American Conservatives-The Stupid Party since before 1897

This paragraph is one of many gems that I have found reading a collection of essays on Tactics of Christian Resistance assembled by Gary North in 1983. The paradigm of the evil party and the stupid party has been at work long before William F Buckley Jr. was born.

In 1897, Robert L. Dabney described Yankee Conservatism thusly:

This is a party which never conserves anything. Its history has been that it demurs to each aggression of the progressive party, and aims to save its credit by a respectable amount of growling, but always acquiesces at last in the innovation. What was the resisted novelty of yesterday is to-day one of the accepted principles of conservatism; it is now conservative only in affecting to resist the next innovation, which will to-morrow be forced upon its timidity and will be succeeded by some third revolution, to be denounced and then adopted in its turn. American conservatism is merely the shadow that follows Radicalism as it moves forward towards perdition. It remains behind it, but never retards it, and always advances near its leader. This pretended salt hath utterly lost its savor: wherewith shall it be salted? Its impotency is not hard, indeed, to explain. It is worthless because it is the conservatism of expediency only, and not of sturdy principle. It intends to risk nothing serious for the sake of the truth, and has no idea of being guilty of the folly of martyrdom. It always-when about to enter a protest-very blandly informs the wild beast whose path it essays to stop, that its “bark is worse than its bite,” and that it only means to save its manners by enacting its decent role of resistance. The only practical purpose which it now subserves in American politics is to give enough exercise to Radicalism to keep it “in wind,” and to prevent its becoming pursy and lazy from having nothing to whip. No doubt, after a few years, when women’s suffrage shall have become an accomplished fact, conservatism will tacitly admit it into its creed, and thenceforward plume itself upon its wise firmness in opposing with similar weapons the extreme of baby suffrage; and when that too shall have been won, it will be heard declaring that the integrity of the American Constitution requires at least the refusal of suffrage to asses. There it will assume, with great dignity, its final position.
1. Robert L. Dabney, Discussions, Vol. 4 (Vallecito, CA: Ross House Publishers, [1897] 1979), p. 496.

As quoted in essay The Fundamental Biblical Tactic For Resisting Tyranny by Louis DeBoer, p 16.

BSA Punts to May Meeting

The Boy Scouts of America have felt the heat (not much hope they will see the light) and decided not to decide. The Board reluctantly realized that maybe exposing every individual in the organization to litigation is not in the best interest of their organization’s survival. And your first clue was what?

The value of being morally straight has survived another assault by the enemies of virtue.

BSA Going Gay

We will know sometime this week if the Boy Scouts of America will be the latest institution to abandon traditional values and embrace the lies of multicultural and politically correct Liberalism. Interest groups and conservative pundits that should be opposed to this assault on another fine American Institution have been strangely silent.

The vote will be held in secret sometime this week. No scouts or parents of scouts will be allowed to watch the proceedings. No scouts or leaders of scouting were consulted, polled, surveyed or given any input. The corporate board of BSA is going to sell-out millions of parents and children for a few corporate dollars.

If this policy change is approved then my son will be forced out of scouting because Scouting will have rejected the values of its Christian founders and will not be a safe environment for activities. I have kept my son out of the public school system because of all the pro-homosexual mandates placed in the education code of California. Mark Leno’s values may be from the pit of hell but that doesn’t mean I will voluntarily turn my children over to these pedophiles and perverts.

This is yet another proof that divine judgment continues to ratchet-up as the United States persists in its decline.

For a summary of this under reported issue see http://www.wnd.com/2013/02/look-which-companies-dumping-boy-scouts/

David Chilton on Our Political Failure

I have been reading through David Chilton’s commentary on the book of Revelations, Days of Vengeance. (It is available for download at this address http://www.garynorth.com/freebooks/sidefrm2.htm ) This book was written during Reagan’s second term after the collapse of Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority and the backtracking of C. Everet Koop.

In light of the current state of the Republican Party and continuing decay of social issues in our country, the following really caught my eye. It is from pages 511-512.

It must be stressed, however, that the road to Christian dominion does not lie primarily through political action. While the political sphere, like every other aspect of life, is a valid and necessary area for Christian activity and eventual dominance, we must shun the perennial temptation to grasp for political power. Dominion in civil government cannot be obtained before we have attained maturity in wisdom-the result of generations of Christian self-government. As we learn to apply God’s Word to practical situations in our personal lives, our homes, our schools, and our businesses; as Christian churches exercise Biblical judgment over their own officers and members, respecting and enforcing the discipline of other churches; then Christians will be able to be trusted with greater responsibilities. Those who are faithful in a few things will be put in charge of many things (Matt. 25:21, 23), but “from everyone who has been given much shall much be required” (Luke 12:48; cf. Luke 16:10-12; 19:17). One of the distinguishing marks of heretical movements throughout Church history has been the attempt to grab the robe of political power before it has been bestowed.

This whole issue has been thoughtfully explored in an excellent essay by James Jordan, and the best service I can provide the interested reader at this point is simply to refer him to it. 25 Jordan concludes his study with these words: “When we are ready, God will give the robe to us. That He has not done so proves that we are not ready. Asserting our readiness will not fool Him. Let us pray that He does not crush us by giving us such authority before we are ready for it. Let us plan for our great-grandchildren to be ready for it. Let us go about our business, acquiring wisdom in family, church, state, and business, and avoiding confrontations with the powers that be…. For as sure as Christ is risen from the grave and is ascended to regal glory on high, so sure it is that His saints will inherit the kingdom and rule in His name, when the time is right.”26

Footnote 25:

25. James B. Jordan, “Rebellion, Tyranny, and Dominion in the Book of Genesis,” in Gary North, ed., Tactics of Christian Resistance, Christianity and Civilization No.3 (Tyler, TX: Geneva Ministries, 1983), pp. 38-80.

Footnote 26:

26. Ibid., p. 74. In this connection, Jordan’s remarks on the so-called “patriotic” tax-resistance movement are also worth repeating: “We must keep in mind that the pagan is primarily interested in power. This means that the maintenance of force (the draft) and the seizure of money (excessive taxation) are of absolute primary interest to him. If we think these are the most important things, then we will make them the point of resistance (becoming ‘tax patriots’ or some such thing). To think this way is to think like pagans. For the Christian, the primary things are righteousness (priestly guarding) and diligent work (kingly dominion). Generally speaking, the pagans don’t care how righteous we are, or how hard we work, so long as they get their tax money. This is why the Bible everywhere teaches to go along with oppressive taxation, and nowhere hints at the propriety of tax resistance” (p. 79).

Jordan’s essay is also available at the URL above. Look for Tactics of Christian Resistance by Gary North.

Off the Rails at the CRA Board Meeting

Yesterday I attended a Board meeting of the California Republican Assembly. I’ve attended a lot of meeting for various organizations and this one was noteworthy for what was done incorrectly.

The highlights or takeaways or whatever metaphor fits the best were related to endorsements for candidates running for positions on the Board of the California Republican Party—the election for these positions will be during their spring convention.

I walked in the door just as Jim Brulte was being introduced. Brulte is the only announced candidate that has stepped forward to run for chairman of the California GOP. Brulte spoke for about five minutes and then fielded a few questions. Brulte did take two questions from me.

My first question was an attempt to get Brulte to promise that in the future, the CRP should not expend their limited funds in general election races where both candidates were Republicans. Please spend money fighting against Democrats. He did seems to agree that would be a better use of our resources.

My second question was concerning CRP candidate endorsements. I was trying to get Brulte to have the CRP adopt a primary system that did not vest all power in Central Committees and the State Board but allowed input from rank and file Republicans. Brulte had no interest in dealing with this issue. The current system was supposed to be only for the 2012 election cycle but no permanent solution has been proposed yet. I think it likely that the current system is here to stay. It is a top down model and works well in an authoritarian/elitist system. As long as this system is in place then the Republicans have no claim to being a “grassroots” Party.

Immediately following his remarks, the chair entertained a motion to endorse Brulte. She called for yea votes, then said “all opposed step outside” and the asked for any abstentions. I wanted to vote “no” based on the brush-off to my second question but I was not allowed to do so. Shortly after this vote, the Secretary called the role for purposes or establishing a quorum.

When a Chairman cannot follow Robert’s Rules of Order I loose respect for them. The rest of the body didn’t want the Chair to look dumber by pointing out that their endorsement vote was illegal and therefore void under both CRA’s Bylaws and Robert’s Rules.
• Quorum was not established prior to conducting business
• No one was allowed to speak in opposition to the nomination which was the case in all other endorsement votes held yesterday

As is often the practice of the Parliamentarian, he was silent on this snafu.

The Agenda for the meeting was poorly done. The main purpose of the Board Meeting was supposed to be to discuss endorsing candidates for the CRP Board and this was not even on the Agenda! The layout was not done as multi-level outline but resembled a grocery list.

My other gripe is much more delicate to discuss. A candidate for another office appeared at the Board Meeting seeking endorsement for his run for a CRP office. Except for Brulte, all other candidates were asked to leave the room. Once this other candidate left the room, the meeting took a trip into the Twilight Zone or some other infrequently charted waters.

An individual got up in front of the group and then stated that he had been sober for ten years and had not been arrested in 17 years but he said that the candidate that we had just heard could make no such claim. Wow!

Then a second person got up and began to talk about the candidate. His attempt to speak was curtailed by the chair. He was frustrated that he was unable to unload on the character of this individual and his conduct during the most recent election cycle. The person complaining was promised that he would be able to bring this up under new business. When he again tried under new business he was shut down by the chair. Clearly this candidate has hit a raw nerve in the minds of several that claimed to know him.

The endorsement was tabled in the remote hope that someone more palatable would be found at a future date.

This incident was one of those where the political response diverged from the biblical one.

The character assassination card was played against this person. He had no opportunity to respond to the accusations since he was not allowed in the room. No evidence was presented that the accusations were true and his reputation was hurt. Lastly the person could have been blocked from getting the endorsement without the tactics that were utilized.

I sensed that there was likely a basis in fact for the accusations but it was equally clear that the endorsement could be blocked without resorting to their use. Disclosure in this way was a punitive act.

The Christian response would be to pray for the person and if he claimed to be a believer then go to him in order that he might repent. Putting someone out of the church is a different issue from blocking a political endorsement. I think some well-meaning folks went too far.

I think my conclusion that we are not yet ready to lead is still true. We need a new paradigm before those in the church are ready to lead in the political world. We need to have a political worldview that is an extension of our faith not a contradiction of it.

40 Years of Roe

When I was younger, I used to stand in front of an area abortion clinic with a homemade sign that read, “Abortion: One dead, One Wounded.” Some Roman Catholic folks that were with me made a suggestion for my sign; this resulted in some additional words being added. My sign then read, “Abortion: One dead, One Wounded and One Rich.”

I was involved with the pro-life movement for many years. During that period in my life I learned much about myself, my faith and the wickedness the men justify in their own hearts.

I had learned the issue as one where our argument was something like this: if we could just convince folks that abortion took a life then they would stop because we all agree that taking a life; especially an innocent one, was wrong. What I found was that the “other guys” never agreed with this premise. For them, the arguments that once started with babies in the womb being parasites and unviable tissue masses were replaced with more selfish ones about “choice.” Their definition of choice was like the proverbial “Russian Election.” Only one candidate was on the ballot and we all were expected to freely cast a vote for that person. The only choice on the ballot was death. In their world, the unborn child never had hope that life might occasionally win.

The result has been that since the passage of Roe v Wade in 1973, one in three pregnancies in the United States has ended in abortion. Legalized abortion in other countries has killed even more children. Europe is collapsing demographically and nothing can stop it. Mohammed is the top baby name in England. France is over 25 percent Muslim and growing rapidly. Ideas have consequences. Abortion is literally remaking the racial and ethnic character of the world. China has millions of men that will never marry because there are too few women in their country due to the one child per family law and a cultural preference for boys. The failed experiments in Social Darwinism continue in those countries that elevated man as the measure of all things.

The world stands at the brink of destruction on a scale never before seen in human history. Last century we endured two world wars and many decades of a “cold war”. Worse events could be in our future. The belief that some men are superior to others has caused the death of millions. Abortion, genocide, euthanasia and other forms of murder seem to be part of this fallen culture of men.

Today, as we reflect on the anniversary of Roe v Wade, our country is marching headlong into forced euthanasia for elderly. It is clear from the paradigm that Obama has instituted in his healthcare reform that his friends will experience a different outcome than those that disagree with him. I thought we just finished a protracted battle with the Soviets where the Party faithful got the goodies and the rest were enslaved and now we are voluntarily adopting much of the same system once dubbed “the Evil Empire”?

In the words of the Litany, “Good Lord, deliver us.”

Disarming Citizens is Tyranny

This month’s lesson in government intrusion seems to be aimed at infringing the right of the people to keep and bear arms.

Amendment II

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

As you can see, the Second Amendment never mentions hunting or sport shooting. The right to bear arms is clearly for military purposes. It is to protect our State and nation from threats. This was a purposeful Amendment to prevent a specific violation of rights that the British had committed upon the Colonies prior to the Revolution.

Furthermore, the Army of the United States was envisioned by the Founders as a defensive force. The Founders wanted to avoid the political entrapments and intrigue so common in the European States of the period. The modern American Military with an offensive force and the capability to “project power anywhere in the world” is the opposite of what was intended by the Framers of the Constitution.

The history of the Amendment was to ensure that citizens could protect themselves against tyranny and foreign aggressors. Or as the standard oath of office phrases it’ “I , _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; …”
• Protection from Foreign enemies is a pledge to protect our territory from attack.
• Protection from Domestic enemies is a pledge to defend citizens from the tyranny of the government; State or Federal.

Our dilemma is what to do when office holders have broken their oath and become the tyrants? This scenario was not envisioned by the Framers—at least not as part of their draft of the Constitution.

This leaves us with the right of civil disobedience and the doctrine of the lesser magistrate. These are helpful but the question remains; at what point do we stop submitting to the authority of our government? When does our road to serfdom necessitate a “line in the sand” that requires a response?

The question is further complicated by the fact that the politicians are no more corrupt that our fellow citizens. Do you actually believe that if someone “did a Tom Clancy” that the new leaders would be better than our current crop? I think it might actually result in a worse government and less freedom.

The Second Amendment is the only tool we have to insure that the rights that we have from God are not denied by the State. As long as politicians can’t disarm the population then we have hope that they will acknowledge limits to their power.

Christmas Returns at Best Buy and Kohl’s

Other than the return line at Fry’s Electronics, I don’t have too many times that I have to return items to retail stores. In the wake of Christmas this year I did have to exchange two items; one at Best Buy and the other from Kohl’s.

Best Buy
In an irrational fit of nostalgia, I purchased a copy of Doom 3. I really wanted it to get the bonus copy of Doom 2 that was included. I have the original CD of Doom 2 from about 1995 but it will not run on my 64 bit copy of Windows 8. The code on this new CD was modified to run on a 64 bit OS. The down side was I finally had to get a Steam account. I have been trying to avoid Steam for many years but they finally got me on this purchase.

I took the game out of my stocking on Christmas day and after the children had divided their loot and the turkey was carved, I sat down to install the game. I created my Steam account and then was prompted for the product key for the game. Much to my dismay, there was no product key in the box. The box was tampered with just enough that some enterprising kid had pried the paper with the key out of the box. (In case you are not familiar with Steam, you don’t need physical media to own the game, only a product key. Once you enter the key, Steam will let you download the game on your PC. )

The next day after work, I attempted to exchange the game for a new one. I expected Best Buy to give me the third degree about the license missing. Whether it was my age or just company policy, they let me swap it for a new one. They even verified that there was in fact a license in the new box. I left a happy customer.

Kohl’s
In Kohl’s I never saw an employee except at a cash register. I was left on my own to see if I could locate an appropriate item to exchange. In my case a pair of slippers that I was given were one size too small. I made two passes thru the shoe area to find any slippers. As it turned out, there was no area for slippers. It appears to be a holiday only item. On my second pass I found two opened boxes with slippers in them sitting on a display island in the store. The one that was the style that I prefer and the correct size still had fragments of wrapping paper on the box as a result of someone else returning them.

I went to my car to retrieve the small slippers which were purchased at a different Kohl’s store and the receipt. I then took both the item I was returning and the replacement box to the counter. They scanned both and stapled a receipt to my sales slip and I was free to go. No ID check or signature needed; even when item was purchased at a different store!

The exchange process in both stores was quick and the lines were short. Thanks for the good customer service.

Comments on the Connecticut School Shooting

I am amazed but not surprised at the outcry over the school shooting at Newtown Connecticut. While the attack was terrible, the political posturing and exploitation of this tragedy by liberals in our country is breathtaking. The shooter leaves his rifle in the car, using two pistols to kill his victims and all the media and politicians can do is try to convince us that the gun that was not used to commit the crime should be outlawed.

I wish people would spend their efforts comforting the families that lost loved ones instead of exploiting this shooting to empower themselves politically. I think if you look at it closer you will find that the ones offering comfort and those exploiting these deaths are actually different groups. Those offering comfort do so in private while those exploiting it do so as they pander to the cameras.

A constant in the liberal playbook is that no criminal is responsible for his deeds; it is society’s fault because we did not prevent the circumstances that lead to the crime. Why so many gullible people think this belief is reasonable is yet another indictment of government schools in this country.

The NRA had it right when they stated that the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is when a good guy has a gun. The whole line of discussion about banning firearms is blatantly unconstitutional. The Second Amendment has nothing to do with hunting, it is allowing citizens to be armed to protect themselves; first from the tyranny of government and secondly from threats to persons and property.

The hypocrisy of many exploiting this event for political purposes is shameful. Have none of the folks in our country ever heard of the Beslan school siege? Terrorists took almost 1,200 people hostage in a small village school on the first day of classes. During the three day hostage stand-off 380 people died. If you don’t want to dig too deep on Google to read about it then watch the documentary Beslan: Three Days in September narrated by actress Julia Roberts (yeah Pretty Woman herself).

In a few days many Christian Churches will honor the Feast of Holy Innocents. This is a day when we remember Herod the Great’s failed attempt on the life of Jesus when he executed all male children under two years of age that lived in the vicinity of Bethlehem.

Mass murder and evil deeds are nothing new. However, what is new is our knee-jerk reaction to punish the law-abiding and criminalize their lawful behavior because bad guys are bad. Liberty is a dual-edged sword; it can lead to greater good or greater evil. The alternative to liberty is slavery not security. The shooting in Connecticut should not be an excuse to limit the liberty of law abiding folks.

Mayan Doomsday

Since today is the end of the world, here are some movies titles to consider watching as we enjoy our last few hours on the planet.

Armageddon – Bruce Willis
Out of Time – Denzel Washington
Resident Evil – Apocalypse – Milla Jovovich
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Martin Freeman
In the Blink of an Eye – Eric Roberts
The Mark – Eric Roberts
Deep Impact – Robert Duvall
Night of the Comet – Catherine Mary Stewart
Knowing – Mel Gibson
Spaced Invaders – Douglas Barr
End of Days – Arnold Schwarzenegger

(Please note: had the Mayans used legal sized clay tablets for calendars instead of the cheaper and more plentiful letter sized ones then we could have enjoyed a few hundred more years before our apparent extinction because there will be no tomorrow.)