National Day of Prayer Unconstitutional?

In the news is the ruling by U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb of the United States District Court of the state of Wisconsin, that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional and violates the first amendment.

First of all,I'm wondering where in the Constitution a state district court has the power to overturn Congress or to engage in Federal Judicial review. This case should be before the Supreme Court of the United States. My guess is that it will eventually get there as the appeal process continues.

Secondly, she could not have done any research into the intentions of the founders when they ratified the First Amendment. It's well known that on the day the First Amendment was ratified;

"...the House of Representatives authorized the first official Thanksgiving. The resolution they passed called for “a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God.”

...Clearly those in the first Congress did not see any conflict between the First Amendment’s prohibition on an established religion, and government sanctioning an official day of thanksgiving to God."

(http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/classroom/religious_liberty3.html)

My opinion is that this Judge substituted her own beliefs and ideology, and cherry-picked case law to support those beliefs, when recorded history and the Congressional Record clearly indicates the intentions of the founding fathers and the first congress.

Religion, and Christianity in specific is under attack in this nation. This nation was founded on the basis of freedom of religion, not freedom from religion. That freedom is one of the bedrocks of this nation. Many Americans gave their lives in the history of this nation. It is spitting on their graves to allow an unaccountable, unelected judge to decide to overturn 230 years of precedent, and one of the bedrock freedoms of our great nation.

This has to stop. This is the danger of a radical activist minority who hates what made this nation great, trying to recreate the nation in their own image.

I hope all my freedom loving friends of all political stripes, who value their freedoms will stand up and say "NO!".

Over 60 million people were murdered in countries where there was no religious freedom on which to base the morals of a nation. That is not an advertisement for making our country a secular nation.

Our religious faith is what makes this country great!

"All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of superintending providence in our favor. To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on the means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful friend? Or do we imagine that we no longer need his assistance? I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth-that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the Ground without his Notice, is it probable that an Empire can rise without his Aid?" -- Benjamin Franklin, To Colleagues at the Constitutional Convention.

"If we forget that we are a nation under God, we will be a nation gone under." -- Ronald Wilson Reagan 

A Solution to Racism...

A YouTube video has been making the rounds which features Morgan Freeman in an interview with Mike Wallace. It's about "Black History Month."

Click here to see the YouTube Video

Morgan Freeman makes an incredible amount of sense in this interview. He says something that I've been thinking for a long time. The way to eliminate racism is to stop talking about race.

Stop separating out blacks from the general populace. They are Americans. Their history is American history. They have made major contributions to our country and society. Black people are not second-class citizens. They are Americans, and have a lot to be proud of.

We can't control what people think or feel. We can't make people not have racist thoughts. But we can create a climate where racism can't thrive. We can starve it for the air it needs to survive.

Racism isn't just saying bad things about someone of a different race. Racism is also treating someone differently because of their race. Like having a Black History Month.

Racism is also thinking that certain people need extra help or consideration because of their skin color. Giving them preferences due to skin color, is also racism.

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions."

The way to make racism go away, is not to dwell on race. The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King dreamed of a day where people were judged not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. He didn't dream of the day where people were pandered to, or given special treatment because of their skin color.

I think most non-black people are ashamed and sorry for the poor treatment of blacks in the past. Segregation, racism, cross-burning, slavery. All wrong, and something any human being with feelings and empathy would decry.

But, treating people special because of a perceived hurt is what we do with children. We give them a lollipop after a shot. Or, we tell a child they can hit us back if we hurt them. But, that's not how adults deal with situations. We can't make centuries of wrong,right by treating people today special. The people today aren't the people who were hurt, or the people that did the hurting. For the most part.

To move on, we need to move on. That means stop talking about race. Stop judging people by the color of their skin. Avoid the easy path of crying "Racism!" to win an argument (the political version of "When did you stop beating your wife?" as I mentioned in an earlier blog.)

Mr. Freeman has it exactly right in his interview. He's a very wise man. Watch it, and see if you don't agree.

Farragut Forever!

Yesterday, I wrote about Star Trek: Phase II a fan-made production of the original Star Trek series from the 1960's.

Phase II is based on the adventures of the Starship Enterprise. But, there is another production similar to Phase II which also has a few episodes under it's belt. That show is Starship Farragut.

Starship Farragut is a show based on Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek from the 1960's, but set on a sister ship the U.S.S. Farragut. Captained by Jack Carter. The shows take place during the same era as the original series. The first episode has a cross-over with Phase II.

John Broughton who portrays Captain Carter is the Executive Producer, and Michael Bednar who portrays Commander Robert Tacket the Executive Officer of the Farragut is one of the Producers.

In the past, this show shared sets and many actors with Star Trek: Phase II. They have since leased a property in St. Mary's, Georgia and are in the midst of building their own sets.

They've released two full episodes and a vignette, which you can view on their website. In addition, they have produced two Animated episodes in the style of the 1970's Filmation Star Trek The Animated Series. The second episode is still in post production, so only two parts have been released.

The animated episodes are produced by NEO f/x in association with Farragut Films, Inc. Michael Struck is the man behind NEO f/x and does a great job replicating the look and feel of the Star Trek Animated series.

I've enjoyed these shows, and I'm looking forward to future productions from their own sets.

Unlike Phase II, Farragut uses it's own custom composed music by Hetoreyn. The soundtrack for Starship Farragut-for Want of a Nail is available for purchase on Amazon.com. I bought it, and really enjoy it.

If you're a Star Trek fan, you'll enjoy these shows.

There are two other productions I want to mention as well.

In Pre-production is Star Trek: Excalibur, with Joe Kerezman as Executive Producer. They had gotten quite far with sets and all, but lost them when the property they were renting changed hands and the new owner locked them out and destroyed their sets and property in the space.

Another production is Starship Exeter which produced one episode and part of a second. We hope someday to see the conclusion of the second episode. This show was well done.

There are other productions from the TNG Movie era, which I'll post about in a future blog.

It's 1969 all over again...

Since I was young, I've been a huge fan of Star Trek, and science fiction in general. My Dad used to get mad when I'd stay up late Friday nights to watch Star Trek on NBC in New York when it was on late in it's last season.

For years afterwards, I'd watch the reruns on WPIX channel 11 in New York. My sister would get mad because she knew I had seen every episode many times over.

In the 1970's, before the release of the first of many Star Trek movies there was talk of Star Trek returning to television with the original cast, picking up where the series had left off when it was cancelled.

Sadly, that never happened. Though, we did get a series of movies. Some of which were great, others... not so great.

Star Trek did return with different characters in the form of Star Trek: the Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise. But except for an infrequent mention, and a couple of cameos by several of the original series actors. there were no further adventures of Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, Dr. McCoy, Scotty and the rest of the crew.

In April 2003, that changed. A dedicated fan and former assistant to William Ware Theiss (Costume Designer for the Original series and Star Trek: The Next Generation) James Cawley, brought the adventures of the Original Crew back to the small screen.

The pilot episode, "Star Trek: New Voyages - Come What May" was an amazing first outing. It wasn't perfect, but it proved that Star Trek could be done today, just like it was done in 1969.

James and his volunteer group of amazing people (whose names are too numerous to mention here), have continued to make episodes. The show is now called Star Trek: Phase II (Wikipedia Entry), taking it's name after the aborted television series that became Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

James and crew have rebuilt museum quality replicas of the Bridge, Briefing Room, Sickbay and Transporter Room as standing sets. They build corridors and other sets as needed. They replicate the lighting techniques, and use nearly-exact replicas of (and in some cases actual) costumes from the original series.

Through an agreement with Paramount, they can make these shows and distribute them as long as no profit is made from the production. These episodes are very expensive to make, and rely on the donation of time, money, equipment and materials by many dedicated fans.

The 2009 Star Trek movie was a direct result of the Phase II crew proving to Paramount that fans would accept other actors in the iconic roles of Kirk, Spock, et al.

If you watch closely, James Cawley makes a cameo as a bridge officer twice in the movie. Spock walks past him as he exits the turbo lift just after Kirk assumes command, and Chekov bumps past James as he rushes to the front of the bridge to tell the assembled command staff his plan to catch Nero's ship.

James Cawley maintains that these characters transcend the actors who play them, and while we all love the original actors performances, these roles can also be played by any competent actor. Just like Shakespeare's characters, Superman, Batman, and others.

I have to say I agree. I especially enjoy John Kelley as Doctor McCoy on the show. He does a great job. I think James is good as Captain Kirk, and both Andy Bray and Jonathan Zungre are excellent as Chekov. Both are better than Anton Yeltsin who played Chekov in the movie.

For me, Ron Boyd as Vincent DeSalle is a breakout character from Phase II that in the original series was a little used, rarely seen background character. And, I can't forget to mention Paul Sieber, the man of a thousand faces who plays Security Chief Prescott, and several other characters in the show. His performances in "Enemy Starfleet" and "Blood and Fire" are great!

Star Trek: Of Gods and Men was also produced using the sets and talents of the Star Trek: Phase II crew.

Phase II accepts volunteers for their twice yearly shoots, and I was lucky enough to have been able to participate in the June 2008 (Enemy: Starfleet), and the June 2009 (Kitumba) shoots. I was sick as a dog for most of the 2008 shoot, so didn't contribute as much as I wanted to. I was the Prop Master for the June 2009 shoot, replacing Greg Schnitzer prop man extraordinaire for one episode he couldn't make.

It was an amazing experience, and thanks to James Cawley and crew I crossed a few things off my bucket list. As well as befriending many, many wonderful people. It is a warm and welcoming family that makes these shows. And that attests to the magic that is Star Trek, and to the example of kindness and generosity that James sets, and we all gladly emulate.

Some of the original actors have appeared in episodes, including: George Takei, Walter Koenig, Barbara Luna, William Windom, Grace Lee Whitney, and many more.

Each production is better than the one before. There are three shows in post production now (Enemy: Starfleet, The Child, and Kitumba - the last two adapted from scripts written for the aborted 1979 Phase II series). They hold lots of treats in store for all Star Trek fans. Especially Kitumba, which is the most ambitious show filmed to date.

Another episode "Star Trek: Origins" is set to film in June 2010. It will cover Kirk's Academy days. I'm looking forward to it.

You can view the episodes from links on the Star Trek: Phase II website, or YouTube. If you want to volunteer to assist at a shoot, you need to join the forum at their website and watch for the crew calls to go out. You must be prepared to pay for your travel, lodging, and food when assisting. Check the forum for more details.

Walking the bridge of the original Enterprise was an experience beyond any other. Being able to contribute in a small way to make two of these shows is a dream come true.

The 7 year old kid, who stayed up past his bedtime to watch Star Trek on his little black and white television, could never have dreamed that he'd walk those decks, and help make further adventures of the crew of the Enterprise.

Thank you James, for my dreams come true! And love to Patty, Charles, Doc John, Sarge, Rob M., Mark, Terry, Greg, Gary, Jeff F., Bill T, Bill (Mouse), Kent, John and Annie, Jeff and Melissa, Jaimie, Max, Troy, Dave, Tony D, Tony and Linda, Karl and Barbara, Ron, Paul, Meghan, Kim, Jonathan, Doug, Pony, Mabel, Cesar, Rob F., MissRiva,  J.T., Bobby, Vic and Michelle, and everyone else I haven't mentioned by name. You know who you are.

Stand by to blast off for the 25th Century because Buck Rogers is next on their plate!

Sharing the Wealth...

Americans are the most generous people in the world. Where there's need, you will find Americans there trying to fill it. Haiti Earthquake, Chili Earthquake, Tsunamis, Famines, War, Epidemics... Nothing keeps us away.

In 2006, I became physically disabled, and have been blessed by all the love, help and support that I received. All my basic needs are well cared for. Food, Housing, Medical, all taken care of.

I decided that I wanted to pay it forward. In 2006, I donated at Thanksgiving to a homeless shelter in Philadelphia. But, that was a one time thing.

I also went everyday to The Hungersite, and I would click each tab on the top to help in all the areas. But, this is free to me. No stretch in being generous here.

On the Michael Medved Show on WNTP 990AM in Philadelphia in May 2008, he was having a sponsorship drive for Children International. For $22 a month, you can sponsor a child in trouble spots around the world.
 
I decided that this was for me, and joined. I adopted a 7 year old girl named Almira in the Philippines. She is 10 now and lives with her father, who is a street vendor, her 12 year old Sister, and 9 year old brother. Her mother has abandoned her family.

Her father earns about $60.00 a month. The money I sponsor Almira with makes sure her most basic needs are met, such as:

• health care and medicine
• dental care
• nutritional assistance
• educational support

I also send extra gifts on her Birthday, Christmas, Easter and other times of the year. The extra contributions go towards household items, home improvements, clothes and other needed things.

I get pictures and hand-written letters periodically. She is a very sweet little girl. I write back through the website. A worker from Children International translates to and from English for her.

I really live close to the bone. But, I feel good paying forward the help I get.

"A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor."
Proverbs 22:9

I'm already blessed. And, I feel more blessed to be able to make a difference to a child and her family so far away.

The Greatest Gift...

The greatest gift a child can give a parent is to say: "Thank you! You did a good job! I grew up, I'm OK, and I love you." I think this is the thing that all parents want to hear from their children.

I think this why a child yelling "I hate you!" can be the most hurtful thing a child can say to a parent.

My father passed away in 2007. And for some years before he passed away, I made sure that every time I saw him, I told him I loved him. I always gave him a hug as I did that.

My childhood was chaotic, and my father was an inconsistent parent when I was in my teens. He had alot to deal with between my mother's illness and raising two teenagers who were a bit rebellious. Each in their own way. We didn't give him an easy time.

My Dad took a lot of knocks from various sources for many years. As time went on, and I realized that I'd have less time ahead of me with him, than behind. I decided that I didn't want my last years with him to be ugly, or sad.

And truthfully, he started out strong as a father. Teaching me to read and write before kindergarten, helping me perfect my penmanship, he even played a little baseball now and then with the neighborhood kids and I.

I decided those things were the things I was going to build the memorial in my heart from. And those were the things I talked about at family gatherings, and acknowledged him for.

My Dad sacrificed a lot for my sister and me. He did his best. And as I grew in age, and wisdom, the more that became apparent.

To some, parenting comes naturally, others have to work at it. I realized his shortcomings weren't purposeful. There's no class on being a Dad. You don't get a "Dad Certification."

Through my work at Landmark Education, I learned the power of completion. To have an incident or relationship be whole and complete with nothing missing. I wanted my relationship with my father to be that way.

I wanted no regrets. Nothing left unsaid. I just wanted my Dad and I to be complete in our relationship. Because, I had already experienced the loss of both of my Grandmothers and felt incomplete with them. I wanted to tell them how much I loved them, and how much they meant to my life. And, I never took the chance to do that.

So, I made it a habit to always leave my relationship with my Dad in a complete state every time I saw him. It was easy. I loved it. It became the thing that had me look forward to seeing him. Based on a shift in who I was being, he became the Dad I always wanted.

As he lay in bed in the hospital in his last days, I told him I loved him. And to my joy, my brother and two sisters followed my example and did it too. As a family, we gave my Dad the best gift children can give a parent.

I love my brother and sisters. They are the best I could have hoped for. I'm proud of them, every day. And in that moment at my father's bedside, I truly got how great they were. How great my Dad was, to have four such wonderful children.

Finger-paintings, home made cards, ties, and clay pencil holders can't compare to the power of completion and acknowledgment. That one lesson, one of many learned at Landmark Education, was worth all the work, and all the time I put in there. I'm forever thankful to my friends and Seminar Leaders for helping me become a person I love.

I think of Dad every day. I miss him. But there's nothing unsaid. No lingering regrets. All that's there is love and appreciation.

I love you Dad, and thank you.

Fail Obama?

A lot has been made over Rush Limbaugh's statement that he hopes Obama will fail. Democrats have decried Rush and other conservatives who share this wish as "racist." Racism seems to be the first retort against any criticism of Barack Obama.

This is disingenuous, and purposeful I believe. It's disingenuous because the criticism isn't personal to Obama. This is projection on the part of our friends the Democrats. Democrats always seem to attack the messenger, rather than the message. This is because in most cases, the facts aren't on their side and they just can't win in the "Arena of Ideas" by attacking the message.

Projection is basically accusing others of what you yourself are doing. So, one can understand how Democrats turn substantive disagreements on policy into something personal. The Democrats constantly attack Rush about his weight, or his former addiction to painkillers, but never address the substance of what he says.

We've had about seven years of attacks on George W. Bush, calling him stupid, a "sock puppet" (controlled by either Karl Rove or Vice President Cheney), a cowboy, and more. Recently, Ann Coulter was attacked by an official of a college where she was going to speak in Canada, before she had uttered a word! (Oh Canada! - March 24th, 2010)

In over 30 years of corresponding on political forums, the moment I announce myself as a Conservative
I'm besieged with personal attacks. Even good friends who I've known for years, think I'm kidding when I "come out" as a Conservative. They say that I'm too intelligent and compassionate to be Conservative. It's not an oxymoron to any Conservative, but seems to be to a Democrat.

The Democrats are unconscious to themselves and so project their own faults onto others. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid  talk about a "Culture of Corruption" on the right, while the left is wracked with scandal after scandal from bad actors like William Jefferson, Charlie Rangel, and others.

Nancy Pelosi and Bill Clinton promised to run the "Most Ethical Congress", and  "Most Ethical Administration" respectively. And to all accounts, lied. The scandals in Congress and the Clinton years make those promises false. The unconsciousness is so profound, there is never any apology or accountability for the lies, no less the scandals.

Racism is not just uttering an epithet, or denying a black person a job, or equal rights. Conservatives believe it's also assuming they need help, like lower standards in tests, racial preferences, reparations (to people two three generations removed from those harmed), and pandering. Assuming someone needs help just because of their skin color is a more insidious form of racism than a simple epithet.

The use of the racism card is purposeful by Democrats because it diverts attention away from the substantive criticism of policies, and puts the critics on the defensive. Calling someone a racist, or a homophobe is the political version of "When did you stop beating your wife?" Once so charged, it's very difficult to respond and be believed.

My own preference is not to get involved in proving that I'm not racist or homophobic. What am I going to say?

"Some of my best friends are black!"

or

"I have Gay friends and family members!"

It's not worth it. You can't win against folks who aren't interested in substance. Rather, they use every dirty trick to deflect criticism. It's better to keep the argument in the space of substantive criticism on bad policies. It takes discipline, but it results in keeping the debate out of the mud, and on the high road.

It's these bad policies that Rush, I, and fellow Conservatives wish to fail. If the man went to the right, and governed more as a centrist rather than a leftist ideologue. I'd be willing to wish for his success. Because if good policies succeed, our nation succeeds. Our nations success transcends political ideology.

In wishing for his failure, we hope he will learn that his cherished belief system is false. That it doesn't produce good results in the real world. That only in the theoretical realms inhabited by leftist academics does his ideology have the illusion of working. I think this is a forlorn hope. History shows that our Democrat friends aren't result driven. They don't ever evaluate their actions based on the results. They evaluate themselves based on their intentions. They never take responsibility for the results of their actions.

Children and other immature folks avoid responsibility for their mistakes by citing their good intentions. But good intentions so far have not put millions back to work, reduced poverty, or caused peace in the world. As we grow older and wiser, I hope we all look to results rather than intentions. That is one of the signs of wisdom.

In these times, we need a wise leader. We need wisdom rather than ideology. We need results rather than rhetoric. We need fiscal sanity rather than spending sprees.

Until Obama can be a responsible adult, and set aside his ideology, he can count on many people of all party affiliations wishing for his failure. Not just Rush Limbaugh and me.

The Unconscious Left...

Nancy Pelosi has been making some wild statements lately. Like Democrats need to take the opportunity during the Spring Recess to "sell" the new Health Insurance Law to their constituents, or that we needed to pass the bill before we can know what's in it.

The smiles and high fives the Democrats have been giving each other after the passage, and signing of this bill into law has been infuriating to many of us.

All during the process of crafting this law, she and others in the Democrat party have been lying to us. What makes me sad is that she's probably lying to herself and thinking she's doing a good thing.

The thing I notice among the left is that they have no ability to question themselves, and no critical thinking skills. Like children, they suffer from stage one thinking. They want to do what gives them a good feeling in the moment, and they think good intentions equal a good result.

In the end, they lack maturity and good judgment. And the rest of us in the nation suffer for it.

"Stage One Thinking" is a term coined by Thomas Sowell in his book Applied Economics: Thinking Beyond Stage One. What Stage One Thinking is, is making decisions based on immediate gratification without regard to the consequences of the decision. Assuming that the economy is a "Zero Sum Game" (meaning that it's fixed, and changes in tax rates or spending policies only shift around a fixed amount of capital. Rather than causing the total amount of capital to shrink or grow), is an example of Stage One Thinking.

Children employ Stage One Thinking because they have not yet acquired experience. I certainly thought this way until my early 30's. Graduating from this mode of thought took a lot of painful life lessons, and a lot more introspection.

During the mid 2000's, the Left in the media and in politics decried President Bush for never admitting mistakes. I was floored by the irony of that statement because you can never get a Democrat to admit to the failures of their programs.

Trillions of dollars thrown at the poor in welfare programs, and we have about the same level of poverty as before. Medicare and Social Security on the verge of collapse. Cities and states all over our great country run into the ground by Democrat leadership (New Orleans, Detroit, Philadelphia, New Jersey and California being examples.)

Republican crafted Welfare reform, which the Democrats opposed took many thousands of people off the welfare rolls and gave them better lives, self worth, and jobs.

The Left isn't introspective. They believe good intentions are all that's needed. And we all know the quote about "Good Intentions."

Without introspection and evaluation, how can one create good results? It's like building a Christmas Toy without the instructions and blindfolded. I don't know what's going to result from that method, but it won't look like a bicycle or a dollhouse.

"In the main it is not by introspection but by reflecting on our living in common with others that we come to know ourselves. What is revealed? It is an original creation. Freely the subject makes himself what he is, never in this life is the making finished, always it is in process, always it is a precarious achievement that can slip and fall and shatter." -- Bernard Lonergran

Introspection and self-evaluation has to be a constant process. Especially for those in positions of responsibility. Guaranteeing good results has to be the priority of anyone offering to help others.

In fooling themselves, the Democrats not only harm themselves... they are a menace to our country. Good intentions do indeed pave the road to hell, and the Democrats are forcing the entire country to walk down that road, kicking and screaming the whole way.

Welcome to my Blog...

For awhile, I've been wanting to create a Blog. I have many friends who have Blogs, and I will be devoting entries to telling you about them.

But, this is my Blog. Where I'll be posting my thoughts on a weekly basis, and more often as needed.

I'm a Conservative, Christian man who lives in Keansburg, NJ. I was disabled several years ago in a work related accident. I've been politically involved since the Carter Administration.

My views are a mix of classic Liberalism (as opposed to the post-JFK Liberalism/Progressivism/Leftism), Libertarianism, and Conservatism. At heart, I'm a practical person. I want the best outcome, for the most people.

I believe life is basically unfair, and because life is unfair isn't a reason to try to make it fair artificially. Instead, it's an opportunity for each person to work hard, grasp the golden ring, and take as much for yourself as your skills and talents can manage.

I also believe that it is a joy to help others. When you have more than you need, to share it with others is a wonderful thing. People who want Government to take your property and redistribute it to others, rob all of us of the freedom and joy of sharing.

As you can see, I have a lot to write about. I hope you'll find it interesting, and thought provoking as I use this blog to explore my beliefs, flesh them out, and then stand on them as I publicly profess them.

Thank you for stopping by.