Yahoo! News - Cosby Has Harsh Words for Black Community: "'Let me tell you something, your dirty laundry gets out of school at 2:30 every day, it's cursing and calling each other n------ as they're walking up and down the street,' Cosby said during an appearance at the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition & Citizenship Education Fund's annual conference. "
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Hurrah for Bill Cosby! A black man needed to say this, and Cosby has found the courage to say it. He is probably the best one who could. If a WASP like me said it, it would immediately be labeled anti-black and racist. Blacks have been using racist arguments for years, aided and abetted by many of their black leaders who ought to know better. But we are in danger of losing a whole generation of black children, if we cannot get them away from destructive rap, gangsta mentality, and hatred of whitey. There is no future in that. Thank God for Bill Cosby.

See Ed Koch on Michael Moore at Very Bad Figs.

OpinionJournal - Featured Article: "The instant reading of yesterday's Supreme Court rulings on terror suspects is that they were, as the Associated Press asserted, 'a setback to the Bush Administration's war against terrorism.' After reading the opinions, we'd say it's more accurate to call them a modest but important victory for the Presidency."
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The talking head called it a disastrous defeat for the President, but when have the facts bothered them? Every victory, no matter how small or how large, can be turned into a defeat by the biased liberal media. Read this article for a different perspective from that of Dan Rather.

Dennis Prager: Chicago Tribune and WLS-TV revel in humiliation: "Remember Richard Jewell, the guard at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics who discovered a pipe bomb minutes before it exploded? Though one person was killed, Jewell saved many lives. Yet, he went from hero to villain three days later when the news media announced he was an FBI suspect and then camped across from his apartment day and night, pointing their high-powered cameras at his door. His life was dissected in the media, where he was regularly humiliated for living with his mother and other implied failures. Eighty-eight days later, he was cleared of any suspicion."
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Dennis Prager strikes again: A deft skewering of the arrogance of the print and tv media, who can and do destroy lives with all the emotion of a sadistic boy ripping the wings and legs off a fly, and then watching it try to squirm.

Today's media is not the cure for oppressive and arrogant government, but the cause of it. Newspaper and tv people are educated with the same liberal philosophy as those who seek to use government to advance their own social and elitist goals. Both come away with anti-Christian and anti-American ideas, despising the heritage of Christianity and American constitutionalism. The only checks and balance they exercise are against people who believe the Bible and the constitution of the United States. They defend, cover up, and nurture their liberal corrupt buddies in government. You don't have to look far for examples: Teddy Kennedy, Bill Clinton, and Robert Byrd. Republican Bob Packwood was driven from office for far milder sexual harrassment offenses than Bill Clinton, and Trent Lott was deprived of leadership for far less racism than Robert Byrd. Richard Nixon was not nearly as corrupt as Ted Kennedy, and has engaged in far more vitriol against conservatives from Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas to George W. Bush than ever Dick Cheney. Who get's condemned for using the "F" word?

If it had not been for Rev. Carl McIntire's resistance to the "Fairness Doctrine"--subsequently repealed under Ronald Reagon--the triumph of the liberal press, in bed with corrupt liberal politicians, would have been complete. Instead, we have seen the rise of talk radio, which has tipped the scale a bit, but not much, from the heavy-handed one-sided bias of the print and tv media. McIntire's resistence cost him his seminary, his radio empire, and his entire ministry. I was and am not a supporter of Carl McIntire, but his liberty to speak and minister was robbed by the liberal media, to their shame and curse.

There is a new breeze blowing north of the border. Not a gale, certainly, but a bit of fresh air, that is welcome after the stifling liberal pseudo-moralism of the past. Elections in the people's republic north of the border, sometimes called Canada, have denied the liberals an outright majority, and so they will have to seek alliance with someone in order to erect a government. This will probably take place with the ultra liberals, which will pull the liberals farther to the left, more out of touch, losing more support for them.

They have always been a little daft north of the border, preaching moral platitudes [made-up morality that is only a faint shadow of a once-biblical faith], always a bit insecure because they know that their liberty is protected by the might of the United States. From time to time they sniff self-rightously about their horrid and unrefined neighbor to the south, but mostly it does no harm.

It is a different story when they lend whatever remnant of moral influence they have to hinder the War on Terror. The hatred that Islamic militants have toward the United States is based upon the fact that our culture, the best and the worst of it, is not based on the Koran. Neither is Canada's. Do Canadians think that the Islamists will run away at the sight of the Mounties?

But as I said. There is a faint breeze blowing.

Let's see now. The most popular movies of recent history (I did not see them, and do not expect to}, are

The Passion. This is a sadistic and brutal account of what some very evil people did to Jesus of Nazareth.

Farenheit 9/11: This is a sadistic and brutal account of what some really stupid people would like to do to President George Bush.

Note: I would not compare Dubya with my Savior, for that would be blasphemy, but it is fair to compare the movies, isn't it? I wonder how many people wept through both of them, and for what reasons. Did they eat popcorn through both of them? Did they want to upchuck over man's inhumanity to man?

I know why people hate Jesus Christ. His goodness is a rebuke to wickedness. But why do they hate George Bush? Because the one, who is a sinner, has expressed faith in the Other, the Savior of sinners?

Just wondering.

New York Post Online Edition: postopinion: "Sadr's predictable failure has not captured the headlines in the West largely because it confounds the doomsayers who cannot stomach the fact that Iraq could be liberated and put on the path of democracy by 'the arch-villain America' led by 'a brainless good-for-nothing' like George W. Bush. "
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Wouldn't it be a great thing if the major TV and print media would tell the story about what is going on in Iraq, rather than just serving as propaganda outlets for the Democratic National Committee. Over the past week they have been condemning Cheney for telling the Democrats where to get off in no uncertain terms. They are blaming Bush for not living up to his promise to "change the tone in Washington." It goes this way, you see. Democrats and their supporters like Al Gore and Michael Moore and Teddy [under the bridge] Kennedy can refuse all judicial nominations, accuse Bush of lying, stupidity, and other monstrous crimes against the US and humanity, and if any Bush supporter answers back, then they are at fault for not "changing the tone."

Ah, for a headline something like this, "In spite of continued and wide-spread attempts by President Bush, a most decent and kindly man, to change the tone in Washington, Democrats continued their venomous and bitter attacts against the man they hope to replace in the White House this fall." Oh well. Who expects truth from the party of Bill Clinton?

FOXNews.com - U.S. & World - Volcker Confident About Oil-for-Food Probe: "In an interview with FOX News on Wednesday former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker said that he will be publishing an initial report in about two months, and it will likely be damaging for U.N. officials and many others involved in the oil-for-food program."
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Aha! Seems that UN officials and others [French, Germans, Russians???] had a financial stake in seeing Saddam in power. Could it really be that Europeans would sell out freedom for gold?

Yahoo! News - Court Upholds Sante Fe Wage Ordinance; Landmark Ruling Confirms Power of Cities to Raise Pay for Low-Wage Residents: "SANTA FE, N.M., June 24 /U.S. Newswire/ -- In a sweeping decision, New Mexico state court Judge Daniel Sanchez today upheld the Santa Fe living wage ordinance -- one of the nation's first local laws raising the minimum wage for workers at all large private businesses in the city. The ruling means that thousands of low-wage workers across the city will begin receiving at least $8.50 an hour. "
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Hmmmm. Let's see now. This means that businesses will not move to Santa Fe, unemployment will rise, welfare rolls will rise, taxes will rise, and the authors of these laws will complain about out-sourcing and selfish businesses. Why didn't they raise it to $50 an hour so people could really be comfortable? Hmmm?

In his landmark book Personal Knowledge, Michael Polanyi refers to the atomic theory of chemistry that was established by John Dalton in 1808. It was generally accepted almost at once, yet its meaning was obscure. Fifty years later, more clarity came to the theory when Cannizaro defined the concepts of atomic weight; molecular weight and equivalent weight. Many questions were answered. Polanyi writes:

"Such clarification is irreversible; it is as difficult to reconstruct today the confused conceptions which chemists used during the previous half century (and which for example induced Dalton to reject Avogadro's Law as contrary to the atomic theory of chemistry), as it is to be baffled once more by a puzzle after having discovered its solution.... [In the same way] Great pioneers in hypnotism, like Elliotson, had fallen tragic victims to the confusion previously prevailing, for lack of a conceptual framework in which their discoveries could be separated from specious and untenable admixtures."

It is not too great a leap to jump from chemistry and hypnotism to theology. The whole purpose of theology is to bring by definition and clarification the truth of Scripture into focus. Those who denigrate theology are scalawags and charlatans, who do not wish to have clarification in these matters so they can continue to practice their witchcraft and sorcery in morals and worship.

My Way News: "- The Republic of Georgia said it plans to boost its military contingent in Iraq; 250 servicemen are awaiting orders to depart for Iraq to join the 158 soldiers already serving there, said Givi Iukuridze, the head of Georgia's General Staff. "
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Hurrah for this former soviet of the defunct USSR. They know what tyranny is. Hurrah, again.

Killing stiffens Roh's resolve - Iraq - www.theage.com.au: "South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun denounced the beheading of a South Korean hostage by militants in Iraq but said his country would continue its plan to send more troops rather than bow to terrorism. "
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Maybe there is more backbone in Korea than in all of France, Germany, Russia, and Spain.

It's not for the faint of heart. I refer to Michael Polanyi's 1958 classic Personal Knowledge. It has more about epistemology than most want to know. ["Epistemology" is the study of what can be known and how it is known.]

What I find intriguing is how often Polanyi comes up to the reality of man being in the image of God, looks over the precipice, and then refuses to take the leap. It's a shame. It is a great book and valuable, in spite of its humanistic suppositions. I haven't finished it yet, but have already had my mind stirred.

Check out the new post on Theological Figs. Click on the link on the right.

USATODAY.com - Diet: Potato growers say they'll pitch a 'low-carb' spud: "Florida is the first test site in the United States for the European import, which was developed by HZPC, a seed company based in the Netherlands. The potato was developed by crossbreeding and was not genetically modified."
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Hey! Don't mess with the spud. The potato is one of the best things in the world and shouldn't be messed with. I for one, am perfectly satisfied that the Idaho baking potato, slathered with butter, and plenty of salt and pepper, cannot be bad for you. Nervous little people that you see jogging early in the morning, fretting about a calory here or a inch or two there, die young from nervousness and worry.

My favorite quote from all time is from Winston Churchill. When asked what he did for exercise, he said something like this, "Mostly I exercise by serving as pall bearer for my physical fitness friends."

Anything that takes away from a merry heart cannot be good for you. That includes most diets.

Mike S. Adams: Our Republican Substitute Teacher: "'Well,' said the man, 'you don't know where you are or where you are going. You've risen to where you are due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we met but, somehow, it's my fault.'"
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Read this great article from my favorite college professor. In a minute or two you will learn more about taxes than if you listened to evening news for four or five years.

Grove City College_Throckmorton_Hiding Truth From Schoolchildren: It's Elementary Revisited: "Noe' Gutierrez, the young man that told his story in the video, came out as gay at 16 but then came out again as ex-gay at 24. On 'It's Elementary,' he was filmed speaking to a San Francisco area middle school on behalf of Community United Against Violence. Mr. Gutierrez was quite involved in gay advocacy and frequently spoke publicly on this topic. However, about six years ago Mr. Gutierrez went through a period of re-evaluation and change. The end result was his change of sexual identity from gay to straight. Without fanfare, Mr. Gutierrez went through a profound experience of transformation and after a while of working through his experience began telling others of his change."
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Can't happen, of course, according to the PC bunch, but it doesn't matter to them that it did. This "scientific" bunch has a long history of ignoring facts that don't agree with their conclusion. In fact, that is one of the accepted methods of modern science--ignore what doesn't agree with your conclusion. If you don't believe me read Michael Polanyi's Personal Knowledge or Knowledge and Being. No friend to Christian presuppositions, Polyani demonstrates the necessity for faith in all scientific knowledge and has been a giant in 20th century scientific thought.

It shows the irrationality that is involved in the attitude of modern science to Christianity. "Christianity cannot be true because I don't want it to be true, and if it is true, I would have to change my moral presuppositions and my truth presuppositions and I don't want to do that so Christianity cannot be true. I will not allow it to be true," pretty much sums it up.

The last two weeks have been very busy. I taught a class on Introduction to Reformed Theology in Baltimore during the week of June 7-12, and this week another minister and I represented our church to the Synod of the United Reformed Churches of North America meeting in Calgary. So there has been little time to blog.

Most of Friday, June 11, I spent driving through the northeastern part of Maryland, driving through small towns and farmland, listening on the car radio to the Reagan funeral. I wonder if we will every hear anything like it again. Of course, it was a funeral in the very best tradition of what was once American state religion, broadly evangelical and protestant, although a catholic priest helped officiate, something we would not have seen in the 19th century dominance of our state religion.

There has been an unending assault on our state religion for the past 65 years or so, using a revised version of American history and interpretation of the First Amendment. There may be even more changes in the next few decades, because of the change in the demographics of America, with a large influx of Hispanics, Eastern Europeans, and Asians. The vitality seems to be going out of evangelicals as they lose their sense of the inerrancy of Scripture and justification by faith.

The bright spot on the horizon, small as a man's hand, is the revival of high calvinism which is taking place throughout the world. The consistent theology and world view of calvinism is greatly feared by humanism of all stripes, but an integrated biblical faith is the only real answer to consistent humanism, whether of the virulent variety of militant Islamism or the seemingly benign form of New Age irrationalism.

It certainly appears that we are in for a ride that will include a lot of change in the next few years. The funeral of Ronald Reagan may well have signalled the end of an age, an age that some may remember with nostalgia, but one that is likely never to come again.

Reason: Objections to These Unions: What Friedrich Hayek can teach us about gay marriage: "But look. No matter how I come at this question, I keep bumping into the same wall. For the entire history of civilization, marriage has been between men and women. In every religion, every culture, every society -- maybe with some minor and rare exceptions, none of them part of our own heritage -- marriage has been reserved for the union of male and female. All the words in the world cannot change that. Same-sex marriage would not be an incremental tweak but a radical reform, a break with all of Western history.

"I'm sorry. I am not prepared to take that step, not when we are talking about civilization's bedrock institution. I don't know that I can even give you good reasons. It is just that what you are asking for is too much."

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Read this article. What great sense it makes. Haven't we had enough human disasters in the 20th century by people who thought they could create social orders that ignored basic human instincts?

A Tribute to Brave Americans.
Memorial Day, 2004

What brave men they were that Christmas night, 1776! George Washington had decided to risk it all on one daring attack. The British with their Hessian mercenaries [Hesse made a living by renting soldiers] had driven the Americans from New York and Long Island. Most American soldiers had signed up for only six months terms and those terms were coming to an end. Washington’s troops had dwindled to about 10 percent of his original force, about 3000 men, many of them without shoes or proper clothing. But they were well armed with plenty of artillery.

The Hessians had taken up positions in Trenton, certain that Washington’s army was defeated and could not fight. Besides, it was winter, and a terrible storm was brewing. But they were fine professional soldiers, the finest in Europe, and they reached deep for energy to post guards and be vigilant. It is a modern myth that they were drunken and asleep that night.

Washington had retreated across New Jersey and crossed the Delaware River and took up positions in Pennsylvania opposite Trenton and NE of Philadelphia.

Washington divided his army into three parts, two parts to attack Trenton from the south and east, the third part under Washington would cross to the north and attack from the north. Two of the armies were unable to cross the river that Christmas night because of the storm and the ice piling up in the river.

Washington and his troops effected the crossing with much difficulty. Yes, Washington stood in the boat, for the boats were huge Durham boats made for carrying the trade that made Pennsylvania farmers rich. Besides only a fool would sit down, for there was always water in the bottom of the boat, and nobody sat down in them, especially during a winter snow storm on December 25. Modern debunkers in history departments for many years have downgraded the status of American heroes.

They were four hours late when they finally got all the troops and artillery across. It was well past dawn when they finally completed the trek south, hauling artillery pieces up steep banks and braving the fierce blowing snow and ice.

Washington did not achieve his goal of a night attack, but the storm helped. They did not achieve complete surprise upon the Hessian troops, for they were spotted by sentries and both sides fought bravely, but the Americans had the advantage of artillery, numerical advantage at that time and place, and finally the Hessian commander called a halt. It was over at 9:00 a.m. Washington’s gamble had succeeded.

The great victory at Trenton shook America and Europe. Fresh recruits lined up throughout the colonies to join the American armies. Inquiries and inquisitions were held in Hesse and England. The English blamed the Hessians and the Hessians blamed the English. Continental currency received a shot in the arm.

The victory at Trenton was probably not the turning point of the war, but if Washington’s gamble had failed, his army would have been pinned with their backs against the Delaware river, and it probably would have been destroyed. Trenton did not gain liberty for America, but it made it possible for the war to continue.

God bless General George Washington, and God bless America.

I do not know what the greatest generation of American was, but we couldn’t even talk about it if it had not been for the generation of 1776.