HALF AND HALF

We are in for a rough and rocky ride.  We are caught in the middle and up the creek without a paddle. 

I thought I would be able to find out the “what is” and the “what isn’t” by using my trusty computer.  That proved as difficult as trying to sift through different colors of sand.  The experience was exasperating to say the least.  A truly dutiful little conservative I called upon the well-known prolific knower of all, Google search.  Much to my chagrin after typing in carefully the phrase “lies Clinton uses about Trump”, it came up with more topics about the unreliability of statements Mr. Trump has used against Hillary.  Hmmmm.  So those choices seemed to be pretty biased.  My next stop was MSN and then Bing.  Surely I would be able to find what I was searching for; bad guess.  Then I was hit with the sad truth.  I am not impartial, nor is the media, nor is almost all of the internet chatter.

Things were a lot easier back when I was born. There was a code of morality drummed into my head in my childhood and early adulthood that eased the torture raw choice can invoke.  Disagreement still existed between folks but it seemed contained within the boundaries of civility and societal decorum.  Right and wrong, good and bad, truth and lies were all easily recognized and we reacted accordingly.  Those fences seem to have steadily eroded over the course of half a century.   It seems some of the very things that made the United States into one of the strongest statements for freedom, have also contributed to the sad skeleton we now experience.

Freedom of speech is no longer the just freedom to express our viewpoints.  That freedom now gives us the freedom to use slander, half-truths, innuendo and rumor without any repercussion.  Our media, which used to exist in only printed form has grown into a massive giant of persuasion, granted the permissive use of propaganda.  Originally, freedom of the press was granted under the belief it would provide truth to the people of our society.  Clear cut truth and opinion are no longer the norm.   We are getting just what we ask for.  Clamoring for entertainment and sensationalism, our minds are bombarded with the half and half as well as some full blown baloney.  Lapping it up like sheep devouring the landscape, we are left with nothing of value.  There are those who decry the sad state of affairs and those who feel justified by the belief that they are getting the short end of the stick.  

Once upon a time a great city and a great government were brought to its knees in submission by a “Trojan Horse”.  Once a great army suffered the same fate from within their own, a “fifth column”.  We are in the process of accepting the same fate from the same type of deceivers. Unfortunately, it is not just one Trojan horse or one column (as the demons told Christ) they are legions.  Those who would cost us our very core are not just outside our society, they are within.  We are being sold out by those who are full of the deadly force of greed.  The greed is not just for the wealth of things but for the power of control.  Our society is being manipulated by the power of propaganda by the media, our educators and our elected officials.  The blame rests not on those who manipulate, but on those who know better and still allow it to occur.  We deserve better and we should be demanding more from those we once were able to trust.  We deserve more than the acceptance of half and half, propaganda mixed with truth.  We need to demand a full dose of the truth.

We have a choice this November and it will determine the course of our society.  The “who” we promote to the office of the Presidency is not important, who they will appoint to the Supreme Court is.  Now is the point in history where we decide what direction we want to send our children and grandchildren.  I for one don’t want them sent down the road leading to “Troy”.  Don’t be misled by the “Trojan Horses” of our media and educators, or by the fifth column of some in our government.  Take a real long hard look at all the facts before you pick your bandwagon.  Selfishness is not a good reason, nor is pride.  Reason based on the logic of what has been good for all of us in the past provides for a wise choice.  What systems have been and have given the most to the whole of mankind?  Fire, the wheel, language and print have all been enormously significant in mans’ progress.  The freedom of self-determination brought us to the moon and back and that’s because of what the “Fathers of our Country” gave to the people of the United States.

We do our descendants an unbelievably tragic disservice if we continue to allow the deterioration of those things that made our nation and a lot of the world a better place for mankind.  

Love your neighbor, lift him in spirit, and pray for discernment.    God bless the U.S.A.

THE CITY OF BABEL REVISITED

I have known people in my life who operate under an ethical sense, giving permission to say whatever it takes to get your way.  Truth is not important, the objective is.  The majority of us would not stand for that type of interaction in our personal relationships so why do we allow it in politics?  How can we allow it when that fine bunch cares more about getting votes than caring about their country?  Wake up people!

Not all politicians are bad folks. Some have our best interests at heart, and some work their ---‘s off to make a difference.  Some have been led down a path lit by ideology and misinformation, acting honestly without the factor of truth.  I’m sure that neither Democrat nor Republican understands the other side’s language. They both just have different meanings for the same words.

Since my dictionary is printed in common sense and conservatism, it is difficult to understand either side completely.  When we can watch over 200 speeches containing components of prevarication designed to pump emotion without getting a hint of raw fish smell, something has failed us.  It seems those two different languages may sound identical but the meanings are totally adjustable to suit the means.

When I hear Mr. Trump talk about immigration, I hear completely different meanings when I’m listening to him speak than when I am listening to the progressives’ repeat of what he has said.  I hear him say that he wants to protect our borders.  I hear him say he wants to allow those who are invited into our country to come on in for as long as their welcome has been extended.  Once again interpreted completely different in progressive speak.  I hear him say he doesn’t want to allow murderers, rapists, thieves, drug dealers and criminals to come into our national home.  I hear him say that he doesn’t want other national neighbors to take our livelihood, our income, our protection without compensation.  I hear him say he wants to give all parents the right to choose the best schools for their children.  In my world, those are good things.  In listening to the DNC speakers, every one of those items took on new meanings.  An example that encapsulates the language situation best is when Mr. Trump identifies a problem, addresses it and says he has the resolve to repair and fix the problem.  The progressive definition of his words is, “America is lost and there is no hope”.

I understand that we are in a political adversarial point in time.  Let’s try to differentiate our policies by fact not by false innuendo.  I honestly tried to listen to the major speeches on the first and second nights of the DNC but the difference in language interpretation caused my head to hurt.  It’s a strange thing when you recognize the words and wonder how they can mean something so different.  Those meanings seem to change with whoever is speaking at the time.  It seems the use of language in propaganda has gained in strength, and honest, truthful dialogue has gotten the boot.  Someone please publish an understandable set of translations.  The best we are provided with are the fact checking web-sites, some of which I have included below.

Is the new language going to be a return to a likeness of the city of Babel?  Will our country face the same fate the tower suffered? If you’re not sure what my reference to Babel is about, look it up.  Suffice it to say if the strands of humanity that have given us the strength of togetherness continue to unravel our strength will evaporate like smoke in the wind.

Learn to separate kernels of truth from the chaff, weeds and fertilizer.  Learn to recognize the motivation behind what you are hearing.

Pray for discernment, pray for your fellow man.  God bless our country.  Love your neighbor.  Stop hatred.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/factcheckingclinton/factchecking-clinton%E2%80%99s-big-speech/ar-BBv0TBi?li=BBnb7Kz

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/ap-fact-check-hillary-clintons-dnc-acceptance-speech/ 

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/07/29/fact-checking-hillary-clintons-speech.html

http://www.npr.org/2016/07/21/486883610/fact-check-donald-trumps-republican-convention-speech-annota 

http://www.factcheck.org/2016/07/factchecking-clintons-big-speech/ted

IMMIGRATION AND THE RULE OF LAW

http://www.westernjournalism.com/democrats-accused-of-breaking-the-law-on-live-tv-during-convention/

How is this going to work out?  Let’s just imagine what could be the worst outcome of this election coming to fruition.  As the first woman president as she takes the oath of office,” "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."    

 Will she be able to audibly say the magical “I do affirm (or swear) to?”

Under Article II of the Constitution, the President is responsible for the execution and enforcement of the laws created by Congress. 

We all know those provisions have been sorely abused by the current administration when illegal, undocumented non-citizens come into our country without our invite.  The Democrat Executive Branch practice of allowing catch and release, sanctuary cities and flat out ignoring current immigration laws have prevailed. 

With the giant push to gain voters from the Latino segment of our population (legal or not), The Democrat Party has persistently pushed back against the existing laws regarding immigration.  What a way to increase the voter base.  It is no longer a question of what is best for our country or setting the example to our society that abiding by the laws are important.  It has become a method of acquiring power for the future and it has very little altruistic value. 

Approximately 70% of our population thinks our country is headed downhill or in the wrong direction.  There are approximately 42% of registered voters calling themselves Democrat and 39% Republican.  That’s just about an equal amount.  How can our blatant law breaking be taking place and why do we allow it to continue.  Breaking the law seems to be condoned by 42% of the voting population.  Why does the American electorate see fit to elect an Executive Branch in charge who ignores our laws? How is it we keep electing folks more interested in keeping their office and getting votes than they are in making our country strong, vibrant, economically sound and protected?  Somewhere, somehow we have become so lazy and uninvolved that our ability to make better choices has evolved into national gullibility. 

I don’t know about you but I’m pretty careful about making sure the door to my house is locked.  I’m careful who I invite into my house.  I don’t want any probability of someone coming in uninvited, unknown or with criminal intent.  How is it racist to want the same consideration for my country’s hearth?  If you come into my home uninvited or when I’m not looking, that’s breaking and entering and that is against the law.  The doorway into our home is open to those we invite to come in and when you enter we have a right to expect a certain set of courtesy and decorum.  If we rule in our home, we should be able to expect you to follow those rules or make the choice to leave.  If I invite you into my home you do not have title or ownership.  Be honest America, how different from our own individual position should our nation be?  If you refuse to disrespect the rules of our home, does asking you to leave make me inhumane?  If you refuse to leave, would I be within my rights to summon the police to remove you?  The answer is, yes, of course.  The same is true for our nation.  The problem with our nation calling for the police to protect our home, they are unavailable.

In order to make the GOP conservatives into absolute enemies of all that is good, it becomes necessary to interpret the desire for a rule of law into the divisive terms.  To make themselves appear kind and loving, labels of racist, bigot, hater, uncaring, selfish and any other derogatory terminology that suits the agenda are gleefully put into use to describe the other side.  Truth and fact matter not, the power of perception is the rule.  There is an old adage: “fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice shame on me”.  We have already had a full taste of the second bite of the apple.  I might add a third part to the above mentioned adage.  I’ve let you fool me twice, if I allow you to fool me again, lock me up for I have truly gone insane.

I recently listened to a sermon that suggested folks of a certain age should stop scaring our children with all the gloom and doom talk.  I would like to know how many parents would be silent if they observed their child headed into a street full of traffic.  Do we advise children when to be careful and to be aware of dangers?  I’m pretty sure we do.  Those are all common sense warnings, in most cases derived from experience.  Parents not caring for their children in a responsible manner are in jeopardy of jail time, fines or both.  A thought for you young’uns out there, we’re not trying to scare you, we just want you to be aware.  Without enforcing and practicing the rule of law, expect anarchy.

 Pray for discernment, knowledge, and safety.  God bless our country.  Love your neighbor.

OMG HAVE WE BEEN DECEIVED?

CLINTON CASH a you-tube movie about the Clintons climb to wealth.  This movie is about an hour long.  Time well spent.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td2pyyCau30

 

This was so unbelievable and so full of food for thought, if you are not a Mensa genius it will boggle the mind.  This could not have any validity, but it does. Like most informational things today, there is most likely some stretch going on so it’s up to you to do your own fact searching.  I have only done a minimal amount, but one source I checked with gave it some validity.

http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/article/2015/apr/26/fact-checking-april-26-shows-clinton-cash/

I'm one of the first to admit that my man Donald appears to be a bit narcissistic but we've proved we can survive 8 years of that personality defect. The choice on the other side is very much akin to what third world countries have to contend with and I’m not so sure how well we will survive if we go in that direction. We have the opportunity to elect what I (if this movie has validity) would classify as an opportunistic sociopath and her enabler. Before you get all bent out of shape, educate yourself without blinding your mind with your side, my side clingy and sheep like ignorance. 

High intelligence and communication skills give some folks a real ability of persuasion.  If that’s connected to a strong drive for achieving power and the personality defect of a sociopath, we have the ultimate con artist.  For the last thirty years I have heard all the conspiracy theories regarding the “Clinton Machine” and for the last thirty years I have sprinkled salt on them and forgot them.  Like most of us, the thought of someone being able to fake their way into the Presidency of the United States was way past reality.  The one thing in our favor is that most people can be fooled some of the time but all the people cannot be fooled all the time.  We need to be sure we are smart enough to salvage what is ours.

Watch this movie.  If it raises questions, look for answers.  Just don’t trust there to be a pot of gold waiting for you.  Some rainbows exist only in the mirage of hope.    

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td2pyyCau30

Pray for discernment, our country and your neighbor.  God Bless you and our country.

WHO KNEW?

CLINTON CASH a UTUBE movie about the Clinton foundation.  How could we be so uninformed?  Some rainbows exist only in the mirage of hope.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td2pyyCau30

This movie is about an hour long.  Time well spent.

http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/article/2015/apr/26/fact-checking-april-26-shows-clinton-cash/

BILL DOESN'T LIE

I listened to one of the most talented speakers of our time as he used his magical abilities to paint pictures in our mind.  He painted the picture of a modern Joan of Arc fighting courageously for those in need.  He spoke of a nimble quick mind surrounded with the heart of gold.  He told a story about the perfect politician for both then and now.  I am absolutely certain that every one of his claims those positive exploits can and will be substantiated throughout the next few months. 

One thing the past has shown us is that “Bill cannot tell a lie”.  If Bill says he didn’t, he didn’t and if Bill says Hillary is all good with no bad we are almost forced into believing that scenario.  Bill did make a little tiny mistake towards the end of his eloquent flowery painting.  He asked the question of the American voters.  How can we square what we heard in his speech with what we heard at the RNC just the previous week?  We can’t, and like he said, one of the Hillary depictions must be a falsehood.

The problem with lies of omission is they are very hard to disagree with.  You cannot disagree with something you don’t even hear.  As usual, the use of semantics makes it easy to say “Bill doesn’t lie”.  Hillary may well have done all those great things with great altruistic purpose, but some of the other things we have seen and been witness to didn’t make it into the painting.  One problem with that practice is somewhere in time and space. the omissions are a glaring reality.   There is an old adage in play and it is this “the truth will out”.  The missing colors to the painting set before us are pretty much of the same hue, not good.

Most of us are aware of the current missing items:  

·         Benghazi (a video did it)

·         Missing e-mails (30,000 compared to Richard Nixons missing 6 minutes of taped conversations)

·         Playing fast and loose with classified documents (General Petraeus called guilty and lost position)

·         Lying to Congress (“ I never had classified material on the personal computer)

·         Possible use of the Clinton Foundation as a personal slush fund ( Bill and Hillarys speaking fees took a giant increase, over $26 million from Clinton Foundation donors; donations tied to positive government decisions in favor of donors)   

This trend did not appear magically in the last decade.  Here are some others that are there for you to peruse: 1978 $100,000. Profit on a $1,000 investment in cattle futures (I think Martha Stewart served time for some similar act); 1980’s Castle Grande drafting of misleading documents to deceive bank examiners; somehow documentation of her complicity in the former was somehow lost and didn’t reappear until the investigation had closed (sound familiar); Travelgate; throwing women under the bus during Bills sexual scandals; verbally abusive to White House and security staff; there is also some question as to her role in the suicide of Vince Foster  What a little sweetheart she is.

One of the things that Mr. Bill said is that Hillary is one of the smartest people he knows.  Smart doesn’t mean you are moral and it certainly doesn’t mean mental acuity can’t be used to attain wealth and personal power.  Hillary states that when the Clintons left the White House and Bills presidency they were flat broke.  What part did her being smart play in going from zip to $120 million in just one decade’s time?  Warren Buffet would be proud of her business acumen.

Hillary in her younger period was so enamored with the Saul Alinsky model of sowing discontent and taking down governments (Rules for Radicals) that she carried on a correspondence with him.  I would suggest that you look up the tenants of that writing and realize that is a part of Hillary’s deeply rooted belief system.  Alinskys ideology is based on creating revolution by anger and division.  I have to think the diviseive methods we have witnessed fit right into his methodology.  I might note that we have just completed 7 ½ years of governance under another one of his close followers.  It’s pretty hard to say that we are more united as a country than we were in 2001. Transforming every difference into have and have not’s has the effect of changing reconcilable difference into civil disobedience and violence.  Nice job guys in proving Saul knew what he was talking about.  American society can be brought into the socialist fold.

We, at least, were spared explanation, excuses, or statements common to Clinton defense methods.  Missing was Mr. Clintons famous defense of “ I did not have ___ with that woman”, or Hillary’s “everybody else did it” and “I didn’t know it was (classified).  I guess no defense was needed other than just plain ___________________________________               (silence, the soothing sound of crickets and birds chirping).

Pray for our country, pray for discernment.  Seek the truth.

God bless our country and God bless each of you.

MORAL COMPASS

Right or wrong, we all have an inner guidance system to steer our tendencies in one direction or another. We call it our moral compass.

I have been lucky throughout my life. I haven’t always headed true North on my moral compass but at least I was given a compass in working order.  Early on, in my exploration life, my compass was calibrated by a strong sense of family. Family extended through parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents.  I grew up in a rural ranching environment that implanted the directive that eating involved working together toward a common goal.

 

It taught me in order to have the bread, it was necessary to nurture the plants, to get the grain needed to make the flour to make the bread we eat.  I learned if you wanted to drink water from the cistern, you had to make the pump work.  I learned that nothing happens if you do nothing.  Anything that happens to a human child from birth until the age of reason is pure luck for that child.  The child has no choice of circumstance or of picking who will be tinkering with the compass.  Like I said, I was lucky.  My parents set up my compass to include a positive direction that defined both positive and negative direction.  In today’s society not everyone is that lucky.

Trekking through nature without a compass is tricky and dangerous without one that is working correctly.  Over time we have learned that compasses can be affected by other magnetic influences.  Our moral compass is no different.  Excepting the fact that mans’ moral compass is affected by so many more types of influencing factors.  One of the strongest influences on our compass is that of our peers. 

The small town and the times I grew up in gave me directional signs to follow.  I saw the directions my parents had shown me were similar as those of the community.  I learned that staying the course was acceptable and going off course had repercussions.  It was an early lesson in cause and effect, a law of universal truth.  Parents, extended family and community provided me with a high powered compass.  Cause and effect also come into play by dictating the necessity of maintenance.  Looking at the moral compass guiding our society, judging its working order by where we are headed, it is in need of repair. Unfortunately, it’s not just the society of our country but our peers in other nations who influence our magnetic direction. 

Like I said, my compass was not kept in good working order at times, but that goes for a different topic and a different time.

What happens to the child who is not as lucky with his fate?  What happens when the training wheels for the compass are skewed?  What happens when all the technicians for compass repair are on a sabbatical or just plain missing in action?  What happens to a young human when they are shoved into a world without any sense of direction or tools to get where they need to go?  What happens when the peers affecting their direction have faulty compasses as well?  The world society is losing the battle of direction.  We can’t possibly change direction by looking at the effects of the missing compass.  Without repairing the manufacturing process, the compass needed will never be accurate.

Psychology has long carried on the debate regarding the growth of the human being.  Are we a product of genetics, or of learned behaviors, an empty blackboard to be scribbled on by our environment?  If I were to venture my best guess it would be that all of the above would be the prize winning answer.  The genetics we can’t change, at least at this time in our evolution, but the blackboard can be scribbled upon with gibberish or clear cursive common sense right and wrong.  If those children are allowed to continue along life’s many paths without a proper working compass we are all affected. 

When one child is killed by a gang in Chicago, we are all diminished. We need to be honest about what screwed up someone’s compass for that to happen.   How does it happen that a child feels so helpless that they choose a peer group who believes breaking the law, not valuing the sanctity of life, and anger is a good direction for life?  Where are those who could repair and maintain those compasses?  We all have an obligation to guide and nurture our children.  Every time we fail to support the principles of self-determination, of responsibility for self, the sanctity of all life, we fail in our purpose for existence.  Every time we fail to provide our children the tools of education, safety, and solid community, we fail in our responsibility as a human being.  Every time we reinforce hatred and anger, we have failed humanity.  We are supposed to be better than that.

In our world today, the societal influence leading humanity into the desert is evident.  We see the effects of indoctrination, propaganda and ideology throughout our planet.  We see the effect of bastardizing the belief structure of Islam, the devastation caused by infused hatred, bigotry and prejudice.  The implied permission to murder those of different beliefs is granted under the skewed moral compass of indoctrination.  Indoctrination scribbled upon the blackboard of thousands of children.  Indoctrination affects us all. The compass we work with can only be corrected knowledge based in truth and fact.  We have a responsibility. I question our resolve to accept and act accordingly. 

Are we teaching the oneness of humanity or the divisiveness that is straining the working ability of an accurately tuned compass? 

.No matter what color of the human rainbow your neighbor is, there is just one rainbow.

God bless our nation and our world.  Give us discernment individually and collectively.

Love your neighbor. 

and HERE WE GO

Sunday morning talk shows and news commentary abound with innumerable spinning top politicians and surrogates.  Meanwhile, the internet group spews forth their own personalized brand of bovine fertilizer, designed to further either fear or discontent.  There is so much propaganda rhetoric coming from all sides, it is difficult not to become mentally and emotionally dizzy.  This is nothing new in our society.  We have lived in times of “he said” “she said” and it seems difficult anymore to believe what we personally see and experience.  To make rational choices, we need to separate the “stuff” from reality.

We are confronted with the fact that our time of decision will be on our shoulders in just a few short months.  We also have to realize that the choices we make will affect generations after we are gone.  The affecting results of judicial choice will affect more than just you and me.  This is not a responsibility to be taken lightly.

For some reason this morning, the spinning top of agenda really got my attention.  I have watched CBS Sunday Morning for the last 25 years and it has been a source of enjoyment.  This morning it became clear to me that the political agenda of CBS has become so prevalent that, that, hour of my week has been ruined.  Restating my lack of respect for the partially true reporting of the Trump campaign will serve no purpose but to allow my venting.  Once again I watched and listened to a slant that was different than what my own eyes and ears experienced. I wrote of that in an earlier blog, http://arbeeresponds2.blogspot.com/2016/07/what-di-d-you-hear.html

Reality and facts need to be assessed without the discoloration of ideology and false information if we are to make such an important decision.  Repeating the same actions that have been proven inadequate in the past will not change results.  In fact, that is the definitive action of insanity.  We elect the same people from the same stable. The people who use the same self-approved methods of inadequacy.  We expect them to pull us back from the brink of the same old precipice.  That’s just plain nuts.

 

Our republic was founded on the principles of self-determination and freedom and yet our freedoms are continuously stripped away through law and regulation.  I agree that some laws are needed but have you ever heard of any governance that has deleted a substantial number of those that are outdated or unnecessary?  I didn’t think so.  We elect lawyer after lawyer, without any term limits, to govern our freedoms and our safety.  What have we reaped from that sowing?  We now have regulatory powers imposing ideologies without any representation from “We the people”.  Forgive me I digress.

I personally believe that to review and state current conditions, with the understanding that they are changeable, is not a bleak and dark viewpoint.  If I were to hear that there is no chance of changing the circumstance that would be bleak and dark.  Covering my head, blindfolding my eyes, plugging my ears is never going to change what is.  Trying to fix something is never going to accomplish anything, but fixing a problem will. The practice of not admitting what is fact is similar to driving your car blindfolded on an unfamiliar road. That is just not wise, and your outing is not going to end well.  What I fear is not the one who sees a problem and resolves to fix that problem, but the one that says the garden is free of snakes when I can see them myself.

We are confronted with the prospect of compounding the effects of mismanagement of our country or taking it in a different direction for a new result.  The facts are easily researched: our economy is not at an optimum; our city neighborhoods are not as safe as they could be; our law enforcement people are being attacked; racism has been accelerated by distrust; ISIS, Daesh, is real and presents a danger; our southern border is an avenue for illegal drugs and infiltration by Islamic Radical Terrorists; harboring large numbers of folks that we are unable to properly vet puts citizens in danger; our inability to enforce immigration laws is also a danger to our citizenship.  The list goes on.

Status Quo is not a solution.  Believing spin is not a good impetus for positive action.  Use your God given ability to reason.

Pray for our country, pray for discernment and love your fellow man.  He has no color and his heart beats.

God Bless the USA and our world.

A VIEW FROM CANADA

 I have no idea who originally came up with this top ten list, but it defiantly is food for thought.  That is if you are so inclined to think that is.
            Canadian's Version of David Letterman's Top 10.

Just makes you want to shake your head in disbelief. This is so sad; from a proud, strong country to the laughing stock of the world.

# 10 Only in America, could politicians talk about the greed of the rich at a $35,000.00 per plate Obama campaign fund-raising
event.

# 09 Only in America, could people claim that the government still discriminates against black Americans when they have a
black President, a black Attorney General and roughly 20% of the federal workforce is black while only 14% of the
population is black 40+% of all federal entitlements goes to black Americans - 3X the rate that go to whites, 5X the rate
that go to Hispanics!

 # 08 Only in America could they have had the two people most responsible for our tax code, Timothy Geithner (the head of
the Treasury Department) and Charles Rangel (who once ran the Ways and Means Committee), BOTH turn out to be tax cheats who
are in favor of higher taxes.

 # 07 Only in America... can they have terrorists kill people in the name of Allah and have the media primarily react by
fretting that Muslims might be harmed by the backlash.
  # 06 Only in America, would they make people who want to legally become American citizens wait for years in their home
countries and pay tens of thousands of dollars for the privilege, while they discuss letting anyone who sneaks into
the country illegally just 'magically' become American citizens. (probably should be number one)

# 05 Only in America, could the people who believe in balancing the budget and sticking by the country's Constitution be called EXTREMIST.

# 04 Only in America, could you need to present a driver's license to cash a check or buy alcohol, but not to vote.

# 03 Only in America, could people demand the government investigate whether oil companies are gouging the public
because the price of gas went up when the return on equity invested in a major U.S. Oil company (Marathon Oil) is less
than half of a company making tennis shoes (Nike). 

# 02 Only in America, could you collect more tax dollars from the people than any nation in recorded history, still
spend a Trillion dollars more than it has per year - for total spending of $7-Million PER MINUTE, and complain that it
doesn't have nearly enough money.

# 01

Only in America...

could the rich people - who pay 86% of all income taxes - be accused of not paying their "fair share"
by people who don't pay any income taxes at all.

PICK YOUR PLANET

What color is the sky on your planet? 

We could ask that question of our news media, our political leadership and all the different factions of society that we have been herded into.  The degree of separation seems to be more than just talking points, more than planetary but could be represented by our solar systems.  This weekend (7/23/1016) will give us the opportunity to explore those solar systems through the eyes of the varied inhabitants of them.  Unfortunately, we have managed to squeeze all of those differences into one segment of one small continent.  We are the United States which at this point is anything but united.

It’s Saturday morning at my house and time for the weekly news recaps, salted with ideology, ready to feed my hungry mind.  It would be helpful if there were just the one language where we would be able to understand all of these inhabitants of the other solar systems.  It seems it is more than just a question of language. What I see and hear is not the same as what you might see or hear.

I don’t understand the media attack on Mr. Trump’s speech on Thursday night pointing out much of what my eyes and ears observe in my world was just plain wrong.  The solar system of media says his speech was dark and foreboding.  The media stated his speech offered no hope or promise of a brighter sky or any path of improvement.  Our President and the Democratic solar systems say that our world may not be perfect but there is no cause for concern.  The media says the GOP is trying to separate and divide our country and put the GOP on the track of racial divide. The GOP candidate is a dangerous bigot who will destruct the entire universe.  Their sky is only dark if our population chooses to elect Donald J. Trump.

What are we to believe?  Are we to believe our own eyes and ears?  Are we to believe that what we saw and heard is really what the media says they saw and heard? Is reality and truth really that different in their solar systems?  The administration with the megaphone of the Presidential office would have us believe that the 80% of those watching and listening to the RNC were all mistaken. The RNC offered no light to our society according to the media who saw it differently.  How in their solar system can they see rosy and calm and a canoe on a quiet smooth lake when over 60% of our population sees us heading toward a huge waterfall?  How can they see and hear darkness, doom and gloom when most of our population saw and heard a positive and hopeful statement.

 I heard a presentation that held out the truthful and factual realities of where we are right now, today.  Our society is under attack and just not by radical Islamic terrorists.  Our common beliefs, our common language, our pride of country, our economic success and freedoms have been under attack from both inside and out.  Without seeing and recognizing the problem and the realities, there will be no cure.  The sky in my solar system is gray and cloudy with glimmers of blue and sunshine.  Granted the sky in the RNC closing was painted with the brush of reality, but it was clear there are rainbows and clear skies on the Trump horizon.  That is hope!

God Bless the USA.

Pray for discernment.

WHAT DI D YOU HEAR?

 Let’s paraphrase Donald Trump’s acceptance speech:  “America is in trouble, headed in the wrong direction and I can repair the damage.”

This morning I spent a lot of time listening to the different takes on the RNC closing night presentations.  I found out there were two entirely different sets of that presentation.  Both were, no doubt, heard and watched through opposite filters.  The sets of eyes, ears and brains that attended the evening in person and via television were all affected by their basic belief structures and ideologies.  What is sad is how much misinformation and propaganda is spread outward by those standing in front of camera and sitting in front of their radio microphones.

Those speaking from the right leaning saw and heard a lot of positive and forward looking statements from the speakers while the left saw doom and gloom.  From my own personal view, I took in a lot of things that gave me hope for the future of our country.  In watching the ABC and CBS morning shows, I thought they had been tuned into a completely different place in what can now be called history.  It appears that the approved bandwagon will continue to dispense misinformation and bias for their audiences rather than the required self-introspection needed for decision making.  I have to agree that Mr. Trump’s assessment of where our country is today is one of dark foreboding.  I have to disagree with most of the media when they try to depict his viewpoint and goals as negative and without positive outlook.  In promoting that depiction they serve their audience a HUGE disservice. 

During this entire political escapade, I have borne witness to the license taken with the truth in reporting the facts.  The media has depicted Mr. Trump’s statements not as he meant, but as they would like to have us believe.  The statement regarding our border control and illegal (undocumented) trespassers has been translated into “he hates Latinos”.  Statements regarding Islamic Fundamentalist Terrorists, translated into he hates all Muslims.     Regarding his ban on refugees coming into our country from Islamic nations, has been translated to mean forever to all Muslims, whereas Mr. Tromp would let them enter the United States legally after they had been properly vetted. The list of misinterpretations equals and in most cases exceeds every word out of Trump’s mouth.  I am disgusted with the failure of our media to provide honest reporting.  Without that honesty, based on truth, the editorial factions that spew their attitudes have absolutely no checks and balances.  In today’s environment, it is far too easy to spread vitriol to back up propaganda and agenda. 

Back to topic please:

What I got out of the RNC finale gave me hope.  What I saw and heard was a new standard and somewhat new direction for the GOP and for our nation.  I saw a new definition of who our new candidate is as a person, a father, a teacher and a leader.  I listened to Ivanka Tromp, an intelligent young daughter, tell the story of her father teaching her a positive set of values.  He taught her to listen to people and that all people deserve respect.  As a woman she could do anything and become anything she set her min to.  She told of her father’s company that hired and promoted people according to ability regardless of sex, ethnicity or religious affiliation.  That same company employs more female managers than male managers.  Also, Mr. Tromp’s company was the first in the field of construction to hire an onsite female foreman.  She spoke of her father’s compassion, seeing needs and helping those in need. I watched and listened to a business partner of our candidate.  He spoke of a man whose handshake was stronger than a written contract.  He told of a man with vision who was able to see what is and what was capable of becoming.  He told of a man who dreams big and would see those dreams through to fruition.  He spoke of a man who recognizes the needs of a neighborhood, how to fill those needs and then build the solutions needed.  He told of a man who will complete the task he sees before him.  I take hope in that kind of documentation.  We need to have a man of vision to lead our country toward the next period of reaching for excellence.

Finally, regarding this man the detractors call bigoted, hateful, racist, misogynistic, fear mongering, greedy, rich and dangerous, this is not what I heard from him last night.  I heard a man who wants law and order on both sides of the badge.  A man who wants all parents to have a choice in the educational facility they provide for their children.  A man who wants businesses to have the opportunity to start, grow and provide employment and a man who wants neighborhoods to be rid of the violence threatening them.  I heard a man speak who sees the problems, recognizes them and is capable of managing and directing solutions. I heard a man who knows and understands the needs of our underemployed minority population.  I heard a man that knows and understands the nervousness and uncertainty, the causes and the solutions that are a real factor in our world today. 

I have heard and seen the effects of the other choice for our country.  I have seen and experienced the harm and cost to our businesses posed by regulation.  I have seen and experienced the constant failure of the status quo.  I don’t like it, and it’s time for a correction.  It’s time for taking a stand for bringing in folks who will fight for what’s best for our country

 rather than fighting for their next election.

Pray for our country and for discernment.

THE FRUIT IT BEARS

An age old adage speaks of judging a tree by its fruit.  In the New Testament Christ confronts a nonbearing fig tree.  We are all aware of different versions how to judge a man.  What has he shown during his lifetime as a measure of who and what he is.  How can we better our odds of success when we choose our leaders?  It’s not just what they tell us they are going to do.  God knows we have all heard promises, so many they can’t be counted.  The majority of political promises somehow vanish like smoke in a wind storm.

 A choice confronts us all. In just a few short months the rock or a hard place will be our reality.  We are placed in a position of choosing the future for our children and progeny that will be changed for generations.  Individually we cannot and must not take this responsibility without purpose.

The choice we have left as conservatives is dubious at best.  We are in the position of pushing a boulder up the hill that could be one of gold or one of lead.  In either case, it’s going to take a lot of effort fueled by enthusiasm.  In order to create the fuel we need to believe, the boulder better be made of gold.

The RNC gives us a platform, a stage upon which we can judge the fruits sprouting from the tree of Donald J. Trump.  We are seeing and hearing testimony as to who he is.  How can we learn and know what makes up the man that we are putting forward?  What can we use to give us the enthusiasm to put him in the office of the most important leader in our time?  He says he will make America great again, will he?  Our best chance of determining that comes from the fruits of his past.

During the last few months we have been watching a giant iceberg showing us only a small portion of the total.  His history shows us one of economic success and most of us believed that is simply because of his wealth. The last few days have shown us what went on below the surface.  We listened to his wife, Melania, speak to us about her past. That part of the speech has drawn criticism because the wording seems to have been plagiarized from another source.  That part of the criticism is most likely valid, the history is alluded to is equally valid.  I personally believe her when she talks about the values her parents instilled in her. My parents told me the same.  Her speech spoke of the same ideals and life directives given to me almost verbatim.  Here are the fruits of the Trump she spoke of:  a loving family, successful children, and an installation of patriotism as a family value.  Most of all she spoke of a man, capable and focused, hardworking and one who completes what he undertakes.

Most adults who have children know that one of the biggest jobs and one of the most important is that of raising children.  It is our job to give them the best of ourselves and who we are cannot be hidden as a result.  They are our fruit and they bear witness to our deepest identity. There can be no doubt after watching and listening to night #2 of the RNC that two of those from the tree of Trump have had pure gold infused into them.

Those children, young adults now, spoke of a father who provided them with food, clothing and shelter. More importantly, their father instilled them with knowledge, confidence and beliefs that have made them successful in their own lives.  They spoke of a father that taught them the principles, values and understanding of how being an honest, hardworking member of society is important.  They spoke of a father they not only admired, but even more importantly, they loved.  I saw and heard Donald J. Trump Jr. spell out for us what traits in a man his father holds up as ideal.  I saw and felt the power of love of country.  That does not happen by accident.  Those things happen because the serious encouragement of a good man took his commitment to family into his heart.  Our country, our people, our allies, and especially our children deserve and need that type of leader.

The tree seems to produce fruit and it looks very sweet.

Pray for discernment in our choices

God bless our country, and have mercy on our world.

CONSEQUENCES

The ugliness of unintended consequence twists its way into our collective lives.

 Ignorance of the future caused by today’s actions are all around us.  As a society, we have mistakenly condoned, as parents we have fueled, and as educators we have failed, and as leaders we have given permission to act out.  In our country "We the People” have the right to dissent, to disagree and to enact change.  As a society, we have given permission to act out however we want.  We have given permission for rappers the right to spew out profanities, race baiters to embolden age old hatreds and politicians the right to lie and educators the right to instill personal bias into the minds of children.  It’s little wonder that we find ourselves at the precipice of anarchy.

The new face of ignorance, fueled by anger and intended manipulation, is one of death.  Under the guise of justified right and permission we are watching a small percentage of our society rip our way of life from the rest of us.  We are not alone receiving the ill effects instilled hatred, prejudices and indoctrination.   On the World’s stage we can see the results of century’s old indoctrination and implied permission.  No one with any degree of civilization would condone any of the horrors perpetrated by those hiding behind the mask of Islamic jihadism.  In the same manner’ no member of our society with any knowledge of right and wrong would condone the murder of law and order.  Unfortunately, we face another result of unintended consequence.  Our society has given permission and our media has magnified the voice of those promoting the rise of anarchy.

As individuals, each of us acts out our lives according to our beliefs the best we know how.  It is almost impossible to act against what we truly believe.  Our beliefs are what give basic permissions to act in one way or the other. The appearance of agreement from other people simply re-enforces that permission.  In some cases, in which society wants to bring awareness to a situation, in order to bring about change, the act of magnification continues long after awareness has been achieved.  The use of violence to promote social change comes out of an ignorance of the law of cause and effect.  Sometimes what we have been taught, what we perceive and what we believe are blatantly wrong.  If those we continue to learn from are affected by the same ignorance, we will continue to act out in ways that are going to cause a detrimental effect.  Violence may change action but it is never going to change belief.

The results of historical blame are something we all have to live with but not always entirely justified.  Our collective belief focuses on the bad and the ugly while ignoring factual truth in its entirety.  There is no doubt in our collective memory that bad things occurred between white and black historically.  We are already aware of that.  Anger, riots and killings are not going to make our society more aware.  The unintended consequence is not the creation of repair but the ugliness of confirming and affirming justification for new fears.  If you want someone to trust you and to listen to your viewpoints, smashing them in the face is not going to advance your point of view.  Think about what you are doing and don’t maintain an ignorance of result.

Infusion of hatred is not going to have a desired effect, nor is the injection of fear and mistrust.  Recognizing why someone is angry and hateful is not going to have the effect of cure.  Effecting a correction entails a lot more than explaining the “why”.  Shouting the “why” from the rooftops has a corresponding unexpected result.  The result is increasing the feelings of mistreatment and the search for revenge.  Politicians today in their divisive rhetoric give permission to everyone to show their worst.  Instead of speaking about positive correction, they speak on how one side is against the other.  That understanding of why they act badly sometimes appears as permission to continue with the bad activity.  Understanding why you are smashing me in the face doesn’t give you the right to help correct your form of communication. To change the direction, we need to understand each other; to change interaction between both sides; and wanting improvement.  To have a positive effect requires positive action.  The law of cause and effect is universal and is absolute.  If I act out of fear and misunderstanding the result is predetermined by cause and effect.  Anger is not a positive fuel, violence is not a positive fuel and as such their effect is bad for us all.

Recognizing fault is easy unless it lies on our own shoulders.  It’s always easier to see when we are looking away.  Like it or not, if we look to the common sense of proverbs the unintended consequence of looking at the “log in your own eye before the splinter in the other person’s eye” is one of positive action and correction.  If you want to fix a problem, be brave enough to ask yourself, are you partially responsible for it in the first place?

Pray for our country and our people for understanding of the truth.

God Bless America

SO HERE WE ARE, DAESH IS AT WAR

History is and always has been static, at least to our best information.  “Now” is static as well simply because its existence is so quickly replaced by history. 

In order to help future, the “nows” should be used to understand, recognize and act upon history.  It really doesn’t matter what took place in all of our yesterdays, if we ignore and mislead ourselves about the now they created. Why is the most important question we need to ask ourselves. We ask the “past” why a specific event took place.  If we discard the truth component as part of that answer, “now” forces us to learn by repetition.  If we fail to honestly assess the results of our decisions, actions and plans, history will repeat as many times as we fail our “now’s”. Wow, what a vicious cycle is created by the idiocy of denial. Kind of makes your head spin. Could I have said that I need to understand the “how” and why of yesterday in order to effectively plan for tomorrow.  Then act accordingly right now.  Probably, perhaps I may do that next time.

Recent history proves out the failures and the misuse of so many “nows”.  We need our leaders to recognize what part their particular ideological weaknesses have played in creating danger for our nation.  Like it or not, our world is at war.  Like it or not, we are in a WWIII situation against a medusa of ideology.  Like it or not, we have to admit the truth. The time is now.  Unless we fully recognize and engage as real, enemy history will repeat and it will continue to spread infectiously and epidemically. Like it or not, the fact of now is this will continue to live as long as our tactics to defeat it are halfhearted. Medusa cannot be killed by cutting off one or two heads, as they are replaced by two or three more.  Medusa requires a full scale assault, not just on the heads, on the entire body of the beast in order to protect the civilizations already covered in the blood of our innocents.

History tells the tale of what took place when Radical Islamic Jihadists created a caliphate. The word jihadist matters.  That caliphate spread across the Middle East, Africa and Spain.  It was as barbaric as the one we call Isis, the one more appropriately called Daesh and the less correct term Isil.  The caliphates’ dominance and control of those areas continued until met with equal ferocity and barbarism of the Crusades. Could the Crusades be a possible response to the barbaric Medusa of today’s world?  Do we owe the future more than what we are admitting or doing right now?

In the past “now” created the United States of America, gave it abilities surpassing any other in history.  Has the interpretation of that history through the eyes of ideology been complicit in the advance of Daesh and its successful uses of barbarism?  We as a nation have been given more than just ability and resource.  We have been given the responsibility of action.  Like it or not we are at war.  Like it or not we do have the responsibility of leading, and like it or not we need to be completely honest in our examination and use of history.  If you as an individual are being physically attacked, denying that fact is not going to change your degree of safety.  If you tell that attacker you will not harm them, that recusal of action will not diminish their ability to cause you bodily harm.  Telling them that you understand and respect their right to anger will not save you from a severe beating.

The United States of America has a responsibility to tomorrow.  It needs to have a rational plan on how to be the most effective leader possible.  Most importantly our government needs to understand the importance of “NOW”.  We have a responsibility to be “the good Samaritan”.

God bless our country, guide or decisions, and protect ability to meet our responsibilities.  Pray for our country, pray for civilization.

THANK YOU MR. PRESIDENT

Thank you President Obama.  

In Dallas yesterday, you showed your nation a real depth of understanding.  In Dallas I saw the leader of our country, a leader who could take our people forward with hope for a change.  You spoke as a President of all, and as one who understands the pain and the anguish of a grieving nation.  You showed a respect for the law enforcement contingency that has been under attack and actually spoke to the reprehension of false motive involved in that attack.  It actually made me weep when I was able to see our President speaking to the nation as its President.  A President who recognized the greatness of our nation, the importance of law and order and of the unity our nation will need in order to survive. 

I saw and heard a President who we’ve been yearning for during the last eight years.  I saw a President capable of drawing us together as a nation, capable of achieving and helping others to achieve.  I saw a President who was grieving not only for the fallen heroes of those who serve and protect, but also for the animus that infects our people.  I saw a President of the United States of America.  I saw and heard him speak words that could heal.  I couldn’t help but think of how much national pain could have been avoided had that President been the Chief Executive, the Commander and Chief of our country for the last decade.

In the middle of all the good being created by your oration, Mr. President, you ripped the microphone away and resumed control of the subject matter.  Old habits die hard.  Directed away from our President’s unifying, healing messages, the Community Organizer resumed his not so subtle take on gun control and the lack of understanding, by whites regarding the African American plight.  Mr. President spoke about the great strides our country has taken in the advancement of interracial interaction.  Mr. Obama reverted to his normal focus on the things that divide the hues of our country into those that mistreat and those that are mistreated. 

Mr. Obama, release our President from the bondage of your learned habits.  The President, who was with us briefly, showed us his ability to see solutions, the ability to unite.  The Community Organizer silenced all that good with blame.  Shame on you, Mr. President.

HONESTY, TRUTH,and STUFF

It’s easy to define honesty and easy to define truth and sometimes difficult to distinguish between them.  Stuff is a lot harder to catch ahold of as most often it will contain components of the other two active nouns.   Easy differentiation between honesty and truth can easily be determined.  Honesty is simply those things that one sincerely believes in, while truth is based solely on those things that can be factually proven.  Stuff, on the other hand is harder to trap in any sort of specific definition.  Stuff can be part of an actual belief and will most generally contain some smidgen of truth.  The truth portion is included and serves the purpose of one thing, to make it credible.  We see all three of these things on a daily basis. Some are obvious, some are not.  One thing you can be positive about and that is stuff is going to be hidden, insidiously, inside statements containing a bit of the truth item.  Sometimes this occurs honestly.

The use of propaganda is nothing new.  Human beings have used this pretty much since the beginning of time.  I can even see biblical inference to that as far back as Cain when he threw the misdirected curve “am I my brother’s keeper”?  History has illuminated propaganda’s use of stuff during wartime, sometimes for good results sometimes for ill. Our society is being greatly affected by this practice, some of us are aware of it coming from every direction and the effectiveness of it is apparent.  The strength brought to our nation for the last two and one half centuries is that of a strong cable formed of innumerable individual strands.  United we stand has been more than just a motto it has been a glue that has helped our nation become one of the strongest, most inventive, most generous and free of any nation throughout history.  Our national unity, the cable, is and has been taken apart a strand at a time.  The methodical erosion, seductively employed by political factions and ideologies to separate us into easily swayed groups, has been hastened by news media, educators, zealots and the inherent laziness of those who honestly accept stuff without truth.

For the majority of us, the news media has been our source of gathering data.  Unfortunately, this source is no longer reliable as a provider of truth.  We can no longer base decisions on what we read or what we hear as being factual and complete.  We are led to believe, by a form of mass manipulation, by conspiracy theories, the stuff behind agenda as being honest and true.  We need to start thinking for ourselves. We need to examine those things which we honestly believe to be true.  We need to follow through in order to find truth, follow that with honest logic and we need to take the time to get it right.  We need to ask: “what is the underlying agenda to what we are being led to believe and does it pass the smell test?”  We also need to be honest with ourselves.  Asking: “what is my own personal agenda?” How much truth or how much stuff is in my honesty?  Finally, what is the possible motivation or agenda behind that which we are being asked to believe?

There are so many points of dissention bombarding us on a daily basis it would be really difficult to pinpoint what is most important to us as individuals.  Without a doubt, somethings are at a critical mass in each of our individual list of topics.  Thanks to the ease of disbursing stuff, we seem to be at each other’s throats.  It is increasingly simple to create a state of mass dissatisfaction inside a population in pain due to a large number of causes.  Most of us are affected and influenced emotionally by terrorism, unemployment and those things we deem as unfair to ourselves and or others.  We all are aware of what the other guy should do to make things better. We all know what he has done to put us in those terrible situations.  We of course stand alone, blameless in our “honest” assessment of reality.  If you or anyone else presents something to you on a topic in the sake of your own honesty, put it through the sifter of truth. 

We are witness to the results of an anger based on partial truths, on discoloration of fact and the opportunistic advancement of agendas that are dangerous to all of us.  How much anger will it take to give anarchy the home field advantage?  If you are to believe that law enforcement has an agenda of causing harm to you, your neighborhood, your race or your religion, find the facts and the truth that supports your beliefs.  If you believe that a war being declared on law enforcement is justified, that physical confrontation and the use of violence are justified, it’s time to check out your moral compass.  If you believe that the NBP movement’s involvement is a positive part of the Black Lives Matter movement, you need to have a look at the real agenda and approaches used by the New Black Panther group.  If you think anti-white, anti-police rhetoric is not agenda driven, an agenda of making some self-promoting demagogue appear relevant, you need a dose of logic.  You should be looking at the historical, not just to see what has happened in the past, but to the motivations behind those shoveling stuff in your direction.  Ask yourself, what do they want, what are they willing to do to get it, is what they are really after good for me and my family? 

Police are not all perfect, our nation is not perfect and neither you nor I are perfect.  The majority of our society wants what is best, not just for ourselves but for our neighbors.  One of the Judeo-Christian precepts is that we love our neighbor as ourselves.  One of the parables used to clarify that command was that of the “good Samaritan”.  In this parable the Samaritan sought out and provided the means to heal a Jewish traveler after he had been beaten by thieves.  In historical context, Jews and Samaritans did not like each other and both nations acted out prejudicially.  Sound familiar? Who is your neighbor, I ask that he have no color, and as for race we are all the same, human.  

God bless our country and our people and please heal our nation.  Pray for our country.

I WANT TO HEAR YOU

Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, in full pandering mode, announces that she is going to do everything she can “to make white Americans listen to their African American brothers.”  Wow, that statement is sure to get the full support of those voters in her camp already.  The large majority of our society has already listened to the anger, the resentment and all the racial divisive rhetoric spewing forth from the mouths of our politicians.  As for that large majority, we don’t need to be lectured but we do need to be able to have a legitimate conversation.

If we were to look at our societal relationships, all of the different components that we have been divided into by the political factions, this country appears to be badly fractured.  If these were relationships between individuals, say in a marriage, those relationships would probably be terminated.  There is one thing that might keep those marriages together and that is strong mutual purpose.  We, as Americans, have that purpose. Unlike individual relationships we cannot be directed in to the process of mediation or escape through any sort of dissolution or divorce.  We do not all have the interests of our mutually created children to give us the impetus to repair all the mistrust, the false perceptions and all the past history confronting that process.

In that state of anger, the individuals involved do require the ability and the desire to listen to the other side of the argument.  Any of us who have ever been in a heated argument are very aware as to the difficulty involved in the activity of listening when you are being hit over the head with a frying pan.  In the aftermath of the Dallas assassinations, I have to direct my own attention to the perceptions created by some narrative that brings the problem of race relations into the headlines once again.  There are certain beliefs that I myself hold at my core.  I believe that most of us in our society have similar beliefs.  We care about sustaining our own lives; we care about our own personal safety; and we care about our personal reputations.  We as individuals care about those things and so do people in other neighborhoods. If we all care about those things, where does all the disturbance and distrust stem from?

For all segments of our society it is really difficult to form bonds of trust with someone or something that wants you to trust them at the same time they are threatening you.  The minorities in our country are nervous, mistrusting and fearful of Anglos and police due to past history.  Police and Anglos are on the direct reverse of that coin.  Both sets of fear have some basis but in reality those basis are only partially justified.  I say partially because in absolutely none of those cases can any of the groups honestly tar and feather everyone in the other groups.  Walking a mile in the other guy’s moccasins does not mean there is no mud on that particular footwear, or on the ones you were wearing.

In the case of “Black Lives Matter”, I can understand the need to draw attention to a situation and viewpoint. Surrounded with cause, that violence against young men in the Black community by law enforcement needs to be in check.  Very few in law enforcement feel that ones’ skin color is a reason for taking a person’s life.  That is the voice of reason, but the voice of fear is also in play.  The tension playing out, black vs. blue, is part of the effect and cause relationship and that is where our sensible conversation should be focused.  While the young black man may fear for his life at the hands of a police officer, the police officer has a justifiable fear as well. Like it or not the slogans of “kill a cop”, “pigs in a blanket”, and knowing that a target has been openly placed on your back could lead to fearful reactions.  No matter how much training an officer goes through his basic instinct is to stay alive.  I’m sure that any reasonable person would understand the apprehension behind confronting young black males when the showing of weapons and attitude predominate a neighborhood.  That does not grow out of prejudice.

Black Lives Matter as a statement is great, as a battle cry and as a call to arms it is extremely dangerous.  To create a war where discussion and understanding could actually be a solution seems counterproductive.