Fear in politics

One of the things that bothered me the most during the election — and, I will point out that it was through no direct fault of Barack Obama, but rather from his supporters — was the “rationalization” that voting against a black man was a vote in favor of racism.

What screams fowl in that concept is that it, in itself, promotes racism in much the same way that Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, et al promote racism by fighting for their own twisted vision of “racial equality.”

For the sake of comparison, let me make a theoretical argument: Not voting for Sarah Palin equated to voting in favor of sexism.

Do you see the absurdity in that statement?  Sadly, there are quite a few people in this country who fail to see the connection I just made.  They see apples to oranges while I’m holding two Granny Smiths.  And, sadly, the fear of being labeled a racist undoubtedly resulted in at least a few “Yes” votes for our currently sitting president.

Our lives are not to be run by fear, and it should not calculate heavily into our decisions.  We are to approach God confidently through prayer in times of indecision, aligning ourselves and our will with His Will.  Then, and only then, can we make decisions with confidence.  If we can stand before God in confidence at that moment, why should our votes be cast in fear?

1 Peter 3:14-16: “But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed.  Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened.  But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.”

Paying Caesar, or paying for an agenda?

Caesar is taking far more than what is Caesar’s.

After projecting $7.1 trillion in deficit spending over the next 10 years — then ripping into the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) for “exaggerating costs and underestimating savings” under the Obama-led spending plan after the estimated approximately $9 trillion — White House officials have confirmed that they will revise those numbers this week, hiking the total up to (surprise, surprise) about $9 trillion.

A scary trend is developing with the current administration, which is what has prompted its inclusion on a site that avoids the partisan politics and looks, instead, at the Biblical ramifications of the underhanded dealings of the U.S. government.  On more than one occassion, this president has promised one thing, delivered something entirely different, and then essentially replied with a half-hearted, “just kidding” response.

And what’s worse is that each time he does it, he costs you, me and John Q. Public more money.

Keep in mind that we are not just the citizens of America; we are America.  And, if John Smith charges something on credit in John Smith’s name, the debt belongs to John Smith.  So, that means that President Obama — in a few sentences that will be presented this week — has just spent $2 trillion more of our money.

Lying, deception and false witness are all essentially the same thing, and they all violate God’s ninth commandment: “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:16)  But we let those who run this nation do exactly that — to each other, to other nations and to us — every single day.  Essentially, what our president has done in this instance, and in several others, is to deceive us by garnering support on a set of numbers that is high but, in the eyes of many, acceptable, only to turn around after receiving approval with an “oh, by the way…” in which we’re told the cost will be much greater.

I urge you to begin speaking out against your government.  We are the citizens of the United States — the caretakers of this great country, given to us by our Lord to escape unrighteous tyranny and oppression.  Let’s take care of it before it is too late.

No economic recovery is going to save this country

Despite the best efforts of the government, the Dow broke 9,000 today for the first time in 2009.

As if laughing in the face of the president and his bailout dollars, Ford Motor Company led the way with its best quarterly result since it last turned a profit five years ago.  This comes in spite of the fact that it is the only American auto manufacturer not either owned or heavily subsidised by Washington.

As the men and women running this country into the ground continue to throw away dollars they taxed out of the pockets of the people, seemingly in an effort to buoy the economy on a sea of quarters and pennies, companies that have vowed to do what is best for the American people are salvaging the nation’s private-sector fiscal year.

I can’t say with any certainty that the heads of these companies are devout Christians, and I can’t speak to anyone else’s faith in God.  However, I can see a generalized example of faith in today’s turn of events: people who believe the best way to survive is not by leaning on a frail crutch — the ones who have faith in something that eventually normalcy and peace will be restored — are the ones who are not just surviving, but are beginning to thrive.

When you have something to believe in — an identity, a rallying point — the people who rely on you will begin to believe.  As a nation, we used to have an identity; now, what we used to be is memorialized (until it is legislated out of existence) as a line in what was once a noble promise but has become nothing more than a poem our kids recite each morning in school: ” … one nation under God, indivisible … “

Unfortunately, these days we as a collective population seem to be pledging our allegience not to a country built on Godly principles, but to a plot of land run by people who pledge their own allegiences to the almighty dollar and, above all else, themselves.