A post from Doug Wilson on the TSA:

...When they are done securing our liberties, we can all rest easy. The radical Muslims can never get at our liberties now. We don't have them anymore. Our liberties are in a box in a TSA warehouse, along with 10,000 nail clippers.

...

We need to spend all that money on hunting terrorists. We should be looking for certain kinds of people, not certain kinds of objects.

...

You cannot reason with bureaucracies. You can only stand on their oxygen hose, which I suggest.

- Douglas Wilson -

source: https://www.dougwils.com/...

For all its sweeping and scary provisions, ObamaCare is not nearly as important as the way it was passed. If legislation can become laws passed without either the public or the Congress knowing what is in those laws, then the fundamental principle of a free, self-governing people is completely undermined.

Some members of Congress who voted for ObamaCare, and who are now telling us that they realize this legislation has flaws which they intend to correct, are missing the point.

The very reason for holding hearings on pending legislation, listening to witnesses on all sides of the issue, and having Congressional debates that will be reported and commented on in the media, is so that problems can be explored and alternatives considered before the legislation is voted into law.

- Thomas Sowell -

source: http://www.jewishworldreview.com/...

Alistair Begg describing what happens when asking what a text means becomes "outdated" (it has) and someone starts looking at the scriptures for "what it means to me":

...deconstruct the bible on the strength of "what it means to me". So that it won't be the affirmations in which we believe but it will be the sensations that are engendered, the things that we begin to feel, the stimulants that come our way and before we know where we are, we have embibed so much of the spirit of the age that we are unable to counteract it, because we are actually drinking at the same fountain.

- Alistair Begg -

I don't agree with everything Chuck Baldwin says or the way he seems to go about it, but I'll back this statement from his recent article...

I tell you the truth: there are not too many problems that could not be solved today with an old-fashioned, honest, morally upright, courageous disciplinarian-father who would lovingly bring up his children in the fear and admonition of the Lord. And let's all remember that it is extremely difficult for a man to be this kind of father without the love and support of his wife. In this regard, the feminist movement is largely responsible for destroying both the femininity of our women and the masculinity of our men.

- Chuck Baldwin -

source: http://www.newswithviews.com/...

About a month ago I got some mail from Wells Fargo. When I opened it up this is what I found:

Yeah, 3 copies of a paper that says "go paperless"...

Of course, it is probably just an accident of a machine miscounting or whatever...but it made me think of the fact that all these big companies are always pushing the "go green" mentality and yet we get reams of junk mail from them...printed on paper...

Question: Not including interest, how long would it take the United States to pay off it's $13 trillion national debt if it payed $1 million per day on the principle alone?

Answer: $13,000,000,000,000 / $1,000,000 = 13,000,000 days.
13,000,000 days / 365 days = 35,616 years

On the 6 May 2010 edition of Fighting For The Faith @ 4:11 into the show Chris Rosebrough gives a good concise description of "purpose driven guys" and what happens in a church when purpose-drivenism comes to town. I have seen this at work personally:

They are like an incurable disease. You can't get rid of them because the first thing the purpose-driven guys do when they take over a church is they change the structure of the church so that...you can't get rid of them...they've created a firewall so that if you complain, you're the one who has to go and they get to keep doing what they're doing. It's just kind of the way they set things up...

- Chris Rosebrough -

source: http://www.piratechristian.com/...

Found a couple old screenshots that I had taken of big corporation errors, in the bowels of my hard drive.

From january 2009, I guess they need a proof-reader over at www.seahawks.com, although the second misspelling certainly was appropriate that season:

This one is from when I wanted to get the most basic cable that there is... of course you have to ask for it since they don't make it obviously known that it is even an option.

This is not very well written. It seems to me that this says $10 for 12 months of service, as in 83 cents per month, then $10 per month after that...or you could read it as $10 per month for 12 months then $10 per month after that?

Great post called "The Problems With The Purpose-Driven Definition Of A Christ Follower" from Chris Rosebrough at Extreme Theology in it's entirety:

Sometimes it is important to step back and review, reflect and summarize your work and look for valuable lessons learned.

I've spent some time this weekend doing just that. I've been hosting my radio program for almost 2 years. One of the daily features of my program are the sermon reviews. Each week I review 3 to 4 sermons from seeker-driven / purpose-driven churches. I review them in their entirety and am generally mortified and disappointed at the shallow self-help / felt-needs seminars that have replaced true in depth Biblical preaching in so many of these church's pulpits. After reflecting on the sermons I've reviewed from such churches as Saddleback, Willowcreek, Granger, NewSpring, Elevation, Fellowship Church, LCBC, South Hills, Fellowship of the Woodlands, Mosaic, The Orchard, and National Community, I set out to find one question that could tie all these sermons together so that I could identify the common theme in all of them. Here's the question I came up with:

If I were an unbeliever and I attended these churches and listened to all their sermons week after week, how would I define the term "Christ Follower"?

Here's the answer I came up with after reviewing the sermons preached at these seeker-driven / purpose-driven churches over the last 24 months:

Christ Follower: Someone who has made the decision to be an emotionally well adjusted self-actualized risk taking leader who knows his purpose, lives a 'no regrets' life of significance, has overcome his fears, enjoys a healthy marriage with better than average sex, is an attentive parent, is celebrating recovery from all his hurts, habits and hang ups, practices Biblical stress relief techniques, is financially free from consumer debt, fosters emotionally healthy relationships with his peers, attends a weekly life group, volunteers regularly at church, tithes off the gross and has taken at least one humanitarian aid trip to a third world nation.

Based upon this summarized definition, I've come to the conclusion that the world is full of people who can fit this definition but who've never repented of their sins and trusted in Christ alone for the forgiveness of their sins. This definition could easily apply to Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses. In fact, it could apply to Emergent Heretics, Unitarians, Muslims and practicing Jews. The reason why this definition of a Christ Follower could be applied to those outside of Christianity is because this is a definition based upon deeds NOT creeds. (Which is precisely what Rick Warren's so-called "second reformation" is all about.) Even worse, Rick Warren frequently admonishes the pastors that he trains to measure a person's spiritual growth by their obedience. If obedience were the true measure of one's spiritual growth then Jesus would have held the Pharisees up as an example of the most spiritually mature Christ Followers on the planet. Instead, Jesus called down woes on the Pharisees because they were outwardly obedient to the demands of God's law but inwardly their hearts were far from Christ. Plain and simple, the Pharisees despite their obedience didn't have FAITH. (Matt. 23:25-28, John 5:39-40).

It is frightening but absolutely true that ANYBODY can modify their actions, just like the Pharisees, so that their behaviors conform with this purpose-driven definition of what it means to be a Christ Follower without ever believing the creeds of the Historic Christian faith and without ever trusting in Jesus Christ alone for the forgiveness of their sins.

Tradgically, the "Jesus" that is presented in the sermons that promote this definition of being a Christ Follower isn't the savior of the world who died on the cross for the sins of the world and calls all nations to repentance of their sins and the forgiveness of sins won by Christ on the Cross. Instead, the "Jesus" that is presented in these sermons is a "life coach", a training buddy and the supreme example of an emotionally well adjusted risk taking leader who lived the ultimate life of significance and purpose. This purpose-driven "Jesus" is there to help you achieve what he achieved and invites you to follow his examples and methods so that you can be Christlike too.

This seeker-driven / purpose-driven definition of what it means to be a Christ Follower is fatally flawed and I fear that there will be many people who appear before the judgement seat of Christ saying, "Lord, Lord, we were emotionally well adjusted self-actualized leaders who lived a life of significance and purpose, took risks, enjoyed healthy sex lives in our marriages, celebrated recovery, tithed, volunteered at church and helped dig fresh water wells in Africa" and Jesus will say to them "Depart from me, I never knew you!" (Matt. 7:21-23)

- Chris Rosebrough -

source: http://www.extremetheology.com/...

Walter Jones, the Seahwks left tackle for the last 13 years retired on 29 april 2010. He is clearly in the top 3 all-time Seahawks and they say arguably one of the best left tackles in the history of the NFL, if not the best...here's an intersting comment about big Walt and how good he was:

If you can find a video clip of Jones taking Carolina Panthers defensive end Mike Rucker and riding him back about 15 yards on a Shaun Alexander run in the NFC Championship game at the same speed Alexander was running ...

- Unknown -

Unfortunately I can identify with this. I didn't, but I could have written it:

Over the last several years, the Internet has evolved from being a distraction to something that feels more sinister. Even when I am away from the computer I am aware that I AM AWAY FROM MY COMPUTER and am scheming about how to GET BACK ON THE COMPUTER. I've tried various strategies to limit my time online...But nothing has worked for long. More and more hours of my life evaporate...

- Unknown -

Here is Rob Bell rambling on about how resurrection is some kind of metaphor for the future and how God is restoring this world, etc.

This quote is particularly deceptive if you don't know your Bible:

...Jesus invites us to trust resurrection...

- Rob Bell -

source: https://www.vimeo.com/...

No Rob...resurrection is about forgiveness of sins and Jesus calls us to trust HIM...

Great line from the ever quotable Phil Johnson.

Previously in the thread a poster said "I never would have believed that could be anything but a parody. But apparently this guy is serious (or making serious money)." The poster was referring to John Crowder, a guy that speaks of such wacky stuff as "tokin' the holy ghost" while on the "drunken glory tour".

Here's Phil's response that post:

Oh, he's no parody. I hesitate to apply the word serious to someone like John Crowder, but he does seem to believe what he is doing is the work of God.

It frankly doesn't get much worse than that. Don't spend too much time watching his videos. You'll want to go Nehemiah on him, if you know what I mean (Nehemiah 13:25)

- Phil Johnson -

source: http://teampyro.blogspot.com/...

Some good quotes from Michael Spencer, aka Internet Monk, who recently passed away in and article called "On Christless Preaching":

The fact is that personal narratives and anecdotes–no matter how entertaining or moving–have no authority whatsoever.

...

A generous segment of today’s social and cultural preaching is increasingly Christless. Instead of Jesus, the message is either personal moral fortitude or collective political action. Because this sort of preaching appeals to the fears and emotions of evangelicals, it is commonplace. Thanks to people like James Dobson, Jesus has become the patron saint of any conservative’s social and political agenda. While many of these crusaders are doubtless correct on the Biblical worldview, they are also usually too busy getting us to the polls to get us to Christ.

The Bible is certainly not oblivious to moral issues. The prophetic voices in scripture testify to God’s holy concern with how we treat one another, and how justice is exhibited in society. But the key to scripture is always Jesus, not moral or social reform. In some of his most shocking words, Jesus says that there is a comparison that can be made between religion that helps the poor and the Gospel that commands all men everywhere to repent and believe.

...

I read with amazement Rick Warren’s enthusiasm for using the Gibson movie as a suddenly ripe opportunity to talk about Jesus. Does anyone else find that notion bizarre?

What else are we supposed to be talking about in the church?

...

The preachers who prompted my thoughts in this essay...have moved to a place where they are under no compulsion to preach the Gospel of Christ. This is not a good place to be.

...

If your pastor preaches a Christless sermon, or a sermon with only a guest appearance by Jesus, don’t get mad at him. Make an appointment. Take him a cup of coffee or a book. Sit down and tell him what you heard, and why it concerns you. Don’t villainize him, because he is probably as much of a victim than a villain. If he loves Jesus, he won’t resent your concern. If you are labeled the enemy, and Christless preaching is defended, then you learned something important.

- Michael Spencer -

source: http://www.internetmonk.com/...

Here's a bit of the strange things and bad theology in an article from the Washington Times called "Interfaith Movement Gains New Strength":

"People who have a hunger for religious experience can have a taste of it here," said Samir Selmanovic, the Adventist co-leader. Born in Croatia to a Muslim father and a Catholic mother, he helped found FaithHouse 18 months ago. Then he wrote a book, "It's All About God: Reflections of a Muslim Atheist Jewish Christian," on the plethora of religions that Americans are increasingly sampling.

- Samir Selmanovic -

source: http://www.washingtontimes.com/...

Ummm...monkey lion chicken wolf?

A speech by Rabbi Serotta suggested that Islamic and Jewish conceptions of God were basically equal.

"We don't understand why God has chosen more than one path for humanity," he told the group. "God created different paths so you'd compete in goodness."

- Rabbi Gerald Serotta -

source: http://www.washingtontimes.com/...

You probably don't understand it because God has done no such thing. Let's see what Jesus...you know, God in the flesh...has to say about that:

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

- John 14:6 ESV

How many paths does Jesus talk about? Oh yeah, one. As in singular.

Back to the article:

"People make the mistake of thinking interfaith outreach is going to the lowest common denominator," said Kristopher Keating of Hillside Missions, "but it's every person freely worshipping God according to their own traditions."

- Kristopher Keating of Hillside Missions -

source: http://www.washingtontimes.com/...

No sir, we don't worship God how we decide but rather how he tells us... He says we must worship him in spirit and in TRUTH:

Jesus said to her... "But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."

- John 4:23-24 ESV

The thing is everyone worshipping according to his own traditions (i.e. Muslim, Buddhist, Mormon, etc.) is not worshipping in truth.

Local garbage collectors here in Washington state are close to going on strike. The city of Sammamish has put out a tip sheet on preparing for a possible strike.

First they tell everyone to become a vegan:

During the strike make modifications to your diet that reduces the amount of meats or dairy products that may be left over after the meal. A vegan diet may help to reduce the waste you need to store.

- www.komo4news.com -

source: http://sammamish.komonews.com/...

But this next one is what really got me. after hearing of this on a 2 day old podcast I searched on the Sammmamish website for another particular text in the document and found a link to a word document but the link was...dead?

Here is a screenshot of the result I got when searching for the text in question. Note the text which is in the blurb from the document below the link to the document:

if the image isn't working out for you, here is the text as written. the portion in parentheses is of particular interest.

You can get flushable kitty litter from some of the pet supply stores. (This is better than storing the used litter in your freezer!) Flushable kitty litter may be more expensive – hopefully the strike won’t happen or last too long.

- www.komo4news.com -

source: http://sammamish.komonews.com/...

A couple quotes from heretic Brian Mclaren.

These start at about 1:12:

I think the book of romans is the wrong place to go to get a definition of the gospel. I think you have to get a definition of the gospel from Jesus. Matthew Mark Luke and John, that's where he's defining the gospel...

I think the book of Romans isn't defining the gospel, its solving a problem created by the gospel...

...the gospel is the message of the kingdom of God and the message of the kingdom of God is a message of reconciliation, calling all people together into one unified new humanity...

- Brian McLaren -

source: http://www.theooze.tv/...

And these are at about 2:46

I mean this is a completely different understanding of the gospel than so many of us were taught and so many of us assume and that's why I think this question is so important. If we open up the question "what is the gospel?", we have the possibility of a new kind of Christianity.

...the good news is the kingdom of God is at hand, it's available, we can reach out and touch it...

- Brian McLaren -

source: http://www.theooze.tv/...

No Brian, the good news is that, even though you are a wretched sinner, Christ died for you. Repent and believe. Here's what God says the gospel is:

"...but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us"

- Romans 5:8 ESV

"Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, hin which you stand, and by which iyou are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised oon the third day in accordance with the Scriptures"

- 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 ESV

We do not DECIDE what the gospel is...God TELLS us what it is...

A couple quotes from the 8 feb 2010 episode of fighting for the faith:

I'm a beggar showing the other beggars where the food are.

- Chris Rosebrough -

source: http://www.piratechristian.com/...

And this one is full of bad theology:

God just gives us the 40 yard line. we don't have to run the whole field because of Jesus.

- Matt Fry from C3Church in Raleigh, NC -

source: http://www.piratechristian.com/...

Wrong Matt, we don't have to run the field at all because of Jesus. He did it for us...

Found this letter sent to Glenn Beck. Whatever you think of Beck, the general idea of this letter represents me:

I'm a home grown American citizen, 53, registered Democrat all my life. Before the last presidential election I registered as a Republican because I no longer felt the Democratic Party represents my views or works to pursue issues important to me. Now I no longer feel the Republican Party represents my views or works to pursue issues important to me. The fact is I no longer feel any political party or representative in Washington represents my views or works to pursue the issues important to me. There must be someone. Please tell me who you are. Please stand up and tell me that you are there and that you're willing to fight for our Constitution as it was written. Please stand up now. You might ask yourself what my views and issues are that I would horribly feel so disenfranchised by both major political parties. What kind of nut job am I? Will you please tell me?

Well, these are briefly my views and issues for which I seek representation:

One, illegal immigration. I want you to stop coddling illegal immigrants and secure our borders. Close the underground tunnels. Stop the violence and the trafficking in drugs and people. No amnesty, not again. Been there, done that, no resolution. P.S., I'm not a racist. This isn't to be confused with legal immigration.

Two, the TARP bill, I want it repealed and I want no further funding supplied to it. We told you no, but you did it anyway. I want the remaining unfunded 95% repealed. Freeze, repeal.

Three: Czars, I want the circumvention of our checks and balances stopped immediately. Fire the czars. No more czars. Government officials answer to the process, not to the president. Stop trampling on our Constitution and honor it.

Four, cap and trade. The debate on global warming is not over. There is more to say.

Five, universal healthcare. I will not be rushed into another expensive decision. Don't you dare try to pass this in the middle of the night and then go on break. Slow down!

Six, growing government control. I want states rights and sovereignty fully restored. I want less government in my life, not more. Shrink it down. Mind your own business. You have enough to take care of with your real obligations. Why don't you start there.

Seven, ACORN. I do not want ACORN and its affiliates in charge of our 2010 census. I want them investigated. I also do not want mandatory escrow fees contributed to them every time on every real estate deal that closes. Stop the funding to ACORN and its affiliates pending impartial audits and investigations. I do not trust them with taking the census over with our taxpayer money. I don't trust them with our taxpayer money. Face up to the allegations against them and get it resolved before taxpayers get any more involved with them. If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, hello. Stop protecting your political buddies. You work for us, the people. Investigate.

Eight, redistribution of wealth. No, no, no. I work for my money. It is mine. I have always worked for people with more money than I have because they gave me jobs. That is the only redistribution of wealth that I will support. I never got a job from a poor person. Why do you want me to hate my employers? Why ?? what do you have against shareholders making a profit?

Nine, charitable contributions. Although I never got a job from a poor person, I have helped many in need. Charity belongs in our local communities, where we know our needs best and can use our local talent and our local resources. Butt out, please. We want to do it ourselves.

Ten, corporate bailouts. Knock it off. Sink or swim like the rest of us. If there are hard times ahead, we'll be better off just getting into it and letting the strong survive. Quick and painful. Have you ever ripped off a Band-Aid? We will pull together. Great things happen in America under great hardship. Give us the chance to innovate. We cannot disappoint you more than you have disappointed us.

Eleven, transparency and accountability. How about it? No, really, how about it? Let's have it. Let's say we give the buzzwords a rest and have some straight honest talk. Please try ?? please stop manipulating and trying to appease me with clever wording. I am not the idiot you obviously take me for. Stop sneaking around and meeting in back rooms making deals with your friends. It will only be a prelude to your criminal investigation. Stop hiding things from me.

Twelve, unprecedented quick spending. Stop it now.

Take a breath. Listen to the people. Let's just slow down and get some input from some nonpoliticians on the subject. Stop making everything an emergency. Stop speed reading our bills into law. I am not an activist. I am not a community organizer. Nor am I a terrorist, a militant or a violent person. I am a parent and a grandparent. I work. I'm busy. I'm busy. I am busy, and I am tired. I thought we elected competent people to take care of the business of government so that we could work, raise our families, pay our bills, have a little recreation, complain about taxes, endure our hardships, pursue our personal goals, cut our lawn, wash our cars on the weekends and be responsible contributing members of society and teach our children to be the same all while living in the home of the free and land of the brave.

I entrusted you with upholding the Constitution. I believed in the checks and balances to keep from getting far off course. What happened? You are very far off course. Do you really think I find humor in the hiring of a speed reader to unintelligently ramble all through a bill that you signed into law without knowing what it contained? I do not. It is a mockery of the responsibility I have entrusted to you. It is a slap in the face. I am not laughing at your arrogance. Why is it that I feel as if you would not trust me to make a single decision about my own life and how I would live it but you should expect that I should trust you with the debt that you have laid on all of us and our children. We did not want the TARP bill. We said no. We would repeal it if we could. I am sure that we still cannot. There is such urgency and recklessness in all of the recent spending.

From my perspective, it seems that all of you have gone insane. I also know that I am far from alone in these feelings. Do you honestly feel that your current pursuits have merit to patriotic Americans? We want it to stop. We want to put the brakes on everything that is being rushed by us and forced upon us. We want our voice back. You have forced us to put our lives on hold to straighten out the mess that you are making. We will have to give up our vacations, our time spent with our children, any relaxation time we may have had and money we cannot afford to spend on you to bring our concerns to Washington. Our president often knows all the right buzzword is unsustainable. Well, no kidding. How many tens of thousands of dollars did the focus group cost to come up with that word? We don't want your overpriced words. Stop treating us like we're morons.

We want all of you to stop focusing on your reelection and do the job we want done, not the job you want done or the job your party wants done. You work for us and at this rate I guarantee you not for long because we are coming. We will be heard and we will be represented. You think we're so busy with our lives that we will never come for you? We are the formerly silent majority, all of us who quietly work , pay taxes, obey the law, vote, save money, keep our noses to the grindstone and we are now looking up at you. You have awakened us, the patriotic spirit so strong and so powerful that it had been sleeping too long. You have pushed us too far. Our numbers are great. They may surprise you. For every one of us who will be there, there will be hundreds more that could not come. Unlike you, we have their trust. We will represent them honestly, rest assured. They will be at the polls on voting day to usher you out of office. We have cancelled vacations. We will use our last few dollars saved. We will find the representation among us and a grassroots campaign will flourish. We didn't ask for this fight. But the gloves are coming off. We do not come in violence, but we are angry. You will represent us or you will be replaced with someone who will. There are candidates among us when he will rise like a Phoenix from the ashes that you have made of our constitution.

Democrat, Republican, independent, libertarian. Understand this. We don't care. Political parties are meaningless to us. Patriotic Americans are willing to do right by us and our Constitution and that is all that matters to us now. We are going to fire all of you who abuse power and seek more. It is not your power. It is ours and we want it back. We entrusted you with it and you abused it. You are dishonorable. You are dishonest. As Americans we are ashamed of you. You have brought shame to us. If you are not representing the wants and needs of your constituency loudly and consistently, in spite of the objections of your party, you will be fired. Did you hear? We no longer care about your political parties. You need to be loyal to us, not to them. Because we will get you fired and they will not save you. If you do or can represent me, my issues, my views, please stand up. Make your identity known. You need to make some noise about it. Speak up. I need to know who you are. If you do not speak up, you will be herded out with the rest of the sheep and we will replace the whole damn congress if need be one by one. We are coming. Are we coming for you? Who do you represent? What do you represent? Listen. Because we are coming. We the people are coming.

- Glenn Beck Listener -

source: http://www.glennbeck.com/...