100 Devastating Days Down

The good news about the 'First 100 Days' of the Barack Obama administration is that there are 100 days behind us, and so we are 100 days closer to the end of this disastrous administration. The bad news is that there remain 1,362 more days in which the President, his policy wonks, and his political allies can do even further damage to the very fabric of the United States of America. Those of us who are Republicans, and particularly those of a more conservative bent, are expected to say things like that. We didn't vote for Obama, will not vote for Obama the next time around, and in fact can see no reason to support any Democrat at this moment, so entrenched is the control and power of the ultra-liberal wing of their party. So for one of us to make such dark, gloomy, negative statements about the Obama administration can easily be written off by his supporters. But there is just one problem for those supporters. They themselves are finding it more and more difficult to actually express the reasons that they support him and his party. It was all so easy just six months ago, when they all had George W. Bush to hate. Bush-bashing was all the vogue and had been raised to an art form thanks to the constant, repetitive, relentless negative coverage given the Bush Presidency by the liberal mass media. Americans, especially Democrats, and even more particularly liberals, wanted 'Change' from Bush and from what they perceived as the negativity of the previous eight years. Had they only stood back and let their brains do the thinking instead of allowing the liberal media, as well as Hollywood and music industry celebrities, they would have been hard pressed to find a real reason to vote for Obama. They would find that presumptuous of me, and would ask what right I had to say that they didn't use their brains in the first place. To that my reply would be that they were simply being disingenuous. I talked to liberals around the time of the election. I never once heard anyone speak of any particular policy or plan of Obama's that they liked, just that it was time for a change, or they would ask me in return about the Bush administration and what had been so great about it. Never mind that the point was moot, that Bush wasn't running. The one thing that they did know was that Obama was going to stop the war in Iraq. So here we are, three months into the Obama administration, and our troops are still solidly in Iraq. Oh, there is a future plan to remove some troops down the road, of course dependant upon the Iraqis being able to fend for their own security. But the fact remains that Obama could bring home every troop tomorrow from the Middle East, and that would not end the war. What the liberals fail to realize is that it takes two sides stopping to end a war, and the radical Islamists have no intention of ever stopping. All our liberal friends need to do is to actually do any amount of serious study in relation to radical Islam, and they would understand this, but they simply refuse to look past their pie-in-the-sky idealism at the sober reality of the situation. In his 'First 100 Days', Barack Obama, the man that they elected for 'Change', has begun to change America at its very core, and not for the better. Obama has seriously handcuffed American intelligence gathering and worsened morale in the military and intelligence infra-structures, thus seriously jeopardizing our very safety. Because he refuses to keep America's military presence active and strong in the Middle East, despite some tough talk on Afghanistan, it is only a matter of time before either Iran actually has a nuclear weapon, or Israel attacks it in what would be a necessary but devastating pre-emptory self-defense bid to avoid annihilation. It is also only a matter of time before the Taliban or some other radical Islamist group takes over Pakistan, already a nuclear power, and thus places the nightmare scenario of an Islamist regime in control of full-blown weapons of mass destruction. Closer to home, he announced the imminent closing of the terrorist holding facility in Guantanamo Bay, yet made no provision for where the dangerous individuals being held there would be released. He knows full well that the vast majority will not be accepted back into their home countries, and that no reasonable nation on earth will take most of them because, well, they are dangerous terrorists. In other words, there is every likelihood that many of these individuals will be released right here into the American population next year. Nice. He went on a Euro-tour and bad-mouthed and blasted our country, much to the delight of the America-despising Europeans, then went to the Middle East and bowed down in deference to the Saudi king, and finally on to South America where he exchanged good will and gifts with one of the most virulent anti-Americans on earth in Hugo Chavez. He is dragging our nation by the hair away from freedom and capitalism and into full-blown Socialism, with the Federal government extending and deepening its reach and effect on every facet of our lives. His handling of financial matters has perhaps amazingly been even worse and potentially as or more destructive. He is pushing a 'cap and trade' plan to limit carbon emissions that would cost every single American household over $3,100 per year, thus destroying his promise of no taxes to the middle-class. He is doing this to prop-up the ultra-liberal 'green' movement that is all feel-good and no substance. The real science says that the earth has had many periods of warming and cooling in its history, and thus will have them again, but also that we are now in a period of cooling, not warming. So what is all this fuss about going 'green', and why do we need billions of dollars of new taxes and fees on Americans to support it? The simple answer is that we don't, and that while natural conservation is an excellent idea to foster for general environmental cleanliness sake it is nowhere near the apocalyptic need that has blown up under the tutelage of Al Gore and his super-liberal supporters. President Bush set a horrible precedent towards the end of his administration by bailing out some financial industry entities with federal dollars rather than letting the market work and letting them fail. Rather than start his administration with a reversal of this Bush error, the Obama administration has taken the idea and run with it, pushing the nation into a series of massive 'stimulus' bailout schemes that will now leave my grandchildren trillions of dollars in debt after Obama himself is long gone. By forcing industries from banking to automobiles to take federal money in exchange for federal control and oversight, the Socialist agenda pushes deeper. All this, and he names an acknowledged tax cheat in Timothy Geitner to be his Treasury Secretary. In his own house, Obama has had a horrible time in trying to fill many other important positions, including the embarrassment now of having a full-blown pandemic hit the world while he has not yet filled the position of Health & Human Services Secretary in his cabinet. No single President in the history of the United States has done more to harm the very heart and fabric of America than this President has done in his first hundred days. It is disheartening to realize that he still has over 1,300 more in which he can do far more substantial damage to our nation. There is some hope that if the country can get a Republican congressional majority elected next year that we can put a brake on some of this, and limit the damage. If not, the dangers both within and without that the Obama administration has opened us up to are frightening to anyone who cares to look past the liberal and administration rhetoric that such talk is simple political demonizing and negativity and at the reality of these Obama administration actions. Still, such political change may become more difficult as Obama has moved control over next year's U.S. Census out of the Department of Commerce and into the White House in an overt attempt to control the results by political means. Since Census results determine congressional allotments, this is a huge attempt at making a long term power grab by the Democrats. President Obama will take to the airwaves tonight to address the nation, field questions from a majority of reporters representing liberal media organizations, and feed the feel-good lines to his Kool Aid-drinking supporters. But the truth will be that it is 100 devastating days down, and 1,362 truly disheartening and possibly frightening days to go under a Barack Obama administration that it's messianic leader will find more and more difficult to sell with any credibility.

Pandemics Are Nothing to Sneeze At

For some people it's probably a big joke. 'Swine Flu', it just has a funny name, right? For others it's probably a case of wondering what all the fuss is about, since we are talking about a few dozen cases in the United States, and all of those are down around the border with Mexico, which has the real problem. So what's the big deal? Why all the headline stories in the newspaper and on television? And what's with all those empty stadiums this past weekend for all the big soccer matches down there south of the border? Well glad that you asked, because the topic of handling a pandemic, at least from a law enforcement perspective, is being addressed this year in one of the courses that I am teaching. The course, titled 'Crisis & Emergency Management', is a scenario-based course in which the police officers of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are presented with four unusual situations, asked to place themselves in the scenario, and are guided as to how they should be expected to have to respond. They are also given information on some of the resources that would be coming to help in the situation from the government and other entities. One of the scenarios, in fact the final one that they are being presented, is a pandemic flu outbreak. How timely, huh? I can't tell you how many times that I have gotten that look in class. You know the one, the "You gotta be kidding me, this will never happen" look. Well as today's headlines are beginning to relate, pandemic outbreaks are not only things that happened in the distant past or the subjects of science fiction, but they are very real threats to our society and our world, and we need to be prepared and informed. A 'pandemic' is a breakout of an infectious disease that spreads through populations of humans or animals or both from person-to-person (animal to person, animal to animal) across large geographic regions, continents, and even around the world. There have been a number of pandemics to hit the world in recorded history. Many have heard of the 'Black Death' of 'bubonic plague' pandemic that struck in the 14th century and killed 20-30 million Europeans in just six years. In the 19th century, another plague outbreak began in China and spread all around the world, killing 10 million people in India. There were numerous outbreaks of 'cholera' in the 19th century, including an 1866 outbreak in our own country that killed some 50,000 Americans. Also here in the U.S., the 'Spanish flu' pandemic struck in 1918-1919, eventually spreading to all corners of the world and infecting up to 5% of the human population, with 20% of people feeling some effects. In six months, some estimates had the number of dead worldwide as 50 million, but others placed it at twice that number. As recently as 1957-58, the 'Asian flu' caused upwards of 70,000 deaths here in the U.S., and in 1968-69 the 'Hong Kong flu' killed 34,000 Americans. During the 1700's, at the time of the 'Thirty Years War', approximately 8 million Germans were wiped out by an outbreak of plague and typhus. Just as recently as 2003 the world reeled at the possibility of another pandemic called 'SARS', a highly contagious pneumonia type, but quick action around the world stopped its spread before it could become a pandemic. That illness was not eradicated, however, and could reemerge at any time. The bottom line is that there is nothing at all cute about 'Swine flu' despite its comical sounding name. It is an illness that draws that name because it is prevalent in swine or pig populations. This is a killer illness that at the very least can make a lot of people very ill. You need to pay close attention to the news on this pandemic, and take every precaution that public health authorities release as seriously as possible. In a worst case scenario here in America, we could see scenes such as played out in those Mexican football/soccer games this past weekend. What are known as 'social distancing methods' could well be put into effect, where large groups of people are kept apart from one another by methods such as closing schools, bars, restaurants, and other public gathering places and events such as pro sports games would perhaps be played, but in front of empty ballparks and arenas. We will see individuals placed into 'isolation', where they have been diagnosed with the illness and are kept away from others during their period of infectiousness. We would also likely see individuals, and possibly families, work places, or entire communities put into 'quarantine' where these have been in contact with individuals who are diagnosed as positive with the illness, until those folks in contact can be deemed illness-free. And if things ever get really bad due to a pandemic disease outbreak, you need to not only pay strict attention and follow along with strict adherence to public health and law enforcement authorities directions, but it couldn't hurt to toss in a prayer or two while you're at it, because hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people are likely to end up dead.

The 'Secret' to a Good Marriage

Thanks to Miss USA runner-up Carrie Prejean, there has been a lot of discussion around the country in the past week regarding the issue of the sacrament of Marriage. I also had the honor of attending a wedding yesterday, and got to enjoy all of the joy and happiness that surrounds those blissful occasions.

I'm going to keep the marriage topic going for one more day here. Only this time it's not going to be the issue of 'who' or 'what' should or should not be allowed to marry. Rather, I'm going to dip in to my own personal experience and education bag of tricks to offer some advice to married couples, and to those who are contemplating getting married.

I think that I can speak on this topic as well as most anyone on earth. I've been married twice in my lifetime, raised children, and gone through almost every type of struggle that most normal married persons go through, including any number that I myself created along the way. I've bought and remodeled two homes. I've bought three cars, a handful of barbecue grills, and a golden retriever.

I've gone from being a 'cafeteria' Catholic to a solid, church-going, sacrament receiving, money-happily-donated defender of the faith. My point is that, like many of you, I come from a decades-long background and experience base that gives me a strong perspective of what it takes to make a marriage work.

I didn't come upon my own particular ideas easily or quickly, nor without causing myself and my family in both marriages a number of difficult moments. But what I have learned is that marriage can be broken down to the dedication of ones self to a pair of very simple words: love and priority. Let's deal with the easy one first.

Some people would think that the idea of 'love' is the more difficult, but I say that is not true. To me, love is the beginning and the bedrock of any marriage relationship. But we also need to remember what love is and is not. Love is not that romantic feeling that you get when you first meet someone and feel that 'connection' or attraction.

Many people get those early months and even first couple of years of a relationship when the sexual attraction and energy are strong, when the bonds of intimacy towards one another are first being formed, confused with actual true love. True love is something that grows over time. It may actually come in those early months for some. For others it may grow over a period of years.

One thing that is certain is that you need to have a certain level of personal experience and maturity in order to understand that true love comes not only with an attraction to, but also with a respect and a deep caring for your partner. Once you obtain that level of understanding, then the knowledge of your love for another is revealed to you in your heart.

It is a fact of your life, the very fibre of your inner being that you cannot deny. When you love someone, you see the world through their eyes, you feel their pain and their joy, you would give your life for them. You never have to ask the question, there is none to be asked. It is simple truthful knowledge. This true love will never die. It cannot be burned out by the fires, or frozen solid by coldness, or stomped out by the giants that will inevitably cross our paths in life.

The Bible indicates that love is from God, and in fact states that "God is love." He loved man so much that, despite our turn from him, despite our rebellion, "God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." This is the type of love that married people need to have towards one another. The type that sacrifices and gives in perpetuity, without expecting anything in return, that is not conditioned on the response of the other person.

I put it to you that in fact, true love is impossible without a relationship with God. The feelings that you have for one another, whatever they may be, however long they may have existed, will not be enough to sustain a true, deep, passionate, committed love without God's care and involvement in the relationship. You might feel responsibility, affection, even enjoy physical intimacy, but that is not love.

The second term is a bit trickier, and hearkens much more to the tangible, physical, easy to grasp everyday world of all of our lives. That idea of 'priority' again takes experience. There is no substitute for actually growing up, not just physically, but more particularly growing mentally and emotionally.

Through personal trial and error, through watching the example of others, and through formal education we learn that actions have consequences. We learn that some of these consequences are good, and some of our actions yield greater good. We also learn that some are bad, and yield various levels of poor results for us.

But we also learn those many lessons in between 'good' and 'bad', learning that some actions yield better results than others. And so in most of our lives we learn to 'prioritize' our actions, doing those good things most of the time that will yield us the best results.

Married couples, and this is a special message that those contemplating marriage need to hear, must make one another and their family their greatest priority, and must constantly examine their lives to ensure that their personal individual priorities are not taking precedence over those of the family.

If you are not prepared to subordinate your own needs and desires to those of a spouse and children, then you should not even be thinking of getting married. If you know that you do in fact truly love your partner, and are committed to building and sustaining a family with them throughout your life no matter what circumstances arise, then you should by all means go ahead and marry them.

You should absolutely not get married because they look good, are good in bed, like the same sports teams or music as you like, are the same religion, or for any other reason whatsoever. And once married, you need to continually prioritize your family first. Not only the caring for of them physically, but the emotional nurturing of your relationships, the education of your children, these things must come first.

Most of us work hard for hours upon hours each week, and we deserve some 'down time' for ourselves. But we must always be very careful that this time never takes away from our family time. In fact, our first enjoyment should always be in the spending of time with our partners and our children.

We also need time to sleep, to rest our bodies. If we deny ourselves this necessary act, then we make ourselves vulnerable to emotional and physical pains and anxieties that will take away our ability to make the best decisions for ourselves and our families.

A good marriage based on true love will prioritize itself to include working to sustain our families with shelter, food, clothing, and education but which also at the same time includes time with them bonding and enjoying one another. Sleep and rest must be prioritized, because without these we cannot be healthy enough to function properly in our right mind and body, thus denying our family our best.

Most everything else is extra, a bonus that comes during those few hours each week where we are not working, or enjoying time with our family, or resting. Some weeks those bonus or extra hours may not come at all, but how can any reasonable man or woman say that they are missing out on anything that life has to offer of real lasting value simply because they didn't get to listen to some music file, or play some video game, or watch some television show, or go to some concert or movie?

Believe me, over the course of our lives, a normal life will yield many opportunities for entertainment and pleasure. We must prioritize our partner, our spouse, our family above all else. And above all of this we must place our own personal, individual relationship with God, and realize that a home that has Jesus Christ as its rock and foundation has a far greater chance of weathering the storms of life than any home trying to do so without Him.

Most of the problems that we have all encountered in our lives, if we are fully honest with ourselves, can trace themselves back to times when we decided that we were going to make our own desires our priorities rather than the will of God as demanded of us in His commandments, as further expanded upon by the teachings of Jesus Christ, and then as grown by the Holy Spirit in the teachings of the Church down through the ages.

The two bedrocks of any good marriage then are love and priority. When you know without thinking that you love someone else, when they can say the same about you, and when you can confidently know that you will always make them your first priority no matter what else happens, then you have the stuff of a good, lasting, loving marriage.

I can tell you this for certain in my own life: I love my wife. Debbie Veasey has all of my love, truly and for as long as we live and hopefully beyond that, and of that there is never any question in my mind or heart, ever, no matter what happens. She has all of my love, and she is my priority. The same extends to my children and grandchildren, and the rest of my family. But that marriage between Debbie and I has to be the rock on which all the rest settles.

In the end, there will be one final test of your marriage that will absolutely tell if it was based on this true love. It will be the old 'proof is in the pudding' saying, and you won't know perhaps until your last day on this earth. This final test is stated perfectly in the closing lyrics of a song titled 'When It's Love' by the rock group Van Halen, which ends "When it's love, it lasts forever." Amen.

What a Hateful Liberal Bigot Looks Like

They have always existed, but they have become more emboldened with the recent leftward lurch in American political direction. I am talking today about liberal bigots, those lefties who are not only obstinately or intolerantly devoted to their own opinions and prejudices, but who also regard and treat those who disagree with them with vitriolic hatred. You frequently hear them harping about wanting freedom of speech, the right to express their opinions and viewpoints publicly, even the right to have their alternative lifestyles accepted by the mainstream public as 'normal' or at least 'acceptable'. But this freedom of speech, this right to express opinions and viewpoints, can never, ever extend to those who disagree with them. Perfect case in point came this past weekend with the Miss USA pageant questioning incident. As I previously discussed in another recent post, Miss California, Carrie Prejean, was a contestant in the pageant. She is a beauty queen, a model, and she had a simple goal, to win a beauty pageant title. She wasn't looking to change the world on Sunday night, and certainly when it came to the question-answer stage she did not expect a controversial question on an epic hot-button sociological and moral topic. In any event, that is exactly what she received from pageant judge Mario Lavandeira, who goes by the professional name of 'Perez Hilton'. Lavandeira is a gay activist and celebrity blogger, and basically asked Prejean whether she supported 'gay marriage', and to give the reasons behind whatever her feelings were on the issue. Carrie Prejean simply replied from her heart, basically saying that she did not support the idea, that she believed marriage should only be between a man and a woman, and that basically this was how she was raised, taught, and now fundamentally believed. In the immediate aftermath of the pageant, at which she nearly won, finishing as the first runner-up, Hilton said that Prejean was a 'cunt', and then took to the internet and video-blogged that Hilton lost because she was "a dumb bitch." So in other words, Hilton as a gay activist has a right to voice his opinion on the issue, and the mainstream American public is supposed to tolerate not only that viewpoint, but also his public expression of it. But the same right is not extended to Carrie Prejean. Because she disagrees with Hilton on this issue, and because she had the audacity to answer his question with honesty, she is pilloried as some sort of bigot and neanderthal thinker, and then called names as well? How far does this freedom of expression, this right to your own viewpoints go, Mr. Hilton? And it wasn't just Perez Hilton, but also most of the 'gay rights' movement, and in fact most liberals as well, who ganged up on Carrie Prejean. In doing so they exposed themselves publicly for what they really are, a group of hateful bigots, everything that they claim to be against. This is the United States of America, and we are supposed to celebrate, support, and grow from the expression of differing opinions, not denounce them with hatred, ignorance, and profanity. It isn't as if Carrie Prejean said that any gay who actually got married should go to hell. She didn't say they should be arrested, tortured, or even publicly embarrassed if they tried to marry. She did not express that she didn't like gay people in general, and didn't call them any names. In short, she said nothing that would incite hatred or intolerance of gays. She simply answered the question put to her regarding the issue of marriage, stating that it should be between a man and a woman, which it should. Not an opinion, but a fact since the early days of man, and one that has only gained any public forum at all since the fringe gay element of society began imposing it's radical views on the vast mainstream 'straight' majority just a few decades ago. Carrie Prejean simply answered a direct question without lambasting or profaning anyone, but the response that she received in reply has been what we have come to typically expect from the liberal community. We conservatives love an open debate, love ideas expressed in public, and embrace the notion of having them put to the test of a vote. That is the true spirit of American freedom and diversity and exceptionalism at work. There are groups who have wanted that freedom of speech repressed in the past: Nazis, Communists, and brutal dictators of all stripes go this way. Add now to that group the ultra-liberal bigots who want anyone shut up and shut down who does not agree with them, from Rush Limbaugh to Sean Hannity to Ann Coulter to Carrie Prejean. For anyone out there who agreed with Perez Hilton's response to Carrie Prejean, not his view on the topic of gay marriage, but with his response to Sunday night's question-answer session, then you can count yourself in that group of liberal bigots. NOTE: As with every entry at this Blog, there is a 'Comments' button below. You can do so anonymously, but it would be appreciated if you had the courage of your convictions to add at least a real name.

Miss California Gives Straight Answer

What was very obvious early on in the Miss USA pageant held this past Sunday night was that Miss California, Carrie Prejean, was a beautiful young woman on the outside. She was the typical stereotype of what we all would expect from a 'California Girl': blond, long legs, gorgeous face. And when it came time for the bikini/swimsuit competition she displayed the great body that you would expect to come strolling down the beach in Malibu. But what did not become apparent until right near the end was just how beautiful Carrie Prejean is on the inside. It took an incredibly controversial question under those circumstances from an incredibly outrageous, over-rated, quasi-celebrity judge in the pageant named Perez Hilton who demonstrated his own internal ugliness to bring out Miss California's inner beauty. Hilton, an openly gay male and celebrity gossip blogger, had the task of asking a question of Ms. Prejean during the final portion of the contest. All of the other finalists had to give their opinions on the somewhat difficult questions asked by a particular judge when their own turns came, but none got a more outrageous judge with a more sensational question than Ms. Prejean. Hilton asked his question with wide-eyed enthusiasm, quite obviously expecting a different response: "Vermont recently became the fourth state to legalize same sex marriage. Do you think every state should follow suit? Why or why not?" With the relative softballs that the other finalists were being tossed in comparison to this bomb shell of a question, Miss California looked momentarily lost as she searched her mind and her heart for an answer. She quite obviously knew that this was her make-or-break moment. Many people thought that she was the odds-on favorite to win, and the results of later voting showed that was indeed the case heading in to this question period. A politically correct answer, even some non-committal answer, very likely would have resulted in her being crowned as Miss USA. But fortunately for everyone in attendance and for everyone searching for good examples in these increasingly amoral days, Carrie Prejean is a Christian, and she simply could not sell out here true beliefs for a pageant crown. She stumbled through her answer as she tried hard to balance those beliefs with an answer that might still salvage the title. Some of her reply included "I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that's how I was raised." Well hallelujah! First, a young woman with integrity enough to answer a controversial question with honesty. She very well could have gone another way with her public answer, won the crown, kept her personal beliefs to herself for now, and perhaps revealed them down the road as a 'change of heart'. But that's not how Carrie Prejean rolls. This beautiful young girl just a few short years out of high school stood on that stage in front of thousands watching her live, and millions more on television, and spoke from her heart and soul. And secondly, big kudos go out to the parents and family that raised this young woman to also be beautiful on the inside, and to understand at such a young age that truth cannot be compromised for expediency. She later would comment that she now believed that God had placed her in that position intentionally, and I would have to agree with her. Immediately, the exasperated Hilton was taken aback, and he along with numerous gays in the audience and later on the internet and in other forums had negative, hurtful, and profane comments to make about this wonderful young lady. There is only one word that comes to mind: typical. The fact is that God instituted marriage as a sacrament to be between a man and a woman. That is in no way a hurtful or sexist or demeaning statement towards gays. It is simply the truth. Though there were a smattering of boos, the large majority in the audience cheered and applauded when Ms. Prejean gave her answer, one that she had to know once she was finished would derail her Miss USA hopes. As it turns out, it was still very close. She finished as a very close 1st Runner-Up in the judges voting. In the aftermath, the Miss California Organization denounced her answer and said that they did not agree with it. Shame on them for not standing up for their girl. California, one of the most liberal states in the American union, has already turned thumbs down on gay marriage when it was put to the public for a vote, which only shows that even many people with generally liberal political and social viewpoints understand basic, fundamental truths. In response, Hilton commented that she lost the pageant because of her answer, and then later video-blogged that she did not lose because of the answer, but because she was a "dumb bitch". This one should not even be considered in any way controversial on Prejean's part, but the controversy should be squarely on Perez, who showed with his attitude and his words that he is a total and complete horses ass. Perez Hilton is a perfect representation of all that is ugly in the world today, while Carrie Prejean represents all that is right and true. After his outrageous attacks on her simple honest answer, Prejean said simply that she would pray for Hilton. Thankfully, she stood up and showed all of us her beauty on Sunday night, both inside and out. Congratulations to Carrie Prejean for her high finish in the pageant, but more importantly for her, for taking the higher ground that night and ever since. NOTE: As always, the title of this entry takes you to more information on the topic, this time to a news story that shows the Miss USA question-answer, and the controversial internet response.

Remembering the Nazi Final Solution

The Nazi Party came to power under the guidance of Adolf Hitler during the 1930's, and early on they blamed the Jewish people for many of their problems. They then began to formulate a plan for what Hitler himself called the "final solution of the Jewish question." In 1935, the Nuremberg Laws were passed that saw classification of German citizens by race. If all four of your grandparents were of German blood, then you were a good German. If 3 or 4 of them were Jewish, then you were Jewish. With 1 or 2 Jewish grandparents, you were considered a 'crossbreed'. The laws prohibited marriage and intercourse between Jews and Germans, as well as the employment of German females under age 45 in Jewish households. They also stripped those of the non-German blood of their German citizenship. Efforts to begin eliminating Jews from German society began even prior to World War II, as Jews were slaughtered in mass killings and became the victims of 'pogroms', which were systematic riots against and attacks on their population centers that included physical violence and murder against people, destruction of businesses, and destruction of their places of worship. Beginning in September of 1941, all Jews living in the lands under German control were required to wear yellow patches on their clothing for identification. Jews were not permitted to become doctors, lawyers, or journalists, could not use state hospitals, and would not be schooled by the state beyond age 14. By the time that 1942 rolled around, with WWII underway fully across the globe, one million Jews had already been killed by the Nazi regime. But this was only the beginning of the worst slaughter of one group of people in the history of mankind. On January 20th, 1942 at the Wannsee Villa in Berlin, a conference named after Hitler's statement of 'The Final Solution to the Jewish Question' was held by a group of Nazi officials. It was here that the idea was born to build actual 'extermination camps' at which mass extermination of Jewish people would occur. Many Jews would also be held at 'concentration camps' if deemed healthy enough and would be utilized as slave labor, until they either died of disease or exhaustion. As the Germans conquered new territories, they set up a system of mass warehousing of Jews, and their transportation on trains to the extermination camps. Built under the direction of Heimlich Himmler in Nazi-occupied Poland, this use of actual extermination or death camps was the beginning of the final phase of the Jewish mass murders that has become known as 'The Holocaust'. This coordinated genocide of mostly Jews, but also at places including Serbs and gypsies, was accomplished by herding those who survived the arduous train rides into the camps. Here they would be led one-by-one into gas chambers, with the bodies then being either cremated or buried in mass graves. Approximately 2-3 million people, most of them Jewish, were killed during the years that the death camps operated, and perhaps 10 million more Jews were killed by the Germans when you count in mass shootings and other murder victims. Today, April 21st, is 'Holocaust Remembrance Day', on which we call to mind all of those who were murdered by the German Nazis in that final racist solution. Still today, over six decades after their use, the death camps with their gas chambers and crematories are lasting symbols of the pure evil that existed within Germany during the years just prior to and during World War II. Evil is a very real force, a real entity in our world that exists still today. We need only do what today calls on us to do, remember the Holocaust in the Nazi final solution, to plant that knowledge of evil firmly in our consciousness, and we must always be willing to fight to overcome that evil.

Rendell is Wrong on Guns

The governor of Pennsylvania wants to take away your Constitutionally guaranteed right to bear arms. He believes that there are guns flying or walking around his Commonwealth and this nation on their own, blasting away at the citizens under his charge. He believes that if he just takes away your guns, then the bad people who want to sell drugs and rob folks will never again have firearms in their hands. This must be the case. He must believe that, like some crazed cartoon, a gun walks up to people on its own and demands their cash. Or that a gun shoots itself at people on a drug corner. Or that guns leave their homes, drive down the block in their cars, and kill police officers. Never mind all of the evidence that seems to point to something completely different. That there actually do seem to be human beings who are carrying those guns, robbing people with them, and pulling the trigger to shoot people. And there is a funny thing about the vast majority of the people who it seems are always carrying those guns. They have a criminal record, have been arrested by law enforcement already, been convicted by juries and judges already, and been sent to prison already. Unfortunately for their subsequent robbery and assault and murder victims, many of them have been released early from their sentences. People sentenced to 15-20 year sentences get out routinely in a half dozen years. People sentenced to 25 years behind bars are out in a decade. And what do the heavy majority then do? They return to a life of crime, often using guns to accomplish this task. But perhaps Governor Ed Rendell understands this, and maybe he just thinks that if we do away with guns then it will be more difficult for these individuals to obtain them. What do you think? Do you think that if a bad guy wants to get a gun, no matter what kind of laws and restrictions the Governor has instituted, that he will not be able to get one? I mean, there are literally tens of thousands of guns already in the hands of private citizens across the country, and no amount of legislation enacted is going to ever do away with that fact. No, the fact is that bad guys will always be able to get their hands on guns, and the further fact is that Governor Ed Rendell knows it. He is not a stupid man, he is just a politician, and what politicians have learned over the years to do best is to make people feel good, to make them feel as if the politicians are doing something, anything, to help alleviate problems. Just like any other politician who has ever said them, Governor Rendell knows that when he and other pols speak lines such as "We're going after the guns! This is outrageous, all these shootings! Something has to be done, and we're going to do it!" he sounds tough, and some people believe it means he is looking out for them. The fact is that politicians know that they can never do away with all the guns out there, and that they cannot keep them out of the hands of bad guys. They simply do not have the political courage to stand up and tell you the truth, that the vast majority of gun crimes, like any other crimes, are committed by the same small percentage of the population over and over again, and that if you just keep these folks off the streets, crime will drop precipitously. If someone gets 25 years in jail, keep them in jail for 25 years. That's a quarter of a century that some violent criminal will not be able to victimize society. If they commit another such crime on being released, double their penalty. That pretty much takes them out of the game for the rest of their lives and ours. Spray paint doesn't cause graffiti, ignorant and delinquent people do. Matches don't light forest fires, careless and reckless people do. Guns don't rob, injure, and kill, dangerous people do. If the Governor and others like him are ever successful in restricting or limiting the purchase of guns, then the only people who will have a hard time getting their hands on them will be law abiding citizens such as you and I. There is a popular argument that these generally liberal politicians like to make, that individuals should be able to own a handgun, but not high-powered, military-style, automatic or semi-automatic weapons. They like to say that no one needs weapons such as those. Why is that? Who are they to decide that they know better than the framers of our American Constitution, who envisioned ownership of private firearms as a means of ensuring that the government could not oppress the people at the barrels of its own guns one day? Americans have the right, guaranteed by our Constitution, to protect ourselves with private firearm ownership. That was the intent of our Founding Fathers, that has been the position of numerous court decisions down through our history, and that is the reality of the situation. Liberal politicians such as Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell would be far more sincere, and far more effective, if they spent less time worrying about taking away our guns and more time worrying about taking away freedom from criminals and keeping them behind bars where they belong.

Are You Like 'Doubting Thomas'?

After his rise from the dead, Jesus appeared to a number of his disciples in a couple of different circumstances. But present at none of these was one of his closest followers, the Apostle Thomas Didymus.

Thomas was one of Jesus' original twelve disciples, one of his inner sanctum. Yet when the others related the news to him that Jesus was indeed raised from the dead, and that the Lord had appeared before each of them, Thomas doubted. He said to them "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."

How many of you reading this feel the same way? You may have been raised in the Christian faith, yet for many that faith has become watered down, and in some cases has disappeared entirely. For others it is something that they profess, and yet do nothing about.

You claim to not need the Church, not need anything 'formal', not need anything sacramental. You are 'spiritual', whatever that means, and no one should dare to presume to tell you what you should and should not believe. After all, everyone has their own beliefs, and we should not force ours on others. Actually, nothing could be further from the truth.

Jesus and his Apostles evangelized, and Jesus himself called on all of his followers to do the same, to spread his Word throughout the corners of the world. Once your life has truly been touched by Christ, there is nothing that you can do to hide that fact, and spreading that word and belief is something that you are bound to do in accordance with your faith.

Thomas was there in the beginning of Jesus' public ministry. He was there throughout the travels around the Holy Land as Jesus spread his message of love and hope. He was there as Jesus entered into Jerusalem in triumph. And he was there as Jesus was taken into custody, put on trial, scorned and scourged, and killed on a cross.

But apparently there was something particular to Thomas' belief in Jesus Christ, the same thing that is particular to many of your belief in Christ. He believed as long as he could see, hear, touch Jesus Christ. Once Jesus was dead, he was history, and Thomas did not have the faith to carry his belief beyond the grave, beyond that history.

Most people understand and believe that Jesus Christ was a real human being in history, and accept that he was a great preacher and holy man in his time who was indeed eventually considered a threat and was ultimately dealt with by the authorities. The rest comes with true faith.

A week after Jesus had last visited his disciples, just a couple of weeks after his death, burial, and rising, the group was again gathered in hiding behind locked doors for fear that the authorities might still be looking for them. Suddenly there standing among them was Jesus himself, appearing out of nowhere, and saying to them "Peace be with you."

He then turned and directly addressed Thomas: "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." Thomas was overcome with Jesus' appearance in front of him, speaking to him again. "My Lord and My God!" is how he responded.

Thomas immediately recognized and acknowledged Jesus Christ for exactly who and what He was. Not a man somehow back among other men, but God himself, the Messiah raised from the dead to bring spiritual deliverance to all men. Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."

I myself have never seen Jesus Christ in person. He has never appeared to me in a dream or a vision. I have never viewed video of his life, or still pictures of his feats. I have never spoken with anyone who can claim any of these things either. But I have met Jesus Christ. He has come into my life.

I cannot claim to have always followed his word, always obeyed all of God's commandments, always been a regular church-goer, always set the best example. But I can say this. I cannot ever remember a time in my life when I did not believe in Jesus Christ as God.

It has been my ultimate happiness to learn more as I have grown older, and grown to understand more about Christ, how he died for my sins specifically. I only pray that you feel the same. That any 'Doubting Thomas' left out there today, especially among those who I count as loved ones, will seek and find what I have found in Jesus Christ.

Islamism Series: The Brotherhood

With the new kinder, gentler Obama administration becoming more and more entrenched by the week, their media apparatus and their own actions have thus far been successful in lulling us to sleep. To ignore the presence and growth of radical Islam here in the United States, to sleep the sleep of the dreamers who believe that a simple regime change here in America has made any difference to those radicals whatsoever, places us all in greater danger. On Monday, April 6th, 2009 the Hudson Institute, one of the most respected research think-tanks in the world, issued a report on 'The Muslim Brotherhood in the United States'. In short, the report states that "Leadership of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood has said that its goal was and is jihad aimed at destroying the U.S. from within." The report goes on to talk about the stated means of making this happen, by establishing Islamic organizations here in the U.S. that are under the control of The Brotherhood. The organization has for more than four decades been building a wide-ranging and elaborate cadre of front groups while denying publicly that it has any desire to topple the American governmental structure. The Hudson report, written by Steven Merley, says that the current operating goal has been in existence for at least two decades, and that is one of the concept of 'Settlement'. This benign-sounding term basically means the establishment, organization, and growth of Islam here in America. The reality behind this soft-sounding term of 'settlement', as a 1991 document published by U.S. Brotherhood leader Mohammed Akram said, is quite simply "a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying Western civilization from within." The Muslim Brotherhood is to be at the forefront of that jihad here in the U.S., propped up by a covert infrastructure that supports a series of public organizations. Merley's Hudson report goes on to describe the growth of the Brotherhood in Europe prior to its coming to America, and then goes on to elaborate on that move here to the U.S. and its growth here since the 1960's. The wrap-up is the truth that the Brotherhood continues to publicly deny: it has a radical Islamic history, it has supported radical Islamic groups with ideology, money, and legal support, and it has made no efforts to reform itself. In short, the Muslim Brotherhood remains an organization committed at its very core to infiltrating the American government and society, and slowing but surely seeking and finding ways to overthrow democracy, capitalism, and freedom itself, replacing it with rule by fundamentalist Sharia Islamic law. Since taking office, some have claimed that Mr. Obama has allowed this organization to find a footing with him in Washington, including Douglas Farah at the Counterterrorism Blog who recently posted an article titled 'The Inroads of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Obama Administration'. It is difficult to make that leap, that Brotherhood members, whether pronounced or covert, are in any way a part of the Obama administration. What is not difficult to examine, however, is the general attitude towards security and intelligence that the administration is taking. There is an article in today's Wall Street Journal by Gen. Michael Hayden, director of the CIA from 2006-2009, and Michael Mukasey, who was the U.S. Attorney General from 2007-2009 which is headlined 'The President Ties His Own Hands on Terror' and which basically claims that Obama's actions are making us less likely to be able to effectively monitor groups like the Brotherhood here in America. They talk about a book by Jack Goldsmith titled 'The Terror Presidency' in which Goldsmith speaks of "cycles of timidity and aggression": politicians, such as the Obama people are doing today, pressure the intel community to push legal limits, then accuse these people when aggressiveness goes out of vogue, thereby incurring no risk to themselves, while then being able to call the intel community timid in the wake of a 9/11-type attack. This is just one of many dangers with the Obama administration. They will talk tough, but tie the hands of intel and security people publicly, then will quietly tell them to do whatever they can to ensure our national security, and will either take praise if all goes well or shift blame to that intel and security community if things go poorly or a major attack happens. The 'intel' community didn't get that moniker from nowhere, they aren't stupid, and so they see how this game is being developed by the Obama folks, who have had a near-impossible time attempting to fill many of their highest-level job positions in these areas. One has to hope that it won't take a 9/11, or worse, for the Obama folks to wake up and realize the true danger that groups like the Muslim Brotherhood pose to America, its people, and our traditional way of life. While Obama plays political games with intel and security, the Brotherhood continues to operate towards its stated objective of one day lowering the American flag, and raising an Islamic flag over the White House. NOTE: As always, the title of this piece is a link to further information on the topic, this time to Steven Merley's Hudson Institute report.

Tea Parties Signal New American Revolt

On the night of December 16th, 1773, American colonists who had grown weary of British taxes on all sorts of goods boarded three ships in Boston harbor and dumped crate loads of taxed tea into the harbor waters. This protest against 'taxation without representation' became known down through history as 'The Boston Tea Party', and is considered a defining moment as the colonists moved towards declaring their Independence just two and a half years later. Today is April 15th, and it is also the deadline for American citizens to file their income tax returns. All across the country, a new revolutionary movement has been building for months, and it will continue in over 500 locations across all 50 states with today's nationwide 'Tea Party' protest events. What has ignited this grass-roots, web-based fire storm is the unprecedented turn towards a more massive government structure with greatly increased tax burdens for all American individuals and businesses. It is a bipartisan effort battling the situation that began with President Bush's $168 billion dollar 'stimulus' that has been taken to even worse levels by new President Barack Obama. As was posted by The Heritage Foundation, "Americans have grown more and more wary of the ever expanding size and scope of the federal government." Obama's supporters continue to send up the smoke screen message that his plans will cut taxes for those making under $150,000 per year in income. What they fail to tell people is how the vast majority of those making just over that figure are small business owners: bar owners, dry cleaners, restaurateurs, gift shops, diners, hair cutteries, and many more. They will all see their taxes rise, which means that their customers will see their prices rise, or these businesses will reduce services and/or employee jobs, or all of these eventualities. Some will even have to close their doors for good, further worsening the jobs situation. What lies behind the Obama tax cuts for the lesser income individuals, which include myself and my family as well, are not any desires to help us out. What lies behind them is an effort to expand government control of a greater and greater portion of our everyday lives. They hope to do this by forcing us out of self-support, out of dependency on jobs in the private sector, and into a process where we look to the federal government for our support. Force some companies out of business with tough tax policy, then make those remaining take federal 'bailout' money to remain in business, with the condition of yielding power to the government to regulate those businesses as they see fit. The government, not private industry, becomes the vehicle that drives the nation. This is, despite what Obama and Democratic political administration officials whine, pure and simple Socialism. President Ronald Reagan himself said it best when he stated that the nine most frightening words in the English language are: "I'm from the government, and I'm here to help." Making individuals reliant on the government kills wide-spread and large-scale innovation. History has proven this time and again. Capitalism is the vehicle which drove the world to it's greatest technological, medical, and societal heights over the past two centuries. Freedom was the fuel for that capitalist vehicle. History has also proven that the way to overcome financial problems is to lower taxes, loosen regulation, and allow the market to readjust itself. When you try to control the markets, you only accomplish one thing - control. It is that political control and power that Obama seeks. Millions subordinate to the government, reliant on it for their very subsistence, and indebted to politically support it in order to sustain those new 'benefits'. All the while, the cost to all of us will be reduced quality in services, and reduced overall benefits to society due to a decrease of innovation. With all of the spending that the Obama administration has embarked upon with their reckless 'stimulus' and 'bailout' packages, not to mention the numerous and incredibly substantial programs that they intend to implement, it is only a matter of time before they will be forced to raise taxes on that middle class whom they now say will get a break. At some point, these bills will have to be paid, and at that point, as the website hotair.com says we in the middle class "will get hammered." Today's wide-ranging 'Tea Party' events will attempt to begin to spread that message more widely. The mass media has largely ignored this grass-roots movement to date, solely because it flies in the face of the Socialism that the newspaper industry needs in order to remain viable and alive financially. Newspapers all across the country are dying because their ultra-liberal editorial sections and news coverage have driven the masses to other sources. The same goes for television news rooms, most of whom have seen their ratings drop precipitously in recent decades for the very same reason. These industries blame the internet and cable television for their demise, failing to acknowledge that it is conservative and moderate websites and cable news programs that have flourished. The fact is that the 'silent majority' in America remains traditionalist, if not conservative, and it is these individuals who are growing the Tea Party concept and other movements. President Barack Obama has significantly overplayed his hand, and we can only hope that 'We the People' can stand up and attempt to minimize the damage until we can get him out of office for good. In the aftermath of the original Boston Tea Party, Samuel Adams wrote that the acts were not those of a lawless mob, but was instead a principled protest and the only remaining option the people had to defend their constitutional rights. The same momentum is building today, and the Tea Party is just one step in this new American revolution.

Harry the K is Outta Here

"Once there was a silly old ant, who thought he could move a rubber tree plant. Everyone knows an ant can't move a rubber tree plant. But he had high hopes. He had high hopes. He had high apple pie in the sky hopes." There is perhaps no more wonderful, in-character moment in the adult life of Harry Kalas than that of him standing in a beer and champagne-drenched Phillies locker room in the fall of 1993. The Phils had just accomplished what many thought impossible. What is still perhaps the most beloved group of Phillies in the franchise' long history, a team that featured such characters as John Kruk, Mitch Williams, Lenny Dykstra, Curt Schilling and Darren Daulton, had just defeated the powerful and favored Atlanta Braves to win the National League pennant one year after finishing in last place. Harry stood in the middle of the trainer's room with the players all gathered around, everyone soaked with that bubbly and brew, and led them in a rousing version of the song "High Hopes" that someone had the great vision to actually record for posterity. The scene in the bowels of Veteran's Stadium can be viewed on any number of video products released from that magical season. It is my absolute favorite Harry Kalas moment of all-time. The pure joy in Harry, the obvious love that he had for the Phillies organization, and the particular affection that he had for that group of players was on full display. Last week, Harry Kalas began his 39th season as the lead broadcaster for the Philadelphia Phillies radio and television broadcasts. It all started with a game in April of 1971 that christened the shiny new Veteran's Memorial Stadium in South Philadelphia. On Monday afternoon it ended fittingly at a ballpark. Harry was prepping for last night's broadcast of the Phillies game at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. when he collapsed in the press box. At the age of 73, the man who had become known affectionately as 'Harry the K' and respectfully as 'The Voice' had reached the end of his days. My own love affair with the team traces back to that very 1971 season. As a 9-year old, I began to be infatuated with the game and the team that had just moved from North Philly down to almost being in the shadow of my own home in South Philly. My friends and I would ride our bikes that spring up on to the nearly completed but not yet opened Delaware Expressway, now known simply as 'I-95', from our homes in the Two Street neighborhood and around to the shining new jewel of towering white columns that was 'The Vet'. We would ride around the concourse of the stadium, hitting full speed before exiting off one of the many long, sloping ramps that would lead tens of thousands of fans up to the entrances just weeks from then. The thrill of those rides was as great a rush as any 9-year old could ever hope for, or so I thought in the days just before my Phillies affair would begin. My dad took my brother and I to the Opening Day festivities for the Vet, and there we got to see the magical dancing water fountain in centerfield, the gigantic unfurling American colonial flag, the fan-friendly baseline picnic areas, and the huge, smiling faces of a couple of characters, Phil and Phyllis, who would fire off a cannon to celebrate every Phillies homerun in those early Vet days. I was hooked, and I began to listen to Phils games on the radio, something that for every year of my life growing up I had already heard my own grandfather and many of the older men of the neighborhood doing while sitting out on their porches on almost every summer evening. These men had listened to the games as they were broadcast from old Connie Mack Stadium by the legendary By Saam and Bill Campbell, and a relatively young, recently retired, and popular former Phillie named Richie Ashburn. But for the new era now opening at The Vet, the team wanted a new fresh face and voice, and so they lured the 35-year old Harry Kalas away from the Houston Astros organization where he had been the on-air voice since 1963. When I turned on my little transistor radio that April and began to follow the Phils, it was Harry's voice that greeted me, as it would for every single Phillies season over nearly four more decades. In those early years the Phillies quickly began to become strong competitors in the National League, culminating in the club winning three straight Eastern Division titles from 1976-78. They had some veteran pitchers such as Steve Carlton and Tug McGraw, and talented young players like Larry Bowa, Bob Boone, Greg Luzinski, and most importantly a young, slugging 3rd baseman named Mike Schmidt. Over nearly two decades, Harry Kalas would develop a strong relationship with the Phillies Hall of Famer and greatest-ever player, highlighted by the development of a legendary and iconic homerun call that Phils fans would hear across two generations: "Swing, and a long drive, deep left field....Outta Here! Homerun, Michael Jack Schmidt!" It was a call that every Phillies fan would learn to imitate as well. You can stick a microphone in the face of almost any Phillies fan and get them to do their 'Harry homerun call' impression. Harry also developed an intense friendship with the man with whom he shared the broadcast booth for 28 seasons, the man who he simply called "His Whiteness", Rich Ashburn. The on-air chemistry that the two men had rivaled their off-field friendship, and this came out clearly in their banter and game-calling. When 'Whitey' passed away following the calling of a game late in the 1997 season, no one mourned more deeply than Harry, and for the rest of his career there would be fond, sentimental references to Whitey woven into many Phils' broadcasts. As many fans did, I had my own moment with Harry Kalas. It came during a late-90's season bus trip that some of my family members had taken to see the Phillies play the Baltimore Orioles at the beautiful new Camden Yards ballpark. We had rented out a party room for some pre-game food and drinks, and at one point I had to use the men's room which was down the hall from our party room. As I exited that men's room, there walking out of the doorway of another party room at the same moment was none other than Harry the K himself. I was startled at seeing the man so closeup, and he seemed startled just from the timing of our entry into the hallway at the same moment. I just blurted out "Hey, Harry!" and his reply was something that I can still hear ringing in my ears today: "Hey, How are ya?" in that typically friendly but signature voice as he ducked into the bathroom that I had just left. Harry Kalas had just personally addressed me with that voice. As stupid as it sounds to some of you, it was one of the most memorable moments of my life. That's how big a Phillies fan, and a Harry Kalas fan, I had become, and still am to this very day. In the fall of 1980, the Phillies gave their fans what they had been waiting for over a century to see, a championship. But for we Phillies fans there was something missing. The rules of Major League Baseball at that time did not allow hometown broadcasters to call the games on radio or television, and so there were no broadcasts of Harry Kalas and Richie Ashburn calling those games in a live format for our fans. That lost opportunity made what happened in 1993 with those 'Macho Row' Phillies even more special, hearing Harry and Whitey get to call the World Series games together. But the Phillies lost that series in dramatic fashion thanks to the walkoff homerun by Toronto's Joe Carter, and so Harry still had never called a championship. Through any number of tough seasons in the late 1990's you wondered whether an aging Kalas would ever get that opportunity again. In 2002, Harry was honored with the Ford Frick Award for baseball's immortal broadcasters, and subsequently with enshrinement in the baseball Hall of Fame, joining both his longtime Phillies pals Whitey and Schmitty among the games legends. With a coming new ballpark the Phillies management and ownership began to loosen the purse strings and bring in some new talent like Jim Thome and Billy Wagner, and the team began to win again as one of baseball's most beautiful facilities opened at Citizens Bank Park. After a couple of seasons a group of young homegrown players like Jimmy Rollins, Pat Burrell, Cole Hamels, Ryan Madson, Ryan Howard, and Chase Utley finally brought the Philadelphia Phillies back to the World Series stage. On the night of October 29th, in the culmination of a game that had taken two days thanks to weather conditions, the Phillies were just one strike away from finally winning another World Series title when Harry finally was able to make the live call: "One strike away; nothing-and-two, the count to Hinske. Fans on the their feet; rally towels are being waved. Brad Lidge stretches. The 0-2 pitch — swing and a miss, struck him out! The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 World Champions of baseball!" It was a moment long overdue, and a shining moment that Harry Kalas deserved as much as anyone who has ever broadcast any sporting event. This past Sunday afternoon, my wife and I were in our car, driving home from having spent Easter Sunday down the shore with some family members. We are both big Phillies fans, and got to enjoy both that unforgettable 1993 season and World Series heartbreak and the 2008 World Series victory celebration together. On the ride home we were enjoying the 39th season of listening to Harry Kalas call Phillies games, as the Phils put the finishing touches on a victory over the Rockies out in Colorado. As we heard Harry call it: "Bouncing ball to Chase Utley, this should be the game... Chase throws him out, and that will be it as the Phil's win 2 out of 3 here at Coors Field, coming back to take this one by a score of 7 to 5." Little did we know that it would be the final time that we would here Harry close out a Phillies game. There is an old saying that all good things must come to an end. Every one of those 1971 Phillies, the 1980 world champions, and the 1993 NL champs saw the ending of their careers come. Richie 'Whitey' Ashburn saw the end of his life come, as did Phillies legends like John Vukovich and Tug McGraw. This one carries perhaps the deepest sting and hurt, more so than even with the Tugger himself, who was a truly beloved figure in town. For almost four decades, Harry Kalas came into all of our living rooms and our cars, into our places of work, our back yards, our front porches, and down on to the beaches with us. He brought a magical, story-telling quality to Philadelphia Phillies baseball games with a unique signature of a voice, and with a love and passion for both the team and the game that if you listened long enough made you incapable of turning it off before falling in love with it as well. Now, Harry is back reunited with his good friend Whitey, calling games in heaven, which gives me something even more to look forward to in the hereafter. The words 'legend' and 'icon' are tossed around sometimes with too much ease. 'Harry the K' was truly an iconic legend here in Philadelphia that will never, ever be forgotten. And the great thing is that we have so much of it recorded. We will hear that voice at various times over the rest of our lives. Perhaps the best way to end this tribute would be with one personal indulgence. Far from being disrespectful, I believe the man that I met in that Camden Yards hallway a decade ago would love it. One final call, this time for Harry instead of by him: "It's a long life, deep affection left at the field, Harry Kalas is....Outta Here!"

Make Pirates Walk the Plank

Shiver me timbers, thar's pirates lurkin' in the waters off the coast of Africa in 2009! Who woulda thunk it! Blue Beard? Black Beard? Captain Hook? Do these fellas have peg legs, long beards, bandannas, eye patches, and parrots on their shoulders? A bit light-hearted there, but there is really nothing funny about what is happening these days off the African coast, as modern day pirates are taking over ships, attacking crews and holding them hostage, and making off with loot by the millions. One of the questions usually asked relates to wondering how a small speedboat can overcome a large fishing trawler or a huge cargo ship. Here is the general attack scenario. The little speedboat moves at high speed and is loaded up with a small crew of 'pirates', often from areas around either Somalia or Nigeria. It approaches the larger ship suddenly and then the pirates cast a rope ladder onto the larger ship. They climb the ladder and make their way through the ship to the crew, taking them hostage and sometimes killing them. The pirates are armed with sophisticated weaponry that includes high-powered automatic weapons, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, and even hand grenades. Even at times when the larger ship sees the pirates coming, they cannot overcome them because of this advantage in weaponry. Due to international shipping regulations, insurance concerns, and for other reasons, the crews on the ships do not normally carry the weapons necessary to overcome the pirates attacks. The pirates can hold the ship cargo and crew for ransoms which can run into the millions of dollars, or they can simply hijack the ship and have it taken to land, where they steal whatever they can from that cargo. The pirates come from poor lands, and that is the simple goal of their mission: money, wealth, material goods. CNN reported that the pirates also threaten and attack tourists, stating that "In March, Somalis hijacked a yacht and its crew of seven off the Seychelles." The modern-day pirates attack sometimes hundreds of miles from the shorelines, and while U.S.-led efforts to combat the pirates has resulted in a decrease in their success rate, the overall number of attacks is increasing. Despite the fact that the problem has been going on for some time, this past week saw the issue finally addressed by the American mass media, and thus the American public finally began to become aware of what is happening. The American ship 'Maersk Alabama' was attacked by pirates in the waters off Somalia on April 8th. The crew initially managed to beat back the pirates, and the ship's Captain Richard Phillips agreed to remain on-board with the pirates with his crew freed while negotiations took place between American authorities and Somalian groups. Just yesterday a rescue was effected when 3 of 4 pirates were picked off by snipers aboard the USS Bainbridge. The Somali groups have now vowed revenge on America, saying “France and the U.S. will encounter unforgettable lessons...We will take quick revenge on American ships if we don’t receive apologies...We will not only target ships and crew in the sea, but also American agencies’ staff in Somalia.” Wonderful. They attack our ship, take our citizens and workers hostage, but we need to apologize to them? That would be hilarious if the pirates weren't so deadly serious. President Barack Obama and his national security people need to ensure safe passage through international waters for the American shipping business and for American tourists. Taking out the 'Maersk Alabama' pirates with sniper fire was a tremendous first step, but much more needs to be done. People need to learn that the answer to their need is never forcibly taking what belongs to someone else, especially when that action puts human lives in danger. However, the larger solution to this problem ultimately will only be addressed by the solution to a far greater problem, that of African government instability. In the short run, the piracy needs to be dealt with harshly while those governing issues are dealt with diplomatically.

After the Fire, the Fire Still Burns

John the Baptist began to spread the new way with a fiery oratory style and a radical message that inspired the masses and threatened the establishment. So the powers-that-be chopped off his head and extinguished his fire. Or so they thought.

Little did they know that Jesus Christ was there to pick up the torch. He would not allow the flame to be extinguished. Instead his message and his style went even further, flaming up so brightly that many saw the hope of an entirely new world, one which would not see the current authorities retain their traditional power. And so again out of fear, they took him away. They beat him, mocked him, and nailed him to a cross where he would also die. They thought that they had extinguished the flame once again. The fire was out as Jesus died and his followers, it's final flickering embers, dispersed into the wind. Or so those same powers of this world thought.

Jesus had indeed been put to death on Friday, and his body taken away and buried in a tomb on Saturday. A massive stone had been set against the opening to the tomb, and guards set outside so that none would be able to remove it. And so night time fell, and into the early still-dark hours of Sunday morning, Jesus lifeless body lay there entombed.

Early on Sunday morning, three of Jesus' female followers arise before dawn, gather their spices and oils, and set out for the tomb. Mary Magdalene, Salome, and another Mary intended to further and better care for Christ's body, which had been hastily prepared for initial burial by Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. They had followed Jesus in the group of his closest friends for some time. They had the fire lit inside them by his new teaching that included "Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted."

Setting out at about the same time was a 2nd group of women, led by Joanna, who had arranged to meet Mary Magdalene's group at the tomb. They too had the fire lit inside of them by Christ's teachings that included "love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you." They knew that a large stone had been rolled in front of the tomb, but they had no idea that it had now been sealed and had guards placed at its entrance.

Before they arrived, an angel suddenly appeared at the tomb and frightened the guards with his brightness. The guards fled in awe and terror, and when they did the angel rolled the stone away from the tomb. As Mary Magdalene's group approached they immediately saw that the stone was rolled aside, and that the tomb was open. She left the other two there and immediately returned to town to let Jesus' Apostles know that the tomb was open.

The other two women decided to enter the tomb, and there they found the angel who said to them "Do not be afraid. I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has been raised from the dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him.' Behold, I have told you." The two women quickly ran back to town to give the message to the Apostles.

Then Joanna's group arrived, are met by two angels, and are given the same message. They also excitedly return to tell the message. They catch up with the first group, and all of the women are suddenly met on the road by Jesus. They immediately fall to his feet and do him homage as he gives them the message himself: "Do not be afraid. Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me."

Peter and John, having been given the message by Mary Magdalene, run ahead of her and arrive at the tomb. The fire of Jesus' teachings which included "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden" has fully engulfed their lives. There they see that Jesus is gone, and examine the burial cloths. They observe that in the condition the cloth is found, it appears as if Christ's body was not removed, but instead appears to have simply disappeared from within.

For all of these men and women, these close followers of Jesus Christ, the Word burns like a flame within. It will be further inflamed as the reality of his rise from the dead and the continuation of his teaching takes place in the coming weeks. Christ had died, but now he had risen and thus had defeated darkness, sin, and death. The authorities had once again misunderstood. Just as with the snuffing out of John's life they had not put out the fire of his message, neither had they with Jesus' death.

Jesus spread his fiery message during his lifetime and his public ministry, and the authorities believed that fire had been put out. These earthly 'authorities' failed to realize that after the fire of Christ's life had been extinguished, the fire of his message still burned. On his return it now burned again even brighter, and would begin to spread around the world as a raging inferno of peace, hope, and love.

Christ Has Died

There is no credible historical or religious writing that makes any allusion to any other fact than that Jesus Christ died on the cross and was buried in a nearby tomb. He was not miraculously raised up to Heaven, he was lowered down from the cross, likely by his friends and followers, or by workers hired by Joseph of Arimathea. Joseph was a rich man who also had become a follower of Jesus and believed in his teachings. Joseph had stepped forward to donate a nearby tomb which he owned as the final burial place of Jesus, and thus had asked for the body. His wealth and his status in the community as a member of the 'Sanhedrin', a local governing council, impressed Pilate enough that he granted Joseph permission. When you think about this particular act, think a little more deeply. Roman law at the time was actually against this very type of action, because the authorities feared that such a tomb would become a shrine of pilgrimage. There has been some speculation through time that Pilate granted the request simply because of Joseph's status in the community, or possibly some bribe or payment from Joseph. There is also speculation that it was a simple matter of conscience. Pilate believed that Jesus was innocent of any crime, let alone one for which he should have been put to death. He stated this numerous times in the hours leading up to the crucifixion. At least a part of his decision to allow the burial at Joseph's tomb may have come simply from feelings of guilt. Approval for this act of charity was granted by Jesus' family as well, and so the cross was lowered and the battered, bloody, and lifeless body of Christ was removed from it. We think about the drama surrounding Jesus' passion and many of the events surrounding his death and resurrection, but we rarely contemplate the most minute details as Joseph and his friend Nicodemus would have dealt with them in the aftermath of the crucifixion. The reality would be that men had to remove the long nails from Christ's hands and feet. They would have had to untie his arms. Someone would have had to remove the mocking crown of thorns from his head. His body would have then been wrapped and carried away towards Joseph's tomb, which was not far from Golgotha. Items involved in the crucifixion such as the nails, the rope, the crown of thorns, and even the cross itself on which Christ hung were most assuredly taken by some of Jesus' followers or by others who believed these artifacts would have some material value as souvenirs, if not by Joseph and Nicodemus themselves. Before being laid in the tomb, Joseph and Nicodemus would have had the body brought to a room where they cleaned it, prepared it for burial with myrrhs and aloes, and wrapped it in a linen cloth. Jesus' mother Mary, and his close friend and follower Mary of Magdalene, were both present throughout the entirety of the process as he was lowered from the cross, transported to the burial place, prepared for burial, and finally laid in the tomb. It was likely their intention to both ensure that he receive proper treatment, and they also planned on returning to the tomb at some point to apply further oils and spices to the body, a process that normally took place over a few days. Finally, Christ's body was carried into the tomb, likely with a small, somber ceremony of simple witness and prayer possibly only involving Joseph, Nicodemus, and the two Mary's, as Jesus' other followers had fled into hiding. A large stone was then ordered to be rolled into place to seal the tomb. On the following day, the chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate and asked that guards be posted at the sealed tomb for three days, because they understood the significance of the belief that Christ was the Messiah, and that it was foretold that he would rise on the third day. The officials feared that Jesus' followers would come by night, remove the body from the tomb, and then claim that Jesus had risen from the dead in fulfillment of the prophecies. Pilate granted this request, and either Roman centurions or Temple guards went to the tomb, ensured that it was secure, and then stood a vigilant watch. All through the day on Saturday, and through Saturday night into early on Sunday morning, Jesus' battered, cold, dead, wrapped body lay in that tomb in utter darkness.

The Place of the Skull

Golgotha is a real place, once a hill in Jerusalem where Jesus Christ was nailed to a cross and died for our sins. Be it in Latin, Greek, or Aramaic, the word or term that we know today as 'Golgotha' means 'the place of the skull'. That is also how it was described in all four of the Biblical Gospels. There are many important places in human history where events have taken place that have shaped humanity. There are none more important than Golgotha, for it was here that Jesus died so that you and I, and indeed the entire human race, might have the chance at eternal salvation. Jesus had been arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, had to endure six separate hearings or trials in one overnight and morning period, been beaten, whipped, and mocked, and had a crown of thorns embedded into his forehead. The Romans had hoped that this unmerciful treatment would satisfy the Jewish leaders' appetite for Jesus' blood, but it did no good. Their cry continued to be "Crucify him!" And so that is what Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor over Judea, ordered to be done. It is very hard to imagine how we can now refer to the remembrance of these events as 'Good Friday', for there was nothing good about the way that Christ was treated. With his back, arms, and legs scarred and bleeding from the beating, he was forced in the morning sun to carry his own cross up the rugged embankments of the hill known as Golgotha. When he reached the exact place that the execution was to take place, his hands and feet were tied and then nailed to the cross. His cross was then raised up and placed into a holding 'ring' which had been struck into the stone for support. Here hung the Son of God, who had come down to Earth as man to achieve this very purpose, in the hot baking sun for three hours. Then at noon the sky went suddenly dark. As Jesus hung on the cross during this period of darkness, God withdrew Himself, and Christ bore the full weight of the sins of all mankind, you and I and all men throughout history, utterly alone. At approximately 3:00pm, Christ uttered his final words: "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." He breathed his last and gave up his spirit. A great earthquake rocked the land as tombs were split open and the Temple veil was torn from top to bottom. Taking in this dramatic site, a stunned and awed Roman centurion stated "Truly this was God's son!" His body was then taken down and away by Joseph of Arimathea, to be prepared for burial in a nearby tomb belonging to Joseph's family. The place where Christ was crucified and buried now lies fully within the boundaries of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. The church was built by the Roman emperor Constantine, who had converted to Christianity in the 4th century and whose mother, Helena, had researched and discovered the exact site of Christ's crucifixion, which had occurred some three hundred years earlier. Sometimes called by the gentler name of 'Calvary', it is a menacing name, Golgotha, "the place of the skull", and it was the site of one of the most important events in human history. We should recall those events today with awe, with acknowledgement of the guilt that we all share in creating them, and with thanks for the sacrifice made by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. NOTE: As always, the title of this article is a link to further information, this time to a site devoted to information and pictures of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

TV Watch: The Tudors

The folks at the Showtime cable network have proven that they are just as adept at creating entertaining, high-quality television programming as their HBO network rivals. Sunday evenings now belong to 'The Tudors', an excellent historical period piece that tells the story of King Henry VIII of England.

Henry was the 2nd monarch of the 'House of Tudor', which drew its identity from the family surname of Henry's father, King Henry VII, whom Henry then succeeded to the throne. The Tudors had originally gained power in the aftermath of the 'War of the Roses', and in the period of their rule from 1485 until 1603 the five monarchs of the ruling family succeeded in uniting England with Wales and Ireland as one kingdom. Their reign also resulted in great social, legal, and political questions of marriage, divorce, and the succession rights of women raised, debated, and answered.

Henry VIII, whose reign began at the age of just 18 years and lasted until his death in 1547 at age 56, was a particularly flamboyant and controversial figure. This was due both to his personal and religious actions, views, and rulings. In his personal life, Henry was married six times, with the first three of his wives each bearing him children who would each eventually accede to the throne.

Henry treated his wives cavalierly, moving from one relationship to another at his sexual whim, and these relationships and the events surrounding them form one large part of the Showtime series. Henry also was noted for establishing the 'Church of England', which broke from the Catholic Church after Henry was excommunicated by the Pope following his divorce of his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.

Despite his political struggles with Rome following the split, Henry was known to advocate Catholic ceremony and doctrine throughout his life, and for much of it he brutally suppressed the Protestant reformation of the church. Henry's struggles with his faith and the various religious authorities and figures of the time form the other major highlight of the series.

Henry VIII himself is played in 'The Tudors' with energetic, ravenous intensity by Irish actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers. Other notable starring turns during the first three seasons come from Henry Cavill as Henry VIII's brave and dashing friend and aid Charles Brandon, James Frain as his political right-hand man Thomas Cromwell, Jeremy Northam as Henry's friend and religious confidante Sir Thomas More, and Natalie Dormer as his mistress and later his 2nd wife, Anne Boleyn.

These are just a handful of a dozen or so outstanding acting turns in 'The Tudors', which also benefits from first-rate costuming, sets, and locations which send you back in time to the 16th century with credibility in every scene. Now in its third season, this is one of the finest series in recent television history, a truly great drama, and one which you should not miss.

An Existential Threat

Israel has been a people since early Biblical times, since around the 20th generation of mankind following their creation in the Garden of Eden. God promised the ancient land of Canaan to the Jewish patriarch Abraham and what would be his innumerable descendants in a covenant that would be in exchange for their worshiping Him as their God. This covenant anointed them as God's 'chosen people', and He promised them his blessings as long as they would worship Him and obey His commandments. God also promised Abraham that in regards to the nation he would "bless those who bless them, and curse those who curse them." The same covenant was made by God with Abraham's son Isaac, and through to Isaac's son Jacob, who during his life had his named changed to 'Israel'. The sons of Israel eventually prospered in the neighboring land of Egypt before their descendants became so numerous that the Pharaohs feared and enslaved them. After hundreds of years of slavery, the Israelites were freed by God through the leadership of Moses and the imposition of a series of plagues on the Egyptians. Under Moses and with God's help the Israelites returned to the promised land. Beginning just over a thousand years before the birth of Jesus Christ, and continuing for almost a thousand years, various Israelite kingdoms and states ruled over the promised land. This beginning is the root of Israel's nationhood, established here on earth by the will of God Himself. Down through the ages at various times the people of Israel drifted away from God's law, and He punished them with eviction from the promised land at the hands of the Romans and with dispersal among the nations of the earth in the time just after the life of Christ. However, he made another covenant with Israel that was conditional on them repenting, and returning to Him and His law. On this repentance they would be returned to the promised land, be restored with God, and be blessed even above their forefathers. In the last century we finally saw that regrouping of the Israeli people, the Jewish nation, in the promised land which culminated in the historic founding of the Nation of Israel. Since it's founding, the United States has been the biggest supporter of Israel, and it is God's promise of blessing on Israel's friends that is the foundation upon which America itself has flourished and become the world leader. But there remain enemies of God's chosen people here on earth who do not share Israel's faith or belief in God. These enemies do not recognize the covenant or even Israel's right to exist as a nation, and who want nothing less than Israel's expulsion from or destruction in the promised land. Recent decades have seen numerous attacks on Israel by these nations, either individually, in unison, or through proxy terrorist organizations. The goal is always the same for these Muslim nations: the destruction of Israel and it's erasure from the Middle East map. In recent years and months, the Islamic nation of Iran has been attempting to develop nuclear weapons as its radical President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has made public statements that Israel is "a rotten, dried tree that will be eliminated by one storm" and is "a regime based on evil that cannot continue and one day will vanish." On Tuesday, Israel saw Benjamin Netanyahu sworn in as its Prime Minister. The tough and hard-line Netanyahu was elected to the position by an Israeli population that had grown weary of its leaders constantly bargaining away land to the Arabs and receiving no reciprocity other than continued attacks and threats. While campaigning he promised that if he were elected "Iran will not acquire nuclear arms, and this implies everything necessary to carry this out." Now that he has been sworn in, Netanyahu has put the world, particularly American President Barack Obama, on notice that if nothing is done to dismantle Iran's nuclear program, then Israel will do it themselves, calling Iran "an existential threat to Israel." He is absolutely correct in this assessment. But Obama was elected in America largely as a peacemaker, and you can bet that he will not lead or authorize any attacks on Iran. Instead, he and the European leaders and the liberal media who have coddled radical Islam will continue to press Israel for further concessions, and even go so far as to paint the Israelis as instigators and aggressors. Nothing could be further from the truth, and the American people should not stand for an American administration that will not continue to actively support God's chosen people in the promised land. Turn away from Israel, and America will surely find that God will turn away from her, which would create the greatest existential threat to America in our own history as a nation.