Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Tea Party



There was no other revolution in the world like America's.  The Russian Revolution and the French Revolution all structurally changed their countries. Thousands upon thousands died. There was mass murder, and even when the Revolution was finished, true freedom was never really attained.
    The United States, however, had a different kind of Revolution.
Society didn't conform to the shape of the war. People weren't blood-thirsty rebels that wanted to kill the British. They just wanted their rights back. The rights which King George and the Parliament had taken away. When their requests for independence  were ignored, they still asked peacably for their rights to be restored. With the occurance of the Boston Massacre, tempers flared, and everything began to set into place. The dumping of the tea into the harbor, or The Boston Tea Party, showed that they didn't want to be taxed or controlled by a government that didn't even represent them. So, the patriots took up arms and had to forcibly press a very powerful army into giving them their freedom.
     With the publication of Thomas Paine's Common Sense, and the signing of the Declaration of Independence, people stood together for the same cause: Freedom.
     Wow. How radical.
    When we achieved our independence, our society wasn't altered in some extreme way. People went on as they had before, but this time they were free.
     It makes me sad to think that so many of our precious liberties that so many men and women have died and continue to die for are slipping away. All the more reason for us to stand up and fight back against a goverment that is overstepping its authority and trying to deny us our freedom.
  Only this time it's not Britain. It's our own government that was established by our Founding Fathers.

- The Liberty Belle


Monday, September 27, 2010

What Could Have Been

     It's interesting to think that the United States possibly could have ended up as a Catholic monarchy. 
Long before the Pilgrims set sail on the Mayflower, Martin Luther King was debating the issue of free salvation at Worms with a Catholic establishment. At a time when the church ruled all, a sort of theocracy and dictatorship was in place. When Martin Luther began preaching that salvation was a gift, and that you only needed to accept it to gain eternal life, his message didn't sit well with a government that ruled through the regulations of Catholicism. The converts to Christianity were persecuted because they presented a threat to their power.
     Because of this persecution, the new Protestants fled elsewhere, eventually seeking refuge in the New World so that they could worship God as they pleased. In this way America was settled predominantly by Protestants. A simple, Christian nation. They'd come here to worship God freely, and they did. But what would have happened had Martin Luther not begun the European Reformation? It's quite possible that America would have been settled by Spain, France, England, (which the Protestants, were for the most part), but not for religious freedom. Monetary gain would have been a huge motivation for settlement, as would extra land for the mother countries.
     In that respect, it's even more fascinating to study the pattern of "coincidences" that led to the unique establishment of the United States as a free and Christian nation.

- The Liberty Belle

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Government Nannies

     In writing about the importance of education lately, I felt it appropriate to recommend a book that taught me a lot about our public school systems that I didn't previously know: Government Nannies. This book was written by Cathy Duffy long before the Obama Administration or even the Bush Administration. It goes over government's role in education--and its power over it--and the goals that were set in Clinton's "Goals 2000."
     I read this book years ago, and it's an excellent source that explains a pretty socialistic agenda merely by relaying pure facts. Read the book, and you'll forever think differently about Federal involvement in education. 
Government Nannies Government Nannies   


- The Liberty Belle

Monday, September 20, 2010

An Educated Country

     The Founding Fathers talked about education a lot.  John Adams said that, "liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people." Edward Everett said, "education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army."
    In short, there are two different types of education. The first teaches you to read, write, add up math problems and figure out scientific notations. The second is the education of civil thinking. Civil thinking is the ability not only to read and write, but to apply those skills to understanding and participating intelligently in the affairs of the country. An understanding of the United States' heritage would be, above all, extremely important. The ability to examine and understand issues like policies and war would be a must.
    The Founding Fathers realized that if a democracy was going to exist and flourish, the people who had authority over the government must be educated, intelligent citizens who were aware of their past, present, and possible future positions. Thomas Jefferson pointed out that, "if a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."
     So what happens when education, a fundamental tool in sustaining a republican-democracy, becomes corrupted? Would it not have the opposite effect of building a nation up? Wouldn't it, instead, tear it down? When people don't know their history, they cannot adequately make decisions about their future without making the same mistake twice--or a worse one. Education is only helpful when it encourages discernment, moral responsibility, and the love of one's country through thick and thin.
    Whether or not we're presently in that position is for you to decide.

- The Liberty Belle

Government Nannies 

Friday, September 17, 2010

A Few Random Thoughts

     This is a post about nothing in particular; just a few observations, perhaps. First of all, the whole story about Michelle Obama reportedly saying that life in the White House is "hell" and that she "can't stand it" is not something I'm awfully glad to hear my First Lady saying. I'm sure that helping to run a country is difficult. I am not, in any way, saying that it's easy. But what about all those vacations? Tell me that my tax dollars provided you with a nice, sunny vacation that put a spring in your step, a twinkle in your eye. After all, I'm counting on you and your husband to help me in return.....Right?
     Second of all, Obama trying to spend more money to save an already pretty lousy economy isn't my idea of an economic miracle drug. Maybe your mother once told you to save your money and spend it wisely. I'm sure she didn't say, "If you're deep in debt, son, make sure that you spend more money, so you can somehow become successful again." No, this mentality makes no sense. It would seem that ruining the economy is almost deliberate, but I'll leave that for you to decide.
     Third, I notice more and more these days how similar Nazi Germany is to our current society. Propaganda, (left-leaning media) control of the youth (Federally-run education system), and creating racial tension to divide people (think of all the cries of racism there's been in the last year or so). Not that this is Hitler's HofbrÀuhaus, of course, but consider: Nazi Germany was overthrown because of "social justice." That worked out great, didn't it? Especially for the Jews. Just grand. Socialism is supposedly the new way to go for the United States. How many people think Socialism is great? A lot more than I'd like to see. I'd think Hitler's less-than-twenty-year "thousand year empire" would give some sort of negative evidence for the socialists.
     There's not a lot I can say anymore. Our leaders are our leaders for a reason. Even if we don't particularly like or agree with them, at least we can know that God uses every single person in the world for His purposes, whether they know it or like it.

- The Liberty Belle

Socialism Sucks Bumper Sticker
   
  

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Tea Parties: In 1994

     This is a book that I bought for 25 cents at a used charity store. It's called the "Taxpayer's Tea Party." What with all the Tea Parties going around, I thought I'd mention that this book is from 1994. I think it goes to show that in every decade, there is some sort of a crisis to solve, some sort of convoluted problem created by government that the people have to remedy.
     The question is whether or not, every decade, will We the People do our job?

- The Liberty Belle 

Monday, September 13, 2010

Saturday, September 11, 2010

9/11


     Nine years ago today, the United States experienced the worst foreign attack in our history. Islamic terrorists used hijacked airliners to crash into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Thousands of lives were lost. Those brave passengers on the hijacked planes were killed along with the terrorists who murdered the innocent victims.
     My memory of September 11th is somewhat vague. I recall little more than walking into the living room, our family television screen on high volume, flashing pictures of one of the Twin Towers on fire. My parents told me what was going on, and my first reaction was shock. How could anyone have let this happen?
Not long after, I sat at the kitchen table, too worked up to eat, and watched--completely stunned and horrified--when the second plane hit the next tower.
     I was younger then, but I do remember quite plainly sitting there, terrified that our city would be next. When the plane hit the pentagon, my fears seemed to be confirmed. I can't really even say how much better I felt knowing that we had a President who--despite all of the faults he had--would protect us from the enemy.
    It's been a long nine years since the September 11th terrorist attacks. Yet the memory has not left me, and neither do I think it's at all wise to assume the terrorists won't be coming back. The horrible, and outright barbaric way that they attacked us was not just awful, it was exactly what their name implied: terrifying. They had to hijack passenger planes and kill innocent civilians who were guilty of nothing but going to work and trying to feed their families.
    People say every year, "we will not forget," but is that really true? Are we as united as we were on September 12th, or have we already forgotten what happened in New York City, on an ordinary Tuesday morning? Are we divided by race, politics, political party, and religion?
   For me, all I have to do to remember what the United States is and what we stand for is watch a video of the day the Twin Towers collapsed.
   Truly, we must never forget.

- The Liberty Belle
   

Thursday, September 9, 2010

California: The Furlough State

     Yesterday, the Supreme Court of California took on one of the most hotly debated cases in the state: furloughing state workers. Under the furloughing, state workers are required to take off a certain amount of days without pay, whether they like it or not. Now, it's hard enough to get your paycheck sliced up, but add in extremely tough economic times and you get a recipe for the strained financial climate of hard working families.
     The case that has been taken to court challenges the Governor's authority to order everyone to be furloughed. He has proposed to axe the furlough, but still take the money. This is also known as: working for free. Sound fun? There are places within the agencies of the state where certain employers have put away money for specific economic times as these; if the Governor orders furloughs, they can still pay their people out of their emergency money. So far they haven't been allowed to use their own money.
     There's people saying that state workers get paid too much so they can take the hit, they "deserve" to be furloughed, and all that kind of stuff. All I can say is, try taking a 15 percent pay cut from your employer for no other reason than the fact that he wants to leave some sort of a legacy other than his failed plastic bag ban policy.
     The Sacramento Bee reported that the Supreme Court is leaning both ways on the case. Who knows who'll win? It comes down to ruling whether or not Arnold Schwarzenegger has the right to furlough state workers. If not, a lot of people will get lost money paid back, and it will be a lot easier to pay bills in an already horrible economic climate. If the Governor gets his way, then things will simply get a lot harder.

- The Liberty Belle

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

John Hanson: First President?


                    Who was the first President of the United States? George Washington, of course. Under the ratified Articles of Confederation, better known as the Constitution, George Washington became the nation's first President. However, when considering that the U.S. was a struggling country during the Revolution, and that there were two different drafts of a Constitution, it would be a valid question to ask who was in charge when the rough draft of the Articles of Confederation were in place. The answer to that question is a man named John Hanson.
                  John Hanson was a merchant from Maryland during the eighteenth century. Needless to say, he was very involved in the War for Independence. He was elected to the Continental Congress--the nation's first congress--and then went on to sign the first Articles of Confederation. Under the Articles of Confederation, he was elected President of Congress, and because of this he has been called the first President of the United States of America.
                As President, Hanson accomplished many tasks that are largely unknown to be to his credit. During his term the Post Office was established. The Foreign, Finance, War, and Marine Departments were created. (These were later the Departments of State, Treasury, Defense and Navy) Hanson was personally commended by George Washington for his work. Hanson ordered Benjamin Franklin to take a loan from France. Hanson appointed the first Postmaster of the United States.
               These are only a few of his accomplishments.  There are rumors that John Hanson was the first black president, that his roots were really African American. Needless to say, those rumors are not rooted in any fact, and John Hanson was not African American.
              It is strange, to say the least, that so many people have never even heard of John Hanson.  
He was the First President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation. Even if his position as President is to be disputed, it cannot be argued that John Hanson was a patriot who did his very best to contribute to the country that he loved.


- The Liberty Belle

The Greatest Stories Never Told: 100 Tales from History to Astonish, Bewilder, and Stupefy

Saturday, September 4, 2010

The Call: In Sacramento

Today I went to a prayer meeting at the capitol of California, in Sacramento: The Call. There was a lot of praying. Tons, actually. There were thousands of people there sitting in lawn chairs or sprawled on picnic blankets. Children, adults and babies. I had a portable chair, myself. The praying was very loud and emotional, centering mostly around the need for God to have mercy on this country; to flee sexual immorality and all that kind of stuff.
It was the first prayer meeting that I've ever been to, besides a Billy Graham event that I attended years ago. The Call is targeted more for a younger audience--most of the people there were high school or college age. Still, that doesn't do anything to damper their message: America needs to turn back to God. There was some loud music and a lot of dancing and singing when I left. Think of it as a rock concert for Jesus. The Call was an interesting and realistic approach to solving a lot of our country's problems.

- The Liberty Belle

Friday, September 3, 2010

American Hero: James Caldwell

James Caldwell was a clergyman.  Before and during the American fight for Independence, pastors were almost like the mayors, or even governors, of their communities. They were knowledgeable, and above all, not afraid to fight.
James Caldwell was one of these men. He was a pastor in New Jersey. When war arrived, he served as a chaplain, spy, supply officer and aid for troops in New Jersey.
He still maintained his pastoral duties. He would remove his pistols before a sermon, then put them on again after he was done. He had the ability to rally discouraged troops. He was known for his honesty and he soon became quite popular.
James Caldwell, therefore, was a threat to the British. They tried to kill him, but never succeeded. His wife was murdered while in their home, sitting on the bed of her children.
James Caldwell fought on for the patriots of America. His bravery and devotion to God was unwavering. A year after he fought a hard, bloody battle at Springfield, he was inexplicably shot in the head by a sentinel at a wharf . His monument read: This monument is erected to the memory of Rev. James Caldwell, the pious and fervent Christian, the zealous and faithful minister, the eloquent preacher, and a prominent leader among the worthies who secured the Independence of his country. His name will be cherished in the Church and in the State so long as virtue is esteemed, and patriotism honored.
The question lies here: have you heard his name?

- The Liberty Belle

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Full of Hot Air?

As I'm writing this, an oil rig in the Gulf has just exploded, the East Coast is getting ready for hurricane Earl, and somehow the world is still in one piece. It's nice to have a bit of humor now and then.

- The Liberty Belle

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Humanism and Education

Education.  That word carries a lot of weight. It has the power to shape a life, or to destroy it. So, when mulling over the government's track record of destroying things (ie, the economy, the bailouts, the stimulus, the stock market, etc.,) I wondered why we should expect them to do something good with something so vital.
I was just reading about education in early America; the colonies. In an act passed by the General Court of Massachusetts, parents were required to get an education for their child for the purpose that they might "read and understand the principles of religion and the capital laws of the country." In the "Old Deluder Satan" Act of 1647, towns with fifty or more people were required to set up a primary school for the education of their children. In all cases, reading, writing, and learning in general was for the ability to read the Bible and live by its principles.
Modern American education is not what I would call Christian, but it is religious, in a way. Present day teaching revolves mostly around the exaltation of one's self. Primarily, whatever feels good it right. This, no matter what anyone says, is the definition of a belief known as humanism.   What Is Secular Humanism? 

I'm not here to say that one religion is better than another, although I myself am a Christian. But when the government pushes a belief like humanism into the very core of our education system, what should we expect as an end result? Will things turn out as well as their government bailouts or their stimulus package? What is the purpose of removing references to Divine Providence in schools?

Like anything the Federal Government does, there is a reason, a plan, and an anticipated end result. What is the plan? Perhaps driving the country away from its God-centered roots? Is that a direction we want to take? Is that the opinion we want pressed on our children five days a week, one hundred and eighty days a year? It may be for some, but it is likely a disagreeable situation for most.

- The Liberty Belle