Invasions, Assimilation, and Salt

For some reason, I have been gripped by the topic of “invasive species” for the last few days.    Down here in the south, the example of kudzu immediately comes to mind.  The UN Council on Bio Diversity defines an invasive species as, “a plant or animal that is not native to a specific location; and has a tendency to spread, which is believed to cause damage to the environment, human economy and/or human health.”  

 

The European Union uses the term "Invasive Alien Species."  One doesn’t need to be a recent graduate of our modern academic system to realize just how offensive and politically incorrect the term "Invasive Alien Species" could be.  In fact, two researchers, Robert I. Colautti and Hugh J. MacIsaac in a paper titled, “A Neutral Terminology to Define ‘Invasive’ Species” come to the aid of those oppressed aliens.  

Their paper’s abstract explains, “The use of simple terms to articulate ecological concepts can confuse ideological debates and undermine management efforts. This problem is particularly acute in studies of nonindigenous species, which alternatively have been called ‘exotic’, ‘introduced’, ‘invasive’ and ‘naturalised’, among others…”  Instead they, “propose a neutral terminology.”  Perhaps they should be called “undocumented species” or “uninvited, but welcome anyways species” or “refugee species.”  Some species were probably brought here by their parents, through no fault of their own – some might call that species a “dreamer” perhaps.

Dr. David Tilman finds, “Typically, an introduced species must survive at low population densities before it becomes invasive in a new location.”  Then there is a “tipping point” where the invasive species becomes a problem.  However, this doesn’t just happen; there are preconditions that make an ecosystem susceptible to invasion.  The Department of Agriculture insightfully explains, “Invaded ecosystems may have experienced disturbance, typically human-induced.  Such a disturbance may give invasive species a chance to establish themselves with less competition from natives less able to adapt to a disturbed ecosystem.”   In the case of the American ecosystem, that disturbance is the result of unconstitutional executive actions.

As PJ Media reports, “President Obama’s amnesty by edict has always been about adding new Democrats to the voter rolls, and recent action by the Department of Homeland Security provides further proof. Sources at the DHS report that the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services is reallocating significant resources away from a computer system — the “Electronic Immigration System” — to sending letters to all 9,000,000 green card holders urging them to naturalize prior to the 2016 election.”

 

And the invasion will continue unabated for the foreseeable future.  The Washington Examiner reports, “Legal and illegal immigrants will hit a record high of 51 million in just eight years and eventually account for an astounding 82 percent of all population growth in America, according to new U.S. Census figures.”  

The Center for Immigration Studies analysis of the new Census says, “These numbers have important implications for workers, schools, infrastructure, congestion and the environment…They also may have implications for our ability to successfully assimilate and integrate immigrants. Yet there has been almost no national debate about bringing in so many people..."

There was a President that unashamedly loved America; he described her using the metaphor Jesus used in His Sermon on the Mount.  In his farewell speech to the nation, Ronald Reagan said, “I've spoken of the shining city all my political life, but I don't know if I ever quite communicated what I saw when I said it. But in my mind it was a tall, proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, windswept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace…”

In that same speech, Reagan warned us that it was effectual assimilation that would prevent an invasion from leading to annihilation.  He cautioned, “An informed patriotism is what we want…are we doing a good enough job teaching our children what America is and what she represents in the long history of the world?...freedom is special and rare. It's fragile; it needs protection.”  Social scientists define successful assimilation as “new members of a society become indistinguishable from members of the other group.”

  

Immediately before His “City on a Hill” illustration, Jesus told his followers, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”  

 

If our country is going to be preserved, Americans must pour on the salt.  No matter how irritating some might find it.

This column also appears in the 29 APR 2015 Upson Beacon.

Cage, Convert, or Kill

I am not a smart man.  I’m not just quoting Forrest Gump – I’m not a smart man, but I repeat myself.  Maybe that is why I appreciate simplicity so much.  The legendary artist, Leonardo da Vinci said, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”   In fact, “simplicity” is deemed so important that it is one of the US military’s nine “Principles of War.”

The idea of guidelines for effectively conducting war goes back some 500 years before Christ, at least as far as Sun Tzu.   Machiavelli had his "General Rules" in the 16^th century.   Carl von Clausewitz wrote his version in the early 19^th century which is largely the foundation of what the US military employs today, or should.  

Military doctrine defines these nine principles as the, “the most important nonphysical factors that affect the conduct of operations.”  As you read each of these doctrinal definitions, decide whether or not they comport with President Obama’s employment of forces in our “overseas contingency operations” formerly known as the “global war on terror.”  (Parenthetical comments are mine.)

Objective -- Direct every military operation toward a clearly defined, decisive, and attainable objective.  The principle of objective drives all military activity towards the destruction of the enemy's ability and will to fight.  (Like an effective “Jobs program.”  That ought to keep those “violent extremists” too busy to fight.)

Offensive -- Seize, retain, and exploit the initiative.  The surest way to achieve decisive results is to seize, retain, and exploit the initiative. Seizing the initiative compels an enemy to react.  (See also:  “NOT leading from behind.”)

Mass – Concentrate the effects of combat power at the decisive place and time.  (Note – simultaneously telling the enemy your withdrawal plans when announcing additional forces can offset the benefits of this principle.)

Economy of Force -- The reciprocal of mass.  Allocate minimum essential combat power to secondary efforts. Never leave any unit without a purpose.  (Doing nothing can be very economical, until the enemy is at your door.)

Maneuver.  Place the enemy in a disadvantageous position through the flexible application of combat power.  Effective maneuver keeps enemy forces off balance by making them confront new problems and new dangers faster than they can counter them.  (Caution – promising “no boots on the ground” can cause the enemy to be injured by laughing at your lack of resolve/timidity.)

Unity of Command -- Necessary to applying a force’s full combat power.  A single commander directs and coordinates the actions of all forces toward a common objective and the most effective way to achieve unity of effort. (Note – can be undermined by embracing enemies, and undermining allies.  There has never been a more propitious time to unite the world; Sunni Arabs, Europe, Africa, and Israel all want to stop the spread of radical Islam and the Islamic State – the only thing lacking is a leader.)

Security -- Never permit the enemy to acquire an unexpected advantage. Security results from measures a command takes to protect itself from surprise, interference, sabotage, annoyance, and threat surveillance and reconnaissance.  (Antonym – Benghazi)

Surprise -- Strike the enemy at a time or place or in a manner for which he is unprepared.  Factors contributing to surprise include speed, operations security, and asymmetric capabilities.   (e.g. Obama enforcing a “Red Line” would be a surprise.)

Simplicity -- Prepare clear, uncomplicated plans and clear, concise orders to ensure thorough understanding and reduce confusion.  (I can say I’m confused -- the Obama administration is trying to strike a deal on nukes with Iran, but will not require that they renounce terrorism or the destruction of Israel?)

Analyzing the conduct of our ongoing military operations using these nine principles, “the most important nonphysical factors that affect the conduct of operations,” suggests, at least to me, it is a good time to revisit our National Security and Military Strategies. Or at least consider relieving/impeaching the Commander-in-Chief for dereliction of duty.

Here is a trustworthy warning:  anytime you hear Obama say, “let me be clear” or a politician say “comprehensive solution”, just know what’s about to follow is malarkey.  As Thomas Sowell said, “People who pride themselves on their ‘complexity’ and deride others for being ‘simplistic’ should realize that the truth is often not very complicated. What gets complex is evading the truth.”  The problem is not with our doctrine being too complex.

Regarding our ongoing war with radical Islam, which they’ve declared and Obama disavows, it seems to me there are really only three options:  cage them, kill them, or convert them. 

 

Truthfully, it’s pretty simple.

This article appears in the 22 APR 2015 Upson Beacon.

Prayer Breakfast President

At a recent Easter prayer breakfast, President Obama, leaving his teleprompter for a moment, said that he, “gets concerned about Christians who are less than loving in their expressions.”  Perhaps it is those rampaging Presbyterians, those marauding Methodists, or some bomb-building Baptists whose lack of love has garnered the theologian-in-chief’s condemnation.   No Mr. President, Christ’s willing sacrifice on the cross means His followers don’t have to fly an airplane into a skyscraper, strap a bomb to their body, or behead an “unbeliever” to be with God for all of eternity.   

It cannot be said too loudly or too often:  Jesus Christ is the hope of nations and the antidote to all that ails us.  He is the answer, not the problem.  When Thomas (the doubter) asked Jesus how they could know the right way to go, Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.   If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.”  Jesus plainly declares He is the only way man can know God. 

Jesus is also the long awaited Messiah the followers of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob longed for.  After John the Baptist was thrown in prison he wanted to be reassured Jesus was the Messiah.   Jesus told His followers, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.  Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”  Thereby fulfilling what Isaiah said about the coming Messiah.

In talking to the woman at the well, Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.”  Most Bible believing Christians have a great love for the Jewish people and their state.  Paul explains a symbiotic relationship between the believing Gentile and Israel that can benefit both, “…salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious.  But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their full inclusion bring!”
 
Most Gentiles that know the Jewish carpenter as Savior realize they have been grafted into His faith.  Although believers may be Gentiles by birth, Noah, Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and David become their spiritual patriarchs and heroes as much as they are to the tribes of Israel.  Christians are enriched by the Judean ethic, and Israel is blessed by the Christians who recognize their spiritual heritage.    

President Obama’s demonstrated disdain for Israel, and his embracing of the Iranians, places America in a precarious position and puts Israel in peril.  Not only has he snubbed the only unwavering ally we have in the Middle East, but he also alienates our nation from God.  President Obama would be wise to heed Patrick Henry and President Netanyahu, both of whom are true leaders.  Patrick “Give me liberty or give me death” Henry said this about our nation, "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of

worship here."  

Paul told the Romans, ^“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”  Jesus explained this gospel (good news) one night to a Jewish teacher named Nicodemus.  Jesus told him, “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”  

The next verse is the most famous of all – John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  Now that is a “loving expression” that the Islamic State, our fifty states, and the world need to hear. 

My prayer for the President: rather than bashing Christians, be one.

Paul the Apostle and the Paratrooper

The US Army has a course that doesn’t get a lot of attention – Jumpmaster school.  The reward for successfully graduating is additional work and responsibility.  There are two very challenging parts to Jumpmaster training; Practical Work in the Aircraft or “PWAC” and Jumpmaster Personnel Inspection or “JMPI.”  

One of the daunting things about PWAC is the way it demands “grace under pressure” from the student.  There’s something about hanging out the door of an airplane wearing 125lbs of gear and parachute while flying one-thousand feet above the ground at 150 mph in the middle of the night that gets your adrenaline flowing.  Combine that with trying to locate your drop zone, maintaining control of your jumpers and countless other safety considerations and “keeping calm” becomes crucial.  But PWAC is not really the hardest part.

JMPI is what spelled the demise of most Jumpmaster wannabes.  Performing a timed inspection for improper rigging or defects of three rigged paratroopers and their equipment is very taxing.  Merely exceeding the time limit, missing one major or three minor deficiencies, spells failure.  

Here’s what Wikipedia says about the course, “Generally speaking, it takes a potential jumpmaster at least two attempts to pass the course (less than 30% of attendees earn a first time Go). In recognition of this, returning students are commonly referred to as ‘alumni’ by their Black Hat instructors. There is also a common joke that those who pass on their first attempt actually tested out early from the ‘full six week course’.”

Before each airborne operation, after donning his equipment, each paratrooper gets inspected by a Jumpmaster.  You could always tell how much trust the jumpers had in a particular Jumpmaster by how long the line of jumpers he had waiting in his inspection line.  Some Jumpmasters had fifteen guys waiting, while others were waiting for a jumper.  Jumpers wanted a thorough inspection from a guy that would tell them the truth.  If they were screwed up, they wanted to know it while there was still time to correct it.  

That seems to have all changed in our culture today.  “Don’t tell me what to do” could become the new National motto.  But that is not really what they mean.  What they really mean is, “I am going to tell you what to do.”  Unlike the jumpers who wanted their deficiencies and flaws uncovered, there are segments of society today that demand everyone accept, and even celebrate their deviance.

It has come to the point now where a pizza parlor owner in Indiana, a florist in Washington, and bakers in Oregon, and Denver have all had their livelihood’s and lifestyle’s destroyed, simply because they would not surrender their religious convictions to celebrate “alternative” lifestyle choices.  That is what happens when people no longer want to be one Nation, under God -- there will not be liberty and justice for all.  

The Apostle Paul foresaw this day two-thousand years ago. In writing to the Romans, Paul said, “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.  For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”

Paul declares that you have to deliberately deny the Creator because His creation alone makes His existence apparent.  Choose to deny the self-evident, and there won’t be any acceptable excuse.  But that’s just the beginning of their end. 

Paul continues, “Their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools…Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie… Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.”

Debasing yourself is destructive enough, but devastating others’ livelihoods is disgraceful. 

So, you want a Jumpmaster that won’t tell you the truth, have at it.  Just be prepared for a very hard landing.