"Civil War cannon"

“But war, in a good cause, is not the greatest evil which a nation can suffer. War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things: The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks nothing worth a war, is worse. When a people are used as mere human instruments for firing cannon or thrusting bayonets, in the service and for the selfish purposes of a master, such war degrades a people. A war to protect other human beings against tyrannical injustice – a war to give victory to their own ideas of right and good, and which is their own war, carried on for an honest purpose by their free choice – is often the means of their regeneration. A man who has nothing which he is willing to fight for, nothing which he cares more about than he does about his personal safety, is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. As long as justice and injustice have not terminated their ever-renewing fight for ascendancy in the affairs of mankind, human beings must be willing, when need is, to do battle for the one against the other.”

John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), “The Contest in America.” Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, Volume 24, Issue 143, page 683-684. Harper & Bros., New York, April 1862

"Stone ground radar"

Life in Lo-Fi: More iPhonography | http://tinyurl.com/ybnklf2

"Aliens among us"

Pixels at an Exhibition: The new field of iPhonography | http://tinyurl.com/yctb3hk

Trisha and Justin Davis – http://refineus.org/about/

Desperate Pursuit

I want to be desperate for God. I want to desire an intimate relationship with God more than I desire anything else. What is true about me, and maybe true about you is that I tend to pursue and am desperate for what God can do for me, more than I am desperate for God, Himself. I am desperate for the benefits of having a relationship with God, more than I am desperate for the relationship itself. So I find myself pursuing things that I think will satisfy, but always leave me wanting more. I’m…

• Desperate for acceptance
• Desperate for approval
• Desperate for intimacy
• Desperate for relationships
• Desperate for happiness

If we were honest, we would say that we are more desperate to improve our lives than we are to know more deeply the One who is life. So we substitute knowing God with figuring out what He can (should) give us. If we are a Christian, God will give us a good marriage. If we are a Christian, God will give us a good relationship with our kids. If we are a Christian, God will give us deep and meaningful friendships. If we are a Christian, God will give us a faithful spouse. If we are a Christian, God will give us a level of happiness that will surpass all of the troubles of life. If we are a Christian, God will give us a fulfilling career. If we are a Christian, God will give us…….and so many people sit in brokenness because they are a Christian, and yet, God hasn’t “given” them what they thought He would (should).

I know this way of living, because I have lived it. I bet, many of you are living it right now. You can’t put your finger on what is wrong, but you know deep down in your heart, something isn’t right. There is a sense of restlessness, a sense of disappointment, a sense of loss that you feel, but don’t know why. You are unsatisfied…

• Unsatisfied with your job
• Unsatisfied with your marriage
• Unsatisfied with your kids
• Unsatisfied with your church
• Unsatisfied with your life

Marriages don’t just explode. Affairs don’t just happen. Divorces don’t just develop overnight. Kids don’t just instantly rebel. Relationships don’t just melt down. Maybe you’re are desperate for the wrong things…not bad things, just the wrong things. Maybe you are seeking what God can offer you more than you are seeking God. Maybe what your marriage needs most is for you to stop seeking to be right, and just seek God. Maybe what your kids need most is for you to stop seeking to rule over them, and just seek God more. Maybe what will allow you to experience more joy at work is to seek God in spite of your circumstances. Maybe you’ve pursued satisfaction more than you have God, and you’ve ended up with neither.

What “thing” that God can give you are you tempted to pursue in your life, more than you pursue God?

Greece and the Welfare State in Ruins

February 22, 2010

By Robert Samuelson

WASHINGTON — It would be possible in other circumstances to disregard the ongoing story of Greece and its debts as a tedious tale of financial markets. But there’s much more to it than that. What’s happening in Greece speaks to two larger issues affecting hundreds of millions of people everywhere: the future of the welfare state and the fate of Europe’s single currency — the euro. The meaning of Greece transcends high finance.

Every advanced society, including the United States, has a welfare state. Though details differ, their purposes are similar: to support the unemployed, poor, disabled and aged. All welfare states face similar problems: burgeoning costs as populations age; an overreliance on debt financing; and pressures to reduce borrowing that create pressures to cut welfare spending. High debt and the welfare state are at odds. It’s an open question whether the collision will cause social and economic turmoil.

Greece is the opening act in this drama; already, its budget problems have spawned street protests. By the numbers, Greece’s plight is acute. In 2009, its government debt — basically, the sum of past annual deficits — was 113 percent of its economy (gross domestic product, or GDP). The budget deficit for 2009 was 12.7 percent of GDP. Two-thirds of the debt is owed to foreigners, reports the Institute of International Finance.

The crisis originated in fears that Greece wouldn’t be able to refinance almost 17 billion euros in bonds (about $23 billion) maturing this April and May, says the IIF’s Jeffrey Anderson. If lenders balked, Greece would default on its bonds. A default would inflict losses on banks and other investors. By itself, this wouldn’t be calamitous, because Greece is small (population: 11 million). But a Greek default could undermine market confidence in other euro countries’ ability to service their debts. Serial defaults would threaten the global economic recovery. Most often mentioned are Spain, Portugal and Ireland.

Preventing that is what the 16 euro countries, led by France and Germany, are now debating. Greece’s adoption of the euro contributed to the crisis. For years, it enabled Greece to borrow at low interest rates, because the prevailing assumption was that the euro bloc wouldn’t allow one of its members to default. It would be rescued by the others. These expectations constituted an implicit guarantee of the debt of Greece and other euro countries. If Greece defaulted, the guarantee would vanish and, possibly, trigger a flight from other countries’ debt.

But in practice, a bailout is proving hugely controversial. If Greece is aided, won’t other countries demand — or require — rescues? Is this possible, considering that even France and Germany have high debts and that a Greek bailout is unpopular, especially in Germany? One way to mute the problems is for Greece to embrace a harsh austerity that reduces its borrowing. Greece has already pledged to cut its government work force and raise taxes on alcohol, tobacco and fuel. The other euro countries want more. Their dilemma is that either rescuing or abandoning Greece is a gamble.

To some economists, Greece’s situation is so dire that default is inevitable, though it may be a few years away. The required austerity would be too punishing, says Desmond Lachman of the American Enterprise Institute. Greece would need spending cuts and tax increases equal to 10 percent of GDP, he says. The resulting savage recession would worsen existing unemployment, already about 10 percent. “No sane country is going to accept that,” says Lachman. Greece may get a temporary rescue, he thinks, but will someday miss debt payments and revert to its own currency (the old currency: the “drachma”).

Conceived as a way to unite Europe, the euro increasingly divides. No one wants Greece to default, but no one wants to pay the price of prevention. With its own currency, Lachman thinks, Greece will pursue depreciation to spur exports and economic revival. If other countries dump the euro, currency wars could ensue. The threat to the euro bloc ultimately stems from an overcommitted welfare state. Greece’s situation is so difficult because a low birth rate and rapidly graying population automatically increase old-age assistance even as the government tries to cut its spending. At issue is the viability of its present welfare state.

Almost every advanced country — the United States, Britain, Germany, Italy, France, Japan, Belgium and others — faces some combination of huge budget deficits, high debts, aging populations and political paralysis. It’s an unstable mix. Present deficits may aid economic recovery, but the persistence of those deficits threatens long-term prosperity. The same unpleasant choices now confronting Greece await most wealthy nations, even if they pretend otherwise.

Copyright 2010, Washington Post Writers Group

Originally published at CentersForDecency.org | 2.16.10

Narcissism

Deeply embedded in today’s culture, narcissism has crept into our children’s mentality like a thief in the night, actually robbing them (and everyone around them) of much dignity and happiness. Young people spend hours every day updating their Facebook pages, post and e-mail countless pictures of themselves, and plug their ears with music to create a self-indulgent existence shut-off from everyone around them.

Author Rebecca Hagelin

I recently went online and viewed the page of a friend-of a-friend-of a-friend-of my daughter’s on Facebook and discovered literally hundreds of pictures of the girl posing like a super model.

Where are our children learning to be so obsessed with self? From adults, of course.

In 2006, Time Magazine voted “You” as the “Person of the Year.” And why not? Peruse the popular magazine covers and they are all about indulging in your own desires and fantasies. Just watch television for a couple of hours and you’ll walk away feeling as if you owe it to yourself to have an affair, spend lavishly on yourself, and be your “own man” at the expense of everyone else.

And then there’s the American obsession with pornography – the ultimate objectification and degradation of other human beings. Men, women girls and boys are all there for your personal pleasure in millions of websites, advertisements, shows and publications.

Just look at the economic mess we are in. Too many spent way beyond their means on trinkets and toys and demanded the best when their budgets could afford what was “only” good enough. They bought homes and cars and gadgets a plenty, with the swipe of an interest-only loan or a “special low introductory rate” credit card. America is largely an entitlement society where we demand that the government provide us with health-care, retirement, and a comfortable life, with no concern of who will pay for Utopia.

And then there is the phenomenon of abortion on demand, without apology, through the ninth month of pregnancy. Have all the sex you want, with whomever you want, and if you get pregnant, just “terminate” it regardless of how the father may feel. And the baby? What baby? It’s just tissue – remember? How convenient.

Our kids see our selfish, irresponsible ways and learn the lesson, ‘It’s all about me.”

When our culture is all about “My body, my career, my choice, my, my, my, what is a parent to do?

Thankfully, we’ve known the answer all along: Practice the Golden Rule.

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

The wisdom in this biblical admonishment is so self-evident that it is universally admired – but tragically, rarely followed. It is the basic tenant for successful human relationships, the economy, personal finances, you name it. Imagine the good that could accomplished, the human suffering that would be replaced with human achievement, if we treated others with the dignity and thoughtfulness we ourseleves crave.

The two greatest gifts we can give our children are to teach them to love God with all that is within them, and to love their neighbors as they love themselves.

Here are five easy ways to start:

- Invest time in your kids, rather than being obsessed with your own career, hobbies or whims.If your kids see that you are not concerned about them enough to sacrifice your own desires and pour into their lives, how will they ever learn to pour into others?

- Be a role model. Considerate, well-mannered, thoughtful children come from parents who exude those behaviors themselves.

- Share stories of kindness. Start seeking media that teach what is highest and best, that glorify human decency instead of depravity.

- Be generous. You may not be rich, but everyone can be generous with their time and talents. There’s nothing more selfless than giving to someone who can’t possibly ever repay you.

- Practice ‘Random Acts of Kindness”. Think of something nice to do for someone else – and then do it. Consistently.

Narcissism eventually leads from self-love to self-loathing. But living the Golden Rule is a powerful way to spread joy, improve the human condition, and develop true self-respect. Rebecca Hagelin reporting.

http://www.centersfordecency.org/a000573b.htm

Fearfully and wonderfully made

That includes the preborn, the apparently vegetative, and the spiritually unconscious | Marvin Olasky

George Washington, the father of our country, had taphophobia, fear of graves. When dying in 1799 he recalled several newspaper reports of men thought to be dead who were buried alive. He told his secretary not to bury him until at least three days after his death.

Wikipedia states, “Before the advent of modern medicine, the fear was not entirely irrational. Throughout history, there have been numerous cases of people being accidentally buried alive.” Legends tell of coffins opened for some reason and corpses found with hands raised and palms turned upwards. In past centuries some among the wealthy purchased “safety coffins” with breathing tubes and ropes attached to external bells: Someone mostly dead could signal outsiders that life remained.

But nothing so macabre could happen in these days of “modern medicine,” right? Hmm—what about being one of perhaps thousands of patients who, according to neuroscientist Adrian M. Owen, “are totally unable to perform functions with their bodies—even blink an eye or move an eyebrow—but yet are entirely conscious”?

How about being stuck in a hospital bed with your breathing tube for years, able to hear conversations—including those of people wishing you were dead—yet unable to ring a bell or indicate in any way that you’re conscious? Wait a minute, you might be saying: Are you resurrecting the debate about Terri Schiavo, the Florida woman in a “persistent vegetative state” who died five years ago after becoming the subject of national debate and congressional intervention?

Who is neuroscientist Owen and who takes him seriously? Well, the University of Cambridge, where he works, does. The New England Journal of Medicine, which published his article, does. Even The Washington Post does, as its lengthy Feb. 3 article—under a headline, “Tests show brain activity from those in ‘vegetative state’”—indicated.

Owen and technicians placed patients inside advanced brain scanners and gave them careful instructions: Imagine you are playing tennis. Imagine you are exploring your home, room by room. The scanner showed no action in the brains of most patients, but for others the scans flashed like those of a healthy conscious person: The minds of these supposed vegetables were alive. One patient could answer detailed yes-and-no questions about his life before entering the hospital.

Owen’s summary: “It was incredible. These are patients who are totally unable to perform functions with their bodies—even blink an eye or move an eyebrow—but yet are entirely conscious. It’s quite distressing, really, to realize this.” Quite distressing, yes, but also breathtaking: As Psalm 139 teaches, we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We should not give up on what God has knit together.

That brings me to the other president sometimes remembered in February, Abraham Lincoln. Toward the end of this life he apparently believed that God had knit together the United States, and he was not willing to accept the unraveling of that union. In that way he differed sharply from John Brown, whose goal was to bring on the Civil War: That’s why Brown’s band of terrorists slashed to death five pro-slavery men in Kansas in 1856 and tried to start a rebellion at Harper’s Ferry in 1859.

Two decades ago I discussed slavery and abortion with Randall Terry, then head of Operation Rescue and later a spokesman for Terri Schiavo’s family. Terry acknowledged his desire to be a new John Brown leading America to a new Civil War. I mention this because Christian Newswire, a distributor of press releases, was smoking after a jury on Jan. 29 found a pro-lifer guilty of murdering Kansas abortionist George Tiller. Terry emphasized Tiller’s taking of innocent blood. Other pro-lifers said Terry was justifying the murder of Tiller.

Look, for numerous reasons we should not and will not have an abortion civil war or even tit-for-tat skirmishes, with pro-lifers and pro-aborts increasingly shooting each other. One reason: God is providing many alternatives to violence. Support for abortion is unraveling. Ultrasounds now show a mom and dad what their unborn child looks like. Owen’s research will make more people reluctant to end the lives of those in vegetative states.

As previously silent stones cry out, let us proceed, as Lincoln said in his second inaugural address, “With malice toward none, with charity for all.” That includes the preborn, the apparently unconscious, and the spiritually unconscious—for now.

If you have a question or comment for Marvin Olasky, send it to molasky@worldmag.com.