Wednesday.....Culture.....When Power Vanishes

The Nuremberg Trials were a series of tribunals held by the victorious allies beginning in 1945. The trials were not only for the military but for those in other professions who committed crimes. We already know but should keep it fresh in our minds that power corrupts and that those corrupted seem to act as if they will always be in power. But alas, time goes by, things change, and the advantages once had disappear along with the protection. Government officials, corporate officers and others in authority often fail to recognize that a time will come when others hold the keys to the file cabinets, or more appropriately today, the passwords to the computers. What we have experienced in the past twenty months is so dramatically opposed to our heritage, traditions and a strong national defense that when a new Congress convenes, should it be led my men and women as outraged as the public, we may find ourselves in our own series of trials that will make Watergate look insignificant. Should new editors eventually take over we may find a resurgence of legitimate journalism. Books tend to come from authors who were in the administration that are revealing of the inner-workings of the decisions that were made. Authors that are outside of the administration are no longer stigmatized as those criticizing an administration protected by the media. In short, the armor will then be off. Some questions that may be answered after this group in Washington D. C. leaves are "Where did the money go?", "Who gained from the decisions that were made?", "What figures given to the public were distorted?", "What deals with either world elites, corporations or foreign governments were made for political reasons and endangered the American economy or national defense?", "Was there, as many say today, an ideology foreign to America that was pursued by stealth and deception?", "What were the covert reasons behind pushing global warming and illegal immigration amnesty?",   "Was our constitution knowingly and effectually abrogated by a small army of czars and judges placed in their positions specifically to nullify laws made by the states?". If Barack Obama's many documents such as a birth certificate and college transcripts eventually are discovered and indicate that he applied for a position with a false resume with the result being two Supreme Court justices with strong biases but weak credentials, will we just pass this off as "a lesson learned" or will the courts then challenge the many changes swiftly and deftly brought upon us without public support? The President is currently trying to rejuvenate his base but they may respond with Fool me once...shame on you, fool me twice...shame on me!  Messrs. Axelrod, Emanuel, Geithner and others may move on but their decisions and actions may come back to haunt them and it would be wise for those replacing them to know off the bat that a new Congress may not care one iota about the Newsweek's cover stories, New York Times' editorials or Saturday Night Live skits but only adherence to a constitution that the people once procured and are now defending with the same fervor as Washington, Jefferson et al.

Sunday.....Christianity.....Release Barabbas?

All four Gospels mention the story of Barabbas. Essentially, the people would decide the fate of Jesus of Nazareth. The state (Pilate) refused to prosecute to the full extent demanded by the people. The rulers stirred up the people who followed in lockstep and demanded that a criminal be released as part of the yearly custom at Passover in releasing one prisoner on request of those people. The state refused to defend an innocent man. The state then said that it would not take responsibility for the sentence and turned Jesus over to the mob. We have a similar situation today in America, although infinitely distant in importance. The debate is "what is to be released to the American people, the freedom of religion or the freedom from religion?" Our Constitution finds no fault in Christianity. The people, who once embraced it, are under full assault from the elite rulers of society, to reject the Gospel and legitimize removing God from, not only anything remotely related to government, but from anything where there is anyone connected to it who might be indignant, in other words...just about everything in our society. The law is behind, even proclaims, freedom of religion but the customs of the day tire easily of laws enacted by men who are no longer here to defend their thinking. The absence of law is chaos but chaos is not easily detected in a society that thrives on it.  Law has become too restrictive and if criminals also benefit from deconstructing law, so be it. The ruling elites simply cannot have their way in a culture whose people hold, not only to law, but a higher law and a higher authority, and if given their way, by golly, will enact laws to see that this does not happen and will supply their own higher authority! Our state is a Constitutional Republic and is now asking us again  through the electoral process, what we want released...constitutional law or rule by the elites. We will either have order or mob rule, precision or abstraction. A friend has a bumper sticker that says G. O. P. does not spell God. This is absolutely true and I thank him for the reminder, but  t..y..r..a..n..n..y still spells tyranny, D..a..r..w..i..n still spells Darwin and i..d..o..l..a..t..r..y still spells idolatry. Our vote should reflect  freedom "of" religion and our proclamation Soli Deo Gloria...To God Alone Be Glory!

Friday.....America.....Coming With Me?

Before yesterday I could not have identified Stephen Colbert in a line-up for I have never seen him on television, nor have I seen The Daily Show. As for Jon Stewart...I recognize the name but can't put a face to it. That's just one of the benefits of not having extended cable television. I've written quite a few times on a la carte cable where we would choose the stations, and only the stations, that we wanted to pay for in our home. The issue is still being debated in various circles, usually presented as a way to save money on the cable bill but my passion for it is that if we were able to easily just say no when subscribing to what cable television implants in the American mind we would be more discerning and far less susceptible to the schemes and agendas offered by those with different worldviews of America. A few days ago, as I was just pondering everything this administration has given us, I saw Barack Obama more as a gamemaster in a fantasy role playing game than as a President of the United States, with personality and charisma as his weapons against enemies constructed by him, given only weapons he allots them, and even at that, the game would be falling apart. Apparently, Stephen Colbert was, at one time, a devotee of Dungeons and Dragons and his performance on Capitol Hill today is indicative of the liberal mind, excuse me.....the modern liberal mind that has long since gone down the rabbit hole as he treated the United States Congress as a comedy club. Oprah and the women from The View are actually major influences to millions in the forming of opinion. Although liberals own most of broadcast and cable television, the medium is also dangerous to conservatives and I gave a strong caveat a while back on giving the popular show 24 any place in serious consideration of terrorism. This house of cards that the Obama presidency has built is tumbling and we dare not laugh for he may live in a world of fantasy but he occupies a position in world of harsh realities, with real enemies. Today's news is that both CNN and NBC have given the boot to their chiefs and they are jumping ship at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. That we are being transformed is clear but into what is not so clear. There is absolutely no room for sitting back and waiting for election results on November 2nd. I watched an episode last night from an old television western called Wanted: Dead Or Alive starring Steve McQueen as bounty hunter Josh Randall. It was different, to say the least. Randall had been sent out to bring back a bank robber. On the way back that character died from a fall in an escape attempt. The episode ended as Randall walked away from the sheriff after finding out that he was sent after an innocent man. Where are you going, the sheriff asked as Randall turned to walk away. To find a church was his response, followed by coming with me?. This transformation will be worthless if it doesn't include a humbling before the creator of every atom in this universe and also of time itself that the cosmos exists in. Coming with me?

Wednesday.....Culture.....Appearance Of Excellence

This past April, former President Bill Clinton came out strongly against the Arizona initiatives in protecting its own borders. "I don't think there is any alternative but for us to increase immigration" he said and, more immigrants were "essential" and would help all Americans. First of all he turned this argument. Immigration to America is indeed good and necessary to this nation of immigrant heritage. Latino immigration is a blessing in many ways but illegal immigration can be likened to a dock where people are walking, tickets in hand, through the turnstiles to board a ferry only to have many more jump the fences and rush on board, nearly capsizing the ship. Bill Clinton volunteered his expertise on immigration again today, only he's against it now. Russian aliyah, Russian immigration to Israel, is vital to Israel as immigration is to us but Bill Clinton sees a problem here and the immigrants in question are not even entering illegally. They're a little bit too patriotic for his liking, a little bit too independent minded. There are too many of them and their children serve in the army. Democrats believe that illegal immigrants here will support the party who wants to give them amnesty. Bill Clinton believes that legal Russian immigrants to Israel might jeopardize Hillary's attempts to secure a peace treaty between Israel and the Palestinians. Its always been my contention that to these folks immigration is not the issue, politics is as it is with health care reform, gender, racial  and children's issues. Stimulus monies are not about the economy, cap and trade is not about the environment, Education is about consumer satisfaction (as Professor Lewis puts it) but not about learning. Four years ago, Harvard Professor Harry R. Lewis wrote this of Lawrence Summers in his book recommended below: "He is an economist who sees the actions and decisions of men and women as governed by rational choice and power, not by belief and commitment," and  "In the Harvard of President Summers, students and Faculty were, like the electorate as seen from Washington D. C., interest groups, not collections of individuals." He adds "Interest groups are given what their spokespersons say the groups want, in proportion to their size and influence." His book is on the appearance of excellence at Harvard and other universities today. Larry Summers fit in well with the Obama administration until the appearances became that of failure. We have a culture where the appearance of excellence is the goal, for excellence like truth is subjective, subject to the interpreter who is in turn subject to his own desires of the moment. So illegal immigration can be good, and legal immigration bad, declaring the recession over gives an appearance of progress, withdrawing combat forces from Iraq implies a promise kept, a Harvard dean named to the Supreme Court implies an astute legal mind. There is a lot written on why the American public is becoming so outraged and different groups may have differing reasons for their anger but as for independents and Democrats turning away from the Democratic leadership, it's because they have been turning to each other and whispering the emperor has no clothes!

Monday.....Miscellaneous.....Skies Of November...Redux

This more recent blog from March of this year was addressed to people from other countries that might come across it, and so are my comments here. Let it be known that America is not going to fall in line with those elites who wish to establish a world government or a New World Order in any way, shape or form. We have 234 years of existence as a nation behind us and should God grant us any more time, time we do not deserve nor show any promise that we will even acknowledge His grace upon us if we do, we will use it as we always have done, in defending our liberties, rooting out our cancers, and helping anyone who comes to us for assistance. You have evidence available to you that we have softened. There is evidence that, after George W. Bush, we are seeking to cohabitate with terrorism, and there is ample evidence that we are embracing socialism. Our media has given testimony to this and now it is time for the defense to give summation. Barack Obama usurped the powers of his office in a very deceptive campaign. We, as a people, did not know him then. We know him now. His legislative powers have been curtailed but he is not without executive powers which he will surely continue to use. He has brought division to us that we have not seen in over a century. He has put us in a seemingly insurmountable debt and plans to attempt to tax his way out of it. He is attempting to de-develop* America to assuage the anti-colonial demons that haunt him. He knows socialist political philosophers, their sycophants and followers but does not know Americans and their indomitable spirit. That indomitable spirit has been and will continue to be a powerful defense against tyranny but without a humbling of itself before God, it will not sustain us, nor should we want it so. Tyranny of the mind is the latest enemy both we and you have to deal with. If you should hear from our media that the backwards, uneducated, easily maneuvered fundamentalist Christians are jeopardizing America's progress, rejoice, for it is code for a people humbling themselves before He who had mercy upon us and blessed us, and you, to begin with.

March 28, 2010
This blog is written to those who may come across it from outside America. The BBC news and a couple of other news sites from outside the United States are what I read on a daily basis and if this is any indication of news sources from other nations, you are not even being given a glimpse of what is going on in America. Our media has failed its profession. This is one problem we face, and the single most important reason that Barack Obama was elected President last year. The agenda that he had pursued his entire adult life was kept from the American public. His power grabs and the thuggery of his party in Congress since his inauguration have been ignored. We are an entertainment driven culture and our powers to reason, analyze and discern have been steadily declining for quite some time. Where we once saturated the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ and with the prospect of "freedom and liberty", we now specialize in sending the world our latest Hollywood films. Many throughout the world, no doubt, celebrate this new American consciousness but that celebration may be short lived for behind the news that you see is an America that has witnessed usurpers come in and while surreptitiously at first, they now boldly discard, piecemeal, our traditions, our laws, our constitution and have placed our republic in jeopardy. The skies of this November will turn gloomy for the Democratic Party, to paraphrase a popular song from our history, but the gales of November may come early in a world whose economies are teetering and where terrorist minds know our present situation and may wish to challenge our rhetoric, probe the limitations that this administration may have applied to itself and test our general will to defend ourselves and our way of life. There is no "beating the chest" and no "declarations of prowess" in the intent of this blog. Our strength has always been and will continue to be directly related to our humbling ourselves before Almighty God. We are not His special nation, nor are we His gift to the world. We are a secular nation whose foundations had acknowledged a Creator, whose people proclaimed Jesus Christ as their Savior and whose pulpits proclaimed our weaknesses and His strength, our shame and His glory, our unstable ways and His immutability in His goodness, justice and love. We have strayed from this faith and if there is reason for our enemies to celebrate, it is this, but let them also know that the glory that is due Him and Him alone is what is certain and not that of our future. This also is true, the gospel is offered to all, and to those reading this from outside America, who have redemption through the finished work of Jesus Christ, though we be citizens of different nations, we are brothers and sisters in Christ who is our only hope.

* CNSNEWS.COM White House Science Adviser Advocated "De-Development" Of The United States

Sunday..... Christianity.....And If It Be Evil In Your Eyes...

The New International Version of the Bible translates Joshua 24:14-15 as Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. Most Christians are familiar with the last part of Joshua's proclamation. It's a statement that we should want to make. The English Standard Version, a newer translation and one much more preferred by me, throws a different light on the words preceding the well-known Choose you this day often memorized ending. The ESV says And if it be evil in your eyes to serve the Lord. There is a big difference between serving the Lord as being undesirable and being seen as evil. Certainly the Gospel, as the Bible presents it, is at least undesirable as heard by modern ears, for it is not good news to them that we await a just condemnation even if God has provided a way. Today, the modern conception of the Gospel, can be very desirable; one simply retains their own views on most issues on salvation and adds Sunday church service. There is no need to be born again. It's one thing to simply not desire something and another to consider it evil. I've written a few times about Christopher Hitchens' book God Is Not Great, How Religion Poisons Everything. Mr. Hitchens is at least honest in giving his opinion. It's my contention, and I think the ESV is correct, that most people consider Christianity, even God Himself, to be more evil than just undesirable, although they would never admit it. Faith is fine as long as it is not explicit enough to involve guilt or punishment in any way. The watered down evangel of today, the good advice as today's broadcast of the White Horse Inn described it, can indeed  be seen as only undesirable, or it can be embraced, where one chooses to go to church, profess Christianity if asked or if it comes up in a conversation and even become fanatical on issues such as abortion and homosexuality, for these issues do not cut to the bone of our own rebellion against God, our own lost condition and just condemnation when we take our last breath. Is this important? In polls, over 80% of Americans claim to be Christians but only a fraction of them admit to even the most basic of essential Christian doctrines. God's act of saving us involves a ripping out, a tearing asunder, a heart transplant, every bit and more as devastating to our person as that medical surgery.  This is not indicative of much of American Christianity and any description of America as a Christian nation is deceptive, any hope that God will uphold us for that Christianity is futility. Our hope is more that God will protect our nation so that the Good News can continue to be proclaimed within and without. Disagree with me on Christian issues and certainly on political issues but if you cannot admit, joyfully, astonishingly admit, to having been regenerated, to having been rescued from a sure eternity in hell, then you must address why you do not. One last thought, if the concept  alone of hell is considered evil, then the ESV translation of Joshua 24:14 is likely more accurate than the NIV.

Friday.....America.....Hot Diggity, Dog Ziggity

As a child I would play with my toy soldiers while my parents had friends over and I would watch Perry Como along with them on television. As a teen, my cousin and I would run about his house while Bobby Vinton songs played on the radio. We visited Canonsburg, Pennsylvania today for their annual Oktoberfest and thoughts of these two entertainers came to mind, for it's their hometown. How could it not come to mind as you drive by Bobby Vinton Drive and walk past Perry Como's statue. We sat down to eat and I had wiener schnitzel, German pancakes and a good German beer that I failed to get the name of. A conversation started around the table. One young lady had her four month old daughter with her. She said her husband was probably enjoying Oktoberfest in Germany right then for he serves in our Air Force.  I thanked her for his, and her, service to our country. Another gentleman joined in as we talked about Como and Vinton. I said that it was something to have "two" from the same town.  He corrected me, "three" he said. "Oh, who is the third?" "Dan Block" was the answer. Not wanting to disparage the third well known person from Canonsburg I said "I'm not familiar with that name." "That's me," he answered. He got me on that one. I asked him if I could use that sometime and also if I could use his name in a blog. It really was a nice time. Good music, good food and a perfect day. We had a nice conversation with a couple at a booth sponsored by an organization that tried to keep the German language and traditions alive. He wore a Bavarian Alpine hat with over a dozen pins on it. He said "welcome home," which I immediately recognized as one Vietnam vet's welcome to another, for he saw my pins. My wife is of German heritage and I am primarily English. I mentioned this and was reminded of the German  lineage in British royalty. I love these small towns in Western Pennsylvania like Canonsburg which  has a steel and coal heritage. These towns try to retain their European traditions but are as American as as you can get.  A Vietnam vet in full Bavarian dress, proud of his heritage and also his military service in defense of his nation is a fine example of this. A young mom whose husband is off to war protecting her freedoms is another. This is the unity in diversity that has made this country great. It's the diversity in place of unity that is tearing it apart, where a heritage doesn't adorn the American it conceals him, if he is there at all. I often find myself thinking back to those days when Perry Como was the big entertainment on television but I know very well that going back isn't the answer to our problems, rather going forward in the full understanding of human nature, or how we, like Newton's Second Law of thermodynamics or universal principle of decay, go downhill in our faithfulness, our vigilance... we forget He who is our benefactor and we charge mindlessly into narcissism as we wile away our time on Facebook. Germans know very well how far a nation can fall if it does not remain vigilant against demagoguery and the Japanese realize how fortunate they are to have brought war upon a people that were merciful in victory. We have flirted with demagoguery here and will soon see if we have also forgotten Tripoli, the Argonne Forest, Iwo, Inchon, Khe Sahn and the wars on rock and sand today where our military is every bit as faithful to our defense even though not fully backed by its own people. We watched an old classic film the other evening called Night Train To Munich. There was a scene where Rex Harrison, who played a British spy in a Nazi uniform, in order to retain his camouflage, defended freedom under the Nazis as much better than freedom in England for it is perfectly ordered and controlled. Our freedoms are becoming ordered and our liberties controlled. America is made of small towns, a fact that the ruling class may patronize but may also have underestimated their choking on that patronizing and spitting it out.

Thursday.....Politics.....The Ruling Class

I dropped off some small Christian evangelical cards with this blog's URL written on the back at the college that is closest to us. Over the summer I did this at Pitt, where I went to school, and at Penn State. There was a nice response from the State College students but very little from the Oakland gang. I had the impression while walking around Pitt that there would be little interest in a blog about politics and religion. Maybe it was the international flavor of the campus, then maybe it was just the temperature. It may be that when someone drops by for the first time that the last blog published determines whether one checks out my profile where I have a statistic on visitors to it.  Today is a book review. I noticed long ago that Christian book publishing went through periods where there was one great book after another and other periods where whole seasons could pass with little that was extraordinary.  Presently we have one great political book after another. This book today is very comparable to Mark Levin's Liberty And Tyranny. In fact it goes well with Levin's book for his addressed the government aspect of the world's elites and this one has more to do with an entire class of elites who demand to rule. Along with Thomas Sowell's Intellectuals And Society these three books combine for a tour de force on defining America's problems. It may have been a month ago that I was listening to Rush Limbaugh, because of my work schedule I rarely get to hear him, and he read, word for word, an essay published in a magazine by a professor emeritus in international relations at Boston University. Yes Virginia, there still are some great, great professors out there! The essay affected me as it effected Rush. It was turned into a small paperback with the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution reprinted in full at the back. Its title..The Ruling Class, How They Corrupted America And What We Can Do About It,  and the author...Angelo M. Codevilla. I would like to reach a few college students with this book. I know, it's all reading at college with little time for personal reading, but I'm living proof that one can read peripheral topics at college. One only has to sacrifice a few hundred thousand dollars of income over the years for not specializing in one's major. It may not sound like a good deal but what good is that future profession if America indeed does collapse from within and/or without through decades of ignoring vigilance in protecting our foundations. This book can be easily read in two days but may stay with you forever like the imprint on the mind of Hillary's smile as she says I have no plans on running for president in 2012. So here we go; the professor's forward begins with America now divides ever more sharply into two classes, the smaller of which holds the commanding heights of government, from which it disposes in ever greater detail of America's economic energies, from which it ordains new ways of living as if it had the right to do so, and from which it asserts that that right is based on the majority class' stupidity, racism, and violent tendencies. He likens the other class, the Country Class, to the frog in the pan that is slowly boiled, at least until this year. The Ruling Class since the 1930s have been inclined to dismiss the public's opposition as ignorant, and to believe themselves entitled to shape a new and different America. This is why America is rebelling now through Tea Parties and other methods of revolt. The Ruling Class' chief pretension is its intellectual superiority...confusing its own opinions with science and praying to themselves as saviors of the planet. All the while the Country Class observes that they, the Ruling Class... lose every war....run up an unpayable national debt, and generally make life worse. They resort to their living Constitution and denigrate the American people's devotion to God. They have lost America's respect according to Professor Codevilla, and this is very true! Codevilla takes one on a short and concise history of what happened in the financial collapse and writes on this topic that Differences between Bushes, Clintons and Obamas are of degree, not of kind. The Ruling Class established themselves in the Democratic Party and the Country Class has settled in the Republican Party. Higher education is the next topic and we read Today's Ruling Class, from Boston to San Diego, was formed by an educational system that exposed them to the same ideas and gave them remarkably uniform guidance, as well as tastes and habits. These amount to a social cannon of judgments about good and evil, complete with secular sacred history, sins (against minorities and the environment), and saints. The small Christian college that our son attended, with its rigorous disciplines, cannot possibly be bettered by the "accepted" elite schools that have traded the soul of Higher Education for a puppy mill of future bureaucrats. Ethics comes next and professor Codevilla gives this example: a Harvard law professor plagiarized his magnum opus in 1984 and was confronted ten years later. He is addressed in the book; you could claim (perhaps correctly) that your plagiarism was "inadvertent," and you could count on the law school's dean, Elena Kagan, to appoint a committee (including former and future Harvard President Derek Bok) that would issue a secret report that "closed" the incident. Of course the "global warming" frauds were brought up. He lays this situation at the feet of Darwinism and Progressivism. He quotes Barack Obama's famous description of his opponents as clinging to "God and Guns" as a characteristic of inferior Americans, he justified himself by pointing out he had said "what everybody knows is true." A quote from then Vice President George H. W. Bush is added. The words spoken to Gorbachev were Reagan is a conservative, an extreme conservative. All the dummies and blockheads are with him."  Codevilla takes apart the Ruling Class' "defining feature" of equality and presents evidence that it is the Country Class that truly exhibits the belief that all men are created equal! Professor Codevilla is hard on the Republican Party since Ronald Reagan and very high on the Tea Party Movement and would be very satisfied over the results of yesterday's primaries and also might be very critical of Karl Rove's attempt to return to business as usual in the party. The author uses the last pages to give plenty of caveats to the Country Class in this volatile time. Whether its Levin's Statist, Sowell's arrogant Intellectual or Codevilla's Ruling Class, Americans are increasingly on the same page in discerning that minority who believes that they are so much better than those not initiated into their group, those who have not been born into their privileges, acquired their tastes, likewise rejected their creator or profited from their hollow list of credentials. Some are as good but no one better than Codevilla is calling us to attention.

Monday.....Miscellaneous.....1962.....Redux

I don't think that there are lettered sweaters in high schools anymore. I'm surprised that they even give athletic letters in this educational culture that frowns on highlighting individual accomplishment in grades. Schools are even dropping the valedictorian for this reason. Our son's varsity letter is sewn on a jacket and I was so happy for him when he received it. The following is a short story (related from memory for I no longer have the draft) I wrote some time ago. The blog is from August 22 of last year:

Tommy Wilson walked into the apartment where he and his mother lived, beat and worn out. She had been holding dinner late every night so that Tommy could go to football practice and work for two hours at Spinoza's Market.

"Welcome home Johnny U!"
"I'm on special teams mom...Johnny Unitas is a quarterback."
"Oh, well excuse me...any new bruises today?"
"Yeah, my right shin."

Tommy was a senior at Catawaga High School in Buffalo, New York and he was going out for football for the very first time. He was on a mission. you see, Tommy was in love with Mary Burns whose family had moved to Buffalo the year before from Tennessee. Her father was an airline pilot and this is where the job was. Tommy and his mom did not have a lot of money. He would have wanted to buy a ring or a necklace for Mary so that everyone would know that she was his girl. What he finally decided on was going to take a lot of effort. He wanted to make the football team and earn a varsity letter, then put it on a  sweater and give it to Mary. All the guys who had lettered had given lettered sweaters to their girlfriends. He had to not only make the team but play in 10 quarters to earn that letter. The coach told him that the only way he would get into games was on the kickoff teams and that only if he proved that he could tackle. Tommy had given more effort than anyone on the team, flying down the field and literally throwing his body at the opposing players.  Working at Spinoza's would earn him the money for the sweater that would cost $37.50. That was the plan anyway.

Mary: "Tommy, I'm really worried about you. You get hurt almost every practice and you work so hard at the market after that. Are you sure that you want to do this? You know football doesn't mean that much to me."
Tommy: I have to do this Mary. Football will be over in December and I can slow down."

Tommy hadn't told Mary about the plan or the importance of others knowing that she was his girl. Mary was a Christian girl from the South who always talked about the "Lord."  Tommy didn't understand half of it. He never talked this way about God and didn't know anyone else who did.

Mary: Tommy, the Bible says that you must be "born again." You should think about what that means and try to understand it!"
Tommy: Mary, I believe in God. I may not be perfect, but who is....except maybe you?"
Mary: "You know I'm not perfect Tommy. I'm far from it since I know the Lord and still cannot live as I should."
Tommy: "Well, you seem pretty close to perfect...in everything...to me."

Tommy's coach was not particularly happy that Tommy expected to win a letter. This was his second year as head coach with the Flyers and he was going to succeed and make coaching his profession. Catawaga had never had a winning season. They were 0 and 10 the year before he came and 4 and 6 in his first year. Come "hell or high water," as he would constantly remind them, they were going to have a winning season this year and that meant 6 wins. The assistant coach, Mark Offen, was a "coach" second and a history teacher first. He admired the spunk of this lightweight senior, who for some reason just had to win a letter. his efforts probably stopped Coach Thomas from cutting Tommy.

Coach Offen: "Are you alright Wilson?"
Tommy: Yeah coach. I forgot to hit with my pads and not my head/"
Coach Offen: "Sit down for a while."
Tommy: "Do I have to coach? I feel OK."

Coach Thomas came over as Tommy headed for the sidelines.

Coach Thomas: "That kids going to kill himself and get us all in trouble."
Coach Offen: "I'll keep an eye on him. Hell be alright/"

Tommy liked to take Mary up to this new hamburger joint called McDonalds. It was only 19 cents for a burger and that was all he could afford on his budget. Mary carried a Bible with her at all times and liked to sneak in about ten minutes of Bible reading every time they were together. Tommy was glad he didn't  live in the South for they took religion all too seriously. The next day would be the first game and Tommy didn't know if he would get in, for the coach gave no clues. when the game started, he was not on the field for the kickoff, nor for the two others in the first half. Catawaga was winning 21 to nothing when they took the field for the second half. Coach Thomas barked out orders and yelled Tommy's name for the kickoff team without even looking for him. Tommy's first experience in a game was not encouraging. He ran down the field and was belted by someone twice his size, but he had one quarter in for his letter. He was not called on for the final quarter. The next week was a grueling week for practice. Tommy hit every opposite colored practice jersey he had a chance to hit.  Coach Offen patted him on the back but Coach Thomas never acknowledged him. The Flyers were 1 and 0 going into the second game. Again Tommy did not play in the first half. For the kickoff starting the second half his name was called and he flew down field and hit the first jersey he saw, who flew into the ball carrier enabling his teammates to make the tackle. Tommy had contributed! He was in on the kickoff again and this time the kick was real short. Someone in the middle had picked up the ball and Tommy had a chance to hit the ball carrier for the first time. Just as he was about to make the tackle he was blocked hard and thought he heard his finger snap. The trainer wrapped it up and the doctor later said that it was separated and would keep him our of football for three weeks at least. Tommy now had three quarters of the ten he needed but half of the season was over when he was given the OK to play. The Flyers were 3 and 2 so the coach was not on the warpath as he had been. the 6th game saw Tommy get in to play but only in the 4th quarter. He now had 4 quarters of game play with 4 games left.

Mary: "Tommy, you played really well last night. you hit that big number 70 real hard!"
Tommy: "But I didn't move him Mary. I can't expect to get a letter if I can't help the team."
Mary: " Is that what this is all about...a letter? Why is it so important?"
Tommy: "Well...uh...I just have to win one. That's all."

Tommy had a fairly good week of practice but did not get in the 7th game at all and they lost. The team was 4 and 3 and Coach Thomas hardly even practiced Tommy the next week. Tommy thought he heard Coach Offen mention his name to Coach Thomas once. He couldn't hear what was being said but could tell neither coach was happy. Game 8 went well from the start and the Flyers were up 30 to 0 at the half. There were 10 quarters left and Tommy needed to get in 6 of them. It seemed impossible but he kept on giving everything that he had. He was on the kickoff team starting the second half and Coach Offen slapped him on the back with encouragement. Tommy ran down the field fast but not as fast as he had been, for he had to have an idea of where the ball carrier was. The runner picked up about 20 yards when he found himself charging straight at Tommy who lowered his head and dove for his legs. the runner went down and Tommy's teammates were slapping him on the helmet, but it had cost Tommy for he felt his finger hurting again but did not tell anyone. The Flyers put their 3rd team for the 4th quarter but their was no scoring and no chance for Tommy to get in. The next week was the opposite. Tommy got in on the first kickoff but the Flyers were down 28 to 0 at the half and he did not get in. There was one game left and Tommy needed all 4 quarters!  He was actually learning the game with one game left in his career. The team now had 5 wins and 4 losses with one game left and had to win it for the winning season. Tommy thought it was impossible to get in for all 4 quarters. Coach Offen told him to make the plays and he'll get in. It seemed as if he had talked to Coach Thomas or something. He was in on the first kickoff and hit one blocker and knocked him down. The runner came next and Tommy latched on to his legs for the tackle. Catawaga was losing 28 to 27 in the last quarter of the season and the Flyers could not move the ball, nor could the other team. He had played in the first 3 quarters but there were only 5 minutes left in the game, then 4...3...2. Williamsville, their main rival, had the ball on their own 10 yard line with a one point lead and only 15 seconds left on the clock. Tommy had tears in his eyes. He looked up in the stands and saw Mary looking at him and smiling. She pointed up to the sky and Tommy knew what she meant..."the Lord was more important than football." Tommy began to feel guilty that his team was going to lose, his coach was not going to reach his goal, but the only thing he cared about was himself. The game was just about over and Coach Thomas angrily called out Tommy's name. Tommy jumped up and looked at him. The coach told him to go in for Davis  in the defensive backfield! Tommy had only played that position in practice when they needed a body. He started running out on the field and everyone was yelling to him that he needed his helmet. He reached the defensive huddle. He now had his 10 quarters in!  Why would Coach Thomas do this, especially as they were about to lose? His teammates were oblivious to this. They only had one more play on their mind. The quarterback took the snap and handed off to the fullback who broke through the line coming right at Tommy. Tommy ran straight at him and hit as hard as he ever hit anyone. Tommy was knocked on his back but heard shouts. He had caused a fumble and everyone was running after the ball. One guy fell on it only to have it squirt out and towards Tommy. Tommy picked it up and tan towards the goal. He was hit short of it but before he fell was hit from behind by a teammate and then another. He felt his feet hit the ground and pushed one more time in the scrum with players in front but more in back. He fell but held on to the ball and could still hear yells. What had happened? The referee was pulling players off until he saw Tommy and raised his hands signaling a touchdown!  Everyone was pulling at him, slapping him, yelling at him. He had scored the winning touchdown. The team beat their rival and finished the season with 6 wins and 4 losses. Tommy was in a bit of shock. As he walked back towards the sideline he saw Coach Thomas and Coach Offen talking. Coach Thomas was just smiling and shaking his head up and down.

Mary: "Tommy, you were unbelievable! You were the hero, and you'll get your letter!"
Tommy: "Mary, I'll tell you later why I had to have that letter."

Two weeks later was the football banquet where the varsity letters would be given out. Everyone has two tickets for the dinner to give to parents. Tommy's mother and Mary would be at his table. the Flyers colors were white and red. Tommy had bought the white wool sweater at Anderson's Department Store and was ready to have the letter put on the day after. Tommy's mom had picked up Mary in their 1957 Ford Fairlane and met Tommy at the banquet who had gone early for instructions on the ceremony. Tommy was the only senior to be given a varsity letter for the first time, a 10 inch red "C"." Coach Thomas said a few words about every player that cam up to the podium. When he came to Tommy, he had this to say, "Quite frankly, I never expected Tommy Wilson to earn this letter. It is nearly impossible to earn a varsity letter as a senior without ever having played a down of organized football. In fact, I'm ashamed to admit it, I was a little bit annoyed at his determination. But Coach Offen had faith in Tommy's abilities, abilities that I did not see. He nearly twisted my arm to get him in all four quarters of that last game. Come up here for your letter Tommy. You deserve it as much as anyone on this team." Tommy was red faced and looked to Coach Offen and smiled as he returned to his table. He gave his varsity letter to his mom and held Mary's hand tight.

Mary: "Well, Tommy, I'm so proud of you and you have that varsity letter that you wanted so much!"
Tommy: "Mary. I never told you why I wanted this ... letter so bad. All of the other guys have something to give their girls to show everyone that they they are their girlfriends. They give nice rings and most have cars to drive them around. They take them to the prom and I can't afford that. I worked for that letter to put on  a sweater and ask you if you would wear it for the rest of the year. I would be so proud to see you in it, knowing that you are showing everyone that we are in love with each other."
Mary: "Tommy...I had no idea that you felt that way. I'm in shock...and I have to tell you what came to my mind as you told me. Tommy...everyone will one day stand before God and He will look at them to see if they belong to his Son Jesus. And do you know how He will know? All those who have trusted in Jesus, and in Him "alone" to save them...they  will be dressed in white...the righteousness of Christ! We will stand before God after a lifetime that is filled with sin, yet the Father will not see that for He will only see what Jesus has done. That is why Jesus came here to be one of us, to live the perfect life and pay for our sins. Tommy, if we trust in anything we do then we are pulling back that robe...that sweater...of righteousness to reveal our sin. God may have given you this determination to win a varsity letter to demonstrate this to you. When we are "born again" we see this."

Tommy could not say a word. The Mary that he loved so much was the Mary that loved Jesus so much. He sometimes felt jealous over this. How wrong he had been. For the first time he understood what Mary was trying to tell him. He felt that God must love him to tell show him this. He had doubted before because he had grown up without a father. Tommy  felt tears forming in his eyes and turned his head. His mother was returning to her seat. She had his sweater in her hands and the varsity red letter "C" was sewn on. She had secretly brought the sweater with her and returned to the car to sew it on. Tommy looked lovingly into his mother's eyes and took the sweater and turned back to Mary. She had stood up to remove the little vest she was wearing. Tommy offered her the sweater and she carefully put it on. As she sat down and said "Thank you," Tommy looked at her with wet eyes and said "Maybe we can both put on something white tonight with the letter "C"? They held hands as the principle turned the microphone on and said:

"Well, the Supreme Court recently ruled that God cannot come into our schools. Maybe someday we will have to comply...but not tonight. Heavenly Father. Thank you for this night, and for the food we are about to eat...."

Sunday.....Christianity.....The Hospital Visit

I would like to relate here a conversation (one sided) of a few minutes that took place in a hospital room a week ago yesterday. My mother had been admitted and my wife and I had just arrived, having only had a short conversation with the nurse on duty. A gentleman of about my age, maybe a little bit older, came in the room and for a moment we thought he was the doctor but he gave pleasantries all around intermixed with the appellation the Lord. I smiled and he began a prayer so I bowed my head. I don't remember the exact words but I had heard the prayer in its many variations many times an in fact used it myself many years ago in evangelizing. It was the sinner's prayer where one prays a prayer and is saved. He instructed everyone to repeat after me, and my smile faded and my head came up. As he continued he saw that I was not complying and I think that I saw an unfavorable glance in my direction. My mother was confused about why she was there let alone what was going on, she repeated his words and after the prayer, it was announced that the saints and angels in heaven were rejoicing over a new soul in the kingdom and the topic immediately segued  into healing and we were told his medical history of serious and not so serious illnesses that were long gone. It might soon have been my turn to say something but a nurse came in walking quickly, wheeling an upright cart announcing that it was time to take my mother's vitals. We moved back to give her room and the gentleman nodded and was gone. After a few more questions to the nurse, I walked out in the corridor and looked around but could not find our visitor. So what had just happened here? Was this and angel, an emissary of God...a blessing, or was it an assault on the gospel itself? I know from where this man cometh for I resided there myself many years ago. I led men in the sinner's prayer and as I related in a previous blog, only one was being regenerated at that time in his life and he had only come to me for he knew of  no where else to go. I should add here what I did not mention previously, that being that those other  men who I so ignorantly led, with good intentions, into the sinner's prayer, may have come to faith later in life but not at my leading, at that time. Note: As happens often I leave the computer in the middle of a blog for one reason or another and tonight (8:30 pm Sunday, on 101.5 FM) it was to listen with my wife (for many, many years with my wife and our son before his marriage) to the White Horse Inn Radio program. Rather than expound on this issue here myself, I'm given the opportunity to direct you to much more capable men. Tonight's program does not deal with "the sinner's prayer" as such but does talk about salvation and is therefore related. So let me defer to those gentlemen. Please give this ministry a chance and this blog would indeed accomplish something. You can go to http://www.whitehorseinn.org/ and click on "NEW LISTENERS...CLICK HERE.

Wednesday.....Culture.....A Planned Deception

It's common to see at least one blurb on the back cover of a current events book that says something like, Every American needs to read this book. The writer of the blurb obviously has a passion for the message within and expresses his support of it in such a way. I read the blurbs before I read the inside covers and the many book recommendations in this blog show that I, in this very limited way, choose the same path of encouraging people to read. Unfortunately we don't read what we should or as often as we should. Compounding the problem, many Americans get their information from the entertainment industry supplied mostly by liberal Hollywood, and we get our news from...well...the media!  I'm going to recommend another book here and...every American should read it. I'll modify that a little bit and say that the topic needs placed on the front burner of political discourse in America! If it is, the disadvantage we labor under now will disappear.  The prevailing opinion in England, America and the entire West is this, that Islam is a tolerant and peaceful religion and that it is the radical fundamentalists within it that are causing the problems. It is not necessarily that the statement is false but rather that it is so short, so radically incomplete and so deceptively crafted that the strategy behind it takes preeminence over the statement itself. With the different interpretations of Islam, the enormous numbers of people represented and the diversity within those multitudes, there may not be a single statement that can address the issue. The information that we have available to us is plentiful but it is only recently being disseminated among Americans and the mainstream media has yet to even vaguely address it and when it does broach the issue, it gives selective representation and ultimately whitewashes the problematic areas which are many and greatly unsettling. The book I bring to you here is The Grand Jihad, How Islam And The Left Sabotage America by Andrew C. McCarthy. The radicals are there, as well as the moderates, the problem being that the scholars, the clerics, the propagandists and the proselytizers are primarily from the radical element. An additional problem and a topic of this book is that there exists a movement and a strategy by those who have usurped the description of moderates when in fact they are part of a sophisticated plan to woo the American government, media and people into a false sense of security as they establish a beachhead in our nation. It was long ago recognized that what was necessary, what was decided upon and what has been in progress is a taking advantage of the freedoms and liberties of the West. It was necessary to work on two fronts with two very different methods. Today we, with the aiding and abetting of a grossly ignorant media, split the two religiously conjoined forces, worry about only one, address only one, combine the two "moderate" elements, giving legitimacy to the one that is anything but moderate. Many Americans subsequently learned about the Wahhabist element and thought it information enough to discern the problem, and that was that. The more culture invading element, every bit as desirous in seeing Islam attain hegemony in the world, settles in, establishes enclaves that teach, segregate and often  financially support the militant element. They seek sympathy as discriminated pilgrims all the while very proficient at using and abusing our liberties, which they would never otherwise incorporate, into a cultural entity that increasingly demands modifications of our laws to accommodate theirs. Some European countries, England and France included, have come to the unfortunate realization that a major problem has developed and are trying to alter their immigration policies, yet both countries have large portions of their population, taken in by the strategy, and consequently they protest the government's proposed policies, often nullifying the efforts. The Left enters prominently into this equation as Mr. McCarthy spends considerable time tying the two ideologies (Islamist and the Left) who differ but will use each other for their own ends as long as they can as he writes The moderate masquerade enables them to make common cause with the radical Left in one big, "progressive" campaign for "social injustice." McCarthy, in admitting there exists a truly moderate Islam that occupies much of the world, a moderate Islam that is also under siege, cautions that Our primary objective must be to defeat militant Islamists who attack us at home and abroad, and (my emphasis) to shield ourselves from other Islamists who seek to undermine our freedoms in more sophisticated ways. Numerous Islamic terms such as dawa, siyash, zakat and the Ikhwan  are explained in detail in the book. A course in Islam, a full-orbed dissection of the entire religious movement, both moderate and radical, is needed, drastically needed, in our nation today. On the connection between the radical militant and faux moderate McCarthy writes that an environment where people..."freely" embrace Islam (as they describe the intimidation)...is achieved by violence "only if violence is necessary"...On that score, of greater significance than actual violence is the "effect" of violence, not terrorism, but terror...The effective communication of the message enables the Islamist to achieve his ends without resorting to violence to exploit the atmosphere of intimidation created by the terrorist. One organization after another that we hear of in the news, usually described of as a charitable, student or cultural entity, is investigated as to its origins, who influenced it and what its stated goals are. If Americans understand this alone, discernment on this entire issue will increase. Islam's history of its origins along with recent history is detailed and we see a picture of Anwar Sadats who waged the same battle being thrust upon the West today. And then came Barack Hussein Obama. In what is a mini-book of it own Obama is shown, not as a Muslim, but as one whose sympathies emanating from family history, anti-colonialism and Leftist ideology, make him an asset to both Islam and the Left. Is it divisive to seek a national discourse complete with documentation from both sides? Is it Islamophobic to seek clarity? Is it religious intolerance to rally around the rights of and favorable presentation of the the practices of true moderate Muslims while exposing the machinations of the Islamist? The American creed is inclusive, diverse and tolerant but it's foundations of liberty and freedom are exclusive when challenged by tyranny, deceit and intolerance. 

Monday.....Miscellaneous.....Mrs. Miniver.....Redux

The bumper sticker on my automobile says 57 Days Left. It points to the November 2nd election that may put the republicans back in control of at least the House of Representatives and seriously hinder the agenda of the Leftist/Socialist Barack Obama. My heart is not in this day as it is with a lot of conservatives. Yes, it's necessary, yes it will stop the hemorrhaging but it is not even near the only Rx for our troubles that being a humbling of  ourselves as a nation before God. I have the bumper sticker there to draw attention to my blog's url which is next to it. The following blog is from April 10, 2009 and is on the 1942 British film Mrs. Miniver. I'm sitting in a Starbucks as I write this and when one gets away from the news on the web, the talk of radio and the headlines of the newspaper, it would seem as America rolls on like Old Man River, rough water here, high water at times but always the same whether it be Huck Finn on a raft or the well-to-do in their speedboats and martinis. Newsweek philosopher Fareed Zakaria believes that America's overreacted to 9/11. In the next 57 days we are going to see a Panzer movement from the administration in an attempt to influence the election. Economic measures that promise a lot but would be in effect another stimulus and another nail in our economic coffin; and another peace initiative in the Middle East that deals with rational people but utterly ignores dealing with those with the bombs and the hatred. The near future does not portend well for Americans but that is not the issue in the minds of the radical Left and the elites who only want time to fundamentally transform the world into a manageable, Godless, essential tyranny and totalitarian rule of the minds and actions of the les miserables. If our tranquility is interrupted in a major way, as it was in England and was projected for us in 2001, we will either, through God's mercy, respond in that essential humility or give these elites full command of our future.

The English film, Mrs. Miniver has been called by some the greatest movie ever made. A series of newspaper articles were written in London about the fictional character of Mrs. Miniver who saw the gaiety of a rather comfortable 'middle class" life morph into the severity and sorrow of life in World War II. At the start, Mrs. Miniver is preoccupied with fancy new hats, her husband is equally taken by purchasing a new automobile. Their son, attending Oxford is enraptured by the myriad of intellectual and social issues that were opening up to him, along with the affections for a young lady. During a church service where the family's minds seemed to be on anything but the gospel, the announcement was made that England was at war. Out of necessity, life changes. The horror of 9/11 brought on numerous comments about how America "would never be the same." It didn't happen, at least not the way it was envisioned. Our "war on terror" today has taken on a pre-9/11 strategy. Admittedly, this movie and the articles it was based on, were meant to encourage the English and challenge us in America. Admittedly also, I write often on the good but mostly the bad influence that filmmakers can have but there is more than enough evidence of the determination of the British people and it's army, navy and R.A.F., and the historical importance and accuracy of the happenings of "Dunkirk" that is pictured in this film. England had its protesters and its dissenters but it also had Winston Churchill and an overall indomitable spirit that would not be defeated. There is a scene in the middle of the film that deserves relating. Mrs. Miniver captures a German pilot that crashed, held her at gunpoint and then collapsed from his wound. Mrs. Miniver's compassion is displayed on the young man that is very much like her own son in the R. A. F.. That compassion is given a dose of reality as the pilot responds to the compassion with promises that those who come after him will kill tens of thousands. This movie was released in 1942. Churchill said that "Mrs. Miniver" had done more for the allied cause than a fleet of destroyers. (I've heard so many different variations of the quote that I don't know the exact wording.) I researched the film for facts and saw a review of the improbability of the character, the "slick propaganda" and general silliness of parts of the movie. Here is part of our problem also, whether we face more war on our homeland or not, there is sufficient evidence that we may find ourselves in a similar situation as the Miniver family and others and the same determination is indeed possible and may be required of us. There is a "false logic" that pervades much of the debate, if you can call it debate. on criticism of the film.  When challenged with a strong argument, the tactic is to find just one or two inconsistencies and then declare the whole argument (film) invalid. It works with a public that does not wish to work through issues to find truth. I won't reveal any more of the film in case you haven't seen it, except to say that it ends with a church service and the same hymn sung but a truer reverence (albeit incomplete), different worship and different priorities.

Sunday.....Christianity.....The Appointed Amount Of Years

My wife and I recently attended a surprise birthday party for a friend where the entertainment was professional style gambling tables. Everyone was given 35 thousand dollars of play money to gamble with for a specified period of time. At the end of that time we were to count our money and were given one ticket for every five thousand dollars we had left. Those tickets were to be placed into containers of four very nice prizes for the winning ticket holder. Now if one ran out of money during the allotted time they could go up and sing a karaoke song and receive another seven thousand dollars to gamble with. I never saw a roulette or craps table in operation before and probably drove the dealers crazy with my questions for they were constantly moving my bet for one reason or another and often pointing to the winning chips and saying Yes, that's your money, you can take it or saying yes or no when asked should I roll again. Forgetting momentarily that the money was not real, my wife, at one point, was aghast at my betting four thousand dollars on one hand of Blackjack. She was shaking her head and laughing about that even tonight. I've probably written on the following topic before because I have held to this philosophy for quite some time now. I call it the 70 year philosophy. It's the determining factor, from the human perspective, of my choosing to have faith in Christ. I refer to it as the human perspective for my choice was always rejection of real faith in the true Christ and would have remained so for all of my life, for God chooses, and then compels, out of great mercy, to choose Him, thus giving us a part in His redemptive plan, but a bestowed part nonetheless.  Back to the 70 year philosophy, at one time in the not too distant past the average life span for a male in America was 70 years and I use that as a reference point in my philosophy of life. That life for many may be much shorter and for others it may extend for some time afterwards but the principle is the same. It's 60 years and seven months for me as it stands now and I do not know what a day may bring. I have lived youth, middle age, and whatever this is now. Some of those years were wasted, some trivialized, but none failed to add to the evidence from which a philosophy emerged. That philosophy is twofold; that 70 years is a relatively short period of time in the full scheme of things, and to paraphrase once again that pin-striped philosopher Yogi Berra, if it's over...it's over. The Wall Street Journal this week ran a piece in remembrance of a Formula One race car driver, Stefan Bellof, who was destined to be great before his untimely death on the track. Steve Prefontaine, the marvelous runner, was another whose name would live on after death, and James Dean of film died after only four movies but remains an icon in  our culture. Their memory lives on but they do not.. We all, I believe, tend to think that we live on in someone's memory even after death. Christopher Hitchens' first in a series of articles on his newly diagnosed cancer appeared this week in Vanity Fair and on the web. Its worth reading because of his wit, and his openness in dealing with both prayers and condemnations sent his way since the announcement of this famous atheist's illness. He has not budged one inch in his refusal to not only disbelieve in God (small "g" as he writes) but promises to not only remain defiant to the end but proclaims in advance that if a deathbed conversion occurs, he would have had lost his mind in his illness. Mr. Hitchens may believe that he will fight this "poison" of  "faith in god" even after his death. But this is impossible. Others can fight his fight in his name but his efforts will have ceased  He has effectively sent in a continuous series of absentee ballots through his writings that will be counted by those following him but they will nonetheless be illegal votes for whether he exists in some other state or not, he cannot render his preference from there. Do not many others do the same thing? They may die, they reason, but by golly they will be present with us in spirit!  They will protect the turf of their reputation even though that turf would then only contain bones of a life that once existed. If their spirit exists, it won't be with us, if it doesn't exist, it obviously won't be with us either. The decision is to be made in the here and now, the 70 years as I label it.  Personally, I may wind up having 60 years and seven months in which to have made that decision, and I may have my proverbial 70 years.  This blog or some other cyber writing may remain but even that opinion would be from someone no longer present, a soul who I believe would have had his chips (sins) counted, pronounced justified by grace through faith in Christ and entered into the glory of His Lord; or, as many others believe, would be a soul that no longer exists and therefore has vanished in its entirety, simply a part of the history of mankind. Christopher Hitchens is comfortable with his decision. A mind as capable and analytical methodology as rigorous as his would have at least been consistent if his decision was being made irregardless of any deference to his reputation after death. If, on the other hand,  he is clinging to his continued presence here after the fact, he would have betrayed that which he values greatly, his intellect. Indecision ...is...decision. We all have an aloted amount of time. If you are alarmed about the claim that it is God who chooses, then run to Him and plead to be one of them. He may grant you the choice, and if so will provide your response also. If you are merely outraged that God will do the choosing, then you indeed already have the choice and will provide the answer also. If you in any way base your decision on others opinion of you, either now or in your posterity, then you are striving for something that you will not be here to take pleasure in, or else no longer exist to even contemplate, or...as the Christian would believe, not be present here but present somewhere else and greatly regretting that others here have a memory of your advice that was given.

Thursday.....Politics.....If You Come To A Fork In The Road, Take It.

Any major bookstore will offer a number of books on leadership, and Christian bookstores the same. A dearth of leadership was a prime cause, no pun intended, in the recent financial collapse. Owners and CEOs of corporations historically were leaders and those who followed were the employees. The employee has effectively been taken out of the equation today, even to the point of being a liability; the CEO now leads the shareholders. The results in productivity, ethics and general happiness is predictable. One might find a number of mistakes that Winston Churchill made but he was the epitome of a leader at a time when England would not survive without one. President Bush (W) made more than his allotment of mistakes, and no one could have predicted from his adventuresome and irresponsible past how strong he would be when needed after our country was viciously attacked, but he was, and this evidenced by the roaring reception he received from our military upon his surprise visit to Baghdad. Robert E. Lee generated adoration from the entire South, Stonewall Jackson fear from his enemies and U. S. Grant great appreciation from his President. There seems to be no one character trait or personality required as Patton and Jackson were opposites in many ways. It doesn't even take an intellectual acumen for as Yogi Berra cautioned Even Napolean had his Watergate. He was a leader of the Yankees and would have made a good politician, In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is (I'm still trying to figure out that one.) He would have made a good liberal voter today You better cut the pizza in four pieces, because I'm not hungry enough to eat six. Wednesday's Wall Street Journal offered a book review on leadership in industry and that book highlighted Milton Hershey as a man who was driven by fulfilling his responsibilities to those who worked for him. There's no shortage of politicians who want to lead today. As I write this, an XM radio commercial from a stand-up comedy routine ventured into the topic. The comedian talked about a peculiarity of his in answering in the affirmative when, while shopping, a customer in the store mistakes him for a sales clerk. A man came up to him and asked if he had a certain pair of pants in a size 32. He responded I'll look in the back and was pleased with himself for finding a pair and giving it to the customer only to have the customer change his mind. His response was an uncomplimentary remark which the customer took offense to and went to see the manager, who upon returning fired the the comedian who in turn said You can't fire me. I don't even work here. The manager leaned up close and said Cool it. I don't work here either. I do the same thing, particularly at Barnes & Noble, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo? I can order it for you but I have Andrew McCarthy's "The Grand Jihad, How Islam and The Left Sabotage America, it's 20% off and you can save another 10% if you sign up for a "Member Card.". This modus operandi must, in some way, be how Hillary Clinton became our Secretary of State. The Democratic party has not one solid leader that I am aware of, former Georgia Senator Zell Miller being the last and pollster Pat Cadell the closest today of any significance. If ever there was an opportunity for leaders to arise, it is now in this party but the first thing it would require is a determined and vocal opposition to the Clinton, Alinsky, Pelosi and Reid cartel that has destroyed it as a viable second major party. Another Anwar Sadat is needed in the Middle East, another Thatcher in England, another Hammarskjold at the United Nations.. Barack Obama's charisma was a faux leadership and even that withered by a narcissism and arrogance in failure. The Republican party has a number of candidates for a number of positions and I'll be looking for them to rise to the top. They won't do that by condescending to an increasingly awakened, agitated and discerning constituency. Show me the money is out; show me honor is in. At this point in time, South Carolina Jim Demint has passed the test and hopefully others will step forward!