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

TWO AMERICAS

Are we becoming two Americas? Are we half liberal, Democrat, progressive and the other half conservative, Republican, traditional Americans? And if we are, can we ever get together at some level for the good of the country? In my several years on this planet I have seen many Administrations come and go. I have seen successful Democrat presidents and I have seen successful Republican presidents. I fondly remember Democrat Harry Truman and I also fondly remember Republican Ronald Reagan. Some of the Administrations had like thinking Congresses and some had to deal with opposition in Congress. Regardless, most of these Administrations were capable of governing and successful with their attempts.

Don’t get me wrong. Most elected Administrations have had to work to get the job done. But, the job, for the most part, got done. In my lifetime America has been involved in several major wars and many more so-called police actions. Most but not all were concluded with America and her influence in tact.  

Today we have evolved to a state of debilitating non-compromising, party first, country second, I win, you lose politics. The people we have hired to govern seem to prefer their political party over their country. Bickering has become the order of the day. We are involved in an interminable war in the Middle East that has lasted over ten years, the longest war in our history and there seems to be no end in sight. Scandal after scandal keeps popping up. Government agencies and lifelong civil servants seem incapable of doing their jobs and even less interested in the good of the country.

Poll after poll finds the American people fed up. Fed up with both the President and the Congress. Today President Obama has the lowest approval ratings of his presidency.  Congressional approval ratings are much lower yet. The people are also fed up with civil servants who refuse to answer questions and explain their mistakes and misjudgements.

Have we gone too far to recover? Can people of good faith, people who love this country, sit down and work out satisfactory solutions to our problems? Everything isn’t politics. For the good of the country sometimes the Republicans have to win. For the good of the country sometimes the Democrats have to win. The most important thing is that the country wins.

Today we have major problems facing us. Our never ending war in the Middle East for one. We have scandals which will not go away and they must be resolved. Now we are faced with possibly the most dangerous issue we have seen for decades. That is the invasion on our southern border of illegal aliens from all over the world. We absolutely cannot afford this influx of illegals. They are who knows who from who knows where. They bring nothing to this country but problems and costs.

It is past time for adults, liberal and conservative, to get together and fix the messes. They are not going away. We are not two Americas. We are one country that needs to resolve its differences for the good of the whole.

Ron Scarbro

ISRAEL IS HERE TO STARY

I wrote recently about a fact of war. In war there are no ties, only winners and losers. Secondly, a war is never over until a winner and a loser have been established. Another fact is that wars are generally won by the best armed and the best equipped. That country with the best fighting force with the best leaders and Generals are usually the winners.

Consider now Israel. Israel is fighting a war but not a war against another country. Israel is fighting against a terrorist group known as Hamas. Hamas is armed and supplied by Iran whose objective is to annihilate Israel. They are currently using Gaza as their base and setting up their missile launchers in schools, mosques, hospitals, and other civilian buildings. They do that because they are cowards and choose to hide behind women and children. They do this because they mistakenly believe Israel will not fire upon such sites.

Well Israel has evidently decided, for once and for all, to end the continuing harassment and shelling by Hamas. Israel is eliminating the Hamas threat.

Some countries have apparently decided that Israel is a bully for taking this action against this small country and this very small contingent of fighters. Our own president has been strangely very quiet about the action being taken by Israel. I choose to speak and to speak loudly about this event.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said on many occasions that if Hamas stopped their constant shelling of Israel, this war would be over. If Israel stopped firing though, Israel would ultimately be destroyed. It is clear that Israel doesn’t want to expand their territory. They just want peace and security.

Here are some more facts. Israel is by far the best equipped and the best armed country in the region. They are our ally. Their Generals are the best trained and the best educated. What this all means to Hamas is they had best learn to swim because Israel is not going to stop until Hamas is driven from Gaza and into the Mediterranean Sea.  

For years now Hamas has been poking at the sleeping bear and today that bear has awakened. The bear is angry and the bear is going to seek out and destroy those who have been poking at him. And if you are paying attention Iran, you might want to start practicing up on your backstroke. You may want to reconsider arming groups like Hamas because Israel just may hold you responsible for what has happened. I hope they do and keep going until the entire Middle East comes to understand that Israel is here to stay. That could be very bad news for terrorist supporters like Iran. With the weaponry in Israel’s hands Iran could be reduced to rubble in a matter of hours.

There are some clear lessons to be learned here. Much to the consternation of Iran and many other Middle Eastern countries, Israel is here to stay. Another lesson is that Israel doesn’t particularly care what other countries think. There is definitely going to be collateral damage but any blood that is spilled will be on the hands of cowardly Hamas and their supplier, Iran.

Ron Scarbro

THIS IS DESERTION, NOT POLITICS

Now let me see if I have this straight. Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl has been checked out by the medical personnel and has been declared healthy enough to return to active duty. And though he is under investigation for crimes up to and including desertion in a time of war, he is not under any restriction and can come and go as he pleases. He has been given a nice clean desk job. Meanwhile the soldiers with whom Bergdahl was stationed in Afghanistan have not been contacted or questioned. Yes, I think I’ve got this straight.

By way of background, I am a veteran of the US Army. The first thing learned as a new recruit was how and when to salute. On my first day in the Army I was confronted by a young 2nd Lieutenant who was extremely unhappy that I didn’t offer up a snappy salute when I saw him. In my defense at the time I didn’t know a 2nd Lieutenant from a pine tree. To make sure I didn’t ever forget the young Lieutenant had me spend the next thirty minutes saluting a pine tree.

The second thing I learned was the rules under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The number one no no was that a soldier never, under any circumstance, deserts his post. It was made clear to us that such a desertion in wartime was punishable by death, period. You desert, you die.

So now what we have here is a probable deserter who was traded for five enemy killers who will doubtless go back to their old ways. Five killers who we will have to deal with again and again until we finally eliminate them.

Of course the problem here is that our President made this deal and cannot be made to look like a jerk. A lot of us believe that that horse left the barn long ago and he didn’t have to make this stupid swap to look like a jerk. He took care of that much earlier. Politicians, especially politicians who have never worn the uniform, make a lot of mistakes regarding the military. Obama thought this deal was going to make him look good. This was going to take all of the scandals off the front pages. Well it has but not in the way he planned.

Am I angry that this swap took place? Absolutely. Am I angry that Bergdahl hasn’t been dealt with yet? You bet your life. But what I am most angry about is that the Army, my Army, would even consider whitewashing this deserter’s actions to protect a moronic decision by Obama. Any failure to prosecute Bergdahl will be pure politics.

Does anyone actually believe this is going to just go away? Do the morons in this Administration think we are just going to look the other way? Do the relatives of the soldiers who were killed looking for Bergdahl just forget the whole thing? Not likely.

The US Army, my Army, is not going to be a party to any such garbage. Those little Generals who think they can cover up a wartime deserter for political reasons had better reconsider. As is always the case, the cover up will be much worse than the original crime.

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is going to have to stand trial for his actions. He is going to have to face his fellow soldiers whom he abandoned. He is going to have to face the relatives of the soldiers who were killed looking for him. Then if he is found guilty, he must face the penalty determined by the court martial.

Ron Scarbro