Can Blogs Save the World?

The Cause of the American - European Crisis

2011-11-26T12:05:00.000-08:00

I will try to keep this as short and sweet as possible. The cause of the crisis is simple, and if you really think about my theory, you should also understand that it's really just a matter of common sense, and you’ll ask yourself why our politicians are not talking about it publically and also why this has been going on for so many years and no one has tackled the problem.

The simple version of the American - European Crisis is that American and European private sector factories have been closing down for years and consequently private sector tax paying jobs have been and are being lost in the process. Simultaneously there has been an expansion of government programs and jobs that are replacing the lost private sector jobs. One reason this truth has been hidden for years is because the true unemployment numbers have been hidden due to government jobs being silently filled over time by the private sector jobs that were lost. There is a transfer of wealth from the United States and the Europeans directly to China. Their private sector "taxpaying" jobs are building up while the private sector here in the United States and also in Europe is in decline. Consequently, the strength of China's economy is directly supported by the United States and Europe. Their incomes and way of life are improving and our incomes and way of life are declining.

An analogy for transferring wealth between countries is as simple as two people exchanging money. It's easy to understand that if I give you $100, then you have $100 more and I have $100 less than I did before the transaction. Now consider that analogy on an international level. Every product that you buy that is made in China (or any other country who's labor prices are far less than the United States or Europe) represents a factory and jobs in that particular country. Let me repeat that statement because it is very important that you understand it. EVERY product that you purchase off the shelf here in the United States or in Europe that is made in China (or any other country who's labor prices are far less than ours) represents a factory with employees in THAT particularly country (not our country). When you purchase that product, your money (at least a good portion of it) goes to that country and is "directly" supporting the growth of industry and tax paying jobs in that country instead of your own. I keep mentioning "tax paying jobs" which is important because every "taxpaying job" that is lost in our country means less money going into the U.S. Treasury and also less money going into the Social Security Trust Fund. It's also important to understand that as government programs and jobs are increasing in numbers at the same time the private sector tax base is in decline, it makes the national deficit grow at an increasing rate. It's also just as important to understand that at the same time the private sector tax base is decreasing, and at a time when President Obama decreased the social security tax a year or so back by 2% and at a time when a great number of the baby boomers are retiring. At the same time the baby boomers are retiring, many of their jobs aren't being replaced which means less people are paying which further covers up the "true unemployment numbers" of the private job sector size decreasing. In other words, their private sector jobs WILL NOT be replaced as the private sector continues its downward spiral. Also, maybe you've noticed a great swell in fast food restaurants and casino's over the years and a great push politically for casinos, bingo halls, etc. Yes, these are yet more jobs that replace "product" type factory jobs. These jobs are more consumer "luxury" type positions and when things get really tight, many of these jobs will disappear as well, as people will not have money to gamble or eat out as much, but they do somewhat temporarily "fill the void" because even though they are not high paying positions, they at least contribute somewhat to the U.S. Treasury in the form of taxes. The truth is, politicians need the unemployment numbers to remain low, so look for more "creative" job positions to surface as the struggle to keep people working continues.

So the dynamics that are helping create the slow and painful death of our factories and consequently our taxpaying jobs in the United States and the European countries is directly connected to the cheaper labor from other countries which create unfair competition. It's very important that you understand this, because it's killing our economies. The strength of our country lies in the private sector, NOT government jobs, because it's the taxes that are paid by private sector factories, industries and private businesses that pay 100% of every government salary that is in existence. This includes our politicians and our military. Sales tax on products and fuel tax are the only taxes I can think of that do not necessarily apply to that statement, but most sales taxes are localized in the communities they are collected and fuel taxes do go towards maintaining our public roads which is a very small portion of our government.

There is also a wealth of misinformation distributed through different outlets, but this hidden truth has not been discussed in an outright and honest fashion. The very fact that it has been covered up and not addressed for many years either leads us to believe that there is much ignorance, apathy and/or incompetence in our federal government or there is something else going on that lends towards some of the conspiracy "one world government" theories. For the life of me, I can't imagine that degree of ignorance coming out of the best and the brightest our political arena has to offer, which makes me consider some of the conspiracy theories about the new world order and also ask myself how many of our presidential administrations had such big ambitions in the world wide political arena that they basically defecated on our countries best interests in order to "balance out the world economy" and gain international political favors.

Because in the world arena, wealth is just like pouring water from one glass into another, the liquid in the one decreases and the liquid in the other glass increases and at some point, they will even out and in theory that is all labor costs balance out (with our wages being lowered and China's being increased) and we will be able to start supplying products to China, India and the other countries, but what was the cost to get us to that point and who will be the victor when we get there? Also, there are dire consequences and serious defects in the theory that this will be just as good for us as it is China.

The best example I can give is the textile industry. If you have two similar quality t-shirts and put them on a rack at a store for sale, we can quickly surmise that the cheapest shirt will in all probability sell first. If one of those shirts sell for $15 and it is made in the United States (or Europe) and the other shirt sells for $8 and it is made in China (or India) then we see that the $15 shirt represents a factory which represents American (or European) jobs and the $8 shirt represents a factory which represents Chinese (or Indian) jobs. Here lies our problem and is proof of this transfer of wealth and jobs that I am speaking of: Unfair competition is causing a major transfer of wealth and power, the proof lies in common sense and discerning what is true and what is just misinformation coming from the powers that be. Common sense tells us that the majority of people will buy the cheaper shirt and common sense also tells us that the other company that creates the more expensive shirt will struggle to stay in business. We have to compete, but how can we compete with the $8 shirt? We either have to automate and lay off excess workers, pay cheaper wages to the workers we have which lowers the standard of living and lowers the taxes our government receives, or we have to lay off most of our employees and subcontract to the Chinese factory, purchasing t-shirts from them at bulk pricing and still put our "made in America" logo on them.

Some will argue with you that trading with China is fair and that there is a huge market in China, a country that has more than four times the population that we have, but again, common sense rules the day and pushes all of that nonsense to the side. The fact remains, if Americans and Europeans can’t afford to purchase products made in America or Europe, but buy Chinese products instead, you can bet that the lower salaried Chinese people are NOT buying the higher priced American and European made products. Keep in mind that they were more expensive to begin with before shipping charges and you can bet that the Chinese media is not encouraging people to “buy American”.

Many people have noticed the middle class shrinking and believe it's because the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer, but I say it's because almost every American (and European) salary has been gradually going through a "shrinking stage" for quite a few years now. If you do not believe me what I am saying, then maybe you can check on the history of the standard of living and wage increases in China and compare it to your country. China's salaries and minimum wage have been increasing and because of the law of supply and demand, factories are prospering and the population of China is increasing at a faster rate than here in the United States, and that is true even though China has very strict "one child policy" per family.

So there you have it. Private sector jobs is what pays taxes and produce results and government jobs, even though they do pay taxes, they still create a net "tax loss" because the taxes they pay do not even pay their own salaries, much less pay for the building space they are in, the insurance and benefits they receive, or in some cases, the car that they drive.

This did not happen overnight. It has been happening for years. Do not believe the misinformation that is handed out to us that this one world economy is a good thing because it is lowering our standard of living while increasing the standard of living for the other countries. That is good for them, but not us. We are accustomed to a certain standard of living. Our main streets are congested with restaurants, we love football, we love all these things, but our politicians have sold us out. Only when our salaries can compete with the Chinese will factories balance out and trading is fair, but what have we gained in the process? What have we lost? The idea that things will be great when that occurs and that we can all live in a world full of harmony working together ideally sounds quite delicious, but in reality it is impossible. Politicians will not easily delete all of those extra government jobs and programs that were added as our factories closed down because of the public outrage. EPA helped put extra strains and regulations on the very factories that closed down because they already could not compete with China, so one analogy is that those factory workers went to work for EPA, FDA, and Homeland Security etc. Quite simply, our private sector tax base is shrinking at an expanding rate, and but government jobs, salaries and buildings that require upkeep are not, therefore the national debt will continue to grow out of hand because no politicians are willing to put their necks on the lines and give us the tough love this country needs so they will continue to expand and spend the little money that remains until there is no choice but to raise our taxes so high that most will not be able to make it. We will have to sacrifice some things and it's going to hurt. There will be chaos.

This is not mainstream press, but if the public ever really wakes, our politicians who have known these things for many years will finally have to confess this truth, or at a minimum "pretend" to send harsh words to China. Political posturing and exaggerated words will not fix the problem however, although creative speech may get someone elected, we are getting to the point that China will not easily accept the changes that are required to be made because in order for our factories to rebuild, many of their factories must close down. Also, creating an atmosphere here to rebuild American factories, whether we add extra taxes on imported goods or decrease regulations on American factories so that we can compete with unfair competitors is a good start, but imagine how many years it will take to slowly rebuild the private sector so that the $8 t-shirt is the same price as the American $15 t-shirt. The other major problem in turning this pattern around is that as we have been buying those $8 t-shirts, our salaries have been decreasing to the point where we can no longer afford the $15 t-shirt and fuel prices have been up since 2008 robbing so many people of their extra available income. China will not be happy about it, and diplomatically there will be some sharp dialog from them towards us, so very strong leadership is required to get our country moving in the right direction again and I'll admit, I see the problem, but I do not see an easy solution. We can only hope, but I am worried that the most important truth of the century will be lost and the struggle will get much worse and I am not looking forward to the chaos that will come.

You might consider that one day, there will be a lot more people protesting in this country and Europe than the current occupy movement, but if they don't wise up, they still won't really understand what got them to the point of why they wanted to protest to begin with. You see, it's the private sector that truthfully runs the economy, not the banks. The banks, rich investors and corrupt politicians are just the gnats sucking blood from the wounds. The wounds are a failing private sector and consequently a diminishing economy. The national debt is swelling government and a dwindling tax base.

Matthew 12:25 (NIV)
25 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.

Index for Books of the Bible

2011-11-08T18:29:00.000-08:00

Old Testament: Books 1 to 39

New Testament: Books 40 to 66

Written by Moses

1. Genesis
2. Exodus
3. Leviticus
4. Numbers
5. Deuteronomy

OT Narratives

6. Joshua
7. Judges
8. Ruth
9. 1 Samuel
10. 2 Samuel
11. 1 Kings
12. 2 Kings
13. 1 Chronicles
14. 2 Chronicles
15. Ezra
16. Nehemiah
17. Esther

Wisdom Literature

18. Job
19. Psalms
20. Proverbs
21. Ecclesiastes
22. Song of Songs

Major Prophets

23. Isaiah
24. Jeremiah
25. Lamentations
26. Ezekiel
27. Daniel

Minor Prophets

28. Hosea
29. Joel
30. Amos
31. Obadiah
32. Jonah
33. Micah
34. Nahum
35. Habakkuk
36. Zephaniah
37. Haggai
38. Zechariah
39. Malachi

NT Narratives

40. Matthew
41. Mark
42. Luke
43. John
44. Acts

Epistles by Paul

45. Romans
46. 1 Corinthians
47. 2 Corinthians
48. Galatians
49. Ephesians
50. Philippians
51. Colossians
52. 1 Thessalonians
53. 2 Thessalonians
54. 1 Timothy
55. 2 Timothy
56. Titus
57. Philemon

General Epistles

58. Hebrews
59. James
60. 1 Peter
61. 2 Peter
62. 1 John
63. 2 John
64. 3 John
65. Jude

Apocalyptic Epistle by John

66. Revelation

The Great Falling Away and Rise of Cults

2011-10-16T09:03:00.000-07:00

There is coming a day when there will be a great falling away in the Church, a great rise in the number and influence of cults and also great persecution of Christians. This is Biblical and refers to the "end times". As Christian influence decreases, the youth that once prospered in the Churches, will fall into other family entities such as cults and gangs.

The Bible does not actually mention the word rapture, but all throughout the New Testament the rapture is spoken of. This is an event when Jesus comes back and all Christians leave the earth to be with God. It's a single event, and the only time when Christians "in mass" will be collected up while they are still alive to be with the Lord in the sky, leaving all non-Christian's behind.

The Bible is VERY clear that no-one knows the time or the date. There have been false prophets for over 2000 years who have tried to predict a date. Predicting a date is completely non-scriptural and therefore those doing the predicting should be completely ignored. However, the Bible does give clues as to the last generation and the Bible states that the end times will occur during the last generation. As you can see, there is a difference between predicting "an actual date" and knowing a particular "time frame". Prophecy states the last generation begins when Israel becomes a nation. We know that the U.N. adopted "Resolution 181" on November 29th, 1947 which approved the creation of the Jewish State of Israel and called for independent status to go into effect by October 1st, 1948. There were 33 countries who voted "yes" and 13 countries that voted "no" to the resolution. The countries that voted no were ironically the same countries that surround Israel and continue to stir up anti-Semitism for the Jews today. They are Afghanistan, Cuba, Egypt, Greece, India, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, Yemen; all of them Muslim countries except for Greece. History also tells us that Israel declared it's independence on May 14th, 1948.

So, according to the Bible, we do not know the date of the end times and the rapture, but we do know the "last generation" begins when Israel becomes a state. Now, we must find out how long a Jewish generation is and we have a time frame. However, we could debate whether we're talking about a Jewish generation or a Gentile generation.

Matthew 24:32-34 (NIV)

³² “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. ³³ Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it^[^a^] is near, right at the door. ³⁴ Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.

The Fig Tree is symbolic for the formation of the State of Israel. Israel is often spoken of as being the fig tree in the Old Testament. Jesus often quoted verses of the old testament when he spoke. Although He did not specifically specify how long a generation was, the following verse from the old testament is a biblical example of what this time frame could be.

Psalm 90:10 (NIV)

¹⁰ Our days may come to seventy years,
or eighty, if our strength endures;

So using simple math we see that a generation would be 70 years after 1948 is 2018 and 80 years is 2028 but technically speaking it could have happened anytime within the 70 or 80 years meaning the last 7 years (considered the tribulation or time of troubles) could begin at any moment.

I wanted to mention a little history before I got into the content of the great falling away and rise of cults. Some consider the great falling away to be the rapture because after the rapture when all Christians are taken up to be with the Lord, there will be a great rise of sin and immorality in the world, simply because there will be no Christians and/or no Christian witness' (at first) here to influence humanity. All of this changes however as new converts and supernatural "witnesses" come on the scene. Ironically, there is one verse in the Bible that encourages us to not put off Salvation because once the tribulation starts many "will believe a lie" that the anti-Christ tells everyone. Satan is using propaganda and even Hollywood right now to prep us for this lie.

Others consider the great falling away to be the Christian church becoming apathetic to sin and abusing "grace" by people not repenting of their sins. Certainly we all are saved by grace, but the Bible speaks about "our works" and further states that "faith without works is dead" (James 2:17).

Either way, we can easily see that whether by the rapture or through apathy of the church which leads to less spiritual leadership in communities, there could be a great falling away which will lead to a great abundance of sin and immorality. For you sexual atheists, one might say "one big orgy".

It's a strong belief of mine that apathy in the church and/or the rapture is what will create the "rise of cults". This is Biblical that the closer to the end there will be a great increase of false prophets. To me, I have witnessed this in my own community through a local cult here and the control they have over their members. Many times the members want to be in a seperatist cult because they believe or they are "told" by the cults leaders that the church wasn't there for them and that the "cult is the true church". It's an unfortunate by-product of "people falling between the cracks" in the church. Then the cult using a battery of techniques to brainwash the members and use very strict and controlling techniques to keep them active and obligated to the cult. Biblically speaking we are to be slaves to "Christ" and not slaves to a cult or to a Church, but if we are slaves to Christ we are to be a part of a Church and likewise work both inside and outside of the church using the gifts that Christ has given us to further His Kingdom.

2 Peter 2:1-2 (NLT)The Danger of False Teachers

¹ But there were also false prophets in Israel, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will cleverly teach destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them. In this way, they will bring sudden destruction on themselves. ² Many will follow their evil teaching and shameful immorality. And because of these teachers, the way of truth will be slandered.

As verse two states, "because of these [false] teachers, the way of truth [Christianity] will be slandered. One reason Christians will be scoffed at and persecuted towards the end of times is that these false prophets will be on the rise and people will see their heresy and believe that "all Christians" must be like that. The hatred towards Christians will grow as will anti-Semitism.

Let's look at John 16:1-5

John 16:1-5 (NIV)

¹ “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. ² They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. ³ They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. ⁴ I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember that I warned you about them."

There is coming a time when there will be so much hatred against Christians that many people will hate us, after all, if we're not "luke warm" as it speaks of in Revelation, then we might not be entirely politically correct, we may not always say what people want to hear, but it's not that we're supposed to say what people want to hear but what they need to hear. However, the radicals, the non-Christians, the Christian pretend to bee’s, the ones the Bible speaks of who take advantage of weak women, the ones who steal from the Church, the ones who con people out of their money so they can live extravagant lifestyles, all of these pretend Christians and the media's propaganda against us will eventually lead to many people despising us. Who comes to your mind in verse two above that says "the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God"? It's possible that he was speaking of the early Catholic Church was murdered many for what they called heresy, but it could also include any modern day religion that promotes violence and dislikes Christians, Jews, and/or our support of Israel.

Is there any Christian that doesn't believe Adolf Hitler was an early version of the Anti-Christ? He tried to "number" the Jews. Yes, they were assigned a tattoo of identification. Hitler even used technology to try and exterminate the Jews. Ironically, IBM technology was used in this process. Take a look at the following wikipedia.com summary of a book written recently:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_and_the_Holocaust

Another thing Hitler did was use movies, posters and other forms of media propaganda to encourage people to blame the Jews for Germany's economic crisis. This laid the groundwork for genocide. Is it possible in today's political climate that Hollywood and the media could create a climate of hate against a particular race? Is it possible that Hollywood and the media could create a climate of hate against a particular religion? Is it possible for Hollywood and the media to create a climate of hate against a particular political party? These two questions are very possible with today's political climate.

Is it no wonder that in Revelation we see that the anti-Christ would have us all wear "the mark of the beast" on our arms or foreheads? Doesn't his remind us of how Hitler "tatood and numbered" Jews in the concentration camps. He used IBM which was the best technology had to offer in his day to determine the ancestry of the Jews and today we have computers much more sophisticated. Matter of fact, there has never been a time in history where an "Anti-Christ" could effectively "number" every single person with the "mark of the beast" in which Revelation discusses we will have to have in order to purchase or sell. The technology was just not there when Hitler was in power, but it is in existence today.

Take a look at this "mark" on this Jews arm:

As the old saying goes "Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely". If you haven't heard of Facebook’s "face recognition software" which is being used by governments worldwide to help locate people or the strength and power of Google, then you might consider that the term "knowledge is power" will take an entirely more sophisticated meaning during the "times of trouble".

So, I end with this. The closer to the end times and especially after the rapture, there will be a great rise of cults and false teachers, there will be a great falling away. The more false prophets that do bad things, the more some people will attribute that to Christianity and the more people will hate Christians. By association, we will be portrayed as agreeing with the loud mouths, the radical pro-life people who bomb abortion clinics, the protestors who disturb military funerals with vulgar signs, the conservatives who represent "corporate greed", the pedophile religious leaders who abuse children and all of those other things that will make people hate us. The bible states the end times will be rough and the economy will be even rougher, that there will be all sorts of fighting, lack of trust, earthquakes in diverse places, "tracking", bickering, partying etc. Some will tell you that there has always been those things, but I tell you that there has never been a time in history where the technology existed for all of us to have a number assigned to us in order for us to buy and sell, and there has never been a time in history where we were so completely dependent on the grocery store for food.

We shall see. For now, I'd suggest you read the parable of the ten virgins which is spoken of right after Matthew 24 (the time of troubles) and seek to prepare your lamps, because whether the end times are very close or not, our death could occur in the next few years or even the next few days so we never know "For Whom the Bell Tolls".

Matthew 25:1-13(NIV)

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

¹ “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. ² Five of them were foolish and five were wise. ³ The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. ⁴ The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. ⁵ The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.

⁶ “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’

⁷ “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. ⁸ The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’

⁹ “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’

¹⁰ “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.

¹¹ “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’

¹² “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’

¹³ “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

We do not know the "day or the hour", but we had better "keep watch".

Is God Lonely?

2011-10-05T21:27:00.000-07:00

I've often pondered on the loneliness of God. It's a subject that's not specifically addressed in the Bible, but evidence of its existence does support it. One might ask, how could such a magnificent and intelligent Deity who lives forever be lonely, but I would strongly suggest that being in such a position of intelligence, could both isolate and intensify the loneliness unless there was a companion, at which the desired companion and Bride of Christ is stated repeatedly as being the Church and the New Jerusalem.

The first known written examples of God seeking dialog begin in the Book of Genesis in the Bible. If you remember, God created Adam and He said that Adam would need someone to keep him company because it wasn't good to be alone; therefore he created someone that Adam could communicate with on certain level that would satisfy Adam's loneliness. Adam came first and then God made woman out of a part of Adam and together they formed a team or unit that God could communicate with. Being that they were a part of each other originally, Adam and Eve would always be attracted back to each other and just like a couple of magnets certain men and women are drawn to each other.

Is it to "human" to think that God could be lonely also; is it blasphemous to attempt and attribute human emotions and feelings to the Alpha and Omega? Do not forget that Genesis states that we (humans) were created from His image, therefore are we not emotional people and human to the degree that we sometimes are lonely? The concept of God having emotions is so deeply engraved into the Scriptures that there is no possible way to separate the emotions from the Bible; however to say that God is lonely, we'd need to support that with evidence, but my thoughts are how many times throughout the Bible are we taught that God desires our prayers and our dialog, not just our obedience? God does most definitely desire to dialog with us on a daily basis and many of us desire something to fill that void we call loneliness. How can we ever be lonely if we had a good personal relationship with the King who created the universe? How could we ever be bored if we sought after His face through the creative and magnificent art He has created, the most powerful and magnificent of which being the heart? What human on this earth has ever created a painting as wonderfully complicated and colorful as the continually changing clouds and sunsets hovering in the western sky or a painting as welcoming as a beautiful sunrise after the darkest of nights? What artist on this planet could create such a beautiful star system or even come comparatively close to imagining such diversity in the animal and plant kingdom? I often feel sorry for those who think that all of this "just happened" in some sort of big bang, and almost as sorry for those who think that God couldn't create humans, animals and plants manuevering in a world that continually adapts to ever changing environments. The only difference possibly is that the true evolutionists will one day be in Hell if they don't experience salvation, and some of the others might only be labeled religious legalists. I truly believe we came from dust or dirt as it says in Genesis, not monkeys or fish. If you study biology and chemistry you will find that our bodies are made up of the very same chemical compositions that dirt are made of except we walk and talk and dirt does not. It's because God created us from the dirt, but then blew life into us and that's when we came alive.

The analogy of the Church and the New Jerusalem being the Bride of Christ is another example, as a marriage between a man and a woman (I'm trying my best to be politically correct here) is the example of a great communion and lifelong partnership, yet the Church getting ready for the Bridegroom is the larger analogy of completion and a partnership for eternity.

Yes, God was communicating with Adam and Eve before they ate from the forbidden fruit, but yet sometimes I wonder if God knew they would fail that which would be put before them, failing into their sin and weaknesses when tempted by the serpent as they ate the fruit that would give them wisdom of what was good and what was evil. Having no prior knowledge of what was evil, they disobeyed God and ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, but afterwards when they were caught, they did not get a chance to eat of it again, nor of the tree of life which afterwards was hidden from them, later to come to us as a Gift and as a New Testament covenant.

What diverse and intensely intricate lines of dialog must the God of the Universe require in order to be satisfied from His loneliness; I can't even begin to imagine to what depths such a dialog would penetrate nor could I imagine the great emptiness that would accompany God's heart without such a deep communion.

Oh Lord, I desire your communion and more and more wisdom and clarity, that I can understand on a deeper level what it is You would like for me to do in this short temporary life I am living. Please Lord show me, teach me, strengthen me, then lead me down the trails of righteousness, of wisdom, strength, forgiveness and mercy, all at the same time as walking down the Trail of your Word and your will, in Jesus Christ's name I pray. Amen.

Transfer Funds and Power Straight to China

2011-09-20T21:08:00.000-07:00

The have nots are always so eager to take from the haves, at least many times this is the case. People call it a "transfer of wealth". It's only when we see this transfer of wealth and power happening between our country and another country that we recognize that "transfer of wealth" might not be all that highly rated.

How is it that China is growing stronger, more powerful, wealthier and more politically active in the world and the United States and Europe appears to be in decline? Is it unpatriotic to say that. No, it's unpatriotic to notice it and not try to stop it.

If you've ever put a dead battery into a flashlight with a new battery in the hopes that your flashlight will work as if two good batteries are inside, you will be quick to discover that the dead battery actually pulls the good battery down to it's level very quickly and then you you have is a dead battery.

So, what will it be like when things get tough within a nation (s) that is used to being spoiled, fast food eateries, plenty of gas money for sunday drives, vacations etc... ? Not a good picture.

A transfer of wealth, industry, money and political power is being transferred from us (the U.S.) to them (China) and that's not a good thing for us, and not good for democracy and freedom. It's a very sad day when someone sells out to the enemy. The trade agreements with China are just that. The NAFTA with Mexico is different. They won't get too much out of line if we get in a disagreement with them (Mexico), but China, human rights violations, communist government, state run media, arrest you on suspicion and lock you up without a trial China?

To think that a China man in a communist country that's dominated by highly scrutinized government ran media is going to buy an American made t-shirt when we are getting to the point that we can't even afford an American made t-shirt is beyond believable. Why would he/she? We don't even buy them. Does Walmart even sell American made clothes anymore? I haven't seen any in a while.

My argument is this? If there is a $10 t-shirt that's made in China and a $15 dollar t-shirt on the rack at Walmart that's made in the U.S.A. what will the majority of people buy? Ok, the $10 shirt. So, let's think about this transfer of wealth theory of mine for a minute. The factory in the U.S. that makes the $15 t-shirt has got to compete with the cheaper Chinese t-shirt so in order for that factory not to complete shut down (laying off every worker in the process) they must do one of two things: 1) hire cheaper workers or 2) buy a machine that makes the t-shirts instead of having so many employees. What I am saying doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand, just some common sense. China's workforce is poor but we've opened a huge market for them. They have saturated our markets with their "cheaper" goods. Now while this has allowed them to actually open up more factories, and even pay their people better wages, at the same time, just like the dead battery analogy I mentioned earlier, our wages on average, have to drop.

So, China is opening up factories as well as some of the other "poor" countries such as India and Mexico. Our wages have to decrease for our factories to stay open and at the same time, their salaries increase. Make sense? The other thing that is screwed up about the trade agreements is that many businesses and factories are now "outsourcing" goods that they used to make "in-house" to other countries and having those goods imported in cheaper than they can make it here in the states. Again, that equates to more people working in other countries and less in our own. The debate they tell us to justify the world trade agreements is that the Chinese and the Mexicans will buy our goods therefore all of this will balance out. Seriously, how brainwashed are we? Propaganda, people still believe that everything you hear must be true as if it was written in stone, but it's not. Do you really think a Mexican in Mexico is going to buy many of the things we make here? Do you know how poor 95% of mexico is? Does anyone really think that more than 1% of the Chinese are going to buy our products when we can't even sell them cheaper within our own borders, must less come anywhere close to competing with Chinese goods in China after shipping them there.

Are we so stupid?

I love to hear Bill Gates stand up with politicians and talk about giving up his wealth, and paying more taxes, not that I don't think that he doesn't pay more taxes, but the hypocracy of his statement just kills me. Why? Because if he cared so much about our country and was so willing to give up half of his income to pay taxes then why in the heck doesn't he at least hire Americans there at Microsoft. Now I know he has some, but why is it that when you call MS tech support you can't even understand the person because you're speaking with someone from India or some other slave labor country because Corporate America Bill is trying to make a few extra billion while sacrificing American Jobs?

I am patriotic, very much so, and I am so tired of seeing our factories closing down and people being unemployed and on welfare when this whole fair trade thing could be balanced out better and we start opening back those American factories again and making them competitive without the average employee working for peanuts.

The longer this goes on, the harder it will be to straighten it out. I am a contractor and I haven't seen a toilet made in America in years. All the toilet manufacturers are importing the toilets from Mexico. Most textiles come from China and other slave labor countries. The only clothing factory here in Selma is one that has a military contract. Wouldn't it be nice if there wasn't such a big divide with China and we could open up a couple of large clothing factories here in Dallas County and put some people here to work so that they can start paying taxes too?

Oh, and speaking of another perk of the world trade agreements as they are? They are the biggest contributors to world wide pollution and global warming (if there is such a thing) that exist. Why? Because the United States puts more control over their pollution and more agencies to monitor pollution than about any other country in the world, therefore if the world trade agreements are creating industries in China, Mexico, India and others who have far less standards (if any) then the damage to the environment is increasing exponentially.

And lastly, we are so desperate for money and to strengthen our economy that we are selling out to the devil (China). We say "I hope China invests here and gives us some money". Let me tell you, I don't want to have to answer to China, and I don't want a communist government to hold my mortgage. If you've ever seen the movie "It's a Wonderful Life" then you understand why George Wilson did not sell out to old man Potter. If you remember, if George had not have been there, old man Potter would have owned Bedford Falls and life there would have been drastically different (for the bad) under Potters "rule". Potter was definitely the evil character in the movie and China buying our debt and while we give them the money (through the World Trade Agreements), they buy more of our debt and grow stronger in power, monetarily, militarily and politically. Don't forget that it was China, followed by Russia that wanted the world to "drop" the U.S. Dollar as the worlds staple currency back at the end of 2008, a move that would have crippled us politically world wide. This was very obvious a move to throw us under the bus and I am very surprised that the media didn't harp on it more, even now. I suppose it's a matter of national security and the government doesn't want us to panic? What ever the case, I was taught to stay away from tigers, especially if they try to eat you, but miss. They will come back later when the time is right.

There's so much more I'd love to say, but I'll leave it at that for now...

Delete Taxes - Thinking Outside of the Box

2011-09-15T16:27:00.000-07:00

The title says it all. Actually it doesn't so let's go on. Why do we have taxes any way? The dollar has not been connected to either gold or silver for many years.

This concept may be considered a bit extreme to some, but let's just think outside of the box for a minute. People, just like animals, are creatures of habit and many times we just go with the flow and walk down the same path that our ancestors have walked down previous to us. The majority of people, after all, are followers, and with such a complicated issue such as taxes (getting even more complicated every year) then surely generations of politicians prior to our "information age" existence must be right, right?

Why?

Let's explore that question; the question why? There may be a slight transition to deleting all taxes completely, but why wouldn't it be possible? It's not like it's attached to gold any more, or jewels or pewter or the things of the past that men and women considered gems, diamonds etc.Listen, when taxes were created, there was no paper money, it was all silver or gold, period. In France, Great Britain, Rome, in all of these countries tax collectors went around collecting silver and gold from the people, and sometimes food as well, you know, tangible things they could put in the kings coffers and build up wealth.

When countries went to war with other countries, they pillaged the villages for what? Not paper money, but gold, silver, jewels and food. They didn't rebuild those cities they pillaged. They kept the wealth for themselves and for their country. Selfish right?

Now that gold, silver, jewels and food are no longer collected as taxes (get where I am going?) to fill up the kings coffers as was done in thousands of years past, why are they still collecting taxes when it is only paper, and many times just an electronic transfer of, you guessed it, nothing. I say nothing because the government prints money on a regular basis anyway, and I'm sure there is some accountability there, although I've often read that the Federal Reserve has never been audited before (whether this is true, I have no clue). So what's the point anyway?

Why can't the government audit every city, state and county as to what their revenue intake has been traditionally and connect that to their infrastructure and population in a fair and reasonable fashion, then print up a year's worth of money and just transfer it into their bank accounts on a monthly basis so that they can meet their obligations, payroll and day to day expenses. If some cities are out of proportion with other cities for how much money is collected per each individual, just find some way to average it out over a period of say ten years. The government "must" allow for this information to be public so as to earn the trust of the people and other city and state governments. This could be accomplished by listing every city, county and state that receives money from the federal government showing exactly how much money they were given compared to their number of employees and their census population. Every year if special needs come up from some of the cities needing additional revenue, then have them write a grant to the federal government.

Everyone will have more money in their pockets and this should stimulate the economy right? Some might argue that this artificial surplus would create inflation, but all of the artificial printing hasn't seemed to do it yet has it? This transition could be accomplished over the course of several years so we could do as the Federal Reserve calls it, a "quantitative easing".

Again, let me repeat that taxes throughout history were gold and silver that actually went into the governments vaults and that they spoils of war were actually spoils of war that went in the conquering government's vaults and since none of this is any longer the case, it could be said that taxes are really just an outdated method of collecting nothing, and therefore does not serve its original purpose anymore.

Deleting them entirely could raise people's spirits, even out the playing field, uncomplicate people's lives and make it easier for all businesses to streamline their production and focus on their products instead of so much red tape. The IRS could probably be downsized considerably, transitioning them into new jobs in the private sector. Accountants currently in existence can help moderate the transition by auditing the IRS and making sure that all cities received proportional amounts of money and to insure that corruption did not take over the system by allowing "certain" cities to receive extra payouts. All figures allotted each city, county and state government monetary figures should be published for the public’s consumption with a easily understood summary of why some cities receive slightly more funds than others as well as how much money in grants they received and for what.

Roads and streets could still at least "partially" be funded by fuel taxes, although the fuel taxes could be lowered and eventually deleted over the course of several years as the system "evens" out.

I am just thinking outside of the box. I just think this idea could be explored. It is a concept that would be hard for most people to wrap their minds around because there have always been taxes, but life is complicated enough and the tax codes are just so complicated. Doing this could allow us to spread our wings and focus on the more important things of life. I realize that one of the complications may be how this would affect the world markets, and to be honest, I do not know what percentage of taxes other countries pay out, but the concept could be a global concept as long as the entire world is not connected to precious metals with their currency any longer.

Success - You have to Fail to Reach it.

2011-07-24T07:20:00.000-07:00

Many would argue with the title of this article, but it's true nonetheless. We often talk about "change" and how we want it, yet how many times do we fall into the same old "rut" and "routine"? I remember a debate 20ish or so years ago with some of the older youth in my church. The question was "If your goal is to fail and you succeed, did you still fail?". My answer was "If it was your goal was to fail and you met your goal, then you did succeed in your own eyes, because everyone else’s definition of success should not reflect your own." To be honest, I have seen some kids that were so afraid of failure; they were perfectly content to never leave the couch and they continued to live with their parents well into adulthood.

I ran across the following piece written by Portia Nelson called "Autobiography in Five Short Chapters" and found it worthwhile to post, so here it is. May we all reflect, understand and seek the "better street" and become all that we can be by overcoming any adversity or "holes" that we fall into. Here's a toast to all the holes we've fallen into and the new streets we've found because we at least had the fortitude to get off the couch and walk down those streets to begin with. May we stop falling into the same old holes, but find new holes on different streets to fall into and get out of. May we become better people because of it all.

Chapter 1:
I walk down the street.
There is a hole.
I don't see it.
I fall in.
It isn't my fault.
It takes a very long time to get out.

Chapter 2:
I walk down the same street.
There is still a deep hole.
I pretend not to see it.
I fall in.
I pretend it's still not my fault.
It takes a long time to get out.

Chapter 3:
I walk down the same street.
There is still the same deep hole.
I see it.
I fall in anyway.
It's a habit.
I get out quicker this time.

Chapter 4:
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole.
I see it.
I walk around it.
I don't fall in.

Chapter 5:
I walk down a different street!!!

Cult Council - Ward 3 - Absolutely Not!!

2011-07-04T20:52:00.000-07:00

July 5th, 2011 - Judgment Day. The day that every voter (that's everyone that actually votes) judges (votes) for one candidate and at the same time, judges against the other candidate. In a day and age when the wolves in sheep’s clothing (the cult) complain and whine about "haters" and "non-religious tolerance" they themselves have been the biggest hypocrites of the very things they preach and whine about.

First and foremost, let me assure you that I do not hate the Freedom Foundation or any of their other associated cult organizations or programs which are all weaved together like a spider's web ready to catch any unsuspecting and naive soul. I have decided that there is no hate in my heart for them, at least not at this point. What I do have is a great love for Selma, therefore to understand this love, you have to understand that seeing Selma suffer from this cult and seeing the potential future devastation to Selma from the growth of this oppressive organism has me a bit perturbed.

If you do your research, you will see that the Freedom Foundation, the House of God, the Selma Community Church, Random Acts of Theater are all connected together and to one man; Mark Duke. They are a cancer in our community and if this cancer ever metastasizes, then the death of Selma economically will not be far behind.

Motives and heart. How many times have I said it? Leadership is all about intelligence, inspiration, diplomacy and so many other things, but the smartest, most inspiring and diplomatic person on the planet would not get my vote if their heart and motives were “bad” and depending on that "bad" person's aspirations and potential is what determines how much I would campaign against them and for someone else.

Winston Churchill was not an Adolf Hitler fan, but Hitler was a "very" charismatic and popular leader. He was smart, witty and a strong leader who knew how people worked. Hitler used all sorts of media and propaganda to basically brainwash the public. Now, don't misquote me. I am not saying that the Freedom Foundation is going to commit genocide against the Jews or the citizens of Selma, but what I am saying is that even with all the right traits, wisdom and personable leadership qualities someone might have, it certainly doesn't make them worth following if the motives and heart are corrupt. Motives and heart are what determine a good leader and sometimes you have to really do your research. Not everyone has discernment. It's a gift that was not equally distributed out. There are very intelligent people out there who do not have discernment just like there are very discerning people out there who do not have very much intelligence. What I am saying is that just because a candidate has a nice "radio voice" and sounds sweet doesn't mean she is. There are basically a few types of followers. Those who "know" better, those who "don't know" better and those who just “don't care”.

Winston Churchill most definitely had discernment. He's been quoted as saying, "If Hitler invaded hell I would make at least a favorable reference to the devil in the House of Commons."

Winston also said “Politics is the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month and next year. And to have the ability afterwards to explain why it didn't happen.”

I don't think anyone here reading this doesn't know where I stand on Gwen Brown, Mark Duke, Shawn Samuelson and Ronald Smith, however many of you probably don't understand why I am so adamant about exposing them for the destructive group that they are, so I want to clarify some things.

I don't hate them, I just love Selma much more. It's important that you understand this.

I strongly feel that the cult will be the demise of Selma if given enough momentum.

I don't trust them and for good reason. They are a pack of notorious and destructive liars and there's lots of proof.

I dislike bullies very much. The only physical fights I’ve ever been in were protecting the weak from bullies. The cult is a bully. Lot's of proof there also.

They are creating racism in itself by creating negative drama. Make no mistakes, this group is the opposite of what Selma needs.

They are leading youth down a very bad path.

They have no respect for authority at all. They only do the bidding of their cult leaders.

They will eventually help run businesses and business people out of Selma.

They speak of those who speak out of the both sides of their mouths, yet that phrase was invented because of people just like them.

They speak of unity, yet use diverse divide and conquer tactics on the citizens of selma.

They do a few things and highly market those things they do in direct contradiction to the biblical term.

They help those who can help them recruit more members or who have talents or money that will directly support their cause and again recruit more people.

They speak of racism, yet cults are the true slave masters of the mind, the true oppressors of the weak.

Their only cause is their own glory, power and control and not that of the Father.

Their only justice is their cause which is control and power.

They are partison politics at it's worst.

They speak of democracy yet they are dictators.

Does Gwen have a job? Her job is to get control over the people of Selma according to her leader Mark Duke.

Why run businesses out of town? Leadership. Is this really the leader you want? They speak of unity yet they are the opposite of unity. They are "anti-unity".

Perkin's is openly supporting the cult. Without a doubt, I am ashamed of this politician. Why? Because there has been so many examples of cults and with media, news, books etc there is absolutely NO reason for an educated person to be supporting this cult and especially publically supporting them. Is he that desperate for a few votes? The cult is going to ruin his future career and his reputation; however the cult is only supporting him because HE GIVES THEM CREDIBILITY. Perkins is being played. He has so much to lose and the cult has so much to gain. Perkins - You need to cut them off ASAP. If you read this, I am still waiting on that lunch meeting and I will be glad to elaborate. Don't make a fool of yourself any more, you're embarrassing all of us, and I am not speaking this white/black race gibberish, I am speaking the entire human race.

Next, without a doubt specialists have labeled this group as a destructive cult. Obviously they are blasting Allan McConnell. That's all they can do. What would you do? Unfortunately there is not a cult specialist that resides in Selma, so Ms. Coles, I suppose that your comment about him being an outside agitator might be correct. Take an antacid for your heart burn because he is a cult specialist no matter how much the cult and some of their bed buddies try and discredit him.

Listen, several years ago I called some people associated with the archives of the whole Jim Jones, People's Temple cult and described what was going on. I was asked "WHO WAS MONITORING THE SITUATION" and I said "A man by the name of Allan McConnell with Watchman Fellowship" and the reply I got back was "Ya'll are in good hands because Watchman Fellowship is one of the largest and most respected cult monitoring specialists in the country". That's all that I needed to believe. What will it take for some of you? There's a WeTV show called "Women in Cults" that is out and mentioned the Selma cult by name. There have been several other cult monitoring experts nationwide that has labeled this group a cult. The Alabama Baptist did a four page spread on the Selma Cult. What is it going to take for all of this to sink in? I have asked myself this question and the only thing I can think of is that there are so many "questionable charactors" that talk on the radio daily here in Selma Alabama, that no-one trusts anyone any more. I pray that you start trusting and listening to Allan McConnell before it's too late because he's the real deal people. No, he isn't perfect and seems a little harsh sometimes, but if you really listen, he's only telling the truth, and to the cult and the cult's supporters, the truth hurts their agenda. I'll say again that I don't hate the Freedom Foundation, but I love Selma more, and I believe that Allan doesn't hate them either, but loves all of the spiritually abused people have been and are being lied to and manipulated by this group much more.

Although I strongly predict a loss for Gwen Brown and a win for Greg Bjelke, I must admit that if something doesn't happen, there will be continued growth by this group and eventual council seats for them down the road. Folks, this can't happen. They will rip Selma to shreds. You think there aren't enough jobs here now? Seriously? Do you think businessmen actually like a lot of drama in the city they reside? Do you think the youth start minding their parents more when they see the Cult directly disobeying those leaders in charge? Do you think they will create "real jobs" for Selma?

Let me tell you a secret that obviously the airwaves of Selma have never understood. Drama runs off industry and jobs. Leaders who create division and drama run off industry and jobs. What I am saying is that if you support the cult, you are supporting less jobs for you and your family.

Want proof? How many people move out of Selma during Perkins term in office? Drama and he created lots of it. How many people pulled their kids out of the public school system and even moved out of the city in the early '90s? Again, drama and safety issues.

Tone it down. Give Selma a positive image and try to help the city, not hurt it. Also, do not put leaders in office that polarize the city as this is a very negative thing and causes us all to lose. I am not saying be complacent, true leaders are never complacent. If your house was full of snakes, you would not sit down on the couch, no you would not.

Vote for a local businessman that has invested his life in Selma and has actually created jobs here. As Daddy White said "Vote Bjelke, Vote Bjelke, Vote Bjelke" put the RIGHT man in.

Every vote against the cult is a vote for Selma.

The Selma Cult Takeover Stragegy - Our Youth

2011-06-28T09:25:00.000-07:00

Normally I wouldn't share strategies that would benefit the Selma Cult, but since they are very aware of this paticular strategy already, i am not sharing any secret or giving them any ideas by sharing this to everyone else:

Many of the "honest" adults have been on to them for a while, but their strategy is to bring in the youth and it is an effective "cult" strategy to do this. Get them as they are young, control them, and then you have their vote and since they all will think they "owe their lives" to the cult for keeping them out of jail (as one of their black boys said, "if it weren't for the ff saving me, statistics show I'd be in jail, so it must be true" - effectively what he was really saying is that he owes his life to this organization because they have him believing whole heartedly if it weren't for the Freedom Foundation, he would be in jail. This is what they want because now that boy will give up his life to the "cause" and the cult), keeping them off drugs, off alcohol, marrying a homosexual off in an arranged wedding setting so he can "control his homosexual lusts" etc. All of these things contribute to the control and manipulation of the cult.

One thing is for certain. A child that has been in a "cult family" environment knows no different and the cult leadership knows this. They will dedicate their lives to the "cause".

This is evil and sickening to a degree that is beyond anything I have seen in my entire life but it will be a very effective strategy for them and if something doesn't happen/turn this around in five years those "children" will be voting age and many people in this city not taking this seriously will come up with some other excuse as to why they didn't get involved or why it wasn't their fault etc and will just move away anyway leaving Selma in even sadder financial shape than ever before.

What we could be looking at down the road is the end of democracy in Selma as we know it and white flight will eventually turn into "more" industry and small business flight leaving Selma in a very precarious situation.

Fact is the SELMA CULT is horrendously horribly bad for the City of Selma and it's past time for more people to take notice and get active to inspire "positive growth" and not negative power trips.

Comparing Apples to Oranges

2011-06-27T17:48:00.000-07:00

The "ex-mayor" of selma was defending the cult on the radio today and also defending their stance on "Jesus isn't God" in case any of you were wondering.

Religious tolerance he said...he mentioned the Muslim mosque in town and why wasn't anyone picking on them...

Well, in case you're wondering, why people are upset with the freedom foundation and not going after the muslims here in town, it's because:

The local muslims haven't been recorded stating they were raising an army - Mark Duke has

The local muslims haven't been recorded saying that they must get control and authority over the city and it's politics in order to gain eternal life - Mark Duke has

The local muslims haven't been recorded stating they would shed blood on the bridge - Mark Duke has

The local muslims haven't been recorded stating that it's members must now cut ties with former family and friends - MARK DUKE HAS

OH, and that's just the start...

Think about it... if Mark Duke had arab decent and dark hair with a middle eastern accent, homeland security would be all over his ass and also all over his followers...

Everyone... please wake up, get out of that group, expose that group for the dangerous cult that they are and do everything in your power to not support them or those who support them...(among other things).

Now on to the other point that James Perkins Jr was trying to make. He quoted a scripture today (out of context of course) supporting the case that the cult was doing good works EVEN THOUGH THEY MIGHT BELIEVE JESUS ISN'T GOD. He basically said they were doing the same as all the churches even though they didn't believe that Jesus was God like the traditional Christian church, and that basically we were ALL working towards the same end. Here's the verses he used to back up his case:

Mark 9:38-42
New International Version (NIV)

38 “Teacher,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.”

39 “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, 40 for whoever is not against us is for us. 41 Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward.

HOWEVER, he failed to follow up with verse 42:

42 “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea.

The point is that they are not preaching the real Jesus and that it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and thrown into the sea. Not saying literally because what that is saying is that eternally they need to stop this nonsense NOW before they cause ANY MORE TO STUMBLE.

James, there are probably a hundred verses about the demise of false prophets and those who use the Lord's name in vain (for profit, control, money etc).

You might want to dig a little deeper into your Bible and quit using the Lord's name in vain and supporting false profits. If you REALLY know your scripture, then you are very aware of what the scripture says about false profits. You need to wake up just as much as the cult members need to. That is, if you even really believe in the scripture at all. That is a heart and soul issue that only you and God can relate to.
New International Version (NIV)

16 This is what the LORD Almighty says:
“Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions from their own minds,
not from the mouth of the LORD.

Hosea 11:6
New International Version (NIV)

6 A sword will flash in their cities;
it will devour their false prophets
and put an end to their plans.

1 John 4
New International Version (NIV)

On Denying the Incarnation

1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit[a] of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

There are SO MANY verses about false prophets and how they lead people astray. "Wolves in sheeps clothings" the scripture says.

I am NOT going to apologize for this. I CAN'T BELIEVE that ANY former mayor of Selma would align themselves and openly support this cult.

My Dad

2011-06-14T15:50:00.000-07:00

I have always admired my dad and with Father's Day coming up I thought it a good idea to reflect on not only the genetic connection with my father, but also his admirable traits I've witnessed over the years.

My father has always been a strong man. This year he will hit his 50th wedding anniversary and will turn 83 years old. He loves my mother. My father has been a rock for his entire family without a shadow of a doubt and has always been there for me and mom as well.

My father has always been tough as nails. Up until a couple of months ago I would have told you he has gotten a little frail in the last two years or so but after I witnessed him bruised and skinned up from head to toe a couple of months back and he told me the story of how he fell down the steps and hit face first on a brick sidewalk a week earlier and didn't even go to the doctor for a check-up, I had to rethink my thoughts about all that especially since what I saw should have broken quite a few bones at his age, yet only skinned him up and bruised his ego a little. I tried not to show my emotions and anger as to why he didn't tell me or why he didn't even go to the doctor, but it sure was hard.

My father went to work at an early age after the tragic death of my grandfather. He was sixteen years old. He sent money to my grandmother on a regular basis and went into the military. When he found out his youngest brother had dropped out of school, he came home from overseas and forced him to finish, buying his books in the process. My grandmother remarried to a man who was an alcoholic and who physically abused her, and after one episode of abuse, my father came home to show his step father just what it felt like to be physically abused. He got my grandmother out of that situation encouraged her to stay with my aunt, which she did. That wasn't the first fight my dad had been in, being raised up in rural Choctaw County where fighting was the norm and meanness was abound. Despite the occasional fight though, my father grew up doing well for himself and after he got out of the military he took a job with the highway department.

Mom and dad tried to have kids and weren't successful for years so they adopted and three years later at the age of 43, I was born. When I was eight years old my parents both decided that I was a handful and that they didn't want to raise me in and around the city of Mobile, so they both retired young and built a house in the country. I just didn't realize how different I had it from most children my age who had parents that worked. My father had a garden and did little side jobs from time to time. He introduced me to some good work ethics and hooked me up with local people to cut their grass and do other projects around the age of 11. At the age of twelve, I was searching classifieds and ran across an ad to sell Grit Papers, profiting 25 cents per paper sold. Dad would drop me off at the local store in the morning and I would ride my bike all over selling papers. He took a lot of time with me. I took carpentry a couple of years in high school and he eventually connected me to a couple who put my skills to the test at the age of 16. At the age of 17, I wanted to build a two story playhouse and garage for my niece and dad, he supplied me with the materials, the tools and gave me free reign to build it by myself, the best way to learn.

About a year prior to getting my drivers permit, I noticed my dad began to slow his driving down 5 miles under the speed limit, often telling me "Son, just because the speed limit is 55 mph, doesn't mean you have to drive that fast." He talked to me about alchohol and drugs and even a very short talk about sex and although my dad always kept a firm grip on my whereabouts, and also his belt when he disciplined me, he never used any kind of mental type abuse or punishment when he punished me. Matter of fact, he never once called me a name or tried to put me down in any way, but he did believe in that belt, and always wanted me to understand why I was getting whipped. He made sure I respected my mother as well. All this was for my benefit.

My father always was the brother and son who took care of business in the family. When my Uncle Otis was severely hurt in Okinawah around the time I was born, it was my dad who picked up one of the other brothers and went to New York to look after his affairs. He had extensive brain damage and paralysis, the mind of a one year old and he could not even feed himself, needing care around the clock. Once a month we would drive three hours to visit my uncle in the nursing home and it was my dad who always spoke with the doctors and nurses to keep things straight. Dad took care of all the paperwork (along with my mom). I can still remember the phone going off in the middle of the night and it being a doctor wanting to talk with my dad about Otis or to get permission for some proceedure. My dad looked after my Uncle Otis for over 30 years. Anytime anyone in the family was in some sort of trouble or needed something, my dad was right in the middle of it taking care of business. When my uncle Condie got colon cancer, it was my dad that brought him to our place and took him to chemo. When Uncle Condie got cancer a second time, it was my dad taking care of business once again. When people needed something worked on, my dad was there.

My dad is always there and has always been there for so many people. He's always said what's on his mind and some people might consider that insensitive, but you always knew exactly where he stood on any issue that would come up and you also knew how you stood with him. I've acquired a great sense of respect and admiration for that part of his personality.

There is a great deal of age difference between my parents and myself, but without a doubt, I want to take after the example of my father and be the strong one in the family just like he always was and be there for him and my mother in their old age. After all, I wouldn't be near the man I am today without my father (or my sweet mother). I love him now, and always will.

Tuscaloosa Tornado

2011-05-27T21:05:00.000-07:00

Today was my fourth time visiting Tuscaloosa after the deadly tornado hit. House after house destroyed and cars thrown around like toy hot-wheels cars. There's not a lot I can do except cut down trees that are dangerous to passers by, or will be dangerous as they rot and die. The ones that are left have been stripped of the majority of their limbs and leaves. There is debris that needs to be moved next to the road so that crews can pick it up however so just in case you don't have a chainsaw there is plenty to do in that department. Bring gloves and plenty of water if that's what you'd like to do. Be sure to check in at the McAbee Center so that the city of Tuscaloosa can get credit and reimbursed for all of your volunteer hours. I can assure you, they need all the help and reimbursements they can get as the infrastructure in the hit areas has a lot to be desired.

Some of the volunteers today ran across a bible that had obviously been tossed in the wind like so many things during the storm. It was tattered and torn. It was open to the book of Judges. To some this would be a coincidence and to others a sign, but either way, I'd never seen a bible that had weathered the storm like this one. It could still be used unlike most of the houses in the area and it's words were alive unlike the hundreds of people who passed away in the storm. In the summer heat you could smell the rottening decay of animals and spoiled food from freezers that no longer were located where they originally were sitting, and then there was that Bible; every page could be read. Even though it was tatered and torn, none of the pages were stuck together and none of the ink was smeared from the wetness of the storm. There it sat open to the book of judges.

I spoke with quite a few people and heard some stories, some stimulating and some saddening like the old lady who was hiding in her tub for dear life when the roof disappeared and the toilet water started funelling up to the sky right before she went for a ride for a hundred yards, still in the tub until she and the tub landed safely on the ground with only a few bruises. One saddening story was the lady that walked in front of one of the lots I was working on a few weeks back who held her dead baby in her arms while she cried. The baby that was in the tree that came from a different county was yet another sad story.

One gentleman I spoke with lost everything including his work uniforms. He had been living in that house since he was a baby and forty years later lost everything except the clothes on his back. He brought up his insurance and said "by the way, you'd better make sure you have the names, models and serial numbers off of every thing of value inside your house if you expect the insurance companies to do much for you.

This was all a wide awakening event for me, but it makes me realise that we are here for only short while and the bible teaches not to put much stock in worldly possessions, but at the same time to not worry because God will take care of us.

Matthew 6- ¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Seeing the destruction in Tuscaloosa reminds me that everything could be gone in a second. It brings life into perspective. What are we taking with us? What are we accomplishing with our hands? What are we accomplishing with our mouths? What are we accomplishing with our bodies? What are we accomplishing in our souls? What are we accomplishing outside of our bodies and souls?

Matthew 6:21 (New International Version)
"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Wow. What a deep verse and so true. For a believer, one treasure is so empty and one is so full of life.

In Tuscaloosa there are many houses that were made of wood and brick that are gone completely now. The people that were inside were either injured or dead. They thought they were safe and many were not.

Sometimes we try to stay "safe" and not do what we know is right, not say what we know is right, not teach what we know is right, not fight for what we know is right but in the end can we truthfully say that we truly lived or will we say that we led the sheltered life? If there's a chance that you're going to be sucked up into a storm one day regardless, wouldn't it be nice to just "live" in the mean time?

There are many who live in a sturdy and secure home, but the storm killed them years ago. Don't let that be you. Sometimes you just have to step out on a limb, because if you don't, you just ain't living. There may be risk, but some of the greatest things in life require risk. Without a doubt, risk combined with faith is a powerful combination.

Ward 3 Election - May 24th, 2011

2011-05-24T21:10:00.000-07:00

Judgment Day... I mean, City of Selma Ward 3 Election Day, May 24th, 2011

Ms. Lola Sewell and local radio talk show host (96.3 fm) "Sunshine" on the sidewalk near the Christian Outreach Alliance at 700 J.L. Chestnut Blvd. which is one of two (the other one being at the Dallas County Court House) voting locations for the elections.

A "peaceful" protest of one of the candidates Gwen Brown with Real Talk Selma, the Freedom Foundation, the Selma Community Church, the Parker Community Church, the House of God and Random Acts of Theater (RATCO). All of these organizations and the people that are active members of these organizations are considered by many in this community and in this country, including “multiple” cult experts, a destructive cult.

There are recordings of Gwen's preacher and leader Mark Duke stating how he wanted to get "authority over the people" and how he laid out a plan to gain control of the people of Selma. This plan included "kissing babies" on every corner and whatever else they needed to do to obtain their goals.
I believe that if you're going to kiss a baby, then you should not be fake about it. After much research and study into this group, there certainly has been much fakery going on. I'd even go far as to say there are some very "serious" and "strange" things that have happened and continue to happen within the cult, past and present.

There were eight candidates who ran for the vacant seat of Dr. Monica Newton who moved with her family to Georgia months back. When the polls came in this evening we find out that it has been narrowed down to two, Greg Bjelke, a local businessman, and Gwen Brown, a local don't have a job troublemaker who speaks of unity in one side of her mouth but out of her heart, and by direction of her divine and anointed spiritual leader Mark Duke, divides and stirs up more than a hungry chicken scratching for maggots.

For those of you who still think that people didn’t start calling this organization a cult until they came to Selma and started working with black people, think again. I could supply you with emails from before they even moved to Selma where Mark Duke is threatening to sue a lady for calling them a cult, while at the same time his “spiritual partner” Shawn Samuelson was calling her a “goat” in another email telling her they didn’t pray to the same God and to never come back to their church, while at the same time Shawn and Gwen were sweet talking the ladies husband about continuing to come and talking bad about his wife. The couple wised up and decided they didn’t want to be a part of a group that tried to “play them against one another” which turned out to be a good decision for them. Other couple’s did not fair so well as it’s even been documented that the Freedom Foundation encouraged and even financially supported other couples divorces.

Selma, I've been saying this for several years now. They have a strategic plan to gain control of this city. A serious side effect of that plan is to quicken the demise of Selma and Dallas County. Please wake up and do your research, get a plan, and put that plan into action before it's too late. It’s hard to compete against a man who believes he won’t have eternal life unless he gets control of your city, but everyone needs to start.

Achilles' Heel in Our Government

2011-05-18T06:03:00.000-07:00

I have a few things on my mind and heart this morning that I need to get out so I can move on with my day.

I love my country very much. It pains me great depths to see trouble brewing, and the trouble didn't start in just the last couple of years, nor did it start in the eight years prior. I can't say for sure when it started, but I believe it began when our founding fathers who so adamantly tried to place every single protective measure in place to insure stability and accountability but just couldn't see quite far enough ahead to cover everything.
I've never heard a president say "I am so thankful to all of you that contributed money to my campaign to get where I am today. I am especially thankful to those of you who contribute large sums of cash. I am thankful for those of you who let me buy real estate for 1/4 of the appraised value so that I can resale for huge gains. I am so thankful for the business partnerships that have been given me and the stock options. I am so thankful and I am going to let all of this persuade which direction I go. No, I won't do what's best for this country because if I did, I would ignore all of you lobbyist and all of you bankers and all of you businessmen/women and would do what's best for this country. I can be bought and so can this country, so let’s ensure that the middle man and the low man keep their heads in the sand just a little longer until it's too late for them to do anything about it and by that time we will all have our villas in the rural countryside with 12' tall compound walls and barbed wire protecting us from any danger when it all hits the fan."

John F. Kennedy during his inaugural address in 1961 said "And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country."

But today how many people are saying "What can I get out of my country?" How many politicians are influenced by money and greed? How many very important decisions have been made based solely off of campaign contributions and backroom business deals?

The other thing I see is people profiting off of a sideways or bad economy. Yes, now's the time to buy real estate right now. Many buy stocks when the economy is bad. This could compromise a crooked politician in itself don’t' you think?

I've never heard a president say "We will keep the economy in limbo so that we can manipulate the stock market and buy up lots of cheap real estate from all the middle class and low income class foreclosures that are going on. We will continue to take bribes from government officials of other countries and import their cheap slave labor products into this country forcing our countries factories to shut down. We will increase the size of our government and substitute government jobs for industrial jobs so that the size of the middle class will shrink and the working man's dollar will diminish. We will create more government jobs who's salaries will have to either be paid by the free market workers salary and/or borrow against the national deficit for those salaries and government programs. We will continue to increase the debt ceiling and continue to decrease or credibility as a world leader in the eyes of the world.

And lastly, we will eventually have to increase your taxes by 50% or more to make up for this lack of fiscal responsibility, but on a positive note we will add 100,000 jobs at the Internal Revenue Service to insure that we'll get that money either out of your ass or when you have to shut your business doors, out of your assets, because we think small business's just don't contribute enough money into our personal bank accounts."

A Wake up Call on Cult Motives

2011-05-16T04:35:00.000-07:00

A wake up call:

To anyone reading this site that thinks the FF are such great people because they are going out into the community -

Historically almost every cult HAD TO HAVE A CAUSE to stir up people's hearts.

Historically almost every cult HAD TO MARKET THEIR ORGANIZATION and the most famous cults included plays and music into their scheme, attaching onto children which eventually grabbed onto the parents.

I know it hurts that every "event" you go to is put together for the wrong reasons when you think it is coming from the heart of Gwen Brown and Mark Duke, but if you really study up, I believe you will wake up and see but don't kick yourself too bad... because many of you followers had the right intentions.

If you really study up and look at the people the FF have given something too, didn't that person either have some talents/strengths that the cult could monopolize on? Think about ol’ Dusty. He's pretty talented on the theater side isn't he; therefore his support could help them recruit more people into RATCO. There are others that are very social and have a way with people that help in recruiting also... Wow. This isn't rocket science here.

How about Ronald? Part of their strategy was to play the race card and get racial emotions stirred up and polarize the city. When they realized that Mark Duke early on that Mark wasn't going to be accepted strategically they needed a black man, and one with a past, to start recruiting more from the black community... and they needed someone with local roots/ties, and Ronald needed a meal ticket and a boost in the community, but it's too bad that he doesn't realize that he was cheated... and took second best... If Ronald was a Christian and scripture wise it's hard for me to imagine that, but just in case the Lord is in his heart somewhere, then I pray the Lord shows him that he took a shortcut by joining up with this group... He could have found a job and worked his way back into society... but Mark manipulated him and is still using him as a pawn...

Mark's using the same marketing techniques Jim Jones with the People's Temple used... the most famous destructive cult in the history of the United States... He used the race card to stir up people's emotions.. I can remember Jim had up a sign at his church at one point that said “Black People are Welcome Here”. Doesn’t that sound just like something Duke would put up at his church to “stir the pot”? If you’ve ever heard Jim preach and also Duke preach it’s really scary about how much their sound alike and preach about the same things and keep bouncing the subject around… People were calling Duke the “Spin doctor” and still do and ironically when I researched the People’s Temple, I found out that people called Jim the “Spin Doctor” as well….probably 80% of his congregation was black and the others were whites that wanted to hear the message of racial reconciliation. The heart was right but the location was wrong.

All of you should know that there are other integrated organizations in this city with truth in their hearts. Ronald knows this, but it's his job to ignore it... He's getting paid and played....He's been programmed to ignore it... It's his job to promote otherwise... but it's not too late...

Think about it... There are over a hundred hours of sermons that leaked out... Mark Duke talking about the black preachers in Selma... Mark Duke talking very negatively about Martin Luther King Jr and Jessie Jackson. Ronald Smith - don't you think he's talking about you too behind closed doors with Gwen Brown and his spiritual partner Shawn Samuelson (and even his legal wife Becky) ? Come on, if he talked about all of those other African-American preachers, don't you think he'd talk about you too if there was something he thought he could gain from it? Don't fool yourself.

So it's my prayer that everyone in this city and the cult wakes up and smells the rotten/decaying stinking false motives of the Freedom Foundation and gets into a real organization/church that displays the True Gospel of Christ...

James Perkins Jr. Kicked Me out of African-American Church

2011-05-13T21:09:00.000-07:00

Well, last night, Thursday, May 12th, 2011, I played a part in something that certainly made me understand and connect more with the emotions of former cult members.

I was excommunicated from a church, a black church here in Selma. I can't think of the name off the top of my head, because it was dark when I arrived and didn't see the sign, but I'll post the name soon.

Yes, for the first time in my entire life I was requested to leave God's house, a Christian place of worship and one of those people requesting that was the ex-mayor James Perkins Jr after Ronald Smith with the Freedom Foundation and the pastor of their church, the Selma Community Church, told everyone present that he couldn't remain in the same room with me.

I spent the entire day with a integrated group of volunteers from Selma working in Tuscaloosa and was in the process of dropping the last volunteer off at a local stop the violence meeting located in a local church a couple of blocks north of J.L. Chestnut. At the request of Mark Myles who had just spent the day with me, I entered into the church to sit in and listen in on a community stop the violence meeting only to find out that it was mainly a Freedom Foundation and Perkins event instead of a community event, although there were some others there, it appeared to me that Perkins was running the meeting and although Ronald Smith wasn't contributing anything, the way he acted later, I do question the authority he had in that particular stop the violence campaign.

I sat peacefully and quietly for approximately 20 minutes or so, and then Perkins singled me out and asked me to tell everyone my name to which I replied "My name's Dewayne Allday and I just wanted to say that it's a commendable thing trying to figure out ways to stop the violence in Selma". Those were the first words spoken by me. Perkins commenced to explain what they were doing but was interrupted by Ronald Smith who stood up, pacing the floor and announced that he couldn't be in the same room with me, that I was a thorn in the side of the Freedom Foundation since day one, that I was a racist and that I was one of the ones that called into the radio station all the time on their show and on whbb... Then he told everyone that there was "nothing good at all inside Dewayne Allday". He told everyone that he was going to have to leave because he couldn't stand to be near me.. That's when Perkins stated that he didn't realize who I was and that he was glad to now be able to put a face to the name and connect all the dots together.

I was the only white person in the room except for Gwen Brown and one guy I recognized as Freedom Foundation (can't think of his name). Perkins asked me what I wanted to say about the allegations and I calmly told them all that I certainly wasn't a racist and that there were plenty of African-Americans in this community and elsewhere that would vouch for me without even batting an eye, and I said that as far as calling into any radio show, I have never called not even once, and I listen very rarely; in front of Ronald Smith's peers I called him a flat out liar. This was very easy for me to do even considering I was somewhat at a disadvantage to debate since I really only was friends with one person in the room. However, everything I said, I said looking them straight in the eye and without hesitation.

There were probably 12 people in the room at the church and they started asking me a string of questions... a couple requested that I leave the facilities. One asked me what I had against the Freedom Foundation. I told them the Freedom Foundation was a cult and that Allan McConnell who worked with Watchman Fellowship, one of the nation's most recognized cult monitoring agencies as well as several other nationally recognized cult specialists had labeled them so. I told them there were some serious issues within the group. I told them that I knew nothing about the group until I met Mark Duke in person and the hair stood up on the back of my neck and more red flags went off about him than ever before in my life that he was evil.

Perkins asked me if I thought black people were inferior to whites. I was a little confused about the basis of his question, whether he was speaking about a race as a whole or whether he was asking me specifically if I felt superior to him, but I replied that I look at the individuals intelligence and heart, and it doesn’t' matter what color, whether black, white, Asian or Mexican. He asked me if I were a Christian. To which I replied "since the age of 13".

Someone asked me what I thought the Freedom Foundation was doing to which I replied "cults are a huge money maker... a manipulative front...fake....I said that there is a whole lot of money to be made in the cult business..."

One guy said that the entire white community supported the Freedom Foundation until they [the Freedom Foundation] started driving around with black folks in their vehicles] to which I told them that there was email evidence that their church had been labeled a cult prior to them even moving to Selma... that there was a married couple who had been attending some of their church meetings and the woman wanted to bring her minister to listen in at a meeting and via email Shawn Samuelson got angry with her and called her a goat and told her she didn't want her coming back but at the same time Shawn and Gwen were "circling" the lady's husband sweet talking him and telling him negative stuff about his wife, encouraging him to continue going. After the wife accused them of being a cult, Mark Duke's email actually came into play where he even threatened to sue the woman if she ever mentioned them being a cult or him a cult leader again. I looked at Gwen who had a "deer in the headlights" look on her face and said "you were a part of all those emails and correspondence Gwen.. what do you have to say.. You know exactly who I am talking about don't you...?" No response at all...

There was a little more ongoing debate before Perkins announced he was making an executive decision that he felt was in the best interests of the group and that was to request that I leave the premises, and some of the others agreed, although I could tell that some of them were contemplating some of the things I had said, even one had mentioned he had heard talk of the group being a cult... One had made some comments prior to all that going down that indicated to me he didn't trust them...

Although they asked me to leave, Perkins did follow up and say that he would like to follow up with me at lunch one day on the topic to which I replied, "I'd be up for it any time", and I sincerely mean that. No matter what he did or what I said either then or now should stop a civilized dialog and share our thoughts.

That was my first experience being kicked out of a church. I can very well picture former and present cult members being chastised and ridiculed in front of the others. Now I understand just all the more clearer how a cult works and how a "Christian" church is so much better than that. I understand now completely that if Ronald Smith and James Perkins would kick a person out at someone else’s church, then certainly they would handle themselves in the same manner in their own churches. It's not like I went there with ill intent. I was dropping someone off and they invited me in. I think stopping the violence in Selma and working towards that goal is a worthwhile and commendable thing. I do however question the motives of this particular group. What happened to me makes me think back about a sermon Mark Duke with the Freedom Foundation did when they came to Selma when he said that they were planning on getting political and would be kissing babies and doing whatever they needed to do to gain control and get power over the people in this city and if anyone would like to get a copy of that sermon to hear it in his own words, I'd be glad to find you one. I was sitting quietly in the meeting, even paid them a compliment that stopping the violence was a commendable thing until Ronald Smith ostracized me and made completely false allegations towards me in front of group of people who knew nothing about me. Although I can try to relate with Perkins position there was no reason to request me to leave. I would have left on my own. However, there was someone who asked me if I would be willing to work with the Freedom Foundation with what they were doing, I said that I would not be able to work with the Freedom Foundation, and I stated that I don't think many people would, especially after being treated like that. Keep in mind that had Ronald not attacked my character and lied about me the way he did, I would have listened quietly and eventually exited the building without a single peep of controversial talk.

In retrospect, I wish I would have given every single person in the room my phone number in case they wanted proof of the allegations that I made. I hope that something good comes of all this.

Ronald Smith and Gwen Brown have no place in any Anti-Violence programs since I'm convinced in my heart they put a racist pig in Colorado up to threatening me and my life and then letting that guy get airtime and lie about me on their radio show. In my opinion, this group is horribly bad for Selma, and I certainly believe there is plenty of evidence out there to support my opinion. As Forrest Gump would say "and that's all I've got to say about that".

Confidence and Self-Esteem

2011-04-20T14:56:00.000-07:00

Self-Confidence is built when you see future events ahead of anyone else and the events you saw unfold into reality. Self-Esteem is established in yourself when you could care less about telling everyone "I told you so." Discouragement and then guilt sets in when you can't stop the bad things that you see coming.

~Dewayne Allday

4/20/2011

Smaller Government Equals Less Civilian Tax Burden

2011-03-22T20:01:00.000-07:00

You hear a lot of people calling for smaller government. You never hear all the reasons why though. Some people are afraid of tyranny and rightly so. Some people are afraid of more government intrusion of privacy, and rightly so. Some people are afraid of government corruption and also unproductivity and rightly so. Competition spells production and the government has no competition so it gets lazy and that laziness spills over as a taxpayers expense. I'll take that last statement further. Every government job is paid for by the taxpayer and is a burden to the state.   Speaking again about government competition, we used to have competitors, but now we have "partners". The only competition a government ever really had was competition with other world governments but with the new world economy and most of our goods produced overseas, it already appears we are losing that and also we "appear" not very competitive. Our "partners" seem to have the upper hand, particularly our number one supplier and also the biggest holder of our 14 trillion dollar nation debt which is China. There are many businesses in this country that have went out of business because of China. There are some products that are not even made here in the United States any more because they can be imported in cheaper. What if there is a conflict with China. It is hard to start up a factory overnight to replace a product/industry that should have never shut down to begin with. Someone, and many years of someones, has dropped the ball.

I am not saying that our government needs to transition into a state of anarchy. We do need a certain number of government jobs for transportation, education, police protection and for political offices, etc, but what I am saying is that smaller government in contrast to bigger government spells more economic stability, productivity and efficiency. It also means more money in our pockets because smaller government means less tax burden strain on all citizens. Smaller tax burden on all citizens means more wealth to spread around for all of us. A "streamlined" federal and even state government is simply a major first step in repairing the damage of many years of a growing government and amassed federal programs that are long outdated, ineffective, counterproductive, many of which are dumbing down our culture, society, economy, and our effective world political leadership role and even oppressing a large percentage of our population. I would not say these things if I did not truly believe what I am saying. I have no doubt in my mind and heart that an increasingly larger government among other things will and already has, severely hurt us and our country.

How do I know this? Take a look at a graph of our national deficit from 1920 until now, and then compare it side by side with a graph showing the increase in government jobs compared to civilian jobs in the same time period. Then compare both of those graphs side by side with another graph which compares "percentages" of unemployment and welfare recipients, and social security benefits. Many people don't realize that neither welfare or social security even existed prior to the great depression.  During the great depression and the collapse of the economic system something had to happen and at that time, measures were put in place somewhere between 1932 and 1935 to help insure that people didn't go hungry, but even then, social security in 1935 was not what it is today. The media has been prepping us for years that social security wouldn't always be here and now with the first wave of baby boomers hitting the social security system at a time when there are less workers paying into the system, less middle class having children, more welfare and unemployment recipients and less social security tax being paid by the workers (the law was passed just this year to decrease this amount by 2% nation wide), it's a wonder how much longer it can survive at all.

The people in this country prior to the great depression weren't starving to death. However, natural laws and the "thought" that starvation could happen encouraged them to learn and survive and many times even prosper. In those days, if there were families in a community that were in dire need of help, the church and community pitched in to help get them back on their feet. This was core to society, especially in rural communities. It helped give a sense of purpose in the Church and encouraged people in the faith. With the modern liberals stretching the "separation of Church and State" into new meanings not intended by the founding fathers of this country, there is no increasing of "faith" received any more from secular government handouts. This, in part, has contributed to the demoralizing and stabilization of our country. I am not saying that welfare or social security needs to be eliminated but I am saying that serious thought and study needs to be placed on the shoulders of those in office as to how to turn this train around. It's my strong opinion that welfare oppresses and holds down those that are on it. If you've ever seen a child that their parents keep "rewarding" for failure with monetary rewards never prosper and compared that to a family that teaches their child to work and earn money to buy their own car and make their own mistakes and paying for them then you can at least understand what I am saying. I have drifted off the subject mometarily, but all of this really is weaved together.

When an economy is in a serious rut, jobs are hard to find and unemployment is very high, one might argue that "bigger government creating more government jobs is good for the economy, but in truth it is terrible for the economy and especially the long term survival of a country.  Trying to shore up the economy by creating more government jobs is worse than sticking a piece of gum in a leaking dam, but more like sticking a piece of unstable dynamite into the hole. The only person it is good for is the people that received the government job, and it's only good for those people until the economy eventually has a self correction and believe me, that self correction is coming and the early stages of it are already here. This self correction can and has been artificially pushed and extended into the future by passing the burden of the system to an alarmingly increasing national debt, but eventually the bubble will pop and there will be trouble for all of us, poor to wealthy, like we have never before experienced. If you can imagine the national debt as being a growing balloon being pumped full of wet horse manure that continues to uncontrollably grow until it "pops" throwing dung on all of us in the process, then you can begin to get a picture of what I am speaking of.

The salary of a government worker is paid by the tax payer. Who else pays for it? The government prints the money, but money can not just be printed to pay these salaries and other duties, after all, if it could, why do we have even have to be taxed to begin with? Couldn't the government just quit charging us taxes and just print extra money to pay for our roads, irs agents, politicians, state troopers, social workers, government buildings, related upkeep, etc. which would give us all more money to spend? Couldn't the federal government just print billions of extra dollars to give to our state and city governments to take care of all of those things which would give us more money to put into the economy. No, as good as it sounds, that's not how it works; at least not without a major imbalance in the economy and inflation that is beyond my comprehension.

If that were the case, there would be no reason for our government to crack down on those producing counterfeit money would they? Some would argue that the govenrnment's money has been counterfeit ever since they "unhinged" it from the gold standard into a "floating" currency. Just six years ago gold was going for under $400 per ounce. Today gold is going for over $1400 per ounce. If gold was an indicator of the value of our dollar still, that would be a very scary thought wouldn't it? If I'd purchased $100,000 worth of gold six years ago at $400 per ounce, I could sell it now and receive $350,000. Optimistically, if I rushed out and bought $100,000 worth of gold right now at $1400 per ounce and the economy turned around and the price of gold dropped back down to $400 per ounce (which I hope is possible) then I'd only be able to receive $28,571.43 if I sold it). However, you can get great deals on stocks and even buy foreclosed on real estate for half price right now and we all know that the wealthiest know how to work the system and get rich by taking advantage of a terrible economy. As Rahm Emanuel, is often quoted as saying, “Don’t miss an opportunity to take advantage of a good crisis" and the power players on Wall Street and Washington all know that you can get very rich in a sideways or down economy. One would only hope that they didn't help create the crisis in order to benefit themselves. Greed does strange things to people.

A breakdown of just a few of the costs for a government worker:

$50,000 salary (or more)
a personal vehicle (for some)
insurance
retirement (and a very good one at that)

If you add in the cost of the building they are housed in, the utility bills, the cost of paper, equipment, desk and many other items they use during the course of the year, I think you'll find that many government worker costs the tax payer around $100,000 per year. Police officers can at least give out speeding tickets to "help" pay their salary which is in itself a different type of "tax", although I highly doubt that enough revenue is generated through tickets to pay for his/her car, gas, insurance etc.

If the current trend continues, it's my belief that the debt will continue to increase and so will the population. "Diversity" of cultures in the U.S. Division will grow as well as the class divide between the poorest and the top 1% of the population. There will be a "delayed", yet very vocal reaction to the increasing debt and a very sharp divide between the liberals and the conservatives. The entire country will be polarized as the economy worsens. Finger-pointing will be coming from all sides and no one will truly understand what happened, blaming the current administration for the problems, when in fact, this has been an increasing trend since the great depression. Even if a past president was advised of the problems, they were simply not "man enough" to stand up and make some tough decisions to get this country back on the right track. Instead of listening to "one" economist or to the Federal Reserve Chairman, these guys should have been brainstorming with thirty or the smartest economists in this country. Unfortunately, all the most recent Presidents appear to be mostly partisan which is very divisive and unproductive for our country. They have also been about the short term.

During the great depression FDR implemented programs to help teach people to grow their own food so that they could eat but the current administration passed senate bill c-510 making us increasingly dependent on the grocery store and harder on the small farmer which is exactly why Monsonto "genetically altered" seed monopoly and the FDA supported it. Grow you own food? One day, a government official may actually fine you for it! In some states, this has already happened.

The main difference between the worst economic recession (some called it a "depression") since the great depression of the early 30's is that back then, a much greater percentage of the population were more indenpendent and knew how to grow their own food. People ate more healthy foods. They worked together more in communities. They were more patriotic. There was prayer in schools. There were less single parents and more stable families. People were far less dependent on oil. People were far less dependent on government hand outs.

We all have been conditioned over the years, and spoiled to a certain degree, and this has occured for generations. This is exactly why we must pray that someone figures all of this out and puts long term measure in place that will bring people out of poverty, put them to work, increasing the size of the middle class population in the process, create more industry here instead of importing as much from China and other poverty "slave labor" type govenrments, eliminate the national deficit and become self supportive again, break down the biggest of the monopolies which outsource most of their jobs overseas and be more supportive of small businesses that create work in local communities. Decrease corruption in Washington and Wallstreet and decrease the divide between the richest 1% of the population and the middle class.

Bigger government is bad for the economy. It didnt' work in communist Russia and it will not work here.

A Patriot

2011-03-08T04:59:00.000-08:00

For a patriot is not a title given at birth, or is it based on color, or is it self-inflicted; but patriotism is a title earned through a lot of heart and love of country, while actively seeking the absence of blindness, ignorance, incompetence and complacency.

~Dewayne Allday

January 7, 2011

Dire Straits - Capitalism vs. Socialism

2011-03-01T08:42:00.000-08:00

Our country is in a very unique situation. The entire world is changing right before our eyes. History is being written. Some might say, history is being repeated. Egypt, Iran, Libya, democracy, dictatorships, unrest?

There has been much talk about capitalism and socialism over the last few years. What do they mean? It is CRITICAL that we, as a country research and understand the definition of these two political and economic dogmas.

These are not just two simple terms that we can shout at each other saying "you're a socialist" or "you're a capitalist". It's my opinion that many times those doing the shouting don't even understand what they are saying. That's where education comes in.

Capitalism and Socialism are more than words; they are a way of life for society as a whole. They are comprised of a complicated string of events that compose a political and economic system and there are major differences in the two dogmas. The two can't run together side by side efficiently. One will prevail over the other one, the end result either being victory or defeat.

It's my belief that we are in a very dangerous and precarious situation in this country. The majority of people are complacent, but not only complacent, they are distracted, unmoving, uncaring. Uncaring may be too harsh of a term, because it may not be the uncaring part as much as the "not knowing how to care" part that has us in trouble. We go to work, we get home, we either work more, watch tv, get online, check up on facebook and read the local newspaper. More and more people are being consumed by distractions instead of actively participating in their communities. I've often made the comparison over the years of when you watch TV, you are watching others live their lives (and fictional lives at that) instead of living your own life. After all, we weren't just put here to be robotic workers who shut down in the evenings, our lives should have meaning. Yes, there are pros to the information age. We get information instantly, and we expect it. Just think about what we've seen lately going on in Egypt, Iran and Libya. Revolution. Do you think the internet age contributed to those people wanting to reform or do you think they just finally reached the "tipping point" because they and their families were hungry, without work, and tired of oppression and lack of liberty?

Knowing and understanding the difference between Capitalism and Socialism and even Communism is VERY important. If you understood communism, you would see that socialism and communism are very similar. After all, how can government be all bad if they provide you a free education, free healthcare and even a free piece of land? That's exactly what communist Russia did for years. The people had those things but they had to bow down to the government. Yes, bigger government = communism. Read everything you can on the three subjects. There is a lot of information on the internet and there have been books written dating back 200 years or longer. Also understand that not everyone can understand the complexities of the life force that operates these systems. Think of them as a complicated political "organism that is alive once a government breathes life into it just as God breathed life into Adam". A government can breath life into either Socialism or Capitalism or both. The two can exist at the same time. They are alive and well right now. One will overtake the other if given enough life. The two can be and actually are co-existing together at this moment and the cons of both and the partisan politics are weakening our economy and souls as I write this.

Two books I have read on Socialism, one by Oscar Wilde (supporting) and one by Ludwig Von Mises (against), were both very "stimulating". Interesting enough Oscar Wilde was a play-write and Mises was an economic scholar who was almost alone when he predicted the demise of the German economy and the great depression. If I had to put weight on the two based on their credentials, I'd put it on Mises since he has a better track record. I really enjoyed Wilde's theory on individualism, but it was incoherently flawed. His idea that we could become individualists and develop that part of our creative character if we did not have to work and the government gave us all equal shares of land was interesting enough, but in reality, those who do not work get complacent eventually. Even Wilde had to work, so maybe he was just a complainer, but regardless, I have not read anything that can touch Mises works. Mises is dead on.

Yes, I have heard about the two and I have researched and I feel like I comprehend them both. One is a thriving life force and one is a slow and painful death. I have wrapped my brain around both dogmas and "regulated" capitalism is the winner. Socialism will eventually lead to revolution. Please don't stop reading now because you "think" you are a socialist or you think your party supports socialism; be your own person. Study for yourself. They will argue that there is no proof that socialism will fail, and they will tell you that capitalism is failing, but if you study up on these very important subjects, you will see there there is plenty of proof in every day activities and common sense that one leads to success and one leads to complete and utter failure and eventually chaos and revolution.

Think of these two "life forms" as two separate trains. Once implemented, they are hard to stop by the individual, but capitalism is easier stopped because it's run by individualists and socialism by collectivists. To understand what I mean, you have to understand the two terms, individualism and collectivism. Please research. Care enough to study the subjects. Wilde's theory on individualism is outdated in today's modern day socialism. Giving you a piece of land and you not having to work for a living, as nice as it seems, does not strengthen your spirit.

Capitalism does have a few flaws that can be regulated and corrected.

Flaws of capitalism:

1. Monopolies (eating up small business and eliminating the competition, leaving behind the fat excess of later erosion/deterioration of the monopoly)
2. Environment (capitalism is fueled by growth, but again this can be regulated)
3. Greed and manipulation (the top 1% can have serious influence over politicians and legislation, in which laws can be put in place to widen the separation of social classes, the haves and the have nots - stronger ethics laws, regulations, laws and enforcement of these laws and regulations can correct this)

However capitalism has a lifeblood of pros:

1. Healthy competition which pushes us towards greatness
2. Better education
3. Individualism as long as monopolies are contained and small allowing small businesses thrive

4. Productive employment through small competitive businesses creating more sustainable jobs and a broader world market for products.

5. More stable families, financially and emotionally. The loss of industries and jobs here are not due to a weakness of capitalism, but because of the new world economy and NAFTA. NAFTA is often given more credit for the demise of jobs but the truth is that "free trade" and outsourcing our many of our jobs to poor countries, plus a devalued currency has lead to the demise of jobs, and a decrease in our living standards requiring us to work more hours to get by.

Flaws of Socialism:

The entire dogma is flawed. It is not a question as to "will it fail?", it is a question of "when will it fail?". It absolutely can't sustain itself. As I stated previously, it will be a slow and painful death. It will start out fine once ushered in, but will steadily erode at the economy and psychology of the people.

1. Loss of competition and reward leads to more complacency, laziness (even slothfulness), loss of production and also loss of motivation.

2. Lack of competition and reward leads to a loss of production at work, which leads to struggling businesses which lead to us getting further behind in the world economy and even more outsourcing our jobs overseas, which leads to less smaller localized businesses and the strengthening of monopolies (monopolies are a weakness of both socialism and capitalism) which will outsource many of the jobs to other countries.

3. Lack of competition and discipline in our schools leads to rebellion, less educated children who later grow up to be our leaders who fall behind in the world economy, making bad decisions for our country in all sectors.

4. Loss of our countries sovereignty as we become a less productive and lazier society.

5. Loss if our liberty. Socialism requires an increasing larger government and more laws and taxes to burden the citizens. It is inevitable that crime will rise, health issues and more unemployment. You would think that creating more government jobs would help the economy, but government jobs do not produce a product as industries do, and government salaries are not sustainable except through taxes, fines, traffic tickets, and an in excess tapping and increasing national deficit to pay unsustainable government salaries.

4. Complacency (the complacency that's occurring now is not because of capitalism - more information below). Complacency is a by product of many things. It's here now but will increase ten fold with socialism.

5. Bigger government, bigger government programs, bigger government hand outs, bigger national debt and eventual failure and collapse of the system.

Keep in mind that both Capitalism and Socialism are part of a mindset. It's simple psychology. True capitalism creates reward for hard work. If monopolies could be regulated and free trade competition implemented we would have better products on the market at better prices if it were not for cheaper overseas goods being imported into the states. Socialism creates no reward for hard work, but in its place the promise that you will be taken care of for not working or succeeding. Capitalism creates jobs, and helps businesses succeed therefore creating more jobs and tax revenue, however socialism will kill the spirit of the american people, break the back of the small businessman and create an atmosphere that it's easier to just give up and sit down which will bankrupt or nation. Socialism does create more "government" jobs, but those jobs are paid for by heavy tax burdens. In other words, it's a very inefficient system. It just doesn't make good business sense. Debt is debt. It will have to be paid back one day. It doesn't matter if it's personal debt or government debt. You can defend it all day long saying that socialism is to "protect" the people so that they don't go hungry, but time will prove that when the system is bankrupt, we will all be hungry and it will be complete chaos to proportions we have never seen.

There are some things that are not relevant to either socialism or capitalism that are happening to our country. Everyone's heard of the "stone age", the "industrial age", and the current "information age", but my main concern is "can the information age replace the industrial age?". Also the question I ask is can government jobs replace industrial jobs? Statistics show very clearly that the number of government jobs are a much higher percentage compared to industrial and other domestic jobs than thirty or more years ago. What happens if this increase of government jobs and decrease of domestic jobs continues?

This scenario can be easier described in the following comparison scenario:

10% government jobs paid for by taxes from the people who work in civilian jobs and 90% civilian jobs who's taxes pay for infrastructure, protection, public education, and salaries of government jobs and maintenance of their vehicles and buildings that they occupy.

As you can see the above scenario doesn't seem too bad, but what if the following happens?:

60% government jobs paid for by taxes from the people who work in civilian jobs and 40% civilian jobs who's taxes pay from the infrastructure, protection, public education, and salaries of government jobs and maintenance of their vehicles and buildings that they occupy.

In a worst case scenario which in reality can never happen you would have 100% government jobs who's salaries would be taxed at a much lesser rate (say 28%). Out of that 28%, you'd have to pay their salaries (how do you pay a $100,000 salary out of a tax base of only $28,000?), plus their benefits for 40 years after they retire, plus their vehicles, insurance, buildings they work in and maintenance of those buildings and also provide public safety, build and maintain roads and interstates, provide public education, buy weapons, fight wars, provide aid relief to impoverished countries, and so many other things that go through the system at the tax payers expense.

These things haven't just occurred during President Obama's administration. They have been happening for years; Republican and Democratic presidents alike have contributed to both positive things and also negative things, but we, as a nation, all see to be riding this unstoppable train we call a republic together and we're drifting along having a good time, but who is scouting ahead and repairing the bridge that is out?

Many will argue that the invention of radios, television and the internet are invaluable and a great asset to our society and I am not disagreeing with that concept as long is it is partnered with discipline . I'll say that the information age definitely has it's advantages, but definitely has some of the disadvantages due to lack of discipline such as complacency leading to loss of time to participate with family and in community activities, local politics, loss of local tax base (purchasing items online instead of locally), and the growth of monopolies such as google, microsoft, and amazon. This loss of time to participate in our communities, churches and family discussions has led to a downturn in our culture as a whole.

Something else I have noticed is a greater divide growing between the democratic party and the republican party in this county. There are an increasing number of democrats that think if you're a republican, you are automatically anti-environment, and pro-upper class and anti welfare. There are an increasing number of republicans in this country that think if you are a democratic, you are pro-socialist, pro entitlements and bigger government. This divide is going to heighten as our economy gets worse and the pros and cons of both capitalism and socialism are exploited. The divide will grow stronger and more vocal as the economy gets worse and each party will seek to fight for what they believe in.

It's almost as if there needs to be a third party that subscribes to a modified form of capitalism. This party, when in power, needs to dismantle monopolies, and promote competition within our country and control free trade overseas, create laws that require corporations to have a much higher percentage of domestic jobs in comparison to outsourcing jobs overseas, stricter trade regulation during and after the reconstruction of our industrial sector, and tighter control and regulation of insider trading and enforcement of laws for unethical conduct dealing with wall street, corporate waste, and the banking industry. Also focusing on new technologies for economical replacement of oil such as more productive solar panels, wind turbines, dams, nuclear energy and clearly transportation etc. We must be proactive about being a competitive country again instead of being partners with such countries as China who only want us to buy their products, but could care less if we are unemployed or hungry or have individual liberty.

If there isn't a third party that can do this, then either the republicans or the democrats need to become more educated, pro-active, and concerned about our country's situation and move it forward. We are entering into very precarious times; a dire straits, for you doomsday experts. Education and non-complacency is essential, and we don't have another day to spare.

IMHO

2011-02-16T05:46:00.000-08:00

SITE DISCLAIMER

Some of the information that is written in my blog, either by myself or by others is IMHO (In My Humble Opinion) even though I sometimes express my feelings, thoughts and opinions in a NSHW (Not So Humble Way).

If for some reason you do not agree with my feelings, thoughts and opinions or those feelings, thoughts and opinions of others, then I can respect that. We can just agree to disagree. If you feel like you'd like to comment by sharing your thoughts and opinions in a supportive way or if you have material which I may not have access to which may either support my feelings, thoughts and opinions further or shed new light on the subject matter which may possibly change my mind on the topics discussed, then please feel free to comment and we can chat as adults do in a constructive way.

I promise to keep an open mind as to what you have to say, and it's very possible that I may change my mind, but even if I don't change my thoughts or feelings after you share something, it doesn't mean anything except that we'll just have to "agree to disagree".

The Freedom Oppressors

2011-02-15T20:32:00.000-08:00

If you haven't noticed I am not a fan of the Freedom Foundation/House of God cult. I really didn't know anything about them at first except that Selma originally welcomed them for moving close to 50 people here and buying up some old houses in the historic district. In hindsight, maybe we should have questioned the fact of such a large group of people quiting their jobs and moving away from their families like a flock of Canadian Geese, but most of us didn't pay it much attention. Some were leery of them, but I didn't hear any of that talk prior to meeting Mark Duke personally, but when I did meet him, I must say that the discernment meter God gave me started going off saying "red flag alert, red flag alert, red flag alert" like never before in my entire life. Seriously. It was only after sensing the most evil fraud of my entire life was standing in my mist that I started researching the group and the man behind the curtain. This research lead me to a forum online composed of former members and estranged family members who were frustrated, lost, venting, searching for answers and trying to fill a great void or the embarrassment of being lied to and manipulated. I am so glad that most of Selma "woke up" concerning their real motives, but but it seems they tend to go after the weaker ones and are heavily targeting our youth who are much less discerning.

This investigation led me also to cult expert Allan McConnell and other cult experts all of which were saying the same thing "there's no doubt, this is a cult". Without getting into too many specifics (you can see and hear more at Allan McConnell's website www.wewillfindthetruth.com or simply http://freefromthehouseofgod.blogspot.com/ ) about a prophet who gets his feet rubbed during prayer meetings by different women with low self esteem or how he uses cheap magic tricks to inspire people, I must say that after reading a few articles lately of how the first african-american mayor of Selma has totally embarrassed his city and his race by subscribing to this cult, I have gotten a wee bit discouraged.

This is America however and Perkin's free to do what he wants. We all know there will be fundraisers involved when he goes to Colorado and is "displayed" in front of a bunch of whites who will undoubtedly raise money for him and the third world city he so graciously flown in from; at least, that is how they (the Freedom Foundation and Mr. Perkins) are presenting us to be. I just don't agree with them.

In the following article speaking of this spectacular event http://open.salon.com/blog/rogerc/2011/02/02/ex-selma_mayor_praises_colorado_groups_civil_rights_work , perkins is no doubt pledging his allegiance to the cult. It is truly to bad that the United States doesn't have laws distinguishing between a religion and a cult such as France who sued the Scientologists for their scams, but we don't, so to some degree we can just fret about it and reason with whoever will listen to us.

So, quoting the article we see:

"He [Perkins] was a recent visitor to the Front Range, invited to be the keynote speaker at a fund raising banquet for the Freedom Foundation, a group created by Anglos from Colorado whose work Perkins holds in high regard."

“I’ve been watching their work versus listening to what other folks have been saying, and their work is phenomenal,” Perkins told me in an interview at his hotel here. “They’ve earned my support and I’m here to support them.”

It's bad enough that a good friend of Gwen Brown, president of the Freedom Foundation and vice-president of the local SCLC, who's ex-wife is the president of "In a Mother's Arms" (the Denver non-profit mentioned in the article that co-sponsored the fundraiser) called me and left multiple messages using the "N" word repeatedly and later after I never returned his calls started txting me obscenities, threats and eventually txting me even a death threat. This is the same guy who they had doing a couple of football camps with the inglorious Gwen Brown and some black boys here from Selma. So yes, it truly hurts my feelings to see the first African-mayor of Selma supporting an organization that supports oppression and uses divide and conquer techniques, chastisement and various types threats, both visually and "read between the lines". I am not the first person in town to receive threats and I'm sure I won't be the last. It isn't right that this group can use mafia style bullying tactics and especially "pretend" to be Christian. I am not happy about any of it.

It seems there have been a good many airplanes flying back and forth between Selma and Colorado in the last few months, and people have been spreading lies about this city. It pains me to see this to no end. It also pains me for the first African American mayor of Selma to backslide and embarrass this wonderful city, and his race (cults are true oppressors, the slave traders of weak minded people) but not only this city and his race, but also embarrassing Christianity as well. No, it wouldn't be an embarrassment to Christianity if Perkins was an atheist, but he's not; Perkins is an ordained minister, yet the rif-raf he's hanging out with are pulling people left and right into a separatist, Jesus "isn't" God cult which stated they have the only religion going to Heaven and all other religions to hell. They call it the "Spiritual Rights Movement". As far as Heaven and Hell goes, Mark Duke has been recorded as stating in the past that he was going to run for mayor [of Selma] because God told him to and if he didn't [run for mayor], he wouldn't go to Heaven. I guess since he didn't run for mayor in the last election but decided to support Perkins instead, he is either going to Hell (because he didn't run for mayor as God told him to) or a carbon copy [Perkins] will run.

Jim Jones of the People's Temple cult was made chairman of the housing commission after he used his followers to campaign and help George Moscone get elected as mayor of San Francisco. I wonder what the trade off will be for Mark Duke if Perkins gets re-elected as mayor? City jobs at city hall? Time will tell, but I'm sure there will be some sort of trade off.

Don't get me started. I am signing off [for now] in a very bad mood.

If you have a different opinion than me, visit http://dewayne-allday.blogspot.com/2011/02/imho.html

edited and added the following 2/17/2011: As you can see above, I was a little upset when I wrote this article. I hate to see the manipulation of individuals. I dislike bullies. In my mind, there is enough information available about "cults" for people to be informed, but I am often reminded of quotations from people who left some of the most famous cults in history such as the People's Temple, who made statements such as "No one wants to believe that they are in a cult" or "we all thought we were to smart to be manipulated and be a part of a destructive cult", but in truth, there have been (and are) doctors, lawyers and many educated people who fall victim to cults for various reasons, many of those reasons are the same reasons people join gangs.

If you know James Perkins personally and on a close basis, I urge you to try and talk some sense into him now. This sort of behavior is not helping him. They are using him, and in a sense he probably trusts them and thinks they will get him some votes, but in truth, he is on a destructive path and those "true" friends and family need to circle around him in this latter phase of his life because if they don't, the cult family will praise him, circle around him, stroke his ego, find his weaknesses and he'll be stuck in a very awkward situation. In the short term, he'll feel like he has "family and love", but it's only a front.

That's the side of me that wants him to get some "help" from his "real" family and friends. I must make note however that if he is fully aware that it's a cult and he actually likes the manipulation, power hungry, destructive nature of this beast called the Freedom Foundation, then I hope he just stays in Colorado with his new "cult" family and never comes back to Selma. Just my humble opinion.

Qualitative and Quantitative Economics

2011-02-08T11:20:00.000-08:00

The most profound idea I have read in a very long time was Ludwig Von Mises thoughts on Qualitative and Quantitative economics". Two books by Mises, one about socialism and the other about economics, I have just started absorbing recently, but really haven't given them the attention that they deserve.

Let me interject something here. It has always been my philosophy that no individual is perfect, but there are thoughts and ideas that are perfect, but with the person relaying those ideas may come some things that we don't necessarily believe are agree with. I believe we can learn something from every person, whether Christian or not, but we have to have the discernment to distinguish truth from fiction. There are laws of the universe that have to be reckoned with just like there are "distractions" and a lot of reckless ideas that can lead us all astray. Long story short, if you throw away the intelligence of a gifted individual just because you don't see eye to eye with them on other subjects, then you could be missing out on something very important.

Quantitative Economics:

I have an uncle who was the VP of a bank for over 30 years. He told me on different occasions during my youth that governments make money round because it is made to roll, but Mises seems to differ with this, and to a certain large extent, I agree also. One thing that comes to mind is gambling casinos. There is a great quantity of money that goes into this system, and yes, it could create jobs, but is it good for our economy? I believe definitely not. It's no more good for our economy that the quantitative economics of selling drugs. Yes, we can sugar coat it, and say it's for education, but what are we really doing? The real question here is "are casinos productive"? My answer is no. Are we making a sustainable product? No. Are we selling a sustainable product? No. Is the money that casinos make helping our economy? Maybe a little, but it's causing more damage than good.

Another item that comes to mind is our stock market. More than ever before in history people are "blindly" giving their money to companies and investing in the stock market. I say blindly because retirement brokers have really been promoting mutual fund retirement accounts over the last 15 or so years. People get advice from the brokers and $100 or even $500 or more a month automatically goes into those funds, and those brokers and fund managers get a 2 to 5% cut off the top no matter whether the fund does good or not. There have been "several" occasions through the years where the government has passed laws making it easier for small businesses to allow employees to contribute to these funds, through traditional or roth iras. All of a sudden people started plugging a whole bunch of money into the system. What happened? CEO's flying jets and driving expensive cars and getting enormous bonuses? Companies like Enron and others "cook the books" and market their companies so that people and brokers may take notice and turn their 15$ stock into 40$ stock in a matter of weeks. What does that mean to us? Well, if it was a responsible company, they would take the money and re-invest and grow, but what if there was no growth for the company? What if there was not enough market? Well, then we have an excess. We have corporate splurges, and big bonuses. We get a company who may turn their heads away from quality and growth and make some bad decisions.

What goes up in a hot air balloon might come down with a big crash when that bubble is popped or when it runs out of gas.

Qualitative Economics:

When we think of qualitative economics we think of quality don't we? How about good stewardship and work ethics? How about wisely reinvesting in our companies and protecting it from all dangers. Production? Making money, but not being cocky and arrogant about it? How about quality and ethical employees with integrity and purpose? How about building up the quality of our nation and it's citizens and balance imports so that if you have a U.S. made product on a shelf and a China made product on the shelf you see comparable quality for the same price? Why you ask? Because through ignorance and bad form, the people in charge of imports and exports in this county have been destroying our American businesses for years now by allowing slave labor imports to infiltrate our society. Don't blame it on Americans not buying american because the big picture for those of us who know better is that those in charge know people automatically go for the cheaper price. Free trade? We are cutting our own throats. Our government states that we buy Chinese products and they buy ours, but if you use your brains, and just a little common sense, you realize that labor is ridiculously cheap over there and labor is higher here, so what is an average Chinese worker going to buy from us? How many American ductile iron companies are in existence today? Do you research. Most ductile iron is imported from China at such a reduced rate that almost every single American ductile iron manufacturer is out of business now. It's no wonder that what federal politicians used to call the evil empire, modern day politicians call "our partner", and it's no wonder they do because the communist country China owns almost 25% of our 14 trillion dollar deficit. This sort of backs us in the corner doesn't it? How did the powers that be in this country allow this to happen? That's another subject for another day.

When I think of quantitative and qualitative economics it makes me think of the parables in the bible that speak of building on the sand (quantitative economics) and building on the rock (quantitative economics). Also, another analogy is the story of the three pigs building a house of brick (rock - qualitative economics) or a house of sticks (quantitative economics) or a house of straw (poor quality quantitative). When the big bad wolf came, we all remember which house was still standing, and it's my hopes that before that day, this country wakes up and begins a long term plan to build american small businesses back up using qualitative approach instead of the quantitative approach that we seem to be subscribing to.

Gold and silver hasn't backed up our currency in a very long time, only faith in a house built on straw. I don't know how or who, but I do know we need to start building with bricks again.

Where are We?

2011-01-28T08:56:00.000-08:00

As a young boy, I can remember reading stories of very important historical people from our country's past. The words of many of the founding fathers of this country impressed me greatly and gave me a sense of security that we truly live in the greatest country in the world. Reading many of the wise words they expressed and seeing how they became servants for this country, to insure that we had freedoms and liberty and a chance at a new life, made me very proud. Reading about how they thought far ahead into the future, and put protective measures in place, including a dual party system, to help insure that we would have democracy gave me peace. I have much respect for these men and admire them greatly. Sure, we could find fault with any of them, and in today's media climate, even seek out to destroy them for their imperfections and transgressions. I can only imagine what our country would be like if the media had decided they didn't want to support Thomas Jefferson, or for some reason some major advertisers of the greatest newspapers and media outlets in the United States, put financial pressure on the them to destroy the popularity of Benjamin Franklin or some of the others. Is there truly “Freedom of the Press”? What and who influences the press; the boss, the people, mom and dad, partisanship, bias, prejudices, advertisers, good judgment, bad judgment, making sure sales are up? Where would we be at today if the media back in the late 1700’s had the power that they have today? What if Paul Revere had not made that famous ride through the night? What if some of those historical and most important documents of that time such as our Constitution and the Bill of Rights were written by today’s politicians, many of which don’t seem to have the cares to see past their administration, much less caring what happens in twenty years? What if our constitution were written by the unions, the lobbyists, and the campaign contributors who elected them to office; the very same powerful organizations that our politicians have to be accountable to.

Where would our country be? Where is our country today? Our society is so much more complicated than it was back then. We are a part of the global economy. We can debate back and forth about the difference between "partnering" with China and other countries and being a "competitor" with China, and politicians today keep saying China is our "partner", but if you think about it, doesn't competition make us better athletes? If we are a partner, and there's no competition, won't we get lazy, and our minds, patterns and behaviors and society digress into a state of declination having serious consequences in a world that has never been so densely populated in the history of mankind?

Where are the Benjamin Franklins, the George Washington’s, the John Adams, the James Madison’s and the Alexander Hamilton’s of today? The writers today, are they writing about things that need to be said, or things that will make them popular or make their purses heavier? It's a thought provoking question that needs answering. A couple of months ago, while perusing the political aisle of Books a Million, I found myself a little perplexed to not find anything that really said anything. It appeared that 60% of the shelves were loaded with a few memoirs of President Bush, but mostly books either supporting or critizing President Obama. There were some interesting books there, don't get me wrong, but many of the books seem to be watered down propaganda, or greed influenced material, pages of words that barely add up to a cup full of worth, and dumbed down decadence. Where are the gifted and ingenious writers such as Ludwig Von Miser. Does anyone read his works anymore? He was almost alone in the world when he predicted the Great Depression, the collapse of the German pre-war economy, and used very thorough reasons as to what was going to cause those collapses, therefore wouldn't his writings on economics be worth noting and even studying by modern day politicians? I’m one to talk, a writer want to be, trying to improve and hone his skills, however, I am aware that the only way to do so is with independent and discerning thinking, practice, research and the heart to seek the truth and better myself. I know where I want to go and that's what's important to me. It doesn't matter if anyone likes it, that’s why it’s creative. If I bent to the pressures around me, then it would take away a part of my soul. I like it, and that’s important to me. I'm not influenced by advertisers, politicians, political parties, unions, campaign contributors, therefore I am not a stain soiled sponge, but a sponge only weakened by my own ignorance, time constraints, ability to research, emotions, and past influences which I must filter, therefore limiting the effects on the content of my message. I'll continue to try and separate from those things and continue to learn and grow in the process. I actually like being independent, able to use the mind that God gave me, seeking guidance and help from Him in the process. For I know God is the only truth in this world, so His truth is solid foundation on stable ground, in any shaky economy.

There are some that would say “woe to the guy hits the drums out of sync”, but to me it makes more sense to play the drums than to never start. We all have to start somewhere. There’s an old proverb I recently read which states that if you fall six times, get up seven. This reminds me of a prayer I used to pray quite often “Lord, for every step I take backwards, please let me take two steps forward”. Now I pray “Lord, for every step I take backwards, please let me take two steps forward, and in equal proportions”. I hope you see the wisdom in that prayer, and maybe you can reflect in your lives. I personally believe that God has been answering that prayer my entire life.

Besides, what kind of pessimist talks about the guy who hits his drums out of sync if he only messes up on occasion? Aren’t we all human? It’s been my experience that the pessimist is usually the person who doesn’t hit the drums at all. Today, for the first time in over 10 years, I ran three miles but two weeks ago, I could only run a couple of miles, therefore did I hit my drums “out of sync” by attempting to run three, but only making two? Absolutely not. I am supposed to run a half marathon in a couple of months, so only running three miles today, should I be discouraged that I did not run twelve miles? Absolutely not.

However, we have to start somewhere, and if we have to walk on one trail of many trails, all of which having the same scenery but leading to different places, why not walk the trail that takes you to where you want to go? My whole life I have started projects and hobbies and when they were mastered eventually got bored with them, how could I ever get bored with knowledge and understanding? It is an indulgence which I have realized I can never find enough of, or ever grow bored of, but even knowledge and understanding is not viable without putting it to good use. What is a faucet good for if there is not a cup to fill, or a stove without a meal to cook, or a coffee maker, without coffee to make, and deeper than all of that, what are all of those things without someone to drink or eat whatever is being produced? If there was someone to eat or drink what was produced, wouldn’t it effect and influence what you were cooking? I could cook for just me, or I could be totally influenced by them and cook for them, or I could study what would be the most healthy for all of us and cook tasty and healthy foods. Ironically as I type I am sitting in my kitchen whittling away at this keyboard and I am hungry, so to some extent my thoughts and writing have already been influenced to some extent and I am consciously cognizant of that, but it’s my hope that one day, someone will value the words that I type and understand them, and my words will be their words and help them in some way. If that person can understand and comprehend my words and the pattern of my thought, then they will be my brother and my sister, of which I may never meet, but appreciate them all the same.

Where are we? Are we at the one mile mark, or at mile two or three or thirteen or twenty six? Have we stopped running at all anymore? Is our national deficit so large that we just ignore the big elephant in the room and continue the demise of our country only to shoot for short term praise, inacting short term policies that will temporarily improve things while they are in office, but ultimately failing sometime approximately mid-term of the next persons administration? Shouldn't our politicians be implementing a long term plan for our country's future success? Definitely food for thought, and speaking of which, there are some Ramen noodles calling me.

A Prayer to my Lord

2011-01-19T20:01:00.000-08:00

Our Father in Heaven, how I love and hold thy name close

to my heart and desire for your spirit to course through

my veins unrestrained and ever flowing;

thy wonderful kingdom and thy perfect will be done,

here within us, inside and outside us, as it is in Heaven,

Lord Father God, so be it here on Earth.

Give us this day, what we need to sustain us and enable us,

with the tools, the means, and heart for success.

Please forgive us of our wrongs and imperfections

as i pray we forgive those same things used against us;

help us steer clear from all trails of overpowering temptations,

while holding us fast to the trail of Holy Spirit filled growth,

through your Spirit and your Will Father and Lord Jesus,

for Thine is the Power, the Kingdom and the Glory,

and may thy magnificent Mercy and Grace illuminate

our hearts and minds forever and ever.

Amen

If Our Leaders Act Like Fools, Shouldn't We?

2011-01-13T07:44:00.001-08:00

If our “leaders”, in this city and on the radio and even in our nation act like fools, and they are the examples of what we are to be like, then who can blame “us” for acting like fools as well?

Bullets are not Diplomatic

2011-01-13T07:06:00.000-08:00

A bullet is the shortcut to diplomacy, communication, compromise and understanding. Neither person each side of a moving bullet has won the debate; the shooter hits the mark, but misses the point and the recipient will never make a point again.

Future Topics

2011-01-10T08:25:00.000-08:00

This is more of an index of subject matter for my benefit on subjects I intend to further research.

1. The member nations of OPEC, their influence in world affairs and politics, what they think of us and why they own some of our national deficit.
2. Wiki-Leaks
3. Monopolies and the world's Billionaires and their influence on politics
4. Further study our National Deficit, charts, graphs, etc. Also the stability of other worldwide countries.
5. Capitalism and Socialism Pros and Cons
6. World wide population growth, and the population density of socialist and communist countries with laws relating to population control
7. Study population, population densities of all countries worldwide
8. Russia's and China's "friends"
9. Study the European Union, and the new push for a new international currency. Study the influential players in the U.N. and their status as allies with the U.S.
10. Study electronic currency.

Terrorism = Al-Qaida, Wiki-leaks and National Deficit

2011-01-07T12:45:00.000-08:00

Who will ever forget the destruction of the world trade center towers September 11, 2001. Often called 9/11, people who had never heard of Al-Qaida before, were exposed to the name in the worst sort of way and that “visible” attack created waves of panic, anger, and retaliation that would eventually take our focus off of other things and eventually lead up to where we are today. 9/11 was a very real and “visible” eye opener to all of us that there are people in the world that truly despise and hate the United States of America. What many still fail to realize though is that Al-Qaida didn’t form overnight. Those towers of smoke and flames we saw permeating from the television sets on that day was just a visible symbol of things that have been forming over many years.

Al-Qaida is not the only organization that hates the United States of America, but they certainly became the “visible” target of our aggression, because they “so visibly attacked us”. Consequently, our country has been completely ignoring other sorts of terrorism that are not so visible, or flamboyant , but still destroy people's lives in far larger degrees than a terrorist ever did.

According to some, there are over one hundred definitions for the word “terrorism”, and no universal definition of the word agreed upon worldwide. Terrorists are an “invisible”, and then “sometimes visible” influence in the world and one reason terrorism is so hard to fight against and illuminate, therefore hard to eliminate is because we are not at war with a country, which is a visible target, but we are at war against individuals, organizations and hundreds of other things that are set out to destroy our great and wonderful country.

So, what are these “invisible things” that at some point will become “visible” and cripple our country and our economy? After all, there is no agreed upon definition of terrorism, therefore no true and agreed upon definition of who the leaders of terrorism (also called terrorists) actually are? It is my belief that in order to answer the above question, we have to look at what the ultimate goals of a terrorist organizations are, particularly the ones that hate us. If we do this, we can make that which is working “unseen” under the radar become “visible” so that we can destroy it before it destroys us.

According to “thinkexist.com” Osama Bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaida, has been quoted as saying “America is a great power possessed of tremendous military might and a wide-ranging economy, but all this is built on an unstable foundation which can be targeted, with special attention to its obvious weak spots. If America is hit in one hundredth of these weak spots, God willing, it will stumble, wither away and relinquish world leadership.”

So based on the above quote, we see that terrorists would see us stumble, and terrorists often use their horrendous acts to scare and promote their political agenda, and that political agenda supersedes the value of human liberty, safety and life. Therefore one easily could surmise that terrorism is “any act” where a group’s political agenda is more important and valuable than human liberty, safety and life.

It was so obvious after watching the twin towers burn and fall to the ground on television on that dreadful day of what the “visible symbol” of terrorism is. But it is so important to also be looking for terrorism that is not easy to see on the surface. There are people in the world that love the United States of America because we “buy things” and help their economies in doing so, but many of those same people hate the United States of America as a political power and would love to see us crippled in that respect. Also, there appears to be too many self-interest politicians, self-serving politicians, partisan politicians currently in government, and not nearly enough bi-partisan politicians and what I call patriot politicians.

“We can't accommodate terrorism. When someone uses the slaughter of innocent people to advance a so-called political cause, at that point the political cause becomes immoral and unjust and they should be eliminated from any serious discussion, any serious debate.”

~RUDOLPH GIULIANI, CNN interview, Sep. 11, 2002

Giuliani is quoted as saying this after the attacks. My point is that there are many ways “to slaughter innocent people to advance a so-called political cause”.

“Our enemies are fully aware that they can use oil as a weapon against America. And if we don't take this threat as seriously as the bombs they build or the guns they buy, we will be fighting the War on Terror with one hand tied behind our back.”

~BARACK OBAMA, speech, Feb. 28, 2006

I think back do the Bush Administration and the war when gas prices increased exponentially. Who controlled these price increases? With over 320,000,000 people living in the United States, and a good portion of these people pumping gas weekly, spending an extra $50 a tank doesn’t seem like much until you multiply it times how many cars are on the road. Some estimates say there are 240,000,000 vehicles on the road. If we assume there are 200,000,000 vehicles spending an extra $30 per week on gas, then approximately $6,000,000,000 (6 billion dollars) per week. Multiply that times 52 weeks and you get $312,000,000,000 (312 billion dollars). Where did this money go in a time when people were struggling and really needed money and small and large businesses and shops were really needing people to be using that money on products by putting money back into the economy?

We do not create terrorism by fighting the terrorists. We invite terrorism by ignoring them.

~GEORGE W. BUSH, speech, Dec. 18, 2005.

Reality tells us there has been a lot of partisan politics with our current President and even our previous President, but people do write some good quotes for them from time to time. And it’s true, we “do” invite more terrorism by ignoring it. It is not good to ignore or to not sweep bad things affecting our countries future under the rug, or try to “hide” those bad things with chemical dispersants. Once the problem is brought to the surface for its ugliness to be seen by all, attack the problem head on.

I recently read an article in the New York Times titled “Alabama Town’s Failed Pension Is a Warning” written by Michael Cooper and Mary Williams Walsh, December 22, 2010. The first thing I noticed about the title is that it left out exactly who Prichard’s scenario was a warning to. After reading further, we see it is clearly a warning for city government officials and the voters who elected them to office; to be good stewards of both their office and their votes. It seems it is also a warning for county government officials, state government officials, and even federal government officials and the voters that elected them to office to be good stewards as well.

In a nutshell, the City of Prichard, Alabama, has been attempting to file for Bankruptcy. They have already completely “defaulted” on their retiree’s pension plans. In other words, through lack of planning and foresight on city official’s parts, “the checks stopped coming in the mail”. Think about that for a moment, “The checks stopped coming in the mail.” Faithful people working for the city, basing their entire retirement around their retirement checks all of a sudden quit getting their check. Just because Prichard broke state laws in not mailing the checks didn’t stop them from not mailing them, after all, the money just wasn’t in the bank. Quoted from the article: “Far worse was the retired fire marshal who died in June. Like many of the others, he was too young to collect Social Security. “When they found him, he had no electricity and no running water in his house,” said David Anders, 58, a retired district fire chief. “He was a proud enough man that he wouldn’t accept help.” This is just one unfortunately city right? Wrong, as I type, there are many cities at the brink of bankruptcy. It could happen to a city, or a corporation, but this could never happen to a “country” right? Wrong, there have been multiple countries bankrupt over the years. Do a little research into Greece and Iceland and read about their struggles. Read up on other countries that has had to seek help through the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Don’t know what the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the Group of 20 or Bretton Woods are? Ever heard of the “Nixon shock”? Ignorance is bliss, start reading. It was a “shock” to me right after the financial collapse of the Bush administration to read that the biggest holder of our national debt, a communist country which is called “China” was encouraging Russia and the European Union to “drop the dollar” and re-establish Bretton Woods back to the gold standard. The dollar I am speaking of is the very same dollar that gives us a lot of “political clout” worldwide because the rest of the world uses it as a benchmark. When Nixon blew off Bretton Woods, and the rest of the world in 1971 by dropping the “gold standard” (called the “Nixon Shock), the world began to “float on the U.S. dollar” instead of something stable like “gold”. Now, there is a great push by some very influential countries to “drop the U.S. dollar, dropping the U.S. in the process” so that our problems won’t cause them problems. This is a very serious situation.

Considering that our national deficit has increased exponentially over the last ten years, and every recent president seems to be bound and determined to spend our grandkids inheritance, leaving them only debt in its place, spending could technically called terrorism, and the spenders, terrorists. I’m sure that thought will raise some eyebrows, but considering, like Prichard, the thought of our government “defaulting” and out of the blue, hundreds of millions of people losing Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and welfare benefits, like Prichard, this could be a very real possibility. What I am talking about is millions of people starving to death or dieing from other causes. That makes the few thousand people killed on 9/11 look pale in comparison. It is very scary that out national debt has gone from 380 billion to 14 trillion since 1970. According to Wikipedia.com, the leading owner of our U.S. Treasuries (national debt) is communist China at almost 20.8 percent, Japan at 20.2 percent, the United Kingdom at 9.2 percent. The oil exporters are next in line at 5.5 percent. While it appears that oil exporters have far less faith in our treasury (at 5.5%) than does China (at 20.8), we find out that Russia has far less faith and support in our government treasuries, being next to last on the list at 3.2 percent. There are only a few more that own our national debt such as Carribean Banking Centers at 3.7 percent, Brazil at 4 percent, Hong Kong at 3.3 percent, and the Republic of China at 3.2 percent. Does history show that a country can “default” on a national debt? Yes, history shows us this very clearly. China and Russia seem to be the two largest powers pushing for Bretton Woods to be revised and dropping the U.S. Dollar in exchange for a new international currency based on gold. It’s interesting to me that our largest financial supporter, China, and our smallest financial supporter, Russia, are conspiring together on this issue. True, the United States economy plummeted for various reasons in 2008/2009, pulling the “world” down with it. According to George Soros there will be a second “bubble” or plummet. For a guy who was so adamant against Bush and supportive of Obama, he's now dropped support of Obama it seems, therefore where do his loyalties lie? Like many billionaires, himself. I agree, that the economy crash here in the States was embarrassing, and out of control, effected the world in a negative way and the leadership at the presidency, congress, the senate etal had their part in it, but the fact is, it is our 300,000,000 plus population of convenience hungry people buying other countries products that gave those countries a market for things they produced. Let’s face it, how many people live in France anyway? Approximately 60 million. The United States is five times larger.

They all suck up to us because we buy their products and help support their labor forces, but also because we still have a lot of potential growth, due to our vast land area, but many of them hate our political power and our wars. Fact remains that many of them would love to see our country still be dependent on their products, yet fail as a world political influence.

That being said, Wiki-leaks is a terrorist organization. I have no doubt. They use propaganda to influence us to believe that they are about stopping wars and peace, yet the truth of the matter is, they hate us. Also, they are bias. They don’t target ALL countries, or all industries, only those that they want to, or those that attack them back such as the financial institutions which are abandoning them because of the controversy. This organization has further set out to destroy our great country. They have put the lives of many in severe danger, and consciously doing so. The United States has recently sent out hundred of notifications to people whose names were identified in the Wiki cable leaks, alerting them to the fact that their life could be in danger. Is this just propaganda or is it true? Think about it, if a U.S. spy’s name was compromised, or an undercover cop in a big drug sting operation was identified, don’t you think their lives would be in danger? Is this not terrorism? Doesn’t the world all recognize that the tensions on the Korean peninsula are very high, with threats of war and even nuclear missiles talked about almost on a weekly basis? We are talking about millions of people that could be in danger if South Korea and North Korea go to war. So, assuming that Assange is a fairly intelligent man, and knows better, wouldn’t he recognize that those leaks could cause the two countries to go to war. Again, Wiki-leaks and Julian Paul Assange could be one of the largest and most dangerous terrorist organizations I’ve seen; putting the lives of millions of people on the Korean peninsula in danger, but also attempting to cripple the United States of America as a world leader and financially, thereby threatening the lives and safety of over 320 million people who live here. Now, that’s one pretty serious terrorist if you think about it. What makes it worse is both the verbal, moral and financial support this terrorist organization is receiving. Julian Assange and his terrorist supporters should be in jail. A reward should be on his head every bit as much as a reward on Osama Bin Laden’s head.

If we hate the terrorists so much, then why are we acting like them and supporting them? Please don’t be offended. I mean it in the nicest name-calling way possible. George W’s quote about inviting terrorism when we ignore it reminds me of a quote attributed to Edmund Burke, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” Edmund is also quoted as saying “When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle." I think in tri-partisan politics you’d call those people falling “one by one” as neither Republican or Democrats, but as Independents. What I believe he means is that when only a few stand to right the wrong, rocking the boat in the process, when the majority of those in the boat are corrupt and all the rest complacent and uncaring, the corrupt will destroy the last few of the good every time they stick their necks out for the complacent population. I hope and pray that we never get to that point.

Terrorism is terrorism. It doesn’t matter if it’s a visible bomb that kills thousands, or incompetence, corruption, greed, and complacency leading to mass layoffs, lawlessness and suicides. Also, terrorism is jeopardizing the future of social security pension checks, welfare checks, Medicare and Medicaid, which would lead to mass hysteria, starvation, theft, killings and revolution. Finally, terrorism is jeopardizing our countries political influence and economy and the lives of millions of people here and on the Korean peninsula by a “squealer” who is so obviously out to destroy our country through leaks of extremely sensitive data.

So many people seek to divide our country through partisan politics, bad policies, and playing on people’s emotions for their own political self interests and greed, defecating on our countries future as they smile and wave a magic wand, saying it will all be better tomorrow while at the same time continuing the poison of our countries future. The writing is on the wall, it’s written on the floor, and it’s written all over the ceiling. It is past time to trim the fat, cook the crooks, and bury the terrorists, obviously in the most diplomatic way possible, using your voice, your vote, letters, phone calls, influence and "do it" as "peaceful" as possible. I wanted to say that in case some off balance nut like Jared L. Loughner, the suspect in the recent shooting and killing in Arizona, reads this.

"I would like to assure the world that I did not plan the recent attacks, which seems to have been planned by people for personal reasons".

~OSAMA BIN LADEN

Bin Laden is quoted as saying that after the “very visible” 9/11 terrorist attacks, denying any responsibility. Sounds like “non-accountability” and “finger pointing” to me. Can’t you hear these very same words being said by every politician, every voter and non-voter, every single dissident and non-dissident, patriot and non-patriot, and every single illegal alien if complete chaos erupts in our country?

Winston Churchill said that “Politics is the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month and next year and to have the ability afterwards to explain why it didn’t happen”. Right now there is so much writing on the wall, but without enough people actively searching for truth, then we won’t get to the “explain why it didn’t happen”, but only to the finger pointing.

Dewayne Allday

Selma, Alabama

Making a Positive U-Turn in Selma (Revised)

2011-01-03T13:53:00.000-08:00

Original writing December 23, 2010, revised January 3^rd, 2011

I just read an article in the New York Times titled “Alabama Town’s Failed Pension Is a Warning” written by Michael Cooper and Mary Williams Walsh, December 22, 2010. The first thing I noticed about the title is that it left out exactly who Prichard’s scenario was a warning to. After reading further, we see it is clearly a warning for city government officials and the voters who elected them to office; to be good stewards of both their office and their votes. It seems it is also a warning for county government officials, state government officials, and even federal government officials and the voters that elected them to office to be good stewards as well.

I would greatly encourage everyone to read this article, understand what it’s saying, how they got there, and how it could have been turned around.

Here's the link: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/23/business/23prichard.html

A few excerpts from this very important and eye opening article:

“PRICHARD, Ala. — This struggling small city on the outskirts of Mobile was warned for years that if it did nothing, its pension fund would run out of money by 2009. Right on schedule, its fund ran dry.”

“Then Prichard did something that pension experts say they have never seen before: it stopped sending monthly pension checks to its 150 retired workers, breaking a state law requiring it to pay its promised retirement benefits in full.”

“The city’s rapid [Prichard’s] decline began in the 1970s. The growth of other suburbs, white flight and then middle-class flight all took their tolls, and the city’s population shrank by 40 percent to about 27,000 today, from its peak of 45,000. As people left, the city’s tax base dwindled.”

Census Bureau statistics show Selma’s population in 1970 at 27,400. By 2009 the Bureau’s estimate shows a drop of 32% to 18,278, an average of 1.1% a year.

According to the Census, Selma’s decline began around 1970 just like Prichard but for twenty years it was only around 3% per decade. Starting with the trouble within the school system around 1990, this loss drastically increased to over 10% per decade which is where it still is today.

Prichard lost 40 percent of its population since the 1970s and Selma has lost 32% in the same time frame.

Dallas County has lost around 11% in the last decade where Elmore County has gained 20% in the same time frame.

I realize that Selma and Prichard are different in some “positive” areas, however, I also see a pattern of similarities that are very hard to leave unnoticed.

Here are some of those patterns:

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, both Selma and Prichard were similar in demographics, even though Prichard was a little larger in population and land area.

Therefore, Selma had a smaller population tax base and land base to maintain. I DO believe Selma has more people who love her however, and not nearly as many self serving, self motivated, negative crooks as Prichard had, especially in the current administration. I think there are some good people working down there at city hall working hard and doing the best they can right now. Prichard on the other hand, according to an article I read last year, there were some elected officials there who kept sticking their hands in the cookie jar (stealing money). Certainly, that didn't help the situation.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, both Prichard and Selma showed continual increases in the population base all the way up to around 1970, and then they both steadily have been losing population and tax base every year after 1970.

Prichard is at a 40% loss of population since 1970 and at the stage of bankruptcy while Selma is at a 33% loss of population. The real question is whether or not the 40% population loss is the tipping point of bankruptcy. If this assumption is correct, and I were a pessimist, then if changes in a positive direction are not enacted quickly, then Selma will be in a very awkward position in about six years because according to the U.S. Census Bureau estimate, Selma lost approximately 346 more people between 2009 and 2010. As of 2009, the U.S. Census has our population at 18,278. The magic number Selma will need to be at to have a loss of 40% of population since 1970 will be a population of 16, 444. If the census said we lost approximately 346 people between 2009 and 2010 and that trend continues then in 2010 we would be at 17,932, and in 2011 we’d have 17,586, and in 2012 we’d have 17,240 and in 2013 we’d have 16,894 and therefore Selma’s tipping point would be extremely close in 2014 at a population of around 16,548, therefore it will only take us approximately 3 or 4 more years for Selma to be at the 40% population/tax base loss that Prichard is experiencing currently. And think about this; we do have an election coming up in 2012. A negative campaign orchestrated on the radio and on the streets and the wrong person getting elected as mayor of Selma in 2012 could very easily cause the tipping point happen early. In other words, if just 450 extra people moved out of Selma above the 346 census average by the end of 2012 due to the elections or a negative campaign, then Selma’s population would be at the 40% loss mark (16,444) the same year the Mayan calendar expires. For you doom and gloom experts, that’s specifically December the 21st, 2012.

Also, something else to consider. According to the U.S. Census, only 46% of the population of the City of Selma is actually working as of 2009. What that means is that in excess of 54% of the Selma tax base are not working, therefore bringing in less money, therefore spending less money to contribute tax dollars and spending in the system. That means children, young adults, unemployeed, retirees, home makers, etc and from what I have been seeing, it is majority the working middle class that are the ones moving. The 46% statistic was in 2009, but for now, let's assume that it has stayed the same as of 2011, therefore 46% times the estimated 2011 population of 17,586 is approximately 8,000 working citizens. I have heard taht the population has already dropped below 17,000, which is true would put the working citizens at around 7,800. These are the people that have more money to spend at locally owned businesses in town, although it's unfortunate that some of them drive to other cities like Montgomery and Prattville to spend at least some of it. If I had to guess, Walmart is very important to the city of Selma right now, and will continue to be even more important for tax revenue in the next ten years.

However, if I were an optimist (and I am), I believe that Selma will NOT go bankrupt as Prichard is seeking to do, and will NOT default on city employees retirement pensions in order to keep the payroll of the existing staff, and and being the optimist I am, I beleive that the world will NOT end with the Mayan calendar on December 21^st, 2012 because Selma has some things going for it that Prichard does not, therefore the actual tax base/budget numbers might be skewed in a positive direction somewhat. Selma has a lot more tourism dollars coming in than Prichard does which greatly helps to keep Selma afloat. Every tourism dollar, every positive effort, every tax dollar spent in Selma and on Selma, every effort to renovate and promote or expand existing recreational facilities, every effort to revitalize our downtown shopping center, Selma’s mall, pushing for a nice and safe movie theater here and some major visionary research and design of a beautiful, well lighted, well thought out and safe river walk downtown with ample parking in close proximity and some other major tourist attractions that will make not only make Selmians proud, but also make people want to come here, stay here, and spend their money here.

I am an optimist, but at the same time a realist. Although I don't believe in showing your garbage for everyone to see, I also believe that hiding from key and very real issues, especially one that is SO IMPORTANT, solely for the sake of "image", is a dangerous plank to be walking on.

Prichard’s story has special meaning to me since I have both a Prichard and Selma connection and also a Prichard U.S. Census connection. I say that because at the announcement of my mother’s pregnancy with me near the beginning of the rapid decline of Prichard’s population in 1970, my parents were a part of the white and middle class population that the article in the New York Times was speaking of which fled Prichard. I was born in 1971, residing still in Mobile County, but instead of starting my life in Prichard, Alabama, I began my life living in Chickasaw, Alabama, one of the "safer" suburbs outside of Prichard where some middle class whites and blacks fled to. I can still remember the stories my parents spoke of about Prichard when I was a child, which I recently revisited with them in discussion after reading the New York Times article. I can still remember them saying how unsafe it was there and about all of the stealing and the murders and shootings. I can remember them talking about how a week didn’t go by that you didn’t hear gunshots in the city limits at night.

My advice to the residents of Selma is; don’t leave, don’t move away. I still have lots of hope for Selma and you should too. If you leave, we all lose. Also, all communitys in Dallas County will lose as well. Selma has a lot of potential if people would quit trying to destroy it with negativity and political advancement at the expense of its citizens. Let’s rebuild this battle scarred city and quit stirring up controversy and polarizing the city. Polarization and negative talk only gets people stirred up, angry, discouraged, and makes them want to move to a more positive place. Have you ever heard of escalating an argument – you know, that’s when you start cussing and throwing stuff. It's a spiral effect that gets progressively worse until someone is man enough to say "enough is enough" and "this arguement isn't productive". It’s not healthy and it doesn’t encourage business and growth. Anger never loved anyone and I think it’s safe to say that a lot of negativity actually increases unhappiness, therefore increasing violence and crime in general. Quit reopening old wounds and rubbing salt in them like some groups, organizations and individuals seem to want to try and do. Quit all the selfish, childish stuff and quit supporting and encouraging those groups, organizations and individuals who do. I am not going to name any names here (or radio stations), but I think you know who you are.

Get on your work boots and roll up your sleeves. Start and/or continue rebuilding side by side with people of all races, and make Selma a better, more pleasant place to live. Start encouraging positive, progressive and intelligent minded people to move here. Even if you have to work with someone you don’t like, do it because you love your city more, and yourself less, to benefit the good of the whole.

Because, if we don’t start working together in a positive direction and turning these statistics around, we could all be looking at losing at lot more than our pensions.

Dewayne Allday

Selma, Alabama

Making a Positive U-Turn with Statistics

2010-12-23T12:18:00.000-08:00

Note: follow link for revised and expanded article: http://dewayne-allday.blogspot.com/2011/01/making-positive-u-turn-with-statistics.html

I just read an article in the New York Times titled “Alabama Town’s Failed Pension Is a Warning” written by Michael Cooper and Mary Williams Walsh,December 22, 2010. The first thing I noticed about the title is it left out exactly who it was a warning to. After reading we see it is clearly a warning for city governments and the voters who elected them to office; to be good stewards of both their office and their vote. It seems it is also a warning for county government, state governments and federal governments and the voters to be good stewards as well.

A few excerpts from the article:

“The city’s rapid decline began in the 1970s. The growth of other suburbs, white flight and then middle-class flight all took their tolls, and the city’s population shrank by 40 percent to about 27,000 today, from its peak of 45,000. As people left, the city’s tax base dwindled.”

Census Bureau statistics show Selma’s population in 1980 at 26,700. By 2009 the Bureau’s estimate shows a drop of 32% to 18,278, an average of 1.1% a year.

According to the Census, Selma’s decline began around 1970 just like Prichard but for twenty years it was only around 3% per decade. Starting with the trouble within the school system around 1990 this loss drastically increased to over 10% per decade which is where it still is today.

Prichard lost 40 percent of its population since the 1970s and Selma lost 32% in the same time frame.

Dallas County has lost around 11% in the last decade where Elmore Countyhas gained 20% in the same time frame.

My advice to Selma is; don’t leave, don’t move away. If you leave, we all lose. Let’s rebuild this battle scarred city and quit stirring up controversy and polarizing the city. This only gets everyone angry, discouraged, and makes them want to move away. It’s called escalating an argument – you know, that’s when you start cussing and throwing stuff. It’s not healthy and it doesn’t encourage business and growth. Quit reopening old wounds and rubbing salt in them, quit all the selfish, childish stuff and quit supporting and encouraging those who do. Get on your work boots and roll up your sleeves. Start or continue rebuilding side by side with people of all races, and make Selma a better, more pleasant place to live. Then start encouraging positive, progressive and intelligent minded people to move here. Even if you have to work with someone you don’t like, do it because you love your city more, and yourself less, to benefit the good of the whole.

Because, if we don’t start working together in a positive direction and turning these statistics around, we could all be looking at losing at lot more than our pensions.

Dewayne Allday

Selma, Alabama

Focus and Goals

2010-12-17T11:01:00.000-08:00

December 13th, 2010

Long term focus and goals are much more important than short term inadequacies and shortcomings

~ Dewayne Allday

The End Never Justifies the Means

2010-12-17T10:59:00.000-08:00

December 13th, 2010

The end never justifies the means if you have to sleep in a den of vipers. Torch the den first and then sleep peacefully.

~ Dewayne Allday

Here for a Short Time

2010-12-04T12:29:00.000-08:00

December 4th, 2010

We are only here for a very short time. There is no time for watching the same movie twice. There is no time for listening to the same old song over and over. Therefore, get out and create your own movies and sing your own songs. The only re-run you need to be participating in is growth, love, forgiveness, mercy, empathy and compassion for your fellow man and search after the Creator who created us all. Merry CHRISTmas everyone and may our Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah and God of the universe be in all of your homes this year and forever.

~ Dewayne Allday

Elevators

2010-11-26T08:09:00.001-08:00

There are some whose elevator may skip a few floors but their building is often times taller than that of their critics.

~Dewayne Allday

Teach Me Lord

2010-11-26T08:07:00.001-08:00

Lord, You are giving me the tools, now please teach me how to build.

~Dewayne Allday

Life is Bigger

2010-11-26T08:06:00.001-08:00

Life becomes much more satisfying when you live it outside of yourself.

~Dewayne Allday

Floods

2010-11-26T08:05:00.001-08:00

Don't let past memories of destructive floods in your life overide the promise of the rainbow and cloud over a beautiful blue sky.

~Dewayne Allday

Leading up to and Moving Beyond the Economy Crisis

2010-11-10T06:46:00.000-08:00

I am normally an optimist and have a little trouble being around negative personalities so please don't label me as a full time doom and gloom kind of guy after you read what i have to say here. I still have great hopes for our immediate recovery from the worst economy crash since the great depression; a crash that was heard around the world.

Over one year prior to this crash I was concerned about an economic uncertainty just around the bend told several people, including a client of mine about my suspicions prior to the problem. It was late 2007/early 2008. All of you have read that our situation was caused by too much money being loaned to unworthy candidates in the housing market, banks loaning out too much credit and too much credit in general but while I agree that was part of the problem, in my strong opinion there were other factors working in conjunction with the credit situation and it's those factors that are scaring me because no one is talking about them. These factors could happen again, and it's my concern that if they happen again in this struggling and still horrible economy it could set off a chain reaction around the world that would make this recession/depression we're having now look like a hiccup after eating some small potatoes and that's why we need to talk about it.

I am writing this as i eat breakfast. I was starving this morning and these pancakes are so good. I have been awake since 4:30 am to insure that my wonderful wife had hot water in the guest house for a shower since ours is not working in the house. Hot water and pancakes are a luxury in some parts of the world. Can you imagine yourself without hot water? During the great depression of the 30's they say it was really bad. This current deep recession was called a depression by many in the media, how that determination was made i do not know because i don't know the statistics about the original great depression in order to compare it. i do know this, today many of us are spoiled. We are spoiled in that most of us rely on the grocery store for food. We have to have our hot water and our pancakes, cigarettes (not me, I'm smoke free), vehicles, eat out nights, lunch with friends at one of the many local restaurants etc and you know what? Many of us don't know how to raise our own food. Seriously, i am not saying take up gardening classes, but what i am saying is that people during the great depression made it through by learning how to skimp on the luxuries, but many of them, particularly in rural areas, all had gardens. Today there are fewer and fewer people that know how to raise their own food, and more usable land converted to subdivisions, so if a serious depression hit, and if it were not for welfare, there would be some very hungry people about which would create some serious and terrible situations. Illness, starvation, serious crime and even an increase in violent crimes.

In my opinion what led up to the current financial crisis was not just the credit cards and uncontrolled spending, but something prior which led up to people abusing those generous credit lines in the first place leading down the road to the foreclosures, bankruptcies and bank failures. That's what I want to discuss because that's what I am afraid that it's some of these factors leading up to the problem that will extend this recession and if other measures aren't put in place, could even take us further backwards. In other words, balance the budget Mr. Government. Take a business class and take and economics class and let's get this thing turned around before it's too late.

What caused our financial crisis? I will highlight on the top six:

1. Quickly inflated gas prices
2. Habitual spending
3. Over spending
4. Lose credit regulations and too much credit
5. Bank foreclosures
6. Poor national leadership
7. Monopolies

We have been through what's called a correction and I'm not talking about a ruler slap on the wrist by a nun in Catholic grade school, I am talking about a serious correction, but why let failure correct us? Why not be proactive and fix the failed system before the slap from the big ruler?

How does quickly inflated gas prices and habitual spending fit in? Why are they my first two concerns placed in front of the loose credit regulations and bank foreclosures? Because they both have just as much if not more significance to our current problem and let me explain why and then I will propose a solution, a solution that may not be received well by either republicans or democrats or anyone in the oil business.

For many years we all in this country were used to gas prices being around $1.30 to $1.50 per gallon. When I say "years" what I mean is why in the heck did it stay so cheap for so long? For you who disagree with me and contend that we had it made because gas prices averaged $5 per gallon in the UK for years, then please hang with me and let me help you understand the significant difference. It's mainly the sudden jump in gas prices instead of a gradual one that spoiled our milk our milk here in the States. I can remember gas being around $1.15 when i graduated from high school in 1990 and 15 years later it was not much more. Our economy grew like crazy during those years and except for a couple of much smaller hiccups we were doing great. I have always heard that inflation is around 3% per year so why didn't that apply to gas prices and why the sudden "correction" or spike during the Bush administration? I am not trying to open a can of worms, just wanting this to not happen again and for our country's economy to get rolling again and not take a nose dive. My point is that IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN A "GRADUAL PROCESS" and slow enough for us as a country to digest it and adjust our life styles accordingly. Just one example of the severity of this sudden adjustment in gas prices directly related to the mortgage crisis is the planning of how big of a house you can afford on a fixed 30 year loan. You figure up your "fixed costs" (gas, vehicle payment, utility bills) and a few others and determine how much of a house payment you can afford. Also, minimum wages went up considerably since 1990, from around $3.25 or $3.50 an hour to double that of $7.25 per hour in 2010 or before. The gas/minimum wage cost was significantly out of balance until recently. Basically gas prices are now roughly double what they were in 1990 and so is the minimum wage, but the minimum wage is a little more than double, so YES that is good in my opinion. My next point is that we were making extra money and gas was cheap so for years we got accustomed to spending money, going out to eat every weekend, many of us ate out every day (i wasn't one of those). We got stuck in some habits and scientists and psychologists alike will tell you that habits are very hard to break. So what happened next? Gas prices decide to make their own "correction" and out of the blue they jumped from $1.50 to $3.00 and even around $4.00 per gallon. Now, the purpose of this article is not for me to get shot an killed, because i know there's BIG money in oil, but my purpose is to show that it's my strong opinion this "correction" in gas prices which "leaped" in 2008 was the shot that was heard around the world and this combined with loose credit is what got us in the situation we are in now. I say that because when gas prices went up, did we quit spending as a country? No. Many people kept eating out every day. People kept going out on the weekends. Some people such as me, a home builder, already had construction projects under way and we were bound to contract to finish them no matter how far a drive it was to the jobsite every day. People who had jobs 60 miles and even 100 miles from home and commuting every day DID NOT have a choice to quit either, but to continue to drive their vehicles, sometimes gas guzzlers, to work. Out of habit, people continued to spend and to go, and since many of them were putting an extra $40 to $120 worth of gas into their vehicles every week and it was so easy to pay for supper with a credit card, this is what they were doing. Too much credit. I myself had over $40,000 worth of credit limits. I spent almost $18,000 for gas in 2008, which is over $8,000 not budgeted for when i priced the jobs and makes Bush tax credit of $800 which was supposed to stimulate the economy at the end of the year look like a piece of bubble gum out of a Kiwanis club bubble gum machine. That $8,000 should have went back into the economy and it did not. It went into the oil companies pocket, which in my opinion did not get back into the economy, and in my opinion was a big waste. Tell me, did the cost of making oil really more than double in less than a year? No, it was ALL PROFIT.

Now I am going to have to go soon because I've finished my pancakes and I'll need to get to work, not to go to a construction job, but to figure out why I don't have any hot water so my working wife and myself can get a shower and she can get to work. I mean, after all, with the housing market crash, I've been out of work for over 3 months. Ironically I signed a contract to build a new house three months ago, but it is taking it's sweet time at the bank because of tighter banking regulation on the pre-approved loan, the time frame a knee jerk reaction to an "over-correction" in the economy resulting in a serious correction in the bank lending industry. Maybe next week the loan will close and I can once again start contributing to my family and the economy, but for now it's pancakes, fixing a shower, and writing a blog.

Where'd the money go? Some quick unscientific math. Get the census numbers and do the math yourself.

According to statistics the United States is the third largest country in the world with over 300 million people living here. This is only beat by two countries, China and India, both having a population of over 1 billion. Those are facts. Now, this is where I (or someone) should do more research: Let's assume 1/2 of the 300 million are old enough to drive. Let's assume that when gas jumped up they spent an extra $40 per week on gas.

Pre-gas rise prices for 500 miles per week average comparison from $1.25 per gallon to $3.25 per gallon.

vehicle at 12 miles per gallon - 500 divided by 12 = 41.67 gallons per week x $1.25 gallon = $52 per week
vehicle at 25 miles per gallon - 500 divided by 25 = 20 gallons per week x $1.25 gallon = $25 per week

Now lets jump the gas prices suddenly up to $3.25 per gallon:

vehicle at 12 miles per gallon - 500 divided by 12 = 41.67 gallons per week x $3.25 gallon = $169 per week

vehicle at 25 miles per gallon - 500 divided by 25 = 20 gallons per week x $3.25 gallon = $65 per week

Let's take the average between the gas guzzler and the gas saver and then multiply that times the number of people (again, this is an assumption) driving in the united states:

($169+$65) divided by 2 = $117 per week extra out of people's pay checks. Personally I believe 500 miles a week is about right because about everyone I know put at least one take of gas in their vehicle every week at 400 miles per tank, and also quite a few people go twice that because of commuting to their job, but let's cut it back to $100 extra dollars a week going to the oil companies (because it didn't go to the gas stations, according to friends I know that own gas stations it put them in a bind because they still made exactly the same per gallon but had to spend extra money in the front end, sometimes on credit, to fill their tanks up with the more expensive gas).

So assuming 150 million people spend an extra $100 per week on gas before the market collapse we can multiply 150,000,000 x $100 which equals $15,000,000,000. That's 15 BILLION dollars per average week not going into our economy multiplied to 52 weeks - $780,000,000,000. That's 780 BILLION dollars in one years time that DID NOT go into our people's pockets and back into the economy. My proposal is that a fraction of that, went on credit cards. People maxed out their credit cards and there were NOT ENOUGH regulations on credit card companies and even banks, some charging $40 a month for late payments and even loan shark interest rates of 30%. People found themselves in a awkward position. Without all the credit cards, people would have "corrected" themselves and their budgets sooner, after all, some of the commuters couldn't even afford to drive to work. Possibly, they were the first to start defaulting after quiting their jobs, or they tried it for a while putting extra expenses on credit cards before realizing the boat was sinking.

Where did 780 billion dollars go? Overseas? How much of that money stayed here to help our economy? Did the cost of overhead in the oil industry really more than DOUBLE in less than a years time. ABSOLUTELY NOT. Maybe it went to the over paid CEO's, board members, bribed politicians, etc who are now purchasing all the homes that have been foreclosed on so they can now rent them out and turn the United States into a Section 8 rental country. Did a sudden increase in gas prices during the Bush administration help destroy our economy and affect the entire world. ABSOLUTELY.

So, what can we do about it? I believe the oil industry got greedy personally but since oil is a traded commodity we can't say that 100% and also the oil market is also controlled by who? Come on, that's not hard to answer if you do a little research, but also keep in mind that MONOPOLIES also play a part in this. I mean, how many oil companies out there are there to begin with? Not many. I believe when things crashed at the end of the Bush Administration "someone" saw the mistake that was made and tried to help correct it because WHAT HAPPENED? Gas prices went way down as President Obama went into office although gas prices have since been slowly going up since that time. Had gas prices remained high we'd all be seriously boating in the swamps without a paddle amongst the alligators and crocodiles.

Again, what can we do about it:

1. Quickly inflated gas prices - Something that affect our economy so drastically, the pricing should be controlled tighter

2. Habitual spending - Time - An adjustment period. We're all adjusting now, but just a little too late

3. Over spending - Our government should quickly take a lesson we've all had to learn. Stop it. Balance the the dang checkbook like the rest of us. Government should quit borrowing money to get by. We had to, and they should see and understand what happened to us and use that example to get rid of the deficit before it's too late.

4. Loose credit regulations and too much credit - This has been overly corrected in order to make up for past mistakes

5. Bank Forclosures - New policies in place to allow people to stay in their houses so that we all don't become a nation of renters instead of owners. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer? Understand what I am saying?

6. Poor National Leadership - Wake up call. Quit electing weak minded self serving people to leadership positions.

7. Monopolies - A subject for another day, my one vice to true capitalism.

There are many points in this article that I wrote this morning, but one point I want to make very clear and if you are reading this and you are in the know and and in a position or about to be in a position to fix things, please do answer these questions:

1) Who in government dropped the ball 2) who saw the mistake and picked up the ball? 3) Who is protecting the ball, and who is protecting the guy who is protecting the ball? and 4) who is watching the ball and the guy who is protecting the guy who is holding the ball and making sure they are not a crook?

I have strong capitalist views, but my only fault with true capitalism (at this point in my life) is 1) monopolies controlling markets and having too much power can drastically affect our economy and if something goes wrong and they fold then we're seriously in trouble 2) what I call "fixed costs" increasing at an alarming rate which ARE BASIC ESSENTIALS such as gas, power bill, water bill, sewer bill, other utility bills and lastly insurance costs and land tax costs. I believe in capitalism, but these "essentials" have to be "capped", controlled and regulated as well as the banking industry.

Now, SERIOUSLY, Mr. Government. Regulate these industries asap instead of just printing more dollars which could make the United States loose it's reputation as a world leader, increase inflation at a substantial rate hurting this country even more, and also encourage other countries to listen to China and the World Bank and drop the Dollar entirely for a more stable form of unified standard such as the recent World Bank's recommendation of going back to a Gold standard. Do not allow gas prices to go back up (even though they already are, make them go back down). I realize they need to go up, but it should have been a gradual thing and they went up too quickly and now we're now in a crisis. Ease off the gas prices so we'll all have more money again to start spending again and help encourage the minimum wage workers to keep their job because fixed costs such as utility bills and gas to get to work doesn't cost them more than their paycheck, so that they aren't encouraged to just "give up" and get on welfare or unemployment which puts more of a strain on our national deficit and the working people struggling to get through this ailing economy.

Mr. Government. Please get this ball rolling, so the economy will recover and more of us can get more work so we can help contribute some cash to that struggling fat and failing oil industry. I am sorry about the sarcasm, but our country to bleeding right now, so Mr. Government, fix the wounds.

Cahaba River, Alabama

2010-11-02T10:40:00.000-07:00

I have built this article as a reference guide to help plan and time canoe trips down the Cahaba River. If you can not swim, I do not recommend this. If you do not devote the time into studying the river and how rainfall affects the currents and also dangers associated with canoeing rivers with fast currents I do not recommend you go without first going with someone fairly experienced in these things. It's one thing losing a camp stove or a camera, but quite another to lose a life. Two or three inches of rainfall can turn a wonderful trip into a nightmare. Not trying to scare you, only to inform you. If camping on a shallow island, one inch of rain can raise the river more than 6 inches (enough to flood your tents). Soapstone cliffs in the curves of the river often have caves eroded out just under the water surface; something you don't want to dive off of and get pushed into by the current. A tree that has fallen across the river and blocked your canoe to pass can also be a killer if you get sideways and lean the canoe upstream allowing water to quickly enter in, flipping the canoe with you in and pinning you between the canoe and the tree under the water. Allowing your canoe to be sideways against a submerged (or not submerged) rock, stump or tree branch in fast current could cause you to flip the canoe also if you panic and lean the wrong way. If you are not paying attention and some low tree limbs are extending out and all of a sudden you turn around and one knocks you out of the canoe or punctures your eye out. Also, if you lose your canoe and can't go on, it can be a very long walk back to civilization. There's a small chance of alligators and a good chance of poisonous snakes. The Cahaba River isn't as wide as the Alabama River and Alligators like hanging out near the bank which could be close to where you are swimming. Flipping the canoe and getting soaking wet in the very cold of winter could cause hypothermia.

All I am saying is a little planning and thinking is all that is required to have a fun and fulfilling trip down the Cahaba River. Pay attention and even scout ahead. Read books and articles and talk with others that have floated it. This will definitely all be worth it and canoeing down the Cahaba River can and will be a very enjoyable trip to any outdoors orientated person, so read, plan ahead, prepare and do it!!

Centerville, Alabama (Cahaba Park) to Selma, Alabama (U.S. Highway 80) - 61 miles

According to John H. Foshee in his book "Alabama Canoe Rides", this trip is a total of 61 miles. This encompasses Section 13 through Section 18 in his book. Three others and myself are going to attempt this trip this month. Hopefully we can do it in two nights and three days without any problems.

Section 13 - U.S. 82 (Centerville) to Harrisburg Bridge - 11.7 miles (our put in is actually the park)

13 hour trip over 36 miles = approximately 2 1/2 miles per hour

Put in at Centreville, AL - Friday, November 12th, 2010 @ 9:30am

Suttle flow - approximately 400 cfs, depth 5.60 feet

Centerville flow - approximately 290 cfs, depth 1.10 feet

Marion Junction flow - 520 cfs, depth 2.10 feet

Took out in Sprott on U.S. Hwy 83 Bridge on Sunday November 14th, 2010 at 1 pm

This trip encompassed Sections 13, 14, 15 and 16 (Sprott) in three days. Our goal was to make the Highway 80 Bridge in Selma Alabama, but the current was slow due to the width of the river in some of these sections and I'm pretty sure that John Foshee's calculations of the mileage for these sections was under calculated. Had the river been up about 6 more inches and the cfs us some (but still under safe levels) I feel like we would have made the trip if we had put in earlier and taken out later, but instead we fished, and put in around 9:30 am each morning and set up camp at 4pm both evenings. We also took about an hour for lunch both days so we actually only had about 5 hours of float time Friday and Saturday, and then another 3 hours on Sunday for a total of 13 hours of actual floating time. At about 36 miles over three days that's over 2 1/2 miles per hour float time.

We'll finish our group trip up this spring.

Section 14 - Harrisburg Bridge to County Road 47 (Jericho) Bridge - 11.3 miles

Section 15 - County Road 47 (Jericho) Bridge to Alabama Highway 14 (Sprott) - 11.5 miles

Section 16 - Alabama Highway 14 (Sprott) to County Road 30 (Radford) - 7.3 miles

Section 17 - County Road 30 (Radford) to County Road 6 (Suttle) - 9.1 miles

Section 18 - County Road 6 (Suttle) to U.S. Highway 80 (Selma) - 9.7 miles
5 hour trip over 9.7 miles = approximately 2 miles per hour
Saturday November 6th, 2010
Suttle flow - approximately 430 cfs, depth 5.70 feet
Centreville flow - approximately 310 cfs, depth 1.20 feet
Marion Junction flow - 600 cfs, depth 2.40 feet

I floated this section with my son Saturday, November 6th, 2010. We put in at the bridge on County Road 6. There is a dirt road that drops down below the bridge from the pavement. The slope to the river is pretty steep here (about 35 degrees) but it's not hard to get the canoe down the bank into the water. Bringing it up you'd definitely need an extra hand (or two). We arrived at 12 noon and took out at the U.S. Highway 80 bridge at 5 pm, so this basically was a 5 hour trip. We made one 30 minute stop.
Getting in was easy, but to hour surprise (not mentioned in Foshe's book) it was not far down stream was about a 40 feet stretch of white water including two drops, one about 1 foot and one at least 18 inches. I was on the front of the canoe and luckily we kept the canoe straight as we went through. Had we went across that sideways there is no doubt the canoe would have flipped. I got soaking wet in the front of the canoe, at least my waist down anyway, when we went off the second drop the front of the canoe almost went underwater and I got splashed several times. The canoe took on about 1/2 inch of water in this area.

This stretch of the Cahaba River was beautiful and there were some high banks, particularly in the first half of the trip, one bank had to be 100 feet tall. There were some cypress trees, and lots of Sycamore trees, willows and maples in this stretch.There were at least 5 sandbars and/or islands high enough to camp on without much worry of getting flooded out unless there were huge storms upstream. This trip was quite enjoyable and not tiring at all.

Interesting notes were the deer we canoed by and lots of mallards and wood ducks. There was one 9 foot alligator that made a horrific splash about 40 in front of us in one narrow stretch, going underwater right in front of us. I had a paddle ready just in case he surfaced under the canoe!! The only negative note I have is that there were about 15 floats stuck in the tree debris along the edge of the river, I am assuming leftover remnants from bad luck experiences people had trying to float down the river upstream, losing their float in the process. I had heard about a shuttle service of sorts but the only two people I spoke with that had experienced the trip got bruised and cut up (the legs), one having their ankle twisted. They both said they wouldn't be back. However, someone must be having fun because they keep doing it.

Obviously this trip would have moved a lot slower in the summer time, but the water level was decent on this trip and we made good time. I am going to try this again in a couple of weeks, so we'll see how it goes then.

Section 18A - H.S. Highway 80 (Selma) to Alabama Highway 22 -
This Section begins fast with hardly any paddling required but about 2/3 of the way south the water basically stops and if you want to get to the bridge before dark (considering you put in a little after daylight) you had better paddle fairly consistently. A good day trip estimated at around 9 hours without stops.

A Christmas Spirit is on the Loose

2010-10-30T07:31:00.000-07:00

by Dewayne Allday

October 30th, 2010

As Halloween passed by and Christmas enters in, there’s a spirit on the loose but not if the Grinch can stop it. To hear him tell, Christmas makes him mad as hell, so no wreaths, or no bells, no carols or meat, no smiles and no laughter, or new jobs that we keep.

“ Year after year, I've put up with it now I must stop Christmas from coming But how?”, said the Grinch.

If you remember the story goes, there was once a foul soul named Grinch and the villagers in Whoville didn’t demonize the Grinch for just any reason; he really was evil, so evil that everyone was afraid to say “Grinch” during the holiday season. Sure, they would hint around in whispers and behind screennames on the internet, but everyone was so afraid Grinch would hear them and come down from his green supremacist house on the hill and terrorize the city some more. Yes, people were scared when they heard that name “Grinch” and he really liked the smell of that stench.

It all started in school at a time when Grinch was a very impressionable young fellow. He was a very intelligent and talented young man with sheen, yet he was different because he was hairy and green. He had a crush on some girl in his class and she him, and one Christmas he decided to give her a card on a whim and profess his love but “a few” of the kids in his class laughed at him and he got so angry and that anger just grew ‘til he blew. He was one of the smartest ones in the class, but his anger was great and made him an ass. He didn’t want to see laughter and he didn’t want to see song and he didn’t want to see the city succeed therefore became a very foul creature indeed. He pillaged and stole, he was nasty and cold, and a lot of his peers didn’t like him as he grew old.

No one ever called him because his answering machine said, "If you so much as utter one syllable, I'LL HUNT YOU DOWN AND GUT YOU LIKE A FISH! If you'd like to fax me, press the star key."

So much anger inside from hurt long ago, you’d have thought that poor guy had lost his dark soul, but there was one little girl that lived down in Whoville who had innocent eyes and a heart big as google. She hated to see such anger and pain, the separation and games, and more importantly wanted to see Whoville flourish again. She went to see Grinch in all his green splendor and Grinch wouldn’t see her so thank God she persisted because the Grinch learned that hatred produces hatred and love produces love and that day Grinch felt God’s love from above, and left that elevated house on the hill to help rebuild the city and live with the people, even those in Whoville who were different than him.

There were bells, and wreaths, and carols and meat, so many smiles and laughter, and more jobs thereafter. People moved back to rebuild, not being scared any longer and Whoville rejoiced and was blessed to be done with that mess.

Merry Christmas everyone, I wish the best for you all. Let’s not forget ‘tis the season, Jesus Christ is still Lord.

Me - Republican or Democrat?

2010-10-20T07:38:00.000-07:00

The question has come up in my mind whether I am a Republican or a Democrat. I have now decided that I am an independent. Traditionally I believe in the values of the Republican Party and that is based off of my strong views supporting capitalism. I have seen a widening in the values of the two parties over the years and that concerns me. I do believe in checks and balances, but I feel the differences in our two parties at this point in my life have become too great and there is a great need to bridge a little closer together for the continued success of our country, our countries economy and other countries and economies around the globe. I strongly feel that socialism will destroy our country in the long run, but I also feel that true capitalism and the republicans are helping this along by allowing larger corporations to continually buy out the smaller guys and force the others out of business by using their power to influence market prices. This country was built on capitalism, noone can deny that and our vastness of our country in size is like no other democratic society in the word. Capitalism made us who we are by encouraging the American Dream and our businesses multiplied all over the country and our people had families that had children who had children and we grew and as we grew, our ancestors encouraged and grew the economies in the socialist European countries. In my opinion, if we'd started out with socialism in our democracy, our country would have not progressed and thrived like it has. If you don't believe me, look at what socialized healthcare, socialized welfare and socialized education did for Communist Russia.

The difference between Capitalism and Socialism can be summarized very simply; Socialism encourages stagmentation and complacency and Capitalism encourages growth and competition.

I'll work more on this later.... but I do subscribe to protecting our environment (more democratic) and modifying the capitalists (republican) views of mega corporations and monopolies. I believe in welfare, but I believe in major welfare overhauls with things in place to work people off of welfare, but I also believe in not allowing corporations to get to large where they can damage our economy and the worlds economy at the same time when they fail.

More to come...

Who am I?

2010-10-13T09:17:00.000-07:00

"Who am I?" is a question I have been asking myself for many years. When one peels back the layers of skin of oneself, each layer consisting of past experiences and influences (both positive and negative), motives, ambitions, dreams, realities and freedom to be who we are meant to be while at the same time being able to step outside of all those things that have been in our past which influence our decisions and look back at them in an unbiased manner and say to ourselves "Is that really who I am and what I believe or is it what the influencers in my life believe?".

When it comes to politics, many times we are affected by our parents, our relatives, our friends, our boss, or even our race but how can we really support something that we don't believe in ourselves? We should understand completely what we believe in before we can truly get behind it and in order to completely understand what we believe in we first have to completely separate ourselves of our biased natures and past experiences and seek truth; then compare those truths to what we were taught. You may very well find out that you were raised a republican and you have come to know yourself and that you are still a republican or maybe you are a democrat or a Tea Party person, or maybe you're like me and you are getting closer to who you are and you realize that quite possibly you wish there were another party out there which believed in what you believed in.

The problem we run into is if we are not either 100% Republican or 100% Democrat then we don't truly believe in either party, therefore we don't get as excited and support them like we would if we were 100% believers. People still vote however for both parties, so there is some belief or that wouldn't happen at all. I've heard people say "I'll just vote for the lesser of two evils", and that statement in itself is quite scary to me. Jesus Christ stated a very profound reality in Matthew 17:20 - "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." If we really believed in our party and the candidates themselves really believed in their party, then they could certainly be the "movers and shakers" of our society, but instead they don't truly believe, and likewise a lot of corruption, complacency, and self interests have infiltrated the leadership in our society. My point is, if they really believed, then the United States would continue to be a very influential world leader for many years into the future. This country, the United States of America, would hold every diligent politician's heart and it would be extremely hard for any of those "other" distracting things to enter in. If only we had the faith of a mustard seed, we could move mountains.

As far as the Tea Party, no, I'm not quite ready for them, although I am inspired by their spirit and I do believe our country could and should learn a lot from our ancestral leaders like George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and others. There might just be a time for the Tea Party if things don't change but unfortunately, as inspiring as it is, the Tea Party is only a very delayed knee jerk reaction to a country and politics that have been slipping without true and effective leadership for years. It's very name symbolizes revolution. Do we need a revolution or civil war in this country? No, and the separation and variation between the Democrats and the Republican parties are growing larger. I would most rather support a new party that took the best of "both" the Democrats and the Republicans and applied them to the ideals of the party forming something more "balance" and less "rebellious". A lot of thought would have to go into the name of this new party however because the name "Tea Party" smells like revolt and rebellion and isn't really a "long term" party designation. Maybe something a little more unified like the Unification Party? No, not really a good idea; people would confuse us with Rev. Sun Myung Moon of the Unification Church a worldwide political and religious cult who owns the famous newspaper, the Washington Post and also has given large sums of money to both political and religious leaders alike. Not a very good idea to take money from this fellow since he believes he is the new "Saviour" and "Messiah" and should run the world. So, let's consider some other names such as the United Alliance Party, the Party of the United States, the United Republic, the United Democracy, or the Party of Change?

So, who am I? I suppose for now, I should call myself an independent. I am myself. I am me. Some might accuse me of riding the fence, however the truth is that I don't care much about the fences, only the "big picture" seen outside of all the fences. All I care about it what I think is right based on unbiased observations of what I believe will work, won't work, what is strengthening us and what is weakening us. When I speak of "us", I'm speaking of firstly the "United States of America" and secondly "the rest of the world"; the people, the animals, the economy and the environment are just a few of those things I am speaking of that add up to the United States of America, the country that I love.

Harlotizing the Bridge

2010-08-22T22:09:00.000-07:00

A little makeup, some marketing, and the promise of “unity”, but what exactly will it cost? Well, she looks pretty good on the surface, but you dig a little deeper and something smells very funny and if you don’t wise up quickly, Selma might catch something penicillin won’t get rid of.

Let’s ask Mark Duke, who said the following during a recorded sermon, what he thinks of the bridge:“There's a new day coming to Selma, let me tell you something, if it takes our blood on that bridge again, then they'll get our blood, but we ain't gonna stop - God is with us, he has anointed us, he has called us..." Who in the hell wants to see blood on that bridge again Mark? Does anyone want to see Sugar Daddy White taking pictures and marketing them on his websites so that he can profit off of the bridge and the people who were hurt on it? Do we want him to blaspheme the true leaders who were marching on that bridge with right and true motives on Bloody Sunday?

Aren’t they sending a message to our youth/adults that it’s perfectly alright to break the rules, disobey authorities, break promises and throw temper tantrums when you don’t get you way? Do we want to teach our youth to arrogantly defy city government creating a sense of lawlessness in a city that already has enough lawlessness? Is it really necessary to bombard the Mayor and others of this City with letters, protests and unruly conduct forcing “real issues” on the back burner and wasting our elected officials time which could’ve been spent making Selma a better place to live?

Selma, I beg of you. We have been losing population for years and this unity they speak of is a complete farce. It’s just like makeup on a harlot and if you look a little past the makeup, there’s a very bad smell. Let’s not lose any more Selmians only to be replaced with Colorado implants filling job positions and leadership positions vacated as good honest tax payers scamper and move away. Let us work together as brothers and sisters to make it so that when Selma makes the news, anyone who is anyone will want to come and visit not only because they are proud of the symbol of the bridge and what it stood for, but also because of the great places that same bridge could lead Selma and the rest of the world in the future. Your city and that bridge could be a glorious beacon shining in a still sometimes dark and oppressive world. I am not saying that anyone should forget Bloody Sunday, no, never forget that day. I’m only saying that it is my hope for all of us to not forget where our path started, but more importantly to focus on where we want our paths to take us.

Dewayne Allday
Selma, Alabama

If you have a different opinion than me, visit http://dewayne-allday.blogspot.com/2011/02/imho.html

Antonyms – Liberty (Freedom) is to Oppression as Real is to Fake - Condensed

2010-08-19T13:57:00.001-07:00

Antonyms – Liberty (Freedom) is to Oppression as Real is to Fake

I quote William Wordsworth, “Habit rules the unreflecting herd.” Possibly the creator of the words “Freedom Foundation,” “Real Talk,” and “House of God” intended them as a manipulative front and antonyms such as “Oppressive Foundation,” “Fake Talk,” and “House of Deceiver” are more applicable.

Mark Duke was not the first self proclaimed “white savior” of black people. Jim Jones, the charismatic, yet narcissistic leader of the People’s Temple claimed that pedestal during the civil rights movement. Duke was not the first who tooted his horn about his organization’s good works, nor the first to strategically market his organization. Duke was not the first questionable leader to relocate his followers, segregating them from their families and belongings so they could dedicate all their free time towards “the cause,” nor the first narcissist who wanted his picture taken with influential people and politicians. Jones hung out with people of much higher political value than Duke, including Walter Mondale, First Lady Rosalynn Carter, Governor Jerry Brown and Lieutenant Governor Mervyn Dymally. Duke isn’t the first “leader” to get political and support a candidate for mayor. Jones is credited as playing a major role in the election of George Moscone as mayor of San Francisco.

Did someone mention fruits, something they keep harping on? Jones got many awards for community service. Doesn’t the Boy Scouts do more in a few months than the Freedom Foundation has done in three years? Aren’t there groups in this city that do not toot their own horns, who do far more than they have ever done, while doing it quietly, steadily, with real unity and a true love of Selma?

When Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X died, they left virtually no money to their family because of their refusal to make a profit from their activism. Duke moved his family to Georgia, purchasing yet another mansion in a rich gated community, while but he frequently visits visiting Selma sowing seeds of division, intimidating local churches, businesses and individuals, before then retreating back to his “plantation” where he watches his “flock” fighting “his cause” while they live in poverty and communal housing. Talk about freedom. I just can’t believe this “beloved communal” is what Martin Luther King Jr. was talking about. While many of us sit back deciding whether we like the Freedom Foundation or not, they have an organized plan for control. Duke is moving pawns in place, silently seeking and succeeding in placing his group’s leaders/supporters in strategic places of employment and office. Why is he doing that you ask? Let’s ask Duke, who said this during a recorded sermon: “I’m gonna run for mayor. Yeah, that's what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna run God's campaign. How are we going to get this town, unless I have the authority to get people… with authority, they have to come together … I’m running because He told me to run… If I don’t do what God tells me to do, I’m not gonna have eternal life.”

Reading that I see his distorted vision of an oppressive socialized dictatorship for Selma and although he failed trying the front door, like Daddy “J,” he’s going for the back door.

Dewayne Allday

Selma

If you have a different opinion than me, visit http://dewayne-allday.blogspot.com/2011/02/imho.html

Antonyms – Liberty (Freedom) is to Oppression as Real is to Fake

2010-08-09T17:05:00.000-07:00

Although I was born after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, graduating from a public school and spending my entire adult life working in Selma for the last twenty-two years, I have come to learn through books, magazines and word of mouth that there is no doubt Selma’s people, and especially it’s African-American people, have been oppressed in the past. Today, many of us, both Caucasian and African-American, have at some point been in one or more oppressive situations, although positively to a far lesser degree than pre-seventies or even pre-eighties. Realizing this, why do some of us continue to support organizations that exhibit oppressive behaviors and teachings? Personally I don’t see color, but I see heart, and the color of our hearts may be all the same, but the motives and size of our hearts are can be quite different, and especially when you combine hearts with wrong motives and big ambitions, we often find that oppression is not far behind.
Mark Duke was not the first self proclaimed “white savior”, yet cult leader of black people. Jim Jones, the charismatic, yet narcissistic leader of the People’s Temple cult claimed that official pedestal in the sixties and seventies, a much less popular title then, than now. Mark Duke was not the first cult leader who preached racial reconciliation either, or who tooted his horn about all the good works his organization was doing, nor the first cult leader to strategically market his organization in various ways. On top of all the press releases about their good works, Jim Jones received many awards from local governments and organizations in the cities which he and his cult resided. Also, Mark Duke was not the first cult leader who segregated his followers from their families and had them cut off communications with past so that they could dedicate all their time and talents towards “the cause” which was really “his cause”. Mark Duke was not the first narcissist who enjoyed the spotlight and wanted his picture taken with influential people and big-shot politicians. Jim had his picture taken with people of much higher political value than Duke ever has, including Walter Mondale, First Lady Rosalynn Carter, Governor Jerry Brown, Lieutenant Governor Mervyn Dymally, Angela Davis and so many others. Also realize that Mark isn’t the first cult leader who got very political and supported a candidate for mayor. Jim Jones is credited as playing a huge role in the election of George Moscone as Mayor of San Francisco. Who can argue with a guy who can bus in hundreds of volunteers to help run a campaign at the drop of a hat? I can.

I have read and heard Mark Duke’s words speaking of unity but I have also heard many of his “recorded” words that I am sure he now wishes had not been “leaked” to the public, words speaking of horrible things that would completely swing the support of any honest heart from having anything to do with him, his organizations or his subordinates. I completely agree with Joseph Rembert who recently wrote “that a picture of a black child eating watermelon is not as offensive as a white savior of black people (in his own mind) referring to black people as “darkies”. Well, if Mark Duke is so bold to oppress other local churches by calling their black visitors or members “darkies” because they attend a church that doesn’t cater to his organization or his opinion, what do you think he saying in private among his “flock”? Many of those recordings are not too far away if you know where to look, but sad to say, many times all you have to do is listen to him talk on the radio to hear the gospel of oppression.

And as for oppression, this group is oppressive as it gets. If you’re a veteran member of the group, try to have a different opinion about something and see what happens. If you’re not a member of the group and have a different opinion, or voice your opinion about the group, look out for them to try and discredit you, threaten to get you fired, call your name out on their radio or show up with a mob at your place of employment or at even at your personal residence. Let’s take this intimidation a little further and let your members legally carry guns by getting jobs with the Selma Police force or even go to FBI school so you can find out the source of those anonymous screen names that discuss the Freedom Foundation on the internet who happen to be anonymous because they are afraid some of those threats the Freedom Foundation made against them may come to fruition. Did someone mention fruits, something they keep harping on? Does not the Boy Scouts in our local area do more in a few months than the entire Freedom Foundation has done the entire time they have been here? Aren’t there many organizations and churches here in this city that do not toot their own horns, yet do far more than the Freedom Foundation has ever done, while doing it quietly, steadily, with real unity and hearts with a true love of Selma?

I have repeatedly read that when Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X died, they left virtually no money to their family because of their refusal to make a profit from their activism. When Duke moved his family to Peachtree City, Georgia, he bought a mansion in a rich gated community. He also still visits his mansion in Colorado. He almost weekly still visits Selma, sowing more seeds of division, intimidating local churches, businesses and individuals, before retreating back to his house on the hill where he watches his “flock”, many living in poverty and sub-standard conditions in communal housing fighting for “his” cause. Talk about freedom. I just can’t believe this “Beloved Communal” is what Martin Luther King Jr. was talking about, and while many of us sit back deciding whether or not we like the Freedom Foundation or not, they have an organized plan to get control of this city. While we sit back and watch, he is moving his pawns in place, silently trying and succeeding in getting veteran cult leaders in political offices and strategic places of employment all over Dallas County. Why is he doing that you ask? Let’s ask Mark Duke himself (caught on tape): “You know what I’m gonna do next year. I’m gonna run for mayor. Yeah, that's what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna run God's campaign. How are we going to get this town, unless I have the authority to get people, they don't want to come together. But with authority, they have to come together and they need someone to bring them together… I’m not running to win, I’m running because He told me to run… If I don’t do what God tells me to do, I’m not gonna have eternal life.” Sounds like force fed puke to me. Read his words carefully Selma, because in these words you will see his goals of an oppressive socialized dictatorship for Selma, and from these words, you will see how he uses religion to get his cult followers to bear fruit. After all, if they don’t do what God tells them to do, they will not have eternal life.

And as for the recent bridge dancing embarrassment, how do you feel about them sending a message to our youth that it’s perfectly alright to break the rules, disobey authorities, break promises and have temper tantrums when you don’t get your way? Is that what we want for our youth to arrogantly defy city government creating a sense of lawlessness in a city that already has enough lawlessness? Is it really necessary to bombard the Mayor and others of this City with protests and letters, wasting their time and others which could have been spent on making Selma a better place to live? Do you think you should feel special because you feel you are the first political candidate in history being supported by a cult? I wish we could ask George Moscone how special he feels about using cult members to help him in his campaign, especially since his name shows up just about every place you read about the destruction of the People’s Temple cult.

Oh yes, the bridge. Let’s ask Mark Duke what he thinks about that bridge in his own words: “There's a new day coming to Selma, let me tell you something, if it takes our blood on that bridge again, then they'll get our blood, but we ain't gonna stop - God is with us, he has anointed us, he has called us..." Again, listen to what he’s preaching. Listen to what he’s teaching these kids. Really Mark? Really Selma? Do we really need blood on that bridge again? Do we want you to see you taking pictures and marketing them on your websites so that you can profit off of this bridge and the people who were hurt on it? Do we want you to blaspheme the true leaders who were marching on that bridge with right and true motives on Bloody Sunday? No, we certainly do not.

Has anyone ever thought that maybe whoever created the names “Freedom Foundation”, “Real Talk”, and “House of God” used those words as a manipulative front, but the antonym of these words may actually be more applicable, such as the “Oppressive Foundation”, “Fake Talk”, and “House of the Deceiver”? I quote William Wordsworth, “Habit rules the unreflecting herd.” Shouldn’t we be reflecting on big tourist dollars and reflecting on things that will bring people to Selma to spend their money instead of making them run for cover or move away? How about that nice River Walk that will take advantage of this fine river and the beautiful views of the most famous bridge in the United States? How about building a nice voting rights museum within walking distance of the River Walk which the entire world can be proud of and people would love to pay $10 a ticket to get in and feel fulfilled when they walk out. How about let’s find some grant money and reinvest it in the storefronts of our downtown historic area. Let’s make Selma a great place so we can attract business’s, jobs, more citizens and tax dollars so that once again we can continue to keep our aging streets, storm, sewer and water mains properly maintained.
Selma, I beg of you. We have been losing population for years. This unity they talk about is not what some of you still think it is. They talk a big game in public, but it’s what they teach in private which we should be worried about. Let’s not lose any more Selmians only to be replaced with Colorado implants filling our job positions and our leadership positions which are vacant as people move away. Let us work together as brothers and sisters to make it so that when Selma makes the news, anyone who is anyone will want to come and visit because they are not only proud of the symbol of the bridge and what it stood for, but also because of the great places that same bridge continues to lead not only Selma, but more importantly the rest of the world in the future. Your city and that bridge could be a glorious beacon shining in a still sometimes dark and oppressive world. I am not saying that anyone should forget Bloody Sunday, no, never forget that day. I’m only saying that it is my hope for all of us to not forget where our path started, but more importantly to focus on where we want our paths to take us.

Joseph Rembert rightly said “I am hoping that we will not lose sight of the trees by overly focusing on the Forrest” and I say “I am hoping that we will not let the weeds overtake the garden.”

Dewayne Allday

If you have a different opinion than me, visit http://dewayne-allday.blogspot.com/2011/02/imho.html

Pondering

2010-08-06T06:21:00.000-07:00

If I question my own thoughts and actions as to what is right and what is just, then surely I will question everyone elses.

~Dewayne Allday

The Universe

2010-07-24T12:25:00.001-07:00

Some look up at the stars and see God. some see a universe, some see science, some dots. and some can't see past the end of the galaxy they call their nose

Free Thinkers

2010-07-24T12:24:00.000-07:00

We really need more non-complacent free thinkers in today's society.

Realism and Idealism

2010-07-24T12:23:00.001-07:00

You first must be able to visualize something before you can build what you desire, whether it's a house, business, relationship or a friendship. I'd put realism on the backburner to idealism any day!

Old Children

2010-07-24T12:12:00.000-07:00

It doesn't matter how old some people get, they will still have a childish two year old mentality.

Don't take it Personal

2010-07-24T12:09:00.002-07:00

When someone attacks you either slightly or viciously don't take it too personal because many times it's more about them than about you.

Stay out of Dog Fights

2010-07-24T12:09:00.000-07:00

Everyone who jumps into a dog fight must understand there is a chance of getting bitten by the dogs. Don't take getting bitten too personal (after all, you knew the risk), lick your wounds, and next time just stay out of it.

What Ails you?

2010-07-24T12:07:00.001-07:00

A smile and hug from your kids can fix all that ails you

Profit of Love

2010-07-24T12:05:00.001-07:00

Love beats profit any day of the week.

Falling Between the Cracks

2010-07-24T12:02:00.001-07:00

If we keep letting people fall between the cracks there will be noone left standing above the cracks to keep us from falling.

Crummy Day

2010-07-24T12:01:00.002-07:00

If you're having a crummy day, then quit eating the crumbs or better yet, dive right in but serve them with herbs and seasonings, olive oil and an occasional good bottle of wine.

Learn the Lanquage

2010-07-24T12:01:00.000-07:00

Life isn't easy; no one ever said it was, but I just wish with my entire heart that I could learn, comprehend, feel, speak and translate it's language, the language of life.

Earth Warming Theory

2010-07-14T06:14:00.000-07:00

Earth Warming Theory

By Dewayne Allday

July 14th, 2010

Depleting the Original Cooling System (Earth's)

This is not to be confused with mainstream theories of "Global Warming" and is not meant to take away from any of those theories, except where they may overlap. This is my original theory, to which I want it called the "Earth Warming Theory".

It is widely know that oil keeps a car running smooth and keeps it from overheating. What if oil, when in the earth’s surface, helps keep the earth running smooth, therefore, along with water, keeps it from overheating. We must keep in mind that the earth spins on an axis and has a lot of plate movement activity, and that the earth's core is very hot. We must also keep in mind that the earth is a great huge mass, turning, creating both internal and external heat as it spins on its axis. I will create an analogy and compare the Earth's cooling system with an automobile cooling system to help you easier understand some of the dynamics involved. In my mind, it only makes sense that the earth would have its own radiator (ocean), cooling jets (aquifers, rivers, streams) and oil to keep the earth running smoothly. Oil is under pressure, not needing an oil pump (example- the BP gulf oil spill is pumping thousands of gallons into the gulf without the aid of an oil pump due to what is called "head pressure"). Water is under pressure, not needing a water pump (example- artesian wells in some areas spill out thousands of gallons if not hundreds of millions of water because of the same "head pressure" concept). This being said, the earth's population is increasing exponentially like never in the history of mankind and our water aquifer reserves and oil reserves have all been tapped, some of which have been completely depleted. Even many of our artesian wells do not produce the gallons per minute (GPM) that they once did, or they don’t have enough “head” to produce the artesian affect at all anymore. Keeping that in mind, what happens when the earth's engine runs low on oil and its radiator is depleted of water by an increasing global population?

I believe it will run very rough with increased earthquake activity with larger earthquakes in general. If you ever have been around a vehicle which is worn out due to lack of oil, overheating, this will make more sense to you. I also strongly believe that the internal earth temperatures will increase from the increased friction, resulting in warming earth temperatures, the ice caps melting, ice and snow in general melting at an increased rate, resulting in more flooding and also increased droughts and more intense storms.

Basically what I am proposing is a global warming theory that is totally separate from any previous theories of global warming to date based off any greenhouse theory or discussion of reduced ozone in our atmosphere, even though it may appear that the theorized symptoms may overlap.

For millions of years oil lubricated the earth's interior surface and did not create heat, but instead actually helped eliminate heat through reducing heat producing friction. Yes, friction causes heat, not only in automobiles, but deep within our earth's surface, and on a lot larger scale. Now we have billions of little heaters driving around the planet (automobile exhaust pipes), and other heat producing sources putting heat in our atmosphere and using the very product (oil) which for years reduced heat, but is not producing heat in a non-direct way (by increased friction from being reduced in volume by oil drilling) and in a direct way (by being burned). So, not only will heat increase within the earth's surface because we are depleting our oil reserves, but the oil that was actually decreasing heat for many years because it was lubricating the earth, now is being used up and burned on the earth's surface and creating heat.

And people thought that Henry Ford created one of the first cooling systems in the United States. Personally, I just don't think old Henry was around when the original cooling system (the earths') was created.

To me, this is science combined with a little common sense. Prove me wrong.

Ecclesiastes 1:9-10 (New International Version)

9 What has been will be again,

what has been done will be done again;

there is nothing new under the sun.

10 Is there anything of which one can say,

"Look! This is something new"?

It was here already, long ago;

it was here before our time.

Idea to Stop the Gulf Oil Leak (Revised)

2010-05-30T10:51:00.000-07:00

Sunday, May 30th, 2010 (updated 12:47pm)
To whom it may concern:
My name is Dewayne Allday and I have come up with an idea, which I strongly believe will completely seal off the hole in the Gulf which is destroying our environment in the gulf region, tourism, local fishermen, ecological systems and eventually (if not already) damaging our economy and our reputation as a world leader. As a United States citizen, I hate this embarrassment to our country and also hate what this is doing to us in the eyes of the world, not to mention our envirornment and way of life, therefore I’ve been brainstorming on a solution and I really believe I have found one.
First of all, think "self inflatable raft" (like the ones they use in emergencies that blow up rather quickly), and then think "air bag". Now with those things in mind, try to visualize a golf ball in the middle of a water hose. What I want you to visualize is a round “bump” in the middle of the hose where the hard golf ball has pushed out the sides of the hose completely sealing off any traffic of water through the hose. Obviously it would be difficult getting a golf ball into the hose because it is bigger, but not so difficult to get something smaller than the golf ball, but that is inflatable, into the hose and filling the device with air (or water) until it expands up to a certain pressure (p.s.i.) and presses up against the inside walls of the hose. Now picture a device such as that pushed down into the hole drilled in the gulf floor. It can be done, even with oil pressure pushing “up” as long as the pressure pushing the device down is more. I questioned myself at first about getting such a device into the hole, by if they can successfully push a pipe into the hole (and I understand that the device may have more friction and be somewhat harder to push) then I truly believe a way can be investigated to push this device into the hole. Once this device is at the proper depth, lets assume 50 to 100 feet inside the hole, then big compressor(s) on boats above could be cut on to inflate the device and seal the hole. Once the device is inflated (remember the analogy of the golf ball inside the water hose pushing out the sides), there would be no pressure of oil flowing out of the hole and a more “permanent” fix could be implanted directly after (boats on call on the surface ready to pump concrete into the hole on top of the “plugged device”. I would suggest not pumping too much concrete at first until some of it sets up (because I’d be afraid to put too much weight on top of the “plug device” at first being worried it may burst, but after it is somewhat set up [the concrete] then I’d say “pump more concrete” at a pace until it is determined that the weight of the concrete is no longer affecting the “plug device”, and then I’d say “filler up” (no pun intended BP). If air will not work because of the depth, then surely water or concrete will. Another idea would to pump neither air or water in the "plug device" and fill the "plug device" with concrete instead, therefore "potentially" eliminating the final step of placing concrete on top of the device. In this instance, the device would contain the concrete and keep it from being "blown" back up by the well as in the previous idea of just pumping non-contained concrete into the well.

I am sure there have been many suggestions which did not work, but the methods I have heard and read about thus far never made any sense to me and I never thought they would work. I truthfully believe this method would work and also in the future this technology could be in place and more “plug devices” built and sitting “on call” just in case this event ever happened again.
The only thoughts I have which would make this method ineffective in this situation and need futher review to insure the success of the project and future successes to save our environment, economy and way of life in the future would be following:
1. Insure the material used for the “plug device” is much stronger than traditional airbags or rafts so that pressure can build up to a large p.s.i. without the device being severed by rocks or overinflating.
2. Determine the “pressure” of the oil coming out of the hole, the diameter of the hole (all of this should be readily available knowledge from BP oil or others) and make sure the device used to lower it into the hole is greater and that the device can hold up to the pressure.
3. Insure the compressors are large enough to inflate the device and hold the pressure over a sustained period of time. I do realize that one mile is a long way for an air hose, but it should still work if the hoses are the proper size and all connections air tight.
4. If the pressure is too great because of the depth of the “air bag” (engineers should be able to determine this) then just pump “water” into the bag instead.
5. As I mentioned above, there is the possibility of pumping water and even concrete straight into the device which will then harden for a more permanent fix. More concrete can still be installed on top of the air/water/concrete filled "plug device" once the leak is plugged.

This is not really an original concept. When replacing sewer systems the sewer first has to be bypassed while the new sewer lines are installed. To do this, a plastic/rubber ball is inserted into the large sewer pipes with an air hose attached and air installed until the ball inflates and completely seals off the flow of sewer downstream and the sewer from upstream is then bypassed around the new work.
Also, there is a device that plumbers use which is inserted into a drain pipe with a water hose connected to it which “inflates” inside the pipe completely sealing it off and at the same time pushing fresh water through allowing pressure to build up on the clog downstream until the pressure builds up enough to break loose the clog and at that time the water hose is turned off, the ”device” deflates and then pulled out of the pipe.]
I truly believe this will work, and I am available to meet with any group interested in hearing my opinion and thoughts during the process. I worked in civil engineering for sixteen years and have been a home builder for the last four years.
Warm regards,
Dewayne Allday
http://www.alldayprestigehomes.com/
334-414-0514
P.O. Box 1287
Selma Alabama 36702

Idea to Stop the BP Gulf Oil Leak

2010-05-30T10:36:00.000-07:00

Sunday, May 30th, 2010

To whom it may concern:

My name is Dewayne Allday and I have come up with an idea, which I strongly believe will completely seal off the hole in the Gulf which is destroying our environment in the gulf region, tourism, local fishermen, ecological systems and eventually (if not already) damaging our economy and our reputation as a world leader. As a United States citizen, I hate this embarrassment to our country and also hate what this is doing to us in the eyes of the world, not to mention our envirornment and way of life, therefore I’ve been brainstorming on a solution and I really believe I have found one.

First of all, think "self inflatable raft" (like the ones they use in emergencies that blow up rather quickly), and then think "air bag". Now with those things in mind, try to visualize a golf ball in the middle of a water hose. What I want you to visualize is a round “bump” in the middle of the hose where the hard golf ball has pushed out the sides of the hose completely sealing off any traffic of water through the hose. Obviously it would be difficult getting a golf ball into the hose because it is bigger, but not so difficult to get something smaller than the golf ball, but that is inflatable, into the hose and filling the device with air (or water) until it expands up to a certain pressure (p.s.i.) and presses up against the inside walls of the hose. Now picture a device such as that pushed down into the hole drilled in the gulf floor. It can be done, even with oil pressure pushing “up” as long as the pressure pushing the device down is more. I questioned myself at first about getting such a device into the hole, by if they can successfully push a pipe into the hole (and I understand that the device may have more friction and be somewhat harder to push) then I truly believe a way can be investigated to push this device into the hole. Once this device is at the proper depth, lets assume 50 to 100 feet inside the hole, then big compressor(s) on boats above could be cut on to inflate the device and seal the hole. Once the device is inflated (remember the analogy of the golf ball inside the water hose pushing out the sides), there would be no pressure of oil flowing out of the hole and a more “permanent” fix could be implanted directly after (boats on call on the surface ready to pump concrete into the hole on top of the “plugged device”. I would suggest not pumping too much concrete at first until some of it sets up (because I’d be afraid to put too much weight on top of the “plug device” at first being worried it may burst, but after it is somewhat set up [the concrete] then I’d say “pump more concrete” at a pace until it is determined that the weight of the concrete is no longer affecting the “plug device”, and then I’d say “filler up” (no pun intended BP).
I am sure there have been many suggestions which did not work, but the methods I have heard and read about thus far never made any sense to me and I never thought they would work. I truthfully believe this method would work and also in the future this technology could be in place and more “plug devices” built and sitting “on call” just in case this event ever happened again.

The only thoughts I have which would make this method ineffective in this situation and need futher review to insure the success of the project and future successes to save our environment, economy and way of life in the future would be following:

1. Insure the material used for the “plug device” is much stronger than traditional airbags or rafts so that pressure can build up to a large p.s.i. without the device being severed by rocks or overinflating.

2. Determine the “pressure” of the oil coming out of the hole, the diameter of the hole (all of this should be readily available knowledge from BP oil or others) and make sure the device used to lower it into the hole is greater and that the device can hold up to the pressure.

3. Insure the compressors are large enough to inflate the device and hold the pressure over a sustained period of time. I do realize that one mile is a long way for an air hose, but it should still work if the hoses are the proper size and all connections air tight.

4. If the pressure is too great because of the depth of the “air bag” (engineers should be able to determine this) then just pump “water” into the bag instead.
This is not really an original concept. When replacing sewer systems the sewer first has to be bypassed while the new sewer lines are installed. To do this, a plastic/rubber ball is inserted into the large sewer pipes with an air hose attached and air installed until the ball inflates and completely seals off the flow of sewer downstream and the sewer from upstream is then bypassed around the new work.

Also, there is a device that plumbers use which is inserted into a drain pipe with a water hose connected to it which “inflates” inside the pipe completely sealing it off and at the same time pushing fresh water through allowing pressure to build up on the clog downstream until the pressure builds up enough to break loose the clog and at that time the water hose is turned off, the ”device” deflates and then pulled out of the pipe.

I truly believe this will work, and I am available to meet with any group interested in hearing my opinion and thoughts during the process. I worked in engineering for 16 years and have been a home builder for the last four years.

Warm regards,
Dewayne Allday
http://www.alldayprestigehomes.com/
334-414-0514
P.O. Box 1287
Selma Alabama 36702

Dominican Republic Day One

2010-03-18T18:52:00.001-07:00

Cross-roads

2010-03-01T20:00:00.000-08:00

Some of the most intense moments in life are when we are standing at a fork in the road, whether a friend is standing there with us or not. It's forever life altering moments like these that deserve our cognizance, recognized for what it is while demanding our utmost respect. It’s times like these when our mind, our heart and our ethics must reconcile together and spend quality time together. Whether standing there with a friend or standing alone, we are the ones that must live with our decision and sometimes in life the most beautiful road to be on is the one that is not dependant on anything or anyone but our faith in ourselves and in God.

Wasted Pleasures

2010-02-19T21:48:00.000-08:00

by Dewayne Allday

February 19, 2010

If a tree falls in the woods

and someone wasn't there to hear,

do you think it made a noise?

If a sweet plum falls from a tree

and someone wasn't there to taste,

isn't that a waste?

If a strawberry ripens near the ground

and noone's there to be it found

my God a waste it is.

If a grape falls from the vine,

never to make it into wine

and a peach drops from it's branch

and it looks up and says

"I missed my dance".

So let's make sure

we don't miss our chance,

not rot, not waste.

We all just want

a little taste.

We all just want

to not be waste.

Fallen Rainbow

2010-02-19T21:20:00.000-08:00

by Dewayne Allday

2009

From the heavens a majestic

image suspended from the clouds,

dropping color, giving substance

to my heart on the sound

of a whisper that lingers alone

near my ears, in my soul,

calming the quandry of tears,

settling to rest the angelic fears,

that have been gone,

since that last song was sung,

when the dialog was born,

and the war was won.

Mounting the Mount

2010-02-19T21:17:00.000-08:00

by Dewayne Allday

2009

My minds a swirl,

a mirey murl,

a thousand gates

that flood my world.

I climb the mount

and look about;

amongst the sane,

where is Dewayne?

Up on the ice I place my pick,

my sunglasses contain the glare

I think.

My rope, my harness, my wits

hold firm; my safety

doesn't make me squirm.

It's cold my dear, my fearless queen,

no thoughts of where I am or been.

The ice runs deep inside my veins,

but the blood my heart

pumps is all a flame.

Can it, will it, might it melt it,

can it, kill it, or maybe tame it,

the ice monster in my veins?

Can that beast be contained,

the warmth and cold

doth wax and wane?

What do I know, for now I climb

and endure the pain;

Until that day I mount the mount,

until that day it's all explained;

and once on top,

I'll stand my ground,

I'll plant my flag,

and trust my warmth

will melt the snow

and mine eyes will bring forth

tears that overflow the valleys

down below.

I'll dance around a love so pure,

a song will serenade my heart and show

that all the while with pain's a gain,

it's worth the time, that mountain mile.

For this I know, my heart does show.

For this I know, my heart does show,

and this place I want to go,

and this place I want to know.

Wind and Ashes

2010-02-19T21:05:00.000-08:00

by Dewayne Allday

2009

When want meets want

and like meets like;

When desire meets desire

and the ashes explode into fire,

I just want to know

what the winds gonna blow,

where the song's gonna fall

when my destiny calls;

and the wind's knocking at my door

every day, every hour, every minute,

keeping me going 'til I'm finished

with this race, in this place,

in this little space I call my corner

of the universe,

a big bang I can hang

my hat on and be

justified through my tears,

through my eyes,

til the end, til the beginning,

forever singing my song.

Facebook Status Haiti

2010-02-19T10:14:00.000-08:00

January 16, 2010 - Shortly After watching news about Haiti

Facebook Comment - "I wish I could just leave and go to Haiti"

January 28, 2010 - Left for Haiti

God's Promise

2010-02-19T10:10:00.001-08:00

January 17, 2010

It's a new day. We always trust even when there's no other consistency in life that the sun will rise, so always look and greet it in the morning and say "Thank-you God for that promise"

-Dewayne Allday

Decisions

2010-02-19T10:06:00.001-08:00

January 19, 2010

There is a lot of strength in making a decision, even though it may not be the right decision, at some point, there will be a right decision that will be life moving.

- Dewayne Allday

Second Chances

2010-02-19T09:59:00.000-08:00

February 12, 2010

Sometimes you get a second chance in life, sometimes a third chance, sometimes a forth. Here's a toast to the third or more chances in life!!

- Dewayne Allday

Gifts

2010-02-19T09:56:00.000-08:00

February 16, 2010

If you have a gift, give it, otherwise what's the fun of having it?

- Dewayne Allday

Sparrows Fly and Water Falls

2010-02-18T20:16:00.000-08:00

By Dewayne Allday

February 18, 2010

A sparrow fell from the sky one day

and stood beside a waterfall.

The sky was grey that day, I say,

And night was on its weary way.

The sparrow knew the night was coming,

And the sparrow’s heart was really longing

For a friend to share the pain, to make again,

To fly the skies, and over sea, and over land.

The water fell, and fell and fell

And the sparrow said, “oh my goodness, well,

If the waterfall, falls, and falls, and falls

And I know God designed it, all in all,

Oh gracious me, oh gracious my,

My God designed me to fly”. So I pondered why and

I questioned Him, and God kissed my heart and said,

“It’s okay to feel again, to fly again, to smile again.

It’s okay to love again, and I’ll tell you something else:

Appreciate the waterfall for what it is, forever falls,

Appreciate the rocks abound and the streams around,

They talk as if in dialog, with the winds, the trees,

The living leaves whispering in your ear my dear,

As if to tell you what you know, a heart so pure,

Must fly again, I only gave you legs, so you could land, but

I gave you song, so you can sing, I gave you eyes, so you can see,

And I gave you heart, so that you can fly,

and your wings are just their alibi.

Beside a rock across the stream there sits

Someone, something, a bird no less, watching

Sunlight glisten through the mist as the water fell,

And I was thinking, “Well. Patience doesn’t love

A lonely heart, two hearts apart, two spirits kindred,

Separated by a stream in spring, where the water falls,

but I know that sparrows were designed to fly,

and I know this day, that I will start working

on this heart of mine. I desire to fly, not walk, or sit

Or talk for very long. I’m designed to sing of flight,

not sadness blight, nor strings or kites,

because I know she’s there, my heart it tells

me faith and love go hand in hand.

And they both got their heart that day,

And now the water fall was in their way,

So both birds took flight into the sky,

And, seeing each other, said “Hi”.

God said, “This time I reached down and helped you up,

And next time you’ll share each other’s cup,

And when one is empty, the other fills,

And you both will understand that water falls

and sparrows fly, and flying is your destiny.”

The Tree

2010-02-18T20:12:00.000-08:00

November 26th, 2007

by Dewayne Allday

Once there was a tree

dwelling there for me to see.

Up on a hill it took its stand,

From it’s high limbs you see the land.

It’s branches wide to hold me tight,

It’s limbs so soft to touch me light.

The roots were firm, implanted deep

Without that tree, it makes me weep.

The wind will come from far and wide

The force is strong, the ocean’s tide,

I cannot see, I cannot be

Without that tree right next to me.

When it’s dark, oh when it rains

I cannot seem to much complain,

The limbs explode in bright menu

as a million flowers long to do,

Those colors swarm me into the air,

A smell none other can compare.

They spin me up and all around

But then they ….Gently let me down.

Oh tree, my tree, how I miss you dear

We’ve known each other from ages past

You know old friend it's made to last.

Remembered today, forgotten yesterday

Me you, and you me, a mirror in a melody.