When a couple approached volunteer Tony at Cleveland State University this spring, he had no idea the amazing thing that was about to happen. 

They stopped in front of the Genocide Awareness Project and said to Tony, “We have an abortion appointment scheduled. What can you say to change our minds?”

Tony responded “If these pictures don’t change your minds, what about the realization that you will be the parents of a dead child that you paid to have killed? Can you live with that truth for the rest of your life?”

The couple were quiet as they contemplated the pictures in front of them and Tony’s bold words. After a little while, they left saying that they would not abort their child. 

Praise Jesus for this young family spared!

Today is the anniversary of the 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.  The following day, President Roosevelt gave one of the great speeches of all time.  Here is my list of the greatest speeches of World War II.  (See videos below.)

• Day of Infamy — Pres. Franklin Roosevelt, December 8, 1941
• Blood, Toil, Tears, and Sweat — Sir Winston Churchill, May 13, 1940
• Finest Hour — Sir Winston Churchill, June 18, 1940
• Japanese Surrender Ceremony — Gen. Douglas MacArthur, September 2, 1945
• The Guns Are Silent — Gen. Douglass MacArthur, September 2, 1945
• The Boys of Pointe du Hoc — Pres. Ronald Reagan, June 6, 1984
• Tear Down This Wall — Pres. Ronald Reagan, June 12, 1987

What would you add to this list?

Day of Infamy — Pres. Franklin Roosevelt, December 8, 1941

With confidence in our armed forces — with the unbounding determination of our people — we will gain the inevitable triumph — so help us God.

Blood, Toil, Tears, and Sweat — Sir Winston Churchill, May 13, 1940

I would say to the House, as I said to those who have joined this government: “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.”  We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind.  We have before us many, many long months of struggle and of suffering.  You ask, what is our policy?  I can say: It is to wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime.  That is our policy.  You ask, what is our aim?  I can answer in one word: It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.  Let that be realized …

Finest Hour — Sir Winston Churchill, June 8, 1940 (conclusion only)

Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this Island or lose the war.  If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be free and the life of the world may move forward into broad, sunlit uplands.  But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age made more sinister, and perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science.  Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, “This was their finest hour.”

Japanese Surrender Ceremony — Gen. Douglas MacArthur, September 2, 1945
Note: Many of my generation owe our lives to Gen. MacArthur. He brought our fathers home alive. During the next 5 years, he would prove to be the greatest emperor Japan ever had.

The video left out some of Gen. MacArthur’s introductory remarks, but you can link to complete audio of Gen. MacArthur’s introductory remarks here.  (source)

It is my earnest hope and indeed the hope and indeed the hope of all mankind that from this solemn occasion a better world shall emerge out of the blood and carnage of the past — a world founded upon faith and understanding — a world dedicated to the dignity of man and the fulfillment of his most cherished wish — for freedom, tolerance and justice.  …  Let us pray that peace be now restored to the world and that God will preserve it always.

Link to full text of Gen. MacArthur’s remarks here.

The Guns Are Silent — Gen. Douglas MacArthur, September 2, 1945
Immediately after the surrender ceremony, Gen. MacArthur addressed the American public via radio.  We could find no video link but you can link to audio of The Guns Are Silent here.

As I look back on the long, tortuous trail from those grim days of Bataan and Corregidor, when an entire world lived in fear, when democracy was on the defensive everywhere, when modern civilization trembled in the balance, I thank a merciful God that He has given us the faith, the courage and the power from which to mold victory.

Link to audio of The Guns Are Silent.  (source)

The Boys of Pointe du Hoc — Pres. Ronald Reagan, June 6, 1984

Why?  Why did you do it?  What impelled you to put aside the instinct for self-preservation and risk your lives to take these cliffs?  What inspired all the men of the armies that met here?  We look at you, and somehow we know the answer.  It was faith and belief; …

Tear Down This Wall — Pres. Ronald Reagan, June 12, 1987

General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate!  Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate!  Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

On this, one of the bleakest days in recent history, I thought it good to share a few quotations from a better, more coherent era.  All of these are attributed to President Ronald Reagan.

Socialism only works in two places, heaven where they don’t need it and hell where they already have it.

Here’s my strategy on the Cold War:  we win, they lose.

The most terrifying words in the English language are, “I’m from the government and I’m here to help you.”

The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they’re ignorant; it’s just that they know so much that isn’t so.

Of the four wars in my lifetime, none came about because the U.S.  was too strong.

The taxpayer: that’s someone who works for the federal government but doesn’t have to take the civil service examination.

Government is like a baby:  an alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other.

The nearest thing to eternal life we will ever see on this earth is a government program.

It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession.  I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first.

Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases:  If it moves, tax it.  If it keeps moving, regulate it.  And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

Politics is not a bad profession.  If you succeed, there are many rewards; if you disgrace yourself, you can always write a book.

No arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is as formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women.

The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money.  (Originally come from Margaret Thatcher, but we’re betting Ronald Reagan quoted her on it at least once!)

If we ever forget that we’re one nation under GOD, then we will be a nation gone under.

Fascinating interview with Camille Paglia, Professor of Arts and Media Studies at the University of Arts in Philadelphia.  (Link also here; you may have to register and login, but it’s worth the trouble.)

A true maverick with something to offend everyone, Paglia has been described as “a writer in a category of her own … a feminist who hates affirmative action; an atheist who respects religion” and “a Democrat who thinks her party doesn’t get it.”

Camille Paglia on education (particularly art education):

[Because of sneering liberalism], students are emerging from our schools mal-educated.

On the loss of art education programs in schools:

American school children losing their art programs are paying the price for the art world’s delusional sense of entitlement.

Camille Paglia on ObamaCare:

Of course we need health care reform in this country.  What a mess!  Everyone agrees about that.  But ObamaCare is, to me, a Stalinist intrusion into American culture. …

I don’t understand how any veteran of the 1960s who’s a Democrat could not see the dangers here, that Obama is a statist.  It’s exactly what Bob Dylan was warning about in Subterranean Homesick Blues.

You don’t want government agencies being empowered to intrude into people’s lives like this.  The controlling force in ObamaCare is the IRS!  This flies in the face of what the Free Speech Movement was about at Berkeley or about any of the values of my generation.

On the Democratic Party:

I don’t see progressives.  All I see is white upper-middle-class liberals who speak in this unctuous way about the needs of the poor.  They have no connection whatever with the working class.  It’s the professional class gone amok.  And that’s why they don’t notice what a bureaucratic nightmare ObamaCare is.

Entire interview: http://www.pjtv.com/s/GEYDSNZS

By James Taranto of the Wall Street Journal (link):

Obama’s journalistic supporters live in a bizarre alternate reality in which a politician’s actual words mean nothing. When the president says something foolish and offensive, he didn’t say that.  Meanwhile every comment from a Republican can be translated, through a process of free association, to: “We don’t like black people.”

Song written by John Lopker and Eileen Lopker.  He is her little boy.

Perhaps this can be a reminder for all of us of why we work so hard.

On this day (June 12) in 1987, President Ronald Reagan stood at the Brandenburg Gate and uttered one of the most memorable phrases of my lifetime.

General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate!

Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate!

Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

As it turns out, the “experts” at the State Department deleted this exhortation from the speech on multiple occasions—they thought it would be too provocative—but President Reagan kept putting it back in.  On his way to the Brandenburg Gate, he told an aide, “It’s gonna drive the State Department boys crazy, but I’m gonna leave it in.”  The rest, as they say, is history.

Entire text of speech here.  Video below:

The following question was asked by DezyVol on one of the VolQuest fan forums:

Please don’t turn this into a religion bashing thread …

I’m a Christian and have always left God out of sports other than praying for player safety and humility.  I’ve never thought the Almighty would have any interest in sports or their outcome.

That said, it almost hard to not at least somewhere in the back of your mind think Tebow might occasionally receive Divine assistance with sports.  I know determination, motivation, preservation and all that has a lot to do with it, but does anyone think its possible that God rewards/answers Tebow’s prayers concerning sports?

I think its great that he sticks to his beliefs unflinchingly at a time when it is politically incorrect and unpopular to do so.  Could the Almighty being throwing Tim a bone during games so as to better utilize him as a tool to spread the Good Word?

Just curious on your thoughts.

10sevol answered:

Throughout the Bible, God used murderers, harlots, and despots to carry His great message.  Using a Gator would seem like the next logical choice.

Back by popular demand, this is too funny!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ooc5eJc5SHA

There’s nothing more pro-life than the Christmas story.  It’s when Jesus came to Earth to save us all from certain death.  You imitate Him when you work to save children.  Is there any better way to imitate our Messiah?

For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. (John 13:15)

also 1 Peter 2:21, 1 Corinthians 11:1, Matthew 16:24, and 1 John 2:6

If you live within a 3-hour drive of Pigeon Forge, this one song is well worth the trip and the ticket to Dollywood.   We saw it again over the weekend, and it was very moving.

Several people have put this up on YouTube.  Here’s one:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqGyvwqI8K4

Other recordings differ in audio and video quality, but each one is magnificent:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5icadzuoLyo

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POjhuQDC5-M

.

This year, I feel just like this little girl in the video below.  My whole October was like this.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUGq8hIBuhQ

Einstein is Knoxville’s own superstar.  Check it out!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbrTOcUnjNY

FAB has just learned that Harold Camping scheduled another one of his famous end-of-the-world parties for today.  We missed the last one.  Bummer.  Anybody know where we can get tickets?  We’ll buy your extras.

I attended Kortney’s funeral in Matthews, North Carolina, on Friday.  I wanted to share with you a story about a couple who witnessed the crash Saturday night and later e-mailed the family.  It was a real encouragement, even in the middle of unspeakable grief.  These e-mails were handed out to all in attendance at the funeral, but we will change the names of the couple who originated the exchange.

About the middle of last week, the family received this e-mail:

Hello,

My name is Jason Bice. I was there last night at the scene of the accident. My wife (Amber Bice) and I came upon the accident no more than thirty seconds after it happened. There were five other people there that witnessed the crash. They were all waiting for help to arrive. Knowing the area and knowing how long it would take emergency crews to get there, my wife and I stopped the car and got out to help.

The accident was bad, one car was on top of the other. I immediately found myself out of my comfort zone, but I went ahead and climbed into the car on the bottom to check on the driver. I exited that vehicle and went to check on the one on top. The vehicle on top was in a dangerous position. It could have slid off and rolled over at any minute. As my wife and I thought about what to do, I noticed that the other drivers had come out of their comfort zones and offered help.

We pulled one young man out of the vehicle and away from the car to safety. We went back for the other who had apparently crawled out himself and we moved him away from the wreck. My wife who is an ER nurse and thirty weeks pregnant cared for them while we went back for the others. We couldn’t get to the other two people due to the position of the vehicle. One of them was Kortney, someone you all loved dearly. Someone that passed away doing something she cared so deeply for and devoted her life to.

Ten minutes after it happened, police and firemen were there and took over.

My message is this, I came out of my comfort zone to help the 5 people that were involved in the accident. The other bystanders, seeing my wife and I trying to help, came out of their comfort zones and started helping too. There were 15 of us working to care for the hurt before EMS and police even showed up. We put ourselves in harms way to help them. There were men holding the car steady while we pulled people out and away from it. It’s time for all of us to come out of our comfort zones. Kortney came out of hers a long time ago. In a world where it seems a lot of people think abortion is OK, she stood against it and gave it her all. There is one thing we can do to keep her awesome spirit alive, and that is for all of you who read this to come out of your comfort zones, to help and support those in need and to stand strong for what is good and right.

The 20 minutes I was at the scene of the accident and then reading Kortney’s story today have changed me forever. I hope her story lives on and does the same for more people.

Jason Bice

Kortney’s uncle Don Blythe, who is a long-time pro-life activist and an early inspiration to Kortney, responded for the family:

Jason,

In the midst of our deepest of grief and overwhelming sorrow, my brother, Kortney’s father, and I were having trouble working our way through our brokenness, even though we had an inner confidence of the hope of our coming reunion someday, when it would be our turn to meet our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Then your email came in and the power of your careful words and testimony ministered to us and all of the family and friends we shared it with. I thank you with all of my heart for you and your wife, and the divine appointment God set for you that evening. Your information has further confirmed in us that our Lord was still there and many concerns were answered by your actions for Kortney.

We began the process of recovery of our spirits after reading your email.

I hope you have also placed your trust and faith in Jesus Christ for your souls, so we can meet you in Heaven too someday. May the God of Heaven bring an outpouring of love and grace on you and your precious baby as you live out your lives in this world.

I will never forget you and what you did for our Kortney.

In His Steps,
Don Blythe

Here was the reply from Mr. Bice:

Don,

Those words came from my heart and what I am about to tell you is, too.

My faith in God was almost completely gone before that night. I don’t think I had prayed in over five years. If I did, it was probably for something so selfish that it wasn’t worth remembering. I have prayed more in the past few days than I have at any other time in my life. God was really weighing down on me Saturday and Sunday. I felt like I had to find out who the people in that accident were. When I did, I felt like I had to send that email and to share Kortney’s story with everyone I met. I continue to tell people the story of her life and how that night changed me forever.

To say that she and the rest of the people in that accident changed my life is an understatement. They saved my life.

My wife and I have cried tears over the pain that this must be causing you and the rest of her family. I am glad that sending these emails has helped ease that pain. I love all of God’s people and hate to see anyone in pain. I hope you all find a way to make it through this tragedy.

I can safely say now that my wife and I will have that chance to meet her in heaven.

With love and hope,
Jason Bice

In a recent post, FAB wondered if the riots that started in Europe would spread to the United States.  We’re finding out.  What we are seeing in the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) mob is exactly what Ann Coulter talked about in her new book, Demonic: How the Liberal Mob Is Endangering America.  To really understand OWS, you should read Ms. Coulter’s book.

OWS mobsters can’t articulate any coherent justification for their “movement,”  other than their entitlement to OPS (other people’s stuff).  They rail against corporate America, but they communicate on i-pods and cell phones manufactured by American corporations.  Ann Coulter wrote:

George Will noted another incoherency, that Washington is too corrupt, but it should be given more power to control our lives. Citing the kind of corruption that would be promoted even more aggressively if the OWS mob gets its way:

[The Obama administration’s Solyndra episode of crony capitalism] does not validate progressivism’s indignation, it refutes progressivism’s aspiration, which is for more minute government supervision of society. Solyndra got to the government trough with the help of a former bundler of Obama campaign contributions who was an Energy Department bureaucrat helping to dispense taxpayers’ money to politically favored companies. His wife’s law firm represented Solyndra. But, then, government of the sort progressives demand — supposed “experts,” wiser than the market, allocating wealth and opportunity by supposedly disinterested decisions — is not just susceptible to corruption, it is corruption.

The list of OWS demands proves that nothing is too extravagant for the people who don’t have to pay for it:

… a “guaranteed living wage income regardless of employment”; a $20-an-hour minimum wage (above the $16 entry wage the United Auto Workers just negotiated with GM); ending “the fossil fuel economy”; “open borders” so “anyone can travel anywhere to work and live”; $1 trillion for infrastructure; $1 trillion for “ecological restoration” (e.g., re-establishing “the natural flow of river systems”); “free college education.”

And forgiveness of “all debt on the entire planet period.” Progressivism’s battle cry is: “Mulligan!” It demands the ultimate entitlement — emancipation from the ruinous results of all prior claims of entitlement.

Mark Steyn summed it up quite well:

[The] “occupy” movement has no real solutions, except more government, more spending, more regulation, more bureaucracy, more unsustainable, lethargic pseudo university with no return on investment, more more more of what got us into this hole.

Desperate for something to give energy to their upcoming 2012 election campaign, the Democrats have embraced OWS and have encouraged its continuation and growth.  This is too good to be true.  Looks like the Dems have created their very own Tar-Baby, but unlike Br’er Rabbit, they are eager to embrace it, not fight it.

The best outcome possible is that the OWS continues to expose itself and the American Left (i.e., the Democratic party) for what it truly is, an angry mob who claims entitlement to the fruits of other people’s labor.