Why Liberals Hate Men Who Won’t Give Up Their Guns And Women Who Won’t Kill Their Babies

I don’t know why many Americans on the political left are embracing a system that has persistently failed throughout history.  They love to cradle this system in words that sound warm and fuzzy and very appealing: cooperation, collective effort, common ownership, and mutualism.   It reminds one of a quote often attributed to Albert Einstein:  “Insanity is repeating the same mistakes and expecting different results.”  Why are they convinced that they (modern progressives) can finally make this failed system work?  They are in a collective stupor because they have overdosed on a drug called arrogance.

            Their movement is full of contradictions.  They vehemently oppose the western tradition of supporting “rugged individualism” and wish for all to join the herd and allow the government to shepherd us toward ‘greener’ pastures.  The independent ones who choose to paddle upstream rather than go with the flow are ostracized and hated.  However, they will compromise their own collective principles if an individual or minority group can bring political benefit to the progressives. 

            Thomas Jefferson defended the rights of the individual in the Declaration of Independence.  He diligently studied the great British political philosopher John Locke.  He practically quoted Locke word for word in his original version of the Declaration when he wrote that all individuals have a right to “Life, liberty and the pursuit of property.”  This comes from John Locke’s writings on natural law.  Perhaps Jefferson was wishing to paint with a broader stroke when he chose to edit Locke’s statement when he penned the words “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

            The primary property John Locke was referring to was a man’s right to his own person.  “Though the Earth…be common to all Men, yet every Man has a Property in his own Person.  This no Body has any Right to but himself.”  (First Treatise on Government)  Some of Locke’s contemporary philosophers believed that property was created by the state and therefore the state has sovereignty over the individual.  (Hume, Hobbes and Rousseau)  Modern progressives embrace the idea of sovereign government over the natural rights of the individual.

            The modern anti-individualism movement is clearly on display in the left’s hatred for guns.  An individual in possession of a gun expresses an independence that drives leftists nearly insane.  The gun owner is expressing his individual right to protect himself, not only from other individuals of ill intent but also from a power mongering government.  The liberal senses an attitude in the “bitter clinger” that declares himself to be owner and defender of his own self.  The gun control freaks are frosted when an individual refuses to call on and trust a collective government to protect him.

            Social progressives detest women who find fulfillment in being wives and mothers.  Liberal woman expect all female sheep to join the cause and collectively and competitively wage war on male society.  Feminists celebrate enthusiastically when a woman chooses death through abortion.  They have a seething hatred for those who would choose individual families over collective femininism. Women devoted to families are considered weak and disgusting.  The “right to life” is selective and to be determined collectively rather than individually. While shouting that all women have a right to their own bodies the feminist movement actually promotes something entirely opposite.  Sheepish females who have chosen to submit to the alpha females of the feminist movement must sacrifice their individual rights for the sake of the common ‘good’ and their unborn babies must sacrifice their lives for the collective goal of feminism.

            Progressive hate Christians and Jews because Judeo-Christian beliefs run contrary to socialist beliefs.  They try to transform the Savior Jesus into some sort of social justice hero.  But Jesus was no hater of children, he love the little ones and warned those who would kill them or corrupt them that “it would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck” (Luke 17:2) than to face the punishment stored up for those who destroy their own children. 

            Stay-at-home mothers or families that home school their children are hated by progressives.  This kind of independent behavior runs contrary to their teaching that “it takes a village” to rear children.

            John Locke’s understanding of property rights helps us understand the bitter hatred of the left for those on the right who promote families, pro-life, gun ownership and home schooling.  Those who are reared in families that believe in the right to protect individual property, especially the right to protect one’s own body, represent the future failure of socialism in America. 

            Jesus taught a balance between individualism and collectivism.   Eliminating one in an attempt to promote the other will lead to chaotic failure.  Jesus asked his disciples as individuals to “take up their cross and follow him.”  Then he taught them “not to forsake coming together in community.”  I believe we can be a part of a community without sacrificing our individual rights. 

            Christians must beware of devoting themselves too fully to a secular cause or idea.  Oswald Chambers said, “A man that is devoted to God is not devoted to a cause or to any particular issue; he is devoted to God himself.”  (My Utmost For His Highest, p.123) 

Kevin Probst - Teaches History, Government and Apologetics at the high school level in Columbus Georgia.

Socialism: The Destructiveness of Dependency

Colorado Cub Looking For A Handout

A friend of mine was about to take her small grandchildren for a walk.  As she opened her cabin door to a deck that overlooks the beauty of the Colorado wilderness, she was shocked to see a happy, small brown bear delighting itself with the sugar water from her hummingbird feeder.  She quickly retreated into the cabin, closed the door, grabbed her camera and postponed her walk.

The bear had come looking for a free handout.  This bear had learned very young that it is much easier to raid someone’s garbage can than it is to forage through the woods laboring for its next meal.  If my friend would habitually feed the bear, the bear would soon be conditioned to daily climb the deck, consume its meal, retreat to its den for a post-meal nap and come back later for its next handout.   

In Pavlov’s conditioning experiment he linked two stimuli with a reward.  He conditioned his dogs to behave in the manner he wished by first ringing a bell and then following its sound with a tasty morsel.  Soon, just the ringing of the bell would cause the dogs to salivate as they expected food to follow. 

The behavior of millions of Americans has been conditioned and controlled by a manipulative government.   America was founded on the idea that anyone with a willingness to work hard could come to our country and build a successful life.  In more recent times, America has been the place immigrants are literally dying to come to because of all the free stuff they can get.  The land of hard work has devolved into the land of handouts. 

Our politicians ring the bell indicating there is more free stuff coming.  The mouths of the populace begin to water and they experience a sense of satisfaction, not because they feel good about working hard for an honest day’s wages, but because they were successful in getting free stuff. 

My father always told me that the idea that one can get something for free was an illusion.  Nothing is for free.  Free stuff is the carrot on the end of the politician’s stick.  After the appetites of the masses have been sufficiently whetted, the crafty politicians demand payment.  That payment comes in the form of votes that will keep them in office for at least another term.

Here is an amazing irony.   The U.S. Department of Agriculture has distributed the greatest number of food stamps ever.  Meanwhile, the U.S. Park Service which belongs to the U.S. Department of Agriculture admonishes park visitors to refrain from feeding the bears because it will lead to dependence and they will not learn to fend for themselves!  We understand the destructiveness of dependency in the lives of bears, but we choose to ignore it’s destructiveness in the lives of humans!

One might ask the question, “Where does the government get all of the free stuff it gives away?”  The answer is simple, the government plays Robin Hood, it takes from those ‘who have’ and giver to those ‘who have not’.  This sounds like a good thing on the surface but things are not always as they seem to appear.  We would like to believe that most of these government policies were formed with good intentions in an attempt to help the poor and disadvantaged.  Unfortunately, many shysters have learned how to manipulate these policies and fatten themselves on ‘entitlements’ they don’t really deserve.   

The scale of justice has been weighing only what people lack, not how hard they have worked.  Injustice clothes itself in deception as Fannie May and Freddie Mac declares that everyone deserves a house, even if they are able bodied couch potatoes who refuse to offer their services and contribute to society.  Hard working Americans are enraged by the all too common practice of taking more and more of their hard earned money and giving it to those who are undeserving.  Isaiah the prophet warned about the practice of twisting justice for personal benefit, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.”  (Isa. 5:20)

It is very important to keep the dogs salivating, the bears returning to the deck for their next handout.   President Obama often uses scripture in his attempts to justify the policies of his failed administration.  At a prayer breakfast earlier this year he claimed to have Jesus’ backing for his Healthcare Reform bill because Jesus said, “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” (Matthew 19:19)   His healthcare reform also includes using our hard earned tax money to fund abortions.  Can anybody say, “Thou shalt not kill?”  (Lev. 19:11)

Jesus had a plan for caring for the poor.  In the Old Testament the farmers were instructed to leave some of the fruit for those who were poor, “Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God.”  (Lev. 19:10)  Notice, this wasn’t a handout, the poor still had to get up off their duff and go pick grapes. 

Jesus’ never, ever advocated taking from those who worked hard and giving the fruit of their labor to those who are undeserving.  “You shall not be partial to the poor nor honor the person of the mighty.”  (Lev. 19:15)  There are certain expectations that should be applied to both poor and wealthy.  Jesus’ plan for taking care of the poor was not a compulsory taxation, it was an impulse planted in the heart of those who were converted to his way.  Christ followers feel a voluntary compassion for the disadvantaged. 

Caring for the poor is a volitional act of love.  When asked why she was so motivated to care for the dying, the poor, the destitute, Mother Teresa said, “They are all Jesus in disguise.”  Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.  (Matthew 25:40)

Perhaps the church is not blameless for the condition we find ourselves in.  Has the church abdicated its responsibilities to the government?  Care for the poor has become something that is government mandated rather than an act of compassion on behalf of those who live for the glory of God alone.  Our sin of unbelief is often revealed when we transfer belief in God to belief in an idol, an empty, impotent alternative to God himself.  Have we put our trust in government and relegated God to a back seat?

Kevin Probst - Teaches History, Government and Apologetics at the high school level in Columbus Georgia.

Socialism: The Snake Slithering in the Grass

A nation once known for the liberty it provided for its citizens is now known for the burden of debt it has saddled on its citizens.  The massive, incomprehensible figure of $15 trillion dollars is a number we like to ignore but it is the number imprinted on the debt- shackles we have clamped on our children and grandchildren.  This national failure is unprecedented and this behavior is immoral.

What family would intentionally max out all their credit cards and then apply for another credit card in order to pay the interest on their previous cards?  Imagine having so much credit card debt that your entire income must be used just to pay the interest on the debt leaving no money for food, or transportation or the mortgage.  This is insanity redefined.  No one in their right mind would allow themselves to get into such a situation but that is exactly what our government has done. 

Americans are slowly discovering that the stealthy snake in the grass that has crept upon us unaware is socialism.  The ideas of socialism and Marxism are no longer just threats, they are upon us.  Like a slow twisting boa, we have been constricted by a powerful ideology that is just beginning to squeeze the life from us.  The sleeping giant that could save us from this slow death of our liberties and freedoms is the church but Christians have fallen asleep at the wheel. 

It is time for American Christians to awaken.  Isaiah warned an apathetic people; "Awake, awake, O Zion, clothe yourself with strength."  (Isa. 52:1)  "Awake, awake!  Rise up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, you who have drained to its dregs the goblet that makes men stagger."  (Isa. 51:17)  Americans are drunk on their desire for pleasure and wealth and leisure.  We must awaken before it's too late. 

The brilliant British journalist, Malcomb Muggeridge, once addressed the plight of western society.  He illustrated the slow decline by telling how a frog, placed in a bowl of boiling water will immediately leap out in fear of boiling to death.  When placed in a bowl of lukewarm water the same frog will adapt to the increased temperature of the water and will eventually be boiled to death because he was too comfortable to remove himself from danger.

Muggeridge postulated on the dilemma of western man by saying:  "Since the beginning of the Second World War, Western Society has experienced a complete abandonment of its sense of good and evil. The true crisis of our time has nothing to do with monetary troubles, unemployment, or nuclear weapons. The true crisis has to do with the fact that Western man has lost his way."  (1)

The next election may be our country's most important election.  Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), grievously declared that President Obama and his administration continually sees the "government as a solution to everything.”  (2)  This is in direct contrast to the opinion of former President Reagan who believed, "government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem." (3)

The constant interference and intrusion of government in our lives has become a huge problem for concerned Americans.  The present day "Government is the solution" ideology has accumulated for us $15.4 trillion in debt.  Many fear a strategy for a Marxist takeover.  George Will recently said, "There are more Marxists on the Harvard faculty than in all of eastern Europe."  (4) 

President Obama is applying Marxist principles in his attempt to solve our economic crisis.  He has attempted to stifle capitalist innovation by placing an increased economic burden on American entrepreneurs.    He is changing the very structure of government by writing new rules along the way and by appointing zsars that do not represent the voting public.  His former first Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel is famous for saying, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.” (5)   The president is attempting to use our economic catastrophe to reach into the pockets of hard working Americans with the intent of redistributing their wealth to those who have not been so diligent.  Saul Alinsky would be so proud of his disciples.

Christ calls Christians to be the “light of the world, a city on a hill that cannot be hidden”.  (6)  We are instructed to be the “salt of the earth.” (7)  But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor?  Christians must not become apathetic.  We are instructed to “occupy until I come.”  (8)  We are to stay involved and stay busy preserving the gifts of liberty and freedom granted to us by a Sovereign God.  Yet, of the 60 million evangelical Christians in America, only 15 million of them vote.  (9)

Americans are becoming more and more dependent on their government.  The government encourages this because greater dependency creates more power.  The government grubs for power by attempting to control and manipulate Americans in the areas of health, energy and education.

Many Americans are horrified when they realize that the government is using their tax contributions to murder innocent unborn babies here and abroad.  Some Americans are disturbed about forced taxation to support s system of education that teaches a set of values contrary to their Christian beliefs. 

One reason our country continues its decline toward defeat, decline and despair is because Christians are asleep.  We have built upon the sand.  We have compromised our values so that we might adapt to the politically correct expectations of our culture.  We have become obsessed with pleasing others and we’ve forgotten that the chief end of man is to bring glory to God. 

How inspiring it would be to hear a modern day politician echo George Washington’s words in his farewell address:  “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness.” (10)

Kevin Probst - Teaches History, Government and Apologetics at the high school level in Columbus Georgia.

Obama Care in the Supreme Court

Wm. Hennessy Jr./CourtroomArt.com

The Supreme Court has decided many landmark cases that have had a generational impact on our society.  The Dred Scott vs. Sandford Case (1857) determined whether all Americans would be protected by the constitution.  Brown vs. Board of Education (1954) declared state laws that segregated blacks from whites in the public school system were unconstitutional.  The court agreed in Roe vs. Wade (1973) that the "due process" clause of the 14th amendment extended the right of women to choose to abort their babies.  These momentous decisions determined the projectile of the future of cultural America.  Decisions of the Supreme Court have impacted the income tax system in 1895, the Social Security Act in 1937 and the Civil Rights and voting Rights Acts in 1964 and 1965.

The docket of our land's highest court will include: immigration, voting rights, gay marriage and affirmative action in 2012.  Perhaps the most important case to be considered by the court this year has been the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, which was passed into law on March 23, 2010.  The importance of this review is enormous considering its effect on the future of all Americans.  Proponents of this law get back slaps for attempting to offer insurance for 30 million uninsured Americans. The methods chosen to enforce the new law have been debated for months.  The Supreme Court's decision pertaining to the constitutionality of the law will have repercussions on the re-election campaign of our sitting president as well as the power of our Congress to regulate commerce.

There are certain provisions in the law that would seem to be very beneficial and humanitarian at face value.  Seniors would benefit from free wellness exams.  Children up to age 26 (why are 26 year olds being categorized as children?) may be covered on their parent's policies.  Proponents of the law will argue that it is justified by the right of -Congress to "regulate commerce" (Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3).  It is their opinion that this bill will improve the general welfare of Americans.  The constitution states that the imposition of taxes is necessary and appropriate in order to reach the goal of improving the lives of American citizens. So why have 26 states coalesced to oppose the measure?  

The authors of this bill determined that it could not be effective unless all Americans participated.  The majority of Americans are troubled by the fact there is no provision to opt out.  Many consider the requirement for all to buy healthcare to be a contradiction to the principles of our capitalistic, free enterprise system.  Beginning in 2014, everyone must have bought into the health insurance plan or pay a tax penalty of $95 in 2014 to increase to $695 in 2016.  The penalty for a family that hasn't bought in by 2016 will be $2,085.  The fee is identified as a 'penalty' in an attempt to avoid using the word all Americans have learned to hate, 'tax'.

The solicitor general, Donald B. Verrilli, Jr., representing the government in the Supreme Court, has made the argument that Congress clearly has a right to regulate commerce.  Healthcare must be provided.  It must be financed and an 'individual mandate' that requires the purchase of healthcare is necessary for the physical and financial health of the nation.

Opponents of Obamacare will question the government doing something it has never done before; requiring Americans to participate in commerce.  Our constitution was written to limit the powers of the government.  They see the passage of this law as a trespass of the government into the pastures of individual liberties.  

The Supreme Court generally leans slightly conservative.  Justices Antonia Scalia, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito Jr., Anthony Kennedy and Chief Justice John Roberts are more likely to vote against the bill while Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan can be trusted to support it.  To pass muster in the Supreme Court the bill needs to convert at least one conservative to acquire a 5-4 vote.

That may prove difficult considering Mr. Verrilli was only three minutes into his defense of the mandate when Justice Kennedy began some strong questioning:  "Are there any limits?", he asked.  If the government can make us buy health insurance what else might the government make us buy?  Will we be forced to buy Chevy Volts to save on the consumption of oil?  Will we be forced to buy healthy vegetables and prohibited from purchasing donuts to insure we don't draw too heavily from the nation's health insurance plan?  Will the purchase of cigarettes become illegal by penalty of law?

Adam Smith would be spinning in his grave if he could see the amputation of his 'invisible hand'.  The government has already wrested control of our public education system from the American people.  Will Americans allow their healthcare system, which represents 18% of the entire U.S. economy, to be hijacked by their government?  We are no longer creeping toward socialism, rather, we are leaping and bounding toward a socialistic, government controlled society.

The justices must finally decide if the bill is constitutional.  If it is not, is it only the individual mandate that makes it unconstitutional?  If the individual mandate is cut from the bill does it then become Constitutional?  The court's decision regarding Obamacare will be known near the end of June, just in time to influence the Democratic and Republican National Conventions.  It may be a lose/lose situation for Obama.  If the bill is struck down, his greatest achievement as president will go up in smoke. If the Supreme Court affirms the bill it may be the impetus for unifying a divided Republican Party which may then be feel a greater motivation to run a winning campaign against the incumbent president.

Kevin Probst - Teaches History, Government and Apologetics at the high school level in Columbus Georgia.

Wake Up, America

There are some people who suffer from a rare sleeping disorder called Kleine-Levin Syndrome.  For whatever reason, they need excessive amounts of sleep, maybe up to twenty hours a day.  These people would be sleeping 140 hours a week and their wakeful hours would only total 28 hours.  It’s hard to imagine sleeping away 80% of your life unaware of what was happening around you.

Americans seem to be suffering from some sort of disorder.  We are either asleep or we just are not paying attention to what is going on around us.  Perhaps attention deficit is not the problem.   We are just not being attentive to the more important things.  We know who is still competing on American Idol.  We know that Kim Kardashian was only married for 72 days and we know the final score in the Super Bowl.  But do we know what is happening in Congress?  Do we know what kind of hope and change is being planned for the American people?

While America has been sleeping, or entertained by television, Facebook and the latest technology, their history is being rewritten by cultural rebels who have their own agenda to promote.  George W. Bush referred to them as ‘revisionists’.  These new authors of history will not let a few facts get in the way of their radical opinions regarding global warming, same sex marriage, promotion of socialism, etc.  It is now necessary for the student of history to learn to decipher the truth from a set of lies agreed upon.

While Americans satisfy their addictions by sitting bug eyed in front their televisions and computers, the wonks in Washington have been rewriting our constitution.  In some twisted way they have made it to say that the killing of the unborn is lawful.  They want to rewrite it so that the greatest government document ever authored by man approves a marriage between Bill and Bob, Jill and Pam.  The founding fathers clearly designated the Congress as the branch of government responsible for writing the law.  Now we have federal court lawyers and Supreme Court justices determined to write law rather than simply interpret it as the constitutional authors intended. Nine of the first ten amendments have been twisted almost beyond recognition while some Americans are still fighting tooth and toe-nail for the 2^nd amendment right to bear arms.

We allowed them to write abortion into the constitution.  Now, forty years later we’ve killed fifty million of our own.  Auschwitz and Dachua pale in comparison.  God’s plan was that we would multiply and replenish the earth.  God’s earth is big and plush with enough resources to satisfy the needs of the masses.  But we ignored this truth and murdered our babies.  Replacement numbers were reduced dramatically.  The U.S. level for population replenishment is now a meager .9.  That means for every ten people who die 9 are born.  God’s plan provides for the care of the elderly by providing a multitude of able bodied laborers who care for the young as well as the old.  To sustain America’s social security system beyond 2050 we need a population replenishment rate of 120 births for every 10 deaths.  Our refusal to overturn Roe vs. Wade makes it necessary for us to open our borders and allow immigrants to shore up our dilapidated workforce.  (World Bank Development Report)

While Americans have been enthralled by the gladiators at the coliseum the American government has grown like Jack’s beanstalk.  Thomas Jefferson warned us of the dangers of behemoth government:  “Government big enough to supply everything you need is big enough to take everything you have ... The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases.”  Big government erupted from Washington, D.C. like an explosive vomit under the presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.  Roosevelt’s government was like a bull in a china shop, leaving nothing untouched and nearly everything overturned.  Few seemed to foresee the results of allowing the socialist camel to get its nose under the tent.  The gradual transformation of a democratic government to a socialist government was manipulated by Roosevelt’s economic cohorts, the ‘gods of the market place’, John P. Morgan and John D. Rockefeller.

Our modern presidents are far more efficient than those of previous eras.  President Obama has been able to do in four years what it took FDR twelve years to do.  While Americans lulled into passivity by excessive entertainment the Obama government has been snatching away the liberties Jefferson warned we would lose.  When they awaken they will discover that their healthcare has been taken over by a panel of unknown physicians just like the corporative board of General Motors was taken over by a panel of bureaucrats who know nothing of how to make a car.   Socialism a la Obama is provided and funded by George Soros and David Rockefeller.  One is obsessed by the prospect of a New World Order while the other rants an illusion of an overpopulated earth.  When Americans awaken they will discover these men were not contributing their millions because they were patriotic or because they were overwhelmed by a deep compassion for humanity, these ‘gods of the market place’ expect a kickback, a big kickback in the form of wealth and power.

Americans may finally be stirred to wakefulness when they feel the master’s whip slash their backs.  The hollow-minded will discover the truth about socialism.  It’s not really about equality after all.  The powerful elite have no intentions of giving away their power and wealth to satisfy an ideology that demands a level playing field.   Socialism is a power grab intent on proving the truth in the old cliché, “Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely.”  The Lords of the middle ages would never think of sharing their power with the serfs.  The southern Planters of America’s 19^th century would never have considered sharing their power with their slaves.  The modern elite have no intentions of sharing power with American serfs.  It’s not about enabling the serfs by giving them more, it’s about neutering the serfs by taking what they have.  If equality for the masses is the goal it won’t be attained by redistributing the wealth of the elite, it will be attained by stripping rights away from individuals.

Substituting God’s plan with the frail plan of man is never a good idea.  God warned us many times over about going our own way rather than his way.  The tower of Babel proved the incompetence and foolishness of man.  Little has changed.  We are still trying to build the tower.  God reveals his transcendence to mankind when he says, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”  (Isaiah 55:9)  Unfortunately, sleeping ears don’t hear.  Jeremiah’s description fits modern America well:  “Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear.” (Jeremiah 5:21)

Sleeping serfs are no threat to the global elite determined to strip us of our liberties and possessions.  They have no fear until they see the peasants awake from their slumber and pick up their pitchforks.

Kevin Probst - Teaches History, Government and Apologetics at the high school level in Columbus Georgia.

Difference Between a Liberal and a Conservative

I have taught Government for many years now.  Every year my seniors want a clear explanation of the difference between a liberal (usually Democrat) and conservative (usually Republican).  One of my more thoughtful students sent me this today.  An excellent analogy discribing the difference between liberal and conservative thought.  Thank you, Sally Key:

Found this in an email and thought you might find it intersting!!

A young woman was about to finish her first year of college. Like so many others her age, she considered herself to be very liberal, and among other liberal ideals, was very much in favor of higher taxes to support more government programs, in other words, redistribution of wealth.

She was deeply ashamed that her father was a rather staunch conservative, a feeling she openly expressed. Based on the lectures that she had participated in, and the occasional chat with a professor, she felt that her father had for years harbored an evil, selfish desire to keep what he thought should be his.

One day she was challenging her father on his opposition to higher taxes and the need for more government programs.

The self-professed objectivity proclaimed by her professors had to be the truth and she indicated so to her father. He responded by asking how she was doing in school.

Taken aback, she answered rather haughtily that she had a 4.0 GPA, and let him know that it was tough to maintain, insisting that she was taking a very difficult course load and was constantly studying, which left her no time to go out and party like other people she knew. She didn't even have time for a boyfriend, and didn't really have many college friends because she spent all her time studying.

Her father listened and then asked, "How is your friend Audrey doing?"
She replied, "Audrey is barely getting by. All she takes are easy classes, she never studies and she barely has a 2.0 GPA. She is so popular on campus; college for her is a blast. She's always invited to all the parties and lots of times she doesn't even show up for classes because she's too hung over."

Her wise father asked his daughter, "Why don't you go to the Dean's office and ask him to deduct 1.0 off your GPA and give it to your friend who only has a 2.0. That way you will both have a 3.0 GPA and certainly that would be a fair and equal distribution of GPA."

The daughter, visibly shocked by her father's suggestion, angrily
fired back, "That's a crazy idea, how would that be fair! I've worked really hard
for my grades! I've invested a lot of time, and a lot of hard work! Audrey has done next to nothing toward her degree. She played while I worked my tail off!"

The father slowly smiled, winked and said gently, "Welcome to the conservative side of the fence."

If you ever wondered what side of the fence you sit on, this is a great test!

If a conservative doesn't like guns, he doesn't buy one.
If a liberal doesn't like guns, he wants all guns outlawed.

If a conservative is a vegetarian, he doesn't eat meat.
If a liberal is a vegetarian, he wants all meat products banned for everyone.

If a conservative is down-and-out, he thinks about how to better his situation. A liberal wonders who is going to take care of him.

If a conservative doesn't like a talk show host, he switches channels.
Liberals demand that those they don't like be shut down.

If a conservative is a non-believer, he doesn't go to church.
A liberal non-believer wants any mention of God and Jesus silenced.

If a conservative decides he needs health care, he goes about shopping for it, or may choose a job that provides it.
A liberal demands that the rest of us pay for his.

Kevin Probst - Teaches History, Government and Apologetics at the high school level in Columbus Georgia.

The Truth They Could Not know

There was a point in Christ’s ministry when the Jews came to him demanding a sign.  He told them that if they would “destroy this temple he would raise it again in three days.”  (John 2:18-23)  The Jews perceived this statement to be foolish. They mocked his claim that he could single handedly rebuild in three days what took 46 years to complete using a very large workforce of laborers.  Of course, they missed the point because they were not spiritually minded.  A mind totally focused and consumed with earthly things cannot comprehend spiritual things. 

There is a foundational principle in Christianity that non-Christians fail to comprehend.  You cannot know who God is except you know his Son.  Jesus proclaimed this when he said, “No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)  We can’t really know God except we first know Christ in his saving grace.  It is the truth that leads men to Christ.  The truth is that we are all born in sin and “if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from unrighteousness.” – (1 John 1:9)

When men turn away from scripture in their search for bad things happen.  The Bible is the source of the truth that reveals to us Christ who leads us to the Father.  No man can know Christ apart from the Bible.  So, there is a train of logical steps that lead us into a relationship with the Almighty.  First, it is the truth that sets us free and the source of that truth is the Bible.  Second, the Bible introduces us to Christ, the very Son of God.  Confession of our sin and belief in the power of the shed blood of Christ as a sacrifice and an offering for our own sin brings us into relationship with Jesus.  Thirdly, to know Christ is to know the Father. When Jesus was asked, "Where is your father?",  He replied, "If you knew me, you would know my Father also."  (John 8:19)

The attempt to discover spiritual truth in any other source leads men away from rather than toward Christ.  Many claim to know Christ or they attempt to know him through other means.  Regardless of what Oprah Winfrey says, there is only one way to God, Jesus.  He said, “I am the way, the truth the life” and there is no other way but by me.  (John 14:6) 

Some seek him through their own intellect.  History has shown us that the most destruction despots and dictators of the past have been those who were exposed to the truth but willfully alienated themselves from that truth and dedicated their lives to lies and falsehoods.  Karl Marx’s verse in The Pale Rider is chilling:

“Thus heaven I’ve forfeited

I know it full well.

My soul, once true to God,

Is chosen for hell.”

Some have attempted to bring about reform or salvation to the hearts of men by transforming society.  In a sense, they lift their fist toward God and declare,  ‘We can save ourselves.  We don’t believe in your heaven or your hell’ and then they set about trying to prove themselves to be gods sufficient for the needs of mankind.  They attempt to redistribute wealth, level the playing field for the social classes and create a utopia on earth.  Karl Marx dream for society was to see the State fade away and all people join hands in harmonious bliss, sharing everything with hearts cleansed of greed simply by embracing his idea.

Karl’s  father was very concerned about the direction his young son had chosen.  He wrote in a letter:  “Only if your heart remains pure and beats humanly and if no demon is able to alienate your heart from better feelings, only then will I be happy.”  But his son resisted all authority figures including his father.  Karl’s youthful rebellion and hatred for God was revealed in a poem he wrote called “The Player”:

“The hellish vapors rise and fill the brain,

Till I go mad and my heart is utterly changed.

See this sword?  The prince of darkness sold it to me.

For me he beats the time and gives the signs.

Ever more boldly I play the dance of death.”

Saul Alinsky was a Jewish-American community organizer from Chicago who strongly influenced Barack Obama. Alinsky feared greatly that his parents would insist he become a Jewish Rabbi.  Instead, he ran in the other direction.  He is famous for his book, Rules for Radicals, an instructional guide to the rebellious generation of the 60’s instructing them how to organize a revolution whose ultimate goal would be to teach the poor working class how to take away from the wealthier upper class.  His book contains an outlandish dedication to Lucifer:

“Lest we forget at least an over-the-shoulder acknowledgement to the very first radical:  from all our legends, mythology, and history (and who is to know where mythology leaves off and history begins –or which is which), the first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom – Lucifer.”

Though Alinsky might have some sort of warped admiration for Lucifer, Christ sets the record straight regarding the ‘first radical’ and those who admire him:  “You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires.  He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him.  When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44)

One observer of the life of Karl Marx seemed to hit the nail on the head:  “Marx wrote in the Communist Manifesto that his aim was the abolition not only of all religions, but also of all morals, which would make everything permissible.”  Isn’t this the real foundation of all rebellion against God?  We want to be able to do what we want to.  We don’t want to have to answer to anyone.  We want to call our own shots.  A final truth from God’s word: “There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.” (Proverbs 14:12)

Kevin Probst - Teaches History, Government and Apologetics at the high school level in Columbus Georgia.

Occupy Wall Street…Connecting the Dots

It’s hard to discover just what these protesters want. Interviews of the tent dwelling squatters seem fruitless. Most cannot articulate why they are there. They seem to be frustrated and angry but they are not sure why they are directing their anger toward Wall Street. They are much like a high school student who sees a crowd rushing toward the school courtyard. He doesn’t know why the mass is bolting but he joins them, fearful of missing something big. He gets taken in by the emotion that is driving the mob but he doesn’t have the slightest idea what is going on.
The occupiers of Wall Street make some valid points. They seem to oppose the Federal Reserve. This organization is neither federal nor is it reserving anything. It is private and secretive and stirs great suspicion among American citizens.
Other occupiers are like puppets on a string. They carry a list of talking points but seem to have only a surface understanding of what they are saying. They rage against capitalism failing to understand that though this system is imperfect, it has worked far better than socialism. They rail against the government like spoiled children insisting they be pampered by Big Brother. If they are unemployed the government should give them a job. If they can’t afford a house the government should make a home affordable to them. They insist that the government pay for their education.
What they seem to be calling for is Cooperate Fascism, a merger of government and business. They don’t seem to grasp what happened with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Government was interfering with the system of free enterprise by developing policies for an economic organization to provide loans for those who could not afford them. Politically it looked appealing. It satisfied the desire of politicians to placate their constituents by putting “a chicken in every pot, a car in every garage.”
Let’s call a spade a spade. The occupiers are protesting against capitalism and calling for socialism. The only way to bring about the promised “hope and change” is to rebuild the system. You can’t rebuild a standing structure unless you tear it down first. Perhaps, inspired by the Arab Spring movement, the protesters are hoping to start a revolution that will result in radical change.
It may appear that these people just showed up on Wall Street randomly one day. This is not so. It is an organized movement. The cattle are trusting and they follow faithfully though often in ignorance. But the men driving the herd know exactly what they are doing. Many of those interviewed indicated that their trip to New York was financed by their union. Thousands of these people have been bussed in from hundreds of miles away. Have community organizers used the unions in an attempt to spark a revolution that would bring about societal change? Lenin taught that infiltrating unions was necessary to deconstruct society before it could be reconstructed. (1)

Are the occupiers true Marxists or are they “useful idiots”? In Saul Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals, 1971, he wrote that “A Marxist begins with his prime truth that all evils are caused by the exploitation of the proletariat by the capitalists. From this he logically proceeds to the revolution to end capitalism, then into the third stage of reorganization into the new social order of the dictatorship of the proletariat, and finally the last stage—the political paradise of communism.” (p.10) Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were both greatly influenced by Saul Alinsky. Hillary turned down an offer to come work for him. She titled her senior paper at Wellesley College "There Is Only the Fight . . . ": An Analysis of the Alinsky Model.
Richard Cloward and Frances Piven were a husband and wife team influenced by Alinsky. They were sociologists and political activists in the 1960’s. They called for an overload of the U.S. public welfare system in order to precipitate a crisis that would lead to replacing the national welfare system with a system that would guarantee an “annual income and thus an end to poverty.” (2)
It is necessary to collapse the system before reforming it. Considering so many of our leading politicians were trained by radical socialists one must ask if the collapse of our banks, our industries and Fannie and Freddie were intentional in order to destroy the old capitalist system in order to replace it with socialism?
Yuri Bezmenov, a Russian born KGB defector was a KGB trained subverter outlines the four stages the Soviets use to bring transformation to a society. First, the nation must be demoralized, then destabilized. Chaos is necessary to make the people weary enough to accept a new plan that will bring relief from the chaos. The final stage is normalization. A life with less liberties and freedoms becomes the new norm.
Is it so hard to believe that the “occupy movement” might be a manipulation of a well organized group with a grandiose scheme to bring radical change resulting in a strong lean toward socialism?
Works Cited:
1. “Left Wing” Communism, Lenin
2. The Nation, “The Weight of the Poor: A Strategy to End Poverty”, Cloward and Piven

The Truth About America (Part 1) Who Is Weeping For America?

The Truth About America (Part 1)
Who Is Weeping For America?
By Kevin P. Probst
One man said the “truth hurts, not the searching after, the running from.” I see so many who are running away from the truth about America. I understand that coming face to face with the painful truth about a country one loves can be extremely painful but I also know that solutions to our problems can’t be found until we stop running from the truth. For those who are followers of Christ, he taught us: “the truth will set you free.”
So, what is the truth about America? You’ll not find that truth in the voices you hear on talk radio and network television. Many listen to Rush Limbaugh, Anderson Cooper or Glen Beck, as if they were infallible sources of truth. The real and only source of truth is the divinely inspired Word of God. It is God conversing with the hearts of men through his own Spirit.
My in-laws came to visit a couple months ago. In fact, my wife’s father had come to help me put in a new hot water heater. We worked well together. I don’t have a mechanical bone in my body so he turned screw drivers and twisted wrenches and I held the flash light for him. But as I stood there watching things I didn’t understand I began to feel something was not right. My head felt light. My stomach felt queasy. My wife had grilled steaks and baked potatoes but I had no appetite. I finally dismissed myself and went to bed. Later that night a gut-wrenching sickness gripped me.
Americans are feeling like something isn’t right. There is a queasiness deep within. There is a gut feeling that things are not as they should be. According to a recent poll conducted by The Hill Newspaper, 69% of Americans believe our country is in decline. 83% are worried about America’s future. So, what is wrong with America?
We see a strange group of people Occupying Wall Street. We observe copycat demonstrations going on all over the country. Angry, violent flash mobs are robbing convenience stores and beating patrons. Rage seems to be reaching a boiling point. We are more politically polarized than ever. The promise to unify us seems to have morphed into a determination to divide us.
I see a vast number of Americans who desire to see but they cannot. They want to know but they can’t. Jesus said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.” (Matt. 13:13) The multitudes are crying, “What’s wrong with our society? What’s wrong with our country?” Isaiah said, “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this peoples' heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes.” Jesus quoted that verse to his disciples and then he said to them, “blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.” – (Matt. 13:16) A clear perspective of this problem cannot be achieved unless it is viewed through the lenses of truth found in the Word of God. Any other perspective muddies one’s view of what is really happening.
This is the truth about America. We have exalted our government to be our god. It has become our idol. The American people keep voting for more and bigger government. The poor no longer look to God. They look to the government for more welfare. The ignorant no longer look to God. They expect the government to educate the masses. We no longer look for wisdom in the Word of God. Instead, we have removed that book from our schools. We presume that government can solve the problem of alcoholism. We pretend that Government is winning the war on drugs and eliminating poverty. We expect government to integrate us and teach us to live together in love and harmony.
People are angry because their god has failed them. The pain of disappointment and disillusionment is causing them to hate their government. They hate Bush. They hate Obama. They hate Republicans and Democrats. They have no confidence in the Congress. Only 9% are pleased with the job Congress is doing. (CBS, NY Times poll) The corruption in their government has reached unprecedented levels. Something has gone terribly wrong but an unrepentant people can’t perceive what it is.
As a history teacher I teach my students that the one thing we learn from history is that we don’t learn from history. History certainly does repeat itself. America is not suffering from a new and mysterious ailment. America suffers from the same things that affected previous nations and empires of the past. We have eyes but we fail to see. Isn’t this affirmed by the fact we have seen a multitude of nations try socialism and communism and everyone without fail plunged into societal darkness and experienced economic failure. Russia, China and numerous eastern European countries are fleeing a failed system. Who can explain the mysterious and incomprehensible fact that our country (America) is moving toward socialism and big government? Why are we abandoning what brought us success and embracing what has brought failure to other nations? It is because we have eyes but we cannot see.
One day Jesus stood on a hill overlooking the city of Jerusalem. He opened his heart and revealed the great compassion he had for his people, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” (Matt. 23:37)
Who is weeping for America?

Class Warfare: Problem of the Free Stuff

Class war at its best. The Problem of Free Stuff (Author Unknown)

The folks who are getting the free stuff, don’t like the folks who are paying for the free stuff,

Because the folks who are paying for the free stuff,

Can no longer afford to pay for both the free stuff and their own stuff,

And, the folks who are paying for the free stuff,

Want the free stuff to stop.

And the folks who are getting the free stuff,

Want even more free stuff on top of the free stuff they are already getting!

Now... The people who are forcing the people who pay for the free stuff, have told the people who are RECEIVING the free stuff, that the people who are PAYING for the free stuff, are being mean, prejudiced, and racist.

So... the people who are GETTING the free stuff, have been convinced they need to hate the people who are paying for the free stuff, by the people who are forcing some people to pay for their free stuff, and giving them the free stuff in the first place.

We have let the free stuff giving go on for so long that there are now more people getting free stuff than paying for the free stuff.

Now understand this. All great democracies have committed financial suicide somewhere between 200 and 250 years after being founded. The reason:

The voters figured out they could vote themselves money from the treasury by electing people who promised to give them money from the treasury in exchange for electing them.

The United States officially became a Republic in 1776, 231 years ago. The number of people now getting free stuff outnumbers the people paying for the free stuff.
How long will our republic last? It depends on whether we can solve the problem of the Free Stuff.

Kevin Probst - Teaches History, Government and Apologetics at the high school level in Columbus Georgia.