Lyndon Johnson muzzled the voice of the church

The ban on churches participating in the election process has nothing to do with the First Amendment or Jeffersonian principles of separation of church and state.  It is based on a provision in the 1954 tax reform act prohibiting all tax-exempt organizations from supporting or opposing political candidates.  It grew out of Lyndon Johnson’s effort to end McCarthyism and to win reelection to the Senate in 1954 and was specifically directed at right-wing organizations.  Although he was particularly worried about specific organizations that opposed him (they weren’t churches), the way the act was worded caused the muzzling of churches, which up to that time had had freedom to speak out about elections.

http://www.alliancedefendingfreedom.org/content/docs/issues/church/Johnson-Amendment-History.pdf

http://www.firebuilders.org/JAmCEC.htm

Paula’s list of excuses

Paula Priesse has collected a list of excuses for Obama’s failures in the debate.

1) Al Gore – The “altitude” (Coach – “We only lost because game was in Denver”)

2) Left wing blogs – “Cheating Romney looked at hankie” (Jeopardy Winner Scandal – Answers on Kleenex)

3) Obama college supporters in Madison – “Unfair, Obama couldn’t use teleprompter” (Students Strike Over No Cheating Policy)

4) NY Times Charles Blow – Obama just lost on “style” (WA Generals Lose to Globetrotters on Style Points Only)

5) Obama on Friday – Romney in debate was like “Dancing With The Stars” or “Extreme Makeover”

6) Jim Lehrer (I’m adding that one), even though he gave Obama 4 minutes more than Romney some leftists said it was his fault in not controlling the debate more.

Why does the left defend Big Bird—he’s wealthier than Mitt Romney!

Obama was never constitutional law professor, never offered tenure

“According to longtime University of Chicago law professor Richard Epstein, Obama was never actually offered a tenured faculty position. Nor, for that matter, was he ever a “constitutional law professor.”

“I have no idea where Jodi [Kantor] got her story [2008]” about the tenure offer, said Epstein, adding that he immediately wrote Kantor to tell her she was wrong.

“Tenure offers require votes from faculties approved by the provost, and need a scholarly output. He was approached with the possibility of an entry level position without tenure, but it never got to the faculty for want of interest on his side,” Epstein confirmed via email.

Epstein was the law school’s interim dean during 2001. His account contradicts a claim Kantor has repeatedly made, that a tenure offer came from Dean Daniel Fischel.

Read more: http://nation.foxnews.com/president-obama/2012/09/12/obama-bio-crumbles#ixzz28XlJM9am

Another campaign stop in California

Saul Alinsky is considered the founder of modern protest tactics and the father of community organizing. He became the topic of Hillary Clinton’s college thesis, a role model for Barack Obama and a mentor to labor activist Cesar Chavez.  President Obama will go to California to dedicate a memorial to Chavez. This way in one trip he can pump up the Hispanic vote and pander to his far left wing base which lately has been very unhappy with him for  trying to appear “centrist“ for the campaign.

http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Cesar-Chavez-Home-to-Become-a-National-Monument-172753951.html

Wayne Dupree, proud Conservative, black and free, news aggregator on line

“This is Wayne Dupree, Newsninja2012. I am and have been committed to exposing the Democrats in a way that has been frowned upon by some conservatives and cheered by many more. When I completely left the Democratic Plantation in 2008 during the Democratic Primary, I felt liberated and free to a point that I wanted to share it with everyone.

Since that time, I have gone stealth mode and really learned more history than I ever did in school and how much I was lied to by the Democratic Party. To have that sense of what I knew and that it was fabricated to get my vote only angered me to the point I had to begin something to inform everyone else.

I feel it’s our responsibility as conservatives/republicans to fight back against the liberal hate machine and meet them head on with like-minded strength and dedication. I also want to expose the media for the dirt bag politics that they employ on a daily basis and how they rip us off by not giving up the correct news to be well-informed voters.

I am the proud son for a Sunday School Superintendent that loves the Lord and made it possible for me to be who I am today. I spent 8 years in the US Air Force and I have been in the public sector ever since trying to build up my knowledge.”

You can follow him on Facebook.

The Abortion President

40% for blacks who are 11% of the population. Now who’s the racist?

Update: “Not only did Obama tout abortion at a campaign event in Virginia today [October 5], but virtually every speaker at the event made abortion promotion the centerpiece of their message as the talked to a less-sizable-than-desired crowd. The Weekly Standard has more on the abortion fest before the smallish audience of about 2,000.”

http://www.lifenews.com/2012/10/05/obama-sticks-to-pro-abortion-campaign-themes-after-bad-debate/

Ohio in the Fall

If you aren’t entitled to success in America, where can you go?

The President of Everything Redistributive and Food Stamps has declared:

“This country doesn’t just succeed when just a few are doing well at the top. It succeeds when the middle class gets bigger. Our economy doesn’t grow from the top down — it grows from the middle out. We don’t believe that anybody is entitled to success in this country,” said Obama. “But we do believe in opportunity. We believe in a country where hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded, and everybody is getting a fair shot and everybody is doing their fair share and everybody is playing by the same rules.”

He needs to reread history.  Our government also isn’t from the top down as he keeps bloating and expanding it.  It’s we the people, sir.

The All American Quarter Horse Congress

Here in Columbus we can visit/see a spectacular event for the next three weeks that brings in millions to our economy--the All American Quarter Horse Congress. As of mid-September  the 2012 Quarter Horse Congress had a 9 percent increase in regular entries over 2011, with 18,268 entries, compared to 16,742 at this time last year. This number doesn’t account for late entries made during the event.

It's almost laughable to imagine what would have happened to this money maker begun in 1967 by a small county horse organization if the federal government had imposed on it the subjective ideas of "distributive justice" or "sustainability" or "affirmative action." Yes, it is subject to probably thousands of rules from codes for barns and food safety to labor laws, but the government didn't build it, can't build it, but Americans working together can. Load up the car--the ticket price is per carload.

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/editorials/2012/10/05/saddle-up.html

                     

Democrats call this approach “racist” and bullying and “chainsaw”

But the rest of the nation saw it as truth, common sense, and a better way to restoring the country. Now the Chicago thugs will have to double down on vilifying Romney.  Get ready for some real nastiness.

“By pummeling the president on the facts and the policy, Mr. Romney looked in control. By walking through the concepts of growth, of free-market health care, of tax reform, he inspired with ideas. By explaining how his specific policies will help average Americans, and by doing it with a sunny demeanor, he became that likeable candidate.

The effect was not only to erase the months-long Obama caricature of Mr. Romney. It also undermined Mr. Obama's own pitch. The bold Romney vision put the president's (modest, pleasant) promises—for a "balanced approach," for "clean energy," to "invest in education"—in context: small, tired, failed. In outlining the great that might be, Mr. Romney made voters think about how measly the past four years have been. He flipped the Obama equation.”

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443635404578036773650154896.html

The left has turned on Lehrer

“Prior to Wednesday Lehrer had been canonized as the patron saint of the Commission on Presidential Debates. His mere presence endowed the occasion with ceremony and a sort of historical grandeur. Lehrer explained to an interested world how he would allow the candidates to interact with one another. He said early on that he wanted to emphasize the differences between the Republican and the Democrat. That is exactly what happened.

Among the distinctions: One candidate was awake, and the other was not. One candidate had specific attacks and rebuttals, and the other did not. One candidate spoke energetically and without interruption, and the other did not. One candidate, Romney, made it perfectly clear that he truly wants to be president next January 20, and the incumbent seemed like he could take it or leave it. He may have to leave it.”

http://freebeacon.com/on-the-cannibals/

Third largest abortion clinic in the United States

St. Paul, Minnesota, has a handsome new “eco-friendly” abortion facility to help with the 4,000 abortions a year in Minneapolis/St. Paul. But it’s not very “green” for babies in the womb is it?  The new building’s location was chosen because a zip code analysis pinpointed the poor and minority neighborhood. This is how the left wages war on poor women—kills their babies.  Only Houston and Denver have larger abortion mills.

Abby Johnson is praying there today.  She’s a former Planned Parenthood director, turned pro-life advocate; voted for Barack Obama in 2008. She had a conversion and realized what she was doing.

Plagiary by Obama—the 2008 and 2012 debates compared

2012: I also want to close those loopholes that are giving incentives for companies that are shipping jobs overseas. I want to provide tax breaks for companies that are investing here in the United States.
2008: Let's just be clear. What I do is I close corporate loopholes, stop providing tax cuts to corporations that are shipping jobs overseas so that we're giving tax breaks to companies that are investing here in the United States.
*
2012: And so the question here tonight is not where we've been but where we’re going. Governor Romney has a perspective that says if we cut taxes, skewed towards the wealthy, and roll back regulations that we’ll be better off. [...]
Are we going to double down on the top-down economic policies that helped to get us into this mess, or do we embrace a new economic patriotism that says, America does best when the middle class does best? And I'm looking forward to having that debate.
2008: Now, we also have to recognize that this is a final verdict on eight years of failed economic policies promoted by George Bush, supported by Senator McCain, a theory that basically says that we can shred regulations and consumer protections and give more and more to the most, and somehow prosperity will trickle down.
It hasn't worked. And I think that the fundamentals of the economy have to be measured by whether or not the middle class is getting a fair shake. That's why I'm running for president, and that's what I hope we're going to be talking about tonight.
*
2012: Now, I've identified areas where we can, right away, make a change that I believe would actually help the economy. The -- the oil industry gets $4 billion a year in corporate welfare. Basically, they get deductions that those small businesses that Governor Romney refers to, they don't get. Now, does anybody think that ExxonMobil needs some extra money when they're making money every time you go to the pump? Why wouldn't we want to eliminate that?
2008: And if we want to talk about oil company profits, under your tax plan, John -- this is undeniable -- oil companies would get an additional $4 billion in tax breaks. Now, look, we all would love to lower taxes on everybody. But here's the problem: If we are giving them to oil companies, then that means that there are those who are not going to be getting them.
*
2012: [W]e've got to boost American energy production. And oil and natural gas production are higher than they’ve been in years. But I also believe that we've got to look at the energy source of the future, like wind and solar and biofuels, and make those investments.
2008: We have to have energy independence, so I've put forward a plan to make sure that, in 10 years'time, we have freed ourselves from dependence on Middle Eastern oil by increasing production at home, but most importantly by starting to invest in alternative energy, solar, wind, biodiesel, making sure that we're developing the fuel-efficient cars of the future right here in the United States[.]
*
http://reason.com/blog/2012/10/04/obama-plagiarizes-own-debate-promises-fr

Big Bird makes more than Mitt Romney

Sesame Street will do just fine without government funding. (Romney’s suggestion during the debate)

Shows like Sesame Street are multi-million dollar enterprises capable of thriving in the private market. According to the 990 tax form all nonprofits are required to file, Sesame Workshop President and CEO Gary Knell received $956,513 -- nearly a million dollars -- in compensation in 2008. And, from 2003 to 2006, "Sesame Street" made more than $211 million from toy and consumer product sales.

If you break that down, it works out to over $50 million a year "Sesame Street" is taking in from all that merchandising.

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Hollywood/2012/10/04/Big-Bird-Richer-Than-Romney

Yes, Mr. President, Romney did explain his tax plan

Jennifer, my guest blogger, watched the debates and is frustrated that Obama and liberal talking heads pretend to not hear a tax plan.

I don't know why anyone thinks Romney didn't explain his tax plan! But for those who missed his explanation, here are some of the key points he shared in the Wednesday night debate:

1. End many of the subsidies to the "too big to fail" companies that the current administration has propped up like the 5 largest banks (and letting the small banks who are too small to matter fail).

2. Stop the loopholes and special deals for big corporations which help them not pay taxes. GE is one example. If we close the loopholes, the big corporations will pay more even if the tax rate is lowered. He mentioned this with the gas and oil industries who get subsidies now. He mentioned cutting out subsidies to PBS.

3. End Obamacare which is costing a fortune. It has robbed such a huge amount from Medicare that doctors and nursing homes are turning away new Medicare patients because Obamacare has made the pay out so low the doctors and nursing homes can't afford to accept them. (Romney also explained how Obamacare is different that the Massachusetts health care plan.)

4. He cleared up the untruthful claims Obama has been making about adding 5 trillion to the deficit. That was never his plan.

5. He said he WOULD NOT raise taxes on anyone and in fact, the big corporations would end up paying more when the loopholes and subsidies are removed. By keeping the rates lower for all, it will allow small businesses to hire more and this will make more people who are paying taxes, which will also increase the revenue coming in

6. Repeal Dodd Frank which says banks will be penalized for making risky loans, but doesn't define what is risky so banks aren't lending for fear of being fined.

How did the media spin Obama’s loss?

“They -- as well as Democratic operatives -- are pushing the spin that this was all about style and presentation. Obama was "flat," "lackluster," "not himself," and “not firing on all cylinders.” In other words, Obama wasn't Obama last night. Some are going further, pushing the narrative that Romney was somehow mean-spirited and even deceptive in his presentation.

This analysis denies reality. Obama lost on style, to be sure. More importantly, much more importantly, he lost on content. Romney crushed him. For the first time in his political career Obama a) had to defend his record and b) had no one running interference on his behalf. Romney as challenger had a seemingly endless list of particulars to choose from and did so in a devastating manner. That, that was the damage done to Obama.
The media's refusal to focus on this all-important element is the ultimate spin control, perhaps a form of spin control heretofore unknown: spin by omission. Like so many news reports they've refused to run this year if they hurt the re-elect Obama narrative, now they're refusing to discuss the real takeaway from last night's debate because it is devastating to the incumbent.”

Brent Bozell, Newsbusters

Hope it’s covered by Obamacare

I showed this to my husband and he said, “People have too much time on their hands.”

I don't know who PeopleBrowsr is, but it analyzes tweets/twitter (I’m not on Twitter).
"Number of tweets overall. During the 90-minute debate, there were 10.4 million tweets mentioning Mitt Romney, Barack Obama or the debate.
Tweets specifically mentioning Obama and "win or winner." Total: 29,677.
Tweets specifically mentioning Romney and "win or winner." Total: 47,141.
The peak of overall activity. Twitter activity was highest between 9:48 and 9:58 pm EDT, peaking at 9:53, during a discussion about health insurance and regulation. The second largest peak was at 9:28 pm EDT, just after Romney suggested cutting funding to PBS despite the fact that he loves Big Bird.

The Benghazi investigation

will be buried until after the election.  The FBI was there for three hours, and now the documents will probably be unavailable until after the election, if they even appear then.  I turned in a cell phone with drug information on it and I think the local police spent more than 3 hours on it.

FBI agents made a brief visit to Benghazi this week to examine the scene of the consulate terror attack that killed four Americans -- after being delayed for weeks because of security concerns. . .

"The FBI continues to coordinate with the U.S. Departments of State, Justice, and Defense, as well as the Libyan government, and other agencies in furtherance of the investigation into the deaths of Ambassador Stevens, Glen Doherty, Sean Smith, and Tyrone Woods," the FBI said in a statement. "As this is an ongoing investigation, we have no further information to provide."

A Libyan official told AFP that the team worked for three hours collecting evidence.

As the FBI investigates, an independent panel has been established by the State Department to review what went wrong. That review, though, could take months and U.S. lawmakers were starting to express frustration after their requests for more information were rebuffed as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged lawmakers to wait for the conclusion of an internal review.

Read more here:

God is good

My next door neighbor holding her new twin granddaughters. This summer they had a diaper shower, so grandparents wouldn’t be caught short.

When voting to increase your property taxes. . .

[Politifact.com] “We first checked with the Romney campaign, which said the figure came from the College Board, which produces an annual study of college costs. The College Board found that for the school-year 2008-2009, the average published tuition and fees for in-state students at public four-year colleges and universities was $6,585. By the 2011-2012 school year, it stood at $8,244. That’s an increase of slightly over 25 percent. So the claim has a grain of statistical truth.  “

Then Politifact goes on to do a different statistic—all costs—and claims since that cost is around 20%, the add is mostly false!  Also it was working with a Spanish language ad and didn’t like the translation.

Why put this in a campaign? It's about state supported colleges. Well, states are struggling to support our state institutions because they have all those mandates from the feds--and Obamacare will only increase that as more get bumped from employer insurance to Medicaid. That said, when I stroll across the campus at OSU, I can't believe the plush, lush, extravagant buildings and perks students of the 21st century have. College tuition and fees today are 559% of their cost in 1985. Makes medical costs look like a bargain.

Where are the yard signs against issue 51?

A friend’s daughter is trying to do a photo essay on our local school levy, but can’t find a yard sign to photograph.  I don't support issue 51 , but I see no yard signs either. The Vote for Issue 51 signs are standing next to both Romney and Obama signs.

In a suburb next door to OSU, not voting for a school or library issue is tough going. Issue 51 is a 5.8-mill operating levy for Upper Arlington City Schools on the Nov. 6 ballot. If approved by voters, the levy would cost homeowners an additional $178 in annual taxes per $100,000 in property value and generate about $9.2 million per year for the school district. We have an exceptionally good school system, but 86% of the money goes for wages and benefits.  Ohio is not a Right to Work state, so these teachers are protected by both the union and the STRS.  Their retirement package will be 3-4 times what someone on Social Security will get, with far fewer years of service. 

UA schools are especially fine for those going to college (others are the children left behind--my friends suggest moving to Worthington if you have special needs children), but it's pricey and gets the same results as other districts that spend far less. UA cost per student is $15,172; at Olentangy district schools it is $9,465. Hard to find a website or an article, but here's one:

http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/upperarlington/news/2012/10/03/anti-levy-campaign-educate-ua-seeking-lasting-district-reforms.html

The debates—Obama is being swamped

Watching the debate—Obama is being Obama

David Gelernter on the debate: "Remember that Obama is Richard Nixon in a JFK suit. He can do a fair imitation of charm for the right audience, for a short time. But he is dour, sour, full of himself, and mean. He is a patronizing man who cares (and always has) about winning elections—not governing; not the United States. Romney just has to let Obama be Obama."

Lehrer appears to be cueing Obama and clarifying questions for him. This is like watching a massacre—Obama is a stumblebum without his teleprompter, he’s punch drunk, using scatter shot whereas Romney is taking aim and hitting the target.

But we all know how the MSM pundits will see it:  Obama has won!

Fat Man Demands Bank Loan.

At Roland Lane’s FB page—I’m assuming he’s the author.

So I entered my friendly neighborhood bank with whom I have no relationship and asked to take out a loan.
"Do you have an account here?" asked the friendly banker.
"No," I replied.
"Would you like to open an account?"
"Yes"
"Do you have some ID?"
"Well," said I, "Nothing with a picture on it."
"You will need a picture ID."
"Not so fast, sir," I replied. "I do not think that I need a picture ID. You see, I am somewhat large, perhaps some would say fat, and I am sure that fatness is a civil liberty. I am sure that being fat is on the PC lists. It is a civil right."
My friendly banker was now less friendly. "Sir," said  he, "Childhood obesity is in the news every minute. Childhood obesity is no longer on the PC list. It is no longer OK to be a kid and fat. It is no longer a civil right for kids because Michelle Obama picked that up as the Presidential wife thing. All President's wives have a thing, dating back to Betty Ford and alcoholism. Once she made alcohol rehab fashionable by going to a clinic it was OK to be an alcoholic and it became PC, more or less a civil right. Unfortunately, Michelle Obama's actions have taken childhood obesity off the PC list.
"But," I protested, "I am not a child, Michelle has not addressed old fat people therefore we are still on the PC List and for me, a fat old person, it is still a civil right. I believe your demand for a picture ID to get a bank loan is a direct attack on fatness, adult obesity if you please. Back off or else."
Pausing a moment, the friendly bank person glowered at me but asked: "What ID do you have?"
"I have a copy of my electric bill with my name on it and I would like a loan of ten thousand dollars."
Now the most unfriendly banker asked, "How do I know you did not cut and paste and photo shop the electric bill?
Well I replied, "I regret to inform you that you can ask that question but I do not have to answer. Where do I sign for the loan?"

Blog is now nine years old

Yesterday was my 9th blogiversary--I've been blogging since Oct. 2, 2003. Then I back dated to Oct. 1, to add some links, and just because librarians like to be tidy. My first blog was to explain why I was blogging. In the "old days" there was no Facebook or Twitter, or any other new fangled social media.

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2003/10/1-most-of-my-writing-has-been-sent-via.html

Oops! Somebody stole a T

Not four more years of tax and spend!

When the rich take legal deductions it’s called loopholes

Liberal media are the enemy of the American people

Mitt Romney is not running against Barack Hussein Obama.

Governor Romney is running against a liberal media complex — Orwell’s “Ministry of Truth” — and Barack Hussein Obama.

Robert J. Avrech, observant Jew, a religious Zionist, a conservative Republican, and a member of the NRA.

Buried alive for 4 years—Joe Biden

Available at a Romney Ryan site.

He’s not stupid, but if you vote for him again. . .

Would Barack Obama ever work the garbage truck?

From Mitt’s account (not the one in the opposition’s ad):

"During my campaign for governor, I decided to spend a day every few weeks doing the jobs of other people in Massachusetts. Among other jobs, I cooked sausages at Fenway Park, worked on asphalt paving crew, stacked bales of hay on a farm, volunteered in an emergency room, served food at a nursing home, and worked as a child-care assistant. I’m often asked which was the hardest job – it’s child care, by a mile.

One day I gathered trash as a garbage collector. I stood on that little platform at the back of the truck, holding on as the driver navigated his way through the narrow streets of Boston. As we pulled up to traffic lights, I noticed that the shoppers and businesspeople who were standing only a few feet from me didn’t even see me. It was as if I was invisible. Perhaps it was because a lot of us don’t think garbage men are worthy of notice; I disagree – anyone who works that hard deserves our respect. – I wasn’t a particularly good garbage collector: at one point, after filling the trough at the back of the truck, I pulled the wrong hydraulic lever. Instead of pushing the load into the truck, I dumped it onto the street. Maybe the suits didn’t notice me, but the guys at the construction site sure did: “Nice job, Mitt,” they called. “Why don’t you find an easier job?” And then they good-naturedly came down and helped me pick up my mess." No Apology, p. 251

Women who have no choice

I'm on the PDHC prayer list. I pray for women who have come to them for ultrasounds or pregnancy concerns. This week was typical--here's three:

* college student; had ultrasound done; boyfriend wants abortion
* single woman, mother of one; is 6 weeks; wants to parent but her mother wants her to have an abortion
* woman 7 weeks; has two daughters; in abusive relationship; has no support

If you are "pro-choice," keep in mind that 65% of the girls/women who have abortions have no choice--someone else is making it for them. Parents, husband, boy friend.

My friend Kelly says, “I had a friend in that exact situation in college. At the last minute she used her choice, and allowed friends to help her raise a beautiful baby in college. (It was even fun for all of us). She went on to do a Ph.D. and now has a wonderful 32-year old son.”

Don’t confuse a Democrat with facts

He promised us one term if he couldn’t turn it around.

Our aching backs brought us together

My very first Medical Library Association meeting was in Boston.  I think it was 1989. I can usually spot someone who has a bad back, and so I started chatting with Jerry, who like me, was standing against a wall during a presentation, even though there were seats available.  Sitting is the worst possible position for some back problems.  We’ve been friends ever since.  The following year I stayed at her home in a suburb of Detroit, and I think we roomed together at some conferences.  She was a hospital librarian and eventually took a wonderful job setting up a library on a Caribbean island.  We’re both retired now, but on Facebook recently there was an update about her back: “The less invasive procedure in April did not do the trick. Have a ruptured disk, stenosis, spondylethesis and degeneratie discs. “  Ouch.  Mine never got that bad, and when I get twinges, I wear a back brace. Prayers for my good friend. Love you Jerry.

                   

Here we are in San Antonio in 1994.

Do pollsters lie?

I know Democrats who supported Edwards to the bitter end.  Probably were fooled by his own staff.

"Under oath, Hickman admitted that in the final weeks of Edwards's 2008 bid, Hickman cherry-picked public polls to make the candidate seem viable, promoted surveys that Hickman considered unreliable, and sent e-mails to campaign aides, Edwards supporters and reporters which argued that the former senator was still in the hunt —even though Hickman had already told Edwards privately that he had no real chance of winning the Democratic nomination. . .

“Hickman acknowledged sending a series of emails in November and December, and even into January, endorsing or promoting polls that made Edwards look good. Asked about what appeared to be a New York Times/CBS poll released in mid-November showing an effective "three-way tie" in Iowa with Hillary Clinton at 25 percent, Edwards at 23 percent and Obama at 22 percent, Hickman acknowledged he circulated it but insisted he didn't think it was correct.

"The business I'm in is a business any fool can get into, and a lot can happen. I'm sure there was a poll like that," the folksy Hickman told jurors when first asked about a poll showing the race tied. "I kept up with every poll that was done, including our own, and there may have been a few that showed them a tie, but... that's not really what my analysis is. Campaigns are about trajectory, and... there could have been a point at which it was a tie in the sense that we were coming down, and Obama was going up, and Clinton was going up."

http://www.politico.com/blogs/under-the-radar/2012/10/a-pollster-under-oath-137100.html

"

This year’s flu shot

Today my husband said, “Let’s get our flu shot.”  “OK.” So he called to make an appointment.  But the recording was so confusing with instructions of how to go to the emergency room, or how to get English, or how to wait for our doctor, we just got in our car and went to his office.

I had just been there in July, but apparently another Obamacare computer change was in the works and things were chaos.  This time our Medicare cards were scanned instead of photocopied, she recorded our race and ethnicity, and the computer took our photo to add to our records.  One of the staff members came in carrying her portable/lap top version and was about to have a meltdown.  The staffer at the desk mumbled and grumbled that she’d prefer a notebook and pencil to all this nonsense.

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/vaccine/qa_fluzone.htm

“Why is a higher dose vaccine available for adults 65 and older?

Human immune defenses become weaker with age, which places older people at greater risk of severe illness from influenza. Also, ageing decreases the body's ability to have a good immune response after getting influenza vaccine. A higher dose of antigen in the vaccine is supposed to give older people a better immune response and therefore better protection against flu.”

Are these Julia’s lady parts?

We knew the left didn’t think much of women, but this e-card for the Obama campaign confirms it.  To politicians like Teddy and Edwards, Fluke, Clinton and Obama, a woman voter is the sum of her “lady parts.”

Prom dress code

I was a bit surprised to see this in a prom dress code (Utah?) in 2012:

"Strapless dresses are prohibited unless a jacket or shawl is worn. 'Plunging' necklines are prohibited. The backs of dresses should not show more than 1/3 of the back (directly below the armpits)."

Have they looked at a Bride's Magazine lately? Or at a 1956 prom photo?

Junior Prom, May 1956, Mt. Morris, Illinois

NCLB and RTTT—a comparison

Confused about how the Department of Education spreads around your tax dollar? Here's a comparison of No Child Left Behind (Bush, 2001, regular budget funding, Title I) and Race to the Top (Obama, 2009, ARRA money through grants, on top of NCLB). Bush's is a mandate; Obama's is more money for improvement—competition. Sort of a flip flop of how the right and left say they do things.

Until Obama came on the scene, Bush was the biggest all time spender on social programs; but that didn't get him any points with Democrats.

http://www.cga.ct.gov/2010/rpt/2010-R-0235.htm

Young Jewish woman questions Obama’s relationship with Israel

18-minute mini-documentary follows the journey of Irina, a 23-year-old liberal, Jewish New Yorker who voted for Obama in 2008. Yet as her connection to Israel has grown, and she has learned more about the President's policies across the Middle East and towards Israel in particular, Irina has come to realize that "when the chips are down," the President may not "have Israel's back" as he says.

And let’s not forget September when both God and Jerusalem were booed and voted down at the Democrat convention in Charlotte.

Why Obama clings to the internet video story

There is substantial evidence that foreign aid, directed by the Obama administration to support Libyan rebels and Syrian rebels, has been falling into the welcoming hands of Al Qaeda terrorists. U.S. intelligence confirms that the very same terrorists who premeditated the attack on our own Libyan Consulate, also played a key role in the killing of four Americans and may have used American taxpayer money to fund the effort.

From World Net Daily:

36 days and 15 reasons to not elect Barack Obama

Green Fail: Toyota bails on Obama's green car fantasy - the market and technology still not viable

Failed Leadership: The promisesthat the incompetent Obama did not deliver on and never will

Failed Leadership: Day after the worst terrorist attacks against U.S. since 9/11, Obama continues his massive fundraising efforts as if nothing happened

Polls & Surveys: Only 9% of people cooperate with pollsters - other 91% likely to be Republicans and independents that don't trust the partisan pollsters

Polls & Surveys: Early voting in Ohio shows that Romney has cut in half the Democrat advantage of 2008

Polls & Surveys: Actual historical vote counts show that polling firms have always significantly underestimated GOP vote

Biased Media: See how Washington Post's "balanced journalist" smears Paul Ryan - the liars of Obama's lapdog press are out of control

Biased Media: MSNBC caught using video wrongfully edited about Romney campaign event – the prima donna dumb ass, Democrat “Republican” Joe Scarborough, duped [video]

Obamanomics: U.S. taxpayers coughed up $1.4 billion to pamper Obama Family - the Brits only spend $59 million/year on the real 'Royals'

Obamanomics: Skyrocketing gas prices during Obama's jobless recovery especially harms lower and moderate-income families

Obamanomics: White House actually encourages defense contractors to mislead employees about looming mass layoffs in direct violation of federal laws

Obamanomics: U.S. states pursuing anti-Obama economic policies have economic growth 9 times higher - the Republican red state policies trounce Obama's blue states

National Security@Risk: Obama White House Military Office network hacked by Chinese - part of nuclear weapon command system

Smart diplomacy?: The Libyan-Benghazi cover up provides proof that the Obama foreign policy is collapsing, says expert - and al-Qaida is winning the war against Obama

Religion of Peace?: Muslims attack Buddhist templesand homes because a Facebook page upset them

http://www.c3headlines.com/2012/10/36-days-until-election-nov-6-2012-the-headlines.html

Obama’s man in Egypt

Monday Memories—Remembering Luther Strommen

It was announced in church Sunday that our former senior Pastor, Luther O. Strommen, died Saturday, September 29, 2012, in Minneapolis.  There was a collective gasp and whispering, although many probably already knew.  Our current pastor and a son of a member who had been in his youth group in the 70s  had visited him on Friday. 

Because we began attending UALC in 1974 and were confirmed on Palm Sunday 1976, I don’t know exactly the dates of his tenure, but he was the second pastor of Upper Arlington Lutheran Church and began his ministry in 1970. He retired in 1984.  Our current senior pastor, Paul Ulring ,was called in 1973 as an assistant and he is due to retire (he had a pastorate in Illinois from 1979-1987) . I don’t know how many members there were when we joined—maybe 1500—but Luther made two house calls while we were still visitors.  We had our new member class (adult confirmation) in his home.  I was still a stay-at-home mom in those days and remember attending a morning Bible study led by him in the church lounge.  He confirmed our daughter in 1984.  My husband used to kid him about his three point sermons, Jesus is Lord, Jesus is Lord, Jesus is Lord.

Pastor Strommen must have thousands of spiritual children, and a very large biological family.  His wife Helen survives as well as children and grandchildren. One of his 6 children still lives in Columbus, or did a few years ago when I last saw her. Today he is in that very happy place rejoicing with all the saints around Jesus.

                              

                  

The upper photo is from 1987, lower from 2001.

                

April 29, 1984 Confirmation Day Reception

Obituary: Strommen, Rev. Luther O. age 95, of Mpls. and Sun City AZ, died peacefully at home surrounded by his beloved wife and children. Luther was born in Rugby ND, on Feb. 15, 1917, to Rev. Peter & Nellie Strommen. He graduated from Augsburg College and Luther Seminary. Luther served the Lord all of his life. He was senior pastor at 3 congregations for over 42 years: First Lutheran Church in Ellensburg WA, Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Rockford IL, and Upper Arlington Lutheran Church in Columbus OH. Dad's love for his Lord and for family and friends continually inspired him. He is survived by his wife of 68 years, Helen Louise (nee Larson); by his 6 children: Mary Ellen (Mel) Liebers, Christine Strommen, Jeanine (Mark) Nesvig, Todd Strommen, Paul (Jude) Strommen, and Lisa (David) Smith; 9 grandchildren and 1 great-grandchild; brother, Merton (Irene) Strommen; sister-in-law, Gladys Strommen; many nieces and nephews. Preceding Luther in death were his parents and 2 brothers, Abner (Marge) and Clair. Visitation 4-7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 4, Washburn- McReavy Edina Chapel, W. 50th St. & Vernon Ave. at Hwy. 100. Funeral service 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 5 at Calvary Lutheran Church, 7520 Golden Valley Rd., Golden Valley. Private interment Lakewood Cemetery. Memorials preferred to Augsburg College or Lutheran World Relief. www.Washburn-McReavy.com Edina Chapel 952-920-3996

You can stop the Obamataxes

Vote him out!

After a film maker was accused publicly and in the press for 1400 years of Muslim bad behavior . . .

he “was arrested for jeopardizing President Obama's reelection chances when Mr. Obama's story of the events in the Middle East unraveled.

An American diplomat was murdered and American embassies and consulates were burned. Americans were not interested in hearing about diversity and multi-culturalism. They wanted a head on a platter.

Rather than sacrifice the entire State Department, Mr. Obama decided that the film-maker made the perfect pawn.

The film-maker was arrested on a "probation violation," for a prior low level white collar crime. Usually this involves a low bail amount. Even Bernie Madoff received bail. Friends of Barack Obama such as Jon Corzine get a free pass, but the anti-Muslim film-maker had no right making President Obama's awful handling of the situation affect his polls.”

Read more at Washington Times

44th fund raiser–in California!

This past week—it will soon be surpassed.

And to think he whines about capitalism while going after the wealth of celebrities.

One note BO

There's a single theme in the Obama ads I see (before I hit mute)--they seem to be about Mitt Romney's wealth--not our wealth, not our investments, not our jobs, not our housing industry, not our borders, not our military deaths in Afghanistan, not black flags flying in the Middle East and in U.S. demonstrations. One note BO. Fail. Fail. Fail.

Obama has support from Chavez, a Communist

‘Obama is a good guy ... I think that if Obama was from Barlovento or some Caracas neighborhood, he'd vote for Chavez," the president told state TV, referring to a poor coastal town known for the African roots of its population.

Chavez is one of the world's most strident critics of Washington and his 14 years in office have been characterized by diplomatic spats and insults at the White House.

He called former U.S. President George W. Bush a "drunk" and the "devil." After an initial overture to Obama came to nothing, he said the new president had disappointed progressives the world over and was the "shame" of Africans.

But Chavez was back in a conciliatory mood in a TV interview with friend and former vice president Jose Vicente Rangel.

"After our triumph and the supposed, probable triumph of President Obama, with the extreme right defeated here and there, I hope we could start a new period of normal relations with the United States," he said.

"Obama recently said something very rational and fair ... that Venezuela is no threat to the interests of the United States," he added.

Since coming to office, Chavez has projected himself as the head of a global "anti-imperialist" movement inspired by his friend and ideological mentor Fidel Castro of Cuba.

Relations with Washington improved briefly after Obama took office in January 2009 and promised more engagement with Latin America. Chavez toned down his tirades against the "Yankee empire" and shook hands with the new U.S. leader at a summit.

But months later, he accused Obama of sticking to Bush's foreign policies and capitalist agenda, and the tirade against the United Sates began again.

Despite the ideological gulf between Washington and Caracas, both sides take a pragmatic approach when it comes to business, with OPEC member Venezuela remaining the United States' fourth biggest crude supplier.”

 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/30/venezuela-election-obama-idUSL1E8KU37A20120930

             

Ann Coulter on the Tea Party

Why does the “caring” left discourage wealth?

The earthquake in Haiti was a magnitude of 7.0. According to Wikipedia, the 1989 Loma Prieta quake in San Francisco was either 7.0 or 6.9 depending on which scale is used. In other words, the intensities were fairly similar. Haiti is devastated. If the New York Times is correct, the death toll could be in the tens of thousands. The death toll in the 1989 quake was 63, if you include indirect deaths due the quake.

The difference is wealth. San Francisco is one of the wealthiest areas in our part of the world, while Haiti is the poorest. Poverty makes natural disasters worse. Wealth mitigates natural disasters. You would think that those who worry about the poor of the world would promote policies that increase wealth. Instead, they push policies that restrain wealth creation, and they do it intentionally and knowing it will restrain wealth creation.

http://www.thefreemanonline.org/headline/wealth-poverty-and-natural-disasters/

Why do these people need subsidized phone service?

The program in Ohio cost $26.9 million in the first quarter of 2012, the most recent data available, versus $15.6 million in the same timeframe in 2011. Compared to the first quarter of 2011, the number of people in the program nearly doubled to more than a million.

I lived for 71 years without a cell phone (I now have an old one on my son’s plan), and now I’m paying on my phone bill (land line) so cell phone companies get $10 for each low-income “customer?”  And the media ripped Romney for his 47% statistic that it’s hard to appeal to people on a lower taxes platform?

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/news/subsidized-cell-phone-program-nearly-doubles-in-oh/nRDqC/

Economic reading, a list

• Against Monopoly
• Cafe Hayek
• Coordination Problem
• Division of Labour
• EconoLog
• Foundation for Economic Education
• Free Banking
• Heroes of Capitalism
• Knowledge Problem
• Liberty and Power
• Marginal Revolution
• No Coercion
• Orgs and Markets
• The Beacon (Independent Inst.)
• The Economic Way of Thinking
• The Freeman Online
• ThinkMarkets

It’s always the economy, Stupid, II

For me it's abortion, I admit I'm a single issue voter, and Obama is the most anti-life at both ends president we’ve ever elected. But for most Americans, who don’t even seem that concerned about our safety and security also heading for the toilet, it's the economy. And on that Obama has been flat out awful--going after healthcare instead of the economy when Democrats had 2 of the 3 branches of government. While people lost jobs, homes and hope. Never waste a crisis, and he's had plenty to play with--like right now in the Middle East. And he will keep his promise to destroy coal, part of Ohio's economy. And what do Ohioans do? Act stupid and support him.

Under Obama’s watch, black unemployment has gone from bad to worse. It was 12 percent when Obama took office, and now it’s 14 percent. Average black unemployment in Ohio last year was 17.2 percent, compared to 7.6 percent for whites and 8.8 percent for Hispanics and Latinos, according to the most recent annualized figures available from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. But employed, middle class black Ohioans, secure in public service positions with tenure or unions, will vote him another 4 years.

"As the U.S. unemployment rate hit 9.5% in June 2009 and a shocked public was looking for a response, the new president introduced the Affordable Care Act. Whatever else one may say about ObamaCare, it has nothing directly to do with U.S. employment. For the next nine months, as unemployment ran between 9.5% and 10%, Congress at Mr. Obama's insistence worked on his health-care legislation. When Mr. Obama signed the bill into law in March 2010, the unemployment rate was 9.8%. If an opponent wanted to describe this in partisan terms, he might say that the president legislated an entitlement dream while the economy burned." Daniel Henninger, It's always the economy, Stupid. Sept. 27, WSJ

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/news/national-govt-politics/black-joblessness-redefining-presidential-race/nR8N8/

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443328404578020413697528982.html

Noted in the news—the mess in Syria

U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon called for an end to arms shipments to both sides in Syria’s brutal war between Western-backed rebels and the Bashir al-Assad dictatorship before the conflict spins out of control. President Obama, on the other hand, did not call for an end to the violence and bloodshed. Instead, he spoke out in favor of the rebels-many of whom are actually al-Qaeda affiliated foreign jihadists seeking to create an Islamist dictatorship- and vowed to continue supporting them in a bid to topple Assad’s dictatorship. Thousands of civilians have died, and Christians are being “ethnically cleansed.”

http://www.thenewamerican.com/world-news/asia/item/12989-un-chief-calls-for-end-to-syria-war-obama-vows-more-aid-for-rebels

Check this: http://www.cfr.org/syria/al-qaedas-specter-syria/p28782

It’s always the economy, Stupid

"As the U.S. unemployment rate hit 9.5% in June 2009 and a shocked public was looking for a response, the new president introduced the Affordable Care Act. Whatever else one may say about ObamaCare, it has nothing directly to do with U.S. employment. For the next nine months, as unemployment ran between 9.5% and 10%, Congress at Mr. Obama's insistence worked on his health-care legislation. When Mr. Obama signed the bill into law in March 2010, the unemployment rate was 9.8%. If an opponent wanted to describe this in partisan terms, he might say that the president legislated an entitlement dream while the economy burned." Daniel Henninger, It's always the economy, Stupid. Sept. 27, 2012 Wall Street Journal

Never let a crisis go to waste as his advisors said.  He took over the health care industry while unemployment rose, people lost their jobs, their homes, and their hope and change.  They are probably too discouraged to vote, or think their government benefits depends on his good heart. His die-hard supporters who haven’t lost anything but maybe a raise or two, will blindly vote for 4 more years of this.

http://www.doughroller.net/news-analysis/health-care-reform-bill-facts-figures/  26 facts known about Obamacare at the time of its passage

http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/ir_6.htm  How Obamacare will increase unemployment

http://thecollegeconservative.com/2012/06/27/the-real-face-of-obamacare-suddenly-unemployed-young-people/  How Obamacare increases youth unemployment

Don’t blame First Nanny.

Michelle Obama is getting a lot of blame for the unpopular features in some school lunch programs, First Nanny, etc. and maybe that's a popular political stance for the anti-Obama crowd, but this type of government manipulation of food and nutrition goes waaaay back, first for farmers to pay for over production after WWII, then the low-come and poor, and the last two decades for the middle class purchasing processed and food-away-from home. Here's testimony from early in the GW Bush administration (2003). At that time it was thought "educating" people through labeling, media campaigns, health literacy and promotion would reduce obesity. And perhaps it did, because obesity in children slowed down about 10 years ago.

http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/news/testimony/obesity07162003.html

Looking back 40 years to the 1960s, when many of us in this room were children, just over four percent of 6- to 17-year-olds were overweight. Since then, that rate has more than tripled, to over 15 percent. And the problem doesn’t go away when children grow up. Nearly three out of every four overweight teenagers may become overweight adults.

I’m not willing to stand by and let that happen. American children deserve much better than being condemned to a lifetime of serious, costly, and potentially fatal medical complications associated with excess weight.

Richard H. Carmona, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.S.
Surgeon General
U.S. Public Health Service
Acting Assistant Secretary for Health
Department of Health and Human Services

July 16, 2003

The Real History of Slavery by Thomas Sowell

The following is a partial review of Thomas Sowell’s book, “Black Rednecks and White Liberals,” and appeared in the October 2005 issue of Freeman, a libertarian publication. Review is by Richard M. Ebeling.  I don’t know how successful this book was—seems to be a compilation of his columns which appeared in newspapers—and I don’t know if there were revisions.  It would be good to review the history of slavery, especially since in modern times, we now know it is a larger enterprise in the 21st century than it was in the 18th century because of selling sex, and cheap labor.  And just as Arabs sold black Africans to the Europeans from raids in the interior of Africa, so Muslims today are capturing and selling slaves in Africa and Asia.  So his conclusion (the reviewer, I assume) that ending it in the British Empire closed that chapter isn’t accurate.

“A related theme that Sowell discusses in a chapter on “The Real History of Slavery” is that the institution of human bondage is far older than the experience of black enslavement in colonial and then independent America. Indeed, slavery has burdened the human race during all of recorded history and everywhere around the globe. Its origins and practice have had nothing to do with race or racism. Ancient Greeks enslaved other Greeks; Romans enslaved other Europeans; Asians enslaved Asians; and Africans enslaved Africans, just as the Aztecs enslaved other native groups in what we now call Mexico and Central America. Among the most prominent slave traders and slave owners up to our own time have been Arabs, who enslaved Europeans, black Africans, and Asians. In fact, while officially banned, it is an open secret that such slavery still exists in a number of Muslim countries in Africa and the Middle East.

Equally ignored, Sowell reminds us, is that it was only in the West that slavery was challenged on philosophical and political grounds, and that antislavery efforts became a mass movement in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Slavery was first ended in the European countries, and then Western pressure in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries brought about its demise in most of the rest of the world. But this fact has been downplayed because it does not fit into the politically correct fashions of our time. It is significant that in 1984, on the 150th anniversary of the ending of slavery in the British Empire, there was virtually no celebration of what was a historically profound turning point in bringing this terrible institution to a close around the world.’

Obamataxes are coming

George H.W. Bush lost the support of his party when he went back on his promise not to raise taxes and was defeated by Bill Clinton with  the help of Republicans who chased a 3rd party dream—Ross Perot.  But for Obama, it actually increases his support from die hard Democrats. They just love taxes!

Obama giving $450 million to Muslim Brotherhood, a terrorist organization

This is peanuts—he’s supporting a $4.8 Billion loan from International Monetary Fund.

The Obama administration notified Congress on Friday that it would provide Egypt’s new government an emergency cash infusion of $450 million, but the aid immediately encountered resistance from a prominent lawmaker wary of foreign aid and Egypt’s new course under the leadership of the Muslim Brotherhood.

The aid is part of the $1 billion in assistance that the Obama administration has pledged to Egypt to bolster its transition to democracy after the overthrow last year of the former president, Hosni Mubarak. Its fate, however, was clouded by concerns over the new government’s policies and, more recently, the protests that damaged the American Embassy in Cairo.

The United States Agency for International Development notified Congress of the cash infusion on Friday morning during the pre-election recess, promptly igniting a smoldering debate over foreign aid and the administration’s handling of crises in the Islamic world.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/29/world/middleeast/white-house-move-to-give-egypt-450-million-in-aid-meets-resistance.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0

But would they be shocked by a 2nd trimester abortion?

Arms and legs are twisted off the body, lungs and heart ripped out and laid on the table to be reassembled after the head is removed.

The curator testified that animals had been euthanized in shocking ways at the Reston Zoo: Some were shot, rabbits were slammed into walls and chickens were fed to pythons.

But in a Fairfax County courtroom Friday, Ashley Rood said she reached her breaking point after uncovering evidence that the zoo’s director, Meghan Mogensen, had drowned an injured wallaby named Parmesan in a plastic bucket.

Washington Post, Sept. 29

“The D&E or Dilatation & Evacuation method was developed and largely replaced the above. It involves the live dismemberment of the baby and piecemeal removal from below.

A pliers-like instrument is used because the baby’s bones are calcified, as is the skull. There is no anesthetic for the baby. The abortionist inserts the instrument up into the uterus, seizes a leg or other part of the body, and, with a twisting motion, tears it from the baby’s body. This is repeated again and again. The spine must be snapped, and the skull crushed to remove them. The nurse’s job is to reassemble the body parts to be sure that all are removed.”

http://www.abortionfacts.com/online_books/love_them_both/why_cant_we_love_them_both_18.asp

I’m a single issue voter—LIFE

I have a big ol' Thompson Chain Reference NIV Bible that I take to my Saturday class (we're doing Beth Moore's David). Because she was doing an armor of God passage, I looked up the "chain" topic to see what other passages had a similar meaning. The topic (374) BATTLE OF LIFE was in bold on the upper right hand of the page on the right hand side of the open Bible, a total of 4.5 columns (turning the page). Then I noticed the word on the upper left of the page on the left. BARAK. One verse. Can we say confirmation for this single issue voter?

                         

Susan Rice

The woman who went on five different Sunday talk shows a week ago to lie to the American people about the attack in Libya on
9/11, saying it was a spontaneous protest when the administration knew it was in fact a terrorist attack 24 hours after it occurred, skipped Israeli Ambassador Benjamin Netanyahu's speech yesterday at the U.N. General Assembly in New York City. U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice instead decided to go to a lunch with foreign ministers. There is no word on whether Rice's decision to skip Netanyahu's speech was spontaneous or planned in advance.

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2012/09/28/us_embassador_susan_rice_skipped_netanyahu_speech

The same people careless with womb life may not think boomer life is so great either.

https://www.facebook.com/DesignsbyBirgit#!/DesignsbyBirgit

Is it a lie if everyone else knows the truth?

Kathleen McKinley, Houston Chronicle, 9-28-12

"We now know that Ambassador Susan Rice went on all Sunday news shows a week ago and knowingly lied to America by saying the Libyan attack was a protest that went wrong, and NOT a planned terrorist attack. The White House also falsely insisted that it was because of a video on Youtube. Not for a day or two, but for TWO WEEKS. The White House not only knew within 24 hours of the attacks that it was a planned terrorist attack, they also knew that Al Qaeda was most likely behind the attack."

Well, Yes, Kathleen, this is true, however, everyone knew the WH was lying.  I think I had it figured out the next day.  The harm is to his imploding reputation. Democrat presidents don't just lie about sex.

Major Crimes—it’s just not working for me

"I asked for season 7 of the Closer (DVD) for my birthday last week, which my daughter and son in law gave me when we went out to eat at the Rusty Bucket. Oops. My husband had started over with season one, is viewing one a day, so it may be after Christmas before I get to see it (we watch them together).  Yesterday he started season Two. He's the kind of guy who can put a package of double fudge brownies in the freezer and only eat one a day!"

Kyra Sedgwick the star of the Closer:

After seven seasons, the ratings keep going up. For some people, this would mean staying until viewers stopped watching. But Sedgwick was happy that fans are still begging for "The Closer" not to end. The 46-year-old admitted to the L.A. Times, "People come up to me all the time and go, 'Please! Don't! Why?' It's heartbreaking, and I feel badly about it, but I'm also thankful they're saying that and not, 'You're still doing that show? Oy!' It's so much better to leave having people want more."

                   

Forty days of prayer

         

‎40 days of prayer (before the election) started today. When I googled this I found a lot of groups--Catholics, evangelicals, Baptists, and various ministries I've never heard of. I think I even saw that Planned Parenthood was doing some sort of prayer thing, which seems really odd. (Please God, send us more helpless babies? The coffers are getting low.) So I was in exercise class at UALC-Lytham, bored (I hate exercise), so I prayed while following the routine. Up with God, 2-3-4/down with debt 2-3-4; heal the nation 3-4/change our hearts 3-4.

Today, our nation faces multiple crises – pending economic collapse, moral disintegration, and international terrorism -- but all have spiritual underpinnings. Together, they are even more daunting than those Americans confronted in 1776, 1863 and 1941.

Now as then, our national survival is at stake.

Now as then, our destiny rests in God's hands. The crises confronting us are beyond the power of human beings to resolve without Divine guidance.

Nothing short of a Third Great Awakening can save us.

And then there was this one in the 40 days before the 2008 Election:

Whomever is elected, we must remember the words that Daniel spoke to a godless king, Belshazzar, many centuries ago. He said: “The Most High God is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and sets over them anyone he wishes.” (Daniel 5:21)

But this one, by Catholic Sistas, actually had a list of what to pray for.

Take back our language

The term “politically correct” has become very trite and is applied to everything from learning disabilities (“differently abled” for emotionally disturbed, disruptive students) or career choices (“sanitation engineer” for garbage truck driver).

Calmly speak the truth, and if you are called a racist, a homophobe or an Islamophobe when telling the truth, stop the assault, because that is what it is. You are being silenced, not with a loaded gun but with loaded words.

• Being concerned about what Islamic leaders declare publicly about the destruction of Israel, is not Islam-hating or bigotry—it is citing their own sources and leaders—believe them;
• saying Obama is a food stamp president is not racist—it is the policy of his own administration to actively recruit low income people to government programs—bonuses and stimulus money are used for this and it manipulates their loyalties;
• supporting the Biblical definition of marriage is not gay bashing, it is God’s plan for the continuance of the human race with whom he wants to be in relationship, the very people for whom Jesus died.