Some Things Work Better Together

 1 Corinthians, Chapters 12 and 13 (NKJV) 

Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant:  You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led.  Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. 

There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.  There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord.  And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all.  But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:  for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit,  to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit,  to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.  But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. 

For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.  For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.  For in fact the body is not one member but many. 

If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body?  And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body?  If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling?  But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.  And if they were all one member, where would the body be? 

But now indeed there are many members, yet one body.  And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.”  No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary.  And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty,  but our presentable parts have no need. But God composed the body, having given greater honor to that part which lacks it,  that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another.  And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. 

Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.  And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.  Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles?  Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?  But earnestly desire the best gifts.

And yet I show you a more excellent way.[1] (emphasis added)

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.  And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. 

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;  does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked,  thinks no evil;  does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;  bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 

Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.  For we know in part and we prophesy in part.  But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. 

When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.  For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. 

And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.[2] 

---

[1] https://biblehub.com/nkjv/1_corinthians/12.htm 

[2] https://biblehub.com/nkjv/1_corinthians/13.htm

There is Hope

A day is coming, hopefully soon, when Jesus Christ will return from heaven to take His redeemed out of this world.  When He does, we will go to be with Him forever.  As we are caught up, those who have died in Christ will be resurrected from the dead, and given new immortal bodies, while those who are living will be transformed into new immortal bodies.  Praise God!  Even so come, Lord Jesus! 

 

Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame. 

But someone will say, “How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?”  Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies.  And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain—perhaps wheat or some other grain.  But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body. 

All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of animals, another of fish, and another of birds. 

There are also celestial bodies and terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.  There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory. 

So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption.  It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.  It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.  And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 

However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual.  The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven.  As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly.  And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man. 

Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.  Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.  So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 

“O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory?” 

The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.  But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

(1Corinthians 15:34-58 NKJV)  https://biblehub.com/nkjv/1_corinthians/15.htm 

 

But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 

For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.  For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.

(1Thessalonians 4:13-18 NKJV) https://biblehub.com/nkjv/1_thessalonians/4.htm

 

After the End Times are finished, we will enjoy forever the blessed promises given to us in God’s Holy Word:

 

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.  Then I,  John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.  And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

(Revelation 21:1-4 NKJV) https://biblehub.com/nkjv/revelation/21.htm 

 

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.  For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.  Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

(Romans 8:28-30 NKJV) https://biblehub.com/nkjv/romans/8.htm 

 

You can have this blessed hope, too.  Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and be saved. 

 

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.  But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

(John 3:16-21 NKJV)  https://biblehub.com/nkjv/john/3.htm

 

Issues for the 2022 Midterm Election - National Defense

The latest voter opinion polls vary considerably about which issues American voters find to be most important.  The most recent poll I read was a Fox News poll of registered voters taken October 9-12, 2022.  It showed (in order of importance) that voters found: 

1. Inflation/Higher Prices,
2. Higher Crime Rates,
3. the Russia/Ukraine Situation,
4. What’s Taught in Schools,
5. and Abortion[1] 

 to be most important to them. 

Other polls listed the Economy, Immigration, Climate Change, Guns, Voting Policies, Energy, Race Relations, and Foreign Policy (among others) as their most important issues for 2022.[2] 

National Defense was notably absent from any of the lists I found.  It would be interesting to know why?  Were respondents offered the opportunity choose National Defense as an issue of importance to them?  If not, then why not?  Was it an error of omission by the pollsters, or did they exclude National Defense on purpose?  If it was excluded on purpose, then why? 

I believe that National Defense is an issue that is vital to the continued existence of the United States of America as we know it.  Let me explain why I think voters must vote for candidates who favor a strong National Defense.  Hopefully, I can raise the consciousness of a few of my fellow citizens on this issue before November 8^th. 

At times, an issue may be understood when studied by itself, or by considering it and two or three variables that influence outcomes.  Often, issues are part of a dynamic in which many things are interrelated.  Our ability to defend our country is impacted by many of the other issues voters say they are concerned with in the upcoming elections in 2022 and (hopefully) in 2024. 

Voters are concerned about the Economy.  Our GDP (Gross Domestic Product) has posted negative growth for the previous two quarters of 2022.  Traditionally, a recession is defined by two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth.  There is some disagreement among the experts about whether we are in a recession, but it is clear that the U.S. economy is not performing well.  Our government’s primary source of revenue comes from taxing economic activity.  When the government spends more money than it takes in, the result is called deficit spending.  Accumulated deficits become the national debt. Our current national debt is $31,148,224,201,748. (31 trillion dollars)  Opinion varies as to how much debt we can accumulate before we are forced to default.  It seems clear to me that, without large annual revenue surpluses, we will not be able to reduce the national debt significantly, let alone pay it off.  To compound the severity of the problem, the government has embarked on programs that will increase federal spending by trillions of dollars.  The result has been another issue of concern to voters in 2022 – Runaway Inflation. 

The Biden Administration has shut down American energy production.  The result has been higher fuel and utility prices, which are contributing to inflation.  President Biden has attempted to lower fuel prices by increasing the supply of oil.  He has asked oil producing countries to increase their oil production, and he has released oil from our strategic reserves.  The result has been a small, temporary reduction of the price of refined petroleum products.  However, these actions have damaged our ability to defend ourselves.  Other nations have lost confidence in our competence to govern ourselves and to lead the free world.  Further, if we have to go to war without strategic oil reserves, what will we use to fuel our ships, airplanes, and tanks – fumes? 

Despite some improvement during the Trump Administration, too much of our productive capacity remains overseas.  Many things like computers, shoes, batteries for our electronic vehicles, and pharmaceuticals are made in China.  In an ill-considered statement during an interview recently, President Biden said that he would use American military personnel to defend Taiwan if the Chinese invaded.  Now, help me understand because I’m getting a little older myself.  How, pray tell, are we going to fight China if we are getting the things we need to support our troops and our home front from them? 

The history of modern warfare shows us that, in most cases, the nation with the most resources, money, and productive capacity is the nation that will prevail in a shooting war.  See how it all works together to make us or break us?  Our present government is flushing our economic power and the value of our money down the toilet.  In short, the United States cannot afford to fight a big war for any length of time, and our adversaries know it. 

It has been obvious for a long time that the Democrats want to keep themselves in power by providing social programs that will make large groups of Americans dependent on the government for one or more of them.  Military spending takes away from the government’s ability to fund more and bigger social programs.  Consequently, whenever they are in control in Washington, D.C. the Democrats limit military spending.  In the Clinton and Obama Administrations, the cuts were drastic.  Acting on ideology, rather than on pragmatism, President Obama also unilaterally reduced our nuclear capabilities in the futile hope our adversaries would follow suit.  It didn’t happen.  They know that in international relations it is important to deal with other nations from a position of strength. So, if International Relations is an important issue to voters in 2022, we must understand that International Relations do not exist in a vacuum. 

When military appropriations remain static, or are reduced, one of the areas that is affected is weapons development, production, and distribution.  Since World War II, the United States has faced adversaries with numerically superior forces.  The only way that we have been able to hold the strategic advantage is through superior weaponry and the nuclear deterrent.  Presently, we can see how the effectiveness of American and NATO weapons has helped the Ukrainians in their struggle with Russia.  We have, however, lost much of the lead we had in weapons development, and we must elect leaders who understand the importance of getting it back.

The issue of Education is related to the National Defense.  As weapons systems become more sophisticated, our war fighters need to have strong educational backgrounds in Science, Mathematics, Geography, Engineering, and Computer Science to operate them and assist in their development and improvement. 

Much as I hate to advocate for increased spending, I believe it is imperative for the United States to have enough military power to simultaneously defend our interests and our allies on three fronts … Europe, the Middle East and East Asia.  To help offset increased military spending, it is important to cut spending on social programs and remove the need for them by bringing our industrial production back home.  People with high paying jobs do not need social programs. 

China has built a powerful navy, tested weapons in outer space, has a first-rate air force, and has nearly achieved parity with the United States in military strength.  Despite their poor showing in Ukraine, Russia remains a formidable military power, with land based hypersonic missile systems that can evade anti-missile defenses and are capable of delivering nuclear warheads.  There are reports that the Russians will soon deploy hypersonic missiles on some of their surface vessels and on submarines.  North Korea has nuclear weapons and large conventional forces.  They continue to develop more sophisticated delivery systems for their nuclear weapons.  Iran will become a nuclear power in the foreseeable future.  They have missiles capable of striking targets in the Middle East and Europe. 

The Chinese, Russians, Iranians, and North Koreans are forming mutually supporting diplomatic and economic relationships.  They are not blind.  They know that the United States cannot fight all of them at once.  It is entirely possible that they might agree to act simultaneously to achieve their various ambitions by using military force.  What would happen if China invaded Taiwan, North Korea invaded South Korea, Russia attacked Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Finland, and Poland, and Iran and other Middle Eastern countries attacked Israel – all at the same time? 

Americans, we do not need to panic or start digging holes in our backyards.  We do need to elect leaders in 2022 and 2024 who have some sense of the real problems we face that may mean the difference between the survival of our society as we know it, or living with an oppressor’s boot on our necks.  No joke.  Vote the Democrats and RINO Republicans out of office – now.

 

 

---

[1] https://www.foxnews.com/official-polls/fox-news-poll-polarization-defines-midterm-election

 

[2] https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2022/08/23/midterm-election-preferences-voter-engagement-views-of-campaign-issues/

 

Clarifying Terms

In some of the more traditional churches today, we sing a hymn called, I Surrender All.  The first verse and chorus go like this:

All to Jesus I surrender,
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live. 

Refrain:
I surrender all,
I surrender all;
All to Thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.[1] 

At the church I attend now we sing a contemporary Christian song that I think is called, More Like Jesus.  The words to the chorus go: 

If more of You means less of me
Take ev'rything
Yes, all of You is all I need
Take ev'rything[2] 

It is easy to sing along without thinking about what we are saying really means.  Does all, or everything, mean a commitment of the whole person; body, mind and spirit.  The material things of this life must also be dedicated to the Lord’s work – are they?  How about the desires, hopes, and dreams we create?  Are they subject to God’s plan for our lives?  Who do we put in the driver’s seat? 

We each need to take a hard look at what it means when we say, “I surrender all” or “take everything.”  Does “all” really mean all?  Does “everything” mean giving our complete devotion to the Lord, or sacrificing our career, our friends or family, our house, or “everything” else.  The “self” is often the hardest thing to set aside.  Jesus said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” (Luke 9:23 NKJV)[3] 

Jesus Christ set an example for us to follow.  Following His advent, He was all of God in a human body. (Colossians 1:19)  He was with God from all eternity past. (John 1:1-2, John 17:5)  All things were created through Him (John 1:3), and in Him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:17, Hebrews 1:2-3)  Try to envision the enormity of the universe, and the power required to create it and hold it together. Jesus set aside the power and glory He had in heaven to come to live in a human body with us as a servant.  He humbled Himself to be obedient to the Father, even to the point of death. (Philippians 2:5-8)  Nobody took His life, He gave it for us voluntarily. (John 10:17-18) 

By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him

ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

(1John2:5-6 NKJV)[4]

In many places around the world, living for Jesus means that you may have to die for Him.  In some places, even owning a Bible can get you killed.  The levels of persecution vary, but Christians are being shunned, denied equal employment, taxed, and beaten and disowned by family.  Their property is being confiscated, and they are being driven out of their homes and communities, arrested and interrogated, and jailed.  In some countries, Christians are confined to concentration camps, imprisoned under inhumane conditions, tortured, and executed. 

The following list does not include all of the countries in which Christians are persecuted, or the level of persecution in each one.  I hope, however, it will give you an idea of how widespread the persecution of Christians is: North Korea, the Peoples Republic of China, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, Laos, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, India, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, Egypt, Somalia, Sudan, Libya, Algeria, Nigeria, Morocco, Colombia, Cuba, and Southern Mexico. 

Here in the United States, the Christian point of view is often labeled as bigoted, homophobic, racist, hate speech, ignorant, and ‘out of touch.’  Giving one’s testimony for Christ can get you in trouble at school, in the workplace, and in certain public forums.  Speaking God’s truth as given in the Bible brings derisive criticism for being a “bible thumper” or for trying to force Christianity on people who don’t want to hear it.  The secular entertainment industry consistently mocks Christians and portrays them to be judgmental, abusive, inflexible, and hateful. 

Persecution is already here.  Are we American Christians ready to give up “everything” for our testimony about Jesus Christ?

 

---

[1] https://library.timelesstruths.org/music/I_Surrender_All/

Van DeVenter, Judson W. I Surrender All. Public Domain 1896

[2] https://www.christian-songlyrics.net/2019/06/more-like-jesus-live-lyrics-passion.html

B. Younker, B. Ligertwood, K. Stanfill, and S. Ligertwood, More Like Jesus. Whole Heart Album 2018

[3] https://biblehub.com/nkjv/luke/9.htm 

[4] https://biblehub.com/nkjv/1_john/2.htm

Issues for the 2022 Midterm Election - Education

The philosophy of the school room in one generation

will be the philosophy of government in the next.

Abraham Lincoln[1]

Our system of public education in the United States has been a “political football” for over a hundred years.  Liberals, progressives, democrats, and socialists have tried to use the schools as an agent of change to usher in a radically different society.  Republicans and other conservatives have hoped that the schools would serve as a bulwark for traditional values to maintain the status quo. 

The politicizing of our public schools is contributing to division and polarization in our society.  Currently, many people feel that the schools’ influence on our children has moved too far to the left.  At other times, some people have felt that the schools’ influence was regressive and was not doing enough to motivate students to carry out needed social change.  In short, when the schools are politicized there will always be people who are unhappy with the educational system. 

The matter is further complicated by the underperformance of our public schools as measured by international academic achievement test scores.  Unfortunately, truly current data on comparative academic achievement test results is difficult to find. According to PEW Research, the 2015 PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) scores of US 15-year-olds ranked 34^th of 71 nations measured in Mathematics, and 24^th in Science and in Reading.[2] 

The public school system is funded by taxes paid by Americans.  Clearly, we are not getting our money’s worth.  It is presumptuous of public education to think the schools can do a better job of socializing children than their parents can.  A little humility on the part of Educators would be appreciated.  Until our schools can show that they are providing the best education in the world on basic subjects like Mathematics, Science, Reading, and Writing we cannot believe they are competent to teach values to our children that parents do not agree with.  We all would benefit if both sides of the political spectrum would stop using our childrens’ education to further their own political ends. 

When I think back

On all the crap I learned in high school

It's a wonder

I can think at all

Paul Simon[3]

If you are headed in the wrong direction, it is difficult to find your way to the right destination.  To change that, here are some recommendations that I hope the candidates I vote for will act on. 

A democracy cannot endure without an informed electorate.  Our schools must teach their students how to inform themselves.  I once heard Victor Davis Hanson say something to the effect that the role of the university was to teach students how to think, not what to think.  The same should apply to the primary and secondary education our children get in the public schools.

We live in a very competitive world.  It is important that the schools equip our kids with the abilities needed to effectively participate in the workforce.  The entire idea of preparing students for the job market has been lost in a quest to turn out graduates who are “well rounded” people.  If employers must reeducate and retrain new employees from “ground zero,” it will become too costly to hire them.  Businesses and government will then look elsewhere to find a workforce that comes to the job equipped with the proficiencies employers need.

Many school districts have adopted a subjective approach to measuring students’ progress.  I am here to tell you that “Exceeds Expectations, Meets Expectations, and Does not Meet Expectations” do not provide an adequate measure of a child’s mastery of subject matter.  Schools have cast off objective grading: 90 percent and above earns an “A,” 80 to 89 percent earns a “B,” 70 to 79 percent earns a “C,” and so forth.  “Passing” or “Not Passing” tells us virtually nothing.  The schools are saying that objective grading discourages students who are having problems.  However, how well they meet performance requirements will be the standard students will be evaluated by in the real-world workplace.  The schools discourage competition because it makes the losers feel bad.  Competition is a fact of life in the environment students will encounter when they leave school.  They will either “cut it,” or they won’t, and nobody will care if it makes them feel bad.  Children need to learn to compete, and compete effectively, if they are to thrive and prosper in any society – socialist or capitalist. 

Schools should teach students how to conduct a job search, prepare a resume, apply for employment, add value to their skillset, and keep a job once they get one.  There is a right way and a wrong way to inform managers about problems, make suggestions for workplace improvement, and relate to coworkers.  Students must be taught the importance of networking, and how to get help with difficulties without appearing to be incompetent. 

Many professionals and skilled workers find themselves in business.  Lawyers, health care providers, electricians, plumbers, those in the building trades, and those who repair everything from automobiles to computers may find themselves in need of the skills necessary to set up and operate a business.  Even when I was in school (many years ago), the public education system had an anti-business bias.  The profit motive was regarded as greedy, big business executives were portrayed as “robber barons,” and college was presented as a way to avoid having to get dirty working in the trades.  There is dignity in all honest work.  Good business skills are needed by managers and workers alike. 

The exportation of American capitalism since the end of World War II has done more to raise the standard of living of people around the world than anything else.  Rather than portraying capitalism as a vehicle for upward mobility, schools portray capitalism is a system that exploits the many to make the few rich.  If America is to remain competitive in today’s world, her people must understand how to prosper in a capitalist economy by helping others to prosper as well. 

Our schools are not safe - for students or teachers.  The ACLU has removed many of the tools that school staff need to maintain good order and discipline.  Gangs and drugs compromise student safety.  Bullying and assault are common.  Parents cannot send their children off to school without fearing for their safety.  Despite repeated active shooter incidents, we have failed to harden school security enough to protect our children from mass murder.  Respectfully, I submit that it is difficult for learning to take place in that kind of environment.  The government must give the schools the legal and financial resources needed to provide a safe and orderly learning environment.  If we, as a society, cannot even provide for the most basic of needs … safety … for our school kids, then we should not permit the schools to be used as a divisive and abrasive instrument of social change. 

The schools must be required by statute to respect parental rights and authority.  The family is a child’s primary support system, and their ability to trust their parents’ judgement to provide for, protect, and nurture them must not be undermined at school.  Parents are not perfect.  At times, families may be dysfunctional.  It is the duty of school personnel to report child abuse and neglect to the proper authorities.  It is, however, true in most cases that the family is a better resource for the child than anything else that others may try to provide. 

Americans do not know how to manage money.  The public schools should be educating students about the pitfalls of debt, how to save and invest, and how to control impulse buying.  Consumption must not be a form of recreation.  In the future it may not be viable financially for employers to provide adequate retirement plans.  Our children should be learning how to create and maintain the financial resources needed to provide for their financial security and retirement. 

W. Edwards Deming has been widely quoted for his unique perspective on management.  He is reported to have said: 

Eighty-five percent of the reasons for failure are deficiencies in the systems and process rather than the employee. The role of management is to change the process rather than badgering individuals to do better. 

The worker is not the problem. The system is the problem. If you want to improve performance, you must work on the system.[4] 

Most classroom teachers are good people who are doing the best job they can, while working in a broken educational system.  In most cases the problem is with the system, and not the teachers. 

The federal Department of Education is part of the Executive Branch of Government, and there lies the greatest need for reform.  Where the Executive Branch abuses its authority, it must be restrained by the voters and the Legislative and Judicial Branches.  That is why Education is an important issue for both the 2022 and 2024 elections.  For our nation to survive, the way public education is provided must be rebuilt from the ground up.  Please vote for candidates who will take a pragmatic, outcomes-based approach to public education that will promote the development of useful and productive citizens … not a generation of ideologues. 

NOTE: Please see my post on Education dated, July 17, 2020.

 

---

[1] https://www.brainyquote.com/search_results?x=35&y=7&q=Abraham+Lincoln 

[2] https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/02/15/u-s-students-internationally-math-science/ 

[3] https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/23116080/Paul+Simon/Kodachrome 

[4] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-978-your-organizations-problems-due-people-m-preston-leavitt

Issues for the 2022 Midterm Election - Inflation

A lot of numbers are being quoted by the government and the media to describe the runaway inflation we are currently experiencing.  I am not calling those numbers into question.  They come from what we hope are reliable sources, and those sources presumably have better data than the average person has access to.  Nevertheless, I keep records of what we spend and where we spend it. 

My records are subject to variables that are not accounted for in the information I am providing.  I hope, however, to provide a glimpse into how inflation is impacting one elderly couple in the United States. 

Most people are bored by numbers, statistics, and concrete thinking, so I will keep this concise and spare you the detailed data.  We buy groceries and related general merchandise from a “discount superstore,” a couple of supermarkets, and a meat pack.  The general merchandise includes things like paper products, detergents, and personal care items.  We are on a fixed income, and we are very careful about what we buy and what we pay. 

I compared our average expenditures for the months of February, May, and August for the years 2020, 2021, and 2022.  The price we paid for the necessary items listed increased as follows: 

·    From 2020 to 2021 the price we pay at the “grocery store” increased by about 13.6 percent. 

·    From 2021 to 2022 we paid about 16.7 percent more for the groceries and general merchandise we bought. 

·    From 2020 to 2022 the amount we paid increased by about 32.8 percent. 

A year ago, we eliminated all of our monthly payments except our mortgage.  If we had not done so, we would be in financial trouble today.  I am also aware of the circumstances of young couples who have children, and those I know are struggling to keep from going into the red each month. 

Citizens, everything we buy is delivered to market by truck, train, and airplane.  After taking office in January 2021, President Biden and the Democrats in the House and Senate killed domestic energy production.  The price of gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel doubled.  These costs are passed on to the customer – to you and me – in the form of higher prices. 

Our Democratic and RINO Republican “elected representatives” then passed legislation that increased federal spending by trillions of dollars, flooding the economy with cheap money and driving inflation.  To pay for it, they propose to increase taxes on “the rich” and on big business.  We can expect this to cause even more of our productive capacity (high-paying jobs) to move overseas, and the cost of these taxes will be passed along to the consumer in the form of higher prices for the goods we buy.

To try to slow runaway inflation, the Federal Reserve has raised the prime lending rate.  The result is that you will pay more for the things you buy on credit in the form of higher interest rates.  Call that what you will … inflation or an inflation tax.  The end result is that you will pay more for the things you need. 

If you read the available literature, most Economists attribute inflation to bad government policy.  President Biden, the Democrats, and the RINO Republicans have been running things since January 2021.  Ask yourself, were things better before they took over?  YOU BET THEY WERE! * 

So, here comes the emotional part; because that is what people respond to: 

THE INFLATION WERE LIVING WITH IS AN OUTRAGE!  THOSE RESPONSIBLE MUST BE TAKEN TO TASK FOR WHAT THEY ARE DOING TO US AND TO THE COUNTRY!  WE MUST VOTE THEM OUT OF OFFICE IN 2022 AND 2024, AND NEVER, EVER VOTE THEM BACK IN!

 

* For a more detailed discussion of inflation please refer to my post, dated January 21, 2022.

Issues for the 2020 Midterm Election - Abortion

On June 24, 2022, the US Supreme Court decided the case of DOBBS, STATE HEALTH OFFICER OF THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, ET AL. v. JACKSON WOMEN’S HEALTH ORGANIZATION ET AL.  In that decision, federal protections of a woman’s “right to choose” to have an abortion, granted in 1973 by the Court in Roe v. Wade, were removed.  The Supreme Court found that the regulation of abortion was the responsibility of the individual states and not the federal government. See also: Amendment 10, US Constitution. 

This decision did not make abortion illegal, however, it was clear that a number of the states would do so.  The Supreme Court’s ruling did not make it illegal for a resident of a state where abortion is illegal to get an abortion in a state where abortion is legal. https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/19-1392_6j37.pdf 

The ensuing strong public reaction was predictable.  Those who oppose abortion in most cases were relieved and happy.  Those who believe that a woman has the right to choose to have an abortion were dismayed, and some were angry.  Democratic politicians seized upon the opportunity to build their support base by promising to “codify” Roe v. Wade by legislative action.  This in spite of the fact that the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson would seem on the face of it to make such legislation unconstitutional. 

As the 2022 Midterm Election approaches, the Democrats are attempting to define the election as a referendum on abortion.  They are not blind to recent public opinion poles that seem to show that a small majority of the American voting public favor allowing women the right to choose to have an abortion.  Most Republican politicians favor prohibiting abortion except in certain, very limited circumstances.  A few Republicans, like Sen. Lindsay Graham, have come out in favor of abolishing abortion. https://news.gallup.com/poll/1576/abortion.aspx 

In my view, the whole debate over abortion is a diversion, created by the Democrats to obscure from public view their abject failure to govern since January 2021.  Confident if an easy victory next month, the Republicans are allowing themselves to be drawn in, rather than to speak out strongly on issues like: runaway inflation; domestic energy production; the crisis on our border with Mexico; the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan; crime; restoring sanity to our educational system; coping with adversary nations like China, North Korea, Russia, and Iran; returning our industrial production to the United States; and so forth.  These are the issues upon which the Republicans can win.  If they continue to allow the Democrats to define the election in terms of abortion – the Republicans may lose. 

It is time for each of us to determine where we stand on abortion rights, and then to move on to the other issues that really do pose a threat to our country’s existence.  Fellow Americans, this time it is too important.  We must not choose poorly, as we did in 2020. 

NOTE: Religion, politics, and personal convenience aside, it is my opinion that we should look at the process of human reproduction scientifically.  The salient question for each of us is, “When does the termination of a pregnancy become a homicide.?”  Is it morally justifiable up until the point of live birth, or is there a point between conception and delivery when the developing life becomes a baby?  There are a number of descriptions of human gestation available on the Internet or at your local library.  The following link is from a trustworthy source: https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002398.htm

 Also, I posted on the subject of Abortion on April 9, 2016, June 11, 2019, and October 11, 2020.