He's at it again. Just like his asinine remarks after 9/11 where he agreed with the charlatan "minister" Jerry Falwell when he said 9/11 was caused by feminists and gays, Robertson has pronounced on his scam "700 Club" show that the Haitian earthquake is the result of the Haitians having made a "pact with the devil" two centuries ago.
Here is the report:
Pat Robertson said Wednesday that earthquake-ravaged Haiti has been "cursed" by a "pact to the devil."
"Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it," he said on Christian Broadcasting Network's "The 700 Club." "They were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III, or whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, we will serve you if you'll get us free from the French. True story. And so, the devil said, okay it's a deal.
Robertson said that "ever since, they have been cursed by one thing after the other"
This miserable Gantryite piles on the poor Haitian people by suggesting that God is punishing them for something that happened centuries ago?
While all people of compassion and good will, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Atheists, are trying to help the injured, the sick, and the dying, this jackass used his position as a "Christian" spokesman to blame the afflicted for this catastrophe.
Pat Robertson is a fool and beyond contempt and is no more a "Christian" than is the devil he stupidly believes in.
Shaw,
ReplyDeleteYes, I noticed this too -- it was only a matter of time before one of the usual suspects piped up something like that, or made some other preposterous claim, or used the whole thing as a chance to bash President Obama for some hastily fabricated "reason." How to give them their comeuppance? Donate what you can to the Red Cross and/or other reputable aid organizations. For instance, I believe UNICEF and Doctors Without Borders are also involved in the efforts to help.
Pat Robertson needs to eat shit and die! -- too harsh?
ReplyDeletereligious fanatical insanity at its best!! The old man needs to go meet his maker, NOW!!
ReplyDeleteToday, I half expected some rightwing nut job to say something stupid, and Pat Robertson did not disappoint. If not Robertson, then Pain-in-the-Neck-Beck, Jumbo Limbo, or any number of callous jerks hell-bent on spinning any story to suit their purpose.
ReplyDeleteThrough the day, I flipped channels to compare cable news coverage. CNN and MSNBC aired non-stop reports virtually all day. In sharp contrast was FNN. Typical fair: A little disaster coverage, a lot of Red Eye, Dan Quayle, Glenn Beck, and Hannity.
More to the point: FNN operates, not a news station, but a messianic rightwing squawk box, 24/7, always on message without pause. FNN sees itself as a command and control center in the culture wars. The progressive side doesn’t seem to get it!
I am so frustrated. Every time a nut job says something stupid, our side goes into “offended mode” and obsesses about the latest gaffe. As precious cargo sinks to the bottom of storm-tossed seas, Robertson and Limbo rise to the surface … and we rant about the oil slick.
Today should be about Haiti, about relief efforts, and where to send our contributions. Yet, here we are … talking about stupid people who hijack the story. Damn narcissists. Yet, we enable them by paying attention to them while losing focus.
What I wish for today: A month without Beck, Limbo, or Palin occupying our thoughts, cluttering our weblogs, wasting our energy.
Tonight, I shall ink the aquarium and sulk for a while.
Robertson is a predictable idiot. The only reason they put him on teevee is the certainty that he'll say something moronic, which will stir controversy and boost the ratings. The best thing is to ignore him.
ReplyDeleteOcty, its frustrating isn't it?
ReplyDeleteDid you stay up late enough to watch Bill O'Reilly (which had to be a rerun because it was after 10 pm) 'discuss' Jon Stewart with some blonde 'media consultant' where they basically were criticizing Stewart for brainwashing and filling young minds with propaganda...
...the whole time I am shaking my head laughing at the fact of the kettle calling the pot black...
At least Stewart is on the COMEDY CHANNEL and Bill O'Reilly hypes himself as the 'No Spin Zone'
Remember, they are all entertainers who didn't create their market as much as they pander to a market need...
Robertson makes HATE guilt free...he feeds the HATE that people have and makes them feel good about it....he makes hate okay.
Its not really Fox News, Limbaugh, or Robertson that is the issue, its the anger, hate, and frustration of the masses that they pander to.
Liberals blindly follow Obama because he is the Messiah....
But yet teabaggers are Patriots because they drink the kool aid of Fox News straight...
When Obama, who was from a mixed race single parent home achieves what he has is considered the establishment and Palin, who has realistically achieved nothing in her life, quit her job when the going got tough, and now is riding the gravy train is considered a patriot....
You just can't fix stupid.....
Stewart's show Tuesday contained an interview with a fellow who carefully explained that "the Jews" were in cahoots with Satan to force "sodomy" on the world.
ReplyDeleteI defy anyone to explain to me why any small level of credence in "Satan" or in this man's story is not irrefutable proof of incurable and dangerous insanity.
Any somehow the largest business enterprise in America supports these ideas and worse -- and they get a tax break to boot.
There is no hope for this country.
"The usual liberal outrage over some obscure preacher's rants are nearly as offensive as Robertson."
ReplyDeleteHold on there dude -- yes, religion is to blame, or at least the people who buy into the "god's will" tripe or the New Testament injunction against slaves revolting against their masters -- but -- you're offended by my
Liberal outrage? What better praise! and may everyone you love and care about die a slow and squalid death while I complain, like Limbaugh that my tax money may be used to help them or enjoy, like Robertson, special tax status. "some obscure preacher" is not an honest appraisal and the air is full of people howling about the cost, not full of less obscure preachers denouncing Robertson -- or Limbaugh for that matter. This isn't an honest appraisal of what's happening in any respect. It's just another example of your rhetorical Mambo where you dance around the truth.
So it's Ho-hum as a reaction to hundreds of thousands of deaths amongst the poor and helpless and you're offended that I dislike evil?
Is this more "conservative" philosophy or does J stand for Jerk?
Octo,
ReplyDeleteWhat I noticed on the MSNBC-based lib-shows (which I kept on as background to the schoolwork I was doing on my laptop) yesterday was a pattern that went something like this:
Robertson & Limbaugh are fools. Haiti coverage. R & L sure are fools! More Haiti coverage. Damn! Why don't R & L just pipe down? Back to Haiti, etc.
But the bulk of coverage was in fact on the suffering in Haiti and what can be done about it, so I didn't mind the R & L schtick.
The key thing coverage needed to do, really, was to encourage people to give what cash they can in the early stages -- the time window is terribly short if lives are to be saved.
As for J's remark, I don't find the condemnation of comments like those made by P-Rob at all offensive: This guy is no obscure preacher, and he tends to speak out in the worst way at the most inappropriate times. Why shouldn't what he says be condemned roundly, if briefly, by anybody with a sense of decency and charity?
I think that there are times, such as now, when we must let people know that Rush and Robertson don't speak for us. Haiti and other nations need to know that there is an outrage against those public speakers that speak vitriol.
ReplyDeleteAnd as a Christian, I feel it is our duty to let people know that Robertson doesn't speak for us, and really isn't one of us.
Jesus - what a J you are! Easy to call it shallow - easy to sling shit of all sorts, but impossible to do much more than sneer, it seems.
ReplyDeleteSure, blame "well funded" science for not predicting the almost impossible to predict - and if they had, you could complain that they should have stuck to predicting American quakes and stop wasting our tax money. I blame, it's offensive -- you blame it's -- it's what? What a bore.
What do you want me to do then - go bang on Rush's door? Dump tea on his private beach? or maybe take his advice and never contribute a dime to help anyone?
And what about you with your "opposition" What the hell good are you doing? What the hell do you stand for but cheap, condescending, troll-like cynicism towards people who are doing something no matter how small?
But yes, if we're to ignore inconsequential blowhards, what better place than right here and right now.
Looks like someone has been cleaning up the beach.
ReplyDeleteDidn't take "J" long to degenerate into name calling and other insults.
If we do not speak out against the Pat Robertsons and all they stand for, then we are no better.
Imagine what a different world it might be today if Germans had risen up and spoke out against the Nazi demonization of Jews and other people they considered "undesirable."
Thousands have died in Haiti and many more are suffering. Human beings just like you and I. They had so little to start with and even that little bit is gone. 700 children were in a school that was flattened in the quake... there has been no sign of life.
To have a self proclaimed "man of God" declaring that these people brought this on themselves is unforgivably appalling.
Rocky, I couldn't agree more.
ReplyDeleteNow, to the commenter whose posts I have permanently deleted: perhaps you visited in hopes of provoking anger, fear, guilt, embarrassment, or some similarly unpleasant feeling. You may have thought your remarks wise or witty and hoped they would stand as a rebuke to the likes of us, but your ill-prepared plate of notion-hash topped with confusion-gravy (side of word-salad and cup of bitterness compris) and/or simple-minded obscenity is hardly to the taste of intelligent writers or their regular visitors. You have been found unworthy of further attention, and your messages will not be taken seriously in future or allowed to be part of this blog's permanent record. Your comments are, in short, immature.
Dino: “Why shouldn't what he says be condemned roundly, if briefly, by anybody with a sense of decency and charity?”
ReplyDeleteNo doubt, what you say is true. No doubt, their statements are shamefully callous and unworthy of civilized discourse. Yes, they offend my core values too. What frustrates me?
There are trolls everywhere, not just the ones who predate our waters, but the schlock jocks trolling our public life. Count them: Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter, James Dobson, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Stalkin’ Malkin, Pat Robertson, Michael Savage, Randell Terry, to mention a few. Will we react to each and every one? Every time? And what will we accomplish?
If we are constantly reactive to reactionary trolls, and fail to take time to frame our message, it is hard for me to imagine how constant political combat offers a positive choice in the marketplace of ideas?
Octo,
ReplyDeleteI suppose it's a matter of how much time is spent on the affair -- too much, and I quite agree with you that the effects are deleterious. The pundits probably spend too much time taking hits at the worst of the worst, thanks to their need to produce television or copy daily. But even so, they should be clever enough to avoid allowing such responses to frame their own outlook -- that's the burden on them if they're going to go off on rants about this or that idiotic remark somebody made yesterday.
Dino, perhaps my gut instinct lacks descriptive adequacy at this moment. I left a comment under your post, Who’s Your Daddy. Briefly, my comment is about politics as a family metaphor and the framing of values, myths, language, and emotions in political discourse … something conservatives seem to do better than liberals.
ReplyDeleteMy point: If the liberal side is to be competitive in a high-stakes contest, we need to understand these constructs. Schlock jocks are a distraction that divert us from this task.