"In a major victory for President Barack Obama, Democrats muscled a huge, $787 billion stimulus bill through Congress late Friday night in hopes of combating the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Republican opposition was nearly unanimous."
My random rant.
Well, comrades, we just had one more step towards Marxism. To think that an average American taxpayer, such as myself, who has worked hard to get out of the poverty I grew up in, finally does, and pays his own way through life, now has to submit to the socialist state when it comes to my healthcare (just for starters), and who knows whatever else they did sneak into the bill at the last minute. It is sad. I pay for my own healthcare and am not subsidized by the federal government, yet the Feds will now be able to dictate what I and my family can receive as healthcare.
Thank you to all of you unthinking and uncaring liberal Democratic cult members that decided to screw the rest of us so you could have your big warm and fuzzy "we voted for change ha ha" moment. You are testament to the degrading values of our once great society. You are all so wrapped up in this so-called "historic" moment you have lost your senses. You cared more about "winning" than you did about what was good for the country.
Obama got the bill he wanted. The man stood before a Raleigh crowd and laughed off the being labeled a socialist. I guess he was right. He is much worse. He will sign this disgraceful, useless bill that is nothing more than something to be used as toilet paper.
Thank you to the Republicans who forgot why the people put you in power to begin with. You did a great job at becoming nothing more than Democrats. You forgot that Democrat starts with a D, not an 'R'. Why vote for nothing more than a misspelling of the same diarrhea, when you can have the real thing. The libertarians are the only ones who have it right.
I hope you enjoy the fruits of your labor when you take your child to the doctor and they tell you no that they can no longer decide what is best for your kids, that an idiot in Washington will decide what your kids treatment will be. It is all for the good of the commonwealth. And, of course, those of you on Medicare are screwed as well.
I think about my poor mom who is in a wheel chair near the end of her days, who has Multiple Sclerosis and a number of other health problems that accompany that. I see the governments handiwork with her Medicare, and it is pathetic. She is a shining example of the failed government healthcare plan. She has no access to treatment that could make her better. The government refuses it. She went to the hospital critically sick, and the kicked her out after a few days because of limits.
We will all be subject now to rationing of healthcare, no matter who you are, or whether you pay your own way or not. But it is just the beginning of their 3-part episode to take control of everything. They have given us a heads-up already. It's coming and it has a multi trillion dollar price tag. They have used this recession as a means to buy up you unthinking morons with all new and freshly printed money they will soon have. We will once again see inflation and high interest rates. We will see higher taxes, higher unemployment, and lower salaries.
Thank you to all the losers out there that can't exercise fiscal responsibility. To all the poor out there that decided they were entitled to a house, new cars, plasma T.V.s and of course Blue-Ray DVD players, iPods, and much, much more. Yes, thanks for leaving that burden of your selfish recklessness on myself and my children. I loathe your very existence, as I now see it as more damaging than the ridiculous CEOs and their salaries and bonuses.
The rich get richer and the poor get poorer because they keep doing the things that got them there. I never wanted to be rich, but I recognize the need for the rich. I don't envy what the rich have, nor do I chastise or demonize them for it. I thank them for the opportunities they have given me in the many start-up companies I have worked for. I thank them for taking the risk with their dollars and either investing in the companies I have worked for or directly starting up ventures, in my career that allowed me to use my talents and skills to create something. The rich take on the biggest risks, but everyone else seems to think they do not deserve the biggest rewards. Well, they will not risk their money anymore, and fuel for capitalism will fade away for some time, spawning even more unemployment.
America will be reminded, once again, what suffering is, and maybe we deserve it. I can only hope that we will eventually come out on top in the end, after people once again realize that these policies being invoked do not work. It seems every couple of generations forgets more history (as our public school system likes to conveniently leave it out of the books), as to what made this country great to begin with. We have forgotten what our founding fathers were trying to do for us. Why they imposed restrictions on government, not the people. Why our constitution limits the powers of the Federal government, and empowers the States to govern themselves. Washington has wiped its tail with that document, and Americans are ready to lie down and let it happen. They have exceeded their authority and have now laid the pathway to fascism and tyranny.
My wife, who is an immigrant (legally entered the country and went through the process of citizenship), came from a Communist country. She understands what it really means. She told me one day before Obama was elected, that she believed that America will do the right thing. That the world sees America, even amongst all the negativity, as the shining light of hope to people who want a better life. She has since then retracted her statement. She sees America now as misguided and confused. That people do not understand the mistakes they are making. That the things that gave others in the world hope are fading away. She didn't like the war in Iraq anymore than anyone else, but she knew that war was not that by which America is judged. It was freedom.
"From bondage to spiritual faith;
From spiritual faith to great courage;
From courage to liberty;
From liberty to abundance;
From abundance to complacency;
From complacency to apathy;
From apathy to dependence;
From dependence back into bondage"
Where do you think we are now?
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Gas Prices
I chuckle quite often when I listen to all of the conspiracy theories and speculation about gas prices. The more interesting ones are the ones which revolve around the President and the Vice President. It's an unfortunate thing, as it shows the lack of education on the part of many individuals, especially liberals, about economics. So I want to share with you a little bit about the truth of gas prices.
First of all, don't complain too much about your oil prices. In Europe, the average price per gallon, as of May 2007 is about $6.50US. This past week I saw it for $2.84US in Raleigh, N.C. OF course it varies throughout the country. For example, it is about $3.60 in San Francisco and $3.46 in Seattle.
So what causes these variations? Well a number of things can be the cause. State and federal taxes, distance between refineries and filling stations, environmental laws, and international events.
So what actually goes into the cost of gas? Well, about 52% of the cost is in the crude oil, 13% in refining costs, 9% in profits, 9% in distribution and marketing, and 15% in federal and state taxes. Refining costs vary depending on state regulations. State taxes vary depending on the state.
Now, it is very funny how people lose their sense when they hear that oil companies are having record profits. Suddenly the oil companies are evil, and the government should do something to stop them from making profits, and lower the gas prices. Well folks, sorry to tell you, but it isn’t the oil companies driving up the price. The oil companies have about a 9% profit margin on oil. To put that in perspective, Intel has double those profit margins, but no one is yelling at Intel for having so much profit. And, no one is yelling at Yahoo, who not long ago, posted nearly 45% profit margins during the time the oil companies were having record profits, and they don’t provide any necessary services. Yes, the world would get along just fine without Yahoo. Google, at the end of the fiscal year, had posted a 29% profit margin.
Somehow, the oil companies are the bad boys, and they provide something everyone needs, including Google and Yahoo. But, you are probably wondering, still, why gas is so expensive. Well, the main reason is world demand, in particular, India and especially China. China is growing at an incredible rate, possible faster than it can sustain in the long run. And, it is consuming a tremendous amount of resources, which is getting bigger every day. However, the supply of oil is getting smaller. Now, economics 101 comes into play. Quantity supplied is lower and Quantity demanded is higher. That means price has to go up. Yea, I know you don’t want to believe it, but it is the reality of the situations. I know many of you would like it to be the evil oil companies taking advantage of everyone, and the evil Bush administration. Well it just simply isn’t the case. No conspiracies here. It is good ole fashioned free market economics.
Here is a bit of an explanation from Herman Sampson, a Distinguished Undergraduate Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics, at North Carolina State University, who discussed the issue in summer of 2006.
“Why can we not do anything about the gas prices?
Well, you can. You can change your lifestyle, driving habits, the vehicle that you drive, ride a bike, use foot power, purchase a hybrid vehicle, demand less goods and services that use fossil fuel and its derivatives in the production process; and I could go on and on.
I think what you are really asking is "how can we lower gas prices and not change our lives or anything else?" If I had an answer for that one, I would be a very popular fellar and pretty rich as well. I hear folks "popin' off" all over town every time the gas price inches upward.
First, most folks don't realize that the inflation adjusted price for gasoline (called "real price" in economic terms) is still not as high as back in the 70's. You keep hearing that oil prices are at record highs. True in "nominal terms" but not true in "real terms". Oil would have to be $90.00 plus dollars a barrel today to be equivalent to the price of oil in the 70's. We are a little more than 2/3rds of the way there right now.
Over the course of the next 6 months or so, I suspect that we are going to have to learn to live with $2.00 plus gasoline prices. Now, why? Many reasons that are all coming together at the same time.
First, CHINA. Yep, CHINA. The world demand for oil has grown significantly and CHINA is the primary reason. The Chinese economy has grown by leaps and bounds and they are consuming more oil than ever before. The Chinese people are starting to earn enough money to trade in their bicycles and purchase an automobile. And, there are over a billion of those Chinese folks. That puts a lot of pressure on the gas pump let me assure you. We did the same thing many years ago. We traded in our horses and wagons for automobiles. Other folks want the same commodities that you and I enjoy. When more and more people want the same things out of life, that creates what is called "competition". So, the Chinese are "competing" with us for the available oil supplies around the world. As the competition heats up, so do the prices. It is called "bidding". Plain and simple.
The second factor is refinery capacity. Right now, there are adequate oil supplies around the world to satisfy world demand. The problem is, that we are not able to refine that oil fast enough to meet the demand for refined fuels around the world. Some of this problem is due to U.S. environmental regulations on oil refineries and distillate products (gasoline). First, environmental regulations became so onerous with respect to building new refinery capacity, that oil companies just did not do it. There was not enough incentive (profit) to do so. Our refinery capacity is old and not nearly as productive as new facilities would be. Environmentalism has costs and we are all paying those costs right here and now. The second environmental factor is all the different blends of gas that must be produced for the U.S. market. California gasoline is different from North Carolina gasoline for example. All these different states have developed different formulations for their respective states due to clean air requirements and environmental concerns of their respective political bodies. It is much cheaper to run large batches of a single fuel blend than it is to run many small slightly different batches of fuel blends. Also, we can buy gasoline pretty cheap from Brazil and Argentina and have it shipped right in to the Gulf Coast to help alleviate our capacity problems. But, no we can't do that because Argentina and Brazil gasoline is just run of the mill gasoline and is not "blended" for the U.S. market in terms of the environmental requirements.
In the past, Presidents have turned to the U.S. Strategic Oil Reserve to help ease oil and gasoline prices. By releasing oil from the reserve, the short run supply of oil increases and prices usually come down some and Americans become happy campers for a while again. The Clinton administration did this right before the election between Gore and Bush. Some believed it to be more of a political move to assist in the election of Gore than an economic necessity. Bush has decided to use the strategic oil reserve for what it was intended to be used for. Emergencies. We are not in an emergent situation yet. If Bush were to release oil from the strategic reserve at this point, many many would argue that it would be a political move. Gasoline prices would probably not come down much at all if any. Why? Because we are getting all the oil we need right now, we just can't refine it fast enough. If more oil becomes available, it is just going to sit there waiting for refinery capacity. More oil is not going to solve the refining capacity problem. Bush recently announced that the U.S. would no longer be adding oil to the strategic reserve to allow more oil to be available to the markets. In other words, instead of releasing oil from the strategic reserve, we have temporarily just stopped adding to those reserves.
There is also a lot of uncertainty left in the world around the Middle East in terms of terrorist activity and oil flow disruptions from the Middle East. As long as there are concerns about oil security in the Middle East, there will be a "risk premium" associated with oil. More recently there have been militant flair ups in Nigeria which have been causing a lot of angst in the oil markets as well. And then there is Venezuela that just recently nationalized its oil industry and is supporting Iran in terms of political rhetoric. Iran recently tested a high speed torpedo capable of sinking an oil supertanker right smack in the middle of the Straits of Hormuz and you are all aware of Iran playing with nuclear material and the worry that they are trying to develop a nuclear weapon. All of that makes markets very nervous. Uncertainty makes markets nervous and uneasy. Why? Because markets are simple people interacting with each other. Does the thought of Iran having a nuclear weapon make you nervous?
Oil and gasoline prices will eventually be a drag on the economy. Higher gas prices behave very much the same way that an increase in taxes behaves. We will probably see a reduction in folk’s discretionary incomes as they pay more at the pump. This will start to be felt by different industries. As I pay more for gas and diesel, I will be eating out a lot less I assure you. I won't have as much to spend at Wal-Mart, so my son Zack is going to get real tired of hearing, "No, No, No, No, No, and No". He is going to think that "No" is the only word that I know anymore. Folks may cut one or two trips to the beach out. All those folks down at the beach will make that much less money. Folks may not travel as much to see the fall colors in the mountains. Folks may purchase one less shirt or pair of pants. Folks may not throw that pair of underwear with a hole in them in the trash but wear them for a month or so longer.
Adjustments will be made and those adjustments have costs, and benefits. Already, the higher prices for fuel have resulted in flat growth in fuel consumption in the U.S. Most recently, prices have eased just a bit as the consumption of fuel has eased somewhat due to the higher prices. The latest worry is of course inflation. If you were wondering why the stock market tanked last week about 300 or so points, it was because the inflation report showed higher inflation that was expected by the markets. The stock market does not like inflation. The stock market now anticipates that the Federal Reserve will continue to increase interest rates. The stock market does not like high interest rates either. People tend to move their money out of the risky stock market for a sure fire return, interest in financial institutions covered by Federal Deposit Insurance as well as U.S. Government Treasury Securities. These have very very low risk compared to the stock market. Therefore, when interest rates are high, money tends to leave the stock market causing stock prices to slide. “
First of all, don't complain too much about your oil prices. In Europe, the average price per gallon, as of May 2007 is about $6.50US. This past week I saw it for $2.84US in Raleigh, N.C. OF course it varies throughout the country. For example, it is about $3.60 in San Francisco and $3.46 in Seattle.
So what causes these variations? Well a number of things can be the cause. State and federal taxes, distance between refineries and filling stations, environmental laws, and international events.
So what actually goes into the cost of gas? Well, about 52% of the cost is in the crude oil, 13% in refining costs, 9% in profits, 9% in distribution and marketing, and 15% in federal and state taxes. Refining costs vary depending on state regulations. State taxes vary depending on the state.
Now, it is very funny how people lose their sense when they hear that oil companies are having record profits. Suddenly the oil companies are evil, and the government should do something to stop them from making profits, and lower the gas prices. Well folks, sorry to tell you, but it isn’t the oil companies driving up the price. The oil companies have about a 9% profit margin on oil. To put that in perspective, Intel has double those profit margins, but no one is yelling at Intel for having so much profit. And, no one is yelling at Yahoo, who not long ago, posted nearly 45% profit margins during the time the oil companies were having record profits, and they don’t provide any necessary services. Yes, the world would get along just fine without Yahoo. Google, at the end of the fiscal year, had posted a 29% profit margin.
Somehow, the oil companies are the bad boys, and they provide something everyone needs, including Google and Yahoo. But, you are probably wondering, still, why gas is so expensive. Well, the main reason is world demand, in particular, India and especially China. China is growing at an incredible rate, possible faster than it can sustain in the long run. And, it is consuming a tremendous amount of resources, which is getting bigger every day. However, the supply of oil is getting smaller. Now, economics 101 comes into play. Quantity supplied is lower and Quantity demanded is higher. That means price has to go up. Yea, I know you don’t want to believe it, but it is the reality of the situations. I know many of you would like it to be the evil oil companies taking advantage of everyone, and the evil Bush administration. Well it just simply isn’t the case. No conspiracies here. It is good ole fashioned free market economics.
Here is a bit of an explanation from Herman Sampson, a Distinguished Undergraduate Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics, at North Carolina State University, who discussed the issue in summer of 2006.
“Why can we not do anything about the gas prices?
Well, you can. You can change your lifestyle, driving habits, the vehicle that you drive, ride a bike, use foot power, purchase a hybrid vehicle, demand less goods and services that use fossil fuel and its derivatives in the production process; and I could go on and on.
I think what you are really asking is "how can we lower gas prices and not change our lives or anything else?" If I had an answer for that one, I would be a very popular fellar and pretty rich as well. I hear folks "popin' off" all over town every time the gas price inches upward.
First, most folks don't realize that the inflation adjusted price for gasoline (called "real price" in economic terms) is still not as high as back in the 70's. You keep hearing that oil prices are at record highs. True in "nominal terms" but not true in "real terms". Oil would have to be $90.00 plus dollars a barrel today to be equivalent to the price of oil in the 70's. We are a little more than 2/3rds of the way there right now.
Over the course of the next 6 months or so, I suspect that we are going to have to learn to live with $2.00 plus gasoline prices. Now, why? Many reasons that are all coming together at the same time.
First, CHINA. Yep, CHINA. The world demand for oil has grown significantly and CHINA is the primary reason. The Chinese economy has grown by leaps and bounds and they are consuming more oil than ever before. The Chinese people are starting to earn enough money to trade in their bicycles and purchase an automobile. And, there are over a billion of those Chinese folks. That puts a lot of pressure on the gas pump let me assure you. We did the same thing many years ago. We traded in our horses and wagons for automobiles. Other folks want the same commodities that you and I enjoy. When more and more people want the same things out of life, that creates what is called "competition". So, the Chinese are "competing" with us for the available oil supplies around the world. As the competition heats up, so do the prices. It is called "bidding". Plain and simple.
The second factor is refinery capacity. Right now, there are adequate oil supplies around the world to satisfy world demand. The problem is, that we are not able to refine that oil fast enough to meet the demand for refined fuels around the world. Some of this problem is due to U.S. environmental regulations on oil refineries and distillate products (gasoline). First, environmental regulations became so onerous with respect to building new refinery capacity, that oil companies just did not do it. There was not enough incentive (profit) to do so. Our refinery capacity is old and not nearly as productive as new facilities would be. Environmentalism has costs and we are all paying those costs right here and now. The second environmental factor is all the different blends of gas that must be produced for the U.S. market. California gasoline is different from North Carolina gasoline for example. All these different states have developed different formulations for their respective states due to clean air requirements and environmental concerns of their respective political bodies. It is much cheaper to run large batches of a single fuel blend than it is to run many small slightly different batches of fuel blends. Also, we can buy gasoline pretty cheap from Brazil and Argentina and have it shipped right in to the Gulf Coast to help alleviate our capacity problems. But, no we can't do that because Argentina and Brazil gasoline is just run of the mill gasoline and is not "blended" for the U.S. market in terms of the environmental requirements.
In the past, Presidents have turned to the U.S. Strategic Oil Reserve to help ease oil and gasoline prices. By releasing oil from the reserve, the short run supply of oil increases and prices usually come down some and Americans become happy campers for a while again. The Clinton administration did this right before the election between Gore and Bush. Some believed it to be more of a political move to assist in the election of Gore than an economic necessity. Bush has decided to use the strategic oil reserve for what it was intended to be used for. Emergencies. We are not in an emergent situation yet. If Bush were to release oil from the strategic reserve at this point, many many would argue that it would be a political move. Gasoline prices would probably not come down much at all if any. Why? Because we are getting all the oil we need right now, we just can't refine it fast enough. If more oil becomes available, it is just going to sit there waiting for refinery capacity. More oil is not going to solve the refining capacity problem. Bush recently announced that the U.S. would no longer be adding oil to the strategic reserve to allow more oil to be available to the markets. In other words, instead of releasing oil from the strategic reserve, we have temporarily just stopped adding to those reserves.
There is also a lot of uncertainty left in the world around the Middle East in terms of terrorist activity and oil flow disruptions from the Middle East. As long as there are concerns about oil security in the Middle East, there will be a "risk premium" associated with oil. More recently there have been militant flair ups in Nigeria which have been causing a lot of angst in the oil markets as well. And then there is Venezuela that just recently nationalized its oil industry and is supporting Iran in terms of political rhetoric. Iran recently tested a high speed torpedo capable of sinking an oil supertanker right smack in the middle of the Straits of Hormuz and you are all aware of Iran playing with nuclear material and the worry that they are trying to develop a nuclear weapon. All of that makes markets very nervous. Uncertainty makes markets nervous and uneasy. Why? Because markets are simple people interacting with each other. Does the thought of Iran having a nuclear weapon make you nervous?
Oil and gasoline prices will eventually be a drag on the economy. Higher gas prices behave very much the same way that an increase in taxes behaves. We will probably see a reduction in folk’s discretionary incomes as they pay more at the pump. This will start to be felt by different industries. As I pay more for gas and diesel, I will be eating out a lot less I assure you. I won't have as much to spend at Wal-Mart, so my son Zack is going to get real tired of hearing, "No, No, No, No, No, and No". He is going to think that "No" is the only word that I know anymore. Folks may cut one or two trips to the beach out. All those folks down at the beach will make that much less money. Folks may not travel as much to see the fall colors in the mountains. Folks may purchase one less shirt or pair of pants. Folks may not throw that pair of underwear with a hole in them in the trash but wear them for a month or so longer.
Adjustments will be made and those adjustments have costs, and benefits. Already, the higher prices for fuel have resulted in flat growth in fuel consumption in the U.S. Most recently, prices have eased just a bit as the consumption of fuel has eased somewhat due to the higher prices. The latest worry is of course inflation. If you were wondering why the stock market tanked last week about 300 or so points, it was because the inflation report showed higher inflation that was expected by the markets. The stock market does not like inflation. The stock market now anticipates that the Federal Reserve will continue to increase interest rates. The stock market does not like high interest rates either. People tend to move their money out of the risky stock market for a sure fire return, interest in financial institutions covered by Federal Deposit Insurance as well as U.S. Government Treasury Securities. These have very very low risk compared to the stock market. Therefore, when interest rates are high, money tends to leave the stock market causing stock prices to slide. “
Friday, July 29, 2005
Gun Manufacturers now shielded from Lawsuits
Well, the United States Senate has voted 65-31 on a bill which will protect gun manufacturers from being sued by victims of gun related crimes. Makes perfect sense to me. The gun manufactures do not commit the crime, they do not encourage the crime, they do not have anything to do with the crime. Punish the criminals.
I am sure the lawyers are all up in arms, as this blocks them from exploiting another opportunity to back the courts up with frivolous lawsuits, and filling their own pockets at the expense of others.
Now, I own 1 gun, and it doesn’t even work. It was handed down to me by my grandmother when she died. It was my grandfather’s, so I keep it for sentimental value. I personally do not like guns, but I recognize every citizen’s constitutional right to own guns. I am a firm believer in the “guns don’t kill, people kill” philosophy. So this type of legislation is a good thing, as it keeps stupid lawsuits out of the courts. I just wish more of this stuff could be passed.
Perhaps, we could get the Senate to vote on a measure that would Shield restaurants from lawsuits from people who burn themselves with hot coffee. Note that I said burn themselves. Hot coffee is hot folks. I guess some people missed that memo.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Why do liberals fear Christianity?
I opened up an edition of the "Limbaugh Letter", and the first article was titled "Liberals' "Theocracy" Paranoia". Before I even read the article, I began to reflect back on how the liberals in this country perceive Christianity or any other faith. I also tried to put this in the perspective of the liberal rhetoric of being tolerant and sensitive to other's feelings and beliefs. What I have concluded is in the realm of religion, particularly Christianity, as well as other areas of debate, liberals are more intolerant than those they claim to be intolerant.
The fact is many liberals are only tolerant on the issues they want to be tolerant. They have a selfish, inward view of specific issues, and those who are not in agreement are considered to be intolerant. Liberals, in fact, are everything they say they are against. They use politics, public education, and the courts to force their ideology on others. But, the one place they have not been able to make this happen is in the Church. Now why would that be?
Unlike liberal ideology, Christianity has a solid foundation upon which has withstood the test of time. It is not an ideology, but a practice by which the individual, through fellowship, study, and prayer, comes to understand God and the world around. It is in the study of Christianity, that a sense of moral understanding is created. Christianity teaches, through historical reference, as well as through the wisdom of Christ, the nature of sin, and its affects on us individually and as a society. Christianity reveals a path in which each of us can follow to achieve moral and spiritual happiness. Christianity teaches, tolerance, respect for others, respect for ourselves, respect for all things of this earth, and respect for God.
So, why do liberals fear Christianity? Well, I just gave you the reasons. Liberals disguise their true nature by giving a false sense of compassion and tolerance. They want people to feel like they are caring and sensitive to everyone's needs and feelings. The truth is liberals can be summarized in a single sentence. Liberals want total freedom without responsibility. That is why they fear Christianity. Christianity advocates freedom and choice, but at the same time teaches that with freedom and choice come responsibility and consequences. Liberals want a government shelter to protect them from responsibility and the consequences to their actions. Liberals are afraid of choice and consequence. For example, on the issue of HIV and AIDS liberals believe that government should spend all this money and time on research and development of drugs to treat and cure HIV and AIDS. We are taught that this is the moral and right thing to do so alleviate suffering of those who have the disease. Of course, this is the moral thing to do. If we can prevent someone's suffering then we have a moral obligation to help them and not judge them.
However, there are two sides to the coin. In ALMOST all cases of HIV and AIDS, the disease has been spread through inappropriate sexual practices or IV drug usage. By focusing so much on treating the symptoms, we have ignored the source of the problem, which reveals a cure. The cure for the disease is to abstain from sex until marriage, and have only 1 sexual partner in life, or abstain from the use of drugs. This requires no medication and no doctors, and can be afforded by anyone of any economic class. Just a simple life choice and the disease will go away over time. If you are HIV positive or have AIDS, you should not be having sex with anyone. If you are unmarried, you should avoid having sex. Christianity teaches this principle, because history has revealed the dangers of such actions. These teachings are not designed to make life miserable. The teachings are designed to protect life.
This is just 1 example of how liberals do not want to accept the truth of how Christianity invokes a sense of responsibility and morality to solve a problem, because they believe people should be able to live their questionable lifestyles without bearing responsibility for their actions. And to make it worse, the tax payers are left with the bill.
I am not advocating that government should try to become the great judge of people who exhibit such dysfunctional behavior. I am not advocating the forcing of religious beliefs on to those who do not want to accept them. What I am addressing is the fact that there are people of great moral character, who have obtained such great moral purpose from their faith. And since that moral character and those beliefs of responsibility, honesty, faithfulness stem from a religious source, the liberals are going to attack it, as it teaches values which they reject.
What you do to yourself in the privacy of your home or residence is your business. By the same token, it should not be the government’s responsibility to bail you out when you screw up. Take responsibility for your screw-up and be an example for others so they may not follow in the same path. When people start taking responsibility, then problems like poverty, racism, AIDS, and other major issues in today’s world will start slipping away into nothingness.
The fact is many liberals are only tolerant on the issues they want to be tolerant. They have a selfish, inward view of specific issues, and those who are not in agreement are considered to be intolerant. Liberals, in fact, are everything they say they are against. They use politics, public education, and the courts to force their ideology on others. But, the one place they have not been able to make this happen is in the Church. Now why would that be?
Unlike liberal ideology, Christianity has a solid foundation upon which has withstood the test of time. It is not an ideology, but a practice by which the individual, through fellowship, study, and prayer, comes to understand God and the world around. It is in the study of Christianity, that a sense of moral understanding is created. Christianity teaches, through historical reference, as well as through the wisdom of Christ, the nature of sin, and its affects on us individually and as a society. Christianity reveals a path in which each of us can follow to achieve moral and spiritual happiness. Christianity teaches, tolerance, respect for others, respect for ourselves, respect for all things of this earth, and respect for God.
So, why do liberals fear Christianity? Well, I just gave you the reasons. Liberals disguise their true nature by giving a false sense of compassion and tolerance. They want people to feel like they are caring and sensitive to everyone's needs and feelings. The truth is liberals can be summarized in a single sentence. Liberals want total freedom without responsibility. That is why they fear Christianity. Christianity advocates freedom and choice, but at the same time teaches that with freedom and choice come responsibility and consequences. Liberals want a government shelter to protect them from responsibility and the consequences to their actions. Liberals are afraid of choice and consequence. For example, on the issue of HIV and AIDS liberals believe that government should spend all this money and time on research and development of drugs to treat and cure HIV and AIDS. We are taught that this is the moral and right thing to do so alleviate suffering of those who have the disease. Of course, this is the moral thing to do. If we can prevent someone's suffering then we have a moral obligation to help them and not judge them.
However, there are two sides to the coin. In ALMOST all cases of HIV and AIDS, the disease has been spread through inappropriate sexual practices or IV drug usage. By focusing so much on treating the symptoms, we have ignored the source of the problem, which reveals a cure. The cure for the disease is to abstain from sex until marriage, and have only 1 sexual partner in life, or abstain from the use of drugs. This requires no medication and no doctors, and can be afforded by anyone of any economic class. Just a simple life choice and the disease will go away over time. If you are HIV positive or have AIDS, you should not be having sex with anyone. If you are unmarried, you should avoid having sex. Christianity teaches this principle, because history has revealed the dangers of such actions. These teachings are not designed to make life miserable. The teachings are designed to protect life.
This is just 1 example of how liberals do not want to accept the truth of how Christianity invokes a sense of responsibility and morality to solve a problem, because they believe people should be able to live their questionable lifestyles without bearing responsibility for their actions. And to make it worse, the tax payers are left with the bill.
I am not advocating that government should try to become the great judge of people who exhibit such dysfunctional behavior. I am not advocating the forcing of religious beliefs on to those who do not want to accept them. What I am addressing is the fact that there are people of great moral character, who have obtained such great moral purpose from their faith. And since that moral character and those beliefs of responsibility, honesty, faithfulness stem from a religious source, the liberals are going to attack it, as it teaches values which they reject.
What you do to yourself in the privacy of your home or residence is your business. By the same token, it should not be the government’s responsibility to bail you out when you screw up. Take responsibility for your screw-up and be an example for others so they may not follow in the same path. When people start taking responsibility, then problems like poverty, racism, AIDS, and other major issues in today’s world will start slipping away into nothingness.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
British terrorist threat a lie?
Well, we've seen the terrible pictures in the news. We've seen the destruction and the suffering that is taking place, right now, in Britain, as a series of terrorist bombings have taken place London. Michael Moore would probably say that there is no terrorist threat in Britain, that it is a lie. I guess what we are seeing and reading in the media is all a hoax, just like 9/11. 9/11 must have been a good hoax, coz I was in NYC 2 weeks ago, and I noticed the World Trade Center towers were missing. It must have been a David Copperfield job.
Well, there is a real terrorist threat, in America and all over the world. Mr. Moore knows this, and accept its. Why do I say this? Because Mr. Moore is capitalizing on the weak minded liberals. His books, movies, articles, are full of misrepresented facts and lies that play on those liberals world wide. He irresponsibly spins the facts and information, and reports, what I call, factfiction. Mr. Moore is a very intelligent man, and he knows how to play to his audience. He knows what his audience wants to hear, and he is not above lies and deception to reach more readers, watchers, and listeners. Those are the people who are making him rich. The people who can not form their own opinions, but need people like Moore to feed them their opinions. He knows it, he takes advantage of it.
The Bush Administration has been a big boost to Mr. Moore's economic success. The liberals in this country hate Bush so much that they will spend their money on almost anything that is anti-Bush. Anyone who is anti-Bush, with some creativity and modest effort, could probably rake in a few hundred thousand dollars easily.
Anyway, the terrorist threats in this world are real, and today's bombings in London are a grim reminder of how evil some people can be. Unfortunately, this will blow over quickly and people, like our politicians, will return to their superficial arguing over unimportant issues, and ignore the big issues because they are afraid to take any action towards resolution. Most politicians are afraid to make any real decisions, making them terrible leaders.
Terrorism is not going to go away, until we kill as many of them as possible and make the terrorist afraid of us. Thank god we at least have a president who realizes that. Sure terrorist are not afraid to die, as they, in many cases, commit suicide attacks. But they have fear. Every human has fear. The key is discover and exploit that fear.
The liberals all talk about how we need the rest of the world to work together, that the U.S. and Britain should not go at this alone. Well, they are right. We are just waiting for the rest of the world to wake up and get behind us.
To the people in Britain, I give my condolences for any suffering and losses that you may have suffered. I surely hope those involved in these terrible acts will be brought to justice and receive the most extreme punishment the law will allow.
Some Related Links to Stories
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,161768,00.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8492258/
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=916957
Well, there is a real terrorist threat, in America and all over the world. Mr. Moore knows this, and accept its. Why do I say this? Because Mr. Moore is capitalizing on the weak minded liberals. His books, movies, articles, are full of misrepresented facts and lies that play on those liberals world wide. He irresponsibly spins the facts and information, and reports, what I call, factfiction. Mr. Moore is a very intelligent man, and he knows how to play to his audience. He knows what his audience wants to hear, and he is not above lies and deception to reach more readers, watchers, and listeners. Those are the people who are making him rich. The people who can not form their own opinions, but need people like Moore to feed them their opinions. He knows it, he takes advantage of it.
The Bush Administration has been a big boost to Mr. Moore's economic success. The liberals in this country hate Bush so much that they will spend their money on almost anything that is anti-Bush. Anyone who is anti-Bush, with some creativity and modest effort, could probably rake in a few hundred thousand dollars easily.
Anyway, the terrorist threats in this world are real, and today's bombings in London are a grim reminder of how evil some people can be. Unfortunately, this will blow over quickly and people, like our politicians, will return to their superficial arguing over unimportant issues, and ignore the big issues because they are afraid to take any action towards resolution. Most politicians are afraid to make any real decisions, making them terrible leaders.
Terrorism is not going to go away, until we kill as many of them as possible and make the terrorist afraid of us. Thank god we at least have a president who realizes that. Sure terrorist are not afraid to die, as they, in many cases, commit suicide attacks. But they have fear. Every human has fear. The key is discover and exploit that fear.
The liberals all talk about how we need the rest of the world to work together, that the U.S. and Britain should not go at this alone. Well, they are right. We are just waiting for the rest of the world to wake up and get behind us.
To the people in Britain, I give my condolences for any suffering and losses that you may have suffered. I surely hope those involved in these terrible acts will be brought to justice and receive the most extreme punishment the law will allow.
Some Related Links to Stories
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,161768,00.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8492258/
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=916957
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