At Least One Adult Was at the UN Last Week

"Nearly 62 years ago, the United Nations recognized the right of the Jews, an ancient people 3,500 years-old, to a state of their own in their ancestral homeland. I stand here today as the Prime Minister of Israel, the Jewish state, and I speak to you on behalf of my country and my people. The United Nations was founded after the carnage of World War II and the horrors of the Holocaust. It was charged with preventing the recurrence of such horrendous events. Nothing has undermined that central mission more than the systematic assault on the truth. [Wednesday] the President of Iran stood at this very podium, spewing his latest anti-Semitic rants. Just a few days earlier, he again claimed that the Holocaust is a lie. ... To those who refused to come here and to those who left this room in protest, I commend you. You stood up for moral clarity and you brought honor to your countries. But to those who gave this Holocaust-denier a hearing, I say on behalf of my people, the Jewish people, and decent people everywhere: Have you no shame? Have you no decency? A mere six decades after the Holocaust, you give legitimacy to a man who denies that the murder of six million Jews took place and pledges to wipe out the Jewish state. What a disgrace! What a mockery of the charter of the United Nations! Perhaps some of you think that this man and his odious regime threaten only the Jews. You're wrong. Dead wrong. ... I speak here today in the hope that we can learn from history -- that we can prevent danger in time. In the spirit of the timeless words spoken to Joshua over 3,000 years ago, let us be strong and of good courage. Let us confront this peril, secure our future and, God willing, forge an enduring peace for generations to come." --Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu

Communicating Truth

"If you want someone to hear the truth, tell them.  If you want someone to know the truth, tell them a story."  Eudora Welty

A Picture of The Father's Love

Her father’s look is one of stunned surprise, and then he chooses to give her the “embrace of grace” that will cover up all the questions of “Why did you do that?” He loves her and delights in her.

Source IM

Economic Opinion in Brief

"A reasonable economic prediction must be based upon understanding the social, and corresponding moral viewpoint." The question may be, "Whose veiwpoint"? If this is true where does this leave Wall Street and higher education?

NOAHS MUGS!

I have had many conversations with men and women wondering when and if they will be able to make a difference with their lives. Should they quit their jobs? Will they have to go from "success to significance" later due to financial commitments?

Now is the time. One example...Noah at www.noahsmugs.com
It's never too late OR too early!

Lord Save Us From Your Followers the Movie

If you were to meet ten average Americans on the street, nine of them would say they believe in God. So why is the Gospel of Love dividing America? It certainly shouldn't be.

Dan Merchant put on his bumper-sticker-clad jumpsuit and decided to find out why the Gospel of Love is dividing America. After talking with scores of men and women on streets all across the nation, and also interviewing many well-known active participants in today’s “Culture Wars,” Dan realized that the public discussion of faith doesn’t have to be contentious.

Lord, Save Us From Your Followers is a fast-paced, highly engaging documentary that explores the collision of faith and culture in America. See clips here

There is a screening in Franklin September 10 and Charlotte September 14. Let me know what you think about the movie. I think it is going to be instructive.

What's the US Real Financial Position?

For a couple of years now people have asked me why I am so deeply concerned about the economy (though it has become self-evident in the past year why I was in an economic funk). I have normally answered that with our leaderships out of control spending and lack of restraint even an entrepreneurial revolution in the US would be choked by the massive debt we call the US Federal Deficit. I have been told I am "crying wolf" and our deficit as a percentage of GDP isn't so high historically, but for some context from someone who should know read the following quotes from David Walker, former head of the Government Accountability Office, the nation's auditor-in-chief.

"Our off balance sheet obligations associated with Social Security and Medicare put us in a $56 trillion financial hole—and that's before the recession was officially declared last year. America now owes more than Americans are worth—and the gap is growing!" Walker follows with further context:

"Our $56 trillion in unfunded obligations amount to $483,000 per household. That's 10 times the median household income—so it's as if everyone had a second or third mortgage on a house equal to 10 times their income but no house they can lay claim to." As for this year's likely deficit of $1.8 trillion, Mr. Walker suggests its size be conveyed thusly: "A deficit that large is $3.4 million a minute, $200 million an hour, $5 billion a day," he says. That does indeed put things into perspective. When asked if there was hope on the horizon for reform he said the following:

"We have four deficits: a budget deficit, a savings deficit, a value-of-the-dollar deficit and a leadership deficit," he tells one group. "We are treating the symptoms of those deficits, but not the disease."

Mr. Walker identifies the disease as having a basic cause: "Washington is totally out of touch and out of control," he sighs. "There is political courage there, but there is far more political careerism and people dodging real solutions." He identifies entrenched incumbency as a real obstacle to change. "Members of Congress ensure they have gerrymandered seats where they pick the voters rather than the voters picking them and then they pass out money to special interests who then make sure they have so much money that no one can easily challenge them," he laments. He believes gerrymandering should be curbed and term limits imposed if for no other reason than to inject some new blood into the system. On campaign finance, he supports a narrow constitutional amendment that would bar congressional candidates from accepting contributions from people who can't vote for them: "If people can't vote in a district not their own, should we allow them to spend unlimited money on behalf of someone across the country?"

These remarks and those from others I respect are the reason for my pessimism. I hope and pray for men and women of courage and integrity. I see no reason for optimism short of a reformation in the hearts and minds of our leaders who choose to serve and submit to the love of others over self.

Quotes taken from John Fund article at WSJ.com