Bob: Good Works are a Form of Idolotry

If Bob Dutko didn't exist, you couldn't make him up.

Fresh back from his "mission" trip, Bob spent a considerable amount of time on Tuesday criticizing Pastor Rick Warren for his so-called "P.E.A.C.E. Plan".

Bob apparently thinks that Warren is devoting too much time to helping the poor and healing the sick. You see, Bob thinks these good works are getting in the way of what Bob thinks should be his number one mission: converting people to Dutko-brand Christianity. Bob claims that Warren isn't pushing Christianity in this initiative and is (God forbid!) working with non-Christians to achieve the goals of the initiative. Bob prefers the "Compassion International" model of charity where if you don't receive the lecture about Jesus and eventually proclaim that you're a True Believer, you don't get the food, clothing, and education paid for with Bob's money.

Wow.

Now, first off, I think Bob's dead wrong about Warren not pushing the Christianity. One of the features of his initiative is to "Plant Churches." That sure sounds like Christianity promotion to me!

But more importantly, I have to wonder just how calloused is the heart of Bob Dutko? Does he not have the ability to show compassion and be charitable without demanding a measure of fealty from the recipients?

Bob's idea of compassion is completely opposite of mine. I routinely give my time and money, as well as donating my blood, without demanding that the recipients of this charity have religious beliefs that match my own. In fact, these religious beliefs never even crossed my mind. The only thing that's important to me is that I'm helping the recipient(s) survive and prosper. That's what makes me feel good about doing it.

Bob's Iraq News Bubble

I have to wonder how Bob keeps him insulated from the reality of what the United States has done to the people of Iraq as a result of our invasion and occupation.

Today, Bob decided to berate American Muslims for not supporting George W. Bush and the Republicans after they launched the disastrous war in Iraq. Bob called this "a problem that exists even among moderate Muslims in America." Bob wanted these Muslims to self-examine their thoughts on this issue. After all, look at all the great things that Bush and the Republicans accomplished:

• Removed Saddam Hussein
• Went to war with (and defeated!) al-Qaida and "the terrorists"
• Wiretapped telephone calls from "terrorists"
• Profiled Muslims getting on planes

Bob thinks moderate Muslims should be cheering on Bush for all these "accomplishments".

Well, Bob, let me give you my thoughts why Muslims, as well as reasonable, compassionate persons of all beliefs, might not be so super duper happy with George W. Bush and the Republicans:

In short, the U.S., under orders of George W. Bush, took a stable, functioning state (Iraq) made up primarily of Muslims, and turned into a non-stop, hell-like war zone. Sure, Iraq was no paradise under Saddam Hussein. But at least the vast majority of people had a decent existence and didn't fear for their lives and future at every moment. Let's look at George W. Bush's actual accomplishments in Iraq and the "war on terror" in general:

1. Hundreds of thousands of dead Iraqis.
   
2. 1.4 Million Iraqis that are displaced from their homes.
3. Over $600 billion spent for the Iraq War alone.
4. Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, the men behind the 9/11 attacks, have still not been captured or killed!
   

Our invasion of Iraq utterly and irreversibly screwed up Iraq and shattered the lives of millions of Muslims. And of course, all Americans, including the Muslim ones, will end up paying for this debacle for decades to come.

Does that clear things up for you Bob?

Bob Almost Says The Right Thing. Almost.

On Tuesday, Bob showed we have one thing in common: We both can't stand Fred Phelps.

For those of you who might not know, Rev. Phelps is the pastor of Westboro Baptist Church and is so against homosexuals, he goes to military funerals to protest His reason? He believes that troops are dying in war because America has become tolerant of gay people.

Yeah, he's a scumbag. And even Bob thinks so.

Problem with Bob is that in countering the arguments of Rev. Phelps, he decided to read off Bible verses saying that we should love our enemies and do good to those who persecute us (Christians).

But Bob doesn't believe the rules apply to him. He believes it's fine to demonize people (even other Christians) who have different political opinions than him. When it comes to the war in Iraq, he believes that instead of withdrawing and putting troops into the just war in Afghanistan, we should continue an unnecessary war in Iraq. And while I haven't heard him say it (I don't listen to Bob as much as I used to), he probably feels the same way about Iran.

If only Bob agreed with his own words, his world view would be much better.

Sorry, but the Obama Attacks Must Continue

A couple weeks back, during "free-for-all-Friday," a loyal listener called in and asked that Bob lay off Barack Obama just a bit. This listener was a Christian and a conservative. His humble request was that Bob take simply one day and make it Obama-free because it was getting hard to listen every day to the constant attacks.

Bob refused.

I recently found this blog post from a listener to the show. He warns Bob that his continuous attacks on Barack Obama will alienate Bob's black, Christian audience.

I hate to break it to these gentlemen, but the attacks on Obama will continue unabated until the election. Every day. Several times each day. Why? Because Barack Obama is a Democrat and has a different view on a few social issues (i.e., abortion) than Bob. Really, that's it in a nutshell. It doesn't matter that Obama wants to end the war in Iraq and bring our troops home from that meat grinder. It doesn't matter that Obama wants to ensure healthcare is available and affordable for all Americans. All the initiatives that Obama wants to help out working families -- well, they don't matter either. Because Obama is a Democrat, and as should be self-evident to anyone who listens to Bob for any period of time: Democrats are bad. Oh, and if Obama wins, you can count on four long years of attacks on President Obama. Unless, of course, God is merciful and Bob's shows are finally canceled.

As we've said on this blog countless times before: Bob is simply a shill for the GOP. He may profess to be a Christian, but he certainly doesn't speak for all Christians. He says he is "pro-life", but supports a war that has killed over 4,100 U.S. service men and women and tens of thousands of Iraqis. He says he employs "logic and intellectual reasoning", but, as we've shown so many times, Bob really just trades in lies and deception.