HOW CAN SOMEONE EVEN ARGUE AGAINST GUN CONTROL?

I'll give it my best shot...
Violent crime rates:
LINK: Violent crime rose after ban in Australia
"The Australian Bureau of Criminology states its murder rate in 2006 with firearms was the highest ever at 16.3 percent. The ban started in 1997."

"In 2006, assault rose 49.2 percent, robbery 6.2 percent, sexual assault/rape 29.2 percent and overall crime rose 42.2 percent."

"Since the ban, Australian women are raped three times more often than American women. Using Australia as an model to lead people into a false sense of security that an anti-gun policy could create a safer society is an injustice."

LINK: Gun crime doubles in England after '96 ban
Gun crime has more than doubled since 1996, the year of the Dunblane massacre, according to the latest Home Office statistics.

In the year to April, there were 10,250 gun crimes - a rise of three per cent on 2001-02.

WATCH THIS 6 MINUTE VIDEO:

LINK: Mexico gun ban creates highest death toll in Mexico's history

"A new spate of violence has pushed the homicide rate in the Mexican border town of Ciudad Juarez to an unprecedented 1,701 murders, breaking the record set just a year earlier in 2008."

"Since February, some 8,500 Mexican soldiers have been deployed in Ciudad Juarez, but they have failed to stop ongoing violence between members of the Juarez and Sinaloa drug cartels."

Guns aren't to blame:

HERE'S A GRAPH OF THE TEN KILLERS IN THE U.S.

LINK: More people killed with hammers and clubs than rifles
"According to the FBI annual crime statistics, the number of murders committed annually with hammers and clubs far outnumbers the number of murders committed with a rifle."

"Think about it: In 2005, the number of murders committed with a rifle was 445, while the number of murders committed with hammers and clubs was 605. In 2006, the number of murders committed with a rifle was 438, while the number of murders committed with hammers and clubs was 618."

" in 2011, there was 323 murders committed with a rifle but 496 murders committed with hammers and clubs."

It's not constitutional:

     "The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government." -Thomas Jefferson

     Democide- the murder of any person or people by a government, including genocide, politicide, and mass murder. There have been 262 million victims of democide in the last century.

      Understand that this number is equal to the entire adult population of the United States of America. This has been done between 1900-2000. In nearly every case of democide, the population was made to register their weapons, it was made illegal to sell said weapon or to pass it to children, and was consequently confiscated from the individual.

     The reality is that governments have killed more people in the last century than every war combined since written history has began. Why should I trust someone who says that they are in place to keep me free, yet at every turn I'm less free than I was the day before? Our government officials in this nation are elected to keep our freedoms from being erased, not to erase our freedoms. This was so important to the founders, that it was the second amendment to the constitution, not tenth, not fifteenth, but second. They had seen with their own eyes what a nation would do to its people if they weren't armed.

 

We would end mass attacks if we got rid of guns!!!
LINK: Chinese man mars 22 with knife same day as Newtown
    
     Here's the bottom line. All weapons are banned in prisons, yet criminals still find a way to kill people. CRIMINALS ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO KILL PEOPLE. Banning guns gives the criminal access to a weapon that law abiding citizens don't have. This gives the criminal and the criminally insane an advantage when it comes to robberies, rapes, and violent encounters of all kinds.

GOD IS IN CONTROL... I JUST HOPE WE HAVEN'T QUIT ON HIM

In CNN's exit polling in the battleground states, I want to point out some things that stand out to me:
1. 43% of American's said that they either never attend a church service or that they attend once or twice a year. With this group, Obama won with over 60% of the vote.
2. 42% of American's said that they attend church either more than weekly or once a week. With this group Romney won with over 60% of the vote.

     Our country isn't divided Red/Blue, it's divided by the godly and the ungodly. It's divided by 42% who say I believe that God is in control, and 43% who don't believe in God at all. At our greatest as a nation, we were a Christian nation. George Washington, in his farewell speech on September 19, 1796: "It is impossible to govern the world without God and the Bible. Of all the dispositions and habits that lead to political prosperity, our religion and morality are the indispensable supporters. Let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that our national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle."

     I wanted desperately to believe that Mitt Romney was going to pull this out. If he did, he would've discredited over 10 well known religious figures that have prophesied specifically that President Obama would win this election. That our country was headed for a unique set of circumstances that would reduce our influence, and that Israel would be left alone to fend for itself. I have said privately that I believe that if our nation doesn't turn away from it's current trajectory, no matter the president, it is headed for mediocrity. This VIDEO is an interview with a Messianic Jew who wrote a book called the Harbinger. It's a book that describes some terrifying things that could be on our horizon as a nation if we don't humble ourselves before our creator.

     I don't want to seem all doomy and gloomy just because President Obama won. I have said it all along, and I'll say it again, "It is the Gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit which will save our nation – not politics or even necessarily godly leaders in positions of authority." That's the bottom line. I think that even with a Romney victory, would God have looked at this and said these people get it, they're humbling themselves and turning back to me. I don't think so. I don't think that we'll do it. We think that we have an economy problem, and we couldn't be further from the truth. WE HAVE A VALUES PROBLEM! We're long on talk and short on walk. Over 75% of American's identify themselves as Christians, yet only 42% come to church? No wonder the spoken word videos are so popular about why people "hate religion". Because religion says read your bible, pray, sacrifice, take up your cross, go to church. They want to talk about relationship, yet how can I have a relationship without knowing my friend and talking to him? How can I profess my belief in something without understanding the things that it asks of me? Yet 60% of American's can't even tell you half of the 10 commandments. THE MOST BASIC OF CHRISTIAN DOCTRINES.

     God judged Israel on multiple occasions when they repeatedly ignored his warnings toward them. He even went as far as to destroy his own temple so that they couldn't disgrace it with there hollow practices. If he was willing to do this to Israel who was the SOLE REPRESENTATIVE of his name, why wouldn't he do this to America who used to be the flagship for it? Why wouldn't we be a warning for all other nations, that when you profess me as your God, yet you disgrace my name by killing children, and openly spitting in the face of the creator with homosexuality. We've flagrantly destroyed God's first commandment with a promise to honor our fathers and mothers, and the list of our sins continues to pile on top of each other.

     When I was in Russia, with their Christian minority, they said as nicely as they could to me that they were all praying that America would be humbled. That the message that we spread with our music, movies, actions, etc. is that of the most secular nation on the planet... NOT THE MOST GODLY! YWAM coordinator Fred Markert also resonated these sentiments from his travels all over the world. That we're no longer furthering the gospel as a nation, that we're actually inhibiting the spread! Believe me when I say this to you, GOD WILL NOT STAND FOR US IF WE DON'T STAND FOR HIM. So yes, God is in control. Is that a good thing for America?

WHY I CAST MY VOTE FOR ROMNEY... AS A CHRISTIAN AND AN AMERICAN

Last week I published a blog stating the reasons that I'd never cast a vote for President Obama, no matter the opposing candidate. Tonight I want to shed light on my reasoning that is beyond just a vote against the Prez, and for a man that I've grown very fond of in the last six months.

AS A CHRISTIAN:

1. His support of Israel:
ABCNEWS: ROMNEY AND NETANYAHU ARE OLD FRIENDS

"Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential candidate, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have been friends for more than 35 years."

"So with the Israeli prime minister turning up in yet another Pro-Romney Super PAC ad, it was only natural to ask: Had Netanyahu, his relationship with President Obama always in varying degrees of distress, formally endorsed his old pal Mitt Romney for president?"

"there’s little doubt Romney is more popular with Israel’s foreign policy hawks, Netanyahu chief among them."

Speaking about Romney: “He’s a strong friend of Israel and we’ll be happy to meet with him,” Dermer said.  ”We value strong bipartisan support for Israel and we’re sure it will only deepen that.”


2. His stance on abortion:
This was supposed to be a "gotcha" moment for the left. It was an off-air conversation with a left wing radio host. He was trying to trap the Gov into saying something negative about Mormonism or abortion. He gets testy and I love it. It's five minutes and it's worth it: VIDEO

3. His stance on traditional marriage:
This is a two minute video where the Gov was the keynote speaker at Liberty University's graduation ceremonies in May of this year. It's a two minute cut from that speech. If you're a Christian and you want to know where this man stands, here it is: ROMNEY ON MARRIAGE AND VALUES

4. His belief system:
Explaining his worldview (2 MINUTES): CNN VIDEO

ROMNEY'S TAX RETURNS
First of all, his first name is Willard... didn't know that. He made 13.7 million last year...
"Mitt Romney gave about $2.6 million to the LDS Church in tithing last year, though he only claimed a little over $1 million on his federal income tax filings to ensure a higher tax rate."

"In addition to Romney’s direct contributions to the LDS Church, he also gave to the faith through his charity for a total of $3.07 million last year."

5. The selection for SCOTUS:
CBSNEWS: WHEN WILL SCOTUS ENTER THE DEBATE?
"The next president will get one or two Supreme Court nominees. That's how close Roe v. Wade is," Biden said. He went on to predict that Romney, if elected, would appoint justices like Scalia who would vote to "outlaw abortion."

ONE COULD ONLY HOPE...

AS AN AMERICAN:

1. His view toward government:
LIBERTARIANS FOR MITT
-Gov. Romney reformed Massachusetts’ welfare state, having Medicaid recipients make co-payments for some services, and successfully pushed for legislative action forcing new state workers to contribute 25% of their health insurance costs, up from 15%.


-Romney worked to revolutionize the Massachusetts state pension system by moving it from a defined benefit system to a defined contribution system.

-Romney aggressively pushed to deregulate Massachusetts’ auto insurance industry, which is the only state in the nation in which the government mandates maximum insurance rates and requires insurers to accept every applicant.

-Mitt Romney favors unrestricted free trade, saying “We have to keep our markets open or we go the way of Russia and the Soviet Union.”

-Romney supports drilling in ANWR, and opposes government regulations on energy production.

-Romney opposes raising Social Security taxes, and supports personal accounts.

-Romney strongly advocates in support of repealing McCain-Feingold.

-Governor Romney supports “the Second Amendment as one of the most basic and fundamental rights of every American.”

-Romney opposes and would veto the Fairness Doctrine.


2. His success in business:
LATIMES: SALT LAKE OLYMPICS WAS ROMNEY'S GOLDEN MOMENT AS A LEADER
"Mitt Romney wanted to send a message when he took over as chief executive of the Salt Lake Olympic Games. So he moved the organization's Washington office from a well-appointed K Street law firm to a barren third-floor walk-up, wedged between a burrito shop and hair salon near the U.S. Capitol."


"It was furnished with broken desks cast off by federal agencies. Its stairs were so steep that Cindy Gillespie, the head of federal relations for the Olympic committee, refused to have guests visit. "It was a nightmare — I couldn't stand it," Gillespie recalled. "But Mitt just adored it. He thought it was totally appropriate."

"The message, of course, was that frugality was the new watchword of the organization."

"Recruited in February 1999 to take over the beleaguered Olympic committee, Romney deferred his $280,000-a-year salary until the Games were over and its finances secure, then donated it to charity."

"Romney frequently touts his success running the Olympics as an example of his strength as a chief executive. The experience also demonstrated his skills as an agile politician — one who touted the committee's new frugality."

"The controversy faded by the time the Games rolled around. Even before the opening ceremony, Romney was applauded for producing a successful event, leaving a nearly $100-million surplus on a pared-down $1.3-billion budget. He told reporters that he could never imagine an experience that would top the Olympics."


AS GOVERNOR OF MASS. ROMNEY FACED SIMILAR CHALLENGES AS THE PRESIDENT:

"In many ways, Romney inherited a state economy in 2003 similar to the one President Barack Obama found entering the White House in 2009, one marked by a deep recession, huge job losses, and a widening budget deficit."

"Romney spent much of his first two years in office focusing on the state’s budget crisis. Romney succeeded in closing the budget shortfall without raising the state sales or income tax -- a notable accomplishment."

"Romney also took on natural allies in the business community when he undertook an effort to change the business tax code by closing what he called “loopholes.” It was a controversial step, but Romney said the rules allowed many companies to avoid paying taxes at a time when the state could hardly afford it. Some banks, for example, avoided taxes by sheltering holdings in Real Estate Investment Trusts."

"Romney also increased government fees on a host of services, from marriage licenses to property deeds, raising another $375 million annually."

"State unemployment fell to 4.7 percent from a peak of 6 percent."

"One of his biggest wins came near the end of his term in 2006, when Massachusetts won a bidding war with other states, convincing pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb to build a $750 million plant at the former Fort Devens army base."


3. His sacrifice in the public sector:
SNOPES: ROMNEY SERVES 28 YEARS OF PUBLIC SERVICE, NO PAY
ENOUGH SAID...

4. The repeal/replacement of Obamacare:
MITT'S PLAN TO REPEAL AND REPLACE
You need to look at his plan, it's the bee's knees : D

"Nearly Three-Quarters Of Small-Business Owners Blame Obamacare For Impeding Job Creation. “As part of the explanation for the general economic pessimism, 78 percent of small businesses believe that taxation, regulation and legislation from Washington make it harder for businesses to hire more employees — and 74 percent blame the recent health care reforms passed by the Obama administration for creating an impediment to job creation.” (Tim Mak, “Chamber Poll: Small Biz Blames D.C.,” Politico, 1/18/12)"

"As President, Mitt Romney Will Take Steps To Repeal And Replace Obamacare Starting From Day One. “Days before President Obama's signature healthcare law goes in front of the Supreme Court, GOP front-runner Mitt Romney vowed to repeal and replace the law, speaking to a supportive crowd in a suburb of New Orleans. ‘It's critical that we repeal Obamacare and, by the way, also replace it,’ he said. ‘I think I'm the only person in this race who's laid out what I would replace it with.’” (Alana Semuels, “Romney Vows To Repeal And Replace 'Obamacare' On Law's Anniversary,” Los Angeles Times, 3/23/12)"


5. His choice in VP:
I just have to say that I'm a HUGE Paul Ryan fan. His work with the budget is a libertarian's dream. Get the government out of our lives, period. Get it out of education, get it out of healthcare, get it out of religion, get it out. The best parts of our society are the parts without government interference. Let's move on from these dead end schools, and look at the independent model for our success!

So, I hoped that you learned about my decision making process for why I'M WITH MITT. I'd love your opinion and thoughts!!!  

WHY I WOULD NEVER VOTE FOR OBAMA... AS A CHRISTIAN AND AN AMERICAN

As a Christian:

1. He supports abortion (early, late, post-birth)
A. Four times he voted for bills that refused rights to babies born despite attempted abortions. This is what he said, “That determination then, essentially, if it was accepted by a court, would forbid abortions to take place. I mean, it would essentially bar abortions”
B. He would rather kill babies that were born despite failed abortions, than to stop abortions.
C. His key legislation, Obamacare, makes the American tax payer liable for every abortion cared for under the act. 

2. He supports breaking the 10th commandment (Don’t covet)
A. Coveting is defined as feeling a desire for that which is another's. Its basic premise is that I don’t want to have while you have; I want to have what you have. I don’t want to earn the kind of money you earn; I want the actual money that you earn.

3. He supports gay marriage.
A. Quoted in 2012: ““I was sensitive to the fact that for a lot of people the word `marriage’ was something that invokes very powerful traditions, religious beliefs and so forth.” Now, he said, “it is important for me personally to go ahead and affirm that same-sex couples should be able to get married.”
B. 1 Samuel 15:29 (NLT) - And he who is the Glory of Israel will not lie, nor will he change his mind, for he is not human that he should change his mind!”

4. He doesn't allow his “faith” to affect his decision making.
A. Joe Biden said, “I can’t allow my religious beliefs to affect my decision making process.”
B. Colossians 3:17 (NLT) - And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

As an American:

1. His disdain toward our founding fathers.

2. His position toward American influence.
A. Colonialism- the establishment, exploitation, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory.
B. President Obama’s reaction to his grandfather thanking colonialist England for his success, “What Granny had told us scrambled that image completely, causing ugly words to flash across my mind. Uncle Tom. Collaborator. House nigger.”
C. President Obama’s quote on the constitution: “The Constitution is a charter of negative liberties, says what the states can't do to you, says what the federal government can't do to you, but it doesn't say what the federal government or the state government must do on your behalf.” This thinking enable him to do for us the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare)

3. His policies toward free-enterprise.
A. 2008 we ranked #1 in competitive rankings, today we rank #7. 2008 we ranked #66 in macroeconomic stability, today we rank #111. Our government is ranked #76 in efficient spending of resources. We rank #140 of #144 in government deficit as percentage of GDP. 2008 we were #50 in government regulations of business, today #76. 2005 our infrastructure was ranked #1, today #16.

4. His tax policies. 
A. Trickle-down economics vs. trickle-down government
B. You’ve heard President Obama say things like, “They need to pay their fair share, others need a fair shot, etc…”
C. The socialist model of taxation says that you tax the highest earning among you an astronomical rate, and you remove all taxes from the poorest. 47% of the country didn’t pay income tax. The top 10% of Americans pay 70% of the taxes in this country. They only earn 43% of the income.

5. Then there's this:

Remember though, if you think this election will change the course of our nation you're wrong! It is the Gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit which will save our nation – not politics or even necessarily godly leaders in positions of authority.

HOW OUR GOVERNMENT SHATTERS THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, AND WE'RE ALL ACCOMPLICES

Quickly (without google) name the ten commandments... GO!

 

     How many did you get? 60% of Americans can't name half, and even funnier 31% say they can earn their way in to heaven. Isn't that a conundrum, 6/10 can't name half the commandments, yet 3/10 think they can earn heaven by obeying these commandments? We've begun to systematically remove these commandments from our courthouses and our government, but what's worse is that we've removed them from our everyday life so much that we don't even notice them stripped from the public. I'm going to work back to front starting at 10:

 

10. DON'T COVET (to feel a desire for that which is another's)

 

     Is there a more popular subject matter in today's political sphere? I can't earn it, you've got it, I want it. The left tries to garnish some sort of biblical compassion for the poor by telling those who have EARNED their money the good old fashioned way to pay their FAIR SHARE. So that those who are less fortunate can have their FAIR SHOT. This thinking boggles my mind. By forcefully taking from those who have and giving to those who don't care, that is somehow biblical? I'm all for helping the helpless, I draw the line at helping the careless. I think that Paul said it best in 2 Thess. 3:10-13 (MSG):

"Don’t you remember the rule we had when we lived with you? “If you don’t work, you don’t eat.” And now we’re getting reports that a bunch of lazy good-for-nothings are taking advantage of you. This must not be tolerated. We command them to get to work immediately—no excuses, no arguments—and earn their own keep. Friends, don’t slack off in doing your duty."

     Coveting is a problem we have. We are sending a message that says I don't want to earn what you have, I want to take what you have. I don't have to dream about my future, I want to take yours. I don't have to work for what I have, I want to sit and benefit from your work. See most of us want the success of others without going through what they had to go through to get where they are.

 

“Most people want to improve their circumstances, but they won’t improve themselves, so they remain bound” –James Allen

"The price of greatness is responsibility."— Winston Churchill

"Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility, and most people are frightened of responsibility.”— Sigmund Freud

“The distance from where I am and where I want to be, is what I’m willing to give up. You can tell you’re on the road to success because it’s uphill all the way.” –John Maxwell

 

     We're unwilling to improve ourselves, so we want to take from those who have. We are unwilling to be responsible, so we demonize those who have been. We're unwilling to give up some luxury now, so that we can have luxury later. So we take from those who did. This has become the American way. Social Security: I didn't want to save when I was younger, so the young can now pay my retirement. Government run healthcare: I don't have a job that gives me health insurance, so I need to take from those who do. 2 Corinthians 9:7 (NLT) says: You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. "For God loves a person who gives cheerfully." Yet we have forced those who have degrees, experience, and sacrificed their time to pay for those who are unwilling to do the same. Don't understand what I'm saying? Watch this video from Nancy Pelosi's daughter who is a left wing journalist: OBAMA BUCKS VIDEO

 

#9 THOU SHALL NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS

 

     Pretty sure that we have seen this play out from both parties and both candidates. Enough said.

 

#8 YOU SHALL NOT STEAL

 

     SEE #10

 

#7 YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY

 

I DID NOT HAVE SEXUAL RELATIONS WITH THAT WOMAN

 

     The left doesn't have a corner on the market when it comes to adultery though. The right has the following: President George Bush Sr., the Governator, John McCain, Giuliani, Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, Newt Gingrich, Bob Barr, Henry Hyde just to name a few.

 

#6 YOU SHALL NOT MURDER

 

     We've been quite good at breaking this commandment. In fact, we've killed 26x's more babies than the amount of American's who've died in battle. Over 53,000,000 legal abortions have occurred since Roe v. Wade. Remember what David said in Psalms 82:3-4 (NLT) "Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked." 

 

     Want to know another shocking statistic the left will never want you to know? Since '76, there have been slightly over 1,300 people given the death penalty for crimes. That's one person who commited a heinous crime to every 41K babies who've done nothing. How can the left justify being against the death penalty for those who've commited murder, and murdering a baby that's done nothing? This confuses me.

#5 HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER

 

     Have we ever lived in a time when this principle of our faith has been trampled on more? When the solidarity of the home has been beaten up by not just our government, but by the media too? We have shows on TV that represent all the things the bible preaches against. Shows like "Modern Family", "The New Normal" where homosexual couples are seen as the new normal. That there's nothing wrong with this picture. The problem people have is that the bible isn't an "evolving" document. See the standard of the bible doesn't change with pop culture, the bible doesn't change for us! WE CONFORM TO THE BIBLE.

 

     The bible is so clear when it comes to what's going to happen in the days we're currently living in. Paul writes to Timothy in 2 Tim. 3:1-5 (NLT), "You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. 2 For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. 3 They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. 4 They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. 5 They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!"

 

#4 REMEMBER THE SABBATH

 

     Another memory game, quickly name the only place you can think of closed on Sundays. I know the only one that I can think of is Chick-Fil-A. Sidenote, I'm thinking of a business venture where I buy a ton of CFA's food and sell it in their parking lot on Sundays. I'll call it Chick-Fil-Atheist. J/K.

 

     I love the story told by the movie CHARIOTS OF FIRE. It's about a young man named Eric Liddell. He makes a stand once he finds that the opening heats of the Olympic games is on a Sunday and says that he can't run on the Lord's day. He is so adamant in his stand, that they end up moving the day of the heats so that he can participate. This man who had a lifetime invested in this one moment was willing to give it all away because of a conviction about the Sabbath. Jesus gives us a picture of what God had intended for the Sabbath in Mark 3:4-5 (NIV) "Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent. He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.” Paul even said this in Colossians: "So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality.”

 

     I think what I find funny too is the fact that technically Saturday is the real Sabbath. If we are really so legalistically bound by the rule of the law, than we need to be adhearing to the actual law. Remember that Jesus said this too in Mark 2 that the Sabbath was created for MAN not man for the Sabbath.

 

#3 DON'T TAKE THE LORD'S NAME IN VAIN (Vain- empty of substance: devoid of substance or meaning)

 

    I'm going to take some liberties with this one. I hope that you can follow my logic here. John 1:1 tells us, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." God is the word, so if you make his word void of substance, you've broken the 3rd commandment. Jesus tells us for our yes to be yes and our no to be no. We shouldn't swear to God, but we should just be men and women of our word. That we also shouldn't use the scripture to gain credibility.  

     I watched an interview about a book called THE HARBINGER and our politicians have foolishly used the word of God to proclaim America's greatness. After 9/11 they used the scripture from Isaiah 9:10 where the people of Israel, in defiance of God, shake their fist and say that we don't need you. We can rebuild our country on our own without your help. Yet they read this like they understand what they're saying, and that this makes them credible. What it's really doing is making God's word empty of substance and devoid of meaning.

#2 NO IDOLS/#1 WORSHIP NO OTHER GOD BEFORE ME

 

     Humans have a problem. We have a tendency to want to quantify God. We want to see, feel, smell, hear, and taste God. Even Israel, who saw incredible miracles, heard God's voice and in fear told Moses to go up and speak to God alone because they were fearful, after just 40 days had begun to melt all their gold and worship a calf. We want to make God human. People say knowledge is power, I say wisdom is power and knowledge is a curse. We were cursed by knowledge, the more we "know" the greater the curse. We try and put ourselves on God's level, even though Isaiah 55:9 tells us that his ways and thoughts are infinitely above ours. We put our faith in people and things because we have no FAITH (the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things NOT SEEN) in God.

 

     We can see, touch, smell, hear, and taste people. We glorify people to a place that only God should be. We worship Hollywood, athletes, singers, politicians, etc... We base our happiness on things that are unable to make us happy. An idol is defined as: making for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. How many of us have done this? If you quantify the things you do by the hour, how many things do you do more than your time with God? I would say that prayer, bible reading, and church would be able to be added together. How many things are you currently saying with your actions are more important than God?

 

     The reality is this, we can all complain about how corrupt/ungodly/secular/terrible/weak/sorry our government is becoming. The reality is this, our government is a direct reflection of us. They are our representatives. You'll hear most churches saying the following, "VOTE YOUR VALUES". The sad thing is what G.K. Chesterton predicted about our culture today when he said, "Tolerance is the virtue of a culture that has no virtues". We, as Christians, have to decide at some point to stand up and become the moral majority for our nation. We are the majority, 58% of Americans identify themselves as Christian. It's time that our actions lined up with our mouths, and we begin to walk the walk. REMEMBER:

It is the Gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit which will save our nation – not politics or even necessarily godly leaders in positions of authority.

OUR FREEDOMS AREN'T FREE... AND THEY'RE BEING REMOVED

"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." -Benjamin Franklin

"Man isn't free unless GOVERNMENT IS LIMITED." -Ronald Reagan

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it's because we destroyed ourselves." -Abraham Lincoln

    I hear this statement all the time and I completely agree that freedom isn't free. The lives that have been lost in the pursuit of freedom in this country are astounding. 25,700 American lives lost in the revolutionary war against Britain for our freedom from tyranny. 360,000 Union fighters were killed making sure we were MEN of our word and that all people were created equal and have unalienable rights. Total, 620,000 Americans died in the Civil War. All in all, nearly 2 million Americans have died in wars. They've defended our constitution and the rights of all people around the world. We've sent them into battle defending our rights for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That's why this issue is so close to my heart.

    Our freedoms have literally come under attack in the last two administrations, Bush and Obama, more than any other time in our history. Case in point, every President combined has issued a total of 56 EXECUTIVE ORDERS. President Bush issued 62 and President Obama has issued 138 EXECUTIVE ORDERS. Need more examples? Lets take the Bill of Rights that are under attack one by one:

#1 FREEDOM OF SPEECH, PRESS, ASSEMBLY, AND RIGHT TO PETITION
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

*Assembly:
EU TIMES REPORT
“Only days after clearing Congress, US President Barack Obama signed his name to H.R. 347 on Thursday, officially making it a federal offense to cause a disturbance at certain political events — essentially criminalizing protest in the States.”

“knowingly entering a restricted area that is under the jurisdiction of Secret Service protection can garner an arrest"

“The Secret Service serves as the police that protects not just current and former American presidents, but are also dispatched to monitor special events of national significance, a category with a broad cast of qualifiers. In the past, sporting events, state funerals, inaugural addresses and NATO and G-8 Summits have been designated as such by the US Department of Homeland Security, the division that decides when and where the Secret Service are needed outside of their normal coverage.”

*FREE SPEECH
HUFF POST: CURB FREE SPEECH
“The developing world nations are essentially telling the West: Curb free speech that inflicts wounds based on race or religion. But the West is far from uniform on how to balance free speech rights it considers sacrosanct with efforts to tackle the spread of racial, ethnic or religious hatred.”

“The non-binding resolution from South Africa – on behalf of the Africa Group – as well as Cuba, Venezuela and Bolivia, follows calls by the Arab League for the international community to criminalize blasphemy.”

“ In the United States, today a land of no-holds-barred talk radio, the Constitution's First Amendment says Congress "shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech." But in an unanimous opinion on the government's ability to regulate speech during the World War I draft, Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. argued that Congress can bar use of words in some circumstances that "are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger" – such as "a man in falsely shouting fire in a theatre and causing a panic."

NBC: PASTOR GETS 2 YEARS FOR PREACHING DISCIPLINE
“A Black Earth pastor convicted of conspiracy to commit child abuse for advocating the use of wooden rods to spank children has been sentenced to two years in prison.”

“He was also ordered Friday not to have contact with the church and have no leadership role in any church.”

“The Dane County jury took about two hours to find 54-year-old Philip Caminiti guilty of eight counts Wednesday.”

#2 RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS

EXAMINER: OBAMA TO BAN AR'S AND HANDGUNS
"What I'm trying to do is to get a broader conversation about how do we reduce the violence generally. Part of it is seeing if we can get an assault weapons ban reintroduced. But part of it is also looking at other sources of the violence. Because frankly, in my hometown of Chicago, there's an awful lot of violence and they're not using AK-47s. They're using cheap handguns."

UN GUN CONTROL TREATY
“Last time I checked, Americans were responsible for making our own laws. We do not invite foreign nations to have a say in how we govern ourselves within our own borders. Yet if you follow what's been going on with the United Nations this year, you know that the USA came perilously close to having other countries dictate our gun laws. And the fight isn't over yet.”

"The focus of the treaty would be a demand that governments regulate the sale and possession of firearms worldwide -- all of them, including yours and mine.”

“The debate reached a fever pitch during a month-long marathon negotiation session in July. The goal was to disgorge a treaty in time for the Obama administration to sign it before Election Day. The draft treaty was odious on its face. Among other things, it would have required the United States to "maintain records of all imports and shipments of arms," register the identity of the "end user" of those firearms and then report the user's information to a U.N.-based gun registry. In several drafts, the treaty would have mandated that every round of ammunition be tracked globally.”

IF THEY CAN'T GET OUR GUNS, THEN WHY NOT GET THE AMMO FOR THE GUNS?

THE HILL: U.S. BILL TO REGULATE AMMO SALES

“Sen. Frank Lautenberg (N.J.) and Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (N.Y.) said the new law would make the sale of ammunition “safer for law-abiding Americans who are sick and tired of the ease with which criminals can now anonymously stockpile for mass murder,”

How dumb are these people? Criminals can't own a gun of any sort legally. So banning ammo for all, to make sure that criminals don't get it is the same as a gun ban for all. THE CRIMINALS WILL STILL HAVE GUNS AND AMMO! While those of us who are law abiding citizens will get caught in the crossfire.

“Democratic senators though have offered an amendment to the cyber-security bill that would limit the purchase of high capacity magazines by some consumers. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) defended it last Thursday as a “reasonable” gun control measure.”

This isn't the first time that they will have placed a moratorium on high-capacity magazines. If you own an AR, buy 'em up. You'll make more money off them than if you purchased gold. They'll be worth 4-5 times what they're worth today. Same as AR's if they ban the manufacturing of them as well.

#4 PROTECTION FROM UNREASONABLE SEARCH AND SEIZURE

     Let me advise you to do a little research on the PATRIOT ACT when it comes to all of our rights, but especially on this topic of UNREASONABLE SEARCH. The PATRIOT Act allows the FBI to write warrants for themselves, granting their own permission to invade the privacy of the American citizen. This exactly what the American colonists were mad at the British for. The PATRIOT Act takes aim at those suspected of “terrorism”. While fighting terrorism is a good thing, whose definition of terrorism does the government use? Well the government uses their own definition. Terrorism is a tactic, not a set group of people. If one were to trace the origins of modern terrorism one would find themselves with Michael Collins and the Irish Republican Army. If the government is allowed to invade Americans’ privacy based on such a vague term that they themselves can define, there is no limit to their power. Not so long ago Vice President Joe Biden compared the Tea Party to terrorists. While we must defend ourselves from terrorists we must also remember that governments can be just as dangerous as any foreign enemy.

SUPREME COURT SHREDS 4TH AMENDMENT
"The Supreme Court has traditionally concluded that “searches and seizures inside a home without a warrant are presumptively unreasonable.” The only exception to this rule is when police are dealing with “exigent circumstances”

“What is an exigent circumstance?  Risk of death of serious bodily injury qualifies as exigent.  The likely escape of a criminal suspect makes the grade.  Finally, police officers can smash open your door if they have reason to believe that evidence is being destroyed.”
 

“The Court today arms the police with a way routinely to dishonor the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement in drug cases” Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote in a blistering dissent.  “In lieu of presenting their evidence to a neutral magistrate, police officers may now knock, listen, then break the door down, never mind that they had ample time to obtain a warrant. I dissent from the Court’s reduction of the Fourth Amendment’s force.”

#5 DUE PROCESS

ACLU SUING OVER DRONE STRIKE OF US CITIZEN
"Holder acknowledged in that speech that the "due process" the administration has employed does not involve an independent review by the courts."

"Due process and judicial process are not one and the same, particularly when it comes to national security," Holder said then. "The Constitution guarantees due process, it does not guarantee judicial process."

“One oddity of the current legal situation remains that the U.S. government needs some kind of court-approved warrant to intentionally eavesdrop on the telephone or e-mail of a U.S. citizen suspected of involvement with Al Qaeda, like Anwar Al-Awlaki. However, using a drone, a missile, bomb or military raid to intentionally kill that same person requires no approval from the judicial branch.”

PRESIDENT OBAMA: DUE PROCESS OF DRONE STRIKE
“President Obama: "It has to be a target that is authorized by our laws. It has to be a threat that is serious and not speculative. It has to be a situation in which we can’t capture the individual before they move forward on some sort of operational plot against the United States. And this is an example of where I think there’s been some misreporting. Our preference is always to capture, if we can, because we can gather intelligence. But a lot of the terrorist networks that target the United States, the most dangerous ones, operate in very remote regions, and it’s very difficult to capture them. And we’ve got to make sure that, in whatever operations we conduct, we are very careful about avoiding civilian casualties."

"Obama made no direct mention of any of the three U.S. citizens killed overseas, including the 16-year-old teenager Abdulrahman al-Awlaki"

I hope for your sake and your families sake that you're never considered a terrorist by our government... Especially with this news coming out:

DRONES BEING USED NOW IN THE U.S.
“With Congress enacting a law giving the go-ahead for the use of drones in U.S. airspace last February, the drone industry is now poised to deploy the technology to monitor everything.”

Remember that freedom isn't free, it's something that has been fought and died for. Not just by our military who have made such an incredible sacrifice, but also by regular citizens who decided that tyranny wasn't an option. This quote says it all:

“It is better to fail in a cause that will ultimately succeed, than to succeed in a cause that will ultimately fail.”-Peter Marshall

Dear Republicans: Please stop defending Bush... He was TERRIBLE

       I know that I'm probably going to get a ton of flack for this blog entry, but here goes. As a person who falls somewhere between libertarian and very conservative, I am not a fan of our former President. Like most conservatives, I was caught up in the landslide that supported Bush in 2004. He was, after all, the better choice...right? In a previous post, I defended him when it came to the horrible economy that he resided over here, but I can't completely defend him because if he was smart he would've seen that coming and repealed/replaced it with something better for the country.

       This man was a 21st century Republican. He was SOCIALLY conservative, but this man was FISCALLY liberal. His liberal spending theology, coupled with his conservative tax initiatives literally put us in a massive hole. He actually increased the size of our government MORE THAN PRESIDENT OBAMA. Thank God for the TEA party movement that has finally brought the majority of the republican party back to its conservative roots. So when, if ever, will this party ever get smart and throw this cat under the bus? We want voters to accept the reality that their 2008 vote for Obama was a mistake, yet we're unwilling as Republicans to call a spade a spade with Bush.

#1 THE SIZE OF GOVERNMENT GROWN:
       Now, my argument could start by pointing out that the only reason that Obama's government growth/spending wasn't as much as Bush's was because of the congress that the respective men had. Bush had a very liberal congress the last four years, Obama has had a very conservative congress the last 2 years. (Little talked about fact, our economy does better under a republican congress and democrat president... why? GRIDLOCK. Government has no effect and the people flourish) Need proof?

OBAMA V. BUSH business insider link

“from 2000 to 2008, under President Bush, Federal spending rose by $1.3 trillion, from $1.9 trillion a year to $3.2 trillion a year.”

“From 2009 to 2011, meanwhile, under President Obama, federal spending has risen by $600 billion, from $3.2 trillion a year to $3.8 trillion a year.  It has also now begun to decline.”

FOOD STAMP PRESIDENT? CNN link 

“By many measures, the federal government has indeed grown during Obama's tenure. Spending as a share of the economy has gone up. The number of federal employees has risen. More Americans are relying on federal assistance.”

“Government spending as a share of the economy has hovered around 24% during the Obama administration, several percentage points higher than under President Bush, according to Congressional Budget Office data. It's also elevated from the historical average of 20.7% over the past 40 years.”

“The number of federal employees grew by 123,000, or 6.2%, under President Obama, according to the White House's Office of Management and Budget.”

“The federal payroll has been expanding since President Bush took office, after declining during the Clinton administration. But it's still a tad smaller than it was in 1992”

“The federal government has been one of the few areas that's grown during the economic downturn. The private sector remains down 1.1 million jobs from the start of 2009, while state and local governments have shed 635,000 positions.”

“There were 75 major regulations adopted in Obama's first two years in office, compared to 120 during Bush's entire term, according to the Heritage Foundation, citing Government Accountability Office statistics. Fiscal 2010 saw a record 43 rules adopted."

So Bush increases the size of government to all time highs, yet the 1% of this man who is conservative fiscally decided it would be smart to cut taxes across the board. Half measures are always a mistake. He is the largest government President in history, prior to Obama, yet we've got the lowest taxes. His policies here have crippled us globally. Liberals loved the 99% of this guy. When you hear criticism from the left its on two things, the "Bush Tax Cuts" and this:

#2 UNNEEDED WAR THAT TAINTED THE NECESSARY ONE:
I think that most rational Americans would agree with this statement. That what we found about Iraq, although it made sense for us on a human rights front, made no sense on the "war on terror" front. If the reasons for going into Iraq were legitimate, then it would've made much more sense to go into Iran instead. What we've found is that we've been pressured financially now to end our occupation of Afghanistan, which is the sole reason we got Bin Laden, and that wouldn't have happened if we weren't in Iraq first. We've lost sight on the original reason that we're in the middle east to begin with. It is largely seen as a vendetta that the son finished what his dad couldn't.

#3 THE TEA PARTY AFFECT:
THANK GOD for the TEA party. They've done more for the argument in this country than any group in the last 30 years. The nation actually has a clear choice on the issues in their state government. I've been able to vote for the last 8 years and finally feel that it's not just the choice of the lesser of two evils. I finally can draw a stark contrast between not only my choices for President, but for state and local government as well. President Bush wouldn't have stood up to the scrutiny of the TEA party if it had been around in 2000. They understand the thought process that "half measures" don't work. A country constantly being moved into a socialist style, needs an aggressive counter-culture to bring it back from guaranteed failure. These people were unafraid to call Bush what he was, a liberal with conservative tendencies. Why won't the higher-ups do the same? I think that it would help! In fact, I think the award-winning line for the upcoming debates would be, "Mr. President, I am not George Bush, and you sir are not Bill Clinton."

I would really appreciate your opinion on this! Either on this blog or on the Facebook post.