Tuesday, October 30, 2012

ESPN Additions


Ironically, some of the best television commercials are for ESPN and only air on ESPN.  Now, I do not know if these ads really are meant to add all the more to the viewing experience, but it works for me.


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He Hated F.D.R.

The following is a continuation of what was started with [None of the Above].

It is of my dad that I am referring to, and his political point-of-view is well worth examining.  For it is still shared by a fairly great many, and I am quite sure that he would be a very enthusiastic follower of the [American Tea Party Movement] if he was still physically alive.

Despite being physically born in 1920, it is arguable that he really wasn’t a child of the [Great Depression].  For he could not remember the area around [Blue Mound, Kansas] being severely affected by either the [1929 Stock Market Crash] or the drought that ushered in the [Dust Bowl Era].

In fact, my dad was able to secure a full-time union job as an oiler, which was someone who performed light maintenance upon the heavy equipment, with a natural gas pipeline company out of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma when he was just 15 years-old.  Of course, he had to lie about his age, along with having the considerable weight of an uncle’s influence upon the company backing his application, but he was making really good money before graduating high school when millions around the country were looking to the government to literally save their bacon.

According to him, my dad was a very dutiful son, but he admitted that it was only on account of how much he loved playing varsity baseball and basketball that he did not ignore his parent’s letters that became more and more adamant in their insistence that he return home and get back in school as the time for the 1935 fall semester to begin approached.  For after actually seeing some of what lay beyond the Linn County line, not even thoughts of making trips to the sprawling metropolis of [Mound City] held quite the same appeal for him.

Ironically, he later turned down offers to play minor league baseball for the [Chicago Cubs] and the [St. Louis Cardinals], along with a full scholarship to play basketball for [Phog Allen] with the Kansas Jayhawks.  For the money he could then be making at the controls of a bulldozer far exceeded what was in those minor league baseball contracts, and he could not see how a college education could help him stay upright while gouging out a right-of-way across the Blue Ridge Mountains in western North Carolina—let alone keep from sinking in an east Texas swamp.

No, my dad never had to face the indignity of standing in a soup line.  Neither did any of the members of his extended family to the extent that I was made aware of.

My dad attributed that to their willingness to work, and he was quite vocal about claiming that any able-bodied man can find a job if they are willing to work.  In sharp contrast, he was also quite vocal about how much he resented having to pay taxes to feed the families of men who did not have enough gumption to get a job on their own, which was in reference to the [CCC].

No, my dad was no fan of the [New Deal], but it was being in the second wave to land on [Omaha Beach] under the withering fire of German gun emplacements that fueled his hatred of [President Franklin Delano Roosevelt] the most.  For he did not see where it was any of our business being in a war against an enemy who posed no immediate threat to our country at the time.

[Pearl Harbor]?  Well, aside from that being an attack by the Japanese, my dad believed that it was orchestrated by Roosevelt to get us involved in World War II before the best opportunities to profit from the manufacturing of military supplies passed.

Adding even more fuel to his fire was that he didn’t even have to go.  For he could have taken advantage of the draft exemption granted to only sons, but Blue Mound was way too small of a place to remain safe at home with his aging parents, quite comely wife and newborn daughter while the sons (and even many daughters) of neighbors were lining up to do their patriotic duty.

So, he answered the call to arms—only to face having to sign a release of liability to avoid a significant delay in returning home after the fighting was over in the [European Theatre].  For he had been seriously wounded at the start of the [Battle of the Bulge], and he was told that all with possible medical complications would have stay overseas for at least six months longer unless they signed a form that released the United States government from having to pay for any future medical treatments of wounds sustained in battle, along with any medical conditions related to them.  He signed the form.

Alas, is it not no wonder that he looked upon with horror as the reach of the federal government grew steadily longer over the years?  For even after giving all that he had in a war that he considered to be quite unnecessary, there was his very own government trying to take advantage of desperate desires to return home as soon as possible!

He begrudgingly came to accept that the New Deal was really not such a bad deal before his time as a part of this world came to an end.  I would think that it was on account of [Social Security] and [VA] disability checks keeping us from becoming completely destitute after he was told by several doctors that he had to quit working or face permanent paralysis and the [International Union of Operating Engineers] refusing to pay his pension because of not being old enough to draw one yet.  In all fairness, his application for workers compensation was vigorously fought against (and defeated) by the company he had been very loyally with for over 30 years because of his primary medical condition not being the result of a single accident, but even with both of those things notwithstanding, he always insisted that he was just getting back from the government what he had paid in to the Social Security fund and earned on numerous battlefields in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Germany.

All of that had a great influence upon the formation of my own political point-of-view.  Does any of it bring back memories from your childhood?  How about sounding rather consistent with what can still be heard coming from on top of many a soapbox these days?

Be assured that I have plenty of my own “pleasant” experiences with all that our federal government has to offer.  For in 2000, I had to come to grips with the fact that I could no longer hold any sort of job after being afflicted with [CFS] in 1993 (1992, actually) and trying to hang in there for the previous seven years.  My wife finally convinced me to apply for Social Security Disability, and that is when the “fun” really started.

I really should have been more prepared.  For if it was possible for the Social Security Administration to initially determine that my dad was not disabled with him having one full vertebrae in his lower back, and the discs on both sides, completely ground to dust after over 30 years of operating bulldozers and ditching machines, how could it have come as any great surprise to me that they would not accept feeling even exceedingly exhausted all of the time as being a debilitating condition without a fight?

Unlike what eventually happened with my dad, it took more than two tries to finally win a judgment in my favor.  In fact, it took four tries!

Well, at least I think it did.  Since we hired the only board-certified social security disability lawyer in southwest Missouri, I am not quite sure what really has happened.  That is, other than initially receiving checks for $23.50 a month, of course.

Oh, but wait, there’s more!  For if our household income exceeds $3,000.00 a month, no money from the Social Security Administration will be directly-deposited into our checking account, and we are required to send copies of my wife’s check stubs each month.

Speaking of such, we received a notification in the mail a couple of months ago that a new national income reporting phone line had been established.  Since this could save us both time and money, I was rather excited to give it a try, and I was quite disappointed when it did not work.  Not being able to find out what was going wrong, and receiving a letter informing us in no uncertain terms that actual copies of check stubs had to be sent in and that a fine could be accessed for failing to report monthly wages on time, was also quite disappointing to me.

Be assured that I really don’t have the words to describe what a joy it has been trying to deal with the good people of the Social Security Administration.  However, I can tell you that thinking about how many times we have received letters announcing that great increases in my monthly compensation amounts would be starting the next month—only to receive another letter a week or so later that said that we would be receiving nothing until further notice because of my wife’s anticipated wages exceeding the limit when she has never made more than $3,000.00 in a month does bring a tear to my eye.

Yes, it would seem that I have plenty of my own reasons for not losing focus on my dad’s political point-of-view, but our Heavenly Father allowing me to look at things through His eyes has drastically changed my perspective.  For I can now clearly see that He established governmental social welfare programs to make up for what we (as individuals and even as members of His church) far too often refuse to do on our own.

Now, this is not to say that these programs are doing the best that they can.  In fact, the way they are run would be laughable if it was not for how many people are being badly hurt by incompetence and corruption, but instead of wanting to throw the proverbial baby out with the bathwater by getting rid of programs that really could be a great blessing to us all, we should be looking for leaders who will get serious about truly fixing what is broken about all of the various levels of government in this country.

No, that is not something that Obama and Biden are interested in accomplishing, and the reforms that Romney and Ryan preach about will undoubtedly do more harm than good if they win the election.  Hopefully, the misery will end much sooner than later.

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Sunday, October 28, 2012

Say These Lines?



Crazy Times
Jars of Clay
You're cold that way
And that's why you say
The things that you say
You can't attract
The things that you lack
You're trying in vain

It seems
It's always the crazy times
You find
You'll wake up and realize
It takes
More than your saline eyes
To make things right

You spiral down
You've broken your crown
You don't feel like a queen
You've seen the proof
But you're still crying wolf
You'll never believe

It seems
It's always the crazy times
You find
You'll wake up and realize
It takes
More than your saline eyes
To make things right

You try to climb a broken ladder
Grip the missing rungs
And fall
Down
Down
Down
Down
Seems some time ago you said
This wouldn't last
And now you sit here crying

Beside your bed
You feel left for dead
You kneel in the dark

It takes
More than your saline eyes
To make things right

It seems
It's always the crazy times
You find
You'll wake up and realize
It takes
More than your saline eyes
To make things right

Lyrics From: [A-Z Lyrics Universe]

NOTE: Before closing, I feel compelled to explain what the title to this piece is all about.  For while I was listening to the song for the first time in quite a while the other day, I kept hearing More than your say these lines instead of saline eyes in the chorus, which is significant to me.  For our Heavenly Father has been bringing it back around into my range of focus that far too many in the Christian community would still rather believe in what are really doctrines of demons that dictate the reciting of certain prayers and parts of Scripture to bring about their deliverance from whatever mess they may find themselves in as if His words are meant to be employed in the same way as one would speak an incantation to cast a magical spell.  May they want to be delivered out of this trap before it is too late.

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Friday, October 26, 2012

Keep Me From Drowning Again



Flood
Jars of Clay
Rain
Rain on my face
It hasn't stopped
Raining for days
My world is a flood
Slowly I become
One with the mud

But if I can't swim after forty days
And my mind is crushed by the thrashing waves
Lift me up so high that I cannot fall
Lift me up oh
Lift me up
When I'm falling
Lift me up
I'm weak and I'm dying
Lift me up
I need you to hold me
Lift me up
Keep me from drowning again

Downpour on my soul
Splashing in the ocean
I'm losing control
Dark sky all around me
I can't feel my feet touching the ground

But if I can't swim after forty days
And my mind is crushed by the thrashing waves
Lift me up so high that I cannot fall
Lift me up oh
Lift me up
When I'm falling
Lift me up
I'm weak and I'm dying
Lift me up
I need you to hold me
Lift me up
Keep me from drowning again

Calm the storms that drench my eyes
Dry the streams still flowing
Casting down all the waves of sin
And guilt that overflows me

But if I can't swim after forty days
And my mind is crushed by the thrashing waves
Lift me up so high that I cannot fall
Lift me up oh
Lift me up
When I'm falling
Lift me up
I'm weak and I'm dying
Lift me up
I need you to hold me
Lift me up
Keep me from drowning again
Lift me up
When I'm falling
Lift me up
I'm weak and I'm dying
Lift me up
I need you to hold me
Lift me up
Keep me from drowning again

Lyrics From: [A-Z Lyrics Universe]

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Thursday, October 25, 2012

Oh So Very Near, Certainly Not Far



From A Distance
Bette Midler
From a distance
The world looks blue and green
And the snow-capped mountains white
From a distance
The ocean meets the stream
And the eagle takes to flight
From a distance
There is harmony
And it echoes through the land
It’s the voice of hope
It’s the voice of peace
It’s the voice of every man

From a distance
We all have enough
And no one is in need
And there are no guns
No bombs
And no disease
No hungry mouths to feed
From a Distance
We are instruments
Marching in a common band
Playing songs of hope
Playing songs of peace
They are the songs of every man

God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us
From a distance

From a distance
You look like my friend
Even though we are at war
From a distance
I just cannot comprehend
What all this fighting’s for
From a distance
There is harmony
And it echoes through the land
And it’s the hope of hopes
It’s the love of loves
It’s the heart of every man
Every man

It’s the hope of hopes
It’s the love of loves
This is the heart of every man

And God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us
From a distance
Oh God is watching us
God is watching
God is watching us
From a distance

Lyrics From: [A-Z Lyrics Universe]

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Tuesday, October 23, 2012

ESPN Additions


Ironically, some of the best television commercials are for ESPN and only air on ESPN.  Now, I do not know if these ads really are meant to add all the more to the viewing experience, but it works for me.


Please Also Visit:
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Sunday, October 21, 2012

Stumbling Steps



Hangin’ by a Moment
Lifehouse
Desperate for changing
Starving for truth
I'm closer to where I started
I'm chasing after You

I'm falling even more in love with You
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until You make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with You

Forgetting all I'm lacking
Completely incomplete
I'll take Your invitation
You take all of me now

I'm falling even more in love with You
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until You make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with You
I'm living for the only thing I know
I'm running and not quite sure where to go
And I don't know what I'm diving into
Just hanging by a moment here with You
There's nothing else to lose
There's nothing else to find
There's nothing in the world
That can change my mind
There is nothing else
There is nothing else
There is nothing else

Desperate for changing
Starving for truth
I'm closer to where I started
I'm chasing after You

I'm falling even more in love with You
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until You make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with You
I'm living for the only thing I know
I'm running and not quite sure where to go
And I don't know what I'm diving into
Just hanging by a moment here with You
Just hanging by a moment
Hanging by a moment
Hanging by a moment
Hanging by a moment
Hanging by a moment here with You

Link: [DC Talk]


What If I Stumble
DC Talk
The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today
 Is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips
 Then walk out the door and deny him by their lifestyle.
 That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable

What if I stumble
What if I fall

Is this one for the people
Is this one for the Lord
Or do I simply serenade
For things I must afford
You can jumble them together
My conflict still remains
Holiness is calling
In the midst of courting fame
'Cause I see the trust in their eyes
Though the sky is falling
They need Your love in their lives
Compromise is calling

What if I stumble
What if I fall
What if I lose my step
And I make fools of us all
Will the love continue
When my walk becomes a crawl
What if I stumble
And what if I fall

What if I stumble
What if I fall
You never turn in
The heat of it all
What if I stumble
What if I fall
Fall fall fall fall

Father please forgive me
For I cannot compose
The fear that lives within me
Or the rate at which it grows
If struggle has a purpose
On the narrow road you've carved
Why do I dread my trespasses
Will leave a deadly scar
Do they see the fear in my eyes
Are they so revealing
This time I cannot disguise
All the doubt I'm feeling

What if I stumble
What if I fall
What if I lose my step
And I make fools of us all
Will the love continue
When my walk becomes a crawl
What if I stumble
And what if I fall

What if I stumble

Everyone's got to crawl
When you know that
You're up against a wall
It's about to fall
Everyone's got to crawl
When you know that
Ooh oooh ooh ooh
Yeah
Everyone's got to crawl
When you know that
You're up against a wall
It's about to fall
Everyone's got to crawl
When you know that
Yeah

I hear You whispering my name
You say
My love for you will never change
Never change

What if I stumble
What if I fall
What if I fall
What if I lose my step
And I make fools of us all
What will they say
Will the love continue
When my walk becomes a crawl
What if I stumble
And what if I
What if I stumble
And what if I fall
What if I lose my step
And I make fools of us all
What will they say
Will the love continue
When my walk becomes a crawl
What if I stumble
And what if I fall

What if I stumble
What if I fall
You never turn in
The heat of it all
What if I stumble
What if I fall
Fall fall fall
You are my comfort
And my God
God God God

Is this one for the people
Is this one for the Lord

Link: [Kansas]


Hold On
Kansas
Look in the mirror and tell me
Just what you see
What have the years of your life
Taught you to be
Innocence dying in so many ways
Things that you dream of are lost
Lost in the haze

Hold on
Baby hold on
'Cause it's closer than you think
And you're standing on the brink
Hold on
Baby hold on
'Cause there's something on the way
Your tomorrow's not the same as today

Don't you recall what you felt
When you weren't alone
Someone who stood by your side
A face you have known
Where do you run when it's too much to bear
Who do you turn to in need
When nobody's there

Hold on
Baby hold on
'Cause it's closer than you think
And you're standing on the brink
Hold on
Baby hold on
'Cause there's something on the way
Your tomorrow's not the same as today

Outside your door He is waiting
Waiting for you
Sooner or later you know
He's got to come through
No hesitation
And no holding back
Let it all go
And you'll know
You're on the right track

Hold on
Baby hold on
Hold onto me baby
'Cause it's closer than you think
And you're standing on the brink
Hold on
Baby hold on
Yeah I need you by my side
'Cause there's something on the way
Your tomorrow's not the same
Hold on
Baby hold on
I’ve got to talk to you baby
'Cause it's closer than you think
And you're standing on the brink
Hold on
Baby hold on
There’s something around the corner
'Cause there's something on the way
Your tomorrow's not the same
Hold on

Lyrics From: [A-Z Lyrics Universe]

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