Opus 2026-252: Headlines: Texas Hope

I saw a brief note this morning that Trump had finally made an endorsement in the Texas runoff race for the US Senate between Ken Paxton and John Cornyn.  It is about time.  Early voting started Monday.  He went with Paxton which was the MAGA choice.  

I have lived in Texas about nine years now.  Cornyn has been in the Senate that entire time and I have watched him Rino his way through every issue.  I don’t know that I would say he never did something right but I noticed a pattern of uniparty loyalty.  

Paxton is just the opposite.  I am sure he has made some decisions I would disagree with but I can’t remember what they were.  On the other hand he has been consistently on the side of liberty and rejection of federal heavy handedness.

I think that in the general election Paxton will have no trouble with the basket case the Democrats has nominated.  It will be a Republican replacing a Republican so the states on all the charts will not change but, oh what a difference it will make in how things move forward.  It will be like a reduction for the Democrats of one vote.  The senate might start putting America first again.  Is it too much to hope for?  

Keep the faith, pray without ceasing and make your voice be heard.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-251: Trusting Turkey

Recently Powerline had an interesting article about a Trump initiative.  It involved developing a trade route through Armenia as a go around of the northern route through Russia and the southern path via Iran.  It is called the Trade Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP).  It is an interesting idea but I don’t put a lot of long term confidence in it.

Why?

Because it involves Turkey.  Turkey went through a phase where the moderate, secular Muslims were in control.  That has changed.  They are moving back to the traditional stance.  That is a long history of treaties and promises that are broken at the first convenient place.  It goes back to Mohamad promising to go easy on the Jewish tribe if they would surrender and then beheading the men, raping the women and selling any left alive into slavery.  That was the pattern down through the crusades and the modern expression of Jihad.

Can a leopard change its spots?  If it did, it would still be a leopard.  Or remember the fable about the frog giving the scorpion a ride across the river.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-232: Franklin and Trump

One topic that comes up in Christian circles is the spiritual status of Donald Trump.  I don’t claim to have the final word on who is saved and who is damned, that goes without saying, and I don’t present it as a cop-out on taking a stand.  I have heard nothing credible that would make me think Trump has put his faith in Christ . One thing I have noticed though is that he is open in his comments.  He does not try to learn the jargon so he can pull the wool over our eyes. 

The first time I saw this was in his first campaign.  He was being interviewed on a Christian talk show and being asked some very direct questions.  He clearly did not understand the lingo but just as clearly he was trying to be honest.

I was glancing through a book on my shelf that I intend to get to some day.  It had one chapter on the spiritual stands of various Founders.  One that I looked at to determine if the book was reliable concerned Benjamin Franklin.  I did not read everything they had but what I did read was adequate to establish the author. The following quote is rather long but I think it is worth reading.

“You desire to know something of my religion.  Here is my creed.  I believe in one God, the Creator of the universe. That He governs it by his Providence.  That he ought to be worshiped.
That the most acceptable service we render him is in doing good to his other children.  That the soul of man is immortal, will be treated with justice in another life respecting its conduct in this. These I take to be fundamental points of all sound religion.  As to Jesus of Nazareth, my opinion of whom you particularly desire, I think the system of morals, and his religion, as he left them to us, is the best the world they ever saw, or as likely to see.  I apprehend it has received various corrupting changes; and I have with most of the present dissenters in England, some doubt as to his divinity, though it is a question I do not dogmatize upon, having never studied it, and think it needless to busy myself with it now, when I soon will have an opportunity to know the truth with less trouble.  I see no harm, however, in it being believed, if that belief has the good consequence, as probably it has, of making his doctrines more respected and observed, especially is it as I do not perceive that the Supreme takes it amiss, by distinguishing the believers of his government of the world with any particular marks of his displeasure.”  Pages 157-8

What struck me was the similarity between Franklin and Trump. For all of their intelligence and exposure to Christians, neither one seemed to understand what the issues were.  Neither was hostile.  Neither tried to claim something they were not. 

I find that encouraging.  Years ago I read I read Franklin’s Autobiography.  I don’t remember any claims to faith in it.  At the same time God used him in the establishment of our country.  May He use Trump in the preserving it.

The attitude of Franklin was very similar to Trump

Morris, Benjamin F.  The Christian Life and Character of the Civil Institutions of the United States.  Powder Springs, Georgia:  American Vision Press, 2007.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-115: Trump Being Trump

I watched the State of the Union Address.  I did not want to, but I knew that I would not get any honest appraisal of what was said and what happened if I didn’t watch it.  It’s one of those key moments where we have a way of stepping around the fake news and the distortions and actually going to the source.  It was my responsibility as an American citizen to listen to what he had to say, not what other people said he had to say.

There are two things about listening to this that make it painful.  The first would be the theatrical element that has crept into the State of the Union Address.  There are a lot of really nice things that happen that don’t belong in a report on how the country is doing.  Lifting up heroes is great.  Pointing out people that have risen above the crowd and gone the extra mile is wonderful, but I don’t need to be entertained with 10 minute long applause and weeping family members.  So the amount of time spent on things that have nothing to do with the purpose of this speech I find frustrating.  It’s one reason why I would rather read something than watch it or listen to it.  When I’m reading, I can skim and skip.  I find myself doing this more and more in my old age.  I learned I don’t have to read everything.  Unfortunately in real time, you have to listen to everything.

The second thing that I find painful is listening to Donald Trump.  I support him.  I think he is doing an awesome job overall.  He’s getting things done.  He loves America.  In spite of that I find it painful to listen to him with his constant hyperbole.  The problem with hyperbole when it’s overused is that it loses its impact.  He talks about having the best of this in history, really?  He says it’s the greatest in the last 50 years.  Really?  I know it’s hyperbole.  I know his point is that we are doing well, but I get tired of the exaggerations.  The two hour presentation could’ve been cut down to about 20 minutes if we cut out the theatrics, hyperbole, extended applause, and repetition.

That have been said, since it’s over and done, I am glad I listened.  Of course I’m glad that I was drafted and served in Vietnam too, but I wouldn’t want to do it again.

I really enjoyed this constant emphasis on how the Democrats were not responding like Americans but more like America haters.  Toward the end, they finally started standing up when some things were so obvious they should be approved of, but you weren’t going to catch them giving Trump the time of day.  I found his approach refreshing.  I know all the bleeding heart people that want a lot of touch and feel didn’t like it.  It made them uncomfortable.  But then the truth always does make certain people uncomfortable.

If you didn’t watch it, find time to do so.  If you don’t have time to do so, then don’t believe anything anybody tells you about it, including me.

As George Putnam used to say, “Here’s to a better stronger America.”

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-081: Hiding Behind Hyperbole

In case you weren’t paying attention in high school English, hyperbole is a literary device where you use extreme exaggeration to make a point.  It’s fairly common and I think most of us have used it sometime in the last 24 hours.  It involves words like “never” and “always”.

Sometimes I think hyperbole is used to hide our feelings or our opinions.  In a sense it’s an out-and-out lie, but the person can’t accuse you of that because you will just say, “I was joking”, or “you don’t recognize hyperbole?”

We also need to acknowledge it when we see, or hear, it.  A good example that I find irritating is the way President Trump always declare things are “huge” or “the best in history”.  It is irritating but I have learned to live with it.  One way I deal with it is to not listen to his speeches unless it is necessary.  Why would it be necessary?  Because the media will try to tell me what he said and in their case it isn’t “extreme exaggeration to make a point” it is just plain lies.

There is a difference. They don’t seem to know it, but we do.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-042: Immortal quotes: Character Counts

I have mixed emotions about pulling Maduro out of Venezuela.  I have mixed emotions about getting involved in the revolution going on in Iran.  I have no idea what’s going on in Ukraine.  There are certain times, more frequent than we want to admit, where we simply have to put our trust in the character of a leader.

Character has many different definitions and ways of looking at it.  Donald Trump does not have a good record in successful marriages.  At the same time he seems to have been able to raise well balance children.  Those ex-wives all get along with him.  I scratch my head over that one.  Other areas of character that we tend to ignore are probably more important in his current role.

He is a man who follows the rules.  He does that in the most legalistic manner.  If he didn’t, the Democrats would have put him in jail and impeached him long ago.  Keep in mind, not only have all the Democrats in Congress and many of the Republicans tried to destroy him, but they have weaponized the DOJ, FBI, administrative state, CIA and any other alphabet that you want to use.   In spite of nine years at least of searching, they’ve been able to find nothing that was truly illegal.

He is a man who does his homework.  As a real estate developer in New York he was very much involved in what he was working on.  I read his autobiography.  Much of it had to do with his business dealings.  He knew his market, he knew his contractors, he knew what could be done and what could not be done.  That didn’t come from reading the LA Times.  It came from doing real research.

He is a man who is willing to take risks.  Again, looking at the real estate market in New York, there are points where you have to take risks.  If you read his autobiography, you’ll find out that many of his risks were taken with other peoples money, but again that comes to doing his homework and knowing what the rules were.  He still took risks, but they were measured and thoughtful risks.

He got results.

When I look at Venezuela and Iran, my concern about getting involved is not that there is no American interest, but because I also believe that in the long run when you bail people out and they don’t have to fight it themselves, they end up not developing the character they need to be successful.  We removed the dictator from Venezuela.  OK.  That may have needed to be done.  The issue is that at some point the people of Venezuela need to stand up and step forward.  I understand that to do that before would have gotten you a bullet in the head.  Maybe now they can be free to do that and take the risk necessary for liberty and prosperity.  The same is true in Iran.  There may be small ways that the United States can help advance freedom, but the answer is not to send in the Marines and then hand everything over to someone who has not earned the position of leadership.

So far it seems that Trump is walking the thin line.  I pray that his wisdom will continue to get results.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-579: RIP

Recently, Dick Cheney went to his final reward.  I’m not wise enough to predict what that reward is.  What stood out to me was who was invited to the funeral and, even more so, who was not invited to the funeral.  If you want to get a look at the dividing line between those who want to make America great again and those who want to turn back clock to the rhino days, then just look at the invitation list to that event.

I haven’t gone over the list.  I assume there is one somewhere.  I know who I saw sitting in the first couple rows of the pictures, and I know who was very loudly proclaimed as not invited.  In case you were not paying attention that was Donald Trump.

The rhinos of the country want to go back to the days where the left is allowed to continually change the rules to fit what they want and employee law-fair and the media to intimidate anyone who has traditional values.  One of the great meme posters I’ve seen showed President Trump, looking at the camera, saying something to the effect that they are not really after him.  They are after us; it’s just that he’s in the way.  There’s some truth to that.  There’s a lot of truth to that.

Keep in mind that there are still many people in this world whose major moral position is “Orange Man bad.”  As they say in memes and such, they’d rather have no mean tweets that have stability, safety and recovery of the country. Maybe it would be a good thing if someday you were not invited to the funeral of a famous person.  It might be a compliment if you are banned from family holiday gatherings.

Keep up your values.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-477: You Really Don’t Want That

The jellied masses of the left should be grateful to Donald Trump.  He has given people of principle on the right a hope that we can move forward without violence.  We are more than reluctant to resort to extreme measures for a number of reasons.

We know enough about history to know that the kind of destruction and death caused by civil war and wide scale insurrection is far worse than we can imagine.  Once the restraints are broken atrocities and mayhem multiply.  When a neighbor you have known for years turns on you it becomes dangerous to be alive.  The ones who suffer the most are the innocent.  

We know enough about our emotional and mental health to know that killing has a price even for the survivors.  Talk to someone who has been in combat.  It isn’t like the movies where you shrug you shoulders and move on.  It destroys something in you.

We have a spiritual commitment that holds us back.  This is probably the strongest of all but don’t assume that it does not have a limit.

So be glad that we have more hope than we did a year ago.  

Keep your doors locked, you eyes open and your prayer life on high.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-282: Headlines: The Great Divide

All the rush today is about the split between Musk and Trump.  They have had a falling out.  Verbal attacks have been exchanged.  The end is near.

Balderdash.

Keep in mind a few things.  The first is Fake News and the technique of editing.  Have Musk and Trump had words?  Probably.  Is it as big a deal as the media wants it to be?  Probably not.  My wife made me sit and watch a bit of Fox on the topic.  What struck me was that most of the quotes were carefully edited and most of the interviews were with Democrats who hate Trump.  They also hate Musk almost as much.  Take the reporting with a grain of salt.  The goal is ratings and ad revenue, not truth.

Second, keep in mind that you are dealing with two men who are quite open about speaking their mind.  Neither one got where they are by being diplomatic.  I seriously doubt this is the first time they have knocked heads.  It is just the first time we have heard about it.  Both are used to getting back on the horse and having the end goal in mind.

Third, they are both right.  Musk seems to be upset because congress is doing nothing about all the cuts he has clearly earmarked.  He is right.  They are playing politics and trying to work with a congress controlled by Rinos.  Trump has things that are necessary to get done and the only way he can get them is to try to work with a congress controlled by Rinos.  If you are a praying person pray that they both get what they want.

Fourth, and probably most important, both men love American and really want to see it great again.  That is a quality that makes it possible to overlook a lot of faults.

In the end it will come down to MAGA.  Buckle up and don’t make any bets.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-176: The Danger of Donald

Donald Trump presents a real danger to America and Americans.  I say this as a Trump supporter.  I voted for him.  I wore a red Trump hat.  If the constitution allowed it, I would vote for him again.  I salute the sense of optimism and hope that he has brought to the country.

At the same time I think of him as being a real danger.

Donald Trump is not the messiah.  He is not the undisputed guru of our culture.  To be fair he has never said he is.  He is simply a man who loves America and was put in a unique position to step forward and be counted.  He may be the key figure in history in the last hundred years and in the next hundred years.

The danger comes when people of faith start to get complacent and stop praying.  We are not at the second coming yet.  The new Jerusalem is not descended from heaven.  All is not well in the world.  Our problem is we tend to get a little bit of good times and we relax.  We can’t afford to do that.

Donald Trump and his cabinet and those working with him need our prayers now more than ever.  They are living a daily life of danger.  They are in the crosshairs.  We need to pray for their safety.  We need to pray for their wisdom.  We need to pray that the statements they have made that seem open towards the presence of God take that extra step and actually embrace Him and make sure they’re on His side.

I had a litany that I gave before the election.  I went down a list of things starting with “keep praying”.  I talked about standing up and speaking out.  Keep in mind that the changes that need to take place in this country are in the hearts of mines of the rank and file, the grass roots.  There are so many misconceptions that need to be addressed and we need to be doing the addressing.

Here’s to a better stronger America.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-148: Donald Is Not God

And to be fair, he has never claimed to be.  All he has said is that he feels that God has protected his life because He has something for him to do.  You might feel the same if a bullet took off the tip of your ear.

If I wanted to be critical, it would be of those who try to make him into something he is not.  I would rejoice if I could totally believe that Donald Trump is on board with my spiritual beliefs.  I think he’s open to them but I have not heard the keywords.  That may be just a problem with jargon and semantics.  It may be something deeper.  I am not, however, going to force him into my version of what the Bible teaches.

Fortunately, I don’t need to. I believe that he is the man God is raised up at this time to be used to try and bring revival and renewal to the United States of America, and through us to the world.  You don’t need to be a 24 karat, KJV believing Christian to qualify for that.  God has used many types of people and leaders over the years.  You have it one in the pharaohs and Nebuchadnezzars and such tyrants and despots.  God used them.  At the other end, you have the Wilberforce’s and the Wesley’s and the apostle Paul’s.  All were raised up by God for a specific purpose, and whether they acknowledge God or not, they have been His tools.

So pray to the real God that the Donald would be open to His leading.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-135: Read and Learn

I finally found Trump’s book, The Art of the Deal, at the library.  There were two additions listed in the card catalog.  The newest one was reported as being on the shelf but even the librarian could not find it.  The older one was checked out but I came back and found it later.  I have been reading it.

I’m hoping that the Trump haters never read the book.  It’s kind of interesting.  I haven’t finished it yet, but it looks like most of it is biography with little bits about his business philosophy mixed in.

One reason I hope that the haters never read it is because it might lead them to understand him better.  One of the early things I picked up is that he thrives on challenge.  Where most of us would get worn down by the constant attacks and difficulties that are thrown in our way, Donald Trump seems to gather energy from it.

Go figure.

Judging from the opposition he gets even from people who should be supporting him, this can be a good thing.  Keep praying for him.  Try to understand him.  Pray that he would have that balance between the strengths of a strong character and the weaknesses of a proud character.  There is a balance.  There is a place for strength.  There is even a place for healthy pride. Pray that he finds it and keeps it.

The battle or the Republic is not over.  It will never be over.  Stay vigilant.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-129: When?

One of the big questions that everyone is asking is “When?”

When will the Epstein files be released?
When will the JFK files be released?
When will the MLK files be released?
When will someone be arrested and indicted for all the fraud that DOGE is uncovering?

We need to understand that there is one factor at work that is legitimate but frustrating.  It is called the rule of law.  That involves due process, the 5th Amendment, a jury of our peers, innocent until proven guilty and other matters that are a part of a legitimate legal pursuit.  It is frustrating but we are the party that believes in the Constitution.  We are the party that is commited to following the law.

One thing I can be sure about with Donald Trump, he will follow the law.  If he were in the habit of taking shortcuts they would have locked him up from all the witch hunts that he was subjected to.  Have you really stopped to think about that?  For eight years the entire power of the deep state has been digging and trying to find something to put Trump in jail over.  All they could find were trumped up, if you will excuse the term, nothing burgers and bill of attainder violations.  You may not like the way he used the bankruptcy laws but everything he did was legal.  He will continue in that tradition and insist that his people do the same.

So keep asking.  Keep being a pest.  Hold the fire to their feet.  At the same time accept that if it is done right it will take some time and if it is done right it might only need to be done once.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-185: The Real Man

I watched President Trump‘s speech last night.  It was the same man in many ways that we are used to.  He is not what I would consider a gifted public speaker in the crafting of what he has to say.  He talks too long.  He repeats himself, repeatedly.  He uses. superlatives almost without end.  Everything is the greatest, the biggest, the best, and so forth.  That’s Donald Trump.

But that’s not what attracts people to Donald Trump.  There is a basic personality that if you look, you can see.  It often expresses itself in love for America.  But it goes deeper than that.  It brings to mind a verse that one of my favorites in the Bible,

Micah 6:8 (NASB95) He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?

When you break this down the first part of “ Do justice?”, describes Donald Trump to a T.  You might say he is one of the greatest of the legalists.  He follows the law.  That means that he takes advantage of the nonsense that is in the laws and the conflicting laws and use them to his own advantage.  But at all times, he follows the law.  That is why all these witch hunts have been able to do nothing to him with legitimate lawsuits.  He has a tendency to do what is right or “just” as this verse talks about.

He definitely “loves kindness”.  Many people don’t see this or know about it because the media is on a vendetta against him, and would not say anything if they saw him walking on water, or raising the dead, things which he has never claimed to do.  But if you follow the little bits and pieces here and there you see constant instances where he is reaching out to those less fortunate than himself, and trying to help them.  In his speech, he mentioned several times that he talked to family members of people who’ve gone through trials.  He mentioned the man who was killed behind him on the podium.  He mentioned talking to families of people murdered by illegal aliens.  This is not just for show, this is Donald Trump when no one is looking. There are endless stories of him quietly, with no publicity, doing benevolent things for other people.  He truly does love kindness.

If there’s any area that Donald Trump has had trouble with is in the idea of walking with humility.  Part of that is just who he is.  And if there’s anything that this recent attempt on his life may help him with it is this idea that he is to be humbled before Almighty God.  I think he finally gets it.  He brought it up several times in the speech last night.  Of course we are used to politicians talking about God and getting religious during campaigns.  Those politicians have not come within a quarter of an inch of dying.  There are so many factors that were miraculous in his survival.  I think he sees that.

I support Donald Trump. Big surprise, right?  It’s not because of his great speaking ability.  It’s not because he is flawless in his execution of things.  He is still a big spender. He will make many mistakes.  But the basic man is decent, caring, and patriotic.  Now if we could just be sure that he was saved.