There was another drive to the office this morning for CMA and more discussion on the talk radio circuit.  This morning’s interesting topic was about a editorial letter that was picked up by the NY Times from a colonel in the military that blamed himself for the oil problem that is currently going on in the Gulf of Mexico.  This began the discussion and call in as to whether this was accurate, that we are to blame for the problem of how much oil we in America consume.

As I drove I began to recall how I read that roughly half of the twenty-five million barrels of oil consumed in the states is consumed by the military.  Of this amount, most of it is consumed by the United States Air Force.  What if we were not present in Iraq and Afghanistan?  How much would consumption drop?  I am not certain, but I imagine it has to be quite a bit.

Then I consider the amount of taxes that normally would be paid by you or I when we pull up to the pump.  I know that in my state of Pennsylvania it is currently $0.507, which is almost fifty-one cents a gallon.  This includes the $0.184 cents per gallon of federal tax.  When the federal government purchases fuel, do they pay themselves the fuel taxes?  Good question.

To take this one step further, I recall reading about all the government employees and their social security taxes.  There are approximately 4.5 million federal employees.  Normally, a business owner pays half of the social security taxes while the employee pays the first half.  I believe it is currently 6.4 per cent.  We surely know that the federal government deducts the 6.4 per cent from the employees paycheck, but do they pay the other amount or is it an accounting gimmick?  Take a guess with this government and you would probably be right.  I think soon, they may be so large that the money they collect from themselves to pay themselves, while printing more to spend, and then loaning it out to commercial banks, who in turn loan it to other banks and then, …  Oh nevemind.

I was in the back yard with the puppy yesterday when I noticed she pooped and then turned around and ate it.  It was disgusting, but I hope you get the connection.

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Pride goeth before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.

Have there been times in your life when you felt invincible?  Times when nothing could go wrong and you were sitting on top of the world?  I have had this feeling many times.  It is a great feeling.  How about the reciprocal of that when nothing seems to be going your way, when you are willing to pray to God to help you out of the situation your in.  If you would pray when you are in trouble, why would you not pray when everything is perfect?

I can recall times in my life when I was desperate for help and no one was around any where to help me.  It was at this time that I prayed, and promised to God what I would do if He would only get me out of this situation.  When the crisis appeared to be over, I would often forget what I had promised.  How convenient for me.  But what about when your situation is on top of the world.  Is this the time to ‘hit your knees’ and give thanks for where you are and how grateful you are?  I would think that is the best time.  Seldom do we find ourselves remembering to give thanks for what we have received.  And often this is when ‘Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before the fall’

Does this phrase seem relevant to any of our current leaders?  I believe that it does.  I also believe that the bigger the pride, the bigger the fall.  How can some of these people not see what is going on around them and within them?  I can only pray for their souls and hope the best for them.

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And how to quiet your mind.

On a daily basis, at least during the week, CMA spends about forty-five minutes every morning on a commute to the office.  Almost always is the AM radio tuned to a local talk show host who claims to be a moderate but the veil is wearing thin.  The subject of discussion is often quite entertaining and deals with local, national, and international news stories.  Listeners call in and express opinions.

Every now and then I can no longer bear to listen and simply shut the radio off.  This can be rewarding at this time of year especially on a beautiful sun-drenched late-spring morning.  Birds singing with the smell of fresh air filling my nostrils.  There are sounds of automobiles, but here I can practice to block their sounds from conscious mind as I wonder at the spectacular sights that surround me and by whom they were created.

Years ago, I came to realize that this daily ritual for me was my prayer.  When I was able to quiet my mind from most, if not all distractions, I felt connected to all that was good, and the one responsible for creating it.  I believe that this was exactly what Jesus meant in Matthew Chapter 6, verses 5-7 (Emphasis Added):

⁵“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. ⁶But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. ⁷And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

What is this ‘secret place’?  I believe that it is what lies inside of us, in the stillness of our hearts and minds.  Some call it meditation.  For me, this was very difficult to achieve, for I being somewhat intelligent have a desire to constantly analyze everything going on around me.  It takes a tremendous amount of practice to block outside conscious stimulus like the radio, sounds, and the multitudes of sights we see.  This has become even more difficult with the advent of cell phones with web-surfing and texting capabilities.  We can learn how to ‘shut the door’, meaning we can block all the distractions for what is important. In a previous entry, I urged us to get ‘back to basics’ and this is what is needed more now than ever.

Try it and see what happens.  Let me know how you make out.  For me the rewards are indescribable.

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“If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging” widely accredited to Will Rogers

So it seems we find ourselves in a hole. Why, for the love of Pete, are we still digging? This is a question I ask of myself everyday. Of course I am referring to the growing debt and deficit of the American government. Monthly figures indicate that the problem is growing worse at a steadily increasing rate. With news from around the world of similar financial difficulties, it seems apparent to most, but those in congress, that the issues are not correctly being addressed. Spending at astronomical rates continue with hopes of revenues magically appearing from the likes of exports, consumer demands, and the fiat fairy cranking the printing press to overdrive.

What is a caveman to do? If you or I found ourselves in a similar situation, we would surely not continue. We would hopefully realize our senseless ways and take action to alter our course of self-destruction. We would more than likely stop, assess our situation, and change our behavior, most prudently, for the better. Failure to do so would surely result in our own demise. Which leads me to believe that our leaders have some other motive. We cannot be responsible for their actions until they are held to account at the next election when we can “vote the bums out!” But enough with them.

What we need here that most others lack is personal responsibility. We need to return to the basics. We should be able to care for ourselves. Food, clothing, and shelter are the essentials at the most basic level. Most of us do quite well with these as we are seldom cold in the winter, or hungry as we go to sleep each night. Some are not so fortunate and are the recipients of charity of the good souls that abound throughout our society.

This is neither a lecture of what you should do or how you should act, but merely a gentle reminder of what you are responsible for at the highest level, which is yourself. This time around will not be like the 1930′s where a majority of the country was be able to grow their own food from the farm. It will be much more difficult because so many have become “urbanized.” The great exodus from rural America to the cities began in earnest in the late 40′s and 50′s and continues still.

The lesson here is being able to care for yourself and your loved ones for an extended period of time. When your Uncle Sam has nothing left to give you, you will have nothing.

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