These words spoken by Abraham Lincoln are as true today as they were then.
“All the armies of Europe, Asia, and Africa combined… could not, by force, take a drink from the Ohio… At what point, then, is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us, it cannot come from abroad.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

Polarization has been a goal of conservatives and liberals alike for many years and they have succeeded. The swinging pendulum has swept so far from right to left now, that most people can no longer relate to or communicate with those who have differing opinions. Decades ago, the general attitude was to treat those you disagree with respectfully even though you can politely disagree.

A friend of mine recently lost a facebook contact because he had a different political opinion. The woman told him that if he disagreed with her, then he basically did not deserve to be her friend and she would try to encourage others to dislike him. What has happened to our reasoning powers? How to we have a decent future as a country with attitudes like this?

With this premise, I come to my main point. I am closely following the GOP race for the nomination. Never have I seen the attitude; “if I find anything I disagree with, or discover any imperfection in a candidate, I will hate him and could never support him”. Really America?

I want to fight this destabilization and ask you to join me…no matter which candidate you support. Okay, after I have gone after Gingrich, maybe his supporters will not listen, but the reason I did that is because I believe he is part of the inside group working to destroy the Constitution, and this I cannot support.

So if I say I like Ron Paul, do some of you throw out anything good I say? When I say I like Mitt Romney do I lose the other side?

This is a year of hate and we need to be sane and not join that kind of thinking. Because Romney likes to work from inside the system is he evil? I do not think so. Because Ron Paul has been against the war is he a bad person? I sent out an email before we went to war describing exactly what I believed would happen based on my years of studying the Middle East which is my college major. Everything I wrote happened exactly as I predicted. So do I agree with Mitt or Ron? Neither and both. I will describe my position in another post but for my current purpose, I want to point out that although I disagree with some of the positions of each man, I respect them. They do not have to be perfect. I also respect most of what I see from Rick Santorum even though I disagree with his big government positions. He is not evil.

Could you join me in jumping off the political pendulum and spreading a different message this political season? We do not need to become a nation of hate and we can respect people even if we do not agree with every position they espouse.

Italy pushes through austerity law

By Barry Moody and George Georgiopoulos

ROME/ATHENS (Reuters) – Italy’s parliament began rushing through austerity measures demanded by the European Union to avert a euro zone meltdown, after U.S. President Barack Obama ratcheted up pressure for more dramatic action from the currency bloc.

Italy’s Senate approved a new budget law, clearing the way for approval of the package in the lower house on Saturday and the formation of an emergency government to replace that of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Italy pushes through austerity lawBy Barry Moody and George GeorgiopoulosROME/ATHENS (Reuters) – Italy’s parliament began rushing through austerity measures demanded by the European Union to avert a euro zone meltdown, after U.S. President Barack Obama ratcheted up pressure for more dramatic action from the currency bloc.Italy’s Senate approved a new budget law, clearing the way for approval of the package in the lower house on Saturday and the formation of an emergency government to replace that of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/italy-vote-cuts-u-applies-124824165.html

Hopefully Italy can avoid bankruptcy with some sound economic policies and not drag down all of Europe.

Technorati Tags: Obamanomics, Value of the dollar, World Economy

Government fines jailed Border Patrol agent’s family

After successfully winning a two-year prison sentence against U.S. Border Patrol Agent Jesus E. Diaz Jr., the Justice Department is now trying to collect a $6,870 fine from his wife, saying it should be paid “immediately” — even though the judge signaled she would have a grace period.

In a notice sent last week the Justice Department said the fines were imposed by the court that found Agent Diaz guilty and sentenced him to prison for improperly restraining a 15-year-old suspected of drug smuggling.

“We strongly urge you to pay this debt immediate,” said the notice, which was received by Diana Diaz, who is also a Border Patrol agent.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/nov/8/govt-fines-jailed-border-patrol-agents-family/

Many years ago, I watched Clarence Thomas vilified in a senate hearing on his supreme court nomination. After watching almost every minute of the hearing, I could not believe that anyone who heard all the evidence could possibly believe he was guilty. What was an obvious smear campaign had a permanent, negative effect on the life of a very good man. It seems to me that when a black man is a political conservative, he becomes an easy target, almost if he has betrayed his race by refusing to be liberal.

I am not supporting Herman Cain for the Republican nomination, but I do respect the man and believe there is a strong possibility he is being smeared. One of his accusers was paid off years ago to keep Cain out of court, but that is a very common event in the lives of the wealthy and prominent and does not mean he was guilty. Without stronger evidence, I choose to believe the best, maybe because of what I saw happen to Clarence Thomas.

Perhaps I am not the only one who feels this way, since the polls suggest that many people still support Herman Cain. Good for them, and good for him for not running away.

Defiant Cain says he won’t drop out of GOP race

By AMANDA LEE MYERS and SHANNON McCAFFREY – Associated Press

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Under rising pressure from fellow Republicans, presidential hopeful Herman Cain sought to muddy the reputation of one accuser, forcefully denied any and all allegations of sexual impropriety and vowed Tuesday the growing controversy would not drive him from the race for the White House.

“Ain’t gonna happen,” he declared.

Cain flashed defiance one day after a woman publicly accused the candidate of groping her more than a decade ago, adding her voice to three other accusers with allegations that presidential rival Mitt Romney called “particularly disturbing.”

Speaking at a news conference, Cain vowed, “we’ll get through this,” as he sought to steady a campaign that has made him the leader in an unofficial race to emerge as Romney’s principal conservative rival.

http://news.yahoo.com/defiant-cain-says-wont-drop-gop-race-235353456.html
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Technorati Tags: Clarence Thomas, Herman Cain, Republican, sexual harassment, smear

Last year was a very difficult time for many of my readers, so I offered something to help make Christmas giving easier: Free copies of The Christmas Box. It was a huge hit and we went through more than a quarter million copies in about five weeks!

This year I am giving away what I have left. (There are only about 50,000 copies left.) If you would like these free books, don’t delay! They won’t last long. This is the offer: One free box containing 20 paperback copies-of my #1 International Bestseller, The Christmas Box ($100 worth of books) for just the price of shipping, boxing and handling, $15 ($35 in Canada). You may use these books as stocking stuffers, neighbor gifts, teacher gifts, church gifts, visiting teaching, bible class, student gifts: whatever you want them for. All I ask is that you not resell them. And, I hope you still plan to share my book THE CHRISTMAS LIST with those you love.

Order three or more boxes and we’ll add a FREE copy of Paul Cardall’s national bestselling music CD: THE CHRISTMAS BOX. This beautiful piano music will lighten up your home for the Holidays for years to come. HELP YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS!

You may order up to ten boxes. To order these books, click the link below. You may also copy this link and send it to your friends and family.

http://richardpaulevans.com/freebooks

Important: This offer is only good while supplies last. WHEN THEY ARE GONE THEY ARE GONE. So please order immediately.

I wish you an early Merry Christmas and I hope you enjoy my new book The Christmas List.

- Richard Paul Evans

Technorati Tags: Christmas Box, free book, Richard Paul Evans

I’m working on my doctorate degree and part of what I’m studying is what happens when books are made available for free.

I’ve been working with Deseret Book and they have made 8 of their books available for FREE DOWNLOAD. Several of the books are ones I thought you might be interested in. The books are:

1.       Please Pass the Scripture (by me).
2.       What I Wish I Would Have Known When I Was Single (by John Bytheway).
3.       Women at the Well (by Richard and Jeni Holzapfel).
4.       Digging Deeper (by Robert Eaton).
5.       10 Secrets Wise Parents Know (by Brent Top and Bruce Chadwick).
6.       Growing Up: Gospel Answers About Maturation and Sex (by Brad Wilcox).
7.       Saving Kristen (by Jack Weyland). (fiction)
8.       The Hidden Path (by C.B. Andersen). (fiction)

I’ve read part or all of all of these books and they are great. If nothing else, I recommend that you go download them all and save them for future reference as they will only be available online for free for a short time. A lot of people aren’t aware that books like these even exist, much less that they are available for free.

Please feel free to forward this email on to anyone you think would be interested in getting some free church books. I would love to help share these great, free resources with as many people as possible. Some of the books help you get more out of the scriptures. Others are good for parenting. Some are just plain fun. Go check out http://deseretbook.com/free. I hope you like the books!

John Hilton III

Technorati Tags: Deseret Book, free books, John Hilton

I live!

I hope that you have been enjoying the new Quote of the Day feature. Please feel free to submit any quotes you feel would be appropriate.

I have been out of commission for the last several days. We were hit with the dreaded H1N1 Swine Flu. Everyone else seemed to bounce back pretty well. It’s taken me a few days longer–coughing and wheezing. Today is the first day I’ve felt well enough to attempt more than just necessary thinking!

Have you had a chance to watch any of Glenn Beck’s shows over the past month? He has worked hard to outline how our country is being “nudged” toward Socialism. I’ll be writing about some of these things in the next few days.

Please feel free to add your comments – I appreciate any input you give.

Stay safe and well!