Ray Boltz is Gay...

Ok, this is a big deal. I worked at WKCL in Ladson, a Christian radio station for 10 years. Ray Boltz was probably requested and played hundreds, perhaps thousands of times in that decade.



The first concert I went to with my future wife was a Ray Boltz concert. He came out of the closet in an interview with a gay magazine in Washington this month. I never saw this one coming. My first reaction is, well, I never really knew Ray Boltz. On second thought, I think I knew who he was, I just didn't know THIS about him. I have no problem personally with the fact that he has a boyfriend. As a Christian, I believe the bible says this is sin. Having said that, there are all sorts of sins that don't change the way you think about someone. If I told you Ray Boltz has not tithed 10% of his earnings for the last 20 years, would that change the way you think about him? As far as I understand it (and I'm by FAR not a biblical expert,) sin is sin. There really isn't a set of sin "levels." Telling a lie keeps you out of heaven just as sure as killing someone. Jesus paid the price to cover ALL SIN. I DO understand that. Once we become a Christian, we are to turn away from our sin. If he is still sinning, isn't that wrong? Well, I suppose it is. Just like it is still sin when we allow our temper to flare up. It keeps us from being the husband/father we need to be. In the end, it is God's job to judge us. I have friends who are gay, and I don't look at them any differently than my straight friends. There are straight friends I have who aren't living the way I believe the bible says they should either. But that doesn't mean I believe I should point out their sin to them, especially if they are not Christians. This whole story is just a shocker to me, since Ray Boltz was such a part of my life for such a long time. I'm sure some of the others who read this can relate to what I'm writing here. What do you think about this subject? I'm really interested in hearing other opinions.


Raymond
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Honestly not allowed in the campaign...

Ok, so last night, I blogged that Biden agreed with me, that the McCain "internet" ad was terrible. Now today, Biden changed his mind...

http://www.weeklystandard.com/weblogs/TWSFP/2008/09/biden_sent_to_reeducation_camp.asp

BTW... the video from Biden on the bus with Katie is right below this post... check it out and let me know if it sounds to you like he hadn't seen the ad.

Raymond
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Biden, on ad I blogged about: "I thought that was terrible."

I was extremely pleased to see Joe Biden agrees with me on the ad that the Obama campaign ran, making fun of the fact that John McCain can't use the internet the same way the rest of us can...




Raymond
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Obama ad: McCain can't use computer.. .doesn't mention war injuries that makes that difficult...

This is a story that has my blood boiling... apparently, being injured serving your country is not a good excuse to not be as "techno-savy" as some in politics believe you should be. No matter what your politics, this should be something that upsets you as well.

Sen. Barack Obama has a new ad out, highlighting how "old" John McCain is...



http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/still_ad/

...while I suppose it is the Obama campaign's right to talk about McCain's age, the part that irritates me is the following...

"He admits he still doesn't know how to use a computer, can't send an e-mail."

That statement is FINE, unless you consider the facts...

FACT 1: McCain suffered injuries as a POW that make it difficult for him to type on a keyboard...
FACT 2: Unless FORBES was making the news up, as far back as 2000, it was reported that McCain, through the assistance of his wife, has been sending email..

"In certain ways, McCain was a natural Web candidate. Chairman of the Senate Telecommunications Subcommittee and regarded as the U.S. Senate's savviest technologist, McCain is an inveterate devotee of email. His nightly ritual is to read his email together with his wife, Cindy. The injuries he incurred as a Vietnam POW make it painful for McCain to type. Instead, he dictates responses that his wife types on a laptop. "She's a whiz on the keyboard, and I'm so laborious," McCain admits." (http://www.forbes.com/asap/2000/0529/053_print.html)

I sure hope nobody in the Obama campaign realized that McCain's war injuries make it difficult to use a computer the way you and I can on a regular basis. I also assume nobody in the campaign bothered to do 5-10 minutes of research on google prior to releasing the ad. However, that is a lot of assuming. We all know what assuming does.

I'd love to hear what you think on this... am I being oversensitive, or is this about as low as any campaign can go?


Raymond
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SC Democratic Party Chair: Palin's biggest qualification is no abortion

Here is the dumb comment of the night... The chairman of the South Carolina Democrat party said that Palin's primary qualification is that she has not had an abortion. I first heard about this at Palmetto Scoop... http://www.palmettoscoop.com/2008/09/10/fowler-palin-primary-qualification-that-she-hasn%e2%80%99t-had-an-abortion

I can't imagine why this comment would be made. Afterall, even if it was used in jest, it failed. There doesn't appear to be ANY context that I can imagine in which the statement would be considered funny.

I suppose it could be like Chevy Chase adlibbing a joke... not funny unless it's scripted... but my guess is there is just serious panic on the left and they are just blurting out their thoughts without considering the consequences.

That appears to be what the McCain campaign thinks of the comment as well.







I had the chance to phone in to a media conference call this afternoon with Sen. Lindsey Graham. Here are few of the things he had to say about the comments... He said he was "shocked and surprised" that Fowler would make such comments. He said "If this were done the other way, there would be a firestorm…" Finally, he said "It shows our democratic colleages are in a meltdown." That makes the most sense to me as well.


UPDATE: As usual, FITSNews has a unique look at this story...http://www.fitsnews.com/2008/09/10/carol-fowler-is-kind-of-a-bitch/
Fowler, and the FITSNews story touches on an issue I mentioned here Monday.. http://raymondblogs.blogspot.com/2008/09/i-have-to-apologize-for-not-updating.html

Raymond
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Illegal Immigration Problem? Ok, let's make it harder to do it legally!

I read an article in USA Today (http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-09-09-citizenship_N.htm?csp=34) that covers the fact that the number of people applying to become a US citizen has dropped by more than half after the fee to apply for citizenship increased more than 50%. The fee went from $400 to $675 per year. This simply does not make sense. One of the biggest problems facing this country is illegal immigration. One of the easiest ways we can fix the problem is to make it EASIER to come to the US and become a citizen LEGALLY. If we increase the fees to become a citizen by more than 50%, that is basically ASKING for more illegal immigration. As I've said to friends before, if I were born in Mexico or other less than modern countries around the world I would be doing my best to get to the United States as well... legally or illegally. The fees involved with coming to the US and becoming a citizen need to be lowered, not raised.

Raymond
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TRUE face of feminists

I have to apologize for not updating the blog since Palin's speech last week.  To be honest, I think I was just stunned into not blogging.  As I watched the speech, I was thinking of several things... that I might be watching the US version of Margaret Thatcher... That I was looking at the modern Ronald Reagan... that she was a similar woman to my own mom... who raised us while still working and proving that women can do the same jobs men can do.  I've always thought of my mom as a feminist of the TRUE variety.  I've never bought into the lie that N.O.W. or people like Gloria Steinem or women like her are the true feminists.  I think that was a media creation.  I ran across this post from NPR... http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=94369835&ft=1&f=1102 that asks if Palin is the NEW face of feminists.  I agree, she is the face of feminists.  However, I am not sure this is NEW.  I believe women all across this country are just like Sarah Palin.  They want to do the same jobs as men, but at the same time, they don't want to pretend they are men.  A TRUELY strong woman doesn't need to look/dress in a masculine way in order to be a true feminist.  Sarah Palin is the embodyment of this point.  She is making the tough decisions, she is a leader, she is a mother, she is a friend, she is a real woman.  The incredible reaction we are seeing to her, from the 37 million people who watched her speech, to the crowds showing up to see her on the campaign trail, to the brand new polls out showing a BIG jump (http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/us/general_election_mccain_vs_obama-225.html) all prove this.  Women (and men for that matter) across this country have been waiting for a REAL, TRUE feminist to show up on the scene.  Nothing in the definition of a feminist (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feminist) suggests that women have to act like men or dress like men to be a feminist.  Quite the opposite.  I believe a true feminist can be who she is.  She doesn't need to act like a man to be a woman.  That is what I've seen so far from Sarah Palin.  She is who we see on TV.  Her friends say this, people from Alaska say this.  It is refreshing to hear from a politician who knows who she is, and isn't afraid to be that in public. 

 

Raymond
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WOW....

If you missed Gov. Palin's acceptance speech, look it up on youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKgNrb3baNM&eurl=http://www.johnmccain.com/informing/news/Speeches/c1af6c79-f5bf-42ed-9fb9-9e83b0c580e1.htm


Raymond
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NOW: Palin's more a conservative man...

I just read this post in The Weekly Standard... NOW tries to say, since Palin doesn't think the way they do, she must not be a woman, but perhaps a conservative man... NEWS FLASH FOLKS... Turn your tube on and you'll see what a REAL woman looks like.

http://www.weeklystandard.com/weblogs/TWSFP/2008/09/now_palin_is_not_a_woman.asp

Raymond
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Thompson lays groundwork for future...

Listening to Fred Thompson's speech tonight, I can't help but wonder if he isn't laying the groundwork for a future in higher political office.  He certainly is saying the right words to get the crowd pumped up.

Raymond
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I get dibs on the GOP Convention plasma...

I want that plasma when the convention is over in St. Paul.

Raymond
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Prisoner Escapes for 2nd Time...

I love law enforcement. Frankly, law enforcement is the only thing between all of us and the criminal crap of society. However, every so often something happens that makes you ask HOW? How did that happen? This is one of those stories... (http://www.counton2.com/cbd/news/local/article/inmate_escapes_for_second_time/13953/)

Apparently, this dude escaped from the Dorchester county sheriff's office twice. That either says a lot about HIM, or the SHERIFF'S OFFICE. I'm hoping it says a lot about him. He is now on the run.

Raymond
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Palin's daughter expecting... Is it possible to have another baby that soon??

Gov. Sarah Palin says her daughter is pregnant. Now, I'm sure the medical experts over at The Daily Kos must be able to explain how the daughter is 5 months pregnant when she just gave birth in some elaborate scam The Daily Kos explained here... (http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/8/30/121350/137/486/580223.) The more likely story is, The Daily Kos and other online blogs have been lying about Sarah Palin because they don't appreciate strong women. It appears Bristol Palin is planning to marry the father of the child. I don't know how people can sleep at night saying things like that about others, even if they are running for vice president. I'm sure none of the people at The Daily Kos have had teenage children who ended up pregnant.

Raymond
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