If Ye Love Me...

While at Yellowstone we were walking around the boardwalk at Prismatic pool, there we saw someone had taken an object and written their name in the algae mats. They also wrote these words, "I love Yellowstone." I thought, how ironic. Then the thought came to me, "If ye love me keep my commandments." (John 14:15)

I wonder, how many of us know what that means? We say we love our Heavenly Father, but then we are quick to excuse our sins. Or we may just cherry-pick those commandments that we think are more important than others.


As a Latter-day Saint, it is like sustaining our leaders and then not SUSTAINING them when they ask us to help.

God has given us these commandments as a gift to help us be happy while living with our fellow man. To dismiss them is like giving your child a present only to have them set it aside without even opening it.

The only way we truly can know the power and wisdom of God is to test his wisdom through obedience. 

On The Issue of Gay Scouts

On issues of morality, do we condemn the man who has his weakness but abstains from his desires in order to fulfill his duty to God? Pride would condemn a man for his weakness before he even acted upon his thoughts. I would dare not judge a man for his thoughts, as I have my own thoughts and weaknesses that would condemn me if I were to be judged today.

Can one be morally straight and gay at the same time? And can one be heterosexual, and not morally straight? Absolutely.

The phrase morally straight, in our current societal terms, has come to imply a sexual preference. However, I believe that it has little to do with sexual attraction, but goes much deeper than that. I believe it has a lot more to do with being trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent. All characteristics of a morally sound individual.

The BSA has struck a balance in which they separate the sin from the sinner. It is about teaching the boys how to be morally straight at a time of life when so many others are being taught that morality is relative. They have recognized that their job is to teach young men to fulfill their duty to God despite what the world says they should think, feel, or do. 

Tolerance does not mean that we accept the sin only the sinner. As we might hope that God would accept us not in our sins, but despite our own sinful nature.

The Electoral College Could Just Bring Balance To The Force

I believe that the Constitution is an inspired document. The Electoral College is definitely a part of the Constitution, but the wisdom of it has come into question on both sides of the isle as close elections are turned into an attempted to call a victory a mandate not by popular vote but by the perception of the electoral colleges vote percentages.

It is funny how now the elections are over we tend to look for a scapegoat to blame for our loss. A common scapegoat over the past several election cycles seems to be the Electoral College. I am not super familiar with the history of the Electoral College, but I understand that the founding fathers put it in the Constitution and I do believe that it was there for a purpose, though I believe that the way it is applied now is not what they intended.
After this last election I was thinking about how many on both sides feel cheated by the system. States that are dominated by democrats or republicans are easily ignored by both candidates while certain states are given more attention than they should get.
In the mean time, we all realize that there is something very wrong when the popular vote can be so different from the Electoral College vote count. It discourages many from voting because it looks like their vote doesn't even count.
I could not find anywhere in the Constitution where it says that states have to comply to the winner takes all tradition, and it seems to me that it would be in the states interest to change the winner takes all rules.
Just think for a moment if we made it so that states voted for the president along congressional boundaries. Candidates would have to appeal to more than just swing states and city dwellers. Then what if the 2 extra votes per state were appointed by the states themselves. They might be appointed based upon over all popular vote for the state, or by state appointment via the legislature?
State representation might actually force our candidates to focus on more than just social and or popular issues. With potentially 100 votes at stake it might actually require them to address states issues. This would follow the spirit of The Great Compromise and represent us not only as individuals, but as a state as well.
What if the smaller states could band together and create a regional block of votes? This might change the political system all together.
Hmmm...Just something to think about.

The Role Of The Sentinel

The role of the Sentinel is not to appease and calm your fears. His is to illuminate you to the potential of danger, to heighten your sense of urgency. The sentinel is placed outside of town in a small fortress or a watch tower and their job is to keep their eyes open for the encroaching enemy. They are the key to our being prepared when the enemy enters. These soldiers are not set to tell you everything is okay, they are there to communicate the great dangers that are coming our way.

There was a day when the media use to be this sentinel they would expose corruption and show us where it was emanating from. They would hold people responsible for their actions. They were professional and competent. They asked the hard questions and demand the answers. They were for the most part unbiased, in that if they saw corruption they didn't ask which side it came from, at least that was what their stated goal was.

Somewhere along the way we lost our sentinels, the media lost its ability to stay neutral and our watch towers have been over run by the enemy. There are very few watch towers left, but there are a few. Those who remain are doing everything they can to get your attention, which sometimes can come across as annoying, and obnoxious, and in some cases arrogant, but they have to get our attention so they do what they can, because the enemy is has just passed their towers and is approaching the city parameters.

The job of the media to ask hard questions and to investigate corruption has been taken over by such organizations as The Drudge Report, Breitbart, The Blaze, and other such organizations. These organizations have seen the enemy coming and have tried to warn us. The problem as been that most of us have been taught to watch the towers that have been taken over. We see these others and we feel something is not right, but because of what we are taught we suppose that it is those who are trying to get our attention that are wrong, because our trusted sources are not giving us any reason to suspect anything is wrong. Our sources tell us all is well, all is well...

We cant afford to ignore those who are warning us. Get out of Debt, Get a Food Storage, and Get yourself right with God, because we are about to find out what it means to be in bondage if we don't. If we are prepared we have no reason to fear, but if we are not then fear will do us no good.

Watch for the sentinels signals, and if your watchtower is telling you all is well, then you better take a closer look. I do not like doomsayers, but that is what the sentinels job is they are our first line of defense.

There is a calling for others to calm our nerves as we prepare for battle, but we can not overlook the role of the sentinel without grave consequences. 

Ron Paul, Why Do I Feel So Uneasy About Him?

I write this more as an exercise in trying to put a finger on what it is that makes me feel so uneasy about Ron Paul, or Ron Paul supporters. Ron Paul has been a figure in American Politics for quite some time. He has become the voice of libertarians. I like a lot of what I hear and in fact the more I listen the more I like, but for some reason I feel something very unsettling when people start talking about him, not those who are detractors, but those who support him.

A few years ago I was elected to be our precinct chair at our neighborhood republican caucus, not a hard fete as I was only one of three that showed up that year. I was willing to hold the caucus at my house no one else wanted the job, and it had to be filled so I took it. In fulfilling my duties I attended the organizing committee meetings. At these meetings there was a group that I observed on the fringes of our party. I liked what they had to say, but it didn't take long before I was unimpressed with their delivery. They objected to sometimes the most meaningless things and almost took meetings hostage by manipulating the rules.

Some how these folks got elected to the county leadership it didn't take long before morale was tanked and arguing and bickering started among our leadership. It was a shame. They darn near destroyed the party.

I was reelected to precinct chair by default because no one showed up the next go around. However, I resigned my position rather than deal with this group. It felt like we were going to a circus every time we had a meeting. I was not there when some of them were kicked out of the party. From that time I realized that just because a group espouses the principles of liberty did not mean they knew how to administer them, and in some cases they may become the very people they preached against. You can no more force liberty on a people than you force them to be righteous.

Since then I have become very familiar with the phrase "by their fruits ye shall know them." The fruits that these folks had before they took power was anger, frustration, bitterness, and aggression. They took office their fruits never changed. It wasn't that the principles that they espoused were bad principles it was that they did not understand how to administer those changes without dictating them. They had no understanding of how to administer agency nor freedom. They became worse than those who they thought were wrong.

I have learned that if I agree with someone 100% that does not mean that they are going to be my savior by getting into office. Sometimes it is better to be a voice in the wilderness crying repentance. Sometimes it is not our calling to lead from the front. Sometimes the best thing we can do is support a good man and gain his ear.

What makes makes me nervous about Ron Paul is not so much a Messiah complex from himself such that we seem to see in the White House today, but a Messiah complex among his followers. When listening to the talk shows if a host ever spoke even the least bit negative toward Ron Paul or even one of his teachings they have been pounced upon by Ron Paul supporters, some talk show hosts have even been receiving death threats. These things have all made me feel very leery of Ron Paul.

To me it would be very easy to believe all that Ron Paul has to say, I have in fact changed several of my views after thinking about what he preaches, but it has not changed the fact that I feel very uncomfortable among his followers as a whole. Individually I like many of his followers, but as a whole I just do not feel comfortable at all. They may be my friends, and I will talk to them and agree with almost everything they say, but I can not vote with them, not until I feel they understand what agency really means, and they know the difference between Anarchy and Liberty. When they can convince me, as a group, that they can accept that others believe differently and it is okay that they do, then I might find myself a little more comfortable voting for Ron Paul. As it is I am comfortable with Ron Paul being Paul Revere riding through the country and warning the people, and preparing us to get ready to be worthy of liberty.

The President Has A Challenger

Last night was the first Presidential debate of the 2012 Election. I was unable to watch the debate, but I did listen to it the best I could while I was sitting in with the scouts at my church. I had a hard time listening, but what I did hear sounded like Romney was handling himself very well, while President Obama was struggling. I could hardly believe what I was hearing. I wished I could have seen it, because body language says so much more about the conviction one has for their message. However, after seeing the clips and hearing even the liberal pundits I think it is safe to say that The President was handed a sound thumping at the hands of his opponent Mr. Romney. 

 After thinking about it I realized that our President is the victim of his own welfare state that he created for himself. What I mean is that he has protected himself by using the media to save him from the tough situations, the tough questions, from criticism and the scrutiny that others who have held the office of president or have run for the office of president, have had to face. Our president has been suffering the effects of reverse discrimination, which in my eyes, is worse than the effects of discrimination. Not that either is good, but reverse discrimination gives its victims a false sense of confidence among so called friends. Reverse discrimination is when those who can't really stand you don't want to look like they can't stand you so they are extra nice to you, all the while looking for ways to use you and abuse you all in the name of looking out for you. 

For the past 5 years or so, President Obama has been given the soft ball approach by the media. The media has played underhand pitch, giving him every chance to hit the ball out of the park. If you are a friend this is not a bad idea in the beginning to give him a little confidence, but eventually you have to get to where you can throw him the fast ball, the curve ball, or the knuckle ball so that he has the chance of learning to play with the big boys. Instead the media has let him think that he can do no wrong, that he can talk his way out of any situation. The confidence that his so called friends gave him, made him weak. Now, I understand this is the first debate, but he only has three and if last night was any indication as to what we might see in the future debates he might as well call in sick, at least then he wont be able to say things that might be held against him. 

Romney on the other hand has been given no softballs from the left or the right. He has fought through two presidential primaries and has not apologized for who he is. He has not acted the part of the victim nor has he asked for any special favors. He has been painted as some kind of capitalist monster, a snob, not a real person, a liar, dishonest, and much worse by the media and by the elite of both parties. Evidence shows different. I have come to know that time is the friend of a man of virtues and an enemy to the man who lacks virtue. 

The media can say all they want, plan and scheme, and hide things both positive and negative, but when you put two men side by side on live T.V. they can not hide the contrast. They may edit and clip and make things look as though it wasn't really so, but those who saw it will know what really happened. And those who saw it will be forced to acknowledge that the media is not interested in converting the informed, but controlling the uninformed and ignorant.

The President, looked like he was bewildered by the hostile, or not so hostile but nice but hard hitting challenger, Governor Romney. Our President looked like a lion with is mane shaved. He looked like he was asking for a hand out... out of the arena that is. 

Term Limits Should Be Up To Us

I apologize up front in that I do not want this to become a political blog, but there are times when politics seems to impose itself on my mind.
Term limits is an issue that is often brought up by challengers and agreed to by incumbents but rarely ever is it self imposed. I have been thinking about it, and my thoughts are not original, but they are mine. I used to be pro term limits by mandate of the law. Since, I have come to realize that would be a very bad idea. If we think corruption is bad now, imagine what might happen if every election we had a bunch of lame ducks...not that we don't already...but now they have absolutely no consideration of having to answer to their constituents.
We keep looking to government to save us from government. Where is the logic in this? This government is a government of the people. It is our responsibility to direct the government. Rather than
ask our representatives to sign a petition to pledge for term limits we should get the people to sign a pledge not to vote for the same candidate twice for a senator and 3 times for a congress man. We should be vigilant in our search for new leadership, and in developing new leaders to take the place of those who are serving us well. The longer they are left back in Washington the less they represent us and the more they represent Congress to us.  
So, while I might have supported a term limits amendment in the past, I see the wisdom of the founding fathers in not imposing it by law, but by giving us the chance to choose those who represent us, the onus is on us to keep them accountable.
We have allowed Seniority to trump wisdom. It is us, the people, who have fallen for the argument that seniority matters. And in so doing we have allowed our politicians to get away with far too many compromises. This has only emboldened them. We like them the first time they run and the second, but after that we give them the benefit of the doubt and that is not wise. We need to make being the incumbent a disadvantage instead of an automatic advantage. We need to make our politicians more replaceable instead of irreplaceable.
To every thing there is a season and for every politician there should be a term and that term should come and go as the sun rises and sets.

I Am Tired Of Political Parties

Beware of political parties. The more I think about political parties the less I see the need for them. I mean in the current atmosphere of political stink I think we have lost the purpose of the primaries and caucuses. We have already determined that come this fall we are going to elect one of two parties both of which are to blame for our current mess and both of which are unwilling to admit their part in the mess which will lead to just a bigger mess.

Politics are inherently corrupt due to the intoxication of power. Like alcohol or any other drug some may be able to function for a time, but the danger of addiction is almost inevitable. Once addicted denial and self aggrandizement begin to corrode the character of even the strongest of statesmen. It is no wonder that George Washington served with reservation and left without regret.

Once we give our total allegiance to a party we tend to lose our objective point of view and we tend to give "our side" the benefit of the doubt while scrutinizing our "enemy" for the same actions. We tend to drink the kool aid of our party leaders, not realizing that both sides are drinking out of the same bucket. Those in power are more concerned about their next fix (election) than they are about the consequences their actions have on the average person. Both parties seeking the ultimate prize of total control and domination over the other party never mind the casualties along the way.

That being said, I do believe it is our duty to get involved in the process of electing good men, getting them in and getting them out of office before they can be poisoned by the power. I have affiliated myself with the Republican party, but I have many reservations in embracing the party completely. They should have to earn my vote as much anyone.

Our country is being torn apart by all the hot air that is being blown in every direction. I am so tired of the class warfare, name calling, emotional insults, and campaign rhetoric. If I believed everything that was said I don't think I could vote for anyone.

It is the political parties that play tug of war with different demographics, with no real concern for the truth at all. All they care is that we believe them long enough that we will elect them and that we forget after they are elected. If I sound a little bit cynical then I must be communicating effectively.

I am tired of listening to how terrible this country is. I am tired of politicians thinking that we can't live without them. I am tired of political ads. I am tired of debating my friends on issues that I know if it weren't for politics telling us we believe different we might actually understand each other. I am tired of being called a racist, when I know I am not. I am tired of being accused of wanting the poor to suffer. I am tired of being accused by my friends, who know me, of being anything but what I am. I am tired of politicians defining what is right and what is wrong and what I should believe. I am tired of government forcing us to bow to the god of environmentalists and saying we do not care about the environment if we don't believe them. I am tired of being painted with  broad brush that leaves me unrecognizable.

Beware of Political parties they are destroying our desire to get along. Don't give them that power. Yes, we may think differently on some issues, but we really don't believe that differently. We may disagree with how things can be accomplished, but no one wants poisoned water, or dirty air.
Let's be honest. If our goal is to feed the hungry does it matter how it gets done as long as it gets done?The hypocrisy of our leaders is they preach one thing, and enforce another. They speak of equality, but make it impossible for us to become equal. They speak of freedom and of defending our rights while at the same time abusing the agency we gave them to defend us. They have so successfully destroyed the premise of right and wrong and made the argument about right and left, Republican and Democrat, Conservative and Liberal, that the right answer is not even in the equation.

Until "We the People" come together and realize the gift that God has given to us in this country we are going to be kicked to the curb by the very machine we allowed to be created under our very nose. We have to shake ourselves out of the sleep we have been put under and remember who we are and who we are meant to be. It doesn't matter which side you stand on, choose to stand in the light.

The Truth Always Brings Hope

Truth is not always pretty. Truth is, sometimes the truth is quite ugly, but until we learn to embrace the truth we will have no hope for peace. Hope comes by embracing the truth and dealing with it. The ugly truth tells us that hard times are going to happen. The battle between Good and Evil will have many casualties. Many will die, many will be wounded physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We will see family members seduced by the darkness. There will be times when we feel alone in our battle.
I imagine a great mist of darkness, made up of the filth and vulgar images and sounds that will blind us and make the truth hard to hear. I imagine that many of us will face our own demons in the darkness and will be tempted to shrink away, but if we understand the truth we will not. The beauty of truth is that we know who wins.

In Star Wars Anakin was a gifted child who served as a Jedi knight, but his ambitions to be the best led him to hope for more power, which the Sith Lord used to seduce him. Anakin lost everything he sought power to save. And while he gained great power, he lost all hope when in his final act as a Jedi he killed a Jedi master. Luke, the son of Anakin, on the other hand, carried inside of him the power of hope, and in the end the power of hope defeated the hope for power.

Lord of the Rings plays out a similar story of hoping against all hope, fighting a power that seems unbeatable relying upon the most unlikely of creatures to deliver that final blow to the Evil which ruled over the land without mercy. And again in the end the light purged the land of all evil.

It is easy to see who was right and who was wrong in the movies, but in real life we have feelings that are easily manipulated by those who are masters of manipulation. It becomes our responsibility to trust no one. Put not your trust in the arm of flesh, but trust in God, and in the end the light will prevail...

History Repeats Itself In Ignorance

As I grew up I remember learning the history of our country. I was taught about George Washington, and Abraham Lincoln. I was taught about the Revolutionary War, and the Civil War. I was taught about the Pilgrims and the struggles that we had as we grew as a nation. There were things that did not seem good, but over all I could see that we as a nation were continuously correcting our course. That was part of what made America great. The goodness of America encouraged us to become better. You see, when your basic nature is good you may not be perfect, but when you know something is wrong you try to change it.
That was what I learned, but something has changed...
A couple of years ago I took a class at the local community college. In the class I met a woman who came from a country that had been occupied by the Soviet Union when she was very young. She told us how her father had to listen to freedom radio in the basement for fear that anyone would find out he was listening. She told of a couple of times where she was kicked out of school because she had no interest in joining the Communist party.
About this same time my daughter was taking a history class in High School. She shared her opinion on an issue that was being debated by the then presidential candidates. Her teacher then encouraged her classmates to mock her for her beliefs. This I find disturbing. I see little difference in what happened to my daughter as compared to my classmate who lived under a communist regime.
How did we get to this point? We used to know what communism and socialism were. We saw what these systems of government did. But the history is being changed little by little by those who are further and further away from the actuality of the events and who seem hell bent on repeating history. Our historians gather evidence and make accusations against those who have no ability to defend their own good name.
It kind of reminds me of a children's book I once saw where archaeologists from the future looked back to our day and interpreted items they found. The comical interpretations were entertaining but more importantly showed how easily history can be manipulated or misunderstood when all the facts are no longer available.

It seems to me that our education system is systematically unteaching our children in the name of education. The potential of a good system in the wrong hands is outright evil. This leaves us as parents with a greater responsibility to see that our own children recognize both the truth and the lies.
We can not change history without very dire consequences.
We believed in a good heritage an America that was founded on principles of liberty and justice for all.  Our history has not all been roses, but we have learned from our mistakes. We can not change what has happened, but we can learn from what has happened and we can change..
When we teach only the bad things we miss out on the fact that America is basically good. Compare our history to any other history through out the world and I think we might find that while not all was good, it is far better than any other. America was known as a blessed land. People envied what we had. And maybe in part some came here thinking that they could bring with them the things they liked about their country, not realizing that the things they liked came with the unintended consequences. Which reminds me of another childhood story I once heard. I believe it was called Stone Soup, but I am not sure. It was about a family who loved their mothers stone soup, but each child wished that she wouldn't but in one ingredient or another. Well their wish was their mothers command and when they sat down at the table to eat they found a pot of hot water with only the stone in it. That is what I see has happened in America we have said, "I like this thing that America offers, but could you leave out..." or "could you add..."
I do believe that history repeats itself because we either become ungrateful, or ignorant, and then become arrogant. It cycles through tyrants and dictators because of their arrogance and because of our ignorance. What isn't taught in history doesn't just hurt us it often kills. When they say the devil is in the details, it is true. He is trying to hide them from us so that he can rewrite them. When the history of our past is changed that is the beginning of the end of progress.

No Social Freedom Without Financial Freedom

Some espouse the idea of total social freedom but they believe that wealth should be redistributed. Is this not a contradiction in and of itself? How can you enforce one morality while giving a pass to all others. Or how can you promote one immorality over another? What would happen to justice? At what point are Social and Financial  issues separate?
I may not like what someone does with their money, but when do I have the right to take it from them, because I feel they have abused their rights? Many people abuse their social rights and commit crimes doing it. Would we simply turn the other cheek and allow other social depravities to run rampant?
As a society we have laws that are suppose to protect our rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And when someone breaks those laws they are suppose to be punished. To simply deem someone immoral or illegal because of their financial status is itself immoral. We can not deem someone immoral just because we think they are doing something wrong, otherwise we would have chaos.
You can not have social freedom without financial freedom. A man can not be forced to change his heart without the agency to do so. Whether that heart is bad socially or financially. Each man must work out his own salvation and if he tries to work out someone else's salvation he will lose his own. It is not our job to see that our brother does right, only that he has the opportunity to do so.

Unions Giving Your Power Away

Unions interest me. I see the cover picture of unions as a very powerful concept, the voice of the people joining together to force change for the better. Yet something has always bothered me about them. It started in earnest when I worked in Las Vegas for awhile and had to work at night for our own safety because we did not belong to a union. Before that I didn't feel comfortable with the idea, but I was not really against them either. As I have looked further into my own feelings my understanding has increased and I have come to a understand why I feel the way I do...besides the threats.

The idea of a union to increase the power of your voice is kind of alluring. It kind of reminds me of Ursula from the Little Mermaids. Ursula recruited those who wanted something better than what they had, but in order to get what they wanted they had to give up their power they already owned. She knew that once she had their power, she had nothing to worry about. She would never have to give them what they really wanted. She was EEEVIIIIL!!!!

I see unions as a threat to the individual. When we trade our voice in for a collective voice we lose our own voice. In the beginning, unions look good. They have great ideals, promises of a living wage, job security, and the power of your voice to reign in bad business practices. Once they have your voice, what you think is not nearly as important as the Union's agenda. You join because together the collective voice has more money, more power to get the attention of politicians. However, as each Union gets bigger the voice does get louder, but you do not recognize that voice as your own, instead of the collective sounding like the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, it sounds like Roseanne Barr singing the National Anthem.

As Unions join with other Unions suddenly what you thought was a good thing starts to feel like you have no control whatsoever. It is then that you recognize Ursula for who she is. Your dues have fed this monstrosity that you have to feed in order to feed your family. Now you start hearing that tune of Doctor Proctor playing in your head. You know, "Doctor, doctor have mercy on me. Your cure is worse than my disease...."

We can not afford to compromise our individual power, by handing it over to any group. Like a candle on its own there is little light but two individual candles together work to synergize their power. One large candle may burn brighter than one small candle, but it does not have the same synergistic potential as many smaller candles working together on their own.

Welfare: Don't Feed The Bears

I was watching a documentary on Yellowstone Park the other day. They talked about how the government built up Yellowstone National Park as a tourist destination. One part of the story really caught my attention, mostly because it was an example of man messing with the natural order of God's creations. Yellowstone bears were being fed by tourists and several tourists were being mauled and some were even killed, if you can imagine that.
Well, as I see it if you warn people and they ignore the warnings then they must suffer the effects of disobedience   to their own good judgement and common sense. That can be deadly in some cases... Anyways, the government in its desire to make it safe for not so brilliant people to view the wildlife designated certain areas where they would dump food for the bears. Suddenly the number of bears began to decline. They noted that the bears when they did not have to hunt for their food lost their skills to hunt and they relied more on the food that they were given, which did not give them the nutrients that they needed to survive their hibernation.
So, it is in nature, so it is with men. Help those who need help, but if you take without offering and honing your own skills you are likely to lose the skills you have and when the "winter" comes, you will not be ready to survive. An easy meal may keep you alive temporarily, but in the long run, it will leave you malnourished and wanting for more.
It is our responsibility to help our fellow man, it is also our responsibility to take care of ourselves. There is a fine balance between giving and taking that nature allows for without destroying both the giver and the taker. A giver that gives too much or a taker that takes too much is destroyed by the contempt developed by those who take without gratitude. 

Free Enterprise and Personal Discipline

There are many who want to discredit Free Enterprise and Capitalism because some make a lot while others make little to nothing. I believe that Free Enterprise and Capitalism are being blamed for the greed of Commercialism. Even at that it is often overlooked that poverty in a Free Enterprise System has a higher standard of living than in any other system in existence today.

It does not matter what system we look at, throughout the world of ideas, greed will always play a factor in the haves and the have nots. Those who promote progressivism, socialism, or communism can not dispute that the upper echelon of society will still control the majority of the capital. The only difference between these systems is who has control of the capital and how much they are willing to allow others some stake in the game.
I believe that despite the frailties of Free Enterprise it is still far fairer than any other system in that you do not need to be a part of the political elite to own property and or influence the direction of the country, all you need to do is find a need and fill it.
Commercialism however has a tendency to take a more aggressive line and creates needs out of wants and flips priorities on their head. Living with Commercialism requires a personal discipline, but I believe that with personal discipline comes personal growth and the opportunity to increase in wisdom and understanding.

The Environment Is A Resource To Be Used...Not Abused.

I am not an environmentalist, but I like what nature has to offer. I love the outdoors and I feel a great desire to see that it is preserved that my children may enjoy the sites and activities that I have been able to enjoy.

That being said, I believe that God gave us this earth and its resources to be used and enjoyed, but not abused. It is our responsibility to take care of this earth. To be kind to our environment. To create technology that will enhance our environment, to increase the usefulness of our environment, and to renew our environment.

I believe that the current environmental movement has little to do with the environment and more to do with power and control. That, I see as an abuse of the environment. We must be careful in our fight against environmentalism not to throw out the proverbial baby with the bath water. We must be allowed to develop our technology at a natural pace or we will end up replacing the old technology before the new technology is ready.

Tend the garden God has given you. Take care of it, so that when the season ends it will bring forth fruit.

How Do You See Freedom?

I believe that the Spirit of Freedom is the Spirit of God. I believe that our freedoms are inherently attached to our  God given agency. Without the ability to exercise our agency we can not progress. To be forced to do what is right takes away our agency and takes away our own ability to figure out what is right or what is wrong.

How we see freedom often times shows our attitude towards it. Do we see what freedom has done for others? Or do we look at what freedom has done to others? Do we see what freedom will do for others? Or do we see what freedom may do to others? How do we use the freedoms we have? Do we even know what freedoms we do have?
I personally choose to see what freedom does for the majority of those who live within its influence. Freedom, however, is like money or a gun, used in the right hands is a blessing to the barer and a benefit to those around them. In the wrong hands it is a curse to themselves and a danger to those around them.

Where much is given much is expected... It is our responsibility to protect our own agency by doing what we know is right. It is our responsibility protect our freedoms by understanding them and by electing those who will defend our rights. And it is our responsibility to warn others of those things which will destroy both our agency and our freedoms.

Redistribution of Wealth?

Talk about politically correct terminology. Redistribution of Wealth? Stealing is stealing whether you break into a home and take the money yourself or you "elect" someone else to do it for you. The only difference is if the other guy takes the money you can claim innocence. It's alot easier to avoid the guilt that way. Right?

Since when was it our patriotic duty to condemn a man for securing his families financial future. When did it become our right to determine the worthiness of another man's quest to provide vital services to his fellow man? How can you condemn a man who creates wealth for the purpose of solving problems such as finding a cure for cancer or diabetes or ahlziemers. What right do you have to claim to know the heart of a man by condemning him as "greedy?"

Greed comes when risk is taken away. If you have no opportunity to fail you can not succeed. Because success is measured by overcomming your failures. Without that option you you are just going through the motions. If there is no faith required, then God is not needed.

Politics the Art of Destroying "We The People," But in a Nice Way

My apologies for this continuation of the political rants. However, tis' the season! And as much as I hate politics I know that it is important. Hopefully my voice can be heard even if nowhere else but in this little world I am creating. Anyhoo, this is a paper I wrote for my writing class. I hope you enjoy!

Politics the Art of Destroying "We The People," But in a Nice Way

Wow! This political season has been one heck of a long season. It is not every election year that the peacocks strut their stuff so early. This season has been extremely long due to the fact that the sitting vice president has chosen not to run for president and the current president has served his maximum time, leaving both parties without a clear front runner. This has left us “The People” unprotected from the political fluff. As each side squares off displaying their tail feathers to us and spewing promises left and right, you know that this is a fight to the end… to the end of us, “The People.”
I have never felt so unimpressed with political candidates on both sides. Amidst the melt down of the American economy politicians have managed to turn this country into a consolation prize for the rest of the world. Once this country stood for stability, strength, ingenuity, honor, and just true grit, now she’s on life support. What happened? Politicians promised more than they had the right to promise. Playing the game of Russian roulette each term of “service” holding their breathe all the while pointing the gun at us The people.
The power of this country has always been in its people. We were a strong country because the government had not figured out how to break the will of the people. But sadly, I think they have learned their lesson, and we the people are going to pay the price. We have been hypnotized by the feathers and fluff of skillful politics. They make it sound so good: Free health care, free money for the poor, everyone will love each other, and they will change the world! Blah, blah, blah… I think I saw that last time. In fact I think that I have heard that time and time again. Like an annoying song you can’t get out of your head.

Change? Reform? Which word means that America will come first? Which word means that The People will remain free forever? Which word means we will stop the name calling and the “Politics of Personal Destruction”? Which word means we can be friends with our neighbors without being told that we can’t like them because they think, look, eat, sleep, or speak different than we do? Which one means, “By Damn we will fix this problem and we will do it Now!”?
Instead we get these two parties that couldn’t care less about the people. They will destroy the people if they have to, in order to satisfy their hunger for power. Neither side will back down. They just circle each other around and around looking for the weakness, looking for an opportunity to pounce; all the while we the people stand oblivious to the powers we have given up. Kind of like the spouse who gives up the check book to their shop happy partner. The partner brings home lingerie, and nice furniture, wonderful Entertainment Systems, etc., and the spouse says, “hey, I like this, I am really glad I turned the check book over to my wonderful partner. I can’t believe the benefits of this deal, if you know what I mean.” Then suddenly the bill collectors start calling.
We have allowed our taxes to go to back to Washington, our “shop happy partner.” Who goes out and buys the lipstick and lingerie, and then play their sick little game of Russian roulette. Promising us everything and telling us it is okay because we can just get our money from the rich dude down the street. As the rich dude packs his bags in the middle of the night and leaves the country for safe harbors, such India, Mexico, China, or where ever he can hide from the red sickle of the American Politician.

You know the sickest part of this whole thing is that we the people get excited every time they add a bullet to the revolver. Look how perty she is. Bang! America, “We the People,” are no more. Dead, but at least it was done in a nice way.

Letter to the Editor Divisiveness of Political Corectness

Dear Editor,

When it comes to racism and prejudice, we need to be able to speak our mind. When we are afraid to say what we feel it builds up resentment and anger. This anger and resentment leads to attitudes and acts of racism and prejudice. Under the guise of trying not to offend anyone we offend everyone.
Whether on purpose or on accident political correctness has worked to divide us as human beings. We have been divided by color, religion, socio-economic status, education, political beliefs, etc. We have been taught to hate those who have, and look down on those who have less. We may agree on more than we disagree, but we are taught to listen and obey a few people who “know what is best for us.”
What is the answer? I don’t know for sure, but we can start by opening an honest dialogue void of political correctness. And void of any other motive than getting to know one another. Let’s share our frustrations, our fears, our discomforts. Then maybe we can share our hopes and dreams with each other. Maybe without the divide of political walls between us we can verbally duke it out and walk away friends.

Why Relativity is so important to Progressives

The Progressive belief in relativity stems from the fact that they herald theories over absolute truth. Their reality has become based on the particular theory they embrace. They reject God because if they accepted the premise that God exists they would have to reject their theory until they could find the absolute truth. Because God, being the truth, is the ultimate end of education.
So, maybe you can see their predicament. They have become so forward thinking that they can see the end of the need for thier existence. If it gets out, that God exists, they might lose their jobs.