“Third, and most important, when life grows difficult or fearsome, they (politicians, preachers, pundits) encourage you to cling to your ignorance with even more fervor. But by this time you don't need much encouragement - you've put all your eggs into the ignorance basket… If you are sufficiently ignorant, you won't even know how dangerous your policies are until they have destroyed you, and then you can always blame others.” [Slate Nov 4/04]  (Redneck pictiures on htis page proudly presented by Official Redneck Websites.)   Read more Smiley here.

YES, WE HAVE SOME BANANA REPUBLICANS
Banana Republicans: How The Right Wing Is Turning America Into A One-Party State is a seminal work. (No, it doesn't mean that… )

Writing on Amazon, a shaken reader named Lance Huffman responds: “What was most frightening for me in this book was the push by the right to completely 'wipe them [the left or the democrats] off the face of the planet.' This quote by David Horowitz, political strategist for the right, is telling… For the Democrats, politics is a debate between two opposing camps or schools of thought. For the Republicans, it is a war for dominance. I am frightened by a group that does not welcome discourse, especially when that group is so powerful politically and economically.”


The book's authors, Rampton and Stauber, simply note: “For the first time since 1932, the Republican Party controls every major institution of the federal government: the White House, the Supreme Court, the Senate and the House of Representatives - not to mention the 'fourth branch of government', the mass media.”

Banana Republicans “reveals how the GOP leadership maintains its hold on power through the systemic manipulation of the electoral system, the media, the lobbying establishment, and the political culture at large. The book examines how the 2000 Florida ballot scandal has continued to play out… in a nationwide effort at racial gerrymandering and redistricting schemes. How a GOP echo chamber methodically spreads its views through conservative media giants and highly placed columnists, journalists, and opinion makers.

“How, even within its own environs, the national Republican Party has squelched disagreement and moderation, stripping traditional oversight agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, of mission and influence… How corporate-funded think tanks and Republican Party pundits have equated disagreement with treason, and the government has used its power to punish dissent.” [bananarepublicans.org]

This big list covers many sins against God. Now add two million or more innocent dead family members in Afghanistan and Iraq since 1991, on top of two to three million slaughtered Vietnamese, Laotian and Cambodian parents and children under another Republican regime. Then throw in Louisiana, whose original residents have been deliberately dispossessed in savage and ongoing acts of ethnic cleansing eerily echoed in Baghdad and Kirkuk.

Then calculate, if you can, the downstream effects of thousands of tons of nuclear waste burned into powder in Afghanistan and Iraq and wafted high into the jetstream to contaminate the entire globe. Mix in megatons of toxic wastes released into America's air, water and foodstreams, the genetically modified crops unleashed across America's farmland, all those wild and human lives traumatized and truncated.

Next calculate the damage wrought by the world's number one consumers, wasters and polluters who are driving China's frenzied overproduction, while fundamentalist Republicans sabotage every international attempt to slow a looming climate crackup.

What really frightens me is not just all the damage being done, much of it now irreparable. The big freak-out is inevitable retribution. Because in this universe, there is always a reckoning, always a rebalancing. What is sown is eventually reaped. What goes around, slingshots back around. And karma is always collected. Usually with interest.

Could a perfect “God” really be this vindictive? Of course, there can't be any correlation between “superstitious” beliefs and dramatically documented events.

But just suppose, I supposed… If God is seriously choked over how his “chosen” political party and its Red State constituents are behaving, do you reckon it just might be showing up on the Weather Channel, say, or the nightly news?

Looking at the Blue States and Red States, I started trolling through myriad indicators of grace and calamity.

And grew shocked by what I found.

AND GOD SMOTE THEM WITH LIGHTNING
Let's start with biblical lightning. Even non-Christians who slip up in their speech or actions invariably cross themselves and look up, while uttering aloud the wish that God doesn't strike them down with “a bolt of lightning.”

For Christians, being struck down by a thunderbolt hurled by God is a standard indicator that you have seriously screwed up. Each strobing flash of divine outrage heats the surrounding air to nearly 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit - hotter than the surface of the sun, and more than enough to flash-fry anyone standing around pretending to be a lightning rod.

National Geo's John Roach reports, “The second largest weather-related killer, lightning claims more victims each year than do snowstorms, hurricanes, and tornadoes.” Only floods wiping out entire towns kill more people.

At least 100,000 thunderstorms crank out about 22 million strikes in the USA every year. Most impatient victims “are struck under blue skies after storms have passed.” [news.nationalgeographic.com]

“Each year, an average of 150 people are reported killed and more than 700 reported injured by lightning,” reports Spectrum Thunderbolt. But “the actual number of lightning-related deaths and injuries may be 5,000 per year.” Hundreds more suffer debilitating injuries, including “memory loss, attention deficits, sleep disorders, numbness, dizziness, and weakness,” adds the National Weather Service. [spectrumthunderbolt.com; National Geographic News June 22/04]

With a total of 1,523 deaths and Injuries the "Lightning Capital of the World" has apparently racked up more lightning-struck sinners than all other states combined.

May we have the envelope please! The top state for what many Americans might view as God's personal retribution is: Florida.

LIGHTING FATALITIES 1959-1994
Rank State Fatalities
1 Florida            345
2 North Carolina 165
3 Texas              164
4 New York        128
5 Tennessee      124
6 Louisiana        116
6 Maryland         116 (tied)
7 Ohio                115
8 Arkansas         110
9 Pennsylvania    109
10 Colorado           95
11 Michigan          89
11) Mississippi      89
12 Oklahoma        88
13 Illinois              85
14 Alabama          84
15 Kentucky          82
16 Georgia            81
16 New Mexico      81
17 Missouri          79
18 South Carolina 77
19 Indiana            74
20 Iowa                65
21 Arizona           59
[scienceblog.com Jan/01]

Using these old statistics, among the top 21 states for people being struck dead by lightning, 19 are Red States .

THE TORNADO OUTBREAK OF JANUARY 7, 2008:
The National Center For Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado reports: “At least 35 tornado reports, 41 damaging wind reports, and 91 hail reports for a grand total of 167 severe weather reports wraps up the day across Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Indiana , Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan. Hardest hit was Springfield, Missouri, with 6 injuries and 1 fatality from a single tornado. [city-data.com]

Guess which states are getting picked on worse?

Tornadoes cost Texas on average more than $40 million a year. (1999 dollars)

The “Super Tuesday Outbreak” produced the 2nd longest tornado swath in U.S. history, with the National Weather Service determining that this single tornado remained on the ground in Arkansas for 123 miles, destroying 200 homes and killing 12 people. [city-data.com]

In April 2007, Virginia declared an official state of Emergency after being struck by three "killer" tornadoes causing 9 deaths and more than $1.5 billion in damage. From April 6 to 8, severe weather and numerous tornadoes killed 10 people and caused more than $1.5 billion in damage in the Red States of OK, KS, MO, NE, KY, TN, IN, MS, GA , OH and Al . No Blue states made this tornado disaster list.

The previous April, a “significant outbreak” of tornadoes and severe weather hit 2 Blue States and 5 Red States, killing 27 people and leaving $1.1 billion in damage in IL, IN, IA , AR, MO, KY , and TN. Just one month before, a week-long tornado killed another 10 people and left $1 billion in damage in all Red States: AL, AR, KY, MS, TN, TX, IN, KS, MO, and OK ..
[NCAR Extreme Weather Sourcebook; NCAR ScienceDaily Feb 9/99; disastercenter.com]

HURRICANES
Hurricanes are not “storms.” Having survived two of these “Acts Of God” onboard a small boat far out at sea (where my crew and I explored terror down to our toes), I am personally persuaded that these huge cyclonic cataclysms Top The Charts of God's berserker wrath.

In the summer of 2004, Hurricane Charley romped over Florida , resulting in major wind and some storm surge damage, before going on to pound South Carolina and North Carolina, killing at least 35 people and causing more than $17 billion in damage.

Hurricane Jeanne also hurt Florida , before causing additional flood damage in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York state. At least 28 people died, and damage topped $8 billion.

Desiccant dropped into the hurricanes by air force C-130s to lessen their force began washing ashore, where it was taped and commented on by a startled television crew near Palm Beach. But this divine-interfering compound also apparently slowed Ivan and Frances, surprising seasoned network weathercasters Frances unexpectedly zigzagged and stalled over east-central Florida, dropping over 15 inches of rain. Considerable flood damage also occurred in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina , and New York, where another 48 people died and damage topped $10 billion.

Hurricane Ivan made landfall on Alabama's Gulf coast, sending additional flood damage throughout coastal Alabama and the Florida panhandle, as well as Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia , Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York. At least 57 people died, and damage was estimated over $15 billion.

ROWING HOME
God does not always part the waters. Sometimes, many religions believe, He sends them. Blue Iowa ranks first in costs of flooding.

But for sheer deluge across America, in 2007 NOAA reported: “A series of storms brought flooding, millions of dollars in damages and loss of life from Texas to Kansas and Missouri in June and July. [Chemtrails Confirmed by William Thomas; NCAR ScienceDaily Feb 9/99 Economic Costs Of Extreme Weather By State; noaanews.noaa.gov]

All Red States!

Let's next track:

THE 10 RAINIEST CITIES ANNUAL RAINFALL
Mobile, Alabama 67 inches average annual rainfall
West Palm Beach, Florida 63 inches average annual rainfall
Miami, Florida 62 inches average annual rainfall
Tallahassee, Florida 61 inches average annual rainfall
Pensacola, Florida 65 inches average annual

Some cities, though not that hot, were weirdly warm last year. Guess where?

SUMMER 2007 (JUNE-AUGUST)
Washington D.C. Warmest summer on record: 77°
Key West FL Warmest summer on record: 86°
Boise ID Warmest summer on record; 76°
Helena MT Warmest summer on record: 71°
Las Vegas NV Warmest summer on record: 93°
Reno NV Warmest summer on record: 76°
Raleigh NC Warmest summer on record tied: 80°
Salt Lake City UT Warmest summer on record: 79°

An eight for eight Red state sweep!

Quickly now, in 2007:

WET 'N' DRY RECORDS
Oklahoma City, OK Wettest year on record: 56.10”
Birmingham, AL Driest year on record: 28.86”
Huntsville, AL Driest year on record: 28.65”
Rome, GA Driest year on record: 28.71”
Greenville, SC Driest year on record: 31.08”


PLACE SETTING 24-HOUR RAINFALL RECORD IN MAY
Aberdeen, South Dakota 8”

PLACE WITH MOST SNOW IN 24 HOURS
Hobbs Park, Wyoming 70”

HOTTEST PLACES IN AUGUST 2007 (These are averages: max temps much higher!)
Birmingham, AL        Warmest month on record: 86.9°
Montgomery, AL       Warmest month on record: 87.0°
Huntsville, AL          Warmest month on record: 85.8°
Albany, GA              Warmest month on record: 85.6°
Athens, GA              Warmest month on record tied: 85.2°
Atlanta, GA              Warmest month on record: 85.6°
Bowling Green, KY   Warmest month on record: 85.0°
Louisville, KY           Warmest month on record: 85.0°
Baton Rouge, LA      Warmest month on record tied: 85.7°
Greensboro, NC        Warmest month on record: 83.2°
Raleigh, NC               Warmest month on record: 84.1°
Greenville, SC            Warmest month on record: 84.7°
Chattanooga, TN        Warmest month on record: 85.7°
Knoxville, TN             Warmest month on record: 83.2°
Roanoke, VA              Warmest month on record: 82.1°
[extremewatherguide.com]

That's 17 out of 17 - another Red State shutout!

2007 DISASTERS AND EMERGENCIES DECLARED BY STATE
03/03 Alabama Severe Storms and Tornadoes
10/24 California Wildfires
03/13 California Severe Freeze
10/23 California Wildfires
01/07 Colorado Snow
01/07 Colorado Snow
02/03 Florida Severe Storms and Tornadoes
03/03 Georgia Severe Storms and Tornadoes
02/09 Illinois Severe Winter Storm
03/13 Indiana Snow
03/30 Iowa Snow
03/14 Iowa Severe Winter Storms
01/07 Kansas Severe Winter Storm
12/12 Kansas Severe Winter Storms
02/23 Louisiana Severe Storms and Tornadoes
12/27 Missouri Severe Winter Storms
12/12 Missouri Severe Winter Storms
02/01 Oklahoma Severe Winter Storms
02/01 Oklahoma Severe Winter Storm
12/18 Oklahoma Severe Winter Storms
12/10 Oklahoma Severe Winter Storms
01/07 Nebraska Severe Winter Storms
04/02 New Mexico Severe Storms and Tornadoes
02/23 New York Snow
09/07 North Dakota Severe Storms and a Tornado
09/07 North Dakota Severe Storms and Tornadoes
10/02 Texas Tropical Storm Erin
05/01 Texas Severe Storms and Tornadoes
08/18 Texas Hurricane Dean
02/14 Washington Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, and Mudslides

That's 20 declared Red State emergencies, 10 in still-favored Blue States - a 2 to 1 “win” for Red states.

The ice storms were especially fierce. Even Reuters recognized the correlation, issuing this headline to newsrooms worldwide in December 2007:

THIRST
“By 2020, water could be the hottest commodity,” report Deb Price and Jake Schoellkopf. Atlanta, Georgia - America's fourth-fastest-growing metropolitan area from 1990 to 2000 - made national headlines by nearly running dry this year.

Florida and Texas are so short of water, two cities began operating desalination plants in 2003. California is also desalinating seawater. But that state is blessed enough by God to have yet avoided severe water shortages by diverting water from adjacent Red states. [AP; Detroit News Aug 14/05]

With the entire country running out of agua, Blue States will still come out sort of on top because they can suck the polluted Great Lakes dry. Red states in much hotter, thirstier, southern climes will probably be unable to move from their current locations.

Plants are people, too. In 2006, widespread drought nailed 16 Red States and 4 Blue States, leaving $6 billion in damages in North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Minnesota and California.

The following year, severe drought persisted in 20 Red States and 8 Blue States, with preliminary estimates of well over $5 billion in damage in ND, SD , KS, OK, TX , IA, MO, AR, LA, MS, AL, GA, NC, SC, FL, TN, VA, WV, KY, IN, IL, OH, MI, PA, NE, MN, WI and NY.

A “Spring Freeze” in April 2007 also smote 17 Red States and just 1 Blue State, causing significant losses in fruit crops and field crops (especially wheat) and over $2 billion in damage in AL, AR, GA , IN, IA, KS, KY , MS, MO, NE, NC, OH, OK, SC, TN, VA, WV and IL. [disastercenter.com]

WILDFIRES
Really dedicated sinners may not have to wait to roast in hell. As God weighs the depredations and good deeds of a country with the temerity to print His name on their cash - which states do you suppose He's awarding the most brimstone?

2007 NUMBER OF WILDLAND FIRES - RANKED BY ACRES BURNED
ID          1,473          1,980,552
CA        9,093          1,087,110
NV           891             890,414
GA        8,726              837,895
MT        1,875              778,079
OR       2,561              648,046
UT        1,423              620,730
FL         4,918              578,346
AK          448              525,017
WA      1,268              214,925
MN       1,821             163,111
AZ        2,240             101,381
NM       1,418               97,750
SD        1,505              78,013
WY          593              78,004
OK        3,519              69,907
AL         3,373              64,262
KY        2,092              60,917
NC        7,000              54,658
TN         3,361             48,572
ND            953             41,647
TX            699             36,299
AR         1,290            32,212
KS               75            24,260

20 Red States burned the most; just 4 Blue!

STATES NOT BURNING (FAVORED BY GOD?)
MA        2,204                2,687
OH            576                1,578
WI         1,458                4,713
PA           523                1,047
NY           211                  855
IA               54                  684
IL              77                   611
ME          491                  423
CT           361                  288
VT             99                  230
NH           421                  212
DE            23                  153
RI            100                    61

11 Blue States hardly burning; 2 Red.
[National Interagency Fire Center nifc.gov]

Let's cross-check these hot numbers with the Disaster Center:

2008 FIRE MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE DECLARATIONS
03/21 Oklahoma Quinlan Fire
02/25 Oklahoma South Woodward Fire
03/20 Texas Encino Fire
03/19 Texas Burns Ranch Fire
03/14 Texas 322 Fire
03/14 Texas Eighty-two Fire
03/14 Texas Old Bastrop Highway Fire Complex
03/12 Texas Arabella Fire
03/04 Texas La Perla Fire
02/28 Texas New Archer Fire
02/25 Texas Silver Fire
02/25 Texas South Odessa Fire
02/23 Texas Scurry Complex Fire
02/13 Texas Broadway Fire
02/08 Texas

It's another Red State sweep with 15 out of 15 declared fire assistance emergencies!

SAFE PLACES AND NOT SO MUCH
Forbes magazines took a look at all available weather data and came up with a list of places to be and not to be - as if there was any question:

LEAST SAFEST U.S. CITIES FROM EXTREME WEATHER
Monroe LA
Shreveport-Bossier City LA
Lakeland-Winter-Haven FL
West Palm Beach-Boca Raton FL

SAFEST U.S. CITIES FROM EXTREME WEATHER
Yakima WA
Spokane WA
Richland-Kennewick-Pasco WA
Medford-Ashland OR
Corvallis OR
Salem OR
[naic.org; Frobes.com]

That's gotta be conclusive! But if you're still having trouble getting His weather-related hints - but remain concerned about the health of yourself and your family - should you hitch your covered stationwagon and light out for an inflamed red state, or a chuckling baby blue one?

Lets look at the official state numbers:

STATE HEALTH RANKINGS (2004)
Each state is shown with its percentage above or below (-) the national norm.

TOP THREE HEALTHIEST STATES:
1 Minnesota 25
2 New Hampshire 24
3 Vermont 23

NEXT THREE HEALTHIEST STATES, BUT NOT BY SO MUCH:
19 South Dakota 6
20 Virginia 6
21 Oregon 5

THREE AVERAGE HEALTHY STATES:
29 Illinois
29 Michigan
31 New York
Seven Blue States out of 10 total have the best health records.

UNHEALTHIEST STATES - BELOW NATIONAL NORM
38 New Mexico -7
39 Kentucky -7
40 Oklahoma -7
41 North Carolina -7
42 Florida -8
43 Alabama -10
43 West Virginia -10
45 Georgia -11
46 Arkansas -12
47 South Carolina -13
48 Tennessee -13
49 Mississippi -20
50 Louisiana -21
[America's Health: State Health Rankings 2004 Edition]

Red zone!

CRASHING
If you are cleaning your .303 while swigging a six-pack and driving your jacked-up pickup in a Red State , are you more likely to be killed in an accident than someone just as brain-addled by her cell phone as she hurriedly liquidates her U.S. dollar account while navigating her new Taurus across a Blue one?

Short answer: “Your risk of dying in a motor vehicle accident is almost five-times more likely in Mississippi than in Massachusetts.” [disastercenter.com]

The Disaster Center cheerfully informs us: “Motor vehicles accidents account for more deaths than all natural disasters combined. In fact, in the United States your chances of being injured in an motor vehicle accident is better than one in a thousand, in any one year. If you are a male, than you are twice as likely to die in a motor vehicle accident than if you are a female. Yet, if you are a female you are slightly more likely to be injured. “

Older folks “are more likely to die” as doddering pedestrians. All told, about 15% of people who die because of motor vehicles are pedestrians or bicyclists. You, however, are ten- times more likely to die riding your motorcycle than if you are piloting any other type of motor vehicle.

Blue, Red, Green or Purple… the ages between 16 and 24 “are the most dangerous for both sexes.”

The current U.S. national batting average is 23 deaths for every 100,000 drivers. So buckle up, everybody, it's Road Rage time in the Red States, which have a total lock on the top 26 states where people are apparently commanded by God to return to Him and help others along by aiming their vehicles into other conveyances and large immovable objects:

THOUSANDS OF FATALITIES PER 100,000 DRIVERS
Florida 24
Utah 24
Nebraska 25
West Virginia 27
Indiana 27
Iowa 24
Kansas 27
North Carolina 29
Texas 30
Missouri 31
Nevada 31
Georgia 32
Idaho 32
Oklahoma 32
Kentucky 33
Tennessee 33
Louisiana 34
South Dakota 34
Arkansas 35
Montana 35
South Carolina 36
Alabama 37
Arizona 37
New Mexico 41
Wyoming 42
Mississippi 48

That's 26 Red States leading unopposed in vehicular fatalities!

As for the 10 safest states for drivers, with fatalities well under the national norm - do you have to ask?
Rhode Island 10
Massachusetts 10
Connecticut 13
New Hampshire 15
New Jersey 15
New York 15
Alaska 18
Maryland 18
Ohio 18
Pennsylvania 18
[disastercenter.com]

redneck palm pilot

PARITY
For Blue and Red states, the only near-parity occurs not in God's choice, but at the command of his chosen servant, George Bush, who seen to it that mounting dead, maimed and traumatized war veterans are almost evenly proportioned between his Democratic and Republican constituents. (Red states lead.) [washingtonpost.com]

CRIMINALS
What about the war at home?

“While political party affiliation in the United States is not a perfect indicator of religiosity,” observes Sam Harris in his Letter To A Christian Nation, “it is no secret that the “red states” are primarily red because of the overwhelming political influence of conservative Christians. If there were a strong correlation between Christen conservatism and social heath, we might expect to see some sign of it in red-state America. We don't. Of the 25 cities with the lowest rates of violent crime, 62% are in the “blue” states… Of the 25 most dangerous cites, 76% are in the red states… In fact, three of the five most dangerous cities in the United States are in the pious state of Texas. The 123 cities with the highest rates of burglary are red. Twenty four of the 29 state with the highest rates of theft are red. Of the 22 states with the highest rates of murder, 17 are red.”

RED STATES SLURP IT UP AT FEDERAL TROUGH, BLUE STATES SUPPLY THE YUMMIES
Don't despair, Red Staters! You can still stand proud after lifting the wallets of all those tree-hugging, latte-sniffing wimps. Yessiree, a 2004 Tax Foundation report shows that of the 32 states and District of Columbia "winning" the pork barrel pig-out by receiving more federal grants than they pay in federal taxes, 17 of the 20 states receiving the most federal spending per dollar of federal taxes paid are Red States .

TOP 10 STATES RECEIVING MOST FEDERAL SPENDING FOR FEDERAL TAX DOLLARS PAID:
1. D.C.
2. North Dakota
3. New Mexico
4. Mississippi
5 . Alaska
6. West Virginia
7. Montana
8. Alabama
9. South Dakota
10. Arkansas

Of 14 states receiving the least federal spending per dollar of federal taxes paid, 11 are Blue States. Surprise!

RIPPED OFF STATES RECEIVING LEAST IN FEDERAL SPENDING PER FEDERAL TAXES PAID:
1. New Jersey
2. Connecticut
3. New Hampshire
4. Nevada
5. Illinois
6. Minnesota
7. Colorado
8. Massachusetts
9. California
10. New York
[Tax Foundation Sept 27/04]

RED STATE ROULETTE 2008
So far in 2008, 10 flooding emergencies have been declared in Red States , just 2 in Blue:

2008 FLOODING DISASTERS AND EMERGENCIES DECLARED BY STATE
02/07 Arkansas Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding
03/20 Georgia Severe Storms and Tornadoes
02/06 Hawaii Severe Storms, High Surf, Flooding, and Mudslides
03/07 Illinois Severe Storms and Flooding
01/30 Indiana Severe Storms and Flooding
02/21 Kentucky Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding
03/19 Missouri Severe Storms and Flooding
03/12 Missouri Severe Winter Storms and Flooding
02/05 Missouri Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding
01/08 Nevada Severe Winter Storms and Flooding
01/15 Oklahoma Severe Winter Storms and Flooding
02/07 Tennessee Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding


As this story goes online on March 31, 2008, it looks like the states where fundamentalist pastors preach nonstop race war are reaping the energy they've sown. Torrential rains are hammering Missouri , where one man has drowned and hundreds more have been left homeless as raging rivers closed nearly 200 roads. More flooding is cutting “a swath of destruction” through Illinois, Ohio, Arkansas, Indiana, and Kentucky , where at least 13 people are dead and another three missing.

Strong storms that “may have included tornadoes” have also caused damage and power outages in Oklahoma. At the same time, a storm in Louisiana has damaged a mobile home park, injuring two people. And a man has drowned in southeastern Texas, when an overflowing creek swept a car off a highway near San Augustine after 14 inches of rain fell in the area over two days.

Four deaths were also linked to flooding in Missouri , with another five people killed in a highway wreck in heavy rain in Kentucky . Searches are underway in Texas for a teenager washed down a drainpipe, and in Missouri for a man missing in a creek. Two more people are missing in Arkansa s after their vehicles were swept away by rushing water.

The National Weather Service has now posted flood and flash flood warnings from Texas to Pennsylvania on Wednesday, with evacuations already underway in parts of Missouri, Arkansas and Ohio .

Meanwhile, heavy snow has fallen across Wyoming and the northern Texas Panhandle. And heavy rains are falling across flood-stricken parts of Illinois, Missouri and Arkansas, with more heavy rain and snowmelt expected. Forecasters predict some parts of Kansas could see more than 10 inches of rain today.

The greatest risk of severe storms - including “a few unusually strong tornadoes” - now extends through Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri. [Weather Channel Mar 31/08; news.yahoo.com; AP Mar 31/08; usatoday.com; accuweather.com; kansascity.com]

SO WHERE WOULD YOU RATHER LIVE?
Statistically, these calculations of calamity and divine favor are nowhere near a normal distribution curve. Something else must be going on. Are Red state wounds self-induced? Is it really true, that as you sow in thoughts, words and deeds - so shall you reap?

You can't dispute official numbers. If this article doesn't lead you to an examination of your beliefs and conscience, you must not be living in a Red State . let's wrap up by factoring in everything - every perception and prejudice, fantasy and fulmination of American Dreamers - and see which states come out on top as the Most Desirable Places To Live?

God knows, the people's final assessment of God's grace is once again compelling.

TOP 5 RANKED US STATES
California
New York
Oregon
Washington
Hawaii
[city-data.com]

You can't argue with God.

RED STATE RETRIBUTION

Are The Red States Reaping What They've Sown?
by
William Thomas

I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE
Still pondering my results reported above, I came across the results of Russ Belville in the Oregon Herald. Because it presents an independent check on my own findings, his article on so-called “Red State Moral Values” is extensively quoted here. Bottom line: Belville confirms every point I make above. And adds a few more startling Red and Blue state findings of his own.

TWIST AND SHOUT
Next on God's list of favorite retributions: Tornadoes. Who has survived one of these twisters without feeling Hi's power?

NUMBER OF TORNADOES
1 TX     5490
2 OK     2300
3 KS    2110
4 FL     2009
5 NE    1673
6 IA      1374
7 MO    1166
8 SD     1139
9 IL       1137
10 CO    1113
11 LA    1086
12 MS    1039
13 GA     888
14 AL      886
15 IN       886
16 AR     854

The top 16 states for the most tornadoes include 15 Red States.

Interesting, no?

Now take a look at the damage many Americans (and prehistoric tribes) would consider wrought by an angry deity:

U.S. TORNADOES Total Damages (2006 dollars)
1 Texas             $8,707,000,000
2 Oklahoma       $6,134,000,000
3 Indiana           $8,047,000,000
4 Georgia          $5,025,000,000
5 Kansas          $5,177,000,000
6 Minnesota      $4,895,000,000
7 Ohio               $3,838,000,000
8 Missouri        $3,671,000,000
9 Mississippi    $3,013,000,000
10 Illinois          $3,548,000,000
11 Iowa             $3,235,000,000
12 Michigan      $3,845,000,000
13 Florida         $2,554,000,000
14 Alabama      $2,458,000,000
15 Nebraska     $2,435,000,000
16 Pennsylvania $2,111,000,000
17 Arkansas      $2,180,000,000
18 Louisiana      $2,155,000,000
19 Massachusetts $3,503,000,000
20 Tennessee    $1,706,000,000
21 Kentucky      $1,616,000,000
[NCAR ScienceDaily Feb 9/99]


Among the top 21 states damaged by God's tornado tirades are 16 Red ones.

But cross-checking these stats with a second source, we find Dubya's karma being collected back home:

1. Texas : 1 for frequency of tornadoes, 1 for number of deaths, 1 for injuries, 1 for cost of damages.
2. Oklahoma
3. Kansas
4. Florida
5. Nebraska
6. Iowa
7. Illinois
8. Missouri
9. Colorado
10. South Dakota
11. Louisiana
12. Mississippi
13. Alabama
14. Georgia
15. Indiana
16. Arkansas

Here, 13 of the top 16 states being smacked with twisters are Red States ! That's a dang near unanimous divine verdict.

But 9 out of 10 states with the lowest number of tornadoes are Blue States:
41. New Hampshire
42. Connecticut
43. Washington
44. Delaware
45. Nevada
46. Oregon
47. Vermont
48. Hawaii
49. Rhode Island
50. Alaska ranks number 50 for frequency of Tornadoes, none for injuries and 50 for costs. [disastercenter.com]

Now update these stats by factoring in: