Why Do We Bother?

Though the following article references the pro-life movement, specifically, I believe that it accurately reflects the ideals of so many of us who find ourselves caught up in the movement to defend freedom on all fronts.  As long as we keep remembering why we are doing what we are doing, we will continue to have the motivation necessary to persevere in the face of setbacks.  In the end the war will be won, but the prize will only go to those who stayed in the fight to the end.

 

 

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

This Week's Feature
Dr. Charmaine Yoest and Dr. Alveda King co-authored an op-ed that appeared in The Washington Times this week on Elena’s Kagan’s confirmation to the Supreme Court, why it was worth opposing her nomination, and why the pro-life movement will – over the long haul – ultimately win in the struggle to restore a culture of Life. 

Rights for the unborn

Pressing on for 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness'

President Obama's selection of Elena Kagan, the most demonstrably pro-abortion Supreme Court nominee in recent memory, presented a daunting challenge to pro-life leaders, as her 63 Senate votes during Thursday's confirmation attest.
Not unreasonably, observers have asked: Why then, do we bother?
The question resonates for this particular political confrontation but applies equally to the larger issue as a whole as we near four decades of abortion on demand in America post Roe v. Wade.
We bother because, in the end, we will win.
Think of "Rocky" and "Rudy." In a universally favorite movie plot, the unsung and discounted hero defies great odds, ignores the naysayers, perseveres in the face of overwhelming obstacles and emerges triumphant just when it looks impossible.
Tenacious persistence has been part of the American fiber since the beginning.
After all, our nation's founding was the impossible dream of the 18th century. America's founders had the audacity to believe that the people could govern themselves, and they agreed to take on the world's greatest military power to earn the right to try.
But in our modern, 24/7 drive-thru microwave Twitter culture, we often forget that great victories for the betterment of humankind don't happen instantly. Real, substantive change doesn't take place in the course of one election, one year or as the result of one political battle. It is achieved through a long march that can span many lifetimes.
Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech was not the launching point in the struggle for civil rights and equality. Rather, Dr. King's genius was his dedication to carrying a well-weathered baton that was handed to him by a long list of committed visionaries. The struggle to make all Americans truly equal regardless of race, which predates our republic, took more than a century and a half.
In 1773, Benjamin Franklin wrote "a disposition to abolish slavery prevails in North America" while Thomas Jefferson, in another letter, castigated King George for his "cruel war against human nature itself" because the king opposed efforts to prohibit the slave trade in the American Colonies.
President John Quincy Adams - the "hellhound" of abolition - was a strong opponent of slavery in America's early years and had hoped to see its end. Realizing near the end of his life that victory would not be achieved on his watch, he noted that in spite of this, "my conscience presses me on."
But Adams, in his later years, befriended a one-term congressman from Illinois. Young Abraham Lincoln, who went on to become the 16th president of the United States, later based his Emancipation Proclamation on Adams' anti-slavery arguments.
As decade stretched into decade, Americans from Harriet Tubman to Rosa Parks pressed on in the defining human rights struggle of their time. And, after fighting a bloody war, staging protests at lunch counters or walking into a hostile school escorted by armed paratroopers, hundreds of thousands of people eventually moved the nation to do the right thing.
Finally, on July 2, 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson - with King present - signed the Civil Rights Act, a law that put into practice the 14th Amendment guarantee of equal protection for all Americans.
Today, in poll after poll, Americans are trending more and more pro-life. They want to see abortion restricted, support parental involvement laws and want an end to taxpayer-funded abortion. On the issue of judges, Americans are also very clear. In a recent poll, 87 percent said they support judges who "interpret the law as it is written" and 70 percent said they think elected officials should make policy and not the courts.
In spite of this opposition to an agenda-driven judiciary, Washington elites continue to defy the people. Elena Kagan's nomination is a prime exemplar of this vast contradiction.
After months of dedicated opposition to her nomination, Ms. Kagan's confirmation is a difficult setback in our long march to ultimate victory.
Justice Kagan's agenda-driven philosophy, her advocacy of abortion without any restrictions, and her record as a White House aide who manipulated medical evidence to achieve political ends has caused a stir among the electorate.
In 1857, when the Supreme Court ruled in Dred Scott v. Sanford that black Americans essentially had no protection under the Constitution and therefore virtually no rights, abolitionists may have felt that their cause had been dealt a serious blow - yet they continued to press ahead.
They pressed ahead, as we do now, not because victory was immediate but because they were compelled by duty to do what is right. And in America, land of the second chance, we know there will be another opportunity.
When opportunity comes, we will take on the challenge to the best of our ability. We take that challenge knowing that maybe on our watch, or maybe on our children's watch, 1964 will come again. We are, after all, one human race on an unending quest to secure life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all.
Remembering this, may our consciences press us onward.
Charmaine Yoest is president and chief executive of Americans United for Life.

Alveda King is director of African American Outreach for Priests for Life and founder of King for America.

When the Music Stopped

The following incident apparently happened a few years ago, but for some strange reason, the story never appeared in my inbox. I just got it tonight and wanted to pass it along to others who may have missed it. Let's pass it along to our children!

WHEN THE MUSIC STOPPED

For those who are unaware, at a military theater, the National Anthem is played before every movie.
From a Chaplain in Iraq :
I recently attended a showing of ‘Superman 3,’ here at LSA Anaconda. We have a large auditorium we use for movies, as well as memorial services and other large gatherings. As is the custom back in the States, we stood and snapped to attention when the National Anthem began before the main feature. All was going as planned until about three-quarters of the way through The National Anthem the music stopped.
Now, what would happen if this occurred with 1,000 18-22 year-olds back in the States? I imagine there would be hoots, catcalls, laughter, a few rude comments; and everyone would sit down and call for a movie. Of course, that is, if they had stood for the National Anthem in the first place. Here, the 1,000 Soldiers continued to stand at attention, eyes fixed forward. The music started again. The Soldiers continued to quietly stand at attention And again, at the same point, the music stopped. What would you expect to happen?
Even here I would imagine laughter, as everyone finally sat down and expected the movie to start. But here, you could have heard a pin drop. Every Soldier continued to stand at attention. Suddenly there was a lone voice, then a dozen, and quickly the room was filled with the voices of a thousand soldiers, finishing where the recording left off: ‘And the rockets red glare, The bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night That our flag was still there. Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave, O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.’
It was the most inspiring moment I have had here in Iraq . I wanted you to know what kind of Soldiers are serving you here.
Remember them as they fight for you!
Pass this along as a reminder to others to be ever in prayer for all our soldiers serving us here at home and abroad. For many have already paid the ultimate price.

Written by Chaplain Jim Higgins

Ain't It The Truth, Though!

Words of Wisdom for You

1. In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm and three or more is a congress. -- John Adams

2. If you don't read the newspaper you are uninformed, if you do read the newspaper you are misinformed.
-- Mark Twain

3. Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But, then, I repeat myself.
-- Mark Twain

4. I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.
-- Winston Churchill

5. A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul.
-- George Bernard Shaw

6. A liberal is someone who feels a great debt to his fellow man; which he proposes to pay off with your money.
-- G. Gordon Liddy

7. Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner.
-- James Bovard, Civil Libertarian (1994)

8. Foreign aid might be defined as a transfer of money from poor people in rich countries to rich people in poor countries.
-- Douglas Casey, Classmate of Bill Clinton at Georgetown University

9. Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.
-- P.J. O'Rourke, Civil Libertarian

10. Government is the great fiction, through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else.
-- Frederic Bastiat, French Economist (1801-1850)

11. Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And, if it stops moving, subsidize it. -- Ronald Reagan (1986)
12. I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.
-- Will Rogers

13. If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free!
-- P.J. O'Rourke

14. In general, the art of government consists of taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other. -- Voltaire (1764)

15. Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn't mean politics won't take an interest in you! -- Pericles (430 B.C.)

16. No man's life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session. -- Mark Twain (1866)

17. Talk is cheap...except when Congress does it. -- Anonymous

18. The government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a happy appetite at one end and no responsibility at the other. -- Ronald Reagan

19. The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of the blessings. The inherent blessing of socialism is the equal sharing of misery. -- Winston Churchill

20. The only difference between a tax man and a taxidermist is that the taxidermist leaves the skin.
-- Mark Twain

21. The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools.
-- Herbert Spencer, English Philosopher (1820-1903)

22. There is no distinctly native American criminal class ... save, Congress.

23. What this country needs are more unemployed politicians.
-- Edward Langley, Artist (1928-1995)

24. A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have.
-- Thomas Jefferson

Malts in the Cafeteria

Guest Column | by Tracy Stone Lawson
Malts in the Cafeteria
A presidential election lost.
Posted August 02, 2010
Print This Post • 10 comments

When I was in sixth grade, three of my classmates and I ran for student council president. The entire student body would vote, and the one with the most votes would be president; second-most vice president; third, secretary; and fourth, treasurer. Looking back, I suppose the other three offices were mostly for show. There was little opportunity for us to manage a lot of cash. The vice president was only there in case the president was sick and unable to fulfill the obligations of the office. The presidency was the only job that really mattered, and that was the job I wanted.

I hope you’ll believe me when I say I was motivated by only the purest intentions — I sincerely wanted to make the school a better place. I put a lot of time and thought into my speech and carefully selected an outfit to wear.

I realize now that my ideas for leading the school through the 1976-77 school year were nothing monumental. I wanted to place a suggestion box in the library so any student could make his or her ideas known; I wanted to start a student newspaper. Maybe there was something in the speech about soliciting student volunteers to pick up litter from the playground, and that the big kids should be deterred from bullying the little kids. At the time it seemed like a solid platform.

On Election Day, I wore my white sweater with a hand-lettered campaign button pinned over my heart. We gave our speeches at a podium set up at the front of the cafeteria.

Todd, a red-haired, freckled boy on whom I’d had a crush since fourth grade, gave his speech first. It (unlike him) was nothing remarkable. Though my heart was still loyal and he was definitely the cutest boy in our class, he was not, I decided, presidential material. My best friend, Debbie, gave her speech next. She was a worthier opponent, and prettier than me, but still I felt confident, thinking I had a real shot at the power seat at Sharonville Elementary. I knew Debbie really wanted to be class secretary, but since there was just the one election, she was hoping for third place in the popular vote.

Campaign Promise Turns the Tide

Then it was Chris’s turn. I remember just one sentence from his speech, but it was the sentence that torpedoed my dreams of the presidency: “Elect me and we will have malts in the cafeteria … every day!”

Now, really — frozen chocolate malts were a coveted treat. They cost a quarter extra, and the cafeteria ladies put them on the lunch menu maybe twice a month. To blithely suggest that it was within the student council president’s authority to open the floodgates and provide unlimited chocolate malts was … irresponsible.

But it didn’t matter, as long as the voters believed it.

My carefully thought-out speech was lost to the ages. Nothing I said would have mattered at that point. Chris had the election in the bag.

Chicanery! I was indignant, and even though the word chicanery wasn’t in my vocabulary at the time, I had just been schooled on the concept.

When the votes were tallied, the results were announced over the school public-address system. Chris had been elected president, I was vice president, Debbie was secretary, and Todd treasurer.

A month after our inauguration it became painfully clear that Chris could not deliver on his campaign promise, and his approval rating plunged. Hobbled by the bureaucracy in the cafeteria, he resigned office before he could be impeached. As vice president I assumed the president’s duties, and the suggestion box was installed in the library.

Malts in the cafeteria. Every time a politician makes a promise, that’s what I hear. It’s all just malts in the cafeteria.

Source: http://www.thefreemanonline.org/headline/malts-in-the-cafeteria/

FDR's Depression Policies: Good Deal or Raw Deal?

This is a video debate between a Keynesian economist and a free market economist, and it gives an insightful look at the differences in how both sides view FDR's policies during the depression. I was sad that the question asked of the audience was not repeated at the end, but I think I know what the answer would have been. The first guy that talks is pretty dry, but if you'll hang around for the rebuttal, I think you'll appreciate this debate.

FDR's Depression Policies: Good Deal or Raw Deal? from FEE on Vimeo.

Everyday Ethics: Consumer Rights. . .And Wrongs

This is the latest video out from Prager University. Everyone needs to see this. Great food for thought!

Glenn Beck and other speeches on YouTube.

I found out that Glenn Beck's speech, as well as some of the others from the American Revival event are available on YouTube so I'm sending the links for those who might be interested.  (Be interested!)  The subject of the meeting was Faith, Hope, and Charity.  I have numbered the speakers below in the order they presented, in case you'd like to watch them in order.  Glenn's keynote speech was actually last, rather than first, as is typical of keynote speeches (in my limited experience).

4) Glenn Beck's American Revival speech that I talked about in my last email can be accessed in 6 parts on YouTube here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ljulr6R1IRE (part 1, follow the links to the remaining parts)

1) David Barton's subject was Faith, and he talks about the faith of our founding fathers, but that particular talk is apparently unavailable at this time. Here is a link to a different presentation that will cover much of the same information.  His organization, Wallbuilders, is dedicated to promoting the idea that the United States was founded upon Christian principles, and he owns the largest collection of original writings of the founders before 1812.  He is amazing to listen to.
David Barton on American Exceptionalism:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JxaV4gaCrk&feature=PlayList&p=062C67575D84A9B0&playnext=1&index=13  (part 1)
 
2) David Bruckner speech on hope:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfhNSih34MI

3) Judge Andrew Napolitano's speech on charity:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W-C8RmQtpo