09/18/21

Just One Red Leaf

By: T.F. Stern | Self-Educated American

While taking my afternoon walk down our private road towards the mailbox, more of a chance to exercise my replacement knee than to check on the mail; I happen to notice a single red leaf on the ground. I’m not sure which tree it fell from; this being only the second week in September, it seemed a little premature to have Fall leaves.

The afternoon temperature was right at 90 degrees, about normal for this time of year. I’d walked enough to notice beads of perspiration had formed on my forehead. I take my cellphone with me on these walks, just in case I need to call for help getting home, in case my knee decides it’s had enough. I still find it rather amazing that folks can take photographs with their “phone”; so, I snapped a photo of the fallen leaf.

That single red leaf, as my mind worked to explain why I’d taken a picture of it, that single red leaf represents hope. That’s right, hope.

Looking around at the many trees that line our private road, they all appeared to be dressed in various shades of green indicating that Summer was in full swing. I was unable to identify the tree which had lost the single red leaf and yet it had to be nearby.

Fall and the resplendent colors we look forward to are close, so close as to make me hopeful. The air will change from being in the nineties to a more comfortable setting, maybe a light breeze out of the north to blow lots and lots of leaves about.

Perhaps my youngest grandson will come to visit and he can toss handfuls of leaves into the air, delighting as they fall around him without a care in the world. We’ll then go into the house, enjoy a cup of hot chocolate to warm up, and smile at having lived to see the seasons change.

Two weeks from now we’re having a wood-burning stove installed in our living room. At this moment it’s in the shipping crate sitting on the porch awaiting the scheduled installation. In biblical terms, this would be called faith. We haven’t seen any cold weather, at least not at this time, and yet we are acting on the hope that cold weather surely follows the first fallen leaf.

During the hottest days of summer, I was splitting large tree chunks down to a usable size that will fit the wood-burning stove we purchased. That kind of labor, effort spent on the expectation of something that had yet to be…that’s the definition of faith.

Hope and faith are essential elements to having joy. They have nothing to do with how much money you make, whether or not you are living in a fancy home or under a bridge trying to figure out where your next meal is coming from. If we can have hope in our hearts and minds that good things will happen and then act with faith believing that things will work out, then everything will work out just fine.

Self-Educated American, Senior Editor, T.F. Stern is both a retired City of Houston police officer and, most recently, a retired self-employed locksmith (after serving that industry for 40 plus years). He is also a gifted political and social commentator. His popular and insightful blog, T.F. Sterns Rantings, has been up and at it since January of 2005.

09/14/21

Tell the Truth; but, Take Good Notes

By: T.F. Stern | Self-Educated American

There was a clever quote by Mark Twain shared on Facebook, “If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything”. I thought about that for a moment and then decided it was lacking something important, which might annoy folks seeing as I was contradicting one of America’s foremost minds.

Yes, it’s important to tell the truth because once you start telling lies, eventually you’ll forget which lie you told and you’re going to be caught.

But keeping good notes about the truth is important too; especially if you expect to remember details down the road.

To illustrate my point, back when I was a police officer for the City of Houston, I’d write traffic tickets and later appear in court if the driver wished to contest the ticket.

I developed a short code consisting of letters and numbers to jog my memory on details that were associated with each violation. If the driver ran a red light; but claimed the light was yellow, down in the corner of the traffic ticket I’d put “CY”.

I’d also put how many car lengths from the intersection the driver was when the light turned red prior to driving on through that red light; 1,2,3 and so on… but reserved ½ to indicate that the driver not only ran the red light; but had accelerated rather than tried to stop. This was a simple way to be able to testify to what I’d seen when it came time in traffic court, often months after the ticket had been issued.

One afternoon after having testified about a driver having run a red light by 3 car lengths the judge stopped the prosecutor, looked at me, and asked, “Didn’t the driver run the red light by 3 and a half car lengths?” I couldn’t help but smile as I refrained from outright laughing.

“No, Sir. She ran the red light by 3 car lengths.”

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07/31/21

Healthy vs Asymptomatic

By: T.F. Stern | Self-Educated American

Prior to having surgery, the medical folks insisted I fill out a COVID Survey. Apparently, it doesn’t matter if you’ve had the experimental vaccine or not; each individual is treated as if they have the COVID virus. This would explain why each question is asked from the standpoint, “Are you currently Symptomatic or Asymptomatic?”

Interestingly, there’s an article written by several doctors, What Does Asymptomatic Mean?

“An asymptomatic infection is one in which a bacteria, virus, fungus, or parasite has invaded the body but has not yet caused any symptoms (like fever or a cough).

Your body may fight off the invader and you may never know it was there. Or, you may develop symptoms of the illness after an asymptomatic phase. Depending on the pathogen, you may be able to spread the germs to others even though you have no symptoms.”

If I’m interpreting the questionnaire/survey correctly, there is a presumption on the part of the medical industry that everyone is either sick and showing symptoms of the COVID virus, or, they have the COVID virus and have yet to display any symptoms, but are to be considered a threat to humanity.

At one time individuals who didn’t feel sick and had no symptoms of being sick were referred to as Healthy.

According to my grandfather, there was an exception to the old rule, at least when it came to observing a woman who appeared to be pregnant. “It’s never polite to ask if she’s pregnant, as it could become awkward”. He continued that thought by saying, “The only time it’s permissible to ask”, pausing as he put the rest of the sentence together, “…is if you can see the baby’s head crowning”. He’d give a wink and a sly grin for having made a joke.

The COVID virus crisis, pandemic or well-played political device; call it what you will, has altered the presumption of ‘healthy unless proven otherwise’ into a dark pit where everyone must prove they don’t have COVID, even if the testing for COVID is less than accurate to the point of being flawed.

Hmmm… it dawned on me; the same thing has happened with the ‘presumption of innocent until proven guilty. Far too many are willing to apply ‘trial by media’ as they find individuals, “Guilty, he must be guilty because it was on television,” depending on how the news media spins a story… but I’m getting off-topic, or am I?

We’re being led down the path of Totalitarian Marxist control as corporations and governments attempt to install Vaccination Passports to limit the movement and actions of individuals as if this kind of intervention were acceptable under our Constitutional Republican form of government. “But it’s for the safety of everyone, so you must submit”.

Is this how a healthy society behaves? I think not.

07/4/21

Washing the Car and the Sacrament

By: T.F. Stern | Self-Educated American

Last Sunday I drove my clean and polished 1999 BMW Z-3 Coupe to church. As I pulled into the parking lot a few raindrops began to fall and it was a close call getting in the back door as buckets of rain fell.

I didn’t think much of it until after church when it was still raining. Driving from Madisonville back to Buffalo wouldn’t be near as much fun with the roads wet. I’d have to drive conservatively rather than my normal aggressiveness; letting the car have fun while going through the gears was not an option.

The last couple of miles to my property are on ‘county roads’. That means leaving the asphalt pavement and driving on crushed rock or dirt. If it’s dry then a cloud of dust follows you, covering the lower portion and back end of the car. If it’s wet the road becomes a slip and slide covering the lower portion and back end with a layer of mud.

Since it was still raining, all I wanted to do was park the car in front of the house and get inside; spraying off the mud would have to wait. As it turned out it waited all week. It was depressing just looking at my pretty green jewel sitting there covered with a film of dirt, but there were plenty of chores around the property that took priority.

One of the ongoing tasks is splitting firewood from stacks of tree trunk sections that are behind our storage trailer. At one time that wouldn’t have been such an ordeal; but after you reach 70 there isn’t much get up and go in this body. So, after chopping a small bundle of firewood down to size it’s time to cool off, take a nap, and try again later.

The property needed mowing, something I usually break down; doing the front two acres one day followed by the back acre the next. Feeling spry and wanting it done, I got all three acres mowed. That back acre needed to be double-cut so it’s more like doing two acres.

Then today we drove down to Huntsville to get our grocery shopping done as we prepare for Independence Day; our kids and grandkids coming up to visit. I’m glad the property got mowed as it looks so inviting, but that dirty BMW sitting in front of the house wasn’t going to let me off the hook.

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06/25/21

Critical Race Theory vs the Golden Rule

By: T.F. STERN | Self-Educated American

There have been many discussions of late regarding the teaching of Critical Race Theory in classrooms across the country. There are varied opinions regarding the topic’s legitimate purpose, much less whether it should be used as an indoctrination tool in public schools where students are manipulated by social group think methods.

(Image, One Fish Two Fish, courtesy of Dr. Seuss clip art)

There used to be a simple thought process taught in schools, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. This strange concept is often called the Golden Rule. Jesus Christ shared this idea during His ministry and public-school administrators are reluctant to include it as part of basic social interaction, they have deemed it inappropriate based on its being religious indoctrination. Social media ‘Fact Checkers’ might say the Golden Rule doesn’t meet with current Community Standards.

The definition of Critical Race Theory makes it a bit more interesting since those who are pushing this concept appear to have created their own religion, one which rivals Christianity; but I’m getting ahead of myself…

Wikipedia’s definition indicates that “Critical race theory is an academic movement of civil-rights scholars and activists in the United States who seek to critically examine the law as it intersects with issues of race and to challenge mainstream liberal approaches to racial justice. CRT examines social, cultural, and legal issues as they relate to race and racism.”

While similar to Wikipedia, Britannica’s definition holds that “Critical race theory (CRT), intellectual movement and loosely organized framework of legal analysis based on the premise that race is not a natural, biologically grounded feature of physically distinct subgroups of human beings but a socially constructed (culturally invented) category that is used to oppress and exploit people of color.”

It would appear that the intellectual community, academic activists who have taken over the public schools, have incorporated Social Justice as a means of correcting mankind’s propensity to judge people by the color of his/her skin. Not only to reprimand all lighter-skinned individuals for having judged a person by the color of their skin; but to recompense those with darker skin for hundreds of years, even thousands of years of presumed oppression.

The Judeo-Christian justice system, which the civilized world has used throughout recorded history, teaches an eternal principle, that individuals are responsible for their actions; responsible to their fellow citizens, and, more importantly, responsible to God. Through the efforts of those wishing to replace that justice system with Social Justice, individual responsibility would be altered into a collective responsibility. This corruption of reality is at the heart of the intellectual argument.

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05/6/21

COVID Pandemic Warning of Totalitarian Control

By: T.F. Stern | Self-Educated American

I received a warning informing us of the health pandemic Hoax being foisted off on us. The warning came via text messages and, after reading the printed text, along with watching the linked video, determined the warning is of great value and the presentation offered in the video is reliable based on the fluid delivery which indicated substantial knowledge in his field along with his integrity.

I don’t claim to be a scientist or health expert; however, if you study the manner in which individuals express themselves, an art rather than a science, you can discern their level of honesty along with their credibility. This individual has both credibility and integrity from my dealings with both crooks and honest people over a lifetime. Here’s what I read…

“Can you imagine what impact it would have on our society if the head of the FBI or CIA came out and turned against the organization, he had worked with for sixteen years and said, “My agency is corrupt, do not trust them they are intending on destroying you.” Would you listen?

In this Interview with Michael Yeadon, former Vice President and Chief Science Officer of Pfizer, where he worked for sixteen years you will hear that exact damnation of the pharmaceutical vaccine makers and their evil counterparts in government and the medical profession whose intent is to destroy your health over the next five years with additional injections which you will be told you have no choice but to allow yourself to be injected.

I know by now you are thinking “I already know they are bad and I am not going to take them so why listen to another person tell me what I already know?”

That is the exact reason you must listen to every word he says — not for you, but for all the people you know who are not aware of what is being done to them and who have already taken the first one or two experimental injections or plan to do so.

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02/11/21

Watching the Wall Go Up

By: T.F. Stern | Self-Educated American

We have in our collection of DVD movies, Bridge of Spies. The dramatized movie is based on actual events, with Tom Hanks playing the lead role of a lawyer assigned to provide the appearance of a proper defense for a Russian agent caught spying on the United States. His efforts later include trading the convicted Russian spy for an American pilot shot down while flying a spy plane over Russia, we are shown the transformation of a divided Germany.

(Image is a screen shot grab from the movie, Bridge of Spies)

There’s a scene showing an American student crossing from West Berlin into East Berlin at the very moment when the Berlin Wall is nearing completion. His purpose for entering East Berlin was to advise a friend the time was nearly upon them when leaving would no longer be possible. That time, in fact, had expired as he was prevented from returning to West Berlin; beyond that, he was charged as being a foreign agent for political purposes.

The reason for bringing this up has to do with a gut feeling, something tells me we, here in the United States of America, are watching the first few blocks of a wall being erected. If not the wall itself, then certainly the foundation for such.

A friend sent an article about how Trey Goudy was responding to the current political scene, and while doing so, added his own observation.

“One of the first things a Marxist regime (We DO have a fledgling Marxist regime whether we want to admit it or not) does when taking power is destroy any and all potential opposition. History makes that clear! You can bet the fabricated charges are already in place to be used once this impeachment dog and pony show has ended. For 4 long years the Dems have used false accusations to harass and overthrow Trump; from Trump/Russia collusion, the false Trump/Ukraine quid pro quo used to justify the 1st impeachment, the list is endless! To assume their blind hatred and vindictiveness will end now that they have successfully overthrown him via election fraud is worse than naïve! As long as Trump lives and has supporters, he will be a threat to the Marxist agenda!”

But… nothing of the kind is happening, you might say, shaking your head in disbelief. Then let me point out some of the ‘red flags’ warning of impending danger.

All of last year leading up to the elections, the Democrat Party made a massive effort to alter the methods by which voters might participate…other than in person, and certainly not having to show a valid picture ID. Their presumptive argument centered on the COVID-19 pandemic, which they claimed would inhibit far too many voters from attending the polls. So, undermining the validity of the election became supremely important; speaking from the standpoint of one who believes fraud and corruption determined the outcome rather than the will of the people.

You’d also have to consider that the major news media outlets no longer report news events; rather, they are propaganda outlets owned and operated by…you guessed it…the Democrat Party. When I say the Democrat Party, they are in fact the American Communist party; but that again is an opinion based on observation since the two parties have the same agenda planks.

If you’ve been paying attention to what’s been happening on social media outlets such as Twitter, YouTube or Facebook you could hardly avoid noticing that conservative views, opinions and fact-based reporting have been censored; or as they would have us believe, Fact Checked by impartial individuals who just happened to be paid by the Communist Chinese government. That last tidbit has been Fact Checked and no response was made.

Fact Checkers, call them what you wish, have taken over to the point where individuals who express opinions that run counter to those held by the leftists are made to look as if they are spreading false information. If the individual continues to share opinions that are contrary to those held by the left, that individual gets placed in a time-out box for a day, three days or even banned.

Does this look like the America we had only a year ago?

What about members of Congress submitting legislation that calls for stripping basic rights from anyone who supported Donald Trump’s bid for a second term as President? How does it sound when half of the country is called ‘Domestic Terrorists’ simply because they don’t agree that going down the road to pure Totalitarian Marxism isn’t such a great idea?

Some in Congress have suggested that anyone who supported Donald Trump should be removed from society. How does that work; just wondering as I seem to remember that kind of mindset being used to remove undesirables from Germany in order to improve the Fatherland.

What I’m seeing is the destruction of our constitutional republican form of government. When Barack Obama was elected to fill the White House there were meetings wherein the goal expressed was to take down capitalism “brick by brick”; I believe those were the exact words used. Every member of his appointed Czars/cabinet were radical leftists…and…it would appear that with Joe Biden having been “installed” as our current president, we have returned to that same path.

Sheila Jackson Lee recently submitted legislation aimed at the Second Amendment, an attempt to further erode individual citizen’s inalienable right to own and bear arms. She’s called for the registration of all firearms along with phycological testing prior to being able to purchase a firearm or even purchase ammunition.

Senator Rand Paul responded, “Mandatory mental health screening could result in anyone with an unpopular political belief or lifestyle choice being labeled “mentally ill”.

If you wanted to use the old “connect the dots” process, popular a few years back, then by dismantling the Bill of Rights, one “brick at a time” a Totalitarian Marxist State could be installed. Alter the 1^st Amendment; freedom of speech and the right to assemble peaceably to address government with grievances, then seriously infringe on the 2^nd Amendment by weeding out undesirable opponents of Marxism via mental health screenings run by government-paid psychiatrists, and I didn’t even mention that the Supreme Court was about to decide whether or not the 4^th Amendment applies to warrantless searches of your home since they’ve already upheld such searches of vehicles.

Each of the bricks taken away from upholding our constitutional republic appears to have a purpose in building a wall to facilitate installing a Totalitarian Marxist State. We are witnessing the building of a new and improved version of the Berlin Wall. Tell me I’m wrong!

01/26/21

Working on the Engine

By: T.F. Stern | Self-Educated American

This morning there was a photograph of an airline mechanic standing on top of a ladder while putting what looked like Duct Tape around the front of the jet engine. The likelihood of Duct Tape being used for that particular function is minimal at best, but it might have caused a mild panic for passengers looking on.

Back in 1970, while on my way back to Ft. Jackson, South Carolina (it might have been Ft. Gordon, Georgia, to complete Military Police School), I was awaiting a delayed flight out of IAH in Houston. The delay had something to do with one of the four jet engines as I watched the mechanic standing on a huge ladder as he went over the schematic printed on the engine cover which was propped open. His finger followed the diagram to a certain point whereupon he’d turn his head and try to follow the information offered by running his finger across the jet engine. He did this several times; each time a scowl crossed his face as he grimaced in dissatisfaction.

He had my attention.

While talking into a portable radio, he again ran his finger along the schematic diagram while listening to the instructions being offered. He repeated the ritual of feeling his way across the jet engine which didn’t match up with the diagram; his finger stopped as if there was a hole preventing it from moving further. He put the jet engine cover down, similar to slamming the hood on a car in anger, and fastened the screws that held it in place; not having done anything other than shake his head in disgust.

My attention to his every action was intense as I followed his getting off the ladder and his using the stairs that led up to the passenger jetway. After getting his attention, blocking his forward progress by standing in such a way as to make it impossible for him to ignore me, I asked if the plane was okay to fly.

His answer did not put me at ease. “Oh, these newer planes fly just as well on three engines as they do on all four.” He probably thought that was a clever comeback line as he walked away, thinking that he’d have a good laugh once he reached the employee’s break-room.

I, on the other hand, was about to fly across the county in an airplane that had been delayed for about an hour and a half. From what I could tell, nothing had been done to correct whatever had been the cause of the delay. Aside from that, the odds of meeting up with my connecting flight were slim.

About the only positive mark was that all the seats in Coach were filled and they had to put me in First Class. One of the perks of being in First Class…speaking as a young Private in the Army who had never flown First Class…they served alcoholic beverages at no charge from the moment the doors closed until the airplane reached its final approach into Atlanta. I got ‘properly snockered’; I believe that’s the appropriate term. I figured if the plane was going to crash, I was going to be smashed before anyone else.

Amazingly, the flight across the country caught a terrific Jet Stream which pushed the arrival time making it possible for me to catch my connecting flight. I hurried across the airport and was happy to see the connecting flight had also been delayed due to mechanical issues. Running through the airport with a heavy buzz was a new experience; plowed would be a more accurate description, I was plowed.

They boarded everyone onto the plane while a team of mechanics dressed in overalls continued with their repairs. I managed to engage one of them in conversation and found that something wasn’t working with the air conditioning system. I told him about needing to get back to base to avoid being late and not to worry about the air conditioning. He explained that the air conditioning and passengers being able to breathe were all part of the same system.

Looked like we might have to wait for repairs; I was going to be late reporting back in, about two hours late. I took a bus back to base around ten o’clock; it was raining, just perfect.

The Duty Sergeant listened to my lame excuse for being late, observed my alcohol-induced state of readiness along with my sincere attempt to sober up. He determined the situation really was out of my hands as I stood before him with my travel bag and paperwork. Instead of writing me up, he assigned me to work a guard post the remainder of the night.

As I stood guard that night it might have been nice to have a roll of Duct Tape, something to hold me up till sunrise.

12/18/20

Christmas Magic

By: T.F. Stern | T.F. Stern’s Rantings

There was a challenge handed out the other day, what did your family do at Christmas? A handful of memories floating around so I’ll start with writing a wish list. This was done either on Thanksgiving or very soon thereafter.

We’d jot down, in our very best handwriting, items we considered worthy of asking Santa for. It didn’t matter if the requests were based in reality; but as a rule, these items had been seen on television or in one of the many catalogs, catalogs which many folks referred to as Wish Books.

After completing the assignment we’d place our lists on a plate along with some cookies and a bottle of Coca-Cola. The idea was to make sure the Big Guy was rewarded for having traveled over to our house and considered our requests. We were told that Santa wore magic mittens and that while holding up our notes to be read, those mittens would catch the pieces of paper on fire; proof that he’d read them would be ashes left on the plate.

We didn’t need an alarm clock to get up the next morning as we all raced to the dining room table to witness the miracle which had occurred during the night. There would be a scorch mark on the china and a small clump of burnt up ashes. It was the beginning of the Christmas Season, official and verified.

My folks must have been gluttons for punishment as they’d also told us that Santa was the one who decorated our Christmas Tree, that all we had to do was pick out a good one, keep it watered out behind the garage until Christmas Eve, and then haul it inside to the living room; Santa would do all the rest. Once the tree was in the living room it was easy to convince us to get to bed.

I should mention that I learned some of my locksmith trade vocabulary from my father, who never was a locksmith, as he struggled to get the trunk of the tree to fit inside the classic tree stand. Apparently, other trades, auto mechanics and carpenters come to mind, use similar vocabulary to express frustration. I later found these magic words remarkably similar to terms used by police officers.

I can’t imagine how late my folks stayed up that night putting lights, ornaments, and tinsel on the tree as they also put together bicycles, dollhouses, wrapped and sorted gifts to be put under the tree, and… I almost forgot, fill our stockings and hang them at the end of our beds. It makes perfect sense, now that I’ve gotten older, that my folks would want to sleep a little later on Christmas morning as our excitement level climbed slightly higher than the Empire State Building.

We were to wait in their bedroom while my father made sure Santa had actually come. That translated means he went to the living room and plugged the extension cord into the wall so the Christmas Tree lights would be on when we came in. Remember, the night before when we’d gone to bed that very same tree was bare; but as we entered the room it was dazzling pure magic.

In my teen years, having pretty much figured out the Christmas magic thing, I remember hearing my father carefully open the door to my room as he carried a stocking to place on the end of my bed. As he did his best not to make a sound I smiled and respectfully called out to him as he exited, “Goodnight, Santa.” He smiled back and accepted the fact that I was no longer a little boy, and, as I recall, he even winked back.

12/12/20

A Republic If We Can Keep It

By: T.F. Stern | Self-Educated American

(Image of Ben Franklin courtesy of factfile.org)

This past month has been a roller coaster ride for anyone trying to figure out which candidate actually won the election. I was tempted to use the term ‘earned’ rather than won; but that would give away my feelings about cheaters, swindlers, liars, and the rest of the Democrat Party.

Ben Franklin has been quoted when asked if we had a monarchy or a republic, “A Republic if you can keep it.” He may or may not have actually said those words exactly as history has claimed. Rather than share without having done my homework, I looked it up. The first reference that came up on Google was from the Washington Post’s coverage of last year’s phony impeachment hearings, a treasonous coup attempt to remove President Donald Trump.

The inclusion of Ben Franklin’s quote in that particular article is… interesting, well, actually far beyond interesting; but I can’t print my actual thought as it violates decency in many ways.

There was a coup attempt, masquerading as an impeachment hearing by the Democrat Party to remove the sitting President of our Constitutional Republic and they’re quoting Ben Franklin… un-bye-god-believable!

I can say it was a phony impeachment hearing because evidence has since come to light; the entire investigation into Trump’s dealings with Russia was in fact a creation, a fabrication, or a scheme cooked up by Hillary Clinton to take her out of the spotlight for her illegal private server, a felony.

An article by Steve Nelson in the New York Post dated October 6, 2020, explained the timing. That story didn’t make the rounds of the major news networks, gee-whiz; is anyone surprised?

“Ratcliffe’s initial disclosure said that, according to Brennan’s notes, Clinton allegedly approved the scheme on July 26. The minor inaccuracy shortens the window of time between Clinton’s alleged approval of the plot and the FBI opening its investigation of possible Trump-Russia collusion on July 31, 2016.”

Amazingly, the FBI and DOJ didn’t see any wrongdoing and Hillary Clinton walked away, free to continue as if nothing ever happened. I haven’t done the research; but somewhere down the line, the folks who didn’t see anything wrong with Hillary Clinton’s criminal behavior must have ties to the deaf, dumb and blind Justices on our Supreme Court.

This past week the Supreme Court of the United States declined to hear a lawsuit contesting corrupt and fraudulent elections that affect all other states. Only two of the sitting Justices were willing to hear the evidence while the others did absolutely nothing to uphold the integrity of the election process which determines who will be President.

Saddened would be a mild description of how many American citizens feel at this time.

Here’s Allen West’s statement dated December 11, 2020, as Chairman of the Texas Republican Party’s official response:

“The Supreme Court, in tossing the Texas lawsuit that was joined by seventeen states and 106 US congressman, has decreed that a state can take unconstitutional actions and violate its own election law. Resulting in damaging effects on other states that abide by the law, while the guilty state suffers no consequences. This decision establishes a precedent that says states can violate the US constitution and not be held accountable. This decision will have far-reaching ramifications for the future of our constitutional republic. Perhaps law-abiding states should bond together and form a Union of states that will abide by the constitution.”

Where does that leave us?

Some have suggested forming a new nation, one that actually follows the Constitution while the remaining nation of criminals, liars, and thieves go on doing business as usual. Perhaps that would work, but a nation divided cannot stand.

My thoughts turned to Captain Moroni, the last prophet in the Book of Mormon in charge of the sacred plates around 400 AD (you’ll notice I refuse to refer to it as CE for Common Era). He was instructed by the Lord to bury the sacred records in the Hill Cumorah near Palmyra, New York, so they could come forth in our day. Moroni witnessed the destruction of his people because of their iniquity and their refusal to repent, to follow the commandments, and come unto the Lord, Jesus Christ… and yet, he remained faithful, even joyful in his mortal life.

The honest hard-working individuals who try to do their best each day… have had the rug pulled out from under them, but will eventually understand what has happened. It is my hope we will endure in spite of the corruption that’s taken over, the attacks to destroy liberties that God has provided. Do we have the courage to be as Captain Moroni, to have hope, faith, and charity in spite of all that is going on around us? Ahhh, that’s a true test that we’ve been given.

With all that is happening, it makes me admire the wisdom of our founders, individuals like Ben Franklin who recognized the wondrous miracle of our newly formed Republic; that and his warning… if we can keep it.