President Obama chooses pragmatism over principle

Chuck Colson (pictured above) of Prison Fellowship and BreakPoint Ministries wrote this article and I wanted you to see it. I am sad that we have a president who is so inexperienced and who's values run very counter to mine. The mainstream media is singing the praises of their new president. They campaigned hard for him and they should be proud of their accomplishment!

This article is well written and definitely something we should be aware of. Here is Colson's article:

As I noted yesterday on BreakPoint, the inauguration of America’s first African-American President was one of the most moving moments in American history.

But now that the celebrations are over, it’s time to take a close look at how President Obama is planning to govern. And the closer I look, the greater my concerns. In his first week in office, he showed shown an alarming tendency to choose pragmatism over principle.

For example, I applaud the President ordering higher ethical standards for lobbying. “If you are a lobbyist entering my administration,” Obama said, “you will not be able to work on matters you lobbied on, or in the agencies you lobbied during the previous two years.”

Unless, that is, your name is William Lynn. Obama appointed him as deputy secretary of defense—despite the fact that, until very recently, he had been a lobbyist for Raytheon, one of the nation’s biggest defense contractors, right up until the time he was appointed.

When the press challenged him on this, Obama said Lynn was uniquely qualified to do the job, so he issued a waiver. How was he uniquely qualified? He knew how the system worked.

Pragmatism trumped principle.

Obama used the same argument when it turned out that his choice for Treasury secretary, Tim Geithner, had neglected to pay $35,000 in self-employment taxes for a number of years. Senator Robert Byrd—a member of Obama’s own party—called Geithner’s behavior “inexcusable negligence.” He’s right.

Again, pragmatism trumped principle. Click here to read the rest of the article.

What do you think? I would love to hear from you. Tye out.

Barak Obama and history in the making

• My office at First Baptist Church in Medina, Ohio.
• The milk cooler at Flav-O-Rich Dairy in Rossville, Georgia.
• My living room in Wadsworth, Ohio.
• The nursery at the Gospel House in Walton Hills, Ohio.
• Orchestra/band practice at Temple Baptist Church, Rossville, GA.

Those are some of the places I remember being when history was made or a significant, historic event occurred.

And it is not likely that you will forget what your were doing on this historic day when the first ever African-American was sworn into office as the President of the United States. Our nation has come a long way since the Emancipation Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln, January 1, 1863 as this nation headed toward its third bloody year of civil war.

Our nation has come a long way since the rioting in the south in the 50's and 60's. Desegregation, while messy and difficult, helped move our nation away from segregation and toward a nation where all men are born with "inalienable" rights.

Martin Luther King, Jr. took a stand and would not back down. He had a dream and I can't help think that I am watching that dream come true. Rosa Parks represents African-Americans who took a stand against the evils of segregation and many of them, like King, payed the ultimate sacrifice. (If you click on the link to Martin Luther King, Jr. You will be treated a sermon by Dr. King on servant leadership. Amazing)

Today I feel proud to be an American. I also feel humbled to be a Christ-follower because I realize that it is from the Bible, the Creator God's word to mankind, gives us the rights we so graciously enjoy here in the states. Having been to nations that do not enjoy the freedoms we enjoy here I can say this.

While I most certainly do not agree with much of President Obama's ideology, I am commanded in the Bible to pray for him. No one really knows, outside of God, what the next four years will bring us.

May God bless our new president and his family. May God bless our great nation! Tye out.

P.S. Here is the historical events mentioned in my opening:

• 9/11 Terrorist Attack (I watched the second plane drive into the tower)
• Challenger Space Shuttle Disaster
• U.S. Invasion into Iraq (The next day I flew to Belgium.)
• O. J. Simpson trial verdict (the only TV at the church was in the nursery for closed circuit)
• Tragic death of Dale Earnhardt in Daytona, Florida at the Daytona 500.

President Bush's Final TV Address

President Bush's final TV address on Thursday, January 15 was upstaged by a near tragic event on the Hudson River where a pilot of an Airbus 320 managed to ditch his crippled plane in the river. Pres. Bush endured an incredibly difficult 8 years and had many, many successes. Click here to hear the 14 minute speech.

I am saddened that our nation has elected an inexperienced candidate who has already changed his mind on many things. What is sadder is the fact that the press, who attacked Sarah Palin and John McCain with a vengeance for everything they said, has once again given "their" candidate a free pass.

I would like to honor President Bush and say thank you for serving our country through some very difficult times. Thank you for keeping your promises and having integrity while doing so. Thank you for the example you provided us as a strong, yet compassionate leader. You never asked our country to go where you had never been.

God bless the Bush's as they return to "normal" life and may God bless our great nation!

Remembering Pearl Harbor

Today I am remembering those who gave their lives that tragic day 67 years ago in Pearl Harbor.

According to Wikipedia (I know - keep your comments to yourself):

The casualty list includes 2,335 servicemen and 68 civilians killed, with 1,178 wounded. Included are 1,104 men aboard the Battleship USS Arizona killed after a 1,760-pound air bomb penetrated into the forward magazine causing catastrophic explosions.

This attack brought the USA into a war with Italy, Japan and Germany, a war that would eventually cost the lives of some 600,000 soldiers. Yet, the Allies won.

I hope our new president has the wisdom to know what to do Iraq. I hope he supports our troops and pushes for a "win" in that country. While you are remembering our fallen war heros, perhaps you could say a prayer for those serving today, those who have served in the past, and those who made it home but were injured. Tye out.

Soaring to Singapore - Update #5b

Tonight the Griffith's took me downtown to one of the many shopping malls. It is at least six or seven stories tall and there are 8 or ten of them in the area where we were! Click here to see some pics.

We ate supper at the Manhattan Fish Market. We had some fish for supper - I have fish and chips. The fish was dory fish, like in the movie Finding Nemo. It seemed a little strange to be eating a fish that is a cartoon. Besides, fish are friends, not food. : )

Susan had to come back early for choir practice so Rick and I rode the subway and bus system to get back. But not before a stop at Starbucks. Their Dark Cherry Mocha was absolutely delicious!

We also enjoyed a nice chat about the recent election and the reporting here in the Singaporean papers. The papers here are no different than the states - very slanted to dems. Click here to see a pic of the front page. McCain is not even mentioned -well, "Mc" is because there is a McDonald's ad on the bottom.

(Rant warning) I wonder what would have happened with the election had the media had told the truth about Obama? What if they had challenged him about precaucas statements in Iowa promising voters to dismantle the military and stop excessive defense spending by pulling troops out of Iraq. What if they had grilled Obama about his "policies" like they did Sarah Palin.

In the end, I truly believe God is in control and I will sleep well resting in that fact. Tye, from Singapore, out.

Governor Sarah Palin speaks the truth - in style

Wow! What else can you say after hearing this hockey mom tonight at the Republican National Convention? Wow. Here's my thoughts:

It's about time someone told the truth about Sen. Obama. His tax and spend ways are going to drive our country into deeper debt and the worse economic condition in years. He says that he identifies with the middle class, all the while planning to tax them into oblivion. And has anyone visited a government health care facility? Let me know how it goes.

My choice for President/Vice President is John McCain/Sarah Palin. Tye out.

Huckabee on Obama's wrong ideas

Here is an article taken from Facebook by Mike Huckabee regarding Obama's wrong ideas.

Obama's Wrong Ideas for America

Today at 5:06pm

Greetings, from Sapporo, Japan:

Janet and I are still in Japan for a few more days. It is about 5am here on Friday which makes it 3 in the afternoon back home in North Little Rock. We are having a great, but extremely packed week. It feels like being back on the campaign trail, except that the speeches are being interpreted in Japanese and the raw fish is sometimes a little tough on a guy who grew up thinking fried catfish was seafood. Yesterday, I visited with some of the scientists at Tohuko University in Sendai City regarding their groundbreaking research in producing solar energy and in the their development of amazing new materials that are lighter and stronger than steel. I also visited with the Governor of the Hokkaido prefect where next month’s G-8 Summit will be held and spoke to the Chamber of Commerce in that prefect on American politics, US/Japan relations, and economic trends in the United States. We are looking forward to being back—we miss the dogs!

My speech to the Foreign Correspondents Club a few days ago seemed to have generated some buzz both here and back home when I mentioned that it would be a “fundamental if not fatal mistake for the GOP to demonize Barak Obama” in order to win the election. Some seem to have taken that to mean I was all but endorsing Obama! Quite the opposite.

I believe his ideas are totally wrong for America and many of his plans would take us the opposite direction from where I think we need to go. He is an ardent supporter for the most liberal and indefensible positions on abortion, including his refusal to support a ban on the most vile forms of all, partial birth abortion. He has stated that he would be an activist in seeking to push for what the anti-life forces euphemistically call “reproductive rights.”

His plan to raise taxes would be an economic disaster for our nation. We would lose jobs and investment and see the economy really squeeze the working class with even higher fuel and food prices.

He would implement more government control on everything from health care to small business and that’s not the right direction for us.

What I am saying is that we need to challenge Obama on the basis that his ideas are the wrong ones—not attacking him personally. If people spend their time repeating a bunch of internet driven drivel about his middle name (he didn’t choose his anymore than I chose mine), or his race (I do sincerely celebrate that our country has moved to a place where a person’s race doesn’t limit him from aspiring to the highest office in our land, but I just believe that due to his proposals and lack of substantive experience, he’s gone far enough—not because of his race, but because of his sincere, but misguided proposals), or his church (there are far more important reasons for us to elect Senator McCain than where Obama went to church).

Politics ought to be VERTICAL and Obama’s ideas will not take this country UP, but DOWN. I think he is a sincere and obviously a very intelligent and charismatic person. For us to deny that is foolish. Our focus should be to logically and systematically explain why ideas really do matter and why some are bad for those struggling as it is to pay the rent.

Elections ought to be about elevating the best ideas and exposing the worst ones—not engaging in character assassination with half truths, innuendoes, and disputable “internet facts.”

I hope you’ll keep the dialogue going and be a part of HuckPAC. I enjoy reading your posts—even the ones from those who use the blog to attack me. The reason I don’t respond to all of that is 2 fold: 1. I have other things to occupy my time than answering every critic; and 2. You guys—the HuckPAC family do a better job anyway!

Hope you are having a good week and continue to pray for our friends in the Midwest suffering from the devastating floods.

Sayonara,
Mike Huckabee

Being Salt & Light means you should pay your taxes without complaining

I would imagine that most of you have already filed your taxes and might have even received your refund back in the mail. I did.

Jesus tells us to pay taxes if they are required:

Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, “Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away. Matthew 22:15-22 NIV

Pay your taxes and don't complain. I don't like paying them any more than you do, but it is something we are supposed to do in order to be salt and light in this world.

The one thing I would say is that you have the opportunity to vote for people who want to tax and spend a lot less than they are now. Also, I would be careful about voting for the person who is offering everyone free stuff - you and I will have to pay for it! Tye out.

Senator Obama's remark's

Senator Obama made some remarks that have probably hurt him, possibly beyond recovery at this point.

At issue are comments Obama made privately at a fundraiser in San Francisco last Sunday. He explained his troubles winning over working class voters, saying they have become frustrated with economic conditions:

"It's not surprising, then, they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

(as reporterd by JIM KUHNHENN and CHARLES BABINGTON, Associated Press Writers Sat Apr 12, 3:15 PM ET)

Everyone is frustrated with the economic situation our country is in. But I'm not looking to the government to solve my problems. I am trusting God with my life and the Bible tells us to pray for those who are in authority over us.

What if Huckabee had made these comments? Think about it. Tye out.

Day of Silence - a truly Christian response

I first heard of the Day of Silence at a board meeting recently. On April 25, 2008 students are being encouraged to have a day of silence in honor of a student who was shot and killed because of his sexual orientation which I would assume was homosexual. While I completely disagree with the homosexual agenda, I whole-heartedly disagree with violence to gays.

I am writing today because I have never believed that we will get anywhere with those we disagree with by carrying banners, protest marches, petition drives and the like. We are called to love those with whom we disagree. This is called grace and I would rather be known for what I am for rather than what I am against.

Our senior high pastor, Mark Forstrom, has written an incredible article on the subject and it is posted on his blog. Much of what he says is an answer Don Wildmon and the American Family Association (AFA) which has a very ungracious and unchristian response to the Day of Silence. (Please know that Tye's Jazz dot com does not endorse AFA in any way.)

Here is part of Mark's response which can be read in its entirety on his blog:

I’ve started receiving numerous emails about boycotting the April 25th Day of Silence (details below) and I want to offer my perspective for consideration.

I’ve done a lot of thinking about it as well as some research about this event. The DayofSilence.org website says the purpose of the event is to: “observe a daylong silence to protest the bullying, harassment and name-calling—in effect, the silencing—faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students and their allies in schools.” In contrast, The American Family Association website (AFA) claims their purpose is “to disrupt the classes while promoting the homosexual lifestyle.” The Mission America website goes even further: “This pro-homosexual day communicates clear (and false) messages to ALL students in the school that: homosexuality is a worthy lifestyle; that it has few or no risks; that some people are “born” homosexual, including students; and that those who oppose this behavior are hateful and uninformed.”

Despite what these Christian organizations infer as to the purpose of the event, I believe we must base our response on their stated purpose, not our assumptions or interpolations. To do otherwise makes us look like fear-mongering, paranoid, extremists, who don’t understand plain English.

Surprisingly, I can fully agree with the stated purpose of the Day of Silence which says that the bullying, harassing, and name-calling of gays is deplorable. Though I strongly disagree about the correctness of homosexuality, I believe we should love those with whom we disagree. If we’re ever going to reach their hearts and change their values, I believe it will happen through love, not protesting.

Click here to read the rest of the article. I hope you will. Tye out.

America has an unbelievably biased media

Iowa caucus results are in: Huckabee and Obama are the clear winners.

So, who is CBS trying to put on the news? HILLARY! This is pathetic.

Two winners: Huckabee and Obama.

So the media outlet says, "Hey!!! Let's interview Hillary and get her on the screen." And that is exactly what they did.

The media is SO biased. They just love Hillary and the democrats and it is so obvious.

When they speak about the republicans it is with a lower tone of voice, emphasizing the negative aspects: "preacher turned politician" when referring to Huckabee. The Clinton's go to church on a regular basis. Why not mention that?

What is the moral of this story? Don't listen to the liberal media. Use your brain and think for yourself. Check out their stories and their track records. Then, make an educated choice. Tye out.

Iowa Caucuses

(Warning: This is a political blog post. If you will be irked by this, stop reading now. Consider yourself warned.)

I have heard about the caucuses since probably government class in middle school but now that we live in Iowa that's about all you hear this time of the year! Caucus for Hillary, Caucus for Obama, Caucus for Mitt Romney. It gets old after a while.

It is during the caucuses that the next presidential nominee will be selected for both parties.

I had every intention of going tonight, but I have brass line rehearsal at the church. hmmm.

OK, you're probably wondering who I would "caucus for," aren't you. If I could go tonight I would be caucusing for Mike Huckabee. I believe he has character, integrity, and a plan to help keep America free. I also like his idea of getting rid of the IRS. (there is no need for a link to the IRS - they will come looking for you!) I'm not sure how you do that, but I would be ALL FOR IT!

BTW, be careful about voting for people who are offering "hope" and "helping a fractured nation." No human can do that. Also, be careful about voting for the person who is offering everyone free stuff and at the same time "pulling for the middle, working class." They are wrong. You and I (the middle class) will have to pay for all their free stuff in higher taxes.

I'm caucusing for Mike Huckabee...if I could go tonight. Tye out.