The Letters Are Light for a Reason

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First a Word From the Proprietor

The posting is going to be light this as week, as I am going to be off on vacation. There will be just a handful of things to keep you all from forgetting about me. I will post just a few letters here this morning, maybe three or so, scheduled ahead of time, because, as the Eagles put it so well, I am already gone.

The Content Cluster will appear on Thursday as normal, but other posts this week will all be recycled material.

Douglas

Douglas, yeah, well. Try to have a good time. Try not to think about how you are ignoring all of us. Try to enjoy yourself without being too selfish.

Thou Hypocrite . . .

Now that’s how you do it.

YOU were the one advocating breaking the law over non-gospel issues, you hypocrite. The protesters, even the looters and rioters, could use your same argument to justify their behavior.

Marc

Marc, try to think this through a bit more carefully. There is a difference between disregarding righteous laws and unrighteous laws. Righteous? Unrighteous? These are strange words.

Conspiracy or Incompetence?

Thank you for your writing, it has been and continues to be a profound blessing to me in these times which, as the sage once said, “be crazy”.

In several posts you have made the claim that the lock downs were intentional efforts on the part of “the bad guys” to ruin the economy in a tantrum-like attempt to undo the undesirable result of the 2016 election. This strikes me as somewhat conspiracy-theory-esque when a seemingly more plausible explanation (sheer incompetence) is available.

Would you be willing to walk me through the reasoning behind your thoughts in slightly more detail? Or direct me to some reading that will flesh it out?

Josh

Josh, sure. Incompetence does account for much of it, and so we should never make the mistake of ruling that out completely. A lot of the decision-makers and actors are patsies — they really are afraid of the virus. And I don’t believe it was a “release the virus” kind of conspiracy. But as Rahm Emmanuel put it once, “never let a crisis go to waste.” I believe that certain opportunists saw, about ten minutes after the virus hit, that this was an opportunity for them. I also believe that the death of George Floyd was not engineered. But there were plans for rioting in place, waiting for the kind of incident that happens pretty regularly in a country our size.

Free State Projects, Plural?

Libertarians tried this with the Free State Project some years ago. Why should this be any more successful?

Jeff

Jeff, I think the difference is that the libertarian project was being done for the sake of ideology, and most regular folks aren’t that ideological. And, to the extent that they do have an ideology, it has elements of libertarianism in it, but it is not the pure article. This coming shift is, I believe, organic and spontaneous, and is the natural result of regular folks seeing what high incompetence looks like in a crisis, especially when coupled with the ideology of the hard left. As a resident of Idaho, and an observer of the refugee column that is starting to stream in, I can honestly say that I have never seen anything like it.

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John HC Niederhaus
John HC Niederhaus
3 years ago

Where and when was the picture taken that shows the man carrying a sign that says, “If Jesus returns. Kill him again.”? Curious if this was during the current protests or from some other time and place.

J.F. Martin
J.F. Martin
3 years ago

UndoJesus.org. Morbid curiosity led me there after I saw the picture. The guy has put a little effort into his cause…but I can’t compliment it.

Ken
Ken
3 years ago
Reply to  J.F. Martin

I won’t dignify the sentiment by visiting the man’s website. But I will comment that Doug’s citation of Romans 6:9 could/should be complimented by Psalm 2 or almost anything out of Revelation. Why does this guy think that Jesus is going to go along with being killed when he comes again? Or that he (the guy) won’t do a prompt face-plop a la Isaiah 6 or Matthew 17 or Philippians 2 when confronted with the glorified Christ? Methinks he is short a couple of theological bricks.

Gray
Gray
3 years ago
Reply to  Ken

It makes me wonder if that phenomenon (since the Church is the prow of culture) is due to the modern evangelical focus upon the suffering savior model (a once and done accomplishment) instead of where and Who He is: “at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him…and with…”a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with an iron scepter…He has a name written on His robe and on His thigh: King of kings and Lord of lords.”

JP Stewart
JP Stewart
3 years ago

Not sure which laws Marc was talking about, but if he’s seriously comparing a church having an “illegal” service or someone not wearing a mask to this, there isn’t much hope for him.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8377277/Americans-survey-damage-sixth-night-riots.html

https://disrn.com/news/blm-leader-says-group-developing-highly-trained-military-arm-for-war-on-police

JohnM
JohnM
3 years ago

“As a resident of Idaho, and an observer of the refugee column that is starting to stream in, I can honestly say that I have never seen anything like it.” Interesting, if something is going on there. For anyone considering re-location, which can be a rational decision, you’d first want to be clear in your own understanding of what *exactly* it is you are fleeing. Then you could do your research and form a good idea of where, if anywhere, you would be getting away from whatever it is. Speaking of ‘never seen anything like it”, anyone else been to… Read more »

JP Stewart
JP Stewart
3 years ago
Reply to  JohnM

“Speaking of ‘never seen anything like it”, anyone else been to an outdoor sporting goods store and noticed the level of gun and ammunition sales recently? It looks like it’s exceeded even election year get-it-while-you-can buying of the past. Never seen anything like it. People are scared. Maybe some people are taking an approach different or in addition to getting away from it.” I think it’s a combination of violent “protesters” being treated with kid gloves, the police potentially being defunded or defanged in some areas (or basically going on strike in Atlanta) and the Dems still talking pushing for… Read more »

Gray
Gray
3 years ago
Reply to  JP Stewart

“Will anyone be surprised…”

Surprise should never be included in the lexicon of the wise.

Jeff Singletary
3 years ago
Reply to  JohnM

But it is cold in Idaho. Why not some place like South Carolina?

Gray
Gray
3 years ago
Reply to  JohnM

Firearm sales for March of 2020 was 2,373,193 reflecting an increase in sales of 7% more than the previous record in December of 2015. These numbers are new, all-time records for both sales as well as NICS background checks performed in one month. That is outside the range of statistical anomaly. March 2020 NICS sales increased to about twice as many as March 2019. (1,213,027) which is an increase of (March of 2019 vs March 2020) about 96%. The more technical term for sales increases of this magnitude is “through the roof”. In terms of “refugee caravans”, a recent report… Read more »

Gray
Gray
3 years ago
Reply to  Gray

9.7 NICS checks were accomplished in March, April, and May 2020. This is 2.4 million more than from the same time frame last year (a 32% increase over last year’s same three month period.)

NICS checks do not represent the actual numbers of firearms purchased since someone can buy multiple firearms from a licensed dealer with a single background check. The NICS checks represent a minimum approximation for determining the number of or purchases.

Even at that number, that is more than 100,000 per day.

Gray
Gray
3 years ago

And speaking of lemming-like capitulation and wild-eyed panic as the mob is pursuing all willing victims down the street: “It wasn’t a noose, it was a hand loop to help make closing the garage door easier; and it wasn’t put there for Bubba Wallace, because it was there in November 2019. Additionally, in November of 2019 no-one would know what garage bay would be assigned to Bubba Wallace in June of 2020. It’s absolutely ridiculous to see this as targeted hate.”

Documented here: https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2020/06/22/is-bubba-wallace-rope-noose-a-hoax-or-misunderstanding-all-talladega-garage-doors-have-nooses-nascar-video-evidence/

…and was it just a coincidence that my Captcha code was (yes really) sjwHQ

Gray
Gray
3 years ago

“As a resident of Idaho, and an observer…”

Pastor Wilson, would you see echoes of a Deborah-esque phenomenon with this:

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2020/06/a-heroine-for-our-time.php

particularly in light of the Little things that some governors have perpetrated?

Gray
Gray
3 years ago

NASCAR subtitle: The Gulag Archipelago, volume 2, Chapter 10, “The village club manager went with his watchman to buy a bust of Comrade Stalin. They bought it. The bust was big and heavy. They ought to have carried it in a hand barrow, both of them together, but the manager’s status did not allow him to. “All right, you’ll manage it if you take it slowly.” And he went off ahead. The old watchman couldn’t work out how to do it for a long time. If he tried to carry it at his side, he couldn’t get his arm around… Read more »

JP Stewart
JP Stewart
3 years ago
Reply to  Gray

I wonder if that kind of noose could function as a tie-down for a garage? If so, we may start seeing more of them at NASCAR!

Gray
Gray
3 years ago

This seems to be within the current subject matter, and seemingly very close to the wheelhouse: “A federal court in the San Francisco Bay Area has determined that churches do not contribute to a vibrant and fun atmosphere and therefore may be excluded from Salinas’ downtown area.”

https://www.pacificjustice.org/press/court-city-can-exclude-churches-while-favoring-theaters-and-entertainment/

-BJ-
-BJ-
3 years ago

Mike M. (and whoever might be interested)

Following up on our previous conversation, the final part of the debate has been published.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbzU7It4j3k&list=PL6Nuau4C8u1ApCpwSJZqbKbeWIZw-CPr2