Satan’s One-Trick Ponies June 29, 2009

The behavior of the leftists in this country remind me of the actions of the “dissenters” in the Catholic church. As if it had been a public election and they won, the leftist dissenters in the Church, as soon as Vatican II was closed, scurried about like rats to start the destruction of their surroundings. They presumed authority where none existed, they destroyed millions of dollars’ worth of priceless art and tradition, they gutted the teaching of the faith and diluted all the doctrine they could reach with their Socialist counterfeits, until the Church (especially in America) bore little or no resemblance to the Faith of our Fathers.

The same thing has been going on in Washington. Just like the destroyers in the Church, the Democrat leftists in Washington capitalized on every perceived opportunity, and literally beat the opposition back with the sheer force of their favorite weapon, ridicule of the Right and all it stands for, and eagerly abetted by the Fifth Column in the press. With the 2008 election of Barack Mugabe Obama, they began their profligate institution of laws upon laws, taxes upon taxes, and any admixture of the two, until the average American was left standing openmouthed and incredulous at the destruction of American government, and dumbfounded at the debt they would be saddled with for the rest of their lives, so cavalierly voted in by leftist True Believers.

With no respect for the Constitution or for the Doctrines and Traditions of the Church, the leftists in both these entities have ridden roughshod over the truth. Having never met a tax or an onerous law they didn’t love, those in government treated the Constitution like toilet paper and passed law after mandate after tax as if the Constitution no longer existed. For them, actually, it never had, and was litte more than a speedbump on their way to the great Socialist Utopia. In the Church, the dissenters managed to get one bishop after another with a leftist tilt into key positions within the Church, and these bishops ordained like-minded priests who became later bishops of the left. The destruction continues.

It is hard to comprehend the hatred these groups have felt for the institutions they are determined to destroy. In the Church, the dissenters hate every restriction, every rule, and every major Tradition. They demand sexual priveleges and forget that they are part of a monolithic organization. In government, the leftists hate the United States so badly that they will destroy it gladly. The dissenters don’t care to leave the Church they hate so deeply; they just want to undermine it and destroy it, to “change” it to suit their ideals. The politicians and prominent leftists would rather destroy the country which alone in the world gives them the right and privelege to demonstrate against it. This isn’t good enough for them. They won’t be satisfied until all their changes are in effect and they are the only ones left standing, lording it over a population they deliberately destroyed.

But, these one-trick ponies are laboring for their own version of built-in obsolescence, although they don’t know it yet. They can only undermine so much before the socialist system, which has been demonstrated repeatedly to be an abject failure in terms of competency or actual governance, simply topples from its own ridiculously topheavy and clumsy construction.

The Church came to its senses about 20 years ago and began to root out these destructive forces. Fortunately, the Church has “term limits” that can only be abrogated by one person: the Pope. The rule is that all bishops reaching the age of 75 must tender their resignations. It is up to the Pope to accept or reject these resignations. And, fortunately for the Church, most of the leftist bishops put into position during the heyday of dissent and destruction are reaching retirement age and their resignations are being accepted in Rome. They are replaced by bishops with true love for the Church and the restoration of its beauty and freedom.

It’s only a matter of time before the voters in America become so disgusted by the usurpations of their rights, earning ability, and private lives by the endless webs and tangles of new regulations being forced on them by Washington that they simply rise up and demand an end to it. But seeing the similarities between the attempted destruction of the TWO GREATEST INFLUENCES FOR GOOD ON THE EARTH leaves one wondering if there isn’t one determined despot behind both scenes, who will be satisfied with nothing less than the total destruction of human worth and righteous spiritual authority. I can only think of one who might fit this bill. He has many followers, but their usual methods are similar and follow the same general guidelines, with the same consequences, repeated and repeated and repeated.

And, people still hate and slaughter each other. Politicians still lie, usurp, and steal. But eventually, they will all go down to defeat and failure. That is the only fate of this kind of destruction. I know it’s hard to believe this as we watch the blatant disregard for life, freedom, property, and individual rights that is perpetrated by these groups. But their aim is always the same, and they are still locked into performing the same destructive acts over and over again. Their Boss can rename his mischief and repackage it any way he pleases, but it is still the same contentious, “I will not serve!” that got him kicked out of Heaven. His success will be limited. And his defeat is an absolute and foregone fact. Did he win when he thought he’d eliminiated the Son of God? Evil may look like it is winning, but it can only succeed where it is given permission. Satan has no more power over us than we are willing to grant him. Sooner or later, that permission is going to be rescinded without notice.

Watch and pray.

Billy Mays (1958-2009) June 28, 2009

Love him or hate him, Billy Mays forever changed the face of “Paid Advertisement” time on television. People were deeply irritated by his loud, excited pitches for OxyClean, among other things. But they were also strangely drawn to watch the handsome, black-bearded man convince them that they really, really, NEEDED that OxyClean, or whatever else he was investing his heart, mind, blood pressure, and personality in at the moment.

We will probably never know the exact details of his injury, but he received a violent blow to the head when the plane he was flying in landed and the gear collapsed on the runway and something from overhead fell on him. He went home, but complained of “not feeling well” and went to bed. He was discovered dead, probably from a subdural hematoma that took several hours to compress his brain to the point where he couldn’t respond.

Rest in Peace, Billy. You done good, as my dad used to say. You done good.

Some Things About Alaska… June 28, 2009

…most folks never hear about…

1. There are a lot of towns and villages in Alaska, but only a few of them are accessible by road, or even by river. Lots of them can only be reached by air. Every village has a gravel airstrip for the delivery of essentials, like groceries, gasoline and heating oil, mail, lumber for building, etc. Most people Outside have no concept of that kind of isolation. It’s like a time machine. The people in those villages have very little in the way of modern conveniences. Most of their local economy revolves around what they can make, kill/catch, or barter. Life is harsh and bleak in terms of comfort, but rich in tradition. The job market, as you might expect, is pretty much limited to town government and a few other service positions.

2. Distance here is measured in hours. For instance, it’s six hours from Valdez to Anchorage. It might have been shorter if they could have straightened out the highway. A two-lane, winding, frost-heaved highway through mountain passes and deep river valleys is scenic, but slow going. And amenities are few and far between. There are three towns between here and Valdez: Palmer/Sutton, Eureka, and Glennallen/Copper Center. The driving instructions are simple: “Head out of town on this road until you come to Glennallen, then hang a right. Valdez is at the end of the road. If you drive long enough, you’ll come to it.”

3. Gas prices here are much higher than they are Outside. I have no idea why. Most of it is produced here, from oil taken from Alaskan wells. Talk to the refiners, I guess. And the government flunkies that set the taxes on these kinds of things. Even with the economy in a tailspin this year, there are more motorhomes and campers on the road than there were last year, when gas was around $4/gallon in this part of the state. The general cost of living is higher here, especially for essentials like electricity and groceries. Some businesses add an “isolation differential” to their pay scale so the wages of an average employee would have the approximate buying power of a counterpart Outside.

4. Climate-wise, you can pretty much take your pick. Alaska is almost 2/3 of a million square MILES. Lots of that is so remote and uninhabitable that even wealthy hunters and adventurers don’t bother with it. And, most of it belongs to the government. Only about 10% of Alaska land is in private hands. A place that big has a widely-varied climate profile. If you like clammy, gray, dreary weather, the Aleutian Islands are for you. And you can’t GET more remote. Talk about being a thousand miles from Nowhere. If you like your days gray, damp, but warmer, and like living in forests so dense you have to have the lights on all day, the Panhandle (“Southeastern”) is for you. This is where the Capitol is located. Juneau is a landlocked state capitol, and can only be reached from other parts of the state by air and water. But if sunnier, warmer summer days and brighter winters are for you, and you don’t mind a little cold, the South Coast (“Southcentral”) part is the place to head for. Anchorage and Wasilla are here. Pretty summers as a rule. (Green, thy name is Alaska in June!) If you are more of a mind to appreciate hot summers and bitter winters, you’ll have to go to Fairbanks for that. But anything north of that is not quite so pleasant. The Brooks Range separates the warmer weather from the cooler, and leaves everything north (“Arctic”) of their shelter in the low sixties on the “hottest” summer days. Westward, there isn’t an awful lot, either. The Yukon River delta has Nome and the Kuskokwim River has Bethel. Outside of that, there’s not a lot you can do. This is one of those areas connected only by local roads. So, take your pick.

5. Winter is one of Alaska’s best-kept secrets. Places on the coastline get lots of snow, with Valdez and Whittier taking the prize for total seasonal accumulation: around thirty feet. Yes, that’s FEET. But, fortunately, it scrunches itself down from its own sheer weight, so six feet or so on the level by season’s end is the general rule. If there is one thing Alaskan towns know, it’s snow removal. Visitors ask about large empty spaces in the middle of towns. Those empty lots are for winter snow storage. True. But Alaskans love their snow. Snowmachines (“snowmobiles” Outside) simply wear out here because they get used so much. Mushing and skiing, as well as snowshoe golf and softball, etc. are popular winter sports here. In Fairbanks, the winter temps can drop so low it will crack the paint on a car and put flat spots on tires.

6. The rumors about the giant mosquitoes are true, I’m afraid. But they haven’t discovered an antidote for DEET, and that is a good thing. Of course, a good headnet without holes is a must for yard work. Sometimes spraying the netting with DEET helps.

7. The Dividend Check is just that: a dividend on investment. Alaska’s Constitution says that the residents of the state are the owners of its resources. So, when the oil leases were signed for North Slope oil development, some of the profits from production were placed into a “Permanent Fund” which was invested on behalf of Alaskans. Once each year, the profits on those investments are divided up and disbursed to the fund members (us). We are NOT “getting paid to live here.” We are enjoying the benefits of some practical thinking 40 years ago, and we all have a personal stake in the success of the Alaskan oil industry.

8. Alaska’s main industries are oil, commercial fishing, tourism, gold, and other mineral resources. Commercial fishing is one of the absolute most dangerous jobs there are. Many lives and vessels are lost every year. Alaskan waters are wild and open, and we have more coastline than the entire rest of the South 48.

9. Not all the indigenous people are Eskimos. As a matter of fact, Eskimos might be in the minority among Natives. There are several tribes of Indians: Tlinghit, Tsimpsian, Nootka, Salish, and Athabaskan in the Interior. On the west coast, most Natives are Aleut in origin. The Eskimos are varied, as well. There are the Y’upik and the Inupiat Innuit.

10. The White man didn’t “steal” Alaska from the Natives. We share the land with them, and it’s as hard for us to keep the wilderness at bay as it is for them. We DID, however, purchase governing rights for Alaska from Russia a hundred and fifty years ago. Secretary of the Interior William Seward made the purchase for two cents an acre, and Alaska was called “Seward’s Folly” and “Seward’s Icebox.” The United States got such a good deal, though, that lately, some folks in Russia have been heard to mutter something about “taking Alaska back…” Good luck with that, Comradeski.

Beat It June 26, 2009

The protesters in Iran have had enough. Now they’ve even put together a video you might enjoy seeing. Pray for them.

War In The Heavenlies June 24, 2009

Christian tradition affords to Michael four principal offices:

Sometimes, it seems that things just can’t get any more depressing, but unfortunately, they always seem to do so, no matter how much we don’t want to see it. It’s as if there was no bottom to the misery and sadness that is possible in the world. The sun still shines, but it shines on a world of sorrow. Seeing the ability of people to hate and kill their brothers and sisters in the most brutal ways imaginable leaves us deeply saddened and feeling quite helpless.

Most of us who grew up and went to school in the Fifties have been imbued with a strong sense of patriotism that the younger generations lack. We are aware of how profoundly our formerly-free country has descended into the dark regions of misery and evil design. It staggers the imagination to realize that one small group of people has brought down not just the American economy, but they have dragged down the economies of every major country in the world in just six short months. And, it’s not just economies. It’s freedom. One by one, Constitutional rights and freedoms are being abused and cancelled as this juggernaut full of unaccountable “czars” begins to find new places to stick the knives that will finish bleeding the taxpayers dry.

Those of us who know the Lord have heard of “spiritual warfare.” We believe that, in the words of Hal Lindsey’s book from the sixties, Satan is alive and well on planet Earth. What this means for prayer warriors and spiritual soldiers is a renewed call to arms. There has never been so much evil wrought on so many in such a short time in history, if for no other reason than the size of the population of the world. The events taking place in Washington today produce ripples that affect the entire world. When the dollar crashes, so do the dinar, the franc, the kroner, yen, and pound. When our soldiers are hamstrung by shrinking budgets, it leaves not just the United States defenseless, but all the non-communist countries in the world that we are called upon to defend. Life means little to maniacs and tyrants who slaughter to make a point, as in Teheran this past week shows. Satan is not satisfied just to take away our social restraints and replace them with debauchery and lust.

He is not satisfied to replace our fruitfulness with abortion and murder. He is not complete without the undoing of every righteous thought, every charitable act, or the destruction of every word of prayer. Nothing less than the total destruction of God will be enough for him, who has already asserted, “I will not serve!”

The old song,WW II song, Praise the Lord And Pass The Ammunition” came to mind as I was praying this morning, and it reminded me that we are NOT helpless before the onslaught of evil that has overtaken this country literally while we slept. We have allowed our watchmen to slumber, and ignored those watchers who tried to spread the alarm. But that does not mean that we are finished. Far from it. With our Baptism into the Lord and our Confirmation in the power of His Holy Spirit, we were given authority for spiritual warfare.” “The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh…” This combat is not for the timid, nor is it for those of a dour, doubtful disposition. The assaults on the “Prince of this world” must be strong, focused, and determined.

I know that to those of a less-than-devout mind, this must sound like a bunch of poppycock. So I invite any unbelieving readers to simply sit this one out. The rest of you, put on the full armor of God. The battle has begun:

) 10 Finally, my brothers, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Why take to you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, with which you shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints

(Ephesians 6:10-18)

New Superdude June 22, 2009

All Shook Up June 22, 2009

Alaska gets around a hundred earthquakes a day. Some of them, we can actually FEEL.

To All The Daddies In My World June 21, 2009

One Perfect Hail Mary June 21, 2009

Living with an alcoholic can be trying at best, and utter hell most other times. They lack the will to understand that their behavior destroys love and trust, and they live only for the next drink. The best thing the families of these people can do is learn how to live their own lives in spite of the drinker’s behavior and to make the drinker responsible for consequences, i.e., destroyed furniture, holes in walls, bar tabs and debt, jail time, etc., and to not “clean up” after the drinker. No excuses to his boss. No pleading to keep him out of jail.

In the early days of my marriage, my husband became one of these loud, aggressive drunks; a man who couldn’t leave the bars until they kicked him out, at which time he would make his way home and wake the family to participate in the interaction we all should have experienced earlier in the day, at a more normal time. If there is anything that will turn a spouse to prayer, it’s trying to deal with such a situation.

The neighborhood Bible study was a source of consolation and helped arm me for the battles I faced. Without their knowledge, these ladies had fitted me with the armor and weapons that would eventually prevail. One plump little wife was married to an especially mean drunk, who had suddenly amended his ways and become a model husband and father. I wanted what she had, so I took her aside one day and asked her for her secret. “Gratitude,” she said. “I started thanking God for every wart and wrinkle on that big ol’ stinker! I prayed him up while he was asleep. He never knew what hit him, and he didn’t stand a chance!”

This was not exactly what I had expected, but it was not expensive, so it was worth a try. That night, as the snoring drunk next to me lay in his stupor, I put my hand on him and started to thank God for bringing him into my life, for giving me the gift of a man who worked diligently when he was sober and provided well for us. After that, I prayed for him every night. I thanked God for a man who took my young son under his wing and gave him a father’s love, and became the only father the boy had ever known. It soon became such a restoring, refreshing activity for me to pray for him that I did it while he was awake, and when he was just being himself — a good man who needed to be encouraged in the good he did, and appreciated for his efforts.

At first, my prayers were hesitant and unsure, because I was severely out of practice. At the Bible studies, I let the other ladies do the praying, and had little notion of how to really make myself heard. What happened surprised even me. My puny, nearly non-existent prayer life began to take on some muscle.

I began to change. I became grateful for everything, not just my husband’s weaknesses. Every test and affliction that came to us was met with humble prayer and trust. I started finding reasons to pray and spend time in the Presence of the Lord. I started making time for prayer. I started getting up early to pray, so that my day started with Him.

But, it didn’t seem to be working on HIM. He still got drunk on a regular basis, still got loud and aggressive, and got into trouble, and he still came home at 2 A.M. to wake us up and demand supper and interaction — until the night he called and told me to bring his gun to town. Now, this gun was a Ruger Blackhawk .44 magnum, and I was NOT about to let him play with it when he was drunk. Finally, the phone rang again, and it was him, calling from jail. That was the first weekend night I can remember sleeping peacefully during all that struggle. This little stint in jail ended with a purpose of amendment and some court-ordered attendance at AA, the two things necessary for a real breakthrough, which came. As soon as he learned he DIDN’T HAVE TO DRINK ANY MORE, and how to avoid it, he was done with it, and life became enjoyable at last. It really was time to thank the Lord, which we both did, by returning to church on a regular basis, having a regular, joint prayer time, and inviting God into all our decision-making.

They say prayer changes things, and I believe it. They also say prayer changes people, and people change things. I believe that, too. But I also believe that prayer changes people and things in ways we don’t expect. “God writes straight with crooked lines.” By being obedient to prayer, I changed my own outlook and reactions. By praying for my husband in a persistent way, I allowed God to do what was necessary to make the changes come about in his life, too. When I first began to pray again, the only prayer I could remember was part of the “Hail Mary.” I had to rack my brain to recall the rest of the prayer. I started by saying one “perfect” Hail Mary, without distractions. That was all. One little request for prayer to the Mother of the Lord. But sometimes, one good daily Hail Mary is all that is needed.

Stolen Lives June 19, 2009

There aren’t many things left that shock me. At my age, I’ve pretty much seen most of it, and I’m not really interested in seeing much of what’s left. But the human capacity for viciousness and evil still astounds me whenever I see it, and especially when it happens to someone close to me.

My son’s home was burgled yesterday. Obviously, they were away, or the thieves wouldn’t have tried to come in. I suspect it was a “knock, no answer, open” crime of opportunity, but the fact that the thief (or thieves) knew exactly what to take shows that they are seasoned professionals and have no consciences. This is an “unlocked-door” community (or was) with a low crime rate. My kids don’t have much, but they scrimped and saved to acquire the things they have, and they like having them, and it goes without saying that this fine point of legitimate ownership is lost on any burglar plying his nefarious trade.

The obvious prizes in this case were guns, electronics, and jewelry, of course. But they also took my daughter-in-law’s pain medication for a chronic congenital condition and some Iraqi dinari the kids had been holding for almost ten years. There were other things taken, of course, and the house was ransacked. If you haven’t ever had the dubious experience of being robbed, it’s hard to describe just how VIOLATED and victimized the victims feel. What disturbs me most is the will of some people to do evil against their fellows in a country with so much bounty. The old penalty for thievery used to be the amputation of the hands. It’s hard not to wish for such an outcome for these crooks.

The scum-sucking, lazy, sleazy burglars would rather steal from their neighbors than go out and actually earn an income they could be proud of. Obviously, we all know of people who would all too easily slide into this uniform, and the surprise is still that there are so many, and that burglary and other forms of robbery take place so often in America, a place where numerous opportunities for honest incomes abound. But thieves have always been with us, and there never seems to be a definitive solution to the problem.

Another aspect of being burgled is that it leaves everyone around the victims living in fear that they will be the next to be targeted. It simply boggles the mind to realize that the “bad side” has the capacity to paralyze the rest of us. Who now will be willing to leave their homes unattended for even an hour? At what point can the yet-unvictimized-but-vulnerable rest of us let down our guard?

There is no real way to prevent these kinds of crimes. If a burglar wants to get into your house, he will find a way, at whatever cost to your domicile. But there are ways to keep a burglar from getting more than just a feather in his cap from his buddies and an old X Box, and some of these include bank safety-deposit boxes, safes of various configurations, alarm systems, and huge, menacing watchdogs. Around here, muggings aren’t too prevalent because it is an “open carry” state, and there is no way for any would-be thief to know if his intended victim is armed to the teeth or not. But things like that don’t deter the burglars, since they make sure their victims are not in the vicinity before they do their dirty work.

In the end, all anyone can do is offer condolences (because it feels almost like a death in the family) and encourage the victims to try to get back into as much of a normal life as is possible. Possessions can be replaced, damaged homes can be repaired, but nothing can restore the damage that has been done to the spirit of the victims, and the local quotient of paranoia and mistrust of one’s neighbors gets ratcheted up another notch.