Warning: Rant Ahead

(along with plenty of righteous indignation)

I include the link to an article about an alleged murder. Aside from the personal interest that it is my home church mentioned and one of my brothers is quoted, I felt compelled to comment on the details (as I often do), in both the article and the blog-like comments which follow it.

If you choose to read the article, my comments will make more sense. If not, you may sit back and enjoy a brief offering of logic in a world which sorely lacks it.

1) Innocent until proven guilty, whether you like it or not.

2) Regarding Cindy's comment: I cannot believe a church would condone murder.
Umm, did she even read the article? As stated by the minister, the fundraising is for legal fees, "We're not saying (Mandichak is) innocent or guilty."

3) Cindy again: The family members are affluent in their church community.
Umm (again), the article says "active", not "affluent". Moreover, a church which struggles to meet budget each year is not affluent, and no one, except maybe starving Africans or Asians, would call Maple Shade an affluent town.

4) Regarding the suspect's picture:
Wow, he has changed a lot in 18.5 years! (Wow, do I feel old!)

5) No body was found (as of the 1/28/08 posting date).
The police say they have ample evidence for a murder conviction, but I'd be that darn stickler causing a hung jury because, without a body, how can I be certain that someone is dead?

6) The victim's uncle, the alleged accomplice, believes he might be the father of the victim's baby.
I'm amazed that the commentors care more about criticizing a church for raising money for someone's legal defense than they do about the incest that (most likely) occurred, which leads the uncle to think he could have impregnated his niece in the first place.

7) Frank appears to want to change the sentencing and parole system.
Based on what we read in the article, we don't know why the suspect was paroled for an earlier crime. The commentor needs to get off his high horse.

8) Dear Poor Me:
He can, but that is up to God, isn't it?

9) To Johnny:
Oh, yeah, because only atheists and agnostics are capable of murder.

10) Jim apparently is an expert in everything simply by living in the same town. He can know through osmosis that ...that church is a complete joke.
I guess he must have missed the nearly 100 afghans knitted by church members each year for needy people and disaster victims... or the free water given out during each summer's street fair while every other vendor is selling something... or the food donated for needy families... or the school supplies donated for needy children... or the money collected for various world charities while the (aforementioned) budget never seems to have enough for fixing windows, replacing threadbare carpet, or installing air conditioning.

11) Jim continues, that whole church can rot in hell.
Has guilt by association ever worked? (There's also something about the sins of the father visited on the son, but I have neither a Bible nor a copy of Bartlett's handy.)

12) Jim won't stop ranting: Poor girl had a baby to raise...
Pardon my tendencies toward being literal and logical, but the article said nothing about the "poor" girl's financial situation, let alone how complicit she may or may not have been in becoming pregnant before finishing high school and then choosing to give birth and keep the child.

13) I'm getting tired of Jim, but I have to respond to this one, too: The baby will have no mother and looks like no father either.
Do you mean "no father" or "no uncle"? :)

14) I'm not sure if a Spanish-speaking Jesus is leaving a comment or if the Son of God Himself is speaking up. Who's raising money to help baby Miciana?
That would be a good question to ask the reporter.

15) Jesus again: What if Miciana had died?
The family would buy a tiny coffin and dig a small hole. (Black humor. Sorry.)

16) Another from the hijo de Dios: That would have been very very late term abortion.
Indeed, not to mention a very very wrong definition of the word.

17) Uno mas from our amigo: Does this church support attempted infanticide now?
Not likely. (Does he seriously believe his own question?)

18) El ultimo: If the 17 year old mother's life wasn't important...
Hmm, maybe it is the Son of God after all, if he can pass judgment on the girl's worthiness.

19) From Ray: Thou shall not kill has just become thou shall not kill, but if you do we will pay to get you off.
Actually, it's "murder", not "kill." Read it in the original Hebrew, Ray. It's fascinating.

20) Another assertion from Ray: The church has been condoning child rape for years now.... The church has now lost ALL credibility. This is exactly why I am a recovering catholic.
Really? Where does he see the word Catholic in my church's name? (Note: I'm assuming he meant (Roman) Catholic with a capital "C". Spelled with a lower case "c", the word means something different.)

21) A different Ray (I think) says, No one is Pro Abortion. It's called pro-choice.
Wow! And I thought I was the only one who noticed the distinction!

22) Warren's last sentence: So before one reads be wary that you are only hearing part of the story.
Seems like a good place to end this post.