Now We Can Feel Safe

In light of the recent attempts to bring down a US Airliner, I came across this article on Google. Amazing the lengths we will go to feel safe. Washington (Journal-Constitution News Service) The recent attempt by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab [pictured here] to blow up Northwest Flight 253 has led the Administration of Barack Obama to institute new procedures aimed at reducing the likelihood of another terrorist attempt against the American Airline industry and the American people. Prodded into action by administration critics such as Missouri Representative Candace Miller who called the recent actions an "Act of war against the US" yesterday President Obama announced new regulations, effective January 15, 2010, that will "...end air terrorism as we know it." The new rules will bar airline travel for all citizens of the United States, except for government officials and members of Congress. Ray LaHood, Secretary of Transportation, acknowledging the Draconian nature of these regulations said that while the new regulations are "very restrictive, and will make air travel a thing of the past for many in America, they will help us prevent another terrorist attack of this type.” Reaction from the more conservative members of Congress was both swift and supportive. Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Ky), speaking for the GOP caucus, praised the administration for the new regulations saying “The Republican Party strongly supports President Obama and his administration in their common sense efforts to combat terrorism and safeguard the American people. There should be no sacrifice we will not make to ensure our freedom and safety” But not all reaction was positive. Senator Harry Reid of Nevada quickly pointed out that the new restrictions will effectively end air travel as we know it. But when questioned by Sean Hannity of FOX News whether the new rules would in fact make Americans safer, Reid was forced to admit that yes they would. Under fierce questioning from Bill O’Reilly on his FOX News show, House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca) also conceded the reality that the new rules will limit opportunities for Islamic Jihadists to attack the United States. But she also vowed to pass a bill to thwart the Administration attempts to place these limits on air travel. When asked how Americans, who have become used to easy inexpensive air travel would adjust, President Obama responded that “…all Americans ought to be willing to put up with a few inconveniences for the safety and security that these common sense solutions will bring.” (Sam Fuller, Diane Smerkel, and Lisa Ruthman all contributed to this article. All rights reserved, Journal-Constitution News Service. ©)

Merry Christmas to all...

Christmas has never been my favorite time of the year. It has always been a time in which I felt oddly out of place, or even a little sad. Maybe it was the late night telephone calls when I was young that always seemed to say my brother could not get leave and would not be home. Maybe it was growing up in a house where both parents had jobs that required them to work on Christmas. Or maybe it is my growing unease at our willingness to be led down a path to commercialism, rather than a focus on family and relationship. My wife however, is a woman who loves Christmas. Everything about it. From walking the malls, to singing the carols, to setting up penguin families in our front yard. If it smacks of Christmas, she loves it. Sometimes I wonder if that song about Christmas being the most wonderful time of the year was written about her. Well this year, she outdid herself. To most of you, it will seem like no big deal. But to me, it shows me how well I chose to get a woman who would care for and look out for me like she does. As she was helping her dad clean out the house he grew up in before it was sold earlier this year, she noticed something he was going to throw out. It was one of those classic aluminum Christmas trees from the 60’s. The kind I had in my house as a kid. And she saved it. Along with the color wheel. And brought it home for us to put up. So tonight when we get home from church, we’ll have some nog, watch “White Christmas” and stare at our beautiful silver Christmas tree as red, green, blue, and gold colors splash across it, and I’ll be less sad. Feliz Navidad a todos, but especially to Chelle, my best friend, Merry Christmas.

I'm Just Askin'...

When is it leadership, and when is it ignoring the will of the people? Throughout the Bush Administration, we listened to the lefty liberals complain that then President Bush had a duty to listen to the wishes of the American people. It was their point of view that once a majority of people opposed the war in Iraq, he should accede to their wishes and withdraw our troops. The conservatives in our country rallied to his side, praising him for his strong leadership in spite of falling poll numbers and giving him high marks for doing what he believed was best for America, even if a majority of people did not support his actions. Now we fast forward to the Obama Administration, and we find that the Hush Puppy is on the other foot, so to speak. President Obama has been a steadfast supporter of health care reform. He campaigned on it, has pushed for, and we are close to having a deal in place. Even though a seeming majority of Americans oppose the plan that is taking shape. But now that the inhabitant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is different, both sides of the political spectrum are singing a different tune. Now we have the conservatives saying that President Obama should heed the wishes of the American people and veto health care reform. And we have the lefty libs saying he is just showing strong leadership. Is the concept of strong leadership only valid when your guy is making the decisions? When is it socialism and when is it a hand up? Throughout the recent debates over health care reform and our economic bailouts, issues about which there can be legitimate differences, we kept hearing the words socialism and government takeover. It seems as if socialism gets defined like this. We have socialism when the government steps in and proposes a system that modifies, or undercuts the free market system. Now mind you, I am not interested in arguing whether or not this type of action is actually a socialistic practice. What I am saying is that currently, many people in our country, primarily conservatives, define socialism as such. This means if the government gets involved in health care, and disrupts the free market, or influences competition; it is guilty of socialistic practices. And this is bad, because socialism is an evil practice used by governments to enslave people. But is it socialism when a government steps in and influences the free market in the agricultural industry? Currently US food prices are kept artificially high through a system of price supports and government subsidies. If it is socialism when the government steps into health care in an attempt to lower costs to the consumer, how is it not socialism when the government steps into the ag business to keep prices high for the farmer? Is it possible that like leadership, it is only socialism when people of the other side of the political spectrum propose direct government intervention and involvement? I’m just askin’…

Maybe Some Chow Mein and an Egg Roll

Last night after a long day of staring at a computer screen and putting together a Christmas mailing, I took the family out for dinner. We went to one of those gourmet Chinese food restaurants. Perhaps you’ve been there. It’s called The Panda Express. Now you are probably thinking that I’m a little nuts. There is no way The Panda Express has gourmet food. But it does, and it says so right on their logo. Check it out. So we ordered, ate our wonderfully bland mediocre gourmet food and headed out. And there she was. Sitting on the concrete right by the doorway. Maybe 40 years old, dirty, disheveled, and not looking good. As we were getting into our little toy car, she approached me. Living in a somewhat urban setting, you get used to this type of attack. The homeless/lazy/down on their luck/lookin’ for a buck person. But this was different. Because she looked right at me and asked me for some food. Maybe some chow mein and an egg roll. And she apologized. She said she was sorry. I quickly went inside and ordered her food. A big plate of noodles and her egg roll, with chicken. And since the guy told me an additional item wouldn’t cost any more, I decided to treat her to a plate of orange chicken as well. As soon as I gave her the food she apologized again and dove into it as if she hadn’t eaten in a week. Which was quite possibly true. Christians are pretty quick to defend “our” season. We are almost cataclysmic if stores say Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. And heaven help the person who suggests that maybe for their own religious reasons, they would rather not participate in the office gift exchange or Christmas party. But is it possible that God, as He was with Israel is pretty upset with us? Maybe our version of Christmas has just become another empty burnt offering. Maybe in the face of our hungry fellow man, whether he is in Darfur, Indonesia, an abandoned inner city, or down the street from where we live, our trees, twinkling lights, and rush to get the latest iphone or Wii Fit gadget are the things that the ancient prophet Amos says God despises. Last night God broke my heart again. I hate when he does that. And believe me, it happens over and over. Because I can be a stubborn guy. I cannot get that woman out of my mind, and yet I am pretty sure God is okay with that. Sometimes Christmas can be such a struggle.

Handcrafted For You

I recently went with my in-laws to have dinner at one of their favorite local restaurants, Ruby Tuesday. It is the kind of place that likes to call itself an American Diner. Whatever that is. Basically, it is an upscale coffee shop that charges inflated prices and puts out somewhat average fare. As I was reading the menu, trying to make sense of the 524 different items offered, a couple of thoughts crossed my mind. First, if your menu is 17 pages long, and you have another specialty menu to give your guests, just how special is the place. But that is another post. What really caught my attention that night was the term handcrafted. For Ruby Tuesday, it applied to both steaks and burgers. For the life of me I am still trying to figure that out. How on earth, in a production style restaurant, do you handcraft a steak? I mean let’s look at this. Stradivarius handcrafted violins. Lots of people handcraft guitars, sculptures, purses, and many other assorted items. But not steaks. You can cook a steak. You can even carve a steak, which believe me is not happening in any Ruby Tuesday kitchen, but you cannot handcraft a steak. That’s what God or Mother Nature does. I’m even willing to say my buddy Mark Doverspike up in Oregon who is a big cattle rancher does more handcrafting of a steak than any backline kitchen worker. But here is what was truly amazing that night. Someone at another table asked for a small dinner salad with their “handcrafted” steak. The waitress was quick to say that they would have to order the salad bar, as Ruby Tuesday did not have a dinner salad. Flustered the guest asked the waitress if they could just make up a salad for her. After a moment of thought, a solution was offered. The waitress offered to go to the salad bar herself and, you guessed it, “handcraft” a salad! It was a great moment of corporate marketing on steroids. That poor little waitress had no idea she was being ridiculous. She was just following orders. If corporate said they handcrafted food, then logic aside, they could handcraft anything. Steak, lemonade, burgers, even a salad. And now, if you’ll excuse me, I am heading to lunch, at In-N-Out Burger. Where they really do handcraft their burgers, [ground and pressed fresh daily] and fries. And then I’ll head over to Seattle’s Best Coffee for dessert and of course, my handcrafted coffee. Whatever that means. **Just a quick update... last night I was watching the tube, and Chili's, another chain restaurant, came on with a commercial for their "handcrafted" tacos. I just have a couple of thoughts on that... 1. Aren't all tacos handcrafted? and 2. If I want tacos, I'll get them in Mexico, thank you!**

Leftwing, Rightwing

As someone who serves as a missionary in Mexico, I frequently find myself in different churches around the country. It is always interesting to me to hear the hopes and concerns of Christians in the USA regarding their faith, family, life, and more recently, politics. It should come as no secret to anyone that a sizable majority of the evangelical Christian world in America is concerned about the direction of our nation. To many, President Barack Obama is putting this country on a path to destruction. He is seen not as a principled liberal, but more often, as a dangerous leftist/socialist/fascist, determined to undermine everything that made this country great. Barack Obama is, in the words of quite a few folks, an extremist. I have been thinking about that a lot lately. But not as it relates to Obama. I have been wondering what someone on the extreme right looks like. If President Obama is the embodiment of the extreme radical leftwing of the Democratic Party, what does the other side of the coin look like? Or, put another way, what does the extreme radical rightwing of the Republican Party look like? Logically, one would have to agree that any viewpoint taken to some ideological extreme could be seen as a radical, dangerous point of view. So maybe some of you more conservative readers could help me out here. I am not looking for any Barack Bashing. I am looking for some reasonable thoughts on what would be considered rightwing extremism, and some examples of people currently espousing those viewpoints in American politics.