Category Archives: current events

by | January 6, 2016 · 11:10 am

In Response To Our Glorious Leader

It Is Written

By now most of you have already watched or listened to President Obama’s tearful speech announcing his new executive mandates regarding guns and background checks.

Since he specifically mentioned the “gun lobby” and “the lies” they supposedly tell, I thought it fair to post this video, not just on Facebook and other social media, but on my blog as well.

On Paper?

In his speech Mr. Obama said that he understood we have certain rights because they are written down “on paper.” Interesting, especially coming from a self-acclaimed Constitutional professor, don’t you think?

Our rights are not written on “paper,” but on parchment – and it’s called the Constitution of the United States.

I feel sorry for those who took his classes; they probably didn’t learn much.

 

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by | December 3, 2015 · 6:32 pm

The Tree Meaning of Christmas

I would like to thank President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama for reminding us that the true meaning of Christmas is not what most Christians have thought.

clip-art-charlie-brown-christmas-tree-charlieNo, according to our President and First Lady, the message of Christmas (and Charles Shultz’ “A Charlie Brown Christmas”) is that “tiny trees just need a little love.” Jesus has nothing to do with it.

Believe it or not, if we look at the “original” translation of the prophecies concerning the coming of the Messiah, we will see why the Obamas believe this.

“For unto us a seedling is born, unto us a tiny tree is given: and the government shall be upon its branches: and its name shall be called Woody, Conifer, The mighty Balsam, The evergreen Fir, The Prince of Pine.” – Isaiah 9:6

You see, we Christians have gotten it all wrong. Christmas is not about the birth of “our Saviour, which is Christ the Lord;” it’s about the birth of a seedling in need of nurturing and decorating, which will bring peace on earth and goodwill toward men.

Again, just read this version of the Christmas story and you’ll see how other translations have gotten it all wrong.

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a seedling, which needs to be loved. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the twig wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger made of his dead relatives.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” – Luke 2:8-14

Thank you, Mr. President! You’ve changed everything!

 

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by | November 28, 2015 · 12:30 pm

The Face of Terrorism in America?

Colorado

You may have already heard about what happened in and around a Colorado Planned Parenthood facility. Three people were killed, including a police officer, by a shooter by the name of Robert Lewis Dear, age 57.

My heart is broken by the loss of life. Even though I believe abortion is the taking of an innocent life, I don’t condone attacking a Planned Parenthood office. If that was all Robert Dear was doing, then he had no justification for his actions. What he did was murder.

But right off the bat, even before the whole story had been released (and we still don’t know all the details as of yet), accusations started flying; talk of gun control ramped up once again; and anyone and everyone with a Facebook or Twitter account made their own two cents known.

Cue Montel Williams…

I don’t know what to think about Montel Williams. For the longest I have always viewed him as more of a moderate, likable, patriotic kind of guy. However, what he posted on his Facebook page after the Colorado shooting left me stunned and disheartened.

The face of terrorism in America is Robert Lewis Dear, 57, who today felt it necessary to take a Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs hostage while using the police for target practice in some sort of dramatic pro-life statement (which is ironic since the vast majority of the pro-life movement correctly interprets pro-life to mean not killing anyone).

Multiple people are dead, including one police officer who died as he lived – bravely. My prayers go out.

There is nothing more dangerous than a nut with an idea – in this country, those nuts often look like 57 y/o Robert Lewis Dear. Let’s not forget the face of evil often looks pretty darn American. – Montel Williams (from a post on his Facebook wall)

One common thread holding Mr. Williams’ statement together was what he considered the “face of terrorism” and the “face of evil” in America.

The Face of Terrorism and Evil

Montel Williams stated that the “face of terrorism in America is Robert Lewis Dear” who wanted to make a “dramatic pro-life statement…” He also stated that there is “nothing more dangerous than a nut with an idea…” Really?

So, if we were to parse out Mr. Williams’ statement, what characteristics should we be looking for in order to help us spot the poster boy of terrorism and evil in America? Based on Montel Williams’ profiling skills, from what kind of person should we be hiding?

  • A middle-aged white male (with a beard).
  • A white, male pro-lifer.
  • A middle-aged, white, male, pro-lifer with who owns guns.
  • A middle-aged, white male with an “idea” that is not pro-abortion.

Essentially, “nuts” that kill innocent people are most often white, male, middle-aged Americans with guns, and who are pro-life.

Seriously?

Contextual Terrorism and Evil

In a broad sense, the most common face of terrorism and evil in the world today is not American, not Caucasian, not Christian, and it doesn’t care a rat’s a** about the dignity of human life.

However, the true face of terrorism and evil in America is hardly the average middle-aged pro-lifer with a gun. The true face of terror – well, it really depends on the context.

If you are an average American citizen, the true face of terror is the one that makes you lock your doors at night, especially if you have anything worth taking. It’s the face that makes you nervous to walk down your street at night, or carry your groceries to your car.

For the average American, the face of terror and evil is the one that makes you wish you owned a gun, and if you do, get a permit to carry it. The face of evil the average American fears is the one who keeps you from picking up hitchhikers or giving a dollar to a stranger. It’s the face that makes you have to do background checks for nursery workers.

But in another context…if statistics were the only issue…it’s the unborn children in America, who die by the thousands every day, that should be scared. If they could see that face, how would they describe it?  I guess it’s because it uses forceps and scissors, instead of guns, that its face isnt’t associated with evil?

The TRUE Face of Terrorism and Evil

Let’s be honest, the average American is not afraid of middle-aged white guys with ideas any more or less than the black or Hispanic teen in a hoodie; we’re fearful of everyone!

The average American has no idea what the next drunk driver, mugger, identity thief, rapist, or child molester is going to look like. So, to say that there is a “face” that is more poster-worthy than the next is nothing more than racist fear-mongering.

The true face of terrorism in America (and the world) wants what it wants, hates it when you say no, and will stop at nothing to take it. That face is attached to every heart guided by hate, envy, jealousy, lust, a lack of forgiveness, and pride – not simply a nut with a gun.

Transform the heart and you’ll transform the face, regardless the context.

 

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by | November 13, 2015 · 1:58 pm

It’s All About the Typing

Headlines

There are so many things in the headlines these days, aren’t there? I’d love to spend some time on many of the topics being discussed, but for today, before I get to the main point of this post, I want to at least leave a few comments on the top stories.

  • Donald Trump, although a great business man, knows nothing of the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ. Because of this, his understanding of redemption and renewal are so limited that he cannot understand how Dr. Ben Carson can change from an angry teenager to a mild-mannered adult. Just because Trump claims to be Presbyterian, that doesn’t mean he knows what Christianity is all about.
  • The Brit who cut off all those people’s heads on video – Jihadi John – was sent out into eternity via an American high explosive. I am not crying.
  • Two teens (age 13 and 14) riding on a bus stabbed an Israeli security guard. After being warned to back away, one boy was shot (only wounded) and the other was captured and handed over to authorities. But it’s the Israelis who only want to kill Palestinian young people? Evidently, then, the name of the security officer was Barney Fife, and he must have only had one bullet…’cause you know…he didn’t kill the two young thugs.
  • College campi are under siege this week. They are being overrun by a bunch of spoiled little racist brats who have no idea what real oppression looks like. They are an embarrassment to America. They have no clue how economics works, nor how truly oppressive their dream government, a collective society, would be. These kids would have never made it through the Great Depression.

The Main Topic

The whole reason I wanted to write today was that I wanted to use my keyboard. Yes, I love to type.

My actual keyboard :-)

My actual keyboard 🙂

Oh, sure, I love writing, because that is what I am doing write now – writing. But have you ever stopped to think about how good it feels to be able to type 60 words a minute without even looking down? Have you never felt the satisfying sensation of pounding out your emotions through your fingers to the sound of plastic hitting plastic?

It’s GREAT!!!

As a matter of fact, there are a lot of times when I could have written posts using my iPhone or iPad. However, there is nothing like the feeling of clicking and clacking with all eight of my fingers, not just one. There is nothing therapeutic about thudding one’s fingertip on a tiny piece of glass, not unless you’re responding to an idiot on Facebook, I suppose.

But there is one other think that I was thinking about. I wonder if there are older typewriters out there that are rigged to computers? Wouldn’t it be great to be able to type on an old electric typewriter, to have that mechanical feel, yet still be able to backspace and correct without having to use correction tape?

Could someone get me one for Christmas?

Yes, I know…I’m old. For crying out loud, I took typing classes on MANUAL typewriters!

typewriterAnti-Troll Corona

Can you imagine? How many internet trolls would just give up if they knew they had to actually work to write anything? What percentage of them have ever had to write a paper using correction fluid instead of the backspace key? No, real typewriters would be the end of those who have nothing better to do than make people miserable.

Did I mention how those college kids protesting are a bunch of spoiled brats? Maybe they would feel less oppressed if we took away their “devices” and gave them a Smith & Corona?

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by | October 30, 2015 · 1:06 pm

I Support Coach Joe Kennedy

This week a high school football coach in Washington was fired from his job,

  • not because he molested a student;
  • not because he stole from the locker room;
  • not because he posted offensive language on the school’s website;
  • not because he exposed himself to other teachers while in the teacher’s lounge;
  • not because he was encouraging excessive violence on the field;
  • not because he was conspiring with terrorists;
  • not because he threatened the coach of another team;
  • not because he tried to contaminate the food in the concession stand;
  • not because he was caught cheating;
  • not because he was caught paying students to play;
  • not because he cursed a player’s parents during a game.

No, the reason he was fired was because he dared to kneel and silently pray on the 50 yard line of the ball field AFTER the game. The audacity!

Congress begins with prayer, and the most liberal president we’ve ever had attends national prayer breakfasts, but a high school football coach can’t silently pray on his own time for fear that it might send the message that a public school endorses religion? Makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? Not.

Now, the school where Coach Joe Kennedy USED to work, Bremerton High School, DID give him an option: he could pray silently alone inside the school, in a room chosen by the administration, just not on the field.

Senator Lankford of Colorado stood on the senate floor and said the following: “Government doesn’t have the authority to confine your faith to the location of government’s choosing.” However, this is where we are heading if people of ALL faiths don’t stand up and speak out.

This is STILL America. We are STILL unique in the world with regard to religious freedom. Don’t let those who want to prohibit the expression of faith in public – our Constitutionally-affirmed right – get away with this.

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by | October 29, 2015 · 9:37 pm

It’s Your Choice

I don’t have enough time, with all the other stuff going on this weekend, to write about everything of which I have an opinion. There’s just too much in the news.

Therefore, I want YOU to decide on what I write about next! You know, it’s sorta like a reverse of Fox News’ “We Report. You Decide.”

You decide. I will report.

Now, if you would like a few suggestions, just consider what has been in the news over the last few days and weeks. Maybe one of these topics would interest you.

  1. The Republican and Democrat Presidential debates in America.
  2. Policemen jerking unruly punk kids out of their desks in school.
  3. Policemen getting killed for being policemen.
  4. China ends one-child-only policy, but only ups it to two.
  5. Miley Cyrus and her upcoming naked concert.
  6. A football coach getting fired for praying after games at the 50-yard line.
  7. School shootings and gun-free zones.
  8. NCIS and Gibbs’ new look.
  9. Chinese and American tensions in the South China Sea.
  10. The possibility the Russians are going to cut internet cables in the Atlantic.

Then there are other things that aren’t in the news, but are nevertheless important – at least to some:

  1. Portlandia.
  2. NCIS compared to Castle.
  3. My DVR is full and erasing things I want to see but don’t have time to watch.
  4. Candy corn.
  5. How to keep trick-or-treaters away from your front door.
  6. The American public education system and Asian exchange students.
  7. Sharing the news of a missing pet on social media.
  8. Posting embarrassing photos of your teenage children when they were young.
  9. The horrors of being in the driver’s seat at a drive-thru with 6 other people in your minivan trying to tell you what they want, and all of them being females who can’t keep anything simple.
  10. Camera phones and legalism.
And then there's this.

And then there’s this. Aren’t you curious?

 

What do you want me to write about (excluding ending sentences with a preposition)?

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by | October 28, 2015 · 1:34 pm

Trying to Understand the Undead 2.0

Halloween

I hate Halloween. But if you are a big fan, one who looks forward to the glorification of death, evil, and the grotesque, then ghoul for you. My minimal desire for bags of candy and apples bobbed for in spit-filled water is not enough to make me dress up like a satanic mass murderer, which is what most costumes seem to portray.

Actually, this time of year gets on my nerves, and one of the biggest reasons is the proliferation of horror movies. Horror movies don’t scare me that much; they tick me off! They are always full of idiots walking into the dark asking, “Buffy, is that you?” And what’s worse, so many of today’s horror flicks involve ghostly, demonic hauntings by creepy dead kids. HINT: if a soaking-wet dead girl crawls out of a well and starts climbing through your TV, change the channel (preferably to a Christian station).

On a side note, has it ever occurred to anyone that all the demonic activity pictured in horror movies is nothing more than an attempt to convince us that the spiritual realm is real?

Really, I hate Halloween. I find no pleasure celebrating the very Enemy taking my friends and loved ones to hell.

The Undead

But what I really don’t get is the “undead”…zombies…Michael Jackson’s dance partners. Can somebody help me understand the logic behind the capabilities and actions of walking corpses?

English: A participant of a Zombie walk, Asbur...

English: A participant of a Zombie walk, Asbury Park NJ, USA. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There has been so much talk about zombies, lately. There have been a lot of movies and television programs devoted to grossing us out with their nastiness and appetite for human flesh. What’s the deal? Is it just an attempt to shift our attention away from the spiritual to the natural or animalistic? Who knows?

All I know is that the walking dead make no sense. Consider the following:

  1. Health. Why is it that when I have the flu I feel as good as dead, yet when a zombie is dead he feels more alive than me? If I break a bone I can’t function, but a zombie can have all his bones broken and break into an armored car! Have you seen what people die from? Why is it they have more energy once they’ve rotted away than when they were still exfoliating?
  2. Appetite. Why is it that the walking dead never seem to recognize that their fellow walkers are also human, and edible? And why are humans the only meat worth eating? Why don’t the walking dead break into grocery stores, butcher shops, and kennels? Seriously, don’t the dead understand that there is far more meat and brains in a cow?! Why eat the farmer???
  3. Blood. I’ve had too much experience in funeral homes to buy the idea that zombies coming out of graves have bright, red, flowing blood. How many walking dead have you seen dripping embalming fluid? Hmmm?
  4. Speed. Why can’t healthy people, including clumsy women in high heels, outrun people with muscles falling off the bone? Bones don’t work alone to cause movement; limbs need muscles to function. Even if one tripped over every blade of grass in an attempt to flee a rotting granny, how fast could granny be?
  5. Practicalities. If old people become zombies, do they have to keep their false teeth in order to chew their neighbor? Also, what is the life expectancy of something that is already dead? Oh, and when a zombie eats a human, where does the meat go? Do zombies poop?

The Real Undead

To be very honest, I am more afraid of my own stinking flesh than some dancer from Thriller.

“O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” (Romans 7:24)

I must crucify it on a daily basis and live in the life of Jesus Christ (Romans 13:14). For if I live in the power of my own zombie-like self, I will die: but if through the Spirit I put to death the deeds of this stinking body, I shall live (Romans 8:13).

 

That “2.0″ Part

What you just read was originally written in 2013, so it might interest you to learn what has happened since then. The girl from “The Ring” might be living in my house!

Actually, this year we decided to host a foreign exchange student from South Korea. She is a totally adorable teenager with a great sense of humor, and we love her bunches. However, I don’t think she’s ever seen “The Ring,” nor is she familiar with the black-haired, demonic ghost-girl that disjointedly crawls out of a well and through the television screen to kill people.

Credit: "The Ring"

Credit: “The Ring”

If she had seen the movie, and if she really didn’t want to creep me out, then maybe she would stop coming out of the shower at night, on the way to her room, with her long black hair covering her entire face.

Maybe…just maybe…when getting on my school bus in the morning, when it is dark, and sitting in a seat behind me, like she did this morning, she could uncover her sleepy face and have a smile on it when I look into the mirror!

I’ll just keep telling myself she’s never seen the movie. She hates scary movies.

Or does she?

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by | October 22, 2015 · 11:10 am

Chihuahuas Attacked Me!

I Was Late

“Why are you so late?” was the question out of the first child’s mouth. That’s not true; I just felt her think that as she stepped onto the bus.

Yes, I was about ten minutes late picking up the kids this morning. Some nearly died from the additional exposure to the 49-degree weather (I know this because they got on the bus saying that they were about to die waiting on me in the cold). However, it didn’t help them too much to get on the bus, for since I was running late I didn’t have time to warm it up – or put up the windows that were put down by the elementary kids the day before.

Anyway, why was I late? I overslept…simple as that. But telling that to the first child I picked up proved to be rather boring and nothing to write about. Therefore, since my adrenaline was already pumping and my mind was functioning at regular speed (unusual for 6:40 in the morning), I decided to make the reason for my tardiness (I hate that word) more memorable.

The “Real” Reason

“You are NOT going to believe what happened to me this morning!” I exclaimed to the next kids that got on my bus. “I am running late because of a herd of chihuahuas.”

You see, what happened was the craziest thing I’ve ever seen! This morning I walked out of the house and started across the parking lot to my bus, but then all of a sudden I heard the humming sound. I first I didn’t know what to make of it, and then it got louder…then I heard growling…then a chorus of tiny, yappy barks.

My rendition of this morning's horror.

My rendition of this morning’s horror.

Totally taken aback, I look forward and peer into the early morning shadows to see the ground moving around my school bus! As I fearfully inched closer, it became clear that a dadgum herd of chihuahuas was surrounding my school bus! What the taco was going on???

At least a hundred pocket-sized terrors began barking at me, growling, snarling. When I took a few more steps toward the bus, knowing I had children to go pick up, the biting burritos from some south-of-the-border Hades started biting at my shoes – which are the expensive gray kind old men like me buy from New Balance – and that ticked me off!

At first I tried shooing them away, but they couldn’t understand me. Besides that, there was something about the bus they liked, and they wouldn’t leave for love nor pesos. That’s when I walked back to my house, went into the garage, and retrieved my personal putter normally reserved for Gooney Golf games in which I mercilessly defeat every opponent during youth outings with our church.

Knowing there were freezing  children out there waiting on the side of the road…freezing children, fearful that their bus driver had abandoned them…I had to act with speed and ferocity. With a whack here and there, followed by the Hispanic-like squeals from demonic chihuahuas,  I was finally able to clear the way to my bus.

Fifteen minutes later, in a cold bus, I was doing what God has called me to do – save the lives of freezing children and transport them to a place where they can be educated.

You Decide

Now, you can decide for yourself it the above story is a good one and believable. Unfortunately, many people are more willing to believe an exciting story than the boring truth. And beyond that, the more one tells a lie the more likely the listener (or reader) will believe it, especially if the lie is told with passion.

With that being said, Hillary Clinton is being questioned by a congressional committee. I want to hear what she has to say about the chihuahuas in Benghazi.

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by | October 8, 2015 · 5:00 am

Shortage of Common Sense

proverbial thought pictureThe following (edited) devotional was originally written in 2013 and re-released just yesterday on ProverbialThought.com. Amazing how little things have changed.

Common Sense

Some things make perfect sense. Some things are so sensible that everyone agrees, hence the term “common sense.” However, there are some things that people find hard to understand, even though anyone with common sense would think it makes perfect sense.

The following proverb should be a no-brainer.

“When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.” – Proverbs 16:7

Pleasing Ways

Are you familiar with the Ten Commandments? Not the movie with Charleton Heston; I’m talking about the actual Ten Commandments found in the Bible.

If you haven’t read them in a while, why don’t we refresh ourselves with a few of them?

  • Don’t steal
  • Don’t murder
  • Don’t commit adultery
  • Don’t lie about your neighbor
  • Honor your father and mother
  • Don’t sit around desiring what’s not yours

If you want to live in such a way (ethically speaking) that will please the Lord, the above list is a good place to start, wouldn’t you think? What is more pleasing than not stealing, not murdering, not lying, not envying, etc.?

Peaceful Enemies

Believe it or not, doing what pleases the Lord (like not committing murder, not stealing from your employer, or not sleeping with your boss’s wife) is actually a good way to get ahead in the world. Common sense, wouldn’t you think?

I have worked with many atheists and agnostics, some of which hated what I believed, but none of them ever fired me for being a bad employee. Most gave high recommendations to my next employer. In one sense they were my “enemies,” but all in all they were peaceful. Why? Because my ways pleased the Lord.

Nonsense

What I found totally nonsensical, however, was a story relating to the Ten Commandments being posted in a public school. I can’t remember where this took place, exactly, but I do remember the reason the lawyers gave for removing the list from view…

“If the Ten Commandments are allowed to remain, then children will be tempted to do what they say.”

So, what were they saying, that if the Ten Commandments were left up someone might actually be tempted not to steal, not to lie, etc.?

Here’s a question… Which is more pleasing, a) NOT committing murder, or b) gunning down students and teachers?

I guess there’s a shortage of common sense these days.

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by | October 7, 2015 · 9:23 am

Roseburg Realities

So much has been said about the tragic murder of 9 innocent students and teachers in Roseburg, Oregon, that probably nothing I can say will be new.

However, I feel I must say something. Why not just point out a few realities?

  1. Innocent people were murdered.
  2. Innocent people are murdered every day in the womb, just not by a gun…but we can’t “politicize” that.
  3. The President said that “political will” was to blame for “allowing” another shooting.
  4. “Political will” was responsible for no one being able to shoot back.
  5. Most people who use guns to kill other people are not “mentally ill.”
  6. Most people who own guns never kill people.
  7. “Though shalt not kill” was too offensive to post on the front door.
  8. The first chapter of Romans has never been more true in America.

“Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.” – Romans 1:28-31 NIV

Forget God, mock God, and run God out on a rail as a nation, and this is what you get – depravity. What more should we expect?

Guns don’t kill people; sinful, angry, prideful, self-centered, wicked people do.

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