Christmas

Christmas Eve and Christmas were wonderful.

Christmas Eve started with me at work. I had my gift exchange with my friends from Electronics. They gave me a new set of bunny ears for our television (our was missing an ear) and the movie Pearl Harbor... both EXCELLENT gifts! I left at lunch and dropped by Kmart on my way home. The traffic was horrendous and the people were almost as bad. Christmas definitely brings out both the best and the worst in people.

I then picked up Hannah and we went to John & Peg's for the family dinner. We were all very tired (especially Hannah) but had a good time. We spent the evening at home with Ben and Joe and Rachel. Ben then stayed for the night.

Christmas morning started at 7am for us. Once we had gotten up it was not long until Hannah's mother, Ben and Sam got up. We had a quick talk on the meaning of Christmas and I read from Isaiah 61. For the first time, I really feel like I get the meaning of Christmas-- Freedom! The gift of Christmas is atonement, which provides for redemption and brings freedom! Jesus bought us the gift of atonement with His blood as we buy each other gifts at Christmas. So because we have been redeemed, we are free! The only chains we bear are the ones we are holding on to ourselves. We need to understand that and live in that freedom, live in the Spirit of Christmas, all year long!

Riley Joy was not as into her Christmas packages as we thought she was going to be. Though she enjoys ripping things, she did not take much interest in tearing off the wrapping paper. Her favorite gift were her twin dolls sent to her by her Great Grandpa & Grandma Golden. Even before we had taken them out of the packaging she was pulling on them trying to get them out! She knew what they were and said, "Baby!" Then when we had gotten them out, she took one and held it close (it was upside down, though) and rocked it... it was very cute :-). She also got the most precious outfits from Grandad and Grandma and a really nice soft bear from Great Grandma Connie. My family also sent us a webcam which could possibly be the best gift we got this Christmas. We had two wonderful video visits with my family with it on Christmas day. Nana got Riley Joy some wonderful toys and got me House seasons 1 & 2 and a large bag of Dunkin Donuts coffee. She got Hannah some pants and a few other things. Hannah got me beef jerky and a nice shirt and a set of books I picked out.

Since then we have been relaxing and watching House and just plain enjoying ourselves. The only thing we have had a hard time enjoying is that Riley Joy is sick :-(. She came down with a fever yesterday morning and has been sick ever since. She is quite a handful... but it looks like her fever might finally be gone. Unfortunately we had to miss church today.

Riley Joy is so very cute :-). We must have another video chat with my family today.

Personal Party

I had a personal party last night... just me :-). Every once and awhile I have one just to be alone. So after Hannah and Riley went to bed I ran to the store and got what I needed. Then I came home and munched on (extra buttery) Popcorn and M&Ms while drinking a bottle of Coke and watching a movie... it was wonderful :-). I watched "Traitor" and was quite impressed. It was a perfectly politically correct movie (which was annoying at times) but when I started I almost turned it off because the first half seemed to be preaching about how terrorists are actually just oppressed revolutionaries trying to serve God and besides Christians in the KKK did some of the same things anyway! You see why I about turned it off? Then about half way through you realize that the main character now involved in the terrorist group is actually working on our country to bring the organization down! It then turns into a sort of conversation dealing with the two contradictory sides of Islam-- the violent and the peaceful. The main character is just a refreshingly good character. He is just a good person, and a Muslim. But to him Jihad is not violent war against the infidel, instead it is war against temptation and lust. We know the Koran and other Islamic writing are contradictory on this, but this movie mainly just presents the two sides with the peaceful Muslim being presented as the true follower of Allah. Regardless of how I personally feel on the topics, it was a very well-written movie.

Excerpt From The Declaration of Independence

"...We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States..."

Birthday Lunch

Glenn and Gale took Ed and myself to Vitos for lunch today! It was nice. We had a pizza and fries. Gale says there is supposed to be a huge icy wintery mess coming here tonight... hope it is not too bad. But! Tomorrow I am riding with Dan and when he puts a few cinder blocks in the back of his 4wd truck, there is no stopping him! I am very glad I don't have to brave the snow (assuming it comes) with my little Corolla. I have been blown off the road on a snowy day literally by wind before. Yeah, my car really is that light. Add some cheap tires and snow driving becomes near impossible.

But that has never stopped me from braving the storms before!

Harmonized Codes

The Government makes me laugh. Leave it to them to make a 3000+ page document of commodity codes for shipping items internationally. It is near impossible to find anything in there. The parts I am looking for get lost between the numbers for everything from "railway sleepers" to items "prepared for use in making wigs" to "mongolian lamb raw firskins". Wow. How do they expect people to be able to find anything in there???

Christmas Sweater

Hannah and I went and saw Glenn Beck live performance of "The Christmas Sweater" down in Philly a few nights ago and it was incredible!!! I read the book soon after it came out and got pre-sale tickets (I am a "Glenn Beck Insider") in a box right up front. We were close enough to see the tears (and there were a lot) flying from his face. It is just such a neat story. "The Christmas Sweater" is a fictional story of many true events in Glenn Beck's life. During the show there is an even where his mother knitted him a sweater for Christmas because she could not afford the bike he wanted. When he got it, he ran up to his room, threw it on the floor and cried at the window. A few moments later his mother came into the room and saw his sweater which she had worked so hard on rumpled up in a ball on the floor. She said in a hurt tone, "Is this the Christmas sweater I gave you?" During the epilogue, Glenn said, "I do not want to leave this world one day and stand before God and have Him look at His gift to me of redemption and say in the same way, 'Is this what you have done with the gift I gave you?'." Glenn then said that God's gift to man is redemption and atonement and THAT is the true meaning of Christmas. Christmas is a time of redemption, of renewing and freedom! We need to accept that gift of atonement from God and start living in the freedom He has planned for us! Christmas should be a time of renewing! But more than that, Christmas should be something we live every day of the year because once we put that gift of redemption on, the only chains we bear are ones we are holding of our own will.

Wow! What a spiritual experience! It was excellent.

Members

Church went well on Sunday and afterwords I went and talked to Pastor David. We talked about Chuck Smith and the Calvary Chapel movement and contrasted it to the market driven/seeker sensitive movement. I really enjoy talking to him. Then I told him that Hannah and I would like to become members! He told us that we are all members in the family of God whether there is an official member roll or not... and they are so small that they have not set up an official member roll yet :-). It makes sense, being that there are only between twenty and thirty adults there every week, that it is very easy to know who is part of the church and who is not. So we just have to fill out a communication sheet so the church has us on record and can contact us and we are now members! Yay! I am so excited... going to church services does not feel like a chore anymore :-).

Christmas Gifts

All my Christmas gift are bought and wrapped!!!

The Heart of Calvary Chapel

This is from:
http://www4.calvarychapel.com/what_we_believe.cfm

Calvary Chapel has been formed as a fellowship of believers in the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Our supreme desire is to know Christ and to be conformed into His image by the power of the Holy Spirit.

-We are not a denominational church, nor are we opposed to denominations as such, only their over-emphasis of the doctrinal differences that have led to the division of the Body of Christ.

-We believe that the only true basis of Christian fellowship is His (Agape) love, which is greater than any differences we possess and without which we have no right to claim ourselves Christians.

-We believe worship of God should be spiritual. Therefore, we remain flexible and yielded to the leading of the Holy Spirit to direct our worship.

-We believe worship of God should be inspirational. Therefore, we give a great place to music in our worship.

-We believe worship of God should be intelligent. Therefore, our services are designed with great emphasis upon teaching the Word of God that He might instruct us how He should be worshiped.

-We believe worship of God is fruitful. Therefore, we look for His love in our lives as the supreme manifestation that we have truly been worshiping Him.

DHL... GONE!

DHL will be disbanding their domestic shipping service on January 30th! They are the most incompetent shipping company I have ever seen and I will be glad to see them go. Apparently they are great with international stuff, but what I have seen of their domestic fleet was anything but great. Just a few months ago they delivered two separate packages clearly addressed to us to a person down the street from us! They have on occasion put our packages at the wrong entrance and have this weird habit of not backing up to the door. They pull to the far end of the parking lot and then flip into reverse and extremely slowly and carefully start backing up... but then get nervous and stop and just walk the whole way! One time I was on break outside and the driver just got out and gave me the package rather than bringing it inside! And I must point out that these occurrences were not just from one driver. We have regularly had things like that happen no matter what driver was on our route for the day.

They deserve to shut down. Regardless of the economic conditions, they have brought this on themselves.

Comedy Stage

I am definitely not in a comedy stage right now with movies. I used to enjoy sitting down to most comedies and enjoying myself... but now I get a short chuckle from most and feel that I have wasted my time by the end. I will not say it is a bad thing, but it is kind of annoying. I see a preview and say, "Now that looks hilarious!" but then see the movie and realize that it is just like the rest. So what movies do make me laugh? Well, "Dan In Real Life" for one. That situational and down-to-earth real life humor is definitely what gets me right now. When a writer can take a common moment and show the humor in it, that is what I like. That is what I can relate to and what makes me laugh.

Follow The First Time

A friend asked how my life was, and this is the response I gave:

Life is pretty incredible. My daughter is nearly a year old and is walking, we are preparing for Christmas (and loving it!) and we just found a new church! So things are pretty good. I love how the Spirit works. This was the first church He put on my heart back before we left our previous church in August, yet for this reason or that I put off going to it and visited others. But of course He eventually caused us to go to the church and it is incredible! Lesson learned. When the Spirit leads, follow the first time and avoid the bother!

Scripture Study By The Power Of The Spirit

I have just had the most wonderful time of Scripture study. The Holy Spirit is here right now and He has been opening up my eyes to what I have been reading in Luke. It really blows me away. It is incredible how study which can be so mechanical and lifeless alone becomes so exciting and invigorating and significant when the Spirit is here guiding it. Thank You Spirit for this. Please continue to guide my studies and my life.

God At Work

Our God is so incredible. I feel so full that it is hard to reduce it down into words... actually it's impossible. The weekend was wonderful. I finished getting the Christmas lights up outside, carried off the remaining leaves and sticks and stuff from our work last weekend, we went with Hannah's mother and got a tree, we set up our artificial tree in the basement, Hannah went to the Christmas Tea with the women from our church and we went to the hanging of the greenery at New Beginnings. It was a beautiful and refreshing weekend in so many ways. Riley Joy is walking all the time now. She just started doing it regularly on Saturday. She has decided it is often easier and quicker to walk from point A to point B rather than crawl. Hannah had a wonderful time at the tea and the experience there cemented our decision that we are going to settle into Calvary Chapel Living Water. I have been listening to the Word of Promise dramatized New Testament Audio Bible and have just been being so blessed by it. God has been opening up the Scriptures so much to me and I am enjoying it so much. I officially started saving for Bible College on Thursday and from now on a certain portion of all of my paychecks will automatically be put into an account specifically for that. In four years (or less) I will be able to begin! I want to be out of debt before starting... so when I start depends on that. I will be able to get my Associate in Theology degree for $8000 altogether and will be able to study from home. I am really excited!

Might everything change? Yup! That is the way life is and the way God often works. But I am enjoying it, and will continue to enjoy it even if everything changes. Luckily God has the perfect plan!

And on another note: Christmas is my favorite time!!!

Exciting Times

Life is incredible right now. I just plain have so much hope. And where does the hope come from? Faith. I have just been able to recently put my faith in God more than I ever have in the course of my life. As result, stress has turned to hope and joy and just left me feeling darn incredible. I love our Lord so much and am so happy to see what He is going to be doing in our lives. A lot of this I think comes from the church we are currently attending. Since we have started going there things have just been happening within us that have just been so refreshing to our souls. I really have been able to see and feel the Spirit working in our lives.

On another note, today I officially started putting money aside for Bible College. I will have a certain amount automatically put in a specific savings account for that every week.

I am just so excited about life right now :-).

Spirit Working

I have just been so blown away by God and what He is doing over the last couple days. I seriously have been smiling almost non-stop. I wish I could always be on a high cloud like this... maybe I can be? I don't know. But I have felt the Spirit so near recently. On Sunday we borrowed a dvd from church called "A Venture In Faith" which is the story of Chuck Smith and the Calvary Chapel movement... WOW! It was so spiritually refreshing to watch! I could not help but sit back and praise God for His wondrous works! I love the setup of the Calvary Chapel churches. They are very opposed to the Purpose Driven/Market Driven/Program Driven style of churches. They believe that the Word is the point, so everything is built around that. They all use a rolling-commentary style expository preaching format and just go book to book across the entire Bible! And though all the Calvary Chapel churches are independent non-denominational churches, they all tend to be in one accord doctrinally because of their emphasis of the whole Bible! If you look at the Bible as a whole and don't just ignore that parts you don't like, it makes sense that it would lead you into sound doctrine. I love that, and need that. Chuck Smith pointed out that if the focus of the church is purely evangelism and there is not spiritual meat, the people in the congregation will not be able to mature, so Calvary Chapel makes it a point to teach the Scriptures in the services, not just give a quick evangelistic message. Calvary Chapel sees pastors as equippers, not evangelists, and therefore sees the pastor's job as training and equipping the members of the church to go into the world and preach the Gospel. But the great thing is, God has used Calvary Chapel in mighty evangelistic ways just because of their emphasis on the Scritpures... even though they don't water them down. Should anyone be suprised? God's Word will never return void.

Thanksgiving Vacation

Life has been crazy, and the funny thing is that when life is crazy I am less inclined to write. I would think that in the crazy times writing would be therapeutic, but instead it just feels like a chore. I start to write and then my brain starts exploding with stuff and I just never have enough time to get it all out and end up scrapping the post. I could just put these half-thought-out posts up but that would drive me crazy because my brain does not work that way. I neeeed to get my whole thought out or nothing at all. So now, rather than regular and meaningful updates, I end up posting randomly over periods of time with lists of relatively mundane events in my life. Not my ideal, but at least something is getting written. So here is what happened over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Thursday:
Riley got us up early. We took it easy first thing in the morning but got to cleaning and getting ready for the visitors about mid-morning. Hannah was not feeling well so her mother and I did most of everything. I cleaned the bathrooms and vacuumed and did some other random chores while Hannah's mother got the food together. Then the extended family came over and we had a wonderful time. Lots of good food and warm conversation. Later when most everybody had gone, Hannah, her mother, brother Ben, and I were the only people left and sat down to enjoy the movie Elf. It is kind of a new tradition of ours to watch it together each year :-). That along with a glass of Mojito made the evening very relaxing. We called and had a wonderful but brief conversation with my parents before going to bed. 'Twas a great Thanksgiving.

Friday:
I got up and went to Target at 5:30am to brave the Black Friday sales. It was wild and crazy. The line from the doors was desperately long and everyone went crazy once the doors opened at 6. It was quite disturbing watching these rabid shoppers carrying multiple televisions as they rand wildly through the isles. I have to say that is about what is worst about our country. Needless to say I found the small portable DVD player for Riley Joy I was looking for. Then I ran to Hackman's and got a couple items at dramatically reduced prices. We relaxed the rest of the day.

Saturday:
We spent almost the entire day doing yardwork. We cleared bushes, raked leaves and sticks, trimmed bushes, I put up a wire fence, and we put away the patio furniture for the season. It kept us busy but was really fun. It is so refreshing to work outside on a nice day and get a lot accomplished.

Sunday:
Church went great. Pastor David talked about Contending for the Faith. Our scripture passage was from the first half of Jude. We need to contend for our faith and the truth of the Gospel no matter what the circumstances. We can not let out faith grow cold and miss out on the grace and blessings God has for us. For example, Israel let their faith grow cold after they crossed the Red Sea and therefore did not get to enter the Promised Land.


Wow, I am finally done. Quick note--it has taken me THREE DAYS to finish this quick post... why am I having such a hard time writing?

Now This Movie Looks Good!

I want to go see this with Hannah!

Weekend

Had a great weekend. Friday Hannah and I hung out and watched Casino Royale while eating Little Caesar's pizza. Saturday I watched Riley Joy while Hannah left and had some away time. Then we went to the library. Sunday we went back to Living Water and had a wonderful time. It was "Hymn Sunday" so a woman sat at the piano and people just hollered out hymns to sing. It was informal and really neat. The sermon was on living truth and love... excellent! My best friend from childhood, Josh, was there which was a great surprise. We talked a little, he does not seem much different from the last time I talked to him a couple years ago. We need to get together. In the afternoon we went to Alburtis and walked around. Then in the evening we watched "Hondo" with John Wayne and I was floored by it! I had somehow heard it was not that great, but it was incredible! I added it to my official list of favorite John Wayne movies :-).

Today is going good. Nothing special. I must leave now, Marge is finally back at work after her double knee replacement surgery and console shop is having a salsa party!

Headlines

I saw these headlines today... I think they speak for themselves.

"Obama to use executive orders for immediate impact"
"Plans for National Holiday Honoring Obama"
"Spokesman: 'Obama Ready to RULE on Day 1'"
"Gorbachev calls on Obama to carry out 'perestroika' in USA"
"Iranian president applauds Obama"

McCain lost... so now what?

McCain staffers are now going out and bashing and lying about Sarah Palin. Apparently their plan is to smash her down so McCain does not look bad for losing. They want the public to assume it was obviously that dumb mayor that brought him down.

This boils my blood...



And anyone who says she brought him down is lying or wildly uninformed. Polls show that McCain gained 13% of his votes exclusively from choosing her. And I am one of those votes.

Bright Spots

On a high note, the ballot measures defining marriage as between one man and one woman in Arizona, Florida and California have all won! That is a huge victory for families. And there was another victory in Arkansas where the ballot initiative to ban gay couples from adopting children also won! Those are definitely some bright spots in all that has happened. Also, the Democrats did not get their supermajority in the Senate, so the Republicans still have the filibuster option if they need it.

So It Happened...

We were up until midnight watching the election coverage... and Barack Obama has won the Presidency. It blows my mind that our country would elect an unapologetic marxist with strong fascist tendencies. Well, the sixties radicals have finally taken control of our country. They tried to take it through violence in the '60s, but now they have two of the branches of our federal government and are going to do everything in their power to seize the third. We will just have to wait and see what happens.

I Did the Deed

I got up this morning and voted before work. The line was pretty long, I had to wait about thirty minutes, not so long compared to some lines but still longer than I have ever waited at this polling place. I cast my ballot for McCain/Palin, Charlie Dent, Mike Welsh, and Tom Corbett among others. Though this has been a very disappointing election season (also terrifying!), I was at least excited about voting for Tom Corbett. He is running for State Attorney General and he has a hard core record of prosecution. He is willing and has a record of holding even Harrisburg politicians to account for their illegal activities. Also he is a hard-liner against child molestors. We will see what happens. I can not say I was excited to vote for John McCain, but I was thrilled to be able to vote for Sarah Palin. A vote for McCain is a vote to bring that incredible woman that much closer to the White House. Now I just need to get through the rest of the day so I can go home, relax, listen to the coverage and pray for the best outcome. This day is taking too long, I am definitely ready to be home.

My Critters

I love critters, whether bugs of small animals or whatever! I seem to find them everywhere I go, and whenever possible I like to snap a picture. Unfortunately I don't have pictures of the 20 live bees I once caught and put inside a jar or a few other fun moments, but these are still some fun ones.



I caughts this spider at work. I brought it home but Hannah was not as thrilled by it as me :-)



This lovely beast fell from the tree to his death. He looks pretty comfy here, though, almost like he was just sleeping... oddly enough, another squirrell dropped down dead a couple days later.



This was a neat grasshopper type bug I found on the hood of my car. It was far too cool to not get a picture of.

Here is another spider I caught at work.

I love walking sticks, and here is one I found at work.

Here are some walking stick I found that were mating. (The fat one on the bottom is the female)

I never quite figured out what this was. It was obviously alive but its face looked painted on rather than actually being a face. To be perfectly honest I do not even know if that was his face! But that goofy tongue looking thing made this bug too cool to pass up.

Hannah and I were driving in Florida when this little guy walked out from under our hood and onto our windshield. He was able to hold on until we reached 55 mph.

I still have not figured out what this thing is... :-)

I found this dead snake on the driveway at work.

This is a live snake I recently caught at work.

This wasp is an old friend of mine. I caught him across the street from the Warehouse in our barn location. Rather than kill him, I stuck him to a box with two nails squeezed against his waist to keep him in place. I visited him ever time I went to the barn, was able to pet him and watch his stinger pop out and go back in. Then after three weeks of being stuck there, he died. It was a sad day when I came in and realized he was gone. But he still sits there stuck to the box to this day. It has been over a year.

Here is a field mouse I caught today. I saw his scurrying across the driveway at work so I chased him down and stepped on him... which was enough to kill him. So I bagged my game and showed it off around the shop.

My Head Is Going To Explode!!!

That is my post.

The "Tragedy" of the Civil Rights Movement

Audio was just uncovered of Barack Hussein Obama in 2001 where he said the following:

"You know, if you look at the victories and failures of the civil-rights movement, and its litigation strategy in the court, I think where it succeeded was to vest formal rights in previously dispossessed peoples. So that I would now have the right to vote, I would now be able to sit at a lunch counter and order and as long as I could pay for it, I’d be okay, but the Supreme Court never entered into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and sort of more basic issues of political and economic justice in this society.

And uh, to that extent, as radical as I think people tried to characterize the Warren Court, it wasn’t that radical. It didn’t break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution — at least as it’s been interpreted, and Warren Court interpreted it in the same way, that generally the Constitution is a charter of negative liberties: [It] says what the states can’t do to you, says what the federal government can’t do to you, but it doesn’t say what the federal government or the state government must do on your behalf.

And that hasn’t shifted, and one of the, I think, the tragedies of the civil-rights movement was because the civil-rights movement became so court-focused, uh, I think that there was a tendency to lose track of the political and community organizing and activities on the ground that are able to put together the actual coalitions of power through which you bring about redistributive change. And in some ways we still suffer from that."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iivL4c_3pck

Amazing Grace

WOW, I just finished watching the movie "Amazing Grace" and it was the most inspiring movie I have seen in a long time. When I saw it come to dvd last year, I thought, "Oh, this must just be a sappy, long, cheap looking movie" and kept putting off watching it. Well, Hannah's mother rented it and left it for Hannah and I to watch, so I stuck it in tonight and I was a hundred times better than I ever imagined it to be! "WOW" is the only word I can use to describe it. The production quality itself is astounding and Ioan Gruffudd fills out the character of William Wilberforce so powerfully that you totally forget you are watching only a recreation of his life. The depth of his character just blew me away. Until now I had never known the story of William Wilberforce and how he with seemingly only God on his side fought the evil of slavery... and after many years of passionate devotion toward his cause and through the amazing grace of God he was able to see its end in Britain. Seeing a true story like this can not help but cause a person to reflect on their own life. He became a part of something far larger than himself and devoted everything he had to it, and just seeing it makes me think about my passion and what I am devoted toward. At this point I feel that I am most passionate about taking care of my wife and daughter. And to be perfectly honest probably right under that would be my passion to bring Christ to my unsaved friends and co-workers. But when it comes down to it, I really do not feel like I have the passion or direction that William Wilberforce had. I wish my life was that simple and I could see clearly before me my specific calling and devote everything I have toward it. At this point I feel that God wants me to devote myself to my family, but at the same time I feel that He has more, a wider mission or a bigger picture for what He wants to do with my life. I guess I will just have to be patient and wait for Him to make that clear. God is faithful, and I know He will reveal it all in His perfect time.

You Won't Hear This In Schools

Excerpt from Liberal Fascism, by Jonah Goldberg, pp. 11-12

But this whole discussion misses a larger and frequently overlooked point. The New Deal did emulate a fascistic regime; but Italy and Germany were secondary models, post hoc confirmations that liberals were on the right track. The real inspiration for the New Deal was the Wilson administration during World War I...

Indeed, it is my argument that during World War I, America became a fascist country, albeit temporarily. The first appearance of modern totalitarianism in the western world wasn't in Italy or Germany but in the United States of America. How else would you describe a country where the world's first modern propaganda ministry was established; political prisoners by the thousands were harassed, beaten, spied upon, and thrown in jail simply for expressing private opinions; the national leader accused foreigners and immigrants of injecting treasonous "poison" into the American bloodstream; newspapers and magazines were shut down for criticizing the government; nearly a hundred thousand government propaganda agents were sent out among the people to whip up support for the regime and its war; college professors imposed loyalty oaths on their colleagues; nearly a quarter-million goons were given legal authority to intimidate and beat "slackers" and dissenters; and leading artists and writers dedicated their crafts to proselytizing for the government?

Saturday

I am about to go to sleep, but what have I done today?

1. Got up around 8:00
2. Watched Seinfeld with breakfast while Riley Joy crawled around
3. Riley went down for a nap
4. Went to the Library and picked up "Liberal Fascism" and Hannah got some girly books
5. Did some dishes and some reading
6. Got on the computer
7. Hannah made peanut butter popcorn and we hung out and watched "Dan In Real Life"
8. Called my mother
9. Put away some laundry
10. Put Riley Joy to bed
11. Called my dad
12. Watched "The Osterman Weekend" in bed while Hannah slept

That was my day. Now I sleep.

Blockbuster Interview!

Today I finally went to an interview for a part time job, it was at the blockbuster a few blocks from our house. It went very well, I thought. The store manager is a young guy and really loves what he does. He described the job as not really work. He said you work at the register and talk to people about movies and then in your free time organize the shelves... sounds pretty nice! He said the time always goes very fast and he regularly asks his employees whether they feel like they are working, to which they always so, "Oh no. This is fun!" So it definitely sounds like a good job. He said he is going to do a background check and call my references and he will get back to me in a few days if I get the job. I know he is interviewing others, so I hope I stood out somehow. Before I left I told him that I was energetic, knowledgeable about movies, quick to learn and pick things up, and I love working with people, so I could all but guarantee him that I would be just right for the job. Hopefully he believed me :-). It will also help that I will get really good reviews from my references. We will see! I humbly submit to God's will :-).

Looking Up

Last night was wonderful. The evening started with me getting a call from Blockbuster for a job interview on Friday. Then I realized there was an extra thursday this month (I budget for 4 week months and therefore get a bonus every month with 5 weeks) which will be just enough to get us through. And then we went to bed and got an absolutely wonderful night's sleep! I went to bed at 10:30pm and did not wake up once until 4am! So I am definitely feeling better today.

God is so good to us :-)

I am hoping and praying that everything will work out and I will get this job. This is the plan:

1. Get a part time job
2. Pay off debt
3. Put something in the Savings account
4. Have another baby
5. Move to our own place! (after Hannah's mother returns from China)
6. Have another baby
7. Have another baby
8. Have another baby
9. Have another baby
10. Have another baby

Tired, Annoyed, Grumpy

I am just so down right now I can not describe. I feel exhausted and grumpy and stressed and it is all manifesting itself through anger. I am holding myself back with everything I have in me... but I am just flaming angry at everything! I was looking for a work order today and just flew off the handle and thoughtlessly slammed my fist down on my desk making a shockingly loud noise... just loud enough to wake me out of my thoughtless/pointless fury. I just wish I had my second job, I wish we had enough money to pay this month's bills, I need sleep, I wish we had our own apartment, I am sick of my nose burning and running, and I am hungry. I don't even know why I am hungry! I keep eating full meals, but I am just starving!!! Aaaaaaaaaah! I just hope I snap out of this soon. As of this moment I am absolutely miserable.

I just had to get that out.

Tired

Riley Joy has been fighting an ear infection and a cold over the last few days. Hannah and I (especially Hannah) have been losing much sleep and it is definitely making its mark. I think Hannah is better at covering it up, but I have been quite a grump. Work has been very grueling recently which does not help. Everybody is waiting on something from me but as of yet I can not seem to catch up. I guess this is just what happens at this time of year... we always have a lot of catching up to do on jobs to have them ready for the big Christmas services. I have Walker, Texas Ranger on right now so I think I am going to sit back and watch it until we head to bed. I hope Riley sleeps better tonight...

Hit By A Car... Or At Least Almost

We decided to walk to the grocery store after I got home from work this evening (4 mile round trip). It was a gorgeous evening, like most here at this time of year. Riley was wearing her new purple had Nana made her yesterday and some new mittens. Hannah was wearing a sweatshirt and I had my favorite flannel shirt on. Along the way there was a sprinkler spraying water across the sidewalk, but as we watched it we realized it was moving! So we quickly ran and made it past just in time to avoid getting soaked. But our most adrenaline pumping moment was when we were crossing an intersection. We stopped as we hit the corner and saw an SUV on our left coming to a stop at the stop sign. It came to a complete stop. I looked to my right and saw many cars moving through the intersection so we started crossing. We were halfway through the first lane when the SUV started moving! I was pushing Riley Joy in the stroller and she was mostly past it, but I was right in the middle and Hannah was right behing me. It moved pretty quickly into us but right as it started to push my leg I started banging on the hood going, "Woa! Woa!" It was a lady driving and she instantly stopped and her eyes nearly popped out of her head. Her hands came to her mouth and she was in total shock but as we started moving again she called out, "Oh, I am so sorry! Are you ok?" Hannah burst into tears and I could just let out a "humph!" and motion towards our baby. I wanted her to know what she could have done. When we were safely on the sidewalk Hannah took Riley Joy out the stroller and held her and cried while I hugged the both. The woman just sat there in shock until we were a little ways away. It was quite an experience. I don't know exactly whether I could count this as being "hit" by a car, because though it put pressure against my leg, I ended up hitting it far harder than it hit me :-). But praise the Lord we are safe. Now I must go to bed, Hannah is waiting and told me she wants to cuddle before she falls asleep.

Today

Today has gone pretty well, though I must admit, it started off pretty rough. We decided to visit Calvary Chapel in Quakertown this morning. So we packed up and got there a couple minutes before the service was scheduled to start. We entered the building but there was no one there to greet us or tell us what to do. So we shuffled past some talking people and went into the auditorium. The morning worship music started and we sang along. We both took turns holding Riley Joy. Then while Hannah had her, the pastor (I think it was him) came up to her and said, "We don't allow kids in the service." She asked if he was alright with her at least having Riley Joy in during the worship and he said that should be ok. What! No children AT ALL in the service! Well, we did not want to make a big deal about it so Hannah took her into the nursery (where she had been directed to leave Riley Joy) and there was no one in there with the babies! There was a little girl that kept coming and going but she said herself that she was not in charge of the babies. Hannah was not about to leave Riley Joy alone in any nursery regardless, but the point is that they tell us we are not allowed to have our baby (even if she is quiet) in with us during the service but then do not have anyone in the baby nursery?!?!?! Hannah stayed in there for a while but could not stand it so she got me and we left. You might say we shook the dust off our shoes from that church. It was really sad. Lets see, wasn't there a story in the Bible about adults telling people to take their children away because they might be distracting... oh yeah! That was where Jesus rebuked them and said, "Let the little children come unto me." It hurt to be told that by that church and dampened our spirits quite a bit. Riley Joy had not even been making any noise. It felt like they said to us, "Your daughter is not welcome here." That hurts alot and I am trying my darndest to not be angry about it... but it still hurts. And I think that attitude toward our beautiful little daughter was about the opposite of the attitude Jesus would have had toward her in that situation. But if our daughter is not welcome, then we are not welcome, and I know we will definitely not be returning to that church.

What Is A Conscience?

Excerpt from The Book On Leadership by John MacArthur, pp. 78-79.

"The conscience is a built-in warning system that signals us when something we have done is wrong. The conscience is to our souls what pain sensors are to our bodies: it inflicts distress, in the form of guilt, whenever we violate what our hearts tell us is right.

The conscience bears witness to the reality that some knowledge of God's moral law is inscribed on every human heart from creation (Romans 2:15). Both the Greek word for "conscience" (suneidesis) and the Latin root from which the English term is derived have to do with self-knowledge--specifically, a moral self-awareness. That capacity for moral reflection is an essential aspect of what Scripture means when it says we are made in the image of God. Our sensitivity to personal guilt is therefore a fundamental trait of our humanness that distinguishes us from animals. To try to suppress the conscience is in effect to diminish one's own humanity."

World's Longest Bug Discovered in Borneo!

This is too cool! Yes, it is a walking stick.

Catch-Up

Having been unable to write yesterday, I must play catch-up today and write yesterday's blog. So here it is.

Wow! Today has been crazy. I knew I was going to have a lot of shipping so I started almost first thinin the morning. We have three POET rack systems to ship out and each one takes me from a hour and a half to two hours to pack up and ship. These just happened to be slightly larger systems and also the paperwork was incomplet for them so packing them up took extra time. I finished everything at about 4:45pm. UPS normally arrives at 4:30, but luckily he arrived a few minutes late and was patient as I finished up. So in the end I had packed up three POET systems and one random small box with an LCD display and some documentation. In all it made for a very busy, tiring day. Now I am home and am exhausted. I grabbed a $5 Litlle Caesar's Hot and Ready Pizza on my way home and the new Indiana Jones movie so we have just been vegging out and watching that. All in all this has been a very nice Friday evening. Riley is asleep now and we are about to head up and read for a while before going to sleep. I got a new Abraham Lincoln book from the library which I am excited to read. Life is good :-).

On Being "Pro Choice"

Professor Robert George of Princeton University on the Glenn Beck Program.
October 17, 2008

"Well, ['pro choice' is] a mistaken label because it pushes off stage the real issue that determines where a person stands on the question of abortion and that is the legitimacy of the choice. If abortion is, as I believe it is and as I believe you can prove it is very easily as a matter of scientific fact, the intentional killing of a living human being, a member of our species, one of our tiny brothers and sisters, then if you believe that that killing is a legitimate choice, whether you call yourself pro choice or not, you are favoring abortion. You are favoring the legitimacy of abortion. It's a legitimate choice. It's not an injustice. If you are on the other side, on the pro life side, then, of course, you are opposed to abortion. So it's not a question of choice. It's a question of whether we think the action is killing an innocent person, is a grave injustice, is an ill legitimate choice or not. If you think it's legitimate, then you are for it. If not, you are against it. Compare it with slavery. Just take another example, another moral issue. Compare it with slavery. There were plenty of people at the founding of the United States -- Thomas Jefferson was one -- who said, look, slavery is a bad thing. It's terrible that we have it. I prefer a world without slavery. But the world we have is one with which slavery is integrated into our economy and into our culture and there would be dire consequences for farms and businesses where slavery is used and for the society as a whole if we abolish slavery, therefore reluctantly I'm going to support the choice of people to have a slave. But that wasn't being pro choice on slavery. That was being pro slavery. It was treating slavery as a legitimate choice. Again the issue is, is it legitimate or is it a grave injustice. If it's legitimate, then you're for it, whether it's slavery or abortion. And if it's illegitimate, then you are against it."

I Am Tired

This day has been pretty wild. I have far more work than I can get done and I have been having to re-prioritize my day over and over. And then whenever I start doing something I am reminded by someone that they need something else done. Either way I keep filing all this away in my head or on my computer but the sheer volume of information descending on me is filling everything I have to the breaking point. My brain has been full since about 9:30 this morning so my body has taken to storing information in my appendix and belly button. Once they are full I am not sure what I am going to do because everything else in my body pretty much has a function already and probably can't deal with storing the extra information. Yes, that is me right now. I am tired and miss my beautiful girls.

Why Barack Hussein Obama is not only wrong, but terrifying

Barack and Friends: (Television Special)
Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_HZMD97nMw
Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1TAnDcQyjA
Part 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7y3U383Ffuk
Part 4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7g__--BJ9I
Part 5 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxCZzxEfUAs
Part 6 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxfQD4If7kk

On the Freedom of Choice Act: (Barack Supports 100% Freedom for Abortions and opposed parental notification for minors)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0__ctD48nfQ

On National Defense: (Barack is going to dramatically cut back our nation's defenses)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7o84PE871BE

On Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac: (Obama received the 2nd most amount of money from both corrupt corporations)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-_HlpZ8azA

On Iraq Flip-Flopping: (He can't tell the same story twice)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHEIi4XKRmM

Glenn Beck: What Are The Odds? (Barack is either a liar or the most unlucky guy in the world)
http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/16820/

On the "Born Alive Infant Protection Act": (Barack supports infanticide)
http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/196/15318/

On Redistribution of Wealth: (This is called Marxism and was implements in the wonderful Soviet Union)
http://www.nypost.com/seven/10152008/news/politics/obama_fires_a_robin_hood_warning_shot_133685.htm

On ACORN: (Barack worked with ACORN and supported them financially)
http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/16762/

On the Perception of Obama as a "new" or "different" kind of politician: (Barack used slimy methods to get into politics just like everyone else)
http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/01/obamas_alinsky_jujitsu.html

On Alleged Lies about his ethnicity:
http://kennethelamb.blogspot.com/2008/02/barak-obama-questions-about-ethnic.html

Final McCain/Obama Debate

The debate ended a little bit ago and I have just been browsing the internet while listening to the post-debate analysis. It is very typical: "McCain was terrible... but Barack was great and presidential and so refreshingly different!!!" I thought the debate was better than the last two, but it was still pretty boring. McCain can not be tought, hard as he tries. The problem is that neither of the candidates are real leaders, so you just have two people with authority but no qualities of leadership. In the end the debates and campaigns just seem hollow. It is sad. Where is a leader? President Bush is a leader, Sarah Palin is a leader, Rick Santorum is a leader, Tom Delay is a leader, Newt Gingrich is a leader. But neither of the people we have running for President. I have been a reading a book by John MacArthur called The Book On Leadership and it is so depressing to read because I see how far our candidates fall from being true leaders. But at least McCain has some opinions than Barack and is not friends with racists and communists. I definitely hope McCain wins the election, but I am excited for the day when a true leader rises up (like Ronald Reagan) who posesses the true qualities of leadership and can inspire our nation to follow him. That will be a wonderful day.

How about those "Bitter Americans clinging to guns and religion"

Everyone Needs To See This

Oh The Joy of Manure :-)

My goodness it is beautiful outside! I left the Warehouse and was rolling back to the shop when I smelled the wonderfully refreshing smell of cow manure! I can't stand pig manure, but there is something nostalgic and wonderful about cow manure. I had the windows down when the smell hit, and it was about a perfect moment. I looked out one window at the beautiful trees with their leaves changing, and out another at a recently harvested field, I looked at the beautiful hill before me and the hills off in the distance on every other side... wow, I love this state :-). But I so wish we lived in a more rural area.

Historic Times

The incredibly historic events that are taking place right now force me to write. We are building our future... and it is not very pretty. We have seen our government move more over the last few weeks toward socialism than ever before in our country's history. Our government just decided now that it is going to nationalize many of the country's largest banks. So that basically means they are going to buy into the companies and then put a government representative on their boards. On top of socializing our banking system, they are now vowing to guarantee all loans made by banks! Do you remember what brought Fannie and Freddie down? The government guaranteed their money and as result they took unreasonable risks and made bad decisions and crumbled as a result! Of course leaving our government with the bill. Government guarantees cause people to make bad decisions because they know that the government will bail them out.

What is going on here?

Barack Obama, A Man Of Substance

Oh, It Has Been Too Long

My goodness it has been too long since I wrote a real entry in here. Life is just so incredibly full right now that I get frustrated trying to put it into a few words. The volumes I am sorting through my head this moment could take me the rest of my life if I tried to put them into words. So now here I am, vowing to write a post every day for the rest of the year on this blog, partly because I enjoy it, but mostly for posterity. I want my children to know about my life and the world I live in. Who knows what will have changed when they grow up? Just this last week we have seen the socialization of our country's mortgage industry, and now we are on the brink of socializing the entire banking system! Even though free markets in their pure form have been tossed aside years ago by our country, at least until now they have tried to hold on to it in some small way. But at this rate, within years my children will be living in a country with socialized banking, transportation and energy. The Higher Law upon which our country was created has been forgotten and the government now has total sovereignty. It makes no difference if we have "Under God" written on our worthless paper bills anymore because the whole concept of our nation being under God's Higher Law has been entirely forgotten and replaced with total government sovereignty. Our rights, freedoms and privacy are now at the mercy of our government. Now, don't get me wrong, I still advocate for keeping "Under God" on everything we can because, God Willing, there will be a revival among Americans and we will once again give God the rightful place He should have in our country. We still are "Under God" but our government has forgotten it. Well, we will just have to see what happens. At least we can rest in the knowledge that in the end, it is God Himself who appoints the rulers of this world. And though I might not understand it, He has His own reasons and I can trust in his sovereignty.

Letter to Representative Charlie Dent

I contacted your office twice to make my concerns known on the recent "bailout" bill. I was so proud when I heard that you initially voted against it, but then... YOU VOTED FOR IT! So they add $130,000,000,000 of pork and other entirely un-related and entirely socialist provisions (the foundation for a future carbon tax?) and THEN you decide you want to support it? So now we are going to "bail out" the people who made bad business decisions (unfortunately at own government's bidding) by further inflating the dollar or borrowing money from other countries. And this being when we pay thousands per each american's head yearly just for interest on our existing debt! What is going on here!?! I know the pressure was on to sign it, but now our government is bigger than ever and we have successfully socialised our entire banking system... thanks a lot... what were you thinking? It would seem the Republicans have lost their spine, and I previously thought you still had one. Either way, I am seriously considering voting for a "write-in" rather than yourself. Sam Bennet is an idiot but you have stabbed me in the back... what really can I do here? Please contact me and tell me I still have some reason to vote for you.

Respectfully,

Ryan

New Movie

Wow, this is sad. I can not imagine how many people will be led astray by this movie. All the arguments he used in this preview are things I have heard people say. Here is a movie that says, "Hey, you are right! Religion (and Christianity in particular) are absurd!"

Farewell Letter to Salem

Salem Pastors and church family,

We would like to first off express our thanks to Salem and to you for everything you do. We have really enjoyed our time at Salem, but now we feel that it is our time to move on. This coming Sunday will be our last. We have felt for a long time that Salem was a temporary home for us, and recently as we have seen the church heading in a different direction than we are being led, the Lord has made it clear to us that it is time to go.

Salem has been such a wonderful home to us these past few years. First to me as I was alone in college, I always felt at home on the weekends at Salem and I praise the Lord for the gracious folk at Salem (specifically Glenn & Sheri Harris) who took me in and gave me the home base I needed during that time. Then when Hannah started coming, she was welcomed with open arms just like me.

I have great respect for Salem and the wonderful ministries in place there, but most specifically I love the evangelistic fervor at Salem. From the bus ministry to the large number of missionaries to the consistently presented Gospel in the services Salem’s heart for the lost is seen. We are honored and thankful that we got to be a small part in that.

But now we are going to be looking for another church in the area. God has not given us a specific location yet, but we are confident He will lead us there soon. We will be looking for a smaller congregation and a church with meaty, expository preaching. We have seen Salem over the last few years move toward a Rick Warren style “Purpose Driven Church” model that is very different from what Hannah and I are looking for. We are also excited to find a church where we will be asked, “How have you been doing?” rather than “How have your parents been doing?”

We have put lots of time into praying over this and it is clear that this is God’s will for us. We want to thank you for everything you do and we pray that God will continue to bless the church and its ministries.

Thank you and the church body for everything,

Ryan & Hannah Burgett

Praise, Praise, Praise God!!!!

I have felt the Spirit working mightily these last few days... and now I have seen that work manifest itself! My friend Ed from work just accepted Jesus as Savior!!!! I have felt God working in him for quite some time, but it all came together over this weekend and today he accepted Christ's atonement for his sins and he wants a relationship with Jesus!!!!!!!!!!! I told him to pray and tell Jesus what he was doing, so he basically said, "God, I believe in You, that You exist. I believe that You came and died on the cross for our sins. I want a relationship with you, I can not do this life on my own."

Praise to God!!!! Thank You Spirit for the incredible things You have been doing!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"The Commission"

I found this at:
http://www.persecutionblog.com/2008/09/the-commission.html

The Commission
by G. Shirie Westfall

I asked the Lord to help my neighbor,
And carry the gospel to distant lands,
And to comfort the sick, but he said to me,
If you love me, be my hands.

I asked the Lord to go to the dying,
And the orphan in the street,
And visit the prisoner, but he said to me,
If you love me, be my feet.

I asked the Lord to look to the poor,
And watch over each babe that cries,
And see each man’s need, but he said to me,
If you love me, be my eyes.

I said to the Lord, I want to serve you,
But I don’t know where to start.
To love is the answer, he said to me.
If you love me, be my heart.

Environmentalists Crying Over Dead Trees! Hilarious!

I Need To Write

My brain is spinning right now. God has been doing so much in me that I don't know quite what to do with myself. I sit here during break, and while I used to always have reading or something I wanted to do, I now just feel restless and out of place. I love working here, but at break time I just feel so pointless and lost. Same with home. I get on my computer, but just can't think of anything to do on it. Then I put in a dvd, and get bored watching it. Then I go to read, and my brain starts spinning so fast I can not focus. What does this mean? It is quite annoying.

I have recently started getting involved in the Voice of The Martyrs ministry and am really enjoying it. They are such a neat and essential ministry. They give normal people like me practical ways to be a blessing and help the "least of these." It is so incredible to think of the millions of persecuted Christians worldwide. I was so angry while during the Olympics China was parading around acting as if they were some great nation, while at the same time arresting Christians and anyone who might say something to the news about their oppressive government. I just sent a letter to a 76 year old woman through voice of the martyrs named Shuang Shuying who with her son was hosting a house church. The police found out and beat them in the street near the site of the Olympics and then arrested them both. So now this 76 year old woman with all sorts of health problems (some doubtless related to being beaten by the police) is serving time in prison for her crimes. I have also read about a girl just recently in Saudi Arabia who believed in jesus and when her father found out, he beat her, cut out her tongue, and then killed her. Then the press picked it up and put it in the news across the country as a warning to what happens when you convert. There are so many stories like that of things that happen every day. It really blows my mind. But when I am doing something to help these people and minister to them in some small way, I feel perfectly at peace. I just wish I could feel this peace all the time :-).

Why Obama is Terrifying

This video shows why Obama is the WRONG choice. He will reduce and handicap our nation's defenses worse than even Bill Clinton...

Dear Mr. Obama

A very powerful video...

9/11

Wow, it has been seven years since that awful attack. I was sitting in homeroom when I heard about it, but did not believe it until it was announced in chapel. I remember that whole day huddling by a small radio in shock trying to figure out what was going on. In one day we were attacked at both World Trade Centers, the Pentagon, and the third major attack was thwarted by some brave passengers aboard United 93. It really does not seem like it was that long ago because as soon as the day comes, I feel the exact same as I did in 2001. I woke up this morning as as I turned off my alarm I saw the date, September 11, and immediately started praying, thanking God for our leaders, our military, and especially George W. Bush. I watched a dvd about the radical Islamist movement around the world and it is absolutely terrifying what is going on. Praise the Lord we have a President who understands the threat and has done everything he can to keep us safe. And I take comfort knowing that since 2001 we have sent hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of radical Islamists to the grave. But if only our dimwit President in the '90s had looked past his fear of hurting his "image" and taken action to stop these radicals, we could have stopped 9/11. But I hope that everyone in our nation today takes time to remember what happened and thank God for President Bush, our brave troops, and everyone else in our government who have supported them. Also, I hope people stop blocking out the memory of this event so they can see clearly who they should vote for in November. The choice is absolutely clear.

Here is a video shown at the Republican National Convention having to do with 9/11, it is really good.

Excerpt from John McCain's Speech

(I was not impressed with John McCain's speech. It was generic and borderline socialist at times, but it had heart and that was the best part of it. This portion really shows the heart of John McCain, regardless of his politics.)

...Long ago, something unusual happened to me that taught me the most valuable lesson of my life. I was blessed by misfortune. I mean that sincerely. I was blessed because I served in the company of heroes, and I witnessed a thousand acts of courage, compassion and love.

On an October morning, in the Gulf of Tonkin, I prepared for my 23rd mission over North Vietnam. I hadn’t any worry I wouldn’t come back safe and sound. I thought I was tougher than anyone. I was pretty independent then, too. I liked to bend a few rules, and pick a few fights for the fun of it. But I did it for my own pleasure; my own pride. I didn’t think there was a cause more important than me.

Then I found myself falling toward the middle of a small lake in the city of Hanoi, with two broken arms, a broken leg, and an angry crowd waiting to greet me. I was dumped in a dark cell, and left to die. I didn’t feel so tough anymore. When they discovered my father was an admiral, they took me to a hospital. They couldn’t set my bones properly, so they just slapped a cast on me. When I didn’t get better, and was down to about a hundred pounds, they put me in a cell with two other Americans. I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t even feed myself. They did it for me. I was beginning to learn the limits of my selfish independence. Those men saved my life.

I was in solitary confinement when my captors offered to release me. I knew why. If I went home, they would use it as propaganda to demoralize my fellow prisoners. Our Code said we could only go home in the order of our capture, and there were men who had been shot down before me. I thought about it, though. I wasn’t in great shape, and I missed everything about America. But I turned it down.

A lot of prisoners had it worse than I did. I’d been mistreated before, but not as badly as others. I always liked to strut a little after I’d been roughed up to show the other guys I was tough enough to take it. But after I turned down their offer, they worked me over harder than they ever had before. For a long time. And they broke me.

When they brought me back to my cell, I was hurt and ashamed, and I didn’t know how I could face my fellow prisoners. The good man in the cell next door, my friend, Bob Craner, saved me. Through taps on a wall he told me I had fought as hard as I could. No man can always stand alone. And then he told me to get back up and fight again for our country and for the men I had the honor to serve with. Because every day they fought for me.

I fell in love with my country when I was a prisoner in someone else’s. I loved it not just for the many comforts of life here. I loved it for its decency; for its faith in the wisdom, justice and goodness of its people. I loved it because it was not just a place, but an idea, a cause worth fighting for. I was never the same again. I wasn’t my own man anymore. I was my country’s.

I’m not running for president because I think I’m blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need. My country saved me. My country saved me, and I cannot forget it. And I will fight for her for as long as I draw breath, so help me God...

Excerpts from Sarah Palin's Speech

(I tried to whittle this incredible speech down to only the best parts, but I still ended up with this much. The speech was absolutely incredible!)


...I accept the call to help our nominee for president to serve and defend America.

I accept the challenge of a tough fight in this election... against confident opponents ... at a crucial hour for our country.

And I accept the privilege of serving with a man who has come through much harder missions ... and met far graver challenges ... and knows how tough fights are won - the next president of the United States, John S. McCain.

It was just a year ago when all the experts in Washington counted out our nominee because he refused to hedge his commitment to the security of the country he loves.

With their usual certitude, they told us that all was lost - there was no hope for this candidate who said that he would rather lose an election than see his country lose a war.

...in April, my husband Todd and I welcomed our littlest one into the world, a perfectly beautiful baby boy named Trig. From the inside, no family ever seems typical.

That's how it is with us.

Our family has the same ups and downs as any other ... the same challenges and the same joys.

Sometimes even the greatest joys bring challenge.

And children with special needs inspire a special love.

To the families of special-needs children all across this country, I have a message: For years, you sought to make America a more welcoming place for your sons and daughters.

I pledge to you that if we are elected, you will have a friend and advocate in the White House.

...I was just your average hockey mom, and signed up for the PTA because I wanted to make my kids' public education better.

When I ran for city council, I didn't need focus groups and voter profiles because I knew those voters, and knew their families, too.

Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska, I was mayor of my hometown.

And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves.

I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a "community organizer," except that you have actual responsibilities. I might add that in small towns, we don't quite know what to make of a candidate who lavishes praise on working people when they are listening, and then talks about how bitterly they cling to their religion and guns when those people aren't listening.

We tend to prefer candidates who don't talk about us one way in Scranton and another way in San Francisco.

As for my running mate, you can be certain that wherever he goes, and whoever is listening, John McCain is the same man. I'm not a member of the permanent political establishment.

And I've learned quickly, these past few days, that if you're not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason alone.

But here's a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators: I'm not going to Washington to seek their good opinion - I'm going to Washington to serve the people of this country. Americans expect us to go to Washington for the right reasons, and not just to mingle with the right people.

...we are expected to govern with integrity, good will, clear convictions, and ... a servant's heart.

I pledge to all Americans that I will carry myself in this spirit as vice president of the United States. This was the spirit that brought me to the governor's office, when I took on the old politics as usual in Juneau ... when I stood up to the special interests, the lobbyists, big oil companies, and the good-ol' boys network.

Sudden and relentless reform never sits well with entrenched interests and power brokers. That's why true reform is so hard to achieve.

But with the support of the citizens of Alaska, we shook things up.

And in short order we put the government of our state back on the side of the people.

I came to office promising major ethics reform, to end the culture of self-dealing. And today, that ethics reform is the law.

While I was at it, I got rid of a few things in the governor's office that I didn't believe our citizens should have to pay for.

That luxury jet was over the top. I put it on eBay.

...And I thought we could muddle through without the governor's personal chef - although I've got to admit that sometimes my kids sure miss her. I came to office promising to control spending - by request if possible and by veto if necessary.

Senator McCain also promises to use the power of veto in defense of the public interest - and as a chief executive, I can assure you it works.

Our state budget is under control.

We have a surplus.

And I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending: nearly half a billion dollars in vetoes.

I suspended the state fuel tax, and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress.

I told the Congress "thanks, but no thanks," for that Bridge to Nowhere.

If our state wanted a bridge, we'd build it ourselves. When oil and gas prices went up dramatically, and filled up the state treasury, I sent a large share of that revenue back where it belonged - directly to the people of Alaska.

And despite fierce opposition from oil company lobbyists, who kind of liked things the way they were, we broke their monopoly on power and resources.

As governor, I insisted on competition and basic fairness to end their control of our state and return it to the people.

I fought to bring about the largest private-sector infrastructure project in North American history.

And when that deal was struck, we began a nearly forty billion dollar natural gas pipeline to help lead America to energy independence.

That pipeline, when the last section is laid and its valves are opened, will lead America one step farther away from dependence on dangerous foreign powers that do not have our interests at heart.

The stakes for our nation could not be higher.

...With Russia wanting to control a vital pipeline in the Caucasus, and to divide and intimidate our European allies by using energy as a weapon, we cannot leave ourselves at the mercy of foreign suppliers.

To confront the threat that Iran might seek to cut off nearly a fifth of world energy supplies ... or that terrorists might strike again at the Abqaiq facility in Saudi Arabia ... or that Venezuela might shut off its oil deliveries ... we Americans need to produce more of our own oil and gas.

And take it from a gal who knows the North Slope of Alaska: we've got lots of both.

...We need American energy resources, brought to you by American ingenuity, and produced by American workers. I've noticed a pattern with our opponent.

Maybe you have, too.

We've all heard his dramatic speeches before devoted followers.

And there is much to like and admire about our opponent.

But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform - not even in the state senate.

...Victory in Iraq is finally in sight ... he wants to forfeit.

Terrorist states are seeking new-clear weapons without delay ... he wants to meet them without preconditions.

Al Qaeda terrorists still plot to inflict catastrophic harm on America ... he's worried that someone won't read them their rights? Government is too big ... he wants to grow it.

Congress spends too much ... he promises more.

Taxes are too high ... he wants to raise them. His tax increases are the fine print in his economic plan, and let me be specific.

The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes ... raise payroll taxes ... raise investment income taxes ... raise the death tax ... raise business taxes ... and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars.

...How are you going to be better off if our opponent adds a massive tax burden to the American economy? Here's how I look at the choice Americans face in this election.

In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers.

And then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change.

They're the ones whose names appear on laws and landmark reforms, not just on buttons and banners, or on self-designed presidential seals.

Among politicians, there is the idealism of high-flown speechmaking, in which crowds are stirringly summoned to support great things.

And then there is the idealism of those leaders, like John McCain, who actually do great things.

...He's a man who's there to serve his country, and not just his party.

A leader who's not looking for a fight, but is not afraid of one either. Harry Reid, the Majority Leader of the current do-nothing Senate, not long ago summed up his feelings about our nominee.

He said, quote, "I can't stand John McCain." Ladies and gentlemen, perhaps no accolade we hear this week is better proof that we've chosen the right man. Clearly what the Majority Leader was driving at is that he can't stand up to John McCain. That is only one more reason to take the maverick of the Senate and put him in the White House. My fellow citizens, the American presidency is not supposed to be a journey of "personal discovery." This world of threats and dangers is not just a community, and it doesn't just need an organizer.

And though both Senator Obama and Senator Biden have been going on lately about how they are always, quote, "fighting for you," let us face the matter squarely.

There is only one man in this election who has ever really fought for you ... in places where winning means survival and defeat means death ... and that man is John McCain. In our day, politicians have readily shared much lesser tales of adversity than the nightmare world in which this man, and others equally brave, served and suffered for their country.

It's a long way from the fear and pain and squalor of a six-by-four cell in Hanoi to the Oval Office.

...As the story is told, "When McCain shuffled back from torturous interrogations, he would turn toward Moe's door and flash a grin and thumbs up" - as if to say, "We're going to pull through this." My fellow Americans, that is the kind of man America needs to see us through these next four years.

For a season, a gifted speaker can inspire with his words.

For a lifetime, John McCain has inspired with his deeds.

If character is the measure in this election ... and hope the theme ... and change the goal we share, then I ask you to join our cause. Join our cause and help America elect a great man as the next president of the United States.

Excerpts from Rudy Giuliani's Speech

...Every four years, we are told that this Presidential election is the most important election of our lifetime. This year - 2008 - IS the most important.

This has already been historic. It is the longest Presidential campaign in history. And it sometimes felt even longer.

The American people realize this election represents a turning point. In two months they will decide the future direction of our nation. It's a decision to follow one path or another.

'We the people' - the citizens of the United States - get to decide our next president ... not the media, not Hollywood celebrities, not anyone else.

...You're hiring someone to do a job - an important job that involves the safety and security of your family. Imagine that you have two job applications in your hand - with the names and party affiliations taken off the top. They're both good and patriotic men - with very different life experiences that have led them to this moment in history.

You've got to make this decision right. Who would you hire?

On the one hand, you've got a man who has dedicated his life to the service of his country. He's been tested time and again by crisis. He's passed every test.

...That's one man.

On the other hand, you have a resume from a gifted man with an Ivy League education. He worked as a community organizer, and immersed himself in Chicago machine politics. Then he ran for the state legislature - where nearly 130 times he was unable to make a decision yes or no. He simply voted "present."

As Mayor of New York City, I never got a chance to vote "present." And you know, when you're President of the United States, you can't just vote "present." You must make decisions.

A few years later, he ran for the U.S. Senate. He won and has spent most of his time as a "celebrity senator." No leadership or major legislation to speak of. His rise is remarkable in its own right - it's the kind of thing that could happen only in America. But he's never run a city, never run a state, never run a business.

He's never had to lead people in crisis.

This is not a personal attack ... .it's a statement of fact - Barack Obama has never led anything.

Nothing. Nada.

The choice in this election comes down to substance over style. John has been tested. Barack Obama has not.

Tough times require strong leadership, and this is no time for on the job training.

...John McCain will bring about the change that will create jobs and prosperity. He will lower taxes so our economy can grow. He will reduce government spending to strengthen our dollar. He will expand free trade so we can be even more competitive. He will lead us toward an America that will be independent of foreign oil by an all-of-the-above approach, including nuclear power and off-shore drilling.

This is the kind of change we need.

And he will keep us on offense against terrorism at home and abroad. For 4 days in Denver and for the past 18 months Democrats have been afraid to use the words "Islamic Terrorism." During their convention, the Democrats rarely mentioned the attacks of September 11.

They are in a state of denial about the threat that faces us now and in the future.

You need to face your enemy in order to defeat them. John McCain will face this threat and lead us on to victory.

...In choosing Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate, John McCain has chosen the future. Governor Palin represents a new generation. She's already one of the most successful governors in America - and the most popular. And she already has more executive experience than the entire Democratic ticket. She's led a city and a state. She's reduced taxes and government spending.

And she's actually done something about moving America toward energy independence - taking on the oil companies while encouraging more energy exploration here at home.

Taxpayers have an advocate in Sarah Palin - she even sold the former governor's private plane on E-Bay.

And as a former U.S. Attorney, I am impressed by her success in combating corruption - when she found unethical and illegal behavior among the power- brokers of her own party, she did not hesitate - she acted courageously and independently. That's the kind of reformer we need - she shook up Alaska. She'll shake up Washington.

And we sure need that.

Excerpts from Michael Steele's Speech

(I have been a huge fan of Michae Steel since 2004. He could be the most articulate conservative voice in politics today.)

...Times such as this remind us that we are each called to respond to a cause greater than our own self-interest.

They speak to a truth about America: that when things are tough and the skies are filled with stormy clouds, we turn to each other for comfort, support and leadership.

...We are Americans prepared to reach out to each other for a cause greater than ourselves. We recognize that leadership is not often tested in good times, but rather during those times of uncertainty, when ones judgment, strength of character and experiences come together to reassure, to calm and to guide.

...In moments such as this, buffeted by the winds of an uncertain time we need a leader who understands the life lessons of those who sacrifice, who demonstrate the full measure of what it means to be an American.

In times such as these, we need a leader who will work in the public's interest, not clamor for the public's applause, someone who will lead with the common sense of his neighbors and friends.

In times such as these, we need John McCain.

John McCain has never lost faith in the power and ingenuity of the individual to create the legacy of a nation through hard work, self-sacrifice and discipline.

Through his service he reaffirms to the American people his core belief that government should be limited so that it never becomes powerful enough to infringe on the rights of the individual.

That taxes should be kept low so that families can keep more of their hard earned money.

That the ideal of a colorblind society is worth fighting for because each man, woman, and child is an individual and not a member of some hyphenated class or group.

...So, do you want to put your country first? Then let's change the way we educate our kids.

Let's empower those whose minds are shackled by a poor education with real choices in where they go to school.

So, do you want to put your country first? Then let's change our tax code to confiscate less of our hard earned paychecks so more and more families may actually know what it's like to save for the future.

So, do you want to put your country first? Then let's reduce our dependency on foreign sources of oil and promote oil and gas production at home.

In other words, drill baby drill! And drill now!

So, do you want to put your country first? Then let's make decisions about our security based on what keeps us safe and not on what's politically correct.

So, do you want to put your country first? Then let's win the war on terrorism.

So, do you want to put your country first?

Then let's elect John McCain the next president of the United States!

...It's not just about John McCain's lifetime of selfless service to a nation and its people. It's about his knowing who the enemy is and what to do about them.

It's about his understanding that associations do matter, and that America, though flawed, should not be damned for creating a place so many want to call home.

...John McCain knows we must empower working families and stand with them against the erosion of our constitutional rights, the corruption of our school systems, the weakening of our families and the taking of human life - born and unborn.

We have been reminded once again of what is best about America and its people.

How Does This Happen?

There is no reasoning this away. Look at these pictures. I know the media has a liberal bias, but my jaw still dropped when I saw these.






Wow.