SelahV Today

Yet Another Reason to WEAR CLEAN UNDERWEAR and NOT BURY BLOGPOSTS of VITAL IMPORTANCE in a Sea of Mundane Blatherings by hariette petersen

No.  Unfortunately, this post is not really about mama's sage advice for you to don clean boxers or undergarments, in case you are in an accident and wind up in the emergency room of life.  It is about a court system that makes us wonder about the brain cells of aging Supreme Court Justices and ANY Justice appointed by any president--be they conservative or liberal, with liberal or conservative majorities in the House and Senate of the United States.

Thanks to Marty Duren for calling attention to this obscene ruling and unreasonable logic of the highest court in the land of free-thinking, law-abiding, countrymen who just happen to believe in the 4th Amendment and have read the Bill of Rights when they were school-children.

In what is certainly one of the most grotesque disemboweling of civil liberties since Congress last took a vote, the Supreme Court of the United States has granted unfettered authority to police or jail officials to conduct strip searches on any person arrested for any crime. So, dear reader, the next time you are stopped for a traffic violation by an officer who decides to make you an example, you could find yourself standing naked, exposed and exposing while a police officer or jailer looks you over in a way that would make a nearsighted urologist blush.

Duren writes:

"In what is certainly one of the most grotesque disemboweling of civil liberties since Congress last took a vote, the Supreme Court of the United States has granted unfettered authority to police or jail officials to conduct strip searches on any person arrested for any crime. So, dear reader, the next time you are stopped for a traffic violation by an officer who decides to make you an example, you could find yourself standing naked, exposed and exposing while a police officer or jailer looks you over in a way that would make a nearsighted urologist blush.

This kind of corrupt, Third World, dictatorial ruling opens the door for unreportable, unprovable molestation and rape."

I have not read all the briefs and opinions of the Supremes (Justices on the United States Supreme Court).  However, if what Marty Duren, respected pastor, author, and voice among Christians, is right in his understanding of this ruling, my stomach turns, my mind goes beserk, and my spirit groans.  How could this be?

How can a panel of robed elitist, and highly respected wise men and women come to such disgusting ruling?  Do they not see how their decision ushers in sanctioned abuse of power?  That's right...sanctioned and approved abuse of power.  Do they think that this ruling exempts themselves and their children and grandchildren--their moms and sisters and little cousins?  Are there any...I say, ANY, exceptions to their ruling?  I do not know--according to Marty's well-researched article, it does not appear so.  Surely the advocates of all-things-legal and right are looking into it with precedent-set microscopes and scapel-driven precision.  To think that "anyone arrested" of the least infraction of the law, shackled in handcuffs--be they guilty of any alledged violations or not--could find themselves stripped down to bare skin, is absolutely dehumanizing.  It begs for better definitions of the words absurb, deplorable, irrational, and insane.

It's sick!  Demented.  Beyond the pale of reasonable thinking.

Given the unreasonable violations of human dignity imposed (upon little old ladies wearing Depends and Poise pads, and toddlers wearing Huggies and Pampers when boarding jets to fly from Podunk, Kansas to Disney World), by TSA agents who show no respect for humanity, nor the common sense of a snail, we can only foresee the most horrendous of violations and constitutionally guaranteed rights of the electorate.

Folks, we do well to get to the bottom of this ruling.  We need to strip-search the entire wording of every brief and if need be, expose it to the world in its unflattering naked truth.  [All puns intended.]

If this is a ruling that negates and shackles law-enforcement officers from doing the unthinkable, and the most demeaning of actions when a preacher is arrested for reading the Bible in front of a DMV office, or a young woman is arrested for a sit-in protest at the Occupy Wall Street gatherings, or a teenage girl who stands too close to an Abortion Clinic...then we need to know.

We need to know when we parents and grandparents, send our unsuspecting (and sometimes foolish), children out into the highways and byways with their brand new shiny driver's licenses to pick up a gallon of milk, that if they weave, or roll to a stop, or heaven forbid, forget to buckle their seatbelt, then they will be arrested and strip-searched without the presence of an attorney or parental permission.

We need to know, to walk the line of law, set our cruise controls, air up our tires, and obey the rules of all cities, counties, and states before we dare hop in our cars and drive to grandpa's house to hunt ducks, or deer and not check the laws of the land for transporting weapons across state lines.

We need to know.   We need clarification.  We need details.  We need more folks to find out what in the world we are doing talking about Obama's ire regarding the decision of the Supremes concerning his unconstitutional Health Care Bill, when stripping that bill of a forced compliance to purchase insurance, is nothing, absolutely nothing, compared to strip-searching of Americans and foreigners alike. But when you consider the fact that uninsured Americans could be strip-searched if Obamacare as it is written, is ruled legitimate, and we fail to purchase health- insurance, we have got to rethink EVERYTHING we think.

Tell me you are mistaken, Marty.  Tell me I'm over-reacting to an over-zealous blogger's opinion and interpretation of the Supreme's recent ruling.  Tell me I'm a reader gone wild.  Please. Otherwise, I'm gonna move to Canada, sit inside my cabin in the woods, shut down all communication with the outside world, and never come out. God have mercy.  selahV

In what is certainly one of the most grotesque disemboweling of civil liberties since Congress last took a vote, the Supreme Court of the United States has granted unfettered authority to police or jail officials to conduct strip searches on any person arrested for any crime. So, dear reader, the next time you are stopped for a traffic violation by an officer who decides to make you an example, you could find yourself standing naked, exposed and exposing while a police officer or jailer looks you over in a way that would make a nearsighted urologist blush.

This kind of corrupt, Third World, dictatorial ruling opens the door for unreportable, unprovable molestation and rape.

In what is certainly one of the most grotesque disemboweling of civil liberties since Congress last took a vote, the Supreme Court of the United States has granted unfettered authority to police or jail officials to conduct strip searches on any person arrested for any crime. So, dear reader, the next time you are stopped for a traffic violation by an officer who decides to make you an example, you could find yourself standing naked, exposed and exposing while a police officer or jailer looks you over in a way that would make a nearsighted urologist blush.

In what is certainly one of the most grotesque disemboweling of civil liberties since Congress last took a vote, the Supreme Court of the United States has granted unfettered authority to police or jail officials to conduct strip searches on any person arrested for any crime. So, dear reader, the next time you are stopped for a traffic violation by an officer who decides to make you an example, you could find yourself standing naked, exposed and exposing while a police officer or jailer looks you over in a way that would make a nearsighted urologist blush.

In what is certainly one of the most grotesque disemboweling of civil liberties since Congress last took a vote, the Supreme Court of the United States has granted unfettered authority to police or jail officials to conduct strip searches on any person arrested for any crime. So, dear reader, the next time you are stopped for a traffic violation by an officer who decides to make you an example, you could find yourself standing naked, exposed and exposing while a police officer or jailer looks you over in a way that would make a nearsighted urologist blush.

In what is certainly one of the most grotesque disemboweling of civil liberties since Congress last took a vote, the Supreme Court of the United States has granted unfettered authority to police or jail officials to conduct strip searches on any person arrested for any crime. So, dear reader, the next time you are stopped for a traffic violation by an officer who decides to make you an example, you could find yourself standing naked, exposed and exposing while a police officer or jailer looks you over in a way that would make a nearsighted urologist blush.

WHEN FIRES RAGE

It saddens me.  Even though fires are what give my grandson his vocation, and the possibility of fires demand more firemen be trained and employed, it still breaks my heart to see the destruction a raging fire causes.

I've shared photos with you two days ago of a place here in Southeast Oklahoma that takes my breath away each time I see it.  It's so serene...so pure and clean.  The photo on the left is one I plan to make into a greeting card.  However...

...yesterday afternoon a fire which had burned over 4,000 acres near Medicine Park, jumped a road and headed straight for this little community.  The photo of the tarantula (right) I took that was crossing the road with a couple of partners just outside of my lens. Over and over I heard of more engines and water being needed on the scanner-radio.  I also heard of trailers burned to the ground.  The entire community of businesses and homes were evacuated.  With 35-mph winds prevailing, and drought in our area, it will be a miracle if the fireman from over 20 stations are able to hold the fire at bay.

My grandsons, Ryan and Jordy, were two of the many firefighters battling the blaze.  I've prayed for them alot through the night.  My daughter has prayed....and listened anxiously to the online scanner.  It's not easy to fight fires anytime, let alone in temperatures topping 104.  Even the evening held temps of 96.  Tomorrow there's no relief in sight, either.  Firefighters will deal with heat exhaustion.  Many of these men are volunteers.  They don't get paid to protect our lands and homes from fire.  They do it because they care.  They care about their community, and their neighboring communities.

It's rather surreal.

One week a place is at peace and blossoming with the serenity of heaven on earth.  The next week it is a charred and ruined land...tarantulas gone, the roadrunner I saw chasing something (most likely a snake), into the brush, is probably gone, too.  Houses, trailers, homes...gone...structure fires is what they are called.  Homes are what residents call them.  I do feel sad.  My husband preached in a little church in Medicine Park when we first came to Oklahoma.  They are sweet, dear people.  I know some are now homeless.  Just as they were homeless years ago, when a tornado ripped through the town.  Some residents packed up and moved on.  Others stayed and rebuilt--much like these Okies will do when the fire has taken all it can take. 

All across America, people are homeless.  Floods throughout the heartland.  Tornadoes dotting the nation.  And soon it will be hurricane season.  I've watched as families cried at the loss of their loved ones...of property...and livelihoods.  It makes me see how blessed I am to have what I have.  I am so grateful for my grandsons who brave the elements and fire which threaten to destroy the peace of my neighbors.  I am so grateful for the volunteers who fight tirelessly all night then go to their jobs each day.

How much we take for granted in life.

I listened to the dispatch report a domestic disturbance.  A husband and wife arguing.  I wonder if the officers will be okay as they approach these two discontented people and enter their dysfunctional lives.  I pray so.  I pray they'll all be fine.  I pray for the families around our country who are hurting and unemployed.  I know their pain, their fear, their anxious thoughts.  It is not fun.  May God grant to all the peace that passes all understanding as they stand the trials upon their faith.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7. 

To get a BETTER idea of how gorgeous this place is, take a virtual tour of  Medicine Park, Oklahoma (/link)..  It's beautiful...or it was.  Today's light will bring a clearer picture.  May God be with them all, and may we be there for them before the embers cool.  selahV

THIS photo was the bridgeview as my friend, Karen, and I left Medicine Park a couple of weeks ago.  I hope I can still cross this wooden bridge next week and see some green still growing.

[To VIEW an ENLARGEMENT, just click on the photos] 

TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA TORNADO FOOTAGE

In the aftermath of horrendous tornado that just hit Tuscaloosa, volunteers walk carefully through piles of rubble to carry out a child on a door.  Unbelieveable.  Pray for these people.  And all those in the last few days who've seen the destruction of nature.  Pray for Georgians as this system churns towards them.

WARNING! THERE MAY BE A KILLER IN YOUR ATTIC

Forget cholesterol, french fries and McDonald's Happy Meals!  That is the least of our worries.  Forget recalls on China's toys.  Let's talk the EPA and how their silence about Zonolite is murdering milliions as I type these words.

Read the horrendous story and pass it on to others.  This is not about old men who work in mines for years.  This is not about insulation lying untouched in the attic.  This is about deadly fibers throughout millions of homes that affect every technician, electrician, and person who has ever climbed into an attic to install a wire, or collect the Christmas ornaments.  Please read this article.  Your baby's life is at stake.  This asbestos ladened, and Zonolite filled insulation has been installed in attics and walls from the 1940's to the 1990's.

Did you read that?  As late as the 1990's.  That's houses we are living in and purchasing today.  That's buildings we frequent.

Most doctors do not even explore what could be causing all the lung problems that affect patients today.  Is it really second-hand smoke?

It makes me wonder.

How many of our schools and churches are filled with this insulation?  How many of our children are at risk?

CLICK HERE AND READ THIS STORY today, then email everyone you know...it may save your grandchildren's lives.  Our government should be ashamed for not emphasizing this to the unsuspecting American public.  It's outrageous.  More so than macaroni and cheese being served in school lunches.  selahV

The link above is only Part One of a FOUR-PART story of this situation. 

FLIES, SWATTERS, AND OTHER OBSERVATIONS

I discovered yesterday that some folks don't like my analogy of flies gathering around a particular post I wrote.  For the record, that post was not about me and whether or not I go around wringing my hands over page-views and hits.  Or whether you, my faithful friends are faithful enough.  How wise would that be?

Why would any writer complain about readers? or even those who just found me? I wasn't even talking about the occasional fly-over made by some who dive into the mix from time to time. I was making an observation of how some posts seem to draw more attention than others, and how the oddest websites show up in my stats when I write about stuff that involves controversial folks like Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin (though I haven't written about Sarah in two years), or Obama's health-care plan.

Personally, I think many folks literally salivate over train-wrecks and Glenn Beck criticisms.  I found it rather interesting, for instance, that I had four peeks at my site by someone from Huffington Post. In case you don't know, that is a liberal site that abhors all things conservative and especially Glenn Beck.  Then I has some from Forum Baptist Life.  I clicked on that and found my name listed as some kind of "Influential SBC Blogger".  Neither of those sites have ever shown up in my stats.  I don't frequent them. I simply found it rather odd and ironic that the only time some folks visit a site is to see what they might chew upon.

Somehow a few of you thought that I meant you were some dirty little insect since I used the "flies" analogy.  I'm glad that my friends knew it was not meant to say they were some nasty little thing.  Take Sanica, my pal from India.  She's more like a butter-fly.  She flies in about every day and gathers her fill and flits on over to other posts she enjoys.  She's one of my Face-book pals who found me through Devotional Christian.  Then there's my dear friend Mary.  She's like a fire-fly.  She comes in and picks up on a specific point and lights up my life with her ability to grasp the irony of which I speak.  Mary reads constantly.  I'm always blessed when she shows up.  We often chat about other things that are totally off-topic when she visits.  Then there's Tim Guthrie.  I like Tim; I often agree with him..am I calling him a fly? 

I could go on, but suffice it to say...some folks tend to assume too much.

Some folks assume the worst; they conjure up all kinds of fanciful thoughts, then assign motive to what one is saying, rather than looking at what is said.  Still, others are non-assuming.  They read what they see, and if they don't understand (before judging another), they ask a question.  To others, even a question is suspect.  Some folks just don't trust anyone, and it shows in how they bully their way into conversations, push everyone else's thoughts out of the way, then assert their own views to be the all-to-end-all.

Some folks put you in a pre-labled box and assume they know you better than you know yourself.  These folks tend to criticize you for daring to even write about bugs when you're speaking of a trait, of generalities, and thoughts to which they aren't even privy. 

I've had a couple of folks dislike a couple of my analogies, recently.  Yeah; can you believe that?  LOL.  Can't win them all.  Flies.  Folks don't like flies in a post to illustrate a point. I suppose I could have said honey bees or ants.  Butterflies or fireflies.  I just don't think the same punch would have been delivered.  Flies seemed to be the perfect analogy for what I was observing at the time.

Jesus used pigs, sheep, goats, white-washed tombs.  He used fish, sand, and rocks to communicate His thoughts. He used specks and logs to illustrate judgment.  He used seeds that die in order to live; He used weeds, tares, and wheat.  He used salt that's valuable, and salt that's worthless.  He used sickles, swords and crosses. Sometimes a post calls for an eye popping illustration.  Other times it calls for a more tender analogy.

Never assume your readers know what you're thinking.  They don't.  Unless you tell them. Even then, some just keep on assuming they know what you think, and overlook the "point" you try to make. No matter how politically correct you speak your mind, there is someone who wants to correct you.  I just figure one man's fly, is another man's bass bait.  What do you think?  selahV

BAPTISTS DETAINED IN HAITI CHARGED WITH KIDNAPPING

Morris Chapman, SBC Executive Committee President, wrote an article requesting prayer for the Baptist detainees in Haiti.  It breaks my heart that this Christian group who wanted to help these children are being slapped with charges of child kidnapping by the Haitian government.  As I read through Dr. Chapman's article in the Baptist Press, I couldn't help but wonder if this terrible situation could have been avoided if the International Mission Board had been involved in their ministry--if only in an advisory capacity--from the beginning.  The SBC has so many people who know the ins and outs of regulations and laws with our Disaster Relief teams and boards, that surely, they could have helped this ministry group from facing such a situation.  See Chapman's article HERE.

May God intervene and have these volunteers released soon.  May His comforting spirit be with them and their families in the United States.  May the children of Haiti find someone to help them through this experience.  selahV

Devotion for Today, and "IF God is in Control..."

Last week I wrote a devotional for Devotional Christian entitled: When Life Falls Apart, Jesus Holds It Together.  It is published today at their site.  I am compelled to link it here for my readers in light of some of my posts of late.

It is not my intention to create more fear in our lives as I write about combustible gases on tankers, trials of terrorists in New York, and the injustice of health-care reform in America.  It's also not a weakness in my faith that nudges me to write prayer requests for my brother's situation with emphysema or the safety of his daughter as she lives in New York city.  My faith is strengthened by my dependence on the Lord.  My posts are meant to show our complete reliance upon Him as we do what He leads us to do in the scheme of things as we walk in this world.  I was reminded by a dear friend today that nothing and no one can do anything "unless it is given to him of the Lord".  In other words, God is in control.

We might ask, as a reader recently wrote me via email, "If God is in control, does that mean He is controlling us?"  Whew!  That's some  heavy stuff to lift above our finite minds, isn't it?  To believe otherwise would make us seem to question the sovereignty of God.  But to dissect the entirety of this question, one must also remember God's sovereignty is big enough to allow us choices in life.  With every choice comes a consequence.  And the blessing within God's protective grace is that He is, indeed, in control of the consequences, too.  Who are we to challenge His decisions?  Who are we to tell Him when to pour forth rain, withhold it, or grant us sunshine?  Who are we to decide which calamity will bring greater peace? Who are we to tell him that our illness is not the best part of His plan for us? if we trust with all our heart that He rules upon this earth as He sees fit for His glory?

Maybe the question we should ask is, If God is not in control, do I want to be?  Really?

EXPLOSIVE COMPANIONS, COMBUSTIBLE LIQUID, YEMENI AND BOSTON

How can Americans trust ships from Yemeni to enter the ports of Boston?

"How vulnerable are the tankers? It’s safe to assume that the Coast Guard and police throughout the Port of Boston will step up security on tankers originating in Yemen. Also give some credit to the liquefied natural gas industry. Their double-hulled tankers boast an excellent safety record. But how good will security be on the Yemeni end? Could terrorists with explosives gain access to a tanker that requires more than a day at the dock to load?

Distrigas president Frank Katulak says that protection at the French-owned facility in Yemen will meet US standards and remain under the control of European security personnel." Larry Harmon, The Boston Globe, boston.com

"Meet U.S. standards"??????

In light of the Fort Hood Massacre of soldiers by the hand of a fellow soldier who was a terrorist confiding with the Yemeni terrorist guru, and bent on destroying the "infidels"?

Considering the Christmas terrorist who trained in Yemen, and avoided all kinds of security breaches, and came very close to blowing up a plane en route to America?  And instead of whisking this man away to be interrogated by the FBI and military, he is mirandized and given a public defender?

Wouldn't you think it behooves the United States businesses to be a bit wary of the security of any ship coming from Yemen?  Nah. The President of the company purchasing this volatile liquefied gas says they can trust the security of America's system.

Uh...sorry, folks.  I don't trust the system lately.  Congress is holding hearings this very week on the inability of our national security system and delving into the absolute failure of our security system.  And until the system is fixed, I am more than concerned that these ships are going to be floating on waters in Massachusetts.  I don't think the money this company makes is nearly as important as the people who live and work in the Boston area. 

For more information on this explosive companionship, read HERE.  In the meantime...someone call Curt Shilling.

PASSIONS VERSUS PASSION

I read my friend Vicki's post in my reader today.  This lady makes so much sense.  She's a breath of fresh air.

I remember when I had my newspaper that I loved writing positive stories about things people did in the community.  My paper focused on family, faith, community and country (and, occasionally, apple pie).  Over time, several organizations (good ones mind you), all wanted coverage.  I found myself trying to champion their causes and ended up having difficulty writing the kind of stories from which my paper had become "known".   As a one-woman-publisher-editor-writer-in-chief, I couldn't keep up with the advertisement needs, the stories, and the demands from cause-oriented organizations.  My passion submitted to the passions of others.

As Vicki describes in her post, we can do this with our faith.  We can get so bogged down with all the "right" and righteous causes in life that we lose our focus (Oh how guilty I am of that).  We can so easily be caught up in the winds of politics, the breezes of community involvement and world causes, that our passion for Jesus wanes.

We can become so engrossed in counseling couples in troubled marriages, dissecting their problems, that we fail to point them to the Problem Solver--Christ himself.  We can allow the couple, the friend, the family member, to become dependent upon us and our answers rather than Jesus.

We can be so consumed by the injustice, cruelty and sin in the world, that we fight battles with rules and legislation, petitions and marches, then fail to remember the victory has been won.  The real war is within each and every soul.  We can be so enamored with the plight of man, we miss opportunities to share the peace of Christ.  We can be so involved in the battles of others, we forget to put on the whole armor of God ourselves.  We can be so enamored with the sound of our own voice, opinion and belief that we cannot hear His voice, seek His truth, or trust in His precepts.  We listen to the strategies of man.  We follow men, rather than Jesus.  No wonder we get disappointed and discouraged.  No wonder we get weary.  "Apart from God we can do nothing."  Yet we think we must be strong in our own strength, and certain in our own intellect.  We get ideas and do not take time to discern the origin of those ideas.  Are they really from God?

We can debate points.  We can argue.  And we can strive.  But until we rest in Jesus and allow His Spirit to flow through ours, we achieve nothing.  Our work is in vain--and often becomes vainglorious.  And our passion loses its fuel, its power--Jesus Christ.  When we see discord, strife, deceit and confusion--we know Christ is not present.  We know this because God is not the author of confusion.  God does not lie.  And all my busyness should magnify Him--not me.  Not some organization or "cause".  Often we reverse the order which creates disorder.  Christ doesn't magnify the organization, the cause or us.  He magnifies Himself through us and in us as we seek His face and focus our attention upon Him.

May we all seek the fullness of His Spirit and wallow in His glory each new day.  selahV

[Visit my friend Victoria Gaines at WINDOWS TO MY SOUL.  She's a precious woman of God who seeks Him in all she is and all she writes.]

I'D RUN TOO

A young pastor, Jonathan Paul Ayers, was killed this week by drug enforcement agents dressed in plainclothes.  Allegedly the young 28 year-old Baptist pastor from Lavonia, Georgia had just dropped off a lady at the convenience store.  She was allegedly under investigation for cocaine dealing.  Pastor Ayers wasn't under suspicion of anything.  Don't know about the validity of the situation, but do know after I watched the video of the incident, I don't see how I would have done much differently than the pastor if I'd been accosted by two men with guns at a gas station.  I think, had I seen two strange men coming at my car with guns drawn, I'd have gunned my gas pedal and run too.

This is the account by ABPnews.

Please pray for this young pastor's wife, Abby Ayers, please remember her name.  She is 16 weeks into her pregnancy with their first child--a child who will never know his/her daddy.

[UPDATE...by the account and by the video, this is a drug-sting gone horribly wrong.  I'd only seen the video and the AOL account of the story when I posted this.  Then I read the story from Baptist Press.  Pastor Ayers will be sorely missed by his congregation.  The community has lost a man who wanted to love them and share Jesus with them all.  Please pray for Lavonia, Georgia in this terrible time.  May God touch this community with an outpouring of His Spirit].

GOTTA LOVE THAT GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY ~ LOL

If it wasn't so ridiculous, it would be funny!  However...

...as President Obama seeks to sell America on government-run ("public option") insurance, my husband called the special number the Veterans Administration gives to automatedly refill his thyroid medicine.  The good news is, he ordered it a few days ago and the medicine arrived in the mail today, (Thursday).  The bad news is, VA filled the wrong prescription and sent hubby something he didn't need at all.  Isn't that efficient?

We wanted to give VA the benefit of the doubt, so we looked to see if the prescription numbers were similar.  Nope.  They couldn't have been more different if they'd been in a different language.  One was all numbers and the other had a combination of numbers and a letter.  My husband joked, "Hey!  Maybe this is the "red" pill they said we could take instead of the medicine we needed."

Good thing hubby has enough pills to last till the VA possibly refills it correctly when he orders it again tonite.  Otherwise, he may have to go to the Emergency Room to get a prescription.  Who knows about the VA?  They may get it right this time, or they may simply tell us he's already been sent the medicine.  Think I'm kidding?  (One time my husband went for his appointment to have his blood drawn.  A few days later he received a notice in the mail that he had missed his appointment, and so they told him if he missed another, he'd be dropped from the program.  You wouldn't believe the riga-ma-row he had to go through to make them realize that he had to have kept the appointment since they had his bloodwork report.)  Geez!

And Obama wants us to believe the "government-run" "public option" insurance Congress wants to force folks like us to have (and folks like my daughter to pay for with higher taxes), is gonna make life hunky dory?  I wasn't born yesterday, folks.

By the way, in case you think my hubby entered in the wrong prescription number (with all the medicines he's taking for congestive heart disease), that is not the case.  My husband may be sick, but he ain't blind and he ain't stupid!  He carried that little bottle of thyroid medicine into the bedroom--AWAY from the kitchen--to make the automated call.  No mistakes on this end.  And just in case you have the "notion" I am saying that the government is incompetent, "let me be clear".  I am.  selahV

[8-25-09, UPDATE...NO LAUGHING MATTER...Veterans Department sent out over 1200 notices to veterans telling them they had ALS or the fatal Lou Gehrig's Disease .  The letters were sent by mistake.  These shocked and frightened veterans learned the diagnosis was wrong after some went through painful tests to see what stage they were in.  Another example of our government's inefficiency.] 

FROM SPIRITUAL TO MUNDANE "FISHY" STUFF AND "MOB MENTALITY"

Just taking a quick break from my series on Thessalonians to mention a mundane matter.  Fishy stuff, and Mob mentality.

I've been watching the speculations of pundits, spectacles of health-care town hall meetings, and explanations from politicians and meeting attendees for some time now.  Last night I was listening to one news show, and a panel was trying to figure out why the White House and politicians were so adamant about calling vocal citizens "mobs".  Some of the discussion hit upon the distant drumming of these people not being representative of Americans.  The pro-health-care reformers and single-payer proponents are calling their opposition crazies, and dangerously reminiscent of Tim McVeigh anger, and militant enthusiasts.  So, it occurred to me that possibly I have an answer for those pundits who are wondering why The White House wants everyone in America to report their neighbors' casual conversations, forwarded emails, websites, ETC. (my newspaper column, COMMON MATTERS), to flag@whitehouse.gov. *

Now, to be quite clear, I don't have the answer, just an answer.  Who could possibly know the mind of the present administration?  They're never clear.  But in light of the following statement by President-elect Obama, I submit it may be part of the reason:

"We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set.  We have to have a Civilian National Security Force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well funded..."?

Could calling the thousands of citizens protesting health-care and government invasion of their lives have rendered these opposing voices as "mobs", "crazies" and "fear mongers" have another goal in mind?  Could it be just the fuel our now, duly elected, President Obama needs to form this National Security Force, he thinks we need?  Could this National Security Force be the force to reckon with these "right-wing fringe groups", "astroturfers", "organized", "orchestrated", "manufactured" people, who are "distorting the facts" and creating fear in the hearts of the real America?  Could we need a "Force" to assist city police departments, to control these "angry, yelling" crowds who may swell all the more, the more the government ignores their voices?  Is this the force we need to enforce the rules of that HATE Bill that's been passed?  I don't know.

It's hard to discern which people will be considered "mobs", "haters", and "fear mongers".

Did you hear about that one man who got bullied by some thugs who didn't like him handing out flags and buttons that said, "don't tread on me"?  Yep.  Happened last week.  He was an African American Republican and some guys (one, another African American), knocked him down to the ground and called him the "N" word.  Is that the kind of "mob" they are talking about?  Or is it just "mobs" of citizens who are tired of being ignored by their government and saying so?  You know..."mobs" of housewives, nurses, doctors, retired salesmen, and white-haired old ladies and veterans (who know what the VA health-care delivers).

This makes me wonder, if all these citizens with "mob mentality" that politicians, today, are citing will someday be silenced with greater force than ever imagined in America?  Surely not.  This administration doesn't seem too worried about people intimidating people.  Our Attorney General's office just quashed the prosecution of the Black Panther dudes who showed up with a billy-club at the voting booths last November, so why would they be disturbed by a four folks who jostled a man who was giving away flags and buttons saying "don't tread on me" at one of those town-hall meetings?

I don't know about you folks, but I've never considered myself part of a "mob".  I've had times when I did not like what I saw my government doing, and even went to a couple of town hall meetings to voice an opinion.  That was years ago, however.  I never did anything that would or could be classified as a "mob".  I listened to each side.  I tape-recorded their words.  I wrote letters, even hand-delivered a couple to some politicians.  When that didn't do much, I started a newspaper.

That was then.  Today, well...I'm gonna just go to a few town hall meetings and see for myself what all the fuss is about.  And I'm gonna write on-line what I think about it while I still can.  selahV

* [UPDATE, Aug. 17, 09...The White House disabled the email address for reporting "fishy" emails and conversations among Americans.  Guess they realized that was rude and an invasion of privacy.  Why else would they remove it, after requesting information?] 

DON'T QUOTE ME...

...BECAUSE I'M PARAPHRASING HOW I UNDERSTOOD WHAT I HEARD.

I was watching Laura Ingraham tonite who was sitting in for Bill O'Reilly (yeah, I watch The Factor sometimes).  Tonite it was particularly interesting because Laura had a guest on and they were talking about the health-care bill and something in it about old folks like me.  If this passes (which in some form or another, it will, eventually), they want a mandatory meeting for old folks with a government representative.  I didn't catch at what point an old person gets their first visit.  But the purpose of the visit was the thing that had warning bells and whistles going off in my brain.

It appears that this government rep will come and discuss with old people (like Social Security recipients, I suppose), the rationale behind their health and the care they are receiving to see if they are making the best choices.  And they may need to evaluate the fact that they don't have much time left, and they'd had a good life and so....   "Ding, ding, ding!"  soooo...they should consider putting themselves under Hospice care rather than spending money on healthcare.  I suppose the government rep will have this handy dandy little list of things that helps determine the quality of life an old person has.

Laura was pretty upset.  She said she didn't want some rep coming in and interviewing her 83 year-old dad and telling him he needed to just accept he'd had a good life.  The gal she was interviewing had a rather condescending expression (in my biased opinion) as she told Laura that it was up to her father and not her what he did.  Ah..."Ding...Ding...Ding".  I see.  So the rep will talk to the old folks and their family members won't have any say-so in the matter.  Ah...the good old national healthcare system.  Won't it be wonderful?  We'll just bump off advise the Social Security recipients.  We'll explain how they'd be better off and so would their families and all the young people in America, if they'd just step aside and go on to Gloryland as the better choice for all concerned.  And I suppose if the old person doesn't agree, the health-care system can just cut off their dialysis treatment and blood pressure medicines and chemo.  I'm just guessing though....don't quote me.

Hey, that would take care of the Social Security going bankrupt, now wouldn't it?  If all of we baby-boomers (especially those of us who are struggling financially), were to step aside for the good of the younger generation? (Surely we can see how much better that would be for our grandchildren's benefit).  Then Social Security could be solvent again.  And no one would have to pay for our healthcare, either.  Hmmmmn. 

I'm getting cynical in my old age, folks.  Downright cynical.  selahV   

A WOMAN WITH MEANING

What is a woman today? Wife? Mother? Lawyer? Doctor? Teacher? Want to venture a guess?  What role are we to play in the Kingdom? How are we to assume our role? For what purpose did God create woman?

I look at my five granddaughters and my one daughter and wonder.  Where is our world leading them?  Where is the church leading them?  I can remember a time when my father thought I should be a teacher.  When I got married at the tender age of seventeen, he was so very disappointed in me.   He never really got over that, either.  Still talks about it today.  I laugh.

I see women becoming people of notoriety which would never have been a thought in most women's minds when I was a child.  As a teen, the subjects in school were geared toward women becoming secretaries or teachers.  Most thought of being wives.  Oh, there is the few liberal-thinking, progressive women of yore that forged the way for we women to do more than tat, quilt, can beans, garden, wash diapers and hang laundry on the line.  But I wonder how progressive we have really become.

We have our fine pot-scrubbing dishwashers, our miracle-one-minute microwaves, our complete dinner in a tray, our babysitting Dish-satellite home entertainment centers, our wrinkle free clothes.  In fact, fashion houses make material with wrinkles so we don't have to even worry whether our dresses are free of crimps at all.

We probably have more time-saving devices in this century than we have time to use them.  In fact, I think that is the problem with being a woman today.  We have no time.  No time to reflect.  No time to meditate upon the Word of God.  No time to play with our children.  No energy left for our husbands because we've spent the whole day pushing those time-saving devices and programing our lives to fit into a culture that demands women be more than women.  Much more.  We are to be men, too.

I have some lady friends who I admire so much.  They are stay-at-home women.  They have educations.  They have skills.  They have gifts.  And they have talents.  But they use them in service to the Lord and others.  Their greatest joy in life is in being women of virtue.  Known for hospitality.  Encouragement.  And servanthood to others.  They are the backbone of society; they are volunteers.  They have the greatest marriages.  Their husbands respect them--sacrifice for them and validate their worth.

What is the place for a woman today? Home with the children? Homeschooling? Volunteering at schools? Driving kids on fieldtrips? Reading books to toddlers instead of plopping in a Veggie-Tale movie? Answering endless whys? Baking homemade bread? Being a helpmate to their spouse?

Or are we subject to society's whims? Is a woman's place no longer in the home but in the world of labor? Are woman to dominate the workforce and make equal pay for equal work? Are they to be the CEO's, the Deans, the Senators, the Speakers of the House, the Secretaries of Defense, the Presidents of the United States? The first woman who? Is that a woman's place?

I've been confused over this issue as long as I've known I was a female.  Being raised with four brothers and a dominating, domineering father in a world of women in search of more than what my stepmother was, has caused multiple conflicts in my mind.  Rising from childhood to womanhood in a time of Women's Liberation added to my confusion.  Media, society and psychologists demanded a better way for women and women who wanted to stay home were shunned as insignificant bon-bon popping slobs.  Not to mention ignorant.  Then finally, women began leaving the workforce and going back to being homemakers.  Homemaking became noble again.  But the confusion is still there.  The finger-pointing is still there.  The guilt is still there.

I am a woman of meaning.  I love being a wife, a mother, a grandmother and friend.  I don't like the competition of trying to be more in the world than what I was created to be.  That's just the way I am.  And anyone is entitled to disagree with me.  It doesn't bother me a bit.  I'm next to certain that you won't lose a wink of sleep over my opinions.  I really don't think it's as important to know what it means to be a woman as being a woman with meaning.  What do you think?  What does being a woman mean to you?  [copyrighted, selahV, 2007] FOR MORE OF WHAT MATTERS TO SelahV, click HERE.