SAD NEWS FOR MOPAR WORKERS & ADMIRERS
Noted by Torrey H. Brinkley
Mead, Colorado
The automotive industry woes here in the Winter of 2008 have included some sad news that Chrysler Corporation has lost some of its financial support from Cerberus, the hedge fund giant. Mercedes Benz had severed ties less than 12 months ago with MOPAR. Without help from the US government, will Chrysler be able to stay afloat? As well, if private customers cannot get loans from banks and finance arms, how will dealers sell any of these $20,000 to $60,000 vehicles? Perhaps this is why Chrysler has decided to shutter all 30 of its manufacturing plants for 30 days.
This observer has seen many remarkable changes in design and marketing philosophy in the last 60 years for Chrysler Corporation. While some have always felt that MOPAR had some of the best engineering ideas in the American marketplace, their design department has seemed to be more like a bar of soap in the bathtub: interesting and clever, but hard to truly get ahold of.
Think back over the last 6 decades:
----1947-52 featured Chrysler and DeSoto vehicles with elegant and classic lines. Their grilles and bumpers had no peers in that post-war period. Even more lowly Dodge and Plymouth mirrored this fine-edged look. Interiors also showed nice design and high quality materials.
----1953-56 saw the company with evolutionary styling that was a bit more bolder, yet not winning over the masses. Perhaps the best design was the 1955 Chrysler (with 300 coupe being the best), which marketers labeled "the Million Dollar Look". Plymouth cars were #3 in sales right behind Ford and Chevy in the USA.
----1957-61 With the era of big & tall fins, Chrysler almost took the lead in rocket ship imaging. Nothing was as tall and bold as the 1957 Plymouth, Chrysler or DeSoto fins. But nothing got quite as ugly as the morphing of the 1959 & '61 Plymouth and '61 DeSoto (which was killed after that year). MOPAR gained some fans but lost many others during this period. Keep in mind that VW and other imports were entering our market during this time frame (with tiny & economical cars). The new Plymouth Valiant and Dodge Lancer had an odd European styling that was striking, but hard for many Americans to accept.
----1962-68 This was a period that was called the "Muscle Car Era". Plymouth and Dodge had Hemi engines in many of their high-powered cars, that were designed not to offend, but not exactly to inspire either. The best design from MOPAR during this period was clearly the 1967-68 Dodge Charger. Recent sales of vintage MOPAR muscle cars from this era show that many things were done right. Huge Imperial models were not appreciated then, nor are they much seen as collector cars today.
----1969-81 Several factors served to change the auto industry during the next 12 years: higher gas prices, government safety regulations, increasing competition from foreign automakers, and mounting inflation. Chrysler designers kept a "me-too philosphy" for most of their vehicles, thus not distinguishing themselves from other domestic competition. While MOPAR vehicles grew to the size of small barges, engines were choked down, and too many Chrysler interiors were described as much like a "Las Vegas bordello." Perhaps the best designed car was the 1975 Chrysler Cordoba coupe, having a twin Dodge Charger model. But restrictive anti-pollution controls and poor fuel economy gave the marketers a rough time. The Dodge Aspen and Plymouth Volare seemed to be a good design, but reliability issues made for tough re-sales.
----1982-93 A government bailout and shrewd leadership from Lee Iococca brought Chrysler from the verge of bankruptcy to re-define itself in the marketplace. All engines were now small 4-cylinders, and size/weights of new Dodges, Chryslers and Plymouths were trimmed way down. Initially the public liked a new cheaper way to drive, but lack of pep and reliability made for a tough sell, when other manufacturers stressed higher quality, bigger designs and more power. Best design for MOPAR was the invention of the minivan, which introduced a whole new segment in America, that gave Chrysler, Dodge and Plymouth segment sales superiority for a good 20 years. The Diamond Star car project with Mitsubishi also gave nice Eagle Talon & Plymouth Laser sporty cars for MOPAR showrooms for 1/2 dozen years.
----1994-2004 This was a period when MOPAR designers swung the pendulum back the other way. They decided to make a cab-forward design, with bigger and expansive vehicles. They started a new division called the Eagle, partnering with Mitsubishi to get engines and platforms. These were among the most stylish cars, but marketers had trouble selling cars that were less than reliable, especially in the transmission department. Plymouth did not receive any of the new larger designs, but got stuck with the Neon, a tiny car with plastic engine parts....and soon left the MOPAR scene. Perhaps the biggest design success was the new Dodge Ram pickup truck in 1994, resurrecting what had been a dying truck brand.
----2005-2009 Gradually foreign brands have sucked the life out of most US car makers, in almost all segments, and MOPAR sales had become anemic. Best design change was shrinking the big Chryslers and Dodges down, and the Chrysler 300 series was a big sales success, and the re-introduced Hemi V-8 engines helped sales and excitement (for Dodge briefly, too). But $4 a gallon gasoline choked off that new-found virility among male drivers. MOPAR designers and marketers sadly have no small economical 4-door 4-cylinder (or hybrid) sedan to offer the public. How did they and partners at Daimler not see this need coming? While it seemed like many people liked to buy SUVs, it was not wise for Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep showrooms to load up with 11 SUVs and crossovers, without any economical microcar offering.
Can Chrysler executives right this ship in the next 120 days? Stay tuned, but don't bet the mortgage on MOPAR stock.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Bailing Out the Automakers?
Help For the American Automobile Companies
offered by Torrey H. Brinkley
Many and varied are the recent opinions about the condition of the Big 3 American Auto Companies, and what should be done with their financial woes.
Few voices are demanding that GM, Ford and Chrysler be saved from any possible collapse, even if thousands of jobs are lost, and home foreclosures soar any higher in Michigan and Ohio.
---The U.S. Congress, with billions of dollars at their disposal to dole out to financial institutions in dire straights, seem to balk at loaning/giving money to auto manufacturers who actually produce something tangible, that all Americans use and depend upon daily.
---Union leaders scream that up to 3 million jobs nationwide could be lost if production, distribution and sales of U.S. cars & trucks cease, yet union bosses themselves produce nothing, just control things like negotiations & benefits.
---Young workers & students in America have had nothing to do with U.S. cars all along, preferring skateboards, bikes, planes, motorcycles, snowboards and Toyotas/Hondas, and VWs (et al).
---Affluent engineers and urban yuppies also fret not about Chevy, Ford and Dodge products, preferring their jet skis, light aircraft, ski-doos, plus Audis, Porsches, Lexus, BMWs, Mercedes or Italian sports cars.
---America's poor and under-employed certainly can't fathom the job bank centers where idle GM employees go sit, do nothing and collect thousands each month while robots assemble $25,000 Malibus and $60,000 Escalades. If minimum wage folk can barely afford $700 a month apartment rent, they certainly can't comprehend $650 a month car payments (plus $100 a month insurance, $120 a month fuel costs, + tires, repairs and 30% a year depreciation on a newer car).
---U.S. lending institutions have washed their hands of the auto industry and their woes. One by one, banks across America have dropped out of the auto loan business......especially ones who had previously been heavily drubbed by the risky sub-prime housing loans. GMAC, Ford Credit and Chrysler Financial finally realized they couldn't put everybody on wheels.....especially when dealerships were rolling over customers who were $10 to $15,000 upside down in their previous car loans.
Some critics have blamed the Big 3 for bad products, not very economical or often reliable. Others have called for GM or Ford to bring over their European counterpart vehicles (which do have fine engineering and design advantages over most US economy cars). Yet, all such previous imports have flopped in the U.S. market. Besides, the United Auto Workers want to roadblock importing vehciles not made with their "union gloves." The image problem, not so much product design, has been killing the Big 3 recently. Consumer Reports magazine has noted that VW, Mercedes, Suzuki, Kia and Land Rover as much more trouble-prone than typical US products.
U.S. auto manufacturers have done so many things right for over 100 years, and they probably won't fail unless the entire U.S. economy collapses, or the world economy falters. Imagine this:
1) They have provided clean, safe, relaible, comfortable, speedy, personalized transport for rich and poor alike (the poorest driver in a $200 "beater" car shares the same roadway as the driver of a $350,000 Rolls or Bentley, and can arrive at similar destinations in the same time frame.
2) Thanks to American ingenuity, there are private automobiles for families; pickup trucks for tens of thousands of manual labor jobs & industries; sport utilities for scores of athletes & adventure seekers; and thousands of roomy, reliable, minivans to airporter vans for soccer teams & traveling musical choirs; plus fleets full of small, medium & large size trucks to haul food & goods nationwide across roads & interstate highways that connect the entire country!! Ever since the 1960s, many Americans likewise find their identity in the type and nameplate of vehicle they utilize.
3) Few jobs in the USA are not tied into our freely mobile society, compared to the horse-drawn buggy days, or compared to the more isolated localized societies that exist elsewhere. Much employment exists in auto assembly; parts & design manufacturing; service & sales shorooms; our highway departments; contractors building/maintaining garages, driveways, parking lots; our subdivision designers & builders; gas stations & car washes; rental & leasing companies (almost exclusively tied into the Big 3 Auto Companies); auto lending institutions; tire shops & lube centers; automotive computer & navigation systems; marketing, advertising agencies (TV, radio, newspaper, magazines & internet); and all the myriad of customizers of body & engine parts.
If Congress does not choose to bail out the Big 3, what should be done?
a) WAIT. Be patient. Let the US and world economic woes settle down before making rash decisions If the Ford F-150 pickup truck has been the top-selling vehicle in the USA by far for the last 30 years, then why scrap what Americans have been purchasing for something less useful? Remember that gasoline cost $4+ per gallon in early summer, and now we see it priced at $1.60 a gallon in late November.
b) MOVE vehicles the best ways possible. Sell them thru leases, loans or cash deals. We should perhaps consider encouraging businesses and government agencies to purchase autos for use by managers & execs, since they have easier access to cash. The Europeans have been doing this for decades.
c) SAVE money. Ask all Big 3 employees to accept pay cuts (deferred towards better times) from top executives down to union floor workers. Get that $73 per hour cost for a GM vehicle produced down to the $46 it costs Toyota (maybe the UAW would consider doing a little something to help out). Can GM somehow get rid of that $60 billion long-term indebtedness for the health benefits for its current and future retirees?
offered by Torrey H. Brinkley
Many and varied are the recent opinions about the condition of the Big 3 American Auto Companies, and what should be done with their financial woes.
Few voices are demanding that GM, Ford and Chrysler be saved from any possible collapse, even if thousands of jobs are lost, and home foreclosures soar any higher in Michigan and Ohio.
---The U.S. Congress, with billions of dollars at their disposal to dole out to financial institutions in dire straights, seem to balk at loaning/giving money to auto manufacturers who actually produce something tangible, that all Americans use and depend upon daily.
---Union leaders scream that up to 3 million jobs nationwide could be lost if production, distribution and sales of U.S. cars & trucks cease, yet union bosses themselves produce nothing, just control things like negotiations & benefits.
---Young workers & students in America have had nothing to do with U.S. cars all along, preferring skateboards, bikes, planes, motorcycles, snowboards and Toyotas/Hondas, and VWs (et al).
---Affluent engineers and urban yuppies also fret not about Chevy, Ford and Dodge products, preferring their jet skis, light aircraft, ski-doos, plus Audis, Porsches, Lexus, BMWs, Mercedes or Italian sports cars.
---America's poor and under-employed certainly can't fathom the job bank centers where idle GM employees go sit, do nothing and collect thousands each month while robots assemble $25,000 Malibus and $60,000 Escalades. If minimum wage folk can barely afford $700 a month apartment rent, they certainly can't comprehend $650 a month car payments (plus $100 a month insurance, $120 a month fuel costs, + tires, repairs and 30% a year depreciation on a newer car).
---U.S. lending institutions have washed their hands of the auto industry and their woes. One by one, banks across America have dropped out of the auto loan business......especially ones who had previously been heavily drubbed by the risky sub-prime housing loans. GMAC, Ford Credit and Chrysler Financial finally realized they couldn't put everybody on wheels.....especially when dealerships were rolling over customers who were $10 to $15,000 upside down in their previous car loans.
Some critics have blamed the Big 3 for bad products, not very economical or often reliable. Others have called for GM or Ford to bring over their European counterpart vehicles (which do have fine engineering and design advantages over most US economy cars). Yet, all such previous imports have flopped in the U.S. market. Besides, the United Auto Workers want to roadblock importing vehciles not made with their "union gloves." The image problem, not so much product design, has been killing the Big 3 recently. Consumer Reports magazine has noted that VW, Mercedes, Suzuki, Kia and Land Rover as much more trouble-prone than typical US products.
U.S. auto manufacturers have done so many things right for over 100 years, and they probably won't fail unless the entire U.S. economy collapses, or the world economy falters. Imagine this:
1) They have provided clean, safe, relaible, comfortable, speedy, personalized transport for rich and poor alike (the poorest driver in a $200 "beater" car shares the same roadway as the driver of a $350,000 Rolls or Bentley, and can arrive at similar destinations in the same time frame.
2) Thanks to American ingenuity, there are private automobiles for families; pickup trucks for tens of thousands of manual labor jobs & industries; sport utilities for scores of athletes & adventure seekers; and thousands of roomy, reliable, minivans to airporter vans for soccer teams & traveling musical choirs; plus fleets full of small, medium & large size trucks to haul food & goods nationwide across roads & interstate highways that connect the entire country!! Ever since the 1960s, many Americans likewise find their identity in the type and nameplate of vehicle they utilize.
3) Few jobs in the USA are not tied into our freely mobile society, compared to the horse-drawn buggy days, or compared to the more isolated localized societies that exist elsewhere. Much employment exists in auto assembly; parts & design manufacturing; service & sales shorooms; our highway departments; contractors building/maintaining garages, driveways, parking lots; our subdivision designers & builders; gas stations & car washes; rental & leasing companies (almost exclusively tied into the Big 3 Auto Companies); auto lending institutions; tire shops & lube centers; automotive computer & navigation systems; marketing, advertising agencies (TV, radio, newspaper, magazines & internet); and all the myriad of customizers of body & engine parts.
If Congress does not choose to bail out the Big 3, what should be done?
a) WAIT. Be patient. Let the US and world economic woes settle down before making rash decisions If the Ford F-150 pickup truck has been the top-selling vehicle in the USA by far for the last 30 years, then why scrap what Americans have been purchasing for something less useful? Remember that gasoline cost $4+ per gallon in early summer, and now we see it priced at $1.60 a gallon in late November.
b) MOVE vehicles the best ways possible. Sell them thru leases, loans or cash deals. We should perhaps consider encouraging businesses and government agencies to purchase autos for use by managers & execs, since they have easier access to cash. The Europeans have been doing this for decades.
c) SAVE money. Ask all Big 3 employees to accept pay cuts (deferred towards better times) from top executives down to union floor workers. Get that $73 per hour cost for a GM vehicle produced down to the $46 it costs Toyota (maybe the UAW would consider doing a little something to help out). Can GM somehow get rid of that $60 billion long-term indebtedness for the health benefits for its current and future retirees?
Monday, November 3, 2008
Spreading the Wealth Is Easy
How Obama Can Redistribute the Wealth
Once again, it has been uncovered how one presidential candidate plans to convert the USA into a far better place, by re-distributing the wealth of so many rich Americans, into the hands of much poorer, less fortunate individuals. And many of Barak Obama's wealthy, influential supporters are the very ones who have stepped up to the plate, to offer to be the first to give up of their good fortune, to help those in need.
Hollywood Movie Stars:
There are so many of these fine folk who make $10 million per movie and they just don't need all that money. So, they are the first to give generously. Their money will go to support the kids who sell popcorn @ the movie theaters, hairdressers, and cosmetics salespersons at the mall shopping centers. Each actor/actress can support 1000 such young workers. Costner, Cruise, and Spielberg could round up dozens more just like them if Barak calls.
NBA Basketball Players:
These talented young men earn from $1 to $20 million a year, but really don't need all that cash after they get dressed up in their fine gear and shiny bling. The poorest paid NBA star could help support 200 inner city teens with $5000 each. There are about 350 such wealthy NBA players, delighted to spread around their wealth. Blacks helping blacks is a great idea.
TV News Anchors:
They probably don't want you to know that they aren't doing their work for free, but Katie Couric, Matt Lauer and Charles Gibson get paid no less than $15 to $30 million a year for "reading the news" to you, with their liberal top spin on everything. So, we know they'd be willing to part with some of that to support Obama's causes. They could each support 2000 newspaper carriers, gas station attendants and single parents with $10K apiece.
University Professors in our fine liberal institutions, with tenure, receive $100,000 a year + book commissions for teaching 6 hours a week. We're so lucky to have them scattered across our country, relaxing in their pompous "left-wing-for-life" ivory tower positions. (A conservative-thinking friend with a doctorate from Oxford University found that there were 7000 other applicants w/ Ph.Ds for just one opening of a Philosophy professorship. ) If there are 100,000 such profs, certainly many would be willing to contribute something to the day-care workers, kindergarden teachers and school cafeteria workers who get minimum wages, right?
Financial Gurus: like George Soros and Warren Buffet, who both support Obama, must be willing to share some of their billions to help the poor, who just live on Social Security benefits. Each one could double the S.S. income of some 5000 Americans. Oprah, Kobe, Labron and Bill Gates all could do more, if the next President would call.
Isn't this a great country? The nice thing is that none of these donations have to touch the "principal" wealth owned by these model citizens, just one year's wages!!
After these above folk do their part, modeling this generous spirit, then soon all the top insurance company execs, real estate developers, hedge fund managers, doctors and hospital administrators, Washington politicians (the Senate has long been known as the Millionaire's Club), MLB baseball players, NFL footballers, NHL hockey stars, television actors, magazine editors, successful lawyers, for-life judges, and pop music singers will willingly come forth to do the same sharing for those they obviously see in need.
Should the checks be mailed directly to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue?
How popular is this "share the wealth philosophy" with those who've participated in such a system? Back in 1969 we were studying overseas with a doctor from England. At that time he wished he could move to the USA, because the prohibitve (socialist) tax rate in the UK was 90% for his income level. Upon moving to Spain in 1978 we befriended an aging, & then depressed, actress, famous throughout all of South America for decades, who had fled Cuba after Fidel had taken her home and possessions.
By the way, have you asked yourself what Barak Obama could have done to help the nation's poor with those $610 million he has spent just trying to get elected president? Certainly all those TV stations running his ads are thrilled to get his millions these last 9 months. This year, more than ever, receiving ten political 4-color flyers in the mail per day causes this observer great pain to know that all those trees have been felled to print a bunch of lies and attacks by one candidate/proposal against another.
While the motivation to share wealth with those less fortunate, in order to build a more equitable society might seem noble, one has to learn from history the pitfalls.
Even the early Church community, fresh from observing Christ's resurrection from the dead & ascension into Heaven, voluntarily gave of its bounty to the Disciples early in Acts, so that no one would be in need. But some few, like Ananias & Sapphira, lied to the Apostles and the Lord, and held something back----and were struck dead by the Holy Spirit. They wanted to appear generous & giving, but instead deceived the church community regarding their true intentions.
We are so foruntate that all politicians today operate with pure motives, desiring only to help others less fortunate than themselves!
---The Brinkleman (not political) Observer
Once again, it has been uncovered how one presidential candidate plans to convert the USA into a far better place, by re-distributing the wealth of so many rich Americans, into the hands of much poorer, less fortunate individuals. And many of Barak Obama's wealthy, influential supporters are the very ones who have stepped up to the plate, to offer to be the first to give up of their good fortune, to help those in need.
Hollywood Movie Stars:
There are so many of these fine folk who make $10 million per movie and they just don't need all that money. So, they are the first to give generously. Their money will go to support the kids who sell popcorn @ the movie theaters, hairdressers, and cosmetics salespersons at the mall shopping centers. Each actor/actress can support 1000 such young workers. Costner, Cruise, and Spielberg could round up dozens more just like them if Barak calls.
NBA Basketball Players:
These talented young men earn from $1 to $20 million a year, but really don't need all that cash after they get dressed up in their fine gear and shiny bling. The poorest paid NBA star could help support 200 inner city teens with $5000 each. There are about 350 such wealthy NBA players, delighted to spread around their wealth. Blacks helping blacks is a great idea.
TV News Anchors:
They probably don't want you to know that they aren't doing their work for free, but Katie Couric, Matt Lauer and Charles Gibson get paid no less than $15 to $30 million a year for "reading the news" to you, with their liberal top spin on everything. So, we know they'd be willing to part with some of that to support Obama's causes. They could each support 2000 newspaper carriers, gas station attendants and single parents with $10K apiece.
University Professors in our fine liberal institutions, with tenure, receive $100,000 a year + book commissions for teaching 6 hours a week. We're so lucky to have them scattered across our country, relaxing in their pompous "left-wing-for-life" ivory tower positions. (A conservative-thinking friend with a doctorate from Oxford University found that there were 7000 other applicants w/ Ph.Ds for just one opening of a Philosophy professorship. ) If there are 100,000 such profs, certainly many would be willing to contribute something to the day-care workers, kindergarden teachers and school cafeteria workers who get minimum wages, right?
Financial Gurus: like George Soros and Warren Buffet, who both support Obama, must be willing to share some of their billions to help the poor, who just live on Social Security benefits. Each one could double the S.S. income of some 5000 Americans. Oprah, Kobe, Labron and Bill Gates all could do more, if the next President would call.
Isn't this a great country? The nice thing is that none of these donations have to touch the "principal" wealth owned by these model citizens, just one year's wages!!
After these above folk do their part, modeling this generous spirit, then soon all the top insurance company execs, real estate developers, hedge fund managers, doctors and hospital administrators, Washington politicians (the Senate has long been known as the Millionaire's Club), MLB baseball players, NFL footballers, NHL hockey stars, television actors, magazine editors, successful lawyers, for-life judges, and pop music singers will willingly come forth to do the same sharing for those they obviously see in need.
Should the checks be mailed directly to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue?
How popular is this "share the wealth philosophy" with those who've participated in such a system? Back in 1969 we were studying overseas with a doctor from England. At that time he wished he could move to the USA, because the prohibitve (socialist) tax rate in the UK was 90% for his income level. Upon moving to Spain in 1978 we befriended an aging, & then depressed, actress, famous throughout all of South America for decades, who had fled Cuba after Fidel had taken her home and possessions.
By the way, have you asked yourself what Barak Obama could have done to help the nation's poor with those $610 million he has spent just trying to get elected president? Certainly all those TV stations running his ads are thrilled to get his millions these last 9 months. This year, more than ever, receiving ten political 4-color flyers in the mail per day causes this observer great pain to know that all those trees have been felled to print a bunch of lies and attacks by one candidate/proposal against another.
While the motivation to share wealth with those less fortunate, in order to build a more equitable society might seem noble, one has to learn from history the pitfalls.
Even the early Church community, fresh from observing Christ's resurrection from the dead & ascension into Heaven, voluntarily gave of its bounty to the Disciples early in Acts, so that no one would be in need. But some few, like Ananias & Sapphira, lied to the Apostles and the Lord, and held something back----and were struck dead by the Holy Spirit. They wanted to appear generous & giving, but instead deceived the church community regarding their true intentions.
We are so foruntate that all politicians today operate with pure motives, desiring only to help others less fortunate than themselves!
---The Brinkleman (not political) Observer
Friday, September 19, 2008
Jesus: No Community Organizer
Jesus Was Not a Community Organizer
by Torrey H. Brinkley
Some liberal politicians have recently tried to identify Jesus of Nazareth as a "community organizer." Even certain political candidates of today, who claim to have been "community organizers" cannot properly identify the term, and explain what they did, or attempted to do.
But, to be certain, Jesus of Nazareth, born some 2000 years ago, was not one who came into this world to organize any communities. There have been many attempts down thru the years to pigeon-hole Jesus into being something that he was not.
Even during his own lifetime, folk had trouble identifying what Jesus' life purpose and mission might have been:
--We see that Magi (or wise men from the East) thought that Jesus was born "King of the Jews" (Matthew 2: 2). Matthew puts Jesus' geneology right in line as being the "son of David" (Matthew 1:1), and notes that the Roman soldiers at his death put a sign above Jesus' head at the cross saying "This Is Jesus, the King of the Jews" (Matthew 27:37).
-- Many scholars in the last century noted that Jesus was a good moral teacher, but nothing more. Early on, the writers of the Gospels observed that Jesus was far more than that. God spoke from Heaven, saying "This is my son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17). Even the Devil, as he was tempting Jesus in the wilderness, called him "the Son of God" (Matthew 3:3, 6).
--Enemies of Jesus thought he was there to stir up the people, and cause them to rebel against authority. But the Scriptural biographies of his life show that he preached and taught with and about godly "authority", and backed it up by healing their diseases and sicknesses, even curing the demon-possesed, the paralyzed and the lame (Matthew 4: 23-24).
--Some folk think that Jesus just wanted to establish an idyllic religious community, solely contemplating about heaven. Yet, clearly, Jesus spent much time calling "tax collectors and sinners" to be forgiven and transformed (Mark 2:14-17).
--In Jesus' day his enemies did not understand what he was doing, nor did they recognize His power and authority (from God). They accused him of being out of his mind or possessed by Beelzebub (the prince of demons)....see Mark 3:21-22.
--Jesus did not come to organize a small community of people who were needy, so as to make them feel good about themselves. He came to plant seeds of a kingdom of God, that would extend to the furthest corners of the world (Mark 4: 30-31).
--Christ knew that His mission was not to bring "peace" into the world, or to solve community issues. His message and claims were so radical that families were divided. "Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents & have them put to death. All men will hate you because of me." (Matt.10:21-22.)
--Jesus Christ was far from being a politician who wanted all people to love and admire and follow him or vote for him. As a matter of fact, He did so many things that caused others to hate and dispise him (Luke 6:22):
+++he warned the rich that they were in trouble (Luke 6: 24)
+++those who foretold the future with lies & deceit were condemned (Luke 6:26)
+++Jesus demanded a kingdom where his followers were to love their enemies, and pray for those who persecuted them (Luke 6: 27-28).
+++Christ actually told his followers to lend & give away possessions (even to total strangers) without expecting anything back in return (Luke 30:36).
+++Unlike politicians who constantly criticise those who diagree with them, Jesus warned everyone not to be a hypocrite, but to beware of the log in our own eye (Luke 6:41-42).
Perhaps no one understood Jesus of Nazareth better than his closest disciple, John, who wrote, in his extensive treatise on Christ's life, that Jesus was not a mere mortal who was born and died, frustrated in not accomplishing his life's goals. Rather John portrays Jesus as:
**He was the WORD of God (come in the flesh) ...John 1:1
**Jesus was the LIGHT of the World (which had lived in darkness).....John 1:9 & 3:19-21
**Christ was, in fact, the sacrificial LAMB of God, who died to take away the sins of all mankind (John 1:29 and 3:16-18).
**For those who are hungry, Jesus is the BREAD of life (that came down from Heaven as did the manna in the wilderness)....John 6:35 and 41, 48-51.
**For those who are thirsty in the community, Jesus says "I am the living WATER" ....John 7: 37-38.
**Many people feel lost and abandoned. Jesus said: "I am the good SHEPHERD" ...John 10:11, and he was willing to die for his sheep.
**When Jesus' good friend had died from an illness, Jesus did not organize an elaborate community memorial service; he brought Lazarus back to life. For he said "I am the RESURRECTION & THE LIFE." .....John 11:25-26.
**Jesus notes that there are a lot of trees in the forest, but His is the one with the right branches and bearing the good fruit. "I am the true VINE, and you are the branches. Remain in Me and I in you, and you will bear much fruit." ....John 15:5
**For people confused by all the rival ideologies and political systems and economic realities in this world, Jesus gave the definitive answer (that almost all public school educators, liberal theologians and politicians categorically reject today), "I am the WAY, THE TRUTH & THE LIFE. No one comes to the Father except thru me." ....John 14: 6.
Pilate, the politician, claimed that he did not know the definition of truth (John 18:38). But Jesus claimed to testify of the truth, and that everyone on the side of truth would listen to him.(John 18:23 & 37).
Wise men today still seek him and pay attention to His instruction. The community around Jesus ( the religious leaders, the soldiers, the political establishment and rebellious sinners) all rejected Jesus at the end. They did not like His message, even though he healed their diseases, fed them when they were hungry, and shared about God's great love for them. Those who were humbled, convicted and repentant were grateful for such wonderful transforming news!
Thankfully, Jesus was the "resurrection and the life", and he came up from the tomb, giving life and hope to all who follow Him in grace and truth. (See Peter's observation in Acts 2: 31-33).
Will you cast your vote for King Jesus.......and put aside all pretenders?
---The author served as a church-planting missionary to Spain and in pastoral ministries in Colorado and Kansas.
by Torrey H. Brinkley
Some liberal politicians have recently tried to identify Jesus of Nazareth as a "community organizer." Even certain political candidates of today, who claim to have been "community organizers" cannot properly identify the term, and explain what they did, or attempted to do.
But, to be certain, Jesus of Nazareth, born some 2000 years ago, was not one who came into this world to organize any communities. There have been many attempts down thru the years to pigeon-hole Jesus into being something that he was not.
Even during his own lifetime, folk had trouble identifying what Jesus' life purpose and mission might have been:
--We see that Magi (or wise men from the East) thought that Jesus was born "King of the Jews" (Matthew 2: 2). Matthew puts Jesus' geneology right in line as being the "son of David" (Matthew 1:1), and notes that the Roman soldiers at his death put a sign above Jesus' head at the cross saying "This Is Jesus, the King of the Jews" (Matthew 27:37).
-- Many scholars in the last century noted that Jesus was a good moral teacher, but nothing more. Early on, the writers of the Gospels observed that Jesus was far more than that. God spoke from Heaven, saying "This is my son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17). Even the Devil, as he was tempting Jesus in the wilderness, called him "the Son of God" (Matthew 3:3, 6).
--Enemies of Jesus thought he was there to stir up the people, and cause them to rebel against authority. But the Scriptural biographies of his life show that he preached and taught with and about godly "authority", and backed it up by healing their diseases and sicknesses, even curing the demon-possesed, the paralyzed and the lame (Matthew 4: 23-24).
--Some folk think that Jesus just wanted to establish an idyllic religious community, solely contemplating about heaven. Yet, clearly, Jesus spent much time calling "tax collectors and sinners" to be forgiven and transformed (Mark 2:14-17).
--In Jesus' day his enemies did not understand what he was doing, nor did they recognize His power and authority (from God). They accused him of being out of his mind or possessed by Beelzebub (the prince of demons)....see Mark 3:21-22.
--Jesus did not come to organize a small community of people who were needy, so as to make them feel good about themselves. He came to plant seeds of a kingdom of God, that would extend to the furthest corners of the world (Mark 4: 30-31).
--Christ knew that His mission was not to bring "peace" into the world, or to solve community issues. His message and claims were so radical that families were divided. "Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents & have them put to death. All men will hate you because of me." (Matt.10:21-22.)
--Jesus Christ was far from being a politician who wanted all people to love and admire and follow him or vote for him. As a matter of fact, He did so many things that caused others to hate and dispise him (Luke 6:22):
+++he warned the rich that they were in trouble (Luke 6: 24)
+++those who foretold the future with lies & deceit were condemned (Luke 6:26)
+++Jesus demanded a kingdom where his followers were to love their enemies, and pray for those who persecuted them (Luke 6: 27-28).
+++Christ actually told his followers to lend & give away possessions (even to total strangers) without expecting anything back in return (Luke 30:36).
+++Unlike politicians who constantly criticise those who diagree with them, Jesus warned everyone not to be a hypocrite, but to beware of the log in our own eye (Luke 6:41-42).
Perhaps no one understood Jesus of Nazareth better than his closest disciple, John, who wrote, in his extensive treatise on Christ's life, that Jesus was not a mere mortal who was born and died, frustrated in not accomplishing his life's goals. Rather John portrays Jesus as:
**He was the WORD of God (come in the flesh) ...John 1:1
**Jesus was the LIGHT of the World (which had lived in darkness).....John 1:9 & 3:19-21
**Christ was, in fact, the sacrificial LAMB of God, who died to take away the sins of all mankind (John 1:29 and 3:16-18).
**For those who are hungry, Jesus is the BREAD of life (that came down from Heaven as did the manna in the wilderness)....John 6:35 and 41, 48-51.
**For those who are thirsty in the community, Jesus says "I am the living WATER" ....John 7: 37-38.
**Many people feel lost and abandoned. Jesus said: "I am the good SHEPHERD" ...John 10:11, and he was willing to die for his sheep.
**When Jesus' good friend had died from an illness, Jesus did not organize an elaborate community memorial service; he brought Lazarus back to life. For he said "I am the RESURRECTION & THE LIFE." .....John 11:25-26.
**Jesus notes that there are a lot of trees in the forest, but His is the one with the right branches and bearing the good fruit. "I am the true VINE, and you are the branches. Remain in Me and I in you, and you will bear much fruit." ....John 15:5
**For people confused by all the rival ideologies and political systems and economic realities in this world, Jesus gave the definitive answer (that almost all public school educators, liberal theologians and politicians categorically reject today), "I am the WAY, THE TRUTH & THE LIFE. No one comes to the Father except thru me." ....John 14: 6.
Pilate, the politician, claimed that he did not know the definition of truth (John 18:38). But Jesus claimed to testify of the truth, and that everyone on the side of truth would listen to him.(John 18:23 & 37).
Wise men today still seek him and pay attention to His instruction. The community around Jesus ( the religious leaders, the soldiers, the political establishment and rebellious sinners) all rejected Jesus at the end. They did not like His message, even though he healed their diseases, fed them when they were hungry, and shared about God's great love for them. Those who were humbled, convicted and repentant were grateful for such wonderful transforming news!
Thankfully, Jesus was the "resurrection and the life", and he came up from the tomb, giving life and hope to all who follow Him in grace and truth. (See Peter's observation in Acts 2: 31-33).
Will you cast your vote for King Jesus.......and put aside all pretenders?
---The author served as a church-planting missionary to Spain and in pastoral ministries in Colorado and Kansas.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Sports Fans Are Serious Spenders
DO WE LIVE FOR SPORTS?
observed by Torrey H. Brinkley
The Olympic Games have ended for 2008, and perhaps billions of people worldwide had the opportunity to observe some of the athletic prowess and skills of hundreds and thousands of athletes from countries across the globe. Athletic contests are not new, as even the global Olympic games were begun back in Athens before the time of Christ.
Yet today we could perhaps question whether sports activities have become too dominating in our western culture.There is a proliferation of sports leagues and teams:
--the NBA men's basketball has spawned a women's pro league, and the college NCAA men's basketball goes mad in March all across the USA. Girls college hoops are very entertaining, and high school basketball brings out fans every year in noisy gyms in America.
--the NFL season begins in 32 cities soon for football fans, just as college football gets started as well on thousands of small & large campuses, with aspiring players also practicing at high schools from coast to coast.
--Major League Baseball has one more month left in 30 ball parks in US & Canada, while College World Series and even Little League World Series garnered attention on national TV. Rarely do big city folk know of all the scores of Minor League Baseball teams scattered from east to west coasts, but we do see how skilled Girls Fast Pitch Softball leagues have become.
--The NHL has more Canadian players and fans than in the USA, but big money insures that many folk know who are the best players around. College hockey, youth teams and minor league hockey also has its following.
--Auto racing has fans who watch their sport live from February to November in NASCAR, Indy Car, CORR truck, NHRA drag racing, motorcycle and motocross racing, Monster Truck, ALMS and other SCCA sports car events.
--Fans of golf like seeing men and women play for 3 days every weekend on gorgeous courses worldwide.
--Other fans pay attention to tennis tourneys for both sexes, X-treme sports competition, plus other events such as Beach Volleyball, Track & Field events, and Frisbee Golf.
Today there is a huge FINANCIAL committment required to make sports events happen. Grass-covered fields and lavishly equipped stadiums, uniforms and equipment, travel and transportation to & from venues, advertising & sponsorships are all involved. Sporting goods stores, sports magazines, athletic apparel shops, sports trading cards and other sports memorabilia are just a few ways that folk pour money into sports interests.
One is amazed at all the MEDIA coverage given to these sporting events: first there was just newspaper & magazine coverage. Then radio broadcasts were made of games across the country from the 1920s to the present. Starting in the 1950s one could see a sports contest or two on television. Films were shown of real and then staged athletic contests. But today, we have video games of sports, Wii semi-participation, internet coverage, and i-Phone hookups of contests. Direct TV even boasts some 44 sports channels one can watch (for a price). Sadly, some TV sports channels think that watching people "play poker" is a sport, and they broadcast such nonsense for hours at a time.
In recent years, besides the many spectator sports listed above, there are more PARTICIPATORY sports where folk do more than watch someone else get the exercise. We can gain muscles, endurance and feel accomplishment thru:proliferating golf courses nationwide, swimming, ski resorts, volleyball, basketball, exercise gyms, tennis teams, hiking groups, climbing walls & mountains, hang-gliding, water-skiing, bicycling, and off-roading on wheeled vehicles (with or without motors).
TIME involvement is enormous for for athletes: exercising, training, practices, actual game experiences, with the attendant pre- and post-game analysis. In our Denver area, a rabid fan could watch 420 games a year (times 3 hours each) for our pro baseball team, pro football team, pro hockey franchise, NBA round ballers, plus the college basketball and football games in town.
Even sports MEDICINE helps keep athletes in top shape for the games they play: conditioning, massages, surgeries, braces, and prosthetics are available. Countless sports talk shows on TV and radio even spend hours talking about the injuries, ages and condition of players of the various sports.
A major question might be: Who has time & money to dedicate to following all these sporting events?
1) Do you pretend to follow 200 college football teams, who each play 12 games each "before" bowl games yearly?One of the bigger programs, Ohio State University, has a $110 million athletic budget itself.
2) Are you one of those fans of the 32 NFL football teams who play 20+ games and pay $75 a ticket to watch them get exercise down on a grassy field, while you munch down on over-priced unhealthy food snacks? Total attendance would be 22,400,000 to regular season games, who pay out $1.79 billion in seat prices alone!!
3) Each of the 30 MLB baseball teams plays 162 games + Spring Training + playoffs, meaning well over 2500 contests are waged yearly. A season ticket holder of just 2 average seats would spend $3250 + parking + snacks.
4) Do you want to pay $40+ per game to watch your NBA basketball team for 41 home games? That would be $3280 for two season tickets + parking + snacks, for all that time you've "wasted" watching someone else get a lot of exercise. Folk do that in 32 cities in North America.
5) The 30+ professional hockey teams also play 82 games apiece + long playoff series, meaning a total of over 2500 games played.
6) Do you support a college basketball program for their games? Maybe 250 college teams play as many as 32 games a year + tournaments. That's close to 4000 games, where spectators are paying no less than $20 a night per seat.
7) NASCAR draws typically 100,000 live fans to many of its 40 Sunday races, which yields a cool $240,000,000 in seat revenue alone, plus TV advertising and other major corporate sponsorship donations.
We need to be careful in assessing our priorities in society:
a) Let us not become a nation of spectators; it is better to get some exercise than watch others doing it.
b) A soft society desires to be entertained, something that led to Rome's downfall centuries ago.
c) If we have so much excess leisure time with huge discretionary income, then why are we not showing compassion to the poor & helpless among us & around the world?
d) Since we have seen increasingly obese people in our country, why not push for more exercise for the masses instead of eating junk food while accomplishing nothing productive?
e) We need to be careful not to foster violence amongst spectators watching sports that border on agressive competitiveness. If there were no referees on the field, many games would turn chaotic & barbaric. Many fans in various countries have rioted watching soccer contests in the last 10 years, with ugly and even deadly results.
f) So much emphasis on sports and outcomes has fostered a gambling habit, where sports betting has become a huge industry and an addiction on many college campuses. The number of folk wasting money & time on "Fantasy Football" again indicates too much time & excess money going to something which produces exactly nothing for the good of society.
Are you exhausted yet reading of all the time and effort we regularly put into sports? Imagine that we have been sports fans for over 100 years now as a nation? We do this year after year after year. We have the following to show for all this expenditure of time, exercise and money: voluminous record books, perhaps mis-placed hero worship, and some memorable moments in sports.
Perhaps we need to heed the advice of the Roman prisoner, Paul, who wrote to a young man named Timothy some 1950 years ago, while Roman citizens were cheering on the exciting athletic events in their coliseums, including feeding Christians to the lions,
"For bodily exercise profits little, but godliness is profitable in all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." -- I Timothy 4: 15
---The author was the Sports Editor on his high school newspaper (Chicago, IL), served as a Gym Teacher in San Jose, CA at one time, and taught 150 Spanish youth how to play American baseball while serving as a missionary in Madrid, Spain.
observed by Torrey H. Brinkley
The Olympic Games have ended for 2008, and perhaps billions of people worldwide had the opportunity to observe some of the athletic prowess and skills of hundreds and thousands of athletes from countries across the globe. Athletic contests are not new, as even the global Olympic games were begun back in Athens before the time of Christ.
Yet today we could perhaps question whether sports activities have become too dominating in our western culture.There is a proliferation of sports leagues and teams:
--the NBA men's basketball has spawned a women's pro league, and the college NCAA men's basketball goes mad in March all across the USA. Girls college hoops are very entertaining, and high school basketball brings out fans every year in noisy gyms in America.
--the NFL season begins in 32 cities soon for football fans, just as college football gets started as well on thousands of small & large campuses, with aspiring players also practicing at high schools from coast to coast.
--Major League Baseball has one more month left in 30 ball parks in US & Canada, while College World Series and even Little League World Series garnered attention on national TV. Rarely do big city folk know of all the scores of Minor League Baseball teams scattered from east to west coasts, but we do see how skilled Girls Fast Pitch Softball leagues have become.
--The NHL has more Canadian players and fans than in the USA, but big money insures that many folk know who are the best players around. College hockey, youth teams and minor league hockey also has its following.
--Auto racing has fans who watch their sport live from February to November in NASCAR, Indy Car, CORR truck, NHRA drag racing, motorcycle and motocross racing, Monster Truck, ALMS and other SCCA sports car events.
--Fans of golf like seeing men and women play for 3 days every weekend on gorgeous courses worldwide.
--Other fans pay attention to tennis tourneys for both sexes, X-treme sports competition, plus other events such as Beach Volleyball, Track & Field events, and Frisbee Golf.
Today there is a huge FINANCIAL committment required to make sports events happen. Grass-covered fields and lavishly equipped stadiums, uniforms and equipment, travel and transportation to & from venues, advertising & sponsorships are all involved. Sporting goods stores, sports magazines, athletic apparel shops, sports trading cards and other sports memorabilia are just a few ways that folk pour money into sports interests.
One is amazed at all the MEDIA coverage given to these sporting events: first there was just newspaper & magazine coverage. Then radio broadcasts were made of games across the country from the 1920s to the present. Starting in the 1950s one could see a sports contest or two on television. Films were shown of real and then staged athletic contests. But today, we have video games of sports, Wii semi-participation, internet coverage, and i-Phone hookups of contests. Direct TV even boasts some 44 sports channels one can watch (for a price). Sadly, some TV sports channels think that watching people "play poker" is a sport, and they broadcast such nonsense for hours at a time.
In recent years, besides the many spectator sports listed above, there are more PARTICIPATORY sports where folk do more than watch someone else get the exercise. We can gain muscles, endurance and feel accomplishment thru:proliferating golf courses nationwide, swimming, ski resorts, volleyball, basketball, exercise gyms, tennis teams, hiking groups, climbing walls & mountains, hang-gliding, water-skiing, bicycling, and off-roading on wheeled vehicles (with or without motors).
TIME involvement is enormous for for athletes: exercising, training, practices, actual game experiences, with the attendant pre- and post-game analysis. In our Denver area, a rabid fan could watch 420 games a year (times 3 hours each) for our pro baseball team, pro football team, pro hockey franchise, NBA round ballers, plus the college basketball and football games in town.
Even sports MEDICINE helps keep athletes in top shape for the games they play: conditioning, massages, surgeries, braces, and prosthetics are available. Countless sports talk shows on TV and radio even spend hours talking about the injuries, ages and condition of players of the various sports.
A major question might be: Who has time & money to dedicate to following all these sporting events?
1) Do you pretend to follow 200 college football teams, who each play 12 games each "before" bowl games yearly?One of the bigger programs, Ohio State University, has a $110 million athletic budget itself.
2) Are you one of those fans of the 32 NFL football teams who play 20+ games and pay $75 a ticket to watch them get exercise down on a grassy field, while you munch down on over-priced unhealthy food snacks? Total attendance would be 22,400,000 to regular season games, who pay out $1.79 billion in seat prices alone!!
3) Each of the 30 MLB baseball teams plays 162 games + Spring Training + playoffs, meaning well over 2500 contests are waged yearly. A season ticket holder of just 2 average seats would spend $3250 + parking + snacks.
4) Do you want to pay $40+ per game to watch your NBA basketball team for 41 home games? That would be $3280 for two season tickets + parking + snacks, for all that time you've "wasted" watching someone else get a lot of exercise. Folk do that in 32 cities in North America.
5) The 30+ professional hockey teams also play 82 games apiece + long playoff series, meaning a total of over 2500 games played.
6) Do you support a college basketball program for their games? Maybe 250 college teams play as many as 32 games a year + tournaments. That's close to 4000 games, where spectators are paying no less than $20 a night per seat.
7) NASCAR draws typically 100,000 live fans to many of its 40 Sunday races, which yields a cool $240,000,000 in seat revenue alone, plus TV advertising and other major corporate sponsorship donations.
We need to be careful in assessing our priorities in society:
a) Let us not become a nation of spectators; it is better to get some exercise than watch others doing it.
b) A soft society desires to be entertained, something that led to Rome's downfall centuries ago.
c) If we have so much excess leisure time with huge discretionary income, then why are we not showing compassion to the poor & helpless among us & around the world?
d) Since we have seen increasingly obese people in our country, why not push for more exercise for the masses instead of eating junk food while accomplishing nothing productive?
e) We need to be careful not to foster violence amongst spectators watching sports that border on agressive competitiveness. If there were no referees on the field, many games would turn chaotic & barbaric. Many fans in various countries have rioted watching soccer contests in the last 10 years, with ugly and even deadly results.
f) So much emphasis on sports and outcomes has fostered a gambling habit, where sports betting has become a huge industry and an addiction on many college campuses. The number of folk wasting money & time on "Fantasy Football" again indicates too much time & excess money going to something which produces exactly nothing for the good of society.
Are you exhausted yet reading of all the time and effort we regularly put into sports? Imagine that we have been sports fans for over 100 years now as a nation? We do this year after year after year. We have the following to show for all this expenditure of time, exercise and money: voluminous record books, perhaps mis-placed hero worship, and some memorable moments in sports.
Perhaps we need to heed the advice of the Roman prisoner, Paul, who wrote to a young man named Timothy some 1950 years ago, while Roman citizens were cheering on the exciting athletic events in their coliseums, including feeding Christians to the lions,
"For bodily exercise profits little, but godliness is profitable in all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." -- I Timothy 4: 15
---The author was the Sports Editor on his high school newspaper (Chicago, IL), served as a Gym Teacher in San Jose, CA at one time, and taught 150 Spanish youth how to play American baseball while serving as a missionary in Madrid, Spain.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Candidate's Beliefs Do Matter
Beliefs of The Democratic Candidate in '08'
as observed by Torrey H. Brinkley
ON HARD WORK VS. LAZINESS
"In this country, more than anywhere else in the world, we appreciate the dignity of labor & understand that it is honorable to serve. And yet there is room for improvement, for all over over land there are scattered here & there, young men & young women--and even parents--who still think it is more respectable for a young man to spend in idleness the money someone else has earned than to be himself a producer of wealth. ....We must put the badge of disgrace on the idle person." (p. 201)
AS TO GOOD FORTUNE VS. INFLUENTIAL FRIENDS
"I have been a child of fortune from my birth. God gave me into the keeping of a Christian father and a Christian mother. They implanted in my heart the ideals that have guided my life. When I was in law school, I was fortunate enough to fall under the influence of men of ideals who helped shape my course. I have been abundantly rewarded for what little I have been able to do, and my ambition is not so much to hold any office, however great, as it is to know my duty and to do it, whether in public life or as a private citizen." (p. 167).
THE IMPORTANCE OF OUR FREEDOMS
"The Statue of Liberty was the gracious gift of a sister republic & stands upon a pedestal which was built by the American people. That figure --Liberty enlightening the world-- is emblematic of the mission of our nation among the nations of the earth. With a government, which derives its powers from the consent of the governed, secures to all the people freedom of conscience, freedom of thought and freedom of speech, guarantees equal rights to all, and promises special privileges to none, the United States should be an example in all that is good,and the leading spirit in every movement which has for its object the upifting of the human race." (p. 114)
CHOOSING BETWEEN WAR & PEACE
"Nation after nation, when at the zenith of its power, has proclaimed itself invincible because its army could shake the earth with its tread, and its ships could fill the seas, but these nations are dead, and we must build upon a different foundation if we would avoid their fate.
"I appeal to you to make your views known to the President, that he may be strengthened against the insolent clamour of those who ridicule peaceful methods, and, as if infuriated by the scent of blood, are bellowing for war. "I trust that a life devoted to the public, and overflowing, like a spring, with good, exerts an influence upon the human race & upon the destiny of the world as great as any death in war." (pp. 300, 302, 304)
CHOOSING THE RIGHT BEVERAGE
"All hail to the drink of drinks--to water, the daily need of every living thing."Men cannot afford to be drinking alcohol, for financial and physical reasons. The physical discomfort fails to compensate for any possible pleasure. Again, men owe to their progeny life without any inherited weakness, and lastly, 'man is his brother's keeper', and he is morally wrong in drinking alcohol, for the example it sets the weak." (pp. 314-315)
WHAT IS THE AUTHORITY FOR RIGHT DECISIONS?
"The attack being made right now upon those who stand squarely for the Christian faith of their fathers is not an attack on orthodoxy. It is an attack on religion. If you put the hypothesis of science above the Word of God, I don't expect you to tolerate me."The Bible is the Word of God, and the Bible is the only expression of man's hope of salvation. The Bible, the record of the son of God, the Saviour of the world, born of the Virgin Mary, crucified & risen again, that Bible is not going to be driven out of this court by experts who come in to testify that they can reconcile evolution with its ancestors in the jungle, with man made by God in His image & put here for purposes as a part of the Divine plan." (pp. 348, 361)
.........Yes, these were the thoughts of the Democratic Presidential Candidate who came to Denver, Colorado in 1908. Excerpts were from the biography written by Genevieve and John Herrick in 1925 "The Life of William Jennings Bryan".
as observed by Torrey H. Brinkley
ON HARD WORK VS. LAZINESS
"In this country, more than anywhere else in the world, we appreciate the dignity of labor & understand that it is honorable to serve. And yet there is room for improvement, for all over over land there are scattered here & there, young men & young women--and even parents--who still think it is more respectable for a young man to spend in idleness the money someone else has earned than to be himself a producer of wealth. ....We must put the badge of disgrace on the idle person." (p. 201)
AS TO GOOD FORTUNE VS. INFLUENTIAL FRIENDS
"I have been a child of fortune from my birth. God gave me into the keeping of a Christian father and a Christian mother. They implanted in my heart the ideals that have guided my life. When I was in law school, I was fortunate enough to fall under the influence of men of ideals who helped shape my course. I have been abundantly rewarded for what little I have been able to do, and my ambition is not so much to hold any office, however great, as it is to know my duty and to do it, whether in public life or as a private citizen." (p. 167).
THE IMPORTANCE OF OUR FREEDOMS
"The Statue of Liberty was the gracious gift of a sister republic & stands upon a pedestal which was built by the American people. That figure --Liberty enlightening the world-- is emblematic of the mission of our nation among the nations of the earth. With a government, which derives its powers from the consent of the governed, secures to all the people freedom of conscience, freedom of thought and freedom of speech, guarantees equal rights to all, and promises special privileges to none, the United States should be an example in all that is good,and the leading spirit in every movement which has for its object the upifting of the human race." (p. 114)
CHOOSING BETWEEN WAR & PEACE
"Nation after nation, when at the zenith of its power, has proclaimed itself invincible because its army could shake the earth with its tread, and its ships could fill the seas, but these nations are dead, and we must build upon a different foundation if we would avoid their fate.
"I appeal to you to make your views known to the President, that he may be strengthened against the insolent clamour of those who ridicule peaceful methods, and, as if infuriated by the scent of blood, are bellowing for war. "I trust that a life devoted to the public, and overflowing, like a spring, with good, exerts an influence upon the human race & upon the destiny of the world as great as any death in war." (pp. 300, 302, 304)
CHOOSING THE RIGHT BEVERAGE
"All hail to the drink of drinks--to water, the daily need of every living thing."Men cannot afford to be drinking alcohol, for financial and physical reasons. The physical discomfort fails to compensate for any possible pleasure. Again, men owe to their progeny life without any inherited weakness, and lastly, 'man is his brother's keeper', and he is morally wrong in drinking alcohol, for the example it sets the weak." (pp. 314-315)
WHAT IS THE AUTHORITY FOR RIGHT DECISIONS?
"The attack being made right now upon those who stand squarely for the Christian faith of their fathers is not an attack on orthodoxy. It is an attack on religion. If you put the hypothesis of science above the Word of God, I don't expect you to tolerate me."The Bible is the Word of God, and the Bible is the only expression of man's hope of salvation. The Bible, the record of the son of God, the Saviour of the world, born of the Virgin Mary, crucified & risen again, that Bible is not going to be driven out of this court by experts who come in to testify that they can reconcile evolution with its ancestors in the jungle, with man made by God in His image & put here for purposes as a part of the Divine plan." (pp. 348, 361)
.........Yes, these were the thoughts of the Democratic Presidential Candidate who came to Denver, Colorado in 1908. Excerpts were from the biography written by Genevieve and John Herrick in 1925 "The Life of William Jennings Bryan".
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Distorting the Truth
How The Enemy Chips Away at the Truth
by Torrey H. Brinkley
Many have lamented at the loss of absolutes in our society, and how the truth has been warped and distorted. What was once considered wrong is now OK. What we thought was right is now considered "bad form." Things one could once say are now labeled "politically incorrect." Truths taught in our schools & churches are now just old fables. How did this happen?
The Enemy (of the Truth) has always had a plan to deceive and to bring down the wisdom and guidance from above. His steps to lead us into failure and falsehood are measured, calculating, and appropriate for the time. See how it all started:
Questioning Authority: In the Garden of Eden, Satan asked Adam & Eve, "has God said......?" The Devil didn't think these simple humans had a good memory of the truth of God's commands.
--How often is this tactic employed today by those who deny God's instructions? Educated folk today have tossed out bibical Revelation, and have replaced it with fanciful imaginations.
Denying truth statements: As well, in the Garden, the Serpent flatly contradicted what God had told the first couple, "No, if you eat of the forbidden fruit, you will not die!" God's dictates seemed so harsh, that Satan knew the couple would prefer to hear something softer.
--How quickly & flippantly do modern pagan educators dismiss anything stated in the Bible (whether miracles, origins, commandments or salvation-related)?
Building up the listener: Again, the Deceiver told Adam & Eve that they in fact would become like gods, if they would eat fruit from that one tree. Who wouldn't like the extra benefits from a promise like that, even if it means disobeying God?
--Satan loves to "empower" people who feel cheated by the system or the status quo. The Enemy knows there is strength in numbers, even if it is for the wrong cause or purposes.
Putting God out of the picture: If Satan can convince us that the Lord is not around, & He can't see us, then it becomes easy to justify doing something which we think is just our own little secret. How foolish to imagine that God pays no attention to even the smallest detail of our lives! (Just ask Adam & Eve how hard it was to hide from God.)
--To be sure, God has been removed from the modern classroom, for a good part of 90 years in American public education. The modern news media has not uttered the "God" word since its infancy. Hollywood refuses to acknowledge the presence of God, but loves to enable small boys and young, curvy women with magical "superpowers."
Introducing other objects of worship: From early stories in the Old Testament we see that people considered adoring other gods, even things made with human hands (idols, possessions, the fleshly body, lands, etc.). Even the children of Israel frequently left the God who changed history & overcame laws of nature to follow worthless idols.
--Humankind has been able to invent & create so many fascinating technologies, that they have all but forgotten the God who placed them on this planet, set the Sun and Moon in motion, gave us water & food to eat, and instructed us in how to live in peace, harmony & right living. Yet, no matter what things people worship today, they are empty until they find rest in Christ's love, forgiveness and acceptance. We need the Saviour to heal us, not more glamorous celebrities for us to admire.
Adopting the ways of foreigners: Another pronouncement God gave to Israel was to never accept the false teachings and philosophies and deities of their pagan neighbors. Thru foreign trade, social interaction, and inter-marrying, the Jews easily fell prey to those who carried them off into slavery, torture, abuse and degradation.
--No one person in history equalled the success and wisdom of King Solomon, who gained all the fame & fortune that the world had to offer, but he lost his single-mindedness, his purpose and his eventual kingdom, when he made foreign alliances & took on over 700 wives & 300 mistresses thru the goal of greedy "internationalism." Are we any wiser than Solomon today?
Choosing the wrong battles: It is so easy to get distracted from the right focus & the proper direction, and then to charge after the wrong Enemy. David was such a successful warrior and king that he battled scores of enemies around Israel. God eventually had to tell David that he was not fit to build the Lord's Temple and to restore Jerusalem, because he had too much blood on his hands.
--Today we see so many wrongs in the world, often lashing out against all kinds of enemies, and expend all our energy and resources, that we have no time left for God, His Word, sharing His message, building up other believers, witnessing to our neighbors, or feeding the hungry. A wise general reportedly said, "choose the hill you want to die on." That was bad grammar, but good advice.
Therefore, the end result of this attack on absolute values & truths has led to a dismantling in modern society of these pillars:
1) GOD (of the Bible) has been replaced with any religion, or no faith at all. Some even worship the "Planet".
2) COUNTRY (& its founding principles) has been superceded by a global view of history, issues, economics & planning. Some have abandoned hard work & saving, and instead hope for gambling winnings & government transfers of wealth.
3) FAMILY (as an institution of love, nurture & education) is now shown as no better than any grouping of peoples.
4) MARRIAGE (as something God intended for man & woman in blessed intimacy & mutual strengthening) is scorned as no better than any other relationship or laison (without commitment).
5) MORAL VALUES (especially God-given) are dismissed because any & all ideas should be equally acceptable. Popularity is more important than morality.
6) LAWS & COMMANDMENTS are rejected, as modern man asks "why should anyone else have authority over me ?"
--the author studied under Dr.Francis Schaeffer in Switzerland in 1969, and has served as a pastor in the USA and church-planting missionary to Spain.
by Torrey H. Brinkley
Many have lamented at the loss of absolutes in our society, and how the truth has been warped and distorted. What was once considered wrong is now OK. What we thought was right is now considered "bad form." Things one could once say are now labeled "politically incorrect." Truths taught in our schools & churches are now just old fables. How did this happen?
The Enemy (of the Truth) has always had a plan to deceive and to bring down the wisdom and guidance from above. His steps to lead us into failure and falsehood are measured, calculating, and appropriate for the time. See how it all started:
Questioning Authority: In the Garden of Eden, Satan asked Adam & Eve, "has God said......?" The Devil didn't think these simple humans had a good memory of the truth of God's commands.
--How often is this tactic employed today by those who deny God's instructions? Educated folk today have tossed out bibical Revelation, and have replaced it with fanciful imaginations.
Denying truth statements: As well, in the Garden, the Serpent flatly contradicted what God had told the first couple, "No, if you eat of the forbidden fruit, you will not die!" God's dictates seemed so harsh, that Satan knew the couple would prefer to hear something softer.
--How quickly & flippantly do modern pagan educators dismiss anything stated in the Bible (whether miracles, origins, commandments or salvation-related)?
Building up the listener: Again, the Deceiver told Adam & Eve that they in fact would become like gods, if they would eat fruit from that one tree. Who wouldn't like the extra benefits from a promise like that, even if it means disobeying God?
--Satan loves to "empower" people who feel cheated by the system or the status quo. The Enemy knows there is strength in numbers, even if it is for the wrong cause or purposes.
Putting God out of the picture: If Satan can convince us that the Lord is not around, & He can't see us, then it becomes easy to justify doing something which we think is just our own little secret. How foolish to imagine that God pays no attention to even the smallest detail of our lives! (Just ask Adam & Eve how hard it was to hide from God.)
--To be sure, God has been removed from the modern classroom, for a good part of 90 years in American public education. The modern news media has not uttered the "God" word since its infancy. Hollywood refuses to acknowledge the presence of God, but loves to enable small boys and young, curvy women with magical "superpowers."
Introducing other objects of worship: From early stories in the Old Testament we see that people considered adoring other gods, even things made with human hands (idols, possessions, the fleshly body, lands, etc.). Even the children of Israel frequently left the God who changed history & overcame laws of nature to follow worthless idols.
--Humankind has been able to invent & create so many fascinating technologies, that they have all but forgotten the God who placed them on this planet, set the Sun and Moon in motion, gave us water & food to eat, and instructed us in how to live in peace, harmony & right living. Yet, no matter what things people worship today, they are empty until they find rest in Christ's love, forgiveness and acceptance. We need the Saviour to heal us, not more glamorous celebrities for us to admire.
Adopting the ways of foreigners: Another pronouncement God gave to Israel was to never accept the false teachings and philosophies and deities of their pagan neighbors. Thru foreign trade, social interaction, and inter-marrying, the Jews easily fell prey to those who carried them off into slavery, torture, abuse and degradation.
--No one person in history equalled the success and wisdom of King Solomon, who gained all the fame & fortune that the world had to offer, but he lost his single-mindedness, his purpose and his eventual kingdom, when he made foreign alliances & took on over 700 wives & 300 mistresses thru the goal of greedy "internationalism." Are we any wiser than Solomon today?
Choosing the wrong battles: It is so easy to get distracted from the right focus & the proper direction, and then to charge after the wrong Enemy. David was such a successful warrior and king that he battled scores of enemies around Israel. God eventually had to tell David that he was not fit to build the Lord's Temple and to restore Jerusalem, because he had too much blood on his hands.
--Today we see so many wrongs in the world, often lashing out against all kinds of enemies, and expend all our energy and resources, that we have no time left for God, His Word, sharing His message, building up other believers, witnessing to our neighbors, or feeding the hungry. A wise general reportedly said, "choose the hill you want to die on." That was bad grammar, but good advice.
Therefore, the end result of this attack on absolute values & truths has led to a dismantling in modern society of these pillars:
1) GOD (of the Bible) has been replaced with any religion, or no faith at all. Some even worship the "Planet".
2) COUNTRY (& its founding principles) has been superceded by a global view of history, issues, economics & planning. Some have abandoned hard work & saving, and instead hope for gambling winnings & government transfers of wealth.
3) FAMILY (as an institution of love, nurture & education) is now shown as no better than any grouping of peoples.
4) MARRIAGE (as something God intended for man & woman in blessed intimacy & mutual strengthening) is scorned as no better than any other relationship or laison (without commitment).
5) MORAL VALUES (especially God-given) are dismissed because any & all ideas should be equally acceptable. Popularity is more important than morality.
6) LAWS & COMMANDMENTS are rejected, as modern man asks "why should anyone else have authority over me ?"
--the author studied under Dr.Francis Schaeffer in Switzerland in 1969, and has served as a pastor in the USA and church-planting missionary to Spain.
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