Recently on my Facebook Account, I've been posting comments about my favorite Advent hymn, O Come O Come Emmanuel. Since my musings are more expansive then their character allotment , I'm switching to the blog format. In modern times, the pieces has curiously become known as a Christmas carol. Yet this is not a song of celebration, but of intense and exquisite spiritual longing, coupled with a joy anticipated, but unfulfillable before Christ's birth.
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel.
The reference in the first verse written above to "captive Israel" hearkens back to the Babylonian captivity of Israel. The nation born away in chains and dispersed throughout Babylon, which then was subsequently overtaken by Persia, longed for her deliverer, for her Messiah to restore her to her former glory. In a foreshadowing of the redemption that God offers His chosen people, He has a daughter of Israel, Esther, made queen of Persia. When an evil government official, Haman, manipulates the king to arrange the extermination of the entire Jewish race within his kingdom, Mordecai, Esther's uncle and guardian prods her to act on her people's behalf.
Esther requests her uncle to call on their fellow Jews to fast and repent, and then, at peril of her own life, pleads for her people. The King's law is immutable, but a way of mercy is provided. The slaughter is averted. The true evil is purged. The Jews are delivered and later under Cyrus their exile is ended and they begin their return to Israel.
But Israel remained captive to its own sin. Time and again, she had fallen into apostasy and separation. A remnant of righteous believers, some of them spoken of in the Book of Hebrews, remained true, stirring up the faith, igniting the flame and fanning the hope in the promised by the Ancient of Days: O Come.. O Come Emmanuel.
Several years ago, I attended a church where an interpretative dance was performed to this hymn. The dancer began the number swathed in sheer black veils, hands in chains. The visual impact was stunning- Israel, captive without the freedom to move physically, or spiritually clothed in garments of mourning.
Sometime, as Christians, despite having received the Promise, we still fail to walk in own deliverance. Instead of embracing our freedom in Christ, we allow ourselves to be taken captive by sin. Though we have Emmanuel, God with us, and by the Holy Spirit, we have the power to do as Paul admonishes us in 2CO 10:5 and take even "every thought captive to the obedience of Christ."
Traditionally, Advent has always been a time for inward reflection. Once the province of the liturgical churches, the keeping of Advent is now found in a broad spectrum of Christian denominations, non-denominations, and fellowships. As we make preparations to celebrate Christmas, take time to consider the state of your walk. Are you captive to the world, or are you experiencing freedom in Christ?
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Happy Anniversary
Today, dear friends and gentle-people, marks the 39th anniversary of the infamous invasion of the eastern half of partitioned Poland by the Soviet Union. And to mark our solidarity with the Polish people; to take a stand against tyranny; to remind the world of the criminality of the Lenin-Marxist government that was imposed on the Polish people against their will; to recall once again the blood spilled by Stalin; what is it that President Obama does?
Today, this Chicago politician, whose claim to fame is an ivy league education and the work experience of a community organizer, merely pretended to be an American president. He acted like a Frenchmen, or at best, like someone channeling Neville Chamberlain. Gambling away the freedom of Poland and other Eastern European countries, Obama reneged on commitments made by President George W. Bush to provide a missile shield for these countries, offering them protection from Russia's reawakening expansionist appetites and Iran's nuclear capabilities.
Instead, President Obama licked the boots of Russia's Vladmir Putin. Hoping to, maybe, if possible, if everything works out, this is what I'd like in return: Putin to agree with the US about sanctions against Iran at the UN, and have the Russian leader st Betrayal. I do not believe that intelligence has changed all that much in a year-only the man in charge.
"D"
Today, this Chicago politician, whose claim to fame is an ivy league education and the work experience of a community organizer, merely pretended to be an American president. He acted like a Frenchmen, or at best, like someone channeling Neville Chamberlain. Gambling away the freedom of Poland and other Eastern European countries, Obama reneged on commitments made by President George W. Bush to provide a missile shield for these countries, offering them protection from Russia's reawakening expansionist appetites and Iran's nuclear capabilities.
Instead, President Obama licked the boots of Russia's Vladmir Putin. Hoping to, maybe, if possible, if everything works out, this is what I'd like in return: Putin to agree with the US about sanctions against Iran at the UN, and have the Russian leader st Betrayal. I do not believe that intelligence has changed all that much in a year-only the man in charge.
"D"
Saturday, August 22, 2009
The Democratic Potty
Long have I thought that certain members of the House and Senate were better suited to serve in a preschool than in an official governing capacity. I come to this conclusion based on 25 years of experience as a preschool teacher. Now it seems these members have found a voice in our President.
Recently at a health care forum Mr. Obama made this stunning declaration:
"There is something about August going into September where everybody in Washington gets all wee weed up."
Now, at first, mindful of the fact that he had visited France in June, I thought perhaps he was showing off his linguistic skills. However, it soon became obvious that his choice of words had nothing to do with the French language.
Good Lord, is this the great orator I keep hearing about? If potty words make for a skilled orator then I have a classroom full of them. Better than our President, really, because they have also been heard to say poo-poo.
Since this is the level of communication our president aspires to I have decided to make a list of other effective phrases heard in my preschool classroom. I'm sure these will come in handy, not only when addressing the American people, but in dealing with the leaders of other countries.
1. I'm not your friend anymore.
This is a proclamation sure to cause great concern to those sycophants who need you to be the sun to their solar system, the Jack to their Jill, the green eggs to their ham. They cannot envision functioning without you by their side and subsequently will do anything to regain your favor. Crying and pouting is the typical reaction among my 3 year olds so have a box of tissues at the ready.
2. You can't come to my birthday party.
This is guaranteed to stop anyone in their tracks. It doesn't matter if you just celebrated your birthday and cannot follow through on this threat for 364 days. The mere suggestion of being out of the loop is a powerful persuasion to tow the line and remember who is the leader and who is the follower.
3. I'm going to tell the teacher.
This is a little harder because technically there is no one in a higher position than you. I'm pretty sure threatening to tell the vice-president would be met by anything from smiles to outright belly laughs. Perhaps you could use Rahm's name. After all, who wants to find a dead fish in their mailbox? I had a boy in my class who drew pictures of dead spiders to terrorize the girls. Same idea.
4. You're a poopeyhead.
Any insult that contains a reference to a bodily function is a sure fire crowd pleaser. You will hear yourself quoted for the rest of the day until a grown-up gets tired of hearing it and predicts dire consequences for the next person who utters that phrase. I mean it.
I hope these suggestions prove to be helpful in future speeches, Mr. President. If I hear one of them I will consider it a shout out to me. One caveat, though, they don't work on grown ups. But considering the level of people you have chosen to surround yourself with I think you'll find these childish attempts at intimidation to be very well received.
Dee "The Disruptor"
Recently at a health care forum Mr. Obama made this stunning declaration:
"There is something about August going into September where everybody in Washington gets all wee weed up."
Now, at first, mindful of the fact that he had visited France in June, I thought perhaps he was showing off his linguistic skills. However, it soon became obvious that his choice of words had nothing to do with the French language.
Good Lord, is this the great orator I keep hearing about? If potty words make for a skilled orator then I have a classroom full of them. Better than our President, really, because they have also been heard to say poo-poo.
Since this is the level of communication our president aspires to I have decided to make a list of other effective phrases heard in my preschool classroom. I'm sure these will come in handy, not only when addressing the American people, but in dealing with the leaders of other countries.
1. I'm not your friend anymore.
This is a proclamation sure to cause great concern to those sycophants who need you to be the sun to their solar system, the Jack to their Jill, the green eggs to their ham. They cannot envision functioning without you by their side and subsequently will do anything to regain your favor. Crying and pouting is the typical reaction among my 3 year olds so have a box of tissues at the ready.
2. You can't come to my birthday party.
This is guaranteed to stop anyone in their tracks. It doesn't matter if you just celebrated your birthday and cannot follow through on this threat for 364 days. The mere suggestion of being out of the loop is a powerful persuasion to tow the line and remember who is the leader and who is the follower.
3. I'm going to tell the teacher.
This is a little harder because technically there is no one in a higher position than you. I'm pretty sure threatening to tell the vice-president would be met by anything from smiles to outright belly laughs. Perhaps you could use Rahm's name. After all, who wants to find a dead fish in their mailbox? I had a boy in my class who drew pictures of dead spiders to terrorize the girls. Same idea.
4. You're a poopeyhead.
Any insult that contains a reference to a bodily function is a sure fire crowd pleaser. You will hear yourself quoted for the rest of the day until a grown-up gets tired of hearing it and predicts dire consequences for the next person who utters that phrase. I mean it.
I hope these suggestions prove to be helpful in future speeches, Mr. President. If I hear one of them I will consider it a shout out to me. One caveat, though, they don't work on grown ups. But considering the level of people you have chosen to surround yourself with I think you'll find these childish attempts at intimidation to be very well received.
Dee "The Disruptor"
Thursday, August 20, 2009
God Has Children Not Partners
I started my morning believing that I would be attacking the meaty topic of David Axelrod, another one of President Obama's staff's that has made my scoundrels list. However, Mr. Obama stopped me in my tracks.
I still remember the campaigner Obama's flip remark dismissing a certain area of voters as being only concerned with God's and guns. His disdain did not win him votes among that constituency. (Though, he managed some sort of apology.) Now he evokes the assistance of faith to get his political job done. He held a teleconference with 30 faith based groups and 140,000 people. Hmmm. I can just imagine, President George W. Bush having called faith based teleconference, whose agenda was to get a bill pushed through Congress. The cries of separation of church and state from the Dems and the rush of ACLU lawyers to file lawsuits would have been akin to tornado ripping straight up Pennsylvania Avenue.
Now could it be something as crass as which faith leaders, Mr. Obama leaders were called that makes the difference? Here's the list: National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.; Progressive National Baptist Convention; Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism; NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby; United Methodist Church General Board of Church and Society; The Episcopal Church; Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference; Jewish Council for Public Affairs; Gamaliel Foundation; Faithful Reform in Health Care; Unitarian Universalist Association; African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME); The New Evangelicals; National Council of Churches in Christ; Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; United Church of Christ; The Latino Leadership Circle; Christian Community Development Association; Islamic Society of North America; Washington Office of Women’s Divisions, General Board of Global Ministries, United Methodist Church; Jewish Women International; Islamic Medical Association of North America; Presbyterian Church (USA), Washington Office; Disciples Center for Public Witness; Disciples Justice Action Network; Catholics United; Faith in Public Life; Faithful America; PICO National Network; Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good; Sojourners.
I recognize many of these names as representing the liberal side of American Protestantism, Catholicism, and Judaisim. I went to the website of two of the lest identifiable names, the Gamaliel Foundation and the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Foundation. My personal opinion is that former has very little faith represented on its website other that a belief that their political objective are ordained by God and they organized based on studying the epistles of Paul for his skills as a leader. (They are named for the Rabbi Gamaliel due to the reference in Acts where he speaks on how to handle the Sanhedrin's "Christian" problem.) The SDWP Foundation showcased a message of support for the controversial Rev. Jeremiah Wright from one of the elders speaking for the "Village". They, too, are highly involved in litigation and activism. Others, such as the Latino Leadership Group, are part of the emergent church movement, which is a highly controversial redefining of Christian though with emphasis on social justice.
What's scary is what this group of thirty has united to do. They have founded the website www.faithforhealth.org specifically to promote the passage of Obama's health care reform, using the resources of organizations, access to membership, advertisement, etc. concentrated into a 40 day blitz. They hoped to give Obama's plan the sanction of legitimacy and divinity redubbing it "health reform".
Do I go to far by claiming divinity? I think not. Ben Smith's Blog reported that Rabbi Jack Moline, an attendee at the conference twittered that Pres. Obama said, "We are God's partners in matters of life and death."*
Note to President Obama: GOD HAS NO PARTNERS! He has sons; He has daughters. I don't know of even any junior partners being let into the firm. We can be children by adoption, according to the Bible, but I don't see any right to run the Universe. In the end, we get to work and rule, but strictly under Him.
The way I see it, the responsibility for the poor, the elderly, and the uninsured rest with their families and the church. If the government, federal and local stopped taxing us to death, we would have the funds to live up to our responsibilities and live free from fear and government entanglement. Hey! Isn't that a novel idea.
We do have responsbility in matters of life in death. We must uphold the unborn's right to live. God knows the unborn in the womb; He fashions them there; He knows their lenghth of days before they are even yet born. We can give our Creator, obedience in preserving life. Stop abortion now. If we can't overturn Roe v. Wade, let us surely do everything we can to impede it! The right to abortion should not be the right to goverment funded abortion. Partial-birth abortion must be banned forever. Most of all stop abortion by changing as many hearts as we can. We can value the life of our elderly. Give them the proper care they deserve. Stop relying on the goverment to provide everything for your parents. Maybe the money for that drug they need needs to come from their kids and not Uncle Sam. Exo 20:12 "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the LORD your God gives you. Let dying die good deaths when they choose-and I'm not talking slowly dehydrated to death. Withdrawal of liquids is a horrendous way to die. I have seen it. Stop worrying that the terminally ill are going to be addicts and let them have the pain medicine. On the other hand those who are up for the fight and battle for life have the right, because in the end only God knows the number of their day.
So, Mr. President, I really don't trust you and your faith squad to have the best interests, or God's interests at heart. You guys have a tendency to make Him over into your image when ever the spirit-whatever spirit it is -moves you. This country doesn't need your kind of faith based health reform!
Moline - Has removed his tweets regarding the conference. Jml548 My lack of tech literacy results in a huge mistake -- apologies to all for my tweets this afternoon. They have been deleted.
I still remember the campaigner Obama's flip remark dismissing a certain area of voters as being only concerned with God's and guns. His disdain did not win him votes among that constituency. (Though, he managed some sort of apology.) Now he evokes the assistance of faith to get his political job done. He held a teleconference with 30 faith based groups and 140,000 people. Hmmm. I can just imagine, President George W. Bush having called faith based teleconference, whose agenda was to get a bill pushed through Congress. The cries of separation of church and state from the Dems and the rush of ACLU lawyers to file lawsuits would have been akin to tornado ripping straight up Pennsylvania Avenue.
Now could it be something as crass as which faith leaders, Mr. Obama leaders were called that makes the difference? Here's the list: National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.; Progressive National Baptist Convention; Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism; NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby; United Methodist Church General Board of Church and Society; The Episcopal Church; Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference; Jewish Council for Public Affairs; Gamaliel Foundation; Faithful Reform in Health Care; Unitarian Universalist Association; African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME); The New Evangelicals; National Council of Churches in Christ; Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; United Church of Christ; The Latino Leadership Circle; Christian Community Development Association; Islamic Society of North America; Washington Office of Women’s Divisions, General Board of Global Ministries, United Methodist Church; Jewish Women International; Islamic Medical Association of North America; Presbyterian Church (USA), Washington Office; Disciples Center for Public Witness; Disciples Justice Action Network; Catholics United; Faith in Public Life; Faithful America; PICO National Network; Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good; Sojourners.
I recognize many of these names as representing the liberal side of American Protestantism, Catholicism, and Judaisim. I went to the website of two of the lest identifiable names, the Gamaliel Foundation and the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Foundation. My personal opinion is that former has very little faith represented on its website other that a belief that their political objective are ordained by God and they organized based on studying the epistles of Paul for his skills as a leader. (They are named for the Rabbi Gamaliel due to the reference in Acts where he speaks on how to handle the Sanhedrin's "Christian" problem.) The SDWP Foundation showcased a message of support for the controversial Rev. Jeremiah Wright from one of the elders speaking for the "Village". They, too, are highly involved in litigation and activism. Others, such as the Latino Leadership Group, are part of the emergent church movement, which is a highly controversial redefining of Christian though with emphasis on social justice.
What's scary is what this group of thirty has united to do. They have founded the website www.faithforhealth.org specifically to promote the passage of Obama's health care reform, using the resources of organizations, access to membership, advertisement, etc. concentrated into a 40 day blitz. They hoped to give Obama's plan the sanction of legitimacy and divinity redubbing it "health reform".
Do I go to far by claiming divinity? I think not. Ben Smith's Blog reported that Rabbi Jack Moline, an attendee at the conference twittered that Pres. Obama said, "We are God's partners in matters of life and death."*
Note to President Obama: GOD HAS NO PARTNERS! He has sons; He has daughters. I don't know of even any junior partners being let into the firm. We can be children by adoption, according to the Bible, but I don't see any right to run the Universe. In the end, we get to work and rule, but strictly under Him.
The way I see it, the responsibility for the poor, the elderly, and the uninsured rest with their families and the church. If the government, federal and local stopped taxing us to death, we would have the funds to live up to our responsibilities and live free from fear and government entanglement. Hey! Isn't that a novel idea.
We do have responsbility in matters of life in death. We must uphold the unborn's right to live. God knows the unborn in the womb; He fashions them there; He knows their lenghth of days before they are even yet born. We can give our Creator, obedience in preserving life. Stop abortion now. If we can't overturn Roe v. Wade, let us surely do everything we can to impede it! The right to abortion should not be the right to goverment funded abortion. Partial-birth abortion must be banned forever. Most of all stop abortion by changing as many hearts as we can. We can value the life of our elderly. Give them the proper care they deserve. Stop relying on the goverment to provide everything for your parents. Maybe the money for that drug they need needs to come from their kids and not Uncle Sam. Exo 20:12 "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the LORD your God gives you. Let dying die good deaths when they choose-and I'm not talking slowly dehydrated to death. Withdrawal of liquids is a horrendous way to die. I have seen it. Stop worrying that the terminally ill are going to be addicts and let them have the pain medicine. On the other hand those who are up for the fight and battle for life have the right, because in the end only God knows the number of their day.
So, Mr. President, I really don't trust you and your faith squad to have the best interests, or God's interests at heart. You guys have a tendency to make Him over into your image when ever the spirit-whatever spirit it is -moves you. This country doesn't need your kind of faith based health reform!
Moline - Has removed his tweets regarding the conference. Jml548 My lack of tech literacy results in a huge mistake -- apologies to all for my tweets this afternoon. They have been deleted.
Friday, August 14, 2009
"Dirty Dancing"
Rahm Emmanuel serves as President Obama’s chief-of-staff and as part of the Clinton administration acquired a tough, no-holds, enforcer reputation. Little attention is paid to the period of time he resigned as Clinton’s aid in 1998 until 2001. Then, he successfully made a bid for the House Seat in the Illinois 5th District in 2002 elections.
It appears Mr. Emmanuel took the plunge into investment banking. I find this very interesting. After hearing this information, on Glen Beck’s program on Fox News (Aug. 13, 2009), I checked out some basic facts.
· Rahm Emmanuel graduated from Evanston School of Ballet, turned down a scholarship to the Joffrery Ballet to attend Sarah Lawrence College, a school with a strong dance program. There he received a B.A. in the Liberal Arts, followed by a M.A. in Speech and Communication. (Northwestern, University, 1985).
· With no background in business, or banking, he lands a plum job at Wasserstein Perella from 1998 –mid 2002. In 1998, he becomes director of the Chicago office.
· During this stint, he was involved in 8 deals and reaped a 16½ million dollar profit.
· One of those deals generated almost all of the profits. The sale of Southwestern Bell Company’s Security Link unit to GTCR Golder Rauner in order to facilitate SBC’s purchase of Ameritec. (Today through further morphs and mergers SBC has become AT&T.)
· In 2000, Pres. Clinton appointed, Emmanuel to the board of Freddie Mac for a salary and later stock sales of almost $320,000. He is not known to have attended board meetings, or to have been assigned to any working committees.
· Rahm Emmanuel headed the GTCR Golder Rauner investment group that picked up the bargain priced Security Link. *
· Who head SBC at the time of the Security Link Sale? Edward Whiteacre
· To what was Mr. Whiteacre recently appointed? The Treasury Department selected him to become the new chairman of GM.
· Emmanuel’s group sells it for over $1 billion*
*These items were the only one’s that I have not been able to cross check as of today:
1. That Security link was purchased by GTCR for a bargain price. 2. That GTCR group sold Security Link for between 1 and 1.5 billion dollars.
Remember these things:
· Rahm Emmanuel made almost all of that 16 ½ million from a deal that involved Mr. Whiteacre
· Mr. Emmanuel served during the time Freddie Mae was cooking the books and creating some of the most horrendous indiscretions in accounting and lending ever seen in the mortgage industry.
· In the House. Rep. Emmanuel sat on the Financial Service’s Committee, but recused himself from the subcommittee investigating Freddie Mac to supposedly avoid the appearance of impropriety, or conflict of interests
· The Obama administration, rejected a request by The Chicago Tribune under the Freedom Information Act to go over the board meeting minutes and correspondence of Freddie Mac during the time Emmanuel served there. The request was denied.
Well, it looks like while Rahm Emmanuel was studying ballet, he, also learned to the fine art of the political two-step in the heart of Chicago.
Mr. Emmanuel to you, I say that for someone so concerned about the appearance of impropriety you seem to like shutting the barn after the cow has escaped. For the administration to appoint Mr. Whiteacre as GM’s Chairman when you have had financial dealings that benefited you personally with him appears improper to others and me. There are other great businessmen that don’t have financial ties to you, or others, in the administration. (Not to mention this man has no automotive industry experience.)
You are a dirty dancer, Mr. Emmanuel, in an administration of dirty dancers. As for transparency, you and your crew would like to be wearing lead suits, the kind that Superman can’t see through. You have no intention of being transparent; but your deeds still find you out…the trail of slime is always left behind when you dance in the muck and mire.
“D”
It appears Mr. Emmanuel took the plunge into investment banking. I find this very interesting. After hearing this information, on Glen Beck’s program on Fox News (Aug. 13, 2009), I checked out some basic facts.
· Rahm Emmanuel graduated from Evanston School of Ballet, turned down a scholarship to the Joffrery Ballet to attend Sarah Lawrence College, a school with a strong dance program. There he received a B.A. in the Liberal Arts, followed by a M.A. in Speech and Communication. (Northwestern, University, 1985).
· With no background in business, or banking, he lands a plum job at Wasserstein Perella from 1998 –mid 2002. In 1998, he becomes director of the Chicago office.
· During this stint, he was involved in 8 deals and reaped a 16½ million dollar profit.
· One of those deals generated almost all of the profits. The sale of Southwestern Bell Company’s Security Link unit to GTCR Golder Rauner in order to facilitate SBC’s purchase of Ameritec. (Today through further morphs and mergers SBC has become AT&T.)
· In 2000, Pres. Clinton appointed, Emmanuel to the board of Freddie Mac for a salary and later stock sales of almost $320,000. He is not known to have attended board meetings, or to have been assigned to any working committees.
· Rahm Emmanuel headed the GTCR Golder Rauner investment group that picked up the bargain priced Security Link. *
· Who head SBC at the time of the Security Link Sale? Edward Whiteacre
· To what was Mr. Whiteacre recently appointed? The Treasury Department selected him to become the new chairman of GM.
· Emmanuel’s group sells it for over $1 billion*
*These items were the only one’s that I have not been able to cross check as of today:
1. That Security link was purchased by GTCR for a bargain price. 2. That GTCR group sold Security Link for between 1 and 1.5 billion dollars.
Remember these things:
· Rahm Emmanuel made almost all of that 16 ½ million from a deal that involved Mr. Whiteacre
· Mr. Emmanuel served during the time Freddie Mae was cooking the books and creating some of the most horrendous indiscretions in accounting and lending ever seen in the mortgage industry.
· In the House. Rep. Emmanuel sat on the Financial Service’s Committee, but recused himself from the subcommittee investigating Freddie Mac to supposedly avoid the appearance of impropriety, or conflict of interests
· The Obama administration, rejected a request by The Chicago Tribune under the Freedom Information Act to go over the board meeting minutes and correspondence of Freddie Mac during the time Emmanuel served there. The request was denied.
Well, it looks like while Rahm Emmanuel was studying ballet, he, also learned to the fine art of the political two-step in the heart of Chicago.
Mr. Emmanuel to you, I say that for someone so concerned about the appearance of impropriety you seem to like shutting the barn after the cow has escaped. For the administration to appoint Mr. Whiteacre as GM’s Chairman when you have had financial dealings that benefited you personally with him appears improper to others and me. There are other great businessmen that don’t have financial ties to you, or others, in the administration. (Not to mention this man has no automotive industry experience.)
You are a dirty dancer, Mr. Emmanuel, in an administration of dirty dancers. As for transparency, you and your crew would like to be wearing lead suits, the kind that Superman can’t see through. You have no intention of being transparent; but your deeds still find you out…the trail of slime is always left behind when you dance in the muck and mire.
“D”
Sunday, August 9, 2009
"Ooops Your Sith Is Showing"
Mr. President, somebody in your entourage has been dropping the ball. They haven’t been playing it straight with you. Lately you’ve been walking around with your Sith nature hanging out, and J. Q. Public is starting to see it, but nobody has told you to hike it back up.
You know, back in the day, you could fake the Jedi thing pretty well. You would stand up in front of that teleprompter and mesmerize them with “change”, “believe”, “ hope”, “reform”. No, wait… you were actually just like Senator Palpatine. And now that you’ve got the job of president, well the analogy just seems to continue.
You achieved what you could through legislation having the gift of “party ownership” of Congress, but you have soon realized that this has not brought you true control. So eighteen times (or more depending upon the reference source one uses) you created offices and made appointments of czars to oversee them, who are accountable to no one but you. Congress did not confirm these appointments. The czars were given broad powers and funding to do their jobs with no public accountability. Other presidents have appointed czars, but never so many and for such a variety of reasons.
Then, there is the quality of your appointees. Here are three examples. Green jobs czar Van Jones is a self-avowed communist, black-activist and a radical green environmentalist. He has stated, in the past, that he will use any methods accessible to him to achieve his Marxist agenda. Your science czar John Holdren wrote about the constitutionality of required abortion to maintain population growth on a worldwide scale. Carol Browner, Clinton administrations retread and your energy czar comes to this position under a dark cloud. During her final day of running the EPA for President Clinton, she ordered the deletion of her computer records despite a court injunction to the contrary.
You keep company with people who voice chilling ideas-ideas that are shaping our future and will divide our nation and change its very nature. One of your top advisors in health reform, bioethicist Dr Ezekiel Rahm, expressed his belief that the Hippocratic Oath was an impediment to health reform. The “do no harm” section of the oath supposedly is responsible for unnecessary medical tests, and undo prolonging of life that drive up health care costs. He is the man recommending the compulsory end of life evaluations, which you would be required to have with your primary care doctor that would begin at age 65 and would continue at five-year intervals.
You were doing a good job controlling the media. Why you had the major networks stumbling over each other trying to get exclusives. It was a circus! But then, you let a little lace show. You planted that question from the Huffington Post blog. You managed to enrage even the Great Granny of the liberal press, Helen Thomas.
Evidently, you feel confident enough to show more of your true nature because the Sith is continuing to slip. You arranged to be questioned about the arrest of your friend Professor Gates in Cambridge by Sgt. Crowley. Admittedly without knowing the full circumstances, you made a judgment about the police involved saying they “acted stupidly.” You are charged with representing the people, not your friends. Your remarks were incendiary and fed racist ideology, but then again you spent twenty years in the pews of Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s church in Chicago. You seemed astounded by the negative reaction and once again try to return to the beatific, peaceful, Palpatine image, delivering a weak non-apology and having a beer at the White House. You orchestrated a teachable moment, but exactly what were you teaching? Better calibration? We saw camera shots from afar of the participants. You were talking and laughing. Vice-President Biden was doing a great impression of Ed McMahon roaring at everything you said, but Gates and Crowley seemed very subdued.
You jammed TARP down our throats; and the auto bailouts, and now you expect us to swallow health care reform. The snake on the Gaddesden flag representing the thirteen original colonies was not a boa constrictor. Just as it could not swallow a cow, we cannot swallow huge amounts of debt at a time and survive. In truth, people can only swallow so much deficit spending, so much government inefficiency, so much lying, and so much betrayal. You wish to take away our individualism, redistribute our wealth and the benefits derived by our achievements, relieve us of our personal responsibility to care for ourselves and our families, tax into an equal level of misery, and tell us this is a better, more American way of life. You, your advisers, your appointees and your faithful cohorts in Congress have awakened the hibernating rattler on that flag, and the people are beginning to shout: “Don’t Tread On Me!”
Mr. President, many notice that the man in the Oval Office does not lead our country, but attempts to rule our country. You, sir, are our stealth emperor. Take note, Emperor Obama, the history of the world has not been kind to emperors, nor has the world of fantasy and fiction. Americans will not tolerate an imperial presidency!
-"D"
You know, back in the day, you could fake the Jedi thing pretty well. You would stand up in front of that teleprompter and mesmerize them with “change”, “believe”, “ hope”, “reform”. No, wait… you were actually just like Senator Palpatine. And now that you’ve got the job of president, well the analogy just seems to continue.
You achieved what you could through legislation having the gift of “party ownership” of Congress, but you have soon realized that this has not brought you true control. So eighteen times (or more depending upon the reference source one uses) you created offices and made appointments of czars to oversee them, who are accountable to no one but you. Congress did not confirm these appointments. The czars were given broad powers and funding to do their jobs with no public accountability. Other presidents have appointed czars, but never so many and for such a variety of reasons.
Then, there is the quality of your appointees. Here are three examples. Green jobs czar Van Jones is a self-avowed communist, black-activist and a radical green environmentalist. He has stated, in the past, that he will use any methods accessible to him to achieve his Marxist agenda. Your science czar John Holdren wrote about the constitutionality of required abortion to maintain population growth on a worldwide scale. Carol Browner, Clinton administrations retread and your energy czar comes to this position under a dark cloud. During her final day of running the EPA for President Clinton, she ordered the deletion of her computer records despite a court injunction to the contrary.
You keep company with people who voice chilling ideas-ideas that are shaping our future and will divide our nation and change its very nature. One of your top advisors in health reform, bioethicist Dr Ezekiel Rahm, expressed his belief that the Hippocratic Oath was an impediment to health reform. The “do no harm” section of the oath supposedly is responsible for unnecessary medical tests, and undo prolonging of life that drive up health care costs. He is the man recommending the compulsory end of life evaluations, which you would be required to have with your primary care doctor that would begin at age 65 and would continue at five-year intervals.
You were doing a good job controlling the media. Why you had the major networks stumbling over each other trying to get exclusives. It was a circus! But then, you let a little lace show. You planted that question from the Huffington Post blog. You managed to enrage even the Great Granny of the liberal press, Helen Thomas.
Evidently, you feel confident enough to show more of your true nature because the Sith is continuing to slip. You arranged to be questioned about the arrest of your friend Professor Gates in Cambridge by Sgt. Crowley. Admittedly without knowing the full circumstances, you made a judgment about the police involved saying they “acted stupidly.” You are charged with representing the people, not your friends. Your remarks were incendiary and fed racist ideology, but then again you spent twenty years in the pews of Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s church in Chicago. You seemed astounded by the negative reaction and once again try to return to the beatific, peaceful, Palpatine image, delivering a weak non-apology and having a beer at the White House. You orchestrated a teachable moment, but exactly what were you teaching? Better calibration? We saw camera shots from afar of the participants. You were talking and laughing. Vice-President Biden was doing a great impression of Ed McMahon roaring at everything you said, but Gates and Crowley seemed very subdued.
You jammed TARP down our throats; and the auto bailouts, and now you expect us to swallow health care reform. The snake on the Gaddesden flag representing the thirteen original colonies was not a boa constrictor. Just as it could not swallow a cow, we cannot swallow huge amounts of debt at a time and survive. In truth, people can only swallow so much deficit spending, so much government inefficiency, so much lying, and so much betrayal. You wish to take away our individualism, redistribute our wealth and the benefits derived by our achievements, relieve us of our personal responsibility to care for ourselves and our families, tax into an equal level of misery, and tell us this is a better, more American way of life. You, your advisers, your appointees and your faithful cohorts in Congress have awakened the hibernating rattler on that flag, and the people are beginning to shout: “Don’t Tread On Me!”
Mr. President, many notice that the man in the Oval Office does not lead our country, but attempts to rule our country. You, sir, are our stealth emperor. Take note, Emperor Obama, the history of the world has not been kind to emperors, nor has the world of fantasy and fiction. Americans will not tolerate an imperial presidency!
-"D"
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Crossing the line
There is spirit in this country. It was bought here by a group of people seeking the right to worship God in their own way. They were willing to risk everything to travel to an unexplored world and shape their own future. Not the act of a timid people. In spite of a hostile environment and extreme weather conditions they managed not only to survive but to progress and expand their colony. Throughout these times they were ever mindful of the hand of Divine Providence and continually gave thanks to God for delivering them from their persecutors.
This same spirit emboldened those who chafed under the leash of King George to rise up and call for change. Resentful of the restrictions placed on them by the Crown they sought to declare their independence and form a new union. Those brave souls placed themselves on the forefront of a revolution that would change the world. Their writings reflect a steadfast belief in God and a desire to make His laws the foundation of their brave new world.
Throughout our country's relatively brief history this spirit has been present in the undercurrent of history: a civil war, two world wars, the civil rights movement, 9/11. We are slow to anger but quick to respond. Now it seems that our own political leaders have forgotten or lack understanding of the forces that served as midwives to our great nation. Many people worked hard, some gave their very lives, to insure that we would remain a free people. To be betrayed from within is not acceptable and I for one do not plan to stand by and helplessly wring my hands .
Do we have an enviable like style in this country? Yes. Did we work damn hard to attain it? Yes. Do others have the same opportunity to work damn hard? Yes. Do some people believe this life should be handed to them on a silver platter? Yes. Is this a reasonable expectation? NO.
We were not founded by a bunch of wimps. We were founded by people who understood hard work, were not afraid of hard work and expected others to work just as hard as they did. And at the heart of their existence, with them in every struggle and every triumph, was their God.
Fortunately for them their leaders understood this, acknowledged a dependence on the will of the Almighty and girded themselves for daily battle.
Unfortunately for us our current leaders seek to remove this spirit from our country. They do not want people to be resilient and hard-working. No longer is self-reliance a virtue. Total dependence on a government that holds us in a choke hold is their goal. God has no place in this equation.
Slow to anger, quick to respond. Step carefully; scales are falling from eyes at a rapid rate. The threat to our way of life is becoming more obvious and the call to arms has been sounded. Teabag parties, town hall protests, politicians afraid to show their faces for fear of open confrontation by their constituents - sounds like the beginning of a revolution to me.
It's about time.
Dee
This same spirit emboldened those who chafed under the leash of King George to rise up and call for change. Resentful of the restrictions placed on them by the Crown they sought to declare their independence and form a new union. Those brave souls placed themselves on the forefront of a revolution that would change the world. Their writings reflect a steadfast belief in God and a desire to make His laws the foundation of their brave new world.
Throughout our country's relatively brief history this spirit has been present in the undercurrent of history: a civil war, two world wars, the civil rights movement, 9/11. We are slow to anger but quick to respond. Now it seems that our own political leaders have forgotten or lack understanding of the forces that served as midwives to our great nation. Many people worked hard, some gave their very lives, to insure that we would remain a free people. To be betrayed from within is not acceptable and I for one do not plan to stand by and helplessly wring my hands .
Do we have an enviable like style in this country? Yes. Did we work damn hard to attain it? Yes. Do others have the same opportunity to work damn hard? Yes. Do some people believe this life should be handed to them on a silver platter? Yes. Is this a reasonable expectation? NO.
We were not founded by a bunch of wimps. We were founded by people who understood hard work, were not afraid of hard work and expected others to work just as hard as they did. And at the heart of their existence, with them in every struggle and every triumph, was their God.
Fortunately for them their leaders understood this, acknowledged a dependence on the will of the Almighty and girded themselves for daily battle.
Unfortunately for us our current leaders seek to remove this spirit from our country. They do not want people to be resilient and hard-working. No longer is self-reliance a virtue. Total dependence on a government that holds us in a choke hold is their goal. God has no place in this equation.
Slow to anger, quick to respond. Step carefully; scales are falling from eyes at a rapid rate. The threat to our way of life is becoming more obvious and the call to arms has been sounded. Teabag parties, town hall protests, politicians afraid to show their faces for fear of open confrontation by their constituents - sounds like the beginning of a revolution to me.
It's about time.
Dee
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Medical Blues Pt. 2
To continue my little summer medical adventure, I ended up being admitted to the hospital that night only because my rheumatologist suspected pneumonia, even when an xray didn't confirm it. He wanted more sensitive tests including a CT scan with contrast of my lungs to eliminate a diagnosis of pleurisy or pneumonia. My primary care doctor backed him up. From this point on, no one from the hospital, ever talked to these two people again, even though, they presented information to me as if it has been discussed with them, and that decisions about my care had been made with their impute.
The CT scan showed fuzziness in t he lower right lobe and some more indications of pneumonia in an upper right lobe. An infectious disease doctor was called in. He claimed the original Xray did show indications of pneumonia. I determine was started on antibiotics. There were beau coup blood tests to a cause. The nursing staff were to determine that I needed oxygen and saw the order was given.
The house doctor said he thought I was just in an RA flare. After all, my sed rate was high. I really just needed some more prednesone, bed rest and some extra pain medication. As far as he was concerned I was taking up space.
Blood tests and cultures didn't reveal the culprit, but I was switched to a stronger wide spectrum antibiotic by the infectious disease doctor and began to improve within six hours.
When I was finally released, the two doctors were still disagreeing about my condition. The house doctor changed levels of some of my everyday meds without consulting my primary care doctor, but gave me the impression that this had her authority to do so.
The infecticous disease doctor questioned me and came up with a theory. I had been changing out the dirt in some plant pots that had wintered outside Some standing water had collected in them. I took care of these a few days before first growing ill. He believed that I has that while in a flare I was exposed to legionnaire's disease. Fortunately, it was caught in the early stages, leading to a lack of culture evidence.
Now, that house doctor wouldn't give an inch. Refused to consider the truth-that the treatment cured me. Disregard the wishes of my doctors to be involved in my case-despite my expressed directions.
On top of all this, neither doctor has ever written a report to my rheumatolgist ( which I requested) , and as of late Nov. , none had been written to my primary care doctor.
The hospital I used had been an institution of high repute. During the past three years it has deteriorated to the point that when I can, I will choose another.
The charges for my stay were high; the amount we pay for insurance is steep. I would expect that the focus of attending physicians would be on the needs of the patients and not on competition and one-up-manship with each other. Above all, the patient has relevant knowledge and information to offer if the doctor will listen. I know body and I know when something is wrong! I know the difference between a flare and something else that's wrong -like pneumonia.
grrrr
"D"
The CT scan showed fuzziness in t he lower right lobe and some more indications of pneumonia in an upper right lobe. An infectious disease doctor was called in. He claimed the original Xray did show indications of pneumonia. I determine was started on antibiotics. There were beau coup blood tests to a cause. The nursing staff were to determine that I needed oxygen and saw the order was given.
The house doctor said he thought I was just in an RA flare. After all, my sed rate was high. I really just needed some more prednesone, bed rest and some extra pain medication. As far as he was concerned I was taking up space.
Blood tests and cultures didn't reveal the culprit, but I was switched to a stronger wide spectrum antibiotic by the infectious disease doctor and began to improve within six hours.
When I was finally released, the two doctors were still disagreeing about my condition. The house doctor changed levels of some of my everyday meds without consulting my primary care doctor, but gave me the impression that this had her authority to do so.
The infecticous disease doctor questioned me and came up with a theory. I had been changing out the dirt in some plant pots that had wintered outside Some standing water had collected in them. I took care of these a few days before first growing ill. He believed that I has that while in a flare I was exposed to legionnaire's disease. Fortunately, it was caught in the early stages, leading to a lack of culture evidence.
Now, that house doctor wouldn't give an inch. Refused to consider the truth-that the treatment cured me. Disregard the wishes of my doctors to be involved in my case-despite my expressed directions.
On top of all this, neither doctor has ever written a report to my rheumatolgist ( which I requested) , and as of late Nov. , none had been written to my primary care doctor.
The hospital I used had been an institution of high repute. During the past three years it has deteriorated to the point that when I can, I will choose another.
The charges for my stay were high; the amount we pay for insurance is steep. I would expect that the focus of attending physicians would be on the needs of the patients and not on competition and one-up-manship with each other. Above all, the patient has relevant knowledge and information to offer if the doctor will listen. I know body and I know when something is wrong! I know the difference between a flare and something else that's wrong -like pneumonia.
grrrr
"D"
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