Amidst the Garden

I think that man has a natural inclination towards a garden.

I recently was dumbfounded at the sheer beauty of a bird chirping. I was recently struck by the majesty of trees, how they sit there in stoic poses, waving about their branches amidst the delicate breeze. I thought how amazing is our God!

I saw a documentary on the sun last night. The History Channel had these experts on the show, and they were discussing about the science behind this star. Well, they were talking about the sheer magnitude and the extensive heat that it puts out on a daily basis. And then they began to discuss how it was made, and how it was this cataclysmic event. Gravitational pull just suddenly arose and fused the sun together... I thought how incredibly bold that assertion was! I thought that perhaps the sun was billions of years old. Yet I would throw in the caveat that there needs to be some sort of Divine maker.

Yahweh made some amazing things! I once wrote a paper on how I felt that heaven would be a combination of a Garden and a City. It would be like the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. I love gardens, and I love to make them. I think flowers are astounding and waterfalls are mighty. Basically put, I think that all that our heart's desire will be in this place. As St Augustine would say, "Our heart's are restless until they rest in You!"

Failed Worldviews

I have held onto a spirit of biopartisanship for sometime now. I think that it is incredibly important to have two strong parties, yet now I am rather frightened. One party hates this war at the expense of the country and the other is not doing enough to win. Below is my scathing remarks of three candidates.

John Edwards believes that "The War on Terror" is not serious, but merely a bumper-sticker slogan. Well Mr. Edwards, do you mean that Islamists are not real? That they don't want to kill us? I am so sorry, but there is historical hatred by the Islamofascists. WWIII is here. You sir, would not make a good Commander-in-Chief. Al-Qaeda wants to kill you!!! Islamofascists would love to do anything destructive to you, as seen in this newly found file (warning, it is pretty graphic).

Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, you both are disgraces. You are for the troops and against the war? I would wager a guess that you are against the troops and against the war. You two voted against funding the war because you hate the war. I do not mind that you are against the war (even though I then think that you have no historical perspective), but the fact that you would withhold material from our brave men and women is utterly insane! You two care more about the Moveon.org than the survival of this country. I cannot believe that you also promised to give money to the troops. Timetables are one thing, but withholding funding flatout? It looks like you broke your promise.

People in France voted for a conservative because they wanted change. President Sarkozy is actually funding those disgruntled immigrants to leave. I cannot emphasis this enough, but we are in a war of survival!! People want to kill you! They would want nothing less but to destroy everything you hold dear- liberal or conservative. Even Moderate Muslims who speak out are routinely called sell-outs and "Islamophobes." It seems like the French are getting the picture. The Dutch and Germans are also moving towards realistic policies. Maybe the West is waking up... Sadly, many Christian Serbs are facing the wrath of Islamists, this historical emnity is nothing new!

Imperfects vs Ideals

As I embarked on a political career, I often find myself thinking about the end goals. I cannot help but think about morality and how my Christian worldview impacts my voting habits. I wrote in my political philosophy paper (to borrow from the amazing book The Gospel in a Pluralist Setting) that my faith needs to be a pair of "spectacles" that help me view the world. Something that has been given impressed in my mind is the fact that there is a tension between two schools of thought, the "black and white" and they "gray."



As a Christian, I can see the difference between good and evil. I have the capability (which is reaffirmed by my strong Protestant belief in the depravity of man) to distinguish between ideals and immoral acts. I do not want to get into the great political issues of "what is the good?" and other Classical Greek philosophies- if you want to get into that, I advise you to read Kevin Walker's blog, a political philsopher at VUSC. What I really want to get into is the gray areas of life.

I wish that there were clear black and white answers within international and domestic politics. Why couldn't there be clear- cut solutions? For example, let me take the immigration issue. I have this tension within the depths of my political soul, this tension between compassion and the rule of law. My "humanity" does not want to tear away parents from their children and deport them to their old countries. However, my "politik" side believes that the rule of law should not be bent to the breaking point. I can make the concession that it is not fair for those poor immigrants who are abiding by the rule of law, those who wait for years on end for an immigrant visa. It is not fair for those poor people who abide by the laws to be overlooked, simply because they kept the law!

How can something like this ever be solved? How can we find true justice and true compassion in this world? Do we allow the imperfect, realizing that the ideal can never be obtained? I assume that these questions can never be fully answered. As a young historian and political scientist, I realize that there are issues that can never be fully resolved- that hindsight is not always 20/20. Within Christianity, I live with the knowledge of good and evil. This constant tension is sometimes too much to bear! God, I am ever in need of your aid.

This Land Is [Not] Your Land

I am soooo sick and tired of hearing from (Illegal) Immigration activists that this place that we call home is Mexican land. Quite simply put, it's not.

Short History Lesson

• American Indians held the North American continent- after they stole it from the Wooly Mammoths.
• Spanish came along and swiped the land from the American Indians, taking a good deal of modern day Latin America (minus Brazil) and the American South West.
• The Mexicans fought for independence from Spain. The Mexican War of Independence lasted from 1810-1821.
• The Mexicans held the Southwest for 20 years until the "Imperialistic Americans" came along and stole it from the Mexicans. The Mexican-American War lasted from 1846–1848.
• The Americans have occupied the Southwest ever since, and have allowed immigrants to come (in accordance with the rule of law).

Now that history is established, can I make another bold assertion. Mexico held the land for 20 years. And the people who are protesting in the streets did not live here in the 19th Century! They came over within the past century or so. Let us be real! Sorry, but you guys who hold up the signs that say This is our land, not your land! are wrong. Of course, they then make the caveat that I am a racist "cracker."

You and your descendants were not here before the Whites. We beat you in a war and took the land. Just like you beat the Spanish, who beat the Indians, who beat the Mammoths.

¡Ay, caramba! Learn some history.