Time for Another Confession

I’ve . . . well, I was going to write another post, but then realized that I had to write this one first.I’ve a confession to make, something I need to be published, along with my reasoning, for the sake of honesty and transparency.

I voted for Donald Trump. I wasn’t going to, I didn’t want to, and living where I do, it really didn’t matter anyway, but I did. And I’d like to explain why I did so that there is no question later, for good or ill.

Originally, I was a Cruz supporter, because I actually believe in the ideals and ideas behind the Declaration of Independence and The Constitution, I believe they should be upheld, and I though Cruz was the best bet. I liked most of the Repubs running in the primary, to be honest, through was distinctly disliked a few, among them Trump and Jeb who were, to me, the Twinned Pinnacles of Establishment. My initial dislike of Trump was further inflamed by the behavior of many of his supporters among my friends. Their feverish, unquestioning supports was too reminiscent of the 2007-Present support of the Obama-Otaku, and disturbed me greatly. That and I was starting to see and hear things about some of the people that support him that disturbed me. (More on that with a post to follow, regarding my personal look into the “alt-Right”.)

Still, he won the nomination, so after one single day of expressing my dismay after the Convention, I kept my mouth shut. By then, it was looking like Hillary would get the Dem nomination and, despite my misgivings about Trump, I had sorta sworn Eternal Vengeance on Her for Reasons Not Limited to Benghazi. So while I wouldn’t support him, I dang sure well wasn’t going to do anything to help her. He may be a con-man and a swindler, but she’s a conniving, murdering b*tch.

But now a new dynamic started up, and (almost) all my lefty friends started working to Do Their Part for Her! The sheer amount of casual bigotry, hatred, lying and blithe-passing-along-of-lies that I saw every single damn day so disgusted and sickened me, that I started considering voting for Trump just because they didn’t want me to. But I didn’t want my vote to be decided by spite (I may have sorted Slytherin, but acting on emotion is not really considered Best Practices among our House). So, being the (somewhat) decent Catholic girl that I am, I prayed about it. And I mean, on my knees, with actual tears, begging God to let me know how to exercise my civic duty without completely offending Him. I begged, “Lord, please, just, hit me with a rock or something, You know how flipping clueless I am. . .”

For months, I assumed that when I got into the booth, I would go third party. Despite that Johnson and Weld were sh*t Libertarians, and awful candidates, I was reasonably sure they’d get my vote. Otherwise, the choice seemed between Civil War (Trump), or Wold Wide Nuclear War (Hillary). Both seemed really quite awful. But still, I prayed.

And on Thursday, 03 November 2016, that prayer was answered, via the work of Wikileaks. Mind you, I don’t entirely trust Wikileaks, don’t entirely trust Mr. Assange, not as far as motives are concerned. Perhaps I’m too cynical to believe that their motives are as stated. But I also acknowledge their pretty-damn-sterling record in terms of accuracy of their releases. So, what was it in the releases that caught my eye? Well, if you’re familiar with any of my older writings, you would likely guess the whole Spirit Cooking thing. And you’d be right.

Spirit Cooking is the term used for the Occultic Work of Marina Abramovich. This is the sort of thing that Alex Jones has been raving about, and even I (who should have known better!) dismissed. But now we had actual evidence. No longer hearsay, we now have video, emails, actual evidence to back up all the worst emails . . . These following video is disturbing, but it is still just an intro to the subject:

And I can’t believe I’m actually adding an InfoWars vid, but this is also useful:

Myself, I didn’t really need the explanations, or the quotes. I just needed one email and two pictures, before I recognized the sick-sweet, metallic smell of hardcore, black occultism. Likewise the fetid morass that results from prolonged exposure to such ritual.  I always skirted the edges in terms of organized occultism, was never directly involved with any group save for some like-minded over the internet and, of course, K-Sensei. But the groups I knew of in New Orleans had no interest for me, nor I for them. But. . . I was aware of them. And I know their scent.

While I was never personally involved with such groups, I am not a stranger to the use of pain and blood, my own at least. Only ever in very small quantities, used as amplifier and seal. But this. . .

This was Whole ‘Nother Level of Evil. This was the Rock that I’d asked the Lord to toss at my cranium, and it hit with a resounding Gongggggg! It was no longer a matter of not supporting Her, it was now imperative that She, and those around Her, be kept out of the White House. Is Trump of the same “elite” set? Maybe. The difference was that now we had proof that one side definitely was into some Very Bad Things, but only speculation-by-association for the other. She had to be kept out, no matter how much I was not a fan of Trump.

So, I voted for him, even though I felt my stomach turn as a I did so. And when, against all my expectation, he won, I determined to withhold further judgement until after his inauguration– just as I did in 2008 when Obama won despite my meaningless opposition. I don’t trust politicians, or much of anyone in a position of “power”. So of course I’ll keep an eye on him.

But having Her at least temporarily out of the picture is a Good Thing, no matter how his time turns out.

Advertisement

RE: The Inanity of “Gun Control”

After the Orlando Massacre, I posted a series of posts on my Facebook feed regarding this issue. This post serves to consolidate them in one place, clean up, edit, and add a bit more thought and information to them.

I’m limiting this post strictly to the issues regarding guns and the Orlando Massacre. I will not be posting on any other aspects, and I would ask commenters to likewise refrain from bringing those issues up. My Friends List is varied and diverse, and I actually like most of the people on it. In fact, the 2 or 3 people I like least are among those most likely to agree with what I’m saying here, so. . . chew on that a bit.

Subjects addressed will be: The Weapon Used in the Orlando Massacre, A Brief Mention of Gun Crime Stats in the US, the Truth About “Assault Weapons” (If you skip all the others, pay attention to this one), the Purpose of the 2nd Amendment, and Why I have had an AR-15 on my personal wishlist for a few years (self-styled feminists should take note of this one, too).

Ok then, let’s go!

The Weapon Used in the Orlando Massacre

The firearm used in the Orlando Massacre was NOT an AR-15. Let’s first be clear about this. The firearm used was a Sig Sauer MCX Carbine. “AR-15” is a specific system design (AR from ArmaLite Rifle, before they sold the design to Colt), not a overall classification. The media and other ignorant people like to call all semi-automatic rifles “AR-15s”, because they’re scary-looking and AR-15 sounds scary. Calling this an AR-15 is like calling an American Girl a Barbie, just because they’re both dolls with changeable clothes. “AR-15” is a registered trademark to Colt but, due to common usage, the term is sometimes used for variants of the same basic design which can use the same parts. But this shiney-ass Sig? It’s a rifle system that sometimes utilizes the STANAG magazines that are common to more than 60 different firearms (because interchangeable magazines are just basic sense, see link), but otherwise has no major parts that interface with AR-15s in any way, shape or form. Therefore, not an AR-15.

I bring this up because I’ve seen a petition passed around for banning AR-15s. So, knee-jerk ignorance has yet again struck upon an utterly useless solution that will solve nothing, prevent nothing, and probably make the situation worse, as usual.

Why should the average, non-gun-nut person care? Because if you actually give half a damn about trying to prevent future massacres, future unnecessary, innocent deaths, then you need to actually care about 1) What has worked historically to accomplish that end,  2) What might possibly have prevented the events that horrify you, and thus, 3) What ideas might possibly help in the future, as opposed to those ideas that will accomplish nothing good, and might actually make things worse.

Every time you promote a solution that clearly and obviously would have done nothing to prevent the event you claim horrifies you so much, what you’re really promoting is your own arrogance and self-righteousness. It shows that you don’t actually care the slightest bit for the victims or their loved ones, or the future victims and their loved ones. It shows that what you really care about is your unearned sense Moral Superiority, your belief that you are So Much Better than everyone that disagrees with your knee-jerk, brainless emoting. All you care about is making yourself feel good in public. It is Public Masturbation of the Ego, and it’s disgusting to the rest of us. Which is why we keep telling you to stop already, put that mess away.

Some sources for you (and that I’ve pulled some info form): http://bearingarms.com/…/narrative-fail-orlando-islamic-te…/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AR-15
http://bearingarms.com/…/fact-check-ar-15-wasnt-used-orlan…/

Moving on. . .

A Brief Mention of Statistics.

I’ll note right out that I hate statistics. Of all my textbooks from all my college and university courses, the only one that prompted suicidal thoughts every time I opened it was my “statistics” book. I’m of a mind to agree with Mr. Mark Twain: “There’s lies, damn lies, and statistics.”

That said, if we keep away from some of the more egregious number manipulation, they can show some good, useful information. So:

http://www.theacru.org/harvard_study_gun_control_is_counte…/

http://www.pewresearch.org/…/gun-homicides-steady-after-de…/

http://www.justfacts.com/guncontrol.asp

http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/…/gun-homicide-rate-down-49…/

http://www.bjs.gov/content/guns.cfm

I’ve tried to keep these sources as non-political as possible, which is hard when it comes to this matter. The only one that I’d say isn’t 100% objective is the first one, but I included it sums up what follows.

But it also comes down to basic sense: Murder is already illegal and generally socially unacceptable. Pretty much No One supports Murder. And yet, it happens. Because people who choose to murder don’t give a damn about the fact that it’s outlawed.

Once a Bad Person has decided to Murder (thus flouting the law against such an action), they tend to not give much of a damn about any other laws, like “This thing is Banned”, or “Register this thing”, or “Don’t do this other thing, cuz we say so!”. Like, seriously, they don’t care. They’ll find a way. And if there are laws that others obey, thus cramping their Murder-Style, why then they’ll go buy fertilizer and rent a truck, get creative with kitchen gadgets like pressure cookers, get stabby with a kitchen knife, or go onto the black market and buy some illegal firearms. Or get a security position with the government thus giving them a position with carefully crafted exemptions to the laws. Like just happened.

The only people, in fact, that abide by gun control laws are the law abiding people who don’t Murder others. They care about the law. They don’t want to be criminals, because they’re Decent, Civilized Beings. Such laws only effect non-murderers. Only Non-Murderers are disarmed, thus leaving them as happy(?) sitting ducks for any Murderer to come and pick off at will.

Which is why every massacre happens in a Gun-Free Zone, filled with defenseless innocents who can offer no effective resistance. Which is why they Never happen at Gun Shows or NRA Conventions.

The Truth About “Assault Weapons”

If you do nothing else, if you skip every other post in your quest to remain sanctimoniously ignorant, go to this link and go through the Whole Damn Thing. http://www.assaultweapon.info/

Summary: Assault Rifles are already banned. “Assault Weapons” is a term that, I Shit You Not, means “Scary Looking.” Seriously, go through the whole thing. None of this is new to me, but it might be new for you. Please, even if only to make your own arguments more intelligible. I will know if you haven’t done your homework. It will be patently obvious to everyone who already knew all this, or who just learned it all themselves.

Related Extra Credit Reading: http://www.gunsandammo.com/gun-culture/9-misused-gun-terms/

 

The Purpose of the 2nd Amendment

The 2nd Amendment has Jack Sh*t to do with hunting. There purpose of the 2nd Amendment is to protect civilians from the government when it inevitably turns against them.

Like it did at say, Wounded Knee (The Lakota women weren’t even allowed to possess the tools needed to to sew beads onto their dresses, okay? And they and their children were mercilessly slaughtered, and their murderers given Medals of Honor. Don’t tell me it won’t or can’t happen in America– it already has). Or, as has happened in countless other countries in the 20th and 21st Centuries.

The core purpose of the 2nd Amendment is to act as an Auto-Destruct in Case of Constitutional Failure. The only reason we haven’t yet gone to the terrible extremes of other totalitarian states is because enough legislators know that enough citizens remember that it is the government that should be scared of the citizens, not the other way around.

Why is this not reality?! (Promo pic for the delightfully silly yet accurate Girls Und Panzer)

Which means, yes, the 2nd Amendment protects theGod-given Right of the Citizens toeffectively defend themselves against their own military. In this context, then, the fact that I can’t own a working Tank is an abomination (I even know where I’d park it!)– but one I understand due to the mess that would result if everybody took tanks to work. Likewise my lack of F-16 (don’t know where I’d park this).

 

Y’all know I love the US Military, and not just because the US Army pays my bills. I love and Respect The Crap out of our War-fighters, okay? I don’t want there to ever be a day when the 2nd amendment is triggered for it’s purpose. But you know what? I have no respect for our politicians, and little hope that they’ll suddenly learn even a sliver of the honor of our war-fighters. The 2nd Amendment *must* be preserved against that horrible day.

The secondary purpose of 2nd Amendment is that it is the only thing that allows minorities to effectively protect themselves against a hostile majority. It is the Right that allows the Great Equalizer to take effect– it allows women to stand a chance against stronger male attackers, it allows racial and religious minorities to protect themselves from the likes of the KKK. The Pink Pistols say that “Armed Gays Don’t Get Bashed.”– and you know what, they’re right! (Also, the Pink Pistol’s ain’t the only Gay Guns! Group in town anymore: Check out the delightful https://www.facebook.com/LGBTforGunRights page!)

If any of you want to learn the safe and proper handling of firearms, I highly recommend the NRA courses. I’ve taken a couple, and they’re very informative, and include range time and tests.

Why I Want An AR-15 (Since the State of Maryland Won’t Allow Me to Own an AK-47)

So, truth be told, I’ve been wanting an AR-15 of my own for a couple of years. I have to straighten out some other finances first (I still owe my Dad $300 from Balticon), and there are some House-things that need doing, but an AR-15 is on the wishlist. Let me tell you why (“feminists” might find this of interest):

Coupla years ago, I think it was my friend Kory, he let me borrow his AR-15 during a shooting day at a mutual friend’s range. And I fell instantly in love. Know why? The Adjustable Stock.

Here’s the thing: the proportions of my upper-arms to my lower-arms (length-wise) are a bit out of whack. For reasons therefore of strange geometry, the standard-size stocks of most rifles I’ve tried are very hard for me to handle. It’s like my arms simply aren’t long enough, or jointed right, to hold properly and securely.

In addition, I’m left-eye dominant, even though was born ambidextrous and generally write right-handed. I need a left-handed or ambidextrous rifle.

Also, maybe you didn’t know, but I’m female. Although I do my pushups and haul heavy boxes with the best of folk (often surprising the fellas when it comes to such things), I’m still relatively weak when it comes to upper-body strength. Rifles are both long and heavy, therefore requiring greater arm strength to properly control for more than a minute or two at a time.

The AR-15 is a modular system, which means that you can assemble a custom built rifle for a much more affordable price than if you had to order a non-modular rifle with the needed specs. So I can get the adjustable stock for my weird arms, and I can make sure it’s set up for left-handed use (or more easily get a gunsmith to make a few adjustments to make it ambidextrous). It’s relatively lightweight, which means that I and other women can use it with greater ease and accuracy.

It’s also generally quite affordable (depending on what parts you choose), which means that lower-income women have economic access to it.

Please keep in mind that accuracy is a safely matter above anything else. So too, flash suppressors, sound suppressors, and heat cages. They might look scary because Hollywood has taught you that they looks scary, but these are all safety measures.

I’ve been invited to take part in several informal shooting competitions, but I can’t really take part at this time because my rifles either don’t have change-able magazines, or because their cartridge capacity is too low. An Ar-15 would allow me to compete with my friends (who, themselves, mostly use Ar-15s in these competitions), but would also allow me a self-defense weapon that is reliable, is easy to use in an emergency, and is easy to control when adrenaline might otherwise make it very difficult.

So why do I want an AR-15? Because it would allow me to play with my friends, *and* effectively defend myself should my living-on-my-onesies situation become a little too tempting for the local criminal element. And because I can customize with all the obnoxious Hello!Kitty crap I want. Just like my ammo cans!

I may post further updates. Eventually. Who really knows.

09 April 2014 News

Here’s a good way to take advantage of our overload of lawyers. Sue the schools that abuse our children.

If there is only one thing you read today, read about these amazing, heart wrenching efforts to save children from sex slavery rings.

[While we’re on the subject, let me just note that I hate the term “Human trafficking”. Even if it’s technically correct, it seems to me to be a politically correct softening  of the term “Slavery”. That’s what this is, plain as day. We should name it with the ugliest terms we have. We should be absolutely clear what we’re talking about. This is slavery. The people who do it are slavers. Those who support it in any way are supporting the slave trade.]

My favorite actor of Lucifer calls out Obamacare over its attack on freedom of conscience. Turns out, he’s a bit of a libertarian. Who knew?

Also inappropriate: Strippers at nursing homes. Really? Ugh. Like Mrs. Scalia, I’m not comfortable with strippers in general as it is, for pretty much the reasons  she notes. How crass and insensitive do you have to be to call them into a nursing home?

This is gonna make my job even more tedious. Let’s just add more red tape. That’ll help women. . .

 

The American Covenant

The Warning

It started 31 January 2012. According to my journal, Gold was $1,747.04/ oz that morning, and silver was $33.66/oz. The rest of the entry for that morning reads as follows:

Jay Carney says WH has no rush re: Iran. Since the man is a liar, we may assume the opposite.

FL primary today.

Rumor Mill News

Messianic Rabbi Jonathan Cahn The Harbinger

Debka is reporting that Syrian Prez Bashar Assad may start regional war if UN tells him to step down.

One of these things is not quite like the others. . . that day, in the morning, I’d come across an interview with Rabbi Cahn on YouTube, and it “pinged” in my brain. Something made me take notice. I run across odd, cool and crazy things on YouTube all the time. Sometimes I post them on my blog. But this was different enough to have me scribbling a note in my journal with ink on paper– a more real “noting of” than simply copy/pasting electrons via computer. So I scribbled it down and put it out of my mind.

On 12 March 2012, in addition to my usual market entries, I wrote the following

On Saturday, bought a new pair of work shoes (1st time in 3 years). Then on a whim, went to the neighboring bookstore. There, in front, on display, was that book I’d noticed a couple of weeks ago –> The Harbinger. So, I bought it, and just finished reading it. And it’s very troubling. Ref. Isaiah 9:10-12, in relation to events of 9/11 and all that follows. Crap–> this means responsibility of some nature that I must uphold.

[Oddly enough, that was the last entry until near the end of June, even though the journal is always in my bag.] Due to my experiences in life, when something presents itself before me and sticks in my brain, I make note of it. When it keeps presenting itself, I take that as a message from above, that He wants me to take notice. It would be a long, long tale to describe that training, but He trained me thusly, and so this is how I respond.

It’s odd, for me, as a Catholic. Prophesy and things related are generally avoided, save those referring to Jesus. End-times prophesy is so very. . . protestant, you know. Best to not meddle around with trying to interpret anything. Que sera, sera, and all that. But then, I’ve always been the nutter in the choir loft, and I’ve had a passion for all the “Strange but True” stories featured on Unsolved Mysteries and The X Files. So I never really followed the traditional Catholic manner of dealing with the Book of Revelation or various Old Testament Texts. To my mind, too many theologians have been involved in the Catholic view of such things. There’s a strain of Catholicism (to which I have long exposure) that holds that Biblical Prophesy has been fulfilled, or else is not to be interpreted, because we’d just get it wrong anyway. This same strain looks askance at the events of Fatima and buys the Vatican line about the 3rd Secret.

So you can imagine that when contemplating ideas bridging ancient Israel to modern America, the voices of 500 theologians (and the dubious eyebrows of my father) cry out all at once in my head. But luckily, my inner musician rises up in reply and says “If the melody and chord progression are the same, the rhythm similar, it means it’s the same Opus, by the same Composer!”

For instance, when I first saw The Fellowship of the Ring in the movie theater, I realized before I saw the credits that the composer of the soundtrack was the same guy who composed the soundtrack for The Matrix. How did I realize this? Because Howard Shore, the composer, used a chord, broken into an descending arpeggio descending for The Matrix, and used the same chord, broken but ascending, for Lord of the Rings. It was a signature. It was possible that the music was written by two separate people– but unlikely. My ear heard that one pattern was simply the inversion of the other, and identified it as the work of the same person.

Because of this musical training, I’m pretty good at spotting patterns. If someone else spots the pattern and points it out, I can validate it pretty quickly. This is what happened with the book mentioned above. Rabbi Cahn noted a pattern between the events starting around Isaiah 9:10, and their super-eerie correspondence to the exact same things happening with 9/11 and the events that followed. There is a clear pattern shown, a pattern even more detailed thanks to Rabbi Cahn’s Jewish background and understanding of the Jewish Calendar and traditions.

I’ll not spell out the pattern int his post– if you are interested, that can be another post. Or you can get the book yourself. However, the main point, at least as far as this particular essay goes, is this: That God is very much active in the events around us, That God is very much involved in the continuing history of the American people, and that God is very much trying to get our stupid, wandering attention, and we really ought to start paying Him some mind. . .

The Covenant

Having read that book in the spring, it’s implications knocking around in my skull for a few months, I was well primed when about a month ago, I heard of another book, this one called The Covenant: America’s Sacred and Immutable Connection to Ancient Israel, by Timothy Ballard. [Allow me to give a few disclaimers: First, I have not yet finished the book, so what I write today is based upon what I have read so far. Second, this book was a re-write of two other books that had been written for an LDS readership– Ballard removed all the LDS material for this book so that it would be accessible to a broader audience. Third– the author references the writings and research of other authors. I’ve not had the chance to check out these writings, though I’m interested, so I cannot say, for myself, how trustworthy these sources are. That said, the ideas presented are intriguing and worth considering, so I cannot dismiss them outright.]

Basically, The Covenant takes the microcosmic idea of The Harbinger and enlarges it– not only is 9/11 an echo of past events– the entire history of America is tied with that of Ancient Israel (which is why the Harbingers show themselves now as they did then). Ballard (this is where he references works and authors I’m unfamiliar with) starts with the Old Testament prophesies concerning the descendants of Joseph– the famed lost tribes of Israel, who disappear from canon before the prophesies are fulfilled. Through hints found in linguistics and archaeology, Ballard theorizes some of the movements of these lost tribes northwest through Europe. Then using the writings of Columbus and others, he shows how the discovery, settlement, and Founding of America were always seen as something ordained by God in the Bible, and that God was active in the discovery, settling and founding of the nation.

This then explains American Exceptionalism, the instinctive feeling of kinship with modern day Israel and the near obsessive need many American’s feel to protect Israel, the need to reawaken our common religious sensibilities, whatever our religion may be, and why we absolutely, positively, cannot allow the secularists to have their way in removing God from the American Consciousness. This is why it is so very important for all Americans to know and understand the words of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution/ Bill of Rights– these are the documents that write out the American Covenant. These set up the human half of the equation– they state who we are as a people, what we desire, and the rules which shall bind the powerful among us. In return, just as with Ancient Israel, God will bless us with protection (life), liberty, and prosperity (the pursuit of happiness). However, should our part of the Covenant be broken, should we forget our part, God will withdraw His blessings not so much to punish us, but to get our attention, to remind us of the covenant, and to call us back to Himself.

Zophiel’s Ponderings

I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to being very intrigued with the idea. I can’t say I entirely buy it (those 500 theologians would make my head explode if I tried) . . . honestly, I have more research to do before I can properly weigh various arguments and make my decision on what I believe in this regard.  However, it is worth considering as we look at the tragedies befalling our dear nation everyday. When we see all three branches of our government betray us, our economy stumbling and crawling, our news peppered with reports of flesh-eating zombie-people and the reports aren’t jokes. When we consider the old-guard “conservatives” who focused more on policy with a mention of religious texts much like one would reference any other work or literature, when we consider just what is being taught in our schools– and not taught.

But here’s what it comes down to. I’ve read the fist book, am about halfway through the second. I’ve been considering these ideas for months now. And these things keep shoving themselves in front of my attention. I’ve gone and read. And I’ve considered the ideas. And still they present themselves. Which, according to my past experience, means this: It is not enough to read and ponder, I have to share.

I hate that part the most. I can ponder whatever crazy idea I want in the privacy of my own brain. But sharing the nuttiness? Oh my. That’s entirely different.

So, here I am, sharing, hoping that this is sufficient for His purposes. Hoping that I can finish the one book and then move on to something else, and not have these things vying for my ever wandering attention. I have presented to you the idea that America, like Ancient Israel, is a Nation Under Covenant with God, and that means that we have responsibilities and duties to uphold, or else the pattern of Isaiah 9:10 will continue out to the finish.

Let’s hope we get things back on track before that happens.

(Update: Forgot to add the link for Intercessors for America)

28 June 2012, St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Big News Day. See below for some SCOTUS and Colorado Fire coverage.

Let’s get to the rest:

The House votes 255-67 to hold Eric Holder in contempt. Ace writes that since 17 Dems voted for contempt, that means it’s a bipartisan move. And:“The Democrats staged a walk out. From WI and IN to the House of Representatives, when Democrats don’t get their way they walk away like spoiled little brats.”

UPDATE: Missed this earlier– Fulton Sheen declared “Venerable”. Heck to the yeah, man! Next step, Beatification!

Initial Fast And Furious Roundup

Okay, it’s late, but I was trying to get this out before I went to bed tonight. Remember, this is the “program” that is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of innocent Mexicans, and Americans, including Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. In a more honest world, it would have been considered an act of war, and Holder would have been on trial at least a year ago. Myself, I’d even have tossed treason charges in as well. This thing was an abomination, they knew it, and with the help of the corrupted media, they have been covering it up as much as they could.Anyway, on with the linkage, starting with some “older” stuff for some context. . .

DOJ fails to turn over documents promised to Issa’s Committee.

Holder Asks for Executive Privilege on Docs, Gets It even though Obama was against it just a few years ago.

Heritage Foundation on Executive Privilege

Ed Morrissey wonders if the EP claim will work for Obama. He doesn’t think so. I hope Ed is right.

Soros-Funded Group Plans to Undermine Fortnight for Freedom Campaign | Women of Grace

From Women of Grace

Soros-Funded Group Plans to Undermine Fortnight for Freedom Campaign

The memo contains “talking points” on how to handle the bishops, what kind of questions to ask them to trip them up and otherwise make them look bad in the public eye.

Read the whole thing.

Righting the World: Thoughts on Breitbart, Ministry and Courage!

This started some time ago. I tend to dwell and ponder matters. One thing I dwell on is my role in the world: What am I doing, what purpose am I serving in doing what I do? I also expand that out to various groups of friends, notably my dear friends at The Conservative Treehouse. What is our role? How does what we do serve the greater community?

In the midst of these ponderings, that great towering giant of a man, Andrew Brietbart, shocked the lot of us by skipping off for heaven waaaay before we expected. And my ponderings upon the role and place of The Treehouse got tangled up with ponderings on the lessons Breitbart left us. I’m going to try to sort that out now.

As I am a Christian, when I ponder and consider the roles of my self or those near me, I often flash on the following words from Jesus (Matt 25):

³³And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on his left.

    ³⁴Then shall the king say to them that shall be on his right hand: Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess you the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

    ³⁵For I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in:

    ³⁶Naked, and you covered me: sick, and you visited me: I was in prison, and you came to me.

    ³⁷Then shall the just answer him, saying: Lord, when did we see thee hungry, and fed thee; thirsty, and gave thee drink?

    ³⁸And when did we see thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and covered thee?

    ³⁹Or when did we see thee sick or in prison, and came to thee?

    ⁴⁰And the king answering, shall say to them: Amen I say to you, as long as you did it to one of these my least brethren, you did it to me.

    ⁴¹Then he shall say to them also that shall be on his left hand: Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels.

    ⁴²For I was hungry, and you gave me not to eat: I was thirsty, and you gave me not to drink.

    ⁴³I was a stranger, and you took me not in: naked, and you covered me not: sick and in prison, and you did not visit me.

    ⁴⁴Then they also shall answer him, saying: Lord, when did we see thee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to thee?

    ⁴⁵Then he shall answer them, saying: Amen I say to you, as long as you did it not to one of these least, neither did you do it to me.

    ⁴⁶And these shall go into everlasting punishment: but the just, into life everlasting.

 You’ll not that He says nothing about blogging. He says nothing about writing at all. But that does not mean that writing, and blogging, are <I>not</I> ways of ministry. (Mind: I am not  saying that if one blogs, that excuses one from following the literal interpretation of His words. Also, I’m writing primarily about the commentors before the posters– the entire community.)

When I read the posts and comments at the Treehouse, I consider that our role, what we do, is as follows: We see those who naked of language– they know the Truth, but cannot express it, or defend it. We, in our open ponderings and occasional bickering, provide them with words to use. We see a world hungry for Truth- and we give it, as best we can. We see that people have been brainwashed through our public education system and media, and we try to show them the way out of their mental prisons. Believe me, the thought-patterns of the Left are a prison even without concrete walls.

In terms of posts, we are a varied, Rag-tag (if you will) lot. We are not a news service like Hot Air or Insty. Nor are any of us Bill Whittle (though we do try, and Sundance comes closest!). We’re somewhere in between, headlines and essays, activism and kitteh pics. A little bit of Ace, a little bit of Anchoress. But that’s just our style. What we do, our purpose, started as a little refuge for our band of misfits. Many (most?) of us never really fit in anywhere else. We started out fleeing from one site, chased from our first hide-out, and here decided to make our stand.

From those campfire days, we’ve developed into quite the little village, with each writer and each commenter valued, and an active Troll-Patrol. Here we gather, we Rag Tag bunch of Misfits, from varied backgrounds, and bring share our insights. In doing so, we encourage each other to go out and proclaim Truth to the world– whether on facebook, other blogs, caucuses, the street, family, friends, random strangers. . . We learn to deconstruct lies, to dive into the hearts of issues, to expose the lies around us for what they are, and to succor those who seek Truth, who are confused and need an environment where they can work out their confusion.

[I count myself among the latter. Most of my blathering is me trying to Sort Things Out, and you lot have been remarkably patient with me.]

The size of our ministry is, at this time, rather small. But we emphasise quality over quantity. If we grow, we grow. If we stay the same size, we stay the same. We may not always agree on things. Our thoughts and insights may not always be original to us– but one thing we count on, is that each of us is sincere and honest in our writing. And that is what makes this place a Refuge, a small shining village of Trust and Truth in the grim forest of Fear and Madness.

In the midst of these thoughts, that great warrior Breitbart went and bought the farm. He was, is, our model of Fearlessness, of brazen courage, raging against the falling night, uncowed by any attack. So much has already be written on what we are to do now, how we all need to follow in his footsteps. I couldn’t agree more.

Last Thursday, I had taken the day off. I was cleaning my living room when the word first came onto Fox News that he had died. It was like a punch to the gut– I was so shocked, I thought that surely I’d misheard, or it was someone with a similar sounding name. . .  I heard Jonah Goldberg reminice a few minutes later, himself clearly in shock and grieving. Soon, I could bear no more, so I switched to the Funimation Channel. And there, they were showing the final eposides of the anime Soul Eater. A very strangely appropriate thing to see at the time. I was very moved the first time I saw the final episode, and seeing it again in this context gave it even more meaning for me.

There’s so much that I think is appropriate for reflection that I want to share it with you. The guy wrapped in bandages is the Kishin (Demon God) Ashura– he is the embodiment of Fear and Madness. His weapon is fear, and he radiates madness. Maka, the little girl with the pig-tails, in our heroine. She attends the DWMA (Death Weapon Meister’s Academy) in Nevada, where she, along with her fellow students, learn to weild their living weapon companions– her companion, Soul, is a scythe. They hunt down evil souls and harvest them to protect the innocents of the world, under the direction of Lord Death. She and her team are trapped insode a barrier with the Kishin, while her father, teachers, and other friends are locked outside, unable to help. At the beginning, all of her teammates have fallen, and only she and Soul remain. Watch her progress as she faces the Kishin, and note the moment when the tide changes, and what it was that changed things.

Watch the whole thing. It’s 23 minutes long, so bookmark it if you need to come back later.

And, yes, I chose the subtitled version for this. Usually, I’m not such a snob about such things, but the Dubbed translation was just off enough that for my purposes, the original was what was needed.

UPDATE: Related (h/t Gracie over at TCT). Remember, the word is: Courage!

Reason to Homeschool the Chirrn, #4

Detroit teen given 4 vaccines without parent’s permission.

The point being, of course, that this was a violation of the rights of both the child and the parents. This is not about the value or dangers of vaccines. This is about people deciding on medical treatment for themselves. This is about the government deciding every little intimate detail about how you live your life. [You’d think the “My Body, My Choice” crowd would get that idea, but I guess it only counts when ending innocent life is concerned.]

While I do believe in the concept of “herd immunity”– I’ve also never had the flu shot. And only gotten the (repertory) flu twice in my life. Whereas, everyone I know who gets the shot, ends up with the illness. I’ve never known someone to get the shot, maybe be symptomatic for a couple of days after (as we are warned can happen), but then go on to have a perfectly healthy flu-season. Everyone ends up with a respertory bug of some nature, every season, except those of us who don’t get the shot. That tells me all I really need to know . . .

Speaking of Contraception . . .

The Anchoress points out a surprising source for support of the Church’s teaching re: Birth Control– Business Insider, of all places!

Here’s a tasty bit:

Today’s injunctions against birth control were re-affirmed in a 1968 document by Pope Paul VI called Humanae Vitae.  He warned of four results if the widespread use of contraceptives was accepted:

1. General lowering of moral standards
2. A rise in infidelity, and illegitimacy
3. The reduction of women to objects used to satisfy men. 
4. Government coercion in reproductive matters. 

Does that sound familiar? 

Because it sure sounds like what’s been happening for the past 40 years.

As is said, read the whole thing!

To be honest, I used to be a lot more laissez-faire about the issue myself. After all, if God wanted you to have a kid, it would happen– both myself and my little brother were conceived while our mother was using birth control.