The Patriots

by Phill Kline

The perfect storm in support of the Culture of Death has arrived. Consumerism, self-indulgence, the worship of government, stardom and economic crisis is poised to transform the Shining City on the Hill into a death camp. The nation founded on the principle that all human life has value ordained by God is adopting a utilitarian view of life that casts aside the voiceless, defenseless, broken, disabled, diseased, unborn and elderly. The Land of Plenty is fast becoming a land where government shall ration its plenty only to those who it perceives add value, creating a duty to die for those who government perceives lessen value. We are losing our way.

The Culture of Death - (a) A health care bill introduced by House Democrats forces the elderly to attend consults regarding the withholding of food and water for the chronically ill; and (b) President Obama and the Democrat congressional leadership is attempting to force all Americans to pay for abortions and all hospitals to provide abortions.

Abortion has always claimed "choice" and "liberty" as its driving value. The same with Euthanasia and physician assisted suicide. Yet, at its core, both are about a belief that there is not enough compassion, not enough love, not enough money, not enough life to share. We do not want to face those who by their condition awaken our conscience to our duty to provide for such needs. We'd rather they die.

The most common reason for an abortion is fear of the impact a child will have on the future of the mother, father or parents of the mother. The top reason for assisted suicide is fear of becoming a burden on another.

Abortion is not about the "life" of the mother, nor is assisted suicide about eliminating physical pain as both concerns can be addressed without loss of life.. Rather, euthanasia and abortion are about America's increasing fear that bears the fruit of stinginess through lack of faith.

We are becoming a self-indulgent culture demanding immediate answers to life's intractable problems and thanks to an obsessive media focus, casting our hopes and eyes constantly towards government for answers. This is why government is constantly growing, regardless of which political party holds the keys - both parties have learned that promoting false solutions through government action appeals to America's demands for answers. Government plies our fears, creating false hope and doing so by our political wannabes warrants TV time with the talking heads resulting in Stardom. In government, you do not generate power by depowering government.

Government already dictates much in the medical industry. Medicare and Medicaid are now the largest player in the health care market providing 46 cents of every health care dollar spent in America. Private insurance provides 42 cents of every dollar and the remaining 12 cents comes from consumers through out-of-pocket expenditures.

Markets are intelligent - they know where their money comes from! As a result, as government has increased its play in the market - those who earn in the health care market have turned their eyes on government. Increasingly, physicians, medical manufacturers and hospitals have moved away from protecting free market principles and moved towards demanding more from government.

Professional associations representing these groups have demanded increased government payouts for various procedures and services. Increasingly, they have become employees of government - not directly responsive to patient needs or demands. And put simply, they want a pay raise.

Politicians recognize the political truism that you gain a more loyal following by passing out dollar bills than allowing people to keep their own money: dependency is a great source of power. Honoring this truism grows government - creating ever more powerful constituencies that protect every government dollar spent.

The loss of these constituencies commitment to free market principles has been devasting and increasingly resulted in physician decisions being dictated by government formularies - government reimbursement pay formulas for certain medical services and equipment. These pay formulas are the new values driving decisions in medical care. And now, the primary articulator of these values - government - is ready to pomote a claim of value in death.

A child that is unwanted and uneeded - is simply a burden. Abort it! The elderly - more of a drain than a benefit - encourage physician assisted suicide.

The President's new health care bill will mandate your participation in abortion. And a new "reform" bill introduced in the US House by Representatives John Dingell (D-Michigan) and Charlie Rangel (D-New York) creates government mandated death consultants who will encourage the elderly and disabled to choose death.

In 1985, withholding fluid and nutrition from a patient unable to feed himself or herself was considered criminal. Afterall, we are unable to feed ourselves at numerous stages of life and if we were not in the process of dying, someone wihtholding fluids and food was denying what was considered humane care.

Such care is not medical treatment it is an act of compassion. Yet, with high profile court cases in numerous states and the trend towards death and a rationing of care - in 1986, the American Medical Association for the first time defined the provision of food and water as "medical treatment." The impact is monumental. Medical treatment can be withheld, humane care cannot.

Death by dehydration is brutal and lengthy.  It is accomplished with dozens of people standing by who, with simple effort, can sustain a life they watch wither, suffer and die.

And now in the Dingell/Rangel bill, the government will get into the act. Under Subtitle C - "Miscellaneous Improvements" beginning on page 420 of the 1,018 page bill, the government would mandate under Section 1233 what it terms "Advance Care Planning Consultation."

The consultation requires reviewing with all medicare patients the options of withholding care, including providing information on "the use of artificially administered nutrients and hydration."

There is not a need to educate patients about the need of hydration and nutrients. All of us have lived with that need all of our lives. We obtain it - or we die. This provision is there to encourage a pre-determination of death by neglect in order to, as the bill's title suggests, "provide affordable health care."

The proposed law takes the next step and requires these death consultations when a patient and family are most vulnerable. The consultations are to take place "if there is a significant change in the health condition of the individual, including the diagnosis of a chronic, progressive, life-limiting disease."

This sets up the dynamic for withholding food and water due to non-life threatening conditions. Further, it invites a patient, if conversant, to make a decision about their future during an ultimate time of stress.

This language invites an approach similar to Oregon's assisted suicide legislation, which was sold as a "compassionate" way out for those terminally ill and in constant pain. This was and is a lie.

Studies indicate that none of the 43 who were assisted in their suicides during the first two years of that legislation were facing such problems. The overwhelming concern was being a burden on family and requiring assistance in daily living.

Just as abortion plays on the fears of frightened mothers, euthanasia plays on the fears of frightened seniors and the disabled.

Further, the bill establishes a special government study called the "physician's quality reporting initiative" which will create special government funded "patient decision aids" and government consultation groups to assist paitents in understanding these issues.

These committees will represent different disciplines but with one commonality - all will be paid by government. And government is interested in saving "costs."

The only thing that breaks this cycle is principled leadership or Americans demanding principled action. Americans, however, are increasingly being taught that liberty is a frightening concept - it requires initiative and exists in a state of uncertainty. Today, there is the ever-present temptation to trade liberty for a false sense of security. This has happened with health care.

Health care is now government business and as with all those who pay the bill, government is attempting to cut costs and this means rationing - choosing one over the other. This is one of the main threads of the hidden debate on health care. Proponents of government making such choices are struggling to find the right Orwellian terms to confuse or mislead the American public.

At least Princeton University Professor Peter Singer, although confused, was blunt and direct in the July 19th edition of the NY Times Sunday Magazine. Professor Singer argues that such rationing is logical. Singer is right - it is. The crux, however, is who makes the choice of rationing and whose values are reflected in that decision. Singer and President Obama support government making these decisions.

Singer writes "(r)ationing health care means getting value for the billions we are spending by setting limits on which treatments should be paid for...." And Singer invites us to answer the following problem as an example: "saving the life of one teenager is equivalent to saving the lives of___ 85 year-olds."[ix] Or how about, preserving the quality of life of one adult is worth the lives of how many unborn? Or, saving the life of___ university professors is worth the life of___ unemployed steel workers? (Prof. Singer probably does not want to put that one up for a vote). You can see the problem.

Families make difficult choices of rationing every day - saving for college, purchasing a new and safer car, enhancing savings, moving to a new home, determining health care costs. Increasingly, government is making these decisions for us through the coercive impact of law or through tax code encouragement. This loss of liberty has profound implications. The government solution scheme incrementally replaces opportunity with government promises, diminishes personal accountability creating government inefficiencies and more ominously, invites government dictates in the cause of controlling costs.

And now President Obama is attempting to have government dictate abortion in the name of "choice." Soon, you government may be dictating the duty to die to the disabled, sick and elderly in the cause of universal health care.

Accordingly, the President and Democrat congressional leadership are trying to force through mandated health insurance coverage for abortion and the mandatory provision of abortion services for all Americans as well. All Americans will be forced into health insurance plans that include abortion coverage - forcing all Americans to pay for abortions through their premiums.

It is in these battles that we will define ourselves as a nation and a people.

{Phill Kline is the former Kansas Attorney General and now a visiting law professor in Virginia. His web site is http://www.standwithTruth.com - Ed.)

by Nonie Darwish

In the Muslim faith a Muslim man can marry a child as young as 1 year old and have sexual intimacy with this child. Consummating the marriage by 9.

The dowry is given to the family in exchange for the woman (who becomes his slave) and for the purchase of the private parts of the woman, to use her as a toy.

Even though a woman is abused she can not obtain a divorce. To prove rape, the woman must have (4) male witnesses. Often after a woman has been raped, she is returned to her family and the family must return the dowry.

The family has the right to execute her (an honor killing) to restore the honor of the family. Husbands can beat their wives 'at will' and he does not have to say why he has beaten her.

The husband is permitted to have (4 wives) and a temporary wife for an hour (prostitute) at his discretion.

The Shariah Muslim law controls the private as well as the public life of the woman.

In the Western World (America) Muslim men are starting to demand Shariah Law so the wife can not obtain a divorce and he can have full and complete control of her. It is amazing and alarming how many of our sisters and daughters attending American Universities are now marrying Muslim men and submitting themselves and their children unsuspectingly to the Shariah law.

Author and lecturer Nonie Darwish was born in Cairo and spent her childhood in Egypt and Gaza before emigrating to America in 1978, When she was eight years old, her father died while leading covert attacks on Israel. He was a high- ranking Egyptian military officer stationed with his family in Gaza.

When he died, he was considered a "shahid," a martyr for jihad. His posthumous status earned Nonie and her family an elevated position in Muslim society.

But Darwish developed a skeptical eye at an early age. She questioned her own Muslim culture and upbringing. She converted to Christianity after hearing a Christian preacher on television. In her latest book, Cruel and Usual Punishment: The Terrifying Global Implications of Islamic Law, she warns about creeping sharia law - what it is, what it means, and how it is manifested in Islamic countries.

For the West, she says radical Islamists are working to impose sharia on the world. If that happens, Western civilization will be destroyed. In twenty years there will be enough Muslim voters in the U.S. to elect the President!  Female Circumcision most commonly known as Female Genital mutilation is also occurring in the United States.

by Allen Williams

I'm one of those individuals who does virtually everything across the Internet. It is in that spirit that I sought and found a set of replacement radiator cooling fan motors on Junkyard dog.for my dad's 1991 Nissan Sentra E (which I now own since his passing). The car has deep sentimental value and I have sought to maintain it as it was when he was alive.

Photo: The parts carton delivered by UPS

Although the company that I ultimately ordered the parts from, Sunrise Nissan- California, didn't show up on the Internet search, they obviously got the information that I filled out in the salvage query because they sent me an e-mail with price and availability. Their shipping cost was the lowest of any of the companies that I had negotiated with for transport. (And now I know why)

I decided to order. The item arrived from Sunrise Nissan delivered by United Parcel Service (UPS) on the evening of June 8th, some 15 days after it was ordered. 

I could hear things rattling around inside as the UPS agent handed me the carton. The package was wrapped around multiple times with plastic wrap and quite difficult to get open. The packaging was not at all like the shipping containers that I've received with vintage auto parts in the past; this one had a noticeable dent on one end and it looked more like a cocoon than a box. {No, I didn't mistakenly show the wrong shrimp, I mean shipping carton here. The parts were actually delivered in an old frozen shrimp carton. Frankly, I was surprised not to find any dead shrimp along with the fans when I opened the box.}

Opening the shipping carton

At this point, I'm not certain if this particular auto salvage operation also sells or prepares shrimp at their location but it might be wise to scan any shrimp you order from California with a metal detector before serving.

Both fan assemblies were broken. The driver's side was the least damaged with only one mounting tab missing. I found it at the bottom of the box.  Fortunately, I was able to repair it satisfactorily

Photo: Inspecting the parts..

The second fan shroud was extensively damaged. One of the broken frame sections was lying underneath the fan blade as you see top center.

There is a fracture about 3/4" from the right hand side of the missing top piece penetrating through the entire shroud assembly. The lower frame was broken clear through at its bottom as shown in the photo top. It was not found in the shipping carton.  Either, the shipper or UPS, placed the broken shroud parts in the bottom of the shrimp carton along with the two fan assemblies.

The supplier was: SUNRISE NISSAN & KIA AUTO DISMANTLING, 3450 SUNRISE BLVD, RANCHO CORDOVA, CA 95742. PHONE (916) 631-8795 FAX (916) 631-8849 e-mail: (now protected)  STORE HOURS - M-F 8am-5pm SAT 9am-4pm STD PACIFIC All parts guaranteed 6 months

After placing a complaint call, UPS made arrangements the following day to pick up the packaging for 'inspection'. What? They didn't photograph it after picking up such an unusual package from the shipper? I e-mailed both UPS and Sunrise Nissan the evening of June 10th complaining of the damage and including these photographs. UPS sent an e-mail acknowledgement of receipt of the pictures on 6/11/09, stating:

"Thank you for sending us the photos of the damaged package. We will now inspect the package and notify your shipper of the results. We will contact the shipper by the end of the next business day. If you are the receiver, please stay in contact with your shipper for additional information regarding the final disposition of the claim.

Thanks,

Gregory Marshall

UPS Damage Exception Group

1-800-651-2352 ext. 4511"

Photo: Original Fan Shroud assemblies.. 

Sunrise Nissan has not responded to date. Lacking the common courtesy to respond to its customers gives one an indication of what their 6-month fan warranty might be worth.  Is it a wonder that California is going broke?

So, whose fault is it for the damaged items? Both the Shipper and Carrier will blame each other for the damage; it's the consumer who loses.

I was fortunate, neither fan motor was damaged, both work satisfactorily and replacing the shroud will cost about $52.08.

But why not just use the original fan shroud assemblies already on the vehicle which were in good shape? Well, ordinarily that would have been a viable solution but in this case, the replacement fans mount differently in the shroud assemblies than the originals as shown below.

Photo: The Nissan original and replacement fan shroud..

Although both are '91 fan shrouds, the replacements ordered from Sunrise Nissan utilize a triangular mount that's actually part of the motor and can't be removed.

Swampers or auto dismantlers have no particular incentive to remove parts undamaged.. getting orders filled quickly is what counts.  And, UPS already has quite a reputation for damaged goods and often refuses to pay claims on things it wrecks in transit.  One claimant writes: "I shipped a wall sculpture at THE UPS STORE in Lagrange KY on February 25, 2009. The item was undamaged and in good condition when I took it to them for shipment to my home in Virginia. I paid 90.50 for shipping, handling and insurance on my sculpture. When it arrived in Virginia I found my 822.50 sculpture had been totally destroyed. "

Another writes: "I shipped a desktop phone system to a customer by packing it in a heavy box, wrapping each phone 2x in large-cell bubble wrap, and adding Styrofoam peanuts for extra protection. The customer contacted me stating the phones arrived looking like they had been smashed by hammers.."

It's why consumer advocacy sites like "Angie's List and others have sprung up on the Internet. Angie's List serves some 750,000 consumers with ratings on who's good, who isn't and who's in the 'penalty box'. Suppliers do not pay to get on Angie's List, they must earn their way on in either in providing good or unsatisfactory service.

Today's consumer not only faces the risk of receiving merchandise like this from unscrupulous sellers, but also has to deal with callous shippers like UPS who often damage otherwise satisfactory and serviceable goods in transit. Carriers make their money on the sheer volume of merchandise they ship; careful handling is NOT conducive to maximizing company profits. It's better to push the volume to the highest maintainable level and let the smashed articles accumulate as they may. After all, UPS faces no real retribution other than unpopular publicity and if you deny most of the damage claims, you're profit ahead.

by John H. Ogwyn

On a bright, balmy afternoon nearly 200 years ago, on December 20, 1803, the flag of the United States of America was first raised in the Place d’Armes (now Jackson Square) in New Orleans, as the U.S. officially took possession of the Louisiana Purchase.

In just a few years at the start of the 19th century, the U.S. and British Commonwealth nations rose to unprecedented prominence on the world scene. Why did the English-speaking peoples rise to such unprecedented power and greatness?

Jefferson at the Helm

In 1776, there had been no United States of America. That summer, Thomas Jefferson penned the Declaration of Independence, which first declared the existence of a sovereign American nation. A bloody war and successive years of struggle were to follow, and a new nation was created. In March 1801, when Jefferson took the oath of office as the third President of the fledgling U.S., much had changed in just 25 years. Thirteen British colonies hugging the Atlantic seacoast had quickly become a westward-looking nation expanding toward the Mississippi River.

In 1801, the total population of the U.S. was still under six million, most of whom lived less than 100 miles from the Atlantic coast. But several new states—Vermont, Kentucky and Tennessee—had been added to the original 13, and increasing numbers of settlers were pouring into the future states of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. Many farmers were finding that it only made sense to ship their produce down the Ohio River to the Mississippi, then south to the port of New Orleans. A lack of roads made it impractical for farmers to haul their cash crops east to the Atlantic seaboard.

The French had founded New Orleans in 1718, then ceded it to the Spanish in 1763 as part of the Treaty of Paris, which ended the Seven Years War (also called the "French and Indian War" in America). Because of its position at the mouth of the Mississippi, New Orleans was of major economic importance to the western settlers in the young U.S. As more settlers moved westward, this port could only grow in importance.

So the Jefferson administration was understandably concerned when it learned that France’s new ruler, Napoleon, was pressuring Spain to return the Louisiana Territory to French control. It was one thing for a weak Spanish government to control the port of New Orleans, but it was quite another for it to be controlled by an ambitious and powerful ruler such as Napoleon. The Mississippi River was the economic lifeline for America’s western settlers, and whoever controlled New Orleans controlled commerce on the Mississippi.

Knowing that the very future of his country was at stake, President Jefferson dispatched to France two diplomats—Robert Livingston and later James Monroe—to negotiate the purchase of New Orleans. At first, Napoleon’s government showed no interest. Napoleon had dreams of reestablishing a vast French colonial empire in the "New World." But the Creator of the universe had other plans.

Napoleon’s dreams of an American empire were crushed when 50,000 French troops, under the command of his brother-in-law General Charles LeClerc, died while trying to subdue a rebellion against French colonial rule on the Caribbean island of Santo Domingo. This calamity, and the growing prospect of war against the British, prompted Napoleon to offer the American envoys not just the purchase of New Orleans, but rather the entire Louisiana Territory.

For $15 million—less than a nickel an acre—the U.S. received what turned out to be a vast inland empire of 830,000 square miles, including some of the richest farmland on the face of the earth! Included were all or part of what would become 13 states: Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, North Dakota and Minnesota. "‘Today,’ said Livingston, after he had attached his signature, ‘the United States take their place among the powers of the first rank’" (William O. Scroggs, The Story of Louisiana, p. 161).

At the time of the purchase, the boundaries were so poorly defined that neither France nor the U.S. knew exactly what was being sold. President Jefferson was eager to learn all about the new territory—the Indian nations living there, its plant and animal life, its rivers and the prospect of a route across the northern part of the new territory that could take Americans all the way to the Pacific Ocean. An official expedition into the new territory was outfitted and dispatched, led by U.S. Army officers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. Leaving from St. Louis, Missouri in the summer of 1804, they returned a couple of years later with maps and data that made clear that America had gained far more than had previously been realized.

This vast expanse of territory ensured the continuing expansion of widespread land ownership among the American people. Laying a foundation for a wide-based American prosperity, millions of future settlers were able to own their own land, rather than live as tenants on the estate of some great landlord. Under President James Madison, Jefferson’s successor, the U.S. government undertook the ambitious project of surveying this vast tract of land. The survey began in a swamp near the present-day town of Brinkley, Arkansas, where a stake was driven in the ground and teams began to chart an east-west line that became the baseline for all property descriptions within the territory of the Louisiana Purchase. This line continued west along what is now Baseline Road in Little Rock, and ultimately extended across the entire state of Oklahoma.

"The National Historic Landmark, deep in the swamp of the Louisiana Purchase State Park in Brinkley, marks the initial survey point. From this point, surveyors began their work of chains and compasses. Every legal description of the land contained in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 depended on these measurements taken from this point" (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, May 4, 2003).

Fulfillment of an Ancient Promise

The Louisiana Purchase territory includes some of the most valuable agricultural land on the planet. It encompasses the very heartland of the North American continent. Control of this valuable territory set the stage for what Americans in the coming decades began to call "Manifest Destiny."

Was this rapid expansion just a matter of time and chance, or was it really the nation’s pre-ordained destiny? If it was a matter of destiny, then why? Why were the English-speaking peoples destined to control the American heartland, rather than the nations that had tried and failed before?

To understand the answer to that question, we must look to the far distant past. The Creator of the universe told a man named Abram, living on the lower Euphrates River in a city called Ur of the Chaldees, to leave his family and homeland to go to a land that he would afterward be given. At age 75, Abram left Mesopotamia behind, and began his journey to the land of Canaan.

Initially, God simply told Abram that he would become "a great nation" and that all the families of the earth would be blessed through him (Genesis 12:2–3). Twenty-four years later, when Abram was 99 years old, God appeared to him and entered into a solemn covenant. God changed Abram’s name to Abraham, and expanded His promise to include Abraham’s becoming the "father of many nations" (Genesis 17:4). Many years later, the Almighty appeared to Abraham’s grandson Jacob, and further expanded the promise by declaring that Jacob’s descendants would spread abroad in every direction from the promised land in the Middle East (Genesis 28:13–14). Still later, after another encounter with God, Jacob’s name was changed to Israel (Genesis 32:28), and his descendants were thenceforth known as Israelites.

Genesis 48 describes a ceremony that took place near the end of Israel’s long life. Very few have ever understood the real significance of what occurred that day in ancient Egypt. Israel’s sons had sold their younger brother Joseph into slavery many years earlier. Joseph, however, had prospered, rising to become second-in-command to Pharaoh in Egypt. The family was reunited during a time of famine, when Israel and his family had come to Egypt to live in the Nile delta region (the "Land of Goshen"). Learning that his elderly father was ill, Joseph came to visit, bringing his sons Ephraim and Manasseh.

Sitting up in bed to receive his son and grandsons, elderly Israel called Ephraim and Manasseh near to bless them. Knowing that his father was nearly blind, Joseph had purposely placed the boys so that his father’s right hand would be on the older son, Manasseh, and his left hand would be on the younger, Ephraim. When the time came, Israel crossed his arms, laying his right hand on Ephraim and his left hand on Manasseh. Initially, Joseph was disturbed, for he thought his father had become confused. Israel corrected him, explaining that he was doing this on purpose. In this ceremony, Israel placed his name on the young men, declaring that Ephraim’s descendants were to grow into a great company of nations while Manasseh’s were to become a single great nation.

One reason that so few have understood the significance of Israel’s declaration is that most people erroneously assume that all Israelites are Jews. Yet Judah—the Jews’ ancestor—was just one of the 12 sons of Jacob (Israel). After the death of King Solomon, more than seven centuries after Jacob’s declaration, Israel’s descendants split into two kingdoms—northern and southern. The citizens of the northern kingdom, with its capital at Samaria, were known as Israelites, and were taken into Assyrian captivity after Samaria fell in 721bc.

The southern kingdom of Judah, however—with its citizens known as Jews—continued on for a century after Israel’s fall, before falling to Babylonian invaders. From the time of Solomon onward, the histories of Israel and Judah have been quite distinct. While the promise of the kingly dynasty, and ultimately of the Messiah, came through the line of Judah, the birthright promises went to the descendants of Joseph (1 Chronicles 5:2).

With this bit of background in mind, we can understand the events that immediately preceded Jacob’s death. After blessing Ephraim and Manasseh, he called all of his sons together and told them what would befall their descendants in the last days (Genesis 49:1). Jacob described Joseph’s descendants as a colonizing people, and likened them to a fruitful vine whose branches would grow and spread out. They, as a result of God’s blessing,would be militarily strong and have great blessings of agricultural and mineral wealth (Genesis 49:22–26). This birthright blessing, which Israel conveyed to the descendants of Joseph, had been described as the "fatness of the earth" (Genesis 27:28) and included a future inheritance of lands that would produce an abundance of corn and wine.

Why was the timing of this future inheritance delayed for so long? A recurring theme of Scripture is that God has a time plan and does things right on schedule. Jesus told His disciples that the Father retains control of the times and seasons of human history (Acts 1:7). The Apostle Paul declared that God had determined in advance both the times and bounds of habitation for the nations (Acts 17:26). This prophetic time framework shows God’s sovereignty in history. Just as God declared that "seven times" would pass over Babylon, so that men would know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men and gives it to whomsoever He will (Daniel 4:16–17), so also does history prove that seven prophetic "times" elapsed in the fulfillment of the end-time promises that Jacob made to his sons.

What is a prophetic "time"? Revelation 12 and 13 use the expressions "1,260 days" and "time, times, and half a time" and "42 months" interchangeably. Forty-two months of 30 days each are equal to 1,260 days—or three-and-a-half years. Clearly, then, 2,520 days—1,260 doubled—are the equivalent of "seven times." Numbers 14:34 and Ezekiel4:6 establish the principle that a day is equal to a year in fulfillment of Bible prophecy. History shows us that Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took Jerusalem and brought Judah under his control in 604bc. This was in the third year of King Jehoiakim and the time at which Daniel and a number of other young men of prominent families were taken away captive to Babylon.

Interestingly, it was exactly 2,520 years later—seven prophetic "times"—that the stage was set for an end-time Jewish nation in its ancient homeland. It was in November 1917 that the British government issued the famous Balfour Declaration, announcing that it would "look with favour" upon a Jewish homeland in Palestine. A few weeks later, British forces under Viscount Allenby entered Jerusalem and freed it from the Turks.

When looking at the history of the northern kingdom (the House of Israel), we find a similar phenomenon. From the time of Israel’s being taken into Assyrian captivity in 721bc, the passing of 2,520 years brings us to the year 1800. This was the time when the British and American nations began their rapid rise to world dominance, which would endure for the entire 19th and 20th centuries.

A Warning About Forgetfulness

Clearly, the U.S. and the British Commonwealth nations have received the fulfillment of the ancient promises that the Creator God made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God has given them prosperity that no other peoples on earth have known. Just as Britain mushroomed into the greatest empire in the history of the world, beginning at the start of the 19th century, so the U.S. quickly rose to become the greatest single nation in history. A great nation and a great company of nations possessing the choicest places of the earth—this description is the fulfillment of what elderly Jacob promised to Joseph’s sons in the end time. This describes the English-speaking peoples as it does no others in the entire history of the world.

Acquiring the vast Louisiana Purchase territory was only the beginning of expansion for the U.S. Spreading across the North American continent to the Pacific coast within a generation, the American nation was destined—along with Canada and Australia—to become the breadbasket of the world.

However, with great blessings come great responsibilities. Just before Israel first entered into the Promised Land, Moses gave a solemn warning. After describing the "bounty" of the land into which God was leading Israel (a description that is certainly appropriate today for the lands held by the English-speaking peoples), Moses warned the people not to forget the sourceof that bounty (Deuteronomy 8:7-14). He cautioned that the most dangerous time is not the time of hardship, but rather the time of abundance. In times of adversity and trial, it is easy to be conscious of our need for God’s help and blessing. It is in the time when we have "bread without scarceness" that people tend to have an illusion of self-sufficiency and self-reliance.

Though the U.S. and Canada both have holidays set aside as Thanksgiving Day, the real meaning underlying them has become lost. In the U.S., this day is increasingly called "turkey day" and has become little more than a day of football, overeating, and the start of the "Christmas shopping season." How many are truly thankful to the Creator of the universe, recognizing that the wealth that they enjoy is the result of God’s faithfulness to His covenant with Abraham? Rather, as their wealth has multiplied, the U.S. and British Commonwealth nations have increasingly forgotten God and His laws.

When the English-speaking nations rose to prominence in the 19th century, the Bible was the most widely read book in the English-speaking world. The Ten Commandments were acknowledged as the underpinning of national laws. Today, that is no longer the case. As courts and legislatures seek to legalize the perversions for which God anciently expelled the nations of the Canaanites, we should not forget that God will not be mocked.

Moses made it plain that if the Israelites forgot God, and refused to obey Him, they would "surely perish" from the land that God gave (Deuteronomy 8:19–20). While the Louisiana Purchase might rightly be described as the "greatest land deal ever," we must never forget that it was not nearly so much the result of American ingenuity as it was the result of the Creator fulfilling His promises. As the U.S. and British Commonwealth nations increasingly turn their collective backs on the One who gave them His choicest bounty, we should realize that the same One who gives national wealth can also take it away.

Those who refuse to remember their Creator in this time of abundance will ultimately be forced to seek Him in the midst of the greatest time of trial and adversity in mankind’s history. Scripture calls this "the time of Jacob’s trouble" (Jeremiah 30:7).

What about you? Do you really recognize that His laws are the source of the righteous conduct that truly exalts a nation? (Proverbs 14:34) Only those who recognize His role, and obey His laws, will have His protection in the trying times that will conclude this age and set the stage for the coming of the Messiah!

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{First published in 2003, it is edited for space considerations and is re-published here by permission of Tomorrow's World magazine. A long read but well worth it. It lends new meaning to George W. Bush's remark, "I'm the president of the greatest nation on the face of the earth" - Ed.}