Posted on 04/24/2005 8:37:28 AM PDT by churchillbuff
The AOL "welcome" page this morning has a picture of Sen. Frist (with a perverted halo effect around his head) and the headline "Buying votes with religion?" You click and get to an article on the pitch to evangelicals to help Frist stop the filibusters.
I don't remember AOL casting aspersions on Gore or Kerry for campaigning in black churches. Or on Dem senators for opposing judge nominees because they're conservative Christians.
How can one complain to AOL in a way that might make an effect?
I guess they ran out of room for the picture of Ted Kennedy, captioned, "Buying votes from illegal aliens with more welfare benefits?"
AOL always has left wing slants on the news on their welcome pages. From happy smiling John Kerrys next to frowning, scowling George Bushs to questions posed similar to "When did you stop beating your wife?" They make me want to hurl.
There are many, many ISPs out there to chose from that offer all AOL has and then some. So change already. You'll save bucks, too. AFAIK, no ISP charges what AOL charges.
Switch to Earthlink.
John Kerry Church Appearances
Prompt Criticism
( ABP) -- Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry's increasingly prominent habit of using politically sympathetic churches as a platform for campaign speeches is drawing criticism -- though for differing reasons -- from groups on both the ideological right and the left.
President Bush's re-election campaign came under fire earlier in the year when news reports revealed that campaign officials were attempting to use conservative-leaning congregations to obtain church directories for mailing lists -- and encouraging pastors of such congregations to use their pulpits to endorse Bush positions. Supporters of church-state separation denounced the tactic, with some Christian leaders going so far as to buy full-page advertisements in the New York Times and other newspapers to do so.
Now the Kerry campaign is enduring criticism for using churches to hold what amounts to political rallies during Sunday morning services in African-American and other Democratic-leaning churches. Many conservatives have long accused liberals of hypocrisy for engaging in the practice.
After the Massachusetts senator spoke in his second African-American Baptist church in as many weeks Oct. 17, the conservative Family Research Council -- often a Kerry antagonist -- sent him a letter asking him to join with them in support of a controversial bill now stalled in Congress.
H.R. 235, the "Houses of Worship Political Speech Protection Act," has languished in the House for more than two years, despite strong support from the Religious Right. It would allow churches and other houses of worship to endorse political parties and candidates while still maintaining their tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. It has failed even to gain a sponsor in the Senate.
"As you quoted from the Book of James yesterday, 'Words without deeds are meaningless.' So I hope one of your first deeds when you return to Congress will be to introduce a Senate version of the Houses of Worship Political Speech Protection Act," wrote Connie Mackey, the group's vice president for government affairs. "Family Research Council looks forward to working with you to protect the freedom of speech for churches and other places of worship."
However, in an Oct. 21 telephone interview, Mackey admitted she thought Kerry was unlikely to respond to the request. Most Democrats have strongly opposed the bill out of church-state concerns.
Groups advocating church-state separation, such as Americans United for Separation of Church and State, also oppose the bill. An AU spokesman criticized Kerry and the churches for getting involved in partisan politics.
"We believe all houses of worship should play by the same rules, whether they're liberal-leaning or conservative-leaning," said Rob Boston, the Washington-based group's director of communications. "I think Sen. Kerry and the Democratic Party do need to be aware that their actions are placing houses of worship in jeopardy. There is a long tradition of Democratic candidates politicking in African-American churches, but the fact that it has been going on a long time doesn't make it right."
On Oct. 11, AU asked the Internal Revenue Service to investigate a Miami church for seeming to endorse Kerry when the candidate gave a similar speech there Oct. 10. "This year alone, we've reported three black churches for endorsing John Kerry from the pulpit," Boston said.
Mackey -- echoing charges made previously by many Religious Right groups -- accused AU of hypocrisy and said its criticism of churches for seeming to endorse liberal candidates in the past was "new news. They have never bothered with the other side, with people from the Democratic Party," she said.
"These letters to the IRS are a cover for what has been their practice, which is ... to turn a blind eye to what has been going on in mostly black churches in the past," Mackey continued.
But Boston said AU first began to criticize churches and candidates for having too cozy a political relationship in 1988 -- in response to an African-American Democratic presidential hopeful.
"We've actually been interested in this issue for a long time," Boston said. "It was Jesse Jackson's activities back during the 1988 race that first got us interested in this issue of church endorsements."
Officials from the Kerry campaign did not return a message requesting comment for this story by press time.
© 2004 Associated Baptist Press
© 2004 Maranatha Christian News Service
(Post date: October 22, 2004)
You need a new ISP
Earthlink is cool..and my homepage is EXCITE.COM
Years ago when I talked my Mom into dumping that AOL trash, I went into her email address book and sent a few emails to each of her contacts. The 10 or so other little old ladies got the message and her email flowed without interruption to her new address.
To this day she thinks I'm a computer genius because I got her email switched and she "didn't miss a single one". Which in turn kept the whole recipe/joke/chain letter exchange from falling off its axis.
Hey, when you're a hero, you're a hero. What can I say? :)
But AOL is just a horrible company. Their "changing your email is a nightmare" scam is just a small example.
Their customer no-service is a joke, they double bill, they continue to bill after you've dumped them. I have friends that have been fighting with AOL for over a year about billing problems. I think AOL's attitude is, "If we ignore them long enough, they'll give up."
AOHELL has NO redeeming attributes IMHO.
Is this something like Hillery running for the Senate from New York and saying she had Jewish blood in her viens?
AOL is the enemy. They do what the enemy does. What's to be upset about?
Don't use it. Ever.
I am hesistant to go to EarthLink because I don't know to what extent Scientologists are still involved in it.
NOOO!!!!!! Earthlink is the absolute WORST. It would take me a week to tell you the story of how awful their service is. Seriously, they are HORRIBLE!
Do NOT go to Earthlink!!! Their service is absolutely terrible. They will send you equipment that does not work, and their staff is unequipped to help you make it work. Absolutely the WORST customer service I have ever experienced!
This is my experience with Earthlink. It has been such a nightmare . . .
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