We the People

One of the basic principles enumerated in the Constitutional commission is the government mandate to "provide for the common defense".  The specific interpretation of this phrase is that the government is charge to appropriate armies.  There are other government provisions supported by laws which extend specific authority to the executive, the President and his Cabinet.  The Department of Homeland Security was created in response to specific threats in the US against US citizens.

From my perspective, those protesting against the current acts of the President of the United States are seem to be arguing that the President exceeds his authority to act in behalf of the people.  "Not MY President!", they scream, along with other complaints of the same general class.  Few of them seem to express any logical rationale for that premise.  Some of them so consumed with their enraged and frenzied self-importance they seem to have great difficulty articulating ANYTHING even marginally intelligible.  They are essentially protesting against provisions of the US Constitution.

There is no law prohibiting these people from embarrassing themselves in public.  Indeed, many of them seem to be pursuing this end with the greatest energy and enthusiasm.  I have no idea how long these hysterics will be the popular trend, before they exhaust themselves.

Ultra Political Gynecology

Wow! Incredible. I don't even know how to respond to this kind of foolishness.

One of the most flagrant fake news stories I have ever seen. I read a similar story in the LA Free Press, almost 50 years ago. I was stunned then, and amazed that such stories even pass the smell test from the editors. I'm confident that publication of this article was timed to coincide with peak interest in the rather nasty "Women Marching" diatribes. What is truly pathetic is that I'm almost as certain that this kind of faux information will be enthused about by pro-abortion people who are generally too ignorant or naive to discern that anything is wrong here.

Foisting this kind of malicious drivel on useful idiots is only possible if they are abysmally ignorant of even basic biology principles.  It works effectively because so many qualify.

Never on Sunday

I sometimes hear the suggestion that we should take a break on Sunday from all the political hyperbole that so distracts, and focus on our Sabbath worship. Sorry if my continued sharp rhetoric offends anyone's delicate sensibilities. But I am not really up to being a different person on Sunday than I am on every day. The same face in the mirror looks back at me on Sunday. I've had my fill of two-faced people in my life.

The lack of tolerance and diversity I see so much celebrated in the popular world is a constant source of entertainment and amusement for me. But I was always easily amused.

Even on Sunday.

Bell Pepper lies

This one makes the Internet occasionally.

I didn't know this either - particularly because it isn't true.

Not sure the purveyors of these silly stories are altogether clear on basic biology.  The fact is, bell peppers are a common fruit.  In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants formed from the ovary after flowering. This seed-bearing part of the plant is invariably regarded by biologists as "female".  There is no such thing as a "male" bell pepper, although feeling bumps on the bottom may gratify the voyeuristic sense, in some titillating manner.

I really have no idea if there is any substantive difference in the eating quality of 4-bump or 3-bump.  It may well be true that one is better for cooking.  I have never tested this hypothesis, and cannot speculate.  

But I am absolutely certain that the basis for this popular meme is totally false.  This is a trivial example of the kind of phony "fact" commonly found around the Internet.

Fake news at its finest!

Make Europe Great Again

Interesting European reaction to changes in US political scene. This might be mildly embarrassing, at least to some. The whole world actually seems to be following our lead. They're not all laughing, it would seem, notwithstanding the hilarious skepticism of rather sophomoric comic parodies, which have long been present in the darker European underworld. One of the centers of current controversy is the Netherlands, where populist interests control multiparty majority representation in the current government. The country is divided about whether or not to follow the "Brexit" trend.

Wikipedia:  

Hypothetical Dutch withdrawal from the European Union is also commonly referred to as "Nexit",   based on "Brexit", the common name for a British withdrawal from the EU.

A poll by the Pew Research Center in June 2016, before the British referendum, found the Dutch to have a 46% negative view of the European Union, less than the 51% of their population found to have a positive view towards it.^[2] Another poll, by peil.nl in the aftermath of the British vote, found 50% of the Dutch population to be against a similar referendum in their country and 46% to favour remaining in the union (compared to 43% against).

A small assist, for those of you who only have a rather vague notion of the geographic realms of northern Europe...

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte called the possibility of a referendum "utterly irresponsible". The only party in the country which favours it is the far-right Party for Freedom; leader Geert Wilders made it a key issue in their manifesto for the 2017 general election with his party leading the polls.

American billionaire investor George Soros, who opposed Britain's exit, has named France and the Netherlands as the next countries to leave the EU. UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage, a prominent supporter of Britain's exit, predicted the Netherlands to be the next to leave the European Union.

I realize that most Americans are rather mentally handicapped when it comes to awareness of the greater world. Silly cartoon parodies are as deep a mentality as they can grasp. This is not because they generally lack intelligence (though I don't discount that probability for some). Only because they always seem to be lazy and self-indulgent. Most never bother to inform themselves on any but a totally superficial level. They learned everything they know from Big Bird, and the Jon Stewart school of philosophy.

While crowds march and scream slogans decrying "Facism" and losing their imagined "rights" in the US, it looms as a very real possibility in the deeply divided European political theater. Meanwhile, the progressive groups in America hear nothing but screaming with feigned moral outrage to decry some imagined fault or insult from President Trump.

Civility in the Public Square

Self-expression is vital to the communication process, but expletives should AUGMENT thoughtful dialog - not replace it. If you find yourself resorting to mostly vulgar or profane language, you are not any longer expressing yourself effectively. Little wonder we find scant meaning in the enraged tirades of demonstrators and their angry slogans. To me, they come across as little more than childish inarticulate and feeble-minded tantrums.

Reiterating: Abortion is Murder

Today laws building understanding of the sacred nature of ALL human life have been reinstated.  I expect many more similar developments to be forthcoming in the near future.  This is not based on partisan politics.  

In this era of shrill political sound-bites, there is one clear unequivocal standard that stands out, for those who profess to be faithful members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Lord commanded, “Thou shalt not … kill, nor do anything like unto it” (D&C 59:6). The Church opposes elective abortion for personal or social convenience. Members must not submit to, perform, arrange for, pay for, consent to, or encourage an abortion...

Church members who submit to, perform, arrange for, pay for, consent to, or encourage an abortion may be subject to Church discipline. (Handbook 2)

I cannot in clear conscience support or promote any political candidate, group, party, or individual who embraces anything but a "pro-life" policy.  This is one of those issues where the weight of moral considerations far transcend any political policy.  Those who choose to tolerate abortion have all kinds of philosophical arguments and rationale that twist this ideal, but can't make this unequivocal statement disappear.  They may wish to ignore this in the interest of catering to popular ideas, but ultimately cannot.  Those who willfully violate this principle do so at their own peril.  Those who choose to ignore this principle in the current Presidential campaign are consenting to condemn entire generations to a bloody and horrifying death.

Abortion is murder.  This principle stands.

Ye Are the Light of the World

In a newly released video message, Elder David A Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints invited those who participated in the "Light the World" initiative over the Christmas holiday to keep serving throughout the year.

“I hope we learn through ‘25 ways in 25 days’ that service in not restricted to 25 days in December. It should be just as important in June as it is during the Christmas season."

Happy New Year 2017

Best wishes

For a

 Happy and prosperous New Year!