Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Beyond the Shadow of a Doubt

It is National Poetry Month, so here is my attempt at some Poetic Justice. For the prose version on this topic see this week's Journal-Standard's Pulse section (For the Love of Community).

Elections belong to the people. It is their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters.
–Abraham Lincoln

The charges were starting to mount,
Found guilty on each and every count;
Friends, buddies, cronies, and lies,
We’re the ones who pay, that’s no surprise.

Big Jim covered all of the legal bills,
Friendship can’t cover all of the political ills;
Mr. Warner, Mr. Ryan, and pockets of cash,
Vacations, gambling, do I need to rehash?

“I didn’t do it. I’m innocent,” he said,
Licenses for bribes and six children dead;
Cover-ups, scandals, silence the news,
If we knew the secrets, an election he’d lose.

All the good things like buildings and roads,
But how about the employees on whose backs he rode?
To an election victory with ill-gotten campaign funds,
Christmas gifts to the boss, so for governor he could run.

All of them are crooked, the public says,
Just some of them are caught on given days,
We can’t do better, there isn’t much choice,
We’re only citizens, we don’t have a voice.

But, that is where we so often go wrong,
We have the chance to stand and be strong;
We can say, “Enough is enough!”
We’re tired of putting up with your stuff.

There are good politicians, who go to serve,
There are others, who get what they deserve;
We can’t expect miracles from all of them,
We do seek those we can praise instead of condemn.

Another election will be upon us soon,
Are the choices ones to make us worry or swoon?
The campaign rhetoric will go to depths unknown,
The ads will make sure large sums of money are blown.

No real reform will occur, because people love power,
Once in office, many seek to remain in their ivory tower;
So often, the people who benefit, are the major donors,
And those trying to get by, are treated like wayward loners.

Three of the last six governors have been indicted,
Money, or love of money, has been the reason cited;
Money and power, in our land, go hand in hand,
For the top offices in the state and country are out of hand.

The playing field will never be leveled at our current rate,
Those without money are left at the starting gate;
Look at the campaign “war chest” of Governor Rod,
We know that candidate, Treasurer Judy, will be treated roughshod.

In Illinois, it is called politics as usual for our state,
We tend to accept that as our destiny, our fate;
While more jobs are lost in part for our failure to change,
I think that we let ourselves be shortchanged.

There are no easy answers to our political woes,
We’ll continue in this quandary, if we think that anything goes;
Of course, Mr. Ryan practiced those ideas for years,
Now, he continues to show no remorse, no tears.

A nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize for emptying death row,
He thought his legacy would be secured when it was time to go;
And now a jury of his peers found him guilty for all he’d done,
What does it all get for us in the long run?

A sad, old man who thought he was above the laws,
Whose fancy lawyers will fault the jurors instead of seeing the real cause;
The appeals will last for years, and he’ll appear weak and frail,
Most likely, he’ll never spend a day in jail.

I feel no pity for Mr. Ryan when I think of the Willis children who died,
All because of the cover-ups and the people who lied;
To save a man’s political career who appeared so proper and prim,
And I get disgusted every time I realize that... I voted for him.

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character,
give him power. –Abraham Lincoln

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety. –Benjamin Franklin

Monday, April 17, 2006

Christian Faith Under Attack, Again

It seems that something usually happens around Easter to try and shake the faith of those who believe that Christ really died and was resurrected. This year we have the ever-growing myth of the DaVinci Code. What with the coming movie starring our "everyman" Tom Hanks, how could we not believe that this novelization is based on truth? It may make for a thrilling read much like Celestine Prophecy did a few years ago, but they are both FICTION with real-life locations to add to their fauxthenticity.

Now, we also have the Judas Gospel, which all but exonerates Judas for his role in Christ's crucifixion. I don't think that is what people had in mind when the Aologists were formed. It wasn't intended to make excuses for every bad action that has taken place in the Bible. IF we are to believe that there is a good and evil, then isn't it quite possible, that Jesus knew his fate was not only preordained by the Father, but that Satan might play a role in Christ's death, as well. If Judas were to be a saint and working complicitly with Jesus, why was he found to have hung himself after his act of betrayal?

Each year, or so it seems, there is an assault on Christianity and each year Easter is celebrated as the high point of the Christian faith. This year we were also able to celebrate the 79th birhtday of Pope Benedict XVI on his first Easter as Pope. Will wonders never cease?

God Bless those who just celebrated Easter and to the Eastern Orthodoxy, wishing you a glorious Easter next Sunday. Let us all pray for peace in our lifetime no matter what our religion or belief.

Sunday, April 09, 2006

NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT

It has been a time of reflection during this Lenten Season. I haven't had much time to write besides my weekly column and one health column. The past few weeks have taken me to Hollywood for the Global Diabetic Foot Conference and to Nashville to visit my oldest daughter, who is away at school.

Daily life leads to many challenges with children in school, work, writing, and finally fitting in a chance to exercise. Health has taken on new urgency with the onset of high blood pressure, which lead to some personal changes in habits and diet. No more sodas, no more caffeine, minimal white flower or white sugar, more fruits and vegetables and water. Exercise has again become a priority. In the last three months I've seen a drop in weight of almost 25 pounds, a reduction in body fat of 5% and 3" in waist size. The extra benefit has been a drop in blood pressure to normal levels without medication. I've been extolling the benefits of this combination for years, but then I "fell off of the wagon" for enough years to see the waistline expand, the breath become shorter, and the cholesterol and blood pressure go up.

Oddly enough, after watching the movie, "Super Size Me" and then the television show, "The Biggest Loser" in addition to having an antihypertensive suggested... well let's just say that it was the culmination of several things that lead to returning to a healthier lifestyle.

Back to the Global Diabetic Foot Conference: Diabetes is becoming a worldwide epidemic as more people abosrb the Western, fast-food diet. The increase in diabetes is leading to more diabetic-related foot problems and in that vein, we have a senator from Wyoming, Mike Enzi-R, who in his infinite shortsightedness, suggests making podiatric services less available to the general public as a means of reducing the budget. His sugar-coated description of making health care more affordable for small businesses doesn't tell the truth behind the deregulation of making services available. This is another case of our government reducing services under the guise of covering more people with insurance.

I urge readers to write their congressmen and congresswomen to vote against Senate Bill 1955 in order to preserve your state and federal rights to affordable and available foot care.