Apologies all around

One would rather have a hug than an attack. Wouldn't you say so? Well, most of you anyway.

When I wrote the Christians Unite article I shot from the hip. Man, I didn't think before I wrote. I didn't plan my words.

I am not a gay basher, as some have pointed out. Target is not a French-owned companty, nor are they necessarily pro-gay. The thing about the veterans was not right either. So, I have egg on my face today.

And, something else came to mind. What about all those innocent folks who work for Wal-Mart and Ford Motor Company, and others who are openly supporters of the gay agenda? These folks are just trying to support their families the best way they can. So we can't jeopardize them. No, it's the ones at the top we need go afer. This election sure shook things up, but the ones who are behind all the evil are way above the little politicians.

I'm still for orgainizing Christians. I will not back pedal on that issue. Would you covenant to pray with me on these matters, that God will direct our moves. We do need to network together in prayer groups, and meet for fellowship and encourage each other and keep each informed. We don't do this at church like we used to. We need to return to our roots, to the basics of Christianity. We need to sing those old songs that once lifted us up to the mountain top. O What a Friend We Have in Jesus. Jesus Loves Me. And many others. A chorous once in a while is fine, but a steady diet of them leaves us starved to hear and to sing the word JESUS like we used to. Too many songlets sing all around the Word, all about the Word, but few give us a chance to lift our voices in praise to Jesus.

And if I don't hush, pretty soon you will know what I believe about most everything.

Eagle or turkey? Which one would you have picked?

Eagle Vs. Turkey: America's First Bird Controversy

Nations often adopt animals as symbols: England has its lion, India its peacock. On the afternoon of July 4, 1776, just after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Continental Congress appointed a committee made up of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin to select a design for an official national seal.

The three patriots had different ideas and none of them included the bald eagle. They finally agreed on a drawing of the woman Liberty holding a shield to represent the states. But the members of Congress weren't inspired by the design and they consulted with William Barton, a Philadelphia artist who produced a new design that included a golden eagle.

Because the golden eagle also flew over European nations, however, the federal lawmakers specified that the bird in the seal should be an American bald eagle. On June 20, 1782, they approved the design that we recognize today.

At the time, the new nation was still at war with England, and the fierce-looking bird seemed to be an appropriate emblem. But from the start, the eagle was a controversial choice. Franklin scowled at it. "For my part," he declared, "I wish the eagle had not been chosen as the representative of this country. He is a bird of bad moral character; he does not get his living honestly. You may have seen him perched in some dead tree where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the labor of the fishing hawk and, when that diligent bird has at length taken a fish and is bearing it to his nest for his young ones, the bald eagle pursues him and takes the fish. With all this injustice, he is never in good case."

Some people have since questioned whether the eagle would have been chosen to adorn the seal had the nation not been at war. A year after the Treaty of Paris ended the conflict with Great Britain, Franklin argued that the turkey would have been a more appropriate symbol. "A much more respectable bird and a true native of America," he pointed out. Franklin conceded that the turkey was "a little vain and silly," but maintained that it was nevertheless a "bird of courage" that "would not hesitate to attack a grenadier of the British guards who should presume to invade his farm yard with a red coat on." Congress was not convinced, however. The eagle remained our national symbol.

In truth, both the turkey and the bald eagle are native to the Americas. But if the issue is a bird that represents our nation, Americans can't really lay exclusive claim to either species, since both traditionally ranged in Canada and Mexico as well.