The Stand and Pray Challenge

 Okay sports fans.  You all love challenges, right?  Well, I am back again asking you to take the Stand And Pray challenge.  It looks like our new neighbors, the Covid family, are getting rowdy again and may interrupt your in person viewing in elbow to elbow seating in stadiums across the country.  So when it comes time to stand for the national anthem, I ask that you just Stand and Pray.  Stand and Pray that you will not contract a variant of the Covid virus while trying to enjoy your spectator sport.  Even better, pray to God thanking him for your still being alive in year 2 of  the World Covid Season (WCS).  Pray for all those who have lost loved ones due to Covid and members of the Covid family, Delta and now Omicron.  Stand and Pray thanking God for all the good and positive situations in your life, past and future.  Whatever you pray for, simply Stand and Pray.

 

Daunte Wright/Kimberly Potter

Day 1 of the trial.  I was struck by several statements made during the first day.  The lawyer for the defendant (Potter) stated that in regards to Mr. Wright “all he has to do is stop and he’d be with us”.  That is the typical “comply” comment, of European Americans.  It’s as if they are saying “just comply and be a good slave like you people used to be!”  The automatic reaction of the police to draw a deadly weapon on a black man seems instinctive.  Although she had been trained on which side her weapon is on and which side her taser is on, Potter instinctively drew for her deadly weapon.  It’s as if the police have a shoot to kill mentality against black men regardless of training.

The lawyer for Potter went on to say, "She made a mistake. This was an accident.  She is a human being, but she had to do what she had to do to prevent a death to a fellow officer, too."  I thought about the news reports over the past years of black men being released from prison after serving 30 to 40 years for crimes they did not commit.  The justice system made a mistake or just convicted those black men because they could.  Those men still served time and cannot gain back the years they lost.  Nor can their families.

I see several issues in this trial.  There needs to be an acknowledgement that European Americans seem to have an inherent belief that black men are dangerous.  European Americans seem to believe that a non-compliant black man deserves to die.  Because a black man behaves in a defiant manner is no reason to shoot and kill them.

The punishment for Potter.  A prison sentence is too lenient.  She appears to be a heathy individual.  She needs to be sentenced to at least 30 years of community service in the black community of Brooklyn Center and Minneapolis.  Her retribution needs to be the daily performance of tasks that provide support for the black community.  Whether it is helping to build a home for first time homeowners under Habitat for Humanity; feeding the homeless; sweeping streets; cutting lawns and landscaping homes; working at a community center; helping youth improve their educational skills; etc.   Living in a prison after being found guilty or not guilty, will do nothing for the legacy of Daunte Wright and the black community.  Potter needs to admit the “mistake”.  Admit that maybe she instinctively reacted due to the European American notion that a black man must be dealt with using deadly force in all occasions.  Then she has to dedicate 30 years working day to day to assist with the needs of the black community in Brooklyn Center/Minneapolis.

A guilty verdict with only serving some jail time and eventual parole, or a not guilty verdict with no further actions required are both the same.  It’s time for a different type of justice.

NCIS Hawaii pilot continues Hollywood formula on same sex relationships - Force it at us!

I watched the NCIS Hawaii pilot and was not surprised when 20 or so minutes into the episode it joined the ranks of numerous Hollywood formula shows that incorporate a scene of intimate same sex relationships. This has been the Hollywood formula for at least 10 years it seems. As a viewer I could since that this new show would not have the courage to not show a same sex relationship scene. It met my expectations. So, this is just another formula TV show that I will not watch as it feels it has the right to force me to watch same sex relatioship scenes without advance warning that the content of the show contains such scenes. 

The TV Parental Guidelines Monitoring Board gave the show a rating of TV-14 Coarse Language Violence. There was no information in the rating that the show would contain a same sex relationship scene. The Board continues to believe that we as viewers just need to sit there and accept these scenes, without warning. The Board needs to immediately add an SSR-Same Sex Relationship warning at the beginning of such TV shows.

Does the TV Parental Guidelines Monitoring Board Serve the Public interests or the interests of the Entertainment Industry?

 

The TV Parental Guidelines Monitoring Board is a private organization created in December 1996.  The Board created a system of guidelines whose intent was supposed to provide parents and others with advance cautionary information to help them make informed choices about the television programs they watch.  The Board is responsible for the development of such ratings as TV PG, TV 14, TV MA, etc.  More specific information on the meaning of the ratings is found at  About Us | The TV Parental Guidelines (tvguidelines.org)

Over the past 10 years the content of programs assigned a content label of “S=sexual situations” has expanded.  Parents and others are now often caught off guard when television shows or TV movies with the S label have featured intimate same sex relationships in the content of the program.  An additional content label of SSR=intimate same sex relationships would be helpful to clarify the content of the program to follow.  This factual label statement on the content of the program will assist parents and others in making decisions on whether they want their children, themselves or others in the household to view the program.

The Board consist of approximately 18 members and representatives of 5 “public interest” members.  The members are from:  Fox Corporation; ABC, A&E Networks; American Academy of Pediatrics; Boys and Girls Clubs of America; Call for Action; CBS; Discovery Inc; Entertainment Industries Council; HULU; Lifetime Networks; National PTA; NBC Universal; Sony Pictures Entertainment; Turner Broadcasting System; Univision and the Viacom Media Networks.  As of this writing the Board has refused to divulge who are the 5 public interest members.

I recently contacted the Board through their listed phone number (202) 570-7776 and email address TVOMB@tvguidelines.org.  My phone calls were not returned. I did receive several standard response email replies supposedly from the Board.  These emails did not indicate that the Board had met to consider the SSR label suggestion, or my suggestion that the content warning be kept on the screen for 60 seconds instead of the current 15 second policy.  I also attempted to contact each organization with a representative on the Board.  Only Marie Dyak, the member representing the Entertainment Industries Council responded.  Her response stated that the Board was not considering a descriptor for same-sex-situations and that the Board felt the current descriptors accurately reflected the content of TV shows.  When I pointed out that her email did not reflect her being the President of the Board and asked her if she was speaking for the Board in it’s entirety, her response was she was only speaking for her organization not the Board .

Last night, around 9:30 pm I received a response from the email account of the Board.  It regurgitated the information on the Board’s website, but did not address whether the entire Board had met to discuss the issue.  The response attempted to infer that it was a social value, social policy, and moral judgment issue which is not the case.  It is simply clarifying the content of a TV show so the viewer is forewarned about the content of the show.  I responded to the email that the Board still has not shared with me who are the 5 public interest members!  I also pointed out that the response did not address when the Board met to discuss the issue and what was the vote of the Board.

If you are a consumer and viewer of the various forms of entertainment on TV or streamed to you, I urge you to contact the Board at (202) 570-7776 and email address TVOMB@tvguidelines.org to give them your opinion on the need for an expanded designation of the label S=sexual situations.  For example the label for V=violence has been expanded to now include the label FV=fantasy violence (children’s programming only).

The Board has operated behind closed doors.  The Federal Communications Commission needs to review the actions and policies of the Board to see if the Board is truly meeting the needs of consumers.  The needs of consumers/viewers for clarity on the content of TV programs must be addressed. No one knows the names or background of those on the Board.

Stand and Pray Revisited

 Over a year ago in the midst of the Covid pandemic, I made an appeal that those fans who were still attending sports events, and those fans who in the future would return to attendance make a change.  During the playing of the national anthem, I suggested that fans simply stand and pray, rather than sing the national anthem or stand silently.  No need to protest some various social issue.  The simple act of standing and praying meets all needs.

You can pray for the 600,000 plus people in the United States of America who have died from Covid.  You can pray for those who refuse to wear a mask or get vaccinated during this pandemic.  You can pray for kindness to be the first choice of people.  You can pray that countries take care of people so they do not have to flee to another country just to have a decent life.  You can pray for a political system that does what it is supposed to do.  You can pray that we act as caretakers of the planet Earth, and protect the resources it provides us.  You can pray for peace so we do not have to send people off to fight senseless wars where at the end, no one has "won".  You can pray that each of us acknowledge the fact that there is a Creator, a God, or whatever label you have assigned.  The list of what you can pray for goes on, and on, and on.  You know what to pray for.

So I ask you to act.  During the national anthem, please Stand and Pray for those items most closest to your personal walk in this world.   #StandAndPray.

A rebuttal to the concept of humanism versus the existence of God

 

To those following a new wave of humanism and not believing in the existence of God.  I was going to create a response, but found that the responses already exists in the bible.  These specific scriptures are from the New Living Translation version.

For deciding to go to humanism. Luke 23:34  Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.

How can you find the truth?   2 Chronicles 15:2c  Whenever you seek him, you will find him.  But if you abandon him, he will abandon you.

Why you should not turn to humanism?  Psalm 118:8  It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust people.

The danger of human answers.  Matthew 16:23  Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me.  You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.”

Why keep seeking the truth?  Matthew 7:7-8  Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for.  Keep on seeking and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks, receives.  Everyone who seeks, finds.  And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

Why is the easy solution of humanism not the right answer?   Matthew 7:13  You can’t enter God’s kingdom only through the narrow gate.  The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way.

Have you ever thought about how the human definition of “beginning”  just does not make sense?  You can’t explain the notion of beginning without a spiritual foundation.

Why Christians should speak boldly about the Word in the bible?

The world provides no answers or solutions.   1 John 2:15  Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you.  For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions.

Who do you trust?  Proverbs 3:5-6  Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.  Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Who guides you?   Psalm 16:7-8  I will bless the Lord who guides me; even at night my heart instructs me.  I know the Lord is always with me.  I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.

Ask for guidance in speaking boldly.  Psalm 25:4-5  Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow.  Lead by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me.  All day long I put my hope in you.

Asking God for wisdom to speak boldly.  James 1:5-6   If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you.  He will not rebuke you for asking.  But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.

Psalm 32:8-9  The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.  I will advise you and watch over you.  Do not be like a senseless horse or mule that needs a bit and bridle  to keep it under control.”

Humanistic ideas are a call to service for all who believe in God.  To speak boldly about the Word.

Hebrews 12:1  Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up.  And let us run with the endurance the race God has set before us.  We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith,

James 1:2-4  Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.  So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

Ephesians 6:13  Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil.  Then after the battle you will be standing firm.

It's time to get to work.

A National Monument to Man's Desires versus God's Plan

 A former night club, which was the scene of a hate crime mass shooting has been declared a national monument by Congress and President Biden.  When I heard the news, I thought, why is the site of the massacre of people at a gay nightclub a national monument, when to my knowledge none of the sites of massacres of black people have been designated as a national monument?

Is it because our culture has accepted and now promotes gay/homosexual/lesbian life styles as being okay?  Is it because this country has no remorse regarding the atrocities committed against black people over the years?  

The man made decision that condones gay lifestyles is directly contrary to religious principles in many Christian faiths.  The tales of homosexual activities goes well back in time and is described in the bible.

As the bible describes, God created Man and Woman.  God did not create people to be labeled as non binary, pansexual, homosexual, transgender, or whatever other terminology is used.  The proliferation of support for man made, un Godly behavior is reaching its peak.  It is being pushed down onto children as something they can consider in defining their sexuality.

Why is this being done?  Simply because some people do whatever they want to do.  They do not believe in a God and that we should follow Godly guidelines in how we behave and live our lives.  These people do not believe in "sin".  They believe in "human rights".  The right to do whatever a person wants with no consideration that there is a God who created us and defined what behavior is proper.  These people operate under unlimited behavioral control.  They operate under the concept that people seeking pleasure can seek it without limitations on sexual morality.  Anything and everything goes.

This is why in the year 2021, national legislative bodies and even the President of the United States supports making the site of a mass killing at a gay nightclub a national monument.  This also shows how the national legislative body and the office of the President of the United States still is ignoring the fact the atrocities committed against black people in the United States need to be addressed.  Identify each black massacre site specifically as being a monumental reminder of the hate, and sinful behavior that black people have had to endure for hundreds of years in this "civilized" country.