The admirable Lisa Fox has a letter to a "red" (= republican) state.
The letter was around already the last time (Election of 2004), but is a good introduction to today's issue: Cheating at Elections. The Presidential elections are fast approaching in a USA which does not generally use paper-ballots, as everybody else, and the discussion is on again about un-reliable electronic voting-machines (e.g. in Ohio) and how the American elections may be stolen (if any of the Parties are less than honourable). Click on the Headline!
Much more, for instance about Oprah Winfrey and what happened to her in Chicago, Illinois this week in this very election, may be read on Brad Blog
another one
The original story is on: The Huffington Post
The Times of London, which is owned by an Australian; Robert Murdoch, and has sent reporters to the USA for much-raking... has the story about presidential candidate Senator Obama's aunt, who lives illegally in Boston since four years back, after her bid for asylum was rejected and now also has given money to her nephews campaign, which is not allowed for non-Americans.
The idea that giving money for a campaign is not allowed for non-citizens (which I find reasonable) falls on its head, however, when one reads about a Swede who has gone to the USA to work for Senator John McCain.
Which is it, really? That some animals are more equal than others???
-------------------------- November 3rd:
Link to The Huffington Post about voting problems, queues, & c., is here
lördag, november 01, 2008
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8 kommentarer:
GÖRAN,
Thank you. I really enjoy your blog, particularly your biblical scholarship but truly all of it.
GÖRAN,
Thanks, yes, some have always been less equal than more equal or just plain equal (which would be healthiest)...we´ll see what else these miners will uncover as they dig themselves deep.
I can´t wait, I´m screaming out to God...yes, please God, OBAMA, please God, no more deceit!
Best to you always,
Leonardo
I was told that the Church of Sweden was disestablished in 2000 and that they did a public opinion poll five years later to see what effect diestablishment had had. Nearly 1/4th of Swedes didn't know that their 'National Church' had been disestablished. Is this true?
No idea. But probably.
The Church has been run (clolsely) by the State for 313 years (Absolutism, Calvinism - in fact a different christianity alLtogether), and people don't engage very actively.
There will be an outcry if the church-building is burnt down or something, but it's not more than a landmark...
Disestablishment is a quite novel idea. People are used (Absolutism, Calvinism) to have everything taken care of. Without having to bother...
One part of this is that the Church of Sweden always has been a Majority church, to the difference of the Anglican churches ("the Tory party at prayer"...) and the Roman (for instance in France), who are minority churches.
That accounts for a lot.
Well, until the mid-19th century it was illegal for Swedes to belong to another church, just as in Italy and Spain and Portugal. That would probably account for it being a majority church.
Why does the church allow the state to control it? Don't they want to be free? Doesn't it embarrass them that they're paid and are part of the government but that only about 3% of the population attends their churches?
The church's servitude under the Absolut State/Calvinism lasted for about 313 years from 1686/1687. The church is autonomous again from 2000.
No state pays anything. The church is not part of Government.
How far it ever was is a bit unclear, since there was much resentment and pretence between the Calvinist Kings and the Curch of Sweden (and Absolutist careerists ;=)
The church was not really Lutheran, nor had it ever been Roman (no mandatory celibacy, no "canonical" testament), but was still 1st Millennium in its basic structures; the Parish owning the land and the buildings (incl. the church) and the Vestry calling the priest.
The Bishops were leading politicians for much of Swedish history and Chapters mainly the school-board for the Gymnasium every Diocese had.
Secretary of State Georg Normann tried to change this in the 1530ies, but failed.
So the Absolutist kings found Sweden and its church most backwards in both structures and catholicity...
For a century from Charles IX this was on the Agenda until Absolutism triumphed under Charles XI in 1680, topling the Legal, Constitutional and Political system.
The church had been an actor in all 3 ;=)
Re citizenship it was even worse really.
Not being part of the Church of Sweden didn't exist, was't defined. Even a Jew was a member of the Church of Sweden, if he was a Swede. To not be a member meant not living in Sweden and having no rights to live here.
When the insight grew that some were not members of the Church of Sweden, they were refused Marriage ceremonies and exams.
Only living together was available (and legal until 1918, if the father attended his children's baptisms/equivalent).
This was only gradually altered from Gustaf III onwards, the first Church of Sweden King since John III +1593 (Gustaf's father King Adolph Fredrik had been a Lutheran bishop in Holstein, his mother Queen Louise Ulrica was an atheist Calvinist from Berlin).
Romans had to have 2 marriage ceremonies from the 1780ies, one Roman, one Swedish. Jews had their own from 1867.
A general marriage ceremony with no confessional straps, erroneously called "civil marriage" was introduced in 1908.
Such had in the late 19th century been a social punishment for the non baptised, non confirmed (in practise often Baptists) who were not permitted State employments.
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