Orrin Woodward And Life!

One of the best moments of this weekend's leadership conference is the dawning of the mental fitness challenge. LIFE founders have developed an assessment of where you are mentally and how you process your thoughts. Then they have developed a systematic method of improvement, designed to assist you in reevaluating outside input to receive a more desirable outcome. You can then retake the assessment test to see how you have improved in the all the areas evaluated. It's a self help course that in 90 days will guide you to becoming better in all of the eight F's. Faith, Fitness, Finance, Friends, Fun, Freedom, Following, and Family, and seriously, who could use improvement in one or more of those areas? Watch this short video to gain a better grasp of what the 90 day Mental Fitness Challenge is all about! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvZXoarOqjA&feature=youtube_gdata_player God Bless! Capt. Bill

And Away We Go!

"Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."- Romans 12:2 What a great quote from the Bible! It fits in perfectly with the pilgrimage tens of thousands are going to make this weekend to improve our leadership skills, our community growth, and our personal improvement at the Ohio State Campus in Columbus, Ohio. We who are involved with the LIFE opportunity, will come together to learn and renew our minds so we can effectively set the shinning example for others. Little compares with the power of association. The energy that will be emitted from a massive group of like minded individuals is beyond comparison and I urge you to experience this destiny changing event just once. As that is all one ever needs to realize the importance of association within the community. It's a transfusion of empowerment drawing from each individual and returning the same boosted by the synergy of the masses. Simply stated, it's powerful stuff! How do you describe an event with more emotion than a funeral or a wedding, more excitement than an overtime Super Bowl game, and more energy than a live Who concert? Travel safely my fellow ticket holders for this major event. Lives will be changed, destinies will be redirected, and legacies will be determined this weekend. If your not going to this event, and not part of this existence improving opportunity, please reread the first sentence of this post and ask yourself.....why not? God Bless! Capt. Bill

Community Verses Networking!

Leadership is all about community building. Now let's think about that for just a second because many people confuse networking and leading a community. Networking is the art of creating a roadmap of individuals you have a connection with. They don't necessarily follow you, they connect with you because you have mutual interests. Like a person who has rental properties has a network of gardeners, plumbers, electricians, etc. There is no leadership present in that network other than they all look to the rental owner for work and to get paid. As you can see this relationship has limitations, and quite frankly is fragile. This my friends is one of the downfalls of "network marketing." Now on the other hand is the strength of a community. A community differs in you share a life together focused on the same vision or goal. You create a momentum that invites others, creating a ripple affect that influences growth. A network only grows on the value to the individual, a community grows on the momentum of a shared vision that benefits all involved in one way or another. Example: A community is best represented by a church. The patrons of that church are spiritually bound seeking heaven. It benefits the group and the individual. A network is less likely to benefit the group and more likely to be beneficial to individuals. Like a realtor that sells a home uses his or her network to connect clients for services like painting, window treatments, or decorating services. No group benefit, no spirituality. Both have their place, but a community of leaders is based on a solid foundation and less likely to erode. It's reinforced with shared dreams and visions. The stronger the goals, the more momentum and loyalty in the community. Community trumps networks! God Bless! Capt. Bill

More On Leadership!

Building a community of people who follow you on your leadership journey, is a process that oft times eludes the best intentioned leadership apprentice. The initial key to creating a following is a simple process, you have to connect with people. Without an atmosphere of introduction, there is no one to follow you! It's vital to put yourself out there. People are a necessary part of the equation.

Once a gathering of individuals is accomplished, the leader is able to contribute, adding value to the people he or she has connected with. Adding value is imperative to creating a following. If you have nothing to offer the people you connect with, why would they follow you? This is where the value of reading and listening to audio recordings of people further along in the leadership journey comes in handy. That learning process is what keeps you a step ahead of the community your trying to build and lead.

Then we enter the third step in the process. This is the part where the people you've added value to celebrate their victories! This is the best tool in your leadership arsenal. Nothing attracts others to your community like the word of mouth advertising coming from someone you helped achieve a victory in their life. This alone will catapult you into a whole new realm of leadership, and it all surrounds you digging into information and using it to add value to others.

Remember, connect, contribute, celebrate! No connection, no contribution, no celebration....


God Bless!
Capt. Bill

More On Leadership!

One of the critical elements involved in building leaders is the importance of transferring a vision. If you cannot relay the foresight of where your taking people, they are not going to blindly follow! Even the lemmings or the sheep follow for a reason, but people need a specifically defined goal. It's important that you allow them to see the need of the void your seeking to fill. It looks something like this

Need + Vision = Inspiration

Once they see the need is worthy, and you transfer the vision accurately describing the how and why, you immediately supply them the inspiration necessary to move forward and complete the task. These are all critical to the equation, otherwise you end up with this....

Need - Vision = Desperation

If the people you seek to lead sense desperation they are going to seek leadership elsewhere. For example, if you have a need such as staffing a charitable event, and you present it as we need volunteers with a tone of desperation, it comes across as disorganization.

If you transfer the feeling of how fulfilling it'll be to participate in this worthy cause, you'll garner a larger and more enthusiastic support group. The difference is subtle, but the results are significant. This is the mind set of a competent leader. Learn to pass on your vision and your cooperation level will increase tenfold.....

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

More On Leadership!

One of the critical keys to leadership is the ability to attract a following. After all, if no one is drawn to follow you, by definition you cannot lead. Interestingly there are people who confuse attracting a crowd with developing a following. If your going to do something foolish, you'll likely draw a crowd. When you set an example, you will draw a following! The difference is the key, and that's reflected in the following dialog....

Jesus; "Welcome to heaven!"
You: "Man this is incredibly awesome!"
Jesus: "My good man, I told you it would be. How many people did you bring with you?"
You: "Well there are all those people who followed my leadership."
Jesus: "Outstanding! But what about the others?"
You: "I invited them, but they chose not to follow."
Jesus: "I invited you to join me in heaven...."
You: (Silence)
Jesus: "...but for that to happen, I had to go to you."
You: (Yet more silence)

You see it's not enough to not enough to be an attractive example to follow, you have to expose yourself to others. They cannot follow what they don't know of! This is why we have to go out of our way to connect with people. Once that connection is made, your example can contribute to their life. We do this by being servant leaders and adding value to others. Once that value is realized, we can celebrate the victory, and the community following your leadership example will increase. The laws of attraction cannot work without something to attract. This is a solid key to leadership, mastering the building of a community. Expose yourself to others......

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Leadership Principles!

Leadership isn't something people are born with, it's a developed trait. One of the classic examples of leadership development was done by none other than our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

Apprentice selection; Jesus picked the people He wanted. His selection for apprenticeship was a relational process, and I think we would all agree those He chose weren't exactly what most would define as leadership material.

Apprentice expectation; Jesus designated them apostles! Apostle means "sent one." He was clear from the beginning that his expectation of these leaders in training was to go out on a mission.

Apprentice preparation; Jesus' disciples were with Him. They were mentored and given examples of life on life relationships. They were trained to saved the world by following in the footsteps of the example Jesus gave them.

Apprentice graduation; Jesus concluded their apprenticeship by sending them out to preach and have authority over demons. The apostles apprenticeship ended when they could do what Jesus did.

So a quick review. He sought his apprentices, defined their mission, had them learn His ways, and sent them out to do the task. Define, Learn, Do!

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

My Fairness Doctrine!

One of the outstanding features of reading awesome books over and over again, is you notice a phrase or a thought you missed the previous times you read the book. This is why I read and reread the Bible over and over again. It's amazing what you pick up! Just today I came upon a passage in the New Testament that specifically addresses the issue of "fairness" or "income equality." Isn't it funny how the Lord brings information into your life at the most opportune moment?

"Will what is molded say to the molder, "Why have you made me thus?" Romans 9:20

And

"Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for beauty and another for menial use?" Romans 9:21

So we all have our purpose in life. Granted existence by our Creator, we are not guaranteed to be famous nor rich, but in America we are all created equal and your opportunities are what you make of them. Some people are called for a higher purpose, some not so much, but it is all by design. Which leads me righ to the parable of the talents...

13 “Therefore stay alert, because you do not know the day or the hour. 14 For it is like a man going on a journey, who summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The one who had received five talents went off right away and put his money to work270 and gained five more. 17 In the same way, the one who had two gained two more. 18 But the one who had received one talent went out and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money in it. 19 After a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled his accounts with them. 20 The one who had received the five talents came and brought five more, saying, ‘Sir, you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’ 21 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 The one with the two talents also came and said, ‘Sir, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more.’ 23 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 Then the one who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Sir, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered, ‘Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn’t sow and gather where I didn’t scatter? 27 Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received my money back with interest! 28 Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten. 29 For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30 And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth’” (Matthew 25:13-30)

We are given life, and our purpose is to serve our Creator. The capacity He leaves up to us, but He does have a design in mind. Are you serving your purpose? Are you using all of your talents to the best of your ability? Are you taking advantage of the opportunities God has provided for us?

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

I'm Glad You Asked......

Occasionally I rant about the government's "war on poverty," and exactly what is the exit strategy? For as long as I've been on this earth and decades before, the government has been fighting this battle, and by all accounts losing. Recent statistics show there are more people on government assistance and specifically "food stamps" than at any other time in history. Is this progress? It's very apparent that the "solutions" offered by those in Washington have done little to relieve the issue, and truth be told, have enhanced the problem!

Now I've long been a proponent of business being the long term solution to this problem, backed by charitable organizations that teach as well as support those in need. Businesses produce goods and services that produce jobs. Maintaining and encouraging productive and profitable business is the answer to poverty. So why do we constantly erect road blocks to discourage the answer to our most trying social problem?

America used to be the most business friendly environment on the planet. We actually encouraged business to prosper and flourish! That led to a lifestyle that the world envied. Recently through taxation and regulation we've restricted that atmosphere and that has encouraged business to migrate to a more profitable climate. The same bureaucracy that has stymied the business community, is the one handing out the government assistance to those in need. Essentially doing the work of charity, not governing. Being the benefactor to those in need has become lucrative for the politician, it provides the votes they need to retain office and yield power. In fact they demonize business as greedy capitalist, exploiting the labor force and creating social inequality. To whom does that end serve? Only Satan himself wants to keep people in the wretched bondage of lifelong poverty and it's hard to think of a better way to do it than to encourage people to think that business is fundamentally evil. I'm willing to bet that Satan would even go as far as to have us believe that business, in all it's greed and selfishness, would purposely harm our environment.

What better way to discourage this activity than to over tax it, or put insurmountable regulation in it's path? Why is it the government feels it's best suited to serve those in need as opposed to the charities equipped and designed to lift people up out of their poverty and bondage? Isn't that the mantra of the former super powers like North Korea, Cuba, China, and the former Soviet Union? What level of affluence have the citizens of those countries enjoyed, and why do we feel it necessary to follow their lead? These are outstanding questions one should ask themselves prior to selecting a candidate and voting for the people who represent you in government....

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

A Level Playing Field!

The evils of poverty and excessive self indulgent wealth must not cause us to think that God's goal is total equality of possessions, or that all inequalities are wrong. An atmosphere of competition allows us to excel and give the glory of our achievements to God. Had God not wanted us to compete, would He have not made us all carbon copies? Assuming God's plan was for everyone to be equal, is a gigantic leap from reality.

There are people, a great deal of them in government, that believe in redistribution of private property. This is incredibly flawed thinking, although it does sell well with the people who have less, as they violate their ideals on a daily basis. Take the President for instance, when he nominates someone for a cabinet position, is he not telling the world that he believes this person is the best for the job? The President had a names list, eliminated those less qualified and chose the one he felt excelled. In other words, those others weren't equal to the person he chose. By default that same chosen person will receive compensation the others will not. Should the President compensate them all to level the playing field?

A spirit of competition allows for winners and losers. When you shop for anything you make a decision between competing products so that you come home with the highest quality for the lowest price. That again shows why a level playing field isn't realistic. If your better at anything you should be recognized as the rewards of income or accolades of praise should be directed your way. Those should be immediately redirected to Him that is responsible for your standing out above the crowd, God your Creator. This is how we glorify Him.

Competition is good, participation awards are bad. Allow no one to tell you differently. We don't need to lower the bar, we need to raise others up.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Hope Does Not Disappoint!

"We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us." -Romans 5:3-4

I had to share this message on this Monday morning, the beginning of a new week and it's a week full of hope.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Demand Better!

Figures never lie, but liars sure can figure...

I listen to a pundit yesterday proclaim that during the era when taxation was in the 70% bracket America had the largest economic boom in history. The pundit tried to spin,(lie), the tale to make us believe that the boom was because of the taxation, not in spite of. This is all in the justification of our leader's belief that we need to unfairly overtax the wealthy so that they are paying their fair share. There is just so much wrong with that statement I'm not sure I know where to begin, but more on that in a moment. The actual reason America had such an outstanding economic boost was we had no competition. The world was recovering from both world wars. England had been bombed to rubble, Japan was made into a cinder, Germany had been crushed by allied forces, Italy was a shambles, and France had been pummeled during the occupation. We were the only producing nation left with any resources, and had a very needy export market.

Now I know this gentleman knew this, but he was counting on the public's lack of education and understanding to pass this off as truth. Isn't it interesting the same people control our education system and teach us this history? Quite frankly, this is a dishonest abuse of the voting population and I fail to understand why we allow it to continue.

Back to the same education system that the government runs and teaches us all math. You'd have to be an abject failure to not understand that even if the tax rates are equal for all income brackets, that those who make more money, contribute more to the system. If we tax everyone 10%, and John Q Public makes $10,000.00 his taxes would be $1000.00. If James P. Richguy earns a million dollars his taxes under a 10% rate would be $100,000.00. $100,000.00 >$10,000. And if you forget mathematical symbols that says one million dollars is greater than ten thousand dollars.

Let's also alleviate the spin, (lie), that if James P. Richguy makes his $1,000,000.00 under investments and pays the lower rate of 5% because it's earned income and taxed at a different rate he still pays more. In fact he'll pay $50,000.00 and as we all know $50,000.00 is greater than $10,000.00. ($50,000.00>$10,000.00). But somehow there is a group in government that believes that this is to complicated to understand and they keep telling you the wealthy are paying lower taxes than their secretary. Here's the worse part, there are some in this society that understand this to be true. Another testament to government controlled education!

Now I'm sorry but the only thing I despise worse than a liar is a thief. Quite frankly, this is qualifying as both. It's a brash attempt to relieve us of our income, wealthy or not, so those in power can arbitrarily spend it at their whim. And if you think that's a good idea I'll refer you to the spending habits of the GSA that have been recently revealed.

Demand better!

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

The War On The People!

Apparently one of the parties in Washington has decided to add to it's "war on the wealthy," a "war on stay at home moms." Now I've watched the dealings in Washington for the better part of four decades and it seems to me that the safest place to be is in their sights. Whenever they wage a war on something it seems to prosper, for example, the war on poverty, the war on illiteracy, and countless other wars they have waged on social issues.

Given the two examples that they are currently focused upon, I've found they have some similar characteristics. Wealthy individuals represent people with choices. They have the resources to open up options in their life. It's very similar to the definition of freedom, as they are not confined by income limitations. You see the more disposable income one has the less restricted their ability to do as they please, ergo they are a freer people who enjoy more liberty.

Now the "stay at home mom," also is exercising options. They are choosing to spend their time influencing their children by being available for them 24/7. Working moms don't have that option, they are constrained by what their employer will allow when it comes time to influence their children. They are forced to concede the influential growth years to someone who has the time to spend with their brood. Ergo "stay at home moms,' have more options and are a freer people enjoying more liberty.

It's interesting that political figures are taking this position. Why would someone in this great nation want to limit your options? What drives anyone to take anything from someone by the force of government? What kind of individual belittles a mother who chooses to spend her time being a 24/7 influence in her children's life? I think it's high time we reevaluate the people we raise to positions of power and what their agenda is. What kind of principles do they believe in? It's starting to sound like when the curtain is pulled back and the real truth is exposed, their values are not in line with what America was founded on. Who attacks motherhood as an idle endeavor? Who places restriction on success? Who believes that people of means sit on the couch and eat bon-bons all day long?

Answer...

People who don't understand how wealth is created. People who have a view that their is only so much success to pass out. People who want to have control over your choices.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Overwhelmed?

There are times in everyone's life when things just seem to be overwhelming. Often the timing or the adversity of events increase our stress level to maximum tolerance. This is the time when we grow!

First it's important to discern what if any of those events you actually have control over. If it's outside your circle of concern, leave it to those closer to the issue who can have a direct impact upon the outcome. Trying to impose your will on something you have no influence over is akin to trying to stop the tide from flowing. nothing you say or do will change the outcome. So trust in God, and do what smart people do, pray for a righteous outcome. I've often seen those bumper stickers that announce that God is their co-pilot. Here's the truth, if God is your co-pilot, your in the wrong seat, and seriously self deceived.

Now if your cause of stress is something you do have a say so in, the answer isn't much different, pray! Pray for the wisdom to learn the lesson from the teaching moment God has placed in your life to aid you in personal growth. Ask the Lord, what are you trying to teach me here? Those lessons come in all shapes and sizes, but they are there by design. Nothing is ever so overwhelming that some time on your knees and personal reflection won't reveal the answer to. And trust me, the lesson will be repeated until the lesson is learned, so do yourself a favor and become a quick student.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

The Infection Of Quitting!

Leadership is always about having to make the tough decisions. People turn to leaders to make the decisions they don't want to make. Hopefully they seek a leader's counsel because their advice comes from experience and wisdom, not because they have the heart of a chicken. But then a quality leader will weigh all of that in their decision, and help the others to see their blind spots.

One of the hardest decisions to counsel someone on is the time and place to leave an opportunity. It's the old, "a bird in the hand," analogy. It's never a good idea to leave any opportunity without out a game plan or an opportunity that's equal or better to replace it. That's what we call quitting, and quitting is an infection. Once an individual begins the quitting spiral, it simply becomes part of their culture and sadly, easier. So take heed when passing out or receiving free or unsolicited advice. It just maybe the work of the devil, tempting you to start the downward cycle of quitting. Quitting without like or improved opportunity serves no one but Satan.The Lord often disguises opportunity as work and raises the adversity quotient, where Satan lures you with deceit and ease.

Quitting is not an option, trading up for a better opportunity is.......

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Night Moves!

Okay this one has been bugging me for quite awhile. Perhaps you've heard this government sponsored service announcement.

One night I went to a bar, I had a drink, I drove home. A squirrel ran across the road, I swerved. I hit a guy.

Then another young lady says...

One night I went to a bar, I had a drink, I took a taxi home. A squirrel ran across the road, the taxi swerved.

The message is clear and a great reminder. Don't drink and drive! Here's the problem. Squirrels are not nocturnal animals. Come sundown they carry their furry little butts into a big leafy nest and go to sleep. Leave it to the government to produce and pay for a commercial this far removed from reality. How does one take advice from anybody who is this misinformed?

Here's my point, for the greater art of the last decade the new ventures undertaken by government have failed to achieve their objectives. Why is that? Because they don't have a clue what they are talking about, and this is why out founding father's made their responsibilities concise and simple. Raise armies, print money, maintain the roads, and make sure the states traded freely among themselves. There is nothing there about social engineering.

Can anyone name me a government program outside the parameters of our founding documents that is a shining success? They designed a system to prevent bank panics and produced the largest bank panic in the history of mankind. They created a social security insurance program that's not only insolvent, but a fraud for those just entering the system. It just goes on and on, and they justify it with hypothetical nonsense. "Well, had we not taken this action it would have been worse!" Prove it! Which of an of the government reforms of the past decade has achieved it's objectives? Yet there is still a tendency to regard existing government intervention as desirable, as if hypothetically they could work if run by disinterested men, free from the pressure of special interest groups, and the pandering to likely voters.

Their excuses keep echoing in my head. as supposed intellectuals they compare the existing state of affairs with all it's injustices and defects, to a hypothetical state of affairs it might be. Then they tell me that squirrels run across the road at night.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

What If?

See if this rings a bell. Karl Marx often argued that labor was exploited. His reasoning was that labor produced the "whole" of the end product, but only received a small portion in return. He believed that labor was entitled to what it produces. So if there is a guy who works in a BMW factory installing lug nuts, he is entitled to drive a BMW. This is the mind set of not only the current union management in this country, but several of the individuals who hold office in the White House.

They don't understand that the people who shoulder the risk of buying the machinery, purchasing the raw materials, laying out the rent and the utilities for the facility, and paying the labor costs to manufacture are entitled to the bulk of the return. You see they don't understand how wealth is created, so they are clueless when it comes to what steps are necessary to inspire it.

Wealth to them is considered inequality, and is measured by the differences in the level of living between the "privileged" and other classes. Classes they take great steps to preserve, as if we are not living in a capitalist country but one of socialist regime. The greatest achievement of capitalism is that anyone has the opportunity to extend, develop, and improve their capacities. Not the current mantra of the union and it's government shills that it leads to an unfair accumulation of property and wealth that they need to tax the snot out of to redistribute.

And how is that money used? Well, they group like income people in a housing project, infesting the neighborhood with poor association. Broken families, illegal substance addiction, crime, and juvenile delinquency is what those impoverished people know as normal. Then in an attempt to level the playing field they bus that population all across the town to different schools spending yet even more money . This is the "war on poverty." One we've been fighting for decades with no exit strategy, save the constant cry of inequality from those who fund and created the mess. This is the interference of government and the demonization of capitalism at it's finest.

What if these people weren't herded into one section of town. What if we changed their association and modeled a better existence? What if the quality of their schools in their neighborhood was equal and they didn't have to travel? What if that money was used for education rather than transportation? What if government took a hands off approach to income equality, leveling the playing field, and individuals actually learned to take advantage of the opportunities afforded them by capitalism? What if people were given the opportunity to earn and learn the pride of a job well done? What if?

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

The Lord Of Dance!

Happy Easter to all. The Lord has risen and what a beautiful day we have to celebrate! I have to share this outstanding Celtic lyric with all of you on this special day....

The Lord Of Dance
words by Sydney Carter, music traditional
I danced in the morning when the world was begun
I danced in the Moon & the Stars & the Sun
I came down from Heaven & I danced on Earth
At Bethlehem I had my birth:

Dance then, wherever you may be
I am the Lord of the Dance, said He!
And I'll lead you all, wherever you may be
And I'll lead you all in the Dance, said He!
(...lead you all in the Dance, said He!)

I danced for the scribe & the pharisee
But they would not dance & they wouldn't follow me
I danced for fishermen, for James & John
They came with me & the Dance went on:

I danced on the Sabbath & I cured the lame
The holy people said it was a shame!
They whipped & they stripped & they hung me high
And they left me there on a cross to die!

I danced on a Friday when the sky turned black
It's hard to dance with the devil on your back
They buried my body & they thought I'd gone
But I am the Dance & I still go on!

They cut me down and I leapt up high
I am the Life that'll never, never die!
I'll live in you if you'll live in Me -
I am the Lord of the Dance, said He!

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Taxing the Gene Pool!

There are those in our country, and quite frankly in office today, who strongly believe in income equality as a social goal and have the willingness to use the arm of the state to promote it. Now understand this is a concept more in tune with a socialist or communist point of view, rather than the capitalistic freedom our country was founded upon. In fact it begs the question, what is the justification for the state intervention to promote income equality? Some would twist the words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence and quote the general welfare clause, and the "pursuit of happiness" statement. That's the same people who seek the above intervention, but their argument doesn't pass the smell test.

You see those individuals believe anyone who succeeds has been blessed by the state, and given the environment to succeed, thereby owning their success to the state. One might note there is no mention of God's hand in these events, an interesting parallel. They also see the bequeathing of success to the next generation as akin to winning the lottery, so they should be entitled to a portion of the proceeds to fund their state run redistribution efforts. After all if you didn't live in this great nation, our forefathers couldn't have amassed this wealth to pass down to you.

So how to they tax the gene pool? Suppose your parents bequeathed you an exceptional talent? For instance a beautiful singing voice, or exceptional good looks. You benefited from those who sired you, and will live an enhanced life because of a gift passed down. How does the stateists propose to redistribute those qualities? Don't they feel that you were blessed and received more than someone else interfering with their pursuit of happiness? After all if they hadn't provided the environment for your parents to reproduce, you couldn't have benefited from their meshing of genes.

Life is a lottery, some are born into wealth and, or exceptional talents, and some are not. God controls and provides the environment for us to excel, not the state. We owe our gratitude to our maker, not a group of elitists trying to make a level playing field so they can compete. We don't lower the bar, we celebrate exceptionalism because God doesn't make any junk. Each of us is blessed in our own special way and the only homage we need to pay is to our Creator.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Evil....To Whom?

Yesterday I did a piece on the mob and how easily propaganda can be used to sway their emotions and get them to act irrationally. I used a modern day reference, pointing to the Trayvon Martin case down here in Florida, as that is a recent and most grievous example. But the famous incident that comes to mind today, Good Friday, is the death of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Once again a mob was emotionally ginned up and acted irrationally, resulting in the death of an innocent man. While that death led to a resurrection and our salvation, it does expose the lack of intelligence of an out of control mob. We would be wise to study and understand the history of how abusers influence mob violence. I find it more than interesting that groups of people will lose common sense and allow manufactured images to control their minds, rather than what they know to be true. Think about that in reference to the crucifixion of Jesus. He walked among the people, performed miracles to benefit them, brought them to an understanding of the truth, and yet they allowed that all to be put aside and were convinced He was evil.

To whom?

Then this throng of mad men and women insisted this kind and gentle soul be unmercifully put to death! If this example alone isn't fair warning to act as a free thinking individual, who make their own rational and independent decisions, I'm not certain what it might take to preserve the truth. Avoid being a sheep led to slaughter. Research and expose the truth to yourself. Act as an independent agent of the truth, and always remember, truth tamper with is truth lost. Put a distance between yourself and those who apply a spin to what you know to be fact. And for goodness sake, let's not elect anymore of them to office! History is littered with those examples.....

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Quick To Condemn

It's hard to overlook the fact that propagandist can fan a flame of hatred to horrible ends. Arousing the mob is the simple process of playing on their emotions, because a crowd inflamed with emotion loses it's ability to reason. The media and the race baiters come to mind in the recent shooting of Trayvon Martin in Florida.The distortion of fact, enhanced by a 911 call that was edited to imply the caller had a racial overtone, erased the ability of logic to overcome the emotion. Add to that the irresponsible ginning up of the crowd by religious(?) figures, who insist on preaching a gospel of hate and victimization, and you have the seduction of a mob into a state of emotional hysteria. To what end does that serve?

Crowds like this are rarely influenced by reason. The social influence is independent of the truth, or lack there of, that it may contain. Crowds think in images, and the power of that image is held in the hands of the ability of the statesman to draw out their emotion. It wasn't difficult to suggest that Trayvon was gunned down by a Afro-American hating, White-Hispanic, power hungry, cop wanna-be. Those are the same people who insist race should never be an issue. They want equality void of racial considerations, yet use the race card to transform rational people into emotion driven mobs seeking vengeance. All in an effort to secure the position as a figure head they turn to in times of emotional distress. When their job has been completed, they simply return to the airwaves to secure income and additional fame reinforced by a large viewing audience as the mob wants to be fed more emotion.

When the facts come out, and if they turn out to be contrary to the statesman's agenda, the subject will be changed to another issue of racial inequality. They'll try to focus the mob's attention to the invented hatred of the President, not because he's an abject failure, and is separated from the truth, but because of the color of his skin, an issue they claim we need to get past. Once again, falsely preying on the emotions of the crowd seeking to slowly slaughter another defenseless victim with cowardly ferocity, void of fact.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Easter Now and Then!

Easter is but a few days away as we wind down Holy Week. It seems just like yesterday Lent was beginning, but here we are so close to the celebration of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection from the dead. What a wonderful display of love our Lord has for us sinners! It's not a wonder why we celebrate it.

Think about the timing of this event. He had to choose a point in history where man had not grown past the point of putting an individual to death for a crime against the church. With the exception of radical middle eastern faiths that would have never happened today. Well, unless of course he was in the Middle East trying to convert people to Christianity. Oops, He was doing that, wasn't He? I guess the Middle East hasn't grown much since then.

I was just about to mention how He chose that era because the method of punishment was so cruel. Not many today are put to death by crucifixion. Now in the Middle East they simply punish those who present different opinions by beheading or stoning them to death. It's hard to compare having your head crushed by a rock to hanging on a cross of wood with nails through your body for the level of pain and cruelty.

It also had to be a time where the people were ignorant enough to allow others to gin them up and work a crowd into such a frenzy that their actions became irrational and violent. Being led like sheep by rhetoric designed to play on our emotions could never happen in this era of the educated man.

Well, maybe things haven't changed as much since the time of the crucifixion. Man is still flawed, but yet we are blessed that Christ died so we can be forgiven. We have so much work to do.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

We Know Better!

"With the loyal you show yourself loyal; with the blameless you show yourself blameless; with the pure you show yourself pure, and with the crooked you show yourself perverse." - Samuel 22:26/27

And after that great piece of wisdom, my mind wanders off unto a totally different subject. Or is it? The election race is in full swing and many of us are rightly concerned about the state of our nation. I've heard that government is broken. Ah contraire! The government is in great shape, it's the politicians that are messing everything up. Please note that I didn't point the finger at either side. They are both equally guilty.

One side believes in bigger government.

The other side believes in bigger government as well.

So what's the difference? Well, it's in the nature of the government they desire. The one side collects your taxes and redistributes it for social justice, and economic parity. The other side believes it's job is to collect your taxes and increase our defense spending. The only thing they have in common is they love to collect your money and use it to serve their purpose. Meanwhile our money is being squandered and our nation is in debt. That's not how our government was designed to operate. This is a perversion of the original design.

So since both sides have an agenda outside the original game plan, who is to blame and how do we fix it? Well frankly, the blame lies in "We the People," because when we get right down to it, we elected and promote this behavior.

How do we fix it? Education, and not from the government. Is anyone naive enough to think elected officials are going to enlighten the population to the scam they are running? It's our responsibility to become informed, to give ourselves a "Thomas Jefferson Education," (self taught). If we continue to tolerate this behavior from the politicians inside our government, we can expect more of the same. Our only weapon is education and personal the responsibility to improve.

"With the loyal you show yourself loyal; with the blameless you show yourself blameless; with the pure you show yourself pure, and with the crooked you show yourself perverse." - Samuel 22:26/27

And with information you show yourself informed.........

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

It's Not In The Budget!

"Debt enslaves people to the urgent."-Orrin Woodward

If you ponder this quote it's pretty deep. How many families are working to achieve the will-come needed to pay off purchases they didn't have the willpower to delay gratification for and earn? Are they focusing on quality of life, or just in a rut trying to relieve themselves of the debt they created?

This is not a disease limited to those who have limited incomes. I watched a man a of means, a lawyer in fact, make the most absurd statement about the government needing to collect more taxes to help relieve the debt. Now with that financial mind set, how do you think his own personal finances stack up? It's one of the biggest lies we tell ourselves, increased income rarely solves financial problems. The answer lies within your spending habits. Any financial counselor worth his salt will address those issues first.

So with that in mind is our great nation focusing on the what it's charter designated it to do, or are we occupied with urgently finding a way to relieve our national debt? That's a trick question because I've yet to see anyone take a serious jab at getting this country to live within it's means. We don't even have a budget, and again that's one of the first things a financial counselor would insist upon when addressing financial woes. Making a written budget and sticking to it is everyone's model for financial success. Why would a government be exempt?

God Bless!
Capt. Bill

Servant Leadership!

God has blessed us with yet another beautiful day in paradise! I woke to the birds singing and an eruption of color befitting a sunset! How lucky are we to be apart of His wonderful creation? Today is Palm Sunday the kick off of Holy Week, which concludes with the Resurrection of Jesus on Easter. I can't help but look back on what an amazing sacrifice was made on our behalf, talk about a servant leader! No greater love has a man than to lay down his life for another, and it was all done to be our "whipping boy" so we can be forgiven for our sins. No longer is it necessary to sacrifice an animal to please God, we simply need to ask forgiveness and repent.

Take some time today to reflect on the sacrifice that was made in your name. Absorb the incredible example Jesus left us till the end of time. It's a model only a fool could find fault with, and one we should consider emulating. How much this world could change if we only walked in Jesus' footsteps.

God Bless!
Capt. Bill