06T19:57:00.000-05:002006-03-06T19:58:54.686-05:00

Our very own Velveteen Rabbi is hosting the Progressive Faith Blog Carnival.

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1141344622429898222006-03-02T19:10:00.000-05:002006-03-02T19:10:22.526-05:00

In military terms, nothing conveys the total helplessness of a situation as the term "over-run". According to my rememberance, it's the term used by a commander to indicate that gunnery should triangulate on his radio signal and direct their fire at it. The idea is to create a pyrric victory. Once the enemy has broken through your defenses and you can't tell friend from foe even two feet away,

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1141271775047531402006-03-01T22:56:00.000-05:002006-03-01T22:56:15.130-05:00

Nothing like last minute changes to make a man's hair turn gray, fall out, or both. Due to life happening all over the place, our new Carnival host for Sunday (more or less) is Roving Ellipsis. As always, you can submit links and anything of interest to our email - ProgFaithCarnival-at-yahoo-dot-com. I just discovered that a few posts that had been submitted in previous weeks had been

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1141151321551976412006-02-28T13:28:00.000-05:002006-02-28T13:28:41.670-05:00

Although I hate to do it, I'll start by directing your attention to an op-ed written by Michael Medved. Medved claims that the non-furor of Conservative Christians over Brokeback Mountainshow that they have matured since the release of The Last Temptation of Christ was released. Temptation was greeted with street protest and loud calls for boycot. Medved claims that Conservative Christians

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1141140440951002062006-02-28T10:27:00.000-05:002006-02-28T10:27:21.073-05:00

We can now announce that we have a venue in which to hold the Progressive Faith Bloggers Conference - hopefully the first annual event. We'll be throwing open the curtain at the Montclair State University Conference Center Friday, July 14 through Sunday, July 16. The entire event (without catering or housing) will cost $630. So far, about 40 people have indicated their interest in the

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1141079990546092052006-02-27T17:39:00.000-05:002006-02-27T17:39:50.603-05:00

A belated notice that the Progressive Faith Carnival went up yesterday at Pearlbear's Blog. Next week will be hosted at Feminary. Don't forget to send in your links!

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1140792637470960652006-02-24T09:50:00.000-05:002006-02-24T09:50:37.750-05:00

The greatest goal of mankind, the highest common denominator of civilization, is the thirst for greater justice. The call for justice is recognized as one of the building blocks of civilization. To extend justice, people codify laws and empower governments to enforce those laws. The Law of Moses, Hammurabi's Code, Confucius' Antalects, India's Law of Manu - all of the great ancient

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1140727443270710382006-02-23T15:44:00.000-05:002006-02-23T15:44:03.386-05:00

If you don't live in New Jersey's Nineth District, you've probably never heard of Steve Rothman (unless you happen to watch the Colbert Report on Comedy Central). In a world of flashy politicians, each scrabbling as hard as they can to build a cult of personality around them, he's always struck me as different. When he talks to his constituents, he's calm and thoughtful and almost shy at

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1140570362813713922006-02-21T20:06:00.000-05:002006-02-21T20:06:02.910-05:00

Get ready for this week's Progressive Faith Carnival! This week's carnival is hosted by Pearlbear. Submit your links to ProgFaithCarnival - at - yahoo.com. We also need volunteers to host the Carnival for upcoming weeks.

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1140537919062100082006-02-21T11:05:00.000-05:002006-02-21T11:05:19.146-05:00

There is no human emotion that is more understood, more likely to evoke sympathetic response, than simple human pain. Show someone a film of physical pain being inflicted and they will flinch. Show them a film of emotional pain being inflicted and they will clench their fists in anger, clamp their jaw, and even shed tears. It may be a stronger reaction if the person in the film is known to the

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1140010616820720792006-02-15T08:33:00.000-05:002006-02-15T08:36:56.846-05:00

This week's Carnival will be hosted by Virushead. Be sure to get your submission in.

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1139948812444007092006-02-14T15:26:00.000-05:002006-02-14T15:26:52.526-05:00

Ever hear of Heather Wilson? Chances are, you haven't. New Mexico's First Congressional District isn't widely known for creating controversy. That may be changing. A review of her record will tend to blow apart the idea that she is not a "real Republican". She tends to not be independent, but generally conservative and she doesn't generally buck the party too hard. She is, as well, a

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1139858407381976732006-02-13T14:20:00.000-05:002006-02-13T14:20:07.460-05:00

In case you didn't hear, Jersey got a ton of snow. Fortunately, temperatures are rising and it should melt away fairly soon. Fine by me. I'm not crazy about snow the first day, and nothing on earth looks as bedraggled as three-day old snow piled at the foot of a slush puddle. Fortunately, I don't have to worry too much about heating bills. We have nice new double-paned windows that are doing

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1139783262658559322006-02-12T17:27:00.000-05:002006-02-12T17:27:42.716-05:00

Baraka at Truth and Beauty sets up the Carni this week. Take a break and consider the implications for a bit.

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1139597901486169982006-02-10T13:58:00.000-05:002006-02-10T13:58:21.570-05:00

I saw this tidbit in the news today: The Air Force released new guidelines for religious expression Thursday that no longer caution top officers about promoting their personal religious views.The revisions were welcomed by conservative Christians, who said the previous rules was too strict and lobbied the White House to change them. I've served in the military (though not in the Air Force).

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1139332405913734232006-02-07T12:13:00.000-05:002006-02-07T12:18:43.566-05:00

I've been thinking some lately about goals. One of the images I carry from my childhood is of a poster in some classroom that showed a bullseye target with several arrows hitting the ground in front of it. The caption read, "If you aim at nothing; you're bound to hit it." There's nothing earthshaking in that statement, but it's a nice visual - and sometimes visual aids make all the difference.

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1139255492850409842006-02-06T14:51:00.000-05:002006-02-06T14:51:32.953-05:00

If you want to know what a man believes, watch him, and ignore everything that comes out of his mouth that doesn't agree with his actions. It's awfully hard to argue for a "Christian nation" when you start from that perspective. I'm not alone in this observation.: "Up to now, the application of religious principles in political debate has been mainly applied to social mores, such as abortion

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1138992995439219222006-02-03T13:56:00.000-05:002006-02-03T13:56:35.530-05:00

I incorrectly linked and quoted the wrong State of the Union address this week. Thanks to Enlighten-NJ for pointing this out. I have no excuse for it, other than to say I'm human and it was a dumb mistake and I accept responsibility for it. My apoligies to everyone. Here is a link to correct that mistake. The paragraph I quoted should have been this one: Our economy is healthy and vigorous

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1138824183123946042006-02-01T15:03:00.000-05:002006-02-03T14:04:35.223-05:00

NOTE: This post contains an error. Rather than erasing it as if it never happened, I attempt to make amends by reviewing the correct text. I have to admit that I didn't give the President my full attention last night. However, I did review the test of his State of the Union speech, and I found a lot of platitudes and not a few misleading statements. For example: America's economy is the

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1138731349481491622006-01-31T13:15:00.000-05:002006-01-31T13:15:49.566-05:00

*Note of explanation - This is cross-posted from Blue Texas. Carole Keetan Strayhorn is a former Democrat who jumped to the Republican Party to run for Texas State Comptroller. She is now running as an "independent" for the Governorship of Texas. She began her "independent" bid by stating "I am a Republican." My personal feeling is that her connections to the Republican Party preclude any true

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018659.post-1138723226430142292006-01-31T11:00:00.000-05:002006-01-31T11:00:49.826-05:00

The Progressive Faith Carnival will set up shop at CrossLeft this week. Note the fancy new address to which submissions should be sent:progfaithcarnival - at - yahoo.com. Get them in by Saturday for inclusion. Also, the Carnival of NJ Bloggers is moving to Philomathean. NJ bloggers should submit to: EnlightenNJ - at - gmail.com.

Xpatriated Texanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16202309776546699202noreply@blogger.com