There is an old saying that nature abhors a vacuum, the belief being that when something abdicates or abandons its place in the natural order that place does not remain empty; something else rushes in to fill it. Sometimes, it isn’t even a matter of abandonment, but of the replacement being too strong to be held back. Anyone who has ever seen efforts to strengthen a levee with sandbags can understand this particular displacement scenario. But whether it is a matter of abdication or elimination, simply put, the nature of things tends toward maintenance of the status quo in general if not in the particulars. It would be hard to find many educated people who, with the opening of a new millennium, would have predicted the rise of the medieval Crescent not only in the Middle East but in Europe and even North America. The last time Islam posed a threat to the West, men wore knee britches, silk stockings and long wigs while the Ottoman Empire still inhabited the map of the world. Yet, here we are, little more than two decades into the 21st century and there is a very real threat of a world-wide Caliphate and the victory of the Prophet and his “religion” in every place in the world from Morocco to Mexico and Nigeria to Norway. The Christian Church, once the foundation of Western Civilization and gaining converts in nations that never knew the Roman Empire is fast becoming a ghost—and not a very Holy One at that! If one were to ask Westerners in Europe, Britain and the United States (and Canada), what happened?! most would find no words to describe how the civilization of Plato and Aristotle, Cesar and Charlemagne, the Sun King and Thomas Jefferson could find itself sinking ever more rapidly into oblivion while those openly proclaiming their murderous intentions against everything Christian and Western are protected by the very governments of the West using political correctness and the concept of “hate speech”—which, by the way, only applies to those who resist. If the cultural institutions of the West fail to recognize their danger, much less fight back against that danger, it is even more incredible that the main victim of jihad—the Christian Church—seems equally oblivious to the danger posed to its adherents. Using the pretext of Christ’s admonition that we are “to love one another,” many Christians and their churches fail—or refuse—to understand the peril that so-called “radical Islam” poses not only to the Church, but to the West. As noted, in many instances, the governments of Western nations are no longer even resisting the institution of the Caliphate. They have abandoned their own people to an invasion of Third World revolutionaries who have already killed tens, perhaps hundreds of thousand of non-Muslims and even their own “brethren” in their mad crusade to raise the Crescent over the graves of Christianity and Western civilization. One of the things that many in the West cannot fathom is why so many especially young Westerners embrace Islam. They do not come from the ethnic and racial backgrounds that might explain their conversion, but it would seem every day more and more ordinary Americans and British and French and Norwegians embrace the Prophet. Why? And here we must return to our opening point; that is, that nature abhors a vacuum. At some point in the 20th Century at least Western Christianity determined to try to increase interest among youth by reaching out and making it easier to be a Christian. Fasting, prayer, tithing, moral absolutes and church attendance were considered in many instances a barrier to the acceptance by young people of church membership. This was especially true during the 1960s when much of what before had been accepted cultural norms were not only scrutinized, but often abandoned. The Church tried to deal with this situation by adopting more worldly viewpoints in hopes that the disillusioned (and narcissistic) youth of the West would not abandon what many saw as too restrictive to their chosen lifestyle. In some instances, this worked. For example, the institution of Saturday night Mass in the Catholic Church has permitted young Catholics to participate in Sunday morning sports while maintaining at least some association with their “faith.” But how permanent that association will remain once those involved are no longer concerned with soccer, football and lacrosse remains to be seen. The problem with this easing of standards is not for the minimally involved, but for that young man or young woman who seeks meaning in his or her life; that is, that individual who wants a belief system that challenges and, by doing so, fulfills his (or her) spiritual needs. Very little of this kind of rigorous spiritual exercise exists in the West’s tepid Christianity which is often more secular than religious. For such seekers, Islam presents an all-encompassing way of life that promises rewards—and punishments—for the believer. Very early on in the war in Afghanistan after 9/11, a young man from the “left coast” was found fighting with the Taliban. He was an example of the failure of modern liberalism having grown up within a belief system that offered nothing of consequence or value. This young man was a seeker. At a different time and with a more robust Christian society, he might have become a priest or a pastor or a missionary but in today’s America, he had to adopt a 12th century moral monstrosity in order to find any meaning in his 21st century life! The fate of this young man is a seminal example of a moral and spiritual vacuum being filled by an aggressive moral and spiritual movement. Furthermore, it does not matter that those of us who retain some connection with Western Civilization find that movement demonic and immoral! All that matters is that it provides what is needed to those who cannot abide a moral and spiritual vacuum. There was a study done some years ago regarding an endangered waterfowl. Conservationists hovered about the nesting grounds of these birds to see what could be done to increase their numbers. As they watched the young hatch, they noticed that the poor little things spent virtually hours pecking their way out of their shells only to lie exhausted in the nest for a considerable time afterwards. The naturalists gathered together to discuss this situation, and it was determined that they would go and carefully, while the mother bird was off the nest for a few moments, weaken the shell at the time of hatching. To maintain a scientific balance, however, it was decided to do this with only 25% of the hatchlings. The plan was quickly put into effect and sure enough, at the time of the hatching, the weakened eggs gave way much more quickly and the young hatchlings were far less exhausted by their labors. Great were the expectations of the naturalists until they discovered a few days later that all the young birds so assisted—were dead in their nests! At first there was some thought that the “helpers” had somehow contaminated the eggs and that the birds died as the result of infection, but examinations of the dead chicks proved that such was not the case. In the end, it was determined that the very struggle by the young to escape their calcium prison hardened and strengthened them so that they were able to survive those vicissitudes they were all fated to experience in the wild. In other words, what those naturalists discovered to their dismay was that struggle is a part of life and necessary for the development of both body and spirit! This is something that today’s Christian churches need to rediscover while there is still time, or rather, if there is still time.
I just watched a man die today and it can't be for nothing. There is nothing worse than watching someone in pain, even though we're all in pain to some degree or another, but nearly everyone in my town is a chain smoking alcoholic with a decent dose of hard drugs thrown in to spice things up. If you think I'm exaggerating just come and work in any outback Australian mining town and you will see how people reap what they've sown for decades. Mr Riley was brought to my hospital one week earlier because he was finding it hard to breathe but there was not much we could do for lungs at the final stage of total failure and a heart that struggled to pump blood around the body and kidneys equally bad. It was a miracle he had made it to sixty, but his time had come. 'How about some morphine' I recommended but the patient shook his head and in between his laboured breaths, told me he was worried it might be bad for him. Such irony is easy to see but hard to put into words, but after a lifetime of abusing his body to the extreme, he was suddenly worried about one of the few remaining medicines to make him breathe a little easier. But I know better, because when you mention morphine, people suddenly see how close to the end they really are. Fortunately I'd gotten to know Mr Riley over the multiple presentations over the last year and he listened to me and trusted me when I told him it would not harm him, but help him. It's odd to think that a high dose of morphine will stop us breathing, but a small dose will help your breathing, and over the next week Mr Riley spent with us in the small hospital he agreed to try the morphine and his breathing did ease even as his body slowly shut down. Like so many in our town Mr Riley didn't have any family to be with him during his dying days and like many who passed before him I wondered if it was because he had come here to escape from his past, or left his family or they left him, but when his final moments came I felt it couldn't be for nothing. Sadly in the 12 months I've been working outback I've seen more people die than in the last 30 years nursing combined, and it can't be for nothing. I'm not afraid to admit I need God to be real. All this death, or maybe the fact I'm about to turn 50, has made me need not just any God, but the God that entered into this world of suffering and suffered with us. I need God to be real, but I also need God to know what I'm going through - and it turns out my God, the Christian God, did just that. My own irony is that while I need God to be real (and despite bouts of doubt) I'm not an especially good Christian, but that's a story for another time. For now, I'll finish by asking who else needs God and at the same time fails to live up to their own idea of a good Christian? For my thoughts condemn well and truly, let alone speak of my deeds.
The statistics in this article are at least 17 years old and given the ongoing forced “immigration” into the Western World by Third World (and especially Muslim) people, we can assume that the numbers shown here are much lower than they are today. How much lower, I don’t know, but given that the statistics prove what happens as the numbers increase it really doesn’t matter. It is more than correct to assume things have only gotten worse – much worse! And so, here is how Islam works to destroy anything that it does not control. To begin with, Islam is not a religion nor is it a cult. It is a complete system. Islam has religious, legal, political, economic and military components. The religious component is a beard for all the other components. Islamization occurs when there are sufficient Muslims in a country to agitate for their so-called 'religious rights.' When politically correct and culturally diverse societies agree to 'the reasonable' Muslim demands for their 'religious rights,' they also get the other components under the table. Here's how it works (percentages source CIA: The World Fact Book (2007). As long as the Muslim population remains around 1% of any given country they will be regarded as a peace-loving minority and not as a threat to anyone. In fact, they may be featured in articles and films, stereotyped for their colorful uniqueness: United States – Muslim 1.0% Australia – Muslim 1.5% Canada – Muslim 1.9% China – Muslim 1%-2% Italy - Muslim 1.5% Norway – Muslim 1.8% At 2% and 3% they begin to proselytize from other ethnic minorities and disaffected groups with major recruiting from the jails and among street gangs: Denmark – Muslim 2% Germany – Muslim 3.7% United Kingdom – Muslim 2.7% Spain – Muslim 4% Thailand – Muslim 4.6% From 5% on, Muslims exercise an inordinate influence in proportion relative to their percentage of the population. They will push for the introduction of halal (clean by Islamic standards) food similar to the Jewish concept of kosher, thereby securing food preparation jobs for Muslims and demanding that large food stores employ them. This will increase pressure on supermarket chains to feature it on their shelves – along with threats for failure to comply. (This has already happened in the United States). France – Muslim 8% Philippines – Muslim 5% Sweden – Muslim 5% Switzerland – Muslim 4.3% The Netherlands – Muslim 5.5% Trinidad &Tobago – Muslim 5.8% At this point, they will work to get the ruling government to allow them to rule themselves under Sharia, the Islamic Law. The ultimate goal of Islam is not to convert the entire world but to establish Sharia law over that world. When Muslims reach 10% of the population, they will increase lawlessness as a means of complaint about their conditions (Paris – car-burnings). Any non-Muslim action that offends Islam will result in uprisings and threats as happened in Amsterdam over Mohammed cartoons. Guyana – Muslim 10% India – Muslim 13.4% Israel – Muslim 16% Kenya – Muslim 10% Russia – Muslim 10-15% After reaching 20% expect hair-trigger rioting, jihad militia formations, sporadic killings and the burning of synagogues and churches. Ethiopia – Muslim 32.8%At 40% you will find widespread massacres, chronic terror attacks and ongoing militia warfare:Bosnia – Muslim 40% Chad – Muslim 53.1% Lebanon – Muslim 59.7% From 60% you may expect unfettered persecution of non-believers and other religions, sporadic ethnic cleansing (genocide), use of Sharia Law as a weapon and Jizya, a tax placed on infidels that must be paid for them to remain in the country involved. Albania – Muslim 70% Malaysia – Muslim 60.4% Qatar – Muslim 77.5% Sudan – Muslim 70% After 80% one may expect State run ethnic cleansing and genocide. Bangladesh – Muslim 83% Egypt – Muslim 90% Gaza – Muslim 98.7% Indonesia – Muslim 86.1% Iran – Muslim 98% Iraq – Muslim 97% Jordan – Muslim 92%Morocco – Muslim 98.7% Pakistan – Muslim 97% Palestine – Muslim 99% Syria – Muslim 90% Tajikistan – Muslim 90% Turkey – Muslim 99.8% United Arab Emirates – Muslim 96% If the nation involved is 100% Muslim, this is supposed to usher in the peace of ‘Dar-es-Salaam' – the Islamic House of Peace; that is, there is supposed to be peace because everyone is a Muslim: Afghanistan – Muslim 100% Saudi Arabia – Muslim 100% Somalia – Muslim 100% Yemen – Muslim 99.9% But this is not the case. For there is the ongoing “religious war” among the various “sects” or “branches” of Islam including: Sunnīsm, Shīʿīsm, Ibadism, Quranism, “Non-denominational” Muslims, Mahdavia, Ahmadiyya, the “Nation of Islam” and Sufism. Because Muslims are by both creed and nature “warlike,” despite a nation or area being 100% “Muslim,” the above groups will then wage war on each other. Indeed, their creed is found below regarding their philosophy of life: 'Before I was nine, I had learned the basic canon of Arab life. It was me against my brother; me and my brother against our father; my family against my cousins and the clan; the clan against the tribe; and the tribe against the world and all of us against the infidel.' Leon Uris, 'The Haj” It is good to remember that in many countries, such as France, Muslim populations are centered in ethnic ghettos; they do not assimilate into the community at large They don’t want to assimilate; they want to rule. But because they consolidate in geographic areas, they exercise more power than their numbers would indicate. This is especially true as they knowingly choose locations where they are able to dramatically affect local and regional governments. And yet, knowing what is happening, we continue to cater to these “invaders” (not immigrants!) dealing with them in a “politically correct” way so as not to “offend.” But if we do not learn to defend our own heritage, it will indeed become a “Muslim” world.
Curiosity And Love Of Learning Posted on October 23, 2024 by john Dear Friends, It seems to me, the role of kindergarten and first grade should be to instill curiosity, and a love of learning in the children. If that’s done, the entire rest of their lives will be happier, healthier and more prosperous. Because a child that’s curious will be more intelligent, learn faster, and be able to apply that knowledge. A kid that loves to learn will know more than one who hates learning. More even than lazy geniuses. That additional knowledge gives perspective to opinions, depth to thoughts and nuance to perception. Don’t claim that some are too dumb. Ask an apparent moron what pitcher won the world series in 1978. It’s astonishing how much people know about trivia. While getting right to the ABCs is important, I think giving the students the tools to learn for the rest of their lives, is more important. Everyone’s curious. Whether or not they’re curious about math, sports, history, war, philosophy, science, religion, etc… is culturally dependent. People from incurious families, tend not to be curious, and then display lower IQ as a result. Because the brain is like a muscle. If it’s never used it becomes weak. Though, thought can be exercised to get a strong mind… or connived to get a big head. Curiosity is the incentive to use the brain. Since curiosity is culturally dependent, a culture of curiosity can be created. The earlier the better. Not only because its easier, but the sooner a kid becomes curious, the sooner that curiosity will of benefit them, and therefore, humanity. Moreover, there may be a Piagetian stage that we’re most open to becoming curious? That would be the time to strike. A love of learning is a treasure to those who have it. Like a goose that lays golden eggs. It produces treasure daily. Being a want that can be fulfilled at any time in any place. Even the supermarket has opportunities to learn. For those that want to. Moreover, knowledge is a treasure that can’t be taken away. Even at gunpoint. A love of learning isn’t like a dragon’s hoard though. It’s the love of a process. Almost Taoist. Those that love the process of learning then, amass a dragon’s hoard of treasure in the form of knowledge… not for the piles of wealth, but for the love of gaining it. That’s in fact how the richest people become the richest people. They don’t love the money… they love earning it. Like Elon Musk. Children taught to love learning then can only become rich in knowledge. I believe the brain is like any other muscle, the more its used the stronger it becomes, even as the less it’s used the weaker it becomes. I’ve seen teenagers unable to think their way out of an open door, upon being thrust into life and having to use their brain, becoming quite smart. Because they weren’t taught to be curious or to love learning. So their brains weren’t used for anything but getting laid. Then upon use, those weak minds became strong. Had they been inculcated with a culture of curiosity and a love of learning, and exercised those brains, imagine how much further ahead those kids would be? Setting in a chair half asleep isn’t mental exercise. It’s the opposite. It stultifies the brain. The student must be curious. Because curiosity is motivation to exercise the mind. I think IQ is a function of nature, nurture… and culture. I’ve heard of studies of identical twins raised in different cultures and their IQs can vary widely because of it. If we can inculcate a culture of curiosity those children exposed to it will be smarter. Smarter kids will have better lives. Their better lives will make the world better. A love of learning dovetails into a culture of curiosity to make strong minds. This is why I say, the first priority of any education should be to instill a culture of curiosity and love of learning, to facilitate strong minds. A nation of strong minded citizens with agency and freedom will create prosperity, peace and eliminate suffering, as a quotidian matter. Such a nation, as the US once was, would be the envy of oligarchies the world over. Curious kids should be everyone’s goal. Sincerely, John Pepin
Culture Posted on October 30, 2024 by john Dear Friends, It seems to me, if we change the culture, we change the future. We’re more a product of our culture than our genes. Raise a kid in a different culture and they grow up to reflect the culture not their genetics. If you could pluck an infant from ancient Sparta and raise him in the US today, there’s the same likelihood he will succeed, or die of fentanyl overdose, as any other kid. People are people, it’s our cultures that separate us. That’s why all cultures are not equal. Some promote weakness, war, class, political favor, opulence, etc… Many in the US are almost pure Indian, yet don’t live a hunter gatherer lifestyle, they have jobs, watch sports, eat out, have permanent homes and cars. They’re products of American culture. Just as we are all products of our cultures. More than anything else. A middle class man of Victorian England will be very different from a middle class Englishman today. Because, while their genetics is nearly identical, the culture is radically different. Therefore, their morals are very different, as are their way of thinking, acting and feeling. These are all based a great deal on our culture. You have the morals you do because of the way you were raised. Had you been raised in a different culture you would have different morals. Were you been raised in ancient Rome, you would have no problem with the institution of slavery, but you would be very agitated at Christianity. Like a modern progressive. Because when we’re born we’re empty vessels. Our parents, culture and education program us. Moral cultures are the ones we should model then. They claim Africans are less intelligent than Europeans, Jews or Asians. I believe the apparent disparity is cultural not genetic. I say this because there are studies that show identical twins raised in different cultures have different intelligence quotients. This would not be possible if genetics was the only factor. Moreover, identical twins raised in similar households, have similar IQ. Which is a strong suggestion that culture is critical in determining intelligence. I suspect that why different cultures advance at different rates. Not because some people are dumb, places are too hot or cold, but because of the prevailing culture. So if we want to increase the intelligence of our people, we would be wise to look at why some cultures have greater and lesser intelligence. Then model the successful ones. Some cultures are naturally more prosperous than others. Maybe due to the intelligence, work ethic or morality those cultures inculcate, or perhaps there’s another reason. The first few decades of the US’ existence, it was nearly impossible to find help. Because there was so much opportunity. No one would work for a living when there was so much wealth available to the industrious. So the elite solved that problem by changing the culture, from independence, industriousness and hard work… right past worker bees, and onto lazy, entitled and drug addicted louts. The people are the same, but the culture is different, resulting in different ethics, morals and intelligence leading to the difference in prosperity. Smart people in poor cultures then should copy the cultural practices of prosperous ones. A wise culture then tries to be curious, hard working, independent, thankful and thrifty. A curious culture fosters intelligence in the people. A hard working culture quickly becomes prosperous. Moreover, people that are independent would rather pull the wagon than ride in it. Thankful people value the valuable and are humble. Then there’s thrift. Which creates savings for the opportunities and inevitable famines that must come along. All these cultural practices combine to make a people that are resilient, wealthy and smart. That should be a goal of every nation on Earth. Even as the culture our cultural elite have created results in poverty, hopelessness and eventual collapse. Change the culture… change the future. So lets join hands and change ours for the better. Sincerely, John Pepin
Given the state of the Post Office, most folks give thanks for the digital system known as “e-mail” presently ensconced in just about everybody’s home. One learns a great deal from these communications though they can become annoyingly abusive if one’s on-line activities become unacceptable in today’s WOKE world. Even so, warnings are also delivered that can prevent or divert problems about which one is unaware. Such an e-mail found its way into my personal “in box.” I did not know the original writer. It was merely passed on to me by one of my contacts in a list to which I happen to belong. Below is a somewhat edited version of the matter, a matter that most of us should find chilling at best and deeply disturbing at worst: "This is going out to select people on bcc. The subject matter is about my personal and recent experience being denied a transaction via a business debit card for reasons that will be explained. This is the beginning of the "social credit" scores that already exist in China. If you pass this along, please delete our name and contact info. [This alone should horrify ordinary Americans; that is, that we can become targets of those who do not wish such information “shared” to other ordinary Americans!] Yesterday my wife went to the [Business involved] website to order DVD/flash drive recordings of an upcoming conference. Three times she tried to purchase the recordings and three times our [credit card company X] business debit card was declined. Finally, the card was blocked. She called our bank because we use this card very regularly and this has never happened before. They [the bank] did some research and said that our card had been given a "low rating" which caused it to be declined. The bank manually removed the "low rating" and I was able to complete my purchase. So I immediately drove to the bank to speak with the account manager. He said that [credit card company X] is now putting their own ratings on credit/debit card purchases and was denying my transaction based on their own criteria. [Notice, the credit card company had never made this new “arrangement” known to the customer!] This had nothing to do with the bank itself, however, we could not make another purchase until the bank intervened. The manager said it is now regularly happening that accounts may be flagged by [credit card company X] if, for example, they [the card owner] purchased a gun with their card. The account manager agreed that this is the beginning of [credit card company X] implementing social credit scores being tied to our ability to transact business. [Business involved] has existed for a long time and advocates healthy food choices as well as exposing the politics of our federal government such as the entire Covid "pandemic" and research on whether viruses even exist (Dr. Tom Cowan). This organization is anti-establishment and thus a threat to the lying narrative in so many areas. We were flagged for doing business with [Business involved]. That caused our "low rating.” On a debit card?? What does a debit card have to do with a credit score anyway? When a transaction is made, the bank account is automatically debited. This article below also explains the situation and what is coming in respect to whether or not anyone can transact a purchase of something [and] if it does not fit the acceptable social criteria, one can be barred from transacting business. That is where we are headed and we have experienced it. It's here." And at this point, an article was attached to the e-mail that went into further detail about the use of supposedly “American” companies and their involvement with the Chinese Communist “social justice” system of enforced obedience to government “norms.” It is not necessary to give the name of the credit card company for if one company has this “arrangement,” you may rest assured the others either have it and no one has yet reported it, or they will get it in the very near future. Neither can we take any solace in the fact that this gentleman’s bank stepped in and prevented this unconstitutional restraint of his personal business by a company of which he is a supposed “customer!” How long will it be before the banks lock-step into the social credit business given the current situation in this “no longer free” country? Far too many Americans have wasted years trying to outwit the tyrants, hoping to scrape along just out of the spotlight of tyranny. But it doesn’t work that way. If we don’t fight back, soon every opportunity to have done so will be gone. Worse, the generation(s) coming up will have no problem with a government-run social credit system. Indeed, many especially younger Americans are demanding it! This is most evident by the fact that American (?) corporations are taking the lead in this tyranny. It is not being forced upon them by the government, or, at least, there is no hard evidence that this is the case though undoubtedly, it is a matter of mutual consent. Neither can we prevent by not using our credit cards when we do business with those whom the current establishment rejects. Soon, your bank will not cash your check if it is written to an “unacceptable” recipient and, the way things are going, soon the use of “cash” itself will disappear. When everything becomes “digital,” we, too, will become nothing more than ciphers in a great global computer, easily deleted if we become a nuisance or are no longer of any use.
It’s another cold night. I can’t even remember the night before.
The more time passes, I have no new memories and I’m forgetting the
old ones even more. But this I remember hanging out with my friends. I couldn’t wait to rush to the pier and fish for the evening’s
catch. The fish always came to me at the astonishment of so many. It
was the endless blessing that I somehow always had before me. I would make a
little money selling the fish to old ladies who would shout down from
their balconies. I didn’t realize at the time that I had fed so
many. I saved that money and bought a beautiful bike called a
Chopper. It had a big wheel in the back and a smaller one in the
front. It felt like I had the Lambo of bikes. I felt the breeze of
the speed especially going down hill. The excitement was contagious
and scared the hell out of me fearing that I would fall down and
break my head. But I didn’t care. I found out young what it was to
be alive. And I wasn’t gonna give that up. But now I’m back
sitting under this bridge. That wind came back but much colder now.
But I felt alive again for a moment. I felt like the kid I used to
be. But now I sit here an old man and there’s not much to see.
Nobody cares when you sit under a bridge. Family is gone. The wife
left, the kids grew up or worst they all passed away. All the things
life gave you, someone took it all away. All I have left is my
dignity and these torn clothes. I stare down at the dirt. It’s my
next destination as is for everyone. It isn’t much, everyone steps or spits on it. But
it’s my home. And I sit here and stare at it all alone. My thoughts fade
away and have no purpose to share. The world has done passed me up and
tossed me into a garbage can. Worst, I am the left overs when the dump
truck comes to visit. Even the trash man doesn’t want it.
I wonder if death
would pay me a visit and be my friend. Make me smile once more and
give a glimpse of a new memory. That maybe someone gives a shit about
this old man that the world couldn’t muster up a care to even throw
him away. I have one thing left now, one bit of hope that after I die
I would go to Heaven. Maybe he’ll forgive this cynical man the
world beat down and give him an embrace. That I may live a real life
again, on the pier fishing and forget this one under the bridge and let it fade away..
Of all of the sciences in which man is engaged, none is so pure as mathematics. Nothing external to the process bears upon it. 2 plus 2 equals 4 and 4 divided by 2 equals 2. One’s economic status, race, gender and religion count not one “jot or tittle” with regards to the correct answer. It doesn’t matter if you are poor or rich, black or white, man or woman, good or bad—the result is the result. Indeed, even in advanced forms of the discipline when it is possible to arrive at two conclusions, there is always a rational reason for the findings; they are not the product of mere confusion, still less of desire. That is why I wondered why the government efforts to indoctrinate our children developed during the Obama administration—also known as “Common Core”—had such confusing and, frankly ridiculous—means of dealing with simple arithmetic. I have seen some of the examples of how children will be “taught” to deal with ordinary math problems that require many times the effort by which the problem would have been solved in the past and which frequently do not even lead to a correct answer after all the hoopla and hullabaloo involved! Why, I wondered, did those who constructed this mental morass even bother! It was supposed to teach but instead it confused. It was supposed to empower but instead diminishes the ability of whatever poor soul is exposed to it. The mathematics in Common Core is a sort of infectious agent which apparently is intended to lead to a weakened intellect and lowered ability to perform even the most basic of tasks—such as making change or taking measurements. And again, I wondered why—until I remembered that mathematics was probably the only discipline left in our culture unaffected by the mind-destroying concept of political correctness. No longer are truth and facts sufficient to form opinions or act thereupon. Now, all that matters is how people feel about any given matter whether it is history or politics or sociology or even art and entertainment. Falsehoods are embraced—indeed insisted upon—if the facts prove to be offensive to this or that protected class. “Better red than dead,” an old saying from the 50s and 60s is replaced—in name if not in spirit—by the idea that it is better to lose all freedom than to chance “offending” some particular group even when what is being said is as correct as the answer “4” to the question of “2” plus “2.” And that is why mathematics must be as sullied, soiled and perverted as just about every other discipline in our hapless society. When an innocent child or even a discerning adult realizes that there are correct answers that have nothing to do with the situation extant, that there are “absolutes,” moral and otherwise and that there are facts and truths that may challenge our most cherished beliefs, it becomes impossible for the establishment to continue to promote falsehood and relativism to support its worldview. So, having polluted just about everything else with emotion-laden determinations based upon desire rather than reason, our government now turns to Common Core to destroy the last bastion of common sense: mathematics. One has to wonder if our nation of sheep will permit this offense against reason or if they will simply turn on the TV and opt out.
Several years ago, an aggravated American while attempting to deal with some government agency found it closed for apparently no reason—It wasn’t even St. Vitus’ Day! In his rage, he did some investigating regarding these various government “agencies” such as how many existed and what they (supposedly) addressed within the government. When he had finished, he sent out to all and sundry the following list with the comment that they could close most of them and nobody would know the difference until they received their tax bill. Actually, as this was done some years ago, it would not surprise me to find that more barnacles had become stuck to the hull of the ship of state! (*Everything with an asterisk is a comment by the aggravated writer) Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Administration for Native Americans Administration on Aging (AoA) Administration on Developmental Disabilities Administrative Committee of the Federal Register Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts Advisory Council on Historic Preservation African Development Foundation Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Agency for International Development Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry Agricultural Marketing Service Agricultural Research Service Agriculture Department (USDA) Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Interagency Coordinating Committee Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (Justice) Bureau of Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade (Treasury) Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (DHS) Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) Bureau of Engraving and Printing Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Bureau of Industry and Security (formerly the Bureau of Export Admin.) Bureau of International Labor Affairs Bureau of Justice Statistics Bureau of Labor Statistics Bureau of Land Management (BLM) (*No, NOT what you think it means!) Bureau of Prisons Bureau of Public Debt Bureau of Reclamation Bureau of the Census Bureau of Transportation Statistics Census Bureau Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (formerly the Health Care Financing Administration) Central Command (CENTCOM) Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) (*a/k/a Treason Inc.) Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Chief Acquisition Officers Council Chief Financial Officers Council Chief Human Capital Officers Council Chief Information Officers Council Denali Commission Department of Agriculture (USDA) Department of Commerce (DOC) Department of Defense (DOD) Department of Defense Inspector General Department of Education (ED) (*should be in jail!) Department of Energy (DOE) Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) (*no pun intended!) Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Department of Justice (DOJ) (*pun intended!) Department of Labor (DOL) Department of State (DOS) Department of the Interior (DOI) Department of the Treasury Department of Transportation (DOT) Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Director of National Intelligence Disability Employment Policy Office District of Columbia Home Page Domestic Policy Council Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Economic, Business and Agricultural Affairs (State Department) Economic Adjustment Office DoD Office of Economic Adjustment home page (DOD) Economic Analysis, Bureau of Economic Development Administration Economic Research Service Economics & Statistics Administration Education Department (ED) Election Assistance Commission Elementary and Secondary Education Employee Benefits Security Administration Security Administration (formerly Pension and Welfare Benefits Admin.) Employment and Training Administration (Labor Department) Endangered Species Committee Energy Department (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy DOE Energy Information Administration English Language Acquisition Office Engraving and Printing Bureau of Environmental Management (Energy Department) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Farm Credit Administration Farm Service Agency Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) (*apparent adjunct of the CIA) Federal Bureau of Prisons Federal Citizen Information Center (FCIC) Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Federal Consulting Group Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Federal Election Commission (*possibly also listed under “find a grave”) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Federal Executive Boards Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council Federal Financing Bank Federal Geographic Data Committee Federal Highway Administration Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight Federal Housing Finance Board Federal Interagency Committee for the Management of Noxious and Exotic Weeds (*soon moving to California) Federal Interagency Committee on Education Federal Interagency Council on Statistical Policy Federal Judicial Center Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer Federal Labor Relations Authority Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (*also soon moving to California) Federal Library and Information Center Committee Federal Maritime Commission Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Federal Railroad Administration Federal Reserve System Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (*the word “thrift” has no place in anything that starts with “Federal.” Federal Student Aid Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Federal Transit Administration Federated States of Micronesia Home Page (*Really???) Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission Financial Management Service (Treasury Department) Fish and Wildlife Service Florida Home Page Florida State, County and City Websites Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Food and Nutrition Service Food Safety and Inspection Service (*Sometimes asleep at the switch) Foreign Agricultural Service Foreign Claims Settlement Commission Forest Service Fossil Energy Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board General Services Administration (GSA) Geological Survey (USGS) Georgia Home Page Georgia State, County and City Websites Global Affairs (State Department) Government Accountability Office (GAO) (*Apparently non-functioning) Government National Mortgage Association Government Printing Office (GPO) (*VERY busy place! Ask Iran!) Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration Guam Home Page Health and Human Services Department (HHS) Health Resources and Services Administration Helsinki Commission (Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe) Holocaust Memorial Museum (*Whose “holocaust?) Homeland Security Department (DHS) House Leadership Offices House Office of Inspector General House Office of the Clerk House of Representatives House of Representatives Committees (*Missing the Treason Committee.) House Organizations, Commissions, and Task Forces House Representatives on the Web Housing and Urban Development Department (HUD) Housing Office (HUD) Immigration and Customs Enforcement Immigration and Naturalization Service (Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services) (*Apparently dissolved as unnecessary!) Indian Affairs: Bureau of Indiana Home Page Indian Arts and Crafts Board Indian Health Service Industrial College of the Armed Forces Industry and Security, Bureau of (formerly the Bureau of Export Administration.) Information Resource Management College Innovation and Improvement Office Institute of Education Sciences Institute of Museum and Library Services Institute of Peace (*Wasn’t that also under Big Brother?) Interagency Alternative Dispute Resolution Working Group Interagency Council on Homelessness Inter-American Foundation Interior Department Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (*a/k/a The Spanish Inquisition) International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) International Labor Affairs, Bureau of International Trade Administration (ITA) International Trade Commission (*a/k/a the “Screw America” commission) John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (*Something worthwhile) Joint Board for the Enrollment of Actuaries Joint Chiefs of Staff Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies Joint Fire Science Program Joint Forces Command Joint Forces Staff College Joint Military Intelligence College Judicial Circuit Courts of Appeal, by Geographic Location and Circuit Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation Justice Department Justice Programs Office (Juvenile Justice, Victims of Crime, Violence Against Women and more) Justice Statistics, Bureau of Labor Department (DOL) Labor Statistics, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Lead Hazard Control (Housing and Urban Development Department) Legal Services Corporation Library of Congress Marine Mammal Commission Maritime Administration Marketing and Regulatory Programs (Agriculture Department) Marshals Service National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) National Agricultural Statistics Service National AIDS Policy Office National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare (*Sure.) National Capital Planning Commission National Cemetery Administration (Veterans Affairs Department) (*possible new voter information) National Constitution Center National Council on Disability National Counterintelligence Executive Office National Credit Union Administration National Defense University National Drug Intelligence Center National Economic Council National Endowment for the Arts (*Propaganda, Inc.) National Endowment for the Humanities (*See above) National Gallery of Art National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency National Guard National Highway Traffic Safety Administration National Indian Gaming Commission National Institute for Literacy (*Terribly UN-p.c.) National Institute of Justice National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Interagency Fire Center National Laboratories (Energy Department) National Labor Relations Board National Marine Fisheries National Mediation Board National Nuclear Security Administration National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Ocean Service National Park Foundation National Park Service (*TERRIBLY politically correct!) National Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK) National Reconnaissance Office National Science Foundation National Security Agency (NSA) (*See CIA and FBI) National Security Council National Technical Information Service National Telecommunications and Information Administration National Transportation Safety Board Oak Ridge National Laboratory (*Didn’t we BUILD that damned bomb?) Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission Office of Compliance Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (*Who oversees the overseers?) Office of Government Ethics (*REALLY?????) Office of Management and Budget (OMB) (*Should be OMG!) Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Office of Personnel Management Office of Refugee Resettlement (Everybody in the world—except Americans—are “refugees” today) Office of Science and Technology Policy Office of Scientific and Technical Information Office of Special Counsel (*Way too much use these days!) Office of Thrift Supervision Public and Indian Housing Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs (State Department) (Too damned MANY “affairs!”) Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation Pentagon Force Protection Agency Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Policy Development and Research (HUD) Political Affairs (State Department) Postal Regulatory Commission Postal Service (USPS) Postsecondary Education (*Should be Department of Marxist Universities) Power Administrations Presidio Trust Radio and TV Marti (Español) Radio Free Asia (RFA) Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) Railroad Retirement Board Reclamation, Bureau of Refugee Resettlement Regulatory Information Service Center Rehabilitation Services Administration (Education Department) Research, Education and Economics (Agriculture Department) Research and Innovative Technology Administration (Transportation Department) Rhode Island Home Page Rhode Island State, County and City Websites Risk Management Agency (Agriculture Department) Rural Business-Cooperative Service Rural Development Rural Housing Service Rural Utilities Service Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Selective Service System Senate Committees Senate Leadership (*An oxymoron if ever there was one) Senators on the Web (*They are IN not ON the Web—of deceit) Small Business Administration (SBA) Smithsonian Institution Social Security Administration (SSA) (*a/k/a Congressional Cash Cow) Social Security Advisory Board (*They are not doing their job—see above!) Southeastern Power Administration Stennis Center for Public Service Strategic Command Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Superfund Basic Research Program Supreme Court of the United States Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement Surface Transportation Board Susquehanna River Basin Commission Tax Court Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (*M.I.A.) Tennessee Home Page Tennessee State, County and City Websites Tennessee Valley Authority Territories of the United States Transportation Command Transportation Security Administration Transportation Statistics, Bureau of Treasury Department TRICARE Management Trustee Program (Justice Department) U.S. Border Patrol (now Customs and Border Protection) U.S. Capitol Visitor Center U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services U.S. Customs and Border Protection (*Presently at war with Congress) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (see above) U.S. International Trade Commission U.S. Military Academy, West Point U.S. Mint U.S. Mission to the United Nations (*This should be removed IMMEDIATELY!) U.S. National Central Bureau - Interpol (Justice Department) U.S. Postal Service (USPS) U.S. Sentencing Commission U.S. Trade and Development Agency U.S. Trade Representative U.S. Virgin Islands (*Nice!) Unified Combatant Commands (Defense Department) Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences Weather Service, National Western Area Power Administration Western Area Power Administration Washington Headquarters Services DoD Washington Headquarters Services home page Women's Bureau (Labor Department) Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (*All three of them ~scholars, that is!) So, there you have it folks. When they talk about the National Debt, read it again – and weep.
If there is any question that is asked today that immediately makes me conclude that the questioner is an ass—and that the respondent isn’t much better—it is the question, “How do you FEEL about that?” Of course, the “that” may be anything from the weather to a national tragedy—and everything in between—but the question always refers to feelings. Nobody today asks, “What do you think about that?” I believe that if such a question were to be asked, the individual would be so dumbfounded as to be unable to respond at all! I really do wonder if the verb “to feel” has replaced the verb “to think.” I don’t know, but certainly everything today is predicated upon emotion—what “feelings” are—rather than rationality—what thinking is! And this is not new. Many years ago, Roman Catholic Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen declared, “We live in a sensate age. We are no longer governed by faith, we are no longer governed by reason. We are governed by feelings.” As annoying as this situation is for the rational and the knowledgeable, far, far worse, it is dangerous! When any social construct runs on emotion rather than reason, the results will be catastrophic. It’s not enough to feel that the plane has enough fuel to reach its destination; one must know that it does or one risks catastrophe. It is not enough to feel that the lump in one’s breast is benign; one must know whether it is or not! Feelings, like the Biblical sand, make a poor foundation for beliefs and actions. Liberal actress Jane Fonda in the 1960s was heard to declare about her political and social views, “I must be right—I’m so sincere!” Sincerity is an emotion, a feeling. As such, it is no guide to accuracy. I may sincerely believe that I am going to Miami when I board a plane bound for Chicago, but when I land, it will be at O’Hare, and not Miami International! But this matter has gone much further than a decided suppression of the American IQ! Almost every facet of the culture is now in the hands of those for whom “feelings” take precedence over “knowledge” and especially the knowledge of the consequences of permitting those “feelings” to govern our reactions. Is it any wonder that we suffer through the Age of the Eternally Offended? Taking offense is—you guessed it!—a feeling! And since reason and knowledge are of no value, it doesn’t matter if you are “offended” by something because of your own ignorance or prejudice or because you have misunderstood the whole thing! It is enough that you are offended to make whatever offends you—however benign—considered worthy of censure with all that that entails! We haven’t had so many hurt feelings since Adam and Eve used notoriously prickly grape leaves to cover their tender parts in the Garden! And, of course, if knowledge, facts, truth and rationality are no longer the criteria for discourse and social action, we are on the verge of chaos! Public policy, framed by “feelings,” then becomes whatever the largest and most powerful number of “the offended” want it to be, no matter how despotic and senseless. Of course, when mindless tyranny is the policy of the State, the results are always detrimental to both freedom and survival. History is filled with social and political actions based upon madness. Today is just one further example!
Everyone has heard of and believes that he knows all about the “insurrection!” that allegedly took place in Washington on January 6th, 2020. Supposedly, newly “defeated” President Donald Trump sent his hordes of MAGA followers out to destroy the Capitol, notwithstanding that the bronze doors into that ediface have a combined weight of 20,000 pounds and a magnetic lock that could only be opened from the inside! Indeed, a “tweet” first posted on January 31st claims that these doors were opened from the inside! I am not going to go into the “attack” on the Capitol save to say that none of the Capitol police were even so much as scratched but a young, unarmed white woman was murdered by a black Capitol policeman, a matter that seems to have provoked absolutely no outrage from the government, the media or the people. I will also say that those involved are frequently referred to as “rioters” though many were older folks whose good behavior in such matters is a “given” not the least because it’s hard to “riot” while using a walker! On the other hand, there were a great many people who looked suspiciously like government “plants” leading any person with half a brain to see this “incident” as just another false flag operation by the Deep State. No, the real problem is the fate of those who were arrested. Few people are even aware that there were arrests and fewer know that those arrested are still confined in the DC jail having been denied the most basic rights available to Americans under such circumstances including being charged with a crime! At least one has already committed suicide, and the rest have been tortured and humiliated, ignored by what is supposed to be a “government of, by and for The People.” This is especially egregious as it is most probable that those televised wandering about the Capitol were, in fact, government agents creating the “crime” for which these people are paying with their freedom and even their lives. Recently, having no recourse at what is available to far more egregious wrongdoers such as murderers and drug dealers, these forgotten Americans produced a handwritten petition requesting transfer to the federal facility in Guantanamo, Cuba in the hopes that they will receive at least humane treatment if they are going to remain incarcerated without trial for the foreseeable future. The number of the petitioners is thirty-four and they have already been held for over a year and a half on misdemeanor and false felony charges. Many among them have been isolated, viciously beaten and otherwise abused as well as being threatened, tormented and belittled by guards for their political and religious beliefs. Both men and women have been without medical assistance, prescribed medications and exercise while most have been held in isolation with little or no human contact for months at a time. One woman, Victoria White described a bare-fisted beating by DC police on January 6th and is probably not the only person so assaulted. Their request for a transfer to GITMO is motivated by the fact that in that facility for terrorists and “enemies of the State,” they would not have to endure inhuman conditions that include flooded toilets, mold, flies, and frequent beatings, but rather, with the rest of the prisoners they would receive good meals, sunlight, freedom of religion, exercise and entertainment while being treated like human beings. Indeed, Alexander Solzhenitsyn would have easily understood their plight in America’s gulag. At the end of this article is a link to the transcript of the original handwritten letter to the Garland “Department of Justice!” and the names of the petitioners. Below is their list of grievances that clearly demonstrate the present condition in this “United States” for those adjudged “enemies of the State” and it should make any decent person ashamed not only for what has been and is being done here, but for our total lack of concern for our fellow Americans whose only crime was to believe that our constitutional rights still obtained: · Begging for Help / Water / Medical Aid / Mercy through a 4 inch by 10-inch window of cold metal doors · No Visitations · No Religious Services · No Attorney Access · Mail delayed 3-4 months prior to delivery · Laundry returning with brown stains, pubic hair, and or reeking of ripe urine · Worms found in salad of “Meals” · Inadequate calorie count of “Meals” · Complete lack of nourishment in “Meals” · Loss of Head Hair due to malnourishment of “Meals” · Loss of Eye Sight due to malnourishment of “Meals” · Suffering from Scurvy due to malnourishment of “Meals” · Blatant extortion via commissary in order to maintain health and or body weight · Rust in the Water · Rust in jagged metal desks in Cells · Rust on metal cages near face on small windows of Cells · Black Mold on walls of Cells · Black Mold on floors of Cells · Black Mold in vents of Cells · Broken Sinks in Cells · Broken toilets that either wont flush or repeatedly explode in Cells · Cockroaches in Cell / Cell Block · Mice in Cell / Cell Block · Black Mold on floors and walls of showers in Cell Block · Black Sewer Flies in the Shower · Denial of basic cleaning equipment to sanitize Living Space · Denial of personal grooming allowed, forced to use Nair on head and face leaving chemical burns on skin · Stuck in Cells for 9 days without shower · Improper Medical Care · Medical Care arriving months later, or none at all! · Lead Paint inside Cell / Cell Block · No Access to Discovery · No Legal Support such as laptops, printers, copiers · Denial of Legal Mentors · Vaccine Requirements for Visitations · Vaccine Requirements for Visitors · Vaccine Requirements for Haircuts · Vaccine Requirements for Religious Services · Vaccine Requirements for speaking with Lawyers in person · C.R.T. Propaganda on Tablets · Re-Education Propaganda on Tablets · Lack of Legal Documentation on Tablets · Racially Biased information on Tablets · Removal of Internet Access/Booster for Educational Tablets · Solitary Confinement for 25 ½ hours or more at a time · Outdoor Rec denied arbitrarily · Entry to Congressmen & Women who came to check on us Denied · Repeatedly Mocked and or Insulted for our skin color or “Religious” documentation · Compared to “Beasts”, “Dogs” and “Hogs” by “The Final Call” Magazine · Politically mocked by staff with Democrat, Black Lives Matter, Kamala Harris, Joe Biden related attire · Sent to “The Hole” if we express any political views whatsoever · Racially Profiled by Guards · Sleeping on the job by Guards · Denial of hot water by Guards · Prevented from attending court dates by Guards · Homosexual and or Verbal Assaults by Guards · Maced by Guards · Physically Harassed by Guards · Assaulted by Guards · Cell Invasions in the middle of the night by Guards · Grievous Beatings by Guards · Threatened with and or Nearly Stabbed with “12 Inch Knives” · Trials Postponed for at least 6 Months or almost a Year · Bond / Bail continually Denied · Removal of Internet Access of Clear Tablets · Removal of Access to Attorney · Removal of Access to Law Library · Removal of Access to Worship Services · Removal of Access to Grievance Forms on Tablets Of course, this is not the first time the “American government” punished its citizens for choosing the wrong side in a war or even for criticizing that war – and in this case it was an actual war! Abraham Lincoln eventually imprisoned what some sources report as 40,000 of his own countrymen with the outbreak of the Civil War – another mislabeled “insurrection!” Indeed, Lincoln went much further. He rendered the First Amendment virtually null and void by shutting down newspapers that criticized the war and/or his own actions. One of his political prisoners, Francis Key Howard, editor of The Exchange Newspaper of Baltimore, was arrested on the morning of September 13th, 1861 and taken to Fort McHenry. He later wrote: "When I looked out in the morning, I could not help being struck by an odd and not pleasant coincidence. On that day forty-seven years before my grandfather, Mr. F. S. Key, then prisoner on a British ship, had witnessed the bombardment of Fort McHenry. When on the following morning the hostile fleet drew off, defeated, he wrote the song so long popular throughout the country, the Star Spangled Banner. As I stood upon the very scene of that conflict, I could not but contrast my position with his, forty-seven years before." Just as Biden and his minions are served by Garland and the rest of his criminal agencies, Lincoln was served by his Secretary of State, William Seward who reveled in his ability to terrorize his fellow citizens as seen in this comment he made to Lord Lyons, the British envoy to the United States for much of the war: “My Lord, I can touch a bell on my right hand, and order the arrest of a citizen of Ohio. I can touch a bell again, and order the imprisonment of a citizen of New York; and no power on earth, except that of the President, can release them. Can the Queen of England, do so much?” So for those who take foolish comfort in believing “it can’t happen here,” know that it has already happened here and it is only going to get worse! For instance, in his book Lincoln Uncensored, author Joseph E. Fallon pointed out that “Lincoln concluded that the laws were insufficient and the courts inadequate. [Therefore] Congress passed the conspiracies act of July 31, 1861, and the treason act (known also as the second confiscation act) of July 17, 1862 … The conspiracies act decreed fine and imprisonment for those who conspired to ‘overthrow the government’ or opposed governmental authority. The treason act softened the penalty [and definition] for treason from death … to an alternative of death or imprisonment and fine.” [James G. Randall and David Donald, The Civil War and Reconstruction, 2nd Ed. (Lexington, Massachusetts: D.C. Heath and Company, 1969), p. 300.] And again, “Congress had also passed earlier conspiracy and treason acts to facilitate the prosecution of antiwar activities in civilian courts. But Lincoln preferred to employ military courts or, better yet, dispense with courts entirely.” [Jeffrey Rogers Hummel, Emancipating Slaves, Enslaving Free Men: A History of the American Civil War, p. 256.] I bring this matter to the reader’s attention to point out in times of social chaos as we now have, it is very easy indeed to lose those liberties we have taken for granted for so many years though, God knows, they have been slowly eroded even since Lincoln’s day. Indeed, they have been so eroded that a fairly large number of our fellow Americans have been deprived of all their rights including for Ashley Babbitt and the prisoner who committed suicide in his despair, the right to life itself. And, if we remain silent and apathetic, we will not be able to complain when our turn comes as immortalized by Lutheran pastor and Nazi martyr, Martin Niemöller: First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist.Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me. Link: https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/10/breaking-34-us-political-prisoners-dc-gulag-demand-transfer-guantanamo-bay-escape-intolerable-conditions-receive-rights-violent-foreign-terrorists/#disqus_thread
Nothing is eternal but God. Whether it is a nano-particle with a life span too small to measure or the universe itself. Everything that has a beginning has an end. That is why Christian ascetics meditate on death. Only by understanding that everything ends are we able to deal properly with everything that continues. As existence is a progression from start to finish, the conscious mind learns to see at what point the thing of present interest is in its progression to its inevitable end. Some are obvious: if the banana is green, it isn’t yet ripe. If it is yellow, it is at its peak. If it is black, it is at the end of its cycle. And the same observations can be made of just about everything around us including ourselves. This ability becomes all important when one is trying to deal with, overcome, adjust to and/or make a proper response to matters within one’s own world and that includes our culture. It is one thing to judge a banana’s “life cycle,” it is quite another to determine the “life cycle” of a civilization. That’s why books such as Edward Gibbon’s Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire hold – or at least used to hold – the attention of the learned. For there are certain indicators regarding where any culture is in its progress from birth to death! Indeed, these “markers” have been elucidated many times and when presented it would appear that our present culture is at the last stages of this time-line. More and more people are becoming aware that Western Civilization is under a deadly attack by just about every person or entity of any power or importance in the world today. Ordinary people are seeing their ordinary lives implode into mental, emotional, physical and economic chaos. Things that were always a “touchstone of normalcy” have now been wiped away as if they never existed. Those institutions that once provided us with what we considered to be “normalcy” such as our churches and other religious and cultural associations are often unrecognizable! The basic moral structures of our lives and the lives of our society have been abandoned and rejected to be replaced by a belief system correctly adjudged as psychopathic and demonic! The lessons of that favorite reading matter of most Christians – the Bible – is finding fulfillment and warnings such as “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness . . .!” [Isaiah 5:20] are so openly obvious as to be unquestionable in their meaning and intent! And as the culture – like the banana – becomes ever more black, other Scriptural references that at one time might have been somewhat obscure, become more and more clear to the despair of the righteous. When Jesus Christ stood before the Roman Governor Pontius Pilate, Pilate asked if He were a King. Christ told him, “My kingdom is not of this world. . . You say that I am a king. I have been born and come into the world for this reason—to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to My voice.” Pilate then asks that most seminal question, “What is truth?” [John: 37-38] There is no more important question today than that of Pilate’s, WHAT IS TRUTH? For we have lost the understanding of the essential nature of absolutes – including truth! – and that loss is leading to our doom. Throughout history, people did indeed lie, especially those who followed the Prince of this world. Jesus said that the devil was a murderer and a liar from the beginning and hence those who embrace his worldview are, per se, liars. However, decent people have always eschewed the lie as destructive to all things that are good, a fact that has been proven throughout history. Again, normal, ordinary, decent people have rejected the lie as a danger to themselves and their civilization. That is why liars have always done their best to conceal their behavior so that they might foster support among honest people for their wicked agendas. In the past, however, once the lie was revealed, all but the most corrupt abandoned the agenda supported by the lie even if it held conclusions to which they might agree! Alas, today that is no longer the case. This fatal failure to follow and be guided by Truth manifests itself in two ways: first, people were apparently so cowed and frightened by the ruling elite’s use of a highly questionable “medical emergency” that they not only failed to seek the truth, but if what they learned didn’t agree with the establishment’s viewpoint – however questionable or even ridiculous – it was rejected out of hand! It didn’t matter how competent those who revealed such truths, even when their claims were essentially supported by the establishment itself! It was enough that people craved safety, however unattainable, that they chose comfortable lies over distressing truths. Of course, this is very much a part of a culture that has embraced what is desired over what is real and thus today we reject reality to embrace delusion with the set and fixed understanding that to do so is sufficient to overcome the laws of nature and, in the words of Thomas Jefferson, Nature’s God. But worse than this manifestation of the rejection of reality itself is a worldview that spans all parts of the ideological and political spectrum even to the point at which good people who once founded all of their actions upon truth are willing to forgo goodness for the sake of a “desired result.” What is this manifestation? How is it defined and disclosed? Simply this: when the facts are revealed and their consequences known, in the past, people reacted according to their moral viewpoint. If the consequences honestly led to a desiredresult, all well and good. But if the result were obtained dishonestly – no matter how much that result was desired! – an honest man would reject it. That was the way in which one could tell the honest from the dishonest; that is, no matter how much the result was “desired,” if obtained dishonestly, the principled man rejected it. Such a mindset existing in the majority, assured that the underlying moral foundation of the society was sound and one could trust those matters involved in the society’s functioning whether political, scientific, medical or ecclesiastical! Today, much of this essential honesty has been lost. Even “good” people, when presented with a desiredresult are far less concerned about how honestly it was obtained! The idea seems to be that the consequences are all that matter and how those were obtained is of little or no interest. Of course, the problem with this mindset is that once truth is abandoned in order to obtain a chosen result, it really doesn’t matter what the agenda is! What is “good” and what is “bad” becomes a matter of choice rather than truth. Thus, we have a culture that can (and does) call good, bad and vice versa and since there is no factual foundation for that determination, it then becomes a matter of which side has the most adherents or the largest public voice. In Christian – that is, absolute – morality, right is not dependent anything but the truth. Two plus two is always four even if the whole world rejects that result! So today, when I see all that information that is “out there” being read, assimilated and responded to by people in ways that prove it is the information that matters and not whether that information is true or false, I mourn for good and honest folk who have abandoned the talisman of truth and embraced the idol of personal desire. For once a lie is accepted, however glorious, there is no more hope! Our mother Eve was assured by the serpent, that, should she eat of what God had forbidden “You will surely not die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” [Genesis 3:4-5] She chose the devil’s lie over God’s truth and all that we suffer today is a consequence of that original choice. What is Truth? Truth is everything for without it we have nothing!
During the famous – or infamous – Canadian Truckers Convoy, that bastion of clear and honest thinking, The Washington Post printed an opinion piece that declared that the expectation of individual freedom “is a key component of white supremacy!” Never let it be said that the Post ever disappointed its “hard left” readership! However, it is also interesting to note that even our enemies acknowledge that truly great concepts arise from Whites. Yet, the Post’s rather odd interpretation of the blessings of freedom and liberty was challenged by one internet publication, The Blaze. That worthy group opined that, “expecting individual freedom is a ‘key component of white supremacy’ is the latest in the effort to undermine our constitutional republic.” Well, certainly it is that, but it also illustrates that even these mental midgets recognize that really good things come from whites! The column referenced was written by Taylor Dysart, a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of History and Sociology of Science at the University of Pennsylvania. Apparently, academia is no more reasonable or intelligent than our current leftist journalists. Mr. Dysart began his “reasoning process” (if anything so unreasonable could be identified as a “reasoning process”) by attacking the Canadian Truckers Convoy that attempted to end the tyrannous Covid-19 vaccine mandates placed on truckers by Canada’s own communist regime. Dysart derided the truckers as “explicitly racist” and said that the convoy’s stated effort to restore their – the truckers’ – constitutionally guaranteed freedoms is “a key component of white supremacy.” The author also charged that the convoy’s motives were rooted in Canada’s settler-colonial history: ”The convoy has surprised onlookers in the United States and Canada, both because of the explicitly racist and violent perspectives of some of the organizers and because the action seems to violate norms of Canadian ‘politeness . . .'” but Dysart claimed. “. . . the convoy represents the extension of a strain of Canadian history that has long masked itself behind ‘peacefulness’ or ‘unity:’ settler colonialism.” Of course, the convoy came about to protest vaccine mandates on truckers, and even the leftist mainstream media reports indicated it was a largely peaceful protest. Neither did Dysart cite any violence on the part of the truckers, but he still attacked the organizers for failing to be “obedient” to the “well intentioned” [!] efforts of Prime Minister Fidel – ah, Justin – Trudeau and his bully boys. Dysart opined, “While the convoy’s supporters have characterized the protest as a peaceful movement, uninformed by ‘politics, race, religion, or any personal beliefs,’ many supporters have been associated with or expressed racist, Islamophobic, and white-supremacist views . . . (the) primarily white supporters of the Freedom Convoy argue that pandemic mandates infringe upon their constitutional rights to freedom . . (t)he notion of ‘freedom’ was historically and remains intertwined with whiteness, as historian Tyler Stovall has argued.” According to The Blaze, In Tyler Stovall’s book “White Freedom: The Racial History of an Idea,” – the basis for Dysart’s conclusion – he, Stovall, contends that the Statue of Liberty “promised both freedom and whiteness to European immigrants.” The book allegedly “provides vital new perspectives on the inherent racism behind our most cherished beliefs about freedom, liberty, and human rights.” In keeping with Stovall’s contentions, Dysart alleged that, “The belief that one’s entitlement to freedom is a key component of white supremacy. This explains why the Freedom Convoy members see themselves as entitled to freedom, no matter the public health consequences to those around them.” Of course, the fact that there were no true legitimate public health consequences involved was never addressed by Dysart. He accepts out of hand, the same propaganda that has been handed out by the bio-weapons purveyors and their political allies from the beginning, propaganda that has already killed and crippled millions of people around the planet. Conservative supporters of the convoy’s month-long protest were quick to respond, as reported by The Blaze. Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) made the true point regarding the whole stupid argument: “Why do conservatives want to keep critical race theory out of schools? Because it leads to the insane belief that ‘one’s entitlement to freedom is a key component of White supremacy.'” Movie producer and political commentator Dinesh D’Souza pointed out, “If freedom is a white supremacist notion as this Washington Post article insists, what should we be aiming for instead? Unfreedom? Incarceration? Slavery?” Reason.com Associate editor Liz Wolfe reasoned that, “When you call everything ‘white supremacy,’ the term ceases to have any effect whatsoever.” And so it does. Just as those who use the phrase cease to have any effect or importance whatsoever as well. Soon any efforts to remain alive and healthy will also be seen as "racist."
The Election Of Trump Posted on November 6, 2024 by john Dear Friends, It seems to me, with the evident election of Trump, the deep state is conniving a way to get rid of him. A plan that will eviscerate his ability to change anything for the better. Like they did before. The real problem with Trump, for the elite, is that he’s a patriot who loves America and the American way. Which is the antithesis of the way the elites feel. They loathe America and the American way. But most of all, they hate you and I. They hate our culture.. our freedom to speak up, our liberty to carry weapons, and our Right to privacy. All of which infuriate the elites. Because they see the US as the single biggest stumbling stone to their new world order. A globalist state where we will own nothing and be happy. Even as they own everything and will remain perpetually angry. Control of the administrative state gives the unelected elites great power to do evil in the world. An ability they use to great effect. Trump’s election threatens that monopoly on power. Unlimited in scope, reach and law, the bureaucracy is the real force behind the throne. The administrative state is our version of the Praetorian Guard. They choose who will take the figurehead position. Now their choice has fallen, they’ll be livid. Power is the single goal of those in the oligarchy, that is the bureaucracy, otherwise called… the administrative state, or deep state. The ultimate destination for them is more power and on a global scale. Trump stands in the way of that dark vision for humanity. As you read this the unelected powers that be will connive to undermine him and get rid of him. The elite will try to trick him into abandoning the people and policies that got him elected… like last time. They managed to get Trump to shunt to the side people like Newt Gingrich, in favor of deep state actors, who undermined Trump’s first presidency from start to finish. The message will be clear, RFK and those like him, are a danger to our republic. Because of their “radical” ideas. Trump will be inundated with demands to hire backstabbers like Amy Comey Barrett. Since folks like her are reliable elitist scum. Any choice like Rand Paul will be met with outrage in the Senate. Even a republican controlled senate. Because most of the republicans are controlled by the deep state. As Chucky Schemer said… “The intelligence community has six ways to Sunday to get you.” Expect another frame job. A frame they hope to stick Trump in this time. By the time I finish this article the progressive faction will be brainstorming ways to destroy him. With the backing of the traitorous media, the unelected elites will have an unobstructed path to build it. Who knows what they’ll come up with this time. It may be difficult to claim foreign interference though… what with the Iranian, CCP, British and other foreign governments openly backing Harris, with money, intelligence, propaganda and election workers. The hypocrisy maybe a bit much even for the hypocrites that run the world. Then again… maybe their void of self awareness will win out. So I expect the frame job to have something to do with his campaign, businesses or personal relationships. There will be violence. The progressive faction will burn down DC during the inauguration… again. In an act of blind rage. Which is perfectly acceptable since the progressive faction is above the law. In fact, they see law as a means to power, not a way to enhance personal safety, facilitate economic actions or smooth interactions between men. So, without past consequences, the left will riot in the streets. Perhaps some drug dealer will OD again, that they can somehow pin on Trump… then they’ll use it to justify more violence. Expect the left to use the same playbook they used before. Because it’s the only one they have. Lie, cheat, and beat downs are the progressive globalist play. Hopefully Trump has been inoculated by his last term so is wiser this time. I pray he has. For all of our sake’s. Sincerely, John Pepin
When I was young, there was a very famous and much articulated saying by Voltaire, to wit: “I may disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it!” Everyone—or at least everyone who was rational, moral and decently educated—knew that this was the creed of a free society in general and “America” in particular. Admittedly, at times even during our history, this sentiment was more honored in the breach than in the observance. Political correctness is not a new invention! But, on the whole, Americans have admitted to and acknowledged the right of unpopular views to be openly expressed especially in the Public Square. In fact, that sentiment is articulated in the first of the ten amendments to the United States Constitution that became known as the “Bill of Rights.” Even more to the point, people did not necessarily become pariahs for holding views contrary to the current orthodoxy whatever that was. Charles Lindberg did not lose his status as a hero when he came out against the United States taking up arms against Germany in World War II. True, even Lindberg had to embrace “war fever” after Pearl Harbor, but many understood and sympathized with the Lone Eagle’s desire to avoid another European war even if his apparent sympathy with the Nazis was looked upon askance. Indeed, the above sentiment is most apt to go out of favor in times of war. When he was inaugurated, Abraham Lincoln used his office far beyond its constitutional powers when, among other things, he suspended habeas corpus and issued orders to arrest and incarcerate without due process over (it is believed) forty-thousand Northern citizens who disagreed with that war. Later—much later—it was acknowledged that Lincoln violated the Constitution far more than he adhered to what was supposed to be “the law of the land.” But most of those acknowledging that fact either excuse or applaud his actions. The fact is, whether we are considering the United States or any other nation, empire or tribe, in times of war, there is very little sympathy for anything “unpatriotic” however legal, moral or just. As Judge Holt says in the film The Conspirator, “In time of war, the law is silent.” Sadly, this is not only wrong but evil simply because for all intents and purposes, when the law is most needed, it is not. We now live in a time of triumphant political correctness in which we not only fail to defend unpopular speech, but we condemn that speech and those who utter it. Yet, this is also a very odd period because though we are immersed in several wars—including the ubiquitous “war on terror”—the fact is we do not condemn those who speak out against these wars, but rather, against those who voice certain ideas and viewpoints within the culture with which those purveyors of politic correctness disagree. Worse, it now seems that any viewpoint that does not embrace the totality of the agenda of those same purveyors are labeled with the most powerful weapon in their arsenal of censorship, the dreaded universal race card. For instance: You do not accept the man-made origins of global warming? You are a racist! You do not accept open borders and total amnesty for millions of illegals? You are a racist. You do not accept a double standard which excuses crime and corruption when certain groups break the law but not others? You are a racist. You criticize the current progressive agenda in this country? You are a racist. You support the Constitution—and especially the Second Amendment? You are a racist. In fact, just recently, a black gentleman declared that ending Saturday mail delivery was “racist.” I think you get the point. No matter how false, no matter how silly, no matter how obviously dishonest, to disagree with the current “orthodoxy” is to be a “racist.” It is even more interesting when you realize that there actually is blatant—even violent racism in the society but those involved are considered incapable of being “racist” because—you guessed it!—of their race! Looking at the present state of American culture, there is another saying from ancient Greece that comes readily to mind: “Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad.” I don’t know about other folks, but I am mortally tired of explaining myself to these politically correct types—and no wonder! They aren’t interested in what I think. They aren’t even interested in what I say! They are only interested in quieting a voice—any voice—saying what they do not wish to hear—whatever that may be. You cannot converse with such people. You cannot debate them. You cannot even argue with them! Why?Because they are not really people at all. They are the cheering section of and for a socio-political-economic-moral view of the world that brooks no deviation, no dispute, no debate and no diversity. In a way, that’s what makes the whole matter so very, very odd! Because the most potent code word in this movement—after “racist,” of course—is “diversity.” Nothing is more important, nothing is more needful, nothing is more required of any society than “diversity!” And yet, actual “diversity” is just what is notpermitted. Everyone in the society must hold the same views, must demand the same relief from the same social, economic and political ills, must condemn the same “wrong-headedness” and worship at the same political and ideological altars. Those who fail to do so are not just “wrong,” but wicked and the cause of all that is unjust and unfair in the world! Obviously, no humane, intelligent or rational discourse can occur when one side at least looks upon those with whom it disagrees as evil incarnate! Americans were more sympathetic with Lindberg and his affection for Germany than they are today with the “monsters” who practice “political incorrectness” no matter what their motives.
Few people know that the time-honored words in Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration, “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” was originally written as “Life, liberty and property.” It was changed, it is thought because it lacked the inspirational note desired in a document intended to obtain the support of European nations for America’s efforts to throw off the yoke of British colonial rule. And yet, of all the matters engaged in this small phrase, property was probably the most “revolutionary” concept extant! Life and liberty were understood but the concept of property in the hands of ordinary people was unique for the time. The era of the serf whose labor was bound to the land – and therefore to the owner of that land – was over. But even so, only the most wealthy or important (not necessarily the same thing!) had actual legal attachments to the land. As precious few in the American colonies could look to the “mother country” for titled holdings, the concept of any person having the means to obtain and gain title to not only land, but what was built thereon, was novel to the extreme at that time in history! Going back to Jefferson’s Declaration and all that followed, by the late 1700s, the country conceived in 1776 had come into being albeit in a rather confused state. Efforts to bind together the original thirteen “colonies” – now “states” – in individual governing structures and not part of an overarching “nation,” was not faring well. Attempts were made first with the Articles of Association framed by the Continental Congress in 1774 and later by the Articles of Confederation, adopted on March 1st, 1781, to “govern” the disparate former colonies. But as the matter stood at the time, there were simply too many areas of dispute for the ill-assorted consortium to go forward in any sort of reasonable order. Hence, a convention called in 1787 to “amend” the Articles became, instead, a means to create an entirely new document called the Constitution of the United States of America that was eventually adopted (ratified) in 1789 Of course, the Constitution dealt with many things, but the concept of private property was paramount in its considerations. Indeed, the Founders believed that property rights were the basis of all freedoms that were to be guaranteed by that Constitution! Thus, the common law, state law and the Constitution itself protected property rights – the right of people to acquire, use and dispose of property freely. The Constitution protects property rights through the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process clauses and, more directly, through the Fifth Amendment’s “Takings” clause: “nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation;” that is the legal matter described as eminent domain. One of the manifestations of constitutional expression is the fact that the Founders understood that there was no way any document could define everything that was permitted under that document. Instead, they chose to at least try to define what was not permitted, a far easier task! That is why secession is not mentioned in the Constitution, and neither is slavery. These were ongoing, acceptable situations and thus considered unnecessary to address. Yet, the Founders did try to circumvent, where possible, undesired interpretations as can be seen in the Tenth Amendment of the Bill of Rights that states: The powers not delegated to the United States [that is, the federal government] by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the People. This was hoped – and intended – to prevent wholesale misinterpretations of the Constitution to the detriment of the People’s rights including their rights to own property. Alas, as in everything else, the slow deterioration of the spirit of the Constitution as the nation grew, began to affect a great many things, the concept of the sanctity of the holding of private property included. But first and foremost, it must be remembered that the Constitution as created by the Founders actually died with the election of Abraham Lincoln and his unconstitutional war to prevent the constitutionally guaranteed right of secession by the Cotton States and most of the rest of the South. As noted, the so-called “Civil War” – it was no such thing! – resulted in a “national government” (as Lincoln himself called it) and no longer a federal government acting with the consent of the governed. From 1865 on, the Constitution became a dead letter that had as its “memorials” those “Amendments” that only enlarged the power of the central government while reducing the liberties, rights and powers of the citizenry, private property being one such. The idea, whether well intentioned or not, was to make the government not just a part of every American’s life, but the ruling part! That is, the part that had the power to maintain the illusion of freedom or stifle it beyond all hope of resurrection. In the beginning, actions by the government – at all levels – were presented as helpful and needful during times of distress. America’s ongoing years of warfare beginning with the Revolutionary War and still going strong down to today, has given immense opportunities for the government to increase in power and strengthen its hold over the citizenry in the name of patriotism or giving aid and comfort to “the people” in their distress – distress usually created by that same government. The late Ronald Reagan put it best when he said that the most frightening words in the English language were, “I’m from the government and I’m here to help!” In the new millennium, the true desire of our government – indeed all governments – is that all power should reside in the hands of government; that is, the era of personal freedom and all that that entails – including the concept of “private property” – must end! In his article “Social Justice, Affordable Housing, and Government Tyranny” to which I am responding, author Tom DeWeese makes the following point: “Eventually – and very soon – the only source of housing will be from government. Take a good look at the destroyed neighborhoods now under government control and see your future. Property rights and personal ownership is an equal opportunity for everyone to build wealth and freedom. It’s how the United States quickly became so prosperous. Government destroys personal choice, incentive and the wealth created from it.” Actually, government didn’t get into the “housing” business until the late 1930s during the Great Depression. The “Federal Reserve” created in 1913 was supposed to prevent such crises but actually helped create the world-wide depression that initiated the next link in the chain leading to the New World Order, World War II. Of course, Social Security, Medicare and other government schemes were presented to the American public as “limited” efforts to succor a very few “at risk” populations such as the elderly, widows, orphans and a whole list of cultural rarities who would “benefit” from, we were told, the relatively small amount spent by government to “do the right thing.” Yet, if the only people to benefit from “government housing” were one-eyed albino lepers, the cost would still be prohibitive and the results disastrous. For as with every other “government program,” there is no “brake” much less any restitution of the monies stolen from the People to fund this supposed government largesse. But the worst thing is, government housing is our future. We have been told by the elites of the New World Order, that soon, we will own nothing! Everything we think we have will be on loan from Big Brother to be removed if and when we fail in obedience and homage. You would suppose, given the obvious results of public housing, that Americans would revolt against being forced into a life that is, frankly, not worth living, but apparently, such is not the case. Perhaps too many believe that better people forced to live in these “ghettos” will lead to better conditions. Not so albeit, there undoubtedly is a certain class of people who make a slum out of anything once they are ensconced. Yet, Mr. DeWeese points out: “Here’s what it’s like to actually live in those government projects. In many cites these neighborhoods are drastically rundown in disrepair as lights, air conditioning, and appliances fail to work. The roof leaks, windows are broken, and the plumbing backs up. Trash around the grounds is in ever-growing piles, is rarely, if ever cleaned and hauled away. Don’t even think about any kind of yard work to create a place for the children to play. Worse, the residents live in fear of gang elements like MS-13 that have taken over the neighborhoods to rule as their territory. Pimps, pedophiles, and drug-dealers prey on the children. And no matter how many times residents may ask for repairs, it never happens. “Why are the conditions so bad in this government-controlled housing? Government is a monopoly that has no incentive to be efficient. The taxpayers are forced to pay and the money rolls in so the politicians can puff out their chests over how generous THEY are in helping the less fortunate. Meanwhile, the management of these properties is by government bureaucrats with no personal stake in the projects. Their paychecks keep rolling in, no matter what happens to the properties they manage. Only private owners care about the condition of their property.” And while much of the destruction and devastation in public housing as noted above comes from the behavior of the residents involved, once everyone – other than our ruling elites – find themselves so domiciled, one doubts that the conditions will greatly improve. But whether they do or not, the freedom that our Founders understood resulted from a man’s right to own his own property, will be as dead as the Founders themselves and their Constitution. The article Social Justice, Affordable Housing, and Government Tyranny appears on the website News with Views. The author is Tom DeWeese and All Rights are Reserved
We all have
reservations. We all have times when we think we are not ready for the next
step. Whether this is the next step in education, a new job opportunity, or an
addition to the family. Sometimes these feelings are warranted by real
limitations, whether we lack experience, face physical or mental challenges, or
simply feel our hearts are not ready to devote ourselves to that next endeavor.
Whatever the case may be, the mere existence of these reservations shows a
reverence for the situation we are addressing. We experience the
same phenomenon with matters of God. Our knowledge of our sinful past can
prevent us from taking that next step, even in what some would consider
easy-to-conduct tasks, such as attending church, participating in a Bible
study, or witnessing to others. This does not get any easier as our journey
leads to other theological matters, such as those that make up the new birth
experience as written in the Bible. Are we ready for water baptism? Are we prepared
for the baptism of the spirit? These are issues we all have or will deal with. Theological
debates do not seem to ease this in any way. Arguments are made about what is
or isn’t essential, what practices recorded are or are not normative, and whether
gifts are for today or just for that season. Amidst this confusion, I find
clarity by looking through the lens of nothing being impossible for God. There
is no box grand enough to contain him. Following his word as it is written will
lead us into the Kingdom. I’m wagering my soul on it. Combining all the
above, the confusion in the world, and knowing none of us are worthy of the
gift of salvation, along with an earnest eagerness to seek the humility Jesus
taught, we can have a border wall around our salvation that seems impenetrable.
While talking with a brother in Christ about issues we and the people around
us face, I told him, “We sometimes put things out of our own reach.” It was just one phrase in a meaningful conversation but had a profound impact. At
first, it seemed counterintuitive. If it is within our reach to place it there,
surely, we can reach again and grab it when the “time is right." I found myself examining the phrase before we were finished with the conversation. Quickly, a memory
of an old analog scale we used at home for baking came to mind. It served as a
perfect analogy for this concept. We keep the scale on the top of our cabinets,
partially for décor and primarily because we don’t have a better spot. After we
are done using it, I stand on my own two feet, albeit on the tips of my toes, and
place the scale on the cabinet, using the tips of my fingers to get it past the
webbing so it sits level. The next time we need to use it, I cannot simply
reverse the process. To get my hand close enough to grasp this thing, I put it out
of my reach; I need the help of something (a stool) to lift me to within reach. Maybe you
see where I am going with this. Just as with the
storage of the scale, putting God’s gifts out of our reach is not only possible but also probable. However, no stool is tall enough to help us in this regard.
The uplifting help we need can only be provided by the gift-giver himself. Oh,
what a wonderful God we have who is so patient with us. He allows us to work
through these things at our own pace and makes himself available to meet us
wherever we are and at any time. The saving faith
we have, the means to the grace only he can provide, is itself only possible
through his word. This only makes sense considering, “For by Him all things
were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible…”
(Colossians 1:16 NKJV) Some lessons we
learn from conversation, teachings, and through the experience of others. Sometimes,
our stubbornness leads us to act against our own best interests, learning
lessons the hard way. We can get ourselves into situations that we cannot get
ourselves out of. So, when faced with doubts regarding readiness throughout our
walk with God, it is essential to remember it is not us; He makes us ready.
Thinking back to my first day of secondary school (UK Ed sys), there was this perception I had developed that had me thinking that, not only, the way I would be treated would reflect me having the status of "adult in development" but that the other students would also behave according to this principle understanding. This concept was put to bed early during my first classroom sessio, in the first moments to be precise. I had just entered into the classroom and was sat back among my new classmates, our new teacher stood at the front and suggesting, as all do, that we go around the room and introduce ourselves. Happenstance or design had the teacher first call upon a student who stood notably shorter than the rest of the class and was, with appropriate reasoning, not only concerned about the prospect of being bullied but noticeably shy as a consequence. Having noticed this, and under the preconception that the purpose of our being at the school was a collaborative effort in maturing our minds and skills, I spoke up in encouragement. Was this the right move? My classroom fell silent, my classmate's expressions suddenly shifting from that of trepidation at having to speak up in a room of strangers to that of shock, in some small amount, that one of us would so casually offer a word to help, as if the concept of it being a conversational setting was entirely foreign and that this was a "speak when spoken to" only situation. Naturally I spent that moment with a big dumb smile on my face, looking back and forth between the teacher and student for recognition of my expectations, finding a half confused look on the student's face and a look of "oh no, is this one of those kids?" on the teacher's. As you might expect, this moment augmented my expectations for the new school experience and I settled back into the status quo of teachers running through the script of information and students as children to be taught a base cariculum. Looking back on that moment, at that fleeting version of myself, I was in an ideal state of mind to learn, to develop, to share the experience and grow as part of a collaborative effort. It seemed to be the classroom environment itself that wasn't ready to harness the enthusiasm, not because it isn't an effective method of presenting and dissemination information but because it is designed to be a one sided production line of education. The book "Education: A very short introduction" by Gary Thomas explores the notion that the best way to teach and to learn is to, as a teacher, hold the reigns just enough to keep students safe and to set a goal for them to achieve, giving them the tools they need to achieve and allowing them the time and experience necessary to essentially teach themselves. The book then goes on to note that this is difficult to achieve in a school, to create a template that produces a standard outcome when the method is so free form, and to ensure that individual students aren't falling behind and concealing this by hiding in the groups that the method encourages be formed. Reading that book sent a flash of recognition through me, to that bright eyed kid ready to learn how to be grown up, wondering who I turn into on the other side of my time in secondary school, what kind of career I would find myself gravitating toward, and how much fun it was going to be to explore the paths of education that the school had to offer. I wonder what it would be like if every student in my class had the same perspective as me in that moment and if the teacher knew how to respond to the enthusiasm, maybe talking through what the school had to offer, what the basics were on the cariculum while encouraging students to explore their own interests within the limitations of what the school can provide. It's often so easily forgotten that we created the world around us and that we're obliged to improve it, to seek out and solve the problems standing between us and whatever comes. Education is a good starting point, if nothing else.
Everyone is talking about meaning these days, especially since Jordan Peterson hit the scene with his insights and words of wisdom, although such thinking is not new. It's as if western society has been asleep for the last half century as life became easier and people became distracted by pleasure - from the freedom of guiltless sex, drugs, rock n roll - and now the endless distractions of the internet and soon to be Metaverse. Finding meaning is the thing to do these days, although it was Viktor Frankl who became famous for his meaning centered psychotherapy and his book 'Man's search for meaning' which tells of his times in Auschwitz that is arguably one of the most influential books in the world. But only now society is waking up to the fact than meaning matters, and even starting to accept the fact that life is hard and sometimes we grow best through pain. Such words don't help someone while they are suffering, and I'd never tell a patient in the throes of physical or mental pain, about the philosophy of meaning and how they might grow. I not only don't do this because timing is important, but because I've come to the point that while finding temporary meaning in the day to day trials we face is important for others, it's meaningless to me. I get little comfort in day-to-day meaning unless there is an overall, ultimate meaning. Just the other day a 50yr old woman who had never been to hospital apart from having her four children, presented to the ED feeling 'generally unwell' and a bit short of breath. When she lay flat on the bed she turned bluish/grey and couldn't breathe. A CT showed lung cancer with metastasis throughout her body and 12 hours later she was dead. I'm not clever enough to find any meaning in that and it was a good thing I never got to see the family in this case, because life seemed totally meaningless, at least without an ultimate meaning. By ultimate meaning I mean God. Whether you believe in God or not, your attitude towards God arguably affects you more than anything else. If there is no God, and at the end of our allotted time we return to dust, then everything seems meaningless to me. Why by nice if being nice doesn't work for me? Why look out for my neighbor if they're an asshole? Why turn the other cheek if revenge suits me? Why be good and why give a damn about injustice if, at the end of it all, nothing really matters. So when I come across the growing number of podcasts, opinion pieces and headlines that talk about meaning and at the same time see the growing rates of youth suicide and depression, I have concluded that such well intentioned words are not enough. There needs to be an ultimate meaning. Maybe we are programmed to find ultimate meaning, which I believe to be God. Some may find my need for this a weakness, but it seems I'm not alone as almost every day at work I come across another young adult (sometimes not so young) who has lost all hope tried to take their life - or at least make a serious cry for help. So what's my purpose in sharing all this? It's my attempt to make you wake up think about the most important thing in your life, which is to find an ultimate meaning, and in doing so find real hope.
As the debates raging in this country go on, I have noticed something that I’m sure others on “my side” of these debates have also noticed; that is, that most of those on the Right or conservative sides are believers in Voltaire’s sentiment, “I may disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it!” Of course, there are those on the right who, tired of lies, threats and insults no longer hold that viewpoint. Why? Because it gets tiring when all attempts at dialogue and/or debate end with name calling on the part of your opponents! And we all know the standard Leftist “comebacks,” that is, those who disagree with their viewpoint however inane or insane those viewpoints, are either a member of the “far right” — a term indicating anyone to the right of Stalin — or, more usual these days, one is a “racist.” This term, interestingly enough, is also used on conservative blacks, a fact that only goes to show the term is a standard – and mindless – weapon in the hands of the Left, without any real meaning other than as an attempt to silence their opponents. In the end, this mindset removes any attempt at not only discourse, but compromise. You cannot compromise with people who see you not as having an opinion with which they disagree, but someone who is intrinsically EVIL. And, of course, that also ends any attempt at discourse for how can one have discourse with evil? Parenthetically, that is something that we on the right have been trying to do for a long, long time only to learn that this leopard at least never changes its spots. I remember learning from former Fox News commentator Tucker Carlson that at the time to criticize Black Lives Matter — a hate group if there ever was one! — the person involved could and did lose his or her job. One man was fired because his WIFE wrote a letter to a newspaper critical of the group! People were being advised to openly support and even financially contribute to BLM — OR ELSE! In the past, such horrific denial of fundamental constitutional rights would have resulted in a lawsuit and big bucks proceeding to the injured party. Today, however, the courts are as liable to uphold the actions of the employer as sustain the rights of the employee given the topic. We no longer have a viable legal system. It now seems to depend upon the ideology of the judge trying the case. And, of course, the unhappy consequence of the political success of our WOKE culture with its “liberal” leaders are ever more leftist judges and prosecutors. Alas, while many Americans are concerned about losing the Second Amendment, we may have already lost the First and with it our rights of freedom of speech and expression, freedom of assembly and freedom of religion. Once those are gone beyond restoration, the Second Amendment is easily nullified. As well, we also seem to have, in many instances, lost the protection of the civilian police who, we are told, made UNNECESSARY the Second Amendment. If this becomes the rationale, there will no longer be anywhere to seek justice in a world gone mad.
Absurdity Cloaked In Jargon Posted on October 22, 2024 by john Dear Friends, It seems to me, everything the progressive’s say makes perfect sense, until you think about it, then you realize, it’s absurdity cloaked in jargon. Progressives in every nation rely on spurious logic to manipulate us into self harm. Some examples are, “a just nation has a low disparity between the rich and poor,” “Misinformation must be controlled,” and the ever famous, “democracy is at stake!” Each statement sounds true enough as long as you don’t think about it. But then again, who does? We’re busy people and so a quip, true or not, has more power to convince than a well thought out argument. Which is one reason the left is so panicked about their inability to create memes. A joke that exposes their absurdity is their greatest peril. Because it alerts the victims. Slogans, tropes and spin are ways to manipulate us. They define absurdity cloaked in jargon. There’s nothing like a simple to remember slogan. A few words that create an emotional reaction are the ideal tool of manipulation. Because an angry person is not a thinking person. People who aren’t thinking are easy to control. Slogans set up tropes. Mind viruses that hold our thoughts fast. So we don’t engage in wrongthink. Then there’s spin. If we see something we shouldn’t, and shock causes us to have too much to think, the elite can manipulate our reaction with spin. That laptop with all the damning information on it? Well, that’s only Russian disinformation. Don’t take Ivermectin for heavens sake! It’s horse medicine! The fact the IPCC lied, and made up data, is only proof of the urgency of climate change! The best tools of manipulation are self proving, obvious and arcane. Self proving is another way of saying circular logic. Why should there be a small discrepancy between the rich and poor for a nation to be just? Because justice requires the discrepancy to be small. To be obvious is to be simple to understand. Misinformation must be bad, it’s in the damned name! One way to make a slogan appear clever is to use words with undefined meanings. Keep it arcane. So no one actually understands what you’re saying. Then they put the definitions they want to your words and voila… minds are changed, logic is abused, and the economy is wrecked. Absurdity cloaked in jargon then is circular, simple to understand and filled with mercurial definitions. The modern absurdities we’re expected to believe uncritically have these things in common. They’re arcane. Because the terms are never defined. They’re spurious, because they sound logical but are intended to deceive. Plus they oversimplify. Since without definition and intended to fool they must oversimplify. Else they lose their effectiveness. Five words stick in the mind while fifty never make it past the ear. Especially five words that are left to us to define as our emotions command. What really is democracy, misinformation, rich or poor? Depends who you ask. Making those terms arcane and spurious. Quips sound smart so we often believe them uncritically. Making absurdity cloaked in jargon a nearly impervious political tool of control. Except it has a weakness. Memes, or visual jokes, are kryptonite to the progressive’s absurdity cloaked in jargon. They illustrate the absurdity, in a few words, and are humorous so stick in the mind. Vaccinating the recipient from the mind virus of slogans, jargon and spin. Moreover, progressives don’t have a sophisticated sense of humor, being low on the orderly aspect of the big five. Wit is the result of connecting two disparate ideas in an unexpected fashion. Those with overly open minds have all ideas connected and so they don’t understand the shock of unexpected connection that makes jokes work. Which makes memes a single edged sword for populists. Like slogans used to be for elitists. Absurdity cloaked in jargon has been very a effective tool of manipulation… memes may be the kryptonite we need to defeat them. Sincerely, John Pepin
Americans who support beleaguered (former) President Donald Trump should give very careful consideration to the following historical utterances, old and new, and what they mean for us in America today: From Ulysses S. Grant's Report on Conditions in the South - 18 December 1865: “I am satisfied that the mass of thinking men of the South accept the present situation of affairs in good faith. The questions which have heretofore divided the sentiment of the people of the two sections— slavery and state's rights, or the right of a state to secede from the Union—they regard as having been settled forever by the highest tribunal—arms – that man can resort to. I was pleased to learn from the leading men whom I met that they not only accepted the decision arrived at as final but, now that the smoke of battle has cleared away and time has been given for reflection, that this decision has been a fortunate one for the whole country, they receiving like benefits from it with those who opposed them in the field and in council.” Thus wrote Ulysses S. Grant in 1865. But if Grant was, in fact, correct, then everything decent Christian people believe is a lie! For when Grant speaks of “the highest tribunal” being arms and that the South was proven wrong because their “arms” were insufficient to protect them against the “arms” of Grant and the rest of the Union military, we hear spoken aloud and without shame—albeit in different words—that old philosophy: “might makes right!” In more modern times, the late Justice Antonin Scalia said as much; that is, that the cause of the Confederacy—the constitutionally guaranteed secession of sovereign states from the old compact—was defeated and thereby rendered unconstitutional, not by law, but by force of arms! But consider what that actually means! If that is true, then Hitler was not wrong, but bested in war. Had he prevailed, his actions would have been legitimate. The Nazis were subject to trial and execution not because of their actions, but because they could not validate those actions by force of arms! Do we really believe that? Do we really agree with former ambassador John Bolton, when he said that the American government robbed, raped and killed Southern civilians during the Civil War without due process but it was the right thing to do? It is one thing to “accept the arbitrament of the sword” as did Robert E. Lee and other Southerners after the war—for by that concept they simply meant that they had been defeated and there was nothing to do but make the best of it. No other choice lay before them other than acceptance and continuing with their lives or, in the alternative, sullen resentment and ultimate oblivion. But, that is not the same thing as acknowledging that issues of law, divine or secular, had—or could be—be legitimately settled by military might. For, if force is the final arbiter, then there is no such thing as law! It is an illusion that can be swept away by whichever contending party wields the greatest force! And if that is so, then the Constitution was never the law of the land for true authority rested and continues to rest solely with that faction that has the most fire-power!
Two verses
from the Hebrew bible, informing as it does the conscience of Western
democracies, opens our exploration. Do not
maltreat the migrant and do not oppress him because you were migrants in the
land of Egypt. (Exodus 22:20) An
awareness of the wheel of fortune teaches that sometimes we rely on the
openness of other peoples and other societies to help us in times of need. This memory of our time in Egypt engendering generosity and gratitude is even
more remarkable given the harsh reality of that time in Egypt. Nevertheless, we
are enjoined to take from that experience an openness to the migrant seeking to
benefit from our society. Several times, the Bible harkens back to Egypt as
impetus for kindness to the stranger and even a forgiving attitude to the
Egyptian slave master. A different
verse speaks not to what we owe the migrant but what the migrant owes the host
society in terms of obeying the law. Being subject to the law, both obligates
the migrant and confers rights and protections. You
shall have one kind of law, for the migrant as well as the native-born; for I
am the LORD your God. (Leviticus 24:22) I think the
polarizing debates around immigration in America, certainly in the run up to
this election, would do well to remain mindful of these complimentary Biblical injunctions.
One law must govern the migrant and the citizen. He cannot be allowed to
circumvent the necessary procedures, tests and screens that a country sets up
to properly absorb and assimilate newcomers. Democrats would do well to
recognize that a coherent immigration policy must presuppose working borders. But
Republicans would do well to recognize that almost everyone in America was once
new to that land. North America was built on immigration. There is vociferous
and popularist opposition to immigration egged on by former President Trump
that resonates deeply with his voters. It is a suspicion and oppression of the
migrant that contravenes the first verse quoted above. Understanding that
opposition will help us contend with it. We need to
disambiguate three, often conflated categories: Immigrants, Refugees and
Revolutionaries. Immigrants seek better opportunity in a new land. Refugees are
forced out of the “old country” because of war or famine or political
oppression and seek asylum in the “new country.” Both they and their hosts may
regard the grant of asylum as temporary, holding out hope that conditions are
restored in the “old country” allowing the refugee to return home.
Revolutionaries carry habits and beliefs from the “old country” about how
things should be done in the “new country.” They seek ways to refashion the new
country in the image of the old country. The opposition to immigration focuses
on the sense that these newcomers are changing the country that we know and
love for the worse. We need to examine that sense, recognize when it is
legitimate and when not. Immigrants are more willing to leave behind the faulty
constructs and social ills that frustrated their progress in the “old country”
and to assimilate the better ways of doing things in the “new country.” Thus,
the immigrant does not pose a problem to the existing population, so long as we
correctly identify those “better ways” we ask the immigrant to embrace. I still
have some investments in the bank where I grew up in suburban Toronto. I
returned recently to check on those deposits to find that my bank had become
entirely Chinese. The signage facing the street, Chinese, the explanatory
pamphlets, Chinese, and all the management Chinese, Chinese Canadian, I rush to
add. I found it difficult to get good advice for my money, across a stilted
language barrier. I felt the trust that my precious investments were in good
hands erode and a desire to move them elsewhere. Was that fair? Was my
financial advisor an immigrant to Canada, a refugee refusing to part with her
old ways or a revolutionary, infiltrating my neighborhood bank and slowing
placing it inside a communist Chinese orbit?
The
demographics of North America are steadily changing, becoming more brown, more
Asian and more non-English speaking. If a bank wants to flourish in my old
neighborhood, it would do well to do exactly what it did even if that makes me
less comfortable, even encouraging my relocation. The signs of a shifting
aesthetic, religion and culture are evident over the half-century of my
connection to that neighborhood. But my old neighborhood is no less Canadian
for it. When we ask an immigrant to leave behind the old country and embrace
the new country that does not necessarily include aesthetics or religion or
even culture. Language is a legitimate issue, and it is important that strong
English speakers are accorded privileges. And as long as that is in place, the
children of those immigrants will grow up speaking a fine English. They are not
refugees, and we should have no expectation or suspicion that they are going
back to China any time soon. Nor are they revolutionaries as my bank remains a
secure, legal, thriving Canadian institution even as I might move to a better English-speaking
branch. Revolutionaries do exist and they are indeed a problem seeking as they
do the undoing of the principles that make North America the attractive
location it is for migrants. They must be recognized by actions and attitudes
antagonistic to western democracies and not by projecting those attitudes upon
foreigners by virtue of their different aesthetic. Those revolutionaries are
certainly plentiful and powerful among the native born. In trying to further
the needs of an existing population, it should be remembered that productive
immigrants contribute much to the society and economy. We need to remember
those verses encouraging our charity while insisting on the rule of law. And we
should be discerning about who we let in, properly distinguishing between
immigrants, refugees and revolutionaries without painting them all with the
same brush.
