Are Political and Religious Identities the Same?

There's noble, brave, unwavering, and solid.  And then there's dishonorable, unsteady, compromising, and flighty.  To many conservative Christians, county clerk Kim Davis would embody all of the former traits with her stance against issuing marriage licenses to same-sex partners. From this act she's apparently earned the reputation to have the real character of an American follower of Jesus.  She's got that grit and determination to not move an inch from her beliefs.  She's the image of standing on the Word of God.  It's political drama at it's most mediocre.

Feed the Fire

In an era where kids in the safest suburbs on the planet are determined to emulate the lives of small-time drug dealers and petty thieves, Tony Lewis, Jr. is shelving the kingpin nature he was born with in an effort to save a city.  His father, Tony, Sr., and Rayful Edmond III were the guys in Washington D.C. that by many accounts are responsible for funneling tons of cocaine into the District during the 1980s.  This brought Junior into the world in the lap of luxury, but it gave his hometown the murderous and cold reputation that has stuck with D.C. ever since then.  Tony, Jr. would soon come to discover the truth behind the perception; as immediately after his father received a life without parole sentence in 1989 he and his mother were thrust into poverty and prey.  However, unlike so many that have experienced this transition, he didn't simply assimilate into his environment.  With assistance and determination, Lewis walked the path of humility and service and now is deeply engaged in community activism.  That's pretty impressive for someone who was submerged into smugglers' culture at birth; and it's another example of a person's beginnings are only as important as that person makes them out to be.

World Police Indeed

Years ago a friend of mine was seeking refuge.  He had gotten into a very heated argument with his live-in girlfriend and was taking what he believed (and we did too) the proper steps to avoid anything physical.  She had already gotten physical; and when he arrived to where we were he played the message of her saying she would do it again with her male family members...classic stuff.  Anyway he was ready to leave her and needed to get some of his things for work the next day.  He knew however, that stepping in that apartment without police presence would cause another exchange that he couldn't trust himself handling well.  So we went to the police operations station who did receive us.  But when he told the story, the officer shrugged it off and told us to beat it.  He further expressed the need have an escort, which the officer replied to saying "if something violent happens, call us."