Thursday, November 26, 2009

FOR THERE IS MUCH WORK TO BE DONE

"He said, 'Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.' His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master's joy.'" [Matthew 25:20-21]

"...[B]ut rather labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with one in need...[And] be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ." [Ephesians 4:28, 32]

***

What if we could invest in Americans, reduce waste, increase GDP, and improve family morale with a philosophical shift in the administration of taxpayer funded unemployment benefits? Would Congress have the courage to take action?

The recent extension of unemployment benefits is but another chapter in an economic saga for which the end has yet to be written.  Among the unemployed are many skilled and talented job seekers eager to return to gainful employment. The economic meltdown's domino effect has led many breadwinners to lose their previously "secure" positions, despite dedicated their dedicated service to their former employer, coupled with specialized technical training and/or post-graduate education.

As the unanimous Senate vote and earlier overwhelmingly bipartisan 331-83 House of Representatives vote suggest, no God-loving person would want to see their neighbor's family starve or lose their home simply as a collateral result of a layoff.  Yet I would put forth that there would be a more effective manner in which these taxpayer dollars could be transferred from the federal coffers to the family budgets.

If one were to agree that a majority of unemployed men and women possess the strong American work ethic and derive dignity and self-esteem from actively engaging in productive and creative work, then might there be a better manner to pay out these taxpayer-funded benefits?


  • Among the unemployed are skilled architects, engineers, and building trades. Are there not schools, government buildings, hospitals, and housing projects in needs of expansion, maintenance, or repair?


  • Among the unemployed are skilled technology professionals. Are there not public schools, state universities, government agencies, hospitals, and the military in need of networking & cabling, software design & programming, data mining, and hardware deployment?


  • Among the unemployed are skilled teachers, counselors, and administrators. Are there not at-risk children (pre-K through high school) who could benefit from the caring, compassionate attention that additional educators and specialists could bring to challenged & underfunded public school systems?


  • ...and so forth...

I think we would be hard pressed to find able-bodied Americans who wouldn't trade the hours of stress, loneliness, and uncertainty for the engagement of familiar or new meaningful contribution to the economy. So long as we've made the decision, through our Legislative and Executive Branches to spend taxpayer funds to support families through a prolonged period of unemployment, can't we at least structure such a program to produce a return on our investment instead of simply a government-funded benefit?

TODAY'S QUESTION: How can Congress restructure future unemployment compensation legislation to produce the greatest return to our nation on the meaningful and necessary investment of taxpayer funds?

Saturday, November 14, 2009

GENUINELY PRO-LIFE HEALTH CARE LEGISLATION

"Happy those concerned for the lowly and poor; when misfortune strikes, the Lord delivers them...
The Lord sustains them on their sickbed, allays the malady when they are ill." [Psalm 41:2,4]

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former." [Matthew 23:23]

If we are to engage in honest, Christ-focused debate amidst crafting truly comprehensive health care legislation and retake the lead in ensuring that a bill emerges that will reduce costs to businesses, protect human life at ALL stages, and encourage further medical technology innovation, we must restrain our urge to communicate solely via cable news soundbites and caustic blog postings.

Jesus valued LIFE...ALL life.  We tend to focus so much upon the blight caused by abortion that we neglect to speak to the truths of those already born and suffering (children, seniors, etc.).  Jesus cared for and encouraged others to care for the poor, the children, the sick, the widows.

He did not employ a partisan litmus test before administering healing.  Jesus did not come only to heal one party, one gender, or one economic class to the exclusion of others, and the Lord's message as told to us through Scripture is no less poignant and clear today than it was thousands of years ago: "Do unto others as you would have done unto you."  Be not a modern day Pharisee, but be a Light upon the Hill.

Instead of fighting AGAINST health care legislation, why don't we Conservatives retake the high ground in the debate and restore our principles to the legilation in a manner that will allow us to go back to our Districts and be able to share with our constituents our pro-active efforts on their behalf.  Cancer doesn't evade conservatives' children, nor does dementia evade their elderly parents.  Being uninsured after a job loss is not limited only to members of the liberal caste.  Wouldn't we benefit more if we could stand before our constituents back home, men and women, young and old, Republican and Democrat, business owner and retiree, and tell them of our SUCCESS in fighting for ALL OF THEM.

Personally, I wish Ronald Reagan and Lee Atwater could have been with us longer...Why don't we retake the initiative on this legislation, build consensus around God-fearing, pro-life, fiscally responsible free market principles, and be heralded in history as the party that governed our citizenry with compassion and delivered REAL HEALTH CARE REFORM.  Or, as I heard a pastor say once, "Be Jesus to others in all of your affairs, as you may be the ONLY Jesus that someone encounters today."
TODAY'S QUESTION: How can YOU embrace the Lord's Word in the health care debate so that YOUR principles are encompassed in the final legislation in a manner that benefits ALL of God's children?

Thursday, November 5, 2009

YOUR AUDIENCE: THE INDEPENDENT ELECTORATE

When the media spin is peeled away from the November 3, 2009 election results, one sees the unvarnished result in the seeming hodge-podge of results across the spectrum: the Independent Electorate spoke for themselves at the ballot box.

One can reconcile the seemingly diverse results of well-won gubernatorial victories by Bob McDonnell (VA) and Chris Christie (NJ), Michael Bloomberg's 3rd-term mayoral victory in the Big Apple, and Bill Owen's century-aged Democratic victory in the NY-23 congressional district within the context of voters choosing the candidates that they themselves perceived to be the best qualified to address their respective local, state and national issues.

Particularly in the Virginia and New Jersey contests, both victors sincerely and consistently engaged the citizens of their states in real dialogue so that they, as candidates, could develop broad-based plans to address their citizens' concerns. The 2010 gubernatorial contests in Texas (Governor Rick Perry) and Michigan (current Attorney General Mike Cox) reflect similar genuine family-focused, pro-free market solutions to the real challenges facing men and women, business leaders, and municipalities.  Particularly in Michigan, candidate Mike Cox continues his genuine, heart-felt mission of representing ALL citizens with his well-researched, comprehensive practical plan to rejuvinate Michigan on several critical fronts (see: http://www.mikecox2010.com/putting-michigan-back-to-work/).

The victors in local, state, and national elections in 2010 (much like 2008 & 2009) will be drawn from the men and women who propose comprehensive, practical solutions. The real challenges facing our nation's citizens know no partisan bounds. Unemployment, high taxes, lost health insurance, foreclosure, and crime cut deeply through Republican, Democrat, and Independent families, farms, and business alike. While bitter, partisan punditry may make for entertaining cable news shows, only REAL solutions that address REAL FAMILY & BUSINESS concerns will lead that ever-important Independent Electorate to pull your lever in 2010.

TODAY'S QUESTION: What are YOU doing to engage YOUR electorate personally to sincerely identify the pressing challenges and craft meaningful solutions that will ensure the resurgence family and business financial security?