Is it OK to Laugh Now?

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Shiny and Beautful but Check Under the Hood

Barack Obama recently introduced a new seal, designed, no doubt, to resemble the Presidential seal. These days, running for office is more of a marketing campaign than a test of qualifications. Packaging a presidential hopeful now requires Madison Avenue expertise.

Unknown just a year ago, Obama blasted off and quickly shot to the top of the polls with his captivating rhetoric and his catch phrases "Yes We Can" and "Change We Can Believe In." Luring and attractive, this candidate appeals mostly to those who don't care for substance, or those who don't even realize that substance actually exists. Women have fainted at his rallies. He has been dubbed Obamamessiah by those who see through his brittle facade.

Retired Army Lieutenant Colonel and well known essayist and novelist Ralph Peters recently remarked that Obama is like a beautiful Ferrari with no engine under the hood.

I agree.

And apparently, this is just the beginning. For Obama's next marketing move, click here.

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The Price of a Well Oiled Machine

The gradual creep of of governmental control over our daily lives marches on slowly, methodically, and unnoticed by millions. Way too many people actually believe that our federal government can be more efficient and more effective in managing our day-to-day affairs than we can ourselves. Year by year, Americans relinquish a little bit more of their freedoms for what they believe is security.

But on the whole, government-run programs have proven to be a colossal failure. Nearly thirty years, and billions upon billions of dollars after the U.S. Department of Education came into existence in 1979 at the end of Jimmy Carter's term, look at the still pitiful condition of education in America.

LBJ's attempt to create a "Great Society" failed utterly. Our nation's "War on Poverty" and "War on Drugs" have been nothing more than black holes, draining American treasure.

Medicare, Medicade, and Social Security limp along under the constant threat of collapse. FEMA flunked a major exam when tested on Hurricane Katrina. And yet our politicians continue to promise us the moon even as one government run program after another fails to deliver.

Just recently, two Democractic Congresspeople said that the federal government should take control of oil companies. Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) said, “We should own the refineries. Then we can control how much gets out into the market.” And Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), in a recent Congressional hearing let slip these thoughts about government control of the oild industry. “Guess what this liberal (referring to herself) will be about? This liberal will be all about socializing - um, uh … will be about … basically … taking over, and the government running all of your companies.”

Two government run institutions do seem to work fairly well, however. America's space program, run by NASA, has, with a few bumps along the way, consistently yielded a good return on our investment dollars. Perhaps this is because space, and the technology it fosters, is really an industry.

But the greatest, historically proven success in government run institutions is the military. We can disagree on the merits or even morality of fighting in Iraq, but most will concede that our Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and even our Coast Guard are essentially well oiled machines. Yes, they too experience waste and mismanagement, but on the whole, they are far more efficient than other government run institutions.

But why is the military so much more successful at what it does than those government run programs on the civilian side? Could it be because military authority is so much more absolute? When a young man or woman joins the military, they surrender just about everything. They no longer have control over their time. They cannot choose where they live or what they do. Their wardrobe is very limited. They don't even have the ability to choose their own doctor or hospital should they need medical care.

So, be careful what you wish for. If you want the "government" to care for you from cradle to grave, then be prepared to surrender your freedom.

The Myth of Multiculturalism

America's journey down the road toward multiculturalism leads to a cliff.

Before you throw up your hands in disgust and write me off as another racist, xenophobic, close-minded, right-wing religious nut, ask yourself a simple question:

What is culture?

For our purposes we will limit the exploration of the word's meaning to a "set of learned beliefs, values and behaviors—the way of life shared by the members of a society."

The word "culture" stems from the Latin word cultura which finds its roots in the word "worship." At the heart of every culture is who or what the people of a culture worship.

Archaeological findings from ancient cultures demonstrate the central role of religion in national life since the beginning of time. The ancient Egyptians, primarily a farming culture, worshipped many gods, each representing a different part of the nature that was so much a part of their daily lives: Ra, the sun god; Tefnut, the god of rain; Seb, god of the earth; and Nat, goddess of the sky.

The Greeks also gave obeisance to a variety of gods. The list is long, but here are a few: Zeus and Poseidon—nature; Apollo—music, prophecy, poetry, archery; Dionysus—wine, festivals, merriment; Aphrodite—love, lust, beauty; Ares—war, murder, bloodshed.

Although these ancient cultures worshipped many gods, their gods collectively represented their core beliefs. Each of their "small g" gods embodied an element of life that held significance for their singular culture. These ancient communities were not multicultural. They had one religion consisting of numerous deities, each with limited power. But together, these deities incorporated the whole.

In constrast, the ancient Hebrews worshipped one, all-powerful God who they believed had revealed Himself at various times, in various ways, to various people. Their primary source of knowledge of God came from the Pentateuch, what we know today as the first five books of the Old Testament. But on many occasions throughout the history of ancient Israel, we see a straying from the worship and obedience to the God of the Pentateuch, and an embracing of the gods of neighboring cultures: Dagon, the chief Phillistine god; Baal, the Caananite god; Ashtoreth, god of the Phoenicians; Chemosh, god of the Moabites.

Whenever the Israelites abandoned the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, they fell prey to the myth of multiculturalism. They believed that they could have things both ways. They wanted God's blessings to continue while they disobeyed His commands.

But their frequent experimenting with other religions always took them to the edge of a cliff. And sometimes they tumbled over the side to their deaths.

Throughout the world, many countries, especially western nations, include a "state religion" as a central component of their nationhood. Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Finland recognize the Lutheran Church as their official "state religion." Great Britain long ago established Anglicanism as theirs, and many of the cantons (states) of Switzerland list the Reformed faith as theirs. Likewise, most Middle Eastern nations recognize Islam as their official "state religion."

The historic success of American culture rests largely upon its Judeo-Christian foundation. For generations, Americans embraced the idea that we were a Christian nation. Though made up of Christians from many streams, from mainstream Protestant, to Evangelical and Pentecostal, to Catholic and Orthodox, we rested secure in the knowledge that on Sunday mornings it was Jesus Christ being worshipped almost universally from Boston to San Diego, from Miami to Seattle.

Whether English, Scottish, Irish, Dutch, German, Scandanivian, French, Italian, Greek, Polish, or Czech, we knew that America was first and foremost a Christian nation. We brought with us our unique sub-cultural flavors, but we embraced America first, and did not find offense in its rudimentary, Christian quintessence.

And yet, neither of our nation's two founding documents (the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution) mention Jesus Christ, or even name God directly. By the time our nation's founders sat down to craft the constitution that would form and govern our new nation, many Christian faiths were represented throughout the thirteen colonies. But our nation's founders purposefully determined not to make Christianity our "state religion."

Historian Sydney Ahlstrom, in his work titled, A Religious History of the American People, dubs America from it's beginnings in the early 1600's to the Civil War era of the mid-1800's, as The Protestant Empire. Protestant Christianity has been, and remains, the primary religious component of our republic. In generations past, White Anglo-Saxon Protestants (WASPs) dominated America's cultural landscape. For the first 171 years of American history, we did not elect one Catholic to our nation's highest office. Not until John F. Kennedy took the oath of office in 1961 did we put a non-Protestant man in the White House. And we have not elected a non-Protestant since. Out of our 43 presidents to date, 42 of them have been Protestants.

Through the years, those on the outside of this dominant Protestant circle (Catholics and Jews) learned to bear the sometimes-inflicted stigma of being non-Protestant in a Protestant land. Blacks and native Americans however bore the almost insufferable burden of being labeled by many as "sub-human." Thus, even in the midst of the God-rendered blessings of liberty and prosperity, our "Protestant Empire" became tarnished and stained by our unChristian treatment of those not like us.

Despite the abominable actions of some in our past, our Christian nation remained strong and secure from its inception through WWII. Yet bubbling beneath the surface, a cauldron of atheistic, hedonistic, and socialistic unrest threatened to erupt.

United for generations by our mutually-embraced Christian faith, we began to slowly gravitate toward the conduits of popular culture to define our Americanness. Film, radio, telelvision and youthful music began to unite Americans in a new way. The Civil Rights Movement arrived in our homes via our televisions, while our movies began to portray the darker side of American history. Racial unrest in many of our nation's urban areas, and social unrest among our youth, opened wide a crack in our Christian civilization. The bubbling, godless cauldron beneath the surface broke through and began gushing across the landscape.

Those promoting godlessness and secularism employed our own shame and embarassment to weaken our resolve, using the unsightly components of our own history against us. Faced with the ugly reality of some of our Christian forbears' unseemly conduct, and the guilt and shame it produced, many Christians shrunk back from defending our Christian heritage.

Into the breach swept the new false religions of atheism, socialism, materialism, moral relativism, political correctness, humanism, Darwinism, narcissism, radical feminism, hedonism, and nihilism (love of death). These are the gods we wrestle with today, the gods who are turning our nation from a thriving Christian culture, into a multicultural mess of self-worshipping heathenism.

Blogger Baron Bodissey of Gates of Vienna expresses so well what I have been trying to articulate in The Greatest Betrayal in History:

"What we are dealing with in the Western world is demographic warfare closely aligned with psychological warfare, aimed at breaking down our self-confidence and self-awareness to the point where our technological superiority is rendered useless because we are ashamed of ourselves or incapable of articulating what we should fight for. Sun Tzu in The Art of War said that wars are won in the temples before they are fought. The mass media are the temples of our time, which means that we are currently losing badly."

Hatred of America is now widely promoted in our schools and in our media. In many places within our own borders, America has become something to loath and despise. Consider the recent remarks by presidential candidate, Barak Obama:

"And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

Without pride in our nation and culture, we will not rise to defend them. Indeed we will likely assist in their destruction either by direct action, or by doing nothing.

Multiculturalism, the false idea that a nation can serve many gods at once, will be the end of America.

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Domestication, Feminization, Wussification Part II

My online conversation at Black Velvet Bruce Lee under the author's blog entry of Happy Metrosexual Fathers Day continued as another reader commented on my comments:

Mark W. Weaver, What happened 40 years ago that changed things around? I am curious.

So, I replied:

Let’s see. Where do I begin… ?

1) Prayer was taken out of the public schools (45 years ago)

2) The Supreme Court approved the murder of the unborn, allowing pregnant parents to discard their children because of inconvenience, thus devaluing “human life” in general (Roe v. Wade 35 years ago)

3) Playboy, Penthouse, and likeminded publications began the devaluing of women, telling men that its OK to yield to their baser instincts, and that women were merely objects to be possessed

4) Moral absolutism was rejected in favor of moral relativism

5) Universities ceased the practice of historic, classic, liberal education, and began promoting agenda-driven, political ideologies

6)LBJ’s “Great Society” and the birth of the modern welfare state released young men from their fatherly responsibilities and rewarded women for having babies out of wedlock

7) Filmmakers and television producers loosened their standards, showing fornication, adultery, violence, and crude language, all of which demean humanity

8)The wholesale promotion in public education of Darwin’s ideas of “evolution,” “natural selection,” and the “survival of the fittest” have reduced many of us to a life where only our wants and needs matter

9) The institution of marriage became weakened as more and more couples just “shacked up” without a marriage covenant, the divorce rate soared because marriage was minimalized, and the offspring of these relationships suffered greatly for lack of strong family ties, poor role models, and vision for life

All of these changes have sapped hope and stolen vision from us, especially our young. The idea of living for something larger than ourselves, and embracing the sacrifices required by such a vision, is now passé.

I’ll stop there …

Now, as promised, here is the remainder of my thoughts on Manhood and Manliness penned eight years ago.

Manliness in the Church. Scripture employs allegorical portraits of both construction projects and gardens to convey God’s principles. His first commandment to man charged him with fruitfulness, growth and the subjugation of the whole earth (Gen. 1:28). In essence God said, “Here’s the earth—build and plant!” Every time ground is broken for a construction project or the cultivation of the earth, man fulfills God’s Biblical command to subdue the earth.

Mankind is made in God’s image—both male and female. Building and planting come naturally to us. For centuries, men utilized their hands and tools to plant their fields and craft earth’s raw materials into finished products. Many of America’s most common names reflect our heritage from the trades: Chandler, Cooper, Glover, Mason, Miller, Sawyer, Smith, Turner and Webster.

When we use our hands to build and plant, to craft and create, we engage in the subjugation of the earth—we fulfill God’s first commandment. And creative activity is by no means limited to the male gender. Women also find great joy in crafting and producing. And many now work in the trades alongside men.

Made in God’s image, men and women bear both masculine and feminine qualities. Naturally, men tend to be more masculine and women more feminine. But it is not unusual for a man to cry or for a woman to make a logical assessment.

The Church of our generation contains both feminine and masculine expressions. Some pastors utilize teaching, sound doctrine and reasoned Biblical arguments to engage their congregants and guests. Others employ emotion to move both the lost and the saved. Altar calls generally appeal more to the emotional part of man than the cerebral. On balance, the current trend finds the American Church moving toward knowing God through emotional experience and away from an intellectual knowledge and understanding of God.

In truth, God desires that we know Him in all ways possible. God is Spirit and we must first have a spiritual knowledge of Him—we must be born of the Spirit. As we mature, our intellectual understanding of God grows alongside our emotional experiences.

To say that the Church needs more manliness means that Church life must include more than the joy of relationships with God and fellow believers. To be complete, we should be producing, creating, building and planting. We should be bringing in our manly earth movers and heavy equipment and demolishing vain imaginations, pulling down intellectual as well as spiritual strongholds, laying in spiritual infrastructure and erecting spiritual edifices for the furtherance of God’s kingdom.

God’s kingdom should be expanding and not simply absorbed in recovery, fellowship and times of praise and worship. Our minds should be expanding as well, learning more and more about God and His plans and purposes in creation. We should be taking ground for God.

Is it any wonder when our church marquis’ display messages like “Jesus Cares About You” that most of our churches have more women in their pews than men? Why not deliver a masculine message? “God’s Kingdom is Under Construction. Come in and Help Us Build.”

Over the last few generations in the western world, technology and progress have moved us from our fields and shops to factory production lines and offices with desks and computers. Much has happened in recent generations to strike at Christian manhood and manliness.

Today, Christian manhood is in recovery. With the growing influence of organizations such as Ransomed Heart Ministries, Christian men are slowly, painfully, beginning to rediscover what it means to be a man of God.

But how much have progress and technology denuded the Christian man of his manliness? What are the implications of a lack of manliness in the Church's ranks? Have 20th and 21st century Christians drifted away from the noble themes of godly manliness found in generations past, and in Scripture, and settled for a stripped down version of Church life?

I say we have.

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Domestication, Feminization, Wussification Part I

Black Velvet Bruce Lee posted an interesting blog today titled Happy Metrosexual Fathers Day. The well read local blog engendered some interesting comments, most in support of a return to manhood and manliness. I offered my two cents worth:

"A question to the male readers of this blog:

When you were growing up, did you desire to one day be a pampered, nice, sensitive man? It’s doubtful.

"No. As a boy you longed for battles to fight, adventures to live, and a beauty to rescue. America has been feminized by popular culture, by political correctness, by televison, movies, and poor role models, and by the grossly imbalanced ratio between male and female educators in our schools. The “establishment” and the “experts” have been attempting for years to “domesticate” our boys, to make them more like girls. Instead, many an American male has been quietly “castrated.”

"I am not an any way denigrating female teachers. The vast majority work hard and do their best in the face of great and growing challenges. But because they are female, they represent only half of the adult role model for the boys under their tutelage. Without male educator counterparts, the boys suffer.

"Sadly, today’s male role models are fantasy superheroes, self-centered, overpaid atheletes, and rude, crude, and vulgar action heroes. Fewer and fewer young men have genuine fatherly figures to look up to, to emulate.

"A real man can be manly without crudeness. A real man can be gentle when necessary, but uncompromising and tough as nails when he knows he is in the right, when he is defending his family, his property, or his nation.

"We have lost a great deal of ground in the last forty years."

And then I remembered something I had written about eight years ago:

Manhood and Manliness

What is the difference between manhood and manliness? The following stories may help distinguish the two.

Manhood. Sometimes we can learn much about a subject by studying what it is not. Take for example Frank, a hard working, thirty-five year old. Recently married, Frank and his wife are expecting their first child. Not long ago, Frank decided to purchase a $35,000, top-of-the-line diesel pick-up truck. When questioned about his extravagance, Frank responded that now that he was starting a family, he wanted one last opportunity to spend some money on himself. When further questioned regarding his excitement at becoming a father, Frank offered a telling response:

“Well … I don’t know … there’s going to be so much change in my life. I’m going to have to give up so many of the things I’m used to having. My whole lifestyle is going to be different.”

Yes, marriage and family will change Frank’s lifestyle, his bank account and his whole outlook on life. But at the age of thirty-five, isn’t it about time for Frank to grow up?

Such is the essence of manhood—maturing, accepting responsibility, learning to place the needs of others above our own. Manhood involves self-sacrifice and accountability. Others are depending upon us, looking to us for their care and provision. We are leaders, if not yet in our communities and workplaces, then at least in our homes.

Christian manhood involves even more. Christ has become our standard. His lifestyle of purity and righteousness and serving others becomes our model. His example of the ultimate self-sacrifice becomes the basis for our conduct in the world.

What then is manliness? Another story may help elucidate.

Manliness. Tom and John own an excavation company. Running their business requires expertise in many areas. Not only are Tom and John skilled in construction, they also have to work up estimates, produce proposals, negotiate contracts, meet deadlines, manage their workers and their subcontractors and make certain that their invoices are paid on time.

Responsibilities sometimes create stress. Tom and John enjoy getting out in the field with their projects and workers. Tom particularly enjoys running his bulldozer, clearing the land of trees and scrub bushes and performing rough grading on the site. John finds pleasure in working the backhoe, digging trenches and laying pipe.

Bulldozers, backhoes, front-end loaders, generators, earth-movers, cranes and other heavy equipment are manly things. On Tim Allen’s popular television show, Home Improvement, tools and equipment take center stage. Tim “the tool man” Taylor appeals to such a broad audience because he has cleverly touched the very heart of manliness.

As homeowners, few joys compare with planning and building improvements to our homes and property. A home addition or renovation, a new deck or patio, a paint job, or even a freshly cut lawn brings untold satisfaction to the manly part of us.

God understands manly nature. After all, He created us men. Here’s what He said to the prophet Jeremiah:

“See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.” (Jer. 1:10)

Jeremiah’s mission from God consisted of two essential components:

• Demolition and uprooting. Men delight when a wrecking ball smashes an old building into rubble or when a lumberjack hollers “timber,” signifying a crashing tree. We like explosions. And we enjoy turning over the soil in our gardens.
• Building and planting. Men’s chests puff out just a little when they enter the basement of a newly constructed home and inspect the floor joists and bracing. “I would have preferred 2 x 10 fir myself.” Men stop and peer through knotholes at building construction sites. “What’s going on down there? Are they pouring footers, pilings? Is that foundation going to be deep enough?” Many men also take great pride in planting trees and shrubs and even flowers.

Yeah, this is real man stuff. I'll post more tomorrow.

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Divinization

I learned a new word today—divinization. It means "to make divine" or "to deify."

This is precisely what is happening, in the shadows, in North America.

Systematically, in both Canada and the U.S., quasi-governmental groups functioning under banners which usually include the words "Human Rights Commission," are methodically dismantling our rights to free speech. Fueled by what some are now calling a "grievance culture," the power of these so-called "Human Rights Commissions" has quietly grown over the past decade.

In Alberta, Canada, after several years of hearings, Pastor Stephen Boisson was ordered to cease all forms (including newspapers, emails, sermons from the pulpit, and postings on the Internet) of expressing his views on homosexuality, and to pay a $7,000.00 fine.

His crime? He published a letter in the Red Deer Advocate in which he expressed his views about the nature and dangers of homosexuality.

The judgment came down from The Alberta Human Rights Commission, an independent commission of the Government of Alberta established under The Alberta Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act (HRCM Act) to "carry out functions under the Act." The Commission reports through "the Minister of Culture and Community Spirit, who has responsibility for human rights issues."

A similar trial under this same human rights "tribunal" is now ongoing against Ezra Levant, the publisher of the Western Standard magazine. Levant made the grevious error of publishing the now infamous Danish cartoons of the Muslim Prophet Muhammad. An Islamic Imam and a group of Muslims persuaded The Alberta Human Rights Commission to pursue Levant, a man who will not roll over for them, but is vigorously defending himself. See Levant in action here:



In British Columbia, writer Mark Steyn, Canadian author of America Alone, has been on trial by the "British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal" for publishing the words of a Norwegian Islamic Imam in McLean's Magazine.

In another case, Fr. Alphonse de Valk, editor-in-chief of The Catholic Insight, is being dragged through an expensive hearing process for writing about traditional Catholic teaching on homosexuality.

In yet another case, Christian Horizons, a charity group that ministers to the handicapped, has been ordered by the "Ontario Human Rights Commission" to cease requiring their employees to sign a "Lifestyle Agreement," attesting to their own personal commitment to live according to Judeo-Christian moral standards.

Of the judgment against Christian Horizons, Fr. de Valk writes, "By presenting state and God as equal opposites between whom we must choose, Gunter and Hannaford appear to accept the fascist order whereby the state tells the citizen what he may and may not do, think, and write."

These so-called Human Rights Commissions are popping up everywhere. We even have one right here in Prince William County. The "thought police" are growing in power.

Yes, the state is beginning to compete with God for our souls, our hearts, and our minds. Powerful people in high places are brazenly attempting to usurp God's place as our judge, setting up their own standards of right and wrong and carrying out their laughable sentences upon those who refuse to conform.

And we continue to allow them to be deified, to be made godlike in their power, to be divinized.

We would all be wise to stay alert.

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A Most Important List

As the attention span of the average American grows shorter and shorter, the list of publishers using lists grows longer and longer. Here's a list of ten lists from recent magazine covers:

1. Men's Health: 10 Ways to Supercharge a Boring Gym Session
2. Good Housekeeping: 10 Best Places to Raise a Family
3. Popular Science: America's 50 Greenest Cities
4. Southern Living: 40 Things Every Southerner Should Do
5. Cosmopolitan: 250 of Your Beauty Questions Answered
6. Consumer Reports: 10 Common Car-Buying Mistakes
7. Popular Photography: 101 Tips
8. Money: The 10 Best Big Cities
9. Fast Company: 15 Reasons Google is No. 1
10. Sports Illustrated: The Top 100 Sports Books of All Time

Just about everyone enjoys perusing a list. In 1977, Irving Wallace, his son David Wallechinsky, and his daughter, Amy Wallace published The Book of Lists. The work of this trio has grown into a decades long enterprise, with four sequels. Their latest, The New Book of Lists, appeared in 2005.

As a writer, I easily forget that most folks like their reading in tiny bites. And I constantly struggle to keep my words to a minimum. I don't always succeed.

As we move into the general election season, I offer below, my list of ten cornerstones of our American republic. These ten cornerstones played a major role in forming our nation, enabling freedom and prosperity to flourish through the generations in our land.

Yet over the last seventy years, we have been gradually veering further and further from the core principles represented by the words below. And as we do, our freedom is slowly being chipped away.

As you evaluate candidates this fall, set their ideas up against this list and see how they fare.

The list is not new. I originally published it on July 4th, 2006. I have since added one more cornerstone—property.

Today I offer only the list. If you wish to delve deeper into the ideas behind the words below, click here.

1. Transcendence
2. Self-Government
3. Liberty of Conscience
4. Individuality
5. Moral Law
6. Covenantalism
7. Separation of Powers
8. Republicanism
9. Federalism
10. Property

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The Decline and Fall of our Once Great Nation

Our nation, the cradle of freedom, "the last best hope" as author William Bennett calls us, is collapsing around us. There are many reasons for our seemingly pending demise, but Edward Gibbon in his classic work, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, summed it up very nicely:

1. The undermining of the dignity and sanctity of the home—the very basis of human society.
2. Higher and higher taxes; the spending of public money for free bread and circuses for the populace.
3. The mad craze for pleasure; sports and other entertainment becoming every year more and more exciting, more brutal and more immoral.
4. The building of great armaments when the real enemy was within . . . the decay of individual responsibility.
5. The decline of religion—faith fading into mere form; losing touch with life, losing power to guide the people.

Where to begin? Let's launch into the second half of number four—the decay of individual responsibility.

In 1993, the last first lady of the twentieth century, Ms. Hillary Clinton, was commissioned by her husband, the president of the United States, to develop a plan for universal health care. The failure of this effort is widely known, and Ms. Clinton herself has owned up to the washout with the explanation that she shot for too much, too fast. She has acknowledged that she failed to listen to Congress, who would ultimately have to approve her plan. She wanted 100% coverage for every American, a massively huge step that the Congress was not prepared to make.

Barring a political earthquake, Clinton's Democratic primary opponent, Barak Obama, will in August, become his party's nominee for president. The silver tongued one, the man who has mesmerized so many with his silky smooth rhetoric, is also promising "universal health care."

But that isn't all he is promising. In the closing moments of his speech on the night of the last primary, June 3rd, Mr. Obama promised us the world:

"... generations from now, we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we began to provide care for the sick and good jobs to the jobless; this was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal; this was the moment when we ended a war and secured our nation and restored our image as the last, best hope on Earth."

WOW!

So prior to now, the sick in America have never been cared for? And I guess work for the unemployed has never been remedied by the private sector before, so now it's up to Obama to fix all of that for us? Somehow the marvelous Barack Obama is going to quell the invetiable swelling of the oceans from melting icebergs, and heal our planet!

Al Gore, the man who invented the Internet and is raising our consciousness on global warming, better watch his back! Obama is out for his title of Mr. Wonderful.

"College education is the birthright of every American."

So claimed Mr. Obama in that same triumphant speech. And people actually believe this stuff.

As Francis Schaeffer so clearly iterated, "ideas have consequences."

Recently, a friend of mine said that "everyone has a right to healthcare." I asked him, "Did people in the 16th century have a right to health care?" I ask now, "Was a college education a birthright for the people of the 16th century? How about the people of Jesus' time?"

Our nation's wise founders identified but three components of the human birthright: "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Has something changed? Do we 21st century Americans suddenly have more unalienable rights than our forbears?

Many Americans now want something for nothing. Many claim helplessness and an inability to do much for themselves anymore. Big government is the answer to our every need.

". . . the decay of individual responsibility."

It is rampant. It is toxic. It is deadly. We careen carelessly toward the edge of a cliff, our selfishness applying ever more pressure to the gas pedal, led to our own demise by a blinding self-absorption, and by those who promise us the world.

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Resumption

Today marks exactly seven months since my last blog post.

It feels like a lifetime.

Yes, I have been writing—writing, brainstorming, and editing The Front Line, the newsletter of Help Save Manassas. I have poured an awful lot of time, energy, emotion and thought into this effort, and have received a few pats on the back. That's always nice.

I have learned a great deal, too—about the workings of local governmental bodies, about some of the dynamics of politics, about the rhetoric and general whining of an opposition who, having no rational argument for their support of illegal behavior, resort to name-calling.

It is sad. I wish that our country had more people willing to simply sit down and discuss their differences in a rational and respectful way.

I have twice met and spoken with the mayor of our city. I am cultivating relationships with two of our city councilmen. Our local state delegate, Jackson Miller, knows me by first name. And, and a few months back, I sat down next to PWBOCS Chairman Corey Stewart at a local pub and enjoyed a beer.

But unquestionably the largest benefit of this newsletter project has been my new relationship with The Front Line's co-editor, and his family. One year ago, I did not know them at all. Today I count them among my good friends.

I have made other friends as well since joining Help Save Manassas. And involvement overall has deepened ties with my community.

This past week, while enjoying breakfast with my pastor, I was encouraged to take up my blog again. And so ... here I am, diving once more into the fray of public, Internet-furnished disquisition.