Humor Alert: Obama Joins TEA Party!

Seven National Crimes & 10 “Cannots”

Tags

10 Cannots, Rev. Boetcker, Seven National Crimes

When we understand our constitutional system of government and compare it to the actions of this administration, clearly something askew within our governing machine. This list helps us understand some of the reasons for the mess in Washington, in state capitols, and even many city governments. ~ BBB

Born in Hamburg, Germany, Boetcker was ordained a Presbyterian minister soon after his arrival in the United States as a young adult. He was ordained in Brooklyn, New York.

An outspoken political conservative, Rev. Boetcker is perhaps best remembered for his authorship of a pamphlet entitled The Ten Cannots, published in 1916, that emphasizes freedom and responsibility of the individual on himself. (Wikipedia)

Never has Rev. Boetcker’s message been more needed!

Written nearly a century ago, you’d think it was written yesterday by some astute conservative mind. And so the political battle rages.

Boetcker also spoke of the “Seven National Crimes”: (crimes of the people!)

“I don’t think.”
“I don’t know.”
“I don’t care.”
“I am too busy.”
“I leave well enough alone.”
“I have no time to read and find out.”
“I am not interested.”

I talk to Americans everyday who offer one or more of these “criminal” excuses for not engaging in the political effort. Yes, there is corruption … in BOTH parties. Yes, things are a mess, but how will it change if We-the-People do not change it? This is the safeguard built into the Constitutional Republic in which we live. We have a say! If enough of us don’t like the way things are going, WE have the right and the ability to change things.

Is it all the fluoride in our water that mollifies us? Is it that we’re really quite comfortable? Is it that it can’t really be as bad as they’re sayin? Scarier still, what will it take to wake the American people up?

Advertisement

Ronald Reagan On The Decline Of America

Tags

American Heroes, American Morality

Quoting President Ronald Reagan:
“[The Democratic Party leadership] tell us they have done the most that humanly could be done. They say that the United States has had its day in the sun; that our nation has passed its zenith. They expect you to tell your children that the American people no longer have the will to cope with their problems; that the future will be one of sacrifice and few opportunities. My fellow citizens, I utterly reject that view. The American people, the most generous on earth, who created the highest standard of living, are not going to accept the notion that we can only make a better world for others by moving backwards ourselves…. [T]he American people deserve better from those to whom they entrust our nation’s highest offices, and we stand united in our resolve to do something about it.”

Share this:

Awesome to read, and pathetic that so few reveal the same patriot nobility today!

Parents: 5 Things Parents Must Decide @ DayCare!

Tags

Committment

I worked in privately owned child care facilities with 2 yr olds, specifically, for several years. Every daycare facility has its own personality, priorities and methods. Few agree on even the basics, which is important if you are the parent of a child that requires either daycare or nanny care. Here is a checklist parents can work through before selecting a daycare facility or a new nanny.

• Necessity: As parents, you must decide if, in fact, both parents NEED to work while the children are pre-school age. Remember, most daycare employees have NO special training, and little, if any, college. These are the people who will be “raising” your child, so consider carefully!
• Affection: Some facilities/educators limit the amount of age-appropriate physical affection teachers and assistants are permitted to show the children while others give affection freely.  Determine how important hugs are to you as parents. Your child’s teachers may or may not be permitted to freely care for your child as demonstrated by age-appropriate physical affection.
• Teaching method: There is a vast spectrum of educational styles, particularly in early education facilities like daycares. There are some that do not permit “free play.” There are others that do nothing but “free play.” As in most things, a healthy balance of both structured and non-structured activities best suits early education students.
• Staff qualifications: As strange as it seems, all experts agree that the “formative years” between 1 – 5, (or even 1 – 3, some say) are most vital in a child’s growth and development, and yet most early educators have little, if any, education beyond high school.  Most daycare staff members receive minimum wage, or only slightly higher.  I mention this because, even at this, there are some devoted educators with advanced degrees willing to sacrifice the money for the reward of teaching young children well. It might pay to find these special facilities. They are rarely well documented, but they are out there both in the daycare setting and as potential private nannies.  States mandate some criminal background checks in search of child abuse histories, but if this seems important to you, you may ask about the educational certifications of your child’s teachers.
• State Laws: If you are a parent looking for a daycare facility, know that when parents are not on the premises, liberties are often taken to save money.  I’m sure there are exceptions, but after all, while childcare has become big business, there is generally not a high profit margin.  The biggest shortcut I have seen is in ratio-staffing.  Again, each state dictates the safety standards for class size (total number of students per classroom) and ratio (number of students per adult) depending on age group.  There are also space requirements per child, which is harder to fudge.

These are subjects for discussion as parents consider childcare options. Please, consider the above issues carefully before making a commitment with your child. Meet the facility director and the prospective teacher(s). Remember, no one can do a better job of encouraging healthy growth and development in your child than YOU.

“All great change in America begins at the dinner table.” ~ Ronald Reagan

Capitol or School Yard?

All great change in America
begins at the dinner table.”

~ Ronald Reagan ~

What is more central to a civilization, a culture than the family unit? The strength and design of the family defines the culture, and, as such, its future.

What is a Family?

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, a family is “a group of two or more people who reside together and who are related by birth, marriage, or adoption” (U.S. Census Bureau). This definition is clear and concise, however, it does not reflect the “extended” family which once again is growing in importance to the nuclear family. In today’s economy, many grandparents, aunts, & uncles are helping with household management, everything from moving home with parents and combining households to daycare help with small children. While it may be “hardship” that causes this change, in the long run, it is advantageous all around. Seniors once again have some purpose – tending children or helping with light household chores. Parents are free to work or run errands. Children have more adults around them to emulate, play with and gain attention from! Like spreading the load among more people, the weight becomes easier.

The belief that America is degenerating on a moral level is shared by both Republicans and Democrats. According to a new Gallup poll, 82 percent of Republicans and 78 percent of Democrats say that moral values in the U.S.A. are only fair or downright poor. 40 years ago, only 33 percent of Americans felt that way.

So what’s happened? First, secular forces have destroyed any rendering of Judeo-Christian philosophy in the public school system. Many teachers are now ordered not to make value judgments on behavior and not to push any specific moral standards. Thus children receive little if any moral guidance in class. READ ON

You cannot build character and courage by taking away a man’s initiative and independence.
~ Abraham Lincoln

“The left insists on its constructs, on isolating entire groups into neat categories of oppressed and oppressor, but it can only keep those categories alive by perpetuating their disempowerment in one way or another. Take Griggs v Duke Power Co, in which the Supreme Court held that it was racist for a company to ask for a high school diploma of its employees, because such a requirement had a disproportionate impact on minorities. Like many of the loonier Burger court decisions, this one was scaled back over time, but what of the idea behind it. That social justice involves lowering barriers for qualification, thereby discouraging ability and competence.” READ ON

Historical Figures weigh in on
the Importance of Morality or Character

Only a man’s character is the real criterion of worth. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved. ~ Helen Keller

A vote is like a rifle; its usefulness depends upon the character of the user. ~
Theodore Roosevelt

No change of circumstances can repair a defect of character. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. ~ Abraham Lincoln

Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today’s world do not have. ~ Ronald Reagan

Arbitrary power is most easily established on the ruins of liberty abused to licentiousness. ~ George Washington

America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves. ~ Abraham Lincoln

Each individual American is responsible
for their own behavior, attitudes, and words.
It’s time to rebuild America’s Moral Character!
Now or Never!

Fighting for the Right to for ALL to Work

Tags

American Interests

A Different Tack – Learning Virtue from Wise Tales

Tags

"life lessons"

Tacking into the wind

Several years ago, I taught American and British literature to typical high school students who typically cared little for the subject. A few cared about the necessary “good grade” needed to get into the college or University of their choice, but mostly, it was ho-hum … until one day I brought in a few “morality tales” – otherwise known as fables, parables, or allegories! We read a few in class, talked about them and their meanings, then I assigned them to write one for the next day. It proved a very enlightening exercise.

I’m not writing any original stories here, just posting a few for ages gone by.

Androcles

A slave named Androcles once escaped from his master and fled to the forest. As he was wandering about there he came upon a Lion lying down moaning and groaning. At first he turned to flee, but finding that the Lion did not pursue him, he turned back and went up to him. As he came near, the Lion put out his paw, which was all swollen and bleeding, and Androcles found that a huge thorn had got into it, and was causing all the pain. He pulled out the thorn and bound up the paw of the Lion, who was soon able to rise and lick the hand of Androcles like a dog. Then the Lion took Androcles to his cave, and every day used to bring him meat from which to live. But shortly afterwards both Androcles and the Lion were captured, and the slave was sentenced to be thrown to the Lion, after the latter had been kept without food for several days. The Emperor and all his Court came to see the spectacle, and Androcles was led out into the middle of the arena. Soon the Lion was let loose from his den, and rushed bounding and roaring towards his victim. But as soon as he came near to Androcles he recognized his friend, and fawned upon him, and licked his hands like a friendly dog. The Emperor, surprised at this, summoned Androcles to him, who told him the whole story. Whereupon the slave was pardoned and freed, and the Lion let loose to his native forest.

And the moral is: Gratitude is the sign of noble souls.

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

The Ass and the Lapdog

A MAN had an Ass, and a Maltese Lapdog, a very great beauty. The Ass was left in a stable and had plenty of oats and hay to eat, just as any other Ass would. The Lapdog knew many tricks and was a great favorite with his master, who often fondled him and seldom went out to dine without bringing him home some tidbit to eat. The Ass, on the contrary, had much work to do in grinding the corn-mill and in carrying wood from the forest or burdens from the farm. He often lamented his own hard fate and contrasted it with the luxury and idleness of the Lapdog, till at last one day he broke his cords and halter, and galloped into his master’s house, kicking up his heels without measure, and frisking and fawning as well as he could. He next tried to jump about his master as he had seen the Lapdog do, but he broke the table and smashed all the dishes upon it to atoms. He then attempted to lick his master, and jumped upon his back. The servants, hearing the strange hubbub and perceiving the danger of their master, quickly relieved him, and drove out the Ass to his stable with kicks and clubs and cuffs. The Ass, as he returned to his stall beaten nearly to death, thus lamented: “I have brought it all on myself! Why could I not have been contented to labor with my companions, and not wish to be idle all the day like that useless little Lapdog!”

And the moral is: To be satisfied with one’s lot is better than to desire something which one is not fitted to receive.

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

The Crab and the Fox

A CRAB, forsaking the seashore, chose a neighboring green meadow as its feeding ground. A Fox came across him, and being very hungry ate him up. Just as he was on the point of being eaten, the Crab said, “I well deserve my fate, for what business had I on the land, when by my nature and habits I am only adapted for the sea?’

And the moral is: Contentment with our lot is an element of happiness.

Is Compromise the REAL Name of the Game?

Tags

American Moral Character

Every few years, seemingly corresponding to the election of a Democratic President – but not ALL Democrats – the question arises about the integrity or character of elected leadership. When the news of President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky broke, I recall the scandal nearly became the determining factor in his re-election in 1996. Nearly! I remember the debate over the importance or relevance of the “character” of the sitting President. There were actually those among us who believed the false notion that one’s personal character had nothing to do with his ability to perform his duty. REALLY??? If the President takes his oath seriously, We-the-People have nothing to worry about. However, if, as now, we have a President who must have had his fingers crossed behind his back when he took his oath, well, just look around. The evidence of questionable character is more than evident.

Another issue that floats to the surface is the class separation as referenced by party. R stands for Rich Republican … really? Who had a fundraiser event in Hollywood for $35,800 per plate? Nope! Not the Republicans … but the pseudo royalty of the entertainment industry. To be nice, I won’t name names! Funny how that never gets mentioned, eh? Hollywood celebrities supporters Obama for President

What makes a good leader? Ha! Just for the sake of argument, I googled that question. In most of the top websites listed, there was little or no requirement for any kind of moral integrity. I like the first listing on the site referenced here: Accountability! Our elected officials are accountable to US – to WE THE PEOPLE! WE must hold them to the promises they make or FIRE THEM! For must too long, WE THE PEOPLE have watched as these power-driven men and women say anything to obtain our vote, then do as they please to line their own pockets.

GOP congresswoman photographed in compromising situation with wealthy donor

Mike Bennett, Florida State Senator, Caught Looking At Risque Images During Floor Debate On Abortion Bill

Anthony Weiner Photos: Congressman Sent X-Rated Pictures Of Himself

Then, of course, there is Arnold Schwarzenegger and his mistress etc. Schwarzenegger’s love child: How did he keep the secret so long?

It saddens me to say that WE THE PEOPLE elected these officials, and many more like them – on BOTH sides of the aisle. Corruption and compromise are accepted as rules of the game. Sexual misbehavior (i.e. infidelity, impropriety, and illegal use of gov’t funds and equipment for sexual reasons) is rampant in Washington, but also in state capitols. OR maybe their poor behavior makes us feel better about our own? WE THE PEOPLE bought the lies that morality is relative and the ends justify the means, and now we are paying the price. Morality is who we are! Do you really believe that someone who is able to lie and cheat those closest to him/her will not do the same to his or her constituency?

WRONG!

It is long past time WE THE PEOPLE demand more! That we expect Better! Higher quality both from our elected officials AND from ourselves! Morality does NOT have to rely on religious background. I don’t know about you, but I’m damn tired of being “less than the best” … of being way down on the list in education (compared to other industrialized nations), of being way down on the list of exporters of QUALITY goods at a reasonable price, of being way up on crime, violence, and suicide. BUT … yes, there’s a BUT … and I’ll close with this:

What are you personally willing to sacrifice to help get America to a healthy, productive, compassionate place? Your moral choices? Your vote? Your Time to volunteer somewhere? Your Money where our mouth is? Your belief in Higher taxes? Your neighbors’ joblessness? Your downsizing to a smaller home? Your purchase of fewer ‘luxury’ items? Fewer benefits at work? Americans, at least this generation, have never felt the pinch of genuine sacrifice. Oh sure we may throw a couple dollars into an offering plate, or donate a few charitable dollars now and then, but that isn’t real sacrifice. Can we go without that McDonald’s meal? or the latest plasma TV? or the newest model mobile device? Even if it means a responsible balanced national budget? Time will tell. Time and some better choices and increased involvement will tell.

All tyranny needs to gain a foothold

is for people of good conscience to remain silent.
Thomas Jefferson

REALLY?

READ MORE:

HOT! The President’s lies about why employment growth is so anemic

The Disgraceful History of the Democrat Party

POLITICO ISSUES CORRECTION AFTER PALIN CAMP BASHES AUTHORS FOR ‘MAKING UP’ QUOTE

Obama’s quick trip from tyrant to weakling

The Battle Cry of the American Republic!

Tags

American history, American Interests, American Morality

To my mind, this song captures the “fighting spirit” of the American people. It stirs the images of Old Glory flying over the bloodied battlefields of the Civil War and echoes the emboldened cries of the abolitionists and the newly freed slaves. If we close our eyes and listen, we can see the troops flooding onto the shores of Normandy. There is, however, also contained within these lyrics, a virtuous spirit, and righteous indignation aimed at the evils of slavery. Slavery continues today, but with a different face on either end. The Master is not big business, but the Government itself! And the slaves? Any of us who are dependent on the good graces, the finances of Uncle Sam.

So once again, we must rise as ABOLITIONISTS against the oppressive government. We must throw off the shackles and FREE OURSELVES …

BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord:
He is trampling out the vintage
where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning
of His terrible swift sword:
His truth is marching on.
(Chorus)
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.
I have seen Him in the watch-fires
of a hundred circling camps,
They have builded Him an altar
in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence
by the dim and flaring lamps:
His day is marching on.
(Chorus)
I have read a fiery gospel writ
in burnished rows of steel:
“As ye deal with my contemners,
so with you my grace shall deal;
Let the Hero, born of woman,
crush the serpent with his heel,
Since God is marching on.”
(Chorus)
He has sounded forth the trumpet
that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men
before His judgment-seat:
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him!
be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on.
(Chorus)
In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me:
As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.
(Chorus)
He is coming like the glory of the morning on the wave,
He is Wisdom to the mighty, He is Succour to the brave,
So the world shall be His footstool, and the soul of Time His slave,
Our God is marching on.
(Chorus)

Pretty “heavy” lyrics … Can you honestly sing along?

“What Makes an American”

(March 1939 – Atlantic Monthly)
“To become an American is a process which resembles a conversion. It is not so much a new country that one adopts as a new creed. And in all Americans can be discerned some of the traits of those who have, at one time or another, abandoned an ancient faith for a new one.” By Raoul de Roussy de Sales

At the conclusion of Friday’s [18 Sep, 2001] service of prayer and remembrance at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., the congregation (which included President George W. Bush and former Presidents Clinton, Carter, and Ford) joined voices to sing Julia Ward Howe’s defiant anthem, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” For many, the singing of this hymn, which enjoins the American “hero” to “crush the serpent with his heel,” and to “die to make men free” signaled America’s willingness to retaliate against the recent terrorist assault.

“The Battle Hymn of the Republic” has buoyed Americans in conflict since it first appeared in The Atlantic Monthly in February, 1862, during the Civil War. Julia Ward Howe, the wife of a prominent Boston abolitionist, had visited a Union Army camp in Virginia where she heard soldiers singing a tribute to the abolitionist John Brown (who had been hanged in 1859 for leading an attempted slave insurrection at Harper’s Ferry). A clergyman at the camp, aware that Howe occasionally wrote poetry, suggested that she craft new verses more appropriate to the Civil War effort, to be set to the same rousing tune.

As Howe later explained it, the verses came to her in a single night:

I went to bed and slept as usual, but awoke the next morning in the gray of the early dawn, and to my astonishment found that the wished-for lines were arranging themselves in my brain. I lay quite still until the last verse had completed itself in my thoughts, then hastily arose, saying to myself, I shall lose this if I don’t write it down immediately. I searched for an old sheet of paper and an old stub of a pen which I had had the night before, and began to scrawl the lines almost without looking, as I learned to do by often scratching down verses in the darkened room when my little children were sleeping. Having completed this, I lay down again and fell asleep, but not before feeling that something of importance had happened to me.

Soon afterwards, she submitted the poem to The Atlantic Monthly, which accepted it and paid her a fee of four dollars. After the verses appeared on the first page of the February, 1862, issue, they quickly caught on as the rallying anthem of the Union troops, and were sung frequently throughout the rest of the Civil War. Howe’s words later inspired American soldiers during World War II, and civil-rights activists during the sixties. Now it seems, as the United States girds itself for what President Bush has referred to as “the first war of the twenty-first century,” Americans are once again drawing encouragement from Howe’s resolute words. —Sage Stossel

RELATED ARTICLES:

Julia Ward Howe

Continue reading about the creation of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”