Parable: THE ANT AND THE GRASSHOPPER

I generally try to refrain from forwarding emails which have been forwarded to me.  However, this ‘parable’ hits home.  Please see my know at the end.

THE ANT AND THE GRASSHOPPER
This one is a little different... . Two Different Versions.... .......... .....  Two Different Morals

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OLD VERSION
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.

The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away..

Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed.
The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.

MORAL OF THE STORY: Be responsible for yourself!

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MODERN VERSION
The ant works hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.

The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving.

CBS, NBC , PBS, CNN, and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.

America is stunned by the sharp contrast.

How can this be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?

Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everybody cries when they sing, 'It's Not Easy Being Green.'

ACORN stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house where the news stations film the group singing, “We shall overcome.” Then Rev. Jeremiah Wright has the group kneel down to pray to God for the grasshopper's  sake.  

President Obama condemns the ant and blames President Bush, President Reagan, Christopher Columbus, and the Pope for the grasshopper's plight.

Nancy Pelosi & Harry Reid exclaim in an interview with Larry King that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an immediate tax hike on theant to make him pay his fair share.
Finally, the EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Anti-Grasshopper Act retroactive to the beginning of the summer.

The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government Green Czar and given to the grasshopper.

The story ends as we see the grasshopper and his free-loading friends finishing up the last bits of the ant’s food while the government house he is in, which, as you recall, just happens to be the ant's old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn't maintain it.

The ant has disappeared in the snow, never to be seen again.

The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize the ramshackle, once prosperous and once peaceful, neighborhood.
The entire Nation collapses bringing the rest of the free world with it.

MORAL OF THE STORY: Be careful how you vote in 2010.

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I have seen this played out in my own extended family and it grieves me that some of my own ‘kinfolk’ play the role of grasshopper.  As family we have tried to be the ant, going on to even help, yet, they continue to play the grasshopper role, milking the system for all it is worth.

I believe it was John Wesley that once spoke to believers in Jesus Christ about money:  “Make as much as you can. Save as much as you can.  Give as much as you can.”

This life is not about earning.  It is not about getting.  Life is about living, by giving and helping as we are directed by God, not compelled by the Government, to give to those who will not work.

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BE

Quote: Right to Bear Arms

"A government that does not trust it's law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms is itself unworthy of trust."
-- James Madison
(1751-1836), Father of the Constitution for the USA, 4th US President
Source: Federalist Papers
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/James.Madison.Quote.B15E

"The maintenance of the right to bear arms is a most essential one to every free people and should not be whittled down by technical constructions."
-- State vs. Kerner
Source: 181 N.C. 574, 107 S.E. 222, at 224 (1921)
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/State.vs..Kerner.Quote.CA0B

"To prohibit a citizen from wearing or carrying a war arm ... is an unwarranted restriction upon the constitutional right to keep and bear arms. If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of constitutional privilege."
-- Wilson v. State
Source: 33 Ark. 557, at 560, 34Am. Rep. 52, at 54 (1878)
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Wilson.v..State.Quote.CA00

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BE

Health Care Reform: Marriage Penalty

It is no surprise that the leaders of our government are opposed to the Judeo-Christian heritage we have enjoyed for nearly two hundred years in our government.  Yet you would not expect legislative attacks against families.  Yet, this is part of what is hidden in the 2000+ page 'health' care plan in the senate.

Marriage Penalty Hidden in Health Care Reform, an article from Citizen Link, clearly indicates that Congress intends to penalize couples who marry, in a significant way.  For example:

For instance, in the House version, an unmarried couple each making $30,000 a year would pay $1,320 combined each year for private health insurance.  If that couple chose to marry, their premium would jump to $12,000 a year, a difference of $10,680.

Refusing to prohibit abortion funding, end of life care management (euthanazia), and now penalizing couples what want to life according to God's standards.  Clearly this legislation is not about reform, but about control and opposing what is Right and Just.

If you haven't, contact your legislator, specifically your senator, and let them know that voting for this 'health care reform' is an act of treason against the people of the United States of America.
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BE

Psalm 50

A Psalm of Asaph.

The Mighty One, God the LORD,
speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shines forth.
Our God comes;
he does not keep silence;
before him is a devouring fire,
around him a mighty tempest.

He calls to the heavens above and to the earth,
that he may judge his people:

"Gather to me my faithful ones,
who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!"

The heavens declare his righteousness,
for God himself is judge!
Selah

"Hear, O my people, and I will speak;
O Israel, I will testify against you.
I am God, your God.
Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you;
your burnt offerings are continually before me.
I will not accept a bull from your house or goats from your folds.
For every beast of the forest is mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.
I know all the birds of the hills,
and all that moves in the field is mine.

"If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
for the world and its fullness are mine.
Do I eat the flesh of bulls or
drink the blood of goats?
Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and perform your vows to the Most High,
and call upon me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you,
and you shall glorify me."

But to the wicked God says:

"What right have you to recite my statutes
or take my covenant on your lips?
For you hate discipline,
and you cast my words behind you.
If you see a thief,
you are pleased with him,
and you keep company with adulterers.

"You give your mouth free rein for evil,
and your tongue frames deceit.
You sit and speak against your brother;
you slander your own mother's son.
These things you have done,
and I have been silent;
you thought that I was one like yourself.
But now I rebuke you
and lay the charge before you.

"Mark this, then,
you who forget God,
lest I tear you apart,
and there be none to deliver!
The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me;
to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!"

(Psa 50:1-23 ESV)

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I was reminded this morning during my time with the Lord, that he is the one who orders the days and seasons.  I was reminded that He is not silent.  I was reminded that I must offer thanks and order my life rightly.  And regardless of what happens, ultimately, He, the Lord my God, will deliver me.

BE

Quote: Constitutional Rights

"The right of a citizen to bear arms, in lawful defense of himself or the State, is absolute. He does not derive it from the State government. It is one of the "high powers" delegated directly to the citizen, and `is excepted out of the general powers of government.' A law cannot be passed to infringe upon or impair it, because it is above the law, and independent of the lawmaking power."
-- Cockrum v. State
Source: 24 Tex. 394, at 401-402 (1859)
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Cockrum.v..State.Quote.CA0E

"The claim and exercise of a Constitutional right cannot be converted into a crime."
-- Miller v. U.S.
Source: 230 F 2d 486, 489.
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Miller.v..U.S..Quote.CA12

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BE

Quote: The Righteous vs. Wicked Rulers

"It is when a people forget God that tyrants forge their chains."

— Patrick Henry

When the righteous triumph, there is great glory, but when the wicked rise, people hide themselves.  (Pro 28:12 ESV)

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BE

Quote: Government, Control and Banking

"I am one of those who do not believe that a national debt is a national blessing, but rather a curse to a republic; inasmuch as it is calculated to raise around the administration a moneyed aristocracy dangerous to the liberties of the country."
-- Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) 7th US President
Source: in a letter to T. H. Colman, 26 April 1824
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Andrew.Jackson.Quote.5038

"Governments do not govern, but merely control the machinery of government, being themselves controlled by the hidden hand."
-- Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881) Prime Minister of England, British statesman, novelist
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Benjamin.Disraeli.Quote.504D

"And I sincerely believe, with you, that banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies; and that the principle of spending money to be paid by posterity, under the name of funding, is but swindling futurity on a large scale."
-- Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), US Founding Father, drafted the Declaration of Independence, 3rd US President
Source: letter to John Taylor in 1816
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Thomas.Jefferson.Quote.3778

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BE

Quote: The Listener is Responsible?

"It is frequently said that speech that is intentionally provocative and  therefore invites physical retaliation can be punished or suppressed. Yet, plainly no such general proposition can be sustained. Quite the contrary…. The provocative nature of the communication does not make it any the less expression. Indeed, the whole theory of free expression contemplates that expression will in many circumstances be provocative and arouse hostility. The audience, just as the speaker, has an obligation to maintain physical restraint."
-- Thomas I. Emerson
Source: The System of Freedom of Expression, 1970
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Thomas.Emerson.Quote.3FD0

I found this quote very interesting. Just think, the hearer, the audience, ... the listener is responsible for his own actions. What a novel idea!

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BE

Quotes: Socialism

"There’s no longer any left or right. There’s the system and the enemies of the system."
-- Eduard Limonov
founder of the National Bolshevik Party in Russia
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Eduard.Limonov.Quote.E418

"We are sure living in a peculiar time. You get more for not working than you will for working, and more for not raising a hog than for raising it."
-- Will Rogers
(1879-1935) American humorist
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Will.Rogers.Quote.250E

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BE

Quotes: Enumerated Powers, What are they?

Enumerated Powers refer to the Federal Government having only the powers numbered/listed in the constitution.  This is made clear in the Tenth Amendment.

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."
Quote by:  U.S. Constitution, Tenth Amendment

The importance of this is that the Federal Government is be a government of LIMITED POWERS.

Below are quotes referring to these enumerated powers.  Please note of the persons who made the statements.

"This government is acknowledged by all, to be one of enumerated powers."
-- Justice John Marshall,(1755-1835) US Supreme Court Chief Justice
Source: McCulloch v. Maryland
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/John.Marshall.Quote.A3D9

"If any state in the Union will declare that it prefers separation... to a continuance in union... I have no hesitation in saying, 'let us separate.' "
-- Thomas Jefferson, (1743-1826), US Founding Father, drafted the Declaration of Independence, 3rd US President
Source: letter to W. Crawford, June 20, 1816
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Thomas.Jefferson.Quote.2551

"We start with first principles. The Constitution
creates a Federal Government of enumerated powers."
-- William H. Rehnquist, Chief Justice, U. S. Supreme Court
Source: United States v. Lopez
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/William.Rehnquist.Quote.ECFF

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I find Mr. Jefferson’s statement of particular interest.

BE

Children are a Blessing, not a Curse

Albert Mohler alerts us to the a troubling mindset of many of the cultural elite.  Muslims are becoming the majority in Europe by simple biological math, Russia is paying mothers to have more babies, and this article Mr. Mohler sites is ecstatic about falling fertility rates.

Children are a blessing, not a curse.

Psa 127:1-5 ESV
(1)  A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches o ver the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.
(2)  It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.
(3) Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.
(4)  Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth.
(5)  Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

Please read Mr. Mohler’s comments on the article in the current issue of “The Economist”.

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BE

Another Response from Senator McCaskill

Please see my initial correspondence to the senator, and her initial response, and then her most recent reply below:

November 9, 2009

Dear Mr. Emmerling,

Thank you for contacting me regarding Medicare physician payment cuts. I appreciate your comments and welcome the opportunity to respond.

As you may know, in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, Congress introduced the sustainable growth rate (SGR) which is the mechanism currently used to determine payment to physicians in the Medicare program. The SGR compares yearly changes in payments made to physicians providing care to Medicare beneficiaries to the growth of the overall economy. If the data shows that reimbursement rates are too high, they are then set to be reduced in accordance with the SGR formula. However, as health care costs have skyrocketed, the formula has produced skewed results and left physicians facing significant Medicare payment cuts at the same time they are experiencing increased costs. Physicians are, in fact, facing a staggering 21.5 percent cut in reimbursement starting in January, 2010. Congress has consistently acted to prevent any cuts to physician payments. I have supported these efforts because I recognize that the SGR formula is flawed. I support efforts to simplify the Medicare payment system and to address the SGR formula problem in a more principled fashion.

Furthermore, I am concerned that these recurring Medicare cuts to physicians could put patient access to their doctors in jeopardy by preventing physicians from accepting new Medicare patients. On October 13th, Senator Stabenow (D-MI) introduced the Medicare Physician Fairness Act of 2009 (S. 1776). The bill would permanently repeal the SGR formula. In addition to S. 1776, there are proposals within the Senate and House versions of the health reform bill that would improve physicians' payment schedules.

I agree that it is essential for Congress to replace the flawed physician payment system with one that reflects the cost of treating our Medicare patients. However, I also believe that we must do so in a fiscally sustainable and responsible manner. I will be closely reviewing what the best method is to address the problems associated with the SGR formula, but agree that a fix must be made.

Again, thank you for writing. Please do not hesitate contacting me in the future regarding other matters of interest or concern to you.

Sincerely,

Claire McCaskill
United States Senator

P.S. If you would like more information about resources that can help Missourians, or what I am doing in the Senate on your behalf, please sign up for my email newsletter at www.mccaskill.senate.gov.

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What more can I say?  "Clearly", she has addressed "all" of my concerns.

BE

Quotes: Power of Federal Government

"The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace, negotiation and foreign commerce."
-- James Madison
(1751-1836), Father of the Constitution for the USA, 4th US President
Source: Federalist No. 45
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/James.Madison.Quote.FEF7

"The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people."
-- U.S. Constitution, Ninth Amendment
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/U.S..Constitution,.Ninth.Amendment.Quote.3EF3

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."
-- U.S. Constitution, Tenth Amendment
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/U.S..Constitution,.Tenth.Amendment.Quote.6FB6

Enough said.

BE

Book Review: How Long, O Lord?

How Long, O Lord? Reflections on Suffering & Evil.
D.A. Carson, 1990 Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI.

How Long, O Lord? was my vacation reading this year, as we travelled to and from the Grand Canyon. Travelling with teenage drivers is a new experience, very relaxing with my daughters and wife driving. The scenery made it difficult to read, but camping made up for it.

How Long, O Lord? was not written to comfort those who are suffering. It was written to help Disciples of Jesus think Biblically about suffering. Some might appreciate the thoughts of D.A. Carson on this subject when suffering; but when we suffer as humans, we tend to emote rather than think. Therefore, “How Long, O Lord?” would be better read before, than during, suffering.

Mr. Carson states what the book is:
"Primarily, this is a book of preventative medicine. One of the major causes of devastating grief and confusion among Christians is that our expectations are false." (Carson, preface, pg. 9)

Further he states:
"But I shall be satisfied if it helps some Christians establish patterns and habits of thoughts that are so strong that when the hardest questions batter the soul there is less wavering and more faith, joy, and hope." (Carson, preface, pg. 10)

This is not an feel good book with easy, glib answers about suffering. D.A. Carson is a pastor and theologian who thinks from the Bible about its teachings (which is orthodoxy = right teaching). Mr. Carson looks at suffering from the scriptures:

1. Where did it come from?
2. What are its sources and forms?
3. How does God respond to suffering?
4. How should we respond to suffering(which is orthopraxy -right practices)?

Mr. Carson does an excellent job of examining this as a fellow sojourner in suffering. His conclusions are from the Lord, the Word, and are not his own.

Biblically, as Mr. Carson reminds us, suffering is a result of the Fall of Adam and Eve after Creation.

Suffering originated with sin. In fact, Mr. Carson would maintain that all suffering is a result of sin, though only sometimes is it the direct result of the sinner. Some, like natural disasters are the result of the original sin of Adam & Eve (all suffering has its origins here). Others, like lung cancer MAY be a direct result of abusing ones own body. In between is a range of sin and suffering that we ALL struggle with in some way. And we see this throughout the Bible.

God is NOT surprised by suffering, nor is he impotent to deal with it. His response is to provide an eternal solution and provide us with an example for responding to suffering in our lives; that of Jesus Christ.

Our response to suffering should not be to question "Why?" as if we deserve not to suffer. Rather, we might better ask "Why should our suffering not be worse?" Suffering should help us to see God's goodness, holiness, mercy and grace.

Part 1 Thinking about Suffering and Evil

Mr. Carson first recognizes that thinking about suffering is HARD. He then examines false starts that we may have in our thinking. This is critical as where we start thinking defines the presuppositions we have.

Part 2 Parts of the Puzzle: Biblical Themes for Suffering People

These are the Themes he explorers, hardly exhaustive, but VERY COMPREHENSIVE in scope.

• The Price of Sin
• Social Evils, Poverty, War, Natural Disasters
• The Suffering People of God
• Curses and Holy Wars—and Hell
• Illness, Death and Bereavement
• From the Vantage of the End
• Job: Mystery and Faith
• The Suffering God

Part 3 Glimpses of the Whole Puzzles: Evil and Suffering in the World of a Good and Sovereign God

Finally, he addresses the questions of how are we to see God’s actions in the midst of our suffering.

• the Mystery of Providence
• The Comfort of Providence: Learning to Trust
• Some Pastoral Reflections

While Mr. Carson only scratches the surface of the Biblical discussion, and I only scratch the surface of his examination and contemplation.

To whom would I recommend this book?

• Pastors- -to help them better think about suffering Biblically, and equip them to better shepherd the flock the Lord has charged them with protecting and caring.
• Believers/ Disciples of Jesus -who should want to minister to those whom are suffering.
• New Believers-who need to know what the Bible says about suffering before they encounter suffering for themselves.

Personally, I cannot recommend this book on suffering enough.

In closing, I quote form his chapter “First Steps”:

"They [Christians] draw comfort only from the living Lord himself, from the Spirit whom he has graciously given, from a renewed grasp, a felt experience, of the love of God in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3: 14-21). That is not to say, however, that the set of beliefs is irrelevant. It is to say that, in addition to holding that Christian beliefs are true and consistent, the Christian, to find comfort in them, must learn how to use (Carson's emphasis) them. Christian beliefs are not to be stacked in the warehouse of the mind; they are to be handled and applied to the challenges of life and discipleship." (Carson, pp. 20-21)

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Next Review(s):

• What He Must Be. Voddie Baucham
• Last of the Mohicans. Cooper (? I really enjoy this book, but novels are low on my review list, just depends on their impact)

Currently Reading:

• Already Gone. Ken Ham
• Do Hard Things. Harris Brothers

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BE

Response from Senator Claire McCaskill

Below is the response from Senator
Claire McCaskill:

November 3, 2009
Dear Mr. Emmerling,

Thank you for contacting me regarding Medicare and Congressional proposals for health care reform. I appreciate your comments and apologize for the delay in my response.

Medicare has been the foundation of health insurance for our nation's seniors since 1965 and has provided a crucial health care safety net for nearly 45 million elderly Americans. I know how important Medicare is for seniors living on a fixed income, and I assure you that I am committed to strengthening this vital benefit program.

There is, however, no denying that our health care system is in need of reform. The soaring cost of medical care is crippling our economy, bankrupting our nation's families, and becoming an unsustainable financial burden for American employers. Federal entitlement programs, such as Medicare, will face financial insolvency if burgeoning health care costs are not addressed. In fact, it's estimated that Medicare will begin to run a deficit by 2017 and there is growing concern that the federal government will not be able to keep pace with the aging baby-boomer demand for medical services. It is clear that reforms must be made to our health care system so that we can maintain seniors' access to medical treatment in a fiscally sustainable manner.

As you may know, the President's budget includes a number of proposals which will generate an estimated savings of $92.3 billion over five years in the Medicare program. Congress is also exploring other ways to bring down health care costs and to produce savings in Medicare. Some of the proposals being debated include adjusting Medicare drug coverage premiums for the wealthy; bundling hospital Medicare payments to incentivize better follow-up care and decrease hospital readmission rates; and improving Medicare payment accuracy to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse.

Many of the potential savings for Medicare are expected to come from establishing a competitive bidding system for Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Currently, the federal government is paying private insurers up to 12 percent more than it costs to treat comparable beneficiaries through traditional Medicare. In fact, a recent GAO report revealed that MA insurance companies made $3.36 billion in profits in 2006, with some companies making profits in excess of $1 billion more than they had projected. These overpayments are making sustaining Medicare more difficult. The proposed savings plan would require private insurance companies to competitively bid to cover Medicare beneficiaries in a certain geographic area and be paid the average of the bids. Generating competition within the private insurance market will lower overall prices and would save Medicare nearly $177 billion over 10 years.

Options like these will not only provide higher quality and value of care to patients, but also produce the savings we so desperately need to ensure that future generations can receive this benefit. Congress, as it considers health care reform, must work toward creating a Medicare program that serves the interests of seniors rather than private insurance companies.

Although there is not a final version of the health reform bill in the Senate, I understand that there has been a lot of confusion surrounding certain provisions in the various versions of this legislation. There is also misinformation being propagated, especially with regard to seniors. You may be interested to know that the Special Committee on Aging, of which I am a member, has prepared a document entitled "Health Care Reform, Fact vs. Fiction". I encourage you to visit the website http://www.aging.senate.gov/issues/healthcare/factvsfiction.pdf to gather factual information regarding some of these rumors.

As health reform legislation comes to the Senate floor, please be assured I remain committed to making sure all of our nation's seniors have access to affordable quality coverage.

Again, I appreciate your letter. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future about other matters of interest or concern to you.

Sincerely,

Claire McCaskill
United States Senator

P.S. If you would like more information about resources that can help Missourians, or what I am doing in the Senate on your behalf, please sign up for my email newsletter at www.mccaskill.senate.gov.

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BE

An Open Letter to My Congressmen

RE: the Healthcare Package

Dear Congressman,

Please understand that voting for the Healthcare Package before Congress is an act of TREASON!

Allow me to explain why:

1. No bill should be passed UNREAD BY YOU PERSONALLY. If you cannot read it, VOTE NO. At ~2000 pages, you cannot possibly have read AND analyzed the document. You were not sent to Washington, D.C. to be a "Yes Man".
2. Any bill of this nature is clearly UNCONSTITUTIONAL. I expect you feel otherwise, if so please indicate which sections and paragraphs of the US Constitution apply.
3. This bill is over reaching and clearly an attempt at socialism/communism. Our Founding Fathers, those who fought WWII, Korea and Veitnam laid down their lives for against such things, and we are willing to do the same. (Yes, I know I am labeled by our government as a Right Wing Domestic Terrorist simply for SAYING this.)

You have attacked my 1st Amendment right of free speech and freedom of religion. This alone is an act of TREASON, for which you should be recalled, replaced and tried in the courts of Missouri.

I expect those who represent me to represent my values, and to stand for what is truly right, regardless of opposition.

Vote No on healthcare reform as it is presented.

Feeling VERY unrepresented,

William & Sharri Emmerling

P.S. Please note, I will post this on my blog, http://the-word-on-the-street.blogspot.com/, along with your response.

cc: 
Representative Ike Skelton (D-MO 4th)
Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO)
Senator Christopher S. Bond (R-MO) [His letter was modified as he voted against the 'Hate Crimes' Law.]

Where is America Headed?

In recent weeks I have been reluctant to share much of what I have learned about where the current Presidential Administration is taking our nation. I wanted to encourage rather than discourage. I needed God to transform my mind.

Therefore, before I share the following, please be reminded that the LORD is in control. He is not surprised at anything which occurs; and we need to keep our eyes on Him.

Dismantling America By Thomas Sowell at Jewish World Review, is very much a short must read to put things in perspective. I will simply share the first and last paragraph to help give his perspective.

Just one year ago, would you have believed that an unelected government official, not even a Cabinet member confirmed by the Senate but simply one of the many "czars" appointed by the President, could arbitrarily cut the pay of executives in private businesses by 50 percent or 90 percent?

Nothing so epitomizes President Obama's own contempt for American values and traditions like trying to ram two bills through Congress in his first year — each bill more than a thousand pages long — too fast for either of them to be read, much less discussed. That he succeeded only the first time says that some people are starting to wake up. Whether enough people will wake up in time to keep America from being dismantled, piece by piece, is another question — and the biggest question for this generation.

As case in point, please visit the following linksabout the legislation Mr. Obama signed today 28 Oct 2009. (Sadly on my son's birthday)

Obama signs 'hate-crimes' bill into law
'It's a very sad day for America and for religious liberties'

Obama signs 'hate crimes' bill - Christian broadcasters concerned

There is more that needs to be said, but the most important are the words of repentance we need to share with the LORD.

More to follow, as the LORD wills.

BE

Jefferson--"A wise and frugal government..."

"A wise and frugal government which shall leave men free to regulate their
own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth
of labor the bread it has earned — this is the sum of good government."
— Thomas Jefferson
(1743-1826), US Founding Father, drafted the Declaration of Independence, 3rd US President

the gratitude campaign

While I have struck up conversations with those who serve and said thank-you; I would have said it even more often with this. Thank you, to all those who serve and have served.

the gratitude campaign http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSfFYxSdKdo

Psalm 12, Save from Lying Lips

Simply by 'chance' this was the first Psalm I read in my personal worship time.

Psa 12:1-8 ESV
To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

Save, O LORD, for the godly one is gone;
for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.

Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
May the LORD cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue that makes great boasts,
those who say,
"With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us;
who is master over us?"

"Because the poor are plundered,
because the needy groan,
I will now arise," says the LORD;
"I will place him in the safety for which he longs."

The words of the LORD are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.

You, O LORD, will keep them;
you will guard us from this generation forever.
On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

----
BE

Samuel Adams: Virtue & Liberty

"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."

by:	Samuel Adams (1722-1803), was known as the "Father of the American Revolution."
Source:	letter to James Warren, 4 November 1775. Reference: Our Sacred Honor, Bennett (261)

Does God Still Control the Weather?

When I saw the content of the email this page was linked to, I was shocked.  I have since found another article to confirm its validity.  Rather than elaborate, I will let the author's words convey.

Read this first:
WAS GOD IN THE WHIRLWIND?

ELCA Assembly: Was God in Either Whirlwind?

As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
BE

Inflation, Government and Contentment

Recently, I was reading financial publication which had the following quote:

"By a continuing process of inflation
governments can confiscate, secretly and unobserved,
an important part of the wealth of their citizens."

Would you like to guess who made this statement?
Would you consider who follows the principles of this man today?

Read the quote again.

"By a continuing process of inflation
governments can confiscate, secretly and unobserved,
an important part of the wealth of their citizens."
John Maynard Keyes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, 1919, p. 235.

How is inflation produced?
If a nation's monetary system used fiat money, say paper money with no tangible backing,
then it is only necessary to print large amounts of this money to create inflation.

Why would a nation print such large sums of money?
Perhaps to cover a debt which the nation owes.
Or perhaps, as Mr. John Maynard Keyes indicates, there might be another reason.

Frankly, I prefer to reflect on the words of another knowledgeable man:

"Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

But as for you, O man of God, flee these things.

Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. "
Paul of Tarsus, Holy Bible, (1Ti 6:6-11 ESV)

Be blessed and Be a blessing,
BE

Do the 'Royals' support Abortion?

I was going through my email this morning and ran across this link about Royals Balk at Recognizing Pro-Life Group.

I thought baseball was a symbol of America, its innocence, and how we stood to protect those less fortunate.  I was no fan of professional baseball before, but I am even less endeared to the past-time now.

BE

George Washington on the End of a Republican government

"If the laws are to be so trampled upon, with impunity, and a minority (a small one too) is to dictate to the majority, there is an end put, at one stroke, to republican government."

— George Washington
as quoted in a Citizenlink email.

America and Jeremiah 5

I was riding my bike this morning and listening to Jeremiah.
As I listened to Jeremiah 5, I wondered at the likeness of America, her people and her leaders, to Jerusalem and Judah. While America has no covenant with the Lord, he judges nations on the basis of the justice that they administer.

Jer 5:1-31 ESV

(1) Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, look and take note!
Search her squares to see if you can find a man,
one who does justice and seeks truth,
that I may pardon her.
(2) Though they say, "As the LORD lives," yet they swear falsely.

(3) O LORD, do not your eyes look for truth?
You have struck them down,
but they felt no anguish;
you have consumed them,
but they refused to take correction.
They have made their faces harder than rock;
they have refused to repent.

(4) Then I said, "These are only the poor; they have no sense;
for they do not know the way of the LORD, the justice of their God.
(5) I will go to the great and will speak to them,
for they know the way of the LORD,
the justice of their God."

But they all alike had broken the yoke; they had burst the bonds.

(6) Therefore a lion from the forest shall strike them down;
a wolf from the desert shall devastate them.
A leopard is watching their cities;
everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces,
because their transgressions are many,
their apostasies are great.

(7) "How can I pardon you?
Your children have forsaken me
and have sworn by those who are no gods.
When I fed them to the full,
they committed adultery
and trooped to the houses of whores.
(8) They were well-fed, lusty stallions,
each neighing for his neighbor's wife.

While this speaks directly to sexual immorality, I believe this is also a reference to the nation seeking after other gods. Our 'other gods' range from the desire for more things to actually worshiping other gods, i.e. Islam, Hinduism, pantheism, etc. These are incompatible with a true and living God.

(9) Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD;
and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?
(10) "Go up through her vine rows and destroy, but make not a full end;
strip away her branches, for they are not the LORD's.

(11) For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have been utterly treacherous to me, declares the LORD.
(12) They have spoken falsely of the LORD and have said,
'He will do nothing;
no disaster will come upon us,
nor shall we see sword or famine.
(13) The prophets will become wind;
the word is not in them.
Thus shall it be done to them!'"

(14) Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts:
"Because you have spoken this word,
behold, I am making my words in your mouth a fire,
and this people wood,
and the fire shall consume them.

(15) Behold, I am bringing against you a nation from afar,
O house of Israel, declares the LORD.
It is an enduring nation;
it is an ancient nation,
a nation whose language you do not know,
nor can you understand what they say.
(16) Their quiver is like an open tomb; they are all mighty warriors.
(17) They shall eat up your harvest and your food;
they shall eat up your sons and your daughters;
they shall eat up your flocks and your herds;
they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees;
your fortified cities in which you trust they shall beat down with the sword."

(18) "But even in those days, declares the LORD,
I will not make a full end of you.
(19) And when your people say,
'Why has the LORD our God done all these things to us?'
you shall say to them,
'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land,
so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.'"

(20) Declare this in the house of Jacob; proclaim it in Judah:
(21) "Hear this, O foolish and senseless people,
who have eyes, but see not,
who have ears, but hear not.
(22) Do you not fear me? declares the LORD.
Do you not tremble before me?
I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea, a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass;
though the waves toss, they cannot prevail;
though they roar, they cannot pass over it.

(23) But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart;
they have turned aside and gone away.
(24) They do not say in their hearts,
'Let us fear the LORD our God,
who gives the rain in its season,
the autumn rain and the spring rain,
and keeps for us the weeks appointed for the harvest.'
(25) Your iniquities have turned these away,
and your sins have kept good from you.

(26) For wicked men are found among my people;
they lurk like fowlers lying in wait.
They set a trap;
they catch men.
(27) Like a cage full of birds, their houses are full of deceit;
therefore they have become great and rich;
(28) they have grown fat and sleek.
They know no bounds in deeds of evil;
they judge not with justice the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper,
and they do not defend the rights of the needy.

(29) Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD,
and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?"

(30) An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land:
(31) the prophets prophesy falsely,
and the priests rule at their direction;
my people love to have it so,
but what will you do when the end comes?

Like Israel of old, our churches today bow down to political correctness, rather than submitting to the holiness of the True and Living God.


Our true hope is in the one who came to set us free, Jesus the Messiah. That freedom does not mean insulation from the wrong and sin in the world. No, instead it means freedom from the penalty of our own sin, as individuals.

As more of us benefit from this,
the nation is preserved.
God receives the glory.

However,
as fewer of us benefit from this,
the nation suffers, as evil is done by it members,
until God avenges in justice.

Ultimately, God will see that justice is applied completely. Mercy will be given for those of us accept Jesus as has son and seek to obey him out of love. Yet, evil will be punished.

As John the apostle said, "Come quickly, Lord Jesus."

BE

We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. (Joh 9:4 ESV)

Reagan on the Federal Government

Going through the Inbox and found this quote by Ronald Regan:

"The federal government has taken
too much tax money from the people,
too much authority from the states, and
too much liberty with the Constitution."
-- Ronald Reagan
(1911-2004) 40th US President
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Ronald.Reagan.Quote.70F8

On Liberty: Jefferson, Locke and Lindsay

"... whenever the Legislators endeavour to take away, and destroy the Property of the People, or to reduce them to Slavery under Arbitrary Power, they put themselves into a state of War with the People, who are thereupon absolved from any farther Obedience, and are left to the common refuge which God hath provided for all men against force and violence. ... [Power then] devolves to the People, who have a Right to resume their original Liberty, and, by the Establishment of a new Legislative (such as they shall think fit) provide for their own Safety and Security, which is the end for which they are in Society."
-- John Locke
(1632-1704) English philosopher and political theorist. Considered the ideological progenitor of the American Revolution and who, by far, was the most often non-biblical writer quoted by the Founding Fathers of the USA.
Source: Second Treatise of Civil Government [1690], #222 (Lasslet Edition, Cambridge University Press, 1960), p. 460-461; French translation by David Mazel (1691): Traité de gouvernement civil (Paris: Garnier-Flammarion, 1984), pp. 348-349
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/John.Locke.Quote.7F16

"Those who suppress freedom always do so in the name of law and order."
-- John V. Lindsay
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/John.Lindsay.Quote.3FCD

"We have the greatest opportunity the world has ever seen, as long as we remain honest -- which will be as long as we can keep the attention of our people alive. If they once become inattentive to public affairs, you and I, and Congress and Assemblies, judges and governors would all become wolves."
-- Thomas Jefferson
(1743-1826), US Founding Father, drafted the Declaration of Independence, 3rd US President
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Thomas.Jefferson.Quote.B372

Truth & Error: Today's Quotes

"Whenever there is a simple error that most laymen fall for,
there is always a slightly more sophisticated version
of the same problem that experts fall for."

-- Amos Tversky
Source: The Mind's New Science
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Amos.Tversky.Quote.E295

"Society is composed of men, and every man is a FREE agent. Since man is free, he can choose; since he can choose, he can err; since he can err, he can suffer. I go further: He must err and he must suffer; for his starting point is ignorance, and in his ignorance he sees before him an infinite number of unknown roads, all of which save one lead to error."

-- Frederic Bastiat
(1801-1850) French economist, statesman, and author. He did most of his writing during the years just before -- and immediately following -- the French Revolution of February 1848
Source: Harmonies, XXX
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Frederic.Bastiat.Quote.1925

"The main thing is to have a soul that loves the truth and harbours it where he finds it. And another thing: truth requires constant repetition, because error is being preached about us all the time, and not only by isolated individuals but by the masses. In the newspapers and encyclopedias, in schools and universities, everywhere error rides high and basks in the consciousness of having the majority on its side."

-- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
(1749-1832)
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Johann.Wolfgang.von.Goethe.Quote.74EB

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

(Joh 8:31-32 ESV)

04 June 09: Today's Quotes on Liberty

"Foolish liberals who are trying to read the Second Amendment out of the constitution by claiming it’s not an individual right or that it’s too much of a safety hazard don’t see the danger of the big picture. They’re courting disaster by encouraging others to use this same means to eliminate portions of the Constitution they don’t like."
-- Alan Dershowitz
(1938- ) Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard Law School
Source: The Conceptual Foundations of Anglo-American Jurisprudence in Religion and Reason, 82 Mich L. Rev., 204 (Dan Gifford), 1995
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Alan.Dershowitz.Quote.35FD

The above quote reminds me of how some do interpretation of the Scriptures. You cannot remove what you don't like without damaging the whole.

"I cannot assent to the view, if it be meant that the legislature may impair or bridge the rights of a free press and of free speech whenever it thinks that the public welfare requires that it be done. The public welfare cannot override constitutional privilege."
-- John Marshall Harlan
(1899-1971) U. S. Supreme Court Justice
Source: Patterson v. Chicago
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/John.Harlan.Quote.4051

Have a blessed day.
BE

The Murder of George Tiller

After two nights and roughly two days of relaxation way from the responsibilities of the home, and what was essentially a media black out, my wife and I returned to home to this headline:

Abortionist Tiller shot, killed in church

Doctor accused of late-term law violations was attending service

"Lord Jesus, what has just happened," was my next thought.

I have spend the last 24 hours considering what my response, the response of my family, and the response of the Church should be to this murder.

As I have considered this I have encounter the writings of two men on this subject that are worth reading.

The first, Doug Phillips of Vision Forum at:
George Tiller is Dead: For Whom Shall We Mourn?
In asking the question, "For Whom Shall We Mourn?" Mr. Phillips addresses the complexities of the situation which goes beyond simply the emotions involved on both sides of this this issue and gets to the core of this issues at hand.

The second, David Kupelian of WorldNetDaily.com:
The real danger of right-wing extremists
Mr. Kupelian addresses the long term ramlifications of events like the murder of George Tiller, which could be quite serious.

As I cannot truly add anything of value to what these to men have said, I end with saying,

Yes, I mourn for the lives which George Tiller has taken over the years.

And Yes, I mourn for the man George Tiller, made in the image of God, and for the loss his family is experiencing.

Yet . . . I also mourn for our Nation and the Lord's Church, who no longer stands with or for righteousness.

BE

---

And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

(Heb 9:27-28 ESV)

Recent Items of Interest

Starting with the good news first.

$20,000 offered for listing 10 Commandments

Entrepreneur creates incentive to memorize God's laws

---

Home: No place for Bible study

County demands pastor obtain $10,000 permit to host friends

Friends, this is in the USA, specifically San Diego, CA.

---

Upholding values will shield US from terror: Obama

Now, just what values does he mean?

---

Responsible drinking for prostitutes? Your tax $ at work...

The Obama administration will pay $2.6 million to train China's prostitutes to drink responsibly on the job.

I find this very ironic given what he recently said, that we cannot borrow from China forever.

---

Do You Want Your OTV?

Obama White House officials decided to do their own media report on the
visit, complete with cuts, interviews, and chyrons identifying who's
speaking.

Even the media who put him in office are offended by this one. However, they seem to miss the real issue: This seems to be state controlled access to the White House. This sounds too much like the beginnings of socialism, or communism, neither of which permits unfavorable coverage of the government.

Note: Mr. Obama spending time with another sports team.

---

Sobbing Kindergarteners Snubbed for Steelers?

Kids locked out of White House; officials say they were too late

Mr. Obama is spending a lot of time with sports teams, talks of values, and turns away kindergartners.

---

Have a blessed Memorial Day.
Remember to honor those who have fallen for our freedoms and values.
Remember most of all the one who died to free us from our sins.
Worship Jesus.

BE

Right-Wing Extremist ID Card

From Liberty Counsel, The 'Official Liberty Counsel card-carrying Right-Wing Extremist' card.  Get yours today.

BE

Today's Quotes on Liberty

"Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called.
Were you a slave when called? Do not be concerned about it.
(But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity.)

"For he who was called in the Lord as a slave is a freedman of the Lord.
Likewise he who was free when called is a slave of Christ.

"You were bought with a price;
do not become slaves of men.

"So, brothers, in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God. "
(1Co 7:20-24 ESV)

"Good intentions will always be pleaded for every assumption of authority. It is hardly too strong to say that the Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions. There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern. They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be masters."
-- Daniel Webster
(1782-1852), US Senator
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Daniel.Webster.Quote.9BFA

"Today, when a concerted effort is made to obliterate this point, it cannot be repeated too often that the Constitution is a limitation on the government, not on private individuals -- that it does not prescribe the conduct of private individuals, only the conduct of the government -- that it is not a charter _for_ government power, but a charter of the citizen's protection _against_ the government."
-- Ayn Rand
(1905-1982) Author
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Ayn.Rand.Quote.DE9E


"The deterioration of every government
begins with the decay of the principles
on which it was founded."
-- C. L. De Montesquieu
[Montesquieu, Charles Louis de Secondat] (1689-1755) Baron de Montesquieu
Source: The Spirit of the Laws, VIII, 1752
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/C..L..De.Montesquieu.Quote.8108

Liberty and Government

Just received the following quotes this morning, and got more excited with each one.
Hope you are blessed with the sentiments as much as I was.

BE

"Liberty has never come from the government.
Liberty has always come from the subjects of government.
The history of liberty is the history of resistance.
The history of liberty is a history
of the limitation of governmental power,
not the increase of it."
-- Woodrow Wilson
(1856-1924) 28th US President
Speech, 1912
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Woodrow.Wilson.Quote.2AEF

"That the sole object and only legitimate end of government is to protect the citizen in the enjoyment of life, liberty, and property, and when the government assumes other functions it is usurpation and oppression."
-- Alabama, Declaration of Rights Article I Section 35
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Alabama,.Declaration.of.Rights.Article.I.Section.35.Quote.5244

"I have little interest in streamlining government or in making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size. I do not undertake to promote welfare, for I propose to extend freedom. My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them. It is not to inaugurate new programs, but to cancel old ones that do violence to the Constitution ... or have failed their purpose ... or that impose on the people an unwarranted financial burden. I will not attempt to discover whether legislation is 'needed' before I have first determined whether it is constitutionally permissible. And if I should be attacked for neglecting my constituents' 'interests,' I shall reply that I was informed that their main interest is liberty, and in that cause I am doing the very best I can."
-- Barry Goldwater
(1909-1998) US Senator (R-Arizona)
http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Barry.Goldwater.Quote.401D