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Economic Outlook: More Darkening Clouds
by Dom Armentano
...Hillary Clinton, for example, has said that she personally intends to "manage the economy" not understanding, apparently, that the "economy" is simply a metaphor for the billions of individual decisions made every day that no one person could ever "manage."...
...The most significant area of economic ignorance, of course, is with respect to the Federal Reserve policy. All of the candidates, both Democratic and Republican (excepting Congressman Ron Paul) have applauded the Central Bank's recent decision to dramatically lower the federal funds target rate to 3.5%; it may even be pushed lower. (The federal funds rate is the rate at which banks lend to other banks). To accomplish this reduction will require massive purchases of government securities by the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee which, in turn, will make mountains of new liquidity available to potential individual and institutional borrowers both here and abroad. .
Now this is a good thing, right? WRONG.
During deep recession with high unemployment and significant idle industrial capacity, some economists (not me) would advocate an aggressive "easy money" policy to jump-start the economy. Be that as it may, that is emphatically NOT the current situation. Additional liquidity from the Federal Reserve now would only serve to prop up tottering malinvestments (mostly in housing and finance) that are themselves the creature of the last Federal Reserve money bubble....Read more>>
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Tip of the Coming Iceberg
From Michelle Malkin's column
The Politics of Foreclosure...I certainly have sympathy for borrowers who may have been misled. But for every "predatory lender" out there, you can find a predatory borrower. For every fraud-minded loan officer or mortgage broker, you can find a homeowner who secured financing and bought a home he knew he couldn't afford with little money down and bogus or no income verification. Washington is silent about this reckless behavior, which it is encouraging both tacitly and explicitly.
Now comes word from California that some of these homeowners Washington is rushing to rescue are simply walking away -- abandoning their mortgage commitments and contractual obligations. Poof: "Foreclose me. ... I'll live in the house for free for 12 months, and I'll save my money and I'll move on," one homeowner blithely told the Los Angeles Times this week...
...A Wachovia executive noted during a conference call that they are "people that have otherwise had the capacity to pay, but have basically just decided not to because they feel like they've lost equity, value in their properties..." Some are bailing for cheaper homes in the same neighborhoods. There's even a term that's become popular over the last couple of years -- "Jingle Mail" -- that describes when homeowners cut loose and mail in the keys to the bank. Ho, ho, ho...
This is gonna be such a mess
The Politics of Foreclosure...I certainly have sympathy for borrowers who may have been misled. But for every "predatory lender" out there, you can find a predatory borrower. For every fraud-minded loan officer or mortgage broker, you can find a homeowner who secured financing and bought a home he knew he couldn't afford with little money down and bogus or no income verification. Washington is silent about this reckless behavior, which it is encouraging both tacitly and explicitly.
Now comes word from California that some of these homeowners Washington is rushing to rescue are simply walking away -- abandoning their mortgage commitments and contractual obligations. Poof: "Foreclose me. ... I'll live in the house for free for 12 months, and I'll save my money and I'll move on," one homeowner blithely told the Los Angeles Times this week...
...A Wachovia executive noted during a conference call that they are "people that have otherwise had the capacity to pay, but have basically just decided not to because they feel like they've lost equity, value in their properties..." Some are bailing for cheaper homes in the same neighborhoods. There's even a term that's become popular over the last couple of years -- "Jingle Mail" -- that describes when homeowners cut loose and mail in the keys to the bank. Ho, ho, ho...
This is gonna be such a mess
The Internet as a Source of Income, Multiple Sources of Income?
We need to be thinking outside of the box. As we start to see the family as an entity, an economic unit working for the same goal, the glory of God, and changing from the Americana mindset of individuals that are consumers. But rather families that are trying to become mighty in the land through thrift and entrepreneurial efforts. This is from Gary North's website. He is always trying to encourage outside the box thinking from a biblical perspective. he recently had this article with the links to two sites I have included.
So, You Want to Make an Extra $2,000 a Month, for Little Work. This Teenager Did.
Jan. 29, 2008
This is an interview by Clayton Makepeace, the multimillionaire copywriter. He interviews Ken Evoy, whom I regard as the greatest of the website business advisers.
His story is great. But what grabbed me was the story of his teenage daughter. At 14, she started a website. She was 17 at the time of the interview. She makes $1,000 a month on retainer, and $1,000 to $2,000 a month from Google.
The first site is the website his teenage daughter makes the money from
www.anguilla-beaches.com
This site is where he talks about how she makes money from it. just something to think about, which God can maybe prompt you to use in a different manner, or even our "little ones" can come up with Ideas. Don't be quick to poo poo things, allow stuff to simmer and see what happens.
An All-in-One Website Building, Website Hosting and Website Marketing E-Commerce Software.
So, You Want to Make an Extra $2,000 a Month, for Little Work. This Teenager Did.
Jan. 29, 2008
This is an interview by Clayton Makepeace, the multimillionaire copywriter. He interviews Ken Evoy, whom I regard as the greatest of the website business advisers.
His story is great. But what grabbed me was the story of his teenage daughter. At 14, she started a website. She was 17 at the time of the interview. She makes $1,000 a month on retainer, and $1,000 to $2,000 a month from Google.
The first site is the website his teenage daughter makes the money from
www.anguilla-beaches.com
This site is where he talks about how she makes money from it. just something to think about, which God can maybe prompt you to use in a different manner, or even our "little ones" can come up with Ideas. Don't be quick to poo poo things, allow stuff to simmer and see what happens.
An All-in-One Website Building, Website Hosting and Website Marketing E-Commerce Software.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
What's Happening to Our Money?
We have the sub-prime mess. But this is the other shoe that is gonna drop or is dropping. From Lew Rockwell's
The Great Credit Unwind of '08by Mike Whitney
"The current crisis is not only the bust that follows the housing boom, it's basically the end of a 60-year period of continuing credit expansion based on the dollar as the reserve currency. Now the rest of the world is increasingly unwilling to accumulate dollars.''
~ George Soros, World Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland
..."Financial institutions are holding all sorts of credit instruments that are impaired but are difficult to value, creating uncertainty and freezing new lending. Without more visibility, the economy and financial system risk freezing up as Japan’s did in the 1990s."
Right again. The banks are "capital impaired" because they are holding nearly $600 billion in mortgage-backed assets which are declining in value every month. This is forcing many banks to conceal their real condition from investors while they scour the planet for the extra capital they need to continue operations. As long as the banks are in distress, consumer and business lending will dwindle and the economy will continue to shrink. The main gear in the credit-generating mechanism is now broken. The rate cuts can provide liquidity, but they cannot bring insolvent banks back from the dead. Summers is expecting too much....Read it All
The Great Credit Unwind of '08by Mike Whitney
"The current crisis is not only the bust that follows the housing boom, it's basically the end of a 60-year period of continuing credit expansion based on the dollar as the reserve currency. Now the rest of the world is increasingly unwilling to accumulate dollars.''
~ George Soros, World Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland
..."Financial institutions are holding all sorts of credit instruments that are impaired but are difficult to value, creating uncertainty and freezing new lending. Without more visibility, the economy and financial system risk freezing up as Japan’s did in the 1990s."
Right again. The banks are "capital impaired" because they are holding nearly $600 billion in mortgage-backed assets which are declining in value every month. This is forcing many banks to conceal their real condition from investors while they scour the planet for the extra capital they need to continue operations. As long as the banks are in distress, consumer and business lending will dwindle and the economy will continue to shrink. The main gear in the credit-generating mechanism is now broken. The rate cuts can provide liquidity, but they cannot bring insolvent banks back from the dead. Summers is expecting too much....Read it All
Be Still My Heart
While at Legacy Rob was working with more from Luke, the real Gospel was being laid down elsewhere in the nation...
Warren, Obama and Clinton preach good works
WASHINGTON - Rick Warren, Barak Obama and Hillary Clinton were in different churches on Sunday. But in their messages to the various congregations, all three emphasized the importance of good works.
In a Sunday forum at Washington's National Cathedral, Warren said the nation needs both liberals and conservatives, and he lamented that evangelicals are often viewed as only "right wing."...
Meanwhile, Democrat Senator, Barak Obama, told the congregation at Harvest Cathedral in Macon, Georgia, that "there was something missing" in his life until he experienced Jesus' love and forgiveness. He said surrendering his life to God gave new inspiration to his anti-poverty work and has enabled him to bear the rigors of politics.
And In Memphis, Tennessee, Senator Hillary Clinton quoted the Old and New Testaments at a Sunday morning worship service at Monumental Baptist Church. Beginning her speech with a passage from Psalm 118 -- "This is the day that the Lord hath made" -- Clinton went on to speak of the many needs she hopes to address as president. She noted that Bible's Book of James teaches that "faith without works is dead," but added that she's learned that "works without faith is just too hard."whole thing here
This was from onenewsnow.com
( I think it is one news now.com, not, one new snow .com, but I could be wrong)
Warren, Obama and Clinton preach good works
WASHINGTON - Rick Warren, Barak Obama and Hillary Clinton were in different churches on Sunday. But in their messages to the various congregations, all three emphasized the importance of good works.
In a Sunday forum at Washington's National Cathedral, Warren said the nation needs both liberals and conservatives, and he lamented that evangelicals are often viewed as only "right wing."...
Meanwhile, Democrat Senator, Barak Obama, told the congregation at Harvest Cathedral in Macon, Georgia, that "there was something missing" in his life until he experienced Jesus' love and forgiveness. He said surrendering his life to God gave new inspiration to his anti-poverty work and has enabled him to bear the rigors of politics.
And In Memphis, Tennessee, Senator Hillary Clinton quoted the Old and New Testaments at a Sunday morning worship service at Monumental Baptist Church. Beginning her speech with a passage from Psalm 118 -- "This is the day that the Lord hath made" -- Clinton went on to speak of the many needs she hopes to address as president. She noted that Bible's Book of James teaches that "faith without works is dead," but added that she's learned that "works without faith is just too hard."whole thing here
This was from onenewsnow.com
( I think it is one news now.com, not, one new snow .com, but I could be wrong)
Monday, January 28, 2008
Political Correctness in Banking
So the Fed(Greenspan)made money available like a druken sailor and using the langauge of caring to tear down normal lending rules, opened wide the floodgates for sub-prime lending. Right now the gov't can only print more money, they are a one trick pony, even the stimulus package does not address the real issues, but they have to try and keep up the illusion that they care, but in Washington it's all about keeping up resemblences till the election is over.
Central banks and manipulating the "monetary supply" have nothing to do with free enterprise. We have not had free markets in a very long time.
From Lew Rockwell today...
Countrywide Financial Corporation and the Failure of Mortgage Socialismby Eric Englund
Angelo Mozilo is the Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of the failed Countrywide Financial Corporation. Mr. Mozilo co-founded this company, nearly 40 years ago, in 1969. To be in business for almost forty years, and to become America’s top private home-mortgage lender, are testimonies to genuine business acumen. However, success can breed arrogance, and a sense of supreme power, to the point where a corporate chieftain believes his personal will can override the free market and reshape society according to a grand vision – which, for Angelo Mozilo, entailed making America a better country by bringing home ownership within reach of all and sundry. For Countrywide Financial, unfortunately, Mr. Mozilo’s dream of social engineering demanded that sound credit-underwriting principles be abandoned. And now, Countrywide Financial Corporation’s failure stands as a monument as to how integrating egalitarianism and political correctness, into a business plan, is downright poisonous... Read it All
Central banks and manipulating the "monetary supply" have nothing to do with free enterprise. We have not had free markets in a very long time.
From Lew Rockwell today...
Countrywide Financial Corporation and the Failure of Mortgage Socialismby Eric Englund
Angelo Mozilo is the Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of the failed Countrywide Financial Corporation. Mr. Mozilo co-founded this company, nearly 40 years ago, in 1969. To be in business for almost forty years, and to become America’s top private home-mortgage lender, are testimonies to genuine business acumen. However, success can breed arrogance, and a sense of supreme power, to the point where a corporate chieftain believes his personal will can override the free market and reshape society according to a grand vision – which, for Angelo Mozilo, entailed making America a better country by bringing home ownership within reach of all and sundry. For Countrywide Financial, unfortunately, Mr. Mozilo’s dream of social engineering demanded that sound credit-underwriting principles be abandoned. And now, Countrywide Financial Corporation’s failure stands as a monument as to how integrating egalitarianism and political correctness, into a business plan, is downright poisonous... Read it All
More Background for the Coming Economic Hangover
From the New York Times via Lew Rockwell's site. A year ago the Times would have relegated this type of story to the kooks and crackpots let alone run it in their paper.
Paying the Price for the Fed’s Success
By JAMES GRANT
....So Americans proceeded to borrow. Over the past decade, household indebtedness, expressed as a percentage of the value of household assets, has shot up into record territory. Watching house prices levitate, people did what they could have been expected to do. They borrowed heavily against the accretion in value they had already seen as well as the gains they hopefully anticipated.....
Last week, as the Fed delivered its emergency cut of three-quarters of 1 percent, dropping the funds rate to 3.5 percent, the cost of living was rising on the order of 4 percent a year. Yet inflation was almost an afterthought in the press release in which the Federal Open Market Committee, the central bank’s policy-making arm, explained its surprise intervention: “The committee expects inflation to moderate in coming quarters, but it will be necessary to continue to monitor inflation developments carefully.”...
To lubricate the machinery of lending and borrowing, Mr. Bernanke is likely to make dollars increasingly plentiful. The trouble is that, while the Fed is America’s central bank, the dollar is the world’s currency. It lines the vaults of central banks of America’s creditors, especially the up-and-coming states of Asia and the oil-soaked principalities of the Middle East...
Such institutions hold dollars by choice, and not a few of them chafe at the greenback’s steady loss of purchasing power. For some, Tuesday’s hasty rate cut might be the last straw....Read it All
Paying the Price for the Fed’s Success
By JAMES GRANT
....So Americans proceeded to borrow. Over the past decade, household indebtedness, expressed as a percentage of the value of household assets, has shot up into record territory. Watching house prices levitate, people did what they could have been expected to do. They borrowed heavily against the accretion in value they had already seen as well as the gains they hopefully anticipated.....
Last week, as the Fed delivered its emergency cut of three-quarters of 1 percent, dropping the funds rate to 3.5 percent, the cost of living was rising on the order of 4 percent a year. Yet inflation was almost an afterthought in the press release in which the Federal Open Market Committee, the central bank’s policy-making arm, explained its surprise intervention: “The committee expects inflation to moderate in coming quarters, but it will be necessary to continue to monitor inflation developments carefully.”...
To lubricate the machinery of lending and borrowing, Mr. Bernanke is likely to make dollars increasingly plentiful. The trouble is that, while the Fed is America’s central bank, the dollar is the world’s currency. It lines the vaults of central banks of America’s creditors, especially the up-and-coming states of Asia and the oil-soaked principalities of the Middle East...
Such institutions hold dollars by choice, and not a few of them chafe at the greenback’s steady loss of purchasing power. For some, Tuesday’s hasty rate cut might be the last straw....Read it All
Sunday, January 27, 2008
The Bad News is Just Getting Rolling... Gary North
This is a cheery synopsis of what has been happening to the Macro economics of our nation. I have heard no one argue that his facts are wrong. Whether or not we are actually on an abyss I don't know. But I have no doubt that we will be in a recession or possibly a depression?!? Everything the King and his men are doing to save Humpty Dumpty does nothing to address the real problem. We have spent way to much money that we don't have. Nationally and on an individual level.
This is a longer column that gives a pretty good look at what's going on.
At the Edge of the Abyss
by Gary North
This week has been filled with surprises. It began with bad news for international stock markets. It got rolling with unprecedented news from the Federal Reserve System. It got wild with nutty news from a bureaucrat in New York. Then it settled down to wild swings on the American stock market.
All in all, this week was a sign that the economy is headed toward the falls. Keep close watch on the canoe 100 yards ahead of you. If, without warning, it disappears, start paddling for the shore. Either shore. Fast.
On Monday, Americans were home, celebrating the birth of Martin Luther King. Well, maybe not celebrating. But home.
The American stock markets were closed. That left foreign markets to set the pace. They fell. They looked like they were in free-fall. Then, the next day – day two for them – they fell again, only worse.
Fifteen minutes before the New York Stock Exchange opened, there was an announcement from the Federal Reserve System. The Federal Open Market Committee had met in secret the night before and had voted, 8 to 1, to lower the target rate for the Federal Funds rate by three quarters of a point: 75 basis points, as they call it in the trade....
whole thing here
This is a longer column that gives a pretty good look at what's going on.
At the Edge of the Abyss
by Gary North
This week has been filled with surprises. It began with bad news for international stock markets. It got rolling with unprecedented news from the Federal Reserve System. It got wild with nutty news from a bureaucrat in New York. Then it settled down to wild swings on the American stock market.
All in all, this week was a sign that the economy is headed toward the falls. Keep close watch on the canoe 100 yards ahead of you. If, without warning, it disappears, start paddling for the shore. Either shore. Fast.
On Monday, Americans were home, celebrating the birth of Martin Luther King. Well, maybe not celebrating. But home.
The American stock markets were closed. That left foreign markets to set the pace. They fell. They looked like they were in free-fall. Then, the next day – day two for them – they fell again, only worse.
Fifteen minutes before the New York Stock Exchange opened, there was an announcement from the Federal Reserve System. The Federal Open Market Committee had met in secret the night before and had voted, 8 to 1, to lower the target rate for the Federal Funds rate by three quarters of a point: 75 basis points, as they call it in the trade....
whole thing here
More $, the Value of a Dollar
This is from Lew Rockwell's site. Inflation caused from printing more money,it's a hidden tax. This is a plainly worded column explaining how it happens. It is another component to the economic hangover that is coming to America. This is also why our dollar keeps dropping in value against other currencys.
Dishonest Scales
by Larry L. Beane II
A crooked merchant can use dishonest scales as a way to steal from the customer. If the sign says that a pound of Cajun pastrami sells for $9.99 per pound, you expect to get 16 avoirdupois ounces for ten bucks. But what if the merchant is clever and rigs the scale to read a full pound at only 15.5 ounces? That's not a lot to shave off, but like the urban legend of the computer programmer that rolls additional fractions of cents into his own bank account, when multiplied over thousands of transactions, that's a lot of money stolen. And what's to stop the merchant from lulling people into slowly changing the scales a little at a time, year after year, so that, say in 50 years, your "pound" of meat is really only 8 ounces? If it's done slowly enough, you won't even notice...
From 1790–1913, the United States dollar was constant. It was tied to gold and/or silver. A dollar bought pretty much the same thing for Thomas Jefferson as it did for Teddy Roosevelt. A careful look at inflation rates from 1790–1913 shows some minor fluctuation, but for the most part, a 1913 dollar was the same as an 1850 dollar, and was the same as a 1790 dollar....
So, why was there no inflation (devaluation) of the currency until 1913? That's the year the United States created a central bank. The Constitution makes no provision for the Federal government to do any such thing, and the Constitution even specifies that money must be backed by gold and silver. But, of course, the folks that tell us the Constitution is a "living document" will tell us that the dollar simply must be "flexible" (while the same people would never in a thousand years propose a "flexible" foot, pound, or gallon to shrink over the course of time)....
Read it All
Dishonest Scales
by Larry L. Beane II
A crooked merchant can use dishonest scales as a way to steal from the customer. If the sign says that a pound of Cajun pastrami sells for $9.99 per pound, you expect to get 16 avoirdupois ounces for ten bucks. But what if the merchant is clever and rigs the scale to read a full pound at only 15.5 ounces? That's not a lot to shave off, but like the urban legend of the computer programmer that rolls additional fractions of cents into his own bank account, when multiplied over thousands of transactions, that's a lot of money stolen. And what's to stop the merchant from lulling people into slowly changing the scales a little at a time, year after year, so that, say in 50 years, your "pound" of meat is really only 8 ounces? If it's done slowly enough, you won't even notice...
From 1790–1913, the United States dollar was constant. It was tied to gold and/or silver. A dollar bought pretty much the same thing for Thomas Jefferson as it did for Teddy Roosevelt. A careful look at inflation rates from 1790–1913 shows some minor fluctuation, but for the most part, a 1913 dollar was the same as an 1850 dollar, and was the same as a 1790 dollar....
So, why was there no inflation (devaluation) of the currency until 1913? That's the year the United States created a central bank. The Constitution makes no provision for the Federal government to do any such thing, and the Constitution even specifies that money must be backed by gold and silver. But, of course, the folks that tell us the Constitution is a "living document" will tell us that the dollar simply must be "flexible" (while the same people would never in a thousand years propose a "flexible" foot, pound, or gallon to shrink over the course of time)....
Read it All
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Looking at What's Up in the Economy... from Gary North
This is from Lew Rockwell's site, an article from Gary North concerning how economic news is handled, or rather not handled.
...In good times, stockbrokers tell you to buy and hold.
In bad times they tell you to buy on the dips and hold.
Stockbrokers are like barbers. For a barber, you always need a haircut.
The stock market is now giving a "haircut" to millions of investors....
whole thing here
...In good times, stockbrokers tell you to buy and hold.
In bad times they tell you to buy on the dips and hold.
Stockbrokers are like barbers. For a barber, you always need a haircut.
The stock market is now giving a "haircut" to millions of investors....
whole thing here
Boom and Bust, From the Mises Center
This last year I have learned much about central bankers, fiat money, what causes inflation, The Fed,etc. From the Lew Rockwell Site, Mises Institue and from Gary North's. It's nothing like learning something new and then watching it happen right in front of your eyes to drive it home.
Don't Blame Subprime Lenders!
With all the rhetoric about how subprime mortgage lenders have behaved badly and dangerously, few if any well-known writers have pointed out how impossible it becomes to avoid a Fed-induced monetary boom.
Instead, pundits dismiss the Austrian Business Cycle, saying that entrepreneurs can easily detect "funny money."
After all, hasn't it happened before?
The whole entrepreneurial class is, as it were, in the position of a masterbuilder whose task it is to erect a building out of a limited supply of building materials. If this man overestimates the quantity of the available supply, he drafts a plan for the execution of which the means at his disposal are not sufficient. He oversizes the groundwork and the foundations and only discovers later in the progress of the construction that he lacks the material needed for the completion of the structure. It is obvious that our masterbuilder's fault was not overinvestment, but an inappropriate employment of the means at his disposal. (Human Action, chapter 20, section 6)
Many writers even ignore any attempt at first-cause explanation. For example, some writers characterize the recent mortgage boom as "irrational exuberance."
(Recently I found an excellent one-line refutation by Gerard Jackson: "You can't spend exuberance.")
So why would a businessperson choose to do such a thing once they've seen several business cycles? Because, even though business investors know that the bust will come, it makes no sense to refuse funds while other businesses are using the new funds to compete!...
whole thing here
Don't Blame Subprime Lenders!
With all the rhetoric about how subprime mortgage lenders have behaved badly and dangerously, few if any well-known writers have pointed out how impossible it becomes to avoid a Fed-induced monetary boom.
Instead, pundits dismiss the Austrian Business Cycle, saying that entrepreneurs can easily detect "funny money."
After all, hasn't it happened before?
The whole entrepreneurial class is, as it were, in the position of a masterbuilder whose task it is to erect a building out of a limited supply of building materials. If this man overestimates the quantity of the available supply, he drafts a plan for the execution of which the means at his disposal are not sufficient. He oversizes the groundwork and the foundations and only discovers later in the progress of the construction that he lacks the material needed for the completion of the structure. It is obvious that our masterbuilder's fault was not overinvestment, but an inappropriate employment of the means at his disposal. (Human Action, chapter 20, section 6)
Many writers even ignore any attempt at first-cause explanation. For example, some writers characterize the recent mortgage boom as "irrational exuberance."
(Recently I found an excellent one-line refutation by Gerard Jackson: "You can't spend exuberance.")
So why would a businessperson choose to do such a thing once they've seen several business cycles? Because, even though business investors know that the bust will come, it makes no sense to refuse funds while other businesses are using the new funds to compete!...
whole thing here
What's Up With the Church? From Barna
Ok, Barna released a another survey back in December. It concerns Christian parents and how they are uncomfortable with what they buy for their kids. But they feel compelled to make these less than wise purchases so they will be in good standing with their offspring.
The contrast between life lived in the fear of the Lord (the examples from the 10 Commandment DVD’s) verses the fear of man couldn’t be clearer. We have been so trained by the culture at large that it is wrong to make any judgments and this is compounded in spades when the Church itself doesn’t want to take much of a stand on so many areas for fear that people will leave. Why? It's important that these people keep coming because they need their lives to be changed, And these buildings and salaries’ need to be paid so... we wind up with lukewarm mush rather than the clear declaration of God's word.
...Observations about the Findings
The outcomes struck the study’s lead researcher, George Barna, as reflective of the challenge Christians face in today’s culture.
"Millions of Christian parents want to appear to be relevant in their children’s eyes, and to provide gifts that fit within the mainstream of postmodern society," Barna noted. "The problem is that many of the entertainment products that meet those criteria conflict with the moral precepts of the Christian faith. Parents have to make a choice as to what is more important: pleasing their kids’ taste and sensibilities, or satisfying God’s standards as defined in the Bible. When the decision made is to keep their children happy, the Christian parent is often left with a pit in their stomach...
Woe is us!
the tragic story is here
The contrast between life lived in the fear of the Lord (the examples from the 10 Commandment DVD’s) verses the fear of man couldn’t be clearer. We have been so trained by the culture at large that it is wrong to make any judgments and this is compounded in spades when the Church itself doesn’t want to take much of a stand on so many areas for fear that people will leave. Why? It's important that these people keep coming because they need their lives to be changed, And these buildings and salaries’ need to be paid so... we wind up with lukewarm mush rather than the clear declaration of God's word.
...Observations about the Findings
The outcomes struck the study’s lead researcher, George Barna, as reflective of the challenge Christians face in today’s culture.
"Millions of Christian parents want to appear to be relevant in their children’s eyes, and to provide gifts that fit within the mainstream of postmodern society," Barna noted. "The problem is that many of the entertainment products that meet those criteria conflict with the moral precepts of the Christian faith. Parents have to make a choice as to what is more important: pleasing their kids’ taste and sensibilities, or satisfying God’s standards as defined in the Bible. When the decision made is to keep their children happy, the Christian parent is often left with a pit in their stomach...
Woe is us!
the tragic story is here
More Ten Commandments DVD
I last mentioned “The Ten Commandments for Today “ DVD, it's 12 parts. There are plenty of things to quibble about it, but overall it presents God's Commandments in such a stronger, more commanding, sweeping, potent light than I am used to thinking of them.
It’s like God wrote them.
And meant it.
Which, we would all go, Duh….
I have said Rushdoony has been the guy to leave me feeling like “my” God would fit into a french fry sack while his God towers over the universe. We have the same God. So it is to my shame and a testimony to my weak and shallow evangelical heritage that this is where I must start from now. Better to start in, from left field, later in life then never even realize that’s where you’re at. I just wish that I was at least in the correct stadium. I guess that might be a little harsh. But in too many areas it's true. I am more used to a lovey-dovey God that could be glued onto my dashboard.
I thank God for the great fellowship and love for one another that has been a part of my heritage. There was a lot of good teaching, but it all more or less focused around man and his issues and being made whole....So....you can help others become whole. The practical application of this was one program after another all focussed on man. But I can stagger at how much was being missed.
Now I would say the focus is more, “What does God want?” Which plays out in God being glorified by his creation in which man is the center of it. That taking dominion...which plays out in “taking every thought captive” in the New Testament. This DVD set just kind of reminded me of the starkness of it.
The production values are low, lots of boo boo’s. It's also nice to see some areas where God has moved understanding and orthopraxy beyond where he was. Not to be proud, but rather thankful, thank you, thank you God! You're moving us.
They had a great platform, Rev. Abshire just asking questions and Rushdoony answering. I wasn’t ready to see him as old as he looked. A little bit of the feel like a basement tape, where you get to listen in to a interesting conversation. We are now watching for the second time.
On Sunday, I mentioned how God gave us the New Testament to be laid onto the Old. The Old Testament was the frame work with which the New Testament would complete and be understood. When you stop and realize that God didn’t rush to have the NT assembled and distributed in a few years, or a hundred years. God allowed almost 400 yrs till he assembled what we would call the Old and New Testaments. So for 400 years the new covenant sprung forth with really only the Old Testament as a complete written guide for the Church, not the New Testament. Think about that.
That was not an oversight, not only was God comfortable with that, we must acknowledge that it was his design from time eternal. We find no instance where Paul or the disciples fret that they have to spread this new gospel without an assembled New Testament. They constantly quoted the Old Testament.
Timothy was told by Paul to lay hold of what he had been taught, which would’ve only really been the OT and Paul said it would equip him for every good work.
I’m convinced the modern evangelical movement has in contrast taken the NT and laid it on top of our culture, not the Old Testament to give us modern Christianity. So, much of what has been built has been without God's basic framework, which explains an awful lot.
So the net effect of applying the New Testament to the culture produces a man centered gospel? Whereas if you apply the New to the Old Testament you get a God centered gospel and my experience so far has been that if you take the focus off of yourself and put it onto what God wants you to do and work at that, your issues become so much background noise rather than the focus of your life.
Myth: the Old Testament was about externals and the New Testament brought it into the heart. I wish we could say those evil pagans perpetrated this lie to us. But this was our own wicked hearts that cooked up this whopper!
Freebie: If you are thinking of selling anything. There are more people who think they have disposable income now, then will feel the same way a year from now.
It’s like God wrote them.
And meant it.
Which, we would all go, Duh….
I have said Rushdoony has been the guy to leave me feeling like “my” God would fit into a french fry sack while his God towers over the universe. We have the same God. So it is to my shame and a testimony to my weak and shallow evangelical heritage that this is where I must start from now. Better to start in, from left field, later in life then never even realize that’s where you’re at. I just wish that I was at least in the correct stadium. I guess that might be a little harsh. But in too many areas it's true. I am more used to a lovey-dovey God that could be glued onto my dashboard.
I thank God for the great fellowship and love for one another that has been a part of my heritage. There was a lot of good teaching, but it all more or less focused around man and his issues and being made whole....So....you can help others become whole. The practical application of this was one program after another all focussed on man. But I can stagger at how much was being missed.
Now I would say the focus is more, “What does God want?” Which plays out in God being glorified by his creation in which man is the center of it. That taking dominion...which plays out in “taking every thought captive” in the New Testament. This DVD set just kind of reminded me of the starkness of it.
The production values are low, lots of boo boo’s. It's also nice to see some areas where God has moved understanding and orthopraxy beyond where he was. Not to be proud, but rather thankful, thank you, thank you God! You're moving us.
They had a great platform, Rev. Abshire just asking questions and Rushdoony answering. I wasn’t ready to see him as old as he looked. A little bit of the feel like a basement tape, where you get to listen in to a interesting conversation. We are now watching for the second time.
On Sunday, I mentioned how God gave us the New Testament to be laid onto the Old. The Old Testament was the frame work with which the New Testament would complete and be understood. When you stop and realize that God didn’t rush to have the NT assembled and distributed in a few years, or a hundred years. God allowed almost 400 yrs till he assembled what we would call the Old and New Testaments. So for 400 years the new covenant sprung forth with really only the Old Testament as a complete written guide for the Church, not the New Testament. Think about that.
That was not an oversight, not only was God comfortable with that, we must acknowledge that it was his design from time eternal. We find no instance where Paul or the disciples fret that they have to spread this new gospel without an assembled New Testament. They constantly quoted the Old Testament.
Timothy was told by Paul to lay hold of what he had been taught, which would’ve only really been the OT and Paul said it would equip him for every good work.
I’m convinced the modern evangelical movement has in contrast taken the NT and laid it on top of our culture, not the Old Testament to give us modern Christianity. So, much of what has been built has been without God's basic framework, which explains an awful lot.
So the net effect of applying the New Testament to the culture produces a man centered gospel? Whereas if you apply the New to the Old Testament you get a God centered gospel and my experience so far has been that if you take the focus off of yourself and put it onto what God wants you to do and work at that, your issues become so much background noise rather than the focus of your life.
Myth: the Old Testament was about externals and the New Testament brought it into the heart. I wish we could say those evil pagans perpetrated this lie to us. But this was our own wicked hearts that cooked up this whopper!
Freebie: If you are thinking of selling anything. There are more people who think they have disposable income now, then will feel the same way a year from now.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
The Problem is Not Fixed...Economy
So everyone held their breath yesterday as the market whipped down and up, same for today. As far as what has happened to cause the markets to get tipsy...all of those factors are still in play, nothing, nothing, has changed the course of events that have caused this weakness. Sooner or later this market will fade down again, California is hitting new levels every month of homes going into foreclosures.
All of the shaky loans to people who probably shouldn't have gotten them are still out there. And it was only last week that it became public what many were talking about....that the bond insurers did not have enough set aside for losses, it was being invested to make more money. Nobody thought the music would stop playing and the piper have to be paid.
All keep hoping we have hit the bottom of the housing market, but it really has only begun. Yikes.
The market had a nice little bounce today, up 300 points, but it is gonna prove to be a dead cat bounce. This is a good opportunity to move that 401k to safer segment if your group/company gives you that option. People are thinking the worse is over... "I'm glad I didn't sell, now it can start back up again"....like all the other times. This isn't like the other times. I have never seen times like this in the finance community.
I have moved my 401k money to the side lines some time ago. I am still looking for a safe place for it. But I don't think being in mutual funds is a safe place right now.
All of the shaky loans to people who probably shouldn't have gotten them are still out there. And it was only last week that it became public what many were talking about....that the bond insurers did not have enough set aside for losses, it was being invested to make more money. Nobody thought the music would stop playing and the piper have to be paid.
All keep hoping we have hit the bottom of the housing market, but it really has only begun. Yikes.
The market had a nice little bounce today, up 300 points, but it is gonna prove to be a dead cat bounce. This is a good opportunity to move that 401k to safer segment if your group/company gives you that option. People are thinking the worse is over... "I'm glad I didn't sell, now it can start back up again"....like all the other times. This isn't like the other times. I have never seen times like this in the finance community.
I have moved my 401k money to the side lines some time ago. I am still looking for a safe place for it. But I don't think being in mutual funds is a safe place right now.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Christianize the Christians
From Douglas Wilson
Gratitude for the Laws
Topic: Postmodernism
Enlightenment modernist types want laws to run everything, all by themselves, and they want this in every department of human thought. It doesn't matter if we are talking about logic, or science, or economics. They want the whole schbeal run by the law of non-contradiction, the law of gravity, and the law of supply and demand. These impersonal laws float ten yards above the surface of the ground, each one holding itself up there by its own shirt collar. Here's this "law," telling everybody and everything what to do, and you just have to obey it, okay? "Why do we have to obey it?" "Don't ask questions," somebody hisses. "He just floated in one day and spoke with great authority."...
This is good for your mind to think through...Read it All
Gratitude for the Laws
Topic: Postmodernism
Enlightenment modernist types want laws to run everything, all by themselves, and they want this in every department of human thought. It doesn't matter if we are talking about logic, or science, or economics. They want the whole schbeal run by the law of non-contradiction, the law of gravity, and the law of supply and demand. These impersonal laws float ten yards above the surface of the ground, each one holding itself up there by its own shirt collar. Here's this "law," telling everybody and everything what to do, and you just have to obey it, okay? "Why do we have to obey it?" "Don't ask questions," somebody hisses. "He just floated in one day and spoke with great authority."...
This is good for your mind to think through...Read it All
From One of the Most Liberal Universities
Mystery in Brooklyn: Bomb factory at Columbia University professor’s home
By Michelle Malkin • January 22, 2008 10:03 AM
The NY Daily News reports today on a disturbing discovery at a Columbia University instructor’s home:
Police stumbled upon a bomb-making factory Sunday in the home of a Columbia professor who specializes in the spread of infectious disease - and are investigating whether he and his roommate have terror ties...
Read it All
Oh boy, They cannot find the guy...
By Michelle Malkin • January 22, 2008 10:03 AM
The NY Daily News reports today on a disturbing discovery at a Columbia University instructor’s home:
Police stumbled upon a bomb-making factory Sunday in the home of a Columbia professor who specializes in the spread of infectious disease - and are investigating whether he and his roommate have terror ties...
Read it All
Oh boy, They cannot find the guy...
Friday, January 18, 2008
DVD Review : The Ten Commandments For Today
Having plundered the Egyptians for awhile I am gonna get back to some blogging...
At the end of the year Chalcedon 30% off sale, I picked up the DVD series called "The 10 Commandments For Today". It's RJ Rushdoony being asked questions about the 10 Commandments. He's like 82 yrs old from 1997. Absolutely fascinating, and very enjoyable!
I meant to watch the intro segment and the one on the first commandment (both about 25 minutes each) but it is turning into an all night marathon. The family keeps begging for more! Being led by Beth. What does a wise father do when his family is begging to hear more about God's commandments........let the DVD player run and give the glory to God. Might be a good candidate to watch during a Reformation night (halloween).
Terry Family gives it 5 stars.
I keep trying to do something else, but I keep standing round listening to more.....nuff said!
So we only made it to the sixth commandment before Beth got too tired. The Hudleson family we're not. Time to get ready for bed.
At the end of the year Chalcedon 30% off sale, I picked up the DVD series called "The 10 Commandments For Today". It's RJ Rushdoony being asked questions about the 10 Commandments. He's like 82 yrs old from 1997. Absolutely fascinating, and very enjoyable!
I meant to watch the intro segment and the one on the first commandment (both about 25 minutes each) but it is turning into an all night marathon. The family keeps begging for more! Being led by Beth. What does a wise father do when his family is begging to hear more about God's commandments........let the DVD player run and give the glory to God. Might be a good candidate to watch during a Reformation night (halloween).
Terry Family gives it 5 stars.
I keep trying to do something else, but I keep standing round listening to more.....nuff said!
So we only made it to the sixth commandment before Beth got too tired. The Hudleson family we're not. Time to get ready for bed.
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