tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75062269023949953112024-02-20T17:56:37.337-06:00A Military Member...to support and defend the Constitution of the United States.greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-14804336767124067732013-11-16T16:27:00.000-06:002013-11-16T16:27:04.454-06:00Religious and Secular Warnings on Marriage<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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In 1995 the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve
Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints published, “<a href="http://www.lds.org/topics/family-proclamation" target="_blank">TheFamily: A Proclamation to the World</a>” affirming the central role of the family on earth as intended
by our Creator.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The proclamation
concludes with these words:</div>
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<span class="dominant">"We…</span>warn that the disintegration
of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the
calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="dominant">"We call upon</span> responsible
citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures
designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of
society."</div>
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Yesterday, the Heritage Foundation published an article
entitled, “<a href="http://blog.heritage.org/2013/11/15/double-decline-marriage-religiosity-matter/" target="_blank">A Double Decline of Marriage and Religiosity: Why Does It Matter</a>” providing
empirical details of many “calamities”, natural social consequences of broken
families, currently impacting individuals, communities and our nation as a
whole:</div>
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"Brad Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project, has
shown that family dissolution is linked to a further erosion of civil society…</div>
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<br /></div>
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"The impact of the downturns in family formation and
religious practice have real-world and long-term implications for the lives of
Americans—particularly the rising generation…</div>
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<br /></div>
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religion and family, it is critical for the public interest to bolster both—and
a starting point would be to support policies that promote marriage and
strengthen families."</div>
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See <a href="http://blog.heritage.org/2013/11/15/double-decline-marriage-religiosity-matter/" target="_blank">full article</a> for specific details.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Unfortunately, the government is not heeding the religious
proclamation of the LDS Church and similar warnings from other religious
institutions, and they are ignoring the mountain of social evidence that has
been building for decades showing the positive impact of traditional families and negative consequences of broken families.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their politically correct
policies are not strengthening the institution of marriage or families – quite the
opposite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The results speak for themselves.</div>
greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-6775753438184259372013-11-11T11:32:00.000-06:002013-11-11T11:32:28.078-06:00My Veterans Day Wish<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Over the years, countless people have thanked me for my
service to the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When this
happens, I always think, “I pray I can count on yours.”</div>
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<br /></div>
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Abraham Lincoln presciently said that no “transatlantic
giant” would ever cross the oceans and defeat us, but rather, “if [danger]
ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If
destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a
nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide.”</div>
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This death by suicide is happening right in front of our
eyes and the military cannot stop it – intervention must come by the voice of
the people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the service I pray I
can count on from the patriotic citizens of this country that I love.</div>
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Our liberties are steadily decreasing with the ever
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occurring amongst us: </div>
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"We're at war [ideologically] with the most dangerous enemy
that has ever faced mankind in his long climb from the swamp to the stars [i.e.
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so doing lose this way of freedom of ours, history will record with the
greatest astonishment that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">those who had the most to lose did the least
to prevent its happening</i></b>. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Well I
think it's time we ask ourselves if we still know the freedoms that were
intended for us by the Founding Fathers.</b><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">"</span></div>
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"If we lose freedom here, there is no place to escape to.
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still the newest and most unique idea in all the long history of man's relation
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My wish this Veterans Day wish is that all citizens who love
liberty, revere the constitution and appreciate the blood sacrificed freely by
those past and present to preserve it from foreign powers,
will rise to the occasion and cease not to raise their voices in its defense by
all means available until the socialist tide is turned and our constitutional
liberties are restored to their original standing.</div>
greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-20072046300655481772013-11-09T16:55:00.000-06:002013-11-09T16:55:55.037-06:00PC Brands Opposition “Haters” and “Bigots”<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Political correctness is a modern day method Satan uses to suppress
truth, establish his standards in society and silence any discussion of
alternate standards, i.e. God’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Kirk Cameron’s treatment by the media is a classic example
of the forces of political correctness in action.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Cameron, a self-described Christian, has publicly made his
views on homosexuality known, including views on same-sex marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His views conform to the teachings of traditional
Christianity but do not conform to the politically correct standards of
today's society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In a 2012 interview on CNN,
Piers Morgan asked him if he thought homosexuality was a sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, Cameron did not answer the
question directly; nonetheless his answer was doctrinally accurate: “I think
that it’s unnatural.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s detrimental
and ultimately destructive to so many of the foundations of civilization.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This is clearly an unpopular position with those who deny
that the scriptures contain divine truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
are a multitude of voices in our day who oppose traditional Christian morality
and uphold the social standards of political correctness, which “call evil good,
and good evil;… put darkness for light, and light for darkness; …put bitter for
sweet, and sweet for bitter” as described in the Old Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are “wise in their own eyes, and prudent
in their own sight”, seeking to be unmoored from God’s standards (<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/isa/5.20-21?lang=eng#19" target="_blank">Isaiah 5:20-21</a>).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Although Morgan later claimed to “respect Cameron’s
religious beliefs” he said he didn’t “respect his use of bigoted, inflammatory language
re homosexuality.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, right
of conscience is one thing, but voicing a belief, conviction or opinion
contrary to the standards of the politically correct makes one a bigot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ann Curry joined the politically correct effort to brand
as controversial traditional values that have existed and prevailed for millennia over the “new
normal”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Curry pushed a
notion while subsequently interviewing Cameron on the NBC Today Show that
voicing beliefs such as his promotes hate crime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Curry did not directly accusing Cameron of bigotry
when questioning him about the “firestorm” he set off in the Morgan interview,
but the premise behind her line of questioning was clear – Cameron’s views are
neither popular nor politically correct and shouldn’t be voiced:</div>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Many people are suggesting that this is hate speech. Are
you encouraging people to feel hate towards gay people?”</div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Do you feel any responsibility saying words like that, that
might encourage people to feel that it's okay to treat – mistreat gay people?” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Why do you say things like this that you know are going to
cause people to push back? Why do you even talk about it, then? Because this is
not the first time you've been asked about it. It's not the first time you've
made comments that have caused people a lot of alarm.”</div>
</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Additional efforts of the politically correct crowd to stifle
advocacy for traditional values are evident in the many media headlines and stories
characterizing Cameron’s stated beliefs as “anti-gay”, fallaciously implying
him to be “anti-person” instead of “anti-behavior”, which was clearly his stance
on the issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fallacy is that if Person
A hates homosexual behavior, and Person B engages in homosexual behavior, then
Person A hates Person B.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The deliberate mischaracterization
of Christians as anti-gay by virtue of their views on homosexuality is necessary to make Christians scared to admit, defend or advocate their beliefs for fear of
being branded a “hater” or a “bigot”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
is also necessary to justify indignation and “fear” on the part of those who
accept homosexuality.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The New Testament is clear that Jesus Christ loved all
sinners but hated sin - meaning he loves all gays, but hate’s their homosexual
behavior. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus Jesus, and Christians who
endeavor to follow His perfect example, are not anti-gay - they are
anti-homosexuality, in the same way they are anti-adultery, anti-fornication,
anti-pornography, anti-lying, anti-cheating, anti-stealing, anti-murdering, and
so forth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus never balked at calling
sinful behavior for what it was nor urging sinners to repent for the eternal
sake of their souls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, He
commanded His followers to “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations… teaching
them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you,” (<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/28.19-20?lang=eng#18" target="_blank">Matthew 28:19-20</a>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He expects His followers to not be silent or
neutral in matters of morality.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The methods of the politically correct in society will
persist. Christians must not bow to pressure but must stand firm in their beliefs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As <a href="http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/no-other-gods?lang=eng" target="_blank">Dallin H. Oaks recently taught</a>:</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Unlike other organizations that can change their policies and
even their doctrines, [the church] policies are determined by the truths God
has identified as unchangeable…man’s laws cannot make moral what God has
declared immoral…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“We remain under covenant to love God and keep His
commandments and to refrain from serving other gods and priorities—even those
becoming popular in our particular time and place.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“In this determination we may be misunderstood, and we may
incur accusations of bigotry, suffer discrimination, or have to withstand
invasions of our free exercise of religion. If so, I think we should remember
our first priority—to serve God" (<a href="http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/no-other-gods?lang=eng" target="_blank">General Conference 2013</a>).</div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
For those who believe sin exists, and pervasiveness of sin
in society brings upon society the attendant consequence of the judgments of God,
continual advocacy for adherence to God’s standard of morality over Satan’s is
the most vital service they can give to their country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The politically correct crowd wants to
silence their opposition because truth resonates.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.lds.org/general-conference/1986/10/little-children?lang=eng" target="_blank">Boyd K. Packer said of resonating truth</a>: “The study of the
doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior
will improve behavior” (<a href="http://www.lds.org/general-conference/1986/10/little-children?lang=eng" target="_blank">General Conference 1986</a>).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The prophet Alma likewise taught that “the <span class="highlight">preaching</span> of the <span class="highlight">word</span> had a
great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had
more powerful <span class="highlight">effect</span> upon the minds of the people
than the <span class="highlight">sword</span>” (<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/alma/31.5?lang=eng#4" target="_blank">Alma 31:5</a>).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The forces of Satan can be overcome in this world the same
way they were in heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Describing the
defeat of Satan in the War in Heaven, John described the secret weapon used in
the decisive victory: “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by
the word of their testimony” (<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/rev/12.7-11?lang=eng#6" target="_blank">Revelation 12:7-11</a>)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let true and humble followers of Christ not be silenced by
the politically correct despite any level of “push back”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Surrender to immorality and acceptance of a debauched society is ultimately a
surrender of liberty and prosperity. </div>
greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-2694051044885532652013-10-13T21:42:00.000-05:002013-10-13T21:42:47.111-05:00A People in Bondage: King Limhi's Proclamation<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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From <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/mosiah/7?lang=eng" target="_blank">Mosiah chapter 7</a>:</div>
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20 “And…it is because of our iniquities and abominations
that he has brought us into bondage."</div>
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25 “For if this people had not fallen into transgression
the Lord would not have suffered that this great evil should come upon
them."</div>
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29 “For behold, the Lord hath said: I will not succor my
people in the day of their transgression; but I will hedge up their ways that
they prosper not; and their doings shall be as a stumbling block before them.</div>
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30 “And again, he saith: If my people shall sow filthiness
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31 “And again he saith: If my people shall sow filthiness
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32 “And now, behold, the promise of the Lord is fulfilled,
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33 “But if ye will turn to the Lord with full purpose of
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See also <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/2-chr/7.14?lang=eng#13" target="_blank">2 Chronicles 7:14</a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span></div>
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<![endif]-->greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-69122831886406403832013-10-11T23:15:00.001-05:002013-11-09T15:39:53.236-06:00Servitude to the State<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span class="story"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Our founders enumerated powers in our
Constitution to ensure that the scope of government remained limited, thereby
preventing government from re-enslaving the people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For decades the government has used the “general
welfare” clause of the Constitution to justify expansion and increasing
involvement in or control over the lives of citizens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This has resulted in a corresponding
degradation of liberty and servitude to the state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To illustrate this, let’s examine the government’s
role in meeting the needs of the poor and frame the discussion with Aesop’s
fable, “<a href="http://www.aesopfables.com/cgi/aesop1.cgi?1&TheAntandtheGrasshopper&&antgrass2.ram" target="_blank">The Ant and the Grasshopper</a>”.</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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<span class="story"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In a field one summer's day a
Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart's
content.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An Ant passed by, bearing along
with great toil an ear of corn he was taking to the nest. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="story"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"Why not come and chat with
me," said the Grasshopper, "instead of toiling and moiling in that
way?"</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="story"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"I am helping to lay up food for
the winter," said the Ant, "and recommend you to do the same."</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="story"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">"Why bother about winter?"
said the Grasshopper; we have got plenty of food at present."<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the Ant went on its way and continued its
toil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the winter came the
Grasshopper had no food and found itself dying of hunger, while it saw the ants
distributing every day corn and grain from the stores they had collected in the
summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then the Grasshopper knew:</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="story"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It is best to prepare for the days of
necessity. </span></span></div>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This well-known fable highlights the importance of industry
and self-reliance, while also highlighting the folly of indolence and
procrastination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In another version of
this fable the ant refuses the starving grasshopper’s petition for food and
upbraids him for his wasted summer and unpreparedness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This variation leads some to ignore the
original moral of the fable and instead condemn selfishness and lack of
compassion on the part of those like the ant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Granting that the grasshopper was
lazy and the ant lacked charity, let’s consider which side our government comes
down on.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are two types of poor, the deserving and
undeserving.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Deserving poor are those
who are poor through no fault of their own, while the undeserving poor are able
bodied with adequate opportunity but choose not to work for their basic
necessities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The grasshopper in Aesop’s
fable is clearly intended to highlight the undeserving poor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our government’s welfare policies make no
attempt to distinguish between the two and therefore incentivize the indolence
of the grasshopper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Worse, government unjustly
makes the industrious ant the slave of the grasshopper.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If our government were cast in Aesop’s fable, upon
identifying the plight of the undeserving grasshopper, instead of using the
force of government to compel him to work and earn his own bread they would use
the force of government to take the fruits of the ant’s labor and redistribute
it to the grasshopper through welfare instruments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead of forcing self-reliance the
government chooses to force “charity” and fosters dependence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since there is no incentive for the
grasshopper to become self-reliant his annual plight will persist and the
government will continue to force the ant to support the grasshopper with his
labor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a twisted mind that can
claim justice in this scenario.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The individual himself should be the first line against
poverty, yet the government’s policies do not seek to foster self-reliance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The next line of defense should be the
family, yet the government’s policies do not seek to strengthen and support
this vital institution in society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Quite
the contrary, the government has for some time supported and aided those in
society bent to destroy the family and has sought itself to replace the family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Welfare distribution actually discourages
poor pregnant females from getting married.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The next line of defense should be religious based institutions and
organizations specifically established to relieve poverty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One author wrote that the “private charities of the
nineteenth century had been more successful and humane than the
twentieth-century welfare state – private charities had stressed what he called
affiliation, trying to help the poor by restoring broken family ties, whereas
contemporary social policy emphasized personal autonomy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Private charities had tried to bond with
those they cared for when they were truly on their own, whereas the welfare
state was bureaucratic and impersonal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Private charities tried to discern who really needed help and who merely
sought to live in indolence; the welfare state made no such distinction” (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Upstream-The-Ascendance-American-Conservatism/dp/1416522883" target="_blank">Regnery,2008</a>).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The government is impersonal and will never be able to distinguish
between the deserving and undeserving poor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Instead of assuming the role and responsibilities of charity, they
should establish policies that foster self-reliance and strengthen those
institutions of society best able to do so and to administer to the deserving poor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As
long as government stays in the welfare business, they will continue to
unjustly make the hard working members of society the slaves of the undeserving
poor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In expanding outside of the enumerated powers of the
Constitution, our government has slowly marched towards tyranny and despotism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our welfare system is but one example.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Always under the guise of authority, justice
and the general welfare of society, politicians have fostered a mindset and
culture of dependency on government.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
have passed laws that steadily eroded personal liberty and put government in
control.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are increasingly bold in despoiling
the fruits of our labors to support the growing aims of the state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sadly, too many of our citizens cannot see this
destruction in operation.</div>
greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-25287644672668846192013-10-06T18:39:00.000-05:002013-11-09T15:32:33.518-06:00The Collapse of Free Societies<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">John Quincy Adams, 6<sup>th</sup>
President of the United States, said this regarding the bible: “In what light
soever we regard it, whether with reference to revelation, to history, to
morality, or to literature, it is an inexhaustible mine of knowledge and
virtue.” I have the same sentiments about the <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm?lang=eng" target="_blank">Book of Mormon</a> and think
that even the reader who doesn’t believe as I do that the <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm?lang=eng" target="_blank">Book of Mormon</a> is of
divine origin, especially the reader who loves liberty, will find my references
to it below intriguing and thought provoking, if not illuminating.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm?lang=eng" target="_blank">Book of Mormon</a> details the rise
and fall of two ancient civilizations on the American continent, the <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/gs/nephites" target="_blank">Nephites</a>
and <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/gs/jaredites?lang=eng&letter=j" target="_blank">Jaredites</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It highlights in
particular the righteous and productive forces that enabled their growth and
prosperity as well as the evil and destructive forces that resulted in their downfall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Critical analysis of the accounts will reveal
obvious parallels that our nation is following, offer explanations for why
things have happened or are happening as they are and more alarmingly
foreshadow bleak and terrible days ahead if our people do not make the
necessary course corrections.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/gs/nephites" target="_blank">Nephite</a> civilization was delivered
from destruction and led to a land of promise, and after becoming a free
people, like the children of Israel, they began to serve other gods besides the
God of their fathers, “<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/1.16?lang=eng#15" target="_blank">walking in their own way</a>”, setting their bounds not
according to God’s will, but according to their own carnal desires. The
<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/gs/jaredites?lang=eng&letter=j" target="_blank">Jaredites</a> civilization followed a nearly identical path.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The prosperity and peace originally obtained
as a blessing from God through obedience to Him had become a stumbling block
and their hearts turned more and more to things of the world, to instant
gratification of the flesh rather than eternal reward and happiness. Thus
in turning from God they began to forfeit his blessings and mercy and reap the
demands of justice as prophets had warned over and over would happen: </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“But if they obey and serve him,
they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if they obey not, they shall perish by
the sword, and they shall die without knowledge.” (<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/job/36.11-12?lang=eng#10" target="_blank">Job 36:11-12</a>)</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“If ye be willing and obedient, ye
shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be
devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the lord hath spoken it.” (<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/isa/1.19-20?lang=eng#18" target="_blank">Isaiah1:19-20</a>)</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Wherefore, this land is consecrated
unto him whom he shall bring. And if it so be that they serve him…it
shall be a land of liberty unto them; wherefore, they shall never be brought
down into captivity; if so it shall be because of iniquity; for if iniquity
shall abound cursed shall be the land for their sakes, but unto the righteous
it shall be blessed forever.” (<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/1.7?lang=eng#6" target="_blank">2 Nephi 1:7</a>)</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">See also <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/lev/26?lang=eng" target="_blank">Leviticus 26</a>,
<a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/deut/28?lang=eng" target="_blank">Deuteronomy 28</a>, <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/1-sam/12.14-15?lang=eng#13" target="_blank">1 Samuel 12:14-15</a>, <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/7.24-27?lang=eng#23" target="_blank">Matthew 7:24-27</a>, <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/rom/2.2-11?lang=eng#1" target="_blank">Romans 2:2-11</a>, <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/alma/9.13?lang=eng#12" target="_blank">Alma9:13</a>, <a href="http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/ether/2.12?lang=eng#11" target="_blank">Ether 2:12</a>.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Eventually, the Nephites were
annihilated in war, but not before their society descended into decadence and
their free government collapsed. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The initial crack in the dam leading
to eventual destruction was individual wickedness and apostasy from true
principles of their religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A minority
condition at first, eventually it grew to the point that the vast majority of
citizens accepted or embraced the ever increasing iniquitous behavior in society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From the beginning, evil men worked to hasten
the elimination of virtue in society and set the conditions required for them
to achieve their satanic goal of gaining power and control over the people and
the fruits of their labors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To this end they
deliberately attacked faith in the existence of God, sought to silence any
public advocate of righteousness and virtue, and sought power and influence in
government by whatever means necessary including seduction of the people by
allowing them to share in their spoils. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The center of gravity in this political
struggle was belief in God. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In attacking
this faith, the enemies of liberty denied His existence or twisted the truth of
His nature. They taught that belief in God was foolish and man must not
believe in anything he cannot verify or witness with his own senses. There was
no proof of God’s existence, they claimed, nor was there a transcendent
standard of good and evil, right and wrong. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They re-framed the right to free exercise of
conscience to be only a right to free exercise of worship, and that in private,
outlawing any public intimation of religion due to the feigned offense it gave to
non-believers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They pretended that people
purporting to believe in a non-existent God did so in order to exercise control
and dominion over others through their churches and the morality that they
legislated. They denied faith; they denied the Holy Ghost; they denied
the Savior; they denied sin and convinced people it did not exist and there was
no reason to restrict it or seek forgiveness for it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Because the truth had a tendency to
resonate with people and encourage belief in God, which resulted in public
virtue, they sought to silence the voice of believers through a court system
infested with unrighteous lawyers and judges. Motivated not by truth and
justice, but by prestige in skill of winning arguments and associated monetary
gain, unrighteous lawyers sought high profile cases in which to demonstrate
their skill and cunning devices in court, to get rulings tantamount to good
being evil and evil being good, which would swell their fame and increase their
earnings. Without conscience they applied their art to make people cross
their words or contradict themselves, fabricating evidence to make the innocent
appear guilty, or the guilty go free. Unrighteous judges rendered
judgment not according to the laws and justice, but according to their own
whims or interests, inventing authority and setting the law at naught for
personal gain, fame and power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Evil men thereby
eliminated enemies and stole property in collusion with these judges under the
guise of the law and justice. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Conspiring men did whatever was
necessary to gain access or placement in government in order to turn it to
their uses in plundering more and more property and wealth from others. These means frequently included murder as was
the tradition of such men from the time of Cain to present.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even as their actions and designs became more
apparent, they enjoyed swelling popular support as policies of redistribution
of wealth gave promise to the indolent and covetous among them that they could
reap without sewing, get something for nothing, and have perpetual entitlement to
eat the bread of another man’s labor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In this environment of greed and
wickedness, the would-be tyrants corrupted the laws and government, despoiled the
industrious in society, criminalized opposition and ultimately brought upon the
nation the judgments of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people
suffered judgment in loss of liberty and subjection to an unrighteous ruling class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They suffered judgment in drought, famine and
wrecked economy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was no peace
among them within or without.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>War
continually afflicted them until ultimately the sword devoured them,
eliminating their wickedness from the face of the earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He who hath ears, let him hear; who
hath eyes, let him see.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Have the forces of political
correctness in our day silenced objection to vice and wickedness in our society?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Has the Christian virtue of tolerance been redefined
to mean “acceptance”, further minimizing opposition to the evil trends in our
society?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are basically good people
hamstrung by the fallacy that to discriminate between good and bad, a
requirement of choosing the right, is contrary to the teaching of Christ to “not
judge”, and therefore stand silent so as not to be condemned publicly for “discrimination”
and “intolerance”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we complacent in
our defense of liberty, and the public virtue required for its preservation?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I conclude with the following
warning and admonition from two inspired and righteous men. </span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“We are too “broad minded” to
challenge what we do not believe in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
are afraid of being thought intolerant – uncouth – ungentlemanly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have become lukewarm in our beliefs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And for that we perhaps merit the bitter
condemnation stated in the Book of Revelations 3:16: ‘So then because thou art
lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.’” (Ezra
Taft Benson) </span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Let us have the courage to defy the
consensus, the courage to stand for principle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Courage, not compromise brings the smile of God’s approval.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Courage becomes a living and an attractive
virtue when it is regarded not only as a willingness to die manfully, but as
the determination to live decently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A moral
coward is one who is afraid to do what he thinks is right because others will
disapprove or laugh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember that all
men have their fears, but those who face their fears with dignity have courage
as well.” (Thomas S. Monson)</span></div>
</blockquote>
greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-72229343893209113592013-09-21T21:29:00.000-05:002013-11-17T19:42:00.424-06:00Sarah Palin on Freedom's Fall<a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/article/359114/freedom-destroys-itself-sarah-palin">This</a> is why I like Sarah Palin - she's the only national figure correctly identifying that the cause of our problems, whether mass shootings, a falling economy, foreign entanglements, disappearing freedoms, etc. is our collective fall away from morality (<a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/article/359114/freedom-destroys-itself-sarah-palin">article link</a>).<br />
<br />
Sarah Palin observes that the characteristic response of our government is to ask, “What can we do to limit the freedom of the people” when instead they should ask, “What can we do to nurture and support a people capable of living in freedom?”<br />
<br />
She quotes John Adams who said, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” I will add that one will have a hard time finding a founding father who did not also echo the sentiment that collective national virtue is the only foundation upon which peace, safety and prosperity in our nation can endure under the constitution they established, or who did not predict all of the consequences we are seeing as a result of discarding that sure foundation.<br />
<br />
I’ve been listening closely for a long time to the voices on our national stage posit on the root causes of our several national challenges and advocate various cures, but Sarah Palin is the first I’ve heard identify a growing culture of immorality as the source of our nations woes and turning to God as the remedy. God, religion, right, wrong, good, evil, morality, immorality are all subjects and words branded “offensive” by the the standards of political correctness and are thus banned from the public lexicon, suppressing the real national dialog that needs to take place. Bravo to Sarah Palin for having the courage to speak truth in defiance of political correctness.<br />
<br />
As long as the good men and women who have a national platform succumb to fear of violating the sacrosanct commandments of the politically correct and avoid the topic of good and evil, seeking instead to find a secular, intellectual answers that will suffice while not bringing down wrath from those who feign offense at the hint of God, our nation will never get on the road to recovery. As the prophet Jeremiah unsuccessfully tried to teach the Jews just before their utter destruction by Babylon, “...Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord.” (Jeremiah 17:5)<br />
<br />
Many of our churches are teaching this, but the damnable suppressive consequence of our leaders’ acquiescence to political correctness hinders the truth from making its way to the public square. Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was one in 2009 who <a href="http://www.lds.org/general-conference/print/2009/10/moral-discipline?lang=eng">taught</a> church members the same truth Sarah Palin courageously raises on the national stage (<a href="http://www.lds.org/general-conference/print/2009/10/moral-discipline?lang=eng">link</a>): <br />
<blockquote>
“[They teach] that truth is relative and that everyone decides for himself or herself what is right. Concepts such as sin and wrong have been condemned as value judgments…</blockquote>
<blockquote>
“As a consequence, self-discipline has eroded and societies are left to try to maintain order and civility by compulsion. The lack of internal control by individuals breeds external control by governments…</blockquote>
<blockquote>
“Policemen and laws can never replace customs, traditions and moral values as a means for regulating human behavior. At best, the police and criminal justice system are the last desperate line of defense for a civilized society. Our increased reliance on laws to regulate behavior is a measure of how uncivilized we’ve become…</blockquote>
<blockquote>
“In the end, it is only an internal moral compass in each individual that can effectively deal with the root causes as well as the symptoms of societal decay. Societies will struggle in vain to establish the common good until sin is denounced as sin and moral discipline takes its place in the pantheon of civic virtues.”</blockquote>
Our god-fearing pilgrim ancestors believed this as did our patriotic founding fathers and the faith of their generations propelled the United States of America to the pinnacle of greatness of recorded history. Our country is sliding down the slopes from that pinnacle because our generations have ignored or not been taught one of the foremost truths taught in scripture, that “If they obey and serve [God], they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures. But if they obey not, they shall perish by the sword, and they shall die without knowledge.” (Job 36:11-12)<br />
<br />
Our nation was founded upon principles of righteousness and our turn away from God is bringing about His judgments and will continue to do so until we return to Him, something that won’t happen as long as political correctness controls the national discourse.<br />
<br />
We need more Sarah Palin’s in public life and in private life to stir the nation up in remembrance of God and urge everyone to reject wrong and embrace right.greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-29658065782446834662012-01-22T16:09:00.006-06:002012-01-22T16:42:53.997-06:00Risk to Religious Liberty RecognizedLast week <a href="http://amilitarymember.blogspot.com/2012/01/highlight-introduction-to-religious.html">I highlighted in a blog </a>that defense of religious liberty is currently a priority of the LDS church.<br /><br />Two headlines this past week relating to threats to religious liberty are worthy of your investigation:<br /><br /><strong>Religious Liberty: The Latest Target of Obamacare</strong> by Grace-Marie Turner <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/288756/religious-liberty-latest-target-obamacare-grace-marie-turner">at National Review Online</a>:<br /><br /><br /><blockquote>"The Obama administration announced today it will wait for a year (coincidentally until after the elections) before requiring religious organizations to comply with an Obamacare mandate that they provide coverage for contraception —including controversial drugs that can abort an early pregnancy". (<a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/288756/religious-liberty-latest-target-obamacare-grace-marie-turner">full article</a>)<br /><br /></blockquote><br /><strong>Bishop Burton Joins Leaders to Promote Religious Freedom and Marriage</strong> by the LDS Public Affairs <a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/bishop-burton-promotes-religious-freedom-and-marriage?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LDSNewsRoomTop15+%28RSS%3A+LDS+Newsroom%29">on their website</a>:<br /><br /><br /><blockquote>"Last Thursday, Presiding Bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, H. David Burton, joined 38 prominent leaders of different faiths in signing a letter advocating traditional marriage and religious freedom". (<a href="http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/marriage-and-family/marriage/promotion-and-defense-of-marriage/upload/Marriage-and-Religious-Freedom-Letter-Jan-12-2012-4.pdf">read letter</a>)</blockquote><br />Are so many of our religious institutions imagining a looming threat to free practice of religion, or is religious liberty truly put at risk by recent legislation and political agendas? You be the judge.greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-37946337252498614532012-01-08T22:33:00.004-06:002012-01-08T23:33:24.790-06:00Pray for the USA<blockquote><em>2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will <strong>heal their land</strong>.</em></blockquote><br />While driving, I usually listen to talk radio on AM and driving my boys around to their weekend activities on Saturday was no exception to start with. However, predominant themes of national debt, constitutional sidestepping, and general political dishonesty brought about an unusual despair and frustration. I racked my brain but couldn’t see a way out of our national mess and ultimately began scanning the FM dial for some music to regain my sanity.<br /><br />I’m a few years behind on my country music, so when I rolled across a weekly country countdown, I decided to catch up. Featured on the program was a song titled “<a href="http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/leebrice/lovelikecrazy.html">Love Like Crazy</a>” by <a href="Lee Brice: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Brice">Lee Brice</a>, both unfamiliar to me. A line in the song’s chorus seized my attention:<br /><br /><blockquote><strong>“Never let your prayin' knees get lazy”.</strong></blockquote>These lyrics made me wonder whether or not Americans are engaged sufficiently in prayer and supplication for the Almighty to intervene and help us fix our problems. I had to admit that although I personally pray often, I do not often (enough) pray for my country, its leaders and its citizens. I wondered if across the board, god-fearing patriots are not pouring their hearts out sufficiently to bring down the blessings of heaven so needed by our nation.<br /><br />I recalled how the miracle that was the creation of our constitution only occurred after our founding fathers sought divine intervention to overcome <em>irreconcilable</em> interests. Benjamin Franklin urged them to so humbly petition thusly:<br /><br /><blockquote>“Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth- that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the sacred writings, that "except the Lord build the House they labour in vain that build it." I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our little partial local interests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall become a reproach and bye word down to future ages. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter from this unfortunate instance, despair of establishing Governments be Human Wisdom and leave it to chance, war and conquest.<br /><br />“I therefore beg leave to move, that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the Clergy of the City be requested to officiate in that service.”</blockquote>History attests that shortly afterwards, the founders’ “irreconcilable” interests were reconciled, dramatically highlighting the limitations of men who’s “prayin’ knees [are] lazy” and the contrasting power of prayer.<br /><br />I suspect that what our country needs is more prayer.<br /><br />Matthew 7: 7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-91033869578706990612012-01-05T20:11:00.006-06:002012-01-22T15:45:42.526-06:00Highlight: An Introduction to Religious Freedom“A free society committed to religious freedom and freedom of conscience means that all its members are vigilant in protecting the freedoms of each other. Maintaining this most basic of human freedoms and the harmony it brings is imperative for us all.” So concludes a recent <a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/introduction-religious-freedom">article</a> published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS). The article titled “An Introduction to Religious Freedom” is a “broad introduction for a forthcoming series of articles on religious freedom”. I look forward to reading the series.<br><br />Judging by the related links accompanying this article in the LDS Newsroom, educational emphasis on religious freedom is a current priority of the LDS church:<ul><li>“<a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/apostle-says-religious-freedom-is-being-threatened">Apostle Says Religious Freedom is Being Threatened</a>” – 13 Oct 2009<br /><br /><li>"<a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/religious-values-in-the-public-square">Religious Values in the Public Square</a>" - 15 Dec 2010<br /><br /><li>“<a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/apostle-emphasizes-the-importance-of-religious-freedom-to-society">Apostle Emphasizes the Importance of Religious Freedom to Society</a>” – 4 Feb 2011<br /><br /><li>“<a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/beliefs-statements-religious-freedom">Selected Beliefs and Statements on Religious Freedom of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints</a>” – 4 Feb 2011<br /><br /><li>“<a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/case-religious-freedom">The Case of Religious Freedom</a>” – 25 May 2011<br /><br /><li>“<a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/religion-and-freedom">Religion and Freedom</a>” – 1 Jul 2011<br /><br /><li>“<a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/elder-quentin-l-cook-speech-morality-religious-freedom">Elder Quinton L. Cook Delivers Speech on morality and Religious Freedom</a>” – 16 Dec 2011</li></ul>“<a href="http://newsroom.lds.org/article/introduction-religious-freedom">An Introduction to Religious Freedom</a>” first establishes that freedom of religion “is not simply the freedom to worship or to believe the way one chooses...neither is it just for religious people”, but rather it “is the human right to think, act upon and express what one deeply believes, according to the dictates of his or her moral conscience”. The article further states that religious freedom is “the preeminent freedom in the U.S. Bill of Rights... the first among other essential liberties ...often referred to as the 'first freedom'. It is characterized this way because it enables and protects other human freedoms, like freedom of speech. Indeed, the culture of liberty and peaceful democracy in the United States in large part emerged from its firm respect for religious freedom".<br><br />After a brief discussion on “Religious freedom and society” and “Mormons and religious freedom”, the article gets to heart of why this topic deserves the recent emphasis given it by the LDS church:<blockquote>“Challenges to religious freedom are emerging from many sources. Emerging advocacy for gay rights threatens to abridge religious freedom in a number of ways. Changes in health care threaten the rights of those who hold certain moral convictions about human life. These and other developments are producing conflict and beginning to impose on religious organizations and people of conscience. They are threatening, for instance, to restrict how religious organizations can manage their employment and their property. They are bringing about the coercion of religiously-affiliated universities, schools and social-service entities. They are also resulting in reprimands to individuals who act in line with their principles — from health practitioners and other professionals to parents. In these and in many other circumstances, we see how religious freedom and freedom of conscience are being subtly but steadily eroded. And of equal concern, the legal provisions emerging to safeguard these freedoms are often shallow — protecting these liberties only in the narrowest sense. In many aspects of public life, religious freedom and freedom of conscience are being drawn into conflicts that may suppress them".</blockquote>The article's conclusion leads off: “Religious freedom, or “freedom of conscience,” has long been the bedrock of democracy. Long buried and taken for granted, it is now an elevated concern. There is need for Americans ... to become reacquainted with this freedom and recommitted to it".<br><br />Amen.<br><br />Don’t assume someone else will preserve your “first freedom”. It will surely die the death of a thousand cuts if patriots fail to stay on top of current issues, identify where and how liberty is under assault, and unite together in its defense.greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-85597617098509838912010-09-06T19:48:00.005-05:002013-11-09T15:47:34.441-06:00History of Political CorrectnessVideo Summary: The working class having failed to bring about revolution under classical Marxism, a Marxist think tank sets out to develop a new class capable of doing so. The goal: complete destruction of western culture, believed to have thwarted the original revolution. They develop “Political Correctness” as the mechanism to curb the free speech messages of anyone in opposition to their goals.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="323" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/EjaBpVzOohs" width="400"></iframe>greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-2523341599747141462010-04-12T07:28:00.004-05:002010-04-12T07:41:05.096-05:00Romneycare: What's Happening in MA?For those of you who don’t follow <a href="http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html">Rush Limbaugh</a>, you missed <a href="http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_040910/content/01125106.guest.html">this insightful critique of Obamacare</a>, informed by the fruits of Romneycare:<br /><blockquote>“Massachusetts and the health care plan they have is the role model, it is a miniature laboratory, if you will, for Obamacare. Even Democrats have described it that way. Insurance rates are going through the roof. The governor has imposed price controls. The insurance companies who asked for their rates to be raised are nonprofit companies, nonprofit. Today Massachusetts, tomorrow the rest of the nation. "This week it became impossible in Massachusetts for small businesses and individuals to buy health-care coverage after Governor Deval Patrick imposed price controls on premiums. Read on, because under Obamacare this kind of political showdown will soon be coming to an insurance market near you. The Massachusetts small-group market that serves about 800,000 residents shut down after Mr. Patrick kicked off his re-election campaign by presumptively rejecting about 90% of the premium increases the state's insurers had asked regulators to approve." They have to go get approval to raise their rates. Deval Patrick said hell, no, and started tarring and feathering the companies as part of his reelection campaign, same thing Obama has done is demonize these people. These are nonprofit companies. <br /><br />"Health costs have run off the rails since former GOP Governor Mitt Romney and Beacon Hill passed universal coverage in 2006, and Mr. Patrick now claims price controls are the sensible response to this ostensibly industry greed," exactly what we were discussing yesterday. There is no greed in industry. These are nonprofits. They're trying to make enough money here to stay in operation in Massachusetts. The real greed can be found inside most Congresses and legislatures in these states. That's where the greed is. Not in the free market. "Yet all of the major Massachusetts insurers are nonprofits. Three of largest four -- Blue Cross Blue Shield, Tufts Health Plan and Fallon Community Health -- posted operating losses in 2009. In an emergency suit heard in Boston superior court yesterday, they argued that the arbitrary rate cap will result in another $100 million in collective losses this year and make it impossible to pay the anticipated cost of claims." And this gets even better. Stick with me. "It may even threaten the near-term solvency of some companies. So until the matter is resolved, the insurers have simply stopped selling new policies." <br /><br />“They're not selling anything. That's their response. Now, let's extrapolate. In Massachusetts, the government can't take over for the insurance companies or doesn't want to. In the case of Obama, when this happens, as we predicted, as a lot of people predicted, when this happens in America's private sector, nationwide, that's when Obama will move in, if this happens, and get his single payer. When the insurance companies can no longer stay in business even if they're nonprofits, they're just gonna quit. That's the objective -- mark my words -- of the Obamacare problem. "A court decision is expected by Monday, but state officials have demanded that the insurers -- under the threat of fines and other regulatory punishments -- resume offering quotes by today and to revert to year-old base premiums." So the State of Massachusetts, "You're not selling policies? Fine. You better start quoting for people that want to buy, and you're going to quote last year's prices." And they talk about greed in the private sector? <br /><br />"Let that one sink in: Mr. Patrick has made the health insurance business so painful the government actually has to order private companies to sell their products (albeit at sub-market costs). One irony is that Mr. Patrick's own Attorney General and his insurance regulators have concluded -- to their apparent surprise -- that the reason Massachusetts premiums are the highest in the nation is the underlying cost of health care, not the supposed industry abuses that Mr. Patrick and his political mentor President Obama like to cite." And they're actually acting surprised. They're stunned to learn that these costs going up are related to the price of health care. They say they're surprised. See, their template, their narrative has been the insurance companies are evil, they've been demonizing, they're raising prices without any regard for the consumer, raising prices without any regard for true market forces, they're just greedy. And now the attorney general and Deval Patrick all of a sudden learn, no, no, no, the cost of health care is just skyrocketing. And you'll hear why, this gets even better in just a moment. <br /><br />"On top of that, like ObamaCare, integral to the Massachusetts overhaul are mandates that require insurers to cover anyone who applies regardless of health status or pre-existing conditions and to charge everyone about the same rates. This allows people to wait until they're about to incur major medical expenses," such as getting sick or right after they have the car crash, before they buy insurance. So they buy the insurance only when they need to, and then after the catastrophe has passed, they are selling, they're getting out, they're canceling the policies. "This week Blue Cross Blue Shield reported a big uptick in short-term customers who ran up costs more than four times the average, only to drop the coverage within three months. Last July, Charlie Baker detailed similar gaming at Harvard Pilgrim, the health plan he used to run. Between April 2008 and March 2009, about 40% of its new enrollees stayed with it for fewer than five months and on average incurred costs about 600% higher than the company would have otherwise expected." <br /><br />“Well, bingo, this is perfectly allowed under Obamacare. The only difference here is if you don't buy the insurance -- there's a mandate that you buy it -- if you don't, you get fined. We know now the IRS will take the value of your fine, the amount of it, from your so-called IRS refund, your income tax refund. And then when you need the insurance, doctor tells you you got a bad problem, illness, or the minute you have the wreck call the insurance company and they have to insure you just like they have to in Massachusetts, at controlled prices. Well, this is what's causing prices to skyrocket in Massachusetts. This is why these insurance companies have asked the commission for rate increases from anywhere from eight to 32% and Deval Patrick said no way as part of his opening salvo in his reelection campaign. So the insurance companies, "We can't do business like this." They're nonprofits don't forget, so they stop selling policies. And the governor has ordered them to start quoting prices at last year's premiums. Well, folks, they can't stay in business this way. It's not possible. This is a 100% microcosm. This is just one of the many aspects that is rife throughout Obamacare.”<br /></blockquote>Read full transcript <a href="http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_040910/content/01125106.guest.html">here</a>.greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-65805162714919076362010-03-08T17:49:00.006-06:002013-11-17T19:40:12.564-06:00The Health Care Bill Must Die NowMust Read! An excellent blog by Lori Ziganto entitled <a href="http://www.redstate.com/snarkandboobs/2010/03/08/government-health-care-is-not-about-health-care-its-about-government/">Government Health Care Is Not About Health Care; It's About Government</a>, makes a strong case on why freedom loving Americans should completely reject any form of nationalized health care. <br />
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Patriots! Arm yourself with information and don't let this enslaving legislation pass. It is a dagger pointed at the heart of our liberty. I couldn't agree more with Lori's conclusion: <br />
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"The health care bill must die now. We can’t chance that anyone will have the fortitude or the ability to repeal it once it is in place. It will be too late. If we don’t, the once Shining City on the Hill will, tragically, lose its luster when it becomes the “Government approved Shine” only. We must ensure that The Shining City on the Hill will remain full of luster and not be irrevocably tarnished by a Government willing to suppress the rights of its people."</blockquote>
greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-54567975308787920582010-02-27T07:38:00.004-06:002010-02-27T08:15:15.859-06:00Say "NO" to Government Run Health Care<blockquote><em>"I will not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits -- either now or in the future." (Remarks by President Obama to a Joint Session of Congress, September 9, 2009)</em></blockquote><br />Key points from Rep. Ryan (WI) on the current health care bill before the House of Representatives:<br /><br /><li>Our current entitlements are already suffocating state budgets and adding trillions in obligations we have no means to pay for.<br /><br /><li>The bill does not control costs; the bill does not control deficits.<br /><br /><li>The bill is full of gimmicks, smoke, and mirrors making it look cheaper than it is.<br /><br /><li>The true 10 year cost of the bill is $2.3 trillion.<br /><br /><li>The full 10 year cost of this bill has a $460 billion deficit; $1.4 trillion the next 10 years.<br /><br /><li>THE BILL PUTS GOVERNMENT IN CONTROL OF HEALTH CARE!<br /><br /><object width="400" height="323"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zPxMZ1WdINs&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zPxMZ1WdINs&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="400" height="323"></embed></object><blockquote></blockquote>greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-54768840751521939392010-01-08T20:58:00.002-06:002010-01-08T21:05:32.256-06:00Make Mine FreedomI'm posting this video on my blog for those of you who haven't already had the opportunity to view it. <br /><br />It pretty much speaks for itself. Rarely does government offer us anything that doesn't come at the expense of liberty. Our citizens are easily seduced by the allure of more for less or something for nothing and are not as discriminating as they should be of the legislation and programs coming out of Washington. <br /><br />Bottom line: When we allow government to grow and touch more aspects of our lives, our liberties shrink and we literally open the door more widely for the advance of absolute tyranny.<br /><br /><object width="400" height="323"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mVh75ylAUXY&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mVh75ylAUXY&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="400" height="323"></embed></object>greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-49835426730682121932009-12-30T08:15:00.004-06:002010-01-04T06:10:48.281-06:00Freedom Requires Moral CitizensI know of people who contend that the road to America’s re-adherence to constitutional principles of government isn’t through the ballot box, but through the collapse of the Federal Government. I contend that the make-up of the Federal Government and their current style of governance isn’t the problem; it’s only a symptom of the problem. America’s collective proclivity to shun traditional religious influence is the problem, plain and simple. Until this problem is fixed, the demise of our Federal Government will only result in the birth of another one equally or more corrupt. <br /><br />James A. Garfield, 20th President of the United States, offered the following which has the ring of truth to it:<br /><br /><blockquote>“… the people are responsible for the character of their Congress [and Executive Branch].<br /><br />“If that body be ignorant, reckless, and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness, and corruption. If it be intelligent, brave, and pure, it is because the people demand these high qualities to represent them in the national legislature... If the next centennial does not find us a great nation... it will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the morality of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces.”</blockquote>I would expand this to say that America’s greatness is suffering not only because Americans failed to aid in controlling the political forces, i.e. were excessively apathetic, but more so because selfishness, greed, and immorality have spread widely across the Fruited Plain. America is walking away from God.<br /><br />Our experience in America today validates John Adams' assertion that, <blockquote>“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”</blockquote>And James Madison's, <blockquote>“Is there no virtue among us? If there be not, we are in a wretched situation. No theoretical checks, no form of government, can render us secure. To suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or happiness without virtue in the people, is a chimerical idea.”</blockquote>Our citizens have not always rejected religion. Cleon Skousen's book 5000 year leap discusses Alexis de Tocqueville's observations of our young nation in 1831. <br /><blockquote>"The philosophers of the eighteenth century explained in a very simple manner the gradual decay of religious faith. Religious zeal, said they, must necessarily fail the more generally liberty is established and knowledge diffused. Unfortunately, the facts by no means accord with their theory. There are certain populations in Europe whose unbelief is only equaled by their ignorance and debasement; while in America, one of the freest and most enlightened nations in the world, the people fulfill with fervor all the outward duties of religion." (Pg 80).</blockquote>Skousen explained Tocqueville's observation that the American clergy, while wholly separated from the government "collectively had a great influence on the morals and customs of public life. This indirectly reflected itself in the formulation of laws and ultimately in fixing the moral and political climate of the American commonwealth."<br /><blockquote>"Not until I went to the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever cease to be good, America will cease to be great." (Pg 84).</blockquote>Unfortunately, America has been spiraling into the ignorant, debased condition Tocqueville described in the populations of unbelievers in Europe. A major factor in America’s collective rejection of virtue has been a concerted secularist campaign to re-label good bad, and bad good. In a Heritage Foundation speech, “How Modern Liberals Think”, Evan Sayet described perfectly the growing cult of "indiscriminateness". The strategy has been to make morally inclined people believe that, <blockquote>"...indiscriminateness is a moral imperative, because its opposite is the evil of having discriminated… In order to eliminate [discrimination] the modern liberal has opted to become utterly indiscriminate." </blockquote>I.e. we cannot tolerate any morality or religion in our public life because it results in someone saying certain public behaviors are WRONG and those who uphold such behaviors will be discriminated against. The ironic aspect of the cult of indiscriminateness is that advocates of morality end up being highly discriminated against for their beliefs. <br /><br />We can see the success of this campaign around us. Sin is denounced increasingly less often and year after year the accepted standards of behavior in America sink lower. The declining civility in our society and the corresponding decreases in liberty are the fruit that this seed of indiscriminateness has brought forth. <br /><br />In an online forum, Gary Jeffryes insightfully posted, <blockquote>“If we choose pleasure over morality, morals decline. When morals decline, and the number of people participating in immoral activities increases, the number of people willing to hold politicians and educators responsible for their actions declines, because people who are immoral are disinclined to hold other people to a moral behavior, though they may gossip about it. They may gripe about it, but when it comes down to the crunch, the will do nothing about it because that requires righteous judgment and the unrighteous are less willing to condemn their own kind, but eager to condemn the righteous who's behavior is a shining light.<br /><br />“So the immoral masses keep reelecting the same immoral politicians and things continue to decline as one group feeds the corruption of the other.” </blockquote>The solution to re-secure our lost liberties is in more preaching, more faith based testimony, more exhortation to virtue and righteous living. Our nation must collectively return to our Creator, begin to obey His laws, and love our neighbors as ourselves. On these laws “hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matt 22:40). <br /><br />If the majority again begins to live the Golden Rule, they will not accept legislators or presidents whose governance results in harm to others, when said governance is exposed for what it is (ballot box choices). They will pull their own weight and not attempt to live off the backs of their neighbors. They will eschew government entitlements and those who would deal them out. They won’t need excessive regulation to do the right things. They will eliminate the poor around them through voluntary acts of service and charity. <br /><br />The solution in heaven is the same solution that we must pursue: <br /><br />Revelations Chapter 12: <blockquote>"7 And there was a war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. … 11 And <strong>they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony</strong>”.</blockquote>greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-22639224820445269982009-12-18T19:17:00.003-06:002009-12-18T19:22:54.093-06:00Thanks For Your ServiceI witnessed another instance of Americans honoring our troops the day before yesterday. I was on my way home from a business trip on a plane with many Army Privates, traveling home in uniform for their holiday break from Basic Training. The airlines had just closed the cabin doors and a flight attendant began making announcements, including the variety of lunch boxes and beverages that would be for sale shortly after take-off. She then announced that there were many uniformed personnel traveling home for the holidays and that an anonymous passenger had purchased a lunch box for any of them who wanted one and that the airline was providing complimentary beverages to them as a token of appreciation for their service. This event prompts me to re-post a previous blog.<br /><br />Quite often, fellow citizens from all over the country who don’t know me thank me for my service after discovering I serve in the military. Candidly, this embarrasses me. I don’t serve for honor or recognition or expect any thanks for what I do, and I admit that I don’t handle compliments well either. Nonetheless, the tremendous outpouring of support and appreciation directed towards service members by grateful compatriots is deeply touching and I dedicate this post to highlight a few personal examples and reciprocate a most heartfelt thanks to all who go out of their way to extend these sentiments.<br /><br />The first time a perfect stranger ever thanked me for my service was on September 14, 2001. I had been on active duty for just over six years. My family was on vacation in California and September 11 still dominated our thoughts. President Bush had declared a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance and at noontime, Disneyland ceased all activity to observe a moment of silence. I didn’t know exactly what the implications of the attack meant for the military, but I knew there would be some. Evidently, I was not the only one; later that day, a mother and daughter thanked me sincerely for my service.<br /><br />This experience is now common. Most of my military brethren report a similar trend. However, the surge of support has not just been limited to expressions of gratitude.<br /><br />Sometime during my first week or two in Iraq, a couple of my Soldiers came into the shop, each carrying a US Postal Service Flat Rate Box (O-FRB1). I marveled that their families were so quick to send them care packages. It turned out that the packages were from one of the many, many organizations sending care packages to troops. Over the course of my tour in Iraq I saw hundreds and hundreds of these care packages distributed. I never had to buy toiletries by virtue of the abundance available from care packages. I can’t think of anything we went without. These packages contained everything imaginable: candy, chocolate, Twinkies, Oreos, chips, dips, cookies, crackers, summer sausages, snacks, knives, scarves, gloves, personal hygiene items, games, books, Christmas cards, Christmas trees, thank you letters…you name it, they sent it!<br /><br />I regret that I didn’t write down all of the organizations, churches, schools, businesses, and individuals from which I saw a package or letter flow through. The list would be very long if I had. I would like to be able to thank each one by name. There were various Any-Soldier and Adopt-a-Soldier type organizations. Many church groups, community organizations, and schools also contributed. I read several books sent over by knife maker A.G. Russell. His boxes also contained pocket-sized copies of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution along with an assortment of products (not cheap) from his own business. A box arrived once that was full of handmade scarves. I will always cherish the one made by Marilyn A. Borros of Lakewood, Ohio that I drew from the box.<br /><br />Finally, let me highlight the U.S.O. Besides sending care packages and entertainers to Iraq, they organized one of the most touching experiences of my life at the Dallas Fort Worth Airport. After deplaning, we walked through a long gauntlet of cheering airport workers and passengers on our way to customs. Departing customs towards the buses that would take us to another terminal, we walked through an even longer, more densely packed gauntlet of boy scouts, cub scouts, girl scouts, brownies, athletic teams, veterans, and many other locals. Applause thundered, cheers and thank-yous rang out, cameras flashed, flags waved, hands clapped our backs and shoulders, hands reached out to shake ours, gifts were pushed at us, personal cell phones were offered to make calls home, welcome back and thank-you banners were everywhere. It was all I could do to maintain my composure, and I lost it as soon as I was on the bus. I still choke up whenever I think of it. A young Soldier exclaimed as he walked onto the bus behind me, “I feel like a rock-star! This makes it all worthwhile.”<br /><br />You citizens who extend your support to the troops have done more to support the war effort than you probably realize. Some people wonder why Soldiers continue to re-enlist despite long and multiple deployments – I don’t.<br /><br />So to all who reach out and support us service members in your various ways, please accept my deepest gratitude and know that you’re efforts are not unnoticed and make a huge difference.<br /><br />Merry Christmas.greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-42310137642473719622009-12-13T09:45:00.008-06:002009-12-13T13:52:19.212-06:00Christmas is My Favorite Time of YearCue one of my favorite Christmas songs sung by Kenny Rogers:<br /><br /><blockquote>(Lyrics): <br /><em>How wise the Wise Men must have been<br />To find the Child in Bethlehem.<br />He lives again and draws us near,<br />Christmas time is here.<br /><br />A tail of love that never dies,<br />The laughter in the children's eyes,<br />The child in me is always there,<br />Christmas is my favorite time of year.<br /><br />The mist of wonder lies under my tree,<br />The gift of memories is waiting for me.<br /><br />The day will come and soon depart,<br />The spirit stays to hear my heart<br />With love for people everywhere,<br />Christmas is my favorite time of the year.<br /><br />Christmas is my favorite time of the year.</em></blockquote>Despite the unfortunate commercialization of Christmas, this time of year more than any other brings a greater degree of “peace on earth, good will towards men.” Christmas celebration results in more smiles, more public greetings, more acts of charity, and more worship. Christmas music, including the song quoted above reverently sung by Kenny Rogers, helps to bring about this increased spirit of love and its attendant fruits. A challenge in preserving liberty is getting more people to carry this spirit of love in their hearts throughout the year. Love is the foundation of all virtue and the public morality upon which our system of government rests. <br /><br />Cleon Skousen treats this concept masterfully in his book “The 5000 Year Leap”. He first establishes that our Founding Fathers believed that “the only reliable basis for sound government and just human relations is Natural Law.” (pg 37.) <br /><br />Natural Law according to the Roman Emperor Cicero is nothing more than “the Creator’s order of things.” (pg 39.) Skousen demonstrates that Cicero’s philosophy is in harmony with the Christian teaching that “all the law and the prophets” hang on the first and great commandment to love God, and the second greatest commandments to “love thy neighbor as thyself.” (<a href="http://scriptures.lds.org/en/search?search=matt+22%3A34-40">Matt 22:34-40</a>)<br /><br />Cicero was conscious that love was a “mighty social bond.” He said that, “…virtues originate in our natural inclination to love our fellow-men, and this is the foundation of justice.” (pg. 43.) <br /><br /><blockquote>“As one and the same nature holds together and supports the universe, all of whose parts are in harmony with one another, so men are united in Nature; but by reason of their depravity they quarrel, not realizing that they are of one blood and subject to one and the same protecting power. If this fact were understood, surely man would live the life of the gods!” (pg 46.)</blockquote>After establishing what the philosophy of Natural Law is, Skousen gives evidence that the Founding Fathers “embraced the obvious necessity of building a highly moral and virtuous society.” (pg 46.) Public virtue in eighteenth century terms was a “willingness of the individual to sacrifice his private interest for the good of the community”, i.e. love and living the Golden Rule. He offers many quotes that show the Founders “universally acknowledged that a corrupt and selfish people could never make the principles of republicanism operate successfully.” (pg 50.) Two examples follow:<br /><br /><blockquote>James Madison: “Is there no virtue among us? If there be not, we are in a wretched situation. No theoretical checks, no form of government, can render us secure. To suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or happiness without virtue in the people, is a chimerical idea.” (pg 54.)<br /><br />John Adams: “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” (pg 56.)</blockquote>During this Christmas season, consider the increase in kindness around you, which as a corollary means an increased suppression of selfishness. Consider the public merit of this increased “goodwill towards men” and whether it results from the secular/commercial or religious aspect of the holiday. Consider whether or not our Constitution and liberty will be better off if efforts to remove Christ from Christmas, and religion (morality) from public life are successful. Finally, consider how well you individually contribute to or detract from keeping the spirit of Christmas alive throughout the year.<br /><em></em>greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-90274921651042869672009-12-02T06:19:00.005-06:002009-12-02T06:28:53.271-06:00America's Drift Towards Socialism“America was built on the principle of faith in God, self reliance, the profit motive, individual action and voluntary charity. It was built by those who believed that the surest helping hand at was at the end of their own sleeves. These forefathers of ours shared one thing in common, an unshakeable faith in God and a faith in themselves. There are indications that America is moving away from the philosophy that made her the most prosperous nation in the world.” – Ezra Taft Benson<br /><br /><object width="400" height="323"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/B0BpLlnvmME&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/B0BpLlnvmME&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="400" height="323"></embed></object>greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-38613805114063504842009-11-22T09:00:00.002-06:002009-11-22T09:02:59.438-06:00Health Care - Promoting the General WelfareFrom the Center For Medicine in the Public Interest (<a href="http://www.cmpi.org/">CMPI</a>). “The Center for Medicine in the Public Interest is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research and educational organization that seeks to advance the discussion and development of patient-centered health care.” (<a href="http://www.cmpi.org/">CMPI Website</a>)<br><br /><object width="400" height="323"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hfLXjsvmjZo&border=1&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hfLXjsvmjZo&border=1&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="400" height="323"></embed></object><br><br /><br />Our founders framed our government and intended it to be a limited government, recognizing as George Washington cautioned that government is “force” and “like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." The video above aptly illustrates the dangers of governmental involvement in free society. Unfortunately, many politicians point to the general welfare clause of the Constitution as justification for expanding government into increasingly more areas of our lives, the latest attempt being a national health care system. <br /><blockquote>"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, <b>promote the general Welfare</b>, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." (<a href="http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_transcript.html">read here</a>)</blockquote>In 1792 while arguing against a bill sponsored by general welfare government expansionists, James Madison provided the historical context of the general welfare clause. A Founding Father himself, his authoritative remarks refute any notion that the general welfare clause was intended as a “catch all” authority for government to do anything it deems as good for the population in general.<br><br /><blockquote>"There are consequences, sir, still more extensive, which, as they follow dearly from the doctrine combated [government expansion to promote the general welfare], must either be admitted, or the doctrine must be given up. If Congress can employ money indefinitely to the general welfare, and are the sole and supreme judges of the general welfare, they may take the care of religion into their Own hands; they may a point teachers in every state, county, and parish, and pay them out of their public treasury; they may take into their own hands the education of children, establishing in like manner schools throughout the Union; they may assume the provision for the poor; they may undertake the regulation of all roads other than post-roads; in short, every thing, from the highest object of state legislation down to the most minute object of police, would be thrown under the power of Congress; for every object I have mentioned would admit of the application of money, and might be called, if Congress pleased, provisions for the general welfare.<br><br />"The language held in various discussions of this house [House of Representatives] is a proof that the doctrine in question was never entertained by this body [Congress]. Arguments, wherever the subject would permit, have constantly been drawn from the peculiar nature of this government, as <b>limited to certain enumerated powers, instead of extending, like other governments, to all cases not particularly excepted</b>." (<a href="http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2133653/posts">read more here</a>)</blockquote>Citizens, whenever government presents a governmental solution to problem sets in our society, please consider the realities presented in the Health Care Hoops video when deciding whether or not to support it.greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-61114946613900861212009-10-12T00:46:00.004-05:002013-11-17T19:46:52.143-06:00Rejecting the Right“We would not accept the yoke of Christ; so now we must tremble at the yoke of Caesar.” -Bishop Fulton J. Sheen.<br />
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A premise of this blog is that our constitutional liberties can only be preserved on the foundation of a moral citizenry. As Patrick Henry put it, “No free government, or the blessings of liberty, can be preserved to any people but by a firm adherence to justice, moderation, temperance, frugality, and virtue; and by a frequent recurrence to fundamental principles”. Accordingly, I view philosophies and ideologies contrary to moral discipline, and those who espouse them, as threats to and enemies of the Constitution. <br />
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I want to highlight two speeches, one religious and one secular, which tied the degradation of our society to an effort to eliminate discrimination between right and wrong. I highly recommend everyone find time to watch both speeches. You can view, listen, or read the first speech entitled “Morale Discipline” by Elder D. Todd Christofferson in its entirety (15 min) <a href="http://lds.org/conference/sessions/display/0,5239,23-1-1117,00.html">here</a>. You can view the second speech entitled “How Modern Liberals Think” by Evan Sayet in its entirety (48 min) <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaE98w1KZ-c">here</a>. <br />
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Elder Christofferson defined moral discipline as “self-discipline based on moral standards”. He posits that, “In the end, it is only an internal moral compass in each individual that can effectively deal with the root causes as well as the symptoms of societal decay. Societies will struggle in vain to establish the common good until sin is denounced as sin and moral discipline takes its place in the pantheon of civic virtues”.<br />
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Mr. Sayet’s speech describes some of the political and secular circumstances that exist in today’s society that result in just the opposite. He details a modern philosophy that brands any government, society, or even individual who denounces sin as bigoted. This philosophy, he says, attempts to eliminate discrimination between good and bad, right and wrong, or behaviors that lead to success versus behaviors that lead to failure in society.<br />
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Quotes from the speeches follow below (emphasis mine). The first quote from the Wall Street journal wasn’t directly quoted in either speech, but was included as a footnote to Elder Christofferson’s speech. <br />
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<strong>Wall Street Journal on Societal Decadence</strong>:<br />
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“Sin isn’t something that many people, including most churches, have spent much time talking about or worrying about through the years of the [sexual] revolution. But we will say this for sin: it at least offered a frame of reference for personal behavior. When the frame was dismantled, guilt wasn’t the only thing that fell away; we also lost the guidewire of personal responsibility. . . . <br />
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“The United States has a drug problem and a high-school-sex problem and a welfare problem and an AIDS problem and a rape problem. <u>None of this will go away until more people in positions of responsibility are willing to come forward and explain, in frankly moral terms, that some of the things that people do nowadays are wrong</u>” (“The Joy of What?” Wall Street Journal, Dec. 12, 1991, A14).”</blockquote>
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<strong>Elder Christofferson on Societal Decadence</strong>:<br />
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“The societies in which many of us live have for more than a generation failed to foster moral discipline. They have taught that truth is relative and that everyone decides for himself or herself what is right. <u>Concepts such as sin and wrong have been condemned as “value judgments</u>.” As the Lord describes it, “Every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own god”(D&C 1:16).<br />
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“As a consequence, <u>self-discipline has eroded and societies are left to try to maintain order and civility by compulsion</u>. The lack of internal control by individuals breeds external control by governments. One columnist observed that “gentlemanly behavior [for example, once] protected women from coarse behavior. Today, we expect sexual harassment laws to restrain coarse behavior. . . . <br />
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“Policemen and laws can never replace customs, traditions and moral values as a means for regulating human behavior. At best, the police and criminal justice system are the last desperate line of defense for a civilized society. Our increased reliance on laws to regulate behavior is <u>a measure of how uncivilized we’ve become</u>.” <br />
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“In most of the world, we have been experiencing an extended and devastating economic recession. It was brought on by multiple causes, but one of the major causes was widespread dishonest and unethical conduct, particularly in the U.S. housing and financial markets. Reactions have focused on enacting more and stronger regulation. Perhaps that may dissuade some from unprincipled conduct, but others will simply get more creative in their circumvention.3 There could never be enough rules so finely crafted as to anticipate and cover every situation, and even if there were, enforcement would be impossibly expensive and burdensome. <u>This approach leads to diminished freedom for everyone</u>. In the memorable phrase of Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, “We would not accept the yoke of Christ; so now we must tremble at the yoke of Caesar.”<br />
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“In the end, it is only an internal moral compass in each individual that can effectively deal with the root causes as well as the symptoms of societal decay. <u>Societies will struggle in vain to establish the common good until sin is denounced as sin and moral discipline takes its place in the pantheon of civic virtues</u>”</blockquote>
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<strong>Elder Christofferson on Intelligent Use of Agency</strong>:<br />
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“…[I] have heard a few parents state that they don’t want to impose the gospel on their children but want them to make up their own minds about what they will believe and follow. They think that in this way they are allowing children to exercise their agency. What they forget is that <u>the intelligent use of agency requires knowledge of the truth</u>, of things as they really are (see D&C 93:24). Without that, young people can hardly be expected to understand and evaluate the alternatives that come before them. Parents should consider how the adversary approaches their children. He and his followers are not promoting objectivity but are vigorous, multimedia advocates of sin and selfishness.<br />
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“Seeking to be neutral about the gospel is, in reality, to reject the existence of God and His authority. We must, rather, acknowledge Him and His omniscience if we want our children to see life’s choices clearly and be able to think for themselves. They should not have to learn by sad experience that “wickedness never was happiness”.</blockquote>
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<strong>Evan Sayet on Modern Liberalism</strong>:<br />
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<blockquote>
“[Modern Liberalism] is diametrically opposed to that which is good, right or successful”.<br />
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“[Modern Liberalism] sides with evil over good, wrong over right, and the behaviors that lead to failure rather than the ones that lead to success”.<br />
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“The modern liberal looks back on [the history of] human civilization and knows only one thing for sure, that none of the ideas that mankind has come up with, none of the religions, none of the philosophies, none of the ideologies, none of the forms of government – none have succeeded in creating a world that is devoid of war, poverty, crime, and injustice. So <u>they are convinced that since all of these ideas of mankind have proved to be wrong, the real cause of war, poverty, crime, and injustice must be found, can only be found, in the attempt to be right</u>. <br />
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“If no one ever thought they were right, what would we disagree about? If we didn’t disagree, surely we wouldn’t fight. If we didn’t fight, of course we wouldn’t go to war. Without war there would be no poverty, without poverty there would be no crime, without crime there would be no injustice. It’s a utopian vision, and <u>all that’s required to usher in this Utopia, is the rejection of all fact, reason, evidence, logic, truth, morality, and decency</u>.”<br />
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“<u>The best way to eliminate rational though [or] the attempt to be right, is to work always to prove that right isn’t right, and to prove that wrong isn’t wrong</u>.”<br />
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“[Modern Liberalism’s] one criterion for truth, beauty, honesty, etc, etc, is does it tear down what is good and elevate what is evil. Does it tear down what is right and elevate what is wrong. Does it tear down the behaviors that lead to success and elevate the ones that lead to failure so there is nothing left to believe in.”</blockquote>
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<strong>Sayet on a Cult of Indiscriminateness</strong>:<br />
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“The way the elite do this is by teaching our children, starting with the very young, that <u>rational and moral thought is an act of bigotry</u>. That no matter how sincerely you may seek to gather the facts, no matter how earnestly you may look at the evidence, no matter how disciplined you may try to be in your reasoning, your conclusion is going to be so tainted by your personal bigotries, by your upbringing, by your religion, by the color of your skin, by the nation of your [7th] great grandfather’s birth, that no matter what your conclusion is, its useless, it is nothing other than a <u>reflection of your bigotries</u>; and therefore the only way to eliminate bigotry, is to eliminate rational thought.”<br />
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“[The rising generation is] raised to believe that <u>indiscriminateness is a moral imperative, because it’s opposite is the evil of having discriminated</u>… In order to eliminate indiscriminateness the modern liberal has opted to become utterly indiscriminate. <u>The problem is, of course, that the ability to discriminate, to thoughtfully choose the better of the available options, is the essence of rational thought</u> [or as Elder Christofferson put it, ‘the intelligent use of agency’].” </blockquote>
greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-61690902463732377242009-10-03T08:10:00.010-05:002009-10-03T08:55:40.164-05:00Socialism: The Core of the Health Care Debate II<blockquote>“…no true American can be a socialist or a communist or support programs leading in that direction.” -- Ezra Taft Benson, <u><a href="http://www.latterdayconservative.com/articles/ezra-taft-benson/the-american-heritage-of-freedom">American Heritage of Freedom</a></u></blockquote><br />In my recent blog, "<a href="http://amilitarymember.blogspot.com/2009/09/socialism-core-of-health-care-debate.html">Socialism: The Core of the Health Care Debate</a>", I discussed how the unconstitutional principle of re-distribution of wealth is the selling point of a nationalized health care system, naively accepted by some well meaning individuals and embraced by the greedy. I also mentioned that many politicians champion health care reform to increase their political power by making the citizenry increasingly more reliant on government solutions and increasingly less reliant on themselves. I read an <a href="http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=33797">article</a> today by Roger Hedgcock with a title I may well have used for my blog, "<a href="http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=33797">Health Reform is Spelled F-O-R-C-E</a>". The article reminded me of additional reasons to eschew national health care.<br /> <br />If America socializes our health care, public costs will drive health care decisions, not individual choices or desires.<br /> <br />The government will eventually determine when “end of life” medical care is cost prohibitive, or wasteful and pointless. (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-dQfb8WQvo">See video</a> where President Obama implies that individuals are incapable of making good “end of life” decisions; that government must save them from evil medical practitioners who will milk them dry by loading their elderly parents up with needless tests.) <br /><br />Health care costs will cause Federal regulation to expand into a broader range of activities since nearly everything affects health in some way or another. For example, it is conceivable that the Federal Governement will try to regulate the likes of McDonalds out of business for nutritional reasons. It is conceivable that they will force doctors to perform abortions and euthanasia on demand. <br /><br />Roger Hedgecock <a href="http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=33797">writes</a>: <blockquote> “When you cut through the different bills working their way through Congress, cut through all the speeches, all the charges and counter charges raging in the debate on health insurance "Reform"---at the bottom line is governmental force. A shift of power and money and choice from the citizen, taxpayer, and patient to Government.…</blockquote><blockquote>…The same mentality that led President Clinton to blurt out that taxes were good because "we know better how to spend your money than you do" is evident today in the arrogant attitude that only this behemoth increase in government power can save us from our inability to provide health care to ourselves and our loved ones.”</blockquote>Beware of this Pandora's Box, America!greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-89163301891257712009-09-20T07:59:00.004-05:002009-09-21T10:22:50.775-05:00An Educated and Moral Citizenry Needed to Preserve Liberty<a href="http://dailyreporter.com/files/2009/07/mall-072309.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 500px; height: 330px;" src="http://dailyreporter.com/files/2009/07/mall-072309.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />I first saw this picture on the Drudge Report. It shows what the Washington Mall looked like after the crowds attending President Obama’s inauguration departed. (What happened to the Woodsy the Owl campaign to “help keep America looking good” anyway?) Dumbfounded, I was saddened to see this evidence that increasingly more of our citizens do not live by the <a href="http://scriptures.lds.org/matt/7/12#12">Golden Rule</a>, expecting others to serve them and clean up their messes. Am I making too much out of this? Does this not really indicate anything about the basic values held by those capital litterbugs? I'll let you be the judge. <br /><br />I use this introduction to tee up some of my favorite quotes from wise men who expounded on the links between public morality, education, and the preservation of liberty: <br /><blockquote>“No people will tamely surrender their Liberties, nor can any be easily subdued, when knowledge is diffused and Virtue is preserved. On the Contrary, when People are universally ignorant, and debauched in their Manners, they will sink under their own weight without the Aid of foreign Invaders.” – <b>Samuel Adams</b> in a letter to James Warren, November 4, 1775<br /><br />Bad men cannot make good citizens. It is when a people forget God that tyrants forge their chains. A vitiated state of morals, a corrupted public conscience, is incompatible with freedom. No free government, or the blessings of liberty, can be preserved to any people but by a firm adherence to justice, moderation, temperance, frugality, and virtue; and by a frequent recurrence to fundamental principles. – <b>Patrick Henry</b><br /><br />“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and citizens. The mere politician, equally with the pious man, ought to respect and to cherish them. A volume could not trace all their connections with private and public felicity. Let it simply be asked: Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths which are the instruments of investigation in courts of justice ? And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle. <br /><br />“It is substantially true that virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government. The rule, indeed, extends with more or less force to every species of free government. Who that is a sincere friend to it can look with indifference upon attempts to shake the foundation of the fabric? <br /><br />“Promote then, as an object of primary importance, institutions for the general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion should be enlightened.” – <b>George Washington</b> in his farewell address.<br /><br />“Too many Americans have lost sight of the truth that God is our source of freedom—the Lawgiver—and that personal righteousness is the most important essential to preserving our freedom. So, I say with all the energy of my soul that unless we as citizens of this nation forsake our sins, political and otherwise, and return to the fundamental principles of Christianity and of constitutional government, we will lose our political liberties, our free institutions, and will stand in jeopardy before God.” – <b><a href="http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=3d7f615b01a6b010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1">Ezra Taft Benson</a></b>, October 1979<br /> <br />"We are involved in an intense battle. It is a battle between right and wrong, between truth and error, between the design of the Almighty on the one hand and that of Lucifer on the other. For that reason, we desperately need moral men and women who stand on principle, to be involved in the political process. Otherwise, we abdicate power to those whose designs are almost entirely selfish." – <b>Gordon B. Hinckley</b> in "Stand a little Taller", pg. 15, July 2001 </blockquote>greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-38742318529714202212009-09-13T07:48:00.004-05:002009-09-13T08:14:03.247-05:00The Immutable Law of the Harvest Dooms Social ProgramsBrian Mecham of <a href="http://www.latterdayconservative.com/">Latter-Day Conservatives.Com </a>brought a wonderful speech to my attention. In 1966, Elder Howard W. Hunter brilliantly exposed many fallacies of socialist theory through the light of the Law of the Harvest. Liberty was under assault in 1966 and still is today. I highly recommend that all defenders of liberty read <a href="http://www.latterdayconservative.com/articles/howard-w-hunter/the-law-of-the-harvest">"Law of the Harvest: As a Man Sows, So Shall He Reap"</a>. The speech is full of truths to inject into our modern day debates on the proper role of government.<br> <br />I’ve chosen just a few choice quotes to leave on this blog. The full speech is available <a href="http://www.latterdayconservative.com/articles/howard-w-hunter/the-law-of-the-harvest">HERE</a>. <blockquote><br />“… there appears to me to be a trend to shift responsibility for life and its processes from the individual to the state. In this shift there is a basic violation of the Law of the Harvest, or the law of justice. The attitude of “something for nothing” is encouraged. The government is often looked to as the source of wealth. There is the feeling that the government should step in and take care of one’s needs, one’s emergencies, and one’s future.<br><br />“…as my friend…became a slave to his own ignorance and bad habits by refusing to accept the responsibility for his own education and moral growth, so, also, can an entire people be imperceptibly transferred from individuals, families, and communities to the Federal Government.”<br><br />“If you deprive a man of his right to fail in the righteous use of his property, you also deprive him of his right to succeed. If you remove from a man his right to “go to hell,” you likewise remove his free agency to go to heaven. Satan’s entire philosphy is based on a “something for nothing” philosophy: salvation without effort – a free gift…”<br><br />“In a very real sense, the true Law of the Harvest was restored – the law of justice, the law of mercy, the law of love. It was restored in a free country under the influence of a God-inspired Constitution which created a climate of freedom, opportunity and prosperity. The basic virtues of thrift, self-reliance, independence, enterprise, diligence, integrity, morality, faith in God and in His Son, Jesus Christ, were the principles upon which this, the greatest nation in the world, has been built. We must not sell this priceless, divine heritage which was largely paid for by the blood of patriots and prophets for a mess of pottage, for a counterfeit, a false doctrine parading under the cloak of love and compassion, of humanitarianism, even of Christianity.”<br><br />“What can you do here and now? First, resolve to live the Law of the Harvest and realize that this will involve a price, and with some that price will be very, very heavy. Then go to work, resisting temptation, overcoming bad habits, and developing the good habits of an upright character, …<br><br />“Like the light set on a hill, like the leaven of a loaf, you will influence for good our entire country and help preserve this great Republic and its inspired Constitution and its great climate of freedom.”</blockquote>greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7506226902394995311.post-1517698332397446602009-09-08T00:20:00.004-05:002009-09-08T02:15:47.560-05:00TIM HAWKINS: The Government CanThanks to my friend Paul Trujillo for bringing this video to my attention. Tim Hawkins, comedian, political satirist, highlights wonderfully what our constitutional form of government ISN’T supposed to be, but what our present day government IS becoming. <br> <br /><object width="400" height="323"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LO2eh6f5Go0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LO2eh6f5Go0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="400" height="323"></embed></object> <br><br />Think about it patriots. If it is so, it's because we allow it to be.greg.hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08328176445227944491noreply@blogger.com0