My Earliest Christmas Memory

My earliest memory of Christmas was the days shared with my mother and fellow siblings at my grandmothers home in St.Louis. As a little boy I did not realize how modest her home was it was not as large as many of the homes in today's suburban communities , but it was large enough to entertain each of her 7 grandchildren; from the Amway merchandise filled basement, to the upstairs small 3 bed rooms.

The living room was always the most exciting place in the home it was where the Christmas tree and fireplace would bring the family together before the Christmas feast and after.

My older sisters and oldest brother would assist in setting up the dining room for the Christmas dinner while my mother , grandmother and on some occasions my aunt would be putting the last minute touches on the meal.

My older brother and I were close enough in age to enjoy the same toys but it was not a long time of play for me, because I enjoyed hanging out in the kitchen or bugging my oldest brother for a comic book drawing.

The most exciting moment was when my father would come through the door with a gift or two for both my brother and I. He would sit and talk with my grandfather and uncle as the room would smell of iced spirits and cigar.

My grandfather was the envy of all of the youngest boys in the household, because he owned two items we coveted most, his beige recliner and the old zenith three button color television remote control.

To most adults the recliner was just a nice relaxing chair, but to a young boy of the mid to late sixties it was an Apollo rocket ship or Captain Kirk's commanders chair, and the remote control was our phaser... Oh the fun we would have... until our grandfather was ready to take control of the bridge.

looking back on those perceived innocent days of my youth, I am reminded of how little it took to keep us entertained, we enjoyed each others company, and even during the rough times we managed to find some redeeming value in how we coexisted with each other. My siblings and I were the off springs of a broken home, yet in spite of what some would judged negatively, on Christmas.. none of that mattered.

We may not have been the Osmond's or the Walton's yet today , after seven grandchildren , twelve great grand children, and ten great great grand children our family continues to grow, and most importantly we did.. (and do) share the same precious gift with both of the before mentioned famous families which is... the gift of Love.

Merry Christmas

K Gerard Thomas

He Did It...

President Obama Did It Again ...Just when some thought he was down for the count he got back up to continue his fight for what is best for the citizenry of America. Some may have not got all that they wanted some of those in the progressive or conservative camps complain but it is a hell of a lot better then what would have happened if compromise on both parts had not taken place.

Merry Christmas to all those men and women who worked hard to prove to the world our nation is more than just Democrats and Republicans but we are E plubrius unum.."from many One."

Yes We Did!

"God Bless Us Everyone"

Media Made Controversy

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.
edstetzer.com/2010/11/17/tsa-logo.gif&imgrefurl

TSA Problem 2009

Now that the smoke has cleared since November 2nd election all the pundits and press are focusing their attention on the new uproar regarding pat downs by agents of the Transportation Security Administration.

It has been proven the United States citizenry has a very short term memory and it saddens me to say we are easily duped to follow where ever the media leads, that is why they keep pushing
Palin 24/7.

Why are we now talking about the TSA? It fits the season, (think about it) , this is the high travel season so what better time to keep stirring up controversy and scare tactics with a dash of Palin.

How Did We Get Here?

After 9/11 our nation has been confronting multiple attempted attacks by would be terrorist such as the "Shoe Bomber" and last years "Christmas underwear bomber" .

The online web site The Grio reports the following from an Associated Press story regarding last Christmas attempted suicidal bombing incident on flight 253.

"Passengers on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 forced the alleged bomber to the front of the plane as it approached Detroit Metropolitan Airport last Dec. 25 carrying nearly 300 people. Authorities say he was trying to set off explosives hidden in his underwear. The incident exposed flaws in security and intelligence.

Damned if you do and damned if you don't

After the alleged Christmas Bomber was caught the Republicans blamed the president for not doing enough to protect fliers. Of course they were gung ho for the new stronger security methods, but now it is Obama's fault that some people are complaining about TSA agents going too far in their zeal to assure the safety of the travelers.

According to 'Crooks and Liars' online article.. Republican Jim De Mint Blames Obama for "Christmas Bomber" While putting Hold On TSA Appointment .. Logan Murphy

"Last Sunday Republican Jim DeMint used the alleged Christmas Bomber issue to attack President Obama and the TSA because the agency's screeners might *gasp* unionize.

As it turns out, DeMint was really trying to deflect attention away from the fact that he voted against TSA funding earlier this year and has put a hold on Obama's nominee to head the department"

2010 Problems

Why is the press pushing this story so hard are these complaints new? or is it just convenient because we are approaching the Holiday season and the lazy reporters don't want to cover news of more substantial value.

Has the TSA been searching people more aggressively since the "Christmas Bomber" incident in December of 2009 or did it just start this week.

Ever since 9/11 our national security has been primary and if it takes a scanner or even a reasonable some what uncomfortable frisk by a TSA agent to continue to secure our safety I'll take it .

Yeah.. We Think You're That Stupid

Press manipulation is when they attempt to interview a guest that knows very little about the subject for which they are being interviewed but because they can stir up controversy the press will allow them to proliferate unsubstantiated or vetted comments just because.

Such was the recent CNN interview with Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal who as instructed by the Republican House Leaders stuck to the script of attacking his president on every thing from the BP Oil Leak to how the TSA is to intrusive.

Jindal is hocking his new book and thus he must concentrate on how the last two years was the apocalypse. ( Here is the funny part ) Jindal said former Alaska Republican Gov. Sarah Palin could make a "compelling case" for president." I like governors because they have to balance their budgets, they have to run their states,".. Oh but didn't she quit the governor ship.

Another Jindal zinger was he said there should be some system of profiling of passengers who deemed to be a threat ...Yeah Bobby Jindal said that.

What Will the New Congress Suggest we Do?

Here is the sneaky part.. John Mica(R Fla) stated on CNN this weekend that Private Security Firms should be in charge of Transportation Security thus opening the door for corporate money making entity like maybe "Black Water" ...Nah they wouldn't do that.

K.Gerard Thomas


http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1110/111910nj2.htm

http://crooksandliars.com/logan-murphy/republican-jim-demint-blames-obama-ts

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/11/21/top-goper-appears-to-discount-white-house-run/#more-136536

Update to... What Will Happen If Democrats Loose House and Senate on November 2nd?

Prophetic Words of October 2010 now has come to pass as result  we are in trenched in a battle between those who know very little about our democracy and those who are willing to forgo political power or posturing for the sake of the greater good. 

In the next two weeks the press will continue to push the alleged consensus that the Democrats are doomed for a great defeat on November 2nd, this is the only narrative that matters to the main stream media. The only thing that can shut them up is a strong powerful showing on or before November 2nd.

If these so called "Tea Party" Republican candidates succeed in taking control of the house and Senate there will be a return to the Bush era of greater partisan bitterness and an even larger divide within our nation not seen since 1994 a time of constant grid lock in Washington DC where nothing gets done because the needs of the people are less important then the needs of the wealthy and the elected officials political ideology.

As a nation we should be working together to try to move forward yet there are those who continue to stand in the way and block our ability to offer more assistance to the nation's middle class.

If the Tea Party candidates win ..our country will suffer the greatest loss since the days of the depression and we will no doubt discover (too late) that most of these candidates were and are limited in their knowledge of how government works.

In the opinion of some .. after listening to their rhetoric regarding what they will do if elected they will damage our economy in ways the Bush administration could never dream of.

Some of these candidates have zero qualifications to hold the office they are running for, but because our nation is still in recovery from the eight years of recession like treatment of the middle class (under the republican party I might add ) disgruntled Mc Cain Palin voters from 2008 have re branded themselves as members of the Tea Party are willing to put any body in office.


The only way to offset the financial power of those who are the financial backers of the Tea Party is to use the ballot as your weapon. The wealthy Republican leaders don't have to worry about medi-cal  medicaid, or paying for their child's college tuition. It is simple they are wealthy the middle class worker is not wealthy so they struggle to pay bills and enjoy financial security. 

The middle class is expendable, and while our unemployment rate is high multimillion dollar corporations ship jobs over seas assuring that citizens of other nations benefit from cheap labor while many citizens in America benefit from zero labor.   

The national Press has written off the Democrats and are continuing to push the same old tired talking points that the Republicans will sweep the upcoming election on November 2nd even when polls are tightening all across the nation and many of the Democratic candidates are now taking lead in their races but don't let the truth or the facts get in the way of a good national press induced fight.


Go Vote... as if your life depended on it ...(If health care reform is repealed) it just might.

A Day of Remembrance Ten Years Later

Ten years ago while getting ready for work I turned on the television as I often do in order to check the local weather and traffic report just like most commuting suburbanites who have to travel some twenty plus mile or more to work and back, we had no idea that this terrorist attack would for ever change the lives of millions of Americans for ever.  

On that Fateful Day

Our local Los Angeles newscast was preempted by a live video feed from New York City and what first seemed to be just a containable fire coming from a floor in the World Trade Center soon became a story about a possible small Cessna airplane that flew off course into on of the Twin Towers in Manhattan.    

The Video Footage Changed the Story

Within minutes of the first live journalistic assumptions and questions, a video footage showing a large (high jacked ) passenger transcontinental air plane crashing into the north tower of the WTC,  the public later learned it was American Airline flight 11 caring 92 passengers of which there were no survivors.

While observing the live feed from New York a second plane crashed into the south tower once I witnessed this tragic event  before my very eyes, I knew right away, this was no accident, and my family and I were now witnessing in real time one of the most horrific and heroic moments in our nations ever changing history.  The second plane was United flight 175 caring 60 passengers as well as the hijackers. Two other flights were also hijacked on the same day  flight 77 which was en route for the Pentagon in Arlington Virginia ,  and flight 93 which was assumed to be en-route for the White House.    

Like many Americans I was worried that this was not the end of attacks. I was raised with a strong faith in God’s sovereign ability to watch over our nation, knowing we as Americans would have to rely on each other and Gods mercy to get us through this painful moment for years to come.


What Have We Learned ? 

As a result of what took place on September 11, 2001 multiple lives have been affected worldwide. Each year since we still mourn those whose lives that were taken on that fateful morning, and we honor the thousands of service men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice defending our nations freedom.

Today I am saddened and angry at the way some have used this terrible moment in our history to excuse their bigoted remarks, and physical and verbal attacks on innocent citizens and others who are seeking a peaceful solution to the bitter narrative of anger, racism, and revenge.

Recent news stories shed some light on how 9/11 has become a tool of manipulation to further the political, monitory, and racist agenda for those who continue to fan the flames of division in our nation and the world. We are still learning how to accept what happened it is a process but we must not turn on each other because that would play into the hands of those who committed this horrendous act.


How do we pay our Respect to Those who’s Lives Were Lost?


Some used this solemn day of remembrance to offer service to others donating their time and skills, such as helping in a shelter for the less fortunate, assisting in building homes, donating or serving food at a food bank, giving monetary assistance to a charity or church out reach program. Whatever we could do to offer some menial service to those in need, cannot in any way comparing to what our service men and women encounter each day on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan.

This week rather than focusing on the negatives of those who have used 9/11 for their personal agenda, (which in most cases has some negative slant), I choose to offer a narrative of respect and honor to the lives of those lost and to my country as a whole.

Billy Graham in one of his last national appearances with a sitting president Reverend Graham stated " We come together today to reaffirm our conviction that God cares for us, whatever our ethnic, religious or political back ground may be."



May God Bless the 9/11 Families, the men and women of the Armed Services and their families, and our President and Congress and finally May God Bless the United States of America.

K. Gerard Thomas

You Shall Know Them by Their Fruit

The name of Jesus and his teachings have been used and misused by some of the most evil and hate filled people in-order to spread fear and intimidation to those with whom his so called followers do not agree. This goes back to the days of the Inquisitions and Crusades, as well as using religion as divine justification to attack and conquer indigenous people through out the world .

Any real honest student of history will admit that religion has been used through out the centuries to justify a false doctrine of pain, hatred , malice, bitterness, un-forgiveness,and intolerance. Although from a generic stand point this is true of all religions from Hindu, Islam, Judaism, Christianity and a host of others the two largest faiths Christianity and Islam garner
the most attention positive and negative.

Unlike the middle ages today's civilized individuals and countries should offer a better understanding of those who are of a different faith , unfortunately in the United States there are some who don't practice the truth of their faith but choose to make up the rules as they go.

9/11 Gives The Excuse to Hate

Ever since our nation was attacked on 9/11 some in America feel they have a right to go after Muslims and have done so just because they are Muslims, some feel justified in causing pain to those who are simple innocent believers of Islam in-order to pay back those evil men who set up the hijacking of the planes that flew into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

The latest attacks have been the angry protest regarding the building of an Islamic community center in New York two blocks from ground zero, protest against this building project have been shown around the world. The complaint by some is that it is a sign of insensitivity to build any thing Muslim near Ground Zero even though this center will honor other faiths much like the Pentagon which was also attacked yet it still has a Muslim prayer room inside .

The Islamic Community Center that is set to be built is the catalyst for the newer intolerant assaults on Muslims such as the cab driver who was stabbed by a passenger when he discovered (the driver) was a Muslim, and now Pastor Terry Jones of the Dove World Center Outreach Church in Gainesville Florida is threatening to host a Koran burning ceremony on the Anniversary of 9/11.

Despite calls from General David Petraeus , and other religious and political leaders including president Obama to halt this planned act of hate Reverend Terry Jones still plans to go ahead with the burning of the Koran even after he was warned of the possibly blow back to all the efforts our nation has accomplished in our work in Iraq and Afghanistan and the Muslim community through out the world. This act would put our soldiers and civilian citizens in greater harms way.

Bottom Line

This church is what some would call a fringe Christian Church who obviously do not read the Bible or studied the early church fathers , when you consider the idiocy that is running the conservative movement in America today in which the dumber the better, it is no surprise that this false representative of Christ has found his fifteen minutes of fame. If Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin are considered religious heroes of the faith, it is not hard for extreme radicals like Jones and possibly copy cats to rise up and cast a dark shadow over our nations efforts to win the hearts and minds of Muslims the world over this is a public relations night mare that has received very little attention from the Conservative Christian Community because they are bought and paid for by the Republicans and big business.

God Help Us!

K.Gerard Thomas

New York Daily News.com
pict provided by John Raoqux

The Beck Factor

Glenn Beck with the assistance of his marketing through Fox News hosted his "Restoring Honor Rally" yesterday on the Washington DC mall, forty seven years to the date of the historic "March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom" lead by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. John Stewart of 'Comedy Central' came up with the best head line for the big rally calling it "I Have a Scheme".

This rally was on par with the older religious gatherings on the mall since "Washington for Jesus" in nineteen eighty. This event has been marketed as restoring honor and a fund raiser for the Troops, but like the "Music Man" or "Elmer Gantry" there is more to him than meets the eyes this will prove to be a financial wind fall for Beck and his sponsors.

Becks Previous Version of Honor

Becks Rally was used to voice a political agenda with out any doubt, these so called followers of the ultra conservative cognitive challenged Christian Republicans have nothing in common with the 1963 civil rights march of Dr. King forty seven years ago. Dr. King would have more than likely been treated the same way Beck attacked Van Jones, Acorn and not to mention his constant attacks of the President.

The teary eyed followers of Beck claim their goal for this Rally was to restore honor in the United States and offer support of our military with out politics being involved, but just like the 1980 Washington for Jesus gathering the event was used to build voter support for then presidential candidate Republican Ronald Reagan, this rally was a successful tool used by the Moral Majority and the GOP to assure Jimmy Carters defeat in the 1980 election...sound familiar

Honorable Racism

This so called honor that his followers claim to want to restore is questionable at best, especially when you consider that many of those supporters are big corporations and ignorant duped fearful politicians and followers who offer the nation lies, war-mongering, greed, deceit, racism, fear, anger, gun touting , threats, and an unwillingness to help there fellow man.



It is old news that Glenn Beck accuses a man who is half white or Caucasian as “having a deep seated hatred for white people or the white culture” yet all Obama ever knew was white culture he was raised by his white mother and white grand parents.Fox & Friends July 28,2009

Sarah Palin who tweeted on August 20 that Dr. Laura's Schlessinger first amendment rights were threatened because the public complained about Dr. Laura use of the word Nigger 11 times on the air, Palin's advice: "don't retreat...reload!" Steps aside bc her 1st Amend.rights ceased 2exist thx 2activists trying 2silence"isn't American,not fair") not fair for her not to be able to use the N word. ... That's Honorable.

Who was Dr. King?

The March on Washington in 1963 was a historic event that put the United States treatment of its citizens of color on notice before the world. Dr. King on that day became public enemy number one to J. Edgar Hoover and the Klan and any crazy kook who had a gun and felt black Americans are now a serious threat to their financial supremacy of white Americans. King was called a Communist, a Marxist, Radical, Hates his Country and of course the famous N word ...sound familiar?

March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom

This was the real name of the 1963 March not just the "March on Washington" as it is commonly called or the "I Have a Dream Speech" which really limits the speech to one particular sentence "I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

This may be the most commonly quote but other portions of the sixteen minute speech were just as significant. If one examines the speech from beginning to end you will discover that there are portions of the speech that would make those member of the Tea Party and Beck followers cringe.

1. "America has defaulted on a promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, which has come back marked " insufficient funds "


2. "Don't ignore us it would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of the Negro"

3." Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual.

4. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights.

5. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges

6. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" In these comments and questions Dr. King is prophetic, how was he to know the challenges people of color would be facing "

Racial Harmony for Whites Only

Each of these quotes from the actual speech delivered by Dr. King is in complete contradiction of the Sarah Palin , Glenn Beck, big corporation, wealthy elite, ideology, it was a message of economic justice not just the ability to eat in the same restaurant of a white but justice would be if the African American would be allowed the same opportunity to own the restaurant.

Here is the crust of the matter would any of the ninety five percent Caucasian Tea Party members be willing to work with or for a black man or would any of them be willing to allow their son or daughter to marry a black man or woman and if they notice racial bigotry taking place would they do the honorable thing and confront it head on or would they like there leader Sarah Palin make excuses for someones blatant racism and ignorantly use the first amendment as a an excuse to use the word nigger even though it is offensive to me. (What Would Rabi Jesus DO?


Bottom Line


This rally was a tester for 2012 and I guarantee that there will be more rallies before the 2012 elections. Some may laugh at Beck but they also laughed at other men or women who came to power through good propaganda campaign.

Beck has successfully sealed his place in the psyche of the Christian Conservative, the Tea Party the Republican Party and most importantly the press.

He will be the sounding board for attacks on the Obama administration for the next two years using God to garner support for his warped agenda and unfortunately he laughing all the way to the bank... while his angry, mostly retired, some unemployed, misinformed middle class followers keep reminiscing about the good ol days when Dr. Kings dream was nothing but a dream and the idea of a black man running the country was also only a pipe dream.


K. Gerard Thomas