86% will send this on...
BET YOU'LL SEND IT!!
I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG,
OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ,
AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS,
ONE NATION UNDER GOD,
INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL!
I was asked to send on if I agree, or delete if I don't.
It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God.
Therefore I have a very hard time understanding why there is such a problem
in having
'In God! We Trust' on our money and having 'God' in the Pledge of
Allegiance.
I believe it's time we stand up for what we believe!
If you agree, pass this on, if not, delete.
PLEASE KEEP THIS GOING,
EVEN IF
YOU HAVE PASSED IT ON BEFORE!!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
A nice family story- Thanks Dave Miller.
This is a wonderful piece by Michael Gartner, editor of newspapers large and small and president of NBC News. In 1997, he won the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing.
It is well worth reading and a few good chuckles are guaranteed.
----------------------
My father never drove a car. Well, that's not quite right. I should say I never saw him drive a car. He quit driving in 1927, when he was 25 years old, and the last car he drove was a 1926 Whippet. 'In those days,' he told me when he was in his 90s, 'to drive a car you had to do things with your hands, and do things with your feet, and look every which way, and I decided you could walk through life and enjoy it or drive through life and miss it.'
At which point my mother, a sometimes salty Irishwoman, chimed in: 'Oh, bull----!' she said. 'He hit a horse.'
'Well,' my father said, 'there was that, too.'
So my brother and I grew up in a household without a car. The neighbors all had cars. The Kollingses next door had a green 1941 Dodge, the VanLaninghams across the street, a gray 1936 Plymouth, the Hopsons two doors down, a black 1941 Ford -- but we had none. My father, a newspaperman in Des Moines , would take the streetcar to work and, often as not, walk the 3 miles home. If he took the streetcar home, my mother, brother and I would walk the three blocks to the streetcar stop, meet him and walk home together. My brother, David, was born in 1935, and I was born in 1938, and sometimes, at dinner, we'd ask how come all the neighbors had cars but we had none. 'No one in the family drives,' my mother would explain, and that was that.
But, sometimes, my father would say, 'But as soon as one of you boys turns 16, we'll get one.' It was as if he wasn't sure which one of us would turn 16 first.
But, sure enough, my brother turned 16 before I did, so in 1951 my parents bought a used 1950 Chevrolet from a friend who ran the parts department at a Chevy dealership downtown.
It was a four-door, white model, stick shift, fender skirts,loaded with everything, and since my parents didn't drive, it more or less became my brother's car
Having a car but not being able to drive didn't bother my father, but it didn't make sense to my mother. So in 1952, when she was 43 years old, she asked a friend to teach her to drive. She learned in a nearby cemetery, the place where I learned to drive the following year and where, a generation later, I took my two sons to practice driving. The cemetery probably was my father's idea. 'Who can your mother hurt in the cemetery?' I remember him saying more than once.
For the next 45 years or so, until she was 90, my mother was the driver in the family. Neither she nor my father had any sense of direction, but he loaded up on maps -- though they seldom left the city limits -- and appointed himself navigator. It seemed to work.
Still, they both continued to walk a lot. My mother was a devout Catholic, and my father an equally devout agnostic, an arrangement that didn't seem to bother either of them through their 75 years of marriage.
(Yes, 75 years, and they were deeply in love the entire time.)
He retired when he was 70, and nearly every morning for the next 20 years or so, he would walk with her the mile to St. Augustine 's Church. She would walk down and sit in thefront pew, and he would wait in the back until he saw which of the parish's two priests was on duty that morning. If it was the pastor, my father then would go out and take a 2-mile walk, meeting my mother at the end of the service and walking her home.
If it was the assistant pastor, he'd take just a 1-mile walk and then head back to the church. He called the priests "Father Fast" and "Father Slow."
After he retired, my father almost always accompanied my mother whenever she drove anywhere, even if he had no reason to go along. If she were going to the beauty parlor, he'd sit in the car and read, or go take a stroll or, if it was summer, have her keep the engine running so he could listen to the Cubs game on the radio. In the evening, then, when I'd stop by, he'd explain: 'The Cubs lost again. The millionaire on second base made a bad throw to the millionaire on first base, so the multimillionaire on third base scored.'
If she were going to the grocery store, he would go along to carry the bags out -- and to make sure she loaded up on ice cream. As I said, he was always the navigator, and once, when he was 95 and she was 88 and still driving, he said to me, 'Do you want to know the secret of a long life?'
'I guess so,' I said, knowing it probably would be something bizarre.
'No left turns,' he said.
'What?' I asked.
'No left turns,' he repeated. 'Several years ago, your mother and I read an article that said most accidents that old people are in happen when they turn left in front of oncoming traffic.
As you get older, your eyesight worsens, and you can lose your depth perception, it said. So your mother and I decided never again to make a left turn.'
'What?' I said again.
'No left turns,' he said. 'Think about it. Three rights are the same as a left, and that's a lot safer. So we always make three rights.'
'You're kidding!' I said, and I turned to my mother for support 'No,' she said, 'your father is right We make three rights. It works.' But then she added: 'Except when your father loses count.'
I was driving at the time, and I almost drove off the road as I started laughing.
'Loses count?' I asked.
'Yes,' my father admitted, 'that sometimes happens. But it's not a problem. You just make seven rights, and you're okay again.'
I couldn't resist. 'Do you ever go for 11?' I asked.
'No,' he said ' If we miss it at seven, we just come home and call it a bad day. Besides, nothing in life is so important it can't be put off another day or another week.'
My mother was never in an accident, but one evening she handed me her car keys and said she had decided to quit driving. That was in 1999, when she was 90. She lived four more years, until 2003. My father died the next year, at 102.
They both died in the bungalow they had moved into in 1937 and bought a few years later for $3,000. (Sixty years later, my brother and I paid $8,000 to have a shower put in the tiny bathroom -- the house had never had one. My father would have died then and there if he knew the shower cost nearly three times what he paid for the house.)
He continued to walk daily -- he had me get him a treadmill when he was 101 because he was afraid he'd fall on the icy sidewalks but wanted to keep exercising -- and he was of sound mind and sound body until the moment he died.
One September afternoon in 2004, he and my son went with me when I had to give a talk in a neighboring town, and it was clear to all three of us that he was wearing out, though we had the usual wide-ranging conversation about politics and newspapers and things in the news.
A few weeks earlier, he had told my son, 'You know, Mike, the first hundred years are a lot easier than the second hundred.' At one point in our drive that Saturday, he said, 'You know, I'm probably not going to live much longer.'
'You're probably right,' I said.
'Why would you say that?' He countered, somewhat irritated.
'Because you're 102 years old,' I said.
'Yes,' he said, 'you're right.' He stayed in bed all the next day.
That night, I suggested to my son and daughter that we sit up with him through the night.
He appreciated it, he said, though at one point, apparently seeing us look gloomy, he said:
'I would like to make an announcement. No one in this room is dead yet.'
An hour or so later, he spoke his last words:
'I want you to know,' he said, clearly and lucidly, 'that I am in no pain. I am very comfortable. And I have had as happy a life as anyone on this earth could ever have.'
A short time later, he died.
I miss him a lot, and I think about him a lot. I've wondered now and then how it was that my family and I were so lucky that he lived so long.
I can't figure out if it was because he walked through life, Or because he quit making left turns.
Life is too short to wake up with regrets. So love the people who treat you right. Forget about those who don't. Believe everything happens for a reason. If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would most likely be worth it.'
This email was cleaned by emailStripper, available for free from http://www.papercut.biz/emailStripper.htm
It is well worth reading and a few good chuckles are guaranteed.
----------------------
My father never drove a car. Well, that's not quite right. I should say I never saw him drive a car. He quit driving in 1927, when he was 25 years old, and the last car he drove was a 1926 Whippet. 'In those days,' he told me when he was in his 90s, 'to drive a car you had to do things with your hands, and do things with your feet, and look every which way, and I decided you could walk through life and enjoy it or drive through life and miss it.'
At which point my mother, a sometimes salty Irishwoman, chimed in: 'Oh, bull----!' she said. 'He hit a horse.'
'Well,' my father said, 'there was that, too.'
So my brother and I grew up in a household without a car. The neighbors all had cars. The Kollingses next door had a green 1941 Dodge, the VanLaninghams across the street, a gray 1936 Plymouth, the Hopsons two doors down, a black 1941 Ford -- but we had none. My father, a newspaperman in Des Moines , would take the streetcar to work and, often as not, walk the 3 miles home. If he took the streetcar home, my mother, brother and I would walk the three blocks to the streetcar stop, meet him and walk home together. My brother, David, was born in 1935, and I was born in 1938, and sometimes, at dinner, we'd ask how come all the neighbors had cars but we had none. 'No one in the family drives,' my mother would explain, and that was that.
But, sometimes, my father would say, 'But as soon as one of you boys turns 16, we'll get one.' It was as if he wasn't sure which one of us would turn 16 first.
But, sure enough, my brother turned 16 before I did, so in 1951 my parents bought a used 1950 Chevrolet from a friend who ran the parts department at a Chevy dealership downtown.
It was a four-door, white model, stick shift, fender skirts,loaded with everything, and since my parents didn't drive, it more or less became my brother's car
Having a car but not being able to drive didn't bother my father, but it didn't make sense to my mother. So in 1952, when she was 43 years old, she asked a friend to teach her to drive. She learned in a nearby cemetery, the place where I learned to drive the following year and where, a generation later, I took my two sons to practice driving. The cemetery probably was my father's idea. 'Who can your mother hurt in the cemetery?' I remember him saying more than once.
For the next 45 years or so, until she was 90, my mother was the driver in the family. Neither she nor my father had any sense of direction, but he loaded up on maps -- though they seldom left the city limits -- and appointed himself navigator. It seemed to work.
Still, they both continued to walk a lot. My mother was a devout Catholic, and my father an equally devout agnostic, an arrangement that didn't seem to bother either of them through their 75 years of marriage.
(Yes, 75 years, and they were deeply in love the entire time.)
He retired when he was 70, and nearly every morning for the next 20 years or so, he would walk with her the mile to St. Augustine 's Church. She would walk down and sit in thefront pew, and he would wait in the back until he saw which of the parish's two priests was on duty that morning. If it was the pastor, my father then would go out and take a 2-mile walk, meeting my mother at the end of the service and walking her home.
If it was the assistant pastor, he'd take just a 1-mile walk and then head back to the church. He called the priests "Father Fast" and "Father Slow."
After he retired, my father almost always accompanied my mother whenever she drove anywhere, even if he had no reason to go along. If she were going to the beauty parlor, he'd sit in the car and read, or go take a stroll or, if it was summer, have her keep the engine running so he could listen to the Cubs game on the radio. In the evening, then, when I'd stop by, he'd explain: 'The Cubs lost again. The millionaire on second base made a bad throw to the millionaire on first base, so the multimillionaire on third base scored.'
If she were going to the grocery store, he would go along to carry the bags out -- and to make sure she loaded up on ice cream. As I said, he was always the navigator, and once, when he was 95 and she was 88 and still driving, he said to me, 'Do you want to know the secret of a long life?'
'I guess so,' I said, knowing it probably would be something bizarre.
'No left turns,' he said.
'What?' I asked.
'No left turns,' he repeated. 'Several years ago, your mother and I read an article that said most accidents that old people are in happen when they turn left in front of oncoming traffic.
As you get older, your eyesight worsens, and you can lose your depth perception, it said. So your mother and I decided never again to make a left turn.'
'What?' I said again.
'No left turns,' he said. 'Think about it. Three rights are the same as a left, and that's a lot safer. So we always make three rights.'
'You're kidding!' I said, and I turned to my mother for support 'No,' she said, 'your father is right We make three rights. It works.' But then she added: 'Except when your father loses count.'
I was driving at the time, and I almost drove off the road as I started laughing.
'Loses count?' I asked.
'Yes,' my father admitted, 'that sometimes happens. But it's not a problem. You just make seven rights, and you're okay again.'
I couldn't resist. 'Do you ever go for 11?' I asked.
'No,' he said ' If we miss it at seven, we just come home and call it a bad day. Besides, nothing in life is so important it can't be put off another day or another week.'
My mother was never in an accident, but one evening she handed me her car keys and said she had decided to quit driving. That was in 1999, when she was 90. She lived four more years, until 2003. My father died the next year, at 102.
They both died in the bungalow they had moved into in 1937 and bought a few years later for $3,000. (Sixty years later, my brother and I paid $8,000 to have a shower put in the tiny bathroom -- the house had never had one. My father would have died then and there if he knew the shower cost nearly three times what he paid for the house.)
He continued to walk daily -- he had me get him a treadmill when he was 101 because he was afraid he'd fall on the icy sidewalks but wanted to keep exercising -- and he was of sound mind and sound body until the moment he died.
One September afternoon in 2004, he and my son went with me when I had to give a talk in a neighboring town, and it was clear to all three of us that he was wearing out, though we had the usual wide-ranging conversation about politics and newspapers and things in the news.
A few weeks earlier, he had told my son, 'You know, Mike, the first hundred years are a lot easier than the second hundred.' At one point in our drive that Saturday, he said, 'You know, I'm probably not going to live much longer.'
'You're probably right,' I said.
'Why would you say that?' He countered, somewhat irritated.
'Because you're 102 years old,' I said.
'Yes,' he said, 'you're right.' He stayed in bed all the next day.
That night, I suggested to my son and daughter that we sit up with him through the night.
He appreciated it, he said, though at one point, apparently seeing us look gloomy, he said:
'I would like to make an announcement. No one in this room is dead yet.'
An hour or so later, he spoke his last words:
'I want you to know,' he said, clearly and lucidly, 'that I am in no pain. I am very comfortable. And I have had as happy a life as anyone on this earth could ever have.'
A short time later, he died.
I miss him a lot, and I think about him a lot. I've wondered now and then how it was that my family and I were so lucky that he lived so long.
I can't figure out if it was because he walked through life, Or because he quit making left turns.
Life is too short to wake up with regrets. So love the people who treat you right. Forget about those who don't. Believe everything happens for a reason. If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would most likely be worth it.'
This email was cleaned by emailStripper, available for free from http://www.papercut.biz/emailStripper.htm
Interests and concerns of this blogger
This sinner doesn't deserve all of the good that has come to Jeanie and me in our lives. Yes, Jeanie has had a lot of pain, in addition to me, in her osteoarthritis and we both take many pills each day, but the pills are largely good to us in extending our lives.
Family means so much as friends also do. In looking over the list of frequencies for my posts in this blog, it is easy to see that important things must be politics, country, patriotism, etc. I post many of the forwards from friends and I am grateful for each of those posts. Those close to me know that Kentucky basketball, softball, and my writings have added much enjoyment to this elder's life. It surprises me that they are down the posting list a bit, but, at the same time, I realize that not all share those interests of mine. I hope that concerns for our country and Christianity do matter to those who come to the blog and I suspect they do to most of you who read the blog.
I have great concerns for America and our directions in taking God out of so much where He has been so important to our country in the past. I have become more conservative throughout my life and have the concern that even our rights in worshipping God can be taken away. I didn't think that could ever occur in America. It has sneaked up on us and that truly bothers me.
Our country has freely accepted so many foreigners, and many too freely recently. Assimilation to this country's laws should be expected of all who enter.
Family means so much as friends also do. In looking over the list of frequencies for my posts in this blog, it is easy to see that important things must be politics, country, patriotism, etc. I post many of the forwards from friends and I am grateful for each of those posts. Those close to me know that Kentucky basketball, softball, and my writings have added much enjoyment to this elder's life. It surprises me that they are down the posting list a bit, but, at the same time, I realize that not all share those interests of mine. I hope that concerns for our country and Christianity do matter to those who come to the blog and I suspect they do to most of you who read the blog.
I have great concerns for America and our directions in taking God out of so much where He has been so important to our country in the past. I have become more conservative throughout my life and have the concern that even our rights in worshipping God can be taken away. I didn't think that could ever occur in America. It has sneaked up on us and that truly bothers me.
Our country has freely accepted so many foreigners, and many too freely recently. Assimilation to this country's laws should be expected of all who enter.
Thanks Marge Rusnak!
Subj: Fwd: What Happens in Heaven
WHAT HAPPENS IN HEAVEN
I dreamt that I went to Heaven and an angel was showing me around. We
walked side-by-side inside a large workroom filled with angels. My angel guide
stopped in front of the first section and said, ' This is the Receiving
Section... Here, all petitions to God said in prayer are received. '
I looked around in this area, and it was terribly busy with so many angels
sorting out petitions written on voluminous paper sheets and scraps from
people all over the world.
Then we moved on down a long corridor until we reached the second section.
The angel then said to me, ' This is the Packaging and Delivery Section.
Here, the graces and blessings the people asked for are processed and
delivered to the living persons who asked for them. ' I noticed again how busy
it was there. There were many angels working hard at that station, since so
many blessings had been requested and were being packaged for delivery to
Earth.
Finally at the farthest end of the long corridor we stopped at the door of
a very small station. To my great surprise, only one angel was seated ther
e, idly doing nothing. ' This is the Acknowledgment Section, ' my angel
friend quietly admitted to me. He seemed embarrassed ' How is it that there
is no work going on here? ' I asked.
'So sad, ' the angel sighed. ' After people receive the blessings that
they asked for, very few send back acknowledgments. '
'How does one acknowledge God 's blessings? ' I asked.
'Simple, ' the angel answered. Just say, ' Thank you, Lord. '
'What blessings should they acknowledge? ' I asked.
'If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof
overhead and a place to sleep you are richer than 75% of this world. If you have
money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish, you are
among the top 8% of the world 's wealthy. '
'And if you get this on your own computer, you are part of the 1% in the
world who has that opportunity. '
'If you woke up this morning with more health than illness ... You are
more blessed than the many who will not even survive this day. '
'If you have never experienced the fear in battle, the loneliness of
imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation ... You are ahead
of 700 million people in the world. '
'If you can attend a church without the fear of harassment, arrest,
torture or death you are envied by, and more blessed than, three billion people
in the world. '
'If your parents are still alive and still married ...you are very rare.'
'If you can hold your head up and smile, you are not the norm, you 're
unique to all those in doubt and despair. '
Ok, what now? How can I start?
If you can read this message, you just received a double blessing in that
someone was thinking of you as very special and you are more blessed than
over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.
Have a good day, count your blessings, and if you care to, pass this along
to remind everyone else how blessed we all are.
ATTN: Acknowledge Dept.
'Thank you Lord, for giving me the ability to share this message and for
giving me so many wonderful people with whom to share it. '
If you have read this far, and are thankful for all that you have been
blessed with, how can you not send it on? I thank God for everything,
especially all my family and friends!!
WHAT HAPPENS IN HEAVEN
I dreamt that I went to Heaven and an angel was showing me around. We
walked side-by-side inside a large workroom filled with angels. My angel guide
stopped in front of the first section and said, ' This is the Receiving
Section... Here, all petitions to God said in prayer are received. '
I looked around in this area, and it was terribly busy with so many angels
sorting out petitions written on voluminous paper sheets and scraps from
people all over the world.
Then we moved on down a long corridor until we reached the second section.
The angel then said to me, ' This is the Packaging and Delivery Section.
Here, the graces and blessings the people asked for are processed and
delivered to the living persons who asked for them. ' I noticed again how busy
it was there. There were many angels working hard at that station, since so
many blessings had been requested and were being packaged for delivery to
Earth.
Finally at the farthest end of the long corridor we stopped at the door of
a very small station. To my great surprise, only one angel was seated ther
e, idly doing nothing. ' This is the Acknowledgment Section, ' my angel
friend quietly admitted to me. He seemed embarrassed ' How is it that there
is no work going on here? ' I asked.
'So sad, ' the angel sighed. ' After people receive the blessings that
they asked for, very few send back acknowledgments. '
'How does one acknowledge God 's blessings? ' I asked.
'Simple, ' the angel answered. Just say, ' Thank you, Lord. '
'What blessings should they acknowledge? ' I asked.
'If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof
overhead and a place to sleep you are richer than 75% of this world. If you have
money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish, you are
among the top 8% of the world 's wealthy. '
'And if you get this on your own computer, you are part of the 1% in the
world who has that opportunity. '
'If you woke up this morning with more health than illness ... You are
more blessed than the many who will not even survive this day. '
'If you have never experienced the fear in battle, the loneliness of
imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation ... You are ahead
of 700 million people in the world. '
'If you can attend a church without the fear of harassment, arrest,
torture or death you are envied by, and more blessed than, three billion people
in the world. '
'If your parents are still alive and still married ...you are very rare.'
'If you can hold your head up and smile, you are not the norm, you 're
unique to all those in doubt and despair. '
Ok, what now? How can I start?
If you can read this message, you just received a double blessing in that
someone was thinking of you as very special and you are more blessed than
over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.
Have a good day, count your blessings, and if you care to, pass this along
to remind everyone else how blessed we all are.
ATTN: Acknowledge Dept.
'Thank you Lord, for giving me the ability to share this message and for
giving me so many wonderful people with whom to share it. '
If you have read this far, and are thankful for all that you have been
blessed with, how can you not send it on? I thank God for everything,
especially all my family and friends!!
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Thanks Ralph.
http://www.gopusa.com/images/gopusa_logo_sm.gif
Why We're Talking About Race -- Again
By Star Parker
September 21, 2009
The Democrats have lost the health care debate.
For months now, polls have been showing that Americans don't want the
massive new government controls, regulations, taxes, and spending that
Democrats are pushing.
Latest Gallup polling shows 60 percent saying that President Barack Obama's
proposal will not expand health coverage without raising taxes on middle
class Americans and without affecting the current quality of health care.
Forty three percent approve of how Obama is handling health care and 52
percent disapprove.
You would be hard pressed to find a Democrat or Republican who does not
agree that we can improve how we deliver health care.
So the logical conclusion we'd expect now from well intentioned people would
be that we go back to square one. We do what Obama promised but never did --
have a truly open, bi-partisan discussion, with all ideas are on the table,
to generate the best possible product for the American people.
Why is this not happening? Because it's not about healthcare. It's about
ideology.
Despite claims from our Democrat administration that it wants civility, it
does not. It wants control.
This nation is already torn apart ideologically. In the last four months
we've witnessed two cold-blooded ideologically motivated murders. An
abortion doctor shot in a church and a pro-life demonstrator murdered in a
drive-by shooting in front of a school.
There are fewer and fewer "self evident truths" about which we all agree.
The current charade to paint ideological differences with our president as
racially motivated dangerously pours gasoline on the burning embers of our
differences.
But this is what Democrats want. They have lost the health-care debate on
substance, so they want to make it emotional. They want to intimidate. And
nothing intimidates and polarizes like race.
Months ago they started the process of getting socialized medicine -- taking
over one sixth of the American economy -- passed in a few short weeks. The
deadlines and breathlessness were because they knew that if Americans got a
chance to understand what they were trying to do there would be push back.
Exactly what has happened.
When the President spoke recently before the joint session of Congress, he
finished by asking that we replace "acrimony with civility." But in this
same speech he characterized his opposition as fomenting a "partisan
spectacle," of "scare tactics" and of "wild claims about a government
takeover of health care."
Our smooth talking President reduced those who disagree with him to a bunch
of clowns, incorporated not a single major reform idea coming from the
opposition, and then accused Republicans of stifling "honest debate."
Is it any wonder that every freedom loving American is at wits end? And that
Congressman Joe Wilson lost it when he yelled out "You lie."
To demonstrate the Obama team's interest in civility, immediately after the
speech, Rahm Emanuel, Obama's foul-mouthed, take-no-prisoners chief of
staff, "charged over to three Republicans," as reported by the Wall St.
Journal, "demanding in a profanity-laced tirade that they force Mr. Wilson
to apologize."
Cong. Jim Clyburn, third ranking House Democrat, and black caucus member,
took the lead in getting a House vote to formally reprimand Wilson.
According to Clyburn, "This is about the rules of the House."
But what rules does Clyburn really care about?
When asked in an interview where the Constitution gives the federal
government authority to regulate health care delivery, Clyburn replied,
"There's nothing in the Constitution that says that the federal government
has anything to do with most of the stuff we do."
Finally an honest Democrat. Clyburn pulled no punches that our Constitution,
which is the basis of his authority, is irrelevant to him. That it's all
about political thuggery.
Which is why we're now talking about race instead of health care.
---
Star Parker is an author and president of CURE, Coalition on Urban Renewal
and Education (www.urbancure.org). She can be reached at
parker(at)urbancure.org
Why We're Talking About Race -- Again
By Star Parker
September 21, 2009
The Democrats have lost the health care debate.
For months now, polls have been showing that Americans don't want the
massive new government controls, regulations, taxes, and spending that
Democrats are pushing.
Latest Gallup polling shows 60 percent saying that President Barack Obama's
proposal will not expand health coverage without raising taxes on middle
class Americans and without affecting the current quality of health care.
Forty three percent approve of how Obama is handling health care and 52
percent disapprove.
You would be hard pressed to find a Democrat or Republican who does not
agree that we can improve how we deliver health care.
So the logical conclusion we'd expect now from well intentioned people would
be that we go back to square one. We do what Obama promised but never did --
have a truly open, bi-partisan discussion, with all ideas are on the table,
to generate the best possible product for the American people.
Why is this not happening? Because it's not about healthcare. It's about
ideology.
Despite claims from our Democrat administration that it wants civility, it
does not. It wants control.
This nation is already torn apart ideologically. In the last four months
we've witnessed two cold-blooded ideologically motivated murders. An
abortion doctor shot in a church and a pro-life demonstrator murdered in a
drive-by shooting in front of a school.
There are fewer and fewer "self evident truths" about which we all agree.
The current charade to paint ideological differences with our president as
racially motivated dangerously pours gasoline on the burning embers of our
differences.
But this is what Democrats want. They have lost the health-care debate on
substance, so they want to make it emotional. They want to intimidate. And
nothing intimidates and polarizes like race.
Months ago they started the process of getting socialized medicine -- taking
over one sixth of the American economy -- passed in a few short weeks. The
deadlines and breathlessness were because they knew that if Americans got a
chance to understand what they were trying to do there would be push back.
Exactly what has happened.
When the President spoke recently before the joint session of Congress, he
finished by asking that we replace "acrimony with civility." But in this
same speech he characterized his opposition as fomenting a "partisan
spectacle," of "scare tactics" and of "wild claims about a government
takeover of health care."
Our smooth talking President reduced those who disagree with him to a bunch
of clowns, incorporated not a single major reform idea coming from the
opposition, and then accused Republicans of stifling "honest debate."
Is it any wonder that every freedom loving American is at wits end? And that
Congressman Joe Wilson lost it when he yelled out "You lie."
To demonstrate the Obama team's interest in civility, immediately after the
speech, Rahm Emanuel, Obama's foul-mouthed, take-no-prisoners chief of
staff, "charged over to three Republicans," as reported by the Wall St.
Journal, "demanding in a profanity-laced tirade that they force Mr. Wilson
to apologize."
Cong. Jim Clyburn, third ranking House Democrat, and black caucus member,
took the lead in getting a House vote to formally reprimand Wilson.
According to Clyburn, "This is about the rules of the House."
But what rules does Clyburn really care about?
When asked in an interview where the Constitution gives the federal
government authority to regulate health care delivery, Clyburn replied,
"There's nothing in the Constitution that says that the federal government
has anything to do with most of the stuff we do."
Finally an honest Democrat. Clyburn pulled no punches that our Constitution,
which is the basis of his authority, is irrelevant to him. That it's all
about political thuggery.
Which is why we're now talking about race instead of health care.
---
Star Parker is an author and president of CURE, Coalition on Urban Renewal
and Education (www.urbancure.org). She can be reached at
parker(at)urbancure.org
Must read fron Arkansas- Ralph Hovermale
September 24, 2009
Luke Matheson
ArkansasVarsity.com
Publisher
Thamail Morgan took the kickoff and headed up the field.
He was at the 20 ... 30 ... 40
He had been avoiding, dodging or just simply running through tacklers on the way. Football always had come easily for Morgan. This game was no different. By the time he hit midfield, only open space was ahead of him. The two-time Arkansas all-state selection was headed for a touchdown.
40 ... 30 ... 20
He glanced at the clock and saw the final seconds ticking away. He realized his team, Cave City, was on the way to a victory over Yellville-Summit, comfortably ahead, 34-16. He also realized two other things: This wasn't an ordinary game. And he wasn't the same Thamail Morgan.
When he reached the 2, he stopped. He took a few steps back and took a knee at the 5-yard line.
******
Yelleville-Summit is a co-op program, a combination of two small rural schools in the northern part of Arkansas, near the Missouri border. Combining the schools allows them to field a football team. But even then, the squad is so small that coach Calvin Mallett has to bring extra uniforms in case a lineman gets hurt and someone needs to fill in.
On Sept. 11, before a game with Salem, the schools came together for a pep rally. Afterward, four of the players piled into the bed of Kymball Duffy's truck to head to his house for a pre-game meal.
According to Marion County Sheriff Roger Vickers, this is what happened next.
As Duffy came over a hill, he quickly came upon a brush pile in the road. Duffy swerved into the other side of the road, attempting to avoid it. He lost control of the truck, sending it into a tumble.
The four players in the back - whose names are not being released - were thrown from the vehicle. Miraculously, three of the players in the back suffered only minor injuries. A fourth remains in the hospital but appears to be headed for recovery. Duffy was killed at the scene.
The game with Salem was cancelled.
The town held memorial services for Duffy, then decided they needed to continue the season as part of the healing process.
Before taking on Cave City, the most seriously injured of the four players in the back of the truck, spoke to the team from his hospital bed.
Players from Yellville-Summit and Cave City met at midfield before the game for a moment of remembrance. Players on both teams were a No. 72 decal - Duffy's number - on their helmet.
The game began and Cave City quickly scored. Minutes later, it scored again. And again. All hope for a storybook ending appeared lost.
******
Thamail Morgan is the type of player who can dominate a high school game. On every play.
Last year, playing for Newport in a state playoff game against Heber Springs, he had 15 tackles, a sack and two forced fumbles on defense. He had 145 yards receiving and two touchdowns on offense.
He was coveted by most Division I programs in the South. Then it all changed.
In January, he violated an unspecified school rule that banned him from athletics for a year. Morgan would be eligible for basketball during his senior season but not football.
A year away from football would hurt his chances of gaining a scholarship, so - after considering a number of options - he transferred roughly 40 miles away to Cave City. His scholarship offers did not travel with him.
"Before I screwed up and got myself into trouble, I had some schools like Arkansas, Florida State, Ole Miss, and some other big schools looking at me,'' he said. "Now they are not looking at me, but I have no one to blame but myself for that. Hopefully I can get on someone's radar, even if it is a lower level D-1 or D-2 school."
Cave City coach Jon Bradley was willing to take a chance on Morgan. But only if he met certain conditions. He not only is required to attend extra weight lifting and conditioning exercises, he is required to participate in after-school activities with a local church and meet with a pastor on a regular basis for counseling.
"Everyone makes mistakes," Bradley said. "Thamail made some mistakes that did not allow him to play football anymore at Newport, and we knew what those mistakes were when he came here. I sat him down and talked to him, and let him know I was willing to give him a chance, but there were certain things that he would have to do in order to play for our program.
"So far, he has accomplished, and continues to do everything he has been asked to do, and then some. He has transitioned well and the kids here have accepted him. He is doing well in class, and is a leader on the football field and is a great athlete. We feel fortunate to have him."
******
Bradley said he didn't get word the game with Yellville-Summit was going to be played until Tuesday. He then wondered all week how it would play out.
"I did not know what to expect due to the tragedy,'' he said. "You go into the game wanting to win, but then, you feel bad doing it. When we went up 21-0 in the first quarter, I just can't explain how I felt. The atmosphere was so weird. I just can't explain it."
His players sensed it too.
"They told me on the sidelines that Yellville-Summit was not into it and they did not want to pad stats or run up the score,'' he said. "At that time, I started substituting our kids in and out of the game."
At this point, what the game represented became clear to Bradley.
"Everyone was glad that they were out there playing, getting some sort of return to normalcy,'' he said. "But everyone was going to be glad when it was over."
Yellville-Summit eventually scored in the second quarter, after Cave City had replaced many of its regulars. Bradley did not have a problem with that.
"I talked with Coach Mallet earlier in the week and before the game," Bradley said. "He let me know that if the game was to get out of hand, he simply did not have the players to substitute due to his numbers. So, I knew that when I pulled our guys, that there was a chance they would score."
It was 28-8 at halftime. Then 34-8 at the end of three quarters. Yelleville-Summit scored a second time with little time left to make it 34-16.
They had to kick off, sending a line drive that bounced its way to the back. To Morgan.
"We didn't even think they would kick off," Bradley said. "And we had him (Morgan) all the way back. It was our top return team, but we only have one return team."
What he did next surprised Bradley.
"I did not tell him to kneel down, he did it on his own," Bradley said. "I did not expect them to kick it to him. I figured they would kick away, because he has the ability to break away. I did not know that he was going to do what he did. He broke tackles, ran sideline to sideline, and got to the 2, and just stopped. That is when he backed up and took a knee on the 5-yard line."
******
Morgan did not do this completely on his own.
"We were on the sidelines yelling for him not to score," Bradley said. "Some of the players on the field were saying it, too. But I'm not sure how much he could have heard all of it."
He heard it, Morgan admitted. But he didn't need to.
"Before the game, we as a team talked about being classy,'' he said. "We did not want to come out in a game like this and not show any class.
"As I was running, some of my teammates told me not to score, and I knew that scoring was not the right thing to do."
He was glad to be a part of what happened.
"I just want to thank my teammates for not only being classy all night, but pushing me to be classy as well,'' he said.
The gesture was well received.
"We weren't sure how gloomy they would be before the game,'' Morgan said. "They had gloom, but it was not as bad as we thought. We met before the game, and they told us that they did not want us to feel sorry for them, and they did not want us to back off just because of what happened. They wanted us to play them like we would have if Duffy has still been there with them, so we did.
"After the game, they complimented us, and even thanked us for the way that we played them. They are some really cool cats, and I wish them the best of luck with their healing process and the rest of their season. I hope they make the playoffs."
******
What becomes of the rest of Morgan's football career remains to be seen.
He is getting interest from Arkansas State and Central Arkansas. Bigger schools such as Southern Miss and Texas Tech are starting to re-enter the picture.
At 6-1, 195 with a 4.5 time in the 40, there's no doubt he can play. It's the other issues that are a concern. Bradley is doing his best to make those go away.
"I send things out to places and I tell schools, he's had some off the field issues, but if you're interested, please call me because it's not near as bad as what it sounds,'' Bradley said. "They assume his grades are bad or that he's done something really, really bad. Everyone deserves a second chance. He's doing the right thing."
Bradley said he and Morgan have had many talks, but none of them have been about behavior.
"He's not a discipline problem at all,'' Bradley said. "His grades are getting better. He'll have an opportunity to play. He's too good of an athlete and too good of a young man right now."
Bradley admitted he had concerns at the beginning but they have proven to be unfounded.
"I've never seen anything negative out of the kid,'' he said. "He's the most polite kid. He works hard. He knows he has one shot to get his education.
"He's showing people he's doing the right thing."
That was never more evident as when he kneeled down on the field.
Luke Matheson is the Publisher for ArkansasVarsity.com. Luke Matheson can be reached at Luke@ArkansasVarsity.com.
Luke Matheson
ArkansasVarsity.com
Publisher
Thamail Morgan took the kickoff and headed up the field.
He was at the 20 ... 30 ... 40
He had been avoiding, dodging or just simply running through tacklers on the way. Football always had come easily for Morgan. This game was no different. By the time he hit midfield, only open space was ahead of him. The two-time Arkansas all-state selection was headed for a touchdown.
40 ... 30 ... 20
He glanced at the clock and saw the final seconds ticking away. He realized his team, Cave City, was on the way to a victory over Yellville-Summit, comfortably ahead, 34-16. He also realized two other things: This wasn't an ordinary game. And he wasn't the same Thamail Morgan.
When he reached the 2, he stopped. He took a few steps back and took a knee at the 5-yard line.
******
Yelleville-Summit is a co-op program, a combination of two small rural schools in the northern part of Arkansas, near the Missouri border. Combining the schools allows them to field a football team. But even then, the squad is so small that coach Calvin Mallett has to bring extra uniforms in case a lineman gets hurt and someone needs to fill in.
On Sept. 11, before a game with Salem, the schools came together for a pep rally. Afterward, four of the players piled into the bed of Kymball Duffy's truck to head to his house for a pre-game meal.
According to Marion County Sheriff Roger Vickers, this is what happened next.
As Duffy came over a hill, he quickly came upon a brush pile in the road. Duffy swerved into the other side of the road, attempting to avoid it. He lost control of the truck, sending it into a tumble.
The four players in the back - whose names are not being released - were thrown from the vehicle. Miraculously, three of the players in the back suffered only minor injuries. A fourth remains in the hospital but appears to be headed for recovery. Duffy was killed at the scene.
The game with Salem was cancelled.
The town held memorial services for Duffy, then decided they needed to continue the season as part of the healing process.
Before taking on Cave City, the most seriously injured of the four players in the back of the truck, spoke to the team from his hospital bed.
Players from Yellville-Summit and Cave City met at midfield before the game for a moment of remembrance. Players on both teams were a No. 72 decal - Duffy's number - on their helmet.
The game began and Cave City quickly scored. Minutes later, it scored again. And again. All hope for a storybook ending appeared lost.
******
Thamail Morgan is the type of player who can dominate a high school game. On every play.
Last year, playing for Newport in a state playoff game against Heber Springs, he had 15 tackles, a sack and two forced fumbles on defense. He had 145 yards receiving and two touchdowns on offense.
He was coveted by most Division I programs in the South. Then it all changed.
In January, he violated an unspecified school rule that banned him from athletics for a year. Morgan would be eligible for basketball during his senior season but not football.
A year away from football would hurt his chances of gaining a scholarship, so - after considering a number of options - he transferred roughly 40 miles away to Cave City. His scholarship offers did not travel with him.
"Before I screwed up and got myself into trouble, I had some schools like Arkansas, Florida State, Ole Miss, and some other big schools looking at me,'' he said. "Now they are not looking at me, but I have no one to blame but myself for that. Hopefully I can get on someone's radar, even if it is a lower level D-1 or D-2 school."
Cave City coach Jon Bradley was willing to take a chance on Morgan. But only if he met certain conditions. He not only is required to attend extra weight lifting and conditioning exercises, he is required to participate in after-school activities with a local church and meet with a pastor on a regular basis for counseling.
"Everyone makes mistakes," Bradley said. "Thamail made some mistakes that did not allow him to play football anymore at Newport, and we knew what those mistakes were when he came here. I sat him down and talked to him, and let him know I was willing to give him a chance, but there were certain things that he would have to do in order to play for our program.
"So far, he has accomplished, and continues to do everything he has been asked to do, and then some. He has transitioned well and the kids here have accepted him. He is doing well in class, and is a leader on the football field and is a great athlete. We feel fortunate to have him."
******
Bradley said he didn't get word the game with Yellville-Summit was going to be played until Tuesday. He then wondered all week how it would play out.
"I did not know what to expect due to the tragedy,'' he said. "You go into the game wanting to win, but then, you feel bad doing it. When we went up 21-0 in the first quarter, I just can't explain how I felt. The atmosphere was so weird. I just can't explain it."
His players sensed it too.
"They told me on the sidelines that Yellville-Summit was not into it and they did not want to pad stats or run up the score,'' he said. "At that time, I started substituting our kids in and out of the game."
At this point, what the game represented became clear to Bradley.
"Everyone was glad that they were out there playing, getting some sort of return to normalcy,'' he said. "But everyone was going to be glad when it was over."
Yellville-Summit eventually scored in the second quarter, after Cave City had replaced many of its regulars. Bradley did not have a problem with that.
"I talked with Coach Mallet earlier in the week and before the game," Bradley said. "He let me know that if the game was to get out of hand, he simply did not have the players to substitute due to his numbers. So, I knew that when I pulled our guys, that there was a chance they would score."
It was 28-8 at halftime. Then 34-8 at the end of three quarters. Yelleville-Summit scored a second time with little time left to make it 34-16.
They had to kick off, sending a line drive that bounced its way to the back. To Morgan.
"We didn't even think they would kick off," Bradley said. "And we had him (Morgan) all the way back. It was our top return team, but we only have one return team."
What he did next surprised Bradley.
"I did not tell him to kneel down, he did it on his own," Bradley said. "I did not expect them to kick it to him. I figured they would kick away, because he has the ability to break away. I did not know that he was going to do what he did. He broke tackles, ran sideline to sideline, and got to the 2, and just stopped. That is when he backed up and took a knee on the 5-yard line."
******
Morgan did not do this completely on his own.
"We were on the sidelines yelling for him not to score," Bradley said. "Some of the players on the field were saying it, too. But I'm not sure how much he could have heard all of it."
He heard it, Morgan admitted. But he didn't need to.
"Before the game, we as a team talked about being classy,'' he said. "We did not want to come out in a game like this and not show any class.
"As I was running, some of my teammates told me not to score, and I knew that scoring was not the right thing to do."
He was glad to be a part of what happened.
"I just want to thank my teammates for not only being classy all night, but pushing me to be classy as well,'' he said.
The gesture was well received.
"We weren't sure how gloomy they would be before the game,'' Morgan said. "They had gloom, but it was not as bad as we thought. We met before the game, and they told us that they did not want us to feel sorry for them, and they did not want us to back off just because of what happened. They wanted us to play them like we would have if Duffy has still been there with them, so we did.
"After the game, they complimented us, and even thanked us for the way that we played them. They are some really cool cats, and I wish them the best of luck with their healing process and the rest of their season. I hope they make the playoffs."
******
What becomes of the rest of Morgan's football career remains to be seen.
He is getting interest from Arkansas State and Central Arkansas. Bigger schools such as Southern Miss and Texas Tech are starting to re-enter the picture.
At 6-1, 195 with a 4.5 time in the 40, there's no doubt he can play. It's the other issues that are a concern. Bradley is doing his best to make those go away.
"I send things out to places and I tell schools, he's had some off the field issues, but if you're interested, please call me because it's not near as bad as what it sounds,'' Bradley said. "They assume his grades are bad or that he's done something really, really bad. Everyone deserves a second chance. He's doing the right thing."
Bradley said he and Morgan have had many talks, but none of them have been about behavior.
"He's not a discipline problem at all,'' Bradley said. "His grades are getting better. He'll have an opportunity to play. He's too good of an athlete and too good of a young man right now."
Bradley admitted he had concerns at the beginning but they have proven to be unfounded.
"I've never seen anything negative out of the kid,'' he said. "He's the most polite kid. He works hard. He knows he has one shot to get his education.
"He's showing people he's doing the right thing."
That was never more evident as when he kneeled down on the field.
Luke Matheson is the Publisher for ArkansasVarsity.com. Luke Matheson can be reached at Luke@ArkansasVarsity.com.
Glenn Beck and David Horowitz
Glenn Beck is detestable to little o.
David Horowitz' parents were avowed communists and David was a radical activist of earlier years. David has become a conservative jewish man.
David told Glenn that radicals seek one thing above all and that is POWER.
The radicals are now basking in the power of this narcissistic PUSA.
David Horowitz' parents were avowed communists and David was a radical activist of earlier years. David has become a conservative jewish man.
David told Glenn that radicals seek one thing above all and that is POWER.
The radicals are now basking in the power of this narcissistic PUSA.
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