KROGER MIX

Greenpeace at Mt. Rushmore

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 18:06:00 +0000

In South Dakota activists with the environmental group Greenpeace scaled the Mount Rushmore National Monument Wednesday and hung a banner urging President Obama [to] take the action on global warming. The banner was hung next to the carved mountain face of Abraham Lincoln. It reads quote “America honors leaders, not politicians: Stop Global Warming.” The action came as Obama was in Italy for talks with other world leaders of the G8 summit. The group of 11 Greenpeace activists were arrested and charged with trespassing. They each face up to six months in prison.

It's hard to believe that environmental activism in South Dakota made news around the world. I can't say that I support everything that Greenpeace does or stands for, but I like this action. They felt that they needed to engage in civil disobedience to make a point. Their actions in South Dakota combined with their other advocacy efforts, combined with the movement to care for the environment have led to significant policy changes and new legislation aimed at reducing pollution, expanding sustainability, and assisting those most hurt by climate change.

I think the decision to engage is civil disobedience in never one people should take lightly; people must consider safety and ethics, and wisely discern the best course of action. If this does not occur, civil disobedience can be counterproductive or even immoral.

Last year six Greenpeace activists painted a smokestack in the United Kingdom as part of an effort to stop the expansion of coal plants. They were also arrested and charged, but they were found not guilty.

They were accused of causing £30,000 (US$53,000) of criminal damage to the Kingsnorth smokestack from painting. The defence was that they had a 'lawful excuse' - because they were acting to protect property around the world "in immediate need of protection" from the impacts of climate change, caused in part by burning coal.

Nick Broomfield directed this fascinating documentary of their story. Do you think the actions of either group of activists was justified?

Colbert & Matthew 25

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 04:25:00 +0000

This is from last week, but I had to give a plug for Colbert referencing Matthew 25 in this segment. Colbert reports on Missouri State Representative Cynthia Davis' recent statement that "Hunger can be a positive motivator." The comment was made in reference to her opposition to subsidizing school lunches for low income children during the summer.

In fairness, Davis later wrote, "We all agree on the importance of feeding children, but we differ on who should do this. I believe this duty belongs to the parents." I'm glad she thinks that children should be fed. Unfortunately she doesn't seem to understand that in American we have a great deal of poverty and many children go hungry.

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Faith Communities & Healthcare

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 22:41:00 +0000

Can you feel it? The momentum for healthcare reform is building. If you pay attention at all to the news it feels like there’s some story about this issue everyday. I’m really excited because I think things are shaping up politically for this to really happen. Michael Moore, though imperfect, has laid the groundwork, the economic crisis has intensified the healthcare crisis, and Democratic leadership is in place. But that’s not all--the faith community is organized! As one phenomenal example, check out this excerpt of a press release from Faith in Public Life. It publicizes a faith-based healthcare campaign sponsored by them, PICO National Network, Faithful America, Sojourners, and Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good.

As the health care debate heats up and Senators head home for Independence Day Recess, pastors from across the country are taking to the airwaves with radio ads to remind lawmakers that the status quo on health care is "not who we are as a nation" and that "America can do better," emphasizing our nation's values in the days leading up to July 4th.

Drawing on the Scriptural call to act with a spirit of courage, love and action, the ads will run beginning today through July 4th in five key states--Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Nebraska and North Carolina--urging Senators from those states, whose support will be critical to the passage of meaningful legislation, to support reform that makes quality coverage truly affordable for every American family. The ad script and audio are available here.

On top of faith communities airing radio ads and being locally and nationally organized to encourage their Senators to support “reform that makes quality health care choices affordable for all families,” these efforts were covered by over 100 newspapers, including the Wall Street Journal.

Unfortunately some faith-based groups like the Family Research Council and the Institute on Religion and Democracy seem to be trying to derail healthcare reform. Last week I blogged about Tony Perkins debate with Jim Wallis and this week Mark Tooley sent an email out blaming the Religious Left for the plague of fatherlessness, illegitimacy, crime, social decay, and further poverty in the 1960’s. Why are conservative Christian groups actively opposing efforts to ensure sure that Americans have affordable and accessible healthcare.?

This goes to demonstrate the importance of having groups like Faith in Public Life--who provide an alternative to the Religious Right, but also groups like the Beatitudes Society---who work to counter the harmful actions and influence of the Religious Right (more about that in my previous post).

Here's one other great ad that highlights the importance of healthcare reform. It's from PhRMA and Families USA. It's not faith-based, but I think it should inspire persons of faith to act.

Countering Christians?

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 03:40:00 +0000

This past week I have had several conversations with staff, friends, and family about the mission statement of the Beatitudes Society. Up until now I have felt torn about the language of “counter” within the statement. On one hand, I believe very strongly that Christianity has been hijacked and distorted by the Religious Right. As a 1st year college student in the fall of 2001, I was horrified by the post 9/11 blending of violence and nationalism with Christianity. Since then I have realized that there is a great need for Christians to reclaim the faith by proclaiming and embodying the “message of the welcoming and generous love of Jesus as expressed in the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount.” Advocating for “justice, compassion, and peace” is one component of this. However, if there is not a strategic method to counter the harm that the Religious Right has and is causing, the Beatitudes Society is simply another social justice and leadership organization. Such a group would not be bad and would have a powerful witness, but we need more than that. More Christians saying, “James Dobson doesn’t speak for me,” is also important, but we need more than that too. We need the Beatitudes Society to intentionally work to counter and diminish the power and influence of Christian groups who are encouraging hate, fear, and violence.

On the other hand, being apart of an organization that is explicitly countering a Christian movement that my conservative grandfather (a retired UM minister) is apart of, makes me a little bit uncomfortable. How can I build bridges with him on moderate issues, if I associate myself with an organization that opposes a significant part of who he is? We are both members of the body of Christ, but by the Beatitudes Society “counter[ing] the Christian Right,” he is not welcome at the table. The implications of this part of the mission statement seam to exclude anyone who even partly identifies with the Religious Right from working together with the Beatitudes Society on points of agreement. Does the Beatitudes Society really want to alienate the growing number of evangelicals who are becoming involved in issues of creation care, poverty, human trafficking, torture, immigration, and genocide? Some of those folks may or may not fully on board with issues of war, LGBT, pluralism, or hermeneutics, but they can be powerful allies in the work of “justice, compassion, and peace.”

After reading Kimberly’s post about this issue on the Beatitudes Society’s blog, I have come to some new realizations and conclusions. First, while generational dynamics and Religious Right infrastructure are influencing this discussion, I don’t think they are at the heart of this issue of maintaining or discarding the “counter” language. What’s at stake for me is whether or not a Christian organization is going to make it apart of its mission/purpose/goals to be against people. Granted the wording is, “counters the Religious Right,” but essentially that makes a statement of being against the people in that movement. In thinking about my own life and all of the things I’ve said against the military, I’m realizing that even though I’m almost a pacifist, I don’t think I should be against the military. Rather I am against every aspect of the military that contradicts loving your neighbor; I am against the violence. In the same way, I am against every aspect of the Religious Right that contradicts loving your neighbor; I am against harm. I am not against my grandfather, James Dobson, or Fred Phelps for that matter. And so I don’t think the Beatitudes Society’s mission should be to “counter the Religious Right” because you might as well exchange the words, “counter fellow Christian brothers and sisters.”

What do I believe is the solution? Well I still think that when talking about the Beatitudes Society, you need to talk about the organization differently to different people. And I sincerely believe that that can be done in a way that reflects honesty and integrity, and is faithful to progressive Christianity. But I just discovered tonight that the mission statement opens with these words of context:

Today in America, the widespread perception of Christianity -- one centered in nationalism, materialism and intolerance -- bears little resemblance to the life and teachings of Jesus, particularly as they concern justice, compassion, and peacemaking. To counter that, The Beatitudes Society develops and sustains a national network of emerging Christian leaders at seminaries and divinity schools who will:

These words provide the framework for what the Beatitudes Society is doing. It is not just concerned with justice, compassion, and peace, but also pushing back against a Christianity that is “centered in nationalism, materialism, and intolerance.” This is what the Beatitudes Society is countering. And in my opinion, that is a more accurate reflection of progressive Christianity than countering people.

P.S. As practical alternative word choices, I would suggest the second goal begin with “Embody a message…” or Melanie’s suggestion “Proclaim a message…”

Common Ground on Abortion

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 04:03:00 +0000

If you were to drive across I-90 in SD and observe the billboards, you'd think the most popular place in the state was Wall Drug, a little tourist shop with free ice water and $.05 coffee. However if you were to criss cross through the state and observe the billboards, you'd think the most important issue in SD was abortion. After two statewide votes to ban most abortions in SD, the issue continues to be a source of division between people.

All across America battles have been waged and millions of dollars have been spent by the pro-choice and pro-life movements. In the struggle for dictating the laws of the land, it seems as though little has changed except the deterioration of dialogue and relationships. Often those on the far left and the far right can be heard demonizing their opponents by labeling the other as baby killers or women haters. Meanwhile abortions continue, children born into poverty continues, and unintended pregnancies continue.

So when Obama began talking about finding common ground in the area of abortion, I was deeply pleased. His desire to bring folks together to find places of agreement filled me with hope and resonated with ideas that I had already been thinking about.

That work is continuing and many courageous people are stepping forward (often at the cost of being attacked by their friends) and extending their hand to their opponent. They are joining together with the people like me in the middle who see this issue as a complicated one, but who agree that we should find ways to reduce abortions. I personally identify myself as pro-life, however I'm not so sure that we should criminalize abortion.

Just in the last two weeks there have been some exciting developments and conversations taking place about common ground on abortion. I encourage you to check out the new blog: www.rhrealitycheck.org/commonground as well as watch this civil and sincere dialogue of Jon Stewart and Mike Huckabee discussing abortion.

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Jason Jones in Iran

Update:
This isn't so much an update as a really great article that I forgot to reference. It's about a similar effort occuring in Canada.

"If we made abortion illegal tomorrow it's not going to change anything. I am not concerned with the law," said Yvonne Douma, the executive-director of the British Columbia-based organization.
Her group's goal is to "create a Canada where demand for abortions dwindles and decreases until there's none left -- not because it was forced upon anyone, but because that is what women choose."

Help Save Troy Davis

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 01:51:00 +0000

Many of you are familiar with the death penalty case concerning Troy Davis, and thanks to a Newsweek article, people all across America are learning about Troy Davis. Because I've moved to DC, I haven't been able to participate in the many recent events happening all over Georgia to halt Troy's execution. Thankfully many leaders and supporters from faith communities, organizations, and politicians have been stepping and vamping up their support for Troy.

As the Supreme Court considers what to do with Troy's case over the next few days, please continue to spread the word about Georgia's unwillingness to consider Troy's innocence and their obsession with execution. Pray that the evils of injustice still ever present in the South would be overcome.

You can also help Troy by calling Georgia's Chatham County District Attorney, Larry Chicolm. Tell him to reopen Troy's case: 912-652-7308. You can also email him through Amnesty.

Connected to the People of Iran

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 03:20:00 +0000

This past week has been absolutely crazy with everything happening in Iran. I don't know how much election aftermath you have followed, but I have found myself increasing drawn into the unfolding drama.

Early on I began following Nico Pitney's updates on Huffington Post. From there I discovered the role that Twitter was playing in people being able to get updates and news out of Iran. Soon after I logged into my Twitter account (which I had barely used) and was bombarded with hundreds of comments (Tweets) coming in every few seconds. What I once believed to be a silly and narcissistic micro blog, had all of a sudden become a tool for people to organize protests, say last words, spread news, and respond to the chaos from afar.

Then came the blog post from a woman in Iran,

"I will participate in the demonstrations tomorrow. Maybe they will turn violent. Maybe I will be one of the people who is going to get killed. I'm listening to all my favorite music. I even want to dance to a few songs. I always wanted to have very narrow eyebrows. Yes, maybe I will go to the salon before I go tomorrow! There are a few great movie scenes that I also have to see. I should drop by the library, too. It's worth to read the poems of Forough and Shamloo again. All family pictures have to be reviewed, too. I have to call my friends as well to say goodbye. All I have are two bookshelves which I told my family who should receive them. I'm two units away from getting my bachelors degree but who cares about that. My mind is very chaotic. I wrote these random sentences for the next generation so they know we were not just emotional and under peer pressure. So they know that we did everything we could to create a better future for them. So they know that our ancestors surrendered to Arabs and Mongols but did not surrender to despotism. This note is dedicated to tomorrow's children..."

What amazing courage, inspirational words, and eerie normalcy. As I read her words I found myself increasingly caught up in the Iranian people's struggle for democracy, justice, and life. Then the unthinkable happened--this woman's sister, Neda was killed. After being shot in the chest, her final moments were caught on film. As she dies, blood begins coming out of her nose and mouth, and the people around her scream and shout in lament.

Later over the weekend, Andrew Sullivan wrote a wonderful piece about the role of Twitter in Iran. In his article, Twitter Ripped the Veil Off "the Other" - and We Saw Ourselves, he writes,

The misspelling, the range of punctuation, the immediacy: it was like overhearing snatches of discourse from police radio. Or it was like reading a million little telegram messages being beamed out like an SOS to the world. Within seconds I could transcribe and broadcast them to hundreds of thousands more.
As I did so, it was impossible not to feel connected to the people on the streets, especially the younger generation, with their blogs and tweets and Facebook messages - all instantly familiar to westerners in a way that would have been unthinkable a decade or so ago. This new medium ripped the veil off "the other" and we began to see them as ourselves.

Because information was able to come to us with a human face, this country called Iran shifted from a place many Americans preferred to see bombed, to a country filled with ordinary people risking their lives to make sure their ballots were counted. What an amazing transformation of perspective. I think Sullivan is right, "we began to see them as ourselves." If such a glimpse of our common humanity can be realized between Americans and Iranians, surely it is possible for us to diminish the ways we demonize and dehumanize our enemies.

I pray that as the demonstrations continue and officials debate what to do, that justice will prevail. I also pray that the protesters will do their best to choose non-violence tactics. Thank you Obama for reminding us of Dr. King's words and for weighing in on what is happening.

"Martin Luther King once said, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice,'" Mr. Obama said in a statement released after security forces in the Iranian capital clashed repeatedly with protesters. "I believe that. The international community believes that. And right now, we are bearing witness to the Iranian people's belief in that truth, and we will continue to bear witness."

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Back to Blogging

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 02:47:00 +0000

After a very long and unintentional break, I have finally resumed blogging. Life got a bit more hectic last year, perhaps a result of it being my 3rd year seminary, fighting for Troy Davis, and leading the Social Concerns Network (even my nightly ritual of watching The Daily Show diminished).

Anyway, I hope to get back in the rhythm of blogging this summer. It should be a bit easier with no school, normal working hours, and being on my own. I going to stop sending the monthly updates, but I hope you'll consider signing up to still receive updates via Email, Google Follow, or the RSS Feed. I've just put a bunch of blogs into Google Reader that I hope to keep up with. I'm going to try to post 2-4 times a week, but we'll see how that goes. This fall I'll be in N. Ireland and in June I'll probably be in a parish, so there may be some additional evolutions to this blog.

I've updated some of the links on the side, so please check out some of the blogs of my friends and other folks I folllow. As the description says, I hope this will continue to be a place for education, advocacy, conversation, resourcing, and expression. I invite you to be apart of all that.

Peace,

Karl

Protesting the Jailing of a Muslim Woman in GA

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 05:30:00 +0000

Earlier this week in Georgia, a Muslim woman was jailed in Douglasville for refusing to remove her head scarf. In response to this incident of religious discrimination, a group of us from Candler decided to hold a small peaceful protest outside the Municipal Court. I think we got their attention.

ACT: Contact the Mayor of Douglasville to express your concern about Ms. Valentine's expression of religion freedom being violated.

Mars Hill - Stop the Traffik - Steve Chalke - Audio

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 02:14:00 +0000

Facebook in Reality

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 06:00:00 +0000

Facebook--changing the definition of friendship:)

Snippets...

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 05:00:00 +0000

As reported in the Emory Wheel, the shuttle drivers have their first union contract and received their first ever paid holiday on Labor Day. It is sad that we can be so oblivious to the conditions of workers in our community.

John Deer, a Catholic priest and peacemaker recently suggested "The Only Diet for a Peacemaker Is a Vegetarian Diet." But if you're not ready for that perhaps you could just eat less meat. The top UN climate scientist has suggested that people should consider eating less meat as a way of combating global warming.

Daily Show: Republican Hypocrisy

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0000

This entire episode had me laughing hysterically. In the segment Stewart shows back to back clips of conservative politicians and media issuing contradictory statements.

C. Hitchens Waterboarded

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 03:00:00 +0000

After personally experiencing waterboarding, Christopher Hitchens concludes, "If waterboarding does not constitute torture, then there is no such thing as torture." (Vanity Fair)

Healthcare Ad & Campaign

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 02:00:00 +0000

Healthcare for America NOW! is a bold new campaign advocating for a guarantee of quality, affordable health care for all?
ACT: Sign up and donate.

Music: Derek Webb

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 01:00:00 +0000

Is voting for who you like the lesser of two evils? If so, is it an action worth doing?

Film: Ordinary Radicals

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 00:00:00 +0000

From Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw's Jesus for President tour comes the documentary, Ordinary Radicals. As they write in the book, "This is not the old-time religion of going to heaven; this is about bringing heaven to the world."

Snippets:

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 06:00:00 +0000

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers has scored another labor victory. "Burger King has agreed to pay an additional net penny per pound for Florida tomatoes to increase wages for the Florida farm workers who harvest tomatoes."

In West Virginian people will be able to get more bang for their buck when they shop for food. The state has now cut the food tax in half.

Because of Democratic Senator Jim Webb and others, a new GI Bill was passed and signed into law. The legislation provides substantially better benefits because the old GI bill was outdated.

The US Supreme Court ruled that Guantanamo prisoners have the right to challenge their detention at the US military base in civilian courts.

Despite improvements in domestic nutrition programs, the recently passed Farm Bill failed to reform farm subsidies. Thanks for trying President Bush.

The House passed an updated and compromised FISA bill. The debate over telecom immunity will continue in the Senate today.

A report released by the human rights group, Physicians for Human Rights, reveals that former terrorist suspects detained by the United States were tortured.

In her new book and this interview, Professor M. Gigi Durham discusses the corporate media's sexual objectification of girls and how to help young women fight regressive media messages.

Chris Satullo suggests "we deserve no Fourth this year" in his newspaper column.

The Office: Japanese

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 05:00:00 +0000

AIPAC Pandering

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 04:00:00 +0000

In this clip Stewart claims that a real debate about Israel is only acceptable in Israel. Based on my experience in the US and in Israel I would say his comments are fairly accurate.

With regard to Obama's pandering at the annual policy conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), he did at least offer some suggestions to Israel.
“Israel can,” he said, “ease the freedom of movement for Palestinians, improve economic conditions in the West Bank, and to refrain from building new settlements — as it agreed to with the [President George W.] Bush administration at Annapolis.” Inter Press Service

If Obama is elected, I hope that he will be able to critique the harsh violence of both the Palestinians and the Israelis.

Short Film: Strangers

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 03:00:00 +0000

"Strangers depicts the unlikely duo of a young Arabic and a Jewish man who must put aside their fears and predisposed hatred toward one another when confronted with an even greater threat, a gang of skinheads.

This short film by Erez Tadmor and Guy Nattiv really sheds some perspective on tensions between Arabs and Israelis, considering how both still face an incredible amount of prejudice and violence in Europe and elsewhere throughout the world." Alternet

Film: Promises

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 02:00:00 +0000

Before I left for the Middle East I watched the documentary, Promises. The film taught me a great deal about Israeli/Palestinian conflict. It also caused me me laugh, despair, and hope.

You are welcome to borrow the film from me

Cluster Bomb Treaty

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 01:00:00 +0000

In May over 100 nations approved a cluster bomb treaty ban.
For more on the story & on who didn't sign the treaty watch this video.

Dangerous Ground is a commercial that depicts what life would be like if Westerners could not walk on the ground due to landmines and unexploded cluster bombs.

ACT: Ask all the presidential candidates to commit to sign the global cluster bomb ban.

Hannah's Lunchbox

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Kevin was one of several incredible lay persons who joined me and 29 other seminarians in our Middle East Travel Seminar.

His family was recently featured on CNN and the Today Show for their project, Hannah's Lunchbox. I hope you will be inspired and challenged like I was by their story. I refer to it in my column.

Music: Nick Cannon

karlkroger@gmail.com (Karl Kroger) — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 23:00:00 +0000

One day at the United Methodist General Conference I attended a luncheon that featured a former abortion clinic owner. As the speaker told horrors stories from her experiences and spoke passionately against abortion I was moved. But I was also disturbed as she basically characterized all pro-choice advocates as being pro-abortion. I came away believing even more strongly that the extremism on both sides of the abortion debate is detrimental.

I believe I am apart of the moderate majority that is pro-life, but against the criminalization of abortion. If we are to effectively reduce abortions in America, we must find ways for persons who are pro-life and pro-choice to work together.

Nick Cannon's song below is a powerful testimony of his own personal experience with the issue. While you may not agree with the message he is conveying, I hope you'll take a listen.