Introducing Doug Powers

This is Not My Post, But I Like It.

I hope the author of this post doesn't mind, and I will go further and say that if you like this post, please go here and see where it came from. I thought what he had to say was interesting and worth discussion. This is written by Doug Powers.

Scooping Themselves Out of Existence: The MSM Spilling National Secrets

"When it comes to gladly broadcasting secrets that are detrimental to the United States and the safety of the men and women who serve it, the mainstream media now remind me of the joke about the New York Times cover page as it would have appeared before the Revolutionary War if the news organization had the mindset that it does now:

Instances of the media gladly reporting U.S. secrets that could actually, ultimately, and ironically, lead to the demise of the free press (which reporters actually used to be smart enough to realize) seems to be increasing in numbers over the years. “American first, reporter second” is a credo that is on the verge of extinction in the free press, and as a result, the free press could be on the verge of extinction — and they don’t seem to get it.

The most recent was this ABC News report:

The CIA has received secret presidential approval to mount a covert “black” operation to destabilize the Iranian government, current and former officials in the intelligence community tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com.

The sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the subject, say President Bush has signed a “nonlethal presidential finding” that puts into motion a CIA plan that reportedly includes a coordinated campaign of propaganda, disinformation and manipulation of Iran’s currency and international financial transactions.

I’d ask “whose side are they on, anyway?” But I think it’s apparent. I can think of no other industry like the “free American press” that is orchestrating its own demise with such skill and speed. What makes me say this? Because, so often, these “secrets” the U.S. press reports are to the benefit of the very people who, if they ever gain control in the U.S., will put the “free press” out of business (either career-wise or physically).

Consider the situation in Venezuela, which is run by the man who American leftists embrace as one of the best, most generous leaders in the world, Hugo Chavez. If many leftists (some in the mainstream media included) had their druthers, a guy like Chavez would make a great president of the United States.

We need look no further than Radio Caracas Television, a formerly private station in Venezuela, for proof of what will happen to the “free press” with a person like the glorious Hugo Chavez in charge. Hugo Chavez took over the station, shutting it down after he withdrew its license. Why? He didn’t like what they were saying about him.

This is the man who embraces ideals the American left would love to see more of in this country. If any of those people are in American news organizations, and I guarantee you there are some, what does that tell us about their intelligence level?

So isolated from reality has much of the mainstream media become that, when the day comes to pay the price for those they tipped off, it will actually come as a surprise."

For more by this author, Doug Powers, go to www.dougpowers.com or just click here.

Your thoughts?

Marines Jamming With Charlie Daniels

Charlie Daniels and the boys in Baghdad

Easter Bunny

You need to know this.

What Gives Life To Islam?

Freedom is the enemy of Islam.
In the history of the world, Islam has only spread by means of conquest, or isolation, or oppression. The nations of the world where Islam dominates, the people are not free. The nations of the earth that are free, Islam does not grow except through immigration. People in America convert to all types of religions, including, at times, Islam. However, Islam has view converts in America. No, In America, people become Christians if they convert to anything, most of the time. The same is true in all free countries. (the connection between freedom and the presence of Christian thought is also worth considering, but at another time).

But, in countries where there is no religious freedom, Islam (and Hinduism, for that matter) can grow. Ironically, in countries where there is no religious freedom, like China, North Korea, etc, Christianity often grows there too.

Islam is not a religion that can be separated from the government. The religion demands control of the government. Fortunately, there are millions of Muslims who don't take their religion that seriously. Islamic peoples' cannot afford to allow freedom of religion (or freedom of speech, for that matter), or they would cease to be.

Thoughts?

Foolishness?

The cross of Jesus is offensive to some, ridiculous to others, irrelevant to many, and glorious to millions. God becomes man, dies on a tree, where He bears on His human body the sins, the sorrows, the weaknesses, and the sicknesses of this world. By His bearing of these things, they are expunged, removed, absorbed, taken away from those who are plagued by them. This is a strange message, is it not?
It is becoming vogue for some theologians to describe the cross as "divine child abuse." They contend that it is abusive of God to punish His own son for the sins of His other creatures. If a man has two sons, and one does evil, it would be abuse to punish the other. On top of that, it wouldn't do any good, for the guilty son gets off without discipline. This is how the argument goes. Such an argument raises good questions. But it also breaks down in crucial points (for example, the Bible never claims that God has two sons. He only has One. The One dies for for the human creatures in order to make them potential children of God. Also, the issue is not discipline or teaching humans to behave, it is redemption).
It can seem odd to the world that the anger of God towards mankind is poured out on His only Son. How is that fair? It's not fair, of course. That's the point. It is free and unfair. We are unfairly treated. If we were fairly treated, we'd be on the tree and we'd face the anger of God ourselves.
This cross can seem very strange indeed. On the cross, so the story goes, God pours His own anger on His Son. He is not saving us from sins, or from sorrow, or from the devil. He is saving us from God. God is saving us from God. God is the enemy of mankind. He is the One to fear. Yet, this Enemy, who has overwhelming power over us, obviously, has even more overwhelming kindness. He gives us what is not fair. He pours His wrath out on Himself.
Yes, the cross doesn't make much sense, does it?
It was there, mankind was ransomed.
It was there, that the scores were evened, and all debts were paid.
It was there that the blood of the Savior was the sacrifice that satisfied the anger of God against us all.
So, we Christians tell this to the world. How does that make any sense?
The Cross of Christ: for many it is foolish, odd, irrelevant, jewelry, silly, for the uneducated, offensive.
The Cross of Christ is the solution. It is the answer. It is the demonstration of God's love to a world that isn't kind. It is the center of the universe, the center of history, and will be the dominating theme of mankind until He ends time.
Life begins at the cross.


"For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." --1 Corinthians

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes," --Romans

From the Horse's Mouth

Fred Thompson's thoughts on the current immigration bill:

"Most Americans know that we have an illegal immigration problem in this country, with perhaps as many as 20 million people residing here unlawfully. And I think most Americans have a pretty good idea about how to at least start solving the problem – secure our nation’s borders.

But there’s an old saying in Washington that, in dealing with any tough issue, half the politicians hope that citizens don’t understand it while the other half fear that people actually do. This kind of thinking was apparent with the “comprehensive” immigration reform bill that the U.S. Senate and the White House negotiated yesterday.

I’d tell you what was in the legislation, but 24 hours after the politicians agreed the bill looked good, the Senate lawyers were still writing what may turn out to be a one thousand page document. In fact, a final version of the bill most likely will not be made available to the public until after the legislation is passed. That may come five days from now. That’s like trying to digest an eight-course meal on a fifteen-minute lunch break.

We’ve tried the “comprehensive” route before to solve the illegal immigration problem with a bit more care and deliberation, and the results haven’t been good. Back in May 1985, Congress promised us that it would come up with a comprehensive plan to solve the problem of illegal immigration and our porous borders. Eighteen months later, in November 1986, that comprehensive plan was signed into law.

Twenty-two years and millions of illegal immigrants later, that comprehensive plan hasn’t done what most Americans wanted it to do -- secure America’s borders. Now Washington says the new “comprehensive” plan will solve the problem that the last comprehensive plan didn’t.

The fact is our border and immigration systems are still badly broken. We were reminded of this when Newsweek reported that the family of three of the men, arrested last week for allegedly plotting to kill American military personnel at Fort Dix, New Jersey, entered the U.S. illegally more than 20 years ago; filed for asylum back in 1989, but fell off the government’s radar screen when federal bureaucrats essentially lost track of the paperwork. Wonder how many times that’s been replicated?

Is it any wonder that a lot of folks today feel like they’re being sold a phony bill of goods on border security? A “comprehensive” plan doesn’t mean much if the government can’t accomplish one of its most basic responsibilities for its citizens -- securing its borders. A nation without secure borders will not long be a sovereign nation.

No matter how much lipstick Washington tries to slap onto this legislative pig, it’s not going to win any beauty contests. In fact, given Congress’s track record, the bill will probably get a lot uglier -- at least from the public’s point of view. And agreeing to policies before actually seeing what the policies are is a heck of a way to do business.

We should scrap this “comprehensive” immigration bill and the whole debate until the government can show the American people that we have secured the borders -- or at least made great headway. That would give proponents of the bill a chance to explain why putting illegals in a more favorable position than those who play by the rules is not really amnesty."

What are your thoughts on Fred's thoughts?

Thanks, Steve, for a Great Season

Congratulations, Spurs. Good luck in the future.

Hong Kong Wants To Make Bible Obscene

The poster above is not exactly Chinese Government issue, but it is close in it's idea. The communist government of Hong Kong is pondering a restriction on Bibles, requiring them to be forbidden for anyone under the age of 18 because of their obscene content. This is, of course, insane. China's government is oppressive to all it's citizens, and especially those who worship God.

However, the government of Hong Kong will do nothing if they pass such a measure except encourage more Bible reading. The Bible is the book that nations break upon. Any who seeks to crush God's word, gets crushed by it, in time.

The many brave Chinese Christians will not cut and run. They will continue to teach truth to the children.

For more of this story, click here.

Religion of Peace, Killing Again

In a small town, on the boarder of Pakistan, the Christians, about 500 strong, have been told by the Muslims that they must convert or die. Their deadline is this week. For details, click here.

This shouldn't surprise us. This is Islam. This is how the Muslims took the areas of land they control now. Their religion is their politics and their politics is ruthless and violent. Islam must be stopped. It is a scourge on the earth, bringing no good to anyone.

May these Christians be protected.

Class

Young men of America, take note of these two men. Mike D'Antoni and Steve Nash. They give 100% effort, all the time. The never speak ill words about their opponents. If they are cheated against, or given a raw deal, they never complain. They hold their heads up in all situations. These are great examples of good men. They are, by far, the classiest coach-player combination in sports. Watching them perform in the playoffs so far and hearing them speak, there is no doubt that all true basketball fans know that these two are the class of the NBA. I don't remember enjoying watching any players in any sport that I have enjoyed more. They are a cut above the rest. Let's hope they can win two more this series so we can see them keep going. If not, I'm sure they will walk out with their heads up. And if they do, turn off the t.v. because none of the other teams out there have anything as special. Hats off to the best.

Come to the Quiet

A Friend asked me to reflect on the results of the media fast. Here is what I sent her in response:

Some Reflections:

1. Time slowed down. It is amazing how often I put electronic noise in the gaps of my days. when I take out internet stuff and t.v. alone, my world is quieter and I have more time. I think I only use those toys in unscheduled time, and I guess that is true. However, if I wasn't watching t.v. or fooling around on the net during those unscheduled times, I'd feel more relaxed and more like I had time to do other things.

2. like sleep. I went to bed earlier, at least an hour, and got up earlier every day that week.

3. like think. quiet moments help you think, about God, about anything.

4. less sitting around. besides radio, most media requires sitting on one's hind parts! including reading the paper. I kept moving.

5. increased prayer quality --not time. finding time to pray doesn't get easier. there is always the temptation to put off praying for a different activity. However, I found my praying to be more relaxed, more easy to focus --less like I was shifting gears. By contrast, my prayer time can feel like I just pulled off of a high speed freeway and jumped into a quiet room. My mind is still racing. but for that week, I would just start talking with God in my mind, and there were not a hundred other thoughts and voices and ideas crowding in.

6. My emotions were more on the surface. I felt even negative emotions more easily. I guess I can go through life with some angst, some slight worries, or some slight depressiveness, and I drown it out with the noise of life. Can't do that when the noise of life goes out. This is a good thing. I found myself thinking and talking to God about why I felt the feelings I did, how to endure, how to gain more hope, how to improve.

>> along those lines, a beautiful thought hit me: Jesus bore all my negative emotions on the cross. The Bible says He bears our sicknesses and our diseases, our infirmities, our sins, all of it. Well, then, those times of fear and anxiety and depression must fall in there somewhere. This means two things: He knows how I feel for He bore it for me. I am understood and not alone. Second, He bore my fears and sorrows in order to remove their power over me. Whether now or in the future, I will one day be free from the internal struggles of emotion native to this fallen man.

Mickey Mouse used for incitement by Hamas

Because of, Not In Spite of

If the Suns come back to win this series, it will be, in large part, because of the cut on Nash's nose. Yes, because of the injury. Why? Because it inspires men to see their leader play hurt, and to play bleeding. The others will play harder and with more heart because their leader is pushing forward with blood running down his face.