HAPPY NEW YEAR

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." - Theodore Roosevelt


MAY ALL THE GIFTS HIDDEN INSIDE YOU MAKE THEIR WAY INTO THE WORLD, AND MAY ALL YOUR DEEPEST DREAMS COME TRUE.

Sending each and every one of you LOVE... and wishes for a joyous, abundant, wondrous year full of peace, harmony, prosperity -- and AN END TO WAR!! God Bless You!

No, I have not joined a Halloween cult. This is a photo of Claudia Wells ("Back to the Future") and me at Chiller in New Jersey, Oct. 2005. The guy in costume is scaring us, which reminds me of our current political climate. Sorry for all the changing pictures; my web guy can't be reached and I want to post the new photos with friends!)

2005 wrap-up:
I have to admit I'm getting a little paranoid here, wondering if my e-mails are being monitored or I'm being spied upon simply because I don't agree with the corruption of this administration. What a terrifying thought: that the very freedoms our country was built on -- freedom of thought, religion and speech -- are being usurped. The blatant propaganda of the Fox network has contributed to this Orwellian climate of fear. And the news blackout on electronic voting fraud is also quite astounding.

This Christmas, I have to say that I spent hours in prayer for the mothers, children and spouses of soldiers who died in Iraq. I can't imagine spending the holidays without your only child -- and my heart goes out to all of you.

Here is a letter I got from a Marine Combat Vet in November:

Dear Lydia,
I heard you on the radio with Brad tonight. For what it's worth, Lydia, you have my strong and full support here in my little corner of the world in Oklahoma. I can barely stand the thought of our kids fighting bravely in a hostile land as a result of lies and self-serving motives of this Administration.

I'm a combat Marine veteran of Viet Nam (1969) and was awarded two Purple Hearts for combat wounds for which I am very proud. For sure, my military service makes me no more or a less a "patriot" (whatever that word means anymore) than any other American. But, I relate it to you to encourage you to maintain what you're doin g by speaking out and don't back up an inch! I know there are many veterans like myself who appreciate you and your courage. And I especially appreciate the fact that you pray (and that you keep your clothes on, too, by the way.......not that I'm a prude or anything, but...well, you know).

Don't let Coulter get you down. Who knows......maybe the Lord has plans for you in Ann's life. God knows she needs something. Stay strong and good luck on your show. I'll be watching.
John Conley

Dear Lydia, Your email took my breath. Yes, we live in a strange world, Lydia. And I admire those of you with such national exposure (by the very definition of your career) speaking out from your heart, untainted by political pressures.

There are so many things I would like to express to you about the soldier's heart, but I don't want to take very much of your time. If you do happen to find some time, please go to http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/heart/view/special.html and hear from other soldiers and Marines. These are clips of interviews with four veterans and I believe you will find them interesting and informative. I relate more to Jim Dooley and Viet Nam, but then again, though we are of different generations and different wars.....in ways most important we are all the same. Pray, Lydia, that God guides my memories and my words. Love, John

After my article was published, a Brad Blog commenter named Freedom Fan, asked me: "In your conversations with God Lydia, has he revealed to you when your life began? At what moment do you think all genetic information is in place to create a human life? Does God consider it a sin to intentionally snuff out innocent human life?"

My response: "When I got sober on Sept. 11, 11 years ago -- I experienced a string of catastrophic miracles, spine-tingling evidence of what I now call God in my life. Around this time I found my beloved younger brother's dead body, bloated and purple with lividity -- and I began my spiritual search. It became clear to me that flesh does not contain life. Life is spirit. And yes, I am absolutely sure of the answers to these questions. But I don't want to impose my discoveries on you without some background, and this is not the place. I have written extensively on life, love, death, faith and spirit -- and my own hilariously embarrassing adventures in spiritual growth.

For me the key is in Christ’s words and the meaning behind his parables. We are eternal and spiritual. And God is love. Love is an actual force, the creative force of the universe, more powerful than hate. Where you put your thoughts, there your heart is. If we were all to focus only on the GOOD in each other -- and return love for hate -- (very difficult to do, hence Christ's famous saying that the "gate is narrow") -- but if we could do this, we would create heaven on earth. It's here, we just can't see it, but some can when they change their perspective. (When we are all able to do this, to change our hearts, that is when I believe the "Second Coming" will happen. That's what Christ meant when he said that only he was the way to the Father: it is LOVE! And it's an inside job.) And in this expression, as a reflection of God, we come into form to express God’s qualities through man, His most glorious creative idea. Our natural state is joyous and childlike. And we are all in fact capable of doing what Christ did, we are supposed to be doing the healings he did. We are all the sons of God, made in God’s image, which is spiritual. You cannot kill spirit. So putting so much emphasis on the fetus or body as “life” is wrong to me. Now dont' get the wrong idea: I am against all killing, and I don't believe in partial-birth abortions. But not everyone in America subscribes to the belief that fetal cells prior to 8 weeks have consciousness or soul; and since we can't legislate religion in a free country where separation of church and state is a tenet of the Constitution - we have an obligation here. I also don't think Jesus wanted us to worship him, his flesh, his body so much -- he wanted us to acknowledge the Christ-truth within ALL of us. It's similar to when Jesus said not to focus on the "letter of the law, but the spirit." Soul, consciousness never dies, cannot be killed, is at-one-with God (atonement.) Is killing pro-life? Wars cause more damage to the families left fatherless, motherless and without their loved ones. We are here in this embodiment to learn to love and accept ourselves and transfer that love and acceptance to each other. Life is spiritual and eternal.

I feel God can be proved through science -- because love is a powerful force, an energy, and it's molecular. Anyway, there is no solid matter. Christ meant what he said when he said we could move a mountain with our faith. The problem is, we just don't believe it. If we did, we'd be walking through that metaphorical Gate. But all our doubts arrest God's work through us. Perfect Love casts out Fear, remember? I have had absolute transformative miracles through this kind of prayer; anyone can. Anyone can heal, for we must put our thoughts on the true spiritual essence of life, not the body. Beneath what is visible is the invisible where true power lies. It's like the software or inner language of a computer, beneath the surface. A great movie to rent to begin to understand in layman's terms this field of infinite possibilities is "What The BLEEP Do We Know". Also click on Google and type in "The Message in the Water" -- and read about a famous Japanese scientist's experiment in how our thoughts create everything. Anyway, my own personal journey (and horrific crash and burn) is coming out in a book soon. I was forced to find these answers on a very personal level. I explain this better in the book, and with more humor. Getting too serious lately. Just saw SYRIANA and GOOD NIGHT and GOOD LUCK. Two excellent movies.

More wrap up from 2005: This is from a BRADBLOG commenter named "Big K", who posted numerous comments on my article, and kept attacking me as a member of "the abortion party." I am getting sick of this; I have never even connected being a liberal with abortion! It's the furthest thing from my mind. This right-wing evangelical cabal invented this as a political smear campaign. There are so many wonderful things about the Democrats, which I will post in my next blog -- and no Democrat likes or wants abortions. Like Jimmy Carter, I am NOT pro-abortion and resent this bizarre right-wing obsession. To me, "liberal" means freedom loving, open-hearted, compassionate toward the poor, saving the earth and pro-LIFE in the ways that REALLY matter: we hate senseless death in any form, especially seeing our young bright soldiers killed and maimed (15,000 without legs and arms now) in a needless, corrupt war! If this war was to get rid of an evil despot and to save the poor Iraqi lives, then why didn't we go to Rwanda where the genocide was actually visible on a constant basis? Okay, so it was to fight terrorism. But the terrorists weren't even there at the start of the war. At least not the ones we were pursuing. Finally Big K explained to me: " What many of us have been saying here Lydia is you are just as liable for the “hate speech” you supposedly despise. Likening us to Nazi’s is not going to get me to see any point you have. (I never likened anyone to a Nazi; I simply pointed out that Coulter's "joking" about killing liberals is the same exact "joking tone" Hitler used when he as dehumanizing the Jews in the early propaganda days.) Then Big K goes on to say this: In Mosaic law, you should stone homosexuals since this is an abomination of nature" does not sound very liberal to me." First of all, I can't believe Big K believes Christ would have stoned a homosexual! Is that what he is saying? He lost me there.

Then a Democrat named Autarkis chimed in: "I can't imagine Christ taking a look at a secular leader taking his largest lifetime contributions from an outfit like Enron, which was the case for President Bush until just a couple years ago, and think that this was what he had in mind. Christ might be troubled to learn that the disparity between rich and poor in this country is growing at a staggering rate with no end in sight, and that Christians, at least the Fundamentalist ones, seem to celebrate this as the bounty of God when they're on the receiving end. But that's Ceasar's business. Maybe Christ wouldn't have given it much thought at all. He probably would be astounded to find that someone capable of mocking a prisoner begging for her life, (as Bush did to Carla Faye Tucker) called Christ his favorite philosopher. And then that this fellow launched wars, if not in his name, at least because he thought God put him in the Presidency to do this? And God's vicar, The Pope, tried to talk him out of one of them?"

BLESSED ARE THE PEACE MAKERS * NARROW IS THE GATE

The kids are still out of school - so I'm sneaking away to post a quick item that I had written as part of an earlier blog. In memory of the tsunami victims: all these calamities, catastrophes and hurricanes show us the importance of loving and helping each other -- and helping those less fortunate. Tribal divisions and ethnic chauvinism seem so primitive. We can't survive without each other. It's also pretty clear that storing up material treasures on earth is useless. We are learning not to depend on material sustenance, but to depend on charity. Love for our fellow man -- there is nothing else worth talking about. And that is why the Gate is narrow: it's hard to love your enemies -- and I'm not just talking about terrorists; it's hard to love those people you can't stand to be in the same room with! With my relatives this weekend, I kept asking myself: "How can I be of love and service to people who are incredibly annoying?" Very few will make it through this gate of loving their enemies, not fighting, and embracing those morally bankrupt people who offend them. (I really have to forgive Bush!) But I want to start focusing on all the good we can do. (Although I have a riveting expose on this new breed of "Christian" coming out soon.) Look at this incredible universe – it would take a blind slug not to see God everywhere. This is heaven and it is here now, if we choose to see it. I was at a peacock farm with my kids, chasing peacocks all over the place -- and in the design of a peacock's feathers, you see God’s artistry. In the design of a Monarch butterfly or a baby's smile, you see heaven. Why do people debate whether or not God exists when God is simply LOVE? Who can argue with love, kindness, compassion? Asking to prove the existence of God is like asking to prove you love your kids. I actually believe that Einstein was on the cusp of proving God through science, for he said that 'goodness, truth and beauty are laws of the universe'; hence God and science are not mutually exclusive. I also love Wayne Dyer's statement that "you'll see it when you BELIEVE it" and "the antidote to depression is kindness". One act of kindness to another human being is an anti-depressant; it actually raises your serotonin levels. An observer of an act of kindness also gets a serotonin boost. If everyone in America did more love and service work, we wouldn't be thinking about ourselves so much, what we lack -- and we wouldn't be depressed. Depression is an epidemic in this country and the pharmaceutical companies love promoting our fears & obsessions. Tom Cruise said some very stupid things, some people need medication, but the way they're pushing drugs on us is criminal. Anyway, getting out of our self-centered fear by helping others works every time.

Hope everyone is having a great holiday; I have several articles in the works, a book and a new Brad Blog item which will be up soon. Rene - I love your name, sorry about the confusion. Also, my web designer is in the process of putting up new photos & DVDs for sale for charity and an 80's page of the bombshell pictures ABC put out.

My brilliant friend Chaz was there the other night and we were discussing how the world has changed and how odd it is that something we thought was a given -- these ideas I've been writing about -- make so much sense to us, but make so little sense to Bush-supporters -- and he said that if what I was saying wasn't the truth, it wouldn't upset so many people. Kind of like the film "Good Night and Good Luck" about Edward R. Murrow's battle with McCarthy. He also said that "a frog never jumps out of a pan if you turn the heat up slowly." Which is what the people in power are doing to middle-class Americans: turning the heat up and taking away our earnings, choices and freedoms in such gradual degrees that we barely notice until it's too late.

Received follow-up letters from Dennis Taylor of Phoenix, Arizona. I think this man is very intuitive -- which we are all capable of being when we open our minds.

"Dear Lydia, I have to share something that my wife said after reading your blog. Without sounding flakey…I’m convinced that my wife is correct and that this goes hand in hand with your statement regarding the next frontier being the center or the middle. We both have a strong internal sense of something impending that is difficult to explain. A feeling that many of us are going to be called to stand out for what is right and rescue the Constitution of the USA so that the country can get back to being a democracy. It seems like while America slept, we were slowly and silently robbed of democracy. The irony is the fact that so many people who call themselves Christian as well as conservative played a big role in America silently surrendering democracy to those who regard the constitution as a mere technicality to work around in order to promote their self-serving agenda’s. Respectfully, Dennis Taylor"

And though I cringe at self-promotion, the following letter is not so much about my blog as it about the truth people are hearing. The truth always upsets some people by the way. Throughout the ages, others have said these things in different ways before I did. But the following letter really touched me:

"I could not resist sending your blog page with my letter to many friends. What blows me away is how well it was received by some long time friends of mine who openly admit to be agnostic. I’ve never witnessed anything quite like that before as some of these folks have historically been some of the most open critics of religion and Christianity. I must admit that I never saw that coming. One of them even described tears coming out or their eyes while reading this and stating that your blog rekindled their hope for humanity. A hope that had been lost over the last 5 years." Best Regards and God Bless You & Your Family Dennis Taylor Phoenix, AZ

Prior post: I want to share an amazing letter I just received last night. But first: HAPPY HOLIDAYS, MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY HANNUKAH, HAPPY KWANZAA, HAPPY DIWALI and GOD BLESS YOU ALL! I want to thank the hundreds of wonderful people who have sent me letters of encouragement and support. I especially want to thank Worfeus, for your wisdom and insightful commentary -- and for being a scholar of the Bible as well as every other book ever written. I am learning a lot from you. You are very truthful, and you're not afraid of ANYTHING! I'd also like to thank Rene, the lovely woman who prayed for our family and wrote such beautiful comments in this section, as well as Rebecca from Oklahoma, who left me a voice message & several supportive letters, and Jennifer the young woman from Minnesota who heard Ann Coulter speak at St. Olaf -- your letters all touched me so much. I have to mention Johnny Moo Moo, the atheist, whom I love too; he's so reasonable and balanced. I love that! I know this is unusual, but I'm adding to this post rather than create a new one because of time -- plus this one is chock full of current events. The kids are out of school and home for the holidays and driving me CRAZY with happiness! We are making gingerbread cookies and decorating every nook and cranny.

Okay, here's the letter:

Dear Lydia,

This might be a bit late in the making but I was so moved by your article regarding Ann Coulter, that I felt compelled to respond. You are to be commended for your courage in speaking the truth about Ann Coulter and hate mongers like her who somehow think that they are conservative people. A friend had sent me a link to another article on the Brad Blog and that was where I saw a link to your article. The more I read, the more I was drawn in by the content in your article. I’m sure that you already know this but I have to say it anyway. You are absolutely right in every point you made in that article and this world needs more people like you. God Bless You for Stating the Facts!!!

I have a hard time articulating just how much of a breath of fresh air your article was. As opposed to Ann Coulter’s hate mongering speeches that are designed to manipulate impressionable minds, your comments are something that Americans seriously need to be taken to heart. For the last five years, I have watched the Bush administration feverishly dismantle the very freedoms and liberties that make this nation great. At the same time, I’ve closely observed a very scary “us and them” kind of mentality that has been born and perpetuated by the Bush administration, much of the religious right wing of this nation, and vicious mouth pieces like Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’ Reilly.

As a Christian with a bachelor’s degree in the Bible, I learned rather early on that I had the God given spiritual gift of discernment. That gift can sometimes be as much of a curse as a blessing as I am always able to tell when people are either lying or telling the truth. Because of the fact that I can immediately interpret one’s intentions early on, it puts me in the minority and often times in unpopular situations as I’m often referred to as being “brutally honest”. It does not win any popularity contest but then…those with honesty and integrity never feel threatened when around me either. I knew Bush was lying to America regarding just about all the things he claimed he would do during his 2000 campaign. I also knew that he was lying to America during his very first televised speech when he was trying to convince America that we needed to wage war against Iraq. But I digress….

Tactics like posting your personal contact information on Ann Coulter’s web site are nothing more then the desperate act of someone who is void of any real depth or Christian substance. It was geared towards unleashing a bunch of hate mongering minions and sycophants upon you and your family and Christ Jesus himself would find that to be completely unacceptable. And those who call themselves conservatives should be ashamed of themselves when they justify Ann Coulter’s pusillanimous activities and remarks as being satirical. True conservative people do not engage in the type of conduct or tactics that she and those like her demonstrate on a regular basis. I am convinced that if Jesus Christ almighty were to come pay us a visit incarnate today, he would have one thing to say to many of the religious right-wing and republican party as well as a result of the mess they have made. “Be gone!!! I never knew any of you!!!” (Note from LYDIA: Even Christ admonished the pharisees this way, calling them a "BROOD OF VIPERS".) It sounds harsh to put it that way, but I am not going to mince words when I see these very same people wearing Christianity as a shield to ward off criticism when their anti-Christian conduct and anti-constitutional agenda’s are exposed in the light of God’s word and Christ’s example. These very same people who did everything in their power to rake Bill Clinton over the coals for an indiscretion with a Whitehouse Intern seem to have absolutely no problem with telling lies, half truths and hiding Bush’s sins and crimes. It’s a sad but true statement when ya consider the fact that Nixon got impeached for things far less offensive then the crimes that Bush is flat out guilty of both locally and internationally.

I’m concerned about the future of this country as a result of the dangerous trend of growing lies and deception that the Bush administration and vicious mouthpieces like Ann Coulter and Bill O’ Reilly. Over the course of the last five years, people like this have effectively redefined the word “liberal” to mean a lot of things that it simply is not and never was. Liberal is actually a very positive and progressive term when examined under the light of honesty. However, in the hands of corrupt people like Bush, O’ Reilly and Coulter, it has been used to mislead the American public. Regretfully, they have used the stupidity of most Americans to believe that liberal is something bad, immoral, baby murdering and anti-Christian.

I wish that I could take credit for the following lyric excerpt from a particular song by the band Rush as it is so very true today. One would think that it might have come from a book depicting American society during the Salem Witchcraft Trials. Regretfully, it describes the “mob rules” mentality that the self-serving Ann Coulters of the USA like to incite in impressionable minds who like to be told what to think.

--“Quick to judge, quick to anger, slow to understand. Ignorance prejudice...and fear walk hand-in-hand”.

In any case, my wife and I are 100% supportive of you and everything you said in your article. Your article was uplifting and it is nice to know that we are not alone as we observe the very same dangerous and destructive things that you were brave enough to expose. I wish that there were more people like you in this world. I regularly hear the same hateful responses from Bush & Coulter sycophants stating that they won and we lost and we should get over it. Those of us who see the truth realize that this is incorrect and the ones who lost were Americans and it has been at the price of democracy. It grieves me that my son and others who are only children right now are going to wind up paying the price for the sins of such corrupt self serving individuals. That’s just not right.

God Bless you and your family!

Respectfully,
Dennis Taylor, Phoenix Arizona

You know when you have a sixth sense about things? Well, this may sound bizarre to some of you (and quite common to others) but I actually get a knife-pang in my gut when something is wrong, even distant things outside my sphere of knowledge or interest. Right after the 2004 presidential election, I had this severe pang -- a terrifying gut instinct. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that fraud had occurred, that electronic voting machines were rigged. A lot of people suspected this, but I KNEW there was electronic voting fraud in putting Bush in the White House. This wasn't wishful thinking, believe me I know the difference. And now it is proven to be true. Everyone who thought this -- and there were millions of us -- were instantly dismissed as crazy conspiracy-theorists. Even John Kerry was mysteriously acquiescent in accepting defeat. Why won't the mainstream media really pick this story up and bring it out to the people of America? Maybe it's too disturbing to even fathom that this could happen in our cherished democray -- and it is still tinged with that "conspiracy theory" label. But you'd think this would be front page news -- especially in light of the right-wing's rampant corruption, and the illegal spying on American citizens. And given the obvious propaganda of the Fox network, does anything seem past these people in the Bush administration or in the Republican party? You can read all about the voter-fraud scandal at BRAD BLOG

Heard someone mention to Tim Russert the other night that Bush's poll numbers were up last week (before his Oval Office address last night) simply because Bush is not talking about Katrina. This subject is off-limits because it makes his poll numbers go down. The White House will not remind anyone about Katrina, and as long as they stay off that subject, Bush can gain some ground. So they are deliberately not mentioning it! Nice Christmas present for those poor people down in New Orleans. Now that the mainstream media is focused on Barney and Mrs. Beasley or whoever the other Bush dog's name is, they don't have to shoot footage of things that depress everybody: the continuing chaos and poverty down in New Orleans. Those poor souls; God Bless them.

Narrow is the gate, not wide. Please read Craig Unger's article in the December 2005 issue of Vanity Fair -- an astounding, mind-altering article called "Apocalypse Soon! Evangelical Christians, the Rapture and the Big Business of Being Born Again" For years I had heard about this, but thought it was highly improbable. Now here is the hard evidence AMERICAN RAPTURE I believe this explains why we're in this mess in Iraq. It's the key to how this administration came to power.

For years I've been embarrassed to say out loud that I am a Christian -- because very un-Christian-acting fanatics and televangelists like Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell have made a mockery of the most loving, peaceful force that ever came to man -- but now more than ever, I feel we must turn this lunacy around. It is frightening what these people have done to our country -- and there are so many of them, that theirs is certainly not the Way. It is too wide. And I know this is true with every cell of my being. Remember, it is how we treat "the least among us" that counts. Tim LaHaye, Jerry Falwell, Jesse Helms, Pat Robertson, Tom DeLay, Ralph Reed, George H. W. Bush and W -- this cabal which includes top executives and CEOs is just part of the C.N.P., the New Right -- and they represent the EXACT OPPOSITE of Christ's teachings! They've taken their obsession with morality and their fear of Hollywood to such an extreme, they've lost compassion for their fellow man. Many of them have become homophobic, disdainful of the poor and cruel toward any human who does not meet their rigorous standards -- while ignoring their own pride -- the character defect which annoyed Christ the most! The news footage of looting in New Orleans gave them fuel for their bigotry. Can't they see that the economic system that created such a wide chasm between the haves and the have-nots has created Les Miserables! A culture that constantly advertises salvation through Nintendo, i-Pods and Plasma TVs creates an insatiable craving for stuff. Yes looting is bad, but looting pension funds is worse. Looting votes through Gerrymandering is worse. And to think the minimum wage is still only $6.75 an hour, while Congress votes lifetime pensions for themselves up into the six figures. Reaganomics and the trickle down theory didn't work because of the greed of the corporate executives, who take such a large slice of the pie they have to eliminate the actual workers! Churches are not tithing enough to support the needy. A society must take care of the "least among us." Then we will see amazing things begin to happen. And I'm not talking about a welfare state, by the way.

A lot of you already know about the power of this group of pharisees: they are very organized and already have millions of Americans manipulated into this self-serving, rapture-obsessed, un-Christlike agenda -- and this is how they took our beautiful country, our beautiful democracy away from us. You have to read this article. And our president, calling himself a Christian -- had a perfect chance to show our enemies how Christianity works, but he chose the opposite path.

** The idea of "Christians" obsessing about the rapture and spurring on war in the Middle East (all Jews have to be in Israel) to hurry along Christ's return (and subsequently destroying all Jews in Israel) is an absolutely dangerous, sophomoric, misguided idea. Certain of these fanatics and evangelical preachers should quiet their hearts and go within -- where God is -- to find the truth. And if fundamentalists take the bible literally, FUNDAMENTALLY -- then why not take Christ's very words literally? LOVE ONE ANOTHER. The kingdom of heaven is within. Looking down on sinners is not your job. (Even though, yes, I am looking down on you, which is not very Christian of me, I know.) But I can honestly say I've cleaned house and conquered a few of my major demons. I was a complete idiot before -- selfish and greedy. And I work on those things still, every day. Character change is it's an inside job. And pride (the sins of the Pharisees) is the sin Jesus spoke about more than any other sin

There's a great website I discovered called Slacktivist:Left Behind with insightful, hilarious critique of the LaHaye-Jenkins "Left Behind" books, which I think are not only sophomoric and badly written, but false and dangerous! By the way, there was a time when I was a Republican -- but that was before I got sober. It was when I was in my ego-stage: very self-centered and full of myself. And in fear of losing what I had or not getting what I wanted. As we shed our ego, we become more compassionate toward others, more concerned about social justice and saving our earth and helping other flawed humans -- not judging them, but helping them. There's a famous cartoon I saw shortly after the election: I can't remember the exact words, but two pot-bellied rednecks are standing around drinking beer, happy with being red: "Well, my son lost his legs in Iraq, veteran benefits got cut, lost my pension plan to Enron, got laid-off down at the plant, they canceled my health insurance, Bush vetoed stem cells which would have saved my daugther's life from brain cancer -- BUT I'M SURE AS HELL GLAD THOSE TWO GAYS DOWN THE STREET CAN'T GET MARRIED!" By the way, the marriage contract is a private contract between two individuals. How does it hurt anyone to let two souls honor their monogamy by allowing them the dignity any other human has a right to? I am heartsick at the bigotry I see in America today.

WE BEGGED BUSH NOT TO BOMB FALLUJAH OR START WAR IN IRAQ!! A Vision of Peace

Just received another smear in the comment section from Ann Coulter herself, or her apologist. This woman is never held accountable for inciting violence against people. Any other person who uses the media and airwaves for the perverse things she does, would be kicked off for even ONE of her bigoted comments. What kind of human being operates like this? Holding criminals accountable is part of Coulter's mission, isn't it? Then she should be held accountable for the death threats I received -- and for the abusive phone calls I am still receiving. I can turn the other cheek, but I wouldn't be worth much if I didn't hold her accountable.

Coulter is just a symbol of a decaying democracy, a symbol of the worst things about America right now. I am not interested in Coulter per se, I am interested in what she represents -- in how our culture enables this kind of destructive person not only to profit, but to bludgeon anyone who disagrees with her -- and somehow sway voters into believing you can't be patriotic if you don't support this "war". And she uses the airwaves to spread her propaganda like a bulldozer, with virtually no allowance for rebuttal. Has America really come to this: worshipping bully behavior and swaying voters to forsake common decency and civilized discourse? Fox network does not allow anyone to come on and tell the other side; O'Reilly and Hannity & Colmes do not allow rebuttal or diverse opinions when Coulter is on their shows. And we wonder about a system that allows media monopoly! Coulter came on and was allowed to play the victim and frame the entire UConn uproar in her own terms -- without a single student being allowed on Fox to tell their reasons for protesting her appearance.

I wrote to her thinking her public persona was probably just an act, as many people assume -- and that on a level of one citizen to another, one woman to another -- she would respond with dignity instead of publishing this comment: "Death is certainly sexier than Lydia Cornell" along my private phone number & e-mail! Several people have mentioned that this could be a sort of "code" to her fans -- advocating violence against me. What kind of human being behaves like this? A loving Christian woman? And you say I should not bring it up again. I want Coulter or her web host to remove my personal information, e-mail and home phone number off her website and apologize for her heinous statement to me. This is a serious issue and I still can't believe the Alachua Republican Party hasn't posted a statement on their website, admonishing Coulter for doing this. On Friday I was supposed to do Georgetown University Radio show, but their phones weren't working, so I listened to Anthony Bonna discuss the issue -- and I couldn't even comment. Although Anthony Bonna said some very nice things, he has no idea what I am still going through as a result of all this. He is not a mother nor is Coulter. She has no idea what it's like to care about the safety of your children or loved ones. My family and children have had that phone number for 15 years. Why should I have to change their number and live in constant fear now that someone has my home address? As I stated before, a man angrily appeared at my door the day after she posted it, and my kids had to duck down and hide inside our house.

Clarification: I received a letter from a guy named "REDNECK" saying that my article title was cruel. (Death is Sexier than Sex...to Ann Coulter.) I thought this was obvious, but since we live in an age where readers take everything literally and have no sense of nuance -- I will explain: my title is not meant to be anything but a play on words. After all, how can anything be sexier than sex? Well in this day and age, it seems only extreme graphic violence gets our attention. My kids are begging for "Halo", but I won't let them play such a violent video game. Reality TV is based on humiliating people; Jerry Springer gets high ratings because people like to watch people fighting. Ann Coulter incites people to anger with her 'hate-speak". If she stopped her name-calling and her outrageously extreme statements -- like advocating the assassination of Bill Clinton, wishing Timothy McVeigh had also blown up the New York Times building and using a baseball bat to talk to liberals -- she'd be rather boring. All I was trying to do was bring this odd phenomenon to light. Click here to read my original Ann Coulter article at BRAD BLOG

I found this statement while doing research: "Even Freud admitted that death was sexier than, well, sex. In his incendiary tract Beyond the Pleasure Principle, the grandfather of psychoanalysis admitted that something deeper than the search for pleasure motivates human activity. It's an instinct that's expressed most spectacularly in aggression or destruction, and makes the wish for oblivion overwhelmingly exciting. Freud called it the death drive."

What I want to see is a new era in which peace is finally sexy. It starts with really listening to each other and getting rid of our hidden ego-driven agendas. Although I have to admit, I pay far too much attention to the nay-sayers; if a hundred people are cheering and one is sneering, I'm bothered too much by the one who is sneering. That's because my ego is still in the way.

Cheers to the Nobel Peace Prize winners: Mohamed ElBaradei and the International Atomic Energy Agency -- and to Salma Hayek's beautiful statement: "When we can collectively, as a social conscience, dream a dream of peace, this is when peace will become a very tangible reality," she said.

What you focus on GROWS!

THE PHARISEES

Radio hosts are referring to the conflict between Ann Coulter and myself as a CAT-FIGHT. I am trying to turn the other cheek and let Coulter hit that one, but in case you are wondering, MSNBC's Keith Olberman just labeled Coulter as "the worst person in the world" for posting my family's private home number on her website (and refusing to take it down after repeated requests). Apparently she did this in retaliation for an article I wrote.Click here to read my original Ann Coulter article at BRAD BLOG
Now in my view, Olberman's words a little extreme, even for satire. But Coulter also posted my personal e-mail address on her site. I have been getting hate-mail and death threats from Coulter fans -- and a strange man even came to my front door. My children almost opened the door, but I caught them in time. (More details in the "Death Threats blog below.) I have written politely asking her to take my personal info off her site, but she has ignored me. Most of the mail I get is amazingly supportive though. It makes me even more convinced that I'm on the right path -- because good people would not retaliate with such ugly venom. But I will not live in a spirit of fear. Honestly, the way to talk to Coulter, O'Reilly... is to bless them and pray for them. Prayer has amazing power, if only we'd really have faith in it. All our doubts arrest God's work through us.

On Thursday night I did Doug Basham's progressive talk radio show in Vegas and we had the BEST time! He is one of the most passionate, thoughtful hosts! And he writes brilliant essays, psychoanalyzing the wing-nuts. Another of the best radio hosts I've ever talked to is Steve Kelly on KPSI NewsTalk 920 (an ABC affiliate in Palm Springs KPSI News Talk 920 He is able to really dig deep and get people to open up. Kelly really does his research and is so insightful and progressive -- you should really tune in and listen to him. Our interview aired Monday, December 5. Also did the David Allen show TheDavidAllenShow.com which was delightfully non-combative. But I guess it's not very sexy to have a show without some vicious callers and some combat. I apologize for that, but my mission is to be a peace-maker and bridge the divide between Republicans and Democrats. We have all become so militant toward each other, and I know why Coulter is such a shock-jock -- it's "political porn"; she gets a lot of attention for "calling for the killing of liberals". But she shouldn't go around calling herself a "public intellectual"; she is actually a performance artist. I just wish she didn't have the power to sway public opinion.

The main thing that Jesus severely warned against over and over -- the thing that annoyed him the most, were the religious leaders - the Pharisees. I just spent a week reading all four Gospels to my children. Above all else, we are supposed to love each other, love our enemies and those "sinners" who seem so vile to many church-goers today. I had a letter from someone who said, "You probably would pray for prisoners!" As if that's not Christian? What on earth do you think Christ came here to teach us? That everyone is worthy of redemption -- in fact, he hung around with the sinners & prostitutes -- they were the ones who most needed help and forgiveness. Christ taught mainly that we are to love one another. And we are supposed to leave judgment and vengeance to God. We are to return love for hate and bless those who persecute us (and those who are unlovable, those who offend us). Why do fanatics obsess about abortion and homosexuality, but never mention divorce - the one thing Christ himself actually mentioned as being wrong? Why don't they try to abolish divorce? By the way, no Democrat or sane person is pro-abortion or likes abortion. It's wrong of Coulter to call Democrats "the abortion party." This is horrible that she does this. We just don't believe that the government has a right to become like the fascists and control a person's own private body and their intimate relationship with God. There's a reason the womb is encased in the separate private body of an individual woman: it is between her and God, and her soul suffers the decision, as we are really spiritual beings, all connected to each other, all children of a loving God -- and all the wars are within ourselves. This is probably too metaphysical to understand but the key is inside us. Go rent WHAT THE BLEEP DO WE KNOW? The miracle in the water... The point is, we - a nation born of dissenting opinions - shouldn't be coming to blows over religion. And no government should impose their concept of God on others.

If you could step into our shoes for a moment, you might see it from our point of view. And when I say that line (the comedy line in the article "I never mix religion with politics, but .... don't they know that Jesus was a Democrat? ...) " it's a play on words, I am making fun of myself for combining religion with politics, which earlier I say I never do -- so please try to get the frustration in my voice. Here is what I mean: Jesus spent most of his time caring for the poor and the sick and the sinners, the ones many Pharisees think are too immoral or dirty to touch. He sat on the ground and washed the feet and the sores of the lepers. He told us to leave judgment and vengeance to God. And I admit I am being judgmental when I judge our president for lying to rush us to war. Did he lie? Well, I guess we have to let the courts decide. But when I looked into his eyes during the election, I did not see a man of God, a Christ-like man, had done everything he could to prevent our precious young soldiers from heading off to a tribal hell-hole. Love casts out fear, but I saw Bush operating from fear and retaliation, not Christ-like principles. It's one thing to declare war, but to use God and Christianity as your justification, is abominable. Every cell in my body knew this was wrong. I admit I am stubborn, judgmental and sometimes obnoxiously righteous and I hate that about myself. If I've offended anyone here, I am sorry. I hope you'll forgive me so we can move past this primitive level to the spirit of what I am saying.

Normally a person like Coulter wouldn't bother me so much, it's like watching South Park - but she has actual power to sway elections, or at least she did in the last two. This means she had friends in high places of inflluence, and this scares me that we have now inflamed the world against us for some evangelical mission that was never Christ's intention. Creating violence to bring on Armageddon faster? Are we living in the Dark Ages?

"How has my life been made more loving by my faith?" If it isn't making me a lighter, better, happier more generous person, then maybe I should try to see where I am clinging to the text in the wrong way. The key is hidden in plain sight. A great start is Emmet Fox "The Sermon on the Mount." It liberated me! "Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly!"

I did 8 radio shows across America last week. Aside from KPSI, David Allen Show, Radio America's Battle Line with Alan Nathan, an early morning Florida show all over the east coast, plus the other night in Tennessee with Harrell Carter. I will be on Doug Basham in Vegas tonight at 11 p.m. and with the Young Republicans of Georgetown University this Friday, rush hour drive time from 3-4 p.m. Yesterday, Tuesday, December 6, I did 3 different radio shows -- including KPQ AM with Ken Johanssen in Washington State and Leo Nadequ in Connecticuit. He doesn't like the Democrats or the Republicans. We had a great time talking about peace.

Here is a letter that really encouraged me:

Hi- I called you earlier today and left a voice mail message (Well, I tried, but I think my message got lost- I got static and a few beeps on my end). I kind of felt afterward like I had violated your privacy in calling, even with a supportive message, so if I did, I'm so sorry.

I just wanted to say that I read your posts and I think they're great. I SO agree with you and it's high time that the "Christian left's" existence be known. I, like many others, am a liberal BECAUSE I'm a Christian.

I feel badly for you that Ann Coulter did what she did- I Wish she would wake up and realize that the way she behaves is totally lacking in class, morality, or any hint of Christianity. I just don't understand how she became so full of hate. But, instead of hating her, while I already know that she wants me and some of the people I love to meet a brutal death, I will pray for her, as I know that you are.

I admire your class and thank you for speaking up. I grew up watching "Too Close for Comfort" and it's so nice to see an actress I liked as a young girl become a woman that I admire for her convictions. (I'm not too much younger than you, though- I'm 33)

Please keep writing- You have a gift for getting your point across and showing what REAL Christian values are.

Love you all and God Bless you Ann Coulter!! Lydia

GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS AND BRING THEM HOME!

God Bless the mothers who have lost children -- and the wives and children who have lost their beloved husbands and parents. We have to hold them in constant prayer. Support our troops by bringing them home! We can't lose another precious American life to these terrorist monsters. I wish that people who are not in favor of this war, were not smeared as "unpatriotic". I have the flag flying outside my house; we are the most patriotic people I know. Just because you cannot fathom this war, doesn't mean you don't SUPPORT OUR TROOPS. I have never seen a military with more courage than this one. God Bless you and keep you.

Here's an excerpt of a letter I got (there's another one that really touched earlier in the week, posted in the prior blog):

"Keep fighting the good fight. Ann Coulter is one of the meanest people in American politics, and she seems to care nothing about little things like facts and truth. She's an embarrassment to sane conservatives."

I want to publicy say that I was wrong about Stafford Jones, the Chairman of the Alachua Republican Party. He's a good guy working very hard down in Alachua County, and Lord knows he's had his share of troubles. He left a very thoughtful message the other night. We have each extended an olive branch to each other in this Ann Coulter mess (read blogs below). I apologize for not giving him the benefit of the doubt. I think we were both suspicious of each other, coming from opposite ends of the spectrum. Actually, we have a lot in common - we both want a safer, better America. We have the most magnificent country on earth, and we have to join together and stop this bickering between the parties.

Have been on seven radio shows across the country this past week, including Radio America and others from Florida to Tennessee to California. I will be on in Las Vegas next week, pluus several right-wing shows coming up -- including Georgetown University Radio www.georgetownradio.com next Friday from 3-4 p.m. They're pretty conservative too. I'll attach links to these in the morning. Just wanted to update you.
Luv xoxo
Lyd

DEATH THREATS and JOSEF STALIN

I don't want to live in fear, but I got my second death threat today, and also a strange man came to my door. My kids were home from school and almost opened the door. For Coulter to put my FAMILY'S home phone number on her front page, knowing it would incite her fans, is unconscionable, and it continues to get worse. I have run the gamut from feeling horribly guilty, stupid for putting our home phone number on a private letter to Coulter, (but I wrongly assumed she was a normal person with the class to realize this was a private communication) and now -- very frightened for my children -- for writing what I thought was a comedic article about my frustration with this war & utter bewilderment over this new militant form of Christianity. Click here to read my original Ann Coulter article at BRAD BLOG The Coulter fans who have been contacting me are rabid hate-mongers, because every nasty e-mail and call I have gotten has been someone telling me Coulter is "enlightened and speaks the truth and I am nothing but an idiot and a failure whose films & TV shows no one cares about." One guy threatened to shoot me and another said he woudn't have minded if I had been blown up in the World Trade Center attacks. "You liberal idiots and your ilk should have been standing in a line at the WTC when they were hit. I for one would not have minded." I honestly wouldn't think of publishing this guy's e-mail address because I don't want him to get hate mail from wackos like I'm getting. Although I am saving the letter just in case anything happens to me or my family.

We are not all despicable, Godless abortionists. Most liberals are so meek, so full of desperation to help the poor, they come off as a bit mushy and disorganized, wearing bad sweaters. I am new at this but as a mother of boys and a Christian (well, at least I love the Christ truth, but the religious right-wing is turning the world off to Christianity.) I have to speak out against corruption and a truly illegal war that is rapidly killing off our best and our brightest. I wish our troops were home to protect our own borders.

Edmund Burke said, "Evil triumphs when good men do nothing." So by speaking out against this woman, I feel I am at least doing my duty to young people. People wonder how the Nazis took over: because good people remained silent early in the game. Fear. But Love casts out fear. And it's not just Coulter alone we are concerned with; it's the fact that she is the most vitriolic voice in support of the lies and the rush to war. She is directly linked to the brain-washing and the smearing of good people who are trying to have an open dialogue. And she wears the cross on TV. These new type of mega-chruch Christians are packaged to believe she is "on the side of good" because they are spoon-fed this new twisted version of Christianity based on this abortion myth -- that all liberals are unborn baby-killers. I am not pro-abortion! I am liberal in my open-mindedness and love for humanity. And I am sad for these wonderful people -- they have good hearts and think this new corporate form of Christianity is truth, but if they really, REALLY study Christ's own words and see behind the letter to the spirit, they will know things in their heart that no fire and brimstone-rapture-invoking preacher can tell them. I always have to look at my hidden motives: what am I protecting and in fear of losing? For example, these dangerous "Left-Behind" books warm the hearts of people who care about eternal life, their own salvation. Looking down on those sinners left behind who didn't declare Jesus as their savior, makes them feel superior. But true Christians would not worry so much about saving their own lives; you have to lose your life to save it, which means get off thinking about your own salvation so much! And do you think a God of Love would really throw one of his own children who had lived a life expressing the very love Christ came to show us -- a person who feeds the hungry, gives to the poor, loves his neighbor as himself -- do you think he would throw him into eternal hell simply because he was Jewish or Hindu... or Ghandi? Simply because this person didn't declare jesus as their savior -- while walking as Jesus walked? Jesus himself said not to focus on the letter (rules) but the spirit of his law. It's LOVE, he himself was pure love. Abide in love is what he meant. He could have cared less if you said his technical name -- because if this is true, what happens to all the unborn babies on the way who never learned his physical name yet? By the way, Jesus LOVED the heathens, the lepers (AIDS victims of this day), the sinners, the prisoners - these are the meek ones no one wanted to touch. Please see "Walk the Line" - the Johnny Cash movie. The best line in the movie is when the record exec says to Johnny (paraphrasing): "Your fans are church-goin' Christians; they wont' like it if you sing to prisoners (at Folsom prison)." To which Johnny says: "They they aren't Christians are they?" It dawned on me that God used Johnny Cash BECAUSE he was broken; the other brother who died as a young boy, was already going to be a preacher, too perfect, too by-the-book. Cash went to hell and back and could serve the world better with his form of "preaching" -- singing to the downtrodden heathens that no Pharisees would touch.

Here is a still from the recent episode I did of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" on HBO see "The Christ Nail" video clip right here And you can click on another promo called "Bra Tease" under Featured Clips. Larry David made me laugh so hard I couldn't keep a straight face doing improv with him; he's a comic genius. So was Ted Knight, of course, who played my dad. He taught me wondrous things, like how to do a "spit-take" without drooling. I miss him so much (and Audrey Meadows); we used to laugh until we cried everyday. And I miss John Ritter, who used to pop his head in during rehearsals. Hard to believe all these great comic actors are gone. God Bless Dorothy Knight, Ted's wife, who recently died. My brother Paul died ten years ago yesterday. He was my angel. (I love you and miss you so much.) I remember when he showed me in a vision that there is no death; we are spiritual beings having a human experience and our soul's growth is all that matters.


I do standup comedy and have written comedy for years. Most of what I write has a tinge of humor to it. I wrote a book on Stalin's plot to kill Trotsky. Stalin feared Trotsky because he knew the "pen was mightier than the sword"; Trotsky was a brilliant writer and could sway people to his side. Obviously I am not accusing Coulter of being Stalin or physically killing 60 million people. That was a bit of my humor or "satire". But the dictator was a narcissist (a person so full of self-hate he projects it onto others and cannot bear imperfection). Stalin had no humility or empathy for others, and no true interest in other's lives or opinions. It was HIS way or the highway. You know how wonderful a good conversation is -- when you can share each other's viewpoints and consider new ideas? Well normal human beings that are not sociopaths; they engage in conversation with a certain delighted inquisitiveness and open-minded interest in others. I love people who can admit they're wrong, that they make mistakes. God knows I screw up all the time; I need forgiveness everyday. Admitting your mistakes is a sign of strength, not weakness. Only those who have shaky self-esteem have to always appear to have the upper-hand, to be"right" and in control. There were many qualities about Stalin's personality that were pathological, socio-pathological: an inherent disinterest in other human beings, a disregard for other's feelings entirely. A superiority, an elitism that disdained underlings. Doing research at the library one day I looked in the card catalogue under Stalin's name and the strangest thing came up: Alcoholism. Stalin was a delusional alcoholic who grew power-mad. Other names that came up under alcoholism: famous writers like Dorothy Parker (barbed wit), HItler and Mussolini.

"By their fruits you shall know them". (Scripture-quoting is not really my thing, but this seems relevant.) What constructive thing has a destructive critic ever shown us that she has created with her God-given talent? Destruction -- tearing down others -- to promote a war that has increased our enemies around the world. I love this country. America is the best nation in the world and I am tired of apologizing for being upset over this war! How can anyone in their right mind not want our troops home? I can't bear to hear of another young soldier dying! I fly the American flag, I am a patriot, I have family in the Marines, this beautiful goodness and light we used to represent to the whole world has changed. We are no longer the nation people look to for protection, for moral "rightness", or fundamental laws of faith in the universe. I wanted my children to be able to travel the world someday -- to London, Paris, Rome, Madrid and Athens -- even to Egypt to see the pyramids -- without fear of being called the "Ugly American" or worse, attacked. We have carpet-bombed entire cities, white phosphorous on little Iraqi children, ruined ancient Babylonian treasures and glorified corruption in government: these are the fruits of this administration. Corn syrup sweetner and Ambien are not constructive! And Bush has the chance to join the great minds in finding a solution to global warning but he doesn't seem to think its a priority. A new Kyoto treaty -- and we are not involved!

Here is a link to the most inflammatory Coulter hate-speak. http://www.bradblog.com/archives/00001939.htm. The reason we are speaking out, and I am writing this book with a conservative Christian who has been working for over four years on every single statement Coulter has ever put in her "books" -- is because we believe Coulter is the most verbal evidence of what is wrong with our beautiful country. I am frightened for young people to be swept up in a tide of hatred, because young students are so easily influenced by charismatic speakers. I am so sad anyone would hire Coulter to speak -- because her words are very provocative and stimulating and ugly; she incites people to go against an entire group of fellow Americans. A house divided does not stand. This woman is not a patriot; she divides people. My whole point was to shine a light on Coulter's hate-speak (and some of you don't do your research.) And of course her defenders, (who think they are defending America) are turning it around and saying I am spewing hatred toward her. I know my intentions are loving. I intend to show love toward Coulter and pray for her. But first I must speak the truth and not hide what I know. God is very personal to me -- I had a catastrophic spiritual awakening and a series of spine-tingling miracles through prayer. Now I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God exists -- in fact this may be the only thing I know for sure. But God is love and should never be used to justify war, hatred or judgment by humans. And the bible is still being written because we are still living our history. Why do people think it all ends -- it's still going on! Every godly person is writing the living Bible right now. We are spiritual, not material and our battles are truly within ourselves. Love is the essence of everything.

Others, here on my own site have said I am an idiot to confront Coulter, a person doing this just to get attention." Attention like this no one needs. I have spent all these years staying out of the limelight to find my soul, get rid of my obnoxious ego, fall in love, raise children, gain a real life, experience pain and the death of loved ones, deepen myself -- I have never posed nude, have turned down countless offers to cheapen myself with reality TV or by selling products I don't believe in. I am raising a child with a genetic defect whose mother abandoned him -- and I've had a major crash and burn which turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. Now I figured out the key to life, and I want to share it -- just like other people before me in their own way, but this article came out way before I had a chance to tell the real story. I never intended my article on hate-speech to reach anyone but a few Dems. I never expected anything like this.

Extra stuff: I had no idea the comments on blogs could become so venomous! Some are wonderful, but others are bizarre. But how can one prevent free speech and open dialogue? Actually the ugliest and most personal attacks against me have come from the right-wing, and all I ever wanted to do was shine a light on Coulter's hate-speak. I never call for the hurting of Republicans, I would never incite or jokingly provoke people to hate a whole group of people, but Coulter does this to Democrats.

Frankly I am new at this, and all ever want to write about these days is about God. I have had a remarkable journey of faith, and the last thing I ever wanted to do was create hatred and division.

I read this comment on Huffington Post somewhere: "For perversely hypocritical reasons, the misguided Christian right has convinced itself that the way to emulate the most gracious man to ever live is to be exceedingly ungracious to others." And if I have been ungracious or offensive in any way, I am deeply sorry. I will work on this pundit thing.

God Bless you! Sorry this is so long.