I used Google Trends to visualize the effect that this sparsely-used word’s inclusion in the GOP talking points had on its popularity.

“Dithering” was hardly used until late in 2009. Let’s look at the last few months.

At the end of October “dithering” spikes when former Vice President Cheney kicked off the talking point buzz-word bonanza, only to be followed by nearly every GOP spokesperson, elected official, candidate, and all the media outlets.

The GOP noise machine is as strong as ever. If they were half as good at stimulating the economy as they are at stimulating the usage of dormant verbs, we wouldn’t be in a recession right now.

Now I should probably stop dithering and get ready for the YDA National Conference in Orlando this weekend.

When you sign up for the campaign, you begin by sending an email to your Senators. After that first action, you can earn points by recruiting more people to sign, organizing a phone drive, collecting and mailing handwritten letters, uploading videos, getting a letter to the editor published, or by organizing a local event and getting earned media.

The campaign website also has an organizing toolkit which will help you successfully take the previously mentioned actions.

The contests will run from Thursday, October 29, 2009, to December 2, 2009, and though anyone may participate, you must be 18 years of age or older to win a trip to D.C.

Catholic Charities, one of dozens of nonprofits that partner with D.C. government, manages city-owned shelters that serve about one-third of Washington’s homeless population. The group’s contracts totaled $8.2 million in the past three years, according to the city council.

Council chairman Vincent Gray said Thursday the city would have to find another group to provide social services if the church backs out. He said he didn’t see any room for compromise.

Council member Jim Graham said the church hasn’t abandoned social services in Connecticut, Vermont or New Hampshire, which will begin issuing same-sex marriage licenses in January. But Gibbs said the D.C. law was more restrictive and the relationship between the diocese and those states vary.

Catholic Charities halted its adoption programs in 2006 in Boston because Massachusetts banned discrimination against same-sex couples who want to adopt children.

The Bible includes far more verses about the need to take care of the poor than about homosexuality, yet it seems that when it comes to dogma, hate is more powerful than compassion.

Deut. 15:7. If there is a poor man among you, one of your brothers, in any of the towns of the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand to your poor brother; but you shall freely open your hand to him, and generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks.