<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132</id><updated>2010-03-04T11:35:59.609-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Curmudgeon's Progress</title><subtitle type='html'></subtitle><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/index.shtml'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><link rel='next' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default?start-index=26&amp;max-results=25'/><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/atom.xml'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>66</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-8484507722423959684</id><published>2010-03-02T11:15:00.005-05:00</published><updated>2010-03-04T11:35:59.617-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Politics'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Culture'/><title type='text'>"A blizzard of lies from Al Gore"</title><summary type='text'>Al Gore has a huge financial interest in the myth that human activity causes global warming.  Perpetrating the fraud of AGW (Anthropogenic Global Warming) has made him even wealthier than did his family's tobacco business.  And he's prepared to defend this lie with the same zeal with which he and the tobacco companies defended the lie that cigarette-smoking was not a serious health hazard.Gore </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/8484507722423959684/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=8484507722423959684&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/8484507722423959684'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/8484507722423959684'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2010/03/blizzard-of-lies-from-al-gore.html' title='&quot;A blizzard of lies from Al Gore&quot;'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-5942202450868637188</id><published>2010-01-21T23:11:00.002-05:00</published><updated>2010-01-21T23:15:20.525-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Politics'/><title type='text'>Thank you, Massachusetts!</title><summary type='text'>Thank you for ending the Democrats' stranglehold on the Senate. But you have to feel kind of sorry for the troika of Obama, Reid, and Pelosi. They thought they'd have two full years to turn the United States into the Soviet Socialist Republic of America. But they only had a year and they didn't get it done. What a shame.</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/5942202450868637188/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=5942202450868637188&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/5942202450868637188'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/5942202450868637188'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2010/01/thank-you-massachusetts.html' title='Thank you, Massachusetts!'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-2348249256795282567</id><published>2009-11-25T14:59:00.007-05:00</published><updated>2009-11-25T17:14:19.058-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Culture'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='science'/><title type='text'>Must Watch TV: "Hide the Decline"</title><summary type='text'>Note: Please pardon the unfortunate effect of fitting a wide video into a narrow column (second two videos).Hide the Decline [in global temperatures]Al Gore's "inconvenient falsehoods"Learn more at Climate Depot.Emails reveal efforts to promote "global warming"fiction and punish dissidentsThe corrupt peer review processbehind "global warming"</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/2348249256795282567/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=2348249256795282567&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/2348249256795282567'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/2348249256795282567'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/11/must-watch-tv-climategate.html' title='Must Watch TV: &quot;Hide the Decline&quot;'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-5870748093597452029</id><published>2009-11-20T08:31:00.002-05:00</published><updated>2009-11-20T09:03:33.061-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Culture'/><title type='text'>South Bend, Indiana: Kill children, not dogs</title><summary type='text'>In South Bend, a stoned driver who killed two little girls gets ten days in jail:St. Joseph Superior Court Judge Richard McCormick sentenced 56-year-old Leroy Hoover to 60 days in jail Thursday with 50 days suspended.I guess McCormick couldn't bear to see Hoover spend the whole 60 days in the slammer. Ten days isn't a sentence, it's an endorsement. There's probably some reason that McCormick and </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/5870748093597452029/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=5870748093597452029&amp;isPopup=true' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/5870748093597452029'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/5870748093597452029'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/11/south-bend-indiana-kill-children-not.html' title='South Bend, Indiana: Kill children, not dogs'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-1598058723008268745</id><published>2009-11-06T19:02:00.005-05:00</published><updated>2009-11-06T19:28:29.789-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Obamanation: Fun, shout-outs, and - oh, yeah - dead soldiers</title><summary type='text'>Does anyone believe that Obama has respect for our military? If so, his shameful conduct following the shootings at Fort Hood should clarify things. He doesn't. He cares about his political cronies, frauds like ACORN, his communist advisors, and terrorists like William Ayers, but American soldiers? Not so much.The murdered American soldiers at Fort Hood were just an  afterthought to our "</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/1598058723008268745/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=1598058723008268745&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/1598058723008268745'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/1598058723008268745'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/11/obamanation-fun-shout-outs-and-oh-yeah.html' title='Obamanation: Fun, shout-outs, and - oh, yeah - dead soldiers'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-3540749793748851006</id><published>2009-10-25T18:45:00.007-04:00</published><updated>2009-10-25T19:26:01.969-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Politics'/><title type='text'>Obamanation: Building on lies</title><summary type='text'>Obama has told us we need a public health insurance option to "keep  insurance companies honest."  An unlikely source - the AP - has taken a modest step toward keeping him (and serial liars Nancy Pelosi and moveon.org) a little more honest.To quote the lead from this story: What do these enterprises have in common? Farm and construction machinery, Tupperware, the railroads, Hershey sweets, Yum </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/3540749793748851006/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=3540749793748851006&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3540749793748851006'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3540749793748851006'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/10/obamanation-building-on-lies.html' title='Obamanation: Building on lies'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-913518745963747275</id><published>2009-10-09T10:06:00.006-04:00</published><updated>2009-10-20T16:24:31.203-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Obamanation: The Nobel joke</title><summary type='text'>Ya gotta love those crazy Norwegians! An amateur statesman who has accomplished precisely nothing gets the Nobel Peace Prize. But before we start taking this silliness too seriously, let's look at the real reasons. This won't take long. The prize serves two obvious purposes, one backward-facing and one forward-facing:Giving this prize to a ten-month U.S. President who has done nothing to earn it </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/913518745963747275/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=913518745963747275&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/913518745963747275'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/913518745963747275'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/10/obamanation-nobel-joke.html' title='Obamanation: The Nobel joke'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-2411535932357292263</id><published>2009-09-24T08:18:00.003-04:00</published><updated>2009-09-24T09:05:28.057-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Obamanation</title><summary type='text'>'Nuff said for now. And no, this post is not the answer to the question in the previous post....</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/2411535932357292263/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=2411535932357292263&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/2411535932357292263'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/2411535932357292263'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/09/obamanation.html' title='Obamanation'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-373771776213049490</id><published>2009-08-17T15:34:00.005-04:00</published><updated>2009-08-17T16:35:06.108-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Why do they call me an IDiot?</title><summary type='text'>I've been having a lively discussion on a "science blog" ("Dispatches from the culture wars") about Intelligent Design (ID) and the nature of Darwinism.  In the discussion, I noticed a new term, "IDiot".  The term is used to imply that anyone who defends ID is an idiot.  This is fairly typical of a large segment of people who continue to defend Darwin.  I suppose those who persisted in defending </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/373771776213049490/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=373771776213049490&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/373771776213049490'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/373771776213049490'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/08/why-do-they-call-me-idiot.html' title='Why do they call me an IDiot?'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-3296571829219279859</id><published>2009-04-07T07:28:00.004-04:00</published><updated>2009-04-07T12:21:46.773-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Personal'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Culture'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Christianity'/><title type='text'>A toxic orthodoxy</title><summary type='text'>The title of this post is my own; I doubt my "guest" here would agree with it. But I think that threats of retaliation and un-Biblical litmus tests do indeed suggest some level of toxicity. I have previously written about ill effects of dogmatic insistence on a young Earth and a literal six day creation. In a recent commentary on Moody Radio, Bryan Litfin, Associate Professor of Theology at Moody</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/3296571829219279859/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=3296571829219279859&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3296571829219279859'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3296571829219279859'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/04/toxic-orthodoxy.html' title='A toxic orthodoxy'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-7874901618729883673</id><published>2009-03-29T10:04:00.009-04:00</published><updated>2009-04-03T21:01:24.647-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Politics'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Culture'/><title type='text'>Politics: Having your cake and eating it too</title><summary type='text'>Disclaimer: I occasionally smoke a hand-made imported cigar. I quit cigarettes 27 years ago and have never chewed."Having your cake and eating too" could apply to much of what's going on in Washington these days - Senator Chris Dodd handing his AIG buddies millions of dollars in bonuses then criticizing them for taking the money, Obama promising not to force the burden of our economic mistakes on</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/7874901618729883673/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=7874901618729883673&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/7874901618729883673'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/7874901618729883673'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2009/03/politics-having-your-cake-and-eating-it.html' title='Politics: Having your cake and eating it too'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-4889948431646111942</id><published>2008-11-17T16:03:00.008-05:00</published><updated>2008-11-22T06:11:09.018-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='EPC'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='PCUSA'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Personal'/><title type='text'>PCUSA: Goodbye to all that</title><summary type='text'>My church and I have joined the Midwest Presbytery of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC). After a long, divisive, frustrating struggle with a stiff-necked and ungracious Administrative Commission (AC), we (the session) finally said "enough!". We scheduled an information meeting and vote without the AC's permission.More than 300 of 550 active members showed up last Sunday to vote on </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/4889948431646111942/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=4889948431646111942&amp;isPopup=true' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/4889948431646111942'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/4889948431646111942'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/11/pcusa-goodbye-to-all-that.html' title='PCUSA: Goodbye to all that'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-3093458219725601116</id><published>2008-11-13T22:50:00.015-05:00</published><updated>2008-11-16T08:25:44.277-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='France'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Personal'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Travel'/><title type='text'>Paris!</title><summary type='text'>I love Paris.I knew I would love it before I ever set foot in its streets. I knew it my junior year in high school (1961-1962) when I took my first French class. Last May 21, my wife Debbie and I stepped aboard the TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse - France's 200 MPH passenger train) in Strasbourg, France to begin the final leg of a journey that began in Springfield, Illinois 47 years before.When I was</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/3093458219725601116/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=3093458219725601116&amp;isPopup=true' title='6 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3093458219725601116'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3093458219725601116'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/11/paris.html' title='Paris!'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>6</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-7183187748244823831</id><published>2008-11-12T07:47:00.014-05:00</published><updated>2008-11-13T20:35:00.295-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='PCUSA'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Christianity'/><title type='text'>PCUSA: Obfuscating the Bible</title><summary type='text'>As an academic (Computer Information Systems), I usually appreciate other academics' creativity. I enjoy novel ways of thinking that lead to interesting and maybe useful results. But not when the academic is trying to make the Bible hard to understand.The utterings of theologians and Bible scholars must be approached with caution and often taken with pounds - not grains - of salt. A professor </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/7183187748244823831/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=7183187748244823831&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/7183187748244823831'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/7183187748244823831'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/11/pcusa-obfuscating-bible.html' title='PCUSA: Obfuscating the Bible'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-7385904558529591524</id><published>2008-11-06T16:03:00.003-05:00</published><updated>2008-11-07T08:36:09.211-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='PCUSA'/><title type='text'>PCUSA: The Sundquist disaster</title><summary type='text'>The Sundquist decision is reminiscent of Roe v. Wade. In that case, an activist Supreme Court searched the Constitution high and low to find a hook on which to hang its desired result. Through some of the most tortured logic since the Dred Scott case, the Court found the right to an abortion tucked away in the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable search and seizure. Likewise, the </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/7385904558529591524/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=7385904558529591524&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/7385904558529591524'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/7385904558529591524'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/11/pcusa-sundquist-disaster.html' title='PCUSA: The Sundquist disaster'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-1579975913345363334</id><published>2008-10-27T07:35:00.012-04:00</published><updated>2008-10-27T16:26:49.158-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='PCUSA'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Personal'/><title type='text'>Discipline in the PCUSA: An undisciplined process</title><summary type='text'>When our session announced a year a go that we believed God was calling our church out of the PCUSA into the EPC, it galvanized a small opposition group into action. Initially, they sent a letter to our congregation that listed their objections to the EPC. Whether by design or honest mistake, the letter contained many misleading and inaccurate statements about the EPC and its beliefs and policies</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/1579975913345363334/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=1579975913345363334&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/1579975913345363334'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/1579975913345363334'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/10/pcusa-discipline-un-biblical-and.html' title='Discipline in the PCUSA: An undisciplined process'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-6427271612476499531</id><published>2008-10-06T07:00:00.005-04:00</published><updated>2008-10-06T07:31:58.893-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Politics'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Culture'/><title type='text'>Real must-see TV: Energy independence</title><summary type='text'>If you want to know why we need to reduce our dependence on all oil (not just imports), watch this video. If you want to know how to do it, watch this video. If you want to see through the phony plans of McBama, OCain, T. Boone Pickens, Al Gore, and everyone else who is trying to get rich, elected, or both, watch this video.The video (from C-SPAN) features Anne Korin of the Institute for the </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/6427271612476499531/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=6427271612476499531&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/6427271612476499531'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/6427271612476499531'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/10/oil-must-see-tv.html' title='Real must-see TV: Energy independence'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-2263294403099707038</id><published>2008-10-03T16:29:00.006-04:00</published><updated>2008-10-06T07:32:48.500-04:00</updated><title type='text'>PCUSA: A willful blindness</title><summary type='text'>The Presbyterian News Service released a pair of stories today that illustrate the willful blindness of the denominationGAC’s Evangelism Committee reviews initiatives to reverse decline... the General Assembly Council’s (GAC) Evangelism Mission Committee on Oct. 1 reviewed a variety of initiatives aimed at overcoming a decades-long membership decline in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).The </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/2263294403099707038/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=2263294403099707038&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/2263294403099707038'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/2263294403099707038'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/10/pcusa-willful-blindess.html' title='PCUSA: A willful blindness'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-1359328727780543953</id><published>2008-09-28T20:21:00.006-04:00</published><updated>2008-09-30T19:29:01.599-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Politics'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Culture'/><title type='text'>The Republicans' Jimmy Carter</title><summary type='text'>George W. Bush is on the verge of limping out of the White House as ignominiously as Jimmy Carter did - reviled, mocked, and bewildered. If his catastrophic 700 billion dollar giveaway gets through Congress, "W" - along with his liberal allies in Congress - will forever be remembered as the President who sold out America.There's no need to go over all the bad ideas rolled into this monumental </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/1359328727780543953/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=1359328727780543953&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/1359328727780543953'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/1359328727780543953'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/09/republicans-jimmy-carter.html' title='The Republicans&apos; Jimmy Carter'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-7054446549420085234</id><published>2008-09-24T07:00:00.004-04:00</published><updated>2008-09-24T21:47:30.361-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Politics'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Culture'/><title type='text'>Time to vote third-party!</title><summary type='text'>I've always bought into the idea that a vote for a third-party candidate was a wasted vote. No more. I've become convinced that a vote for a Republican or Democrat - at least at the national level - is a wasted vote. Why? Because neither party can be trusted to do what is right for America.Consider this: Based on their relative solvency, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and AIG should be bailing out the </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/7054446549420085234/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=7054446549420085234&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/7054446549420085234'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/7054446549420085234'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/09/time-to-vote-third-party.html' title='Time to vote third-party!'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-5383423084703756649</id><published>2008-09-22T07:00:00.003-04:00</published><updated>2008-09-22T20:40:06.790-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='EPC'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='PCUSA'/><title type='text'>Women in the EPC: "Second-class citizens"?</title><summary type='text'>This, of course, is the interpretation PC(USA) spin doctors put on the EPC's local option regarding the ordination of women. With our church growing impatient with the PC(USA) and its deep dive into cultural accomodation, we are looking very hard at the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC). Ours is a church where more than a third of the elders are women and our Associate Pastor is a woman. As a</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/5383423084703756649/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=5383423084703756649&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/5383423084703756649'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/5383423084703756649'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/09/women-in-epc-second-class-citizens.html' title='Women in the EPC: &quot;Second-class citizens&quot;?'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-6380313693059970438</id><published>2008-09-17T22:35:00.008-04:00</published><updated>2008-09-19T10:24:56.751-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='PCUSA'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Personal'/><title type='text'>PCUSA: Why not stay?</title><summary type='text'>As my church struggles through an endless process of discernment, yoked to an Administrative Commission that seems dedicated to stalling and dividing us, I decided I needed a clear answer to the question "what harm is there in staying in the PCUSA?" This is what I will tell anyone who asks:Jesus had a special warning for those who lead “these little ones astray”. Our children are watching us. The</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/6380313693059970438/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=6380313693059970438&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/6380313693059970438'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/6380313693059970438'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/09/pcusa-why-leave.html' title='PCUSA: Why not stay?'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-3938215929091930676</id><published>2008-08-29T08:41:00.007-04:00</published><updated>2008-09-20T06:58:04.057-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='PCUSA'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='Personal'/><title type='text'>PCUSA: Why I want out</title><summary type='text'>It seems to me that God tolerates institutional divisions in the church (otherwise known as denominations) for two possible reasons:1. Doctrinal unity. None of us understands God’s theology. We struggle to grasp the principles that underlie his redemptive plan and our place in it, but we come to different understandings. Rather than watch us waste time endlessly debating our differences, God </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/3938215929091930676/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=3938215929091930676&amp;isPopup=true' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3938215929091930676'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3938215929091930676'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/08/pcusa-why-i-want-out.html' title='PCUSA: Why I want out'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-1068546324289133843</id><published>2008-08-23T20:29:00.006-04:00</published><updated>2008-08-23T20:37:37.567-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Obama/Biden: Sounds familiar....</title><summary type='text'>Obama picked Joe Biden, launching a day-long media love-fest. Joe's first assignment will be to travel to England in search of speeches he and Barry can use. Maybe Al Gore will teach Joe to use the Internet he invented so Joe can do his reasearch with a small carbon footprint.</summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/1068546324289133843/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=1068546324289133843&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/1068546324289133843'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/1068546324289133843'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/08/blog-post.html' title='Obama/Biden: Sounds familiar....'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8403132.post-3183907811521795081</id><published>2008-06-23T09:34:00.008-04:00</published><updated>2008-09-20T14:55:53.736-04:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='PCUSA'/><title type='text'>PCUSA:  "Transformative power"</title><summary type='text'>Once again, the commissioners to the General Assembly of the PC(USA) have elected a moderator who is opposed to the denomination's constitution. And once again the selection will encourage continuation of the progressives' endless struggle to sever ordination standards from their Biblical foundations.The new moderator, Bruce Reyes-Chow is being hailed as some sort of hip, connected electronic </summary><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/3183907811521795081/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8403132&amp;postID=3183907811521795081&amp;isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3183907811521795081'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8403132/posts/default/3183907811521795081'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://curmudgeons-progress.com/2008/06/pcusa-transformative-power.html' title='PCUSA:  &quot;Transformative power&quot;'/><author><name>stjones</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/02747513824935310454</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='00488466634881201719'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry></feed>