Wondering if there is any real threat of a North American Union being formed? Here's a "nothing to fear" viewpoint.

Then check out a promoter of the idea -- uh, oh yeah, define words carefully -- promoter of a North American "Community."

Then you may want to ask yourself: If we have nothing to fear from an North American "Community," why is a group holding a "North American Model Parliment" for college students this summer?

" Ethnic cleansing" has been used to describe one ethnic group killing another within a country or region. "Islamic cleansing" is my term referring to Islamic militants demanding conversion to Islam or else -- the else being abondonment of property and exile or death.

In Iraq, Sunni Muslims are "cleansing" the Dora area of Christians. Note, these are not terrorists attacking the "great Satan, the United States." Nor is they Sunnis attacking Shia or vice versa. They are Iraqis attacking fellow Iraqis of a different faith. The belief system that produces this persecution is fundamentalist Islam.

The Cold War was a contest between ideologies, not just countries. The current war is also a contest between ideologies, not just terrorists and their sponsors.

 Cheryl and Jen, young women in their twenties, stroll together through the park.

"Spring is such a beautiful time!" exclaims Jen.

"All the flowers and greenery just renews the hope in my heart," says Cheryl.

"Oh, I agree – especially in your condition."

Cheryl laughs lightly and replies, "You mean in our condition."

The women giggle and continue walking, comparing notes on their early pregnancies. Suddenly, Jen whispers, “Look!” and tilts her head toward a third woman a short distance off the walk, playing on the grass with six children of varying ages.

"Are they all hers?" asks Cheryl.

"They have to be," adds Jen under her breath. "They all look alike and the ages are right."

"How selfish to have so many children. Does she know the carbon load she’s adding to the planet?"

"She's probably some fundamentalist Christian fanatic," replies Cheryl.

"People just refuse to see the negative impact having babies has on the environment!"

"Selfish," they say in unison.

They exchange glances and fall silent as they approach a fourth woman. She is seated on the bench beside the walk, smiling at an infant on her lap. She makes eye contact as Cheryl and Jen pass. They smile politely and walk on.

After a few steps, Cheryl mutters, "Speaking of selfish!"

"I know!" says Jen. "Wasting her pregnancy on a birth!"

"Think of the people she could have helped by donating her tissue!"

"Oh, Cheryl, I'm so glad we are not so selfish. We're going to help so many by donating the products of our conception to research!"

"Absolutely! Our donation will help dozens. What's wrong with these women?"

They exchange looks and say in unison, "Selfish!

How far are we from this surreal scene? Closer than you may think, consider:

- Being a stay-at-home mom (motherhood) has been devalued.
- Marriage has been severely weakened and remains under assault.
- Abortion is legal because it seems normal for a mother to have the right to kill her
  unborn child.
- Embryonic stem cell research is now justified because the embryos are unwanted.
- Some environmentalists are already calling children “bad” for the planet.

How long before shame and condemnation is leveled at those who conceive children instead of spare parts?

Adult Stem Cell Research (ASCR) Delivers Again

Cryo-Cell, a firm offering an umbilical cord blood bank, has discovered a new type of adult stem cell that can provide therapies for mothers.

"The stem cell, called a maternal placental stem cell (MPSC), is taken from the discarded placental tissue immediately after childbirth. Like stem cells recovered from umbilical cord blood, these cells may be collected without any risk to the mother or child.

The new cell is maternal in origin, meaning it is genetically matched with the mother...

Maternal stem cells have not to date been used in human therapies however, researchers believe that these cells may serve as an alternative to embryonic stem cells in the development of human cellular therapies and for use in regenerative medicine associated with the donor (mother)." Source

Let's put the money where the progress is being made -- ASCR and cord blood banks.

How we love to picture ourselves as enlighted people in an age of science and reason. We scoff at the superstitions of ancient people, while displaying our own form of idiocy.

Many today have irrational fear about man-made global warming. Belief in it is a powerful superstition. And like the witch doctor, who manipulates superstitions for power and position in a society, Democratic politicians chant formulaic words, shake Al Gore's multimedia talisman and grasp for votes.

The latest? Democrats want to cut funding for intelligence and study the "national security" impacts of global warming.

The Democrats call this "cutting edge." So, why do I feel like the knife is at our nation's throat?

...especially one pulled on the Huffington Post. The Evangelical Outpost has the details. Enjoy!

We're all looking for a candidate that has the right stuff -- personal traits of a leader. These traits include courage and the willingness to face opposition and prevail. Issues are important, but most of us also want a candidate that has the "right stuff."

Where can you find one? Look quick at the Reagan Presidential Library and pick a Republican. Yes, they have the willingness to face opposition in the form of MSNBC's Chris Matthews. You won't find the same "stuff" in the Democrat -- who whined and walked away from a debate sponsored by Fox News. How tough can you be if Brit Hume and Fox News scare you?

No, I have not had an accident. To my faithful readers I promise to begin posting again shortly. We have been caught in the midst of a move to a new location -- something that exhausts you and bleeds time from your life. I'll be back to posting in a day or so...

How do you explain what caused the Virginia Tech killer commit the massacre? Just how unhinged was he? Chuck Colson has an interesting perspective:

We are uncomfortable attributing events like this to human evil, much less to a kind of evil that seeks to undo God's creation—what Christians call the demonic.

Yet without this idea, events like this massacre can never be understood. We might learn that the killer was "mentally unbalanced" or on anti-depressants. But, absent evidence that he was clinically delusional, this knowledge will not explain why he walked onto a college campus, locked people in a lecture hall, and killed them.

Events like this not only horrify us—they unsettle us. We think of sin and the demonic as not-so-quaint relics from a superstitious age. And even more destructive, random events like this remind us how little we know about ourselves and what we are capable of, as well. But failing to call evil evil misleads us about the world we live in and our need for God's grace, the only real answer and hope for any of us.

Why do we seek comfort in the midst of calamity? The Virginia Tech murders had me pondering the question today.

Do the wildebeests stop to mourn when a lion kills one of the herd? Perhaps, if the loss was a calf, the mother will search for it. But animals do not gather to mourn, pray and seek the comfort of faith when one of the group dies.

Yet people often feel an increased need to connect to God in times like these. I remember the surge in expressions of faith following 9/11. What tugs at our hearts in crisis and loss?

What is it that binds people together in times like these? Why do those of us who have not lost a loved one pause in shock and sympathy? Why do we care? What do we share?

We share the image of the One who made us.

The slaughter of innocents at Virginia Tech has raised the gun-control debate into public awareness again.  Key to the debate is how each side answers the question, "What is evil?" Each side wants to control the evil it sees.

One side sees the gun as evil. They seek greater control over access to guns. They marvel and comment on the fact the Virginia Tech murderer bought his guns legally. Control of guns is the control of evil, they believe.

The other side sees the killer as evil. In fact, because this side sees the evil possible in others, it wants access to guns for personal protection. Guns are a tool that can be used for good or evil, they believe.

Reality favors the pro-gun crowd. Evil dwells in the hearts of many. Controlling the legal purchase of guns will never control the real source of the evil. However, this argument will not persuade the anti-gun crowd. For they fail to see the reality of human evil.

Until agreement can be reached on the reality of human evil, the disagreement on gun control will continue. 

 We each have the ability to dream
       Of a world without evil,
     While at least a bit of evil
Lives in the heart of each dreamer.

The Don Imus insult of the Rutgers women was wrong. Even though it was hyped by some for political purposes, it resonated with so many because we possess an ethical nature. Even from an early age we cry out against insult and offense, "That's not fair!"

But our sense of justice is corrupt. Just look at Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton – leading the moral outrage against Imus when they are guilty of the same sins. Al and Jesse display another characteristic of human nature -- even though we condemn others, we rarely condemn ourselves.

Rosie O'Donnell spews vitriolic insults against others, and nothing happens. So why did Imus get the ax while Rosie gets a pass? Our sense of fairness is not only corrupt and often self serving, it can be influenced by the opinions of others.

We are also quick to judge. Many in and out of the media condemned the Duke lacrosse players based on the allegation of rape – even when the evidence was contradictory. Even now some have no sympathy for the falsely accused athletes, grumbling that these rich white males got better treatment than most because they could afford high-powered attorneys. How selective our sense of outrage can be!

All of this illustrates two truths in the Judaeo-Christian worldview:

1. People possess a special nature – call it "spiritual." We are qualitatively different than animals because we have a moral nature.
2. We are all corrupt. This is seen in the self-centered and hypocritical way we judge others compared to ourselves.

Tom DeLay beat me to the punch -- If Imus should be fired, so should Rosie O'Donnell. DeLay makes some great points, including:

And for the contextual icing on the cake, where are the repercussions for Rosie O'Donnell's hateful, idiotic accusations that President Bush was behind the 9/11 attacks? And her ignorant parody of the Chinese language? Or her comparison of conservative Christians to Islamo-fascist terrorists? Why has ABC not suspended her from The View? Why has she not been frog-marched up to some radio show to apologize to 9/11 victims/Chinese-American activists/evangelical Christians?

DeLay also invites you to write or email The View and demand that Rosie go.

Talk about intolerance! Don't miss the results of Missouri State's investigation into a program biased against students of faith.  A program that was the most negative work environment reviewers had seen. The university president may shut down the Social Work program and give faculty the boot!

 We run alarmist documentaries about global warming while pulling documentaries about Islam because they are "alarmist." Go figure.