Tuesday, September 15, 2009
A Walk In Faith
For so long I have known that there are problems in our government. I knew so many things were wrong but I haven't been able to put my finger on it. I could look around and see our foundation crumbling. I had thought I can't stand to watch this anymore, so I turned off the news for months. Than I saw the Tea Parties starting up and I thought everyone thinks they are radicals anyway, why waste my time? And they grew. When Bill 3200 came along, I was disgusted. I thought my government has ran every program or industry they are a part of into the ground, and were handing them over 1/5 of the economy. WOW. What are we going to do now? That is when the I started to see the town hall meetings. I witnessed all these brave Americans standing up, unafraid to be called the "lunatic fringe." They saw the need for there voices to be heard and spoke up. So, I figured I can't let my fellow country men and women be brave alone. I will not stand idly by and let the media tell us how few people agree. I am not an overly religious person, however, I began to pray. I prayed that the lord would show me the way that I can make a difference. I got my answer, that on Sep. 12th there would be a march on Washington. I really had no idea how many people would be there. Many of my family and friends didn't believe, they said "I know things are wrong, but how is you going to DC going to change anything?" I didn't either but I had faith, an unwavering faith in my country and my lord that all was not lost. As I walked onto Pennsylvania avenue I saw hundreds of thousands of people, and all I could think was, "none of these people knew how many people would be here or what difference it would make, We Were All There On Faith!" And no matter how many people they say attended, I believe that the true power of that day comes from the knowledge That We Are Not Alone..There are many many other who are walking in Faith, and the movement grows. God Bless America.
The Ten Percenter
I think it is completely normal for people to wonder if the conclusions they reach are valid. Everyone I know that has acted independently, have had the same self doubts at some point during their journey. This is because we as individuals want to be certain that our efforts are based on logic and morality.
People are as varied as snowflakes, none are the same, so to posit an idea is subject to not only our own scrutiny, but once articulated, to the scrutiny of others. This is why it is so difficult for many of us to lay it on the line. No one wants to be denigrated for their ideas. For those of us who do not worry about this possibility, I envy your confidence. I am not one of those people. I agonize at the prospect that people that I know and respect will think me ill considered and shallow, this speaks nothing of the people whom I do not know that may feel the same way.
As I have watched the economic decline of our nation take place over my entire lifetime, I like most people, lament. To see government continue to grow out of control as individuals are suffering unemployment, foreclosures, exorbitant taxes, bankruptcies, and retirement funds decline, I wonder if there is anything I can do. Should I move to Costa Rica, or find some property in the middle of know where and take myself and my family off of the grid? I am only one person so what can I do? I vote. I am informed. So what, nothing seems to get better.
Some days I feel as though I am simply rearranging the chairs on the Titanic. You feel like you are doing something but, the ship is sinking nonetheless. I watch the news, CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN and very few people are saying anything I agree with. Then one day in 1989 as I was driving through Chicago I heard a radio broadcast from a guy I had never heard of before. He was saying things I could relate to. He was somewhat arrogant, but funny. I told all of my family and friends about him and apparently so did 20 million others.
It was so new to me, it felt cathartic. Finally it seemed someone was actually saying what I was thinking. I guess I must not be alone. It was one of those moments when you knew you were not alone. Still, was I just one of 10% of Americans, and so therefore, out of the mainstream of thinking? Was this just a mechanism for the extreme right wing to have a voice, or was something else at work here? Soon, there were others on the radio espousing similar ideas and with similar followings.
Ten years later, as I was traveling, I was staying at a hotel with a cable news program. I could not believe what I was watching. This was a channel that told both sides of an issue. The liberal side, and the conservative side. They in fact were probably more conservative than liberal. I remember trying to find this channel at home. Eventually it became available on my cable system. I was thrilled. I began to think that perhaps I was not just a ten percenter. Perhaps there were more of us out there that feel similarly on the great issues of our time.
This network has now become the most relevant news organization of our time. They dwarf the other channels by viewer comparison. The other channels had lost their way, and in the process, had lost their integrity. Lately, members of their time slots have began to practice journalism. People like Bill O'Reilly and Shawn Hannity, have asserted themselves as arbiters of conservative ethos and logic. There viewership is astonishing. People flock to them and listen intently as they take on the giant growth of government and mock the former news outlets for their lack of balance.
As I watched this all taking place, I was heartened. But I knew I must increase my own personal knowledge. I began to read. At first I was involved with writers on the various shows. People like, Bill O'Reilly, Newt Gingrich, Dick Morris, Ann Coulter, Mark Levin, etc.. These authors were insightful on a range of issues, but I needed to get less biased information. Information out of the mouths, so to speak, of the various people cited in these books. So I began to read things like the 5000 Year Leap, the Federalist Papers, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, ect..
I began to understand just exactly how far afield we had come from the founding fathers original intent. That is to say, we are making some fundamental mistakes that we were warned about from the very beginning. Then I began to know that I was not a ten percenter. The ideas that I hold dear and advocate to my family are the very ideas that this country was based upon.
Two weeks ago, my daughter asked me if I planned on attending the march in Washington, D.C. on September 12th, 2009. Up until that moment I, like most of us, had thought about it but it was going to be a pain in the butt. I had a major meeting in Chicago, and in order to go would have to drive from Lansing, MI to Chicago, and then fly to D.C. and drive back with her Sunday morning. A royal pain to say the least. It 0ccured to me as I hung up the phone with my inspiring little progeny, that after all we had spoken about over the years I would be some kind of hypocrite if I did not participate in this great political process.
We made plans and reservations and set out to meet in D.C. She arrived with one of our mutual friends and we talked about the next days event. We woke up and had breakfast at the hotel, and took a cab to the Freedom Center on Pennsylvania avenue. We could not get quite to Pennsylvania ave. for the traffic. We decided to get out and walk the rest of the way. We wondered aloud if this was going to be a big deal or not. Would other Americans show up, and to what extent? We saw thousand of people walking toward the Freedom Center but as of yet were not even on Pennsylvania Ave.
As we reached the corner the hair on the back of my neck and arms stood up. The sight was really more than my poor amateurish efforts can describe. More people then I had ever seen in my entire life gathered together in one place. As far as you could see and further still was this mas of humanity like a giant living amoeba. Since I have returned I have heard estimates from 35,000 from NBC to 75,000 from Bill O'Reilly on Fox. When I first heard those numbers I was taken aback. I must admit I was somewhat angry at the ridiculous nature of these estimates. I have attended U of M football games, the Chicago marathon, and various other events with huge amounts of people so I was fairly confident that I knew what 75,000 people looked like.
As of this morning a university study announced there were 1.7 million people there. Now I can honestly say I could not tell the difference between 500,000 and 2,000,000 people because it is so vast. You really have to see it to begin to understand the magnitude of that number. The real question for all of us should be, "why would anyone want to so grossly underestimate the number of people that actually attended?" What possible motive would they have in underreporting the attendance of this event? The good news is, this number can not be suppressed. The video of these amount of people is everywhere. The numbers will be verified and it will become common knowledge before it is all said and done.
I am no longer a ten percenter. I will not be silent in the face of the utter destruction of our country. I am not chicken little and the sky is not falling, but you are being threatened. The very nature of your country has been changing for one hundred years. The speed at which it is now morphing into Socialism is breathtaking. Just because you have not taken the time to review the elements of our demise does not mean it is not happening. Be objective. Look at the process and determine for yourselves if we are not moving down a slippery slope.
The time has come for us all to stop the process in Congress. Do not let them pass a single bill until we have gone through all of our governmental agencies with a forensic accounting. Each and every government agency needs to be audited starting now. Each and every government agency needs to be assessed for necessity and closed if found to be redundant or unnecessary. We need to clean the house. Democrat, Republican, independent, whatever, this needs to stop now, and be cleansed. Get involved. Know this, your adversaries are involved. Look at groups like acorn. Our president is one of it's greatest advocates. Find out who SEIU is. Our president is one of it's greatest advocates. Words matter, elections matter. Who we surround ourselves by, matters.
I know we are all busy, but do not fiddle while Rome burns.
People are as varied as snowflakes, none are the same, so to posit an idea is subject to not only our own scrutiny, but once articulated, to the scrutiny of others. This is why it is so difficult for many of us to lay it on the line. No one wants to be denigrated for their ideas. For those of us who do not worry about this possibility, I envy your confidence. I am not one of those people. I agonize at the prospect that people that I know and respect will think me ill considered and shallow, this speaks nothing of the people whom I do not know that may feel the same way.
As I have watched the economic decline of our nation take place over my entire lifetime, I like most people, lament. To see government continue to grow out of control as individuals are suffering unemployment, foreclosures, exorbitant taxes, bankruptcies, and retirement funds decline, I wonder if there is anything I can do. Should I move to Costa Rica, or find some property in the middle of know where and take myself and my family off of the grid? I am only one person so what can I do? I vote. I am informed. So what, nothing seems to get better.
Some days I feel as though I am simply rearranging the chairs on the Titanic. You feel like you are doing something but, the ship is sinking nonetheless. I watch the news, CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN and very few people are saying anything I agree with. Then one day in 1989 as I was driving through Chicago I heard a radio broadcast from a guy I had never heard of before. He was saying things I could relate to. He was somewhat arrogant, but funny. I told all of my family and friends about him and apparently so did 20 million others.
It was so new to me, it felt cathartic. Finally it seemed someone was actually saying what I was thinking. I guess I must not be alone. It was one of those moments when you knew you were not alone. Still, was I just one of 10% of Americans, and so therefore, out of the mainstream of thinking? Was this just a mechanism for the extreme right wing to have a voice, or was something else at work here? Soon, there were others on the radio espousing similar ideas and with similar followings.
Ten years later, as I was traveling, I was staying at a hotel with a cable news program. I could not believe what I was watching. This was a channel that told both sides of an issue. The liberal side, and the conservative side. They in fact were probably more conservative than liberal. I remember trying to find this channel at home. Eventually it became available on my cable system. I was thrilled. I began to think that perhaps I was not just a ten percenter. Perhaps there were more of us out there that feel similarly on the great issues of our time.
This network has now become the most relevant news organization of our time. They dwarf the other channels by viewer comparison. The other channels had lost their way, and in the process, had lost their integrity. Lately, members of their time slots have began to practice journalism. People like Bill O'Reilly and Shawn Hannity, have asserted themselves as arbiters of conservative ethos and logic. There viewership is astonishing. People flock to them and listen intently as they take on the giant growth of government and mock the former news outlets for their lack of balance.
As I watched this all taking place, I was heartened. But I knew I must increase my own personal knowledge. I began to read. At first I was involved with writers on the various shows. People like, Bill O'Reilly, Newt Gingrich, Dick Morris, Ann Coulter, Mark Levin, etc.. These authors were insightful on a range of issues, but I needed to get less biased information. Information out of the mouths, so to speak, of the various people cited in these books. So I began to read things like the 5000 Year Leap, the Federalist Papers, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, ect..
I began to understand just exactly how far afield we had come from the founding fathers original intent. That is to say, we are making some fundamental mistakes that we were warned about from the very beginning. Then I began to know that I was not a ten percenter. The ideas that I hold dear and advocate to my family are the very ideas that this country was based upon.
Two weeks ago, my daughter asked me if I planned on attending the march in Washington, D.C. on September 12th, 2009. Up until that moment I, like most of us, had thought about it but it was going to be a pain in the butt. I had a major meeting in Chicago, and in order to go would have to drive from Lansing, MI to Chicago, and then fly to D.C. and drive back with her Sunday morning. A royal pain to say the least. It 0ccured to me as I hung up the phone with my inspiring little progeny, that after all we had spoken about over the years I would be some kind of hypocrite if I did not participate in this great political process.
We made plans and reservations and set out to meet in D.C. She arrived with one of our mutual friends and we talked about the next days event. We woke up and had breakfast at the hotel, and took a cab to the Freedom Center on Pennsylvania avenue. We could not get quite to Pennsylvania ave. for the traffic. We decided to get out and walk the rest of the way. We wondered aloud if this was going to be a big deal or not. Would other Americans show up, and to what extent? We saw thousand of people walking toward the Freedom Center but as of yet were not even on Pennsylvania Ave.
As we reached the corner the hair on the back of my neck and arms stood up. The sight was really more than my poor amateurish efforts can describe. More people then I had ever seen in my entire life gathered together in one place. As far as you could see and further still was this mas of humanity like a giant living amoeba. Since I have returned I have heard estimates from 35,000 from NBC to 75,000 from Bill O'Reilly on Fox. When I first heard those numbers I was taken aback. I must admit I was somewhat angry at the ridiculous nature of these estimates. I have attended U of M football games, the Chicago marathon, and various other events with huge amounts of people so I was fairly confident that I knew what 75,000 people looked like.
As of this morning a university study announced there were 1.7 million people there. Now I can honestly say I could not tell the difference between 500,000 and 2,000,000 people because it is so vast. You really have to see it to begin to understand the magnitude of that number. The real question for all of us should be, "why would anyone want to so grossly underestimate the number of people that actually attended?" What possible motive would they have in underreporting the attendance of this event? The good news is, this number can not be suppressed. The video of these amount of people is everywhere. The numbers will be verified and it will become common knowledge before it is all said and done.
I am no longer a ten percenter. I will not be silent in the face of the utter destruction of our country. I am not chicken little and the sky is not falling, but you are being threatened. The very nature of your country has been changing for one hundred years. The speed at which it is now morphing into Socialism is breathtaking. Just because you have not taken the time to review the elements of our demise does not mean it is not happening. Be objective. Look at the process and determine for yourselves if we are not moving down a slippery slope.
The time has come for us all to stop the process in Congress. Do not let them pass a single bill until we have gone through all of our governmental agencies with a forensic accounting. Each and every government agency needs to be audited starting now. Each and every government agency needs to be assessed for necessity and closed if found to be redundant or unnecessary. We need to clean the house. Democrat, Republican, independent, whatever, this needs to stop now, and be cleansed. Get involved. Know this, your adversaries are involved. Look at groups like acorn. Our president is one of it's greatest advocates. Find out who SEIU is. Our president is one of it's greatest advocates. Words matter, elections matter. Who we surround ourselves by, matters.
I know we are all busy, but do not fiddle while Rome burns.
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