Why is it that the worst thieves and scoundrels always try to find cover for their thievery and misery they bring by invoking religion. And in fact when a traditional religion such as Christianity or any other recognized religion does not accommodate them, they just go ahead and conjure up brand new made up ones like global warming, homosexuality, multiculturalism and who knows what else.
Few however are as ridiculous as the latest such display by none other than the most corrupt and despicable of the thieves and scoundrels that have so thoroughly infected the current political system. Charles Rangle an individual with a self inflicted moral root canal actually called on the name of Jesus Christ to justify his thievery. This scum bag actually invoked the name of the Lord to cover up his most un-Christian actions of stealing money from hard working people
Make no mistake this is not money that will reach the poor anyway but rather money that will line the pockets of Rangle and his supporters and cronies just as the trillions stolen under the guise of “stimulus” have already gone. Nowhere in the Bible did Christ condone confiscation of funds to be redistributed to someone else.
Few things are as anti-Christian as confiscation and redistribution of money!
Charity out of love is what Christianity preaches not forced redistribution of money. The former is a beautiful means of connecting with our Lord and Savior the latter does the opposite. How can anyone be charitable out of love if instead the government forces you to give your money? Free will is the center of Christianity, confiscation negates that and thus it is absolutely anathema to Christianity!
It is also worth noting that in social matters like abortion and homosexuality and marriage Rangle is not so willing to invoke the name of the Lord!
To presume that one knows what the Lord would do is not an easy thing to do for a Christian- Rangle notwithstanding.
It is however a little easier to try to determine what the Lord would not do!
For example I ma pretty sure that the Lord would not appropriate for Himself a four homes – homes that were subsidized with the taxes of a mostly Christian nation – that were meant to house the poor and those who could not afford other housing. Rangle of course did just that taking control of four rent controlled apartments ! To further illustrate how Rangle helps the poor it is worth nothing that the building’s owner , Olnick Organization, booted other tenements for not occupying their apartments but not Rangle.
I guess Rangle believes that taking homes from the poor is what Jesus would do !
While Rangle preaches “forced” charity he himself is not so given to the more traditional type of giving. To wit Charles Rangle failed to pay taxes on more than $600,000 in assets, $500,000 of which was cash in a savings account, and $145,000 in rental income on a Harlem townhouse, and failed to report rental income for his property in the Dominican Republic . We can start by wondering how this crook is able to gather $500,000 in cash and all the additional assets and a lavish vacation property on the salary of a life long “public servant”. We also wonder why Rangle preaches that the rest of us confirm to his version of “what would Jesus do” while he himself evidently subscribes to a completely different course of action.
We further wonder where in the Bible did Rangle read that self aggrandizement is a Christian trait that would be approved by Jesus? As Politico.com writes ” he [Rangle] lobbied his colleagues to approve millions of federal tax dollars for the Rangel Center.
Those getting Rangel solicitation letters included several corporate-affiliated charities, including those tied to Verizon, AT&T, Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Bristol-Meyes Squibb, and Wachovia, among others. Rangel also solicited money from mega-rich celebrity Donald Trump.
Rangel was seeking $30 million from these foundations.
As chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, Rangel had a role in setting tax rates on all these companies.”
His efforts did not go unanswered “The Ford Foundation gave $1 million to the Rangel Center, while the Starr Foundation – which was linked to the failed insurance foundation AIG and its former CEO Maurice “Hank” Greeberg – kicked in $5 million. Verizon gave $500,000.”
Rangle’s constituency has been among the poorest in the country for all of the 40 years that he represented them. During that time Rangle exploited his position and his constituency to gather an enormous amount of riches for himself. How far would the $30 million dollars that Rangle tried to blackmail for his Center go in a community that is ravaged by drugs and crime? Four families would be able to live in the four rent controlled apartments that Rangle controlled. How far would the taxes that Rangle failed to pay on his Harlem townhouse rental income or on his Dominican Republic vacation mansion.
That we allow such a scum bag to walk the halls of congress instead of being tarred and feathered is a living reminder of how far we’ve declined