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Welcome to Varied Expressions of Worship

Welcome to Varied Expressions of Worship

This blog will be written from an orthodox Christian point of view. There may be some topic that is out of bounds, but at present I don't know what it will be. Politics is a part of life. Theology and philosophy are disciplines that we all participate in even if we don't think so. The Bible has a lot to say about economics. How about self defense? Is war ethical? Think of all the things that someone tells you we should not touch and let's give it a try. Everything that is a part of life should be an expression of worship.

Keep it courteous and be kind to those less blessed than you, but by all means don't worry about agreeing. We learn more when we get backed into a corner.

Friday, July 31, 2020

Opus 2020-196: Flag Fear

Why do the Progressives* hate the Confederate flag so much.  They claim it represents racism.  Actually it represents resistance to unconstitutional federal authority.  Slavery was only one of the things that the South was fighting about.  There was also the issue of tariffs.  There was the question of where the transcontinental railroad would be built.  There was the obvious presence of federal armies in their home town.

Although most people will agree that it was time to end slavery they are not so happy about the results of federal overreach.  Look at what federal power is doing to education, abortion on demand, marriage, the Second Amendment, how fast you can drive on the highway, wearing seatbelts and helmets, EPA declaring dry areas as wet lands, nutrition labels and the list goes on. 

The Confederate Battle Flag represents resistance to federal bullying and the gradual usurpation of our rights under the constitution.  It is against requiring a license to cut hair.  I don’t need the federal government to tell me who does a good job and doesn’t give me lice.  Have you ever wondered about all those handicap spaces at the golf course?  If you can’t walk to the golf cart maybe you should not be participating in that activity. 

Keep in mind the liberty sets off an allergic reaction in Progressives*.  It makes them feel insecure.  They want you locked down and masked.  To them the real enemy is you and me living our lives without their direction.

Keep them frustrated.

*(Liberals, educators, socialists, communists, elites, Rinos, Democrats, leftists, Never Trumpers, Antifa, etc)

homo unius libri

Thursday, July 30, 2020

Opus 2020-195: Headlines: Texans 1, Rioters 0

I don’t know if your sources of news have covered the situation in Austin recently where a BLM rioter, armed with an AK 47, was shot and killed by a motorists.  What has been fascinating to me is the way in which the media seems to be covering up the facts.  This includes the conservative sources I have.  They keep saying that the rioter only pointed his rifle at the car but did not shoot.  The motorists did, and the rioter went down.  The media then says the motorists sped away.  Evidently some of them also claim that he was racing through the crowd.

They leave out some important details.  Some are omissions, some are outright lies.  The lie is that the driver was racing through the crowd.  The omitted fact is that the guy with the AK fired five rounds at the guy in the car, or if he didn’t fire them, someone did.  They also seem to skip the fact that, as soon as he got away from the mob, the driver called the police and reported he had shot someone.  You will find a couple of videos that back this up at Natural News.  I found the link to this site on Free North Carolina.  Go to the second one with the guy in the mask first.

The driver was released after being questioned by the police.  That should tell you something.  We will see if we still have the right to defend ourselves in Texas or not.

Stay tuned.

homo unius libri

Monday, July 27, 2020

Opus 2020-194: Headlines: Dear Joe

Please stay in California.

I had no idea who Joe Rogan is except that I had heard the name somewhere, so when I saw a link saying he was moving to Texas I was interested.  The link took me to Trending Politics and I read most of it.

My analysis of what I read is that people like Joe Rogan are the reason that people are moving out of California.  At first the article sounded like he had a clue but as you kept going you found out that he endorsed Bernie Sanders.  When I worked as a teacher in Southern California I was surrounded with people like him, except they were not as rich.  They do everything they can to destroy the country with their politics and then when things get really bad, read the taxes start getting to them, they decide to move to somewhere else.  The place they seemed to be moving fifteen years ago was the Seattle area.  You can see how that has worked out.  Now they are targeting Texas.  In the process they will bring their money and their political opinions and start working to destroy their new home.  Where they think they will move when they drag Texas down, I don’t know.

Would someone tell him that New York City is a great place to live.  I hear he can get a great deal on a condo there.

I am starting to wish I had moved to South Dakota.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-193: Dated Vision

We refer to 20/20 as having perfect vision.  It means we can see reality at normal distances.

I saw a meme talking about 20/20 become a reference for going crazy.  Might I suggest that it could also turn out to being the year that people woke up, put on their reality glasses, and began to see reality.  I apologize for the misuse of the word “woke”.

In order to put on your reality glasses you will need to take off your rose tinted lenses.  You need to accept the fact that these are not just idealistic youth out protesting injustice.  They are Social Justice Warriors out to destroy your way of life.  They may be too naive to realize that it will also ruin their way of life but you can’t help that.  You need to realize that appeasement does not work.  It didn’t work for Neville Chamberlain, it didn’t work for Hezekiah, it didn’t work for the liberals in Seattle and Minneapolis.  It will not work for you.

Remember some of the basic differences between you and the rioters.  You want to build.  They want to destroy.  You work and pay your own bills.  If they have a job it is minimum wage and very temporary.  They expect someone else to pay the bills.  They own nothing and want what you have so they can destroy it.  They are barbarians.  Remember that a common activity for barbarians is destroying great works of art and burning libraries.  They are starting with our statues and drooling over your home.

If you can’t see it, get your eyes checked.

homo unius libri

Sunday, July 26, 2020

Opus 2020-192: Exxon Skins?

I keep reading about how the Washington Redskins are looking for a new name.  I read about a lot of suggestions.  I don’t have a name but I have a suggestion.

If my memory serves me correctly what is now the Exxon Corporation came up with that new name after a long search for a word that had no negative connotations in any language.  I might suggest that the owners of the Washington Football Team contact the CEO of Exxon and see if they can have access to the list.  Maybe they can choose the number two name and save a lot of time.

Just a suggestion.  Unless they publish the results on one of the blogs I read, I may never know.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-191: On the Street: Truth in Advertising

As I was driving along the highway I saw one of those electronic billboard signs and it was giving the message, “If my people will pray...”, “I will heal their land, (II Chron. 7:14)”.  It is a good message and needs to be repeated but it needs to be repeated as a complete statement.  As presented it gives a false impression of whom God is and how He works.  He is not a vending machine that accepts our quarters and gives us a prize.

Here is the complete verse.
(2Ch 7:14 KJV) If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Notice a couple of things.  First, this is not addressed as a cure-all for everyone driving by.  It specifically is addressed to “my people”.  When it was written that meant the children of Abraham which we would call the Jews today.  Most Christians would extend the coverage to devout believers in Jesus also.  So if you are a garden variety pagan, you might make a great neighbor and even a member of the school board but this promise of God is not a promise to you.  When we first moved to Texas I could not walk into any library and check out a book.  I had to apply for the card first.  And the card was not good at other libraries. 

Second is a series of things.  Notice the expectations of those to whom this applies:  Humbling, prayer, seeking and the one no one wants to hear.  That which often remains nameless is repentance.  Repentance is defined in this verse.  It means turning from your wicked ways.

Then God will hear.  Then God will forgive.  Then God will heal. 

If you are a pagan or a pseudo-Christian then, sorry, this is not a promise for you.  However the good news is that if God heals the land of the believer and you live next door, there will be some great side effects. 

So if you are a serious Christian, get with the program.  If you are a pagan, encourage them to get with the program.  After all, what have you got to lose?

homo unius libri

Friday, July 24, 2020

Opus 2020-190: The Mystery of Blue

My wife and I are having a disagreement about New York City.  She has this strange idea that the people of New York have had their eyes opened to the incompetence of their mayor and that the next time they can vote they will clean house.

I say, no way.  New York is full of two extremes.  On the bottom of the economic level you have those who believe they deserve everything and that the government will get it for them.  They are locked into the welfare system and life is good for them.  Why work when you can get all the free stuff?

At the other end you have the Progressives*.  They tend to be the rich who feel that when it all comes tumbling down they will be left on top of the heap telling the less worthy how to live their lives.  They really believe that they are better than anyone else.  They read the fantasy in the New York Times and wonder why we don’t believe a thing it says.  It must be right because it expresses their view of the world.

Both have something tattooed on the inside of their eyelids:  Orange Man Bad.

There may be a few who will change the way they vote but it won’t be enough to make a difference.  Why they stay is a mystery to me.

*(Liberals, educators, socialists, communists, elites, Rinos, Democrats, leftists, Never Trumpers, Antifa, etc)

homo unius libri

Thursday, July 23, 2020

Opus 2020-189: On the Street: A Yard Measure

I am getting back into walking.  Between hip pain and toddler care my mornings were lacking exercise.  The doctor said the hip was just arthritis and the grandchild has gone back to Japan.  So I am working up my walking again.  That gives me time to think and one of the things I noticed was something obvious:  Texas yards are not like California yards. 

For those of you who have not had the advantage of seeing a socialist paradise grow out of a golden state, let me tell you what California yards were like before the water shortage made brown the new green.  California yards were small, green and neat.  We used to have a guy who would hit us twice a month for about $50.  Here in Texas they want $140 for one pass.

That is one reason why a Texas lawn is different.  When my yard starts looking like a wheat field half way through the season, I start to think about mowing it.  We are in hill country and there are some people around us who never mow most of their “lawn”.  The guy across from us has a California lawn but he is rich.  Most of us have clumps of wild plants with a lot of rocks peeking through.  It looks natural.  I like it. 

Now that we are in the hot and dry season I don’t need to worry about it too much.  A lot of what was sticking up a few weeks ago is withering.  If we see something that looks green and growing we worry about a leak in the pipes. 

Just another reason to like Texas.

homo unius libri

Tuesday, July 21, 2020

Opus 2020-188: Should-a-Beens: Name that Virus

If you are old enough you remember a TV show called Name that Tune.  I think it is time for us to come up with something to rename the Covid-19 virus.  Since the SJW snowflakes won’t let us mention where it came from we can’t use Wuhan Virus or, my favorite, Fung Flu.

So lets put on our thinking caps and have a little fun.

Boogie man virus:  Everyone is afraid and he is everywhere.  Similar to the Chicken Man Virus.

Monster under the bed virus:  You can never actually see it, but you know it is there.  You know that if you do the wrong thing, like drape your hand over the side of the bed, it will get you.  Wear a glove to bed.  It might protect you.

Cooties:  Dilbert has been talking about Cooties.  He is diagnosed with having them because he does not believe they exist.

Orange Man Bad Virus:  It is obviously Trumps fault.

Slight of Hand virus:  I will distract you with Fake News on the right while I take away your freedom on the left. 

I can come up with others:  Bait and Switch virus, In your dreams virus, “Squirrel!” virus, Fat Free virus (sugar, gluten, salt, peanut).  I hope that cooties don’t have any support groups.

homo unius libri

Sunday, July 19, 2020

Opus 2020-187: What You See Is What You Get

I recently wrote on another blog, “how people who seem to be intelligent and decent can disagree with me on so many issue.”  As I read the news and watch various clips I find that I don’t need to ask that question.  The people I am seeing in the streets are largely neither.  Their handlers may be intelligent but are certainly not well meaning.  As for the rank and file, they have no contact with either attribute.

A lot of it can be traced back to their school teachers.  In science they have abandoned the scientific method and instead look for evidence based conclusions.  They still call it the Scientific Method, but it isn’t.  They still act like Democrats are patriotic Americans too.  The global warming farce is part of this.  Of course they filter the evidence.  They have no observation skills or curiosity.  One of my favorite illustrations about the ice melting and the oceans rising is to put ice cubes in a glass of water, mark the level of the water, let the ice melt and check how much it has changed.

In history the teachers didn’t pay any attention when they were in class so they don’t know a totally bogus presentation when they see it.  This also applies to global warming.  It never occurs to them to wonder why Greenland was called green if it was covered with ice.  No, it wasn’t an announcement in the Babylon Bee.  It could also be forgetting the current events of a few years ago when we were warned about global cooling.

My only conclusion is that they are either incredibly stupid or unbelievably evil.  Maybe both and my conclusion is not based just on the fact that they don’t agree with me.  I have found stupid people that agree that throwing rocks is violent and I have Calvinist friends that disagree with me on eternal security whom I would never consider evil.

homo unius libri

Friday, July 17, 2020

Opus 2020-186: Headlines: Your Move, Anarchist

The Daily Wire had a post on federal authorities in Portland as they detain and remove people suspected of being violent protesters.  I saw a video of this a few days ago and had mixed feelings about it.  On the chilling side, a bunch of guys dressed up in camo get out of an unmarked car, walk up to someone, take them by the arms and whisk them away.  On the encouraging side, someone is doing something. 

This article gives better insight.  As far as I can see due process is being followed.  The arrests are taking place to secure federal buildings and employees.  Most of those arrested are released, some are detained.  I didn’t catch how many were let go, but it said that 13 were charged.  As long as they follow the rules and are enforcing the law I am good with this.  It may take a few days for the message to sink in but it will force the enemies of America to change their strategy.

Always think of long term consequences and keep your eyes open.  It could escalate with the anarchists coming for you because your local police will do nothing.  It may move on to the Feds overstepping their mandate and throwing out due process.  The first we can deal with, the second is the real danger.  The current lock downs and mask mandates are evidence of that.

Interesting times.

homo unius libri

Thursday, July 16, 2020

Opus 2020-185: Headline: It Is Not Just About Us

One news site I check is Free North Carolina.  I noticed on article that talked about how the China Virus panic is effecting people in other countries.  This was set in Vietnam and talked about the difference in the tourist business from before and after all the shutdowns.  It is dynamic. 

As Americans we tend to think it is all about us.  I guess that is natural.  People tend to be self centered.  We need to realize this nonsense is not just about us being forced into masks and putting the small businesses out of business.  It is a world wide attempt to destroy the economy.  We need to supply the leadership that brings this foolishness to an end.  Maybe instead of being concerned about the taco stand down the street we need to protest to Free Vietnam.  Maybe our media should be letting us know what they are doing to the world.

The last time we had this domino effect was the Great Depression that ended up going around the world.  It was one of the dynamics that led to the rise of Hitler and World War II.

It is time to get back to work, world.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-184: Headlines: My People

As I was perusing the sites I check for news I noticed a headline on The Daily Wire.  It read,
“Viola Davis On Her Role In ‘The Help’: I Feel Like ‘I Betrayed Myself And My People’  By Paul Bois”
I did not bother reading the article and I am not going to turn the meter by clicking on it.  At 72 I don’t have time for that kind of stuff.  It did bring a few questions to mind though.  First, who is Viola Davis?  What was “The Help”?  In case you are inclined, don’t bother telling me.  From the picture of an attractive woman, the title of the play and the phrase “My People” I can assume it is about the servants in a rich household or some variation of that. 

The item that bypassed my pacemaker was the term “My People”.  I am getting triggered by that term and my safe space is being invaded.  How does she define her people?  Is it totally a skin color thing?  Does she realize that “her people” are killing each other around the world because their definition is not based on skin color but the shape of their head or body type.  If she went to the wrong part of Africa would the locals accept her as one of them or knock her over the head so they could send her in a slave convoy to Sudan?  I think the latter is more likely.

I don’t believe I have ever heard a white person refer to “my people” based on color of skin.  They might use it for people who like the same baseball team or eat sushi, but I have never heard such a stupid thing as “my people” based on skin color. 

Let me tell you whom I would accept as “my people”.  First, it would include anyone who is serious about Jesus being their Lord.  They would not need to agree with me on modes of baptism, frequency of communion, style of worship or translation of the Bible.  Second, Americans who believe that we are the city on the hill and that the Constitution gives us the best form of government in history.  They would also acknowledge that the government as it is acting is not living up to that standard.  After that I would have a lot of little categories that would overlap and exclude depending on the issue.  Never would color of skin, texture of hair, shape of eyes or continent of origin come into play.

Viola Davis has my sympathy for her limited, bigoted view of life.

homo unius libri

Wednesday, July 15, 2020

Opus 2020-183: Funication

I am a retired public school teacher.  I am not proud of the fact but not ashamed of what I did either.  I am glad I retired three years ago because in the current Cancel Culture I would have been fired by now.  I don’t care if you think your child’s school is different.  It isn’t.  Public education is a vast wasteland of ignorant leading the ignorant toward ignorance.  This is nothing new.  I came across this in a book called Self Help, published in 1897.
“Accustomed to acquire information under the guise of amusement, young people will soon reject that which is presented to them under the aspect of study and labour.  Learning their knowledge and science in sport, they will be too apt to make sport of both; while the habit of intellectual dissipation, thus engendered, cannot fail, in course of time, to produce a thoroughly emasculating effect both upon their mind and character.  ‘Multifarious reading,’ said Robertson of Brighton, ‘weakens the mind like smoking, and is an excuse for its lying dormant.  It is the idlest of all idlenesses, and leaves more of impotency than any other.’”  (Kindle location from Gutenberg download, 4642-4646)
The mantra of public education is “Learning must be fun.”  While I will admit that there are some things that can be taught by cute songs, A B C D anyone, it is a little difficult to teach any kind of deeper thinking without real work.  But since public education is not about developing free thinking citizens they go for the fun.

If you are a parent you know that you must be a father or mother, not a buddy.  Of course, that is only true if you are willing to risk being unpopular with the little savages you have been entrusted with.  I say that having mostly domesticated the two precious little savages that call me Dad.

I am somewhat amused by the air-time that home schooling has been getting during the lock down.  For those of you invested in public education, never fear.  It will not catch on.  The amount of work and self sacrifice it involves is not for everyone.  The problem with people who are interested in home schooling is that they ask people who still have their children in public school.  It is like going to the local bar to ask about solutions to drunk driving.

If you think you can tough it out and know you love your children, seriously consider teaching them at home.

Smiles, Samuel.  Self Help.  London:  John Murray, Albemarle Street, 1897.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-182: Headlines: The Queen Is Arabic

You stumble across the most useless information when you are poking around on the web.  I was going through old links and came to a site called News Punch and found a headline that said Queen Elizabeth is a direct descendant of Muhammad.  The date on the article in January, 2018 so it is not exactly hot news.

You need to go through 43 generations to get this established.  If you have ever looked into this kind of thing, in 43 generations you can probably prove that you are related to just about anyone.  I always used to tell students that if we trace our genealogy back far enough, all of us have both slaves and slave owners somewhere in our family tree. 

And of course this is true because it is on the internet.

homo unius libri

Monday, July 13, 2020

Opus 2020-181: New Terms: Political Dementia

I hope you are paying attention and don’t develop a case of political dementia.  That is where you can’t seem to remember anything and start believing whatever you are told by your care givers.  If you need to, take notes and take names.

At the head of my list is going to be our governor Greg Abbott.  I had felt good about him until the China Virus panic was drummed up by the media.  At first he got squishy by doing a partial shut-down.  Then he said we didn’t have to wear masks.  Now the Chicken Little’s have convinced him the sky is falling and he declared we all had to wear masks everywhere.  Out of the other side of his mouth he said he was not going to shut the state down again.  What does he think will be the result of masks, social distancing and reduced occupancy in restaurants?

There have also been cities and counties that jumped on the wagon.  It is probably too late to do anything in this election cycle.  Often the Democrat would have been even worse. 

That is in Texas.  If the city councils of Seattle and Portland are reelected then the people who have remained in those cities deserve what they get.  The same goes for New York, city and state, and California. 

The reality is that eventually everyone will be exposed to this virus.  That is the way the world works.  The vast majority will be totally unaware.  The unfortunate few will have a hard time.  The number of businesses that have gone under dwarfs the number of people sick.  I am disappointed in our governor.  I hope I have some options when he comes up for reelection.  I hope my dementia stays at bay.

Elections matter.  Vote the suckers out.

homo unius libri

Sunday, July 12, 2020

Opus 2020-180: The Law of Prosperity

Why are Marxists like Antifa and BLM so set on rioting and causing civil unrest?  It isn’t the destruction per se.  There is a deeper understanding at work.  They hate capitalism because it enables the masses to prosper without bowing down to the socialist elite.  One of the supports that free nations can supply for successful business ventures is a sense of law and order. 

Thomas Sowell, in his book Conquest and Cultures, is reviewing how what he calls “middlemen peddlers” can prosper even in areas where they are total ethnic strangers.  Whether it was Jewish peddlers following the Roman legions or Chinese in Malaya where the British were in charge, they could prosper if they had one thing.
“Neither racial nor cultural affinities with the conquerors are necessary for this to happen.  All that is necessary is for the conqueror to establish a degree of law and order under which others can feel secure.”, p. 17
They needed a place where they knew the rules and knew the rules would be followed.  He said that the rules didn’t even need to be fair as long as they were clear and consistent.

Which brings us back to places like Seattle.  The problem for the survival of a free society and prosperity is not the destruction itself.  The problem is that the Progressive* mayors did nothing to stop it, and in fact, stopped the police from doing their job.

Antifa can’t stop us if we are free to take risks but they can stop us from taking risks if we are worried about being stabbed in the back by the people who are supposed to work to protect us.  The authorities in Seattle and Minneapolis actually want things to fall apart.  These Marxists don’t want middle class blacks to be successful and grow a part of the American dream.  They want them feeling helpless and giving up.  When that happens citizens will be dependent on the government to survive. 

We need to establish law and order.  It is not necessary so we can set our rules.  It is necessary so that a free people can develop their own destinies and not be bowing before their “betters”.

*(Liberals, educators, socialists, communists, elites, Rinos, Democrats, leftists, Never Trumpers, Antifa, etc)

Sowell, Thomas.  Conquest and Culture.  New York:  Basic Books, 1998.

homo unius libri

Friday, July 10, 2020

Opus 2020-179: Move On Is More Than a Movement

I think we need to accept that this current virus, like all viruses, will eventually reach everyone who is susceptible to it.  If your genetic makeup opens you to the virus creating illness in you, count on it happening.  You will get sick.  How hard it will be depends on DNA and a lot of other factors but it will happen.  If you are resistant, that will not change.  Think of things like the common cold.  I understand there are many versions.  We all have experienced them.  It happens.

The craziness needs to stop.  I wrote about being kicked out of a hospital because I didn’t wear a mask.  It is a strange world where you are not allowed into a medical building if you are sick.  It is like being banned from the grocery store if you are hungry.  It also ignores the large number of people who pick up life threatening diseases while they are in the sanitary facility. 

There are things you can do.  Most of them are obvious and anyone with good hygiene and a sense of community is already doing them, in fact they were always doing them.  Someone remarked that one of the great results of all this panic media is that men are beginning to wash their hands in the bathroom.  If I were young and frisky I would be learning to stay home when I was sick instead of going to work and infecting everyone.  Simple things that are called common sense.

There are things you can’t change.  Was your youth filled with cigarettes, alcohol and STD roulette?  There isn’t much you can do about that now.  Did your parents give you weak lungs or a disposition to diabetes?  That is beyond your control, but keep in mind that those things were true before all the hype. 

I would not be surprised if I found I had the virus.  My theory is that it has been around a long time but was just ignored because it was like any other flu.  The biggest danger is not the people who will die and have it blamed on the China virus.  The numbers that are on the road to an early death because they have been denied “non-essential” procedures are going to dwarf the real deaths from something called 19.  The spin off deaths from depression, loss of income and isolation will never be tallied.

Time for the world to get moving again.

homo unius libri

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

Opus 2020-178: New Term: TAIHTSOTIATM

I don’t know about you but I am getting tired of trying to figure out and remember all of the cute little acronyms that people come up with.  I have lol down.  I now what wtf means even if I don’t use it.  I have used teotwawki.  My memory for this stuff is still in the KB and they require MB.

Go ahead and use them but understand that I will treat them like a lot of weird names in novels I read.  I will acknowledge them, not try to pronounce them, and move on.

TAIHTSOTIATM (That’s all I have to say on this issue at the moment.)

homo unius libri

Tuesday, July 7, 2020

Opus 2020-177: Business Opportunity

I wonder if there might be a business opportunity here.  The latest virtue signal is being sent by Dryer Ice Cream as they do away with the Eskimo Pie brand.  Who knows where this will stop.  My thought is that if they don’t want those labels, would they sell them? 

I am guessing that if someone came out with an ice cream bar called Eskimo Pie it would outsell whatever Dryer comes up with to replace it.  I don’t buy pancake syrup but I am guessing that if some entrepreneur were to come out with an Aunt Jemima label it would sell like hot cakes. 

It won’t happen though because these corporate snowflakes would realize that the competition would be bad for their business.  Maybe a package that looked almost the same with a similar name like “Alaskamo Pie”.  Or spell Jemima with a G.  You know, the kind of labeling you often see in a dollar store. 

I won’t be much help because I don’t know how long it has been since I had an Eskimo Pie and I am not big on pancakes.  I will accept a percentage of the profits.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-176: Post Independence Day Post

We need to change the name of the day.

Or maybe have another holiday with the new name.

I used to say we have it better than anywhere else.  I still think that is true but the gap is closing.  It is not closing because other countries are getting freer, but because we are losing our liberty wiggle room.

The popular conception of liberty is changing.  It used to be the opportunity to work as hard as we could and reap the benefits of our labor.  We were responsible for our own lives and accepted that it was up to us to take advantage of what was offered.  Then there is that other “R” word:  Risk.  We accepted that there were no guarantees.  We knew that the greater the risk the greater the reward.  We were only limited by our willingness to strive and the luck of the draw in skills and talent.  The role of the government was to keep the playing field level.

Now everyone thinks that life should be risk free and everyone, especially the snowflakes, should have everything life has to offer regardless of whether we earn it or not.  We think we deserve it.  We are special.  Our teachers told us so.  Everyone thinks it is the governments job to guarantee our security and lack of stress.  Based on the current response to the virus that would also include a guarantee that we not get sick or die.

I would like a day where we declared Independence for that kind of thinking.

Maybe we should call that day Unicorn Day.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-175: Headlines: Kanye for President

When I first saw the headline I thought I misread it or it was a misprint.  It said 2020.  Evidently that is what he said and what he meant.  I keep in mind a couple of things.  First, you can’t believe much that you read in the news.  The only thing I can be sure of is that sometime in the last few days Kanye West spoke.

Second, it was offered as a catalyst for thinking.  People have thrown the idea around before.  Maybe there is something to it.  So far I have seen nothing that adds or elaborates on the statement.

Third, it could be a joke like Trump was reported to have made about running for president.  And then the joke became reality.

I am not opposed to considering West for president in 2024.  Right now I think we need another four years of the Donald.  I would encourage West to keep the thought going and do some serious preparation.  Would I vote for him?  At this point I don’t know.  I know he has backed Trump.  It seems that his religious conversion is real.  Before that conversion it would have been an automatic “no”.  He is a successful business man in addition to his history as a Rapper.  Could be.

There will be some possible good competition in 2024.  In the politician ranks we have Tom Cotton and Jim Jordan along with governor Kristi Noem.  It would really be interesting if the different personalities could get together and pool their energy.  If we are serious about draining the swamp it will need to continue past 2024.

Interesting times.

homo unius libri

Sunday, July 5, 2020

Opus 2020-174: Pins and Hedges

I am not concerned about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.  You have probably heard how silly medieval scholars were because they debated it.  They knew it was silly, just as they knew the world was round but they had their reasons in using it as an example.  I would simply wonder if angels dance.  If they do, is it swing, square or just free style?

My thoughts follow different rabbit holes.  What I do wonder about is, “How many angels does it take to put a hedge of protection around me?”  The question does not appear in a vacuum.  Today I was reading the 34th Psalm and came across this verse.
(Psa 34:7 KJV) The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.
I like that thought.  I like it double considering what the forces of anarchy are trying to do to our country.  I have watched the videos of the drivers slowing working their way through the street blocking demonstrators and seen the peaceful protestor pull out a gun and shoot through the window.  I have seen the picture of the elderly catholic priest being attacked by three or four brave BLM thugs.  It applies to today.

A few days ago I came across another mention of angels,
(Mat 18:10 KJV) Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.
These types of verses make me think about guardian angels.  I wonder if they get bored sitting around my house.  I wonder if the Texas countryside is beautiful to them after cruising the cosmos.  Some day I plan to ask them.  It occurred to me that I might spend 1,000 years just getting to know them. 

My mind goes in many, diverse channels.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-173: Headlines: Or Not a Headline

If you can get through all the screaming about meaningless increases in cases and look at the best numbers available then I have some good news for you.  Daily death counts are down.  The number of death attributed to the China virus on July 4 was the lowest since March 23.  If you don’t believe me check it out at Worldmeters.  You will need to scroll down to the graph marked “Daily Deaths”.

If you factor in that the number of deaths reported are inflated for political and financial reasons, it is good news indeed.  I just someone would point out the obvious to our governor.

We are probably getting ready for the next panic that the Progressives* have in their line up.

*(Liberals, educators, socialists, communists, elites, Rinos, Democrats, leftists, Never Trumpers, Antifa, etc)

homo unius libri

Saturday, July 4, 2020

Opus 2020-172: Declaration Diversity

As I came to the end of the Declaration of Independence I looked down at the list of names and noted that each person put down the role in life that they filled.  I laughed at Samuel Adams labeling himself as a “political leader”.  It would seem that he did not have a day job.

The rest of the list was interesting, not in the number of lawyers, but in the other professions listed.  If you take out the lawyers and judges, which I did, you get an interesting list.

Bartlett, Josiah                NH      Physician, Judge
Braxton, Carter                 VA      Farmer
Clark, Abraham                  NJ      Surveyor
Clymer, George                  PA      Merchant
Floyd, William                  NY      Soldier
Franklin, Benjamin              PA      Printer, Publisher
Gerry, Elbridge                 MA      Merchant
Gwinnett, Button                GA      Merchant
Hall, Lyman                     GA      Physician
Hancock, John                   MA      Merchant
Harrison, Benjamin              VA      Farmer
Hart, John                      NJ      Farmer
Hewes, Joseph                   NC      Merchant
Heyward, Thomas Jr.             SC      Lawyer, Farmer
Hopkins, Stephen                RI      Judge, Educator
Hopkinson, Francis              NJ      Judge, Author
Lee, Francis Lightfoot          VA      Farmer
Lee, Richard Henry              VA      Farmer
Lewis, Francis                  NY      Merchant
Livingston, Philip              NY      Merchant
Lynch, Thomas Jr.               SC      Farmer
Middleton, Arthur               SC      Farmer
Morris, Lewis                   NY      Farmer
Morris, Robert                  PA      Merchant
Nelson, Thomas Jr.              VA      Farmer
Rush, Benjamin                  PA      Physician
Taylor, George                  PA      Ironmaster
Thornton, Matthew               NH      Physician
Whipple, William                NH      Merchant, Judge
Williams, William               CT      Merchant
Witherspoon, John               NJ      Educator

The Founding Fathers had their share of lawyers but it is impressive how many saw themselves as farmers.  Maybe we need to pass a law setting a limit on how many lawyers we can have in congress today.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-171: Cornerstone Considerations: D of I, Who Is “He”?

I am practicing what I preach.  I am reading the Declaration of Independence.  It is hard to get past the first two paragraphs without joining a militia, but I made it.  As I continue to read I come across things I have written on before,
“He has erected a Multitude of new Offices, and sent hither Swarms of Officers to harass our People, and eat out their Substance.”
As I kept reading I kept seeing things that the Founding Fathers acknowledged.  They seem to keep happening.  With the recent riots I noticed this passage.
“He has excited domestic Insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the Inhabitants of our Frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known Rule of Warfare, is an undistinguished Destruction, of all Ages, Sexes and Conditions.”
We have certainly been experiencing this as a nation.  It has not touched my neighborhood but, if it is not reined in, may be here soon.  The insurrection is not random or spontaneous.  It is organized and encouraged. 

As I read through the different issues I kept coming across the word “he”.  In the Declaration it is clear that they are referring to King George III of England and the people he appointed.  We are in theory a republic.  We are not supposed to have kings any more, yet, we see the same things happening and seem powerless to stop them.  Who has assumed the Imperial We in our culture?

Who is “he”?  Who is this person or group that is doing everything it can to destroy us as a free people?  I have a few suggestions.

The first “he” is a congressionally and constitutionally authorized establishment which has gotten way out of hand.  I refer to the courts and the activist judges who are trying to turn the United Stated into a People’s Republic.  The Founders feared a court coup, and they had good reason.

Another “he” is the media.  As clever criminals will do, they know the rules we use and find ways to abuse and destroy them.  They know about the first amendment.  For themselves they fight for it with all they have.  For those who disagree with them, not so much.  In fact they put more effort into destroying our rights than they do defending their own.  You see, no one is trying to take away theirs, so they can spend their energy on stifling us.

“He” would currently refer to Governors and Mayors who have used the current race baiting to advance their own secret dreams of sadistic power.  They get a rush from crushing the helpless.

Will we overcome this?  I hope so.  I fled the People’s Republik of Kalifornia to the Free State of Texas only to find that the governor here seems to have drunk the kool-aide too.  I guess you can’t run and, long term, you can’t hide.

Time to stand.

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-170: Reading Assignment

It is that time of year again.  Just as you might read the Christmas story on December 25, on July 4 your assignment is to read the Declaration of Independence.  You can find it on line.  Have a discussion if you get a chance.

Keep in mind that the Cancel Culture will be doing what it can to remove this from the data bases so you might want to run a copy.

“When in the course of human events...”

homo unius libri

Friday, July 3, 2020

Opus 2020-169: On the Street: Serenade

I was sitting back and trying to determine how many different bird calls I could identify.  I was listening carefully when all of the sudden another voice joined the chorus.  From a good distance away my concert suddenly was accompanied by the braying of a jackass.

I think it is very appropriate that the donkey is the mascot of the Democrat party.

homo unius libri

Thursday, July 2, 2020

Opus 2020-168: A Mask Instead of a Chip

I am wondering if I met the Beast today. 

I am not a conspiracy nut, or at least I don’t think so.  I don’t see the deep state behind every computer glitch nor do I see Soros or Rothschild behind every fool.  Today I began to wonder.

It started off at the bank.  I took a mask with me because I needed to sign some paper work.  At the door I read the fine print and it said customers did not need to wear a mask, so I didn’t.  What I found amusing was that they required me to use hand sanitizer before I entered.  Okay.  I can do that.  That was not what amused me.  What rolled my eyes was that after my hands were germ free I had to reach out and open the door using the same door handle that everyone else was using.  Then when I got inside, I was asked for ID.  I dug out my driver’s license and laid it on the desk thinking the clerk would look without touching or use gloves.  No.  She just picked it up.

So far I am having fun with the nonsense.  Then my wife, being my wife, decided that she needed to stop at a new Mexican place just up the street.  When we got inside I was told that if I did not have a mask I would not be served.  My wife had her mask in her hand, not on.  They said nothing to her.  We left.  I was not allowed to buy or sell.

This brings me to the chilling part about the Beast.  The Beast of Revelation will set things up to demand toeing his line.
(Rev 13:17 KJV) And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
My wife said that our only major grocery chain, H-E-B, has made a corporate decision to require masks even in areas that have not government mandate.  Okay.  I still have the little store I went to yesterday but what if they do the same?

I know.  It is only a mask.  It isn’t a computer chip or a mind altering vaccine.  It is just a mask.  I can even make a joke of it by wearing a bandana.  It is still a government action that is closing in on me saying, “Wear this mark to show your submission or you will not be able to buy or sell.”

We live in interesting times.  No, I do not think that a mask is the Mark of the Beast.  At this point I can probably have food delivered if I want to go that far, but I view this as a trial run by the government and a chance for me to work through some realities.  Like, what happens when your credit card also requires your Covid Vaccination Number to be processed?

Again, we live in interesting times.

homo unius libri

Wednesday, July 1, 2020

Opus 2020-167: New Terms: ABLM

Since the “Black Lives Matter” movement has clearly become a bunch of anti-American thugs along with their snowflake friends, I would suggest that we propose ABLM, “All Black Lives Matter”.  I can get behind that until it is co-opted by the Progressives*.

It is clear that BLM does not care about the murder of 17 black citizens, many of them bystanders, who were murdered in Chicago last weekend.  ABLM does and demands that the Mayor get behind the police and investigation.  Unfortunately she is too busy chanting “Orange Man Bad” to do much about her constituents.  My guess is that she will be reelected.  I don’t know how to deal with that.  If my mayor didn’t seem to care that hoodlums were shooting up my streets I certainly would not vote for her again.

Keep in mind that November is coming.  Every member of the House of Representatives is up for reelection.  A third of the Senate.  In your state there are people who support either the concepts advocated and demonstrated by Antifa and BLM or who support the concept of ABLM.  You really do have a choice.  If you vote to return the Progressives* then shut your mouth, put bars on your windows, buy a gun and hunker down. 

Whatever you do, don’t move to Texas.

*(Liberals, educators, socialists, communists, elites, Rinos, Democrats, leftists, Never Trumpers, Antifa, etc)

homo unius libri

Opus 2020-166: Feline Snowflakes

The cat is crying to get inside.  She jumps up in my window and pleads.  She goes to the back door and pleads.  She runs around the house to the front door and complains.  I ignore her as long as I can because I have been down this road before.

Finally I open the door and she says, “Who me?  Do I really want to come in?”  When I apply my foot with a little gentle reminder she hops ahead and starts to strut like she is the queen on her way to the throne.

It is my daughter’s cat.  My wife keeps saying it is mine.  No way.  I am simply a steward of an animal that my daughter and granddaughter cherish while they work on getting home from Japan.

It is like having a resident snowflake.

homo unius libri