To answer the OP, I would say Yes, I recognize my country. But I would also suggest that recognizing my country now is not as important as; do I recognize where my country is headed?
With the exception of the younger here, how many did not truly see this coming?
How many have felt powerless to stop it?
What are we going to do about it now?
The information and warning is up in post #26.
I hate to be blunt, but it is my fault, your fault, everybody's fault. The sheep were loaded on the train a long time ago. No one can really blame them for being along for the ride. It isn't the fault of the guy currently driving the train or the train itself, they only influence the speed of the journey. Some might even want to blame the train tracks for the direction we are headed in, but it isn't even the inevitability of our destination where blame is to be placed.
It is our own nature and the personal responsibility of each and every one of us (to continue the analogy) that allowed the land to be taken to build the tracks upon in the first place. Through our complacence, the desire to live the "good life" (who really doesn't want that after all?) allowed evil power to be manifested outside of watchful diligence to gain a foothold.
That power secured for itself a space to exist and it lives like a parasite, living off of our dreams. It lives off the dreams for ourselves and the dreams for our children. The space that we allow for ourselves to have special "treatment" is the space where that parasite is hatched. An unwillingness to admit to our own selfishness and greed gives place for that evil parasite to grow. We all gave it the land, the space it needed, upon which to build the tracks for the train upon which we all now ride.
The evil spreads because we have free will and freedom of choice. Do you think the founders were ever able to foresee the irony that the blessed gift of freedom of personal choice and self determination would lead the country they were founding to destruction through the very principles they were trying to promote? It has happened before and continues to happen again and again. Since the beginning of recorded history empires have risen and fallen. Man becomes overwhelmed by the situation that he himself has created and everything goes to Hell.
Is it pride that led our founding fathers to believe this time would be different? Or was it hope? Was it faith in God that we could, as a people, prosper and succeed forever? Do you think they felt we could, as a nation, find a common foundation for all people that we could rise above our selfish short comings as human beings and become a nation of the people, by the people, for the people? Were they foolish, naive, have blind hope, or did they believe in something else that we do not know or recognize today?
Whether the liberals want the conservatives loaded into cattle cars or the conservatives think all the liberals need to be loaded up, it really doesn't matter because every one of us is already on the train. It didn't happen without fault and placing blame now is like chasing wind.
The questions are: What are YOU willing to do about it and have you made peace with your creator?
With the exception of the younger here, how many did not truly see this coming?
How many have felt powerless to stop it?
What are we going to do about it now?
The information and warning is up in post #26.
I hate to be blunt, but it is my fault, your fault, everybody's fault. The sheep were loaded on the train a long time ago. No one can really blame them for being along for the ride. It isn't the fault of the guy currently driving the train or the train itself, they only influence the speed of the journey. Some might even want to blame the train tracks for the direction we are headed in, but it isn't even the inevitability of our destination where blame is to be placed.
It is our own nature and the personal responsibility of each and every one of us (to continue the analogy) that allowed the land to be taken to build the tracks upon in the first place. Through our complacence, the desire to live the "good life" (who really doesn't want that after all?) allowed evil power to be manifested outside of watchful diligence to gain a foothold.
That power secured for itself a space to exist and it lives like a parasite, living off of our dreams. It lives off the dreams for ourselves and the dreams for our children. The space that we allow for ourselves to have special "treatment" is the space where that parasite is hatched. An unwillingness to admit to our own selfishness and greed gives place for that evil parasite to grow. We all gave it the land, the space it needed, upon which to build the tracks for the train upon which we all now ride.
The evil spreads because we have free will and freedom of choice. Do you think the founders were ever able to foresee the irony that the blessed gift of freedom of personal choice and self determination would lead the country they were founding to destruction through the very principles they were trying to promote? It has happened before and continues to happen again and again. Since the beginning of recorded history empires have risen and fallen. Man becomes overwhelmed by the situation that he himself has created and everything goes to Hell.
Is it pride that led our founding fathers to believe this time would be different? Or was it hope? Was it faith in God that we could, as a people, prosper and succeed forever? Do you think they felt we could, as a nation, find a common foundation for all people that we could rise above our selfish short comings as human beings and become a nation of the people, by the people, for the people? Were they foolish, naive, have blind hope, or did they believe in something else that we do not know or recognize today?
Whether the liberals want the conservatives loaded into cattle cars or the conservatives think all the liberals need to be loaded up, it really doesn't matter because every one of us is already on the train. It didn't happen without fault and placing blame now is like chasing wind.
The questions are: What are YOU willing to do about it and have you made peace with your creator?