If You Can't Say Something Nice.... Come Sit Beside Me

That is a catty old statement isn't it and a complete corruption of the time honored advise admonishing us to keep our mouths shut if we can't say something nice.  We are also told not to speak ill of the dead.  I am going to do both, right now, and I don't care if my inner Southern Belle Lady is cringing and throwing a genteel tantrum.  She's just going to have to hush.

Jack Murtha died today. 

Good riddance to a sorry, corrupt, pig of a man who robbed, raped, and pillaged this country for 35 years.  I am glad he is dead.  I just hope they hold that SOB's funeral in his home district so the airport we built for him will get some use.

From ABSCAM to the Airport the man was a scoundrel and did not deserve to hold public office.

There.

Observe good ole Jack Murtha at work:

What Ever Happened to Reporting News?

Thanks again to my good friend Dolley for letting me rant and rave on her site.

My time to blog has been curtailed greatly due to what can only be described as a brutal travel schedule over the last many months. I write this to explain how tweaked I have to be to carve out time to write as it generally eats into my family time.

So what has me fuming today? It is an add for NBC nightly news that runs here in the Atlanta market. It is a combined local / national add so some version may run in your local market. In the ad NBC Nightly news anchor and Managing Editor Brian Williams is talking about how confusing the world is and how it is his and the local news anchor's responsibility to "EXPLAIN" the news to the viewer. EXCUSE ME? We do not need Brian Williams, a college dropout and former Jimmy Carter Administration Intern, to explain a darn thing to us thank you very much.

Whatever happened to a news anchor responsibility to simply report the unbiased news? Now I think we can all safely say that bias has strongly entered to the "reporting" of the news in recent times. However, this is the first time I have ever seen one of these talking heads actually state that they feel they must "explain" the news. I'm all for freedom of the press as this keeps Government honest. But if, and only if, the press is unbiased in their reporting of fact without the silly slant of "explaining" the news from a source that states they are not biased in their reporting. They are leading the Lemmings known as the American Public right over the cliff with their bias. Maybe all the national news outlets should explain why the audience for their nightly foolishness has been hemorrhaging viewers for years with no end in sight?

Seriously, what it next? "The NBC Nightly News with Keith Olbermann?" Oh yeah, he sits in the anchor desk for the weekend addition on occasion... Maybe they should have Rush Limbaugh sit in from time to time to even things out.

In Honor Of New Orleans Super Bowl Appearance

Abigail and Dolley readers may know that I promised that we would not always be political here - so in the spirit of the NO Saints making an appearance at the Super Bowl, I wanted to share my Seafood Etouffee recipe.

When my husband and I lived in Houston, I was introduced to Cajun food on a grand scale and it quickly became one of my favorite cuisines. This recipe can easily be turned into a gumbo by adding broth and okra, (and file' if you can find it, although I am not very fond of the ground sassafras root myself) thus turning the etouffee from a thick sauce/rice topping to a soup.

There are two secrets to this wonderfulness:

1. Take your time with the roux it should be cocoa brown.
2. Use the seafood juices to flavor the recipe

I also like it because the seafood is flexible, you can use shrimp, crawfish, crab, clams, mussels, oysters - whatever in it. I often use canned clams, oysters, and crab because they are cheap and tasty, but also because I add the liquid to the mixture. I also use frozen shrimp, mussels, and crawfish - they are inexpensive and in a dish like this you can not tell the difference.

1/3 c. olive oil
1/3 c. veggie oil
2/3 c. flour
1/8 c. of Emeril's Essence (check the internet for ingredients)
3 bell peppers (mix the colors for a pretty dish and complex flavor) - chopped
4 big stalks of celery - chopped
1 lg onion - chopped
1 can chopped tomatoes
Seafood
Salt and Pepper to taste
Optional - Texas Pete or Tabasco

Chop your peppers, celery and onions and put in a large bowl. Mix the Essence in with the veggies and set aside.

In a large pot, mix oils and flour together to make the roux. Over medium heat, stir constantly until it is a deep velvet brown. This takes a while. Don't let it burn, there is a difference - trust me.

Once the roux is the right color add the chopped veggies and saute until the onions are translucent. Add the can of tomatoes with the juice and simmer. If you are using any canned seafood, open the cans and drain the juice into the pot. Let simmer and reduce to a gravy like consistency. If you have any raw seafood add that first and cook until almost done, add the rest and simmer a few minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand for about an hour or refrigerate and eat later.

Serve over rice with a big piece of crusty french bread slathered in butter and a simple salad. For a real treat make a pitcher of Hurricanes and then run down the street showing your boobs to the neighbors for beads!

Hey, it's New Orleans, right?

NBC Honors Black History Month

It's called Projection.  In Psychology 101 students learn that people often "project" their thoughts and motives on other people.  Without empirical evidence to back up their opinion, people tend to believe that everyone else thinks about things the same way that they do.  This is a mistake, especially when you are dealing with people from completely different back grounds.  Look at the election of Barack Obama, the entire electorate projected their hopes and dreams on an unqualified and undefined candidate, they are now feeling quite betrayed because he is not who they thought he was.

Cultural influence determines in large part our patterns of behavior and thought processes.  It is a mistake for me to assume that a 16 year old Mexican boy thinks about the world the same way that I do.  It is equally erroneous to assume my neighbor views the world the same way that I do just because we reside near each other.  Diplomats have extensive training in this regard, because you can not project in negotiation and diplomacy.  International business is another area where one must be very careful not to assume that others think and feel the same way that you do about an issue.  Journalism is also a career where projection must be kept at bay and sadly this discipline has been largely lost in recent years.

You often hear about Projection as it pertains to assuming others have the same negative personality flaws.  We see this in an adulterer, who accuses his faithful spouse of cheating; or the office thief who thinks everyone else is stealing the coffee, toilet paper, and thumb tacks.  I believe in large part those that cry racism are largely projecting their own twisted thinking onto their supposed enemies.  They do this to hide and deflect their own motivations.  It truly is Psych 101.

Thus, behold, the evidence of the left in this regard.  They cry racism from the roof tops, but merely are yelling at the mirror in front of them.  Recent blatant examples of Liberal racism - Jimmy Carter referring to Barack Obama as a "Black Boy".  Harry Reid's infamous light skinned without the Negro dialect comment.  Robert Byrd's association with the KKK and his use of the term "white N-----".  Bill Clinton's statement that Barack Obama would have been waiting on him a few decades ago.  Joe Biden's description of Obama as "clean".  Even Jesse Jackson's "Hymietown" description of Jewish NYC show the deep seated racism in the liberal ranks.  It goes on and on.

Modern day television "journalism" has no more blatant example the the General Electric Company's NBC. This bastion of uber liberal left wing propaganda is the proud home of the thrill running up his leg, I forgot he was black, Obama worshiper Chris Matthews. These self proclaimed enlightened folks disparage the regular folks as "Tea Baggers" and without a shred of evidence depict them as racially motivated hate mobs who are simply missing their white sheets and burning crosses.  The "post racial" cultural elites decry the perceived racism of their opponents and it is merely a reflection of their own sick and corrupted hearts.  I give you NBC's honor of Black History Month:

 WOW!  Truly, don't you think its great that blacks will at last be able to sit at the lunch counter?  I wonder, if Black History month was in the summer, would they have included Watermelon on this menu?

How Dare They!

Abigail and Dolley readers, please forgive me if I have not been as prolific and thought provoking as usual.  I find that for this brief period of time, I am slightly out of balance in the work arena and have expended a tremendous amount of critical thinking toward my profession.  As such, at night with my lap top I have not had the energy to rail against the news of the day, and find I have even been lacking in witty status updates on my FB page.  Now that is saying something....  Alas, the slump can not last forever and I found the old fire and passion ignited by one sentence.

"Well, you know, those Tea Bagger's are just the lowest common denominator in our society."

Truly, I will have to check the head liner in my car for scorch marks because I believe that fire shot out of the top of my head.

How dare they?  How dare they describe the millions of hard working Americans in that regard.  I know it is the Saul Alinsky tactic of isolate, marginalize and ridicule, but all I kept thinking was "How dare they describe ME in that regard." 

I am a hard working, wife, mother, daughter, friend, grand daughter, sister, and niece.  I am a lover of the Lord and washed in His forgiving blood.  I have supported my husband in his many years of evangelism in prisons and now to young people.  I have worked or gone to school everyday of my life since I was 16 years old.  I largely put myself through college with some assistance from my parents, but not a dime of government money.  I waited tables and cleaned houses to earn money for books, rent, food and of course beer.  I have a degree in Economics and International business from a great school.  I went to work in my field 7 days after graduation and have worked everyday for the last 20 years in my profession.  I am a writer, a blogger, and a kitchen table scholar and historian.  I garden and read prolifically.  I know thousands of useless facts and trivia.  I play a mean Scrabble game and can make you laugh.  When I show up to work everyday, 20 people rely on me to guide our business in the right direction and they call me boss.

I ask you WHO in the world has the right to call me a Tea Bagger and the lowest common denominator of our society?

I am an American.  I am a tax payer.  I am not going to stand by idly while my country is destroyed.  I will fight you to the end with your evolutionary progressive agenda.  I will not stoop to your Saul Alinsky devious tactics.  I will speak the truth.  I will shine a light in the dark places and you will flee.  For the TRUTH will set us free.

The Numbers Just Don't Add Up

1 Trillion Dollar deficit inherited by Obama!  Oh, really.  Let's look at the facts:  2008 budget deficit was $482 B.  TARP was a Loan of $700 odd Billion dollars and shouldn't really be added to the deficit because most of it has been paid back.  I believe we are somewhere in the neighborhood of $100 B that won't be paid back, so you can fairly add that to the $482, but that is on $585 B in deficit, not 1 Trillion or even 1.3 Trillion that Obama throws around.

2009 had a 1.3T deficit and next year is projected the same - but Obama inherited the problem....RIGHT!

Honor

Do we know what this word means anymore? Do we teach it to our children? Do we behave this way in our own lives? Do we demand this of one another? They still teach it in the military and our men and women in the services have it seeping from their skin, it is what sets them apart in the crowd. Not the uniform, but the respect and the code of honor they live by. We don't understand honor anymore if it interferes with happiness. We respond to it greatly in our fiction, case in point the Twilight series.

To help remind us, honor means:

1. honesty, fairness, or integrity in one's beliefs and actions: a man of honor.
2. a source of credit or distinction: to be an honor to one's family.
3. high respect, as for worth, merit, or rank: to be held in honor.
4. such respect manifested: a memorial in honor of the dead.
5. high public esteem; fame; glory: He has earned his position of honor.
6. the privilege of being associated with or receiving a favor from a respected person, group, organization, etc.: to have the honor of serving on a prize jury; I have the honor of introducing this evening's speaker.


Honor, honesty, integrity, sincerity refer to the highest moral principles and the absence of deceit or fraud. Honor denotes a fine sense of, and a strict conformity to, what is considered morally right or due: a high sense of honor; on one's honor.
Honesty denotes the presence of probity and particularly the absence of deceit or fraud, esp. in business dealings: uncompromising honesty and trustworthiness.
Integrity indicates a soundness of moral principle that no power or influence can impair: a man of unquestioned integrity and dependability.
Sincerity implies absence of dissimulation or deceit, and a strong adherence to truth: His sincerity was evident in every word.

Taken from: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/honor

World View and the Importance of Understanding What That Means

World View - how one sees the world, a system of beliefs that one holds regarding this world and beyond.  The filter through which human beings process events, circumstances, and actions.

Understanding your own world view and that of other people is crucial to predicting behavior and explaining motivations and actions.  If you understand how a person views the world then you have a clear understanding of what is driving them.  Without grasping this concept about ourselves and others we are likely to be tossed about on the sea of uncertainty when it comes to critical analysis of why people behave the way they do.  It is particularly important for us to understand the world view of the leaders we elect to office.  If you understand what is driving them, you will not be mislead by clever words and empty promises.

Let us examine some of the common political world views in our society today:

The Victim - this defeated person see the world through a victim's eyes.  They have been wronged and somebody needs to make it right.  This group is fed upon by self serving politicians and exploiters who seek to give the victim validation and a token hand out in exchange for their loyalty and support.

The Environmentalist - this person holds that the Earth is the center of the universe and must be served by man.  This all consuming world view leads to vehement defense of any action or policy that is seen to "harm" their belief system.  They by and large view humans as locust destroying the planet and the concerns of man take a back seat to what is good for Mother Earth.

The "Liberal" Progressive - this person holds that man is perfectible through social engineering and government policy.  As such, individual freedom and responsibility are not considerations in decision making.  The collective is the mechanism for which meaningful change can and must occur.  Social justice, wealth redistribution, and centralized control are all goals and views of the liberal progressive.

The Libertarian - the libertarian views all government with skepticism and rejects social engineering and policy from governmental sources.  They typically disagree with any laws that deal with personal behavior and choices ie assisted suicide laws, gay marriage, abortion, legalized drugs.  These are all areas that Libertarians believe are outside of the purview of the government and should not be legislated.

The "Conservative" Progressive - Also called the Neo-Cons, these are big government, globalist who believe that spreading American influence through preemptive war and the UN.  They ultimately believe in the superiority of the state and the implementation of large governmental controls of individual's life. 

The Constitutionalists -  this Conservative worldview is making a huge resurgence in American culture.  Largely lost by the American public since the turn of the 20th century, this group views the world and the government from a Founder's perspective.  Government is viewed as a necessary mechanism for a civil society but must be constrained and contained within the parameters and borders set fourth by the Founding Fathers.

To some extent or the other, you must look at each of these worldviews and follow them to their natural and historical conclusions.  By doing so, you can determine which world view ending you want to see.

The Victim - slavery, poverty, hopelessness, dependence
The Environmentalist - demodernization, reduced standards of living (no cars, planes, electricity, chemicals)
The Liberal Progressive - complete state control and removal of all who stand in the way of perfecting society.
The Libertarian - a breakdown in the moral fabric of the country that ultimately leads to unrestrained personal behavior.
The Conservative Progressive - unending war, massive debt, massive expansion of government.
The Constitutionalists - limited and restrained government, fiscal responsibly, economic and personal freedoms.  Defined separation and balance of powers.

Hmm.... which one are you?  Which one should you be?  Which one are our leaders and what does that tell you about them?

Finally, Something I Can Agree With the President On!

You might not know it from reading this blog, but I actually am quite a peacemaker and strive greatly in my interpersonal relationships to get along with people.  As such, it has been disconcerting to me to constantly be at odds with the President of the United States.  I must constantly examine myself to insure that I am opposing policy and not just the man.  I criticized others for doing that to GWB and refuse to put on partisan blinders that will skew my view of the actions of the President.

Thus, I am encouraged by the latest proposal to guarantee $54 B in loans for new nuclear power plants.  My father, who is a brilliant engineer, worked at a nuclear facility for several years.  He is an ardent supporter of nuclear power and he and I have had many discussions about this subject.  Nuclear power is cost effective, safe, and efficient.  The environmental impact is negligible and because these are loan guarantees and not government spending, I can get behind this measure as a fiscal conservative.

Honestly, not to throw a cold bucket of water on this Kum Bah Yah moment I am having with the President, but I find this move incongruous with the administrations decision earlier this year to close the Yuka Mountain Nuclear waste facility.  The Energy Equivalent to Guantanamo Bay, the Yuka Mountain facility is a hugely expensive (and paid for my you, the American Tax payer for decades) efficient facility to permanent storage of the waste created by nuclear power.  I am republishing a piece that I wrote several months ago when this closing occurred for your information and edification.

Thanks for reading and your support!

Energy Fascists

The below provides the back ground to the Yuka Mountain Facility and I originally published this several months ago.

Fascism... the phrase is thrown around so lightly these days that I believe in order to support the title, I must define the word.  Abigail and Dolley readers know that while some posts may be tongue in cheek, most are well reasoned works by thoughtful individuals, the rest are written by me.  (There's that tongue in cheek thing again...)

Merriman's Online Dictionary defines fascist as: a political philosophy, movement, or regime (as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition.

According to your worldview or political philosophy you will infer what you wish to our present leadership and circumstances.  I submit to you an example of such fascism as displayed this week by the closing of the Yuka Mountain Nuclear Waste storage facility.  William La Jeunesse wrote a great piece on this and I encourage you to read the article.

Basically, it boils down to this:  Nuclear energy is the cleanest, safest, greenest, abundant, renewable energy source in the world.  It is just not politically popular.  This bad rap is not based on facts, but irrational fear and Hollywood hype.  It is the ultimate in green energy, yet it is shunned in favor of expensive windmills that kill tens of thousands of birds a year, solar farms that are an eyesore, and other "green" solutions that costs 10, 20, 50, 200% more per power unit than nuclear power.

For decades, the Federal Government has been charging every household in America an excise tax on your power bill to pay for a nuclear waste disposal facility in the middle of no where.  The Obama Administration has decided to close the Yuka Mountain facility leaving the nation without a place to store it's nuclear waste.

Do I sense a little "nudge" from the Obama crowd?  What happens to all the waste currently being produced?  Doesn't that sound unreasonable to you, to close a billion dollar facility with no alternative?  Could their motive be to shut down nuclear power in the USA?  Could their motive be a way to force power companies to raise rates and thus open the way for government to intervene against the evil power companies?  Could their motive be to force the cap and trade bill though the Congress by demonizing electric companies who endanger the public with their dangerous nuclear waste?  Could they intervene through the take over of health care and declare nuclear power a danger to our health?  What about intervening from a National Security perspective since the power companies must now protect nuclear material?

Let's review:  

fascist as: a political philosophy, movement, or regime (as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition.

Focus On The Family

Focus on the Family will air an ad on the Super Bowl featuring college football superstar and two time Heisman Trophy winner, Tim Tebow and his mother. The subject of the ad will be "Pro-Choice", in that it will reflect the fact that Tim's Mother Chose to have her baby and not abort him. Pro-abortion groups are seething, of course. You see they don't want people to hear about women who chose life.

NOW and some other group that escapes me, probably named something like "Women of America United for Choice" have said that Focus on the Family promotes violence against women. Now, that is the most outrageous thing I have ever heard. I have to ask, what is an abortion if not violence against women? Is an abortion not violent to the aborted child?

Focus on the Family is a rock solid organization whose work echos throughout the homes of generations of families in this country and across the World. Founder, Dr. James Dobson, is a prolific author, speaker, and teacher his work has guided millions through the cultural quagmire that has been modern day America. By dispensing solid and time tested advise to his listeners, he has equipped them to have successful marriages and to raise children that are a credit to their parents.

From a personal perspective, Dare to Discipline and Raising Boys, books by Dr. Dobson have changed my life and the way I parent. My household is strong and peaceful because of the work of Dr. Dobson. My son isn't too fond of him.... Love Must Be Tough has guided thousands of people through the heart break of divorce. I personally know of five folks who after being abandoned by their spouses regained control of their lives and survived their unwanted divorces through the help and counsel of Dr. Dobson's work.

After recommending The Strong Willed Child to a co-worker, I was embraced the following morning by a mother with tears in her eyes who told me that was the most wonderful book she had ever read. She could not express to me how much it helped her. Until reading Dr. Dobson's work, she felt that she was failing as a parent and that she was alone in her situation. The Strong Willed Child equipped this women with renewed self confidence and gave her a road map to raising her child without breaking her spirit.

From raising healthy children, to helping hurting people, to strengthening marriages, to assisting folks with free telephone counseling, to telling homosexuals there is a way out and helping them get there, to creating fantastic kid's cartoons and programming, to common sense movie, video game, and music reviews, to Citizen Watch political watch dog groups, and so much more - Focus on the Family extends their hand to America and says, "We are here to help you."

You tell me now - which is the destructive force in our world?

Me Me Me!!!

I couldn't resist... with the Narcissism so evident, I had to repost this.




Interested in Narcissism? Click on the label to the left and read the previous posts on the subject. These are guaranteed to make your skin crawl.

Correction!

Abigail and Dolley readers know I am no fan of Obama, but I hate a liar and I hate spin.  I will never participate in that type of thing that I despise so greatly.  It turns out the photo of Obama with the teleprompter was after he had sat for 20 minutes with the students.  Shame on Drudge and Yahoo for showing this out of context.  I do not agree with the Presidential "Race to the Top" initiative and believe he is a well scripted fraud, but fair is fair and here is the other picture.

Somebody Give This Guy a Pie!

I am not sure where that phrase came from, but it was a favorite of my Dad's when I was growing up and was the first thing that came to mind when I saw this picture.  Behold the great "orator": 

President Barack Obama, accompanied by Education Secretary Arne Duncan, speaks to the media after a discussion with 6th grade students at Graham Road Elementary School in Falls Church, Va., Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010

Two teleprompters????  Good Lord, the guy is such a fraud.  Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!!

Somebody bring out the creme pie, this bozo is finished.

A New Voice Shouting From the Wilderness

Perhaps it is my circle of conservative friends, perhaps it is the engagement I am seeing on shows like Glenn Beck, perhaps I am listening to the reasoning of Thomas Sowell, or perhaps I am just seeking information, I can't really say but regardless of the circumstances, I am extremely encouraged by the dialogue going on regarding the future of America.

It seems since the election of Barack Obama that other voices have emerged from the Black Community, in the absence of the voice of Obama, and this time it will not be squashed and silenced.  There is a Conservative voice shouting from the roof tops declaring that there is a better way!  Black leadership and participation in the Tea Parties is scorned and discounted by the media but that is not stopping them.  Conservative Black bloggers and talk show hosts are prolific and persuasive in their logical and impassioned presentation of the facts.

Intellectuals such as Thomas Sowell, Walter Williams, Alan Keyes, among others,  present rational and substantiated information on what has occurred in the Black Family since the "Great Society".  The figures are stunning and should serve as a wake up call to all rational and thinking people in America.  The Black family has been utterly destroyed by Government "Assistance".  In 1980, 12% of black children were being raised in single parent homes.  Today, 70% of children born to Black women are born out of wedlock.  The complete absence of fathers in the black community has left a gaping void where no one has taught this generation how to be a man.  No one has modeled the behavior that is so crucial to all boys on what it takes to be a good man. This is of course true for all, who are being raised with the absence of a strong father, this tragedy crosses all racial boundaries.

There is another voice from less political men of a different generation are declaring that the culture of ignorance, ebonics, and insolence will lead to ruin.  Bill Cosby has been a crusader against the societal norm that says if a child does well in school that they are "Acting White".  Even the "Pants on the Ground" General Larry Platt, who by all accounts is a Liberal Democrat, is declaring to the world that folks need to pull their pants up!

The one group that I am sorely disappointed in is the Black Preacher!  (I am going to generalize here and recognize that there are a lot of exceptions to this.)  Of course Jackson and Sharpton are prime examples, but there are perhaps thousands of these men behind pulpits today.  They, who hold the power and the answers through real faith in Jesus Christ are more concerned with influence, position, and money than they are in telling their parishioners what is right.  They stand at the holy pulpit and promote Liberal Democratic candidates whose policies are in direct contradiction of the gospel they are supposed to be preaching.  They sit back in silence while the genocide of abortion engulfs their congregations.   These men are wolves in sheep's clothing and I would not want to be one of them on Judgment Day, for they have much to answer for in God's eyes.

Far from doing anything to alleviate the plight of generations of blacks caught in the bondage to the government, the first "Black" President (I put that in quotes because, in fact, he is actually the first bi-racial President) the Liberal and Progressive policies seek to further enslave the dependent class. Ironically, while they are promoting policies that keep the Black Community in the ghetto they preach the gospel of antipathy toward those who would seek to break the cycle of poverty and hopelessness.

I pray for these Black leaders speaking out and standing strong in the face of criticism and cat calls of "Uncle Tom", for it will not be my voice that makes a difference, but theirs.

Why Does Left Wing Talk Radio Fail?

With the demise of Air America this week, I have been contemplating talk radio.  Why is Left leaning talk radio a dismal failure, when Right leaning talk radio is a phenomenal success?  I am always amazed at the lefties that will call into conservative talk radio shows and try to argue with the hosts.  Invariably, they will say they listen to the show all the time and then they will add some disclaimer such as, the show lets them know what they should be against or some other such banal excuse.  The fact remains that they ARE listening, yet very few listen to the Left when they go on the same airwaves.  Why?  I mean there is certainly no shortage of Left leaning broadcasts, movies, and shows - why does Left talk radio fail?

I think I know the answer.  The difference is that left leaning movies, TV shows, and "news" programs are subtle in their message.  They frame it with humor or language or drama, it is the underpinning, but the audience is never asked to validate or confirm the opinion.  It seeps into their conscience without careful analysis in the harmless guise of fun or information.  Direct participation in the process by the recipient is not required.

Talk radio on the other hand is a straight forward presentation of ideas and information that necessarily requires blunt and clear communication.  Successful talk radio of course requires callers and others to debate the subject matter.  When confronted head on with what the lefties believe in and want to do the American people recoil in disgust.  When the lies and the spin and the agenda are not cloaked in subterfuge, they are rejected by all but the most rabid of lefties.

I have XM radio in my car and know exactly what and who are on during my morning and evening commute.  Ironically, the station that hosts Glenn Beck in the AM is the same one that hosts left leaning Randi Rhodes at night.  Inevitably, I get in my car, proceed out of the parking lot with this harridan spouting lies full blast over my speakers.  I physically cringe at the sound.  I have actually forced myself to try and listen on a few occasions to see what the other side is saying and I honestly just can't stomach it.   

How can liberals confess to regularly listening to Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh and I can not abide 5 minutes of Randi Rhodes?  Are they stronger than I am some how?  No, I don't believe that is the case.  I believe the liberals are able to listen, even though they disagree, because they are for the most part listening to the truth.

Everyone has that spot planted within them that will respond to the truth.  The truth is compelling and fills a missing part in your soul.  Lies on the other hand make one recoil, we know instinctively when someone is a liar.  Leftist talk radio is full of the bare bones lies they try to portray as truth.  Even those that agree with it find it unpalatable.

Did You Hear That?

It was the collect sigh of relief heard today when Nancy Pelosi admitted they did not have the votes to pass the Healthcare Disaster!  She then proceeded to allude to some smaller things they could work on the ironically exactly mirror several GOP proposals that have been summarily dismissed until now.

Thank you, Lord.

Calling Them Out - John Kerry and Barney Frank

I hate a liar.  I hate a smarmy politician who twists words, misrepresents truth, and tries to scare people.  I really ticks me off when they get away with it.  So, here we go Abigail and Dolley readers - another addition of "Calling Them Out".  Our prevaricators of the day, Mr. John Kerry and Mr. Barney Frank.  On the eve of one of the most important elections in memory, these two were out in full force spreading their misinformation.

Watch the below video and note the strategies conceived and birthed by Saul Alinsky; Rules for Radicals (lots of articles on this site about this subject, check out the label tags to your left) these are flawlessly employed by the left.  Isolate your opponent, marginalize them, ridicule them, demonize them.... If you are pressed for time, watch 0:10 - :21 (Barney Frank) and 1:00 - 1:20 (John Kerry)


Barney Frank - "what does driving a truck have to do with what is going on in Washington?  (Scott Brown has a pick up truck and he and his truck are featured in a campaign commercial about how he has driven himself around the state getting to know the people),
Strategies used:  Ridicule (red neck truck driver) Marginalize (what does he know?)

"Martha Coakley made a mistake by allowing it to become a personality contest rather than contest on the issues.  The Democratic issues are more popular around here and that is why Mr. Brown isn't talking about them."

Strategies used: Demonize - Distancing himself from Coakley if she looses (I never said they don't shoot their wounded...)  Isolate - Mr. Brown is not talking about popular ideas.  Marginalize - Mr. Brown is just a personality.

Now, on to John Kerry - It is one thing for politicians to lie about each other, it is something completely reprehensible and ill advised for them to do this about the American People.  He doesn't come out and say it, but read between the lines.  Kerry infers that Scott Browns campaign is doing the threatening, when the only violence in the campaign has been from Coakley's side shoving reporters around.  Kerry infers that it is outside forces coming into their state, that the people of Massachusetts would never be angry about Washington.  Note, how he pauses on the word Burning..... I was expecting him to say cross, and that is the point!  Do you think that if there were really death threats and people physically going after Coakley and they had proof they wouldn't use every bit of political sympathy they could squeeze out?  

Remember the Tea Party mob commercials?  The complete misrepresentation of American's sick of Big Government?  The Democrats have tried their best to make us into Terrorists and to scare people.  They are so isolated in their Washington back rooms that they are missing it completely,  they are marganizing their electorate.  More people agree with the Tea Party ideals than this Debacle we are seeing in Washington.  Your neighbor is the mob, your co-worker that makes you laugh everyday, the guy in the church pew beside you - these aren't crazy people, these are your neighbors and you know it!  This ill advised strategy will back fire big time, but in the interim, it is an effective tool, because it is ridicule.

Don't be fooled, don't be deceived, don't let them get away with it any more.  Stand firm, speak out, and pray.  May God Bless America!

An Experience In Racism - A White Woman's Perspective

On the Eve of Martin Luther King Day, I have been thinking of his works and his words; one phrase keeps rolling around in my mind.  That one day all men would be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.  I believe that has in some regards come true but I believe that the so called Black leadership does not want it to be true, because without the victim mentality, they have no power.

I have never experienced racism, not really, but I came darn close many years ago.  I know how it made me feel and I did not like it one bit.  Through this experience, I believe I have gained an empathy that would otherwise have alluded me.  Let me explain:

Several decades ago, my husband and I found ourselves in a particularly difficult season.  We were struggling financially, we had moved 1000 miles from our home and family, our living situation was untenable, and everything seemed to be falling apart.  We relieved our stresses by taking long walks, in addition to getting us out of the house, we used it for exercise and privacy to talk about what we were going to do and where we were going to go.  One night was particularly rough.  I don't remember the circumstances exactly, but I do remember I had never been so low.  I was crying and my husband had his arm around me as we walked the neighborhood streets.

There was a golf course at the back of the subdivision and as we often did, we turned down the golf cart path to enjoy the pretty course with it's ponds and lush weeping willows.  That night out of no where this man jumped off his gold cart and came charging at us screaming that we were trespassing and to GET OFF THIS COURSE!  I was taken aback, we weren't hurting anything, we were just walking.  The guy was your typical yuppy self important prick and he had a driver in his hand.  We explained we were just walking and had meant no harm.  He screamed that there were signs posted everywhere and he would call the police if we did not leave.

There were no signs but he did not want to hear about it.  He followed us off the course taunting us.  Now, normally, my husband, who is sometimes called the Krusher, would have knocked the man out, but we were so poor and broken we could not have gotten him out of jail.  He was also concerned for me, as I was hurting so much, he just wanted to get me out of there.

I have never in my life felt so rotten and worthless.  I felt stupid and angry.  I realized immediately that this is what racism must feel like.  This is what it would be like to have people judge you based on how you looked.  It must be how it feels when people lock their doors when you walk by at a stop light or check to see if the video camera is working when you walk in a store.  I can not fathom the anger that must be tamped down based on ignorance and fear.  I do not pretend to understand, but I can now empathize.

This world is full of bigots and racist, I am not among them and Praise God for the Yuppy with the golf club, he taught me something.

Who is We

Abigail and Dolley readers know that 99.9% of the items I put on this site are original.  I don't believe we need another "cut and paste" blog.  Occasionally though, something comes through the pipe line that I just have to share.  I did not write this and the author is unknown as it was an email chain that was sent to me by George Washington.

President Barack Obama said in Turkey: "We do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation.. We consider ourselves a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of values." I found this very interesting.  Do you know the Preamble for your state? 

Alabama 1901, Preamble We  the people of the State of Alabama , invoking the favor and guidance of Almighty God, do ordain and establish the following Constitution. 
Alaska 1956, Preamble We, the people of Alaska, grateful to God and to those who founded our nation and pioneered this great land. 
Arizona 1911, Preamble We, the people of the State of Arizona, grateful to Almighty God for our liberties, do ordain this Constitution... 
Arkansas 1874, Preamble We, the people of the State of Arkansas, grateful to Almighty God for the privilege of choosing our own form of government... 
California 1879, Preamble We, the People of the State of California, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom... 
Colorado 1876, Preamble We, the people of Colorado, with profound reverence for the Supreme Ruler of Universe... 
Connecticut 1818, Preamble. The People of Connecticut, acknowledging with gratitude the good Providence of God in permitting the m to enjoy. 
Delaware 1897, Preamble through Divine Goodness all men have, by nature, the rights of worshipping and serving the ir Creator according to the dictates of the ir consciences...
Florida 1885, Preamble We, the people of the State of Florida, grateful to Almighty God for our constitutional liberty, establish this Constitution... 
Georgia 1777, Preamble We,  the people of Georgia, relying upon protection and guidance of Almighty God, do ordain and establish this Constitution... 
Hawaii 1959, Preamble We , the people of Hawaii, Grateful for Divine Guidance .... Establish this Constitution. 
Idaho 1889, Preamble We,  the people of the State of Idaho, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, to secure its blessings. 
Illinois 1870, Preamble We, the people of the State of Illinois, grateful to Almighty God for the civil , political and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy and looking to Him for a blessing on our endeavors. 
Indiana 1851, Preamble We, the People of the State of Indiana, grateful to Almighty God for the free exercise of the right to choose our form of government. 
Iowa 1857, Preamble We, the People of the St ate of Iowa, grateful to the Supreme Being for the blessings hither to enjoyed, and feeling our dependence on Him for a continuation of the se blessings, establish this Constitution. 
Kansas 1859, Preamble We, the people of Kansas, grateful to Almighty God for our civil and religious privileges establish this Constitution. 
Kentucky 1891, Preamble. We, the people of the Commonwealth is grateful to Almighty God for the civil, political and religious liberties. 
Louisiana 1921, Preamble We,  the people of the State of Louisiana, grateful to Almighty God for the civil, political and religious liberties we enjoy. 
Maine 1820, Preamble We  the People of Maine acknowledging with grateful hearts the goodness of the Sovereign Ruler of the Universe in affording us an opportunity .. And imploring His aid and direction. 
Maryland 1776, Preamble We,  the people of the state of Maryland, grateful to Almighty God for our civil and religious liberty... 
Massachusetts 1780, Preamble We.... the people of Massachusetts, acknowledging with grateful hearts, the goodness of the Great Legislator of the Universe In the course of His Providence, an opportunity and devoutly imploring His direction 
Michigan 1908, Preamble.. We, the people of the State of  Michigan , grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of freedom, establish this Constitution. 
Minnesota, 1857, Preamble We, the people of the State of Minnesota, grateful to God for our civil and religious liberty, and desiring to perpetuate its blessings: 
Mississippi 1890, Preamble We,  the people of Mississippi in convention assembled, grateful to Almighty God, and invoking His blessing on our work. 
Missouri 1845, Preamble We, the people of Missouri, with profound reverence for the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, and grateful for His goodness. Establish this Constitution... 
Montana 1889, Preamble. We, the people of   Montana, grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of liberty establish this Constitution..
Nebraska 1875, Preamble We, the people, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom. Establish this Constitution. 
Nevada 1864, Preamble We  the people of the State of Nevada, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, establish this Constitution... 
New Hampshire 1792, Part I. Art I. Sec. V Every individual has a natural and unalienable right to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience. 
New Jersey 1844, Preamble We, the people of the State of New Jersey, grateful to Almighty God for civil and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing on our endeavors. 

New Mexico 1911, Preamble We,  the People of New Mexico, grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of liberty. 
New York 1846, Preamble We,  the people of the State of New York, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, in order to secure its blessings. 
North Carolina 1868, Preamble We  the people of the State of North Carolina, grateful to Almighty God, the Sovereign Ruler of Nations, for our civil, political, and religious liberties, and acknowledging our dependence upon Him for the continuance of those... 
North Dakota 1889, Preamble We , the people of  North Dakota , grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of civil and religious liberty, do ordain... 
Ohio 1852, Preamble We  the people of the state of Ohio, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, to secure its blessings and to promote our common. 
Oklahoma 1907, Preamble Invoking the guidance of Almighty God, in order to secure and perpetuate the blessings of liberty, establish this 
Oregon 1857, Bill of Rights, Article I Section 2. All men shall be secure in the Natural right, to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of the ir consciences 
Pennsylvania 1776, Preamble We, the people of Pennsylvania, grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of civil and religious liberty, and humbly invoking His guidance..... 
Rhode Island 1842, Preamble. We  the People of the State of Rhode Island, grateful to Almighty God for the civil and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing... 
South Carolina , 1778, Preamble We,  the people of the State of South Carolina grateful to God for our liberties, do ordain and establish this Constitution. 
South Dakota 1889, Preamble We, the people of South Dakota, grateful to Almighty God for our civil and religious liberties ... 
Tennessee 1796, Art. XI..III. That all men have a natural and indefeasible right to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of the ir conscience.... 
Texas 1845, Preamble We  the People of the Republic of Texas, acknowledging, with gratitude, the grace and beneficence of God. 
Utah 1896, Preamble Grateful to Almighty God for life and liberty, we establish this Constitution. 
Vermont 1777, Preamble whereas all government ought to enable the individuals who compose it to enjoy their natural rights, and o the r blessings which the Author of Existence has bestowed on man.
Virginia 1776, Bill of Rights, XVI Religion, or the Duty which we owe our Creator can be directed only by Reason and that it is the mutual duty of all to practice Christian Forbearance, Love and Charity towards each o the r 
Washington 1889, Preamble We  the People of the State of Washington, grateful to the Supreme Ruler of the Universe for our liberties, do ordain this Constitution 
West Virginia 1872, Preamble Since through Divine Providence we enjoy the blessings of civil, political and religious liberty, we, the people of West Virginia reaffirms our faith in and constant reliance upon God .. 
Wisconsin 1848, Preamble We, the people of Wisconsin, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, domestic tranquility. 
Wyoming 1890, Preamble We, the people of the State of Wyoming, grateful to God for our civil, political, and religious liberties, establish this Constitution...

After reviewing acknowledgments of God from all 50 state constitutions, one is faced with the prospect that perhaps, the ACLU and the out-of-control federal courts are wrong! 

The Skinned Knee

A Skinned knee - remember those? I can still remember watching Fantasy Island one Saturday night in 1977 after a fall on the concrete; my knee stiff and throbbing in pain. Not only do they hurt when they happen, but the worst is yet to come. They stiffen up, ache, throb, the scab cracks and heals over and over again. Sometimes you would forget about it and accidentally hit it again or even worse knock the scab off, ugh! They are painful, they do not heal well, they last a lot longer than they should, and they leave a scar.

America - on November 4, 2008 you got a skinned knee. It hurt like the dickens when it happened. We looked down and recognized it as a really bad one. We'd seen this sort of thing before and we knew that while it really hurt right then, it was going to get a whole lot worse.

You see, there was all kinds of dirt and particles in the knee that were buried under the blood and deep in the tissue. All the neighborhood kids were running around having fun, after all, it was a celebration, right? So, you didn't bother going inside and having it cleaned up, you just kept right on playing.

Inauguration Day was like getting in the bath tub. You knew it was going to be bad, but YOW! That really stings! Unfortunately, all that dirt and concrete was covered under a new scab and there was no way we were going to scrub that stuff out.

The next morning they passed the stimulus bill and when you stepped out of bed you felt the scab crack and knew, owww, that hurt.

Through the Spring it got infected with Cap and Trade, Hate Crimes Legislation, a wise Latina Judge, and your friends told you to stop complaining about your knee.

The Summer Town Halls found you at the country doctors, who told you to pick out the old gravel and pour alcohol on the cut. It would be painful, but in the end it would heal better. You called him a simpleton and trouble maker. Your friends told you to stay away from that backward Tea sipping doctor.

The Fall finds you with a festering wound, how could this happen? It was just a skinned knee, right?

Over Christmas you got the news, they were going to have to amputate the leg. Unfortunately, all the doctors are now ticked off because even though they told you what to do in the summer you wouldn't listen. You have accused them of amputating for profit and told everyone that the government could do it better.

So America, your skinned knee now needs amputation, but there are no more doctors left to do it. I guess you will be grabbing a bottle of whiskey and a bandanna. Ah, the good old days. Bring me the saw boys, we have some cutting to do.

Writing Honor

I was incredibly honored to receive news today, that I have been awarded Expert Author Status on EzineArticles.com.  Several recent posts have been published on this high traffic web site and I am very excited about the distinction.  They also included my articles in their RSS feed and their email distribution list sent to thousands of readers.

Sitting in my living room with my laptop on a pillow typing away frantically and the words come pouring out, the writer often wonders if anyone even cares what they are writing and if anyone will even read the words.  It is encouraging to receive positive feedback from followers and friends.  I truly believe though, if no one read my stuff, I would keep writing as evidenced by a 350 page unfinished novel hidden away on this laptop.  One day, Victoria and Gregory's story might even be told.

Check out the site:

http://ezinearticles.com/?id=3551847
http://ezinearticles.com/?id=3551763
http://ezinearticles.com/?id=3551817

Covering

I hope you Abigail and Dolley readers have enjoyed this series.  If you missed Part 1 (Glory) and Part 2 (The Earth Lease), I encourage you to read them, they will give the background.  Today we are going to talk about blood, sacrifice, and the covering of sin.  Have you ever wondered why Jesus had to die on the cross?  Have you ever wondered how that worked?  I know I have.  It just didn't make sense to me.  How could the concept even begin to remotely make sense to a 21st Century American.

Blood sacrifice is the kind of things horror movies are made of, right?  The only visions we see of blood sacrifice are in association with cults and Satanic rituals.  Since we have been talking about the Garden of Eden, let me pick up where we have left off, after the fall.

We know that when Adam and Eve sinned, they realized they were naked.  I believe it is because the glory of the Lord no longer covered them, they were ashamed and tried to hide and cover themselves with leaves.  They were trying to cover their sin; yet mere leaves and their own efforts could not protect them from what they would face.

The Bible says that God himself killed an animal and fashioned clothing for them, thus the blood covered their sins.  A sacrifice of blood covered their sins, but did not restore the glory to them.  They were still alive, but no longer had fellowship with the Lord.  Their sin had caused death.

Between Eden and the cross, the Lord instructed His people to sacrifice animals as an atonement for their sins.  The Old Testament rituals were very important because it was a legal and spiritual act that the priests were performing, but it was imperfect and had to be repeated over and over and over again.  We see that in the garden, the sin was covered but the glory was not restored; we were still cut off from God.

In God's perfect way, He provided the sacrifice.  A perfect man, fully God and fully man - for He longed to have fellowship with His creation.  He longed to walk with you in the cool of the day.  So He came to the Earth, he lived this painful life of a man in a fallen and hurting world.  He allowed himself to be beaten, scourged, and crucified that each precious drop of blood was to restore you to the Father.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that who so ever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.

Through Christ we have communion and fellowship with God, we are covered by His blood, and He had given us back our lost glory.

The Earth Lease

Part II (Please see Part I) - This is heavy lifting for my Christian readers and is intended to edify you and put current events in perspective.  If you are a skeptic and still hanging with me, then read on friend:

Among the perfection of Eden; enter the Deceiver; the Hater of all that is good and pure and wholesome. This envious monster loathed Adam and Eve with an unmatched fury.  He looked upon the earth and coveted it.  He could not take it by force, his war in the Heavens had taught him that, but he could steal it.

He would have to make the man rebel.  Satan knew that if the man sinned against God that the glory would depart from Adam.  Subsequently, God would not be able to be near Adam without destroying him.  God would have to leave the Earth and the Devil could take over.

His plan worked.  God is a just God and I believe that Satan knew enough about God's ways and justice to understand what was at stake and how God would HAVE to react.  Satan understood the rules; I don't pretend to but this is what I think.

I believe that by causing man to sin, Satan did not receive the Earth, but some type of lease on it.  Some say this is a 6000 year period, but it is clear Satan is allowed to rules for a time.  He is described as the prince of this world and Jesus does not refute his claim when He was being tempted in the desert.  Thus, in a manner of speaking, Satan has a lease on the Earth.

As such, he has full privileges of a tenant, but is still restrained by God.  Never doubt, the Devil is able to accomplish much evil in this world.  He has some control over the weather as described in the book of Job.  He is said to be roaming the earth like a roaring lion seeking who he can destroy.

God's Earth

Thus, in this fallen world, bad things will happen.  Is God ultimately in control, yes He is, but He does allow the Devil to operate.  So the next time something bad happens, think about who is really behind the evil in this world.

Continued tomorrow - Part III - The Covering of Sin

Glory

I always find it amazing that those who profess not to believe in God will be the first ones to blame Him when bad things happen.  They will curse Him and shake their fists toward Heaven and say that this disaster proves there is no God and if there is, He is a fiend.  They justify their rebellion by blaming God for all that is evil in the world.

Such are the fools and the scoffers in the liberal media concerning Haiti.  One said that God was a murderer.  Others sneer at the ridiculous premise that there is a Devil and he plays a part in world events.  Does any of this make sense to you?

It does to me; give me a minute.  If you are a Believer, I am going to feed you some spiritual meat.  If you are a skeptic, open your heart to the truth.

When God created the Earth, He created it for man and it was intended to be a place where God could visit and have fellowship with his creation.  The Garden of Eden was a perfect paradise, the likes we can not even imagine.  Adam and Eve would have been glorious and beautiful creatures.  God would have made them very smart, perhaps even witty with a great sense of humor.  After all, if I was creating a companion those are the attributes I would give to my creation.  Wouldn't you?

God came to visit Adam in the Garden of Eden and walked with him during the cool of the day.  Yet, the Bible describes God as an all consuming fire that no man could stand to be near..  When He spoke to the children of Israel at Mt. Sinai, His voice was so thunderous they begged Moses to ask Him to never speak to them again.  When Moses asked to see God's face, God only allowed him to see His back because no man could see God's face and live.  So, what made Adam different?

Psalm 8 tells us, I believe this is written from an angel's perspective just after the creation: 
What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour

Crowned him with glory.... the glory of the Lord crowned Adam, yet because he was sinless he was not consumed.  If you do a Concordance Search on the Glory of the Lord you will find that it is a fearsome sight.  It is always accompanied by fear and trembling.  When the glory of the Lord filled the temple no one could enter.  The fire pillar that led the children of Isreal through the desert was the glory of God. During the Transfiguration, the Disciples saw the true glory of Jesus and they fell to the ground in fear and trembling.  Yet, this is the stuff that covered Adam.  This is what allowed Adam to walk with the Lord and not be consumed.

(The Heavens Declare the Glory of the Lord)

Enter the Deceiver; the Hater of all that is good and pure and wholesome.

Continued tomorrow.......

What Does Democracy Mean To You?

That is the title of a new "contest" that the State Department is running on Twitter. What is wrong with that picture? Seems innocuous, right? Well it is truly the height of stupidity, because we don't live in a Democracy! We live in a Constitutional Republic. We elect our leaders in a Democratic method, but we are not mob rule Democracy. How much of our hard earned tax dollars are going toward this idiotic program? We must fight against ignorance.

I encourage everyone to watch the video below. Share it with your kids, your friends, your co-workers. It is essential that we understand these principals.

Ethics and a Love of the Game

Thanks to Abigail and Dolley for letting me throw out one of my rants on the world of ethics or lack thereof.

I love college football. I like the pro game, and enjoy playing sports quite a lot. But, college football is the only sport you will consistently find me watching on the television. The USC (Southern Cal, not the real USC Gamecocks of the SEC) football program is one of the most storied programs in all of college football. Along with programs like Notre Dame, Alabama, Texas, Ohio State etc, they have a consistent record of winning. Now Pete Carroll is leaving USC to go back to the Professional game from which he came. He says it is the right opportunity at just the right time. But, really Coach Carroll is leaving under a cloud of shame. USC is being investigated for multiple recruiting violations. Is the coach getting out before the storm hits USC fully? I don't know, but I do see a disturbing continuing trend here.

I turn to sports for an escape, to relive my own glory days,and to be entertained. I don't think any of us turn to sports to see college football programs racked with violations of rules of fair play. I don't want to see Barry Bonds perjure himself concerning performance enhancing drugs, I don't want to hear Mark McGuire cry any more because he injected performance enhancing drugs. We are talking about athletes in their prime. I see their use of drugs to aid their performance as a symptom of their greed. Greed for glory, greed for that next big endorsement deal.

Don't even get me going on Tiger Woods... A guy who reportedly cried about his father's infidelities who goes out and does the same. Talk about a culture of lack of ethics.

For me, I'm done with it. I will continue to play the sports I love, but I no longer care about the big time sports on TV. I may watch with detached interest, but I will not give my money to support the products these guys are endorsing. I hope High School sports are still immune to it, but something tells me that many of these big time high school football programs have also been somehow corrupted by it all.

What does this have to do with this blog? It is a reflection of a cancer in our society. I'm ashamed of it and I hope if We the People, say "enough!" And, if we turn away from accepting this behavior and vote with our wallets by not purchasing the sponsors products perhaps we can cause a change. Naive? Probably. Noble? Perhaps. Worth it? Absolutely.

Guest Authors

Abigail and Dolley readers may know that prior to launching this blog spot on November 15, 2009 I blogged with a fantastic group of fellows at another site. I will not go into the whole sordid tale of the ill fated adventure. I will simply state that Founders of the site have been removed from our creation by a usurper and a thief. It saddens me to see our formerly thoughtful and insightful blog into a collection of cut and paste articles and political cartoons.

These fine gentlemen are regrouping and until such time that they are established in their new home, I have invited them to post on Abigail and Dolley. Thus, please join me in welcoming my refugee founders, Mr. Patrick Henry and Mr. John Adams.

Being Your Best

I was raised by good, solid people, who instilled in me a duty to strive to be the best.  They taught me that I owed it to myself to do my best and to work hard.  They told me I could do anything that I wanted and that average was not good enough.  They spanked me when I was bad, which was often.  They loved me and tickled me and wrestled with me.  They took me to church and told me about God.  They raised me to be independent but not so much that I can not ask for help when I need it.  They encouraged me to play sports and to learn teamwork.  They did a good job and I have no illusions that this upbringing created the environment that helped me succeed.

Of course it was not all happiness and roses, no one's life is free from pain and struggle.  I had my share of hardships and difficulties, these things tempered me and shaped me; just as the good things had done.  There is an Arab proverb that says "All sunshine makes a desert."  I like that.

So today, I am going to challenge all Abigail and Dolley readers to be your best.  Here are some of my common sense rules:

1. Adopt a Beginner's Mind
   
2. Take care of your teeth.  Go to the Dentist.  Buy Crest Whitestrips.  Get them straightened if they need it.  Your teeth say a lot about you.
3. Take care of your hair.  If you are a man and are loosing it - go to the Doctor and get a Rx for finasteride and buy Rogain Foam.  25% of all men regrow lost hair, you may be one of them.  If you color it, keep it up for goodness sakes.  Get a decent hair cut that flatters your face.  Buy good product and do your hair - a ball cap and a pony tail should be exceptions, not the rule.
4. Sweat regularly - the human body was not made to sedentary, it was made to work.  Keep it strong and cleansed with regular exercise.
5. Buy Clothes that fit and flatter - do not be a slave to any style other that what looks good on you.  If you have fat rolls, please do not show them to me.  If you are pregnant, please do not wear a bikini or a half shirt.
6. I am so naturally pale in the winter I am actually pink - go to the tanning salon and get a Mystic Spray tan or buy some sunless tanning cream.  You will be amazed at how it will boost your spirits.  I always say that brown fat looks better than white fat!  This is especially important for married women because if we feel sexier, well, you know.
   
7. Laugh and smile often.  Find something that makes you happy.  Seek out laughter.  Adorn your face with a smile.
8. Eat well and eat less.  A fantastic sign from your body that you are full is when the bite you just took does not taste as good as the first bite did.  That is a sure fire signal to stop eating.  I struggled with my weight my whole life and now eat about 75% less food than I used to, see 5'2" women don't need many calories....
9. Be giving - your time, your talent, your love.
10. Turn off the TV - read a book or have sex with your mate, both vastly improve the quality of your life.
11. Celebrate special occasions - use the good china and the silver.  Wear the beautiful dress or expensive pair of shoes.  Make memories and take pictures.

Happy New Year, live well and may the Lord Jesus Christ bless you in all you do.  May He inspire you and care for you, may he wrap his Holy Spirit around you and give you peace.

Most sincerely - Dolley Madison

A Tale of Two Mothers

(The purpose of this tale is to demonstrate how choices we make effect our lives.  Please do not regale me with debate on the circumstances that formed and shaped mother #2.  That discussion is outside of the realm and scope of this piece.)

I want to present to you a tale of two Mothers.  I will play the first mother.  (That is a picture of me and my son when he was a day or so old, I am a heifer there, but he is so adorable...)

When my son was born, I wanted more than anything else in the world to stay home and raise him.  I had fantastic visions of outings to the park, learning to sew, gourmet cooking, and intellectually stimulating sessions with my child, who would of course be brilliant because of all the stimulation he received from Super Mom.  Alas, it did not happen.

I can not convey to you how difficult it was taking him to Day Care and going back to work.  I do not know if I have ever done anything harder in my life.  It was only after the Lord spoke to my heart and affirmed to me that HE loved my son even more than I and HE would be with him while I was away, that I was able to find the strength to do what I had to do.  Why go back, you ask?  Because, you see my son was born with a medical issue that we all knew would eventually require surgery.  My husband was a small business man and we could not go without health insurance, so I went back to work.  I sacrificed, I made the tough choices, I did not ask anyone to take care of me, I did it myself.

We struggled mightily during those Day Care years and as a consequence I never had another child.  I always wanted two kids, but I had to face the hard truth that the timing was never right, the money not there, and in the end I gave up that dream.  As a consequence, I stayed in the work force and now find myself extremely successful.  I work for a great company and enjoy a generous salary and benefits.  I have a Cadillac Health Plan., but I sacrificed for it.  I worked hard, I missed precious moments of my baby's life, I struggled, but I persevered and by the grace of God everything turned out just fine.  

 Now let's take another woman, she had four children and has never worked.  She lives in a lovely house that is paid for completely by alimony and child support.  They live in squalor.  Everyday on my way to work, I see her in her raggedy sweat pants walking the dog.  She lays around her house and Facebooks all day.  Yet, we are regaled by her absolute demand that Health Care is a RIGHT and she should be able to have it for free.

I am sorry, but that just makes me insane!  What has she sacrificed to earn healthcare?  Where am I every morning rushing around like a crazy women to get my son off to school and my butt to my job, while she lazes around her filthy house, drinking coffee, and writing status updates about why we should be giving her something!  Why should I, who has made very tough choices in my life now have to pay for her healthcare?  You give me one good reason why that should happen?  Now, not only will I have to pay for her healthcare, I am going to be taxed out the wazoo for the privilege.

You see, my husband and I are quickly finding ourselves in the "rich" category and will be mightily punished for our success.  How is that right?  It is theft pure and simple and it makes me mad enough to spit nails.

(Pictured:  My son and I after a 10 hour day at the office and two hour commute, painting the rock outside his school for his 8th Birthday.)   

I Like It When I'm Wrong

That may seem like a ludicrous statement, but I actually do like it when I am wrong.  I enjoy honest debate and feel that I grow as a person if I can be open minded enough to realize when someone has a counterpoint that is true.  It is amazing to me the people who are so entrenched in their own opinions that no amount of logic or reasoning will persuade them otherwise.  Much of what we do here at Abigail and Dolley is controversial to the current societal norms, thus there are ample opportunities for others to step in and refute the premise of the articles.

I can not abide word twisting, double talk, and half truths.  It is especially offensive in verbal communication but I find it laughable in written form, since an objective reader can review what is being said and quickly point out the malarkey.  In today's era of electronic media I find it ridiculous that the politicians are able to get away with any of it, what they choose to do instead, when confronted with their own words, is attack the person who is confronting them. 

Barney Frank is by far the best at this ploy.  He is directly responsible for much of the Freddie Mack and Fannie Mae debacle it is irrefutable, yet he maintains that he had nothing to do with it!  There is audio tape by the hour of committee meetings that clearly show his role, yet he maintains he did not play a role in the debacle at all.  His gay lovers have grown pot at his house and run a prostitution ring, yet he claims complete innocence and oblivion to what is going on.  I do not believe that Barney Frank has ever once stood up and taken the blame and responsibly for his actions.   He is an evil, vicious man and a glaring example of what is wrong in our society today.

Perhaps that makes me the polar opposite of Barney Frank, I enjoy learning and growing and admitting when I am wrong.  Nothing diffuses an intense situation faster than acknowledging the other person's point of view.  If we are so attached to our opinions that we are never open to new ideas then we will remain forever as we are right now and in my book if you stop growing, you start dying.

The Culture Of Honor

I love to read and I am ALWAYS reading something.  I usually have a serious business/self help/Jesus book going and always have a romance novel of some sort.  Now before everyone goes and gives me crap about my romance novels, I love them.  They take me away from all the heavy stuff in the world and I find them highly entertaining, besides I have a fantastic grasp on historical facts from a vast array of settings.  So in fact, they are educational (hehehe).

My latest serious read was Outliers by Malcom Gladwell.  A truly enlightening and entertaining study of the factors around successful people, not just their work ethic, but their cultural heritage, where they were born, when they were born, and a host of other unique sets of circumstances that made these people successful.  One of the areas he discusses is cultural heritage and how it is carried down through the generations.  Using clinical research studies and various writings Gladwell puts together some very convincing commentary on people and societies.  One that rang true with me was the culture of honor.

The Culture of Honor is prevalent in the South.  Only in the South is, "He needed killin'" a viable defense.  Researchers found that this went across generations and socio-economic back grounds.  I will explain:

After the Jacobite uprising in 1845 (and I know hundreds of details about this because of my romance novels) the Highland Scottish clans were destroyed.  The last civil war in the UK brought about one of the bloodiest battles of all time in the fields of Northern Scotland in a place called Culloden.  The British had enough of the troublesome Highlanders and slaughtered them on the battlefield and then starved them to death for about 20 years afterward.  It was a crime to play a bag pipe or wear a plaid, the men were gone, the clan chiefs or lairds were gone, their whole structure of life was gone.  Many immigrated to America and they settled in the South with large portions of them choosing the familiar landscape and climate of the Appalachian and Blue Ridge Mountains, they brought with them their culture.

Cultures develop in large measure through the work the people do.  Since the Highlands are not ideal farming ground, these folks were herdsmen.  A herdsman has to be vigilant to protect his livelihood.  The theft of his animals can profoundly effect his families ability to survive and must be protected at all costs.  A weak man will loose his herd and thus his living, his social status, and his manhood.  A man in this culture must be ready to respond with force any perceived attack on his person.   .

Gladwell explains that the cultural heritage of these people is evident in Southern Society today.  The University of Michigan conducted a study of how men would react to an insult.  It did not take long for them to figure out the one word that would get men riled up quickly, asshole.  The experiment involved asking men to fill out a questionnaire and take it down a narrow hall to student that was collecting them.  Another student would block the way and bump into them, while walking away the student would call the test subject an asshole.  Measuring heart rate, blood pressure, testosterone, and cortisol levels the researchers could determine the Southerners without looking at their questionnaires!  These were well to do kids who were attending an out of state university, these were not Hillbilly Hatfields and McCoys (who of course also were of Scotch-Irish descent and steeped in a culture of honor).  These students were furious and ready to fight.  Conversely, the Northern Students did not have the same reaction.  Some even showed lowered blood pressure and heart rates as if they were purposely calming themselves in an effort to blow it off.

Gladwell also tells a story of a murder trial of an old man from the South.  He lived next to a filling station and the town hoodlums would loiter there and give him grief.  One day the old man blasted three of them with his shot gun, killing two.  The judge was astounded when the jury returned a verdict of not guilty.  When asked later, one of the jury commented that the old man wouldn't have been much of a man if he hadn't killed those punks, he HAD to do it.

I keep having visions of the Tarleton Twins from Gone With The Wind whooping and hollering about going to war.  I believe the best example in recent years is from the Honorable Senator from Georgia, Mr. Zell Miller and his fiery exchange with the pinko commie bloated blow hard, Chris Matthews after Miller's address at the GOP Convention.  Senator Miller, a lifelong Democrat gave the Keynote address at the 2004 GOP Convention.

Enjoy!

Can You Imagine if A Conservative Did This? Part 2

Abigail and Dolley readers may know I love to play this game.  There is rather an extensive list under Can You Imagine if A Conservative Did This Part 1 but of course the outrages never stop so let's add a few:

Can you Imagine if George W Bush's "Safe School Czar" had encouraged children to have sex with adults and reminded them only to wear a condom?

Can you imagine if the same Czar was a member of a radical pedophilia group and actively taught junior high school kids the proper way to insert a whole hand up a boy's rectum?

Can you imagine if in one year of a Conservative taking office that we had experience 33% of the terror attacks in the last nine years?

Can you imagine if a Conservative had added 3 Trillion dollars to the National Debt in less than a year.

Can you imagine if a Conservative had rushed through a stimulus package that was nothing but special interest payback, pork, and communist infrastructure and did not do one damn thing for the economy?

Can you imagine if a leading Conservative strategist had written the play book while in Federal Prison on Bank Fraud charges (see Richard Creamer if you don't know who I am talking about)?

Can you imagine a Conservative backing a bill that puts the IRS in more control of people's lives and could actually put them in jail for not buying health insurance?

Can you imagine if a Conservative President gave Constitutional Rights to a terrorist and moved their trials to civilian courts where the widows and children of their victims live?

Can you imagine if a Conservative threatened to tie up NYC for said terror trials?

There is so much more, but I have to rub my husband's foot and he is grumping at me.  Oh well, I am sure we will have a Part 3.

Some Good News For You!

The headlines some days are overwhelming; corruption, incompetence, attacks on our moral and ethical heritage, loss of freedom, loss of rights, loss of liberty.  Debts and spending through the roof, government taking over private sectors, criminals in honored places of power, communist systems praised and emulated by elected officials, the dollar's weakness, and the under lying financial house of cards, violence in our streets and court rooms, murder, Middle East unrest and war.... it just goes on and on.
 
Folks, this is stuff straight out of a Frank Peretti novel. If you never read Frank Peretti I urge you to get "This Present Darkness" and "Piercing the Darkness", they will open your eyes to the Spiritual warfare that goes on all around us. To think that these things are happening on a purely physical plane is foolishness and it leaves the good folks at a disadvantage. Let me tell you, the bad guys know exactly what is going on here.

Ephesians 6:12 (New International Version)

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Take heart friend, because we know how it all ends.  These times are foretold, for in the last days there will be wars and rumors of wars, there will be an increase in knowledge, and men will travel to and fro.  There are increases in natural disasters and men will become mockers of the truth and hold a contempt for all that is good.

What better way for a gracious and merciful God to draw as many to Himself as possible?  Many people in their darkest hours turn to the saving grace of the Lord Jesus - so this may be His way of reaching the lost.  I can not say, I can say for certain that one day...

¹⁶ For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died^[h] will rise from their graves. ¹⁷ Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. ¹⁸ So encourage each other with these words.

Hate Crimes Bill - Protecting Who?

I will bet you missed this one.... I know I did.  I had written most of the below article in May of last year and really don't know how it escaped me when it went through the Senate and was signed into law by Obama in October.  Perhaps because no one in the media made much of a deal about it, perhaps because we were all preoccupied with the take over of Healthcare, or perhaps it became law by attaching it to a Defense Authorization Bill.

Let me tell you the ramifications of the Shepard/Byrd Hate Crimes Act:

If a flasher exposes himself to Abigail Adams, Dolley Madison, or me and I in horror hit him, he is guilty of a local misdemeanor, while I am guilty of a Federal Felony Hate Crime. If a pedophile tries to lure your child into a car and you kill him, you are guilty of a Hate Crime. If you are drunk and run over a trans-gender person you are not only guilty of drunk driving, but a Hate Crime. If a Pastor preaches out of the Bible against sinful behavior and someone who heard the message, commits a crime against a homosexual, the Pastor can be charged with a Hate Crime.

Seem outlandish? Well, just wait until the liberal judges start getting a hold of this thing.  It is a recipe for Judicial disaster. Singling out individuals for special protection under the law is wrong and in the opinion of many Constitutional Scholars is in violation of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution and specifically is not required because all people are protected under the amendments Equal Protection Clause. The premise seems harmless, but if you dig beneath the surface and dissect the real world ramifications of this bill, it is disturbing. Hailed by the left as protecting homosexuals from hate motivated crimes, the Dems refused to clarify the language and will leave that up to the courts. It is intended to make it a Federal Felony to engage in a hate crime, which by definition is an attack based on a victim's sexual orientation, gender identity or mental or physical disability. So, by my count every human on the planet is covered, because we all have a sexual orientation, right?

Focus on the Family clearly outlines what this bill has the potential to do:

• Highlights - no need for the bill, current protections sufficient, no rise in Hate crimes.
• Treats victims of the same crime unequally under the law
  
• Punishes thoughts not actions
• Doesn't define the class it seeks to protect
• Paves the way for religious persecution

When did being a normal, traditional, American afford you LESS protection under the law?  This is indeed a sad state of affairs.


Here are some more little nuggets of truth:

• Attorney General, the brilliant Eric Holder, testified before Congress on the bill.  This is the first time in history that a sitting A.G. has testified before Congress on a bill.
•  2009 saw more prosecutions in Hate Crimes than in the 2001-2008 period combined.
• This bill recognizes the legal status of trans-gender people, this is new.

Conversely, the supposed "Hate Crime" against Matthew Shephard was not a Hate Crime at all, it was a robbery.  Pure and simple, yet the Media went on a frenzy and the Progressives have used this as their rallying cry.  This has been documented by dozens of journalists that did not have agenda in mind, but of course they are marginalized, mocked, and depicted as homophobes.

To be fair the James Byrd Jr. dragging death was indeed a horrific act, there were actually two victims in that case.  The third white boy that was with the white supremisist was a friend of Byrd's.  He tried to stop the murder and the two turned on him with the chain and asked if he wanted to join his friend.  Forensic evidence shows that the third boy was so scared he actually peed his pants, yet he was convicted along with the other two killers.  See, racially motivated and hate crime prosecution, is not about the truth, it is about preventing another LA riot.  To have let him walk would have been unacceptable in our current political climate.  So a young man who picked the wrong folks to go out drinking with will spend the rest of his life in prison because of what others did. 

Perversely, the types of crimes described above, had they been committed by Homosexuals, would have never made it out of their local media market.  You see, horrific crimes perpetrated on the mainstream American public by Homosexuals are covered up and not discussed.  The more heinous the crime, the more likely a hush campaign will be instituted to "not arouse anti-gay sentiments".  This is clearly demonstrated in several cases:

Duke official Arrested for Prostituting His Adopted 5 year old Son - do you remember this story from last June?  I am in NC, so I heard about it, but I wonder if others in the country did.  It is truly disgusting and involves a man prostituting his adopted son for homosexual pedophilia.  Where was the outrage?

Statistics On Homosexual Serial Killers - this article goes out of its way to try to disclaim what the facts state, but it is simply that Bi-sexual and Homosexuals make up about 2.5% of the population, but they make up 43% of serial killers population.

Statistics on Homosexual Child Molestations - as with the statistics on serial killers, while comprising only 2.5% of the population, homosexual child molesters account for upwards of 30% of this entire group of criminals.  This article also goes on to demonstrate that the homosexual child molesters attack an average of 150 victims each while heterosexual child molesters admit to about 20 each.

So, based on the above, who is really being protected here?  There are thousands of instances of these types of crimes yet they are hushed up and we are constantly regaled with the need for Hate Crimes Legislation.


Folks, this is the type of legislation you get when you remove God from the public arena, your schools, and your society because a country that is governed internally by the constraints of the faith and their own conscience will not engage in such activities.  They will not engage in the behavior that is protected nor will they engage in the behavior that is defined as a crime.  A society based on the moral teachings of the Bible will not permit in your face behaviors that are clearly defined as sins, nor will it allow anyone to attack those engaged in such behavior.  We existed as a society for 230 years without this law because we did not need it, nor do we need it now. 

I still believe "In God We Trust", yet those in power clearly believe "In Government We Trust".

Henry Waxman for President 2016

Abigail and Dolley readers know there is NO love lost between me and the traitorous Progressives in DC.  Here's one for you, Mr. Cap and Trade, himself Henry Waxman.  Denise Miller said he looked like Ratatouille, I think Dennis Miller was not being very nice to the rat.

Has anyone ever considered that since JFK we have elected the better looking candidate to office in each Presidential race?  Now, I know that is a subjective statement but it is worth considering.  I say Henry Waxman for Democratic Presidential Nominee in 2016.

A Beginner's Mind

Why do we love the New Year so much?  What makes Jan 1st every year seem like a new start?  Seriously, from a rational perspective it is really just another day.  I think we love it because we bring with us "A Beginner's Mind". 

I love yoga... I exercise because I have to, but I really love yoga.  If I was naturally thin, I would do yoga exclusively, but alas my complete love of all things fat and salty coupled with a natural propensity to be Mrs. 5' X 5' keeps me on the bike, stair climber, kickboxing class, and the completely god awful interval training class at the YMCA. 

I have learned a lot in Yoga class. One thing they teach is the concept of "A Beginner's Mind".  It is simple really, you approach each practice with the mind of a beginner, you accept your body where it is that day.  You do not judge yourself against yesterday.  Circumstances will dictate that some days you will be strong and flexible, some days you will be sore and stiff, other days you will be weak and tired, but with each practice you accept where you are and build from there.

The New Year seems to inspire this in everyone - we set goals, we start fresh, we accept where we are and set out to improve it.  Almost everyone fails to carry their good intentions through the year.  Why?  Because life happens:  you get sick, you get hurt, you get crazy at work, you loose someone, or you just get tired of being hungry and pig out.  Since there is no New Year to tell us to reset, we say we've blown it and just give up.  I am as guilty as the rest.

I got on the scale today and after an initial weight loss of 47 pounds, I have gained back 14 lbs.  It has taken 16 months.  It's not a lot, from a calorie stand point, it is a mere 100 calories a day more for the period of time.  Honestly, I had a hard time getting back in the swing because I kept judging myself on where I once was.  I have not allowed myself to say, okay, let's start again.  I have let my previous accomplishments hold me back and beat me down.

So I am not making New Year's resolutions so much as I am going to adopt "The Beginner's Mind" this year.  Each day will be new, I will strive to do my best, and I will allow myself to remember that God's mercies are renewed everyday, who am I to hold a higher standard for myself than God does?

Brand Loyalty

Today folks, I want to talk with you about "Brand Loyalty", all business in some shape or another seek to build this with their customers.  No matter what you are selling, you need repeat business and one of the ways you accomplish this is through client loyalty.  The epitome of that is Advocacy of your brand/company to other potential customers.  If you can not only secure your clients, but also turn them into "salespeople" for your product you have established something very precious indeed.  As the recipient of this, all you have to do is continue doing the things you did to receive the honor and where applicable continue to improve and produce a quality product.

What happens though, if you fail to perform and lose the customer?  Anyone will tell you, it is a bitter pill to swallow to lose such a good customer and often an impossible task to regain a trust once lost.  I would like to illustrate with a personal story.

In 1970, my Mom bought a Maytag Washing Machine and Dryer.  The lonely Maytag repairman commercials were true.  These machines were fantastic.  In 1986, Mom had the washing machine belt replaced and had a new dial put on the machine because the writing had rubbed off from 16 years of constant use.  When I graduated from college in 1990, one of my first purchases was a washer and dryer, did I even consider another brand?  Absolutely not, Mom's old faithful Maytag set was still running after more than 20 years.  I got a great deal at Circuit City on a pair of floor models, they were a little dented and there were a few scratches on them, but I saved a couple hundred dollars.  These machines lived up to their legacy and served me and my husband for 10 solid years.

We bought a new home in 2000 and decided that we'd like to have new appliances to go with our new home, there wasn't a thing wrong with the old faithful pair, but they had been kind of beat up when I bought them and several major moves later they didn't look so great.  Of course, we bought a new Maytag set, I would not have even considered another brand.  Standing in Sears, my husband and I debated the traditional model or the new high tech, front loader.  The difference in price was significant, but hey, how many times in your life do you buy a washer and dryer, right?  My mother had finally gotten a new set the year before and her Maytags had lasted almost 30 years.  Our current set was still working great after 10, so we decided to spend the $3500 for the Maytag Neptune set.  Believe me folks, we had just bought a house that we could hardly afford, this was a big deal.

What neither my husband or I knew at the time was that Maytag was producing a terrible product.  The once proud brand had dumped these Maytag Neptune machines on their loyal customers and they were lemons.  The Maytag Washer lasted 3 years.  I found out at the time I had missed the deadline for filing in a class action lawsuit by 18 days.  This lawsuit ultimately brought Maytag to its knees and the company was sold to Whirlpool.  This was a major financial hit for us, you see now we had a baby in full time day care and a house we really still could not afford - so buying ANOTHER washer after only three years was a bitter pill to swallow.

We sucked it up and bought another washer, but do you think for one millisecond we considered Maytag?  No way.  So there we were, with a mismatched set, half the reason we had bought the Neptunes was because the old pair was beat up looking.  Now that might not seem like a big deal to some folks, but it was to my husband, he is particular that way.

A couple of years later the Maytag Neptune dryer started going on the fritz.  We tried to buy a dryer to match our two year old washer, and that drama is for another post.  Suffice it to say that for two years, my husband coaxed that dying dryer to work.  It was actually quite comical to hear him talk to it and cajole it to work.  Apparently the dryer took on female characteristics because he would tell "her" that she was looking particularly lovely that day and that her buttons were so sleek and sexy.  Laugh if you want, but usually, she would work for him after a bit of encouragement.

Anyway, last month, after several trips to the laundromat to finish the clothes, we decided to bite the bullet and buy ANOTHER set.  Now, in perspective we are only nine years past our original purchase and we had spent around $5000 in laundry equipment and service calls during that time.  We headed to our local appliance store. (Plaza Appliance, who by the way if you are in Charlotte is the ONLY place I will buy appliances from, the salepeople were very knowledgeable and professional and actually knew what they were selling as opposed to other big retailers.  Ha!  Look, I am an advocate).  They of course were subjected to my sour grapes and tales of woe regarding my laundry drama over the last several years.  I was indeed still very bitter and feeling it even more keenly since I was about to spend another $3000.  They listened patiently and began to tell me a story.

Apparently, Whirlpool has done a fantastic job with the Maytag brand.  They have returned to the quality construction of old and are repositioning Maytag as the premier brand in reliability.  They even launched their Centennial Washer which is the same design and make up as the one my Mom had for 30 years and I had for 10, with several great improvements.  Nostalgia was calling my name, I mean these fancy high tech machines were costing me a fortune, and I know this old faithful will carry us to retirement... So folks, what do you think?  What would you have done in my shoes?

In the end, we stuck with the front loader HE style and bought another brand.  Trusty Consumer Reports rates it number one in reliability, I sure hope so.  Even though I didn't buy the Maytag brand again, I felt an odd relief that they were doing better and I truly do hope they are successful, I just wasn't ready to make that leap of faith again.  Perhaps I am like a woman that sees her rotten ex-husband has begun acting like the man she fell in love with and finally forgives him, and while she hopes he does well, she's not willing at this point to jump back in the fire with him.

I told that big ole story to draw one more analogy and that is that the Republican Party is right now in the same position Maytag was in when it got sold to Whirlpool.  Your brand name is trashed by a shoddy product, you have lost your loyal customer, and you most certainly have lost your advocates.  You are at a cross roads right now, your clients are currently looking at you with a hopeful but a skeptical eye.  We hear some of the things you are saying and seem pretty good, there is even talk about launching that old reliable Reagan brand that we all know and love.  The challenge for the GOP is going to be if they can complete the sale, because once its gone, brand loyalty is very hard to get back, just ask Maytag.

My Speed Skates

I cleaned up my speed skates today. They were dusty and unused. Most people my age no longer have theirs. They were relegated to the Good Will pile long ago, or perhaps given to a younger cousin or sibling that would never really appreciate the true meaning of having a pair of speed skates. We were part of a brief period of time, 1978 - 1981. The heyday of roller skating. Of course it was "Skatin'" in Charlotte.

Nothing was more important to me in 1980 than saving up enough money to buy a pair of Riedell Speed Skates. See my parents split up in 1980, and I stayed with my Dad in Charlotte. We were broke! Seriously, there was cheap food and no extras. Dad didn't have money to buy me all of the name brand clothes that I needed to stay with the "popular crowd". I had about 5 or 6 cool outfits and had to launder them on a very regular basis!

But on Friday night, the kids that had speed skates were the coolest of the cool. After 6th grade your reputation could not stand to even don a pair of rental skates. So those unfortunate ones like me would hang at Skate Palace and borrow our friend's skates throughout the night. I wanted a pair so much!

In 1980, I was 11 years old and a pair was $120! I did some research and that is the equivalent to about $500 today.  My Dad told me if I could save half the money, he would buy the other half. I scrimped and saved for nine months. I rolled pennies and nickles and cashed them in at the bank up the street. I babysat and saved every penny that I could. I saved Christmas money and did extra chores around the house.

Finally, in February, I got my skates. I went with the classic black and white scheme - when I had been tempted to go with the red wheels, laces, and toe stopper. I am glad I went with the classics. They still look good.

I have kept them all these years because they remind me of that innocent time in my life. They remind me what it was like to be poor and have to wait and save for something. They were the first major purchase of my life and they taught me the value of a dollar. Most of all, I will never forget the pride I felt when I laced up those boots for the first time and headed out on the wooden floor with the disco ball spinning and Michael Jackson singing, "Off the Wall". I was finally one of the cool kids and I had earned those skates.

It didn't matter at that moment that my parents were split up and that they both were dating other people. It didn't matter that my butt had completely outgrown the rest of my body and that my face had started to break out. The only thing that mattered was I was free and I was young, and the whole world was ahead of me - I knew I was going to be just fine.

Limiting Factors

Limiting Factors are facts and data that define parameters of a theory.  If you Google the term most of the hits are related to Biology and photosynthesis, so for the point of clarity let's use this example:

If you find a sunken treasure in the ocean and within the wreckage you find a cask of gold coins.  The gold coins will give you certain parameters to determine the origin of the ship and the approximate time that it sunk.  If they are minted with the face of George Washington and bear the seal of the United States of America you can determine that these coins had to be made after 1776, right?  Thus, 1776 is a limiting factor, you can not assume the coins are older than that because the USA did not EXIST under that name until 1776.  Alternatively, if the pieces had dates, you would not look for the oldest date, you would look for the earliest date.  Why?  Simply because the latest date will give you the earliest possible time the ship could have sunken. A coin dated 1810 would define your range with a limiting factor of 1810.  By using the principals of limiting factors you can safely surmise that the ship sunk somewhere after 1810.

Curiously, using Carbon 14 testing and dating, those same coins would probably show they were millions of years old.  Based on the above, would you believe that?  Of course not, because the known and observable history tells us differently and speculation that does not conform to the known and observable must be discarded when it does not line up with the evidence.  Did you know they have Carbon 14 dated a baseball hat pulled out of the rubble after the eruption of Mt. St. Helens in 1980?  The Carbon 14 test stated the baseball hat was millions of years old.  Wow!  Who knew the California Angels were playing millions of years ago?

Thus, if you apply certain observable and known facts about the Earth and its atmosphere you can extrapolate certain limiting factors about the age of the planet.  With me so far?  Good, lets go:

The Earth's rotation is slowing slightly every year.  About once every year and a half we have to add a leap second to account for the slowing rotation.  Thus, we can assume if the Earth is slowing then at some point the Earth must have been spinning faster, right?  If the Earth is about 6000 years old then we do not have a problem, but if the Earth is Billions and Billions of years old there is a big problem.  The rotation would have been such that no life could have possibly existed on the planet.  The Coriolis Effect would have made the wind blow at over 5000 miles per hour.  Day and night would have been mere seconds.  The dinosaurs were obviously thrown into space from the centrifugal forces...

The Earth's magnetic force is lessening.  That happens, over time magnets loose their force. The Earth's magnetic field is essential to life on Earth for several reasons:

• It deflects most of the cosmic radiation that would otherwise destroy life. 
• Worldwide, precise measurements of the Earth's magnetic field have been made since 1829.
• Since that time, the magnetic force of the Earth has deteriorated exponentially.
• The decrease has followed a predictable curve. 

By graphing this curve, the observable facts determine that life would have been impossible before 20,000 BC because the magnetic field would have been as strong as the Sun's.  Furthermore, the Earth will cease to exist after 10,000 AD since for all practical purposes, with no magnetic field left the Earth will be fried by cosmic radiation.

The moon is moving away from the Earth.  That's right, but don't worry it is going about 3 inches a year.  That of course is due to the loss of the magnetic field as discussed above.  If the moon is drifting away at an observable rate, then it is reasonable to determine it was at one time much closer, right?  Using all sorts of complicated math we can determine if the Earth is 6000 years old there hasn't been much change, but if the Earth is Billions and Billions of years old the Moon at one point sat on the Earth and the tides covered the entire land mass.

Space dust accumulates at a predictable rate per year on the moon.  If the moon is billions of years old, the accumulated space dust on the moon should have been hundreds of feet thick.  When the first astronauts landed on the moon they were prepared for this and were surprised to find they did not sink!  Do you know the second statement said on the moon?  "It's solid".  The measurement of space dust on the moon supports the premise that the moon is about 6000 years old.

The limited age of things on Earth undermines the Billions of years theory.  The oldest tree is 4200 years old (pictured right).  Why aren't there older trees?  Perhaps because about 4400 years ago there was a flood that destroyed all life on Earth?  The Sahara Dessert is about 4000 years old based on it's current growth.  Why isn't it bigger if the Earth is billions of years old?  The population measurements from our recorded history support the premise that all humans came from about 8 people 4400 years ago.  If humans have been on the Earth for 3 billion years, using the known statistical analysis of population growth, where are all the people? 

So what is reasonable when you consider the above?  Why do scientists ignore these limiting factors?  Probably because they have not yet come up with an alternative to the obvious.  If you look at the Bible and go backwards to the Creation story you come up with about 6000 years.  Wouldn't it be just like the enemy of your soul to create doubt in the world by putting forth the "billions" of years old theory?  Wouldn't it be just like scientist (need I mention Global warming, flat earth, and bleeding folks as examples of this premise) to embrace a false doctrine?  Do your own research, come to your own conclusions.  Call me simple, but I am comfortable believing the Bible, if you are more comfortable believing science - well, I have a cap and trade plan to sell you.

Dinosaurs and the New Earth

This is another one of those posts, where the subject is so broad and the discussion so involved I could write a book, so for the sake of focus and brevity, I will examine one small area - Dinosaurs.  

Right off the bat, I will admit I am a skeptic of modern scientific "consensus" in many areas.  Abigail and Dolley readers know I beat the drum of Global Warming is a hoax on a regular basis, but there is another "established" fact that I completely disagree with and that is the old earth and evolution.

I believe that the Earth is about 6000 years old and that about 4400 years ago there was a flood.  I believe that man and dinosaurs shared the Earth.  Uh oh, many of you are saying....Dolley has stepped off the deep end on this one, but bear with me on this one, hear me out and then make your decision.  After all, you know that Global Warming Disciples are sorely mislead; who is to say "Old Earthers" and "Evolutionist" are not equally as wrong?

My worldview is such that I take what the Bible says and sift modern "science" and attitudes and culture through the Bible as a filter.  If they pass the Bible test I keep them, if they flunk the Bible test they are tossed in the waste basket with yesterday's garbage.  The Bible is eternal it is perfect, timeless, and trustworthy - I can not say the same for man made ideas and attitudes, can you?

The beauty of this whole debate though, is that you don't have to be a believer to see the complete breakdown in current scientific methods when applied through the filter of rational and logical thoughts.  You may choose to formulate a different rationale than the conclusion I get from the Word, but that is definitely your choice.

Consider this:

If the earth is indeed billions and billions of years old and dinosaurs lived billions and billions of years ago, then how is it that scientists have found blood vessels, blood cells, and soft tissue in dinosaur bones?
(http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7285683/) or see video embedded below.

Scientist can not explain how these can still be present.  Some recent specimens found appear to be "fresh" bones and there is a layer of soft tissue still in tact.

There have been recent discoveries of Dinosaur skin, irronically, the skin seems to have circular shapes on it like many ancient drawings and cave paintings.  How did those cave dwellers know about the circular patterns on the dinosaur skin if they had never seen one?

Life span on the Earth prior to the flood was about 900 years.  (See Genesis)  Since reptiles never stop growing*, is it possible that species of reptiles grew giant during their lifetimes?  (*Holt Earth Science 1991 pg. 293)


Two types of dinosaurs are mentioned in the Bible - the Leviathon and the Behemouth, perhaps what we know today as the Brachiosaurus and either a Dragon or a T-Rex.

Job 40:15-24 the Brachiosaurus from the Bible -(this is a cool link using the description of Behemouth to footage of Jurassic Park.  The embedded video is disabled, but the hyperlink will take you to it)

15 Behold now Behemoth, which I made along with you; He eats grass like an ox.
16 Behold his strength in his loins
And the power in his stomach muscles.
17 His tail sways like a cedar;
The sinews of his thighs are knit together.
18 His bones are tubes of bronze;
His limbs are like bars of iron.


Job 41 Describes the Leviathon - does this sound like a fire breathing Dragon to you? 
¹² “I want to emphasize Leviathan’s limbs
      and its enormous strength and graceful form.
 ¹³ Who can strip off its hide,
      and who can penetrate its double layer of armor?^[d]
 14 Who could pry open its jaws?
      For its teeth are terrible!
 ¹⁵ Its scales are like rows of shields
      tightly sealed together.
 ¹⁶ They are so close together
      that no air can get between them.
 ¹⁷ Each scale sticks tight to the next.
      They interlock and cannot be penetrated.
¹⁸ “When it sneezes, it flashes light!
      Its eyes are like the red of dawn.
 ¹⁹ Lightning leaps from its mouth;
      flames of fire flash out.
 ²⁰ Smoke streams from its nostrils
      like steam from a pot heated over burning rushes.
 ²¹ Its breath would kindle coals,
      for flames shoot from its mouth.



Do I believe Dragons and Dinosaurs lived on the Earth at the same time as man?  Yes, I do.  There are thousands of illustrations of them in art, ancient and up until the 1500's.  There are hundreds of legends about dragons across cultures of the world.  There are carvings of dinosaurs on swords, caves, pottery.  There are figurines throughout the globe of ancient dinosaurs.  There are legends, drawings, and stories about sea serpents and giant creatures.  There are currently today giant squid and octopus weighing tons and measuring over 150 feet.  The Congo Swamps perhaps host living dinosaurs today.  Have you watched a Loch Ness Monster special lately?  To date there have been 11,000 reported sightings of "Nessie".


Notice in the video below, the scientist just don't know what to do with the evidence before them because it does not fit their preconceived theory.  True scientists would accept evidence over theory and throw out the theory instead of the evidence.  Evolution like global warming is a religion, yet we accept this as if it is fact.  Do your own research, look into creation science - haven't you had one side of this argument ad naseum?

Even if you don't believe in God, check out the science of Creationism, and see where it takes you.