Category Archives: Current Events

I WILL post some items in this category, when I have the guts to do so. I anticipate some non politically correct stuff being posted here that might pith some people off.

The U.S. – a NATION OF COWARDS 2018-58

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The U.S. – a NATION OF COWARDS 2018-58
We in the United States, are a nation of cowards!! This includes me, you and anyone reading this message of despair in the U.S. if you read and only complain, and do nothing.

This includes the so-called leaders of our country, which includes the President down to the county office politicians, where we live.

We allowed the current top leader in the U.S., to be elected by default. This was enabled by non-voters of each party, the votes by the “base” that are still mind controlled by him, and normal people with hyped expectations. If you did not vote for “him”, that is a plus.

Our politicians have no guts and allow the pro-terrorist group called the NRA to bring them into submission with payoffs as bribes to follow their wishes.

We continue to allow the weapons of war to kill innocent people across America. We have politicians, paid by the NRA, to promote their wishes of using killing weapons on our people, and WE DO NOTHING!

I name, Republican Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, one of my Senators, who is a coward, being bribed by the NRA for doing NOTHING regarding the gun issue. I do not know about my Congressman Dave Joyce, if he is a paid NRA participant, but if he is paid, he is a coward also. Many others in America belong to this group of cowards, that say much, but do NOTHING!!!

The killing today of 10 students in Texas is another example of our do-nothing country citizens and poor politicians. We the people, are guilty of their deaths, just like the 17-year-old shooter in Santa Fe, TX. We allow our country to be ruled by the NRA and with a President, who was paid also, and, as a lying SOB, who leads those in control of Congress to just ignore what can be changed.

A Nation of Cowards we all are, for we are ALL complacent and complicit in these horrible actions. I am ashamed of myself, and of others that just say much, but do little regarding this issue. I applaud the students of Parkland, Florida who are outspoken about this and they are heroes in my mind.

Den Betts email: bettsden@gmail.com Blog: thebettsden.com

NOT approved for publishing by my Editor, as it is deemed “too reactionary”!

Quotes of Will Rodgers 2018-44

Posted in Contemplation, Current Events, Quotes by

Will Rodgers quotes     2018-44

 

Thought these would be interesting, based on current Washington, D.C. actions or in actions, that prevail in this quagmire we have in this dysfunctional environment of political leadership.

 

Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment. Will Rogers

I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts. Will Rogers

If Stupidity got us into this mess, then why can’t it get us out? Will Rogers

Even though you are on the right track – you will get run over it, if you just sit there. Will Rogers
Peace,

Den Betts     bettsden@gmail.com

We deserve what we got 2017-56

Posted in Contemplation, Current Events by

We deserve what we got   2017-56

This is not a positive statement of how we have things and others do not in the world.

America is in turmoil and the world is wondering how we got there and where we are and still continue to become what we are now.

We have leadership in the United States, that calls our news outlets as being false newscasting like a dictator trying to control the news by trying to persuade the populace in their way of thinking by denying the facts in a convoluted way.

We are taunting some other world leaders having nuclear capabilities and toward what end is unknown. Many citizens do NOT approve of our leaders, but we have them as they are, and now we have to live with these disgusting people on a daily basis.

The problem, overall, is NOT the leadership, it is the people that believe what the leadership is, and how they are performing, acting and dictating. Some people, did not vote for this leadership, BUT more importantly, they did not vote period. This is truly a sad state of affairs. By NOT voting, this gave the existing leadership a way to become in charge.

People in some countries that have leaders and laws that are geared toward anarchy, would LOVE to be able to vote those leaders out or never allow them to lead in the first place.

When a populace allows an inept, unqualified and doctorial leader to be elected, the people, as a whole suffer. This includes the leaders so called followers that helped elect hem in the first place.

Only time will tell as to how far this is allowed to continue. In the meantime, we deserve what we got, good, bad or indifferent.  So be it.

Peace,
Den Betts                                            bettsden@gmail.com

Confederate Flag and Statues 2017-31

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 Confederate Flag and Statues   2017-31

 I have been thinking about the flag and statue issue in the U.S. lately.

The confederate flag is a symbol. A symbol of a lost cause. It has other meanings as well, for many people in this great land of the United States…     

“The Confederate battle flag was never adopted by the Confederate Congress, never flew over any state capitols during the Confederacy, and was never officially used by Confederate veterans’ groups. The flag probably would have been relegated to Civil War museums if it had not been resurrected by the resurgent KKK. Supporters have labeled attempts to display the flag as an exercise of free speech, which it is, although a bad one.

On May 19, 2016, the United States House of Representatives voted to ban the display of Confederate flags on flagpoles at Veterans Administration cemeteries, by a 265-159 vote. The ban was contained in an amendment (House Amendment 592, 114th Congress) to House bill 2822, an appropriations bill. The author of the amendment was California congressman Jared Huffman, who stated that the flag represented “racism, slavery and division. Per Wikipedia”

You can show it, but it also shows something about YOU. What? Don’t really know what, because you might be a very nice person and to suggest you are not is not for me to state. It is, today, an archaic symbol, used by some for many reasons.

I lived in the south for many years and found out some interesting things about the people of the south.

Most are decent, law-abiding, and gracious people. Many would do anything for me when I asked or even if I did not ask. Many went to church regularly and believed in God, Jesus Christ and the Holly Spirit and showed this by doing Christian things as an everyday thing to do.

I do know that by showing this flag is telling me you have beliefs of some sorts. For a lost cause of the past or a challenge of the now or future, that is up to you to say. I do know it is offensive to many because of the past and the Civil War. My great-great grandfather fought and was wounded in the Civil War for the North, and in a way, your showing the flag is telling me you don’t care about what he did or what happened.

That is a shame in a general way, but you can continue to fly this symbol because you have a right entitled to you by the U.S. Constitution to do so, even though it is a disgrace to do so in my mind.

As such, the statues that have been erected during the Jim Crow era that was enforcing racial segregation and in the 1950’s were done so in retaliation to the things happening then. They are a symbol of slavery not heroes for a lost cause. Itis probably time for them to end up in a museum or a junk yard. If any have a problem with this, that is your problem not mine. 

Den Betts

God’s Glory Shown 2017-30

Posted in Current Events, Religious by

God’s Glory Shown 2017-30
WOW!!!!
So, I was outside, with ISO glasses, looking up at the Sun and Moon. Of course, the Moon was showing its dominance by blotting out the Sun, or at least partially, here in the Cleveland area.

I will share them with you, on what I was thinking.

God’s Glory was evident to me, totally and not partially. He was there for me, showing me His power and might. As Moses asked, “Please show me your glory”, so God did so with millions of people today, as he does always each day in different ways.

When I pray, I tell God, “Thank you, for your Glory, God!” That is one part of my prayer to God, when I pray to the only God of the Universe; my God, your God, our God.

I also, pray other things each time also, but firstly, the thanking of God for his Glory is foremost. He shows His Glory in ways that we experience with, besides sight, by hearing Him, touching Him, tasting things, He creates, smelling the goodness of His creations, and other ways such as feelings of closeness that He shares with us. All part of the senses of life that we enjoy daily.
God is alive, He is active, He is aware, He is Present with us always. We only have to take the time to realize His Glory is given to us for us to appreciate, to love, to give thanks for to Him.

God is good, God is great, Thanks be to God.

Den Betts

Evangelical’s and Trump 2017-29

Posted in Current Events, Religious by

Evangelical’s and Trump 2017-29

I do NOT claim to be an Evangelical Christian; have heard of them, think I may know a few, do not hate or really love any for any reason, but think I should describe what I believe they are to me. In that way, I can compare myself and POTUS Trump to them.

 A check at Wikipedia states it is a worldwide trans denominational movement within Protestant Christianity that maintains the belief that the essence of the gospel consists of the doctrine of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ’s atonement.  Well, that sums it up well, but is hard to get my mind around this explanation. It further states that they believe in the centrality of the conversion or the “born again” experience in receiving salvation, and the authority of the Bible as God’s revelation to humanity and spreading the Christian message. Whew!

I understand, the Methodist Church, the Baptist communities of churches and perhaps some Anglicans are good representatives of this movement.  Evangelicals are among the most dynamic religious group movements in the contemporary world. Since I do NOT want to make this a religious critique, I will leave it at this and allow any to look up the word Evangelical at your leisure and learn more about it.

The main thing, in my mind, is this.   Evangelicals are religious. They are mainstream in many ways, sometimes fundamental in belief in many cases, and basically conservative in nature.  Those are not bad things at all, but does put them in a slot of identifying how they feel to a degree. They have a good bit of history about them and I think of The Reverend Billy Graham is a prime example of an evangelist, promoting this faith. As a total, they represent about 28 percent of the U.S. religious groups in the U.S. or about 91 million total.

POTUS Trump is identified as a Presbyterian, which is not actually listed as being an evangelical religion. In a book he wrote, “The Art of the Deal”, which he highly touts, there is no mention of religion and he stated, “I don’t like to analyze myself, because I might not like what I see” he told biographer D’Antonio. He has stated he does attend church occasionally, on Christmas, Easter and “special occasions” (weddings?), but is too busy on most Sundays. I used to do this myself, I admit, and many do so. 

OK, he does not sit in church waiting for the voice of God or sitting through a service or confessing his sins, or other religious doings and that is fine with me. I don’t care, that is his life, not mine!

But, it does bother me that the religious leaders or those in power at the Evangelical church feel he is Evangelical enough to promote him, endorse him and follow him as they do.  He, in my mind, does not follow the tenants of any Evangelical religion, any fundamentalist actions, or even Christian beliefs. I am not being judgmental about this, but more of stating factual thoughts of how he acts in life.

To say they are Evangelical, fundamental in religious thought, religious in general and promote him as being “one of their own” is Bullcrap to me.  It is hypocritical and not realistic. If they, The everyday practicing Evangelical’s, are part of Trump’s “BASE” that he loves so much and if they still support him, then they are lying to themselves in the process, and Trump loves this and them.

Den Betts

Hi Cousin 2017-24

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  Hi Cousin  2017-24

If you are reading this I state:    “I     AM    your cousin!”

I look at the guy across the street and see him as my cousin!  I don’t know the man well, but know he is a far distant relation, as you are too. I see YOU as my cousin!! 

The Italian butcher at the store is also my kindred. He has the same DNA as I do, and we both came from the same grandparents long ago. Perhaps, VERY long ago….

I do not know when the black lady that makes such good cookies at the store became my blood relative, but I know we are from the same one, going back in time.

The interesting man I saw today who calls Allah, his god, shares the same blood as I, from the warrior who fought with Genghis Khan on the steppes of Asia and had a wife from a raid in Persia..

I say hello to a neighbor Mr. Yamato, who does not realize our common ancestor who was a product of a relationship of a Japanese woman, who met a Presbyterian minister who was a missionary, after Japan was found by world travelers.

We are ALL cousins!

Throw a dart at a world map and you will hit a spot where someone you know today has common descendants of both you, that person and, or close to it.

It does NOT matter what race, what heritage, religion or ethnic background we have; our neighbor has part of the same DNA as each of us. That is why, when you disparage someone of another ilk, you are doing the same to yourself. It is time WE, as a whole, start looking at one another with love, instead of hate.

I am related to you!  You are my cousin and it matters not what your name is, or where you came from in the past.

Hello cousin; glad to know you,

Peace be with you,

Den Betts

Broken World!?!- Then and Now? 2017-17

Posted in Contemplation, Current Events, Religious by

Broken World!?!-  Then and Now? 2017-17

I have heard the words “Broken World” in relation to our existing Earthly existence several times lately. It has to do with world events, the way we look at things, sometimes regarding religion, but is not a Wikipedia source to examine.

I can handle the ways it is used to describe how things are now.  We have many instances to use as a reason to call our world broken today. 

I think of just the past one hundred years leading up to today that can be used as examples. The WWI, the WWII, Korean War, Vietnam War, the Iraq/Afghan War, the various mini skirmishes all over the world that have been highlighted, all are part of man’s actions that have put us at jeopardy in living a decent life.  This week we had an escalation in Syria with the air attack in Syria due to chemical bombs by the Assad regime against civilians.  

Those are wars/incidents involving man against man, nation against nation, and show us just how uncivilized we are to one another. Granted, many were started by an individual that created a reason to begin fighting one another.  They gave us justification to begin the art of war towards others.  Pearl Harbor is an example, of a nation starting something they could not finish, due to many reasons.

Little things like the drug war (?) being waged against the opiate epidemic, street crime, gang warfare in the cities, show just how we fight, fight, fight one another. I am not claiming we should NOT act toward “the others” that do things badly, just stating that we indeed, live in a broken world. 

This is NOT new. Go back through time and it is obvious that the world has been broken for a long time. I think of this current “Lenten season” where we take pause and recap what happened to a man/God named Jesus Christ.  He lived in a broken world of His time.  Rome had taken over the Jerusalem area and were in control. Thousands of Jews were killed on crosses and left there as a reminder of just who oversaw the area; the Romans.  Zealot Jews were fighting against the Romans. It was probably not a good time to live in this area of discord. 

I thought about this and realize that things are what they are and don’t change, even when a Messiah is claimed by those that followed Him.  We still have a broken world of people that have FREE WILL to do or not to do something.  The promise of Jesus was salvation. That means not about today, but about later when we can look forward with eternal life with God. 

If this is not appealing to some, so be it.  We still must suffer the consequences of life today, while living on Earth! If the hereafter is not something we care about, we will find out if we should have considered it now. 

I am not looking forward to dying, but when I do die, I hope and pray that I am selected to live with God forever, afterwards.  It will be neat to talk to those preceding me and to find out some genealogical facts of life, they experienced.

A broken world must be lived in. We do NOT have much of a choice right now.

Peace,

Den Betts

Role Model 2017-01

Posted in Contemplation, Current Events by

I thought of this poem when contemplating the many turmoil episodes of the period since election in the U.S.A. of last fall.  We ALL are responsible to those that look at us for guidance and inspiration.  When we do NOT do things that make an example to those that look, we are the ones that can be blamed. The same goes for those leaders that show just how shallow they are in life and we are stuck with the consequences.  Nuff said….  

                                                     Role Model   2017 – 01

 

                        A child learning of life

                        From the day it’s born.

                        Skills to be used

                        Through daily strife

                        Taught by the ones

                        That are figure heads;

                        Good, bad or indifferent

                        It learns from their stead

 

                        Macho, cool, in and such

                        Words not important

                        But many times said.

                        Honesty, ethics, rising

                        Above; some things other

                        Than the things they love.

                        Taking after the leader

                        And teacher, not becoming

                        A peer pressure seeker.

 

                        Looking beyond today for tomorrow

                        When the quality of life

                        Will be of joy, not sorrow

                        The responsibility is there-

                        Not for another, but to the role model

                        Sister or brother.

                        To instill a feeling of self

                        Respect, is a chore for all

                        To want and should expect.

 

                        Den Betts

Statement of an Activist 2016-65

Posted in Current Events, Statement by

Statement of an Activist  2016-65

To become or NOT to become one

THAT is the question!

For every action

There is a reaction

THAT is a fact!

To forget is hard

To remember is even harder.

And, at times, to become one

Is NOT a choice, but a life mandate

To give in and accept the person I detest, as the leader, MY leader, of this great nation is a difficult thing to do and still remain a decent citizen and follow the laws of this United States in the process, IS, and I repeat, IS a daunting task…..  To be quiet, not stir up discord or remain docile is not my nature, BUT I realize there are consequences if action is taken that is contrary to the norm….

I feel that to get involved is a MUST, a duty, a requirement, as a concerned citizen. No longer can I remain a member of this great United States as an onlooker only, a follower of the masses and do NOTHING, a creature of apathy, again, a do-nothing person, and just exist as a complainer only.

I therefore commit to action. Action of something more than nothing. I will NOT accept this so called leader to get by with immoral, decadent, illegal, or any other action that goes against the Constitution of the U.S.A., without voicing my displeasure.

He has NOT become a better person just because he is elected POTUS! Just like a leopard cannot change its “spots” or a zebra its “stripes” he is not mysteriously a “nice” person, full of wisdom and great things, all of a sudden… He is still has ALL the baggage he had before being elected.

Worse yet, he is appointing people that have the same thought patterns as he has, therefore, making the rest of the leadership in the White House having the same horrible mentality. We cannot change what has occurred with the election, but we can hold him and those that he appoints accountable.  We must NOT accept those things that are WRONG, that affect us or others in a negative way; we must NOT.

Therefore, I will become an activist and, as such, my life will change, and I will hopefully change the lives of others in the process….   Time will tell, on the results of my efforts…..

Above all, I will use the teachings of the biggest rabble rouser of all times, the one man who changed the world for all times, the one that I will use as a guide for my endeavors in the future and who will show me the way –Jesus Christ, the son of God…….   Amen

Dennis Betts—  Activist and Disciple