A Nation Divided Against Itself Can Not Stand! Part 1

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Americans, change, Conservatives, constitution, Cruz, democrats, divisions, election 2016, Founders, history, Liberals, obama, Republicans, Trump

A house divided against itself cannot stand.

It’s written in the Bible (Mark 3:24-25), and it is the foundation of one of President Abraham Lincoln’s most important speeches.

On June 16, 1858 more than 1,000 delegates met in the Springfield, Illinois, statehouse for the Republican State Convention. At 5:00 p.m. they chose Abraham Lincoln as their candidate for the U.S. Senate, running against Democrat Stephen A. Douglas. At 8:00 p.m. Lincoln delivered this address to his Republican colleagues in the Hall of Representatives. The title reflects part of the speech’s introduction, “A house divided against itself cannot stand,” a concept familiar to Lincoln’s audience as a statement by Jesus recorded in all three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke). House Divided Speech, Springfield, Illinois, June 16, 1858. Read more HERE.

Decades later, running on a platform that publicly declared his intention to “fundamentally change America,” against the wishes of millions of Americans, President Obama has succeeded in is goal to piece by piece dismantle and disrespect the very foundation of our nation: our Constitution and the rule of law.

A house divided against itself cannot stand.

A Historical background via Obama the Great Divider, by J. Robert Smith

 “Throughout our nation’s history, division has been the rule; unity, the exception.  That goes back to the Revolution.  When it was clear to the Founders and outraged colonists that the British had no interest in redressing their grievances, they elected to divide, to fight for independence.

“Lucky for us and the world that they chose to do so. 

“Today, many Americans aren’t acquainted with the fact that colonists weren’t unanimous for independence.  A sizeable minority — Tories — backed the Crown.  They supported British troops and some fought alongside them. 

“The nation’s early, formative political era was marked by sharp divisions.  Federalists versus Jeffersonians.  Pro-Jackson versus Anti-Jackson factions.  Disputes over slavery were ongoing.  There was a whiskey rebellion and another war with the British.

“By the mid 1800s, the nation divided into sections and fought a civil war.  That, assuredly, was a tragic division.  620,000 military casualties, north and south, say so.  A ravaged South and a depleted North say so, too. 

“But as Lincoln stated, the war came, despite efforts at reconciliation.  The good that resulted from the war was the abolition of slavery.  And though it would take another hundred years, and yet more divisions and trials, abolition set African-Americans on the path to gaining their full God-given rights.  

“In the 20^th Century, Americans divided about other wars as well.  World Wars I and II, Vietnam and the Iraq War.  Toward the end, they divided about the Cold War.  

“And they’ve divided about the New Deal, the Fair Deal, The Great Society and the Reagan Revolution.  They’ve divided culturally, starting in the 1960s, over drugs, sex and rock and roll.  They’ve divided over abortion.

“As we look back over the long arc of the nation’s history, we see that from divisions came resolutions.  Freedom, more often than not, was advanced.  Our rights better secured.  Our nation, strengthened.   

“We live in a time of momentous divisions.  Many of us will not live to see the resolutions completely.  Since the early part of the 20^th Century, a great conflict has not only been playing out abroad, but at home, between statism and freedom. 

“At home, the statists – call them progressives, liberals or leftists – have worked diligently to advance government, to centralize authority in a political elite and bureaucracy and to, thereby, abridge the rights of the individual.  They dismiss the original intent that undergirds the Constitution, claiming a right to make interpretations that are frequently aimed at pressing their causes and increasing their power.  Many disdain our values, faith and traditions.

“Where shall we find common ground with the statists?  Compromise?  Compromise must invariably lead to less, not more, freedom.  And wasn’t that tried by our parents’ and grandparents’ generations?  Aren’t we, in part, struggling against a looming tyranny – albeit a soft tyranny – because of the good will and accommodations of our predecessors? 

Though ideological opponents, these two responsible leaders were also friends.

“Note, too, that overseas, in the 20^th Century and now, tyrants, established or aspiring, all sought or seek unity.  Unity under their rule in the service of the state.  Inevitably, they use force to achieve that end.  Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, Mao, Pol Pot and an assortment of lesser dictators all bullied, imprisoned, maimed or killed millions who failed to unite with their will. 

“Today, the Castro brothers are still at it.  Hugo Chavez is attempting it in Venezuela.  The mullahs are at it in Iran.  Kim Jong-Il has been at it in North Korea.  So are the Chinese.  Putin isn’t far from reasserting unity in service to the Russian state. 

“In our nation, we are fortunate that the Founders had great insight into human nature and the wisdom to arrange our government in ways that divided and authority.   They instituted checks and balances to thwart the tyranny of any faction, or combination of factions, to impose unity on us. 

“In the last ninety years, the barriers erected by the Founders to protect us from the tyranny of unity have been breached.  But they still stand.  It falls to us to repair and strengthen those barriers.  To reclaim the full measure of freedom which is our birthright and was intended us by the Founders.  And pass on that freedom to our children and theirs.” Read more HERE

If you listen to both Hillary and Bernie, they are so angry, so victimized, so … dead set on the next chapter in the self-destruction of America, that cannot or will not change course. Even the “driveby” media has nothing good to say, nothing hopeful, nothing uplifting to point to in anything going on. MORE coming soon.

 

 

 

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The Cost of Freedom

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America, American history, application, compassion, First Responders, freedom, military personel, patriotism, sacrifice

During the last several years, I have been increasingly embarrassed by the number of Americans who have sold out to the well-intentioned but misguided concept of COMPASSION. It is an age-old deception passed down through the generations that says if we are to be kind, we must be willing to compromise our standards. Nothing could be further from the truth.

In fact, true compassion, the self-sacrificing noble compassion can only be rooted in solid, absolute but merciful moral code.

COMPASSION: a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.

The question is, what is the best way to alleviate the suffering or hardship of others. Pain and suffering are part of life, and not necessarily the worst part. Though no one desires pain and hardship, many people around the world manage to endure it with joy, or at least acceptance knowing that good always follows pain … eventually.

It saddens me that in today’s America, we seem to have forgotten the benefits of struggle, or working toward a goal, of fighting through disease, of sacrificing for the good of others. This is the essence of compassion.

Instead, we have opted for the shortcuts. Problem is, “No pain – no gain” is completely accurate! We are left with a nation of Americans who have no idea what it cost to build America into a nation where, at least before the current administration, people of all races, religions, and backgrounds could live together in relative harmony. We are no longer taught of the price the Founding Fathers paid for their rebellion against the status quo. Of course, humans are imperfect, and today’s educators and political liberals choose to focus on their imperfections rather than the enormous gifts they gave and the heavy costs they paid.

Today is July 4, 2015. For any who are not aware, July Fourth in the U.S., is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, by the Continental Congress declaring that the thirteen American colonies regarded themselves as a new nation, the United States of America, and no longer part of the British Empire. During the American Revolution, the legal separation of the Thirteen Colonies from Great Britain occurred on July 2, 1776, when the Second Continental Congress voted to approve a resolution of independence that had been proposed in June by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia declaring the United States independent from Great Britain rule.

Now, there are many whose lives reflect the same selfless sacrifice in service to others. Recently, police have come under irrational scrutiny because of some ideologues political agenda. Of course, there are imperfections and abuses. As long as they are human, that will be the case. But we dare not overlook the tremendous personal sacrifices made by our first responders and military service members (and families.)

As we celebrate this weekend, I pray we remember … the tremendous cost of freedom that allows us the many choices we have, and it is my prayer that we will work to overcome evil with good…each of us…one kindness at a time!

Father God, many in our nation have turned away from You, but you know each one and love us still. Father God, please turn our hearts back to You in gratitude for all You have provided. Heal the divides between neighbors. Restore our yearning for self-reliance with You as our Source and our Guide … for the sake of the lost people of the world.

The Spirit of “Paul Revere’s Ride”

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courage, education, globalists, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, leadership, lofty ideals, obama, patriotism, Paul Revere's Ride, personal sacrifice, work

In third grade, I was required to memorize and recite the first three stanzas of this epic poem classic. (Do schools ever do this any more?) It was the spark that ignited my fascination with the search for the New World, the great experiment known as AMERICA.

The spirit of Paul Revere’s Ride goes beyond the poetic perfection of the rhyme and meter achieved by Longfellow, even beyond the historical relevance, to the heart of one man, a Patriot, sometimes referred to as “any-man.”

America, too, is much more than her geographical dimensions, her conglomerate of peoples and tribes and nations all mixed together into One People. America is even more than her founding documents: the Declaration of Independence and Constitution of the United States of America.

America is an idea. It is BIG and BOLD. It is unique in the world. It is INDEPENDENCE – depending on no one else for anything, and she promotes independence in her people and around the world. It is pride, but not arrogance. It is generosity, but not manipulation. It is compassion, but not lawlessness. It is unique in ideal because it seeks “equality” for all, under the law. It is contrary to human nature, but still possible, if we are willing to WORK for it, willing to sacrifice for it, willing to swim against the stream for it. It’s easy to be mediocre, middle of the stream, average. Not so easy to be the best, the strongest, the leader because leaders are RESPONSIBLE for & to those they wish to lead.

“My legacy will be an America brought down to the level of the rest of the world.”
~ Barack Obama ~

Why the Globalists Selected Obama to be President

I wish “Paul Revere’s Ride” was required reading, not only for third graders, but for each and every adult citizen of this nation. Please read it … aloud, if possible, and let it stir your heart, your love for the IDEA of AMERICA. And then, share that Spirit … the spirit that says we can be AMERICA again. We can be strong, but compassionate, A NATION OF LAWS, and not men. We can be innovative, yet controlled. We can rein in our spending as a government and reduce the waste and overlap of offices. We can return to the perimeters of the Constitution, if we are willing to count the cost of NOT doing so.

Surely, if evolution is fact, then shouldn’t the human race be bettering itself instead of seeking mediocrity and the lowest common denominator?

Read … and share!

The Landlord’s Tale. Paul Revere’s Ride

By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Listen, my children, and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in ‘Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

He said to his friend, “If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light, —
One, if by land, and two, if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm.”

Then he said, “Good night!” and with muffled oar
Silently rowed to the Charlestown shore,
Just as the moon rose over the bay,
Where swinging wide at her moorings lay
The somerset, British man-of-war;
A phantom ship, with each mast and spar
Across the moon like a prison bar,
And a huge black hulk, that was magnified
By its own reflection in the tide.

Meanwhile, his friend, through alley and street,
Wanders and watches with eager ears,
Till in the silence around him he hears
The muster of men at the barrack door,
The sound of arms, and the tramp of feet,
And the measured tread of the grenadiers,
Marching down to their boats on the shore.

Then he climbed the tower of the Old North Church
By the wooden stairs, with stealthy tread,
To the belfry-chamber overhead,
And startled the pigeons from their perch
On the sombre rafters, that round him made
Masses and moving shapes of shade, —
By the trembling ladder, steep and tall,
To the highest window in the wall,
Where he paused to listen and look down
A moment on the roofs of the town,
And the moonlight flowing over all.

Beneath, in the churchyard, lay the dead,
In their night-encampment on the hill,
Wrapped in silence so deep and still
That he could hear, like a sentinel’s tread,
The watchful night-wind, as it went
Creeping along from tent to tent,
And seeming to whisper, “All is well!”
A moment only he feels the spell
Of the place and the hour, and the secret dread
Of the lonely belfry and the dead;
For suddenly all his thoughts are bent
On a shadowy something far away,
Where the river widens to meet the bay, —
A line of black that bends and floats
On the rising tide, like a bridge of boats.

Meanwhile, impatient to mount and ride,
Booted and spurred, with a heavy stride,
On the opposite shore walked Paul Revere.
Now he patted his horse’s side,
Now gazed at the landscape far and near,
Then, impetuous, stamped the earth,
And turned and tightened his saddle-girth;
But mostly he watched with eager search
The belfry-tower of the Old North Church,
As it rose above the graves on the hill,
Lonely and spectral and sombre and still.
And lo! As he looks, on the belfry’s height
A glimmer, and then a gleam of light!
He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns,
But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight
A second lamp in the belfry burns!

A hurry of hoofs in a village street,
A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark,
And beneath, from the pebbles, in passing, a spark
Struck out by a steed flying fearless and fleet:
That was all! And yet, through the gloom and the light,
The fate of a nation was riding that night;
And the spark struck out by that steed, in his flight,
Kindled the land into flame with its heat.

He has left the village and mounted the steep,
And beneath him, tranquil and broad and deep,
Is the Mystic, meeting the ocean tides;
And under the alders, that skirt its edge,
Now soft on the sand, now loud on the ledge,
Is heard the tramp of his steed as he rides.

It was twelve by the village clock
When he crossed the bridge into Medford town.
He heard the crowing of the cock,
And the barking of the farmer’s dog,
And felt the damp of the river fog,
That rises after the sun goes down.

It was one by the village clock
When he galloped into Lexington.
He saw the gilded weathercock
Swim in the moonlight as he passed,
And the meeting-house windows, blank and bare,
Gaze at him with a spectral glare,
As if they already stood aghast
At the bloody work they would look upon.

It was two by the village clock
When he came to the bridge in Concord town.
He heard the bleating of the flock,
And the twitter of birds among the trees,
And felt the breath of the morning breeze
Blowing over the meadows brown.
And one was safe and asleep in his bed
Who at the bridge would be first to fall,
Who that day would be lying dead,
Pierced by a British musket-ball.

You know the rest. In the books you have read,
How the British Regulars fired and fled, —
How the farmers gave them ball for ball,
From behind each fence and farm-yard wall,
Chasing the redcoats down the lane,
Then crossing the fields to emerge again
Under the trees at the turn of the road,
And only pausing to fire and load.

So through the night rode Paul Revere;
And so through the night went his cry of alarm
To every Middlesex village and farm, —
A cry of defiance and not of fear,
A voice in the darkness, a knock at the door,
And a word that shall echo forevermore!
For borne on the night-wind of the Past,
Through all our history, to the last,
In the hour of darkness and peril and need,
The people will waken and listen to hear
The hurrying hoof-beats of that steed
And the midnight message of Paul Revere.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Click HERE to jump to amazon to buy a copy for your shelf or for your children or grandchildren!

Our Constitution: A Firm Foundation Crumbling? (Warning – Historical Content!)

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63rd NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER, Founders, JFK, liberty, NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER 2014, President D.D. Eisenhower, President Truman, US Constitution, US History, We Pray, WE THE PEOPLE

if My people who are called by My name put away their pride and pray, and look for My face, and turn from their sinful ways, then I will hear from heaven. I will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

STRENGTH
RESILIENCE
BALANCE
TIMELESSNESS

It’s the 63rd NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER, instituted by Pres. Truman. Since that time, thirty-four of the 44 U.S. Presidents have signed proclamations for National Prayer. Three of the Presidents who did not sign a proclamation died while serving in office. Two Presidents, not included in the count, William Howard Taft and Warren Gamaliel Harding, signed proclamations for Thanksgiving and Prayer.

At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, James Madison proposed the plan to divide the central government into three branches. He discovered this model of government from the Perfect Governor, as he read Isaiah 33:22;

“For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; He will save us.”

This is the birth of the branches of government.

Election season is upon us, and once again, We-the-People have the awesome responsibility of choosing our leaders. Most of us will agree that BOTH parties are corrupt. We can therefore NOT vote by party as we have in the past, as our parents and grandparents did. We must investigate the individuals who seek office, and choose as though our future, and perhaps our lives, depend on it. Something must be the guiderule, the standard by which we decide, the plumbline by which we measure the men and women who seek office.

But what?

The Founders goal was that this nation be a nation of Law and not of men. That “all men” would be judged equally under the Law. Clearly, we have drifted from this standard, and only We-the-People have the authority to turn us back in that direction, or continue toward the tyranny of men ruling over men. It is clear in our inspired Constitution, which direction is “FAIR,” but the political winds have perverted fairness and truth. America was built on God’s word by people who understood and accepted His sovereignty. Do not give ear to those who say otherwise Investigate on your own! Let’s choose those who will stand strong on our Constitution, rather than those who seek to rewrite it.

President D.D.Eisenhower, on the say of his inauguration, placed his hand on a specific verse in the Bible – Psalm 127: 1 which says:

Unless the Lord builds the house (America),
They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the Lord guards the city (cities),
The watchman stays awake in vain.

What will our course, then, be?

On that fateful day in Dallas, the day President Kennedy was assassinated, he was slated to give a speech. From that speech …

I have spoken of strength largely in terms of the deterrence and resistance of aggression and attack. But, in today’s world, freedom can be lost without a shot being fired, by ballots as well as bullets. The success of our leadership is dependent upon respect for our mission in the world as well as our missiles — on a clearer recognition of the virtues of freedom as well as the evils of tyranny.

America depends on us. It is not just a nation. It is an ideal, a hope, the God-ordained leader of nations, not for the sake of power-mongers or financial/political gain, but for the GOOD of the nations. No other nation has been as helpful in catastrophe, no other nation has been so compassionate in tragedy, no other nation has been so merciful in the collection of debt … no other nation has been the home of as much innovation, scientific advancement, medical development and academic prowess, but each of these fields has also fallen victim to corruption and abuse. Nevertheless, the goodness, the compassion continues as a result of God’s goodness to US!

For the tired and the weary
Lost and confused
Hopeless and needy
With nothing to lose
For those who are falling
Or have already fallen away

Cause Our hearts are exploding
With compassion and love
For a world that is dying
To be lifted up (oh)

We pray
Humbly we seek Your face
Broken yet unafraid to be, you hear
We leave it all in Your hands
Know that you hear us when we pray

Peace and forgiveness
For the nations at war
Strength in their weakness
When they can take no more
Mercy, redemption, healing
And for You to be Lord of all

Our hearts are exploding
With compassion and love
For a world that is crying
To be lifted up (oh)

Father in Heaven
The Giver of life
Your Kingdom forever be glorified
You’re all can will unite us
And heal our divide
We bow down before You
Oh Lord hear our cry

We pray, humbly we seek your face
Trust that you hear us when we pray

Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
LAGERBERG, CLINT/PRICE, OTTO MONTGOMERY JR.

Follow the Matrix of Liberty

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America, character, Christianity, education, faith, Forefathers' Monument, Founders, freedom, justice, LAW, liberty, Matrix of Liberty, mercy, morality, Pilrims, Separatists, tyranny, youth

Matrix of Liberty: The Founders’ Monument

or
Where Do We Go From Here?

Unknown or unacknowledged by many, our forefathers erected a “Matrix of Liberty” for the purpose of documentation. It documents the road map they followed to win and establish LIBERTY in AMERICA. The monument has been there for decades, built with government funds, in the off chance We, the People would lose our way and allow the government to assume tyrannical power. Oops! Good thing, right? Yet, it is ignored.

Below, the matrix is explained. Each of the granite figures carries meanings like pieces of a puzzle. I have outlined each figure below, but the video completes the explanation. Please watch and be amazed!!!

FAITH
Meet FAITH! She is paramount! She is pointing upward toward the God of the Bible. FAITH in God is what brought the first Pilgrims, or Separatists, to Plymouth. Not the sour, pious stiffness we were told in school, but a LIVE FAITH that carried them through persecution and hardship as they broke free from tyranny.

MORLITY
Morality is internal liberty, and starts in the HEART of the individual. As we pursue our God in faith, He teaches us true fairness via internal morality of heart.

EVANGELIST
EVANGELISTS preach the message that transforms the heart. TRUE Freedom and Morality are products of FAITH in GOD and His Promises, the BIBLE, studied and taught to every person.

LAW
A MORAL SYSTEM translated from God’s Law into civil law, balanced by MERCY and JUSTICE, with Equality under the LAW for each individual.

EDUCATION
A Woman training her young children (YOUTH) according to heart-held principles and an honorable character, preparing the next generation to carry forward the “Matrix of Liberty!”

LIBERTY
LIBERTY is the result of following the “Matrix of Liberty!” LIBERTY is seated in Victory. He is holding the broken chains of the manacle of tyranny attached to his leg. He has slain the Lion Tyrant, yet bears the marks as a remembrance on his shoulder. Liberty has his foot on the chest of Tyranny, holding it down by following God’s principles only – no bloodshed! Strength based on Morality, overcoming evil with Goodness!

So much of what we were taught in school, and even more of what our children are being taught in school today is simply untrue based on historical documents still in existence. Notably, the first Bibles printed in the United States were funded by CONGRESS in 1782 for the use of our SCHOOLS – First public school law!!! Bibles were used in schools starting in 1647 through 1963 (which I remember!)

LEARN MORE … PLEASE WATCH VIDEO!!!!!

So … where do we go from here, America? Toward FAITH or TYRANNY?

Related reading: The Forefathers’ Monument Explained – VERY COOL!

A RECIPE FOR GRATITUDE!

Tags

4 steps to gratitude, a comfortable life, a grateful nation, entitlement, grateful people, grateful to whom, gratitude, humility, Mayflower, multicultural version of Thanksgiving, pilgrims, Thanksgiving, The Real Story of Thanksgiving

Have you noticed the glaring absence of Thanksgiving? Our American culture skips every so quickly from Halloween to Christmas – or “Sparkle Season!” *eye roll*

Whatever happened to THANKSGIVING?

The logistics of gratitude, if we take the time to think about it, require us to recognize our own place in the scheme of things. We cannot be grateful is we feel we are deserving of ANYTHING.

“Gratitude is a function not of how much we have, but rather of how much we have relative to how much we feel we deserve.”

The “entitlement” attitude so prevalent in America today completely contradicts GRATITUDE. We are either entitled to “a comfortable life” or not. If all Americans are entitled to “a comfortable life”, then what distinguishes Americans from others across the planet whose lives are anything but comfortable, by our standards? Yet, in the garbage dumps of the Philippines, or Guatemala, or Calcutta gratitude is more common than in the lines at Macy’s, Nordstoms, or even Walmart. Only when we recognize how much God has given us and how little we deserve it, can we come to a place of faith, love, and gratitude. Only when we dare to look UP from a position of HUMILITY, can we apprehend a true sense of gratitude.

A RECIPE FOR GRATITUDE

Here, then, are the 4 steps to gratitude:

1. Recognize all the good that you possess. Count your blessings rather than attempting to measure your apparent lack!
2. Acknowledge that everything you have is a gift, not something you deserve … that God has enabled you to earn it, build it, create it, and maintain it.
3. Identify the source of the gift, whether God or a human being. Gratitude is pointless without an object to receive our thanks.
4. Express your thanks openly and cheerfully.

The-Landing-of-the-Pilgrims-by-Henry-A-Bacon-circa-1877

The Pilgrims of the first Thanksgiving obviously appreciated God’s sovereignty and provision in that first crossing. They knelt in gratitude almost immediately as their feet hit solid ground. They were grateful not for a high standard of living, but simply for their survival that first Massachusetts winter in the New World. Deeply religious people, they felt gratitude to God for his direct and indirect provision. The first Thanksgiving feast was their way of expressing that gratitude to God.

The Real Story of Thanksgiving

by Rush Limbaugh, 2011

“The First Thanksgiving” (1915), by Jean Louis Gerome Ferris (American painter, 1863-1930).

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT – audio link HERE

THE FIRST THANKSGIVING at Plymouth, MA. Oil on canvas, 1914, by Jennie A. Brownscombe.

RUSH LIMBAUGH: Now time for a tradition, an annual tradition, and that is The Real Story of Thanksgiving from my book that I wrote back in the early nineties. I wrote two of them, actually. In one of the books I wrote, The Real Story of Thanksgiving. And reading from it has become something we do every year on the program because it’s still not taught. The myth of Thanksgiving is still what is taught, and that myth is basically that a bunch of thieves from Europe arrived quite by accident at Plymouth Rock, and if it weren’t for the Indians showing them how to grow corn and slaughter turkeys and how to swallow and stuff, that they would have died of starvation and so forth. The Indians were great — and then, in a total show of appreciation, we totally wiped out the Indians!

We took their country from ’em. We started racism, sexism, bigotry, homophobia; spread syphilis; and, basically, destroyed the environment. That is the multicultural version of Thanksgiving, and it simply isn’t true. The real version of Thanksgiving is in my second best-seller, 2.5 million copies in hardback: See, I Told You So. “Chapter 6, Dead White Guys, or What the History Books Never Told You: The True Story of Thanksgiving — The story of the Pilgrims begins in the early part of the seventeenth century … The Church of England under King James I was persecuting anyone and everyone who did not recognize its absolute civil and spiritual authority. Those who challenged ecclesiastical authority and those who believed strongly in freedom of worship were hunted down, imprisoned, and sometimes executed for their beliefs.” In England.

” The “Mayflower” approaching Cape Cod, November 1620.” by A.D.Blake.
In the late afternoon the “Mayflower” runs along parallel to the Cape Cod peninsular as she approaches , what is now known as Provincetown.

So, “A group of separatists first fled to Holland and established a community. After eleven years, about forty of them agreed to make a perilous journey to the New World, where they would certainly face hardships, but could live and worship God according to the dictates of their own consciences. On August 1, 1620, the Mayflower set sail. It carried a total of 102 passengers, including forty Pilgrims led by William Bradford. On the journey, Bradford set up an agreement, a contract, that established just and equal laws for all members of the new community, irrespective of their religious beliefs. Where did the revolutionary ideas expressed in the Mayflower Compact come from? From the Bible. The Pilgrims were a people completely steeped in the lessons of the Old and New Testaments. They looked to the ancient Israelites for their example.

“And, because of the biblical precedents set forth in Scripture, they never doubted that their experiment would work. But this was no pleasure cruise, friends. The journey to the New World was a long and arduous one. And when the Pilgrims landed in New England in November, they found — according to Bradford’s detailed journal — a cold, barren, desolate wilderness.” The New York Jets had just lost to the Patriots. “There were no friends to greet them, he wrote.” I just threw that in about the Jets and Patriots. “There were no houses to shelter them. There were no inns where they could refresh themselves. And the sacrifice they had made for freedom was just beginning. During the first winter, half the Pilgrims — including Bradford’s own wife — died of either starvation, sickness or exposure. When spring finally came, Indians taught the settlers how to plant corn, fish for cod and skin beavers for coats.

“Life improved for the Pilgrims, but they did not yet prosper! This is important to understand because this is where modern American history lessons often end. Thanksgiving is actually explained in some textbooks as a holiday for which the Pilgrims gave thanks to the Indians for saving their lives, rather than as a devout expression of gratitude grounded in the tradition of” the Bible, “both the Old and New Testaments. Here is the part that has been omitted: The original contract the Pilgrims had entered into with their merchant-sponsors in London called for everything they produced to go into a common store, and each member of the community was entitled to one common share. All of the land they cleared and the houses they built belonged to the community as well.” Everything belonged to everybody. “They were going to distribute it equally. All of the land they cleared and the houses they built belonged to the community as well.

“Nobody owned anything.” It was a forerunner of Occupy Wall Street. Seriously. “They just had a share in it,” but nobody owned anything. “It was a commune, folks.” The original pilgrim settlement was a commune. “It was the forerunner to the communes we saw in the ’60s and ’70s out in California,” and Occupy Wall Street, “and it was complete with organic vegetables, by the way.” There’s no question they were organic vegetables. What else could they be? “Bradford, who had become the new governor of the colony, recognized that this form of collectivism was as costly and destructive to the Pilgrims as that first harsh winter, which had taken so many lives. He decided to take bold action. Bradford assigned a plot of land to each family to work and manage,” as they saw fit, and, “thus turning loose the power of the marketplace. That’s right. Long before Karl Marx was even born, the Pilgrims had discovered and experimented with what could only be described as socialism.

The Arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers, c. 1864, (oil on canvas) by Antonio Gisbert (1835-1901)

“And what happened? It didn’t work!” They nearly starved! “It never has worked! What Bradford and his community found was that the most creative and industrious people had no incentive to work any harder than anyone else, unless they could utilize the power of personal motivation! But while most of the rest of the world has been experimenting with socialism for well over a hundred years — trying to refine it, perfect it, and re-invent it — the Pilgrims decided early on to scrap it permanently. What Bradford wrote about this social experiment should be in every schoolchild’s history lesson. If it were, we might prevent much needless suffering in the future.” If it were, there wouldn’t be any Occupy Wall Street. There wouldn’t be any romance for it.

“The experience that we had in this common course and condition,'” Bradford wrote. “‘The experience that we had in this common course and condition tried sundry years…that by taking away property, and bringing community into a common wealth, would make them happy and flourishing — as if they were wiser than God,’ Bradford wrote.” This was his way of saying, it didn’t work, we thought we were smarter than everybody, everybody was gonna share equally, nobody was gonna have anything more than anything else, it was gonna be hunky-dory, kumbaya. Except it doesn’t work. Because of half of them didn’t work, maybe more. They depended on the others to do all the work. There was no incentive.

“‘For this community [so far as it was] was found to breed much confusion and discontent, and retard much employment that would have been to their benefit and comfort. For young men that were most able and fit for labor and service did repine that they should spend their time and strength to work for other men’s wives and children without any recompense,'” without being paid for it, “‘that was thought injustice.'” They figured it out real quick. Half the community is not working — living off the other half, that is. Resentment built. Why should you work for other people when you can’t work for yourself? that’s what he was saying. So the Pilgrims found that people could not be expected to do their best work without incentive. So what did Bradford’s community try next? They unharnessed the power of good old free enterprise by invoking the under-girding capitalistic principle of private property.

Signing of the Mayflower Compact in 1620.

“Every family was assigned its own plot of land to work and permitted to market its own crops and products. And what was the result? ‘This had very good success,’ wrote Bradford, ‘for it made all hands industrious, so as much more corn was planted than otherwise would have been.’ … Is it possible that supply-side economics could have existed before the 1980s? Yes,” it did. “Now, this is where it gets really good, folks, if you’re laboring under the misconception that I was, as I was taught in school. So they set up trading posts and exchanged goods with the Indians.” This is what happened. After everybody had their own plot of land and were allowed to market it and develop it as they saw fit and got to keep what they produced, bounty, plenty resulted.

“And then they set up trading posts, stores. They exchanged goods with and sold the Indians things. Good old-fashioned commerce. They sold stuff. And there were profits because they were screwing the Indians with the price. I’m just throwing that in. No, there were profits, and, “The profits allowed them to pay off their debts to the merchants in London.” The Canarsie tribe showed up and they paid double, which is what made the Canarsie tribe screw us in the “Manna-hatin” deal years later. (I just threw that in.) They paid off the merchant sponsors back in London with their profits, they were selling goods and services to the Indians. “[T]he success and prosperity of the Plymouth settlement attracted more Europeans,” what was barren was now productive, “and began what came to be known as the ‘Great Puritan Migration.’

But this story stops when the Indians taught the newly arrived suffering-in-socialism Pilgrims how to plant corn and fish for cod. That’s where the original Thanksgiving story stops, and the story basically doesn’t even begin there. The real story of Thanksgiving is William Bradford giving thanks to God,” the pilgrims giving thanks to God, “for the guidance and the inspiration to set up a thriving colony,” for surviving the trip, for surviving the experience and prospering in it. “The bounty was shared with the Indians.” That’s the story. “They did sit down” and they did have free-range turkey and organic vegetables. There were no trans fats, “but it was not the Indians who saved the day. It was capitalism and Scripture which saved the day,” as acknowledged by George Washington in his first Thanksgiving Proclamation in 1789, which I also have here.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: I want to quickly tell you about one passenger on the Mayflower, a guy named Francis Eaton. He was a carpenter. He was not one of the Pilgrims. He was another passenger. He was a carpenter. He died in 1633, 13 years after they landed at Plymouth, and here’s what he left in his will: “One cow, one calf, two hogs, 50 bushels of corn, a black suit, a white hat, a black hat, boots, saws, hammers, square augers, a chisel, fishing lead, and some kitchen items” and his season tickets for the Redskins-Cowboys game. No, no, seriously. This is the estate of one of the men who probably built many of the houses for the first settlers. Very modest. But it shows what he saw as wealth back then. By the way, the life expectancy back then was not much. Not compared to today. And just remember, they were not eating trans fats, and they didn’t live as long as we do today.

END TRANSCRIPT

Want to Change Future History?

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"other" awareness, change history, community, GET INVOLVED, Helping others, kindness, service

SERVICE

One look at our recent American culture and one concept is abundantly clear. We have become a fearful, myopic society. We’re self-centered, self-consumed, and self-absorbed. We are encouraged by all that surrounds us to JUDGE one another, to separate the population into groups or “collectives” and turn against one another because of our differences. And the up side of this is … ? Exactly what is the benefit of all this hatred and division?

As a woman of faith, it is my goal to imitate my God, to live as He lives, to love as He loves. This lead me to think about the gulf between the urge to be “of service” and that of myopic America. The difference is so simple! OTHERS!

Children are naturally myopic, selfish, but as we mature, we should become increasingly aware of the needs of others. It’s called “Other-awareness” in the education or psychology fields, but in life, it’s just growing up. If society doesn’t encourage us to mature in this way, however, it is unlikely to occur. What we are seeing now is a nation of people whose psychological development has been stunted by a shift in morality from others to ourselves.

There are as many different ways to “serve” one another as there are individuals. We are each unique, and uniquely gifted. Some enjoy cooking and making a little extra to share with a neighbor is a joy. Some have organizational abilities and can help other start businesses or clean homes. Some are good with small children while others are better with Seniors who need assistance. Like a pond without an outlet, we grow smelly if we do not give of what we have received. Our “richness” grows stagnant and moldy unless we find an outlet, a way to serve.

If each person who reads this article decides to become a giver, a public servant or a neighbor, we can change the current drift of our nation toward oblivion. If we commit to this change and seek opportunities to help one another, kindness will spread and multiply because that is its nature! If we can do this, the government won’t have to!

Service might be a position of employment or a volunteer position. It can be a regularly scheduled event or a random occasion. Service might be scrubbing toilets or teaching children. It can be at a Senior Citizens high rise or a Veterans center, making meals for a disadvantaged mother or picking up groceries for a “shut-in.” The cool thing is, each of us “see” a need in our community. It’s like a burr under a horse’s saddle that rubs and rubs until it’s dealt with. Whatever that “burr” is to you is most likely the way you are designed to help your neighbors and your nation. Get involved. Find a way to give. Find someone who needs your help, and then do it with a joyful heart and watch history change!

THE DOOR SWEEPER

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America, deception, lies, OATH, Oathkeepers, Obama adminstration, Our sacred Honor, patriots, poetry, Sons of Liberty

Behold, standing by the swinging doors,
The burly DOOR SWEEPER, with outstretched arms,
His implements of deception held firmly in clenched fists,
Ready to hide all evidence of evil.

Masked ingeniously by the sweet songs of summer,
The DOOR SWEEPER silently sweeps truth underground,
While the masses enjoy their sweet summer splashes,
And TRUTH sinks silently into the deep.

Named for their heroes, the Sons of Liberty gather,
Bound by honor and driven by an Oath,
To lend an arm to History’s wayward babe,
And regain our firm footing on solid moral ground.

Blinded by ignorance and crippled by distraction,
The masses are lulled into vain satisfaction,
But Liberty will endure and arise stronger still,
And the DOOR SWEEPER will lick his wounds in defeat.

Hark! How the call of History beckons,
To the heart of mankind to see clearly the subtle signs:
A magnitude of lies and a flood of deception
Has mangled and beaten Truth out of our sight.

Yet, it lingers nearby, guarded by honor,
The Sons of Liberty are coming together at last,
To rise to the occasion and defend unto death,
The noblest, most courageous song of America!

Seldom heard additional verses.
Give these lyrics some thought … and notice the punctuation!

InspirationMonday via BeKindReWrite!

Which Pledge Works?

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adaptation, America, Arabic, citizens, English, history, Socialism, The Pledge of Allegiance, WE THE PEOPLE

The Pledge of Allegiance

I read an article today about the children in a high school in Colorado reciting the Pledge in Arabic, and replacing “under God” with under Allah. It reminded me of the history of the Pledge, so I thought I’d remind us all.

“The Pledge of Allegiance was written in August 1892 by the socialist minister Francis Bellamy (1855-1931). It was originally published in The Youth’s Companion on September 8, 1892. Bellamy had hoped that the pledge would be used by citizens in any country.

In its original form it read:

“I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

In 1923, the words, “the Flag of the United States of America” were added. At this time it read:

“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

In 1954, in response to the Communist threat of the times, President Eisenhower encouraged Congress to add the words “under God,” creating the 31-word pledge we say today. Bellamy’s daughter objected to this alteration. Today it reads:

“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

Section 4 of the Flag Code states:

The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag: “I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”, should be rendered by standing at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. When not in uniform men should remove any non-religious headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart. Persons in uniform should remain silent, face the flag, and render the military salute.”

The original Bellamy salute, first described in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, who authored the original Pledge, began with a military salute, and after reciting the words “to the flag,” the arm was extended toward the flag.

At a signal from the Principal the pupils, in ordered ranks, hands to the side, face the Flag. Another signal is given; every pupil gives the flag the military salute — right hand lifted, palm downward, to a line with the forehead and close to it. Standing thus, all repeat together, slowly, “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands; one Nation indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.” At the words, “to my Flag,” the right hand is extended gracefully, palm upward, toward the Flag, and remains in this gesture till the end of the affirmation; whereupon all hands immediately drop to the side. The Youth’s Companion, 1892




Shortly thereafter, the pledge was begun with the right hand over the heart, and after reciting “to the Flag,” the arm was extended toward the Flag, palm-down.

In World War II, the salute too much resembled the Nazi salute, so it was changed to keep the right hand over the heart throughout.”

The original pledge was designed as a Socialist tool, but it was also made to be adaptable to any nation. It may well be that we, as Americans, will have to lay claim to the version, the adaptation of the Pledge we want. As for me and my house, we will cling to our God and our guns and the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States of America under God. As a Vet, my oath never expired, so that, too, continues to be my oath! It is up to us, the People of this nation to DEFINE the nation we want.

Related reading:

• What’s Conservative about the Pledge of Allegiance?
• Resolution Revolution: Making a Better America by Being a Better Me
• Is America a Democracy or a Republic?

Celebrate American Freedom!

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"life lessons", 4th of July Celebration, American, American history, Celebrate America, Committment, Independence Day, July 4th, Know America's History, patriotism, Patriots Unite

The Star-Spangled Banner

“In 1807, Britain introduced a series of trade restrictions to impede on-going American trade with France, with which Britain was at war. The U.S. contested these restrictions as illegal under international law. The British did not wish to allow the Americans to trade with France, regardless of their theoretical right as neutrals to do so.”(Wikipedia) The tensions increased and the wealthy politicians in Britain exercised their influence and put pressure on the America to bow to their wishes. An unstated but powerful motivation for the Americans was the desire to uphold their newly won national honor in the face of what they considered to be British tests and insults.

It is this war “whereby the fledging, in-fighting, unprepared baby United States cemented its status as an independent nation by defeating the most powerful military power in the western world. The final battle waged in Baltimore, Maryland, was the one celebrated in Francis Scott Key’s famous poem, which was made into our national anthem: “Star Spangled Banner”. READ MORE

The Battle for Ft McHenry

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire, including those of present-day Canada.[nb 2] The Americans declared war in 1812 for a number of reasons, including a desire for expansion into the Northwest Territory, trade restrictions because of Britain’s ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant sailors into the Royal Navy, British support of American Indian tribes against American expansion, and the humiliation of American honour. Until 1814, the British Empire adopted a defensive strategy, repelling multiple American invasions of the provinces of Upper and Lower Canada. However, the Americans gained control over Lake Erie in 1813, seized parts of western Ontario, and destroyed Tecumseh’s dream of an Indian confederacy. In the Southwest General Andrew Jackson humbled the Creek nation at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend but with the defeat of Napoleon in 1814, the British adopted a more aggressive strategy, sending in three large armies along with more patrols. British victory at the Battle of Bladensburg in August 1814 allowed the British to capture and burn Washington, D.C. American victories in September 1814 and January 1815 repulsed British invasions of New York, Baltimore and New Orleans.” CONTINUE READING

Scribbled lyrics by the inspired F.S.Key

“During the rainy night, Key had witnessed the bombardment and observed that the fort’s smaller “storm flag” continued to fly, but once the shell and Congreve rocket barrage had stopped, he would not know how the battle had turned out until dawn. By then, the storm flag had been lowered and the larger flag had been raised.

During the bombardment, HMS Erebus provided the “rockets red glare”. HMS Meteor provided at least some of the “bombs bursting in air”.

Key was inspired by the American victory and the sight of the large American flag flying triumphantly above the fort. This flag, with fifteen stars and fifteen stripes, came to be known as the Star Spangled Banner Flag and is today on display in the National Museum of American History, a treasure of the Smithsonian Institution. It was restored in 1914 by Amelia Fowler, and again in 1998 as part of an ongoing conservation program.
Aboard the ship the next day, Key wrote a poem on the back of a letter he had kept in his pocket. At twilight on September 16, he and Skinner were released in Baltimore. He completed the poem at the Indian Queen Hotel, where he was staying, and entitled it “Defence of Fort McHenry.” (Wikipedia)

“The Star-Spangled Banner” was written in a time of great national crisis. The Capital of the United States had fallen to the enemy. Its most important Federal buildings were charred ruins in the wake of the British occupation. There seemed to be nothing separating Britain’s vaunted military power from complete victory, except the small bodies of scattered and disorganized militia. American morale was at a low ebb. It required a bold man at that time to prophesy the spiritual rebirth of the American Nation as Francis Scott Key did in “The Star-Spangled Banner.” CONTINUE READING

The Star Spangled Banner Lyrics

By Francis Scott Key 1814

Oh, say can you see by the dawn’s early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
‘Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion,
A home and a country should leave us no more!
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps’ pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war’s desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav’n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: “In God is our trust.”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

We still enjoy more liberty than any other nation, but that arguably has begun to change. The Stars and Stripes still wave over this land, but are Americans still “the brave?” Do we have the courage to maintain our liberty?

This week, we have witnessed Egyptian people rising to the occasion and overthrowing the undesirable government we President Obama helped to install. They are fighting for their FREEDOM! Their courage is evident. Regardless how it turns out, I am impressed with their resolve. They want FREEDOM! Do we even realize our freedoms are being slid under the proverbial rug to disappear in time?