{"id":14815,"date":"2013-03-29T17:00:50","date_gmt":"2013-03-29T21:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/?p=14815"},"modified":"2013-03-29T17:00:50","modified_gmt":"2013-03-29T21:00:50","slug":"nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/","title":{"rendered":"NRA: Don’t smile for the camera"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Nicolae: The Rise of Antichrist, pp. 135-139<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is an odd little section of our story. The Antichrist has finally arrived back at his capital city after flying half-way around the world while nuking a dozen major cities because \u2026 well, because he\u2019s the Antichrist and bombing cities apparently was the first evil thing he could think of to do.<\/p>\n

Upon arriving in New Babylon, Nicolae Carpathia decides to have a short press conference on the tarmac at the airport, and Jerry Jenkins gives us a semi-competent account of what such an event might look like as imagined by someone who had never seen a press conference before. Jenkins wants to convey the manipulative sophistication of the Antichrist and his assistants and to show us that Nicolae is a master communicator and politician. But the problem is that Jenkins doesn\u2019t really have any idea what that looks like.<\/p>\n

This is a variation on the \u201cgreatest orator in the history of the world\u201d problem we\u2019ve discussed before. It\u2019s a trap Jenkins keeps setting for himself, compounding the problem by lazily refusing to do anything like research.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\u201cLeon Fortunato instructed everyone on the plane when to get off and where to stand for the cameras when they finally reached New Babylon.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Imagine we were all in some kind of writing class and we were assigned to write a short scene describing a surprising upset in an Olympic fencing match. I\u2019d be in big trouble with this assignment, because I know next to nothing about fencing. I don\u2019t know the rules or the language, or what distinguishes the best competitors from the rest. One doesn\u2019t need to have mastered the art of fencing to write about someone who has, but one has to learn enough about it to be able to describe what mastery looks like<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Before beginning to write our assigned scene, then, I\u2019d need to do some research. I\u2019d need to talk to or read some experts who know all about this stuff, and I\u2019d need to watch some fencing. Ideally, I would watch some fencing with<\/em> some of those experts, so they could help me understand what I was seeing, what to look for, what\u2019s important. Only after doing such research could I begin to write. Then, after finishing a first draft, I\u2019d want to take it back to those experts to allow them to correct, refine and sharpen my attempt to portray their<\/em> art.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s one approach. Jenkins takes the other one. He seems to figure that it doesn\u2019t matter if he<\/em> doesn\u2019t know anything about fencing, because 99 percent of his readers probably don\u2019t know anything about it either. No need to do all that hard work of research, then, he can just bluff and bluster his way through it. Maybe he won\u2019t be able to write something that would be convincing to fencing enthusiasts, but that\u2019s OK, because most readers won\u2019t know enough to be able to tell if he gets everything wrong.<\/p>\n

This bluff and bluster is on full display here in this section, as Jenkins insists that we see Nicolae and his henchman Leon Fortunato as masters of political stagecraft while at the same time revealing that neither he nor his characters has much of a clue as to what such expert stagecraft really looks like.<\/p>\n

This is a pattern in these books. We\u2019re told<\/em> that Buck Williams is a master journalist, but since the authors couldn\u2019t be bothered to learn what good journalism looks like, we\u2019re shown<\/em> that Buck is a clumsy hack (\u201clike saying the Great Wall of China is long\u201d). We\u2019re told<\/em> that Nicolae is a great orator, but since the authors couldn\u2019t be bothered to learn what constitutes good oratory, we\u2019re shown<\/em> that Nicolae is a droning bore (\u201cAfghanistan, Albania \u2026\u201d).<\/p>\n

Worst of all, we\u2019re told<\/em> that Buck, Rayford, Bruce, Chloe and Tsion are devout disciples of Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n

And the pattern holds.<\/p>\n

The authors clearly could not be bothered to learn what real Christian discipleship looks like, and so while they tell<\/em> us that these characters are good, Christ-like saints, what they show<\/em> us, instead, is a bunch of self-centered, oblivious, obnoxious sociopaths who hold all of their neighbors in contempt.<\/p>\n

Here again the authors try to lazily bluff their way through, figuring it won\u2019t much matter if they don\u2019t know the first thing about the subject because most readers probably won\u2019t know enough to tell when they\u2019re getting it wrong.<\/p>\n

I cannot claim to be an expert or to have mastered Christian discipleship any more than I could claim to have mastered journalism or oratory or political stagecraft. But I\u2019ve seen<\/em> all of those things done well and I\u2019ve seen all of them done poorly. And even if I\u2019m not an expert, I\u2019ve learned enough about them to recognize the difference. I suspect that\u2019s true for most readers of these books. So when the authors bluff and bluster, telling us that we\u2019re seeing mastery while showing us, instead, the clumsy posturing of ignorant amateurs, I don\u2019t think most readers are convinced. At least, I hope<\/em> not.<\/p>\n

Leon Fortunato instructed everyone on the plane when to get off and where to stand for the cameras when they finally reached New Babylon.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Fortunato,\u201d Rayford said, careful to follow Leon\u2019s wishes, at least in front of others, \u201cMcCullum and I don\u2019t really need to be in the photograph, do we?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot unless you\u2019d like to go against the wishes of the potentate himself,\u201d Fortunato said. \u201cPlease just do what you\u2019re told.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Is this a thing that happens? Do world leaders and dignitaries arriving at the airport pose for pictures with the pilots who flew them there? Are the flight crews usually asked to stand around behind the dignitaries throughout their tarmac press events? I\u2019m trying to recall ever seeing this. Yet here it\u2019s presented as a customary practice \u2014 as something routine and expected whenever a world leader travels by plane:<\/p>\n

Rayford buttoned his dress uniform jacket and put his hat on as he stepped out of the cockpit. He and McCullum trotted down the steps and began the right side of a V of people who would flank the potentate, the last to disembark.<\/p>\n

Next came the flight service crew, who seemed awkward and nervous. They knew enough not to giggle, but simply looked down and walked directly to their spots.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I might point to this as another example of the pervasive misogyny in these books, but I\u2019m afraid the authors might point to this same passage as part of their defense against that criticism. After all, the little ladies in this scene \u201cknew enough not to giggle\u201d during a press conference following the nuclear destruction of a dozen or more major cities. I\u2019m guessing the authors regard that as a sign that these are exceptionally smart and capable women, able to suppress their natural womanly tendency to be constantly giggling and batting their eyelashes and what not. I\u2019m also guessing that the authors would expect brownie points for not using the word \u201cstewardesses\u201d \u2014 even if every aspect of the scene reeks of sexist stewardess imagery from a 1960s \u201cFly Me\u201d ad campaign.<\/p>\n

Before departing the plane, Nicolae reminded everyone not to smile for the class picture they were about to take:<\/p>\n

\u201cRemember,\u201d Carpathia said, \u201cno smiles. This is a grave, sad day. Appropriate expressions, please.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That warning could have been a chilling illustration of Nicolae\u2019s monstrous evil except that, in this story, everyone needed to hear it.<\/em> Including Rayford.<\/p>\n

This is all happening the very same day that New York, London, Chicago and many other cities were destroyed, killing millions of people. If these books were populated with human characters, they would not need to be reminded that this is \u201csad.\u201d If these were human characters, then Nicolae would be telling them to dry their eyes, to be strong, to not let their devastation show in front of the cameras. But instead he has to remind them not to smile \u2014 not because he\u2019s<\/em> an evil monster, but because everyone<\/em> is.<\/p>\n

When Nicolae finally departs the plane, we get Jerry Jenkins\u2019 best attempt at a description of a polished, sophisticated politician \u2014 along with the hint of some vague supernatural mojo at work:<\/p>\n

The potentate always seemed taller than he really was in these situations, Rayford thought. He appeared to have just shaved and washed his hair, though Rayford had not been aware he had the time for that. His suit, shirt, and tie were exquisite, and he was understatedly elegant in his accessories. He waited ever so briefly, one hand in is right suit pocket, the other carrying a thin, glove-leather portfolio. Always looking as if he\u2019s busily at the task at hand,<\/em> Rayford thought.<\/p>\n

Rayford was amazed at Carpathia\u2019s ability to strike just the right pose and expression. He appeared concerned, grave, and yet somehow purposeful and confident. As lights flashed all around him and cameras whirred, he resolutely descended the steps and approached a bank of microphones. Every network insignia on each microphone had been redesigned to include the letters \u201cGCN,\u201d the Global Community Network.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The hand in the pocket is a JFK thing \u2014 a detail plucked from the same Mad Men<\/em> era conjured up by the giggling stewardesses, exploding flashbulbs and \u201cwhirring\u201d cameras.<\/p>\n

What with the still-unfolding outbreak of war, I\u2019d have had Nicolae lose the tie and maybe even the jacket. Rolled-up shirtsleeves tend to convey a leader \u201cbusily at the task at hand\u201d better than an \u201cexquisite\u201d suit and tie with \u201celegant\u201d accessories.<\/p>\n

Rayford slept for several hours crossing the ocean, so he shouldn\u2019t be so bewildered that Nicolae appears freshly showered and shaved. But I like the hint here that maybe something else is at work. Maybe this is another part of the Antichrist magic \u2014 the ability to appear however he needs to appear in order to sway the masses. I wish Jenkins had pursued this a bit more. Maybe Nicolae is not actually clean-shaven and dressed in an impeccable suit and tie, but that\u2019s how he appears to Rayford<\/em> because it\u2019s what Rayford expects to see. (Rayford\u2019s divine protection is supposed to keep him from being influenced by Antichrist mojo, but maybe not this particular special power.)<\/p>\n

I\u2019m disappointed that the Antichrist still doesn\u2019t seem to appreciate the economies of scale afforded by his one-world government. His OWG owns every media outlet in the world and he controls what all of them print. Is it still necessary, then, to keep paying the expense of a New Babylon desk at every one<\/em> of those media outlets?<\/p>\n

The only person he couldn\u2019t fully control chose that moment to burst Carpathia\u2019s bubble of propriety. Hattie Durham broke from the crowd and ran directly for him. Security guards who stepped in her way quickly realized who she was and let her through. She did everything, Rayford thought, except squeal in delight. Carpathia looked embarrassed and awkward for the first time in Rayford\u2019s memory. It was as if he had to decide which would be worse: to brush her off or to welcome her to his side.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Nicolae is the Antichrist, so unlike a good, godly man, he cannot \u201cfully control\u201d his fianc\u00e9e. Hattie Durham has rejected the gospel, so she refuses to be fully controlled by her man. Tim LaHaye has written many books describing his ideal for Christian marriage. This book is one of them.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a nasty little bit more in which Hattie \u2014 who does not know enough to suppress her constant giggling \u2014 tries to \u201cplant an open-mouthed kiss\u201d on Nicolae\u2019s lips during the middle of his press conference. That\u2019s another reminder that Hattie is not a virginal madonna, and therefore she must be the other thing.<\/p>\n

(Kind of odd, too, that the potentate\u2019s\u00a0fianc\u00e9e doesn\u2019t have any kind of security detail. The whole pretext of all the war and bombing in the previous chapters is that armed insurrectionists are in open rebellion against the OWG. Shouldn\u2019t Hattie have at least a bodyguard?)<\/p>\n

The press conference ends with the authors providing yet another example of what they insist is Nicolae\u2019s masterful oratory.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s what they tell<\/em> us, anyway, but here\u2019s what they show<\/em> us:<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a difficult time in which we live, and yet our horizons have never been wider; our challenges so great, our future so potentially bright.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat may seem an incongruous statement in light of the tragedy and devastation we have all suffered, but we are all destined for prosperity if we commit to standing together. We will stand against any enemy of peace and embrace any friend of the Global Community.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is a pattern in these books. We’re told that Buck Williams is a master journalist, but since the authors couldn’t be bothered to learn what good journalism looks like, we’re shown that Buck is a clumsy hack (“like saying the Great Wall of China is long”). We’re told that Nicolae is a great orator, but since the authors couldn’t be bothered to learn what constitutes good oratory, we’re shown that Nicolae is a droning bore (“Afghanistan, Albania …”). <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":141,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[238],"class_list":["post-14815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-left-behind","tag-left-behind"],"yoast_head":"\nNRA: Don't smile for the camera<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"This is a pattern in these books. We're told that Buck Williams is a master journalist, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what good journalism looks like, we're shown that Buck is a clumsy hack ("like saying the Great Wall of China is long"). We're told that Nicolae is a great orator, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what constitutes good oratory, we're shown that Nicolae is a droning bore ("Afghanistan, Albania ...").\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NRA: Don't smile for the camera\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This is a pattern in these books. We're told that Buck Williams is a master journalist, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what good journalism looks like, we're shown that Buck is a clumsy hack ("like saying the Great Wall of China is long"). We're told that Nicolae is a great orator, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what constitutes good oratory, we're shown that Nicolae is a droning bore ("Afghanistan, Albania ...").\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"slacktivist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2013-03-29T21:00:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/wp.patheos.com.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/files\/2013\/03\/FlyMe.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Fred Clark\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Fred Clark\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"11 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/\",\"name\":\"NRA: Don't smile for the camera\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2013-03-29T21:00:50+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2013-03-29T21:00:50+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#\/schema\/person\/32666545e535b697afb93d9848dcfc47\"},\"description\":\"This is a pattern in these books. We're told that Buck Williams is a master journalist, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what good journalism looks like, we're shown that Buck is a clumsy hack (\\\"like saying the Great Wall of China is long\\\"). We're told that Nicolae is a great orator, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what constitutes good oratory, we're shown that Nicolae is a droning bore (\\\"Afghanistan, Albania ...\\\").\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"NRA: Don’t smile for the camera\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/\",\"name\":\"slacktivist\",\"description\":\""Test everything; hold fast to what is good."\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#\/schema\/person\/32666545e535b697afb93d9848dcfc47\",\"name\":\"Fred Clark\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7083ccd514d4fb8d5043041756d766a0?s=96&d=identicon&r=pg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7083ccd514d4fb8d5043041756d766a0?s=96&d=identicon&r=pg\",\"caption\":\"Fred Clark\"},\"description\":\"Fred Clark is a graduate of Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary (now called Palmer Seminary), of Eastern College (now called Eastern University) and of the fundamentalist Timothy Christian High School (still fundamentalist and still called Timothy Christian High School, but not really thrilled to have a snarky, liberal, tree-hugging, pro-choice, pro-GLBT, peacenik, commie, evolutionist as such a vocal alumnus). A former managing editor of Prism magazine, Fred worked in the parachurch nonprofit world for a decade and then for a decade in the newspaper biz. He began blogging in 2002. In 2003 he began writing a review of the best-selling Left Behind series. Eight years later he still hasn\u2019t finished reviewing the second book of that series and the experience has left him a broken shell of a man. Fred knows the difference between the possessive \u201cits\u201d and the contraction \u201cit\u2019s,\u201d and he is acutely bothered when others mistakenly confuse the two, yet he himself just kind of instinctively types the apostrophe whether or not it belongs there. Some feel this is his greatest hypocrisy, but those who know him better know better. He\u2019s guilty of much greater hypocrisies. Jesus loves Fred far more than Fred loves Jesus, but he at least has the decency to recognize the unfairness of that lopsided relationship and he has long wished that he were better at maybe kind of sort of doing something more to correct that some day. A Baptist, an amateur, a Gen-Xer, a Gemini and a Mets fan, Fred lives in Southeastern Pennsylvania with his wife and two teenage daughters. You can reach him via email at slacktivist at hotmail dot com.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/author\/fredclark1\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"NRA: Don't smile for the camera","description":"This is a pattern in these books. We're told that Buck Williams is a master journalist, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what good journalism looks like, we're shown that Buck is a clumsy hack (\"like saying the Great Wall of China is long\"). We're told that Nicolae is a great orator, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what constitutes good oratory, we're shown that Nicolae is a droning bore (\"Afghanistan, Albania ...\").","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"NRA: Don't smile for the camera","og_description":"This is a pattern in these books. We're told that Buck Williams is a master journalist, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what good journalism looks like, we're shown that Buck is a clumsy hack (\"like saying the Great Wall of China is long\"). We're told that Nicolae is a great orator, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what constitutes good oratory, we're shown that Nicolae is a droning bore (\"Afghanistan, Albania ...\").","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/","og_site_name":"slacktivist","article_published_time":"2013-03-29T21:00:50+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/wp.patheos.com.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/files\/2013\/03\/FlyMe.jpg"}],"author":"Fred Clark","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Fred Clark","Est. reading time":"11 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/","name":"NRA: Don't smile for the camera","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#website"},"datePublished":"2013-03-29T21:00:50+00:00","dateModified":"2013-03-29T21:00:50+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#\/schema\/person\/32666545e535b697afb93d9848dcfc47"},"description":"This is a pattern in these books. We're told that Buck Williams is a master journalist, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what good journalism looks like, we're shown that Buck is a clumsy hack (\"like saying the Great Wall of China is long\"). We're told that Nicolae is a great orator, but since the authors couldn't be bothered to learn what constitutes good oratory, we're shown that Nicolae is a droning bore (\"Afghanistan, Albania ...\").","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/2013\/03\/29\/nra-dont-smile-for-the-camera\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"NRA: Don’t smile for the camera"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/","name":"slacktivist","description":""Test everything; hold fast to what is good."","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#\/schema\/person\/32666545e535b697afb93d9848dcfc47","name":"Fred Clark","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7083ccd514d4fb8d5043041756d766a0?s=96&d=identicon&r=pg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7083ccd514d4fb8d5043041756d766a0?s=96&d=identicon&r=pg","caption":"Fred Clark"},"description":"Fred Clark is a graduate of Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary (now called Palmer Seminary), of Eastern College (now called Eastern University) and of the fundamentalist Timothy Christian High School (still fundamentalist and still called Timothy Christian High School, but not really thrilled to have a snarky, liberal, tree-hugging, pro-choice, pro-GLBT, peacenik, commie, evolutionist as such a vocal alumnus). A former managing editor of Prism magazine, Fred worked in the parachurch nonprofit world for a decade and then for a decade in the newspaper biz. He began blogging in 2002. In 2003 he began writing a review of the best-selling Left Behind series. Eight years later he still hasn\u2019t finished reviewing the second book of that series and the experience has left him a broken shell of a man. Fred knows the difference between the possessive \u201cits\u201d and the contraction \u201cit\u2019s,\u201d and he is acutely bothered when others mistakenly confuse the two, yet he himself just kind of instinctively types the apostrophe whether or not it belongs there. Some feel this is his greatest hypocrisy, but those who know him better know better. He\u2019s guilty of much greater hypocrisies. Jesus loves Fred far more than Fred loves Jesus, but he at least has the decency to recognize the unfairness of that lopsided relationship and he has long wished that he were better at maybe kind of sort of doing something more to correct that some day. A Baptist, an amateur, a Gen-Xer, a Gemini and a Mets fan, Fred lives in Southeastern Pennsylvania with his wife and two teenage daughters. You can reach him via email at slacktivist at hotmail dot com.","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/author\/fredclark1\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14815","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/141"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14815"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14815\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14815"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14815"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/slacktivist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14815"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}