"Reasons" to Vote for the Biden/Harris Democratic Socialism Agenda

 

1. Continued support of unlimited late term (and even post term) abortion, gov't paid of course, in the name of women's rights.  Progressive Christians know that supporting social justice is far more important than protecting innocent human life.

2. They will ensure that the Supreme Court is filled with activist judges who will enact policies or "discover" rights they can't get created through the people's legislators.

3. Abolish our law enforcement system and replace it with "something else", with no police or jails, as pushed by the moral leaders like Colin Kaepernick.  We know that people are fundamentally good and it is society that forces them to commit crimes.

4. Trump Bad!

5. Redistribute wealth in the name of reparations for past wrongs and to right economic disparities, even if it destroys the economy or punishes people who have done nothing wrong

6. They listen to the scientists who agree with them, ignoring other experts and considerations. We need to shut down our economy and livelihoods again in the name of saving us from today's crisis.

7. Force socialized medicine on the US citizens, whether they want it or not.  Better to destroy the whole system, than to make allowances for the people who might fall through the cracks.

8. Abolish Capitalism and math, since they are racist.  Replace it with a more just system like Communism  Democratic Socialism.

9. They'll enact tolerant laws and policies that restrict bigoted religious freedom, ban offensive expression, and eliminate biased conscience excuses.

10. Create more states to gain political advantage. After all, Somalia needs more representation than just Minnesota.

11. We should allow unlimited immigration to flood our social safety nets.  Since we can't afford to care for our own poor, vets, and elderly, why not?

12. We need to continue open-ended spending and gov't debt increases to fund things like free college and student loan forgiveness for all those who didn't pay their own way or who took on too much debt.

13. They support the Social Justice Gospel and Critical Race Theory, because they are doctrine-free Christians, not those backward Conservatives, who (like Jesus) think All Lives Matter.

14. Get rid of guns for self-defense and militias.  Who needs guns anyway?  There will be no violence and bad guys won't kill innocent people anymore, if they can't get them.

15. "Peaceful" riots and protests are politically advantageous, so they will continue to be implicitly enabled, but publicly decried 😉😉 by public leaders.  After all, we should not prosecute rioters thinking they are exercising their 25th Amendment rights.

16. Patriotism is wrong and we should not be proud of this country, which was founded on systematic racism way back in 1619.  The same goes for Western civilization and its oppressive religion.

17. Since it was an insult to Muslim nations to move the US Embassy to Jerusalem and to broker unacceptable peace deals between Israel and some Arab countries, these actions need to be repudiated and voided, just like Trump did with Iran.  We can't have a president who actually talks to foreign leaders and does tough negotiations, instead of bowing down to them.

18. Trump Really Bad. Of course, Conservatives are also racist, sexist homophobes who hate anyone different than them.  

19. We despise aggressive like Republicans and can only work with weak leaders like Romney or McCain.  We all know everything Trump says or does is wrong.  Trump is rude and calls people names (just better than Joe and Kamala).

20. America First is offensive and racist.  We need to wipe out the idea that America ever was great.

21. Our superior leaders know what we need better than we do.  We don't need to know their glorious plans for us.

22. Energy policies like the Green New Deal will create all the energy we need if we wish hard enough, so we should just get rid of all those fossil fuel and nuclear power plants now to save our planet, regardless of the consequences.

23. Allowing choice of schools would be catastrophic to our children, the public school system, and the teacher's unions.

24. We trust that Joe's handling of Swine Flu, as Obama's VP, shows how he will handle COVID19.  Since fewer people died under his watch (with many more infections), and because more have died under Trump, clearly Joe is better.

25. Trump Really, Really Bad.

26. Waiting until after the election, then we can tell you.

Disclaimer: If you haven't figured it out yet, this is a satirical take on reasons often heard for the voting decisions of the progressive left.

Responding to ‘Pro-Life' Evangelicals for Biden

They miss the difference between objective morals and subjective ones.  Abortion is objectively morally wrong, since it is wrong to murder innocent human beings.  

However, it is subjective to claim we must support (fill in the blank) liberal social policy.  Biblical Justice is objective; wealth redistribution (for example) to achieve "justice" is not.  No amount of support for subjective morality outways objective moral truths on protecting innocent human life and sexuality.

True Non-violent leader, Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Violence as a way of achieving racial justice is both impractical and immoral. I am not unmindful of the fact that violence often brings about momentary results. Nations have frequently won their independence in battle. But in spite of temporary victories, violence never brings permanent peace. It solves no social problem: it merely creates new and more complicated ones. Violence is impractical because it is a descending spiral ending in destruction for all. It is immoral because it seeks to humiliate the opponent rather than win his understanding: it seeks to annihilate rather than convert. Violence is immoral because it thrives on hatred rather than love. It destroys community and makes brotherhood impossible. It leaves society in monologue rather than dialogue. Violence ends up defeating itself. It creates bitterness in the survivors and brutality in the destroyers."   Martin Luther King Jr., 11 Dec 1964

So true.  He was a real leader.  Where are those today?  So what is the agenda of the violent mob then, since it is obviously not real justice and equality?  Even the "peaceful" protestors chant and write despicable things about other human beings.  Dr. King was not in favor of tearing down the family and societal structure of America.  He knew that this kind of revolution is evil and immoral.

What messages are we sending our children?

Where are the leaders willing to stand up and say what needs said? Influencers such as social activist heads, pastors, entertainment icons, prominent political leaders, and especially parents around the kitchen table, all need to speak about what matters for healing.

No nation can long stand with antipathy for civil authority. We need people who lead by both example and speech to model respect. If your goal is peace and reconciliation, then you must change your actions and attitudes, and then do your best to influence those you can to do likewise. To fail to do that is not noble nor is it moral. In The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis got it right, “We make men [and women] without chests and expect from them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honor and are shocked to find traitors in our midst.”

No amount of police reform or defunding can work without sustained leadership teaching respect and civil attitudes toward those tasked with upholding our democratically established law instead of fearing the mob. To teach disrespect for authority, especially police or federal ICE agents, just perpetuates the war and cannot bring any reconciliation.

We cannot have disregard for all human life and private property rights. Envy and covetousness of those who have more than you do is not a virtue. Disdain for rule of law, because you decide it violates your subjective morality, is only destructive.

We rightly condemn Arabs who teach their children to hate the Jews. We rightly condemn those who teach that others with a different skin color are inferior. We should also expose those who indoctrinate our children and culture with the idea that it is noble to disrespect and openly resist authority and the rule of law.

We should rebuke those who work to tear down respect for the one nation founded on principles of equality granted not by gov't, but by God, and which fought a costly civil war to right the great evil of slavery. Is it virtuous to decry it, but offer no better examples or practical solutions? Is it just to mislead others with straw man arguments against the founding principles of our country, which has never been perfect, but is set up to allow self-correction and the righting of wrongs? Yet we see this time and again. This is the big sin that needs to be publicly confessed and repented of.

Ask yourself, are you throwing the first stone? Do you condone, implicitly support, or refuse to rebuke the rebellious attitudes, destruction, and violence toward innocent human beings? Do you silently encourage vigilante "rush to judgement" lynch mobs, which ethical people know cannot be tolerated? Most major incidents that have sparked the recent rioting and violence have their roots in criminal activity. The disrespectful attitudes and actions of those perpetrators often result in injury or death to the officers and/or the malefactor. There are very few cases where a respectful interaction with law enforcement ends unjustly. When there is actual wrongdoing, is it better justice to enforce laws or to allow anarchy? Where are the leaders correcting the initial false narratives and never openly questioning or urging calm, thereby failing those who might listen and learn?

Whether you're a Hatfield or a McCoy, can you follow Jesus' example and be the first to not return wrong for wrong? Can we send the right messages to our children and heal our land?

Why Can't Folks Imagine a World Without Cops, Without Prisons?

 

Answer: Because people inevitably do evil things to others, as we see daily.

The Founders of our country knew this:

"If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary" Federalist No. 51

If you start with the a worldview that denies reality, then you come to ridiculous solutions. We, as followers of Jesus, see people as made in the Image of God, with inherent worth, but profoundly broken by our sin.

We need a change of heart, not platitudes or "imaginary" answers that cannot work.

When it comes to Justice, Don't be a Humpty Dumpty!

Consider how the word "justice" is misused as a political tool.

• The Bible teaches that it is wrong for a Christian to have feelings of superiority (Phil. 2).
• Believers are told not to make class distinctions between various people (James 2).
• Paul teaches the spiritual equality of all people in Christ (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:11).

If a definition of "justice" makes distinctions between people, especially in the Church, based principally on classes they belong to (e.g. race, sexual identity, wealth/social status, historical oppressed/oppressor groups, or other intersectionality), then it is not based on the Christian worldview and is not Biblical Justice.

Don't be a Humpty Dumpty!

Book Review - Weathering Climate Change

 Book Review - Weathering Climate Change  

A Balanced Take on the Controversial Topic of Climate Change

I was excited to get an advanced copy of the new RTB Press book, Weathering Climate Change - A Fresh Approach by Hugh Ross.  But I also began to read this book with a bit of trepidation.  I was afraid, given the polarizing views on both sides of this issue, that this book will cause controversy and detract from RTB's primary mission of Science-Apologetics for the sake of evangelism.  As it turns out, this book is both pointed and pragmatic.  It will push your preconceptions whatever your perspective on the climate change challenges we face.  

Hugh Ross is well qualified to provide a balanced perspective on this topic.  This is fundamentally not just an issue for climatologists, but requires an interdisciplinary approach by someone who is both technical enough to understand the science and also wide-read enough to have a broad perspective on the interplay between the various disciplines and issues that are pertinent.  The author gives such a balanced understanding of the problems and possible solutions on this contentious and complicated issue.

The book does a good job of separating the politics, emotions, and policy issues from the actual science.  If anything, the book is heavy on the science details, though seemingly weighted more toward the standard scientific consensus of the data, with less discussion of possible objections by the minority of scientists who have some disagreements on various points.  On balance, though, I felt like it gives a fair representation of the current best understanding of warming measurements and modeling.  The conclusion is that, "yes", human activity has affected the climate since the industrial revolution, and the climate may be at (or close to) a tipping point where our current extended period of climate stability is at an end.  He does make the point, however, that we still have to face "the inevitable onset of another glacial episode. We may be able to put it off for a few more centuries, perhaps even for a little more than a millennium, but we cannot extend our present interglacial indefinitely." 

Where I think that Hugh Ross makes a distinctive contribution to this discussion, is in his fair and objective look at our responses to the climate crisis.  He presents three categories of possible solutions: mitigate, adapt, and/or "defeat" (or live with it).  He feels that the apocalyptic nature of some claims: global emergency, the need to awaken the public, or calls for immediate, drastic action, feed fear and don't promote rational discussion of solutions.  Scientists' legitimate concerns communicated through journalists and politicians have polarized opinions, from panic and knee-jerk activism to disbelief and lack of trust in the claims.

 

Dr. Ross points out that self-interest of people and nations makes enforcement an intractable problem, because human nature is such that we want to look out for our own self-interests first and let others sacrifice.  This is not surprising due to the dual reality of humanity: while we are created in God's image and can achieve great good, we are also broken by our selfish sinful nature, and we rebel against the good that God calls us to do.

He asks us to consider if there are Win-Win solutions.  It seems to me that some win-wins mentioned would not be widely embraced, such as forced changes to diet, animal husbandry, or traditional farming methods.  It seems unwise to trust that we can quickly replace our current energy needs by future technology, even if we dramatically increase research funding.  Any solutions found through new research likely would not be ready until decades into the future.  Hugh Ross presents some possible climate solutions with the objective of sparking creative thinking and collaboration, and to also "demonstrate that we need not choose between what is best for the environment and what is best for our economic well-being."   Personally, I am skeptical that any of these proposed solutions can be implemented quickly enough, on a large enough scale, to make a significant dent in our climate change situation.

As in past books, Dr. Ross clearly makes the case that the Earth's environmental conditions have been fine-tuned for life.  Many unique circumstances and features of the Earth, Moon, stellar environment, and more, lead to the suggestion that the whole system has been carefully designed and balanced for advanced human civilization during the current narrow window of time.  He says, "The anthropic principle is the observation that the universe, Earth, and Earth’s life appear exquisitely and intentionally designed for humanity." 

The middle section of the book is more technical, which might not be as accessible to the general public.  However, the conclusions and summary questions bring focus at the end of each chapter.  In general, the book is well-sourced and full of recent scientific data on the climate.  Here Dr. Ross provides an in-depth explanation of the causes behind ice age cycles and other historical global climate changes.  Again he shows that the current interglacial stability has provided the ideal environment for our modern civilization, designed and finely tuned by the Creator for that purpose.  He suggests that the current period of extreme climate stability has given us the opportunity to reach billions of people with the Good News.  That brings promise of true purpose and meaning to their lives, and hope for an even better future home awaiting in the new creation.  

The book ends with a plea for collaboration and cooperation among all the diverse groups of humanity in finding win-win climatic solutions.  In the meantime, it is the duty of those who choose to follow Christ to take an active role in caring for both people and the planet, so that we can maximize the time we have available to reach more people for Christ.