He Doesn't Get It, But She Sure Does

The "He" would be President Obama, and the "She" is Cassandra at Villainous Company. She articulates well some thoughts I've been mulling over lately, especially since the crime at Fort Hood last week. Here's how she starts her thoughtful post:

Life is full of mysteries, but chief among them in this Marine wife's mind at the moment is, "Just how stupid does this White House think we are?" If the events of the past few months have shown us anything, it's that Barack Obama has little enthusiasm for - or interest in - one of the most important duties of an American President: his role as Commander in Chief of the nation's armed forces.

She's only getting started. It's a long post, but I recommend it.

A Monthly Abortion Premium?

That's what the office of Congressman John Boehner says is included in Pelosi's healthcare bill:

What is even more alarming is that a monthly abortion premium will be charged of all enrollees in the government-run plan. It’s right there on line 16, page 96, section 213, under “Insurance Rating Rules.” The premium will be paid into a U.S. Treasury account - and these federal funds will be used to pay for the abortion services.

Also alarming is the latitude allowed to the Secretary of Health and Human Services:

On line 17, p. 110, section 222 under “Abortions for which Public Funding is Allowed” the Health and Human Services Secretary is given the authority to determine when abortion is allowed under the government-run plan. The Speaker’s plan also requires that at least one insurance plan offered in the Exchange covers abortions.

Please go read the whole post. This is appalling.

Quote of the Day

From Brigette Russell at Moralia, on why she's not blogging as often:

When you homeschool, and your kids turn out to be ignorami, there’s nobody else to blame. That’s some pressure, I tell you what.

Oh, how I can relate to that!

If the young guys with the white shirts and black ties are walking through your neighborhood, you'll want to have read this from Credenda Agenda. Here's a peek:

There are basically two ways Christians witness to Mormons. One is to demolish Mormonism in an apologetic way, the other is to expose Mormonism in a theological way. The former deals with Mormon history, false prophecies, archaeology, DNA, etc. The latter deals with sin, repentance, atonement, the gospel, etc.

Most people take the first approach, but we, the Oasis ministry in Utah, take the second. The first may make many ex-Mormons, but it doesn't necessarily make believers. Actually, it can be counter-productive. Once Mormons realize Mormonism is false they typically move into atheism because it is almost impossible for them to disassociate their knowledge of God, the Bible and Jesus from their Mormon worldview. They are so wounded from having been lied to that they hesitate to trust any religious consideration afterward and default into heavy skepticism. Also, destroying the historical foundations of Mormonism isn't preaching the gospel. The message we are called to preach is the same message for all people whether they are Mormon or not: we are called to preach Christ crucified, the only salvation for sinners.

The whole thing is worth a read.

A Picture Worth 787 Billion Words

Here.

"Rome wasn't built in a day, so if Caesar could see what I've already done, it would rock his world."

Need a laugh? Scott Ott can help.

Missing the Spirit of the Law

I was not in favor of the cell phone ban for drivers on Oahu that kicked in this past summer, not because I think driving while on the phone is a good idea, but because I think erratic driving while dialing is reckless driving, and that's already against the law. I also think that the law is largely ineffective, as illustrated by what PalmPilot and I saw yesterday. While on the H-3, PalmPilot tried to pass a driver who couldn't keep a consistent speed in the right lane. As we passed her, we saw that the young woman had both hands on the wheel, but she was balancing her cell phone on her upper left arm and had her head tilted over to listen in. Hands free? Yes. But as she tried to balance the phone while conversing, safe driving, not to mention keeping a constant speed, was the last thing on her mind.

Books I've Read in 2009

I'm keeping a list again for my reference, and I'd love to hear what you're reading, too.

JANUARY

~ Elizabeth Prentiss: More Love to Thee - Sharon James
~ The Soul of A Chef: The Journey Toward Perfection - Michael Ruhlman
~ Reflections on the Revolution in France - Edmund Burke (for Omnibus III)

FEBRUARY

~ Killer Angels - Michael Shaara (for Omnibus III)

MARCH

~ Christianity and Liberalism - J. Gresham Machen (for Omnibus III)
~ The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway (for Omnibus III)
~ The Communist Manifesto - Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels (for Omnibus III)
~ Animal Farm - George Orwell (for Omnibus III)
~ From Fear to Freedom: Living as Sons and Daughters of God - Rose Marie Miller

APRIL

~ The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald (for Omnibus III)
~ Stepping Heavenward - Elizabeth Prentiss (a re-read)
~ Death of a Salesman - Arthur Miller (for Omnibus III)
~ The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
~ Postmodern Times: A Christian Guide to Contemporary Thought and Culture - Gene Edward Veith, Jr. (for Omnibus III)

MAY

~ Legends of the Fall - Jim Harrison
~ 1984 - George Orwell (for Omnibus III)
~ A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini
~ How Should We Then Live? - Francis A. Schaeffer (for Omnibus III)
~ Honolulu: A Novel - Alan Brennert

JUNE

~ Pompeii - Robert Harris
~ Heart and Soul - Maeve Binchy
~ Dynamite Road - Andrew Klavan
~ The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future (Or, Don't Trust Anyone Under 30) - Mark Bauerlein (I read this last year, but it's assigned reading this summer for the teachers in our secondary school and definitely worth a second look. My initial thoughts on it are here.)

JULY

~ Knowing God - J.I. Packer
~ Nero - Jacob Abbott
~ The Courage To Be Protestant: Truth-lovers, Marketers, and Emergents in the Postmodern World - David Wells
~ Checking for Understanding: Formative Assessment Techniques for Your Classroom - Douglas Fisher & Nancy Frey

AUGUST

~ Teacher Man - Frank McCourt
~ The Art of Teaching - Gilbert Highet

SEPTEMBER

~ Death on the Nile - Agatha Christie

OCTOBER

~ Dear John - Nicholas Sparks
~ Cat O'Nine Tales: And Other Stories - Jeffrey Archer
~ The Death of the Grown-Up: How America's Arrested Development Is Bringing Down Western Civilization - Diana West

NOVEMBER

~ An Educated Choice: Advice for Parents of College-Bound Students - Frank A. Brock
~ South of Broad - Pat Conroy

Miscellany

I’ve been such a slacker at blogging that I’m not sure that I have any blog readers left, but just in case I do, here’s a little explanation. I’m in the busiest season of life I’ve ever experienced. Sure, I think about things to blog, but that’s pretty much only while I’m driving, and I have a pretty short commute. Obviously I can’t blog while driving, so by the time I get home, I’m trying to catch up on other things and blogging doesn’t make it to my task list.

The most I can do now is this little collection of this and that:

~ We recently returned from a trip to the mainland to visit family and to look at some schools for PalmBoy, a high school senior. He is sure now about the one he wants to attend, and we are happy with his decision. Now we have some hoops to jump through.

~ This afternoon will be devoted to many of those hoops. I'm not only his primary teacher; I'm also his guidance counselor. (Pause for a moment and pray for poor PalmBoy.) His transcript is almost ready to go, and we have a few other things to finish up. This has caused me to go ahead and begin working on PalmGirl's transcript to save me this massive headache later. I'm thankful that Covenant has a transcript form (scroll down this page) that they like for homeschoolers, and I've heard of other families using it for other colleges and universities, as well.

~ Up until recently, I've gone back and forth on secular vs. Christian education at the university level. After all, PalmPilot and I attended a large state university, found a group of Christians on campus, and plugged in to a local church. We survived our godless professors and lived to tell about it. However, as we've homeschooled our children through the majority of their school years, I've become more convinced than ever that an education that leaves out the lordship of Christ Jesus in all things is not a complete education. Worldview matters. As we toured a large state university and then went back for another visit to Covenant College, the difference couldn't have been more stark. Although this post by Nancy Wilson addresses the subject of daughters in college, her conclusion really rings true for me.

~ In preparation for our move next summer, I'm beginning the arduous process of de-cluttering. I've started going through my book collection and just listed a bunch of them on PaperbackSwap.com. Many of them are already in the mail now. I've got a lot more shelves to get through, though.

~ I'm now on Facebook. If you're a blog friend and want to be my FB friend (my blog isn't tied to my FB account), shoot me an email (link in the sidebar).

~ I miss fall. I got a tiny taste of it in the mountains of North Carolina earlier this month, and then we came home to hot, humid, voggy weather here. Yeah, you feel sorry for me, I know.

Giggle of the Day

Obama adds "public option" to World Series.