"U.S. Government: Too Stupid to Survive?"

Is there no intelligent life in Washington D.C.? Not according to former Assistant Treasury Secretary Dr. Paul Craig Roberts.

And tragically, he may be right.

The official name for what is going on in our capital is "government shutdown".

The reality?

A ten-day (and counting) political temper tantrum.

The long and short of it is this:

The Republican-dominated House passed a spending bill to fund the entire government except for ObamaCare, asking for a 1-year delay to work out all the bugs. The Democrats went ballistic, refusing to negotiate, and basically became bureaucratic bullies demanding their own way--or else!

Now they've cut off access to everything they could think of. And if they couldv'e draped the Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore and the Grand Canyon with giant tarps, they would have. They've barricaded everything in sight--even a few that don't belong to them...just for good measure.

Seriously, the government is closed. Boarded-up. Shut down. And you better notice it, buster.

Why? In order to score political points and force the Republicans into doing everything the Democrats want.

One angry Park Service ranger publicly admitted that he and fellow rangers have been ordered to "make life as difficult for people as we can" during the government shutdown.

The Democrats point fingers of blame at the Republicans and the Republicans are too weak-kneed to stand up to them. Everybody says it's the other guy's fault.

You know what the polls say? Both sides are idiots. The Republicans for starting it and the Democrats for turning it into Obamageddon and making things worse on purpose just to make Republicans look bad (as if they needed any help).

Frankly, both parties look like spoiled brats and the world is worried  (and rightly so) that they won't get their act together in time for the October 17th debt ceiling deadline.

According to Taiwan's China Post:

"This shutdown is widely seen as a mere precursor to the upcoming congressional fight over the U.S. debt ceiling. If Congress fails to pass a ceiling hike, the U.S. will have to default on its debt for the first time in history. Many economists say they simply have no idea what the consequences of such an unprecedented event will be."

Dr. Paul Craig Roberts (remember him--the guy who wondered if there's intelligent life in D.C.?) says, "The danger of default is the rest of the world dumps dollars...the whole system blows up. The banks fail. The markets collapse...it's Washington committing hari-kari. It removes the United States as a superpower." He believes the debt ceiling will be raised and disaster averted.

Let's hope he's right, and intelligent life is found in Washington D.C. after all.

A wise man once said: "Every country has the government it deserves." Joseph Marie DeMaistre--French Diplomat

"Then He will appoint children to rule over them, and anarchy will prevail."  Isaiah 3:4

News:

• CNBC: Stocks surge 323 points on hopes of a temporary debt ceiling deal.
• NBC News.com: Government shut down crippling tourist town near Grand Canyon by shuttering the world famous park.
• FNC: Government shut down prevents families from receiving soldiers' death benefits until shut down is over; private foundation to pick up the tab.

 

"ObamaCare Glitches + Govt. Shutdown = Distraction"

Between the rollout of ObamaCare and the government shutdown this week, most people missed the really important news:

Israel's worst nightmare is coming true.

Last week, Iran's new president, Hussan Rouhani, a perceived moderate cleric who replaced hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was the life of the party at the UN General Assembly.

In an all-out media blitz, dubbed the 'charm offensive', Rouhani has managed to beguile everyone but the kitchen sink.

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu urged the world not to believe a word Rouhani says, calling him a "wolf in sheep's clothing" using "soothing rhetoric". Rouhani's purpose?

• To buy Iran time in its relentless pursuit of nuclear weapons
• To convince the U.S. to let up on crippling economic sanctions
• To isolate Israel by calling on the international community to demand their disarmament

At the same time, Russia has decided to create an international conference to eliminate WMD in the Mideast.

A mere coincidence or an orchestrated plan designed to take the heat off Iran while convincing the court of public opinion that Israel, not Iran is the problem.

Meanwhile, Rouhani is telling anyone willing to listen (which is just about everybody) that his country "has never had nuclear weapons ambitions and never will."

World leaders seem to be eating it up. Everybody except  House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rodgers (R-MI) that is. "Iran has been and continues to be aggressive in pursuing and accelerating its nuclear program," Rodgers said. "Rouhani was chief negotiator for Iran's nuclear program before becoming president earlier this year."

And get this: In 2006, Rouhani bragged about stalling European negotiators while continuing to build up Iran's nuclear program!

The Bible paints a bleak picture for Israel in the last days, one devoid of allies "though all the nations of the earth are gathered against it" (Zechariah 12:3).

The dynamics are beginning to shift into place as the world perceives Israel as an obstacle to peace. Netanyahu told the UN, "Israel will not allow Iran to get nuclear weapons. If Israel is forced to stand alone, Israel will stand alone."

The Bible predicts Israel will indeed stand alone, but the victory belongs to the Lord (Proverbs 21:31).

A wise man once said:  "In our time Biblical prophecies are being realized. As the prophet Amos said, 'they shall rebuild ruined cities and inhabit them. They shall plant vineyards and drink their wine. They shall till gardens and eat their fruit. And I will plant them upon their soil never to be uprooted again.' Ladies and gentlemen, the people of Israel have come home never to be uprooted again." 

-- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Amos 9:14-15)

News:

• NBCNews.com: China struggles to control an aggressive species of giant hornet that has killed 42 people and injured over 1,600
• Fox News Channel: Israeli PM Netanyahu says, "Iran developing ICBMs capable of targeting U.S." 

Today marks the end of an era as Pastor Chuck Smith, founder of Calvary Chapel, finished his faithful service on earth this morning, and went home to heaven.

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing (2 Timothy 4:7-8). 

Our prayers go out to his family.

"Obamanomics"

This week President Obama kicked-off his new talking points venture with a rousing speech designed to...what? Bore us silly?

Talk about your summer reruns.

For most of 2012 (and 2008, for that matter) we heard (over and over and over again) how he was going to fix everything via:

• job creation
• repairing our aging infrastructure
• giving us affordable healthcare
• reforming immigration
• (and our personal favorite) end climate change

So what's the hold up?

"Washington has taken its eye off the ball," the President said.

Huh? But we thought he was Washington...ohhhhh...he means the Republicans. With all due respect, Mr. O, we've heard that song before: The Blame Game.

Here we are five years in and what have we got?

• a healthcare bill so poorly written and packed with problems and loopholes, even its champions no longer want it
• one out of every four Americans on some sort of government assistance
• an unemployment number that isn't projected to hit 2007 levels for another 11 months (if all goes well)
• five years worth of quantitative easings, a "last resort" that goes on and on, putting our economy at greater and greater risk of eventual sky-high inflation rates

So, what's the President's plan?

Give more speeches! No kidding. He pledged to spend the next several weeks touring the country, telling us how there's no way:

   "I will allow gridlock, inaction, or willful indifference to get in our way."

Okay, so how does that create jobs? Isn't he wasting time telling us how he's not gonna be wasting time? Or as Republican National Committee Communications Director Sean Spice tweeted, "More jobs will be created thru the announcement of the royal baby than thru the latest version of this speech."

Or could it be he's trying to butter us up for the coming debt ceiling debates and possible government shutdown this fall just before the midterm elections?

Obamanomics (which means: Big Government + Big Spending = Big Taxes) may make for a good speech, but a good economy? Not so much.

A wise man once said: "Politics is perhaps the only profession for which no preparation is thought necessary."  -- Robert Louis Stevenson

"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody" (Romans 12:17).

News: 

• CNBC: IRS, in charge of Obamacare, asks to be exempt from it
• USA Watchdog: Former President Jimmy Carter said last week: "The U.S. has no functioning democracy at this moment."
• NBC: Kansas slammed with baseball-sized hail in several counties
• Breitbart: Christian military chaplain censored for writing an article with the title "No Atheists in Foxholes." Atheists call for punishment.
• Times of Israel: Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister says PM Benjemen Netanyahu preparing to give away 86% of West Bank to create sovereign Palestinian state.

"The Coming Economic Earthquake?"

There's a new game in Washington, D.C. called "kick the can down the road." The rules? Go from one crisis to another. Wait until the 11th hour to see if the opposition blinks. Agree to a last minute delay. Patch with a temporary band-aid solution and repeat as necessary. After all, no crisis is too big to ignore. The result? A ballooning crisis bubble. Thought you saw the last of the January 1st fiscal cliff?

Nope. It's ba-a-a-a-ack. Only now they're calling it "the sequester." The so-called fiscal cliff "compromise" consisted of a 2-month delay. On March 1st it will rear its ugly head again causing automatic, across-the-board spending cuts to go into effect. President Obama is blaming Republicans, even though the plan was first hatched in the White House as something "so terrible they will never allow it to happen." GOP now says bad spending cuts are better than no spending cuts. "It's a bad idea whose time has come."

Remember the budget? Oh, that's right--they haven't passed one in four years. Instead, Congress has been relying on a series of short-term "continuing resolutions" (CR). The current CR expires March 27, and Congress must pass a new one to avoid a government shutdown. And then there's the debt ceiling (the amount of debt the government must never, ever spend above, or else!)

Originally slated for mid-February, Congress has temporarily raised the debt ceiling until May 19th (when a catastrophic default will result...unless they raise it again). And let's not forget the ever looming Social Security and Medicare tsunami that's relentlessly heading our way. How much longer can D.C. ignore that one? Well, let's see--how far can they kick? The problem with this game is that it can't be won. The road is increasingly bumpy and the cans are turning into time bombs.

Is Congress worried? Nah. They're going on vacation...again.

Okay gang--so what do we do about it? Ideally, we ought to kick them all out of office and start over, but unfortunately that opportunity was lost last November. Instead, many financially savvy experts advise: stop waiting for the government to solve these issues. Prepare your own house. There's a coming economic earthquake that is growing more and more inevitable as each crisis adds more cracks to an already over-stressed system. Any good news regarding the economy must be seen in light of the $16 trillion debt and the seemingly endless money printing.

We'd like to suggest an investment of a different kind: your place in the world to come. (Not sure you're going?click here ). Many of us are so busy living in the here and now, we rarely think about what happens next. Often we fail to realize that the way we live our lives here on earth will have eternal and unchangeable consequences and that our life experience in eternity is being determined by how we invest this life today. Bible prophecy was never intended to merely satisfy our curiosity about future events; it is intended to have a purifying effect on our lives (1 John 1:3).

"Another reason for right living is that you know how late it it; the time is running out. Wake up, for the coming of our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So don't live in darkness. Get rid of your evil deeds. Shed them like dirty clothes. Clothe yourselves with the armor of right living, as those who live in the light. We should be decent and true in everything we do, so that everyone can approve of our behavior. Don't participate in wild parties and getting drunk, or in adultery and immoral living, or in fighting and jealousy. But let the Lord Jesus Christ take control of you, and don't think of ways to indulge your evil desires" (Romans 13:11-14).  In other words, kicking the can down the road doesn't fly for the Christian.

" Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts" (Hebrews 4:7a).

A wise man once said: "The curtain of this earthly drama will close, but it will open in eternity. What we encounter there will have been determined to some degree by the life we lived on this earth. Only in this life can we impact the kind of eternity we shall enjoy. For we are becoming today, the person we will be throughout eternity" --author Erwin W. Lutzer

News:

• Fox News Channel: Nearly 50% of Detroit residents failed to pay their taxes worsening the city's fiscal crisis.
• Politico: ICE announced Tuesday that it has released several hundred undocumented immigrants due to funding cuts (sequestration)
• FNC: Potentially deadly invasive Asian ant species gaining foothold in U.S.
• The Telegraph: Moody's downgraded UK credit rating because of "huge debt burden"