Real and Unreal

#499


In Tacoma, Washington recently, a store owner was arrested by ATF agents because he had received a shipment of 30 toy guns from Taiwan. Like so many of today's toys...including babies that will cry, wet their pants, eat, blink their eyes etc., the guns appeared so real that these federal agents were afraid that these guns would harm someone. Like the old fashioned Red Ryder air rifle of our youth...anything resembling a gun in this politically correct world will bring on the diabolical harassment of federal agents. Some of these plastic guns shoot plastic pellets and some have been used by young people for practice. Locally, a child drew a picture of a gun in his class and was dismissed from school. God help the child who in Massachusetts, was instructed to draw a Christmas decoration, and when he drew a picture of the cross, the very reason for Christmas, he was expelled from school. The phony boloney media enablers and the satanic quislings of political correctness have taken over.

It is like putting a birthday cake on an ant hill. At first, the ants are aggravated but then they find delight in engorging themselves on the cake. The politicians pretend to help us protect ourselves from one another while we are really victims of Federal Control. Freedom is only for those of us who fight for it. The Judas goat has led the dumb sheep into the slaughter house (a sheep will follow a goat and the goat knows there is a trap door for him to escape. This method has been used in slaughter houses for centuries). Judas knew that our Blessed Lord had washed his feet as well as the other disciples on that memorial night before he betrayed our savior. If Judas had repented instead of killing himself probably there would be St. Judas Churches all over the world. But, you do not even name a dog Judas. The Judas goat of pornography is leading our young people into the slaughter house of disillusionment. It is a “me” or “I” generation invincible, infallible, and immortal. There was a time when there was a red light district in any town, backstreets where you find porno shops. Today, the worst gutter of pornography is available in every home where a computer is available. More money is spent on pornography in America than is taken in by all sports stadiums and television networks combined. With boys, it usually starts around age 11. The porno industry is so clever, there will be “pop up” directions to sites involving almost any interest to males. Most boys do not understand that if underage girls send seductive photos to them online, they can bare the name of sex offenders for the remainder of their life. 18% of all high school girls have sent nude photos of themselves to young men...never considering that in the case of a breakup these photos can find themselves around the world. One of the longest court cases in North Carolina involves a former Miss North Carolina whose disgruntled/rejected boyfriend published nude photos of her.

Every generation has a name...Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Media. A recent study shows that youngsters between the ages of 11 and 18 spend over 10 hours a day with an electronic instrument of some sort...television, iPods, cell phones, etc. In one school system, the student said the television was never turned off in their house...that they would even get a plate of food from the dining room and sit in front of the television. This is a sickness beyond comprehension.

I was a college student when I saw my first television set. UNCCH was playing Notre Dame at the Polo Grounds in New York City. Two friends asked me to walk to down town Chapel Hill where one of these television sets was in a furniture store. They wanted to see the game. Just think what has happened in my lifetime. Many children now have a television set in their bedroom...you cannot go into a restaurant, even an automobile garage without one of these incessant idols blasting away.
Perhaps I feel as cynical about this worse example of so called progress. The greatest adventure known to man is found in books. People do not read anymore.

I remember speaking to a Southern Baptist Youth Group at a National meeting in the early 50s. I said then, as I say now, “if Satan had wanted to invent something to make children just as mean as possible he would have invented a television set”. Television combined with the internet has launched our civilization into the debauchery of hell itself.

I walked down the streets of ancient Pompeii in Italy. It is inconceivable that the lava covered everything so quickly, even dogs sleeping in alley ways. It is a fact of history that hot air beyond description engulfed and paralyzed everything before the hot lava covered the entire city when Vesuvius erupted.

We have had warnings of every type...prisons filled with young people...failing schools...lethargic colleges. 75% of all young people who leave Christian homes leave the church in which they were reared...never to return. In 1970, 90% of all homes had a father and mother. Today, only 37% of Black children have a father in the home, 67% white children The Black race is 13% of the population. 52% of all Black babies are aborted (1452 each day). 50% of the American population pays all of the tax for the other 50% of the American population. The recent Obama budget is 3.8 trillion dollars. This means we must borrow 1.8 trillion from somewhere. When will we learn that we cannot get out of debt by spending more money...that when you are in a hole you stop digging. Senator Bunning, father of 9, grandfather of 42 was right...the increased spending and increased Federal Deficit and Federal Debt must be controlled. We keep saying that our children and grandchildren will have to pay this excessive large debt. Not true, we will pay it with inflated dollars. Already, the world is heading into a depression which will require “miscegenation” of currencies. It has already been decided that Mexico, America, and Canada will use the same money but with the financial failures of Iceland, Dubai, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and Spain the entire world will be involved in this financial melee.

Today's poorest Americans live better than the ancient Pharaohs. Still, we are just content to play games to just “go through the motions”. Few people are really sincere or dedicated to anything. For 50 years, I have had employees working for me who would just do anything just to get paid. They knew, a blind man, could not check behind them. They never realize that it was their character, their integrity, their immortal soul that was involved. If you are going to do anything, do it well. The ancient artists and artisans had a passion for perfection. This is the reason that “old” canvases sell for so much money. This is the reason we still marvel as we walk through cathedrals and other architectural marvels built by real passion for perfection.

I will never forget, as a small child, one old man in our church. My father so loved him. His name was George P. Best, large land owner, philanthropist, (no children, left huge estate to orphanages) a perfectionist in everything he did, his appearance, his dedication to his Savior. They were constructing his new home. My father was assisting. Under the house, the brick mortar is not usually scraped from the brick as it is on the exterior where it will always be in sight. Someone said, “why Mr. George, do you want the mortar scraped from the brick under the house where no one will see it?” He said, “because it is my house and I will always know whether the house was built with perfection!” Life is real, not unreal. You only go around one time, make the trip as perfect as possible. Don't carry around the excess baggage of degradation simply because no one can see it...others do not know it is there. You know that it is there. When God forgives sins, he forgets them but he does not allow you to forget them. Believe me, when I tell you, he reminds me of mine...often...even though I know they are forgiven. The consolation I have for living in an imperfect world with imperfect, unreal, people, I know they are subjected to the same measure of sovereignty.

I live in the historic part of the city. I hear people daily walking their dogs, talking with them. I often wonder how much time these same people spend walking and talking with their own children. At the end of this life, will your last thoughts be, “I wish had made more money to leave to someone, I wish I had taken better care of my health”, or, “I wish I had spent more time with my family and friends and had put more trust in the very creator of the universe who assured me, in every way, every day, that he would take care of me?” This is the real and unreal aspects of living...not just surviving.