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Nobel Peace Prize

Everyone is stunned and unable to point to anything Mr. Obama has done to earn the peace prize. Everyone is saying that he has not done anything. I beg to differ. He has brought our nation to the brink of bankruptcy singled-handedly. He can blame President Bush all he wants, but things began falling apart when people began to believe that Barak Obama was going to be elected President.

Imagine this scenario if you will. The wealthy realize that the man, who wants to reallocate the funds by taking from the rich to give to the poor, will, in all probability, win the election. So they take all their assets and liquefy them and move their money out of the country. This causes the banks to find themselves in a precarious situation; no actual cash in their banks. If this isn’t so, then why is Barack Obama trying to get foreign countries to give him the names of those hiding money overseas?

Of course, people start losing their jobs because the wealthy realize that they need to start shaving their expenditures and hiding their assets. Thus, the housing market, which is already precarious because of organizations like ACORN, which, by the way, has very strong associations with Mr. Obama, begins to tumble because so many cannot afford to pay their mortgages anymore. And by the way, Freddie Mac and Fanny Mae, were deregulated during the Bush Administration, but it was done by the Democrats in office, not by anything President Bush implemented.

Mr. Obama has also weakened our country militarily. He is dismantling the STAR Wars Program. His administration leaks our secrets daily. He is making us more vulnerable day by day to terrorist attacks and nuclear strikes. He is destroying the morale of the military and the CIA; and to top it all off, he is building his own civilian army while his cronies in office put out reports that trash the military, Christians, and any group in the country that happens to disagree with his politics. He is also encouraging his comrades in the country to turn in their neighbors if they don’t agree with his policies.

I remember when it was thought that another Democratic President may have sold China the secrets of one of our military’s airplanes, but Barack Obama has sold our entire country to China. Our currency is the weakest in the world. President Bush was in office for eight years, and during that time our currency was one of the strongest. We had clout, influence, and power; and though we may not have been liked, we were at least respected. Now, I believe that the world thinks that we are weak. They have given Mr. Obama exactly what he craves, praise and accolades. For that, he will continue to trash our country until we are so weak that we will no longer be able to defend ourselves, forget any of our allies. Then maybe, he will be able to step onto the world stage, and become the leader of the European Union, or maybe of a world federation!

He has done a great thing that the many over the past few centuries have been striving to do; he has brought the United States of America to its knees. And it is not over yet.

But we only have ourselves to blame because we have destroyed the very foundation of our country. We tossed God out on His ear. Our founding fathers made Him our foundation. They stated it quite clearly, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” Get rid of the Creator and you get rid of the rights! All that is left then is men telling us what we can and cannot do.

Great Day in Boston

We always enjoy ourselves on New Year's Day, but I must say that one of the best New Year’s Day that we have ever spent was in Boston. We wandered the city both on New Year’s Eve and on New Year’s Day sampling an intellectual smorgasbord. It was called First Night in Boston.

During the New Year’s Day First Night celebration, places like the Aquarium were open to the public free of charge. Buildings throughout the city were open and were hosts to a variety of cultural dances, plays, symposiums, comedy acts, choirs, viewings, etc. It was amazing. There were ice sculptures displayed throughout the city, people became live participants in works of art, and historical buildings came alive with practices of the past. First Night is a Festival celebrating art and community in Boston that begins New Year’s Eve and goes throughout New Year’s Day. Certain events do require a badge which can be purchased for around $15.00 for adults; however, this badge can be used throughout the year as entre to various cultural events. It is a nominal fee to pay for such an extravagant set of experiences.

We stood in line with a group of people to view an art exhibit and became part of it. None of us knew what would happen as we entered the exhibit. We milled around kind of confused and then one after another we climbed into a giant ice tray. It was a bit silly, but it was also an exercise in an unexpected, but pleasant and humorous social interaction. My daughter and I had a great time.

The following morning, we went to the Aquarium and had a wonderfully peaceful time watching marine animals swimming in the circular aquarium. I was pleasantly surprised that the Aquarium was not very crowded. I originally thought that it would be packed. However, I am assuming that because this great organization opens its doors free of charge to everyone not only every New Year’s Day but also once weekly, and though there were many visitors, it wasn’t too packed to enjoy oneself thoroughly.

During First Night, there were so many activities that the palate of all individuals must have surely been satisfied. Of course, Boston is known for its citizen’s taste for intellectual treats.

Recently, I happened upon an article published in The Boston Globe that was a gift as good as gold. It was entitled, Human Anatomy for Everyone! This wonderful article opened up another intellectual smorgasbord for everyone. Again, Boston demonstrated its citizen’s well known taste for intellectual treats. MIT has started what is called Open Course Ware and consists of some online courses that anyone can take for free. Wow. This is unbelievable. What can we say, but, “Thank you Boston.”?

I wholeheartedly recommend Boston as a place to go not only during the Holidays, but all year around. I have walked Boston’s Freedom Trail twice now, once during the summer months and once during the wintertime. My experiences in Boston brought to life the historical events of the past in which Boston played such a significant part, as well as other events such as the Holocaust. I am pleased that the citizens of Boston have taken on the responsibility of not only keeping history alive, but of nurturing education for the entire country; so, kudos to you citizens of Boston.

First Short Story: Halloween DNR

Read my first short story and enjoy. Halloween DNR by R. A. Holloway

Every year at Halloween my Grandmother retreats to the hospital. There is always some reason she must go in, but all the family knows it's because she hates Halloween. She cannot tolerate the yearly observance of goblins and ghouls ringing doorbells for candy. She just knows someone will rob her, or steal her cat, or egg her house, or do something far more nefarious in nature. So she chucks it all, and has another needless treatment or operation. When she comes out, she has yet another change in her appearance to mark the occasion. A tighter forehead, fuller lips, cuter nose, or some such modification. I always found it ironic that on the hated holiday where people put on masks and go around ringing doorbells for candy, she would go to the hospital for a new mask to camouflage her flaws. She may not go ringing doorbells for candy, but she certainly does like the attention she receives after her Halloween outings. Don't get me wrong, I am not criticizing my Grandmother because I love her dearly. I'm just commenting on the irony of the situation. Personally, I find it hilarious, and think she is the best.
This year, she has decided to go in for a peel. It is a chemical thing, and she is prepared to have a tender red face for a couple of days before she sees the great results. She has even invited others to join her for a peel on her. My mother flatly refused. She is against any kind of operation. This is probably a reaction to my Grandmother's many nips, tucks, lifts, and various suctions. I myself thought everyone should join in, and keep her company, and so I said, "Yeah mom, all the girls should go get a peel with Grandma. You can all sit there and look at your tomato red faces and commiserate with each other about the pain. And then remind each other how it will be worth it to look so much younger." "Ha, ha, ha," I laughed. Big mistake! For my comments, I received a free peel. That's right. This year on Halloween, instead of indulging myself with decadent chocolate treats and scoping out all the cool costumes, I will be in the hospital receiving a painful chemical peel! I have been mandated to go with Grandma for a peel, thanks to my mother and my big mouth.
Well the night has finally arrived. "Yippee" I say in a glum voice. "Grandma and I are going to the hospital for a chemical peel." My only good thoughts are that at least the torture is free. Tomorrow, when I go to school with a red face, I'll just tell my pals it is a reaction to some face paint. God forbid that my friends should find out that I went to the hospital for a face peel with my Grandma! I would never live it down. I am generally a humorous kind of guy, but that is mostly because of other people's foils and foibles, not my own. Dad thinks it's hilarious. Every time he has looked at me in the past few days, since I opened my big fat mouth, he laughed out loud. It's been humiliating, and I can hardly wait until the whole ordeal is over!
It's 6:00 P.M. on Halloween, and time for us to head over to the hospital. My Grandmother's doctor has given us a check-in time of 7:00 P.M. I'm still thinking about dad laughing at me. Maybe once he sees my red face, he'll stop laughing. Then again, maybe he'll just laugh all the harder. "Oh well, it'll soon be over," I say to myself as we leave for the hospital. As we drove to the hospital, Grandma said, "Well John, perhaps we can make it a date to do this, or something similar every year." Her comment actually frightened me into a stunned silence. "Someone please help me." I screamed inside. I have gotten in over my head. I can only hope that mom hates these procedures so much that she won't force me into any more. One thing's for sure, I will never make comments like those again without thinking! I made that pledge to myself, and I fully intend to keep it.
When we arrived Grandma was prepared for a full-face Phenol peel which would take between one and two hours. I, on the other hand, opted for a light peel. How bad could it be? I get sunburned every spring playing baseball. This can't be that bad. "No big deal." I told myself. We would both spend the night in the hospital, and I would drive Grandma home tomorrow morning. "No sweat. I can do this." I said.
Grandma's doctor must have sensed that I was feeling some discomfort because he tried to put me at ease. He said, "Well son it's not often that I encounter grandsons that share their grandmother's interests." He certainly did put everyone else at ease. This I know because everyone laughed at me. I kind of had to laugh, too, though, when I thought about it from their point of view. "Well then let's get this show on the road." I said. Since my peel would only take about 15 minutes, of course, they were going to begin with me. The nurse came in, and then, she actually asked whether we wanted to be resuscitated should an emergency occur! I am now officially terrified. "What kind of emergency could possibly occur during a facial peel? Can my face melt off?" I asked, as I gasped in terror. Why in the world would they ask such a ridiculous question? Unless.... My mind began working over time. My breath came in big gulps. All of a sudden, I couldn't catch my breath. The doctor gave me a bag and instructed me to breathe in and out of it slowly.
He explained that it was only hospital policy and everyone who had any procedure done had to decide whether to sign a DNR, a Do Not Resuscitate form. "A DNR! Good God! This is getting too intense for me. I am just a kid. How did I get myself into this mess?" I spat at my Grandmother and her doctor. They laughed and told me to calm down.
"What could possibly happen?" my Grandmother asked. "I think it's so funny that every year I sign saying 'should there be any emergency please do not resuscitate me.' After all, who wants to walk around with the type of face one would end up with should there be a real emergency? Why, it would be like living Halloween every day? Wouldn't it?" she queried.
I was aghast. What, I had once thought of as ironic, was now beyond believable. I was in some sort of Halloween Twilight Zone. Honestly, all I wanted to do was go home. However, my dad would never stop laughing at me if he found out I hyperventilated, and refused to go through with the peel. So I signed the DNR just like Grandma, and told them, "Okay, okay, let's get crackin."
You can't imagine the pain. They said, "Oh, don't worry most people only feel a brief burning sensation, followed by a feeling of numbness or stinging." What a big lie. I thought my face was melting off. I was so loud and so upset, the doctor finally gave me a shot. Now I was floating; floating, while my face was melting off. I could even see pieces dropping here and there. It was ghastly. But that was nothing compared to what I saw as they started working on my Grandma. I saw pieces of flesh drop off to the bone. That's right, I saw bones. They actually melted her face off to the bone. It took them hours to get down that far. But they did. I saw them put some Vaseline or something like it in place of her face. Boy was she going to be mad when she was resuscitated. I actually laughed and laughed, as I thought about her reaction when she realized she had no face, only bones, and that they had resuscitated her. I kept telling her doctor, "Boy, you better not resuscitate her. She's going to be mad at you."
Finally, we were taken to our room. I must have fallen asleep sometime between bouts of pledging never to open my big fat mouth again, worrying about my melting face, and laughing at Grandma's reaction to her bones. When I woke up my face was sore and red. Once I remembered what we had been through, I quickly looked over at my Grandmother to make sure she was okay. Honest to God, she looked just like I had described before, in place of her face, there was a mask of Vaseline hiding the bones. I was petrified that when she awoke she was going to be burning mad. As I laughed at my humorous pun, my Grandmother awoke.
The doctor came in just at that moment, and he explained that after a Phenol peel, she would need a pain medication, and he would prescribe a mild one to relieve any discomfort. He also explained that the Vaseline like substance was a waterproof adhesive that was applied to the treated area. He promised that it would be removed in 1-2 days. He also instructed her to cover the area with an antiseptic powder several times a day. He warned that a scab would form, and, within 7-10 days, new skin would form. He told her to expect the skin to be red at first, but he assured her that the color would lighten over a few weeks to a few months. I refused to let my Grandma look into a mirror. All I wanted to do at that moment was to go home, and listen to my dad laugh. I had just spent the most frightening Halloween night of my life.
In a couple of months, my dear Grandmother looked much younger. She was probably as much younger in looks, as I was older for my experience in terror. Nowadays, I'm with my mother in the opinion that no operation is a good operation. I also know, now, that I am not one for medicine; that shot got to me!

To Deepak Chopra:

It has been said that, "No man can know the mind of God." Many philosophers have sought to find some sort of foundation for the thoughts of the mind of men. However, they could not even establish what is real and what is not real. The mind of man cannot be trusted to even know the difference between a waking state and a dream state. In the end, Descartes finally could only conclude, "I think, therefore I am." But that does not testify to the truth of the thoughts. As such, then anyone who claims to know the mind of God, or anything about God, cannot be trusted. There is only one way to know God, His Mind, or anything else about Him. That is through revelation. Deepak Chopra calls Christians primitive and insecure, and he called the God of the Bible a mythical identity.
By what authority does he make these claims? What wisdom does he spout all over Christendom? Where did it come from? If he says from personal experience, then I would say, "Why should we trust your mind above others?" If he says from a multitude of wisdom, then I would say, "Whose wisdom?" The quotes that he spouts come from Eastern masters, men that his culture has valued. Why are his ancestors to be valued above those in our culture? Is this Deepak Chopra a bigot? I say that he is. His wisdom from his ancestors is enlightened, while that from ours is primitive? That is nothing, but pure bigotry.
I would argue that the Bible is the Word of God, thus, it is a revelation of God. For 5000 years, all of the people groups have been affected by these words. Lives have been changed and miracles have occurred simply because of the Words of this Book. Innumerable people have been inspired by this Book. Cultures have been built around this Book. Many different religions have come out of this Book. Countries have been built around this Book. The power of this Book is without question, and that power has been extended to all people without bigotry.
And we are supposed to be ashamed of it, and cast it aside because a man by the name of Deepak Chopra said so! My response to him is to be a man, and wait for the chastisement from God. And if there is none, be very afraid because God only chastises those that He loves. Be very afraid if God does not respond to you, for the punishment for your crimes against God and man will be in eternity for eternity. Stand before God with fear and trembling, begging for mercy and grace, oh man, because you are very near to committing the one unforgiveable sin, that is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit of God. Forget your sin of bigotry, Deepak; your sin against God if far more serious. You have no excuse because God has said that He put in the heart of man the ability to recognize Him. So even if your mind makes mistakes or you follow the mistakes of others, it is because your heart has rejected God.
Deep inside your heart, you know your fallacy. You love your own desires more than you love God. Be very careful, however, because I, Christian, am the apple of God's eye, and when you strike me, you strike God. Myth will not take your life and cast your soul into everlasting punishment. God will. And be forewarned, teachers will be judged more harshly. Be very careful where your greedy desires lead you Mr. Chopra. Isn't it ironic that you sup from the table of the very ones you envy and hate? It isn't, however, very original, for throughout history God's people have been envied and hated because God is good to His people.
Be a man now and answer God. Where does your wisdom come from, oh man? You are like Job knowing only through what you have heard, but never truly seeing God with your heart. Tremble and quake before God, you man, for the time of the Gentiles is about at an end, and soon you will not have access to God. It is not far off when the spirit of this world will be revealed, and then the mold will be cast forever. After all, God's Spirit will not strive with man forever!

Jesus

He came to Earth to be near,
That we would no longer have to fear;
Thus, we hold Him dear,
And tell His story to spread Christmas cheer.

Letter to the Editor

The following was sent to the Chieftain, but it was never published.

I just read an article by Christian Piatt in the Saturday, July 5, 2008 edition of the Pueblo Chieftain, entitled 'Jesus for President'. This is the second time in as many weeks that he has advocated Jim Wallis and Tony Campolo, and their new take on “theology.” Christian Piatt seems to be under the belief that their push towards this new movement is not political. However, everything that I have heard or read about it indicates just the opposite; it is all about political; they call themselves “Progressives.” It is a cleverly disguised push towards a new Marxism. Marxism that has forced a dialectic with Christianity, and Christianity has been the loser. Marx advocated turning theological questions into secular ones by criticizing the religious failings of the political state. Those “Progressives” of the “New Awakening” have taken this a step further, and simply tried to synthesize the words of Jesus with Marxist ideals. It is a Humanistic attempt to force what they believe to be an inevitable social evolution of mankind. Marx is probably rolling in his grave, as he detested religious fervor. He saw it as an evil that upheld social classes. He would not have tried to harness it.

Those “Progressives” of the “New Awakening” intend to use the “religious fervor” to push their "Progressive" political ideological movement. They seem to believe this will work because they see the religious masses as if they were in a state of “religious stupor,” and hence may think the masses can be easily led. I went to a conference given by Tony Campolo, and came away with the feeling that he was advising us to aid in a revolution against the foreign governments of Latin America. While I do advocate helping the poor, I do not intend to be used to establish political ideological movements in this country or any other. By the way, this is nothing more than Liberation Theology. James H. Cone does the same things with the words of Jesus, in his writings on Black Theology. He says that Jesus claimed to be a slave, and advocated revolution of any type or degree; revolution according to James H. Cone ranges from boycotts to all out rebellion against whites! Read his book entitled, Risks of Faith, it is all there in black and white. Need more proof? Consider this: Barack Obama has been well versed in Black Theology for the past 20 years in the Trinity United Church of Christ, where Reverend Wright preached James H. Cone's Black Theology. Barack Obama identified with Tony Campolo and Jim Wallis and their “Progressive Movement,” such that Barack called himself a “Progressive.” Barack Obama also supported their Covenant in his ‘Call to Renewal’ Keynote Address on June 28, 2006. The speech clearly shows the political bent of this "Progressive New Awakening Movement"!