I haven't blogged in quite awhile. There have been too many things I wanted to blog about.
The "Stimulus" Package. The AIG bonuses. The MIAC report. The Continental Congress. Homeschooling. Gardening. Kids.
There has been plenty said about the so-called "Stimulus Package", but here's my two cents anyway. The government is broke. It has no money. Just because the FED promises to print more funny money and increase inflation, thereby hurting the 'little guy' Obama claims to be trying to help, doesn't mean that the government actually HAS that money. Obama said that if there was no lending the economy would fall apart. That is a BIG FAT LIE!!
If there was no debt the economy would prosper! Imagine, people running businesses in the black!! All the time! Wouldn't that be a good thing?! Wouldn't that be creating REAL, not pretend, wealth?! Not according to Mr. Obama. My husband owns a company. He has not borrowed any money to run it. Sure, it is a squeeze sometimes to make payroll, but he has. Of course, the income tax the company owes will likely put him out of business this year, but that is a whole other story! (It is funny how the government defines 'profit')
The whole 'stimulus' thing is just a way for the federal government to exercise more control and become a bigger monster that steals, yes STEALS, more of the people's money.
One down.
The AIG 'bonuses'. (disclaimer: I have not studied this thoroughly so my understanding may not be complete) AIG was under contractual obligation to pay these bonuses. If they did not they would be sued. I do not, not even for a second, believe that Obama (or any other person who voted for or asked for the bailout) did not know that from the start. He knew. Geithner knew. They all knew. But the taxpayers found out and they got mad because it was their money that was being paid out; so now Obama and his henchmen must save face and while saying that he accepts responsibility makes sure that we know that it was really Bush's fault.
Do we really want our government to decide to make void contracts at will? Really?!
As for the idea of taxing the bonuses at 90%, I would remind the Congress that Article 1 Section 9 of the Constitution says, in part, "No bill of attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed." The kind of targeted taxation Obama is asking for is unconstitutional.
Two down.
The MIAC report. If you haven't heard about it, Google. To sum up the Missouri law enforcement officials believe that those who support third party candidates or want the Constitution to be upheld or who are patriotic are violent terrorists. Of course after a huge public outcry Missouri retracted that statement. Gotta keep the rabble happy.
Three down.
The Continental Congress 2009. I believe that this is the movement every American that wants to see the continuation of our freedom MUST get behind. All the smaller groups, while all valuable, must coalesce; and this is where to do it. My entusiasm for this is very great. This is our only chance of getting the government to hear.
Four down.
Homeschooling. Well...unschooling. Really not much going on of note. Ellis has learned to read a few words and Gilbert is learning to write letters. Kyla can do the multiplication tables in chinese.
Five down.
Gardening. It is very hard work!! I managed to get plots for corn, tomatoes, watermelon, cantaloupe, peas, and bell peppers tilled 10-12 inches deep. What a job! My muscles were so sore!! I am glad that I hadn't put any plants out yet. We got about 6 inches of snow yesterday. In a couple weeks we will plant and then the really hard muscle work will be over...I think.
Six down.
Kids. Kids are so much fun, and at the same time a challenge. I have more to say on that but I am tired and my mind is fuzzy so I'll save it.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Gardening and other Adventures
Hey, Liberty here! (No, my name is not really Liberty...that's just what I have as my screenie. And someday, I'm going to name one of my daughters that. :D Anyway.)
Well, our life has definitely been an adventure lately! We've been trying to get our garden up and running, which has been...exciting, to say the least. And backbreaking.
Mom has gotten all the plots tilled- well, all but the two we need for the peas, onions, garlic, and bellpeppers. They're going to share two plots because, frankly, we don't feel like tilling up four. Yesh, we'ze lazy. :P
We can't plant yet though; we're supposed to get a veritable blizzard tomorrow. Go figure that- we get no snow all winter (even at Christmas!), and then bam! Here comes snow in March!
Beyond that, not much in our life besides the usual. However, mom is reading 'The Total Money Makeover' with Dad. It's a book by Dave Ramsey about your finances and debt. So now, we have to sell a bunch of stuff so we can pay off the bunches we owe on our house and credit cards!
I'm reading it to avoid the mistakes I could make. And my youth pastor just started a new series based on Total Money Makeover, for teens. So, I'll be getting a good dose no matter what I do. :D
So yup. Mom is going to take pictures of the garden and blog later, so expect those. :)
Well, our life has definitely been an adventure lately! We've been trying to get our garden up and running, which has been...exciting, to say the least. And backbreaking.
Mom has gotten all the plots tilled- well, all but the two we need for the peas, onions, garlic, and bellpeppers. They're going to share two plots because, frankly, we don't feel like tilling up four. Yesh, we'ze lazy. :P
We can't plant yet though; we're supposed to get a veritable blizzard tomorrow. Go figure that- we get no snow all winter (even at Christmas!), and then bam! Here comes snow in March!
Beyond that, not much in our life besides the usual. However, mom is reading 'The Total Money Makeover' with Dad. It's a book by Dave Ramsey about your finances and debt. So now, we have to sell a bunch of stuff so we can pay off the bunches we owe on our house and credit cards!
I'm reading it to avoid the mistakes I could make. And my youth pastor just started a new series based on Total Money Makeover, for teens. So, I'll be getting a good dose no matter what I do. :D
So yup. Mom is going to take pictures of the garden and blog later, so expect those. :)
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Continental Congress 2009
You can find out more about it here. And find out if there is a meeting near you! :D
From their pamphlet:
"The We the People Congress is a non-profit, membership-based assembly of patriotic Americans dedicated to "institutionalizing" citizen vigilance and governmental accountability. The Congress mission is threefold: To institutionalize local education regarding the history, meaning, and effect of every provision of our Founding documents; to institutionalize citizen vigilance by the People to monitor governments' compliance with the state and federal Constitutions; and to institutionalize resistance by the People against the unconstitutional acts of government."
I am coordinating a meeting in my town. I am so excited! I know that it will not likely make any 'real' impact, but I cannot just sit here and watch my country be destroyed! Doing all of the calls and trying to generate some interest has taken me WAY outside my comfort zone.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
A Ridiculous Notion!
"In order for people with less power to feel as if they have some control over their own lives, they need assistance from their government"
That is a statement on read in an article on Helium.
I see many problems with this idea.
1. If one seeks only the 'feeling' of being in control of one's life, than one is willing decieving onesself.
2. If one only wants 'some control' one does not want true liberty.
3. If the government has to give one 'some control' over one's life, one really has no control, it is only imaginary.
4. If the government is really controlling how much control one has over one's life then one is oppressed and if this one is a true American one would oppose such government 'help'.
The idea that government control of individuals helps the freedom that Americans have ever craved is ludicrious! How can government intervention in the lives of individual citizens be construed as helping liberty? I believe that it has been accomplished in many subtle ways. The public school system (see the link I posted) has gone far to numb American minds. The welfare system has dulled Americans sense of responsibility and initiative to provide for onesself. Slow and steady government intervention has acclimated Americans to accepting such interference as normal and even beneficial. Globalization, the idea that we, as Americans, are part of a 'global community' has eroded our patriotic and nationalist ideals.
If you read the link I posted before about the Prussian schooling method being used here in the US you will know my thoughts on the PSS (public school system). I understand that there may be individuals that have managed to keep themselves largely untainted from the system, but those are the minority. And I am allowed to say that since I was educated by 'the system'.
The ease of getting public assistance makes it palatable to many. I have used it myself. *blushes* I did not stop to think that it was other people's money that I was taking. It was the fruits of other's labor that I was enjoying. There was a time in America when people spurned 'charity' even when their families were in dire straights! Think of the poor family in "To Kill a Mockingbird" (I have gone blank on their name). The family was 'dirt poor' and would not take help no matter how bad things were. Now don't get me wrong. I think that people should accept help if they really need it, but what happened to pride? Not selfish pride, but pride in accomplishment. Pride in taking care of one's own. How does it help one's self-image to be given a handout? How does it help one to grow and strive as an individual for success to be told that they cannot succeed without the government's help? Of course, our idea of 'poor' has changed quite a bit. I think it was Ronald Reagan who said, "My parents didn't know they were poor until the government told them they were.".
The federal government has been slowly regulating us into the mentality that the government knows what is best for individuals and has fostered a distrust of our fellow Americans to do what is right. The government constantly tells us that the business owners (who have a vested interest in the individual's properity) are only out for themselves and that the government (which has a vested interest in our dependency) does have the individuals best interests at heart (does the government even have one?). Are we seriously asked to believe that the government officials, who are so far removed from 'main street' as to have no idea of the needs and wishes of their constituency, have THE PEOPLE'S best interests in mind?
We do have a global economy. That does not mean however that we are 'citizens of the world'. I am an American. I am also a Texan, by the grace of God! ;) The primary purpose of our government is NATIONAL security. It should not be the focus of our elected leadership to try to force us into this global government. I do not want the UN telling me how to run my business, my home, or how to raise my children. The interests of our nation ought to be first with our government. We should not be forced, by taxation, to give aid to other countries. Let them work and figure out how to best serve their people. Our country should not be trying to police the world. I do not want a world leader as POTUS. I want a President that cares for us, his fellow Americans. I mean really cares, not just gives lip service. I want a President that is not blinded by his or her own political agenda and who has not been bought off by lobbyists.
I suppose I just want the government to stay out of my personal life, out of my wallet, and out of the business of the rest of the world.
Let us be Americans. You know the ones who struggled and worked and did without many comforts simply for the satisfaction of having lived well (and by well I do not mean simply financially). Let us strive and work, without the government telling us how. Let us once again be the America that brought multitudes to her shores with the hope of a better, free life.
That is a statement on read in an article on Helium.
I see many problems with this idea.
1. If one seeks only the 'feeling' of being in control of one's life, than one is willing decieving onesself.
2. If one only wants 'some control' one does not want true liberty.
3. If the government has to give one 'some control' over one's life, one really has no control, it is only imaginary.
4. If the government is really controlling how much control one has over one's life then one is oppressed and if this one is a true American one would oppose such government 'help'.
The idea that government control of individuals helps the freedom that Americans have ever craved is ludicrious! How can government intervention in the lives of individual citizens be construed as helping liberty? I believe that it has been accomplished in many subtle ways. The public school system (see the link I posted) has gone far to numb American minds. The welfare system has dulled Americans sense of responsibility and initiative to provide for onesself. Slow and steady government intervention has acclimated Americans to accepting such interference as normal and even beneficial. Globalization, the idea that we, as Americans, are part of a 'global community' has eroded our patriotic and nationalist ideals.
If you read the link I posted before about the Prussian schooling method being used here in the US you will know my thoughts on the PSS (public school system). I understand that there may be individuals that have managed to keep themselves largely untainted from the system, but those are the minority. And I am allowed to say that since I was educated by 'the system'.
The ease of getting public assistance makes it palatable to many. I have used it myself. *blushes* I did not stop to think that it was other people's money that I was taking. It was the fruits of other's labor that I was enjoying. There was a time in America when people spurned 'charity' even when their families were in dire straights! Think of the poor family in "To Kill a Mockingbird" (I have gone blank on their name). The family was 'dirt poor' and would not take help no matter how bad things were. Now don't get me wrong. I think that people should accept help if they really need it, but what happened to pride? Not selfish pride, but pride in accomplishment. Pride in taking care of one's own. How does it help one's self-image to be given a handout? How does it help one to grow and strive as an individual for success to be told that they cannot succeed without the government's help? Of course, our idea of 'poor' has changed quite a bit. I think it was Ronald Reagan who said, "My parents didn't know they were poor until the government told them they were.".
The federal government has been slowly regulating us into the mentality that the government knows what is best for individuals and has fostered a distrust of our fellow Americans to do what is right. The government constantly tells us that the business owners (who have a vested interest in the individual's properity) are only out for themselves and that the government (which has a vested interest in our dependency) does have the individuals best interests at heart (does the government even have one?). Are we seriously asked to believe that the government officials, who are so far removed from 'main street' as to have no idea of the needs and wishes of their constituency, have THE PEOPLE'S best interests in mind?
We do have a global economy. That does not mean however that we are 'citizens of the world'. I am an American. I am also a Texan, by the grace of God! ;) The primary purpose of our government is NATIONAL security. It should not be the focus of our elected leadership to try to force us into this global government. I do not want the UN telling me how to run my business, my home, or how to raise my children. The interests of our nation ought to be first with our government. We should not be forced, by taxation, to give aid to other countries. Let them work and figure out how to best serve their people. Our country should not be trying to police the world. I do not want a world leader as POTUS. I want a President that cares for us, his fellow Americans. I mean really cares, not just gives lip service. I want a President that is not blinded by his or her own political agenda and who has not been bought off by lobbyists.
I suppose I just want the government to stay out of my personal life, out of my wallet, and out of the business of the rest of the world.
Let us be Americans. You know the ones who struggled and worked and did without many comforts simply for the satisfaction of having lived well (and by well I do not mean simply financially). Let us strive and work, without the government telling us how. Let us once again be the America that brought multitudes to her shores with the hope of a better, free life.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Spiritual Musings
I read a blog this morning that has got me thinking.
I wonder, have I compromised what I believe or have I just relaxed my legalistic expectations?
When I first was saved I believed a woman should only wear skirts, long ones. Now I wear pants except at church. Of course that has more to do with the fact that I have gained a bit of weight and none of the skirts in my closet fit me anymore and I refuse to buy clothes for the size I am right now. And part of it is that I realized that there are times when pants are more modest than a skirt. Like on a swing or hiking. So on that I don't think I've really compromised but just come to a different way of looking at it. And of course the fact that I saw a picture of Rebekah (Pearl) Anast in pants makes me confident that it cannot be a sin. :P
Now there is one area that I do believe I have compromised, or just gotten lazy, and that is TV and movies. We didn't have a tv for the first five years we were married and then my aunt gave us a little 13" tv/vcr combo. At first we just watched the news and educational videos from the library. Then somewhere we got a bigger tv and a vcr. Hubby and I watched a show or two during the week and got movies for the kids to watch occasionally.
Our tv/movie watching has increased until now we watch at least one movie a week, usually more and for a time watched tv nearly every day. We only usually watch the news now. Hubby might watch golf on Sunday afternoon or maybe a show on the science or history channel.
There was a time of about a year when I was severely depressed and I used movies and tv to babysit the kids so that I could retreat into my den of self-loathing and self-pity. I have come out of that...although it is still a temptation at times.
So on tv and movies I suppose I have compromised.
The one that makes me the most uncomfortable is witnessing and passing out tracts. I used to pass out tracts all the time. I got out of the habit when we were going to another church and my motivation for stopping is quite sad. I didn't want anyone to get saved from a tract that had that church's stamp on it because I didn't want them to come to that church. Isn't that awful?! To have so little faith in God is really terrible. I felt smothered and disenchanted at that church. I was scared to death of the pastor. My attitude was not always what it ought to have been and I knew that even then, but I still didn't want anyone else to be subjected to him...I better stop that line of thought.
Anyway, I know on that one I definitely have 'backslidden'. And now I want to pass out tracts but feel like my kids are such a poor testimony in public that it would be bad to do so. And why are my kids such a poor testimony? Well, because for about three years I just stopped being a mommy. I was very depressed, suicidal even, and I had lost all confidence in my ability to properly mother my children. I know that it was, for me, a complete lack of faith. Anyway, now I have a mess, a horrid mess. The three year old throws fits quite a bit and the five and seven year olds are just plain mean sometimes. And they lie and steal. The nine year old has an almost constant bad attitude...I could go on but that would be depressing.
I feel quite hopeless some of the time. In Mike Pearl's audio on "Starting Over" (I think that's the one anyway) he says that if one cannot manage both discipline and relationship that one should compromise on the discipline. Better to have sloppy, maybe even slothful, children than to have rebellious, angry ones. But I do not want either! And what makes it even harder is that I know that the REAL problem is my own attitude. Before I fell flat on my face things were good. My children were not perfect but I was content with them and I was cheerful and joyful all the time...well except maybe at church, but that's another story.
So here I am now mostly discontented and having a bad attitude and knowing all the while that I don't have to be that way. Now it really isn't all that bad. My kids really are great kids. They can do work and usually do very well. It is only when I start getting unrealistic expectations and not taking care to make sure that we are having fun that there is friction. And I have a really wonderful husband that puts up with my attitude with great forbearance and thinks I am doing a fine job as a mom.
I think I have really gotten off topic here...and I don't know how to get back...LOL
I really must go anyway the kids are needing me and I have work to do to.
I wonder, have I compromised what I believe or have I just relaxed my legalistic expectations?
When I first was saved I believed a woman should only wear skirts, long ones. Now I wear pants except at church. Of course that has more to do with the fact that I have gained a bit of weight and none of the skirts in my closet fit me anymore and I refuse to buy clothes for the size I am right now. And part of it is that I realized that there are times when pants are more modest than a skirt. Like on a swing or hiking. So on that I don't think I've really compromised but just come to a different way of looking at it. And of course the fact that I saw a picture of Rebekah (Pearl) Anast in pants makes me confident that it cannot be a sin. :P
Now there is one area that I do believe I have compromised, or just gotten lazy, and that is TV and movies. We didn't have a tv for the first five years we were married and then my aunt gave us a little 13" tv/vcr combo. At first we just watched the news and educational videos from the library. Then somewhere we got a bigger tv and a vcr. Hubby and I watched a show or two during the week and got movies for the kids to watch occasionally.
Our tv/movie watching has increased until now we watch at least one movie a week, usually more and for a time watched tv nearly every day. We only usually watch the news now. Hubby might watch golf on Sunday afternoon or maybe a show on the science or history channel.
There was a time of about a year when I was severely depressed and I used movies and tv to babysit the kids so that I could retreat into my den of self-loathing and self-pity. I have come out of that...although it is still a temptation at times.
So on tv and movies I suppose I have compromised.
The one that makes me the most uncomfortable is witnessing and passing out tracts. I used to pass out tracts all the time. I got out of the habit when we were going to another church and my motivation for stopping is quite sad. I didn't want anyone to get saved from a tract that had that church's stamp on it because I didn't want them to come to that church. Isn't that awful?! To have so little faith in God is really terrible. I felt smothered and disenchanted at that church. I was scared to death of the pastor. My attitude was not always what it ought to have been and I knew that even then, but I still didn't want anyone else to be subjected to him...I better stop that line of thought.
Anyway, I know on that one I definitely have 'backslidden'. And now I want to pass out tracts but feel like my kids are such a poor testimony in public that it would be bad to do so. And why are my kids such a poor testimony? Well, because for about three years I just stopped being a mommy. I was very depressed, suicidal even, and I had lost all confidence in my ability to properly mother my children. I know that it was, for me, a complete lack of faith. Anyway, now I have a mess, a horrid mess. The three year old throws fits quite a bit and the five and seven year olds are just plain mean sometimes. And they lie and steal. The nine year old has an almost constant bad attitude...I could go on but that would be depressing.
I feel quite hopeless some of the time. In Mike Pearl's audio on "Starting Over" (I think that's the one anyway) he says that if one cannot manage both discipline and relationship that one should compromise on the discipline. Better to have sloppy, maybe even slothful, children than to have rebellious, angry ones. But I do not want either! And what makes it even harder is that I know that the REAL problem is my own attitude. Before I fell flat on my face things were good. My children were not perfect but I was content with them and I was cheerful and joyful all the time...well except maybe at church, but that's another story.
So here I am now mostly discontented and having a bad attitude and knowing all the while that I don't have to be that way. Now it really isn't all that bad. My kids really are great kids. They can do work and usually do very well. It is only when I start getting unrealistic expectations and not taking care to make sure that we are having fun that there is friction. And I have a really wonderful husband that puts up with my attitude with great forbearance and thinks I am doing a fine job as a mom.
I think I have really gotten off topic here...and I don't know how to get back...LOL
I really must go anyway the kids are needing me and I have work to do to.
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