Today is Ally’s 27th birthday!

Somehow she has survived!

It was just over 2 weeks ago that she was involved in a very bad accident that totaled her car and left her with minor injuries.

But she survived!

She survived 16 months in enemy territory – a suburb of Chicago.

She survived many years of hard study at school.

And she survived her poor excuse for a daddy.

But she survived.

Happy birthday Allison! Love you!!!!!

There was an excellent article in American Thinker (AT) yesterday (March 31, 2012) entitled “On Restoring American Individualism“.

This should be required reading for everyone in elected office, working for those in elected office, running for elected office, and writing articles or news stories about American government of any type.

Allow me to add my few thoughts.  I’m allowed to do that, since I pay for this blog site.

Individualism is the core idea that sets our country apart from all others.  As the AT article describes, we were founded by those who believed that the individual will act for his own best interest apart from a group as a whole. This is Adam Smith’s “invisible hand” concept, by the way, as he expressed it in “The Wealth of Nations”. We each have the ability to choose what we make of ourselves. Stephen Covey, writing in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People calls it “response-ability”: the ability of the human mind to shape its responses to stimuli rather than to yield to some primal instinct. You know how it goes: “If life gives you lemons, make lemonade”.

This is, of course, a Biblical view.  God gave the first man and woman the ability to choose right from wrong.  They chose “wrong”, and we have all suffered since. Mankind retains the ability to choose, and he seldom chooses the right way over the wrong. It is when he chooses the “right” in his interactions with others that society as a whole benefits from the individual. And when pure self-interest conflicts with the pure self-interest of another, agreements are reached in a polite, ethical manner that ultimately benefits both sides. We call this “civilization”. We also term it “Judea-Christian morality”. “Imposing” such a system on this country or any other would NOT be turning it into a “theocracy” as many on both sides of these arguments like to claim. Rather, it would be a freeing of the individual to make his or her own choices in pure self-interest.

Now, human nature being what it is, man’s worse side always tends to come out as “selfishness”, rather than pure self-interest. Then you see the excesses of “greed”, abandoning of ethics, and the ignoring of moral truth.  It is these excesses that have generated protests and movements throughout history. The “progressive” movement in the US, communism, socialism, and fascism are all names of reactionary movements against the wrongful excesses of selfishness.

Incidentally,this also at the heart of some of the violent reactions of radical Islam to Western society. While I condemn heartily their entire misguided belief system, I can in a faint way see the direction from which they have drawn their conclusions.

With the idea of “individualism” as a way of life comes something that is sorely lacking in today’s world: the idea of “personal responsibility”. If a person has the ability to choose for him- or herself what to do with life, then he or she must be ready and willing to accept the consequences of such behavior. It is this woeful flight from responsibility that is at the core of the recent dustups over “contraception” in the health care plan. Certain types of people want individual freedom without any responsibility for the consequences of their actions. They do not want to pay, either before or after the act – even if the act ultimately requires the murder of an unborn human being. This is irresponsibility at its absolute worst.

A lot of this is at the core of the political philosophy known today as “libertarianism”. There’s a lot to like there, but there’s a lot to scare responsible people away as well. How far does the government go in limiting the “individualism” that can be practiced by citizens? There’s where a lot of the disagreeable notions come out.

Let’s look at a brief example: recreational drug use. The current crop of Libertarians generally insist that the “war on drugs” is a colossal waste of money and should be stopped.  People have a right to do with their bodies whatever they wish.

That’s true. But what happens when you do something to your body that reduces your ability to control yourself in pure self-interest (not injuring yourself or causing injury to others or damage to property)? Stories abound of those who have used drugs and have damaged property or other people with their inability to see, sense, or recognize danger (I should include alcohol use in here, by the way!). A wise government will limit the availability of such substances through laws and/or fines and taxes, and then make and enforce strict penalties for their use to discourage unsafe behavior and to insure the rights of its citizens to be safe from unnecessary harm.

Where did I read something like that?

… That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed

Oh, yes, the Declaration of Independence. The ultimate American expression of the individual and his relationship to governing power.

The current trend is toward more and more government control of all facets of life. As the AT article leads one to think, this is the culmination of the work of John Dewey and many of the progressives of the early 20th century. The entire premise is that the government (or the “community”, as progressives put it) makes the individual, not the other way around. The individual is incapable in and of himself to take care of himself or to make proper choices for himself or his property. He must be “protected”, “guided”, and “provided for” by the ultimate Mother figure, who alone can determine what is “fair”. “Uncle Sam” has been replaced by “Mommie Dearest”.

Someone (Rush Limbaugh?) rightly said that the American symbol should change from the eagle to a sow with piglet latched onto her nipples. Our current government certainly feels that way. And they are blessed with brainless supporters who wield microphones, printers, and websites all under the upside-down umbrella called “news media”.

It is going to have to change. Violence is not the answer, but it may have to be a last resort, someday, somehow. I certainly hope it’s not anytime soon.

But if I can figure out what to do to do my part towards changing things, I will.

Will you?

Rambling over. For now.

It never is, is it?

On Friday, March 16th, our daughter Allison was involved in a 5-car accident on I-385 in Mauldin (outside of Greenville), SC.  She had stopped behind another vehicle because of an existing accident.  A car behind her plowed into her at approximately 65 miles per hour, then 2 more vehicles joined in the “fun”.  Apparently the driver of the one car (who did not have a license, nor was she an authorized driver of the vehicle) was texting on her phone at the time.

Ally had minor injuries: mild concussion, whiplash, a cracked rib, a dislocated vertebra, a dislocation in her hip, and bruising of internal organs.  It has taken her almost 2 weeks to begin to feel human again.

The insurance policy on the vehicle at fault has a maximum limit of $25,000.00 per incident.  That means that all of the car damages and all of the medical expenses must be paid out of that amount.  Once it’s gone, it’s gone.  Our insurance is working to try to help get as much as possible.

The following Monday, March 19th, we bought a car to replace Ally’s wrecked 2003 Oldsmobile Aler0.  We found a 1999 Nissan Altima with low mileage and a decent price, so we secured it.  On Thursday I had the oil changed, and the mechanic said that the valve cover was leaking oil (causing misfiring on one cylinder) and the water pump was leaking fluid.  So on Friday I took the car and spent almost $600 on repairs.

When I left the shop, I decided to go get some new wiper blades installed while I was absent from work.  As I crested an overpass, traffic stopped in front of me.  I braked hard and came to rest very close to the back bumper of a Ford Explorer.  Then . . .

~ WHAM ~

I got rear-ended. Wrecked. Bashed.  I was not injured, but the car didn’t look so good any more.  Analysis by a body shop the next Monday showed almost $4,000.00 of damage to a car that I just paid $5,000.00 for. By Alabama law (I was told), since that exceeds 75% of the retail value of the car, it will likely be a total loss.

Am I having fun yet?

Now our insurance company has 2 claims going – on the same policy.  Fortunately for me the woman who hit the Nissan has good insurance, and they seem to be working quickly to resolve the problem. My insurance company will gladly let them, too.

But now I get to buy another vehicle.

I’m almost afraid to drive it to Greenville.

Nope. Not what I had in mind at all.

I have just finished reading Mark Levin’s new book Ameritopia.

Wow.

That’s not necessarily for his writing, but for the quotations he prints from 180 to over 300 years ago.

Levin summarizes four major works: Plato’s Republic, More’s Utopia, Hobbes’s Leviathan, and Marx’s Communist Manifesto. The quotes he gathers, along with his commentary and explanations, show the agenda of these works as being government control and limitation of the individual with power concentrated in a single person or group of “elite” or “chosen” people whose understanding and motives are always pure and above reproach. The subjects addressed are eerily prescient of the state of some governments today, such as the European Union.

In the 2nd part of the book he turns his attention to the other viewpoint.  He discusses John Locke and his Essay Concerning Human Understanding that dealt extensively with the nature of man and “natural law”. Locke’s influences are strikingly obvious in the Declaration of Independence, showing that Thomas Jefferson was a student of Locke’s writings.

The 2nd author discussed is Charles de Montesquieu, who wrote The Spirit of the Laws. One of Montesquieu’s main contributions to American government is the idea of a tri-partite government with independent Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches. His work was a major influence on the Constitutional Convention that ultimately generated the best Constitution ever used to govern a modern nation.  He was also debated in the Federalist Papers, in which the founders and framers of the Constitution debated their opinions of what it all meant.

The 3rd work analyzed by Levin is Democracy in America, written in two books in 1835 and 1840 by Alexis de Tocqueville. Tocqueville was most complimentary about what he observed in touring our young nation, but he offered some sobering thoughts about the possibilities of what could happen in the future if the American spirit changed.

Boy, was he prophetic.  Montesquieu also made similar observations about the growth of government control, the spread of taxes, the results of increased reliance upon government by the citizens, and the certain end of the American dream if such abuses of the system spread.  Reading some of the warnings sounds like one of them had a crystal ball and were reading the front page of a newspaper today or watching one of the liberal news programs.

The bad thing is that Levin has no answer.  He only hopes that we can arrest the quickening downhill slide. So do I.

Another book I am re-reading through is Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged.

I cannot at all agree with her moral conclusions or the immorality she espouses in her characters. But the picture she paints of an American society that focuses solely on what is “fair”, with “equality” and “no unfair competition” and “profits are bad” being common themes of the “masses”, she nails the direction that American society is heading.  I just hope that the outcome she describes at the end of the book (I’m not there yet, but I remember it) will not really befall us. A total disintegration of American society and infrastructure would be disastrous, and those who have ambition and principle (as she describes it) will probably not survive, even if hidden in a desert hideaway.

Some of her scenes and character interactions, however, are certainly troubling.  You can almost hear some of those conversations in the halls of government and political society today.

It scares me.  I hope it scares enough people that we can all do something about it.

But my hope wanes.

I’m speaking of that terrible condition commonly referred to as “adolescence”.

“Insanity” may be the more apt description.

Or maybe “emotional tornado”.

We really do need that barrel.

At any rate, our youngest, who is now all of 14 years old, has an irreversible case of whatever you wish to call it.  And it’s not very pretty at times.

But it is to be expected as coming with the territory.

On the other hand, this kid is REALLY talented in so many different ways.  He just placed #1 in expository preaching at the Alabama Association of Christian Schools Academic and Arts Competition.  He placed 1st in patriotic poster as well.  He entered in calligraphy and won 2nd.  He painted a watercolor and got 2nd for that.  And as a replacement for an absent student he got tossed into the essay category.  He won 2nd place there also.

Two top spots and three second-place ribbons.  That makes five.  Out of five categories entered.  Not bad, as they say.

I may be frustrated with him at times (often, actually), but I am also extremely proud (even MORE often, actually).

Happy birthday, Jon.  Love you!

Well, well.  Today is someone’s 29th birthday.

You know what THAT means?

That means that this is the 30th year of his life.  No more “kid stuff”.  Now it’s taking care of the new home and all the bills that follow, plus planning a family, plus working on the career, plus a whole lot of other stuff that (heh heh) he’ll find out about as it comes.

And it will come, believe me.

So enjoy your 30th year, Chris.  And ignore the hill.

Or climb it and jump higher.  Your choice.

Happy birthday, son!!

What a year!  Aren’t you glad it’s over? 2011 was “interesting” in the Chinese-curse sort of way (“May you live in interesting times”).

It was a tumultuous year, to be sure.  Probably the most memorable and defining event was the tornado outbreak on April 27th.

Then there was the death of our rat terrier Minnie in late May.  While we love her replacement, Rosie the beagle, we still tend to call her name when addressing the dog.  Old habits die hard!

Speaking of old habits, my old habit of devouring anything edible within reach is slowly dying.  My weight has been stable at just under 200 pounds since late August.  I lost 100 pounds in exactly 1 year.  I look different (check out the before and after photos) and feel much better (and sometimes hungrier!), but it was worth it.  Now to keep it off for the rest of my life.  I hope.

Family updates:

1. Our oldest son Chris bought a house in Smyrna, Georgia, which is a suburb of Atlanta. He continues to work for Wandering Wifi and is in line for a good promotion in the coming year.
2. Ally finished up at Bob Jones University and has been through a couple of jobs.  Hopefully the current one will be stable for a while. She will be moving out of the apartment that Chris originally rented several years ago to try to save a bit of money.
3. Ben spent 2 weeks on a mission trip to Antigua, then worked the lifeguard stand at the Wilds Christian Camp for the summer.  He also got very serious about a young lady from Virginia (Hi, Kelly!).  He changed his major to computer science, which gave him a bit of a struggle at first.
4. Jon grew about 17 feet and now is as tall as I am – and he’s only 13! He played JV ball last year, and now is a starter for the JV basketball team this year.  He also won 1st place in the state preaching competition in January, as well as placing 2nd in calligraphy and later winning in some fine arts events.  He also became a teenager (boy, did he!!). I hope we survive it.

In a more important category, my wife continues to be a good great wonderful fantastic wife and mother. I would be hard-pressed to survive without her.  Love you, honey! (Did I use the correct adjective this time??)

Work at Ropak continues.  We have great plans for the coming year, especially since my father just completed purchasing 100% interest in the company. There are some exciting projects that we are working on getting, and if we do, it will mean great success for the business.  That is, of course, if the electrical engineer and IT guy can get off of his once-fat butt and do something productive for a change.

I could rattle on, but I won’t.  We’ll see how the new year progresses. One of the scariest things upcoming in the new year is the presidential election. I am still ambivalent about who to support, but I know that his name will not sound like or rhyme with “Obama”. Nor will he (or she) have a donkey beside their name on a ballot. I steadfastly refuse to vote for ANY candidate – local, state, or national – who runs under the auspices of the Democratic (spelled “A-N-T-I-A-M-E-R-I-C-A-N”) Party.

I am very thankful to the Lord my God for permitting me to have this year and allowing me to start the next one.  All praise is always due to Him alone. Soli Deo Gloria!

* For those not aware of the shortcuts used in blogging and texting, this conglomeration of letters means:

“Don’t Let The Door Hit You On The Way Out”

“Thanksgiving” is a uniquely American holiday in which our whole nation pauses to (ostensibly) give thanks for the many blessings received from God over the past year.  It is sad that we must formalize something like this that should in reality be a constant attitude in our lives.  What other country can boast of the benefits (non-governmental, mind you) and resources (likewise) available to those who strive for them?

The so-called “Occupy” movement, which is really an offspring of this president and his immoral, anti-American political party, is mostly a hodge-podge of greedy malcontents and lazy, ill-educated brats who have never been taught the truths that:

1. in reality there really is no “free lunch”;
2. there are no guarantees in life other than the age-old pair of “death” and “taxes”;
3. hard work does ultimately tend to pay off;
4. “luck” is seldom the reason for success;
5. success, prosperity, and security are never instantaneous – they take time to develop in personal, corporate, and national spheres;
6. like it or not, everything in life carries a certain amount of risk which cannot always be foreseen, mitigated, or avoided;
7. no one (ESPECIALLY not the government!) owes you anything more than you earn;
8. much of what you DO have comes from your own efforts and/or the hard work and generosity of your parents and others who worked before and alongside them;
9. whining, complaining, and tantrum-throwing accomplishes nothing to further any cause and tends to minimize its importance in the public opinion;
10. it really doesn’t matter to others what you want unless it has potential to further satisfy what it is that THEY want;
11. growing up is ultimately necessary and should never cease until death stops the process; and
12. believe and accept it or not, there IS a Higher Power that governs all by His all-knowing and all-wise counsel and Who has an ultimate purpose for each of His created beings, giving to them those things and experiences that He knows will improve them so that they can serve Him joyfully and in total personal fulfillment.

While the above list is in no way all-inclusive, it does summarize many salient points.  And those points are ignored by many of the “elite” who have purchased power for themselves by spending their own ill-gotten fortunes and buying votes and influence without the experience that comes from learning the principles of life.

How much could the American people grow and proper if they would only acknowledge the One Who is ultimately responsible for it all?  is “In God We Trust” really only an empty motto now for most residents?

Our country’s first Thanksgiving proclamation is a good one.  Our first president penned it in 1789.  Read it, and follow its instructions.

And “Happy Thanksgiving”!

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA – A PROCLAMATION

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor – and Whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me “to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.”

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be – That we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks – for His kind care and protection of the People of this country previous to their becoming a Nation – for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of His providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war –for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed – for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which He hath been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions – to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually – to render our national government a blessing to all the People, by constantly being a government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed – to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord – To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and Us – and generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.

GO. WASHINGTON.

Child #3, son Ben, turns 19 today.

Or, stated otherwise, today is the 1st day of his 20th year.

20 years ago, I had the worst year for being away from home.  I was gone almost 160 days that year, which, if you do the quick math, is more than 5 months.

“Mommy” decided that she was not done with doing the “mommy” thing, and informed me that she wanted another child.

So she got another child.

He made her pay for it, too.  He was the biggest of the 4, and waited almost 2 weeks beyond his “scheduled appearance” (at least “Mommy’s schedule).

But he came.  And he has been quite the blessing.

Happy birthday, Ben.  Hope there are many more ahead of you.  Just don’t get ahead of yourself – or ahead of God’s plans for you.

Love you!!!

{Note: I’m a baaaaad Daddy.  I started this post on the right day, then forgot about it for a week and had to post-date it.  SORRY!!}

No, I don’t suffer from a math impediment.

I have (almost) reached those numbers.

It was on August 23rd of last year that I attended the diabetic diet class that I took to heart and changed my way of eating.  Now, 365 days later, I weighed 99-3/4 pounds less than I did a year ago.

I honestly doubted that I would have this result.  I am astounded by how much better I look and feel now that 1/2 of my mass has departed.

So now I’m 2/3 of the man I used to be.

The hard part begins.  I’ve noticed a drop in weekly weight loss over the last 3 months, which I would suspect to be normal.  And I don’t think I can lose too much more without seriously eating into what little muscle I have (and I suspect that I have lost a bit of that as well).

I must continue regulating my input and try to get a bit more exercise to build muscle and keep the fat away.  If I could only flip a switch or check a box on a form that would mean that I keep this weight level with little or no work, I would.  But this is a project that will last the rest of my life, so I need to get used to it.

Really, though, it appears to be worth it.

But I’m still hungry.  Sometimes.