The Price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance #6: Will Trump’s Administration Support Freedom in Ukraine?

I am sure Trump will give us plenty to worry about once he takes office, but in the meantime let’s keep our eyes and ears open for signs of what is coming.

During the campaign Trump promised that if he was elected, he would end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours. That would happen even before he took office, he said. It hasn’t happened yet, which is actually a good thing because many people suspect Trump wants to let his hero Putin keep his conquests in Ukraine.

During the campaign Trump said the President of Ukraine was a great salesman for getting aid from the United States, which sure sounds like a hint that aid might stop once Trump is president.

Recently Don Jr. posted a video saying that Ukraine’s allowance is about to be cut off, which also sounds like there is a plan to cut off aid from that country which is currently fighting for its freedom against the Russian dictatorship.

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Our Enemies Will Vanish

One of Trump’s campaign advisers recently said that Ukraine will have to accept that the Crimea is gone, meaning Putin will get to keep this territory he invaded back in 2014.

Trump people say this adviser does not speak for the new administration, but they did not contradict his statement that the Crimea is gone, so maybe that campaign adviser speaks the truth.

I would like American presidents to support freedom around the world. Especially when a country like Ukraine is willing to do the fighting for itself if we just supply them with the tools they need to do the job.

If the new president will not support freedom in Ukraine, where else will he not support it?

We should be vigilant and pay attention to this issue.

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Copyright © 2024 by Joseph Wayne Gadway

The Price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance #5: Floating Race Lines on Buses

If you only believe in freedom and rights for yourself, but not for other people, that is the same thing dictators believe. To really believe in freedom and rights you have to believe in freedom and rights for EVERYBODY.

If the government is leaving your group free, but threatening the rights of others, then, if you really believe in freedom, you have to stand up for those others. In a free country every group should be telling the government: “if you go after them, you are coming after us, and if you go after them, we are going to defend their rights the same way we would defend our own.”

I am reading this great book about the beginnings of the Civil Rights Movement in America. That was a time when most black people did not have freedom or rights, and most white people just ignored the problem. Especially in the Southern states.

This book explains how, for a long time after the Civil War it was a CRIME in many Southern states to teach black people to read. How is that not a dictatorship?

[Check out this book about the Civil Rights Movement and how
it won freedom for millions of oppressed Americans.
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Parting the Waters

This book also explains some about that whole “back of the bus” thing. White people were allowed to sit in the front of the bus, but black people had to sit at the back. But there also had to be separation between them. Drivers would create a “floating line” on the bus to separate white people from black people. As the bus filled up drivers might order a whole row of black people to stand up to make more room for one white person.

Black people couldn’t even walk through the white section of the bus. They had to pay for their tickets at the front and then walk around to the back to reboard the bus in their own section….

How could these black people have been treated so unjustly for so long? How could so many white people have not cared about that injustice for so long? How is that not a dictatorship?

If one person can be deprived of his or her rights without due process of Constitutional laws then no one is free. We all have to stand together and back each other up.

Make sure the laws are Constitutional and make sure the government is following the laws. That’s how we defend liberty and justice for all.

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Copyright © 2024 by Joseph Wayne Gadway

The Price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance #4: The Danger of Christian Nationalism

This morning, I read an interesting article in the best religious freedom magazine in the world. This article is about a group called the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) which wants Christianity to dominate society.

The NAR got its start in 1989 when C. Peter Wagner, an expert on church growth, met Cindy Jacobs, who claimed to be a prophet who organized “prayer campaigns to dislodge high-level demons.”

This group believes that God is bringing back prophets and apostles to lead Christians in the modern world. Not surprisingly, Wagner soon decided that he must be one of the new apostles.

Up to this point, I would have no serious problem with this group. I may not agree with their ideas, but they don’t seem dangerous.

In 2001 they started to turn dangerous.

That year, the NAR adopted the Seven Mountain Mandate (7M) idea from Lance Wallnau. This idea is that Christians should aim to dominate all the major institutions of society which are defined as:
Religion,
Government,
Media,
Arts and Entertainment,
Education,
Family,
Business.

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The Violent Take it by Force

NOW I have a serious problem with this group. In a free country, no religion, and no other group, should “dominate” the major institutions of society. In a country that believes in freedom of religion, Christianity should not even dominate religion! Christians should live their lives, and other religious people should live their lives, and non-religious people should live their lives, and there should be no talk of any group dominating the others.

Naturally, the NAR has started working its way into politics. According to this article, one of Ted Cruz’s parents is a 7M proponent. Sarah Palin was mentored by an NAR prophet in Alaska. In 2015 the NAR became Trump supporters.

In 2020 various NAR leaders were involved in organizing or encouraging the events that developed into the attack on the Capitol. One NAR speaker in Washington DC on January 6, 2001 said, “We are going to rule and reign through Donald Trump and under the lordship of Jesus Christ.”

I think anyone who talks about ruling and reigning does not really understand the American system of government and is not a defender of freedom for all. These words are especially bizarre coming from a follower of the man who said, “My kingdom is not of this world.”

For people who want to be free, the NAR is a dangerous group. Be vigilant!

You can read more about the NAR here: https://www.libertymagazine.org/article/americas-spiritual-warriors

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Copyright © 2024 by Joseph Wayne Gadway

The Price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance #3: How is the Biden Economy Doing in September 2024?

One of the most important weapons in the struggle to preserve liberty is TRUTH. Dictators lie all the time. People who know the truth are better able to protect their freedom than people who do not know the truth.

Dictators will tell you:

1. You have a huge problem or you are in terrible danger!
2. I am the only one who can save you!
3. I can only save you if you give me extraordinary powers like, maybe, suspending the rules of the Constitution, or giving me immunity so I can commit crimes in office!

Usually ALL of these claims are lies. But when the people in a country fall for this con job, they end up with a dictator.

[Here is the classic book explaining the US Constitution
that came out shortly after the Constitution was written.
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The Federalist Papers

A wannabe dictator, for example, might tell you that when his opponents are in power the economy is terrible. When he is in power he will say his economy is the greatest economy the world has ever seen, even if it is really no better than it was before. Even if it is worse than it was before….

How can you tell if an economy is good or bad? Do a quick search online to find out what are considered good ranges for three of the most important economic numbers:

1. Change in Gross Domestic Product or GDP, which is a measure of economic growth. A good range for GDP growth is 2%-3%. (Personally, I would prefer 2.5% to 3.5%, but I am not a professional economist….)
2. Unemployment Rate. Generally, 3% to 5% is considered good.
3. Inflation Rate. The US target for inflation is to be close to 2% and to average 2% over time.

Yesterday I looked at GDP growth from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the 2nd quarter of 2024 GDP growth was 3.0%. That is in the good range. The advance number for the 3rd quarter of 2024 is 2.8%. Also in the good range.

Yesterday I looked at the unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In both September and October of 2024, the unemployment rate was at 4.1%. Those numbers are in the good range.

Yesterday I looked at the inflation rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In September of 2024, inflation was at 2.4%, which is pretty close to the ideal target of 2%.

Right now, economic growth, unemployment, and inflation, are all good in the United States. Right now the US economy is doing good.

If anyone tells you right now that the US economy is doing badly… they are lying to you.

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Copyright © 2024 by Joseph Wayne Gadway

The Price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance #2: How to Defend Freedom

Trump is the president-elect. That is sad news for me, but it’s the truth.

And you know, one thing that makes me proud to be a Democrat is that Democrats accept the truth.

Kamala and Biden have already admitted that Trump won, and they have promised there will be a peaceful transfer of power.

Remember when Trump admitted he lost and promised a peaceful transfer of power in 2020? No! You don’t remember that. Because he never did that….

Kamala’s and Biden’s willingness to admit they lost, and their promise to support the peaceful transfer of power are two of the things that make them responsible and respectable adults.

Trump’s refusal to admit he lost in 2020, and his efforts to gum up the peaceful transfer of power that year are two of the things that make him a dangerous baby….

[Here is an excellent book about authoritarianism.
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Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present.

Nevertheless, Trump is the president-elect. In the United States the people as a whole, through the Electoral College, decide who is president, and the people have chosen Trump.

We all have to accept that Trump will be the next president.

Of course, that doesn’t mean we have to roll over and let our liberties be taken away from us!

Millions of Americans believe the new president will be a danger to freedom in this country. If that is true, then we have the right to defend ourselves whether he was rightly elected or not. The right to vote for a president comes every four years. The right to defend our liberties comes every single minute of every single day.

Some ways we can defend our liberties are to:

1. Write social media posts, and share social media posts, and “like” social media posts that we agree with
2. Add comments to online articles to express our agreement or disagreement with what is said
3. Write letters to editors
4. Write to our elected representatives
5. Petition Congress for a redress of grievances
6. Boycott companies that support threats to our freedoms
7. Participate in peaceful protests
8. Donate money to Democratic candidates and to the National, State, and Local Democratic parties, or to groups like the ACLU that will fight for freedom
9. Go to court! Just like Trump used legal delaying tactics to keep himself out of prison, we have every right to use legal delaying tactics to defend our liberties
10. Go to our town or county political meetings and get involved in helping to find solutions to problems
11. As the next elections approach, donate as much time and money as we can to helping Democrats win back congressional seats in 2026 and to make sure the Whitehouse does not go to a "new" Trump in 2028

Most importantly:

• Learn the facts about the issues and prepare your arguments to combat misinformation and lies
• Tell the truth
• Use peaceful means
• Never give up!

Trump will be the next president. Now let’s keep our freedoms safe until he is gone!

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Copyright © 2024 by Joseph Wayne Gadway

The Price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance #1: The ACLU Defends Freedom

The Sedition Act of 1918 “forbad the use of ‘disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language;’ about the United States Government….” This law appears to be a wildly unconstitutional violation of freedom of speech, but it was passed by Congress, signed into law by a President, and upheld by the Supreme Court.

That is how easy it is for freedom to die….

One person who was prosecuted under the Sedition Act was Eugene Debs, who was arrested for making an anti-war speech in Canton, Ohio. He was convicted of sedition and sentenced to 10 years in prison in 1919. Ten years in prison for making a speech!

Fortunately, the Sedition Act was repealed by a new Congress in 1920. Eugene Debs was released from prison by a new president in 1921.

[Here is an excellent book about the Constitution.
If you buy it from this link Anything Smart
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America's Constitution: A Biography.

That is how fast freedom can make a comeback….

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and its predecessor, the CLB, were started to fight against bad laws like the Sedition Act of 1918.

Today I started a recurring donation to the ACLU.

Just in case there are more threats to freedom coming….

You can find out more about The Sedition Act here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedition_Act_of_1918

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Copyright © 2024 by Joseph Wayne Gadway