• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Bill Kassel's Blog

Occasional reflections on things that come into my mind — plus links to episodes of my radio show / podcast, “Free Expression”

  • Home
  • About
  • Podcasts
  • Categories
    • Education
    • Faith & Religion
    • Featured Articles
    • Ideology & Politics
    • International
    • Memories
    • Moral Choices & Actions
    • Race & Culture
    • Scripture
    • Sex & Gender
    • Song Lyrics
    • Terrorism & War
  • My Brother’s Keeper
  • Press Kit
  • Search
  • Contact

The Point

By 43 Comments

WHY IS THIS “JAB” GETTING
SUCH A PASSIONATE PUSH?

Let’s begin with the requisite acknowledgments…

The pandemic is real. This is a serious illness with which huge numbers of people have suffered, and substantial numbers have died.

The virus is highly contagious. Members of my own family have caught it. I could catch it myself.

I could die with it.

Granted, these things might be said of other large-scale disease outbreaks. Nevertheless, the pandemic is not an illusion or a product of mass hysteria. It’s a genuine global emergency.

Okay. All true.

Still, the question must be asked: Why has this illness been treated differently from other public health crises? And why the continuing panic?

Why the talk of restrictive measures that exceed the lockdowns we’ve already experienced — extended measures that weren’t undertaken in past pandemics?

We know that fatality rates for this plague are much less than for other serious diseases. And while the so-called Delta Variant appears to be somewhat more virulently infectious, indications are that it usually causes less extreme symptoms.

Why are we still approaching this health challenge with such desperation? Why do we still seem to be floundering?

The one ongoing problem we’ve faced since the pandemic appeared on our shores has been a lack of clear and accurate information…

Facemasks: Work or don’t work?

Social-distancing and business / church / school closings: Effective or meaningless?

Surface cleansing: Helpful or a waste of effort?

Opinions abound on such questions. None has ever been fully answered. We’ve done all of these things. Has it made any difference? People are still getting sick.

Understandably, it took awhile for medical professionals to get a handle on the nature and scope of the threat. You would have expected a certain thrashing about when the disease was new.

But we’ve been dealing with this for more than a year now. Vast resources have been thrown at the problem. Yet we’re awash in conflicting theories, and we seem no closer to a definite path out of our ongoing predicament.

We have inoculations for which elaborate claims of success are made. However, now we’re told that booster shots will be required — perhaps an indefinite number of booster shots, administered on a continuing basis.

Does this offer us confidence that all the pharmaceutical innovation has delivered anything that actually works?

It may be naïve to assume we can make the illness go away completely. But isn’t it fair to expect that the famous “curve” will finally be flattened to an extent that we can say the principal danger is behind us?

Worse, why is it that those who have reasonable misgivings about being inoculated are viewed as enemies of society?

Cases of seriously adverse reactions to all the serum types — including deaths — have been reported around the world. To be sure, this information is being downplayed by both the mainstream media and the social networks, but word has gotten out. New incidents occur virtually every day. People are aware.

(For that matter, why all these attempts to suppress this news?)

Everyone knows the vaccinations have not undergone the standard run of laboratory tests and clinical trials. In fact, it’s been a point of pride that they were fast-tracked in order to counter the spread of infection.

In light of such hurriedness, why is caution about their efficacy and side effects seen as something anti-social? And make no mistake, reproach for such skepticism is not only harsh, it can be extreme.

A perfect example is this Facebook post by Mark Shea, a Catholic writer of strong opinions…

“I have no problem at all punishing the refuseniks and rewarding the Normals. These guys want to sicken and kill others and break the back of our health care system while making Pandemic a permanent reality? Then lay a butt ton of taxes on them. Force these people who are so fanatical about IDs for the brown and poor to show proof of vaccination before entering restaurants, sports events, theatres or airports. Make them get tested every week till the end of time. Make *them* bear the burden of their selfish stupidity, not the rest of us. And if they dare to make fake proof of vaccination certificates, lock them up and charge them draconian fines. Their right to be selfish jerks ends where my little grandchild’s right to life begins.”

When news broke about illegal immigrants showing high rates of infection, Shea followed up with this observation…

“The GQP [sic] murder / suicide cult naturally tells racist lies to blame the least of these for the criminal neglect that is 100% their own fault as they willfully and malignantly spread Pandemic. Get the shot, for the sake of those who *cannot* get the shot yet. Delta is killing children. Protect them.”

Severe as it may be, one could understand the passion behind Shea’s call if there was certainty behind the effectiveness of vaccination. But “follow the science” as we might, the truth is that these potions simply have not been proven.

(Tangential, but worth noting, is this fascinating bit of denial from a Facebooker named Cindy, who commented on Shea’s border reference, “Next lie in the pipeline: Biden is flying the immigrants all over the country and releasing them into our communities!!!” This is a lie?)

Such heated rhetoric is not isolated. Nor is it exclusive to online chatter. Western Journal reported this complaint by a Norman, Oklahoma, school board member against children being in school without masks…

“‘It’s just not OK for kids to commit murder by coming to school without a mask,’ she claimed.

“‘And when it comes down to it, it’s possible. They will cause a death of another child because they come to school without a mask. That’s not OK.’”

Indeed, it’s not “OK,” but what do we do about those kids who are experiencing asthma attacks, oral infections, and other maladies because of the masks? Are their motives for going barefaced irrelevant?

The Los Angeles Times has editorialized in support of California requirements for vaccination and regular testing of public employees and health workers…

“responsible health officials seeking to slow infection rates have few options, none of which would be popular among pandemic conspiracists on social media and in elected office.”

The essay added insultingly…

“We have little patience with the knee-jerk naysayers who label every new pandemic policy a governmental overreach. What exactly would the government gain by asking people to put cloth over their faces to save their own lives? In what bizarro world is it an abuse of power to give people the choice of taking a free, life-saving medication or doing preventive testing to prove they aren’t infectious?”

Going even farther, a self-identified “anti-racism educator” named Tim Wise, expressed his impatience with those who dismiss vaccination skeptics merely as members of a “suicidal death cult.” In a blog post Wise charged that…

“This is different, something more dangerous, sociopathic, and sadistic — not suicidal but homicidal.”

He insisted that such people really constitute a religiously deluded “mass murder movement,” convinced of its own superiority and invulnerability. He described their attitude accordingly…

“High on a delusional mix of rugged individualism, toxic masculine bravado, pseudoscientific faith in vitamin supplements, and a belief that God would pull them through, they were convinced they were safe.

“Only others were at risk — the less good people.”

And when members of this cohort happen to contract the virus…

“I cannot weep for someone who thought the ‘blood of Jesus’ was all the vaccine they needed.”

What to do about such hard-hearted characters? Wise recommended…

“Refuse to speak to them, break bread with them or communicate with them in any way until they get their shit together and learn to play by the rules of public health by which rational, decent people agree to play.”

Such sentiments aren’t entirely new. I wasn’t around during the great Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918, but surviving images such as this one attest to strong feelings present at the time.

What accounts for such opinions? Fear? Surely that plays a role.

Anger at the death of a loved one? This would certainly be understandable. But to whom is it proper to direct such anger? Does pain give one a license to be cruel?

Even partisanship doesn’t explain it. The Democrats have already succeeded in ousting Trump (by means that demand closer examination). And after all, it was The Donald who started fast-tracking the vaccines, and made Dr. Fauci a household name.

Such institutional myopia.

Such unreason.

Dare one say it?: Such fanaticism.

The push for a so-called “Great Reset” may account for the public policy side of things. You don’t have to wallow in conspiracy theories to discern political motives in play. There are those who wish to stoke public distrust and division, who wish to keep us angry and suspicious of each other.

But why are so many individuals willing to “needle” their neighbors (so to speak)? What accounts for all the personal nastiness? In particular, what of those who have always recited the mantra: My body, my choice. Quite a change for them.

Here’s the reality we face…

The scientific consensus about these vaccines is less than we’re led to believe, despite a massive effort to convince us otherwise.

(That effort is bipartisan, incidentally. I’ve received a pro-vaccine mailing with endorsements from Ron DeSantis, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and Sean Hannity.)

In point of fact, only about half of healthcare workers in the country have taken the jab themselves. This even includes staff of the CDC, as Dr. Fauci has admitted. Is this just a matter of not getting around to it, or does it suggest distrust within the research and healthcare communites? What information do these people have that we don’t?

None of this is to say that the vaccines are bad.

I don’t know that for sure. Nobody does. We don’t have enough history with them to speak definitively.

It is true, however, that most of the infections now are happening among the vaccinated or those in close contact with them. In addition, other vaccines, developed to combat earlier plagues, have been pulled from the market and reworked after fewer adverse reactions than we’ve seen with the current varieties.

Despite such ambiguity, some people feel themselves at liberty to say the most intemperate and derogatory things about those who are vaccine-hesitant. They are demeaning their fellow Americans in vindictive and hurtful ways.

Something ugly is loose in our society, a spirit of evil that transcends health fears and political agendas.

It’s something that isn’t explained by mere human emotion. And it has a point all its own.

____________

Here’s an interesting attempt to dismiss vaccine hesitancy as frivolous self-indulgence. It’s obvious that this meme was professionally designed. Who’s putting out such messages?…

And here’s an angrier one that tries to obscure legitimate reservations under a whole shopping list of perceived prejudices…

Attorney and conservative commentator Kurt Schlichter draws attention to a logical inconsistency in the argument of one vaccine advocate…

…while someone relates the sad death of a relative after receiving the “jab” (note the assurance of vaccine safety tacked underneath by Facebook)…

____________

Dr. Fauci — whose advise throughout that past year and a half has been all over the map — is on record as advocating employer-compelled vaccination. As noted by Western Journal…

“The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases signaled on Sunday he can’t wait to see Americans cornered into taking the shot….

“The implication is obviously that those who have thus far refused the vaccine could be forced to change their minds, or be threatened with losing their jobs….

“‘I hope — I don’t predict — I hope that it will be within the next few weeks. I hope it’s within the month of August,’ Fauci said on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press,’ according to The Associated Press.”

Read the article by Kipp Jones here…

https://www.westernjournal.com/fauci-just-announced-unvaccinated-americans-worst-nightmare/?utm

 

Princeton University Philosophy Professor Peter Singer (known for his favorable attitude toward infanticide) goes even farther, advocating a legal vaccination mandate, and comparing it to requiring seatbelt usage in cars. Writing in National Review, Wesley J. Smith, senior fellow at the Discovery Institute’s Center on Human Exceptionalism, debunks the comparison…

“There is a huge difference between a law that requires wrapping a cloth belt around one’s body while in a moving car and injecting chemicals into one’s system. Yes, both acts involve attempts to promote public safety. But the former’s interference with liberty is de minimus, while the latter is one of the most potentially portentous that can be asked of people.”

Here’s Smith’s impassioned rejection…

https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/no-a-vaccine-mandate-is-not-like-requiring-seat-belts/

 

Political humorist Mike Dice does one of his man-in-the-street interviews, asking people if they’ll sign a petition demanding that vaccine resisters be jailed. You’ll be surprised how many signed…

 

Share
Tweet
Pin
0 Shares

Filed Under: Ideology & Politics, Moral Choices & Actions Tagged With: passionate criticism, social division, the "jab", vaccine hesitation

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ronald says

    August 15, 2021 at 1:24 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Control! Leading to a dictatorship.

    Reply
  2. Kelly says

    August 15, 2021 at 1:33 pm

    Thank you. You’ve presented the questions in an orderly, understandable and easy to follow way. While I don’t have any answers, you’ve helped me think more clearly about these very real questions.

    As for me, the fear I see in those around me is palpable. I see people blessing themselves with hand sanitizer at church. Wearing masks dangling about their necks the way I might wear a Brown Scapular. That frightens me more than anything I’ve experienced during the pandemic,

    Reply
  3. Dennis says

    August 15, 2021 at 1:45 pm

    Adding to the debate is the outright attack on proven, effective therapeutics like Ivermectin and Remdesavir.

    Reply
  4. Carlo says

    August 15, 2021 at 3:10 pm

    From: Facebook…

    The same media that destroyed Trump is now pushing the “V.” Connect the dots.

    Reply
  5. Janet says

    August 15, 2021 at 3:10 pm

    From: Facebook…

    De-population and control.

    Reply
  6. Greg S. says

    August 15, 2021 at 3:11 pm

    From: Facebook…

    The Genocidal Urge runs deep in the minds of demons. The goal stated by Bill Gates, captured in a video, is for a 15% reduction in world population. (To fight the fantasy climate change threat.)

    The vaccines create life-long dependency; those who got the jab are immune-compromised and will need boosters for the rest of their lives. They must do what the Medical Tyrants demand, or they lose their lives.

    This is easy to understand if one grasps the Satanic playbook. This is simply Satan prancing about the planet terrorizing God’s innocent children.

    Reply
  7. Stephen says

    August 15, 2021 at 3:12 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Three Comments & Links:

    – Children are more likely to be killed by a meteorite…
    https://www.facebook.com/stevedeace/posts/375473390608792/

    – 125 days and counting…
    https://www.facebook.com/stevedeace/posts/373876864101778/

    – The dead baby vaccines come from murder. Perhaps the devil wants it in the veins of every Christian to compromise them. Thus the irrationality…
    https://stream.org/the-abortion-ties-of-the-covid…/

    Reply
  8. Rainhritz says

    August 15, 2021 at 3:19 pm

    From: Gab…

    This is a death jab, for depopulation purposes. This is the NWO agenda. Can’t sustain taking care of the population, all governments bankrupt, killing elderly, disabled, sterilizing children. Not enough have died, hence third booster! All this a scam to push the agenda.

    People are lining up like sheep to the slaughter. People are getting sick due to destruction of immune system. There has been enough info out here on Gab to not even question at this point. Most people only follow what MSM puts out. One bottle was filled with 99.8% graphene oxide, a toxic poison to humans, this was lab-tested.

    This has nothing to due with covid. If you’re religious, and you read the Bible, Revelations. This is our third war, bio weapon, God vs Satan.

    If this jab kills people and they know it does and they’re pushing the jabs, then what do you think their agenda is? Look at cases on CDC, that’s only 1% of adverse reactions. They have murdered at least 50,000 or more Americans. One doc complained when he tried to report an adverse reaction, it kicked him out of the system. The CDC doesn’t want you to know how many have been killed or injured, otherwise, no one would take it.

    Reply
  9. Greg T. says

    August 15, 2021 at 4:23 pm

    From: Facebook…

    This vaccine for Covid has some really good numbers, but politicians had to make it political, and that lead to people not trusting it. I don’t trust it, but I don’t trust, and I am not anti-vac.

    Reply
  10. Cindi says

    August 15, 2021 at 4:23 pm

    From: Facebook…

    I think anyone who doesn’t have concerns, or at least curiosity, about this vaccine, given the rapid way it was developed is what is suspicious.

    Reply
  11. Mildred says

    August 15, 2021 at 4:23 pm

    Hi Bill, my problem with the vaccinations are the new methods used in making them, and the lack of understanding or education concerning all of that. I may not be a scientist, but I am capable of understanding.

    I also do not have sufficient information concerning the bits and pieces of other things used to create the new manner of vaccines, like the aids virus. Most importantly, then, I am very concerned about using anything that uses any part of sacrificed human beings in their creation or testing.

    There is so much about these that bother me I can’t express all. Then you touch on the individual people issuing orders. The reputations of many of them do not have that much trust. I remember touching & his remarks about Ebola, and I go from there.

    Reply
  12. Jeff says

    August 15, 2021 at 4:24 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Them insisting that I get one is suspicious to me. I will make up my own mind.

    With that said, if you feel safer with getting the vaccine, by all means go get one. I’m a watcher. I’ll stand back and watch to see what happens to you.

    Reply
  13. TK says

    August 15, 2021 at 4:52 pm

    From: Facebook…

    1. Because people worship this life and are petrified of even the .06 chance of death that Covid presents.

    2. The Govt is using this opportunity to use their power to pave the way for the “mark of the Antichrist” spoken about in Revelations 13:16-18.

    Reply
  14. Sue says

    August 15, 2021 at 8:30 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Gates is giddy with euphoric wet dreams of depopulation.

    Every time someone gets a jab a globalist net worth goes up. Ask Blackrock and VanGuard who are major shareholders in Moderna, Pfiser, J&J, Astraceneca. All done through three major foundations – Bill and Melinda Gates, Open Society and Clinton. In 2028 Blackrock and VanGuard will hold $30 trillion of the worlds wealth. They run everything including buying private homes paying way above asking for cash. Private purchasers are being outbid to destroy private homeownership. What they don’t buy other corporations, China and Canada are picking up the slack.

    Reply
  15. Niel says

    August 15, 2021 at 8:31 pm

    From: Facebook…

    This is well written, well reasoned, and well worth the read. Showing my age I give it a hardy… “Right On.’

    Reply
  16. 
Sherry says

    August 15, 2021 at 8:59 pm

    From: Facebook…

    So these people are getting nutter all the time. We are getting calls from the MD Vaccine Center. I don’t think I will be returning that call.


    Reply
  17. Paul says

    August 15, 2021 at 9:00 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Bishop Atanasius Schneider said its all about everyone accepting abortion. Its of course all about the depopulation agenda.

    Reply
  18. Dawn says

    August 15, 2021 at 9:02 pm

    From: Facebook…

    I’d love to know that answer!

    Reply
  19. Elizabeth says

    August 15, 2021 at 9:02 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Money! The drug companies are making billions.

    And you know the politicians in congress bought into it too.


    Reply
  20. Mary-Anne says

    August 15, 2021 at 9:03 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Great essay.

    Reply
  21. Debbie says

    August 15, 2021 at 10:46 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Facts are these: Covid is a virus that takes lives. Period. Everyone must get Covid and people must die. Vaccine or no. Isolated or not. Adult or child. Rich, poor, healthy or weak. Everyone MUST get it, or we will drag this out for years.

    I really think they are trying to preserve life, because the message otherwise is as cold as the grave. Some of us must die. You cannot volunteer to save your child…

    Reply
  22. Julie Grace says

    August 15, 2021 at 10:47 pm

    From: Facebook…

    I don’t know if the Catholic Church is granting any religious exemptions for those who cannot accept the fact that aborted babies were used in the vaccine. If they don’t, I can’t understand why not. We the church have stood against abortion since forever, and I feel they have abandoned the faithful and sold out on this issue.

    I should not and we all should not be forced to go against our conscience.


    Reply
  23. Fran says

    August 15, 2021 at 10:47 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Control of the masses.

    Reply
  24. EJ says

    August 15, 2021 at 10:49 pm

    From: Facebook…

    The depopulation agenda spoken about openly by the One World Government elite is very real. Their STATED goal is to reduce the current population of 7 billion, down to under 500,000,000. Let that sink in. This is not a joke, not a conspiracy “theory.” There is overwhelming evidence. Please do your own research. Agenda 201, agenda 2030. But search using Duck Duck Go in Rumble or Bitchute. The same people at the top are the ones who control the media and internet. They are frantically censoring the Truth.

    Reply
  25. Dan G. says

    August 16, 2021 at 4:31 am

    Perhaps one idea is to help weed out who will resist tyranny and needs to be locked up in a “green zone” or imprisoned or executed.

    Reply
  26. Virgil says

    August 16, 2021 at 8:19 am

    From: Facebook…

    I know for many years they have been experimenting with human tissue and electronic circuit boards trying to create a AI. There also was talk of research into DNA to try to unlock hidden codes in them.

    Now fast forward to present. There’s a big push to vaccinate everyone. Now as that’s ongoing and more coming there’s a big push to connect the whole world to 5G. Shortly after that is well underway, comes talk of going cashless. With all this and talk of universal pay, they can control you financially.

    Compare all that’s going on to Revelations. If this isn’t the real deal, we’re still screwing up and losing our ground.

    Have you researched the American Stonehenge? It has all the aims of the NWO carved in stone. In at least 12, I believe, major languages.

    I heard past Presidents talk of the NWO and of bringing it in. Biden been slipping talking of re-education camps. Jesse Ventura documented so many things I’ve read about many years ago. He showed them including a massive stockpile of coffins for mass burials.

    Now we have a surge of a new variant of the virus. They’re talking about another lockdown and mask mandates. Are you asking yourself, then why is our border so open? Why is the government shoving so many infected illegals into the country? Are they trying to kill as many of us as they can? Are we the new native Americans to be nearly wiped out as the original native Americans?

    What’s amazing is that many of Biden’s diehard supporters don’t believe it! They believe if it was so bad that super Joe Biden will swoop in to stop it. These people are being fed total lies and propaganda. This is real and goes further back than you know.

    Reply
  27. William says

    August 16, 2021 at 8:20 am

    From: Facebook…

    You nailed it, Bill!

    Reply
  28. Ginger says

    August 16, 2021 at 8:20 am

    From: Facebook…

    I feel that it is the mark of the beast… so they are scaring people into taking it.

    Reply
  29. Christie says

    August 16, 2021 at 8:21 am

    From: Facebook…

    Money, fear, control.

    Reply
  30. Armand says

    August 16, 2021 at 10:15 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Just for control and money! It is dangerous to people, but the government is pushing it none the less. All to make money even though it will and has killed people and some are disabled for life.

    Reply
  31. Child of Elohim says

    August 16, 2021 at 10:16 pm

    From: Gab…

    I think it is obvious that there is a diabolic agenda over this issue. I have spent hours listening to information about this from people with pretty amazing credentials. It took some of them months to come to the same conclusion I came to in March of 2020.

    There is a political agenda here whose purpose is quite simply CONTROL of the masses. It is diabolic in that perfectly intelligent people become rabidly illogical about wanting everyone to get jabbed, and it being the fault of the unjabbed that there are variants. (Untrue and illogical), while the unjabbed just watch in horror as their vaccinated relatives get sick (very sick – from what I have seen in my own family, this is NOT a milder infection) or die from blood clots (again in my own family.)

    I do not see the unvacced spitting fire over the vaccinated, although many will tell you that being around vaccinated people makes them sick. (Again, personal experience) I have been expecting something like this for years. Read the Apocalypse of John.

    Reply
  32. Jack F. says

    August 16, 2021 at 10:16 pm

    From: Facebook…

    To lower population.

    Reply
  33. Jack K. says

    August 16, 2021 at 10:17 pm

    From: Facebook…

    In attempting to make sense of any of it, 2 questions:

    Why hasn’t the CDC been able to provide even 1 lab example of the deadly COVID virus isolated and cultured from a diseased patient?

    Why has the FDA allowed further use of the jab after the CDC’s vaers statical model extrapolated (12,500,000 = 1%) × 100 = 1.2 million Americans killed by it?

    Reply
    • Debbie says

      August 16, 2021 at 10:27 pm

      ON TOP OF THAT the reporting system VAERS is a FAKE reporting system run by ONE GIRL. I learned this last week. And wouldn’t you KNOW IT?

      Reply
  34. Rose says

    August 16, 2021 at 10:17 pm

    From: Facebook…

    THEY WANT TO MAKE US A COMMUNIST COUNTRY WITH NO SAY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE!

    THEY FORGOT THEY WORK FOR US!

    Reply
  35. Toms says

    August 16, 2021 at 10:18 pm

    From: Facebook…

    Well it was the masks if you don’t obey you get a fine it’s the job if you don’t comply you can’t have a job you can’t go into buildings go shopping do anything you won’t get a vaccine passport so you can’t travel and so effectively we’re going to have more police everywhere right now in Tampa the DC police are setting up an office in Tampa because they feel that they can catch more people who are at the January 6th protest in Washington DC they already have 250 people who are locked up in prison without due process ever since January 6th so they’re going to probably start to have Federal cops in every city if not every County in America which will supersede our own police we elect our own local police they’re very kind people who love America but these federal police they’re only going to be accountable to the federals and the federal government Jack booted thugs yeah that’s what happens when you’re entering socialism when the ultimate goal is communism.

    I will not comply


    Reply
  36. Dan B. says

    August 17, 2021 at 11:11 am

    Outstanding essay, Bill.

    Reply
  37. TPIA says

    August 18, 2021 at 6:26 pm

    From: Gab…

    Not sure if you really are looking for an answer here or just to get people to read your blog.

    In any case, if you look at how many are advocating “no buying or selling aka job, grocery store, restaurants, etc” without the “vaccine” It says to me it is the mark of the beast or a dress rehearsal for it. Hence, the big push.

    Reply
    • Bill Kassel says

      August 18, 2021 at 6:33 pm

      I should think you’d have to read my blog post in order to comment on it.

      Reply
  38. Jaxhkd says

    August 18, 2021 at 6:27 pm

    From: Gab…

    The wholesale push of jabs for everyone regardless of risk is just wrong. As my company is now only hiring vaxxed and jab or weekly testing for employees, they are actively blackmailing us.

    Reply
  39. Al says

    August 23, 2021 at 6:16 pm

    Well boys and girls, THEE MAN said it. GET IT.

    Or is HE now part of the great LEFT WING CONSPIRACY?

    Reply
  40. Mildred says

    September 15, 2021 at 8:25 am

    From: Facebook…

    My problem with the vaccinations is the new methods used in making them, and the lack of understanding or education concerning all of that.

    I may not be a scientist, but I am capable of understanding. I also do not have sufficient information concerning the bits and pieces of other things used to create the new manner of vaccines, like the AIDS virus. Most importantly, then, I am very concerned about using anything that uses any part of sacrificed human beings in their creation or testing.

    There is so much about these that bother me I can’t express all. Then you touch on the individual people issuing orders! The reputations of many of them do not have that much trust. I remember [Biden’s] touching and his remarks about Ebola, and I go from there.

    Reply
  41. Lupe H. says

    November 15, 2021 at 11:47 am

    From Facebook…

    Because some people are becoming very rich from it.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Welcome

I would be very grateful if fans of this blog — loyal as I know you all are — would do everything you can to recruit new readers.

That means suggesting to friends, relatives and colleagues that they check out my scribblings. And, please be sure to pass along my Facebook posts.

Also, if you would be so kind, please click on the LIKE button below.



This will help to boost my online prominence, hopefully bringing more people into contact with The Guy In the Next Pew

Many thanks!

Recent Articles

  • Journeys & Devotions
  • Well Read & Well Dressed
  • Saints & Liberty
  • Learning, Working, Praying
  • Masculinity & the Market
  • Church & Synagogue
  • Promise or Threat?
  • Straws in the Wind?
  • Secrets, Needs & Anxieties
  • Monarchs & Travelers
  • Dancing Around Hate
  • Reaching Out & Journeying
  • Profit & Coercion
  • Rising Again
  • Deception & Unity
  • Knowledge & Service
  • Challenge & Respite
  • A.I. Fact & Fiction
  • Faith & Miracles
  • A Nation of Immigrants
  • Life & Grace
  • Questing & Reflecting
  • Jerusalem & Athens
  • The Angriest Time of Year
  • A Fresh View
  • Influence vs Inspiration
  • The Ongoing Battle
  • Welcome
  • The Minneapolis Incident
  • A Great Review

Links

  • Aleteia
  • American Thinker
  • Ave Maria Radio
  • Ethika Politika
  • EWTN
  • Hot Air
  • Jewish World Review
  • Lucianne.com
  • Patheos
  • Spirit Daily
  • Townhall

Secondary Sidebar

My Brother’s Keeper — Comments from Readers…

From the opening words of Bill Kassel’s novel we are drawn into the complex and colorful world of first century Israel. The reader is caught up in the drama of Christ through the eyes of Jesus’ natural family. Kassel’s work is unconventional, exciting and controversial, offering fresh insights and inspiration for believers and non believers alike.
—Fr. Dwight Longenecker
Blogger and Author

My Brother’s Keeper was, for me, a most gratifying reading experience. The book is beautifully written. And even with my limited early Christian history knowledge, I could tell that it had been exhaustively researched. I consider it a significant literary achievement. It was a privilege to read it.
—Gordon Boardman
Kalamazoo, MI

It makes the Gospels come alive in a new way. I loved it.
Frank Berkemeier
Jackson, MI

This was a fascinating book! It was not what I thought it was going to be. I thought the main character, James the Just, was going to turn out to be one of Jesus’ Apostles and the book would describe what it was like to spread the Good News. Instead, it came from the perspective of a family member who was not 100% sure that Jesus was the Messiah. Not only that: James the Just had a sort of friendship with Pontius Pilate. The entire book put you in the Holy Land while Jesus walked. It was a fascinating read. I would recommend it, and already have!
—Carol McHale
Reviewer for
Good Reads

Bill Kassel has taken a very different approach to the Christian story. His is not the conventional Christmas card portrait of the Holy Family. Rather, he has delved deeply into the earliest writings in Church Tradition and offered some compelling suppositions about what was going on around Jesus and how the people closest to him might have been effected by it. He has crafted a plot that’s engaging to the modern reader and, surprisingly, doesn’t contradict Scripture.”
—Fr. Joe Krupp
Columnist
Faith Magazine

If I lived in the time of Jesus, who would I think He was? What would I have believed about Him? Would I have espoused His teachings? It wasn’t like being raised Catholic in the 20th century. My Brother’s Keeper made me realize in a fresh new way how hard it was, in Jesus’ time, for many people — especially Jews — to believe in Jesus and how amazing His mission really was.
—Cheryl Nael
Ave Maria Radio

This book is one of my favorites. My Brother’s Keeper, from page one, invites you to go deeper into the daily life and time of Christ. Most of us are very familiar with the scriptures that give us an account of his life. This book takes you to a personal level that creates a very real image of not only the people but how Christ’s relationships and decisions created a life outside of themselves. How Jesus related to his family, and how his family saw him, bring a very realistic aspect to his life, and created the beginnings of a more personal understanding of Christ in my own life.
—Chris Hoyt
Osseo, MI

Well worth reading. Kassel Takes Biblical facts, Historic facts, Jewish facts and traditions, and weaves them into a compelling narrative. The dialogue is believable and enlightening. You really feel like you are there it is so well written and believable. I honestly couldn’t put it down even though I know the end as the Bible tells it. Kassel captures the emotions of the characters and they are believable. A very compelling and enjoyable read.
—D. Clark Wonderland
Reviewer for
Amazon.com

Bill Kassel has created a vivid landscape for his characters that can be clearly seen felt and almost touched. The Interaction between the characters is understated and dutiful with silent respect. The reader can almost hear their thoughts in humble reverential tones. The relationships between the characters comes across as genuine and the narrative moves along smoothly. And the storyline in engaging. All in all a very good read.
—Al Ferber
Poet & Author

The subject matter and historical period are interesting to me so I find this a good read. I am Catholic but I think the book would be of interest to any Christian who would like to read a fictionalized rendering of what life might have been like for Jesus’ brother, James.
—M.D. Garnett
Reviewer for
Amazon.com

Read this book. ’Tis a very interesting speculation about the family of Joseph, James and Jesus as the Jewish foundation to the Catholic faith.
—Ralph Wasche
White City, OR

“…a book of history, and, yes, entertainment. Even though we all know how it will end, I can’t put it down! It’s one of those stories you find yourself thinking of when you go about your daily routine …. Whether you are a Christian or not, this is an awesome read.”
—Nancy Ryan
Book Reviewer
Simply Hers
Magazine

Bill Kassel explores the impact Jesus’s birth and ministry had on his family, specifically Joseph and Joseph’s son James. Diligent research vividly describes the geography of the region and portrays the culture and politics of Judaism at that time. Not the typical retelling of the story of Jesus. Kassel poses questions that challenge the reader to rethink basic premises and meditate on new perspectives and their impact on the reader.
—Christine DeNuccio
Reviewer for
Amazon.com

Fantastic! Transported me back to Jesus’ time. And a new perspective on James. Great read.
—“Book Bug”
Reviewer for
Barnes & Noble

Reading “My Brother’s Keeper” is like being part of the part of the crowd at the crucifixion. Mr. Kassel transports you into the Word. I was there and understood the life of Jesus and his family situation.
I am a Protestant, and there are a few things I can’t agree with, but I thoroughly enjoyed the book and Mr. Kassel’s grasp of the English language. I was there with my Savior.
—Gail Gioia
Upper Black Eddy, PA

Kassel relates the life and ministry of the Savior of the world through an inspired, historical, and personable lens… His faith, research, and talent shine through the portrayals of the characters James the Just, Simon Peter, Joseph of Arimathea, Mary the Mother of our Lord, Pontius Pilate, and various others. I commend his authorship and recommend “My Brother’s Keeper” to any seeking to kindle a love for those who shared in the Master’s mortal life and ancient Israel. Kassel adheres to the biblical accounts of Christ’s life, expounding with full creative license potential causes, emotions, and situations that might have occurred among the ancient Jews. I pray that you enjoy the story of James the Just, and join him in discovering a greater love for the Son of God, and our fellow men.

—Drew Hooper
Reviewer for
Amazon.com

Footer

Recent Posts

  • Journeys & Devotions
  • Well Read & Well Dressed
  • Saints & Liberty
  • Learning, Working, Praying
  • Masculinity & the Market
  • Church & Synagogue
  • Promise or Threat?
  • Straws in the Wind?
  • Secrets, Needs & Anxieties
  • Monarchs & Travelers

Categories

  • Education
  • Faith & Religion
  • Featured Articles
  • Ideology & Politics
  • International
  • Moral Choices & Actions
  • Race & Culture
  • Scripture
  • Sex & Gender
  • Song Lyrics
  • Terrorism & War
  • Uncategorized

Links

  • Ethika Politika
  • Jewish World Review
  • Townhall
  • Ave Maria Radio
  • Hot Air
  • Aleteia
  • American Thinker

Pages

  • A Free Sample
  • About
  • Available in Print & eBook Editions
  • Contact
  • Press Kit
  • Search
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2026 · Bill Kassel · Log in