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on: September 21, 2017, 04:01:49 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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Two Minutes With The Bible
From The Berean Bible Society
Free Email Subscription
For Questions Or Comments: berean@execpc.com
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Will We Also Go Away?
by Pastor Kevin Sadler
In 2010, after attending a Bible conference in West Virginia, our family went to visit New York City. Pastor Dennis Kiszonas graciously offered to be our guide for a tour of the city. Since we were staying in New Jersey with a dear friend, I asked Pastor Kiszonas if we could stop by Star of Hope Mission in nearby Paterson before going into the city. Pastor Cornelius R. Stam spent much of his childhood working at this mission with his father, Peter, who founded it in 1913. In that day, missionaries and well-known preachers came to Star of Hope and faithfully preached the Word with clarity and authority. Many were saved through this ministry’s zeal for the Word of God and the unadulterated gospel of grace.
Arriving at the mission and going through the front door, I noticed a picture of Peter Stam prominently displayed in the foyer. However, right away I could see that the mission was no longer about proclaiming the Word of God. It had become a mission which was meeting only the community’s need for food and clothing. While this is admirable, how much more important are the spiritual needs of the soul? Star of Hope had been founded to preach the Word with a burden for the salvation of souls, but they’ve turned away from this original purpose to focus on meeting physical needs. In old pictures we have here at BBS, around the auditorium of Star of Hope were Bible verses painted at the top of the walls, verses such as Hebrews 2:3: “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation.” As we toured the building, we saw boxes of food and clothing stacked high, blocking those verses and making them barely visible.
It reminded me how, over time, a ministry can lose sight of its primary purpose and how easy it is for other things and programs to take the place of what is most important: the eternal destiny of souls and the Word of God. What about the ministry you’re involved with? Is the gospel of the grace of God and preaching the Word, rightly divided, the main purpose? When many of the Lord’s followers left Him during His earthly ministry, He asked the twelve, “Will ye also go away?” (John 6:67). Will we also go away from the Lord in His heavenly ministry and from the things that matter most to Him? May it never be. |
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on: September 21, 2017, 04:00:01 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________ We not only need help every day--but every moment!
(James Smith, "The Evening Sacrifice; Or, A Help to Devotion" 1859)
"Help me, O Lord my God! O save me according to Your mercy." Psalm 109:26
We not only need help every day--but every moment!
Our weakness is extreme.
Our foes are numerous and mighty.
Our duties are difficult and arduous.
Our dangers are great and imminent.
How, then, shall we be able to stand, to conquer, to overcome?
Our God has said, "I will strengthen you--yes, I will help you; yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of My righteousness!" Blessed be His holy name--He is as good as His Word!
He has helped us in every need.
He has helped us out of every difficulty.
He has helped us all through our journey until this day.
And tonight He is as ready to help us as He ever was.
His ear is open.
His heart throbs with infinite love to us.
His throne of grace is accessible.
His mercy is rich and free!
With such thoughts as these in our minds, O Lord, we approach You tonight, confessing to Your honor--that you ever have helped us; and now beseeching You to help us quite through the rough journey of life. Help us, O our God . . .
to conquer our inbred lusts;
to overcome and crucify the old man;
to mortify the flesh with its vile affections;
to overcome this present evil world;
and to tread Satan under our feet.
Help us, as Your chosen people, holy and dearly loved by You--to clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; and, above all, love, which is the bond of perfectness. Save, O save us, from all pride, self-sufficiency, high-mindedness, and worldly wisdom.
Make us humble, meek, and deeply spiritual.
Fill us with the spirit of Jesus.
Produce in us the temper of Jesus.
Enable us exactly to copy the example of Jesus.
O make us Christ-like and holy!
"Answer me, O LORD, out of the goodness of your love; turn unto me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies." Psalm 69:16 |
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on: September 21, 2017, 03:50:22 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post Digest 9-21-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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One of the most attractive elements of Graham-Cassidy is that it allows states to chart their own course to some extent. Block grants would give states the flexibility24 to experiment with new health care options or keep the ObamaCare model, if for some unholy reason they should so choose. In a more reasonable world, it would offer an excuse for some Democrats to support the bill.
Of course, in the bitter, partisan world in which we live, there will be no Democrat support for this bill. They’re too wrapped up in Bernie Sanders’ single-payer3 proposal. But that’s to be expected. When it comes to health care, Democrats and Republicans really can’t bridge the ideological gap25.
Senate Republicans have a two-vote margin of error to get this bill passed, and Rand Paul and Susan Collins can’t be counted on for support. John McCain appears to be on board after shooting down the last attempt to get a bill through. Lisa Murkowski has yet to declare either way. She ran for re-election in 2016 on a promise to repeal ObamaCare, but let down her Alaskan constituents this past summer when she changed her “yes” to a “no” at the last minute.
Things will get interesting next week as the deadline for passage approaches. The Congressional Budget Office assessment26 of the bill will be announced, for what that’s worth. The CBO has already stated that its score will not include estimates on the bill’s impact on premiums and the deficit. This makes some wonder: If CBO can’t provide that information, then why bother doing a score at all? Well, the score is better for Democrats to use as a bludgeon on the GOP.
Indeed, while Democrats publicly balked at hearing this news — as if they were going to honestly consider voting for the bill — in reality they just want numbers to wave in front of the media in order to have a tangible excuse for their “no” votes. Now they will just have to stick their fingers in their ears and mumble incoherently during the floor debate.
There are a lot of hurdles before Graham-Cassidy will see the light of day. And should it pass the Senate, it will face an even tougher time in the House.
For the bill to have any chance of reaching President Donald Trump’s desk, it will have to sail through the House without any changes. This is highly unlikely. The House’s ObamaCare repeal bill27 is quite different from Graham-Cassidy. And it barely squeaked by with a 217-213 vote. Any blue-state representatives will have a tough time supporting a bill that will cost their states billions of dollars in subsidies. Rep. Peter King28 of New York is one such congressman who can’t be counted on to pull in for the big win.
Funny how all these Republicans were so loud and proud about their opposition to ObamaCare when they didn’t have the power to do anything about it. Where did they all go?
MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST
Americans Have Dreams Too29 — Amnesty for “Dreamers” won’t be enough. Democrats will keep pushing for ever more.
Video: Offended by Cotton? Really?30 — Chad Prather has a few words of wisdom for the woman outraged at Hobby Lobby’s cotton plant decoration.
BEST OF RIGHT OPINION
Hans von Spakovsky: As Evidence of Election Fraud Emerges, the Media Wants to Keep You in the Dark31
Victor Davis Hanson: Allegations of Foreign Election Tampering Have Always Rung Hollow32
Tony Perkins: UN Bears the Blunt of Trump33
For more, visit Right Opinion34.
OPINION IN BRIEF
Hans von Spakovsky: “If you have no idea what happened at the second meeting of President Donald Trump’s Advisory Commission on Election Integrity in New Hampshire on Sept. 12, I’m not surprised. Though a horde of reporters attended the meeting, almost all of the media stories that emerged from it simply repeated the progressive Left’s mantra that the commission is a ‘sham.’ Almost no one covered the substantive and very concerning testimony of 10 expert witnesses on the problems that exist in our voter registration and election system. The witnesses included academics, election lawyers, state election officials, data analysts, software experts, and computer scientists. The existing and potential problems they exposed would give any American with any common sense and any concern for our democratic process cause for alarm. … All in all, the Sept. 12 meeting, which was hosted by Bill Gardner, New Hampshire’s long-time Democratic secretary of state, was both informative and comprehensive. But anyone who didn’t attend would never know that based on the skimpy and biased coverage it received in the media. The hearing is evidence of the good work the commission is already doing in bringing to light the problems we face in ensuring the integrity of our election process.”
SHORT CUTS
Insight: “The political mind is the product of men in public life who have been twice spoiled. They have been spoiled with praise and they have been spoiled with abuse. With them nothing is natural, everything is artificial. … They live in an artificial atmosphere of adulation, which sooner or later impairs their judgment.” —Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933)
Belly laugh of the week: “I’m cleaning out the White House. We’re going to sanitize the White House. We’re not going to take what is happening in this country. … I know even my colleagues get very upset. Some get afraid when I say ‘impeachment.’ When I get through with Donald Trump, he’s gonna wish he had been impeached. I feel it very deeply. I am so offended by him and I love my people so much that I am not going to put up with it. I’m gonna say, ‘Impeach 45’ every day, ‘impeach 45’ every day, ‘impeach 45’ every day.” —Maxine Waters, whose eulogy at Dick Gregory’s funeral sounded more like a re-election campaign
Pompous Jackass: “About 40% of the country didn’t believe me — until I was gone, and then they believed me.” —Barack Obama
No really — he’s complaining about costs: “The legislation that we passed was full of things that still need to be fixed. It wasn’t perfect, but it was better. And so when I see people trying to undo that hard-won progress for the 50th or 60th time, with bills that would raise costs or reduce coverage or roll back protections … it is aggravating.” —Barack Obama
But it’s better than the status quo: “Many supporters of the Graham-Cassidy health-care legislation are calling it a ‘federalist’ solution for Obamacare. It might be worth supporting … but it isn’t really federalist. A really federalist bill wouldn’t have the states asking the federal government for flexibility on regulations, and it wouldn’t have the federal government collect money from the whole country and then send it back in block grants to the states.” —Ramesh Ponnuru
Non Compos Mentis: “[Dreamers’] families did a great thing for our country bringing these kids here.” —Nancy Pelosi
Village Idiots: “[Putin disliked me] partly because I’m a woman, which seems to get him a bit agitated. … He certainly demonstrated. There’s an expression, we certainly know it in New York, called ‘manspreading.’” —Hillary Clinton
And last… “If manspreading was a distraction during a meeting with former KGB Vladimir Putin, it’s no wonder why Hillary was a terrible Sec. of State.” —Katie Pavlich
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Managing Editor Nate Jackson
Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of Liberty, and for their families. |
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on: September 21, 2017, 03:44:14 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post Digest 9-21-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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The Patriot Post® · Mid-Day Digest
Sep. 21, 2017 · https://patriotpost.us/digests/51425
IN TODAY’S EDITION
The Senate may take on last crack at passing something on ObamaCare.
Obama just can’t say enough bad things about Republican health care motives.
Surveying the good Trump has done on the immigration front.
Daily Features: Top Headlines, Cartoons, Columnists and Short Cuts.
THE FOUNDATION
“Society in every state is a blessing, but government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one; for when we suffer or are exposed to the same miseries by a government, which we might expect in a country without government, our calamity is heightened by reflecting that we furnish the means by which we suffer.” —Thomas Paine (1776)
IN BRIEF
Obama’s ‘Real Human Suffering’1
As Senate Republicans are again working on a last-ditch effort to repeal ObamaCare2, with a vote planned for next week, Barack Obama has once again jumped to publicly defend his disastrous law and legacy. On Wednesday, Obama spoke at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s “Goalkeepers,” where he accused Republicans of seeking to bring about “real human suffering.”
Donning the well-worn moniker of “Divider and Chief,” Obama railed against conservative lawmakers, saying, “The legislation that we passed was full of things that still need to be fixed. It wasn’t perfect, but it was better. And so when I see people trying to undo that hard-won progress for the 50th or 60th time, with bills that would raise costs or reduce coverage or roll back protections … it is aggravating. … It frustrates.”
What is actually frustrating is listening to Obama peddle factually vacuous hyperbole regarding a law that has stolen Americans’ freedom and has proven only to substantially increase health care costs, all while he and other Democrats repeatedly claimed it would do the exact opposite. It’s no secret that ObamaCare is failing, and badly. It is untenable, and that’s why we have the likes of socialist Bernie Sanders running around openly calling for “free health care” via a single-payer plan3.
But the most offensive comment made by Obama was his elitist moralizing nonsense in accusing Republicans of working to bring “real human suffering.” Obama lamented, “It may be frustrating that we have to mobilize every couple months to keep our leaders from inflicting real human suffering on their constituents. But typically, that’s how progress is won.” No, typically that is how an increasingly oppressive and totalitarian government is formed. In fact, no one inflicted more “real human suffering” than Obama and his Democrat posse when they took over health care. Government is not God, Mr. Obama. The more people recognize that distinction, the better off the nation will be.
The Trump Effect on Illegal Immigration Is Real4
One of Donald Trump’s biggest campaign promises was his commitment to dealing with the growing problem of illegal immigration. And since he took office there has been significant and measurable improvement — so much so that trying to illegally cross over into America via the southern border has never been more difficult. Here is a brief look at the progress he’s made.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement reports that illegal immigration is down 24% from the same time last year.
Upon taking office Trump ordered the hiring of 10,000 new ICE agents and 5,000 more Border Patrol agents.
The Department of Homeland Security reports that illegal entry into the U.S. is at the lowest level since at least 2000 if not the early 1970s.
The apprehension rate of illegals caught crossing the border today (55% to 85%) has increased significantly from just 10 years ago (35% to 70%).
The House of Representatives recently passed the Criminal Alien Removal Act. This will give law enforcement tools and resources to specifically move more effectively against criminal gangs, such as MS-135. It will also prevent gang members from gaining eligibility for asylum as well as other immigration benefits.
Trump has reversed Barack Obama’s “catch and release” policy, which had allowed individuals awaiting court proceedings to be paroled from detention before their court hearing. He also recently suspended Obama’s illegally implemented DACA program6, sending it to Congress — from which laws are supposed to be created.
Getting tough on illegal immigration may be Trump’s most impressive accomplishment thus far.
Top Headlines7
DACA denial rate doubles under Trump administration (The Washington Times8.)
Philadelphia finds hundreds of illegal voters (The Washington Times9)
Hurricane Maria brings more devastation to Puerto Rico (Fox News10)
Clinton election memoir What Happened sells 300,000 copies in first week (Associated Press11)
North Korea’s Kim keeps teen sex slaves, executes musicians with anti-aircraft guns, defector reveals (Fox News12)
California set to eliminate last legal form of open carry (The Truth About Guns13)
Chicago marks 500 homicides in 2017 … so far (Chicago Tribune14)
Yale ditches “freshman” for gender-neutral term (The Daily Signal15)
Wisconsin student sells clothing line by decapitating “pig” cops (National Review16)
VA uses new rule under “VA Accountability Act” to fire executive for second time (The Washington Free Beacon17)
Policy: Rebuilding with public-private partnerships (Real Clear Policy18.)
Policy: Unplugging the electric vehicle summer of love (Manhattan Institute19)
For more, visit Patriot Headline Report20.
Don’t Miss Alexander’s Column
Read Monumental Ignorance — Dumbing Down America21. At UVA, moronic identity politics takes precedent over knowledge and truth.
If you’d like to receive Alexander’s Column by email, update your subscription here22.
FEATURED ANALYSIS
Last Chance to Tackle ObamaCare?2
By Lewis Morris
The window of opportunity is rapidly approaching — and closing — for Senate Republicans to pass their latest attempt to repeal replace reform ObamaCare. After Sept. 30, the opportunity for reconciliation goes away, and with it any chance of passing a bill with a simple majority.
The more cynical among us would say, who cares? We have listened for more than seven years as the GOP made one promise after another to repeal and replace ObamaCare. The electorate handed Republicans both chambers of Congress and then the White House on a silver platter. And yet, they have managed to screw up every attempt to follow through on their promise. Why be concerned about having to face a super majority in the Senate when Republicans can’t even get their own simple majority on the same page?
However, if we were to engage in some cautious optimism for a moment, this time might be different.
Senate Republicans Lindsey Graham (SC), Bill Cassidy (LA), Dean Heller (NV), and Ron Johnson (WI) have introduced a modest proposal that could be the beginning of the end of the Un-Affordable Care Act.
Graham-Cassidy, as it is known, hits a lot of the right buttons23 in terms of trying to correct the ObamaCare horror show. Individual and employer mandates would be eliminated, as would the medical device tax. It offers block grants to states instead of shoring up their ballooning Medicaid plans with what was essentially bribe money that Barack Obama used to buy state support for ObamaCare in the first place. Health Savings Accounts would be expanded and HSA account holders could spend that pre-tax money on insurance premiums, something that was practically unheard of before. |
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on: September 21, 2017, 09:02:01 AM
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Started by Soldier4Christ - Last post by Soldier4Christ
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Promised in Writing
“He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32)
For those of us who have trusted God for salvation, based on the finished work of Christ on the cross, God has already done for us the most difficult and costly thing He could ever do. He graciously sent His only Son to Earth and then to the cross and the grave in order to make forgiveness and eternal fellowship with us possible. We are now adopted children in His family, joint-heirs with His beloved Son, Jesus Christ (vv.16-17, 29, etc.), from whom we will never be separated (vv. 35-39), “whereby we cry, Abba, Father” (v. 15).
Consider our state when all this was being done for us. It is easy to love a beautiful baby who needs someone to care for it; but we were not at all attractive. We were filthy sinners, born in sin and habitually choosing to offend God’s holy nature by succumbing to “the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:3). Furthermore, we were even “enemies” of the cross at the time “we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son” (Romans 5:10). Outside of His eyes of love and grace we would have appeared more like a repulsive maggot than a beautiful baby.
It stands to reason that He who has already done the most difficult, yea, infinitely difficult thing for us out of His great love will continue to manifest that love to us, especially now that we are of His family. As our text tells us, He will “freely give us all things.” With our best interests at heart, He will see that “all things work together for [our] good” (Romans 8:28).
“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). JDM
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on: September 20, 2017, 03:49:24 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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Two Minutes With The Bible
From The Berean Bible Society
Free Email Subscription
For Questions Or Comments: berean@execpc.com
_______________________________________________
A New Body
by Pastor John Fredericksen
The older we get, the more our bodies wear out and are filled with aches and pains. It reminds us of our heavenly home, and helps prepare us for the time when we step into eternity. In the fall of 2013, a dear saint in our assembly was having increasingly severe health problems. One day he stood and said to us all: “Enjoy your aches and pains now because one day soon we will be with the Savior in heaven. There we will be given new heavenly bodies. We will have no pain, no sorrow and no death. A glorious future awaits us. Rejoice in this.”
The above expectation is right on target. When John the Apostle explained the physical eternal state, he wrote, “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is” (I John 3:2). Gospel accounts of our resurrected Savior describe Him with a body similar in appearance to His previous state. We would surely expect that as God Himself, the Savior no longer experienced any pain. Revelation 21:4 confirms this when it refers to the eternal state of the kingdom saints. John wrote, “And God shall wipe away all tears…there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away.” The Apostle Paul explains there will be vast differences in our new eternal body. It will be a “celestial” body (I Cor. 15:38-40), meaning it will fitted by God to thrive in the atmosphere of the heavens. In contrast to our physical bodies that are weak, degenerating and eventually corrupt, our new bodies will be “raised in incorruption…glory…power…[and as] a spiritual body” (I Cor. 15:42-44). Paul continues his explanation by saying: “…flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God…behold I show you a mystery…we shall all be changed” (I Cor. 15:50-51). To summarize our change he says, “…as we have born the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly” (I Cor. 15:49).
Whenever you get weighed down with physical pain, remember, one day our Lord is going to give us new bodies without weakness or pain. Believe it, rejoice in it and look forward to it with thanksgiving. Keep looking up for His return in expectation and faithfulness until He comes. |
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on: September 20, 2017, 03:46:55 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post - Alexander's Column 9-20-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Upon Lee’s death on October 12, 1870, at the age of 63, the New York Herald offered this eulogy:
“For not to the Southern people alone shall be limited the tribute of a tear over the dead Virginian. Here in the North, forgetting that the time was when the sword of Robert Edward Lee was drawn against us, forgetting and forgiving all the years of bloodshed and agony, we have long since ceased to look upon him as the Confederate leader, but have claimed him as one of ourselves; have cherished and felt proud of his military genius as belonging to us; have recounted and recorded his triumphs as our own; have extolled his virtue as reflecting upon us for Robert Edward Lee was an American, and the great nation which gave him birth would be to-day unworthy of such a son if she regarded him lightly. … He conquered us in misfortune by the grand manner in which he sustained himself, even as he dazzled us by his genius when the tramp of his soldiers resounded through the valleys of Virginia. And for such a man we are all tears and sorrow to-day. … As a slaveholder, he was beloved by his slaves for his kindness and consideration toward them. … In his death our country has lost a son of whom she might well be proud, and for whose services she might have stood in need had he lived a few years longer, for we are certain that, had occasion required it, General Lee would have given to the United States the benefit of all his great talents.”
He was similarly eulogized in Europe.
According to the London Standard:
“Few are the generals who have earned, since history began, a greater military reputation; still fewer are the men of similar eminence, civil or military, whose personal qualities would bear comparison with his. The bitterest enemies of his country hardly dared to whisper a word against the character of her most distinguished general, while neutrals regarded him with an admiration for his deeds and respect for his lofty and unselfish nature, which almost grew into veneration, and his own countrymen learned to look up to him with as much confidence and esteem as they ever felt for Washington. No one pretending to understand in the least, either the general principles of military science or the particular conditions of the American war, doubts that General Lee gave higher proofs of military genius and soldiership than any of his opponents. He was outnumbered from first to last; and all his victories were gained against greatly superior forces, and, with troops deficient in every necessary of war except courage and discipline. Never, perhaps, was so much achieved against odds so terrible. Always outnumbered, always opposed to a foe abundantly supplied with food, transports, ammunition, clothing and all that was wanting to his own men, he was always able to make courage and skill supply the deficiency of strength and supplies. Truer greatness, a loftier nature, a spirit more merciful, a character purer, more chivalrous, the world has rarely, if ever, known. Of stainless hue and deep religious feeling, yet free from all taint of cant and fanaticism, and as dear and congenial to the cavalier Stuart as to the puritan Stonewall Jackson; unambitious, but ready to sacrifice all to the call of duty; devoted to his cause, yet never moved by his feelings beyond the line prescribed by his judgment; never provoked by just resentment to punish wanton cruelty by reprisals which would have given a character of needless savagery to the war; both North and South owe a deep debt of gratitude to him, and the time will come when both will be equally proud of him. … A country which has given birth to men like him may look the chivalry of Europe in the face without shame, for the fatherlands of Sidney and of Bayard never produced a nobler soldier, gentleman and Christian than Robert Edward Lee.”
And finally, reflecting on the character of the man in battle, there is this extraordinary account about a Union soldier’s contact with Gen. Lee, as related by Confederate Brig. Gen. A.L. Long and Union Brig. Gen. M.J. Wright in their “Memoirs of Robert E. Lee”:
“We cannot better end this somewhat extended chapter than by presenting the following incident, which is so consonant with … the character of General Lee that no better voucher for its complete truth could be offered. … It is a story told by an old ‘Grand Army’ man…”
“I was at the battle of Gettysburg myself. … I had been a most bitter anti-South man and fought and cursed the Confederates desperately. I could see nothing good in any of them. The last day of the fight I was badly wounded. A ball shattered my left leg. I lay on the ground not far from Cemetery Ridge, and as General Lee ordered his retreat he and his officers rode near me. As they came along I recognized him, and, though faint from exposure and loss of blood, I raised up my hands, looked Lee in the face, and shouted as loud as I could, ‘Hurrah for the Union!’ The general heard me, looked, stopped his horse, dismounted, and came toward me. I confess that I at first thought he meant to kill me. But as he came up he looked down at me with such a sad expression on his face that all fear left me, and I wondered what he was about. He extended his hand to me, and grasping mine firmly and looking right into my eyes, said, ‘My son, I hope you will soon be well.’ If I live to be a thousand years I shall never forget the expression of General Lee’s face. There he was, defeated, retiring from a field that had cost him and his cause almost their last hope, yet he stopped to say words like those to a wounded soldier of the opposition who had taunted him as he passed by. As soon as the general left me I cried myself to sleep there upon the bloody ground.”
These observations reflect the true character and historical significance of the man represented by those statues and monuments. Indeed, this explains the reluctance of many Americans to allow the removal or the shrouding — the “burqanization,” if you will — of our history.
On the importance of our history, and on the abject absurdity of attempting to erase it, I have often cited 20th century philosopher George Santayana, who concluded in his treatise, “The Life of Reason”: “Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. When experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
Aldous Huxley, author of the dystopian novel “Brave New World,” noted, “That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons of history.”
And so it goes at UVA and other once-great academic institutions across our nation, where moronic identity politics takes precedent over knowledge and truth.
(Footnote: A longtime friend of The Patriot Post, distinguished George Mason University professor Walter Williams, has issued erudite warnings about the consequences of historical ignorance here23 and here24, including the removal of historic markers to Confederate generals25 and the rewriting of American history26. Additionally, George Will, via Prager University, has an amusing video27 on the subject of “offensive place names.”)
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Pro Deo et Libertate — 1776 |
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on: September 20, 2017, 03:45:43 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post - Alexander's Column 9-20-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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The Patriot Post® · Monumental Ignorance — Dumbing Down America
By Mark Alexander · Sep. 20, 2017 · https://patriotpost.us/alexander/51398
“A popular Government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy; or, perhaps both. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance: And a people who mean to be their own Governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.” —James Madison (1822)
In 2015, CNN published an analytical assessment by Dr. Stuart Manning, chairman of Cornell University’s Department of Classics. Manning’s report condemned Islamo-Fascists1 for destroying historic monuments2 in Iraq in order that history not impede its political objectives.
In that report, Manning noted, “Confucius said, ‘Study the past if you would define the future.’ ISIS, like so many iconoclastic extremist groups through history, seeks to destroy the record of the past. … The spectacle would be ridiculous and pathetic if it were not so tragic. [These acts of destruction] are brutal assaults on our collective human memory [and] dishonest and hypocritical.” Manning concludes, “Providing educational opportunities and empowering communities to learn more about their cultures and histories, and those of others, is one of the best ways to eradicate destructive hatred and violence.”
While the recorded history of Mesopotamia long predates the recorded history of North America, archeologists and historians have pieced together some of the inhabitant record of this continent over the last 1,000 years. Of course, we have very detailed history records of the continent since its colonization by Europeans, and those records are even more detailed since the founding of our nation.
Our nation’s relatively brief 241-year history is rich in both glory and tragedy, a mosaic of events that sprang from the spark of American Liberty3 in 1776 and have resulted in the most exceptional expression of republican government in world history.
But in recent months, there has been an aggressive campaign by a consortium of groups comprising the so-called “antifa movement4” — self-proclaimed “anti-fascist” fascists in collusion with the Democrat Party5 — to eradicate important chapters of our nation’s history.
The most recent and violent episode of that eradication effort was a confrontation in historic Charlottesville, Virginia, where antifa v. alt-right6 factions clashed. That confrontation was the direct result of Democrats’ favorite political playbook strategy: fomenting disunity7 to rally dependent constituencies.
The roots of the Charlottesville conflict began a year earlier when some of the University of Virginia’s privileged students registered their objection8 to the school’s founder, Thomas Jefferson. According to the snowflakes, “We would like for our administration to understand that although some members of this community may have come to this university because of Thomas Jefferson’s legacy, others of us came here in spite of it.” (Here I would note that nobody was or is holding any students captive at UVA.)
Although other campus cultural eradication protests9 around the nation were festering, the UVA exercise had yet to gain much traction.
So Charlottesville’s mayor, Mike Signer (driven by BIG political aspirations), and his uber-leftist city council voted to remove a historic statue of Robert E. Lee10, just as local Democrats had done in a purge a month earlier11 in Louisiana.
Signer calculated that his council’s measure would stir up the race-bait pot12 at UVA, and with the help of the Demo/MSM propaganda machine13 and its hate hustlers14. Indeed it did. The war on statues15 thus masqueraded as a fight against evil16 and boiled over in that quaint town.
Since the Charlottesville riots, junior Bolshevik brigades elsewhere have targeted other historical icons for erasure, including Christopher Columbus and even Francis Scott Key, suggesting that our National Anthem has ties to racists — which it most assuredly does not.
UVA appears unwilling to cede its status as ground zero for the social and cultural fascists.
Last week, student protesters desecrated and shrouded Jefferson’s statue at the University Rotunda.
But in the latest chapter of this grotesque absurdity, returning again to whitewash the university’s historical connection to our nation’s Civil War, the student malcontents succeeded in forcing a vote by its cowardly Board of Visitors to remove bronze tablets on the Rotunda17 that bear the names of UVA alumni who fought and died during the War Between the States.
Perhaps they should just raze the entire campus18 and go home.
(For the record, what these angry adolescents of all ages across the nation have most in common is not a hatred of our nation’s core principles and values. What they hate most, what they most loathe, is themselves. But that is a subject for a future “Pathology of the Left19” column, one that will focus on their captivity in a suspended state of arrested emotional development.)
A genuine statesman of the civil rights movement, former UN Ambassador and Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young, one of Martin Luther King’s closest confidants, opposes tearing down Confederate memorials and monuments. “I think it’s too costly to refight the Civil War,” he said. “We have paid too great a price in trying to bring people together.” Obscene protesters notwithstanding, Young is joined in this sentiment by most Americans.
Among the reputable polls taken since the Charlottesville riots, an NPR/PBS Newshour/Marist University poll20 found that a substantial majority of Americans believe statues honoring Confederate leaders should stay. More notably, pluralities of black Americans21 also believe the monuments should remain.
Clearly, the number of Americans who understand the importance of our history is far greater than those who don’t.
Given that the monumental ignorance in Charlottesville began over a lack of appreciation for the historical standing of Robert E. Lee by a gaggle of loudmouth Demo-gogues and their cadres of useful idiots22 — those who embrace the notion that ignorance is virtuous — what follows are a few brief chapters of Lee’s history that none of them have ever read, and that none of them would want you to read now.
After his surrender at Appomattox, Gen. Lee wrote to Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard: “I need not tell you that true patriotism sometimes requires of men to act exactly contrary, at one period, to that which it does at another, and the motive which impels them — the desire to do right — is precisely the same. The circumstances that govern their actions change, and their conduct must conform to the new order of things. History is full of illustrations of this: Washington himself is an example. At one time, he fought in the service of the King of Great Britain; at another, he fought with the French at Yorktown, under the orders of the Continental Congress of America, against him. He has not been branded by the world with reproach for this, but his course has been applauded.”
After the war, when Lee became president of Washington College (renamed Washington and Lee after his death), most of the funding to restore operations of the institution came from Lee’s Union admirers in New York and other northern states.
In fact, according to biographer Douglas Southall Freeman, a New York-based insurance company offered Lee $10,000 just to use his name — an offer few others would have refused at the time but which Lee did refuse:
“The repeated business offers that came to him seem to have awakened no yearnings. Nothing appears in his correspondence to show any desire on the part of any member of the family that he accept the post of supervisor of agencies of the Knickerbocker Life Insurance Company, a position pressed on him in the winter of 1868-69 at the then dazzling salary of $10,000. Not a flutter was aroused in the president’s house, so far as one may now judge, by rumors that he might be named president of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad.” |
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on: September 20, 2017, 03:43:49 PM
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The Patriot Post Digest 9-20-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Today, almost 400 years later, the United States has become an increasingly difficult place for a Christian to work, be educated, and to serve his or her country. This has happened despite the statement found in the First Amendment26 of the Bill of Rights: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”
In fact, First Liberty Institute’s 2017 report27 notes that in the past five years, documented attacks on religious freedom have increased 133%. In the past year, attacks have increased 15%. These attacks take place across broad sectors of the public arena — education, religious institutions and the U.S. military.
A case from the public arena, Barton v. Balch Springs, involved a Texas senior center in which city officials told the senior citizens that they could not pray before meals, listen to messages with religious content, or sing gospel music because public buildings do not allow religion. The senior citizens filed a lawsuit, and the government officials threatened to take away their meals if they won because praying over meals paid for by the government violated the “separation of church and state.”
In Pounds v. Katy I.S.D., a school district in the Houston area banned religious Christmas items and religiously themed Valentine’s Day cards. School officials told one student that she could not answer the question “What does Easter mean to you?” with “Jesus.” A federal court ultimately ruled against Katy I.S.D. for its hostility to religion and for violating the student’s constitutional rights.
In Sterling v. United States, Montifa Sterling, a Marine Corps lance corporal, placed three notes in her cubicle that referred to the Bible verse: “No weapon formed against you shall prosper” (Isaiah 54:17). While her supervisor allowed the other service members to display personal items, he ordered Sterling to remove the notes. Sterling believed that her First Amendment rights protected her ability to post the notes, so when she found them in the trash the following day, she reposted them. As a result, Lance Corporal Sterling was court-martialed. The highest U.S. military court, the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, believed the note to be minor and thus unworthy of religious protection. First Liberty Institute is appealing the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
These examples, a small selection of more than 1,400 documented27 incidents, illustrate the direct assault on the constitutional rights of Americans. A combination of misinformation among the populous and lobbying efforts by atheist groups such as the Freedom from Religion Foundation, the American Humanist Association and the American Atheists have resulted in prayers being banned, Ten Commandments displays being made illegal and veterans memorials with crosses being torn down or moved.
The American Atheists28 claim to not be a religion, yet require equal representation of their “non-religion” at interfaith events and councils. Additionally, college campuses routinely list humanists, secularist, free-thinkers and agnostics among other religious groups. They claim to believe in nothing, but in fact believe in a lack of belief and have faith in a lack of faith.
Atheists claim that Christians force their religion on others. Yet atheistic secularism has been forcing students, military personnel, ministers and workers to adhere to their lack of belief standards or suffer the consequences. Far from learning to “coexist,” as many bumper stickers advertise, atheist lobby groups seek nothing less than to persecute and destroy all religions except their own lack of one. Their rejection of religion is their religion and their unrelenting desire to “convert” the rest of us is unconstitutional, intolerant and wrong.
In terms of the quest to totally eradicate religion, the Soviet Union at least communicated its objectives honestly: to destroy religion and establish an atheist, secular state. A state church or a state “non-church” both qualify as an establishment of a religious state. Are atheist lobbyists, then, not the greatest offenders of their own unconstitutional demands of others?
The Pilgrims came here for religious freedom, not freedom from religion imposed on them by atheist lobby groups. The right to “not be offended” does not outweigh the right to practice one’s religion. Ironically, people rarely ask Christians if it offends them to have their child told he cannot pray. Christians have a right to believe in God, just as much as atheists have a right to believe in nothing. The assault on religious liberty only gains victory if people of faith choose fear over courage. As Ronald Reagan stated, “Evil is powerless if the good are unafraid.” While courage may cost social standing, job mobility or favor among others, ultimately standing tall in the face of evil gives others courage and reminds us of our purpose: to do the right thing, despite the consequences.
If you are experiencing religious persecution and need legal representation, contact these non-profit law firms:
Alliance Defending Freedom29
First Liberty Institute30
Becket Fund for Religious Liberty31
MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST
Will Clinton Challenge the Election Results?32 — She’s lied to herself and others so often, she seems to believe she really was robbed.
Spokane Sheriff: Guns Didn’t Change, Society Did33 — He pinpoints the problem of youth violence.
BEST OF RIGHT OPINION
Jonah Goldberg: Only One of Two New Health Care Proposals Qualifies as ‘Extreme’34
Ed Feulner: Salary Suspicions35
Gary Bauer: Trump Addresses the UN36
For more, visit Right Opinion37.
OPINION IN BRIEF
Jonah Goldberg: “With 52 GOP senators, Graham-Cassidy can only pass if at least 50 of them vote for it, and they must do so before Sept. 30, when the arcane budget window known as ‘reconciliation’ closes. … Heritage Action for America has grumbled, rightly, that Graham-Cassidy doesn’t repeal all of the Obamacare taxes. But the choice for Republicans isn’t between this and a better reform. It’s between this or letting Obamacare continue intact, violating all of those repeal-and-replace promises entirely. That’s what’s so silly about the claim that Graham-Cassidy is as ‘extreme’ as Sanders’ radical and shoddily written proposal (the bill is totally silent on how to pay for any of it). Graham-Cassidy is very close to the kind of legislation we would have ended up with if Republicans had an idea of what they wanted from the get-go and the Democrats were interested in compromise. But we live in a time when extremism is defined as not getting everything you want.”
SHORT CUTS
Insight: “The love of liberty is the love of others; the love of power is the love of ourselves.” —William Hazlitt (1778-1830)
Upright: “A first-trimester fetus has moral value because whether you consider it a potential human life or a full-on human life, it has more value than just a cluster of cells. … There are people who are adults who are alive because of a pacemaker. They need some sort of outside force generating their heartbeat. … The problem is, any time you draw any line other than the inception of the child, you end up drawing a false line that can also be applied to people who are adults. So, either human life has intrinsic value or it doesn’t.” —Ben Shapiro
Non Compos Mentis: “The words ‘totally destroying’ a nation of 25 million people, that borders on the threat of committing a war crime.” —ABC’s Terry Moran (“So do little Kim Jong’s threats to NUKE America count as a war crime too?” —Katie Pavlich)
Non sequitur: “If you ask yourself, ‘What would I do if I was a gentile in 1941 [and] my Jewish neighbors were under attack by the Nazis — would I give them sanctuary?’ you might be about to find what you’d do. Will you pass that moral test, or will you fail it?” —Rep. Keith Ellison on DACA
Double standards: “The EPA has been run by Democrats, by Republicans, but has never … been run by someone who seems to be determined to do the one thing that could destroy its credibility, which is not making it transparent.” —former Obama EPA head Lisa Jackson (“Jackson resigned from the EPA amid accusations that her department was deliberately attempting to circumvent open-records laws.” —Daily Wire’s Aaron Bandler)
Village Idiots: “I thought [Trump’s UN speech] was very dark [and] dangerous, not the kind of message that the leader of the greatest nation in the world should be delivering.” —Hillary Clinton (You know what else is dark and dangerous? Hillary’s Benghazi coverup.)
Late-night humor: “Here in New York City, everyone is at the UN. That’s right, the UN General Assembly kicked off … and I read that 193 countries will be attending. They’re all committed to one goal: making New York City traffic a total nightmare.” —Jimmy Fallon
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Managing Editor Nate Jackson
Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of Liberty, and for their families. |
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on: September 20, 2017, 03:42:36 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post Digest 9-20-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
________________________________________
The Patriot Post® · Mid-Day Digest
Sep. 20, 2017 · https://patriotpost.us/digests/51395
IN TODAY’S EDITION
“We didn’t know if we were listening to President Reagan in 1982 or President Trump in 2017.”
A big news flash: Climate models are only as good as their input allows.
Religious liberty is under greater assault than ever.
Daily Features: Top Headlines, Cartoons, Columnists and Short Cuts.
THE FOUNDATION
“I am persuaded that a firm union is as necessary to perpetuate our liberties as it is to make us respectable.” —Alexander Hamilton (1788.)
IN BRIEF
Trump’s Reaganesque UN Speech1
Donald Trump didn’t pull any punches when he addressed the United Nations2 on Tuesday. He was honest and straightforward about the nature of the threats the world faces from tyrannical regimes seeking nuclear weapons. He was even unintentionally complimented by Venezuela’s foreign minister, Jorge Arreaza, who likened his speech to that of Ronald Reagan. “For a moment, we didn’t know if we were listening to President Reagan in 1982 or President Trump in 2017,” Arreaza complained. He was right, but not as he intended.
While Trump’s message was indeed Reaganesque, his delivery was classic Trump, typified by his referencing North Korean despot Kim Jong-un3 as “rocket man.” Trump warned that the U.S. has been patient with the rogue nation, but that we would “have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea” if are forced to defend ourselves. Trump pointedly continued, “Rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. The United States is ready, willing and able, but hopefully, this will not be necessary.”
Trump encouraged all the nations of the UN to stand together in pressuring North Korea to end its missile and nuclear weapons programs. Trump stated, “No one has shown more contempt for other nations and for the well-being of their own people than the depraved regime in North Korea. It is responsible for the starvation deaths of millions of North Koreans, and for the imprisonment, torture, killing and oppression of countless more.”
The president also thanked both China and Russia for joining the unanimous vote4 of the United Nations Security Council to adopt “hard-hitting resolutions against North Korea.” Trump further encouraged UN unity, stating, “It is time for all nations to work together to isolate the Kim regime until it ceases its hostile behavior.”
He also targeted Iran, calling its government “a corrupt dictatorship behind the false guise of a democracy.” He called on Iran to stop supporting terrorists. He demanded that Iran release the Americans it currently has detained. He also sent the strongest signal yet that he intends to pull out of Barack Obama’s Iran nuclear deal5, insisting, “The Iran deal was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into. Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States and I don’t think you’ve heard the last of it, believe me.”
Trump was critical of globalism and its advocating of socialism in world politics. Using Venezuela6 as an example, Trump declared, “The problem in Venezuela is not that socialism has been poorly implemented, but that socialism has been faithfully implemented.” This was Trump’s most Reaganesque moment and the highlight of his speech. No wonder Arreaza was upset.
In short, Trump said what needed to be said. His message was direct and clear in his typical brash style. He didn’t shy away from calling out other member states by name. Nor did he flinch from applying unequivocally moral language, saying, “If the righteous many do not confront the wicked few, then evil will triumph. When decent people and nations become bystanders to history, the forces of destruction only gather power and strength.” While several world leaders seemed not to know how to respond to the speech, it clearly impressed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who tweeted that it had been more than 30 years since he’d heard a UN speech as brave and sharp. That would be about the time of … Ronald Reagan.
Climate Models Stink7
Climate alarmists and “settled science” extortionists have a rather incredulous response to a new study8 appearing in Nature Geoscience. The study takes a fresh look at the “carbon budget,” or how much emissions the earth can take and still maintain endurable temperatures. According to the study, compiled by a consortium of scientists from all over the world, the doomsday clock remains, but it’s been extended by quite some time.
The Washington Post calls the finding “a potential whiplash moment” that “was published by a number of researchers who have been deeply involved in studying the concept, making it all the more unexpected.” According to the study, contrary to previous disquisitions, it is possible to cap global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit), or what most scientists concur is a critical —but largely out-of-reach — global warming threshold. “It had been widely assumed that this stringent target would prove unachievable,” the Post reports, “but the new study would appear to give us much more time to get our act together if we want to stay below it.”
The Post says that, based on new calculations, “We have more than 700 billion tons left to emit to keep warming within 1.5 degrees Celsius, with a two-thirds probability of success.” According to co-author Richard Millar, “That’s about 20 years at present-day emissions.” The hope is that this buys enough time to more robustly mitigate global warming’s effects. Predictably, however, the study is already being downplayed. But it’s important to understand why the researchers came to this conclusion. For us so-called climate skeptics, it’s not surprising in the least.
According to researcher Joeri Rogelj, “The most complex Earth system models that provided input to [the IPCC] tend to slightly overestimate historical warming, and at the same time underestimate compatible historical CO2 emissions. These two small discrepancies accumulate over time and lead to an [sic] slight underestimation of the remaining carbon budget.” Rogelj’s colleague Pierre Friedlingstein echoed this point: “The models end up with a warming which is larger than the observed warming for the current emissions. … So, therefore, they derive a budget which is much lower.” In other words, the models were too rambunctious.
The problem of overly ambitious global warming projections is well known. Climatologists like Dr. Roy Spencer9 and John Christy10 have found that climate models are grossly exaggerating future warming. What’s interesting is that some mainstream scientists are finally — perhaps because the facts leave them with no alternative — addressing this reality. How the rest of their peers are likely to respond is less encouraging. It’s also worth repeating that the true effects of global warming are still unknown and probably excessively dramatized. But at least this study tries to incorporate some authenticity.
Top Headlines11
Senate Republicans close to pushing through ObamaCare repeal (The Washington Times12)
States need $645 billion to pay full health care costs (Paywall — The Wall Street Journal13)
Report: Cutting $2.3 trillion of government waste would balance the budget in three years (The Washington Free Beacon14)
Mexico earthquake death toll surpasses 200 (Fox News15)
Maria slams ashore in Puerto Rico as a Category 4 hurricane (Bloomberg16)
Right-to-work scores a major win in Wisconsin (Hot Air17)
Gun-control activists to pour another million dollars into Virginia state elections (The Washington Free Beacon18.)
The Coast Guard has set a new record for cocaine seizures at sea for the second consecutive year (The Washington Post19)
San Diego State University students get extra credit for calculating their “white privilege” (The Daily Wire20)
Venezuelan price controls lead to predictable shortages (Reason21)
Policy: Defanging identity fraud by verifying identities (American Enterprise Institute22)
Policy: Finally, some common sense Western fire policies (Heartland Institute23)
For more, visit Patriot Headline Report24.
FEATURED ANALYSIS
Atheist Hypocrisy and the Assault on Religious Liberty25
By Caroline Camden Lewis
Knowing the perils of disease, shipwreck and discomfort, the Pilgrims boarded the Mayflower in search of one thing: religious liberty. While many died on the voyage, and half of those who made it here died in the first winter, they knew that their lives were but “stepping stones” for the next generation’s freedom to practice Christianity. Their journey had taken them from an underground church in Scrooby, England, to an escape in Holland. However, as Holland’s secular society began corroding the hearts and minds of their children, they realized that a voyage to the New World was worth the risk. The Plymouth landing in 1620 stands as one of the earliest pieces of our country’s quest for religious liberty. |
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