You must have trees in your yard

In the spirit of our forefathers, the Knights who say "Ni", we the government do hereby dictate that you must have 15 shrubberies and 5 trees in your yard. Failure to meet or demands makes you a menace to society and no better than thieves, rapists and murders.

New Ordinance Causing 'Shrub Scandal' In Barefoot Bay - Central Florida News 13

Absolutely ASININE. Where do these government officials get their brains. There are so many stupid laws that everybody is a stinking criminal.

By the way, 1/8 of an acre is about 12 yard of a football field.

Substitute Teen Class

Our church held its annual Men's Retreat this week. I was one of the few men who didn't go, so I was asked to substitute in the Jr. High and High School classes. They are studying Acts, so I picked up in Acts 9:31-42.

I went the concept that this was a time of peace for the early church in verse 31. Luke uses a particular word for peace here that you are probably familiar. He uses the Hebrew word
SHALOM. Shalom is more than the desire of your life to be more than hassle-free. It conveys a sense of total wellbeing, born of full health -- physical, spiritual, emotional soundness. Dorcas was bring SHALOM to the widows. Peter brought SHALOM to the two people he performed miracles on. The application of the lesson was that our mission here on Earth as Christians is to bring SHALOM to those around us. Heaven is a place of peace and we are to be bringing the future kingdom of Heaven to the world now by bringing PEACE to those around us.

I created a logo that spoofs the "Beef: It's what's for dinner" logo.

Here are my notes and discussion questions for Acts 9:31-42 and the logo.

Scripture Slides for this week

Here are the scripture slides I did this week. They are very random in nature.

This one required me to use a tutorial on how to make a branded look in Photoshop.

---

I tried to make this one look like those "Inspirational Posters" that business display to encourage their employees. I thought that using the inspiration concept overlayed with the boasting concept was quite contradictory. It has a hint of irony, especially with the verse being about the proper way to boast. Also, I had hoped that the really large "Boasting" word would attract attention to the screen as that is not something one would usually see in a church.

---

If I really had any Photoshop sK177z I would've been able to make the letters behind the glass magnify and look warped as actually happens when you try read something through a glass of water.

---

At first I tried to make the verse appear to be "forged" into the anvil using the branding technique. However, I couldn't get it to be readable. Erin loved the font choice with this one.

---

Updated: Scripture Slides in PowerPoint File

Let's Punish the Victim

Government Official's Great Ideas: City looks at fining victims of graffiti

Yeah...that's sensible.

STOP THE PRESSES: Half of families earn below the median family income. HALF

Someone is not too good at math. Read the second to last sentence of this article:

"Half the nation's families earn below the median family income of about $56,000. Three-fifths of American families report income under $70,000."

Liberal economist everywhere are blaming Bush over the fact that a full half of families live below the median. They are citing proof that during the Clinton years, half the families were making more than the median income.

Children are expensive

I find these numbers a little hard to believe. Sure, children are expensive, but you don't have to spend that kind of cash to raise them.

Hey, Clown: No Balloons for You

A British clown has had the smile wiped off his face after being told he couldn't use balloons in his act because children might be allergic to latex.

Balloon ban wipes smile off British clown's face - Yahoo! News

How did we ever survive childhood? Balloons at birthday parties, playing on asphalt covered playgrounds, walking to school by ourselves, riding our bike without a helmet, no seatbelts in the car or carseats for babies, playing with realistic looking toy guns without a fear of getting shot by a trigger happy cop, getting in trouble at school & not getting tasered, arrested & tried as an adult, but knowing we'd get it good when we got home...

Oh what a different world we live in now.

I CAN NOT BELIEVE IT

I just ran across a mainstream media article that actually promotes a characteristic of men as more healthy than a characteristic of women. This is so unusual as our current social climate promotes the feminization of men.

Anyway, the article talks about the dangers of complaining too much and says that women tend to vent their frustrations more as a way to connect (i.e., build relationships with) other women. However, it is a misconception that people will feel better about a problem after the venting.
The researchers discovered that instead of "getting the issue off my chest" so I can feel better, the venting causes us to focus on the problem and exacerbate it, actually causing us to feel worse instead of better.

The researchers discovered that women do this more and actually encouraged women to be more like men in this case.

Why I'm not scared about a Hillary Presidency

I listen to t"evil, conservative" talk radio and I have been laughing at how the hosts are way over estimating how bad Hilliary will be for the country. I laugh when I read liberal websites that talk about how bad Bush has been for the country. My wife was commenting the other day about how bad America will be if Hillary wins next year and I told her I didn't really think so. Sure, she can pass some bad laws, but the great thing about our country is that if she screws up too bad, the people will vote her out in 4 years. Even if she gets eight years in office, that is really not that much time to that much damage because all laws have to go through the two houses and, anything really controversial, will then have to plod through the court system. Our system of government is designed to make it hard to make radical changes. You can really only make incremental changes and no president has enough time in office to make enough incremental changes to add up to something really bad. (Now, because we don't have term limits on Senators and Representatives, they do have enough time to make enough changes to add up to something really bad.)

I seem like a lone wolf with this view, so I was pleased to read on the Freaknomics Blog that Stephen Dubner has analyzed the impact of the President in a very similar fashion as me. Great article with insightful analysis.

Psalm 46

Part of my ministry at church is the creation of the announcement slides that run before and after worship. Besides the announcements I also display welcome slides, no food, no cell phone, and scripture slides. This week I am extra proud of the scripture slides because they were a collaboratives effort with Erin. Her insight and ideas proved invaluable.

All of the slides this week come from Psalm 46.

Psalm 46

For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A song.

1 God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.

2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,

3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
Selah

4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.

5 God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.

6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

7 The LORD Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah

8 Come and see the works of the LORD,
the desolations he has brought on the earth.

9 He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear,
he burns the shields with fire.

10 "Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth."

11 The LORD Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Selah

---

---

---

---

---

Updated: Scripture Slides in PowerPoint File

FDA: To approve or not approve

I wrote a little earlier this week where an appeals court said that patients do not have a constitutional right to seek out "unapproved" medical treatments. I then vaguely remembered reading a columnist talk about the incentives used by the FDA to approve a drug.

So, we have a system where by it is better for the FDA to not approve a drug and it is not allowed for a patient to seek treatment outside of that approval. This does not sound like a good combination to me. I personally don't think the government should be in the business of approving and disapproving drugs. Now, that doesn't mean I don't think there shouldn't be any oversight.

The scope of the government's involvement in the drug industry should be limited to ensure that a pharmaceutical company does not use fraud when selling a drug. In other words the government should verify that the company has done testing and that the company makes the results of that testing freely available to doctors and patients. It is then up to the patients, with consult from their doctors, to determine if they are willing to take the risks.

So, if a drug is known to kill 50% or its patients and completely cure 50% of its patients, then that information must be freely given to the individual and let him make the decision. For the government to step in and prevent the individual from being able to even make that decision is an over-stepping of the rights of the individual

Not without OUR Permission

A U.S. appeals court ruled that terminally ill patients do not have the right to experimental drugs (i.e., drugs that are not approved by the government).

A basic fundamental principle of liberty is the self-determination, that is, the right of a person to determine his own destiny. In particular, the principle allows a person to choose its own political status and to determine his own form of economic, cultural and social development. It is the principle that also allows a man to determine the status of his own health and recognizes the dominion one has over his own body.

So, according to the U.S. appeals court, man does not have the right to choose an experimental drug when he is ill. How would you like to be on your death bed, suffering from some terminal illness, knowing that the government that you supported throughout your working life was willing to use force to prevent you from gaining access to a drug, though experimental, that might actually prolong your life while doing absolutely no harm whatsoever to someone else?

You might have one year, maybe six months, to draw breath. You know that it will be about 10 years for the experimental drug that might help you to become approved. You're going to die sooner than you otherwise would because of a GOVERNMENT REGULATORY AGENCY.

The lawsuit was brought by The Abigail Alliance for Better Access to Developmental Drugs and the Washington Legal Foundation. The claim was that patients should at least have "more access" to experimental drugs.

The government (FDA) is thrilled with the ruling because it gets to keep control over access to treatments that only it deems appropriate. Government and control; what a wonderful combination.

Yes, there was a dissent. One judge that didn't go along with the majority opinion said: "There is no logic to be found ... in the conclusion that the right to save one's life is unprotected" by the Constitution.

"Give me liberty or give me death." are the famous words uttered by Thomas Paine. Our government, by this ruling and by their inability to be humane and flexible are indeed sentencing sick people to die, instead of letting them seek unapproved treatments. What a shame.

School Choice Analogy

Picture the local grocery store. Now, imagine it as "your store." Not in an ownership sense, but the store you were assigned to based on your district. You pay a property tax that goes to fund this store. You are allotted a certain amount to spend each week or month which is sent directly to the store for use only at this store. Not bad, I just run down to my store, get the basics of what I need, and go home. No hassles.

But what if your store doesn't carry a certain brand of something that you like? Or if it has bad management and the floors are not kept clean and produce is not so fresh? No problem, I just find another store. Do you? Remember, the money you paid in taxes will stay at your store.

If you wish to go elsewhere, it will have to come out of your pocket. Now you end up paying double for the service you want. Not a bad deal if you can afford it, but if you can't? Oh well, I guess I will just stay here and hope my store gets better.

Sound odd? We wouldn't accept this in our grocery store. Why then do we do this with our children? We send them off to their assigned government schools to be educated.

Read the rest...