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Obamacare: Nothing But A Redistribution Scheme

10/31/2013

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Famous quotes or approximates: "You can keep your doctor if you want to", or "If you like your insurance you can keep it", or "The average family will save up to $2500 per year".  What do each of these quotes have in common?  They are all false statements and they were all used on multiple occasions by Barack Obama as he campaigned hard for the misnamed Affordable Care Act. 

Many people have known from the beginning that this program could not and would not deliver a healthcare product which would be affordable and viable.  They realized that it just didn't make sense and could not be economically viable. 

Many others, however, wanted to believe all the myths and promises as delivered by the President and his minions over the last three years.  After all, he and his allies designed it to selectively put a few things that many wanted up front, with the bad news coming later.  With the full scale operation of the program beginning on January 1, 2014, the bad news is finally coming out in droves.  The Affordable Care Act is anything but affordable, and instead of providing healthcare to everyone, this incompetently and patently immoral program is causing millions to lose their current coverage to be replaced by a product which many still don't understand. 

Right now, individual healthcare contract holders are being notified nationwide that their current policies are being canceled because they don't meet all of the criteria of Obamacare.  You know, they don't provide things like birth control coverage for single males or abortion coverage for devout Christians morally opposed to the early life taking procedure. The one size fits all doesn't work on most things and nowhere is it clearer than with Obamacare.  And at the same time, citizens can't even find out how much Obamacare will cost them because the system requires input of an application in order to get a quote which crashes the system routinely and which has never been properly tested for security.  Anyone putting their personal information into the system better get Lifelock.  You can't make this stuff up, people.  The AMTRAK of health programs is underway.

Can you imagine an online seller like Amazon telling internet users that they must provide all of their personal data before they can get a quote on a product? The company would be out of business in hours and the CEO and his key associates would be shown the door before they could even get their morning coffee.

And this wondrous automated product has already cost us nearly $700 million on an original budget of $93 million and it is still basically worthless.  Consumer Reports has even recommended that consumers not even try to log on for a month or so at the least.  That tells you everything you need to know.

But the real key to this program is outrageous and it is this:  the program cannot and will not work but, then again, the President and his associates never intended it to.  The plan was to interject a program to kill off private medicine, frustrate citizens trying to use it, and then come in full speed for single payer.  Obama has said this many times; he has just selectively delivered those words where the general public wouldn't hear them and his mainstream media lapdogs obediently remained silent.  But now that they are seeing the public outrage grow they are beginning to let out "bits and pieces" as they try to salvage their credibility with a now skeptical public.

Folks, the entire purpose of Obamacare was to redistribute wealth with its cost structure and gain total control over us.  Think about it, if this thing goes full speed ahead without any challenge, each of us will be at the mercy of the government for our healthcare.  And if you don't think they will use NSA information to determine winners and losers you are not thinking clearly.  And unless the Republicans in Congress start pushing to kill this lemon instead of tweaking it, I guess it will mean they are in "the tank" for Obamacare as well.

This and the dastardly immigration reform legislation will be the crowning blows to freedom in America.  The illegals will get full access to everything, including our jobs and our healthcare, and we with dwindling resources will be footing the bill. It's time to take our eyes off the football games and Hollywood social chatter and start looking at the future of our country and our freedom.  We can turn this around, but it will take all of us.  And it will require paying attention to our politicians and letting them know in no uncertain terms what we expect.  Either they deliver for freedom or they will be replaced.

If we do this, and we keep God in our hearts and by our sides, we will prevail: peacefully but with strength of numbers.  God bless you all.

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Is Virginia Headed for Third World Status?

10/30/2013

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PictureTerry McAuliffe, Democratic candidate
I grew up in Virginia, the Old Dominion.  It was a wonderful place with both ocean shore and beautiful mountains and the hilly Piedmont in between.  Virginia is the home of much of the history upon which this Republic was built and the Commonwealth always had a history of living within its means and operating its government in a responsible fashion.

In recent years, Virginia has been changing.  When the immigration law of 1986 opened America to a large wave of illegal immigrants into our country, many of them settled in Virginia due to its proximity to Washington, D.C.  Northern Virginia, the home of Washington and the Lee family started changing dramatically.  And the expansive growth of government, with many of its employees residing in that area, resulted in a large liberal wave of non-traditionalists gaining a foothold in the Northern part of the state. 

Today she finds herself on the eve of a big state election.  Next Tuesday Virginia and New Jersey have the distinction of receiving top billing in the political world with gubernatorial elections, the only two in the nation this year.

In Virginia, Ken Cuccinnelli, the Republican standard bearer and current Attorney General, finds himself running as the underdog to Terry McAuliffe, a Democratic true believer who has a sordid record of questionable business dealings and practices and has total allegiance to Obama's leftist agenda.  He supports the phony global warming agenda, gun control, abortion on demand, Obamacare, open borders, union prominence and basically everything else that Virginians have traditionally stood against.  He tried to avoid talking about any of the issues during the campaign, largely resorting to mudslinging and name calling.

Cuccinnelli, at age 45 already having been in state politics for over ten years, was the first state Attorney General to go after Obamacare in the courts.  While not the best candidate, he has supported conservative causes vigorously and understands Virginia and what has made her prosperous.  He is currently the underdog and I fear that the Northern Virginia influence is likely to elect McAuliffe.

To my Virginia friends in the land where I was born and and a place I still dearly love, I say this: please think carefully about what you are doing before you vote next week.  If McAuliffe is elected and is successful in implementing an Obama agenda at the state level, don't be shocked if the Old Dominion starts looking like America's Cuba in short order.  After all, look what his party's leader is doing to our country on a national scale.  And somehow I think Mr. Jefferson, looking over the Commonwealth from his beautiful Monticello outside Charlottesville, will be shedding a tear in disbelief.

Come on, Virginia, you can do better than this.  Say no to Terry McAuliffe.  Do "The Mother of Presidents" proud.


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Truth and Honesty: It's What We Need

10/29/2013

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When I think about the dysfunction we see in American government today, I like to look back in history and see from whence we came.  America wasn't always this way.  At our founding, the early patriots knew that the road ahead toward a democratic republic would be difficult.  After all, the Founders were laboring against both a largely disinterested group of Colonies and a fearsome and powerful England which they knew would not give up their distant geographic possessions easily.  They started with only about a 25% share of the American population favoring their cause, yet they pursued it vigilantly by telling the truth about what was being done to them while also honestly portraying the hardships ahead.

Over the years, America became "fat, dumb and happy".  The idea of sacrifice became alien to many of us, although our military forces withstood many hardships and struggles to maintain our freedoms.  But by and large, the general population wanted to find an easy way out of all problems.  As a result, over the more than two centuries that our country has been in existence, we have became a nation of "wants' not "needs".   We expected immediate gratification for everything imaginable and the result has been both a spiraling government debt as well as spiraling family debt for many.

No one is quicker at picking this up than our political class.  When the lifelong holders of office realize that by pandering, by putting off until tomorrow those critical things that need to be done today and by either explaining what they are doing with flat out untruths or "little white lies", they will take that course any time.  For you see, they enjoy power, an opulent lifestyle with many perks and favors and the opportunity to enrich themselves easily at public expense.  Power does indeed corrupt and with corruption comes the seed of destruction. 

Why do I bring this out?  Well, until we face our true problems and the pitfalls of our human nature, we will never turn this formerly great nation around.  I say formerly great nation because I guarantee that if the Founders saw our balance sheet and the lack of interest that many of our citizens show for the reality of our plight today, they would be appalled.

Somehow we must awaken ourselves to the values that made us great and bring them back.  It has to do with what is good and right for America.  We must start admitting the truth about ourselves and our politicians and start demanding truth and honesty both from them and from ourselves in evaluating both our own shortcomings and the shortcomings of our nation.  Only the truth can lead us to the solution and the sooner we defrock political correctness and admit the truth the better.

Bringing our Creator back into the picture is paramount in all of this.  God created us with a brain to use effectively.  Instead of always looking for a hand out, first we must use our own bootstraps and lift ourselves.  Oh, there are times when we need help, but to allow politicians to put a nation in a situation where more people are on assistance than not is a situation we cannot ignore the problem any longer.  And to create a supposedly new and improved healthcare system which no one understands nor can they afford is a good example of what I am talking about.

Changing things will be tough.  It will be literally a political and economic war for the hearts and souls of mankind.  But unless we bring back the pioneer spirit of America with citizens taking the time to learn and understand what is happening, educating themselves about our politicians and demanding less government and more individual initiative, our republic will not be able to sustain herself much longer.  We must demand much more from our elected leaders than "free stuff", because things are never free. We have to pay for them. No, we must demand truth and honesty and if this means replacing the entire cast of characters so be it.

We need to quit using Jon Stewart as our source for news, stop expecting Oprah to solve our problems, and take some time to read and learn what our politicians are doing with our tax money and where it is going instead of memorizing the football statistics.  And then, we must let the Spirit of God not man infect our lives and guide our decision-making.  If we start changing our direction toward the truth, we will begin to realize our frailty and shortfalls and start a new future.

Think of the alcoholic who always says he can stop drinking easily who then continues on a path leading to his demise.  We are in many ways just like him.  We allow the politicians to stay "drunk on power" as long as it frees us to have just one more drink.  The problem: the beer tap is running dry and when it's empty there is no more.  Let's not let America find herself like this.  Let's get to work.  If each of us just starts facing reality and if we love the freedom that so many suffered for to give us, we'll know what to do.  Reading a little history of America will help in this regard.  Make it a family exercise, just like many of us do our daily prayers.

God bless you all and God bless America.  May we always be able to pray openly and freely and may we always live in a land proudly flying Old Glory, the red, white and blue.


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Let's Start the Week Right

10/28/2013

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As another busy week begins with a glorious sunrise, take a moment to ponder life and the goodness in it, not the bad.  Oh, we are faced with many things that concern us, things such as pain and suffering of our brothers and sisters around the world, our fears for the future of our nation, unemployment, moral and spiritual decay of our society, and even just a general malaise that many of us have today.  But we are also blessed to have our family, our life which is a major blessing and a most merciful Father who is always waiting for our call for help and guidance.

Many of us attended church yesterday and used that time for a recharging of our spiritual batteries and to openly pray for His intervention in our lives to keep us strong. For those of you who didn't, I hope you found your own personal quiet spot to spend some time with Him on the Sabbath.  And now it's Monday and the glory of His presence which we receive in church or in our other contact with Him on the Lord's Day recedes into the deepest crevices of our heart and soul if we let it.

So let's commit to change things this week.  Let's not let that strong feeling of commitment and the warmth of His presence recede into the background.  Let's keep it front and center in all we do every day.  After all, He expects us to live our lives to the glory of Him.  He gave us the life of His Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ with the promise of Everlasting Life if we always put Him first.  Let's commit to living up to His plan for us and accept His gift.  And we can only do this if we put Him first, not just on Sunday morning but in every hour of every day.  If we do this, we will feel better, the world will be a better place, we will be able to take on and conquer every roadblock and every obstacle, and our witness for Him will be felt by those around us. 

Start every morning with prayer and end every day the same way.  Thank Him and bless His name always.  The results while not always be seen immediately, but when they are realized it will be astounding and your disposition and outlook will change dramatically.

Dear Lord, Help us to go forward this week with a renewed spirit, with the hope for a better life and a better world for all mankind.  Help us to always put You first, no matter what the situation and no matter what the obstacle, for only through You can we find happiness, peace and purpose in our daily lives.

God bless our loved ones as they face their own challenges each day, and help us to support one another, love one another, and care for one another as You would have us do.  And help us to live our lives with love toward our fellow man, even those who offend us, for only in love can we learn to live in peace and harmony. 

Give us the strength to tackle our tasks, maintain the straight and righteous course, and continually keep our heart and soul open to Your love, guidance and commandments.  We ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.  Amen.


Have a wonderful and productive day with Christ in your heart and actions and God bless America.


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Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Man of Courage and Faith

10/27/2013

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On this quiet Sunday morning, I think it is a good time to use the example of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a noted German theologian of the first half of the twentieth century as an example of courage and strength.  At this time when we American Christians know that something just isn't right here at home and we even see our freedom of religion as Christians being threatened by our own government, Bonhoeffer shows what our love for Christ should mean to us.

Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran clergyman, was outspoken in his belief in Christ and how if we truly believe we must stand up for Him no matter what the consequences.  A brilliant scholar and student, he received his Doctor of Theology degree at the age of twenty-one and became known as an outspoken critic of Nazism and its war on the Jewish people and the world.  While a large percentage of German theologians bought on to the concept of Deutsche Christen, or the German Church which supported the Nazi Party, not Bohhoeffer and a number of other Christian ministers.  When the Church created an Aryan paragraph in its doctrine (preventing non-Aryans from becoming Christian ministers or religious teachers), Bonhoeffer spoke loudly against it, saying that it surrendered Christian precepts to political ideology.  As the Church split into two opposing camps over this issue, the Deutsche Christen group and Bonhoeffer's Confessing Church, Bonhoeffer fought the resulting moral paralysis and the Nazi intimidation of the more traditional Confessors by writing "The Church and the Jewish Question" in 1933.  It argued that Christians had to fight the political ideology and immoral action in three ways: questioning publicly the state's social injustice primarily directed against Jews, helping victims of this injustice, and even sometimes standing in harm's way themselves in support of their beliefs.

This man of action also traveled to many countries, speaking out on the outrage in Germany, and he then served for a time as a minister in London.  Later, he visited America to actively curry support for the movement to spread the word of the German tyranny against her own people.  This brought him much support in the international Church community but also drew rebukes from his homeland.  He knew that if he went back to Germany he would be in danger. 


When he found that war was inevitable in 1939, he knew he had to return.  He opined that he couldn't very well work to restore the Church to its proper role after the war if he didn't face the same challenges and fears as his people back home. 

His return and his outrage at what he found ultimately led him to appear to be caving to the tenets of Nazism.  While making the Nazis think that he was doing what they wanted, serving as a spokesman for his native land to garner world support he was, in fact, doing just the opposite.  He used his position in the Abwehr, or High Military Intelligence, to get the word out to the world of what was actually taking place.  This was done secretly while carrying out his supposed visits about the world.  Eventually he was found out when his name surfaced in the case of his brother-in-law, who was actively supporting an effort to assassinate Hitler, an operation that Bonhoeffer also supported under the cover of secrecy.  The result was his arrest and the eventual charge of high crimes and treason, punishable by death.

He was eventually sent to Flossenberg concentration camp where he was executed by hanging on April 9, 1945, just twenty-three days before the Nazis surrendered.  Up until the day of his death he prayed with other prisoners and told them of the salvation they would receive if they believed in Jesus Christ. Later, after the war, a former guard at the camp testified that he had never seen a man so calm in death.  He was required to completely disrobe before climbing to the gallows, and said a solemn prayer and showed no outward signs of fear at the time of death.  He truly knew that Jesus was with him.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer did much in his life and is remembered as one of the leading theologians of his time.  His works and teachings are used around the world as examples of some of Christianity's best works of realism.  They show a man who spent his life toiling with the question of exactly what a Christian is to do in times of turmoil and strife.  His life was an ongoing study of how Christian thought changes and solidifies when truly awakened by the presence of horrific action and unthinkable evil.  Ultimately, his fears and concerns were resolved and he never gave up on Christ.  At the time of his death he was only 39 years old.

One of Bonhoefer's most popular works, "Cost of Discipleship", remains very popular today as an outstanding source for devotions.  The following quote therefrom gives a quick synopsis of what he thought Christianity should be all about:

"Cheap grace is preaching forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession. ...Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate."

The situation faced by Dietrich Bonhoeffer has, I think, some eery similarities to today.  The strong stand he took against evil and tyranny are a good example of what is expected of us Christians.  We must stand firm, be brave and never forsake our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Remember, Christian soldiers, He is the Way, the Truth and the Life.



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Is Congress Beyond Repair?

10/26/2013

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One of the highlights of any political campaign is the throngs of followers gathering to listen to  and cheer their favorite candidate during election campaigns.  It happens all over America with citizens from both sides standing for their candidate at rallies and gatherings that sometimes resemble a high school pep rally.

Next year will be another big year for events of this kind as one third of the US Senate and the entire House of Representatives stands for election plus thousands of state and local elections will also be held.  Only the President is not running since the current officeholder will be in mid-term, but you can bet he will be actively involved in trying to elect more liberals who support his cause.

The candidates will promise, they will talk about democracy and the things that need to be done and then, once the election is over, they will go to Washington to be commandeered by the leadership of the respective parties to tow the line in order to maintain or receive plum committee assignments so that they can "bring home the bacon" for their constituents thereby insuring their continued election while also giving them cover to vote in ways their electors never envisioned.  And as for the newly elected members, they will come under excruciating pressure to answer to the will of the leadership, not the will of the people.  Thankfully, more and more of our "newbies" seem ready to do just the opposite.

Some of you might say I'm cynical but actually I'm just being realistic.  The system is so entrenched and so slanted toward itself and the Washington establishment that without some major changes things won't get better.  Just look at what the Senate has tried to do to Ted Cruz, Mike Lee and Rand Paul?  They've been called "whackos" for trying to do those things that got them elected.  And how about the House?   John Boehner could have never become Speaker without the new Tea Party caucus yet he has tried with all his power of office to neuter the movement. 

Finally, at least some of America gets it and understands what is going on.  Our system in Washington is broken and it will never be mended by the elected representatives who just become part of the DC establishment.  They have to much too gain from the money and power that comes with being a good "soldier" and following their orders while they build seniority.  And therein lies the problem.

The House and the Senate were never designed by the Founders to rubberstamp leadership.  Let's look at the Senate first since nowhere is it more true than in this formerly asteemed body which was designed to be the great debating society.  It was never meant to be a place where bills were jammed through in the wee hours of the morning much to the dismay of a minority opinion.  It was designed to slow things down, to make sure that bills were fully read and vetted, for compromise to be made, and for the best possible options to survive.  This means that many pieces of legislation would never weather the storm and would be cast out, as it should be more often than not, for laws were supposed to be passed to benefit the citizenry as a whole not an individual or favored group.  And for it to work well, that citizenry has to be informed and armed with the truth.

The Senate was designed to be the representative body of the state governments.  Originally elected by the state legislators, it was establishedf to insure that the needs and concerns of the operating states were addressed, thereby insuring that they had a strong voice in decision-making in Washington.  This is what the concept of states rights was all about.  The seventeenth amendment changed all of that with the popular election of Senators. It turned it into a club of one hundred who, over time, see themselves often as elitists, far removed from their constituents and just as far removed in outlook.  Just think if John McCain's role was to represent and be accountable to state government in Phoenix instead of going off on tangents unrelated to the wishes of his home state?  What a different world it would be.  But since the repeal of an amendment is next to impossible, a return to original intent is highly unlikely.

The House is an entirely different animal.  Elected from four hundred and thirty-five smaller districts, it is designed to be closer to the people and therefore much more in tune with the will of the people.  That's why you see so much more diversity.  Generally rural districts nationwide are similar in viewpoint and large urban areas are in the opposite camp.  The in-between, or more suburban areas, are usually a blend of the two and that's why those communities have so much sway in election outcomes for the House as a whole.

What kills the concept of the House as the people's body is the leadership and seniority.  The longer a representative stays in office, the more power he or she gains and, since power is likely to corrupt, the more in tune with the big money of K-Street and Wall Street they become.  You see they want to be reelected to attain that goal and this requires support of their leadership to attract the funding they need.  It becomes a full time job in itself: fundraising.  The people be damned.

So what can we do?  Well, I think the only feasible answer is term limits.  It would certainly tone down the club atmosphere of the Senate, force Congressmen up for election every two years to stay totally in tune with their home folks and even more, it would mandate a frequent change of leaders in both bodies.  I would recommend four terms for the House and two terms for the Senate, although that is certainly not a magic number.  But the point is to continually require new blood, ideas from people still better in tune with things at home than in Washington.  And this would be most readily apparent in the leadership which is clearly responds more to party establishments and lobbyists than it does to the people who put them there.  Just think about it.  If elected leaders found it more important to be true to their accountability to their constituents with outside interests no longer having such influence, wouldn't it be better?

I know there are those who say that we need leaders in office for a longer period of time so that they can learn the system and work more effectively.  Quite candidly, I think that is hogwash.  After all, it seems to me that the new folks with new ideas catch on quickly and besides, there is one other thing we could do to change that.  Limit congressional sessions to a maximum of six months a year, thereby requiring all to be citizen legislators.  If you look at the amount of actual session time now, if you take out the short weeks, vacations, general time not in session, etc. you can see that this would be feasible. 

In a shortened session you could take the first half to complete legislation from the previous term and then take up new business.  It would limit business to those things really needed and it would also slow things down and, most importantly, give elected officials no option but to clearly be in front of the general public back home more often.  Nothing is more enlightening that walking through your home town grocery store and seeing how your constituents are surviving in the real world, not the world of Washington. Just for starters, I'll bet the formulas used to determine the consumer price index and the unemployment rate would be dramatically changed as a result.  Their benefit plan and exceptions to laws that the rest of us must follow would also be dramatically impacted.  They would have to look at themselves as citizens first, not princes and princesses of the ruling class.

You may not agree but I offer these points for general discourse and consideration.  Think about it, for something must change.  Our present system is clearly not working.  If it doesn't change drastically it is dead.

Have a great weekend and God bless.  Pray for common sense to prevail with our elected representatives and may they all be infected by the Wisdom of Godf.

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Has God Given Up On America?

10/25/2013

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I was born shortly after the end of World War II.  As a boy I remember the patriotic fervor that most Americans felt when they saw the flag or heard the National Anthem.  We felt a chill of pride going down our spine and a warmth in our heart.  It's was just like the old TV series, "Happy Days".  Kids had time to be kids, everyone knew everyone in the neighborhood and school was a place for "readin', 'ritin' and 'rithmetic".  We recited the Pledge of Allegiance every morning and had Christmas parties every year which were open and eagerly participated in by all regardless of religion.

Going to church was just about automatic on Sunday.  And other religions were celebrated by their members as well with no animosity toward others.  Kids of the two predominant religions in America at the time, Christianity and Judaism, had no problem with each other, in fact, the Christmas festivities usually included a Hannukah "bush" with the Christmas tree and we children compared notes on gift-giving.  We Christians used to laugh and say our Jewish friends had a better deal with daily gifts for many days instead of just one.

But something happened during the 1960s.  America began to lose its soul.  It started after the Great Society began.  The lead up to that program held what many thought was great progress.  The end of hunger.  Full equality.  Medicare and Medicaid.  But like the reality of most "dream" programs, the onset of corruption in administration and the strings attached by the federal government quickly placed their tentacles in the way of individual freedom and initiative.  Government that giveth can also taketh away and America is still on the learning curve on that absolute.

And then the "Big Daddy" hit.  Lyndon Johnson drew our young men into the Vietnam War with what many call a bogus "Gulf of Tonkin Resolution".  Whether that was true or not is still debated, but the war became a huge dividing force in America and many of our troops were killed or suffered horrific injuries, physical as well as mental, fighting in a war American had no stomach to fight to win.  We really never recovered from the turmoil and social unrest brought on and liberalism used this, as it relentlessly does, to make great inroads into the educational system, the media and even our churches.  Oh, these changes began much earlier, but this period brought them on full scale with no apologies and no relent.

Even though Ronald Reagan made a valiant effort to stem the tide with a resurgence of conservatism, the numbers were stacked against him and many in his own party, the Republicans, spent much of their time trying to undercut him instead of fighting for liberty.  This problem has continued unabated today; witness the treatment of Ted Cruz by a bunch of old men fearful of losing their grip on party power.  Since I'm getting older myself I am allowed to say that.
 
So today we find ourselves with a country that is broke,  a government that is no longer "for the people", an education system that teaches propaganda instead of academics, political correctness in place of truth, and a leadership that is trying to punish Christians by taking away their religious freedom.  The relentless push is on to control every aspect of our lives and open our borders to lawbreakers and non-citizens making demands to which they are not entitled while at the same time our bread and butter group, the middle class, is being destroyed.  I mean, really, did you ever think you would see a Supreme Court say that you had to buy a certain product whether you needed it or not?  All of these things lead up to this: instead of "Happy Days" we are rapidly becoming the "Hunger Games".

And where does God fit into all of this?  Well, if you believe as I do that He is all powerful and all knowing, He is watching America crumble and He is waiting.  What is He waiting for?  He is waiting for the good Christian people of America to rise up, stand strong  and speak out.  He is looking for us to "Stand up for Jesus' and goodness and light.  He knows we have it in us and He is leaving it to us to use our free will to act as He would want us to act.  Not in anger or with our fists, but with our hearts and minds.  That is are where our true strength can be found and the truth is where the power is.  God will always be there for us when we do the right thing.

So what are we going to do.  Are we going to "Stand up for Jesus" or wallow in a newly created Third World state?  I guess only we can decide since God is testing us.  But God is waiting, hoping and ready to support us.  Let's live up to His love.





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Live Life at the Ready

10/25/2013

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And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.  Hebrews 9:27

Yesterday I took a quick trip into town to buy some groceries and stop by the hardware store.  I was in a rotten mood as I had just found out that my well pump was failing and had to be replaced quickly.  Living on a farm in a tough economy, one has to always watch expenses and, of course, unexpected things always happen when you least need them.  One thing is certain, you can't live on a farm with animals without plenty of water.

As I walked up to the deli counter, I noticed the pretty young woman behind the counter seemed very out of sorts.  She just seemed very sad and trying to be the good Christian I asked her if she was okay.  She looked at me with a tear in her eye and told me that she had just received word that her sister had been killed in a car accident. She was just waiting on an emergency replacement and she would be on her way to her family home.

I told her I would pray for her and for her family and told her God would bless her.  Then I grabbed my order and headed out to my truck.  I thought about this poor woman's plight and was ashamed of myself for having thought earlier that I had a problem.  We just get self-absorbed sometimes and events like this serve to bring us back to the reality of what is important.

And it also brings to mind something else, something upon which our entire reason for being is based.  That something is our God and His requirement that we live our lives for His glory.  You see, God wants us to honor and love Him and it is what we will be judged on when our days on earth are done.  Like the Hebrews verse says, we die from our earthly life but once, and then we will face Him for his judgment.

Will we be good enough to inherit His Kingdom with Him and the Son or will we fall short?  Will we put off what we need to do for Him or make it a priority now?  Think about it folks.  We have the opportunity for Everlasting Life with Jesus and His Father if we will only make our commitment to Him now.  But if we put it off, we may find out that our life which is fleeting may end before we can do so. 

Do you want to take that chance?  I know I don't.  I want to live this life with a good heart and the knowledge that when it is over I will be with Him in glory forever.  You can also inherit the Kingdom if you make the right choice.  If you haven't already, start your new life today while you have the opportunity.  It's your future.  Get ready while you can.

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Our Elected Leaders Just Keep on Spending

10/23/2013

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I've been singling out the President and his Administration recently for the actions taken which I consider to be tyrannical and for the outlandish expenditure of money that we don't have.  And while I have also hit pretty hard at some of our Republican leaders for what I see as cowardice and unwillingness to fight the good fight, today I heard of something that really set me off.  And on the grand scale of things in Washington, it wouldn't be noticed by many, but in my mind it just shows how out of touch our elected leaders are with the nation's citizenry.

In just the last few days, Congressman Bill Young of Florida, the longest serving Republican in the House of Representatives after twenty-two terms, passed away.  And I certainly send my condolences to his family who I know will miss him.  Loss of a loved one is never easy, even after a long and distinguished life and I hope no one takes my comments to follow the wrong way, but I have to call it the way I see it.

It was announced earlier today by the Speaker's office that the entire House of Representatives, all 435 members, would be flown by the United States Air Force to Tampa, Florida for Congressman Young's funeral.  Really?  We couldn't take care of our Afghan War casualties and dependents suffered dramatically from the way they were treated, but leave it to the Congress to spare no expense or leave no stone unturned when it comes to their own members.  I find this both outrageous and offensive.  The country is broke and the Congress continues to spend like drunken sailors for themselves.  Why didn't they have a memorial service in Washington and then, for those who wanted to attend the funeral, they could travel on their own dime?  Why do those we elect think they deserve to be treated like royalty when American citizens are treated like trash?

And remember, folks, when the government was closed the Senate made sure that Senator Lautenberg's widow received the customary $174,000 emergency gratuity even though the late Senator had a net worth in the neighborhood of $50 million.  I don't begrudge them for this, although I think it is rather opulent in those circumstances, but at the same time gratuity payments for the families of dead service members were delayed.  Had not a few individuals voiced outrage it would have never been corrected.

And you don't think our elected officials are treated much better than those who pay their salaries?  Think again.

We Americans need to take the time to watch and evaluate what the President and Congress do with our money and reward or punish their performance in the voting booth.  We must change America or we will disappear into the dustbin of what used to be.  And remember, the little things, like the situation described above, when multiplied by the special pork and favors doled out by the establishment for playing "follow the leader" are killing us. 

Let's wake up and watch the cash register, folks, and close the drawer. 


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Kathleen Sebelius is Going to Testify

10/22/2013

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The word came out late yesterday that Kathleen Sebelius, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, would testify next week before the House Energy and Commerce Committee.  After weeks of stonewalling and saying that her schedule wouldn't allow it, she finally relented as the pressure even began to build from, of all places, the compliant media.  Try as they would to save Obama's "baby" project, Obamacare, even they finally are beginning to see that this boondoggle is destructive.

So what can we expect to learn from her testimony next week?  Well, I think there are two points that need to be brought up before we get our hopes up that anything dramatic will happen.  The first involves Mrs. Sebelius herself, the second the committee chairman, Fred Upton of Michigan.

I think that the Secretary knows she is in for heat.  After all, she  continually trumpeted Obama's line that the program is working well and that millions of Americans will now be able to afford healthcare.  I also think that she also knew that is pure hogwash.  The price of coverage is going through the roof, potential customers can't even get a quote until they divulge estensive personal information that is subject to fraud, the computer customer support program is a complete albatross and now we are even learning that doctors considering participation can't even find out what their reimbursement will be.  Accordingly, a mad dash for the doors by physicians is likely.  So we are likely to end up with a non-workable system that is much higher in cost costly with medical care woefully inadequate.  It's not about healthcare, it's about control.  Why do you think thousand and thousand of new IRS agents are being hired for the program.  They want to take your money, period.

So back to the question of Mrs. Sebelius' testimony?  I think she will be forced to take the "fifth".  She knows she is complicit, she knows she is the fall person and she knows that Obama will throw her to the wolves just like he will anyone else when the heat gets too hot.  So, she'll get some kind of golden parachute, be cashiered out of office with some kind of phony excuse and we will still be left with no additional information on this disaster.

And now that brings me to the House committee that will lead the questioning.  Why did I mention the chairman, Fred Upton?  Well, everyone needs to know that Fred Upton is no conservative.  Oh, he masquerades as one but he is just another RINO.  Remember the requirement that we have to use those household lightbulbs that aren't as bright and if broken literally require a haz mat team?  Well, Fred Upton is the one who didn't fight to allow continued use of incandescent lightbulbs with the associated high cost of the replacements.

I think Congressman Upton will go through the motions, pull a "Boehner" and say it was a thorough discussion and that he was satisfied with her answers, and allow her off the hook.  After all, advance billing says they will focus on the problems with the computer program and why it was not ready for prime time because of either incompetence or poor preparations.  No sir, Chairman Upton, the problem is Obamacare itself and its sweeping use of Gestapo-like tactics to put what are supposed to be free American under the yoke of a government that can hardly tie its own shoes.  And to destroy the best medical care in the world for a false ideology is a travesty and you, sir, should no better. 

Once again the Republicans will have the chance to strike a major blow for freedom and they will probably let it slip through their fingers.  And I think it's because they enjoy what power they have more than anything else.  They have lost sight of their supposed mission and in so doing have lost the people.  I hope I am wrong about this but the signs all point this way.

So what should we do?  Support men of integrity like Ted Cruz and Mike Lee and defend them from the scorn that is being heaped upon them.  They are smart, informative and on the right course and we need to stand with them.  And healthcare is just one of the many issues that are being used to try and "fundamentally change America" in a way that most of us don't want.

Have a great day.  Pray to God for his inspiration and guidance in these times and remember, there is power in numbers.  When you stand up and speak out you will find there are millions out there who agree with you.  God will be with you and He will give you His blessings.

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    Hi, I'm James, a writer who studies nature,  animals and all things created by God. I also write from time to time about what I think God expects of us.  I would love to hear your thoughts on these subjects. I hope you enjoy my comments.

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