NATIONS SHOULD NOT MESS WITH ISRAEL

I am neither a preacher nor a Bible scholar and this column is not a sermon. I am, however, a student. I am a student of history and a student of Bible history. This column uses as reference the Bible.

This is a cautionary tale regarding Israel. Nations should, for their own security, not mess with Israel. In the Bible, in Genesis chapter 12 verses 2 and 3 God gives all the lands of Northern Africa and beyond, what we know today as Israel and her surrounding countries, to Abraham. This land was to be the homeland for all of Abraham’s family for all the centuries to come. In these verses God tells Abraham that He will bless those who bless Israel and He will curse those who curse Israel. It should be noted that the name Israel was also God’s choice as he changed the name of one of Abraham’s offspring, Jacob, to Israel. That can be found in Genesis chapter 32 verse 28.

It is not my intention to preach today but instead just to inform. Whether you believe the writings of the Bible or not is your choice. How you regard this information is also your choice. My role is only to inform. These verses make it crystal clear that nations who attack (curse) Israel or defile Israel, will themselves be cursed and defiled by God Himself.

I also find it interesting that the Muslim faith believes and accepts the fact that Abraham was God’s chosen one and that he was to be patriarch of the chosen people, the Jews. How they have gotten to the place they are today is a mystery to me.

And so the cautionary tale. We all make our choices.  We decide who and what to believe. We decide what we will use as source material. It is not my intent to tell you what you should believe. If you don’t believe the Bible is truth, that is your choice, oh and your problem.

This is what I believe. Anti-Semites from all over the world will face a judgement some day that will be for them, at best, unpleasant. Radical Muslim baby killers who think 72 virgins await them in Paradise are in for a tremendous shock. Our own politicians, both current and past, who espouse anti-Semitic views, will have to explain themselves some day.

By the same token, being one of God’s chosen doesn’t give anyone the right to be intolerant of others. All through history and especially the history recorded in the Bible, God has punished Jews and Gentiles alike.

Hamas, pay attention. Iran, take heed. Nations of the world, listen up. You are fighting a losing battle. You cannot win. All you are doing is setting yourself up for a gigantic disappointment at best and total annihilation at worst. Understand that Israel is protected by a force much bigger than any army. Don’t you understand that Israel is a modern, progressive, economically vibrant state, and she is surrounded by primitive tent dwelling, goat herders who choose to be Israel’s enemy? Who do you suppose is on the wrong side of God’s preference? The message is clear. Leave Israel alone. Work to improve yourselves. Face some reality. Don’t mess with Israel.

Ron Scarbro

POLICE OFFICERS ARE NOT PAID TO BE ABUSED

What is happening in Ferguson, MO? What we know is that during an arrest of an 18 year old there was an apparent struggle and the young man was shot and killed. The police officer who is alleged to have done the shooting was himself hospitalized for his injuries. We are also being told that the 18 year old was unarmed. What we don’t know is anything else about the incident. There is an ongoing investigation by among others the FBI. Soon a report will be issued and then and only then will the facts be known. Until that investigation is concluded, all we have is speculation.

It appears that many in that community have already made up their minds as to what happened and have decided, without any facts, to exact their own retribution. That retribution seems to be in the form of looting legitimate businesses and burning down their town. They would appear to be unmoved by facts. They do not seem to care. There have been death threats against the police officer and against all police officers in that community. They have apparently decided that lynch mobs are okay as long as they are the ones doing the lynching. The situation is further exacerbated by people like Al Sharpton who arrive just in time to stir up an already angry mob.

The only benefit served by the arrival of people like Sharpton is the benefit to Sharpton himself at the expense of the community he visits. He is a  self serving, political animal who seems to think only of himself. He’s come a long way since his days as a drug dealer who turned into an FBI informant to escape punishment for his own crimes.

Wouldn’t communities like Ferguson, MO be better served by people coming to their aid not with fire breathing, mob stirring, rhetoric, but with constructive information? Teaching things like getting an education, and respect for law and law enforcement officers, and responsibility for reproductive choices? Towns like Ferguson, MO are the way they are because of their choices. If they are being held down or held back it is because they are holding themselves back.

Police officers are not paid to be abused. They are not paid to keep their hands to their sides while a criminal attempts to take their weapon and use it against them. Their job is to make sure laws are upheld. Failure on the part of anyone to obey lawful instructions from an officer is a crime. Lying to police is a crime. Attacking any police officer is tantamount to asking for the maximum punishment. Besides all that, it is just stupid.

Like you I don’t know all the facts regarding the incident in Ferguson. I believe we all will know when the investigation is concluded. If any police officer exceeded his authority, he should face whatever punishment the law allows. If it turns out that he was completely justified in his actions, then the entire community should apologize for their actions. Rioting and looting by mobs is the action of uncivilized feral thugs. It wouldn’t surprise me if all the retailers packed up and moved out leaving Ferguson without essential services or grocery stores.  

Residents of all communities benefit by the presence of police officers. I wonder how the citizens would feel if they were left with no police protection. If the officer involved in this incident is sacrificed to the masses for political expediency, then every police officer should resign in protest and leave the entire state without any police protection.

Residents of Ferguson, go home and wait for the official investigation. Try to act civilized. Justice will be served whether you like that justice or not.

Ron Scarbro

THE PLIGHT OF BLACK AMERICA

Attorney General Eric Holder has issued a verbal indictment concerning black convictions and black incarcerations. It is apparently his opinion that black people are being treated unfairly, are disproportionately arrested, prosecuted, and jailed for crimes. Now there is no doubt that the vast majority of inmates housed in various prisons and jails across this country are black. But, is this the elephant in the room? Who is actually committing the crimes in America? What if the crimes being committed are disproportionately committed by black people?

Here’s something to think about. The black population of America is around 12% of the total population. What if you could just break down the total number of crimes committed by whites, Hispanics, blacks, and Asians? How do you suppose those numbers would look? Well it is never going to happen because that would prove beyond any doubt where the problem is. By percentage blacks commit the vast majority of crimes in this country.

Some continue in the mistaken belief that this is due to poverty. Some say it is due to lack of education and opportunity. I had a good friend who used to argue with me that it only appears that blacks are the major perpetrators of crime because the media publicizes their actions and hides white crime. That might have helped him with his conscience but it did nothing for reality. That particular “head in the sand” attitude is one of the reasons for the problem.

Among other glaring problems in the “black community” is the fact that 70% of black children are born to unwed mothers and the children are then raised without fathers. Black men have become nothing more than sperm donors. Children are brought into the world without the influence of any male figure in their lives. A second issue is what President George W. Bush called the “soft bigotry of low expectations.” Schools don’t have the same requirements and expectations of black kids as they do of other races. These two issues alone are almost guaranteed to “keep them on the plantation.”

Can this be fixed? Can the plight of black people be improved? Here are a few suggestions. Number one, the judicial system is doing nobody a favor by refusing to hold young defendants liable for their crimes. To do so cheats these youngsters out of a needed learning experience. Everyone should learn early on that there is consequence for bad actions. All criminal defendants should realize that the police department is the law. When you fight a cop, when you pull a weapon on a cop, when you refuse to obey lawful instructions from any police officer, you should then be prepared to suffer the consequence. Trying to take a policeman’s gun is tantamount to asking to die. Often those wishes are granted.

I know that all races commit crimes. I also know that all races sometimes refuse to see the police as authority. That is a mistake regardless who does it. The policeman isn’t paid enough to be abused by punks regardless of their race.

To Eric Holder I have this bit of advice. Quit playing the tired and worn out race card. Black people are convicted and imprisoned because they commit the vast majority of the crimes. If you truly cared about the plight of black America, you would get out of your shiny office and get into the inner city and help teach young blacks respect for law and law enforcement officers. Unless and until that respect is learned, nothing is going to change for black America.

Ron Scarbro

SUING THE PRESIDENT OR IMPEACHMENT LITE?

Suing the president or, as we call it, “impeachment lite.” So why is the House suing the president? First, you understand the House is made up of lawyers and suing is what lawyers do. Secondly, it is because they know they cannot impeach him. The last time the Republicans tried to impeach a Democrat president, the press crucified them. That Democrat went on to be disbarred from the practice of law for lying to a Grand Jury and then, for no reason intelligent people could ever understand, became the darling of the Democrat party. Thirdly, even if they were successful with articles of impeachment, that would leave us with what has been identified as “impeachment insurance,” Joe Biden. So they are left with only this attempt to embarrass the president.

Let us now examine the real reason for this lawsuit. We are being told that the suit is because the president is attempting to enact laws and change already written laws by executive order bypassing Congress which they say is against the law. Well he is and he is obviously not the first president to do so. The problem for me is the laws he is actually attempting to enact or change, not the fact that he is doing so.

It should come as no surprise to you that I am no fan of this president or of his policies. But that having been said, he has been elected and reelected by the people. If he is guilty of lawbreaking, then Congress should remove him. Otherwise, just keep quiet and work to defeat such policies in the next election.  This lawsuit is nothing but political theater, period. It will be a gigantic waste of time and money designed to take voter’s attention away from the real issues facing us and creating a story for the press to follow. It is a lot like the old carnivals which used to come to small towns. The dancing girls would come on the stage in their scanty outfits while the pickpockets moved among the crowd fleecing the gawkers.

Does anybody really think that this lawsuit will ever go anywhere? And even if it did, what would the Congress win? We already have a book of rules. We already have a Constitution. What we need is to have people in positions of authority who know and understand the law and work to enforce it. Our Congress passes numerous laws to stack upon the laws which we already have but no one seems interested is enforcing the laws already on the books. Incidentally the House of Representatives holds the purse strings for the entire government and could, if they were truly serious, stop any action by any president by refusing to fund it.

Clearly we don’t elect emperors. We don’t elect kings. We elect presidents and they represent all the people, not just the forty per cent who voted for them. Our laws should be enacted by the Congress as the Constitution requires. The President’s only role is to sign the law or to veto it. The Congress then has the authority, by that same Constitution, to override his veto.

Suing this president might make some headlines but it is going to end up being a fiasco. Thoughtful, intelligent people need to sit down and figure out a way to get along for the good of the country and get on with the business of governing. Let’s leave theater to actors, not silly politicians.

Ron Scarbro