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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To tell the truth… Can we expect that of our politicians?

Image by Anu Ranasinghe via Flickr

President Obama’s much-told story about his mother’s fight to get cancer coverage was untrue, according to a recently published book. And the White House isn’t disputing the author’s account.

The New York Times reports that Janny Scott, in her biography, “A Singular Woman: The Untold Story of Barack Obama’s Mother,” writes that Stanley Ann Dunham‘s health insurance provider did, in fact, cover most of the medical expenses related to her uterine and ovarian cancer.

New York Times, July 13: In her book, published in May by Riverhead Books, Ms. Scott writes that Mr. Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, had an employer-provided health insurance policy that paid her hospital bills directly, leaving her "to pay only the deductible and any uncovered expenses, which, she said, came to several hundred dollars a month."

Do we have a right to expect the President of  the United States to tell us the truth? Or are we to expect that the President can spin stories and tell lies? Are we living in a day and age where this is the norm?

President Obama does not corner the market on spinning webs and stretching the truth, but to use his own mother to gain political headway is, well a little to much for me.  (read here)

 

Here’s a fact that may surprise you: Candidates have a legal right to lie to voters just about as much as they want (read this). Well that’s good news to know that when they lie to us, they are not breaking any laws… Our right to freedom of speech is paramount and should apply to everyone. But one would hope that our elected officials would be help to a higher standard. But it seems that we, the voters, do not, that we expect to be lied to, and when we are not, when the politician tells the truth, we react as if they did something wrong. Take the new Governor of Michigan, Rick Snyder, he is doing what he promised to do, and now there is a recall effort. If Governor Snyder would have been like other elected officials, he would have gotten into office and served his own self-interest. Yet he did not, he got into office and did what he said he would.

I may not agree with him on everything he is doing, but he is doing what I voted for him to do. He is doing something most politician don’t, he is doing what he said he would, how refreshing that is….

I find it somewhat disheartening that so many people just take the lies and deceptions as part of life. We should expect more for our elected officials and from ourselves. But we must expect more from ourselves before we can even ask that of others. As Jesus tells us,

“You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” _{Matthew 7:5}

We, as individuals, as family and as community must set higher standards, we must create an environment that expects the truth and requires that we hold ourselves and our communities to higher standards.

There was a time when a lie was considered to be a sign of disrespect, but now it seems to be a excepted part of our communications. At one time we knew we could tune into the nightly TV news and expect to hear the truth, but it seems this is no-longer the case. We have accepted the fact the new casters will spin and twist, even lie to get there  own political point of view across. (Read this)

 

(See this)

 

Trust, is it a thing of the past, can we only expect twist and 1/2 truth from our politicians and others we are to trust.

 

God Bless

Paul

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The Truth comes out is odd ways

This morning when I was deciding to blog, I was not to sure what to blog about, so like I will often do I turned to the internet looking for inspiration. I went to all my normal sites, www.catholic.net, www.usatoday.com, and other news outlets on the web. I have set up several feeds on my home page that allows me to read headlines from several sources, but nothing was jumping out at me. So I turned to Bing. Not the singer, but the search engine and typed in the key words “Odd News”. You never know what you will find…

NYC Schools chancellor regrets birth control joke

Ok, the title grabbed me… A school official jokes about birth control… Hmmm, can birth control even be funny? So I clicked the link…

A spokeswoman says New York City Schools Chancellor Cathie Black was making a joke when she suggested overcrowded schools could be solved with birth control.

The article, short but to the point, makes a very interesting read. And to me it states a lot about what the liberal elites really think. The basic problem the school board was discussing was over crowding and the need to address the need for more desk in the future. The solution, according the Black, birth control. The reaction from the people, well they did not find it funny and some even stated it was a racists remark…

Well I don’t know Miss. Black, so I can not comment on that, but I can comment on the over-all idea of Birth Control and ethnic community…

Planned Parenthood, the international baby killing company, basic premise is racists. The founder herself, Margaret Sanger spoke of sterilizing those she designated as “unfit,” a plan she said would be the “salvation of American civilization. (read more here)

Some more interesting reading from the same website (more to read)

Planned Parenthood is the largest abortion provider in America. 78% of their clinics are in minority communities. Blacks make up 12% of the population, but 35% of the abortions in America. Are we being targeted? Isn’t that genocide? We are the only minority in America that is on the decline in population. If the current trend continues, by 2038 the black vote will be insignificant. Did you know that the founder of Planned Parenthood, Margaret Sanger, was a devout racist who created the Negro Project designed to sterilize unknowing black women and others she deemed as undesirables of society? The founder of Planned Parenthood said, “Colored people are like human weeds and are to be exterminated.” Is her vision being fulfilled today?

And a few links….

AbortionRacism.com

Planned Parenthood Exposed

Planned Parenthood Accepts Racist Donors Wanting Black Babies Killed
Margaret Sanger Interview On The Topic Of Infidelity / Video

Why We Oppose Planned Parenthood

The Truth About Margaret Sanger – Planned Parenthood’s Racist Founder

The Negro Project – Margaret Sanger’s Eugenic Plan for Black America

Margaret Sanger Interview with Mike Wallace

God Bless

Paul

 

Not good enough for Her

Image via Wikipedia

You ever wonder what makes people tick, how they process information, I do. But all to often it’s because of there stupidity that makes me think about this. Today is a perfect example.

As I stated in a previous post, my sister is having issues with someone she was trying to help out. The person being helped was ungrateful and selfish. He kids came second at best and she, well she always was first, over everyone and anything else.

Here is a perfect example.

Over the weekend I had her 2 younger boys. the ones that live with my sister. I took them up to Mackinaw for the day, they have never seen the Mighty Mac nor the great lakes and I wanted them to experience it. The day and weekend was perfect, we had a great time. To my shock, there mother called 2 times on Saturday, normally she never calls me to see how her boys are doing. But this weekend she not only called me 2 times on Saturday, but even stopped over on Sunday. I knew something was up, an I figured it was she wanted me to provider her with a place to stay. And I was right, Sunday morning she asked me if her and the 2 boys could move in. I was a little dumbfounded, but held it together. My response, a friendly “No, I don’t have space for you and the boys”. The truth, but not the whole reason. The whole reason, why on Gods green earth, would I take in a person who showed a total lack of respect to me and my sister over the last few months. Why would I take in someone who refused to pay rent, help out with house work and even care for her own two boys. What would posses her to even think I would. Well two things, 1) She thinks she does no wrong 2) her two boys, she knows that both my sister and I love them, and would take them in a heart beat. But I can not, nor would I live with such a selfish person.

This “thinking pattern”, if you can call it that, is a pattern of self destruction and self prophecy.

Self Prophecy

When I first met her, she was telling stories of woe-is-me. And being a person who always looks for the good side of everyone, I figured there must be truth is what she is saying. Maybe not 100% true, but at least 70%. I look for the good in all, she was, for the most part, a engaging person. Had good humor and liked to talk, mostly about herself, but if I was not friends with people just because they find themselves the most interesting topic, I would have fewer friends. But what I discovered over the past months or so, is that she is selfish, and childlike. Her actions are predictors to her future.

I am in the process of gaining guardianship over her eldest son, and the courts, as would be expected, want to know all involved parties and any person or persons who may have an interest in this case,such as he father. Granted, his father lives in Africa, but the courts still want to make sure that he is protected on all sides. As we filled out the paperwork for guardianship, the question of paternal responsibility came up. She informed me that his father was not on the birth certificate and that he had no contact at all with him. So that is what I filled out on the form. Well she was wrong and knew she was wrong. And because she lied, she had to make a petition to the Cameroon councilor and place an ad in the legal paper asking for any objections to the guardianship. I would have taken care of this, but I was leaving for vacation and would not be able to. Even thought it was not my responsibility to do so, I would have done it for the child, not her. So prior to my leaving I explained to her what needed to take place, she got mad, was not happy that the courts did not take her word for it, was not happy that she had to use her time to do all this, was not happy that they just did not do as she asked.

This reaction is not a one time reaction, if it was I may have over looked it, but on several occasions she has shown the same contempt for the American way of life, the way we help others the way we process:

1. The Salvation Army provides food boxes to the needy filled with donated food items. Not good enough for her, she don’t like the food, they should just give her the money and let her spend it on what she wants.

2. Saint Vincent DePaul provides vouchers for clothing, for her and her 3 boys, not good enough for her, she wants new clothing, its ok for the boys, but not her, and they should allow her to spend the vouchers on what ever she wants.

3. Local Catholic Churches providing assorted help require the person requesting the help to fill out a form with your name address and such along with a copy of your ID. Not her, they should not request any information, they should just give her what she wants, no questions asked.

When she would complain about such “harsh” treatment, I would just tell her that some people abuse the system and that they are a charity and need to protect themselves so they can help the people who truly need the help. Her response, “They should just give me what I want, why can’t the Government just provide for me”. My response “Because we are not a socialistic country, and the charities provide for you out of the goodness of the American people who donate.”

Nope, not for her, the Government should give her what she wants, not the charities, because the charities want to make her responsible, and she don’t want that.

So her actions have dictated her current situation. Today she is moving out of my sisters house, she has no plan, and cares little for what happens to her kids. They did not attend school today, and who knows were they will end up.

I am heart broken that her two younger boys will most likely not be a part of my life. That she is willing to uproot her boys for her own selfish reasons. But I can not control her actions, directly, but I can make sure that her actions are in the best interest of her kids. I will be calling her eldest sons case worker to let him know that she has moved out, so he can follow up and make sure that the two boys are in a safe environment. It is all I can do at the moment, that and pray that they will be safe and happy. And pray that we, my sister and I, will still be able to be apart of there lives.

I just don’t understand how some people think, or better yet, how some people seem not to think.

Pray for them…

God Bless

Paul

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