I Have Had ENOUGH! – The Trans/Drag Movement

?u=https3.bp.blogspot.com-fYRTNk48SCwT8ua0IRDWPIAAAAAAAAFZUpexSmJsN2Kos1600overcoming-adversity-help-yourself-believe-cubby-motivational-1289878102.jpg&f=1&nofb=1Last week, feel free to look it up on YouTube, Officer Tatum was discussing a Drag Queen show where children are present, and the Drag Queen is exposing their underwear regularly to the horror of the children attending.  Now, take a minute and put your critical thinking hat on.  If a man or woman exposes their drawers to a child anywhere, that person is arrested for exposure and investigated for child endangerment and other potential crimes.  Yet, if the person claims to be a cross-dressing member of the LGBTQ+ community, the law somehow doesn’t apply.  Tell me why!

Recently, again YouTube has a video, a mother hears about a Drag Queen indecently exposing themselves at her daughter’s school.  Indecent exposure, as defined in legal communities, is “the crime of displaying one’s genitalia to one or more people in a public place, usually with the apparent intent to shock the unsuspecting viewer and give the exposer a sexual charge.”  It is important to note that in many U.S. jurisdictions, “it is not required that someone observe the act, or see the perpetrator’s private parts, in order for the perpetrator to face criminal charges.”  Never forget that those exposing themself in public are at risk of committing more serious sexual crimes and are a danger to society.  The mother wears the same outfit to the school board and is considered immodestly dressed for a public forum.  News stations blurred the mother’s image to prevent problems with the FCC.  Why wasn’t the Drag Queen treated similarly?  Why is there a two-tier judicial system in the Republic of the United States of America?

Earlier in 2022, a video is taken of a child slipping cash into the underwear of a Drag Queen.  Why haven’t any of these parents been investigated for child endangerment?  Children deserve to be raised by parents who are not abusing them by exposing the child to the sexual predilections of a perverted mind.  How many more instances of child endangerment are needed before schools, governments, and the judicial system before we as a society take action to stop this chicanery??u=http2.bp.blogspot.com-fGEUjJsJ2h4VcJgswaisnIAAAAAAAABcsoFqEewPF_E4s1600quote-if-the-freedom-of-speech-is-taken-away-then-dumb-and-silent-we-may-be-led-like-sheep-to-the-george-washington-193690.jpg&f=1&nofb=1

All are created equally.  All are equal under the law.  These are not aphorisms or nice thoughts; they are how society works.  We must be able to trust the legal system to treat ALL equally under the law.  Yet, if you choose to cross-dress, believing you are a soul in the wrong body, somehow you have special treatment under the law and can commit crimes that others would be jailed and rightfully ostracized from society for committing.

Curiosity is no sin, and I have long wondered why we hear stories of men crashing women’s locker rooms but never a woman entering a man’s locker room.  A trans boy in Vermont crashes a girl’s locker room, makes snide and disparaging comments, makes the girls feel uncomfortable, and the girls are punished.  America has witnessed a star varsity girl be a quarterback on a football team.  Yet, she never crashed the boy’s locker room.  I have been in school districts where girls have wrestled on the boys’ wrestling team; they never thought to watch the boys change, dress, disparage comments, or make the boys feel uncomfortable.  Have you ever wondered why this is always a one-directional story, boys and men against women and girls?

Since SCOTUS ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges, the claim has been made that children would be sacrificed for political correctness.  What have we seen happen in America; child molesters are now called “Minor Attracted People,” Drag Queens are paid tax dollars to dance and expose themselves to children in schools, and explicit LGBTQ+ pornography is peddled through school libraries to children who should not be exposed to this garbage.  Why?  Do not misunderstand; I am thoroughly against heterosexual pornography being peddled to children.  We have laws against heterosexual porn marketing and set legal age limits.  Why does gay porn not have the same common sense approaches and age restrictions?Lemmings 1

In 2019, I substitute taught at a high school in Albuquerque, NM, for several months.  I was horrified at what passed for A.P. English reading materials.  Seeing the reading materials that described explicit details of gay sexual activity was sickening.  Peddle heterosexual pornography with this explicit amount of detail to minors, and you would be jailed, and rightly so.  There are laws restricting this material from minors, but somehow if the materials are gay sexual activity, the rules magically do not apply.  Why?

I have seen reading materials pushed by the American Library Association (ALA) that are so obscene I could not finish reading them, and I am not a young mind in K-12.  Let me elaborate upon this significance.  In Junior High school (1989-1991), I challenged myself to learn about the world.  In seventh grade, I was going to read all the books in the Crosby Junior High School library.  I was exposed to harlequin romances that were inappropriate for my age, and regret having read them.  I read Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler, the Koran, ideals, and philosophies from all over the world, and I am better for the experience.  I wanted an expanded mind; I developed my mind and then felt better about experiencing and experimenting with the world.

NO FearGenerally, I am against banning books, but I am all in for age appropriateness in materials offered for reading.  Tell me, should kindergarten-aged children be learning about masturbation?  Their young minds and bodies are not developed sufficiently, yet what do we find in kindergarten required reading, how to masturbate?  It was inappropriate to have harlequin romances in a junior high school library.  What I needed was to learn about love, not sex.  Not knowing there was a difference cost me a lot of time and relationships.  What is the exposure to gay sexual details doing to the children’s minds right now?  Why are these materials not only allowed but promoted to children?

President Thomas Jefferson, when discussing equality in 1776, rightly reminded his countrymen that he never intended to say anything original in the Declaration but only “to place before mankind the common sense of the subject, in terms so plain and firm as to command their assent.”  Well, with this missive, my intent is similar; I desire to place before you, dear reader, the common sense of this subject, in plain terms, firmly stated sufficient to command your attention and recognize the evil that has beset this nation.

There is no excuse for the sexual attacks on our children and youth in the name of equality.  Equality has become the brick stick to beat populations into submission and chain those minds in captivity.  I choose to allow all the freedom to act as they choose, with two provisions:

  1. I am allowed to act as I so choose.
  2. Those who think differently do NOT use the power of governmental force to compel me to give up my liberties encompassed in the first provision.

If you choose to dress as a different sex, gender, or type of person, you are more than free to do so.  Make your choices, live your consequences, and leave me alone.  However, the LGBTQ+ community is not happy leaving people alone; they insist on stealing rights and liberties through judicial twisting, legislation, and bureaucratic fiat, which is immoral, unethical, and illegal.

Exclamation MarkWhere are the rights of parents?  On YouTube, a discussion was held that a mother and father had no legal say in what their child was taught in his second-grade classroom.  Really, where did the rights of parents go?  In 6th -12th grade, I freely admit I forged parental signatures on permission forms.  Yet, my parents were still afforded their right to say no and tell the school board.  More, when my mother became vociferous sufficiently to make a nuisance, she was jailed for contempt regarding teacher overreach in what was being taught to my younger brothers.

The oppression of parental rights is not new, but it has taken a decidedly dangerous turn, and this trend MUST be reversed!  The class I hated the most in school sexual education.  In the eight different high schools I attended, this class was masked under the guise of reproductivity, family planning, health, and other less obnoxious sounding titles.  But always, the class was sexual education, and too often, the course sickened me mentally and physically.  Yet, in all eight high schools, the classes were made mandatory, not by parents, but by legislatures who had been hoodwinked by Planned Parenthood and other nefarious political bodies.  I learned about women’s periods and cycles in junior high and was physically ill.  On my second trip through fourth grade, I saw movies on how children were conceived and more physical nausea.

During those years of government-mandated public education, I learned the words of Jefferson: “Liberty … is unobstructed action according to our will: but rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will, within the limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others.  I do not add ‘within the limits of the law’; because law is often but the tyrant’s will, and always so when it violates the right of an individual.”  The limits drawn by tyrants are violating the rights of individuals, and the noose cinching our growth originates in the twisted minds of those claiming equality for sexual perversion and mental illness.

Tell me, have you researched the psychiatric book on mental illness?  Several sections are devoted to the mental illnesses of sexual disorders and the mental health of people who create problems because they refuse to be bound by limits in sexual appetites.  The consequences of sexual perversion create mental health disorders.  Please, do not blindly believe me; look up the DSM 5.  The DSM-5 officially is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition, text revision (DSM-5-TR) released on March 18, 2022, by the American Psychiatric Association (APA).  The DSM is a reference handbook that most U.S. mental health professionals use to reach an accurate diagnosis, and the latest version of the manual is the DSM-5-TR.Plato 2

While there are always discussions on the applicability and use of the DSM, this is the reference for lawyers, mental health professionals, and medical doctors in dealing with mental health cases.  The information in the DSM-5-TR remains the standard upon which diagnoses and treatment of mental health patients rest.  A basic level of reading comprehension leaves the reader with a firm grasp of the obvious, sexual appetites and passions have consequences, and those consequences lead to poor mental health, including depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, physical, sexual, and mental abuse of others, and a host of social problems and legal issues.

Yet, instead of addressing the problem and suggesting more control of personal appetites, the reverse is preached by media, politicians, doctors, and other key societal groups.  Leading us back to Jefferson’s claim that “law is often the tyrant’s will” as a weapon to violate the rights of individuals.  Another glimpse into the mind of President Jefferson shows us the following pattern.  “Whereas it appeareth that however certain forms of government are better calculated than others to protect individuals in the free exercise of their natural rights and are at the same time themselves better guarded against degeneracy, yet experience hath [shown], that even under the best forms, those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny . . . [emphasis mine].”

Slow operations are perverting government into tyranny; where have we seen this more apparent than in the bureaucratic nightmare of the federal, state, county, and city/town government on education in publicly funded schools?  Under the guise of the twisted and plastic term progress, the ability to read was curtailed by Dewey, and education was bureaucratized slowly into the mess it has become.  Math and history are weaponized into topics hated and despised, so the student knows nothing of their country’s rich heritage and history.  The popularization of topics has seen the rise of perversion in a bold attempt to groom children for the sexual appetites and passions of adults who deserve public shaming.  Instead, those with morals and ethics are denounced and shunned.Image - Eagle & Flag

Let me be clear and concise, using President Jefferson to help, “Under the law of nature, all men are born free, every one comes into the world with a right to his own person, which includes the liberty of moving and using it at his own will.  This is what is called personal liberty, and [personal liberty] is given him by the author of nature because [it is] necessary for his own sustenance.”  How you choose is your business, provided it does not infringe upon the rights and liberties of others to pursue life, exercise liberty, and choose happiness.  However, what is occurring right now remains in direct violation of personal liberty, and these purveyors of sexual perversion must cease and desist immediately!

You do not have the right to twist the minds of children!  You are not the parents, and your job does not give you the authority to interfere in parental rights!  The power of government is not an acceptable excuse to steal innocence, groom minds, or pervert those not interested in your lifestyle choices!  How you choose to exercise your liberty is between you and the author of that liberty.  When you go forth exercising your liberty and try to steal rights and liberties from others, you are the problem.  You deserve social castigation, denunciation, and the harshest penalties of the legal system.

PatriotismYou have no claims upon my personal liberty, and I want my rights back!

© Copyright 2022 – M. Dave Salisbury
The author holds no claims for the art used herein, the pictures were obtained in the public domain, and the intellectual property belongs to those who created the images.  Quoted materials remain the property of the original author.

Advertisement

Audemus Jura Nostra Defendere – Revisiting a Principle!

Angry Grizzly BearAlabama’s state motto has been used previously to discuss maintaining and defending our inalienable rights as provided by the deity and ensconced into law.  Well, after the week America has had, it is time to revisit this principle and ask for your assistance in raising our voices in defense of American Law.

Audemus Jura Nostra Defendere” – “We dare to defend our rights,” also translated as “We Dare to Maintain our Rights.”

The second sentence of The Declaration of Independence is long but influential and partially quoted below emphasis mine:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

You have a right to life, and yet the government, bureaucrats, and organizational leaders are trying to do precisely this, take your life, steal your right to pursue happiness with or without a vaccine that causes death, and treats people unequally based upon the vaccine.  More than 600,000 Americans have lost their lives through failure to act and caused COVID to be worse than it should have been.  Worse, there are factors actively striving right now to continue to strip your liberties, chain your children to debt captivity, and much worse.  Do you dare to defend your rights?  Do you dare to maintain your rights?  If not, stop reading right now.  If so, pay attention, America is in the most danger it has ever faced, and your ability to stand and defend and maintain your rights is critical to saving America.Apathy

America this week learned that colleges are stripping student rights, liberties, and freedoms to demand they obtain a vaccine that is less effective due to the youth of the students and is causing heart problems in Israel, Canada, and America.  Your children are being ordered to obtain the COVID Vaccine, and none of the politicians are standing up and screaming, not for my constituents!  Does anyone else wonder why we have Constitutional liberties being stolen, and the politicians are silent?Vaccine

Now, consider what the fraudulent president assured America of, “If there’s one message to cut through to everyone in the country, it’s this: Vaccines are safe.”  Yet, at the start of their lives, young people are experiencing heart problems from these “safe” vaccines right now!  What will we learn in 5 or 10 years about the long-term health effects of the COVID Vaccine?  The AstraZeneca vaccine is not permitted in America, as of the president’s speech on 17 May 2021.  Yet, we are shipping this vaccine all around the world.  The same vaccine that was never “officially” tied to blood clotting problems in Italy and other European countries.  Why?  The clinical trials for the vaccine strictly refused pregnant women or those women wishing to become pregnant, but all women are being encouraged to get vaccinated.  There is a health danger, and the vaccine is the root of the threat.Life Valued

I repeat myself only for emphasis; I am not “Anti-Vaccine.”  I am a concerned American who is already taking several prescription drugs. Unfortunately, none of the manufacturers can answer simple questions about the vaccine and how these drugs interact with my medication.  My wife sent me the following; want to know more information, watch the video.  It is well worth your time.  Plus, the video opens more questions about the mRNA vaccine technology, whether the COVID Vaccine is a vaccine, and whether you should exercise your right not to inject something questionable into your body.  I am not telling you to act one way or another, but I encourage you to ask providers tough questions before allowing the jab.Plato 2

In a pretty hushed-up report this last week, we learned that prices were up almost 6% from a year ago when inflation was problematic enough to be part of the presidential races.  Now, inflation in April was up 4.6%, and the Federal Government was still throwing cash into the marketplace.  Debt continues to skyrocket; your local political leaders are debating who has the authorization to spend the money the Federal Government just threw at them.  Yet, no one asks how high inflation will be by year’s end or where the money is coming from.  The only way to maintain our rights is to ask more challenging questions and demand answers from those supporting the flagrantly destructive policies of the current political leaders!

Knowledge Check!The powers who think they can control the government consider themselves above the law, and they are responsible for the more than 600,000 direct COVID-19 related deaths and the more than 14,000 COVID Vaccine deaths.  Is your right to life sufficiently strong enough to motivate you to action?  Will you defend your family and extended family’s rights to life?  Look at the links, look at the data, ask questions, and then make your mind up regarding your right to life and your pursuit of happiness with or without the COVID Vaccine as well as the soon-to-be rolled out boosters, updates, and additional chemicals.

NO FearYou have a right in America; you and I possess the right to refuse our consent to be governed.  I have publicly stated I have rejected those in power my consent to be governed.  Join me; let’s demand the government stop before America is lost!

References

Flythe, J. E., Assimon, M. M., Tugman, M. J., Chang, E. H., Gupta, S., Shah, J., … & Zonies, D. (2021). Characteristics and outcomes of individuals with pre-existing kidney disease and COVID-19 admitted to intensive care units in the United States. American Journal of Kidney Diseases, 77(2), 190-203.

Mahajan, P., Dass, B., Radhakrishnan, N., & McCullough, P. A. (2020). COVID-19-Associated Systemic Thromboembolism: A Case Report and Review of the Literature. Cardiorenal Medicine, 1-8.

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

The Proper and Improper Role of Government – Part 2

QuestionThe following is the second part of the series on the proper and improper role of government. First, imperative to the discussion is a quick recap on the purpose of a government, and then we will discuss the actual role of government.  Second, the following cannot be stressed enough, America was founded upon a Judeo-Christian understanding and philosophy.  Other representative governments have removed the influence of religion globally, but America, thankfully, continues to keep it around.  Third, nothing herein is to be misconstrued as supporting any single religion, including atheism and agnostics.  My religious beliefs are not your business, just as your religious beliefs are not my business; we are not here to debate theology, philosophy, or anything but the government’s proper and improper role.

What is the purpose of government?

The second sentence of The Declaration of Independence is long but powerful:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

The purpose of government is to “secure these rights… deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”  The rights the government is to secure are “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”  When talking about securing, we are not inferring that those rights come from the government, are tools of government, or can be dispersed by the government.  When discussing securing, we are talking about the government protecting against threats to, harm from, or the need to make safe from those who would do the collective body of citizens harm.  The government securing rights does not mean affixing those rights to an individual, as the individual already owns these rights.  The government’s purpose is to protect the body of citizens by making the body of citizens safe.quote-mans-inhumanity

The etymology of secure is vital to understanding the purpose and proper role of government. “Mid 16th century (in a sense ‘feeling no apprehension’): from Latin Securus, from Ee- ‘without’ + Cura ‘care.’”  Hence, without care for an individual, the government secures, protects, and defends the individual’s inalienable rights.  Not deciding what is good for the masses, not selecting winners and losers based upon the whims and wishes of a bureaucrat, but considering the entire mass of citizens without preference and defending their inalienable rights is the purpose of government.

What is the proper role of government?

Government LargessFrom many Judaic and Christian sources, one can find various systems of government in place throughout history.  From despots of the most vile to the judges of Israel, which brought liberty and freedom instead of kings, one can find just about any form of government represented in historical texts of ancient date.  More specifically, one can find the proper role of government, which is stated most simply in the Doctrine and Covenants (D&C) of The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints, specifically Section 134:2.

We believe that no government can exist in peace, except such laws are held inviolate as will secure to each individual the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of property, and the protection of life.”

Is the proper role of government clearer? For example, suppose the government is only focused upon securing the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of [private] property, and the protection of life. In that case, that government is fulfilling its proper role.  Did you notice what is missing from the strict interpretation of the proper role of government?  Social services, arbitration, buying support through forced taxation, and much more.  Except, America was established as a Constitutional Republic with democratically elected representatives.  Thus, does America’s government have a different interpretation of the proper role of government?

Ziggy - IRS AuditThe founding fathers, and several of the first presidents in America, were considered statesmen. However, statesmen are not merely politicians, and politicians are never statesmen!  A statesman is a person who is well versed in the principles or art of government, actively engaged in conducting the business of government or in shaping its policies.  The statesmen are respected for their skill, diplomacy, power to communicate ideas, and being principled.  Thus, the statesmen are morally upright and can be trusted to understand why they are morally principled and why the law should be morally centered.  It cannot be stressed enough. The true statesmen values principles over popularity and works to create popularity for political principles in government operations that are morally sound and bring the most freedom to the most people.

Consider the following from Albert E. Bowen:

Right and wrong as moral principles do not change.  They are applicable and reliable determinants whether the situations with which we deal are simple or complex.  There is always a right and wrong to every question which requires a solution.”

The Duty of AmericansNow, returning to the proper role of government, any form of government instituted by man, we find the following as guidance in measuring said governmental role.  From D&C 134;1-2, 5:

1 We believe that governments were instituted of God for the benefit of man; and that he holds men accountable for their acts in relation to them, both in making laws and administering them, for the good and safety of society.

2 We believe that no government can exist in peace, except such laws are framed and held inviolate as will secure to each individual the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of property, and the protection of life.

5 We believe that all men are bound to sustain and uphold the respective governments in which they reside, while protected in their inherent and inalienable rights by the laws of such governments; and that sedition and rebellion are unbecoming every citizen thus protected, and should be punished accordingly; and that all governments have a right to enact such laws as in their own judgments are best calculated to secure the public interest; at the same time, however, holding sacred the freedom of conscience.”

From the US Constitution’s Preamble, a person will find why the government was instituted.  “… in order to form a more perfect Union (government), establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.”  Between the Articles of Confederation, the Declaration of Independence, the US Constitution, and the offered verses, we find similar language discussing the purpose and role of government.

Thus, the proper role of government remains simple and easy to understand.  The proper role of government is to secure man’s inalienable rights, protect private property, and ensure each citizen may pursue their path of happiness.  A citizen’s path of happiness cannot infringe upon another citizen’s pursuit of happiness, steal their property, damage their property, or destroy public property.  Hence, the government must balance the inalienable rights of a person to commit crimes against the acceptable restriction to hold people accountable to socially acceptable laws while never infringing upon an individual’s conscience.  Therein lay the seeds of the improper role of government.Apathy

What is the improper role of government?

Ziggy - NSAThe improper role of government begins with refusing to accept that government power is limited to only those powers the citizens grant the government.  Thankfully, there is a simple test for understanding what powers the government has or does not have.  The test: Can you order your neighbor to pay for welfare for another person?  If not, the government does not have this right or power.  Can your neighbor call you to pay subsidies to them for keeping their lawn and home maintained?  If not, the government does not have the right to spend taxpayer money to subsidize another person’s housing.  This simple test relates the power of government, the government’s improper role, and reasonable government restrictions.

The line between the proper and improper role of government is thin but very distinguishable using the simple test described above.  Claude-Frédéric Bastiat was a French economist, writer, and prominent member of the French Liberal School. A member of the French National Assembly, Bastiat developed the economic concept of opportunity cost and introduced the parable of the broken window.  We present Bastiat as providing the logic behind the simple test.  “Nothing can enter the public treasury for the benefit of one citizen or one class unless other citizens and other classes have been forced to send it in.”  Hence, the simple test regarding a neighbor forcing you or forcing your neighbor is justified as the test for the proper or improper role of government.Patriotism

Forced taxation is a form of legal plunder, and since payment is the test for which powers are proper or improper for government, we must return to Bastiat for a delineation of legal plunder.

When a portion of wealth is transferred from the person who owns it – without his consent and without [just] compensation, whether by force or by fraud – to anyone who does not own it, then I say that property was violated; that an act of plunder is committed. … How is legal plunder to be identified?  Quite simply.  See if the law takes from some persons what belongs to them and gives it to other persons to whom it does not belong.  See if the law benefits one citizen at the expense of another by doing what the citizen himself cannot do without committing a crime.”

Government Largess 3Legal plunder is theft through the misuse of the power of government.  Consider the following example, your paycheck.  On that paycheck, the Federal and State governments demand money from you, not earned but forced through jurisprudence and legislative fiat, and those funds are given to another person.  As a private citizen, if I took your wallet and removed money from it, I would be guilty of theft and liable to the penalties of criminal and civil law, even if I did not keep your cash but donated it to a charitable organization.  Remember, the simple test that details the difference between the proper and improper role of government.

One additional piece of knowledge where the improper role of government is described and dictates that government cannot create wealth.  No government, at any time throughout history, has produced wealth.  The government takes from the citizens to survive, and the proper role of government would see every cent of forced taxation as a precious resource, needing to be accounted to the citizens forced to pay.  People create wealth, and if you desire a full explanation of how money is created, please see the following link.

Plato 2Why does it matter?

The government cannot exist without the consent of the governed.  Your inalienable rights should be the only concern of any government form, type, or methodology.  Yet, what do we find; legal plunder to buy other citizens’ support.  We find legalized plunder without transparency, without accountability, and without regard for those struggling to pay the forced taxation (legalized plunder).  We find Trillions in missing money in every government, where the representatives are not concerned, or even aware, of the money lost.  We see government spending above and beyond its intake, creating debt penalties for many future generations to pay for the benefits of the current generation, all because the government refuses to live on a budget.  We find bureaucrats treating citizens as property and abusing that property worse than any corporate polluter of the 1970s.

Knowledge Check!Look carefully, dear citizen; government only exists by the will of the governed.  Do you think it is time for a change in government?  Do you feel your government is fulfilling its purpose and proper role or is your government abusing its rights and powers as granted through the consent of the governed?  You must answer these questions and then decide where you stand.

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

NO MORE BS: Postlude to The Declaration of Independence

ApathyLet me reiterate; only for emphasis, armed rebellion is not what I am calling for, advocating, or even advancing as a principle for throwing off the onerous chains of the tyrannical government America is currently suffering.  The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints reveres as scripture a book called the Doctrine and Covenants, and section 134 represents 12 statements on government that I hold dear and believe in strongly.

Statement 1:  I firmly believe that God instituted government for the benefit of man.  All representatives of any form of government will be answerable to GOD for how they held their offices and honored the power the people granted through the consent of the governed.

Statement 2:  I know from personal experience that peace is only possible under the Rule of Law, held inviolate, that secures the individual the maximum free exercise of conscience, the right and control of their personal property, and protection of life.

Statement 3:  Governments require civil officers to execute government and enforce the law, but these civil officers and magistrates are also held accountable to GOD for holding their office and carrying out the duties appointed.  Civil officers and magistrates’ responsibilities require equity and justice to be paramount in executing their official duties.

Statement 4:  Separation of church and state is to be held inviolate.  The church may punish member’s conscience but cannot refuse them life, liberty, or property.  That government may restrain crime but never control a person’s conscience.  The distinction in the separation of church and state is evident; religion may influence the conscience of men but not deprive them of life, liberty, or property.  In the punishment of crime, the government may deprive of life, liberty, or property but cannot and should not control conscience.

Statement 5:  Sedition and rebellion are unbecoming of every citizen!  Hence, my disgust at the riots, mobocracy, and terrorism witnessed by seditious people of all political types and flavors.  Laws should be written to best protect the public interest while holding sacrosanct freedom of conscience!

Statement 6:  Civil officers, elected representatives, and magistrates deserve to be honored in their appointed stations, and every person owes deference and respect in a locality to the laws of that locality.  Hence the only path to freedom and harmony among people.

Statement 7:  As long as respect and reverence are shown by a religious society to the laws of a locality, the government does not have the right to infringe upon the consciences of men and proscribe religious duties and practices.

Statement 8:  The commission of crimes should be punished, and all men are responsible for stepping forward to assist in supporting the public peace, tranquility, and harmony in a population and aid in bringing offenders to justice.

Statement 9: The government supports equality of religious freedom as the best possible method of ensuring public harmony and equality under the law.  Thus, mingling government and religion should be refused to protect all men’s right to the freedom of their conscience.

Statement 10:  Religious societies have the right to handle their affairs where members are concerned, provided the member is not deprived of life, liberty, or property, and excluding the member from fellowship is the extent of the punishment allowed.  These practices should not ever be interfered with by government officers or magistrates!

Statement 11:  All men possess the right to appeal to the civil government for redress when personal abuse occurs at the civil officers’ and magistrates’ hands.  I support all men the right to defend themselves and their properties from unlawful incursions by the government when time and exigency deprive the assaulted from appealing to the civil officers and magistrates for a peaceful redress of wrongs.

Statement 12: It is all about preaching religion freely and without government incursions, provided the laws of the land are followed.

Detective 3I do not speak for The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints!  I respect and honor the books and resources provided for their clarity and their simplicity.  I have abbreviated the above statements to reflect my personal beliefs and respect the intellectual property owned by The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints.  I firmly believe that these statements embody the principles found in the US Constitution, the Magna Charta, the Articles of Confederation, and The Declaration of Independence.  By following these statements, society improves, regardless of the government flavor found locally.

DutyI support obeying, honoring, and sustaining the laws of the land upon which you live and work.  That through the laws of your land, just grievances may be brought forward to your government officials, civil officers, and magistrates, and redress for wrongs made right.  I do not support sedition and rebellion in any shape, form, or creed, as this is the path to anarchy and chaos.  As an American [A(h)-ME-I-CAN], I support the logical separation of church and state as described above and will support any organized religious belief in the public square, provided the religious beliefs do not infringe upon another person’s rights to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness.

I support a “Liberty FIRST Culture;” join me!

© 2021 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved
The images used herein were obtained in the public domain; this author holds no copyright to the images displayed.

Leadership and Kipling: 7-Kipling Quotes to Consider

The following is a reflection on life lessons learned at the feet of a great writer, Rudyard Kipling. Below is the quote; then the life lesson. While not a post intended to be read alone or all at once, this message is designed for pondering, thinking about how these words impact your current life, how they echo deep in your mind, and relate to others the personal meaning. Consider this a week-long journey of thinking and pondering, a mental exercise and an imaginative journey.

 1.  Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind. – Kipling

  • I first came across this quote during a difficult period where my choices and reliance upon words and phrases was creating the problems experienced. Long had the lessons of my youth regarding proper English, pronunciation, annunciation, and word choice were giving me problems socially, but I could not understand why. The words we choose become addictive. The experience of using those words to achieve communication provides a positive feedback loop sustaining word choice, and very carefully the mind closes, the heart congeals, and we begin to attract those just like us. Breaking the cycle requires choosing different words, expressions, and raising our consciousness to the power of expression. Make the choice to choose words more carefully and specifically, and then see where that choice takes you.

2.  We have forty million reasons for failure, but not a single excuse. – Kipling

  • I had a football coach in Altamont, UT who said something very similar. When I discovered this quote several years later, I remembered that coach. More importantly, the lessons of working, striving, achieving, and failure came to mind as well. Failure is to be expected, anticipated, and even appreciated. Not for the excuses, but for the lessons, failure can either be a teacher and builder or ultimate destroyer. The choice to build or destroy remains lodged in the one person who can choose; you. Choose wisely!

3.  For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack. – Kipling

  • This could be the ultimate team quote, but I refuse to think of this quote that way. This is the ultimate society quote, as society must always remain cognizant of the power of the individual and the collective fit that individual has in society. As my injury and disability has grown year-over-year, the realization of this statement from Kipling drives ever more powerfully home. I have had the pleasure of working with some amazingly talented disabled people, who have been shunted to the side, abandoned, forgotten, but their power to impact lives was not diminished. I firmly belief our society or “wolf pack” is stronger for those struggling with disabilities. Embracing the philosophy that all can contribute empowers, supports, strengthens, and builds the wolf pack.

4.  Fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds worth of distance run. – Kipling

  • The best leaders I have ever been privileged to know never inspire people to engage in long tasks, but short bursts of power. Consider the movie “The Patriot” with Mel Gibson. In this movie is a scene where he asks the militia forces under his command not to fight for the whole day or even fire three shots, but simply fire two shots, implying the need to stand and act just long enough. This is the essence of the action discussed by Kipling. Large events hinge upon small acts, small efforts that were made by people filling 60-seconds of life with full effort and purpose. Leaders must remember to only ask enough and no more; enough is most often simply filling 60-seconds of life full to the brim.

5.  Gardens are not made by singing ‘Oh, how beautiful,’ and sitting in the shade. – Kipling

  • Acknowledging the “Power of Work” and the “Law of the Harvest,” which are two powers that change the world one engaged person at a time. Hard work is the investment upon which harvest is born. How often does a person refuse to do the work and then cries about harvesting bitter and useless fields? We see this in a lot of different places, people engaged in sowing hate, envy, strife, and discontent, then complaining that their harvest of bitter crops is too great to bear and wants a new harvest of honey and milk. Leaders must exemplify the need for hard work and the patience required to harvest fields of good crops to their followers. In training, the answer to understanding work comes and delivers its own lessons to be appreciated.

6.  I always prefer to believe the best of everybody, it saves so much trouble. – Kipling

  • Do we understand the power and conviction of this choice? Choosing to believe the best in another requires preparation and a desire to have the best in us be trusted, believed, and seen. Leaders, who personify the quote as internal characteristics, form the backbone of change, the foundation of good society, and reflect the courage needed in difficult times to thrive and build. The time for choosing is today, the need for choosing apparent, and with this single choice, America will never be stronger.

7.  If history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten. – Kipling

  • The human condition is a condition of storytellers. Through stories, we teach, learn, and relate. The choice of words we use in telling the stories teaches values, ideals, and heritage in a most influential way, and most importantly our culture is relayed. Historical events are stories, Hollywood tells stories, books tell stories. Through these stories memories are kept, attraction to or detraction from the storyteller occurs, and language is preserved.

James Allen reports in “As a Man Thinketh” (1903) about thought and purpose claiming, “Until thought is linked with purpose there is no intelligent accomplishment.” Continuing to further claim, “They who have no central purpose in their life fall an easy prey to petty worries, fears, troubles, and self-pitying’s.” History provides the link between thought and purpose; stories of history are the mold the character of a person is poured into. Hence, both the need to learn history and the requirement to tell history as a story for others to learn requires serious consideration.

Why undertake a week-long mental exercise, the answer lies in the words of James Allen:

“Mind is the master power that moulds and makes,
And man is mind, and evermore he takes
The tool of thought, and, shaping what he wills,
Brings forth a thousand joys, a thousand ills: –
He thinks in secret, and it comes to pass:
Environment is but his looking glass.”

Contained in these words is understanding, leadership in the current world requires both understanding thought and a commitment to preserving thought in those who follow. Consider and ponder upon these gems of intelligence. The power of these words from Kipling to guide, mentor, and build others cannot be understated. There is great need for leaders in America; leadership continues to be a choice. If we keep this in mind, the world would be a much better place!

© 2016 M. Dave Salisbury
All Rights Reserved