HERESY!

 Recently, I posted this on Facebook:

As bold as I've been in stating my opinion, I may still not have made something absolutely clear. Christian Nationalism is a heresy. And those who profess it are not Christians; they are heretics. They do not deserve a seat at the table.

It received 35 likes/loves. As far as my posts go, that's a pretty high number.

What it did not receive were any dislikes, nor did it receive any negative comments.

I just called out one of the major religious movements in America, and nobody was there to defend it, or get upset that I was calling them out?

Why?

First, there is the fierce algorithmic control exerted by Facebook. It's possible that very few on the opposite side saw this. I am reminded of the joke about a new person entering heaven and being shown around by an angel. They get to a mountain and look down into a valley where all the Baptists are. The new person asked why they were isolated, and the angel answered, "Shh! They don't know anyone else is here!"

This isolationary algorithm may be giving us a warped idea of what's out there. This may be affecting our view of what's happening regarding our opinions of what's happening to LaVonnia Moore, the librarian fired for a patron-selected display that included an award-winning book that featured a transgender child. We see our Facebook feeds, those of us who support her, and think, 'Wow!' There is a ton of support for her and very little opposition! Surely we are in the majority!

What we don't see are the voluminous number of hateful bogots on the other side. They have been muted from our social media feeds.

Second, this may have gotten little negative response, because many don't recognize that they are Christian Nationalists. I doubt if many churches are blunt about identifying what they are. So, many think I'm talking about somebody else.

No, let's be clear. I am talking about YOU. Virtually all the white churches in this area range from Christian Nationalist heavy to Christian Nationalist lite. They either openly espouse Christian Nationalist philosophy, or they are tolerant of it, and don't call it out as a heresy.

In future posts, I hope to clarify what Christian Nationalism is and which churches here lean most heavily into it.

Briefly, if yours is more of a God of Fear than a God of Love, then you lean more towards Christian Nationalism. If you think of America as God's chosen people, you lean more towards Christian Nationalism. If you value authority and control more than democracy and tolerance, you lean towards Christian Nationalism. If you view immigrants as less than human and want them deported, especially to maintain some fancied cultural purity, then you lean Christian Nationalist.

That's just for starters.

Grace Episcopal Church in Waycross (my church) is not a Christian Nationalist church. That does not mean we don't have individual parishioners who are influenced by Christian Nationalism. But that is not the theme of the church, and it is not espoused by church leadership. The same is true of Blackshear First United Methodist Church.

I live in a county where 90% of those who were able to vote voted for Trump. The devotion to him ranges from cult-like to seeing him as a useful tool. I find him to be the most anti-Christian leader we've ever had.

The New Testament warns of false prophets. Many are selling out their faith, moving themselves farther and farther from anything Jesus espoused, to cozy up to a narcissistic con-man who only cares about himself, and is the least religious/spiritual man to ever occupy the White House.

I have faith Christianity will survive. Most heresies burn themselves out. The true spirit of Jesus, the God of Love, will triumph in the end.

I pray that is so.

Reinstate LaVonnia Moore

 

Tuesday, June 17, 2025 5:10 PM

I arrived early for a meeting with the Pierce County Friends of the Library. I recently volunteered to be their Treasurer.  

The meeting didn't start until 5:30, so I took a look around the library, one of my favorite things to do (this has been true for my entire life). Looking at the new books, I discovered this mammoth surprise - Myth and the Greatest Generation by Kenneth D Rose.  

Months ago, I had heard of the book on a history TikTok. I checked with both Pierce and Ware County libraries. I checked online sites. I checked with Michael Jacobs, a friend and used book specialist. Sadly, it was not to be found.

But there it was, on the bookshelf of my local library! LaVonnia Moore, the talented local librarian and branch manager, unbeknownst to me, had requested it through Three Rivers Regional Library and was able to secure a copy.

This is not just something she did for me. She always prioritizes books that patrons have requested.  

That's not all she does for the library. She is creative, experienced, and dedicated, bringing a wide range of events and activities for all age levels and patrons.

At our meeting, we discussed many of the exciting events planned for the summer reading program, including the Color Ball scheduled for the 28th. Active, caring, and engaged, I have never met a finer librarian. She also talked about the new Director at Three Rivers. She said there were a lot of new rules to adjust to, but he was fair and caring, and looked forward to working with him.

There was no sign of what was to come.

Wednesday was a closed day for the library. But that was the day she was called and summarily dismissed. Why? There was a PATRON CREATED display, primarily based on book cover colors, that included an award-winning book with a theme involving a transgender child. It was not pornographic. It was positive and caring.  

But the Christian Nationalist extremists who have been yapping at our library for over a year took it as an excuse to pressure the Pierce County Commission into firing LaVonnia. Three Rivers caved when it realized the county funding was at stake.

This is nighmarishly wrong. Hopefully, pressure will be exerted to reverse it and rightfully reinstate LaVonnia.

But it is up to you, Pierce County residents and library users. Suppose the commissioners, being politicians, fear the loud, strident, and bigoted extremists. In that case, they may need to learn that they need to fear instead the hundreds who use and love our library and are opposed to banning and censorship. Then, LaVonnia will be reinstated.  

Of course, it may not have sunk in to the commissioners how illegal and un-American what they did was.

However, over time, if they don't act, they may eventually figure it out.

There is a GoFundMe titled Help LaVonnia Moore Seek Justice and Equality. I highly encourage donations. It will help in her legal efforts.

I apologize that this is only a brief outline of what happened, but for more details, if you are local, please check your Facebook feeds and The Blackshear Times. Alicia Moore, LaVonnnia's sister, is invaluable to check out.

Make no mistake, library patrons, concerned citizens, and the Three Rivers Staff. If you don't stand your ground, the extremists will keep pushing and taking. They will not stop until the library is nothing more than a Christian Nationalist Reading Room.

Asleep at the Wheel

 Ever had a toddler who anticipates their big birthday party, and all the pre-birthday excitement becomes too much, causing them to crash during the party?  Perhaps they fall asleep during the special movie they've wanted to see for so long.

Well, we have a President who has been napping in the middle of events more and more often. It's all become a bit too much for our 79-year-old leader.  

I guess the military parade was not what he imagined in his head.  Crowds were sparse, performances were lackluster; even those government officials who felt their attendance was mandatory seemed bored and disinterested.  This was just something they had to get through to please the boss.

His behavior since the parade has been atrocious.  He refused to call Governor Tim Walz to offer condolences for the targeted assassination there of Democratic Minnesota legislators, and made clear his partisan disdain for Walz.  His brief day at the G7 summit was filled with ridiculous misinformation, and most of the other leaders treated him as senile Grandpa at the Senior Home.  

He left the G7 summit that evening, claiming he had to get back to do something in connection with the Israel-Iran situation. Many thought that this meant America was about to enter the conflict, and some vital decisions had to be made.  It turns out that it was just an excuse to leave the conference early. 

He announced via social media that he planned to target Democratic cities for ICE, the National Guard, and the military to harass.  It's hard to say what the point is.  Does he think he can topple, coup-like, Democratic voting results?  Or is this just nasty, authoritarian-style revenge?  

It's hard to say what the orange conman really intends with Iran.  Are we only supplying weapons?  Will service members get involved?  Air Force?  Drones? Ground troops? Israel and the US are playing a dangerous game, one that could easily lead to WW3.

The President is unraveling, and we still have three and a half more years to go.

There is no easy way through this.  If TACO were gone (out of office, for whatever reason), there would be no prizes in the Crackerjack box.  The uncharismatic JD Vance is nothing more than a vessel for the billionaire tech bros, especially Vance's mentor, Peter Thiel. Trump only believes in himself, the billionaire bros actively hate democracy, and want to lead us into a place of technoauthoritarianism, a pseudo-libertarianism that primarily benefits the super-wealthy class.  Next in line is Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, a devout Christian Nationalist who would replace democracy with theocracy.

Our only hope is that the midterms are honestly conducted, and that the opposition wins a majority in the House and the Senate. That's no guarantee of stopping a fascist lunatic who doesn't listen to any power source except his own executive actions, but it's a start.

But we have so much time for things to go terribly wrong.  Every day, the world becomes more unravelled.

Trump's strength comes from his voting base.  That strain of right-wing nuttery that's always been a part of politics, but hasn't always been our dominant thread. Until that hold breaks, we are in for a very rocky ride.

Help me feel better about America.  If you voted for Trump, particularly in 2024, and you have finally seen the light, please let me know.  Give me some hope in this frightening alternate reality we've stumbled into.

Don't stay asleep at the wheel.  Wake up and help us bring an end to this nightmare.

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

America's Rorshach Test

What do you see in the Los Angeles protests?

For the first time, I regretted not having a 24-hour cable news network, having eliminated our access in a reorganization of our streaming services. I missed Ali Velshi in particular. 

My son, Greg, who lives in Irvine near Los Angeles, was messaging me about the protests. I wanted to see what was going on. The only live feeds that I could find were on TikTok.

This was not a big help. Most feeds were static (one place or camera shot), and the commentary running through them was quite partisan. One-half commented about how terrible and dangerous it was, and welcomed the National Guard and the military. Kill 'em all!

The other half urged to keep the protests peaceful and dreaded the intrusion of the National Guard and the military. Be careful! They want to kill us all!

So, who was right? Those who wanted to arrest, hurt, or kill? Or those who were concerned that they would be arrested, hurt, or killed? What a dilemma!

It's hard to cut through. Nevertheless, it looks like the protests are overwhelmingly peaceful (with a few property damage exceptions), and, most importantly, THEY ARE WELL WARRANTED.

Ice agents, masked and dressed as civilians, are kidnapping people from their workplaces, their schools, even from just outside courtrooms. They are arresting young and old, pregnant women and children. If you are swept up, it doesn't matter whether you are a citizen or not. You will be disappeared and traumatized.

This is not an action of a democratic country. This is not representative of a constitutional republic. They are the actions of authoritarian fascism.

In two terms, Obama deported over 3 million people. In his first term, Trump deported 1.5 million people. In one term, Biden deported 4.4 million people. Not what Fox News was telling you, was it?

A comprehensive, bipartisan immigration plan was proposed in 2023. In my opinion, it bent way too far to please the Republicans, but nonetheless, it would have moved the ball forward in improving the system.  

It didn't happen. It didn't pass. Why? Because Trump came out against it. Not for any great purity reason, but because it threatened to go a long way in resolving the issue he wanted to make the centerpiece of his campaign. He didn't care what was in the best interest of the American people. He only cared about himself.

ICE HAS TO BE PROTESTED. What it's doing is wrong and inhumane. It makes us appear monstrous in the eyes of the world. And it is also highly ineffective. You can deport a lot of people, if that is your goal, without acting like the Gestapo.*

The goal here is to provoke and create unrest. If they can create enough chaos, then they can have an excuse for their true objective: declare martial law and take complete dictatorial control of the country. You can disregard Congress, the courts, and the Constitution. You can arrest whoever you want and hold them for as long as you want.  

These are some tough, scary times. Protesting, even the most peaceful kind, is a risk. But it may be the only way to show them we will not be cowed.

There are many NO KINGS protests scheduled for June 14th. There is likely one in your area. They are being held on the same day as Kim Don TACO's massive military parade.  

Attend one, if you can. It's time for the American people to roar, in numbers too big to ignore.

Until next time,

T. M. Strsit

AOC '28

*if you really want to reduce the undocumented population, a more effective way would be to go after the businesses and individuals who HIRE THEM.  Put a few business owners in jail, and this will reverse this much more quickly than random busts at Home Depot.

Suddenly Seventy

 

What? How did this happen?

I'm not sure, but oops, there it is! Nothing I could do about it.

We spent the last week in California, meeting my oldest son, Greg, my middle son, Doug, his wife, Paige, and my one and only grandchild, granddaughter Retta, who is all of three years old! I'm not posting many pictures of this glorious event, as Doug and Paige do not want Retta's image to be shared on social media. Given the awful nature of our times, I agree with their decision. I might post other pictures from the trip at some point.

I am including a picture of me on my 70th birthday. I'm wearing a cap I got from our visit to Disneyland. It states Disneyland, authentic, original, established 1955. Just like me!

Yes, I'm as old as Disneyland. I'm not in as good a shape, but I haven't had as much money spent on my maintenance as Disneyland has!

Really, the only things that make me aware of my age are mirrors and arthritis. Most of the time, I'm still a young kid reading comic books, enjoying movies, eating pizza, and spending time with those I love.

California was a risk, in that I was afraid of a flare-up of arthritis pain, making it difficult for me to do things and keep up. I asked, "Please! Just let my arthritis stay away while I'm in California!"

Sure enough, it did! Now that I'm back, it's starting to flare up again. I asked, "What's up? Why am I getting it now?" The answer? " I gave you California! You didn't ask for anything after that!"

Oh, well.  

No, I don't have everything I dreamed of as a kid. I'm not famous, not as a writer, not as an actor, not as a politician (that last one may be a blessing, but really, whatever my flaws, I couldn't be anywhere as bad as the Orange Despot).

But, in reality, I do have everything that I want. A beautiful, loving partner, three successful and kind sons, an amazingly gifted granddaughter, a supportive church, a wonderful library, and so much more. I may not be a professional actor, but I've been in over a hundred plays, a body of work that encompasses a tremendous variety of roles. I may not be a professional writer, but I have self-published books and maintain this blog, which has garnered over half a million views.  

I've had ups and downs, calamity and heartbreak, success and failure, but through it all, I've always had what's most important, in family and friends. And at 70, that is what you cherish most.

I'll keep this positive, and not deal in this post with what an absolute nightmare the politics in this country have become. I just pray that it eventually straightens and I get to see it.

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

AOC '28

May 25 Update: Life Keeps Marching

You don't know when you're 29 what your focus will be when you're 69.

Am I President of the United States? No, unlike the plan I outlined in junior high, I did not achieve the Presidency by the year 2000. Looking at the current occupant, that is not necessarily a bad thing. I could never sell myself out to make that kind of appeal. I could not comprehend when I was young where I would wind up living, and what consequences that might have for my electoral viability. Not to mention my flaws as an introvert. I can give purty speeches and write well, but I could never glad-hand the way that they can.  

Not only can't I be President, but I'm not viable for anything, and that's somewhat depressing. But I'll keep trying.  

Did I get my own sitcom? No. I'm a good actor, but I've never aggressively pursued it for more than just a hobby. Would I have succeeded? Probably not. It's a hard field to make a living. The truth is that I don't have the temperament to sell myself like I would need to. There are opportunities I should have taken a chance with - many movies and TV shows are now made in Georgia, but I have not.

Do I have a bestseller? No. I've taken a few baby steps in writing but have never really broken through. I feel like there are two primary reasons. One is that I write well, some things better than others, but I don't write well enough to catch the attention of those who could help me. The second is that I'm the world's worst self-promoter. I have done a piss poor job at promoting my writings, either as a self-piublished writer, or someone looking for an agent or a publisher.

Do I have my health? Yes. There are question marks, and I need to care for myself better, but I am more than holding my own for someone on the verge of 70. I need to watch my blood pressure and sugar consumption, and I am far too tubby. My biggest concern is the periodic arthritis that makes getting consistent exercise a problem. It also affects how long I can sit at the desktop writing, as sitting in the desk chair too long can accelerate my arthritis attacks.

Do I have a loving and supportive family? In this one, I have hit a home run. I have a beautiful, supportive partner, going on over 28 years. My three sons make me very proud, and I am finally a grandfather. I only have one grandchild, but what I miss in quantity is more than made up for in quality.

My father dedicated his life to the promotion and success of public education. He was a brilliant teacher and later a high school principal. I was not able to continue in his footsteps. I spent most of my career in the private sector. Technically, I was helpful to people with their finances and businesses, but for the most part, there was very little soul satisfaction in what I did.

I have become a huge proponent of public libraries. I have come to appreciate them more and more, and I will continue to do whatever I can to assist them.

My focus, at 69, is on my family. I do whatever I can to help around the house. I'm supportive of all the activities of my various family members. Our vacations revolve around seeing family, including a big one coming up in California, where we will help my granddaughter enjoy her time with Mickey and Minnie and visit with my middle son and older son.

I write, even though my big dreams have evaporated. Whoever enjoys it, thanks for reading. I may never have a big breakthrough, but it is still fun to do, and I will continue to share.

I act, even though I will never have an IMDb page. I don't need it as much as I used to, but it is still great to get up onstage occasionally and feel the electricity between me and the audience. Hopefully, I can continue to do it without my arthritis from flaring up at the wrong time.

I got one of them fancy watches, and I am trying to keep track of my steps. Exercise is challenging sometimes, but I will do what I can. Monitoring my eating is very hard, because I love food so damn much, but we're getting more fruits and vegetables in the diet, and we don't eat out much.

I still read comic books, more online now. I read as much as I can, with many books being donated to the library after I've read them. I love storytelling in all forms, and that includes scripted television.

So, even though my teen and twentysomething dreams have fallen by the wayside, I think I'm doing pretty damn good, and my focus is on the right things.

At least for me!

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

Wall Street is Not Your Moral Compass

 Wall Street is not your moral compass.

You cannot judge how well the moral soul of the nation is doing based on how the stock market reacts.

I despise Trump and MAGA with every fiber of my being.

I don't think that when the stock market is doing well, that means Trump is doing the right and decent thing. I don't think that when the stock market is down, that is a clear sign that everything Trump is doing is wrong.

Blanket tariffs are a bad thing. They will hurt us all. We will have to pay more for almost everything. Inflation will rise again. We will experience shortages again. Domestic production is not likely to return to the United States. If any of it does, it will likely cost more unless the USA returns to super-low wages, and the cost of construction is passed on to taxpayers. If it creates jobs, many of them will be positions that Americans would rather not have.  It will mostly create opportunities for robots and AI. The manufacturing sector has changed, and it is not always stocked full of the high-wage jobs you think it is.

But the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) doesn't care about any of that. They only react to stockholder value. Will whatever the government does increase or decrease that shareholder value?

When Trump announces blanket tariffs (without regard for reality or economic impact), the stock market plunges. When Trump says, "Psych! Just kidding about some of those!", the stock market may rise.

Meanwhile, those with advanced knowledge of Trump's moods can "play the market" by buying low and selling high.

Because the other aspect of the market is that much of it is legalized gambling. Short sales, buybacks, all sorts of weird stuff that are beyond the scope of my everyday knowledge, happen all the time. The 2008 crash had a lot to do with gambling games that stockbrokers and bankers were playing with, involving mortgages.

So, my feelings about Trump and MAGA are not based on these short-term fluctuations in the markets. It is not my moral compass that should be used to judge whether what the fascists are doing is good or bad.

Virtually all of what Trump is doing is bad, and it may not be reflected in the markets.

The market does not just react to tariff news. The stock market may rise when unemployment increases, because increased labor competition could lead to lower wage increases. It might celebrate legislation that makes it harder to unionize. It might reward Amazon for understaffing and abusing labor, and punish Costco for paying its workers too much. It might be disturbed if polluting companies have to pay to clean up the damage they do.  

It doesn't care. Shareholder value, and the fact that it will rise forever, is capitalism without ends or limits.

The flip side of this is that I know that if Progressive values ever take hold, as promoted by people like Bernie Sanders and AOC, may cause a flip-out of the market. They would throw a hissy fit if they thought things like universal healthcare and free college were coming. Much of what our capitalism thrives on is the exploitation of the working class, not just in wages but also in keeping them in debt. They love things like student loans, payday loans, buying furniture on rent-to-own terms, high home and car prices, and medical debt - these are all money-making opportunities for the capitalist class.

So, when the stock market throws a hissy fit over Progressive changes, I am not going to dwell on it. I am not going to let that convince me that we cannot change. That our moral compass cannot be fixed, and that we forever have to give in to the wealthy and oligarchic power.

Wall Street is not my moral compass.  

Tom Strait

AOC '28