A PERSPECTIVE

President Barack Hussein Obama gave his last speech to the United Nations.  During his speech he,

·         warned Americans against ultra-nationalism.

·         stated, “we can choose to press forward with a better model…”

·         or “we can retreat into a world sharply divided… along age-old lines of nation and tribe and race and religion.”  http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/20/politics/barack-obama-un-diplomacy/index.html.

73 B.C.

The people in America had become complacent in their wealth, and would not listen to their leaders.  So, Moroni took a pole, and placed his rent coat upon it calling the Title of Liberty.  He then prayed to his God for the blessings of liberty… as long as… Christians remained on the Land.

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/search?lang=eng&query=TITLE+OF+LIBERTY&x=0&y=0

Summer.  1776

Thomas Jefferson began to pen the Declaration of Independence.  Within its prose, he spoke of God, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  And that governments are instituted by men to guarantee these rights given by God.

http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/

Oct. 12, 1816

John Jay, the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States of America stated, “Providence has given our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as privilege and interest, of a Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers.”

http://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/jay-the-correspondence-and-public-papers-of-john-jay-4-vols

During the 27 years of the Bush’s, Clinton, and Obama in the White House, religion in America has been in a great decline.  It started earlier in the 60’s, and then began to decline rapidly in the 90’s.  http://religionnews.com/2014/01/27/great-decline-religion-united-states-one-graph/

This loss of religion is coupled with a loss in economic freedom.  There is a parallel.

https://www.mapi.net/blog/2015/09/america%E2%80%99s-disturbing-loss-economic-freedom

THURS. Oct 11, 1798

John Adams, the first Vice-President, and second President of the United States of America stated in a letter to the Massachusetts Militia, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People.  It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”  https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/99-02-02-3102

About 600 B.C.

Jared, his brother, and his people travel to America, and as decreed by God, it is a choice land, but those who possess it must serve God, or be swept off. 

http://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Jaredites  https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/ether/2.14

American Presidential election 2016.

The lead up, and aftermath of this has shown that corruption is rampant in both political parties, and is nearly complete.  Only a handful remain who understand the Constitution, and are faithful to it.

This is also true for the major media outlets who have abandoned investigative journalism for political persuasion, lies, and obfuscation.  This is evil, whatever your political persuasion may be.

About 92 B.C.

Alma the younger had a religious conversion, and no longer went about trying to destroy the Church.  He then became a great defender of it.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alma_the_Younger

Tue. Nov. 8, 2016

As election night of 2016 ended, Donald Trump had won 39 States to Hilary Clinton’s 11.  He also won over 2500 counties across our Country compared to her 500.  Something had awakened in America!

Friday, Jan. 20, 2017

Donald J. Trump, a man who has not showed much Christian faith previously, became the 45^th President of the United States of America.  In his inaugural address, he stated:

·         We are now joined in a great effort to rebuild our country and to restore its promise for all of our people.

·         We are transferring power from Washington, D.C. back to the people.

·         For too long, a small group in our nation’s Capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost.

·         A new national pride will stir our souls, lift our sights, and heal our divisions.

·         The Bible tells us, “how good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity.”

·         And whether a child is born in the urban sprawl of Detroit or the windswept plains of Nebraska, they look up at the same night sky, they fill their heart with the same dreams, and they are infused with the breath of life by the same almighty Creator.

·         God Bless America.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/inaugural-address

Since then he has,

·         Called on God to bless the world after launching military strikes in Syria.

·         Asked God to bless the new Supreme Court Justice.

·         Invoked the Lord’s help in the war on opioids.

·         Pushed socially conservative positions.

·         Felt an increased faith in God, and an increased need to pray since becoming President.

http://www.politico.com/story/2017/04/has-trump-found-religion-in-the-oval-office-237239

Trump is not a Republican.  Trump is not a Democrat.  Trump is not a politician.

Why would a rich Billionaire give up his lifestyle to be vilified and maliciously attacked by the media and existing power structure in Washington?  There is no money trail to follow.  There is no power trail to follow.  Is it all an act to achieve some unknown end? 

Or has he raised the Title of Liberty to save our Country?

2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION AFTERMATH

I have never seen the kind of hostility toward a new president as I have seen against Donald Trump.  In fact, the only time more Democrats decided to pout and refused to attend an inauguration was when Abraham Lincoln was sworn in as President!

Many of my friends and acquaintances have, and probably still hate Trump with a passion.  Honestly, I don’t understand it, so let me share a few observations.  You see, I believe the media has falsely accused him to a tremendous degree.

 Most Trump haters do not like him as he seems to have had a somewhat sordid past.  OK.  Point taken.  Ten years ago, he was less than stellar morally and maybe we saw some lingering traces of that in the first debates.  Obama was a druggie in college.  So what?  Who are these men today?

First, I am more interested in who Trump is today than his past.  And it is quite appalling to me how so many self-righteous sanctimonious so-called Christians are so quick to condemn him to Hell by forcing him to live in his past.  Isn’t the primary belief of Christianity forgiveness and Christ-like love?  Didn’t Christ die so we may be forgiven of our sins?  The only thing we should be concerned about is the man today.  He won the election fair and square.

During his first inauguration, there were 6 Christian prayers offered, more than any other inauguration in history.  And in Trump’s speech he said, “We will be protected by the great men and women of our military and law enforcement and, MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE ARE PROTECTED BY GOD.”

This appears to be Donald Trump today, a God-fearing man.  Is he sincere?  I don’t know.  Is this all just a farce to get elected?  I don’t know.  What I do know is he seemed to invite God back into America. 

Who among you is ready to cast the first stone?  Which of you is ready to turn away from Christ’s teachings and refuse to forgive him for any past deeds?  I am not, and will never be that person.  I have committed too many sins of my own to worry about others.  Also, in a spiritual sense, one the hardest things people trying to follow Christ must deal with is false Christians who won’t let them repent.

Secondly, the media has put forth the “fact” that Trump hates Mexicans.  I do not believe this.  Why?  I have never heard him say this.  Only the fake news media has said this.  I HAVE heard Trump say he was against illegal immigration.  There is a big difference between the two. 

In 1775 Patrick Henry warned the people against indifference, complacency, and apathy.  Are we today heeding the Constitution?  One of the President’s first duties is in the Oath of Office states, “defend the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic.”  What does this mean!  Congress is given the task to make laws, and the President’s duty is to uphold them.  The President cannot make laws.  It is the right and privilege however of our President to enforce laws enacted by Congress that deal with national security.  If someone enters our Country illegally, measures must be taken or we will end up with nothing to call our own.  This is fulfilling the Oath of Office, not racism.

Thirdly, I do not believe Trump is a misogynist.  Again, this is something the mainstream media has raised as a banner to try and destroy him.  Oh how we love to wave about big words.  I am still waiting for some proof of this, and I haven’t seen any yet.  The only things I have heard about occurred many years ago.

Fourth, I do not believe Trump hates Muslims.  Trump has NEVER said this.  However, he has raised some legitimate concerns.  Most Muslims are peaceful people as most Americans are.  However, studies show that 10% to 15% of them are radicalized, or very dangerous.  All I have ever heard Trump say is we need to vet those wanting to enter our Country.  We need to find a way to filter them, and no one knows how to do this yet.  If there was a 10% chance your new neighbor wanted to rape and kill your daughter, would 10% be a risk level you would be comfortable with?  All he wants to do is fulfill the Oath of Office, to protect us from enemies, both foreign and domestic.  This is NOT racism.

And lastly, I would like to quote some lines from Trump’s inaugural address on January 20^th, 2016:

… today we are not merely transferring power from one administration to another, or from one party to another – but we are transferring power from Washington D.C. and giving it back to you, the American people.  THIS IS VERY CONSTITUTIONAL.

… for too long, a small group in our nation’s capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have born the cost.  Washington flourished—but the people did not share in its wealth.  DOES ANYONE HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THIS STATEMENT?

 … what truly matters is not which party controls our government, but whether our government is controlled by the people.  THIS IS VERY CONSTITUTIONAL.

…an education system flush with cash, but which leaves our young and beautiful students deprived of knowledge.  ANY ISSUES?

…for many decades we’ve enriched foreign industry at the expense of American industry;… we’ve defended other nation’s borders while refusing to defend our own… and spent trillions of dollars overseas while America’s infrastructure has fallen into disrepair and decay…  ANY ISSUES?

I could go on.   Would those of you that don’t support him, at least give him a chance?  He has the potential to fill the history books as one of the greatest presidents ever.  Will he?  I don’t know, but his inviting God back into our Country is a good place to start.

THOUGHTS ON THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

Let me start right off by stating this post is not to endorse any candidate or discuss my personal beliefs!  My intent is to offer some observations as to the state of our Country right now, and how we came to be in this position.

I have seen news articles that indicate up to 60% of our Country has not been happy with the Republican or Democrat nominee this time around.  That is a phenomenal amount, and bears some reflection.

The Constitution does not mention political parties.  They are just something that evolved rather quickly as our government is "of the people, by the people, for the people" (Gettysburg Address).  It was a simple thing for like minded individuals to get together and form parties.

One of the shortcomings of this however, is there have really been only two viable parties, democrats and republicans, which severely limits the playing field.

The Federalist party started in the 1790's and believed in a strong federal government.  The Democrat-Republican party started in the early 1800's and believed in a smaller federal footprint. 

The Democrat-Republican party became the Democrat party we have today, and believes in a strong federal government, and strong federal control among a host of other beliefs.  The Federalist party died around 1816, and the Republican party we know today started in 1854.  Its core belief is a limited federal government and local control.  Mind you, these two descriptions are horribly simplified for the sake of keeping this writing to a reasonable length!

Scott Conroy of Real Clear Politics wrote in 2013, "For as long as the United States has maintained its two-party system of government, reformers have dreamed of upending the status quo."  He continues, "From Teddy Roosevelt's Bull Moose Party of 1912 to Ross Perot's 1992 independent run for the White House, a smattering of real contenders in the last century pieced together personality-driven campaigns that threatened to change everything."

Unfortunately, those candidates fell short, and this has never changed.  It is a catch-22 situation.  Mr. Conroy believes a lot of people like third parties, but don't believe they can win, so end up voting Republican or Democrat.  It may be a simplistic answer, but explains very well their lack of success.

So here is a quick review of where we stand:

1) Democrats:  They will always get a certain number of electorates based on their big government and progressive agendas.  I will not go any further than this as I promised no personal beliefs!

2) Republicans:  The leadership has lost their conservative roots after being given the Senate, House, and a majority of the governorships.  They have completely turned their backs on those who elected them.

3) Because the Republican leadership disenfranchised their own base, Trump, who has never been a conservative or a Republican to my knowledge ran on the Republican ticket and beat all of their best!  I believe this happened because the Republicans, as well as the entire country, is completely fed up with career politicians.  I get that!

In summary:
For the Democrats, their party has been fairly consistent in their pursuit of an ever expanding and larger government.

For the Republicans:  Their party has fallen apart.  I believe there are still a majority of conservatives in the Country, but since the leadership is no longer conservative, there are two questions that must be answered.

1)  If Trump wins, will he govern conservatively?  Only time will tell.  If he does, perhaps the Republican party can be finally fix itself from within and rebuild.

1)  If Trump does not govern conservatively, can a third party realistically become a major player for the conservatives to endorse?

Whatever happens, I believe this will be the most pivotal election in our Nation's history.  I sure hope we get it right!  As my wife said, "Our politics is a reflection of who we are as a people."