In ancient times there was a game played in Egypt that included hitting a ball with a stick. The game appeared in different places in different variations through the centuries until sometime in the 1500's the first documented game of "cricket" was played in southern England. Another variant that appeared during the Tudor dynasty was called "rounders," where the players ran around four bases to score rather than back and forth as in cricket.
In America, a game similar to rounders became popular in the early 19th century. It was sometimes known as "townball" or "base." In New York City, a book seller and volunteer fireman named Alexander Cartwright, wrote a rule book and organized the New York Knickerbocker Base Ball Club. At Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey on June 19, 1846, Cartwright and the Knickerbockers lost to the New York Nine 21-1 in the first ever official game of baseball.
Baseball grew with the country. As the nation expanded baseball teams sprung up in many cities and by 1858 the National Association of Base Ball Players became the first amateur baseball league. During the Civil War baseball tournaments between regiments were popular.
In 1869 the Cincinnati Red Stockings became the first professionally paid baseball team, took on all comers and finished their first season with a perfect 65-0 record. At a time when America's industrial might was beginning to propel the United States into the envy of the world, baseball's popularity also prospered and in 1871, the National Association became the first professional baseball league.
During the westward expansion of this era came wild western towns, many founded on gold or silver strikes. Almost immediately gamblers and saloon keepers would arrive bringing with them gunslingers, prostitutes and trouble. Townspeople wanting a decent place to live would then elect a marshal or sheriff to maintain law and order, and eventually secure, thriving communities with businesses, schools, churches, and law-abiding citizens would flourish.
Meanwhile in the northeast, the National Association's original nine teams expanded to 13 by 1875, but gamblers and the sale of liquor at the games kept people away, and by 1876 the National League was founded with the teams owned by businessmen rather than the players, and rules of conduct established to police the game. Baseball was again safe for family entertainment. While the Indian wars were being fought on the western frontier, easterners from Chicago to Boston spent leisurely summer afternoons watching their favorite teams play.
In 1900 an upstart new league, the American, was founded amid much criticism from National League owners and purists. But the American League stuck and by 1903 had challenged the Nationals to a playoff to determine a national champion. The World Series was born and baseball had become America's National Pastime.
Baseball has had its share of colorful figures. In the 1880's a brash, often drunk, bandy-legged speedster named Billy Sunday, playing for the Chicago White Sox, became the first man to run the bases in under fourteen seconds. One night after a drinking spree he stumbled into the Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago, gave his life to Christ, and would give up baseball to become the most celebrated evangelist in the United States for the next forty years.
There was Big Ed Delahunty, who in the 1890's became the first player to hit four homeruns in a single game. All four were inside the park homers. One night he got drunk, walked off a bridge, fell into a river and drowned. There was Rube Waddell, a southpaw who set the standard for flakiness by running out of the ball park in the middle of an inning he was pitching to watch a fire truck go by. There was Jimmy Foxx, known as "the beast" because he hit the ball so hard, Ted Williams, the "Splendid Splinter," Mickey Mantle, the "Sweet Switcheroo," and "Mr. October," Reggie Jackson, one of the greatest clutch hitters of all time.
And how about the greatest misnomer of all, Frank "Home Run" Baker, who hit twelve in 1913. Baker earned his nickname in the 1911 World Series when he hit two homeruns in consecutive games off two of the best pitchers of the day, Rube Marquard and Christy Matthewson, while leading his Philadelphia Athletics to a 4 games to 2 victory over the New York Giants. Baker unfortunately played at a time known as the "dead-ball" era when the balls weren't wound as tight, were without cork centers and didn't travel near as far. Had he come along ten years later he might have rivaled Babe Ruth.
George Herman "Babe" Ruth was perhaps the most well known and the greatest ballplayer of all time. He started as a pitcher for Boston, but when traded to the Yankees he was placed in the outfield and singlehandedly transformed baseball from dead-ball era strategies of singles, sacrifice bunts and stolen bases into heroic home run derbies with monster shots that he routinely hit over the bleachers and clear out of stadiums.
Perhaps the draw of baseball is that while the game has grown with America, it also embodies all that is good about America. It has intense team rivalries, but the focus is on the head-to-head duels between two warriors, the pitcher and the batter. It's a picture of the pioneer spirit that went into the wilderness unafraid to face a worthy foe. Playing the Star Spangled Banner before the game became one of baseball's first traditions. The game is Americana itself; hotdogs, apple pie, mom and patriotism.
In 1918, Christy Matthewson, who invented the screwball and is arguably the greatest pitcher of all time, left baseball to serve his country in World War I. In a training accident he was gassed, developed tuberculosis, and died in 1925 at the age of 45. Many more players, including "Joltin'" Joe DiMaggio, gave up years of prime playing time to fight for freedom in World War II. Others served in Korea and Vietnam. Ted Williams, the last .400 hitter in baseball, gave up five years of his career to serve in both World War II and Korea.
Baseball led the way in civil rights. Long before Rosa Parks or the Civil Rights Act of 1964, baseball took a young black ballplayer by the name of Jackie Robinson and became the first major sport in America to integrate.
Baseball is a drama that has touched the heart strings of millions. There were no dry eyes in Yankee stadium on the day in 1939 when Lou Gehrig said farewell. Suffering from amiotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the disease that would forever after bear his name, Gehrig very shyly spoke to the crowd. "Some people say that I've been given a bad break, but today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth."
When he died two years later, Gary Cooper played the part of Lou Gehrig in Pride of the Yankees. A young teenage ballplayer saw the movie and from then on had only one desire, to play for the Yankees. He got his chance and in 1966 at the end of his career, Bobby Richardson had his own day at Yankee stadium where he finished his comments with, "To God be the glory."
Baseball's defining patriotic moment came on April 25, 1976 at Chavez Ravine in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers were playing the Chicago Cubs. In the middle of the game with the Dodgers at bat, two Iranian Muslim "students" climbed over the outfield fence and ran into left-centerfield. They pulled out an American flag, doused it with lighter fluid, and tried to light it on fire. When he realized what was happening, Cubs centerfielder, Rick Monday, came racing in from his position, scooped up the flag and rescued it. As he ran toward the third base dugout, Dodger third base coach, Tommy Lasorda, charged like a raging bull to the outfield giving the two Iranians a cussing like they had never heard before and held them until security arrived to escort them out of the stadium. The fans stood and began applauding, and somewhere spontaneously it started, and then broke out around the stadium, and in a moment the entire crowd was singing God Bless America.
Rick Monday was so popular in Los Angeles that the team traded for him at the end of the season and he finished his career playing for the Dodgers. In a 2006 interview a reporter asked him if it was upsetting to him after playing 19 seasons in the Major Leagues that the only thing he is remembered for is rescuing the flag. Monday replied, "If that's all you're known for, it's not a bad thing. I think it solidifies the thought process of hundreds of thousands of people that represented this country in fine fashion. Many of them lost their lives."
Rick Monday spoke for all true patriots who love America, who have served, and who have given their lives for their country. Monday was not only a fine representative of the Great American National Pastime, he is one of those who have served America in fine fashion, and is a true American patriot.
And baseball is still the greatest game, or as Babe Ruth once said, "the only real game, I think, in the world...."
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
It's Just a Birth Certificate
Yesterday the president finally released his birth certificate to the public and followed it immediately with a press conference in which he took no questions. He just made a statement and left. It looks after all like Donald Trump has done what the Democrats didn't try to do, the liberal media didn't want to do, the Republicans didn't insist on being done, and the birthers couldn't get done no matter how loudly they protested.
CNN overseas interviewed a Democrat White House strategist named Maria something (I didn't catch her last name) who claimed the Republicans should thank Obama for releasing the birth certificate because now they can concentrate on the real issues. She said essentially that the White House would be glad to hear something from the Republicans on relevant issues rather than these distractions.
Well, first of all, most of the leading Republicans in both the House and the Senate have stated openly they believe Obama has a birth certificate from Hawaii. Even conservative talk show hosts Bill O'Reilly and Glen Beck have refused to be drawn into the argument. The Republicans in government and the radio/TV presenters that Obama hates the most have basically backed him up on this. It's the so-called "birthers" and Donald Trump that have pressed the issue.
Furthermore, the White House hasn't listened to a single word the Republicans have said on any relevant issue for the last two years. What makes her, or anybody, think they are going to listen now that the birth certificate controversy is supposedly over?
In his press conference Obama said that he has "watched with amusement" these last two and a half years and "I have been puzzled by the degree to which this thing kept on going."
I don't think it's all that amusing myself, and why should he be puzzled? He supposedly has spent nearly a million dollars in legal fees trying to prevent not only his birth certificate but every other private document in his life from being released to the public. That's why this thing has kept going on. So much for the most transparent administration in history.
"We got some enormous challenges out there," he continued. "There are a lot of folks who are still looking for work. Everybody is still suffering under high gas prices. We're going to have to make a series of very difficult decisions about how we invest in our future, but also get a hold of our deficit and our debt."
Interesting he would bring up these relevant issues. These are the very ones the Republicans are shouting in his face every day, and he is either intentionally ignoring them, or is so absolutely brain dead when it comes to sensible ideas for fixing them that he has no answers. His supposed efforts in dealing with these problems have made them exponentially worse than they were when he took office.
Obama went on to say we wouldn't be able to solve the problems "if we vilify each other." Then he went on to vilify birthers as being distracted by side shows and apparently referred to Trump as a "carnival barker." He went on to say, "We do not have time for this kind of story. I've got better stuff to do."
Uh-huh. Better stuff like ... campaigning. And do I hear the links calling? Or Oprah Winfrey?
He is right, though. With the world in the financial crisis it is in and unrest breaking out all over the Middle East, we don't have time for this chicanery. He could have taken care of this two and a half years ago, but has steadfastly refused until somebody with the guts and the bucks to stand up to him and his media lap dogs forced his hand.
The question is, why after fighting it so hard all this time does he suddenly give in now?
Two and a half years is a lot of time to find a good forger and to cover the tracks. And how about the document itself? His father's race is listed as "African." African isn't a race. I don't know how they would print it now, but in 1961 black people were still called "Negro," or their race, "Negroid." That's what you would expect to have shown up on the birth certificate. So can we be certain it is even legitimate?
Or how about this scenario? Obama intentionally held back his birth certificate in order to create this mess to distract the country from his double dealing attempts to by-pass the Constitution, and so he could make the Republicans look like fools by pulling it out at the last minute before the 2012 elections, thereby ensuring his reelection.
Unfortunately for the president, Trump trumped him by sending investigators to Hawaii to find out the truth, forcing him to divulge the information too soon.
Maybe, it's a little bit of both. Maybe Trump needs to continue his investigation.
CNN overseas interviewed a Democrat White House strategist named Maria something (I didn't catch her last name) who claimed the Republicans should thank Obama for releasing the birth certificate because now they can concentrate on the real issues. She said essentially that the White House would be glad to hear something from the Republicans on relevant issues rather than these distractions.
Well, first of all, most of the leading Republicans in both the House and the Senate have stated openly they believe Obama has a birth certificate from Hawaii. Even conservative talk show hosts Bill O'Reilly and Glen Beck have refused to be drawn into the argument. The Republicans in government and the radio/TV presenters that Obama hates the most have basically backed him up on this. It's the so-called "birthers" and Donald Trump that have pressed the issue.
Furthermore, the White House hasn't listened to a single word the Republicans have said on any relevant issue for the last two years. What makes her, or anybody, think they are going to listen now that the birth certificate controversy is supposedly over?
In his press conference Obama said that he has "watched with amusement" these last two and a half years and "I have been puzzled by the degree to which this thing kept on going."
I don't think it's all that amusing myself, and why should he be puzzled? He supposedly has spent nearly a million dollars in legal fees trying to prevent not only his birth certificate but every other private document in his life from being released to the public. That's why this thing has kept going on. So much for the most transparent administration in history.
"We got some enormous challenges out there," he continued. "There are a lot of folks who are still looking for work. Everybody is still suffering under high gas prices. We're going to have to make a series of very difficult decisions about how we invest in our future, but also get a hold of our deficit and our debt."
Interesting he would bring up these relevant issues. These are the very ones the Republicans are shouting in his face every day, and he is either intentionally ignoring them, or is so absolutely brain dead when it comes to sensible ideas for fixing them that he has no answers. His supposed efforts in dealing with these problems have made them exponentially worse than they were when he took office.
Obama went on to say we wouldn't be able to solve the problems "if we vilify each other." Then he went on to vilify birthers as being distracted by side shows and apparently referred to Trump as a "carnival barker." He went on to say, "We do not have time for this kind of story. I've got better stuff to do."
Uh-huh. Better stuff like ... campaigning. And do I hear the links calling? Or Oprah Winfrey?
He is right, though. With the world in the financial crisis it is in and unrest breaking out all over the Middle East, we don't have time for this chicanery. He could have taken care of this two and a half years ago, but has steadfastly refused until somebody with the guts and the bucks to stand up to him and his media lap dogs forced his hand.
The question is, why after fighting it so hard all this time does he suddenly give in now?
Two and a half years is a lot of time to find a good forger and to cover the tracks. And how about the document itself? His father's race is listed as "African." African isn't a race. I don't know how they would print it now, but in 1961 black people were still called "Negro," or their race, "Negroid." That's what you would expect to have shown up on the birth certificate. So can we be certain it is even legitimate?
Or how about this scenario? Obama intentionally held back his birth certificate in order to create this mess to distract the country from his double dealing attempts to by-pass the Constitution, and so he could make the Republicans look like fools by pulling it out at the last minute before the 2012 elections, thereby ensuring his reelection.
Unfortunately for the president, Trump trumped him by sending investigators to Hawaii to find out the truth, forcing him to divulge the information too soon.
Maybe, it's a little bit of both. Maybe Trump needs to continue his investigation.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Resurrection Day
The king of the TV and radio interviewers, Larry King, was once asked who would be his choice if he could interview anybody in history, and what would he ask him. King answered, Jesus Christ, and he would ask him whether or not he really rose from the grave. Why? the dumbfounded pundit wondered. "Because," King answered, "the answer to that question makes all the difference in the world."
King's answer intrigues me and I wonder if he has thought any more about it. Having a degree in history I've often thought of events that I would like to have witnessed. Some time ago I wrote about incidents in American history that interest me, but I also have a list of Bible events that I wish I could have seen first hand as well.
For instance, I would like to have seen the creation, the black void of space when the stars were suddenly turned on (No, I don't believe in the Big Bang.) and the world in its innocence. I would like to have watched Noah taking a hundred years to build an ark in the midst of taunts and criticisms. I would like to have seen Moses leading the Children of Israel across the Red Sea, the walls of Jericho falling down, and the favorite of every young boy I've ever taught in Sunday school, including my two sons, David and Goliath. I would like to have seen David and Jonathan weeping uncontrollably when they parted for the last time. I wish I could have seen the handwriting on the wall, or been in the throne room when Esther approached the king uninvited. I would love to have been a shepherd in the field watching the flocks when the angels appeared to announce, "Peace on earth." I would like to have seen the feeding of the five thousand and Lazarus raised from the dead. As painful as it would have been, I would want to have seen the crucifixion to see exactly what Jesus suffered for me, but even more, to have been with Peter and John when they peered into the empty tomb.
But there is one story in Scripture that I wish I could have experienced more than anything else. It's found in Luke 24:13-32, and took place on Easter Sunday, a few hours after the resurrection. Cleopas and another disciple were walking down the road to Emmaus when they were joined by Jesus. Their eyes were "hidden" so that they didn't recognize Him as they talked about the rumors of Christ being alive and wondered what it all meant. Jesus asked them about their conversation, and they, thinking He must be a stranger in town, explained to Him the crucifixion and the stories going around about a resurrection.
Then Christ rebuked them for their unbelief. "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory?" Beginning with Moses, He expounded all the Old Testament Scriptures concerning Himself to them. The Bible doesn't record what He said, but I have an idea Jesus may have said something like this:
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Then He created man in His own image, called him Adam, and placed him in the Garden of Eden. Then God gave Adam a wife, Eve, and began the institution of marriage. Satan came along and tempted Eve to sin. Adam joined her in disobedience and they were cast out of the Garden, their fellowship with God broken by sin.
Before He sent them away, however, God gave them a promise recorded in Genesis 3:15, of a coming Savior who would forgive their sins and redeem their souls. The world without God's presence became an increasingly wicked place until God called out Noah and his family to build an ark and saved them from the judgment He rained on the world. As the world's population grew again, man again turned against God and at the Tower of Babel, in modern day Babylon, God confused the languages, scattered the people and created the nations. Then in Genesis 12:2, He called Abraham and promised to make of him a great nation, Israel. During a famine the Israelites moved down into Egypt, God having used Joseph to prepare a way to save the nation. There, before he died, Jacob prophesied that the coming Messiah would come from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10).
The Jews were in captivity in Egypt for 430 years until Moses was called to lead them out. But Moses was afraid and questioned God's plan saying, "Whom shall I say has sent me?" God answered him in Exodus 3:14, "I AM THAT I AM." Moses led the Israelites across the Red Sea to Mt. Sinai where God gave him the Law. But the Jews rebelled and spent 40 years wandering in the Wilderness of the Sinai Peninsula until Joshua led them into their Promised Land. The Jews were ruled by a series of Judges for about 350 years until the monarchy was established, but after Solomon's rule the kingdom was divided and for 500 years lived in constant rebellion against God until Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem.
For a thousand years following Moses God sent prophets who preached against sin, warned of judgment, and promised a coming Messiah. Daniel 9:25 gave a clue to the exact time of His birth; Micah 5:2 told of the place of His birth; Isaiah 7:14 declared it would be a virgin birth; in Isaiah 9:7 he would be heir to the throne of David; Malachi 3:1 established a forerunner (John the Baptist); Zechariah 9:9 told of the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem; Zechariah 11:12 that He would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver; in Psalm 35:11 He was accused by false witnesses; in Isaiah 53:3 He would be rejected by His own people; Zechariah 12:10 explained His hands and feet would be pierced; He was sentenced with criminals in Isaiah 53:12; scorned and mocked in Psalm 22:7; given vinegar and gall to drink in Psalm 69:21; and in Psalm 22:1 He cried out the lonliest words ever heard by any human ear, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
Isaiah 53:5 explains that His death was a vicarious sacrifice. God turned His back on Jesus while He died on the cross and paid the penalty for our sins. "He was wounded for our transgressions." He bore our punishment so that we might never have God turn His back on us. He suffered because He loved us. John 3:16: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life. Then in Psalm 16:10, His resurrection was foretold.
No doubt Christ's explanation was much more eloquent and thorough than this, but it prompts a question. Why was all this written about Jesus? Who was He? Why was He so important that 1,000 years of prophecy was written about Him and all of it was fulfilled?
In John's Gospel chapter eight, the Pharisees were once again arguing with Jesus over His credentials, and justifying themselves claimed that they were the children of Abraham. Then in verse 56 Jesus tells them that Abraham rejoiced to see His birth. The Pharisees mocked Him more; Jesus was not yet fifty years old. How could Abraham, who had lived 2,000 years before, have rejoiced at His birth? To that Jesus replied in verse 58, "Before Abraham was, I AM."
The Pharisees knew exactly what He meant. He had just told them the same thing God had told Moses from the burning bush in Exodus chapter three. He had emphatically declared that He was, and is, and forever will be God of very God.
When He finished his discourse, Jesus and the two disciples stopped to eat. They sat down and as Jesus blessed the food the disciples' eyes were opened, and they suddenly recognized Him. Jesus then vanished out of their sight. The disciples looked at each other and in Luke 24:32 said, "Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the Scriptures?"
This is the Gospel according to I Corinthians 15:3-4: "Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures."
This is the message that needs to burn in every human heart. In the hearts of those who are lost, that is, without faith in Jesus Christ, their hearts need to burn with the conviction that they must repent of their sins and receive Jesus Christ as Savior. In the hearts of those who are saved, that is, those who have already put their faith in Christ, their hearts need to burn with the conviction that this is the message the world needs to hear, and that they need to tell it.
This is the message and the faith that our Founding Fathers believed in. This is the religion and the God that they spoke about often in their writings. This is the faith that America was built upon and needs to return to today. This is the Savior that promises to bless the nation whose God is the Lord (Psalm 33:12).
This is the true meaning of the Resurrection. Faith in Jesus Christ is the answer to life and eternity. Larry King had it right; the answer to the question of the resurrection does make all the difference in the world. Have you received Christ as your own Savior?
Happy Resurrection Day.
King's answer intrigues me and I wonder if he has thought any more about it. Having a degree in history I've often thought of events that I would like to have witnessed. Some time ago I wrote about incidents in American history that interest me, but I also have a list of Bible events that I wish I could have seen first hand as well.
For instance, I would like to have seen the creation, the black void of space when the stars were suddenly turned on (No, I don't believe in the Big Bang.) and the world in its innocence. I would like to have watched Noah taking a hundred years to build an ark in the midst of taunts and criticisms. I would like to have seen Moses leading the Children of Israel across the Red Sea, the walls of Jericho falling down, and the favorite of every young boy I've ever taught in Sunday school, including my two sons, David and Goliath. I would like to have seen David and Jonathan weeping uncontrollably when they parted for the last time. I wish I could have seen the handwriting on the wall, or been in the throne room when Esther approached the king uninvited. I would love to have been a shepherd in the field watching the flocks when the angels appeared to announce, "Peace on earth." I would like to have seen the feeding of the five thousand and Lazarus raised from the dead. As painful as it would have been, I would want to have seen the crucifixion to see exactly what Jesus suffered for me, but even more, to have been with Peter and John when they peered into the empty tomb.
But there is one story in Scripture that I wish I could have experienced more than anything else. It's found in Luke 24:13-32, and took place on Easter Sunday, a few hours after the resurrection. Cleopas and another disciple were walking down the road to Emmaus when they were joined by Jesus. Their eyes were "hidden" so that they didn't recognize Him as they talked about the rumors of Christ being alive and wondered what it all meant. Jesus asked them about their conversation, and they, thinking He must be a stranger in town, explained to Him the crucifixion and the stories going around about a resurrection.
Then Christ rebuked them for their unbelief. "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory?" Beginning with Moses, He expounded all the Old Testament Scriptures concerning Himself to them. The Bible doesn't record what He said, but I have an idea Jesus may have said something like this:
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Then He created man in His own image, called him Adam, and placed him in the Garden of Eden. Then God gave Adam a wife, Eve, and began the institution of marriage. Satan came along and tempted Eve to sin. Adam joined her in disobedience and they were cast out of the Garden, their fellowship with God broken by sin.
Before He sent them away, however, God gave them a promise recorded in Genesis 3:15, of a coming Savior who would forgive their sins and redeem their souls. The world without God's presence became an increasingly wicked place until God called out Noah and his family to build an ark and saved them from the judgment He rained on the world. As the world's population grew again, man again turned against God and at the Tower of Babel, in modern day Babylon, God confused the languages, scattered the people and created the nations. Then in Genesis 12:2, He called Abraham and promised to make of him a great nation, Israel. During a famine the Israelites moved down into Egypt, God having used Joseph to prepare a way to save the nation. There, before he died, Jacob prophesied that the coming Messiah would come from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10).
The Jews were in captivity in Egypt for 430 years until Moses was called to lead them out. But Moses was afraid and questioned God's plan saying, "Whom shall I say has sent me?" God answered him in Exodus 3:14, "I AM THAT I AM." Moses led the Israelites across the Red Sea to Mt. Sinai where God gave him the Law. But the Jews rebelled and spent 40 years wandering in the Wilderness of the Sinai Peninsula until Joshua led them into their Promised Land. The Jews were ruled by a series of Judges for about 350 years until the monarchy was established, but after Solomon's rule the kingdom was divided and for 500 years lived in constant rebellion against God until Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem.
For a thousand years following Moses God sent prophets who preached against sin, warned of judgment, and promised a coming Messiah. Daniel 9:25 gave a clue to the exact time of His birth; Micah 5:2 told of the place of His birth; Isaiah 7:14 declared it would be a virgin birth; in Isaiah 9:7 he would be heir to the throne of David; Malachi 3:1 established a forerunner (John the Baptist); Zechariah 9:9 told of the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem; Zechariah 11:12 that He would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver; in Psalm 35:11 He was accused by false witnesses; in Isaiah 53:3 He would be rejected by His own people; Zechariah 12:10 explained His hands and feet would be pierced; He was sentenced with criminals in Isaiah 53:12; scorned and mocked in Psalm 22:7; given vinegar and gall to drink in Psalm 69:21; and in Psalm 22:1 He cried out the lonliest words ever heard by any human ear, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
Isaiah 53:5 explains that His death was a vicarious sacrifice. God turned His back on Jesus while He died on the cross and paid the penalty for our sins. "He was wounded for our transgressions." He bore our punishment so that we might never have God turn His back on us. He suffered because He loved us. John 3:16: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life. Then in Psalm 16:10, His resurrection was foretold.
No doubt Christ's explanation was much more eloquent and thorough than this, but it prompts a question. Why was all this written about Jesus? Who was He? Why was He so important that 1,000 years of prophecy was written about Him and all of it was fulfilled?
In John's Gospel chapter eight, the Pharisees were once again arguing with Jesus over His credentials, and justifying themselves claimed that they were the children of Abraham. Then in verse 56 Jesus tells them that Abraham rejoiced to see His birth. The Pharisees mocked Him more; Jesus was not yet fifty years old. How could Abraham, who had lived 2,000 years before, have rejoiced at His birth? To that Jesus replied in verse 58, "Before Abraham was, I AM."
The Pharisees knew exactly what He meant. He had just told them the same thing God had told Moses from the burning bush in Exodus chapter three. He had emphatically declared that He was, and is, and forever will be God of very God.
When He finished his discourse, Jesus and the two disciples stopped to eat. They sat down and as Jesus blessed the food the disciples' eyes were opened, and they suddenly recognized Him. Jesus then vanished out of their sight. The disciples looked at each other and in Luke 24:32 said, "Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the Scriptures?"
This is the Gospel according to I Corinthians 15:3-4: "Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures."
This is the message that needs to burn in every human heart. In the hearts of those who are lost, that is, without faith in Jesus Christ, their hearts need to burn with the conviction that they must repent of their sins and receive Jesus Christ as Savior. In the hearts of those who are saved, that is, those who have already put their faith in Christ, their hearts need to burn with the conviction that this is the message the world needs to hear, and that they need to tell it.
This is the message and the faith that our Founding Fathers believed in. This is the religion and the God that they spoke about often in their writings. This is the faith that America was built upon and needs to return to today. This is the Savior that promises to bless the nation whose God is the Lord (Psalm 33:12).
This is the true meaning of the Resurrection. Faith in Jesus Christ is the answer to life and eternity. Larry King had it right; the answer to the question of the resurrection does make all the difference in the world. Have you received Christ as your own Savior?
Happy Resurrection Day.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Listen My Children and You Shall Hear
In December 1860, as the United States stared at the prospect of Civil War, one of her greatest poets, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, put pen to paper to retell a tale of one of the events that had forged the nation. Dismayed at the prospect of his great country being torn apart, Longfellow set out to make a hero out of a minor character in the Revolution by the name of Paul Revere in order to remind his fellow citizens of their noble past.
Revere was a silversmith who lived in Boston. He was a member of the Sons of Liberty and had participated in the Boston Tea Party. Around midnight on April 18, 1775, he took his horse in a small boat across Boston Harbor to Charles Town. Secrecy was paramount as British patrols roamed the streets. The word was out, there would be a troop movement, but where and when? While Revere waited a fellow patriot climbed the steps to the steeple of the Old North Church. Finally a messenger, sneaking stealthily through the streets arrived. The movement was this night.
One if by land, and two if by sea. Revere stood by watching when out of the darkness a lantern light shown in the steeple tower. And then a second. The British were about to cross over to Charles Town and invade the interior looking to destroy a cache of arms, and to capture Samuel Adams and John Hancock. Revere leaped to the back of his steed and spurred the animal on. The fate of a nation rode that night.
Longfellow's poem brought national attention to Paul Revere, but he wasn't the only rider on the roads that night. Billy Dawes risked riding through the blockade at the neck of the Boston isthmus, and when the two riders met at Lexington, a third joined them, Dr. Samuel Prescott. As they continued on to Concord a British patrol blocked the road capturing Revere. Dawes turned to flee, but his horse stumbled and he escaped on foot. Prescott leaped a stone wall and rode on to Concord to warn the colonists.
By morning eighty Minutemen, led by Captain Jonas Parker, stood on the Lexington Green, a triangular shaped park in the center of the town, and faced 700 British Regulars. The British opened fire and eight militia men fell dead, and ten others were wounded.
The Regulars pressed on to Concord town where another poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson, immortalized the bridge in his poem, The Concord Hymn. By the rude bridge that arched the flood their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood and fired the shot heard round the world. The ever growing militiaman army turned the Regulars back and chased them all the way to Boston. By the end of the day 73 British troops had been killed with 174 more wounded. The patriots lost 49 killed, and 39 more wounded.
It's a story that stirs the heart. What brave and bold men our Founders were who risked everything for freedom. Unafraid of the consequences and willing to give their all, a ragtag army of colonial militiamen went on to defeat the greatest army in the world. What an example to spur us on in our own day to cry out a warning against the enemies who would deprive us of our liberties.
Paul Revere was virtually unknown after the Revolution. He had served on the Penobscot Expedition in the war with Longfellow's maternal grandfather, Peleg Wadsworth. Young Henry probably heard the story many times. Revere was a family friend as well as a family man, having eight children with his first wife, and after her death, remarrying and having eight more. But for Longfellow's poem Revere would probably be forgotten, and what a shame that would have been.
At a time when our history is being denigrated by our phony leadership it is good to remember that there were and are heroes. There were great men and women who suffered and sacrificed for a cause greater than themselves, and there are many serving in our military today doing the same. We often think of our Founding Fathers as the great statesmen that they were, and rightfully so. Paul Revere, however, was not a politician, not an eloquent speaker or writer. He was simply an everyday man who loved his country and became an integral part of the events that built a nation out of a wilderness. He was a hero, and a great American patriot.
Revere was a silversmith who lived in Boston. He was a member of the Sons of Liberty and had participated in the Boston Tea Party. Around midnight on April 18, 1775, he took his horse in a small boat across Boston Harbor to Charles Town. Secrecy was paramount as British patrols roamed the streets. The word was out, there would be a troop movement, but where and when? While Revere waited a fellow patriot climbed the steps to the steeple of the Old North Church. Finally a messenger, sneaking stealthily through the streets arrived. The movement was this night.
One if by land, and two if by sea. Revere stood by watching when out of the darkness a lantern light shown in the steeple tower. And then a second. The British were about to cross over to Charles Town and invade the interior looking to destroy a cache of arms, and to capture Samuel Adams and John Hancock. Revere leaped to the back of his steed and spurred the animal on. The fate of a nation rode that night.
Longfellow's poem brought national attention to Paul Revere, but he wasn't the only rider on the roads that night. Billy Dawes risked riding through the blockade at the neck of the Boston isthmus, and when the two riders met at Lexington, a third joined them, Dr. Samuel Prescott. As they continued on to Concord a British patrol blocked the road capturing Revere. Dawes turned to flee, but his horse stumbled and he escaped on foot. Prescott leaped a stone wall and rode on to Concord to warn the colonists.
By morning eighty Minutemen, led by Captain Jonas Parker, stood on the Lexington Green, a triangular shaped park in the center of the town, and faced 700 British Regulars. The British opened fire and eight militia men fell dead, and ten others were wounded.
The Regulars pressed on to Concord town where another poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson, immortalized the bridge in his poem, The Concord Hymn. By the rude bridge that arched the flood their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood and fired the shot heard round the world. The ever growing militiaman army turned the Regulars back and chased them all the way to Boston. By the end of the day 73 British troops had been killed with 174 more wounded. The patriots lost 49 killed, and 39 more wounded.
It's a story that stirs the heart. What brave and bold men our Founders were who risked everything for freedom. Unafraid of the consequences and willing to give their all, a ragtag army of colonial militiamen went on to defeat the greatest army in the world. What an example to spur us on in our own day to cry out a warning against the enemies who would deprive us of our liberties.
Paul Revere was virtually unknown after the Revolution. He had served on the Penobscot Expedition in the war with Longfellow's maternal grandfather, Peleg Wadsworth. Young Henry probably heard the story many times. Revere was a family friend as well as a family man, having eight children with his first wife, and after her death, remarrying and having eight more. But for Longfellow's poem Revere would probably be forgotten, and what a shame that would have been.
At a time when our history is being denigrated by our phony leadership it is good to remember that there were and are heroes. There were great men and women who suffered and sacrificed for a cause greater than themselves, and there are many serving in our military today doing the same. We often think of our Founding Fathers as the great statesmen that they were, and rightfully so. Paul Revere, however, was not a politician, not an eloquent speaker or writer. He was simply an everyday man who loved his country and became an integral part of the events that built a nation out of a wilderness. He was a hero, and a great American patriot.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Defining Moments
One hundred fifty years ago today at 4:30 a.m. Lt. Henry Farley fired a 10-inch mortar round from Ft. Johnson on the south side of Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The shell arched high over Ft. Sumpter and exploded directly above the Union troops in the fort. From across the harbor, Edmund Ruffin, an irascible, ardent secessionist from Virginia, fired the first shot directly at the fort, a 64-pound shell, from the Iron Battery at Cummings Point. The American Civil War was on.
Major Robert Anderson, in command of the fort, waited for daylight to return fire, partly because having been under siege since December, his supplies and ammunition were low. Although the fort had 60 guns, more than their Confederate attackers had available, only a few were actually manned and used. In the next 34 hours, 3,000 rounds hit the fort, fires broke out and smoke was so thick the defenders could scarcely breathe. When the flagpole was knocked down at 1 p.m. on the 13th, Anderson finally asked for terms.
The battle ended with no casualties. Major Anderson upon surrender asked to be able to fire a 100-gun salute to honor the American flag. During the salute a spark set off a pile of cartridges and the explosion killed Private Daniel Hough instantly. Several others were injured and one, Private Edward Gallway, died a few days later, the first two of what would become over 620,000 within four years.
The Civil War, along with the American Revolution are the two most defining moments in American history. The Revolution gave us a country, but the Civil War determined what kind of country it would be.
The Revolution united thirteen colonies under one Constitution in a government ruled by the people, an experiment in freedom that was unprecedented in world history. A Bill of Rights guaranteed not only the rights of free citizens, but in the Tenth Amendment, the rights of the individual States to rule themselves in any area not specifically covered by the Constitution. From this came the Doctrine of Nullification, the right of the States to overturn any law the Federal government passed that infringed upon the Tenth Amendment rights of the States.
The issue of nullification usually reared its head in the debate over slavery, and the rights of the Southern States to continue the slave trade. By 1860 the issue had grown to include the right of secession from the Union. When South Carolina fired on Ft. Sumpter they very clearly expressed their intention of going to war in order to secede.
What followed was the greatest war in terms of loss of life that the United States has ever fought. It was a war shocking in the level of violence and hatred that ofttimes brothers, cousins, and even fathers and sons hurled at each other. While 20th century wars with machine guns, tanks, and airplanes would kill many times the numbers of the Civil War, most of the deaths in those later wars came from a distance; artillery shells or bombs accounted for 90% of combat deaths in World War II. In the Civil War, 90% of the deaths were from rifles, small arms, bayonets and hand-to-hand combat. For sheer, wanton destruction, the Civil War was the most violent war America ever fought.
The end result, however, was that the right of secession was denied. The United States would remain one nation. The healing of the rift would be slow, and the recognition of equal rights to all races long in coming, but America would continue as one people and be a stronger presence in the world for it.
Today we are at another defining moment. It's not that there haven't been struggles along the way since 1865. There have been corrupt administrations, usurpation of non-designated constitutional powers by certain branches of government, and derelict leadership in the White House. Most of these have been held up, turned back, or overcome through the ballot box every four years. The wisdom of our Founders in creating this system was never more evident than in the 2000 elections.
But through every crisis we've faced, every monstrous growth of government, every burden of added taxes, every failure of leadership, we have always remained a free society. Our free enterprise economic system, the envy of the world, has always recovered when sensible people recognizing the necessity of limited government return to power in Washington. This time things are different.
We are facing a crisis of monumental proportions, a kind not seen since the Civil War, and one more egregious than any issue we have faced since that day. The danger in our time is not of states seceding, but of an entire overthrow of our constitutional system of government and our freedom in favor of a socialist welfare state run by an uncontrolled dictator. Nullification is again a watch word as many states are seeking to undo the overreaching agenda of the Obama administration.
Many, including some from his own political party, are beginning to call for Obama's impeachment. Their complaints among others include:
* Implementing the unconstitutional Obamacare even though a Federal Court has ordered it stopped.
* Ordering the EPA to bypass Congress and enact Cap and Trade even though Congress rejected it.
* A pathetic foreign policy that overlooks the abuses of Iran and Syria while encouraging the overthrow of Mubarak in Egypt, who had been our best Arab ally in the region, and sending military forces into battle in Libya without authorization from, or even consulting with Congress. It was not too long ago Obama joined the band wagon calling for President Bush's impeachment for what they claimed was the same thing.
* Preventing oil drilling even though a Federal Court lifted his ban, all the while telling the public he is encouraging oil companies to drill.
* Preventing Arizona from protecting its border with Mexico from drug cartel armies that are killing Americans while he refuses to do anything to protect the border.
* Usurping the position of the US Supreme Court by declaring the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional even though it was passed overwhelmingly by Congress and signed by Clinton.
* His refusal to provide a legitimate birth certificate to prove his eligibility for the office he holds.
Obama promised change, and he's bringing it all right, but the change he's bringing is a revolution. It's an attempted overthrow of our free society and constitutional government in favor of socialist slavery and dictatorial rule. It has brought us to a defining moment in our history.
When the South surrendered in 1865, poor old Edmund Ruffin could not bear the thought of living in a restored Union and committed suicide. The question for us is, are we going to commit national suicide by surrendering to an illegitimate dictator, or will we put a stop to this arrogant, potential tyrant, and restore constitutional law? What will history say about this defining moment for America?
Major Robert Anderson, in command of the fort, waited for daylight to return fire, partly because having been under siege since December, his supplies and ammunition were low. Although the fort had 60 guns, more than their Confederate attackers had available, only a few were actually manned and used. In the next 34 hours, 3,000 rounds hit the fort, fires broke out and smoke was so thick the defenders could scarcely breathe. When the flagpole was knocked down at 1 p.m. on the 13th, Anderson finally asked for terms.
The battle ended with no casualties. Major Anderson upon surrender asked to be able to fire a 100-gun salute to honor the American flag. During the salute a spark set off a pile of cartridges and the explosion killed Private Daniel Hough instantly. Several others were injured and one, Private Edward Gallway, died a few days later, the first two of what would become over 620,000 within four years.
The Civil War, along with the American Revolution are the two most defining moments in American history. The Revolution gave us a country, but the Civil War determined what kind of country it would be.
The Revolution united thirteen colonies under one Constitution in a government ruled by the people, an experiment in freedom that was unprecedented in world history. A Bill of Rights guaranteed not only the rights of free citizens, but in the Tenth Amendment, the rights of the individual States to rule themselves in any area not specifically covered by the Constitution. From this came the Doctrine of Nullification, the right of the States to overturn any law the Federal government passed that infringed upon the Tenth Amendment rights of the States.
The issue of nullification usually reared its head in the debate over slavery, and the rights of the Southern States to continue the slave trade. By 1860 the issue had grown to include the right of secession from the Union. When South Carolina fired on Ft. Sumpter they very clearly expressed their intention of going to war in order to secede.
What followed was the greatest war in terms of loss of life that the United States has ever fought. It was a war shocking in the level of violence and hatred that ofttimes brothers, cousins, and even fathers and sons hurled at each other. While 20th century wars with machine guns, tanks, and airplanes would kill many times the numbers of the Civil War, most of the deaths in those later wars came from a distance; artillery shells or bombs accounted for 90% of combat deaths in World War II. In the Civil War, 90% of the deaths were from rifles, small arms, bayonets and hand-to-hand combat. For sheer, wanton destruction, the Civil War was the most violent war America ever fought.
The end result, however, was that the right of secession was denied. The United States would remain one nation. The healing of the rift would be slow, and the recognition of equal rights to all races long in coming, but America would continue as one people and be a stronger presence in the world for it.
Today we are at another defining moment. It's not that there haven't been struggles along the way since 1865. There have been corrupt administrations, usurpation of non-designated constitutional powers by certain branches of government, and derelict leadership in the White House. Most of these have been held up, turned back, or overcome through the ballot box every four years. The wisdom of our Founders in creating this system was never more evident than in the 2000 elections.
But through every crisis we've faced, every monstrous growth of government, every burden of added taxes, every failure of leadership, we have always remained a free society. Our free enterprise economic system, the envy of the world, has always recovered when sensible people recognizing the necessity of limited government return to power in Washington. This time things are different.
We are facing a crisis of monumental proportions, a kind not seen since the Civil War, and one more egregious than any issue we have faced since that day. The danger in our time is not of states seceding, but of an entire overthrow of our constitutional system of government and our freedom in favor of a socialist welfare state run by an uncontrolled dictator. Nullification is again a watch word as many states are seeking to undo the overreaching agenda of the Obama administration.
Many, including some from his own political party, are beginning to call for Obama's impeachment. Their complaints among others include:
* Implementing the unconstitutional Obamacare even though a Federal Court has ordered it stopped.
* Ordering the EPA to bypass Congress and enact Cap and Trade even though Congress rejected it.
* A pathetic foreign policy that overlooks the abuses of Iran and Syria while encouraging the overthrow of Mubarak in Egypt, who had been our best Arab ally in the region, and sending military forces into battle in Libya without authorization from, or even consulting with Congress. It was not too long ago Obama joined the band wagon calling for President Bush's impeachment for what they claimed was the same thing.
* Preventing oil drilling even though a Federal Court lifted his ban, all the while telling the public he is encouraging oil companies to drill.
* Preventing Arizona from protecting its border with Mexico from drug cartel armies that are killing Americans while he refuses to do anything to protect the border.
* Usurping the position of the US Supreme Court by declaring the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional even though it was passed overwhelmingly by Congress and signed by Clinton.
* His refusal to provide a legitimate birth certificate to prove his eligibility for the office he holds.
Obama promised change, and he's bringing it all right, but the change he's bringing is a revolution. It's an attempted overthrow of our free society and constitutional government in favor of socialist slavery and dictatorial rule. It has brought us to a defining moment in our history.
When the South surrendered in 1865, poor old Edmund Ruffin could not bear the thought of living in a restored Union and committed suicide. The question for us is, are we going to commit national suicide by surrendering to an illegitimate dictator, or will we put a stop to this arrogant, potential tyrant, and restore constitutional law? What will history say about this defining moment for America?
Saturday, April 9, 2011
One Year On
One year ago today, at the suggestion of a friend, I started American Flyer. I have occasionally written political commentary on e-mail in the past, mostly to blow off steam, but in 2009 there was so much going on politically that I ramped it up and turned out many more articles than normal, so keeping this blog seemed like a good way to catalogue what I was writing. It has done a couple of things for me personally.
For one, I became a little more consistent in composing articles. At first I thought I might write one every week. It didn't quite turn out that way. Sometimes I went two or three weeks without writing, and other times I'd turn out two or three columns a week. Still, by the end of the year I'd submitted 49 articles, so the average is almost one a week, and I have found it to be an invigorating mental exercise.
Secondly, the blog allowed me to add some of my other writings on separate pages so there is some variety on the main page. Having it all there on the screen when I log on gives me a challenge to keep working on other things as well. I haven't done nearly as much as I would like to. Administrating a college and pastoring a church, even though the college is small and the church on the plantation is low maintenance, takes a lot of time, and I could probably think of other excuses too. I usually send a weekly update of our ministry and one person recommended I start another blog to publish my sermons. The problem is my sermons are mostly outlines and not written out. I'm not sure an outline is what you would want to see, but if I ever start writing the messages out, it may be a good idea.
Third, keeping this blog has been a challenge to me to try and stay actively involved in some way in America's political scene. Since my college days when I joined a Young Republicans club, and my campaigning for a conservative candidate for governor of Colorado in 1979, I've always had a desire to somehow be involved in the political process. Military service and being overseas was a hindrance to being very active, but I did get elected by my precinct to be a delegate to our Republican county convention in Texas in 1988. But besides voting absentee most of the time and continually writing to my congressmen and women, this blog gives me the most opportunity to try and stay involved by speaking my mind about what's going on.
The frustrating thing about being in Kenya is that I can't be there to be pro-active in events that are happening. I would dearly love to have a greater part, and as much as I love to write I sometimes wonder if being a political columnist wouldn't be a good career change in the future. Of course, at my age another career change may not be too realistic, but you never know how the Lord will lead.
My audience is still rather small extending just to my mailing list and my Facebook friends list, and a few others that people have forwarded some of my postings too. There have been 102 comments to my articles, a few of those have been me thanking others, or expounding more on my thoughts. I've received probably as many comments by e-mail that are not posted, so there are some who are reading regularly and I thank all of you.
It would be nice if there were more than ten followers, but several people have e-mailed that they've been unable to get on. I don't know what to tell you, but if someone who has joined knows the secret to getting hooked up, please let me know so I can pass it on.
It has been an interesting year and I wish I had commented on more issues, but sometimes there is so much going on day after day that by the time I sit down to write about a thought I had yesterday, the news is already passed. It has also been a critical year and hopefully the elections last November have started to put the brakes on the downward spiral America has been skidding on. But the fight for our country is just beginning, and just now it doesn't appear to be beginning well.
The Republican leadership in the House is already caving to Obama - Reid liberal pressure. The promise of 100 billion in spending cuts to pass a continuing resolution to fund the government wound up being only 61 billion, and in a midnight deal last night the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, agreed to only 38.5 billion in cuts, which allows the funding of Obamacare to continue, and the defunding of Planned Parenthood, which was a major issue, was put off for a later debate.
We can cry all we want about the chicken leadership coming from the White House, but the Republican leader just proved himself to be a gutless, cackling hen. Shutting the government down was a winning hand for Republicans. The majority of the country wants the out of control spending stopped. The majority wants Planned Parenthood defunded. The majority wants Obamacare repealed. Obama's approval rating is 42%, the lowest it's ever been.
Republicans were in a position to force some common sense back into the government, but rather than fight for it, they didn't even come out for the 12th round. They've just given Obama, who has been an abject failure on the economy, jobs creation, the military, immigration, foreign policy and everything else, a major victory. He was on the ropes looking like the dunce that he is. Now he's going to be more smug and arrogant than ever, and the socialist power grab will go on because light-headed, spineless Republicans have once again snatched defeat out of the jaws of victory. They still haven't figured out the mood of the country.
Two years ago I made a short comment about a Harris Poll of the country's top ten favorite movie stars. Harris started this poll in 1994. Since that time only one actor has been in the top ten every year. He was in it again in 2010, moving up from seventh place in 2009 to third. Since 1994 he's never been lower than seventh, was first in 1995, second five other times and now third for the fourth time. His closest competitor, Clint Eastwood, has made the top ten 16 times in 17 years, twice being number one.
Of course you know I'm talking about John Wayne. The question is this: if the movie going public still holds a conservative icon in such regard 32 years after his death, when his movies obviously aren't in theaters anymore, what does it say about the mood of the country? The pendulum of political thought is swinging back to the right. The country is looking for a leader who believes in American exceptionalism; who will declare America's greatness; who will unapologetically stand for the Constitution and the rule of law; who will defend America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; who has the courage to say, "enough is enough, stop spending like a bunch of immature children." Where is the man who will stand up and fill these shoes?
One year on American Flyer intends to continue on. The price of freedom is eternal vigilance. Today, more than ever, if we want to keep our freedoms and see our country restored to its rightful greatness, we must be vigilant.
For one, I became a little more consistent in composing articles. At first I thought I might write one every week. It didn't quite turn out that way. Sometimes I went two or three weeks without writing, and other times I'd turn out two or three columns a week. Still, by the end of the year I'd submitted 49 articles, so the average is almost one a week, and I have found it to be an invigorating mental exercise.
Secondly, the blog allowed me to add some of my other writings on separate pages so there is some variety on the main page. Having it all there on the screen when I log on gives me a challenge to keep working on other things as well. I haven't done nearly as much as I would like to. Administrating a college and pastoring a church, even though the college is small and the church on the plantation is low maintenance, takes a lot of time, and I could probably think of other excuses too. I usually send a weekly update of our ministry and one person recommended I start another blog to publish my sermons. The problem is my sermons are mostly outlines and not written out. I'm not sure an outline is what you would want to see, but if I ever start writing the messages out, it may be a good idea.
Third, keeping this blog has been a challenge to me to try and stay actively involved in some way in America's political scene. Since my college days when I joined a Young Republicans club, and my campaigning for a conservative candidate for governor of Colorado in 1979, I've always had a desire to somehow be involved in the political process. Military service and being overseas was a hindrance to being very active, but I did get elected by my precinct to be a delegate to our Republican county convention in Texas in 1988. But besides voting absentee most of the time and continually writing to my congressmen and women, this blog gives me the most opportunity to try and stay involved by speaking my mind about what's going on.
The frustrating thing about being in Kenya is that I can't be there to be pro-active in events that are happening. I would dearly love to have a greater part, and as much as I love to write I sometimes wonder if being a political columnist wouldn't be a good career change in the future. Of course, at my age another career change may not be too realistic, but you never know how the Lord will lead.
My audience is still rather small extending just to my mailing list and my Facebook friends list, and a few others that people have forwarded some of my postings too. There have been 102 comments to my articles, a few of those have been me thanking others, or expounding more on my thoughts. I've received probably as many comments by e-mail that are not posted, so there are some who are reading regularly and I thank all of you.
It would be nice if there were more than ten followers, but several people have e-mailed that they've been unable to get on. I don't know what to tell you, but if someone who has joined knows the secret to getting hooked up, please let me know so I can pass it on.
It has been an interesting year and I wish I had commented on more issues, but sometimes there is so much going on day after day that by the time I sit down to write about a thought I had yesterday, the news is already passed. It has also been a critical year and hopefully the elections last November have started to put the brakes on the downward spiral America has been skidding on. But the fight for our country is just beginning, and just now it doesn't appear to be beginning well.
The Republican leadership in the House is already caving to Obama - Reid liberal pressure. The promise of 100 billion in spending cuts to pass a continuing resolution to fund the government wound up being only 61 billion, and in a midnight deal last night the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, agreed to only 38.5 billion in cuts, which allows the funding of Obamacare to continue, and the defunding of Planned Parenthood, which was a major issue, was put off for a later debate.
We can cry all we want about the chicken leadership coming from the White House, but the Republican leader just proved himself to be a gutless, cackling hen. Shutting the government down was a winning hand for Republicans. The majority of the country wants the out of control spending stopped. The majority wants Planned Parenthood defunded. The majority wants Obamacare repealed. Obama's approval rating is 42%, the lowest it's ever been.
Republicans were in a position to force some common sense back into the government, but rather than fight for it, they didn't even come out for the 12th round. They've just given Obama, who has been an abject failure on the economy, jobs creation, the military, immigration, foreign policy and everything else, a major victory. He was on the ropes looking like the dunce that he is. Now he's going to be more smug and arrogant than ever, and the socialist power grab will go on because light-headed, spineless Republicans have once again snatched defeat out of the jaws of victory. They still haven't figured out the mood of the country.
Two years ago I made a short comment about a Harris Poll of the country's top ten favorite movie stars. Harris started this poll in 1994. Since that time only one actor has been in the top ten every year. He was in it again in 2010, moving up from seventh place in 2009 to third. Since 1994 he's never been lower than seventh, was first in 1995, second five other times and now third for the fourth time. His closest competitor, Clint Eastwood, has made the top ten 16 times in 17 years, twice being number one.
Of course you know I'm talking about John Wayne. The question is this: if the movie going public still holds a conservative icon in such regard 32 years after his death, when his movies obviously aren't in theaters anymore, what does it say about the mood of the country? The pendulum of political thought is swinging back to the right. The country is looking for a leader who believes in American exceptionalism; who will declare America's greatness; who will unapologetically stand for the Constitution and the rule of law; who will defend America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; who has the courage to say, "enough is enough, stop spending like a bunch of immature children." Where is the man who will stand up and fill these shoes?
One year on American Flyer intends to continue on. The price of freedom is eternal vigilance. Today, more than ever, if we want to keep our freedoms and see our country restored to its rightful greatness, we must be vigilant.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Repealing Obamacare
Liberal propaganda tends to follow a mantra that is handed down by the White House or the DNC, and once put into circulation is repeated by every Democrat in the government and liberal in the news media until it is so overused it becomes meaningless. A good example from a few years ago is "mean-spirited." A current example is going to be "extremist."
On the health care front, a common tactic is to trash the American medical system in favor of Canada's or England's socialized medical systems, which are paraded as the greatest in the world. It may look that way to a socialist, but when you realize that everyone in Canada who can afford it, comes to America for treatment, it begins to paint a different picture. The inefficiency of the Canadian system is clearly seen in the death of Actress Natasha Richardson, whose injury need not have been life threatening, but only became so because she couldn't get immediate help.
Another example from England is Margaret Hutchon, who was a former National Health Service director. She had been waiting since last June for a follow-up stomach operation at a hospital where she was a member of the board of directors. The surgery had been put off four times until she became so weak that when she finally had the surgery she died. Even her position on the board couldn't help speed up her treatment.
I recently sent a letter to Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill concerning repealing Obamacare. In response I received the e-mail below. It illustrates just how out of touch with reality liberals really are, and how deceptive they are in their explanations. When McCaskill claims that repealing Obamacare would kick "young people" off their parent's health coverage, she fails to point out that she's not talking about teenagers. No, she's talking about 25 year-olds who should have their own jobs and their own healthcare plans. When she complains that repealing Obamacare would cause the already insured to cover the costs of the uninsured who show up in emergency rooms, she fails to explain that Obamacare will do the same thing. Where do you think the government gets the money to cover the costs of the uninsured? From the insured!
My reply to the Senator's explanation of her position is at the bottom. It is not lengthy, neither does it address every issue she raises, nor does it need to. Liberal agendas are easily defeated by the truth, and the cost of Obamacare alone is enough to relegate it to a garbage scow headed out to sea.
April 1, 2011
Dear Reverend Patterson,
Thank you for contacting me regarding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. I appreciate hearing from you and welcome the opportunity to respond.
As you may know, on January 5th, 2011, Representative Eric Cantor introduced H.R. 2, the "Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act". The bill would completely repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590), which was signed into law by the President last year. The House passed H.R. 2 and Senator Mitch McConnell offered the bill in the Senate as an amendment to the Federal Aviation Administration authorization bill. The amendment failed to win passage.
I opposed this amendment. Repealing the Affordable Care Act would, among many other things: significantly increase our federal deficit; allow health insurance companies to once again have free rein to deny Missourians coverage based on pre-existing conditions; kick young people off their parent's health coverage; leave those already insured to shoulder the costs of "free riders" who show up in emergency rooms without healthcare coverage; and let healthcare costs continue to skyrocket in a way that bankrupts families, businesses and our government alike.
You should know, however, that I am and always have been open to making improvements to the Affordable Care Act, a bill that was produced after hundreds of hours of debate and that incorporated ideas from both sides of the aisle. In fact, moments before the vote on the healthcare repeal amendment, I joined my Republican and Democratic colleagues in passing an amendment to remove a burdensome 1099 tax reporting requirement included in the healthcare law. I am also open to proposals to remove what is commonly referred to as the "mandate" in the health reform bill, so long as those proposals would produce a system that retains the ability to end discrimination by health insurance companies against persons with pre-existing conditions, increases coverage of uninsured Americans, won't drive up premiums, and addresses the vexing problem of free riders. In addition to having an open mind on how laws can be improved, I also know that many Missourians do not like the "mandate" and I therefore feel I have a duty to them to consider alternatives.
The fact of the matter is that there will be more improvements made to the Affordable Care Act. As with all legislation, we learn in time what works and what does not, as well as how to make them better. I am pleased that the President recently endorsed one bipartisan proposal that would allow states to opt out of parts of the bill, including the mandate, before the requirements go into effect in 2014. States would be able to retain a "waiver" if the state can demonstrate that it has developed its own system to expand coverage for its citizens, hold down health costs, provide important safeguards to health insurance consumers, and not add to the federal deficit. I will continue to work with my Democratic and Republican colleagues alike who bring forward good ideas to make the original legislation better.
Most Missourians support the goals of driving down costs, increasing access, and banning the egregious practices of insurance companies. You can learn more about the changes brought about through the new law by visiting a non-partisan website like the one sponsored by the Kaiser Family Foundation (http://www.kff.org/). Individuals and families who are interested in learning more about their insurance options can visit www.healthcare.gov, which provides a consolidated, personalized list of all of the public and private coverage options in Missouri and the details of these plans. In addition, I have included with this letter some important information dispelling several widespread myths and clarifying facts about the healthcare law. You can also view this information on my websitehttp://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/?p=issue&id=313.
Again, thank you for contacting me. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future if I can be of further assistance to you on this or any other issue.
Sincerely,
Claire McCaskill
United States Senator
April 6, 2011
Dear Senator McCaskill,
Thank you for your response. I am surprised that you could write something like this with a straight face.
You state that repealing Obamacare would increase the deficit "significantly," yet with the bill not even fully implemented it will add 105 billion to the debt, and the CBO projects it will add a trillion dollars to the deficit over the next ten years. I suggest to you that these figures are significantly higher than what they would be if the bill is repealed. All you are doing is adding another useless federal bureaucracy requiring thousands of jobs which will be another monumental drain on the economy and will only red tape services, making the entire health care system slower and less available than it is now.
That scores of organizations, mostly unions, and even some states have applied and been given waivers to get out of Obamacare should give you some clue as to the disaster that the bill really is. That many states have filed law suits challenging the constitutionality of the bill should be another clue. That a majority of the people were opposed to the bill when it was passed with your vote, and at least 59% are in favor of repealing it now, suggests that you care less about the concerns and needs of your constituents than your own political agenda.
I have no doubt that a majority of Missourians are in favor of driving down costs and making health care more accessible. Obamacare does neither. In fact, it does just the opposite, and is more "egregious" than the current system. Ultimately Obamacare will destroy the best medical care in the world.
It makes me wonder if you do any independent thinking or if you are just another mouthpiece for failed liberal socialist causes. If you really want to help, repeal Obamacare and lift the ban on interstate insurance services. Make the system competitive and you will drive the costs down and make medical care more accessible.
Sincerely,
Lance Patterson
On the health care front, a common tactic is to trash the American medical system in favor of Canada's or England's socialized medical systems, which are paraded as the greatest in the world. It may look that way to a socialist, but when you realize that everyone in Canada who can afford it, comes to America for treatment, it begins to paint a different picture. The inefficiency of the Canadian system is clearly seen in the death of Actress Natasha Richardson, whose injury need not have been life threatening, but only became so because she couldn't get immediate help.
Another example from England is Margaret Hutchon, who was a former National Health Service director. She had been waiting since last June for a follow-up stomach operation at a hospital where she was a member of the board of directors. The surgery had been put off four times until she became so weak that when she finally had the surgery she died. Even her position on the board couldn't help speed up her treatment.
I recently sent a letter to Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill concerning repealing Obamacare. In response I received the e-mail below. It illustrates just how out of touch with reality liberals really are, and how deceptive they are in their explanations. When McCaskill claims that repealing Obamacare would kick "young people" off their parent's health coverage, she fails to point out that she's not talking about teenagers. No, she's talking about 25 year-olds who should have their own jobs and their own healthcare plans. When she complains that repealing Obamacare would cause the already insured to cover the costs of the uninsured who show up in emergency rooms, she fails to explain that Obamacare will do the same thing. Where do you think the government gets the money to cover the costs of the uninsured? From the insured!
My reply to the Senator's explanation of her position is at the bottom. It is not lengthy, neither does it address every issue she raises, nor does it need to. Liberal agendas are easily defeated by the truth, and the cost of Obamacare alone is enough to relegate it to a garbage scow headed out to sea.
April 1, 2011
Dear Reverend Patterson,
Thank you for contacting me regarding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. I appreciate hearing from you and welcome the opportunity to respond.
As you may know, on January 5th, 2011, Representative Eric Cantor introduced H.R. 2, the "Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act". The bill would completely repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590), which was signed into law by the President last year. The House passed H.R. 2 and Senator Mitch McConnell offered the bill in the Senate as an amendment to the Federal Aviation Administration authorization bill. The amendment failed to win passage.
I opposed this amendment. Repealing the Affordable Care Act would, among many other things: significantly increase our federal deficit; allow health insurance companies to once again have free rein to deny Missourians coverage based on pre-existing conditions; kick young people off their parent's health coverage; leave those already insured to shoulder the costs of "free riders" who show up in emergency rooms without healthcare coverage; and let healthcare costs continue to skyrocket in a way that bankrupts families, businesses and our government alike.
You should know, however, that I am and always have been open to making improvements to the Affordable Care Act, a bill that was produced after hundreds of hours of debate and that incorporated ideas from both sides of the aisle. In fact, moments before the vote on the healthcare repeal amendment, I joined my Republican and Democratic colleagues in passing an amendment to remove a burdensome 1099 tax reporting requirement included in the healthcare law. I am also open to proposals to remove what is commonly referred to as the "mandate" in the health reform bill, so long as those proposals would produce a system that retains the ability to end discrimination by health insurance companies against persons with pre-existing conditions, increases coverage of uninsured Americans, won't drive up premiums, and addresses the vexing problem of free riders. In addition to having an open mind on how laws can be improved, I also know that many Missourians do not like the "mandate" and I therefore feel I have a duty to them to consider alternatives.
The fact of the matter is that there will be more improvements made to the Affordable Care Act. As with all legislation, we learn in time what works and what does not, as well as how to make them better. I am pleased that the President recently endorsed one bipartisan proposal that would allow states to opt out of parts of the bill, including the mandate, before the requirements go into effect in 2014. States would be able to retain a "waiver" if the state can demonstrate that it has developed its own system to expand coverage for its citizens, hold down health costs, provide important safeguards to health insurance consumers, and not add to the federal deficit. I will continue to work with my Democratic and Republican colleagues alike who bring forward good ideas to make the original legislation better.
Most Missourians support the goals of driving down costs, increasing access, and banning the egregious practices of insurance companies. You can learn more about the changes brought about through the new law by visiting a non-partisan website like the one sponsored by the Kaiser Family Foundation (http://www.kff.org/). Individuals and families who are interested in learning more about their insurance options can visit www.healthcare.gov, which provides a consolidated, personalized list of all of the public and private coverage options in Missouri and the details of these plans. In addition, I have included with this letter some important information dispelling several widespread myths and clarifying facts about the healthcare law. You can also view this information on my websitehttp://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/?p=issue&id=313.
Again, thank you for contacting me. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future if I can be of further assistance to you on this or any other issue.
Sincerely,
Claire McCaskill
United States Senator
April 6, 2011
Dear Senator McCaskill,
Thank you for your response. I am surprised that you could write something like this with a straight face.
You state that repealing Obamacare would increase the deficit "significantly," yet with the bill not even fully implemented it will add 105 billion to the debt, and the CBO projects it will add a trillion dollars to the deficit over the next ten years. I suggest to you that these figures are significantly higher than what they would be if the bill is repealed. All you are doing is adding another useless federal bureaucracy requiring thousands of jobs which will be another monumental drain on the economy and will only red tape services, making the entire health care system slower and less available than it is now.
That scores of organizations, mostly unions, and even some states have applied and been given waivers to get out of Obamacare should give you some clue as to the disaster that the bill really is. That many states have filed law suits challenging the constitutionality of the bill should be another clue. That a majority of the people were opposed to the bill when it was passed with your vote, and at least 59% are in favor of repealing it now, suggests that you care less about the concerns and needs of your constituents than your own political agenda.
I have no doubt that a majority of Missourians are in favor of driving down costs and making health care more accessible. Obamacare does neither. In fact, it does just the opposite, and is more "egregious" than the current system. Ultimately Obamacare will destroy the best medical care in the world.
It makes me wonder if you do any independent thinking or if you are just another mouthpiece for failed liberal socialist causes. If you really want to help, repeal Obamacare and lift the ban on interstate insurance services. Make the system competitive and you will drive the costs down and make medical care more accessible.
Sincerely,
Lance Patterson
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