Lessons from Lincoln

Along with being thankful for my wonderful family and every other blessing in my life, I'm also very grateful for movies. Films are incredibly good at both providing an escape from reality at the same time as educating the viewer about reality. On this Thanksgiving, as we have a habit of doing on free days, my mom and I went to the movies, this time to see Spielberg's "Lincoln." The timing of the release of this movie could not have been better. In a time when many Americans are wondering if the country is lost in days where people can make more money on unemployment than from a minimum wage job, "Lincoln" offers several lessons on why it's not over and how it can be changed.

1) Stand by your Principles.
        Lincoln didn't have to end slavery to end the war. The South was spent; they were running out of materials and the number of living soldiers was dwindling. Both parties in Washington agreed that ending slavery was just going to cause more problems than solve them. Lincoln, however  would not compromise until the Constitution said that slavery was abolished. Yet, Abraham Lincoln is considered by most to be one of America's greatest presidents. How can that be? I hear from the media that gridlock is Washington's biggest problem (*note the sarcasm*), that Republicans just need to embrace amnesty and abortion and higher taxes. Most people in the 1860's told the Radical Republicans that they should just calm down with the slavery rhetoric. If the likes of Thaddeus Stevens and other Republicans like him had backed down, we might still have slavery. If Lincoln had decided to end the war before the 13th Amendment had passed, it never would have had enough votes to be accepted. Don't ever embrace someone else's principles just to make peace. Peace isn't always what is best for the future of the country.

2) Don't Despair.
        One fact that the movie highlighted was Lincoln's ability to tell a joke in the darkest of moments. Early in the movie, Lincoln goes to visit a regiment on the front lines. While talking to several soldiers about their time in the army, the President tells them that his past three barbers had hung themselves after not being able to conquer Lincoln's hair and one of them had even left a pair of scissors to Lincoln in his will. The President of the United States during one of the darkest times in American history always had a joke ready at hand. It's very easy to become afraid and uncertain in times such as these, but crawling under the blankets doesn't change anything. There is always hope, even if it's just the knowledge that everything will work according to God's will. Lincoln held onto the hope that slavery could be ended once and for all. He did not go and hide in despair even though the war raged on his doorstep. He hoped and he kept fighting.

3) Politics: Use it to your purposes.
          Look, I know I know I'm odd for being my age and interested in politics. But as painful a fact as it may be to some, politics runs our world. Lincoln did not receive the needed amount of votes for his amendment out of the goodness of Congressmens' hearts. He and his cabinet pulled off crafty political wheeling and dealing. Now don't get me wrong; I'm not advocating political corruption. But I am saying that politics is a powerful tool and Christians shouldn't be afraid to use it. It gave us the Bill of the Rights; it abolished slavery; it gave women the vote. Christians need to learn how to be politically saavy. Goodness knows, the other side has been working on this for generations with so much success that if we don't become experts immediately, it's going to be difficult to ever win another political battle. Lincoln knew how to use the political system to accomplish his goals and yet his nickname is "Honest Abe." We should never be corrupt but we should also never be amateurs.

4) Thankful to be an American
        There aren't many countries who have ever had the opportunity to elect a man such as Abraham Lincoln. Yet, things work a bit differently here in America than in other countries. We can change our fate and I am grateful for that. God's plan for our country is set, but we don't know what it is. Every election has the potential to shift our direction. Americans are not voiceless.

These are just a few of the many wonderful aspects of this movie. If you haven't seen it yet, obviously I encourage you to do so. And if not for the lessons it teaches, then simply for the spectacular acting job done by Daniel Day-Lewis, or the fact that it highlights Virginia's beautiful Capitol Building or simply because you enjoy truly, well-done films. Maybe while you're out shopping tomorrow, you can sit back and take a break in a movie theater watching Lincoln.

Time to Save America: A Call to Action

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!

Well friends, we came to a crossroads and chose which road to take. And our choice grieves me to no end. I never thought I'd see the day when America would choose free stuff over liberty. We have forgotten who we are. My own state of Virginia has gone blue now for two presidential elections in a row. Virginia, the home of Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Patrick Henry, Thomas Paine, patriots who believed in a country where men were created equal and their status in life was not based on what family they were born into or what country they were from. Where people should have the chance to make of themselves what they dreamed of. No country had ever believed in ideals such as these before. Life to the original patriots was what you chose to make of it, not what the government told you was best. That use to mean you work hard if you want success. Now it means you take as much as you can get from the government. It use to mean you search for the truth and do the research. Now it means you either listen to what the mainstream media tells or you live under a giant rock and are happy not knowing what is happening in the world. And it's not as if these men always agreed with each other. Jefferson and Adams would have been hard-pressed to be more opposite from each other. But there is a difference between those two men, who differed on how the Constitution that they helped write was to be interepreted, and the huge worldview differece between traditional American ideals and the policies we have come to accept in recent years. God has shed his grace on this great nation, but we have squandered it. We have made government our god instead of Him.

O beautiful for glory-tale
Of liberating strife
When once and twice,
for man's avail
Men lavished precious life!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
Till selfish gain no longer stain
The banner of the free!

But do not give up hope. Do not forget the fires we have been put through in history. We survived the Civil War and came out of it as one nation. Americans weathered the Great Depression and went on to help the allies win in WWII. The riots of 1918 and 1919 led many to belive America was over then. We are not beaten yet. But it will be a long, up-hill climb out of this mess. I believe God has a reason for the outcome of this election and I believe part of that reason is to make America stronger under fire and tyranny. He did it before, before 1776. The colonists begged the King for years and years and years before they finally decided to declare independence. They did not want to turn their backs on their Mother country. It may be years and years and years before we finally say as a nation they we have had enough of the liberal and socialist lies and tyranny. But we must hold out, as they did. The colonists knew something had to give, something had to change. And it wasn't going to happen unless they worked for it. God can't use us if we give up. We have to be willing to fight to be used as soldiers. Because this is a war. The election was just one battle. This is a war about freedom, about religious and economic liberty. "Till selfish gain no longer stain the banner of the free!"

O beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
Till nobler men keep once again
Thy whiter jubilee!

My favorite verse of this anthem: the patriot dream that sees beyond the years, that doesn't ever give up. The cities that will one day gleam again despite our fears and sadness in the wake of this election. Christians are the salt of the earth. Salt preserves, that's its job. Christians are called to preserve biblical values and to spread the truth. America was once the hope of the world and can be again if we fight for it. Whatever is suppose to happen will happen and we must have peace in that, I know. But if we have a chance at bringing about a change for the better, why not strive for it?

So what can you, as an individual, do about all this? First off, get informed if you aren't already. And that means stop solely watching MSNBC and CNN and other news networks because they aren't telling you the truth. Do your own reserach without the assistance of the media. Learn what Obama's healthcare law actually contains now that it will be implemented. Learn who it effects and how you can prepare for it. Learn about the Benghazi debacle. I can't tell you how many people I've talked to that don't know anything happened in Libya. So figure out why it is a bigger scandal than Watergate or the Lewinsky affair. Think through the potential consequences of having a president who finds partial-birth abortion perfectly acceptable and who believes everyone should have access to free birth-control, instead of just buying it at Walmart with their own money. Know what true liberty is and why being constantly dependent on the government isn't freedom. Basically, learn how to articulate your values. We can't win unless we teach people why Obama's policies are so ruinous. And if Conservatives themselves can't articulate it, who will? Second, get involved. Fight for something. Don't be a silent bystander. Not being interested in politics is no excuse to not take action. And third: help your neighbor. Teach people by example the difference between being "saved" by the government and getting a helping hand from your neighbor. It doesn't matter what you do, but it's important you do something. To continue being a united nation, we must be willing to help each other. And here's a piece of good news: Obama did not win by a landslide. 49% of us didn't vote for him. We are not alone. But we must unite.

America is a beautiful experiment. Land of the free, home of the brave. The place where people have the courage and the freedom to take a stand for what they believe, especially when they don't know if they will be successful. But if we do nothing, we will fail. If we continue to accept ignorance and lies, we will fail without a doubt. If you weren't involved before, now is the time to act.

 "I wish none of this had happened," said Frodo. But Gandalf's replied, "So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

(Get ready to see blogs from me pop up more often. I think it's time for real education to return to America.)

Voting for a Third-Party = Voting for Obama

In 48 hours, I will either be booking my one-way ticket to New Zealand, or I will be having something akin to a Super Bowl party, celebrating a victory for America. However, at this point in the political season, most people are understandably fed up with politics. But I've noticed a disturbing trend growing out of this: support for third party candidates such as Gary Johnson and (in Virginia) Virgil Goode. I understand that voting independent gives people a sense of breaking away from the two-party system. It also lets them stand up for values they actually support rather than just voting to get someone else out of office. But let me explain  why this actually ends up hurting the case for freedom (at least in this election.)

First of all, a third party guy isn't going to win. We all know this. It's either going to be Romney or Obama. If you believe Obama is ruining the economy, infringing on religious freedom, and promoting values that just aren't good for America, the goal is to get rid of him. Take it or leave it, but that's the truth. And if you believe that's true of Obama and you vote for a third party, you're actually voting for Obama. Taking away a vote from Romney if you disagree with the current President is a vote for Obama. That's just how politics works.

Second, there is no such thing as the perfect candidate, so stop looking for him. No one is Jesus, ok? I don't agree with Mitt Romney 100%. There are a lot of things I wish were true of Romney but they aren't. However, I don't think I agree with Obama on a single issue. Here is where voting for the "lesser of two evils" comes in. Like I said, I understand why independents don't like to do this. But isn't voting for the lesser of two evils actually voting for less evil? Think about it. Everyone is a sinner. Everyone is capable of evil. Isn't the most we can strive for really just less evil? And if you can manage to get less evil in the White House than what we have now, it makes sense to do what you can to accomplish that. Isn't the guy who is pro-life in 99% of instances less evil than the guy who supports all forms of abortions, including partial-birth and gender based abortions? Isn't the guy who believes in getting America back on track financially less evil than the guy who plans to spend even more money because he believes in weakening America? And let's not even get on the subject of Libya....a President who knowingly lets an Ambassador and former Seals die is not good for America. A vote for the guy who isn't even in the equation of "two evils" is a vote for the more evil of the two.

Third: no, it's not a wasted vote. And that's the problem. I explained in an earlier post why voting is important in regards to the electoral college. To summarize: the person who gets the most votes in a certain state is who the electoral college votes for that state will go to. So that means that votes for third-party candidates detract from Romney or Obama. For example, Virgil Goode only needs 10,000 votes and Obama will get Virginia's 13 electoral votes. That's how close this race is. And yet, Goode's views are far closer to Romney's than they are Obama's. But the third-party guy still isn't going to win. So what do you accomplish by voting for him? It drives me up a wall when I hear people say "I don't agree with Romney on some issues, so I'm voting for *third-party candidate of choice.*" People, now is the time to wake up and smell those proverbial roses! Our country is in too dire of a crisis for that kind of wishy-washy thinking. Each election is a battle and that's not the way to get your principals in the White House. There are some elections where it's fine to vote third-party. But there is too much at stake here.

I'm not often an advocate for compromising on issues. But in order to move forward in the way of politics and to promote our values, we sometimes don't have a choice. Small steps forward towards getting America back on track are far better than huge steps in the wrong direction. By voting third party, people do exactly what they always complain about Congress doing: not working together. This is probably the most important election of our lifetime. Don't let America keep going in the wrong direction because you're not willing to budge at all. Vote, please vote, please exercise the right many countries would love to have, but vote for someone who can actually win and make a difference in the country. A vote for Romney is a vote for freedom.

Fashion and Politics

I don't know if you've noticed the recent clothing trend or not, but in my humble opinion, it looks like clothing designers believe the best outfit is the one that makes the least amount of sense. It almost looks like the country is in a cloth crisis because manakins and models can be seen sporting blue plaid, purple argyle, and yellow polka dots - in one outfit. Fortunately, I rarely see real live human beings running around in these atrocious outfits, but when I do (and don't judge, you think this too!) the thought of "do they not own a mirror or do they really think that's attractive?" always crosses my mind. Now, I don't claim to be any sort of fashionista. But when something looks terrible, it just looks terrible. The situation has become so appalling that I have started a collection of sightings of terrible get-ups. Articles from my collection include things such as these masterpieces:

( I couldn't decide if the employees were having a bit too much fun or if these were a meticulously planned part of the men's department.)

Or, my personal favorite:

And yes, that's actually a seperate shirt with matching pants, found in the main entrance to Macy's

 

Like I said before, I don't know many (or, really, any) people who would wear, much less spend money, on any of these outfits. So how do these stores stay in business? Because there are some of us who are willing to look at the rack hiding in the back that has any sort of clothing worth wearing. The good options are there but they are't being advertised.  The motto my mom and I find ourselves saying more and more these days: just because they sell it, doesn't mean you have to buy it.

 

What's even more appalling is that this trend of advertising terrible outfits is branching into the world of politics. Turn on just about any news outlet today and you will find yourself faced with a whole slew of terrible ideas being advertised. For example: Republicans don't care about women's health. Well, most logical people would see this as very illogical because many women are Republicans. So what, they don't care about their own health? Maybe, the issues behind this particular conversation have a whole lot more to do about unborn children than about women. But that's not what's being adverstied.

Another popular thing for sale: More gun control laws will prevent events such as the Colorado movie theatre shooting and the Virginia Tech massacre. But I think the more logical train of thought would be: people who want to kill other people probably don't care about any laws in the first place, much less laws that would prevent them from doing what they want to do. But again, logical isn't what's trendy.

And, of course,this one: Evolution is technically a theory, but there's no need to teach any other theories because we all know evolution is actually a fact......to the unknowing biology consumer in college, this might look good. But if you actually look into it, this is indoctrination, not education.
 

 

These are all fairly broad issues, I know, but they are all presented differently from what is actually true. So who says fashion and politics aren't related? Dig into the issues and find the truth behind them. Go look though the racks in the back to find the non-atrocious outfits. It takes a little more work than just accepting what you're told, but it'll pay off in the end.

 

Apathetic America?

America has problems. Let’s just get that out of our system right. Gas prices are too high; there’s too much traffic; it’s hot in the summer; people don’t know how to drive; Americans eat too much fast food; we don’t have enough Chick-fil-a’s; politicians are lazy; politicians spend too much energy spending money. Let’s admit it: the list of things we complain about in regards to our country goes on and on and on.  But I’ve noticed a new one recently (and maybe it’s not new, it’s just been brought to my attention) that disturbs me. The “our country is going downhill fast and since my vote doesn’t count, I’m not gonna vote or pay any attention to politics.”

Now, don’t take this too personally, but that’s one of the silliest things I’ve ever heard. That’s like saying “I think my freezer is on the fritz, but since I don’t know anything about how freezers work, I’m just gonna wait until all my food has gone bad to do anything about it.” I think most would acknowledge that that scenario is dumb, so why do they say the same thing about the state of our country?

Well first of all, there seems to be this rumor floating around that your vote doesn’t count because of this mysterious group of people called the Electoral College. This is a myth. Each state has a certain number of representatives in the Electoral College, kind of like how each state has a number of U.S. Representatives and Senators. A presidential candidate only receives the votes from a state’s Electoral College members if a candidate has received a majority of the popular votes in that state. For example, if a majority of Virginian’s vote for Romney this November, Romney will receive Virginia’s Electoral College votes. (I’m sorry if none of that was new to you). A candidate must have a majority of the Electoral College votes to win.

So you see, your vote actually does count. You are no longer allowed to make that excuse for not being involved.

Another rumor I’ve heard: one person can’t change anything when faced with the whole government. Well, that’s true if that person really does believe that. But just look at world-changers in history. John Adams, Thomas Paine, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., just to name a few. They each had a cause that they chose to stand by. They didn’t plan on being world-changers;  it just happened because they fought for what they believed in. Become informed, find a cause, and stand by it. Don't wait until election day rolls around and vote for the guy with the cooler sounding name.

Just because America has a few (well, a lot) of problems right now, doesn’t mean she isn’t worth saving. Yes, we are a katrillion dollars in debt. Yes, there are quite a few politicians who never should’ve been given office. But the only way to fix any of that is to pay attention and get involved.

The moment Americans become apathetic about politics is the moment we lose our country. If you wait for the freezer to break completely, it’s a lot harder to replace all the food and get a new freezer than to try and turn things around beforehand.  Let’s work on fixing things now before it’s too late.

Taking a Stab at Communication

Welcome to my blog! Yes, that's right; I have, after much deliberation and urging created a blog - read at your own risk. At some point in the future, it will be a collection of the plethara of crazy things that happen to me, my opinions about society, and whatever random thoughts I have that I feel  like you should know. But for the time being, this is the one and only post. And the topic of this one and only post is the item that made me finally go ahead and do this blog thing: communication.

People have never been more connected to each other ever before in history. If ever we want to get in touch with someone, we can just shoot them a text, a facebook message, an email. We feel like we have a relationship with someone if we comment on their "pin", post a video to their wall, "like" their status. 20 years ago (probably less a whole lot less), the past two sentences wouldn't have made any sense to anyone. And yet, people have never lacked communication skills as much as they do right now either. But is this a problem? "Now Maggie, it's not as if the world is going to go backwards and move away from technology. What, exactly, do you want anyone to do about this?" Hmm, hold that thought for a moment.

One of my summer (bleh) classes right is a communications class (probably why communication is at the front of my mind right now). In this communications class, my professor likes to force, er invite, everyone to get to know each other. Well, it was during one of these "get to know you" sessions that I found myself sitting with a few of my fellow classmates. After asking and answering the required questions, we each found there was little left to say, despite the fact that we were complete strangers and therefore, had plenty left to learn about each other. And so, it was left to me, who certainly doesn't pretend to be a great conversationalist, to get these other two people to talk. Geez, it was like pulling teeth from a porcupine without any novocaine. I'd ask a question, they'd give me a one sentence answer: end of conversation. That went on for an agonizing 10 minutes until my teacher decided to allow us to move on with our lives.

Now, if I hadn't been  willing to listen to an answer that was longer than one sentence, that situation would have been wonderful. And I think for far too many people, that is exactly the case. We don't want to hear everyone's life story. At most, we want everyone to listen to our own story and then move on with their day. Listening to their story would be inconvienent. And so I think we have gotten into the habit of giving the short, easy answers; the habit of reducing our entire lives into one sentence , one status, because we don't want to inconvience people. And what happens when day after day, this is how we describe our lives? Life starts to look miniscule, insignifigant. What else could it be if it can't be summed up in one sentence? "This summer, I'm going to school and I'm working." Well, that's a cheery life summary isn't it? And not only do we start to view our own lives this way, but we also see other people's lives this way. If all we ever know about them is the one sentence they tell us and that we choose to listen to, then that's as small and unimportant we may choose to view it.

But no one's life is small and insignifigant.

And now kindly back to that thought you've now been holding for several moments. No, the world isn't going to go backwards. Facebook and cellphones aren't going anywhere. And don't get me wrong; I'm not saying those things are evil (texting is like whispering; how can you not enjoy it?). But I'm already a fairly good listener. I'm perfectly happy to listening to your life story. But if you ask for mine verbally, I'll probably give you the one sentence. Not because I've reached the point of seeing my life as insignifigant, but because I've formed a habit. And I'm tired of it. So I am choosing to communicate. You don't have to"listen", but I think we need to break our generation and those after us of this habit of non-communication.

So welcome to my blog! If this is the only post you choose to read, so be it. But you may miss all the shenanigans I get myself into, such as stealing mulch and sneaking out of the "employee exit only" at the Library of Congress (ya'll thought I was such a rule-follower, didn't you?). Those are stories will be for another day. Until then....