The Right Lane update 7.24.13

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

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Detroit as the Example By Richard Grenell
Detroit is a great example for cities and states across the U.S. Its problems have been slowly building for decades. Years of decreasing revenues and increasing expenses have been met with political selfishness and weak leadership – all which led Detroit to recently file for bankruptcy. As it stands, Detroit is $18 billion dollars in debt. Although this is an astronomical figure, it isn't surprising…

Across the country, public pensions have grown large and grand at a time when government programs have been shrinking. Political leaders, like Detroit's, who scale back public programs but fail to cut the bureaucrats administering those programs will find themselves in Detroit's shoes soon enough. Local political officials across the U.S. should see Detroit's filing as a warning sign of what can happen when they ignore public deficits.

Detroit's interim leader and emergency manager Kevyn Orr seems well-equipped to make the tough decisions that so-far have not been made in Detroit. Orr, appointed by Michigan Governor and budget hawk Rick Snyder, is an expert bankruptcy lawyer. Snyder and Orr understand that you cannot continue to spend money you don't have. While most politicians would love to say yes to every resident, lobbyist or union member asking for increased spending or new programs, only weak politicians agree to spend money that isn't available.

Orr has signaled that Detroit's problems must be solved by Detroit and that a state or federal bailout won't fix Detroit's structural problems. Governor Snyder views the bankruptcy as an opportunity to fix the problems. "Now is our opportunity to stop 60 years of decline," Snyder said this week.
A bankruptcy filing offers Detroit a chance at a fresh start. Here are a few fixes that Orr and Snyder should implement to restore faith in Detroit's leadership:

1.	End all pension agreements previously negotiated and offer retirees a more realistic package.
2.	Right-size city government by laying off workers whose programs aren't funded.
3.	Concentrate on delivering the basic services.
4.	Separate certain areas from the city's jurisdiction in an effort to make Detroit not so vast an area to govern.
5.	Make public safety the top priority of city officials.
6.	Move city workers out of offices and into the community.
7.	Repeal all city regulations that discourage businesses from operating within the city's limits.
8.	Aggressively recruit new businesses to the city.
9.	Work with Detroit's professional sports teams to market Detroit better.
10.	Lean on Detroit's famous residents to help recruit businesses to the city.

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Lawmakers battle over push to create military 'chaplain' for atheists

Members of Congress are set to square off over a push to create military chaplains for people who do not believe in God.  The effort to create a chaplain for atheists and "humanists" has been building over the last several weeks. While the title might sound inherently contradictory, supporters say the point is to give atheists in the military someone who will pro-actively reach out to them and facilitate meetings. 

Jason Torpy, president of the Military Association of Atheists and Free Thinkers, claims that 23 percent of those in the military ranks assert no religious preference. And he argues chaplains are not providing enough "positive outreach and support" in the way "they do for all of those beliefs that aren't their own." As might be expected, the campaign is running into some heated criticism. 

Lawmakers turned away a Democratic-sponsored amendment last month that would have created the post -- and now, Republicans are trying to formally quash the idea, with an amendment to a defense budget bill that would require military chaplains to be affiliated with a particular faith.  "When it comes to the idea of an atheist chaplain, which is an oxymoron -- it's self-contradictory -- what you're really doing is now saying that we're going to replace true chaplains with non-chaplain chaplains," said sponsor Rep. John Fleming, R-La. "It's just total nonsense, the idea of having a chaplain who is an atheist.

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Professor backs statement that God is racist, says ‘I have tenure. I can’t get fired’

Anthea Butler, the Ivy League religious studies professor who called God a white racist after the Trayvon Martin verdict last week, doubled down on her statement and denounced the conservative media outlets that criticized her. Butler, an associate professor of religious studies at the University of Pennsylvania, wrote a blog post for Religious Dispatches last week arguing that most Americans worship a “white racist god with a problem” who is “carrying a gun and stalking young black men.” “As a historian of American and African-American religion, I know that the Trayvon Martin moment is just one moment in a history of racism in America that, in large part, has its underpinnings in Christianity and its history,” she wrote.  How did she get into this position and why is she still there?

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Why ‘Common Sense Gun Safety Legislation’ Is Not About Safety or Common Sense  Watch here....

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“You Cannot Legislate Morality!”  Dave Miller, Ph.D.

The CEO of a major American corporation was forced to resign after admitting to a sexual affair with a female subordinate (Merle, 2005). The incident triggered the oft’-debated ethical question: “Should one’s personal behavior in moral matters have any bearing on one’s position in public life?” Conventional wisdom now says, “no.” You’ve heard the claims—over and over again ad nauseam: “What a person does on his own time is none of the company’s business.” “Public life and private life are separate issues.” “After all, you cannot legislate morality and personal behavior.” From the president of the United States and the CEO of a large corporation to the public school teacher, Americans in large numbers have swallowed the baseless and ludicrous assertion that personal conduct and moral choices have no bearing on one’s employment position and credibility. Character, integrity, and ethical behavior increasingly have been detached from job performance as people compartmentalize their lives into separate and distinct spheres.

But such ethical schizophrenia is irrational, nonsensical, and destructive to the fabric of society. When a person manifests immorality in one aspect of his life, he demonstrates a character flaw that has become a part of his being. This circumstance must inevitably and naturally permeate a person’s character. If he is willing to lie in his private life, logically his propensity for lying can know no boundaries. The person who becomes comfortable with lying in one area of his life will eventually feel comfortable lying in other areas as well. Once a person sacrifices her integrity by embracing one illicit behavior (e.g., lying), she instantaneously opens herself up to embracing additional illicit behaviors (e.g., stealing, cheating). If a man cannot be trusted with your wife, why would you trust him with your money or your business? God’s Word is the only reliable guide for human behavior (Psalm 119). In the Bible, God has given rules for the regulation of human behavior. Only He is in a position to establish the parameters of proper behavior. Without law, humans would have no guidance and no framework for assessing their actions. They would be free to conduct themselves in any manner whatsoever. One person may choose to murder while another may choose not to murder. There would be no ultimate difference between those two choices—no objective basis upon which to assign any ethical or moral significance. The person who engages in immoral behavior would be open to being immoral in any and every area of his or her life. Only incidental circumstances would decide when and where the immorality manifested itself. If a CEO would sacrifice his sexual integrity, given the right circumstances, he would be willing to sacrifice his financial integrity as well.

Human civilization is, in fact, grounded and dependent on the fundamental principle that human behavior can and must be regulated. Laws, by definition, regulate human behavior! Why do we have traffic laws? Why do we require people to drive their automobiles on the correct side of the road, stop at red traffic lights, or yield to pedestrians in crosswalks? Weren’t we told that we could not legislate human behavior? Why do we have laws governing the food industry’s handling of food for human consumption? I thought we could not legislate human behavior? Why do we have laws that make murder, stealing, and perjury in court illegal—if human morality cannot be legislated? The fact of the matter is that human behavior can and must be governed. The very fabric and functioning of society depends on it!

Ultimately, morality must be based on the laws of God, with the understanding that one day all humans will stand before the Supreme Judge of the world Who will “render to each one according to his deeds” (Romans 2:6): “For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil (Ecclesiastes 12:14). “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men” (2 Corinthians 5:10-11).

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Moderate and Conservative Democrats Backing Away From Obamacare By: Lisa Barron

Obamacare is steadily losing support among moderate and conservative Democrats, according to a new Washington Post/ABC News poll. Just after the Affordable Care Act was passed in 2010, 74 percent of moderate and conservative Democrats supported the law, compared to just 46 percent who express support in the new poll, down 11 points in the past year, according to Scott Clement, a survey research analyst with Capital Insight, the independent polling group of Washington Post Media. By contrast, liberal Democrats have continued to support the law at very high levels: 78 percent in the latest survey.

But the shift among moderates and conservatives is causing an overall drop in party support for the healthcare reform law, according to the poll of 1,002 adults taken July 18-21. Just 58 percent of Democrats now support the law, the lowest measure of support since the law was enacted. Last year at this time, 68 percent of Democrats voiced support for it. Clement notes that the latest results are similar to those found in recent surveys by Fox News and the Kaiser Family Foundation. The poll suggested the trend downward in Democratic support could be driven by the administration's recent announcement that the employer mandate requiring companies with 50 or more employees to provide health insurance is being delayed by one year. According to the Post/ABC poll, 48 percent of survey respondents said the delay means the law is so flawed it should be dropped, but 46 percent dismissed the delay as something that just happens when changes are made to a complex system.

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Obama’s Organizing For America Chairman On Immigration: “We’re Going To Force It Through The House” by Tim Brown

Jim Messina, the man who is Barack Obama’s former campaign manager and now is the chairman for Obama’s advocacy group, Organizing for America, recently said that the group is going to push for comprehensive immigration reform in the U.S. House of Representatives. “We are going to force it through the House,” said Messina. The Washington Post reports that Messina added, “I will sit with you and cry when Barack Obama signs his name on that law and millions of people come out of the shadows.”

What exactly does Obama have in mind? It appears that it is pretty much everything that is in the Senate’s amnesty bill which passed 68-32 at the end of June. Not only did it contain a $5,000 penalty for hiring citizens over legalized aliens, but there were a number of serious financial and national security issues that were in the bill as well.  Though OFA has not come close to meeting its $50 million goal for donations, it has barely received $13.1 million through June, claiming the support of 237,000. The organization is the first in history to go from a campaign to an advocacy group. Yet though they have held more than 6,500 events about the country calling on Congress to pass tougher gun-control laws and approve comprehensive amnesty, they have not been quite as effective at actually affecting legislation. The advocacy group has received criticism from local party officials for targeting four conservative Democrats who would not support stricter background checks for gun purchases. Tony Lee points out, “OFA generated embarrassing headlines when it only attracted eight people last month in Indiana and twenty in Tennessee for rallies in support of immigration reform.” While the numbers seem to be against them fulfilling their mission, OFA chairman Messina says otherwise. “Of course, the naysayers are back saying, ‘Oh, change is hard,’ ” Messina said, adding, “You haven’t seen nothing yet. I just need double the amount of work and two and half times the money,” he said. “We are off to a very fast start . . . but we’ve got to double down.” This simply means that we as Americans will have to continue to stand fast against the socialist agenda being put forth by the Obama administration and OFA and continue to demand that our leaders do what we tell them to. Of course, that will require that we remove those from office, like John Boehner, who doesn’t think it’s his job to take a stand on the issues and lead.

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Obama and his "evolving" positions--The Wall Street Journal

"Same-sex marriage isn't the only subject on which President Obama's views have evolved. In his remarks last Friday on George Zimmerman's acquittal, the President said it would be wise to 'examine' state and local laws governing the use of firearms in self-defense. He suggested that 'stand your ground' provisions are 'sending a message' that 'someone who is armed potentially has the right to use those firearms even if there's a way for them to exit from a situation.' He asked: 'Is that really going to be contributing to the kind of peace and security and order that we'd like to see?' It turns out that Mr. Obama participated in such an examination almost a decade ago and emerged as a stand-your-ground proponent. Illinois Review, a conservative blog, recently unearthed Illinois Senate records showing that then-state Senator Obama voted for and even co-sponsored a 2004 bill that expanded the protection of the state's 1961 stand-your-ground law to include immunity from civil liability for people who use deadly force to defend themselves or their property. The bill wasn't controversial in the liberal legislature, passing the Senate without dissent and the state House with only two nays before then-Governor Rod Blagojevich, also a Democrat, signed it. ... U.S. Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois, a member of the Judiciary Committee, says he'll hold a subcommittee hearing on the topic this fall. Maybe he should call his former junior colleague as a witness and ask him to explain what message he was seeking to send in 2004."

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Pelosi: "We Must Uphold Our Oath To The Constitution By Passing Gun Control" by Philip Hodges

It’s been just over a year since James Holmes entered an Aurora, Colorado “gun-free” theater and shot up a bunch of defenseless movie-goers. Since then, gun control activists have capitalized off of the murder victims in their attempt to appeal to Americans’ emotions.  When that debate began to fizzle, Sandy Hook conveniently happened in a gun-free school, and since it involved more people and little kids, politicians were able to more effectively tug at America’s heartstrings to convince people that gun confiscation is really the most responsible thing to do to combat “gun violence.” But because of the evil gun lobby, even the “compromised” Manchin-Toomey bill failed in the Senate.

Now, we’re waiting for the next act of mass murder that is sure to be bigger, bloodier and better than Sandy Hook and Aurora combined. And when the media works its magic, it’ll be equally more entertaining and dramatic, especially when they delve into and dwell on the “lone gunman’s” twisted and shocking past and personal life. No doubt the media will feast on it like a parasite, sucking the lifeblood of the victims and churning out increased profits in the form of higher ratings. And politicians will cry fake tears in exchange for votes, money and guns. You know the drill.

But while we wait for the next big event to happen, Nancy Pelosi wants to commemorate the one-year anniversary of James Holmes’s theatrical murder spree. She wants to remind everyone that she and the rest of Washington haven’t forgotten about their “Constitutional” responsibility to enact gun control:

“In Congress, there can be no more fitting memorial to the lives lost in Aurora, in Newtown, and across the country than a concerted effort to enact commonsense gun safety legislation. We must uphold our oath to ‘protect and defend’ the constitution and all Americans by expanding background checks and keeping dangerous firearms out of the wrong hands. We must restore confidence in the safety of our homes, schools, movie theaters, and neighborhoods by taking clear, concrete steps to prevent gun violence.”

Never mind the fact that in her Congressional oath, the phrase “protect and defend” doesn’t appear. The phrase she’s looking for is “support and defend.” And if she’s going to support and defend the Constitution, that includes the 2^nd Amendment, which includes the phrase “shall not be infringed.” There is no Constitutional basis for gun control at all. I guess she thinks we must break the law in order to enforce it?  She wants more gun-free zones to protect schools and theaters. We already have those, and we ended up with Aurora and Sandy Hook. I can only conclude that she must want more of those types of incidents.  If politicians like Pelosi truly want to support and defend the Constitution, they’d work to repeal all federal gun control laws and allow states to have their own laws, if any, governing guns. Is that likely to happen with gun-grabbers like Pelosi? Not in this lifetime.

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