If you make yourself not a friend of the President, 

you become an enemy of the state. 

Can we not see the corruption in this? If a president speaks ill of his opponents, and counters their displeasure with displeasure of his own, that is one thing. But, to use the powers of your office and of the United States government is quite another matter. It is corruption. It is the flower bed of tyranny. 

When you stand up to the President,

you become an enemy to the state.

Corruption is in removing your foes,

as much as it is in anything.

I hail the House's decision to formalize the call for an inquiry, and to allow Republicans to bring their witnesses, and to open the proceedings to the public. 

You can bend with the wind

or you can lean into it. 

Those who count sheep 

don't count on sleep.

You can't tell a ghost by its shadow.

Even so, when the wicked hide their ways,

 they sometimes leave no evidence. 

Disagreements get out of hand

 as soon as the slapping begins. 

A whip doesn't crack because it breaks,

 it cracks because it breaks others.

Simplicity must speak for complexity,

or complexity will never be heard. 

Simplicity must answer complexity,

or complexity will never be heard. 

Complication must be explained 

with simplicity.

The scariest thing about Halloween 

is its glorification of death and dying.

I enjoyed a party today. Found those dressed ghoulish and devilish fine enough. All done in good fun, and the faces dripping with blood did not offend me. Still, I wonder on such practice. 

You don't know the morrow. 

It is a stranger until it comes. 

When decisions come before they're weighed,

a fool is following his foolishness. 

When decisions come before they're weighed,

they lack the weight of wisdom. 

If you've already decided a matter

 you have no need for reason. 

Those with agendas 

scurry from the truth. 

Spite never has room for reason. 

Crass fingers 

don't know how to hold the truth. 

Anger plays 

mostly to fools. 

You never taste the truth 

by eating only lies. 

To disconnect from truth, 

disconnect from those who have it. 

The heart of love 

grows to wisdom. 

A sorry mess stays until you're sorry. 

A sorry mess stays that way 

until you're sorry.

Pride tells its story 

at the expense of truth. 

Wisdom comes mostly to the humble, 

for it often requires admitting you were wrong. 

You will never be wise 

if you will never be humble. 

Crassness chases wisdom away. 

We fear the truth 

whenever its narrative 

differs from ours. 

Truth comforts not 

those with agendas.

Wisdom seeks not to win an argument, 

but to provide it with the truth. 

Wisdom seeks not to conquer, 

but only to tell the truth. 

Wisdom lies not so much in having the truth 

as it does in determining you are going to find it. 

Wisdom doesn't proclaim it has the truth 

so much as it determines it is going to find it. 

Why do We not Pressure Zelensky to Release the Audio?

  So, there was no actual recording in America of the call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky? So, what if the Ukrainians have an audio version of that phone call?
  Some say they do. The opposition party in the Ukraine has asked Zelensky to release the recording. Zelensky, I understand, has declined.
   Now, with as important as this matter is, why are we not going after that recording? Why is the U.S. House of Representatives not calling on Zelensky to release the audio?

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-ukraine-mp-calls-for-zelensky-to-release-his-version-of-trump-call-at/

The Tape Recorder was Invented in 1886; Any Reason it wasn't Used?

   Run this by me again: The conversation between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was not recorded, but was transcribed by those who wrote down what was said.
   I believe the tape recorder was invented in 1886. Isn't that enough time that we should have learned of its existence? So, in a day when we can record things -- much easier -- we still have secretaries come in and do it the old fashioned way? What's up?
    In all that comes out of this event, changing this practice should certainly be one. Start using a recorder. Why ever, why ever do we not just record these presidential conversations?
 

The dishonest are given 

to misrepresenting those who hold the truth. 

A fool is given 

to misunderstanding the wise. 

The wise seek to understand each other,

but fools want to know only their own wisdom. 

The wise seek to understand each other,

but fools want none of another person's wisdom.

The wise, by virtue of agreeing to reason,

 settle their differences, but fools will argue forever. 
-

Wisdom settles its disputes,

 but foolishness fights forever. 

Those who throw truth around roughly 

know not it's a precious package. 

A leash around the neck can also hang.

 be careful when you have control.

A future isn't set 

until it is passed. 

When we say, Guns don't kill, people do, we ought to also consider that 

A storm is without a mind. 

It doesn't seek to hurt. 

That which has no search

 has no purpose. 

The hard lessons of sanity 

are learned only through insanity. 

He recognizes not the truth

 who has never met it. 

Those who recognize not the truth 

recognize not those who have it. 

He who listens to only half of a story

rejects the whole of it. 

Truth must come 

from those who know it. 

When a liar tries to tell the truth

he finds a way to ruin it. 

Truth must come from its source.

 A liar will always ruin it.

Trying to explain that which you cannot

only makes you appear the fool. 

Poems come from heaven when they have virtue in their lines. But when they preach wickedly, their pastor is the devil. 

When you don't carry any weight,

you are foolish to throw it around. 

Don't throw your weight around

 if you don't have any.

Those who do not think 

fall victim to their thoughts.
-

Those of deceit 

seek to believe their deceit.

Hearts cannot understand 

that which they cannot see.

Experience 

is the purest form of 

knowledge.

You really only know what you experience.

 Everything else is borrowed knowledge. 

Before you share the truth, you must know it. 

You cannot introduce that which you've never met. 

A fool sees only foolishness 

in wisdom. 

A fool sees only wisdom 

in his foolishness. 

Pencils write the story, but paper holds it from there. 

Even so. it is not the act of writing that gives meaning to your words, 

but whether those words are preserved by time. 

A leash can leash, 

but it can also hang. 

Sometimes we only mean to leash someone 

but we end up hanging them. 

Growth comes not in knowing, 

but in reaching for what you do not know. 

The humble man becomes a giant 

because he thinks he's small.

You grow the most 

when you see yourself as the smallest. 

You grow not so much by wisdom,

 as by obedience. 

When truth is cut and sized, 

you know it is being fabricated. 

The haughty seek the defeat of truth.

The haughty seek not the truth, 

but to fabricate it. 

The haughty spin the truth like a top 

-- and it always spins them off. 

The haughty are too good for the truth, 

except for those truths they suppose belong to them. 

The wickedness of the wind 

comes in those it chooses to blow down. 

Sin is but imperfection, 

so we must wonder if a perfect mind would sin.

The righteous grow wise by virtue of truth,

 while the wicked run from it. 

Mortals remember not their maker, 

for their making dissolved that memory.

Did We Need Less-Perfect Minds, and That is Why We Came to Earth?

I venture this thought, not knowing if it is true, and not saying it is.
But wondering.
If life on earth places us in an imperfect body, one that degenerates, what becomes of the thoughts now within the mind of such an imperfect body?
Do they become less perfect? Do we remember things less? Is our ability to think impeded?
A child sits in the womb of the mother for nine months, about. And, when it is born, it is not able to speak. This is a time when all things can be forgotten. In the womb, it is introduced to its body. All the thoughts and memories of pre-earth life are perhaps brought into the little brain of the little pre-born child.
It  would seem a mortal body might have its degenerative elements right from the time the pre-born begins to develop in the womb of the mother. And, that might mean the memories begin to degenerate as the degenerative elements of the mortal body -- mortal mind -- how are the housing elements for those thoughts and memories.
Is this how we come to forget the heavens, and our pre-mortal existence? Our mortal minds cannot remember things as our spirits, alone, did? The spirit's mind was not of decaying flesh, and was not held back by the conditions of mortality. Did we remember things better, as spirits? Did we reason more clearly? Did we hold more things in our minds without letting them go?
With mortality, comes a mortal mind, it would seem.
Is this one of the reasons we were sent to earth -- because in order to have tests, we needed less perfect minds? In heaven, it would be harder to reject the truth, because our minds would reason more clearly, and be less able to deny the truth. The truth would sit right in front of them, unable to be escaped.
Thus, a mortal mind would be more subject to being tempted.
I don't know that what I have said is true. I wonder, but do not know. I pray that it is okay to wonder about such things, to consider on them, to think about them. I pray that such things are not off-limits. I hope and pray it is okay to wonder about them.

Silence serves truth not by telling it, 

but by keeping it from those who would abuse it.

And, so I wonder about what I write in the blog tonight. Who will read it? Am I placing things before people who would abuse them? I pray they do not.

Respect comes not from the masses, 

but from the reflective man. 

When everything competes for your time,

 you end up with none. 

Depth of character 

comes only when you've

reached the bottom.
-

Death is but a bridge

 to something better.

Death brightens the shadows 

only of those whose lives have faded. 

Death is the shadow 

that chases all. 

Pain has its passing 

with the coming of death. 

The signature of the Lord 

is his love and gentle touch. 

Death brightens

 only when life has been dim.

Death brightens 

life's dim shadows. 

Death scurries forward 

in order to scare you backwards. 

You don't solve problems 

by waiting for them to pass. 

The lost and the lonely are treasures 

to those who value the soul. 

The whispers are louder than the shouts when you are distinguishing between truth and lies. 

Distant comfort 

often has no travel plans. 

The trajectory of truth is not beholden to politics. It swings not to the right or the left, but straight ahead. 

A song is sung best 

when it comes from the heart. 

The shadows that fall 

capture only the hopeless. 

When a border brings hatred to those who cross it,

 a land of the loving is not on the other side. 

There is no shame in effort, 

even when you fail. 

Standing for what's right 

doesn't mean sitting on others.

You don't fall backward 

by leaning forward. 

When the receiver of a favor dangles a bribe, 

often that favor is wrong. 

Favors returned can be favors good.

Favors can be payment and favors can be largesse. 
Whether they are good depends upon the incentive. 

Favors come to those who earn them.

 Favors come to those who buy them. 

The eye of a storm 

never favors those who are in it. 

A load is shared 

only by friends. 

Sing your way through life 

and life will be a song.

The man who sings 

is tuned to happiness.

Wisdom that seeks its own

 is wanna-be wisdom.

A tongue that never stops 

has no purpose for ears. 

A setting sun 

only means there's a tomorrow.

There is opportunity in doing what's right when being treated wrong. The Savior said to love those who despitefully use you. 

Wisdom comes not in proving you're right, 

but in righting where you're wrong. 

Wisdom that seeks its own 

is only a facade. 

Since no one is without mistakes, 

the only way to avoid them is to avoid all life's challenges. 

The man who makes no mistake,  

makes no progress.

The road to peace should not be littered 

with rocks thrown at those on its path. 

Silence of the tongue 

leaves it free to eat of the peace that comes 
from the heart. 

When you find progress only in tearing others down,

 your road is soon in shambles. 

When Satan offers you choices, 

they all call for you to hate others. 

When hatred is your master 

your choices only condemn others. 

Those who try to extract wisdom from hate 

go without wisdom. 

Wisdom comes not quickly to those who hate.

Hates dictates its agenda. 

Hate consults not wisdom.

The course of hate is set before wisdom arrives. 

Wisdom is no compass for those directed by hate. 

The spell of hate 

enchants the wicked. 

Hate on the lips 

betrays the lack of wisdom. 

Hate on the lips 

betrays the intent of the heart.

Mortals only find fault 

where God offers forgiveness. 

Your heart does the talking

 when your lips are still.

A hug speaks louder than words. 

When the heart cries 

tears turn to blood. 

He sails in circles 

whose rudder is turned all to 

the left or the right. 

Indignation with the poor 

comes from a heart without care. 

Walls against freedom 

only speak that there's none.

Love is lost 

when entrance is gained. 

Love is not 

for those without invite.

A full life 

knows its boundaries. 

Shipmates must travel the same direction, 

but they can argue about their course. 

The person who grants favors without payment

 is called a Christian.

Favors are found 

only where payments are made. 

I think this a general rule. But, thankfully, there are some who do grant favors with no expectation of return. 

Dancing comes with pleasure 

unless you're dancing on some coals. 

You only feel welcome

 with those you're alike. 

You won't recognize heaven 

if you didn't learn it on earth. 

Fright turns the walk into a run. 

Dreams are fulfilled 

only with faith.

A tawdry past can be forgotten 

only if it is not cherished. 

Sometimes, you can recognize wisdom by its traveling companions, love and understanding.

Dreams abound 

only when there is hope 

in the dead of the night. 

Age favors 

those who don't have it. 

Freedom is to be cherished 

less than the will to obey. 

Love isn't offered by those 

who love only themselves. 

Our heroes should be the humble, 

if we would ever be like them. 

The cherished of God 

are the forgotten of men. 

The heart that is touched 

knows its God. 

Feelings come not from touch, 

but from being touched. 

Tools are for building, while weapons destroy; 

Make no mistake in the purpose of a gun. 

Old men should seek 

new tales to tell. 

Death laughs at its capture of those who sin, 

but the righteous it must set free. 

Death laughs at its capture, 

but heaven frees all. 

The ghosts of Berlin 

are with us still. 

Death is a welcome to life well-spent, 

but a prison to those who have sinned. 

Justice seeks the betterment of others,

 while injustice rewards only its own. 

As long as we're living there's only decay;

 Anything else would be called resurrection.

Among the living 

there's only decay. 

The sands of time always fall; 

They never upward rise. 

Perfection is found 

only in progress. 

Dark forests 

frighten not their own. 

Mortals worry, 

while immortals know no such fear

If your dreams are only of what you cannot have,

 your dreams are nightmares. 

Dreams are only 

for those with futures. 

Truth seeks a gentle touch 

but remains a rolling stone. 

A tap on the shoulder 

is better than a slap in the face. 

Wickedness wastes its rewards. 

Death smiles on those

life frowned upon.

Silence falls on the ears of the deaf.

Silence searches for words 

but cannot find them. 

You only fix the pump 

when the water runs out. 

Streets of gold need no silver lining. 

Bosom friends often need hugs.

Castles of gold 

better have beds that are warm.

The same people who warned against tyranny all these years, and told us to keep our guns handy, are now blind to its arrival. 

Those who once opposed tyranny now embrace it. 

They never realized it would be a friend introducing it. 

They would have you believe that all in the media are liars, unless they lie to the right. 

Tyranny tosses its enemies in jail. 

Sameness of culture is not freedom of speech.

Tyranny is defined by indignities endured.

If you would not have tyranny, 

you must not allow your police to practice it. 

Patriots 

amass quickly when they see 

injustice. 

Unjust laws do not justice make. 

Life never treats well 

those who think it is sick. 

Wisdom's friends 

are love and understanding. 

A diner is served 

only when he's ordered. 

Love of life 

is the ticket to enjoy it. 

To live life well 

you must learn to love it. 

The balance of life is the future. 

The beggars in life 

are the saints in heaven. 

The cure

 for all the world's ills 

is righteousness. 

Righteousness needs no license, 

but is the doctor of every soul. 

Repentance needs no license 

but practices in every hospital of sin.

The funniest secrets 

are never laughed at. 

Sailing requires its winds. 

Zest for living 

zips you along its path. 

Age brings its own end. 

The face that smiles 

remains on the face of the earth

 a little longer. 

The pattern of life 

comes from the cloth of character. 

The enjoyment of life 

brings its own extension.

Zest for life 

is ointment against death. 

A full life cannot be bound.

A full life is never spent. 

The bitter die of their own poison. 

He who lives life to its fullest 

lives it longer. 

Love of life is rewarded with long years. 

Length of life is extended 

by the propensity to live it. 

Those who learn to enjoy their pain 

know no pain at all. 

Life is stretched when nerves are not.

Life's length is extended by its peace.

The enjoyment of life 

leads to its extension. 

He lives longer who learns to live. 

Truth offers mercy, 

but falsehood only wants to flog its foes. 

A filthy mouth 

speaks only condemnation. 

A filthy mouth only spits. 

A dirty mouth 

seeks only condemnation.

Truth takes pleasure in forwarding a good cause, 

but falsehood laughs at its damage. 

Wisdom is not the one making choices 

but the one providing the best choice. 

Depth of soul

 is measured only when you've 

reached the bottom.

You are shocked the most 

when your feet are wet. 

To ever see heaven

 you must first stare down the devil. 

Those of plenty have no mercy 

for those who come without invite. 

Dinner guests are not served 

unless first served an invite. 

Those who are hungry 

might show up as uninvited dinner guests.

The uninvited dinner guest 

is often the hungriest. 

The uninvited visitor 

is often the most in need.

The uninvited guest 

often eats the most. 

Varnish can protect from rain but not from force, and it takes more than a warm coat to protect your bones from a fall. 

Self-denial lies in all of us. 

It is insanity, but it is a popular form of insanity.

Death follows the path of anger.

When a Person doesn't meet our Standards, They Should Die?

   Here is a teaching moment for all of America and all of the world.  Utah Athletic Director Mark Harlan took to tweeter to take a University of Utah fan to task for a hateful tweet.
   "We strongly condemn the behavior of the individual who directed such hatred toward an Arizona State student-athlete," Harlan tweeted. "There is no place for such behavior from anybody who represents Utah Athletics directly or indirectly."
   And, what did the Utah fan say in his own tweet? He said the ASU player should die for having targeted Utah running back Zack Moss. The ASU player, defensive back Evan Fields hit Moss head-on, spearing him with his helmet.
   For that, the Utah fan tweeted that Fields should die for being so worthless. He used profanity in his message. Die? Worthless? Regardless whether Fields intentionally speared Moss with his helmet, the fan's calling him worthless and suggesting he should die for what he did is inappropriate.
   Out of line.
   In our society, though, many would say that if Fields did target Moss, if he did spear him, he deserved to be called on it, and suggesting Fields was worthless and should die for targeting was not out of line.
   The U. fan was but teaching Fields to behave, they would say.
   So, it was wonderful for Utah Athletic Director Mark Harlan to step in and make it clear that the fan's tweet was out of line. Hate is hate and hate is wrong. A profanity-laced tweet suggesting Fields should die for the targeting goes beyond calling for Fields to mend his ways. It is filled with hate.
   I will take this further. There are times when this same type of attitude does lead to killing. One person judges another person as worthless and pulls a trigger to end their life. We, as a society, teach each other that when someone doesn't meet our standards, their life should be cut short.
   We shouldn't be so quick to call for another person's death, nor to judge them as worthless.

When hatred fills the heart, 

anger spills out. 

Zelensky Should be Called to Testify

   Shouldn't Volodymyr Zelensky be invited to the impeachment hearings? Should there be others from Ukraine who are invited to testify?
   I think of this Zelensky, president of Ukraine, and of how he has a recording of his conversation with President Trump.
   He has said he will not release it.
   Why not?

Do not be Guilty of Impropriety

   Take a vote, then, formalizing the impeachment inquiry. If that is what Trump's supporters require, let the full house vote on whether it should be having the impeachment inquiry.
   Do not stumble to impropriety, or charges of impropriety. If a number of Republicans are upset that they are not allowed in the hearings, let them in. If they want to be able to call witnesses, let them. If they want the process to be more open, let it be. There are a number of ways to go about that. Letting the members release whatever information they want would be one.
   Opening the doors to the public would be another. Why not do that?

Shiver, America, for Your Nation has Fallen to This

  Shiver in your boots, America, if you dare see crime in your president.
  That, in and of itself, might be a crime.
  I read the news today, that the Justice Department -- empowered to file criminal charges -- is opening an investigation into how the Russian investigation started.
   Empowered to file criminal charges?
   I think of James Comey, who they say is guilty of federal crimes. "Former FBI Director James Comey leaked numerous notes he had taken while Director of the FBI to the media," reads a lead from News Target three months ago. "These criminal actions should put him behind bars for years to come. It's time he's held accountable."
   The article by Joe Hoft was republished from The Gateway Pundit. "Disgraced and fired dirty cop James Comey leaked his classified memos to numerous individuals in various entities," the article says.
  We would toss a patriot in jail for standing up for justice, for daring to oppose our President?
  I marvel. I think of countries elsewhere. Where, if you oppose the leader, they will find reason to toss you in jail. And, I marvel that such a condition has reached our shores.

Silence serves the secret, 

but it is not master to the truth. 

The maker of life 

didn't mean for death to end it. 

Wisdom must wait 

for truth to catch up. 

Varnish does not stop 

the wood from breaking. 

Truth is not always pretty, 

but it never hides the picture.

Suns set 

only so new days can begin. 

Life ends where eternity begins. 

Man sees only the days of his life,

but eternity always awaits him. 

Death brings focus to eternity.

A heart without love 

bleeds not for others. 

That heart knows no love 

that bleeds not for others. 

That heart knows love 

that bleeds for others. 

When the heart 

makes room for the faults of others,

 it leaves no room for love. 

Love is lost 

on the heart that finds fault. 

The sailor swears

 only when the salt hits his face. 

Desperation is haphazard in its course.

Desperation knows only

 the path of survival. 

Desperation knows no certain path.

Death is but the end of pain. 

All our lives we seek peace, 

but we find it only in death. 

There never was a weapon 

without a hunter. 

Weapons must have their hunt. 

The justice of a gun 

is always its own. 

Guns only kill 

when wrath pulls the trigger. 

The gun points 

only where wrath directs. 

That which brings wrath 

never brings peace. 

Peace settles 

only when wrath is gone. 

Anger never sues for peace. 

Anger knows only violence. 

Adulation claps only for those who succeed;

The noble who fail have very few fans. 

Those who learn to live with rejection 

learn to live by themselves. 

We whistle for those who succeed, and hiss at those who don't; So, exactly what is it we teach?

Performance draws its audience. 

An audience awaits its pleasure. 

There lies safety 

in not being important. 

Those large in life 

cannot hide from it. 

Arrows seek not sparrows, but for bigger birds; 

There is safety in not being important.

Pain and patience 

must travel together. 

The weight of truth 

can weigh you down.

Truth knows its weight

and knows those too weak to bear it. 

Truth knows its strength 

and knows those to weak to bear it. 

Telling the truth 

knows no secrets.

All secrets are out 

when truth is told. 

Only the careful step

 must never retreat. 

Those who rush in 

often back out. 

Hunger feeds 

the hunter's hunt. 

Hunger feeds 

the desire to hunt.

A full stomach 

doesn't hunt for food. 

The absence of something you want 

is the desire to go out and get it. 

If you would desire something, 

you must first be missing it.

Hunger comes not from plenty, 

but from want.

Truth seeks not a battlefield, 

but to speak in friendly fields. 

Truth seeks not a battlefield 

but to discuss in the hallway of friends. 

Truth seeks not to conquer enemies, 

but to win friends. 

Truth seeks not to conquer, 

but to make a friend. 

Age is but an anchor 

to wisdom. 

The expense of humility 

is in not knowing your value. 

He who made society 

is the only one who can heal it. 

The maker of souls 

needs to be the trust of nations. 

Prayer brings its answers. 

Love brings more righteousness 

than a scolding from the pulpit. 

If a nation is to have light, 

prayer must be its beacon. 

Public prayer 

builds a consensus of faith. 

When things go wrong, 

the first thing to go right is often 

a simple prayer. 
-

Sailing in shallow water 

leaves the rudder at risk. 

Wisdom grows

 in fields of thought. 

Wisdom settles 

where thoughts are spread. 

The greater part of gratitude is not in saying thanks, 

but in returning the favor. 

The greater part of thanks is not in saying thanks, 

but in asking if you can help them also. 

A million times a million equals a lot, 

but it is a waste of time to count it. 

We never hear the echoes of those thrown in a pit, but we always here the shouts of those in their towers. 

More life is to be learned from the humble 

than from those who have everything. 

Strength to be meek 

saves the strong from their strength.

Sometimes it takes 

strength to be meek. 

Wisdom's only pleasure 

is when it forwards a worthy cause. 

The strongest words 

are those spoken with softness. 

Wisdom's strongest words 

are those it speaks with softness.

We live among villains
We live among thieves
We live among those who would kill
We live in a day when hate rules the heart
When men's hearts can never be still

(This was part of a larger poem yesterday, but the best part of the poem stands best on its own.)

There can be more character in taking a loss 

than in forcing a victory. 

There's more character 

in taking a loss than in forcing a victory. 

The sun sets 

on those who flee to the shadows. 

Those who welcome truth

 hear out those who oppose it. 

They rest best in their graves 

who raged least in their lives.

Wisdom isn't wise 

when it thinks its too wonderful. 

The simple souls 

always stand the tallest. 

Eloquence 

is never as precious as truth.
-

Wisdom prevails by strength of reason 

while falsehood relies on lack of thought.

The size of a soul can be measured 

by how it seeks not to be large. 

The greatest souls 

are the unknown humble. 

The giants of men 

are the unknown humble.

The words of the meek are seldom eloquent

 but their example always is. 

Truth has the power of death 

yet seeks only life.

Truth's sword can be tossed down 

in the face of those who fear it. 

Diamonds are precious 

because they are pressed.

Truth often withholds its sword

 from those who fear it. 

The humble example 

is greater than famous wise words.

Those of simple of tongue 

are often the eloquent of example. 

Facing truth 

isn't for the feeble of heart.

We live among villains
We live among thieves
We live among those who would kill
We live in a day when hate rules the heart
When men's hearts can never be still

We live in a day of scripture fulfilled
Of people spreading lies in the dark
Itching ears and fables and rejecting the truth
Second Timothy, right on the mark

They will not endure sound doctrine, it says
And climate change certainly is sound
Yet, they reject it, they won't endure truth
And the believers they constantly hound

The ears of the world are itchy, I say
As meme after meme after meme
Is filled with falseness
And filled with lies
And never is what it does seem

So, I'll issue a warning
I'll issue a cry
Now, I don't know that these things apply
I may be wrong, as often I am
But to me the scriptures are nigh

'Let Your Speech be always with Grace'

  "Let your speech be always with grace." -- Colossians 4:6

  As I reflect on the world we live in, and the hatred among us -- as I look at what is happening politically, and the tone of voice in political exchanges and on Facebook -- I see this scripture as the antidote.
  And, it is a much-needed antidote. The bickering among our leaders is one of the greater threats to our nation. I am not saying, do not impeach President Trump. Nor, am I saying, do not consider whether the President's charges against Joe and Hunter Biden are valid. No; nor am I saying it is wrong to vocalize how the President's withdrawal from protecting the Kurds is a dark moment in our nation's history, if that is what you believe.
  But, there is a level of civility that is lacking. We, as a nation, need to attain it. It is critical. If the friction is deep enough, and lasts long enough, our nation will fracture. We must learn to speak to each other and express our concerns about each other in a more civil manner. I think of how Democrat leaders walked out of a meeting with the President this week. I was not there. I've read how the President called Nancy Pelosi "a third-rate politician." That's a personal attack. It's name calling. I do not know if Pelosi and the Democrats responded in kind -- whether they were also resorting to name-calling and personal attacks, but I know that such conduct is not what we need among us, as we try to solve our problems as a nation.
   "Let your speech be always with grace." Wouldn't be such a bad idea if that scripture were posted in several of the halls in Washington. And, as our leaders gathered to talk to each other, they considered on it.

The road to fame is sometimes a detour 

from the road to heaven. 

Truth is Sometimes a Medicine Our Bodies Reject 

  "The truth is sometimes a hard pill to swallow." -- John McCain
  And, we can be sure that before John McCain said it, the quote had already been said. A million times.
  But, is the truth always good medicine? Calling it a pill suggests it will help us. I would only suggest, then, that there are medicines the body rejects -- that it violently revolts against when they are used.

Truth is stupid when it isn't considerate.

I don't mean to say truth literally is a bad thing, or a thing that should be done away with. I only say that when it hurts others too much, we should consider letting them go without it. 

The faint of heart need their lies.

And, we are all faint of heart. 

Peace can come 

from avoiding the truth. 

   There is a saying, "The truth hurts," to which the person usually adds, "Doesn't it?" Truth can hurt. It can be hard to take. I would once have suggested this does not mean truth should be avoided. These days, I am not so certain. I question whether we truly are able to bear the weight of our own shortcomings -- whether the anguish truly could lead us to our deaths. I no longer hold as much fault against a person who isn't able to face the truth. I see it in all of us. I find myself still correcting others by pointing out when they are believing false memes and such -- believing lies to protect their own beliefs. But, lies can protect us. Facing the truth isn't a matter to be undertaken by the feeble of heart, and, as humans, we are all feeble of heart, at least to some degree. We are mortals. Place us under enough pain, and we die. This quote, "Peace can come from avoiding the truth," is perhaps the least eloquent of all the quotes and proverbs I have posted the last day. It's really not even a saying, just something said and unworthy of being a quote. I suppose I included it just because I came up with about a 100 quotes in a day (a few which I forgot before I could write them down), and wanted to print it to have 100 posted on my blog. (Those just posted, I came up with yesterday.)  Still, for all its lack of eloquence, this quote contains the hidden truth I've just explained. 

Precaution has its expense. 

Blowouts don't happen 

if the tires are changed. 

God's mercy knows the blackest of sins. 

Grace is the ticket to heaven, 

but it must be stamped by good works. 

You can't storm heaven's gates, 

but you'll always gain entry by knocking. 

God's name attaches 

to those who listen to his voice. 

The quest for character 

begins with speaking well of others. 

Eating can be a game of fours. The legs of the table are four. The sides of the table are four. The meat that we eat once had four legs. And, the fork that we eat with has four prongs.

Games of the dead 

can only be played by those who are alive.

Deadlines matter

 only when matters are late. 

Sin is but the hatred of others. 

When he looks around in heaven, a saint will be saddened by the friends that are lost. 

A saint gets to heaven 

only by trying to bring others along. 

The vice of the poor is but that they arrive where they are not wanted. Of all people we should be forgiving of, perhaps it is these of unfed mouths from other nations.

We are not ordered to heaven, 

but only invited. 

The man of action has no TV.

Rumor seeks justice for self 

at the expense of others. 

The wrongness of a rumor is as much in the hate 

that it spreads as in whether it is true or false.

Whether it is a lie or the truth, 

the wrongness of a rumor also lies in the hate 

that it spreads.

You can sometimes tell a lie 

by the hate that it spreads. 

We've been commanded to forgive everyone, yet when we think to forgive, we usually only forgive those with the littler sins. Rapists are always exempt. 

Judgement in heaven may well have something 

to do with how we've treated the poor. 

Righteousness is more in feeding the poor 

than in taking a cup from them.

We should consider our treatment of those who come into our land. 

You'll never listen to heaven 

if you are tuned to the voices of the earth. 

You count something as truth 

only when you've measured it.

You cannot tell the truth by the tone of its voice, 

but you can tell it by the ring.