OK, so this article is not entirely about this Hollywood power and glamour couple, but I did get your attention right? So now that I have it, please read on, since it does have a fair amount to do with Brad Pitt at least, and especially his mother, and even some to do with Angelina Jolie.
By now most of you would have heard of the major controversy which has arisen because of some remarks made recently by Jane Pitt, Brad’s mother. Indeed, all hell seems to have broken out because she dared to suggest that Christians should not be voting for Obama for president.
Her letter appeared in a newspaper on July 3. It said this: “I have given much thought to Richard Stoecker’s letter (‘Vote for Mormon against beliefs,’ June 15). I am also a Christian and differ with the Mormon religion. But I think any Christian should spend much time in prayer before refusing to vote for a family man with high morals, business experience, who is against abortion, and shares Christian conviction concerning homosexuality just because he is a Mormon.
“Any Christian who does not vote or writes in a name is casting a vote for Romney’s opponent, Barack Hussein Obama — a man who sat in Jeremiah Wright’s church for years, did not hold a public ceremony to mark the National Day of Prayer, and is a liberal who supports the killing of unborn babies and same-sex marriage. I hope all Christians give their vote prayerful consideration because voting is a sacred privilege and a serious responsibility.”
Way to go Jane! She is 100 per cent right in everything she wrote. Foolish Christians who think they can just sit out this American election will have blood on their hands big time. And anyone who calls himself a Christian who dares to vote Obama back in also will have blood on his hands.
So she was absolutely correct in everything she said. And for daring to share her Christian beliefs in public, the homosexual hate squad in particular, and the secular left anti-Christian bigots in general, have come out in force big time. One article offers a bit of background here:
“Obama has been labeled the ‘abortion president’ because of his radical views on the ‘right to choose’. His pro-abortion views are so extreme that he has even opposed protections for victims of failed abortions who are born alive. As a state senator in Illinois, he voted against a bill that would require abortionists to provide care to an infant who is born alive during the course of a failed abortion. The legislation was brought forward after Jill Stanek, a nurse at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, exposed abortionists’ practice of abandoning babies born alive after failed abortions, leaving them to die in a hospital utility room.
“In January, he marked the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade by praising the ‘fundamental constitutional right’ to abortion. Obamacare, his hallmark legislation that was upheld last week by the Supreme Court, has been called the largest expansion of abortion since Roe v. Wade.
“Jane Pitt’s letter has generated controversy in part because Brad Pitt is known for his liberal views on social issues—he and partner Angelina Jolie famously vowed not to marry until all same-sex couples could as well—and only months ago he backed Obama in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. ‘I’m an Obama supporter, no question,’ he said.”
The hate mail and death threats – as expected – have been pouring in hot and heavy. Another report says this: “After news of her letter broke, Twitter lit up with messages such as ‘kill the b—h’ and ‘Brad Pitt’s mom, die.’ She has since declined media comment, something many speculate is motivated by fear for her safety.”
Yep, more sweetness and light from the tolerance brigade. Just what we have come to expect from those who scream the most about the need for acceptance, tolerance and openness. And the story has taken more turns since then. “Academy Award-winning actor Jon Voight, the father of Angelina Jolie, said he stands with Jane Pitt, who has received death threats since publishing her views supporting the rights of the unborn and traditional marriage—and opposing President Barack Obama.”
But wait, there’s more: “She is soon to be her daughter-in-law. But Angelina Jolie is not exactly seeing eye-to-eye with Brad Pitt’s mother Jane. In fact the actress is reportedly ‘mortified’ by her. The 37-year-old Tomb Raider star was apparently left outraged after her future mother-in-law urged readers of a local Missouri newspaper to vote against President Barack Obama because of his support of gay marriage.”
There you go – here is a case of sane, moral and rational parents disagreeing with their immoral, irrational and radical lefty kids. Go Jane! Go Jon. Boo Brad. Boo Angelina. Columnist Michelle Malkin offers a bit of common sense and rationality on this entire brouhaha:
“Hollywood and the American left love diversity, except when it offends their ‘progressive’ value system. Witness the reaction to actor Brad Pitt’s mother, Jane, who publicly opposed President Obama’s re-election. Mrs. Pitt’s pro-life, anti-gay marriage statement to her local paper last week enflamed the Tolerance Mob. And her mere expression of dissident political views exposed the glittering hypocrisy of the left-wing ‘No H8’ campaign….
“Self-appointed Tinseltown anti-bigotry cops blew their tops. The Hollywood Reporter labeled Mrs. Pitt’s letter ‘anti-gay.’ Gossip website Global Grind, founded by rap mogul Russell Simmons, called her ‘homophobic.’ Perez Hilton, an L.A.-based gossip website operator and hanger-on to the stars who fronts the’No H8’ gay-marriage movement in California, pounced on Mrs. Pitt as ‘mommy dearest.’
“Hilton angrily scrawled across a photo of Mrs. Pitt with her son: ‘A vote for Romney is a vote for God.’ After taking obligatory potshots at Christians, Hilton, who calls himself the ‘queen of all media,’ fumed: ‘Ugh! How can one woman birth such a beautiful boy, but have such unattractive views???’
“You want ugly? Hilton knows ugly. He’s the same trash-mouth blogger and former beauty pageant judge who attacked Miss USA contestant Carrie Prejean with misogynistic profanities in 2009 because she said she opposed legalizing gay marriage at the federal level in favor of states’ rights to put the question up for a vote. ‘She lost not because she doesn’t believe in gay marriage,’ Hilton railed. ‘She lost because she’s a dumb bitch!’
“You want ugly? When word of Mrs. Pitt’s letter spread on social media late last week, Twitter lit up with a stream of death threats, smears and slurs. My Twitter curation site, Twitchy.com, compiled just some of the vile bile aimed at Mrs. Pitt for supporting traditional values and standing up for the unborn:
“‘BRAD PITT’S MOM WROTE AN ANTI-GAY PRO-ROMNEY EDITORIAL. KILL THE B***H.’
‘Brad Pitt’s mom, die’
‘F*** you, Brad Pitt’s mom. The gay community made your kid a star, you whacko.’
‘Brad Pitt’s mother…what a brainless old b***h…’
‘Brad Pitt’s Mom Slams Obama, Gays. That stand makes her a deluded, dumba** Fascist Repuke’
‘I hope Brad Pitt has been supporting his mother and decides to cut her off. What a b***h.’
‘Brad Pitt’s mom can choke on a (redacted).’
“The usual civility police were in their usual place when the No H8 bullies mauled Mrs. Pitt: nowhere to be found.”
She concludes with these spot-on remarks: “The overwhelming majority of Hollywood libs live in a fantasyland bubble where every Obama critic is a racist, every pro-life activist is a terrorist and every defender of traditional marriage is a Neanderthal. Hold a mirror up to their hatred, and they’ll call it an incitement to hatred.
“Ironically, the iconic ‘No H8’ campaign logo features celebrities with their mouths taped shut with duct tape to symbolize how they’ve purportedly been silenced. It’s classic psychological projection from the practitioners of repressive tolerance.”
Exactly right Michelle. It does not matter who you are – if you dare to express a differing point of view from the secular left militants and the pink mafia, you will be hunted down and destroyed. That is simply how the tolerance brigade operates.
You better keep Jane and Jon in your prayers. It sounds like they sure need it right now. Millennia ago someone else was crucified for his unpopular views, and I am sure these lefty trendies who oppose the death penalty would be happy to make an exception in some of these cases.
Thanks for alerting us Bill.
Thanks Jane and Jon for speaking up for life and truth.
Jasmine Yow
South Australia
I still recall that some leftist media commentators made the ludicrous connection between some cross-hairs on a map in some Sarah Palin publicity and the shooting of an Arizona Congresswoman, amid calls for ‘civility’ in debate. Apparently it wasn’t even likely the gunman had seen/read it, nor apparently, even if he had, that this absolved him any less of responsibility – ie. 100%
Nevertheless, there was all manner of morally patronising screeching that claimed that debates were being marred by a ‘lack of civility’ from conservatives and that leftist politicians were in danger everywhere. (It’s so stupid I can’t believe that such ideas are even articulated by the dumbest people, let alone given status as ‘stories’ by the media)
Where are these people now? No doubt justifying this responses of all those who are literally calling for the death of Jane Pitt and probably passively approving of this by shifting the blame onto her by accusing her of being ‘inflammatory’ or something like that.
Leftists = double standards. It is that simple. Michelle Malkin nails it with this part of her article (which I’m quoting again so maybe someone might actually consider that the gay lobby do not mean the general population well). Do we really want these people involved in law-making unchallenged?
“The overwhelming majority of Hollywood libs live in a fantasyland bubble where every Obama critic is a racist, every pro-life activist is a terrorist and every defender of traditional marriage is a Neanderthal. Hold a mirror up to their hatred, and they’ll call it an incitement to hatred.
“Ironically, the iconic ‘No H8’ campaign logo features celebrities with their mouths taped shut with duct tape to symbolize how they’ve purportedly been silenced. It’s classic psychological projection from the practitioners of repressive tolerance.”
I found this blog article citing a poll by Pew basically confirming what we already knew – that leftists hate, are intolerant, and more likely to be incapable of even conceiving that other people – including their friends – have different opinions than their own.
“We’ve all seen the examples in our own lives where liberals assume that everyone in the room must be liberal because they simply can’t conceive of anyone thinking differently. And we’ve seen how shocked, how angry, and how vile they get when they hear that people have different views. And we’ve seen how they ignore all evidence which conflicts with their beliefs and how they dismissing (sic) any source which shakes up their world. We’ve seen it where they are incapable of good faith disagreement. We’ve seen it where they think nothing of using government force to impose their beliefs on others. We’ve seen it where they try to make words and thoughts into crimes and where they apply double standards based on their guess about your motives rather than looking objectively at your actions. These numbers confirm that liberals are indeed what they appear to be: an intolerant group who are so self-centered they don’t understand that their friends don’t share their views and who are so intolerant that their friends are afraid to tell them the truth.”
I had this experience earlier this week when I had a conversation with two friends who got extremely agitated that I would even get them to maybe consider the possibility that there might be alternate views on a topic that was of relatively minor importance. I literally said this to them (and then at least three times very very deliberately and slowly) “You might very well be right about everything you have said – all I am asking you is whether or not you have heard another view on the issue.” They were literally aghast that I could even suggest such a concept. I was accused of not listening. Yes, you guessed it – virtually all of their lives they have listened to the ABC and nothing else and they are convinced they have a reliable and balanced source of information at their disposal.
They are good friends and always will be, but I find such blindness so very very sad, and it is almost entirely due to leftist media. Back to the main topic, I am sure Jane Pitt’s and Jon Voight’s consciences gives them no trouble. We should stare past the ogres of intimidation and continue to revere something higher and much bigger than that – the truth. Because reality always eventually wins and we should be motivated to know it, even as we discover along the way that we are wrong about some things. But holding to viewpoints in defiance of evidence is not healthy.
Liberals claim to want to give a hearing to other views, but then are shocked and offended to discover that there are other views. – William F. Buckley Jr
Mark Rabich
Dear Bill, When people resort to abusive language to justify their positions, they shoot themselves in the foot. Barrack Obama may need to be choosy about his supporters. I hope Mr. Romney is elected in November.
Regards, Franklin Wood
Absolutely Mark
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Wow, what an amazing story on so many levels. How could such an awesome woman have such a screwed up son? I wonder if she raised him in the church. While we are praying for her safety, let’s also pray that Brad Pitt, a soul for whom Christ died, is set free from the evil clutches of the true enemy, the lord of darkness and his hordes. Imagine the shock waves that would reverberate around the world if some of these big name celebrities were born again. It’s not impossible!
Dee Graf
Good summary of all the players and their positions and rhetoric and very revealing concerning the fad hatreds of the ostensibly non-hateful. Great expose’, Bill.
Joe Whitchurch, US
When people have resort to abusive language aimed at the person, it means that they cannot intelligently refute what the person had to say. Abusive language only tries to intimidate, threaten or bully another person into backing away from their position, or abandoning it altogether. Many times this crude tactic works to the abuser’s advantage.
This is why Christians have to expect persecution, stand up against persecution, and not back away from the truth. Alas, too many Christians do the opposite, or just become complacent toward the worldview, playing along with it, even though everything inside their being screams, “It’s Wrong!”
Monica Craver
Yes, Dee, many of us have children who do not walk with the Lord and it breaks our heart after we have asked ourselves a thousand times what we have done wrong in raising them. But children are people in their own right, making their own decisions with their God-given free will. Thanks for your prayers for people like Jane and Jon and, at the moment, my husband and I, though we always pray for better things to come.
Many blessings
Ursula Bennett
Monica, absolutely brilliantly stated. We as Christians need to be ready to proclaim the truth regardless of whatever persecution may come. Where else can we expect the unsaved to hear the truth? Definitely not the mainstream media.
Mario Del Giudice
“Foolish Christians who think they can just sit out this American election will have blood on their hands big time.”
I’m guessing you don’t think Deuteronomy 17:15 applies to Christians only voting for Christians, then.
John Dekker
Thanks John
Sure, if you are an ancient Israelite living in ancient Israel it would be quite appropriate. But I take it you are not. Trying to make that a binding absolute for today’s Christians would be foolish and unbiblical in the extreme. Then you would have to condemn Paul for telling all Christians to support the pagan Roman rulers of the day as he does in Romans 13. One might as well counsel Christians to only buy bread from Christian bread makers, get milk only from Christian dairies, get their shoes shined only by Christian shoe shiners, and read books only by Christian authors.
Sorry, in a fallen world we often do not have the luxury of only voting for a Christian POTUS, or anything else for that matter. We often send our kids to pagan schools, pay our taxes to pagan rulers, and submit ourselves fully to our pagan doctors. Those Christians pushing a false and Pharisaical “purity” here are just that – Pharisees. And I believe they will have blood on their hands big time for allowing an ungodly abomination like Obama to get back in.
Dear Bill,
if we are going to have the courage to continue to speak the truth in love, (which includes loving people enough to tell them the truth they don’t want to hear) we are going to need to get beyond being shocked, hurt or offended, at the diatribe against expressing a Christian world view or even as ‘Absolutely Mark’ – (great comments by the way) mentions, by even just suggesting people consider another point of view other than their own. May we seek to be winsome but nonetheless, graciously authoritative.
Peter Magee
Such compassion for little furry creatures (not from Alpha Centauri for H2G2 fans) looks lovely, but for real people…???
John Angelico
Concerning your reply to John Dekker, how can you be so sure that this OT text does not apply with equal force today? If we start picking and choosing the texts we’ll obey, who knows where it will end?
Ted Jacobs
Thanks Ted
But please tell us when was the last time you did what was commanded in Leviticus 13:9-11. Or Lev. 13:47-50. Or Lev. 22:26-28. Or Lev. 27:22-23. Pardon – what’s that you said? You did not do these things? You thought they did not apply to you? But wait a minute here: ‘If we start picking and choosing the texts we’ll obey, who knows where it will end?’
There is not one Christian in the world who does not pick and choose between various Old Testament laws. If he sought to obey them all, he would be a Jew, not a Christian. As anyone with even a basic knowledge of Christianity 101 knows, there is both continuity and discontinuity between the Testaments.
Jesus himself told us some things were no longer binding for believers today. If he could be selective in this way, then why cannot we? Of course to do that does not depend on mere personal preference or whim, but on proper hermeneutical principles. But such selectivity is something we are commanded to do as Christians.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Are we still not aware that the PERSECUTION of Christianity is in full swing? The ‘Boss’ said if we stand up to be counted we could be big trouble… Well why are we not standing up “en masse” to overturn the legislation passed in Australia’s parliaments regarding fullterm abortion, the sacrament of marriage, lobbying for removal of Christianity from our schools, public places. Denying opportunity to include God in our children’s activities, ie. girl guides recent deletion of “God & Queen” from their allegiance. Wake up Australian Christians, let our pollies know they are supposed to be working for US. They don’t want to loose their jobs so let them know when we are not happy with their laws and decrees, and ask them to change them.
Lorraine Twentyman
By now most of you would have heard of the major controversy which has arisen because of some remarks made recently by Jane Pitt, Brad’s mother. Indeed, all hell seems to have broken out because she dared to suggest that Christians should not be voting for Obama for president.
Thanks for alerting us Bill.
Thanks Jane and Jon for speaking up for life and truth.
Jasmine Yow
South Australia
I still recall that some leftist media commentators made the ludicrous connection between some cross-hairs on a map in some Sarah Palin publicity and the shooting of an Arizona Congresswoman, amid calls for ‘civility’ in debate. Apparently it wasn’t even likely the gunman had seen/read it, nor apparently, even if he had, that this absolved him any less of responsibility – ie. 100%
Nevertheless, there was all manner of morally patronising screeching that claimed that debates were being marred by a ‘lack of civility’ from conservatives and that leftist politicians were in danger everywhere. (It’s so stupid I can’t believe that such ideas are even articulated by the dumbest people, let alone given status as ‘stories’ by the media)
Where are these people now? No doubt justifying this responses of all those who are literally calling for the death of Jane Pitt and probably passively approving of this by shifting the blame onto her by accusing her of being ‘inflammatory’ or something like that.
Leftists = double standards. It is that simple. Michelle Malkin nails it with this part of her article (which I’m quoting again so maybe someone might actually consider that the gay lobby do not mean the general population well). Do we really want these people involved in law-making unchallenged?
“The overwhelming majority of Hollywood libs live in a fantasyland bubble where every Obama critic is a racist, every pro-life activist is a terrorist and every defender of traditional marriage is a Neanderthal. Hold a mirror up to their hatred, and they’ll call it an incitement to hatred.
“Ironically, the iconic ‘No H8’ campaign logo features celebrities with their mouths taped shut with duct tape to symbolize how they’ve purportedly been silenced. It’s classic psychological projection from the practitioners of repressive tolerance.”
I found this blog article citing a poll by Pew basically confirming what we already knew – that leftists hate, are intolerant, and more likely to be incapable of even conceiving that other people – including their friends – have different opinions than their own.
http://commentarama.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/liberals-are-intolerant-who-knew.html
I had this experience earlier this week when I had a conversation with two friends who got extremely agitated that I would even get them to maybe consider the possibility that there might be alternate views on a topic that was of relatively minor importance. I literally said this to them (and then at least three times very very deliberately and slowly) “You might very well be right about everything you have said – all I am asking you is whether or not you have heard another view on the issue.” They were literally aghast that I could even suggest such a concept. I was accused of not listening. Yes, you guessed it – virtually all of their lives they have listened to the ABC and nothing else and they are convinced they have a reliable and balanced source of information at their disposal.
They are good friends and always will be, but I find such blindness so very very sad, and it is almost entirely due to leftist media. Back to the main topic, I am sure Jane Pitt’s and Jon Voight’s consciences gives them no trouble. We should stare past the ogres of intimidation and continue to revere something higher and much bigger than that – the truth. Because reality always eventually wins and we should be motivated to know it, even as we discover along the way that we are wrong about some things. But holding to viewpoints in defiance of evidence is not healthy.
Liberals claim to want to give a hearing to other views, but then are shocked and offended to discover that there are other views. – William F. Buckley Jr
Mark Rabich
Dear Bill, When people resort to abusive language to justify their positions, they shoot themselves in the foot. Barrack Obama may need to be choosy about his supporters. I hope Mr. Romney is elected in November.
Regards, Franklin Wood
Absolutely Mark
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Wow, what an amazing story on so many levels. How could such an awesome woman have such a screwed up son? I wonder if she raised him in the church. While we are praying for her safety, let’s also pray that Brad Pitt, a soul for whom Christ died, is set free from the evil clutches of the true enemy, the lord of darkness and his hordes. Imagine the shock waves that would reverberate around the world if some of these big name celebrities were born again. It’s not impossible!
Dee Graf
Good summary of all the players and their positions and rhetoric and very revealing concerning the fad hatreds of the ostensibly non-hateful. Great expose’, Bill.
Joe Whitchurch, US
When people have resort to abusive language aimed at the person, it means that they cannot intelligently refute what the person had to say. Abusive language only tries to intimidate, threaten or bully another person into backing away from their position, or abandoning it altogether. Many times this crude tactic works to the abuser’s advantage.
This is why Christians have to expect persecution, stand up against persecution, and not back away from the truth. Alas, too many Christians do the opposite, or just become complacent toward the worldview, playing along with it, even though everything inside their being screams, “It’s Wrong!”
Monica Craver
Yes, Dee, many of us have children who do not walk with the Lord and it breaks our heart after we have asked ourselves a thousand times what we have done wrong in raising them. But children are people in their own right, making their own decisions with their God-given free will. Thanks for your prayers for people like Jane and Jon and, at the moment, my husband and I, though we always pray for better things to come.
Many blessings
Ursula Bennett
Monica, absolutely brilliantly stated. We as Christians need to be ready to proclaim the truth regardless of whatever persecution may come. Where else can we expect the unsaved to hear the truth? Definitely not the mainstream media.
Mario Del Giudice
“Foolish Christians who think they can just sit out this American election will have blood on their hands big time.”
I’m guessing you don’t think Deuteronomy 17:15 applies to Christians only voting for Christians, then.
John Dekker
Thanks John
Sure, if you are an ancient Israelite living in ancient Israel it would be quite appropriate. But I take it you are not. Trying to make that a binding absolute for today’s Christians would be foolish and unbiblical in the extreme. Then you would have to condemn Paul for telling all Christians to support the pagan Roman rulers of the day as he does in Romans 13. One might as well counsel Christians to only buy bread from Christian bread makers, get milk only from Christian dairies, get their shoes shined only by Christian shoe shiners, and read books only by Christian authors.
Sorry, in a fallen world we often do not have the luxury of only voting for a Christian POTUS, or anything else for that matter. We often send our kids to pagan schools, pay our taxes to pagan rulers, and submit ourselves fully to our pagan doctors. Those Christians pushing a false and Pharisaical “purity” here are just that – Pharisees. And I believe they will have blood on their hands big time for allowing an ungodly abomination like Obama to get back in.
But I discuss all that in much more detail here:
https://billmuehlenberg.com/2012/05/13/on-mitt-romney-and-americas-future/
And here:
https://billmuehlenberg.com/2012/05/17/on-mormon-presidents/
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Dear Bill,
if we are going to have the courage to continue to speak the truth in love, (which includes loving people enough to tell them the truth they don’t want to hear) we are going to need to get beyond being shocked, hurt or offended, at the diatribe against expressing a Christian world view or even as ‘Absolutely Mark’ – (great comments by the way) mentions, by even just suggesting people consider another point of view other than their own. May we seek to be winsome but nonetheless, graciously authoritative.
Peter Magee
Gossip website Global Grind? I googled for them, and found this:
http://globalgrind.com/news/globalgrinds-commitment-compassion-no-fur-leather-details
Such compassion for little furry creatures (not from Alpha Centauri for H2G2 fans) looks lovely, but for real people…???
John Angelico
Concerning your reply to John Dekker, how can you be so sure that this OT text does not apply with equal force today? If we start picking and choosing the texts we’ll obey, who knows where it will end?
Ted Jacobs
Thanks Ted
But please tell us when was the last time you did what was commanded in Leviticus 13:9-11. Or Lev. 13:47-50. Or Lev. 22:26-28. Or Lev. 27:22-23. Pardon – what’s that you said? You did not do these things? You thought they did not apply to you? But wait a minute here: ‘If we start picking and choosing the texts we’ll obey, who knows where it will end?’
There is not one Christian in the world who does not pick and choose between various Old Testament laws. If he sought to obey them all, he would be a Jew, not a Christian. As anyone with even a basic knowledge of Christianity 101 knows, there is both continuity and discontinuity between the Testaments.
Jesus himself told us some things were no longer binding for believers today. If he could be selective in this way, then why cannot we? Of course to do that does not depend on mere personal preference or whim, but on proper hermeneutical principles. But such selectivity is something we are commanded to do as Christians.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Are we still not aware that the PERSECUTION of Christianity is in full swing? The ‘Boss’ said if we stand up to be counted we could be big trouble… Well why are we not standing up “en masse” to overturn the legislation passed in Australia’s parliaments regarding fullterm abortion, the sacrament of marriage, lobbying for removal of Christianity from our schools, public places. Denying opportunity to include God in our children’s activities, ie. girl guides recent deletion of “God & Queen” from their allegiance. Wake up Australian Christians, let our pollies know they are supposed to be working for US. They don’t want to loose their jobs so let them know when we are not happy with their laws and decrees, and ask them to change them.
Lorraine Twentyman
Unbelievable!
Steve Davis