The Salty Peanut Gallery

To demagogue an issue means to obscure or distort the matter by making false claims and promises that serve to arouse the emotions, passions, and prejudices of the people. Politicians do it all the time in order to get elected or get a particular bill passed. Journalists do it to promote their own personal predilections in the name of making a difference. It’s easy to be swayed by demagoguery whenever it validates the things we are already thinking. We listen to it because it’s what we want to hear. It’s what we want to believe is true regardless of the facts. Sadly, I fear this has been the case regarding the recent Arizona immigration bill signed into law by Governor Jan Brewer during a Friday afternoon press conference less than two weeks ago. The chattering class has been aghast. Various politicians, minority rights organizations and, yes, numerous faith groups nationwide have wasted no time in decrying this legislation. But are their criticisms justified? Or is this a case of demagoguing the issue? And why are so many Christians so willing to join the fray?

Here’s how some journalists are describing the Arizona law:

“Harkens back to apartheid” – Cynthia Tucker, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

“Shameful” – E.J. Dionne, Washington Post

“Terrible…an invitation to abuse” – David Brooks, New York Times

Some political figures describe it as:

“Mean-spirited” – Sen. Chuck Schumer

“Un-American” – NY City Public Advocate Bill DeBlasio

“The Arizona immigration bill is an affront to the civil rights of all Americans and an attempt to legalize racial profiling.” – Rev. Al Sharpton

“Misguided…threaten[s] to undermine basic notions of fairness that we cherish as Americans.” – President Barack Obama

Here’s a question for all of you. Has anyone actually read the law? Anyone…? Anyone…? Bueller…? And what about Christians who are parroting these liberal journalists and politicians? How ‘bout you? Have you taken the time to read the legislation before organizing prayer vigils and protest marches on behalf of immigrants?

Critics of the law have targeted the phrase “reasonable suspicion” suggesting law enforcement would have the ability to arbitrarily pick Latin Americans out of a crowd and force them to produce immigration papers. As President Obama describes:

“Now, suddenly, if you don’t have your papers, and you took your kid out to get ice cream, you’re going to get harassed — that’s something that could potentially happen… That’s not the right way to go.”

What some people fail to note are phrases like “lawful contact” and “probable cause” which defines the circumstances by which the law may be enforced. University of Missouri Kansas City Law School professor Kris Kobach, who helped draft the measure explains:

“That means the officer is already engaged in some detention of an individual because he’s violated some other law. The most likely context where this law would come into play is a traffic stop.”

Since signing the bill into law, Gov. Jan Brewer has further clarified this in an executive order stating that “race, color, or national origin alone cannot be grounds for reasonable suspicion to believe any law has been violated.”

So why all the fuss? Why the venom? Why the vitriol? I think there are several things we can point to. One is politics as usual. Race is always an easy card for the extreme political left to play. “Those mean-spirited conservatives are nothing but a bunch of bigots,” the goal being to secure the minority vote in the next election.

I think another reason has to do with a certain polarization that exists between “social justice” and “legal justice”. We feel sorry for the downtrodden and less fortunate and rightfully so. We allow our emotions to justify overlooking the glut of illegals flooding our borders, because after all they’re just trying to provide a better life for their families and who among us could fault them for that. We deem that to be socially just. On the other hand we conveniently ignore the injustice of rampant lawlessness that is the result of the federal government’s unwillingness to secure our borders.

The state of Arizona faces a fiscal crisis caused in part by the burden to provide services such as schooling and social welfare for illegals and their families who consume far more than they contribute. Murders and kidnappings believed to be tied to Mexican drug cartels, nightly high-speed chases through neighborhoods where innocent people are at risk are all on the rise. But where are the Christians decrying this kind of social injustice I wonder?

There is a third factor that I believe is contributing to the backlash. Ignorance. Rather than taking the time to learn for themselves the actual content of the Arizona law, most people, including far too many Christians, have been content to get their information from journalists and politicians who have a CLEAR political agenda. This in my mind is a lack of discernment.

Proverbs 18:13 says, “He who answers a matter before he hears it, It is folly and shame to him.” We need to be careful who we listen to and where we get our information from. We need to resist the urge to speak our minds before we’ve thoroughly investigated a matter. And when we do speak we need to speak the truth in love. Because when we don’t we usually wind up looking foolish.

New options for Nitro in 2010. Fishing will never be the same. This comes courtesy of our good friend Ed.

Falling objects synchronized to rhythm. It’s Stomp…sort of. Very avant garde.

Gravité from Renaud Hallée on Vimeo.

Remember the New Orleans “Ain’ts”? After the recent Super Bowl upset victory over the Indianapolis Colts the days of Saints fans wearing paper bags over their heads is nothing but a distant memory. But for Pittsburgh Steelers fans? That’s a different story. Recent reports of off the field misconduct by the team’s biggest stars have made waving the famous “Terrible Towel” more of an embarrassment. (I have two!) Thankfully, the Rooney family and team officials have taken a no nonsense approach to confronting the situation. But after all the bad press surrounding this controversy dies down one wonders if it’s possible for these wayward football heroes to ever find redemption and have their honor restored. What would it take?

I’ve got two pictures commemorating the Steelers 2009 Super Bowl XLIII fourth quarter win over the Arizona Cardinals. In my office sits a picture of Big Ben Roethlisberger and Santonio Holmes in a bear hug celebration after the winning touchdown. At home I have another picture I just received as a gift last Christmas. On the left is the image of Roethlisberger rolling to his right with defenders all around. On the right Holmes is depicted going up on his toes in the back corner of the end zone and coming down with the game winning catch. Sadly, after this week I’ll be removing both pictures from any place of prominence.

I’ve been a Steelers fan as far back as I can remember, since I was old enough to enjoy watching football. Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, Rocky Bleier, Lynn Swann, John Stallworth, and the mighty “Steel Curtain” defense…I still get a kick out of watching old footage on the NFL Network of those guys puttin’ a whuppin’ on “America’s Team”, the Dallas Cowboys.

Through the years and six championships later one thing stands clear, the Steelers have one of the most loyal and widespread fan bases anywhere in the country. They don’t call us the “Steeler Nation” for nothing. And it’s not because they’re flashy. It’s not because of their cheerleaders or because they have a really cool move they do whenever they come to the line of scrimmage. I have always believed it’s because of the hard working, nose to the grindstone attitude that has been the hallmark of Steelers football over the years.

Whether it’s Rocky Bleier coming back from having his foot blown half off in Vietnam to rush for over 1,000 yards in a season, or Jerome Bettis, “The Bus”, coming back for one more season in the twilight of his career to bring home a Super Bowl ring, or Hines Ward, after receiving a bone jarring hit from a defender, getting up one more time still holding on to the ball, and with that winning smile pointing for the first down…that’s the blue collar, roll-up-your-sleeves-and-go-to-work type attitude that has made the Steelers one of the most respected names in the history of the National Football League. And that’s what makes the recent misconduct of some of its brightest stars so disheartening.

Santonio Holmes is coming off his best season in 2009 with 79 catches for 1,248 yards and five touchdowns in addition to being named MVP in Super Bowl XLIII. But as ESPN reports,

“He is also facing a lawsuit in Florida from a woman who claims he threw a glass at her, cutting her above the eye, in an Orlando nightclub. A witness has since taken responsibility, according to Holmes’ lawyer.

Holmes was also arrested in 2008 for possession of marijuana, and involved in a domestic violence incident in 2006; the misdemeanor charges were later dismissed. He was also recently accused of telling a fan to ‘kill urself’ on his Twitter page, but implied that his account was hacked.”

The Steelers wasted no time in trading Holmes to the New York Jets getting next to nothing for him in return, and the NFL has handed down a four game suspension.

As for Big Ben, in addition to an ongoing civil case filed by a 32-year-old woman who claims Roethlisberger sexually assaulted her at the Harrah’s Lake Tahoe resort in 2008, further allegations have been reported surrounding what happened in a small, less than 5-foot wide, single-commode bathroom between the drunken football player and a drunken 20-year-old sorority sister. And while the Milledgeville, Georgia District Attorney couldn’t find enough evidence to prove a sexual assault case “beyond a reasonable doubt”, certainly there’s been enough evidence for NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to issue this statement while handing down a six game suspension:

“Your conduct raises sufficient concerns that I believe effective intervention now is the best step for your personal and professional welfare.”

So where do they go from here? Can they find redemption? Of course we know the answer is yes. In Ephesians 1:3 & 7 Paul writes:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ… In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.”

Britt Hume, in reference to Tiger Woods’ indiscretions put it this way:

“I think that Jesus Christ offers Tiger Woods something that Tiger Woods badly needs. He needs something that Christianity especially provides and gives and offers, and that is redemption and forgiveness.”

Yes, it is possible for Santonio Holmes and Ben Roethlisberger to receive redemption and forgiveness and our prayer is that they will. But what of their reputations? Can that also be restored? We’ve seen what the Steelers organization thinks of these embarrassing encounters by sending Holmes decisively packing. Rumor has it that the Steelers head office has been shopping Big Ben to other teams as well.

Proverbs 22:1 says “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.” Do you know why a good name is more valuable than great wealth? Because once your name has been tarnished it is nearly impossible to restore. For the rest of their lives Holmes and Roethlisberger will be remembered for their abuses and for the shame that they’ve brought to the Rooney Family and to the City of Pittsburgh. And while our hope is to see them restored, there’s no taking that away. Far better for these men to have maintained the same discipline and heroism off the field for which they’ve been praised so gloriously by so many on the field.