Tuesday
OUR CONFIDENCE CRISIS
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THIS WEEK'S EDITORIAL COMMENT: In last week's issue of this
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LAST WEEK WE SPOKE OF OUR LEADERSHIP VACUUM;
THIS WEEK WE DISCUSS OUR CONFIDENCE CRISIS
Important as it may be, there is not time or space for us to discuss this
problem in extended detail. Just a few examples, however, will
indicate the extent of the Confidence Crisis which exists with respect
to the American public's trust of Barack Hussein Obama. A recent
Washington Post/ABC News poll disclosed that nearly 60% of the
American voters have lost faith in President Obama. This is an almost
exact reversal of the voters' opinion of Obama at the start of his
presidency, when about 60% expressed confidence in his decision
making. In slightly more detail, Rasmussen Polls reported on the
reaction to his State of the Union speech where his statements on
cutting taxes were believed by only 21%, with 51% indicating they
did not believe him. On his statements about putting people back to
work, 27% believed him, with 51% not believing him. And with
respect to his statements about growth in the economy, only 35%
believed him. while 50% did not.
This widely prevailing opinion prompted Joseph Farah, of World Net
Daily, to comment: "Every poll shows the same thing. Americans don't
believe Barack Obama. They don't believe him on health care. They
don't believe him on the economy. And they don't believe him on his
own birth story." (On that last point, he was obviously referring to the
recent CNN poll which disclosed that only 42% of the American people
are definitely sure that he was born in the United States. However, that
is a subject concerning which we may never know the truth.)
But there is another statement with broader outreach which he continues
to make, always in just about the same words (demonstrating that he is
truly locked in to the use of the teleprompter). On Aug. 13 at the White
House dinner honoring the Islamic observance of the month of Ramadan,
Mr. Obama said, "Here in the United States, Ramadan is a reminder
that Islam has always been part of America, and that Muslims have
made extraordinary contributions to our country." (Just one hasty note:
the first one that comes to mind occurred on 9/11.)
During his "Apologize for America" tour in April, 2009, in his major
addresses to Muslim audiences in Turkey and Egypt, he used those
familiar words (that ever-present teleprompter!), plus a few which
have appeared in other speeches: "I know, too, that Islam has always
been part of America's story. . . Since our founding, American
Muslims have enriched the United States. They have fought in our
wars, served in government . . . etc."
"Always been part of America . . . fought in our wars . . .?" Let's do
the unthinkable, Mr. Obama, and look at the facts. (1) There were no
Muslims on the Mayflower or among the settlers in Jamestown; (2)
There is no record of any Muslims in the Revolutionary army under
George Washington; (3) No Muslims signed or participated in the
development of the Declaration of Independence or the Constitution;
(4) There is no record of any Muslims in the armies of the North or the
South in the Civil War; (5) There is no record of any American Muslims
among the U.S. soldiers in World War I; (6) No Muslims of record
served in the U.S. military in World War II, or the Korean conflict.
And as for Muslims serving in government -- that has to have been very
recent; the first Muslim was not elected to Congress until 2008.
So much for Mr. Obama's view of the contributions to America by
Muslims. It is one further evidence of the Confidence Crisis which has
been developed between Americans and the present American president.
He just isn't believed.
In the past few days, another example of that Confidence Crisis has
been much in the news, as a result of a Pew Forum survey concerning
the president's religious affiliation -- specifically, is he perceived to be
a Muslim or a Christian? Obama has never been particularly clear on
this subject. He has often made the statement, "I am a Christian," but
in close context he has spoken of "my Muslim faith," and has often
referred very reverently to the teachings of "the Holy Koran," but has
seldom quoted from the Bible. He has not denied the statements of
Ahmed Abul Gheit, the Foreign Minister of Egypt, who spoke on Nile
TV and affirmed that Obama had assured him that he is a Muslim, and
is loyal to the Muslim agenda.
The Pew Survey, conducted between July 1 - August 5, disclosed that
among Americans, 18% consider him to be a Muslim -- up from 11%
in a similar survey a year ago. In 2009, 51% thought he was a Christian
-- a figure which dropped to 34% in the current survey. Additionally,
43% of Americans are not sure as to his religious beliefs. That survey
was undertaken before Obama's perceived stand in favor of the Islam
mosque. A Time magazine survey conducted after his mosque statement
disclosed that 24% of Americans consider him to be a Muslim.
The White House released a statement affirming that he is a Christian,
but said that he doesn't wear his faith on his sleeve. (That certainly is
true!) And some nominal "Evangelicals" have expressed their opinion
that he is a Christian. Included among those who express that viewpoint
is Franklin Graham, who is one who understands what it means to be a
true Christian believer. Graham said, "Now it's obvious that the
president has renounced the prophet Mohammed and he has
renounced Islam and has accepted Jesus Christ. That is what he says
he has done. I cannot say that he hasn't. So I have to believe that the
president is what he has said." One might be inclined to remind Mr.
Graham of the oft quoted comment by Ralph Waldo Emerson: "What you
do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say."
To conclude, and get on with other comments: The conclusion is
obvious; President Obama has lost the trust and confidence of the
American people -- if, indeed, he ever really had them. "Conservative
Outpost" writer, Skip MacLure, expressed the concern felt by most of
the nation: "I have long held the belief that Obama has far more than
simple politics going on. His several world tours, belittling the United
States of America in front of people who shouldn't be allowed to say
the name America. His toadying appeasement. His obvious favoring
of Islam over our proven allies... Obama's actions speak louder than
words." He is right, of course. The president is out of touch with the
American people -- he is, as one writer put it, "aloof." He has produced
a Crisis of Confidence. The steady -- even plunging -- decline in the
many job approval polls give solid proof that the nation is losing
confidence in its elected leader.
There is no point in presenting a problem without offering a solution.
When our military forces face a combat situation, each branch addresses
their part in the conflict in a different way -- the Army in its way; the
Navy in its way, etc. So it is in facing the national problems before us --
we, as Christians, must address the problems in our way: (1) First, we can
pray. We can ask God to give wisdom to our leaders so they may make
the right decisions for our nation. (To join with other Christians in a nation
wide fellowship of prayer, go to: www.leadingtheway.org) (2) Second,
we can tell our Representatives and Senators what we want them to do,
how we want them to vote. Simply call the Capitol switchboard at
(202) 224-3121 and ask to speak to the office of your Representative or
your Senators. (3) Third, we must vote. Election Day, Nov. 2, is now just
69 days from today. There are enough of us -- more than enough -- to turn
this country around by electing new members to both houses of Congress --
but nothing will be accomplished if we do not vote! It does no good to
complain about what is happening to America if we do not exercise our
right to vote and to reshape our government.
An interesting message from one of our readers, received by email this
week: "I have often wondered why it is that Conservatives are called
the 'right,' and Liberals are called the 'left.' By chance I stumbled on
this verse in the Bible, Ecclesiastes 10:2 (NIV): 'The heart of the wise
inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left.'" Our reader
has "stumbled" upon a distinction which the Bible, the Word of God,
makes clear. Here, and in Psalm 14:1, the Bible describes Atheists (and
Liberals) as "fools" That is why we do not give any credence to their
pronouncements. Nor should you.
We can always learn something from "What Others Are Saying."
Robert W. Tracinski (Editor, The Intellectual Activist): "Islam is
the world's worst religion, the only creed founded by a brigand and a
tyrant, a religion created by and for criminals. But only a minority of
Muslims allow themselves to fully understand, embrace and act upon
the vicious basis of their creed. And only a minority of that minority
do so in a way that is a threat to the United States. (The rest pick their
victims closer to home, like their wives and daughters.)"
Gary Bauer (End of Day): "It's been a busy few weeks for President
Obama. He's declared war on Arizona over its efforts to enforce our
immigration laws, and he jumped into a fight with two-thirds of the
American people who oppose the Ground Zero mosque. After all that
hard work, Barack Obama is taking a break and going on vacation to
the elite getaway of Martha's Vineyard. While the president is
playing golf and enjoying the beach, his 'Summer of Recovery' tour
bus crashed and burned after today's announcement that weekly
claims for unemployment benefits 'unexpectedly jumped' to 500,000
-- the highest total in nine months."
Mat Staver (Liberty Counsel): "A majority of Americans have
stopped listening to President Obama's political rhetoric and are now
looking only at the hard facts. The result: his highest disapproval
ratings to date. 'We the people' are rejecting the dictates of this
imperial presidency, and are making our voices heard."
Linda Chavez (New York Post): "His supporters are puzzled at
President Obama's slip in popularity. They're racking their brains
to explain now a man who swept into the Oval Office on a tide of
good will could have fallen so low. Recent polls say most Americans
now disapprove of the job Obama is doing. That's a dramatic change
from his early months in office when he held a 2 to 1 advantage in
the approval ratings."
Newt Gingrich: "The use of food stamps hit a record hgh in May,
2010, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with 40.8
million Americans receiving Supplemental Nutritional Assistance
Program (SNAP) subsidies for food purchases. This is more than one
eighth of the population. Worse, the USDA projects the number of
Americans using food stamps will rise to 43.3 million in 2011.
President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats are insisting that
the economy has turned the corner and things are getting better. But
\how can the economy be getting better if the use of food stamps, a key
metric in guaging the health of the American economy, is projected to
increase over the next year?"
Just a few Random Afterthoughts . . .
Purely on the speculation that Obama might decide to be a one-term
president, Tony Hamden, writing in the on-line version of the London
Telegraph newspaper: "It seems highly unlikely that Obama will
decide not to run in 2012. But he might well be calculating that
embarking on a post-presidential role as the leading global thinker in
the post-American world as a Republican successor enters office, is
more attractive than being sullied by the political compromises and
manoeuverings necessary to win."
And to continue along the speculation line, for what it's worth, Hillary
Clinton's name is still in the thinking of many Democrats. This despite
her denial of any presidential campaign aspirations for 2012. A Synovate-
eNation poll conducted in July showed that 61% of those polled prefer
Clinton as the Democrat candidate in 2012. And a Rasmussen poll just
released this week reveals that 48% of Americans consider Obama's
political positions as "extreme," and 42% consider him to represent the
"mainstream" of American thought. Clinton's views were considered to
be "extreme" by only 35%, while 51% consider her to be "mainstream."
There is still the possibility of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, and this
is too important a subject to overlook. With the next round of talks set
tentatvely to begin in Washington on Sept. 2, George Friedman, writing
in Stratfor Global Intelligence, comments that neither party is eager for
the talks for the deeper reason that there have been so many "peace talks"
between the two sides, and so many failures, that it is difficult for any
rational person to see much hope in them. He explains: "They are taking
place because the United States ... wants a peace process, preferably
a long one, designed to put off the day when it fails ...This will allow
the United States to appear to be deeply committed to peace and to
publicly pressure the Israelis, which will be of some minor use in U.S.
efforts to manipulate the rest of the region. But it will not solve
anything. Nor is it intended to ...The fact right now is that all of the
players prefer the status quo to the risks of the future."
That divisive concept of "separation of church and state" has raised
its ugly head again. (One wonders when the concept of "separation of
mosque and state" will appear?) The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals has
ruled the 14 crosses on Utah highways, marking the spots where Utah State
Troopers were killed in the line of duty are "unconstitutional" and must
be removed. The decision of the Court is that it is wrong to have a cross
mark the place where the Troopers were killed because it is on public
property. But that is where the men were killed, on public propertry, along
some road, somewhere in the state. They didn't choose to die alongside a
highway for some religious purpose. But that is where they died. The
crosses, bearing the names of the men they honor, were erected by the Utah
Highway Patrol Association, a private group, not part of state government.
They were not paid for by the state, or authorized by the state. But the
problem raised by some atheistic activists is that these deaths occurred
alongside a public road. How honoring those men by these simple
memorials of their sacrifice is a promotion of religion goes beyond logic
or reason -- but the Bible explains this underlying fact: "The fool has
said in his heart, There is no God." (Psalm 14:1) Once again the Court
has sided with fools. One hopes that those atheists, their lawyer and the
judges in the Court never need assistance or protection from Utah State
Troopers.
On the matter of the Ground Zero mosque. Although that is no longer
the politically correct name -- according to various elements of the media,
it is now to be referred to as the "New York City Mosque," and the words
"Ground Zero" are not to be used in referring to the mosque -- even though
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the chief organizer of the project has always
referred to it by using the term "Ground Zero." Rauf is currently on his
international fund raising tour among Muslim nations, a trip paid for by
U.S. taxpayers' dollars -- because the "separation of mosque and state"
apparently does not interfere if the religion being promoted is Islam. This
mosque subject will not soon be concluded . . . we will have more to say
as time goes on.
It is always beneficial to learn from our Founding Fathers . . .
"The only foundation of a free Constitution, is pure Virtue, and if this
cannot be inspired into our People, in a great Measure, than they have it
now. They may change their Rulers, and the forms of Government, but
they will not obtain a lasting Liberty." -- John Adams, 1776
"No country upon earth ever had it more in its power to attain these
blessings than United America. Wondrously strange, then, and much to
be regretted indeed, would it be, were we to neglect the means and to
depart from the road which Providence has pointed us to so plainly.
I cannot believe it will ever come to pass." -- George Washington, 1788
"Without morals a republic cannot subsist any length of time; they,
therefore who are decrying the Christian religion, whose morality is so
sublime and pure ... are undermining the solid foundation of morals,
the best security for the duration of free governments."
-- Charles Carroll, 1800
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