Friday, February 24, 2012

The farce of the two party system.

If you have been voting like your grandparents, then this is for you. How often have we voted for a candidate just because of the name at the top of the ballot only to be sadly disappointed in their performance in office? Have you ever noticed that no matter which party is in power, our government stays fundamentally the same. Our nation is going down the same failed path of much of Europe and our leaders continue to spend money we don't have. Our great-grand children will never see a debt free day.

The two Party system has become a farce. Neither party remotely resembles the party of a few decades ago. Both parties have been hijacked by powerful forces that seek power and control.
The GOP, while professing to uphold the Republic, is committed to mercantilism, or more bluntly, the stiffening of free trade by picking winners and losers and the Democrat party, behind a mask of progressivism is the sharp reality of Marxist socialism. Both ideologies are geared to gaining more political power and leaving We the People with less and less liberty to live our lives as we so choose.
A great working definition for insanity is to keep doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. We need to ask ourselves a few questions; "Would I really blindly vote for a yellow dog just because Grandpa would?"   
In the next election, the stakes for our state and for our nation are higher than ever before. It will be critically important that we vote intelligently. We need to put family political history aside and do our own homework and find out what principles each candidates values.
It should be quite simple, do they represent more or less regulations and taxes? Will they head us down the road to slavery or help to restore the Liberty that our grandfathers fought and died for?

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Left-Right Paradigm Is A Hoax


Categories: Archived Columns, Columns
There may have been a time when the words “conservative” and “liberal” meant something, but that time is no more. Today, “conservatives” in government are doing as much to promote Big Government, as are “liberals.” In fact, if one were to honestly evaluate the twelve years of the George Herbert Walker Bush and G.W. Bush administrations, one could say that “conservatives” even eclipse “liberals” in promoting Big Government. Under the two Bushes, the federal government expanded (and even exploded) to levels that for-real liberal Democrats could only dream about.
Let’s get realistic. Just because a politico says he or she is “pro-life,” or “pro-family,” or “pro-marriage,” etc., does not mean that they are going to do anything to help save the country. Come on, folks; think! “Conservative” Republican administration appointments have dominated the US Supreme Court since the infamous Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton decisions that effectively legalized abortion-on-demand. And we are no closer to overturning Roe and Doe after almost forty years of electing “pro-life conservatives” than we were the year after the Roe and Doe decisions were rendered. And for the first six years of the 21st Century, “conservative” Republicans dominated the entire federal government, and still the Roe and Doe decisions stand.
And when it comes to marriage and family, there is not a darn thing that Washington, D.C., can do to “save” it. Washington can no more “save” the family than it can “create” jobs! Washington is not God–the attitudes of most Washington politicians and national newscasters notwithstanding.
Herein lies the real problem: both “conservatives” and “liberals” expect Washington, D.C., to be the panacea for all the nation’s ills. Oh, the left and right come to Washington expecting different solutions, but they both come to Washington, D.C., for the solution. Both “conservatives” and “liberals” expect the federal government to “fix” America. But, in this regard, Ronald Reagan spoke with great profundity when he said, “Government [especially the federal government] is not the solution to our problem; government [especially the federal government] IS the problem!”    Hear President Reagan’s quote
Both “conservatives” and “liberals” look to the federal government to establish and enforce their parochial agendas. “Liberals” look to Washington for the establishment of “social justice,” while “conservatives” look to Washington for the establishment of “military justice.” The net result is the federal government keeps getting bigger and bigger regardless of who controls the White House, Congress, or Supreme Court.
“Conservatives,” whether Christian or not, are just as culpable in the expansion of Big Government as are “liberals.” In fact, when it comes to the expansion of military adventurism, “conservatives” are the most culpable. And when it comes to the ever-burgeoning police state that is currently taking shape in the United States, “liberals” and “conservatives” are equally to blame. Let’s face it: both “conservatives” and “liberals” are in the midst of an intense and illicit love affair with Washington, D.C.
The way many “conservatives” have embraced the candidacy of Rick Santorum is a prime example of how skewed their understanding of historic, constitutional principles really is. Santorum goes around talking about “pro-life” and “pro-family” issues, while his voting record in the US Senate demonstrates that he is just another conservative-talking, big-spending politician. He has voted for so many Big-Government bills and endorsed so many Big-Government toadies that it is incredible that anyone could refrain from laughing out loud when he calls himself a “conservative.”
To check the factual record of Senator Rick Santorum.
By the same token, it is absolutely incredible that “conservatives,” especially Christian “conservatives,” could so quickly and firmly reject the candidacy of the man who most likely is going to go down in history as the greatest congressman to ever sit in the US House of Representatives, Congressman Ron Paul of Texas. Patrick Henry was probably the greatest governor that the United States has ever seen; and Daniel Webster was probably the greatest senator that the country has ever seen; and I am personally convinced that history will regard Congressman Ron Paul as our greatest US House member. For his entire political career, Congressman Paul has stood like a rock for the fundamental principles of liberty and constitutionalism, and, yet, many “conservatives” reject his Presidential candidacy. They would rather support Big-Government toadies like Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, or Mitt Romney. Egad!
Have people not wondered why the direction of the country has not changed one iota regardless if “conservatives” or “liberals” are running things? One would think that at some point people would wake up to the fact that until we start electing civil magistrates who take their oaths to the Constitution seriously, and who truly understand the nature of our federalist form of government, and who are truly committed to the preservation of the Bill of Rights, and who truly understand and appreciate the jurisdiction and authority of the states, nothing is going to change in this country. Nothing! And in 2012, there is only one man in the Presidential field who has an intellectual grasp and moral commitment to all of the above: Ron Paul. I will say it yet again: it will not matter to a tinker’s dam if anyone other than Ron Paul is elected President in 2012.
Furthermore, if Americans do not wake up to the importance of electing State governors, attorney generals, senators, legislators, and county sheriffs who understand that their primary responsibility as a State office holder is to safeguard the rights and liberties of the citizens of their respective states FROM THE USURPATION AND OVERREACH OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, our liberties are lost–no matter how many “conservatives” we elect!
Ladies and gentlemen, face it: the left-right paradigm is a hoax! It creates false conflicts and masks true problems. It caters to the increase of socialism on the one hand and fascism and corporatism on the other hand. It saps our strengths and augments our weaknesses. It blinds our eyes to the warning clouds above us and deafens our ears to the sounds of the sirens around us. It turns friends into adversaries and adversaries into friends. It dulls our senses and sharpens our illusions. It removes true courage and gives false hope. It sullies our character and shines our betrayal, and it puts shackles around our feet and greases the skids of oppression.
Instead of worrying about whether one professes to be a “conservative” or a “liberal,” we should be concerned about whether the people we vote for understand the fundamental principles of liberty and constitutional government and have the moral character to defend such principles at all costs. Furthermore, we should be concerned that both “conservatives” and “liberals” look to government for the solutions to our problems instead of looking to the Natural Law principles of our Creator. Yes, Martha, the Golden Rule really does matter–even in Washington, D.C.
P.S. Readers should know that I have withdrawn my candidacy for Lieutenant Governor of the State of Montana. Here is my press release in this regard:
“Yesterday (Sunday, February 12), I called gubernatorial candidate, Bob Fanning, and told him that I was withdrawing my name as a candidate for Montana’s Lieutenant Governor. When Bob and I announced my candidacy for Lieutenant Governor here in Kalispell, I said, ‘We are in this race to win.’ I realized then that, in order to be competitive, there were certain criteria that had to be met. I knew our campaign had to raise a sizeable sum of money; and knew that we had to put together a quality campaign organization. Since making our announcement back in November, this campaign has accomplished neither task. Therefore, it is more than obvious to me that this campaign has no chance of being successful in the primary elections. And I have too much respect for the people of Montana than to ask them to support a candidacy that cannot at least be competitive. People who believe in a political campaign enough to invest their time and hard-earned money in it have a right to expect that the candidates they support can deliver a successful campaign.
“I believe that my departure from the Governor/Lieutenant Governor race will allow me to continue to pursue whatever opportunities the people of Montana would believe were best suited for those abilities and attributes that I may have in our mutual pursuance of liberty and constitutional government. And, no, I will not endorse a gubernatorial candidate at this time.
“I wish Bob Fanning much success in his future endeavors and am honored that he would ask me to be his Lieutenant Governor running mate.”
I want to thank readers for their support and prayers for me and my family as we continue to fight for the principles of liberty and constitutional government in our country, and especially in the great State of Montana.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Letter to the Editor

Ignorance and apathy are destroying our Nation just as swift and sure as any totalitarian ideology . Today, we are overwhelmed by both.

The average age of the world's greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years. During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence:

·       From bondage to spiritual faith;

·       From spiritual faith to great courage;

·       From courage to liberty;

·       From liberty to abundance;

·       From abundance to complacency;

·       From complacency to apathy;

·       From apathy to dependence;

·       From dependence back into bondage.

And just where do you see our country on this scale? Near the top or near the bottom? Are we closer to slavery or to liberty? Have we become a nation where the people who work for a living are outnumbered by those who vote for a living?

I believe that one of the main reasons our country is in the sad sorry state that it is in today is because of a state run education system that is committed to the "Dumbing Down" of America. We the People have kicked back in our recliners for the last 50 years with a toxic beverage in one hand and the remote in the other and accepted the propaganda we have been fed on a daily basis.

Helen Keller said; "Science may have found a cure for most evils; but it has found no remedy for the worst of them all - the apathy of human beings."

People of good will are working tirelessly to make the world a better place but we have been behind the curve for far too long. Our once proud ship of state is sinking in a cesspool of corruption. Both political parties are only shells of what they were just a few decades ago. Unless we take some action, and pretty darn quick, the lamp of Liberty will be extinguished and future generations will never experience the joy of freedom. How will you choose?

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Make Me the father, O Lord

Yesterday I received a remarkable email.  A very dear friend sent me a prayer for fathers that he found online.  It was written by Thom Rainer, president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources.  Dr. Rainer had been impressed by a prayer written by General Douglas MacArthur, throughout which he repeated the phrase, "give me a son."  Dr. Rainer realized that he needed to become a godly father before he could ask for godly sons.  So he rewrote Gen. MacArthur's prayer, substituting "make me the father" for "give me a son."  Here is the result:

"Make me the father, O Lord, who will show my sons the strengt face  weakness; the courage to face fear; the grace to accept honest defeat; and the humility and gentleness to accept victory. Make me the father who will show his sons not a path of ease and comfort, but the ability to accept the challenges of stress and difficulty.  Use me, I pray, to be the example of one who can stand up in the storm, and there learn compassion for those who fail.

Make me the father who will teach his sons the value of a clear heart and a high goal; to look in the mirror of their own faults before they find fault in others; to learn to laugh, yet never forget how to cry; to reach into the future without ever forgetting the past.

Make me the father, O Lord, who will show my sons enough of a sense of humor, so that they will always be serious, but never take themselves too seriously.  Give them humility, so they will always remember the simplicity of   true greatness, the open mind of true wisdom, the meekness of true strength.

And after all these things are theirs, add for me, I pray, the wisdom to show them the dubious values of titles, positions, money, and material gain; and the eternal value of prayer, the Holy Bible, a Christian home, and a saving relationship with Your Son Jesus Christ.

Then I, their father, will dare to whisper, "I have not lived in vain."

Make Me the father, O Lord

Yesterday I received a remarkable email.  A very dear friend sent me a prayer for fathers that he found online.  It  was written by Thom Rainer, president and CEO of LifeWay  Christian Resources.  Dr. Rainer had been impressed by a prayer written by General Douglas MacArthur, throughout  which he repeated the phrase, "give me a son."  Dr.  Rainer realized that he needed to become a godly father before he could ask for godly sons.  So he rewrote Gen. MacArthur's prayer, substituting "make me the father" for "give me a son."  Here is the result:


Make me the father, O Lord, who will show my sons the strength to face weakness; the courage to face fear; the grace to accept honest  defeat; and the humility and gentleness to accept victory.

Make me the father who will show his sons not  a path of ease and comfort, but the ability to accept the challenges of stress and difficulty.  Use me, I pray, to be the example of one who can stand up in the storm, and there  learn compassion for those who fail.

Make me the father  who will teach his sons the value of a clear heart and a high goal; to look in the mirror of their own faults before they find fault in others; to learn to laugh, yet never forget how  to cry; to reach into the future without ever forgetting the past.

Make me the father, O Lord, who will show my sons enough of a sense of humor, so that they will always be serious, but never take themselves too seriously.  Give them humility, so they will always remember the simplicity of true greatness, the open mind of true wisdom, the meekness of true strength.

And after all these things are theirs,  add for me, I pray, the wisdom to show them the dubious values of titles, positions, money, and material gain; and the eternal value of prayer, the Holy Bible, a Christian home, and a saving relationship with Your Son Jesus Christ.

Then I, their father, will dare to whisper, "I have not lived in vain."