Saturday, May 23, 2009

LIFE AS WE KNOW IT

From My Perspective - - -

The Headlines on News Websites paint an interesting picture. For instance, DRUDGE REPORT has: (1) Dollar Plunge; Fear Over Debt; (2) GM revamp under attack; Feds to cancel debts, inject aid; (3) FIAT already concerned for deteriorating Chrysler; (4) California faces its day of fiscal reckoning; (5) Florida's BANKUNITED Goes Bust; Year's Biggest; (6) Recession Turns Malls Into Ghost Towns; (7) Fed President Says Inflation to Increase.

There’s the news account from China that conveys a negative truism that sometimes one is better off without a "helping hand”: “Chen Fuchao, a man heavily in debt, had been contemplating suicide on a bridge in southern China for hours when a passer-by came up, shook his hand — and pushed him off the ledge. Chen fell 26 feet onto a partially inflated emergency air cushion laid out by authorities and survived, suffering spine and elbow injuries, the official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday. The passer-by, 66-year-old Lai Jiansheng, had been fed up with what he called Chen's "selfish activity," Xinhua said. Traffic around the Haizhu bridge in the city of Guangzhou had been backed up for five hours and police had cordoned off the area. I pushed him off because jumpers like Chen are very selfish. Their action violates a lot of public interest…They do not really dare to kill themselves. Instead, they just want to raise the relevant government authorities' attention to their appeals...According to Xinhua, Chen wanted to kill himself because he had accrued $290,000 in debt from a failed construction project.”

In addition to the Financial and Economic issues, Pew Research indicates the general electorate is shifting in its focus. The Report states, as of May 21, 2009: “While the Democrats gained a sizable advantage in partisan affiliation during George Bush’s presidency, their numbers slipped between December 2008 and April 2009, from 39% to 33%. Republican losses have been a little more modest, from 26% to 22%, but this represents the lowest level of professed affiliation with the GOP in at least a quarter century. Moreover, on nearly every dimension the Republican Party is at a low ebb – from image, to morale, to demographic vitality. By contrast, the percentage of self-described political independents has steadily climbed, on a monthly basis, from 30% last December to 39% in April. Taking an average of surveys conducted this year, 36% say they are independents, 35% are Democrats, while 23% are Republicans. On an annual basis, the only previous year when independent identification has been this high was in 1992 when Ross Perot ran a popular independent candidacy. As has been the case in recent years, more independents lean Democratic than Republican (17% versus 12%). Yet an increasing share of independents describe their views as conservative; in surveys conducted this year, 33% of independents say they are conservatives, up from 28% in 2007 and 26% in 2005. Again, this ideological change is at least in part a consequence of former Republicans moving into the ranks of independents.”

Consider these things with me - - The Pew Research also notes: “…independents are more skittish than they were two years ago about expanding the social safety net and are reluctant backers of greater government involvement in the private sector. Yet at the same time, they continue to more closely parallel the views of Democrats rather than Republicans on the most divisive core beliefs on social values, religion and national security.” The orientation to “Core Values” is interesting. In desperate times, a gradual reality comes into play, namely, government is not and cannot be the answer. Government is part of the problem – not part of the solution. Somehow, we need to return to the fundamentals and basics – God Is More Than Sufficient To Meet Ones Needs. The starting point would be to implement Luke 17:6, and cultivate “If you have FAITH as a grain of mustard seed…” Surely, you can exercise at least that much faith! Otherwise, you may need to seek a helping hand in China to assist you off of the bridge! You would be wise to reach out to the Hand of God and be assisted by Him. He’s faithful and He never fails!

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