Without a Paddle

I’ve often described the culture of a military organization as being like a river.  Once you join that organization, or dive-in, there is a culture or current that moves you along with the rest of the team.  Going with the flow, so to speak.  The better the unit and the more motivated the members, the easier it is to get swept-in and pushed along in the right direction.

America had such a cultural current.  We had a distinctly Judea-Christian outlook  When an immigrant arrived they became immersed in a distinctly American milieu.  Sure, there were ethnic enclaves and national neighborhoods, and even ghettos that were reminiscent of “The Old Country” some thirty, forty, or even one hundred years ago, but they were launching pads for the younger generation to go out from, not sanctuary cities or virtually-gated communities to keep American culture out.       

Don’t miss the effect technology plays in enabling these new “Americans” to reach-back to their previous homeland.  They can stay linguistically and culturally unassimilated through the world-wide web and satellite entertainment in such a way that they will never be anything more than a nominal American.  Push 1 if you have no intention of learning English.  

That’s not to say that the media, entertainment and technology are all negative.  There was a time when the main stream media was actually pro-American.  Someone under 30 ma have never heard a National newscast where we weren’t the bad guys – at least until Fox News.  That’s not to say they’re the answer, but at least they don’t actively seek to undermine the formerly prevailing American cultural tradition.

Believe it or not young folks, there was also a time in the past when lots of shows on the three networks (when that’s all there was) that promoted family values.  These shows depicted largely healthy families (i.e. a Mom and Dad) and promoted traditional mores and values.  Police, military and even cowboy characters were largely portrayed as good guys.   

Moses parted the Red Sea with the help of God; Obama has divided the US with the help of the liberal media and secular-progressive academia.   The unifying effect the media once had is now used to promote division and contention. 

A major new survey by the Pew Research Center of more than 35,000 Americans summarizes the changes: “The Christian share of the U.S. population is declining, while the number of U.S. adults who do not identify with any organized religion is growing.”

Thomas Jefferson said, “Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear.”  It is understandable that people would question God’s existence nowadays.  It is hard to reason exactly what god was behind the Mali hotel incident where people were required to cite (from memory) verses of the Koran or be shot.

Why the precipitous drop in America?  “The percentage of adults (18 and older) who describe themselves as Christians has dropped by nearly eight percentage points in just seven years, from 78.4% in an equally massive Pew Research survey in 2007 to 70.6% in 2014.” It would be unfair to ascribe all of this to academia, the media, or Obama.  Nonetheless, something has happened since Obama has assumed the highest elected office in our land. 

 

According to the same survey, there has been a corresponding increase over the same period in the percentage of Americans who are “religiously unaffiliated – describing themselves as atheist, agnostic or ‘nothing in particular’ – it has jumped more than six points, from 16.1% to 22.8%.  The share of Americans who identify with non-Christian faiths also has also inched up, rising 1.2 percentage points, from 4.7% in 2007 to 5.9% in 2014. Growth has been especially great among Muslims and Hindus.”

To the followers of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; take heart!    The Psalmist saw this day coming and encourages us with these words:

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear…  There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts.   The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.”

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.