From God and Socialism:
Fyodor Dostoevsky criticized the literary critic Vissarion Belinsky on this point: “as a socialist, [he] had to destroy Christianity in the first place. He knew that revolution [here quoting Marx] must begin with atheism.… As a socialist, he was duty bound to destroy the teaching of Christ.”
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Steve Deace says there is a possibility due to a rule change:
An obscure rule change made four years ago by the Republican Party has opened the door for Paul forces to cause a major headache for Mitt Romney when he tries to nominate his choice for vice president at the party convention in August. The Republican National Committee could change Rule 40 in the week leading up to the convention, but that would risk the appearance of jamming Romney’s nominee through, and likely cause a subsequent backlash. Republican officials are still waking up to the fact that Paul loyalists — who control the majority of delegates in Maine, Minnesota and Iowa, and have sizable contingents in a number of other states — could very likely enter Paul’s name into nomination for vice president. This would force a roll call vote where each delegate of each state is polled on the floor of the convention. Such a move would transform a symbolic procedure that has taken mere minutes in the past several conventions into a chaotic and time-consuming spectacle that could eat up the better portion of a day. Though Rand Paul has jumped on the party establishment bandwagon, it’s unlikely he currently has the clout within the liberty movement to stop such a gesture, because the Paulistas would probably just throw him overboard for trying to.
Hiring Boom if Obamacare Goes Down?
The Obama Regime launched a pre-emptive ad blitz on June 19, touting Obamacare’s benefits days before the U.S. Supreme Court will announce its ruling on its constitutionality. The ads claim there’s a lot to lose if the law is struck down. But they say nothing about the hiring boom that will result from an ObamaCare defeat. It would give the economy a shot in the arm. If that’s true, would voters this fall give Obama credit for creating jobs his policies actually tried to kill? For more details click here.
Why Impeachment is the Only Way
Former Ambassador to the United Nations and Republican presidential candidate Alan Keyes says “impeachment is the only way” to deal with President Obama after he cited executive privilege Thursday in the “Fast and Furious” scandal.
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National Review (no friend of libertarianism) writes about Rand Paul’s rise within the Romney camp:
In conversations with Romney sources about the VP stakes and related matters, I’m hearing the usual names: Portman, Pawlenty, and Ryan. All three are seen as top campaign surrogates. But one surprising name was added to the mix by a couple of Romney advisers: Senator Rand Paul. Inside Romney world, the Kentucky freshman’s stock is rising. He’s certainly not a leading veep contender — he has not been asked for paperwork — but he is a valued ally. Within weeks, Paul will hit the trail for Romney. Rallies and other public events are in the works.
Paul is also slated, I’m told, to speak at the Republican National Convention. “We speak to them and are going to be helping them more as we go forward,” says one aide close to Paul. “Rand will do some surrogate work for him soon.” Paul’s father, presidential candidate Ron Paul, will reportedly wait until the convention to officially end his campaign, which continues to win delegates at state conventions.
Pat Buchanan’s masterful Suicide of a Superpower is replete with gems. I am still uncomfortable with his protectionism, but I see his point a little better after reading his first chapter. Quoting Stephen Moore,
More Americans work for the government than work in construction, farming, fishing, forestry, manufacturing, mining and utilities combined. We have moved decisively from a nation of makers to a nation of takers (16).
Buchanan blames free-trade ideology. Though there may be some element of truth, the reality is that the government has increased its size, and part of that increasing demands a workforce to keep the machinery going. The lesser her size, the lesser her workforce.<>
I will be interviewing Joel McDurmon on Trinity Talk this coming Monday. His book God and Socialism is an excellent defense of free-markets viewed through a biblical perspective. In the introduction, Joel defines socialism in the context of a God-ordained world:
Socialism is the belief, therefore, that stealing is acceptable as long as another man or group of men says so. Socialism believes in theft by majority vote, or theft by a majority of representatives’ votes in Congress. Socialism is the belief that armed robbery is OK as long as you do it through proxy of the government’s gun. Socialism places man, and ultimately the State, in the place of God. Man becomes owned by other men instead of by his Maker. Socialism is an entirely humanistic, God-denying, God-usurping belief (Introduction, pg.9).
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The good folks at WOW 90.9 (Jeff York, and others) have posted my letter to the mayor on their page. For those who have not read it, here is our (the session’s) letter.
Note: The Pastors of Providence Church have faxed and e-mailed an official letter to the Mayor’s office and Pensacola News Journal regarding the mayoral proclamation found here. If you would like a copy, please e-mail me at uriesou@gmail.com
To the Honorable Mayor Ashton J. Hayward III of Pensacola, Florida:
It is with great sadness that we, pastors of Providence Church in Pensacola, Florida write to condemn your endorsement of the Pensacola Pride Festival Week, and also the approval of accompanying activities, which are designed to give further affirmation to the homosexual lifestyle, which is contrary to the words of the Apostle Paul. Your signature on the Pensacola Pride Festival Week proclamation of the First of June, 2012 officially unites the city of Pensacola with those practices, and elevates them as something to be admired and encouraged.
This country continues to incur the wrath of the God of Scriptures who reveals Himself as Father, Son, and Spirit by continually despising and scorning the Name of Jesus Christ, which is above every name. A nation that does not humble herself before God, who perpetually turns to wicked ways, will not receive the forgiveness of God or be healed by the One who made heaven and earth.
Mr. Mayor, marriage is grounded in Creation. God established that a man and woman must unite for the sake of companionship and procreation. It is a divine decree, which must not be ridiculed or made to be one of many competing ideas. This covenant between a man and a woman is the most sacred of vows; the foundational stone for a stable and prosperous society. Your signature undermines this foundation, which is tantamount to an approval of sin and its dire consequences.
We humbly beseech you by the mercies of God to turn away from your endorsement, and to pursue righteousness in this city; to strive to please God and His commandments in all things, and to not sacrifice purity for the sake of plurality.
In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Sincerely,
Pastors
Uriesou Brito and Alan Stout
CNS News reports:
The Obama administration distributed $9 billion in economic “stimulus” funds to solar and wind projects in 2009-11 that created, as the end result, 910 “direct” jobs — annual operation and maintenance positions — meaning that it cost about $9.8 million to establish each of those long-term jobs. {Read the entire piece}
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…but asserts that the Governor is bound by the Constitution, even when it comes to declaring a war:
After Senator Rand Paul endorsed Mitt Romney, he got grief from a lot of his libertarian supporters, especially after the GOP nominee stated that the president can wage war on Iran without Congressional approval. Anyone wondering how Sen. Paul would react, as I’ve been doing, need wait no longer. In a piece published Tuesday afternoon at National Review Online, he reiterated his dissatisfaction with President Obama’s domestic agenda, and then proceeded to write:
… I must oppose the most recent statements made by Mitt Romney in which he says he, as president, could take us to war unilaterally with Iran, without any approval from Congress.
This is a misreading of the role of the president and Congress in declaring war. The Constitution clearly states that it is Congress that has the power to declare war, not the president. The War Powers Act also clearly states that U.S. forces are to engage in hostilities only if the circumstances are “pursuant to (1) a declaration of war, (2) specific statutory authorization or (3) a national emergency created by attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions, or its armed forces.
Absent these criteria, the president has no authority to declare war. Even if the president believes he has such authority, the War Powers Act goes on to require the president to seek congressional approval within 60 days of conflict. No president is above the law or above the Constitution.
Paul criticized the Obama Administration’s foreign policy too:President Obama was elected on a platform of ending wars, yet he has opposed every effort made by me and others in the Senate to do that. He opposed my resolution to end the Iraq War. He has refused my urgings to end the war in Afghanistan more quickly. He started another war in Libya, and this time went further into unconstitutional territory than previous presidents by not even seeking Congressional approval whatsoever. I opposed him when he did that. Anyone who believes President Obama is less aggressive internationally than his predecessors is mistaken. I do not yet know if I will find a Romney presidency more acceptable on foreign policy.
As interesting as the piece itself is its venue, National Review Online’s group blog, The Corner, which isn’t generally friendly to non-interventionists. The comments beneath the post were as heated as you’d expect.
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…in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department. The Blaze elaborates:
Rather than serving as a discriminatory practice, the new policy is intended — at least according to Major John Diggs who oversees the chaplain program — as an effort to respect people of all faiths.
“[It’s a] matter of respecting that people may have different faiths and that it is not aimed at any one religion or denomination,” Diggs told WSOC-TV.
But while Diggs claims that the decision is rooted in not offending non-Christians and that it is not geared toward any particular denomination, some are voicing their disapproval. Take, for instance, Pastor Terry Sartain, who is the senior faith leader at Horizon Christian Fellowship and who has been a chaplain with the police department for seven years.
Sartain was scheduled to speak recently at a government event where he planned, as per usual, to use Jesus’ name in his invocation. Just before the event, he received a phone call informing him of the new-found ban. Naturally, he was saddened and made the decision not to attend the event.
“When I heard this I was sad,” he explained. ”I asked if I could withdraw, because Jesus is the only thing I have to bless people with.”
In the end, the pastor was told that his decision not to attend and pray at the event will hurt his standing as a chaplain. Despite this incident, Sartain pledges to stay with the ministry, as he believes his work with the police officers is important. That being said, he has asked to have his name removed from the roster of individuals who would offer up public prayers at local events.
Despite some protesting, some, like Jim Groquist, a former Methodist minister and a lawyer and member of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), are elated.
“It’s improper to mix up religion with the function of state agents, and as long as they’re state agents, they should not be able to do that,” he proclaimed after learning of the news.
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Kuyperian Commentary Podcast
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