Anxiety attack

Have you ever had one of those weeks in which it seems almost everyone around you is pushing your buttons, seemingly trying to provoke you into doing something you'll seriously regret? Yeah; one of those.

I'm here to tell you, it isn't just you. Globally, there is a wave of animus that is engulfing millions of people. And it is neither accidental nor coincidental.

In London and other European cities mobs have increasingly devolved from ideological and social misfits to racial tribalism. As I noted in the previous posting, it's also happening here. As in other US cases, officials are carefully walking a "see no evil" line, in which any hint of racism - if it is (obviously) black-on-white or Muslim-on-Christian - is automatically denied by politicians who are equally quick to pin the blame on anyone other than the actual culprits.

Earlier this year, I posted Glenn Beck's discovery of an active plot by SEIU organizer Steven Lerner to begin an assault against the banking industry by encouraging millions of people to purposely default on their mortgage payments, with the aim of causing the entire economic system to collapse. The apparent goal was to have the resulting crash to cause widespread riots and violence to ripple across the country. Taken to its logical conclusion, that atmosphere of chaos would be just the crisis needed to declare a national emergency that would necessitate the nullification of our constitutional rights. Because of Beck's public warning, the effort didn't really get off the ground at that time, although more than 400 showed up to annoy people at JP Morgan Chase's annual stockholder meeting in Ohio.

Now, they're back, and bolder than ever. Capitalizing (if I may use that term) on the massed protests in Wisconsin and other areas, the mobs are set to occupy Wall Street itself in what organizers are calling the Days of Rage, with the goal of creating “a week of civil disobedience, direct action all over the city:” Since this action could be an impediment to the conduct of big business, maybe even Mayor Bloomberg will find a backbone and impede them in return.

In addition to the larger efforts at mobocracy, smaller but just as sanctimonious groups including the AFL-CIO (isn't it curious; the union labels are everywhere) are once again protesting individual corporate officers at their homes.

When union thugs end up destroying businesses or driving them away, you can thank your local union member for his support (union dues, protests, intimidation, etc.) in causing even more job losses. And in case you don't work at a big corporation and don't care, keep this in mind: every large corporation buys goods and services from hundreds of small businesses - everything from the local restaurants and pizza parlors patronized by the workers and their families, to the office supply companies, security firms, gas stations, corner stores and markets, hardware stores, beauty- and barber-shops, and many others.

If there is anything to be learned from all this, it is simply that...if people really are out to get you, you aren't schizophrenic. And ironically, it seems that the only folks more afraid of violence in the streets are the people at the top of government. The irony isn't that they are afraid, because they hold the military, police, judicial and political power; it is that they are afraid all that power won't be enough to keep them eternally in those positions of power.

Stand, or get knocked down. This week may become one of the most memorable in recent years, and it could go either way; to glory or infamy. Glenn Beck is holding his Restoring Courage event. Actually, it is a series of events taking place over four days in Israel.

• On Sunday, Glenn, historian David Barton, Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, Pastor John Hagee and others will speak at the Roman ampitheater in Caesarea, where the biblical stories of Ruth and Esther will be highlighted.
• Monday, from the Old Train Station Plaza in central Jerusalem, there will be a remembrance of the Holocaust, as a reminder of the evil men can do, and the threat that looms over all of us when we forget that. At a time when anti-semitism is again on the rise globally, and billions of people around the world are being programmed with the belief that average Americans are no better than the dehumanized (and patently false) depiction of Jews, there is coming a time when we all will need courage.
• On Tuesday, Glenn will follow that with a special documentary he produced which follows his personal journey into Auschwitz-Birkenau, where more than one million people (incidentally, not just Jews) were systematically murdered by a government, while citizens went about their business literally within a stone's throw away, and did nothing about it. We once boldly stated "We shall never forget," and yet there is barely a mention of this shattering chapter of history in the schools or in the media anymore, other than the History Channel archives, which most people never watch.
• The keynote event happens on Wednesday, where Glenn and others will meet at the Western Wall and the Temple Mount, only yards from where Jesus Christ overturned the tables of the money-changers. Glenn will " issue a challenge to all citizens of the world to stand with and declare their support for Israel."

If the impending fate of Israel doesn't interest you, you aren't nearly as alone as the citizens of that tiny nation. It is literally surrounded by enemies determined not to merely beat them, but to utterly destroy them - every man, woman and child, and not just in Israel. Muslim clerics (remember that Islam is equally a religious and political system). Millions of Europeans are revisiting their historic disdain for Jews, and many Americans are being turned against them by our own current government (which also happens to be recalling many of the policies, activities and goals of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union). I have even heard Christians argue that Israel deserves no special attention from us, in the sense of upholding our historic defense agreements with them. Personally, I don't believe my Christian faith tells me that abandoning our honor or compassion is the right way to go. But then, to each their own interpretation of scripture, I guess.

If you are one of those people who doesn't believe we should stand up for Israel when they need us most (by the way, they haven't asked for help yet; what they are looking for is someone that will at least speak on their behalf -- in other words, a friend), then perhaps it is time to recall the words of Pastor Martin Niemoller. The exact text of what Martin Niemoller said, and which appears in the Congressional Record, October 14, 1968, page 31636 is:

"When Hitler attacked the Jews
I was not a Jew, therefore I was not concerned.
And when Hitler attacked the Catholics,
I was not a Catholic, and therefore, I was not concerned.
And when Hitler attacked the unions and the industrialists,
I was not a member of the unions and I was not concerned.
Then Hitler attacked me and the Protestant church --
and there was nobody left to be concerned."

You can follow Glenn Beck as he tries to restore the compassion and courage of the American people (you didn't really think the Israelis needed to be reminded of courage, did you?) by signing on to his fledgling internet TV channel which officially launches September 12. You can subscribe to GBTV without contracts for $4.99 per month (until launch day, after which the price goes up to 9.95 per month unless you're already locked in). Having seen a number of productions already presented, I can say it is worth the cost. However,for those who just can't go that step, it was just announced that TBN will carry at least one event (Sunday) so far.

As I've stated before, I don't like to put anyone on a pedestal because we're all flawed. But Beck has done what no one else with his ever-expanding media footprint has been willing to do; put everything - including his own money and his reputation - on the line to put the evidence, the truth as he sees it, and a call for a return to moral principles, and a return to God as revealed in the Bible. Many of those who criticize Beck have either never actually listened to him - other than perhaps a selected sound-bite by other critics - or they judge him purely on the rants of those critics. You don't have to agree with him on everything (I don't), but if you listen to what he presents; the evidence and his interpretations thereof you may tend to consider him worth listening to. The truth is that we've been lied to by virtually everyone, and he's trying to discover the truth, and get it out there for the rest of us to see. And Beck sees God as the ultimate Truth; as do I.

You don't have to get all religious to understand - with a little serious study - that the Bible actually is the essential handbook for the human race. It uses history to illustrate how people get off the track, and that common sense, integrity, morality, fairness, honesty, love, and compassion are timeless principles. If you're willing to believe you aren't the center of the universe, it also shows that there actually is a Being that created and cares about us; and He provided everything we need - eternally - if we're only willing to accept it. But unlike certain other faiths in which your only choice is submit or die, the Bible shows that the God it describes is a God willing to give you a choice to do it your way and suffer the eventual consequences, or do it His way and reap rewards beyond your comprehension.

Playing with matches

As a child, did you ever feel the temptation to play with something forbidden?  Did you, one day long ago, feel the irresistable attraction of a stray book of matches?  Was there a penalty for your impulsiveness; an "accidental" fire as the match fell into some combustible material? (Uh-oh, am I giving too much away?) Did you barely escape real calamity by the "skin of your teeth" or, more likely, by the grace of God?

Unfortunately, there are a lot of people right now who are "playing with fire" without the excuse of youthful ignorance. Rogue politicians (great and small), judges and police are becoming more presumptive and abusive in their actions.  They are attacking faith, families, institutions and small family farms and businesses that cannot afford to defend themselves against the government.  These people know full well what they are doing, and though they would be loathe to admit it their intent is to hurt other people (not so much physically - yet, but morally, economically), lots of other people, and not only get away with it but prosper from it. After all, you can't make a brave new world without breaking a few bodies and souls; might as well get something out of it. Right?

As if there weren't already too many loose cannons running around, now we find  people almost literally crawling out of the woodwork, most of them thoughtless renegades running on little more than impulsive behavior and really bad judgment, totally oblivious to the potentially devastating effects they could have on themselves, their families, and other people they don't even know. 

By all indications, we really have reached, and are tottering beyond, the tipping point. The world as we knew it is vanishing. It has been spoiled or stolen by masters of all things devious, slowly disappearing into a cloud of sub-awareness. The primary culprits are radical Marxists and the incestly-related Progressives, and their primary tools are our youth.  It's all but impossible to ignore; by now even a few politicians appear to get it.

The British riots, the riots in Greece, in Spain and other European states, expected riots in Israel, the uncivil wars in Libya and Syria, the Winsconsin state fair wilding; these are all simply exhibits A, B, C, ad infinitum, of the new cultural paradigm: tear things apart, and then....then what?

And that's the real point of the exercise, isn't it? After all the destruction is wrought, after the 'system' has been brought down, after the 'wicked capitalists' have been expelled, after the 'wealthy' (except those on the Left) have been broken through extortion and theft committed under color of law, what's the plan?

Let's play a little game and follow the logical progression and history, since we have that as a teacher, and see where it leads.

Oh, don't worry; there is a Plan.  It just won't involve a whole lot of that equality the protestors are always calling for, because by its very nature there must be a ruling class (the Party) and a worker class (everyone else).  It won't contain much of the justice the downtrodden are looking for, because it will be every man for himself (There are only two ways to get things done in a tyrannical environment: by force or by bribery) and the powerful will do all they can to remain so.  It won't provide much of the protection the fearful are hoping for, because the police and courts will be the most visible components of oppression of the new system. The precursors to the plan have been working their insidious way through the system and culture for many decades.  You just have to take a step back to   see them.

When the radical Left assumes the positions of power that it craves so ravenously, the elites will have no more use for an entire subclass of illiterate, illegitimate, uneducated and (by then) unteachable, useless 'useful idiots.'  With the world in economic chaos and all the threads of capitalism that formerly held it together (whether they're willing to admit it or not) left in tatters, there won't be much left to feed those former tools of the radicals. After all, parasites aren't particularly known for their altruism or generosity, or compassion.  Among the inner cities, much of their former housing will have been reduced to ashes or wreckage in their zeal to please their suddenly invisible puppet-masters (formerly known as 'community organizers'). The new ruling class won't want a lot of eyesores dotting the new landscape.  Frankly, I don't think there will be a lot of patience for millions of nonproductive people with no talent other than making trouble for 'the man' whether it is the old man or the new man.

Ironically, those people will be no better off than a few million conservatives and patriots who resist the not-so-tender embrace of the new world order. First, both groups will be ostracized by the government-controlled media as rabble-rousers and criminals, eventually graduating to merely enemies of the State.  Then will come the disconnect; the cutting of social tethers. The internet and social networks will go silent to stifle mass communication, followed by severe "austerity measures" in the doling out of food and other essentials.  We'll be herded into enclaves where we can be confined and controlled more easily. We may even share the same cattle-cars one day, on a pleasant -although likely crowded - trip into the countryside where there are few witnesses to tell the tale.

Pause for reflection

I'll get to the meat in a moment. But first: For those readers who actually noticed my absence of postings over the past couple of weeks and may have momentarily lamented the absence, please accept my apology. (For the rest of you, I suppose it doesn't really matter, does it? Oh, well.) I had to take a break because after getting halfway through what would have been the blog following "Looking for Hope," I looked at it with utter disappointment and ended up deleting it. It wasn't acceptable to me. I was tired. In a sense, I had lost hope too.

I was tired of putting so much time and effort into what is simply a hobby blog (since I make no money off it) that allows me to air my frustrations about the world. I was tired of the people who rag me for even bothering, because they believe (and I began to believe) no one cares. I was tired of putting my heart, soul and mind into trying to wake people up, only to realize most folks don't want to wake up, and many who are awake feel they have no control or effect anyway.  I was tired of only getting feedback from a couple of friends; and being me, I figured they were just pumping me up because of that friendship (and I truly appreciate that, guys - and gal). After all, I'm not a world-class blogger who gets picked up by the 'big boys' or called to comment on Fox News (Love you, Michele Malkin!); I'm just a guy who comes home from work and pounds on the keys in an effort to provide new information, and perhaps new perspective.

Then I re-read my last post, and realized I was succumbing to the very thing I was writing about. I had forgotten what got me started on this in the first place. I began this tacky little blog knowing full well it would remain virtually unknown. But I thought that if I could change one mind, lift one heart, teach one thing that might save one life or soul, it was worth the time and trouble. After due deliberation, I still believe that.

So, here I go again. The preceding passage is probably the most personal pronouns I've used in decades, and it's uncomfortable for me to do so, but the explanation was needed, both to air out my own difficulties and to offer something to the one or two people who might actually read this far.  For you, dear friends, thanks for sticking with it.  Now, on to the stuff that matters.

Polish off the crystal ball.  Naturally, most people would choose to be optimistic; good for them. But there comes a point where to ignore the obvious is just plain stupid. If you are willing to continue wrapping yourself in your own personal bubble and ignore what is happening around us, you are - along with a couple hundred million others in this country - setting yourself up for even worse disaster than those who go in possibly helpless but open-eyed. We each make choices every day. Sometimes those choices - whether choices of ommission or comission - can affect not only ourselves but many others we may never meet.  Can something be done? I believe so, but we are rapidly running out of time, largely due to apathy, disbelief and indecision.  Let's take a look at just a couple of things that are currently on the radar. Put these under the heading: Did You Know?

Rise of the Police State. I've noted before that a dramatic change is taking shape among American police forces, and it isn't necessarily for the better.  I've stated previously that I generally support police and law enforcement, but I've also said that laws don't always equate to justice.  Increasingly, the law is being used not to keep the peace, but is being used as a hammer by petty bureaucrats, politicians and organizations with an agenda that doesn't respect personal liberty, equal justice or equal opportunity. And the changing social paradigm - the way people operate on a personal level - is producing new attitudes of disrespect and belligerence across the spectrum of society.

Increasingly we are seeing a rise in the number of cases - often documented in videos - of officers either out-of-control, or being directed by their superiors toward totalitarian behaviors. The calm, rational  Joe Friday and Adam 12  characterizations are giving way to a new sort of cop; but that sort is actually very common, especially in almost every other nation on the planet.  The new breed presents itself as superficially dedicated to law enforcement, but all too often seems detached from what used to be the supremacy of the US Constutition and the Bill of Rights.  And law uncoupled from the restraints imposed on it by those documents leads to ominous and bad things happening to honest citizens and future generations.

Change in the religious paradigm.   A recent Gallup poll indicates that Muslim-Americans are the most optimistic segment of society.  That probably comes as a shock to many Christians, who have always felt we had a corner on that market.  Of course, it's possible the poll numbers may be skewed either intentionally or incidentally, but the fact that they are providing legitimacy to the claim only increases the odds it will become self-fulfilling.

But why wouldn't American-based Muslims feel optimistic? The government supports nearly everything they do, they are making inroads throughout the culture with the help of this malAdministration's clear favoritism, plus support from bureacrats, the media, and millions of dollars pumped from the Saudis, Hezzbollah, Hamas, CAIR and other activist groups. Meanwhile, the former majority of benignly-dominant Christians are fast becoming the new persecuted faith along with a global resurgence of anti-Semitism. Churches are being attacked, invaded, burned and vandalized here and around the world. Christians are being harrassed, tortured and killed for their faith more than they have in hundreds of years. Much of American media is waging a tacit campaign against Christianity, but minimizes or virtually ignores the dark deeds of Muslims, including "honor" killings, beheadings, sexual and spousal abuse, money-laundering, terrorist support and direct actions and other crimes - including those commited in our own country.  Is there really any wonder why Christians are losing their traditional optimism for this world, and further retreating into their consideration of the next?  After all, it takes time for a formerly dominant culture to acclimatize to being the new persecuted sub-class, especially when its own laws and institutions have been thoroughly infiltrated and are being used against it.

And while we're on this happy train of thought, consider this: the evidence is mounting that there is an active push to start any sort of real social crisis, including a full-fledged race war. The race-baiters have been at it for years, but now there is active incitement. It began with so-called 'flash-robs': large groups of people who organize on social networks such as Twitter, meet up and essentially invade a store, stripping its shelves of everything they can carry, and run out the door leaving the shop-keepers bewildered and enraged, customers terrified, and police helpless to stop it.

The latest phase seems to be centered around violent confrontations calculated to provoke via race, like the LA riots in the wake of the Rodney King verdict. A recent, unprovoked mob attack by more than a hundred blacks at the Wisconsin state fair Thursday night appears to have been specifically targeting white people bringing their families to the fair. Numerous fairgoers were beaten and cars damaged by the mob. Note to the oblivious: When someone incites attacks on innocent people with their families, they don't expect to get a cheery aftermath. This was calculated by someone to attract retribution and further violence.

We're also seeing outbreaks of spontaneous violence elsewhere, including a Philadelphia incident (no longer the 'City of Brotherly Love') in which a woman on a bus who felt slighted by another passenger phoned a group of others who met her at the bus stop openly waving firearms and then fired randomly at the bus with an AK-47 semiauto. Fortunately, no one was injured. Unfortunately, no one on the bus was able to fire back in self-defense.

Expect to see more of these violent provocations and incidents taking place across the country. The mindset of America has been altered through decades of programmed ignorance of our founding values and social mores, the skewering and deconstruction of our language, history (both good and bad) and national goals, the undermining of our economic principles and social institutions.  When you have a state (Pennsylvania, again) that declares that owning a cellphone is a civil right and the state is obligated to provide one to the poor - along with 250 free (taxpayer-bought) minutes per month, you know something is radically wrong.  I mean, really; if a massive solar storm or EMP wipes out cellphone service, does that make the state a violator of civil rights for not protecting against it? And why only provide them to the poor? Shouldn't every citizen be entitled to those "free" phones and minutes? [Insert scream of frustration here]  This is a perfect reminder that the State cannot legitimately provide rights, it can only protect God-given Rights - which was the primary function of American government from the beginning - and grant (or revoke) Privileges.  Many people cannot tell the difference between the two, but we will certainly recognize when we lose them.

We are headed 180 degrees away from what our Founders intended, and what they sacrificed so much for. We have gone from the Greatest Generation straight into the Prodigal Generation. And that's the last stop before the train hits the mountainside.

What is occurring today is the result of intricate planning that began more than a century ago, aimed at the dissolution of the American Republic and our liberty - the greatest social experiment in history. We are at the end of the beginning of the end. We have reached the tipping point, and it could go either way; but at the moment we are leaning in the wrong direction. Those hardy and vocal conservative souls who are keeping the heat on are the last bastion.

Yes; I believe God is in charge; but throughout history, good people have suffered along with the bad. He expects us to act anyway, and He is not only directing, He is waiting for us on the other end, but He is also waiting for us to act in the here and now. Our duty is in the effort, His will be the result.

Looking for Hope

The "good old days," a bygone era 

Assuming that you are more than nine years old, and unless you've had your head safely tucked under a rock, you are probably aware that the world around us has changed.

Prior to September 11, 2001 this was a much different country than it is today. Sure, we whined and complained, but we could get on a plane with little more than a ticket and boarding pass (and with a lot more luggage for a lot less price) and unlike today, retain our dignity in the process. There were millions more of us who had jobs, we could afford decent medical care, and we still had some semblance of privacy. As a nation we still had allies we could count on, and who could still count on us. While we had plenty of disagreements, for the most part the world was relatively stable, both geologically and socially. Then the world changed, and so did we; slowly at first, but now social change is happening at a more rapid pace. The Earth itself is in upheaval and society is freefalling toward chaos. That last part is no accident.

Until three years ago, we were still respected throughout the world, even (grudgingly) by our enemies, because we had a President who knew how to lead without surrendering our national dignity. But now we have a president who seemingly came from nowhere, has accelerated and exacerbated the trashing of our economy, has pushed our military to the brink of exhaustion while giving more aid and confidence to our enemies, has humiliated himself and this nation before the rest of the world, has emboldened our enemies and alientated our friends, and is redesigning this government on a neosocialist model which I believe will ultimately be the worst combination of the old Soviet Union and Huxley's Utopia. He has the attitude and arrogance of a king, with the leadership abilities of a demagogue.

Although children born within the last decade won't realize it because this is their "normal," things are dramatically diffferent today, and they are likely to get even more so in the months and years to come. We are witnessing an era marked by gross disrespect for the preborn, the very young, the elderly, and the peacefully patriotic. We are seeing continual diminishing of our right to free speech, freedom to peaceably assemble, right to dissent, right to protect ourselves, right to own and do as we wish with our own property, not to mention the right to life itself. A complicit news media distorts the truth to foster revolution. And the attacks against our freedoms have come from both sides of the aisle.

As people grasp for hope in increasingly difficult times, it is continually being pulled further away from us. One 'hand' doing the pulling are atheists.  Instead of being simply a personal choice, atheism as a movement has become more agressive, with its often nihilistic proponents initiating innumerable frivolous lawsuits against anything associated with Christianity (but oddly, virtually never against Islam).

Recently some have begun proselytizing their non-faith to the point of following the example of homosexual activists and trying to popularize it in movies, with TV sure to follow. On the other hand, our churches - the final bastion of organized hope - have been so deeply undermined that many are all-but-empty, and the preaching from many pulpits has become so radically separated from their world-changing founding document - the Holy Bible - that people are either flocking to some churches because they pander to man's weakest traits or they are running away from them because of their blatant fraudulence.

I'm undoubtedly going to ruffle feathers here, but if a church grossly violates biblical principles by redefining biblical doctrine, it should not even be called a Christian church. That applies especially to those denominations which cherry-pick the particular verses that can be twisted to a completely different meaning from their original intent, and those that ignore the Bible completely as the authoritative source of doctrine and information regarding the faith.

I know some readers are chomping at the bit to challenge me. "What do I consider as true biblical doctrine?" they're asking. My response would be that Christians should be following the Ten Commandments of the Mosaic Covenant, and the so-called "eleventh" commandment of Jesus Christ; "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:36-40).

It must be noted, however, that the Commandments were given to make us aware of our sinfulness before God, and that each of us is flawed, violating one or more of those laws either in our body or our thoughts, all of which are accountable before Him. To God, there are no greater or lesser crimes; all offenses are punishable by death, because a perfect God cannot tolerate imperfection; and as any thinking person will admit, a little disease (sin) soon spreads and contaminates the whole body. And because we are "faulty," and cannot free ourselves from the ultimate penalty, the Father offers us a means to save us from eternal punishment. Christ Jesus came to provide that Way to escape.

Christians, by default, should be bound by the New Covenant which is symbolized by baptism in Christ, because it was His sacrifice on the cross that provides salvation for us. For those who don't believe, nothing I say will convince them. We could have endless discussions on biblical doctrine and religous philosophy, but this forum is too limited, and I'll be the first to admit I don't have all the answers. God provides an option, but each of us chooses his own path. My real concern is that many are willing to believe, yet are confused by clever wolves in pastor's clothing who twist scripture to twist minds.

Rev. Wright and Fr. Pfleger
preach marxist revolution theology

There are now, for example, so-called mainstream "churches" that are attempting to gut the concept of the Holy Trinity; for example, abandoning the concept of God the Father. As the Father image is the superior aspect of the Trinity, the attempt to minimize or remove Him from the equation is nothing less than an attempt to destroy the faith at its very foundation, and those who preach such blasphemy from the pulpit are worse than mere liars.

But this all fits in with a larger plan initiated by the communist party that has been in effect for a long time. Concerning the Church, their goals were:

27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity, which does not need a "religious crutch."

28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."

This plan was exposed back in 1963. Look at it, and then look around you. Has it been successful or not?
As I noted earlier, we each choose our own path, even if others limit our choices. Too many of us have either remained in the dark or silent, and the enemy isn't just at the gates, they are well within the gates. Our choices are now narrowing between life or death, prosperity or poverty, peace or war, courage or cowardice. Make your decision soon, or someone else will make it for you.

What's so special?

The Fourth of July is right around the corner, as we prepare to remember...what?

I noted recently in a Facebook blurb - only partly in jest - that teenagers must believe they are smarter than any adult, because their answer to any information offered by anyone older is virtually always, "I know." Recalling my own reliance on that phrase way back when, I think that response may be hard-wired into our brains.

However, with Independence Day fast approaching, reality casts a different light on what most people actually know about our greatest national holiday (note: Christmas and Easter are ostensibly religious holidays). For instance; ask most grammar school kids today what we're celebrating on Monday and if you're fortunate, you'll get something like, "Ummm...We fought a war?" If you ask many high schoolers you'll most likely get a response that includes the near-universal retort; "I dunno."  And if you ask college-age young adults, who are one step shy of taking the reins of "responsible" adulthood, you might get something mumbled that smacks of "Old white slave-owners." Ignorance of our history is the new standard.

Before liberals took control, US scores
 used to be near the top of the charts

The sad - no,...tragic truth is, the modern American diseducational system has done incredibly successful work over the past half-century in turning what was one of the world's showcase demographic on literacy into Number 18 (depending on which scoring method you look at) and falling.

Thomas Jefferson warned us of the dangers of ignorance; "Educate and inform the whole mass of people...they are the only sure reliance for the preservation of liberty." His words now come back to haunt us as we have traded education for indoctrination, and truth for disinformation. Newspeak passes for news.

All this is a roundabout way to hit my actual point: most Americans no longer know what our own country is supposed to be about: why it was formed and how it got to be the greatest nation in the history of mankind for a while. And while there seems to be a late-blooming awareness by many that something is wrong, most folks today  do not understand how precarious our current position is, or which way we are lined up to fall. And they certainly do not see how those latent dangers may one day directly affect their own lives.

Instead of being a nation of people with the freedom to pursue our own destiny, to enjoy the fruits of our labors, we are being turned into a nation of mindless sheep, driven by packs of ravenous wolves - many of whom don't even realize they will eventually be turned into sheep themselves.

Just because we haven't (yet) officially adopted the swastika or the hammer and sickle, there can no longer be any doubt; America is effectually becoming a police state. We're still in the early stage, but the evidence is clear. Law does not automatically equate to justice. Language no longer makes sense, because meanings have been turned around to expedite political change and agendas. Our leadership is either cluelessly or intentionally destroying everything that made this country a great nation. In any event, that leadership is unravelling as Obama's abject inability to understand how to lead becomes more apparent each day.

OK, then; enough depression for one sitting. Monday is Independence Day. So, what does that day mean to us today? Here are my own answers.

- To me it means that we in this country have been God's favored people, and under His guiding hand for nearly four hundered years (if you think back to the Pilgrim era); perhaps the first since the establishment of ancient Israel (and the reestablishment and defense of modern Israel may have been the latest). But by turning our backs on Him we risk national calamities (natural, economic, military, agricultural, governmental, social, etc.), as have many other formerly Christian nations such as Britain, Germany, France, Spain, Greece, Italy and others.

- It means we are, for the moment, among the most free people in the world, with the ability to follow our own destiny based on our abilities, opportunities, personal energy and will to persevere. But each year we become less free and more dependent - either forcibly or willingly - on government. We have forgotten that we were supposed to elect representatives, and instead continually return career politicians who more often than not simply rule over us with secret deals and bullying tactics, without satisfactorily debating or explaining the issues or heeding our choice. Such actions only reinforce my desire to see an end to political careerism, open debates, and public referendum on major issues, especially those that turn social structure upside-down.

- It reminds me we are blessed with the best military in the world; a true force for good - but (and I've changed my opinion on this) that doesn't mean we should be building nations, or spending our largesse in countries that only use our generosity against us.

- It reminds me that we have been the most charitable nation - for our own needy and those of other nations in distress. But charity has always been and should remain the purview of the Church, based upon our Christian heritage. But that charity is derived from personal and willing generosity, not coercion. When government gets in the charity business, it quickly forgets that it is only giving away what it has forcibly taken from our own productive citizens, and in too many cases, giving it to those who feel no compunction to actually earn or repay their "allowance".  When you've bled your own productive sector dry, it only signals the beginning of a death spiral, as government takes more from people who must now work harder to keep less, and therefore have less to give.

- It reminds me that this nation gained its strength from the union of diverse peoples who sought to become something better than they started as; millions of legal immigrants willingly surrendered (but always retained) part of their former heritage to attain a new heritage as an American. Now we are being consciously and intentionally divided to further political agendas; we are increasingly either hyphenated or socially isolated in cloistered "ghettos" where mostly-illegal immigrants refuse to acculturize, while the rest of the society is divided by moral issues that did not conflict with the social "normal" until the 20th century.

It was during this time that various socialist groups (marxists, communists, nazis, progressives, eugenicists, Fabians) began to insert the Satan bug (Gen. 3:1 - "Did God really say...?") across the culture to get us to doubt our previous moral imperatives: Margaret Sanger introduced the abortion movement in 1921 (which was fraudulently legalized in 1973), immorality became semi-legitimized in 1948 by the first of the faux-scientific Kinsey Reports and went mainstream with the publication of Playboy in 1953, and homosexuality became a liberal cause cèlébre following the 1969 Stonewall riots.

Each of these destructive 'seeds' have germinated into ever-growing movements,cultural weeds propelled and perpetuated by the educational system and the entertainment industry, and facilitated (or disobstructed) by a rogue government that continuously distances itself from our founding principles.

But as far down that dark road we've already traveled, I believe there is a chance to revive this nation's spirit. By that I mean, in part, an authentic religious revival. Unless man reconstructs himself from within and reestablishes internal restraint, reason, and sound judgment, we can never adequately address the needs of the larger community (and by community I mean every social structure outside the immediate family, up to and including the global community). Man cannot rule justly if he only relies on himself, because sooner or later his baser nature will take the lead (as Kings David and Solomon belatedly discovered). In our weaker moments, eventual tragedies are born. We must look to the greater Good for solutions.

I call that greater good...God. I believe God is the ultimate force for creation and destruction. I believe He is the author of logic and science, and through these He is the master craftsman of all creation. I believe that although we have come to understand much, we effectually know next to nothing, and we err when we try to limit Him by our own understanding. He left us instructions, examples, lessons and reminders, and we ignore or misinterpret these at our peril.

In a nutshell, the celebration of Independence Day is a celebration of His gift to us; the gift of freedom. I believe He wants us to use that freedom constructively. I believe this nation - for all its ills - has done more for the human race than any other. The downside is that because we have made poor choices, we are undoing much of that previous good. We should use this Monday to remind ourselves and our fellows that we have a greater heritage, and potentially, a greater destiny to live up to.