One objective of this blog is to encourage productive discussion and debate within the "comments" forum. Leaving comments has been made easier. No registration is required. Comments can be left anonymously. A Hassle free and easy forum to leave a comment. However, any inappropriate comments will be deleted by blog administrators. Thank you for commenting so your voice can be heard.


Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Alan Grayson To Republicans Blocking Unemployment: 'May God Have Mercy On Your Souls'

If you haven't yet heard of Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), I am sure you will hear his name many times in the future.  He is a very colorful representative from the Great State of Florida.

Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) said on the House floor Monday that Republicans are blocking a reauthorization of unemployment benefits in order to resurrect the America of the 1930s.


"There was no unemployment insurance back then," Grayson said, in one of the more colorful speeches on the issue. "There was no State benefits back then. There was no help for the people who had no jobs. All they could do, like my grandfather, in desperate straits, supporting a family of seven, was to go to the dump and desperately try to find something he could sell.

"That, my friends, is the America that the Republicans are trying to revive. The America of desperate straits, and for them cheap labor. The America where people have nothing, hope for nothing, and are desperate to live to the next day. That is what the Republicans are trying to resurrect by blocking unemployment insurance day after day, week after week, and now month after month."

See what I said, very colorful.  But does he have a point?  According to the Huffington Post more than 2.5 million people who've been out of work for longer than six months have stopped receiving federally-funded extended benefits since the end of May, when Congress failed to reauthorize the benefits. Republicans in the Senate, joined by Nebraska Democrat Ben Nelson, have filibustered the bill because they don't want its $33 billion cost added to the deficit (even though that is the usual way with federal extended benefits).
 
Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) made an argument similar to Grayson's when he told HuffPost in June he thought the GOP was waging class warfare. "The Social Security Act of 1935 made these entitlements, Social Security and unemployment insurance and welfare," McDermott said. "The Republicans have been after all three of those programs ever since 1935. They got welfare a few years ago, because that's poor people. They could jump on them. But unemployment and Social Security is middle-class people -- they haven't been able to get them, but it isn't because they're not willing to try."
 
Those are very strong words.  While it seems unlikely that the Republicans actually want to punish the poor, it does seem that they are indifferent to their plight.  But Alan had some different words.
 
"And I will say this to the Republicans who have blocked this bill now for months and kept food out of the mouths of children," Grayson concluded. "I will say to them now, may God have mercy on your souls."

4 comments:

  1. This story is heart breaking. What is it the christians say GOD said?
    "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."

    N.R.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You refer to this piece of mythological fiction. It is claimed to be written by god/jesus christ ---- AKA an illusionist that made up myths.

    To the least of my brothers
    By Jesus Christ

    "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

    "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

    "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

    "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

    "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'

    "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'

    "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'

    "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

    (Matthew 25:31-46)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Interesting the sheep were on the " right" and the goats on the " left".
    It would seem god had it backwards. It sounds like the "Heavenly Father",
    is talking about the "right" (republican ideals) when her refers to those goats on the left who will burn in hell for not helping those in need.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Isn't it amazing wars have been fought over some little fairy tales that were written. The scariest part of this shit is so many people still take this crap literally.

    Religion breeds fragmentation of humanity. Religion is the biggest problem in the world that we know. All based on fear of the unknown.

    No one could possibly fucking know any of the mysteries of human life.
    Religion is a very feeble attempt to lesson people's fears of the unknown and then control the masses through those MAKE BELIEVE answers to the fears.

    JT

    ReplyDelete