Caleb's iBlogger

Fight the Driver Texting Ban - Email Gov Daniels!

2011-05-02T23:35:00.013-05:00

Fellow Hoosiers,

The Indiana legislature has delivered a bill, HB 1129, to Governor Daniels' desk that would attempt to prohibit drivers from texting while driving. We must not let this ill bill become lousy law! Below is a copy of the letter I submitted to the governor using the form on his website, here: http://www.in.gov/gov/2631.htm

If you're wondering why we all need to oppose laws of this nature, read my letter! Also, you might refer to my post from the last legislative session wherein I answer that question, here: http://bit.ly/doGvRc

02 May 2011

Governor Daniels,

This letter is a plea for an ear to hear regarding HB 1129, the Driver Texting Ban.

In May 2009, you delivered the commencement address at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. As I sat in my cap and gown, anxious to receive a paper validating my years of hard work, dreaming of the days to come in the new, "real" world I'd soon enter, your words gave me pause and have, in fact, never left me. I'm sure you have your address notes around somewhere for all the specifics, but the point you drove home was that our cities, counties, State, and nation are in dire need of more technical people speaking up about the issues we face. And so I am compelled to weigh in upon the matter of the Driver Txt Ban recently delivered to your desk: you absolutely must prevent HB1129 from becoming State Law!

There are several reasons to fight such legislation, but I only want to cover three of the best ones: enforceability, effectiveness, and accountability.

This law cannot be enforced without gross violation of personal rights. Since there are numerous - and legal - reasons to be interacting with a modern phone while driving, it is impossible for a law enforcement officer to develop any probable cause on a driver using a phone. A driver could just as easily be looking up a restaurant nearby, reviewing a shopping list, choosing a song or audio book, obtaining directions, et al., ad nauseum, and an observing officer would be absolutely unable to know if the driver is in violation of the law unless he first violates the driver's 4th amendment protection from illegal searches and seizures without a warrant or probable cause, or he convinces the driver to waive his 5th amendment protection from saying something stupid. If passed, this law WILL contribute to the widespread violation of our enumerated rights, and, to add insult to injury, each violated driver will have to pay hundreds of dollars afterwards! Forgive the crude analogy, but this concept is akin to being being forced to pay your rapist for his "service."

Laws of this type have not proven effective elsewhere. Arizona Democratic State Rep. Steve Farley, who was the first legislator in the country to introduce a bill that would ban texting while driving, has noted that "hands-free" legislation has not proven successful [1]. The California DMV also notes that keeping phones out of a driver's hand doesn't make the road safer [2]. More frustratingly, our own "Criminal Justice Institute Traffic Safety Division Director Ryan Klitzsch says it’s as much an informational campaign as an effort to crack down on distracted drivers" [3]. Passing a bill which would, if law, violate the rights of every citizen out of compliance therewith is the worst possible way to embark upon a public education campaign.

It is not for the People of Indiana to decide which distractions a driver can handle and which he cannot. In a free State, a driver is able to determine for himself what his own limitations are. No law can be appropriately tough on some and loose on others; at least, no law that focuses on the minutiae over the true issue can. A ban on texting utterly ignores the danger of drivers doing any of the other millions of things modern phones can do! To truly make the roads safer, the use of the phone altogether must be banned. But we cannot stop there, either: how could a driver focus on the road if his passenger is talking? Or if he is listening to music? God forbid the driver be a parent with misbehaving children in the car! Or reading an actual book! No, each driver must take the personal responsibility to make such decisions on his own, and he must be held accountable for those decisions. But this bill does not achieve this goal in an American way.

Governor, I won't even start to get into the discussions about the "nanny state." I'm sure you have heard them all before. Furthermore, given your success in your current office, I know you understand and embrace responsibility at a governmental and a personal scope. I implore you to send this abusive, misguided albeit well-intentioned, and un-American bill back to the drawing board. Similar bills have been defeated before in our Legislature; we can't allow this one to make it into law this time either.

Links for sources
[1] http://bit.ly/aVKlv8
[2] http://bit.ly/lTkm5u
[3] http://bit.ly/lsI2mw

Additional reading: in the last legislative session, I penned the following article fighting the idea of a driver texting ban and even presented a much more viable and less intrusive approach to improving road safety and decreasing the leading cause of accidents--driver distractions.
http://bit.ly/doGvRc

Maj. Hasan, the "Accused" Ft. Hood Shooter

2011-02-03T14:56:00.006-05:00

A discussion on the dilemma between calling an apple an apple and upholding the American justice system's "innocent until proven guilty in a court of law" standard and on the mainstream media's motives.

Why not call it like it is?
We're not calling apples "apples", but it wasn't always this way.

Today, while reading this story about the US Senate's report on the Fort Hood shooting, I was reminded again of an issue with which I've struggled. Here's the bit that caught my eye (emphasis mine),

According to portions of the report obtained by the Associated Press, military supervisors had the authority to discipline or discharge Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people and wounding more than 30 in the shootings at the Texas military post in November 2009.

Why do we refer to this individual as "the man accused of mass murder" instead of "the man who murdered 13 people in November of 2009"?

These are facts:

A gunman opened fire at the Soldiers Readiness Processing Center on the grounds of Fort Hood, a US Army base near Killeen, TX, at about 13:30 CST on 5 NOV 2009.
Thirteen people were murdered by this gunman and more than 30 others were wounded.
The gunman was shot but not killed.
This gunman was identified as Major Nadal Hasan, an Army psychiatrist who worked on the base.

So, really, why are we still only referring to him as "the accused Fort Hood shooter" in lieu of "the Fort Hood shooter"?

News reports published in the immediate aftermath did not pull punches. For example, a story published on 5 NOV 2009 by MSNBC came right out and said what happened and who did it.

An Army psychiatrist who opened fire at Fort Hood, Texas, killing 12 people and wounding 31 others, was shot but captured alive, military officials said late Thursday.

The gunman, identified as Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, was wounded at the scene but was captured alive and was in stable condition….

What changed? Why did we not call him only "the accused" then but do so now?

It's the American Way
We protect the innocent, sometimes risking not punishing the guilty.

Is it common for the media to refer to those who have been arrested and charged with crimes as "accused" until the verdict is returned? That's possible. But in this case, should they bother? He was caught red-handed! In the act of murdering people!

I am torn because on the one hand, I do not believe that Maj. Hasan is the wrong person. He did it: he murdered those people. Furthermore, on 22 NOV 2009, the AP reported, "John Galligan, the civilian attorney for Maj. Nidal Hasan, said, … 'an insanity defense has to be considered.'” (And I just noticed that, even then, the author calls Maj. Hasan "an Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people".) Claiming a person is insane does not imply the person did not commit the crime for which he was arrested, only that he should be excused from the just consequences. I mean, there is just no way out of the truth that this Muslim murdered those people. I don't like reading all the pussyfooting around the matter.

But, on the other hand, I do believe that the right thing is to call ANY such person "the accused" until they have been judged to be guilty in a court of law. The American justice system ought to be one that favors protection of the innocent at risk of allowing some guilty to go free rather than one that catches all the guilty at the risk of wrongly imprisoning some innocents.

And so, begrudgingly, I concur that we should honor the American Way by continuing to call him "the accused" until he is found guilty in court.

But, wait! Is there more?
Is there more to the matter than meets the eye?

That was where I meant to end this post when I first set out to write it. My initial supposition was that the media is honoring the American concept of "innocent until proven guilty," but maybe I am giving the media too much credit. Should I really trust the media to do the right thing? Do they have some other motive? Are we being conditioned by the media to consider him only "the accused Fort Hood shooter" instead of calling him what he really is, "the Fort Hood murderer"? Does the fact that he is an Islamic extremist compel the media into giving this man special treatment?

What do you think? Is the media no longer blatantly calling Major Hasad "the Fort Hood shooter" out of respect for true American ideals, or is there some other reason?

The Righteous Man's Prayer is Powerful, But Who is Righteous?

2010-12-13T22:47:00.004-05:00

I have long had this in my head: The prayer of a righteous man is powerful. It was only recently, though, that this finally began to "apply" to me. I'd like to share a short devotional with you about what I've learned.

I like the New Living Translation, so here is its version of James 5:16, from which the saying above is derived:
"The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results."

Whenever I thought about praying, I thought to myself, "What's the point? I'm not a good person. I SUCK at doing what I know I should do. So obviously my prayers aren't going to be powerful." It was very discouraging to me. But in the past few weeks another line of thought began to accompany that old train. "But, wait a second, Caleb—'there is none righteous; no, not one.' Well, who is supposed to pray, then?"

Another saying that has been in my head since childhood is the command to "pray without ceasing." Steven Curtis Chapman made a good song about that concept to which I was introduced by WOW 1998 called "Let Us Pray" (click here to listen to it).

I was pretty sure I knew the answer to my own question. But who among us learns so easily?

Last week in my Bible reading, I read a particular parable Jesus told that really drove home the lesson I needed to learn. Here is Luke 11:5-10.

Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence.

“And so I tell you, 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."

So here is my resolution: though my righteousness is as filthy rags, when I undertake to pray for something, I will pray without ceasing for it in the holy name of my Savior, the very one name under Heaven given among men whereby I am saved. I will shamelessly enter into the throne room of the Creator—who knit me together in my mother's womb, who has numbered the hairs on my head, who calls the stars by name, who provides for the lilies, and whose eye is on the sparrow—and boldly make my request in the powerful name of Jesus Christ!

I am no longer afraid to ask for anything. I have long believed that faith was one of my spiritual gifts; it is time for me to grow that faith some more. With faith the size of a mustard seed, I will say to the mountain, "Throw yourself into the sea," and it shall.

What mountains will you command? Don't limit yourself! Have you forgotten that Jesus cursed a fig tree for such a petty reason that it did not have fruit when he went up to it? (It's in Mark's gospel.) And did Jesus not tell us that we will do greater things than He? (It's in John's gospel.)

Don't be like the seeds sewn among weeds who started out strong but were choked out by the worries and fears of the world. Fear not! Worry not! Have faith! And know that our prayer is powerful because it is in the name of Jesus Christ who alone is righteous, who alone is worthy, and who alone stands with us before the Father and pleads our case (1 Jn 2:1).

On Veterans Day 2010

2010-11-11T10:15:00.010-05:00

Since 1919, the United States of America have set aside a day each year to honor and remember the men and women of the US Armed Forces—heroes, all of them. What will you do today to remember and honor those who have given the ultimate sacrifices to keep us safe? How will you thank those who were or still are willing and ready to do the same?

As you seek ways to pay respect to the people who deserve it more than any other in your church, city, state, country, and world, here are a couple excellent videos I want to share with you.

Yesterday was the 235th birthday of the United States Marine Corps. In honor of the Corps, and because that's the branch I plan to join, here is another video produced by the same group dedicated to our Marines.

Please consider visiting The Warrior Song Project's website, where you can get various media and apparel. All proceeds from the sale of "The Warrior Song" MP3 are donated to the Armed Forces Relief Trust on a voluntary basis by The Warrior Song Project. A portion of the proceeds from all other sales are also donated to the AFRTrust on the same basis. Those who have or still serve in any of the US Armed Forces can simply email them to receive The Warrior Song for free, and active or retired Marines can also receive the The Warrior Song - Hard Corps for free (details here).

And for those who are active or retired military and are going out to dinner tonight, here are some places to hit up where your service will be honored by offering you free food.

Applebee's: Veterans Eat FREE November 11th (click for details)
Golden Corral: Free "Thank You" Dinner Monday, 11/15 (5pm-9pm) for Veterans (details)
Outback Steakhouse: Free Bloomin’ Onion and Beverage for active/retired military (details)
Chilis: Veterans eat FREE (details (PDF))
Famous Dave's: Veterans eat FREE (details)

More deals on things like clothing, electronics, or furniture can be found here.

To my civilian friends, please find ways to join me in doing things that say...

To my military friends, Thank you.

Fort Wayne Disses Local Social Media Experts, Hires Chicago Firm [Updated]

2010-11-09T16:41:00.006-05:00

On 30 September 2010, the City of Fort Wayne, Indiana entered into a contract with Chicago-based social media firm Carolyn Grisko & Associates in a move to increase the city's use of social media as a means of providing information to and getting feedback from its citizens. Many approve of the goal, but there is a concern among some who believe outsourcing the job is a serious misstep.

[This entry has been updated twice: I added another Further Reading link and report on the City Council meeting I attended to the end of the post.]

Deputy Mayor Beth Malloy, who has worked in local government under Chicago's Mayor Daley's administration, has indicated that she desires to have a greater presence in social media despite previous efforts by the City to avoid entering that arena. I think most Fort Wayne residents who spend time on the Web would applaud the effort to finally "get with the times"; I sure do. I use social media such as Facebook and Twitter to keep track of all sorts of local, regional, and national news, including events and venues, weather, traffic, emergencies, and so on, so I would welcome an official city presence to the mix.

While discussing the benefits and uses of services like Twitter (especially Twitter) would merit its own article, one obvious positive is the interaction with other local people. I have a list of Twitter users from Fort Wayne (view it here), and similar lists are maintained by many of the people on that list. It has allowed me to "meet" some very intelligent people right here in my own hometown without even trying!

Among the folks I've "met" using social media are several people who are involved with small business, publishing, news, and even social media. I don't really know anything about media marketing, but I know Scott Howard (@ScLoHo) could help me with that. I've never started a company, but I know James Paden (@JamesPaden) could help me with that. I've never tried to make a plan for integrating social media with local government, but I know Kevin Mullett (@kmullett) could help me with that. Hey wait—what was that‽

Deputy Mayor Malloy spoke with News Channel 15 reporter Elizabeth Fields: "When I got here, that's what I asked about. I looked around and did some Googling and searching, and I wasn't able to find a local government that had actually procured someone to help with a strategy." Scott Howard, a local media and marketing expert, recently tweeted, "Reason Malloy couldn't find local expert 1) She's not from here. 2) Never looked or asked!!!" In what looks to be an even bigger sign of the lackadaisical effort the City put forth to find qualified personnel locally is the absence of any mention of this issue from Fort Wayne's Project Bidding webpage. I could've found somebody—in fact, I have—and I'm not even in the industry! There are many others qualified, too.

There are many concerns people have about this deal: that Malloy may be employing Chicago-style "cronyism" by giving the job to a friend from back home; that Malloy may have intentionally kept the price tag below the $75,000 threshold to avoid the requirement for approval from the Fort Wayne City Council; that $72,000 is too much for the city to be paying for this service. I don't know what is the truth about Malloy's history or motives, but she claimed she did not know Carolyn Grisko & Associates or its owner and that the deal was in the pipeline before the threshold was lowered from $100,000 to $75,000. But I do know that there are local resources who could fill the role.

Now, I don't claim to be a person who could help with the implementation of social media to the Fort Wayne government, but as a currently unemployed recent graduate of a reputable science, engineering, a technology institute with a degree in computer science living in Fort Wayne, I can sympathize with the feeling that this job needs to go to a local resource before it goes to Illinois—especially Chicago! (Don't get me started on why I'm not a fan of Illinois, especially Chicago. And this news from the city only aggravates that distaste.) It is vital to the economies of the City of Fort Wayne, the Allen County, and the State of Indiana that jobs which local resources can accomplish are given to those local resources! (This isn't something Fort Wayne and northeast Indiana doesn't already acknowledge; haven't you seen the Talent Made Here commercials on TV and on your banner ads on Facebook?) I have seen, with my own eyes, comments from local social media experts who would have offered the service for free or at greatly reduced fees than the $72,000 bill we're now footing.

Tonight, my father and I are attending the Fort Wayne City Council meeting (5:30 pm in City County Building Room 128) to make it known we do not approve of this contract with an outside company when there are local companies who can do the job. Councilman Tom Smith is also displeased with the contract, so it is good to know that at least one representative shares our point of view.

Further Reading
My point in posting this blog entry was to summarize the matter for my friends and family who may not be aware of it, clarify why I am unhappy about it and why they should be unhappy about it, too. There is a lot more to read about the issue that local writers better than myself have already produced. For more information and more viewpoints, check out the following resources.

Opinion: The City of Fort Wayne and Social Media and ‘Talent Made Here’ — The AroundFortWayne Blog
This is an excellent post that breaks down the specifications from the actual contract and demonstrates point-by-point how they could have been handled locally.

Do We Really Want Talent that IS MADE HERE? — OurSpace Fort Wayne
This discusses the attitude of young unemployed people who may realize, why stay here?

Fort Wayne Deputy Mayor introduces Chicago style cronyism — Angry White Boy
Again, I don't know that it really is cronyism at work, but the suspicion is valid, in my mind.

Controversy over social media consultant — WANE-TV
This features video of the interviews with Deputy Mayor Malloy and Councilman Smith.

City spending $72,000 for lessons on social media use — News Sentinel

City hires social media consultant — Journal Gazette

Fort Wayne City Council meeting schedule

To follow the conversation on Twitter, use the hashtag #FortWayneSM.

Update 2: Even Further Reading
How Hiring a Social Media PR Firm Can Ruin Your Public Relations - .gov Edition — Social Media Infrastructures.com
The very tools the city wants to learn how to implement and integrate were used to tear apart the poor decision the city made about how to learn it.

Update: Attended the City Council Meeting
Well, I attended the City Council meeting tonight at the City County building with my dad. One of the local social media and marketing experts I mentioned in this post was also there, Scott Howard (@ScLoHo). He wrote a great response to the meeting, which you can read here:
Lessons in Local Politics (& Social Media) - The Political side of Scloho.

What came of attending the meeting? As it turns out, since I'd never been to a City Council meeting before, I wasn't sure of the procedures, and I definitely wasn't going to speak out or on a topic that would make myself the fool, so I ended up missing the time to speak on the matter. (They asked if anybody in attendance wanted to speak, but I didn't know if it was open for any topic or just for the matters on their agenda, so I held my tongue. Turns out that was the time to speak up. Oh well.)

And on reflection, it may not be a matter which warranted speaking up at the time. As Scott noted in the aforementioned response, this isn't really even within the City Council's jurisdiction since it didn't break the threshold. Or if there is a course of action open to the councilmen, I sure don't know it. I need to educate myself about the way our government works here in Fort Wayne before I think I can speak up myself, so that I can speak up at the appropriate times and to the appropriate people.

And so should we all.

On Reading the Bible

2010-11-04T02:09:00.002-05:00

What started as a Facebook status update quickly turned into something worth preserving as a blog entry.

Caleb Allen finished reading the OT (from where I would've been if I'd started my annual goal in January), but is still a bit behind schedule. I've never spent this much time in the Word. It's so amazing how refreshing it is! To my non-Christian friends, "you've GOT to check this out!" How anybody can choose not to believe escapes me. …

I'm going to cut off the "status update" right there and now start in on making the rest of it into a more meaningful, well-written post.

Annual Bible Reading
If you are friends with me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter, you may recall me posting (Facebook status, via a tweet) about my new goal to read the Bible annually by reading three chapters daily.

I have long struggled with daily devotions. Like many people, I've started many a time, only to lapse after a week, two weeks, a month… it almost felt like, "Why should I bother? It'll only last a short time anyway." Nevertheless, it was an area in which I really wanted to improve… eventually. To be completely honest, my newfound resolution is due in no small part to the influence of my wonderful girlfriend, Amber (of whom I wrote last month), who has been reading the Bible annually using the 3-chapters-a-day plan for seven years already. It's a very simple plan: you start on the first of January at Genesis 1:1, read three chapters daily, and cheat occasionally by reading more than three if they are short (this is necessary because the ratio of chapters to days would require actually reading ~3.25 chapters daily).

Keeping Up
Still struggling, I improve.

It should be a surprise to no reader that one cannot easily go from not doing something at all to doing it perfectly overnight. To say I've not missed days, sometimes several in a row, would be to lie. Amber has been such a blessing to me in many ways; and one important way is that she has continued to gently encourage me to be faithful to my daily readings. When she invited me to join her in doing daily readings, she had just finished Ezekiel and was ready to start Daniel. Having maintained her habit, Amber is now several days into Matthew while I only finished Malachi tonight.

But the more I read, the more I WANT to read… it's a different response than I've felt in my previous attempts. I'm not sure why it's so different, but that it is different I am sure. Perhaps I'm more mature now than in my previous attempts (I should hope so!). Perhaps I'm more motivated (I think I am). But whatever the reason, I'm excited for it!

A Response to Worship
My heart yearns for more and questions those who reject Him.

As I've been reading over this past month, I've been compelled, forced, stretched to my limit, to question how anybody can reject Truth! I think of my friends from college: Chad Whitaker, Christine Price, and Mike Mrozek stick out in my mind. How can they seriously maintain that God is unreal or that He doesn't matter or care? Is there anything I could've done to make an impression on them? It isn't as though they haven't heard. Chad was raised in the church and ran sound, just like me, before leaving home for college. Christine quotes passages I've never read in order to make fun of them! Clearly ignorance is not the issue. I suppose I could've been more outspoken, though I don't even know exactly what that would mean.

I can't change what I didn't do in college, but I can make an ardent plea now.

To my non-Christian friends, "You've GOT to check this out!" There are many spirits out there, but only one of them loves us! The Bible is that spirit's attempt to tell us about itself. And what a mighty spirit it is! He is called many things: Yahweh, Jehovah, Creator, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, God Who Provides, God With Us, Lord of lords, King of kings, God Almighty, Most High, Lord of Heaven's Armies, Comforter, Living God, Holy One, I AM.

As I have been reading my Bible, I have been repeatedly overwhelmed with the thought of how much a blessing it is to know I have a relationship with the one spirit in all of that which exists who actually CARES about me! My friends, what a blessing it could be for you to know this spirit! This spirit is not absent from our world or from our lives, and it is willing that you would seek it. You may think you've been loved in your life (or you may not); you may think you've been blessed in your life (or you may not); you may think you have been comforted in your life (or you may not); but I tell you this, YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHING YET! The spirit who existed before he created all that exists, who so ordained cells to multiply in your mother's womb, and who breathed the very breath of life into your flesh has so much stored up for you that you cannot even begin to imagine it!

How could you pass up on this? Why would you want to‽

You can call me crazy for believing in something I cannot see, but I tell you the truth, I have seen my God! (An old hymn says, "You ask me how I know He lives: He lives within my heart!") I have seen His works; I have seen His blessings; I have literally felt His strength holding me up when I was about to collapse (no, I mean, literally—when I stood in the hospital room where my beloved sister's soul-less body lay, I felt as though I was going to collapse, but a strength came upon me and physically held me on my feet! And it happened a couple other times that week, as well.); He orders the steps of the godly and delights in every detail of their lives (and I can attest to it!).

WHO IS LIKE MY GOD‽
There is none like you, O Lord.

Closing Remarks
Don't dismiss the opportunity to be a part of something worth being a part of.

My friends… if you don't yet call yourself a Christian, please… take some time to read the Bible. I really liked the end of the Old Testament; starting in Daniel may be good. If you have questions, just ask me!

If you do call yourself a Christian, please… take some time to read the Bible! It is so refreshing to read about the wonders of such a mighty spirit that bends the very laws of nature it created and yet concerns itself with the daily dealings of a creature such as I.

God bless you, reader.

The Importance of Owning a Gun for Home Defense - Especially if You Have Children

2010-06-24T16:57:00.001-05:00

"I've never seen anything this bizarre, except on TV. It couldn't and shouldn't have happened here in our community, but it did."
~Vigo County Sheriff Jon Marvel
WTHI, Terre Haute, IN

And that’s the way it goes. You never expect it to happen to you; you think it is so unlikely that it isn’t worth the trouble to prepare for it. But the fact is, it is going to happen to somebody, and you have no control over whether it will be you to whom it happens. Now, you tell me, as a parent, is it really worth the risk?

In this post
It happened to somebody.
It could have happened to you.
It could have been worse.
It could have been better.
Ways to make sure it is better if it happens to you.
Closing entreatments.

It Happened to Somebody Else
An event unfolded yesterday about which I feel compelled to share some thoughts.

Yesterday afternoon I was in the gym, and the local news was on one of the TVs on the wall. I didn't have any headphones, so I couldn't hear what was being said, but from the headings on the station I learned that a woman in the region had tried to kidnap a baby and that somebody had been stabbed. On the drive to work this morning, I finally found out what had happened.

A Vigo County, IN woman, Stephanie Foster, with a history of miscarriages had recently been faking another pregnancy. She was determined to obtain a child for herself, so she contrived a little plan. She began reading birth announcements in the newspaper looking for a child to kidnap and claim as her own. She selected a boy born to Ashley and Michael Speer of Prairie Creek, IN. With her target determined, Foster proceeded to gather more information about the family; Foster found the Speer's home address and phone number online.

On the afternoon of Wednesday, 23 June 2010, Foster came to the Speer's home with a toy gun and a hunting knife. Under the pretense of using their phone, Foster gained access to the home while the father napped. The assailant stabbed the mother repeatedly, attempting to steal the Speer's infant son. Awakened by the struggle between his wife and an attacking madwoman trying to steal his son, Michael Speer emerged from a nearby bedroom and attempted to subdue the stranger. He was stabbed, as well. As Michael pinned down the intruder, Ashley was able to dial 911.

Michael Speer was taken to the hospital to be treated for his stab wounds; he has already been released. His wife had to be air lifted to a hospital in Indianapolis, where she was initially in critical condition; she has been upgraded to stable condition. The assailant is in the Vigo County jail without bond. She faces preliminary charges of attempted murder, armed robbery, aggravated battery, and attempted criminal confinement (aka "kidnapping", I think).

Obviously, this is a horrible situation. While it could've been a whole lot worse — the month old boy could be an orphan right now — it could also have been a whole lot better if the family, especially the father, had been properly prepared.

It Could Easily Have Been You
Twas chance that this family was selected instead of yours

You may think to yourself that this is one heck of a story, "but it won't happen to me." Is it really worth the risk? Stop a moment here. To how many families does this apply: "The only reason it didn't happen to you was that a madwoman picked a different name out of a hat." Now, do you realize that there are crazy people everywhere? It doesn't matter if you live in the sticks, in the ghetto, downtown, or in a sexy suburban scene. There are crazy people everywhere. And one day, your name may be pulled from a proverbial hat by one such person, just as the Speers discovered.

How It Could Have Been Worse
Some sadder endings to this report

This section is perhaps superfluous, but I decided to add it anyway since it'd be so short.

A father could have had to bury his wife and infant son.

A mother could have had to bury her husband and infant son.

A mother and father could have had to bury their infant son.

A baby boy could have grown up with a madwoman, perhaps ever on the run from authorities.

A baby boy could have grown up in foster or adoptive homes and would have had to be told someday how a madwoman murdered his parents when he was born. ("Was it my fault mommy and daddy died?")

Every one of these is heart wrenching. Would you wish this upon any man, woman, or child? This is the stuff Lifetime movies are about! (I mean, aren't they? I'm actually not positive because I most assuredly do not watch Lifetime. Blech!) Every possible situation listed would be worse than what actually happened. And every possible situation listed was an equally possible outcome yesterday. The Speers were fortunate.

How It Could Have Been Better
Some ideas for how YOU can make sure that it will end better for you than it did for Michael and Ashley Speer.

It is my personal opinion (and I'll admit, I think this is the correct opinion and that everyone should share this opinion) that it is the duty of a husband to provide for the safety of his wife, and that it is the duty of a father and mother to provide for the safety of their children. On this hierarchy, the father carries the most responsibility.

The most effective tool at the disposal of men and women in this era to provide for safety of those in their charge is the firearm. The father should have been prepared. He should have had a gun in the house. Why didn't he?

Perhaps the couple had simply never given a thought to the possibility, to the idea of being prepared for something crazy. If they simply never considered it, since the father carries the most responsibility, yesterday's events reveal a failure on his part. To be less politically correct, I'll be blunt: if there was never thought to be prepared for this (or for "anything"), then this is Michael's fault.

Perhaps the reason he wasn't prepared was that his wife thought he was crazy or unreasonably and illogically fearful. "What‽ You want to have guns in the house with a BABY‽ Are you crazy‽" And that is a rough situation to be in, when the very ones a father has a duty protect refuse to allow him to have the tools with which to fulfill his duty. To be less politically correct, I'll again be blunt: if there had been talk of preparing but Ashley wouldn't let Michael own a gun, then this was Ashley's fault. And it nearly cost her own life.

(To be clear, I have no idea why they don't have a gun, but those are two of the most common scenarios.)

On a somewhat lesser charge, the mother should have been more careful. Why did she open the door for a stranger? Well, to be fair, women tend to have more tender hearts to strangers who show up with a good story and "just need to use your phone." But this is a urge that must be carefully managed. Even I, as a Christian, do not forsake situational awareness and basic self-preservation instincts when fulfilling my mandate to love my neighbor. Evil exists in this world, and it is not our calling to sacrifice our lives rather than fight it. (But lets not get started on that aspect here; I have a blog planned to address that later.)

The point is... if you're going to invite a stranger into your home, try to make sure there is a safe distance maintained and that you have the ability to repel an attack if need be. If you can't repel a potential attack, you better think twice before admitting a stranger to your home. If you don't keep a gun in your home, you better be VERY strong before you let a stranger in.

Finally... when a father is awakened to hear struggling in within his home, his first thought better be to make sure his family is safe (okay, maybe second, after putting on pants, but that's iffy). And, again, unless you are a bull of a man, you better have a gun at hand because there is no better way to provide that safety to your beloved wife and children.

If I am ever awakened by the sounds of a struggle and find my wife being savagely attacked, stabbed, and bleeding, a righteous rage will fill me, and the attacker will have several bullet wounds in short order, with more ready to be handed out if the first volley does not immediately terminate the attack on my family. How DARE you come into MY home and attack MY wife and threaten MY child‽ I submit to you, this is the correct response for any husband and father, even for any man.

From what I've heard, I believe Michael did the right thing at this point. But the attack could have been terminated more quickly, and probably without Michael being stabbed, if he'd emerged from his bedroom with a firearm.

As a corollary to the theorem that the husband and father should be armed, I recommend that a mother also arm herself out of love for her children and her own desire to protect them. Had Ashley been armed when she answered the door, this could have been ended even sooner, and she could have saved herself a flight to Indianapolis and a stay in critical condition.

What Will You Do?
Closing thoughts and entreatments
Hopefully you have come to the realization that something this insane could happen to you — do you think Michael and Ashley ever had this nightmare? I would bet money that they fully expected last night to be an average evening, like any other, like you will probably have tonight and tomorrow night, and all next month. But you simply cannot predict or prevent atrocities like this; all you can do is prepare.

There are stats and there are stories. There are books and there are tales. There are memories and there are tragedies. The records are there to be found if you are willing, and they will bear witness to the fact that there exists no better tool of home defense and self defense than a firearm.

This isn't based on a made-up story. This happened yesterday. In Indiana. This IS real life.

If you are a husband and/or father and haven't thought of preparing yet, it's time you start thinking about it.

If you are a wife and/or mother and are withholding the proper tools from your husband, it's time you rethink that.

If your wife is withholding the proper tools from you, it's time you start trying in earnest to help her understand.

It's your job to protect yourself, your wife, and your children. Is it really worth the risk to be unprepared?

Summer Reading List

2010-05-28T11:59:00.010-05:00

You already saw my post about re-reading "In the Gravest Extreme" by Massad Ayoob (which I have finished, by the way), but I've got a few more things I'd like to read this summer.

Heller

I'd like to read the majority and dissenting opinions from the 2008 US Supreme Court case, District of Columbia v. Heller. (I don't have links to the opinions yet, but once I get them, I'll add them to this entry. Or! If you have them, feel free to post them in the comments!) I may also read some of the amicus curiae briefs and some of the arguments; we'll see.

The Spirit of St. Louis

At a recent "open hangar" event at the Terre Haute International Airport, a local pilot who'd built his own lightweight plane was talking about his experiences flying through some rough storms in that dinky little plane, and he commented, "I finally knew what Lindberg was talking about in his book." That really got me thinking that I should start reading stuff about flying since I plan on being a pilot in the Marine Corps. I'm not positive if this is the book he was talking about, but it's the one on my list: The Spirit of St. Louis, by Charles A. Lindbergh.

Spiritual Warfare

I've long held an interest in spiritual warfare; this was fueled, in no small part, I'm sure, by the stories my parents brought back from Indonesia and Jamaica of being first-hand witnesses and, sometimes, active participants of encounters with people under the direct control of demons.* They have engaged in dialogue with evil spirits and been present on occasions when mere men, by the power of the very name of Jesus Christ, have commanded demons to leave the body of a possessed person.

Combined with my longstanding interest in the subject, some recent events have prompted me to add some reading on spiritual warfare to my list. As it turns out, one of the most respected experts on the subject, Dr. Timothy Warner, has ties to Fort Wayne and several people in my family have actually met with him. I've decided to add his book, Spiritual Warfare: Victory over the Powers of this Dark World, to my summer reading list.

*I know that demons exist not just because I believe what the Bible says about them, but because my parents have met them and I trust their accounts. It's similar to my answer when people ask me how I know God exists: "I've met Him." Like Thomas after the Resurrection, there's no need for faith to believe in that which you have seen.

USMC Field Manual

Last Christmas, my parents got me the field manual for enlisted Marines from the local Army surplus store. I have only read the first couple chapters so far, but I plan to finish that over this summer. (I couldn't find a link to the manual I have online.)

Founding Documents

The United States Constitution

It may come as a surprise to you, but I have not read the United States Constitution, the one I hold so dear, in its entirety straight through. This summer I will rectify that. The text can be found through its Wikipedia entry.

The Declaration of Independence

Similarly, I am fairly sure I haven't read this monumental document. I may have read it at some point in my preparatory schooling, but that is doubtful. The text can be found through its Wikipedia entry, as well.

[Optional] State Declarations

As I was looking up the Wikipedia link for the United States Declaration of Independence, I saw that a few of the declarations issued by Sovereign States in the American south, who subsequently formed their own country which failed to establish itself as independent in what is now called the Civil War, are available for reading. Those would be interesting. I believe that many of the same usurpations which compelled the American colonies to declare independence from the British Empire, and several Sovereign States from the United States of America, either are currently happening again, or will be very soon.

Common Sense

A pamphlet written by Thomas Paine in the years during the war for American independence presented arguments to the colonists for exactly why the colonies needed to be free from the tyrannical British rule. As it was signed "Written by an Englishman" and was written using well-reasoned arguments in a manner easily understood by many people, it was pivotal in turning the colonists' opinion into support for the cause of independence. That pamphlet is on my list.

Additionally, Glenn Beck wrote a book of similar same name in 2009 — Glenn Beck's Common Sense: The Case Against an Out-of-Control Government, Inspired by Thomas Paine. This book is also on my list. As a convenience, Beck included Paine's original writings at the end of his book, so I will be able to hit two birds with one bullet.

A Book About Rachel

2010-05-23T17:45:00.004-05:00

Today I started working on my book, a book about my departed and beloved sister, Rachel Marie (Allen) Amstutz. I do not know how long it will take to finish, only that it will be finished one day.

For whom am I writing this book? Me. I'm writing this because *I* want to have it; it will have special meaning to me. But I recognize others may want to read it too. I bet that my family will want a copy of it, and it would probably be good for Rachel's children to read someday, too. Rachel's closest friends from childhood and church, those to whom she reached out, and even some who accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior in the wake of her death may also be interested in reading it. I very much hope to get this published for those who would share my joy in having and reading it.

This purpose of the book will be (at least) twofold.
1) God's Preparations. As time went by, facts came to light that revealed the many, many ways in which God was actively preparing the world for the day he would call Rachel heavenward; I want to document and discuss these.
2) People's responses. I know that many people penned journals, poems, and songs in dedication to, honor of, or memory of Rachel. I want to collect these. As word got out that she had moved on to her glory, letters of encouragement poured in from all around the world - literally. Some were sent to me, some to my parents, still more to my brother by birth, and of course, to Rachel's bereaved husband, my brother by choice, Scott. I want to collect as many of these as I can, too.

So now it comes to this: I need your help!

From whom I need help:
Family, friends, or acquaintances with Rachel, Scott, myself, or my family. (Basically, anybody who knows us!)

What I want:
I need more content, and you guys have it all!
If you did anything like write a letter, journal, song or poem, jotted notes on a Post-It, made a "sticky" on your iPhone, ANYTHING AT ALL in response to Rachel's death and the days and events surrounding it, please send it to me!
If you made a decision about your future (children? salvation? outreach?), tell me about it!
Rachel touched so many lives, and I want to try to capture as much of that as possible. I think you will actually be surprised when you learn just how much Rachel affected others, not just you.

=====
UPDATE: This info was added after this entry was originally posted.
To reiterate, I'm primarily doing this for myself. I personally am interested in seeing this stuff if you have it. If you feel comfortable sharing it with me but don't want it published publicly, that is perfectly OK! I've already had one person send me something with the request it not be shared outside the family, and I'll honor any such request. -Thanks.
=====

Timeframe:
As soon as you can get it to me.
I have a few things already to get me started, so I'm not sitting around waiting on things to get going. But I'd like to get your input as quickly as I can, while it is all still pretty fresh in your mind. Now, if you don't have something prepared can you can send me, take your time. Write it up. This will be an ongoing endeavor, so don't rush yourself.

Where to send it:
If you have electronic media to contribute, please send it via email to MySisterRachel+contribution@gmail.com. If you have something that cannot be sent via email, alert me via email so I can hook you up with a mailing address.

Book orders?
Like I said, I expect that there will be other people besides me who will want a copy of the finished book. If you are one such person, please send an email to MySisterRachel+bookorder@gmail.com, and I will let you know when the time approaches.

General contact information.
If you have anything to say or ask about related to this project, you can just use this email address: MySisterRachel@gmail.com (without the +-tags).

Deterrent Effect of Defensive Handguns

2010-05-23T10:21:00.011-05:00

A year and a half ago, I applied for my lifetime Indiana License to Carry Handgun (LTCH) in preparation for becoming one of the citizens who goes about his daily business prepared for the type of occasion I hope never happens. A person who is close to me had been such a citizen for several years already; since this person may wish I do not reveal publicly that he carries, I shall refer to him as Noah. Based on Noah's experience in the field of carrying a handgun daily for self-defense, and on his familiarity with my character, attitude, and general youthful foolishness, he strongly advised me to read a book by Massad Ayoob before I get a gun and start carrying it daily. In fact, his recommendation was so strenuous that he told my parents not to let me purchase or carry a gun until I had read this book.

Without question, I read the book and almost immediately agreed with Noah's opinion that I *needed* to read it before carrying. In fact, I agree with his opinion so much that, even now, I advise new shooters to also read the book first. It is paramount to the safety of all citizens that those who carry have the correct mindset, and Ayoob's book is an excellent tool for building that mindset (among the myriad other lessons he teaches in it).

Six months after I applied for my LTCH, and 4 months after it arrived in the mail, I got my first handgun. In the year since then, my collection of firearms has grown, as has my proficiency and familiarity therewith. I've applied myself to learn as much as I can about the safe, legal, and ethical use, handling, and storage of guns, ammo, and accessories for various purposes. As I come upon the 1 year mark, I thought it would be appropriate that I re-read Ayoob's book. I knew there would be more things I'd be able to pull from it as a result of my continued learning. (Shoot, when I read it the first time, I already knew I was going to have to read it again because there's just so much to soak up.)

Today I read a chapter that so perfectly demonstrates why I chose to carry a gun that I want to share it with you. It is perhaps the shortest chapter in the book, only a couple pages, so I'm going to share its entirety with you. I encourage you to read this chapter to help gain understanding in the matter if you've ever questioned, "Why would you want to carry a gun?" Moreover, read the whole book.

====================
"In the Gravest Extreme: The Role of the Firearm in Personal Protection". Ayoob, Massad. 1980. Massad F. and Dorothy A. Ayoob, Publisher.
(Amazon link)

Chapter 10: Deterrent Effect of Defense Handguns

I have often said that in a situation where the law-abiding citizen is criminally threatened with physical harm, the great saving force of the self-defense handgun will be demonstrated more in its psychological deterrent power than in its ballistic stopping power.

I don't deny the fact that there will be terrible moments when the intended victim will have no choice but to pull the trigger. But if the timing is right, and if the assailants are of the typical mettle of a mugger who wants an easy score and doesn't want to shed any of his own red blood to line his pockets with someone else's green money, the sight of your blue steel may be enough to turn some faces white and some spines yellow, and let you go on living your life uninterrupted in its own placid colors.

For instance, it is a cold February night. I am leaving a Holiday Inn located on the outskirts of what is listed in the FBI reports as one of the most crime-free cities in America. It is cold, bitter cold, with a savage Nor-Easter blowing. I button my topcoat over my suitjacket as I walk through the darkened parking lot to the very edge, where I had to leave my car. Alone in the car-filled lot is a young man in a thin pea-jacket, smoking a cigarette, lounging against the hood of a sedan.

On this night, in this weather, it is not a place to relax for a smoke. I look around the lot, wondering whom he is waiting for. There is no one to be seen.

I glance back at the young man, and he is already looking at me, and our eyes meet. I nod to him, the instinctive gesture of one human being meeting another in a lonely place. He turns sharply away, looking fixedly at nothing, and draws on his cigarette.

Alarm bells ring in my subconscious. Something is wrong here. The same instinct makes my right hand unbutton my topcoat and my suitcoat, to give that hand access to the Smith & Wesson Chief's Special in its speed rig on my right hip. I feel the frigid wind knife through my chest. You shmuck. I think to myself, if you get pneumonia and die, they'll list your cause of death as paranoia. I keep walking. The young man, directly in my path, keeps looking away.

I pass within a few yards. And, suddenly, he moves.

The half-smoked cigarette (I remember it had a brown filter) is thrown to the ground, and with a violent sweep of his arm ("Marines, let's go!") he gestures towards a car in the parking lane behind him. And now a lupine face comes from behind a fender, its eyes on mine as the young man's are now, narrowed and hungry.

And they lunge. For me.

I am two people. One of me watches in fascination, never before having seen a human face in a frenzy that would draw the lips so far back from the teeth that the gums are showing. The other of me, without really thinking about it, draws the .38.

And, voila, another revelation. Never before, except in cartoons, have I seen people come skidding to a halt on the heels of their shoes, with their toes pointed skyward and their hands flailing for balance.

We stand looking at each other for a long moment. They can't see the wicked tips of the hollowpoint handloads in the chambers, and wouldn't recognize them if they did, because this is before the day when ACLU bleated to the world about Super Vel and police brutality. The gun isn't even pointed at them, just held casually at a 45° angle. But they know what it is, and they look at me with surprise. "No fair," they seem to be thinking. "You're not supposed to pull steel!"

I give them a big grin, partly because I often respond to stress situations with a touch of hysterical laughter, and partly because I can't think of anything relevant to say.

Then, I walk to my car, backwards, watching them with an occasional glance over each shoulder for a third mugger, who either isn't there or knows enough not to jump on somebody with a piece.

And then I get in my car and drive away.

It has been a long time since that happened to me. I often wondered if I was wrong in not trying the citizen's arrest number (I didn't become a cop until later). I wondered if I left them out there to pounce somebody else.

But I knew then that it was their two words against my one, and I knew they hadn't come up to me to bum a cigarette, it might have been hard to convince a judge of that in a town where there supposedly isn't any street crime. I'd rather think that I scared enough out of them and they gave up trying to mug a straight stranger who just might be "walking heavy."

Not long after that, I was in a major metropolis that doesn't try to hide its street crime problem because it can't. In broad daylight, I was accosted by a man-woman mugger team. The woman's deliberate staggering into me was supposed to throw me off balance and into the arms of her male friend. But I had worked with enough good judo teachers to stay on my feet, turn, and wind up facing her boyfriend with her on the other side.

He didn't brandish his knife like in "Blackboard Jungle" or "West Side Story." He just drew it. It was a fixed blade, a kitchen knife I think.

Matter-of-factly, with a big grin, he showed it to me.

Matter-of-factly, with a big grin, I showed him a four-inch .38 revolver.

Rather urgently, he shoved the bare knife back into his belt, and I hope he slashed himself. He raised his hands in a conciliatory gesture ("Don't shoot, we're all friends here, heh heh . . .") and waved at the woman behind him to cross the street as he back pedalled himself. He stopped grinning, turned to her with his eyes widening now, and made a desperate "get the hell out of here" gesture. Then he looked back at me and grinned even wider as he continued his backward movement.

I grinned back and put the gun inside my sportshirt again. He turned and fled.

I did not try to apprehend him. I wasn't a cop then, either. And that city didn't give gun permits to out-of-state travellers, or, for that matter, to its own crime-plagued citizens. He would have gotten a free lawyer. I would have spent some time in their local clink and would still have a felony bust on my record. If I hadn't had the gun, he probably would still have gotten off with his free lawyer, and I would have wound up in the hospital and would still have the scars. Or maybe the worms would have eaten the scar tissue by now. Either way, it was easier to walk away whole with no blood on my hands. And none of mine on anyone else's.

It was some years later, and this time I was wearing a police uniform. The call came over the radio, and I hit the lights and siren. A drug-crazed suspect had forced his way into a suburban home on the edge of the community I patrolled.

He was gone when we got there, but he had already left a residue of fear that would never go away. He'd had the wife down on her living room couch when the husband, hearing her screams, grabbed his Walther .32 auto from his night-table drawer and ran to her aid.

The guy heard him coming, and threw himself to his feet to take the husband. The guy was big. Then he saw the pistol . . . and got small.

He backed out the door screaming threats, covering his face like a vampire in a late-show movie cringing from a crucifix. By the time the husband had chased him out, his wife had run to the bedroom closet and fetched the loaded 12-gauge. As the druggie stood on the lawn screaming obscene threats at the homeowner, the latter fired a round of birdshot into the air, and the attacker fled into the woods.

During the hours that followed, as I and a contingent of brother officers stalked the suspect through the woods, I reflected on the value of that little .32 automatic in that man's night-table drawer. We'd had a decent response time—we were on the scene less than a minute after getting the hysterical phone call—but as I crept through the pitch-black woods that night, listening to the sound of the bloodhounds, I couldn't help but wonder what might have happened if he hadn't had that little gun. I admit, I didn't reflect on it too much at the time, because I was more preoccupied with the sounds and movements around me as I still-hunted the brush with a Kel-Lite flashlight going on-and-off in one hand, and a Colt .45 automatic in the other. But I knew damn well that without that little .32, we might not have gotten the call until it was too late.

Later that night, when the thing was (bloodlessly) ended, that man came up to me and said, "Officer, my wife is afraid they're going to arrest me for threatening him with a gun. They aren't, are they?"

That gave me something to reflect on, too. I remembered those incidents back before I started wearing a badge, and how my first thought was that "they" could arrest me for defending myself against violent assault. At that moment, I was glad I'd taken the call as R/O (responding officer or reporting officer).

I put my hand on the guy's shoulder. I told him he wouldn't be arrested. I told him to come in to the police station Monday morning and see about getting a "carry" pistol permit. And then I gave him the address of a friend of mine who runs a police equipment shop, and promised him a discount on something bigger than a .32 automatic. Somewhere in between came a lecture on trusting the frail hook-and-eye lock on his screen door.

Wanna few more? I've got files full, and thank God, only a few of 'em happened to me. But the documentation is there, with me and a lot of other people, most of 'em cops: when an innocent person is menaced by a violent criminal who doesn't give a damn for any life but his own, the very presence of a firearm is often enough to turn the situation around, to make the attacker say, "Whoa! I didn't bargain for jeopardizing my life instead of yours!"

I reiterate: the very presence of a citizen's gun, as they rightfully say in the Armed Citizen column in AMERICAN-RIFLEMAN, often prevents bloodshed on either side. You'd think the ACLU and similar groups would appreciate that more than they do.

Despite all the junk "rape defense manuals" and similar pop lit, there's only one way you can talk a violent criminal out of harming you once he's picked you for a victim. What you have to do, is hit him with a deep, existential question, something that will make him re-examine and re-evaluate his own personal values and life style, his own hopes and dreams, as related to the moment at hand. It can even be phrased without words.

A question like, "You don't want me to have to shoot you in the face with this .38 Special, do you, scumbag?"

States Fighting Federal Government Takeover of Health Care

2010-03-24T10:39:00.008-05:00

There is so much wrong, on so many levels, with the passage of the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act" that it is tough to know where to even begin. My last post on this blog was focused on sharing a copy of my petition to Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller that he fight the bill, which was signed yesterday (23 March 2010) by the President.

This post follows up with some good news that I turned up in my continued research:
1. Indiana is going to fight the health care law;
2. Indiana is among many states fighting the health care law;
3. The law is an overt attempt by the federal government, especially Democrats, to "control the people."

The Law is Bad for Indiana... and We'll Fight It
It is unconstitutional, limits options, and raises costs in Indiana

According to this news release on IN.gov, AG Zoeller is "reviewing options for legal challenge to health care bill". The news release included a link to the official report that AG Zoeller submitted to Senator Luger (US Senate, R-IN) on 05 February 2010 analyzing Senate version of the health care bill. Here is a link to the full report on IN.gov (PDF, 55 pages). And here is a summary of the report on IN.gov (1 page, web).

So why exactly is this law bad for Indiana? Check out these highlights from AG Zoeller's report (or read the full report, if you wish).

Constitutionality at issue.
Never before has the federal government required Americans to purchase any good or service, nor has it regulated inactivity.

The bill's "Nebraska Compromise" amendment ... appears to violate Article I of the U.S. Constitution.

Insurance exchanges problematic.

Indiana Medicaid costs.

Increases Indiana's Medicaid costs by $2.4 billion over 10 years.

Diverts pharmaceutical rebate savings from the states to the federal government, potentially resulting in a loss to Indiana of $750 million by 2019.

State insurance plans preempted.

[May] spell the end of the popular Healthy Indiana Plan (HIP) where low-income Hoosiers now are able to purchase state-run health coverage — funded partially through cigarette tax — that emphasizes preventive care.

Economic impact.

Substantial negative impact on two Indiana industries that employed a combined 35,500 Hoosiers in 2007.

The report concludes that the Senate version of the health care bill is unlikely to achieve one of its major goals, reducing the cost of health care. ... The Senate bill is likely to cause a steep increase in insurance premiums.

Indiana is Not Alone in the Fight
14 Sovereign States have already filed suit

In the build-up the bill's final passage and signing, I was most aware of the Commonwealth of Virginia's opposition to it. Little did I know, the ball was already rolling throughout the Union.

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (website | Twitter) was outspoken in his opposition and made it clear before the House even passed the bill that Virginia would file suit if it became law. When the House did pass the bill, AG Cuccinelli tweeted: "Well, they did it. Once the president signs it into law, we'll walk across the street and file suit b/c the ind mandate is unconstitutional".

Not only has the Attorney General stood up for the sovereignty of the Commonwealth and the liberty of its People, but the Virginia General Assembly passed a bill, expected to be signed into law by Governor Bob McDonnell today (24 March 2010), that explicitly makes it illegal for the federal government to force Virginia residents to purchase health care. Under the 10th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which states "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people", since the Congress was not granted authority to force citizens to purchase a product or service, State laws supercede the federal government's "law".

As I said, I have been most aware of the fight in Virginia, but that last link includes a tidbit that Idaho has actually enacted such a law already.

In separate action, the attorneys general from thirteen (13) other states have jointly filed suit in the US District Court in Florida.

Attorney General	State of
Bill McCollum	Florida
Henry McMaster	South Carolina
Jon Bruning	Nebraska
Greg Abbott	Texas
Mark L. Shurtleff	Utah
James D. "Buddy" Caldwell	Louisiana
Troy King	Alabama
Michael A. Cox	Michigan
John W. Suthers	Colorado
Thomas W. Corbett, Jr.	Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Robert M. McKenna	Washington
Lawrence G. Wasden	Idaho
Marty J. Jackley	South Dakota

One interesting note is that, while in most states the Attorney General and the Governor are allies in this battle, Washington Governor Chris Gregoire supports the health care law that WA AG Rob McKenna has filed suit to block. Since both are elected offices, neither has authority over the other's actions.

Thankfully, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels has been just as adamantly opposed to the federal government's takeover of the health care system. I'm encouraged to see that my home state is but one among many with heads of sound logic and balls of steel to stand up to the federal government's outright attempt to "control the people".

The Real Reason for the Health Care Bill
To control the people

Oh, did you miss that? Representative John D. Dingell (D-MI) admitted "it takes a long time to do the necessary administrative steps ... to control the people." He went on to say that "our Republicans have spent a long time not participating [in trying to control the people], not helping [the effort to control the people], prepping [to fight Democratic power-grabs], and delaying [Democratic power grabs],... they have contributed nothing to [the attempt to control the people] and made no offer whatsoever as to what it is they want or what they stand for."

There you have it, folks, straight from the horse's mouth. "Democrats been working a long time to advance the federal government's power to control the people, and Republicans have done nothing but try to stop them." And he is sorely mistaken if he believes Republicans have not made it known what they stand against. The very fact they've put up such a fight against these kinds of power-grabs speak louder than any official press-release or party policy.

Thank God we have States like Indiana and the others who have already filed suit to stop the injustice and folly that is the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act".

Fighting for State's Rights & Personal Liberty

2010-03-22T17:57:00.004-05:00

It has been asked, "How do we get our country back?"

There is no simple answer. We have been slowly eroded by politicians from both parties for decades, and it will likewise take a while to recover. But one thing is known - the first step is to contact your representatives. If they will listen, great! Tell them how they can best represent you and the best interest of the people. If not, it is time to start looking for a replacement - who knows, the right man for the job may be the one in the mirror.

With the passage of the "health care" bill by the US House of Representatives yesterday, we have taken a giant leap towards becoming the Union of Socialist States of America (USSA). Thankfully, several of the Sovereign States have already made it known that the federal government, a creature OF the Sovereign States, has overstepped its bounds, gone beyond the power granted to it by the States that created it.

At this point in time, at least 10 States have disclosed plans to file a lawsuit against the federal government for overstepping its powers with the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act". More Sovereign States are likely to follow. My fellow Hoosiers, I encourage you to contact Attorney General Greg Zoeller in support of Indiana joining the list of States with the cajones to stand up to the federal government.

Below is a copy of the email I sent to AG Zoeller, and here is a link to contact him yourself. (If you are not a Hoosier, please contact your respective attorney general an encourage him to join the cause of State's Rights and Personal Liberty.

Dear Mr. Greg Zoeller:

I write to you on a day that is dreary not only because of the rainy weather, but more importantly because of the decision of the United States Congress to pass the "health care" bill last night. The bill was strongly opposed by a majority of American citizens throughout our great nation; watchdog groups warned us of the repercussions; the Democratic Party even lost seats already because citizens simply did not want this bill enacted. Yet, Congress, in its Infinite Wisdom, decided that the We the People are not intelligent nor wise enough to make this sort of decision, that it is somehow ordained to push this down our necks against our every petition, plea, and protest. Nevertheless, as of today, what has been done has already been done.

Yesterday, the President said, "This is what 'change' looks like."
"Oh really, Mr. President?" is my response. "Just wait until you see November... then you will truly see 'change'!"

I was disheartened to see that all five (5) of the Democratic representatives from Indiana to the United States House of Representatives voted in support of this bill. Surely they will receive their reckoning come election time. In the mean time, however, we have work to be done. As the highest legal advisor to the State of Indiana, I implore you to help us fight off this tragedy of American greatness that is the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act".

As many as twelve (12) Sovereign States of our Great Union have begun preparations to file a lawsuit against the federal government's seizure of the health care system [1]. Most outspoken on this intention has been Virginia's Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, but Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum has also made his intentions known. Furthermore, the attorneys general from Alabama, Nebraska, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Washington will be standing up to the federal government on behalf of their respective states [2]. I respectfully petition you, sir, to join the growing throng of opposition among these Sovereign States against the unconstitutional behavior of the members of the Congress of the United States and the White House.

Our very own Governor Mitch Daniels has been publicly against the passage of this outrageous bill [3]. I am a young man, and I have not been active in following politics until just the past two years, but my research and diligence has given me great faith in our State and in our Governor. I know you are much more aware of all the ramifications of this "reform" bill than I, but from every stretch of my knowledge, from every byte of insight I've extracted from my elders, advisors, peers, and mentors, and from every application of my sincerest wisdom, I have concluded that this Act must be undone at the earliest possible moment in order to protect, if not the Union as a whole, the State of Indiana. So again, I encourage you to join Governor Daniels in opposition to this bill for the welfare of our own state.

Thank you.

Best regards,

Caleb W. Allen
Fort Wayne, IN
B.S., Computer Science, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, 2009

Sources:
[1] http://www.wbur.org/npr/125030078
[2] http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/22/health.care.lawsuit/
[3] http://www.wthitv.com/dpps/news/indiana/governor-mitch-daniels-releases-statement-on-health-care-bill_3284623

All for now...
Caleb

Why There Should Be No Ban On Texting-and-driving

2010-02-03T12:05:00.014-05:00

That video is gut wrenching. Were you even able to watch its entirety? The part that hurts me the most is seeing the little girl asking "Why won't Mommy and Daddy wake up?" and the little infant with an empty stare while emergency personnel frantically check for a pulse because I see in them my two nieces, ages 8 months and 6 years, who lost their mother when my sister Rachel passed away suddenly 8 months ago.

The accident depicted was caused by a teenaged girl texting while driving. So how could I possibly still oppose a legal restriction against texting while driving? There are many reasons, but let me discuss three of them:
1. Such a ban can not be well enforced.
2. "Texting" isn't the cause of accidents.
3. I have a better idea to handle the issue.

For the sake of discussion, let us consider HB 1279 which passed in the Indiana House yesterday (02 FEB 10). You should click that link to get more details on the specifics and definitions, but this is the main part of the bill:

A person may not use a telecommunications device to transmit a text message or electronic mail message while operating a moving motor vehicle unless the device is used in conjunction with hands free or voice operated technology.

1. Non-Enforceability
Law enforcement officers (LEOs) have no legal way of determining if you are texting.

In Indiana, using your wireless phone to make phone calls while driving is not illegal. In fact, Indiana does not even have a hands-free law regarding placing calls. Neither is there any restriction on using the GPS, music player, camera, or even game features that most modern phones include. These facts demonstrate that there are legal reasons to be looking at your phone and pressing buttons (or touching the screen) while driving.

So, a LEO may visually observe you pushing buttons on your phone while driving, but this is not sufficient to pull you over under the proposed law. This is different from Indiana's "Seat Belt Law" which specifically allows LEOs to stop a driver under Indiana Code 9-19-10-3.1.

Suppose that you have already been pulled over. A LEO may very well want to find out if you were in violation of the "Texting While Driving Law", but he cannot. If the officer asks you if you were texting, the Constitution of the United States protects you from answering. If the officer asks (or even "orders") you to produce your phone for inspection, the same Constitution protects you from unreasonable search and seizure without 1) a warrant or 2) probable cause.

There are two very important things to remember. The first is that under United States law, the exercise of your Fifth Amendment right is not an admission of guilt and cannot be used as such. The second is that, since there are legal reasons to be pushing buttons (or touching the screen) of a phone, the fact that you were doing so does not provide probable cause for a search or seizure of your phone, and neither does refusing to tell the LEO if you were texting develop probable cause.

So, without probable cause or a warrant to search your wireless phone (or a subpoena for your phone records), there is no legal way for an officer of the law to determine if a driver was to be in violation of the "Texting While Driving Law". I must note that this does not apply to drivers foolish enough to waive their 4th and 5th Amendment protections by either admitting guilt or producing the evidence of guilt without a warrant.

2. The Real Cause of Accidents
The real cause of accidents is not texting or even using a wireless phone; it is driver negligence.

The results are in. They can be read all over the internet, and they are seen and heard on the news. But many people have misinterpreted those results.

The following sources produce statistics and quotes you've probably heard before.
1. Cell Phones and Driving: Research Update. December 2008. AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.
2. Highway Officials: National Ban On Texting While Driving. SeriousAccidents.com (Car Accident Lawyers)
3. Teen Driver Menace: Text-Messaging: Studies Show Texting While Driving Is Epidemic. ParentingTeens.com
4. Teens Admit Text Messaging Most Distracting While Driving. Students Against Destructive Decisions.

The overriding theme is that there are many things which distract drivers from the road, and that one of the most common distractions these days is the use of a cell phone, especially for sending and receiving text messages. (Side note: HB1279 would only ban sending messages, not receiving and/or reading them, while driving.) So, you see, texting isn't really the cause; instead, the main cause is that drivers are paying more attention to something other than driving. Let's brainstorm a moment here.

Possible distractions to drivers:
• Reaching for a moving object inside the vehicle.
• Looking at an object or event outside of the vehicle.
• Reading a book or newspaper.
• Applying makeup.
• Doing or fixing hair.
• Eating.
• Taking a drink (assume non-alcoholic).
• Talking to passengers.
• Dealing with your kids in the back seat (lost toy, fighting, spill, potty accident, sick, etc.)
• Changing a CD, tape, radio station, song, or volume.
• Just listening to music, even if you don't change or adjust anything about it.
• Sexual activity (let's not be naïve, it happens).

And, of course, some other things that can adversely affect a driver's ability to safely operate a motorized vehicle:
• Emotions and state of mind.
• Cough syrup.
• Lack of sleep.
• Body aches and injuries.
• Drunkenness.
• Gender. (OK, just kidding on that one;)

The evidence in all studies to date has demonstrated that a driver whose attention is not focused on driving puts himself at a MUCH higher risk of being in a collision. (Note that I do not call it an "accident". One thing I learned in Driver's Ed is that there are very few accidents; it is almost always somebody's fault.) Whether that driver's attention is diverted by a phone, an iPod, CD player, GPS, or passengers is really irrelevant. No matter what causes that distraction, it is the responsibility of the driver to make sure that his vehicle does not hit anything. Thus, you see that most accidents result from driver negligence—neglecting to fulfill his responsibility to keep his vehicle from hitting something.

3. A Better Approach
Regulating distractions doesn't work. Regulating driving will.

Consider the findings of the attorneys at SeriousAccidents.com (source 2, above).

The percentage of car accidents attributed to dialing a cell phone is nearly identical to the number associated with talking or listening on a cell phone or bluetooth headset.

Again, the results are in. When cellular phones were just beginning to gain popularity, it became evident they were becoming a distraction to drivers. Many states enacted legislation requiring drivers to use "hands-free" devices if they wanted to use a cell phone while driving. But that did not help. Even Arizona Democratic State Rep. Steve Farley, who was the first legislator in the country to introduce a bill that would ban texting while driving, has noted that "hands-free" legislation has not proven successful.

What are legislators to do? Should they doggedly continue down the list of possible distractions and attempt to regulate each one, hoping that success will be found once they've all been banned? No, certainly not. This would be a waste of tax-payer money, since they'd be wasting time, on our dime, writing laws that are too difficult to enforce, infringe on our rights, and, most importantly, have little positive effect in solving the actual problem!

Listen, folks, I don't know if I've made it clear yet, but I'm not saying people should text whenever they want. And I don't believe that people should drive when they are drunk or high.

I've never been drunk, and thus never driven while drunk, but I've driven while I was way more sleepy than was safe. Studies have shown that driving while sleep-deprived can be as dangerous as, or more than, driving drunk. So why is driving tired not illegal too? Well the easy answer is that it cannot be easily measured such as your BAC can be measured, even though some people are not drunk at .08 while others are drunk well before then.

The laws are tackling the issue the wrong way. We should come up with a better way to handle this.

Let us create a "Distracted Driving Law" that is based on your driving, not what you're doing. Distracted driving tickets could be issued for, among other things:
• Not going at a green light.
• Swerving (which is already a reason to suspect drunk driving).
• Merging into somebody.
In fact, there are already several things in the Indiana Code that are classified as "reckless driving". Let's add to that.

Behavior that is generally indicative of being an impaired driver should be banned rather than each and every single little thing which could possibly contribute to impaired driving. In Indiana, one of the drivers in a collision is assigned fault (which is as it should be, in contrast with Michigan's no-fault policies). An appropriate piece of legislation may impose penalties for being the at-fault driver beyond the current status quo of simply being financially responsible for any damage caused to person or property.

We could do away with the current drunk driving laws, this proposed "Texting While Driving Law", and a flurry of other similar laws, both current and future. It doesn't matter what the heck you are doing in your car if you are able to maintain proper control of its velocity, path, and destination, i.e., speed, direction, where it goes, and where it ends up. But so help you, if you screw up, you're in deep poo-poo.

Legislating the driving itself also allows the law to be flexible to people of various skill levels. Can you barely chew gum and drive in a straight line? Better not chew and drive. Are you a big, burly, bartender who knows he can have four beers in an hour without even getting a buzz? Fine, if you can keep the car on the road and not hit anything; THAT is what is important, not your BAC nor bottle count.

And need I mention that this doesn't infringe on your personal rights? No illegal searches. No need to pull somebody over and give them a hard time on suspicion alone. The LEO can clearly observe if the vehicle is being operated in a reckless manner. This is much more easy to enforce.

Finally, this approach lets us stop writing laws about it! Thirty years ago there were no laws about texting and driving, or even using a phone while driving, because they weren't relevant. But suppose that laws had been written as I have suggested. In that case, the old law would still be relevant today because it was focused on the way a driver operates the motor vehicle on the roadway rather than what the particular distraction of his generation is.

Come on, folks. Don't let your legislature enact another "feel good" law with demonstrably little effect on stemming the real problem. Instead, let us encourage them to use some common sense and write a better law.

Click here to email your Indiana legislators. Tell them you oppose this bill, and all others like it, not because you think texting and driving is safe, but because it is a foolhardy approach to establishing roadway safety.

Further Reading
A Penchant for Controlling Others - Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr. - Mises Institute
~ Angry White Boy ~ » Indiana House Bill 1279 – Nanny State Legislation
Do Not Make New Laws – Enforce the Ones We Have (Texas)

ATTN: Hoosiers. Support Senate Bill 25 - "Parking Lot Bill"

2010-01-12T19:19:00.008-05:00

UPDATE! A law to this effect has been enacted!

HB 1065 was signed into law by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels on 18 March 2010.
News release on IndyStar.com
Digest of HB1065 on IN.gov

HB 1065 included provisions that protect Hoosiers from Katrina-style weapons confiscation in time of emergencies, among other emergency powers protections. In addition, the bill, which takes effect on 1 July 2010, prevents employers from banning legally possessed firearms from being stored in locked vehicles on company property. Both of these protections are important for the preservation of the right to keep and bear arms protected by the constitutions of the United States and of Indiana.

------------------------
Original post follows
------------------------

My fellow Hoosiers,

On Tuesday, January 12, Senate Bill 25 passed out of the Senate Committee on Corrections, Criminal, and Civil Matters by a vote of 8 to 3. SB 25, sponsored by NRA Board Member and State Senator Johnny Nugent (R-43), will now head to the full Senate for a floor vote.

This legislation would prevent a business from adopting or enforcing a policy or rule that prohibits an individual from legally possessing a firearm that is locked in the individual's private vehicle while the vehicle is in or on the business’ property. Twelve states have already enacted similar legislation to protect their law-abiding citizens from being wrongfully terminated for exercising their Second Amendment rights, and it is time Indiana did the same.

This is a bill that all citizens who are concerned for their own personal safety should support. To that end, I encourage you, fellow Hoosiers, to contact your state senators and encourage them to vote in support of this bill. I have already done so, and you are free to use the letter I drafted if you would like to, or you may feel free to compose your own; either way, just show your support for the bill!

Click here to contact the senator for your district.

Dear Senator [NAME]:

I am contacting you, as my representative in the Indiana Senate, to encourage you to vote in support of, and to work with all diligence to otherwise lend your support to, Senate Bill 25.

Senate Bill 25 would prevent a business from adopting or enforcing a policy or rule that prohibits an individual from legally possessing a firearm that is locked in the individual's private vehicle while the vehicle is in or on the business’ property. Twelve states have already enacted similar legislation to protect their law-abiding citizens from being wrongfully terminated for exercising their Second Amendment rights, and it is time Indiana did the same.

This is extremely important to Hoosiers who legally own and transport a firearm from their residence to place of business where said firearm may not be welcome due to company policy. Citizens concerned for their safety while in transit to and from their place of employ are then forced either to break company policy, at risk of job loss, or to forfeit their inherent right to bear arms recognized and protected by the constitutions of the State of Indiana and of the United States of America, at risk of life, limb, and/or property loss.

With these considerations in mind, please remember to vote in SUPPORT of SB 25.

Thank you.

Sincerely,
Your Name
Your City, IN

Caleb.

These Evils Shall Not Come Nigh Thee

2009-11-20T00:40:00.001-05:00

I came home from Rose for Thanksgiving Break on Thursday afternoon. It is very good to be home again. I really love my family, and it is always just great to come home.

After a delicious dinner of Jamaican-style rice and peas (photo, recipe) by my Mom, followed by Indonesian-style ketan (sweet/sticky rice) for dessert, my parents had some news to share with me. They had opted not to tell me sooner because they did not want it to disrupt my studies.

My next door neighbor — for whom I had worked lawn for a few summers in high school; who started a local pizza chain; a generally great, friendly, thoughtful guy; a husband, father, and grandfather — had committed suicide. Needless to say, I was shocked. My parents had spoken with him only a week prior, and he’d said everything was going well: his business was improving, his family was doing well, things were good. Well, after the tragedy, my parents found out from his widow that there had been a series of signs that, in retrospect, betrayed his inner struggles. My condolences go out to his family and friends.

While any suicide is traumatic for those who knew the person, two suicides a mere week apart hits even harder. While I only now learned of my neighbor’s death, there was another suicide: a friend who lived on my floor when I was a Sophomore Advisor at Rose-Hulman committed suicide on what turned out to be only the 5th day after my neighbor had done the same.

As I thought of these four deaths of the past 7 months, each of which came as a great surprise, I was nearly overwhelmed. First, my uncle died of a nurse’s mistake while in the hospital. Then our Father called my sister home suddenly only 3 weeks after that. And then the two suicides. “What is with all this death?!” I wondered.

I haven’t even told you of the other deaths on my mind at the time. The best friend of a member in my home church was shot to death last month. The brother-in-law of one of my brother’s friends from his church died in a car crash this week.

I’d never known anybody who had died, nor known anybody who’d been directly affected by death until this year. Is it only as I become more aware of the world around me that I pay attention to these deaths? It really just seems like death is starting to fall around me, at various distances, of course.

Then God took my mind back to a verse I memorized in sixth grade: “A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.” Whether or not you agree that the verse applies to the situation of death seemingly falling all around me is inconsequential. Recalling that verse led me back to the chapter in which it is found: Psalm 91.

I read through Psalm 91 and was struck by how relevant it is to me as I ponder the deaths in the last 7 months. I wanted to take the time to write all this down so that you, too, may be comforted and strengthened by the promises therein.

1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
     will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
     he is my God, and I trust him.
3 For he will rescue you from every trap
     and protect you from deadly disease.
4 He will cover you with his feathers.
     He will shelter you with his wings.
     His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
5 Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
     nor the arrow that flies in the day.
6 Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
     nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
7 Though a thousand fall at your side,
     though ten thousand are dying around you,
     these evils will not touch you.
8 Just open your eyes,
     and see how the wicked are punished.

9 If you make the Lord your refuge,
     if you make the Most High your shelter,
10 no evil will conquer you;
     no plague will come near your home.
11 For he will order his angels
     to protect you wherever you go.
12 They will hold you up with their hands
     so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
13 You will trample upon lions and cobras;
     you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!

14 The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me.
     I will protect those who trust in my name.
15 When they call on me, I will answer;
     I will be with them in trouble.
     I will rescue and honor them.
16 I will reward them with a long life
     and give them my salvation.”

Psalm 91 (NLT)

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Commend it to God

2009-11-05T23:04:00.002-05:00

I received the following in an email from my dad this morning. As myself and my family have been dealing with life without my beloved sister Rachel, who moved to Heaven on April 18, 2009, we have needed to remind ourselves that we only need to cast our cares on Him. The message in Dad’s email was encouraging to Dad and me; I hope it encourages you, too.

Luke paints some very moving scenes for us in his record of the early church. Not least is that emotion-charged farewell to the Ephesian elders on the docks at the port town of Miletus. Paul was on a tight travel schedule, and time would not permit a visit to his beloved Ephesus. So he sent for the elders of the church to come and see him off. They came. Misty-eyed, and with a dull ache in his heart, the superlative missionary urged parting counsels upon these men whom he had come to treasure—men whom he had prayed, preached, and wept into the body of Christ.

And then he uttered the well known words, "And now, brethren, I commend you to God." That word "commend," I discovered, means literally "to set down beside or in front of someone," and so can be very beautifully expressed,

I lay you down beside God.

In the hot summers of yesteryear we would drive to the beaches of New Jersey to enjoy the sun, sand, and surf. It was always a problem what to do with your wallet, car keys or other valuables while splashing in the Atlantic, for the beaches were crowded, and little was safe. It was no problem when Mother was with us, for we simply entrusted our valuables to her care, dismissed our concerns, and enjoyed the water.

That's what Paul was saying. His paternal instincts to the contrary, he knew that he could not cling possessively to his converts forever. There comes a time when the fledgling must leave the nest, when the parental hand must be withdrawn. Life flows on, and the work we have begun we must soon lay down and trust to the continuing care of the Great Shepherd. There comes a time in the ministry of the missionary and the mission, when in a decisive way we must say to a particular soul, or to a particular church, or of a particular work, I lay you down beside God.

This calls for grown-up faith, when God must be trusted only and utterly to do what is beyond our power to do. And is not this what our Father calls us to do not only with persons we treasure, but with all the cares of life? With the problem that has exhausted our wisdom and patience? Lay it down beside God- With the future and its uncertainties? Lay them down beside God. - With the fear that besets us? Lay it down beside God.

And what shall we say of life itself, and of the substance of time and things placed in our trust? Lay them down beside God, where neither moth nor rust can corrupt and where thieves cannot break through and steal. Paul understood that attitude. He learned out of his own experience of surrender to say,

I am convinced that he is able to guard what
I have entrusted to him for that day.
- 2 Timothy 1:12 (NIV)

Jesus I will trust Thee
Trust Thee with my soul
Guilty, lost and helpless,
Thou canst make me whole;
There is none in heaven
Or on earth like Thee
Thou hast died for sinners,
Therefore, Lord for me.
- Mary J. Walker

Credit: Conley, Joseph F. 2009. Lay It Down! Reflections: Musings of an Old Missionary. Nashville: Xulon Press, 31-32.

About the Author: Joe Conley was the man who delivered the chapel message at Fort Wayne Bible College that God used to tell my dad that he and my mom were to be assigned to West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Further, he headed Regions Beyond Missionary Union with whom my dad served in Indonesia.

[UPDATED] Komets brawls with LumberJacks (31 Oct 2009)

2009-11-01T15:29:00.013-05:00

Update: IHL announces suspensions

Summary—

Brad MacMillan (FW) - Suspended 15 games

Robin Big Snake (MUS) - Suspended 12 games

Jason Lawmaster (MUS) - Suspended 0 (zero) games

Each player was also fined an undisclosed amount.

Links—

IHL Suspension Notice
http://www.ihl-hockey.com/press/league/index.html?article_id=279

The report from the Journal Gazette's Justin Cohn covering the suspensions is here.

Video: MacMillan suspended 15 games | The Journal Gazette, Fort Wayne, Ind.
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20091102/BLOGS11/911029953

The report from News-Sentinel's Blake Sebring covering the suspensions. This includes commentary from Brad Jones, who issued the suspensions, as well as from Komets General Manager David Franke and Brad MacMillan.
News-Sentinel.com (Reaction to the suspensions)
http://fwnextweb1.fortwayne.com/ns/sports/tailingthekomets/?p=2705

Here's the only report from the Muskegon Chronicle online about the game. It falsely claims that the entire incident was set off when MacMillan cross-checked Muskegon's Tom Galvin.

Suspensions, fines handed out after Muskegon Lumberjack-Fort Wayne Komet melee | Muskegon Lumberjacks - - MLive.com

http://www.mlive.com/lumberjacks/index.ssf/2009/11/suspensions_fines_handed_out_a.html

Blake Sebring has published his write-up of the events. It was posted before the suspensions were announced.

K's MacMillan may sit out 20 games | The News-Sentinel - Fort Wayne IN
http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091102/SPORTS/911020304/1002

My thoughts—

I'm fine with the suspension given to MacMillan. Big Snake deserved an equal suspension, though, for his specific targeting and surprise attack on Chaulk. Lawmaster definitely deserved a more severe penalty, though, for his even more vicious attack and abuse of Shafronov. It is noteworthy that neither Chaulk nor Shafronov received penalties resulting from the altercation: they didn't even have a chance to fight back.

I've heard various reasonings: that it was retaliation for Schrock's fight with DiPace; that it was retaliation for MacMillan's blows with Bouchard; that it was retaliation for MacMillan poking at the puck as Muskegon's goalie was covering it up. None of these, however, warranted the level of retribution the LumberJacks doled out. I saw the video, and the way MacMillan, who is known to be taking on a more "real" shift this season, crashed the net was textbook: nothing wrong there. The situation was escalated by Muskegon taking offense to the net-crashing, but MacMillan would have none of it. Why Bouchard got in there with him is beyond me, but I notice that MacMillan did NOT continue to attack Bouchard once it was clear he wasn't going to fight. Finally, DiPace is not merely a skill player; he's been known to tango with other known tough-guys, as noted below in my original post. It wasn't like Schrock singled him out and attacked him suddenly and randomly. It was a natural extension of what happens when defensemen protect their goalies.

I don't blame Muskegon for wanting some retaliation from the first fracas, but they overreacted BIG TIME, and in an extremely unsportsmanlike manner. Big Snake got off a bit too easy, and Lawmaster got off WAY too easy.

Game Replay:

According to Blake Sebring's blog, "the Public Access team will show a replay of Saturday’s game at 7 p.m., Wednesday on Comcast Cable Ch. 55 and Verizon Ch. 25, and again at 11 a.m. on Thursday."

Original Post Begins Here

I'm not sure if all of you heard about the melees (yes, more than one) at the Komets game last night, October 31, 2009, at home versus the Muskegon LumberJacks, but here is some summary information and a link that includes video of the altercations.

Let's get this started by showing you what happened. Here's the video:
Komets battling Muskegon
http://www.wane.com/dpp/sports/local_sports/sports_hockey_wane_komets_battle_muskegon_200910312146

This blog post by Justin Cohn, the Journal Gazette's Komets writer who was at the game, gives a bulleted summary of what all happened:
Timeline of craziness | The Journal Gazette, Fort Wayne, Ind.
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20091031/BLOGS11/910319957/1008/SPORTS

On the above page, Cohn calls John DiPace a skill player. While he is a skill player, he is also known to fight tough guys, including Jeff Zehr (the loser from Port Huron who was attacking our star players behind the play in the 3OT Game 7 Turner Cup victory in 2008), Tyler Willis (Kalamazoo's enforcer for several years), and our own Mitch Woods. For details, see John DiPace - hockeyfights.com.

Cohn also notes that bully Jason Lawmaster went after scorer Konstantin Shafronov, who Cohn also calls "the most gentlemanly player" in the league. For the record, I checked on hockeyfights.com to see who Shaf has fought before — he doesn't even have an entry, despite the fact he's been playing professional hockey for over 20 years. You can check out Konstantin Shafronov's hockey statistics profile at hockeydb.com.

This blog entry from Blake Sebring, the News-Sentinel's Komets writer who was also at the game, has comments from Komets coach Al Sims, LumberJacks coach Rich Kromm, Muskegon's Robin Big Snake, and Fort Wayne's Colin Chaulk.
News-Sentinel.com (More on the altercation)
http://fwnextweb1.fortwayne.com/ns/sports/tailingthekomets/?p=2688

Here are the other articles posted by the Fort Wayne Newspapers' writers about the night's "festivities".

All hell just broke loose | The Journal Gazette, Fort Wayne, Ind.
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20091031/BLOGS11/910319958

News-Sentinel.com (A Mac attack)
http://fwnextweb1.fortwayne.com/ns/sports/tailingthekomets/?p=2684

What MacMillan had to say | The Journal Gazette, Fort Wayne,Ind.
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20091031/BLOGS11/910319956/1008/SPORTS

News-Sentinel.com (What Mac had to say)
http://fwnextweb1.fortwayne.com/ns/sports/tailingthekomets/?p=2686

K's start and finish it, then criticize Kromm | The Journal Gazette, Fort Wayne, Ind.
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20091031/BLOGS11/910319953/1008/SPORTS

This entry was posted by Justin Cohn while I was writing this up. It includes a photo of Lawmaster bullying Shafronov and a few of Cohn's day-after thoughts.
Here's what K's were peeved about | The Journal Gazette, Fort Wayne, Ind.
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20091101/BLOGS11/911019980

My own thoughts on it all:

From the way that Muskegon's tough guys jumped our players the way they did, it is my belief that what Muskegon's Lawmaster and Big Snake did to Fort Wayne's Shafronov and Chaulk was much more vicious and premeditated than anything Fort Wayne's MacMillan did. Brad MacMillian is sure to receive the mandatory 10-game minimum suspension for leaving the penalty box on top of the "abuse of officials" (which wasn't really abuse at all, he just brushed off the linesman who skated up to him which caused him to lose his balance and fall because of his own momentum, but nonetheless) suspension, but I hope that Brad Jones, IHL VP of Hockey Operations who deals with suspensions, issues suspensions to both Big Snake and Lawmaster that meet or exceed MacMillan's due to the vicious surprise attacks they perpetrated. Whether 'Jacks coach Kromm is responsible for instructing his fighters to do what they did, I cannot say with authority, but I wouldn't be surprised, and in fact believe it would be fitting and proper, if Kromm was fined or otherwise reprimanded for what transpired.

Kromm claimed that Mac left the penalty box twice. I wasn't at the game, and I didn't see that in the video, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen twice. What I *did* see, however, was Lawmaster savagely attacking one of our top scorers, who has probably never been in a hockey fight, pinning him to the ground and wailing away at his head. I also saw Big Snake leave the penalty box (in the video at the 3:20 mark) to try to fight MacMillan after Mac just finished with Lawmaster. So Lawmaster's suspensions should come from his specific targeting of Shaf (Cohn pointed out he had to skate 40 feet to get to Shaf to start his attack). Big Snake's suspensions should stem from (1), his surprise attack on Chaulk, (2), leaving the penalty box, and (3) from "abusing the officials" when he didn't want to go into the penalty box in the first place (in the video at 2:35). While Big Snake's "abuse" of the linesman may seem smaller-scale than MacMillans (seen at 2:41), a key difference was that Big Snake was actually focused on the linesman whereas MacMillan wasn't even really paying attention to the linesman because he was already zeroed in on taking care of Lawmaster. What MacMillan did is the same type of maneuver that you use in many sports to get away from a defensemen guarding you; it was unfortunate that the linesman went down as he did, but it was mostly from Mac redirecting the linesman's momentum away from himself (it doesn't look like an actual "push" to me).

I understand Mac getting suspensions: I won't argue with whatever he gets. Despite that, I still believe Mac did what he had to do to show those hooligans that their specific targeting and surprise attacks were way out of line. And I believe that as a result of those way-out-of-line acts, Big Snake's and Lawmaster's suspensions must match or surpass MacMillan's for the league to demonstrate that it will also not tolerate that kind of "goonery". The very day before, October 30, a report was published at QConline.com wherein IHL Commissioner Dennis Hextall said he'd like to see physical play, but no "goonery" in our league. The fight between DiPace and Schrock would be allowed under the Commissioner's guidelines, while the attacks on Shafronov and Chaulk most certainly would not.

Other links that may be of interest

The official boxscore from the game:
IHL Stats
http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/boxscore.html?gameid=1057445

At the time of this entry, the Muskegon Chronicle had not posted any articles discussing the game. Feel free to check it later, though.
Muskegon Lumberjacks - MLive.com
http://www.mlive.com/lumberjacks/

iChat Feedback - Status Icon Updating Error

2009-08-11T10:52:00.000-05:00

This has been bugging me for a while: whenever my Mom sets an away message on her iMac, her status icon would update on my Bonjour list, but not the AIM buddy list on my iMac. I finally did some digging at the Apple forums and came across this thread, where the user mmouse noted a work-around and suggested sending iChat Feedback. So that is what I've done.

I wrote up a nice (I thought it was nice, anyway) piece of helpful feedback that the iChat developers can use when they get around to fixing the error. Click here to view what I put on the iChat Feedback form.

If you have two Macs, you can verify this error on your own. If you do decide to try it out, feel free to report your findings on this blog. And if you find the error occurs for you, too, PLEASE take the time to send feedback to the iChat developers also. Click here to submit iChat feedback. And feel free to just copy-paste what I wrote if those steps led to an error for you.

All for now...
Caleb

My Public Calendars

2009-03-30T22:31:00.011-05:00

I use Apple's iCal to do my calendar stuff. Since I use it with iCloud, it syncs automatically over-the-air with my iOS devices and Macs. Also, I can publish them publicly so that other people can subscribe to them.

My primary calendar is public. You might call this my "general purpose" calendar; it has all the other stuff I'm doing that I want to keep on a calendar, such as appointments or concerts.
Subscribe: webcal://p01-www.icloud.com/ca/subscribe/1/VIKr2bWW5i1Ae_2zS6IXrmm8HaVirBOCPnIrjeF7YRYPqEieC-rnWfqC6EJbDXmckrydYiEppyyq9U71AMrMpranbD7aEgd3hRgd8y4jI-4

I've also created a shared calendar with all the Fort Wayne Komets games; it has been updated for the 2011-2012 season.
Subscribe here: webcal://p01-www.icloud.com/ca/subscribe/1/kZNh0d_tPGl_BaKP3eEfV9aOmYSN27J35V7g_hJZ62MWKFg9Rw7gAOFQWdHm3qw6bSo3oNDFkOnU60hYBQjw4Uk9M7MhpGLc2pknM78Lkg8

Caleb

Ways to Save Online - Deals Sites

2009-03-22T02:49:00.007-05:00

I want to share a couple links that I think will be helpful for people who like to shop online AND save money. I posted both of these on Twitter, but I wanted to have another record of the links on here, too.

Note on navigation: These sites utilize www.krunchd.com's toolbar feature. This lets you visit only one URL (the krunchd link I provide) and that page will load all the other sites. You can sequentially navigate among the sites in my list using the arrows that will appear in the top right of the krunchd page, or you can select a specific site from a drop-down box and jump to that one.

www.krunchd.com/dealtrackers
This first page has a bunch of deal trackers. To clarify, these are sites to which other users submit deals that they find. For example, my roommates saw that KFC had a deal going on where the Famous Bowl was about 40% its normal price, so they took a picture of the sign and reported the deal to slickdeals.net (which is one of the sites on the list). Then users on slickdeals, or other site, rate the deals that people post and indicate if they can confirm them in their area, too. Other deals you might find could be great savings on TVs; laptops; computer accessories such as RAM, hard/optical drives, or mice; apparel; jewelry; and more.

www.krunchd.com/deal-a-day-sites
This page has a bunch of deal-a-day sites, or ones close enough. Woot.com updates every day at 0100 Eastern, and 1saleaday.com updates at midnight Eastern; but steepandcheap.com puts up a new product whenever the current one sells out. On the other hand, spyoptic.com has an "Unreal Deal of the Week" which of course only updates once a week. I've also included a few sites that track even more deal-a-day sites with which I'm not very familiar, but may have good deals, too.

If you know of other websites that would fit well with one of my categories here, post a comment on this blog entry and I can add it to the list.

//C

Spring 2008-2009 Schedule

2009-03-09T00:27:00.005-05:00

Spring quarter begins tomorrow (today?... no, tomorrow.). This is the last quarter of my senior year, and don't let anybody tell ya any different. The fact that I have one extra quarter I'll have to complete in the fall has nothing to do with this still being my senior year. And this is the last quarter of the year.

Anyway, here is my schedule for this quarter.

(click to enlarge)

AFN...
//C.

Test Post from Qumana (kinda)

2009-03-08T02:39:00.003-05:00

First let me say that this post is almost meaningless because I couldn't even post from Qumana. It gave me an error when I clicked Publish, even tough it first told me that it was successful (but wasn't really). Just because I spent the time preparing this post, I feel like it'd be a waste not to go ahead and publish it. Even if you don't find it useful, it will probably prove useful to me later.

——BEGIN POST FROM QUMANA——

I'm looking into finding a good way to post blogs from my Macs. I may end up just using the web interface, but I figure I ought to give due diligence to checking out other options. Today I am checking out Qumana.

Positives of Qumana
I'll start out by looking for things I like about this application. It is very easy to figure out; its features aren't hidden behind a plethora of menus. I like that the buttons aren't really small, either. You just really see what everything does, yet it remains uncluttered. I like the layout, too. It is really easy to use. That's the main point for which I'm going here.

It also has a nice way to compose in HTML or WYSIWYG. That's a handy little thing to have. (Of course, the web interface has this, too.)

Any Negatives?
I think that this app works fairly well, but it does have some drawbacks. The keyboard shortcuts aren't all working as the normally do within OS X. It seems to have been written in Java, so the overall look-and-feel of the application is inconsistent with that of native apps and with the OS X interface.

I also just realized that in-line spell checking is not supported in this editor. There is a menu option to perform a spell check, though, it just isn't very fast compared to what users would be used to.

And as I went back to add the bit about the lack of spell checking, I noticed a peculiar behavior. If you have a paragraph entered and then you go back and insert more text above that one, it doesn't really bump the existing text down very well. You don't lose what you had entered, but you do have to scroll the text-entry area up and down to force the app to redraw it correctly.

Pros of Using a Blogging App
Well, if for some reason I don't have access to internet, I suppose I could use one such app to prepare my posts, and then publish them once I regain access. As I was writing this, I scoffed to myself at the prospect of having no internet, but I suppose with my upcoming military involvement, that may not be so absurd. Of course, another approach may be to just write up my reports in a simple text file, or even on paper, and then publish it later.

If a native software solution was good enough, its interface could provide a smoother, faster, better way of composing the new post and otherwise preparing to publish it.

Conclusion
As I was composing this, I tried to think about why I even wanted an application for doing this instead of just using the web interface. I couldn't really come up with any good reasons. I did come up with a reason not to use one: I don't like having extra apps needlessly. If I can do it from my browser, why run an extra app that is going to suck up my resources?

So taking into consideration that I don't like using specific apps if I can avoid it, and, as I mentioned above, a native software application would have to be very good with regard to functionality and usability, I've decided I'm not going to be using Qumana. I think it is a pretty solid app, but I'm not sure I like the behavior and interface quirks I've been able to notice just in the time it took to compose this entry. If I end up without internet, I'll make do with TextEdit and/or a traditional journal.

Apology & Closing
Sorry for making you read this, but I think it was a good thing for me to do because now I know a little bit more of what I'm looking for in a blogging application.

All for now...
Caleb.

Powered by Qumana

Photobucket

2006-02-27T02:58:00.000-05:00

This is a test post from Photobucket.com

Pics from Pearl

2006-02-27T00:27:00.000-05:00

Superbowl Sunday

2006-02-06T01:03:00.000-05:00

obviously i went to chrch in the morning. no surprise there. but while i was there, a few of the guys i work with at youth for Christ asked me what i was doing for the big game. well, i hadn't planned anything yet. so they invited me to "sneak" into their high school youth group party. since i didnt have anything else going on (and i had diligently completed all my homework on saturday) i decided to go. i also invited Drew, a guy who works with me at YFC. turns out, that was an answer to prayer as he had prayed for a christian environment to watch the game in instead of being with the guys on his floor. so that was neat..

i played some little bit of basketball for the first time in... in dang near FOREVER. we got some 21 goin on. of course i was winning. but then the decided to play football, in the spirit of the evening. i sat out that game. my knee might be a lot better, but i'm not stupid.

well, thats about it. the rest is pretty much standard: pizza, pop, chips, cookies, brownies, big screen tv. ya know how it goes.
oh.. i also played some ping pong. hadnt done that in who knows how long. i think the last time was back when we coach Johnson was our youth pastor and we all would play on wednesday nights after youth group. anyway, i played against Isaac, the new youth pastor at World Gospel Church. we were pretty evenly matched - it went to 20-20 before he finally won. still fun, though.

in other news:
we used to have 2 fish tanks, right. here's a reminder of what they were like:





well, here's what they are now:





so what the deal is, is this guy from Speed 2 just got a new tank and they got it all set up and ready, but didnt have any fish yet. so Josh was telling us about it and we pointed to the small tank and said, you can have the fish in there if you want.
the thing was that we were in the process of allowing the small tank to die - we hadnt fed it in like a month. neither had we put any more water into it. apparently, if you take fish that dont normally eat other fish and then starve them, they start eating fish. cuz there were definitely only 3 left out of.. uhh, a lot more.

so here is the new tank that we moved them into. there is a pic of one particular fish that kinda got caught in the net and we couldnt free him. that was kinda painful to watch. chad had to use pliers to grip his fin while i pulled on the net - pulled REALLY hard - before it finally popped free. he swam away so fast, you could tell it hurt. but at least he got to keep his fins!





oh, also, i dont recall if i posted about this.. but the Oscars we had died over christmas break. somehow the water filter and the air pumps got unplugged while chad and i were home - so they died. then we got a few smaller piranhas. 4, to be exact. but they ate themselves down until there were only 2. on saturday we went out and got a new piranha, a bigger one. a black diamond. so far, it has eaten like 8 goldfish, both small piranhas, and removed the tails from both the eels and the rest of the goldfish in there. but he's only active at night, as evidenced by the fact that we havent actually witnessed any of these attacks. :(

well, thats all.

:out

Third test

2006-02-03T16:46:00.000-05:00

So now this is my third test for this. I have a little widget that is s'posed to let me post blogs to Blogger directly from Tiger's Dashboard. Here's to hoping it works!

a joke I got in my email

2006-02-03T16:42:00.000-05:00

An Amish boy and his father were in a mall. They were amazed by almost everything they saw, but especially by two shiny, silver walls that could move apart and then slide back together again..
The boy asked, "What is this Father?"
The father (never having seen an elevator) responded, "Son, I have never seen anything like this in my life, I don't know what it is."
While the boy and his father were watching with amazement, a fat old lady in a wheelchair moved up to the moving walls and pressed a button. The walls opened and the lady rolled between them into a small room. The walls closed and the boy and his father watched the small circular numbers above the walls light up sequentially. They continued to watch until it reached the last number and then the numbers began to light in the reverse order.
Finally the walls opened up again and a gorgeous 24-year-old blonde stepped out.
The father said quietly to his son, "Son... Go get your mother."

Experimenting

2006-02-03T15:04:00.000-05:00

Well,

I already have a blog through my MySpace account (click here to view it), but I wanted to see if I couldn't find another host/server or whatever to try out. I didn't really like the look of feel of Xanga, and I don't want to have to pay for anything, either. While .Mac is probably a very very good one, especially because of how well it integrates with my computers, I just don't want to have to pay for it. I had seen that there was a widget available that works with this site, so I'm gonna give it a shot.

Now I want to upload a picture or two here to see how that works.

This is me with my little nephew at this past Christmas.

OK, so it uses HTML code. Thats good. I've been working on learning that from MySpace stuff. It's cool that you don't have to use an external image host, though.

Okay, I'm satisfied with the content of this post as a test-post. So... let publish!