Month: July 2012

Hypocritical Road Block

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   “It just seems to be a human trait to want to protect the speech of people with whom we agree. For the First Amendment, that is not good enough. So it is really important that we protect First Amendment rights of people no matter what side of the line they are on.”
~Floyd Abrams

   “The First Amendment is often inconvenient. But that is besides the point. Inconvenience does not absolve the government of its obligation to tolerate speech.”
~Unkown

How soon we forget.  It wasn’t that long ago that Christians of many creeds were calling for boycotts of businesses and it won’t be that long before it happens again. 
       Christmas rolls around but once a year.  And, invariably, several Christian ‘leaders’ or ‘spokespersons’ are very willing and quick to point out the major store chains whose employees are less than apt to use the word “Christmas” during any kind of verbal exchange.  Whether their personal preference or the company policy, we are – just admit it – very quick to be offended by ‘Happy Holidays’ or ‘Season’s Greetings.’
       Granted, when it is the company’s policy we would like to aver 1st amendment rights, where the employee is concerned, and shame on the corporations!  (Never mind freedom in Christ)  “Don’t frequent these stores!” Followed by a list of nasty Scrooges who won’t use the word ‘Christmas’ for fear of offending non Christians! 
      Time shift.  Time: the present. Chick-fil-A is in the middle of a PR mess after the owner, Dan Cathy, stated that he believes in traditional marriage and that our insistence that we know better than God is presumptuous. When asked (by a Baptist organization) if he monitarily supported political causes that are arguably against same sex unions Cathy replied, “Guilty as charged!”
Much like (but not really) Christians call for attention to certain offenses, the secular world is crying “Foul!” and insisting some action be taken. Boycotts, no Chick-fil-A zones, etc. One company even said that any money received from Chick-fil-A would go to a pro- gay group.
In an attempt to show ambiguity on Cathy’s part, some have indicated that last year he stated he was not anti gay but wanted everyone to be a (Chick-fil-A) fan and now he’s apparently forgotten that.
I think about these things and I want to shout out in defense of Cathy! But I force myself to step backwards and consider some things first. What is our proper response to either or both of these examples? As Christians, as casual conservatives, as patriots, as whatever? Should there be a collision of church and state? If so is there a proper way for it to occur? And are these examples comparable?
Not gonna drag this out. I get too long winded. Our response should be simple. If people get hurt, don’t do it. (Encourage others to abstain as well.) If (reasonable) stumbling blocks go up, don’t do it. If we’re not sure but it violates our conscience, don’t do it. If we’re Christians, WWJD? Does God approve? Etc. It’s always a moral ethical question.

As for Christmas scrooges, I say “Bah, Humbug!” My personal convictions are that if I don’t spend every season including the Christmas season spreading God’s love and message (and messenger!) of redemption, then, I’m in the wrong! Separation of Church and State was meant to protect the Church! So why don’t I exercise MY individual rights by avering “Merry Christmas!” to every muzzled employee I meet. Maybe I’m letting them know I understand. Maybe I’m convicting them in some small way. Maybe I’m just making them smile. And maybe, just maybe, even if they’re offended, I’m building a bridge. But at least I’m doing as Christ and seeking the lost.
That’s MY take. And that’s the rub! It has to be MY conviction!
In the same way, as someone else is convicted to do elsewise, that’s their conviction! – the merits of which may or may not be discussed at length with that person. Conclusions drawn. Individual choices made. Etc.
Cathy was exercising HIS right. The company(s) that severed ties were exercising theirs. The people who want to boycott or are compelled to visit more frequently are exercising their rights. I have severed my budget from certain companies that support abortion. My right.
Rights are funny things… People even have the right to be hypocrites. Yes, it is their right to even believe people are idiots for not agreeing with them. To believe that the first amendment only applies if it agrees with what they already think.
Unfortunately for them it doesn’t really work that way. Trying to force this belief is where the irony of them exercising their first amendment right while refusing you yours BECAUSE you don’t agree with them begins. Generally speaking, conservatives and Christians don’t so this. Actually, generally speaking, not a lot of people do this. Invariably a handful of narrow minded people make idiotic threats, callous vulgar statements, ignorant generalities… But for the most part, as right as they think they are, most folks are ‘live and let live.’
It’s hard to deal with this particular ‘1%’ of liberal thinkers. But not impossible. Fools with signs discontentedly claiming THEIR rights are infringed because you exercised yours – dumbfounding. But nor illegal. Just ignorant and frustrating.

Where the collision takes place is when, for political gain, people in GOVERNMENT try to infringe on those rights! Cities like Chicago and Boston have no business coming out and publicly declaring that Chic-fil-A is not welcome in their city! Quite frankly, if the people actually respected and understood their own rights, then these power motivated politicians would not be in power very long. IRONICALLY, Bloomberg was the voice of reason! Stating loosely, ‘as long as permits are filled out, any upstanding business is welcome in NYC!’ (Did someplace freeze over?!?)
With respect to Cathy, he was being interviewed and gave his perspective. Love it, hate it, indifferent, you prerogative. He has stated and proven that every customer is treated with the utmost dignity, respect, and top notch service, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, car preference, etc.
Maybe someday the left will understand that anti gay MARRIAGE is not the same as anti gay. In the meantime, while we encourage people to remember we all have the same rights, let’s not forget that they do have the right – as we do, to act on our conscience, right or wrong, within the law. And let’s not forget that we sometimes act hastily, with passion, and with muted self righteousness.

And let us never lose sight of how precious is the freedom that was purchased for us to be able to debate these things.

Tim

Fast and Furious: Premeditated Politics

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“So today I say to the cartels: Don’t even think about bringing your violence and tactics across this border. You will be met by an overwhelming response.”
-Janet Napolitano, Homeland Security Secretary, January 2012

AG Eric Holder gave vague, deceitful, and ambiguous responses as to his knowledge concerning the Fast and Furious scandal – A program in which the U.S. government supplied thousands of U.S. guns to the Mexican cartels with no intention of tracing the weapons (as George W. Bush did and was able to recover every gun.) The President’s involvement became complicit when, faced with an impending deadline, AG Holder asked Obama to claim executive privilege over documents in question that would most likely have exposed his false testimony concerning his involvement in fast and Furious. By claiming executive privilege, Obama basically acknowledged that he had knowledge as well. Several of these weapons have been used in border ‘skirmishes,’ and 300+ people including Brian Terry, Border Patrol Agent, are now casualties of this incomprehensible ‘program. To further complicate matters, Brian Terry’s death, the nature of it and the exact circumstances surrounding it have been closed. It speculated that he may have known too much… Who knows? But not even his mother knows what exactly happened to him. The above statement would appear to be too coincidental to be anything but a chronological paragraph in the liturgical order of the fast and furious instruction manual, don’t you think?

Now, tell me again how nobody knew about this. Tell me the purpose of it.  Not only, but there was and is no ‘overwhelming response.’  So then what is the purpose – as BP is ordered to duck and hide armed with bean bags? This quoted January of this year! Curious timing, don’t you think? Absolutely reprehensible.

Christian, evil people do evil things in this world. We are called to be the hands and feet of Christ. If we don’t get involved in these things that affect so many people, that by all appearances are nothing more than acceptable sacrifices to the god of political agendas, then we are denying our responsibility!

These people must be told what we think of what they’re doing! The blissfully ignorant masses must be informed so that, at the very least, they can choose to act or not on their own conscience! Where would people who would give guns to cartels and bean bags to Border Patrol agents, then ‘speak harshly and carry a small stick,’ stop?

This is not “Politics as usual.” This is life and death. If we can’t be motivated by this level of deception and careless disregard for life, then what will motivate us?

I think if people know what is really at stake, we will have a land slide victory in November – If the power hungry don’t derail the train before then. But, as is always the case, we must proceed as if it will matter and as if we can make a difference.

“I am Brian Terry.”

Tim

The Illusion of Gun Control

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“Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed; as they are in almost every kingdom of Europe. The supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword; because the whole body of the people are armed, and constitute a force superior to any band of regular troops that can be, on any pretence, raised in the United States.” -Noah Webster

About a year ago I got a European bred German Shepherd, very sweet dog but definitely bred for work. When she was young she would just sleep off and on whenever she wanted, but now that she is getting older I have noticed one thing… She sleeps deeply for hours during the day, she never that did before. She will get up and play, but in general she sleeps during the day more than most dogs that I know. But when the sun sets this all changes, once I lay my head on the pillow she walks over to the window and starts her “shift”, for the first couple hours she moves from window to window watching for any movement outside…Her ears are high, and the first sound of movement sends her into an immediate investigation. Even when she finally lays down right beside my bed she is awake, laying her head downbut always alert to what is going on around her. If I said this didn’t make me sleep better I would be lying…It is a comfort knowing that you have protection. If anyone looks her way it serves as a deterrent to entering my home unwelcomed…And if anyone entered and wasn’t welcomed, well, it probably wouldn’t be pretty. In her mind her sole duty is to keep her people safe, well…and fetch balls. When I take her to my nephews she goes into panic mode if they climb a tree, or when a stray dog entered the yard she wanted the people on the porch. It is a sense of safety that I am guessing will only get better when she graduates from dog toddlerhood.

We as humans feel safe when we have protection. Our world is full of dangers that we don’t recognize or see, watching the nightly news is the most constant reminder of this fact. I would hate to see my dog hurt someone, but would I call her off if a person broke into my home? No. For this very fact I am an avid supporter of gun rights. I will outline my personal reasons as to why, and also why the average excuses do not suffice nor do they give any valid reasoning for gun control.

I have heard the stories where a young child is playing with a gun that should have been put up, the results were tragic and life was lost. I have heard stories of violence and pain where a gun was used. We all know about the tragic school shootings and horrific crimes committed. But we also know about the accidents, for instance…one of my good friends had a cousin accidentally shot while hunting. But I have also heard stories of children drowning in pools because a door was left open or a ladder was left in the pool. I have heard the tragic news reports of people murdered by being drowned, and I have heard of accidental drowning victims. Do we then outlaw pools, lakes, and bath tubs? No. A gun, just like any other dangerous entity is to be treated with extreme caution and should require extreme training, as well as extreme care. ESPECIALLY when a child is in the home. Some would consider my dog to be dangerous, but I take precautions to ensure that she isn’t loose, she isn’t running the streets, and she isn’t out of control. The idea that if Guns were removed from homes in America it would make the streets safer is completely false. Drugs are illegal and I don’t have them because I do not want any part of them, and for many borderline law abiding citizens the legality of them is a deterrent as well. BUT, we have streets, rehabs and prisons full of drug addicts who have found a way to constantly feed their addictions. Cops have worked tirelessly for years to lower this number, but in the end it all comes down to the fact that drug addicts still exist because large amounts of people are more than willing to go behind the backs of law enforcement for not only a living, but to maintain their way of life.

To think that outlawing guns would undo the criminal activity involving guns is false. And if you are under the assumption that I then think drugs should be legal, that is wrong as well. Guns for the most part are used for good. We can’t even begin to imagine how many lives are saved DAILY because of guns in the U.S. (we will get into more of this later). Those that get them legally and have the proper training should be allowed to have them…Just like medically ill patients around the world should legally be able to have medications, even though many criminals turn them into illegal drugs and addictions. To use it as a means to eliminate crime and accidents is a blatant lie used by the left.

Now to the most dangerous of the reasons. My quote from Noah Webster is one to remember…We as a nation are free (this is questionable at this point in time), but we are flirting with the dangerous line of socialism, and that line was only allowed to be placed because of our politically uneducated nature. We haven’t put this topic in the forefront of our minds, while the devious plans have been knowingly taking place behind our backs. Something as brutal as Fast and Furious is now being used as a platform for gun control campaigning, and shockingly from the very people that refuse to allow justice to the Fast and Furious case. People, this is like OJ Simpson preaching on the dangers of knives.

So, I am giving the socialist the benefit of the doubt by saying that they know the history of gun control…Back in the French 1700’s blacks were beat for having any type of weapon whatsoever, laws continued to be passed prohibiting FREE blacks from owning firearms. Out of fear of a revolution? How about the 20 million dead due to the gun control in the Soviet Union? Or how about the holocaust, in 1938 Germany rolls in the newly established gun control and millions of Jews are slaughtered defenselessly. As early as 1970 Uganda established gun control and before 1980 over 300,000 Christians were murdered. This is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg…

       So, the only conclusion that I can draw from someone coming into my home and removing my trained and controlled dog would be that they themselves plan on entering my home unwelcomed. Same goes for my guns. Our President and upper class government are working to disarm the very people that they are refusing to listen to concerning our economy. With his executive privileges he now has the power to hit the martial law button and have complete control of our lives, add gun control to that and you have what history has proven to be a deadly mixture.

       Not only is it historically proven that the government becomes the embodiment of what can only be referred to as the Orkin Man for humans, but the crime rates sky rocket. Why? Because all you have done is remove the guns from the self controlled ensuring that the uncontrollable have a free ride while rummaging through your home.

       Think like a criminal…If every home in the US had a sign in the front yard indicating if they were armed or unarmed, which homes would you prefer to enter? The new healthcare bill will tax the middle class into poverty, when you tax someone into poverty and then unarm them we cannot possibly be so naive as to belief that this is not a purposeful removal of freedoms for the purpose of a questionably fatal control. With Obamacare our government would now have the ability to deny coverage and life saving medical services…Could we possibly think that this added to gun control couldn’t grow into a discrimination on race or religion like it has for EVERY other instance of Government control?

       Our country has been the exception to the rule when it came to freedom, but that wasn’t free was it? We were the exception because we had been given our freedom and were willing to fight for it. But if we willingly relinquish those rights do you honestly believe that we can be the exception any longer? Absolutely not.

       Once again Christians, you have the obligation to fight for the very freedoms you use every time you walk into your church, every time that you bow your head in public, for the freedom to listen to your Christians stations and wear a cross around your neck. Take a moment to think about your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, the millions who have had their lives taken for doing exactly what you do everyday…serve your God. That isn’t the future that you want for your kids, and if you think that future impossible…

       I urge you to look at who we as a country are now standing behind, who our President is in support of, and who his confidants praise. Look at where he is headed, where gun control took other countries, and the blood that he is willing to hide in order to get reelected. Maybe then we wouldn’t be bickering over having a Mormon in the White House.

       I love the bumper sticker that said “You think healthcare is expensive? What until it’s free”, maybe we should have bumper stickers that say “You think guns are dangerous? Wait until only the criminals have them”…

-Mb-

You didn’t build that

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Class warfare.  The intent is obvious.  By playing to the employees vs. employer, Obama hopes he has the ear of the majority as there are many more employees than there are employers; insinuating that the ‘rich’ employers owe the workers something more than a paycheck.
It’s funny.  It’s no dig on the working class that a lot of them have never given it a go at building their own business.  But the next best obvious choice is to work for someone who DID make a go of it.  And it is their Choice.  When did soliciting an employer, submitting an application as if you wanted the job, interviewing, agreeing to wages (perks, breaks, raises, absenteeism, etc.), and signing the ‘ contract’ constitute some kind of a bad arrangement?
I hear a lot of complaining where I work and where I have worked.  “They don’t pay me enough for this.” They don’t care sitting up in their air conditioned office.”  “They make their money off of our backs!”
Really?   How many account have you solicited?  How many products have you created? How many trial and error prototypes have you designed? How many 80 hour weeks did you put in when the business was on the brink of failing? Did you ever write your last payroll check to yourself and put it in a drawer to cash later when the money was there? Did you figure out the cost analysis, the overhead, the workmans comp? Did you take a crash course in HR so you could not only be fair but avoid a lawsuit? Did you write the proposal, submit it to the bank, secure financial backing, cash in your nest egg?  Did you confront the auditors and inspectors and show them everything was up to par? Did you pay the snow plow, pave the parking lot, hire a maintenance crew? How many times have you come to work and the day was all lined up for you – all the days work ready to be done, scheduled and waiting?  Well?
The insinuation is that you the worker deserve more from your employer.   Even if that were the case, do you think the answer is to allow the government to tax your employer more? You won’t see a dime more.  You’ll get less raises, potentially layoffs, maybe less hours.  Or should the government force the owners to take less, prohibit layoffs, keep their hours? When they go broke to force them to keep their business, not sell, not move?… Does that sound like America???
The oversimplified American dream:  Success through hard work. The freedom to try.
Your employer PAYS you for your service.  That’s the trade off.  That’s the compensation.  How come we know this coming in and were ‘happy’, we ‘like working here’, and, ‘it’s a nice place to work’,  and we’re content. But a year, two, ten years down the road we feel crapped on?
Open your eyes America!  If you allow this mentality to creep any further into the door, then we’re soon in danger of losing the opportunity to even try to achieve the dream!  Not only that, but the employee/employer contract is a great deal!  They did all the work, do the lions share now, and PAY you to make ‘that happen!’ – primarily the production.
Worse is when I hear Christians grumbling about this.  Hey!  If you want to make owner money, then do what the owner did!
I believe most of us know this.  I believe most of us WON’T buy into this class warfare nonsense.  I believe in the free market and its ability to fix or help a lot of woes that ail us.  I believe that an army of people armed with information and a common sense apologetic approach can educate our coworkers.  I believe we must.
I’m angry at our president.  He says it was taken out of context.  Mr. President, what is in the heart is what spills out of the mouth.  If you’ve misspoken,  then you’ve done it umpteen times.  You don’t represent our morals, our values, our beliefs.  And in November we mean to vote you out of office in a landslide.
Christians and Patriots, won’t you help? Educate. Motivate. Lead by example. Try. Even harder.
In the end, win or lose, be content with your effort. Know that at the very least you left it all on the field.

Tim

America’s Pastime

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We went to the Cardinals/Brewers game last night.  The Cards lost 3-2, but it was the best time we’ve had in… well, almost ever!

A couple months ago, I was looking at the Cardinals schedule when a serendipitous situation started to play itself out. The Cards were, against the odds, scheduled to play the Brewers at Miller Park on my wife birthday. Three things about this. One, I’m from Wisconsin but my wife is from St. Louis. Her dad played minor league for the Stl Browns and was a coin flip away from the pros his first year in until he broke both ankles in one year. Brewers’ fans should never argue that Wisconsin is a baseball state. It’s not. It has its ups and downs and moments when the team is good and the fever hits, but it’s really a football state. (Go Packers!) So despite the mid 80’s, I never was drawn towards it. It’s no reach to understand then that when I got married and lived in Missouri in a family who was blessed with a Brown, and a state who argues (reasonably so) that the Cards are America’s baseball team, that I was drawn in to the passion for the game and became a Card’s fan. So we live in WI but we’re Card’s fans for life!
Two. Living 4 hours away, it’s difficult to make more than a game or two a year to Miller and luck would have it that my job pretty much dictates anything other than a weekend game is out of the question. Combine that with, trying to start up a business, and a lot of family functions and you wind up with one game in two years. That’s ok though. I’m not rich and a years subscription to MLB on satellite is half the cost of one game in person!
Three. Our luck this year has been unusually rotten. Rotator cuff surgery and two months of missed work have left us content to watch the games on tv. Our one mutual escape none the worse for the financial wear.

I sat staring at the schedule in disbelief. What could be a better birthday present?!? But alas, I let the thought die a dignified death and moved on…
To a ticket site! Hey, no harm in looking! My son happened by the computer and we started scheming together to make it happen!
Now I won’t divulge who payed how much, but God bless my 19 year old son! In disbelief, I held the tickets in my hand. My job let me off early. I scrimped and saved gas and parking money a few coins at a time. This was actually going to happen.
For two months we kept the secret. She had no clue. It wasn’t until we were 15 minutes from the park that my wife screamed, “I FIGURED IT OUT!” And punched my bad shoulder. Don’t worry, I’m ok.
“Great parking,” she said as we stopped 6 rows from Home Plate.
“Are you kidding me?!?!?” We parked our butts front row right over the media dug out visitor side. Larger than life players milled to and fro no more than 25 feet from us. We brought our two grandsons, 4 & 5, our daughter, and our son.
The Cards were taking batting practice. Then Skip Schumaker walked past to stretch out. Bubby, my 5 year old grandson yelled, “Skippy! ” He turned, smiled and waved. Big Puma waved. Matt Carpenter. Mike Matheny. Jose Oquendo. My wife’s eyes danced. It was perfect.
Then Skip Schumaker walked by the stands and tossed a ball to a bunch of teenagers. He went to toss a second when a voice yelled, “Not them! Give one to the little guys!” He remembered us, turned immediately to Bubby and threw the ball, major league over hand toward him.
Now Bubby is a child prodigy. At 4 he hit a fast pitched ball 129′, but who’s keeping track, right? But the ball came in low outside the rail. Grandma to the rescue! She reached far over the rail and snow coned the ball! Could it be more perfect?
Yep.
Matt Holliday threw one. Then Jose Oquendo. Then Oquendo again! (We gave that one to a little girl for whom it was intended). Then the camera guy scored one and gave it to my daughter.
My wife’s sister texted, “I can hear you guys!” Awesome! We screamed louder. My wife snapped a picture of the camera guy shooting the game to send to her so she could see how close we were! (More on that later!) A few seconds later she texted back, “You guys were just on TV for like 20 seconds!!!” (The St Louis feed, promoting a junior clinic, had the camera on Bubby, my son, myself, and grandson Buster!) Unbelievable!
Remember the photo showing sis how close we were? We looked at the picture today. The cameraman’s laptop monitor is visible in the lower right hand corner. It clearly shows the feed from the other camera dug out… US! On the feed! Unbelievable! Now the Cards lost… we didn’t win the 50/50…(close though!) But here’s the best part, and infer what you will. There will be no overt opinions avered in this post.
I spent the game protecting my family from foul balls, which never happened. When I wasn’t doing that, I was very intently watching my five year old grandson with his glove on his hand, his attention on every pitch, and a sparkle in his eye. It spoke a mountain of unsaid hopes and dreams – of an incorruptible memory in the process of being permanently forged. I don’t think he ever sat down.
He’s good. He could do this. I couldn’t help but wonder what the future holds for my little Bubby. I imagined in my mind the best future I possibly could, and I turned to my wife. She was watching him with the same sense of wonder. I turned my attention back towards the moment.
“Papa?”
“Yes Bubby?”
“I wanna play baseball.”
“Right now?!”
“No!” he laughed. “When I grow up. That’s what I wanna do. Play baseball.”
“Bubby, I’ll see what I can do.”

Tim

Punching holes in the wall

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    “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
– Thomas Jefferson –

It’s weird to think that after these words were penned and the Declaration was signed, that it wasn’t immediately laminated and placed behind vacuum sealed glass. But the war was in full swing. The Declaration was simply an emphatic letter to George the third letting him know they would never back down. The Declaration, to them, was never as important as the freedom for which they fought. It simply clearly defined their motives and arguably, silently avered the truth of their suppression. Historically, we recognize the profound and revolutionary results of their actions. And while we revere the documents, the writers, and the ideals they espouse(d), and we celebrate the results, they were ultimately just concerned about the results.

I’m gonna try something I’ve never seen done, not that is hasn’t been done. We have interpretations of the bible up to the ‘red neck ten commandments,’ right? So how about the above passage? Here goes:

George, we’re doing this for obvious reasons: God created all men equal. It goes without saying that you disagree. He’s given all men certain rights that cannot be revoked, (while we suffer from your attempts to revoke them,) namely Life, Liberty on several fronts, and to try to be happy. We will live or die by this. Good luck. Sincerely, Tom and company.
   
Just a couple things stand out to me in the original text.
1: “…all men are created equal.” Equal in importance, not necessarily social status. Like ‘same body – many (equally important) parts.’ Critics argue obvious social level, slave ownership, etc. (I always secretly hoped to believe that they were the 18th century version of Schindler where that was concerned.) Equal.
2: Capital “C” in “Creator.”
3: “Rights, Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness,” grammatically emphasized. Again, the underlying message was probably pointing out the things that were not being allowed.
4: ‘Endowed’ and ‘unalienable.’ Given, and irrevocable. It drives some people nuts when I tell them I’m free in Christ because they see it as so much bondage, rules, and regulations… restrictions. That it can’t be taken away would seem debatable. But it’s not. With the Colonies, it wasn’t the ability to have the things that couldn’t be revoked, it was the Right to the things that was irrevocable, different from freedom in Christ in that the ability to remain free can’t be taken, but you get the picture.

These ‘truths’ are obvious. Yet, according to what I’ve read, homeland security and Nancy Pelosi would have you believe that if you hold to these truths, if you believe in personal liberties, if you are a tea party libertarian, you are a potential terrorist and a dangerous individual!
If you’re like me, you’re thinking, “This can’t end well.”

The collision of church and state should never have happened. It is the love of the almighty dollar that is the root of this corruption. Even the love of power is subject to the love of money. The government is in bed with the abortion industry. For many years, more and more restrictions have been placed on protesters (primarily religious folk), ie. certain distance from clinics, illegal to approach and talk to or convince would be ‘patients’ otherwise, etc. etc. Finally we were getting reports that abortion centers were slowly but surely being shut down… defunded. Individual lower level politics doing what they could… states, sovereign states passing legislating… The dam seemed about to burst.
“That’s ok,” thought the federal government, “we can force everyone to buy health coverage and include in the bill a ‘birth control’ mandate. BAM! Collision.

Passage of the bill: Bought by one vote. Upheld: (possibly) Bought by one opinion. It’s discouraging to think this precious liberty could be bought by politicians and thugs. It’s backwards too. The government was confined to certain powers, separate but equal, that the will of the people has barely held in check for the last few years. Whether by principle in that the government should be limited in its powers over ‘church’ or in ignorant application that religion has absolutely no place in the government, it has remained intact (with its share of black eyes). Now the government apparently has decided that the separation only goes one way – and you can guess the direction!

But it’s encouraging too. One vote. During Obama’s popular phase. One. Not that an abuse of power and executive orders can’t nullify lack of popularity and unfavorable opinion polls. But we can only be cautiously hopeful that the integrity of the system will remain intact. That enough people can let their senators know how we feel about their job security. There is hope. If not now, then November. There’s always hope. Hope was forged from the midst of a Revolutionary War. It’s certainly not gone now.

There’s definitely much more to talk about than Obamacare, but that’s the pressing issue. Call your senators. Stay involved. Be active.
And if you’re compelled to believe that religion shouldn’t get involved, remember our founding fathers were politicians whose purpose included ‘Creator’ with a capital ‘C’.

Tim

You Didn’t Mean Not To…

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“Facts are stubborn things: and whatever may be our wishes, our inclination, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.” John Adams

One of my Grandpa’s has always used the saying “You didn’t mean not to” in response of anyone that dare say “well, I didn’t mean to”.  Some of the family abhors this saying as an annoyance, or as the demeaning of the accident prone.  I for one find it refreshing…When using this saying he is not attacking the individual, but pointing out a possible lack of care when the situation calls for it.  But, be it a fender bender that was truly unavoidable, of course those words wouldn’t be spoken.  The beauty of the saying is found in its simplicity. Maybe we aren’t in purposeful disregard of others, but merely not going out of our way to be different.  I thought of this recently when I was in a twitter “debate”, I didn’t exude the persona of someone who was overly concerned with her approach…I have been caught in that trap many times.  I seem to believe that the obviousness of the issues should be clearly seen by all, but that just isn’t the case…and where does it get me? Nowhere.  So in the name of practicing what I preach, I need to deliberately mean not to.

 

This same idea goes hand in hand with events that we find in the news.  Our lives are so wrapped around our day to day dealings that sometimes we ignore the sounds of the train…and unfortunately we have ignored them for so long that we don’t realize they are about to hit us.  A few months ago I finally plunged into the Fast and Furious scandal I had heard little about, it wasn’t that I was meaning to be out of touch…but I wasn’t deliberately meaning not to.

The mainstream media has ignored the F&F scandal since day one, every once in a while I would hear something only to go back to what I was doing content in my ignorance.  But the truth is that the stories that tend to be deliberately ignored by the media are the ones you should be worried about the most.  F&F is no exception. I won’t go into extensive detail about the scandal itself, to do so would make this blog more of a book.  I’m going to give you the Campbells condensed version in hopes that you will research this yourselves.  Many bloggers have kept the story alive and I would encourage you to look into Katie Pavlich as she has been on the frontlines of this battle the entire time.  F&F was a gun running scandal that if looked at in detail not only looks suspicious, but nearing on blatantly purposeful. This scandal lead to the deaths of over 300 Mexicans and a border patrol agent named Brian Terry.  Weapons used? US guns that our government sold, then watched them walk over the border. Our government is in possession of a small mountain of documents concerning F&F, that is of course if you consider Everest to be small. And let’s just say that if we compare the total mountain of documents to Everest, they have handed over the equivalent of a mole hill…possibly even an ant hill.

So, with the above information in mind, I am guessing you have the same question that I do…What is there to hide?  Why do they say that there is nothing to hide, but yet put up massive roadblocks to hide the truth?  Many Christians find themselves in a conundrum over this idea, maybe even throw up their hands and say “this doesn’t involve me”.  But it does, this type of behavior has been knocking on our doors for such a long time without response that something as blatant as murder, evasion, and hiding evidence has been committed with little to no justice served. The question we have to ask ourselves…Do we as Christians want our future generations raised in a supposed Christian land where murder is committed while Christians recline in the cushioned chair of ignorance and acceptance of injustice?  Is that what we were meant to be?  The President used Executive Privilege to protect Attorney General Eric Holder.  Our President, Attorney General, and who knows else are standing in the way of justice for victims of murder.  Could this be out of guilt?   This is not acceptable. To go even deeper into my concerns surrounding this injustice…The Democrats are now pushing for stricter gun control.  My personal opinion is that this was designed as a platform for their mission… But I ask you, what was the result of Hitler’s gun control?  What was the result of Mao’s gun control? What was the result of Stalin’s gun control?

We believe that we have strayed away from accountability, and if you pay attention to what is going on then you know that right now is the time to act…Right now is the time to speak out for the victims and to show your children, your neighbors, your family, your friends, that you believe in the Christian principles that your nation was founded on…and that your dedication to Christ has called you to stand up and be counted.   We are even reaching a point that those becoming vocal are being silenced under our noses, the government has given themselves the power to silence us.  We The People can spread the word and be a voice for the innocent, the victims, and against the blatant disregard for human beings.  

To leave the darkness in its content and brutal dismissal of the light is only an invitation for it to continue on its rampage.  I always think back to the idea that if a family were to arrive home to find that their house was broken into, they wouldn’t send their kids to bed without checking the house over… We are resting in an unchecked home, we are leaving the closets to contain dangers that will eventually harm us.  We need to check our closets, under our beds and behind our doors, because eventually, and probably sooner than we expect, when asked why we stood by while our country was stolen beneath our feet, crying that we didn’t mean to let it happen,  we will only have one thing left to ask ourselves…Why didn’t we mean not to?  

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“Learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow” Isaiah 1:17