Acquaintance Rape

So, here's the scene:

A girl in high school meets a guy. She "really cares" about him. He wants to have sex with her, but she says no because she's not ready. She "tried keepin [her] clothes on" but finally gave in because she didn't think she'd win. After they have sex, she reports that he started treating her really badly. Specifically, he threatens to beat up her ex-boyfriend and tell her parents what happened if she leaves him. So, she stays and whenever they are alone, he always gets his way and has sex with her, even though she doesn't want to.

He blames her, telling her that it is her fault because she drives him crazy by wanting to leave him, and that he needs her. So, after a little arguing, he always gets to have sex with her. Some of her friends tell her it's date rape, some say it isn't because she put herself in a bad situation. Meanwhile, she would leave, except that she's afraid for her ex-boyfriend, and she's worried about his threats to have friends from his gang go after her.

"im still confused to whether or not if i went through date rape or not bc he had done it to me more than once."

Just because he is committing the crime more than once, that certainly doesn't mean it's not a crime. In my humble opinion, this is fairly classic.

First, even if she had done it with him willingly many times -- not the situation here -- the first time he has sex with her against her will after she has said "no" it is a rape. It used to be that a defense against rape in the US was that the two people involved were married. That is no longer the case in America. If a husband forces his wife to have sex against her will, that is illegal. That is why many jurisdictions have gotten away from the crime of "rape" and now address "sexual assault" -- it is more inclusive of a broader range of criminal conduct.

It should be noted, though, that often times the perpetrator justifies his conduct to himself, to his victim, and to others, either explicitly or implicitly, by the fact that the two have had sex before. Amazingly, even if the previous incidents themselves were sexual assaults, somehow in the twisted logic that gives birth to acquaintance rape, that "makes it okay" somehow.

Second, this threat of violence -- again, whether explicit or implicit -- against people the victim cares about or against the victim herself just reinforces the fact that he is forcing her repeatedly to do something against her will. It is rape, pure and simple.

Third, the fact that he excuses himself by blaming the victim facilitates his criminal conduct in his own mind, and confuses her enough that she doesn't put an end to it, but rather allows it to continue. Furthermore, blaming the victim for being raped is, in my opinion, another kind of rape. It is a mental rape, over and above the physical rape of forcing her to commit a sexual act against her will. It is a violation of her humanity.

If it has already happened before, there is a very real danger that it will happen again. If this guy isn't doing this to the same girl, he might be doing it to someone else. If he doesn't have someone else to do it to, then she is definitely in danger of being victimized again. This guy is thinking with his penis, and his brain only enters in to justify and excuse him and consider how to get away with it.

This is NOT HER FAULT. She may very well have made some bad decisions and put herself into bad situations, but that in no way excuses or justifies the crime that this rapist is committing repeatedly.

In a situation like this, the victim might want to tell her parents. Certainly it is worth considering how the person's parents will react. In many cases though, although the parents may initially react with anger, and may fall into the trap of blaming the victim, eventually they will (hopefully) come around and be supportive of their daughter.

A good place to seek help is the school guidance counselor, who (presumably) is trained enough in these matters to put the victim in touch with appropriate help. Regardless, the school administration needs to know what kind of a problem there is in the school so they can ensure the safety not only of this victim but of other girls as well. Hopefully, the school administration will do its job here, and not just cover this all up to keep the school from looking bad -- such kinds of things have been known to occur.

Local law enforcement may be of help. Aside from law enforcement, there are crisis counselors available -- I link to a couple, and there might be some in the victim's local community, depending on where the victim lives. In some cases, if the victim is in a rural area, it may be a long way to appropriate help. Local clergy may be of help, too -- that just depends.


A parting comment to you guys that are thinking you would do this if you "knew" you could get away with it....

You can't. You might escape justice on this earth, but the Lord will get you sooner or later. The only way out is to turn to your Creator, acknowledge the bad things you have done, and make a sincere effort to change and do better. Anything short of that, and you will, in the hereafter, find yourself in special place, with a special guy, who will teach you all there is to know about rape....

Hell exists for a reason.

"All over a colored flag and a few dollars."

Here's another story I heard recently. I took out the names and did other minor editing:

"I only had one real uncle.... He took care of everybody in my family, making sure we were always safe. Now he's gone, dead, one bullet to the head. All over a colored flag and a few dollars. [He] knew a lot of people, he touched a lot of lives. He will be greatly missed...."

Yeah, isn't gang life cool?

Alcohol, Sex and Date Rape

I recently got a story from someone explaining how she went to a friend's house and "got really drunk." While she was drunk she had sex with a guy. She said yes, but, she points out, she was drunk. Now she feels terrible, and is wondering if this is rape.

In many jurisdictions in the United States, the influence of drugs or alcohol is considered when determining whether or not a person "consented" to having sex. The effects of the drugs or alcohol can negate the consent, and the act can be considered a sexual assault or a rape. Another factor that generally negates consent is age; a person who is too young, even though the person eagerly says "yes", is considered to not be able to give consent: hence terms like "age of consent" and "statutory rape".

No matter how much alcohol a person consumes, it does not entitle others to take advantage of that person. People have a right to consume alcohol without being raped; people even have a right to make the mistake of having a "few too many" without being victimized by rapists or robbers or others. Even if the person is under the legal drinking age, and thus violating the law by consuming, that still does not give others the right to violate the law by sexually assaulting that person.

The reality is, however, that there are too many people out there who are completely unscrupulous and will take advantage of any situation.

What this story seems to be, though, is one of those stories where the people under the influence of alcohol did some things that they later regretted and felt bad about. If you look through the websites linked to in the panel to the right dealing with rape and sexual assault, you will discover that one indicator that a sexual assault or "date rape" may have occurred is when one (or both) of the people just feels bad about what happened and the way it happened. If someone has that kind of a feeling afterwards, it may have been a sexual assault. It also may have been just two people who made a bad decision in the heat of the moment. It's a fine line between a crime and bad judgment -- a fine line blurred by drugs and alcohol. That's part of why these kinds of assaults have at times been difficult to prosecute, and that's part of why authorities sometimes don't pursue the case.

Just because you are drunk, that does not give others the right to victimize you. The reality is, however, that consuming alcohol impacts your judgment and your ability to react to the situations around you and makes you an easier target for those who would victimize you. Even if you're with a good crowd of people who are sincerely watching out for you, consuming alcohol can increase the likelihood of something happening that people will later regret.

The World of Su Xiao-Zhen

Para los que hablan español, con mucho gusto puedo recomendarles este blog: El Mundo de Su Xiao-Zhen.

Es el blog de una española; se llama Su Xiao-Zhen y vive en Kuala Lumpur, Malasia, que se encuentra por la orilla del Océano Pacífico. Parece que anda de viajes por su trabajo, y siempre maneja un momento para disfrutar de los lugares exóticos que visita y toma una fotos. Luego regresa y pone en su blog sus fotos con mapas y una descripción del lugar que ha visitado. Es muy interesante; ella obviamente es una blogger de bastante preparación.

También es interesante para mí, un gringo, que ella es española y escribe en español castellano. Por ejemplo, arriba yo escribí "recomendarles" (a ustedes), con mi accento mexicano, pero ella escribiría "recomendaros" (a vosotros), de manera castellana. Sale que ella escribe en español muy correcto, no como yo, cuando típicamente escribo vocales sin accentos -- ¡en este post estoy poniendo atención!

Actualmente ella tiene allí La Belleza de Sabah y Un Mundo aparte llamado Brunei. Vale la pena leerlos y lo demás.

For those of you who don't understand Spanish, Su Xiao-Zhen, a young lady from Barcelona who lives in Kuala Lampur, has the blog referenced above. Even if you can't enjoy the wonderful information in the very correct Castilian Spanish that she writes, there are still beautiful photos and nice maps, and I saw a post in English there, too.

Her blogs (she also has Tres Cosas Hermosas) are worth a visit.



Alright -- let me practice a little: á ó é í ú ñ ¡ ¿

Ripples in a Pond

Greta over at Musings has some thoughts about blogging: Echoes in a Vacuum. It's worth a read.

Personally, instead of echoes in a vacuum, I think of it as ripples in a pond. My comment to her post was this:

The pond is big; we don't know how big, neither can we see its edges. When we toss in a pebble, who knows where the ripples will reach?

But it's the same idea.

Cosmic thoughts....

A "Choice"

Abortion is murder of an innocent person.

Often times, even people who are "pro-life" will permit an exception for abortion in cases of rape or incest.

Consider this, from Pam Stenzel Dot Com: Pam's Biography:

Seven years ago Pam Stenzel grew weary of hearing the phrase, NOBODY TOLD ME!! After years of counseling young girls who found themselves in crisis pregnancies, Pam began to realize that so many were completely unaware of the risks involved with sexual activity, and that many had never been told about all the consequences of their choices. That was the inception of Pam's life as a speaker, but Pam Stenzel's story started years earlier.

In 1964 a fifteen-year-old girl was raped, became pregnant, and decided to carry her unborn child to term. Five months after the baby girl was born, in an act of courage and love the young mother provided her child a better environment by giving her to an adoptive family. That child was Pam Stenzel. She is the oldest of 8 children… 7 adopted…1 biological, and her extended family includes 38 adopted children in all.

From Pam Stenzel Dot Com: About Pam:

What People are saying about Pam Stenzel

"In 27 years of education I have never heard a more clear and direct message to young people. Pam effectively delivered a very important and powerful message to our young people."
Educator

"I got tears in my eyes when you told me and the others who chose to abstain that you thought we had character and you were proud. No one has ever told me that before."
Student

"Pam Stenzel is a dynamic speaker whose message is one that saves young people from a lifetime of tragic consequences. Pam believes in young people’s ability and willingness to make good choices, if given appropriate information, and are really challenged to save sex for marriage."
Dan Ziedler
President
Family Life Council, Inc.

"Pam connects and is a powerful voice on the side of responsibility and morality in a culture war that offers kids all too many voices on the other side. She delivers a shocking message to kids - you are not out of control sex maniacs. Waiting has some nice rewards, and avoids some terrible price tags."
Sean Hannity Radio & TV Host
Fox News, WABC Radio

Although conceived when her mother was raped, Pam Stenzel now tries to solve some of our world's problems by educating young people on the responsibilities and consequences of sexual activity. Had Pam's mother taken her innocent baby and made that baby into a "choice", Pam's contribution to our society would not have been possible.

You don't know how God intends to use a situation or a set of circumstances. You don't know what plans God has for your unborn child.

When you're considering your "choices", consider the life that God has placed inside you, and make a choice that both you and God can be eternally pleased with.

"Living in a Nightmare"

Living In A Nightmare

After burying my own brother, I have seen the world in a different light. I spent some time in jail, and I spent some time living in pain, The pain that you are thinking of is a mental pain that would drive a man to kill himself. Everyday I have to live this pain. I have to live with the fact that I hurt many people and I hurt myself, I even thought a gunshot or a few would make me a real man. I am partially crippled due to my foolish decisions.

I was once in Los Angeles, on the block with helicopters 50 feet off the ground searching at night for drive-by suspects. Holding a cup filled with thunderbird wine, a wine so strong we called it "gangsta juice". I would have that big joint in my left hand with my eyes bloodshot scanning back and forth looking for enemies, and the police who would run up on us. packing a loaded gun at age 10 to standing in front of a burnt out liquor store with my homies. You know I thought that was the world and the people who was really down for me.

Every gangster story is unique because it's coming from a unique person, just like we all got unique fingerprints. The nightmare that I live everyday is from my past. I'm scarred mentally. You know I am sitting here writing about the pain I feel but how did I get this way? Why is it this way I used to carry dope for my big homies, and do anything they ask to earn what I thought was respect. Who is respecting me? Everybody? Hell no. Just from my close circle of friends who were down to kill for me? No. You know they straight turn on me snitch. I trusted them and got stabbed in the back. I was down for years and lived right here in South Central LA. Things ain't the way they used to be. Everybody is out for themselves. It's always been that way though.

I just remember the bodies dropping, the cries of screaming mothers, screaming to God and I can't even say it. You know I heard this song "Theres a dead man walking in the hood". There is a dead man walking in every hood. It's not right to blame anybody for the problems we have created for ourselves. My brother who I loved was murdered. It wasn't my fault and I can't really be mad at the world. Sometimes I thought taking a gun to my head was the only way to get out of this world of misery. I have a lot of questions that I can't answer or get answered. People treat me like I am a threat often. It's like they can see in my eyes the pain, the misery, the evil deeds I done. It hurts everyday that I have to carry an old soul. I've lived a lifetime over and over.

The gang is a group and can a gang can't be stopped. People don't understand that gang members are tight knit groups of friends. When we live in surroundings of hopelessness then we turn to violence to get respect. Does the working man in the business suit going to respect us? No. They look at us as if we are stupid thugs who are not smart enough to know any better. But you know, we choose to live this gang life and we do know it. That's where hopelessness comes in. The greatest human desire to be appreciated, to be looked at as if we were great. To be loved. The greatest desire isn't money. It's bigger then that. I have seen countless dead bodies, people brains blown out on the streets of Los Angeles. A war zone.

The police ride around in armored vehicles raiding houses, flying helicopters, and harassing innocent people. We are the people who just want to work, we just want to live. And I am telling everybody right now that Peace can be real, but force is necessary to get it. We can't let the LAPD continue to step on us. And let me tell you that in no way am I trying to encourage violence. I am only saying that regardless of the gang, there are bad peoples out there. There are some straight killers that will kill and not care. Sociopaths. I know some. I had one homie who would murder people every week. Mostly people of his own racial makeup, black. He was murder kids, parents, and other gang members of rival sets. See the nightmare I have to live? Pieces of shit like this who I was friends with?

Because like I said there are bad people out there. Don't think twice about that. I acknowledge that I have and feel bad about the pain I inflicted on others. The point of these writings is the madness I have to live with, the pain I am in everyday. It develops over the years. I banged for 12 years and I am so scarred mentally I can't even think straight. Read this and I want you to say to yourself "damn, I don't want to end up like this guy". I still try to pull through everyday and have faith in God. But changing is not as easy as it seems. It is a process. I never really had anybody there for me except my family. I was lonely when I had to quit my criminal career. Who else can I fit in with? I banged since I was 11 years old.

I had to catch up with the real world. I see even in the real world everybody bangs, they bang to get that job, they bang to get that new car, that lady friend. Little would we know we bang on other daily, aside from being in a real gang. I called my homie the other day, he's been in his house with a bracelet that beeps whenever he leaves his front yard. It's called house arrest. Imagine that shit. Once it was on my ankle. I am tired and don't want anybody to live my personal pain.

Have hope, have big dreams, think to yourself that you can be somebody and not end up a deadbeat, not end up a mental cripple.

This is no game, this is foreal. Don't hurt anybody to get to the top. The traditional business technique. I want people to start loving one another, care about your peoples. I want you to help a disadvantaged person. It will make you feel better to give back rather then take like the gang members mentality is based on, taking and not giving back. These words are real and come from my heart.

O.G. RK

When you start trying to act "cool", thinking you need to experience this to "be a man",...

"I have to live with the fact that I hurt many people and I hurt myself, I even thought a gunshot or a few would make me a real man. I am partially crippled due to my foolish decisions."

...or do that to "get respect",...

"Why is it this way I used to carry dope for my big homies, and do anything they ask to earn what I thought was respect. Who is respecting me? Everybody? Hell no. Just from my close circle of friends who were down to kill for me? No. You know they straight turn on me snitch. I trusted them and got stabbed in the back. I was down for years and lived right here in South Central LA. Things ain't the way they used to be. Everybody is out for themselves. It's always been that way though."

...you never know where it's going to end.

Maybe you just dress like a banger and hang out, thinking people won't mess with you because they think you're a banger. Maybe you think that since you're not really a banger, you won't get in the trouble. Think again. Even something like that can lead to some gangmembers seeing you, thinking you're from a rival set, and taking a shot.

"And I am telling everybody right now that Peace can be real, but force is necessary to get it. [...] There are some straight killers that will kill and not care. Sociopaths. I know some. I had one homie who would murder people every week. Mostly people of his own racial makeup, black. He was murder kids, parents, and other gang members of rival sets. See the nightmare I have to live? Pieces of shit like this who I was friends with?"

In my opinion, and I think this is what RK is trying to say here, it is because of killers like this guy he describes that the threat of force, from law enforcement (LE) for example, is necessary to intimidate and deter them. In that same paragraph, though, he hints at problems in relations between LE and the civilian community, problems that need to be addressed:

"The police ride around in armored vehicles raiding houses, flying helicopters, and harassing innocent people. We are the people who just want to work, we just want to live. [...] We can't let the LAPD continue to step on us."

"Ganglyfe" is really gangdeath. It's hell-on-earth, homes:

"Sometimes I thought taking a gun to my head was the only way to get out of this world of misery."

Jesus is the way out this world of misery. The nightmare ends when you wake up and come to Jesus.

"This is no game, this is foreal. Don't hurt anybody to get to the top. The traditional business technique. I want people to start loving one another, care about your peoples. I want you to help a disadvantaged person. It will make you feel better to give back rather then take like the gang members mentality is based on, taking and not giving back. These words are real and come from my heart.

O.G. RK"

Knowledge and Wisdom

An interesting article:
Final tearful plea as embryo fight fails.

A WOMAN left infertile after cancer therapy yesterday made a final plea to her ex-partner for permission to use frozen embryos, after her five-year legal fight ended in failure.

Natallie Evans broke down in tears as she spoke of her anguish at the prospect of never becoming a mother using her own embryos.

The 35-year-old appealed to her former partner, Howard Johnston, to change his mind and allow her to use the eggs he fertilised in 2001. The embryos are due to be destroyed within 28 days, after the European Court of Human Rights yesterday ruled against her.

She said: "I am distraught at the court's decision. It is very hard for me to accept the embryos will now be destroyed and I will never become a mother.

"Whilst a lot has been said about the rights of Mr Johnston, I was fighting for my right to be a mother and the rights of the embryos.

"I would ask Howard to consider whether he could permit me to have the children I long for, and which he was happy to consent to when the procedure took place to create these embryos."

Asked if she would make a last-ditch appeal to Mr Johnston, she said: "I have pleaded with him before and it has not worked; now there is nothing I can say to him.

"Last time I pleaded with him and asked him, 'Please rethink', and he didn't. He said nothing is going to change his mind."

Mr Johnston, 30, said he and Ms Evans had discussed other ways she might become a mother when the couple were undergoing IVF.

He said: "Being a mother is still an option to [Ms Evans] that does not involve me.

"I had hoped that commonsense and the legal framework would hold up. I'm grateful and relieved that it has done so."

Mr Johnston added:

"I don't think I have acted selfishly. If you turn this on its head and if I was infertile with a new partner, I wouldn't expect Natallie consenting to me using them."

He said he had not spoken to Ms Evans, but acknowledged she had been through an "emotional rollercoaster".

He added: "I've had every sympathy with Natallie from the first moment I knew I didn't want to have children with her, and it's the same now.

"I don't regret meeting her. At one point in our relationship, she was Miss Right."

The human rights judges said the central dilemma was an "entirely irreconcilable" conflict between Natallie and her former boyfriend. The issues raised by the case were "undoubtedly of a morally and ethically delicate nature", said the judgment.

There is currently no standard European approach to questions in the field of IVF.

The UK is not alone in permitting the storage of embryos and giving both partners the right to withdraw consent up to the moment of implantation, but different rules and practices are applied elsewhere in Europe.

There is no European consensus about the stage in IVF treatment when the sperm donor's consent becomes irrevocable.

LAST HOPE OF MOTHERHOOD
Q: Why did Natallie Evans have the embryos frozen?

A: In 2001, her ovaries were removed after pre-cancerous cells were found. The treatment would leave her infertile, so she first underwent in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) with then partner Howard Johnston. His sperm fertilised her eggs and six embryos were frozen - her only chance of having her own children.

Q: What is the process for IVF from frozen embryos?

A: Embryos are frozen in liquid nitrogen. They can be stored for up to five years.

There's a great deal here. Let me boil it down for you.

First, human life begins at conception. If that is not the starting point, then what is? Birth?

Births occur naturally after pregnancies of different lengths of time; for example, nine months and one week vs. eight months and three weeks. Additionally, the labor can be induced medically, and operational procedures can result in a birth without labor. No matter how it happens, the baby can be expected to come out alive and living. That means the baby was alive and living inside "Mom". Consequently, to suggest that "birth" is when human life begins is quite arbitrary; it just doesn't pass the idiot test.

Even more foolishly has it been argued that humal life begins when a person is sentient, conscious, self-aware. This is extremely sinister, since self-awareness is hard to prove. A computer could be programmed to appear to be self-aware. Conversely, a person who, for whatever reason, has difficulty sensing surroundings or communicating about them, could appear to be not self-aware.

For that matter, how do I know that you are self-aware?

If sentience is the yardstick by which human life is measured, then there is no such thing as murder, and the door is wide open for a madman to decide that no one exists besides himself, and decide to abort all of humanity.

Human life begins at conception. That is when our Creator establishes the connection between an other-worldly spirit or soul and the this-worldly biological entity of a fertilized egg.

Once that is understood, then it logically and obviously follows that abortion is murder. So is the destruction of these "fertilized embryos".

When Mr. Johnston agreed to fertilize Ms. Evans' eggs, he became a father to her offspring. Those children are now held in limbo under what appears to be a death sentence.

It's amazing what science can do.

2:1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you,
2:2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.
2:3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
[...]
2:9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders,
2:10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
2:11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie,
2:12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

(from the Second Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Thessalonians)

Humanity has eaten of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Now, that knowledge is advancing far, far beyond our "wisdom" to deal with it, and, instead of serving us, we have come to serve it.

It is time to eat of the Tree of Wisdom, Which is God.

26:26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is My body."
26:27 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you.
26:28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
26:29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom."
(From the Gospel according to Matthew)

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil is the Tree of Death. The Tree of Wisdom, the Tree of Knowledge of the Lord, is the Tree of Life, Which stands in the middle of the Garden of Eden.

23:39 Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, "If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us."
23:40 But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?
23:41 And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong."
23:42 Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom."
23:43 And Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise."
(From the Gospel according to Luke)

Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!
Psalm 46:10

"Lord, remember when You come into Your Kingdom."

Gangs: "...dont join in da first place!!!"

I got this in an email:

yo im in a gang now dogg and both of my parents are cuz of gang its just bad im in one cuz of that im in da crips z did a drive by and killed em both but the only way to get out a gang is they kill u or beat u so dont join in da first place!!!

You can get out. I've known many people who have gotten out and gotten their lives together and are now quite happy.

It is hard, though, and it's scary. Many gangs do threaten to kill you or at least beat the stuffings out of you if you try to leave.

But, many gangmembers do respect Jesus Christ, and they often will respect a sincere desire on the part of a gangmember to leave gangdeath (notice how I write "gangdeath" instead of "ganglife") behind and come to Jesus. I think part of the reason is that most of the gangmembers are just as scared and want out just as much as the member who is leaving.

People don't understand words like "sin" and "salvation" -- they don't understand when you tell them that they commit sin and Jesus is here for their salvation.

So, let's use words like "mistakes" and "fixing them" instead.

We all make mistakes, and Jesus is here to fix them for us. Joining a gang is a mistake -- a very big one!

God knows more than we do. He gives us advice on what to do and what not to do. We do things our way, though, instead of His way -- those are mistakes, and they carry consequences. God has mercy on us, and has sent His Son Jesus Christ to fix our mistakes and save us from their consequences.

Get with Jesus and stay there.

Especially those of you who think you already are with Jesus -- get closer.

Help from the Government

There are many good people who work for the government, but as an institution, the government can be pretty useless. While the people who work for the government often go to extraordinary lengths to do their jobs, often times the "system" is just plain against them.

I recently had two emails that kind of illustrate the point.

One is from someone who works in a state penal system. This person is a counselor, and is looking for help in the form of someone who can come and talk to inmates who are about to be released to help motivate them to avoid gang affiliation and criminal activities once they get released, and to give them some ideas how to do so.

I applaud this individual. I wish we had more like this person. While many government employees are simply bureaucrats and sit around doing their job, no more no less, this person is taking initiative to find out how to do the job better, more competently, more thoroughly. This person is trying to serve the community by helping keep people who have committed crimes and are finishing their prison time from returning to a life of crime upon release. This is also a tremendous service to the prisoners who are about to be released. The effort here is to create a true win-win situation, helping all parties involved. God bless you for trying!

What's irritating, though, is that the government's penal system -- in this person's state and in every other -- should already have such a proactive program in place. Instead, they so often just release the prisoner back into the same system from which that prisoner came. Often times, the only change is that the individual's attitude has been hardened by the prison time, and the individual has learned more about crime by exchanging stories with other prisoners.

This brings me to the other email I got.

A mother is looking for help for her son, who wants to change, is trying to change, but finds life outside prison very challenging. She asked if there are any government programs that can help.

Of course, there probably are some government programs that could be of help.

The point is, though, that they shouldn't have to be asking. There should be proactive involvement on the part of the government-run penal system with a list of support organizations that people can contact upon their release. Those support organizations could be, and probably would be, private-sector and faith-based. The government doesn't have to recommend them (and shouldn't -- First Amendment); they can merely make the information available for those who want it.

True change in a person's life is a spiritual matter. In general terms, even if a person is not religious, the person needs to want to change and try hard to do so. Of course, as a Christian, I believe we all need to change, and that is why God sent His Son to us: to help us to change and to show us how.

There are certain things the government can do for us and should do for us. Defend the nation on the federal level (national defense), and defend society on all levels (policing), are two functions that come to mind. It is inappropriate to privatize these functions as they entail power that is too easy to abuse. For a similar reason, I am against privatizing prisons.

Beyond certain functions, though, the government can be pretty useless.

In New Orleans, for example, there were people who had spent so many years receiving government checks and living in government housing -- checks and housing that were intended to be temporary -- that they forgot how to take care of themselves. What was supposed to be a safety net became a hammock. The government's programs were counterproductive, creating a culture of helplessness and dependence on the government. People were taught a culture of victimization; they became addicted to government assistance. When Hurricane Katrina hit, the government showed how worthless it can be in a crisis, and these people were left in a devastated place that was suddenly and to a great extent temporarily ruled by criminals.

I think it's time we take a good, hard look at what little it is that government can actually do for us, and then pay government accordingly -- a low, flat tax.

Eliminate all the useless or counterproductive government programs -- the pork -- and we could have a whopping tax cut, which would mean more money in our pockets. That money would be invested and spent, spurring economic growth. The private sector would have more funding for the faith-based and charitable programs that really work, eliminating, through increased economic opportunity and a better-funded private sector safety net, much of the need for government programs. And, the government, taking a smaller piece of a bigger economic pie, would have more tax dollars to spend -- enough to give people like that counselor I mentioned above a well-deserved raise!

The biggest help the government can give us is to cut our taxes as much as possible and leave us alone as much as possible.

In The Beginning was Vegetarianism

1:26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
1:27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
1:28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
1:29 And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food.
1:30 "Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food"; and it was so.
1:31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
(from the Book of Genesis)

It's fun debating with people about what God intended us to eat. I tell some Christians that I'm a vegetarian, and mention Christianity as one reason why, and many of them during the discussion wind up pointing out the Mosaic provision where Moses, giving the law to the ancient Hebrews in the desert, gave the children of Israel a big, long list of animals that they can eat.

So, I ask, is a man allowed to divorce his wife for just any reason? Of course, I am leading them to this passage:

19:3 The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"
19:4 And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,'
19:5 "and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'?
19:6 "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."
19:7 They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"
19:8 He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so."
(from the Gospel according to Matthew)

Moses permitted divorce, but that came about after The Fall, after Original Sin -- after we were booted out of the Garden of Eden. In The Beginning it was not so.

So, then, I ask them if man is permitted to eat just any animals. Of course there is the Mosaic list of what animals can and cannot be eaten. It's a fairly long list.

People then typically point to the passage in Chapter 7 of Mark or Chapter 15 of Matthew (the account in Mark is a little better for our purposes) where our Lord explains that it is not what goes into a person that defiles, but rather what comes out -- the evil thoughts and evil actions. Of course, the explanation is intended to draw attention away from the ceremonies of the Pharisees (handwashing) and towards the intent behind the law; that is, after all, what Jesus had been doing all along. Many people understand that passage to abrogate Mosaic Law regarding foods.

I, however, disagree with that understanding.

5:17 "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.
5:18 "For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled."
(from the Gospel according to Matthew)

My question then follows: was it so in The Beginning? I usually get blank looks in response.

God gave us the plants as food. We have dominion over the animals. God also gave the plants as food for the animals. We were not intended to eat animals, neither were animals intended to eat each other. We were intended to have dominion over animals -- they would be our companions, friends, "pets" -- but we, and they, were intended to eat plants.

People eating animals (and animals eating each other) came later, after The Fall.

As we approach Easter, we are in Great Lent. Check the Orthodox links in the sidebar and learn about the lenten fast. Pay particular attention to what one may and may not consume, and when. One of the main things we are to avoid is animal-based products. Many of the rules deal with which animal-based products can be eaten, and when.

For me, it's easier. I avoid animal-based products all the time -- just like we were supposed to do all along.

Gen 1:31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.