Cult Watch: Obama mediates

Cult Watch: Obama’s “Chat” About Cambridge Arrest
7/30/09

(Posted to Facebook by the Cato Institute this morning.)

So President Obama is going to host Professor Gates and Officer Crowley today at the White House. Much has already been said about thecontroversial arrest for “disorderly conduct.”

IMHO,itseems like a false arrest.I wasn’t there, but it is not a crimefor someone to beobnoxious to the police (and thatis basically the cop’s version of the incident). For additional background, I recommend the columns by Eugene Robinson, Harvey Silverglate, and Radley Balko.

But leave the arrest itself aside. Even more disturbing is Obama’s leap into this matter. It is yet another indication of the Cult of the Presidency where the President sees a role for himself in just about any aspect of life. The news media covers the event as if it is pretty much ordinary business. What’s next? Will Mr. Obama try to help the Gosselins out by having Jon and Kate over for tea? Obama could bring in the best counselors in the world while Michelle takes the kids on a helicopter ride to Camp David for the afternoon.

The "Messiah" thing is getting old

There he goes again

Politicalwire.com reports that Ralph Reed, late of the Christian Coalition, and various failed efforts to gain elective office, is planning to launch a new "hipper" version of the Christian Coalition, called "Faith and Freedom Coalition."

Sigh.

Poor Ralph.

I recently came to the realization that the evangelicalism I came to Christ via in the 1970s really doesn't exist any more. Evangelical Christianity has changed. The things that mattered to my generation aren't major concerns among the up-and-coming evanglical generation, and that includes both strict fidelity to the authority and reliability of scripture, and creating a conservative "counterculture." My generation of American evangelicals wasted its moment in history pursuing a vision of "seeker-friendly" mega-churchianity, and exerting influence upon the surrounding society through political means. The upcoming generation of evangelicals is not so dogmatic, not nearly as conservative, and increasingly views politics as a bogus pursuit. All-in-all, not entirely negative things.

But the point is this: Ralph Read appeals to a generation of evangelicals that is quietly passing from the scene. His style of "conservatism" is, as with most of conservatism at the present time, firmly rooted in the 1980s. He may have a modicum of success, mainly in isolated islands throughout the midwest and south, but time has passed him by.