* Another tenet of modern conservatism is this: Those near the bottom of the economic ladder should wait on crumbs from the upper reaches to "trickle down" to them. In other words, we must take care of the wealthy's needs first before considering the plight of the poor. The Bible, which many Southerners claim to know, sings a different tune. It instructs Christians to serve "the least of these." (Matthew 25:40.) Again, has the conservative South been ignoring God's word, replacing it with the Gospel of John Boehner?
* Based on his words, as reported in The Bible, Jesus Christ was a man of considerable intellect. It's unlikely that anyone can read the Sermon on the Mount, for example, without realizing these are profound words, from a deep and probing mind. So why do Christ's modern followers, especially those of a conservative bent, turn away from intellectual rigor? Why do they ignore the teachings of our brightest minds on profound subjects, such as climate change? In the wake of last week's storms, a leading climate scientist said we must not ignore the role climate change plays in triggering killer tornadoes. Reports Truthout, in an article dated April 30, 2011:
Conservatives attack any discussion of climate policy within the context of the killer tornadoes as "grotesque," saying that to do so is blaming the victims.
In an email interview with ThinkProgress, Dr. Kevin Trenberth, one of the world's top climate scientists, who has been exploring for years how greenhouse pollution influences extreme weather, said he believes that it is "irresponsible not to mention climate change" in the context of these extreme tornadoes. Trenberth, head of the Climate Analysis Section of the National Center for Atmospheric Research, added that the scientific understanding of how polluting our atmosphere with billions of tons of greenhouse gases affects tornadic activity is still ongoing:
"It is irresponsible not to mention climate change. ... The environment in which all of these storms and the tornadoes are occurring has changed from human influences (global warming). Tornadoes come from thunderstorms in a wind shear environment. This occurs east of the Rockies more than anywhere else in the world. The wind shear is from southerly (SE, S or SW) flow from the Gulf overlaid by westerlies aloft that have come over the Rockies. That wind shear can be converted to rotation. The basic driver of thunderstorms is the instability in the atmosphere: warm moist air at low levels with drier air aloft. With global warming the low level air is warm and moister and there is more energy available to fuel all of these storms and increase the buoyancy of the air so that thunderstorms are strong. There is no clear research on changes in shear related to global warming. On average the low level air is 1 deg F and 4 percent moister than in the 1970s."
Is God angry at conservative Southerners for ignoring the science on the dangers of climate change?
An examination of the twisters' paths through Alabama raises even more questions about conservatism and the wrath of God. Tuscaloosa, home to the University of Alabama, was the hardest hit city in the state. Why was that? Well, many of our state's business titans, who often seek to comfort the wealthy at the expense of everyone else, are products of the Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration. Many of the lawyers and judges who have turned our "justice" system into a cesspool are products of the University of Alabama School of Law.
Heck, Tuscaloosa's best known longtime resident is Paul Bryant Jr., the son of Hall of Fame football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. And as we have reported in numerous posts here at Legal Schnauzer, Bryant Jr. and one of his companies (Alabama Reassurance) have extensive ties to massive insurance fraud.
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