Independence Day

It is hard to believe that it was 235 years ago today that our nation's Continental Congress declared independence from England on July 4, 1776 when 55 congressmen signed the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  At the time, twelve of the thirteen original colonies approved the declaration, with the only exception - New York - deemed it unanimous a few days later.

What I find to be even more significant, a fact many Americans are not aware of, is the fact that two of those Founding Fathers, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, both died on the same day of July 4, 1820.  How ironic that two of our most famous American Presidents should die on a day celebrating our freedom.  I find it to be a fact worth remembering and cherishing as a part of our great American History and Heritage.  We are so fortunate to have had so many dedicated Americans back in 1776 willing to sacrifice their own lives to allow a nation of our own to be independent of any other sovereign powers so that we could all live with freedom, liberty, and justice for all.

We, as Americans, 235 years later, have an obligation to carry on that declaration, to prevent other nations or governments to come into our great country and strip us of the Pursuit of Happiness that we have struggled to attain.  We have been involved in too many foreign wars to allow ourselves to be defeated, especially at a time when we are still rebuilding from the terrorist attacks we so well remember from September 11, 2001.  We are a strong nation, one that is willing to sacrifice lives for freedom, in order to provide the same to our future generations.

We face a future of uncertainty in a world of wars and conflicts, but the people of the United States continue to stand as "One Nation, Under God, Indivisible, with Liberty, and Justice for All."

And that's the Way it is.

Happy Father's Day!

Father's Day is a special day for me.  Over the years, I had the honor to have a Foster Father, an Adopted Father, and most recently, a Step-Father.  I never did have an opportunity to personally meet my Biological Father, although I had located him but he didn't want anything to do with me.  As painful as that was at the time, I now realize he had his own personal feelings, which may have been hard for him to share at the time.  He is no longer alive, as well as my adopted and foster fathers, but I do still have a step father that I have great respect for, as he is a very loving, caring person.

We tend to go through life taking parents for granted, especially as we grow older and become parents ourselves.  Sometimes fathers may not care to - or know how to - show their love to their child, but as a parent myself, I know that in the father's heart, their love for their child is still very strong.  I grew up having great respect for my parents, and know now they loved me dearly, even though they may not have physically shown it all the time, and at times while I was young, I had trouble realizing how much they loved me.

Today, I salute all Fathers and wish them all a great Father's Day!

Because....... that's the way it is.

Shoplifters: A New Felony?

How many times have you witnessed another shopper plucking items off a store shelf and place into a purse or bag, then leave the store without paying for the items?  Maybe you have been guilty of even accidentally walking out the store with something you stuck in your pocket because you needed your hands to carry a larger item to the sales counter, meaning to take the item out of your pocket and pay for it - but forgot.

As the economy continues to wreak havoc on everyone's financial well-being, some people - and even organized groups - are waging a huge shoplifting binge at the expense of other shoppers and businesses to make a financial killing to fatten their own wallets.  Some of the more advanced organizations have grown rapidly by hiring people with previous criminal records to steal items off shelves, which in turn, sell the items to the brokers.  Many of the operations are very sophisticated, netting millions of dollars over a period of time to the ring.

As law enforcement agencies continue to close in on numerous undercover investigations across the country, the issue prompts the public to wonder if the courts should perhaps consider making such crimer operations a felony, rather than a misdemeanor.  One might think stealing a cheap $2 item off a shelf will not hurt the business, but as countless numbers of shoplifters pull the same trick, the value of losses add up fast and costly.  Perhaps we need to start charging big-time shoplifters with a felony in order to curb the interest.  The only problem is where do we draw the line on the value of stolen items before it is classified a felony?  Would it deter small-change shoplifters of escalating their interest into a full-fledge shoplifting ring?

It is time to pull all the stops out to decrease shoplifting in America by proposing tougher sentences on all shoplifters, and imposing felony charges on anyone who has a previous record of shoplifting.  Time to take back our law-abiding social norms and reduce the number of "illegal shoppers" so we can keep a tighter rein on rising consumer costs.  Because, that's the way it is.

The Movie "Hachi"

While watching the movie "Hachi", one cannot but help feel the emotions of sadness and love portrayed throughout the entire story of a Japanese-bred Akita Inu puppy that is found abandoned at a train station by a college professor who befriends the dog and takes it home.  Hachi, the dog, becomes very loyal to the professor, following and waiting for him at the train station each day.

Much can be learned about loyalty from this movie.  I cannot help wonder how loyal people are to each other, in comparison to dogs.  We grow up learning life's values, trying to put them to good use.  However, as we go through life, we tend to stray from proper values.  This is evident in today's marriages, which seem to fall from the wayside, having lost the true meaning of "till death do we part", and more as a paper formality.  We seem to have lost the value of Christian faith and loyalty of love.

Hachi proves the love and friendship a dog shared with its master, something that all of us need to bring back into our own relationships and future lives.  We cannot let ourselves lose our life's values to trivial wants, but rather stick to the moral rights and obligations we have as Christians......because that is the way it is.

A year of disasters: Are you Ready?

I don't believe there is a person reading this blog that has not viewed the tornadoes on TV that have totally devastated complete neighborhoods and communities throughout the Southern Belt, the Midwest, and into the Mid Atlantic states.  It is only April, which should be a clue to all of us of the potentially long year ahead of us - fearful of storm after storm.

Perhaps we should start considering and accepting the fact that Armageddon may be closer than we think.  We have already witnessed countless wraths of storms all over the world, including most recently in Japan.  The fact that we most recently saw hundreds of tornadoes racing across several states in the past few days, bringing with it flooding and totally demolished buildings in their paths, can only  make us think that more deadly storms are on the way in the coming months.  Those of us here in Minnesota know we face both flooding and tornado damage if hit, and those along the coasts face the wrath of hurricanes.  And, although many states have not experienced earthquakes, the threat of such disaster has become a greater concern of almost every state.

I know I am ready to accept I am living in a world of turmoil, ever closer to coming to an end in due time.  In the meantime, I plan on becoming trained as a Red Cross Volunteer so that I can help out in times of disasters in this great nation of ours.  I feel we all live only once, and I want to make the most of every minute of what I have left - by helping others.

And that's......the way it is.

Birthers vs. Obama

For the past three years we have witnessed and heard countless numbers of protests by American citizens on the validity of President Barack Obama's U.S. Citizenship.  In 2008 he released the short form which was provided to him by the State of Hawaii, but in the past few days, the White House was able to receive the long-form copy of his original birth certificate from Hawaii.

It amazes me to think how a nation that, in 2007, pushed for change in politics, to deal with the issues that were casting such a dark shadow over us, including unemployment, social chaos, poor economy, and the largest domestic debt ever held in this nation.  The majority of people voted for a change, to put Obama in as president, and here, three years later, we are a nation doubting our own leader's birth certificate.  What happened to a nation that loved and respected our government leaders, no matter what race or creed they are?  Have we now lost faith in the one man that oversees our nation for four years?  We have to realize Obama's term will soon be up, and we will have the opportunity to vote for a new change - whether it will be better or worse than 2008, we will have to wait to see.  But the fact remains, we have more critical issues at hand to deal with than a birth certificate if we want to pull our nation out of turmoil, and get back on our feet, to work as one nation, under God.....with Liberty, and Justice, for All.....


And that, my friends, is.......the way it is.

Remember the Civil War

It is hard to believe that 150 years have past since the Civil War started.  What is harder to believe is the fact that the war began due to the issue of slavery.  As we look back at the mid 1800s, we see a period of people trying to survive in a period of constant migrations - people moving from the East to new unsettled lands west of the Mississippi River.  This was a time of new changes, as well as old habits.  The Colonists, as were known since the first English settlers arrived from England, used Black Slaves, brought to America from Africa, to help farm their plantations, from the New England States, all the way down the Atlantic coast, inland to the Southern Belt states west to the Great River.  Plantation owners relied on their slaves, and most would usually provide them sufficiently with food and shelter, but there were many others who constantly abused their slaves.

President Lincoln prepared and presented the Emancipation of Proclamation, proclaiming an end to slavery.  But what many people do not realize, is that Lincoln, personally, was not totally against slavery.  But, as President of the United States, he felt there were a majority of states that felt slavery should be abolished, and slaves become free citizens.  As a result, several Southern states seceded, and eventually the first shot of the Civil War occurred on April 12, 1861 on Fort Sumter.

We cannot turn back time on those four fateful years of the war, but we now know that civil disputes between individuals, groups, and states can create a large enough mountain to start a war.  If is unfortunate in the thousands of lives lost over the issue of slavery, but now, we can see that we are all created equal, no matter what our color.

The most significant insight of the Civil War is that we learn from previous mistakes, and work together as one nation to resolve issues.  Politics will always play a major role in conflicts between political parties and groups, but if we learn to resolve issues before they get out of proportion, we can maybe avoid another Civil War.  And that.....is the way it is.