Spin

It isn't even 2012 yet, but the election season has kicked off with yesterday's announcement that President Obama is starting his re-election campaign. Now, while it's no surprise that the president is seeking re-election, the fact that he's kicking off the campaign allows for a perfect discussion on "spin."

"Spin" is a term that has become popular over the past couple of decades. It is a term that is used to describe a person or group's take on a particular topic. Typically, people who "spin" a topic will take a few of the facts, leave out some of the other facts, and promote their agenda or view of the topic as it favors them.

Spin has become very popular among politicians. Any given day, the network news channels will feature politicians and pundits who paint a picture that serves only their agenda and no one else.

There is nothing wrong with giving a personal perspective on a topic. But, what has made spin so bad is that it ignores reality. By only taking self-serving facts and ignoring other truths that are involved, spin creates a lie and tries to pass it off as truth.

Reason and logic go out the window in the spin zone.

What are some ways that we can end the spin and bring back truth?

No More Unchecked Power

Congratulations to Scott Brown on his historic victory yesterday in Massachusetts. The people of Mass. voted for the country on Tuesday, and put into place the only chance conservatives have of derailing the liberals; unchecked power.

Any political party dreams of the opportunity to be able to enforce their agenda without any real opposition. That may sound good if you're the party in command, but unchecked, or absolute power has a tendency to corrupt. It will lead politicians down paths they would have never believed possible, and toward problems they never imagined.

Such is the case with the Democrat Party. The unchecked power they received in 2008 was clearly not a mandate to do whatever they wanted. It was merely a desire by the people to change what the country had for the previous eight years. Unfortunately, voters jerked their knees too much in '08, and gave Dems too much power. Yesterday's election in one of the most liberal states in the country proved that. The people declared that they wanted that power to be balanced.

What is great about the Brown victory is that he campaigned on very specific things. His campaign was all about breaking the Dems' super-majority in the Senate, and stopping the legislative train wreck in Washington. Where the Democrats didn't have a real, straight forward mandate in 2008, Congress and the President now have a clearly defined mandate from the voters in Massachusetts, and it's contrary to the current legislative plan.

Now, with that being said, Republicans should also take note. The MA voters' mandate is a shift toward the conservative. The notion that the GOP should be a moderate or liberal party has now been debunked. The GOP would do well to throw out the progressive voices in their midst, and return to being America's true conservative party.

Additionally, Republicans should prepare for a couple of things. This coming November will likely bring a huge swing in Congressional seats. No party can make as many unpopular decisions as the Democrats have, and still keep their power. Should the GOP return to power in Congress, there are two key things that Republicans need to remember.

1) Don't get cocky. When the party won Congress in 1994, it didn't take long for the power to go to the heads of the new power mongers. Within four years, the Contract with America had been shelved for special interests and personal gain. By 2006, the People had their fill and began moving power to the Democrats.

So, should Republicans regain Congress in the fall, they need to remember the mistakes of their past, and keep a level head about the offices they hold.

2) Don't become wimps. The GOP had been the minority party for so long, that when they won the majority in 1994, they didn't know how to act like winners. Instead, they acted like wimps. Areas where they could have and should have followed through on the public mandate (Contract with America), they ended up compromising with a powerless opposition. No politician should ever compromise when their constituents give them a clearly defined mandate.

New Year's Eve

2009 is almost in the books. How time flys.

As we wrap up this year, I have a few thoughts to share with my readers.

• The annual ball drop in New York City's Time's Square to ring in the new year has to be one of the biggest let downs in all of the world's New Year's celebrations. I'm sure the party on the ground is cool, but for the television viewer, all we experience is a less than glamorous ball dropping followed by a short and cheap fireworks display. This is NYC! Can't someone put together a bigger celebration?!? Blow the roofs off those skyscrapers. Fireworks should go for at least an hour. I'm just saying....
• We're on the brink of having nationalized health care. It will be the biggest mistake the United States will have made since Social Security (which we all now know is not secure). Government has never been the solution to any of the nation's problems...NEVER!
• I look forward to the congressional elections in November. If I had already had my hand in politics, I would probably be running. There will be a lot of angry Americans seeking political office this coming year. Be sure to choose the best ones to right the ship that the liberals are trying to sink.
• Speaking of liberals. Give them a hug, but don't give them any power. Democracy and Capitalism are the answers to our country's problems, not Socialism.
• Eluding to conservatives. Conservatives have the best answers, but don't be fooled by liberals and moderates in conservative clothing, lest they sell out their public image in order to improve their financial and political standing. The conservative uprising of 1994 was a great one for the country. Sadly, the real conservatives were beat down by the pretend-conservatives, and the conservative movement lost out in 2006 & 2008.
• Speaking of the Republican Party, 2010 will be the resurgance of the GOP if true conservatives regain control of the party leadership. Otherwise, 2010 will the the year the GOP is replaced by a third party.
• Speaking of third parties, I think some will win congressional seats in 2010, and we could see a third party (conservative) candidate win the White House in 2012. Conditions are ripe for that.
• Government is not the answer, and 2010 should be the year that the Christian church rises up to provide the answers. The church doesn't need to get political to supply those answers. It just has to live up to the design Christ left it.
• I have one resolution this coming year: to become more disciplined. That way, I should be able to tackle all the other things I want to accomplish in the upcoming 365 days.
• If all goes as planned, my wife and I should be debt free in a matter of days. I still remember when we got into debt for the first time. It still makes me vomit a little in my mouth. We will not be going down that roller coaster ride again...not even to buy a house. I expect people will be looking at us oddly as we stop relying on credit to live.
• I'm planning on reading through the entire Bible this year. One of my favorite ways to read the Bible is on my smart phone. It's easier to take it in chunks, and I can carry it with me everywhere I go. Now, if I can only get a more reliable phone.
• 2009 had it's ups and downs. I'm hoping 2010 will be a great year.

That's it. Have a Happy New Year.

What's Wrong With Healthcare?

With the debate over health care reform raging across America, we've been subjected to a wide range of view points on the subject.

I personally believe that the federal government needs to stay out of the insurance business. Government has terrible track records for every agency it has ever set up...save for the military. Key examples of government's ineptitude include social security, medicare, medicaid, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the postal service.

Given the misuse of the health care portion of this list by certain politicians wishing to stay in power, I believe that those in the Washington power circle don't want health care reform so it can benefit us. I believe it's a political ploy to ensure certain figures can hold onto power for many years to come. Evidence of this can be seen every election cycle when certain candidates are accused by their opponents of wanting to take social security away from senior citizens.

That all being said, let's look at the health care system that we have today. Is there anything wrong with it? It doesn't take but a brief look around the globe to realize that America has one of the best health systems in the country. Our doctors and hospitals are some of the best the world has to offer. So, the health system can't be the problem.

However, the biggest complaint people have about their doctors visits and hospital stays is the cost. I remember when I was a child, and the annual physical for school sports would cost about $25 for the visit. Today, that's just the co-pay. My wife has gone through three surgical procedures to fix damage on her right hand caused in an automobile accident last summer. I've been amazed at the prices charged for what should have been simple tasks.

So, we have the best health care, but some really bad prices. Some folks might argue that you get what you pay for. However, I don't think the price associated with the care is justified. Something else has gone wrong to bring the system to a costly point. And, that leads us to the last remaining major player in the health care system -- insurance.

Now, I'm not anti-insurance, but I do think we must place the blame for the cost increases in our health care system on the insurance industry. But, to understand the increases, we must understand what led to them, and the economics involved. The following illustration is a bit simplistic, but it will make the point.

In a system where health insurance is used only for catastrophic situations, such as a severe accident, heart attack, cancer, etc., the patient foots the entire bill for regular office visits and basic surgical procedures. This process leads to price competition, because the patient will intentionally shop around for better prices. In many cases, patients can negotiate or barter medical costs. Price competition in a capitalist market always lowers costs.

How does this work? It's the same concept that you find using cash over credit or debit cards. As you see your own money going out to pay for services, you will do what you can to curb costs, and that will lead you to pick your physicians more wisely. Insurance acts as the plastic card in that you don't actually see your money changing hands. The impact on your bank account is delayed. Hence, our love of insurance.

By spreading health insurance to cover all medical expenses, we have pushed off the cost of it to other hands. Corporations have taken control of what used to be the consumer's responsibility -- shopping for medical care. This has led to HMOs, PPOs and the like, which has in turn reduced the consumer options by limiting the doctors available under the chosen plans.

Tack onto that, the insurers have also walloped the doctors by charging extremely high rates for their malpractice insurance. This has forced medical offices to charge more to cover those expenses.

The end result is a never-ending cycle of increasing expenses on the consumer and physician end.

Whether someone or some corporation is getting rich off this system is irrelevant. The politicians would like to paint this as some big, evil company or doctors group as the bad guy. But, they are wrong in this portrait of the health care system. Every person and company has a right and a duty to earn a profit in the capitalist economic system.

The problem is that the system is broken in the way that it is set up. No government program will ever fix that. If anything, a government program will only intensify the problem by imposing bureaucratic red tape, great inefficiencies and extremely high taxes.

The only way to fix the health care problem is by resetting the system. We must return to a consumer-oriented system where the patient makes all the decisions regarding their medical care, including paying for those decisions out of their own pocket.

Sadly, no one is talking about the reset option.

The Healtcare Idol

One thing has been bugging me lately about the debate on healthcare reform. I was watching some of the public comments on one of the cable news channels, and someone made the claim that health insurance was a right, not a previlage.

The reform of the healthcare system has captured the American spotlight as liberals try to take us into socialized healthcare and conservatives try to prevent it. I've stated my take on the healthcare debate before.

What concerns me today is this notion that we all deserve healthcare. That it is our right. That we cannot survive without it (which is a bogus argument, considering we've done pretty well so far).

When did our very existence depend on a need for health insurance? From where did the notion come that says we cannot survive without it?

Friends, we have made healthcare and health insurance our newest idol in America. We have taken something harmless, and turned it into a necessity. We're replacing our reliance on God with a reliance on the government. Hmm, I suppose that makes government an idol, too.

Exodus 20:3-6 says:

"You shall have no other gods before me.
"You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

As Mark Driscoll would point out, insurance itself is a good thing. There's nothing necessarily wrong with having insurance to cover the catastrophic events of life, or planning long term care of an elderly loved one. But, as Mark says, when you take a good thing and make it a god thing, that becomes a bad thing.

The Week of Galatians 1:10 - Part Two of Five

Every election season, we see it happen time and again. The scene has been played out so often that it is now almost predictable. Somewhere along the road to the office they are seeking, candidates cease touting their credentials and begin playing the popularity game.

"Vote for me, I'm popular."

"Pick me, I hang with the President."

"Choose me, I'll give you a government program so you'll never be in need again."

I'm only 35, so I can't speak to much beyond those years, but politics in America have become less about leadership and much more about popularity. I suppose its the nature of that beast to create a bunch of glad-handing people who's sole work is to make you happy rather than to actually lead. See, leadership is not about happiness or warm, fuzzy feelings. Many times, leadership involves making very unpopular decisions for the betterment of the organization, industry or nation.

The same is true when it comes to following Jesus. When you read the Gospels, it's pretty obvious that Jesus didn't play the popularity game. The religious leaders of His day wanted Jesus to side with them, and were disgusted when Jesus would hang out with the sinners and tax collectors.

Jesus' teachings were sometimes offensive, and John records a time when He lost many followers, because he claimed to be the bread of life. When Jesus had finished speaking, many of his followers grumbled to themselves, "This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?"

John 6:66 may very well be one of the saddest sentences in the whole Bible, "After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him."

That's pretty clear evidence that Jesus wasn't into popularity contests. He knew His mission, and being popular was not a component in completing it.

Life isn't about being the most popular. It's not even about being well liked, although I think it is a good thing to have a good reputation. As Christians, we are meant to be servants of God, to follow His instruction and remain obedient, even if it's not popular.

After all, there will come a day when we will all kneel before the Almighty. On that day, our popularity won't matter, but our obedience will.

That Land Is Ours, Pastor

Yesterday, I talked about a pastor and his wife in San Diego County who have been told by a county official that they need to stop holding their Bible study in their home or get a permit for proper land use. I'm sure we'll hear a lot about it in the coming days as the Christian community gets its feathers ruffled about it.

Yesterday, I pointed out that we do need to be concerned about the government (national, state or local) infringing on our rights to worship. Jesus warned us that the world would hate His followers more than they hated him, so we need to be on our guard.

I also noted that we need to respect the laws that affect our area. But, what happens when laws are passed that harm churches and religious gatherings? This question brings me to what I believe is an even greater threat to the church today than any single government official's attempt to stop Christianity.

I am most concerned about the issue of eminent domain. This is a legal maneuver that governments typically use to gain access to private property for the construction of highways, utilities, etc. If necessary, this is a proper use of eminent domain. However, recently there have been moves across the country to use eminent domain to obtain private property then turn that over to commercial developers. The idea is that the commercial developments can generate more tax dollars than residential areas.

Such was an effort a few years ago in the city of Ozark, Missouri, where the city government tried to condemn a residential neighborhood in an effort to turn the land into a commercial area. It failed, and led to tighter laws on eminent domain use in the state, but those laws have left a huge loophole. There are no protections against the taking of property owned by not-for-profit organizations, like churches.

Imagine, if you will, that your church sits on a heavily travelled strip of road. As a tax exempt organization, your land generates no tax for the government. A cash-strapped city might target your prime piece of real estate for eminent domain, then turn that "condemned" land and facilities over to a developer to build a strip mall.

This type of possibility is why I believe churches should set aside money in their budgets to keep an attorney and maybe even a lobbyiest on retainer to represent them before the government. I would even encourage church leaders to get involved on some level with their government representatives to push for greater protections.

Yes, if it is law, we have to abide by it, but in America, we still have the ability as citizens to shape those laws. It's time to get involved and be a part of the process.

Fear

I am extremely troubled by something I've noticed lately about our society, yet I'm not entirely surprised. No, it's not our culture's political embracement of homosexuality, or liberalism-gone-wild. While those things do concern me, at the moment, the one thing that is very bothersome is the fear that has swept our nation.

I don't think we fully grasp the impact fear can have on people until it engulfs a large group of people at the same time. For the past couple of years, we have witnessed a number of instances where fear has stopped people in their tracks.

What started as widespread panic over the collapse of the economy has now moved to concern over flu viruses. To make matters worse, it appears that our government leaders in Washington are bent on convincing us that we need to be afraid...that our only solution is the same government that historically has mismanaged nearly every program it has created. Evidence of this comes from President Obama's chief-of-staff Rahm Emanuel who reportedly said "A crisis is a terrible thing to waste," essentially meaning that the federal government should use the opportunity presented by fear to scare citizens into turning over their rights and freedoms to the politicians in return for some government handout. And, it would appear that the government is doing all it can to follow through on Emanuel's comments.

The Rahm Emanuel comments came as part of the discussion over the financial crisis, but have also come into play in how the government is responding to the latest fear-monger, swine flu. At first, there was this public face that we should be very worried over this extremely deadly virus. But, when it turned out to not be so serious, the folks at the CDC had to come up with another scare tactic, namely the idea that swine flu could combine with avian flu and be real nasty (even though there is no proof that has happened or even will happen).

Even though this nationwide (and worldwide) panic appears to be enhanced by politicians in hunt of a power grab, the ultimate responsibility for this widespread fear lies on you and I. It is our fear that is continuing to drive the economic downturn, the hysteria over swine flu (or variations of it) and whatever else comes down the trail in coming days.

In a recent nationwide broadcast, author and talk show host Dave Ramsey pointed out that the entire collapse of the economic system was triggered by fear. He said that the markets are at false lows, and are being held down by fear. Likewise, the panic over flu viruses is also being caused in large part over fear of the unknown.

Well, since we don't know what lies around the corner, what can we do to combat this fear? We need to look to the Bible for answers. In Luke 12, Jesus tackles fear head on. He tells us not to fear the threats of man, but instead to fear the one who can take our soul. We should also not worry about those who will attack and defame us for our Christian faith (see Carrie Prejean). And, Jesus sums it all up by instructing us not to worry about the problems in this life, telling us that God has our best interests in mind and will care for those who follow Him.

What's great about Luke 12 is that Jesus also calls out the root of fear. He does it here, here and here. What's he telling us? I see a couple of things I want to point out.

First, Jesus tells us that those who live in fear are subject to the hypocrisy of the leaders in their community. He tells us to watch out for their lies and deceit, because they only seek to increase their pedistal.

Second, and more importantly, Jesus cautions us to not allow money (or other man-made things) to become our god. As we see around us today, when our false gods fail us, we tailspin into a panic that opens the door for the hypocrites (politicians) to make slaves of us.

Jesus had it right when He said these things 2,000 years ago. I think he was a bit smarter than our own modern-day thinkers.

What are your thoughts on fear? Drop a comment, and let me know.