Yep. I said it. Diddy is an iddy-it. Now, don't get me wrong: I respect Sean Combs for many things. He's an entrepreneur, a musician, and more. He's accomplished a lot, and should be commended.



That, of course, doesn't mean that he's got any common sense. In his video blog entry #16, he calls John McCain a few choice (read: not family-friendly) names for selecting Sarah Palin as his running mate. The reasons for his attitude? Well, as he states them in his video, they are:

• John McCain is old.
• Choosing Palin was disrespectul to those with "diverse lives".
• There's no crime in Alaska.
• There are no black people in Alaska.
• Palin isn't versed in "black policies".
• There are no crackheads in Alaska.

While Diddy says that choosing Palin was irresponsible, I say that Diddy is being an idiot. Let me run down the list:

1. John McCain is old: This is true. He's pretty old. Under normal circumstances, this would be a compelling argument...but these aren't normal circumstances. The implication is that McCain could die, making Palin the new President, and that she's too inexperienced to be America's leader. What Combs doesn't seem to realize is that Palin has as much experience as his chosen candidate Barack Obama...if not more.
2. Diversity: Hmm. Let's see. McCain picks a WOMAN as his running mate, and Diddy wonders about diversity? I could agree if his choice had been Mitt Romney, but it seems he hasn't thought this one through. It also seems like a judgment of her color rather than her character.
3. Crime: While it's nothing to be proud of, Alaska is notorious for alcohol and drug abuse as well as domestic violence. Suggesting that Palin couldn't govern America because Alaska has no crime is idiotic.
4. No Black People: This seems transparently self-centered. Are blacks the only non-white people group in America? Of course not...and Alaska seems fairly diverse for its population. Anchorage and Fairbanks have sizeable black populations, and the state also boasts ethnic groups like Filipino, Native American, Native Alaskan, German, Norweigans, Irish, and so on. Dozens of languages are spoken in Alaska. Doesn't Diddy care about other non-white groups that aren't black? Apparently not.
5. Black Policies: What, exactly, are black policies? Maybe the last 35 years of equality-building would have gone better if people like Combs had stopped talking about "me" and started talking about "we".
6. No Crackheads: Idiot.

I welcome feedback from Mr. Combs, should he be so inclined.

I'm not a huge fan of audiobooks, but many are. I find my attention wandering a bit too often to follow for long, and if I close my eyes I'll fall asleep.

For those of you who aren't as attention-deficited or sleep-deprived, I'd like to point you to a cool resource: Christian Audio. They offer Christian books and stuff in audio format. Whether you're visually impaired, do a lot of knitting, or (heaven forbid) have a job with a long commute, their offer of a free resource each month is probably just the thing.

This month: you can download a free copy of In His Steps by Charles M. Sheldon. It's the 39th best-selling book of all time, currently at 30,000,000 copies.

Much is being made of the fact that Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin has a daughter with Down's Syndrome. Why is it a big deal? Simple: most women in the developed world undergo testing to see if their baby will have Down's Syndrome, and an estimated 90% of all babies so diagnosed are aborted. Sarah Palin and her husband Todd - despite knowing that their daughter would be born with Down's - decided to raise their child instead of killing it.

I'm pleased to see a politician who shares my distaste for abortion. According to Wikipedia, the approximate number of induced abortions performed annually is a mind-numbing 46 million. According to a study by the Guttmacher Institute - part of Planned Parenthood - 26% of all pregnancies worldwide end in abortion. That's more than 1 of every 4 babies waiting to be born.

Abortion is obviously far too common. Most abortions are considered birth control, which says a lot about human nature. In 2000, over 90% of US abortions were elective, and according to information given by the mothers, were done specifically for convenience. Yes, I applaud Governor and Todd Palin...but there's more to learn from this situation than that someone made a difficult and unpopular decision.

I'm talking about Eugenics. The word Eugenics means "well born". Simply put, Eugenics is man's attempt at helping evolution along. The idea is that we can improve the gene pool by keeping undesirable traits from being passed to our children. Traits like illnesses, birth defects, lower intelligence, and even simple things like hair and skin color. Eugenics efforts have included selective breeding, sterilization and euthanasia. Adolf Hitler was a proponent of Eugenics, and believed that removing the unfit (blacks, Jews, etc) from the gene pool by killing them was a benefit to mankind.



Margaret Sanger, founder of the American Birth Control League (which later became Planned Parenthood) was a proponent of negative Eugenics...which brings us back to the Palin family. Like many others, they believe that their daughter's life is valuable regardless of her Down's Syndrome. Planned Parenthood is partially responsible for around 48 million abortions in the US since the passage of Roe v Wade. While there's no question that Planned Parenthood has done a lot of good over the years, there's also no question that their support of abortion stems as much from Eugenics as from women's rights.

Hitler's and Sanger's brand of Eugenics was responsible for compulsary sterilization in the United States, in which 65,000 individual people in 33 states were sterilized against their will between 1907 and 1981. Among the traits to be removed from our gene pool:

• Mental retardation
• Mental illness
• Deafness
• Blindness
• Epilepsy
• Physical deformations

Native American and African-American women were sometimes sterilized against their will - often without their knowledge - while hospitalized for other reasons (like childbirth).

Eugenics is alive and well in the 21st century...we just don't call it Eugenics anymore. We call it "a mother's right to choose". I hope that Sarah Palin's choice will be echoed by women everywhere.

Wow. It happens just that suddenly. First Todd Bentley is the poster child for 'the new revival' and then it all hits the fan. Not only are many CharisPentals downright skeptical about Bentley's "ministry" but, in a few short days, we hear a couple of news items that tell a much seedier story.



It appears that Todd Bentley and his wife are in the process of separating. In Canada, it's apparently a prelude to a divorce that takes 9 months. If you're a Canadian reader, and have info that I don't, please let me know.

One news article I read had a Bentley staffer saying that there were no other parties involved in their separation...I suppose to quell any rumors of infidelity. Then, without warning: it happened. Based on further news stories, Bentley has been having an inappropriate relationship with a female staffer.

Now, don't get me wrong: I wish it weren't true. I wish that all were well in the Bentley household, and that Todd taught the Gospel as it's laid out in the Bible, and that the people around him were truly being led by the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, that doesn't appear to be the case.

Billy Graham had the same assistant (or secretary) for decades, and was never alone with her. That takes a commitment that most people consider a bit 'over the top'. Notice that Billy never had a sex scandal? Yeah.

Notice that Todd Bentley, whose ministry became more and more outlandish as the weeks went by, is suddenly hip-deep in it? It's a pity, really.

Wow. As always, I'm very impressed by a group effort that displays a lot of hard work, practice, and creativity. This is a good example: Pilobolus was on Conan O'Brien's show, and did their really cool thing.

Masab Yousef now calls himself Joseph. He's leaving his old life behind. His old life? He was a Muslim, and is the son of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin...and he's now a Christian living in the US.

How much would you give up to live the life you believe to be true? Most of us never find out. I'm not sure if that's good or bad, really. I'm sure it's unpleasant, but - then again - many profitable things are.

I've been waiting for some time to put this one up. Some of you may know the Drowning Pool song that says "let the bodies hit the floor". Some of you may not know who Drowning Pool is, and that's okay...you're more likely to have heard the song in the recent Rambo movie trailer than on the radio.

Anyway... - I don't think very highly of Benny Hinn. I don't know him personally, but I know a bit about what he says and does. I consider him a charlatan of the highest order, which is part of why this video tickles me. I also just like a good joke every now and then.