The Slippery Slope to Anarchy

Someone is lying. That someone is either Christine Margaret Blasey Ford or Brett Michael Kavanaugh.

Mrs. Ford, a college professor, has stated that Mr. Kavanaugh, the current Supreme Court Justice nominee, sexually assaulted her at a party 36 years ago when they were both teenagers.  Mr. Kavanaugh refutes that accusation.

Most if not all vectors point to Mr. Kavanaugh lying.  The most credible vector is that Mrs. Ford disclosed six years ago – six years prior to her ever knowing that the President would nominate Mr. Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court – during a therapy session that she was physically assaulted by Mr. Kavanaugh. I could go on with a list of other vectors, but that is not the point of this post.

The point of this post is that we could be on the slippery slope to anarchy.

• Our President lies (he has been proven in a court of law that he has lied repeatedly in the past and arguably, in the court of public, currently, on a daily basis).
• Arguably, a past and current Supreme Court Justice has lied.
• The current Supreme Court Justice nominee has arguably and very much convincingly, lied  - on separate and multiple instances.
• And members of Congress for the most part condone it.  

Are we a nation of liars?

There are consequences to lying.  If those that enforce the law, such as our President lies, then others may be led to believe that lying, if not acceptable, may be expected, which is the beginning of the slippery slope leading to where no one can be trusted.  That is a scary proposition. Even God condemns lying; please look at the 8th Commandment. 

Visit to a Food Bank & Barbershop

On Friday I spent time visiting a food bank held at Tuskawilla United Methodist Church (TUMC) followed by a visit to DJ’s Barber Shop and Hair Salon. Both the church and barbershop are not in Florida’s 3^rd Congressional District (CD-3), but both serve constituents that are from the district.

Food Bank Provides Hope
The food bank was started by Bishop Ron Johnson, who has is own ministry, but due to the large need, he found a helping hand from Reverend Dwayne Craig, Senior Pastor at TUMC, to distribute the food. The Bishop made an astute observation to me that the people must really have a need if they travel far to sit for two hours to receive less than two boxes of food. I confirmed his statement by talking with some of the recipients. Some were unemployed, others underemployed. While the food was not enough to last a week, it helped to keep the food bill down, especially so when there may be several generations under one roof. Typically, the matriarch was there to receive the food, but there were a few men as well. Also, all age groups and races were present.

The last person to go through the line left a lasting impression on me. The person was a middle aged woman that was dressed slightly nicer than the rest. She had been keeping to herself in a far back corner of the room with her head down low fiddling with a small notebook. Her actions alone spoke volumes. I believe she once had a stable income, but with the recession lost the ability to make ends meet.

Like this woman, I believe all would prefer not to be there, but there may be nowhere else for them to turn; however, seeing the smiling faces upon leaving, one could tell that the food helps the recipients to worry less. As the Bishop told me, the food gives them hope when there is none. With hope, the people should one day find a way to once again support themselves and eventually help others that are in a similar need. The Bishop introduced me to two women that had made that journey and were now helping to distribute the food.

Barbershop Talk
After visiting the food bank, the Bishop introduced me to a good friend of his, DJ, at DJ’s Barbershop. I was very fortunate to be introduced to DJ because he gave me wonderful advice and additional insight into the community. Some of the things we talked about were:
1. The youth not having hope;
2. Keeping my word; and
3. Other politicians courting the community’s vote, but later turning their back after being elected.

In reference to the last point, I think as politicians try to appeal to as many different constituents as possible, some may make too many and/or lofty commitments that they end up satisfying no one. While the African-American community may have had more than it share of broken promises from politicians, I believe America as a whole has had it share of broken promises, too. Per DJ, what is different is that the African-American community places a greater emphasis on a person’s word because for a long time, the only thing of value in the African-American community was a person’s word.

While there are differences between the many cultures that make up America, I think people in general want to find common ground with each other so we can work together to help make things better. Obviously, CD-3 is more in need than other parts of the country, but it does highlight some of the challenges we face if the economy continues to remain anemic for an extended period of time.

Shrinking Standard Of Living

I visited the neighborhoods of Deland, Florida in Volusia County that comprise Florida Congressional District 3 (CD-3). It should not come as a surprise, but the neighborhoods were comprised of people that were less affluent than those that live in the other neighborhoods of Deland that surround CD-3. The issues of poverty, lack of employment opportunities, as observed in the other parts of CD-3, are here, too.

My first visit was with a community recreation center where I had the opportunity to speak with a man that was focused on helping young men avoid the life of crime. He himself had been in prison once. He turned his life around with the help of God and was now an associate pastor at a nearby church, but during the week he worked at the center.

My longest visit was with a group of two men and a woman sitting outside relaxing under the setting sun. All were frustrated with the economy and lack of job prospects. One even complained that his wages were stagnant, yet the cost of living had increased. I can fully understand his plight. He is not alone and I believe more people will join his ranks because of the effects from our past and current fiscal policies.

Our ongoing deficits and large national debt will eventually lead to inflation. Even worse will be anemic wage growth due to foreign competition unless workers can provide greater value obtained through ongoing/lifelong training and education. The good news is that those who can provide value by solving other people’s problems will find employment that provides financial security.

Cleanse Thy Soul

I recently worshiped with members of Mount Zion Commandment Keeping Church of the First Born of Central Florida led by Bishop Ron Johnson. I consider the Bishop a friend and believe he is influential in the community of Florida Congressional District 3 (FL CD-3) even though his church is not physically located in the district. His church has a small congregation, which I believe he prefers because it allows him to minister on a more intimate level. He is definitely a man of God and cares about all regardless of creed.

The day I attended there were less than 20 people in attendance. I walked in 5 minutes late, but the Bishop stopped the service to give me a warm welcome. Since he was not giving the sermon that day, he sat next to me. Between hymns and other parts of the service he whispered some context with me about some of the parishioners. I shared with him half way through the service that I enjoyed attending black churches because they are so uplifting and contrasted so much to the church I grew up in. After the formal service ended, I was able to see my fellow congregants with new eyes. I imagine that was his purpose of ministry, to open mine afresh.

Raised as an Episcopalian, I learned the forms of worship such as how to kneel without registering a complaint. As I got older, I took pleasure that I could kneel without complaint. Because of the rote structure of church service, if I were to show up late I could easily pick up the service in the Book of Common Prayer without even looking at the printed order.

Typically, the service will last an hour, but inevitably when I was younger it seemed like two. However, my friend’s church service lasted two and a half hours, but sped by in what seemed like an hour. Based on the few churches I have attended in the district, I am beginning to understand why faith is a big part of CD-3. One feels part of a community and your soul feels cleansed after attending. Amen.