International Business Ownership

We all know that business ownership and the places goods and services are produced has become international, but I wonder how many of us realize the extent.  I didn’t.  That is why when I found this article from streetinsider.com on my Microsoft Edge browser I was so surprised and shocked.  I guess maybe I’m just naïve. 

Please pay special attention to how many of these companies are linked to China by ownership, production, or as a source of parts and materials.

 

American Companies That Are No Longer American | Investing Magazine (streetinsider.com)

The Duty to Warn

THE BAD NEWS is that we are living in troubled times.  People are becoming more and more violent.  Human life is no longer valued the way it once was.  Evil leaders of stronger countries are trying to subjugate neighboring countries against their will.  The threat of nuclear war remains real and imminent.  The boundaries of moral sexual behavior are being torn down.  Credit cards and loan companies charge interest that amounts to usury.  Even the thieves are getting more resourceful.  Hackers diminish the benefits of the Internet and advanced communication technology by cyber theft, extortion, scamming, selling personal information, and fraud.  The times will become more and more evil as people rebel against God. (2Thessalonians 2:1-11; 2Timothy 3:1-5). 

The end-time events in the Bible include the Rapture when Jesus returns to take the saved out of the world to be with Him in the Heavenlies (1 Corinthians 15:50-53; 1Thessalonians 4:13-17; John 14:3).  Following the rapture there will be a seven-year period (Daniel Chapter 9) called the Tribulation when God will pour out His wrath upon the unbelieving who are left on earth (Revelation Chapters 6-18).  At the end of the Tribulation, Jesus will return to establish His kingdom on earth, which will last for 1,000 years (Revelation Chapters 19 and 20).  The final judgement will follow the 1,000 years, evil will be done away with forever, all creation will be burned with fire, and a new heaven and earth will be created (Revelation 20: 7-15; 2Peter 3:8-13).  All creation will be restored to perfect harmony with God for eternity. 

Scholars may debate about exactly when and how these things will occur.  The Bible is clear, however, that the appearing of the Anti-Christ will mark the beginning of the time of God’s wrath (Tribulation), and that there will be a “rebellion” before he appears.  People will turn their backs on God, and follow a false religion that teaches a way of salvation other than by faith in Jesus Christ. 

 

Now, dear brothers and sisters, let us clarify some things about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and how we will be gathered to meet him.  Don’t be so easily shaken or alarmed by those who say that the day of the Lord has already begun. Don’t believe them, even if they claim to have had a spiritual vision, a revelation, or a letter supposedly from us.  Don’t be fooled by what they say. For that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man of lawlessness is revealed—the one who brings destruction.  He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God. (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 NLT) 

 

THE GOOD NEWS is that saved, born again Christians will not have to go through this time of wrath called the Tribulation. (Revelation 3:10; 1Thessalonians 1:10, 5:9)  Everyone has sinned, but Christ has saved those who believe in Him from the wrath of God that we deserve. (Romans 5:6-11) 

Christians are often resented because our testimony about God points out what is wrong in the lives of all of us (Romans 3:23; 1John 1:8-10).  We are called hypocrites, bigots, haters, racists, Holy Joes, holier-than-thou, and a lot of other things that are unprintable in this blog. 

Christ commanded us not to judge others (Matthew 7:1-5).  His commandment does not mean, however, that we are to suspend all spiritual discernment.  It is not the Christian’s job to condemn people or to diminish their humanity - their personhood.  Jesus gave us an example of this when He was asked to decide whether a woman caught in adultery should be stoned.  He did not condemn her, but He admonished her to stop sinning. (John 8:1-11). 

We are under Biblical instruction to warn others, believers and unbelievers alike, if what they are doing is forbidden by God in the Holy Bible, and about the consequences of disobeying God.  Chaos and wreckage in one’s life are the natural and logical result of living in disobedience to God.  If a person’s style of living is contrary to what God has told us to do in His Word they will be eternally condemned in the judgement that is to come, and it is our duty to warn them.  “It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:31 NLT) 

It is loving, compassionate, caring, and responsible to warn someone if they are doing something dangerous, or if they are about to be injured or killed.  The cliches for such circumstances abound.  For instance, we would warn someone who is smoking a cigarette while filling their car with gasoline.  They might resent it and tell us to mind our own business.  They might even get away with it this time, and the next time, but their luck will run out sometime.  The Bible says we are irresponsible if we do not warn people that they are disobeying God. 

Several passages in the Holy Bible admonish the believer to warn people if they are doing something that will incur God’s wrath.  We are told that God will hold us responsible for their death if we fail to warn them. 

 

After seven days the LORD gave me a message. He said, “Son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for Israel. Whenever you receive a message from me, warn people immediately.  If I warn the wicked, saying, ‘You are under the penalty of death,’ but you fail to deliver the warning, they will die in their sins. And I will hold you responsible for their deaths.  If you warn them and they refuse to repent and keep on sinning, they will die in their sins. But you will have saved yourself because you obeyed me. 

“If righteous people turn away from their righteous behavior and ignore the obstacles I put in their way, they will die. And if you do not warn them, they will die in their sins. None of their righteous acts will be remembered, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths.  But if you warn righteous people not to sin and they listen to you and do not sin, they will live, and you will have saved yourself, too.” (Ezekiel 3:16-21 NLT) 

 

In Jerusalem, Jehoshaphat appointed some of the Levites and priests and clan leaders in Israel to serve as judges for cases involving the LORD’s regulations and for civil disputes.  These were his instructions to them: “You must always act in the fear of the LORD, with faithfulness and an undivided heart.  Whenever a case comes to you from fellow citizens in an outlying town, whether a murder case or some other violation of God’s laws, commands, decrees, or regulations, you must warn them not to sin against the LORD, so that he will not be angry with you and them. Do this and you will not be guilty. (2Chronicles 19:8-10 NLT) 

 

Once again a message came to me from the LORD:  “Son of man, give your people this message: ‘When I bring an army against a country, the people of that land choose one of their own to be a watchman.  When the watchman sees the enemy coming, he sounds the alarm to warn the people.  Then if those who hear the alarm refuse to take action, it is their own fault if they die.  They heard the alarm but ignored it, so the responsibility is theirs. If they had listened to the warning, they could have saved their lives.  But if the watchman sees the enemy coming and doesn’t sound the alarm to warn the people, he is responsible for their captivity. They will die in their sins, but I will hold the watchman responsible for their deaths.’ 

“Now, son of man, I am making you a watchman for the people of Israel. Therefore, listen to what I say and warn them for me.  If I announce that some wicked people are sure to die and you fail to tell them to change their ways, then they will die in their sins, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths.  But if you warn them to repent and they don’t repent, they will die in their sins, but you will have saved yourself. (Ezekiel 33:1-9 NLT) 

 

The Bible says that people may not heed our warning.  In fact, they may resent it, or even hate us for it.

To whom can I give warning?

Who will listen when I speak?

Their ears are closed,

and they cannot hear.

They scorn the word of the LORD.

They don’t want to listen at all.

(Jeremiah 6:10 NLT)

It is the Holy Spirit living in us that causes us to testify about God and His perfect goodness. (John 15:26-27)  Sometimes, it causes people to have a guilty conscience.  They may resent being made to feel like that, and resent us because the Spirit is using us to testify about God.  Jesus said:

 

But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you.  And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. (John 16:7-8 NLT)

 

The day will come, (and is already here), when Christians will be persecuted for advocating for Godly behavior.  Atheists and others have even started organizations like The Freedom from Religion Foundation to advocate for their desire to have all vestiges of religion (i.e. crosses or the Ten Commandments) removed from the public square.  Christian businesses and organizations have been singled out for persecution.  For example, Chic-fil-A was barred from Chicago.  The Little Sisters of the Poor Home for the Aged, (a Catholic charity) had to fight the Obama Administration all the way to the US Supreme Court for their right not to participate in any aspect of the Affordable Health Care Act, due to their sincerely held religious objection to contraception.  Christian bakers and photographers have been driven into financial difficulty defending themselves against charges of discrimination for not providing their services at same-sex weddings.  However, Christians must not shirk our Biblical duty to warn. 

Believers must not neglect our own behavior, and we must warn each other to repent and ask God’s forgiveness when we go astray.

 

Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God.  You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God.  For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ. (Hebrews 3:12-14 NLT) 

 

Be careful that you do not refuse to listen to the One who is speaking. For if the people of Israel did not escape when they refused to listen to Moses, the earthly messenger, we will certainly not escape if we reject the One who speaks to us from heaven!  When God spoke from Mount Sinai his voice shook the earth, but now he makes another promise: “Once again I will shake not only the earth but the heavens also.” This means that all of creation will be shaken and removed, so that only unshakable things will remain. 

Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe.  For our God is a devouring fire. (Hebrews 12:25-29 NLT) 

 

While the fear (reverence, awe) of God is prudent, we are not trying to scare anyone into getting saved.  God does not want anyone to perish, but rather He wants all to be saved (2Peter 3:9).  The basis for coming to Jesus is love – not fear.  He loved us enough to leave the glory He shared with God the Father, to come to live among us in a human body, and to die a horrible death in our place to pay the price for our sins.  All we have to do is to respond by believing in Him and then to love and follow Him. (Colossians 1:11-22; John 3:16; Romans 5:6-11) 

 

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.  This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. 

Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.  No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. 

And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us.  Furthermore, we have seen with our own eyes and now testify that the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.  All who declare that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God.  We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love.

God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.  And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. 

Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love.  We love each other because he loved us first. (1John 4:9-19 NLT)

 

 When a Christian warns someone in truth and love, (not in a harsh, condemning manner), they are trying to bring that person into God’s loving family (1John 3:1-3).  After all, it really is a matter of life or death. 

Acknowledgement: 

All the passages of scripture shown here were copied from: https://biblehub.com

 

Human Developmental Stages and Decision Making

Personality Theory is a field of study in Psychology.  If you do post-graduate work toward earning a master’s degree or a doctorate in Psychology, many universities will require you to complete at least one course in Personality Theory.  Among the many personality theorists included, the course will almost always cover the theories of Sigmund Freud. 

Freud, Carl Jung, and Alfred Adler are regarded as the founding fathers of psychology, and their ideas are foundational to the psychoanalytic school of psychology.  There are still many psychologists and psychiatrists who adhere to the psychoanalytic school or accept some of its assumptions as valid. 

Erik Erikson is sometimes regarded as “Freudian.”  He was trained in Vienna, Austria at the Vienna Psychoanalytic Institute.  Both Erikson and Freud believed that the human personality develops over time in stages.  Freud wrote about five developmental stages, and Erikson proposed that there were eight.  Various others have written on the subject.  There are a great many articles available to you on the Internet if you use a search phrase like “human development” or “stages of development.” 

You will find that most developmental theorists do not regard the personality to be fully developed until late adolescence or adulthood.  Erikson in particular seems to have seen personality development as a lifelong process.[1] 

Today, the educational system in many places in the United States is encouraging very young children to make decisions about their gender identity.  In many cases the public schools are doing so without the knowledge or consent of the child’s parents. 

Some medical treatment providers are treating young children medically to “affirm” their gender identity if they decide, (or coached into believing), that they want to change the gender they were born with.  If you consider the prevailing human personality developmental theories, the decision to receive the treatment is being made before the child’s personality is fully formed. 

This is a Christian blog, and there are religious reasons why we believe what is happening to our children is wrong, and that it should be stopped.  However, we recognize that not everyone shares those beliefs, and that some people oppose what they perceive to be attempts to impose religious values on the general population.  Rather than raising moral issues about gender reassignment,  we ask that widely recognized ideas about human development be taken into consideration. 

Young children and adolescents are not sufficiently developed psychologically to make life-altering decisions about gender identity, or to request and consent to undergo gender reassignment counseling or medical treatment.  It is a parent’s responsibility to provide guidance until the child is an adult and can make their own decisions. 

Furthermore, the public schools are underperforming in the basic fundamental tasks of educating our children.  If they cannot teach our children to be proficient in reading, writing, mathematics, science, history, civics, business, geography, and so forth, then I think it is arrogant for them try to guide their students in sensitive areas like gender identity.  Opinion poll results are mixed regarding Americans’ approval of public school performance.  Polling can be manipulated according to the biases of those conducting the polls.  Gallop is a trusted source, and Gallop opinion polling from the years 2000 through 2022 consistently shows that over half of those polled were “dissatisfied” with school performance.[2]  Personally, I will not be satisfied until our children attain grade-level or above proficiency in the traditional, basic subjects, and until we are in the top three countries in academic achievement internationally. 

To add insult to injury, many school systems are disregarding the rights of parents.  While a child is in school, the school has certain duties that make it necessary for the school to act as a prudent parent would to ensure good order and discipline on campus and to safeguard children from injury.  The duty of schools to act as a surrogate parent ends there.

Curriculum must be decided in cooperation with the public.  Parents have the right to opt their children out of subjects that conflict with their core values or sincerely held religious beliefs.  Parents who have attempted to do so, however, have been kept from exercising that right.  Additionally, those parents have been branded haters, bigots, racists, and even terrorists.  Consequently, we demand that parental rights regarding the education of their children be codified by law.

Here is the bottom line.  The recognized stages of human personality development show that our public schools must not indoctrinate our children on issues regarding gender identity.  The appropriate responsibility of the schools is to protect children while they are on campus from ridicule and bullying about any issue – a task at which they fail miserably. 

Permanent, life-altering medical decisions about medical gender reassignment must be made by the individual recipient after they reach a legally recognized age of adulthood.  It is the responsibility of the child’s parents to guide children on issues like gender identity, not the schools. 

Simply put, it is self-evident that people should not be encouraged or allowed to make adult decisions, or take on adult responsibilities, until they are adults.  (What a concept.)  It is not something new or different.  We cannot legally drive a car until we are 16 years old.  We must reach a legally mandated age before we can buy alcoholic beverages or cigarettes.  We cannot vote or serve in the military until we are old enough. 

Vote for common sense.  Vote for candidates who will protect our children from the radical, left-wing people who are running our schools.  Remember it is our tax money that is paying for all this insanity.  Therefore, we all bear some degree of responsibility for it.

---

[1] https://www.verywellmind.com/erik-eriksons-stages-of-psychosocial-development-2795740 

[2] https://news.gallup.com/poll/1612/education.aspx

 

 

True Wisdom

For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  For it is written:

“I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE,
AND THE UNDERSTANDING OF THOSE WHO HAVE UNDERSTANDING, I WILL CONFOUND.” (Isaiah 29:14)

Where is the wise person? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has God not made foolish the wisdom of the world?  For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.  For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom;  but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness,  but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.  For the foolishness of God is wiser than mankind, and the weakness of God is stronger than mankind. 

For consider your calling, brothers and sisters, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble;  but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong,  and the insignificant things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no human may boast before God.  But it is due to Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God,  and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption,  so that, just as it is written: 

“LET THE ONE WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.” (Jeremiah 9:24) 

(1Corinthians 1:18-31 NASB) *

 

*  https://biblehub.com/nasb_/1_corinthians/1.htm

 

New and Improved

The saying, “Never give a sucker an even break,” is most commonly attributed to the comic actor, W.C. Fields.  Confidence men sometimes call a sucker a “mark” – the target of a scheme to defraud or deceive. 

Some people want something for nothing.  Others are into shortcuts.  People who want to get rich quick or who want things for “free” often find that they have been cheated or defrauded in one way or another. 

Legitimate businesses “create demand” for “new and improved” products by convincing consumers that they need them.  They convince people they will be “in with the in crowd,” or one of the elite, if they buy the very latest version of smart phone or computerized gaming device.  It all boils down to the line Danny DiVito’s character says in the movie Romancing the Stone, “He made ya think ya need it – ya sap.” 

Now let’s look at the latest rifle cartridge du jour … the 6.5 Creedmore (aka 6.5mm Creedmore or 6.5x48mm); made available commercially by Hornady in 2007. It was developed for long range target shooting, but it has also become a popular hunting cartridge. 

The 6.5mm bullet has excellent ballistic characteristics that result in flat trajectories and good retention of velocity and impact energy, especially at long distances.  Its wind resistance is better than some other bullets as well.  To spare you the details of sectional density and ballistics coefficient, 6.5mm is streamlined. 

There!  Fundamental fairness has been served.  Now we can get to the meat of the matter.  The fact is that before the 6.5 Creedmore was introduced, rifles had already been chambered for at least ten 6.5mm cartridges that I know of, and there are probably more.  Why then do we need another one? 

Most hunters need one or two versatile big game rifles that they can use on deer or antelope, but can also dependably and humanely kill larger animals like elk and moose; using heavier loads.  There’s already a plethora of calibers that will do the job, and there is no need, in my opinion, to add more.  Examples include the 270 Winchester, 280 Remington, 280 Ackley Improved, 30-06 Springfield, and 7mm Remington Magnum.  In a cartridge with a shorter case, you can choose a 308 Winchester or pick from a raft of Winchester Short Magnums.

If the hunter might have an opportunity to hunt large bears or other dangerous game, they should consider the 300 Winchester Magnum.  Forgive me if I left out your favorite. 

When I sold guns in retail stores, customers would ask for a recommendation about which caliber rifle to buy.  If there was a possibility that they might hunt larger big game animals, I would tell them to buy the most powerful rifle that they could shoot accurately.  You see, the more powerful the rifle the harder it kicks, which makes it more difficult to shoot well.  The 300 Win Mag has over 10 ft. lbs. of recoil per square inch more (recoil) than a 270 Winchester or 280 Remington.  If you can’t deal with that it is no disgrace, but you might want to consider a 7mm Remington Magnum, 280 Ackley Improved, or a 30-06 Springfield over the 300 Win Mag.  I don’t care how macho you want your friends to think you are, even seasoned hunters have a hard time shooting 20 rounds of 300 Winchester Magnums accurately at one continuous sitting.  True, the 300 Win Mag is a favorite among our military snipers, but they use heavier rifles that absorb some of the recoil.  Trust me, if you aren’t used to it you won’t like carrying a heavy sniper-type rifle all day, every day for seven days in the heat, cold, rain, or snow while looking for an elk.  But, I digress. 

A careful reading of a good rifle ballistics chart (available for free online) will show you that the 6.5 Creedmore is not as powerful as most of the standard big game cartridges listed above.  Further, some of the streamlined, long-distance projectiles in 6.5mm do not expand dependably after hitting an animal.  Good expansion is extremely important to clean kills and the ethical take of big game animals.  The Creedmore is okay for deer and antelope, but most of the proven, standard cartridges listed above are better.  I strongly urge that the 6.5 Creedmore not be used to take game larger than deer. 

When a new cartridge goes on the market, all the gun writers for the hunting and shooting magazines get onboard.  Articles are written extolling the virtues of the latest offering.  There are always a few dissenters, but they are usually drowned out by the shouts of those in favor.  On TV, the outdoor programs allow us to see for ourselves how accurate the new cartridges are.  At the sporting goods store, the salespeople recommend 6.5 Creedmore; or better yet its more muscular younger brother the 6.5 PRC (Precision Rifle Cartridge).  (If you check it out, you may find they have more Creedmores in stock than anything else.) 🙈🙉🙊

Cool, but is it best practice to use the 6.5 Creedmore on big game?  It makes it easier to hit targets accurately at longer ranges, but that must not become a shortcut used instead of the largest factor affecting marksmanship – practice, practice, and more practice.  It is not enough to sight in your hunting rifle at 1.5 inches above the bullseye at 100 yards and expect your shots to strike the target dead center at 200 yards … or about 7 inches low at 300 yards.  To be an ethical hunter you must know where your bullets will impact at those ranges.  Are you a good enough shot to dependably group your rounds in a 6-inch circle at 300 yards?  There is no way to tell unless you set up targets at those ranges and shoot at them. 

Modern, bolt action hunting rifles are more intrinsically accurate than they used to be.  They have better stocks, triggers, scopes, barrels, and bedding systems.  They can give you an edge, but there are no shortcuts to good marksmanship. 

Accurate shooting is a skill that goes away unless it is maintained by regular practice.  In my opinion, most American hunters do not practice enough to be able to shoot even the most accurate rifle/cartridge combination well enough to cover a 5 shot group with a silver dollar at 200 yards.  No rifle or cartridge can compensate for that, and it is, therefore, not ethical for most hunters to attempt to shoot a big game animal at distances over 300 yards.  Consequently, manufacturers must not create the illusion that their products alone can enable hunters to do that.  Good shot placement is as important, or more so, than anything else in the humane take of big game, and there is a lot more to it than buying the latest rifles and cartridges on the market. 

There is nobody who is a stronger supporter of the Second Amendment, hunting, shooting sports, and the firearms industry than I am.  I am not against change or innovation.  But, the “new” also really does need to be “improved.” 

“If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”

(Henry Ford, 1911)

So, why do they do it?  The simple answer is that manufacturers want to sell every hunter one more gun.  The 6.5 Creedmore is no different than the latest model of the iPhone.  In my opinion, all it is really good for is punching holes in paper targets at 1,000 yards.

July 4, 2023

The Flag Goes By

by Henry Holcomb Bennett

Hats off! Along the street there comes
blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums,
flash of color beneath the sky:
Hats off! The flag is passing by!

Blue and crimson and white it shines
Over the steel-tipped, ordered lines.
Hats off! The colors before us fly;
But more than the flag is passing by.

Sea fights and land fights, grim and great,
Fought to make and to save the State;
Weary marches and sinking ships
Cheers of victory on dying lips;

Days of plenty and years of peace;
March of a strong land’s swift increase;
Equal justice, right and law,
Stately honor and reverend awe:

Sign of a nation, great and strong
To ward her people from foreign wrong:
Pride and glory and honor-all
Live in the colors to stand or fall.

Hats off! Along the street there comes
A blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums;
And loyal hearts are beating high;
Hats off! The flag is passing by!

When Does a Human Life Begin?

Please open your heart to God's answer:

You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body

and knit me together in my mother’s womb.

Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!

Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.

You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,

as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.

You saw me before I was born.

Every day of my life was recorded in your book.

Every moment was laid out

before a single day had passed.

 

 (Psalm 139: 13-16 NLT) *

 

* https://biblehub.com/nlt/psalms/139.htm