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Entertainment / Poetry/Prose / When we eat an apple
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on: February 05, 2020, 10:13:38 AM
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When we eat an apple
(John Newton)
Acts 17:11, "Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true."
Brethren, remember your exalted privilege--you have the Bible in your hands, and are not bound to follow books or preachers any farther than what they teach agrees with the Oracles of Truth. We have great reason to be thankful for the instructions and writings of spiritual men--but they are all fallible, even as ourselves. One is our master, even Christ--what He says, we are to receive implicitly. We do not owe implicit subjection to the best of our fellow-creatures. The Bereans were commended because they would not implicitly believe even the Apostle Paul--but searched the Scriptures to see whether the things which he taught were true. May the Lord give us a spirit of humility and discernment in all things.
When we eat an apple--we usually first cut out the blemishes, then eat what is good, and lastly throw the core away. Such a rule I would observe in reading human authors--the best may be defective, and the wisest may be mistaken. We are not only permitted, but enjoined, to call no man master!
2 Timothy 3:16-17, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." |
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Entertainment / Poetry/Prose / Good News for Pilgrims!
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on: February 05, 2020, 10:11:09 AM
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Good News for Pilgrims!
(Don Fortner)
Here is good news for weary, heavy-hearted pilgrims from our homeland in Heaven. Do you have heartaches and troubles too numerous to count? It will do you good to receive some good news from home.
The Lord our God is still on His throne.
Our Savior is still in Heaven, preparing a place for you, representing you, interceding for you.
There are many in Heaven just like you and me already. There is . . .
a fallen David there,
a doubting Thomas there,
an angry Moses there,
a feeble Philip there,
an impetuous Peter there,
and a righteous Lot there.
All are there by grace alone, through the merits of Christ's blood and righteousness.
And, soon, the Lord Jesus Christ will come again to take you there!
John 14:1-3, "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also." |
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Theology / Bible Study / Devotionals By J.R. Miller, 1895
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on: February 03, 2020, 02:09:15 PM
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September 14.
"That they may be ever seeing—but never perceiving,
and ever hearing—but never understanding" Mark 4:12
It is a mistake not to use one's eyes to see things that are to be seen. The result is that in the end—one has no eyes with which to see. Refusing to listen to the words of God that are spoken in gentleness and love, results in the loss of the power to hear, so that in all God's universe of love, one shall hear no sweet sound; so that the very voices of tender mercy shall become screams of terror. Refusing to understand the things of God—leads to the dulling and deadening of the soul, so that at last one cannot understand—even if he would.
We should learn to keep all the gates of our soul open toward heaven. We should train ourselves to see whatever God would show us. Thus shall our eyes become able to see more and more beauty in God and in all his works. We should keep our ears intent to hear every Word that God speaks to us. We should strive to understand what God teaches us; for to those who seek, all hidden mysteries at length become clear. |
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Theology / Bible Study / Devotionals By J.R. Miller, 1895
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on: February 03, 2020, 02:07:55 PM
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September 13.
"The child sat on her lap until noon and then died."
"Did I ask you for a son, my lord?" she said.
2 Kings 4:20, 28
The woman's thought seems to have been, "It would have been better had I remained as I was, with no voice of love in my home, my heart unfilled with affection, than that I should know and experience the gladness of motherhood for this brief time, and then be robbed of the joy." No doubt similar thoughts ofttimes come to those who are bereft of friends. In their deep grief, it seems to them that it would have been better if they had never had their friends at all—than to have had them a little while, to have learned to love them so, and to find such blessing in them—and then to lose them!
But Tennyson's word is far more true:
'Tis better to have loved and lost,
Than never to have loved at all.
Loving itself blesses us. It opens our heart and enriches our life. It teaches us the true meaning of life; for to live truly—is to love.
The taking away of our dear one—does not rob us of the blessings which loving has wrought in us. These we keep forever, though the friend is with us no more. Even if this child had not been restored to the mother in this world, she would still have kept forever the impressions and the influences which the child in its brief, beautiful years had left upon her life. |
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Theology / Bible Study / The Judgment Seat of Christ - Part 2
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on: February 03, 2020, 01:51:34 PM
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_______________________________________________
More Minutes With The Bible
From The Berean Bible Society
Free Email Subscription
For Questions Or Comments: berean@execpc.com
_______________________________________________
The Judgment Seat of Christ - Part 2
The Judgment Seat of Christ
by Pastor Paul M. Sadler
With redemption now a reality, we are to tell a lost and dying world that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their sins unto them. So it is important that we are following the correct commission. Although many sincere believers are operating under the Great Commission, they are sincerely wrong. This commission, with its baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, and signs, miracles and wonders, was given to Israel under the old economy. Today, we are to proclaim the commission of reconciliation (II Cor. 5:18-21).
So then, as we make known the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, we must again turn to Paul’s epistles in order to present the correct terms of salvation, which are: Christ died for your sins, was buried and rose again (I Cor. 15:1-4). The Bema Seat will declare if we had a burden for lost souls and faithfully shared the gospel of salvation with those around us. It will also be made manifest if we cared enough to follow-up with those we had the privilege of leading to Christ. In short, were we faithful to see that they became rooted and grounded in the truth of the unsearchable riches of Christ?
Hay is a temporal commodity. Since it stands opposite of silver, it represents those who have no interest whatsoever in the salvation of others. Here’s a Christian who doesn’t have a burden for lost souls. He’s too busy for such things, or the fear of men has silenced him. He knows he should be witnessing for Christ and plans to get around to it someday, but the years pass like the flower of the field and his life ends misspent.
All too often the excuse is, “I’m not an evangelist, I leave such things to those who are more qualified!” This may be true, but every believer is responsible to do the work of the evangelist (II Tim. 4:5). You see, we have access to people and places the evangelist can only long for. Stop and think, when was the last time you prayed for the Lord to give you boldness to witness to someone? When was the last time you were concerned about a loved one near to you that is in danger of eternal damnation? When was the last time you shared with someone the truth that God loves them and Christ died for their sins? Remember, the clock’s ticking, not only for them, but for you as well!
Precious Stones and Stubble
Precious stones also bear a connection to the Old Testament temple. The High Priest was required to wear a breastplate when he ministered in the things of the Lord, which contained twelve precious stones (Ex. 28:15-29). Each stone represented one of the twelve tribes of Israel. They symbolized the glory of God. The breastplate was a constant reminder that the Lord’s people were to be close to the heart of the High Priest as he faithfully ministered on their behalf, and also executed judgment. As a result, God was glorified among them.
When we come to Christ, we are saved by grace through faith alone apart from works. However, after we are saved by the grace of God, we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works. According to Paul’s gospel, we are the ministers of God today, and we are to glorify Him through good works. These include raising our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, volunteering our time at the Rescue Mission, given to hospitality, small acts of kindness, etc. It has been said, “Nobody is going to care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”
Fred Craddock, in an address to ministers, caught the practical implications of consecration. “To give my life for Christ appears glorious,” he said. “To pour myself out for others…to pay the ultimate price of martyrdom--I’ll do it. I’m ready, Lord, to go out in a blaze of glory. We think giving our all to the Lord is like taking a $1,000 bill and laying it on the table--`Here’s my life, Lord, I’m giving it all.’ But the reality for most of us is that He sends us to the bank and has us cash in the $1,000 for quarters. We go through life putting out 25 cents here and 50 cents there in little acts of love in service for others. Usually, giving our life to Christ isn’t glorious. It’s done in all those little acts of love, 25 cents at a time. It would be easy to go out in a flash of glory; it’s harder to live the Christian life little by little over the long haul.”
Our motives and the intent of the heart also have a great bearing on our service for Christ. Allow me to illustrate: Pick one thing you really enjoy doing in life--fishing, traveling, skiing, attending craft shows, etc. Once the date is set, you’re probably like a sweet ant in a sugar bowl. The anticipation is more fun than a barrel of monkeys, and when the day finally arrives, you savor every moment. Now, do we approach the things of the Lord with the same enthusiasm, or do we serve Him out of necessity? If the members of the Body of Christ put half the effort into the Lord’s work that a diehard Green Bay Packer football fan puts into a game at Lambeau Field, we’d make a lasting imprint on the world.
Stubble has little redeeming value. It’s like the chaff that the wind sweeps away from the threshing floor. This is the believer who sows to the flesh. The pleasures and possessions of this world have crowded out any interest in serving the Lord. Like Demas, he has turned his back on the Lord’s work, having loved this world. The loss this believer is going to suffer is immeasurable.
THAT DAY
“Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire” (I Cor. 3:13-15).
“Every man’s work shall be made manifest.” God is going to bring forth every man’s work for a complete and thorough review. The apostle here is speaking of the body of a man’s work that he produced over the course of his Christian life. We often say concerning someone who devoted his entire life to a particular cause, “this was his life’s work.” In other words, it was the sum total of all he accomplished. The same will be true of the believer, for “the day shall declare it.” What day? The day of Christ when we must all appear before the Bema Seat.
“And the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.” Fire is a symbol of the Word of God. Prior to the Babylonian captivity, Jeremiah became very discouraged with the things of the Lord. So he packed his bags one day and essentially said to himself, “That’s it, I’ve had it with this stiff necked people, I quit!” “I will not make mention of Him, nor speak any more in His name. But His Word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay” (Jer. 20:9).
With our marching orders for the Body of Christ found in Paul’s epistles, we are going to be judged by the Word of God in light of his revelation. As our works are brought under the scrutiny of God’s Word, there are going to be two searching questions at that day: First, did we acknowledge Paul’s apostleship and message to the Gentiles? Second, were we obedient to the commands of Christ taught in his writings? Of course, the Lord will judge the members of His Body on the basis of their faithfulness to the light they had in regard to the revelation of the Mystery. The Word of God, which is sharper than any two-edged sword, will distinguish what s-o-r-t of work it is. It is not a matter of the volume of work done, but what type--the issue is quality, not quantity.
Only those things that were done for Christ in relation to His heavenly ministry will be able to endure the intense scrutiny of the Word of God. |
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Theology / Bible Study / The Judgment Seat of Christ - Part 2
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on: February 03, 2020, 01:46:23 PM
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_______________________________________________
More Minutes With The Bible
From The Berean Bible Society
Free Email Subscription
For Questions Or Comments: berean@execpc.com
_______________________________________________
The Judgment Seat of Christ - Part 2
The Judgment Seat of Christ
by Pastor Paul M. Sadler
“Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is” (I Cor. 3:12,13).
The poet, Friedrich Von Logau, said, “Though the mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceedingly small.” William Wadsworth Longfellow elaborated and said, “Though the mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceedingly small. Though with patience He stands waiting, with exactness He grinds all.” (The Tale of the Tardy Oxcart, by Charles R. Swindoll, W Publishing Group, Nashville, Tennessee, Page 323.) The judgments of God are like a fire sweeping across the floor of a pine forest--all consuming. Nothing will escape His eternal presence in the Day of Judgment. Although there have been many injustices in the household of God through the centuries, God has not forgotten. “He stands waiting, with exactness He grinds all.”
Paul begins, “Now if any man,” that is, any pastor, teacher, or evangelist, “build upon this foundation.” While these words are primarily meant for those who hold positions of leadership within the Church, they also apply to every member of the Body of Christ. Consequently, all should take heed to the apostle’s admonition.
BUILDING ACCORDING TO GOD’S PLAN
Gold and Wood
Gold, silver, and precious stones represent our good works and faithful service. On the other hand, the wood, hay, and stubble represent those things that are done in the flesh, which are temporary in nature. Since Paul uses the metaphor of the temple in this context, we are given a hint as to the significance of these particular building materials. Paul assumes, of course, that we already understand what these materials symbolized in the Old Testament. Surely we can never do justice to this subject due to the endless line of thought that each of these images convey. So with God’s help, we offer the following for your consideration.
In the Old Testament gold symbolized deity. The furniture in both the tabernacle and the temple was overlaid with pure gold. When the priest entered the Holy Place, directly before him stood the golden altar of incense, where incense was burned, which portrayed the prayers of the saints ascending to God. This was an act of worship. On his right hand was the golden table of showbread, and on his left stood the golden candlestick with six branches (Ex. 25:23,24,31,32; 30:1,3).
Once a year on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest entered the Holy of Holies on behalf of the people; but not without blood. When he stepped behind the veil he stood in the very presence of God. As he sprinkled the blood on the Mercy Seat--located on top of the Ark of the Covenant--it should be noted that both were overlaid with gold. So then, gold is closely associated with the presence and worship of God (Ex. 25:10,11,17-19).
Today, our worship of God rests upon the revelation given to us by the Apostle Paul. Herein are the commands of Christ that we are responsible to obey. In so doing we are using gold in our construction. But what does God expect of us in regard to worship? Worship is simply service--it means to serve, pay homage. However you cannot serve God, or acceptably pay homage to Him, unless you have a knowledge of His will.
The primary focus of our worship must be the proclamation of the Word of God, with special emphasis laid upon rightly dividing the Word of truth (II Tim. 2:15 cf. II Tim. 4:2). Of course, singing, prayer, giving, and testimonials should complement the preaching of the Word, but never infringe upon it in any way. In the administration of Grace, it is Paul who shows us how to worship. Hence, we must acknowledge his apostleship and message to build that which is lasting upon the foundation, which is Christ Jesus. This impacts every area of our worship.
For example, unlike Israel, we worship the God of all grace who’s doing something new and different among the Gentiles. Unlike Israel, who had limited access to the throne of God, we have full access. Unlike Israel, who sought the forgiveness of her sins through atonement, we are forgiven on the basis of Christ’s precious blood.
An outward expression of worshipping God is our giving. Under the law, God required His people to give ten percent of their earnings. This was known as the law of the tithe. Furthermore, the law was clear that their offerings and special donations were to be given in addition to the tithe. Today, we are to give from our heart as God has prospered us, which differs from person to person (I Cor. 16:1,2).
Everything connected to the tabernacle/temple spoke in some way of the person and work of Christ. As we know, the acacia wood used in the construction of the furniture in the temple was all overlaid with fine gold. The combination of wood, which symbolized humanity, and gold was significant because both typified Christ--He was wholly God and wholly human in one person (Ex. 25:10,11 cf. Isa. 53:2).
Wood, then, is closely associated with the flesh. As one of the building materials, it represents those things pleasing to self, and that which is done for appearance sake. Once again, worship is in view since wood and gold correspond to one another. But here we have a refusal on the part of the worshipper to fully acknowledge Paul’s gospel, for one reason or another. Many count the cost, and the cost is simply too high to stand in the defense and confirmation of Paul’s message. They prefer to merely blend in with the mainstream of Christendom, where the music is plentiful and the experience gratifying. These “feel good ministries” thrive on emotionalism, but offer little in the way of substance from the Word of God.
The motto of the Church today is, “Let me entertain you!” Shame on us! Surely we’ve lost our way, and sadly, the uniqueness of our message in the process. When a new family asks a pastor, “What does this church have to offer us?” it is obvious the Church has drifted far from its original purpose. The proper request should be, “Pastor, what can my family do to help further the cause of Christ?”
We have a life-changing message that’s being smothered by compromise. The world is drunk with entertainment. It’s quietly searching for answers to the eternal questions: Where did I come from? What is my purpose in life? Where will I spend my eternal destiny? Think of it, we have the answers to these questions, and more! But the new philosophy of ministry has loftier goals. It says the Church must be more progressive to meet the needs of the community. So while Christian leaders are busy planning the next church extravaganza to outdo the assembly down the street, lost souls are going to a Christless eternity.
Why do we insist upon grieving the heart of God!? We need to rededicate our pulpits and services to the preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the Mystery. If we follow Paul’s pattern, the Word of God will stir the hearts of the saints to do the work of the ministry. This is true worship in action! Remember and remember well, we must all stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ.
Silver and Hay
Silver was another precious metal that was prominent throughout the tabernacle. All the sockets that supported this structure were made of silver. Inasmuch as these sockets were made from the redemption money given by the children of Israel to ransom their souls unto the Lord, it is clear silver speaks of redemption (Ex. 25:1-3; 30:11-16; 36:24; 38:27). It points to the redemptive work of Christ and the need to be saved. |
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82
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Theology / Bible Study / The New Nature In The Believer
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on: February 03, 2020, 01:44:28 PM
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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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The New Nature In The Believer
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam
It has been well said that if there is anything good in any man it is because it was put there by God. And something good — a new, sinless nature — has been imparted by God to every believer.
While there is still within us “that which is begotten of the flesh,” there is also “that which is begotten of the Spirit,” and just as the one is totally depraved and “cannot please God,” so the other is absolutely perfect and always pleases Him.
Adam was originally created in the image and likeness of God, but he fell into sin and later “begat a son in his own likeness, after his image” (Gen. 5:3). It could not be otherwise. Fallen Adam could generate and beget only fallen, sinful offspring, whom even the Law could not change. But “what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God, sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin,” accomplished, “that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” (Rom. 8:3,4),
As Adam was made in the likeness of God, but fell, so Christ was made in the likeness of sinful flesh, to redeem us from the fall, that by grace, through the operation of the Spirit, a new creation might be brought into being, a “new man… renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that created him” (Col. 3:10) a “new man, which, after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Eph. 4:24). Referring to this “new man,” John says:
“Whosoever is born [begotten] of God doth not commit sin, for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born [begotten] of God” (I John 3:9).
“We know that whosoever is born [begotten] of God sinneth not…” (I John 5:18). |
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Entertainment / Poetry/Prose / Grimshaw's Covenant with God, December 1752
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on: February 03, 2020, 01:41:45 PM
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Grimshaw's Covenant with God, December 1752
(J.C. Ryle, William Grimshaw)
Eternal and unchangeable Jehovah! Great Creator of Heaven and earth, and adorable Lord of angels and men! I desire with the deepest humiliation and abasement of soul to fall down at this time in Your solemn presence, and earnestly pray that You will penetrate my heart with a suitable sense of Your unutterable and inconceivable glories.
To You I now come, invited by Your love, and trusting Jesus' righteousness alone, laying myself at Your feet with shame and confusion of face; and smiting on my bosom, saying with the publican, God be merciful to me a sinner!
Glory be to You, O my Triune God! I desire and resolve to be wholly and forever Yours! Blessed God, I most solemnly surrender myself unto You. Hear, O Heaven, and give ear, O earth! I avow this day, the Lord to be my God, my Father, my Savior, and my portion forever! I am one of His covenant children forever. Record, O eternal Lord, in Your book of remembrance, that henceforth I am Yours forever. From this day I solemnly renounce all former lords--the world, the flesh, and the devil--in Your name. This day I give up myself to You, a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto You; which I know is my reasonable service.
To You I consecrate all my worldly possessions. In your service I desire and purpose to spend all my time, desiring You to teach me to spend every moment of it to Your glory and the setting forth of Your praise, in every station and relation of life I am now or may hereafter be in.
Nor do I only consecrate all that I have to your service, but I also most humbly resign and submit to Your holy and sovereign will all that I am. I leave, O Lord, to Your management and direction--all that I possess and all that I wish. I set my every enjoyment and interest before You to be disposed of as You please. Continue or remove what You have given me. Bestow or refuse what I imagine I need--as You see best. And though I dare not say that I will never repine--yet I hope I may say that I will labor not only to submit, but to cheerfully acquiesce to Your sovereign providence; not only to bear Your heaviest afflictions on me, but to consent to them and praise You for them; contentedly resolving, in all Your appointments, my will into Yours; esteeming myself as nothing--and You, O God, as the great Eternal All, whose word shall determine, and whose power shall order all things in the world.
Dispose my affairs, O God, in a manner which will be wholly subservient to Your glory and my own true happiness. And when I have done, borne, and endured Your will upon earth--call me home at whatever time and in whatever manner You please.
Grimshaw's last words were, "Here goes an unprofitable servant!" |
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ChristiansUnite and Announcements / ChristiansUnite and Announcements / The Patriot Post Digest 2-3-2020
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on: February 03, 2020, 01:33:23 PM
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________________________________
The Patriot Post Digest 2-3-2020
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68290-kobe-contradictions-why-number-girldad-isnt-reality-in-black-america-2020-02-03
NEWS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY42
MIDWEEK VOTE: Senators will vote Wednesday to acquit Trump (USA Today43)
KEEP AMERICA GREAT: Trump’s great Alice Johnson Super Bowl ad reminds us he deserves major credit for criminal-justice reform (Washington Examiner44)
A BLIND SQUIRREL FINDS A NUT: NFL airs patriotic tribute to the American flag during Super Bowl (The Daily Wire45)
LIES, DAMNED LIES, AND STATISTICS: Michael Bloomberg’s claim about “children” killed by “gun violence” is off by 73% (Reason20)
INDIVIDUAL-MANDATE UPDATE: Fifth Circuit declines to rehear ObamaCare severability case en banc (Reason46)
CORRUPTION: Ilhan Omar paid additional $215,000 from campaign coffers to alleged boyfriend’s firm (The Washington Free Beacon47)
INTRAPARTY SQUABBLE, PART I: 2020 Democrats slam party rule change that could let Bloomberg debate (Washington Examiner48)
INTRAPARTY SQUABBLE, PART II: Hillary Clinton blames Bernie Sanders for disunity in Democrat Party (Washington Examiner49)
“FOREIGN NATIONS … MUST SATISFY BASIC SECURITY CONDITIONS”: Trump expands travel ban to six new countries (The Washington Times50)
DESPITE THE BAN ON “POINTY KNIVES”: Just-freed terrorist killed by cops after London stabbing spree (The Daily Beast51)
POLICY: The coronavirus is a big economic deal (American Enterprise Institute52)
POLICY: Why American scientists take Chinese money (National Review53)
HUMOR: Time to panic? More Chinese restaurants handing out fortune cookies that just say “Death by coronavirus” (The Babylon Bee54)
For more of today’s editors’ choice headlines, visit In Our Sights55.
The Patriot Post is a certified ad-free news service, unlike third-party commercial news sites linked on this page, which may also require a paid subscription.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68314-monday-news-executive-summary-2020-02-03
VIDEOS14
Video: The Myth of the Tiny Radical Muslim Minority56 — Ben Shapiro debunks the myth of the “tiny radical Muslim minority.”
Video: 2020 Media vs. 1999 Media on Impeachment57 — Hypocrisy and double standards are personified by our Leftmedia elites.
Video: We Finally Have Proof of Quid Pro Quos58 — There are plenty of instances in which politicos are implicated. Democrat ones, that is.
Video: Can Quirky, Prickly Bernie Get Nominated? Horace Greeley Did17 — Bill Whittle discovered a precedent for Sanders’s potential nomination.
SHORT CUTS60
Insight: “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.” —Ronald Reagan
Friendly fire: “People like Bernie Sanders who are running on throwing the whole U.S. economy out the window and starting from scratch — he’s running on taking private health insurance away from 180 million Americans. I just think that makes our job so much harder in terms of beating Donald Trump.” —John Delaney
Due process for me but not for thee: “I don’t care what kind of nice, little, legal, constitutional defenses that they came up with.” —Sen. Mazie Hirono
Race bait: “I am very concerned about the racial division that this president has fostered. And I’m meeting a lot of voters who are no longer willing to look the other way on that, looking for a new political home.” —Pete Buttigieg
Alpha jackass: “Of 51 Republican senators who voted to block John Bolton’s testimony in Trump impeachment trial, 25 represent states of the Confederacy during the Civil War. The old Confederacy represents the bulwark of the 21st century GOP.” —CNN’s John Harwood, who subsequently remarked, “Deleted a tweet because I made a tabulation mistake. 23 of 51 Senate GOP votes to block Bolton testimony came from states of the old Confederacy, not 25.”
Non compos mentis: “Coronavirus task force another example of Trump administration’s lack of diversity.” —CNN headline
And last… “The NFL claims they are taking a stand against sex trafficking yet they have a halftime show degrading and objectifying women with pole dancing. A horrendous example to the millions of young women across the world.” —Charlie Kirk
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68313-monday-short-cuts-2020-02-03
TODAY’S MEME61
https://patriotpost.us/memes/68304-four-more-years-2020-02-03
For more of today’s memes, visit the Memesters Union61.
TODAY’S CARTOON62
https://patriotpost.us/cartoons/28201
For more of today’s cartoons, visit the Cartoons archive62.
Join us in prayer for our Patriots in uniform and their families — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way, and for our nation’s First Responders. We also ask prayer for your Patriot team, that our mission would seed and encourage the Spirit of Liberty63 in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis |
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ChristiansUnite and Announcements / ChristiansUnite and Announcements / The Patriot Post Digest 2-3-2020
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on: February 03, 2020, 01:32:04 PM
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________________________________
The Patriot Post Digest 2-3-2020
From The Federalist Patriot
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The report’s co-chair, Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE), also addressed the “lax oversight of federal research grants and the ineffective and mixed messages agencies have been delivering to schools and researchers.” Yet he was as myopic as Portman, further insisting that America should not abandon international collaboration with regard to science and technology. “As China’s aggressive efforts show,” he said, “our scientists, research institutions, and universities remain the best in the world and serve as a magnet for talented people looking to do meaningful, cutting-edge work.”
Not quite, Sen. Carper. China’s efforts show it’s determined to achieve global supremacy — by any means necessary.
Yet, for the American Left, President Donald Trump’s increased vetting is tantamount to racism. “The push to stanch China’s well-documented and costly theft of U.S. innovation and know-how has also raised questions about overzealous prosecutors and racial profiling,” Bloomberg News columnists Janelle Lawrence, Chris Dolmetsch, and Malathi Nayak assert29.
Would Americans prefer a more lackadaisical approach toward a nation described37 by Victor Davis Hanson as one well known for “its gulag-like reeducation camps, its systematic mercantile cheating, its Orwellian surveillance apparatus, its serial public-health crises, and its primitive hinterland infrastructure”?
Unfortunately, for our elitists in government and business, the answer is yes. And in a speech given on October 13, 2016, candidate Donald Trump illuminated38 exactly why, saying, “There is nothing the political establishment will not do, and no lie they will not tell, to hold on to their prestige and power at your expense.”
Conspiratorial? Ask the millions of Americans living in outsourcing-ravaged communities. The same ones expected to abide poverty, hopelessness, and rampant drug addiction in exchange for cheap consumer goods — while being ridiculed39 on national television by a trio of elitist hacks.
“Western elites often harangue about misdemeanors when they cannot address felonies — a strange sort of psychological penance that excuses their impotence,” Hanson asserts.
Can’t, or won’t? And what if that impotence — impotence that invariably elevates avarice over national security — is by design?
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68299-abetting-chinese-espionage-2020-02-03
Warren’s ‘Disinformation’ Plan vs. the First Amendment40
Democrat presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren recently released her plan to fight against online disinformation. It’s the boogie man that Democrats have repeatedly — and without evidence — parroted as the determining factor that enabled Donald Trump to win the 2016 election. “Disinformation and online foreign interference erode our democracy, and Donald Trump has invited both,” Warren dubiously asserted. “Anyone who seeks to challenge and defeat Donald Trump in the 2020 election must be fully prepared to take this on — and I’ve got a plan to do it.”
And what is Warren’s plan to end what all American politicians have been infamous for engaging in since the time of our nation’s founding? “I will push for new laws that impose tough civil and criminal penalties for knowingly disseminating this kind of information, which has the explicit purpose of undermining the basic right to vote,” Warren claims.
So, the woman who lied about having Native American ancestry to further her own academic career, and who routinely lies about her biography on the campaign trail to boost her “street cred” now wants to play the role of national “fact checker”? What about that little thing called the First Amendment?
Warren’s plan sparked a fiery response from actor Rob Schneider, who has been outspoken about the Left’s attempts to silence speech. He hit the nail on the head, stating, “Thank YOU Warren for treating Americans like we are so completely f—— stupid that we can’t think for ourselves. Luckily we have leaders like YOU who can tell us what to believe & how to vote. You are right; the stakes are too high to trust the people to decide for themselves.”
Yet again, another Democrat who loudly clamors about the absurd notion that the American people’s election of Trump somehow equates to a threat to the nation’s democratic process. In reality it is politicians like Warren and their tyrannical instincts that present the real threat facing our republic and Liberty itself.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68295-warrens-disinformation-plan-vs-the-first-amendment-2020-02-03
Kobe Contradictions: Why #GirlDad Isn’t Reality in Black America41
Grassroots perspective by Patrick Hampton
The world is numb, saddened, and in mourning for the tragic loss of basketball superstar Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna, as well as the other passengers and pilot who also perished in the helicopter crash in Calabasas, California. In memoriam, the Twitter-verse is filled with heartfelt tribute for the basketball legend and his 13-year-old child, with posts shared under the now-viral hashtag #GirlDad. Among those sharing photos and telling stories are black socialites and #PretendParents — my term for parents who only exist to brag on children they didn’t raise. These groups band together to celebrate fatherhood in light of this devastating incident. But is a horrible event like this what it really takes for us to praise the value of having a father in the home?
First, let’s define what a #GirlDad is. In summary, a #GirlDad is a father who is actively raising his daughter into womanhood. But how many #GirlDads are there today?
I’m not here to question Kobe’s parenting abilities. It’s clear that he was as present as any celebrity athlete can be for his family. Instead, I call into question the false pride among the African-American community, which has clearly shown that fatherhood is no longer a priority. Statistics suggest that greater than 70% of black people are born to single-parent (mother) households.
It’s as if many woke black people seek to live vicariously through the lives of the rich and famous, but they never work to acquire and redeem any virtues of their own. They tune into Hollywood’s depiction of wealthy, powerful, and successful black families and are satisfied with just watching. The black family has been in television for generations, so how did we end up with fatherless homes at all? I estimate that to these woke black people, seeing their own in television, in headlines, is good enough.
This type of laziness is hard to tackle. For little effort is given because the notion of collectivism prevails. “One black person succeeds, so we all are succeeding,” some people believe. One strong tidal wave lifts all boats.
Sadly, this approach to living keeps black families lacking and unable to realize success for themselves. While Kobe may have had a wonderful relationship with his daughter, this hardly means that all black families are healthy and whole, and no amount of retweets and hashtags will make it so.
#GirlDad doesn’t address an alarming abortion rate among blacks.
#GirlDad doesn’t speak to the staggering crime rates for black men compared to other races.
#GirlDad does little to resolve the educational challenges present in today’s public schools.
#GirlDad says nothing about a culture of hateful mothers who pin their daughters against their dads.
#GirlDad hardly challenges the judicial biases against men who truly want to be good fathers.
With black families among those pressed up against these obstacles, the last thing we need is another useless #hashtag movement. Generations of television and film depicting a wholesome, successful black family didn’t do it, and neither will this. It’s time we turn away from the computer screen and face the mirror. Looking at ourselves, we must ask if we truly value family. |
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on: February 03, 2020, 01:30:20 PM
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The Patriot Post Digest 2-3-2020
From The Federalist Patriot
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Energy Policy That Wins26
Robin Smith
Every president since Richard Nixon has promised energy independence to Americans as a measure of national security. Promises and pledges have come and gone from the White House since the 1970s — but now, the United States of America is an exporter of crude oil as well as natural gas and, yes, Americans can be declared energy independent.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (USEIA), “In November 2019, the United States became a net exporter of all oil products, including both refined petroleum products and crude oil.”
For the very reasons eight presidents prior to Donald Trump promised this energy autonomy, it’s now evidenced with the stability of oil prices that no longer wildly fluctuate with every world event.
Middle East policy has become more shaped by those drilling in Pennsylvania, North Dakota, and Texas. Yet leftists still declare, “We just can’t drill our way out of the problem.” Well, that’s exactly what happened.
Despite, not because of, the policies of the Obama administration, exploration, drilling, and fracking for natural gas and oil expanded with no appearance of turning back as the Trump administration approved last week the Keystone Pipeline right of way for a crucial 46-mile stretch controlled by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Keystone was first proposed in 2008, but faced repeated rejections during the Obama years. This approval permits the $8 billion construction project expected to move up to 35 million gallons of crude oil every day from western Canada to terminals on the U.S. Gulf Coast.
What does this mean to average Americans?
According to economist Stephen Moore, “At least $1 trillion of U.S. economic output is related to the shale revolution,” with more than 1.5 million Americans working in the industry. A separate study by the American Petroleum Institute cites at least four million jobs connected to the shale oil and gas energy transformation that include work in construction, engineering, pipe fitting, steel production, trucking, and sales jobs.
Specifically, Michigan and Ohio together have more than 400,000 workers tied to the shale industry, with Pennsylvania home to an additional 320,000 alone. Colorado and Florida each have more than 200,000 oil and gas workers. It’s obvious that these states hold not only precious natural resources but critical voters that serve as the fuel for the engine of 2020 politics.
While these states are the heart of the shale industry, Texas has more than two million employees of gas and oil companies. Add to that the coal workers who showed up in 2016 from Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio supporting Trump. He embraces an all-of-the-above approach to energy that includes fossil fuels, nuclear, solar, and renewables, but without the subsidies propping up the green industry.
It’s obvious that fossil fuels and nuclear energy are not welcomed in the Democrat Party, as evidenced by the lineup of presidential candidates whose policies would stall the American economic engine, killing millions of jobs while massively increasing prices.
As Salena Zito and Brad Todd wrote in their book, The Great Revolt: Inside the Populist Coalition Reshaping American Politics, those who are red-blooded and blue-collared are now the GOP — yes, it’s a Growing Opportunity Party. As the elections inch closer, expect effective reminders that Democrats view those who cling to their God and guns as “deplorable,” as well as disdain all who see the value in America being first in energy exploration and production. That might be called #Winning for conservatives.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68311-energy-policy-that-wins-2020-02-03
Abetting Chinese Espionage27
Arnold Ahlert
Charles Lieber, chair of Harvard University’s Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, was charged28 last Tuesday with lying about payments he’d taken from Communist China’s “Thousand Talents Plan,” which is an effort to recruit researchers. Two Chinese nationals were also charged. Yanqing Ye, a Boston University robotics researcher, was charged with lying about her position as a lieutenant in the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, and Zaosong Zheng, a cancer researcher at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, was arrested in December for allegedly attempting to smuggle research samples out of the country. “No country poses a greater, more severe or long-term threat to our national security and economic prosperity than China,” stated29 Boston FBI agent Joseph Bonavolonta. “China’s communist government’s goal, simply put, is to replace the U.S. as the world superpower, and they are breaking the law to get there.”
Indeed. And like so many other Americans whose concerns for personal gain apparently transcend concerns for our nation, Leiber had quite a lucrative deal going for himself. According to prosecutors, Lieber was paid $50,000 a month by the Wuhan University of Technology in China and received up to $158,000 in additional living expenses. He was also awarded more than $1.5 million to establish a research lab at the Chinese university. In exchange, Lieber was expected to publish articles, apply for patents on behalf of the Chinese university, and organize international conferences, all with the intent of helping China become proficient in cutting-edge science.
When confronted, Lieber gave “false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements” to both the Department of Defense (DOD) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) regarding his participation in the Thousand Talents Plan, according to a charging document30 written by an FBI agent. That would be the same Thousand Talents Plan the U.S. government has designated31 as a threat to national security.
The DOD and NIH also provided Lieber with $15 million in grant funding, which required him to disclose any ties to foreign funding, and his deception caused Harvard to make false statements to the NIH about Lieber’s work with the Chinese.
Yanqing Ye, who has apparently fled to China, is wanted32 for acting as an agent of a foreign government, visa fraud, making false statements, and conspiracy. In addition to being a People’s Liberation Army lieutenant (a fact she failed to disclose when applying for a U.S. visa), a search of her electronic devices allegedly revealed Ye obtained information about two U.S. residents with expertise in robotics and computer science.
Zaosong Zheng, who obtained a visa sponsored by Harvard University in 2019, was arrested33 at Boston’s Logan International Airport in December, while attempting to smuggle 21 vials of cancer-research material out of the country. Zheng, who stole the vials from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, allegedly hid them in a sock in his suitcase. Like Ye, the FBI alleges Zheng was also working for the Chinese government. Deemed a flight risk, he is being held without bail.
Both Harvard and Beth Israel are cooperating with authorities.
“The arrest of Charles M. Lieber, the chair of Harvard’s department of chemistry and chemical biology, signaled a new, aggressive phase in the Justice Department’s campaign to root out scientists who are stealing research from American laboratories,” The New York Times reports34.
It also validates a bipartisan report by the Senate investigations committee revealing “how the American taxpayer has, in effect, unwittingly funded research that has contributed to China’s global rise over the past 20 years,” Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) stated35 last November.
The American taxpayer? Breitbart’s Neil Munro provides a far more accurate description36: “Careless elites in government and in universities help the Chinese government steal U.S. technology and get taxpayer funding for Chinese research.” |
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ChristiansUnite and Announcements / ChristiansUnite and Announcements / The Patriot Post Digest 2-3-2020
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on: February 03, 2020, 01:28:56 PM
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The Patriot Post Digest 2-3-2020
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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The Patriot Post® · Mid-Day Digest
Feb. 3, 2020
https://patriotpost.us/digests/68317-mid-day-digest-2020-02-03
THE FOUNDATION1
“We should be unfaithful to ourselves if we should ever lose sight of the danger to our liberties if anything partial or extraneous should infect the purity of our free, fair, virtuous, and independent elections.” —John Adams (1797)
https://patriotpost.us/fqd/68316-founders-quote-daily-2020-02-03
IN TODAY’S DIGEST
Iowa Caucuses: Sanders in Pole Position, DNC Worried2
The Super Bowl’s Cultural Fumbles3
Energy Policy That Wins4
Abetting Chinese Espionage5
Warren’s ‘Disinformation’ Plan vs. the First Amendment6
Kobe Contradictions: Why #GirlDad Isn’t Reality in Black America7
Daily Features: News Executive Summary8, Videos9, Best of Right Opinion10, Short Cuts11, Memes12, and Cartoons13.
FEATURED ANALYSIS14
Iowa Caucuses: Sanders in Pole Position, DNC Worried15
Thomas Gallatin
The Democrat Party’s presidential race will officially begin to take shape with the Iowa caucuses today, but there are clear indications that party leadership is seriously worried that the “wrong” candidate may take the lead. Recent polling indicates that the surging Bernie Sanders has pulled ahead of the party leadership’s preferred candidate, Joe Biden. That is perhaps why the Des Moines Register otherwise inexplicably canceled the release of its final poll. Even with Sanders stuck in Washington and off the campaign trail the past two weeks due to the impeachment trial16, Biden’s middling campaign has seemingly failed to gain any advantage.
According to the current polling average from RealClearPolitics for Iowa, the picture that is forming has Sanders now atop Biden by four percentage points, followed by Pete Buttigieg at 16.4% and the fast-fading Elizabeth Warren sinking to fourth at 15.6%. Combined with Sanders’s near-10-point lead over Biden in New Hampshire, by the middle of next week Sanders could be the clear frontrunner17. And if recent history is any guide, ever since 2000 the winner of the Iowa caucuses has gone on to win the Democrat nomination. That explains why the Democrat National Committee may be starting to panic.
As in 201618, the DNC appears to be conspiring to prevent an avowed socialist from winning the nomination. The first inkling of DNC shenanigans that has Sanders supporters crying foul is a new rule change that drops a requirement for grassroots fundraising — a change that will allow self-funding billionaire Michael Bloomberg onto the next debate stage. “That’s the definition of a rigged system,” fumes Sanders’s senior advisor Jeff Weaver.
Furthermore, a small group of DNC members is raising the specter of superdelegates as a means of fending off the possibility of a brokered convention and weakening Sanders. Politico reports, “About a half-dozen members have discussed the possibility of a policy reversal to ensure that so-called superdelegates can vote on the first ballot at the party’s national convention. Such a move would increase the influence of DNC members, members of Congress and other top party officials, who now must wait until the second ballot to have their say if the convention is contested.” Should Sanders take Iowa tonight, expect to hear of more rule-tweaking by the DNC.
As a footnote regarding President Donald Trump and the impeachment trial, the Senate will vote to acquit Trump of the House Democrats’ vacuous articles of impeachment charges this coming Wednesday, following Republicans’ vote last Friday against calling new witnesses. If that comes to pass, it will put an end to the Democrats’ charade, though it will only begin the narrative of a Republican cover-up as Dems aim to retake the Senate and the White House.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68315-iowa-caucuses-sanders-in-pole-position-dnc-worried-2020-02-03
The Super Bowl’s Cultural Fumbles19
Nate Jackson
Last night’s Super Bowl was quite a game for fans who love good football. But the game is never only about the football, meaning the Kansas City Chiefs’ incredible comeback win over the San Francisco 49ers — scoring 21 points in the last half of the fourth quarter to win 31-20 — wasn’t the only storyline. Here are the ones that caught our attention:
Bloomberg’s deceitful gun ad
Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who already has spent over $250 million of his own money on his presidential campaign, ran a $10 million 60-second ad claiming that “2,900 children die from gun violence every year.”
In 2013, the billionaire Democrat started Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun-grabbing group that routinely peddles false statistics to conjure up fear and emotional distress, particularly among women, about firearms in America. The group came to the 2,887 number by including all deaths by firearms among any American age 0-19. But if you exclude legal adults ages 18 and 19, the number is 1,499 — barely more than half his claim. (By the way, the son of the woman featured in the ad was 20 at the time of his gang-related murder — which is not to minimize it but to put it in context.) Moreover, if you exclude gang-banger violence between older teens on Democrat urban poverty plantations, the number is drastically lower still, though hard to quantify.
Another inconvenient truth: Nearly two-fifths of the deaths Bloomberg cites are suicides. When all is said and done, Reason’s Jacob Sullum notes20, “The number of minors killed each year by ‘gun violence,’ as that term is usually understood, is about 73 percent smaller than the figure cited in Bloomberg’s ad.”
Bloomberg wants $100 million annually for programs dealing with local violence, and that’s all well and good, but he and his ilk should quit infringing the Second Amendment and besmirching its defenders in the NRA and other upstanding, law-abiding organizations — all while exploiting a grieving mother without explaining how his policies would have saved her son or others like him.
Trump’s upbeat ads
By contrast, President Donald Trump painted a favorable picture of America in two key ads. One highlighted the positive impact his push for criminal-justice reform21 has had on the black community, including an emotional and thankful black mother profusely thanking him.
The other ad celebrated America’s strong economy thanks to his administration’s policies on taxes and deregulation.
What’s Bloomberg’s plan for the economy? A $5 trillion tax hike22.
The Halftime Cesspool
For those who don’t use the break to refill the cheese dip and grab another plate of wings, the Super Bowl Halftime Show has been a key feature of the game for a long time. But last night’s version may have reached a new low for depravity and family un-friendliness. Jennifer Lopez (wearing what PJ Media’s Megan Fox called23 “a two-sided thong and buttless chaps”) and Shakira played a show full of raunchy displays like pole dancing, crotch grabbing, and shaking rear ends in front of the camera.
If that wasn’t bad enough, the hypocrisy is worse. Human sex trafficking remains a big problem24 at the Super Bowl, and the country has spent recent years in the midst of the #MeToo movement to empower women against sexual assault. Doing so is right and good, even if the movement itself was uber-politicized by feminists. But J-Lo’s vulgar performance in particular was anything but “empowering.”
As for the ad the NFL refused to run? A pro-life ad25. Quite a statement of the league’s “values.”
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68312-the-super-bowls-cultural-fumbles |
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ChristiansUnite and Announcements / ChristiansUnite and Announcements / The Patriot Post Digest 1-31-2020
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on: February 03, 2020, 03:59:56 AM
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The Patriot Post Digest 1-31-2020
From The Federalist Patriot
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https://patriotpost.us/articles/68256-compassionate-dems-just-cant-solve-homelessness-2020-01-31
Crime, Punishment, and the Second Amendment48
Patriotic Virginians should be furious. The state’s new Democrat-controlled legislature, which was elected in no small part thanks to a one-two punch of Michael Bloomberg’s cash and Andrew Cuomo’s campaign against the National Rifle Association49, is now pushing for gun-control laws that clearly violate the Second Amendment and would punish law-abiding citizens for crimes and acts of madness they had nothing to do with. They would also ignore the failure of our government to enforce the laws already on the books — a failure that costs lives.
One need only look at Chicago to see that the laws being pushed by Bloomberg and his fellow gun-grabbers don’t work. In fact, Chicago enacted an outright handgun ban from 1983 to 2010, which was ultimately undone by the Supreme Court in McDonald v. Chicago50. Of course, the bad guys still got their guns during the nearly three-decade ban, and they used them to murder thousands.
Why? Because criminals break laws, including 18 USC 92251, whether by stealing them or by using a straw purchaser. Even the National Firearms Act52 provisions on short-barrel shotguns have been flouted for decades. Passed in 1934, that particular law boasts an 86-year track record of failure.
Believe it or not, actual enforcement of federal gun laws has been tried — and it worked. Project Exile began in Richmond, Virginia, which had sought to address its high murder rate. As the project took hold, aided by a PR campaign using ads on buses and billboards53, the crime rate dropped, and crooks stopped using guns — because they knew they’d be put away for a long time.
Curious what a small gun-running operation can lead to in terms of prison time? The NRA ran a tab back in 199954, and the results are quite instructive about the state of current law. Imagine what could be done to those who make multiple runs — or a bigger run.
Yet despite the success of Project Exile, politicians representing Chicago at the local, state, and federal levels have responded over the years by demanding that other states (like neighboring Indiana) and the federal government punish law-abiding citizens instead of the Windy City’s criminals55. Simply put, the enforcement of laws aimed at the misuse of firearms could save a lot more lives than so-called universal background checks or a ban on modern semiautomatic firearms. Instead, we’ve witnessed a stunning betrayal of law-abiding citizens, who are being scapegoated in place of proper enforcement of the current provisions of 18 USC 922, 18 USC 924, and 26 USC Chapter 53.
Thankfully, the NRA and other pro-Second Amendment groups are fighting for the rights of those citizens.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68254-crime-punishment-and-the-second-amendment-2020-01-31
NEWS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY56
“THIS IS ONLY THE FIRST SALVO”: Ex-Trump aide Carter Page files suit against DNC over dossier (Fox News57)
PICK ME! PICK ME! Watch Schiff’s hilarious attempt to stop Nadler from delivering closing remarks (Townhall58)
ADDRESSING EXPLOITATION: Trump to sign executive order combating human trafficking (The Hill59)
IDEOLOGY TRUMPS MORALITY: Warren vows to give “young trans person” veto power over her secretary of education pick (National Review60)
MEMO TO DON LEMON: Trump supporters score higher on verbal ability tests (The Volokh Conspiracy61)
“TIME TO VOTE AGAINST THE IRAQ WAR”: Trump ally Matt Gaetz calls for AUMF repeal (CNSNews62)
ATTACK FALLOUT: Fourteen more U.S. troops diagnosed with brain injury following Iranian missile attack, bring the total to 64 (NBC News63)
POLICY: Do subprime auto loans threaten the U.S. economy? (RealClearPolicy64)
POLICY: Poverty stats greatly overstate how many Americans are destitute (Intellectual Takeout65)
HUMOR: BREAKING: The Senate will call impeachment witness John Blasey Bolton (Genesius Times66)
For more of today’s editors’ choice headlines, visit In Our Sights67.
The Patriot Post is a certified ad-free news service, unlike third-party commercial news sites linked on this page, which may also require a paid subscription.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68278-friday-news-executive-summary-2020-01-31
VIDEOS14
Video: Democrats Are Huge Hypocrites on Impeachment68 — They’ve been pious and sanctimonious on impeachment from the get-go.
Video: Iowa Lets ‘Transitioning’ Child Molester Out of Jail69 — This ming-boggling news is manufactured by — what else? — “social wokeness.”
Video: ‘Why Would You Vote for Me?’ Biden Wonders70 — Even leftist media outlet Vice News is mystified.
BEST OF RIGHT OPINION71
68262 68258 68268 68263 68266
For more of today’s columns, visit Right Opinion71.
SHORT CUTS72
Insight: “A bureaucrat is the most despicable of men, though he is needed as vultures are needed, but one hardly admires vultures whom bureaucrats so strangely resemble. I have yet to meet a bureaucrat who was not petty, dull, almost witless, crafty or stupid, an oppressor or a thief, a holder of little authority in which he delights, as a boy delights in possessing a vicious dog. Who can trust such creatures?” —Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC)
Upright: “The problem today is not that religious people are trying to impose their views on nonreligious people, it’s the opposite — it’s that militant secularists are trying to impose their values on religious people and they’re not accommodating the freedom of religion of people of faith.” —U.S. Attorney General William Barr
For the record: “John Roberts did nothing while the FISA court which he personally oversees illegally spied on an American citizen. He did nothing when DOJ determined the court was defrauded. But when a senator asked a question? Roberts shut that down. Twice. What a disgraceful coward.” —Sean Davis
Braying jenny: “I don’t know how [Trump’s attorneys] can retain their lawyer status, in the comments that they’re making. I don’t think they made the case. I think they disgraced themselves terribly in terms of their violation of what our Constitution is about and what a president’s behavior should be.” —House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
Moving the goalposts: “You cannot be acquitted if you don’t have a trial. You don’t have a trial if you don’t have witnesses and documentation and all of that.” —Nancy Pelosi
A blast from the past: “The Senate may dismiss articles of impeachment without holding a full trial or taking any evidence. Put another way, the Constitution does not impose on the Senate the duty to hold a trial. In fact, the Senate need not hold a trial even though the House wishes to present evidence and hold a full trial.” —Sen. Joe Biden, January 5, 1999
Non compos mentis: “This was not a partisan impeachment … even if it was a party-line vote.” —Joe Biden
Hyper hyperbole: “We are watching the crowning of the president with Mitch McConnell holding the crown.” —Sen. Mazie Hirono
Grand delusions: “Imagine Donald Trump deciding, sometime in June, ‘Well, I heard this conspiracy theory that a whole lot of illegal immigrants voted in California. So, I’ve decided that, during the presidential election, California has to undergo extreme vetting.’ This is literally the kind of thing he will do now. We’re not talking hypotheticals, anymore.” —MSNBC pundit Jason Johnson
Non sequitur: “January 31, 2020: Britain withdraws from Europe and America withdraws from the Constitution.” —University of Virginia professor Larry Sabato
And last… “Democrats embarked on an effort doomed to failure from the start, and [they’re] now shocked and outraged that it failed.” —Rich Lowry
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68275-friday-short-cuts-2020-01-31
TODAY’S MEME73
https://patriotpost.us/memes/68239-government-2020-01-30
For more of today’s memes, visit the Memesters Union73.
TODAY’S CARTOON74
https://patriotpost.us/cartoons/28191
For more of today’s cartoons, visit the Cartoons archive74.
Join us in prayer for our Patriots in uniform and their families — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way, and for our nation’s First Responders. We also ask prayer for your Patriot team, that our mission would seed and encourage the Spirit of Liberty75 in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis |
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ChristiansUnite and Announcements / ChristiansUnite and Announcements / The Patriot Post Digest 1-31-2020
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on: February 03, 2020, 03:57:44 AM
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The Patriot Post Digest 1-31-2020
From The Federalist Patriot
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In the U.S., the CDC is now reporting human-transmitted cases and has confirmed five cases in Arizona, Washington state, Illinois, and California, while officials are investigating four more — two in Washington, DC, and one each in Maryland and Virginia. The CDC is waiting on test results for more than 100 other patients suspected of coronavirus infection. Accordingly, the U.S. has issued a strong travel advisory22 for China, but we believe the CDC should increase the isolation period for those who are suspected of being infected to 14 days.
What do you need to know — and do?
First some perspective. Global deaths from the Ebola epidemic originating in 2014 are estimated now at more than 13,20023. But deaths from the the 2009 H1N1 Swine Flu outbreak, while officially put at 18,449, are now estimated by one CDC study24 to be as high as 284,000. The vast majority of these deaths occurred in third-world nations where containment and treatment are rudimentary. Most deaths were at both ends of the age spectrum — the young and old.
While domestic concern about the coronavirus is warranted, it is worth noting that the current influenza B/Victoria viral strain25 in the U.S. is deadly. There have been more than 8,000 deaths26 associated with influenza across the country in this flu season. “Influenza is going to cause thousands more hospitalizations and I’m afraid many, many deaths that will make the coronavirus impact on our country very tiny in comparison,” said Dr. William Schaffner, a Vanderbilt University infectious-disease specialist. He added, “The risk from influenza is real and present.” (Did you get that flu shot this year?)
What can you do?
Be prepared. As I noted in “The REAL Pandemic Threat27,” “Clearly, there are significant pandemic threats posed by viral infections that mutate into much more contagious forms and can spread regionally, nationally, and internationally, causing significant loss of life. I have advised for years that the primary defense against such contagions is the capacity to shelter in place. What originates in China or Africa one week can be in your suburb the next.”
For that reason, years ago we developed a resource page on Disaster Preparedness Planning28, including a Two Step Individual Readiness Plan29 and a section on how to shelter in place30.
We encourage you to visit each of these pages, because national preparedness begins with individual preparedness.
https://patriotpost.us/alexander/68279-the-flu-and-you-perspective-and-preparedness-2020-01-31
The UK Steps Away31
It was a revolution by ballot, not by bullet, but Great Britain’s departure from the European Union (best known by the term “Brexit”) becomes official later today. At 11 p.m. local time, the United Kingdom enters a “transition phase,” in which the UK and European Union begin to unwind their intricately woven economies and governments. It’s an exciting time and it yields an uncertain future, but it’s also what the people of the UK voted for in 201632 and reaffirmed with a smashing victory33 by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Conservative Party in national elections this past December.
For Great Britain, it’s been an exhausting affair. Former Prime Minister Theresa May lost her job34 for failing to deliver Brexit, and Parliament’s week-kneed intransigence gave hope to the “Remain” side as negotiations with the EU dragged on. This stoked fears35 of a “hard Brexit” as the deadline for withdrawal drew closer. For a time, it appeared that the nation that gave the world Winston Churchill had lost its nerve, but the people prevailed. After two delays pushed the timeline back from last April to the present day, the deal should be completed next January 1.
What will change? For one thing, the British no longer have representation in the European Parliament. Nor will they attend regular EU meetings unless specifically invited. The British and their erstwhile EU partners will need to hammer out a new trade deal, but breaking loose from the EU also allows Great Britain to pursue deals36 with allies of its choosing, with the United States likely at the head of the line. That prospect worries the diplomatic crowd, which fears that the new order will place France and Germany at odds and make the continent more susceptible to Russian influence.
“What happens now matters far beyond Britain’s shores, or Europe’s,” opines37 The Wall Street Journal editorial board. “A Brexit that goes badly, with failed reform and stagnation in Britain and trade friction with the EU, would drag down Britain and weigh on continental economies not strong enough to take the strain. The effects would ripple toward America and Asia, and perhaps embolden dangerously disruptive political movements in Europe.”
As the test case for other European countries, the UK is no longer bound by a relatively stagnant economy within which some nations have succeeded while others like Greece and Italy have dragged down the whole. Nor is the UK still subject to the EU’s controversial migration policies or its ridiculous38 Brussels-based bureaucracy.
Brexit also resonates here in the U.S., as we push back against a bureaucratic swamp that has, at times, put the EU nanny state to shame: regulating mud puddles, anyone?39 Fortunately, the Obama-era Waters of the United States rules were recently overturned by the Trump administration, which wholeheartedly hailed the results of the UK’s December election. Expect him to be among the first to look for a deal with the newly liberated Brits.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68257-the-uk-steps-away-2020-01-31
‘Compassionate’ Dems Just Can’t Solve Homelessness40
The problem of homelessness in Los Angeles has drawn national and global attention in recent years. Some of the city’s streets are lined with makeshift dwellings and blighted by needles and human feces. The threat of disease is very real, and the city’s residents have reached the breaking point.
The Los Angeles Times reports41, “As people living in tents, RVs and makeshift shelters become a fact of life in neighborhoods far and wide, homelessness is now an all-consuming issue in Los Angeles County, with 95% of voters calling it a serious or very serious problem,” according to a new poll conducted for the Times and the Los Angeles Business Council Institute.
“The courts have upheld the rights of homeless people in recent years,” adds the Times, “saying that cities cannot ban sleeping in public unless they provide enough beds for those who want them.” Along these lines, the U.S. Supreme Court decided in December 2019 not to take up a lower court’s ruling protecting the homeless from prosecution for sleeping outside.
Of course, we can neither round up and imprison the homeless nor simply ignore them. And the crisis has gotten the attention of President Trump, who threatened the city with federal intervention.
But those bold steps were stopped by Congress in December, which voted to restrict how the administration could spend federal funds designed to alleviate conditions in Los Angeles. Nonetheless, as The Washington Post reports42, “Administration officials now hope to work closely with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (D). They are considering whether to send hundreds of federal workers and additional money for services if a deal can be reached.”
When it comes to addressing homelessness, money appears to be the primary consideration. Phillip Molnar writes43 at The San Diego Union-Tribune, “San Diego, and other California cities, have spent millions of tax dollars on the homeless issue, including shelters, storage facilities and numerous programs.”
Money and new legislation clearly aren’t enough, especially when so-called leaders enact bad laws44 that make matters worse.
Thus, to the north in Washington state, Republicans are taking a more comprehensive approach to homelessness that goes beyond merely throwing money at the problem. As Seattle’s Ashley Archibald writes45, “A group of Senate Republicans held a press conference Jan. 21 to articulate their vision of how to end homelessness in Washington, which would rely on existing funding and could strip the progressive stronghold of Seattle and King County of some authority to implement its own existing policies.”
Archibald adds, “One such proposal, the SHELTER — Serious Homelessness Engagement Leads to Effective Results — Act from Sen. Phil Fortunato (R-Auburn), would require counties of a certain size to have at least one large shelter facility, guarded by police, that would also have counseling and job services at hand.”
On the other side of the country, New York City houses the homeless in shelters46 and, for nearly 50 years, in commercial hotel rooms. But Mayor Bill de Blasio plans to end that practice by 2023 as part of the city’s Turning the Tide on Homelessness plan47, a costly initiative that seeks to address the complexities of the problem.
These innovative ideas won’t end homelessness in America, but focusing on the root causes is a good start — and a far better alternative to allowing homeless tent villages to spring up on city streets, bringing lawlessness, violence, drug use, and disease. |
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ChristiansUnite and Announcements / ChristiansUnite and Announcements / The Patriot Post Digest 1-31-2020
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on: February 03, 2020, 03:55:47 AM
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The Patriot Post Digest 1-31-2020
From The Federalist Patriot
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The Patriot Post® · Mid-Day Digest
Jan. 31, 2020
https://patriotpost.us/digests/68281-mid-day-digest-2020-01-31
THE FOUNDATION1
“If we move in mass, be it ever so circuitously, we shall attain our object; but if we break into squads, everyone pursuing the path he thinks most direct, we become an easy conquest to those who can now barely hold us in check.” —Thomas Jefferson (1811)
https://patriotpost.us/fqd/68280-founders-quote-daily-2020-01-31
IN TODAY’S DIGEST
Impeachment Charade Almost Over?2
Americans Are Feeling Pretty Optimistic3
The Flu and You: Perspective and Preparedness4
The UK Steps Away5
‘Compassionate’ Dems Just Can’t Solve Homelessness6
Crime, Punishment, and the Second Amendment7
Daily Features: News Executive Summary8, Videos9, Best of Right Opinion10, Short Cuts11, Memes12, and Cartoons13.
FEATURED ANALYSIS14
Impeachment Charade Almost Over?15
Thursday was the second and final day for the Democrat House managers and President Donald Trump’s defense team to make their arguments for and against impeachment as they responded to written questions submitted by senators. However, the biggest development yesterday came in the evening, as one of the four Republican senators the Democrats were counting on to side with them in calling for new witnesses unequivocally declared that he would vote against doing so.
Explaining his decision in a statement16, Tennessee’s Lamar Alexander argued, “The framers believed that there should never, ever be a partisan impeachment. That is why the Constitution requires a 2/3 vote of the Senate for conviction. Yet not one House Republican voted for these articles. If this shallow, hurried and wholly partisan impeachment were to succeed, it would rip the country apart, pouring gasoline on the fire of cultural divisions that already exist. It would create the weapon of perpetual impeachment to be used against future presidents whenever the House of Representatives is of a different political party.”
We speculated that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s partisan impeachment vote would come back to bite Democrats, and it certainly appears that’s the case.
Speaking of Pelosi, she pompously declared that Trump “will not be acquitted,” regardless of the Senate vote. Why? “You cannot be acquitted if you don’t have a trial. And you don’t have a trial if you don’t have witnesses and documents.” But that raises a big question: On what evidence did the House Democrats rest their impeachment case if they need new witnesses that they themselves refused to call and more documents that they failed to obtain?
Pelosi might want to check with Joe Biden. Back in 1999, then-Sen. Biden explained why the Senate didn’t need to call additional witnesses in Bill Clinton’s impeachment trial. “The Senate may dismiss articles of impeachment without holding a full trial or taking any evidence,” Biden said then. “Put another way, the Constitution does not impose on the Senate the duty to hold a trial. … In a number of previous impeachment trials, the Senate has reached the judgment that its constitutional role as a sole trier of impeachments does not require it to take new evidence or hear live witness testimony.”
Meanwhile, among the most notable questions Thursday was one from Sen. Rand Paul, which Chief Justice John Roberts refused to read for reasons that were not clear. Paul then posted his question publicly: “My exact question was: Are you aware that House intelligence committee staffer Shawn Misko had a close relationship with Eric Ciaramella while at the National Security Council together? … My question is about the actions of known Obama partisans within the NSC and House staff and how they are reported to have conspired before impeachment proceedings had even begun.”
What Paul endeavored to force Democrats to answer is precisely what Mark Alexander has asserted from the early days of this charade and reiterated Wednesday in his column, “Topping My Impeachment Witness List: Adam Schiff17” — Schiff and his staff colluded with Ciaramella. “Schiff has coordinated the entire impeachment narrative and is its principal author and director. Thus, subjecting Schiff to Republican cross-examination would reveal his collusion with the ‘whistleblower’ — which would unravel the entire case against Trump.”
While Roberts blocked Paul’s question, he did read a similar one from Sen. Ron Johnson that asked about Schiff’s reported hiring of an individual who had contact with the whistleblower — a hiring that occurred the day after Trump’s phone call with the Ukrainian president. Schiff responded with righteous indignation suggesting that the question itself was a “smearing of the professional people that work for the Intelligence Committee” and that he “will not dignify those smears on my staff by giving them any credence whatsoever; nor will I share any information which I believe could or could not lead to the identification of the whistleblower.”
But Chief White House Counsel Pat Cipollone was having none of Schiff’s obfuscation. He argued, “So I think [the senators] deserve an answer to that question, and I think it’s time in this country that we stop assuming that everybody has horrible motives, in the puritanical rage of just everybody’s doing something wrong, except for you. ‘You cannot be questioned’ — that’s part of the problem here.”
Finally, it looks likely that wily Senate Leader Mitch McConnell has once again rallied Senate Republicans to hold the line and vote against calling any witnesses. If that does indeed happen, then the vote for acquitting Trump should occur soon afterwards, finally ending this Democrat partisan impeachment charade by this evening. This would be a huge win for Trump, Republicans, and the entire country. Of course, as the saying goes, it ain’t over until the fat lady sings. Here’s hoping she’s singing loud and proud tonight.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68277-impeachment-charade-almost-over
Americans Are Feeling Pretty Optimistic18
Amidst all the partisan rancor and hatred spewing from our nation’s capital — at the apex of the Democrats’ impeachment charade — it’s worth remembering that most Americans actually feel pretty upbeat about the country and their own prospects.
A Gallup poll19 this week revealed some fascinating findings. Most encouraging is this: An astounding 84% said they’re satisfied with “the overall quality of life,” and “Americans’ overall satisfaction with the country’s direction is at its highest point since 2005.”
Gallup also says, “Average satisfaction across 27 issues is higher than when [President Donald] Trump took office.” Issues with wide satisfaction include the economy (68%), “the opportunity for a person to get ahead by working hard” (72%), and military strength (81%). All three areas have gained tremendously since Trump was elected.
It’s no surprise that there’s plenty of dissatisfaction, though. Income distribution, race relations, immigration, healthcare, abortion, poverty and homelessness, and “the moral and ethical climate” are all areas where dissatisfaction runs high. Frankly, there’s a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem there. Are politicians constantly talking about those issues because people are unhappy, or are people unhappy because politicians won’t leave those issues alone?
In any case, we find it heartening that while one party is doggedly trying to impeach the president from the other party, most Americans see clearly the problems we face but have a positive view of the greatest nation on earth.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/68276-americans-are-feeling-pretty-optimistic-2020-01-31
The Flu and You: Perspective and Preparedness20
By Mark Alexander
Thursday, the UN’s World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concer21 in connection with the spread of the latest coronavirus mutations and concern about human-to-human transmission. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted, “The main reason for this declaration is not what is happening in China but what is happening in other countries.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control, generally far ahead of the rest of the world regarding potential pandemic threats, is always watching this and other bugs for early warning signs of spread in the U.S. Taking additional measures, the Trump administration’s Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar has empaneled a task force to ramp up preparedness and response to the spread of this contagion. Azar declared, “Americans should note this is a potentially very serious public health threat.”
Officially, the communist Chinese government claims about 220 deaths and 10,000 infections. Our sources indicate that the actual rates of infection and deaths in China are much higher, and, in fact, official reports may only represent 5-7% of the actual dead and infected. The so-called “popup hospitals” now being constructed in Hubei province where the coronavirus outbreak originated double as isolation morgues. |
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