This was written by a close friend, Mr. Jim Schwiesow, a retired sheriff from Iowa. You can visit Jim's webpage at Sheriff Jim Online.
Here is his latest article. It is very powerful and speaks to the heart concerning something we should all consider very closely.
Neal
BEYOND A FIERY GATE LIES OUR DESTINY
By: Jim R Schwiesow
“Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,
and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue
shall consume away in their mouth.” Zechariah 14:12
He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will
be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning, It will be
foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites,
ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs
of the times?Matthew 16:2-3
Today, while surfing the internet I ran across one of those interminably silly arguments, via a written exchange, as to whether the Bible is verifiably true or just a collection of colorful, and obtuse fairy tales. It is interesting that these exchanges always seem to be comprised of a divide between the collective bodies of two groups - those who despise the thought that a sovereign God exists and that He might have any control over the universe, the world or horror of horrors their own personal lives, and those nominal Christians who spin their wheels futilely and vainly with nonsensical contentions and vacuous arguments grounded only in the wisdom and doctrines of men and devoid of an unfaltering, unshakable and unassailable belief in the super natural power of the Eternal Spirit who created a universe of one hundred twenty-five billion galaxies; each encompassing one hundred billion stars. All this is mindful of the old TV commercial in which a little old lady lifts the top of the bun enclosing a hamburger and indignantly exclaims, “Where’s the beef?” Like that scrawny little denizen of the geriatric set a true believer in the eternal almighty and infallible God looks at these delusive and puny proffers and cries out, “Where’s the faith?”
On August 6, 1945 a relatively small, by today’s standards, atomic bomb of 130 pounds of Uranium-235 named “Little Boy” plunged from the belly of an American B-29 bomber and detonated 1,900 feet above the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Three days later another B-29 Superfortress carried a nuclear bomb to Nagasaki, a hapless secondary target that was an unfortunate alternate to the primary target of Kokura, which was obscured by clouds. The Japanese military upon noting that only two aircraft were approaching thought that it was only a reconnaissance mission and no alarm was given. Minutes later a second nuclear device, a bulbous Plutonium bomb aptly called “Fat Boy” descended and detonated 1,500 feet above the city. In two brief and blindingly horrific instances within the space of three days 150,000 people died, incinerated by temperatures exceeding 7,000 degrees Fahrenheit. They died in their tracks; their eyes dissolved in their sockets, their tongues dissolved in their mouths and the flesh was consumed from their bones. They either evaporated into nothingness or dropped to the ground as ashes, which were blown away by fiery winds of six hundred miles per hour. And these were the lucky ones upwards of 200,000 more people of those two cities died slowly, agonizingly and tortuously over the next five years from radiation sickness and cancers.
What is not commonly known is that the Japanese narrowly escaped a nearly complete nuclear annihilation. The then President, Harry S. Truman, had announced that if the Japanese government and military failed to accept the terms for an unconditional surrender they could expect a rain of ruin from the air the likes of which has never been seen upon this earth. In the works were four more nuclear bombs and the argument was not whether they would be used, but whether they should be delivered upon the Japanese mainland as they were readied over the next few months or be held and poured out upon the Japanese people in quick succession. Mankind has within its grasp the wherewithal to annihilate every last living soul upon this earth and the evilness of mind to do so.
Mr. Truman failed to note, upon the delivery of his statement as to the likes of such destruction having never been seen upon the earth, that the event was not unprecedented. Those who believe the Bible know that the Biblical cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were delivered unto just such a fiery destruction at the hand of God over five thousand years ago in the year 3123BC; the cause - great sin, rejection of God and His laws and a declination to seek His grace in all humility and abject submissiveness.
The Bible contains a chronological recording of the events of the earth and its inhabitants past, present and future. Only the Creator, the Lord God Almighty, has such perspective. The prophets and apostles who recorded His revelations were selected for just such a purpose before the foundations of the earth were laid, and their inspiration - the Eternal God of limitless power - has preserved their work and His word through the ages to this very day. Satan and his minions and the men who serve him have striven mightily to pollute it, pervert it and efface it, but the Word of God stands like a mighty fortress invulnerable and unassailable.
The Bible was given to mankind for his instruction and we ignore it at our peril. Men can laugh at it, scoff at and denigrate the words thereof and denounce it as myth and superstitious nonsense, but that will not erase any of God’s works, it will not circumvent His control over all of nature and current events nor will it prevent every last prophetic word of the Bible from being carried out. God holds the wisdom of men in derision; man’s every prideful worldly self-centered work is as foolishness to Him.
God’s wrath is poised to be poured out upon this world with a fullness of fury and the United States will be the first to fall, while its English speaking allies will either fall simultaneously or succumb to similar judgment in quick succession. This nation has fallen into a depth of depravity unparalleled in our history. It is not necessary to enumerate our sins they are well known. The perverseness of the minds of the people sickens the soul. Government supported vice is rampant, and the people are of a corrupt mind and their hearts are continually fixed on evil. The killing of millions of babies is sanctioned and protected by government decree, as is sexual perversion and various other vices.
“Our feet run to evil, and we make haste to shed innocent blood; our thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in our paths. The way of peace we do not know, and there is no justice in our ways; we have made for ourselves crooked paths.”
Will we change or will we fall?
We have watched trickles of judgments turn into creeks and then into rivers as the country is beset by one disaster after another. Each calamity falls hard upon the heels of another. Coastal cities and states are devastated and ravaged by storms of unprecedented fury. An entire state is set afire by a statewide electrical storm of historical significance and subterranean rumblings portend the soon coming of catastrophic earthquakes. Hundreds of thousands of acres of the heartland are scourged by floods and communities from coast to coast are shredded and torn apart by monster tornadoes.
Unbridled and illegal immigration has destroyed social cohesiveness and injected racial hatreds and dissention into the nation. Crime is rampant, diseases of new and varied kinds are burgeoning and the health of the people is being destroyed by chemical concoctions pushed by the pharmaceutical reprobates in their quest for astronomical sums of money, and the same are promoted by the medical community and celebrity and media shills for the same reason.
Our country is totally bankrupt and in hock for billions of dollars to foreign nations. Our industrial complex has been dismantled by venal corporate elites and moved to foreign shores, and our economy and currency have been decimated and trashed by the treacherous internationalist agents for a new world order.
We have been delivered into the hands of a now fascist government and every last one of our government institutions is corrupt to the bone and oppressively controlling. Government officials meet clandestinely to plan for martial law and the incarceration of dissident citizens to insulate themselves from possible uprisings over their treasonous acts. The pride of our power as been destroyed, and those to whom the deluded citizens of this country have entrusted their security are seemingly moronic blockheads who blunder into wars, or precipitate wars between other nations, by their obtuse and dim-witted activities. They have no concept of the military strength of those who they provoke and grossly over estimate their own nation’s capabilities both militarily and economically.
In short we have been set up by our own iniquity for total destruction.
Prior to modern times it was relatively easy for scoffers of God’s Word to ridicule Biblical prophecy. It was they said physically impossible for a mark to be implanted into the hand or forehead that would either enable or disable ones ability to carry out commerce or control absolutely a person’s access to the necessities of life. And who could conceive of a power that could instantly dissolve the eyeballs in their sockets, the tongue in the mouth and melt the flesh from the bones. It was they said such silliness that argued that the Bible was a work of fiction or at the very least a collection of mythological tales. Modern science, which is worshipped over God today, has brought all that is prophesied in the Bible to the capability of becoming reality. No longer can God’s prophecies be looked upon as science fiction. Fiction they are not and we are about to learn this the hard way.
We, in this country are perilously close to the end. The concluding event of a long line of corrections at God’s hand will be nuclear destruction. At a time when we least expect it nuclear devastation will rain down upon our cities just as it did upon Hiroshima and Nagasaki and our land will be made desolate. Such a fate is only inevitable if we fail to turn to God with true humility and sorrow and beg His forgiveness and plead for His deliverance. It’s not too late, not yet.
“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.” 1 Thessalonians 5:1-4
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Sunday, August 17, 2008
It Is Not Your Right
Rights are something that many people take for granted, yet they are often something that are often abused . For instance, we all the right to speak out and say what is on our mind. However that right does not entitle us to slander or libel someone.
One right we all have is the right to be treated equally as a human being no matter our race, age, or gender. We all have the right to seek employment and to try and improve our lives. Yet we do not have the right to require others to subsidize our us for our failure to achieve those goals.
Often groups or organizations campaign for rights when in actuality what they really seek is acceptance for their particular cause. That is no more so when one considers the subject of gay rights.
For the most part gays have all the same rights that heterosexual people have, other than those few homophobes who seek out members of the gay community and target them to harass or perhaps assault. So what is it with all the talk of gay rights?
What the gay community really wants is acceptance for their lifestyle choice, and that does not meet the criterion of a right.
There has been much ado recently when California allowed for same sex marriages. Yet California’s decision to do so violates federal law. Chapter 1, Section 7 of Title 1 of the U.S. Code states, “In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word “marriage” means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word “spouse” refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife.”
It is particularly ludicrous that those who support, and fight for, the right of gays to marry, would seek equal standing in the eyes of God by having their unions sanctified in a church.
How can any person who engages in homosexual activities expect God to sanctify their union to another who is of the same sex, particularly when it is written in Scripture, “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them.” Leviticus 20:13
While it is also true that concerning judging others Christ said, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her”, that does not mean that homosexual behavior is any less a sin in God’s eyes and should therefore be considered as sinful by all who profess to be Christians.
It seems that the gay community is not seeking the same rights that each of us as individuals enjoys. Instead they are seeking acceptance of their deviant lifestyle. Why else would a Michigan man be suing the publishers of Bibles for $70 million in emotional damages he suffered because the Bible condemns his sexual activities?
Has our country deteriorated to the point where to mention sin is now considered politically incorrect? It is not only America that has these problems, in 2007 a Priest in Spain was sued over a seminar in which he claimed he could “rehabilitate homosexuals”. Going back to 2005 a Pentecostal pastor was charged with hate speech when he denounced homosexuality as a “cancerous tumor” During his defense, Pastor Ake Green told Sweden’s Supreme Court that his sermon was meant to warn gays that their lifestyle would result in an ‘eternal divorce’ from God.
The first amendment right of free speech appears to be a right that the gay community does not respect when that right is exercised in opposition to their lifestyle.
There are numerous organizations which attempt to garner support for the gay community, and nowhere is there presence more strongly felt than in San Francisco, California.
San Francisco is home to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration Committee, LGBT, whose stated goal is to "educate the World, commemorate our heritage, celebrate our culture, and liberate our people."
http://www.sfpride.org/
One of the ways they go about this is by supporting the group that sponsors the San Francisco LGBT Celebration, and the Folsom Street Fair. The Folsom Street Fair has it's own webpage with a stated goal of "Our mission is to create world-class volunteer driven leather events, providing the adult alternative lifestyle community safe venues for self-expression, emphasizing freedom, fun and frolic, while raising money to benefit San Francisco charities."
http://folsomstreetfair.org/
The San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration, which often goes by the name of San Francisco Pride, is a parade and festival which celebrates all things of the gay lifestyle. It is held in June of each year and is one of the most famous and best attended gay pride parades in the world. It is second to only the Rose Parade in attendance.
The Gay Pride Parade is bad enough, with the gays celebrating their lifestyle for all to witness, but the Folsom Street Fair is downright disgusting in its depravity. The link below shows the type activity that takes place at the Folsom Street Fair, but I have to warn you, it is truly disturbing. Yet this is the lifestyle the gay community wants us to accept as normal.
Warning, the link below contains graphic nudity and repulsive sexually deviant acts
http://www.zombietime.com/up_your_alley_2008/part_1_full/index.php
Those images are both repulsive and, as we know, a violation of the laws of God as found in Scripture. Yet what about mans law, how do they hold up to those?
According to Section 314 of the California Penal Code, "Every person who willfully and lewdly, either: 1. Exposes his person, or the private parts thereof, in any public place, or in any place where there are present other persons to be offended or annoyed thereby; or, 2. Procures, counsels, or assists any person so to expose himself or take part in any model artist exhibition, or to make any other exhibition of himself to public view, or the view of any number of persons, such as is offensive to decency, or is adapted to excite to vicious or lewd thoughts or acts, is guilty of a misdemeanor."
Also, did not one of those disturbing images show a man performing oral sex upon another man, while a third man urinated upon him? According to a California appeals court, urinating in public is illegal as well.
David McDonald, of Berkley, CA, was arrested by police for urinating in a restaurant parking lot. Although it is true that the officers suspected he was in possession of cocaine, Justice Anthony Kline wrote, "There can be little doubt that urination on or near a busy commercial street interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of both life and property." Kline continued, "The sight and smell of urine are vile and offensive, and those who use the public streets and sidewalks cannot be freely subjected to such unpleasantness."
Although not all of the gay community is as 'in your face' with their actions as those who participate in the Gay Pride Parade, and the Folsom Street Fair, their sexual preference is no less offensive to those who chose to live by Gods law and remain heterosexual, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh."
We all know how in the Scriptures, God destroyed the world with a mighty flood due to the wickedness of man. We also know that God destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah due to their wickedness.
Is San Francisco any less wicked than those cities of old? Yet the mayor of San Francisco and his Chief of Police tolerate this deviant behavior in their city, claiming it is their "right" to be different. The groups who support this lifestyle claim that these people are born this way and cannot help themselves. They disregard the Scriptures and what they say about homosexuality. Yet in Proverbs, Chapter 14, Verse 9, it states, "Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favor."
That can only lead one to assume that those who disregard Gods will and defend the 'rights' of the gay community to be different, are to be considered fools, while those who speak out against this abomination find favor in God's eyes.
It is your choice, you can believe what you want to believe, but I find the gay lifestyle offensive and totally against all that I believe to be good. Those who practice this lifestyle have the right to do so, but they cannot claim that among their rights is the right to demand my acceptance of it. Just as much as they have the right to live in sin, I have the guaranteed first amendment right to speak out against it, and I will continue to do so as long as I live.
One right we all have is the right to be treated equally as a human being no matter our race, age, or gender. We all have the right to seek employment and to try and improve our lives. Yet we do not have the right to require others to subsidize our us for our failure to achieve those goals.
Often groups or organizations campaign for rights when in actuality what they really seek is acceptance for their particular cause. That is no more so when one considers the subject of gay rights.
For the most part gays have all the same rights that heterosexual people have, other than those few homophobes who seek out members of the gay community and target them to harass or perhaps assault. So what is it with all the talk of gay rights?
What the gay community really wants is acceptance for their lifestyle choice, and that does not meet the criterion of a right.
There has been much ado recently when California allowed for same sex marriages. Yet California’s decision to do so violates federal law. Chapter 1, Section 7 of Title 1 of the U.S. Code states, “In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word “marriage” means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word “spouse” refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife.”
It is particularly ludicrous that those who support, and fight for, the right of gays to marry, would seek equal standing in the eyes of God by having their unions sanctified in a church.
How can any person who engages in homosexual activities expect God to sanctify their union to another who is of the same sex, particularly when it is written in Scripture, “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them.” Leviticus 20:13
While it is also true that concerning judging others Christ said, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her”, that does not mean that homosexual behavior is any less a sin in God’s eyes and should therefore be considered as sinful by all who profess to be Christians.
It seems that the gay community is not seeking the same rights that each of us as individuals enjoys. Instead they are seeking acceptance of their deviant lifestyle. Why else would a Michigan man be suing the publishers of Bibles for $70 million in emotional damages he suffered because the Bible condemns his sexual activities?
Has our country deteriorated to the point where to mention sin is now considered politically incorrect? It is not only America that has these problems, in 2007 a Priest in Spain was sued over a seminar in which he claimed he could “rehabilitate homosexuals”. Going back to 2005 a Pentecostal pastor was charged with hate speech when he denounced homosexuality as a “cancerous tumor” During his defense, Pastor Ake Green told Sweden’s Supreme Court that his sermon was meant to warn gays that their lifestyle would result in an ‘eternal divorce’ from God.
The first amendment right of free speech appears to be a right that the gay community does not respect when that right is exercised in opposition to their lifestyle.
There are numerous organizations which attempt to garner support for the gay community, and nowhere is there presence more strongly felt than in San Francisco, California.
San Francisco is home to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration Committee, LGBT, whose stated goal is to "educate the World, commemorate our heritage, celebrate our culture, and liberate our people."
http://www.sfpride.org/
One of the ways they go about this is by supporting the group that sponsors the San Francisco LGBT Celebration, and the Folsom Street Fair. The Folsom Street Fair has it's own webpage with a stated goal of "Our mission is to create world-class volunteer driven leather events, providing the adult alternative lifestyle community safe venues for self-expression, emphasizing freedom, fun and frolic, while raising money to benefit San Francisco charities."
http://folsomstreetfair.org/
The San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration, which often goes by the name of San Francisco Pride, is a parade and festival which celebrates all things of the gay lifestyle. It is held in June of each year and is one of the most famous and best attended gay pride parades in the world. It is second to only the Rose Parade in attendance.
The Gay Pride Parade is bad enough, with the gays celebrating their lifestyle for all to witness, but the Folsom Street Fair is downright disgusting in its depravity. The link below shows the type activity that takes place at the Folsom Street Fair, but I have to warn you, it is truly disturbing. Yet this is the lifestyle the gay community wants us to accept as normal.
Warning, the link below contains graphic nudity and repulsive sexually deviant acts
http://www.zombietime.com/up_your_alley_2008/part_1_full/index.php
Those images are both repulsive and, as we know, a violation of the laws of God as found in Scripture. Yet what about mans law, how do they hold up to those?
According to Section 314 of the California Penal Code, "Every person who willfully and lewdly, either: 1. Exposes his person, or the private parts thereof, in any public place, or in any place where there are present other persons to be offended or annoyed thereby; or, 2. Procures, counsels, or assists any person so to expose himself or take part in any model artist exhibition, or to make any other exhibition of himself to public view, or the view of any number of persons, such as is offensive to decency, or is adapted to excite to vicious or lewd thoughts or acts, is guilty of a misdemeanor."
Also, did not one of those disturbing images show a man performing oral sex upon another man, while a third man urinated upon him? According to a California appeals court, urinating in public is illegal as well.
David McDonald, of Berkley, CA, was arrested by police for urinating in a restaurant parking lot. Although it is true that the officers suspected he was in possession of cocaine, Justice Anthony Kline wrote, "There can be little doubt that urination on or near a busy commercial street interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of both life and property." Kline continued, "The sight and smell of urine are vile and offensive, and those who use the public streets and sidewalks cannot be freely subjected to such unpleasantness."
Although not all of the gay community is as 'in your face' with their actions as those who participate in the Gay Pride Parade, and the Folsom Street Fair, their sexual preference is no less offensive to those who chose to live by Gods law and remain heterosexual, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh."
We all know how in the Scriptures, God destroyed the world with a mighty flood due to the wickedness of man. We also know that God destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah due to their wickedness.
Is San Francisco any less wicked than those cities of old? Yet the mayor of San Francisco and his Chief of Police tolerate this deviant behavior in their city, claiming it is their "right" to be different. The groups who support this lifestyle claim that these people are born this way and cannot help themselves. They disregard the Scriptures and what they say about homosexuality. Yet in Proverbs, Chapter 14, Verse 9, it states, "Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favor."
That can only lead one to assume that those who disregard Gods will and defend the 'rights' of the gay community to be different, are to be considered fools, while those who speak out against this abomination find favor in God's eyes.
It is your choice, you can believe what you want to believe, but I find the gay lifestyle offensive and totally against all that I believe to be good. Those who practice this lifestyle have the right to do so, but they cannot claim that among their rights is the right to demand my acceptance of it. Just as much as they have the right to live in sin, I have the guaranteed first amendment right to speak out against it, and I will continue to do so as long as I live.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Would Someone Please Put A Muzzle On SecDef Gates?
On August 14th the media reported that Secretary of Defense Robert Gates issued a stern warning to Russia in regards to the conflict in Georgia. Secretary Gates said that strained relations may last for years if Russia does not pull back its forces.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4533544.ece
Is it just me, or does anyone else find Secretary Gates comments both arrogant and a bit hypocritical, especially when, according to Reuters, the United States currently has around 162,000 troops deployed to Iraq.
I wonder, how many times former Russian President Vladimir Putin offered the same stern rebuke to President Bush?
Could it be that President Bush is so full of self righteousness that he feels our nation can do whatever it wants without the same fear of lasting consequences or increased levels of anger towards the foreign policy of the United States?
The Bush administration has the audacity to warn Russia to pull back, yet a quick overview of our nations foreign policy history may cause some to ask who it is that needs to be told to 'pull back'.
In 1953 the U.S. overthrew Iranian Prime Minister Mossadeq and installed the Shah as dictator. During his time in power it is estimated that he had anywhere between 60-100,000 people arrested and held as political prisoners.
In 1954 in an operation known as PBSUCCESS, the Central Intelligence Agency overthrew Guatemalan President Arbenz and replaced him with Colonel Carlos Castillo.
In 1963 the U.S. allowed Vietnamese President Diem to be assassinated, paving the way for Ho Chi Minh to come into power. After the assassination, Minh is quoted as saying, "The consequences of the 1 November coup d'état will be contrary to the calculations of the U.S. imperialists ... Diem was one of the strongest individuals resisting the people and Communism. Everything that could be done in an attempt to crush the revolution was carried out by Diem. Diem was one of the most competent lackeys of the U.S. imperialists ..."
And of course we all know about the Military takeover of Iraq in which Saddam Hussein was removed from power and replaced with a democracy more favorable to the U.S.
These are just a few of the times the United States has meddled in the affairs of other nations. Even more recently the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency funded and trained Osama Bin Laden to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan. Doesn’t anyone find if a bit peculiar how those whom we support at one time, end up becoming our enemies later on?
Now we find ourselves in a conflict/occupation in Iraq with no clear end in sight. Due to our nations military involvement in Iraq it is estimated that 655,000 Iraqis have died due to the conflict. http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L11717456.htm
It is also estimated that 60,000 Iraqis are forced to leave their homes every month due to the violence from the war. The total number of refugees is now estimated at over 4 million. http://www.brusselstribunal.org/Refugees.htm
One has to remember that it was not Iraq that attacked us on September 11th. According to official reports fifteen of the hijackers were Saudi Arabian citizens, with two from the United Arab Emirates, one from Egypt and one from Lebanon.
https://www.cia.gov/news-information/speeches-testimony/2002/DCI_18_June_testimony_new.pdf
Why is it then that we have not invaded Saudi Arabia? Could it be the close ties between the Bush family and the Saudi Royal Family has something to do with it?
One has to realize that those radical Islamic terrorists who declare jihad against us are mostly from the Wahhabi sect, the same sect that is the state religion of Saudi Arabia.
According to a 1996 CIA report, one third of all the Saudi-backed charities they studied, were tied to terrorist groups. Also, in 1998 a report by the National Security Council identified the Saudi government as the ‘epicenter’ of terrorist financing, with their being the greatest force in spreading Islamic fundamentalism, funneling hundreds of millions of dollars to jihadist groups and al Qaeda cells around the world.
Not only do the Saudis support radical Islam and funnel money to terrorist groups, they are spreading their message of hatred into our country. The king of Saudi Arabia favors, with financial contributions, certain American organizations and is also funding Wahhabi mosques to be built.
The Saudis support numerous American Universities, including Duke, Howard, Johns Hopkins, and Syracuse.
http://www.kingfahdbinabdulaziz.com/main/m330.htm
Among the mosques they are building here within our own borders, there is the one in Fresno California, East Lansing Michigan, Los Angeles California, New Brunswick New Jersey, Toledo Ohio, Chicago Illinois, along with others in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington state.
While our Bill of Rights guarantees us freedom of speech and religion, these mosques are something we all should be very concerned about. These are not mere houses of worship where people go to praise God and worship Him. These are places were anti American hatred is instilled, places that teach their followers that anyone who follows Christianity as an infidel. They teach that strict Islamic law, Shariah, must be adhered to in America, to include that all women should be veiled in public of be killed. They are taught to see all non-Muslims as their enemies, to dissociate from us, and to oppose us in every way possible. Finally they are taught to prepare for war with America,
"To be true Muslims, we must prepare and be ready for jihad in Allah's way. It is the duty of the citizen and the government."
Yet, with all this evidence pointed at Saudi Arabia, why do we invade Iraq? Could it be because Iraq would not play ball with us and behave according to our wishes? Could it be that is why Iran is next upon our list to attack?
Or could it be that there are deep ties between the Bush family and the Saudis? In his book, House of Bush, House of Saud, journalist Craig Unger traced millions in investments and contracts that made their way from the Saudis over the past 20 years and found their way to companies in which the Bush family, or their friends, have held prominent positions. These companies include Harken Energy, Halliburton and the Carlyle Group. Saudi Prince Bandar even made a single $1 million donation to the Bush Presidential Library in Texas.
The point of all this is this, Secretary of Defense Gates is telling Russia to ’back off’ in Georgia, or else. Yet we have meddled in the affairs of countless other countries, staging coups and overthrowing their, sometimes, duly elected governments. We have military bases in more countries of the world than any other country from which we can mobilize our forces to invade almost anywhere. We have invaded Iraq, overthrew its government, killed over half a million of its citizens, and displaced over four million more. Yet through all this, Russia invades a neighbor and our Secretary of Defense has the arrogance and gall to tell them to back off or there will be lasting consequences to our relationship with them.
If Americans would view our nations actions from the perspective of someone from another country they just may find the comments made by Secretary Gates both arrogant and hypocritical. They may also begin to see why so many nations no longer consider America as a friend or an ally.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4533544.ece
Is it just me, or does anyone else find Secretary Gates comments both arrogant and a bit hypocritical, especially when, according to Reuters, the United States currently has around 162,000 troops deployed to Iraq.
I wonder, how many times former Russian President Vladimir Putin offered the same stern rebuke to President Bush?
Could it be that President Bush is so full of self righteousness that he feels our nation can do whatever it wants without the same fear of lasting consequences or increased levels of anger towards the foreign policy of the United States?
The Bush administration has the audacity to warn Russia to pull back, yet a quick overview of our nations foreign policy history may cause some to ask who it is that needs to be told to 'pull back'.
In 1953 the U.S. overthrew Iranian Prime Minister Mossadeq and installed the Shah as dictator. During his time in power it is estimated that he had anywhere between 60-100,000 people arrested and held as political prisoners.
In 1954 in an operation known as PBSUCCESS, the Central Intelligence Agency overthrew Guatemalan President Arbenz and replaced him with Colonel Carlos Castillo.
In 1963 the U.S. allowed Vietnamese President Diem to be assassinated, paving the way for Ho Chi Minh to come into power. After the assassination, Minh is quoted as saying, "The consequences of the 1 November coup d'état will be contrary to the calculations of the U.S. imperialists ... Diem was one of the strongest individuals resisting the people and Communism. Everything that could be done in an attempt to crush the revolution was carried out by Diem. Diem was one of the most competent lackeys of the U.S. imperialists ..."
And of course we all know about the Military takeover of Iraq in which Saddam Hussein was removed from power and replaced with a democracy more favorable to the U.S.
These are just a few of the times the United States has meddled in the affairs of other nations. Even more recently the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency funded and trained Osama Bin Laden to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan. Doesn’t anyone find if a bit peculiar how those whom we support at one time, end up becoming our enemies later on?
Now we find ourselves in a conflict/occupation in Iraq with no clear end in sight. Due to our nations military involvement in Iraq it is estimated that 655,000 Iraqis have died due to the conflict. http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L11717456.htm
It is also estimated that 60,000 Iraqis are forced to leave their homes every month due to the violence from the war. The total number of refugees is now estimated at over 4 million. http://www.brusselstribunal.org/Refugees.htm
One has to remember that it was not Iraq that attacked us on September 11th. According to official reports fifteen of the hijackers were Saudi Arabian citizens, with two from the United Arab Emirates, one from Egypt and one from Lebanon.
https://www.cia.gov/news-information/speeches-testimony/2002/DCI_18_June_testimony_new.pdf
Why is it then that we have not invaded Saudi Arabia? Could it be the close ties between the Bush family and the Saudi Royal Family has something to do with it?
One has to realize that those radical Islamic terrorists who declare jihad against us are mostly from the Wahhabi sect, the same sect that is the state religion of Saudi Arabia.
According to a 1996 CIA report, one third of all the Saudi-backed charities they studied, were tied to terrorist groups. Also, in 1998 a report by the National Security Council identified the Saudi government as the ‘epicenter’ of terrorist financing, with their being the greatest force in spreading Islamic fundamentalism, funneling hundreds of millions of dollars to jihadist groups and al Qaeda cells around the world.
Not only do the Saudis support radical Islam and funnel money to terrorist groups, they are spreading their message of hatred into our country. The king of Saudi Arabia favors, with financial contributions, certain American organizations and is also funding Wahhabi mosques to be built.
The Saudis support numerous American Universities, including Duke, Howard, Johns Hopkins, and Syracuse.
http://www.kingfahdbinabdulaziz.com/main/m330.htm
Among the mosques they are building here within our own borders, there is the one in Fresno California, East Lansing Michigan, Los Angeles California, New Brunswick New Jersey, Toledo Ohio, Chicago Illinois, along with others in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington state.
While our Bill of Rights guarantees us freedom of speech and religion, these mosques are something we all should be very concerned about. These are not mere houses of worship where people go to praise God and worship Him. These are places were anti American hatred is instilled, places that teach their followers that anyone who follows Christianity as an infidel. They teach that strict Islamic law, Shariah, must be adhered to in America, to include that all women should be veiled in public of be killed. They are taught to see all non-Muslims as their enemies, to dissociate from us, and to oppose us in every way possible. Finally they are taught to prepare for war with America,
"To be true Muslims, we must prepare and be ready for jihad in Allah's way. It is the duty of the citizen and the government."
Yet, with all this evidence pointed at Saudi Arabia, why do we invade Iraq? Could it be because Iraq would not play ball with us and behave according to our wishes? Could it be that is why Iran is next upon our list to attack?
Or could it be that there are deep ties between the Bush family and the Saudis? In his book, House of Bush, House of Saud, journalist Craig Unger traced millions in investments and contracts that made their way from the Saudis over the past 20 years and found their way to companies in which the Bush family, or their friends, have held prominent positions. These companies include Harken Energy, Halliburton and the Carlyle Group. Saudi Prince Bandar even made a single $1 million donation to the Bush Presidential Library in Texas.
The point of all this is this, Secretary of Defense Gates is telling Russia to ’back off’ in Georgia, or else. Yet we have meddled in the affairs of countless other countries, staging coups and overthrowing their, sometimes, duly elected governments. We have military bases in more countries of the world than any other country from which we can mobilize our forces to invade almost anywhere. We have invaded Iraq, overthrew its government, killed over half a million of its citizens, and displaced over four million more. Yet through all this, Russia invades a neighbor and our Secretary of Defense has the arrogance and gall to tell them to back off or there will be lasting consequences to our relationship with them.
If Americans would view our nations actions from the perspective of someone from another country they just may find the comments made by Secretary Gates both arrogant and hypocritical. They may also begin to see why so many nations no longer consider America as a friend or an ally.
Sunday, August 03, 2008
Consider The Following
Two hundred and forty five years ago a small percentage of citizens stood up against a superior force and declared their independence from the tyranny under which they lived. This revolution for independence spawned men such as Patrick Henry, who declared, "...give me liberty, or give me death." These were men who realized the inherent danger in their actions and were willing to risk all for that most precious gift, liberty.
The successful war, and the ensuing Constitution, which created our republican form of government, gave these men that gift which they had been willing to risk all to obtain. Yet they realized that to hold on to that gift the people of this country must remain vigilant to prevent tyranny from again ruling the people of this land.
George Washington emphasized that point when he said, "The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government are justly considered…staked on the experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people."
On the very day that Congress had approved the Declaration of Independence, they also appointed Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Ben Franklin to design a seal for the new country. Ben Franklin, along with the support of Thomas Jefferson, proposed the phrase "Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God."
Although it was not approved by Congress, the sentiment is one that was felt widely among the patriots who fought for our nations independence, and brought forth our Constitution.
Thomas Jefferson once wrote that "The issue today is the same as it has been throughout all history, whether man shall be allowed to govern himself or be ruled by a small elite." That issue is one that appears to have been settled, as we are no longer a nation in which the will of the people is upheld by those chosen to represent them.
From the earliest point in our nations history there has been a battle over the interpretation of that document which grants our government its very existence, the Constitution.
There were those such as Thomas Jefferson and James Madison who felt that the Constitution was to be strictly adhered to. Then there were those, chief among them Alexander Hamilton, who felt that the Constitution was to be loosely interpreted as the needs of the nation demanded.
Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying, "Congress has not unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare, but only those specifically enumerated." While James Madison elaborated that point further when he said, "With respect to the two words "general welfare," I have always regarded them as qualified by the detail of powers connected with them. To take them in a literal and unlimited sense would be a metamorphosis of the Constitution into a character which there is a host of proofs was not contemplated by its creators."
On the other side of the argument, Alexander Hamilton is quoted as saying, "Constitutions should consist only of general provisions; the reason is that they must necessarily be permanent, and that they cannot calculate for the possible change of things."
That issue lies at the heart of all the problems that this country faces, what exactly is the purpose and scope of powers of our government? Forget about Republican versus Democrat, conservative versus liberal. Those issues are insignificant unless you understand what is the true purpose of our government.
Thomas Jefferson described the function of government when he said, "A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor and bread it has earned -- this is the sum of good government."
If that be the case, what of the candidates who run for public office who we choose to vote for? Do the promises they make to garner your vote sound more like the one described by James Madison when he said, "If Congress can do whatever in their discretion can be done by money, and will promote the general welfare, the government is no longer a limited one possessing enumerated powers, but an indefinite one subject to particular exceptions."
One year before his death in 1826, and one hundred eighty three years ago, Thomas Jefferson wrote the following in a letter to William Branch Giles, "I see,... and with the deepest affliction, the rapid strides with which the federal branch of our government is advancing towards the usurpation of all the rights reserved to the States, and the consolidation in itself of all powers, foreign and domestic; and that, too, by constructions which, if legitimate, leave no limits to their power... It is but too evident that the three ruling branches of [the Federal government] are in combination to strip their colleagues, the State authorities, of the powers reserved by them, and to exercise themselves all functions foreign and domestic."
If Jefferson said that nearly two hundred years ago, imagine what he would say if he were to see our government as it exists today. Yet we the people of this country sit idly by and allow our government to violate their oath to uphold the Constitution when it was clearly stated by Jefferson, that "Whensoever the General Government assumes undelegated powers, its acts are unauthoritative, void, and of no force."
When our apathy is so great that our government can violate the Constitution as it pleases, without fearing the populace there is tyranny. Or as Jefferson once stated, "[The purpose of a written constitution is] to bind up the several branches of government by certain laws, which, when they transgress, their acts shall become nullities; to render unnecessary an appeal to the people, or in other words a rebellion, on every infraction of their rights, on the peril that their acquiescence shall be construed into an intention to surrender those rights." (emphasis added)
Therefore by our negligence in understanding the true function of our government, we are to be held liable for its unlimited growth and scope of powers. We have acquiesced and therefore surrendered our rights willingly, well some of us have anyway.
Even Alexander Hamilton would be astounded at how much our government has grown, and how far its power extends into areas that were not intended. Yet didn’t even Hamilton once say, " Ah, this is the constitution," he said. "Now, mark my words. So long as we are a young and virtuous people, this instrument will bind us together in mutual interests, mutual welfare, and mutual happiness. But when we become old and corrupt, it will bind no longer."
So, before you go to the polls in just under four months, take some time to think about what our government was established to do. Dig out a copy of the Constitution for yourself and read through it if you must. You may be unpleasantly surprised to see that our government no longer resembles that which was intended.
Or you could just go vote for the candidate of your choosing as you always do. If that is the case, remember one thing Gore Vidal once said, “It makes no difference who you vote for-the two parties are really one party representing four percent of the people.”
It’s your choice, but I would like for you to ponder what Samuel Adams once said, “If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace. We seek not your counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you; May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen”
The successful war, and the ensuing Constitution, which created our republican form of government, gave these men that gift which they had been willing to risk all to obtain. Yet they realized that to hold on to that gift the people of this country must remain vigilant to prevent tyranny from again ruling the people of this land.
George Washington emphasized that point when he said, "The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government are justly considered…staked on the experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people."
On the very day that Congress had approved the Declaration of Independence, they also appointed Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Ben Franklin to design a seal for the new country. Ben Franklin, along with the support of Thomas Jefferson, proposed the phrase "Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God."
Although it was not approved by Congress, the sentiment is one that was felt widely among the patriots who fought for our nations independence, and brought forth our Constitution.
Thomas Jefferson once wrote that "The issue today is the same as it has been throughout all history, whether man shall be allowed to govern himself or be ruled by a small elite." That issue is one that appears to have been settled, as we are no longer a nation in which the will of the people is upheld by those chosen to represent them.
From the earliest point in our nations history there has been a battle over the interpretation of that document which grants our government its very existence, the Constitution.
There were those such as Thomas Jefferson and James Madison who felt that the Constitution was to be strictly adhered to. Then there were those, chief among them Alexander Hamilton, who felt that the Constitution was to be loosely interpreted as the needs of the nation demanded.
Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying, "Congress has not unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare, but only those specifically enumerated." While James Madison elaborated that point further when he said, "With respect to the two words "general welfare," I have always regarded them as qualified by the detail of powers connected with them. To take them in a literal and unlimited sense would be a metamorphosis of the Constitution into a character which there is a host of proofs was not contemplated by its creators."
On the other side of the argument, Alexander Hamilton is quoted as saying, "Constitutions should consist only of general provisions; the reason is that they must necessarily be permanent, and that they cannot calculate for the possible change of things."
That issue lies at the heart of all the problems that this country faces, what exactly is the purpose and scope of powers of our government? Forget about Republican versus Democrat, conservative versus liberal. Those issues are insignificant unless you understand what is the true purpose of our government.
Thomas Jefferson described the function of government when he said, "A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor and bread it has earned -- this is the sum of good government."
If that be the case, what of the candidates who run for public office who we choose to vote for? Do the promises they make to garner your vote sound more like the one described by James Madison when he said, "If Congress can do whatever in their discretion can be done by money, and will promote the general welfare, the government is no longer a limited one possessing enumerated powers, but an indefinite one subject to particular exceptions."
One year before his death in 1826, and one hundred eighty three years ago, Thomas Jefferson wrote the following in a letter to William Branch Giles, "I see,... and with the deepest affliction, the rapid strides with which the federal branch of our government is advancing towards the usurpation of all the rights reserved to the States, and the consolidation in itself of all powers, foreign and domestic; and that, too, by constructions which, if legitimate, leave no limits to their power... It is but too evident that the three ruling branches of [the Federal government] are in combination to strip their colleagues, the State authorities, of the powers reserved by them, and to exercise themselves all functions foreign and domestic."
If Jefferson said that nearly two hundred years ago, imagine what he would say if he were to see our government as it exists today. Yet we the people of this country sit idly by and allow our government to violate their oath to uphold the Constitution when it was clearly stated by Jefferson, that "Whensoever the General Government assumes undelegated powers, its acts are unauthoritative, void, and of no force."
When our apathy is so great that our government can violate the Constitution as it pleases, without fearing the populace there is tyranny. Or as Jefferson once stated, "[The purpose of a written constitution is] to bind up the several branches of government by certain laws, which, when they transgress, their acts shall become nullities; to render unnecessary an appeal to the people, or in other words a rebellion, on every infraction of their rights, on the peril that their acquiescence shall be construed into an intention to surrender those rights." (emphasis added)
Therefore by our negligence in understanding the true function of our government, we are to be held liable for its unlimited growth and scope of powers. We have acquiesced and therefore surrendered our rights willingly, well some of us have anyway.
Even Alexander Hamilton would be astounded at how much our government has grown, and how far its power extends into areas that were not intended. Yet didn’t even Hamilton once say, " Ah, this is the constitution," he said. "Now, mark my words. So long as we are a young and virtuous people, this instrument will bind us together in mutual interests, mutual welfare, and mutual happiness. But when we become old and corrupt, it will bind no longer."
So, before you go to the polls in just under four months, take some time to think about what our government was established to do. Dig out a copy of the Constitution for yourself and read through it if you must. You may be unpleasantly surprised to see that our government no longer resembles that which was intended.
Or you could just go vote for the candidate of your choosing as you always do. If that is the case, remember one thing Gore Vidal once said, “It makes no difference who you vote for-the two parties are really one party representing four percent of the people.”
It’s your choice, but I would like for you to ponder what Samuel Adams once said, “If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace. We seek not your counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you; May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen”
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