Compromise

The political games must stop. The only good reason for making a political decision is that it will work for the people. In these times the only possibility for the people is compromise. For the new year, a possible compromise seems obvious, the people want action that will work into the future. We are in a desperate place, the positive change can begin in December.

1. Openness and time to evaluate all new legislation.
2. Refusal to fund all spending not directly related to new legislation.
3. A 10 % across the board spending cut for all of the next budget.
4. Immediate 10% cut in all federal jobs.
5. Immediate 10% pay cut for all government employees, salary and benefits.
6. Extension of Bush tax cuts for two years.
7. The cuts for those earning above $250,000 should expire now. A tax credit should be given to businesses that hire in the coming year.
8. Extension of unemployment benefits.

This simple way forward seems to be a no brainer should Washington stop posturing the issues for political gain. We don’t care what party is in control because one party control gives our politicians license to ignore the welfare of the people. This compromise addresses all factions and means progress now for the people. What do you say politicians?

G.Goslaw
Victorville, Ca

Book Review

Book: “Crazy for God”, Frank Schaeffer, Da Capo Press, 2007.

“Crazy for God” is Frank Schaeffer’s story of growing up Christian. He was raised by parents influential within an evangelical or fundamentalist understanding of God. Few definitions for these theological descriptions are given but not far into the book, one gets the picture. It is a family narrative lived out through each generation as a changing of the guard. This particular change is familiar to those of us who were raised in remotely similar circumstances.

Truth be told, it is every man’s story, a search for answers to the big questions. Ancient Jewish wisdom in the Talmud identifies our predicament, “Whosoever gives his mind to four things, it were better for him if he had not come into the world - what is above? what is beneath? what was beforetime? and what will be hereafter?”* These questions are a vexation, a blessing and the curse of our humanity. We try to avoid them or explain them away but they never go away.

Spiritual adventurer’s who have gone before us have struggled with these questions and then codified apparent answers into hundreds or thousands of differing religions. The evangelical fundamentalist Christian answer is one such religious expression. Finding fair skies within evangelicalism, Frank Schaeffer split his energies between his art endeavors and working for the cause of his parents. There came a time when the “pat” answers of his parents no longer seemed to be enough.

Thank you Mr. Schaeffer for sharing your honest story, your courage relative to the big questions is exemplary. Please allow me to share a few personal observations from your book that are particularly meaningful to this reader.

1. All people are fallible, sinners and saints, including our heroes.

2. Each successive generation must individually choose it’s own religious expression.

3. Your resistance to throwing the baby of faith in God, out with the bathwater is to be applauded.

Dr. Schaeffer’s generation has lived out it’s priorities. The next generation, Frank Schaeffer’s generation, has either reacted negatively, conformed to parental expectations or sought a bridge to a spirituality that hopefully retains the best priorities of the passing generation. This reader put’s your journey in the latter category.

Thank you Frank for sharing your journey with us.

G.Goslaw

Victorville, Ca

* Joachim Jeremias, “Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus”, Paperback Edition 1975, p.237.

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

Letter to the Editor
Daily Press
P.O.Box 1389
Victorville,CA 92393

Re: Tighten the System, Michael Snow, Daily Press, Sunday, November 28, 2010.

Mr. Snow, do you watch Law and Order? As taxpayers we need leverage to change an agreed upon broken welfare system. Fixing the system from the bottom up, while desperately needed, is beyond our ability as taxpayers to effect. That is the job of those hired to manage the system but why should they? The more welfare folk to manage the more secure is the welfare of the managers.

What we as taxpayers don’t need is more welfare managers not doing their jobs. What we do need is our hired managers doing the job they were hired to do.

I was wrong, you have convinced me that your government employee management folk should have a 25% cut in their taxpayer funded welfare system.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, Ca

Continuing the Lie (Second Posting)

Letter to the Editor

Daily Press

Victorville, CA.

January 29, 2009

Our politicians are ignorant of any responsible economic policy. The American economy is not viable as a consumer based entity that produces little of any substance but banking products. We

the people are more than a potential sale.

The drive for cheap labor has created a bubble that has burst all of the hopes and dreams of the little people. This drive must be addressed by the same politicians that have exploited the people with such disregard.

But will they? Or will they continue the bailout lie? Of course they will.

G.Goslaw

Victorville, CA.

(Published in Daily Press 1-29-09)

Absolutes?

Letter to the Religion page Editor

Daily Press

P.O.Box 1389

Victorville, CA 92393

Re: “Things every Christian needs to know”, by Shane Idelman.

Daily Press, B4, Sunday, November 13, 2010.

Rev. Idleman, your article in today’s Daily Press is sending a mixed message. What is all this absolute business? Pharisaism is merely a negative attitude to be avoided by the Christian but you possess the absolute truth that the rest of us heathen must accept or be eternally damned. Is this a fair summary? Do you believe in recruitment by bullying and threats?

Jesus seemed to have only one absolute, there exists a Father God who unconditionally loves and accepts each of us who ask. The asking opens a friendship beyond any human definition. The people eagerly responded to this good news but the ever present Pharisee types constantly nagged Jesus to preach the absolutes of their religion.

This conflict has been fought for 2000 years but has been the predominate methodology and theology of the last one hundred years. Sinner or saint, you must do thus and so, you must be thus and so. If you were really “saved”, if you possessed the correct spiritual credentials, you would be just like us. Ouch!

One reason this reader believes in God is that Jesus, the Messiah, comes to us not “fitting in” with the spiritual expectations of His day. Instead Jesus issued invitations to all for a party with the Father God! Once at the party, in the light of who we have found Him to be, there will be plenty of opportunity to learn of Him how best to navigate this world. The Scripture directs us not to be conformed to this world but transformed.

Salvation is not a static state of human definition but the possibility of increasing intimacy with the Father God beyond human definition. Most of us, including me, prefer at times to be static and throw absolute stones. Father forgive us, we all have been there.

G.Goslaw

Victorville, CA

The Fence

Mr. Mike Brossart

Opinion Editor

Voice of the People

The Sun

4030 N. Georgia Blvd.

San Bernadino, CA 92407

Re: “In Agreement”, Victor P. Lopez, The Sun, Sunday, November 14, 2010.

Mr. Lopez, thank you for your letter asking for an accounting from our politicians as to where they stand on illegal immigration. All of our politicians are experts at kicking every controversial issue down the road rather than making a contribution to the discussion and hopefully a solution. You are correct that in these times punting is unacceptable. Please let me make a suggestion.

Instead of advancing a detailed immigration plan to be voted on by our politicians, let we the voters of San Bernardino county insist that our politicians first answer one question. Going forward toward an immigration plan, do you support a demand that our Washington politicians and President first enforce the immigration laws already on the books? This simple question could be answered by a simple yes or no.

If the answer is no, there will be no solution. Most of America has no confidence that any new immigration plan will be enforced any better than the deceit of the last thirty years. All of us want the same basic solutions but it would seem that no solution is possible until the law ceases to be a political football. The political impasse will remain much higher than the shadow of the fence along our southern border.

Nothing else has worked, let we the voters and our politicians insist on a plan of action that has some possibility of success. Let us insist that Washington man-up to their legal responsibilities.

G.Goslaw

Victorville, CA.

The Lament

“Still No Shepherds Cry” by Rev. Clenard H. Childress Jr., “The San Bernardino American Newspaper”, Vol. 41, No. 27, November 4, 2010- November 10, 2010, p. 4.

Thank you Rev. Childress and the San Bernardino American Newspaper for this mixing of faith and politics for your readers. Racism has devastated your black audience for the length of our American experience. Speaking as a white man, we are all rejoicing that in this new America, we have elevated a black family to the White House. However, our joy, as well as yours Rev. Childress, has been tempered by the leftist godless agenda coming from Washington.

Secularism is not color coded. As you so well know, the same negative pressures of secularism have been destructive to the biblical priorities of every Church for at least fifty years. It must be terribly disappointing for a black clergyman to see these ambitions coming from the Oval Office of the first black president. We respect your courage to speak up. Your authority to speak for God to the black believer is unquestioned. Please let we white believers listen and take heed as to how we all are failing our God. We need to hear your words because an authentic prophetic voice is even more non existent in our lily white congregations.

The criticism’s cited in your article rightly describe the wrong turn we all are taking as a country. The creeping secularism of the past is declaring victory. Our welfare system has created a disadvantaged underclass to be used and abused and taken for granted by our politicians. Now the underclass is exploding in numbers and color because the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. These same federal mandates have devalued marriage and the family beyond any recognizable biblical priority. The racial scourge of abortion is being codified into our new genocidal healthcare system. The welfare and opportunities for ethnic minorities are being ignored by our political muck-y-mucks by propping up the monopoly of our failed public education system that is staffed by selfish childish adults.

As you scream, where are the leaders? Who has an answer? Where is a Martin for this generation? The church or the country seems to have no creditable leadership to speak in behest of God and then to lead us.

Thank you for your loud voice, would that we were listening!

G.Goslaw

Victorville, Ca