Republican Senator callously says 'biblically, we are supposed to work' to millions set to lose health care
The former billionaire, who inherited a coal mining business from his father, presides over a state where 29% of residents are on Medicaid
When Senator Jim Justice of West Virginia was asked about the Senate Republicans' newly released portion of the proposed spending bill that requires parents of children older than 14 to work for Medicaid, he said, "biblically, we are supposed to work."
https://www.irishstar.com/news/us-news/republican-senator-callously-says-biblically-35431207Open linkView original on discuss.online703
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Imagine being responsible for hurting so many people and turning around and think you're a good Christian quoting Bible crap. I wish Jesus was real and coming soon, so he could slap you in the face. This is not what he meant (or the writers of what he said about loving each other, anyway).
If Jesus was real and did come back we'd probably never know because he would get deported and die in a Salvadorian torture prison.
Or put back on a cross. To paraphrase the comic about aliens asked about knowing Jesus, "Yes, he always comes back around to visit every year or so. We gave him donuts. What did you guys do?"
Soon we'll all be Trumptians anyway once he invades the Vatican and elects himself Pope.
Imagine the irony if Bethlehem is his set spawning point and every time he tries to return he ends up getting murdered by Israel before he can form a coherent sentence.
No, JESUS. You know, white Jesus.
most of these "Christians" only go to EVANGELICAL churces/ televangelists. they dont go to just normal ones, it almost always are these politically connected churches.
You know, I don't recall Medicaid being mentioned once in the bible.
I do seem to remember something about giving all of your possessions to the poor though. But maybe I am imagining that.
The socialism that Jesus taught would carry over to cover medical care that simply didn't exist at the time. It's funny how "socialism" is used by some as a bad thing...there is nothing wrong with society taking care of the citizens, it's sort of the point of having it.
We are a post civil society. Everyone thought we were heading towards post capitalism but apparently there are some detours along the way.
Post civil police state
Then why doesn't this guy get a real job?
He "make a hard d'cision"
Like CEOs
It’s weird how Christian dominionists never mention the Jubilee. You’re supposed to forgive all debts every seven (edit: 7 sets of 7, 49) years, and you can’t really own land - God does.
The only parts they read in Leviticus are the ones about killing gays though.
They certainly skipped 18? 19? where it directs people to treat foreigners in your land like the native born.
That verse you posted said 7x7 years, so every 49 years, with one year off after, so a 50 year cycle. Then I guess they "buy" land throughout the next 50 year cycle based on how many years remain. Ie, if it's 25 years into the cycle, the price for a field might be half off. Not a terrible system really, for the age. At the end of the cycle, it all goes back to the "clan" to be resold again.
Jesus famously didn't give bread and fish unless you'd been working real hard that year.
Supply Side Jesus
Always love a chance to share this comic:
https://imgur.com/gallery/gospel-of-supply-side-jesus-bCqRp
Wierd he paid someone handsomely. I figured he would say do it for the reviews or experience.
Luke 14:13-14
Luke 3:11
"luckily, I have 50, so this doesn't apply to me."
Puritanical work ethic bullshit coming from the mouth of someone with hands that have never known callouses.
Fuck his shitty religion; he can shove that fairy tale book up his ass. I don't give a fuck what "biblically" we are supposed to do.
Don't you just love this fucking bullshit dripping from the mouth of a parasite who's never seen hard times?
I do actually agree with the core of this idea. Most people are not happy in a state of long term indolence. Most of us need 'work' to be happy. However, that 'work' might be carving sculpture, teaching children, breeding plants, or theoretical physics.
How many Albert Einsteins and George Washington Carvers died of blacklung from the mines this parasite inherited?
Constitutionally, your Bible is irrelevant.
Probably the most relevant book ever written, certainly the most read.
Please finish this sentence: “Congress shall make no law…”
No. Sorry, but the people, events, and even societal structures relevant to the Bible are all long dead. Therefore, "relevant" is factually incorrect.
Now, I do fully agree that there are plenty of stories in that book that highlight good morals, and healthy ways to think about yourself, the world around you, and you fit in. Unfortunately, there's also plenty of regressive authoritarian propaganda that does not have any beneficial message to it, not to mention bizarre and disturbing filler.
That said, to decide the entire collection inherently somehow has more importance than other books is not helpful, untrue, and puts you on a frame of mind where it becomes way harder to actually learn from the morals of the story so to speak.
For better or worse, it is, after all, just a book.
Stupid fairy tale is about as relevant as the Greek myths.
The problem is that the Bible was written by multiple authors over the course of hundreds of years. (Oldest bits are like 1000ish BCE, but those are scraps of poetry that were integrated in later, probably dating back to when Yahweh was a married storm god - early Jews were henotheistic)
It’s not a consistent voice, not all views in each book (or even within the same book) are consistent. The big misinterpretation is that it is ultimately not a unified text - it’s a collection of history, poetry, and philosophy written by people who often had political axes to grind (so much of OT is about Israel versus Judah, maintaining a unified identity during the Babylonian occupation, etc)
The way it has been interacted with and interpreted is critical to understanding most of human history.
Saying “lol Bible dumb” and stopping there is lazy 14 year old on r/atheism thinking that will cripple your understanding of about 2000 years of human history.
Cry harder about someone dismissing your shitty fairy tale used to oppress society. Fuck religion and what it has done to people
I’m not a Christian.
The Epic of Gilgamesh is fiction too, but it’s useful in understanding Mesopotamian society.
Cool bud, I don't want nor care to understand them. This isn't about ancient cultures. This is about modern day and how people utilize their mythology to oppress minorities and women, and in this specific instance, the working class.
In fact, that's all religions have ever been good for: allowing the ruling class of the respective era to lay down dictates which are used to oppress those under their rule.
They, and their stupid collection of fairy tales, need to fuck off and shove their shitty excuses for their shitty behavior up their fucking ass.
So there’s no reason in understanding the ideology that people are using to oppress people? We should refuse to learn more and just say “nah it’s stupid” because we don’t agree with it?
Ignorance is not something to be proud of.
Relevant to whom?
Answer the question.
Ftfy
You mean Harry Potter?
Yeah sure. It also says we are supposed to be stewards of the earth and take care of each other as if we are brothers and sisters. Yet they push legislation to destroy the earth under our "biblical" care and treat others like criminals and garbage. But please go on with your corperate bullshit. The Bible says not to take the lords name in vein. That doesn't mean shouting "god fucking damnit" when you stubborn your pinky toe. I means using your diety as the reason for entirely unbiblical bullshit. So, basically, go fuck yourself dude.
Amen
"Don’t rob the poor just because you can, or exploit the needy in court. For the LORD is their defender. He will ruin anyone who ruins them."
Proverbs 22:22-23
He needs to start doing some ruining then. He can start by having Venice sink into the sea during the Bezos wedding, wiping out many of the worst Sociopathic Oligarchs of the world.
That would be one hell of a recruiting move, for any deity that feels low on converts.
I'm.... Honestly unsure if you're kidding or not
Depends on the translation ofc but yeah that's really what it says
Does this person think managing a household with the bare minimum cash flow isn't work? Perhaps he can put himself on the streets with the clothing on his back, $20 and no access to his or family money, phones, electronics, for a month and survive, then come back and tell us how it's not working.
Who the fuck cares what the Bible says? I'm under no obligation to live my life guided by fairy tales someone else believes in. If you want to be dumb enough to fall for that, be my guest, but don't use it to justify immoral behavior.
Yeah... about that...
Even more nuts that they specifically want it to be that way to coerce people into working in order not to be left to die
Healthy enough to work or sick enough to die.
That's what they want. Work or die. It's that black and white for the
slaveworking class.but social safety nets make exploitation and control harder to keep
Entrepreneurship doesn't pay for lobbyists to bribe politicians though
James 5:1-6, NRSV
Moth-eaten, you say?
We are everywhere
yeah and "biblically" we're supposed to be feeding, clothing, washing, and housing the homeless as Jesus commanded. We're supposed to be taking care of the ill, as Jesus commanded. We're supposed to "love thy neighbour" and treat everyone, regardless of their gender, race, sexual orientation, equally as Jesus commanded.
But of course we're not doing any of that and according to the Bible and Jesus that's an instant ticket to "Hell".
If Heaven exists it must be a fairly empty place.
Any politician who publicly states that their religion should be the basis of any law should immediately be [redacted] multiple times in the face with a 12 gauge [redacted]
think biblical, on a cross, crucified.
Yes, these politicians should be redacted.
Wait wait wait wait. You're telling me, a bunch of poor rural white people elected an out-of-touch billionaire who never worked a day in his life, and it's news that he doesn't give a flying rat's ass about those he represents?
Well fuck me sideways.
Biblically, this man should be stoned to death for wearing cloth made of differing fibers.
Incorrect, there wasn't a single stoning recorded for wearing mixed fibers, that's just some hokum the ratheist community settled on for some reason
Please quote Leviticus 19:19 and Deuteronomy 22:11 and tell me what you think wool and linen are.
Are you in the regular habit of just disappearing when you make such direct and bold statements then get called out on it for lying?
The face of hard work:
He looks dead and soulless behind that veneer smile.
Why aren't these rich assholes able to buy cloths that fit?
I know it's a side issue to their evil, but it doesn't make any sense.
"I'm going to wear an expensive suit, but you're too poor for me to allow you to take my measurements"
He's at an age where his body is changing rapidly in unexpected ways. It will happen to you, again.
One down, 900 to go.
Cool, so he follows the bible and is saying people should be working just as much, or little, as him, right? RIGHT!? What a joke.
I remember hearing about journalists as a kid, the ones who would actually ask questions and investigate. Not just reguritate whatever word vomit these troglodytes spew.
Great, then he should have no problem voting to strip himself and his fellow congressmen of their 100% government funded healthcare.
What was it again with rich people getting into heaven and the camel/rope and the needle?
A scripture so inconvenient that they had to spend a good chunk of the last 2,000 years contorting an explanation for why the obvious reading must be wrong.
Legally, you're supposed to do your fucking job and get America such good healthcare it makes Europe blush. Not die on camera in the middle of a photoshoot before your mouth can fully form your war crimes.
Maybe a religious text isn't a good basis for a government
I guess you don't know your history very well...
I'm not saying it's not used as the basis for many governments, I'm saying it's not a good one
again history proves you wrong, how can you be so deliberately stubborn?
So you're saying that it actually is a good basis for government? Or are you saying it's not used? either way, you're incorrect
What are you trying to say, here?
Would you mind sharing with us how that history played out?
If you take even a few minutes to check you'll find that most governments older than 300 years were founded on a religious basis, and Rome was a pretty long running empire that was largely based on religion just as one example.
The modern drive for secularism is an outlier in human history, and according to the way the world looks now, secularism is on the way out.
I'm not saying I like the direction its going but there are pretty clear warnings that conservative evagelicalism is becoming as culturally foundational as a thing can be in the coming fascist regime.
You have this smug attitude that stems from your ideological values, and somehow feel saying things like 'religion bad mmmkay' is sufficient to turn the world away from the coming regressive religious dark age.
But it isn't, and really just makes you look foolish.
Humans have a hole in their brains in the shape of rituals and shared language that we neglect because 'religion just the opiate of the masses amirite?' and now you are seeing the pendulum swing back.
That was not an answer to my question.
I'm a Christian, and I have no clue what he is talking about.
I would point out how the old testament also talks of owning slaves but since the reds are mask off fascists, that is unironically their goal as well.
Can you name 3 differences between chattel slavery and indentured servitude? I can name five but I don't expect you to be as well researched.
This is a nit pick. The bible permits the selling and owning of people as property. Whatever you want to call it, that is immoral.
Yes I agree it is immoral and detestable and was also the softest option for the day. No other contemporary culture had any protection for indentured servants, yet the Bible demands it at the threat of community judgment against the harsh and cruel masters. And the children of indentured servants were free citizens.
Compared to today it was still brutal and inumane, but was the MOST humane option for literally 3000 years. It's just not progressive compared to today's values.
And today's values won't seem very progressive to progressive humans in 3000 years either, something you are probably incapable of understanding.
That only applied to Jewish slaves.
As long as you don't pretend the bible didn't permit slavery were all good.
Lol. Fare well you unreasonable person. Hope you actually read the bible some day.
Go for it, we're all really interested
And he chickened out.
the status of your child does not tell us whether or not you were a slave
this is just false. Foreign slaves were kept for life.
see 2
somw slaves having a "better life" than some free people is a common whitewashing tactic, which doesn't make it not slavery.
having restrictions against the cruelest and most injust masters does not mean it isn't slavery.
Can you tell me who wrote the Bible?
Douglas Adams?
What is the relevance to what I said? Servant and slave are both used in the bible, are you claiming only the US has ever had slavery?
Fuck you too asshole.
Biblically, this man is going to hell.
Biblically you shouldnt hoard power and wealth and yet that taint of a human does.
Luke 12:27-28
That bible?
They’re talking about the Bible where it says “Work shall set you free”.
That's a different bible with a different title. It's really close, so maybe that's why they confuse it. But that testament they are quoting from is actually called "Mein Kampf".
Biblically, slavery was acceptable and part of the gospel.
You say that as if that's not what the regressive actively want to return.
Biblically, all sorts of fucked up stuff was common.
Jesus Christ, famously against feeding and healing the poor.
Biblically, we are supposed to be relaxing and taking care of our home.
Work is a divine punishment. I am no Buddhist but this dude didn't read the Quran properly.
Obviously he misspoke. He meant to say “you”.
Says the man who never actually read a Bible in his whole life.
And why should he? I mean first of all it's a dumb, boring and incompetently written fictional book, but moreover, imthere is a lot in there that says he and people like him are the bad guys, and who wants to read that?
It doesn't sound like he has worked a day in wretched life.
Jim Justice Has worked really hard at screwing over everyone who is not a billionaire.
Biblically, he can suck my cock and nosebang my asshole
With all due respect, Jim Justice can get fucked by his imaginary sky daddy. Biblically. The rest of us don't wanna hear it.
Its always the old white zombies with the L takes.
Get that fucker in a field where the farmers can't retain other workers!
Will no one rid me of this meddlesome millionaire?
That's pretty much what a medieval feudal lord would say. I think people like this have exactly this understanding of themselves: they claim a vague, God-given right to rule over their subjects – a crude excuse for their crimes and inhumanity.
Fuck you. Murder me outright.
You first.
I wish he had black lung instead of just his employees.
Awesome. But. It every job gets you healthcare benefits. And not every job pays enough to afford healthcare through ACA. So fuck off.
Edit: should read, “But not every job…”
I've worked hard labor, while either:
not being provided healcare (many chain stores keep you at 34-36 (I forgot the exact amount) hours a week so you are as close to full time as possible while still being technically part time, or they give you 10 hours a week, no bennies offered either way.)
being offered cheap healthcare that covers nothing with $9000 deductible,
and decent healthcare I couldn't afford, $80 a week, I was that broke (childcare+rent is like paying 2 rents), but still had the $5000 deductible and copays.
We work, and we still don't get healthcare.
Well, not federal anyway. My state does okay, but it is easy to be in the gap of not qualifying for state medical, yet still unable to afford employer insurance that may or may not cover necessary care.
I'm assuming that's a typo, and you don't really think every job has benefits.
iOS strikes again.
Piss on your shitty book.
Which Bible? The Pimp’s Bible?
Never read the Biblical, TF has it got to do with me?
Biblically, tho.
He does not deserve Babydog.
…says the guy who's never worked for a living
Tell that to your lazy ass donors