Tuesday, August 22, 2006

The Case for Christians in Government

The good people of this country have really let this country down. We’ve let pop culture, drive our culture in the ground.
And I’ve stood by and watched it, shook my head and wondered why
Nobody’s putting up a fight
– “From Here on Out” by The Right Brothers.

This is the point we are at today. For too long Christians have just stood by and watched our nation turn further and further away from God. If we continue this trend, we will arrive at a god-less America, and the results of that are dangerous. Societal conditioning has taught us for decades that Christians do not belong in the decision making of this country because of the “separation of church and state” phrase that is so prominent today.

In addition, many Christians have stayed out of politics because of peer pressure and being told that they can’t change the outcome, so their involvement doesn’t matter. We have been indoctrinated to believe that there is no biblical basis for Christians in government. All of these allegations against Christians in government are false. We do have an important job to do in our government and we are the only people that can get it done.

When I am asked the question, “what do you want to do when you “grow up”?” I respond, “I’ll be somewhere in politics.” The reaction I receive is always priceless. I typically get one of two types of responses. The first is a shocked expression and a “well, I hope you do ok” or “great, keep it up girl!” The second is deeper and generally results in a good discussion, the response boils down to a simple question: Why can’t we just stay out?

The answer is simple. We can’t stay out because we are to be the light of the world. Our founding fathers built this land on Judeo-Christianity, and we have strayed too far from Christ. The reason our ancestors came to America was that she was and is a free, God-fearing nation.

Having established this, we have another question. Since we have strayed so far, does it even matter if we continue on this downhill journey? Does it even matter if we get involved? After all, we can’t make a difference.

Yes, it does matter. We are going down the wrong road; following pop-culture stars and Hollywood actors who have no sense of reality. We are soaking in phrases and taking them as fact because we don’t have the determination to make sure what we are being spoon-fed is right. We are being taught that there is no right and wrong and we must tolerate everyone except those that don’t agree. We are becoming a society run on emotions, not facts and logic. If we continue down this path we will crumble, not from the outside, but from within. Our freedoms will eventually be lost, and rather than a republic form of government, we will have nothing but tyranny.

If we stay apathetic and do not get involved, we will end up with tyranny, the only way to stop this is to get involved and change!

The allegation that we can have no impact on our culture is false. Samuel Adams, a founding father, and founder of the Sons of Liberty in the American Revolution once stated, “It does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brushfires in people’s minds”. Throughout history it has been proven repeatedly that a handful of people have the potential to make a dynamic impact.

Now that we know that we can make an impact, we have to ask the question: Is it Biblical? Does God raise His people to be involved in the government?

There are many instances throughout the Bible where God chose His people to be involved in government, not only their government, but pagan government’s as well. The stories of Joseph, Esther, and Daniel are perfect illustrations. In all three instances God took them from their home, or “comfort zone” into a pagan environment and used them to impact the culture.

In Daniel 2:21 it states: And he changes the times and the seasons: he removes kings, and sets up kings: he gives wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:

Psalms 75:7 also reads: But God [is] the judge: he puts down one, and sets up another.

In 1Corinthians 12:28 it says:
And God has set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.

These verses are just a few that prove that God does govern in the affairs of men, and he does raise up leaders. Many people in the church today have put down the calling into politics and government saying that it is not “of God” to be involved in that arena.

In the Bible times the Jewish people didn’t have the right to vote and express themselves like we do today. However, you did see many of His people involved in the political system of their time. Whether it was by birth, choice, or just because God opened a door, they were involved in the government.

We have succumbed to believe that for some reason we should not be involved anymore. Yet, we have just proven this allegation wrong. Since we have the ability to be freely involved, it is our duty to. We are supposed to be a light to the world, one way to effect change, is to exercise our citizen’s rights by voting, supporting candidates, and getting involved ourselves. In the chorus of the song “From here on out” it says:

From here on out I’m gonna do my part. From here on out I’m gonna listen to my heart. It may just be one voice, but I’m gonna make it heard
And I’m not giving in or backing down, From here on out

Not only is it our job to do what we can, but if we don’t we will continue on this road downhill to tyranny. From here on out, I’m going to do my part, the question is, will you do yours?

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

Triumph of Evil

The Triumph of Evil

A "new" look at what the problem is, and how to solve it.

By Kierstyn P

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing"-Edmund Burke. Thankfully, in this case, the good men will not let evil triumph, even if the world pressures them too.


20 days ago marked the start of a war. The Hezbolla captured two Israeli soldiers and killed eight. In retaliation, Israel fired into suspected Hezbollah bases. It is interesting to note, that only when Israel retaliated did the world speak out. At that, it has taken on a mostly anti-Israel bias. The question posed, "is Israel justified?" was what everyone was asking. The answer is simple. The best way to grasp it is to bring it home.


In 2001 American planes were hijacked by terrorists and run into buildings, killing thousands. We knew immediately that we would fight back; were we justified? Yes.


Likewise, terrorists have attacked Israel, and Lebanon has been "hijacked". In response to a terrorist attack, was Israel justified in striking the Hezbollah in Lebanon? The answer to that question is "yes"; we (and any other nation) have a right to protect our nation and ourselves. It is also understood that the government's role is traditionally to punish evil, defend the nation's population, and protect national sovereignty.


It is not surprising then, that Lebanon retaliated and struck Israel. This back and forth fighting got us to where we are today. As of July 31 2006 a 48 hour "cease fire" was declared by Israel. This cease-fire was defined as a 48 hour halt on offensive air strikes. They did fire in order to protect their troops on the ground once, which didn't violate the cease fire since it was defensive.


We have been asking the wrong question from the start, the question is not "were they justified?" the question that should be asked is "what can be done to stop this terrorist organization from harming more innocent people?" Currently, Rice and other leaders are trying to get a long-term cease-fire resolution passed by the United Nations.


While that may seem, and is believed by many to be the perfect solution, we must ask ourselves, are UN resolutions successful? Patrick Henry once stated, "The only way to judge the future is by the past" That is exactly what we have to do now. In the history since the United Nations was created, they have passed MANY resolutions. However, the results weren't worth the paper they were written on.


What needs to happen is not a cease-fire. For until Hezbollah is eliminated Israel will not cease to fire; Lebanon will not cease until Israel does. However, the problem we are facing is that Lebanon is not taking care of the threat inside; therefore, Israel took the initiative.


While observing the situation, I have noticed that we are skirting the problem. If my great grandparents had not immigrated and my family and I were Lebanese citizens, my first reaction would not be "kill Israel". It would be, "Let's solve the problem and stop the people that started this in the first place". That is the answer to the problem, the question now is "will it be followed through?"


Terrorists have hijacked Lebanon, the strikes against Israel are not from the Lebanese government; it is from a terrorist organization. What needs to happen now is for the governments and the Lebanese populace to work to stop the terrorists from harming more civilians. The courage exemplified by the flight 93 passengers on 9/11 shows that civilians do have the ability, whether they realize it or not, to take back the plane, or in Lebanon's case, the Nation.



Albert Einstein once said, " The world is a dangerous place. Not because of the people who are evil; but because of the people who don't do anything about it. " Complacency and fear are the biggest problems we face, and now it is up to Lebanon to take the initiative and stop the terrorists in their own Nation.

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

The Cause.

Operation Completion.

Those two words sum up a project I have been working on for 7 months now. Operation Completion, a mesage of hope and support to our soldiers and their families. In today's world Operation Completion isn't just a statement, its a cause. A cause to say "hey, we don't care what hollywood and the press say, we support you and we thank you and we just wanted you to know that" It's a cause to reach out to the military and the relatives in the military and remind America, WE'RE IN A WAR, AND OUR SOLDIERS NEED TO KNOW WE'RE BEHIND THEM!

This kind of goes into taking our freedom for granted. I've posted numerous times about how are freedom came at a very high cost and how tend to take it for granted and assume it's free. The reality is, our freedom isn't free and the ones that paid the price are under appreciated.

The last rally took place on Saturday, the work put in to it paid off in my oppinion. I have learned so much by working on this project and drawn so much closer to God. I realized over and over again that I can not do this, and in fact, if it weren't for God the GA rally never would have happened.

I got on board with the project two months after I moved. I knew no one. I brainstormed with a friend of mine for a while until I got the go ahead to go public. Having no contacts I wasn't sure where to start. BUT GOD. I went to some Republican meetings and events and met people and spoke about Operation Completion. I handed out fliers and got the word out. I ended up with some contacts in the State House, on various campaigns and in my local government. The GenJ club east of me was helping me with phone banking a few weeks before the rally and my GenJ club and State TARS chairman came to the rally to show their support.

All this time, I had no idea on any response, no body got back to me, even with all the followups we made. I had a media lead, and I'm still not sure how that worked. None of our interveiws happened, and we didn't have a speaker system till the night before.

At 8:30 pm on Friday night, we got a call saying we could rent a speaker system for 250 bucks the next day. Which was totally a God thing since I had been calling up different places seeing if they would let us use a speaker system.

The next day was scheduled to rain, but we didn't cancel. We woke up early, got the sound system. Came back home, loaded up the van and left. Stage set-up took two hours, then Ashleigh and I decorated it. We still had a few hours to kill before it started, so we discussed logistics and waited, till 30 minutes before.

That was when the capitol police told us that the stage was in the wrong location. So we had -30 minutes to move all of the sound equipment and abandon the stage. Which we did in time,Thank God!!!

Throughout the process of planning in the 7 months time I had been brought to a point where everything was totally out of my hands, and in more than one occasion I just payed " Ok God, you've brought me this far, but I can't do anything more to make it happen, its all totally in your hands"

And it was. God is awesome, who-ever says he doesn't have any interest in today is wrong.

We only had a turnout of 75 people, but even though it was a low turnout, these people were dedicated, and came out in spite of the rain just to show support for a cause.

"All things work together for good to those that love the Lord."

His ways are not our ways, I don't know why it rained, I don't know why Reed lost, I don't know why Operation Completion only had 75 people. But I do know, that I thank God for the people dedicated enough to come out, and I thank God for our soldiers who work 24/7 365 protecting our freedom!

God bless America!!!

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

Reed lost. :(
But OC is this week, so even if last night wasn't what I would call a victory, the rest of this week will be great! :D

My favorite campaign story of the last 2 days:

Last door of the night I walk up and this kid opens the door.

me:"Hi, is your mom here?"

"yeah, hold on" *kid runs to get her*

*his little sibling comes out*"did you come here before?"
me: "no"

little kid"ok" *runs off*

mom "hello?"

I start speel

mom: *sigh* "No, sorry we're moving. We're a military family so, we're packing up..."

me: *grin* "wow. Thank you SO much....I can't even express how grateful I am to all of you for serving and doing that..."

mom: *jaw drop...smile*

me: "Oh! something that will greatly encourage you, do you have a computer with internet access?"

Mom"yes"

me "Ok, go to www.operationcompletion.org we have REAL news from the war by someone in the Army Corps of engineers. OC is student run pro-military rallies, one is comming to GA this week. It will greatly encourage you, there ARE people that support you...*grin*"

mom: *shock/grin* "how old are you?"

me *told her*

mom *shock* "you are sharp girl, you're sharp...I'll check that out *grin*"

me: "ok, and Thank you *beam*"

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

Independence Day!

(FYI, the OC blogroll is still going)

Happy Independence Day America!

Lat's take a minute out of the busy-ness of today to remember what we're celebrating. Let's never forget our founding and the soldiers that have served and are serving to protect this nation, in every war since the revolution.

Let us never forget!

(this was derived from lovethissite.com/oldglory)

I fly atop the world's tallest buildings.
I stand watch in America
's halls of justice.
I stand side by side with the Maple Leaf on the worlds longest undefended border.
I fly majestically over institutions of learning.
I stand guard with power in the world.
Look up and see me.

I stand for peace, honor, truth and justice.
I stand for freedom.
I am confident.
I am arrogant.
I am proud.

When I am flown with my fellow banners,
my head is a little higher,
my colors a little truer.

I bow to no one!
I am recognized all over the world.
I am honored - I am saluted.
I am loved - I am revered.
I am respected -- and I am feared.

I have fought in every battle of every war for more then 200 years. I was flown at Valley Forge, Gettysburg, Shiloh and Appomattox. I was there at San Juan Hill, the trenches of France, in the Argonne Forest, Anzio, Rome and the beaches of Normandy, Guam. Okinawa, Korea and KheSan, Saigon Vietnam.
Know me,
I was there.

I led my troops, I was dirty, battle worn and tired,
but my soldiers cheered me, And I was proud.
have been burned, torn and trampled on the streets of countries I have helped set free. It does not hurt, for I am invincible.

have been soiled upon, burned, torn and trampled on the streets of my country. And when it's by those whom I've served in battle -- it hurts.
But I shall overcome -- for I am strong.
I have slipped the bonds of Earth and stood watch over the uncharted frontiers of space from my vantage point on the moon.

I have borne silent witness to all of America's finest hours.
But my finest hours are yet to come.
When I am torn into strips and used as bandages for my wounded

comrades on the battlefield,
When I am flown at half-mast to honor my soldier,
Or when I lie in the trembling arms of a grieving parent at the grave of their fallen son or daughter,
I am proud.

MY NAME IS OLD GLORY LONG MAY I WAVE.

Howard Schnauber

Friday, June 30, 2006

Our Mission, and What We're Proving


Edit: This will continue to be updated as more bloggers join, but Matt has an awesome article up on his website:

From the Pulpit...: OPERATION COMPLETION!




Operation Completion is now making its way to the eastern side of the country.

I have been working with Operation Completion since January. It has been the most amazing experience. If there was one thing that sets us apart from other rallies, it is the fact that we are entirely ran by students.

Lets face it, most of society's veiw of teenagers today is as lazy, unreliable, unmotivated and irresponsible.

Not only are we showing our heroes (or at least MY heroes) that we do follow what they're doing and support them, but we are proving to society that our generation is not all in the mainstream.

We are proving that we are capable of handling GREAT responsibility, and pressing on. We are committed, dedicated, and motivated, to complete our mission and rally America to support the troops in completing theirs!

Operation Completion
has had success in all 3 rallies thus far, lets keep that success going. Let us prove to America, we are able. More importantly, let us show those who have and are sacrificing themselves for OUR generation, that we and most of America support them!

Every proud American should get involved in sending out this message of hope and encouragement to the troops! We support them, let them see it!

On that note, I'm doing a blogroll, one big thing we need is to get the name and mission out. If you write a post about Operation Completion/how we need to support the troops and tell me, I'll link to the post.

Let's comlpete this mission!
Kierstyn P.

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Fires update

This came in earlier tonight...

---
Once again thanks for all the prayers! This morning the fire hit 60,000 acres and has slowed up some. At noon it was 62,500 acres, which is rather slow as compared to earlier in the week. Dad and I continued to get cows out of the way of the fire, gathering probably 70 this morning. The main part of the fire is off the ranch, but a TON of hotspots still flare up every day and continure burning more and more. Firefighters hope to have one of the larger ones mopped up about now, but it is starting to thunderstorm, unless the storm brings rain we could be in trouble as it is packing a LOT of wind.... *phone rings* *returns five minutes later* Well folks as I was typing the above a miracle happened. Some of the fire is most likely still burning, but my Dad was on the phone. He and his boss were out putting some salt out to keep the cows away from the fire. They decided to pray, the prayed, and it rained!!!! That rain put a lot of the fire out. Due to the amount of smoke, we cannot tell if any other fire is still out there, but the Lord has definetly moved. Thank you very much for your prayers as I have no doubt they have helped! It appears that this storm will be packing some rain which is excellent! Praise the Lord as He has brought His healing rain!

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Fires

Hey, I got this in a little bit ago from Matt A.

Currently the ranch I live on has a big fire on it, it has burned 50,000+ acres. It is burning a lot of good cow country which will make it hard for the ranch this fall. Currently they have no control over it as the wind takes it anywhere. My dad, his boss, the manager, me, and a few other cowboys are all working to move cows out of the way. I just got back from getting some cows and my dad said that the area I rode this morning is now on fire. Please pray we will be able to get everything out and that all would be protected.
Matt
----
Keep him in your prayers, I'll update when I know more.
*praying*
KP

Friday, June 16, 2006

Supreme Court V. America, can we win the case against Judicial Activism?


“This member of the government was at first considered as the most harmless and helpless of all its organs. But it has proved that the power of declaring what the law is…by sapping and mining slyly and without alarm the foundations of the constitution, can do what force would not dare to attempt” –Thomas Jefferson 1825.

Today the majority of America is influenced in some way by the media, the latest actor, or newest band. We pay more attention to entertainment than our government. Our culture has shown a lack of interest in the future of our government and Nation, and a rising interest in the latest movies and technology.

For most, life revolves around their sphere of friends and family, and they pay little attention to the world events around them. The oblivious state of mind today is deplorable to say the least.

In spite of the general disinterest, the government still runs and is still very influential whether we realize it or not. Sadly, our courts seem to have noticed this trend, and are using it to expand their constitutional boundaries. What is and was originally the weakest of the three branches of government is believed by many to be the most powerful and influential.

This general assumption, however, is incorrect. The “untouchable” Courts of today are in fact “touchable”. Moreover, the courts are constitutionally the weakest of the three branches.

Alexander Hamilton in Federalist Paper # 78 wrote “The Judiciary, on the contrary, has no influence over either sword or purse; no direction either of the strength or wealth of society, and can take no active resolution whatever. It may truly be said to have neither force nor will, but merely judgment; and must ultimately depend on the aid of the executive arm even for the efficacy of its judgments. This simple view of the matter suggests several important consequences. It proves incontestably that the judiciary is beyond comparison THE WEAKEST OF THE THREE BRANCHES OF POWER...” (Emphasis is mine).

Also, in the constitution, the legislative branch has more authority than the Judicial Branch does.

For example, the legislative has the power to:
Tax, maintain and provide for the military, declare war, borrow money, grant letters of marquee and reprisal, provide for the calling of the militia to execute laws of the Union, suppress insurrections and repel invasions, make rules concerning captures, create post offices and roads, define laws/rules and punish lawbreakers, coin money, and punish counterfeiting.
This is an excerpt of Article 1 section 8 of the US Constitution.

Let us take it a step further and look at the executive role.

The following is an excerpt of article 2 section 2 of the constitution:

The President is the Commander in Chief of the military, and has the power to:
Grant reprieves and pardons for offences, make treaties, nominate ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges, and all other offices, and fill up all vacancies. Even though it does not look like much, making treaties, nominating officers, and just running the nation is an unimaginable workload.


The judges on the other hand, constitutionally speaking, had jurisdiction over cases involving:

Law and equity under the constitution, laws of the US, treaties, ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, admiralty and maritime jurisdiction, controversies to which the US will be a party, to citizens of a state and another state, citizens in the same state claiming lands under grants of different states, and between a state and a foreign state.
(This was an excerpt of Article 3 section 1 of the Constitution)
It is important to note however, that a large portion has been nullified by the 11th amendment:
The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State. (Ratified 2/7/1795)
So now, the role should look like this:
(The Judicial power extends to :) Laws of the US, treaties, ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, admiralty and maritime jurisdiction, citizens in the same state claiming lands under grants of different states, and controversies to which the US will be a party.
By far the Executive and Legislative branches have more duties and responsibilities than the Judicial.




Reading that should also make us realize a little more of how this Nation is supposed to operate. The court, constitutionally, has little power. However, so many times, especially in recent history the court has ignored it’s bounds and stepped outside of it’s constitutional role.

In Article 3 section 1 of the Constitution, it lays the grounds for the judge’s term.

The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one Supreme Court and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts SHALL HOLD THEIR OFFICES DURING GOOD BEHAVIOR, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services a Compensation which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.
(emphasis mine)

A Biblical principle can actually be seen here, I think we all know the story of Lucifer being kicked out of heaven because he was vain and wanted to be worshipped. He originally wasn’t a threat, but then got proud. God then removed him from heaven forever. It could be said that Lucifer was not exercising “Good Behavior” and got punished…or in a sense, impeached from that “office”. God is a just God and does not tolerate lawlessness or deceit.

Today, it is increasingly obvious that “Good behavior” is not what our judges are executing. Rather, they have implemented their own ideas and agendas over the law of the constitution.

There are many cases of judicial activism that we have seen evident in recent history. Two cases in particular really got my attention; those were: Rasul V. Bush, and Griswold V. Connecticut.

The Supreme Court decision in Rasul v. Bush ruled that foreign enemy combatants had “the right to petition the federal courts to review their status as detainees” This is entirely unconstitutional. U.S. Code 28 states in part: “writs of habeas corpus may be granted by the Supreme Court, any justice thereof, the district courts and any circuit judge WITHIN THEIR RESPECTIVE JURISDICTION.” In Rasul v. Bush, Justice Scalia explained the verdict in the dissenting opinion: “…it permits an alien captured in a foreign theater of active combat to [bring a suit] against the Secretary of Defense.”

The Griswold case came as a result of Poe V. Ullman. Harlan, an attorney for the ACLU explained his strategy for getting the court to adopt the privacy rights approach. He explained “…If there is no exact counterpart to the particular case before the Court, there are others that resemble it in a general sort of way, and the principles applied in similar cases should also be applied- perhaps even EXTENDED a little bit- to the new case” (Emphasis mine). In Griswold V. Connecticut in 1965 Justice William Douglas adopted Harlan’s reasoning and the catch phrase “Right to privacy” became law. Douglas wrote that “specific guarantees in the Bill of Rights have penumbras, formed by emanations from those guarantees that help give them life and substance.

Do not feel bad if you don’t know what a penumbra and emanation is. The lawyers reading the decision did not even know. A penumbra is an astronomical term describing the partial shadow in an eclipse or the edge of a sunspot- it is another way for describing something unclear or uncertain. Emanation is a scientific term for gas made from radioactive decay, also meaning an emission.

One thing that these two cases have in common is that there are no constitutional grounds for the decision. In BOTH cases, the Constitution was distorted to fit an agenda.

These cases may seem far off and seem to have little impact on America in general. However, when we look at the cases we see the effects of it. One well-known example is Roe V. Wade. The Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion “on demand”. Since Roe V. Wade 47 MILLION children have been murdered, an entire generation has been killed since the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. The resulting effects of that decision are detrimental. We have lost 47 million voters, politicians, singers, actors, businessmen, workers, and families since the 1970s.

In these instances, and many more, the Supreme Court has stepped outside of it’s constitutional role and the justices have not exercised good behavior. In article 3 section one of the constitution it reads: “…Judges shall hold their offices during good behavior…” When we look at Federalist paper 78 we will see an explanation by Alexander Hamilton about the terms of office. He wrote: “The Courts must declare the sense of the law; and if they be disposed to exercise WILL instead of judgment, the consequence would equally be the substitution of their pleasure to that of the legislative body.” In other words, they would be subject to impeachment.

So now that we have seen the problem, not only with today’s mind or lack thereof, but with the courts as well. What can we do about it? Can we really win the case against Judicial Activism in America?









There are many options of stopping judicial activism available. Two of the most prominent I’ve seen is 1. Term limits and 2. Impeachment. Both of these are good options in my opinion. Though personally, I favor impeachment as that has partially been done before, and it is constitutional. It is constitutional because any official is subject to impeachment, including Supreme Court Justices. Also, impeachment has been partially done, though the enforcement was never carried out. If we impeach a few of the justices who are not exercising good behavior, and enforce it, I believe it will send a stronger message than setting a term limit. I believe that a term limit would be effective for activist judges, but it would also hinder the judges who have a strict interpretation of the Constitution.

Do I believe that we can win the case against Judicial activism?
Yes we can, if we work hard and elect officials who are good strong Christian leaders that will not back down in the face of the mainstream media. Many republicans in office currently are timid because they are afraid of how the media will construe them. I believe that in these upcoming elections we need to pay close attention to the candidates and ask them about what they will do to prevent judicial activism. We need to remember that with God, all things are possible and we can win the case against judicial activism, if we are willing to take a stand.