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Watching the posts on the bulletin board in reaction to
several recent articles concerning "Political Correctness"
and the fate of the environment in South Dakota, I really
have to wonder just why so many people who espouse a common
interest in fly fishing could possibly be so divergent in their attitudes.
We have seen the decline in the character of our nation over
the several decades just passed. And we have arrived at the
point where we are today through the apparent disregard of
our heritage, and the lessons it has taught us over time.
The following is an Email a friend sent me recently, and in
reading it, I was immediately reminded of the before mentioned
articles and the subsequent reaction to them. It seemed to
answer the question quite bluntly of how we got to this
shameful place.
While I did not pen the following, I frankly would have a very
hard time phrasing it better.
Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early
Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this
happen?" (Regarding the attacks on Sept. 11).
Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response.
She said,
"I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but
for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to
get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being
the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can
we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we
demand He leave us alone?"
In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings,
etc., I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was
murdered, her body found recently) complained she didn't want
prayer in our schools, and we said OK.
Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school... the
Bible says thou shall not kill, thou shall not steal, and love
your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.
Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when
they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped
and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed
suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about.
And we said OK.
Then someone said teachers and principals better not discipline
our children when they misbehave. The school administrators said
no faculty member in this school better touch a student when
they misbehave because we don't want any bad publicity, and we
surely don't want to be sued (there's a big difference between
disciplining, touching, beating, smacking, humiliating,
kicking, etc.). And we said OK.
Then someone said, let's let our daughters have abortions if
they want, and they won't even have to tell their parents. And
we said OK.
Then some wise school board member said, since boys will be boys
and they're going to do it anyway, let's give our sons all the
condoms they want so they can have all the fun they desire, and
we won't have to tell their parents they got them at school. And
we said OK.
Then some of our top elected officials said it doesn't matter what
we do in private as long as we do our jobs. Agreeing with them,
we said it doesn't matter to me what anyone, including the President,
does in private as long as I have a job and the economy is good.
Then someone said let's print magazines with pictures of nude
women and call it wholesome, down-to-earth appreciation for
the beauty of the female body. And we said OK.
And then someone else took that appreciation a step further and
published pictures of nude children and then further again by
making them available on the Internet. And we said OK, they're
entitled to free speech.
Then the entertainment industry said; let's make TV shows and
movies that promote profanity, violence, and illicit sex. Let's
record music that encourages rape, drugs, murder, suicide, and
satanic themes. And we said it's just entertainment, it has no
adverse effect, nobody takes it seriously anyway, so go right
ahead.
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience,
why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother
them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.
Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can
figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with
"WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder
why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the
newspapers say, but question what the Bible says.
Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread
like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding
God, people think twice about sharing.
Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely
through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed
in the school and workplace.
Are you laughing?
Perhaps in our rush to do good deeds, we lose something in the
process.
Respect for one another should be paramount.
We live in a "Republic," where the "individuals rights are
protected," and not in a Democracy, where the "majority" rules.
Too often we tend to lose sight of this fact.
The old saw, "all politics is local" is quite true. But, perhaps
could be more accurately stated that, "all government should be
local" I don't live in your city, state or region. So exactly
how am I to know just what is "best" for you. I can assure you,
you have no idea what is best for me.
Environmentalism is not a dirty word, but an extreme position
on any subject is usually a profanity of the most
counter-productive proportion.
Too many lawyers, to many "special interests?" Probably, but,
let's not lose sight of who has the final responsibility for
each of us as individuals. And I would far sooner trust an
individual with his own destiny than the man, woman, or
group who would do it for him.
If this is "Politically Incorrect" or has offended your
sensibilities, perhaps you need to broaden your horizons,
and work at becoming a more tolerant person.
The views expressed here are strictly my own, I am entitled to them.
"I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend with
my life your right to say it."
~ George E. Emanuel
If you would like to comment on this or any other article please feel free to
post your views on the FAOL Bulletin Board!
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