How Different Are We?

I wanted to share we you all a personal experience while visiting DC for the first time in my life. I was on a business trip with a co worker who I count as a good friend and kindred spirit. He had worked for 4 days to get us a flight out of town during a multiple hurricane weather jag. When we finally arrived in DC we had just two days of the 5 day training we were booked for and it was a bummer. I was determined to honor his hard work by getting us at least one sight seeing tour of DC.

I knew from my tour book they had night tours and we had one free night. It ended up being a trial to get on the bus but we made it and it ended up being one great tour and I reccommend anyone to take a night tour. It is much more meaningful.

The thing I want to share with you is about the time we spent at the Lincoln Memorial. In my family Lincoln is akin to Moses is to the Jews. We have an old newspaper somewhere saved by my family from the time of Lincoln's murder and death. I was in ah of the monument. The other person revered in our household is Dr. King. I immediately made my way for where I knew he stood. I remember the speech on TV. I was 4 years old and it is one of the few memories of my early childhood I remember. I remember the grownups being very serious and hushing us as they watched this man speak hanging on his every word.

There was a large group of children looking for the spot Dr. King stood and having trouble. It was pitch black that evening on the platform and you couldn't see your hand let alone the engraved stone marking the spot. I could hear by the voices the children were of all nationalities. I pulled out my flashlight and shown the light on the stone and motioned for the kids to come over and together we all looked at the stone.I told them what I could remember and then what I remembered when Dr. King lost his life for the cause of Civil Rights. I remember my dad and me singing together the old folk tune Anybody Here." We all looked out to the distant lit Washington memorial and the reflecting pond and wondered what it must have been like to stand up there speaking or be out there listening in the audience. I turned my light out and I thought in this complete darkness we all look the same.

Education Reform that Works

In my hometown education is a huge issue. Low graduation rates amongst our public school students are a huge concern along with the increased needs of mainstreaming and immigration of non english speaking students. We are a no left behind state with strict yearly state testing of all students, smaller class size initiatives, strict school voucher programs, quality subsidized school lunch programs, large home school and church school programs as well as state support home school support initiatives, neighboorhood schools, charter schools,fundamental schools and public school choice programs. And yet, in the public school area we still have schools that receive an F and we are constantly told the school budgets are cut to the max and they need more teachers and that some schools will be closed.

The recent reports on homeschools has begged the question why are public schools having so much trouble? Homeschoolers out perform their peers by 40 percent and rank in the 86th percentile in every subject. The public school student performs on average in the 50th percentile. And yet, the average cost per home schooled student was $546 every year, as opposed to the average $5,325 spent annually on each child in the public school system.

Race made no difference in the the achievement of homeschoolers. All did equally well. However race did make a huge difference in the public schools persons of color ranking lower than their white counterparts.

Government oversight or no oversight made no difference in the success of the homeschooler. College educated or no college education parent teachers produced students with the same high success rates.

And most significant of all, more homeschoolers go on to higher education and achieving productive positions in their communities than public school students.

Obviously homeschoolers must be doing something right.

We know that the teacher's unions are chiefly about saving their jobs. That is their primary goal as it should be as a union. This has spawned the triple thick administrator rosters,higher teacher salaries that exceed the average state income levels,smaller class sizes,mainstreaming,tenure,lower teaching standards,fights against school testing and evaluation of academic achievement. This is not about the students but jobs.

Job number one should be our students. Job number one should be about how do we most effectively teach our children. Home schoolers seem to be the most successful. If you have a good working model duplicate it. That is how we do it in the business world. Copy their model, their curriculum, etc. In our area people want more fundamental public schools. The old guard is coming up with excuses why they can't do it even those these schools are rated A every time. Some folks running for office are for fundamental schools. Who do you think will be elected? The backers of fundamentals or those that back the teacher's unions?

I think real education reform is on the way. Our children will not be enslaved on the government dole. Our children won't be as dumb as we have been. They will not be lambs led to the slaughter anymore. Make November be the thunder to remember.

What Should Mr. Smith Do in Washington?

It has been standard behavior by voters to vote for and re elect representatives in local and federal government who will bring back the most money to their home town or state. We brag that so and so brought back all this money or sponsored this or that law that provided for so much for us. Taxes were low then, the value of the dollar was high, credit was plentiful, jobs available, home values showed a good return on value invested, each generation did better than the last and all was well with the world and as said in the book "Cannery Row" "the world was spinning in greased grooves."But as America progressed it's children like the children of the wisest man in the bible Solomon, the Anthony Robbins of his time, the children became lazy and spoiled demanding more and more and working less and less. The great society collapsed and the children and grand children of Solomon lost the kindom and all became enslaved. Americans no different than the children of the wisest man have also lost their way. Looking for every handout they can and not noticing that their governments are reaching into their back pockets for the very same dollars they are trying to get back. But soon this cyclic activity bore it's inevitable fruit, corruption at the deepest levels of government, bankrupt states, derelict cities, high unemployment and even higher numbers of people on the government dole.

What we should be voting for is Mr. Smiths who help us keep what we have in our pockets and stop laws that limit our abilities to go out and create our own businesses, jobs and lives that enrich us and our communities.

In small town America the most prosperous of us would build the libraries, hospitals, and schools, not the government. Instead of giving our livelihood away for other's to decide where it best can be spent, let us take responsibility for our own destinies. Let us look to ourselves for our own survival and look to government only for state and national defense.

When we put too many middlemen between ourselves and our means to advance we are setting ourselves up for failure. Without a life preserver we are more likely to learn to swim, without training wheels we are more likely to learn to peddle faster and better. Without a motorized wheel chair that knee replacement patient is more likely to learn to walk without assistance.

It is time we stop bragging on these professional politicians (who are really the most experienced citizens at living off the public dole) for getting this and that for their state. It is time we start bragging on those that have the courage to vote NO on more government redistributions of your own money and NO on more laws that chip a way at our freedom of self determination. Let us elect men and woman who write bills that curb government legislating every aspect of our lives and start fighting bills in court that have been passed that go against the very will of the people that elected them.

The far left have called conservatives the party of no, the party of no compassion, the party of racists, the party of no ideas.

But this is not true. As Solomon said there is nothing "new" under the sun. The old values of hard work and taking responsibility for ourselves and helping the infirm are as old as time itself. The only time the chosen people fell into to death, desease and bad times is when they forgot the age old principles God had laid out for them in his early levitical laws. As Christ told us he came not to change the laws but to fulfill them. We like the Pharisees have inserted so much of ourselves into our philisophies we have crowded out the simple truths of God. God is our manufacturer. He knows how we work best individually and as a group. The rules are simple and clear and we have taken many lifetimes to muck it up. It is time to get back to the basics of governance. It is time to ask Mr. Smith to teach our local and national governments to go back to the simple levels of government involvement in our lives and allow us the freedom to pursue life, liberty and happiness.

We have looked for the enemy and it is us Pogo, it is time we kill that enemy, forget past hurts and slights, stop looking for someone to bail us out of our own self created messes and pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and start again taking back our lives and our futures instead of putting our trust in men who care not for you but for their own petty ambitions for power and money. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of watching elected officials take lavish vacations, hold lavish dinners and other displays of power and wealth on my hard earned dime. These self absorbed emperors of all they survey brag about the redistributed wealth they have picked from our well worn pockets and at the same time tell us with croc tears that they feel our pain and state the obvious of the problems as if they care and understand. Then they hop into their limos and their first class airline seats or private government jets and go home on Thursday for their "weekend" not to be seen until Tuesday to wine and dine and boat and jet with the well heeled masses at the club or play 3 rounds of golf etc. You get the picture. It is time to elect real Mr. and Mrs. Smith who have only one goal and that is to get governments off our back and out of our pockets and then go home to go on to live the same lives they left.

When you go to the polls in November think on these things. Isn't about time we free the slaves for real this time. Isn't it about time we cut the chains that bind us. Isn't it about time we are really free?

I Have a Dream Deconstructed

For the Sharpton impaired as a public service to my brothers and sisters that were subjected to the flight induced free First Class Seat 7/7 mumbled nonsense that brother Al called a speech I would like to break it down for you Dr. King's famous speech honored with honor at the Restoring Honour Rally. In his speech Dr. King mentioned "free" or "freedom" 20 times. He spoke of the unrealized fullfillment of the Emancipation Proclamation. Yeah Freedom again more than once. He spoke of access to quality education for all, true freedom to travel,stay at hotels,use restrooms and water fountains,buses,trains,planes, restaurants all without fear of abuse or restriction. He spoke of equal opportunity for employment,voting, and representation in government. Quite frankly we have achieved all of that and more all subsidized by the working class and corporate america and what have we done with it? Many of us have chosen to refuse the gift fought for us so bravely. Some of us have decided to suckle the tit of the Federal government never getting on to solid food. Many old dinosaurs who I suspect were mearly coattail riders choose to act like nothing happened and we are still the underpriviledged and disenfranchised not of our own choosing. Still and forever the victim choosing rather to blame others for our own failures when we have many examples of people of every nationality,faith and creed who have succeeded far farther than they would have in any other country.

I quote Dr. King

"The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.

We cannot walk alone.

And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.

We cannot turn back."

"Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.

And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream."

"I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and
mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.

With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:

My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.

Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,

From every mountainside, let freedom ring!

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.

Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.

Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that:

Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.

From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:

Free at last! Free at last!

Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

Dr. King was not preaching division, black ownership of this dream. He was preaching what God wants brotherhood for all. Is America perfect? Is there bigotry? No we are not perfect people and yes there is still bigotry. But do we legally have freedoms. For now yes. It is my dream that this division created by these old warhorses and brainwashed 30 and 40 year old Marxist Socialists who have been handed these old chestnuts to hold on to justify their hate and failures will be stopped. It is my dream that God will open the eyes of these blinded individuals to their devisive ways and Freedom will be preserved and restored to all Americans. That as Dr King stated,

"In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Dr. King did not believe the note was a handout, but a goal to freely be pursued by all mankind.

And that my friends is the Dream speech deconstructed.

A Few Thousand Show Up for Beck and Call Rally

Just kidding folks. A million patriotic Americans of every flavor showed up to support the troops,celebrate the best country in the world(America),cheer with America's best national treasure and cheerleader Glenn Beck, and praise the Lord. I truely think Glenn was worried no one would show up. Glenn........ Even you underestimated the fervor of American's love for God and Country. Shame on you. Tears filled the eyes of every speaker and performer as they all seemed truely overwhelmed at the supersized turnout. I look forward to seeing how the MSNBC and CNN blowhards try to spin this as a small racist get together. But they will. Let them go ahead. I think Americans have found their resolve, their strength in the good Lord and got on their feet to prove it. When voting in November remember to pray first and then consider each candidate and ask yourself what your values are and who supports the ideals you believe in and what direction the country needs to go. Also ask yourself what you need to do to stop the current regime from crushing the American Dream. Voting should be a no brainer. This rally was an astounding success and a glaring example that the Americans know what they need to do to succeed and restore the American Dream. Washington be afraid, be very afraid the American Train is rolling on through and prepare for the moving van cause you're headed out of town.

Islam Explained in Layman's Terms

Cous's latest.
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Here is a perspective by Dr. Peter Hammond. Dr. Hammonds doctorate is in Theology. He was born in Capetown in 1960, grew up in Rhodesia and converted to Christianity in 1977. In addition to his academic work, he is a Missionary.
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Adapted from Dr. Peter Hammond's book:
Slavery, Terrorism and Islam:
Historical Roots and Contemporary Threat
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Islam is not a religion, nor is it a cult. In its fullest form, it is a complete, total, 100% system of life.
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Islam has religious, legal, political, economic, social, and military components. The religious component is a beard for all of the other components.
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Islamization begins when there are sufficient Muslims in a country to agitate for their religious privileges.
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When politically correct, tolerant, and culturally diverse societies agree to Muslim demands for their religious privileges, some of the other components tend to creep in as well.
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Here's how it works:
As long as the Muslim population remains around or under 2% in any given country, they will be for the most part be regarded as a peace-loving minority, and not as a threat to other citizens. This is the case in:
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United States -- Muslim 0..6%
Australia -- Muslim 1.5%
Canada -- Muslim 1.9%
China -- Muslim 1.8%
Italy -- Muslim 1.5%
Norway -- Muslim 1.8%
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At 2% to 5%, they begin to proselytize from other ethnic minorities and disaffected groups, often with major recruiting from the jails and among street gangs.
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> Denmark -- Muslim 2%
> Germany -- Muslim 3.7%
> United Kingdom -- Muslim 2.7%
> Spain -- Muslim 4%
> Thailand -- Muslim 4.6%
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From 5% on, they exercise an inordinate influence in proportion to their percentage of the population. For example, they will push for the introduction of halal (clean by Islamic standards) food, thereby securing food preparation jobs for Muslims. They will increase pressure on supermarket chains to feature halal on their shelves -- along with threats for failure to comply. This is occurring in:
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> France -- Muslim 8%
> Philippines -- 5%
> Sweden -- Muslim 5%
> Switzerland -- Muslim 4.3%
> The Netherlands -- Muslim 5.5%
> Trinidad & Tobago -- Muslim 5.8%
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At this point, they will work to get the ruling government to allow them to rule themselves (within their ghettos) under Sharia, the Islamic Law. The ultimate goal of Islamists is to establish Sharia law over the entire world.
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When Muslims approach 10% of the population, they tend to increase lawlessness as a means of complaint about their conditions. In Paris , we are already seeing car-burnings. Any non-Muslim action offends Islam, and results in uprisings and threats, such as in Amsterdam , with opposition to Mohammed cartoons and films about Islam. Such tensions are seen daily, particularly in Muslim sections, in:
> Guyana -- Muslim 10%
> India -- Muslim 13.4%
> Israel -- Muslim 16%
> Kenya -- Muslim 10%
> Russia -- Muslim 15%
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After reaching 20%, nations can expect hair-trigger rioting, jihad militia formations, sporadic killings, and the burnings of Christian churches and Jewish synagogues, such as in:
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> Ethiopia -- Muslim 32.8%
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At 40%, nations experience widespread massacres, chronic terror attacks, and ongoing militia warfare, such as in:
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> Bosnia -- Muslim 40%
> Chad -- Muslim 53.1%
> Lebanon -- Muslim 59.7%
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From 60%, nations experience unfettered persecution of non-believers of all other religions (including non-conforming Muslims), sporadic ethnic cleansing (genocide), use of Sharia Law as a weapon, and Jizya, the tax placed on infidels, such as in:
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> Albania -- Muslim 70%
> Malaysia -- Muslim 60.4%
> Qatar -- Muslim 77.5%
> Sudan -- Muslim 70%
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After 80%, expect daily intimidation and violent jihad, some State-run ethnic cleansing, and even some genocide, as these nations drive out the infidels, and move toward 100% Muslim, such as has been experienced and in some ways is on-going in:
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> Bangladesh -- Muslim 83%
> Egypt -- Muslim 90%
> Gaza -- Muslim 98.7%
> Indonesia -- Muslim 86.1%
> Iran -- Muslim 98%
> Iraq -- Muslim 97%
> Jordan -- Muslim 92%
> Morocco -- Muslim 98.7%
> Pakistan -- Muslim 97%
> Palestine -- Muslim 99%
> Syria -- Muslim 90%
> Tajikistan -- Muslim 90%
> Turkey -- Muslim 99.8%
> United Arab Emirates -- Muslim 96%
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100% will usher in the peace of 'Dar-es-Salaam' -- the Islamic House of Peace.. Here there's supposed to be peace, because everybody is a Muslim, the Madrasses are the only schools, and the Koran is the only word, such as in:
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> Afghanistan -- Muslim 100%
> Saudi Arabia -- Muslim 100%
> Somalia -- Muslim 100%
> Yemen -- Muslim 100%
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Unfortunately, peace is never achieved, as in these 100% states the most radical Muslims intimidate and spew hatred, and satisfy their blood lust by killing less radical Muslims, for a variety of reasons.
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'Before I was nine I had learned the basic canon of Arab life. It was me against my brother; me and my brother against our father; my family against my cousins and the clan; the clan against the tribe; the tribe against the world, and all of us against the infidel. -- Leon Uris, 'The Haj'
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It is important to understand that in some countries, with well under 100% Muslim populations, such as France, the minority Muslim populations live in ghettos, within which they are 100% Muslim, and within which they live by Sharia Law. The national police do not even enter these ghettos. There are no national courts, nor schools, nor non-Muslim religious facilities. In such situations, Muslims do not integrate into the community at large. The children attend madrasses. They learn only the Koran. To even associate with an infidel is a crime punishable with death. Therefore, in some areas of certain nations, Muslim Imams and extremists exercise more power than the national average would indicate.
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Today's 1.5 billion Muslims make up 22% of the world's population. But their birth rates dwarf the birth rates of Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, and all other believers. Muslims will exceed 50% of the world's population by the end of this century.
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Adapted from Dr. Peter Hammond's book:
Slavery, Terrorism and Islam:
Historical Roots and Contemporary Threat