The Laffer Curve charts a relationship between tax rates and tax revenue. While the theory behind the Laffer Curve is widely accepted, the concept has become very controversial because politicians on both sides of the debate exaggerate. This video shows the middle ground between those who claim “all tax cuts pay for themselves” and those who claim tax policy has no impact on economic performance. This video, focusing on the theory of the Laffer Curve, is Part I of a three-part series. Part II reviews evidence of Laffer-Curve responses. Part III discusses how the revenue-estimating process in Washington can be improved. For more information please visit the Center for Freedom and Prosperity’s web site: http://www.freedomandprosperity.org
The left has been loudly asserting that the middle class would lose under Mitt Romney’s plan to cut tax rates by 20 percent and finance those reductions by closing loopholes.
That class-warfare accusation struck me as a bit sketchy because when I looked at the data a couple of years ago, I put together this chart showing that rich people, on average, enjoyed deductions that were seven times as large as the deductions of middle-income taxpayers.
And the chart includes only the big itemized deductions. There are dozens of other special tax preferences, as shown in this depressing image, and you can be sure that rich people are far more likely to have the lawyers, lobbyists, and accountants needed to exploit those provisions.
But this chart doesn’t disprove the leftist talking point, so I’m glad that Martin Feldstein addressed the issue in today’s Wall Street Journal. Here’s some of what he wrote.
The IRS data show that taxpayers with adjusted gross incomes over $100,000 (the top 21% of all taxpayers) made itemized deductions totaling $636 billion in 2009. Those high-income taxpayers paid marginal tax rates of 25% to 35%, with most $200,000-plus earners paying marginal rates of 33% or 35%. And what do we get when we apply a 30% marginal tax rate to the $636 billion in itemized deductions? Extra revenue of $191 billion—more than enough to offset the revenue losses from the individual income tax cuts proposed by Gov. Romney. …Additional revenue could be raised from high-income taxpayers by limiting the use of the “preferences” identified for the Alternative Minimum Tax (such as excess oil depletion allowances) or the broader list of all official individual “tax expenditures” (such as tax credits for energy efficiency improvements in homes), among other credits and exclusions. None of this base-broadening would require taxing capital gains or making other changes that would reduce the incentives for saving and investment. …Since broadening the tax base would produce enough revenue to pay for cutting everyone’s tax rates, it is clear that the proposed Romney cuts wouldn’t require any middle-class tax increase, nor would they produce a net windfall for high-income taxpayers. The Tax Policy Center and others are wrong to claim otherwise.
In other words, even with a very modest assumption about the Laffer Curve, it would be quite possible to implement something akin to what Romney’s proposing and not “lose” tax revenue.
This doesn’t mean, of course, that Romney seriously intends to push for good policy. I’m much more concerned, for instance, that he’ll wander in the wrong direction and propose something very bad such as a value-added tax.
But Romney certainly can do the right thing if he wins. Assuming that’s what he wants to do.
This video is second installment of a three-part series. Part I reviews theoretical relationship between tax rates, taxable income, and tax revenue. Part III discusses how the revenue-estimating process in Washington can be improved. For more information please visit the Center for Freedom and Prosperity’s web site: http://www.freedomandprosperity.org.
I sent Romney 12 letters on the prolife movement and many of these letters including the writings of Dr. Francis Schaeffer. Here are two clips from Schaeffer that sum up his views on abortion.
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Francis Schaeffer February 21, 1982 (Part 2)
I know that letters like this from Romney below have been spotted over the internet and I don’t suggest that this was written up recently just for me. I received a letter back on September 17, 2012 from Mitt Romney and it stated:
Everette Hatcher III, 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002,
Dear Everette,
Thank you for contacting me about the important issue of abortion. I appreciate your interest in my campaign for president and would like to thank you for taking the time to share your views with me.
I am firmly pro-life. I believe that if abortion were limited to cases of rape, incest, and circumstances in which the mother’s life is in peril, we will have gone a long way to ending abortion in this country. I support the reversal of Roe v. Wade, because it is bad law and bad medicine. Roe was a misguided ruling that was a result of a small group of activist federal judges legislating from the bench.
I support the Hyde Amendment, which broadly bars the use of federal funds for abortions. And as president, I will end federal funding for abortion advocates like Planned Parenthood.
I will reinstate the Mexico City Policy to ensure that nongovernmental organizations that receive funding from America refrain from performing or promoting abortion services, as a method of family planning, in other countries. This includes ending American funding for any United Nations or other foreign assistance program that promotes or performs abortions on women around the world.
I will advocate for and support a Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act to protect unborn children who are capable of feeling pain from abortion.
And perhaps most importantly, I will only appoint judges who adhere to the Constitution and the laws as they are written, not as they want them to be written.
As Governor of Massachusetts, I fought to promote abstinence education in the classroom, vetoed legislation to provide emergency contraception without a prescription, and vetoed embryonic cloning legislation. I am proud to say that each time I was presented with legislation on life issues, I sided with life. I remain strongly dedicated to that position.
I am running for president because I believe in America and know that our best days are still ahead. I believe that the principles that made America the leader of the world today—freedom, opportunity, and free enterprise to name just a few—are the very principles that will keep America the leader of the world tomorrow. These last few years have not been the best of times. But while we’ve lost a few years, we have not lost our way.
Again, thank you for contacting me. I encourage you to visit my website at www.MittRomney.com for updated information on this and other issues that maybe of interest to you. I look forward to hearing from you in the future, and earning your support.
Sincerely, Mitt Romney
Romney for President. Inc, P.O.Box 149756, Boston, MA 02114-9756.
To Mitt Romney, Box 96861, Washington, DC 20090-6861, From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with Bush several times. He told him that the […]
To Mitt Romney, Box 96861, Washington, DC 20090-6861, From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with Bush several times. He told him that the […]
A Ronald Reagan radio address from 1975 addresses the topics of abortion and adoption. This comes from a collection of audio commentaries titled “Reagan in His Own Voice.” To Mitt Romney, Box 96861, Washington, DC 20090-6861, From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being […]
To Mitt Romney, Box 96861, Washington, DC 20090-6861, From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with Bush several times. He told him that the […]
Superbowl commercial with Tim Tebow and Mom. To Mitt Romney, Box 96994, Washington, DC 20077-7556 From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with Bush […]
___________________________________________ Francis Schaeffer is a hero of mine and I want to honor him with a series of posts on Sundays called “Schaeffer Sundays” which will include his writings and clips from his film series. I have posted many times in the past using his material. Philosopher and Theologian, Francis A. Schaeffer has argued, “If […]
A Christian Manifesto by Francis Schaeffer (Part 1) To Mitt Romney, Box 149756, Boston, MA 02114-9756 From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with […]
Part 1 Part 2 To Mitt Romney, Box 149756, Boston, MA 02114-9756 From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with Bush several times. He […]
Part 1 Part 2 To Mitt Romney, Box 149756, Boston, MA 02114-9756 From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with Bush several times. He […]
To Mitt Romney, Box 96994, Washington, DC 20077-7556 From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with Bush several times. He told him that the […]
What Ever Happened to the Human Race? To Mitt Romney, Box 96861, Washington, DC 20090-6861, From Everette Hatcher of http://www.thedailyhatch.org 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002 Did we forgive George Bush in 1988 for being pro-choice originally in 1980? We sure did. In fact, my former pastor, Adrian Rogers, had a chance to visit with Bush […]
Francis Schaeffer February 21, 1982 (Part 1) Uploaded by DeBunker7 on Feb 21, 2008 READ THIS FIRST: In decline of all civilizations we first see a war against the freedom of ideas. Discussion is limited or prohibited. Speakers at universities are shouted down. Corruption takes over city governments and towns as dishonesty and corruption expands. […]
I simply asked him if he had a chance to interact with any Christian Coaches like Tony Dungy or Tom Landry about his conversion. He said that he told Landry about his conversion and that was the only time he ever saw Landry smile. Walt Garrison told Summerall that he never saw Landry smile but he only played for him for 9 years.
LITTLE ROCK — Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy White said he would not change the way he played the game as a member of the Dallas Cowboys, but he would like to see change in the way the NFL treats its retirees.
Randy White speaks to LRTD Club
Former Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman Randy White spoke to members of the Little Rock Touchdown Club. The Hall of Famer was a 9-time All-Pro selection. (By David Harten)
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White, who was a nine time All-Pro in a 14-year career, said he hopes players who are retired get better care when it comes to health insurance and current and future players get better information about concussions.
White, 59, who lives in Dallas, hosts a Cowboys pregame show on KTVT, Channel 11, in Dallas and owns Randy White’s Hall of Fame BBQ & Grill in Frisco, Texas, addressed those two issues Monday at the Little Rock Touchdown Club’s weekly luncheon at the Embassy Suites hotel in Little Rock.
White said he started paying serious attention to retirement issues about15 years ago after he and a group of Hall of Famers attended a speech given by the late Gene Upshaw, former NFL Players Association executive director.
“He told us his loyalty was to the current players and not the former ones and that almost started a fight,” White said. “As a player, I never thought about retirement, but all of the players are going to be retired someday and I want them to be taken care of. Sometimes, it seems like the NFL and its union have taken the attitude that [former player and coach] Mike Ditka has referred to as deny, deny and die.”
White, who said he’s going to need to have his shoulder and knee replaced eventually, is starting to feel some of the effects from a 209-game career. He’s also among approximately 3,000 former players who have sued the NFL, charging that the NFL did not do enough to inform them about the dangers of concussions when they were playing.
“When it’s time to for my grandson to play football, I hope the research is there and contains valuable information,” White said. “I know these things filter down and I want them to know what the risks are. We’re suing because we feel some of the information was withheld from us. Me personally, I wouldn’t do anything differently. You can get hurt playing football. Then again, you can get hurt stepping off a curb.”
White also addressed the New Orleans bounty scandal, which drew a one-year suspension for Coach Sean Payon and pending suspensions for four players. White said cheap shots would have been flagged by the officials and he also had a difficult time believing players were being paid to deliver those hits. He said the players don’t need extra incentive and if they did, they didn’t need to be in the NFL.
“I wanted to hit guys hard, but I never wanted to hurt somebody,” White said. “I was never a dirty player and it was never my intention to hurt somebody.”
White said he was stirred up by the Cowboys’ NFC East rivalries and liked to quiet their fans.
He said games against the Washington Redskins were the best because there was usually a playoff berth, division title or home-field advantage in the playoffs at stake.
“We’d go in those places and it would be loud because those fans didn’t like you and it was always a lot of fun walking out of there after beating them and being able to hear a pin drop,” White said.
He said he often disliked rival players, using former Washington Redskins running back John Riggins as an example, until doing a show handicapping NFL games in Las Vegas with Riggins and former Chicago Bears defensive lineman Dan Hampton.
“At first, I said, ‘Riggins, I used to push him and step on him’ and one day he looked at me and said, ‘Randy, I’m not sure I like you, but you’re all right,’ ” White said.
That attitude extended to the Pittsburgh Steelers, who defeated the Cowboys in Super Bowl X and XIII. “Did I hate the Steelers? I didn’t like them, but I respected them.”
Tom Landry’s faith in Christ was the most important thing in the world to him. I got to ask Pat Summerall a question at the Little Rock Touchdown Club meeting back in October of 2010. Summerall had pointed out that Tom Landry was the defensive coordinator and Vince Lombardi was the offensive backfield coach when […]
Here is story that uses Tom Landry as an example of meekness: Because he regularly attended a church, Tom Landry thought he was a Christian. In his own words: “I had been in and about church my whole life. But really, it was only half-heartedly…I thought of myself as a Christian but I really wasn’t. […]
Tom Landry was a committed Christian and look what impact a few words he had with a former player: “Pat Summerall Here” Theme of the Week: High-Profile Turnarounds Tuesday, October 27, 2009 1 of 1 Key Bible Verse: But God is so rich in mercy … that even though we were dead because of our sins, […]
I got to meet Tom Landry twice and I read his book back in the late 1970′s. What a classy guy. Landry Jones is one of the top quarterbacks in the country today and he was raised in a Christian home and he was named after Tom Landry!!! It is such a small world after […]
I got to ask Pat Summerall a question at the Little Rock Touchdown Club meeting back in October of 2010. Summerall had pointed out that Tom Landry was the defensive coordinator and Vince Lombardi was the offensive backfield coach when he played for the Giants. Summerall had shared how he had recovered from his […]
Oh my gosh! Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten takes down Melissa Kellerman after being forced out of bounds at the game in Arlington, Texas A lot of people got a big laugh out of the November 24, 2011 Thanksgiving game between Dallas and Miami when Jason Whitten caught a pass and ran […]
I got to see Matt Jones speak on 9-10-12 at the Little Rock Touchdown Club and I was proud of him for opening up concerning what brought his career to an end. Drugs can derail a great career. Take a look at what happened to Matt Jones: Taken in the first round by the Jacksonville […]
My son Hunter and I got to hear Matt Jones speak on 9-10-12 at the Little Rock Touchdown Club. When asked about what to do when you are up against a wall like this team is, he responded that he remembers how it felt to lose in the 6 overtime game in Knoxville and to […]
I got to hear Howard Schnellenberger speak on Sept 4, 2012 at the Little Rock Touchdown Club. I did not know that he played football for the University of Kentucky. In fact, just last year Kentucky ended a long losing streak to Tennessee by winning in Lexington. Schnellenberger was responsible for catching the winning touchdown […]
I got to hear Howard Schnellenberger speak at the Little Rock Touchdown Club on Tuesday Sept 4, 2012. Schnellenberger was good at building programs. Ex-coach enjoyed building programs By Jeff Halpern Posted: September 5, 2012 at 5:10 a.m. Staton Breidenthal Howard Schnellenberger speaks Tuesday at the Little Rock Touchdown Club. LITTLE ROCK — Howard Schnellenberger […]
I got to hear Howard Schnellenberger talk on Sept 4, 2012 at the Little Rock Touchdown Club. Schnellenberger said that Bear Bryant had the greatest ability to both instruct a player with criticism but then build him up also. He made a point of making sure he did both during a practice. Under Schnellenburger direction […]
I got to hear Howard Schnellenberger speak on 9-4-12 at the Little Rock Touchdown Club. I enjoyed hearing his stories about Bear Bryant and what he learned from the Bear. Here is a story by Jim Harris that discusses these too things. Jim Harris: Spirit Of Arkansan Bear Bryant Runs Through Schnellenberger’s Veins <!– 23 […]
Photo by Amy Smotherman Burgess Tennessee wide receiver Justin Hunter (11) reaches for a catch under pressure from North Carolina State defensive back Juston Burris (11) during the Chick-Fil-A Kick Off Game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta on Friday, Aug. 31, 2012. Tennessee won the game 35-21. (AMY SMOTHERMAN BURGESS/NEWS SENTINEL STAFF) ____________ Tennessee […]
1972 USC Football Highlights vs. Notre Dame Uploaded by 63utuber on Jun 14, 2011 No description available. I got to hear Coach Robinson speak in Little Rock on August 27, 2012. Little Rock Touchdown Club Week 2: Hall Of Fame Coach John Robinson by Zack Veddern on Aug 28, 2012 9:07 AM CDT robinson […]
1972 USC Football Highlights vs. Notre Dame Uploaded by 63utuber on Jun 14, 2011 No description available. ________- Hearing John Robinson at the Little Rock Touchdown Club was very enjoyable. Earlier I posted about asking him the question: “Do you remember John McKay’s halftime speech at the 1974 Notre Dame at USC game?” Did you know that […]
John Robinson of USC should have an opinion, but no one asked him on August 27, 2012 when he spoke to the Little Rock Touchdown Club. Wikipedia reports USC’s results that year: The 1978 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California in the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season. Following the season, the […]
USC vs. Tennessee 1980 Uploaded by yankeefanintenn on Jan 5, 2011 Hate that we lost, but I love watching games from this era. Fans were really into the games and it was a great game. All video footage is copyright of the University of Tennessee, but legally reproduced here in conjunction with Fair Use laws. […]
2005 USC Trojans vs Arkansas Part 1 (Rewind) Uploaded by NHBI007 on Oct 13, 2008 2005 USC Trojans vs Arkansas __________ I really enjoyed Robinson talk on 8-27-12. Robinson talks past UA, USC matchups JEFF HALPERN Former football coach John Robinson was 3-2 in his career at Southern California and UNLV against the Arkansas Razorbacks. […]
On August 27, 2012 I got to hear John Robinson speak at the the Little Rock Touchdown Club and he was a great speaker. Jim Harris: Former Southern Cal Coach John Robinson Wins In Little Rock <!– 23 –> by Jim Harris 8/27/2012 at 1:59pm College Football Hall of Fame coach John Robinson recalled some […]
2006 USC Trojans vs Arkansas Part 1 Uploaded by NHBI007 on Mar 29, 2009 2006 USC Trojans vs Arkansas Today John Robinson told some funny stories at the Little Rock Touchdown Club and some interesting trivia facts. Did you know that USC won several national titles under John McKay with Frank Broyles defensive […]
USC-ND ’74 – The Anthony Davis Game Uploaded by sckego on Aug 6, 2006 Notre Dame was killing USC 24-0 with a minute left in first half of the 1974 game in Los Angeles. Anthony Davis caught a TD pass to close out the half, then returned the 2nd half kickoff for a touchdown, and […]
I always enjoy the Little Rock Touchdown Club meeting and August 20th was better than I expected. Mark May did a great job. I thought his answer concerning Tennessee being a sleeper team was an excellent description of them. I have not heard many commentators talking about the Vols challenging for the SEC East conference […]
Too bad for Ohio State they had to forfeit the Sugar Bowl victory in 2011. I got to hear Mark May speak at the Little Rock Touchdown Club on August 20, 2012 and he did a great job. May sees hurdles for Hogs in SEC By Jeremy Muck Tuesday, August 21, 2012 LITTLE ROCK — […]
In the last 5 minutes of this video you can see some key plays from the 1971 Liberty Bowl and it shows Tom Reed recovering the ball for the hogs. There are lots of questionable calls in the past and at the bottom of this post you will find a fine article from Arkansas Sports […]
I went to hear Mark May speak at the Little Rock Touchdown Club on August 20, 2012 and he did a great job of giving some insights into the Penn St case and he also looked into the SEC race this year. I do think that May has some good insights and I think his […]
Wally Hall wrote a fine article on the Little Rock Touchdown Club meeting yesterday that I got to attend. It was moving when Mark May got choked up responding to a question about the Penn St scandal. Wally refers to that. LIKE IT IS: ESPN analyst starts LRTC talks with bang Tuesday, August 21, 2012 […]
Reggie Herring is featured in this video above about the 1980 Florida St victory over Pitt. Mark May did a great job at the first Little Rock Touchdown Club meeting of the year. Jim Harris of Arkansas Sports 360 did a good article on it and I agree with what Wally Hall wrote on his […]
Sadly, “The U.S. is now on the verge of a symbolic threshold: the point at which more than half of all American households receive and accept transfer benefits from the government.” I really do hate it because it affects so many people’s attitudes towards hard work and government dependency. However, after reading this article below I am very aware of that sad fact.
I wrote a celebratory post last November about the dramatic difference between Americans and Europeans. There truly is American exceptionalism in that Europeans are much more likely to think it is government’s responsibility to provide the basics of life.
Another poll in 2010 showed Americans, by a 20-percentage point margin, want smaller government and lower taxes. A 2011 poll revealed negative views, by an almost 2-1 margin, of the federal government. And it’s not scientific, or even a poll, but I also enjoyed this Mark Steyn column describing how Americans were the only people in the world to protest for less government when the financial crisis hit.
Based on what’s already happened, Nicholas Eberstadt of the American Enterprise Institute is worried that the narcotic of dependency may be diluting American exceptionalism.
From the founding of our nation until quite recently, the U.S. and its citizens were regarded, at home and abroad, as exceptional in a number of deep and important respects. One of these was their fierce and principled independence, which informed not only the design of the political experiment that is the U.S. Constitution but also their approach to everyday affairs. The proud self-reliance that struck Alexis de Tocqueville in his visit to the U.S. in the early 1830s extended to personal finances. The American “individualism” about which he wrote did not exclude social cooperation—the young nation was a hotbed of civic associations and voluntary organizations. But in an environment bursting with opportunity, American men and women viewed themselves as accountable for their own situation through their own achievements—a novel outlook at that time, markedly different from the prevailing attitudes of the Old World (or at least the Continent). The corollaries of this American ethos were, on the one hand, an affinity for personal enterprise and industry and, on the other, a horror of dependency and contempt for anything that smacked of a mendicant mentality. Although many Americans in earlier times were poor, even people in fairly desperate circumstances were known to refuse help or handouts as an affront to their dignity and independence. People who subsisted on public resources were known as “paupers,” and provision for them was a local undertaking. Neither beneficiaries nor recipients held the condition of pauperism in high regard.
That’s the good news. Now for the bad news.
The U.S. is now on the verge of a symbolic threshold: the point at which more than half of all American households receive and accept transfer benefits from the government. From cradle to grave, a treasure chest of government-supplied benefits is there for the taking for every American citizen—and exercising one’s legal rights to these many blandishments is now part of the American way of life. …Citizens have become ever more broad-minded about the propriety of tapping new sources of finance for supporting their appetite for more entitlements. The taker mentality has thus ineluctably gravitated toward taking from a pool of citizens who can offer no resistance to such schemes: the unborn descendants of today’s entitlement-seeking population. …The U.S. is a very wealthy society. If it so chooses, it has vast resources to squander. And internationally, the dollar is still the world’s reserve currency; there remains great scope for financial abuse of that privilege. Such devices might well postpone the day of fiscal judgment: not so the day of reckoning for American character, which may be sacrificed long before the credibility of the U.S. economy. Some would argue that it is an asset already wasting away before our very eyes.
If you think Eberstadt is being needlessly pessimistic, you may change your mind if you read this and this.
To be sure, it’s possible to reverse this trend if we implement entitlement reform. But how likely is that given the short-sighted outlook and self-interested attitude of the political class.
P.P.S. Redistribution is bad for prosperity because you’re paying some people not to produce and you’re penalizing some people who do produce. To get a better idea of how the former kills incentives, look at this amazing chart.
Does Senator Grassley’s tweet, that the American people “r not stupid as this x prof of con law,” make an important point or was it disrespectful? Is this a sign that Obama’s Supreme Court comments won’t be going away?
There’s enough disrespect to go around – for the president (Grassley), for the Supreme Court (Obama). It’s the larger question about Obama’s comments on the Court and the Constitution that’s more important, because it’s not going away, and for good reason. Look no further than to this morning’s Washington Post, where E.J. Dionne Jr. is falling all over himself in defense of Obama. After the Court’s oral arguments over ObamaCare, it’s finally dawning on modern liberals that their project for ubiquitous government is under serious political and even legal attack, so they’re fighting back.
Like others in the liberal establishment last week, Dionne links Obama’s and Franklin Roosevelt’s attacks on the Court. But he links those in turn to Obama’s ”social Darwinism” attack next day on the Ryan-Romney budget — a budget, Dionne writes, that would cut back “student loans, medical and scientific research grants, Head Start, feeding programs for the poor, and possibly even the weather service.” Indeed, it’s “so far to the right,” Obama said, that it makes the Republicans’ 1994 Contract With America “look like the New Deal.”
What Obama and his liberal apologists fail to accept, of course, is that their welfare-state project is spent, literally. They pose as defenders of welfare programs for the poor and, now, the middle class, while either ignoring the deficits and debt those programs have run up or, at best, arguing that taxing the rich will solve the problem, all evidence to the contrary notwithstanding. Thus the Democratic Senate has failed to pass a budget in over a thousand days, and no one gives the administration’s budget a moment’s thought. Their pose is just that, because unless we come to grips with these systemic problems, there will be no student loans, Head Start, and all the rest, because “entitlements” and service on the debt will consume everything, until they too will go by the way.
Our Constitution for limited government was written to avoid this dilemma. Roosevelt and his “Brain Trust” thought they were wiser than the Framers, much like today’s liberals. Grassley’s mistake was in choosing the wrong word. It’s not “stupid,” it’s “irresponsible.” Santa Claus comes only once a year. The rest of the year we have to behave like adults.
Thank you so much for your time. I know how valuable it is. I also appreciate the fine family that you have and your commitment as a father and a husband.
Sincerely,
Everette Hatcher III, 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002, ph 501-920-5733, lowcostsqueegees@yahoo.com
I have posted many times about the overspending in Washington. Here are a few of those posts listed below:
Sometimes it is tragic that you got to laugh about it. Dear Conan, Reckless Government Spending Is Worse Than You Think Brandon Stewart August 10, 2011 at 7:31 pm Late-night comedian Conan O’Brien’s blog has a new post parodying Washington’s excessive spending. “Team Coco has found out why our government is so broke,” the blog explains, “They’ve […]
I read this letter below from the Arkansas Democrat Gazette on August 13, 2011: Time to stop insanity The president has told us for 2 1/2 years that he is focusing “like a laser” on jobs. Well, looks like it’s time to replace this “Jobs Guy” with someone who has actually had some experience running […]
Senator Mark Pryor wants our ideas on how to cut federal spending. Take a look at this video clip below: Senator Pryor has asked us to send our ideas to him at cutspending@pryor.senate.gov and I have done so in the past and will continue to do so in the future. On May 11, 2011, I emailed to […]
In the last few years the number of people receiving Food Stamps has skyrocketed. President Obama has not cut any federal welfare programs but has increased them, and he has used class warfare over and over the last few months and according to him equality at the finish line is the equality that we should […]
Government Spending Doesn’t Create Jobs Uploaded by catoinstitutevideo on Sep 7, 2011 Share this on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/qnjkn9 Tweet it: http://tiny.cc/o9v9t In the debate of job creation and how best to pursue it as a policy goal, one point is forgotten: Government doesn’t create jobs. Government only diverts resources from one use to another, which doesn’t […]
I have been writing President Obama letters and have not received a personal response yet. (He reads 10 letters a day personally and responds to each of them.) However, I did receive a form letter in the form of an email on January 25, 2011. I don’t know which letter of mine generated this response so I have […]
I really believe that we should balance the budget now!!! I really don’t understand how people can seriously think that bringing in 2.2 trillion while spending almost double that can continue very long without us heading to Greece. President Obama recently was critical of Paul Ryan’s plan and he said some very hateful words like […]
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, […]
Sen. Mitch McConnell: Americans Don’t Approve of Anything Obama Has Done Uploaded by HeritageFoundation on Dec 8, 2011 In an exclusive interview at The Heritage Foundation, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) sharply criticized President Obama for engaging in class warfare and accused him of shifting the focus away from his own failed policies in […]
Dan Mitchell of the Cato Institute rightly has pointed out that President Obama is off base to be critical of Paul Ryan’s budget since it allows the government to grow by over 3% each year and he wished that the Republicans would taking a sharper knife to the budget cuts!!!! Appearing on PBS to Debate […]
The Christian Worldview has a two-fold mission: 1.) to help Christians develop a comprehensive biblical worldview about all matters of life and faith so that they, their families, and their churches will be strong, effective, God-glorifying ambassadors for Jesus Christ, and 2.) to share the good news that all people can be reconciled to God through repentance of sin and faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord.
This mission is pursued two ways:
The Christian Worldview is a nationally-syndicated radio program hosted by David Wheaton that airs every Saturday from 8-9am Central Time on ~200 radio stations and is also available online via podcast, streaming, and TheChristianWorldview.org. Featuring compelling topics, notable guests, listener calls, and sound bites, the program focuses on current events, cultural issues, and matters of faith from a decidedly biblical perspective.
TheChristianWorldview.org is an extensive website resource that provides audio, video, and written content from some of the most respected Christian leaders.
What is a Worldview?
A worldview is a personal collection of beliefs through which all of life is perceived and lived. There are several prominent worldviews — Christian, secular humanistic, Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist, New Age and others — including subsets of each and crossovers between two or more. Every person has a worldview.
The real question is: “Is your worldview true?” All worldviews are based on someone or something — a religious leader, philosopher, professor, writer, popular culture, organization, book, etc. The reason we believe the Christian worldview is worth following is because it is based on the Bible which claims to be entirely true and has never been proven otherwise.
Bad News – Good News
Rejection of the Christian worldview — or in other words, disobeying God’s will as written in the Bible, also known as sin — is ultimately the root cause of all the conflict and injustice within individuals, families, communities, nations, and the world.
The good news is that anyone who repents of their sin against God and places their faith or trust in His Son, Jesus Christ, as paying the required sacrifice for their sin and then follows Him as Lord, can be reconciled to God and then begin the life-long process of developing a Christian worldview to the praise and honor and glory of God.
Being in a right relationship with your Creator and then seeking to understand and live as He desires is the purpose of life. Hence our slogan: “Think Biblically, Live Accordingly.”
Until Christians are strengthened and non-Christians are reconciled,
Published on Aug 30, 2012 by USOPEN Andy Roddick holds press conference to announce his retirement from professional tennis at the age of 30. Roddick is a former world #1 and won the 2003 US Open. ____________ Juan Carlos Ferrero vs Andy Roddick Final US Open 2003 Highlights Pt. 1 Andy has some impressive stats: […]
Above is a video I used to like a lot which features MacEnroe’s wife. _________________________ The tennis players Björn Borg and John McEnroe met 14 times at the regular tour during their careers with their on-court rivalry highlighted by their contrasting temperaments and styles.[1] Borg was known for his cool and emotionless demeanor on court, […]
From Wikipedia: John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. (born February 16, 1959) is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles (three at Wimbledon and four at the US Open), nine Grand Slam men’s doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title. […]
From Wikipedia: McEnroe won a total of 148 ATP titles (a record for a male professional) during his career — 77 in singles, 71 in men’s doubles, and 1 in mixed doubles (not counted as ATP title).He won seven Grand Slam singles titles. He also won a record eight year end championship titles overall, the […]
Rebecca Marino Interview at Saguenay National Bank Challenger Uploaded by TCtenniscanada on Sep 22, 2010 Rebecca Marino speaks to media following her 2nd round win over fellow Canadian Gabriela Dabrowski at the $50,000 Saguenay National Bank Challenger. ___________________ Wikipedia notes: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Rebecca Marino Rebecca Marino at the […]
One on One With Marina Erakovic Uploaded by ASBClassicvideo on Jan 1, 2011 James McOnie talks with Marina Erakovic and gets some positive reinforcement. __________________________________ From Wikipedia: Jump to: navigation, search Marina Erakovic Erakovic at the 2009 ASB Classic Country New Zealand Residence Auckland, New Zealand Born 6 March 1988 (1988-03-06) (age 23) Split, SFR Yugoslavia […]
From Wikipedia: Johanna Larsson Country Sweden Residence Helsingborg, Sweden Born 17 August 1988 (1988-08-17) (age 23) Boden, Sweden Height 1.74m (5′ 9″) Weight 66 kg Turned pro 2006 Plays Right-handed (two-handed backhand) Career prize money $449.950 Singles Career record 220–124 Career titles 11 ITF Highest ranking No. 46 (July 11, 2011) Current ranking No. 58 (January […]
Petrova Interview Wimbledon 2008 Day 8 Uploaded by MZTennis on Jul 1, 2008 Download Match http://tinyurl.com/579jxq Petrova Wimbledon 2008 Interview Day 8 ________________________________ From Wikipedia: Nadia Petrova Надежда Петрова Country Russia Residence Miami, USA Born June 8, 1982 (1982-06-08) (age 29) Moscow, Soviet Union Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) Weight 65 kg (140 lb; 10.2 st) Turned pro September 6, 1999 […]
Uploaded by HobartInternational on Jan 8, 2011 British star Elena Baltacha talks ahead of the Moorilla Hobart International. The Scotswoman, known as “Bally”, is one of many top international players competing at the WTA AO Series event in the Tasmanian capital. She faces Tamarine Tansugarn in Thailand. __________________________ From Wikipedia: Jump to: navigation, search Elena […]
2011 Australian Open – Bethanie Mattek-Sands Uploaded by tennis on Jan 24, 2011 In an exclusive interview with USTA.com’s Craig Gabriel from the 2011 Australian Open in Melbourne, American Bethanie Mattek-Sands talks about finding doubles success down under, the atmosphere of the Aussie Open, maintaining a solid ranking, the mindset of trying to qualify, losing […]
Every Tuesday you can find a great post like this one and below you can find some links to past posts. From Wikipedia: McEnroe won a total of 148 ATP titles (a record for a male professional) during his career — 77 in singles, 71 in men’s doubles, and 1 in mixed doubles (not counted […]
Here are the top ten paid tennis players in the world: Hey people, here we have this post about the top 10 highest paid tennis players of the world, for a little introduction let me tell you that a sum of $1.7 million is given to men’s and women’s US open champion for the title. […]
Juan Carlos Ferrero vs Andy Roddick Final US Open 2003 Highlights Pt. 1 Andy has some impressive stats: Serve records: Fastest serve in Australian open: 148 mph . Fastest serve in Dubai: 150 mph. Fastest average in first serve: 134 mph. Fastest serve in Beijing: 148 mph. Fastest serve in San Jose: 150 mph. Fastest serve in Madrid: 151 mph. Fastest […]
ESPN on James Blake’s tennis career winding down From Wikipedia: James Riley Blake[1] (born December 28, 1979) is an American professional tennis player. Blake is known for his speed and powerful, flat forehand. As of August 2011, Blake is ranked no. 63 among active male players with 24 career finals appearances (10–14 record). His career […]
Uploaded by TennisAustralia on Sep 16, 2011 Lleyton Hewitt and Roger Federer speak to the media following Federer’s win in the second rubber. _________________________ Wikipedia noted: Lleyton Glynn Hewitt ( /ˈleɪtən ˈhjuːɨt/;[2] born 24 February 1981) is an Australian professional tennis player and former world no. 1. In 2000, Hewitt had won ATP titles on all […]
Uploaded by TennisPiu on Feb 23, 2009 Highlights of the final between Andy Roddick and Radek Stepanek of the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships 2009 in Memphis. ______________________________ From Wikipedia: Radek Štěpánek Country Czech Republic Residence Monte Carlo, Monaco Born 27 November 1978 (1978-11-27) (age 33) Karviná, Czechoslovakia Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) Weight 76 kg (170 lb; 12.0 st) Turned pro […]
What should we make from USC’s shocking 21-14 loss to Stanford? Lou Holtz rightly said concerning USC, “They were not number 2 in the country.The writers voted them there and they made a mistake. They were not the number two team.”
Earlier I mentioned that Kiffin looked silly for implying that USC had overcome the sanctions from the NCAA when they had appealed them for two years which resulted in them only being delayed. This of course means Kiffin hasn’t even got close to the finish line concerning the sanctions affects. Those will probably come in 2014 at the earliest.
I said in an earlier post that Lane Kiffin was silly recently when he talked about how they had overcome so much to earn the #1 ranking in the preseason poll. Sure enough he lost that ranking to Alabama a few days later and I pointed out that Kiffin was successful at only putting off the stiff NCAA recruiting sactions for 2 years and now he will have to reap the consequences in 2014-2015 when his junior and senior classes will be subpar for sure. Of course, these future penalties have not stopped Kiffin for bragging. The only thing I can think of that will do that will be Oregon or possibly a SEC team beat down in the national championship game.
John Robinson sounded pretty confident about USC when he spoke at the Little Rock Touchdown Club earlier this year. I do admit that the SEC can not continue to win the national championship every year. You would think that another team would come along and win it sooner or later.
Milton Friedman’s film series “Free to Choose” is excellent and I would recommend the book highly too. I read it and watched the series in 1980 and it had a huge impact on me. Back in 2004 I saw Milton Friedman give an interview in which he said something that I think really summed up most of views in simple statement and here it is:
There are four ways in which you can spend money. You can spend your own money on yourself. When you do that, why then you really watch out what you’re doing, and you try to get the most for your money. Then you can spend your own money on somebody else. For example, I buy a birthday present for someone. Well, then I’m not so careful about the content of the present, but I’m very careful about the cost. Then, I can spend somebody else’s money on myself. And if I spend somebody else’s money on myself, then I’m sure going to have a good lunch! Finally, I can spend somebody else’s money on somebody else. And if I spend somebody else’s money on somebody else, I’m not concerned about how much it is, and I’m not concerned about what I get. And that’s government. And that’s close to 40% of our national income.
The unions might be good for the people who are in the unions but it doesn’t do a thing for the people who are unemployed. Because the union keeps down the number of jobs, it doesn’t do a thing for them.
Interview with Brian Lamb, In Depth Book TV (2000)
The use of quantity of money as a target has not been a success. I’m not sure that I would as of today push it as hard as I once did.
Financial Times [UK] (7 June 2003)
I am in favor of cutting taxes under any circumstances and for any excuse, for any reason, whenever it’s possible.The reason I am is because I believe the big problem is not taxes, the big problem is spending. The question is, “How do you hold down government spending?” Government spending now amounts to close to 40% of national income not counting indirect spending through regulation and the like. If you include that, you get up to roughly half. The real danger we face is that number will creep up and up and up. The only effective way I think to hold it down, is to hold down the amount of income the government has. The way to do that is to cut taxes.
There are four ways in which you can spend money. You can spend your own money on yourself. When you do that, why then you really watch out what you’re doing, and you try to get the most for your money. Then you can spend your own money on somebody else. For example, I buy a birthday present for someone. Well, then I’m not so careful about the content of the present, but I’m very careful about the cost. Then, I can spend somebody else’s money on myself. And if I spend somebody else’s money on myself, then I’m sure going to have a good lunch! Finally, I can spend somebody else’s money on somebody else. And if I spend somebody else’s money on somebody else, I’m not concerned about how much it is, and I’m not concerned about what I get. And that’s government. And that’s close to 40% of our national income.
Fox News interview (May 2004)
I am a libertarian with a small “l” and a Republican with a capital “R”.And I am a Republican with a capital “R” on grounds of expediency, not on principle.
Keynes was a great economist. In every discipline, progress comes from people who make hypotheses, most of which turn out to be wrong, but all of which ultimately point to the right answer. Now Keynes, in The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money,set forth a hypothesis which was a beautiful one, and it really altered the shape of economics. But it turned out that it was a wrong hypothesis. That doesn’t mean that he wasn’t a great man!
Thanks to economists, all of us, from the days of Adam Smith and before right down to the present, tariffs are perhaps one tenth of one percent lower than they otherwise would have been. … And because of our efforts, we have earned our salaries ten-thousand fold.
If a tax cut increases government revenues, you haven’t cut taxes enough.
As quoted in “Milton Friedman’s Last Lunch” at Forbes.com (11 December 2006)
The true test of any scholar’s work is not what his contemporaries say, but what happens to his work in the next 25 or 50 years.And the thing that I will really be proud of is if some of the work I have done is still cited in the text books long after I am gone.
As quoted in The Power of Choice (January 2007)
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Thank you so much for your time. I know how valuable it is. I also appreciate the fine family that you have and your commitment as a father and a husband.
Sincerely,
Everette Hatcher III, 13900 Cottontail Lane, Alexander, AR 72002, ph 501-920-5733, lowcostsqueegees@yahoo.com
Arkansas defensive tackle Jared Green (57) and linebackers Alonzo Highsmith (45), and Tenarius Wright (43) attempt to tackle Alabama running back Eddie Lacy (42) as offensive lineman Barrett Jones (75) looks on during second quarter action of an NCAA college football game in Fayetteville, Ark., Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/David Quinn)
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Arkansas fans knew if Tyler Wilson did not play on Saturday that it was going to be a long day when #1 Alabama came to town. I put it this way, if Tyler plays we got a 20% chance and if he doesn’t then we have a 2% chance of winning.
Alabama played conservative and let their defense do all the work in the first half. Arkansas snapped the ball over the punter’s head which lead to an one play drive for Alabama.
Arkansas did make Alabama’s offense struggle their first two possessions but Sabin did not panic and let his defense lead to a 24-0 halftime lead.
Tennessee had high hopes of winning at home against Florida. No one really knew how good Florida was going to be this year. Everyone knows they have the top talent in the country but they did not look good at all last year.
I thought Tennessee could pull of an upset in this game and the Vols’ fans thought so too and they came with that expectation too. However, in the second half Florida came back and put the game away.
Where do the Hogs and the Vols go now? Arkansas has a bigger challenge this week when 3-0 Rutgers comes to town and we still don’t know if Tyler Wilson will be cleared to play. The oddsmakers have that game as a tossup.
Tennessee has a breather scheduled with Akron. However, both teams will get back into SEC play after that and things should develop soon after that. Either they will develop for the good or fall apart. I think both teams can score some upsets and make runs but I think that both teams have the potential of falling apart too.
Originally published 05:03 p.m., September 16, 2012
Updated 05:44 p.m., September 16, 2012
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Bobby Petrino built Arkansas into one of the top programs in the country in four seasons, playing in a BCS bowl game and finishing as high as No. 5 in the rankings during that time.
In three games this season, the Razorbacks (1-2, 0-1 Southeastern Conference) appear to have all but collapsed without their former coach, and with an injured Tyler Wilson on the sidelines.
The latest crushing blow came in the form of a 52-0 drubbing at the hands of No. 1 Alabama on Saturday, a game in which Arkansas was shut out in Razorback Stadium for the first time in 46 seasons. It might not have been as shocking as an overtime loss to Louisiana-Monroe a week earlier, but it was every bit as emotionally crippling — and then some.
Players walked slowly off the field afterward, coaches embraced in the team’s football complex and Wilson — who missed the game while still suffering from a head injury suffered the week before — called an impromptu news conference where he stressed that he’ll do everything he can to keep the team together, and play, in next week’s game with Rutgers.
“And most importantly, get a win,” Wilson said. “You have to start with one before you can get the rest of them. I give you my word; I am going to do the best I can to make that happen.”
Arkansas running back Knile Davis (7) and tight end Chris Gragg (80) leave the field after their 52-0 loss to Alabama in an NCAA college football game in Fayetteville, Ark., Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)
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While Arkansas was left to regroup, the Crimson Tide (3-0, 1-0) walked away with its second straight shutout and 21st straight win to open conference play. Alabama also reclaimed the sense of dominance it had in a season-opening win over Michigan, a sense that wavered ever-so slightly in a 35-0 over Western Kentucky last week.
The Crimson Tide allowed six sacks of quarterback AJ McCarron in that win, none against the Razorbacks. McCarron was 11 of 16 passing for 189 yards and a touchdown before exiting the blowout in the third quarter, and Alabama outgained Arkansas 438-137 in total yards.
The convincing win even led to a compliment or two from demanding Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban. Alabama hosts Florida Atlantic next week before beginning a stretch of six straight SEC games as it pursues its third national championship in four seasons.
“What we’ve really been fighting with this group about ever since the Michigan game is allowing ourselves to accept average and getting them to demand more of themselves,” Saban said. “I think we started to gain a little bit (Saturday).
“… This group is still learning how to motivate themselves every week and demand to be the best that they can be. We’re going to continue to work on that, and hopefully we’ll continue to improve.”
Meanwhile, whatever Wilson’s availability is moving forward for Arkansas, his absence has left the Razorbacks in turmoil in their first season under coach John L. Smith. The former Michigan State and Louisville coach was brought back to Arkansas in April to replace the fired Petrino, a move that was universally embraced by the players — who declared time and again their affection and loyalty for Smith.
Smith admitted that it was “kind of hard to say anything at this point” to the Razorbacks following Saturday’s loss. He was hired to a 10-month contract in April, and his interim status makes it unlikely Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long would consider other options while continuing his search for Petrino’s long-term successor.
Smith knew he was taking on a unique challenge following Petrino’s unexpected firing for hiring his mistress to a position in the athletic department and initially trying to cover up her presence during an April 1 motorcycle accident. The thought, however, was that that Razorbacks were primed for a run at an SEC championship — with or without Petrino.
All of the assistant coaches remained in place, including Petrino’s brother, offensive coordinator Paul Petrino. More importantly, Arkansas had a pair of Heisman Trophy hopefuls in Wilson and running back Knile Davis, both who turned down the NFL after last season with expectations of climbing past the only two teams the Razorbacks couldn’t beat last season — national champion Alabama and runner-up LSU.
Wilson, last season’s first-team All-SEC quarterback, hasn’t played since the first half of the loss to Louisiana-Monore, and Davis has struggled through three games to regain the form that helped him lead SEC running backs in rushing yards in 2010 — averaging just 3.5 yards per carry.
Smith’s job now is to keep a once-hopeful Arkansas team from fracturing under the weight of the mounting losses.
“I have total confidence in these guys and that the seniors are going to pull us together and the rest of the team is going to pull together,” Smith said. “I don’t think they’re going to splinter and everybody start pointing fingers and going their own way.
“It’s easy to quit. It’s easy to criticize somebody else. That’s the coward’s way out, and these men are not cowards. They’re not going to do that.”
Arkansas coach John L. Smith, center, watches play during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Fayetteville, Ark., Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012. Alabama defeated Arkansas 52-0. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)
Tennessee spent seven days in the Top 25 and one Saturday in the national spotlight.
The sun came up on Sunday, just as coach Derek Dooley promised it would after the Vols’ dispiriting 37-20 loss to the Florida Gators on Saturday. But the ESPN College GameDay studio had packed up and left Circle Park and the Vols’ first Top 25 ranking in four years had vanished.
The road back could be difficult.
Tennessee (2-1) plays host to Akron (1-2) Saturday at Neyland Stadium (TV: CSS, 7:30 p.m.) in a game that the Vols will be expected to win by several touchdowns.
But after that, Tennessee will begin a stretch of four games in five weeks that could define its season. The Vols play at No. 5 Georgia on Sept. 29, at No. 23 Mississippi State on Oct. 13 and at No. 7 South Carolina on Oct. 27. They host No. 1 Alabama on Oct. 20.
Tennessee is likely to be the underdog in at least three and probably all four of those games. The unforgiving SEC schedule leaves little time for moping about what could have been on Saturday.
“We’re going to have to learn from it,” Dooley said. “We’ve got to make sure we don’t make those kinds of mistakes again, because we’re going to be in a lot of fourth quarter games.”
If there’s good news, it’s that Tennessee played well enough to win for nearly three quarters. But the utter collapse on both sides of the ball in the final 20 minutes was so confounding that no one in Saturday’s post-game interview session could really put their finger on just how things went so badly.
On defense, the Vols were victimized by big plays. A 80-yard run by Trey Burton tied the game. A 45-yard run by Mike Gillislee set up the go-ahead touchdown. And a 75-yard touchdown pass by Jeff Driskel to Frankie Hammond made it 34-20 and essentially put the game away.
“It’s so deflating,” said nose guard Daniel McCullers. “You do so good and then you lose contain or lose a block and then they run right past you. We’ve got to work on that.”
The Vols’ offense bears as much or perhaps more of the blame. Through 37 minutes, Tennessee had 20 points and 303 yards. After that, the Vols were scoreless, managing 37 yards in 22 plays.
“We have to clean it up. There were too many three-and-outs on offense,” said tight end Mychal Rivera. “It’s obviously very tough, but we’ve got to move onto the next game because we can still have a great season this season.”
Despite the team’s listlessness in the final 20 minutes, Dooley brushed aside any suggestion that players had thrown in the towel.
“I don’t want to get into that giving-up deal,” he said.
Florida scored a touchdown that would have made the score 43-20 late in the game on a run by Driskel, but it was overturned after review.
“We didn’t look good on that play, but (all the defensive players) thought he stepped out of bounds,” Dooley said.
Officials decided that Driskel had in fact stepped out of bounds before reaching the end zone.
“I was going nuts,” Dooley said. “They should have still kept going on that play.”
Otherwise, the culprit was not effort, but execution. And the two statistics that Dooley cites after every game — turnovers and big plays — were both in the Gators’ favor.
“(The big plays) are something we have to work on,” McCullers said. “I know we’ll get better because we have a great team.”
Chris Martin was brought up as an evangelical Christian but he left the faith once he left his childhood home. However, there are been some actions in his life in the last few years that demonstrate that he still is grappling with his childhood Chistian beliefs. This is the third part of a series I am starting on this subject. Today we will look at how the Bible has influenced the lyrics of Viva La Vida.
On June 23, 2012 my son Wilson and I got to attend a Coldplay Concert in Dallas. It was great. Viva La Vida was one of our favorite songs that did that night.
Here is an article I wrote a couple of years ago about Chris Martin’s view of hell. He says he does not believe in it but for some reason he writes a song that teaches that it exists:
Belief of Eternal Punishment in Grammy Winning Song
By Everette Hatcher
Chris Martin of the rock group Coldplay wrote the song Viva La Vida, and the song just won both the grammy for the “Song of the Year” and “Best Pop Performance by a duo or Group with Vocals.”
In this song, Martin is discussing an evil king that has been disposed. “I used to rule the world…Feel the fear in my enemy’s eyes…there was never an honest word and that was when I ruled the world, It was the wicked and wild wind, Blew down the doors to let me in, Shattered windows and the sound of drums, People couldn’t believe what I’d become…For some reason I can’t explain, I know Saint Peter won’t call my name, Never an honest word, But that was when I ruled the world.”
Q Magazine asked Chris Martin about the lyric in this song “I know Saint Peter won’t call my name.” Martin replied, “It’s about…You’re not on the list. I was a naughty boy. Its always fascinated me that idea of finishing your life and then being analyzed on it…That is the most frightening thing you could possibly say to somebody. Eternal damnation. I know about this stuff because I studied it. I was into it all. I know it. It’s mildly terrifying to me. And this is serious.”
I have been following the career of Chris Martin for the last decade. He grew up in a Christian home that believed in Heaven and Hell, but made it clear several years ago that he actually resents those who hold to those same religious dogmatic views he did as a youth. Yet it seems his view on the possibility of an afterlife has changed again.
Chris Martin is a big Woody Allen movie fan like I am and no other movie better demonstrates the need for an afterlife than Allen’s 1989 film Crimes and Misdemeanors. It is about a eye doctor who hires a killer to murder his mistress because she continually threatens to blow the whistle on his past questionable, probably illegal, business activities. Afterward he is haunted by guilt. His Jewish father had taught him that God sees all and will surely punish the evildoer.
But the doctor’s crime is never discovered. Later in the film, Judah reflects on the conversation his father had with Judah’s unbelieving Aunt May during a Jewish Sedar dinner many years ago:
“Come on Sol, open your eyes. Six million Jews burned to death by the Nazi’s, and they got away with it because might makes right,” says Aunt May.
Sol replies, “May, how did they get away with it?”
Judah asks, “If a man kills, then what?”
Sol responds to his son, “Then in one way or another he will be punished.”
Aunt May comments, “I say if he can do it and get away with it and he chooses not to be bothered by the ethics, then he is home free.”
Judah’s final conclusion was that might did make right. He observed that one day, because of this conclusion, he woke up and the cloud of guilt was gone. He was, as his aunt said, “home free.”
The basic question Woody Allen is presenting to his own agnostic humanistic worldview is: If you really believe there is no God there to punish you in an afterlife, then why not murder if you can get away with it? The secular humanist worldview that modern man has adopted does not work in the real world that God has created. God “has planted eternity in the human heart…” (Ecclesiastes 3:11). This is a direct result of our God-given conscience. The apostle Paul said it best in Romans 1:19, “For that which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their inner consciousness, because God has shown it to them” (Amplified Version).
It’s no wonder, then, that one of Allen’s fellow humanists would comment, “Certain moral truths — such as do not kill, do not steal, and do not lie — do have a special status of being not just ‘mere opinion’ but bulwarks of humanitarian action. I have no intention of saying, ‘I think Hitler was wrong.’ Hitler WAS wrong.” (Gloria Leitner, “A Perspective on Belief,” The Humanist, May/June 1997, pp.38-39). Here Leitner is reasoning from her God-givne conscience and not from humanist philosophy. It wasn’t long before she received criticism. Humanist Abigail Ann Martin responded, “Neither am I an advocate of Hitler; however, by whose criteria is he evil?” (The Humanist, September/October 1997, p. 2.). Humanists don’t really have an intellectual basis for saying that Hitler was wrong, but their God-given conscience tells them that they are wrong on this issue.
Evidently Chris Martin who said he resented dogmatic religious views a few years ago, has now written a grammy winning song that pictures an evil king being punished in an afterlife. Could it be that his God-given conscience prompted him to put that line in? Or do men like Hitler get off home free as Woody Allen suggested in Crimes and Misdemeanors?
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Even though Chris Martin says he does not believe in hell in this discussion below with Howard Stern he writes Viva La Vida (seen in clip at beginning of this post) where the bad king goes to hell. Again his childhood biblical views are coming out again.
On the Howard Stern Show Chris Martin was questioned about his religious beliefs on November 9, 2011:
CM: I was raised very religious.
HS: I know that. What religion?
CM: I am not really sure. People kept asking me that.
HS: You were studying religion but you don’t know what it was.
CM: It was Christian, but there are so many branches of that now. I don’t know which branch we were on.
HS: Are you a religious man?
CM: Not any more religious. I believe I am a spiritual guy I guess.
HS: Do you believe there is a heaven and a hell.
CM:There definately is not a hell. That is what made me stop being religious.
HS: Would you take your children to church or do you want them to get religious training?
CM: No. I think it is important to show that there is all these kinds of religions and this person believes that and you can believe whatever you want.
HS: What do you do if you want your children to get religious training and you want them to embrace all religions and get the concept of God? Where would take your kids to learn that?
CM:That is a good question. I have been doing it in the nihilist approach and I haven’t been taking them anywhere.
HS: So they are not going to be raised in any religious way.
CM: Not in any strict religious way, no…. Religion is not the same as having faith is it. Faith is different right. I am not saying I don’t believe in anything. I not saying that it has to be this and if you believe something else then the other person is going to hell and all that crap.
That class-warfare accusation struck me as a bit sketchy because when I looked at the data a couple of years ago, I put together this chart showing that rich people, on average, enjoyed deductions that were seven times as large as the deductions of middle-income taxpayers.
The Daily Hatch 