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41
on: October 11, 2017, 04:04:56 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post - Alexander's Column 10-11-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
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For context, here is the most recent annual data on mortality in America by the numbers:
88,000 people died from alcohol-related causes.
64,000 people died from drug overdoses.
44,000 people died by suicide, many related to drug and alcohol abuse.
40,000 people died in motor vehicles crashes, about a third related to drug and alcohol abuse.
Regarding murder rates, the latest FBI uniform crime report21 lists 17,250 people murdered in the U.S. in 2016. In 70% of those cases, the assailant used a firearm. It is estimated that in less than one-half of 1% of those murders, an “assault weapon” was used.
And again, as noted above, Chicago alone accounted for half the surge in murders last year, but three other long-held Democrat urban centers22 — Baltimore, Houston and New Orleans — are competing for the murder capital title, though a city’s fatal shooting ranking doesn’t necessarily reflect its ranking for all shootings23.
The most significant statistical fact that Democrats do not want you to know: The vast majority of murders in the U.S. are related to drug and gang violence in urban centers and are disproportionately black-on-black. If you aren’t involved in one or the other, your chances of becoming a murder victim drop to Western European levels.
International rankings: Among the 10 countries with the lowest crime rates24, several are among the countries with the highest gun ownership, including Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Iceland.
The United States, despite the gang and drug violence, does not rate among the top 25 nations with the highest murder rates25.
Notably, however, according to the latest data, among the world’s most violent cities26, almost all were Third World, with the following notable Democrat-controlled exceptions:
Number 36 was Detroit, which had 44.60 homicides per 100,000 residents.
Number 34 was New Orleans, which had 45.17 homicides per 100,000 residents.
Number 26 was Baltimore, which had 51.14 homicides per 100,000 residents.
Number 14 was St. Louis, which had 60.37 homicides per 100,000 residents.
Regarding Donald Trump’s27 renewed call for tougher immigration enforcement28: Most of the world’s most violent cities were in the Western Hemisphere, south of our border. Indeed, illegal immigrants from those areas have seeded violent gangs in each of the U.S. cities among the top 50.
Mexico, from where most illegal immigrants come, now ranks as the second most murderous nation29 in the world — second only to war-torn Syria.
Concerning Democrats’ most-oft cited model for gun confiscation, Australia, where most firearms were “bought back” in 1996: According to the latest firearms causation study30 by the Journal of the American Medical Association, while there was a “decline in firearm deaths between 1997 and 2013,” there was “a decline in total nonfirearm suicide and homicide deaths of a greater magnitude,” thus, “it is not possible to determine whether the change in firearm deaths can be attributed to the gun law reforms.”
Finally, some observations about violence being a cultural problem, not a “gun problem.”
The esteemed George Mason University professor Walter E. Williams concludes that guns aren’t the problem31, regressives are: “Customs, traditions, moral values and rules of etiquette, not just laws and government regulations, are what make for a civilized society, not restraints on inanimate objects. … The benefit of having customs, traditions and moral values as a means of regulating behavior is that people behave themselves even if nobody’s watching. In other words, it’s morality that is society’s first line of defense against uncivilized behavior. … The attack on moral standards has been orchestrated by the education establishment and progressives.”
Political analyst George Neumayr observes, “‘Sensible gun control’ is the elite’s euphemism for making sure that everyone except their bodyguards are deprived of guns. Beware of the word ‘sensible’ in the mouth of statists. It is what they say right before they violate a right. The left is neither sensible nor serious about controlling wicked behavior. If it were, it would seek to shore up the foundations of civilization, without which the multiplication of laws is useless, to which the tragedy in Las Vegas attests.”
And a final observation on Americans and guns from The Wall Street Journal’s Peggy Noonan, who wrote in “The Culture of Death — and of Disdain32”:
I think a lot of Americans have guns because they’re fearful — and for damn good reason. They fear a coming chaos, and know that when it happens it will be coming to a nation that no longer coheres. They think it’s all collapsing — our society, our culture, the baseline competence of our leadership class. They see the cultural infrastructure giving way — illegitimacy, abused children, neglect, racial tensions, kids on opioids staring at screens — and, unlike their cultural superiors, they understand the implications.
The establishments and elites that create our political and entertainment culture have no idea how fragile it all is — how fragile it seems to people living normal, less privileged lives. That is because nothing is fragile for them. They’re barricaded behind the things the influential have, from good neighborhoods to security alarms, doormen and gates. They’re not dark in their imagining of the future because history has never been dark for them; it’s been sunshine, which they expect to continue. They sail on, oblivious to the legitimate anxieties of their countrymen who live near the edge.
Noonan succinctly described why, against all conventional political odds, Donald Trump was elected president. And she makes clear, as did our Founders, that the Second Amendment33 is not about the “tradition of hunting,” as Democrats often suggest, but about the fundamental right to defend Liberty and self.
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Pro Deo et Libertate — 1776 |
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42
on: October 11, 2017, 04:03:55 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post - Alexander's Column 10-11-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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The Patriot Post® · Guns and Violence — A Bullet Point Reality Check
By Mark Alexander · Oct. 11, 2017 · https://patriotpost.us/alexander/51803
“The defense of one’s self, justly called the primary law of nature, is not, nor can it be abrogated by any regulation of municipal law. This principle of defense is not confined merely to the person; it extends to the liberty and the property of a man … it extends to the person of every one, who is in danger; perhaps, to the liberty of every one, whose liberty is unjustly and forcibly attacked.” —James Wilson (1791)
In the tragic wake of our nation’s most recent sociopathic mass murder1, there is a natural instinct in all of us to seek preventive measures to end such attacks. The uncomfortable truth is, however, that there are no measures to preclude the manifestations of evil.
But endeavoring to solve the “gun problem” in America, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has proposed the latest of some 23,000 federal, state and local laws regulating firearms — in this instance the banning of the “bump stock2” weapon adaptation that increased the lethality of this most recent assailant’s firearms. That device was approved for sale in 2010 by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives under none other than Barack Hussein Obama’s3 regime, at the same time that his corrupt attorney general, Eric Holder4, was using that agency as a regulatory tool to implement their “gun control5” agenda.
Feinstein admitted that no law would have stopped the Las Vegas assault: “[The assailant] passed background checks, registering for handguns and other weapons on multiple occasions.” She then remembered who she was and declared, “We need a law…”
But while such laws make good political fodder, the fallacy6 lies in their sense of solution and security: It’s pure fantasy.
Of course, Feinstein and her statist ilk are always looking for a path to undermine the Second Amendment7. As she said, “It is legal for an American to carry a weapon. It’s legal for them to drive a car. However, they register that car.” Recall that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was asked last week if she viewed her opportunistic legislative push as a slippery slope toward total gun control. She replied, “I certainly hope so.”
Despite the salvation promised by Feinstein and Pelosi, the sociopathic assailant in Las Vegas could have killed and injured many more civilians had he driven a large truck at high speed into the street-level venue of more than 20,000 people. (Recall the motorized attack in Nice, France, last year, killing 85?)
For the record, I don’t believe a device that increases the lethality of an assailant’s weapon of choice should be legal when its application is intended to circumvent the law — in this case, the National Firearms Act of 1934, which banned possession of select-fire fully automatic weapons without a permit. That law was intended to appease the public concerns about the rising violence of organized crime syndicates, like that of Chicago’s South Side Italian gang led by Al “Scarface” Capone.
But have you seen the data on Chicago murders lately — murders by a whole new generation of gangsters spawned, ironically, not by alcohol prohibition but drug prohibition? The grim stats for most any weekend alone exceed Capone’s 1929 Valentine’s Day Massacre.
Today, Obama’s Democrat hometown fiefdom of Chicago, with the nation’s strictest gun prohibition laws, accounted for almost half of 2016’s homicide increase nationwide. And per capita, Chicago is not the deadliest of the Democrats’ urban poverty plantations8. The 30 cities with the highest murder rates9 have been under Democrat control for decades.
To divert attention from that reality, Democrats and their Demo/MSM propaganda machine10 insist that violence in their urban centers11 is a “gun problem,” but in fact, violence is a Democrat constituency and policy problem.
(And on the subject of media, no one glorifies “gun violence” more than leftist “entertainment industry12” hypocrites.)
There is ample evidence that, in the decade up to 2015, as gun ownership increased13 in the U.S., the rate of violent crime dropped14 almost 50%. Thus, as research by former Yale professor John Lott concludes, “More Guns, Less Crime15.”
To that point, one of the safest places on the planet is a National Rifle Association convention or any gun show across the nation — where the per-capita concentration of firearms nears 100%. In fact, the cities that host NRA conventions record significant drops in violent crime while its members are in town.
And on the subject of the NRA as a Leftmedia “whipping boy,” columnist Jonah Goldberg wrote this week16, “The op-ed pages have been suffused with claims that the NRA has bought Republicans with blood money, stifling the popular will and thwarting democracy in the process. There’s just one problem: It’s not true. Consider that $3.5 million in [NRA] donations over nearly 20 years The Washington Post made such a fuss about. According to Opensecrets.org, the legal profession contributed $207 million to politicians in 2016 alone.”
After decades of declining violence, murder rates began trending upward in 2015 and 2016, according to the latest FBI crime stats17, due in large measure to the “Ferguson Effect18.” Police in urban areas with high crime are backing off enforcement because, after the justified shooting19 of a Ferguson, Missouri, thug, national and local politicians joined Barack Obama’s war on cops20, condemning them for alleged “racial profiling.”
That notwithstanding, what follows is a bullet-point reality check regarding firearms and violent crime in America and around the world.
We can all agree that one murder in America is too many, and there is an epidemic of violence across our nation. |
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43
on: October 11, 2017, 10:08:38 AM
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Started by Soldier4Christ - Last post by Soldier4Christ
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Right Now!
“Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.” (1 Peter 2:10)
There are many wonderful things awaiting us in heaven if we have trusted Christ for our salvation. “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).
But there are also many wonderful gifts and privileges we have right now. In the first place, we already have eternal salvation. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2). That means also that we are free from any condemnation at the judgment. “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).
We have already been justified—that is, declared righteous with the righteousness of Christ Himself. “Being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him” (Romans 5:9). “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested . . . Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ” (Romans 3:21-22). As our text says: we right “now have obtained mercy” and right now are “the people of God” (1 Peter 2:10).
The apostle John confirms this glorious truth in a beautiful passage. “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” (1 John 3:2).
Finally, we have the wonderful assurance that our Lord Jesus right now is praying for us. For Christ is entered into heaven itself, “now to appear in the presence of God for us” (Hebrews 9:24) and there He “ever liveth to make intercession” (Hebrews 7:25) for all those who have placed their faith in Him as their Savior and Lord. HMM
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44
on: October 10, 2017, 04:23:35 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
_______________________________________________
Let It Get You Down
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam
“For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 3: 14).
When adversity strikes, the world keeps telling us: “Don’t let it get you down,” but believers in the Lord Jesus Christ have learned that it is good to let troubles and difficulties get them down — down on their knees.
A native evangelist in Africa sat outside his hut discouraged and unhappy. Trouble and disappointment had brought “great coldness” into his heart and he seemed ready to give up. The Lord, he felt, had utterly forsaken him. As he sat there, though, his little girl kept nudging him and saying: “Daddy, go inside and pray .” Finally it worked! The evangelist went inside, poured his heart out to God and arose feeling sure that the Lord would see him through.
It is good for us to get down on our knees before God. There is no attitude more appropriate to the redeemed sinner. And as we pray, often falteringly….
“The Spirit also helpeth our infirmities; for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit Himself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
“And He that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because He maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose”
(Rom. 8:26-28.).
“Be careful [anxious] for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding. shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6,7). |
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45
on: October 10, 2017, 04:21:43 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
___________________________________________ The only true reformer of mankind!
(J.C. Ryle)
Political and social reforms labor in vain--because they ignore the fall of Adam and original sin. These are great stubborn facts, which ruin all their calculations. Without acknowledging the reality and consequences of sin--the great problems of human nature can never be solved.
How much we ought to hate sin, and to make the checking of sin the first object in our efforts to do good! How much we ought to long and strive to promote the progress of the Gospel of Christ! This, after all, is the only true reformer of mankind. Just in proportion as men are brought under the influence of the despised old Gospel--will be the increase of peace on earth and goodwill among men.
The more Christ is known and loved, and the more the Bible is read--the more will the inhabitants of the earth love one another. The more grace reigns over hearts and lives--the less hatred and violence will there be in the world. If pure and undefiled religion prevailed everywhere--then such plagues and pests and nuisances as quarreling, robbing, murder, drunkenness, immorality, swindling, gambling, idleness, lying, and cheating would be comparatively unknown. Most of the prisons and workhouses would soon be shut. Lawyers and policemen would have little to do. Taxes would be cut in half.
He is the truest friend to human happiness--who does the most to spread the knowledge of Christ and evangelize the world! |
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46
on: October 10, 2017, 04:19:27 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post Digest 10-10-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Aside from the CPP being a very bad deal for American consumers and the energy industry as a whole, Trump’s EPA in a statement26 had this to say: “The EPA proposes to determine that the CPP is not within Congress’s grant of authority to the agency under the governing statute. It is not in the interests of the EPA, or in accord with its mission of environmental protection consistent with the rule of law, to expend its resources along the path of implementing a rule, receiving and passing judgment on state plans, or promulgating federal plans in furtherance of a policy that is not within the bounds of our statutory authority.”
In other words, Scott Pruitt’s EPA determined that the CPP was unconstitutional. The CPP, if implemented, would have enabled the EPA to act outside of its legal limits. What a refreshing statement coming from one of the most burdensome agencies in the country.
The Clean Power Plan was nothing more than a massive power grab19 by the federal government over the energy industry, primarily coal. It would have imposed rules on all 50 states in violation of the separation of powers.
Aside from being an unconstitutional abuse of power, Obama’s Clean Power Play would also impose heavy economic burdens on consumers and would have resulted in many more job losses from the coal industry. The estimated cost of the plan was between $41 billion and $73 billion a year, and all it would have done was purportedly reduce the temperature by an estimated 0.02 degrees. Thus it’s certain that the cost of the CPP far outweighed the tenuous benefits. But again, the plan was always about power and control, not saving the planet.
Sure, Trump will be blasted by climate alarmists and their media cohorts. But remember, Trump was a businessman, and he, like most Americans, saw that the Clean Power Plan was not going to be good for America’s economy. Further, as Reason’s Ronald Bailey notes27, “It [CPP] sounds like a big deal but it probably isn’t. With or without the CPP, a different force may be pushing the power sector to reduce emissions by nearly that much: low natural gas prices.”
Several energy studies have shown that even without the CPP, power sector emissions would drop as much as 26% below 2005 levels. That’s if renewable energy subsidies remain in place. Even better, the subsidies should be eliminated because the cost of renewable energy continues to fall, therefore out-competing conventional power production. Low natural gas prices combined with lower renewable energy costs mean less emissions in the future. So, what do leftists have to complain about?
They will of course go on the attack against Trump and accuse him of wanting to destroy the planet. But they will ignore the fact that Obama’s plan would have done far more harm than good. Trump’s EPA will allow more of the free market to dictate the outcome of energy use and emissions output instead of a top down, government-controlled approach. In the end, with Trump’s plan to repeal the CPP, America wins.
For more of today’s memes, visit the Memesters Union28.
MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST
The Fantasy of Gun Control29 — We don’t need yet another ineffective law. We need vigilant citizens and a vigorous defense of Liberty.
For more of today’s top cartoons, visit the Cartoons archive30.
BEST OF RIGHT OPINION
Rich Lowry: The Great Regulatory Rollback31
Cal Thomas: Why Criticize Harvey Weinstein?32
Peggy Noonan: Partisanship Is Breaking Both Parties33
Dennis Prager: Dogs, Strangers and God34
Byron York: 10 Reasons to Stay Calm About Those Russia Facebook Ads35
For more of today’s columns, visit Right Opinion36.
OPINION IN BRIEF
Rich Lowry: “One by one, the artifacts of President Barack Obama’s rule by administrative fiat are tumbling. The latest is his signature Clean Power Plan that Environmental Protection Agency administrator Scott Pruitt says he will begin the arduous process of unwinding. … If Congress had authorized the EPA to remake the nation’s energy economy, we would presumably be aware of it and recall an impassioned congressional debate over this radical and costly change. In fact, the opposite is true. Congress has declined to enact laws limiting carbon emissions, including when Democrats held both houses of Congress under President Obama. If the future of the planet is at stake and it requires a generational effort to save it, surely it is not too much to ask that a statute or two be enacted by Congress explicitly committing the country to the task. Yes, this requires winning elections and gaining democratic assent, but such are the challenges of living in a republic and a nation of laws.”
SHORT CUTS
Insight: “Those in power need checks and restraints lest they come to identify the common good for their own tastes and desires, and their continuation in office as essential to the preservation of the nation.” —Justice William O. Douglas (1898-1980)
Dezinformatsiya: “If you can’t convince [Rep. Steve Scalise], who has fresh gunshot wounds, to change his stance on [the Second Amendment], how hard is it to convince the rest of Congress?” —CNN’s Bill Weir
Alpha Jackass: “Scalise, the congressman that [sic] was shot, still says it enforced his belief in guns even more. It’s like, ‘F—k you, a—hole.’” —Chelsea Handler
Village Academic Curriculum: “When [Trump] got elected, I told my classes … some of us won’t be affected by this presidency, but others are going to die. Other people will die because of this. And we’ve seen this happen, right?” — University of Nevada, Las Vegas history professor Tessa Winkelmann
Non Compos Mentis: “These aren’t intelligence documents. It’s historical data. There’s nothing sensitive in there. There’s no troop movements. It was a historical record of everything that had happened in Iraq and Afghanistan.” —Bradley Manning
Friendly fire: “Silence from @HillaryClinton on @HarveyWeinstein is unacceptable. Clinton received hundreds of thousands from Weinstein in campaign & foundation $. If she stays silent she makes us all look like hypocrites.” —former MSNBC pundit Krystal Ball on Twitter
Braying Jenny: “You look at everything all over the world today and how women are dressing and what they are asking by just presenting themselves the way they do. What are they asking for? Trouble.” —Harvey Weinstein ally Donna Karan
Race bait: “White people do not get to tell black folks or anybody else what is acceptable form of protest.” —CNN’s Symone Sanders
Village Idiots: “ESPN’s suspension of Jemele Hill is an outrage and should NOT go unanswered. ESPN and advertisers will hear from us!” —Al Sharpton
And last… “Sharpton’s boycotting ESPN for suspending Jemele Hill who is boycotting ESPN ads because Jerry Jones is boycotting players who are boycotting the national anthem.” —Jon Gabriel
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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47
on: October 10, 2017, 04:18:10 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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The Patriot Post Digest 10-10-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
________________________________________
The Patriot Post® · Mid-Day Digest
Oct. 10, 2017 · https://patriotpost.us/digests/51769
IN TODAY’S EDITION
YouTube goes after Mike Rowe, who fights back and wins.
ESPN is more concerned with its own bottom line than consistency on free speech rights.
Another massive Obama regulation is headed for the ash heap of history.
Gun control will never work to deter evil men from doing evil things. Even Feinstein knows.
Plus our Daily Features: Top Headlines, Memes, Cartoons, Columnists and Short Cuts.
THE FOUNDATION
“Without freedom of thought there can be no such thing as wisdom; and no such thing as public liberty, without freedom of speech.” —Benjamin Franklin (1722)
IN BRIEF
YouTube Restricts… Mike Rowe?1
Last Thursday, Mike Rowe, the immensely likable host of “Dirty Jobs,” announced via a Facebook post that his YouTube channel had been restricted. Now anyone who has ever watched a Mike Rowe video would be shocked to hear this news, as his videos are often some of the most carefully worded, timely and poignant thoughts on a great variety of issues — hence his overall popularity. And one thing Rowe trumpets is respect for the value of hard work, no matter the job.
In this vein, a few months back conservative commentator Dennis Prager invited Rowe to give the commencement speech for his virtual university, Prager University. Rowe gladly obliged with a video entitled “Don’t Follow Your Passion2,” which has been viewed over six million times. Suddenly, without prior warning, Rowe received a message from YouTube notifying him that his video for Prager U was “determined” to be “inappropriate.” Rowe explains3 that he was shocked at the news as he had not run afoul of YouTube’s appropriate content policies, or so he thought. Rowe said that he then reread YouTube’s policy fine print and found the following sentence: “Some videos don’t violate our policies, but may not be appropriate for all audiences. In these cases, our review team may place an age restriction when we’re notified of the content.” In other words, YouTube’s censors are essentially saying they will restrict you if they don’t like your message.
After Rowe posted his message to Facebook it didn’t take long for YouTube to reverse course and lift the restriction imposed upon his content. Fortunately for Rowe he has a big enough audience that he was able to effectively call out YouTube for hypocrisy, but what about the lesser-known user who finds himself victim of a similar prejudice?
ESPN Suspension — Gotta Protect the Revenue4
In a capitalist economic system, the cold hard truth is that every business is dependent upon consumers buying its product. Even that leftist mega sports network known as ESPN will put aside its leftist street cred when serious money is on the line. On Monday, ESPN announced that it had suspended Jemele Hill for two weeks following another inflammatory tweet from the anchor. In response to the news that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones had instructed his players5 to stand for the National Anthem or be benched, Hill tweeted, “This play always work [sic]. Change happens when advertisers are impacted. If you feel strongly about JJ’s [Jerry Jones] statement, boycott his advertisers.”
Upon announcing Hill’s suspension ESPN released the following statement:
Jemele Hill has been suspended for two weeks for a second violation of our social media guidelines. She previously acknowledged letting her colleagues and company down with an impulsive tweet. In the aftermath, all employees were reminded of how individual tweets may reflect negatively on ESPN and that such actions would have consequences. Hence this decision.
Recall that Hill recently insultingly tweeted6 that Donald Trump was a “white supremacist” and “the most ignorant, offensive president” of her lifetime. At the time, ESPN only spoke with Hill but chose to take no further action. But an employee calling for a boycott of companies whose ad revenue not only supports the Dallas Cowboys but also ESPN hits just a little too close to home.
ESPN has no problem supporting NFL players’ right to protest, as if their First Amendment rights were at stake (which they are not), but when its own business is endangered by the free speech of an employee (and not even on company time) it sees no problem in administering discipline. Should NFL owners not be entitled to the same right?
So long as ESPN continues its leftist social “justice” crusade of infusing politically correct virtue signaling into all its sports coverage, it can only expect to see the further hemorrhaging of viewers and sports fans.
Top Headlines7
Democrats promise to derail Congress until Dream Act passes (The Washington Times8.)
At least 10 dead in Northern California fires and blocks of homes destroyed in Santa Rosa (The Sacramento Bee9)
Majority of households paying ObamaCare penalty are low and middle-income (The Washington Free Beacon10)
Trump says he will act on health care — with or without Congress (The Washington Times11)
Obama’s presidential library will have everything but a library of his records — Most Transparent Library in History (Chicago Tribune12)
Puerto Rico’s hurricane recovery just got even more expensive — DHS ends waiver of protectionist shipping law that drives up costs. (Reason13)
Twitter blocks Marsha Blackburn’s pro-life campaign ad (National Review14)
Google sponsors event honoring president of nation’s largest abortion provider (CNS News15)
FBI cites black extremists as new domestic terrorist threat (Fox News16)
Humor: American Heart Association sued for discrimination against trans fats (The Babylon Bee17)
Policy: When it comes to cost of living, red states win (The Daily Signal18.)
Policy: A blow for ecofascists: Trump gets rid of Obama’s “Clean Power Plan” (Investor’s Business Daily19)
For more of today’s news, visit Patriot Headline Report20.
Don’t Miss Patriot Humor
Check out Guns and Drugs21.
If you’d like to receive Patriot Humor by email, update your subscription here22.
FEATURED ANALYSIS
Obama’s (Un)Clean Power Plan Up in Smoke23
By Paul Albaugh
Donald Trump’s administration is poised to take down another regulation that was hailed by leftists as part of Barack Obama’s legacy. Obama’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) is the target this time, and when it is repealed in its entirety — and not replaced — it will be another huge win for America.
This isn’t just any regulation, either. Recall that the Clean Power Plan24 was Obama’s signature edict — a far-reaching effort to allegedly curb greenhouse gas emissions as part of his war against climate change. This plan directed25 every state to develop detailed plans to reduce CO2 emissions, primarily from coal-fired plants, with the intended outcome of cutting carbon pollution by one-third from 2005 levels by 2030.
Fortunately, the CPP never made it very far after 27 states vowed to go fight it, which ultimately led to the Supreme Court blocking its implementation. Unfortunately, with Trump’s EPA announcing repeal of the CPP, there will likely be more legal challenges ahead — this time from the Left.
Climate alarmists are of course outraged that Trump’s EPA would repeal Obama’s plan. David Doniger, a senior attorney for climate and clear air at the Natural Resources Defense Council, whined, “We had a Clean Power Plan. What we’re getting is a Dirty Power Plan.” And former EPA chief Gina McCarthy insisted that the CPP would have brought “major health benefits to families” and that premature deaths would have been reduced by 3,600 per year. It’s quite the double standard for leftists to worry about saving lives in the name of climate control when they simultaneously push for the unhampered premature deaths of preborn babies, isn’t it? |
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48
on: October 10, 2017, 08:16:52 AM
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Started by Soldier4Christ - Last post by Soldier4Christ
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The True Gospel
“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel.” (Galatians 1:6)
There is only one true gospel (meaning “good news”) in Christianity, but there are many false gospels. Various cults have proposed such concepts as the social gospel, the prosperity gospel, the full gospel, and others, but it is dangerous to attach adjectives or other modifiers to the gospel unless these are specifically attached to it in the Scriptures. There are enough of these, however, to emphasize that the true gospel does have many facets. God’s “good news” is always about Christ—His person and work—but His work is from eternity to eternity, and He is both the mighty God and perfect Man. Therefore, with Paul we can say, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation” (Romans 1:16).
The gospel is the “everlasting gospel,” focusing on Him as the one “that made heaven, and earth” (Revelation 14:6-7). It is also the “gospel of the kingdom” (Matthew 4:23), focusing on Him as the coming “King of kings” (Revelation 17:14).
It is the wonderful “gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24) and “the gospel of your salvation” (Ephesians 1:13). Thus, it also is the true “gospel of peace” (Ephesians 6:15), reconciling man to God.
Because Christ is God, this “gospel of Jesus Christ” (Mark 1:1) is surely the one true “gospel of God” (Romans 1:1). This is the gospel that we have been commissioned by Christ to preach “to every creature” (Mark 16:15), so we need no other. And since it is, indeed, “the glorious gospel of the blessed God” (1 Timothy 1:11), we should never desire another. It meets every spiritual need for time and eternity. HMM
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49
on: October 09, 2017, 04:19:12 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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Pastor Stam's Recently Discovered Series - Part 4
David and the Kingdom
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam
The clearest offer, perhaps, is found in Acts 3:19-21, where the apostle says to the “men of Israel”:
“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
“And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
“Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.”
This is not to say, of course, that if that one audience had repented Christ would immediately have returned. Their rejection of Christ was a national matter which called for national repentance. We know also that according to prophecy and certain predictions of Christ Himself much had to transpire before Christ could actually return. Indeed, we now know that the Mystery had to be revealed before the prophecy concerning Messiah’s reign could be fulfilled.
The point is that here at Pentecost Israel was presented with a proposition and made responsible to accept or reject the Messianic kingdom. God’s foreknowledge in the matter did not diminish their responsibility or guilt.
The crucifixion too had been predicted, yet John the Baptist, Christ and the twelve were sent to call the people to repentance and their guilt in the crucifixion, while not one whit diminished by the fact that it was prophesied, was increased by the fact that they rejected the appeal to repent.
Thus Israel rejected both Christ and His kingdom and, as a nation, awaits “the day of His power” when He shall make them willing.
THE PRESENT DISPENSATION
Because the present state of affairs does not seem to be a continuation of the fulfillment of the prophecies concerning Christ and the nation Israel some have altered the prophecies to make them fit. The Church of this age, they say, is the Israel referred to in the prophecies concerning the kingdom, and the throne of David is supposed to be the throne on which He now sits as “King of the Church,” while the Canaan of prophecy is heaven itself.
All these alterations are made on the premise that these prophecies should be understood in a “spiritual” sense. But we protest that this failure to take God at His word is carnal, not spiritual and, furthermore, that this whole system of interpretation—(1) leaves us at the mercy of theologians who may tell us what the Scriptures mean, (2) affects the veracity of God and (3) endorses apostasy.
If our brethren who “spiritualize” these promises understood the Mystery they would find no need to alter Prophecy.
The fact is that the present dispensation was a mystery, hid from ages and from generations, until revealed to and through the Apostle Paul, and it is a mystery of which no believer should be ignorant.
“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in” (Rom. 11:25).
“For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that He might have mercy upon all” (Rom. 11:32).
“And that He might reconcile both unto God in one Body by the Cross, having slain the enmity thereby” (Eph. 2:16).
The same Christ who was raised from the dead to sit on David’s throne, according to Peter’s Pentecostal address, was also raised up for another purpose, according to the later revelation given through Paul:
“Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.
“Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel” (II Tim. 2:7,8.).
According to this gospel Christ was raised, not only to be King over Israel, but to be the Head of the Body (Eph. 1:18-23).
The kingdom, for the time being, is vested in the Person of Christ, seated at God’s right hand far above all heavens.
When God presented His “beloved Son,” they cried “Away with Him,” so now believers are “translated into the kingdom of His dear [beloved] Son” (Col. 1:13). “Our conversation [citizenship] is in heaven” (Phil. 3:20) and we are sent forth as ambassadors of Christ to offer to His enemies reconciliation by grace through faith (II Cor. 5:14-21), until He calls us to be with Himself (I Thes. 4:16-18.).
THE FINAL ESTABLISHMENT OF THE KINGDOM
According to Romans 11:25 Israel’s blindness will not be removed until “the fullness of the Gentiles” shall have come in. Indeed, the removal of that blindness is associated with the return of Christ Himself, as the next verse indicates:
“And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Rom. 11:26).
The kingdom, then, will not be brought in by the preaching of the gospel of the grace of God. It will be brought in by the return of Christ.
Little wonder that John, who writes particularly for a future generation, calls himself their “companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ” (Rev. 1:9), for it will be when the outlook seems most hopeless that our Lord’s return to earth and the establishment of His kingdom will take place.
Nimrod’s successor, “the beast,” aided by Satan, will do all in his power to set up a world empire and will apparently make great progress in this direction, for in Revelation 17:12,13 we read:
“And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
“These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.”
But “the beast” and his “ten kings” will go one step too far:
“These shall make war with the Lamb and the Lamb shall overcome them: for He is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with Him are called, and chosen, and faithful” (Rev. 17:14).
It is then that Daniel 2:44 will be fulfilled:
“And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.”
Thus the solemn judgments with which God will visit the nations will bring in the beneficent and glorious reign of Christ.
“And the seventh angel sounded: and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ, and He shall reign for ever and ever.
“And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,
“Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee great power, and hast reigned” (Rev. 11:15-17).
BUYING UP THE TIME
The kingdom, then, will be ushered in by judgment, not by grace. Christ will descend from heaven to “judge and make war,” treading “the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God” (Rev. 19:11,15). He will “rebuke strong nations” (Mic. 4:3); He will “speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure” (Psa. 2:5).
Much as we long that our despised Savior shall come into His glory here on earth and much as we long to see this poor world come into the joy and peace of His reign, we thank God that “the day of vengeance” has not yet come.
Though there are no specific signs to indicate the close of the day of grace and of our Lord’s coming to catch us, His ambassadors, out of this sinful scene, we feel the day must be very near that these judgments will take place. We, even more than those of Paul’s day, should take to heart his exhortation:
“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,
“Redeeming [buying up] the time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:15,16). |
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50
on: October 09, 2017, 04:17:58 PM
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Started by nChrist - Last post by nChrist
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Pastor Stam's Recently Discovered Series - Part 4
David and the Kingdom
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam
(This is the fourth of a series of articles that first appeared in 1950 in Truth magazine, published by Milwaukee Bible Institute/Worldwide Grace Testimony, now the Grace Gospel Fellowship. These articles have never before appeared in the Searchlight.)
NIMROD AND HIS KINGDOM
In Genesis 10:10 we read concerning Nimrod, “The Rebel,”
“And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.”
Evidently he was the leader of the movement spoken of in Genesis 11:4:
“And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.”
That this was no effort on man’s part to carry out God’s instructions regarding human government is clear enough. These men were not seeking to “replenish the earth,” trusting God to care for them. They were establishing cities—though doubtless little more than small forts at the time—for their own protection and preservation. They were not seeking for one or more among their number to rule for God. They were determined to make a name for themselves; to have a kingdom of their own, entirely apart from God. Indeed, it is evident from what follows that they even established their own idolatrous religion, for Babel thenceforth became the fountain head of idolatry.
The result of this first attempt on the part of man to establish an earthly commonwealth is well known:
“Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth” (Gen. 11:9).
“And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient [fitting]” (Rom. 1:28.).
But Nimrod and his followers did not abandon Babel, nor did they refrain from further attempts at government without God. Soon Erech and Accad and Calneh were added to form the first “empire.” And even this was but a beginning. Indeed, Nimrod’s followers to this day have not given up the idea of establishing a strong world government of their own. But they have planned and labored in vain.
Nimrod’s movement will have its culmination in the rise of “Babylon the Great,” the seat of a world empire before which the original “kingdom” of Nimrod will seem as nothing. But this future Babylon will be brought to desolation both total and final, and with it the world’s government, business, society, and religion will be overthrown (See Rev. 18.). It is then that Nimrod’s anti-type, the coming “lawless one,” will also be destroyed (See II Thes. 2:8.).
THE ABRAHAMIC COVENANT
Meanwhile God has been working out His own unalterable plan. It was shortly after man’s original attempt to establish his own government and make himself a name, that God called Abram out of heathenism, saying,
“…Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee:
“And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing.”
“And…unto thy seed will I give this land…” (Gen. 12:1,2,7).
THE DAVIDIC COVENANT
This great nation was, of course, to be a theocracy, for this was God’s chosen people. However, even they apostatized after a time and demanded a king “like all the nations” (I Sam. 8:5). God granted this request but it was His loving purpose ultimately to reign over them Himself in the person of Messiah. Thus after bringing them through many sad experiences and teaching them many lessons under Saul, their first king, God chose David, “a man after His own heart” and during His reign made a covenant with him, part of which specified:
“And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established forever before thee: thy throne shall be established forever” (II Sam. 7:16).
The uninterrupted, unchallenged establishment of David’s kingdom, of course, still awaited a future day. This is clear from the language of the covenant itself and is borne out by such passages as Acts 1:6 and Acts 15:15,16. But there was one thing which the covenant rendered essential from the outset and that was the preservation of the royal line. That line could not die out. This implication is clearly expressed in I Kings 8:25, for example, where Solomon says:
“Therefore now, Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in My sight to sit on the throne of Israel….”
How wonderfully God kept this promise to David in the face of unrelenting opposition and intrigue on the part of Satan. Again and again it seemed that the last of the royal seed had been stamped out but always God intervened in time, so that Israel was never left without a direct descendant of David to occupy the throne until finally Christ, the eternal Son of David, had arrived.
THE SPHERE AND CHARACTER OF THE KINGDOM
Were it not for the perversion of a plain truth by religious leaders, no one would question that the Messianic kingdom was to be—and is to be—established on earth. Since this fact has been questioned, however, we quote several passages to substantiate it:
“Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the EARTH for Thy possession” (Psa. 2:8.).
“…for the EARTH shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11:9).
“He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till He have set judgment in the EARTH…” (Isa. 42:4).
“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the EARTH” (Jer. 23:5).
These are but a few of the many passages that emphasize this fact.
And these passages are supported in turn by the elaborate descriptions of the kingdom which we find in the prophetic Scriptures. The following are some of the great changes to take place in this world when Messiah’s reign is established:
All Israel will be saved (Rom. 11:26); Israel will be exalted above the nations and become a blessing to them (Isa. 60:1-3); the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord (Isa. 11:9); government will be purified (Isa. 11:1-5; Jer. 23:5); war will be abolished (Isa. 2:4); sickness and death (except in judgment, Isa. 66:24) will be abolished and longevity restored (Isa. 35:5,6; 65:20); the animal creation will be tamed (Isa. 11:6-8; 65:25); the desert will blossom as a rose (Isa. 35:1,6).
THE KINGDOM PROCLAIMED AT HAND
Finally the long-promised King arrived. That He was of “the house and lineage of David” could easily be verified, for the genealogical records had been carefully preserved down through the centuries, and these indicated He was heir to the throne, legally through Joseph and physically through Mary. Furthermore, the manner of His birth (Isa. 7:14), the place of His birth (Mic. 5:2) and the time of His birth (Dan. 9:25), in addition to the miracles which He wrought as His credentials, all went to prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that He was the Son of David; Messiah, the Anointed One; Immanuel, God with us.
Hence in the gospel records we find the kingdom proclaimed “at hand” by John the Baptist (Matt. 3:1,2), Christ (Matt. 4:17) and the twelve (Matt. 10:5-7). Note, they only proclaimed it “at hand.” This phrase is consistently used in the gospels, for not until after the crucifixion and resurrection could it be offered.
THE KINGDOM OFFERED AND REJECTED
We find the first offers of the kingdom at Pentecost and after.
In his Pentecostal address, Peter declares that God raised Christ from the dead to sit on David’s throne (Acts 2:30,31) and pleads with his nation to repent, saying, “The promise is unto you.” |
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