Guns in the US

On December 14, 2011 ABC News reported that billions of dollars of weapons are sold online, many without paperwork (background checks) and taxes. Investigators shopped at 10 websites where buyers could choose out of 25,000 listings and 62% of the time guns were sold to people who said they probably couldn’t pass the background check. New York’s Mayor Bloomberg is leading the crackdown; he wants the federal government to change the laws as he agreed with ABC’s correspondent that buying a gun online is like buying a toaster. Online purchases are probably part of the reason for 68% of the guns seized in Mexico since 2006 came from the US (reported on April 27, 2012). I know the US Constitution says we have the right to bear arms but the intent was for protection; not for us to go around killing one another for no good reason. There is a place and a purpose for guns; I own a shot gun for killing rattlesnakes. Outside Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on New Year’s Eve, 2 intruders (one had been stalking her, one had a 12 inch hunting knife) broke into the home of an 18 year old mom protecting her 3 month old son; she shot and killed one intruder while on the phone with 911, the other turned himself in; she was home alone because her husband died of cancer on Christmas day. It was reported that 30 states have what they call a Castle doctrine or Stand Your Ground law where you’re allowed to shoot/kill an intruder or use deadly force if you feel threatened; the other states say you’re supposed to try and retreat (get away) before using force. Here are some of the stories that have been in the news the past few months:

At a San Francisco 49ers game 2 people were shot in the parking lot; there were shootings at Texas (TX) and central Florida (FL) birthday parties as well as a low rider car show in suburban Seattle; a California (CA) man killed his business partner to avoid paying a million dollar debt; at an IHOP in Carson City, Nevada a man with a rifle injured 5 people and killed 5 (three national guards attending a breakfast meeting and another person before killing himself); a FL man killed his wife and shot 2 pastors in the back while they were praying; October 6, 2011 a disgruntled cement company employee in Cupertino, CA killed 3 co-workers and wounded 7 others because he was moved to the night shift; October 13 a custody dispute resulted in an ex-husband with a bullet proof vest killing at least 8 and wounding one in a Seal Beach, CA hair salon; October 25 a North Carolina teen was shot by 2 teens (15 & 18); November 25 the University of Illinois’ Medical Center was shut down when a man shot his ex-girlfriend in the parking lot; December 12 in Broward County, FL a grandmother shot her son-in-law when he tried to pick up his son; December 13-2 teens playing basketball at a middle school were shot in a rural area near Brownsville, TX; December 15 a wealthy couple was gunned down in their Andover, Massachusetts mansion; December 17 in a CA office 3 dead, 2 wounded; 5 were killed in an Illinois small town; December 20 an Ohio (OH) Amish teen driving a horse and buggy and was shot and killed; a Marine who returned from the wars was shot during a robbery right before XMAS; December 25, after surviving a bombing in Afghanistan, a CA soldier was shot and left paralyzed at this homecoming party; December 26 a murder-suicide took the lives of a family of 7 in a Fort Worth, TX suburb; December 28 at least 2 were killed in a shooting at a Chicago fast-food restaurant; January 11 at an affluent gated community in Tampa, FL a doctor and his wife were found dead; January 28-8 sea lions protected by law were found shot to death along the Washington State coast; February 9 police said a FaceBook fight was the motive in the murder of a Tennessee couple; there was a murder-suicide at a health spa in Norcoss, Georgia that killed 5, the shooter was arguing with one of the victims before he opened fire. February 23 an 8 year old Bremerton, Washington boy brought a gun to school in his backpack and a girl is accidentally shot; an employee shoots 2 supervisors at a Connecticut hospital; February 27 in Chardon, OH 3 students were killed and 2 wounded when a boy opens fire inside the high school cafeteria; March 2 an Arizona man fired a rifle during a high school baseball game, 1 was injured; March 7 a fired Jacksonville, FL teacher gunned down the school administrator; April 13-3 people were killed at a Cracker Barrel restaurant in OH; and April 23 a pastor’s mother and another person were shot dead outside a Colorado church.

These are not all of what I heard. Every day we hear of some killing like that of FL’s unarmed Trayvon Martin by neighborhood watch Zimmerman. We can’t fix this situation when Virginia (February 29) repealed the law that limited hand gun purchases to one a month or a Colorado court (March 6) allows students to carry guns on campus. Good people do not kill one another for greed, misplaced anger or sport.

Privacy v Gossip

Many people are so paranoid that they think there is some kind of conspiracy on the part of the government. On February 15, 2012 we learned that unmanned drones are now being used by law enforcement in order to assist in surveillance and arrests which further fueled the theories. We also heard that drones are being used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to watch glaciers and they have spread to non government users like real estate agencies. The sale of drones to private entities has the Airline Pilot Association concerned if it gets out of hand and they get in the way of flights.

It fascinates me that people want their privacy. On March 13, 2012 I heard a 12 year old girl was suing her school for demanding her FaceBook password because she posted negative comments about a hall monitor; we want the schools to stop bullies but keep their hands tied. And apparently some employers, including the federal government and colleges are asking for the passwords before they hire or allow students admittance; it was pointed out that parents don’t even have legal access to their kid’s passwords. Some say reading the FaceBook page is like reading a diary while others say FaceBook or any internet site is public information and others say if someone’s information is protected (limited to who sees it and who the person communicates with) that it’s private information. With all the crazies out there we must remember that Craig’s List has helped murderers find victims, the social network (internet) is used to brainwash or bully people, support human trafficking (on April 4 the UN reported that 2.4 million people are victims of human trafficking), help sex offenders find young children and stalkers to find their prey. On December 15, 2011 we heard a Judge wouldn’t issue Selena Gomez a permanent (3 year) restraining order (she has letters from the stalker saying that God told him to kill her) until after he heard from her stalker on January 6th; there is a temporary order in place and the stalker has admitted to the stalking and agrees with Selena that he can’t stop himself; he’s on a psychiatric hold as he has a history of stalking people – the point here is the girl should be made to feel safe, not the predator; the judge did extend the temporary restraining order. On April 23 President Obama signed an Executive Order allowing US sanctions against nations using the social network or cell phone technology to carry out civil rights abuses. So, I’m not sure we want to continue with touting the US Constitution and privacy rights to allow criminals to continue with their horrid ways.

Apparently the average person doesn’t think celebrities are entitled to their privacy. And Americans are not the only ones obsessed with celebrity’s lives and keep tabloids and reality shows around the world alive while real newspapers go under. On January 28, 2011 on the View it was pointed out that we’re so consumed with gossip that there’s a book outing stars as Gay or Bisexual. And I don’t think that 911 calls by celebrities should be public information as they may hesitate to call and the failure to call could cost them their lives. This obsession is why we have paparazzi chasing people causing accidents, tabloids making false accusations and the scandal involving Rupert Murdoch, owner of the tabloid News of the World, Fox News and the Wall Street Journal. I don’t know why anyone is surprised about phone hacking, reporters going to any length to get a story, bribes to law enforcement for scoops or politicians turning a blind eye to a situation when there are big bucks involved. If you didn’t want the gossip these things wouldn’t happen. I find this behavior offensive as everyone has a right to some privacy but I’m sure this industry knows interviews and photo shoots won’t soothe the gossip beast. I found it disgusting that Charlotte Church at age 13 was asked to sing at a wedding – her offer was the usual (negative) or positive press. On January 19 I heard that Rupert Murdoch’s News International settled with 36 high profile people in the phone hacking scandal and just recently although he did none of the acts personally he was accepting responsibility for what his staff did.

The need for gossip should not override a person’s right to privacy and I think we’re lackadaisical when it comes to the paparazzi. I also think if you have nothing to hide it shouldn’t matter if the government, the schools or parents have your password or if there’s a drone in your neighborhood.  

Autism

There’s been a lot of talk about Autism; April 2 was World Autism Awareness Day. In 2011 we heard anywhere from 1 in 38 and 1 in 150 people showed signs of Autism. Parents blamed vaccinations (on November 28, 2011 the Associated Press said 1 in 20 kindergarten kids are not vaccinated), and food (tried gluten free-removed wheat-diets), and added oxygen as well as tried medical marijuana to help their children function. Doctors got upset and some said if parents do not get their children vaccinated, they’ll have to seek medical help elsewhere and parents felt that the American Academy of Pediatrics needed to be more compassionate instead of taking such a steadfast stand that vaccinations don’t cause Autism. The National Academy for Sciences came out saying it concluded that vaccines are generally safe for most people and dismissed concerns that they are linked to Autism. We know that without the shots many people would be contagious and die and some children are allergic to the shots. However, Americans are vaccinated for more diseases than Europeans. Back in the 1980s US kids were vaccinated for 7 diseases, now they’re vaccinated for 16 (36 shots) and the cases of Autism has grown. An April 2009 report by Generation Rescue said the average number of shots for the other 29 countries in their study was 18 shots and they had lower Autism and mortality rates for kids under age 5 than the US. Perhaps our shots need to be spaced out more and/or it’s overkill for newborns to be given shots for Hepatitis B.

In 2011 the results of 2 studies reported that researchers found that environmental factors, including those in the womb, a mother’s age at childbirth and a mother’s use of anti-depressants (SSRIs) as well as stress, diet, and infections may cause Autism. It was also said that the cause is 100s of genetic mutations but the speculation surrounding this disposition is varied. And a new study showed that 1 in 5 children with an autistic older sibling would develop the disorder indicating that it’s caused by genetics. On October 17 a study linked Autism to low birth weight. And it was reported that more than 10% of American children age 1 – 6 have some form of Pica, a condition that has them craving non food items (cardboard, light bulbs, toilet paper) to eat; it was also said Pica can be a symptom of Autism and most children do grow out of Pica.

On January 20, 2012 it was reported that the definition of Autism may change and reduce the number diagnosed. People with awkward movements, inability to relate to people and obsessive behavior have been used for the last 17 or more years. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders has right now signs of autism as: a preoccupation with objects, inability to keep eye contact, difficulty holding a conversation, a preoccupation with dates or phone numbers, insistence on following routines, rocking/dipping/swaying and a person only had to display some of them. Under the change they need to display almost all of them. Looking back at the 90s almost half would not be classified and Aspergers would be removed altogether. With numbers rising in the last 2 decades, the scientists became aware that the labels they were using and the way they were counting were often inconsistent, often imprecise and sloppily applied. The CDC’s panel of psychiatrists is proposing that the definition of Autism be improved and the diagnosis be made standard (use a check list). People with children having Aspergers are worried that won’t get special services. Dr. Besser said we need to remove Autism from being tied to a service (child in California may be diagnosed while one in Ohio is not), he also said there’s a lot of research being done and they can’t figure out what causes it until they get the same group of people to study; services need to be tied to the child’s needs (e.g. speech therapy should be given for those with speech problems); a proper diagnosis is needed for adequate treatment and there’ll be time to review data before the proposals are finalized. On March 29 per the CDC 1 in 110 in 2006 and 1 in 88 in 2008 were diagnosed with autism; boys are 5 times more likely to have it than girls and kids are getting treatment at an earlier age (18 months) and see improvement in 4 – 6 months; doctors say there is more awareness and more cases; they don’t understand the increase because they don’t know what causes it; Dr. Besser says kids should be making eye contact at 6 months, respond to their names being called at one year and pull in not turn away when you hold them, and should play pretend games at 18 months. On April 5 it was reported that a study found that genetic mutation and the age of parents (particularly the father) are key clues to autism; dads over 50 (accounted for 5% of those studied) are twice as likely as dads under 30 to have an autistic child (it’s already known that parents age increases the risk of having a child with Down Syndrome, bipolar and schizophrenia). On April 9 it was reported the Journal of Pediatrics published a study of 500 California women that found obese women are 60% more likely to deliver an Autistic child. And on the View I heard a doctor say that your stomach could be causing autism.

I do believe that because standards for assigning a diagnosis were lowered that more people are now diagnosed with Autism. I also believe with so many having Autism that we should be able to find the mutant gene or whatever to treat it. All these doctors with different opinions need to get together instead of doing separate studies. With the so-called numbers and excuses we have for people not being able to be responsible for their actions and/or performance we’ll have no one to live without special treatment or pay taxes. The US needs to work more with other countries to determine why our Autism rate is higher than that of other countries.     

Pope Joan-Fact or Fiction

Cardinal Baronius also wrote that the pope at the time decreed that the statue be destroyed but some say the local archbishop didn't want a good to statue go to waste. "The statue was transformed," believes Cross. "I mean, literally, it was scraped off, her name and written on top of Pope Zachary." At the Basilica in St. Peter's Square are 8 images/carvings by Bernini, one of the most famous artists of the 17th century, of a woman wearing a papal crown and seemingly telling the story of a woman giving birth. Medieval manuscripts tell a similar tale: Pope Joan was in the midst of a papal procession, a 3-mile trip to the Church of the Lateran in Rome, when suddenly at a crossroads she was having a baby, the stories say. Malone said "And then the story gets very confused, because some of the records say she was killed and her child was killed right on the spot. Other records say she was sent to a convent and that her son grew up and later became bishop of Ostia" -- but in most accounts, Pope Joan perished that day. In the decades that followed, the intersection (Colosseum and St. Clement) was called the Vicus Papissa -- the Street of the Female Pope -- and for more than 100 years popes would take a detour to avoid the shameful intersection. Polonus wrote: "The Lord Pope always turns aside from the street ... because of the abhorrence of the event." Valerie Hotchkiss, a professor of medieval studies at Southern Methodist University in Texas, said that the story of Pope Joan was actually added to Martin Polonus' manuscript after he died. "So he didn't write it but it was put in very soon after his death, like around 1280 to 1290…And everyone picks it up from Martin Polonus." Medieval monks were like copy machines, say some scholars, simply replicating mistakes into the historical record. "And they're picking it up from each other and changing it and embellishing it" Hotchkiss said. Monsignor Charles Burns, the former head of the Vatican secret archives, said there is no evidence and no documentation in the secret archives that Pope Joan existed, no relic of Pope John Anglicus anywhere. Others say the Bernini sculptures were modeled after the niece of the pope and the Vicus Papissa was named for a woman who lived in the area. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia Anastasius Bibliothecarius (born around 810 and died in 879) was Librarian to the Church and attended the last session (February 870) of the 8^th Oecumenical Council in Constantinople; he had most of the declarations of obedience of the Greek bishops and a copy of the "Acts" which he translated into Latin. Anastasius did several works that were accepted by the Church and several letters written by him have been preserved but the Church does not accept (same as in April 14 blog-Christ & Apostle Peter) the Liber Pontificalis saying - This manuscript, in the Vatican Library, bears the relevant passage inserted as a footnote at the bottom of a page. It is out of sequence, and in a different hand, one that dates from after the time of Martin of Opava. This "witness" to the female Pope is likely to be based upon Martin's account and not a possible source for it. The same is true of Marianus Scotus’ Chronicle of the Popes written in the 11th century. Some manuscripts of it contain a brief mention of a female Pope but all these manuscripts are later than Martin's work and earlier manuscripts do not contain the legend. Protestants John Wycliff and Jan Huss both used her as examples of the failings of the College of Cardinals and accused the church of hiding the truth (over 40 pamphlets were dedicated to the subject of Pope Joan during the Reformation). At his 1415 trial Huss argued that the Church does not necessarily need a Pope because during the Pontificate of "Pope Agnes" (as he also called her) it got on quite well; his opponents insisted that his argument proved no such thing about the independence of the Church but they did not dispute that there had been a female Pope; it’s said that after Huss’s execution in 1415 the Catholic Church began to deny that Joan had ever existed. Scholars say there were many women martyrs in that era and women who became saints while cross-dressing as monks. St. Eugenia, for example, became a monk while disguised as a boy and was so convincing she was brought to court on charges of fathering a local woman's child; she finally proved her innocence only by baring her breasts in public. "There are over 30 saints' lives in which women dress as men for a variety of reasons and with a variety of outcomes" said Hotchkiss. These powerful women could have inspired a so-called crackdown by the church after AD 1000 as it consolidated its ranks and reaffirmed the rules on celibacy among its priests (15 were sexually active before becoming pope and it’s claimed that 12 were sexually active during their papacies; no pope since 1585 is known to have been sexually active during his papacy; the Catholic Church considers the abuses grave and a cause of scandal but does not undermine the Catholic doctrines). One school of thought says the story of Pope Joan was invented as a lesson to women: Don't even think about reaching for power or you will end up like her -- exposed and humiliated. Another school argues that it was the fear of female power that led the church to essentially expunge Pope Joan from history. And, what about the enormous purple marble chair on which popes once sat as they were crowned; it has a strange opening, something like a toilet seat, reportedly used to check whether the pope had testicles-David Dawson Vasquez, the director of Catholic University of America's Rome program, said "Because it's elaborate, it's purple. It was the most expensive marble of Roman times and so it was only used for the emperor. "The hole is there because it was used by the imperial Romans, perhaps as a toilet, perhaps as a birthing chair. It doesn't matter if there's a hole there because you can still sit there and be crowned." Others say it was a symbol of the pope giving birth to the mother church and so it was hidden from view; the last relic in the tale of Pope Joan is withdrawn. Coincidences or not; it seems the Church may once again be afraid of women.  

Vatican Crackdown on US Nuns

The April 20, 2012 Los Angeles Times article said: In a bluntly worded report, the Vatican's watchdog of orthodoxy, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, found what it called "serious doctrinal problems" with some of the comments and actions by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), based in Silver Spring, Maryland. In its assessment of the Conference the Vatican cited letters from some in the group "protesting the Holy See's actions regarding the question of women's ordination and of a correct pastoral approach to ministry to homosexual persons." "The terms of the letters suggest that these sisters collectively take a position not in agreement with the Church's teaching on human sexuality. It is a serious matter when these Leadership Teams are not providing effective leadership and example to their communities, but place themselves outside the Church's teaching," the report said. The Vatican on April 18 named Seattle Archbishop Peter Sartain to oversee changes in the group, a process that could take up to 5 years. The Leadership Conference, which says it has more than 1,500 members representing more than 80 percent of the 57,000 women religious in the US, stated it was "stunned" by the official assessment. "This is a moment of great import for religious life and the wider church," the group said on its website. "We ask your prayers as we meet with the LCWR National Board within the coming month to review the mandate and prepare a response." The Vatican's actions come at a time when Rome appears to be reasserting its conservative vision over some elements of the church, particularly in the US. Nuns have questioned a variety of church positions. In 2010 American bishops opposed the Obama administration's health care insurance overhaul but some nuns were very visible in supporting the plan. I found the timing of this interesting since I just watched the movie Pope Joan that came out in 2009 (there was one in 1972). Before I get into this I want to point out that there are only two books in the bible by women: the Book of Ruth (belongs within the early period of Judges) because the widow became the wife of Boaz, ancestor of David and Jesus (supports the genealogy of the savior-Matthew 1:5) and the Book of Esther (a Jewish maiden  who became queen of Persian King Ahasuerus; the 12 year events belong with the 6^th and 7^th chapters of Ezra) as Divine Providence is more obvious here than in any other book of the bible – despite the fact the people of Israel did not heed the call for return to their native land they were not forsaken by Jehovah. From a historical point of view the book supplies much information with reference to the state of the dispersed Jews in post-exilic times and gives the origin of the Feast of Purim. If you remember my April 3–Life & Women blog, Jesus had to instruct his disciples to mention Mary of Bethany (Matthew 26:10-13); first I wonder how the books were written if women were not educated and second it leads me to believe that women are mentioned not in a search for the truth but when it suits men.  

I found a December 29, 2005 ABC Primetime story called - Looking for Pope Joan. Mary Malone a former nun who wrote a history of women and Christianity said "90% of me thinks there was a Pope Joan, no woman would have been allowed to appear on the streets in public-that named you as a prostitute immediately”. Women were confined to their homes." Donna Cross, a novelist who spent 7 years researching the time period, said "I would say it's the weight of evidence-over 500 chronicle accounts of her existence." In AD 800 English missionaries were bringing Christianity to Germany and they created a monastery called Fulda in the town of Mainz which became a center of education, books and conversation for travelers -- but it was only for boys. In his "History of Emperors and Popes" a monk named Martin Polonus wrote about a young woman from Mainz who became "proficient in a diversity of branches of knowledge." (Per the Catholic Encyclopedia- Polonus lived at the Curia as papal chaplain and penitentiary and died in 1278 but the chronicles of Martin of Troppau say Joan, known as John Anglicus, became pope in 855 and occupied the papal chair 2 years, 7 months and 4 days.) Cross and others say a girl studying at the monastery would have no choice but to disguise herself as a boy. "First of all you might want to remember that clerical robes are very body-disguising. Also, in the 9^th century, personal hygiene was nonexistent. Nobody bathed. They washed their hands, their face, their feet, but they didn't bathe." said Cross." Clergy members were required to be clean shaven and malnutrition made most men and women physically gaunt. According to the 500 accounts, the woman made her way to Rome. In the 9^th century, Rome and the Vatican were nothing like today ... then the center of the Christian faith was home to bawdy monks, scheming cardinals, cross-dressing saints, intrigue, melodrama, corruption and violence. "Popes (18) ... killed each other off, hammered each other to death," says Mary Malone, the former nun. "There were 12-year-old popes (Benedict IX, 1032 AD was elected 3 times) ... we have knowledge of a 5-year-old archbishop. ... It was a very odd time in history." That also means it would have been a time of opportunity for someone with ambition and nerve. ABC said: If you travel to Italy many people will direct you toward the clues embedded in art, literature and architecture. The Renaissance poet Giovanni Boccaccio wrote a book on "100 Famous Women." No. 51 is Pope Joan. Rare book dealers in Rome pull ancient tarot cards from their shelves; the card for hidden knowledge is "La Papessa" -- the Female Pope. Travel north to Siena where inside the cathedral is a gallery of terra-cotta busts depicting 170 popes, in no particular order…In the 17th century, Cardinal Baronuis, the Vatican librarian, wrote that one of the faces was a female -- Joan the Female Pope. There’s more to the story coming.

Shareholders

April 19, 2012 per the Associated Press: Citigroup has become the first Wall Street bank to get a thumbs-down from shareholders. At its annual meeting April 17, 55% of the bank's shareholders voted against the pay packages granted to Citigroup's top executives, including CEO Vikram Pandit's $14.9 million for last year and $10 million retention pay. The vote is advisory and won't force the bank to change its pay practices but it did send a powerful message of discontent to Citi's leadership. "This vote is historic" said Eleanor Bloxham, CEO of The Value Alliance, a board advisory firm. "None of the Wall Street firms have received this kind of a review yet."

The vote may be nonbinding but it's certainly an embarrassment for Pandit and a warning to other bank CEOs that they need to increase profits or else. And while I'm sure a lot of Americans would be happy to see bank executives get taken down a peg, it's important to note that the interests of bank shareholders and the interests of bank customers aren't always aligned. It's possible a push to bring in more money could result in national banks trying to staunch the flow of customers leaving over new fees and customer service issues. A customer service expert interviewed last month says the only way large national banks can turn their businesses around is by offering better customer service. But Citi actually added 3 million new deposit accounts between the first quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012. Despite defections from thousands of disgruntled customers, the large national banks appear to have little trouble signing up new accounts, thanks to huge advertising budgets and a nationwide network of branches. What seems to be the problem for banks is generating more revenue from customers and as far as checking accounts go, right now that means some combination of cutting costs and increasing fees. So while it may be fun to see bank CEOs sweat a little bit under scrutiny from shareholders the ultimate result could be more expensive checking accounts and fewer branches at the larger national banks.

On December 7, 2011 we heard that CitiGroup was to lay off 4,500 workers. On December 15 we heard that non-Wall Street bonuses were down 15% in the last 4 years.

On February 9 it was reported that the government reached a nearly $26 billion settlement with Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Ally and CitiGroup for fraudulent foreclosure practices during the housing crisis; 750,000 people who lost their houses will get $2,000 and over 1 million will either get refinancing or have their loans lowered by an average of $50,000 as the value of their house is less than the market price; banks are being forced to relook at mortgages if you’re just $1 behind on your payments and the government is going after Frannie Mae and Freddie Mac next as they have 50% of the mortgage market. (April 22 blog said - The Huffington Post in an article first posted on February 11 and updated on May 25, 2011 said Obama called for the end of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and outlines the issues with dismantling the agencies.) On February 16 we heard CitiGroup paid $158 million to settle accusations that it took advantage of the federal mortgage insurance program. On April 7, the federal government ordered 70 executives at the bailed out GM, Ally Financial and AIG to take a 10% pay cut because they still owed the government money.

On April 13 Goldman-Sachs was fined $22 million for so-called trading huddles and the former Best Buy CEO is being investigated for an improper relationship with an employee. Also, on April 13 we heard the Exxon CEO was awarded a $34.9 million package in 2011; a 20% increase over 2010. On April 14 we heard Wall Street closed at its lowest point of the year (because of a decrease in China’s economy and an increase in European borrowing); despite this gas prices are going down and some believe it’s because of a slowing global demand, increased Saudi Arabia production and the Iran talks; others say they’re not sure prices will continue to decrease because of unknown European and Iran issues as well as the change in fuel for the summer. On April 17 a study found 21% of New York City residents lived in poverty in 2010. On April 18 - The gap in pay for the highest and lowest paid is widening; between 2009 and 2011 the top got 7% more while the bottom got 2.5%. On April 20 we heard that because of job layoffs, a low housing market and a slowdown in manufacturing the economy’s recovery is slowing. On April 21 we heard that the top 10% of American earners made 9% more in 2011 than the average American and WalMart hushed up a bribe network in Mexico where 20% of its stores are located.

If you were a bank shareholder, would you want them to increase profits by making fundamental changes and dealing with some of the problems they've been having with customers lately or would you want them to simply increase fees on existing customers? I think I now know why 99% of the 99% doesn’t support the Occupy Wall Street Movement; some are greedy shareholders like their company CEOs.

If I were a shareholder I would want my company to reduce CEO pay, quit making illicit transactions that waste millions in settlements and leave the little guy alone.  

Occupy's May Day

In January 2012 Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protesters returned to Zuccotti Park in New York (NY); the San Francisco, California (CA) OWS group acted poorly-blocking banks, chaining themselves to the buildings, taking over an abandoned hotel and smashing windows at a car dealership; 18 arrested, and in Oakland, CA 300 were arrested because they were throwing rocks, bottles and other objects as well as breaking into City Hall and a vacant convention center; 3 officers were injured. On February 5 the District of Columbia police cleared the OWS tents; 7 were arrested. On February 28 an officer was injured in a clash with OWS at the Sacramento, CA capitol. On March 18 (6 month anniversary of OWS) dozens were arrested in NY. We heard the movement was running out of funding and haven’t heard much since so I looked up what was happening on the internet.

On April 14 the Golden Gate Bridge Highway & Transportation District (owns the Golden Gate Ferries that transport commuters and tourists on San Francisco Bay and operates special baseball ferries to AT&T Park when the San Francisco [SF] Giants are playing at home) workers who are part of the Golden Gate Labor Coalition that run and maintain the Golden Gate Bridge, Buses and Ferries greeted Giants' fans with a picket line of ironworkers, teamsters, electricians, boatmen/women, ferry captains, laborers, and mechanics. In support of the group the Occupy Oakland General Assembly on April 15 unanimously passed the following resolution: If any of the unions on the Golden Gate bridge declare a strike or shutdown action on May Day, we will act in solidarity with these striking workers and the international call for a general strike on May Day, by blockading the flow of capital to the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District. This will be accomplished by a collaboration of pickets and direct action which will shut down all modes of transportation from Marin to San Francisco. The LA OWS decided to join in saying – “We’re going to converge on downtown LA from 4 distinct points with the intent to shut this city down in order to clearly and forcefully articulate the voice that the establishment continues to ignore, our voice which proclaims: we have had enough”. 

On April 17 the attorney for Occupy New Haven (ONH), Norm Pattis, argued in front of a 3 judge panel in a federal Appeals Court in NY City for the rights of his clients to remain on the Green. “… the court asked ‘haven’t they had a chance to protest? Do they have a right to do so day after day?’ I said I can’t believe I’m listening to a federal judge saying there is a time limited warranty on the Bill of Rights,” said Pattis. He added that he was concerned the judges asked him questions prompting him to justify occupiers’ rights rather than asking the city to explain their regulations. The hearing lasted for about 7 minutes and the judges notified Pattis when he had 40 seconds left to fight. “I felt like I was awaiting an execution and in a way I guess I was,” he said. Occupier Don Montano described what occurred in court as “an injustice.” “But what can we do about it? Stand and fight? I have no faith in the U.S. court system. It’s just as corrupt as any other corporation in America and this was proof of it today,” he said. Occupy New Haven, the last encampment in New England and one of the last in the country, had just celebrated their 6 month anniversary. The city released a statement following the court’s action which was deemed “decisive…The plaintiffs have no meaningful chance of success,” city spokeswoman Elizabeth Benton said in the statement. The city of New Haven has respected the rule of law and we expect that members of Occupy New Haven will do the same.” An occupier known as Short Dog said solemnly “Since this is a public park, we can still assemble here” and some will continue. Another (Montano) said he plans to pack up his belongings and go into the woods to spiritually regroup once all is said and done on the Green. “I have to go a few places but maybe I’ll come back here” and “Maybe not. I might just go to a place that needs me and fight the fight there.” Many of the occupiers don’t have homes to go to without the encampment. Home was what many members of ONH called the patch of tents on the upper Green and attorney Irving Pinsky used that as a defense when he filed a Verified Lockout Complaint and Application for Temporary Injunction that claims “the defendant city invited us to enter the premises, pitch our tents there and live there. We were there for six months. These tents have been our only homes. Defendant has attempted to take our homes.” The document further claims the city has “threatened to take our beds, chairs, cots, tents and food, but was temporarily stopped by US Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.” Pinsky explained to legally evict the occupiers, the city would have to give them a notice to quit otherwise it would be in violation of the anti-lockout law. When asked if the anti-lockout appeal is the last resort, Pinsky said, “It’s the only resort I can think of right now” and Pattis added all of the federal legal channels have been exhausted. The attorneys could take the matter to the Supreme Court but Pattis said it is very unlikely that they would hear it.

Just a reminder that HR347-Federal Restricted Areas, that passed March 1, 2012 (March 5 blog), had no bearing on any of the above events. FYI, the world wide protests do continue. The best story was that the protesters had built igloos on January 17 to camp out at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland and 3 topless women were arrested on January 29. Let’s hope the May Day event that CA has started catches on. 

Occupy Watchers

On November 19, 2011 MSNBC posted an exclusive. They said a well-known Washington lobbying firm with links to the financial industry has proposed an $850,000 plan to take on Occupy Wall Street (OWS) and politicians who might express sympathy for the protests, according to a memo obtained by the MSNBC program “Up w/ Chris Hayes.” The proposal was written on the letterhead of Clark Lytle Geduldig & Cranford and addressed to one of CLGC’s clients, the American Bankers Association (ABA). CLGC’s memo proposed that the ABA pay CLGC $850,000 to conduct “opposition research” on OWS in order to construct “negative narratives” about the protests and allied politicians. The memo also asserted that Democratic victories in 2012 would be detrimental for Wall Street and targets specific races in which it says Wall Street would benefit by electing Republicans instead . . . if Democrats embrace OWS “This would mean more than just short-term political discomfort for Wall Street. … It has the potential to have very long-lasting political, policy and financial impacts on the companies in the center of the bull’s-eye.” The memo also suggests that the ABA’s biggest concern “… should be that Republicans will no longer defend Wall Street companies.” Two of the memo’s authors, partners Sam Geduldig and Jay Cranford, previously worked for House Speaker John Boehner. Geduldig joined CLGC before Boehner became speaker; Cranford joined CLGC this year after serving as the speaker’s assistant for policy. A third partner, Steve Clark, is reportedly “tight” with Boehner according to a story by Roll Call that CLGC features on its website. Jeff Sigmund, an ABA spokesperson, said in a statement to ‘Up’ “Our Government Relations staff did receive the proposal – it was unsolicited and we chose not to act on it in any way” and CLGC did not return calls seeking comment. Boehner spokesman Michael Steel declined to comment on the memo but responded to its characterization of Republicans as defenders of Wall Street by saying “My understanding is that President Obama is the single largest recipient of donations from Wall Street.” On ‘Up’ Anita Dunn, Obama campaign adviser, responded by saying that the majority of the president’s re-election campaign is fueled by small donors and rejected the suggestion that the president himself is too close to Wall Street, saying “If that’s the case why were tough financial reforms passed over party line Republican opposition?” The CLGC memo raised another issue that it says should be of concern to the financial industry -- that OWS might find common cause with the Tea Party. “Well-known Wall Street companies stand at the nexus of where OWS protestors and the Tea Party overlap on angered populism,” the memo says. “…This combination has the potential to be explosive later in the year when media reports cover the next round of bonuses and contrast it with stories of millions of Americans making do with less this holiday season.” The memo outlines a 60-day plan to conduct surveys and research on OWS and its supporters so that Wall Street companies will be prepared to conduct a media campaign in response to OWS. Wall Street companies “likely will not be the best spokespeople for their own cause” according to the memo.  “A big challenge is to demonstrate that these companies still have political strength and that making them a political target will carry a severe political cost.”  Part of the CLGC proposal is to do “statewide surveys in at least 8 states that are shaping up to be the most important of the 2012 cycle.” Specifically listed were the US Senate races in Florida, Pennsylvania (PA), Virginia, Wisconsin, Ohio, New Mexico and Nevada and the gubernatorial race in North Carolina. The memo indicates that CLGC would research who has contributed financial backing to OWS noting that “Media reports have speculated about associations with George Soros and others. It will be vital to understand who is funding it and what their backgrounds and motives are. If we can show that they have the same cynical motivation as a political opponent it will undermine their credibility in a profound way.” 

After this memo we heard on November 28 that Los Angeles (LA) California (CA) officers in riot gear dispersed at least 1,000 protesters and in Philadelphia, PA they dispersed 200. On November 29 the LA protesters went to court to fight an eviction and Olympia, Washington (WA) they stormed the capitol. On November 30 the LA & PA protesters were removed (guess LA lost the court battle). In December we heard protesters were arrested in Boston, Massachusetts, Portland, Oregon (OR) and the District of Columbia (they were building a temporary structure for winter without a permit) and were removed from San Francisco, CA and Baltimore, Maryland. On December 12 – 1,000s of protesters tried to shut down the west coast ports from San Diego, CA to Alaska; they did manage to shut down some operations in Oakland, CA, Portland, OR and WA State. There’s more to come. 

Romney/Obama Connections

I checked various websites to find out more on Romney and found on www.citypages.com an article posted on April 18, 2012 that included 5 pages of Mitt Romney’s business ethics while with Bain. The one person that had a negative comment stated the writer Pete Kotz was a Mormon hater but couldn’t or didn’t dispute his facts. There were many websites that spoke of Romney setting up $100 million trust funds for each of his sons without paying taxes on the money and a site that identified Romney’s involvement in a Ponzi scheme. (November 27, 2011 blog stated - However, according to Time magazine the Republicans, at the bankers’ request, are trying to gut the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and the bankers are putting their money on Mitt Romney who says he will repeal the law. This is of no surprise as ThinkProgress reported that Mitt, his son and his brother are linked to Solamere Capital that worked with the Stanford Financial Group (SFG). In 2009 SFG collapsed with charges of massive and ongoing fraud against its investors; the Ponzi scheme bust was second only to Bernie Madoff. Mitt Romney and his son still have extensive financial and political ties to 3 men who allegedly participated in the SFG scheme.) The website aboutmittromney.com had nothing but good things to say about Romney and it said while under Romney’s leadership Massachusetts (MA) went from #49 to #36 (not as Huntsman said - January 27, 2012 blog - while Utah was #1 in the country, MA was #47). MA allows the Governor to use the line veto (allows the striking out of items the Governor doesn’t want while keeping the portion of a bill that is wanted) and Romney used it 700 times in his 4 years as Governor. It is speculated that Romney was successful in MA because of the line veto, a benefit the President does not have. I think because of this difference his ability to operate as president would be hampered. The website www.ontheissues.org gave pages of Romney’s changing viewpoints on every issue.

The issue of Obama having a Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac Connection has come up again so of course I went on the internet to see what I could find. The September 16, 2008 eRumor website said: John Gibson of Fox News wrote an article on September 16, 2008 quoting sources from the Center for Responsive Politics. In it, Gibson stated that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had used "huge lobbying budgets and political contributions to keep regulators off their backs." According to the article, "The top three U.S. senators getting big Fannie and Freddie political bucks were Democrats and No. 2 is Senator Barack Obama." The Center for Responsive Politics (CRP), according to their web site, is a "nonpartisan guide to money’s influence on U.S. elections and public policy." According to the report posted on the CRP website donations between 1989-2008 for the Illinois senator from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac tabulated up to $126,349. The same report shows John McCain contributions from the same group tabulated to $21,550. A New York Times article dated September 9, 2008 stated both candidates had ties with the lending giants but Senator Obama "is second among members of Congress in donations from the firms’ employees and political action committees." I found a Washington Post September 19, 2008 Fact Checker article that debunked John McCain’s allegations that Obama had a Fannie Mae connection but that didn’t stop the website Floppingaces.net on June 30, 2011 from again making the same accusation. This website speculates that Obama met James Johnson who was head of Fannie Mae during the 1990s and says Franklin Raines, Johnson’s successor, currently advises Obama on housing policy. What I did get from this site was: “The New York Times itself reported in 1999 that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were under pressure from the Clinton administration to increase lending to minorities and low-income home buyers – a policy that necessarily entailed higher risks and the fact is that neither political party and no administration is blameless; the honest answer is that government policy over many years caused this problem.” First I want to point out that Obama spent 7 years in the Illinois state Senate (1997-2004) and 4 years in the US Senate (2004-2008) so the time frame and his connection are somewhat distorted. The Republicans want you to get excited because Obama got a combined total $126,349 from Fannie and Freddie and want you to forget that Gingrich got millions from Freddie Mac (November 26, 2011 blog); they’ll also want to blame him for the median home value dropping to $154,700 from the $164,600 it was when he took office. Now let’s be real – they are not blameless and I’m pretty sure he had no influence over the agencies’ policies 5 years before he joined the US Senate. The Huffington Post in an article first posted on February 11 and updated on May 25, 2011 said Obama called for the end of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and outlines the issues with dismantling the agencies – doesn’t sound like a payoff to me.

I recently heard that when Obama took office the national gas average was $1.84 and it’s now $3.79 (I’m sure they’ll want to blame him for this too). This differed from the data I got for my February 26, 2012 blog so I rechecked. CNNMoney.com reported on November 16, 2008 that gas prices dropped for the 60^th straight day to $2.105; the peak was $4.114 in July. Isn’t it amazing that gas can drop $2 a gallon during an election? In case you’ve forgotten, the Republican oil barons control the price of gas (Gingrich said if you like $2.50 a gallon we want you to be with us). Other than Romney’s stand on protecting Wall Street and signing the Marriage Vow document I don’t have a lot of negatives for him. But if you’re feeling manipulated by the 1% and want to prove that Americans want a change in DC then I believe that the only way to get it is to stick with Obama. 

Santorum Out - Romney In

On April 10, 2012 Rick Santorum dropped out of the Republican race (Paul and Gingrich said they’ll stay in). Here’s just a few things Santorum said about Mitt Romney before he dropped out (as he’s undoubtedly going to be the Republican nominee): March 23 – suggested Obama is preferable to Romney and because of his and Gingrich’s comments regarding Romney’s stand on the issues Etch-a-sketch sales went up 1500% in one week; March 26 – he called Romney ‘uniquely disqualified’ to be the Republican candidate for President and in April he said Romney is the worst Republican in the country. Republicans voters don’t even listen to their own representatives; they just want a Republican. Personally I find it non patriotic to vote according to any party as this indicates that the needs of the country do not come first.

The President had a news conference that included rich people that agreed with him and Warren Buffet that they (the rich) should pay the same tax rate as their middle class workers (on January 12 Billionaire Warren Buffet said he’d match any contribution made by Republican members of Congress in order to reduce the national budget; he got no takers). In this conference was hedge fund founder Whitney Tilson who made 39 times what his office manager made and paid 24.6% in taxes while she paid 33.4%; ABC calculated that she would have saved $9,300 in taxes if she paid the same rate as her boss. Although 60% of Americans agree with this thinking the Buffet Rule did not pass. I believe that any person, Republican or Democrat, against a tax increase for the 1% is violating Matthew (22:21), Luke (20:25) and Mark (12:17) (when Jesus was asked by the Herodians if it is lawful to give tribute to Caesar and he replies – Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s). This includes the Sovereign Citizens Movement (SCM) estimated to have 300,000 people that believes the laws of the country do not apply to them; they use obscure laws, the Constitution and the bible to justify flouting the laws (for example they don’t believe they need driver licenses) and avoiding paying debts and taxes; it was said that the FBI and other law enforcement are making this a top priority. This is nice but I’m pretty sure the SCM is not made up of Wall Street people having clout.

On April 12 things got side tracked because a Democrat (not Obama or anyone associated with his campaign) said Ann Romney didn’t work a day in her life. I don’t care if Ann Romney worked or not; most mothers would love to stay with the children, I have no jealously because she was able to do so nor should others and her ability to beat breast cancer and deal with multiple sclerosis is no more of an achievement than that of others that have done the same thing.

On April 14 the President released his 2011 tax return showing he made $789,674 and paid 20.5% taxes (he has released everything from 2000); Romney filed for an extension (February 2 blog shows Romney released 2 years of tax returns and paid about 14% in taxes and is planning on just adding the release of his 2011).

In an interview I heard on April 16 with Diane Sawyer Romney said the President doesn’t understand what it takes to get jobs for the American people; we don’t divide America based upon success and wealth or other dimensions of that nature – we’re one nation under God – we come together. Excuse me – this is exactly what we are doing; Romney wants to do away with the Dodd-Frank Act that punishes Wall Street, the Republican House wants to balance the budget on those needing assistance (if you need a reminder see the blogs of October 21, 2011 – Raising the Debt Limit, October 23 - 25 – The Jobs Act and November 27 - Wall Street Reform) and Republicans blocked the President’s job plan (they did throw you a bone on occasion) to slow down our progress and make it look like he doesn’t know what he’s doing. (On March 8 it was reported that when Obama took office unemployment was 7.8% and it’s now 8.3%; oddly enough hiring again slowed down.) Come on people – who do you think is manipulating the hiring market; if Democrats had the clout in this area they’d be helping the President not hurting him. Because Romney leads in male votes and Obama has a strong lead with women, Romney went on to say - I think that it’s unfair that 93% of the jobs lost were of women. (On January 2 it was reported that men were claiming two-thirds of the US private sector jobs created; per the Bureau of Labor Statistics 216,900 men, 9,000 women were hired in retail jobs usually dominated by women - men are taking jobs they normally wouldn’t). Romney said as far as tax returns go – he understands that the Democrats are going to do everything in their power to keep this election about the failure of President Obama to turn around our economy. To help get the female vote Romney picked Beth Myers to lead his VP search; per the Boston Globe . . . there remains a small circle of trust. . . having a prominent campaign woman heading such an important process is just another subtle jab at Democrats who criticize his policies toward women . . . that ignores Myers’s longtime association with Romney . . In sum, Romney knows that he can trust Myers to lead a search that will be comprehensive, tactful, and - perhaps most importantly to him - discreet. As the “decider,” Romney wants the first public expression of his presidential decision-making to be devoid of drama but acclaimed by would-be voters. 

US Justice System

Here’s another reminder of why we need to utilize the death penalty. On January 25, 2012 it was reported that North Carolina hadn’t executed a prisoner in 6 years and a prisoner sitting on death row for 2 years wrote a letter to a local newspaper saying –“is the public aware that I am a gentleman of leisure, watching color TV in air conditioning, resting, taking naps at will, eating 3 well balanced hot meals a day – with round the clock free medical care – I spit in the face of your so-called justice system. And don’t forget about Charles Manson who was denied his twelfth parole and continues to laugh at our society. Yes, several states have put executions on hold because of debates regarding lethal injection being too painful and blacks being executed more than others. Perhaps we should hang people like the bible says. And, sentencing should have nothing to do with the ethnic background of someone but the nature of the crime. In the Troy Davis case I spoke about a couple of days ago Troy was black as were all 9 witnesses and 7 jurors. The problem with our system is that we don’t look for the truth and don’t prosecute those making false statements (perjury). In December 2011 Newsweek magazine reported that a 55 year old Florida woman and radiologist has been an admirer of Natalie Holloway’s killer, buying him clothes, paying for his attorney and sending him care packages. Unfortunately, because people are not executed there are too many accounts of death row pen pals, marriages and attempted breakouts. I don’t know where our sensibility is. I guess I’ll end my tirade regarding the death penalty being our biblical right to rid the earth of evil.   

Like our haphazard use of the bible in regard to adultery and prostitution, we do the same in our treatment of other biblical crimes (for example: December 14, 2012 PEW Research Center study found 35% of 20 – 45 year olds have at least one tattoo; Leviticus 19:28 – Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead nor print any marks upon you). I doubt that there are many that haven’t committed some crime against the bible. Heck the rich could be jailed because of greed, we would jail those that are obese (on November 2, 2011 the Talk informed us that there’s a website encouraging spouses to cheat on one another; the primary reason is the wife is too fat) as well as those eating the wrong foods (Leviticus Chapter 11) or priests drinking wine or strong drink (Leviticus Chapter 10, verse 9) or those working (like Tim Tebow) on the Sabbath, or even those coveting celebrities for a buck. Basically because of prison overcrowding I’m saying we need to consider how we deal with crimes. Perhaps those writing bad checks, robbing without physical injury, cyber-bullies without injury, and more should also go to jail. Those guilty of non violent crimes such as spectator sports (cock/dog fighting), graffiti, sexting without harm to another person, and other crimes should be under house arrest and wear ankle bracelets to perform community service or work on farms (not hanging out in their PJs, watching TV, being on the phone or internet, etc.). Think about Lindsay Lohan (Bernie Madoff if you don’t agree that he should receive the death penalty) working on a farm or cleaning toilets, sewers or any job others don’t want to do. I think drug addicts and drunk drivers should go to rehab centers (unless it’s their third strike as this shows no desire for change/improvement - in 2011 a Texas man with 9 drunk driving convictions was sentenced to life in prison - I think he should wear a bracelet and do community service). And, we all should know that the laws for each state are different. My problem is that people released in one state travel to another state to continue with their crime sprees. Law enforcement is getting better about connecting the dots but there needs to be more effort into the action to protect the American people in whole. Fines would still exist for littering and more; destruction of property would depend on the property destroyed.

I believe the federal government should be regulating all things that bring us equality as the Constitution says. This would include the death penalty, abortion, marriage, the age of consent, and other civil rights issues (not things like the type of lettering on street signs). And, I again repeat that the US Constitution allows us freedom of religion but the government itself is to have none. The push by the righteous hypocrites (which is not only the Santorum supporters) has people pointing a finger at their neighbors when they should be pointing at themselves. People really need to think about their concerns regarding the bible and our government. If we punished all violators of the bible there would be no one left to say Obama is failing to abide by our Constitution; the real problem is that he is trying to.  

Civil Rights vs Justice

I thought I’d rather have a victim instead of criminal justice system and then realized it would change our thinking to a person is guilty until proven innocent; I like our premise that a person is innocent until proven guilty. But, I do have a problem with people thinking the lives of criminals are worth more than the unfortunate or military. I want to remind people that criminals receive food, clothing, housing, an education, medical care and exercise equipment for life while the working or homeless are given none of these things for free. Many working people never get to travel, go to gyms or college. So, I wonder what freedoms besides the freedom to roam and vote do they lose when incarcerated as they seem to have a say in small things such as wanting creamy, not chunky, peanut butter and recently a Michigan inmate filed a lawsuit because he was denied porn. Prisoners had Facebook accounts until they were recently stopped (American born inmates convert to Islam/Muslim beliefs and try to harm us when they’re released). With all the money being spent to fight terrorism I don’t want prison money going to expand an inmate’s change in religion so this is a good reason to take the internet away. Life in prison must be good; recent statistics showed 40% of criminals go back to jail (a California parolee was caught trying to break into Folsom Prison). I don’t know if it’s still allowed but prisoners were getting conjugal visits that resulted in Welfare babies (kudos to Rikers Island for giving smocks in 2011 to any visitor coming in scantly clothed in order to reduce sexual arousal). There are people who have been convicted of committing horrendous crimes and from a biblical standpoint we should do as God has instructed and rid the earth of evil. I believe these people to be murders, rapists, those that maim, continual abusers, those that steal identities as they destroy lives (more than 8 million people were victims of identity theft in 2010), cyber-bullies whose actions result in a life taken and child molesters or pornographers. I’m also considering Wall Street crooks like Bernie Madoff who received a 150 year sentence which should equal death (I’ll talk about criminals of a lower caliber in a different blog). We should remember that a consensus of ordinary people is required before someone is convicted of a major crime. We all know how hard it is to get a few people to agree on anything so getting several people to agree is next to impossible. And we know people can be threatened or bought in order to upset the apple cart. So, if we keep such a requirement and a person is found guilty, there should be no doubt about using the death penalty and a sentencing hearing would be unnecessary. (It would really be wonderful to have a computer program to eliminate the jury and any possible discrimination, tampering, and/or questionable verdicts.)

I remembered that Oprah said forgiveness comes when you can give up the hope that you can change the past. I thought about this and I’m assuming that most people actually know or still have hope that they could have raised their child better, voted for the death penalty, testified against a criminal or changed some other aspect of what occurred. I don’t know where people expect ex-cons to go when their sentences are up. If people truly showed criminals forgiveness they wouldn’t be disturbed by early releases of inmates, repeat sexual offenders living in their neighborhoods, having ex-cons as next door neighbors or by hearing the stories of ex-cons who commit another crime (2011 a Michigan ex-con went on a shooting rampage killing his daughter, another child and 5 adults before killing himself and in October 2011 a Connecticut paroled burglar was convicted of killing a woman and her 2 daughters). Our current system allows for plea bargains and in most cases the victims and/or families are not informed prior to such being made. A couple of such cases are: a child molester was given probation and didn’t have to register as a sex offender and a child molester in New Mexico was released after serving 1 ½ years of a 12 year sentence because he found God. In this second case, the perpetrator contacted the victim upon his release and ended up back in jail. I know these deals are made to save money but that doesn’t mean justice is served. If we want to save money, implement and use the death penalty and don’t give child molesters a second chance; that belongs to the victim and his/her family as the molestation often takes away their lives. On February 22, 2012 a 39 year old female Georgia teacher was given the toughest sentence so far; 20 years in prison and 20 years of probation for sleeping with a 14 year old boy.

People must know that from an economic standpoint that the money saved could be used on other things or to balance the budget of governments. But, it’s not all about government and taxes. More importantly it’s about us being a decent society. We need to be tougher on criminals if we are to get a more civilized society. Good Americans should not be worried about who is breaking into their houses, stealing their things and family. If only the worthy were left, politicians would be made up of deserving souls; honest people leading this country without bias. Whether it is from the bible or some show I watched the message is the same, we must use fear and pain to stop evil. Civil rights groups need to get out of the prisons and jails and we need to go back to the old ball and chain if we want to change the benefits of being in prison and improve our lives. 

The Death Penalty

We give more to someone who has committed a crime/done nothing to improve our country than we give to those who fight for our freedoms or through whatever hard times find themselves on the streets. As of January 2011 there were about 1,622,134 people in prison or jail in the US. This is about ½ of a percent and according to the NAACP as of October 30, 2009 the prison population cost about $68 billion a year. In 2011 I heard that the US is the only western nation to have the death penalty and that 64% of the population supports it while 29% does not (leaving 7% undecided). The US is trillions of dollars in debt and lawmakers are again bowing down to the few that believe the death penalty along with abortion is a violation of the 6^th commandment. We in conjunction with the Constitution should be looking at the death penalty from purely an economic standpoint as forgiveness for a criminal does not give you points with God. Forgiveness is for the survivors and families to move on with their lives; not for lesser sentencing of criminals.

Here’s a reminder to the religious people who want no death penalty and do not want to pay the increased taxes to house inmates for life. Deuteronomy 19 verses 12 and 13 say: Then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die. Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the guilt of innocent blood from Israel that it may go well with thee. I take this to mean that we should not pity the murder and put him/her to death. Deuteronomy 19 also talks about false witnesses. Verses 15 – 21 say: One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth at the mouth of two witnesses or at the mouth of three witnesses shall the matter be established. If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong. Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the Lord, before the priests and the judges which shall be in those days. And the judges shall make diligent inquisition and behold if the witness be a false witness and hath testified falsely against his brother. Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother, so shalt thou put the evil away from among you. And those which remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you.  And thine eye shall not pity, but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. I interpret this to mean that if you lie you shall be punished by having that which your lie was intended to take from the other person, taken from you. For example, you lie about an innocent person murdering another then your life shall be taken and a lie regarding you not owing someone money will mean they get your money or something of equivalent value.  

Per the Washington Times the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty has been at it for 35 years and Diann Rust-Tierney, executive director of the coalition is “pleased to say that the end of our struggle is in sight” (Connecticut became the 17^th state to abolish the death penalty and others are looking to do the same). Since 1996 DNA results, if properly handled, pretty much assure an innocent person is not persecuted as in the olden days. Handling of DNA shouldn’t negate the validity of the science. The mishandling of evidence is wrong but we’re all human. Inappropriate mishandling if determined to be intentional should be treated as a crime. Cases where DNA is used to convict someone should result in quick justice; not wait 10 or 25 years as the victim’s family has a right to swift action and the convicted person’s state of mind should be consistent with the time the crime was committed. This coincides with Deuteronomy, Chapter 21, verses 22 – 23: And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death and he be to be put to death and thou hang him on a tree. His body shall not remain all night upon the tree but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day for he that is hanged is accursed of God that thy land be not defiled which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance. We no longer hang people but we do have methods to get the same result – death.

The recent execution of Troy Davis, convicted of a 1989 cop killing, should not stop us from using the death penalty. The failure here is in the court room proceedings; not with the penalty assessed. In the 1991 trial there were 9 witnesses saying they saw Davis shoot or heard Davis confess to the shooting. Although there was no murder weapon, no DNA test and no conclusive physical evidence the original jury which included 7 black jurors convicted Davis (it seems there was no racial bias). From 1996 – 2006, 7 witnesses recanted their testimony but only 2 re-testified. In 2009 the Supreme Court asked for new evidence and the defense did not come up with anything that would reverse the conviction. Supporters of Davis say the system did not go after the truth when dealing with the appeals. Although I agree with them I believe the real problem is that the witnesses did not tell the truth in the original trial. Perhaps perjury laws should be strictly enforced as the bible states in order to assist in deterring false testimony.   

Assistance Programs

I realize now is not the time to change assistance programs but we do have to change things in the long run if we are to reduce the cost of the programs. I believe a moral judgment on unborn babies should be between God and a woman as supported by Roe vs. Wade and abortions should not be a 6^th commandment issue but that of costs in order to comply with the Constitution’s First Amendment that maintains a separation between church and state. I believe we are hypocrites if we do not want abortions and do not support programs that promote the prevention of child abuse, domestic violence, drug babies, murder and other crimes that increase the need for foster families, adoptions and incarcerations. The thought of a religious belief causing children to suffer at the hands of so many depresses me and I wonder why the people that oppose abortion also seem to not want increased taxes to continue the programs that are necessary for said population and if they have adopted or fostered a child. I did hear that Michele Bachmann has fostered many children but wonder if she got paid for it or did it out of the goodness of her heart. I’ve said enough about unborn babies so now I’ll talk about born unwanted children that are abandoned (aborted) by a parent and end up on welfare and those abandoned by both their parents and end up in foster or adoption programs.

We say family is important but families are not responsible for babies born out of wedlock (on April 12, 2012 it’s found that 1 in 4 babies are now born to unwed couples living together). States have child support laws to find deadbeat parents but the cost of enforcing said laws isn’t fully covered by the parent. Welfare recipients that have not earned the funds by performing civic duty jobs are taking taxpayer money (may violate commandments #8 and/or #10). On October 25, 2011 a federal judge blocked Florida’s law requiring Welfare recipients to take drug tests; I don’t understand this as employed people may be required to take drug tests in order to keep receiving their money. We talk about teaching a person to fish so he/she will eat for a lifetime but we give Welfare money and teach people nothing. We have to remember that some people are needy because of the bad choices they make and just because you assist them it doesn’t mean that they will become responsible. I believe there is a saying that you can only help those that help themselves. With this said, I believe welfare should be restricted to surviving families that incurred a loss through law enforcement, military or other circumstances beyond their control, e.g., a fatal accident, natural disaster, oil spill, mine explosion or job loss. I do not think that those that made bad choices should reap such benefits.

Many states are giving debit cards to welfare and unemployment recipients and there is no restriction on the cards’ use. In 2011 we were told that California’s welfare debit cards were being used at strip clubs and to gamble; I’m sure they’re not the only state that has use contrary to the card’s intent.  I don’t know about you but I’m tired of hearing stories about people who won’t take jobs because it will eliminate their welfare money. And, I’m tired of those that don’t know who the father of the baby is so he doesn’t have to pay child support. Back in the 1980s I had an employee who got Welfare every time he missed a day of work. As there was no incentive for him to work, I had to fire him and he, although able to work, got back on Welfare full time. I wondered why he would do this as our job paid more and I later found out he was dealing illegal drugs on the side.

The government pays welfare for children born out of wedlock which violates the sins of lust, sloth and envy (exception: births by artificial insemination and surrogates as they normally are taken care of by their parents). To me, this insinuates that the government is the ‘John’ as it’s paying for prostitution-like sex. Welfare (for those born out of wedlock) and adultery (violations of the 7^th commandment) are legal while prostitution is not (I don’t believe gigolos and mistresses get harassed as much as prostitutes). But all of these situations seem to me to be in the same business; they receive money, apartments, food and clothing. I think we should legalize prostitution to be consistent and hope it decreases human trafficking, HIV/AIDS and rape. It’s obvious to me that the government would get more tax dollars if prostitution operated as a legitimate business and we’d probably be able to reduce health care costs as well as redirect the cost of law enforcement to other areas that need it. By the way, the first contract between intended parents and a surrogate was made in 1976, today 1,400 babies are born using surrogates for an average cost of $100,000 each, and some states still make it a felony to use a surrogate.

Bottom line, I believe that if you want to reduce the cost of unwanted babies then the punishments are not harsh enough for the crimes leading up to the cause of the entitlement programs. And, instead of haphazard regulation of the commandments, we should be weighing the price of an abortion against the long term cost of raising born unwanted children via any of the so-called entitlement programs.  

US Religions

Along with John 20, Catholics attempt to defend auricular confession with James 5:16 – Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Catholics believe the Apostles had to hand on all essential powers to their successors and the conditions of salvation must be the same for us as for the first Christians. If those subject to the Apostles had to obtain forgiveness from their fellow men, there is no reason why we should be exempt. We share the same privileges as the early Christians and must have the same obligations. So some of us search the Bible for any word supporting the doctrine of "auricular confession" (the official title for the secret confession spoken to an authorized priest in a confession box). It’s impossible to find any general practice of it during the first 1,000 years of the Christian era. Auricular confession is not mentioned in the writings of Augustine, Origen, Nestorius, Tertullian, Jerome, Chrysostem, or Athanasius and many apparently lived and died without ever thinking of going to confession. It is believed that early Christians confessed their sins but it was not one-on-one with a priest as it was believed that no one other than God was thought to be worthy to hear confessions or to grant forgiveness. It is said in the 4^th century St. Ambrose defended Confession by saying that if a man can forgive sin by baptizing (Luke Chapter 3 also told by Matthew and Mark and not by John himself) he claims nothing greater when he claims the power to forgive sin through the Sacrament of Penance. Some say by the authority of Leo the Great confession was introduced on a voluntary basis in the 5^th century and Religion in the Medieval West states: “A new form of penance was introduced in France in the late sixth century by Celtic monks. . . . This was auricular confession, in which the penitent confessed his sins privately to a priest and it was an adaption of the monastic (simple) practice of spiritual counseling.” According to the older monastic practice the monks confessed their sins to one another to get spiritual help in order to overcome their weaknesses. The Greek Church broke away from the Catholic Church in the 9^th century and has retained this Apostolic practice. Protestants say auricular confession of sins to priests was made mandatory by Pope Innocent III at the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 AD and sins are to be confessed at least once a year and to the parish pastor. The Council of Trent in the 16^th Century made the “infallible declaration” that auricular confession had been practiced “from the beginning” of the Church (although history disagrees that the concept is a Biblical one) and only priests who have received the faculty of absolving sin from the authority of the Church can forgive sins in the name of Christ. With this declaration, Protestants gave up the practice because it was uncomfortable and mortifying and one could abolish every uncomfortable commandment of God. A long and informative article regarding the Protestant Reformation from the warning to false prophets in the bible to the need to challenge the Protestant doctrines as the Catholic Church was challenged in the 16^th century is available at www.gotquestions.org. Because of the 15,000+ joining Tim Tebow’s (NY Jets’ second string quarterback who’s not an ordained minister) Easter sermon at the Celebration Church in Georgetown, Texas I wondered about religion in the US. The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life published the 2010 Landscape Survey (based on interviews of more than 35,000 Americans age 18 and older). It found 28% of Americans have left the faith in which they were raised in favor of another religion or have no religion at all. And, if change in affiliation from one Protestant sect to another is included 44% of adults have either switched or moved from being unaffiliated to being affiliated with a particular faith or dropped a connection to a religious tradition altogether. The survey found 0.8% who either don’t know or refused to identify a religion and 16.1% who said they are unaffiliated with any particular faith (Atheist 1.6%, Agnostic 2.4%, and Secular/Religious unaffiliated 12.1%; among ages 18-29 one-in-four said they are not currently affiliated with a particular religion). Of the 83.1% remaining in the study: Protestant 51.3% (Evangelical 26.3%, Mainline 18.1%, Black 6.9%), Catholic 23.9%, Mormon 1.7%, Jehovah Witness 0.7%, Orthodox 0.6% (Greek, Russian and non Jewish others), Other Christians 0.3%, Jewish 1.7% (Reform, Conservative, Orthodox and other), Buddhist 0.7% (Zen, Theravada, Tibetan and others), Unitarian and other liberal faiths 0.7%, Muslim 0.6% (Zunni, Shia and others), Hindu 0.4%, New Age 0.4%, and Other 0.1%. The survey said Catholicism has experienced the greatest losses as a result of affiliation changes (31% were raised Catholic but 24% describe themselves as Catholic) and the losses would’ve been greater if not for the impact of immigration (foreign-born 46% Catholic, 24% Protestant; among American born 55% Protestant, 21% Catholic). On April 7, 2012 a report said 60% of American Catholics believe priests should be allowed to marry and women should be allowed to be priests; 62% feel the Church is out of touch. I hope Catholics are not the only ones questioning their religion. The doctrine that was intended to pull us together against evil has only pulled us apart with man’s various interpretations (created Jews, Muslims and Christians; like the Old and New Testaments there are 2 distinct Greek manuscript families: the Textus Receptus [received text] and the Nestle-Aland that vary in interpretation; a common thread of all religions). With mail-order/online Ministers the number of religions and false prophets has increased; I believe this surrender to people’s egos and greed are the basis of the evil running through the US. Isaiah 53:6 – All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.  

The Sacrament of Confession

Saintaquinas.com/confess says: In Matthew 16:17-19 Jesus tells Simon after his confession of faith: "Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my heavenly father. And so I say to you, you are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." The man who wrote this site believes that in changing Simon's name to Peter (translated into Aramaic, the language of Jesus and his apostles, is Kepha or rock) that Peter is the rock on which Jesus built his church and by giving Peter the keys of heaven (strong symbols of authority) Jesus gave him binding and loosing powers and ultimate teaching authority over the church. (I believe the interpretation fails to identify that Simon’s middle name was Peter and there were 2 apostles named Simon therefore the middle name simply was used to separate the identity of the 2 men.)

Catholics believe that Christ instituted a church that would be his earthly guide for all nations; a church that would be protected and guided by the Holy Spirit to preserve his Christian truths and guide all men to Jesus for their salvation (essentially, the Catholic Church was founded on Peter, the first of the popes). If Christ had not established a teaching, living, apostolic church then how could we properly understand the doctrines of the Bible? Note that 2 Peter 1:20 says "know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation". And even the Ethiopian eunuch on his way to Damascus while trying to interpret scripture asks for Philip's help (who is ordained as a priest in Acts 6:5). "Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?" He replied "How can I unless someone instructs me?" (Acts 8:30-31). As such, true ability to interpret scripture and preserve the teachings of Christ is only fully possible within the Catholic Church. Although much truth exists in other Christian religions the only infallible truth lies within the Bible and the Traditions of the Catholic Church which thus has the authority to properly teach the doctrines of faith for our salvation. If you read the Father's of the Church their writings correlate with Catholic views on a ministerial priesthood, the sacraments and many other Catholic doctrines. The Church teaches it is the normative necessary means by which a Christian receives the forgiveness of God. Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross served as the divine substitute for our transgressions. Not only does the Church teach the need of regular confession but the Bible also records Christ’s institution of the sacrament following his resurrection from the dead when he first appeared to the assembly of apostles (John 20:19-23): Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.”  He showed them his hands and his side and the disciples rejoiced. Jesus again said “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent me so I send you.”  And when he said this he breathed on them and said to them “Receive the Holy Spirit; whose sins you forgive are forgiven them and whose sins you retain are retained.” We should realize that in Holy Scripture God breathed on man only twice: once when he breathed life into the clay of earth to create man (Genesis 2:7) and the second time when he breathed the life of grace into his Church. Both instances were that of an intimate, riveting moment between God and man. 

The moment Jesus breathed on his apostles constituted both the institution of the Catholic ministerial priesthood and the sacrament of confession (the authority to forgive and retain sins). Acts 6:1-6 shows the establishment of the priesthood under the apostles of the Church. It is clear that the ability to forgive and retain sin given to the apostles requires that each of us confess our sins to the priests of the Church so that our sins can be forgiven or retained. As Christ well knew, confession of sins to a priest requires humility, trust in God and the Church, and contrition of heart. Confession of sins to a priest gives us the assurance that our sins are forgiven even though we may not be perfectly penitent; a man who goes directly to God for forgiveness of sin can be forgiven but only if he is perfectly contrite and resolved to sin no more. A Catholic who will not consent to sacramental confession is the man the Church grieves for the most. He has all the instruments of salvation laid out at his feet but he will not lay his pride down at the foot of the Cross to pick them up. Sacramental confession often seems like a frightening, humiliating act for those who have neglected the sacrament for many years. Over time confessions become less frightening but they always require a measure of humility and resolve. Being there is an act of God’s grace and nothing in the world can compare to the joy of the soul after a good confession when the veil of sin falls away and the light of grace fills the soul. No priest will ever condemn a penitent man. 

Okay, my turn. I’ll buy that God breathed on the earth but it was Christ who breathed on the apostles. I will agree that teachers are necessary to spread the love of God and his words of goodness. But I believe that it was the apostles, specifically Peter, who interpreted Jesus’ words to mean that priests in addition to God have the authority to forgive sin in spite of what is written in the Commandments and 1 Timothy (2:5). Unfortunately because of man’s ego, drive for power and lack of stability, I don’t believe that God’s intentions are being followed. I don’t think God wants us to be daily demons and have a continuous out for our sins; nor do I believe that he approves of religions spewing discriminatory and hateful words which most of them are doing.