Now That's Interesting

Via Captain's Quarters: CAIR membership plummets (Wash. Post). They are down to less than 1,700 from a high of 29,000 in 2000. Most of there money comes from about 24 "individual donors". Hmmm, AQIA,?

There is a God - Part 2

Paris Hilton Ordered Back to Jail
Judge Sauer strikes a blow against "celebrity (in)justice". Way to go your honor!

"Coupe" Deval on Education

Optimistic Patriot over at New England Republican has put together a nice succinct review of King Cadillac Coupe Deval Free 'Em All Patrick's education "reform" proposal; "Governor Patrick, vision without funding is hallucination". Read and heed.

My only addition would be to point out that the 2 hour increase in school day part is clearly a salary for teachers increase not a kids education reform proposal; in other words a real stinker.

It's About Time!

"Feds say La. congressman to be indicted"
I wonder what they were waiting for, the start of hurricane season?

Morning Commute Rants

It was raining this morning driving to work. It seemed to bring out the crazies.

• To 25% of the drivers: It's raining, turn on your lights. The idiot that gets seen before they get hit may be you.
  
• To the woman in the Mazda: I don't mind you using your cell phone, just keep driving, or move over into the right hand lane.
• To the lady in the white Infinity: Smooth move, ex-lax, cutting across traffic to get into the left hand turn lane.
• To the guy in white work van: Thank you for cutting me off when the right hand lane was wide open; it let me swerve around you on the right. Hint: There was nobody behind me; If you had stayed over in the right lane for, say 5 seconds, you could have easily moved over and saved us both some blood pressure points.
• To the truck drivers at the entrance to the base: Don't try to come through the barriers until the inspection area is open. You just end up blocking the whole entrance for everyone.
• To the rent-a-cops in the inspection area: Your job is to inspect the trucks, then get them moving, not chat up the driver then walk around it kicking the tires like you're on a used car lot.
  

[rant off]

Thoughts on the Emerging/Emergent Church

This post over at the World Magazine Blog got me thinking (and researching and writing). The premise of the post was that the Christianity Today magazine has moved from an evangelical perspective to a Emerging Church perspective. Personally I've always considered Christianity Today to be pretty liberal to the point that I would not really have called it an evangelical magazine. To see it more further in that direction would not be a surprise. But this is not the real subject of my post here.

I would like to give my take on what I've found out about the Emerging Church movement. (And yes I will call it a "movement" because that is what it is, contrary to their claims.) For this I'll use the outline of the basic characteristics from the Emerging Church entry in Wikipedia. I researched a variety of sources, but this one is as good a list as I found elsewhere. I'll not define their terms in depth, go read the article for that, but I will give my take on each aspect.

• Postmodern worldview: The existence of the Postmodern worldview is a reality, however it is not a valid basis for defining Christian belief. Neither is Modernism or any other previous worldviews. Christianity is it's own worldview. I can see Evangelicalism as an expression of how to relate the Christian worldview to a modern world, but contrary to claims from the Emerging Church, Evangelicalism is not "based on" a Modern worldview.
  
• Narrative theology: Storytelling can be a good technique for conveying the gospel message, but it is not how the gospel is defined. The gospel is defined in God's Word.
  
• Generous orthodoxy: This smack of relativism and the rejection of the truth of God's Word as the definition of the gospel message. There are absolutes in the Christian faith which means it is possible to be outside them and therefore not Christian. I fear that the Emerging Church is throwing out the baby in the bath water in their rush to be relevant.
  
• Postmodern Hermeneutics: Look up the term. In short it is the rejection of knowable, absolute truth. Dangerous, see above.
  
• Authenticity: There is some good in this area, in learning how to apply Christ in all areas of one's life, but again it smacks of emotionalism and legalism. "I feel saved, I act saved, therefore I am saved".
  
• Conversation/dialog: Again, a good technique for relating to people and sharing the gospel: It does not replace the gospel.
  
• Missional living: The way one lives should reflect one's beliefs, not be the determinant of them.
  
• "Fluid" ecclesiology or "deep" ecclesiology: See above, Postmoderm Hermeneutics.
  
• Creative spirituality: See above, Generous Orthodoxy.
  
• "Non-Legalistic" conduct: Sounds good, but is actually contradictory in practice with the definition of Authenticity above.
  
• Use of new technologies: Using new technologies to share the gospel and relate with people is fine, as long as the technology does not become the object of worship.
  
• Postmodern terminology: Using the terminology is fine, as long as Christian terms and more importantly Christian beliefs are not redefined as well.
  
• Justice: Social justice is a good thing, but again it is not the primary purpose of the gospel. The "social gospel" path practiced by many mainline denominations has been shown to ultimately be contradictory to Christ.

The overwhelming sense I got from researching the Emerging Church movement was one of fuzziness and anti-definition. It is not clear exactly what many in the movement do believe, although there is much that they apparently do not.

The bottom line is that I think there are things to be learned from the Emerging Church movement about how to relate and share the gospel message to people with a postmodern worldview. It could become the next Evangelicalism, but the gospel message cannot be redefined in order to relate it to people and still be called "Christian." Evangelicalism did not redefine the gospel message and neither should the Emerging Church.

There is a God

From MArooned:

Train Kills Man Trying to Kill Woman

LOS ANGELES - A man trying to kill his girlfriend by stopping a car in front of an approaching train was himself killed Monday when the train hit the vehicle and launched it into him as he tried to flee, police said.

The girlfriend survived.

Back on Hiatus

Sorry, I do not expect to have much time to post for the next month or so because of new responsibilities at work, town finance committee activities as part of the run-up to annual town meeting, and the usual slate of home-life events.

I WILL be back.

Recent Events in Global Warming

Sorry it's been almost 2 weeks since the last update. Life and liberty has had me rather busy.

Here are some recent tidbits on the "global warming" silliness:

1. BBC Video "The Great Global Warming Swindle". The original on Google is gone (surprise, surprise surprise), but here is a 2 minute preview, and another source for the full video courtesy of Curmudgeonly & Skeptical.
2. This delightful bit of irony also came from Curmudgeonly & Skeptical, "Frostbite ends Bancroft-Arnesen trek". The quote at the end of the report is delicious:
   

   "They were experiencing temperatures that weren't expected with global warming"

3. Kim Du Toit's observations on the global warming models are insightful. They can be summed up by this quote:

   "'The global warming models have some disturbing characteristics. For example, their output doesn’t depend on their inputs'"

4. Also interesting is his take on carbon offsets:

   “'Carbon offsets' (2007) = 'Papal indulgences' (1517)
   

   Seriously. It’s just payola to a different absolutionist."

5. Seems to me Al Gore is running some kind of Ponzi scheme (or maybe a check kiting ring) with his "carbon offsets". From "Signal 94: Global Warning is Gore's Retirement Plan"
   

   Gore's carbon footprint may be the size of Godzilla's, but he eases his conscience with 'carbon offsets.' He buys them from himself. And every time someone else buys them, Big Al gets richer.

Enjoy.

Double Standards Again in the MSM

"‘That’s so gay’ prompts a lawsuit" From the article:

When a few classmates razzed Rebekah Rice about her Mormon upbringing with questions such as, "Do you have 10 moms?" she shot back: "That's so gay."

For that she was sued, yet nothing appears to have been done to the thugs that subjected Rebekah to religious hate speech. What is good for the goose should be good for the gander. Of particular note is the total lack of coverage of of this double standard in the article.

Don't Ya Just Love It

"The Rev. Al Sharpton said he wants a DNA test to determine whether he is related to former segregationist Sen. Strom Thurmond through his great-grandfather, a slave owned by an ancestor of the late senator. "

Be careful when throwing rocks, the tree you hit may be your own.

"It's a small world after all, it's a small world after all..."

More Political Correctness

I've blogged about this before, but the University of Illinois has finally decided to cave in to the NCAA's political correctness blackmail. Sadly, it appears that the chairman of UI values the dollar over their principals. What a educational statement to their students.

Two students do not appear to have learned that lesson very well: They are suing to keep Chief Illiniwek. Good for them. If you can, donate to their legal fund at Chief Legal Fund, Box 11472, Champaign, Ill., 61826.

It is good to see that there is hope for some of our young people.

Really, Really Bad Music

Here's my list of what I consider to be the worst pop songs ever:

• Feelings by Englebert Humperdinck
  
• MacArthur Park by Donna Summer
  
• You Light Up My Life by Debbie Boone
• Copacobana by Barry Manilow
• Muskrat Love by Captain and Tennille
• Ebony and Ivory by Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder
• Tonight's The Night by Rod Stewart
• Sailing by Christopher Cross
• Daydream Believer by The Monkees
• Call Me by Blondie
  
• Hit Me With Your Best Shot by Pat Benatar
  
• Song Sung Blue by Neil Diamond
• Play That Funky Music by Wild Cherry
• You've Lost That Loving Feeling by Isley Brothers
  

This list has been running through my head for the last 2 days; don't ask me why. Maybe it will go away now. Feel free to add to the list via comments.

Kim du Toit Takes on The "S" Word

"Socialization" that is. For those of us in the homeschooling community "socialization" is the most frequent issue that gets thrown at us as a counter argument. Mr. du Toit has written a very effective critique of this so-called argument. For example:

"High school kids, unsupervised, are the most feral little beasts on the planet, and we saw no reason why we should subject our kids to that ordeal."

Personally I view the socialization gambit as a "t-ball" pitch to be hit outa-da-park. Socialization as exhibited in the public, and even most private, schools is the most artificial and harmful type of social behavior I can imagine. We do not, and will not inflict that upon our children. We care too much for them.

Romney Runs to the Right

Mitt Romney is a member of the NRA, but only since August.

Does he not realize how transparent this is. He supported gun control while governor of Massacusetts, and reportedly while in Utah and running the Olympics as well. This is clearly a temporary swing to win the primary, then he will be back to is two-timing RINO ways for the general election.

Some people are saying that we should get behind Romney (or one of the the other leading RINOs like Giuliani or McCain) now because they're most likely to be able to defeat the Democrats. Pox on their house I say. I'm not supporting a RINO until I have to. Until then, let's take the fight to the liberal, regardless of their party, and get a real conservative nominated.

Thus, with apologies to Lesly Gore, I give you the following fight song:

It's my party and I'll trash who I want to
Trash who I want to, trash who I want to
You'd trash them too if it happened to you

Nobody knows where my party has gone
But Rudy and Mitt left the same time
Why was he holding her hand
When the GOP's supposed to be mine

It's my party and I'll trash who I want to
Trash who I want to, trash who I want to
You'd trash them too if it happened to you

Then all my records keep dancing all night
But leave me alone for a while
'Till my party is back on track
I've got no reason to smile

It's my party and I'll trash who I want to
Trash who I want to, trash who I want to
You'd trash them too if it happened to you

Rudy and Mitt just walked thru the door
Like a queen with the king
Oh what a birthday surprise
The're both a pair in the ring

It's my party and I'll trash who I want to
Trash who I want to, trash who I want to
You'd trash them too if it happened to you

Emerging Trend?

Hal Lindsey has a most interesting editorial on WorldNetDaily. In it he identifies two interesting trends over the last 4 years. One is a pattern of terrorist attacks by individuals of Muslim persuasion in the US, and more disturbingly a corresponding pattern on the part of law enforcement and the media to ignore this religious terrorist connection. Read it and think.

Oh the Irony of It All

HOUSE HEARING ON 'WARMING OF THE PLANET' CANCELED AFTER ICE STORM
Bwahahahaha.

Now I have to go plow another 6" of "global warming" off my driveway.

Global Warming, Bah Humbug

Warming, schwarming. Come spend this week up here and tell me there's a warming trend:
Seriously, I'm sure everyone has heard about the latest global warming report. While there is a fair consensus that a climatic warming trend is likely occurring, blaming human civilization for said trend is not quite the consensus that the MSM and the authors of this report would have you believe.

Here is one study that contradicts the so-called report:

The Physical Evidence of Earth's Unstoppable 1,500-Year Climate Cycle

Read it and make up your own mind

If you want a more readable take on the subject check out Michael Crichton's State of Fear. It's a fiction story, but the science behind it is real. Check the references and footnotes for the facts that support this novel.

Some diligent searching will find other sources that cast credible doubt on the whole global warming, climatic catastrophe, mankind is at fault hoopla. Go forth and read with an open mind.

Update: And for a more humorous take on the subject, check out Penn and Teller's B....... Environmental Hysteria (warning: mild profanity). There are also lower bandwidth and 2 minute summary versions.
Courtesy of Curmudgeonly & Skeptical

Boston LIte-Brite Bomb Scare Thoughs

I'm sure everyone has heard about the bomb scare in Boston several days ago. It's amazing to me how reactions are split so widely. People either think it was a big over-reaction, or that it was perfectly justified. Few if any people I've met fall in the middle. Part of the problem is hindsight is 20-20 on both sides. So what is my opinion: Personally I think putting up the devices as they were was a really, really dumb idea.

First, I'm sure laws were broken in putting them up and there should be punishment for it. Piddly laws I'm sure having to do with unlawful placement of advertising, but broken none the less. Charge the youths (e.g., the scapegoats) who put them up with the appropriate misdemeanors, then go after TBS in a big way.

Second, TBS should have realized that these devices could be mistaken for bombs. Nothing I've read has indicated that there was anything on them that identifying them as coming from TBS. I think a simple "Property of Turner Broadcasting System" would have gone a long way to preventing an over-reaction. For this TBS should cover the state and city expenses for the bomb scare plus a penalty for idiocy. It was their design of the devices, their directions to place them, and their silence in notifying authorities before hand and slowness in doing so afterwards that caused the panic. I consider TBS to be at fault more than anyone else.

Third, we've come a long way from 9/11. There may have been some over-reaction on the part of Boston authorities but frankly I'd rather see that than no response. The division of opinion and the lack of response in any other city indicates that we generally have become complacent and lazy about security and terrorism. I'm disappointed there was not a more vigorous response elsewhere, or that there was any sharing of information between cities.

I predict that we will at some point regret this incident because of the hesitation in reaction that it will cause. I don't think it is a stretch to predict that some terrorist will someday create terror devices resembling some kind of guerrilla advertising device and we will miss them because we've been "burned" once. That's the saddest part of this fiasco, and that's the reason TBS needs to get hammered.

Stupidity kills.

I May Start Flying AirTran

Normally I avoid low-cost airlines like AirTran on business travel. I may change that policy in the future for AirTran.

Girl kicked off plane after tantrum

The mother complained "We weren't giving an opportunity to hold her, console her or anything". Horsefeathers! They had at least 40 minutes on the plane to get control of their child, not even counting prep time in the gate area. Remember, the plane was already 15 minutes late. Boarding usually starts 25 to 30 minutes before departure and families with small children get to board first. Add all that up and they had plenty of time to get their bratty child under control.

Bravo AirTran

Bible Study on Love: Colossians 3:14

Here is a Bible study outline on Love:

Col 3:14

14 Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.

God’s Love for us

John 15:13

13 " Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends

Rom 5:8

8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

John 17:26

26 and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

Rom 5:5

5 and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

We are to be rooted and grounded in love, greater than knowledge

Eph 3:14-19

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,

15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name,

16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man,

17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love,

18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,

19 and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

We cannot be separated from God’s love

Rom 8:38-39

38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,

39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We are commanded to love our brethren

Eph 5:1-2

1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;

2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

1 Cor 16:14

14 Let all that you do be done in love.

2 Cor 5:14

14a For the love of Christ controls us,

John 13:35

35 " By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

Love allays fear, Christ loved us, we are to love brethren

1 John 4:18-21

18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

19 We love, because He first loved us.

20 If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.

21 And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.

Love includes keeping God’s commands

John 15:9-10

9 "Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.

10 " If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.

Love is to treat neighbor well, is not in contradiction to the law

Rom 13:10

10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Gal 5:22-23

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Love commands us to serve one another

Gal 5:13

13 For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

Love builds up

1 Cor 8:1

1 Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies.

Love is the evidence of faith

Gal 5:6

6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love.

Love helps us to achieve unity

Eph 4:1-3

1 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,

2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love,

3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace

Unity

“Unity” has concept of perfection or completeness

Christ as perfect example of unity and perfection

Heb 12:2

2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

God desires us to be in unity

John 17:20-23

20 "I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;

21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.

22 "The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;

23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.

Unity of faith, everyone working together, not everyone identical

Eph 4:11-16

11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,

12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;

13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.

14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;

15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,

16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love

We are to dwell in unity

Ps 133:1

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is

For brothers to dwell together in unity!

In closing reflect on the fullness of love from 1st Corinthians chapter 13

1 If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

2 If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

3 And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

4 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant,

5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,

6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;

7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.

9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part;

10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.

11 When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.

12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.

13 But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.

All quotations from the New American Standard Bible courtesy of PC Study Bible

Support Our Troops, Sign the Pledge

I did. If you're reading what I've been writing you should too.

The Land of Coincidences

This year is the Chinese Year of the Boar (or pig), and
Hillary Clinton launches White House bid.
I leave it as an exercise for the reader to identify the parallels. :)

Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire, Part Three

From Dread Pundit Bluto: "Reyes Does 180 in Order to Oppose President":

"New House Intelligence Committe chairman Silvestre Reyes was for the troop surge before he was against it."

And, from World Magazine Blog: "Do Them Dogs Hunt?":

"on four of five issues during the first week of the new Congress, the 45-member coalition of self-proclaimed donkey moderates voted in lockstep with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi."

Honesty and integrity appear to be in short supply with our new Congressional leaders. Party and politics before principle is poor performance.

Now That's A Gun

I recently joined the nation of riflemen with one of these. Now I see this "A Missile Punch at bullet Prices":

The range for 5-inch guns now on Navy ships is less than 15 nautical miles, Garnett said.

He said the railgun will extend that range to more than 200 nautical miles and strike a target that far away in six minutes. A Tomahawk missile covers that same distance in eight minutes.

I want one :)

Liar, Liar Pants on Fire, Part Two

This appears to be the beginning of a continuing series.

I leave it up to the reader to find the contradiction in these two reports:
"Presidential Hopeful Touts Gun Rights"
"Mitt Romney on Gun Control"

Mitt Romney is a pandering hypocrite and thus a liar. Those of us who have resided under his "care" in the state of Massachusetts have had more than enough of his two-faced ways on gun control, abortion, tax relief and other conservative issues. I consider integrity to be a key characteristic of whomever I vote for. I also think it tends to be a conservative trait, although not exclusively. Mr. Romney lacks it. For this reason, and because of the liberal positions displayed by his actions (versus his words), I formally pronounce Mitt Romney a liberal RINO scum-bag politician unworthy of the Republican nomination.

Why I Support the Death Penalty

"Two missing boys, one since 2002, found in Missouri". I believe in the existence of true evil, and truly evil people, in this world. Very few people qualify. In my opinion killers and kidnappers of children do.

Such people should, to borrow a line, be "decently tried, decently convicted and decently executed". Mr Devlin is one of these people. He should get no plea bargains, no insanity defenses and no delaying appeals. If he wants to be spared a trial then he can plead guilty, but he should get punished the same: Death.

I don't care how he's executed; fried, hung, shot or medicated: I consider Mr Devlins presence in this world forfeit.

Liar, Liar Pants on Fire

Deval Patrick made many promises running for governor of Massachusetts, most of them involved the government doing more for people. That means spending even more money than our socialist, welfare state spends now, and we don't have it.

One of the first things Deval did was restore $383.6 million dollars in cuts that his predecessor, Mitt Romney, had made. He claimed that state revenues were up in November and December enough to cover this spending.

Now he's claiming there will be a $1 billion dollar deficit next year. This is just bad financial management. You don't go spending extra money if you expect to run out next year. You save what you can to try to cover the expected shortfall, not spend money like a drunken sailor.

Personally, I think that he is also a liar and a fraud who is deliberately creating this so-called crisis so he can "convince" the legislature to raise taxes. Last week the state senate president indicated that there was no intent to raise taxes. I suspect that position will be gone before very long.

Hold onto you wallets, we're in for a rough 4 years.

New Look

Courtesy of the new Blogger. I still haven't got all the old functionality re-implemented. Hopefully I'll be able to get trackbacks reimplemented. Until then this should be close enough for government work. Regular posting, at least for me, will resume shortly.
Update: Got trackbacks via Haloscan reinstalled. Now I have no excuses for not resuming blogging.

On Hiatus

I'm putting this blog into hiatus until January. Life continues to be very busy, and with my disappointment in the November election results, I've not had the time or motivation to write. Hopefully I'll be able to make and keep a New Years resolution to start writing again.

How I Will Vote Tomorrow

Republicans for state office and Senate, independent for Congress, no Democrats if that is the only choice, no on all ballot questions. Here are the details:

Governor: Kerry Healy (R), she's not as conservative as I would like, but the options are much worse
Lt. Governor: Reed Hillman (R), see above
Attorney General: Larry Frisoli (R), see above
US Senate: Kenneth Chase (R), anybody but Kennedy
US Congress: Billy Szych (I), his opponent, John Olver, is ranked as one of the most liberal Congressman in Washington
Question 1-Allow grocery stores to sell wine: No, I oppose any action that increases access to alcohol
Question 2-List candidates multiple times, once for each party that nominates them: No, too complicated. The U.S. form of gvernment is not parliamentary. We elect people who happen to be members of parties, not parties who happen to have candidates. I tend to vote for Republican candidates because their views are similar to mine not solely because they are Republican. I would vote for this question if it had each candidate listed only once, but allowed multiple parties to be listed after their name.
Question 3-Unionize family daycare: No, I oppose anything anything that increases the power of unions. They are antiquated, undemocratic, repressive institutions that should be abolished. Plus it will raise the cost of daycare at no benefit to the children.

Please vote early, please vote often :)

False Political Advertising

Can one report sponsors of political advertisements to the FCC if they blatantly lie? Probably not, due to 1st Amendment issues, but I certainly have candidate if one could.

The American Federation of Teachers-Massachusetts has endorsed Deval "free-em-all" Patrick the Democratic candidate for governor, in part because he advocates capping the number of charter schools. Their radio ad supporting Free-em-all blames the current Republican governor, Mitt Romney, and his lt. Governor, Kerry Healey, who is running against Deval, for massively underfunding public education and advocates for change.

The factual problem with this claim is that it is the Democratically-controlled Legislature that passes the budget not the governor. They have effectively reduced funding for public schools in favor of their own pet socialist programs like universal health care. The Democrats have had a veto-proof majority for years now so any attempted changes in public school funding by the governor that the Legislature disagrees with get overridden.

On a side note, according to the Boston Globe, Deval himself was the beneficiary of a scholarship to a prestigious private school when he was a child, yet he wants to limit access to educational alternatives to the kind of poor public schools that he himself escaped.

So what we have here is a hypocritical candidate supported by a lying union.

What's Wrong with Kerry Healey on Gun Control

Kerry Healey is the Republican candidate for governor in Massachusetts. She gets high (95%) marks from various 2nd Amendment watchdog groups like GOAL and NRA. One must consider those marks relative though. Most anywhere else someone with that high a rank would be abolishing gun licensing or at least making it "must issue" and supporting principles like the "Castle Doctrine" and "no confiscation".

In contrast consider her latest proposal to centralize firearm licensing decisions to the state level. It is drawing fire from both the moonbats and the local police chief associations. In MA the local police chief has total decision authority on granting licenses. The theory is that the local police know who the "bad actors" are and can deny them access to firearms. In practice this allows gun-banning police chiefs in some towns to restrict, or even deny, virtually all license applications as a matter of policy. There is an appeal process, but it is slow and onerous. Obviously the police chiefs don't want this power taken out of their hands, so they are endorsing Deval Patrick.

The problem with Mrs. Healey's proposal is that centralizing this decision authority at the state level eliminates all possibility of appeal and even worse will make it trivial for some future governor or the legislature to totally restrict gun ownership. If Kerry Healey were a true 2nd amendment supporter she would advocate the elimination of firearms licensing, not its centralization. At a minimum she should be proposing that police chiefs not be allowed to make blanket policies restricting firearms licenses; they should be required to make such decisions on a case-by-case basis, and the appeals process needs to be streamlined.

By way of further comparison, consider the other choices:

Her Democratic opponent, Deval "free-em-all" Patrick, is a left wing liberal who wants to illegally limit firearms purchases to one-a-month and make private sales subject to the same background checks as retail sales effectively eliminating private and gun show sales. The Green/Rainbow candidate, Grace Ross, is even worse. She wants to "Make guns harder to get and easier to turn in. Track the bullets and the guns, and begin to hold manufacturers responsible for so many tragedies in our communities." Compared to these 2 almost anyone scores high.

The independent candidate, Christy Mihos, is a bit better. He received basically the same ratings as Kerry Healey. He claims to be "a firm believer in Second Amendment rights" and to support "Castle Doctrine". Sounds good except his definition of the Castle Doctrine appears to apply only to one's home, which wouldn't be much of a practical change from current MA law. He also favors "clarifying the state's existing gun control laws", whatever "clarifying" means. I suspect it does not mean abolishing. He has not been very forthcoming on clarifying his position. He might, or might not, be better than Kerry Healey in this regard, but at the rate the election is going the only thing he is going to do is steal enough votes to make Deval Patrick our next governor.

The bottom line is that Kerry Healey is no real 2nd Amendment rights supporter, she just looks like one in comparison to everyone else.

I feel like writing something...

...but I don't know what to write about, so here are some short blog-bites:

Violence against children absolutely sickens me, actual physical stomach-turning sickness. People who kill children ought to be subject to the harshest penalties society can devise. Doesn't matter if they are other children, adults, or worst of all, parents, slow, painful torture followed by a lingering death is too kind for such filth.

Frankly I find Foley-gate to be utter confusion, so far. Was it serious, or was it a prank/set-up by the pages? How long was it going on? Who knew and when? What was or was not done and when? That something happened is clear, otherwise he would not have resigned, but there also seems to be alot of election season hay-making both in the media and political arena with the attendant potential for, shall we say, hyperbole and dissimulation. Maybe the Congressional inquiry will straighten it out, but not likely.

More locally, "Free 'em all" Deval scares me: Just the thought that this man so devoid of truth and substance could be governor of MA, together with our left-of-left socialist legislature is nightmare material. Chirsty ought to get over his little rich boy victim pout with the Republican leadership and drop out.

That's enough for tonight.

Vote Ken Chase for U.S. Senate and Billy Szych for Congress

Ignorance is _____

I almost never post about local issues because providing the context required to understand them would be too much for most to read. In this case I have a short message to deliver and don't care about giving context. I'll put some links at the bottom if you want to do your own research.
[soapbox on]

Dear Mr. K.B., your twisted logic implying that I somehow support or am similar to Mr. Bill J. Clinton is totally bassackwards. If you could actually read and comprehend what I've written here and on the BYF then you would know what I think of that particular ex-(thank goodness)-President. Furthermore, your reasoning and ethics are as twisted as his which is why I won't post on your little board. Go away and leave everyone alone.

[soapbox off] Ahh, that feels better.

For everyone else, here is the information needed to get started. Good luck, don't get lost:
Town of Winchendon
Winchendon Backyard Fence Forum

Neuroses

The time has come for most of the roosters in our new flock to go to the great barnyard in the sky with their carcasses destined for our freezer. Nine of them will be going to slaughter in three and half weeks. Most of them are Barred Rocks. One of them is our Turken (see example to the right).

We are keeping a few of the Barred Rocks just for looks and I wish we could keep the Turken as well because it is a very interesting looking chicken. However, it is the closest thing to a neurotic chicken I have ever seen. It stays inside the coop all the time. I only saw it outside once this whole summer and it ran back inside at the slightest noise.

Ah well, at least it will be good for something in the pot. Hmmm, maybe there's a lesson here for liberal moonbats who are as neurotic about Iraq.

Wynne Shoots Good Idea in the Foot

From CNN:

Nonlethal weapons such as high-power microwave devices should be used on American citizens in crowd-control situations before being used on the battlefield, the Air Force secretary said Tuesday.

Secretary of the Air Force Michael Wynne really needs to think about what he is saying before sticking his foot in his mouth. Testing weapons, even non-lethal ones, on non-volunteer Americans sounds like a really bad idea. Stated that way it is.

However, there is a very good idea behind what Mr. Wynne was trying to say. Anyone who has been following what our military has actually been doing the last 10 years will note that they do a whole lot more nation-building, peace-keeping, and policing than actual combat. At the same time their arsenal for such non-lethal situations is woefully inadequate. They need better non-lethal weapons as an addition to their weapons mix to match the missions they now have.

How do you select which kinds of non-lethal weapons to add? It stands to reason that those which are proven effective in action should be used. What I hope Mr. Wynne was saying is that the military should be using non-lethal weapons that have been shown to be effective in police actions because those are the situations that the Air Force finds itself in.

Law enforcement agencies already have these kinds of weapons and continue to acquire new ones. They use them when necessary: No need to arrange any specific tests. Some of them do work better than others. That is where the Air Force should go to find out what works and then acquire their non-lethal weapons accordingly.

Sports Spots

The Red Sox pull the plug: The curse returns. Personally I think it all when south when their starting catcher, Jason Varitek, went down. The catcher plays a big part in helping the pitchers; I mean he calls the pitches, right? Mirabelli was OK as Wakefield's catcher but since Wake is down too he's clearly not up to handling anyone else. It's obvious to me that not one of the catchers they've tried since Jason was injured is much good at handling the staff that's left. Mail it in from here on out.

It's an improvement, but I'm still disappointed in the U.S. Basketball team. Clearly they're more of a team than any in recent memory, but next time they've got to round out the talent with some shooters and big men. Teamwork, speed and hussle are all good and necessary, but the object is to get the ball in the hole and stop the other team from doing the same. We'll see how the respond in their final game.

Go Andre.

Way to go Georgia.

And Even More Fakery

Here is an analysis of the Red Cross Ambulance Incident (found via Oraculations). From this article it is quite clear to me that the alleged attack was a complete fake. At this point I trust nothing reported from the MSM regarding Lebanon.

The only thing I find curious is why the Israelis are not running a more active counter-propaganda campaign. I realize that they probably have trouble getting the MSM to cover anything from their side and are a little busy at the moment, but it doesn't take much cooperation or effort to release information debunking most of the propaganda from Hezbollah. Maybe they are trying to take the high road, but at some point you need to slap the fleas down before they drive you crazy.

Money is Money, Dumb is Dumb

The stupidity in this story is breathtakingly; "Woman admits stealing $2.3M to play lottery". If this is not definitive proof that state-sponsored looteries are a tax on those who are bad with math then nothing is. One wonders how much they cost states in other areas such as increased crime and lost economic growth. Personally I wouldn't mind at all if they were all banned again.

More Fakery

from Dread Pundit Bluto:

August 6, 2006, 10:44am	August 6, 2006, 10:57am
Tyre, LEBANON: Rockets fired from Israel are seen falling in the outskirts of the southern Lebanese port city of Tyre, 06 August 2006. Israel's army will carry on fighting Hezbollah in southern Lebanon until two soldiers, whose capture sparked the conflict last month, are returned, its ambassador to Washington said today. AFP PHOTO/SAMUEL ARANDA (Photo credit should read SAMUEL ARANDA/AFP/Getty Images)	Tyre, LEBANON: Katyusha rockets are fired from the outskirts of the southern Lebanese port city of Tyre into Israel, 06 August 2006. Israel's army will carry on fighting Hezbollah in southern Lebanon until two soldiers, whose capture sparked the conflict last month, are returned, its ambassador to Washington said today. EDS NOTE: CORRECTING DIRECTION OF SHELLING. AFP PHOTO/SAMUEL ARANDA (Photo credit should read SAMUEL ARANDA/AFP/Getty Images)

At least it only took them less than 15 minutes to catch this "mistake". One would think that after recent events news outlets would check all pictures and stories submitted by Hezbollah propagandists independent Lebanese stringers before publishing them.

Hezbollah, Pallyworld and the MSM; Fakery All

Evidence continues to mount of the propaganda war being waged by Hezbollah and the Palestinians against Israel. The Mainstream Media (MSM) continues to play along, if not actually aid and abet this deception.

As background evidence, check out this "“Pallyworld"” video: Quite a documentary.

The second exhibit is the Qana "“bombing"”. The EU referendum is a good place to begin the basic analysis; start at the bottom and work up. Here is addition information on "Mr. Green Helmut" via the Dread Pundent Bluto.

The latest evidence is the doctored photo of Beruit from Reuters, and their admission of complacency, if not guilt. Check out Little Green Footballs for the detailed analysis. Furthermore, take a look at "“original"” photo according to Reuters.

It clearly is still "“photoshopped"”. Observe the patterns in the smoke (circled) of smudged buildings that appear to be larger than and overlay the real buildings in the scene. In the 8:11pm update Saturday LGM notes a possible source for the real original. Add to that smoke copied from some other source with the buildings from that source still there and you get this.

For more evidence, here are other doctored photographs at The Jawa Report and the unluckest woman in Lebanon at Drinking from Home.

The bottom line is you cannot trust what you see from the media. If it sounds too good, or too bad, it probably is.

Devotional: Quarrels and Conflicts

It has been a long time since I posted a devotional message. Below is the teaching from today. It is mostly just Scripture, the main text from James 4:1-10, with some key points noted and Scripture related to them. Enjoy.

James 4:1-3

1 What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members?

2 You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask.

3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.

Sin is the source of fighting, quarreling, and conflicts. Sin defiles man.

Mark 7:20-23

20 And He was saying, " That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man.

21 "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries,

22 deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness.

23 "All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man."

Gal 5:19-21

19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,

20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,

21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Seek properly from the Lord

Matt 7:7-11

7 Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

8 "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

9 "Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?

10 "Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?

11 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!

Matt 21:22

22 "And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."

James 1:5-8

5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.

7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,

8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways

James 4:4-6

4 You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

5 Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: " He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us"?

6 But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, "GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE."

Pride puts on in conflict with God

Ps 59:11-12

11 Do not slay them, or my people will forget; Scatter them by Your power, and bring them down, O Lord, our shield.

12 On account of the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips, Let them even be caught in their pride, And on account of curses and lies which they utter.

John 12:31-32

31 " Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.

32 "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself."

Seek the Spirit and the fruits of Spirit

Gal 5:16-17, 22-25

16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

James 4:7-10

7 Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

9 Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom.

10 Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.

Weep in humility and repentance from ones sin

Matt 5:4

4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Rom 12:15-16

15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.

16 Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation.

Be humble before the Lord

Ps 25:8-10

8 Good and upright is the LORD; Therefore He instructs sinners in the way.

9 He leads the humble in justice, And He teaches the humble His way.

10 All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth.To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.

2 Chron 7:14

14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Seek the Lord

Isa 22:12-14

12 Therefore in that day the Lord GOD of hosts called you to weeping, to wailing, To shaving the head and to wearing sackcloth.

13 Instead, there is gaiety and gladness, Killing of cattle and slaughtering of sheep, Eating of meat and drinking of wine: " Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we may die."

14 But the LORD of hosts revealed Himself to me, "Surely this iniquity shall not be forgiven you Until you die," says the Lord GOD of hosts.

Eccl 5:1-2

1 Guard your steps as you go to the house of God and draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools; for they do not know they are doing evil. 2 Do not be hasty in word or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few.

Seek the Lord’s wisdom

1 Cor 3:19

19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, "He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS";

James 3:13-18

13Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.

14 But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth.

15 This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic.

16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.

17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.

18 And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Prayer of repentence

Ps 51:1-17

Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness;

According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity

And cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions,

And my sin is ever before me.

4 Against You, You only, I have sinned

And done what is evil in Your sight,

So that You are justified when You speak

And blameless when You judge.

5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,

And in sin my mother conceived me.

6 Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being,

And in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom.

7 Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;

Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

8 Make me to hear joy and gladness,

Let the bones which You have broken rejoice.

9 Hide Your face from my sins

And blot out all my iniquities.

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,

And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

11 Do not cast me away from Your presence

And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation

And sustain me with a willing spirit.

13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,

And sinners will be converted to You.

14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation;

Then my tongue will joyfully sing of Your righteousness.

15 O Lord, open my lips,

That my mouth may declare Your praise.

16 For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it;

You are not pleased with burnt offering.

17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;

A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.

Suggested Hymns:

“O God Our Help in Ages Past”

“Who is on the Lord’s Side”

“Lamb of Glory”

All scripture from NASB via PC Study Bible

New Sisyphus Opines on the War on Terror

Go read this post by New Sisyphus: Read and heed.

World Cup Shenanigans

If anyone is following the World Cup at all it is clear that the referees have decided that it is their stage too. MLB went through that awhile back with their umpires and it didn't help baseball one little bit either.

FIFA needs to make it clear to the refs that they exist to help the game not vica-versa. Maybe FIFA should have an official at the games who can give a red card to the referee and bring on a substitute right in the middle: It only has to happen once.

Let the players play.

Circular Logic Alert

var A="Stay the course is not a strategy";
var B="it's a slogan";
While (A==B) {A=A+B};

People in the Wild: The Obliviot

In the tradition of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom, I've started a series called "People in the Wild". Occasionally here I will profile kinds of people one can observe around you "in the wild".

Today's profile is the "Obliviot". Obliviots are those idiots who go through life totally oblivious to everyone around them. They are characterized by a fixed forward gaze, highly directional and variable auditory reception, and unmodulated speech volume. Scientists believe that Obliviots are closely related genetically to the One-Thought-Screamer.

Obliviots are often found at the front of line whether it be the left hand lane of the highway or the local supermarket. Cell phones are an almost universal appendage and their constant use in places like movie theaters appears to some form of mating ritual or territorial marking.

Sadly there is no known predator for the Obliviot. They are impervious to harassment and embarrassment. Direct confrontation rarely has any permanent effect. Avoidance is the best way to deal with the Obliviot. If you see one observe it from a distance, make no direct contact if at all possible, and never ever come under its direct gaze. They are not directly harmful but exposure to its fixed attention will result in temporary transformation of the observer into an Obliviot.

That's all for today from People in the Wild.

Bad UN, Bad

Thursday already, goodness!

To put it simply the United Nations is bad news. The "treaties" it promulgates are even worse. Without regular cleaning and updating it has gone the way of all bad bureaucracies. It needs to be flushed into the East River and reconstituted without the one world government view. There is a role for a neutral place for nations to interact, discuss and even coordinate and decide on mutual actions, but that place should not be "a government." Extirpate and replace the UN, starting with the name: Something like The International Pow-Wow might be better. Feel free to suggest your own in the comments.

Neat Tidy Package

I'm sorry it's been so long since I posted anything. Work and home life have both been very busy, and none of the issues around have been much inspiration. My opinions on most of them can be summed up rather succinctly:

Dig a moat on the Mexican border. Use all the illegal immigrants as the labor. Make sure they end up on the Mexican side when done. Populate it with alligators from Florida. Feed them occasionally with dead (or not dead yet) terrorists to keep 'em hungry for flesh. Use the dirt to fill in New Orleans. Make sure Ray Nagin and Rep. Jefferson are under the first truck load. [originally found on the Internet, embellished by yours truly]