Landmark: News

The Scapegoat

Bald-faced ineptitude requires the construction of a brazen decoy in order to divert culpability away from it’s own glaring inadequacy. Hence, the poster child for Satan Incarnate has become Tony Hayward, former CEO of the now infamous British Petroleum. The modern White House Darth Vader, Rahm “Bugsy” Emanuel, scheduled a Sunday morning appearance to ratchet up the Chicago-style mob lynching of BP’s most recognizable face man. In a strategy that plays well for him, due to Hayward and BP’s unpopularity, he mocked Mr. Hayward’s attempt for some R&R, following this week’s brutal subjection to Congress’ grandstanding assault. This, at the same time, was when the President and VP were on their own leisurely weekend adventures.
The hypocrisy of it all is shameful. There is a tremendous temptation to be deceived by the charade because the Gulf suffering is so extensive. It is natural to want to blame the apparent culprit. In reality, there is sufficient blame to go around for all. Now there’s talk from the WH for the “sudden” need of government regulation of the oil industry. What absurdity! We already have regulation! But government officials cozy up to oil executives for the perks and contributions to their political coffers. Then, when the imminent danger materializes, because those in charge failed to enforce existing regulations, there is the proverbial scramble to deflect attention from their own guilty participation in the cause of the catastrophe.
Likewise, three days after the accident, offers from world experts in containing oil spills arrived. They were refused. Local officials requested the waiver of bureaucratic red tape in order to prevent oil from reaching the shore. They were denied. A resounding cry for assistance to protect the livelihood of coastal communities was issued. It was ignored.
Oh, but wait, wasn’t it “Bugsy”, who said you should never let a crisis go to waste in advancing your political agenda? Oh, and wait, isn’t there a Cap and Tax Bill the administration wants to impose? Even though the implication of such charges are downright appalling, it is inconceivable to even imagine the inaction of this White House was intentional. It is just too horrific! However, it is reasonable to legitimately conclude that this White House has generously contributed to the oil disaster.
Whether it turns out that inexperience, bad judgment, or human flaws are responsible for their inaction, the time has come to reclaim the scapegoat. Leave the man alone! A terrible accident has claimed the lives of many people. They will never return and their families lives will never be the same. May they rest in peace and may God comfort the families in their tremendous suffering. Is it really necessary to compound the tragedy by destroying the living? If the answer is yes, then there are plenty of “live ones” to destroy. If the answer is no, then pull out all the stops on the organ and bring this fugue to an end.

The travesty of “Political Correctness gone bad” was manifest this month in the massacre at Fort Hood. Combine that with the Godless society we have become and we have a formula for disaster.

If we go back to Bible basics, The Lord promised Abraham (& Sarah) that if he walked with God, He would establish an everlasting Covenant with him. That Covenant would include an everlasting seed (through which all ends of the earth would be blessed), a promised land, and all other blessings of the Priesthood. “And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed and thou shalt call his name Isaac; and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant and with his seed after him.” (Genesis 17:19.)

Abraham’s son, Isaac, had two sons, one of whom was Jacob (whose name was changed to Israel.) Jacob had twelve sons, commonly referred to as the twelve tribes of Israel. Currently, “Israel” is mainly associated with the tribe of Judah because of the middle-eastern country of the same name. But the Biblical kingdom of Israel consisted of the other tribes, which were eventually lost after they were carried captive into Assyria. Isaiah prophesies of the gathering of all the tribes of Israel. One of Israel’s sons was Joseph (of the coat-of-many-colors fame). There are scriptures that indicate America is the land promised to the remnants of Joseph. Fortunately, for believers and non-believers, all Americans stand to benefit from the freedom and opportunity available in this promised land.

However, it is significant to recall that the Covenant was based upon righteousness. America’s foundation was built upon Judeo-Christian teachings and those teachings include the renowned Ten Commandments. It seems the time has come to crack open for review those Commandments once again. When was the last time we remembered the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy? Do we honor our mothers and fathers with respect and attention? When did we last forego that little white lie at the moment it was inconvenient to tell the truth? And can we even say that our love for God and our neighbors are the two highest on our list of priorities?

In a society where God has been relegated to the back corners, well out of the public arena and plain sight, pornography, drugs, violence, entitlement, selfishness and vulgarity have become His replacement. Political Correctness is more important that National Security. Is it really any surprise that more freedoms continue to slip away under the cover of darkness and in the confines of secret chambers?


The once impending disaster no longer approaches. It has arrived. Nevertheless, God promised an everlasting Covenant, with a land blessed above all others. So, the million-dollar question seems to be, “Do we believe Him?”

Peter Dreier’s opinion piece, “The War on ACORN”, alleges a poor, innocent, law-abiding civil rights organization being unfairly maligned by the big, bad GOP and Fox News. He conveniently omits ACORN’s 14-state indictments, as well as, Dale Rathke’s million dollar established embezzlement and current investigation by Louisiana’s Attorney General.

He also left out ACORN’s collusion with Congress in the strong-armed tactics which contributed to the banking collapse. When Congress forced banks to make loans to low-income individuals unable to repay them, they allowed exemptions to banks who coughed-up large contributions to community organizers, aka, ACORN. There is a black cloud of corruption, which has hung over ACORN for years, and any reporter who had any interest in free and fair elections could have seen this one from a mile away.

I may not be lawyer, but when law enforcement obtains indictments, it is not usually based on trumped up charges from political parties or news corporations. Rather, they are based on solid, credible evidence uncovered in the investigation of a crime. ACORN’s multitude of indictments are self-inflicted and it’s high time to end this charade.