Belief... It's what's for dinner...

Off limits.. Politics and Religion

Have you heard “never talk about religion and politics at the dinner table”?  Why?  Are they afraid of hearing a new point of view and they may have to concede it is a good point of view?

No, we are afraid of upsetting someone and we cannot have a conversation and express our opinion.  

The problem here is we have all lost or abandoned our convictions about what we believe.  Can you image what America would look like if those before us were afraid to talk about their convictions?   

• We would have never read these words " Give me liberty or give me death"
• Would the Statue of Liberty be standing in the New York Harbor?
• We would never have stopped the slaughter of millions of Jews by Nazi Germany
• No one would give it a second thought when they heard the saying" I have a dream"
• Susan B. Anthony would have never said “Woman must not depend upon the protection of man, but must be taught to protect herself.” 

  

We hear many leaders, celebrities and those in the media calling out those who don’t believe as they do. These may be people they don't know and have not spoken to but it doesn't stop them from repeatedly calling them stupid, evil, and worse. 

Does this reflect who we have become as a society? 

Have you thought about how this affects the minds of our young people, especially when you hear Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson and even Oprah spewing hatred?  How do you think this impacts the lives of those in real need of leadership and motivation?  It certainly does not help the situation, it holds them back, deepens the racial divide in America. 

Take a look back in history and listen to the messages of leaders who shaped our nation and you begin to understand they had true passion.  Jefferson, Henry, and Lincoln to name a few.  When you hear Martin Luther King, whether you agree with him or not, you hear a man who held a deep convictions in his beliefs and goals.  His goal was to lift the black community up and out of the depths of despair and true oppression.  Today, when you listen to those who claim to have the same goals you hear a different message.  One that is all about them and is only meant to lift them up, using those they claim to speak for, as a pedestal to stand upon.

I see many people sitting on the sidelines waiting for their neighbor to do it for them.  While you are sitting on the sideline your world and freedoms are being taken away.  What rights have you begun to lose, those rights others gave their life for?  What other rights and freedoms are you willing to give up?

Have we already lost parts and piece of the first, second and fourteenth amendment?

The First Amendment

In the United States, the religious civil liberties are guaranteed by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution:  Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The Second Amendment 

(Amendment II) to the United States Constitution protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms from infringement.

The Fourteenth Amendment

The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the religious civil rights. Whereas the First Amendment secures the free exercise of religion, section one of the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits discrimination, including on the basis of religion, by securing "the equal protection of the laws" for every person.

”Those who give up their liberty for more security neither deserve liberty nor security.” Ben Franklin

“Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves.”   Henry David Thoreau 

Are you OK with these right being taken away, altered, amended, and infringed on?

You are giving away your rights and liberties for the perception of safety.  You now have all of your phone calls captured, your emails, we have drones in our skies, cameras on every corner, police departments with patrol cars in your neighborhood scanning license plates. 

 H.R. 347 (112th) Does this restrict your ability to protest?

‘(2) knowingly, and with intent to impede or disrupt the orderly conduct of Government business or official functions, engages in disorderly or disruptive conduct in, or within such proximity to, any restricted building or grounds when, or so that, such conduct, in fact, impedes or disrupts the orderly conduct of Government business or official functions;

‘(3) knowingly, and with the intent to impede or disrupt the orderly conduct of Government business or official functions, obstructs or impedes ingress or egress to or from any restricted building or grounds;

‘(B) of a building or grounds where the President or other person protected by the Secret Service is or will be temporarily visiting; or

‘(C) of a building or grounds so restricted in conjunction with an event designated as a special event of national significance; and

It's like a magician; while you are watching one hand he picks your pocket with the other.  We are not paying attention and we do not understanding the world around us.  We let others make decisions for us and tell us how to think; politicians, the news, advertisers, and paid spokesman.  Do you think they are going to tell you both sides so you can make an educated choice?   

The media is not the only place they are influencing our thinking and we are getting hit from all sides and at all ages.  Look at our education system and ask who is creating the curriculum your sons and daughters are being taught?  The people who are getting rich because of your blood, sweat and tears.  These are the very same people our forefathers fought against and warned us about.  Are they trying to shape the minds of our sons and daughters?  Why else would they want to control the education process instead of empowering teachers to design the curriculum?        

The important thing is not so much that every child should be taught, as that every child should be given the wish to learn.  John Lubbock

It does not matter what religion you are or if you are an atheist you have the freedom to believe what you believe without those rights being infringe on. Those are the principles our nation was founded on.

A police officer at Modesto Junior College in California told a patriotic libertarian student that it was against college rules for him to hand out copies of the U.S. Constitution on campus.

The Florida Atlantic University professor who reportedly told his students to write "Jesus" on a piece of paper and stomp on it
The Florida Atlantic University professor who reportedly told his students to write "Jesus" on a piece of paper and stomp on it

Sharon Sweet, a tenured professor at Brevard Community College in Melbourne, Florida, was placed on an unpaid leave of absence after allegations that she forced students to sign a "Vote for Obama" pledge

Michigan State University is investigating a video that purportedly shows a professor telling his class that Republicans were a bunch of “dying white people” who “raped this country” and wanted to prevent black people from voting.

What will the future look like for your children and your grandchildren?  We have lost our way and our freedom, we we have $17 trillion of debt, which means every man women and child owes $53,554 or $148,225 per tax payer, not counting the unfunded liabilities.  Now we all want more and more stuff, but at what cost.  Are you willing to pay that cost for that stuff and pass the cost on?  Can you imagine if the debt increases at the current rate where will we be in 10 year or 20 years?

So what can you do at this point or is it too late?

It is your business to rise up and preserve the Union and liberty, for yourselves, and not for me. I desire they shall be constitutionally preserved.  ― Abraham Lincoln

“Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it.”  ― George Bernard Shaw

I say it is never too late until it is, but it will take all of us and we must be accountable for the condition of our society and nation.  We are the cause and it starts and stops at the dinner table, start talking again, regain your passion and convictions.   Put down the cell phone, stop tweeting, and updating your status and talk, to each other.  Exchange ideas, thoughts, and passions.  Do you even know what the people sitting at your family dinner table believe?   Do you care more about those fake friends on Facebook; you know the ones, those are the people you don’t want to offend because they may not share your views and unfriend you.  Who cares, they are fake just like you views and updates.

I just read this post a few days ago and had to applaud her.  I guess she has finally had enough…

“Yup, gonna lose some people on my FB. Good riddance. I do NOT want to be associated with ANYONE who believes that childish, bullish behavior is an acceptable response to a constitutional, ethical, moral, and appropriate action by the House of Representatives.”

Do you have this type of conviction?

We have created a Goliath and we have become sheep and not David..   Are you the shepherd or the sheep?

Proverbs 13.4 The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

“No one understands and appreciates the American Dream of hard work leading to material rewards better than a non-American.”    Anthony Bourdain

Don't let yourself be the pillar others stand on unless you are willing to give up your rights in place of theirs.   If you do not stand up for your convictions and beliefs soon you will be asked to follow others down a road of despair

We all have the same goals in mind, to prosper and leave our children a better place.  It should not matter is you are republican or a democrat, conservative or blue dog, tea party or liberal.  We can have a discussion, a respectful discussion, not a hateful discussion.  

Be the example... show our children and the world how to act and be the Cause and Effect.

So what's for dinner tonight?