Monthly Archives: November 2011

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 2)

November 23, 2011 – 12:46 pm

Tyler Wilson

Earlier I wrote about where I think Arkansas could win a national championship with just two more wins.

Below is a portion of an article by Jim Harris of the website Arkansas 360:

STILL THERE’S LES AT LSU: Schlabach, in saying that LSU and Alabama are the two best teams in the country, had high praise for Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson as being tops in the SEC. Mississippi State Coach Dan Mullen, one of three coaches to face the top three in the SEC West this year, concurred. Tennessee’s Derek Dooley and Ole Miss’ Houston Nutt didn’t want to go on the record comparing the teams, Schlabach said.

The ESPN.com writer said that while LSU has the fastest defense around and has the most team speed, “All that being said, Les Miles is still coaching LSU.” And that drew a huge laugh in the room of Touchdown Club members.

Then, seriously, Schlabach said of Miles, “I love the guy … It might be that Les Miles is a geniius and we’re just now figuring that out. If LSU beats Arkansas, it’s got to be the greatest SEC team. They’ll be undefeated and would have beaten four teams ranked in the top four of the BCS … They lost a starting offensive lineman who hasn’t played a game, their quarterback was suspended, they had to suspend four players for synthetic marijuana, they have other quarterback issues now.”

The message is: Miles has pulled off quite a feat. Maybe it’s time to give him credit for being a pretty good coach, as well as a good guy.

Schlabach recalled a trip to Baton Rouge to interview Miles in which the coach “gave me an hour and a half of his time. There’s not many coaches who would have done that.”

Related posts:

Video and story on Iowa St victory over Oklahoma State

Several pieces of the puzzle have to come together for Arkansas to have a chance at the national title. This was a big piece!!! Mark Schlabach of ESPN wrote this article below: AMES, Iowa — So what happens now? We’ve spent the past few weeks wondering what would happen to the BCS national championship race […]

Razorbacks’ road to national championship just got more simple

[+] Enlarge Before the BCS standings came out yesterday, it was the common belief that the Arkansas Razorbacks were possibly going to finish 11-1 and miss out on a BCS bowl, but now that has all changed. Arkansas is sitting pretty at number 3 and I no longer hope Auburn beats Alabama so we can […]

SEC week 12: SEC dominates BCS, Vandy gets ripped off by refs

This is an article on the SEC week 12: By Chris Low As it turns out, the weekend was a productive one for the SEC, even if there were more than a few shaky performances around the league against lesser opponents.Here’s a look at what we learned in Week 12:1. BCS takes on SEC flavor: Brad […]

Why is this victory over the Vols so sweet? Probably because of 71 and 98!! jh85

  Above is a picture from my camera at the game. Photo I have wondered why this victory meant over Tennessee meant so much to our Razorback Nation. I guess the answer is simply that we have lost so many close heartbreaking games to the Vols over the years and the 1971 and 1998 games […]

 

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

The most significant game in Arkansas razorback football history?

November 23, 2011 – 6:52 am

Wally Hall actually said on his radio program on Nov 22, 2011 that the Arkansas v. LSU game on Nov 25, 2011 is the most significant game in razorback history. I have to respectfully disagree. I will agree that it is in the top 5, but I will start a  list today of other games that were more significant.

Today it is easy to make the case for the big shootout.

Here is the info from wikipedia:

1969 Texas vs. Arkansas football game

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The “Game of the Century”
(1969 version)
 
Texas Longhorns Arkansas Razorbacks
(9-0) (9-0)
15 14
Head coach: 
Darrell Royal		 Head coach: 
Frank Broyles
AP   Coaches  
1   1  
AP   Coaches  
2   2  
  1 2 3 4 Total
Texas 0 0 0 15 15
Arkansas 7 0 7 0 14
 
Date December 6, 1969
Stadium Razorback Stadium
Location Fayetteville, Arkansas
Attendance 47,500[1]
United States TV coverage
Network ABC
Announcers Chris Schenkel and Bud Wilkinson

The 1969 Texas vs. Arkansas football game, dubbed The Big Shootout and sometimes referred to as the “Game of The Century”, was a legendary college football game on December 6, 1969 in which the top-ranked Texas Longhorns visited the second-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The Longhorns came back from a 14-0 deficit after three quarters to win 15-14. [2] They would go on to win the Cotton Bowl Classic and be selected National Champions. [3]

Contents

 [hide] 

[edit] Buildup

The relative parity which had existed within the Southwest Conference ended with the arrival of Darrell Royal and Frank Broyles at their respective schools, with either Texas or Arkansas winning or sharing the SWC crown 8 out of the 10 years leading up to the game. [1] Both Texas and Arkansas had won one national championship in the 1960s, and the schools developed a bit of a rivalry after Arkansas defeated in consecutive years top-ranked Texas teams in 1964 and 1965. [4] In 1968 Texas handed Arkansas their only loss of the year.

The 1969 season marked the 100th anniversary of college football. This game would decide the Southwest Conference Championship, as well as its berth in the Cotton Bowl Classic, and ABC television executive Beano Cook arranged for Texas and Arkansas to play the final game of the regular season, moving their usual October date to the first weekend in December. The deal ABC Sports executive Roone Arledge persuaded Arkansas coach Frank Broyles to move the game was a promise that President Richard Nixon would attend and that ABC would televise Arkansas the next season’s opener (against Stanford and its star quarterback, Jim Plunkett). Broyles even talked Arkansas officials into installing AstroTurf, then still a novelty, at Razorback Stadium. The game would kick off at Noon Central Standard Time since the stadium in Fayetteville did not have lights at the time. There were early discussions of moving the game to an evening start at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, where Arkansas played two or three home games per season, but ABC did not consider the lights at Little Rock to be sufficient.

For a long while, it looked as though the game would be a meeting of also-rans. Ohio State was dominating the Big Ten and the chances of the game being anything other than just the last game of the season were pretty remote. However, as the Longhorns took a Saturday off to prepare for their upcoming game on Thanksgiving Day with Texas A&M, Michigan and its upstart coach Bo Schembechler upset the Buckeyes. Texas vaulted to No. 1 in the polls and Arkansas claimed the No. 2 spot. Ultimately, due to good fortune, it worked as the move made the game the focus of the entire sporting world doing a television rating of a 52.1 share, meaning more than half the TV sets in the country were tuned to this game.

That set the stage. Even the day took on an eerie feeling. Billy Graham attended to give the pregame prayer. The night before, a steady, cold rain fell in Fayetteville and an icy fog hovered over the stadium as the crowd awaited the arrival of President Nixon, who would award a plaque symbolic of the National Championship to the winner. Due to the lack of a suitable airport in northwest Arkansas (Fayetteville’s Drake Field was far too small, and Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport would not open for another 30 years), Marine One landed on the practice fields just east of Razorback Stadium as the game was starting.

[edit] The game

In the 100th year of college football, it truly was the “Game of the Century.” In a game between unbeatens played at Arkansas’ Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, the Texas Longhorns were ranked Number 1 in the country, having won 18 straight games. The Arkansas Razorbacks were ranked Number 2, having won 15 straight. The Texas wishbone attack, then still a novelty, was an offensive juggernaut that averaged over 44 points per game coming into the contest. Arkansas led the nation in scoring defense, yielding only 6.8 points per game. In addition, both the Razorback offense and Texas defense were ranked in the top ten nationally.

 

The Longhorns got off to a sloppy start, losing a fumble on the second play from scrimmage and turning the ball over a total of six times. A 1-yard leap into the end zone by Bill Burnett in the first quarter and a 29-yard touchdown reception by Chuck Dicus in the third quarter put the Hogs up 14-0 with 15:00 to play.

James Street scrambled for a touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter. Longhorns coach Darrell Royal had decided before the game to go for a two-point conversion after the Longhorn’s first touchdown to avoid a tie, and Street dove into the end zone to make it 14-8.

Arkansas quarterback Bill Montgomery next led the Razorbacks on a 73-yard drive down to the Texas 7. On third down, Montgomery was intercepted in the end zone by Danny Lester, Arkansas’ first turnover of the game. A field goal would have likely put the game out of reach for Texas.

Still down 14-8, Texas began a desperate drive for the end zone that appeared to stall with 4:47 remaining when Royal opted for yet another gamble on fourth-and-3 from their own 43-yard line. During a timeout that Texas took before the fateful play, Royal shouted at Street, “Right 53 Veer pass.” The play was a deep pattern throw to the tight end. The play wasn’t in the Texas game plan package. “Are you sure that’s the call you want?” Street said. “Damn right I’m sure!” Royal snapped. Street had noticed Arkansas defenders looking into the Texas huddle, so he fixed his gaze on split end Cotton Speyrer while explaining the play to Randy Peschel, saying “Randy, I’m looking and pointing at Cotton, but I’m talking to you.” Street then hit Peschel on the dramatic play, with Peschel making a difficult catch over his shoulder in double coverage. It not only converted on fourth down, but also gained 44 yards, putting the Longhorns on the Razorbacks 13.

[2] Two plays later Jim Bertelsen ran in for the game-tying touchdown. Donnie Wigginton, the third-string quarterback who was the holder, made a big save on a high snap and Happy Feller booted the extra point for the winning score with 3:58 remaining.

Arkansas made a push into Texas territory, hoping for a field goal from All-American kicker Bill McClard. Arkansas was down to the Texas 40 when Tom Campell intercepted Montgomery on the Texas 21-yard line with less than a minute left.

[edit] Controversy

President Richard Nixon attended the game along with several members of his staff and U.S. Representatives George H.W. Bush of Texas and John Paul Hammerschmidt of Arkansas, having announced that he would give a plaque to the winner, proclaiming it to be the National Champion — to the chagrin of observers who thought it premature to do so before the New Year’s Day bowl games, and of fans of Penn State, which would also end the season undefeated. Arkansas took a 14-0 lead, and held it into the fourth quarter, but Texas came from behind to win, 15-14, and accepted Nixon’s plaque.

Texas beat Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl Classic, and removed any doubt as to whether it deserved consideration as National Champion, although Penn State fans still insist that their team, also undefeated and winner of the Orange Bowl, was better. However, it is worth noting that the Cotton Bowl Classic first invited Penn State to play the Southwest Conference champions. The Nittany Lions declined the invitation, preferring to spend New Year’s Day in warm Miami, where they defeated Big Eight champion Missouri. This decision was made while Ohio State was still ranked #1 with only one game to play, so at the time, it did not appear that a national championship was likely to be at stake. The 1969 Texas-Penn State conflict, never settled on the field, has been one of the major arguments in favor of a Division I-A playoff. Arkansas lost the 1970 Sugar Bowl to Ole Miss, led by Archie Manning. The entire Texas-Penn State debate and Nixon’s involvement led to a quote from Penn State coach Joe Paterno, a conservative Republican, during a commencement speech at Penn State in 1974 about Nixon, “How could Nixon know so much about college football in 1969 and so little about Watergate in 1973?”

This game has been nicknamed “Dixie’s Last Stand,” since it was the last major American sporting event played between two all-white teams, although two schools in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), LSU and Ole Miss, did not integrate their varsity football squads until 1972.

With the Vietnam War still raging and Nixon in attendance, protestors came to the game, and one of them got into a tree overlooking the stadium and held up an antiwar sign. An urban legend grew up around this game, claiming that this protestor was Arkansas native and future President Bill Clinton. Clinton, however, was not at the game, as he was then a Rhodes Scholar at the University of Oxford in England, and was listening to the game on a shortwave radio with some American friends.

The two coaches in this game, Darrell Royal of Texas and Frank Broyles of Arkansas, both retired after the 1976 season. Both became athletic directors at their respective schools, Royal for the entire Texas athletic program and Broyles solely for the Arkansas men’s program, as Arkansas had a completely separate women’s athletic department from 1971 through 2007. Royal retired from his AD job in 1980, but Broyles continued on through 2007, with the men’s and women’s athletic programs merging immediately after his retirement. Broyles spearheaded Arkansas’ move from the SWC to the SEC in 1991, and was later instrumental in the Razorbacks and Longhorns playing a two-year series in 2003 (at Austin) won by Arkansas and 2004 (at Fayetteville) won by Texas. The last meeting was in 2008 in Austin won by Texas 52-10. Texas holds a 56-21-0 (72%) lead in the all-time series between the schools. They are scheduled to play again in Fayetteville in 2014.

Below is an article I got from ESPN that calls this Friday’s game the game of the century:

Originally Published: November 22, 2011

Arkansas-LSU, BCS future and more

Wojciechowski By Gene Wojciechowski
ESPN.com
Archive

This week’s top 20:

20. Game Of The Century Jr.

Friday is why God invented the couch, the 52-inch plasma, leftover turkey and the Southeastern Conference.

[+] EnlargeLes Miles

Ronald Martinez/Getty ImagesLes Miles’ team is getting used to being the center of attention.

At precisely 2:30 p.m. ET, my rear end will be sofa bound and the TV remote will summon the satellite waves from faraway Baton Rouge, La. And for the next glorious three hours or so (or until I have to drive to O’Hare and catch my flight to Atlanta for Saturday’s Iron Bowl at Auburn), I’ll watch, like many of you, the supposed second-best matchup of the season: No. 3 Arkansas at No. 1 LSU.

I can’t wait. Then again, I also couldn’t wait for the Nov. 5 LSU-Bama game — Game of the Century Sr.

That was No. 1 versus No. 2, but the game itself didn’t live up to the hype. How could it?

And in retrospect, the outcome didn’t do much to really define the national championship race. Bama lost, 9-6, but it’s no worse off today than it was after missing four field goals that night at Bryant-Denny Stadium. It was No. 2 then, it’s No. 2 now.

The same sort of thing could happen Friday afternoon. A scenario exists where LSU could lose, but still end up in the national championship game against Bama. And if that happens, we’d have Game of the Century III … in less than 2½ months.

The dominoes could fall this way: Arkansas upsets LSU, Bama beats Auburn, Georgia beats Arkansas in the SEC championship game. Or … LSU beats Arkansas, Bama beats Auburn, Georgia beats LSU in the SEC championship.

Depending on what happens with Oklahoma State (or maybe not), we could have a No. 1 Bama versus No. 2 LSU on Jan. 9 at the Superdome.

Meanwhile, the smart guys in Vegas seem to be leaning heavily toward LSU beating up the Razorbacks. LSU is a 14-point favorite, though that could be Tigers fans driving up the spread. But as a helpful reminder, Oklahoma State was nearly a four-touchdown favorite against Iowa State last Friday. How’d that work out?

Anyway, I’m taking LSU, but unlike Century Sr., this one will have actual offense. Something in the 28-24 neighborhood sounds about right.

Related posts:

The most significant game in Arkansas razorback football history?

Wally Hall actually said on his radio program on Nov 22, 2011 that the Arkansas v. LSU game on Nov 25, 2011 is the most significant game in razorback history. I have to respectfully disagree. I will agree that it is in the top 5, but I will start a  list today of other games […]

Reading Louisiana newspapers makes me mad

Reading Louisiana newspapers makes me mad and this video doesn’t make me any happier. LSU says past 11 wins prepared them for Arkansas LSU coach Les Miles yells out to receiver Kadron Boone (86) during the first half of its game against Ole Miss Saturday in Oxford, Miss. Brett Martel The Associated Press Published: Tuesday, […]

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 1)

Earlier I wrote about where I think Arkansas could win a national championship with just two more wins. Below is a portion of an article by Jim Harris of the website Arkansas 360: What kind of college football polling world do we live in now that a No. 3 Arkansas could win Friday at No. […]

Video and story on Iowa St victory over Oklahoma State

Several pieces of the puzzle have to come together for Arkansas to have a chance at the national title. This was a big piece!!! Mark Schlabach of ESPN wrote this article below: AMES, Iowa — So what happens now? We’ve spent the past few weeks wondering what would happen to the BCS national championship race […]

Razorbacks’ road to national championship just got more simple

[+] Enlarge Before the BCS standings came out yesterday, it was the common belief that the Arkansas Razorbacks were possibly going to finish 11-1 and miss out on a BCS bowl, but now that has all changed. Arkansas is sitting pretty at number 3 and I no longer hope Auburn beats Alabama so we can […]

Mangino speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 2)

Mangino at a 2007 KU basketball game Eric Mangino is a very good speaker. Here is a portion of an article by Jim Harris: Jim Harris’ Notebook: Mangino Ready To Return; Big Week For Central Arkansas by Jim Harris 11/14/2011 at 3:37pm It’s easy for fans who don’t follow Kansas football closely to forget just […]

Arkansas razorback Garrett Uekman found dead this morning

Photo by Stephen B. Thornton I saw him play for Catholic against Bryant and I saw him run out on the field just yesterday, but he was found dead this morning in Fayetteville. The Arkansas News Bureau noted: I am proud of the way he represented our program,” Petrino said. “He did everything right and had […]

Johnny Majors speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 12)jh80

Uploaded by TheMemphisSlim on Sep 3, 2010 Johnny Majors from Huntland, TN tried out for the UT Football team weighing 150 pounds. His Father, Shirley Majors his HS Coach,encourage him and then 4 younger brothers all to be Vols. Johnny Majors was the runner-up in 1956 for the Heisman Trophy to Paul Horning, on a loosing Notre Dame […]

 

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Tagged , , , , | Comments (1)

After blowout at Arkansas, Vols coach Dooley felt like celebration after Vandy win was warrented

November 23, 2011 – 6:07 am

I saw the end of the Tennessee/Vandy game on tv and my brother-in-law went to the game (pictures from him below). I have written about the game earlier on this blog so I will not go into that again. I just wanted to comment on the video clip above. I think it is fine that Derek Dooley said some things in his locker room with the team that he doesn’t want to discuss anymore. All coaches do that. I just wanted to note that after the beating that Arkansas gave his team the week before it is understandable that the Vols would be excited to get back on the winning track.

Related posts:

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 1)

Earlier I wrote about where I think Arkansas could win a national championship with just two more wins. Below is a portion of an article by Jim Harris of the website Arkansas 360: What kind of college football polling world do we live in now that a No. 3 Arkansas could win Friday at No. […]

Veterans Day 2011 Part 9:Roy “Roxy” Oxenrider survived Korean War’s Toughest Battle

Picture of Roy after he had recovered at the hospital. Picture of Roy below in the hospital recovering from his injuries followed by a picture of Roy encouraging another soldier who was in the hospital:  Below is an article that was published in November of 2010 in the Saline Courier: Saline County War Hero Bryant […]

What does Johnny Majors’ 71 Iowa have in common with another SEC team in 2011? jh72

They both lost to #1, 2 and 3 ranked teams in the same year (Iowa St in 1971 and Tennessee in 2011). As an Arkansas fan I take great pride in other schools complaining about having to play us. Did you know that Iowa State’s staff included head coach Johnny Majors who had left the Arkansas […]

Mangino speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 2)

Mangino at a 2007 KU basketball game Eric Mangino is a very good speaker. Here is a portion of an article by Jim Harris: Jim Harris’ Notebook: Mangino Ready To Return; Big Week For Central Arkansas by Jim Harris 11/14/2011 at 3:37pm It’s easy for fans who don’t follow Kansas football closely to forget just […]

SEC week 12: SEC dominates BCS, Vandy gets ripped off by refs

This is an article on the SEC week 12: By Chris Low As it turns out, the weekend was a productive one for the SEC, even if there were more than a few shaky performances around the league against lesser opponents.Here’s a look at what we learned in Week 12:1. BCS takes on SEC flavor: Brad […]

Johnny Majors speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 10)jh78

FB: The Best of Johnny Majors at Iowa St I got to hear Johnny Majors talk on 11-7-11 and he talked about the connection that Arkansas and Tennessee had with their football programs. Two years ago I got to hear Frank Broyles speak at the Little Rock Touchdown Club and he said that too. As […]

Why is this victory over the Vols so sweet? Probably because of 71 and 98!! jh85

  Above is a picture from my camera at the game. Photo I have wondered why this victory meant over Tennessee meant so much to our Razorback Nation. I guess the answer is simply that we have lost so many close heartbreaking games to the Vols over the years and the 1971 and 1998 games […]

Majors speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 8)jh76

Interview with Johnny Majors after 1982 Kentucky game I got to Johnny Majors at the Little Rock Touchdown Club meeting on Nov 7, 2011. Jim Harris wrote these words about the connection between the Arkansas and Tennessee football programs: Former Arkansas Athletic Director Frank Broyles was all for Tennessee as the Hogs’ regular SEC East […]

17 seniors play their last game in Fayetteville for Hogs jh82

    My son Wilson and I went to the game on Saturday in Fayetteville and saw the Razorback Stadium. Above is a picture of the seniors and Seth Armburst is running out on the field. Below is an article by Wally Hall that mentions the names of all  of the 17 seniors for the […]

Arkansas has convincing win over Vols

Photo by Jason Ivester Arkansas running back Dennis Johnson scored on two touchdown runs of 71 and 15 yards Saturday at Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, helping the Razorbacks post a 49-7 victory over Tennessee and rise from No. 8 to No. 6 in the BCS standings. _____________ My son Wilson and I enjoyed watching […]

Johnny Majors speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 7)jh75

Uploaded by TheMemphisSlim on Sep 3, 2010 Johnny Majors from Huntland, TN tried out for the UT Football team weighing 150 pounds. His Father, Shirley Majors his HS Coach,encourage him and then 4 younger brothers all to be Vols. Johnny Majors was the runner-up in 1956 for the Heisman Trophy to Paul Horning, on a loosing Notre Dame […]

 

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

“Woody Wednesday” Allen acts silly in 1971 interview (Part 3)

November 23, 2011 – 12:28 am

“Woody Wednesday” Allen acts silly in 1971 interview (Part 3)

Woody Allen interview 1971 PART 3/4

Uploaded by on Jul 21, 2008

Woody Allen interview from 1971, just after the worldwide release of ‘Bananas’

________________________

Looking at the (sometimes skewed) morality of Woody Allen’s best films.

In the late ’60s, Woody Allen left the world of stand-up comedy behind for the movies. Since then, he’s become one of American cinema’s most celebrated filmmakers. Sure, he’s had his stinkers and his private life hasn’t been without controversy. But he’s also crafted some of Hollywood’s most thought-provoking comedies. Philosophical, self-deprecating and always more than a tad pessimistic, Allen adds another title to his oeuvre this Friday with Midnight in Paris. Whether it will be remembered as one of his greatest or another flop is too early to say, but its release gives us a chance to look back at some of his most indispensable works.

Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) and Match Point (2005)

The sanctity of art plays a role in Crimes and Misdemeanors, but it’s a minor one compared to Allen’s interest in the human conscience. Does God exist, his characters wonder, and if He doesn’t, can there still be objective morality? His characters have asked these questions before, but never have the stakes been so high as when Judah Rosenthal (Martin Landau), a prominent New York ophthalmologist, finds his life turned upside by an act of violence he’s responsible for. In the aftermath, he’s plagued by guilt but still wonders if a guilty conscience is such a high price to pay for keeping his good name. His transformation as he struggles with this question is chilling to watch.

The same issue is at the heart of Match Point, Allen’s first movie set outside America. The particulars are different, but its trajectory is the same. When Chris Wilton (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) commits murder to preserve his status and good reputation, we wait for him to be caught. But Allen subverts our expectations again, as in Crimes and Misdemeanors—not because he condones murder, but to illustrate his belief that, if there’s no God, life is a crap shoot. Maybe you’ll get caught, maybe you won’t, but either way you’ll have to live with what you’ve done. In both films, he shows more pointedly than most other American filmmakers what hell on earth must look like.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)

The human conscience is also the focus of Allen’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona, though in a relatively smaller way. He’s also less concerned with the existence of God, but objective morality is still a question lingering in the back of his mind. As the two friends, Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) consider their entanglement with the bohemian Spanish artist, Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), they’re forced to re-examine the rules they each live by. Even though the movie unquestionably favors moral relativism, the character of Cristina, who was once so proud of her “liberated” spirit, comes away from her search for meaning with a more moral perspective. No longer content to live according to Juan Antonio’s eat-drink-and-be-merry philosophy, she ends her time in Spain determined to find “something else.” That something else isn’t likely to be conventional morality, but neither is it unrestrained passion. While still denying that life has any inherent meaning, Allen forces us to consider whether conventional morality is really so stifling after all.

Overall, Woody Allen can’t be called anything close to a Christian (or even a moral) filmmaker—his films often drip with pessimism (some would say nihilism). But most of his films also give viewers something to chew on, something all too rare at the movies.

Do you have a favorite Woody Allen movie?

Andrew Welch lives in Texas and has written for RELEVANT and Books & Culture.

Related posts:

“Woody Wednesday” Will Allen and Martin follow same path as Kansas to Christ?

Several members of the 70′s band Kansas became committed Christians after they realized that the world had nothing but meaningless to offer. It seems through the writings of both Woody Allen and Chris Martin of Coldplay that they both are wrestling with the issue of death and what meaning does life bring. Kansas went through […]

Francis Schaeffer and C. Everett Koop were prophetic (jh29)

Francis Schaeffer and C. Everett Koop were prophetic (jh29) What Ever Happened to the Human Race? I recently heard this Breakpoint Commentary by Chuck Colson and it just reminded me of how prophetic Francis Schaeffer and C. Everett Koop were in the late 1970′s with their book and film series “Whatever happened to the human […]

“Woody Wednesday” Allen is searching for satisfaction in wrong place jh17

Coldplay – 42 Live Coldplay perform on the french television channel W9. In 1992 Woody Allen took up with one of his adopted kids and lived in with her. He was given over to the pursuit of pleasure. Actually he has made that a major focus of his life. In the latter part of his […]

“Woody Wednesday” Allen realizes if God doesn’t exist then all is meaningless (jh 15)

The Bible and Archaeology (1/5) The Bible maintains several characteristics that prove it is from God. One of those is the fact that the Bible is accurate in every one of its details. The field of archaeology brings to light this amazing accuracy. _________________________- I want to make two points today. 1. There is no […]

“Woody Wednesday” How Allen’s film “Crimes and Misdemeanors makes the point that hell is necessary (jh 14)

Crimes and Misdemeanors: A Discussion: Part 1 Adrian Rogers – Crossing God’s Deadline Part 2 Jason Tolbert provided this recent video from Mike Huckabee: John Brummett in his article “Huckabee speaks for bad guy below,” Arkansas News Bureau, May 5, 2011 had to say: Are we supposed to understand and accept that Mike Huckabee is […]

Agnostic Allen notes, “The people who successfully delude themselves seem happier than the people who can’t” (Woody Wednesday Part 5)

Woody Allen interviews Billy Graham on Religion This article below makes we think of the lady tied to the Railroad in the Schaeffer video. Dr. Francis schaeffer – The flow of Materialism (Modern man sees no hope for the future and has deluded himself by appealing to nonreason to stay sane. Look at the example […]

A review of Woody Allen’s latest movie “Midnight in Paris” (Woody Wednesday Part 4)

Midnight in Paris Not Dove Family Approved Theatrical Release: 6/10/2011 Reviewer: Edwin L. Carpenter Source: Theater Writer: Woody Allen Producer: Letty Aronson Director: Woody Allen Genre: Comedy Runtime: 100 min. MPAA Rating: PG-13 Starring: Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Kurt Fuller, Kathy Bates Synopsis: Midnight in Paris is a romantic comedy that follows a family travelling […]

Woody Allen films and the issue of guilt (Woody Wednesday Part 3)

Woody Allen and the Abandonment of Guilt Dr. Marc T. Newman : AgapePress Print In considering filmmaking as a pure visual art form, Woody Allen would have to be considered a master of the medium. From his humble beginnings as a comedy writer and filmmaker, he has emerged as a major influential force in Hollywood. […]

According to Woody Allen Life is meaningless (Woody Wednesday Part 2)

Woody Allen, the film writer, director, and actor, has consistently populated his scripts with characters who exchange dialogue concerning meaning and purpose. In Hannah and Her Sisters a character named Mickey says, “Do you realize what a thread were all hanging by? Can you understand how meaningless everything is? Everything. I gotta get some answers.”{7} […]

“Woody Wednesday” Part 1 starts today, Complete listing of all posts on the historical people mentioned in “Midnight in Paris”

I have gone to see Woody Allen’s latest movie “Midnight in Paris” three times and taken lots of notes during the films. I have attempted since June 12th when I first started posting to give a historical rundown on every person mentioned in the film. Below are the results of my study. I welcome any […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Dumas thinks we don’t need Balanced Budget Amendment but should balance it on our own

November 22, 2011 – 4:19 pm

In his recent article Ernie Dumas sticks to his guns that we should balance the budget without being forced to with a “Balanced Budget Amendment,” but I wonder how well that has worked so far?

I have made this a key issue for this blog in the past as you can tell below:

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 16 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor)

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 16 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor) Dear Senator Pryor, Why not pass the Balanced  Budget Amendment? As you know that federal deficit is at all time high (1.6 trillion deficit with revenues of 2.2 trillion and spending at 3.8 trillion). On my […]

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 15 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor)

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 15 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor) Dear Senator Pryor, Why not pass the Balanced  Budget Amendment? As you know that federal deficit is at all time high (1.6 trillion deficit with revenues of 2.2 trillion and spending at 3.8 trillion). On my […]

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 14 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor)

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 14 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor) Dear Senator Pryor, Why not pass the Balanced  Budget Amendment? As you know that federal deficit is at all time high (1.6 trillion deficit with revenues of 2.2 trillion and spending at 3.8 trillion). On my […]

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 13 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor)

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 13 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor) Office of the Majority Whip | Balanced Budget Amendment Video In 1995, Congress nearly passed a constitutional amendment mandating a balanced budget. The Balanced Budget Amendment would have forced the federal government to live within its […]

Mark Pryor not for President’s job bill even though he voted for it

Andrew Demillo pointed this out  and also Jason Tolbert noted: PRYOR OPPOSES THE OBAMA JOBS BILL THAT HE VOTED TO ADVANCE  Sen. Mark Pryor has been traveling around the state touting a six-part jobs plan that he says “includes a number of bipartisan initiatives, is aimed at creating jobs by setting the table for growth, encouraging new […]

Senator Pryor responds to my “Thirsty Thursday” series of emails to him concerning the Balanced Budget Amendment

I have been blogging for 10 months now and have had over 110,000 hits on my blog. Posts encouraging Senator Pryor to cut spending have been responsible for more posts than any other subject. It has got the most hits too. I am hopeful that Senator Pryor will either pay attention to the people or […]

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 17 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor)

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 17 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor) Dear Senator Pryor, Why not pass the Balanced  Budget Amendment? As you know that federal deficit is at all time high (1.6 trillion deficit with revenues of 2.2 trillion and spending at 3.8 trillion). On my […]

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 12 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor)

Dear Senator Pryor, Why not pass the Balanced  Budget Amendment? As you know that federal deficit is at all time high (1.6 trillion deficit with revenues of 2.2 trillion and spending at 3.8 trillion). On my blog http://www.HaltingArkansasLiberalswithTruth.com I took you at your word and sent you over 100 emails with specific spending cut ideas. However, […]

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 11 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor)

Dear Senator Pryor, why not pass the Balanced Budget Amendment? (Part 11 Thirsty Thursday, Open letter to Senator Pryor) Dear Senator Pryor, Why not pass the Balanced  Budget Amendment? As you know that federal deficit is at all time high (1.6 trillion deficit with revenues of 2.2 trillion and spending at 3.8 trillion). On my […]

Mark Pryor voted for first stimulus but silent about second

The old political playbook will not work this time around. Bragging on Obamacare and the first stimulus in Arkansas will not do much for Pryor in 2014. In this clip above Senator Pryor praises Mike, Vic and Marion. (All three of those men bailed out and Marion and Vic were replaced by Republicans and in […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in spending out of control | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

Reading Louisiana newspapers makes me mad

November 22, 2011 – 4:03 pm

Reading Louisiana newspapers makes me mad and this video doesn’t make me any happier.

LSU says past 11 wins prepared them for Arkansas

LSU coach Les Miles yells out to receiver Kadron Boone (86) during the first half of its game against Ole Miss Saturday in Oxford, Miss.

Brett Martel
The Associated Press
Published: Tuesday, November 22, 2011 at 9:32 a.m.

BATON ROUGE — LSU cornerback Ron Brooks is aware that those who delight in BCS chaos are fantasizing about an Arkansas upset of the top-ranked Tigers on Friday.

Such chatter means little to him, though.

“We don’t live in a fantasy world,” Brooks said. “We live in the real world and we don’t focus on what-ifs and possibilities and what could be.”

While the unbeaten Tigers are showing no lack of respect for an Arkansas squad that has climbed to No. 3 in the national rankings, they’re also expressing supreme confidence in their ability to handle their high-stakes clash with the Razorbacks in the same way they’ve handled every other game this season.

“We all have just one goal: Get to the national championship. And we don’t think anything can stop us from doing that but ourselves,” LSU defensive tackle Michael Brockers said.

If LSU were to lose, it would become one of a half-dozen or so one-loss teams hoping to find a way into the BCS national championship game in New Orleans on Jan. 9.

Adding to the intrigue of the latest matchup is the fact that LSU has struggled against Arkansas in recent years, losing to the Razorbacks in three of the last four meetings, including a triple-overtime setback in 2007, when the Tigers were on their way to their last national title.

Yet, the 2011 LSU team has been on a historic run of dominance. Not only are the Tigers 11-0 for the first time since 1958, but they’ve also won 10 games by double-digit margins.

Throw out LSU’s 9-6 overtime triumph at Alabama earlier this month, and the Tigers’ average margin of victory in their other 10 games is 30.4 points. That includes a 13-point victory over Oregon on a neutral field (Dallas) and a 26-point victory at West Virginia.

“We play the style of football that, if we do what we are capable (of), it makes it very difficult on our opponents,” coach Les Miles said. “We move the ball efficiently without turnovers. Our defense does not allow an opponent to go down the field routinely. They get turnovers. … It does not surprise me that we have been able to have success.”

LSU has won its home games by an average of 34.4 points this season, and its overall winning streak in Death Valley stands at 16 games, dating to the middle of the 2009 season.

That might explain why the Tigers do not seem all that nervous about the prospect of hosting the third-ranked team in the nation.

“We’ve played Top 5 teams, Top 15 teams, it doesn’t matter,” LSU offensive guard Will Blackwell said. “Regardless of whether (Arkansas) was ranked No. 3 or No. 100, it would still mean the same.

“We’ve got some tough games left ahead of us, but we’ve played a lot of tough games this season and I feel like we’re prepared to take on that challenge, mentally.”

Oddsmakers seem to agree, having listed LSU as two-touchdown favorites.

Arkansas’ path to 10-1 has been a little shaky at times, particularly away from home.

The Razorbacks had to rally from a 10-point halftime deficit to win by five at Mississippi, where LSU had a 21-0 lead in the first quarter and won by 49. Arkansas also had to come back against a 5-6 Vanderbilt squad and narrowly beat Texas A&M, 42-38, in a neutral-site contest in Dallas. Arkansas’ lone loss at Alabama was by more than three touchdowns, but that was back in September, and the Razorbacks say they’ve improved since then.

“A lot of people wrote us off there after the ‘Bama game,” Arkansas defensive end Jake Bequette said. “We had some ugly wins afterward, but we’re playing well right now and we’re going to stay focused and try to get one more.”

LSU has only trailed in parts of two games, fewer than 20 minutes combined all season. LSU’s victory over the Crimson Tide, in which they trailed 6-3 for the first 47 seconds of the final period, is the only triumph that would qualify as a fourth-quarter comeback.

For the overwhelming majority of the season, LSU has led, and by a lot.

The Tigers often talk about being “a dominant team.” Brockers said he does not believe LSU players are cocky, but know they have a lot of talent and high expectations.

“I feel like dominance is more of confidence,” Brockers began, “confident in what you’re doing, confident in playing fast and confident in you knowing that you’re better than the guy on the other side of the ball.”

Notes

LSU CB Morris Claiborne, who leads LSU with four interceptions, has been named one of three finalists for the Jim Thorpe award, given to the top defensive back in college football. … Tigers CB Tyrann Mathieu, who has four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and two interceptions, has been named one of three finalists for the Chuck Bednarik Award, which goes to college football’s most outstanding defensive player.

Copyright © 2011 HoumaToday.com — All rights reserved. Restricted use only.

Tyler Wilson

 

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Is soaking the rich fair?

November 22, 2011 – 1:52 pm

Five Key Reasons to Reject Class-Warfare Tax Policy

Uploaded by on Jun 15, 2009

President Obama and other politicians are advocating higher taxes, with a particular emphasis on class-warfare taxes targeting the so-called rich. This Center for Freedom and Prosperity Foundation video explains why fiscal policy based on hate and envy is fundamentally misguided. For more information please visit our web page: www.freedomandprosperity.org.

Is soaking the rich fair?

Soaking the Rich Is Not Fair

by Jeffrey A. Miron

Jeffrey A. Miron is Senior Lecturer and Director of Undergraduate Studies at Harvard University and Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute. Miron blogs at JeffreyMiron.com and is the author of Libertarianism, from A to Z.

Added to cato.org on September 2, 2011

This article appeared on The Huffington Post on September 2, 2011.

What is the “fair” amount of taxation on high-income taxpayers?

To liberals, the answer is always “more.” Liberals view high income — meaning any income that exceeds their own — as the result of luck or anti-social behavior. Hence liberals believe “fairness” justifies government-imposed transfers from the rich to everyone else. Many conservatives accept this view implicitly. They oppose soak-the-rich policies because of concern over growth, but they do not dispute whether such policies are fair.

But high tax rates on the rich are not fair or desirable for any other reason; they are an expression of America’s worst instincts, and their adverse consequences go beyond their negatives for economic growth.

The liberal hatred of the rich is a minority view, not a widely shared American value.

Consider first the view that differences in income result from luck rather than hard work: some people are born with big trust funds or innate skill and talent, and these fortuitous differences explain much of why some people have higher incomes than others.

Never mind that such a characterization is grossly incomplete. Luck undoubtedly explains some income differences, but this is not the whole story. Many trust fund babies have squandered their wealth, and inborn skill or talent means little unless combined with hard work.

But even if all income differences reflect luck, why are government-imposed “corrections” fair? The fact that liberals assert this does not make it true, any more than assertions to the contrary make it false. Fairness is an ill-defined, infinitely malleable concept, readily tailored to suit the ends of those asserting fairness, independent of facts or reason.

Worse, if liberals can assert a right to the wealth of the rich, why cannot others assert the right to similar transfers, such as from blacks to whites, Catholics to Protestants, or Sunni to Shia? Government coercion based on one group’s view of fairness is a first step toward arbitrary transfers of all kinds.

Now consider the claim that income differences result from illegal, unethical, or otherwise inappropriate behavior. This claim has an element of truth: some wealth results from illegal acts, and policies that punish such acts are appropriate.

But most inappropriate wealth accumulations results from bad government policies: those that restrict competition, enable crony capitalism, and hand large tax breaks to politically connected interest groups. These differences in wealth are a social ill, but the right response is removing the policies that promote them, not targeting everyone with high income.

The claim that soaking the rich is fair, therefore, has no basis in logic or in generating desirable outcomes; instead, it represents envy and hatred.

Why do liberals hate the rich? Perhaps because liberals were the “smart” but nerdy and socially awkward kids in high school, the ones who aced the SATs but did not excel at sports and rarely got asked to the prom. Some of their “dumber” classmates, meanwhile, went on to make more money, marry better-looking spouses, and have more fun.

Liberals find all this unjust because it rekindles their emotional insecurities from long ago. They do not have the honesty to accept that those with less SAT smarts might have other skills that the marketplace values. Instead, they resent wealth and convince themselves that large financial gains are ill-gotten.

Jeffrey A. Miron is Senior Lecturer and Director of Undergraduate Studies at Harvard University and Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute. Miron blogs at JeffreyMiron.com and is the author of Libertarianism, from A to Z.

 

More by Jeffrey A. Miron

The liberal views on fairness and redistribution are far more defensible, of course, when it comes to providing for the truly needy. Reasonable people can criticize the structure of current anti-poverty programs, or argue that the system is overly generous, or suggest that private charity would be more effective at caring for the least vulnerable.

The desire to help the poor, however, represents a generous instinct: giving to those in desperate situations, where bad luck undoubtedly plays a major role. Soaking the rich is a selfish instinct, one that undermines good will generally.

And most Americans share this perspective. They are enthusiastic about public and private attempt to help the poor, but they do not agree that soaking the rich is fair. That is why U.S. policy has rarely embraced punitive income taxation or an aggressive estate tax. Instead, Americans are happy to celebrate well-earned success. The liberal hatred of the rich is a minority view, not a widely shared American value.

For America to restore its economic greatness, it must put aside the liberal hatred of the rich and embrace anew its deeply held respect for success. If it does, America will have enough for everyone.

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Cato Institute, Taxes | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 1)

November 22, 2011 – 12:45 pm

Tyler Wilson

Earlier I wrote about where I think Arkansas could win a national championship with just two more wins.

Below is a portion of an article by Jim Harris of the website Arkansas 360:

What kind of college football polling world do we live in now that a No. 3 Arkansas could win Friday at No. 1 LSU and still find itself looking up at both LSU and No. 2 Alabama when the next BCS poll came out? Mark Schlabach, author and ESPN.com columnist, agreed Monday that it doesn’t make sense in the way we once viewed college football rankings, but we’re in a new day. His fellow ESPN college football writer, Brad Edwards, said as much Sunday that Arkansas could be left out of the BCS mix.

Maybe a lot of the national pundits have possessed the same thought Schlabach admitted he felt a couple of weeks back when he said, “When did Arkansas become a BCS contender? When did I miss the memo?”

Well, guess what, guys? This isn’t a No. 8 or 9 Arkansas going into Baton Rouge on Friday, or a 7-4 Arkansas like in 2007 that beat the No. 1 Tigers in triple overtime. Schlabach, who spoke Monday to the Little Rock Touchdown Club (and still has the Razorbacks projected for the Cotton Bowl online), admitted that everything about the BCS could be mixed next week even more than it’s been after this past week’s upsets. He’s not ruling out the Razorbacks shaking it all up.

Arkansas became a contender when Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Oregon all lost over the weekend. Schlabach was in Ames, Iowa, to see Oklahoma State go down to Iowa State in two overtimes. And still, the Cowboys are rated No. 2 in four of the six computer polls used in the BCS calculations. “If Oklahoma State is No. 2, then Georgia is No. 4,” Schlabach said.

LSU has a perfect 1.0 rating a top the BCS, leading in every poll — both the voting polls by the media and the coaches, as well as the computer rankings. The question now is just how much LSU would drop in all those calculations if it were by No. 3 Arkansas upset at home on Friday. In 2007, LSU still made the SEC Championship Game and won, and found its way back into the BCS title game picture, and won it all over Ohio State.

Georgia, which didn’t win the SEC East that year because it had lost early in the season to Tennessee, but may have been the SEC’s best overall team at season’s end, played Hawaii in the Sugar Bowl and finished the year No. 3.

Before computers became part of determining the national champion, it would be cut and dried that Arkansas would move up at least to No. 2, LSU would fall, and perhaps Alabama would move to No. 1. If you’re name was Notre Dame, you could beat the No. 1 and jump several spots to No. 1, as the Irish have done in their history.

Schlabach, who still forecasts LSU to play Alabama in the championship game poses this scenario: Arkansas beats LSU, Alabama plays Georgia in the SEC Championship Game and loses, and LSU and Alabama still play for the national championship and Georgia goes to the Sugar Bowl as the SEC’s champion and automatic qualifier for a BCS bowl. He doesn’t expect that to happen, he only speculated what might happen.

Arkansas, still ranked No. 3, goes to the Capital One Bowl?

Or how about at Arkansas at No. 3 being left out of the BCS bowls while No. 15 Michigan, perhaps at at-large team from the Big Ten, gets a spot in the Sugar Bowl against Houston, perhaps?

It’s a head-scratcher that Schlabach, who grew up outside South Bend, Ind., and attended Georgia before starting his journalism career at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, finds troubling about the system now.

“They’re likely to make some changes to the BCS next summer,” he said.

That may not be in time for Arkansas this year.

None of this matters if Arkansas doesn’t go into Baton Rouge and pulled the upset of the season, of course. Maybe we should all worry about the fallout after this weekend.

Incidentally, a betting line that started at 14 points for LSU has dropped to 12.5 already, we’re told. Apparently a lot of people have already thought two touchdowns between the two might be a bit much. Alabama, meanwhile, is a 21-point favorite to win the Iron Bowl in Auburn. “This Auburn team might be the worst one they’ve had in 10 years,” said Schlabach, who covered the SEC out of Atlanta before moving to ESPN.com. He still resides in Georgia, but is on the road throughout the season. He’ll get this weekend off, however, he said, and watch what all transpires in TV.

Related posts:

Video and story on Iowa St victory over Oklahoma State

Several pieces of the puzzle have to come together for Arkansas to have a chance at the national title. This was a big piece!!! Mark Schlabach of ESPN wrote this article below: AMES, Iowa — So what happens now? We’ve spent the past few weeks wondering what would happen to the BCS national championship race […]

Razorbacks’ road to national championship just got more simple

[+] Enlarge Before the BCS standings came out yesterday, it was the common belief that the Arkansas Razorbacks were possibly going to finish 11-1 and miss out on a BCS bowl, but now that has all changed. Arkansas is sitting pretty at number 3 and I no longer hope Auburn beats Alabama so we can […]

SEC week 12: SEC dominates BCS, Vandy gets ripped off by refs

This is an article on the SEC week 12: By Chris Low As it turns out, the weekend was a productive one for the SEC, even if there were more than a few shaky performances around the league against lesser opponents.Here’s a look at what we learned in Week 12:1. BCS takes on SEC flavor: Brad […]

Why is this victory over the Vols so sweet? Probably because of 71 and 98!! jh85

  Above is a picture from my camera at the game. Photo I have wondered why this victory meant over Tennessee meant so much to our Razorback Nation. I guess the answer is simply that we have lost so many close heartbreaking games to the Vols over the years and the 1971 and 1998 games […]

 

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Comments (0)

Suggestions from a conservative to the Super Committee

November 22, 2011 – 8:32 am

I love the Heritage Foundation.

THE SUPER COMMITTEE: Deficit-Reduction Solutions

November 16, 2011

America’s Spending and Debt Crisis

  • It’s the Spending: Washington has a spending problem. While tax revenue is projected to climb above its historical average level of 18.4% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2021, government spending is projected to increase to 26.4% in the same period. Driven by the three largest entitlement programs—Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid— total federal spending will explode from 24% of GDP in 2011 to nearly 35% by 2035.
  • Government Debt Growing at Unsustainable Levels: Publicly held debt more than doubled from $5 trillion at the end of fiscal year (FY) 2007 to a staggering $10.1 trillion in FY 2011. Today it’s nearly 70% of GDP and is on track to hit 185% of GDP by 2035.
  • Our National Defense Is at Risk: Defense spending, excluding war costs, is only 3.7% of GDP—under the 60-year average—and will be cut further under the Budget Control Act, exacerbating our readiness crisis.

Revenue and Spending Projections

Solutions for the Super Committee

  • Set Priorities and Make Bold Decisions:Whether it reaches its $1.5 trillion target or goes beyond it, the super committee should be bold. At the same time, it should avoid flawed policies that will do more harm than good. Federal spending and revenue should be balanced at the level of tax revenues to avoid deficits adding to national debt.
  • Fully Fund National Defense:Providing for America’s national defense is the primary duty of the federal government. The super committee should ensure full funding for America’s armed forces rather than making additional cuts.
  • Transform Entitlements:Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are the largest drivers of medium- and long-term deficits and debt. These programs should be structurally reformed to make them financially sustainable while also assuring economic security for the nation’s seniors and younger generations.
  • Do Not Raise Taxes: Tax hikes should be a nonstarter to any deficit reduction plan. They harm the economy and keep government spending high. Merely discussing the prospect of tax hikes makes America’s businesses less willing to take risks, buy new equipment, expand, and hire new employees.

How to Rein in Long-Term Spending

  • Repeal Obamacare: The health care law’s Medicaid expansion and costly new health care entitlement are partially offset by unwise cuts to Medicare provider reimbursement rates and new taxes, but it will nevertheless add to deficit spending. These flawed policies will exacerbate existing concerns in health care entitlement programs.
  • Reform Medicare: Medicare should be transformed from an unsustainable, open-ended, defined-benefit program to a premium-support program that allows retirees to select health plans that best suit their needs in a competitive market. This will spur better care at lower cost.
  • Reform Medicaid:Medicaid should be converted to provide direct support to low-income families to purchase their own private health insurance, and states should be given greater latitude to administer the program to better serve the most vulnerable members of society: the elderly and disabled.
  • Reform Social Security: Social Security benefits should be preserved for today’s seniors, and the program should be transformed to real insurance by moving away from a stream of benefits for every single American to a flat benefit above poverty targeting those who need it the most.

For more information, please visit http://SavingTheDream.org.

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in spending out of control, Taxes | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

“Tip Tuesday” Advice for Gene Simmons

November 22, 2011 – 7:25 am

Last Tuesday night I watched Gene Simmons Family Jewels and I commented how I  was struck by the good advice that his son Nick gave him. He told him that he grew up thinking that his father was the best. However, now that the marital infidility has come out, it has made Nick think long and hard about what other things in his father’s life are not like he thought they were.

In today’s sermon at church I heard our pastor say that Randy Alcorn said one of the main reasons he did not want to have an affair was:

  • Hurt to and loss of credibility with my beloved daughters, Karina and Angela. (“Why listen to a man who betrayed Mom and us?”)

THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT NICK SAID IN THE PROGRAM LAST TUESDAY!!!!HE GREW UP THINKING HIS FATHER HUNG THE MOON AND NOW HE DOESN’T KNOW WHAT IS AUTHENTIC ABOUT HIS FATHER’S LIFE ANY MORE.

Today I went to my church, Fellowship Bible Church and heard one of our teaching pastors, Brandon Barnard, deliver a message on Sexual Purity.

He started off the sermon by reading three chapters from Proverbs. Here are the verses:

Proverbs 5:1-23

English Standard Version (ESV)

Proverbs 5

Warning Against Adultery

1 My son, be attentive to my wisdom;
incline your ear to my understanding,
2that you may keep discretion,
and your lips may guard knowledge.
3For the lips of a forbidden[a] woman drip honey,
and her speech[b] is smoother than oil,
4but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a two-edged sword.
5Her feet go down to death;
her steps follow the path to[c] Sheol;
6she does not ponder the path of life;
her ways wander, and she does not know it. 7And now, O sons, listen to me,
and do not depart from the words of my mouth.
8Keep your way far from her,
and do not go near the door of her house,
9lest you give your honor to others
and your years to the merciless,
10lest strangers take their fill of your strength,
and your labors go to the house of a foreigner,
11and at the end of your life you groan,
when your flesh and body are consumed,
12and you say, “How I hated discipline,
and my heart despised reproof!
13I did not listen to the voice of my teachers
or incline my ear to my instructors.
14 I am at the brink of utter ruin
in the assembled congregation.”

15Drink water from your own cistern,
flowing water from your own well.
16Should your springs be scattered abroad,
streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be for yourself alone,
and not for strangers with you.
18Let your fountain be blessed,
and rejoice in the wife of your youth,

19a lovely deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight;
be intoxicated[d] always in her love.
20Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman
and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?[e]
21For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD,
and he ponders[f] all his paths.
22The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him,
and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.
23 He dies for lack of discipline,
and because of his great folly he is led astray.

Proverbs 6:20-35

English Standard Version (ESV)

Warnings Against Adultery

20 My son, keep your father’s commandment,
and forsake not your mother’s teaching.
21 Bind them on your heart always;
tie them around your neck.
22 When you walk, they[a] will lead you;
when you lie down, they will watch over you;
and when you awake, they will talk with you.
23For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,
and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,
24to preserve you from the evil woman,[b]
from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.[c]
25 Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes;
26for the price of a prostitute is only a loaf of bread,[d]
but a married woman[e] hunts down a precious life.
27Can a man carry fire next to his chest
and his clothes not be burned?
28Or can one walk on hot coals
and his feet not be scorched?
29So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
none who touches her will go unpunished.
30People do not despise a thief if he steals
to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry,
31but if he is caught, he will pay sevenfold;
he will give all the goods of his house.
32He who commits adultery lacks sense;
he who does it destroys himself.
33He will get wounds and dishonor,
and his disgrace will not be wiped away.
34For jealousy makes a man furious,
and he will not spare when he takes revenge.
35He will accept no compensation;
he will refuse though you multiply gifts.

Proverbs 7:6-27

English Standard Version (ESV)

 6For at the window of my house
I have looked out through my lattice,
7and I have seen among the simple,
I have perceived among the youths,
a young man lacking sense,
8passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house
9in the twilight, in the evening,
at the time of night and darkness.

10And behold, the woman meets him,
dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart.[a]
11She is loud and wayward;
her feet do not stay at home;
12now in the street, now in the market,
and at every corner she lies in wait.
13She seizes him and kisses him,
and with bold face she says to him,
14“I had to offer sacrifices,[b]
and today I have paid my vows;
15so now I have come out to meet you,
to seek you eagerly, and I have found you.
16I have spread my couch with coverings,
colored linens from Egyptian linen;
17I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,
aloes, and cinnamon.
18Come, let us take our fill of love till morning;
let us delight ourselves with love.
19For my husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey;
20he took a bag of money with him;
at full moon he will come home.”

21With much seductive speech she persuades him;
with her smooth talk she compels him.
22All at once he follows her,
as an ox goes to the slaughter,
or as a stag is caught fast[c]
23till an arrow pierces its liver;
as a bird rushes into a snare;
he does not know that it will cost him his life.

24And now, O sons, listen to me,
and be attentive to the words of my mouth.
25Let not your heart turn aside to her ways;
do not stray into her paths,
26for many a victim has she laid low,
and all her slain are a mighty throng.
27Her house is the way to Sheol,
going down to the chambers of death.

Then Brandon made several points concerning the scriptures. Probably the most powerful point he made was referring to the exercise that Randy Alcorn had challenged all men to make. This below is my advice to Gene Simmons.

In light of all the sexual immorality and high profile infedility, Randy Alcorn shares with us his list that counts the cost of Sexual immorality.

As Christians, this is a timely reminder.

The original link is at http://randyalcorn.blogspot.com/2009/06/counting-cost-of-sexual-immorality.html

Here is the excerpt:

Personalized List of Anticipated Consequences of Immorality

  • Grieving my Lord; displeasing the One whose opinion most matters.
  • Dragging into the mud Christ’s sacred reputation.
  • Loss of reward and commendation from God.
  • Having to one day look Jesus in the face at the judgment seat and give an account of why I did it. Forcing God to discipline me in various ways.
  • Following in the footsteps of men I know of whose immorality forfeited their ministry and caused me to shudder. List of these names:
  • Suffering of innocent people around me who would get hit by my shrapnel (a la Achan).
  • Untold hurt to Nanci, my best friend and loyal wife.
  • Loss of Nanci’s respect and trust.
  • Hurt to and loss of credibility with my beloved daughters, Karina and Angela. (“Why listen to a man who betrayed Mom and us?”)
  • If my blindness should continue or my family be unable to forgive, I could lose my wife and my children forever.
  • Shame to my family. (The cruel comments of others who would invariably find out.)
  • Shame to my church family.
  • Shame and hurt to my fellow pastors and elders. List of names:
  • Shame and hurt to my friends, and especially those I’ve led to Christ and discipled. List of names:
  • Guilt awfully hard to shake—even though God would forgive me, would I forgive myself?
  • Plaguing memories and flashbacks that could taint future intimacy with my wife.
  • Disqualifying myself after having preached to others.
  • Surrender of the things I am called to and love to do—teach and preach and write and minister to others. Forfeiting forever certain opportunities to serve God. Years of training and experience in ministry wasted for a long period of time, maybe permanently.
  • Being haunted by my sin as I look in the eyes of others, and having it all dredged up again wherever I go and whatever I do.
  • Undermining the hard work and prayers of others by saying to our community “this is a hypocrite—who can take seriously anything he and his church have said and done?”
  • Laughter, rejoicing and blasphemous smugness by those who disrespect God and the church (2 Samuel 12:14).
  • Bringing great pleasure to Satan, the Enemy of God.
  • Heaping judgment and endless problems on the person I would have committed adultery with.
  • Possible diseases (pain, constant reminder to me and my wife, possible infection of Nanci, or in the case of AIDS, even causing her death, as well as mine.)
  • Possible pregnancy, with its personal and financial implications.
  • Loss of self-respect, discrediting my own name, and invoking shame and lifelong embarrassment upon myself.

I’m older now, turned 55 a few days ago. My daughters are grown, with children of their own. But the list of consequences of immorality is larger than ever. I have two sons-in-law and four grandsons. Many people have read my books, so the circle of people I would be letting down has grown. (For resources on this subject, see my book The Purity Principle, and my booklet Sexual Temptation: How Christian Workers Can Win the Battle.)

It would still break my heart to let down my Lord Jesus and my wonderful wife. That’s why I’m more careful than ever to avoid the little compromises and indulgences that could lead to moral disaster.

If we would rehearse in advance the ugly and overwhelming consequences of immorality, we would be far more prone to avoid it.

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