And Washington Just Keeps Giving, er, Taking...

• Institutions are in trouble. Government solution: SPEND MONEY.
• Government has no money. Government solution: PRINT MORE MONEY AND SPEND IT.
• Printing more money results in inflation and devaluing of the dollar. Government solution: PROPOSE THE LARGEST BUDGET IN THE HISTORY OF OUR NATION AND SPEND MORE MONEY.
• Reality begins to set in. Government solution: GET MORE REVENUE AND SPEND IT.

While you hold onto your wallets, write to your Senators and Congressman and tell them to STOP SPENDING MONEY, CUT TAXES, and REJECT THE PROPOSED BUDGET.

American Tea Party

Amen to this!

Free Biblical Resources

I just sent this out as an e-mail to family and decided it would be worthwhile to put on our family site.

1. John Piper material. Here is Dr. Piper's web site. Sometimes you'll find free offers on this site directly. Of course, you can look at any of his sermons over his almost 30 years at his church plus many other articles. Even some of his books are online and free and may be downloaded without cost here.

On the top of the site, click on "About Us". Now scroll down to "Postal Mailing List". Fill out the sheet and submit it. Periodically, you will receive a letter from his organization usually offering a free CD of one of his recent sermons or other material. If you want you can contribute to the ministry but that is not required. Just check the box in the letter requesting the free info and send it back. Ok, it's not quite free. It will cost you 42 cents for a stamp!

You might also check out the e-mail subscriptions there as well and sign up. I presently have 5 or some of Piper's sermons on CD to which I have already listened. If anyone wants one, let me know the next time you are here. I will give it to you provided you agree to pass it on after you hear it. I don't care if I get them back but I don't want them simply thrown away.

2. Mt. Zion Chapel Library. Send an e-mail to chapel@mountzion.org and request their free quarterly publication called "Free Grace Broadcaster". This magazine is a collection of articles written by various Christian scholars/pastors all built on a common theme for the quarter. When your copy arrives, it should also contain a letter informing you of their current quarterly free literature offer. These offers usually consists of tracts and pamphlets with an occasionally small booklet. All you have to do is return the form with your name and address requesting this free literature and they will send it to you usually within 2 weeks. Yes, a 42 cent stamp is needed unless you can find a way to request it online. Maybe you could simply send an e-mail to the above address requesting it. They used to do that but now seem to have gone to the form. At any rate, it is good literature and essentially free on a quarterly basis.

3. Teaching Resources International. Ministry of Dr. Jim Ehrhard, a good man whom I have met and chatted with at conferences on several occasions. Go to here and click on the "Information" link near the bottom of the page. This will explain the various resources available. There is a link under (1) to which you may subscribe to the quarterly publication he puts out. This pub is similar to "Free Grace Broadcaster"; a magazine containing a collection of articles from various writers on a common theme.

4. Christian Communicators Worldwide. Here is the web site for Jim Elliff's ministry. Jim is a good man and quite funny if you ever get to meet him. Always lots of things here, many of which may be downloaded. Some excellent bulletin inserts if your church ever needs some. You can sign up for his monthly e-mail update which notes new items. There are items to buy but you will probably find enough free-bees to keep you reading for a spell.

5. The Center for Biblical Spirituality. Dr. Don Whitney's site contains some free stuff and you can sign up for his monthly e-mail which always has lots of good info. Most of the items here are for sale but he usually has some chapters from his books available for free reading. I have also met Don several times and he is a very neat person. Those are the ones that come immediately to mind and that I receive. There are others but this will do for now.

Dates for WWW 2009

If you haven't checked my note concerning possible weekends for this year's WWW, I need you to do so as soon as possible. Please let me know which ones will (or will not) work for you.

What we are doing to our currency

Glenn Beck has a very informative video on the effects of Congress' actions to our currency. You may want to check it out here.

Economic Passion

If you thought I was passionate about our economy and this administration's socialistic attempts to "fix it", check this out.

I have been "stimulated" by our Congress

Yes, the passage of the "stimulus" bill last Friday by both Houses of Congress has greatly stimulated me; stimulated my anger, that is.

First, our President told us we had to move QUICKLY on this bill, our economy was on the verge of catastrophe. Yet, he can spend the weekend out of time and wait until Tuesday to sign the legislation. Hmmm, it must not have been that urgent after all.

Second, how did your Congressman and Senators vote on this bill especially in light of the fact NONE OF THEM HAD TIME TO READ IT? To vote FOR legislation you have not read is:

- arrogant (obviously you must be omniscient)
- partisan (oh, the President wants it, the Speaker wants it, the Dems want it)
- irresponsible

Yes, any legislator who voted for this bill last Friday is irresponsible and does NOT represent their constiuency who, at least, expects them to READ legislation BEFORE passing it. I wonder if our President will have read it before he signs it tomorrow?

I recommend you check on your elected officials and see how they voted last Friday. If they voted yes then I encourage you (perhaps EXHORT is a better word) to write them and complain about their irresponsibility. We need responsible representation in Congress, not the arrogant display we witnessed last Friday.

To my children: PLEASE, don't do this!

I am proud of my children but I beg them never to embarrass our family with a display such as this.

Actually, the President should have applauded the young man for faithfully working while obtaining a college education so that he could better HIMSELF! That, you see, has always been the American spirit. We are a free people. We are an independent people. We DON'T need the government to take care of us. When we are down, we get back up. When we lose a job, we find another. IF WE NEED HELP, we turn to our family, our friends, and our church, but NOT our government. Note how the preamble to our Constitution says nothing about the government providing our jobs, our benefits, our homes, etc.

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Promoting is not providing.

Children, when you need help, ask your family first. Ask your friends. Ask your church. But, PLEASE, do not stand up before the President of the United States and expect him to promise you he will force McDonald's to raise your salary or to improve your benefits. Unlike this lady, don't expect much from our government!

More Stimulus

Today, the Senate passed their version of the "stimulus" bill. The action followed by a day the agreement in the Senate to end debate on the bill (cloture), an act which requires 60 votes. Three Republicans joined the Democrats on that vote as well as on today's vote.

The fight, however, is not over. The Senate bill and the House bill are different. Hence, a committee of the two houses must now iron out the differences and the resulting bill will then be presented to each house for action. I would encourage you to continue to contact both your Congressman and your Senators and exhort them to vote against this bill.

Posted here is an article written by James K. Glassman on this subject. It is very lengthy but worth reading. Mr. Glassman was once the Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. I encourage you to find the time to read it.

A Letter from my Congressman on the "Stimulus" Bill

I received another letter from my Congressman today and, since it included his thoughts on the "stimulus" bill (which did pass the House), I thought I would share it with you. I pray my Senators would listen to Congressman Akin's facts and wisdom.

Dear Bruce,

Thank you for your correspondence regarding H.R.1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. It was good to hear from you and I appreciate the opportunity to respond.

As you may know, this legislation represents the largest spending increase ever foisted on the American people by Congress. Despite initial talk of a measured, infrastructure focused stimulus package, the Democrat majority has created a debt spending bill estimated to cost at least $825 billion. Worse yet, most of the money contained in the stimulus will not be spent soon enough to impact people who are struggling today.

I greatly appreciate the insight and concern of my fellow Missourians on the critical issues before the House of Representatives. An overwhelming majority of those who contacted my office asked me to oppose this spendthrift measure. When it came to the House floor on January 28th, I voted against it.

Even the Washington Post criticized the Democrat's spending bill, saying:

"Some in Congress and the new administration apparently see the country's present recession as an opportunity to change the federal government's spending priorities more generally or simply to reward loyal political constituencies."

Six hundred pages long and a top priority of the majority party, H.R. 1 already appears ineffective at its stated goal: adding stable new jobs to the economy, averting job loss, resolving the housing crisis and lifting the U.S. economy out of the current recession. I am more than willing to support an effective stimulus package, but I refuse to substitute doing "something" for doing the right thing.

To give you a sense of just how large the stimulus package is, the House-passed version is:

o Almost the size of Mexico's economy ($893 billion in 2007).
o 33.7% larger than all spending on Social Security
o 33.4% more than the defense budget.
o 24.6% more than federal spending on Medicare and Medicaid combined.

Additionally, allow me to list a few of my personal concerns with the Democrat's bill:

o It will cost $10,520 per family in debt spending. In fact, some economists say it would be cheaper to give every working family in America a one-year tax holiday.

o Only $26 Billion or 7% of the proposed stimulus funds will be spent in 2009.

o Only $30 Billion or 3 percent - throughout the life of the entire stimulus package would be directed towards "shovel ready" road and highway projects.

o The bill also circumvents the regular budget process by creating 32 new programs at a cost of $136 billion.

o It contains $16.4 billion in new spending for federal agencies - including office furniture at the Public Health Service.

o It spends $54 billion on 19 programs rated by the Office of Management and Budget as "ineffective" or "results not demonstrated." President Obama has said that we can no longer afford to be "squandering billions of tax dollars on programs that have outlived their usefulness." Unfortunately, Speaker Pelosi's House majority has chosen to put forward legislation that is inconsistent with the President's vision for "smarter" government.

Finally, I could not support H.R. 1 because I believe history demonstrates that when government removes billions of dollars from the economy in the name of "stimulus," the result is not a shortened recession but a prolonged depression.

Instead, I supported the Republican substitute measure on the House floor that would have created 6.2 million jobs and provided tax relief to small businesses and working families. In fact, in Missouri alone, the Republican alternative would have had the potential to create 128,000 jobs compared to 73,000 in the Democrat stimulus plan.

The Republican alternative included across-the-board tax cuts for all working American families in the 15% and 10% tax brackets. It also provided immediate tax cuts for small businesses which employ more than half of all American workers. In addition, the substitute would have extended unemployment benefits and eliminated income taxes on those benefits, allowing struggling Americans to keep the entire amount of their unemployment assistance while they are out of work. Unfortunately, the Republican alternative was defeated by a vote of 266-170 and the Democrat package passed by a vote of 244-188.

Again, thank you for taking the time to contact my office. Please know that I will continue to work for positive legislation that benefits all Missourians.

It is a privilege to represent you and I hope that you will not hesitate to contact me regarding any matter where I might be of assistance. I would also encourage you to visit my website, where you can find more information on current issues, share further thoughts with me via email and subscribe to my e-newsletter for updates on issues you care about.

Sincerely,
W. Todd Akin
Member of Congress

Now This IS The Change We Need

No, I did not vote for President Obama. In fact, anyone reading previous entries on this blog will note how strongly I spoke out against him. But, he is now my President and I will respect his leadership. However, I will NOT blindly follow him simply because the media (and everyone else) says he is "The One".

His first 2 weeks in office may have been the worse first 2 weeks for any Chief Executive with the possible exception of President William Henry Harrison. Now, he invokes "fear" in his attempt to push through the "Stimulus" package which does not stimulate anything but government growth. Mr. President, the only fear I have is that the Senate might actually pass this bill and you would sign it.

If you have listened to the media hype you get the impression this bill solves all the nation's financial ills. Nonsense. It will put us in debt forever and further impact our economy. Someone, in an attempt to help us visualize the amount of money proposed in this bill (around one trillion dollars), has said the amount of money in the bill is equal to spending one million dollars a day from the time of Christ until now! And we, the taxpayers now and future (i.e., our children, our grandchildren), will have to pay it back!

Others have highlighted what type of spending is actually in the bill so I won't do that here. The bottom line is the bill passed by the House, being debated in the Senate, and demanded, via scare tactics, by our President is the wrong approach.

The CHANGE we need in terms of a stimulus bill has been clearly articulated by Governor Mitt Romney here. I would encourage you to read it. Then I EXHORT you to call or e-mail your Senators, tell them to forget amending this bill, and, instead, throw it out and look for a completely different approach, an approach which will HELP our economy rather than destroy it. Call/write them everyday until this bill is passed or, hopefully, is defeated.

May God have mercy on our nation.

I Like Glenn Beck

While I don't always agree with him, I always get a kick out of his presentation. This one from yesterday is great.

Happy Birthday, FDR!

Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born on this date in 1882. Today marks the 127th anniversary of the late 32nd President's birth.

When I was a young boy, FDR always fascinated me. I liked his relative, 26th President Teddy, much more, nevertheless, I took an interest in FDR. Perhaps it had to do with my family who, I recall, talked about FDR being a man who cared for the people "unlike the Republicans". Actually, I have no idea if my parents voted Democratic or not but I sure got the impression they were firm Democrats partly (maybe largely) due to FDR's presidency.

FDR, of course, passed away in 1945 before I was born so all I knew about him was what I read. That material certainly played a major role in my taking a liking to him. Everything I got my hands concerning FDR indicated he was a wonderful man and how a great President.

I recall seeing "Sunrise at Campobello" when it came to our local theater. The movie recalled the story of FDR's battle against polio with which he was afflicted in 1921. I watched any television program that even mentioned FDR. I recall one of the episodes of the TV series "The Untouchables" revolved around the shooting of the mayor of Chicago, Anton Cermak, who was with President-elect Roosevelt at the time. The shooter, Giuseppe Zangara, was actually trying to assassinate FDR but hit Cermak and 4 others in and around FDR's car. Cermak was taken to the hospital in FDR's car and, supposedly, said to the future President, "I'm glad it was me instead of you". He died within a month. Zangara was executed only a couple of weeks after Cermak's death (justice moved swiftly, eh?).

I also recall paying one of my fellow classmates in grade school (Cliff Beadle?) $2.00, a fairly high price for an elementary student, for an original St. Louis newspaper from April 13, 1945, the day following FDR's death. The paper, of course, covers many aspects of his life, death, and Presidency. I still have that paper somewhere.

The principal thing I was taught about FDR was how his Presidency saved the United States from the Great Depression as well as saved the world from the Nazis and the Japanese in World War II. Of course, I have long since learned that President Roosevelt and his big government programs actually did not rescue our nation from the depression, rather, it was the war that did so. His programs simply extended the depression. And, in fact, even today we are paying more and more taxes to the government in order to continue funding the programs FDR established (plus many others since).

On the other hand, his leadership during World War II must be acknowledged. I could criticize him for not helping Britain earlier in their fight against the Nazis but America, as a whole, wanted no part of the war in Europe. FDR was not a whimp when it came to foreign policy. He recognized you could not simply sit down and talk to every foreign leader diplomatically and convince them we can all live in peace. Hitler, Mussolini, and others would never have listened. Rather, war, military might, was the only recourse for dealing with them and Roosevelt knew it. Some of our leaders today need to recognize their great Democratic forerunner was right and they and their naive thinking are wrong and dangerous.

Furthermore, let's give him credit for his appeal to the American people. He was elected four times as President, a feat which will never be matched. I suspect some of our other Presidents may have kept the White House for four or more terms if they had wanted it or had lived long enough. Yet, FDR is the only one who has done so.

Politically, FDR did not always succeed. As I noted, his big government programs did not save the nation from the depression. Some of his New Deal programs enacted during his first term were being invalidated by the Supreme Court. So, after winning reelection in 1936, Roosevelt attempted to enlarge the Court in order to prevent future invalidations. Thankfully, he lost that battle.

FDR's moral character was also covered up in the material I read. The picture painted by the biographies, movies, etc., that I read of this President always revealed a loving father and husband, completely devoted to his wife. Well, today we know this was not exactly the case.

So, over the years my respect for FDR has waned somewhat from my earlier view of this President. I would have put him near the top along with Washington, Lincoln, and his 5th cousin, Theodore. Today, my opinion of his Presidency and of his character would drop him lower on my list of the greatest Presidents. Nevertheless, I still hold him in respect because of his leadership during the war and for his personal spirit of never giving up which he illustrated in his battle against polio.

Happy Birthday, Mr. President! I wish you would have left those big government programs in some filing cabinet somewhere, nevertheless, thank you for your courage and your leadership during one of the darkest times of our nation's history.

The Stimulus Package

For those of you who are following the "stimulus" package passed by the House and now on the way to the Senate, you might be interested in a few facts.

1. The stimulus package is a 647 page bill. Yes, 647 pages! If you want to read it or print off a copy, go here.

2. Despite what all the major news networks say, the majority of this package does nothing to create new jobs. Rather it contains many (and I mean many) pet projects of politicians. In other words, it is the largest spending bill every proposed in the history of our nation.

3. Our economy is weak right now and folks are losing their jobs. But comparing our current economic state to that of a Great Depression is a farce. Our situation is no where near as dire as it was then. Such language is used in an effort to get this package passed as soon as possible, even though the package will do little to help our economy.

When Franklin D. Roosevelt became President in 1933 at the height of the Great Depression, the unemployment rate nationwide was 24.9% (1 in 4 were without a job). At the end of 2008, the unemployment rate in the United States was 7.2%. Michigan and Rhode Island, at 10.6% and 10% respectively, were the largest. We are far from the situation of the Great Depression. Let's not over react but let's take time to analyze the situation and make good choices.

4. Furthermore, it has frequently been touted that Roosevelt's "New Deal" is what brought us out of the Great Depression. In his first 100 days, FDR rammed through Congress several new government programs with more over the next several years (including Social Security). We are told these great government programs conceived by FDR's "brain trust" pulled us out of the depression. Therefore, we need the government implementing similar programs today to save us.

Unfortunately, this is not true. In 2004, two UCLA economists released the results of a study which showed FDR's government programs actually prolonged the depression. Several articles have now revealed that World War II, NOT government programs, led to our nation's recovery. As Michael Fumento has written, "The grotesque reality is that it wasn’t an American aristocrat who led us out of the Great Depression but a monstrous Austrian corporal".

So, let's not put too much hope into our government to bail us out of this crisis. The more they get involved, the worse it will get for us and our children. Read over this bill and tell your Senators what you think of it. Point out to them the items in the bill you feel are of no value when it comes to creating jobs. Don't just shake your head and say, "Well, the President is for it so it must be good". That was the attitude of some back in the 30s.

A Letter from my Congressman on FOCA

I wrote a letter to my Congressman and Senators last week asking them to reject any attempt by this administration to pass the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA). Today I received the following response from my Congressman, Rep. Todd Akin.

Dear Reverend Walker:

Thank you for contacting me regarding the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA.) It was good to hear from you and I appreciate the opportunity to respond.

As you may know, FOCA would establish, as the official policy of the United States that every woman has the "fundamental right to choose" to: (1) bear a child; (2) terminate a pregnancy prior to fetal viability; or (3) terminate a pregnancy after fetal viability when necessary to protect her life or her health. It also prohibits any federal, state, or local governmental entity from: (a) denying or interfering with a woman's right to exercise such choices; or (b) discriminating against the exercise of those rights in the regulation or provision of benefits, facilities, services, or information - and it makes that prohibition retroactive. It further explicitly authorizes civil suits under the Act, including against federal, state or local governments.

Sadly, this is one of the most divisive pieces of legislation I have seen in all my years of public service. The effects of this legislation would be sweeping and devastating for women who face unplanned pregnancies. It would, in short, codify Roe v. Wade and subsequent related Supreme Court decisions as public law - enshrining abortion on demand: any time, any reason, as U.S. policy. Worse, it would overturn all state laws (including laws currently allowed under Roe v. Wade) designed to protect the health of the mother, prohibit certain late term abortion procedures or recognize medical professionals' rights of conscience. In addition, it could have a far reaching "chilling effect" on the provision of life-affirming services in the non-profit sector.

One of the beliefs on which I will never waiver is that life begins at conception and that we should do all we can to protect the lives of innocent children while they are still in the womb. Because of this conviction, I am committed to ensuring that no woman is forced or coerced into an unwanted or unnecessary abortion. FOCA would eliminate state laws that guarantee women full and accurate information about abortion and further erode the social support system that helps many women make life-affirming choices.

Since Roe v. Wade, thousands of lives have been prematurely ended by various forms of abortion. The numbers of abortions in the United States have been declining for more than a decade due to increased access to (a) practical, life-affirming support, (b) protections for minors, and (c) information about the serious physical, psychological and spiritual after effects of abortion. FOCA would roll back many of these protections and increase the number of abortions nationwide. It would send the message to women that abortion is easy, safe and completely acceptable - while having a child, especially in some circumstances is difficult and irresponsible. In fact, states that already have FOCA-like laws see much higher rates of abortions than those states that do not have similar statutes.

I am an active member the Pro-Life Caucus which leads the way in working for life-affirming legislation. In my time in Congress, I have supported a number of pieces of pro-life legislation. Last Congress, I was an original cosponsor of the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act (H.R. 1063) and I supported an increase in abstinence education funding for fiscal year 2009. I also co-sponsored the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act (H.R. 3442).

I appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts with me. I believe the Freedom of Choice Act is bad public policy and I will actively oppose it in the 111th Congress. I have also signed a letter to President Obama, calling on him to join me in opposing radical legislation - like FOCA - which would increase abortions across the nation.

It is a privilege to represent you and I hope that you will not hesitate to contact me regarding any matter where I might be of assistance. If you would like more information on issues or would like to share further thoughts with me via e-mail, you may visit my website.

Sincerely,
W. Todd Akin
Member of Congress

If you want to see the letter signed by Rep. Akin (and many others) and sent to the President, let me know and I'll e-mail you a copy.