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Saturday, December 26, 2009

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Has Iran's Supreme Leader Disappeared?

Has Iran's Supreme Leader Disappeared?
by Hana Levi Julian and Nissan Ratzlav-Katz Where is Iran's Supreme Leader?

An underground Iranian activist has told Israel National News that the country's highest official -- Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei -- was spirited to a "secret place" for his own safety and that the nation's religious leaders are "scared." The source - an activist in the global Iranian pro-democracy movement who is involved in assisting a group of some 30,000 students located in Tehran and several other major cities - said Khamenei has disappeared. It is the Supreme Leader who controls Iran's foreign policy, and specifically its decisions regarding its nuclear development activities.

"I am told that Khamenei was taken to a secret place to monitor the situation and perhaps for his safety, and a helicopter was ready with a pilot in it to perhaps fly him out to Russia if the situation got out of hand," the source told Israel National News on Tuesday. "I am also told that prominent clergy went to meet with him hoping to force him to show leniency.... [Our consensus is that the mullahs are scared]."

Foreign journalists were once again banned, phone networks cut and Internet connections spotty at best as government forces tried to put the lid back on the growing unrest that again broke out during special observances on Monday.

The demonstrations, planned months in advance, were held on the nation's annual observance of the deaths of three students during anti-American riots in 1953, a day known in Iran as "16 Azar" -- December 7 on the secular calendar. It is a day that has "bitter memories for Iranians," according to the activist, who explained that the Shah's army had opened fire and killed students on that day.

Basij militia and police officers wielded batons and fired tear gas at demonstrators in Tehran who continue to protest what they contend was the rigged re-election in June of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. They also accuse the government of silencing academic freedom.

"16 Azar" ceremonies were held in all universities across Kurdestan and the suburbs, according to an Iranian blogger who reported that some 700 protesters gathered at Kurdestan University alone, singing anti-government songs, waving signs ("Death to dictator") and chanting slogans. At least 400 demonstrators did the same at Payam eh Noor University, as did a similar number at Sanandaj Azad University.

"Demonstrators' spirits were high," said the activist. "Frankly, I was nervous, since all communications systems were down, and [I was afraid of a bloody massacre. But the turnout was great when the cities of Kerman, Shahr Kord and especially Esfahan came out en masse and confronted the Basij," he related.

Basij 'Very Very Sorry' -- or Not?

"Students and most people participating were emboldened since there was confusion among the military, secret service and Basij," said the source. "Many Basij called [Persian-langua radio stations [outside Ira over the phone and apologized to the people of Iran, crying for having beaten demonstrators under Khamenei's orders," he said. "They said that they were told demonstrators were anti-Islam and Western-paid troublemakers, but now they -- the Basij -- are finding out that they have been told a lie by the mullahs and were very, very sorry for beating their own countrymen.

"The two that I witnessed and listened to their call broke down in tears. I personally listened to such calls from callers who identified themselves as Basij," he added.

Demonstrators reported they witnessed many police officers refusing to engage and attack protesters, according to the source, who said the government forces were seen arguing among themselves. "Good news for us!" he wrote, adding that another countrywide mass demonstration is being planned for Saturday.

The situation may not be as simple as it appeared to this group of activists, however; the Iran Khabar Agency reported late Monday that Basij forces attacked students at the Science Faculty Building of Rasht University, beating them violently with batons.

"As soon as the students gathered and started to chant slogans, the Basij forces attacked... Three students were tied up by their hands and feet and were thrown on vans... the Basij forces today had gone wild," according to the report.

Monday, November 30, 2009


Binion's closing Las Vegas hotel; casino remains

The Associated Press LAS VEGAS—A Binion's Gambling Hall & Hotel spokeswoman says the downtown Las Vegas property that used to host the World Series of Poker will mothball its 365 hotel rooms in a cost-cutting move. TLC Casino Enterprises spokeswoman Lisa Robinson said Monday that Binion's casino will remain open, along with the poker room, sports book and well-known Binion's Ranch Steakhouse. Robinson says about 100 of Binion's 800 workers have been notified they'll be laid off when the Binion's hotel and former Mint tower close Dec. 14. The Binion's Original Coffee Shop will also shut down, and keno operations will cease. Robinson calls the decision a result of the economic downturn and a decrease in room rates and hotel occupancy at Las Vegas-area hotels.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Ode to America

This editorial was written by Mr. Cornel Nistorescu, managing editor of the Romanian newspaper Evenimentul Zilei, in which his piece was published under the title "Cîntarea Americii" (translated into English as "Ode to America") on 24 September 2001.

Why are Americans so united? They don't resemble one another even if you paint them! They speak all the languages of the world and form an astonishing mixture of civilizations. Some of them are nearly extinct, others are incompatible with one another, and in matters of religious beliefs, not even God can count how many they are. Still, the American tragedy turned three hundred million people into a hand put on the heart. Nobody rushed to accuse the White House, the army, the secret services that they are only a bunch of losers.

Nobody rushed to empty their bank accounts. Nobody rushed on the streets nearby to gape about. The Americans volunteered to donate blood and to give a helping hand. After the first moments of panic, they raised the flag on the smoking ruins, putting on T-shirts, caps and ties in the colours of the national flag. They placed flags on buildings and cars as if in every place and on every car a minister or the president was passing. On every occasion they started singing their traditional song: "God Bless America!".

Silent as a rock, I watched the charity concert broadcast on Saturday once, twice, three times, on different tv channels. There were Clint Eastwood, Willie Nelson, Robert de Niro, Julia Roberts, Cassius Clay, Jack Nicholson, Bruce Springsteen, Silvester Stalone, James Wood, and many others whom no film or producers could ever bring together.

The American's solidarity spirit turned them into a choir. Actually, choir is not the word. What you could hear was the heavy artillery of the American soul. What neither George W. Bush, nor Bill Clinton, nor Colin Powell could say without facing the risk of stumbling over words and sounds, was being heard in a great and unmistakable way in this charity concert. I don't know how it happened that all this obsessive singing of America didn't sound croaky, nationalist, or ostentatious!

It made you green with envy because you weren't able to sing for your country without running the risk of being considered chauvinist, ridiculous, or suspected of who-knows-what mean interests. I watched the live broadcast and the rerun of its rerun for hours listening to the story of the guy who went down one hundred floors with a woman in a wheelchair without knowing who she was, or of the Californian hockey player, who fought with the terrorists and prevented the plane from hitting a target that would have killed other hundreds of thousands of people. How on earth were they able to bow before a fellow human?

Imperceptibly, with every word and musical note, the memory of some turned into a modern myth of tragic heroes. And with every phone call, millions and millions of dollars were put in a collection aimed at rewarding not a man or a family, but a spirit which nothing can buy.

What on earth can unite the Americans in such a way? Their land? Their galloping history? Their economic power? Money? I tried for hours to find an answer, humming songs and murmuring phrases which risk of sounding like commonplaces. I thought things over, but I reached only one conclusion.

Only freedom can work such miracles!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Suggestion for Normalcy

The following was in response to a post on a forum suggesting that terrorism against the US would stop if only the US would abandon Israel.

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I would suggest that we will be an enemy of Islam until we all accept Allah, regardless of what countries we support. The Islamic extremists only want to kill anyone not of their faith.

The nature of the universe is chaos. Chaos is only thwarted by intervention of mankind. The Islamists have promoted chaos for centuries. Remember the Turks slaughtering 1.5 million in the 14th ( I think) century. They have never been contributors to civilization, only takers. When is the last civil, scientific, medical, technological, or any other positive discovery you can recall coming from an Islamic nation?

Those that are guilty of being politically correct either have an agenda to allow Islamic takeover of the world or are in fear of Islamic reprisal. I am not.

I would think that we should TAKE one minute, twice a day while at work, school, wherever, and pray to our respective Judeo-Christian diety for the return of civilization to the world. We should all do this at the same time each day, together. While it's obvious our Congress won't listen to us, our President won't listen to us, our business leaders won't listen to us, there is One who will, and He is the One that can make a difference.

Suggestion for Normalcy

The following was in response to a post on a forum suggesting that terrorism against the US would stop if only the US would abandon Israel.

----------------------------------------
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I would suggest that we will be an enemy of Islam until we all accept Allah, regardless of what countries we support. The Islamic extremists only want to kill anyone not of their faith.

The nature of the universe is chaos. Chaos is only thwarted by intervention of mankind. The Islamists have promoted chaos for centuries. Remember the Turks slaughtering 1.5 million in the 14th ( I think) century. They have never been contributors to civilization, only takers. When is the last civil, scientific, medical, technological, or any other positive discovery you can recall coming from an Islamic nation?

Those that are guilty of being politically correct either have an agenda to allow Islamic takeover of the world or are in fear of Islamic reprisal. I am not.

I would think that we should TAKE one minute, twice a day while at work, school, wherever, and pray to our respective Judeo-Christian diety for the return of civilization to the world. We should all do this at the same time each day, together. While it's obvious our Congress won't listen to us, our President won't listen to us, our business leaders won't listen to us, there is One who will, and He is the One that can make a difference.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Just WHO is behind the What

Just read an interesting treatise called, “The End of Money…”

In the article the author, Richard C. Cook, provides insight into a work by another author by the name of Thomas Greco. Mr. Cook and Mr. Greco decry the "global bankers" and refer to the 'Founding Fathers' and their "fight" against the International Bankers. They point to Ron Paul and his efforts to bring out the flaws in the current the monetary system and the evils of the Federal Reserve.

With these references and denunciations it seems that these men, the authors, hold beliefs similar to those of many of today's conservative Americans who are calling for monetary responsibility and fiscal restraint. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth.

My point here is not to review the article itself but to point out what each person should do when encountering anything or anyone who is advocating ANY position. One must check out the background or histories of the people or organizations who are making the statements. Within the article "The End of Money" there is some telltale wording and 'catch phrases' that should set off alarm bells in any informed reader. I will call these 'philosophical fingerprints' or PFs.

PFs can reinforce an espoused position or they can function as a 'discordant note' in the "symphony" of thought. Where PFs are at odds with what the reader believes the author is saying it should set off alarm bells and be the 'clarion call' to start digging into just 'who' it is behind the 'what'. I will not say what PFs I found. That I leave to you to discover on your own. Most will not take the time. But, failure to do so, places the reader at the mercy of those people who who belive' rightly or wrongly, that the average American will not do the 'homework' necessary to provide themselves the knowledge for clear and considered thinking on the issue at hand.

Only when you know the 'who' part of the equation can you really begin to understand 'what' that person is saying.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Enough is Enough!

I received the following email regarding last week's visit to Montana by our President. Transparancy?

Why do we tolerate this?


Hello All,



By now you have probably heard that President Obama came to Montana last Friday. However, there are many things that the major news has not covered. I feel that since Bill and I live here and we were at the airport on Friday I should share some facts with you. Whatever you decide to do with the information is up to you. If you chose to share this email with others I do ask that you DELETE my email address before you forward this on.



On Wednesday, August 5th it was announced locally that the President would be coming here. There are many groups here that are against his healthcare and huge spending so those groups began talking and deciding on what they were going to do. The White House would not release ANY details other than the date.



On about Tuesday Bill found out that they would be holding the "Town Hall" at the airport. (This is only because Bill knows EVERYONE at the airport) Our airport is actually located outside of Belgrade (tiny town) in a very remote location. Nothing is around there. They chose to use a hangar that is the most remotely located hangar. You could not pick a more remote location, and you can not get to it easily. It is totally secluded from the public.


FYI: We have many areas in Belgrade and Bozeman which could have held a large amount of folks with sufficient parking. (gymnasiums/auditoriums). All of which have chairs and tables, and would not have to be SHIPPED IN!! $$$$$


During the week, cargo by the TONS was being shipped in constantly. Airport employees could not believe how it just kept coming. Though it was our President coming several expressed how excessive it was, especially during a recession. $$$$$



Late Tuesday/early Wednesday the 12th, they said that tickets would be handed out on Thursday 9am at two locations and the president would be arriving around 12:30 Friday.



Thursday morning about 600 tickets were passed out. However, 1500 were printed at a Local printing shop per White House request. Hmmmm......900 tickets just DISAPPEARED.
This same morning someone called into the radio from the local UPS branch and said that THOUSANDS of Dollars of Lobster were shipped in for Obama. Montana has some of the best beef in the nation!!! And it would have been really wonderful to help out the local economy. Anyone heard of the Recession?? Just think...with all of the traveling the White House is doing. $$$$$ One can only imagine what else we are paying for.



On Friday Bill and I got out to the airport about 10:45am. The groups that wanted to protest Obama's spending and healthcare had gotten a permit to protest and that area was roped off. But that was not to be. A large bus carrying SEIU (Service Employees International Union ) members drove up onto the area (illegal)and unloaded right there. It was quite a commotion and there were specifically 2 SEIU men trying to make trouble and start a fight. Police did get involved and arrested the one man but they said they did not have the manpower to remove the SEIU crowd.


The SEIU crowd was very organized and young. About 99% were under the age of 30 and they were not locals! They had bullhorns and PROFESSIONALLY made signs. Some even wore preprinted T-shirts. Oh, and Planned Parenthood folks were with them.....professing abortion rights with their T-shirts and preprinted signs. (BTW, all these folks did have a permit to protest in ANOTHER area)



Those against healthcare/spending moved away from the SEIU crowd to avoid confrontation. They were orderly and respectful. Even though SEIU kept coming over and walking through, continuing to be very intimidating and aggressive at the direction of the one SEIU man.



So we had Montana folks from ALL OVER the state with their homemade signs and their DOGS with homemade signs. We had cowboys, nurses, doctors you name it. There was even a guy from Texas who had been driving through. He found out about the occasion, went to the store, made a sign, and came to protest.



If you are wondering about the press.....Well, all of the major networks were over by that remote hangar I mentioned. They were conveniently parked on the other side of the buildings FAR away. None of these crowds were even visible to them. I have my doubts that they knew anything about the crowds.


We did have some local news media around us from this state and Idaho . Speaking of the local media...they were invited. However, all questions were to be turned into the White House in advance of the event. Wouldn't want anyone to have to think off the top of their head.



It was very obvious that it was meant to be totally controlled by the White House. Everything was orchestrated down to the last detail to make it appear that Montana is just crazy for Obama and government healthcare. Even those people that talked about their insurance woes........the White House called our local HRDC (Human Resource and Development Committee) and asked for names. Then the White House asked those folks to come. Smoke and mirrors...EVERYTHING was staged!!!!!!!!!!!



I am very dismayed about what I learned about our current White House. The amount of control and manipulation was unbelievable. I felt I was not living in the United States of America , more like the USSR !! I was physically nauseous. Bill and I have been around when Presidents or Heads of State visit. It has NEVER been like this. I am truly very frightened for our country. America needs your prayers and your voices. If you care about our country please get involved. Know the issues. And let Congress hear your voices again and again!! If they are willing to put forth so much effort to BULLY a small town one can only imagine what is going on in Washington DC . Scary!!



Kathy
Bozeman , Montana

Friday, August 14, 2009

Obamacare to Obstruct Parental Rights?

Dirty Secret No. 1 in Obamacare
Chuck Norris
Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Health care reforms are turning into health care revolts. Americans are turning up the heat on congressmen in town hall meetings across the U.S.

While watching these political hot August nights, I decided to research the reasons so many are opposed to Obamacare to separate the facts from the fantasy. What I discovered is that there are indeed dirty little secrets buried deep within the 1,000-plus page health care bill.

Dirty secret No. 1 in Obamacare is about the government's coming into homes and usurping parental rights over child care and development.

It's outlined in sections 440 and 1904 of the House bill (Page 838), under the heading "home visitation programs for families with young children and families expecting children." The programs (provided via grants to states) would educate parents on child behavior and parenting skills.

The bill says that the government agents, "well-trained and competent staff," would "provide parents with knowledge of age-appropriate child development in cognitive, language, social, emotional, and motor domains ... modeling, consulting, and coaching on parenting practices," and "skills to interact with their child to enhance age-appropriate development."

Are you kidding me?! With whose parental principles and values? Their own? Certain experts'? From what field and theory of childhood development? As if there are one-size-fits-all parenting techniques! Do we really believe they would contextualize and personalize every form of parenting in their education, or would they merely universally indoctrinate with their own?

Are we to assume the state's mediators would understand every parent's social or religious core values on parenting? Or would they teach some secular-progressive and religiously neutered version of parental values and wisdom? And if they were to consult and coach those who expect babies, would they ever decide circumstances to be not beneficial for the children and encourage abortions?

One government rebuttal is that this program would be "voluntary." Is that right? Does that imply that this agency would just sit back passively until some parent needing parenting skills said, "I don't think I'll call my parents, priest or friends or read a plethora of books, but I'll go down to the local government offices"? To the contrary, the bill points to specific targeted groups and problems, on Page 840: The state "shall identify and prioritize serving communities that are in high need of such services, especially communities with a high proportion of low-income families."

Are we further to conclude by those words that low-income families know less about parenting? Are middle- and upper-class parents really better parents? Less neglectful of their children? Less needful of parental help and training? Is this "prioritized" training not a biased, discriminatory and even prejudicial stereotype and generalization that has no place in federal government, law or practice?

Bottom line: Is all this what you want or expect in a universal health care bill being rushed through Congress? Do you want government agents coming into your home and telling you how to parent your children? When did government health care turn into government child care?

Government needs less of a role in running our children's lives and more of a role in supporting parents' decisions for their children. Children belong to their parents, not the government. And the parents ought to have the right -- and government support -- to parent them without the fed's mandates, education or intervention in our homes.

Kids are very important to my wife, Gena, and me. That's why we've spent the past 17 years developing our nonprofit KICKSTART program in public schools in Texas. It builds up their self-esteem and teaches them respect and discipline. Of course, whether or not they participate in the program is their and their parents' choice.

How contrary is Obamacare's home intrusion and indoctrination family services, in which state agents prioritize houses to enter and enforce their universal values and principles upon the hearts and minds of families across America?

Government's real motives and rationale are quite simple, though rarely, if ever, stated. If one wants to control the future ebbs and flows of a country, one must have command over future generations. That is done by seizing parental and educational power, legislating preferred educational methods and materials, and limiting private educational options. It is so simple that any socialist can understand it. As Josef Stalin once stated, "Education is a weapon whose effects depend on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed."

Before so-called universal health care turns into universal hell care, write or call your representative today and protest his voting Obamacare into law. Remind him that what is needed in Washington is a truly bipartisan group that is allowed an ample amount of time to work on a compromise health care law that wouldn't raise taxes (for anyone), regulate personal medical choices, ration health care or restrict American citizens.


Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Give Me Back My TV!

How much longer will the airwaves be dominated by the death of a pedophile?

HE IS STILL DEAD, ISN'T HE?

I know he was at one time a talented musician, but PLEASE!

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Change!

Our President promised us change if he were to be elected. Well, he has come through.

Aside from all the negative changes we are going through, there are a few positive ones as far as TheGOM is concerned. His constant shredding of the Constitution and stripping us of our rights has caused posssibly the most important change in this country since the passing of the Civil Rights Act. He has awakened the sleeping giant, the American people. The "Tea Parties" are continuing. Neighbors are getting together and starting to resist this eroding or our freedoms. There is a new wave of "community organizers" bringing people of like mind together. "WE THE PEOPLE" are beginning to wake up.

The news media has broken down. We no longer have fair and balanced coverage of the news. The networks and print have sold us out. They only report what is allowed by the administration. Any media not aligned with the administration is barred from coverage. FREEDOM OF THE PRESS is no more!

The new administation has also caused some personal changes for The GOM.
He has become politically active, joining a campaign to remove an incumbent member of the US House.
After a couple of near death experiences last year, The GOM has also become more active in his religion.
TheGOM is also learning a new language, out of a perceived need for self preservation. TheGOM is now also active in a local chapter of a group seeking to educate the nation to what is happening in OUR TIME, the death of a nation.
TheGOM has also been educating himself on international situations. The US has few allies. We don't need to anger them.

Now that TheGOM has his health back, he is thinking about getting a dog. Yes, TheGOM is getting back to a normal life. He now has family living in the same area code, friends that he would give his life for, and now a purpose in life. He will post more often, hopefully meaningful content, but probably just more ramblings of a grouchy old man. Stay tuned.

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Friday, April 17, 2009

Does the law appy equally?


Regarding the release of CIA memos:


The American Civil Liberties Union, which brought a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit that forced the release of the memos, called on the administration to name a special prosecutor to investigate torture under the administration of George W. Bush.

"We have to look back before we can move forward as a nation. When crimes have been committed, the American legal system demands accountability," said Anthony Romero, the ACLU's executive director.

"President Obama's assertion that there should not be prosecutions of government officials who may have committed crimes before a thorough investigation has been carried out is simply untenable," he said.

"Enforcing the nation's laws should not be a political decision," he added.

Amnesty International's executive director in the United States, Larry Cox, welcomed the release of the memos.



I would ask if what Romero said is true, why are there so many illegal aliens still in this country. Why are guns still in the hands of criminals? Why is the administration full of tax cheats? Why is the Constitution being trampled?

The answer is obvious. The government is out of control. They do not have a clue as to the wishes of their constituents. Both parties have betrayed "We the People".

The tax day protests SHOULD have sent them a wake up call, however the coverage by the main stream media did not accurately portray the reasons and convictions of the protesters. The White House even said that the President was "unaware" of the protests. If he was unaware, what the hell is he doing in office? 




Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Your Money or Your Life?


THE FOLLOWING IS FROM A MESSAGE BOARD AT "WE-SURROUND-THEM-IN-FORT-WORTH.COM". It is reprinted here with the author's consent.

_________________________________________________________________________________


I am not Jewish. I was raised in the Baptist Church until I reached the age of majority. At which time I chose my own religion. My mother was proud. Not because I chose hers, but because I chose at all. 

The above is the segway into the story I posted below. Truth is truth no matter from whose mouth or religion it comes. I learned early that when you disregard others simply because of what color they are or what religion they practice you diminish yourself. Well, not so much diminish as limit yourself. As Americans we have always been proud of our freedom. I guess freedom can be equated with limits, don't you think? And limiting truth - or the hearing thereof - puts a person or a people in the position of ignorance. And encouraging ignorance is the milk and honey of the dictator. 

I will finish this line of thinking after the inserted letter.
 


Your Money or Your Life 
by Rabbi Daniel Lapin 

In late 2007, eighty-three year-old Raymond Bunte confronted two young 
thugs helping themselves to his neighbor, Dolores Hendershot's valuables, 
out of her suburban San Antonio home. Clutching his shotgun, he blocked 
their exit and ordered the men to lie down on the ground. They ignored the 
old-timer and threatened him. He pulled the trigger. One criminal is dead; 
the other is behind bars. 

A few months earlier, just south of Little Rock, 93 year-old Willie Hill woke to find a hoodlum stuffing his pockets with Willie’s money, his pocket knife and his hearing aid. 24 year-old Douglas Williams was mighty surprised when Willie reached for his revolver and shot the home invader in the throat. 

Finally, in May of that same year, sixty year-old Shirley Reed was about to 
get into her car outside her apartment in Dallas. 19-year-old Charles 
Poursoltani suddenly materialized beside her, pointed a gun at her and 
demanded the keys to her car. Grandma Shirley declined to comply and 
instead she wrenched the gun out of her assailant’s hand and shot him. 
These true stories help us ask how the good Lord wants us to relate to our 
possessions. Of course we are morally obliged to defend our lives, even 
with deadly force, but how far should we go to defend our property? 
Ancient Jewish wisdom probes the protection of possessions in this verse: 
If the thief be discovered breaking in and he is struck and dies, 
there is no blood guilt. 
(Exodus 22:1) 

Ancient Jewish wisdom explores the nuances of this verse over many pages, but one concept drawn from the verse is that you are not morally obliged to let someone escape with your property. You originally obtained your possessions honestly. It follows that you used up a certain number of your hours on this earth working to earn enough to pay for that car or that television. Now if the thief gets away with your property, you will have to repeat that working time to replace the stolen object. In other words, the thief has deprived you of something far more important than a car or a television. He has robbed you of time. Since time is the one irreplaceable commodity, he has committed a grievous crime—he has deprived you of some of the time you have left on God’s earth. 

Here’s a question: what is the law if you murder someone so ill that he was guaranteed to die the next day? Can you defend yourself in court by claiming that since you only deprived this elderly man of one day of his life your crime was really insignificant? What if you shot dead, as he plummets past your window on the twentieth floor of the Empire State Building, a man who had committed suicide by jumping off the roof three seconds earlier? Though he was doomed to die seconds after you shot him, you still committed murder. In other words, stealing even a tiny bit of time from someone’s life is terribly serious. Someone who steals your possessions is also stealing time from your life. 

I tell you this not to encourage you to shoot a burglar but because the Bible enhances our lives by helping adjust our attitudes until they are more congruent with God’s blueprint of reality. We see a similar message in the 
following verses: 

(Jacob) arose that night, took his two wives, his two handmaidens, and his 
eleven sons, and crossed the ford of Jabok. He took them and crossed 
them over the brook along with his possessions. And Jacob was left 
alone and a man wrestled with him until sunrise. 
(Genesis 32:23-25) 

Ancient Jewish wisdom asks what was Jacob doing alone? The surprising 
answer is that he was retrieving some small, inexpensive containers of oil. 
These verses contain important lessons for us. If we recognize the true cost 
of each object we purchase, we will be less likely to impulsively buy items 
that will then sit unused or unappreciated. We are also morally obliged to 
care for our possessions and avoid losing them because they took time 
from our lives to acquire. 

We should cherish our property. In so doing we can honor God’s great gift to us—the days and hours of our lives. 

Published at 
YouNeedARabbi.Com 


I was taught a lesson when I was 30. That lesson was this - for the great majority of working people our life and our money are inseparable and connected. Why? Because, as Rabbi Lipin pointed out regarding possessions, we spent life to acquire it. Money is simply a possession too. A piece of our existence that we can never ever get back. 'Life Force' if you will. Kinda changes the way you look at a dollar bill? It did me. 

That brings me to the point. What do you want your life spent on. If the concept of life (irretrievable moments in time that you choose to expend and can never get back) does equate with this possession (money) then it follows that any person or government who takes this away without your consent is not depriving you of wealth - but of 'life force' itself. The days and hours (called work) that can never be replaced. 

Many lives were expended to create the United States. Many fortunes (pieces of lives) have kept her alive and viable. When life is expended earning something then that something is precious, whether we realize it or not. 

Religion aside, I had never thought of this concept until explained by Rabbi Lipin. I would have never considered such a sacred duty. Until now. No wonder charity has been so oft referred to as,
"giving of oneself." 

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

The GOM is BACK!


It's been almost nine months since the last post. Sorry 'bout that, but I'll try to keep up a little better now.

I've had six surgeries since the last post and have spent a total of 3 months in the hospital, but I feel now that I can do justice to The GOM Files.

WHERE DO I START?

Our country is in real trouble. The economy is in shreds, Israel is pissed, Russia is pissed, North Korea is pissed, Iran will have nukes by the end of the year, violence on our Southern border is encroaching on our soil, and all the administration and congress can do is spend trillions on nonsensical projects and programs designed to "spread the wealth". Capitalism is being attacked and our "representation" in DC is just going with the flow. 

How much are we willing to take? 

What atrocity will Obama have to commit before we wake up? 

Will it be too late? 

I'm afraid it already is.