Impeachment Poll - What Would You Like to See Happen?

Episode #36: Impeachment Poll – What Do You Want to See Happen?

What would you like to see happen with the Senate Impeachment Trial? The other day I posted this question with the following options to the Front Porch Sense Facebook page.

a) Dismiss it without trial. Since the 2 articles of impeachment do not include any allegation or proof of “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors,” the Chief Justice could rule the articles unconstitutional. Dismissing without a trial would prevent unsubstantial impeachments in the future.

b) Trial, but no additional witnesses called.

c) Full trial with all the witnesses either side wishes to call.

Please leave a comment about which option you’d choose. Listen to this week’s episode to discover how your thoughts align with mine and others.

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Senate Impeachment Trial - Democrat Strategy Revealed

Episode #35: Hidden Democrat Impeachment Agenda Exposed

Have you wondered why the Democrats are alienating the moderate Republican Senators and the nation with the way they are handling their presentation in the Senate Impeachment Trial? This episode of Front Porch Sense reveals their secret strategy – the method to their madness.

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destruction of the traditional family

Episode #34 – The Destruction of the Traditional Family: A Strategy of the Left

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 19.7 million children, more than 1 in 4, live without a father in the home.  Research shows that when a child is reared with their father absent from the home, he or she is affected in the following ways:

Father absentee crisis - statistics on the impact of absentee-fathers
  • Four times greater risk of poverty
  • Seven times more likely to become pregnant as a teen
  • More likely to have behavioral problems
  • More likely to face abuse and neglect
  • Two times greater risk of infant mortality
  • More likely to abuse alcohol and drugs
  • Twice as likely to suffer obesity
  • More likely to go to prison
  • More likely to commit crime
  • Twice as likely to drop out of high school

(Data from Fatherhood.org.)

The Family: A Defense Against Tyranny

The traditional two-parent home is one of the best defenses our society has against anarchy and tyranny. It is in the home that children are taught values, morals, good behavior, cooperation, work-ethic, and team-building skills. Typically, fathers tend to be instinctively protective of their wives and children. Mothers, too, have a natural Mama-bear instinct to protect their young. Each of these individuals brings a unique mix of protection, nurturing, and emotional and physical support.

While stereotyping men as the protectors and providers may have been common in the past, there are plenty of variations. For example, in my family of origin, my mother was the authoritative figure, more likely to discipline, and more likely to stand up to outside forces that threatened our home or those in it. My father provided for the family, brought a nurturing presence, and provided protection in his own unique way. He was never one to pursue conflict with anyone in the world, but has an aura of safety and trust about him. Any worry or concern I had as a child melted away in my father’s presence. I knew he would keep me safe.

Together, my parents were a complete package that helped develop their children into well-rounded adults.

From the very beginning of recorded history, God instituted the family in the creation and union of Adam and Eve. He said it was not good for man to be alone. For children to achieve their highest likelihood for emotional, physical, mental and spiritual development, a two-parent home (while not always practical or possible) is the ideal.

The Family: Archenemy of Marxism

According to the philosophy of Karl Marx (the father of socialism and communism), the traditional family is considered a tool of the Bourgeoisie elite and a capitalistic creation. Marx claimed that humanity lived in tribal promiscuous hordes until capitalism came along and the elite started using the two-parent home to pass wealth from one generation to another. *

Marxism, and the cultural Marxism we see infesting our current society in the Progressive and Socialist movements, is anti-family. Family, according to this philosophy, is just something that morphs with society and has no optimal structure. In fact, traditional family is the enemy. It is something to be undermined and destroyed.

Why?

Strong Families Make Strong Nations

A nation with strong families and two-parent households is more likely to teach values such as independence and personal responsibility. Independence and personal responsibility directly correlate to freedom. You can’t have freedom without personal responsibility. And you can’t have true freedom inside of tyranny (socialism which eventually evolves into communism and oligarchy). The two do not coexist.

Thus, destroying the family is a key method for a gradually devolving free society into socialism/communism.

Strong families are more likely to protect themselves against outside tyranny and oppression. Here’s a personal example:

Decades ago, the IRS audited my father about some matter for which he was innocent. They claimed he owed millions of dollars, which he did not. An IRS agent showed up at the house and began harassing my dad. My mother was sitting there, and she discreetly turned on a tape recorder. After a few minutes, the agent noticed what my mother had done, and told her she couldn’t record the conversation. My mother proceeded to tell him in her no-nonsense way that it was her house, and she could do anything she pleased in her house.

The man left and in time the matter was resolved in my father’s favor. My father probably never would have thought to record the conversation; and he was too gentle to go toe-to-toe with the IRS agent. But my mom, as Southern and gentile as she was, stood up for her family like a bear when provoked. Can you see how a two-parent home came in handy against tyranny in this situation? I sure can!

Attacks Upon Men Are Attacks Upon the Family and Our Nation

Not only are government social programs geared toward incentivizing single motherhood with additional payouts, but also our society demeans men and masculinity. It downplays the role of fathers.

I recently spoke with Christi Turley Diamond (a Director of Marriage Boot Camp  and a Certified Life Coach and Certified Grief and Loss Recovery Specialist) about the work she and her husband do with couples. She said,

“So many men are in self-preservation mode.”

In the work she and her husband, Rick Diamond, do with couples, they have noticed that shifts in our society have had a demoralizing effect on men and masculinity. This is negatively affecting marriages and families, leading to more divorce and to more fathers leaving the home. This, obviously, results in more of the negative effects on society which I listed at the beginning of this article.

A Solution

In her work with men, specifically, Christi has seen dramatic shifts that have helped to save marriages and families. She told me that many times, a wife brings a husband kicking and screaming, completely resistant to going to a Marriage Bootcamp. By the end, the man is the biggest fan of the event, excited to share it with the world. He has found safety in opening his heart and giving a voice to buried feelings. He’s unveiled the wounding that created the walls he once used to push his wife away in the first place. Being in a community with other men gives him the ability to let go of the belief that “men don’t talk about feelings,” which is so deeply ingrained in him by society.

Christi shares, “We’ve made marriage so easily disposable in our county, and at an extremely high cost to our children and our society.  If we realized that healing and fixing our marriages isn’t an impossible monumental mountain to climb. Repairing and healing marriages requires only a few shifts here and there. These shifts create a domino effect that leads to transformation in marriage and re-connection of relationships. This leads to the family unit remaining intact, with both parents.  Many, many times we see couples who are on their last leg literally turn their marriage around in four days.”

If we can keep families together, the result would be a changed nation.

Are you or someone you know having marital problems? Perhaps you’re wondering whether it’s time to throw in the towel or time to stay and fight for it? Christi Turley Diamond and Rick Diamond know how that feels. They were there and turned their situation completely around. Now Christi and Rick work together to help couples transform their marriage as they’ve facilitated a marriage boot camp for years and do virtual relationship coaching. Before you give up, talk to them! Book a free 30-minute consultation today.

Note: I receive no financial remuneration for sharing information with you about the Diamond’s relationship coaching services. I’m simply sharing it as a possible solution for a serious problem I see in the world.


Additional Resources on Marxism and the Destruction of the Family

* Marx wrote in The Communist Manifesto: “On what foundation is the present family, the bourgeois family, based? On capital, on private gain. In its completely developed form, this family exists only among the bourgeoisie,” 

Marx believed that abolishing the family would be relatively easy once bourgeois property was abolished. “The bourgeois family will vanish as a matter of course when its complement vanishes, and both will vanish with the vanishing of capital.”

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opinions vs news

Don’t Confuse Opinion for News

Have you noticed that the same basic data is being interpreted in a completely opposite manner by so-called journalists and social media? One person reads a transcript and sees a crime. Another person reads the same transcript and sees nothing wrong at all. How does this happen?

I’m going through Leslie Householder’s Mindset Mastery program and this statement stood out to me today:

“”Facts” come in. Simple data. Every thought that enters our mind is nothing more than basic input. WE are the ones who attach meaning to the input. In and of itself, the input just is. It is what it is.”

I was thinking of this in terms of all the “news” we see reported every day as “facts.” Most of what we see and hear is not “fact.” The information we are bombarded with throughout the day has had meaning(s) attached to it. It is no longer “fact” but “opinion.”

Example: Did you hear about the commercial about a man giving his wife a piece of exercise equipment for Christmas? It’s a simple fact… this equipment exists and could be used as a gift. Yet, social media got hold of this and turned it into an offensive thing to give your wife a piece of exercise equipment.

The fact is… here is a piece of exercise equipment. It could be given as a gift. The meaning attached to it was that this misogynistic man couldn’t accept his wife as she was and wanted her to be more perfect. She wasn’t good enough in his mind. Giving her this exercise equipment was cruel and an affront to all women.

Where did that come from? The stories, the insecurities, the drama, fears, and false beliefs of a society that constantly and never-endingly looks for offense in the most benign places.

This happens on a grand scale with the “news” we’re fed. It isn’t news. It’s adulterated data. If we are ever to know the truth, we must find some way to detach “facts” from the meaning we and others attach to them. An exercise bike is just an exercise bike.

“Just the Facts, Ma’am”

So the next time you hear something controversial…

a) Look at the source data. What does it say? What was actually said in an uncut, unedited version in complete context?

b) If you attach no meaning or bias, what do the facts say? What does it say if you do no “reading between the lines” and make no assumptions?

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Republicans vs Democrats Toning down the vitriol

Episode #33 – How to Tone Down the Vitriol in America

Are you ready to turn down the volume on the vitriol in our nation? I’m going to share with you a solution. It requires no government intervention, no bureaucracy, no committee. The Democrats or the Republicans don’t even need to change. It only requires you and me to take some personal responsibility.

First, I’m going to say something radical that you may not believe. Be patient and please read to the end. I believe it will eventually make sense.

When someone makes you so angry that you can’t see straight and you absolutely hate or despise them, it’s not about them. It’s about you. There’s something in them that you don’t want to see or face in yourself. It could be an inaccurate belief you hold, a fear from a past trauma being triggered, a story you have running in your mind about this person. Most likely it’s some aspect of yourself that is being mirrored back to you. It’s easier to make that person the villain than admit you have similar traits and accept those aspects of yourself.  Whatever it is… this immense hatred isn’t about the person you hate, it’s about you.

This is something to consider as we see people with various political stances who hate individuals of the other stance. When people despise our President with vigor, this isn’t about him. It’s not about the Democrats or the Republicans. It’s about each of us as individuals and how we are reacting. We should be able to disagree with each other without despising one another. If we’re despising someone, it’s on us. We have some serious inner work to do. We need to get to the root of that.

Indignation Isn’t Vitriol

I’m not a fan of a certain group of politicians. I’d like to see them leave office. But I don’t despise or loathe them as individuals. I see them as a threat to our Constitution and to our American ideals. I’d like them to either see the light or step down. But that doesn’t require hate. Sure, I’m annoyed with the nonsense some days. But vehement loathing? Nope. What I feel is appropriate indignation for individuals who, I believe, are seeking to undermine and destroy our Constitution.

Even Christ felt that kind of indignation. We might say He was “angry” with the money changers whose tables he overturned in the temple. Yet, Jesus never despised anyone – not even those who crucified Him.

Time for Some Self-Reflection

Only you can say what you’re feeling. If it’s deep loathing, despising, hatred and revenge; take that as a clue. It’s an indicator that there’s something there you need to get to the root of and work through.

Ask yourself when you’ve felt that feeling before. Trace back through your life and look for the pattern. Jot down the traits/characteristics of the people you’ve felt that way around before.

Now the tough part… when have you possessed the same characteristics? When have other people accused you of being the same way or treated you as if they saw you that way? 

How did your possession of those same traits or characteristics serve you? How did those traits serve other people?

A Real Life Example

For example, at one time I was very upset with someone. They had done something that personally wounded me and radically impacted me, my family and our finances. I saw their actions as incredibly self-serving. I was so mad at this person, I wanted God to rein vengeance down on them. I knew how I felt wasn’t good, but I decided stuffing my feelings wasn’t healthy either.

Then I learned this principle of looking for negative traits and seeing them in myself. As I did so, I discovered that not only had I made similar choices in another area of my life, but also I was equally self-serving. I discovered that everything I do is self-serving. When I help others, I get a good feeling. That’s self-serving. If I do business with someone, I’m getting paid. That’s self-serving. If I love my family, that’s self-serving because life is more peaceful when I’m loving. And usually they love me back.

There isn’t a single thing I do that doesn’t serve me in some way.  My self-serving-ness actually serves others at the same time. My business serves my clients and my family. Me helping and loving others blesses them. Even the time I left a bad marriage was seen by many as self-serving, yet I know how it served others.

At last, I owned my self-serving-ness. I saw how it benefited others and the world around me. Once, I really got it, the anger and need for revenge against my “enemy” melted away. I no longer could judge this person.  Within a short time, I saw that this person did me one of the biggest favors anyone had ever done for me. Their actions – which I originally deemed as purely self-serving – served me in a powerful, liberating way.

There is an excellent book that will take you through an expanded version of this exercise. I highly recommend it. It’s what I used in this situation and it changed my life going forward. I no longer put people on a pedestal or relegate them to a pit. I see both the challenge and support in others and in myself. It’s called The Breakthrough Experience* by Dr. Jon Demartini. If you get it, do the exercise in the middle of the book. If you don’t do the work, you won’t get the transformation.

It’s worth the 2-3 hours it will take you to do this exercise. Your life will never be the same. You will be free. Who can put a price on freedom?

The video shares some blessings our nation is reaping from the attacks on our President. Be sure to listen.

  • Disclaimer: The link above to The Breakthrough Experience is my affiliate link to Amazon so I will make a small affiliate commission if you buy from that link. If you prefer not to use my link, just go to Amazon and search for the book directly.

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Nixon vs Trump Articles of Impeachment

Episode #32 – Nixon vs Trump Impeachments

How do the circumstances underlying the Nixon Impeachment relate to the circumstances surrounding the articles of impeachment against President Donald J. Trump?

This episode of Front Porch Sense takes a look at what happened with Nixon and Watergate in comparison to the Trump articles of impeachment. How does what happened with Watergate relate to the Steele Dossier, the Russian Collusion allegations and what the DNC and Clinton Campaign did to Trump? And what can we do about all this? This episode gives an action step we can all take – no matter who we believe is corrupt.

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President Trump Impeachment Fiasco

Episode #31 – Impeachment Fiasco

Let’s take a look at why many Americans don’t care about how President Trump went about investigating Biden and do not want President Trump impeached.

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Let Us Oft Speak Kind Words / God Bless America

I was playing around on the piano tonight … not with any particular song in mind when I started to play, “Let Us Oft Speak Kind Words” and as I got about halfway through, it morphed into “God Bless America.” I didn’t intend to put the two together, but they fit perfectly. Once I realized what I’d done, I thought, “How fitting… isn’t this what our country needs right now?”

Let us oft speak kind words to each other
At home or where ‘er we may be;
Like the warblings of birds on the heather,
The tones will be welcome and free.

From the mountains
To the prairies
To the oceans
White with foam.
God bless America,
My home sweet home.

Like the sunbeams of morn on the mountains,
the soul they awake to good cheer;
Like the murmur of cool, pleasant fountains,
They fall in sweet cadences near.

From the mountains
To the prairies
To the oceans
White with foam.
God bless America,
My home sweet home

Copyright: Let Us Oft Speak Kind Words, Text: Joseph L. Townsend, 1849-1942. Music: Ebenezer Beesley, 1840-1906. God Bless America written by Irving Berlin.

It's time for some old fashioned conversation - two men talking.

Episode #30 – It’s Time for Some Good Old Fashioned Conversation

The problem with the world today is with all our communication technology we’ve forgotten how important it is to have face to face conversations. We’ve forgotten (or never learned) how to communicate with each other effectively. Instead many walk around looking for offenses and finding them everywhere. Most of the stories we invent in our minds about other people’s motivations, actions, beliefs or intentions are so incredibly wrong.

I believe most people are doing the best they can. They’re trying to do the right thing. They aren’t going around intentionally trying to screw up your life.

Yet many of us assume they are and then spout off to others, portraying our perceptions as truth when we haven’t taken the time to ask questions, wait for answers and seek understanding. As one of my university professors used to say, “When you assume, you make an ass out of you and me.”

So the next time someone does something that offends you or makes you angry, stop to ask for clarification … not via text or messenger… Pick up the phone and have a conversation, or better yet sit down face to face. People wouldn’t say half the rude crap in person that they’ll say hiding being a device. Maybe if we had more real conversations, our society wouldn’t be in the mess it is.

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Discerning fact from fake news

Episode #29: Discernment with the News

Traditional journalism is dead. In today’s swirl of 24-hour-news filled with opinions and out-right fake news, it can be difficult to discern what is true, what’s exaggerated and what’s a flat-out lie.

Here are some strategies and tips for discerning fact from fake news in a sea of opinion, distortions, disinformation and falsehood.

Here’s how and why click bait sites use sensational headlines to trick you into sharing their materials. It’s time we stopped playing into their hands.

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