Courage, then, my countrymen; our contest is not only whether we ourselves shall be free, but whether there shall be left to mankind an asylum on earth for civil and religious liberty. Dismissing, therefore, the justice of our cause as incontestable, the only question is, What is best for us to pursue in our present circumstances?

The doctrine of dependence on Great Britain is, I believe, generally exploded; but as I would attend to the honest weakness of the simplest of men, you will pardon me if I offer a few words on that subject.

We are now on this continent, to the astonishment of the world, three millions of souls united in one cause. We have large armies, well disciplined and appointed, with commanders inferior to none in military skill, and superior in activity and zeal. We are furnished with arsenals and stores beyond our most sanguine expectations, and foreign nations are waiting to crown our success by their alliances. There are instances of, I would say, an almost astonishing providence in our favor; our success has staggered our enemies, and almost given faith to infidels; so we may truly say it is not our own arm which has saved us.

The hand of Heaven appears to have led us on to be, perhaps, humble instruments and means in the great providential dispensation which is completing. We have fled from the political Sodom; let us not look back lest we perish and become a monument of infamy and derision to the world. For can we ever expect more unanimity and a better preparation for defense; more infatuation of counsel among our enemies, and more valor and zeal among ourselves? The same force and resistance which are sufficient to procure us our liberties will secure us a glorious independence and support us in the dignity of free imperial States. We can not suppose that our opposition has made a corrupt and dissipated nation more friendly to America, or created in them a greater respect for the rights of mankind. We can therefore expect a restoration and establishment of our privileges, and a compensation for the injuries we have received from their want of power, from their fears, and not from their virtues. The unanimity and valor which will effect an honorable peace can render a future contest for our liberties unnecessary. He who has strength to chain down the wolf is a madman if he let him loose without drawing his teeth and paring his nails.

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“My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government.”

- Thomas Jefferson

Lord God Almighty, we acknowledge that You are our great Provider and Sustainer. This financial situation is overwhelming for us, but from You comes all power to make wealth and to redeem us from our indebtedness. Deliver us from this crisis, Lord God. Comfort those in our nation who are hurting, and show them the unshakable foundation of Your Word. Reveal to us Your glory so that we will know You are God and from Your hand comes every good thing–including temporary things like the food we eat daily and eternal provision such as the salvation of our souls. Surely, Father, the person who trusts in You will never lack any good thing. Thank You for hearing my prayer. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

- Dr. Charles Stanley
140 days- Week 6: Turning the tide

Traditionally, in America, many, if not most Americans, have dreamed of having their own business. And, in America, some have been more willing to take that risk then others. Either way, please remember,  just the fact that you, as an American citizen, can wake up on any given day, and decide that you would like to start your own business, is an amazing freedom that our founders bestowed to us! 

We must always be mindful of the great blessings and freedoms we have in this country. And, if necessary, be willing to fight, even die, to defend those freedoms!

Our founders entrusted these freedoms to we, the people; and to show them that we are eternally grateful for their hard work, we “must” carry on the torch of freedom, and pass it onto our next generation.

God Bless The United States of America!

From July 4th to November 20th…

Please join Dr. Charles Stanley, and fellow Americans, in 140 days of prayer for our great country:

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Below is a table, linking to each verse, for all 20 weeks:

Unfortunately, it looks like The United States economy is starting to slip backward again. This doesn’t come as a surprise to those of us who have been opposed to most of the spending policies of The Obama Administration, and the current Democrat majority in Congress.

Certainly, over the last 10 years, both parties are to blame for the fiscal irresponsibility, and lack of prudence with tax-payer money;  however, the current spending policies, which appear to be mostly ideological, do not promote the growth needed to get the economy moving again. In fact, many of us would agree, that the current policies are making our situation much worse.

Please watch Bill O’Reilly on the state of the economy:
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In this previous post, there is a video of David Asman, interviewing three guests, which included Congressman Ron Paul; they are discussing a recent poll of 1000 American voters, who were asked, is President Obama a Socialist? 55% of those polled, answered yes…

Politically speaking, this is, of course, very good news for The Republican Party, with the upcoming midterm elections in November; however, to have a President, or anyone in our Federal Government that advocates such policies, is never a good thing. It is certainly one thing to be in a political science class, or on a college campus, discussing different political systems; and theorizing why certain systems may have succeeded or failed; it is quite a different story when people are elected to high office and attempt to put such policies in place; especially without an overwhelming consensus from the people who elected them to office!

And regardless of ones motivation to advocate such policies, Socialism has a proven record of failure, and makes no real sense, economically-speaking; it generally requires a top down, authoritarian type of government, which, inherently, makes it a very dangerous system to a free nation.

Certainly, most Americans are not opposed to some short-term, transitional, social programs, to help fellow citizens get back on their feet; but The American people also realize, this great country was built on hard work; and most people in society, one way or the other, can be a useful and productive member of society.

Most of The American people have an intrinsic desire to be productive, and believe in freedom, and our free-market system of commerce and enterprise. And, because of our history, most Americans realize, the free-markets are a great contributor to what has made our country free and prosperous since the days of our founding.

Since the very early days of The Obama Administration, many Americans have claimed that President Obama is a Socialist; or he at least advocates Socialist policies…

Now, after one and a half years of Obama’s presidency; some very questionable political appointees; and after a long string of redistributive, and general far-left policies, 55% of The American voters say that President Obama is, indeed, a Socialist.

Please watch David Asman’s interview with Congressman Ron Paul and guests:

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As with many Americans, I have been thinking about Arizona, our borders, our immigration laws, and how this all relates to our most treasured, and necessary, United States Constitution. 

Undoubtedly, for many years, under several administrations, and spanning both parties, there has been a failure to effectively secure our borders. Sadly, like many other things that are wrong in our country, failure to secure our borders is greatly due to political posturing; as opposed to doing what is morally, and judiciously, right for The American people. Most Americans would agree, our borders need to be secured, once and for all! And failure to have done so, after 911, is truly reprehensible! 

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In a time when people are simply attempting to survive job losses and economic challenges, I am reminded of how our country was founded and what turn of events transpired to bring about the greatest experiment in self- governance that has ever been conceived. To fully appreciate how far we have moved away from the original designs of our founding documents, we must first understand where it is that our country came from. In particular we should look at the personal aspirations of the brave souls who fought against all odds to not only come to this new land, but then to battle the tyranny of government from afar and overcome hardships that we dare not imagine.

The history of the United States is mired with many tragic events, wars, popular and unpopular political leaders and outspoken critics of government. Certainly there is no shortage of those types of folks today, however there is a key difference between the political leaders of history and those of today. The missing ingredient – in this writers eyes – is honor. Many, and dare I say most, of our political leaders lack honor. Not ’honor’ in the classical sense, but rather an honor that is so deep that it is espoused as a permanent and integral part of their essence. This honor is of the highest magnitude, it surpasses doing what is right simply because it is right and it holds a stronger bond than any familial blood line; no, this honor is about doing what is right because not doing it would grate infinitely harsh against the inner core of your being, such that you would rather suffer immeasurable and irreparable harm than fail at preserving it.

Too often our political leaders view holding office as a power grab, despite their assertion otherwise. It ends up being their golden parachute or fulfilling an internal desire to be famous. Whatever the reasons may be, it is seldom that we find true statesmen. Who do we have, or have we had in our midst in the last 20 years that would begin to measure up against the bar set so high by those such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Samuel Adams. Certainly they exist, but unfortunately they are very rare. The political climate of today instead reflects the poor quality of self-deserving politicos who would rather do what is expedient for the purposes at hand and forgo doing that which is honorable.

The interesting thing here is that it stems not from politicians, but rather the citizens of this once great country who vote them into office because their personal needs would be better served by a political type buying votes as opposed to one doing what is right and just – honorable. Of course we must not forget those who do not vote, as an abstained vote is tantamount to condoning the status quo or roughly the same as a vote against the trailing candidate. But then this isn’t a lesson on why one should vote, but rather why it is important that we maintain the utmost respect for an institution that transcends individual desires.

“Congress [in implementing the 16th Amendment] went beyond merely enacting an income tax law and repealed Article IV of the Bill of Rights, by empowering the tax collector to do the very things from which that article says we were to be secure. It opened up our homes, our papers and our effects to the prying eyes of government agents and set the stage for searches of our books and vaults and for inquiries into our private affairs whenever the tax men might decide, even though there might not be any justification beyond mere cynical suspicion.”

“The income tax is bad because it has robbed you and me of the guarantee of privacy and the respect for our property that were given to us in Article IV of the Bill of Rights. This invasion is absolute and complete as far as the amount of tax that can be assessed is concerned. Please remember that under the Sixteenth Amendment, Congress can take 100 percent of our income anytime it wants to. As a matter of fact, right now it is imposing a tax as high as 91 percent. This is downright confiscation and cannot be defended on any other grounds.”

“The income tax is bad because it was conceived in class hatred, is an instrument of vengeance and plays right into the hands of the communists. It employs the vicious communist principle of taking from each according to his accumulation of the fruits of his labor and giving to others according to their needs, regardless of whether those needs are the result of indolence or lack of pride, self-respect, personal dignity or other attributes of men.”

“The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government, are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace, negotiation, and foreign commerce; with which last the power of taxation will, for the most part, be connected. The powers reserved to the several States will extend to all the objects which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties, and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and prosperity of the State.”

- James Madison (Federalist Papers #45)

On June 12, 2010, Judge Andrew Napolitano launched his new show, Freedom Watch, on The Fox Business Network. On this show, I really appreciated this (below) discussion between The Judge, Congressman Ron Paul (Libertarian), and Sarah Palin (Conservative). I happen to really admire The Judge, Congressman Paul, and Sarah Palin, for their beliefs in our founding values, and our Constitution, as written, and understood, by our founders.

Due to the increasing size and scope of our Federal Government, and the increasing far-left agendas of The Obama Administration, there is no doubt, that even people who previously identified themselves as Conservatives, have increasingly moved further right, to a more Libertarian point of view. It is doubtful that our country could ever go back to a completely Libertarian state, as in the days of our founders, but it is great to see such a Constitutional awakening in our country, and a desire to move closer and closer to our founding values, and The Constitutional principles that made us such a great country, for so many years.

I have often said, “if a plant loses it’s roots,” then the plant could never survive. Conversely, if a country is too far removed from it’s foundation, then God only knows where it could lead. Sadly, the many problems that we are currently experiencing in The United States, is greatly due to the lack of prudence to our Constitution, by our Federal Government, over the last 100 or so years.

Please listen to this insightful and informative discussion:

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Since the very early days, following Barack Obama’s Inauguration, and their far-reaching, Big Government, Progressive agenda,  Conservative Americans on the right, have been at great odds with this administration, and the far-left Democrats which currently have the majorities in Congress.

Unfortunately, rather then things improving, it appears that things continue to increasingly get worse, as our national debt sky-rockets, unemployment stays high… and now, an ecological disaster in The Gulf of Mexico, which (containment wise) this administration does not appear to have a great command over.

While it is very understandable to see the right get angry with this far-left agenda, it now appears that the left’s own base is beginning to pile on as well… as they, unbelievably, do not think The Obama Administration is governing far enough to the left.

Politically, things do not look good for The Obama Administration.  As far as the state of The United States, sadly, things do not appear to be getting any better either. Most Americans, anxiously, appear to be looking forward to November and the mid-term elections, to have a peaceful revolution at the ballot box, and hopefully, restore a bit of sanity back into our country. Until then, anger appears to continue bubbling up on both sides of the political fence.

Please listen to Bill O’Reilly on this:

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