and to the republic...

You hear it constantly from the media, you hear it from your fiends, you hear it from the teachers in public schools, you even hear it from our elected officials. “America is a democracy.”

No, it is not. That is a falsehood that is so prevalent that nobody ever questions it.

We are a Republic. So what you might say. You’re just parsing words. I don’t think so. There is a fundamental difference between a democracy and a republic. Our founding fathers did not want the mob rule of democracy. In a democracy the people vote on the governing of the country and 50% is all that is required to pass, the mob rules.  In a republic the people elect representatives to govern for them. This is a significant difference because now a few govern in the place of the many so that the mob rule effect is diminished. The founding fathers did not stop there, they added a second layer to check the representatives, the Senate. The Senate was envisioned to represent the States interests not the interests of the people of the State. The people did not elect the Senators, they were elected by the State legislatures. Each state had equal representation in the Senate and proportional representation in the House. 

Now we come to a long forgotten out of date document that the government disregarded a long time ago; the Constitution. This ancient document was intended to set the parameters of the Federal Government. It listed specific obligations and responsibilities of the Federal government. Each branch was broken down and their respective scope of powers were laid out. Next we have the Bill of Rights, or the first ten amendments to the Constitution. These were adopted immediately and the Constitution would not have passed with out them.

Amendment 10: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

What does that mean? It is plain language, not some 2000+ page monstrosity that even a lawyer would have trouble understanding. It simply says that the Federal Government can do only what the Constitution says it can. All other powers are reserved to the States and the people. What article of the Constitution spells out the scope of the Department of Education? Where do I find the article giving authority to the government to regulate firearms? Where is the ‘Separation of Church and State’ defined? Where can I find the authority to grant a privately owned entity the power to print and regulate money? Maybe I am dense, maybe I am obtuse, maybe I am just an uneducated right wing extremist. Please enlighten me.

Our founding fathers took great pains to ensure that the founding documents could be easily read and understood by any one with an education equivalent to a High School diploma. Compare the wording of the Declaration, or the Constitution to just this one little snippet from the healthcare bill:

(1) IN GENERAL- The Administration shall be headed by a Health Choices Commissioner (in this division referred to as the `Commissioner') who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

(2) COMPENSATION; ETC- The provisions of paragraphs (2), (5), and (7) of subsection (a) (relating to compensation, terms, general powers, rulemaking, and delegation) of section 702 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 902) shall apply to the Commissioner and the Administration in the same manner as such provisions apply to the Commissioner of Social Security and the Social Security Administration.

Huh? What? This is two small paragraphs of a 2000+ page law. The whole constitution is less the 40 pages with all the amendments and the Declaration of Independence!

God Bless America, and with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

Romans 10:14-15

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!””

ROMANS 10:14-15 (NIV)

As many who know me already know, I have been called to serve and I am being prepared for this ministry. I do not know exactly where or how I am to serve yet. I feel a strong heart calling to the mission field and I am exploring that at this time. Please pray for guidance for me and my family in our service.

Greatest Mission tool ever

Many of you have probably seen the movie “End of the Spear" or at least heard the story of Jim Elliot, Nate Saint and two other missionaries killed in the jungles of Ecuador. Steve Saint was adopted by the people that killed his father and has a heart for missions. He is also a genius. Check out the video at right. 0-60 in 3.9 seconds! And it flies. I want one for Christmas.

The Bitter Homeschooler's Wish List

While I am not a "Bitter" homeschooler I found this article to be very funny and it clarifies many of the bad stereotypes about homeschooling.

The Bitter Homeschooler's Wish List

by Deborah Markus, from Secular Homeschooling,

1 Please stop asking us if it's legal. If it is — and it is — it's insulting to imply that we're criminals. And if we were criminals, would we admit it?

2 Learn what the words "socialize" and "socialization" mean, and use the one you really mean instead of mixing them up the way you do now. Socializing means hanging out with other people for fun. Socialization means having acquired the skills necessary to do so successfully and pleasantly. If you're talking to me and my kids, that means that we do in fact go outside now and then to visit the other human beings on the planet, and you can safely assume that we've got a decent grasp of both concepts.

3 Quit interrupting my kid at her dance lesson, scout meeting, choir practice, baseball game, art class, field trip, park day, music class, 4H club, or soccer lesson to ask her if as a homeschooler she ever gets to socialize.

4 Don't assume that every homeschooler you meet is homeschooling for the same reasons and in the same way as that one homeschooler you know.

5 If that homeschooler you know is actually someone you saw on TV, either on the news or on a "reality" show, the above goes double.

6 Please stop telling us horror stories about the homeschoolers you know, know of, or think you might know who ruined their lives by homeschooling. You're probably the same little bluebird of happiness whose hobby is running up to pregnant women and inducing premature labor by telling them every ghastly birth story you've ever heard. We all hate you, so please go away.

7 We don't look horrified and start quizzing your kids when we hear they're in public school. Please stop drilling our children like potential oil fields to see if we're doing what you consider an adequate job of homeschooling.

8 Stop assuming all homeschoolers are religious.

9 Stop assuming that if we're religious, we must be homeschooling for religious reasons.

10 We didn't go through all the reading, learning, thinking, weighing of options, experimenting, and worrying that goes into homeschooling just to annoy you. Really. This was a deeply personal decision, tailored to the specifics of our family. Stop taking the bare fact of our being homeschoolers as either an affront or a judgment about your own educational decisions.

11 Please stop questioning my competency and demanding to see my credentials. I didn't have to complete a course in catering to successfully cook dinner for my family; I don't need a degree in teaching to educate my children. If spending at least twelve years in the kind of chew-it-up-and-spit-it-out educational facility we call public school left me with so little information in my memory banks that I can't teach the basics of an elementary education to my nearest and dearest, maybe there's a reason I'm so reluctant to send my child to school.

12 If my kid's only six and you ask me with a straight face how I can possibly teach him what he'd learn in school, please understand that you're calling me an idiot. Don't act shocked if I decide to respond in kind.

13 Stop assuming that because the word "home" is right there in "homeschool," we never leave the house. We're the ones who go to the amusement parks, museums, and zoos in the middle of the week and in the off-season and laugh at you because you have to go on weekends and holidays when it's crowded and icky.

14 Stop assuming that because the word "school" is right there in homeschool, we must sit around at a desk for six or eight hours every day, just like your kid does. Even if we're into the "school" side of education — and many of us prefer a more organic approach — we can burn through a lot of material a lot more efficiently, because we don't have to gear our lessons to the lowest common denominator.

15 Stop asking, "But what about the Prom?" Even if the idea that my kid might not be able to indulge in a night of over-hyped, over-priced revelry was enough to break my heart, plenty of kids who do go to school don't get to go to the Prom. For all you know, I'm one of them. I might still be bitter about it. So go be shallow somewhere else.

16 Don't ask my kid if she wouldn't rather go to school unless you don't mind if I ask your kid if he wouldn't rather stay home and get some sleep now and then.

17 Stop saying, "Oh, I could never homeschool!" Even if you think it's some kind of compliment, it sounds more like you're horrified. One of these days, I won't bother disagreeing with you any more.

18 If you can remember anything from chemistry or calculus class, you're allowed to ask how we'll teach these subjects to our kids. If you can't, thank you for the reassurance that we couldn't possibly do a worse job than your teachers did, and might even do a better one.

19 Stop asking about how hard it must be to be my child's teacher as well as her parent. I don't see much difference between bossing my kid around academically and bossing him around the way I do about everything else.

20 Stop saying that my kid is shy, outgoing, aggressive, anxious, quiet, boisterous, argumentative, pouty, fidgety, chatty, whiny, or loud because he's homeschooled. It's not fair that all the kids who go to school can be as annoying as they want to without being branded as representative of anything but childhood.

21 Quit assuming that my kid must be some kind of prodigy because she's homeschooled.

22 Quit assuming that I must be some kind of prodigy because I homeschool my kids.

23 Quit assuming that I must be some kind of saint because I homeschool my kids.

24 Stop talking about all the great childhood memories my kids won't get because they don't go to school, unless you want me to start asking about all the not-so-great childhood memories you have because you went to school.

25 Here's a thought: If you can't say something nice about homeschooling, shut up!

Issue #1, Fall 2007

Lead, follow or get out of the way!

Thomas Paine was one of our founding fathers, a great statesman, orator and one of the greatest thinkers of his generation. He was asked what needed to be done to further the cause of liberty in the struggle tyranny. His simple reply was: “Lead, Follow or get out of the way”

      One of our greatest generals of all time, General George S. Patton echoed this when he was criticized for his often controversial hands–on leadership style. He replied; "We herd sheep. We drive cattle. We lead people. Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way."

      Over the course of the last several years, there have been a lot of changes in our economy, our country and the American way of life. Some of the changes have been positive and worked out well, others not so well.

      People are naturally resistant to change. It is in our nature to be comfortable in the way something has always been done. Some people resist change passively while others resist actively.

      When change comes suddenly we often feel anxiety. We can feel anger if we are not consulted first or if we feel our opinion is not respected. Often we see it as an affront to us and we resist, even when we do not know all the facts or the reason for the change. As a result we often grumble and complain about the changes while offering no real solutions to the problem that precipitated the change.

      I find myself doing this often. I hate change. I can be very arrogant and prideful sometimes. I like things the way they were or at least the way I want them to be. When I was in the military I was the leader. I was used to making decisions and having my directives followed. When I told the Sailors that served under me to do something it had better have been done and done right. After retirement when I started in my new career I started at the bottom, the adjustment was hard.

      When change comes to your life you have to choose how you are to handle it. There are several options:

 - You can embrace the process, get involved in it, and lead the charge to make it happen.

 - You can agree to go along with the change and see what happens while following the leadership of others.

 - Or, if you disagree, Offer a valid and practical alternative and take the initiative to convince others of the need for a better plan. If not then just get out of the way and let others take over.

 - Finally, there is the last option that should never be taken:

That is to obstruct the change, back-bite and complain while offering no acceptable alternative, simply resisting the changes without a valid reason.

      If you see something that needs to be changed, suggest a change. If there is a better way to do something then step up and lets us know. If someone else has an idea that might work, then follow their lead. If you are just a road block to a fixing a problem and you have no other ideas, then get out of the way.

      Change is hard sometimes but it is a fact of life and we must all decide how we are to deal with it. I say “Lead, Follow or get out of the way.