This is Viewpoints for Friday, March 31, 2017

No day is safe

Every day becomes more unbelievable since Trump.

1) The Russian thing. Hope no explanation needed.

2) The travel ban. Just geographically check out the banned countries. They literally surround, without including, Saudi Arabia, the country of origin of practically the entire 9/11 terrorist crew. Make sense?

3) Failed “first day” effort to dismantle Obamacare. Maybe Medicare and Medicaid really do work. Remember: Obama really wanted a single payer system: Medicare for all. Of course, impossible with insurance lobby driving the process, not necessarily bad, but to which any effort must acquiesce. After a lifetime of working in child health care, thank God for Medicaid.

And, all the following in one day.

4) Dismantling the efforts to slow global warming. Ignoring scientific truths will only carry a demagogue or a civilization so far before realizing the catastrophe that was long obvious. Science really does work.

I’ve practiced pediatric intensive care for several decades, and, as Trump says about all but the facts, “believe me,” science works.

5) Today the Republican Congress makes it OK for your private information, if so careless to do normal internet stuff, to be sold to anyone who has the cash. The Libertarians among us should love this.

6) And, as a pediatrician involved in child protection, what really cooked my goose: watching an emboldened (under orders?) TSA agent frisk a 13 year old boy with repetitive “frisking” into the child’s crotch. Really? How many child suicide bombers have attacked our airlines. Tantamount to child abuse. God save us.

Keene and Cummings

The purpose of this letter is twofold. First, to express appreciation for Karen Keene’s letter (March 24). Keene rightly discerns the current state of Christ’s church in our nation. World history proves that the church waxes and wanes, yet is nonetheless loved, chastised and persevered by Christ who bought her.

Christianity in our particular nation has many warts, yet God’s eternal benevolence for his people remains steadfast in all nations.

Second, to comment on Cummings’ typical criticism. His columns contain dogma preached from a weekly pulpit with bias and unbelief almost as old as creation itself. For thousands of years, men have always exchanged worshiping their Creator for a “do what is right in your own eyes” ethos, crafting all sorts of myths.

All his criticism is rooted in this, and is a rejection of divine authority for a religion of self. His latest column (March 26) is no exception.

Rejection of God as creator attempts to cast off ownership that one who makes has over what is made. Rejecting God as helper stems from a self-sufficient, independent self-image. Finally, denying God as redeemer mocks the opposing doctrine of innate sin and guilt. Cummings is not owned, is self-sufficient, and has no need of rescue.

This myth goes beyond those of pagan religions that embrace what their conscience rightly informs them of – remission of sin requires sacrifice.

Cummings’ doctrine of stuffing “love your neighbor as yourself” in a vacuum attempts to escape Christ’s rule. Yet even from an unbelieving perspective – with no objective authority for defining love, then who may accuse Adolf Hitler of enmity, or a Christian of hypocrisy, or Timothy McVeigh of hate? Inconsistent philosophies are adopted by dogmatic men who embrace humanistic doctrines of old.

Cummings embraced these doctrines as a young Catholic priest, and has only changed the outer garments of them now as a seasoned unbeliever. This letter is not written with gritted teeth as he often accuses, but with similar zeal as he himself demonstrates every week for his own age-old religious paradigm.

Unfounded allegations

On March 6, a nightmare began for my daughter. Her 5 year old child’s father made some allegations against her to DFACS. They came to her home and she cooperated with each and every one of their requests. Since the first claim was that “the babysitter” spanked the child leaving a mark, she had to get licensed daycare. Second, she had to pass a drug test, which she did.

Then, her 17 year old brother was staying with her and the father didn’t trust him; we found different living arrangements for him. She was supposed to have gotten her son back after providing proof of daycare enrollment, which we did.

Then all of a sudden, he claimed she was unstable and unfit to care for the child she had been caring for throughout the last five years with no help or support from the father that has spent several of those years in prison for drugs. Now she has to have a psychological evaluation to prove she is fit.

Now, mind you, the child is in the care of the alleged paternal grandmother and they are now refusing to allow her to talk to her son on the phone and also limiting her visits to one hour on the weekend. We are out of our mind angry and frustrated at the system. How can this sort of thing happen when you have cases out there of children being starved and beaten?

AHA interruptus

The Republicans pulled the American Healthcare Act minutes before a scheduled vote. Since the AHA would’ve banned contraceptives and maternity care, “pulling it out” was a pretty good move.

Moving

After many years of calling the American Legion home, the Middle GA Detachment, Detachment 970, of the Marine Corp League will be meeting at a new facility. The Detachment will now be meeting at United Community Church on Heath Road.

The meetings will still take place on the first Tuesday of each month at 7p.m. The Marine Corp League will continue our good work in the Middle Georgia Area and, as always, we highly encourage anyone who is active duty or honorably discharged from the Marine Corp and select Navy Corpsmen to visit and/or join.

This story was originally published March 30, 2017 at 9:00 PM with the headline "This is Viewpoints for Friday, March 31, 2017."