On Government and Related Foolishness

Our friends in Washington DC are fighting each other again.  The Democrats say they will never agree to fund a wall along the border with Mexico.  President Trump says he will not sign legislation into law to provide money for the US Government operate on, unless it includes funding to build the wall.  The Democrats are accusing the Republicans of wanting to “shut down” the government.  President Trump says that he will be “proud” to shut down the government if that is what is necessary to provide for the national defense and the safety and security of the American people.

To set the record straight, nobody can shut down the entire United States Government.  Some spending is mandated by law, and it will continue.  Further, the last time the government shut down, during the Obama Administration, NOBODY MISSED IT!

So, what are they all afraid of?  It seems to me that the biggest favor our “elected representatives” could do for us might be to stop passing laws and spending money unnecessarily … even if just for a little while.

Following, you will find a few acerbic, funny, and thought provoking quotes about government:

Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for.

Will Rogers

I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.

Will Rogers

Giving money and power to government

is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.

P. J. O'Rourke

Patriotism is supporting your country all the time,

and your government when it deserves it.

Mark Twain

Government's first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives.

Ronald Reagan

Government exists to protect us from each other.
Where government has gone beyond its limits
is in deciding to protect us from ourselves.

Ronald Reagan

Democracy substitutes election by the incompetent many

for appointment by the corrupt few.

George Bernard Shaw

The philosophy of the school room in one generation

will be the philosophy of government in the next.

Abraham Lincoln

I have embraced crying mothers who have lost their children because our politicians put their personal agendas before the national good. I have no patience for injustice, no tolerance for government incompetence, no sympathy for leaders who fail their citizens.

Donald Trump

The best argument against democracy is

a five-minute conversation with the average voter.

 Winston Churchill

Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.

Winston Churchill

The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other peoples' money.

Margaret Thatcher

When there is a lack of honor in government,

the morals of the whole people are poisoned.

Herbert Hoover

My brother Bob doesn't want to be in government - he promised Dad he'd go straight.

John F. Kennedy

The story of Detroit's bankruptcy was simple enough: Allow capitalism to grow the city, campaign against income inequality, tax the job creators until they flee, increase government spending in order to boost employment,

promise generous pension plans to keep people voting for failure.

Rinse, wash and repeat.

Ben Shapiro

Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

Ronald Reagan

In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed;

and in the next place, oblige it to control itself.

Alexander Hamilton

A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul. 

George Bernard Shaw

Democracy is a device that insures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. 

George Bernard Shaw

There are a great many other pointed and inspiring quotes to read at:

https://www.brainyquote.com/search_results?q=government

They include the following:

If men were angels, no government would be necessary.

James Madison

We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be,

we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds,

we shall fight in the fields and in the streets,

we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.

Winston Churchill

I recognize the need for government.  I just wish our friends in Washington, DC would focus on what is good for the country and the people, and not on what may help them get reelected and make them rich.

One last message to the US Congress.  Our recent experience with caravans of persons who are trying to enter the country illegally proves the need for a wall at the border with Mexico.  The wall is not about thwarting or resisting Donald Trump.  It is about protecting the United States of America and its people.

Build the Wall!

Crackdown on Churches in China

As I left my home for church today, I may have been observed by my neighbors, and my sister’s neighbors may have seen me pick her up at her house on the way.  We have a pattern of doing this pretty much every Sunday, and from our dress and the time of day it would not be hard to conclude that we were going to worship services.  We did not, however, have cause to fear that someone might report us.

We did not have to fear that our church might be raided because it was not approved by the government, and that the pastor and others might be arrested, cuffed, and taken to jail.  Our church was not shut down because the pastor refused to allow the government to install surveillance cameras in the church.  We didn’t have to fear that the government might use facial recognition technology to identify us as Christians.

We have not been forced to join an underground church that meets in a different location each Sunday, so that we can worship God in the way that we choose.  Our livelihoods have not been threatened because we go to church, and our property has not been destroyed or confiscated.  We have not been threatened or beaten by government sponsored gangs of thugs, and neither have our family members.

We have not been imprisoned or required to do forced labor.  We have not “disappeared.”  We can freely buy Bibles online or at our favorite bookstore.  We can keep religious literature in our homes and distribute it to persons who are willing to accept it.  We can talk about our Lord to those who are willing to listen.

We can vote for candidates who share our views, and petition our elected representatives.  We can run for office.  When we are harassed, as we sometimes are these days, we can avail ourselves of appropriate legal recourse.  When the secular, humanist, progressive politicians, judges and interest groups try to silence us, we have the right to equal justice under the law.

Last week, I received a newsletter from The Voice of the Martyrs, which informed of the escalated level of persecution of religious groups, including Christians, that has been happening recently in China.  This information was corroborated by an article by Samuel Chamberlain on the Fox News Website (12/10/2018).  Mr. Chamberlain based his report, in part, on information from a Texas based group called China Aid.

I thank God for the religious freedom we Americans are blessed with.  Please pray with me for persecuted Christians in China, and in other countries where the persecution is frequently worse.  Voice of the Martyrs provides Bibles to persecuted Christians worldwide, and they help the families of the victims of persecution.  They provide help to local churches in country, and to native born Christians who are witnessing and growing church groups. https://www.persecution.com/

People in China are placing themselves at risk by witnessing for Christ, attending church and/or holding positions of leadership.  We who have the freedom to worship as we choose sometimes do not use that freedom.  I read somewhere that “A freedom not used is a freedom that has been forfeited.”