The Right Lane update 7.15.13

The pursuit of Constitutionally grounded governance, freedom and individual liberty

"There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily." --George Washington

To subscribe, see note below

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Satan’s Lie – "it’s just fun"

God gave you the tools to detect and expose the lies of the world. The greatest tool is the Bible itself. The Word is truth and light, and it exposes lies and darkness. The more you study and use the Bible, the more discerning you become about the world. Watch what goes on in the world and ask yourself questions. Ask if what the world says is really true. For example, entertainment is often based on the humorous portrayal of lust, adultery, jealousy, gossip, hatred, greed, etc. I’m not just talking about X-rated movies; light-hearted, fun PG movies fit the profile just as well. Why do we find it so easy to be amused by behavior that God hates and that Jesus Christ died to save us from? Is there, perhaps, some kind of deception going on that says, “It’s no big deal, it’s just fun”? Another popular lie is that sensual pleasure satisfies. We aren’t fooled by that lie, are we? Even non-Christians warn their children against the deadly pleasures of drugs, alcohol and promiscuous sex. But how about the more wholesome pleasures? Food, recreation, music, travel, cars, computers—these can all provide legitimate enjoyment. But one of the world’s lies is that worldly pleasure itself is worth living for. Just watch commercials for an evening. The only issue is to decide what product or experience gives the greatest pleasure. When your children beg for the newest action figure, video game, or DVD; when you find yourself craving a faster car, a more luxurious vacation, a more powerful computer, a better wardrobe—stop and check yourself. None of those things is necessarily wrong, but will any of them really bring the satisfaction they promise?

~~~~~~

Netanyahu Says Israel May Have to Deal With Iran Before US By: Calev Ben-David

JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran is moving ahead toward nuclear weapons capability and warned that his country would act by itself if necessary to prevent that from happening. “We’re closer than the United States,” Netanyahu said Sunday in an interview on CBS-TV’s current affairs program “Face the Nation,” according to a transcript of his remarks. “We’re more vulnerable. And therefore, we’ll have to address this question of how to stop Iran, perhaps before the United States does.” Iranian officials have said the country’s nuclear facilities are intended only for civilian purposes such as energy and medical purposes. Netanyahu has said Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons that would pose an “existential threat” to Israel and “all options are on the table” to stop it, including a military strike. Iran’s president-elect, Hassan Rohani, has said he would seek to ease international economic sanctions aimed at curtailing the development of his country’s nuclear program. Netanyahu dismissed speculation that Rohani’s victory last month signals a possible change in Iranian nuclear policy, and urged the international community to toughen the sanctions. Rohani’s strategy “is be a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Smile and build a bomb,” the Israeli leader said on “Face the Nation.”

~~~~~~

FBI records: agents found no evidence that Zimmerman was racist - Frances Robles and Scott Hiaason

After interviewing nearly three dozen people in the George Zimmerman murder case, the FBI found no evidence that racial bias was a motivating factor in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, records released Thursday show.  Even the lead detective in the case, Sanford Det. Chris Serino, told agents that he thought Zimmerman profiled Trayvon because of his attire and the circumstances — but not his race.

Serino saw Zimmerman as “having little hero complex, but not as a racist.”

The Duval County State Attorney released another collection of evidence in the Zimmerman murder case Thursday, including reports from FBI agents who investigated whether any racial bias was involved in Trayvon’s Feb. 26 killing. The evidence includes bank surveillance videos from the day of the killing, crime scene photos and memos from prosecutors. Among the documents is a note from the prosecutor who said one of the witnesses said her son, a minor, had felt pressured by investigators to say the injured man he saw was wearing a red top. The boy’s testimony had been considered key, because it backed up Zimmerman’s allegation that he — wearing red — was being pummeled.

Federal agents interviewed Zimmerman’s neighbors and co-workers, but none said Zimmerman had expressed racial animus at any time prior to the Feb. 26 shooting of Martin, a black teen, in a confrontation at a Sanford housing complex. As Sanford police investigated the circumstances of Martin’s death, the FBI opened a parallel probe to determine if Martin’s civil rights had been violated. Several co-workers said they had never seen Zimmerman display any prejudice or racial bias. Two co-workers told agents they spoke with Zimmerman the day after the shooting, and both said they noticed injuries to Zimmerman’s nose and the back of his head. One person said Zimmerman was “absolutely devastated.” Zimmerman told both colleagues that he followed Martin — whom Zimmerman described as a “suspicious person” — so he could tell police where the teen went, but was then “jumped” by Martin. Zimmerman told both that Martin reached for Zimmerman’s gun before Zimmerman shot Martin. In all, the FBI interviewed 35 people about Zimmerman, from current and former co-workers to neighbors and an ex-girlfriend. Among the revelations found in nearly 300 pages of records.

~~~~~~

Obama on verdict: We’re ‘a nation of laws and a jury has spoken’

President Obama on Sunday called the death of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin a “tragedy” and urged calm one day after shooter George Zimmerman was acquitted, saying that American was a “nation of laws, and a jury has spoken.”

“The death of Trayvon Martin was a tragedy. Not just for his family, or for any one community, but for America,” said Obama in a statement. I know this case has elicited strong passions. And in the wake of the verdict, I know those passions may be running even higher,” he continued. “But we are a nation of laws, and a jury has spoken. I now ask every American to respect the call for calm reflection from two parents who lost their young son.”

~~~~~~

Reid on Zimmerman: ‘This Isn’t Over With’ - We have to keep the distraction going at all costs!

Liberals love to fan the flames of racism to distract the American people from the real issues. And our leading moron in the senate couldn't wait!  On Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) asked for the Justice Department to prosecute George Zimmerman, who was acquitted Saturday night in the killing of Trayvon Martin. “I think the Justice Department is going to take a look at this,” Reid told NBC’s Meet the Press. “This isn’t over with and I think that’s good. That’s our system, it’s gotten better, not worse.”

~~~~~~

101 Million Get Food Aid from Federal Gov’t; Outnumber Full-Time Private Sector Workers By Elizabeth Harrington

(CNSNews.com) – The number of Americans receiving subsidized food assistance from the federal government has risen to 101 million, representing roughly a third of the U.S. population. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that a total of 101,000,000 people currently participate in at least one of the 15 food programs offered by the agency, at a cost of $114 billion in fiscal year 2012.

That means the number of Americans receiving food assistance has surpassed the number of full-time private sector workers in the U.S. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were 97,180,000 full-time private sector workers in 2012.

The population of the U.S. is 316.2 million people, meaning nearly a third of Americans receive food aid from the government.

Of the 101 million receiving food benefits, a record 47 million Americans participated in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps. The USDA describes SNAP as the “largest program in the domestic hunger safety net.”

The USDA says the number of Americans on food stamps is a “historically high figure that has risen with the economic downturn.”

SNAP has a monthly average of 46.7 million participants, or 22.5 million households.  Food stamps alone had a budget of $88.6 billion in FY 2012.

The USDA also offers nutrition assistance for pregnant women, school children and seniors.

The National School Lunch program provides 32 million students with low-cost or no-cost meals daily; 10.6 million participate in the School Breakfast Program; and 8.9 million receive benefits from the Woman, Infants and Children (WIC) program each month, the latter designed for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum women, as well as children younger than 5 years old.

In addition, 3.3 million children at day care centers receive snacks through the Child and Adult Care Food Program.

There’s also a Special Milk Program for schools and a Summer Food Service Program, through which 2.3 million children received aid in July 2011 during summer vacation.

At farmer’s markets, 864,000 seniors receive benefits to purchase food and 1.9 million women and children use coupons from the program.

A “potential for overlap” exists with the many food programs offered by the USDA, allowing participants to have more than their daily food needs subsidized completely by the federal government.

According to a July 3 audit by the Inspector General, the USDA’s Food Nutrition Service (FNS) “may be duplicating its efforts by providing participants total benefits in excess of 100 percent of daily nutritional needs when households and/or individuals participate in more than one FNS program simultaneously.”

Food assistance programs are designed to be a “safety net,” the IG said.

“With the growing rate of food insecurity among U.S. households and significant pressures on the Federal budget, it is important to understand how food assistance programs complement one another as a safety net, and how services from these 15 individual programs may be inefficient, due to overlap and duplication,” the audit said.

~~~~~~

Oakland Anti-Zimmerman Protesters Burn American Flag

On Sunday evening in Oakland, hundreds of demonstrators mobbed the streets to protest the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the killing of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida. The new protests followed protests on Saturday night and early Sunday morning in which protesters smashed police car windows, spray painted the black-and-whites, smashed bank windows, and graffitied private businesses. Sunday evening’s protesters burned an American flag.  Who are these people?  What grievance do they have with America (assuming they are all Americans)? What do they really want?  Don't you want to know?

~~~~~~

Top of Form

† † † † † † † † † † †