Month: April 2025

“with great love, sincerity, and affection”

Easter message from FOTUS

I saw this online from TruthSocial and had to double-check to ensure it wasn’t a spoof or a fraud.
Happy Easter to all, including the Radical Left Lunatics who are fighting and scheming so hard to bring Murderers, Drug Lords, Dangerous Prisoners, the Mentally Insane, and well known MS-13 Gang Members and Wife Beaters, back into our Country. Happy Easter also to the WEAK and INEFFECTIVE Judges and Law Enforcement Officials who are allowing this sinister attack on our Nation to continue, an attack so violent that it will never be forgotten!
Sleepy Joe Biden purposefully allowed Millions of CRIMINALS to enter our Country, totally unvetted and unchecked, through an Open Borders Policy that will go down in history as the single most calamitous act ever perpetrated upon America. He was, by far, our WORST and most Incompetent President, a man who had absolutely no idea what he was doing — But to him, and to the person that ran and manipulated the Auto Pen (perhaps our REAL President!), and to all of the people who CHEATED in the 2020 Presidential Election in order to get this highly destructive Moron Elected, I wish you, with great love, sincerity, and affection, a very Happy Easter!!!
Apologist
A right-wing rag responded: “While the message contains strong language aimed at political adversaries, Trump emphasized a tone of inclusion directing his holiday wishes to all regardless of political affiliation or past conflict…
“The underlying tone of the message remains consistent with Easter’s spirit of reconciliation by addressing both allies and critics. Trump appeared to be emphasizing a broader sense of national dialogue during a religious holiday centered on renewal and hope.” What a load of crap.
What People Are Saying

Adam Kinzinger, former Republican Illinois representative wrote in two back-to-back X, formerly Twitter, posts on Sunday sharing Trump’s Easter note: “Dear Christians who think Trump is the savior, here is his inspiring Easter message or forgiveness and resurrection.”

In a second post, he wrote: “How many times Trump mentions Jesus or resurrection: 0 How many times he says Lord: 1, (drug LORDs)”

“Republicans Against Trump,” a group of GOP supporters who don’t back Trump, wrote in an X post Sunday: “Donald Trump dedicated his Easter message to attacking the ‘Radical Left Lunatics,’ ‘the worst and most incompetent President,’ ‘Sleepy Joe Biden,’ and once again falsely claimed he won the 2020 election. Ah yes, the true spirit of Easter: rage-posting about your political enemies.”

Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action gun violence prevention organization, wrote on X: “Easter message from an incompetent maniac.”

PatriotTakes, a left-leaning X account that says it’s dedicated to “exposing right-wing extremism and other threats to democracy,” wrote on Sunday: “Trump’s Easter message fails to mention Jesus, the cross, the resurrection, forgiveness, peace, joy, or any other Easter message. Instead, he attacked his political opponents, migrants, judges, law enforcement, and rambled about himself and his grievances.”

Christopher Webb, who identifies as a Democrat and has over 122,000 followers on X, wrote about Trump’s post: “Imagine being this bitter, this unhinged—and still thinking you’re the victim. Trump can’t even say Happy Easter without turning it into a rage-filled tantrum.”

Too cozy

Shane Claiborne, author, activist, and Christian, shared a cartoon by Mike Luckovich of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, depicting Trump hugging a cross with a thought bubble showing “Big Beautiful ‘T’ for Trump!” Claiborne wrote: “Easter… according to Trump. Every Easter as Trump goes on a narcissistic rant… I think about this cartoon by @mluckovichajc.” (I have read Claiborne and Chris Haw’s 2008 book Jesus for President. . “David Swanson wrote a three-part review of Jesus for President in Christianity Today, in which he argues that ‘Claiborne and Haw make a compelling case that the church in America has become much too cozy with the state.'”

Sunday Stealing is FAB

laundry detergent

For Sunday Stealing: “Since it’s Easter weekend, we’re going to keep this simple. We stole this from a blogger named Idzie, who called this the FAB. (film, audio, book) meme.”

There is such a blurring of the lines between movies and television shows that it’s challenging for me to categorize them. Also, I find it interesting that some people watch TV and films on their phones; I find this utterly unsatisfactory. I don’t wanna be tied to my phone. Adriana Diaz on CBS Mornings talked about watching a horror movie on her phone, occasionally covering her eyes. In my opinion, that’s no way to watch a movie. I want to watch a film on the big screen; failing that, on a television screen. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I watched many films on my laptop; it was an extraordinary time.

F.A.B.

F. Film: What movie or TV show are you watching? 

Most of the movies I watch, I’ve blogged about on this site. 

I watch CBS Sunday Morning, 60 Minutes, CBS Saturday Morning, Jeopardy, Abbott Elementary, Finding Your Roots, Grey’s Anatomy (been watching since the beginning), and Elsbeth (who was a character on the TV show called The Good Wife, which I used to watch religiously).  I still watch JEOPARDY! and enjoy it when I get a clue that none of the contestants know: MYTHOLOGY $800: Stronger than dirt, this great warrior eventually went mad & killed himself. 

A. Audio: What are you listening to?

Most of what I’m listening to, aside from the Coverville and AmeriNZ podcasts and the Heather Cox Richardson Substack, are YouTube videos, which I watch as well as listen to.

For instance, I watch Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, which is on HBO,  but I don’t watch it on HBO, but on YouTube a day or three later on my laptop.

I always watch Vlogbrothers. Sometimes, I watch The Legal Eagle, The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart, Trae Crowder Liberal Redneck, and Rick Beato.

I do a lot of grazing. Upstate Uncovered by Chuck D’Imperio. Searching for Solid Ground, a memoir by Reggie Harris. A bunch of reference books.

Part 2 of the 1935 #1 hits

Rodgers & Hart

Here is Part 2 of the 1935 #1 hits.

“In 1934, two separate top 20 charts began: one for best-selling records (based primarily on the record label charts and Murrells, supplemented by other sources such as Kinkle and Ewan) and one for Your Hit Parade and radio airplay. The latter charts were based solely on radio airplay in 1934 and early 1935. Starting in April of 1935, Your Hit Parade and radio airplay rankings were weighed together for”  The Century of Pop Music Charts.  Thus, the charts show 77 weeks of #1 hits.

Two weeks at #1

East Of The Sun (And West Of The Moon) – Tom Coakley, vocals by Carl Ravazza (Victor) From the Princeton Triangle Club’s production “Stags At Bay.”

It’s Easy To Remember – Bing Crosby with George Stoll and his orchestra (Decca), “‘Mississippi’ was one of  Crosby’s finest Paramount musicals” and boasted several Rodgers & Hart songs

What’s The Reason (I’m Not Pleasin’ You)? – Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians, vocals by Carmen Lombardo (Decca)

Life’s A Song (Let’s Sing It Together) – Ruth Etting (Columbia)

Lullabye of Broadway – Dorsey Brothers Orchestra, vocals by Bob Crosby (Decca) Warren & Dubin tune from “Gold Diggers of 1935” 

The Object Of My Affection – Boswell Sisters with Jimmie Grier and his orchestra  (Brunswick). This was also a 1934 #1 hit by Jimmie Grier with Pinky Tomlin

Let’s Swing It – Ray Noble and his orchestra, vocals by  The Freshman (Victor) from  Earl Carroll’s “Sketch Book of 1935”

Red Sails In The Sunset – Bing Crosby with Victor Young and his orchestra (Decca)

A Little Bit Independent – Fats Waller and his Rhythm (Victor)

A single week at #1

On Treasure Island – Tommy Dorsey and his orchestra, vocals by Edythe Wright (Victor)

Rhythm Is Our Business – Jimmy Lunsford and his orchestra, vocals by Willie Smith (Decca) Written by Sammy Cahn (his 1st credit) / Jimmie Lunceford / Saul Chaplin

Soon – Bing Crosby withn George Stoll and his orchestra (Decca), another Rodgers & Hart song from “Mississippi” 

And Then Some – Ozzie Nelson and his orchestra (Brunswick). Yes, the guy from The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. 

Paris In The Spring – Ray Noble and his orchestra, vocals by Al Bowlly (Victor). The title song from a 1935 Paramount movie 

“the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five”

“you shall hear of the midnight ride of Paul Revere”

In March, John Rowen reviewed The Ride: Paul Revere and the Night That Saved America by Kostya Kennedy for a Friends and Foundation talk. My introduction referenced  “the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five.” I mentioned this to my wife at dinner that night and was surprised she didn’t recognize it instantly.

Listen, my children, and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

From National Park Service: “The opening lines of ‘Paul Revere’s Ride’ are perhaps the best-known words today of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The poem, with its galloping measure and steady rhyme, take the reader through Paul Revere’s urgent ride on the eve of the battle of Lexington and Concord. When it was published in Tales of a Wayside Inn (1863), the poem became ‘The Landlord’s Tale,’ with the proprietor of the old inn in Sudbury telling the local history.”

Sort of correct

It is interesting, though, that only Revere and not his compatriots caught Longfellow’s attention. “Though based on historic events, the poem should be read as a myth or tale, not as a historical account. Many historians have dissected the poem since 1860 and compared it to Revere’s account of the ride in his own words and other historic evidence. Of the several inaccuracies, three stand out:

  • Revere knew the British route before he left Boston. Though two lanterns were held aloft in the Old North Church tower, Revere was not waiting on the Charlestown shore to see them. Instead, they were a fallback plan in case he could not get out of Boston.
  • Revere was captured by patrolling British Regulars in Lincoln, just past Lexington, and never arrived in Concord.
  • Revere did not ride alone that night. He was one of two riders to leave Boston, and one of many messengers spreading the alarm.

The Kostya Kennedy book notes that Paul Revere borrowed a horse named Brown Beauty from John Larkin, a Charlestown merchant and patriot sympathizer. Rowen believes that this new book fills in many gaps that previous tellings had not addressed. He wrote this Goodreads review, based on reading a PDF but only received a physical copy via UPS on the day of the talk!  

What about Dawes?

“The omission of other riders was a particularly sore point for some. Henry Ware Holland, a descendant of William Dawes, self-published a history in 1878 titled William Dawes and His Ride with Paul Revere. He sent a copy to Longfellow, who wryly remarked that it was ‘a very handsome book… in which he convicts me of high historic crimes and misdemeanors.'”

So why not Dawes, who was as courageous as Revere? “Longfellow owned the 1832 New England Magazine featuring a biography of Paul Revere with an account of his ride, and was able to provide it as a reference to a correspondent in 1877.” Moreover, Revere wrote of the adventure multiple times and controlled the narrative. 

My question: Do YOU recognize

On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year

I graduated from Binghamton Central High School in 1971, but I heard at least the poem’s first part well before then. 

And now?

From Weekly Sift on Reclaiming the Spirit of ’75: “Over the next 15 months, a lot of 250th anniversaries are going to roll around. I hope we use them to reclaim the true spirit of American patriotism from the fascist posers who so often usurp that legacy. Let us rededicate ‘our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor’ to the cause of the inalienable rights of all people, and resist all attempts to impose one-man rule on these hallowed shores.”

Welcoming the Stranger vs. MAGA Jesus

none was a ‘Christian’ takeover of government to force its way upon people

I came across some articles while contemplating Holy Week—one cohort linked to Welcoming the Stranger vs. MAGA Jesus. 

A chapter was A Migrant 4 Life Journeys to the New Tower of Babel: Christianity and Immigration by Craig B. Mousin from DePaul University, written in April 2024. “This chapter focuses on two opposite interpretations, categorizing them as restrictionists and receptionists.

“The chapter contrasts how each group interprets Genesis’ Tower of Babel story to restrict immigration or welcome the stranger. The restrictionists, represented by MAGA Jesus, interpret the Tower of Babel story as calling for individual nations to protect borders. In that pursuit, they distinguish between lawful strangers a nation welcomes and those who constitute the enemy who should be excluded or deported. The receptionists, those welcoming the stranger, are represented by Jesus, the Migrant 4 Life. For them, the Tower of Babel cautions against authoritarian government and, instead, welcomes diversity” (44 pp)

Another by Mousin discusses Ruth and the daily trial of innocence, “Nonrefoulement: Responding to Asylum-seekers Through the Prism of Subversive Stories: A Study of Three Trials of Innocence.”  (37 pp.)

Leap of Faith

David French in the NYT writes: “America needs to nail 95 theses to the megachurch door.

“Last month, Paula White, one of President Trump’s most faithful and powerful evangelical supporters and a senior adviser to his new White House Faith Office, began offering “seven supernatural blessings” for the Easter season.

“If you ‘honor God’ during the period of Passover and Easter, ‘God will assign an angel to you, he’ll be an enemy to your enemies, he’ll give you prosperity, he’ll take sickness away from you, he will give you long life, he’ll bring increase in inheritance, and he’ll bring a special year of blessing.’

“The suggested price for these extraordinary gifts is an offering to Paula White Ministries of $1,000 or more…

“After almost 10 long years during which Trump has captured evangelical hearts more than any other president of my lifetime, I am forced to admit that Trump may have been better attuned to conservative evangelical culture than any other Republican president in the modern era.

“His bond with evangelicals isn’t just a result of flawed theology. It’s a result of the broken culture that flawed theology helped create. And in some parts of American Christianity, the theology is so flawed, and the culture is so broken, that evangelicals don’t see Trump contradicting their values at all — he’s exactly like the men and women who lead their church.”

Read the whole thing.

Render unto Caesar

Another piece is There is no Jesus in MAGA by Earl Chappell, a longtime Bible study leader and teacher at First Baptist Church of Norfolk VA. “In no place in the New Testament does Jesus instruct us to take over government or to even align ourselves with government authorities. He modeled the existence with which his followers may be associated with the governing authorities, none of which was a ‘Christian’ takeover of government to force its way upon people. In Romans, Paul exhorts Christians to obey the governing authorities, essentially as they administer the laws over the geography of their influence.”

I imagine the GOP Jesus video will be incendiary. But in my experience, it’s often, though not always, true. 

Finally, a short piece, Jesus at the MAGA rally, by Martin Thielen, retired minister, ex-megachurch pastor, bestselling author, and founder and author of www.DoubtersParish.com. It begins: “Several weeks ago, I had a strange and troubling dream. In my dream, I attended a massive rally. Thousands of people flocked to the stadium to hear their hero speak. As throngs of people entered the stadium, Jesus quietly entered and sat near the back. Nobody noticed him.

“In the dream, the speaker rose to the podium. He spoke a long time about himself, his greatness, and how he alone could save America from doom. He told one falsehood after another, but nobody seemed to care.”

It has an ending entirely appropriate to Maundy Thursday.

What to do?

I’ve been attending events and reading up on the issue. “The New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) is an umbrella policy & advocacy organization that represents over 200 immigrant and refugee rights groups throughout New York.” Because of events that have recently taken place in my own city and county, this will probably consume chunks of my time in the coming weeks and months. What will that look like? I’m not sure yet… 

Ramblin' with Roger
Social media & sharing icons powered by UltimatelySocial