Alternate Acronyms for PETA

Great suggestions, such as:  Standing for Treating Ethically the Animal Kingdom
from Abe Piper and followers.

Which is correct?

"People should not be afraid of their government, the government should be afraid of their people"

- V for Vendetta

or

"For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer."
-Rom. 13:3-4

or are they the same?

Politico-Geographical Oddities

See these points on GoogleMaps.




The uninhabited 8.2 acre island (Market Island) split between nations:
wiki

The parts of the US accessible by foot only through Canada:
Point Roberts, WA
wiki

The Northwest Angle, MN
wiki

Elm Point, MN (right below Northwest Angle)
wiki

Alburgh, VT (accessible by bridge from US)
wiki

The part of Kentucky only accessible by land through Tennesee:
wiki

The hodge-podge of Baarle-Hertog:
wiki

The territory stranded behind the Iron Curtain, Kalinigrad Oblast:
wiki

The countries entirely landlocked by another country: 
San Marino
wiki
CIA World Fact Book

The Vatican
wiki

Lesotho
wiki
CIA World Factbook







The countries that span two continents:

• Russia
• Kazakhsta
• Azerbaijan and Georgia
• Turkey
• Egypt

Happy RamaHanaKwanzmas

from Glenn Beck

Which is Correct?

"Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,"- from the Declaration of Independence

vs.

"for there is no power but of God; and the powers that be are ordained of God."- from Romans 13:1

Governments you may have never heard of (or properly distinguished)

Diarchy (or dyarchy) is a form of government in which two diarchs are the heads of state.

An emirate is a political territory that is ruled by a dynastic Muslim Monarch styled emir.

Plutocracy (plutarchy) is rule by the wealthy, or power provided by wealth.

A stratocracy is a form of government headed by military chiefs. It is not the same as a military dictatorship where the military's political power is not enforced or even supported by other laws. In a stratocracy the state and the military are traditionally the same thing and government positions are always occupied by military leaders.

A timocracy is either:

1. a state where only property owners may participate in government
2. a government where rulers are selected and perpetuated based on the degree of honour they hold relative to others in their society, peer group or class

Ochlocracy is government by mob or a mass of people, or the intimidation of constitutional authorities.

An isocracy is a form of government where all citizens have equal political power.

Minarchism refers to a political ideology which maintains that the state's only legitimate function is the protection of individuals from aggression.

An Oligarchy is a form of government in which power effectively rests with a small elite segment of society distinguished by royal, wealth, intellectual, family, military or religious hegemony.

via the inscrutable wikipedia.

That would be a very quiet Washington

Which is correct?

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend."
or
"Whoever is not for us is against us. (Matt. 12:30)"
?

In foreign policy: Alliance w/ Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Russia, etc

vs
War on terror

(no endorsement of any specific president's foreign policy intended)

Good to know- The "War on Terror" is "over"

White House: 'War on terrorism' is over

'Jihadists' and 'global war' no longer acceptable terms

If only just changing words actually worked.

Movie Review-- An American Carol

An American Carol

Genre: Comedy/Political Satire

Summary: An anti-American documentary filmmaker gets a heavy dose of remedial American history

My Grade: %85


Pros:

• Some greatly funny stuff, such as "the Episcopal suppository bomber" and a quote from Trace Adkins, "I'm the Angel of freakin' death, you tirdhead."
• While not a great plot, it tears down as many liberal talking points as possible
• It offers some substantial truths to combat pervasive lies
• Great to see conservative Hollywood getting some attention
  

Cons:

• Slapstick humor- not my particular favorite
• Crass and suggestive humor- opposite of favorite
• Kids swearing
• Kind of a mess of differing conservative ideas mashed together- I'm not sure JFK represents everything that's good about America
  

Obamacare- the Visual

Prepared by the Republican party.

How the FBI broke Sadaam

A very interesting series of posts from the Counterterrorism Blog, this.

At least they're consistent

Fly vs Obama vs PETA

Book Report-- Inside the Revolution

Inside the Revolution B
By Joel Rosenberg

Non-fiction


Rosenberg's most recent work is as interesting as it is long. As per the subtitle, it is an effort to inform about and explain the history and current events of the Middle East from three dominant perspective.
This book covers and includes a lot of the same information as Epicenter. That, however, does not render either useless. Each have their own format and intended goals. This most recent volume expands many points made in Epicenter and drives them home.
While it is voluminous, it does not handle some topics to great depth, such as the doctrine of jihad or even the doctrine of salvation. Each topic is adequately represented though and seems to be more of an intro to each philosophy.
The best thing about the book was being able to read the amazing testimonies of Muslims around the world coming to Christ, even former terrorists.

Book Report-- Christian Worldview for Students

Christian Worldview for Students M
by Brannon Howse

Non-fiction


Though technically a little late, I still think this was a good read. It was short- like 3 pages per reading of which there were 30. It covered a wide range of topics, from the trustworthiness of the Bible to the philosophies of capitalism and socialism to abortion.
I think this would be especially good for students off to secular campuses, though I'm sure a reader of any age or circumstance could profit.

Movie Review-- State of Play

State of Play

Genre: Mystery/Suspense

Summary: Reporters try to uncover the truth in a scandal involving a politician (and friend) and murder

My Grade: %92


Pros:

• Pretty intriguing plot- good keep-you-guessing story
  
• I liked it from the journalistic angle instead of the overused law enforcement angle
• Nifty closing credits

Cons:

• Though sparing in visual content, it did heavily involve an affair
• Language

Islam and Jihad

Because I've been reading about Islam lately, I've been trying to clarify my answer to a certain questions:

Is violence (radical Islam/jihad) inherent in Islam?
Yes and no. Muhammad taught both violence and peace, both intolerance and tolerance. Because it is a man-made system of faith, it is not perfectly consistent. Muslim clerics throughout the centuries have taught, from the Koran and the Hadith, a variance of doctrines. To say that Islam=violence is wrong. To say that Islam=peace is wrong.

I think I wanted to be able to say "yes," absolutely. I'm not sure why, yet.

Nice to know

Book Report-- Hatred's Kingdom

Hatred's Kingdom L
by Dore Gold

Non-fiction


From the former Israeli Ambassador to the UN, this is a mix of history and current events, theology and politics, heavy and light.
Gold's premise is that the Wahabbi sect of Sunni Islam that originated in seventeenth century Arabia is primarily to blame for the modern outbreak of radical Islam and terrorism. I'm not sure that I would apply such a large percentage of the blame exclusively on just one sect of Islam or even a sect but his arguments are compelling.
Wahabbi Islam is explained to have influenced mainstream Islam's definition of "jihad." Whereas it had come to be only a personal, internal struggle, jihad has now been restored to/redefined as (?) actual physical combat thanks to the intentional teaching and exportation of this sect.
Accompanied by an appendix full of Saudi documents and incriminating photos, this book has affirmed many suspicions of mine. I'm now equally vigilant of Saudi Arabia as of Iran (as if helps anything...).

Our Tax Dollars?

We tend to feel a sense of ownership over the taxes rendered to our government. They even tell us they're our tax dollars ( see "Accountability and Transparency"). Should that be the case?

Before considering our government in particular (because we are all pretty aware that it's not perfect), let's examine Biblical, universal principles.



When the Pharisees asked questions very similar to those asked by Americans today (specifically today), Christ gave a familiar but perhaps ignored answer: "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's."

That means:

• Government was due taxes
• Citizens should pay taxes
  
• Taxes are not (il)legitimate based on the moral qualifications of the government/leader or their uses (because the Pharisees could have made a case against Caesar)
  
• There was not an amount or percentage specified as right or wrong
• Once the taxes were paid, they were the Government's, not the citizens', and therefore the government was responsible for what is done with them

If we, as citizens, adopt these principles into our thinking, there is little room left for questions and protests.

Does that mean:

• our government will be wise with its money? No government ever has perfectly.
• the bailouts/stimulus will work? Probably not, but that's their problem.
• we shouldn't care about what happens to us? No, but care and and protest/revolt are different things.
• God is in control even if government spending isn't? Yes.