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GUARDIANS FOR GOD AND COUNTRY

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Five Things

3/18/2024

During various speaking events, I have occasionally offered the following challenge to my audiences: Name five things that the federal government does well. By “well” I mean effectively and efficiently. “Effectively” means the intended goals are accomplished. “Efficiently” means the intended goals are accomplished with a minimum of cost and waste. I’ve only ever had two answers. The one I usually get is the military. My response is that our military is the best in the world (or, at least, it was until very recently) but I don’t think the Department of Defense is going to receive any awards for efficiency. They’re the ones who make the $400 hammers and the $600 toilet seats. The other answer—offered only once—was the cross-country railroad. I confessed that I was not expert on the subject, although I seem to recall some cases of graft and corruption. I then asked the person who offered that answer if he could think of any example that took place in the last 100 years. His eyes rolled upward—apparently gazing at the same thing as everyone else in the room—and he remained silent. My point was this: If we can’t even think of five things, three things, or one thing that the federal government does well, why would we want to keep entrusting more and more areas of our lives to it?

I intend this to be the first in a series of proofs that the government does not deserve our trust when it comes to solving most problems. The series will be called, “Five Things.” Here’s the first installment.

During the Corona virus pandemic Congress established the “Employee Retention Tax Credit.” It was supposed to help retain workers on the payroll of private companies. Later, Congress extended the tax break and made it available to additional companies. The program was originally expected to cost the federal government $55 billion. The costs of the program have swelled to nearly five times that amount, and new claims are being filed with the Internal Revenue Service every week. A whistleblower recently estimated that 95% of the claims now being made for this program are fraudulent. When asked whether this estimate was accurate, IRS Commissioner, Danny Werfel, answered, “Yeah.”

The “Employee Retention Tax Credit” is one of a very long list of items that cannot be offered as an example of something the federal government does well. Perhaps we should eliminate all the items on that list. Think how much money would be saved and returned to our pockets. Think how much anxiety would be spared from being oppressed by the crooked politicians’ bad ideas. Think how much more productive our nation would be if all the bureaucrats who administer these programs got jobs that actually produced something worthwhile for the nation.

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Gun-Violence

3/18/2024

Christians are opposed to, and appalled by, all forms of senseless violence. So, how does this conviction translate into action when it comes to the rash of gun violence that has been plaguing our nation? Should we oppose the Second Amendment and support draconian measures to restrict private ownership of firearms?

Let’s get back to my opening remark: we oppose all forms of senseless violence. Keep in mind that the greatest perpetrators of violence throughout history have been governments. These governments have used violence against the people of other nations (as in wars) and against their own people (as in “police action” and the suppression of opponents). Governments have been the greatest abusers of individual liberties, the greatest organized criminals, and the greatest mass-murderers throughout the ages. The purpose of the Second Amendment was not primarily to allow people to hunt or even to protect their homes from criminals. The purpose of the Second Amendment was primarily to allow the people to defend themselves from an abusive government, and to put the fear of God into any politicians who might consider abusing the people. Accordingly, the best interests of the people demand that we preserve, protect, and defend the Second Amendment at all cost.

The on-going loss of life to gun violence every year truly is tragic. But what word can we use to describe the loss of nearly 100 million souls in the Twentieth Century — all at the hands of their own abusive governments? Think it can’t happen here? Consider this: nearly every major proponent of gun control is also an advocate of bigger government. Think that’s an idle coincidence? I don’t. So, if you really want to do something meaningful to “keep Americans safe and prevent future tragedies”, then work to restrict government, not guns.

So, how do we work to decrease gun violence? The loudest advocates for more peaceful streets, schools, and workplaces have consistently come up with the wrong answer, and that’s because they don’t understand the true problem. It’s not guns. A godly man can stand in the midst of thousands of firearms and millions of rounds of ammunition, and no one will be hurt. An ungodly man can live in a country where guns and ammunition are completely outlawed, and he will still find a way to hurt others. The problem is not with what we hold in our hands, but rather with what we hold in our hearts. Since the late 1940s our government has worked to remove God, the Bible, and Biblical morality from our society, with predictable consequences. Do you truly want things to be different? Then work to return Biblical morality and respect for life to our schools, government, and society.

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Two-State Solution or Two-Faced Solution

3/18/2024

One of the recurring absurdities proposed to bring peace to the Middle-east is the so-called “Two-State Solution.” Instead of a territory consisting of Israel alone, under the Two-State Solution the same geographic area would be comprised of Israel and an independent, Frankensteinish Palestinian state pieced together from the disconnected areas currently known as Gaza, the West Bank, and east Jerusalem. The idea is that if the Palestinians could have their own nation, all would be well between the Israelis and the local Muslims, and the constant violence between them would stop. HOGWASH! Anyone who embraces this notion is either completely ignorant of the conditions relating to the Israelis and Palestinians or is a deceitful politician seeking either to buy time through appeasement or to set up the circumstances for the annihilation of Israel.

There are many reasons why the proposed Two-State Solution won’t work, but let’s look at the most obvious and insurmountable of these; namely, Islam cannot permit it.

It makes for a clever bumper sticker, but as a practical matter, it is impossible. Islam is not the kind of religion that can tolerate other religions. It offers non-believers—the infidels—only three choices: convert, be enslaved, or die. Notice that “coexist” is nowhere on the menu. This is spelled out in verse 9:5 of the Koran (known as “the verse of the sword”) as well as in many remarks by Muhammad as recorded in the Hadith, or narratives of Muhammad’s words and deeds. Remember that Muhammad is the “model Muslim.” If he said it, Muslims everywhere and throughout time should believe it. If he did it, Muslims everywhere and throughout time may also do it. And among the other hateful comments about the Jews, Muhammad said this, “Kill any Jew that falls into your power.” [Sira 554] [By the way, Muhammad also said, “kill the polytheists {Christians} wherever you find them, and seize them and besiege them and lie in wait for them in every ambush. But if they repent and perform the prayer and pay the poor-tax, then let them go their way.” {Sira 920} Notice the aforementioned pattern: convert {“if they repent”}, be enslaved {“seize them”}, or die {“kill the polytheists”}. Muhammad’s answer to most every obstacle was to kill it. Again, “coexist” is not an option.]

So, Muslims everywhere and throughout time are commanded to “Kill any Jew that falls into your power.” Knowing that, how can the Two-State Solution lead anywhere but to the annihilation of Israel? First, it would carve off territory from an already tiny Israelite state. Second, it would ensure the presence of Islamic terrorist within Israeli territory. Third, it would create multiple bases of operation for a future all-out assault upon Israel. Whereas the Two-State Solution would be a boon for the Muslims, it offers no hope for Israel. It would, in fact, be their death knell.

As a Bible-believing people, we are obligated and privileged to stand with Israel and protect her. Such a policy may exact a great price, but not nearly as great as our failure to do so. As is stated in Numbers 24:9, “May those who bless you [Israel] be blessed and those who curse you be cursed!” Our choice is clear. We must stand with Israel and stand against the Two-State Solution.

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Have You Noticed?

3/18/2024

It seems to be an age for strange notions. You know, things like “defund the police”, killing defenseless babies to protect “reproductive rights”, and smearing history’s noblest and most generous nation. Here’s another one: opposing parental notification in cases where a child may be considering “transitioning.” Yep, it’s become one of the hot topics at school board meetings and elsewhere. The basic idea is that all parents should remain uninformed about a child’s interest in changing their pronouns, their bathrooms, their lorckerrooms, and even their gender because some parents might not handle the news well and resort to abuse of the child. I’ve heard that argument many times. You know what I’ve never heard? No one has ever presented statistics to back up the argument. Do FBI records report that “X” thousand cases of criminal abuse of children have resulted from “unaffirming” parents? Does CPS document that “Y” percent of the children they have seized were taken in order to protect them from brutal parents who couldn’t handle their child’s gender confusion? I mean, how big a problem is this? Does such abuse happen in one out of every ten cases, or one out of every ten million cases? Don’t you think we should know this before deciding to keep all parents in the dark about such an important matter?

Beyond this, there is something very peculiar—and maybe even sinister—about this idea. Have you noticed? Where else is this logic applied? No one argues that all parents should be kept in the dark about their child’s failing grades because some parents might not take the news well. No one argues that all parents should remain uninformed about their child’s truancy record because some parents might go ballistic. Should we deny information to all parents if their child brought a handgun or illegal drugs to school because a few might resort to physical abuse? How come “transitioning” is the only issue that justifies keeping parents uninformed about their child’s behavior?

Of all the potentially harmful behaviors which a child might manifest, this needs to be near the top of the list. The desire to transition is, in certain ways, tantamount to suicide. Think about it. We have a child who is so dissatisfied with his or her existence that he or she is considering terminating his/her identity. But instead of resorting to a bullet or pills or a step off a tall structure, they turn to drugs and scalpels and endless therapy. Even if transitioning solved the child’s misery, it is still a very serious, life-changing matter, and parents need to be involved. Tragically, however, transitioning often does not solve the problem. In fact, it could make matters much worse. Some records show that the suicide rate for children who have transitioned is 50 times higher than the rate for the rest of the child population. Who would want to deny parents information about something that would make their children 50 times more likely to kill themselves?

So, what is the real motive behind the argument to keep parents in the dark? I don’t know, but when you peek into that dark closet, you likely will catch a glimpse of some real monsters.

These poor children need our help and our love. Most of all, they need God; and yet, have you noticed, God is never a part of the formula for recovery offered by the schools, the state, or the woke advisers. I think that glimpse of the real monsters just got clearer.