Conservative vs. Liberal

Promotes equal justice.	Promotes social justice.
Competition is good.	Competition is unfair.
Supports lower taxes.	Supports progressive taxation with high taxes for the rich.
Less government is better. Wants only necessary regulation of business, economy, and individual lives, resulting in more freedom.	More government is better. Many regulations are necessary to achieve a more fair & just society which is government’s primary role, resulting in less freedom.
Limited federal government with more power given to state and local governments.	Powerful centralized federal government with limited state and local control.
People and property rights are more important than environment. Supports conservation and development and use of our natural resources along with the development of green technology by private enterprise and when it is economically feasible and self-sustaining. Opposes cap and trade due to its high cost and negative impact on our businesses and way of life.	Environment more important than people and property rights. Supports rationing and limiting access to natural resources. Focuses on green technology subsidized by the government. Supports cap and trade.
Wealth is good. All have an opportunity to be wealthy. Creates a better life for all through entrepreneurship.	Wealth is bad and unfair. Promotes class warfare.
Equal opportunity without discrimination. Same access for all. Recognizes people make different choices with what they have. Doesn’t seek equal outcomes.	Equal results through such things as quotas and equal pay for unequal work. Have to level the playing field in order to have equal opportunity. Seeks equal outcomes.
Judicial restraint with strict interpretation of laws according to the Constitution and original intent.	Judicial activism: enacting social policy changes via court rulings. Constitution is seen as outdated and in need of change.
Free market economy. Free market creates jobs.	Government regulation of economy. Government creates jobs.
Business is good: creates jobs & improves lives. Give freedom for them to do what they do best. Let free market supply and demand adjust practices. Let employers and employees negotiate benefits.	Business is evil: out to exploit employees, environment, and consumers. Needs to be regulated to protect consumers, employees, and the environment. Government regulates employee benefits.
Traditional morality, including traditional family and values. Absolute standards of right and wrong. Absolute truth. Sees standing against wrong as a moral duty.	Tolerance of all lifestyles & beliefs except those that hold beliefs they consider to be politically incorrect like pro-life Christians. No absolute standards of right and wrong. Moral relativism.
Right to free speech must be supported even if it offends.	Right to free speech is limited to speech that does not offend. (Political correctness)
Peace through strength via a strong military.	Peace through appeasement, cooperation, and understanding others' views. Dislikes showing and exercising strength.
Supports a missile defense system.	Opposes a missile defense system.
American sovereignty comes before globalism.	Globalism comes before American sovereignty.
Sees America as good: the best hope for the world. Believes in American exceptionalism.	Sees America as flawed: racist, homophobic, imperialistic, sexist, ageist and no better than other countries.
Western cultures are superior to others without rights, freedom, and respect for life.	All cultures are equal. Can’t pass judgment on any even if they don’t value freedom, rights, and life.
God is a necessary part of a good society. Religion makes people good.	State is secular (without God). Seeks to eliminate all references of God.
Rights emphasized: Freedom, Parental, Property, Religious, Guns, Life.	Rights emphasized: Civil, Privacy, Secularism, and Reproductive.

Founders on Private Ownership

"He who is permitted by law to have no property of his own, can with difficulty conceive that property is founded in anything but force."  -Thomas Jefferson, letter to Bancroft, January 26, 1788.

"Government is instituted to protect property of every sort; as well that which lies in the various rights of individuals, as that which the term particularly expresses. This being the end of government, that alone is a just government which impartially secures to every man whatever is his own."   -James Madison, Essay on Property, March 29, 1792.

"The moment the idea is admitted into society that property is not as sacred as the laws of God, and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny commence. If 'Thou shalt not covet" and 'Thou shalt not steal' were not commandments of Heaven, they must be made inviolable precepts in every society before it can be civilized or made free."     -John Adams, A Defense of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America, 1787.

“The pillars of our prosperity are the most thriving when left most free to individual enterprise.”   --Thomas Jefferson

Enough of Me

Enough music to write a jingle

Enough poetry to tell you what a tree thinks

Enough politics to have a bad headache

Enough religion to pray and know with whom I converse

Enough rhythm to dance in my chair

Enough testosterone to lose all my hair

Enough truth to know when to lie

Enough lie to have stumbled upon the truth(†)

Enough questions to make you think

Enough knowledge to make you drink

Enough persistence to piss you off

Enough personality that you’ll love me anyway

Enough love to go around

Rush

Running to another checkmark in my task list, I weave across the halted traffic and feeling like a monochrome version of myself as I’m deep in thought over the things I should have done.  My glance veers from where I’m heading to back across the street and where I would have been, had I pressed forward instead of parrying left.  My eyes catch yours and lock.  I’m suddenly transported through time with no machine or ability to stop.  I somehow continue to cross through the traffic, but I don’t remember how the safe passage was completed.  I’m now in an endless fall day many years ago when I last saw my reflection in those same eyes.  Memories flood back, not of events, but rather the sensations; the smell and taste of your skin, not too salty, but fresh with a hint of soap as I steadily explored and sampled with all of my senses.   A rush of breath and energy as adrenaline grew, heart raced faster, yet time stood still and promised forever.  Somehow forever had ended with no explanation.  Why were we forced to move from that one point?  What could have been more important?  As suddenly as my present surroundings had disappeared, they come rushing back and my journey continues.  The checkmarks fall and memories fade.

Those That Can't, Teach

So, if you make a product, the chances are you want to get it in as many stores as possible.  If you make a car, you want to get it in as many dealerships as possible.   The dealers BUY your cars and SELL them to the people that saw your commercial and are interested in your product.  You don't pay the dealers to do this.  They work for the difference between what they buy it for and how much they mark it up.

Does everyone pretty much understand this concept?  



Now, if you make cars  and you want to sell more, you make products that the consumer WANTS.  You improve the cars they like, build new and innovative models and discontinue models that they don't want.  

Does everyone pretty much understand this concept?



If you want to save a company in trouble, you change what is causing them to go under.

Does everyone pretty much understand this concept?


Knowing these 3 concepts, let's take a look at GM's bailout.   GM was forced to cutoff many dealerships that cost them nothing and yet acted as the conduit for getting their cars to consumers.   GM was forced to promote an all electric vehicle in markets where there was no real demand.   GM was given enough money to pay the unions that were sucking off all the profits.  They continued to pay more and more to people that worked a number of years and then retired.  In other words, they are paying people to NOT build cars.  That number of non-workers has been growing to the point that GM CAN NO LONGER MAKE A PROFIT.   


This same genius whose team came up with this plan for saving GM is now seeking a second term while claiming that his policies WORK.   

He can ONLY make this claim stick if it was his intention ruin our economy.  

Obama: President/Enemy of the United States

Obama has been engaged in crony capitalism: using our money to subsidize his pet industries. And basically all he's been doing is setting up these fraudulent, phony green industry businesses like Solyndra which become a conduit for laundering money.


Donors give to Obama; Obama gives them money for their private business such as solar panels. They start their business, and in every almost every case, they go under and the people who work there lose their jobs. They didn't have to pay back the money THEY WERE GIVEN, YOUR MONEY! They just used it up in failed businesses. Obama gets his campaign donations out of it, the people that donated get some of their money back, and everybody was happy -- except the people that worked there.

71% of Obama's Energy Department grants and loans, like the ones you just heard about, went to people who were bundlers and members of Obama's national Finance Committee or they were large donors to the Democrat Party.


He’s created Czars, cabinet level positions without Senate’s approval which is required by Constitution. They have ultimate power and funding, and unchecked by Congress. NOT LEGAL!!!

Obamacare is fraudulent in the funding scheme and unconstitutional. He has ignored FEDERAL JUDGES orders to stop implementing before the Supreme Court can rule.
Cap and Trade bill was defeated, but the President has the EPA using regulations do it anyway though it’s making fuel skyrocket while defying our system of government.


He’s stopped offshore oil drilling or exploration off both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States and in parts of the Gulf of Mexico and stopped new drilling exploration in any states in the United States defying several court orders issued by a federal judge that declared he has no authority to do so. Contempt charges were even filed.


He denounced Drilling and then gave 2 Billion to the Billionaire George Soros' BRAZILIAN Company for offshore drilling. North Korea and the Chi-coms are on the list of countries drilling in the Gulf, but WE won't let OUR companies. Meanwhile, there’s a global food crisis and we continue to put our crops into the gas tank.


Our southern border is basically an open border because he made so much of the federal land in the Border States off-limits to federal, state, and local authorities. So, where do you think the illegals, drugs, and terrorists come through? He ordered the border patrol not to arrest anyone entering, and has stopped deportation proceedings of thousands here illegally bypassing Congress AGAIN.

Obama and Holder SUING AZ along with foreign countries which violates oath of office. How can you sue AZ for enforcing the FEDERAL IMMIGRATION LAWS?


The US Supreme Court ruled that the FCC has NO Constitutional authority to control the Internet. That didn’t stop Obama. He ORDERED the FCC to adopt regulations giving the federal government control of the Internet and its contents, including providing Obama with a kill switch that gives him authority to shut down the Internet.


The Executive branch is supposed to defend the laws adopted by Congress unless they are declared unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court. Yet he IGNORES the Constitution and basically declares himself all powerful. All other bodies of government have be left irrelevant.


FAST AND FURIOUS – do I need to say more on this?? It was a disgusting attempt to give reason for banning guns. THEY WANTED PEOPLE TO DIE so as to raise the hate and fear of guns.


The POTUS is NOT AUTHORIZED BY THE CONSTITUTION to take our nation to war without the consent of the Congress. There’s one exception; the authority granted to the President by Congress under the War Powers Act. It lets the President to take action without the consent of Congress IF there is an imminent threat to the security of the United States, or its citizens. WHERE is the imminent threat caused by the Civil War in Libya? He aided in the overthrow of an ALLY in Egypt to the benefit of the Muslim Brotherhood. He has sent our military to combat missions in a foreign country without the consent of Congress. He based his authority on a United Nations resolution, and a resolution by the Arab League. Are you kidding me???


He’s used executive orders, laws sneaked through Congress in the dark of night, and administrative actions by his departments to nationalize and control automobile manufacturers, banks, insurance companies, and portions of the healthcare industry, effectively taking us into Socialism. Show me where he has that authority in the Constitution?


HE HAS DIVIDED A GREAT NATION AND IS GIVING THE SPOILS TO HIS CLOSEST SUPPORTERS.

So, Why Jesus?

Many people question Christianity, as well they should.  It’s good to be an informed believer.  I welcome questions from skeptics, especially since I was one.

So, could anyone with enough will power, determination and some special effects have pulled off the claim to the title of Messiah?  Let’s look at that.

There were thousands of prophecies that the Messiah needed to fulfill.   Many of the prophecies no one could control.

  

One is that the Messiah needed to be a descendent of King David.   

Jesus would have had a claim to the throne in 2 ways.   His step father Joseph was a descendant through the main line that had the direct heir lineage.   Also, His Mother Mary was descended via a different line.  This was important because the direct line of heirs was told by God that they would never rule again.   Joseph was descended from Jechonias, Jesus could not rightly claim the throne (see Jeremiah 22:30) had he been Joseph’s natural son, but through His mothers line there was no such problem.  Jesus, would have been King had the rule continued.

Here are eight examples of prophecies that were out of human control (by Jesus):

1.  Place of Birth (Mic 5:2), 

2.  Time of Birth (Dan 9:25; Gen 49:10),

3.  Manner of Birth (Isa 7:14),

4.  Betrayal (Ps 41:9; 55:13), 

5.  Manner of Death (Ps 22:16),

6.  The reactions of people (mocking, spitting, etc),

7.  Piercing (Zech 12:10),

8.  Burial (Isa 53:9)

Peter Stoner explains how the science of probability rules out coincidence in his book "Science Speaks." The chance of someone else meeting just these 8 requirements is 10^17.  Stoner gave this illustration:

If you mark one of ten tickets, and place all the tickets in a hat, and thoroughly stir them, and then ask a blindfolded man to draw one, his chance of getting the right ticket is one in ten. Suppose that we take 10^17 silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They'll cover all of the state two feet deep. Now mark one of these silver dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up one silver dollar and say that this is the right one. What chance would he have of getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would've had of writing these eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one man, from their day to the present time, providing they wrote them in their own wisdom (Idem, 106-107).

To add to the problem of manipulation, there are 456 characteristics that the Messiah had to have.  It not only impossible to fake, it shows us God is in control. 

My friends, you may not want to believe in or understand why God has made the decisions that He has, but He is real and He has provided us the bail for our offenses to Him.   He loves us.

Now let’s thank Him.