Recruiting posters used to tell young men, "Uncle Sam Wants You" with the undertext directing enlistees to the appropriate armed services recruiting office. I fear that if some lawmakers in Washington have their way and new poster will be circulated in line with articles in the Health Care Reform Bill telling the elderly and infirm, "Uncle Sam Wants You---Dead," for ending one's life will be viewed as a selfless and patriotic thing to do.
The AP reported on Thursday that the latest House version of the Health Care Reform Bill retains provisions to permit Medicare to pay for services aimed at helping patients depart from this life by their own decision, and with the assistance of medical personnel. Obviously, someone has argued that it is really expensive to have to keep all these old and sick people alive, and those folks aren't really enjoying life anyway, so why don't we help them and cut medical costs?
I wonder what will be the most cost-effective life-ending measures Medicare will approve? A nurse holding a pillow over a patient's face until he smothers? Maybe injecting an air embolism into a lonely and bedridden widow's veins? After all, if the objective is to dispatch people as quickly and cheaply as possible, we don't want to go high tech.
Excuse me, I was just wondering, does any one else see the government's venturing into the euthanasia business as disturbing as I do? It's bad enough that our government has already sanctioned the murdering of millions of unborn babies, now it wants to give its stamp of approval to what amounts to exterminating the old and infirm. Sure, there will be provisions for patient and/or family consent, but what about the poor person who is no longer competent to make decisions for themselves, and has no family? Being the ward of a state that wants to terminate your life as quickly and cheaply as possible isn't that far removed from being herded into a gas chamber because your government has determined that you are an undesirable.
I realize that a faith argument is useless when trying to convince the government it is about to tragically err, but do our leaders really want to make this nation the target of God's wrath? God counts the life of every one of his children as precious, don't you think he might hold someone accountable for the murders of thousands in the name of "mercy?"
Any health care reform bill coming out of Congress in the near future is all but guaranteed to violate a physician's first rule, "Do no harm!" I see nothing but hurt resulting from our legislator's bungling attempts to correct a system government interference has only made worse.
Jesus said he came that we might have life, abundant life. (John 10.10) He argued consistently that it was always better to do good rather than harm, to give life rather than to kill. But when our President has proclaimed that we are no longer a Christian nation, why should I expect that what Jesus said and did would influence lawmakers in D.C.?
Friday, October 30, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Did You Just Hear Something Go "CLUNK"?
I was awakened this morning by the sound of one of my wife's flower vases falling and smashing on the tile floor of the bathroom. Just a couple hours later I heard a much louder crash, actually more of a "clunk," as a new report came out assigning a shocking price tag to the automobiles sold this summer in the governments misguided "Cash for Clunkers" program. Yesterday I dismissed that program as a gimmick at best, and now it appears it was far worse than a gimmick, it was another costly blunder by a government determined to get its hands all over, well pretty much everything.
You remember the come-ons from summer, don't you. Bring in your "clunker" and we'll give you up to $4500 in government money for it towards your purchase of a new car. Unfortunately, with the dust settled, and the opportunity to examine the numbers, it turns out that the net cost to taxpayers per new car purchase in the Cash for Clunkers program was a littler higher than $4500--try $24,000. Ouch! That means your $15,000 Hyundai really cost almost $40K. Why for that kind of money you could have bought yourself a Ford Taurus. But, and here's some bitter irony, most of the clunkers that were traded in actually went towards the purchase of those Hyundais and other foreign cars. So, like so many American jobs, most of the Cash for Clunkers cash headed overseas. The clunks keep getting louder.
And they won't be stopping anytime soon. Here's another big clunk for you. Another quarter of a million Americans filed for unemployment in September. Funny, I would have thought that would have been a loud enough crash to get someone's attention in Washington, but instead the word from D.C. is that the recession is over. Hmm. I think that for some reason those pronouncements of a recovery are not going to convince the 10+ million out of work Americans that happy days are here again.
The auto industry, tottering on the brink of complete collapse, needed to rebuild its foundation. The governments answer was to pull up with a truck full of sand and say, "Here you go, Detroit. Build on this." (Billions of bailout dollars and the awful Cash for Clunkers program) Jesus predicted what happens whenever you build on a poor foundation, the whole structure ends up collapsing (Matthew 7:24-27). Well, if Detroit keeps looking to Washington, and Washington continues to respond by delivering more sand, it won't be long before we will witness the complete and final fall of the American auto industry, and great will that fall be.
You remember the come-ons from summer, don't you. Bring in your "clunker" and we'll give you up to $4500 in government money for it towards your purchase of a new car. Unfortunately, with the dust settled, and the opportunity to examine the numbers, it turns out that the net cost to taxpayers per new car purchase in the Cash for Clunkers program was a littler higher than $4500--try $24,000. Ouch! That means your $15,000 Hyundai really cost almost $40K. Why for that kind of money you could have bought yourself a Ford Taurus. But, and here's some bitter irony, most of the clunkers that were traded in actually went towards the purchase of those Hyundais and other foreign cars. So, like so many American jobs, most of the Cash for Clunkers cash headed overseas. The clunks keep getting louder.
And they won't be stopping anytime soon. Here's another big clunk for you. Another quarter of a million Americans filed for unemployment in September. Funny, I would have thought that would have been a loud enough crash to get someone's attention in Washington, but instead the word from D.C. is that the recession is over. Hmm. I think that for some reason those pronouncements of a recovery are not going to convince the 10+ million out of work Americans that happy days are here again.
The auto industry, tottering on the brink of complete collapse, needed to rebuild its foundation. The governments answer was to pull up with a truck full of sand and say, "Here you go, Detroit. Build on this." (Billions of bailout dollars and the awful Cash for Clunkers program) Jesus predicted what happens whenever you build on a poor foundation, the whole structure ends up collapsing (Matthew 7:24-27). Well, if Detroit keeps looking to Washington, and Washington continues to respond by delivering more sand, it won't be long before we will witness the complete and final fall of the American auto industry, and great will that fall be.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
It's Not the First Time, So Why So Shocked and Surpirsed?
I must confess my ignorance. Until a short time ago I never knew there was an HBO program called "Curb Your Enthusiasm." And now that I have heard of the program I still don't know much about it, other than it apparently tries to pass off vulgarity and moronically outrageous material of the "shock-jock" genre as humor. Fortunately for them, there is no current shortage of vulgar morons out there who like to tune into their particular kind of garbage.
Spare me the appeals to constitutionally guaranteed free speech, I won't argue with anyone about it. Yes, "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and other similar vulgarians, you have a constitutional right to be as immature, vulgar, stupid, and offensive as you want to be. Why you are compelled to so abuse the right to free speech, well let me just say that your to your sin nature is quite evident.
As for the indignities directed at the Lord and his Church, well, it's not the first time is it? And, it won't be the last, will it? Several years ago there was a silly depiction of the Lord's Supper featuring, if I recall correctly, a black woman as Christ. Ding-dongs and nutcases called it "art," but we know better. Then there was the beaker full of with a Crucifix immersed in it, so you see the outrageous stupidity of the knuckleheads at "Curb Your Enthusiasm" isn't even all that original garbage; not only are they stupid, they aren't even all that creatively stupid. I mean, if you are compelled to be world-class fools, at least try to do something new, can't you? Well what should we expect from minds stuck in the anal stage?
So, what are we supposed to do when offended by such outrageous vulgarity and abuse? Well, Jesus instructed us to "turn the other cheek" when struck, and I would suppose the same holds for being mocked, spat upon and worse. In case you might not recall, Jesus silently endured terrible beating and mocking at the hands of his captors during his Passion. When he finally responded he had this to say, "Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing." If the Lord's example was to forgive those crazy or stupid enough to abuse, mock, and ultimately nail him to a cross, I suggest that we try and find a way to similarly forgive the crazy and stupid of our day. I would also suggest that, if you are an HBO subscriber, you call and cancel your subscription immediately. I don't pretend to suggest that you will cause "Curb Your Enthusiasm" or other similar trash to go off the air anytime soon, much less threaten HBO's security, there are, after all, plenty of people who are happy to spend money on this junk, but at least you will have cleaned some real smelly stuff out of your house. And couldn't we all do with being a little cleaner before God?
Spare me the appeals to constitutionally guaranteed free speech, I won't argue with anyone about it. Yes, "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and other similar vulgarians, you have a constitutional right to be as immature, vulgar, stupid, and offensive as you want to be. Why you are compelled to so abuse the right to free speech, well let me just say that your to your sin nature is quite evident.
As for the indignities directed at the Lord and his Church, well, it's not the first time is it? And, it won't be the last, will it? Several years ago there was a silly depiction of the Lord's Supper featuring, if I recall correctly, a black woman as Christ. Ding-dongs and nutcases called it "art," but we know better. Then there was the beaker full of with a Crucifix immersed in it, so you see the outrageous stupidity of the knuckleheads at "Curb Your Enthusiasm" isn't even all that original garbage; not only are they stupid, they aren't even all that creatively stupid. I mean, if you are compelled to be world-class fools, at least try to do something new, can't you? Well what should we expect from minds stuck in the anal stage?
So, what are we supposed to do when offended by such outrageous vulgarity and abuse? Well, Jesus instructed us to "turn the other cheek" when struck, and I would suppose the same holds for being mocked, spat upon and worse. In case you might not recall, Jesus silently endured terrible beating and mocking at the hands of his captors during his Passion. When he finally responded he had this to say, "Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing." If the Lord's example was to forgive those crazy or stupid enough to abuse, mock, and ultimately nail him to a cross, I suggest that we try and find a way to similarly forgive the crazy and stupid of our day. I would also suggest that, if you are an HBO subscriber, you call and cancel your subscription immediately. I don't pretend to suggest that you will cause "Curb Your Enthusiasm" or other similar trash to go off the air anytime soon, much less threaten HBO's security, there are, after all, plenty of people who are happy to spend money on this junk, but at least you will have cleaned some real smelly stuff out of your house. And couldn't we all do with being a little cleaner before God?
Out of Better Ideas
My wife called and left me bad news this morning in a voicemail--the local Ford dealer shut their doors for good suddenly yesterday. While I don't have one in the driveway right now, and more on why that is shortly, I have driven and owned ten Fords in the 39 years since I first got my driver's license. And for the last several years there has been a running joke in our house about the Mustang I am going to get one day. But Fords, along with pretty much every other American born and bred automobile, are on the endangered list. Plymouths, Oldsmobiles, and Pontiacs have already suffered extinction in recent years, and the number of once proud and iconic nameplates that will be relegated forever to history is very likely to grow until a generation or so from now children will ask, "Grandpa, what's a Ford (Or Chevy)?"
And, just like the sad end of the Passenger Pigeon, no one would have imagined such a thing was possible when America's driveways were lined with what Detroit turned out year after year. Time was when Ford could honestly claim that they were committed to "better ideas" in automotives, but those days appear gone forever. The truth is, one of the reasons I used to always have at least one, and often two, Fords in my garage, was that they were affordable and dependable transportation for me and my family. But, with a new Taurus now costing about 37K, the chances one will ever make it to my home are slim and none. If anybody at Ford headquarters wanted to even try to come up with a better idea for today, they would do well to look at what made Ford Motor Company such a success in the first place--affordable, simple, and reliable wheels for the average American.
I'm not saying it is time to bring back the Model T, but when a family sedan costs nearly 40 thousand, well it doesn't work for my family. And judging by the dismal sales of American car makers pretty much across the board, the products they are manufacturing don't work for many other families as well. Yeah, Cash for Clunkers moved some cars over the summer, but that was a gimmick, not a solution for what ails Detroit's automakers. And gimmicks, like zero interest financing and cash back haven't succeeded over the last ten years in turning around the terminal direction of Chrysler, Ford, and GM. A better idea is more than a gimmick, it has staying power and traction, if you will excuse the expression, that can turn things around for the long-term as opposed to simply impacting month-end sales or quarterly reports.
Nobody is likely to ever ask me what I would do, but since this is my blog I'll share with you what I'd do if I were running Ford. First, everyone with a seven-figure income would take a 50% pay cut immediately. Folks with six-figures coming in would say good-bye to 40%. And the people on assembly lines who are represented by their unions would have to face the choice of conceding to some reductions in pay or join the 10+ million other Americans who are now out of work. As Ford's CEO I would have to play hardball with all the companies who supply us. They'd have to drop their prices, or lose our business completely when we are forced to shut down and follow Oldsmobile, Plymouth, and Pontiac into extinction. With costs being cut we at Ford could then offer the American public something shocking, affordable cars and trucks! And I bet we'd start selling a lot more of them than we have in a long time.
And those cars and trucks we'd be selling, well they might not come in 30 different colors, but at least there would be a choice of something besides black (No offense, Henry). Affordability, along with emphasizing practicality, reliability, and safety, used to put a lot of Fords on the road. I don't know if it's possible that it could ever happen again. But why should Ford or GM even bother to try and come up with better ideas when the government is willing to bail out failure without any requisite improvement of performance?
Well, it was never likely that I would have ever seen that Mustang in my driveway anyway, so it won't hurt that much when, along with everyone else, I'll have to walk to a museum to see the sweet little "Pony Car."
Before anyone suggests that I have something against free-market economy, let me state that I'm not the one who has been destroying the free market. The truth is, the American free-market was shuttered a long time ago, replaced by the greed-market. And the most greedy got what they were after, obscene wealth for themselves, and unearned, unrealistic, and self-indulgent "prosperity" for many of the rest of us. And we stoked and rode the greed market as far as it could carry us all, until now it's coming crashing down on all of us. It's not like Jesus didn't warn us about greed; His Word tells us that the love of money results in a world of hurt (1Timothy 6.1), and so it has for our economy and nation.
Anyone have any better ideas?
And, just like the sad end of the Passenger Pigeon, no one would have imagined such a thing was possible when America's driveways were lined with what Detroit turned out year after year. Time was when Ford could honestly claim that they were committed to "better ideas" in automotives, but those days appear gone forever. The truth is, one of the reasons I used to always have at least one, and often two, Fords in my garage, was that they were affordable and dependable transportation for me and my family. But, with a new Taurus now costing about 37K, the chances one will ever make it to my home are slim and none. If anybody at Ford headquarters wanted to even try to come up with a better idea for today, they would do well to look at what made Ford Motor Company such a success in the first place--affordable, simple, and reliable wheels for the average American.
I'm not saying it is time to bring back the Model T, but when a family sedan costs nearly 40 thousand, well it doesn't work for my family. And judging by the dismal sales of American car makers pretty much across the board, the products they are manufacturing don't work for many other families as well. Yeah, Cash for Clunkers moved some cars over the summer, but that was a gimmick, not a solution for what ails Detroit's automakers. And gimmicks, like zero interest financing and cash back haven't succeeded over the last ten years in turning around the terminal direction of Chrysler, Ford, and GM. A better idea is more than a gimmick, it has staying power and traction, if you will excuse the expression, that can turn things around for the long-term as opposed to simply impacting month-end sales or quarterly reports.
Nobody is likely to ever ask me what I would do, but since this is my blog I'll share with you what I'd do if I were running Ford. First, everyone with a seven-figure income would take a 50% pay cut immediately. Folks with six-figures coming in would say good-bye to 40%. And the people on assembly lines who are represented by their unions would have to face the choice of conceding to some reductions in pay or join the 10+ million other Americans who are now out of work. As Ford's CEO I would have to play hardball with all the companies who supply us. They'd have to drop their prices, or lose our business completely when we are forced to shut down and follow Oldsmobile, Plymouth, and Pontiac into extinction. With costs being cut we at Ford could then offer the American public something shocking, affordable cars and trucks! And I bet we'd start selling a lot more of them than we have in a long time.
And those cars and trucks we'd be selling, well they might not come in 30 different colors, but at least there would be a choice of something besides black (No offense, Henry). Affordability, along with emphasizing practicality, reliability, and safety, used to put a lot of Fords on the road. I don't know if it's possible that it could ever happen again. But why should Ford or GM even bother to try and come up with better ideas when the government is willing to bail out failure without any requisite improvement of performance?
Well, it was never likely that I would have ever seen that Mustang in my driveway anyway, so it won't hurt that much when, along with everyone else, I'll have to walk to a museum to see the sweet little "Pony Car."
Before anyone suggests that I have something against free-market economy, let me state that I'm not the one who has been destroying the free market. The truth is, the American free-market was shuttered a long time ago, replaced by the greed-market. And the most greedy got what they were after, obscene wealth for themselves, and unearned, unrealistic, and self-indulgent "prosperity" for many of the rest of us. And we stoked and rode the greed market as far as it could carry us all, until now it's coming crashing down on all of us. It's not like Jesus didn't warn us about greed; His Word tells us that the love of money results in a world of hurt (1Timothy 6.1), and so it has for our economy and nation.
Anyone have any better ideas?
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Jesus and the Health Care Crisis
Having said in an earlier posting (9/3/09) that more than reforming the health care delivery system Americans would benefit from reforming ourselves and our lifestyles that feature bad diets, too little exercise, and too much stress, I want today to say that Jesus had a prescription for the crisis in health care which He encountered in His own time, and I believe it is still a good prescription for us.
When Jesus encountered people who suffered from illness or injury, regardless of what the illness or injury was, what did He do? He healed them! He never asked for proof of insurance. Was not deterred by anyone's inability to pay (See the case of the bankrupted woman whom Jesus healed in Mark 5.24-34). Jesus never turned away people because He already had too many patients. And, when the need for health care was greater than He could deal with personally, He trained and sent out others with authority and power to heal in His name. And it all worked!
There was a time, actually for the better part of two thousand years, that health care was largely the responsibility of the Body of Christ. Physicians and hospitals were ministries of the Church. Following the Lord's example, Christians undertook to help the sick and infirm not for fame or for profit, but because it was the right thing to do. There still are dedicated medical ministries and missionaries who go and meet the needs of people in all corners of the world. But, here in the U.S.A. the "system" has broken down. And the only fix we hear about these days is to put the whole thing in the hands of the government? That definitely was not what Jesus did, and I don't believe it is what He would have His Church do now.
Of course, trying to suggest to largely post-Christian, post-modern America that the Church should play a key role in anything concerning the general public is decried by the ACLU and attacked by atheists and other foolish people as unconstitutional. But what would help get the system back on track is not less privatization, but more. If the Body of Christ were to devote itself to lifting up and empowering Christians willing to dedicate themselves to the many healing sciences, I believe the Church, and much of the public would support it. And, if other private groups wanted to compete with Christians in the health care field let them. But please, don't let us put our health in the hands of the government!
It's like this. When Jesus was asked about what Jews should do with coins inscribed with the likeness of Caesar He responded by saying, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and give to God what is God's." Well you know what? Our lives and health are not the property of the state. We are God's, even fashioned in His own image. He has claimed us as His, promised to take care of us, and gone to extreme lengths (Think: The Cross) to not only redeem us and provide for our needs in this life, He's done everything necessary to assure us eternal life! It's about time that the Church get's back to doing the work of Jesus, and once again start to provide healing to all who need it.
How about opening a growing number of Christian health clinics open to all, regardless of ability to pay? Those who can, should of course pay, and insurers should honor payments to such clinics. As for those who can't pay, well the Church would minister to them in faith, and out of the love of, and for, the Savior. How about "bailing out" struggling hospitals and other health care facilities by the Church taking them over? If I was in the upper echelons of the Church, and I am about as far removed from the upper echelons of anything as you can get, but if I was, I would get real busy working on plans to step in and start caring for Americans. Who knows, it might even regain some of the credibility the Church has forfeited.
I do know that Jesus, when confronted with health care crises in His time, did not pass it on to anyone else but took care of the needs himself. Time His Church started doing what Jesus did.
When Jesus encountered people who suffered from illness or injury, regardless of what the illness or injury was, what did He do? He healed them! He never asked for proof of insurance. Was not deterred by anyone's inability to pay (See the case of the bankrupted woman whom Jesus healed in Mark 5.24-34). Jesus never turned away people because He already had too many patients. And, when the need for health care was greater than He could deal with personally, He trained and sent out others with authority and power to heal in His name. And it all worked!
There was a time, actually for the better part of two thousand years, that health care was largely the responsibility of the Body of Christ. Physicians and hospitals were ministries of the Church. Following the Lord's example, Christians undertook to help the sick and infirm not for fame or for profit, but because it was the right thing to do. There still are dedicated medical ministries and missionaries who go and meet the needs of people in all corners of the world. But, here in the U.S.A. the "system" has broken down. And the only fix we hear about these days is to put the whole thing in the hands of the government? That definitely was not what Jesus did, and I don't believe it is what He would have His Church do now.
Of course, trying to suggest to largely post-Christian, post-modern America that the Church should play a key role in anything concerning the general public is decried by the ACLU and attacked by atheists and other foolish people as unconstitutional. But what would help get the system back on track is not less privatization, but more. If the Body of Christ were to devote itself to lifting up and empowering Christians willing to dedicate themselves to the many healing sciences, I believe the Church, and much of the public would support it. And, if other private groups wanted to compete with Christians in the health care field let them. But please, don't let us put our health in the hands of the government!
It's like this. When Jesus was asked about what Jews should do with coins inscribed with the likeness of Caesar He responded by saying, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and give to God what is God's." Well you know what? Our lives and health are not the property of the state. We are God's, even fashioned in His own image. He has claimed us as His, promised to take care of us, and gone to extreme lengths (Think: The Cross) to not only redeem us and provide for our needs in this life, He's done everything necessary to assure us eternal life! It's about time that the Church get's back to doing the work of Jesus, and once again start to provide healing to all who need it.
How about opening a growing number of Christian health clinics open to all, regardless of ability to pay? Those who can, should of course pay, and insurers should honor payments to such clinics. As for those who can't pay, well the Church would minister to them in faith, and out of the love of, and for, the Savior. How about "bailing out" struggling hospitals and other health care facilities by the Church taking them over? If I was in the upper echelons of the Church, and I am about as far removed from the upper echelons of anything as you can get, but if I was, I would get real busy working on plans to step in and start caring for Americans. Who knows, it might even regain some of the credibility the Church has forfeited.
I do know that Jesus, when confronted with health care crises in His time, did not pass it on to anyone else but took care of the needs himself. Time His Church started doing what Jesus did.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
If Jesus Were Commissioner
Not to sound blasphemous, but I think I'd like to see Jesus serve as Commissioner for Major League Baseball. Actually, I think it would be a good idea if He headed up the NFL, NBA, and NHL to boot. He would, I am sure, make some needed changes in each of the leagues, the first being the reining in of rampant greed that has so corrupted what once was sport.
Take the seasons, they all run over into each other so that we have baseball playoffs postponed because of snow, and football players succumbing to heat stroke, while the finalists in the basketball playoffs just manage to finish before football training camps open. Jesus would get the league schedules straightened out because He knows, better than anyone, that "to everything there is a season," and it simply runs against nature for the World Series to finish in November, upsets the order of things for football to start around the 4th of July and not conclude until it is nearly Valentine's Day, and for basketball to get started just days after the football season has barely begun and then only crown its champion as the MLB All-Star game is about to be played.
Of course, to get all these seasons back where they belong would mean Jesus would have to shorten them all, which means fewer games, which means fewer dollars. But no one will go out of business if baseball were to hold the "Fall Classic" the first week of October rather than the last. And no NFL owner will go belly up if the playoffs were scheduled for December and the Super Bowl was held right around New Years. Not one NBA franchise would sink if the whole season, from training camp to Championship was made to fit between the beginning of October and the beginning of May. As for hockey, its a WINTER sport! Winter doesn't last from September to June in most places, and neither does interest in the NHL.
Of course, it is pure greed that has driven things to this point, and I realize it is un-American to suggest there is something wrong with greed, but hey, this blog is "What Would Jesus Do?' and He is not American. So, please Jesus, come and stop the proliferation of seasons that don't know when to begin, and refuse to know when to end.
While I'm on the bandwagon, I'll offer one other thing that Commissioner Jesus would do soon after taking office. He would get rid of all the pornography (Read "cheerleaders") whose presence and purpose has nothing to do with sport, unless lasciviousness and lechery are now competitive. Scantily clad women shaking their pom-poms, and whatever else they can shake, are intended to appeal to nothing remotely connected with any of the games they appear at. Their sole purpose is to lure in viewers-spectators through, if you will excuse the expression, their titillating routines. Of course, several generations of "Sportsmen" who have grown up on the pornography of SI's annual swimsuit edition will settle for nothing less than all the flesh that can be exposed, even cheering "wardrobe malfunctions" at Super Bowl halftimes.
Yep, if Jesus were Commissioner things would definitely change. As things are now, pretty much every professional sports venue falls into the category of idolatrous and lascivious temple to "gods" of greed and sex. Anyone else smell fire and brimstone in the air?
Take the seasons, they all run over into each other so that we have baseball playoffs postponed because of snow, and football players succumbing to heat stroke, while the finalists in the basketball playoffs just manage to finish before football training camps open. Jesus would get the league schedules straightened out because He knows, better than anyone, that "to everything there is a season," and it simply runs against nature for the World Series to finish in November, upsets the order of things for football to start around the 4th of July and not conclude until it is nearly Valentine's Day, and for basketball to get started just days after the football season has barely begun and then only crown its champion as the MLB All-Star game is about to be played.
Of course, to get all these seasons back where they belong would mean Jesus would have to shorten them all, which means fewer games, which means fewer dollars. But no one will go out of business if baseball were to hold the "Fall Classic" the first week of October rather than the last. And no NFL owner will go belly up if the playoffs were scheduled for December and the Super Bowl was held right around New Years. Not one NBA franchise would sink if the whole season, from training camp to Championship was made to fit between the beginning of October and the beginning of May. As for hockey, its a WINTER sport! Winter doesn't last from September to June in most places, and neither does interest in the NHL.
Of course, it is pure greed that has driven things to this point, and I realize it is un-American to suggest there is something wrong with greed, but hey, this blog is "What Would Jesus Do?' and He is not American. So, please Jesus, come and stop the proliferation of seasons that don't know when to begin, and refuse to know when to end.
While I'm on the bandwagon, I'll offer one other thing that Commissioner Jesus would do soon after taking office. He would get rid of all the pornography (Read "cheerleaders") whose presence and purpose has nothing to do with sport, unless lasciviousness and lechery are now competitive. Scantily clad women shaking their pom-poms, and whatever else they can shake, are intended to appeal to nothing remotely connected with any of the games they appear at. Their sole purpose is to lure in viewers-spectators through, if you will excuse the expression, their titillating routines. Of course, several generations of "Sportsmen" who have grown up on the pornography of SI's annual swimsuit edition will settle for nothing less than all the flesh that can be exposed, even cheering "wardrobe malfunctions" at Super Bowl halftimes.
Yep, if Jesus were Commissioner things would definitely change. As things are now, pretty much every professional sports venue falls into the category of idolatrous and lascivious temple to "gods" of greed and sex. Anyone else smell fire and brimstone in the air?
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