Franklin Graham says that he cannot vote for a presidential candidate if the candidate is pro-choice and wants to redefine marriage.  We at P.E.A.R will concede for a moment and allow him that standard with no objection.  However, we urge him to add to that standard.  How many presidential candidates has Franklin Graham, and the rest of the religious right, supported candidates who promoted an economic structure of society that destroys people's life for the end goal of maximizing profits?

This video offers a decent primer on the idea of the way multi-national corporations destroy lives.  P.E.A.R encourages Christians to research whether their pro-life and anti-gay candidates support policies that perpetuate this sinful activity.

Watch this hilarious video!  This is a joke that makes a very valid point.

So Santorum is against women's reproductive rights, which includes contraceptive medication.  In addition to that, he is critical of public education.  Now, if I'm not mistaken, recent statistics indicate a significant amount of women use birth control, and a significant amount of US citizens send their kids to public schools.  Furthermore, these same people vote.  In other words, they are somewhat responsible for electing candidates into the presidency.  I'm not quite sure why his republican supporters think that he is going to be an effective candidate to oust Obama from the White House.

Rick Santorum is simply naive to reduce social inequality to how much each individual contributes to society.  I will mention a few things he forgets.  


As a Christian, he forgets that his Lord condemns those who are rich:


“Blessed are you poor,
    For yours is the kingdom of God."

then,

“But woe to you who are rich,"

Rick Santorum's Lord does not acquiesce to praising the societal structure of Palestine; he condemns social inequality (see Luke 6 for entire scripture).

Another thing Rick Santorum fails to mention is that since the economic meltdown, it is the hardworking laborer who has worked tirelessly in the manufacturing plants that has suffered.  The CEOs and shareholders have not suffered.  The wealthy shareholders of mortgage lending enterprises have not suffered.  Insurance CEOs have not suffered according to what they have contributed to the economic meltdown.  Does Santorum really believe that they have been insulated from the same hardships due to having contributed more than the laborer?

And finally, Santorum fails to mention that one of the root causes to social inequality stretches back to the founding and development of this country.  Native Americans did not contribute any less to productivity in this country when white European settlers claimed rights to the land.  Yet, if one were to observe the conditions of reservations today he or she could not deny the devastating impact of this thievery.  Let's not forget to mention Santorum's memory loss with regards to slavery.  Once again, to praise our inequality and not mention that African Americans have inherited social injustices inflicted upon their ancestors which have led to two and a half centuries of pain, which descendants of white European settlers could never claim, shows that this candidate is so out of touch with reality Republicans ought to be ashamed of having let him get this far.

Click the link below to hear his comments:

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1456615691001/

Bill Moyers does a great job explaining the underlying conflict with the contraception issue and how it is part of the American tradition to grapple with the concept of "freedom of religion and freedom from religion."

https://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/02/16-11#.T0BABWulglE.facebook

Not-for-profit insurance CEO makes $2 million a year - NYPOST.com

How much do you pay in health care insurance?  It is all too common that this is one of the most disconcerting of financial expenses of many households.  Do you ever wonder about where all this money goes?  This article from the New York Post may give a little more insight.

Not-for-profit insurance CEO makes $2 million a year - NYPOST.com

If Christians believe that God is the creator of everything, then on what basis does a corporation have an inalienable right to say they own a natural good? The article linked below is not about an isolated case of a large corporation attempting to "privatize" a natural good.  The same corrupt legal procedures have been attempted in Peru and Bolivia over water!  Once again, on what basis do wealthy shareholders have a right to encroach upon another's ability to produce or use natural goods in order to secure a monopoly (to increase earnings, not provide for the interest of others).  Socialists are often accused of stealing from hardworking wealthy people.  The only reason the same accusation is not directed toward corporations and their shareholders is because they have the means to turn their thievery into an enterprise labeled capitalism.

“They are probably the most aggressive patent holder in the U.S.,” Gerritsen adds. According to PUBPAT, between 1997 and April 2010, MONSANTO filed 144 lawsuits against farmers for patent infringement, and more than 500 farms are investigated each year.

“The seed that Monsanto doesn’t control, they will control through contamination,” Gerritsen says. “Monsanto wants ultimate and absolute control over everything.”

Read more..

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/02/17-5

Women’s religious freedom violated: Photo of all male birth control witnesses tells the viral truth

By Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite

"Where is women’s religious freedom and freedom of conscience?’ Women can only conclude from this skewed panel that the chairman does not think they are created equally in God’s image, and endowed by their creator with inalienable rights."
-Rep.Carolyn Maloney


Read more:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/guest-voices/post/womens-religious-freedom-violated-photo-of-all-male-birth-control-witnesses-tells-the-viral-truth/2012/02/16/gIQAeyykIR_blog.html