Outrageous and More!

             Well now, last week’s article drew quite a bit of response. Several of you suggested that I provide some concrete steps to take in the active process of getting involved in turning back this frightful slide into socialism.

Another comment was for me to be sure to include an emphasis on the degeneration of morality and spirituality in America, both of which are cancerous to our current state as free people in a republic.

 I want to thank the many of you who took the time to read and reply to my article. I truly enjoy hearing back from you.

So, picking up from last week, let’s see what other events need to be considered.

First, Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl. This Army soldier was recently involved in a prisoner swap, creating a storm of controversy within our own military. Five years ago Sgt Bergdahl wound up in the hands of the Taliban in Afghanistan. The answer yet remains unclear as to just how that happened. This will be sorted out, I trust, at some date in the future. As of this week Sgt Bergdahl is back on active duty. I would hope that he will be charged with violations of the UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice). Why do I say this? Because there are two telling bits of information that seem to be damning in his case: 1) He left his post. Exactly how that was played out is unclear. Every service member is required to learn their 11 General Orders, the first of which states: “I will take charge of my post and all government property in view.” And the fifth General Order says, “I will quit my post only when properly relieved.” Apparently he did neither. And 2) The testimonies of Bergdahl’s fellow soldiers are most revealing. To a man it seems they do not buy the story that he was captured/kidnapped by the Taliban. Instead, it is believed by these men that he intentionally deserted. A recently released email to his dad supports this assertion.

Second, the IRS Scandal. The director of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Lois Lerner, has certainly made a name for herself. Her arrogant, impervious attitude while being questioned by a Congressional committee, has left her in the minds of many to be someone who is intentionally lying to and subverting the efforts of the committee in getting to the bottom of the IRS which has admittedly targeted conservative groups. The icing on the cake, if you will, has been the convenient loss of all Ms Lerner’s emails that addressed this issue. As of this writing there are steps being made to place her under arrest for lying to Congress.

Third, the VA Debacle. If there has been a government agency that was thought to take care of our veterans, it has been the Veterans Administration (VA). As recent reports have shown, this is anything but, in the case of one particular VA facility in Phoenix, Arizona, And in even more recent reports, this trouble in neglecting our veterans is popping up in other VA facilities. In the Phoenix VA some 40 veterans in need of proper medical care (surgeries, medicine) died after being denied medical treatment through an administrative “shell game.” Veterans seeking service would be told to wait for a call from the VA. Weeks and months would go by with no call. When the veteran would call to inquire he would be ignored, or told he’d be called soon. What in fact was happening was an administrative shuffle so that the bosses of the VA in Washington would believe that everything was fine at this facility because reports would only be submitted once a veteran was actually seen. To show a backlog in seeing patients was frowned upon. As Rush Limbaugh often says, “Follow the money!”

Last, the Hobby Lobby case. The owners of this national retail chain of arts and crafts stores are dedicated Christians. And they have found themselves in the cross-hairs of the Administration’s new Affordable Care Act (ACA), or as it is better known, Obamacare. From what I’ve read, Hobby Lobby pays their employees very well, providing them with numerous benefits, including a generous health care plan. The point of controversy seems to surround the “morning-after pill.” To the owner this is deemed as killing a newly formed child in the womb, and therefore a violation of their Christian belief in the sanctity of life. The health plan provides measures to prevent pregnancies, but they will not provide help in stopping a pregnancy. The Supreme Court has ruled 5-4 in favor of Hobby Lobby. However, liberal members in Congress are working to have this decision over-turned. The real issue would appear to actually be one of control. If a large corporation like Hobby Lobby, with 575 stores nationwide can be brought under the onus of Obamacare, what other entities could possibly stand against such invasive government control? And if a person or company that holds to strong moral and spiritual beliefs can be forced to go against those beliefs, then we’re all in trouble.

There’s more to come. But please, pray for our leaders. And pray that God would be merciful to us.