The Stafford Voice

Our little place to talk about and share about life.

Daniel

Multiculturalism: Political Correctness Run Amok

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by Ken Connor

“We … take our form-freedom balance in government for granted as though it were natural.  There is form in acknowledging the obligations in society, and there is freedom in acknowledging the rights of the individual….  There is a balance here which we have come to take as natural in the world.  It is not natural in the world.  We are utterly foolish if we look at the long span of history and read the daily newspapers giving today’s history and do not understand that the form-freedom balance in government which we have had in Northern Europe since the Reformation and in the countries extended from it is unique in the world, past and present.”

Francis Schaeffer, “The Abolition of Truth and Morality”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel set the tongues of pundits wagging this week when she declared that multiculturalism has “utterly failed” in Germany.  Multiculturalism is, of course, one of the sacraments Secularism.  It is the idea that people from dramatically different cultures can peacefully coexist as a unified society within a state or nation notwithstanding that they order themselves very differently within society and cling to radically different–and often conflicting–world views.  Multiculturalism is the fruit of “cultural relativism” which maintains that all cultures are equally valid, no one being better than another.  Cultural relativism, in turn, is the outgrowth of “relativism,” which asserts that there is no such thing as universal truth and that all ideas are equally valid and depend on the circumstances in which they are applied.

Not surprisingy, the political correctness police went into high dudgeon in the aftermath of Ms. Merkel’s speech, suggesting that her comments represented some kind of ominous foreshadowing of a German nationalist resurgence (allusions to Hitler’s Third Reich are perfectly permissible rhetorical tools for liberals, though off limits to conservatives).  Their goal was to squelch any thoughtful debate of the premise advanced by the Chancellor.  If they could demonize her position, that would have a chilling effect on the willingness of anyone else to embrace it or, perhaps, even to discuss it.  In the western world of the 21st century it is no longer fashionable to take pride in one’s national heritage, and patriotism is equated with parochialism.

Continue reading . . .

Daily Dose

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“It is so difficult to draw a clear line of separation between the abuse and the wholesome use of the press, that as yet we have found it better to trust the public judgment, rather than the magistrate, with the discrimination between truth and falsehood. And hitherto the public judgment has performed that office with wonderful correctness.” – Thomas Jefferson

Proverbs 1:5 – A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall atain unto wise counsels.

On this day in history:

In 1774, fifty-one ladies of Edenton, North Carolina gathered and signed a proclamation boycotting the British tax on tea.

Freedom vs. Sharia Law

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by Ted Nugent

We’ve been told there are so-called moderate Muslims who deplore terrorism and that Islam has been hijacked by extremists.

If there are in fact moderate Muslims, they have been quiet as mosque mice regarding their positions. For example, Americans don’t know if moderate Muslims recognize Israel, what they think about women’s rights, or if they believe the proposed New York City mosque should be moved to another location out of concern and sensitivity for the families of the victims of 9/11.

We also don’t know if there are other freedom-loving and freedom-fighting Muslims who respect the rights of others to burn the Koran, draw cartoons of Mohammad in newspapers, hold marches to condemn Hamas and other terror organizations, write unflattering books about Islam, and vigorously support allowing people of other faiths to practice their faith in the city of Mecca where all other religions besides Islam are currently outlawed.

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Public-Sector Unions Choke Taxpayers

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by John Stossel

“I thought unions were great — until at Chrysler, the union steward started screaming at me. Working at an unhurried pace, I’d exceeded ‘production’ for that job.”

That comment, left on my blog by a viewer who watched my Fox Business Network show about unions, matches my experience. No one ordered me to slow down, but union rules and union culture at ABC and CBS slowed the work. Sometimes a camera crew took five minutes just to get out of the car.

Now unions conspire with politicians to rip off taxpayers.

Steve Melanga of the Manhattan Institute complains that politicians get union political support by granting government workers generous pensions and health benefits. After those politicians leave office, taxpayers are liable for trillions in unfunded promises.

“It’s squeezing out all other spending,” Melanga says. “Where are we going to get this $3 trillion dollars? … When they’re (government workers) allowed to retire at 58 and the rest of us are retiring at 60 and 67 — and by the way we’re living to 80 — it’s crazy. The public sector is the version of the European welfare state which, by the way, in Europe, they’re actually rolling back.”

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The Multicultural Cult

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by Thomas Sowell | Part 1 & 2

Somebody eventually had to say it — and German chancellor Angela Merkel deserves credit for being the one who had the courage to say it out loud. Multiculturalism has “utterly failed.”

Multiculturalism is not just a recognition that different groups have different cultures. We all knew that, long before multiculturalism became a cult that has spawned mindless rhapsodies about “diversity,” without a speck of evidence to substantiate its supposed benefits.

In Germany, as in other countries in Europe, welcoming millions of foreign workers who insist on remaining foreign has created problems so obvious that only the intelligentsia could fail to see them. It takes a high IQ to evade the obvious.

“We kidded ourselves for a while,” Chancellor Merkel said, but now it was clear that the attempt to build a society where people of very different languages and cultures could “live side-by-side” and “enjoy each other” has “failed, utterly failed.”

Continue reading Part 1 . . .

There was a reason why employers in the middle of the 19th century had signs that said, “No Irish need apply” — and why employers in the middle of the 20th century no longer had such signs. It was not that employers had changed. The Irish had changed.

The Catholic Church for years worked to bring about such changes among the Irish immigrants and their offspring, just as various religious and secular organizations among the Jews, among blacks and among other groups worked to bring about changes within their respective groups. By and large these efforts paid off. All these groups were advancing, long before there were civil rights laws.

Yet today, attempts to get black or Hispanic youngsters to speak the language of the society around them are decried by multiculturalists. And any attempt to get them to behave according to the cultural norms of the larger society is denounced as “cultural imperialism,” if not racism.

Continue reading Part 2 . . .

New CPR Guidelines

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by WebMD Health News

New guidelines released today by the American Heart Association recommend that the three steps of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) be rearranged.

The new first step is doing chest compressions instead of first establishing the airway and then doing mouth to mouth. The new guidelines apply to adults, children, and infants but exclude newborns.

The old way was A-B-C — for airway, breathing and compressions.

The new way is C-A-B — for compressions, airway, and breathing.

“By starting with chest compressions, that’s easy to remember, and for many victims that alone will be lifesaving,” says Michael R. Sayre, MD, chair of the emergency cardiovascular care committee for the American Heart Association and co-author of the executive summary of the 2010 AHA guidelines for CPR and emergency cardiovascular care.

The old approach, he says, was causing delays in chest compressions, which are crucial for keeping the blood circulating.

The new guidelines may inspire more people to perform CPR, says Sayre, an associate professor of emergency medicine at Ohio State University, Columbus. “Mouth to mouth is hard if you’re not trained,” he tells WebMD. ”Anybody can do chest compressions, whether they have had a class or not. Good chest compressions really help save lives. In many cases, there is a reserve of oxygen left in the patient’s blood and lungs, from the last breath, and we can take advantage of that oxygen reserve and just do chest compressions.”

For instructions on performing CPR, click HERE.

Clinton Stumping For Clinton

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It should come as no surprise that former President Bill Clinton would be out stumping for his wife, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, when she started campaigning again for office.

And, while there have been talks of Obama picking Clinton as running mate for 2012, Bill is out to save the Clinton name. Separating the Clinton name from Obama and what he has done, is a saving grace for Hillary come campaign season.

Not wanting to be tied to Obama and his policies, Hillary has Bill out on the stumping block to do just that. Separation is key for anyone in the Democratic party if they look for a chance of victory. And, if the upcoming elections in November are a telling sign of a dominating victory, sending out a party powerhouse like President Bill Clinton might not be enough.

Although, wouldn’t it be interesting to see Billy-Boy in the White House again, only this time as the First-Man?

Chilean Miners Rescued *BREAKING*

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After 69 days trapped nearly half a mile below ground, all 33 miners were safely brought back to the surface. At the pace of nearly 45 minutes per man, hope continued from start to finish.

Earlier this year, August 5 the men became trapped when the mine they were working in collapsed. Fearing the worst, and taking around 13 or so days to drill a hole to their location, hope became a frantic all hands on deck fight to reach the men when the recieved a note from the bottom stating all 33 were healthy and doing okay.

Before being reached, they were rationing themselves to two spoons of tuna, half a biscuit and half a glass of milk every 48 hours. Also, they limited their battery use for lights and only used machinery to help dig into the collapsed area into a spring of water.

Congratulations are in store for all the men and women that helped with the rescue efforts, the families of those who were trapped, and the President of Chile for every effort he did to honor the respect of life.

Why is America Exceptional?

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by Matthew Spalding

In 1776, when America announced its independence as a nation, it was composed of thirteen colonies surrounded by hostile powers.

Today, the United States is a country of fifty states covering a vast continent. Its military forces are the most powerful in the world. Its economy produces almost a quarter of the world’s wealth. The American people are among the most hard-working, church-going, affluent, and generous in the world.

Is America exceptional?

Continue reading . . .

Obama Golfs While Others Suffer

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by Emily Miller

President Obama has played 52 rounds of golf in less than two years in office. The U.S. unemployment, down economy and two wars have not tampered his leisure time. In comparison, President Bush played a total of 24 rounds of golf in eight years.

The pictures of the President wearing oxford-style, brown and white golf shoes and zipping around green golf courses in an electric cart are insensitive and inappropriate. 

While the United States is in a severe economic crisis, the unemployment rate is stuck at 9.6% and families struggle to make ends meet, Obama spends an average of four to five hours playing each 18-hole round of golf.

Continue reading . . .