Monday, March 31, 2014

It's Really a Question of Faith

A time to believe.
To begin, I won't even argue that Christianity is under attack in America and also around the world, as any casual observer would have to be comatose not to see it. From schools to courthouses, liberals are on a constant mission to remove God and any mention of Him from the public discourse.  And bear in mind, this author is by no means a Holy roller nor a Bible-thumper, but I do believe in God, and pity those who mock Him. (Notice that I do not condemn the heathens nor call for their deaths, but pity and pray for them. May God have mercy on your souls, as I believe He will, while you scoff at the notion).

Still, I wonder not only of the collective motivation of the liberals in America, but of their absolute disdain for the believers as well. While the left demands an answer to the question regarding homosexuals, that being, "how does their lifestyle affect you?", I would ask the same of them; "Why does Christianity offend you so"?

I can already hear the cacophony of protest from the left, claiming that Christians oppress gays, but what of the oppression given in return? Christians are pummeled daily and publicly over their opposition to gay rights, when all that opposition really is is a matter of opinion. Aren't the opinions of everyone given equal merit in a place like America? Have we abandoned free speech altogether? It seems that the free exchange of ideas has lost its validity in the Land of the Free, and the perpetrators of such a heinous trend have absolutely no regrets over the apparent loss of the most basic freedom we have defended for a few centuries.

With all of that said, I want to get to the real crux of the matter, and that is the question of faith. Ask any liberal why they reject God or why they refuse to accept Him, and a majority of the time they will turn to attack mode and demand proof of His existence. When we can offer none, they laugh, throw their hands in the air and assume that they have achieved victory, yet when questioned on the proven failure of their own faith, liberals get defensive and claim intellectual superiority when none is evident. Still, they are convinced of it despite physical proof.

Sure, I could launch into a tirade on the perfection of the universe and the miracle of life on Earth, but I won't To me and millions like me, it is self evident. Could this all be an enormous accident? Well, it's a matter of faith, and the arguments of theologians make much more sense than those of atheistic "scientists", but let's get to the faith of liberals.

Liberals have faith in the philosophies of men like FDR, Obama and yes, even Lenin and Marx, but here's where that faith gets interesting: those collective philosophies are demonstrably detrimental to humanity, judging by recent history. Yet, when confronted with the historical proof of these failures, the left believes with all their hearts. And Christians are deemed irrational?

We have the terrible eyesore of Detroit, a once vibrant city considered the jewel of modern America, a city alive with capitalism and productivity and now dying a slow, horrible death. (And not far from it). And then Wisconsin democrats tried to recall Governor Scott Walker, a measure that thankfully failed. As a result of that failed campaign, Wisconsin now boasts a surplus of $977 million after a deficit of 3.6 billion (yeah, with a "B"). Politifact.com fact-checked this claim and gave it a half truth. Fine, but nonetheless, what ever the true numbers are, there is no dispute that Walker is moving in the right direction.

We also have the "gun safety" numbers, with anti second amendment advocates urging the removal of guns from our society. Again, the faith of the left comes into question when towns like Kennesaw, Georgia -- with a requirement of household males to own a firearm -- boast the lowest crime rate in the nation. How does that figure in the liberal world? They have faith that no guns means a safe society, and don't dare argue the point, and never mind that the hard evidence contradicts the liberal position...just have faith in them. But don't believe in God.

Which brings me to my final point; global warming, climate change, or whatever the liberals want to call it tomorrow. We must all have faith in the prognostications of supposed scientists who parrot the mantra of environmentalists lest we are labeled heretics. The word "heretics" reminds me of the earlier Biblical days, ironically enough. Today, the left prefers the term "liars", as in all of us who doubt them, but the faith of liberals is clearly beyond reproach, at least in their minds.

But we are the crazies who believe in God. Yeah, makes perfect sense in someones world. I just don't want those "someones" running the country.






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Tuesday, March 18, 2014

A History I Was Never Taught

The Work of General MacArthur
What you see in the picture to your left is the burning remnants of the property of some 15,000 World War I veterans and their families, the last of their earthly possessions gone up in smoke. Sadly, this is not the carnage inflicted by the Germans on an encampment in a remote village in France, but the scene that played out in our own U.S. Capital in 1932. Many of you -- like myself -- never knew or learned of this event, but I have now become aware of it and will impart this to you.

We all grew up with the stories of World War II, and many of our grandfathers served in that war. But World War I is something too distant for our memories, as is the Great Depression. Still, we all think back to veterans of these two wars as heroes beyond reproach, men to be revered for the ages. What happened to them in the summer of 1932 is tragic beyond belief.

In 1924, the United States Congress, grateful to the recently returned heroes of World War I, voted to give the veterans a bonus of $1.25 for everyday served overseas, and a $1.00 bonus for every day served stateside. So far, so good for those who defeated the Germans the first time around. The catch was that the bonus would not come due until 1945. A long time to wait in the best of times, but then the Great Depression hit the country, and those brave soldiers were now destitute.

In May of 1932, with the nation in the grips of the Depression, roughly 15,000 soldiers and their families descended on Washington, D.C. to demand immediate payment of their bonuses, many of them flat broke and needing some assistance. Known as the Bonus Expeditionary Force, the veterans set up the largest camp across the river from the Capitol at Anacostia Flats. Being the disciplined military men that they were, taught to survive in harsh conditions, the veterans built structures from scraps from a nearby junk pile. They laid out streets, dug latrines, and held daily formations. The leader of the group, Walter Waters, was quoted as saying, "We're here for the duration and we're not going to starve. We're going to keep ourselves a simon-pure veteran's organization. If the Bonus is paid it will relieve to a large extent the deplorable economic condition."

On June 17th, the Senate was scheduled to vote on a bill passed earlier by the House of Representatives that immediately gave the veterans their bonus money. In anticipation of the vote, roughly 10,000 marchers mobilized on the Capitol grounds awaiting the outcome. By nightfall, Walter Waters appeared to deliver the bad news: the Senate defeating the House bill by a 62-18 vote. The veterans were stunned, but they were not violent. Waters directed them to "Sing America and go back to your billets", which is what they did. Some stayed on the Capitol grounds over the next month and a half in tents.

MacArthur's tanks and Patton's
cavalry attack WWI vets.
On July 28th, the Attorney General ordered the Washing police to evacuate the veterans from the Capitol grounds. There was resistance from the veterans, and the police shot two veterans dead. Upon hearing this news, President Herbert Hoover ordered the Army to clear out the veterans. Infantry and cavalry, supported by 6 tanks were dispatched under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, with Patton commanding the cavalry.

At 4:45 P.M. the troops were poised to attack. Seeing this display, the Bonus Vets mistakenly thought the show of the military was in their honor and began cheering. Then, the army turned to attack. They advanced with fixed bayonets, lobbing tear gas into the crowd. By nightfall, the veterans were driven back across the Anacostia River, and Hoover gave the order to halt the attack. MacArthur, however, was convinced that the Bonus Expeditionary Force was comprised of Communists, and ignored Hoover order to cease.

MacArthur advanced across the bridge to continue his assault on the very men who only years before had defeated the Germans in World War I. He destroyed their makeshift town of shanties, leaving everything these poor men had left in smoldering ruins.

We remember the Kent State massacre, but in fairness -- and not to make light of young people being killed by their own government -- these were protesting college students trying to end the Vietnam War. What our government did to the men who fought for us all in WWI is a dastardly shame. And it set a dangerous precedent.

On May 16th of this year, there is a massive protest being planned to occupy the Capitol, and civilians and former military are expected to participate. The goal is to march on to Washington, D.C. and not leave the Capitol grounds until the members of Congress either leave or agree to major changes in government spending. Informally known as the American Spring movement, judging by our past, things could get ugly in D.C.

To see what our own government is capable of, watch this brief video,





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