Could Boys Town work today? And other thoughts on Charity and Social Justice.

Cover of Boys Town

‎“What’s “just” has been debated for centuries, but let me offer you my definition of social justice: I keep what I earn and you keep what you earn. Do you disagree? Well then, tell me how much of what I earn “belongs” to you — and why?”
– Walter Williams

Williams was born into an AfricanAmerican family. His family during childhood consisted of himself, his mother, and his sister. His father played no role in raising either child.^[3] He grew up in Philadelphia. The family initially lived in West Philadelphia, moving to North Philadelphia and the Richard Allen housing projects when Williams was ten. His neighbors included a young Bill Cosby. Williams knew many of the individuals that Cosby speaks of from his childhood, including Weird Harold and Fat Albert.^[4]

Williams was a talented high school student who displayed a very inconsistent performance in his studies. Following high school he came out to stay with his father in California, and attended one semester at Los Angeles City College, in regard to which he would later state that he was not ready yet to be a serious student.^[5] In 1959 he was drafted into the military, and served as a Private in the United States Army.^[4][6] While serving in the Army, he “waged a one man battle against Jim Crow from inside the army (where he was nearly court-martialed for challenging the racial order).”^[4] Williams:

wrote a letter to President John F. Kennedy denouncing the pervasive racism of the American government and military. “Should Negroes be relieved of their service obligation or continue defending and dying for empty promises of freedom and equality,” Williams demanded of the president. “Or should we demand human rights as our Founding Fathers did at the risk of being called extremists….I contend that we relieve ourselves of oppression in a manner that is in keeping with the great heritage of our nation.”^{[4]  (Link)}

^{The above article, or at least part of the article from Wikipedia and the beginning quote should be an inspiration to all Americans, it talks of Faith, faith in the American system, faith in self and faith in humanity. It talks of self-reliance and justice, not handouts and welfare.  It talks about picking yourself up and taking care of business, your business, and not relaying on the government to do it for you. I like that!}

^{So what is “just”?}

^{As a Catholic, social justice is a huge part of my faith, we have Bishops and everyday pew sitters working on this issue daily, we have documents coming from the Vatican and our local Church. I could spend hours reading and re-reading the documents, many of them online and available for free. I can read the words of many a great men, saints and some not so saintly. But in the end, I think that simple quote above states it very distinctly:}

^…I keep what I earn and you keep what you earn. Do you disagree? Well then, tell me how much of what I earn “belongs” to you — and why?”

 

^{That about states it all… Now I can hear everyone asking, what about the poor, who is going to help them… We need to take and give to them.. True, I agree, you are correct. But… And this is a big but… It’s not the government’s job to decide who or what charities I want to support, it is not the governments job to decide how much is too much. That my friends, it totally up to me… That is “just”.}

^{Humanity will, if allowed, care for herself. In the United Stated we have proven this, prior to big government stepping in, it was left to the local communities to care for one another, and they always did. During the many recessions and depressions this country has gone through, the local community always cared for their own. As it should be. The “Great Society” and the “New Deal” and all other forms of Social Engineering has done nothing to change the simple fact that we will always have the poor. But what it has done is created a whole generation that is now dependent upon the government to fix and provide for all there needs. No longer is it a community coming together, but now it laws and regulations and dependency.}

^{The local out reach programs, Faith based community services and alike are now governed by the Federal Government, bogged down with regulations and paperwork that much of there “good deeds” go undone due to lack of resources to meet the ever-expanding hands of Big Brother. Prior to the government handing out the tax payers money, the local community gathered its resources from the community itself, depended on the community and thrived with in the community it served.}

^{The Catholic church was the prominent provider in many communities, depending upon the Church and the community at large to provide free services to whomever needed them, regardless of their faith. Look at Boys Town as a perfect example. Fr. Flanagan did not ask the Federal Government for moneys to build his Town, nope, he depended upon the common person to send in donations, and the work of building the town, well that was left up the him and the boys. In todays “regulated” world this could never happen, the government would not allow the young men who made up the community of Boys Town to do the labor, they would consider it “degrading” and “child labor”, were as Fr. Flanagan and his boys considered it “Character building” and “Edifying” . How times have changed.}

^{The government would have required trained social workers were as Fr. Flanagan required love and respect. There is not law or regulations for love and respect, so the government would not consider them to be important. How times have changed…}

^{“Charity” and “Social Justice” and not be regulated or forced, they have to be organic in nature. they have to come from the souls of the ones offering. When government sticks its hands into our pockets and forces us to “give” the act of Charity and Justice has just become an act of redistribution and extortion.}

^{In the books “Who Really Cares” and “Gross National Happiness”} Arthur C. Brooks, the author, makes the case that charity is a human act, not a governmental act. That it is the benevolence of man and not the redistributionist of government that keeps charities rolling. Both books are well worth the reading.

The Catholic Church, like many organization, has its fair share of redistributionist, who feel that humanity in-of-its-self is not able or capable of caring for each other. To me this is a travesty and a slap in the collective face of man kind! But, truth be told, we allowed this mind-set to happen, we, as a nation have become “dependent” upon the government to not only govern our national affairs, but also our personal affairs.

A return to a simpler time, a time when communities cared for each other, relied upon each other and depended upon their neighbors was when true social justice existed in this nation. We now live in a nation of not social justice, but a nation of social engineering, other wise know as socialism, tyranny or any other work to describe personal liberties and personal responsibilities being replaced by group think. We are teaching our children not to depend upon themselves and the community at large, but rather to look to and depend upon the government. We have generations of Americans that have no concept of charity and giving, of time, talent and treasure. But we do have generations of Americans who understand the concepts of give me, I deserve and “fairness”. Using the term “fairness” not as it was meant, “Equal opportunity” but rather as “Equal treasures” regardless of effort put forth.

The America of pre-New Deal and The Great Society is not yet lost, but is quickly becoming so. We have the opportunity and obligation to change the course of this great nation. To right the wrongs and return American and her citizens back to personal responsibility and community minded obligations. We have a unique opportunity in America, the opportunity to wage a revolution with our guns and blood, a revolution that uses the most powerful weapon ever know to man, the vote. This November we must vote to return America back to Americans, to restore Charity and Social Justice back to the people. It is time to take up the mantel of liberty and forge a new path to prosperity by returning to the founding principles of this great nation. Principles spelled out in our founding documents, the Constitution and Declaration of Independence. Documents that outline the path to prosperity and freedom, documents that never, not once, call upon the Government to care for the personal lives of its Citizenry. But rather call upon its Citizenry to care for the Government.

God Bless

Paul

Guided Insight Life Coach 

 

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Germany, Liberals and Me

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I just returned from a trip from Germany and was reminded why I dislike liberal point of views. As always the Germans feel a need to tell me how great Obama is and who the rich need to pay even more in taxes, as if they have a vote or say so in America.

As always, being a conservative, I am a target for all that is wrong in the world, the poor, air pollution, the ice caps melting and any and all issues near and dear to the heart of any bleeding heart liberal. I am all to happy to confront them with facts, but just like American liberals, the Germans don’t want to be confused with facts, they just get in the way of there grand plan. Simple facts like under Obama our economy had gotten worse, or more Americans are now on food stamps than any other time in our history (to this the nice liberal German responded “cool”).

Trying to explain that the “rich people and big bad corporations” create jobs, and when you tax them they have less money to create jobs and there for more people go on government support. Funny thing was, they see nothing wrong with this.

I just don’t get it…

But I think it all comes down to personal responsibility. now that is a word that liberals can’t even begin to understand, nor do they want to, because if they did, well that would basically remove all there pet projects. No more social engineering of the market place, no more welfare  programs to hold people back and freedom (another word liberals just do get) to succeed or fail.

Liberals believe that government knows better, that the powers that be can solve any and all problems, that basically the people are just to stupid to know what is right. Well, if that is true, than how can we trust ourselves to vote in people who are smarter and know better? To me, if I didn’t think the people were smart enough to govern there own lives, I’m not to sure I really want them to pick someone to do it for me… How could I trust myself to do the right thing?

Now Conservatives, we know that people, over all, will do the right thing, we trust in our fellow man to come though for us. And we understand that government is to be small and efficient and must stay out of our personal lives and allow the free market to do its thing. There is no such thing as “to big to fail” (yes I know some Republicans think there is, but they are not Conservatives) we understand that over time some things fade away and others come and replace it. Coming from Detroit, I would have hated to see GM go away, but understanding the free market, if you can’t keep up, than the market will take care of it. GM did not need the Federal Government to take them over, in the end all they did was file for bankruptcy, GM could have done that all on there own, with out big loan from the Feds. Just look at the history of this nation, major companies have come and gone, and new companies replace them, it’s the nature of business. It’s the process of natural selection, the strong survive, its just a process of evolution. Now you would think Liberals would embrace that, they keep pushing evolution on us, yet when it comes to this, they decide that a managed approach would work better.

When Conservatives talk about a managed approach, we are mostly referring to wild life and hunting licenses, or fishing permits, and here the Liberals go  nuts…. Once again they claim the natural approach. So if I understand the Liberal mind set here is what I get from all this:

• People cant be trusted to do the right thing
• Government is the answer to all of life’s issues and problems
• Managing wild life with hunting is wrong
• Managing business with regulations is good
• Natural selection only applies to the animal kingdom
• Humans can forgo natural selection by opting to abort a life
• The death penalty is wrong because it aborts life
• You don’t have to earn your money, that is degrading, the government will just give it to you
• Welfare is a stimulus to the economy, not a drag on it
• Forcing social issues on the people is the best way to conversation
• Freedom is over rated

The list could go on and on, but you get the basic idea… Liberals are all about control, control of government, control of business and control of you. The more they can get there hands into my pocket and take my money the more I will need to depend upon them, the more control they will have over me. Yet people keep voting them in to office… I don’t get it… Are we to afraid of taking personal responsibility that we are all to happy to vote in socialist… I pray that America has learned her lesson and that our first great socialist President, Obama, will be a one termer. Now Obama is not the first socialist President, just look back at our history, The New Deal is a perfect example of socialism in the United Stated, the difference, Obama ran on his socialistic issues, and won in a land slide and he has not backed down from it one bit. Even though the American people, overwhelmingly don’t want it. Take ObamaCare, a majority of Americans do not want this social engineering of our healthcare, most Americans want a responsible solution to our healthcare issues, not a government run system. Yet Obama don’t care what we want, he knows better. Just listen to him when he talks, when he says things like “Now I want to be perfectly clear” or  “Now hear me out” what he is really saying is, “look, your just to stupid to know what is best for you, so just do as I tell you”. A perfect example of this was during his “Big Jobs” speech before the joint session of congress, you know when he keeps saying “Pass this bill now”. Two things about that:

1. There was no bill at that time
2. It’s not the presidents job to dictate to congress

But what does Obama care about what his job is or not, he tramples on the constitution so why not just make his job up as he goes along.

Yep, my trip to Germany reminded my why I love being a Conservative… It’s good to trust in your fellow man and not in your Government…

God Bless

 

Paul

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Obama makes it look like President Bush shopped at Wal-Mart

In truth I need to write nothing, there is nothing I can really add to this…. But a blog is about writing, so here I go…

President Bush, at the time, was called in to check, rightly so, for spending way to much of our children’s money. But from what I can tell Obama and his administration make President Bush look like a cheep-o …. The money that he and his people has spent has not only dipped into our children’s money, but there children’s also.

In the name of progress and Change we can believe in, Obama has spent our nation into near bankruptcy. The liberals rally call of “Its all free for the taken” has devastated our budget and placed America, the once power house of the economic world, i n peril.  The Chinese government owns most of our debt and at anytime could decide to call in in, for cash, The value of the American dollar is down and the moral of a nation is on shaky ground. The trust of the people in the government, whom we elect to work for us, has shifted to a distrust in a government whom we work for.

The founding Fathers of this great nation must be rolling over in the graves, looking down upon us with grim faces and asking the question that all Americans should be asking themselves “What the hell is going on”.

How did we ever get to a point in our history were we, Americans, felt that the government was meant to support us, to provide for us. Reading the founding documents, I find nothing in them that would indicate that. Reading the founding fathers, or at least starting too, I have found nothing, so far in what I have read, that would support “Big Government” . In-fact I find just the opposite, I find that the framers of America did everything humanly possible to not allow the government to get this big. They did not want a nanny state, they wanted a free society that was able to fend for itself. And a government that was to protect the borders (something Obama must have skipped over) and provide the protection that allows for our liberties. Yet as we see, the government under Obama has grown, making government more, not less, intrusive in our lives.

With ObamCare we now have a government that will decide what health care I have, who I see and even force me to purchase health care, that I, as a free person, may not want. What is next, all Americans must purchase a GM volt, or you will be taxed, and the IRS will look in to if. Sounds far off, but just a little over two years ago I thought the idea of forced insurance and the IRS checking to make sure you have health insurance was far off. So far off, it never even entered my mind, yet here it is, right in the ObamaCare bill, the IRS is the watch dog for forced heath care.

It almost sounds like one of those bad science fiction movie plots. You know the ones, were the government, in order to create a more perfect union, took over the lives of all, even deciding when they should die.  You know, like the movie “Soylent Green”, of “1984”. Scary to think about, but just take a look at that ObamaCare bill, read the 2000 pages, and then look at the above budget again, and ask yourselves “Is it really that hard to believe”. Sadly, no it’s not, but it should be,

America is not supposed to look like this, this is not what the framers set out to create, somewhere along the way we got lost. We got lost in the “New Deal” and the “Great Society” rhetoric that has created a nation of dependent people.  We, the people, are not supposed to be dependent on the government, the government is supposed to be dependent on us, the people. But once again, look at the graphic up top, and ask yourself, who is dependent on whom?

God Bless

Paul

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A strong conviction

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With the political session to start in full swing soon, I thought I would take the time to mention a few things. As any reader of this blog knows, I am a concretive both in my faith and politics, I state my opinions, sometimes not very well received by others, but I still state them and stand up for them. I have written in the past about standing tall and proud for your beliefs and crying them from the roof tops so all can hear. I believe I do that, via this blog and in my daily life. Not many who know me do not know were I stand on any given issue, be it my faith or politics.

This election year is a tad bit different for me, this year I not only state my view points, I am also running for a political office, I will be on the August 3rd primary for the very first time in my 44 years of life, and I am excited! The office I am running for is Republican District Delegate, a nonpaid political office, but still an office that will give me a voice. Win or not I know I have tried to make a difference, I took the next step. So wish me luck and pray for me, that if elected I will serve the my district, county and state with strong conviction and God on my side, or should I say with me on God’s side.

Strong conviction, strong state

The ability to actually run for a political office amazes me, the simple fact that this year, on August 3rd when I enter the polling both I will see my name on it, that I, a proud American, can vote for myself is just amazing. And that I can win, well that is something all on its own!

A strong conviction is the driving force behind my run for office, a conviction that America is headed in the wrong direction, that she is headed down a road that Americans do not want, a road the Europe is currently on, a road that lead to the EU bail out of a whole nation. A road called Socialism, a road of Government run corporations and a welfare state that becomes the norm, not the exception. Can I, as a Percent Delegate really do anything about all that, would I posses the power to make a difference. The simple answer, NO! But nothing is ever that simple.

The Complex in the simplistic

As a delegate I would sit in on local conventions for the Republican party, help define the direction and needs of my constituents, I would offer advice and be the go to person for the politicians running for state or national office, offering my communities point of view in to the mix. I could be invited to the national convention to help define the planks of the platform. It gives me a voice, it gives the community a voice and allows the average citizen to enter in to the process.

It is this simple fact that made me decide to enter in to the race, to test the waters of the political ocean, to see how hard the waves truly hit and break. Each voice added to the mix will change the direction just as each stroke of the rowmen add to the direction and speed of the boat. Every person has a roll in this nation, and I am searching for mine.

Faith and Politics

The ability to take my faith in to the political waters is exciting for me, I love the chance, any chance, to share my faith, and more importantly, the ability to apply my faith to the important issues of today. The founding Fathers did this, just read any of their documents and you will see morality and God permeate them. Yet in modern times we have seemed to have lost that, we have drifted away from the framers basic intent, and have driven a wedge between faith and policy.

I am currently reading “Common Sense” by Thomas Pain, one of our Founding Fathers, the book offers many lessons for today’s politicians even though it was written over 230 years ago. Mr. Pain offers his readers, pre-revolutionary war America, an argument for the a separate and distinctive United States of America, one free from England and free from religious tyranny. A lesson that once again needs to be taught.

The Silent Revolution

Today we are privilege to live in a country that has just elected its first African American President, but we are also cursed, not because he is African American, but because he is socialistic in his point of views. The Obama view point is not new, it has, in the past, been offered up as the “great fix” the “cure all” for all that is wrong with the great nation. The “New Deal” and other social programs form the past was the start of this new silent revolution, a revolution that is designed to take away our rights slowly, with minimal direct effect on us, the average citizen. The idea is lull us privet citizens into a dreamy state of dependency on the government, the “Big Brother” who will provide for all our needs. And sadly we have allowed this to happen, we have, in many cased, opened our arms and warmly welcomed the striping away of our individual freedoms, all in the name of social fairness.

But there is a new Silent Revolution brewing. One that is not of the government or establishment, but one that is of the people and for the people, one that wished to return the government to its rightful place, as protector of personal liberties and national securities. One that our founding fathers would recognize as the maturing of the great nation they established over 230 years ago, one that they were willing to lay there life down for. This new Silent Revolutions is the wave that carried me in to the race, the one that lit the fire of passion and conviction with in me.

God Bless

Paul

The Age of Reason by Thomas Paine – Include active table of contents

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This is my body

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In a soft voice, full of concern it was spoken. “This is my body”. It was spoken with a love that was felt by all and it lofted lightly in the air waiting for the soft breeze  to carry it away.

Contrast that with the biting words being spoken, words that hurt and kill, so heavy they fall to the ground, “This is my body!” A soft breeze could not carry it away, not even a gale force wind. The words hang like death in the air.

The contrast between the same phrase is striking, remarkable, yet they are spoken daily. The fist are spoke daily by our Lord, “This is my body given up for you” the second spoke by thousands daily “This is my body, I will do with it what I please!” are spoke by woman who are confused and lost and seek answers in abortion.

Our Lord offered up freely His life, the unborn offer up their body under force. The contrast is striking and shocking. Modern day thought is one of “personal freedom” yet freedom is not the outcome but rather slavery. Slavery to the modern ideal that freedom is doing what you want regardless of who it affects.

Everyday 4000 lives are lost in at war. The lives have no voice with in the congress nor do they sit on large company boards, yet everyday someone makes a decision for them. A decision that their life is not worth it, that they are expendable that they can be forgotten about and can be sacrifices in the war. The war on human dignity, a war on the unborn.

President Obama and others claim to be “pro-choice” yet the one they are affecting have no voice, they can exercise no-choice! How can we as a nation who claim to be one of peace and non-violence (excluding defending ourselves) murder 4000 new lives each and every day?

Four thousand (4000) lives daily, more lives have been killed than in the wars of modern history, yet the peace loving non violent left allow this, they not only allow it they encourage it! The contradiction is striking and one that needs to be called out, one that needs to be rectified!

I am pro-life, I am male and I am Catholic. I am proud to write this blog to defend the 4000 lives that will be lost today, and I hope all pro-choice people will be as proud to let there voices be heard. Write a blog, forward mine, send a letter to your representative or to President Obama, ask them to clarify how they can justify the murder of 4000 Americans each and every day, how can they look at themselves in the mirror knowing that they allow murder to take place each and every day.

“This is my body” are you hearing the soft gentle loving voice of Christ or the harsh scared hate filled voice of the culture of death? Was the body given up freely out of love and sacrifice or was it offered up to the alter of modernism and individualism? Are you truly pro-life or are you of the mindset, well I’m pro-life, but they have to make their own decisions? are you allowing the murder of 4000 babies each and everyday to take place with out even offering up a prayer?  Pro-life can not and should not mean sitting still and silent, it can not mean that, non-action is the same as participation. Be it abortion or any other social sin. We must act!

Not all are called to join pro-life movement, I for one am not, I do not belong to one and I truly do not feel the calling to one. But as a Catholic Christian I am called to defend the poor and helpless, and who is more helpless than the unborn? I try to teach the sacredness of life in all I do, and every now and than I try to write about it, maybe not as direct as this, but I try to offer what I can. I will not vote for a pro-choice candidate and I will not support many organizations that donate to pro-choice causes. I do what I can, with the grace of God and the gifts He has given me. Do you?

Just keep in mind the words of our Lord:

“This is my body, given up for you”

God Bless

Paul

A lay person’s guide to Pope John Paul II’s teaching on human life issues in his encyclical Evangelium vitae (Lay person’s guide series)

1 Peter 1:18-19“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” Brought to you by BibleGateway.com. Copyright (C) . All Rights Reserved.

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