Category Archives: Current Events

Tim Tebow being persecuted for his Christian faith?

August 20, 2011 – 1:59 pm

It is clear to me that Tim Tebow is trusting in the Lord and he does not want to get discouraged by the world’s negativity. However, I do not think that he believes that if you have faith then you will become rich and everything you do will bring success as the world thinks of the word. Jeremiah was called the “weeping prophet” and he was killed but he was successful at getting the warning out to God”s people about the coming time of judgement.

Anugrah Kumar of the Christian Post Magazine had a fine article that I wanted to share with you.  

Florida Quarterback Tim Tebow
(Photo: AP Photo / Dave Martin, File

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Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow has come under attack from sports analysts for being vocal about the role his Christian faith plays in his National Football League career.

Before his second professional season has even begun, naysayers are questioning his confidence that relies on his Christian beliefs.

CBSSports.com national columnist Gregg Doyel recently analyzed Tebow’s interview with Denver Post and said the way he equated his love for God in heaven with tangible rewards on earth amounted to blasphemy. The interview was prompted by reports that Tebow might not begin the season as Denver’s starting quarterback.

Doyel’s analysis angered Tebow’s fans. “Dude, your article bothers me. You know dang well that you painted Tebow as a religious nut-job,” complained one Daniel Liebman. Doyel Friday responded to what he described as “hate mails” from “Tebow fanatics.”

“I didn’t paint him as a religious nut-job. Tebow’s the one holding the brush. I just hung his art on the wall and asked you folks to take a look,” the columnist said.

“Your article on Christian faith is extremely offensive,” wrote another fan, Chance Jones. “I have forwarded my thoughts to many individuals at CBS Sports and will no longer be a customer.” Doyel listed the responses sent by Tebow’s fans followed by a statement defending his analysis.

While Tebow is not known to have responded to criticism, he posted “Joshua 1:19” on his Facebook page Friday. The verse, which reads, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go,” alluded to the charge.

Debi Albritton, a fan commented, saying, “Your faith and your continued show of faith even against all the naysayers is a testament to all Christians. May God bless you and continue to strengthen you against all the adversity you receive!”

Doyel’s article juxtaposed views that suggest “Tebow will never be a good NFL quarterback,” with his confidence in God for his success. “He doesn’t believe it. Which is fine… But check out the reason why he doesn’t believe it,” the sports columnist continued.

Then Doyel quoted Tebow as saying, “Others who say I won’t make it are wrong. They don’t know what I’m capable of and what’s inside me. My family and my friends have been bothered by what’s gone on, and I tell them to pay no attention to it. I’m relying as always on my faith.”

“He’ll make it in this league – for the Bible tells him so,” Doyel remarked. “From the outside it looks like Tebow equates his love for God in heaven with tangible rewards here on earth. And that’s more than wrong. It’s blasphemy.” However, Doyel claimed he had nothing against Tebow or his God and that he considered him the nicest person he had ever met.

Collin Hansen, editorial director of The Gospel Coalition, in a blog Friday, commented on the controversy involving Doyel and Tebow.

“I’m not sure if Doyel knows what blasphemy is, or the seriousness of the charge he’s leveling against Tebow,” Hansen commented. “Tebow could be saying he relies on his faith to withstand criticism and pressure, not that he finds assurance in his future as a starting quarterback because God loves him.”

However, Doyel agrees Tebow’s life has been “grandiose.”

“He was the best high school player in America. The best college player in America, and one of the most accomplished players – one Heisman, two national titles – in history. A first-round draft pick of the Denver Broncos in 2010.”

At college in Florida, Tebow frequently wore biblical verses on his eye black. In the 2009 Bowl Championship Series, he wore “John 3:16” on his eye paint, reportedly causing 92 million people to search the verse on Google. Later, Tebow switched to “Proverbs 3:5-6,” again causing 3.43 million searches of the verse together with “Tim Tebow.”

By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

SEC has 7 teams in preseason football top 25 rankings jh3

August 20, 2011 – 12:20 pm

NEW YORK (AP)—Being voted preseason No. 1 is a tradition at Oklahoma, and this season is no different.

The Sooners will start out top-ranked in The Associated Press college football poll for the 10th time, more than any program in the country.

The defending Big 12 champions received 36 of 60 first-place votes and 1,464 points in the Top 25 released Saturday.

Auburn, last season’s national champion, will start the season No. 23, one spot behind where it began in 2010.

If the rankings are any indication, the national title race could be a scramble.

No. 2 Alabama, one of a record eight Southeastern Conference teams in the preseason poll, wasn’t far behind OU, receiving 17 first-place votes and 1,439 points.

No. 3 Oregon got four first-place votes, No. 4 LSU received one and No. 5 Boise State got two.

Florida State was No. 6, the Seminoles’ best preseason ranking since starting the 2004 season at No. 5.

Heisman Trophy favorite Andrew Luck and Stanford were No. 7.

Rounding out the top 10 are Oklahoma’s Big 12 rivals, Texas A&M (No. 8) and Oklahoma State (No. 9), andNebraska (No. 10), in its first season in the Big Ten after leaving the Big 12.

No. 16 Notre Dame is ranked for the first time since early November 2009.

As for Oklahoma, no matter where it lands in the preseason, it always expects to make a run at a national championship in the end. It hasn’t won it all, however, since 2000.

That’s when coach Bob Stoops led the Sooners to their seventh AP national title in his second season in Norman. Since then, Oklahoma has lost three BCS championship games.

The Sooners have won the AP national title four times when they were preseason No. 1 (1956, 1974, 1975 and 1985). The last time they started a season top-ranked was 2003. That season, they lost the BCS championship game to LSU.

“We’re very matter of fact,” Stoops said this week. “All we think about is doing the work.

“We’re also very aware we’re not much different than about 12, 15 other teams that’ll be competing for it that have legitimate chances to win it. What are we going to do differently to separate ourselves?”

Having the combination of quarterback Landry Jones and receiver Ryan Broyles is a good place to start.

Jones passed for 4,718 yards and 38 touchdowns last season, his second as a starter, and Broyles was his favorite target. The senior had 131 catches for 1,622 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Jones was forced into a starting role two years ago as a redshirt freshman when Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford went down with a shoulder injury. That was a tough season for the Sooners, who started ranked third but finished it 8-5.

Bradford was one of several key players Oklahoma lost to an injury that season, and Jones wasn’t the only underclassman who played a bigger role than expected.

“Now two years from that they have benefited from the maturity and the experience gained from being on the field at an early age,” Stoops said. “Our (offensive) line was young and now two years later they’ve got experience and some maturity to them. Same with Landry Jones. Same with Ryan Broyles.”

Earlier this month, Sooners fans must have had flashbacks to Bradford’s injury when linebacker and leading tackler Travis Lewis hurt his left foot in practice. He likely will miss at least the first four games, including a road trip to Florida State on Sept. 17.

“It’s a big blow to us, there is no denying it,” Stoops said.

Oklahoma has also been coping with the death of linebacker Austin Box, a would-be starter who overdosed on prescription painkillers in May.

“He’s very close to so many guys and … it wouldn’t be right to brush it to the side,” defensive coordinator Brent Venables said. “We’re trying to move forward and deal with it as best we can.”

The SEC has won five straight BCS title games and has plenty of candidates to make it six.

“We want to come out and win a national championship, to be undefeated,” Alabama safety Mark Barron said. “Every time we step out on the field, one of our motivating factors is to be special.”

South Carolina (No. 12), Arkansas (No. 15), Georgia (No. 19), Mississippi State (No. 20) and Florida (No. 22) give the SEC more teams in the preseason poll than any previous conference.

The Big Ten placed four teams in the rankings with Wisconsin (No. 11), Michigan State (No. 17) and Ohio St. (No. 18) joining Nebraska.

With No. 21 Missouri, the Big 12 had four teams, too.

The Pac-12 had three teams, with No. 25 Southern California joining Oregon and Stanford.

The Atlantic Coast Conference placed two teams (Florida State and No. 13 Virginia Tech), as did the Mountain West Conference (Boise State and No. 14 TCU)

The Big East, which finished last season with no ranked teams, had one team in the preseason poll, No. 24 West Virginia.

Notable by its absence is Texas. Coming off a 5-7 season, the Longhorns are missing from the preseason Top 25 for the first time since 1998.

For now, ranked or not, every team is chasing Oklahoma.

“Who doesn’t want to be No. 1?” Sooners cornerback Jamell Flemming said.

By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)

Preview of South Carolina and Kentucky in SEC East Football Division 2011 (SEC Preview Part 2)jh5

August 20, 2011 – 7:56 am

Marcus Lattimore’s

Record-Breaking Game

Against Florida

Uploaded by  on Aug 6, 2011

Marcus Lattimore ran all over the Gators in the Swamp on November 13, 2010, for a school-record 40 carries for 212 yards and three touchdowns en route to a dominating 36-14 South Carolina victory and SEC Eastern Division Championship. With his additional 31 receiving yards, Lattimore single-handedly outgained and outscored Florida (226 yards of total offense, 14 points). *Spurs Up Top 15 Moments of 2010-11: #6* Blog Post:http://bit.ly/TopMoments6

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I think that Steve has the talent to do something special this year at South Carolina. I think the SEC East is down this year and SC may win it easily and even get 10 or 11 victories this year. Then he may retire, but maybe not. (Harry King thinks the East may be better this year but I have my doubts how much better.) Harry King has rightly put Marcus Lattimore on the Heisman watch list.

Kentucky is a basketball school and I know that they have been to 6 straight bowls for the first time in school history, but I am predicting a losing season for them. In 2007 they won 8, then in 2009 won 7 and last year 6. Do you see a trend here? The SEC is just too tough and somebody wins and somebody loses.

Below is a preview from Rivals:

Kentucky

Returning Starters: 15, kicker, punter

Strengths: With nine starters returning on defense, including tackling machine Danny Trevathan at linebacker, the Wildcats should have one of the SEC’s top stop units. Five players with starting experience are back in the secondary, so it should be difficult for opponents to consistently throw the ball. Four offensive linemen are back, giving Kentucky the chance to establish a solid ground game. Wide receiver La’Rod King notched 36 receptions as the No. 2 target behind Chris Matthews, five for TDs.

Weaknesses: While the O-line should be a source of satisfaction, someone has to step up and throw the ball, run the ball, catch the ball, etc. The Wildcats have to replace their leading rusher (Derrick Locke), top passer (Mike Hartline) and top receiver (Matthews). Not to mention their best athlete in Randall Cobb, who could play anywhere on the field and often did. If junior QB Morgan Newton, who started occasionally as a freshman, can’t adequately replace Hartline, Kentucky’s good defense could be wasted.

South Carolina

Returning Starters: 13

Strengths: Start with Marcus Lattimore, who may be the SEC’s top running back. Coach Steve Spurrier rode the gifted freshman to 1,197 yards and 17 touchdowns last year as the Gamecocks won the East Division. Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery caught 88 passes for 1,517 yards and nine scores, showing why he’ll play on Sunday in the future. Ellis Johnson’s defense returns two All-SEC players in DE Devin Taylor and CB Stephon Gilmore, and could derive instant help from DE Jadaveon Clowney, considered the nation’s top high school player last year.

Weaknesses: Will perennial knucklehead Stephen Garcia ever get it? Dealt the fifth suspension of his career in the spring, Garcia isn’t a certainty to return to the program fulltime. If he’s not allowed back—Garcia was permitted to attend voluntary workouts in June—many bets are off with the offense as there is no other QB in the program ready to take over. South Carolina also has to replace two defensive linemen and WR Tori Gurley, but it doesn’t have to worry half as much about those positions as it does about Garcia’s off-field decision-making.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida has honored the school’s three Heisman Trophy winners with life-sized statues outside the stadium.

The Gators unveiled bronze statues of Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996) and Tim Tebow (2007) during halftime of Saturday’s spring game.
The statues depict Spurrier passing, Wuerffel poised to throw and Tebow running with the ball.
Tebow says that’s fine with him. He says “you have to change it up. We can’t all be throwing.”
Spurrier thanked his alma mater in a videotaped message shown on the replay boards; he was in Columbia, S.C. for the Gamecocks’ spring game. Wuerffel and Tebow were on hand for the presentation. It was Tebow’s first public appearance at Florida Field since his Pro Day in March 2010.

Danny Wuerffel: The Quarterback with a Servant’s Heart

The 700 Club

CBN.com – THE QUARTERBACK WITH THE MIDAS TOUCH
Known as the quarterback with the Midas touch, Danny Wuerffel received the highest honor bestowed on any college football player in 1996—The Heisman Trophy. He holds no less than 32 National, Conference and School Records and maintains a legendary status as one of the greatest college football players ever to play the game.

As well as his athleticism, Wuerffel maintained high academic standards and was celebrated for his personal integrity. But with all of his fame and success, Danny has used his position to give back in all the communities that he has lived and played in as a football player. And his dedication to his faith in Jesus Christ is what has anchored his life.

In 1997, Wuerffel was drafted by the New Orleans Saints. In spite of his outstanding achievements and the national attention he received as a result, Wuerffel seemed unfazed by his success. “You know, the world just pounds the message into your brain that if you make enough money and if you’re successful in your field, that’s all you need. But you can ask just about anybody who’s been successful–somehow there always seems to be a longing for something more. I believe we were made to find fulfillment in our relationship with God,” he explains. “When we look for it in other places, we come up empty.”

Wuerffel got a head start in his search. “I was blessed to grow up in a Christian home. My father is a chaplain in the air force and my mother has always been active in the church. From the time I was very little, I didn’t question God’s existence, because we talked to Him every time we ate a meal. He was a very real part of our lives. So as I grew up and went into high school and then college, the question was not ‘Does God exist?’, but ‘To what extent?’ What part does He play in my life? What does He want from me? What is my relationship with Him supposed to be like? Those were the questions I wrestled with.” In college, out on his own for the first time, Danny began to take a good hard look at his faith. He started studying the Bible for himself and searching for answers to his questions. “From all different angles, God was really drawing me to himself and saying, ‘This is the time to get serious!'” Wuerffel recalls. “The biggest change was my understanding of myself in relationship to God. The more I understood how awesome God is, the more I realized how wretched I was. It’s a humbling experience to realize what your own nature is, to look at yourself and see selfishness and pride and the attitude that you can just do your own thing. Sometimes it was at subtle levels. Other people might not have noticed it, but I could see it.”

While everyone around him was awed by his talent and promise, Danny realized his need for a Savior and decided to surrender his life completely to Jesus Christ. A decision that changed his life forever. No matter what happened in his career — whether he won the Superbowl or sat on the bench — he determined to live his life to bring honor to God. “There’s a verse in Proverbs 3:5-6 that says ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.’ My desire is to acknowledge Him in all my ways — in my marriage, in my family, in football– in whatever I’m doing!” he exclaims.

In February 2004, Danny decided to retire from professional football to work in New Orleans with Desire Street Ministries, dedicated to one of America’s toughest and poorest neighborhoods. “It’s difficult to say goodbye to a dream,” he told the press. “At the same time, I’m thankful that I’m not leaving because I have to.” His wife Jessica admits that since Danny retired from football and joined the ministry, she doesn’t miss the crowds and fans that came with his fame. Danny is also a popular speaker, sharing how his experiences playing football have helped shape his life.

DEVASTATED BY KATRINA
Located in the heart of New Orleans, Danny’s home and ministry, Desire Street Ministries, were completely destroyed by the hurricane. They were forced to relocate to Niceville, Florida where they are up and running a boarding school. Many of the children they worked with in New Orleans are finding their way to the school, now their home. They also have staff on-site at the facility in New Orleans working on cleaning and renovating the facility. “As I reflect on the past six weeks and look again at the flooded images of the ministry facility and my home, I’m once again faced with the reality of the devastation of this storm. And yet in the midst of all these images, through God’s grace, I’ve found my eyes “fixed” on something different,” Wuerffel says. “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18 “In the past, that verse often encouraged me to not worry about throwing an interception or losing a football game. How trivial that seems now. God is doing a new thing as a result of this storm…a big thing. I’m not sure exactly what it is or what it’s going to look like in the end, but I’m certain he’s doing something significant. Sometimes, though, it’s just hard to see it while it’s happening.”

Through the storm and its aftermath, God continues to do incredible things. “It hasn’t been an easy six weeks, but I’ve personally seen God triumph over every major obstacle, one after another, and my personal journey of faith has never been more vibrant,” Danny proclaims

By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Preview of Arkansas and Alabama in SEC West Football Division 2011 (SEC Preview Part 1) jh4

August 19, 2011 – 7:49 pm
 

Preview of Arkansas and Alabama in SEC today.
 

I am going to preview all the SEC teams in the next few weeks. I want to start off with Alabama and Arkansas. Earlier I really thought that Arkansas was going to be very special this year. However, after losing our star running back Kniles Davis for a year with a injury just a few days ago, I am starting to wonder if we can do it without him. Harry King in his article, “Do poll voters note injuries?” Arkansas News Bureau, August 18, 2011,said that the injury to a player like Davis would mostly likely cost the Razorbacks a higher ranking 

This is the way I view it. Kniles is the guy who can ice away a victory with his hard running in the fourth quarter. I remember when UT had that great running back in 98 that cut through the Arkansas defense the last two minutes of the game like a hot knife in butter. ARKANSAS WILL MISS HIM DEARLY.

I think Arkansas will finish in the top three in the SEC West and maybe do better than that because of the unbelievable receivers!!!

I was at a Applebys the other night in Boston, MA and I was watching the New England Patriots play at Tampa. There was a lively group there watching the game. I got to leave after my meal but I could not resist speaking to the obvious vocal leader of the Pats’ fans. I said,”I am from Arkansas and I wonder if you know about Ryan Mallett who is the backup quarterback for New England.” 

He responded, “I am Rudy (not his real name) and these are all my friends…. I love Ryan Mallett. He threw several touchdowns last week and he will be the quarterback of the future.” Later Rudy said that he had been a football and basketball star in high school and was offered lots of money to play pro baseball, but got mixed up in drugs and alcohol and now he is a plumber.

I told him I was glad that he was clean now and I gave him a tract from Chick called “The Happy Hour.” I have put it below. 

Today I got to visit with a fellow named Tyler who is a student at Alabama. He is a sophomore at Alabama. He actually attended the Alabama at Arkansas game last year in Fayetteville. That is one of the few games that I could not get a ticket to. This year Alabama will be very good again. I have visited with a lot of people from Alabama this year and I have told them all the same thing. “The national championship will leave the state of Alabama this year finally but it will not leave the SEC.”

Alabama’s defense is the best and if they get the offense going then maybe the national title will stay in Alabama for a third straight year. Harry King like many other journalists have picked Trent Richardson as one of the leading candidates for the Heisman Trophy.
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By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Michele Bachmann questioned about submission

August 19, 2011 – 7:15 pm

Michele Bachmann was asked a question about submission. Was that a proper question for a presidential candidate?

Christianity, Politics, and the ‘Submission’ Question

It is a very sad thing to see seemingly smart people try to talk intelligently about things they misunderstand so horribly. This often happens when it comes to religion and politics. And it happened in last night’s Republican candidate’s debate from Iowa, when Byron York asked Rep. Michele Bachmann, because of her evangelical Christian faith, “As President, would you be submissive to your husband?”

The best response to such a snarky and uninformed question was not by the candidate, but from the crowd itself. They jeered loudly and passionately. Good for them.

First, the subtext of the question is that a devout Christian woman who takes her faith seriously cannot be her own person and that if we elect Bachmann, won’t she just be a female puppet of her husband? Mr. York is not the only journalist asking the question. It is really an obscene question, both in its blatant misunderstanding of Christian teaching and in the disrespect it shows the candidate as a woman and a wife.

First, Christianity is no backwoods belief system held by only a few scattered folks here and there. It is a major cross-cultural and historical belief system that has dramatically shaped nearly all of Western and much of Eastern culture. There is no excuse for an intelligent person not to have some familiarity with its teachings in both theory and practice. But alas, such is not the case.

Far too many like to use the “wives, be submissive to your husbands” teaching of Christianity (found in I Peter 3 and Ephesians 5:22) as some kind of proof that Christian women should submit themselves to being treated either like slaves at best or cavewomen at worst, dragged around by their Paleolithic hair. That has never been a part of orthodox Christian teaching or practice. It just hasn’t. And this is what was really behind the question. The Iowa audience got that right off the bat.

Bachmann’s answer was absolutely right. The Christian scriptures teach that husband and wife respect one another as one flesh. But submission is clearly not a one-way street. In fact, in I Peter, the text under discussion, Peter tells all of us, men and women, to “submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him.”

A king is kind of like a president. So not only are all of us called to be submissive to others, but had Mr. York bothered to review the text he was questioning Bachmann on — seems like a reasonable thing to do — he would have found that the text actually calls on Mr. Bachmann, and all other believers, to submit to the authority of the president. Let’s break this down a bit.

Yes, Michele would be called, under her faith, to submit herself to the leadership and protection of her husband in their marriage. And I trust she is quite happy to do so. But no, it does not mean he is her boss, but rather that he is to — and this is critically important to understand — obey God’s command to him for “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.”

Christian husbands are commanded to be to their wives as Christ was to Church. Christ’s burden is light. He does not lord His authority over believers, but instead laid His life down for his Bride. C.S. Lewis explains this basic Christian teaching:

Christian writers (notably Milton) have sometimes spoken of the husband’s headship with a complacency to make the blood run cold. We must go back to our Bibles. The husband is head of the wife just in so far as he is to her what Christ is to the Church. He is to love her as Christ loved the Church — read on — and give his life for her. This headship, then, is most fully embodied not in the husband we should all wish to be, but in him whose marriage is most like a crucifixion, whose wife receives most and gives least.

That, my friends, is what Christianity teaches about marriage and therefore, what the Bachmann’s marriage seeks to emulate, no doubt.

But it also means, and this is more to Mr. York’s question, that Marcus Bachmann, as a faithful Christian, would also be called to be submissive to Michele, not in their marriage, but in her role as our nation’s leader. This is true of every president, male or female. President Obama has responsibilities as our nation’s president, but also as a husband and a father.

And a good president and his family don’t confuse the two. Nor should a good journalist.

A marriage has one set of rules. A presidency has another. And most people know the difference. And Christianity teaches (for those who do their homework) that submission is a two-way street, never falling unfairly on either husband or wife. It is an equal-opportunity calling. If it wasn’t, it wouldn’t have been women who formed the primary foundation and growth of the Church throughout the world and the centuries, as Rodney Stark aptly explains.

— Glenn T. Stanton is the director of Family Formation Studies at Focus on the Family and a research fellow at the Institute of Marriage and Family. He is also author of the recent book Secure Daughters, Confident Sons: How Parents Guide Their Children into Authentic Masculinity and Femininity.

By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Bernanke’s printing of money

August 19, 2011 – 4:38 pm

Bill Tatro

Bill Tatro

Bernanke’s Manslaughter of US Economy

My, oh my.

According to Karl Rove, Rick Perry, has committed the unpardonable sin of calling Bernanke’s actions of printing money treasonous.

I thought I was the only one in the public domain that was calling for jail time for crimes committed against the country during the great credit meltdown of 2008.

I’m not sure treason is the right word since it connotes “knowingly” taking action against our country.  I don’t think Bernanke could be accused of that, however, he could be accused of being entrapped in a philosophy which has the same result as total destruction.  If treason were murder, then what Bernanke did was at least manslaughter.

We’re all familiar with the actions taken by Bernanke (along with Geithner and Paulson) in 2007 and 2008.

Contrary to revisionist history, certain investment banks and beleaguered corporations were on the verge of collapse, the inevitable contraction phase of a boom-bust cycle.

Historically, the cycle starts with growth, and then boom followed by bust, then contraction, stability, growth, and so forth.  Unfortunately, as the contraction phase was about to begin, Bernanke went into action.

The selective destruction of Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns and the careful rescue of Goldman Sachs, AIG, Citigroup, Bank of America, GM, and many more, were deliberate choices made by this select group of men.

It should the business cycle that determines the winners and losers, not those who believe they’ve come down from Mt. Olympus.  Their actions, in my opinion, were not only illegal, but also highly unethical and very immoral.

Attempting to circumvent the natural business cycle had extremely severe repercussions in the United States and around the world.  Arab Spring was not about Democracy, it was about jobs and food.

$4.00 gasoline was not about supply and demand, it was about excess trading capital flowing into tight markets.  Inflation, deflation, high unemployment, foreclosures, and all the rest of our current economic tribulations can be laid at the feet of those who tried to rearrange the normal economic and business cycles.

It’s interesting to recall after the savings and loan crisis of the 1980s and 19990s, hundreds of people were indicted and many went to jail.  Now, in the so-called aftermath of the credit crisis, no significant person has been either indicted or jailed.  Maybe that’s because we haven’t yet reached the aftermath, it’s only just begun.

However, make no mistake; those who created this problem will see their day come.  History says it is so, and Bernanke is at the top of the list.

By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)

David Bazzel to Headline 2011 Meet the Eagles

August 19, 2011 – 2:50 pm

David Bazzel to Headline 2011 Meet the Eagles

August 19, 2011

Attention Eagle Fans!!!Come out to Meet the Eagles on Friday, August 26th at 6:00 pm and meet the members of the fall sport teams. David Bazzel, former Razorback and host of the The Buzz’s Show with No Name, will be our special guest introducing each team.  There will be food, face painting, and a chance to get all the cheerleaders and football players’ autographs. The elementary class that obtains the most autographs will win an ice cream party!!!

Come and join the fun! Tickets will be on sale at the elementary and high school offices beginning Thursday, August 18th.

Advance tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children.  If you purchase your tickets at the door, they will be $12 for adults and $7 for children.

Tickets include the following meal:Adults:  BBQ beef, pork, sausage, plus beans, slaw, chips and cheese dip as well as a drink. Children:  Hot dog, chips and cheese dip, plus a drink

School merchandise will be available to purchase, and the concession stand will be selling ice cream to satisfy your sweet tooth.

We look forward to seeing you there!

For additional information, please contact Shelley Newkirk or Coach Goss. ***High school athletes participating in a fall sport eat for FREE!  Please pick up your ticket from Coach Goss

By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Welfare States in Europe can not keep their promises of goodies (Part 1)

August 18, 2011 – 7:15 pm

I have been saying over and over that the USA is heading to Greece. I will post this story in two different posts. It should show us why the destination of European Welfare State is not a good one even though we are heading there fast under President Obama.

Flashing Red: European Debt Crisis Signals Collapse of Social Welfare State

By James Roberts and J.D. Foster, Ph.D.
August 16, 2011

Europe’s socialist (or “social democratic”) welfare state is collapsing under the load of unsustainable debt. There is no chance European politicians will ever make good on the many costly and unfunded entitlements they have promised their citizens.

The fundamental problem in the European Union is a monetary policy failure. In conjunction with the debilitating effects of the social welfare state, this has led to a broad economic collapse among the lesser states—notably the PIIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, and Spain), but also some of the EU’s newer members—and it threatens to envelop the greater states.

For years, this collapse among the lesser states was disguised by debt accumulation—countries would borrow (at de facto concessionary interest rates) to overcome their inability to generate adequate income by producing and selling. The lack of actual and prospective growth combined with growing debt burdens has led to a long-term solvency crisis, which has been bubbling up of late into a series of liquidity crises.

The monetary and fiscal situation in the EU is increasingly unmanageable, as the debt burdens grow and growth prospects diminish further. To paraphrase an old saying: You can fool some of the credit markets all the time, and all the markets some of the time, but you cannot fool all the credit markets indefinitely.

The Ill-fated Euro Experiment  

The vision of a “euro zone” was ill-conceived from the start. It is now increasingly acknowledged that Brussels’ lack of control over social spending, especially in the PIIGS, doomed it from the beginning. Agreements (e.g., the Maastricht Treaty)[1] to stay within EU member government spending targets were routinely flouted, even by the largest EU countries.

But the growing gap in competitiveness amongst EU members was far more important. Some, like Germany, tended to adopt policies like labor market reforms that built on their inherent economic strengths. The strong got stronger, while others, like Italy and Greece, stood still or even retreated on policies that would have sustained their international competitiveness. The focus today on shifting painfully to policies that can make these countries competitive is simply too little, too late.

And now, the instability is rapidly spreading to the pillars of Europe—first Spain, then Italy, and now apparently to France. Southern Europeans kept borrowing in low-interest-rate euros (which simultaneously inflated housing bubbles in their countries) until, in Margaret Thatcher’s words, their socialist governments “ran out of other peoples’ money!”[2] As a result, some of Europe’s large private banks now hold toxic quantities of sovereign debt issued by the PIIGS and are threatened with extinction through serial defaults—thus they are deemed “too big to fail.” Already there is growing worry over the solvency of France’s Societe General Bank because of this crisis, with several other major European banks likely to be in trouble if the situation is not resolved.

To reduce federal spending and prevent economic collapse, U.S. policymakers should follow The Heritage Foundation’s plan in “Saving the American Dream.”[8]

James M. Roberts is Research Fellow for Economic Freedom and Growth in the Center for International Trade and Economics, and J. D. Foster, Ph.D., is Norman B. Ture Senior Fellow in the Economics of Fiscal Policy in the Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies at The Heritage Foundation.

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

President Obama taking orders from Michael Moore? (Part 2 of series “What is the cause of the U.S. credit downgrade?”)

August 17, 2011 – 10:46 pm
Still of Alan Alda, John Candy, Kevin Pollak, Rip Torn, Michael Moore and Rhea Perlman in Canadian Bacon

7 January 2011
© 1995 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Still of Alan Alda, John Candy, Kevin Pollak, Rip Torn, Michael Moore and Rhea Perlman in Canadian Bacon

Michael Moore is a liberal movie director and his films have been pitiful. However, I did enjoy the movie “Canadian Bacon” which was very funny. Above is a clip from that movie.

Liberal firebrand Michael Moore called on President Obama to respond to the U.S. credit downgrade by arresting the leaders of the credit-ratings agencies.

On his Twitter feed Monday, the Oscar-winning film director also blamed the 2008 economic collapse on Standard & Poor’s — apparently because it and other credit-ratings agencies did not downgrade mortgage-based bonds, which encouraged the housing bubble and let it spread throughout the economy.

“Pres Obama, show some guts & arrest the CEO of Standard & Poors. These criminals brought down the economy in 2008& now they will do it again,” Mr. Moore wrote.

Standard & Poor’s, one of three key debt agencies, stripped the U.S. federal government of its AAA status Friday night and reduced it to AA+ for the first time in the nation’s history.

Now I read this story that just came out at 10:30pm CST on August 17th that evidently President Obama thinks that he better get to marching to Michael Moore’s orders!!!!

The Associated Press reported:

 The Justice Department is investigating whether the Standard & Poor’s credit ratings agency improperly rated dozens of mortgage securities in the years leading up to the financial crisis, The New York Times reported Wednesday.

The investigation began before Standard & Poor’s cut the United States’ AAA credit rating this month, but it’s likely to add to the political firestorm created by the downgrade, the newspaper said. Some government officials have since questioned the agency’s secretive process, its credibility and the competence of its analysts, claiming to have found an error in its debt calculations.

The Times cites two people interviewed by the government and another briefed on such interviews as its sources. According to people with knowledge of the interviews, the Justice Department has been asking about instances in which the company’s analysts wanted to award lower ratings on mortgage bonds but may have been overruled by other S&P business managers.

If the government finds enough evidence to support a case, it could undercut S&P’s longstanding claim that its analysts act independently from business concerns. The newspaper said it was unclear whether the Justice Department investigation involves the other two major ratings agencies, Moody’s and Fitch, or only S&P.

__________________________

I don’t think that Standard and Poors did anything wrong and I think they would have been wrong if they did not act because of all the political pressure they were receiving from the Obama administration. My views are much closer to those below.

Ron and Rand Paul say downgrade is fault of Washington, not Tea Party
CBS ^ | Lucy Madison

Posted on Monday, August 08, 2011 9:02:27 PM by dragnet2

Rep. Ron Paul, R-Tex., and his son, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., both blasted Tea Party critics on Monday for suggesting that the conservative movement with which they’re both linked may have had something to do with America’s recent credit downgrade by the ratings agency Standard & Poor’s.

The elder Paul, a longtime lawmaker, staunch libertarian, and presidential candidate, decried the allegations as an “attempt to scapegoat” Tea Party lawmakers. He pinned the downgrade on the Washington establishment.

“This attempt to scapegoat folks who recognize that our debt is out of control and that we must change course should not be tolerated,” he said in a Monday statement. “They are simply demanding that Washington do its job.”

He continued: “We were downgraded because of years of reckless spending, not because concerned Americans demanded we get our finances in order.

The Washington establishment has spent us into near default and now a downgrade, and here they are again trying to escape responsibility for their negligence in handling the economy.”

In a Sunday appearance on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Obama campaign adviser David Axelrod pinned responsibility for America’s recent downgrade – arguing that the group’s political “brinksmanship” during debt ceiling negotiations “brought us to the brink of a default.”

“The fact of the matter is that this is essentially a Tea Party downgrade,” Axelrod declared.

Former presidential candidate Howard Dean, also speaking on “Face the Nation,” argued that the “radical right” had essentially scared mainstream Republicans off of voting for a debt limit package that could have included tax increases – and staved off the ratings dip.

Dean said the American people are there, the Democrats are there, a lot of reasonable Republicans are there, but they are terrified of these right wing splinter groups, the radical right, because they are so powerful in the primaries.”

Rand Paul, the first-term Kentucky Senator who was elected in 2010 with the support of the Tea Party, argued that blaming the movement for America’s economic woes was like “blaming the fireman for fires “he said in a statement. “The Tea Party has been fighting for a serious solution that would rescue our finances through immediate spending cuts, spending caps and most importantly, a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution.”

“While Democrats would like to lay blame on the Tea Party for the current economic failure, it is their President who has failed in leadership, failed to lower unemployment, failed to rescue our economy, failed to prevent a downgrade of our debt, and failed to control spending,” he added.

The Dow Jones industrial fell 634.76 points on Monday, as anxiety plagued Wall Street on the first trading day since Standard & Poor’s downgraded American debt. The drop is the sixth worst point decline for the Dow in the last 112 years. Every stock in the S&P’s 500 index declined Monday.

Ron Paul: S&P Downgraded US Credit Rating… The Day Of Reckoning Is Coming

By Everette Hatcher III | Also posted in President Obama, spending out of control | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (0)

Time again for Grady Fish Fry on fourth Thursday in August!!!

August 17, 2011 – 10:29 pm

I went to the Grady Fish Fry last year and got to visit with Rex Nelson, Senator Pryor and Boozman, Lt. Gov. Mark Darr and many others. Below is a story by Rex Nelson on last year’s fish fry:

Back to Grady (and other Arkansas favorites)

At the first of every year, I mark the annual Grady Lions Club Catfish Supper on my calendar.

It’s always the third Thursday in August. Always.

It’s always in the Ned Hardin pecan grove.

And it’s almost always hot.

Commonly known as the Grady Fish Fry, it’s among my favorite annual events. I’ve written about it before.

In an election year, the politicians flock to Grady. Among congressional and statewide officeholders and candidates, I saw Sen. Blanche Lincoln, Sen. Mark Pryor, Rep. John Boozman, Jim Keet, Shane Broadway, Mark Darr and Beth Anne Rankin there last night.

There likely were others who left before I arrived or maybe I just just missed seeing them. The event begins at 4 p.m. and ends at 8 p.m. As I said in a post at this time last year, the Grady Fish Fry marks the unofficial end of summer for me. Bring on football season.

I also mentioned last year (but must mention again) what is perhaps the most fascinating contraption in the state — the famed Grady hushpuppy machine, constructed decades ago from pieces of equipment found on area farms. One after another, the huspuppies come out of the machine and are put into the hot grease. If they ever stop using it, it should be donated to the Smithsonian as an example of American ingenuity.

I had a great visit last night with Sherwood Haisty, 85, a Lions Club member who has been a part of 40 of the 55 fish fries. He told me how the members of the Lions Club once worked for days in the hot sun setting up tables, bringing in the products, etc.

Then somebody had the bright idea of asking the Arkansas Department of Correction for help. For years now, it has been a mutually beneficial relationship.

For the Lions Club members, there’s a captive workforce, if you will.

For those who work at the nearby state prisons, there’s a carrot they can dangle in front of inmates – in exchange for good behavior, you can get out for one night and receive a great meal in the process.

Those men from around Arkansas in their white prison garb who are handing out slices of watermelon, filling glasses of iced tea and cleaning off the tables are now just as much a part of the event as the giant pecan trees in the Hardin grove. And the prison band sounded better than ever last night. The lead vocalist has true talent.

Think about it. There are politicians shaking hands. Inmates wearing white and guards wearing blue. A pecan orchard. People cooling themselves with the funeral home-style fans handed out by the politicians. Catfish. Hushpuppies. Watermelon. It just doesn’t get more Southern. It’s like something out of a movie.

Sadly, as the population of rural southeast Arkansas grows older and smaller, we lose members of the Lions Club each year. Rev. Clyde Venable passed away in 2009. Earlier this year, charter members Bill Blankenship and R.C. Johnson died.

Hopefully, there’s some young blood in the area to keep this landmark event going.

A lot of people help out. Hardin Farms supplies the watermelons. Simmons First supplies the plates. St. Michaels Farms supplies catfish. I could go on and on.

Money raised from this annual event (it’s $12 each for all you can eat) allows the Grady Lions Club to provide college scholarships, pay for eye exams and pay for glasses for those who could not otherwise afford them.

By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)