Opus 2015-234: Discernment Watch: The Cold War on the Second Amendment, part 1 of 2

Another term that people under 20 don’t seem to understand is “Cold War.”  And again, many over 20 don’t believe it ever happened.

The Cold War was the period when the free western world, led by the US, was in a deep conflict with the Communist world, led by the USSR.  It never broke out into open war between the superpowers, that is why it was called “cold”.  It did result in much fighting behind the scenes and through surrogates so it was called a war.

One reason that many don’t believe in it is because the Progressives who control the media, education and the Democrat Party have made it a practice of deception and distraction.  Mona Charen in her book Useful Idiots addresses this issue.  In her discussion she makes this comment:

“The Democrats in Congress did not believe in fighting, far less winning the Cold War.  Scarred by Vietnam (for all the wrong reasons) and tolerant of Third World flirtations with communism, they believed above all in one thing:  arms control.  It was the sheer ownership of weapons, they argued, that endangered the peace of the world.  Wars, they believed, could not be avoided when nations engaged in ‘arms races.’”  p. 122

What struck me in this is that the logic of the left never changes.  They felt like the reason for war was weapons.  If we want to avoid war then we should disarm because the only reason that Germany invaded France, The Soviet Union invaded Poland, Japan invaded China, the Huns invaded Europe, the Aztec attacked the Maya, etc was that the countries invaded had weapons and these noble nations were afraid.

Once a useful idiot, always a useful idiot, it seems.  They have carried this thinking over into the issue of the Second Amendment.  They believe the answer to crime and violence is to disarm the law abiding citizens.  The problem is not failing schools, belief in entitlements, the war on Christianity, sympathetic judges and pornographic television.  The problem is too many guns.

To be continued....

Charen, Mona.  Useful Idiots.  Washington, D.C.:  Regnery, 2004.

homo unius libri

Opus 2015-233: Firsts: What Is a Pluot?

I have seen them in the stores.  I have heard them discussed.  Now I have eaten one.  Okay, so I ate three of them.

If you see them on the stand you would think they were a type of plum.  If someone blindfolded you and had you taste it, it would taste like a plumb.  When you pay for it is sure doesn’t cost like a plumb.  On line it says it is a hybrid cross between a plum and an apricot.

They are good.  If you see them at a reasonable price try one.  My opinion is they are just expensive plumbs but keep in mind I like my steak very well done and can’t see why Jamaican Blue Mountain is so expensive.  You can form your own opinion.

homo unius libri

Opus 2015-232: Headlines: The Difference Between R and D

I teach U.S. History, eighth grade edition.  Since I believe that the ability to think and weigh the opinions of others is important, I practice full disclosure.  Most of my students have never met anyone, let alone a teacher, who would admit to being a Republican.  I want to be the wake up call in their lives.

This of course often brings up the question, “What is the difference between a Republican and a Democrat?”  I try to put all of the current issues out of the way on this one and get down to basic principles.  I tell them that the root difference is that people who believe the government is the best source of progress and plenty are Democrats.  People who believe that individuals should make their own decisions and be responsible for their own prosperity are Republicans.

This difference is being broadcast all the time, but people don’t see it.  I saw it in a recent article I read in The Washington Times National Weekly, July 20, 2015, page 25.  I could not get a workable link so you will have to trust me.  The article, titled “Uber-rated?  Clinton, Republicans spar over ‘gig economy’”, dealt with comments that Hillary Clinton made in regard to people who are working as independent contractors instead of getting what the article called “traditional jobs”.

Here are a couple of paragraphs that demonstrate the difference between real Democrats and real Republicans.  First, the writer’s opinion.

“Supporters say companies such as the ride-hailing Uber provide flexibility to workers and consumers with a minimum of government regulatory oversight.  Critics such as Mrs. Clinton say the ‘gig economy’ model may have its virtues but it leaves workers as disposable contractors with potentially no recourse for mistreatment by a company”

Those are the words of the reporter and, if your reading comprehension is in gear, you can see that the difference is that either you are responsible for you success or you need the government to protect you.

Now for the actual words of Clinton.

“This on-demand, or so-called gig economy, is creating exciting opportunities and unleashing innovation.  But it is also raising hard questions about workplace protections and what a good job will look like in the future.”

Then there are responses from a couple of Republican presidential hopefuls. 

Do you see the pattern?  You should.  Elections matter.  There are a lot of things about the Republican big tent that I don’t embrace.  Smoke and mirrors abound.  When the smoke clears and the mirrors break I find that I am still a person who believes that I know what is best for me and I don’t need the government to tell me.

I am a Republican, a real one.  What are you?

homo unius libri

Opus 2015-231: Discernment Watch: Remember the Communist Threat?

People under 20 have never been aware of the Communist threat that seemed to recede when the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991.  Many people over 20 never really believed there was a threat because they watched people like Dan Rather each night.  Mona Charen, in her book Useful Idiots, shares a quote attributed to John Meynard Keynes in 1934.  Keynes is no bastion of conservative free enterprise but in this case he called a spade a spade (with apologies to shovels).

“Communism is not a reaction against the failure of the nineteenth century to organize optimal economic output.  It is a reaction against its comparative success.  It is a protest against the emptiness of economic welfare, an appeal to the ascetic in us all.” p. 91

Keep in mind the Communism (aks socialism, liberalism, progressivism) is a belief system based on faith and assumptions.  It is like any other religion, based ultimately on faith and assumptions.  The assumption is that the ultimate reason for humanity to exist is to evolve into a Marxist state where everyone lives in equality and justice.  That is fine but because they are fanatics, they believe that it is okay to kill millions in order to achieve this enlightenment.  Don’t believe me?  Then check out how many have been butchered by the Communist states of the world.  Start with the Soviet Union, China and Cambodia.  If that isn’t enough for you don’t waste any more time.  You qualify as a Useful Idiot.

The Communist threat is still alive.  Some would say it is being resurrected but in reality it never went away.  It has festered in our universities and media.  It has hunkered down in Russia.  It has adjusted in China.  It has gone chameleon on us but it has never gone away.  As long as we have self righteous zealots who think they know what is best for us common folks the seeds will be alive among us.  When you don’t have the power to starve peasants and shoot dissidents they get temporary relief by limiting our showers, downsizing our cars and turning out cities into centers of racism.

Charen, Mona.  Useful Idiots.  Washington, D.C.:  Regnery, 2004.

homo unius libri

Opus 2015-230: On the Street: 99 Cent Protection

Would you trust a condom purchased at the 99 Cent Store?

Just asking.  I was in line buying some brown rice and saltine crackers.  As I waited I was looking over all of the items they had by the cash register for last minute purchase.  There they were.  I forgot to look and see how many you got for 99 cents.  It looked like more than one.

Maybe they are surplus from the local middle school.

homo unius libri

Opus 2015-229: Ideology Trumps Integrity

Some things never change.

I am reading a bestseller from years gone by called Useful Idiots by Mona Charen.  She goes back and brings out the repeated statements by Democrats and media reporters showing how they have consistently been down on America and pro-Soviet.  She traces this bias back to the last time they were called Progressives, in the 1920's.  She points out some of it is pure naivete but other times it is blatant lies to advance the cause of Communism.  She looks back to the early days of the Socialist threat.

“It might be thought that in those early days, particularly since accurate reporting from inside the USSR was hard to come by, liberals and leftists who made excuses for the USSR were simply ill informed.  But in fact the 1930s and early 1940s were characterized by vigorous and spirited debates within left-wing circles about the nature of Communism.  Figures of the anticommunist left ... provided ample published evidence about the arbitrary arrests, disappearance, and persecutions being carried out in Soviet Russia, as well as copious proof that organs like the New York Times were not telling the truth about the famine and others matters.”  p. 90

So in reality it has never been a lack of evidence but a political philosophy that at its heart is anti-American and anti liberty.  As she summarized,

“The evidence, in other words, was there for those with eyes to see.  But in the 1930s and 1940s, no less than in the 1970s and 1980s, many on the liberal Left suspended their skepticism where Communist regimes were concerned.” p. 90

A book that is eleven years old but still has truth that we are refusing to see.  See if your library has a copy.

Charen, Mona.  Useful Idiots.  Washington, D.C.:  Regnery, 2004.

homo unius libri

Opus 2015-228: The Trials of Life

In one of his sermons Alistair Begg pointed out that life is going to be a series of trials.  I don’t like that.  I want a smooth ride filled with success and harmony.

The fact that I don’t like it means it has more chance of being true.  Have you thought about that?  We tend to reject things we don’t like.  So many things effect us:  Color, smell, texture, size.  Often we will not try a new food because we don’t like its appearance.  Think back to the Nixon/Kennedy debates.  Those who listened to the debate on radio gave Nixon the clear win.  Those who watched on TV gave it to Kennedy.  Why?  Because Kennedy had better makeup. 

So beware of the smooth life.  If you are a Christian, remember that the life of faith is not a matter of cafeteria choices of our favorite truth but accepting what is true.  I don’t like the idea of Hell.  Tough.  There is something in men that is attracted to pornography.  As the old advertising jingle went, “I don’t want to grow up, I’m a Toys-R-Us kid.”  Why work when I can get a government check? 

Why?  Because the wrong choices can not only ruin this life, but ruin eternity.  Read the Owner’s Manual. 

homo unius libri