I Made a Profit From Fraud in the Mail

I got a piece of direct mail from disgraced soldier Alan West yesterday, notable because it had a dollar bill peaking through the address window.

Was that a real dollar bill? It was. 

I wonder how many people threw it out in the trash?  At least half, I imagine.

The letter was, ostensibly, from the "Congressional Prayer Caucus Foundation" whose God seems to be having problems both raising money and being omnipotent. Who would have guessed a religion based on talking snakes, mud people, zombies, and old men in dresses ... passing out edible proxies for human flesh and blood ... might not have it altogether?

The crisis of the moment, it seems, is that someone, somewhere, at some time (they were a little vague on the details) said the United State was NOT A CHRISTIAN NATION.

Huh. 

I remember someone using that EXACT phrase.

In fact I have read the original text ... in Tangier, Morocco.

It's in a document signed by the second President of the United States which is known as the Treaty of Tripoli.  In the treaty, Morocco is coming to the aid of the U.S. in putting down Barbary pirates which were raiding U.S. ships.

Not only is the United States NOT a Christian nation, but we are in fact created in OPPOSITION to the idea.

The U.S. Constitution contains no mention of Christianity or Jesus Christ and, in fact, mentions religion only twice, once in in the First Amendment which BARS "establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof," and in Article VI which PROHIBITS "religious tests" for public office.

Both of these provisions are very clear evidence that the U.S. was, and is NOT founded as a Christian nation, Muslim nation, Jewish nation .... or anything else.

So who, or what, is the "Congressional Prayer Caucus Foundation?" 

A look at their web site suggests it's nothing more than a direct mail scam designed to separate gullible old people from their money.  It was started in 2005 by Randy Forbes, a former Virginia Member of Congress. 

It's not too surprising this thing comes out of Virginia, as most of the right-wing direct mail charlatans got their start with direct mail scam-man Richard Viguerie. 

The entire program of "activism" for the Congressional Prayer Caucus Foundation seems to be posting one short blog post a month. 

The web site of the organization says Alan West is the "Honorary Chairman" of the group (what's that mean?) and say he is CEO of the "National Center for Policy Analysis".

 What they fail to say is that the National Center for Policy Analysis ceased to exist in mid-2017, so the web site has not been updated in at least 2 years.

So what am I going to do with this free dollar ? 

I'm going to find some homeless person to give it too .... just like any decent atheist would do.