Sunday Meditation

SUNDAY 9/1  THE PARADOX OF JOY

"'You have sorrow now' and 'your hearts will rejoice.' The Christian's heart often holds both. I may have sorrow in the circumstances of my life. Sorrow in the state of this broken world. Sorrow in loss & pain. But I also still have joy. Joy in Christ. Joy in His resurrection. Joy in His ultimate power over whatever brings me sorrow today.

"Jesus promised His disciples 'No one will take your joy from you.' May we allow that truth to sink deep into our souls. In His resurrection, Christ has defeated the powers that bring . us pain & suffering. In the end, Jesus will remove all tears. Because of that, we can rejoice. Our hearts have joy--a joy that can't be taken away by anguish or grief.

"If joy seems difficult to find right now, don't bother looking for it at the neighborhood convenience store. Don't seek it in shiny new possessions or in self-help resolutions. Through the gift of faith in Christ, you receive the gift of joy. Although disappointments & despair may be sitting (or even camping out!) on the sofa of your heart, joy is always right there too."  --Sharla Fritz, The Lutheran Witness, Aug 2019

Resolutions + DNA + Climate Change + More

RESOLUTIONS UPDATE

• Not to read any partisan diatribes re:  the 2020 elections . . . MOSTLY KEPT
• Add to our list of National Park visits & cross something off our bucket list . . . WE LEAVE FOR TEDDY ROOSEVELT & GLACIER NATIONAL PARKS THIS WED 9/4
• Lose 10 lbs . . . ONLY 8 LBS TO GO
• Treat Sammy with more patience . . . MOSTLY KEPT
• Help put out all our Christmas decorations . . . WAIT UNTIL NOVEMBER
• Work out at least 3X per week . . . I'M HAVING TROUBLE WITH THIS ONE
• Continue spending an hour or so in "quiet time" each day . . . MOSTLY KEPT
• Write a devotion book for the 2019 Orphan Grain Train Convention . . . DONE

TRENDING *

* Courtesy of The Drudge Report 8/31

• Just one night of poor sleep changes DNA behavior?
• Builders swapping cement for hemp to reduce pollution
• 1.3 billion tons of food being wasted each year. Can we stop it?

THOUGHT FOR TODAY

The first words of Genesis 1 boldly claim that we are not lost and wandering in a cosmic circle of time and chance. There is a story that emerges from the beginning, and we have a place within it. Similarly, the writer of Hebrews describes Jesus as the author and finisher of our faith, where ultimate significance is aptly defined as being written into the story of God. God’s Word places us in the timeline of a coherent history, delivering us from the deceptions of the enemy, telling us who we are, and where we came from, what is wrong with us, how we are made whole, and where we are going. We are placed within a story of which we know and celebrate the outcome, even as we wait for it through time and trial. In Christ, history’s outcome—its ultimate end—is revealed. Dark days may follow, but the ending is known. It is a story neither deficient, nor untrustworthy. --Jill Caratinni, Slice of Infinity

CLIMATE CHANGE

The most fervent devotees of climate change don’t really want science, no matter how often they invoke the word; they want drama and memorable images, believing they will catalyze action more than a properly modulated account of the best research. --Rich Lowry, National Review Online 8/31

WIT & WISDOM OF CAL THOMAS

The motivations behind Comey's actions and those in the media who fanned the flames of collusion are now being revealed and should not come as a surprise. If the FISA warrant is shown to have been based on wrong information and the federal judge who issued it is shown to have been lied to, will the liars be prosecuted? They should be, but in the Comey-Clinton "no intention of breaking the law" era, I'm not betting on it.  --Townhall 8/31

Free-for-All Friday

ROAD TRIPS

Lois & I spent last WED in Grand Island, attending the Nebraska State Fair. We were volunteering at the Lutheran Hour Ministries booth. This was not a strenuous activity. We didn't have a lot of "traffic." Attendance seemed to be down, maybe because of the hassle of having to take shuttle buses to the fairgrounds, since on-site parking was closed because of mud. I also doubt that th typical fairgoer has a booth like ours in his sight.

We spent a little time wandering. It was Lois' first trip back to the Fair since years ago when the State Fair was in Lincoln & we took our kids. After we ended our shift, we went searching for food--a plethora of choices to consider--& settled on gyros & baclava.

This WED 9/4 we leave for Teddy Roosevelt & Glacier National Parks. Our first night will be in Rapid City. Our next two nights will be in Dickinson, ND, which is just outside TRNP. After one night in Havre, MT, we'll spend four nights in a cabin in Hungry Horse, MT, just outside GNP. Lots of driving, but we're looking forward to our adventure.

TRENDING

• "Micro-robot built to crawl through human brain tested for first time . . . " Drudge Report 8/29
• "Americans feel dread & doubts about 2020 race . . . ditto
• "Nation's progressives check news to see what they're boycotting today" Babylon Bee 8/29
• "FDA recommends pouring all pumpkin spice-flavored beverages down drain immediately" ditto
• "Chick-Fil-A installs confessionals so you can repent from eating at Popeye's" ditto

IGNORANCE OF THE PAST

When our schools and colleges do not teach unbiased economics and history, then millions of youth have no idea why the United States, Great Britain, Germany, and Japan became wealthy and stable by embracing free-market capitalism and constitutional government. Few learn why naturally rich nations such as Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Venezuela — or entire regions such as Central America, Eastern Europe, or Southeast Asia — have traditionally lagged far behind due to years of destructive central planning, socialist economics, and coerced Communist government.

8

The handmaiden of failed socialist regimes has always been ignorance of the past and present. And that is never truer than among today’s American college-degreed (but otherwise economically and historically illiterate) youth. --Victor Davis Hanson, National Review Online, 8/29

WIT & WISDOM OF CAL THOMAS

Politicians become a god-substitute and politics their religion. Creeping secularism has affected theological truth to the point where people can believe whatever they want -- or nothing at all -- and escape correction. Heresy, even apostasy, has infiltrated many churches.

Then there is culture. Younger people are exposed to what we collectively call "media" more than any previous generation. Most of what constitutes culture proceeds from a singular worldview that denigrates, or does not promote, patriotism, belief in God and values previous generations not only took for granted, but instilled in their children.

Unrestricted abortion has cheapened how many young people view the value of human life. For growing numbers of the young, marriage has become passe' as children witness the pain of their parents' divorce and decide that living together without a formal, legal, or spiritual commitment is better than risking the cost and pain of ending a marriage. For some, children are viewed as a financial burden and an intrusion on adult lifestyles. --Cal Thomas, Townhall 8/29

REPUBLIC vs DEMOCRACY

The founders had utter contempt for democracy. James Madison, the acknowledged father of the Constitution, wrote in Federalist Paper No. 10, that in a pure democracy "there is nothing to check the inducement to sacrifice the weaker party or the obnoxious individual." At the 1787 Constitutional Convention, delegate Edmund Randolph said, "that in tracing these evils to their origin every man had found it in the turbulence and follies of democracy." John Adams said: "Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There was never a democracy yet that did not commit suicide." U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall observed, "Between a balanced republic and a democracy, the difference is like that between order and chaos."

The U.S. Constitution is replete with anti-majority rule, undemocratic provisions. One provision, heavily criticized, is the Electoral College. In their wisdom, the framers gave us the Electoral College so that in presidential elections, heavily populated states could not run roughshod over sparsely populated states. In order to amend the Constitution, it requires a two-thirds vote of both Houses, or two-thirds of state legislatures, to propose an amendment, and requires three-fourths of state legislatures for ratification. Part of the reason for having a bicameral Congress is that it places another obstacle to majority rule. Fifty-one senators can block the wishes of 435 representatives and 49 senators. The president, with a veto, can thwart the will of all 535 members of Congress. It takes a two-thirds vote, not just a majority, of both houses of Congress to override a presidential veto. --Walter Williams, Townhall 8/28

VALUES

As the sense of the importance of faith and religion diminishes, the values and behaviors that go with them -- marriage and children -- also diminish. --Star Parker, Townhall 8/28

MERITOCRACY

As high-achieving Asian students who are suing Harvard University over alleged discriminatory practices due to the “imbalance” of too many Asians qualifying for admission have discovered, even in America, the Land of Opportunity, there are limits to how far merit will be allowed to take you. We must be careful as a society when attempting to “help” one demographic at the expense of another. We should, to the best of our ability, allow merit to rise to the surface naturally.  --William Marshall, Townhall 8/30

DRAMA

The media and the activist base of the Democratic Party want a lot of drama and ideological radicalism -- partly because both groups are well to the left of not just the average American but the average Democrat, and partly because drama makes for better ratings. But most voters are sick of all the drama, and they're turned off by calls for socialism and the like.  --Jonah Goldberg, ditto

Theological Thursday

THE PURSUIT OF KNOWLEDGE

But according to the Bible, at the end of our incessant pursuit of knowledge lies a Person, not an ideology or impersonal reality. God is not only the beginner of all that is; God has also revealed Himself in the earthliest of terms. Jesus was born in circumstances accessible to the lowliest of the shepherds as well as to the most majestic of kings. He spoke to large crowds in public places and was crucified outside the city walls, thereby silencing forever the voices of self-appointed guardians of alleged esoteric knowledge. In biblical terms, no pursuit of knowledge is ever complete without the discovery of him who is the truth; to know him is to know not only ultimate reality but also ourselves.  --J.M. Njoroge, Slice of Infinity


THE PROMISE OF JOY

On the evening before His crucifixion, Jesus told His disciples, "You have sorrow now, but I will see you again, & your hearts will rejoice, & no one will take your joy from you" (John 16:22). He knew He was going to die, & He knew this would bring them sorrow. They would mourn & weep. The world would appear as dark as a new moon sky, & the night of their grief would seem endless.

Jesus speak to us as well. He doesn't promise us the "easy joy" we want--a life free of suffering, a life without heartache. No, Jesus says, "You have sorrow now." Loved ones die. Long-held dreams perish. Some days it seems disappointment & despair have stepped through the doors & taken up permanent residence in the living room of our hearts.

But Jesus also promises us this: "Your hearts will rejoice." We may not be able to go to the corner store to buy a box of joy when a loved one moves away or we get laid off from work, but the good news is that we don't have to go looking for joy. As believers in Christ, we already have access to more "easy joy" than we could ever need or want. We receive it--freely--as a gift from the Holy Spirit. In Galatians, the apostle Paul lists the fruits of the Spirit:  "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" (Gal. 5:22-23). If we are in Christ, we have the Spirit--and we have joy.  "Easy Joy," by Sharla Fritz, The Lutheran Witness, Aug. 2019

Detentions + Free Speech + Insects + Comedy

WHATEVER

"STUDY:  Optimists live longer . . . " Drudge Report, 8/27

CRIMINAL MINDS

From Omaha World Herald 8/23:  "Detention notice is emailed to entire school by mistake. Contrary to an email that went out to students & parents at Lincoln's North Star High School the entire student body didn't have to serve detention over lunch. A detention notification intended for a handful of students who were tardy the previous day went to all Lincoln North Star students. And their parents."

FREE SPEECH

The First Amendment is an important protection of press freedom. Yet nothing in it protects members of the press from criticism, let alone criticism over things they have written. Such criticisms are exercises of free speech in response to other exercises of free speech — i.e., public debate. --Rich Lowry, National Review Online 8/27

INSECTS

I hate to be the fly in the ointment, but not every reference to an insect is necessarily calling for someone’s extinction.

5

Yes, Twitter and the Internet are a hive of this kind of name-calling, with every troll as busy as a bee, and it’s easy to stir up a hornet’s nest. These comments bug people. One day you think you’re the bee’s knees, covering a race that’s as tight as a tick, and then the next you’re bug-eyed in shock at some nasty insult and that leaves a bee in your bonnet. You’re a nice guy, who wouldn’t hurt a flea, but the idea of somebody hating you like that leaves butterflies in your stomach and has really loused up your day. For a while everybody was on Twitter, but now those who can’t stand the nasty name-calling are dropping like flies.

In a better world, our debates would be principled, respectful and focused on issues; the personal stuff wouldn’t be anybody’s beeswax. When somebody saw the value in our perspective, we would answer, “you have learned well, grasshopper.” It’s tempting to cocoon ourselves in a small circle of like-minded souls. But perhaps we ought to just follow Muhammad Ali’s advice: “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” --Jim Geraghty, NRO 8/27

OIL & GAS

We hear little about the Trump effort to green-light more leasing and production of natural gas and oil, efforts that have already made the U.S. the No. 1 producer in the world.

For all the talk of “climate change,” does the Left tell us how many barrels of oil per day and cubic feet of natural gas they would wish to curtail, or whether the resulting higher costs for fuel, heating, and power are worth the cutbacks, or whether we wish to return to strategic dependence on Persian Gulf psychodramas? Do they have a plan to deal with Indian and Chinese coal-burning if we were to radically cut the use of clean-burning natural gas? Do they know why the signees of the Paris climate accord for the most part have not and will not meet their promises while the U.S. has?

In truth, Trump’s critics mostly stay silent, given that Sarah Palin’s 2008 much-reviled “drill, baby, drill” call to lower costs and achieve independence from Middle Eastern oil has more or less proven wise. --Victor Davis Hanson, NRO 8/27

LATE-NIGHT "COMEDY"

The parasite of Leftism has latched on to “Late Night” talk shows, with the quality of comedy declining as the claws of unabated radicalism dig deeper. The laughter and applause of audiences in search of ideological confirmation ensure that they remain blind to the complete inaccuracy or immorality of the Leftist talking points being fed to them night after night.  --Ian Haworth, Townhall 8/27

TAXES

"Our 30th president, Calvin Coolidge, who was born in the tiny hamlet of Plymouth Notch, Vermont, on July 4, 1872, had abundant wisdom on numerous subjects. Horse, or common sense, they called it. About taxes, which today's Democratic presidential candidates believe are not . high enough, Colidge said, 'I want taxes to be less, that the people might hae more,' & 'The collection of any taxes which are not absolutely required, which do not beyond ereeasonable doubt contribute to the public welfare, is only a species of legalized larcy' & 'The wise & correct course to follow in taxation is not to destroy those who have already secured success, but to create conditions under which everyone will hae a better chance to be successful.' Copy to Bernie Sanders & Elizabeth Warren." --Cal Thomas, Norfolk Daily News

Road Trips + Recycling Crime + Fluoride + More!

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Yesterday we returned home after spending the better part of the week with our son, daughter-in-law, & grandson (3+ years-old) in Eagan, MN. Highlights included:

• Walking Calvin to the park several mornings, then enjoying donuts at a bakery on the way home.
• Watching him play at the Teddy Bear playground in Stillwater, MN, followed by burgers & malts at Leo's in downtown Stillwater.
• Spending some time at the Mall of America.
• Lois participated in a 5K on SAT morning.
• Attending SAT night worship at Easter Lutheran Church.
• Enjoying Neopolitan pizza at Punch Pizza in Eagan, following church.

Tomorrow (TUE 8/27) we leave for Grand Island. Lois & I are volunteering at the Lutheran Hour Ministries booth on WED.

Next WED we leave for our Teddy Roosevelt-Glacier National Parks odyssey. Our first day's destination is Rapid City, SD.

CRIMINAL MINDS

"Mom of 3 arrested, jailed for putting recycling in wrong color bag . . . " Drudge Report 8/20

FLUORIDE

"Study links fluoridated water to lower IQs . . .  Drudge 8/20

TRENDING *

* Courtesy of The Babylon Bee 8/20

• Bernie Sanders arrives in Hong Kong to lecture protesters on how good they have it under communism
• Women who don't believe Israel has right to exist not sure why they got banned from Israel
• California mandates conversion therapy for straight kids

BIGOTRY

There is nothing wrong, and much that is right, to dedicating yourself to the cause of fighting bigotry. But it needs to be against the bigotry that exists rather than the bigotry you imagine. If you want to be a giant slayer, great. But attacking windmills like Don Quixote doesn’t make you one.  --Jonah Goldberg

FOCUS

No matter our object of worship, the same is true of our lives today. That which claims the most thorough part of our hearts, minds, and time both reflects and shapes our lives. We most certainly live in a time when focusing our minds on one thing is a challenge met with a constant parade of options vying for our attention. The Christian story introduces a God who longs to gather, whose arm is not too short to save (even from ourselves) nor ear too dull to hear, who is the same yesterday and today.

--Jill Carittini, Slice of Infinity 8/20



JOURNALISM

If you ever wonder why it is that so many of your fellow Americans believe obvious lies – Russian collusion, election hacking, socialism works – look no further than what journalism has become. There is no institution in America with a larger gap between its potential and its realization; its purpose and its reality, than journalism. Existing institutions can’t be reformed, they need to be destroyed. --Derek Hunter, Townhall 8/20

Mental Health Monday

Another Road Trip

Tomorrow we leave on another summer road trip. We're visiting Nathan & Laura & Calvin in Eagan, MN. We're going to help Nathan take care of Calvin while Laura prepares for the next term at Country Day. We come back on SUN 8/25.

On WED 8/28, we travel to Grand Island. We're volunteering at the Lutheran Hour Ministries booth. We get back on THU 8/29. On WED 9/4, we leave for Teddy Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota & Glacier National Park in Montana. It makes me dizzy just thinking about all these road trips.

There Is No Place Like . . . California

"California's biggest cities confront 'defecation crisis' . . ." Drudge Report 8/19

. . . Florida

"Gators caught climbing fences, swimming across roads in FL . . . " ditto

Trending *

* Courtesy of The Babylon Bee 8/19

• God Demands America Remove "In God We Trust" From Currency
• Proud Parents of 28-year-old Millennial Post Annual Back-to-Basement Picture
• Ilhan Omar Withdraws Support From Bill To Save the Earth After Learning That's Where Israel Is

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

"Study:  Areas with more fast food restaurants report more heart attacks." Drudge Report, 8/13

THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE . . . CALIFORNIA

"Facial recognition mistook 1-in-5 CA lawmaker for criminals." Drudge 8/13

GRATITUDE

Of the ten lepers Jesus healed on his way to Jerusalem, there was only one who stopped to recognize the significance of the man behind the miracle. For this one, it was not simply a life-changing moment of being healed of leprosy; it was a life-changing invitation into a kingdom and a community, into life as a new creation. Falling on his face at Jesus's human feet, he saw the Son of God who made him well. And Jesus said to him: "Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well." --Jill Carattini, Slice of Infinity

THE APPEAL OF CHRISTIANITY

But perhaps the greatest appeal of Christianity is simpler. It takes seriously both the reality of sin & the possibility of redemption. --Michael Gerson, "The beauty of Amazing Grace," Omaha World Herald 8/10

MOTIVATED BY FEAR

If this one thing doesn’t happen, our country is finished. If this law isn’t passed, people will die. If this policy isn’t ended, the economy will collapse. Our very democracy teeters on the edge of the abyss, and lives are at stake! To listen to the news these days, it’s over, everything. The only thing we don’t know is the manner of our destruction. Will it be a trade war, some white supremacist, a movie, or the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man?

Of course, the thing about life is, no matter what you throw at it, it goes on. Even without you. Every death is a tragedy, and economic hard times are never easy, but our species has endured much, much worse than anything being dangled like a string in front of a doomsday cat now by politicians and journalists hoping to motivate you through fear. While it may seem like mass shootings are happening with an alarming regularity (one is too many), and anti-Second Amendment groups and their media allies are touting absurd stats like there are more of them than days in the year, we are safer than we’ve ever been. People telling you otherwise are selling something. They’re selling you security at the price of liberty. Just a little piece of it, they only ever want a little piece of it. But it’s a little piece you’ll never get back, and they’ll be back for another soon enough. --Derek Hunter, Townhall 8/13

INVESTIGATING EPSTEIN

It would be a convenience, to say the least, for Epstein to be out of the way before his trial and it wouldn't be the first time someone got knocked off in prison for revenge or to guarantee their silence. Whitey Bulger, the Irish-American crime boss, was killed by inmates shortly after arriving at the U.S. Penitentiary, Hazelton, in West Virginia, last October.

An old joke says, "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you." And just because conspiracies might make you suspicious, doesn't mean this might not be one. Let the investigation begin, let it be thorough and let it be conducted without favor to anyone. --Cal Thomas, ditto

ANOTHER THOUGHT FOR TODAY

In my travels around the country, one thing has become crystal clear to me. Christians are not prepared for the social consequences of the profound cultural shifts — especially in more secular parts of the nation. They’re afraid to say what they believe, not because they face the kind of persecution that Christians face overseas but because they’re simply not prepared for any meaningful adverse consequences in their careers or with their peers.

C. S. Lewis famously said that courage is the “form of every virtue at its testing point.” In practical application, this means that no person truly knows if he possesses any virtue until it’s tested. Do you think you’re loving? You’ll know you truly love another person only when loving that person is hard. Do you think you’re truthful? You’ll know only when telling the truth hurts. Soldiers are familiar with this phenomenon — most men who travel to the battlefield believe themselves to be brave, but they know they’re brave only if they do their duty when their life is on the line.  --National Review Online 8/14

Mental Health Monday

Trending, Thought for Today, Freedom of Speech, Gun Control, More

This is a reminder that one reason I blog is for my own mental health. DISCLAIMER:  The views expressed therein may or may not reflect the views of the editor.

Trending

• Climate crazy:  University bans burgers to save planet [Drudge Report 8/12]
• Leeches latest health trend [ditto]
• Husband daycare now available at all Hobby Lobby locations [The Babylon Bee 8/12]
• Texas constructs border wall to keep out unwanted refugees from California [ditto]
• Sodom, Gomorrah wondering why American hasn't been obliterated yet [ditto]

Thought for Today

When I was a child, I used to speak as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.

In Jesus, the full stature and maturity of humanity is on display. He taught that love was the summary of all that had gone before, and fulfillment of the entire law and the message of the prophets—love God and love your neighbor as yourself. If the greatest of the virtues is love, as affirmed by Jesus and the apostle Paul, can all who seek to follow envision becoming a community that seeks to make love their chief responsibility and goal?(2) Now abide faith, hope and love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.  --Margaret Manning Shull, Slice of Infinity

Freedom of Speech

Our citizens today are enfranchised irrespective of race, sex, and creed. We are, in this respect, more fit to make political decisions than any those in any previous political epoch. American citizens are afforded liberties by our forefathers, because the founders of our nation had confidence in their posterity to use and protect them wisely. The Founding Fathers did see the potential problems that liberties — those of citizens and of factions of citizens — could present a republic. Yet they knew that the freedom to speak was the foundation of any successful republic, and that any cure for the so-called problems of speech — as with other forms of liberty — would be worse than any of its associated illnesses. --Joe Lonsdale, National Review Online 8/12

Gun Control

It is on the issue of guns that this incomprehension is most pronounced. The cable news anchors expressing frustration and disbelief that the latest shooting may not result in tighter regulation of firearms are sincere. They live safe and satisfying lives without guns; why can’t the rest of the country do the same? Yet the spokesmen for “doing something” do not appreciate the equal sincerity of gun owners, whose weapons are not just possessions but also, on some level, part of their identity. --Matthew Continetti, NRO 8/12

Emotions & Laws

Whenever the United States faces a crisis or a tragedy, it is invariably suggested in the press that the country needs a more streamlined political system that is capable of transmuting the transient whims of the majority into concrete action in a matter of days. This view is a dangerous one, and it ought to be resisted at all costs, for when a nation sets up a direct pipeline between its emotions and its laws, it does not keep its liberty for long. There is much that we can — and should — do in order to respond to changing circumstances. We must recognize that there are certain corners of the Internet that are anything but harmless or “ironic”; we must accept that evil ideologies such as white supremacy represent a physical as well as a spiritual problem in America; and we must avoid complacency, even as we defend our elementary rights. But defend them we must. Even — no, especially — when our grief points us in another direction. --Charles Cooke, NRO 8/12

The Blame Game

There are no sure solutions to mass attacks; one man with a weapon and motivated to kill is hard to stop. The rash of murders in El Paso, Dayton, Gilroy, and Chicago has delivered a wake-up call to a divided and angry America. There are no easy answers, but collectively searching for ways to make such attacks less likely is far more constructive than getting stuck in the current blame game!

It’s easy for politicians to get coverage by blaming President Trump’s supposed “racism” while ignoring their own hateful rhetoric. The president is no more responsible for the El Paso domestic terrorist than Bernie Sanders was responsible for his supporter who nearly killed Rep. Steve Scalise at a Republican baseball practice or Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren is responsible for her supporter unleashing carnage in Dayton. Whether fueled in part by environmental extremism or white nationalism, such views are just used to justify their hateful attacks. --Terry Paulson, Townhall 8/12

Sunday Meditation

In what has been a difficult teaching for every era, the Scriptures witness to the reality of sin and our need for God. Likewise, the experience of our world undeniably witnesses to the reality of darkness in our hearts. If this experience has not inspired a change in philosophy, perhaps it is because the illusion of human goodness brings us greater comfort. Yet, does it really? Do we not find it incomprehensible how one could abuse or torture a child? And do we really believe that given time and progress we will learn to love our neighbor as ourselves? Surely the horrors of the present century alone have proven the idea of the essential goodness of human beings to be false.

Jesus himself said in Mark 10, “No one is good except God alone.” But just before declaring this, Jesus showed us how we may know the power to love and to do good—by coming to him in humility, as children aware of their need for a Savior. “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them,” he said, “for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth: anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.  --Stuart McAllister, Slice of Infinity

Surreptitious Saturday

Alarming News

"Some hotels to drop mini shampoo bottles. The fight to save the seas from plastic waste may mean the end for mini botles of shampoo & other toiletries that hotel guests love to stuff into their luggage." --Omaha World Herald 7/31 COMMENT:  You mean I might be forced to start buying my own shampoo & conditioner?!

Trending

"STUDY:  Optimistic people sleep better, longer . . . " Drudge Report, 8/9

"Why Can't We Return To How Peaceful The World Was Before Guns?"  Babylon Bee, 8/8

"Struggling Chemistry Teacher Takes To Life Of Crime Manufacturing Plastic Straws To Sell On Streets Of Santa Barbara" ditto

"Ocasio-Cortez Severely Burned After Accidentally Touching Book On Basic Economics" ditto

"Study Shows Leading Cause Of Gun Violence Is Those You Disagree With Politically" ditto

"Dems Criticize Trump For Not Taking Ownership Of The Sinking Of The Titanic" ditto

"Woke Polar Bear Apologizes For Being White" ditto

Dept. of Shameless Joke-Stealing *

* courtesy of Reader's Digest, June 2019

From "Lies My Siblings Told Me

• "My brother told me that every time it rained, God was crying because I was so ugly."
• "Just days before my brother's third birthday, I let him in on a secret: 'Do you know what happens when you turn three? You turn into a girl.' His eyes grew big. 'It's true. It happened to me. It happened to Mom.' For the net few days, whenever Mom mentioned his birthday, he burst into tears."

Political Potpourri

The fact that the country is so concerned about bigotry and violence is good, because it’s a sign that our tolerance of such things has shrunk. All I’m doing is asking that people take a breath, count to ten, and put it all in some perspective. --Jonah Goldberg, National Review Online 8/9

As long as Trump resides in the White House, the media can never concede that any condition other than a state of emergency obtains in the United States of America. --Kyle Smith, ditto

Donald Trump’s opponents often do more to help him than his supporters ever could. While the president undoubtedly has his hardcore fans — a base that relishes his Twitter antics and won’t abandon him no matter what policies his administration manages to settle on — he also benefits tremendously from the fact that a host of Democratic politicians, along with the progressive pundit class, have reacted to his presidency primarily by behaving in a steadily more unhinged manner with each passing month. --Alexandra DeSanctis, ditto

Ever wonder why rich people seem the most hysterical on the subject? Ever notice that it's the highest-paid people on TV who are the most determined to convince you white supremacy is America's biggest problem? Why is that? Simple: Every minute you spend angry about race is a minute you're not thinking about class — which, of course, is the real divide in this country. Working-class people of all colors have a lot more in common with each other than they do with some overpaid MSNBC anchor. If you were allowed to think about that long enough, you might start to get unauthorized ideas about economics. That would be disruptive to a very lucrative status quo. So they whip you into a frenzy of racial fear so that it never enters your mind. It's a diversion. Everyone else hates each other. They get to keep their money. Pretty tricky. Unfortunately, it's destroying the country. This is the path to civil war. --Tucker Carlson & Neil Patel, Townhall 8/9

It is both wrong and illogical to blame the acts of the mentally disturbed on the politicians that espouse similar views. This standard is well maintained when it comes to liberal politicians. But not when it comes to Donald Trump. When it comes to Donald Trump, all principles of decency and journalistic integrity go out the window because it fits the Left’s false narrative of President Trump as a maniacal fear mongering racist. --Paul Curry, ditto

Free-for-All Friday

Resolutions Update

How am I doing meeting my New Year's Resolutions? Glad you asked.

• Not to read any partisan diatribes re:  the 2020 election.  I haven't been doing as well.
• Add to our list of National Park visits & cross something off our bucket list.  We plan to visit Teddy Roosevelt & Glacier National Parks next month.
• Lose 10 lbs. Only 8 lbs to go.
• Treat Sammy with more patience. I think I'm doing pretty well.
• Help put out ALL Christmas decorations. Waiting for November.
• Work out at least 3X per week. I got a lot of walking & hiking in last week. Otherwise, eh!
• Continue spending at least an hour of "quiet time" each day. Successful.
• Write a devotion book for the 2019 Orphan Grain Train convention. Completed.
• Receive a DNA report from Ancestry.com. Apparently this isn't going to happen, & I am dropping this off my list.

Mass Atrocities

The rush to attribute responsibility for mass atrocities to one’s political opponents is deeply grotesque. The online world the Dayton shooter inhabited is notable not primarily for its political valence, but for its distorted folkways and the sway it seems to have exerted over his psychology. On both 8chan and parts of Twitter, “sh**posting” — a means of ironically airing extreme positions on serious issues — is a common mode of communication, used by those on both poles of the political spectrum. The most active users of these sites tend to resemble addicts who become decreasingly able to make connections in the real world and use the Internet as a substitute. Studying the Dayton killer’s online behavior and learning about the opinions expressed by those he took seriously are vital to understanding his terrible crime. But the results should not be used to score cheap political points. The stakes are far too high for that.  --Alexandra DeSanctis, National Review Online, 8/6

Politicians may know they’re being hyperbolic when they throw around terms like “betrayal,” “great danger,” “totalitarian,” and “dictatorial”; but not everyone in their audiences understands. There is no shortage of Americans who completely believe in an organized “great replacement” plot to wipe out white America through mass immigration. There is no shortage of Americans who completely believe President Trump is establishing concentration camps and will never peacefully relinquish power. It wouldn’t take much for some angry, emotionally or mentally troubled, isolated extremist to cast themselves in their own heroic narrative, striking down the evil that so obviously threatens the country.

22

The shooters seem to have a peculiar and toxic combination of narcissism and self-loathing. Narcissism manifests in their self-absorption and absolute disregard for how their actions affect everyone around them. Self-loathing, because they know their rampage will end when they are shot or subdued and on their way to life in prison, and this strikes them as the best outcome for themselves. They convince themselves that the only way their lives will have meaning and value is by killing as many strangers as they can — a viewpoint that must find absolutely nothing else of value in their lives. --Jim Geraghty, National Review Online 8/8

It seems to be necessary to begin every discussion in America today with a reminder to show a little charity. If you oppose gun control, don’t assume that those proposing restrictions on gun purchases are merely using the latest atrocity as an excuse for confiscation. Likewise, gun opponents should rid themselves of the notion that, but for the evil machinations of the NRA, commonsense gun control would have been enacted long since and would have prevented the loss of many lives. Show some good faith. Both gun controllers and gun advocates grieve at mass murders and wish there were a simple solution. --Mona Charen, NRO 8/8

Dangerous Rhetoric

But for the Democratic presidential candidates, the El Paso atrocity was like a loose football in the Super Bowl.A mad scramble broke out over who would be first and most savage in indicting President Donald Trump for moral complicity in mass murder.

Never let a crisis go to waste is an old political adage. And this crowd of candidates was not going to let that happen. Yet the naked political exploitation of these horrific acts, before the bodies of many had been removed from the crime scene, was appalling to behold . . .

Yet, blaming the massacre in El Paso on the rhetoric of Donald Trump is a charge that can come back to bite his attackers. Neither the right nor left has a monopoly on political extremism or violence. And the hate-filled rhetoric of the left this last weekend exceeds anything used by Trump.  --Patrick Buchanan, Townhall 8/6

My comment:  Isn't the violent language of the Democratic candidates likely to incite violence against the president?

Toxic Social Media

One of the reasons social media is so toxic is that it is a nationalizing force; it makes us feel as if strangers thousands of miles away are neighbors — and we get mad when neighbors are living the “wrong” way. Cable news does the same thing, just with better production values, plucking anecdotal stories and making them part of a “national conversation.” The problem is that there’s no such thing as an actual national conversation. --Jonah Goldberg, NRO 8/7

More from Jonah Goldberg

What we need are communities, and the idea of national community is a myth. Conversation is done face to face and person to person, and so is community. --Jonah Goldberg, NRO 8/7

Unity

There can be no unity when one side of the political aisle firmly believes that the other side is motivated by unmitigated evil. No decent conversation about fixes can be had when you assume the person sitting across from you sympathizes with monsters who go to shoot up Hispanic Americans at a Walmart. If we can't at least assume that we're all on the same page in condemning white supremacist terror attacks and white supremacist ideology, we may as well pack this republic in. We're done.

We're fighting one another for one simple reason: Too many on the political left have become accustomed to castigating the character of those who disagree with the left on policy. Favor tougher border controls? This puts you on the side of the white supremacist terrorist. Believe in Second Amendment rights? You're a vicious, violent cretin covering for those who commit acts of evil. Cite Western civilization as a source of our common values, believe that police forces across the United States are not systemically racist, favor smaller government intervention in the social sphere -- in short, disagree with the program of the American left? Most of all, consider voting for Trump? You're an accessory to murder . . .

There can be no unity when one side of the political aisle firmly believes that the other side is motivated by unmitigated evil. No decent conversation about fixes can be had when you assume the person sitting across from you sympathizes with monsters who go to shoot up Hispanic Americans at a Walmart. If we can't at least assume that we're all on the same page in condemning white supremacist terror attacks and white supremacist ideology, we may as well pack this republic in. We're done. --Ben Shapiro, Townhall 8/7