Hope Remains - Nation, California, Arizona and Florida

In spite of the disappointments of the evening - we are a nation that advocates freedom, hope and liberty! May our sincere prayers be with those elected to lead! And, may we as a nation stand firm on eternal principles and hold those who lead us accountable. Let's hope and pray for the best!

With regard to the hope in preserving traditional marriage - hope remains!
In Arizona, the current vote shows traditional marriage leading 56% to 43%
In Florida, traditional marriage needed a 60% majority and the current vote count is 62% to 38%
In California we have hope, with 9.5% in Prop 8 is leading is 53% to 47% ( it will be a nail biter)

A Difficult and Defining Moment

With Ohio having gone to Obama, it is nigh unto impossible for McCain to pull of his come from behind victory. It is time for reconciliation as challenging as it may be - all hail the reign of King Obama. We are facing some difficult times ahead, not only economically, but socially. Sensing what is on the horizon in his glorious reign, our only hope is that America comes to its senses by 2012. Hopefully, America turns it lonely eyes to Mitt Romney!

After three years of active involvement both in front and behind the scenes, and as enlightening as this experience has been, it has born its share of frustrations. Our nation has failed in its sifting of Presidential candidates. Neither Obama or McCain reflected the best of our nation; as stated before, the lesser of two evils. In this Presidential election, whether Democrat or Republican, it was always about the personal interests and egos of Barack and McCain. As much as John McCain proffered Country First, it has always been about John McCain; and Barack is no different. Even so, in spite of honoring John McCain for his service to our nation, he has been one of the more flawed candidates to run from the Republican Party, by his own acknowledgement of his ignorance about the economy. And this was an economic election! His campaign has been a travesty for the nation and the Republican Party. Yes, it has been a difficult climate for the Republican Party given the squandering of opportunity by the Republican members of the House and Senate, and the Executive Branch. Notwithstanding this climate, John McCain's poor campaign management, strategic judgments and opportunistic decisions without substance, has born the consequences - America has lost. The thought of Barack, Harry and Nancy without imbedded checks and balances, oh my!

It now demands our hunkering down, and continuing to stand for what is right. Now is the time to hold the Democrats accountable, a frightening thought. In spite of accountability, we will suffer significant economic consequence and even greater social consequence! May we hold fast in our homes to what is right.

Time to work for 2010 and 2012!

The consolation this night is the hope for the passage of Proposition 8 in California and the resolve of the nation to not let Barack, Harry and Nancy undermine families and marriage. May we stand firm on retaining the Defense of Marriage Act passed by Congress!

Proposition 8 - Discrimination? A Great Closing Argument

Hugh Hewitt has posted the closing argument for Proposition 8 by John Mark Reynolds. Thank you Hugh and John Mark Reynolds.

Proposition 8 - A Sensitive and Thoughtful Perspective

A very dear friend of mine sent a personal email to his friends explaining, with personal insight and sensitivity, why he is supporting Proposition 8. With his permission, I publish the text of the email below. Thank you Steve for your thoughts, your advocacy and the loving manner that you have addressed what has become a very volatile and heated debate.

Dear Family and Friends,

As many of you know, I have been involved in the California Proposition to re-establish the definition of Marriage between one man and one woman. This issue was overwhelmingly supported in 2000 with Prop 22, which passed by 61%. Last year 4 activist Judges overturned the will of the people and legalized same sex marriage. My original involvement came in response to a request from my ecclesiastical leaders to do everything within our power to support Prop 8. These kinds of requests rarely come, I responded by supporting people I have come to trust and respect.

At first, I did not fully understanding all of the issues related to proposition 8. The subject of homosexuality is a sensitive one and comes very close to home for me. I have many wonderful employees, co-workers, friends, and family who live this lifestyle. I have deep respect for many of them, their hard work, exceptional talent, their kindness and empathy for others, and the courage it must take to live their lives. One of the most important beliefs we have and have tried to teach our children is to treat everyone with respect. We feel it a great blessing that at least this one lesson was learned by each of them. I would also say that I generally believe in the philosophy of live and let live. There are many issues on many levels that Prop 8 deals with. Disagreements on these issues have unfortunately caused many hurt feelings, strained friendships and damaged relationships.

My close involvement has given me a very clear view of both sides. I have been able to study the issues in such a way as to see things as I believe they really are. I have been able to see the people and motivation of both sides. For me, it is all about children. If you know me, you know that I am Baby Crazy. I have been all my life, and now with grandchildren it has joyfully started all over again.

Prop 8 at its core, is not about the rights of same sex couples or discrimination. These incendiary issues are what have been used by extreme activists to disguise their true motive. They have been very divisive and very successful in their actions. So divisive that I wonder if things will ever be the same again. Unfortunately, it is evident that the agenda for same sex issues have been led by a FEW EXTREMISTS. These few, demand the status of a third gender or new race. The true goal of these few extremists is to indoctrinate, confuse, and eventually lead away our purest and most precious minds and souls, at their most impressionable age. It has been shamefully stated publicly by government and education leaders that this claim is simply ridiculous. The actions however of these FEW extremists are louder than the words of their carefully scripted, heterosexual spokespeople. Make no mistake about the smoke screen of issues and crafted confusion of their message. Their goal is to raise a Godless, genderless generation that looks at God and his teachings as bigotry. These children will be taught in the perfect moments of their lives that homosexuality, transgender, and bisexuality are normal and natural behavior. They will also be taught to NOT TOLERATE those that believe otherwise. At some point in their lives, they will face a situation or be encouraged to make a decision of who and what they are going to be when they grow up. For me in the 60's, it was a fireman or a construction worker. For them it will be gay or straight. They will have been taught over and over that either choice is OK and will carry NO consequences. This is a lie, There ARE very serious consequences to such decisions not only for individuals but family's and Nations.

I personally believe that parents have the rights and obligations to teach their children moral and social, behaviors and beliefs. If Prop 8 fails, parents will lose such freedom. Just during the past month of this campaign my point has been proven over and over. There have been ongoing events aimed at precious children in California schools. I have attached a link to just one of the latest examples of showing their hand as to the core issue of Prop 8. Note that this is a kindergarten class being subjected to concepts and commitments that I never dreamed possible. My hope is that we will be a blessing in the lives of our children and grandchildren. I hope we can all move forward after this ugly time and not be permanently scarred by the divisive confusion of issues perpetuated by the FEW

click here: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,445865,00.html

Sincerely,

Steve S

Oh Really? Barack Doesn't Get It and Doesn't Understand!

Are we in trouble or what? It doesn't take long, but Barack obviously doesn't seem to understand the important role of our Constitution and the Declaration of Independence that preceded it!

Barack Obama - Insights into the Mind and Philosophies of Obama

I am not sure why the writings of Obama have not been sufficiently vetted in the media. In or out of context, the quotes are disconcerting. If you were to add up all that the MSM brushes aside - associations, statements made, philosphies espoused, etc., it is distressing how one so inexperienced and whose beliefs are so contrary to the founding principles of our nation can hold our nation captive. Are we so blinded by the challenges we face in our nation, so caught up in ourselves and the entitled society that we have become snared in the "flaxen cord" flatteries of one so extreme?

Quotes from the writings of Barack Obama.

From Dreams of My Father: 'I ceased to advertise my mother's race at the age of 12 or 13, when I began to suspect that by doing so I was ingratiating myself to whites.'

From Dreams of My Father: 'I found a solace in nursing a pervasive sense of grievance and animosity against my mother's race.'

From Dreams of My Father: 'There was something about him that made me wary, a little too sure of himself, maybe. And white.'

From Dreams of My Father: 'It remained necessary to prove which side you were on, to show your loyalty to the black masses, to strike out and name names.'

From Dreams of My Father: 'I never emulate white men and brown men whose fates didn't speak to my own. It was into my father's image, the black man, son of Africa , that I'd packed all the attributes I sought in myself, the attributes of Martin and Malcolm, DuBois and Mandela.'

From Audacity of Hope: 'I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.'

Obama and Marxism?

Bill Sammon provides a fair report on the point (see below). Unfortunately, Mr. Obama has done a masterful job in hiding who he really is, excepting for those willing to search deeply into his pre-POTUS pursuit. The Main Stream Media has been so taken that they have failed the nation to vet, with integrity, the man running for President, Barack Obama. His writings are a reflection of the teachings of Karl Marx and the truth will ultimately come out - let's just hope it is before November 4th. The influential teachings of our mentors from college and elsewhere do take hold - and so they have with Barack. There is an underlying veil, with deep rooted philosphies, in Barack's populist message and his interest in redistribution. America needs to be cautious in today's political season. More to come.

Obama Affinity to Marxists Dates Back to College Days
Barack Obama shrugs off charges of socialism, but noted in his own memoir that he carefully chose Marxist professors as friends in college.

Barack Obama laughs off charges of socialism. Joe Biden scoffs at references to Marxism. Both men shrug off accusations of liberalism.

But Obama himself acknowledges that he was drawn to socialists and even Marxists as a college student. He continued to associate with Marxists later in life, even choosing to launch his political career in the living room of a self-described Marxist, William Ayers, in 1995, when Obama was 34.

Obama's affinity for Marxists began when he attended Occidental College in Los Angeles.

"To avoid being mistaken for a sellout, I chose my friends carefully," the Democratic presidential candidate wrote in his memoir, "Dreams From My Father." "The more politically active black students. The foreign students. The Chicanos. The Marxist professors and structural feminists."

Obama's interest in leftist politics continued after he transferred to Columbia University in New York. He lived on Manhattan's Upper East Side, venturing to the East Village for what he called "the socialist conferences I sometimes attended at Cooper Union."

After graduating from Columbia in 1983, Obama spent a year working for a consulting firm and then went to work for what he described as "a Ralph Nader offshoot" in Harlem.

"In search of some inspiration, I went to hear Kwame Toure, formerly Stokely Carmichael of Black Panther fame, speak at Columbia," Obama wrote in "Dreams," which he published in 1995. "At the entrance to the auditorium, two women, one black, one Asian, were selling Marxist literature."

Obama supporters point out that plenty of Americans flirt with radical ideologies in college, only to join the political mainstream later in life. But Obama, who made a point of noting how "carefully" he chose his friends in college, also chose to launch his political career in the Chicago living room of Ayers, a domestic terrorist who in 2002 proclaimed: "I am a Marxist."

Also present at that meeting was Ayers' wife, fellow terrorist Bernardine Dohrn, who once gave a speech extolling socialism, communism and "Marxism-Leninism."

Obama has been widely criticized for choosing the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, an anti-American firebrand, as his pastor. Wright is a purveyor of black liberation theology, which analysts say is based in part on Marxist ideas.

Few political observers go so far as to accuse Obama, the Democratic presidential nominee, of being a Marxist. But Republican John McCain has been accusing Obama of espousing socialism ever since the Democrat told an Ohio plumber named Joe earlier this month that he wanted to "spread the wealth around."

Obama's running mate, Biden, recently contradicted his boss, saying: "He is not spreading the wealth around." The remark came as Biden was answering a question from a TV anchor who asked: "How is Senator Obama not being a Marxist if he intends to spread the wealth around?"

"Are you joking? Is this a joke? Or is that a real question?" an incredulous Biden shot back. "It's a ridiculous comparison."

But the debate intensified Monday with the surfacing of a 2001 radio interview in which Obama lamented the Supreme Court's inability to enact "redistribution of wealth" -- a key tenet of socialism. On Tuesday, McCain said Obama aspires to become "Redistributionist-in-Chief."

Obama has managed to cultivate the image of a political moderate in spite of his consistently liberal voting record. In 2006, he published a second memoir, "The Audacity of Hope," that leaves little doubt about his adherence to the left.

"The arguments of liberals are more often grounded in reason and fact," Obama wrote in "Audacity." "Much of what I absorbed from the sixties was filtered through my mother, who to the end of her life would proudly proclaim herself an unreconstructed liberal."

National Journal magazine ranked Obama as the most liberal member of the Senate. The publication is far from conservative, employing such journalists as Linda Douglass, who resigned in May to become Obama's traveling press secretary.

Bill Sammon is the Washington deputy managing editor for FOX News Channel.