iPandora

Behind the scenes, every day, a plugin on this blog protects against comment spam. As of this writing there have been over 550 spam comments caught and deleted by Akismet. My blog, being as it is a little ways off the high-traffic areas of the information super highway, gets relatively little spam, but still 142 legitimate comments compared with 553 spam… Let’s just say I really appreciate Akismet, and you should too.

But there are times when apparently legitimate sites use comment spam to attempt to drive traffic to themselves illegitimately and under false pretense. Consider this comment posted under my review of the movie Flushed Away:

Faction 3 | faction3.us
You cant imagine how much money they spend trying to silence good people who will put their lives on the line to fight for change.

I think you can agree this has nothing to do with the movie I was reviewing here. This comment was not flagged as spam and the only thing that caught my attention was the fact that it really had nothing to do with the article. I checked out faction3.us and found they had a prominent article on Net Neutrality, on which I had written. So I proceeded to look through my site for the article I’d written on Net Neutrality, assuming the poster had just mistakenly posted on the wrong article. So then I checked my spam list in the admin section and found two other posts were caught as spam, one from Faction3.us and one from congresscheck.com. Both these posts are in the form of raps filled with both lingual and mental ignorance, vulgarity, and evil. I’ve included them here, edited only for lingual vulgarity. Please proceed at your own discretion.

NOTE: I decided to post these to illustrate that it is not just mental slavery we battle politically but spiritual slavery at the heart of that mental slavery. The heart is full of sin and deception and the lips speak out of the fullness of that lost heart.

Congress Check | congresscheck.com

I see a message from the government, like every day
I watch it, and listen, and call em all suckas
They warnin me about Osama or whatever
Picture me buyin this scam I said never
You in tune to a Hard Truth soldier spittin
I stay committed gives a f*** to die or lose commission
Its all a part of fightin devil state mind control
And all about the battle for your body, mind and soul
And now Im hopin you dont close ya mind – so they shape ya
Dont forget they made us slaves, gave us AIDS and raped us
Another Bush season mean another war for profit
All in secret so the public never think to stop it
The Illuminati triple six all connected
Stolen votes they control the race and take elections
Its the Skull and Bones Freemason kill committee
See the Dragon gettin s*****er in every city

www.congresscheck.com

And the other from Faction3.us:

 Faction 3 | faction3.us

Now ask yourself whos the people with the most to gain (Bush)
fore 911 motherf****s couldnt stand his name (Bush)
Now even n****s wavin flags like they lost they mind
Everybody got opinions but dont know the time
Cause Amerikkkas been took – its plain to see
The oldest trick in the book is make an enemy
A phony evil so the government can do its dirt
And take away ya freedom lock and load, beat and search
Aint nothin changed but more colored people locked in prison
These pigs still beat us, but it seem we forgettin
But I remember fore September how these devils do it
F*** Giuliani ask Diallo how he doin
We in the streets holla jail to the thief follow
F*** wavin flags bring these dragons to they knees
Oil blood money makes these killers ride cold
Suspicious suicides people dyin never told
Its all a part of playin God so ya think we need em
While Bin Ashcroft take away ya rights to freedom
Bear witness to the sickness of these dictators
Hope you understand the time brother cause its major

www.faction3.us

I was sobered when I first read these in their repugnant glory. Not only is it sad that there are those who believe such terrible falsehoods and are deceived in such astounding ways, but it is sad that they are able to make those beliefs so public on their own blogs. The internet is free and the truth is more than capable of standing up on its own in the face of even the most devious lies and assaults, so I have no fear there. But it gives an importance to my own small efforts here to spread the truth, shining the light to dispel the demons of ignorance.

You better believe I think I’m a crusader!

Kudos to Amy Menefee of the Business & Media Institute for her scathing article of Michael Moores latest “documentary” commenting on the state of the American health care system.

Michael Moore is a documented liar who uses “omission, exaggeration and cinematic sleight of hand” to make his political points. But that doesn’t seem to matter to the media who cover his movies.

Now journalists are using “Sicko,” which opens June 29, to make a giddy, unabashed case for socialized health care in America – and even urging Moore to run for office.

He shows “compassion” and “generosity,” he’s a great “campaigner” and an “adroit politician,” reporters have declared.

He’s “taking on America’s deeply flawed health care system,” said Terry Moran on ABC’s “Nightline” June 13. And “… the point his movie ultimately makes: fixing health care is a moral, even a religious obligation.”

“Father Michael Moore – hard to imagine, maybe, or maybe not,” Moran said, after learning Moore once ventured to seminary. “Well, try this one: Senator Michael Moore.”

The media have been in awe of Moore’s film and Moore’s charisma, and enthusiastic about the idea of socialized medicine. Overall, coverage has glossed over Moore’s distortions in favor of keeping the snowballing policy discussion going.

Those who promote so called “single-payer” or government run health care systems cannot be willfully ignorant. There is too much information readily and publicly available regarding the obvious and horrendous failures of those systems.

The American system costs lots of money, that is true. And health care is very expensive. But how much of that is already a result of government regulation preventing the market from deciding the cost naturally. There are many problems with the system, and the solution is always the same. Mandatory insurance guarantees payments for procedures and medication. If we were budget constrained in our medical choices, additional thought would go into what procedures were really necessary, fewer frivolous procedures.

But then consider the converse side of this. America develops nearly every effective medication in the world today combating diseases our grandparents only dreamed of. The incredible costs of R&D for these miracle meds are covered by the incredible largesse controlled by the medical industry. If there weren’t money involved in making the drugs, there wouldn’t be a sufficient reason for businesses to get involved in creating them. If the government were to get involved in health care, you can rest assured that it would be only a very short time until, in what would be called an attempt to control spiraling costs (and yes, they would continue to spiral, the government cannot control itself) they would begin blaming the drug companies and would begin hostile takeovers of those companies. Government has never been good or even adequate at creativity and creation. Government controls and destroys, the more it is given the more that is lost.

Read the article

EDIT:
Additional articles:
MTV News: ‘Sicko’: Heavily Doctored

…with great thoughts. To believe in the heroic makes heroes.

~Benjamin Disraeli

Today in the Investors Business Daily, the editorial Scoring the War delves into the real numbers and the truth that’s being deliberately and maliciously hidden to affect the perception and the outcome of the War on Terror.

(T)he numbers tell the tale. In his 24 years as Iraq’s Stalinist supreme leader, Saddam Hussein killed at least 2 million people. That averages out to about 6,944 a month for the better part of three decades.

Most responsible estimates show that, at most, 60,000 or so civilians have been killed since the war started, about 1,200 a month.

Moreover, no one doubts that Saddam was responsible for all 2 million of his deaths. In the case of the U.S., most of the civilian deaths come from al-Qaida and other terrorists, not U.S. troops.

There is no balance in reporting on the war. I have a hard time understanding the state of the soul which allows many millions of innocent dead to be further trodden by the bloodied heels of their tormentors, and condemns those who would seek to not avenge but set aright the state of being which allows such heinous crimes.

There are times I do not feel God’s presence. The popular poem Footsteps in the Sand describes a stylized and reassuring portrayal of God’s care for us, but it is only empty words and platitudes for the most part. God has instead given us a concrete method of reassurance which we may use at any time. Whether we feel as though our prayers are hitting a ceiling, or as though the lamp guiding our feet is dim or has gone out, God’s plan works. This plan is outlined in Psalm 13:

1 How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I take counsel in my soul
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and answer me, O LORD my God;
light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
4 lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.

5 But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
6 I will sing to the LORD,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.

The first four verses display an emotional and spiritual state many of us can relate to: Where is God when I need Him most? When God seems to have forgotten, when David is seeking counsel, when his enemies are succeeding in their aims against him, when he feels all hope is lost, David cries out and does not hear a response.

The turning point in this psalm does not say that God heard him even that there was any change in his circumstances. Instead he merely trusted and remembered. God had dealt bountifully with him in the past. God is the same yesterday, today and forever, therefore God will continue to deal bountifully with him. There are times each of us can look back to where God worked obviously and with great result in our lives. When we don’t feel His presence we can remember those times we did, and then we can trust Him to continue to work in us.

Seattle’s homosexual pride celebration was unsustainable last year. After the celebration at the Seattle Center, organizers said they were $100,000 in the red, bankrupt.

As a result of the deficit, this year’s celebration went unplanned until six weeks ago. “There’s a lot of opinions out there and I think there’s a lot of people who thought this couldn’t be pulled off in six and a half weeks. And we pulled this off,” said the festival director.

This year, parade participants carried laundry baskets and fishing nets to collect donations from onlookers to pay the bills for the parade and party.

The organizer, Seattle Out and Proud, is working out a payment plan with the city attorney’s office to pay back the debt from last year’s event.

Read the story HERE.

…an expulsive power in a new affection.

“Let me explain the problem science has with Jesus Christ.” The atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand. “You’re a Christian, aren’t you, son?”"Yes, sir.”

“So you believe in God?”

“Absolutely.”

“Is God good?”

“Sure! God’s good.”

“Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?”

“Yes.”

“Are you good or evil?”

“The Bible says I’m evil.”

The professor grins knowingly. “Ahh! THE BIBLE!” He considers for a moment. “Here’s one for you. Let’s say there’s a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help them? Would you try?”

“Yes sir, I would.”

“So you’re good…!”

“I wouldn’t say that.”

“Why not say that? You would help a sick and maimed person if you could… in fact most of us would if we could… God doesn’t.

[No answer.]

“He doesn’t, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is this Jesus good? Hmmm? Can you answer that one?”

[No answer]

The elderly man is sympathetic. “No, you can’t, can you?” He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax. In philosophy, you have to go easy with the new ones. “Let’s start again, young fella.”

“Is God good?”

“Er… Yes.”

“Is Satan good?”

“No.”

“Where does Satan come from?” The student falters.

“From… God…”

“That’s right. God made Satan, didn’t he?” The elderly man runs his bony fingers through his thinning hair and turns to the smirking, student audience.”I think we’re going to have a lot of fun this semester, ladies and gentlemen.” He turns back to the Christian.

“Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Evil’s everywhere, isn’t it? Did God make everything?”

“Yes.”

“Who created evil?

[No answer]

“Is there sickness in this world? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness. All the terrible things – do they exist in this world? ”

The student squirms on his feet. “Yes.”

“Who created them? ”

[No answer] The professor suddenly shouts at his student. “WHO CREATED THEM? TELL ME, PLEASE!” The professor closes in for the kill and climbs into the Christian’s face. In a still small voice: “God created all evil, didn’t He, son?”

[No answer]

The student tries to hold the steady, experienced gaze and fails.

Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace the front of the classroom like an aging panther. The class is mesmerized. “Tell me,” he continues, “How is it that this God is good if He created all evil throughout all time?” The professor swishes his arms around to encompass the wickedness of the world. “All the hatred, the brutality, all the pain, all the torture, all the death and ugliness and all the suffering created by this good God is all over the world, isn’t it, young man?”

[No answer]

“Don’t you see it all over the place? Huh?”

Pause.

“Don’t you?” The professor leans into the student’s face again and whispers, “Is God good?”

[No answer]

“Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?”

The student’s voice betrays him and cracks. “Yes, professor. I do.”

The old man shakes his head sadly. “Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen him? ”

“No, sir. I’ve never seen Him.”

“Then tell us if you’ve ever heard your Jesus?”

“No, sir. I have not.”

“Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelt your Jesus…in fact, do you have any sensory perception of your God whatsoever?”

[No answer]

“Answer me, please.”

“No, sir, I’m afraid I haven’t.”

“You’re AFRAID… you haven’t?”

“No, sir.”

“Yet you still believe in him?”

“…yes…”

“That takes FAITH!” The professor smiles sagely at the underling.”According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn’t exist. What do you say to that, son? Where is your God now?”

[The student doesn't answer]

“Sit down, please.”

The Christian sits…Defeated.

Another Christian raises his hand. “Professor, may I address the class?”

The professor turns and smiles. “Ah, another Christian in the vanguard! Come, come, young man. Speak some proper wisdom to the gathering.”

The Christian looks around the room. “Some interesting points you are making, sir. Now I’ve got a question for you. Is there such thing as heat?”

“Yes,” the professor replies. “There’s heat.”

“Is there such a thing as cold?”

“Yes, son, there’s cold too.”

“No, sir, there isn’t.”

The professor’s grin freezes. The room suddenly goes very cold.

The second Christian continues. “You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super- heat, mega-heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat but we don’t have anything called ‘cold’. We can hit 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can’t go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold, otherwise we would be able to go colder than 458 -

You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. “Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.”

Silence. A pin drops somewhere in the classroom.

“Is there such a thing as darkness, professor?”

“That’s a dumb question, son. What is night if it isn’t darkness? What are you getting at…?”

“So you say there is such a thing as darkness?”

“Yes…”

“You’re wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something, it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and it’s called darkness, isn’t it? That’s the meaning we use to define the word. In reality, Darkness isn’t. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker and give me a jar of it. Can you…give me a jar of darker darkness, professor?”

Despite himself, the professor smiles at the young effrontery before him. This will indeed be a good semester. “Would you mind telling us what your point is, young man?”

“Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with and so your conclusion must be in error….”

The professor goes toxic. “Flawed…? How dare you…!”"

“Sir, may I explain what I mean?”

The class is all ears.

“Explain… oh, explain…” The professor makes an admirable effort to regain control. Suddenly he is affability itself. He waves his hand to silence the class, for the student to continue.

“You are working on the premise of duality,” the Christian explains. “That for example there is life and then there’s death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science cannot even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism but has never seen, much less fully understood them. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, merely the absence of it.”

The young man holds up a newspaper he takes from the desk of a neighbor who has been reading it. “Here is one of the most disgusting tabloids this country hosts, professor. Is there such a thing as immorality?”

“Of course there is, now look…”

“Wrong again, sir. You see, immorality is merely the absence of morality.

Is there such thing as injustice? No. Injustice is the absence of justice. Is there such a thing as evil?” The Christian pauses. “Isn’t evil the absence of good?”

The professor’s face has turned an alarming color. He is so angry he is temporarily speechless.

The Christian continues. “If there is evil in the world, professor, and we all agree there is, then God, if he exists, must be accomplishing a work through the agency of evil. What is that work, God is accomplishing? The Bible tells us it is to see if each one of us will, of our own free will, choose good over evil.

The professor bridles. “As a philosophical scientist, I don’t view this matter as having anything to do with any choice; as a realist, I absolutely do not recognize the concept of God or any other theological factor as being part of the world equation because God is not observable.”

“I would have thought that the absence of God’s moral code in this world is probably one of the most observable phenomena going,” the Christian replies.

“Newspapers make billions of dollars reporting it every week! Tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?”

“If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do.”

“Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?”

The professor makes a sucking sound with his teeth and gives his student a silent, stony stare.

“Professor. Since no-one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a priest?”

“I’ll overlook your impudence in the light of our philosophical discussion. Now, have you quite finished?” the professor hisses.

“So you don’t accept God’s moral code to do what is righteous?”

“I believe in what is – that’s science!”

“Ahh! SCIENCE!” the student’s face splits into a grin. “Sir, you rightly state that science is the study of observed phenomena. Science too is a premise which is flawed…”

“SCIENCE IS FLAWED?” the professor splutters.

The class is in uproar.

The Christian remains standing until the commotion has subsided. “To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, may I give you an example of what I mean?” The professor wisely keeps silent.

The Christian looks around the room. “Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor’s brain?” The class breaks out in laughter.

The Christian points towards his elderly, crumbling tutor. “Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor’s brain… felt the professor’s brain, touched or smelt the professor’s brain?” No one appears to have done so.

The Christian shakes his head sadly. “It appears no-one here has had any sensory perception of the professor’s brain whatsoever. Well, according to the rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science, I DECLARE that the professor has no brain.”

The class is in chaos.

The Christian sits down.

This is a humorous story of dubious veracity, but it is accurate in it’s description of the fight a Christian must deal with in the college classroom. I’ve been in my share of science, philosophy, even speech and literature classes where the instructors taught things so diametrically opposite God’s law and against His nature I wondered at their capability to contain a rational thought inside themselves without being torn apart by the lies the lived and espoused. I’ve felt like that first student before and many times decided not to confront the class in order to maintain peace. There were a few classes where I spoke up, Biology to challenge evolution, speech to argue for a moral good. But there were many more where I sat by quietly and received my grade.

There really are serious holes in so much of what we base our lives upon. Science is a vaunted, hallowed term which tolerates no controversy. However it is stiff and unable to capture the whole of the human experience. To deny all that Science cannot define is to deny a large and important portion of the human experience and ourselves as humans. The proper perspective must be kept in regards to Science, Philosophy and our spiritual natures.

We are created by God in His image, as spiritual and eternal beings. This physical life is a process, a lesson, a test. The correct answer in this test is to accept Christs redemptive work on the cross as covering our sins and failures, justifying us before God. The correct practice for the lesson is to love the world the way Jesus does, grieving over sin and bringing others to His love and forgiveness. The correct method for the process is to live each day trusting in Gods’ holiness and Christs forgiveness and the Holy Spirits assistance in all our life. Science is brought into perspective with Psalm 19:

The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
Their measuring line goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.

Science serves to illuminate the order and rationality of God and sheds light on His breathtaking creativity and wisdom. And it shows His unbounded love. All creation is made for Him and for our enjoyment of Him. Philosophy seeks to understand the logic of God in the realm of ideas and concepts, morals and ethics. God is logical by nature, though His thoughts are high above us, beyond our comprehension. He has deigned to give us the ability to understand logic so that when we pass the gate of death and stand before Him, His logic and wisdom will awe us and impress us with our own inadequacy, and His amazing love and glory.

Our spiritual natures are what will continue past this fallen, failing earth and physical universe after it is destroyed and into the next, the new Jerusalem and Zion. With new physical body to enjoy the new physical creation God is creating for us we’ll learn ever more about God’s glory and holiness. As Keith Green sang, God made this world in 7 days and consider its grandeur to us, now consider that He has been working on heaven at least 2000 of our years. I know it is foolish to even think of God constrained by our time, but just consider…

…to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.

For a Christian, make sure you’re on God’s side. God isn’t busy figuring out which side He’ll be on.

I went to McDonalds for lunch the other day, through the drive-through and on my way. This is the McDonalds across the parking lot from the world corporate headquarters for all McDonalds, so the service here is just a few notches above anywhere else. The employees are courteous and clean and the food is fast, very fast. And I’ve become spoiled.

Imagine my surprise and consternation then when I get back to my shady parking spot and begin enjoying my lunch accompanied by Mark Bellings filling in for Rush, and find I’m missing part of my lunch order. Oh I got frustrated, quickly. Thinking short words to describe the people behind the thick windows with their beady eyes just waiting to gyp me. I’m frustrated because I only have a half-hour lunch break, and this means even less time to enjoy it. I’m frustrated because it means I’m going to have to walk into that crowded store and describe the problem and try and get it resolved. I’m frustrated because I deserve better than this. They ought to give me a large fries just because they messed up my day. Maybe if I make a big stink I’ll get a coupon or something. Ha.

So I begin to drive back down the street to McDonalds, steaming. But as I near the store, the initial shock and angst wears off and I begin to think rationally about this. The employees here service hundreds of people every hour, I’ve only had one or two issues in my visits there (missed a straw once and missed a fork once). I’ve worked at a McDonalds before and I know the pressures and stresses involved in that job. What was I upset for?

This world is populated with humans, lots of them. We all make mistakes, lots of them. We all mess up and screw up and goof up and the world keeps turning. God still loves us. Why should I be upset because I missed my small fries.

So I walked up to the counter, laid down my receipt, opened my bag to show it’s abbreviated contents and calmly and kindly stated my problem to the important looking lady behind the counter:

“I did not receive my small fries”

“Ok, I’m sorry about that”

She walks the 6 feet, retrieves a small fries package, and back and puts them in a new bag for me. I walk out, content. There is nothing more I need nor anything less. I got what I paid for and now I’m happy. I did not ruin her day and I did not disrupt the store. It was very simple really, once I got passed my human nature.