Saturday, April 25, 2009
Friday, April 24, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
The American Spectator : Obama's Torture Policy for the Unborn
The American Spectator : Obama's Torture Policy for the Unborn
Obama's Torture Policy for the Unborn
If achieving world peace required torturing a single baby, asks a character in Fyodor Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov, would it be worth it?
"Imagine that you are creating a fabric of human destiny with the object of making men happy in the end, giving them peace and rest at last, but that it was essential and inevitable to torture to death only one tiny creature -- that baby beating its breast with its fist, for instance -- and to found that edifice on its unavenged tears, would you consent to be the architect on those conditions? Tell me, and tell the truth."
The liberalism that Barack Obama seeks to complete answers Dostoyevsky's question with an emphatic yes. What is Obama's abortion-on-demand-forever policy but the building of a modern American way of life upon the graves of tortured babies? And not just the unavenged tears of one baby but millions of them.
This week, however, Obama did avenge the tears of terrorists. World peace, he said, isn't worth theirs. He lectured the CIA that "What makes the United States special and what makes you special is precisely the fact that we are willing to uphold our values and ideals even when it's hard."
Obama's prim pontifications about America's "values and ideals" inspired Chris Matthews and Jack Cafferty, among other deep and careful thinkers, to mull over the question: If torturing terrorists works -- as the Obama administration had to admit grudgingly this week -- is it okay? No, of course not, the chattering class proudly concluded.
One wonders why. What do they care? Having already accepted abortion and euthanasia -- which are nothing more than the expedient killing of the unborn and the elderly -- why should the expedient torture of terrorists, a lesser evil, trouble them? Oh, that's right: the terrorists are guilty and the guilty under the ministrations of modern liberalism never suffer. Pain in modern life is for the innocent.
Terrorists, we're told by pro-abortion liberals, suffer excruciating pain while the ejected unborn and euthanized elderly feel nothing. And even if the latter do suffer pain, say these liberals, that pain is worth it. After all, abortion and euthanasia sustain a pleasant and peaceful lifestyle for the strong. Let the dead bury the dead. Or, as the Supreme Court has said, imagine the disruption to America's way of life if stare decisis in the case of Roe v. Wade disappeared and women couldn't plan their careers and futures without the expectation of legal abortion for years to come.
Obama's liberalism is not an opponent of human rights abuses but an embodiment of them. The CIA restricts itself to methods far less ruthless than those permitted by the platform of the Democratic Party. When will Obama bring his own platform into line with the Geneva Accords?
It is a little late in the day for Obama to worry about America's moral reputation. Resisting evil even "when it is hard" hasn't interested liberalism for at least four decades. It rests on an ideology of expedient evil and crass utilitarianism.
With St. Paul, Western civilization, before modern liberalism ransacked it, said: "One may not do evil so that good may result from it." But then modern liberalism came along and reversed the formulation and now insists in the case of everything from therapeutic cloning to killing unborn children to dehydrating the elderly that one should do evil so that good may come from it.
Obama only now rediscovers the Christian ethic for terrorists, even as he weaves the "fabric of human destiny" with the tissue of tortured children.
Gun Control History Lesson � GOLDBLOOM’S PADDED CELL
Gun Control History Lesson � GOLDBLOOM’S PADDED CELL
In 1929, the Soviet Union established gun control. From 1929 to 1953, about 20 million dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
In 1911, Turkey established gun control. From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Germany established gun control in 1938 and from 1939 to 1945, a total of 13 million Jews and others who were unable to defend themselves were rounded up and exterminated.
China established gun control in 1935. From 1948 to 1952, 20 million political dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Guatemala established gun control in 1964. From 1964 to 1981, 100,000 Mayan Indians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Uganda established gun control in 1970. From 1971 to 1979, 300,000 Christians unable to defend themselves es, were rounded up and
exterminated.
Cambodia established gun control in 1956. From 1975 to 1977, one million ‘educated ‘ people, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Defenseless people rounded up and exterminated in the 20th Century
because of gun control: 56 million.
It has now been 12 months since gun owners in Australia were forced by new law to surrender 640,381 personal firearms to be destroyed by their own government, a program costing Australia taxpayers more than $500 million dollars. The first year results are now in:
Australia-wide, homicides are up 3.2 percent.
Australia-wide, assaults are up 8.6 percent.
Australia-wide, armed robberies are up 44 percent. (yes, 44 percent)
In the state of Victoria alone, homicides with firearms are now up 300 percent. Note that while the law-abiding citizens turned them in, the
criminals did not, and criminals still possess their guns. It will never happen here? I bet the Aussies said that too!
While figures over the previous 25 years showed a steady decrease in armed robbery with firearms, this has changed drastically upward in the past 12 months, since criminals now are guaranteed that their
prey is unarmed. There has also been a dramatic increase in break-
ins and assaults of the ELDERLY. Australian politicians are at a loss to explain how public safety has decreased, after such monumental effort and expense was expended in successfully ridding Australian society of guns.
The Australian experience and the other historical facts above prove it.
You won’t see this data on the US evening news, or hear politicians disseminating this information. Guns in the hands of honest citizens save lives and property and, yes, gun - control laws adversely affect
only the law-abiding citizens. Take note my fellow Americans, before it’s too late!
The next time someone talks in favor of gun control, please remind him of this history lesson.
With Guns………..We Are ‘Citizens’, without Them……..We Are
‘Subjects’.
During W.W.II the Japanese decided not to invade America because they knew most Americans were ARMED! Note: Admiral Yamamoto
who crafted the attack on Pearl Harbor had attended Harvard from
1919-1921 & was Naval Attaché to the U. S. 1925-28. Most of our Navy was destroyed at Pearl Harbor & our Army had been deprived of funding & was ill prepared to defend the country. It was reported that when asked why Japan did not follow up the Pearl Harbor attack with an invasion of the U . S. Mainland, his reply was that he had lived in the U.S. & knew that almost all households had guns.
If you value your freedom Please spread this anti-gun control message to all your friends! The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Key witness in passport fraud case of Clinton, McCain, and Barack Obama fatally shot � Count Us Out
Key witness in passport fraud case of Clinton, McCain, and Barack Obama fatally shot � Count Us Out
April 19, 2009 -
A key witness in a federal probe into passport information stolen from the State Department was fatally shot in front of a District church, the Metropolitan Police Department said yesterday.
Lt. Quarles Harris Jr., 24, who had been cooperating with a federal investigators, was found late Thursday night slumped dead inside a car, in front of the Judah House Praise Baptist Church in Northeast, said Cmdr. Michael Anzallo, head of the department’s Criminal Investigations Division.
Cmdr. Anzallo said a police officer was patrolling the neighborhood when gunshots were heard, then Lt. Harris was found dead inside the vehicle, which investigators would describe only as a blue car.
Emergency medics pronounced him dead at the scene.
City police said they do not know whether his death was a direct result of his cooperation with federal investigators.
“We don’t have any information right now that connects his murder to that case,” Cmdr. Anzallo said.
Police say a “shot spotter” device helped an officer locate Lt. Harris.
A State Department spokeswoman yesterday declined to comment, saying the investigation into the passport fraud is ongoing.
The Washington Times reported April 5 that contractors for the State Department had improperly accessed passport information for presidential candidates Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and John McCain, which resulted in a series of firings that reached into the agency’s top ranks.
One agency employee, who was not identified in documents filed in U.S. District Court, was implicated in a credit-card fraud scheme after Lt. Harris told federal authorities he obtained “passport information from a co-conspirator who works for the U.S. Department of State.”
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/apr/19/key-witness-in-passport-fraud-case-fatally-shot/
Saturday, April 18, 2009
The Obama Deception Complete Movie (2009) English - Степашка
The Obama Deception Complete Movie (2009) English - Степашка: "The Obama Deception Part 1 through 12".
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Brutally Honest: "extremism in the defense of liberalism is no vice"
Brutally Honest: "extremism in the defense of liberalism is no vice"
"extremism in the defense of liberalism is no vice"
Modern liberals measure "progress" not by the unfolding fulfillment of the natural moral law but by its elimination. Consequently, most of what is labeled "progress" is basically just regress, a return, under a glossier guise, to the practices of antiquity and pre-Christian paganism.
Pagans stuck the inconvenient elderly on snow drifts; moderns dehydrate them to death in hospitals. Pagans left unwanted babies to die on hilltops; moderns bury them in bins behind Planned Parenthood clinics. Pagans attended orgies, moderns attend "gay weddings."
In its deepening moral squalor, in its raw defiance of reality as God made it, the Brave New World is as barbaric as the old one. That Hillary Clinton and other architects of the Brave New World are now forced to grapple clumsily with piracy is somehow fitting. Their "new world order" is intrinsically disordered, a reckless ideological experiment that explodes in recurring currents of chaos, discontent, and lawlessness. Why not piracy too?
The recent gusher of globalist babble at the G-20 summit is exposed by the rise of piracy as a total sham. And the rise of piracy is one more proof of Dambisa Moyo's thesis in Dead Aid -- that ceaseless Western government-to-government handouts to Africa, which are just a new version of white colonialism, have frozen the continent in a helpless and horrid past. After a trillion dollars over sixty years, the only vivid display of entrepreneurial activity in Africa today is…piracy.
National Review noted this week that Bono's organization, One, is organizing a campaign of attacks against Moyo's book. Perhaps Bono can add pirates to his to-do list or maybe co-host a few Park Avenue parties for them with Al Sharpton.
But having already accepted de facto piracy by African governments -- most aid, Moyo observes, evaporates in corruption -- the engineers of the new world order aren't likely to win the "war on piracy" or even fight it.
...
In the giddy days of the campaign, one cheerleading journalist for the San Francisco Chronicle, Mark Morford, speculated that Obama might be a "Lightworker" for the globe -- "that rare kind of attuned being who has the ability to lead us not merely to new foreign policies or health care plans or whatnot, but who can actually help usher in a new way of being on the planet…"
This "new way of being on the planet" looks awfully familiar, a return to history's most dismal, farcical, and evil chapters with tyranny, decadence, and false religion. This week the new way of being on the planet resembled the 18th century -- pirates abroad, tax-revolting tea parties at home, and a president, acting like a king, who collected excessive taxes and hatched extreme plans (such as forcing doctors and nurses to perform abortions against their consciences) while his aides sputtered about "extremists."
George Washington was an extremist in George III's eyes, and maybe even a disgruntled military veteran too. But under the madness of King Obama, extremism in the defense of liberalism is no vice and the citizenry's attempt to moderate it no virtue.
Neumayr's playing hammer here, nailing modern liberalism with effect. God bless him.
Do your part to counter the barbarism of today's leftist mind and pass this one on.
GraphOilogy: “We had everything but money,” A Suggested Guidebook for the “Greater Depression”
GraphOilogy: “We had everything but money,” A Suggested Guidebook for the “Greater Depression”: "“We had everything but money” is a collection of first person accounts of the Great Depression in the United States. Although, it appears to be out of print, it is widely available online. I recommend it as a very good guidebook for our present circumstances, what many are calling the “Greater Depression.”"
Figures on government spending and debt - Yahoo! Finance
Figures on government spending and debt - Yahoo! Finance
Figures on government spending and debt
- Friday April 17, 2009, 7:45 pm EDT
WASHINGTON (AP) --
Total public debt subject to limit April 16 11,125,587
Statutory debt limit 12,104,000
Total public debt outstanding April 16 11,183,899
Operating balance April 16 257,351
Interest fiscal year 2009 thru February 148,762
Interest same period 2008 198,518
Deficit fiscal year 2009 thru February 764,525
Deficit same period 2008 264,541
Receipts fiscal year 2009 thru February 860,877
Receipts same period 2008 967,153
Outlays fiscal year 2009 thru February 1,625,402
Outlays same period 2008 1,231,694
Gold assets in March 11,041
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
The Cost of Global Warming: A Story in Pictures � The Foundry
The Cost of Global Warming: A Story in Pictures � The Foundry: "human-global-warming"
And what should be the final nail in the coffin: All this economic pain is for very little, if any, environmental gain. Analysis by the Environmental Protection Agency concludes that if the U.S. reduces CO2 emissions 60 percent by 2050, it will reduce global temperature by 0.1 to 0.2 degree Centigrade by 2095. A multi–lateral approach wouldn’t fare much better. Why? Well, there’s a lot of reasons. After all, the science behind global warming is anything but conclusive, but one reason could be how small man’s contribution to carbon dioxide emissions is.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Vinegar and Honey: Seasons Of Life
Vinegar and Honey: Seasons Of Life
There was an Indian Chief who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away.
The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in summer, and the youngest son in the fall. When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.
The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.The second son said no it was covered with green buds and full of promise. The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen. The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.
The man then explained to his sons that each of them had reported correctly, because they had each seen but one season in the tree's life. He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season,and that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and love that come from that life can only be measured at the end,when all the seasons are passed.
If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, the fulfillment of your fall.
Moral: Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest. Don't judge life by one difficult season. Persevere through the difficult seasons and better ones are sure to come.
"To everything there is a season,a time for every purpose under the sun."Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV
Seasons Of Life
There was an Indian Chief who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away.
The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in summer, and the youngest son in the fall. When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.
The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.The second son said no it was covered with green buds and full of promise. The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen. The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.
The man then explained to his sons that each of them had reported correctly, because they had each seen but one season in the tree's life. He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season,and that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and love that come from that life can only be measured at the end,when all the seasons are passed.
If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, the fulfillment of your fall.
Moral: Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest. Don't judge life by one difficult season. Persevere through the difficult seasons and better ones are sure to come.
"To everything there is a season,a time for every purpose under the sun."
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Reformed Voices: Learn the 10 Commandments
Reformed Voices: Learn the 10 Commandments
Learn the 10 Commandments
Is it possible to learn the 10 Commandments and be able to recall them in any order in under 12 minutes? You may be surprised.
part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A64HS79546o
part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1NS0EPXkss
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Spiritual Juxtapostioning - Part Two | Verum Serum
Spiritual Juxtapostioning - Part Two | Verum Serum
Spiritual Juxtapostioning - Part Two
Scott on April 7, 2009
To me, one of the most striking juxtapositions in the Christian faith is the contrast between Light and Darkness.
Isaiah 9:2 - The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined.John 1:5 - The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
Not that the contrast of Light and Darkness is of such a complex nature that it takes theologians and philosophers to make the comparison. On the contrary, it is one of the most fundamental and obvious contrasts in the natural world. But in the spiritual and metaphysical economy of things, Light and Darkness take on monumental and eternal significance.
Non-Christian have at times objected to the idea that they are walking in darkness. They frequently equate darkness with evil, so when they hear someone claiming that they are living/walking in darkness, they take offense. However, the intent of using the term darkness is not to equate it with evil, but to instead equate it with a lack of awareness and/or understanding,
In other words, if someone was born in a cave in complete darkness and this person lived their entire life in that darkness, they would have no idea what darkness was because living in the dark cave, they would have never seen the thing called light. Thus they would have nothing with which to compare their darkness. No amount of explaining what darkness is would make a difference until someone showed them light. It is only in the presence of light that darkness is revealed and understood.
Plato’s Allegory of the Cave brings these ideas into play in some respects, adding the nuance of shadows as well. However, I like a different story involving darkness, light, and people in a cave:
-
THE CAVE PEOPLE (Adapted from a story by Max Lucado)
LONG AGO, or maybe not so long ago, there was a tribe who lived in a dark, cold cavern. The cave dwellers would huddle together and cry against the chill. Loud and long they wailed. It was all they did because it was all they knew to do. The sounds in the cave were mournful but the people didn’t know it, for they had never known the joy of life.
But then, one day, they heard a different voice rise above their pitiful wailing. “I have heard your cries,” it announced, the words echoing through the cave. “I have felt your chill and seen your darkness. I have come to help.”
The cave people grew quiet. They had never heard this voice. The message of hope sounded strange to their ears.
“How can we know you have come to help?” asked one of the tribe.
Out from the shadows stepped a figure they had never seen before. “Trust me,” he answered. “I have what you need.”
The cave people peered through the darkness at the stranger. He was stacking something, then stooping and stacking more.
“What are you doing?” one cried, nervous. The stranger didn’t answer.
“What are you making?” one shouted even louder. Still no response.
“Tell us!” demanded a third.
The visitor stood and spoke in the direction of the voices. “I have what you need.” With that he turned to the pile at his feet and lit it. Wood ignited, flames erupted, and light filled the cavern.
The cave people turned away in fear. “Put it out!” they cried. “It hurts to see it.”
“Light always hurts before it helps,” he answered. “Step closer. The pain will soon pass.”
“Not I,” declared a voice.
“Nor I,” agreed a second.
“Only a fool would risk exposing his eyes to such light,” declared a third.
The stranger stood next to the fire. “Would you prefer the darkness? Would you prefer the cold? Don’t rely on your fears. Look to the light and take a step of faith.”
For a long time no one spoke. The people hovered in groups covering their eyes. The stranger stood next to the fire. “It’s warm here. Come, join me.” he invited.
“He’s right,” one from behind him announced. “It is warmer.”
The stranger turned and saw a figure slowly stepping toward the fire. “I can open my eyes now,” she proclaimed. “I can see.”
“Come closer,” invited the fire builder.
She did. She stepped into the ring of light. “It’s so warm!” She extended her hands and sighed as her chill began to pass.
“Come, everyone! Feel the warmth,” she invited.
“Silence, woman!” cried one of the cave dwellers. “Dare you lead us into your folly? Leave us and take your light with you.”
She turned to the stranger. “Why won’t they come?”
‘They choose the chill, for though it’s cold, it’s what they know. They’d rather be cold than have to change.” The stranger looked sad.
“And they would rather live in the dark?” she asked in disbelief.
“Yes, they would rather live in the dark,” said the stranger.
The now-warm woman stood silent, looking first into the darkness and then at the man in the light.
“Will you leave the fire?” he asked.
She paused, and then answered, “I cannot. I cannot bear the cold.” Then she spoke again. “But nor can I bear the thought of my people in darkness.”
“You don’t have to,” he responded, reaching into the fire and removing a stick. “Carry this to your people. Tell them the light is here, and the light is warm. Tell them the light is for all who desire it.”
And so she took the small flame and stepped into the shadows.
-
Two Easters ago, I worked with my good friend (who was also the worship pastor of the church we were attending at the time) to put together an Easter service that would provide, not just the traditional Easter story (which is perfect all on its own), but that would also provide some additional opportunities and some other forms to convey the truths of Easter to the unchurched. I knew this Max Lucado story and had always felt that it needed a little more fleshing out, thus I adapted it and tweaked it a bit into the form that you see above. I am not sure if Lucado wrote it with Plato’s Cave Allegory in mind or if it was just coincidence. What I find fascinating is that Plato, almost 2500 years ago, seized upon the ideas of darkness, light and shadow and saw within them analogies to life and human existence.
For those times in my life when darkness has arrived in some form and has dimmed my view of my faith and has obstructed my view of Christ, it is only the undimmed and unwavering light of Truth and Grace that clears away the darkness and the shadows that accompany it. Sometimes I am unaware of the darkness. It comes gradually, like the loss of light with the setting sun. Then I am immersed in my own unique brand of dark, shaded by pride or anger or arrogance or judgmentalism.
Until…BAM! The Light breaks through the darkness and reveals the room of shadows in which I had been living. And then I am again reminded of the quote from John Newton that I mentioned in Part I:
My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: That I am a great sinner and that Christ is a great Saviour.
What is Birkat Hachamah? - Birkat Hachamah
What is Birkat Hachamah? - Birkat Hachamah
What is Birkat Hachamah?An Overview of this Rare Blessing |
Every 28 years the sun returns to the same position, at the same time of the week, that it occupied at the time of its creation—at the beginning of the fourth day of creation. A special blessing – called Birkat Hachamah, "the sun blessing" – is recited to mark this event. Due to the rarity of this event, this blessing is customarily recited amid large public gatherings of men, women and children. This year, we will perform this special mitzvah on the morning of April 8This year, 5769, we will perform this special mitzvah on the morning of April 8 (the morning before Passover). The blessing is traditionally preceded and followed by a short selection of Psalms and prayers. The existence of nearly all life on Earth is fueled by light from the sun. Every morning without fail, the sun rises in the east and bathes us with its sustaining rays, causing flora to grow and, through the process of photosynthesis, providing oxygen for all fauna. Some may call this phenomenon nature. We will gather on April 8th and declare otherwise: "Blessed are You, Lord our G‑d, King of the universe, who reenacts the works of creation." |
Monday, April 06, 2009
Rally: Too Flashy For Our Liking | The Big Picture
Rally: Too Flashy For Our Liking | The Big Picture
David Rosenberg, the soon-to-be former Economist for Merrill Lynch, had a very prescient commentary last week about the 25% four week rally on Friday:
As for this 25% rally in three weeks – the consensus has swung to the view that this is a real inflection point. One warning. We saw this happen in late 2001 and early 2002 too … big, big rally; early cyclicals flew; the markets thought we were in for a V-shaped recovery … it was longer away than many at the time believed and many were burnt as a result. And keep in mind that the ‘second derivative’ on growth began to improve in the fourth quarter of 2001, and the S&P 500 still did not bottom for another year.
Currently, the equity market is priced for $70 on earnings on a going-forward basis, or a 75% rebound. And with retailing stocks up 30%, leisure/accommodation up 35%, and the homebuilders up 40%, the market is priced, amazingly, for a revival that is led by the consumer! (in fact, the only S&P sector that is now trading at P/E multiples that are at post-2001 highs is the consumer cyclical group). If we see that in the next year, we will be the first to hang up our Hewlett Packards. Being up 25% in a year and staying bearish … well, shame.
Achieving that in less than a month – come on. Too flashy for our liking.
In fact, let’s learn from history. The only times we have ever seen the stock market surge close to this much in such a short time frame were:
* December 1929
* June 1931
* August 1932
* May 1933
* July 1938
* September 1982Only in September 1982 and in May 1933 was the equity market embarking on a new bull phase. But guess what? By the time the S&P 500 surged 25%, it had already crossed above its 200-day moving average. So call us when the S&P 500 crosses the 1,000 mark – another 20% to go. That is how deeply entrenched this particular bear market has been – that even after this massive rally, the onus is still on the bulls! Consider as well that on 4 of the 6 occasions that the equity market staged such a huge rally over such a short time period, it relapsed. So we are going to wait this out, acknowledging that we could be late to the party. We still feel the downside risks are too high to be involved.
Ashes Ashes All Fall Down: We're Coming Home!
Ashes Ashes All Fall Down: We're Coming Home!
We're Coming Home!
Many years ago, when I was teaching history at a high school in Texas, one of my students was diagnosed with cancer. A rare cancer. She underwent aggressive treatment in Texas, and then in California. And about 6 months after her initial diagnosis we all received an email from her dad that started with the following words: "We're coming home!" While the email appeared optimistic and excited on the surface, I knew that my student was coming home to die. The cancer was not in remission. All treatment options had been exhausted. Within two months she would be gone.
Today I look at America and those words, "we're coming home!", rattle around in my weary brain. The markets are up, 72,000 people attended the national collegiate basketball semi-final in Detroit this past weekend (20,000 more than had ever attended in the past), many restaurants in my community are up 20% in sales from this time last year. And yet even a cursory glance at the underlying economic numbers makes one wince with pain: U6 unemployment at 16+% and growing by close to a MILLION individuals per month, Consumer Debt still tipping the scales at over 15% of GDP, a crashing import-export economy, government-sponsored (and taxplayer funded) bailouts and rescues for criminal banking and financial sector CEO's, etc.
We're coming home! When fifteen year old Clara came home---full of smiles and hugs and love---she did so knowing that the end was near. She was determined to make the very best of her final days, surrounded by family and friends. Her parents knew that their daughter would soon die, and as devout believers in a Christian God, they gained strength from the knowledge that their precious child would soon be in "a better place". But despite their faith, Clara's parents were destroyed. For them, he death of their only daughter would kill them as well. And in many respects, they too came home to die.
I believe that the American people are beginning to understand that the future is bleak. So many jobs destroyed, so little savings, no safety nets, no honest government to care for them, no access to health care, no hope for the future. And millions upon millions of Americans are, in a final gasp and haze of debt spending, maxing out all of their remaining credit cards, and going to basketball games and dining out and seeing the world! One last hurrah before they too reach the end.
We're coming home.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Curmudgeonly & Skeptical�
Curmudgeonly & Skeptical�: "Family of Irving 'Bud' Feldkamp,
Dies in Montana Plane Crash
Owner of the Nation's Largest Privately Owned Abortion Chain,"
Dies in Montana Plane Crash
Owner of the Nation's Largest Privately Owned Abortion Chain,"
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