Month: May 2023

Light is a marvelous thing. It draws our attention. It highlights things that need to be seen. It is faster than a speeding bullet, in fact it travels at the speed of 186,282 miles per second (in a vacuum). Our society would have a horrible time trying to live normal lives without the aid of light. There would be no driving in the dark, no movies at the theaters, and most of us would have to go to bed when the sun goes down, but wait, without light, there would be no sun to provide light, or a moon to reflect the suns light. Christmas decorations would be an absolute bore. Most of us have probably seen those wonderful, colorful Christmas displays on homes during the holidays. Some even had light choreographed to music, not unlike the one pictured above. But without light, none of this would exist. In fact, we would not exist, because unless you can live without eating, nothing would be available to eat. Have you ever been in the deep recesses of a cave and have the guide turn out the light? The darkness is oppressive. So why all the hullaballoo about the value of light? Well, we do have a point to make, but first let us consider the value of salt. Have you ever used it? Most recipes call for the use of salt, because it adds flavor to nearly everything to which it is applied. “Salt, also known as sodium chloride, is about 40% sodium and 60% chloride It flavors food and is used as a binder and stabilizer. It is also a food preservative as bacteria can’t thrive in the presence of a high amount of salt. The human body requires a small amount of sodium to conduct nerve impulses, contract and relax muscles, and maintain the proper balance of water and minerals.” (hsph.harvard.edu; T.H. Chan.) The human body cannot thrive without the presence of salt. Light and salt are vital for the continuation of the human race. But our task in our blog today is not to interfere with your “Biology 101” course of study. We have a completely different take on what “light” and “salt” mean to us in a different context.

For those who are Christians, or even those familiar with this faith, you are undoubtedly familiar with how the Biblical New Testament uses the words “light” and “salt”. Let’s do a quick review for those who may not be familiar. In the book of Matthew, chapter 5, we find probably one of the most important series of statements made by Jesus. It is known as the “Sermon on the Mount”. It begins with the very famous list of “beatitudes”, best describes as characteristics to pursue in life. Listed are attitudes to aspire to, or as one person once said, they are “Be” “Attitudes”. Immediately following the list of attitudes to have, Jesus has the following to say in verses 13 through 16. “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again? It is good for nothing anymore, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp, and put it under the peck-measure, but on the lampstand; and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (NAS version.)

Now to the point of today’s blog. We really do mean to step on some toes today, and we will not apologize if it hurts or is uncomfortable for you. Sometimes we all need a two-by-four whacked up the side or our head to get our attention. We hope we have it. Many Christians are satisfied to live life in a religious bubble, mostly encountered on Sundays or maybe even a day or two during the week. Many are living a “BEDROOM CHRISTIANITY”, where we dare not speak what is on our hearts outside these four walls. During those times when you are with the “like-minded” you dis-associate yourselves from the world around you, and become pious, speaking only issues about your faith. In this cocoon of isolation, we all recognize our sinfulness, our need for constant healing, our need to improve ourselves, and the desire to share the Gospel message with those we may come in contact with during our “normal” daily lives. There is nothing wrong with these endeavors, we just happen to believe it is not enough. “What more might we do?”, you might ask. For decades the churches in our Nation, particularly those of conservative values, have been sold a bill of goods telling us that we had better not talk politics, because if we do, we could lose our tax-exempt status, or we might upset some visitors that walk in our doors, or we might be accused of preaching a “political gospel”, not a lot unlike “The Health and Wealth Gospel” we blogged about just last month. If you are a Christian, do you not understand your reason for living in this Nation at this time? Do you not recognize that YOU are the salt and light? YOU flavor the lives around you. YOU shed light upon the dark places, and YOUR light draws others to you and to God. Rick Warren wrote a book published in 2002 titled, The Purpose Driven Life. Have you not considered that God, the Creator of all, has placed you in this time and place for His Glory? What is your purpose? While we watch Satan encroach upon our children through phone apps, media, advertisements, wayward council members, representatives wooed by the promise of money and power, you silently sit in your pews, minding your “Ps” and “Qs”, considering that God is in charge, and all you may have to do is sit back and watch Him wreak havoc upon the ungodly. Have you not read the Old Testament Book of Esther, and do you not remember the story where Queen Esther has the power in her hand to spare the people of her nation from slaughter, when Mordecai said these words, “And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?” Do you not recognize that YOU are the change-agent God has placed in this Nation at this time? You can pray until you are blue in the face, but until you are ready to put your feet to your prayers, you are not fulfilling your purpose, and you must recognize that you will not only be held accountable for the actions you have taken, but you will also be held accountable for actions you have failed to take.

Look around you. Rome is on fire! If you enjoy our FREEDOM and LIBERTY in this Nation, it is time to pick up your firehose and do something about it! As we honor those this weekend who have sacrificed their lives for our Nation, may we be found worthy in their eyes to follow their example, to find our purpose, to fulfill our destiny, to fight back against tyranny, faithlessness, corruption, greed, and the father of all lies, Satan himself. It is way past time to get out of our “Bedroom Christianity”, and get in the fight for truth, honest, integrity, accountability, righteousness, and justice.

We have a “bone to pick” with a few voters out there. We selected the above picture simply as a representative view of what many election workers have to deal with each and every election day. We are speaking from personal experience and will attempt to shed some light on issues that election board workers must deal with in trying to resolve ballot issues that may arise in nearly every election. Are you complaining about how long it takes to get election results? Do you have any idea of what election board workers are faced with while attempting to come up with accurate vote counts and results? You may think that counting votes is a simple process, but unfortunately it is often compounded by some voter methods.

There are several facts that need to be explored. Some of them are obvious, and some are not. Some voters have a DISCONNECT either between their ears, or with reality, or maybe both. When the blank space on a ballot says “Write-in”, that does NOT mean to sign a name in cursive that only a professional signature verifier can resolve. For the most part, those signatures are the ONLY signature that a signature verifier has available to decipher. Unlike the signature verification process on the ballot envelopes, “Write-in” signatures will not have access to the other potential voter signatures to compare and resolve spelling, shape, size, and other technics used to read accurately a signature. Most election board workers only receive about two hours of instruction as to how to verify a voter signature. If you want to be a professional signature verifier, then you had better be ready to enroll in about a two-year course of instruction. You see one of the major challenges right away. Ballot signature verifiers are for the most part neophytes to signature verification. It is true that if a person has done it for several years, even with limited instruction, one does get better at the process each progressive year, but this is the exception, not the rule. So, please PRINT the name of the “Write-in” candidate.

If you are 18 years of age and are making your first foray into the voting world, you may want to sign a name without ever having had the proper education in cursive writing. So, don’t bother signing a name. Please just PRINT the name. It is a fact that most young voters do not really finalize their formal signature until their mid-twenties. Anything signed until then is basically just a new experiment. Election board workers are not mind readers, and it is not their job to follow your evolving signature style.

Finally, voting is not a joke! It is a demonstration of the FREEDOM and LIBERTY we enjoy in this great Nation. It is sad that many choose to not vote. In choosing not to vote, you are throwing away your right to complain about results. Some elections may see 80% turnouts, but those are the exceptions. Many local elections may only see a 25% turnout on issues directly affecting how your local community functions. Fire, water, and school district board votes have a direct impact on livability standards within your community. Local bond issues have the potential to provide advancements and improvements in the performance of policing and emergency services. Some day you may need those services that may not be approved, and you may suffer the consequences. Some issues may be pushed by a minority within your community and may not be something worthy or in line with the wishes of the majority. Failure to vote can leave you with a burden you did not want and could impact generations to come.

When those on an election board see “Write-ins”, like the one in the example above, they are dismayed in the disrespectful and infantile display some voters show to our Nation’s voting process. Not only are you proving yourself to be the jerk you really are, but you are burdening the election board workers with additional work to clean up the mess you made on isle two. Election board workers are obligated to record those childish votes even though we all know they are spurious. There are other ways that silly voters can mess up the voting system, causing election board worker consternation and frustration, sometimes even fouling up the sorting and tabulation of ballot machines and processes, but we will not name them as there is always the potential of arming nefarious actors with new schemes and devious methods. Unless your real name is “Micky Mouse”, he will NEVER be awarded a victory, so stop your infantile gestures, and take voting seriously! Grow up and be a responsible voter. Our Nation is dependent upon you so that we can improve our Nation and retain our FREEDOM and LIBERTY we are so fortunate to enjoy, not only for ourselves, but for our posterity as well. Thank you for letting us “pick a bone” with a few voters out there.

We will start our blog today by stating the obvious. It takes a woman to be a mother. Some might want to argue with us about connecting the word “mother” with the word “woman”, but that is a topic for another time. Some might baulk at us using the word “VIRTUOUS”. However, we believe this to be the ultimate pinnacle of success when it comes to being the best a woman can aspire to become. Merriam-Webster defines the word “VIRTUOUS” as “honorable, ethical, honest, nice, true, good, moral, noble.” It would seem a lofty goal indeed to aspire to inculcate these attributes into one’s character. Already, we can begin to see cracks and flaws in many women within our Nation. Lest we claim to be perfect, which we are not, we understand that attaining the purest sense of each of these attributes is difficult, if not impossible, for the duration of one’s life. The word “VIRTUOUS” does not, by itself, establish the core of our blog today. We also aim to connect the word “WOMAN” to “VIRTUOUS”. The reason we are drawn to this topic is because today we celebrate our mothers by wishing them all a very HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY. If you are alive, then you have or had a mother. You should be thankful to your mother for if she had aborted you, you would not be in existence. Let us state that again, especially for all those who desire to terminate pregnancies in the womb. If you are marching under the drum beat of “freedom of choice” when it comes to pregnancies, had it not been for your mother deciding against abortion, YOU WOULD NOT EXIST! Now, everyone who is alive can extend our thanks to our mothers regardless of any convergent or divergent relationship that has taken place through the years between you and your mother.

So, is being a “mother” such a great thing? Some might argue that a “VIRTUOUS WOMAN” does not really exist in today’s world. Maybe at one point it did, but as it is with all fading glories, the “VIRTUOUS WOMAN” became history, and maybe over time turned into legend, and ultimately as the ages roll on by, has become accepted only as myth. In our society today it is plain to see that the value a mother holds has been diminishing. We will not blame this alone on the mother, for unless you are an absolute moron, you will understand that it takes the seed of a man (loosely translated as a “father”), to make another human life. Many “fathers” have become absent in the nurturing years of a child’s life. Some women choose to bypass a “father’s” involvement all together by utilizing sperm donor clinics. The absolute denial that both mother and father bring important roles in the rearing of a child often leaves the child missing certain examples suited to a holistic development. The mother may emphasize faith, love, and a nurturing spirit, while the father may emphasize discipline, responsibility, strength, and protection. We are not saying that these qualities belong only to one sex but not the other, but we are stating that each sex brings something to the table of value in the development of a growing human. In our society today we see many young people having escaped the nurturing environments needed for proper societal development. Violence, robberies, thefts, carjackings, unprovoked attacks, disrespect, hurtful and foul language, denial of authority, self-absorption in personal desires, non-productivity, faithlessness, anger and malice run amuck in our youth in our society today. Many adult parents have not been the greatest of examples. We believe the ugly characteristics mentioned before are due largely to the failure of many to truly appreciate and honor those among us who are mothers. Broken homes too often lead to broken lives. The lack of appreciation shown to our mothers is a cancer eating away at the core of our Nation.

For many decades now we have been sold a bill of goods that produces anything but good. The Greatest Generation, who gave so much to give FREEDOM and LIBERTY to many through their sacrifices in World War 1 and 2, has faded from view, and in many classrooms today has become more legend than history. Some, even now, would claim those National sacrifices as simply myth, denying historical truth, choosing to re-write history to asway their ideological persuasions. The destruction of the core family in our Nation has been exasperated by careless speech and faulty logic. Hillary Clinton wrote a book in 1996 called, “It Takes a Village”. We stand today to say, “It takes a family to make a village!” No non-parent, or government, has the right or obligation to parent the children born or adopted into a family unit. In our Nation today, we see government trying to squeeze out the family unit, giving non-parental authorities dictum over legitimate parents and their God given rights and responsibilities, even to the point of incarceration for objecting to governmental influence in the lives of their children. Are there any “VIRTUOUS WOMEN” in government?

We believe there ARE “VIRTUOUS WOMEN” in our society today. For those women who appreciate FREEDOM and LIBERY, and the right to raise their own children as they see fit, we call them MOTHERS. They birth, nurture, teach and train their young to appreciate and enjoy life, to build respectable characteristics to weave into a social structure beneficial to all. Mothers do not wain in their pursuit of these lofty goals, nor do they fail to be concerned for their child for the entirety of their child’s life. We call these mothers, “VIRTUOUS WOMEN”. They are not fictitious. They are ever present. They have existed for ages, and will exist for ages to come, should this world continue to exist. We can trace the “VIRTUOUS WOMAN” back thousands of years. For our benefit, we have historical writings describing the characteristics of “THE VIRTUOUS WOMAN”. They are found in the Bible’s Old Testament book of Proverbs, Chapter 31, verses 10 through 31. For length of our blog, we will only review two of those verses for contextual proof in our blog today. In verse 28, we find that she, the woman, is a mother, for it says, “Her children arise up, and call her blessed . . .” We also find that she has faith in the Lord. Verse 30 says, “Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.” Have you “praised” your mother today? Have you wished her a “HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY”? Have you thanked her for your very life? If you haven’t, maybe it is time to do so before the opportunity passes you by.

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY, MOM!

The year was 1993. What you are seeing in the short video clip above is the end of the 51-day FBI siege at a compound near Waco, Texas. A religious group, called the Branch Davidians, under the leadership of David Koresh, ended in tragedy as federal agents conducted a botched operation that resulted with the death of nearly 80 people, including 20 children. While we do not agree with the religious philosophy of the Branch Davidians, what we witnessed on live TV that day was the use of governmental force to deny a measure of FREEDOM and LIBERTY to many of our Nation’s citizens, allowing them to believe what they chose to believe, and live as they chose to live. The result of a decision made by then U.S. Attorney General, Janet Reno, with the approval of then President Bill Clinton, authorized the officials “. . . to harass the Davidians out of the compound by blaring music and recordings of the screams of rabbits being slaughtered into Mount Carmel throughout the night. Experts later suggested that federal agents didn’t comprehend the extent of the sect’s religious zeal, or the fact that violence from authorities only confirmed their belief in an impending apocalypse.” (esquire.com, Gabrielle Bruney and Bria McNeal; March 24, 2023.) An armada was arrayed against the Branch Davidians. “According to the New Yorker, law enforcement brought in ‘ten Bradley tanks, two Abrams tanks, four combat engineering vehicles, six hundred and sixty-eight agents in addition to six U.S. Customs officers, fifteen U.S. Army personnel, thirteen members of the Texas National Guard, thirty-one Texas Rangers, a hundred and thirty-one officers from the Texas Department of Public Safety, seventeen from the McLennan County sheriff’s office, and eighteen Waco police, for a total of eight hundred and ninety-nine people’.” (Same reference as before.) The point of all this short review of the events in 1993 in our blog today is to draw a comparison between what happened at Waco, and what is happening today. However, we have renamed the event and are calling today’s actions, W. A. C. O. We define the acronym as War Against Conservative Organisms.

Before we get into the nuts and bolts of what is occurring today in our society, let’s briefly define “Conservative” and “Organisms”. “Conservative” harkens back to a time in our Nation when all things beginning with the word “Conserve” were things to be pursued and were widely accepted as the right or correct way to function, regardless of anything to which the word was applied. Conserve your energy. Conserve your water resource. Conserve your earth. Conserve all natural resources. “Conservation” was the “in” thing to do, for it meant the preservation, management, restoration, and the protection of our wildlife and of nature’s forests, soils, and waters. “Conservatories” became prolific. Glass sunrooms, skylights, solariums, and greenhouses were all the rage, and no one seemed to mind the word “conservatory”. They became the location of botanical gardens, museums, and schools for instruction in music and art, and still, no one complained about the use of the word “conservatory”. Why did the word “conservative” become anathema? Was it because it countered liberalism? Was it because it had its early roots in religious circles, and preached a “gospel” of stability, traditions, and peace? Something happened in our National society that made “conservative” a four-letter word. Subcultures had already existed within our Nation for years, and were content to live within the mainstream, but the 60’s grew counter-culture movements, like Woodstock, civil rights, and the Vietnam War protests, all being open about their resistance to the mainstream culture. Hippies, punks, and Transcendentalism became more mainstream. Not all counter-culture movements are bad, in fact the civil rights movement became a part of mainstream culture, and even way before that, the counter-culture movement of Christianity became a part of mainstream culture during the Roman rule and in fact was given full legal rights in 313 AD by emperors Constantine and Licinius. As far as our definition of “Organism” goes, we will use “An individual form of life . . . “ (Wordnik) and “A system with many parts that depend on each other and work together . . . as a complex social/political/economic organism.” (britannica.com). You, personally, are an “organism”, and the group you are a part of is also considered to be an “organism”. Now that we have made our definitions clear, let’s delve into the War Against Conservative Organisms (W. A. C. O.).

Consider the rise of public education. “As early as the 17th century, the need for public education was recognized by the Puritans living on American shores at the time. This population determined education was essential both for teaching basic academic skills and core religious values.” (publicschoolreview.com.) We wonder what was one of their textbooks? The Puritans sought to purify the Church of England and were looking for religious FREEDOM in the new world. Many of the first schools used Bibles as the basic textbook. The Protestant Reformation brought about the ability to read the scriptures. The Puritans were a conservative group of individuals. How many public schools use the Bible for instruction today? Private and religious schools might, but public schools have been wooed away from using the Biblical texts, most likely because of mistaking what the First Amendment of our Constitution actually states. It indicates “freedom OF religion”, not “freedom FROM religion”. The Bill of Rights also prevents the establishment of laws “. . . prohibiting the free exercise thereof [of religion] . . . “. Our Nation has turned its back on the public use of the Bible. Is it any wonder why violence is rampant within many or our cities today? The conservative morals and values are no longer taught in our schools, and sadly not in many homes as well.

The rise of social media has created a space where filth can be shared and spread. The scope of what is acceptable has been expanded beyond the borders of respectable values. The concept of “Mass Formation” has made it easy to go along with the crowd, whether in foul speech, or even to the extent of raiding and stealing from legitimate retailers. Many believe, “If the group does it, it must be okay for me to do it as well.” The societal push to go beyond established boundaries continues to expand, and the conservative approach to life morphs into unbridled liberalism, where the concept of LIBERTY is polluted into selfish pursuits and interests.

At one time, in the not-too-distant past, criminals were incarcerated, and an attempt was made to make victims whole. Restorative Justice, however, has been squashed in the pursuit for criminal leniency. Feminism and the emasculation of the male species makes it risky to compliment a woman on her dress, or even hold the door open for her. If a conservative practices the right of freedom of speech, as guarantied in our Nation’s founding documents, or also uses the freedom to peacefully protest, also protected in our Nation’s founding documents, one might find themself facing prosecution and even potential incarceration by rouge elements of our current National government. If a conservative speaks the truth, as perceived by that individual, lawfare can be used to stymie speech and bury the individual under the weight of financial judgements. Simply the threat of such action squashes speech opposing the chosen agenda of the powerful, those in charge of government or corporate entities. If one dresses conservatively, or limit their exposure to certain forms of entertainment, one could be shunned by society, called prudish in the process, and feel isolated from supportive contacts.

If you, as an individual, or if you are part of an organization, like a church or business, and you can relate to anything we have written so far, then you have experienced what we have described in our blog today. We could go on with many other examples, but we think what we have described is enough to prove our point that there is certainly a “WAR AGAINST CONSERVATIVE ORGANISMS (W. A. C. O.)”. Our current National government, including many of the subservient “alphabet organizations” that have metastasized over the last several decades, have all become out of control and must be reined in. If this is not done, we could be looking at another blundered operation that could burn our Nation to the ground, just like what our inept government leaders did at Waco, Texas, in 1993. FREEDOM and LIBERTY have been given to us by our Creator. Our Nation’s founding documents only reflect what we already know to be true. If you treasure these eternal values, then you must be a part of the on-going efforts to reverse the course our Nation is currently on, to help re-establish the proper course of our Nation, and then defend and protect our Nation. How are you doing that today? How will you do that tomorrow?