Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category

WOW!  They finally came up with a study which proves what I’ve been saying for decades:  The death penalty deters crime.  At the very least, those who pay with their lives for the murder or rape committed will NOT go on to commit further crimes.  All to often we have a “revolving door” court system where the same criminals commit the vast majority of crimes.  Perhaps now we can convince folks to move the system along and clear the backlog in our prisons of violent criminals on death row.

The following is an excerpt from a newsletter I receive from Herb Pinney in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The following is very thought provoking. How can we as Christians have a positive impact on our world? By being salt and light and yeast – not being clumped up but by being spread out through society. It’s past time for a change in the way we think.  I didn’t realize that brother Pinney had this type of vision.  It’s similar to what we’re trying to do here in Pereira – reach into the heart of society to effect positive change on many levels.  He expresses things very well, especially the need to have a positive impact on all levels of society.

Three decades ago two luminaries of the Christian world got a flash of brilliance from God. Go to the youth of the nation, no matter how they want to earn their living, and capture their hearts and vision of a future with and for Jesus Christ. Two decades before that, I had decided to give up on being the geologist on the moon rocket, and to start shooting higher than the moon for my life’s work. In making that decision to go back to college and prepare to be a workplace minister, working with new and troubled churches, I would be earning the majority of my income in the market place. My deep conviction is that if Christianity does not work in the market place, it does not work at all. I have spent my life in unknown places, making the gospel known as I worked in the business world in Europe and the United States. It has prepared me for what God has in store for me, Agape Christian, and Morning Glory over the next twenty years.

The two shakers and makers that God sent a glimpse to, were Loren Cunningham of Youth with a Mission (YWAM) and Bill Bright with Campus Crusade for Christ. The impact of these two men with short term mission’s trips, campus work and the media with the Jesus Film that has now been shown to over 5 billion people, is monumental. The Jesus film has been translated into more languages than any other film and after the Passion of The Christ was shown in Arab countries, the film was in such demand that a million new copies had to be printed in various Arab and 10/40 languages. It was advertised as “the rest of the story.”

The glimpses that these men grasped were that if Christianity were to make an impact in the 20th and 21st century in the whole world, they would have to impact:

• BUSINESS
• GOVERNMENT
• FAMILY
• RELIGION
• MEDIA
• EDUCATION
• ART/ENTERTAINMENT.

Our Bible colleges, and seminaries have had some little impact on main street America. A strong impact in the third world. With the advent of mega churches doing so well in the Christian Churches and leading evangelical groups, still 80plus% of churches in the United States are at a plateau or declining. We are losing our teens that go to secular colleges at a rate of well above 90%. (Christianity Today and World Magazine have both reported that even the Campus Crusade for Christ, YWAM, and many campus ministries from coast to coast are predominantly Oriental, Latino. Anglos are a disappearing breed in Christian organization on campus. The other side of that story are Christian Church Campus houses in secular colleges that are reaching all flavors of the young). Across the nation, Bible College graduates with a ministerial degree are dropping out of the ministry at an alarming rate. I am a friend of our Bible Colleges, I have served on the Trustees of two different Bible Colleges over the years, and count a number of Bible College Presidents as good friends. My children that went to college, went first to Bible College. What I am about to write is nothing I did not say, while in board meetings, and in private conversations with leaders in the Bible college movement. We are missing the boat by not cross training our students so that they are most desirable to industry as well as ministry. I was constantly chided at Ozark Christian College in the 1950s, that “only those that could not get along with a church board and congregation became ‘tent maker’ or ‘market place ministers.’ I was at the top of my class, I would be wasting my time with small churches and the business world.” What I am saying, our Bible Colleges and those of a dozen other Bible believing denominations, have done fairly well with religion, but they have, in most cases ignored the other six areas of impact on culture. In the past decade, Walden Media has worked at taking Christianity in the arts and entertainment. Christian radio and TV are providing media for the choir (most of it non-biblical in my opinion.), Focus on the Family has worked at elevating the family back toward where God would like it to be. We really are, across the board, afraid of business, government, and education. To be bluntly honest, and even preachers ought to be honest once in a while, never before in U.S. history has Christianity had less influence on American culture than it does today. I do not believe that I need to illustrate or prove that point, if you read the news or watch “teleconfusion,” you know what I mean. I just want to make this caveat, there has been a good beginning in the right direction with Pacific Christian College in Fullerton. California, that has elevated to Hope International University, Cincinnati, and Kentucky and other having crossed that line, or others getting their ducks in a row, to cross the University line to have Christian Education for all seven areas of cultural responsibility, we are moving the right direction. But you still read and hear resistance from the old-line Bible colleges that think the only way to preach or witness is from behind a pulpit in a tie and suit.

Dr. Lance Wallnau is an expert in the elevation of Christianity to reach all seven peaks of culture. Let me list them again for you, they are critical: Business, government, family, religion, media, education, arts/entertainment. Dr. Lance writes, “That 3 to 5% of educated people control the national and workplace, agenda for ours or any country. In some third world countries it is even a smaller percent. These people dominate culture and set the direction for everyone else.” It is our goal at Morning Glory to provide Guatemala with a good number of that 3%.

Maybe one out of thousands will rise to this level from the ranks of religion. Once in a great while you have a Billy Graham that is respected but basically ignored by culture. A Mother Teresa that looked President Bill Clinton in the eye and called his attention to abortion, hunger, and illnesses world wide, he smiled and went on to shake the next hand. What you really have are hundreds from the business world that get quoted and followed in Time, News Week, and the like. You have thousands from the education world that are speaking out and being listened to. Nearly the whole country bowed at “the alter” of embryonic stem cell research at the words of Michael Fox and “Superman” Reeves. And then we could mention the influence in Washington D.C. at the words of Nancy Reagan and dancer son about how important to “science” this all is. No evidence, no facts, just emotion from media stars. The battle for Christian apologetics and our world view is no longer being led by us ministers, even the ones of us with a scientific education, it is a battle between highly educated scientists. And other highly educated scientists over the scientific autopsy report on what happened at creation and beyond, it is called Intelligent Design today. (After our 10PM supper last night Melba and I previewed the DVD “The Privileged Planet” by Dr. Gonzalez, astronomer with U. of Iowa. He was denied tenure because of his magnificent proof by our planet’s position and direction by Intelligent Design.) And the educational world is frightened to near death over I.D. They can’t refute it, they must ban it at once, at all cost, before anyone gets to hear the Conner’s report in the trial for public opinion. What I am writing is this, if we Christians want to make an impact on the next 93 years of the 21st century, we need to impact the seven mountains of culture, all seven of them.

Dr. Lance Wallnau went on, “That industry is not necessarily looking for Christian employees. They are looking for highly trained men and women that example Christian qualities in their lives. You know, “no drinking alcohol to excess (a Herb note, if you don’t take the first drink, you will never need to be picked up drunk off the floor. I ran for 45 years with the alcoholic auto world, I never once lost an advantage because of drinking bottled water or Sprite. In fact, a couple hours into the evening, I had all the advantages on my table), non drug users, solid family men and women that are not going to embarrass the company with scandal about sexual relationships that hit the news. Men and women that have been taught the work ethic of honesty, dependability, and who paid attention in class, learned the lessons and were not passed because of pressure from parents, or alumni.” Sounds to me like the average graduate from our Bible colleges and Christian Universities. If they are being properly educated, they can slip right into one or two of the seven mountains of culture and we will have a toe hold on a strong move upward. They can have a world wide impact for Christ. Dr. Lance is a very highly paid advisor to mega churches, multi-million-dollar para-church organizations, governments, business and Fortune 500 companies. He knows that for which they are looking.

It’s good to hear someone advocating common sense regarding the further importation of people who wish to destroy us. The absolute refusal on the part of current politicians to recognize “who the enemy is” is frustrating, to say the least. When grandma’s get felt up by “Security” in the airport, while obvious Muslims parade past, scott free, something needs to change. Why are those in charge pretending that they don’t know who has declared war on our nation? I don’t know.

Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch has some common sense suggestions. Oh that the folks “in charge” would pay attention to such common sense suggestions. Unfortunately, those “in charge” are more likely to use such suggestions against any group other than the one that has declared war on us.

Michelle Malkin hosts “The First Annual Open Borders Oscar Awards“. A HOOT! I still don’t understand folks who claim that there are major differences between the two major political parties in the US, to the point of urging folks to vote blindly “for the right party”. There are too many Republicans who support the “shamnesty” bill, too many who support abortion, too many who support sodomy for me to say “The Republicans are God’s gift to America!” like some folks seem to claim. Vote the issues, not the party. As we were saying, “The First Annual Open Borders Oscar Awards” is a real hoot. Michelle’s typical humor shines light on the idiocy in Washington.

The First Annual Open Borders Oscars

Posted Jun 11, 2007

Hot Air’s Michelle Malkin takes the stage to hand out the Open Borders Oscars awards.

Kim DuToit, a transplanted South African, has an interesting blog, to say the least. He recently posted an article on the illegal immigration problem. Kim immigrated to the US of A legally, and knows first hand how difficult it can be to do so. Here’s some quotes from the article:

This is not an exercise to examine the cost/benefit ratio.

Yes, of course there are costs and benefits. Of course there will be consequences to the costs of goods if the labor pool suddenly becomes more expensive. Of course there will be savings if medical and education benefits are drastically curtailed among the twelve million or so people who are currently using those benefits without contributing towards their costs.

None of that is important: it’s a red-herring issue.

What is more important, far more important, is the soul of this nation and of our society, and it is this soul which is being undermined.

What do I mean by that?

It’s quite simple. In the past, we have always had this compact with immigrants: you are welcome to come here, but you must assimilate into our society. In order for our nation to continue to be this “shining city on the hill”, and a beacon of hope for the rest of the world, it is not only important for us to maintain those societal values, but to strengthen them.

So when we see people breaking the law (entering the country without our permission), relying on the State to provide taxpayer-funded State benefits (medical care, education) without contributing to the cost, refusing to speak our language, and taking our currency out of the country to support the economy of another country—what on Earth is surprising about the backlash against illegal immigration?

When we concentrate only on money, we leave ourselves open to the accountants and financial nitpickers. It’s not the money. It’s our culture and our values that are at stake.

If those huddled masses from Central and South America (and indeed from the Middle East and elsewhere) want to come and live here, to share in the bounty which we produce, that is fine. We are a nation of immigrants, and we are all the stronger for it.

But they may only immigrate here on our terms, not theirs. We are the host nation, and we have created over two centuries a nation which has caused the downtrodden, the fearful and the persecuted to see us as their last hope, the hope of the entire free world.

I find Kim’s use of the phrases “our terms” and “our culture” and “our values” interesting. As a legal immigrant himself he came to our nation to assimilate, to become part of the “American Dream”. He knows whereof he speaks on this matter.

Funny, I got spoken down to for voicing these very ideas – albeit not as eloquently – and was told that my opinion matters not because I’m an “ex pat”. Well then, here’s the opinion of someone who lives up there right now – and who makes the same case as I have. Hopefully there’s more folks out there thinking such thoughts and holding their elected officials feet to the fire, figuratively speaking that is.

How ironic. How can the media NOT be reporting on this hypocrisy? Yet another elitist who would deny the people the very rights he exercises himself.

Newsbusters reports that Rep. William Jefferson (D-Louisiana) was ordered by a U.S. district judge to surrender his firearms Friday. Yet, media outlets that reported this ignored the delicious irony inherent in the Congressman’s anti-gun positions throughout his career.

Maintenance.  It’s necessary to keep things going, usually.  It’s something that drives me nuts when I have to try and convince a mechanic that “We really should do something before it breaks completely.”  A while back I took the van we’d acquired to the shop.  I asked the mechanic to change ALL THE HOSES AND BELTS UNDER THE HOOD.   We’d no idea what maintenance (if any) had been done by the previous owner and I wanted to get the fragile stuff taken care of – so I wouldn’t end up stranded by a busted hose in the middle of nowhere – or rush hour traffic.  The mechanic took a look and said “They look fine to me, don’t worry about it.” So I had him pull off one of the hoses and I squeezed it.  Sure enough, it looked fine on the outside, but inside it was cracking and full of sediment.  So he got to work.  When I came back he assured me that “every hose has been changed.”  Off I went.  Sure enough, about a week later I was in a neighboring town – broke down because he’d NOT changed a hose on the back of the engine.

So what?  Big deal!  Well, yeah.  BUT there’s a point to this rambling.  Lives need maintenance.  Marriages need maintenance.  Nations need maintenance.  If you don’t take care of the little things as they come along, you’ll end up with MAJOR problems down the road.  Just like that two buck hose on the rear of the engine (what idiot engineer thought to put it there, out of site?) there can be problems brewing in our lives, marriages of nation that need attention NOW, before they get bad.  But human nature being what it is (I keep meaning to procrastinate, but keep putting it off ’til tomorrow) we tend to put things off and wait, hoping that we can “just get along”.

Some folks get pretty doggone irritated at me for saying, “We must take care of issues NOW.”  That’s fine.  SOMEONE needs to voice things.  We can pretend that every thing’s OK and muddle on, or we can take care of problems NOW.  Issues like illegal immigration should have been cared for years ago.  But we need to take care NOW.  The Republican Party (“America’s Bastion of Conservatism”) has declined to the point where anyone can claim to be “conservative”, while voting for bigger government, higher taxes, murder of unborn babies and sodomite “marriage”.  Sheeshkabob!  Something’s wrong when members of both parties have near identical voting records.  And we need to demand change NOW.

Why is there little positive change? Because folks are not demanding it.  Well, folks WEREN’T demanding it.  Today’s glad tidings that the Senate bill to reward law breaking foreign nationals within the United State’s borders shows what can be done – if enough folks scream for change.

Let’s overhaul our nation.  Let’s do the maintenance necessary.  We can change for the better – if we will but make the effort.  Saying that things need taken care of is not bashing our land.  Just as I liked the ol’ van when I took it in for maintenance I also love my land – even while calling for folks to get behind an effort to put things in order.

I read somewhere (and don’t feel like looking it up right this minute) that a government that distrusts its citizens is not to be trusted.  And indeed, why should we trust those who project their own selves onto us?  For that is what it amounts to.  Those who want to prohibit others from the use of firearms “because gunfights will break out in the streets” are projecting their own base selves upon men and women of honor who merely wish to have the ability to defend themselves from the violent people who infest society.

There are many things I do not understand.  The idea that one may carry a weapon all over a state, but if one wishes to cross the border to a neighboring state the weapon must be unloaded and locked away is ridiculous.  What is it about crossing a state line that will cause someone to suddenly have murderous urges?  What is it about crossing a state line that will suddenly remove the danger from common criminals? Well, if you’re leaving California, New York, New Jersey or the Northern part of Illinois to a freer state you could argue that one is no longer in jeopardy – but those are states which limit or prohibit the carrying of weapons anyway!

Locally we have a problem in that certain officials have determined that merely utilizing a motorcycle for personal transportation will turn an otherwise law abiding citizen into a murderous maniac – and have declared that carry permits are null and void while transporting oneself upon a motorcycle.  This is idiocy, to say the least.  The process of obtaining a legal weapon here is such that one must come out squeaky clean in back ground checks run by the federal investigators and local police.  After running such a check and obtaining the permission to carry a weapon for self defense, why should that right be denied simply because of the mode of transportation one uses?  But then, in the US of A, we also prohibit folks from carrying the means of self defense while on certain modes of transportation, as if crossing a terminal’s entrance will have a sinister effect upon one’s personality, converting a law abiding citizen to a depraved assassin merely by entering into a hallowed sanctum such as an airport.  And places like Virginia Tech which prohibit lawful carry of weapons seem to think that their decrees are enough to keep their students and faculty safe.  Indeed they feel that “the pen is mightier than the sword” – and wrongly, as proven by the despicable acts performed on V-T’s campus in April of 2007.  Their penned decrees did nothing to prevent the tragedy, and much to enable it by ensuring that those who possibly could have curtailed the murderous rampage were unable to do so – because only the law abiding will abide by such an asinine rule.

Indeed we should be suspicious of those who wish to “pull our teeth”.  Why do they wish us disarmed?  It’s CERTAINLY not for our own protection as proven day after day in city after city around the world.  Those who are disarmed are easy prey for the violent.  So if they don’t trust us, why should we trust them?  We must push and fight to roll back the asinine laws which disarm the law-abiding.  We must push for stiffer punishment of those who wreak havoc upon our land.

A while back I found a site called Infidels Are Cool that is mainly (from what I’ve read so far) a site dedicated to keeping an eye on the problem of Islamic Jihad against those of us who are not muslim.  Today I found an article there about the impact of illegal immigration.  It is well written and I recommend you read it.  A Message From A California School Teacher is the title of the article.

Many e-mail lists and forums prohibit the discussion of religion and politics.  There are various reasons for this, the main one being that they want to limit discussion to the subject matter at hand.  Another reason is that there are few topics around that can be as inflammatory as religion and politics.  Why?  Because they both deal with ideas, the very core beliefs that fuel our being.

Many people are intimidated by the discussion of religion.  Often because their own ideas on the matter are tenuously held.  They believe something, very strongly, and yet are not sure why.   Often the reason is that they have inherited faith or belief.  We see this a lot here.  “I’m a Catholic because Mom was a Catholic, Grandma was a Catholic and Great Grandma was a Catholic.  In fact, our whole family has been Catholics clear back to Adam!” Of course, there’s also a lot of Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians and even Charismatics of all sorts who follow the same type of “reasoning”.  This makes it difficult for people to discuss their ideas since their ideas are usually vague suspicions gathered from forced attendance at Mass or while sleeping through sermons.

The matter of politics is even more difficult.  Folks tend to vote “Brand Name”.  They are “Democrat”, “Republican” or some other label if they are in a country other than the US.  They may (probably) not know what all their party stands for, but because “My papa told me to always vote for X or Y brand.” that’s good enough for them.  Nor do they often pay attention to the voting record of their representative (whether Congressman, Mayor, Councilman, Senator or any other position).  All to often folks have NO idea what their candidate will actually do once in office.  Nor do they care enough to find out.

The big question is, how do you get folks to think?  How do you get them to open up their idea box and use their reason?  It’s not easy.  Far easier to fall back on old ideas rather than to search for truth.  Far easier to cop out with “There’s no alternative other than X or Y” than to actually seek out alternatives.  One of the most difficult things around is to galvanize folks into action, to drive for change instead of the status quo.  How to do this?  I’m not sure.  But if we DO “stir the pot” occasionally, perhaps folks will start thinking rather than feeling and learn to make wiser choices.