thestream--2020-08-27--UPDATED: Watch Abby Johnson Deliver Pro-Life RNC Speech

Editor ’ s note : Originally published August 23 , this story has been updated to include video of the August 25 RNC speech .
The Republican National Convention kicks off tomorrow , with a prime spot reserved on Tuesday for former Planned Parenthood clinic director Abby Johnson .
“ I have been tasked with giving a profound , impactful pro-life speech in five minutes , ” said Johnson in a phone interview .
“ So I am still working out exactly what I ’ m going to say !
” Even pro-life liberals praise the move .
“ The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Johnson , who has a very powerful story , ” said Terrisa Bukovinac of Pro-Life San Francisco .
“ The life issue is the most pressing human rights issue of our day .
It ’ s a good thing any time an anti-abortion speaker has a prominent opportunity like this.
” Bukovinac spoke in a phone interview from Milwaukee .
She and a dozen activists spent the DNC convention protesting the lack of pro-life inclusion in the Democratic Party .
“ I want people to understand what ’ s at stake , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unborn lives are real.
” To See Pro-Life Progress , Follow the Money Last year ’ s major theatrical release Unplanned adapted Johnson ’ s story as a former Planned Parenthood clinic director .
The pro-life film , currently available on Amazon Prime , elevated her national profile .
“ What differentiates me from other pro-life speakers is my lived experience inside of an abortion clinic , ” she said .
“ I definitely want to highlight the things I have seen firsthand in this industry.
” Her former employer has faced setbacks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , International Planned Parenthood Federation lost millions in abortion-related funding .
Last summer , new regulations barred federally funded clinics from making abortion referrals .
Planned Parenthood affiliates pulled out of the program .
In February , an appeals court upheld the Trump pro-life policy .
“ President Trump set an important precedent by defunding Planned Parenthood from the Title X program , ” said Johnson .
“ The court challenge against that didn ’ t hold up .
Now there is an opportunity to defund them from other cash grant title programs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Nevertheless , Johnson says she has been “ frustrated ” by Planned Parenthood affiliates still receiving hundreds of millions in taxpayer funds .
It ’ s a sticking point for many pro-life advocates .
“ Unfortunately , it ’ s complicated to remove [ PPFA ] entirely from the federal budget , ” she said .
“ Some people may think that President Trump is able to just use his pen and make that happen .
It ’ s not quite that simple.
” “ But I do think he has worked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one.
” In June , Planned Parenthood made headlines for surprising reasons .
Staff members at a New York affiliate organized a joint letter that called out discriminatory practices by top leadership .
“ This was a crisis media stunt , ” said Johnson .
“ Planned Parenthood of Greater New York got nervous and reacted to the letter .
They even removed the president of that affiliate .
But I don ’ t believe they meant any of it.
” This minority-led petitioners called out Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from a clinic building and a local street .
Pro-life advocates have often noted Sanger ’ s founding role in the genocidal eugenics movement .
“ The abortion industry is rooted in eugenics , this idea of ‘ whitening up ’ our nation , ” said Bukovinac .
“ Today , racial discrimination remains extremely present in health care .
Stats show black moms die at a rate five times higher than white women in childbirth .
It has nothing to do with economic status , it is about racial bias.
” Johnson @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s mission .
“ They didn ’ t go nearly far enough , ” she said .
“ No one said , ‘ Well , come to think of it , look at the disproportionate amount of black babies aborted in our facilities .
Look at where we strategically locate our abortion clinics.
’ ” The women ’ s health group continues to honor their founder Sanger , even giving out annual ‘ Maggie Awards ’ named in her honor .
“ They were hoping that , with some superficial response , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” said Johnson .
“ And it looks like it did.
” In recent months , related issues of human dignity and equal justice have risen to the cultural forefront .
Liberal pro-life activists confess they feel politically homeless .
“ We really need to act on abortion as if it was an emergency , because it is , ” said Bukovinac .
“ If we find ways to justify voting for pro-choice candidates , we are complicit in the horrors of abortion .
Obviously , I also feel that voting for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ problematic things that I do not want on my conscience.
” Johnson , who leads Pro-Love Ministries in central Texas , has kept focused on the life issue .
“ For me , I ’ ve seen abortion in a very real and tangible way , ” she said .
“ I don ’ t think that any other issue takes precedence over the right to life in the womb.
” While the two women have been friends , they differ on how to approach this election .
“ Pro-life advocates believe that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unborn child , ” said Johnson .
“ At the end of the day , if you hold that view , then I think you have a responsibility to vote that way.
” The liberal activist emphasizes common values over electoral choices .
“ As pro-lifers , we stand for human dignity — which is contrary to the concept of ‘ otherness , ’ ” said Bukovinac .
“ If we fall into thinking that people with different ideals must be stupid in some way , I believe we are going to postpone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ The only way to truly change our culture is to respect each other , to stay open-minded , and to unify at every possible turn.
” Stream contributor Josh M. Shepherd covers culture , faith , and public policy issues for media outlets including The Federalist .
Find him on Twitter and follow The Stream @ Streamdotorg .

Editor’s note: Originally published August 23, this story has been updated to include video of the August 25 RNC speech.
The Republican National Convention kicks off tomorrow, with a prime spot reserved on Tuesday for former Planned Parenthood clinic director Abby Johnson.
“I have been tasked with giving a profound, impactful pro-life speech in five minutes,” said Johnson in a phone interview. “So I am still working out exactly what I’m going to say!”
Even pro-life liberals praise the move. “The American people need to hear from Abby Johnson, who has a very powerful story,” said Terrisa Bukovinac of Pro-Life San Francisco. “The life issue is the most pressing human rights issue of our day. It’s a good thing any time an anti-abortion speaker has a prominent opportunity like this.”
Bukovinac spoke in a phone interview from Milwaukee. She and a dozen activists spent the DNC convention protesting the lack of pro-life inclusion in the Democratic Party.
“I want people to understand what’s at stake,” said Johnson. “The threats against unborn lives are real.”
To See Pro-Life Progress, Follow the Money
Last year’s major theatrical release Unplanned adapted Johnson’s story as a former Planned Parenthood clinic director. The pro-life film, currently available on Amazon Prime, elevated her national profile.
“What differentiates me from other pro-life speakers is my lived experience inside of an abortion clinic,” she said. “I definitely want to highlight the things I have seen firsthand in this industry.”
Her former employer has faced setbacks during the Trump administration. In 2017, International Planned Parenthood Federation lost millions in abortion-related funding.
Last summer, new regulations barred federally funded clinics from making abortion referrals. Planned Parenthood affiliates pulled out of the program. In February, an appeals court upheld the Trump pro-life policy.
“President Trump set an important precedent by defunding Planned Parenthood from the Title X program,” said Johnson.
“The court challenge against that didn’t hold up. Now there is an opportunity to defund them from other cash grant title programs such as Title V and Title XX.”
Nevertheless, Johnson says she has been “frustrated” by Planned Parenthood affiliates still receiving hundreds of millions in taxpayer funds. It’s a sticking point for many pro-life advocates.
“I do think [President Trump] has worked diligently on pro-life priorities.” – Abby Johnson
“Unfortunately, it’s complicated to remove [PPFA] entirely from the federal budget,” she said. “Some people may think that President Trump is able to just use his pen and make that happen. It’s not quite that simple.”
“But I do think he has worked diligently on pro-life priorities, including this one.”
Planned Parenthood’s New York Scandal
In June, Planned Parenthood made headlines for surprising reasons. Staff members at a New York affiliate organized a joint letter that called out discriminatory practices by top leadership.
“This was a crisis media stunt,” said Johnson. “Planned Parenthood of Greater New York got nervous and reacted to the letter. They even removed the president of that affiliate. But I don’t believe they meant any of it.”
This minority-led petitioners called out Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger as a “racist.” Her name was removed from a clinic building and a local street.
Pro-life advocates have often noted Sanger’s founding role in the genocidal eugenics movement. “The abortion industry is rooted in eugenics, this idea of ‘whitening up’ our nation,” said Bukovinac.
“Today, racial discrimination remains extremely present in health care. Stats show black moms die at a rate five times higher than white women in childbirth. It has nothing to do with economic status, it is about racial bias.”
Johnson contends eugenics is embedded into Planned Parenthood’s mission. “They didn’t go nearly far enough,” she said. “No one said, ‘Well, come to think of it, look at the disproportionate amount of black babies aborted in our facilities. Look at where we strategically locate our abortion clinics.’”
The women’s health group continues to honor their founder Sanger, even giving out annual ‘Maggie Awards’ named in her honor. “They were hoping that, with some superficial response, all of the hype would go away,” said Johnson. “And it looks like it did.”
Life in the Parties
In recent months, related issues of human dignity and equal justice have risen to the cultural forefront. Liberal pro-life activists confess they feel politically homeless.
“We really need to act on abortion as if it was an emergency, because it is,” said Bukovinac. “If we find ways to justify voting for pro-choice candidates, we are complicit in the horrors of abortion. Obviously, I also feel that voting for Trump would make me complicit in some problematic things that I do not want on my conscience.”
Johnson, who leads Pro-Love Ministries in central Texas, has kept focused on the life issue. “For me, I’ve seen abortion in a very real and tangible way,” she said. “I don’t think that any other issue takes precedence over the right to life in the womb.”
Please Support The Stream : Equipping Christians to Think Clearly About the Political, Economic, and Moral Issues of Our Day.
While the two women have been friends, they differ on how to approach this election. “Pro-life advocates believe that abortion is the deliberate killing of an unborn child,” said Johnson. “At the end of the day, if you hold that view, then I think you have a responsibility to vote that way.”
The liberal activist emphasizes common values over electoral choices. “As pro-lifers, we stand for human dignity — which is contrary to the concept of ‘otherness,’” said Bukovinac. “If we fall into thinking that people with different ideals must be stupid in some way, I believe we are going to postpone victory for the cause of life.”
“The only way to truly change our culture is to respect each other, to stay open-minded, and to unify at every possible turn.”
Stream contributor Josh M. Shepherd covers culture, faith, and public policy issues for media outlets including The Federalist. Find him on Twitter and follow The Stream @Streamdotorg.


thestream--2020-08-27--Kenosha’s Kyle Rittenhouse: Scapegoat or Patriot?

As we watch armed political gangs take over our cities , with the connivance of many governors and mayors , we see the media focusing instead on a single scapegoat .
His name is Kyle Rittenhouse , and he is 17 .
Stories are churning out of the media apparat vilifying a young man who joined some armed citizens trying to defend Kenosha , Wisconsin businesses from looters .
Those looters used the pretext of the police shooting of Jacob Blake earlier this week .
Apparently facing a mob that was trying to burn down a gas station , Rittenhouse @ @ @ @ @ @ @ group rushed him , and he ran away , then tripped .
The attackers pounced , one of them trying to club the young man with a skateboard while he was down .
So he shot all three attackers .
Two of them died .
One of those , it appears , was a convicted sex offender .
Here ’ s the long form of the video that has been circulating online : A horrible incident .
The kind of thing that shouldn ’ t be happening in our country ’ s streets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is that ?
Why isn ’ t the City of Kenosha , Wisconsin , under police control ?
Why are senior citizens who try to protect their property with mere fire extinguishers getting beaten down in the street ?
Maybe my account of this isn ’ t perfect .
I ’ ve pieced it together from online video and witness accounts .
For a left-wing take on the incident , see Heavy.com ’ s .
For a right-wing account , see this story from The Nationalist Review .
( I can ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ publication , of course . )
The Blaze just published a video showing one of the rioters Rittenhouse shot charging at him .
Does That Look Like First Degree Murder to You ?
Let me pose the crucial queston : You watched that video .
Does that look like First Degree Murder to you ?
That ’ s what the local prosecutor is charging Kyle Rittenhouse with .
That ’ s the most severe charge on the books .
It ’ s what you charge when someone carefully , with premeditation , stalks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her .
How did prosecutors decide that a teenager who — in the moment , swamped by angry rioters — shoots at those attacking him , deserves the same charge as Lee Harvey Oswald would have faced ?
Easy : It ’ s politics .
If the McCloskeys in St. Louis can face felony charges for showing their weapons on their own front lawn , then Rittenhouse really must be made an example of .
Lest Americans think him perhaps … a hero .
Here ’ s an interview Rittenhouse conducted before going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ air that clip , however .
Nor will they report that Kyle is a trained EMT , who actually offered to help injured ( left-wing ) activists , before some others attacked him .
Instead , they ’ ll keep up the pretense that “ peaceful protesters ” were singled out by some deranged white lone wolf .
To maintain that fiction , they won ’ t show you images like this one , of such a protester pointing a loaded gun at a reporter from The Blaze : The Democrats have decided @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the streets , destroying and menacing as they like .
Then they go on TV ( as Michelle Obama did ) and threaten us that if we don ’ t vote their way in November , the riots will get much worse .
That protection-racket platform falls apart , however , if Americans push back .
Democrats can tie the cops ’ hands , and let Antifa and Black Lives Matter terrorize neighborhoods all through the November election , hoping that we ’ ll be too scared to leave our homes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ terror tactic stops working if Americans organize into citizens militias , and rout the political gangs using force .
Mobs of BLM thugs wouldn ’ t dare harass people eating dinner outside in Dallas , Texas — because citizens here still enjoy their constitutional right to defend themselves .
But in a city picked clean of law-abiding gunowners like Washington , D.C. , it ’ s a free for all .
While the cops fume back in the headquarters , the political squads run the streets .
The way they do in Havana @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Meanwhile , the thousands of arsonists and looters who are burning down blue cities run free .
Across the country , Democrat mayors and prosecutors have released hundreds of looters charged with assault and vandalism without bail , on their own recognizance .
They are , you see , on the “ right side ” of the conflict .
The Democrat Playbook , from the Old Lynching Days It might help to think of historical precedents for this situation .
In the U.S. , we ’ d think back to when the Ku @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down thriving black neighborhoods , lynch “ uppity negroes , ” or terrorize would-be voters for pro-black Republican candidates .
Democrat sheriffs and mayors winked at these abuses , since the Klan served as the de facto armed wing of their party .
Democrat senators filibustered anti-lynching laws that would have put such violence under federal jurisdiction .
It took massive federal intervention , in the wake of the Civil Rights and Voting Rights acts , to shatter such petty tyrannies and give black Americans full civil rights .
It Worked for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how the Irish Republican Army served as the armed wing of the Marxist Sinn Fein party in Northern Ireland .
The men in coats and ties kept a little distance , just enough for plausible deniability , from the killers in ski masks .
But they coordinated their efforts , and never attacked each other .
Just as today Democrats won ’ t say a harsh word about Black Lives Matter or Antifa , and BLM ’ s website sends would-be contributors to the Democrats ’ donation page .
But we must look @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get what ’ s happening .
Antifa traces its origins back to the street wars of the Weimar Republic .
Two intolerant socialist factions fought for power , and terrorized everyone else .
The German Communist Party fielded Antifa as its street-fighting wing .
The National Socialist German Workers Party ( Nazis ) , fielded the Sturmabteilung ( the brown-shirted S.A. ) .
Both were equally violent , and touted interchangeably totalitarian goals .
( Stalin was conducting ethnic genocides in Russia while Hitler still handed out pamphlets , as you can read @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) The Communists claimed to represent all workers , and got cash and support from the Soviet Union .
So why did the Nazis win the day instead ?
How did a party that never got more than 30 % of the vote in free elections gain total power , and manage to outlaw the parties representing the other 70 % ?
Surely Antifa has been pondering the lessons of its defeat for the past 90 years .
Remember , this is the same organization , as if the Nazi S.A. had existed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In all those decades of sulking , Antifa seems to have learned from its old mistakes , and internalized the S.A. ’ s winning playbook .
How Do Fringe Movements Take Power ?
I ’ ve studied this period for many years .
Back in 2000 , I wrote the first book in English on Wilhelm Röpke , the first professor in Germany to be fired by the Nazis for refusing to toe their line .
Recently I ’ ve pored over two books that focus on the role of political gangs in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Vanquished : Why the First World War Failed to End , and The Death of Democracy : Hitler ’ s Rise to Power and the Downfall of the Weimar Republic .
Each book struggles to understand how vicious extremists , like the Bolsheviks in Russia and the Nazis in Germany , managed to seize power .
This even though the vast majority of the population opposed large parts of their programs .
( Just as black Americans and white , by huge majorities , now oppose disbanding police , or abolishing the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ demands . )
The answer is grim , and clear , and it ’ s one that Antifa and Black Lives Matter seem to have learned .
The extremists who can keep the public authorities on their side will come out on top .
In Russia , the Bolsheviks quickly established political police , the NKVD , who ’ d use violent force to root out destroy all opposition — killing tens of thousands of priests , professors , moderates , and small business owners or farmers .
In Germany , the Nazis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nationalist mayors and prosecutors .
When Nazis and Communists clashed in the streets , the police would make arrests — but they ’ d throw the book at the leftists , and give the Nazis slaps on the wrist .
Adolf Hitler should have been shot up against a wall for treason after the Beer Hall Putsch .
Instead a sympathetic judge gave him a two-year sentence in a cozy cell with a typewriter .
On it , he wrote Mein Kampf , and emerged from prison to enter politics .
Antifa has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ learned to ape its old competitors .
Will our dithering Weimar regime let them follow that Nazi playbook into power ?
It ’ s tragic that there was no chance for sane , patriotic Germans who opposed all the extremists to form their own moderate militias , and stop either group of zealots from stealing their country .
But their well-meaning liberal government had already seized most of their guns .
Pray for everyone involved here , and for our beloved country .
UPDATE : The New York Times has reported that Mr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the exchange , but returned fire .
John Zmirak is a senior editor at The Stream , and author or co-author of ten books , including The Politically Incorrect Guide to Immigration and The Politically Incorrect Guide to Catholicism .
He is co-author with Jason Jones of “ God , Guns , & the Government .
”

As we watch armed political gangs take over our cities, with the connivance of many governors and mayors, we see the media focusing instead on a single scapegoat. His name is Kyle Rittenhouse, and he is 17. Stories are churning out of the media apparat vilifying a young man who joined some armed citizens trying to defend Kenosha, Wisconsin businesses from looters. Those looters used the pretext of the police shooting of Jacob Blake earlier this week.
Apparently facing a mob that was trying to burn down a gas station, Rittenhouse warned them to stop. A large group rushed him, and he ran away, then tripped. The attackers pounced, one of them trying to club the young man with a skateboard while he was down. So he shot all three attackers. Two of them died. One of those, it appears, was a convicted sex offender.
Here’s the long form of the video that has been circulating online:
Most comprehensive view of the #Kenosha shooting so far. pic.twitter.com/tPpBcdrLR2 — Richard (@Wildman_AZ) August 26, 2020
A horrible incident. The kind of thing that shouldn’t be happening in our country’s streets. But which party’s fault is that? Why isn’t the City of Kenosha, Wisconsin, under police control? Why are senior citizens who try to protect their property with mere fire extinguishers getting beaten down in the street?
Maybe my account of this isn’t perfect. I’ve pieced it together from online video and witness accounts. For a left-wing take on the incident, see Heavy.com’s. For a right-wing account, see this story from The Nationalist Review. (I can’t vouch for the editorial stances of either publication, of course.) The Blaze just published a video showing one of the rioters Rittenhouse shot charging at him.
Does That Look Like First Degree Murder to You?
Let me pose the crucial queston: You watched that video. Does that look like First Degree Murder to you? That’s what the local prosecutor is charging Kyle Rittenhouse with.
That’s the most severe charge on the books. It’s what you charge when someone carefully, with premeditation, stalks his ex-wife for months and slowly poisons her. How did prosecutors decide that a teenager who — in the moment, swamped by angry rioters — shoots at those attacking him, deserves the same charge as Lee Harvey Oswald would have faced?
Making an Example
Easy: It’s politics. If the McCloskeys in St. Louis can face felony charges for showing their weapons on their own front lawn, then Rittenhouse really must be made an example of. Lest Americans think him perhaps … a hero. Here’s an interview Rittenhouse conducted before going into action:
CONTEXT: I spoke with the alleged shooter earlier in the night who stated he was there to protect property He did not make racist comments, condemn #BLM, or mention political motivations for his actions He said that he was there to protect property & was carrying a firearm pic.twitter.com/ViYUB65tiy — ELIJAH RIOT (@ElijahSchaffer) August 26, 2020
Media won’t air that clip, however. Nor will they report that Kyle is a trained EMT, who actually offered to help injured (left-wing) activists, before some others attacked him. Instead, they’ll keep up the pretense that “peaceful protesters” were singled out by some deranged white lone wolf. To maintain that fiction, they won’t show you images like this one, of such a protester pointing a loaded gun at a reporter from The Blaze:
HOLY SH*#: while interviewing this #BLM rioter in Kinosha he pulls out a real pistol and points it at my camera while explaining what we would do to cops if they rolled up on us right now It’s been a while since I had a gun pointed at me even if it was just to make a point pic.twitter.com/hjQqO9Ccbb — ELIJAH RIOT (@ElijahSchaffer) August 25, 2020
The Democrats’ Gang Runs the Streets
The Democrats have decided to let one political faction run free in the streets, destroying and menacing as they like. Then they go on TV (as Michelle Obama did) and threaten us that if we don’t vote their way in November, the riots will get much worse.
That protection-racket platform falls apart, however, if Americans push back. Democrats can tie the cops’ hands, and let Antifa and Black Lives Matter terrorize neighborhoods all through the November election, hoping that we’ll be too scared to leave our homes, or vote against them.
The Democrats have decided to let one political faction run free in the streets, destroying and menacing as they like. Then they go on TV (as Michelle Obama did) and threaten us that if we don’t vote their way in November, the riots will get much worse.
But that terror tactic stops working if Americans organize into citizens militias, and rout the political gangs using force. Mobs of BLM thugs wouldn’t dare harass people eating dinner outside in Dallas, Texas — because citizens here still enjoy their constitutional right to defend themselves. But in a city picked clean of law-abiding gunowners like Washington, D.C., it’s a free for all. While the cops fume back in the headquarters, the political squads run the streets. The way they do in Havana, Cuba and Caracas, Venezuela.
Meanwhile, the thousands of arsonists and looters who are burning down blue cities run free. Across the country, Democrat mayors and prosecutors have released hundreds of looters charged with assault and vandalism without bail, on their own recognizance. They are, you see, on the “right side” of the conflict.
The Democrat Playbook, from the Old Lynching Days
It might help to think of historical precedents for this situation. In the U.S., we’d think back to when the Ku Klux Klan led racist mobs to burn down thriving black neighborhoods, lynch “uppity negroes,” or terrorize would-be voters for pro-black Republican candidates.
Democrat sheriffs and mayors winked at these abuses, since the Klan served as the de facto armed wing of their party. Democrat senators filibustered anti-lynching laws that would have put such violence under federal jurisdiction. It took massive federal intervention, in the wake of the Civil Rights and Voting Rights acts, to shatter such petty tyrannies and give black Americans full civil rights.
It Worked for the IRA
Looking east, we think of how the Irish Republican Army served as the armed wing of the Marxist Sinn Fein party in Northern Ireland. The men in coats and ties kept a little distance, just enough for plausible deniability, from the killers in ski masks. But they coordinated their efforts, and never attacked each other. Just as today Democrats won’t say a harsh word about Black Lives Matter or Antifa, and BLM’s website sends would-be contributors to the Democrats’ donation page.
Antifa Studied the Nazi Brownshirt Playbook
But we must look even further back in history to really get what’s happening. Antifa traces its origins back to the street wars of the Weimar Republic. Two intolerant socialist factions fought for power, and terrorized everyone else. The German Communist Party fielded Antifa as its street-fighting wing. The National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazis), fielded the Sturmabteilung (the brown-shirted S.A.). Both were equally violent, and touted interchangeably totalitarian goals. (Stalin was conducting ethnic genocides in Russia while Hitler still handed out pamphlets, as you can read in Timothy Snyder’s Bloodlands.)
The Communists claimed to represent all workers, and got cash and support from the Soviet Union. So why did the Nazis win the day instead? How did a party that never got more than 30% of the vote in free elections gain total power, and manage to outlaw the parties representing the other 70%?
Please Support The Stream : Equipping Christians to Think Clearly About the Political, Economic, and Moral Issues of Our Day.
Surely Antifa has been pondering the lessons of its defeat for the past 90 years. Remember, this is the same organization, as if the Nazi S.A. had existed continuously in some form since 1933. In all those decades of sulking, Antifa seems to have learned from its old mistakes, and internalized the S.A.’s winning playbook.
How Do Fringe Movements Take Power?
I’ve studied this period for many years. Back in 2000, I wrote the first book in English on Wilhelm Röpke, the first professor in Germany to be fired by the Nazis for refusing to toe their line. Recently I’ve pored over two books that focus on the role of political gangs in the struggle for power after 1918: The Vanquished: Why the First World War Failed to End, and The Death of Democracy: Hitler’s Rise to Power and the Downfall of the Weimar Republic.
Each book struggles to understand how vicious extremists, like the Bolsheviks in Russia and the Nazis in Germany, managed to seize power. This even though the vast majority of the population opposed large parts of their programs. (Just as black Americans and white, by huge majorities, now oppose disbanding police, or abolishing the nuclear family, as Black Lives Matter demands.)
The answer is grim, and clear, and it’s one that Antifa and Black Lives Matter seem to have learned. The extremists who can keep the public authorities on their side will come out on top. In Russia, the Bolsheviks quickly established political police, the NKVD, who’d use violent force to root out destroy all opposition — killing tens of thousands of priests, professors, moderates, and small business owners or farmers.
In Germany, the Nazis counted on the collusion of right-wing, nationalist mayors and prosecutors. When Nazis and Communists clashed in the streets, the police would make arrests — but they’d throw the book at the leftists, and give the Nazis slaps on the wrist. Adolf Hitler should have been shot up against a wall for treason after the Beer Hall Putsch. Instead a sympathetic judge gave him a two-year sentence in a cozy cell with a typewriter. On it, he wrote Mein Kampf, and emerged from prison to enter politics.
Antifa has learned from its past. It has learned to ape its old competitors. Will our dithering Weimar regime let them follow that Nazi playbook into power?
It’s tragic that there was no chance for sane, patriotic Germans who opposed all the extremists to form their own moderate militias, and stop either group of zealots from stealing their country. But their well-meaning liberal government had already seized most of their guns.
Pray for everyone involved here, and for our beloved country.
UPDATE: The New York Times has reported that Mr. Rittenhouse did not fire the first shot in the exchange, but returned fire.
John Zmirak is a senior editor at The Stream, and author or co-author of ten books, including The Politically Incorrect Guide to Immigration and The Politically Incorrect Guide to Catholicism. He is co-author with Jason Jones of “God, Guns, & the Government.”


thestream--2020-08-27--Hurricane Laura Makes Landfall Near Texas-Louisiana Border As Category 4 Storm

Laura sustained winds reaching 140 mph and brought with it a coming storm surge that the National Hurricane Center described as “ unsurvivable.
” The storm intensified at an alarming speed , jumping from a Category 1 storm to a Category 4 storm in less than 48 hours , The Washington Post reported .
Parts of Louisiana prepared for a storm surge up to 20 feet above the ground and reaching 40 miles inland , prompting parts of I-10 , the state ’ s main freeway , to close , NOLA.com reported .
The surge is expected to affect more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , extending from Freeport , Texas past the Mississippi River delta .
Ahead of Laura ’ s landfall , state and local officials urged residents to evacuate further inland to avoid the worst of the storm .
Louisiana Gov .
John Bel Edwards activated the state ’ s entire National Guard to help with the response , The Washington Post reported .
“ If you decide to stay , you ’ re on your own , ” said Thurman Bartie , the Mayor of Port Arthur , a coastal town on the Texas-Louisiana @ @ @ @ @ @ @ His comments were echoed by meteorologists stationed throughout both states .
“ Your life will be in immediate and grave danger if you do not evacuate , ” Donald Jones , a meteorologist for the NWS stationed in Lake Charles , Louisiana , told AP .
In Texas , thousands of residents in the storm ’ s path evacuated Wednesday .
In Galveston , a coastal city close to the state ’ s Louisiana border , the mayor issued a mandatory evacuation order Tuesday , The New York Times reported .
Laura is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Louisiana without power , but may lead to outages as far inland as Memphis , according to the Weather Channel ’ s forecast .
Heavy rain is expected to hit as far north as Indiana and Ohio as the storm is predicted to move north before cutting east towards the Atlantic Ocean , the forecast shows .
Laura is so powerful that there is a chance that it will redevelop back into a tropical depression once back over the ocean , AP reported .
The storm has already killed nearly two dozen people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ island without power and working to mitigate the damage caused by flash floods .
The storm stuck the Gulf Coast only days before the 15th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina , which breached New Orleans ’ levees and killed approximately 1,800 people .
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience .
For licensing opportunities of our original content , please contact licensing @ dailycallernewsfoundation.org .

Hurricane Laura made landfall early Thursday, hitting the Texas-Louisiana border as a Category 4 storm.
Laura sustained winds reaching 140 mph and brought with it a coming storm surge that the National Hurricane Center described as “unsurvivable.” The storm intensified at an alarming speed, jumping from a Category 1 storm to a Category 4 storm in less than 48 hours, The Washington Post reported.
Parts of Louisiana prepared for a storm surge up to 20 feet above the ground and reaching 40 miles inland, prompting parts of I-10, the state’s main freeway, to close, NOLA.com reported. The surge is expected to affect more than 400 miles of the Gulf Coast, extending from Freeport, Texas past the Mississippi River delta.
An extreme wind warning is in effect for Beaumont TX, Lake Charles LA, Port Arthur TX until 1:00 AM CDT for extremely dangerous hurricane winds. Treat these imminent extreme winds as if a tornado was approaching and move immediately to an interior room or shelter NOW!. pic.twitter.com/Kepii38Fff — NWS Lake Charles (@NWSLakeCharles) August 27, 2020
Ahead of Laura’s landfall, state and local officials urged residents to evacuate further inland to avoid the worst of the storm. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards activated the state’s entire National Guard to help with the response, The Washington Post reported.
“If you decide to stay, you’re on your own,” said Thurman Bartie, the Mayor of Port Arthur, a coastal town on the Texas-Louisiana border, the Associated Press reported.
His comments were echoed by meteorologists stationed throughout both states.
Please Support The Stream : Equipping Christians to Think Clearly About the Political, Economic, and Moral Issues of Our Day.
“Your life will be in immediate and grave danger if you do not evacuate,” Donald Jones, a meteorologist for the NWS stationed in Lake Charles, Louisiana, told AP.
In Texas, thousands of residents in the storm’s path evacuated Wednesday. In Galveston, a coastal city close to the state’s Louisiana border, the mayor issued a mandatory evacuation order Tuesday, The New York Times reported.
Laura is not only expected to leave much of Louisiana without power, but may lead to outages as far inland as Memphis, according to the Weather Channel’s forecast.
Heavy rain is expected to hit as far north as Indiana and Ohio as the storm is predicted to move north before cutting east towards the Atlantic Ocean, the forecast shows. Laura is so powerful that there is a chance that it will redevelop back into a tropical depression once back over the ocean, AP reported.
The storm has already killed nearly two dozen people on Hispaniola, leaving much of the island without power and working to mitigate the damage caused by flash floods. The storm stuck the Gulf Coast only days before the 15th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, which breached New Orleans’ levees and killed approximately 1,800 people.
Copyright 2020 The Daily Caller News Foundation
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact [email protected].


thestream--2020-08-27--7 Reasons Why Christian Leaders Fall

7 Reasons Why Christian Leaders Fall

In light of many prominent pastors and Christian leaders stepping down , I decided to re-release this article .
Why do they fall ?
They fall for the same reason that all Christians fall .
Each of us are drawn away by our own evil desires and enticed .
When these desires are acted upon , they lead to sin ( cf .
James 1:14-15 ) .
Sin has a life cycle — it either grows or withers depending on whether we feed or starve it .
John Owen , the prolific Puritan author wrote , “ Be killing sin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Consider the following ways that sin gains entrance : 1 .
“ It will never happen to me.
” 1 Corinthians 10:12 reminds us that if we think that we are standing firm , we should be careful that we don ’ t fall .
“ Pride goes before destruction , a haughty spirit before a fall ” ( Proverbs 16:18 ) .
Pride says , “ I ’ ve never committed adultery .
It will never happen to me.
” Humility says , “ By the grace of God , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Strength is found in admitting our weaknesses : “ For when I am weak , I am strong ” ( 2 Corinthians 12:10 ) .
Pride opens the door to compromise and unwise decisions ; it ignores conviction .
Conviction is not always a hammer to the head , it ’ s a still small voice to the heart .
Sadly , many confuse God ’ s patience with His approval .
C.H .
Spurgeon rightly noted , “ We are never , never so much in danger of being proud as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2 .
I ’ m “ too busy.
” We are all susceptible to putting God second and ministry first .
If we ’ re too busy to cultivate a prayer life that places God first — we ’ re too busy .
Men would live better if they prayed better .
We ’ re often too busy because we ’ re doing too much .
“ When faith ceases to pray , it ceases to live ” ( E.M. Bounds ) .
It ’ s hard to fall when you ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can not gain a stronghold in a broken , praying heart that spends time in the Word and obedience to it ( cf .
James 1:22 ) .
Nine times out of ten , when a leader falls , he or she has no meaningful prayer or devotional life .
3 .
Holiness is compromised .
The enemy attempts to draw us away from God ’ s holy standard .
I vividly remember a story of a young boy who kept falling out of his bed .
He finally asked his mother why @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ It ’ s because you don ’ t stay far enough in.
” In the same way , many of us fall back into sin because we don ’ t get far enough into God ’ s framework of safety and protection via holiness .
In the words of Isaac Watts , “ True Christianity , where it reigns in the heart , will make itself appear in the purity of life.
” Of all the attributes of God described in the Bible , holiness is seen most often .
Holiness @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the enemy ’ s attack ( cf .
Ephesians 6:14 ) .
But holiness must come from brokenness and humility not legalism .
A low view of holiness always damages morality … we rationalize instead of repent .
I ’ m convinced that today ’ s media plays a significant role in the decline of holiness .
Sadly , Hollywood , not the Holy Spirit , influences many .
We can not fill our minds with darkness all week and expect the light of Christ to shine in our lives .
4 .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ sex .
We must be on high alert in this area and have tremendous steps of accountability in place .
The devil doesn ’ t show those involved in counseling appointments , inner office meetings and private “ fellowship ” the pain and anguish and the years of regret that moral failure brings ; he deceives them with a false sense of freedom in ministry … that we are simply “ helping ” the other person .
If you are married and attracted to another person , or if the potential is there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the environment .
Adultery begins with small compromises .
We ’ re often too smart to take deliberate plunges , but we ’ re easily enticed to take one step at a time , one compromise at a time , one bad choice at a time until we ’ re at the bottom .
Don ’ t fight sexual desires ; don ’ t entertain them … flee ( cf .
1 Corinthians 6:18 ) .
5 .
We fail to strengthen weak areas .
The demands of life often tempt us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ things .
We must be on high alert .
The enemy uses “ opportune times ” to draw us away from God .
( cf .
Luke 4:13 ) .
The line is so thin that it is often hard to determine when we cross over .
Weak areas such as drugs , alcohol , pain meds , sex , anger , marriage issues and so on are “ opportune times ” for the enemy to strike .
We must expose these areas through repentance , and install safeguards and accountability .
To @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 6 .
Accountability is often breached or minimized .
Accountability is a safeguard , but it ’ s not bullet-proof .
Accountability , by itself , doesn ’ t work — it ’ s not realistic to ask others to hold you accountable .
Your heart must be focused on honoring God ’ s Word .
Accountability simply adds another level of security in the battle against sin .
It ’ s healthy to say to those we trust , “ I ’ m struggling in this area .
Can you pray with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time to time ?
” The enemy loves to work in darkness and deceit .
Exposing cracks in the armor helps others keep an eye on them as well .
For example , it may be wise to have software on your PC that sends all websites visited to an accountability person every week .
This is a major deterrent and it makes me very conscious of even seemingly innocent sites .
To some , this may seem extreme , but we need to be armed for the enemy who steals , kills @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the greater the need for accountability : spiritually , financially and relationally .
7 .
Loneliness becomes an excuse .
Ministry is hard and can easily take its toll .
Feeling a sense of entitlement is often the beginning of justifying wrong choices .
We can easily become jealous and judgmental of those who seem to have “ all the fun.
” As Oswald Chambers states : “ God buries His men [ and women ] in the midst of paltry things , no monuments are erected to them ; they are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but because they are in the place where they can not be seen.
” Luke 16:10 should be a great encouragement , “ So you also , when you have done everything you were told to do , should say , ‘ We are unworthy servants ; we have only done our duty ’ .
” Sin can be silenced in a thankful heart set on worshiping God .
God has given us the privilege to serve Him , proclaim His truth and help others .
Don ’ t allow frustration and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ path .
In closing , if you are on the cliff or have already fallen , take time now and repent .
It will hurt , but the fruit of repentance far outweighs the fruit of exposure that will surely come ( cf .
Numbers 32:23 ) .
God ’ s grace will see you through .
A penitent person turns from sin .
They accept full responsibility for their actions without blame , resentment or bitterness .
They seek forgiveness without conditions and stipulations .
They take full ( not partial ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be no “ buts ” when repentance is genuine .
“ I am sorry .
I was wrong .
Please forgive me , ” are often ( although not always ) healing words and signs of repentance .
Excuses need to stop before healing can occur .
There are consequences for past mistakes , but it ’ s best to live in God ’ s healing arms of forgiveness , rather than to live broken outside of His will .
Which way will you turn ?
Shane Idleman is the founder and lead @ @ @ @ @ @ @ California and the creator of the WCF Radio Network .
His program , Regaining Lost Ground , points us back to God and reminds us that although times change , truth does not .
His books , blogs , and sermons can all be found at ShaneIdleman.com .

Update: Since this article published the author has made a two-part video discussion of the seven points of the article: See part one and part two.
In light of many prominent pastors and Christian leaders stepping down, I decided to re-release this article.
Why do they fall? They fall for the same reason that all Christians fall. Each of us are drawn away by our own evil desires and enticed. When these desires are acted upon, they lead to sin (cf. James 1:14-15). Sin has a life cycle — it either grows or withers depending on whether we feed or starve it. John Owen, the prolific Puritan author wrote, “Be killing sin, or sin will be killing you.”
“Be killing sin, or sin will be killing you.”
Consider the following ways that sin gains entrance:
1. “It will never happen to me.” 1 Corinthians 10:12 reminds us that if we think that we are standing firm, we should be careful that we don’t fall. “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18). Pride says, “I’ve never committed adultery. It will never happen to me.” Humility says, “By the grace of God, I haven’t, but I can.”
Strength is found in admitting our weaknesses: “For when I am weak, I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). Pride opens the door to compromise and unwise decisions; it ignores conviction. Conviction is not always a hammer to the head, it’s a still small voice to the heart.
Sadly, many confuse God’s patience with His approval. C.H. Spurgeon rightly noted, “We are never, never so much in danger of being proud as when we think we are humble.”
2. I’m “too busy.” We are all susceptible to putting God second and ministry first. If we’re too busy to cultivate a prayer life that places God first — we’re too busy. Men would live better if they prayed better. We’re often too busy because we’re doing too much. “When faith ceases to pray, it ceases to live” (E.M. Bounds). It’s hard to fall when you’re always on your knees. Moral failing cannot gain a stronghold in a broken, praying heart that spends time in the Word and obedience to it (cf. James 1:22). Nine times out of ten, when a leader falls, he or she has no meaningful prayer or devotional life.
3. Holiness is compromised. The enemy attempts to draw us away from God’s holy standard. I vividly remember a story of a young boy who kept falling out of his bed. He finally asked his mother why he kept falling. She wisely answered, “It’s because you don’t stay far enough in.” In the same way, many of us fall back into sin because we don’t get far enough into God’s framework of safety and protection via holiness. In the words of Isaac Watts, “True Christianity, where it reigns in the heart, will make itself appear in the purity of life.”
Of all the attributes of God described in the Bible, holiness is seen most often. Holiness is a vital weapon of defense against the enemy’s attack (cf. Ephesians 6:14). But holiness must come from brokenness and humility not legalism. A low view of holiness always damages morality … we rationalize instead of repent. I’m convinced that today’s media plays a significant role in the decline of holiness. Sadly, Hollywood, not the Holy Spirit, influences many. We cannot fill our minds with darkness all week and expect the light of Christ to shine in our lives.
4. Many build unhealthy relationships with the opposite sex. We must be on high alert in this area and have tremendous steps of accountability in place. The devil doesn’t show those involved in counseling appointments, inner office meetings and private “fellowship” the pain and anguish and the years of regret that moral failure brings; he deceives them with a false sense of freedom in ministry … that we are simply “helping” the other person.
If you are married and attracted to another person, or if the potential is there, take steps now and remove yourself from the environment. Adultery begins with small compromises. We’re often too smart to take deliberate plunges, but we’re easily enticed to take one step at a time, one compromise at a time, one bad choice at a time until we’re at the bottom. Don’t fight sexual desires; don’t entertain them … flee (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:18).
Please Support The Stream : Equipping Christians to Think Clearly About the Political, Economic, and Moral Issues of Our Day.
5. We fail to strengthen weak areas. The demands of life often tempt us to seek gratification in alcohol and other things. We must be on high alert. The enemy uses “opportune times” to draw us away from God. (cf. Luke 4:13). The line is so thin that it is often hard to determine when we cross over. Weak areas such as drugs, alcohol, pain meds, sex, anger, marriage issues and so on are “opportune times” for the enemy to strike.
We must expose these areas through repentance, and install safeguards and accountability. To be forewarned is to be forearmed.
6. Accountability is often breached or minimized. Accountability is a safeguard, but it’s not bullet-proof. Accountability, by itself, doesn’t work — it’s not realistic to ask others to hold you accountable. Your heart must be focused on honoring God’s Word. Accountability simply adds another level of security in the battle against sin. It’s healthy to say to those we trust, “I’m struggling in this area. Can you pray with me and ask the hard questions from time to time?”
The enemy loves to work in darkness and deceit. Exposing cracks in the armor helps others keep an eye on them as well. For example, it may be wise to have software on your PC that sends all websites visited to an accountability person every week. This is a major deterrent and it makes me very conscious of even seemingly innocent sites. To some, this may seem extreme, but we need to be armed for the enemy who steals, kills and destroys. The greater our influence, the greater the need for accountability: spiritually, financially and relationally.
7. Loneliness becomes an excuse. Ministry is hard and can easily take its toll. Feeling a sense of entitlement is often the beginning of justifying wrong choices. We can easily become jealous and judgmental of those who seem to have “all the fun.” As Oswald Chambers states: “God buries His men [and women] in the midst of paltry things, no monuments are erected to them; they are ignored, not because they are unworthy, but because they are in the place where they cannot be seen.”
Luke 16:10 should be a great encouragement, “So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty’.” Sin can be silenced in a thankful heart set on worshiping God. God has given us the privilege to serve Him, proclaim His truth and help others. Don’t allow frustration and negativity to lead you down the wrong path.
In closing, if you are on the cliff or have already fallen, take time now and repent. It will hurt, but the fruit of repentance far outweighs the fruit of exposure that will surely come (cf. Numbers 32:23). God’s grace will see you through. A penitent person turns from sin. They accept full responsibility for their actions without blame, resentment or bitterness. They seek forgiveness without conditions and stipulations. They take full (not partial) responsibility for their actions. There can be no “buts” when repentance is genuine. “I am sorry. I was wrong. Please forgive me,” are often (although not always) healing words and signs of repentance. Excuses need to stop before healing can occur.
There are consequences for past mistakes, but it’s best to live in God’s healing arms of forgiveness, rather than to live broken outside of His will. Which way will you turn?
Shane Idleman is the founder and lead pastor of Westside Christian Fellowship in Southern California and the creator of the WCF Radio Network. His program, Regaining Lost Ground, points us back to God and reminds us that although times change, truth does not. His books, blogs, and sermons can all be found at ShaneIdleman.com.


thestream--2020-08-28--America’s Descent: From Seeking Greatness to Seeking ‘Safe Spaces’

America , once a nation seeking greatness , has become a nation seeking safe spaces .
And it ’ s killing us .
It isn ’ t just that one party hates the slogan , “ Make America Great Again.
” It ’ s becoming the mood of the nation , affecting us all to one degree or another .
Whereas America ’ s story used to be about doing the greatest good , now it ’ s much more about shielding ourselves from harm .
Obviously a certain level of attention to safety is wise .
But you ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ team that goes out to win , and the team that goes out trying not to lose ?
We ’ re worse than that : We ’ re the team that goes out there to not get hurt — or let anyone else get hurt .
That ’ s the goal of our game .
Consider just a handful of examples .
When I was growing up my friends and I played all over the block .
This wasn ’ t your average city block , though ; it was equal in size @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them put together .
Some back yards had gardens , but only one had a fence around it .
Every back yard was every child ’ s back yard , even after dark .
We played baseball in the lawns between my family ’ s house and the homes behind us and next door , until we grew big enough my parents started worrying about broken windows .
That ’ s when we got permission from Mr. Pawley to turn his large vacant lot into a ball field .
We mowed and cleared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ backstop ; we played ball again !
No umpire , no problem : We settled our differences between us .
We were all in the 10- to 15-year-old range that year .
Child Protective Services , Then and Now Nowadays adults organize almost everything kids do .
“ It ’ s safer that way.
” No child gets hurt cutting 10-inch high grass before they play .
No twelve-year-old twists an ankle running a baseline that ’ s not perfectly lined and level .
No child ever has to argue out a call @ @ @ @ @ @ @ care of them that way .
And no kid ever wanders the neighborhood where some predator might come along and nab him or her .
Today children who get privileges that once seemed normal to us have their own special label — “ free-range.
” Their parents have to be careful , lest their neighbors don ’ t find out and report them to child protective services .
Back then our neighbors were the child protective service .
Someone ’ s parents were always nearby , but they let us play .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ children today learn to resolve differences ?
When do they get a chance to organize a ball game or a project without adult help ?
We don ’ t let them .
Far better to keep kids safe than to let them fail or get hurt .
Far better not to let them grow up .
It ’ s safer — at least until they have to actually live as grown-ups .
Far better now to keep everyone equal , too .
Today ’ s world allows no standouts .
Sports and music @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , some can still be the greatest , but no one can be the least , not even if they ’ ve got no talent at all .
It might damage them .
Our culture ’ s vaunted value of “ tolerance ” is also about harm avoidance .
Jesus taught , “ He is the least among you shall be the greatest ” — with “ least ” signifying service to others .
Now it ’ s , “ He who gives least offense shall be the greatest among you.
” If @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as our culture claims it to be , then there ’ s none more noble than the bearded loner in his cabin in the woods , without electricity and without internet .
Tolerance is best practiced by keeping one ’ s distance , either literally or emotionally .
Indeed , harm avoidance is almost always a matter of distance and separation .
Real relationships are really risky .
I ’ d actually thought this safety-seeking impulse had reached it ’ s peak in safe-spaces , trigger-warning-happy campus culture .
Then came COVID .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ you .
We must avoid harm at all costs !
— even if the cost includes depression , suicide , killing our economy , and just possibly also contributing to riots in one city after another .
How indeed do we explain the violence in cities like Portland , Seattle , and Kenosha .
Does it contradict what I ’ ve been saying here about avoiding harm ?
Yes , in a way , but that contradiction is nothing compared to those contained right within our harm-avoiding ethic , which tries to make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ together ; to accomplish great things by doing nothing risky .
Obsessive harm avoidance is harmful .
Entire generations grow up expecting adults to take care of their problems and their conflicts , but what happens when they ’ re the adults ?
What skills have they developed ?
What great things are we no longer accomplishing ?
The result : lack of love , lack of community , and the deep frustration that comes from the new standard ’ s failure to keep its promises of fairness and equality .
No wonder @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It ’ s erupted against itself .
Tom Gilson ( @ TomGilsonAuthor ) is a senior editor with The Stream and the author or editor of six books , including Too Good To Be False : How Jesus ’ Incomparable Character Reveals His Reality .

America, once a nation seeking greatness, has become a nation seeking safe spaces. And it’s killing us.
It isn’t just that one party hates the slogan, “Make America Great Again.” It’s becoming the mood of the nation, affecting us all to one degree or another. Whereas America’s story used to be about doing the greatest good, now it’s much more about shielding ourselves from harm.
Obviously a certain level of attention to safety is wise. But you’ve heard of the difference between the team that goes out to win, and the team that goes out trying not to lose? We’re worse than that: We’re the team that goes out there to not get hurt — or let anyone else get hurt. That’s the goal of our game. Consider just a handful of examples.
”Safe” Neighborhoods
When I was growing up my friends and I played all over the block. This wasn’t your average city block, though; it was equal in size to be about 6 or 7 of them put together. Some back yards had gardens, but only one had a fence around it. Every back yard was every child’s back yard, even after dark.
Jesus taught, “He is the least among you shall be the greatest.” Now it’s, “He who gives least offense shall be the greatest among you.”
We played baseball in the lawns between my family’s house and the homes behind us and next door, until we grew big enough my parents started worrying about broken windows. That’s when we got permission from Mr. Pawley to turn his large vacant lot into a ball field. We mowed and cleared the land; we built a wooden backstop; we played ball again! No umpire, no problem: We settled our differences between us. We were all in the 10- to 15-year-old range that year.
Child Protective Services, Then and Now
Nowadays adults organize almost everything kids do. “It’s safer that way.” No child gets hurt cutting 10-inch high grass before they play. No twelve-year-old twists an ankle running a baseline that’s not perfectly lined and level. No child ever has to argue out a call with any other; adult umpires take care of them that way. And no kid ever wanders the neighborhood where some predator might come along and nab him or her.
Today children who get privileges that once seemed normal to us have their own special label — “free-range.” Their parents have to be careful, lest their neighbors don’t find out and report them to child protective services. Back then our neighbors were the child protective service. Someone’s parents were always nearby, but they let us play. They let us grow up.
No Differences, No Offense Allowed
Where do children today learn to resolve differences? When do they get a chance to organize a ball game or a project without adult help? We don’t let them. Far better to keep kids safe than to let them fail or get hurt. Far better not to let them grow up. It’s safer — at least until they have to actually live as grown-ups.
Far better now to keep everyone equal, too. Today’s world allows no standouts. Sports and music may be exceptions, but even there, some can still be the greatest, but no one can be the least, not even if they’ve got no talent at all. It might damage them.
Real relationships are really risky.
Our culture’s vaunted value of “tolerance” is also about harm avoidance. Jesus taught, “He is the least among you shall be the greatest” — with “least” signifying service to others. Now it’s, “He who gives least offense shall be the greatest among you.” If that’s as great a virtue as our culture claims it to be, then there’s none more noble than the bearded loner in his cabin in the woods, without electricity and without internet.
Campus and COVID
Tolerance is best practiced by keeping one’s distance, either literally or emotionally. Indeed, harm avoidance is almost always a matter of distance and separation. Real relationships are really risky.
I’d actually thought this safety-seeking impulse had reached it’s peak in safe-spaces, trigger-warning-happy campus culture. Then came COVID. You know the story without me telling you. We must avoid harm at all costs! — even if the cost includes depression, suicide, killing our economy, and just possibly also contributing to riots in one city after another.
“Safe Spaces” Breaking Out in Violence
How indeed do we explain the violence in cities like Portland, Seattle, and Kenosha. Does it contradict what I’ve been saying here about avoiding harm? Yes, in a way, but that contradiction is nothing compared to those contained right within our harm-avoiding ethic, which tries to make us get along together by staying separate together; to accomplish great things by doing nothing risky.
Please Support The Stream : Equipping Christians to Think Clearly About the Political, Economic, and Moral Issues of Our Day.
Obsessive harm avoidance is harmful. Entire generations grow up expecting adults to take care of their problems and their conflicts, but what happens when they’re the adults? What skills have they developed? What great things are we no longer accomplishing?
The result: lack of love, lack of community, and the deep frustration that comes from the new standard’s failure to keep its promises of fairness and equality. No wonder our safety-seeking has erupted in violence: It’s erupted against itself.
Tom Gilson (@TomGilsonAuthor) is a senior editor with The Stream and the author or editor of six books, including Too Good To Be False: How Jesus’ Incomparable Character Reveals His Reality.


thestream--2020-08-28--Beware of the ‘Fact Checkers’

Beware of the ‘Fact Checkers’

We live in an age in which information is far more accessible than ever before in human history .
However , so is misinformation .
How can we sort out one from the other ?
Well , some people who call themselves “ fact checkers ” claim to have the answer .
They say , “ Trust us.
” But all too often , they fail to get even basic facts correct .
Let ’ s look at three prime examples .
See if you notice a common thread between them .
Late during the Supreme Court nomination hearings for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of sexual assault , and the media began publishing many “ facts ” about such crimes .
These supposedly showed that only a tiny portion of sexual assault allegations are false , giving the clear message that Kavanaugh ’ s accusers are probably telling the truth .
That ’ s when a “ fact checker ” called Snopes stepped in and reported that “ the most recent and credible research on this topic suggests that around 5 % of rape or sexual assault allegations are false.
” Snopes writer Alex Kasprak based this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ studies .
However , the meta-analysis doesn ’ t say this .
Instead , it states that “ at least 5 % ” of such accusation are “ confirmed false reports ” and “ potentially many more false report cases ” exist .
In fact , the meta-analysis lists four different studies of “ suspected ” false allegations and “ found false reporting rates above 40 % .
” Surely , Snopes knows that the words “ at least 5 % and potentially many more ” don ’ t mean “ around 5 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t enough , the same Snopes article slanders Mississippi state senator Chris McDaniel by claiming that he said “ 99 % of rape allegations from women are false.
” McDaniel didn ’ t say that .
He was speaking about accusations dredged up by the “ American left ” at politically opportune times many years after the alleged incidents occurred .
He was not talking about all sex assault cases , and no competent , honest journalist could twist his words in the manner that Snopes did .
In the final presidential debate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Clinton said that “ half of all ” illegal immigrants in the U.S. “ actually pay federal income tax.
” A Pulitzer Prize-winning fact check organization named PolitiFact looked into Clinton ’ s claim and reported : “ While there is no official figure , experts estimate that about half of all undocumented workers pay federal income taxes , if not more.
” In reality , the polar opposite is true .
Data from the IRS , the Social Security Administration , and the Congressional Budget Office show that roughly half of illegal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ virtually none of them pay federal income taxes .
Instead , they file these returns to claim refundable child tax credits , which give them cash welfare payments for every child they have .
Are we supposed to believe that PolitiFact doesn ’ t understand that “ paying income taxes ” is not the same as “ filing tax returns to get welfare ?
” Well after Obamacare was signed into law , the Congressional Budget Office estimated that it would reduce the size of the U.S. workforce by about 2.3 million full-time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ larger than the previous estimate .
As this negative news spread , The Washington Post ’ s head fact checker , Glenn Kessler , put a positive spin on it by claiming that this decline in workers “ initially would lead to higher wages as employers competed to hire people.
” In direct contradiction to this , the same Congressional Budget Office report that Kessler cited says that the Affordable Care Act will cause “ reductions in wages or other compensation.
” Moreover , it explains that these wage reductions are among the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ workforce to decline .
Since Obamacare cuts the money that people earn from working , less people will be willing to work .
Even a child can read a report that says “ wages will decline ” and know that it doesn ’ t mean “ wages will rise.
” Why can ’ t The Washington Post ’ s head fact checker or his editor do that ?
This is same media outlet that ran a Super Bowl ad praising journalists for empowering the public , helping us make good decisions , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all clear as a bell and inexcusable under basic standards of honesty .
Worse still , when I brought these blatant falsehoods to the attention of these so-called fact checkers , not one of them made a correction .
So what ’ s the common thread here ?
They all mislead in ways that support progressive political agendas .
This is not a coincidence .
I ’ ve examined countless fact checks that are rife with deceit , and in nearly every case , it ’ s the same story : They mangle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ narratives .
Why would they do this ?
I can ’ t read their minds , but this can only boil down to two factors : incompetence and/or dishonesty .
James D. Agresti is the president of Just Facts , a think tank dedicated to publishing rigorously documented facts about public policy issues .

We live in an age in which information is far more accessible than ever before in human history. However, so is misinformation. How can we sort out one from the other?
Well, some people who call themselves “fact checkers” claim to have the answer. They say, “Trust us.” But all too often, they fail to get even basic facts correct. Let’s look at three prime examples. See if you notice a common thread between them.
Snopes
Late during the Supreme Court nomination hearings for Brett Kavanaugh, several women accused him of sexual assault, and the media began publishing many “facts” about such crimes. These supposedly showed that only a tiny portion of sexual assault allegations are false, giving the clear message that Kavanaugh’s accusers are probably telling the truth.
That’s when a “fact checker” called Snopes stepped in and reported that “the most recent and credible research on this topic suggests that around 5% of rape or sexual assault allegations are false.” Snopes writer Alex Kasprak based this claim mainly on a meta-analysis of seven studies.
However, the meta-analysis doesn’t say this. Instead, it states that “at least 5%” of such accusation are “confirmed false reports” and “potentially many more false report cases” exist. In fact, the meta-analysis lists four different studies of “suspected” false allegations and “found false reporting rates above 40%.”
Surely, Snopes knows that the words “at least 5% and potentially many more” don’t mean “around 5%.”
If that wasn’t enough, the same Snopes article slanders Mississippi state senator Chris McDaniel by claiming that he said “99% of rape allegations from women are false.” McDaniel didn’t say that. He was speaking about accusations dredged up by the “American left” at politically opportune times many years after the alleged incidents occurred. He was not talking about all sex assault cases, and no competent, honest journalist could twist his words in the manner that Snopes did.
PolitiFact
Let’s examine another enlightening example.
In the final presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, Clinton said that “half of all” illegal immigrants in the U.S. “actually pay federal income tax.”
A Pulitzer Prize-winning fact check organization named PolitiFact looked into Clinton’s claim and reported: “While there is no official figure, experts estimate that about half of all undocumented workers pay federal income taxes, if not more.”
In reality, the polar opposite is true. Data from the IRS, the Social Security Administration, and the Congressional Budget Office show that roughly half of illegal immigrants file federal tax returns, but virtually none of them pay federal income taxes. Instead, they file these returns to claim refundable child tax credits, which give them cash welfare payments for every child they have.
Are we supposed to believe that PolitiFact doesn’t understand that “paying income taxes” is not the same as “filing tax returns to get welfare?”
The Washington Post
Now let’s examine a fact checking operation embedded in a media outlet.
Well after Obamacare was signed into law, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that it would reduce the size of the U.S. workforce by about 2.3 million full-time workers. This was roughly three times larger than the previous estimate.
As this negative news spread, The Washington Post’s head fact checker, Glenn Kessler, put a positive spin on it by claiming that this decline in workers “initially would lead to higher wages as employers competed to hire people.”
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In direct contradiction to this, the same Congressional Budget Office report that Kessler cited says that the Affordable Care Act will cause “reductions in wages or other compensation.” Moreover, it explains that these wage reductions are among the main reasons why Obamacare will cause the workforce to decline. Since Obamacare cuts the money that people earn from working, less people will be willing to work.
Even a child can read a report that says “wages will decline” and know that it doesn’t mean “wages will rise.” Why can’t The Washington Post’s head fact checker or his editor do that?
This is same media outlet that ran a Super Bowl ad praising journalists for empowering the public, helping us make good decisions, and keeping us free.
Conclusion
These cases are all clear as a bell and inexcusable under basic standards of honesty. Worse still, when I brought these blatant falsehoods to the attention of these so-called fact checkers, not one of them made a correction.
So what’s the common thread here? They all mislead in ways that support progressive political agendas. This is not a coincidence. I’ve examined countless fact checks that are rife with deceit, and in nearly every case, it’s the same story: They mangle the truth in ways that advance leftist narratives.
Why would they do this? I can’t read their minds, but this can only boil down to two factors: incompetence and/or dishonesty.
James D. Agresti is the president of Just Facts, a think tank dedicated to publishing rigorously documented facts about public policy issues.
Originally published at justfactsdaily.com. Reprinted with permission.


thestream--2020-08-28--Military Photo of the Day: Refueling Over the Middle East

A U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II approaches the refueling boom of a KC-135 Stratotanker during air refueling over the @ @ @ @ @ , 2020 .

A U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II approaches the refueling boom of a KC-135 Stratotanker during air refueling over the Middle East on July 29, 2020.
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thestream--2020-08-28--This Week at War: Stepping Up

This Week at War: Stepping Up

The U.S. military is still at war , but our brave men and women in uniform are never too busy to step up and help their fellow Americans .
As Hurricane Laura made landfall early Thursday morning near the Texas-Louisiana border , thousands of National Guard soldiers and airmen were helping citizens stay safe from the dangerous Category 4 storm .
Guardsmen were also preparing for “ high-water vehicle and boat evacuations , both boat and air search and rescue operations , logistical support , engineering support , levee inspection/security , and placement of liaison officer teams assisting parish emergency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which was damaged in the storm .
The below image shows Louisiana National Guard troops ensuring that some of their state ’ s most vulnerable residents were able to find shelter in advance of Hurricane Laura ’ s arrival .
With damage from Hurricane Laura appearing catastrophic in some areas , please join The Stream in praying for the residents of Louisiana and Texas .
We also ask God to protect the valiant men and women of the National Guard as they help their fellow Americans recover from this devastating storm .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ deadly wildfires still raging in California , where National Guardsmen from multiple states are helping firefighters battle the blazes .
Please protect these heroes and the citizens they are protecting as well , Lord .
At the request of Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers , President Trump deployed about 1,000 National Guard troops to the town of Kenosha on Wednesday after several days of civil unrest .
Protests , riots , looting and violence erupted after a controversial police shooting on Sunday .
Please join us in praying for everyone involved in this crisis @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on American streets .
A sixth U.S. service member has died from COVID-19 complications , according to the Military Times .
The California National Guard confirmed that a staff sergeant in its ranks had succumbed to the coronavirus on August 20 .
Three days earlier , U.S. Army Reserve Master Sgt .
Brian Tolliver , 46 , became the fifth American service member to die from the disease , according to Stars and Stripes .
The 25-year Army veteran reportedly left behind three children .
“ We feel a tremendous loss in our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sgt .
Tolliver , ” said Maj. Gen. Jonathan Woodson , as quoted by Stars and Stripes .
The coronavirus “ has taken a dedicated soldier from our formation , and our thoughts and prayers go out to his family.
” As of Thursday afternoon , there had been at least 36,600 cases , 563 hospitalizations and six deaths inside U.S. military ranks during the war on COVID-19 , according to the Department of Defense .
We humbly ask God to comfort the families of these American heroes and shield our military community @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Middle East , where brave American troops continue to fight the war on terrorism , four U.S. troops were reportedly injured this week in northeast Syria when their armored vehicle was rammed by a Russian vehicle .
Politico reports that the four U.S. service members suffered “ mild-like concussion symptoms ” as a U.S. National Security Council spokesman condemned the Russian troops involved in the incident .
“ Unsafe and unprofessional actions like this represent a breach of de-confliction protocols , committed to by the United States and Russia in December 2019 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ quoted by Politico .
“ The coalition and the United States do not seek escalation with any national military forces , but U.S. forces always retain the inherent right and obligation to defend themselves from hostile acts.
” Please pray for all U.S. troops at war in Syria , Iraq , Afghanistan and other hotspots around the globe , as well as their families here at home .
A group of soldiers thankfully returned home to West Virginia from the Middle East this week after an “ extended ” war zone deployment .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ beautiful military families like the one pictured above .
Thank you for your dedicated service to our country and welcome home , heroes !
Tom Sileo is a contributing senior editor of The Stream .
He is co-author of Three Wise Men , Brothers Forever , 8 Seconds of Courage and Fire in My Eyes .
Follow Tom on Twitter @ TSileo and The Stream at @ Streamdotorg .

Natural Disasters
The U.S. military is still at war, but our brave men and women in uniform are never too busy to step up and help their fellow Americans.
As Hurricane Laura made landfall early Thursday morning near the Texas-Louisiana border, thousands of National Guard soldiers and airmen were helping citizens stay safe from the dangerous Category 4 storm. Guardsmen were also preparing for “high-water vehicle and boat evacuations, both boat and air search and rescue operations, logistical support, engineering support, levee inspection/security, and placement of liaison officer teams assisting parish emergency operations centers,” according to KPLC-TV, which was damaged in the storm.
The below image shows Louisiana National Guard troops ensuring that some of their state’s most vulnerable residents were able to find shelter in advance of Hurricane Laura’s arrival.
With over 3,000 Guardsmen activated across the state in support of #HurricaneLaura, Soldiers and Airmen continue to assist our citizens to get out of harms way prior to landfall. #ProtectWhatMatters pic.twitter.com/WzFlyzwyKz — LA National Guard (@LANationalGuard) August 26, 2020
With damage from Hurricane Laura appearing catastrophic in some areas, please join The Stream in praying for the residents of Louisiana and Texas. We also ask God to protect the valiant men and women of the National Guard as they help their fellow Americans recover from this devastating storm.
WILDFIRES 🔥 7 people have died in the fires as hundreds of thousands of residents were evacuated. The Utah National Guard is going to help with firefighting efforts. https://t.co/NVsWKCYe3Q — KUTV2news (@KUTV2News) August 27, 2020
We would be remiss to forget the deadly wildfires still raging in California, where National Guardsmen from multiple states are helping firefighters battle the blazes. Please protect these heroes and the citizens they are protecting as well, Lord.
Civil Unrest
At the request of Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers, President Trump deployed about 1,000 National Guard troops to the town of Kenosha on Wednesday after several days of civil unrest. Protests, riots, looting and violence erupted after a controversial police shooting on Sunday.
Please join us in praying for everyone involved in this crisis and for an end to all violence on American streets.
Please Support The Stream : Equipping Christians to Think Clearly About the Political, Economic, and Moral Issues of Our Day.
COVID-19
A sixth U.S. service member has died from COVID-19 complications, according to the Military Times. The California National Guard confirmed that a staff sergeant in its ranks had succumbed to the coronavirus on August 20.
Three days earlier, U.S. Army Reserve Master Sgt. Brian Tolliver, 46, became the fifth American service member to die from the disease, according to Stars and Stripes. The 25-year Army veteran reportedly left behind three children.
“We feel a tremendous loss in our military family with the passing of Master Sgt. Tolliver,” said Maj. Gen. Jonathan Woodson, as quoted by Stars and Stripes. The coronavirus “has taken a dedicated soldier from our formation, and our thoughts and prayers go out to his family.”
As of Thursday afternoon, there had been at least 36,600 cases, 563 hospitalizations and six deaths inside U.S. military ranks during the war on COVID-19, according to the Department of Defense. We humbly ask God to comfort the families of these American heroes and shield our military community from further infection and death.
Middle East
In the Middle East, where brave American troops continue to fight the war on terrorism, four U.S. troops were reportedly injured this week in northeast Syria when their armored vehicle was rammed by a Russian vehicle.
Politico reports that the four U.S. service members suffered “mild-like concussion symptoms” as a U.S. National Security Council spokesman condemned the Russian troops involved in the incident.
“Unsafe and unprofessional actions like this represent a breach of de-confliction protocols, committed to by the United States and Russia in December 2019,” said John Ullyot, as quoted by Politico. “The coalition and the United States do not seek escalation with any national military forces, but U.S. forces always retain the inherent right and obligation to defend themselves from hostile acts.”
Please pray for all U.S. troops at war in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and other hotspots around the globe, as well as their families here at home.
Coming Home
A group of soldiers thankfully returned home to West Virginia from the Middle East this week after an “extended” war zone deployment.
We are so grateful God for reuniting beautiful military families like the one pictured above. Thank you for your dedicated service to our country and welcome home, heroes!
Tom Sileo is a contributing senior editor of The Stream. He is co-author of Three Wise Men, Brothers Forever, 8 Seconds of Courage and Fire in My Eyes. Follow Tom on Twitter @TSileo and The Stream at @Streamdotorg.