Jesus said, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Mark 12:17) Unless a nation is built on a moral foundation, it cannot survive. We are our brother’s keeper, and the highest of high roads is, love one another and do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
America, throughout her history, has opened our doors and invited the weak and poor from around the world to come and share our blessings and embrace our freedom. Multiplied millions have come, through our golden gates to freedom and prosperity. America is the greatest and most compassionate nation on earth. We offer opportunities and only ask that you respect our way of life and live in peace.
Since the beginning of recorded history, war has been a reality of life. The Bible tells us, “There will be wars and rumors of war.” Our freedom has been preserved by the blood of countless men and women who believe that freedom is a gift from God, not government.
The history of America has been written in the precious blood of our brave men and women who have paid the full measure of sacrifice in order for us to ring the bells of freedom. “America, God shed His grace on thee.”
Around the world there are cemeteries filled with rows of little white crosses to remind us of the suffering and pain that others have known for the freedom we so often take for granted. Do not take one single day for granted. It has been paid for by those who came before us and we should thank God for them, and give to our children something better than we found.
I hope all our elected officials and politicians everywhere will recognize that the office to which they have been elected is one of service and not an opportunity to enhance their own fortunes at the expense of others.
All we ask of you is that you serve with honor and fairness all our people. You have been elected to uphold the Constitution, not to interpret it, nor bend it to favor a few special people over the multitudes. All we ask of you is honesty and your best.
I learned a long time ago that a man who fails to tell the truth doesn’t have much worthwhile to say, and nothing to contribute, unless it is a very poor example, which all of us should avoid.
It appears that an overwhelming majority of our people want to put the brakes on so much wasteful spending, but it’s been so long since the brakes have been used that it is doubtful the brakes will work at all. We have been told that the government takes about fifty percent of what we make each week. If you don’t like that, we should spend more of our time trying to reduce spending and improving the status quo.
You do not have the right to tell me how to worship, do not have the right to tell me what I can or cannot say, do not have the right to tell a woman who is scared and poor she doesn't have the right to do what she wants with her body. I've worked all my life, paid my own way and my taxes without complaining, we have the right to live our lives as we choose. My belief in a good and loving God is much stronger than yours, you fear your God; I will never fear mine because I know that in the end as long as I live my life morally and with respect to creation I don't have to worry about a place invented 2000 years ago to keep the ignorant masses in line
Regarding your question about life beginning at conception, I understand that if an unborn child can survive outside the womb it should clearly be considered a living being. The more difficult question is at what point does life enter the child.
If self sufficiency is your definition, then I have to question your reasoning behind that. Not every child that is born at full term is able to survive without medical treatment that the child is wholly dependent upon. Yet the State recognizes that child as a person.
Perhaps breathing, a heartbeat, and brain activity constitute life. But when are these measurable and how do they come to be if there is no life prior to the existence of a heartbeat and brain activity?
I suppose the fundemental question is: What is life?
How is it that at one moment a person is alive and then, in an instant that person can be dead without any descernable difference?
To me, it is more difficult to attribute life to a time after conception than to accept that it must be at conception. Since it is at that point the fertilized egg begins to transform into the living breathing person that we all have become.
By the way, great article Robert, we all, not just elected officials, need to check our morals inventory, including myself, on a daily basis.
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL MOMS!!!
Leviticus 27:6
"And if it be from a month old even unto five years old, then thy estimation shall be of the male five shekels of silver, and for the female thy estimation shall be three shekels of silver."
So, by today's rates, the boys are worth about 1 & 3/4 ounces of silver ($30 today) and the girls are worth 1.05 ounces ($18.38) after a month of life. AFTER A MONTH?
Before that they are WORTHLESS, even as a fetus. Wow, talk about contradictory.
5 “ Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;
Before you were born I sanctified you;
I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”
Enough Said....
Yes, that was a bit melodramatic. My point is this: when it reaches a point where if removed from the mother it will breathe on its own and functions as only a human child can (in its near-helpless state) then you have a living human being. Anything before that state of functionality isn't.
@BeSmart: Live up to your name please. While you cry for free speech, at the same time you seem to advocate for invasion of privacy. Other people's lives are not your business unless they impose upon your own.
It has been my experience that the Pro-Life advoacates focus on the rights of the unborn child while Pro-Choice advocates focus on the reproductive rights of the woman.
A quick summary of my understanding of the two opposing points of view are this:
The Pro-Choice point of view is that pregnancy is the medical condition that the mother is in. Therefore, the decision as to what type of treatment for her condition is one between the mother and her physician.
The Pro-Life point of view is that pregnancy results in the creation of another living person. One who is at first completely dependent upon the mother for the sustenance of life.
In order to come to my own conclusion, I have attempted to consider the point at which life begins. I suspect that all can agree that it is no later than birth, and no earlier than conception. If so, then the question is when is the fetus a child versus a clump of tissue. I have further reduced the time frame to before the 3rd trimester whereby the child is viable outside the womb.
Suffice it to say that I have chosen to believe that life must start at conception, otherwise there must be some triggering point at which life enters the fetus and becomes a child. When would that be and who can identify it?
The killing of innocent lives will never go unpunished!!!
If the results were that We are simply more dependent on government, that would be tragic. However, the results go much deeper and are more damaging. We The People become ignorant to the importance and necessity of being self-reliant. We forget the importance of our responsibility for our brother.
We shed our responsibilities and place those on the government. On a government that is long on promises and short on delivering. The government can do great things. It can provide for our national defense, but it cannot love a child abandoned by its parents. Government can provide laws and social structure, but it cannot console a grieving widow.
It is imperative that each citizen takes serious the sacred responsibility of citizenship. Hold our government accountable for it's transgressions against the governed. While also being ever mindful of our responsibilities to ourselves and our fellow Americans.
We the People are America, and by God's grace We will honor our Forefathers, We will secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, and we will ever strive to form a more perfect union.
[citation needed]
"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics."
-- Mark Twain
“It appears that an overwhelming majority of our people want to put the brakes on so much wasteful spending, “.”
Duh, tell me who is for wasteful spending. The problem is defining wasteful spending. If we want to on a national level get spending under control then we must do something about the largest part of our nations governmental spending. But, I don’t believe our current leaders or those currently running will control the largest parts of our national spending.
1) Social Security
Our largest spending is for Social Security, about 20% of our total spending. Unless we do something about this spending little can be done about the huge deficits we are running. Let us see who is in favor of reducing spending in this area.
2) Medicare
This program takes up (without the new Health Care program) 13% of our total spending. Let see who is in favor of reducing spending in this area.
3) Medicaid
This program takes up (without the new Health Care program) 8% of our total spending. Let see who is in favor of reducing spending in this area.
4) Interest on National Debt
This mandatory spending takes up 4.5% of our total spending.
5) Unemployment and other mandatory programs
This takes up 16% of our total spending. Let see who is in favor of reducing spending in this area.
6) Veterans Affairs
This takes up 2% of our total spending. Let see who is in favor of reducing spending in this area.
7) Dept of Defense
This takes up 19% of our total spending. Let see who is in favor of reducing spending in this area.
The above spending is 82.5% of our national spending. If we were to not spend on anything else like Education, Homeland Security, State Department, Energy, Transportation and a lot of other things, we would still be spending $291 Billion Dollars then we have in revenue.
It seems to me we have to cut very deeply in Social Security, Medicare, Unemployment, Veteran Affairs, Medicaid, and Defense Spending and to also raise taxes if we honestly believe we can get ourselves out of this mess.