Not "Show YOU the money"; "Show ME the money!"

What would you think of a family with following financial situation?

• Annual Income: $24,500
• Annual Spending: $35,370
• NEW Credit Card Debt: $10,870
• Existing Credit Card Balance: $167,600

You might think such people fiscally foolish at best.  And you'd be right.  Sadly, some in America are just like that when it comes to money.

What's worse? They are fiscally foolish with YOUR money.

Just add eight (8) zeros and you'll see.

US GOVERNMENT BUDGET

• Revenue: $2,450,000,000,000
• Spending: $3,537,000,000,000
• Deficit: $1,087,000,000,000
• Debt: $16,760,000,000,000

"But make no mistake: As people my age retire and demand Medicare, America will eventually go broke."
~John Stossel

Source: "The Austerity Myth"

I don't know where you get your delusions, laser brain.

I've been pondering the election and wondering why people vote the way they do.

It motivated me to delineate how MY political views were formed.  This may be an exercise solely for my benefit, but I'd be surprised if you didn't find it helpful to examine YOUR political leanings and trace back why they are the way they are.

As best I can tell, there are 4 main influences that have shaped my political perspective (and subsequent voting patterns).  I share them in chronological order:

1. Living in England during the Reagan Presidency

• I developed a deep sense of national loyalty to my country.
• During this "Cold War," I became keenly aware that there were many places in the world quite unlike the USA, some of which help a deep-seated hatred of the USA.
• Consequently, I've always been a fan of ensuring our national defense and military were top notch.

2. Reading the Bill of Rights

• I realized that we needed the first 2 amendments (i.e., freedom from government involvement in religion, freedom of assembly, freedom of speech, freedom of press, and freedom to take up arms) as a grass roots form of checks and balances on the government itself.
• I realized the 10th amendment, contrary to what's transpired post-Civil War, put the vast majority of governing power in the hands of the individual states, not the federal government.

3. Reading Barry Goldwater's The Conscience of a Conservative

• I gained an appreciation for smaller government, especially in the face of encroaching Socialism.
• I also realized that rather than ensure liberty, governments by nature tend to be the chief instrument to thwart it.
• I also solidified and developed some of the thoughts I'd stumbled upon in the Bill of Rights (e.g., States' Rights).
• FYI - HERE are some pertinent quotes from the book.

4. Converting to Christianity

• I became pro-life, and consequently anti-abortion, seeing it as the murder of one made in God's image, with this being my political issue which trumps all others in evaluating candidates/parties.
• I shifted my confidence to the triune God who controls (Prov 21:1) and raises up and takes down governments (Rom 13:1-7), rather than in government itself.
• Thus, I added prayer as one of the duties a citizen has toward his/her country.

Admittedly, I am biased, but I recommend each of these 4 to you. Also, I'd love to hear what has shaped your political leanings as well.

I'm not about love; I'm about showing you the money!

In 2011, for the first time ever, the credit rating of the United States was downgraded.

To help explain in terms that should show financial irresponsibility, I submit the following ...

US Tax revenue ....... $2,170,000,000,000
Federal budget ........ $3,820,000,000,000
New Debt .............. $1,650,000,000,000
National Debt ........ $14,271,000,000,000
New budget cuts .......... $38,500,000,000

Remove 8 zeros and pretend this is a family's situation.

Family income ........ $21,700
Money spent .......... $38,200
New CC Debt .......... $16,500
New CC Balance ..... $142,710
Budget cuts ............... $385

Would YOU loan that family money?

God is not on our side because he hates idiots also.

How can I be out of money if I still have checks left?!

Don't worry about the US credit rating. Alan Greenspan thinks we will never have any debt or default problem, because we can always print more money.

(On Meet the Press Sunday, August 7th)

I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that.

I can longer put any fiscal confidence in the government.

"If the US Government was a family, they would be making $58,000 a year, they spend $75,000 a year, & are $327,000 in credit card debt. They are currently proposing BIG spending cuts to reduce their spending to $72,000 a year. These are the actual proportions of the federal budget & debt, reduced to a level that we can understand." ~Dave Ramsey

When you put your hand into a bunch of goo that a moment before was your best friend's face, you'll know what to do.

"Likewise, the church in our day is to be holy. The church is not a voluntary association to be governed as its members see fit, but a dwelling place of God. It ought to be structured according the orders of its commander, the Lord Jesus Christ. Our families and our homes are to reflect the spiritual purity, beauty, and orderliness that was temporarily pictured through the tabernacle and is now supremely set forth in Jesus Christ Himself."
~Vern Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

But, Vern ... and I hope it's okay to call you "Vern" ... methinks a big problem in the churches in the US of A is that they are seen as and operate as "a voluntary association to be governed as its members see fit."

Consequently, their families don't "reflect the spiritual purity, beauty, and orderliness" they ought. It may or may not be a uniquely American problem, but "We the people" is great for ordering a nation, but for a church it must be "You, the Lord, Jesus."

Your mom goes to college.

Folks in America often think of education as the panacea to cure all that ails a society. But is it? Or could it be used to the detriment of a society?

I heartily recommend the following lengthy video which questions the legitimacy of some assumptions in our society with regard to a college education. It also exposes the problem of indebtedness being necessary to getting an education, due to absurd costs.

Check out "The College Conspiracy."

• In related news, check out a SWAT team invasion being used by the Department of Education to collect on defaulted student loans. It's another incident raising concerns about the overuse of police force upon the American people and confirmation for me that the federal government should have NOTHING to do with education.

Really, check this stuff out, folks.