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Mark Caserta: What happened to innocent until proven guilty?

29 Nov

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Mark Caserta:  Free State Patriot editor

Nov 24, 2017

 

 

One of the most sacred principles in our American criminal justice system is the presumption of innocence until a defendant is proven guilty.

The requirement, according to Wex Legal Dictionary, is “the prosecution prove beyond a reasonable doubt every element of a crime to convict a defendant,” and is granted by the due process clauses of the Fifth and Fourteenth amendments.

Sadly, the politicization of nearly every aspect of our lives, bolstered by the mainstream media’s desire to mold public sentiment, has reduced the presumption of innocence statute to “what best serves political expediency.”

Frankly, the double standard to which liberals and the GOP establishment adhere would be laughable, if not tragic for the victims of this dereliction of duty.

Case in point is the travesty of journalism offered by reporter Stephanie McCrummen of The Washington Post when earlier this month she made public the allegations that Alabama Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore fondled a 14-year-old girl and pursued at least three other teenage girls decades ago as an assistant district attorney in the state of Alabama.

Per the Post, McCrummen was in Alabama as part of her paper’s coverage of the Senate race. She recently explained the genesis of the story to NPR.

“I was in Alabama actually reporting another story on Roy Moore supporters, a story aiming to understand, you know, the basis of his support in the state,” McCrummen said. “And it was at the end of a long conversation with someone there that these allegations surfaced.”

Why do you suppose a liberal reporter from The Washington Post would travel to Alabama to cover another state’s Senate race? Does anyone really think McCrummen’s intent was to report on the race or simply to scavenge skeletons in Moore’s closet and derail the chances of another conservative joining the Senate ranks?

So, a man’s career is virtually on the brink of destruction resulting from a newspaper story, based on unsubstantiated evidence, simply because he’s conservative.

Sadly, this appears to be the new evidentiary standard for the progressive movement in assaulting conservatives.

So, how does one intellectualize the major liberal media coverage of Bill Clinton, the assaulter-in-chief, when he faced multiple allegations of misconduct, both as Arkansas governor and POTUS? Clinton was confronted with multiple allegations of sexual misconduct from women like Kathleen Willey, Juanita Broaddrick, Kathy Shelton and Paula Jones.

While the media, liberals and the GOP establishment conduct themselves in support of the women accusers in Alabama and call for Moore to step aside from his Senate candidacy, Clinton’s accusers were berated and humiliated in the court of public opinion.

Irrespective of your political leaning, our country is teetering on the edge of judicial disaster if we succumb to this disregard for the presumption of innocence simply because it supports our political aspirations. Our judicial system would collapse beneath the weight of political jurisprudence!

Due process, afforded every individual by the Constitution, must be paramount in our list of protected rights. And the rule of law mustn’t be forsaken to propagate any political ideology.

 

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Mark Caserta: Uranium One relevant to US-Russia relations

18 Nov

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Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot editor

Nov 17, 2017

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After a full year of Donald Trump as president, the “swamp water” in Washington is indeed beginning to recede, exposing deplorables in both political parties.

In an ironic turn of events, it would seem the Russian-Trump “collusion” apparition, which Democrats have vigorously labored to propagate (without a shred of evidence) has morphed into a Russian-Clinton collusion investigation in which evidence is quickly mounting.

Despite the liberal, mainstream media virtually ignoring the so-called “Uranium One” scandal, it appears it may have been integral to Russia, indeed, conspiring to influence our 2016 presidential election, but not as progressives would have you believe.

So, what is the relevance of the Uranium One deal?

In 2013, as reported by news outlets like Fox News and CNN, a Russian company, ROSATOM, acquired a Canadian uranium mining company, now called Uranium One, which has uranium assets in the U.S. The deal, approved by the Obama administration, reportedly gave Russia control of about 20 percent of U.S. uranium capacity.

Per their website, “The State Atomic Energy Corporation ROSATOM is one of the global technological leaders and one of the largest companies of the Russian Federation and largest taxpayers of the country.” It acquires nuclear power assets, mining approximately 3,000 tons of uranium domestically and is the largest electricity generating company in Russia, owning a large portfolio of foreign construction projects, including some in nations hostile to the U.S.

Now, liberal Democrats insist we should “move on, there’s nothing to see here,” based on the assertion the deal doesn’t allow any of the acquired uranium to leave the U.S. But that’s not to say Russia and her benefactors won’t profit from the deal.

Two weeks ago, as reported in a column by Adam Kredo, of The Washington Free Beacon, a Russian atomic energy corporation announced it has formally begun construction of a second nuclear power plant in Bushehr, Iran. This new plant, dubbed Bushehr-2, will be supplemental to the first plant Russia built for Iran in 2011, and will be equipped with the latest nuclear technology, per reports in Russia-controlled media.

Under Obama’s Iran nuclear deal, signed in 2015, Iran is permitted to construct new nuclear reactors and plants. So, guess who will be handling the deal to build the nuclear reactors in Iran? Russia’s ROSATOM corporation!

Beyond the obvious, potential collusion here, per recent reports in The Hill, the FBI has been reviewing the Uranium One agreement and uncovered some Russian nuclear industry officials engaging in nefarious dealings, to include extortion, bribery and political kickbacks, with possible connections to our old friends Hillary and Bill Clinton.

The House Oversight Committee is now reportedly considering investigating whether any criminal activity occurred regarding the Clinton-Russian connection. And CNS News reports that uranium mining deals in Kazakhstan, multimillion-dollar donations to the Clinton Foundation, and the U.S. government’s approved sale of Uranium One to a Russian state-owned company are now under investigation by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

With the political pendulum swinging the other way, what will further abatement of the murky swamp reveal? Time will tell, but it doesn’t look good for progressives.

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

 

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Mark Caserta: American Dream is within reach once again

12 Nov

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Mark Caserta:  Free State Patriot editor

Nov 10, 2017

 

best flag

 

The so-called American Dream is something to which most people have aspired at some point in their life. While it means something different to everyone, its pursuit is something our Founding Fathers felt was worth protecting.

The Declaration of Independence states early in its text, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.”

Conservatives consider this particularly important because we believe our rights truly come from God, not man. Yet, the ever fallible man often seems to overvalue these rights for ourselves while undervaluing them for others. I’m dismayed at the lack of engagement by individuals in societal issues until they’re impacted directly. This sort of short-sightedness has allowed the progressive movement far too much success in America.

In fact, I submit the American Dream, which for many of us includes the freedom to worship, honor our flag and pray to our God, all openly, has been desperately attacked by those whose progressive dream lacks these virtues. And if eight years of the Obama administration taught us nothing else, we learned how quickly even the mightiest of nations will falter beneath the weight of liberal leaders with socialist tendencies.

For some retrospection, I recently read a 2014 column by Simone Pathe, of “PBS NewsHour,” titled “Why half of U.S. adults no longer believe in the American dream.” The column shared data collected at the time by the annual American Values Survey showing nearly half of Americans, who once believed in the American Dream (defined as the belief that if you work hard, you’ll get ahead), thought it no longer existed.

Fast-forward to a column last week by Samantha Smith of the Pew Research Center titled “Most think the ‘American dream’ is within reach for them,” which revealed an entirely different, optimistic perspective. This column stated that despite persistently “low levels of public satisfaction” with the state of the nation, most Americans (82 percent) believe they’ve achieved the American Dream or are on their way to achieving it.

The state of the union and the mindset toward achieving the American Dream is dramatically improving per every economic indicator under the Trump administration. Unemployment is falling, manufacturing is returning to the U.S., the stock market is at an all-time high, GDP is on the incline, the EPA is being reined in, our enemies once again fear us while our allies are learning to trust us again, and our military is regaining global prominence.

Despite these facts, liberals seem to be working frantically to keep our focus elsewhere. Don’t forget, the same people who are trying to convince you President Trump’s approval ratings are tanking are the same ones who told you Hillary would win in a landslide!

Liberals may choose to reverie in their progressive nightmare, but most Americans are enlivened by the new spirit we’ve embraced as a nation.

The American Dream is once again reality.

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Mark Caserta: Sanctuary cities affect sovereignty, safety

5 Nov

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Mark Caserta:  Free State Patriot editor

Nov 3, 2017

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Opening statements began last week in the case of Katie Steinle, 32, who was killed as she strolled along the San Francisco waterfront with her father. Steinle was fatally shot by a homeless illegal immigrant who had returned to the U.S. multiple times illegally.

Per multiple news sources, including Fox News, Steinle’s father delivered an emotional testimony, sharing Katie’s ardent plea, “Help me, dad,” as her last words.

Two days after Steinle was killed, then-presidential candidate Donald Trump unleashed a scathing statement on the shooting.

“This senseless and totally preventable act of violence committed by an illegal immigrant is yet another example of why we must secure our border immediately,” he said. “This is an absolutely disgraceful situation, and I am the only one that can fix it. Nobody else has the guts to even talk about it. This won’t happen if I become president.”

Trump was, no doubt, referencing the role of “so-called” sanctuary cities, ignoring federal immigration law and providing aid and protection for illegals entering our country.

San Francisco, for example, passed an ordinance in 1989 prohibiting city employees, funds or resources from assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in enforcing federal immigration law. If an illegal was identified through contact such as an arrest, ICE was not to be notified, protecting them from possible deportation.

Since becoming president, Trump has been delivering on his promise to the American people by helping enforce current immigration law. National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd reports a “miraculous” drop in illegal immigration under the Trump administration, per Fox Business.

Within a week following being sworn into office, President Trump ignited a firestorm when he signed an executive order designed to crack down on sanctuary cities and “jurisdictions” that harbor illegal immigrants by stripping them of federal grant money. The order, by the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, directs the Office of Management and Budget to compile federal grant money going to the sanctuary districts.

Aside from cities, at least five states, California, Oregon, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Vermont, have “enacted laws that limit how much police can contribute assistance to federal immigration agents,” according to the New York Times. The Times also noted it’s difficult to determine just how many cities offer sanctuary for illegals, since some do not have an official ordinance or policy in place.

“Unfortunately, over the last several decades, respect for the rule of law has broken down and immigration enforcement has been sacrificed for the sake of political expediency,” said Attorney Jeff Sessions in a statement released by the White House this month.

There is no “up side” for protecting illegal immigrants in our country, beyond the Democrats’ political ambition for creating a dependable voter base. And frankly, they’re willing to do so at the expense of our nation’s sovereignty and our citizens’ safety.

Any sanctuary states, cities and/or jurisdictions found guilty of breaking federal law should be held accountable, financially, and the leaders responsible should face criminal charges. Anything less compromises the rule of law.

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

 

 

 

 

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Pat Buchanan: ‘The real indictment here is of the American political system’

31 Oct

THAT OTHER PLOT – TO BRING DOWN TRUMP

PAT 1

 

Well over a year after the FBI began investigating “collusion” between the Trump campaign and Vladimir Putin, Special Counsel Robert Mueller has brought in his first major indictment.

Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort has been charged with a series of crimes dating back years, though none is tied directly to President Donald Trump or 2016.

With a leak to CNN that indictments were coming, Mueller’s office stole the weekend headlines. This blanketed the explosive news on a separate front, as the dots began to be connected on a bipartisan plot to bring down Trump that began two years ago.

And like “Murder of the Orient Express,” it seems almost everyone on the train had a hand in the plot.

The narrative begins in October 2015.

Then it was that the Washington Free Beacon, a neocon website, engaged a firm of researchers called Fusion GPS to do deep dirt-diving into Trump’s personal and professional life – and take him out.

A spinoff of Bill Kristol’s The Weekly Standard, the Beacon is run by his son-in-law. And its Daddy Warbucks is the GOP oligarch and hedge-fund billionaire Paul Singer.

From October 2015 to May 2016, Fusion GPS dug up dirt for the neocons and never-Trumpers. By May, however, Trump had routed all rivals and was the certain Republican nominee.

So the Beacon bailed, and Fusion GPS found two new cash cows to finance its dirt-diving – the DNC and the Clinton campaign.

To keep the sordid business at arm’s length, both engaged the party’s law firm of Perkins Coie. Paid $12.4 million by the DNC and Clinton campaign, Perkins used part of this cash hoard to pay Fusion GPS.

Here is where it begins to get interesting.

In June 2016, Fusion GPS engaged a British spy, Christopher Steele, who had headed up the Russia desk at MI6, to ferret out any connections between Trump and Russia.

Steele began contacting old acquaintances in the FSB, the Russian intelligence service. And the Russians began to feed him astonishing dirt on Trump that could, if substantiated, kill his candidacy.

Among the allegations was that Trump had consorted with prostitutes at a Moscow hotel, that the Kremlin was blackmailing him, that there was provable collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

In memos from June to October 2016, Steele passed this on to Fusion GPS, which passed it on to major U.S. newspapers. But as the press was unable to verify it, they declined to publish it.

Steele’s final product, a 35-page dossier, has been described as full of “unsubstantiated and salacious allegations.”

Steele’s research, however, had also made its way to James Comey’s FBI, which was apparently so taken with it that the bureau considered paying Steele to continue his work.

About this “astonishing” development, columnist Byron York of the Washington Examiner quotes Sen. Chuck Grassley:

“The idea that the FBI and associates of the Clinton campaign would pay Mr. Steele to investigate the Republican nominee for president in the run-up to the election raises … questions about the FBI’s independence from politics, as well as the Obama administration’s use of law enforcement and intelligence agencies for political ends.”

The questions begin to pile up.

What was the FBI’s relationship with the British spy who was so wired into Russian intelligence?

Did the FBI use the information Steele dug up to expand its own investigation of Russia-Trump “collusion”? Did the FBI pass what Steele unearthed to the White House and the National Security Council?

Did the Obama administration use the information from the Steele dossier to justify unmasking the names of Trump officials who had been picked up on legitimate electronic intercepts?

In testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Clinton campaign chair John Podesta and DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz claimed they did not know that Perkins Coie had enlisted Fusion GPA or the British spy to dig up dirt on Trump.

Yet, when Podesta testified, the lawyer sitting beside him in the committee room was Marc Elias of Perkins Coie, who had engaged Fusion GPS and received the fruits of Steele’s undercover work.

Here one is tempted to cite Bismarck that, if you wish to enjoy politics or sausages, you should not inquire too closely how they are made.

Thus we have Free Beacon neocons, never-Trump Republicans, the Hillary Clinton campaign, the DNC, a British spy and comrades in Russian intelligence, and perhaps the FBI, all working with secret money and seedy individuals to destroy a candidate they could not defeat in a free election.

If future revelations demonstrate that this is what went down, it is not only the White House that has major problems.

If you wish to know why Americans detest politics and hate the “swamp” that has been made of their capital city, follow this story all the way to its inevitable end. It will be months of unfolding.

The real indictment here is of the American political system, and the true tragedy is the decline of the Old Republic.

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Mark Caserta: Liberals affected by Trump Derangement Syndrome

28 Oct

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Mark Caserta:  Free State Patriot editor

Oct 27, 2017

hillary and trump

So-called “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” or TDS, seems to have infected the minds of liberals across the land. While apparently impacting the brain and central nervous system, I believe it’s critically impairing the left’s ability to reason or comprehend facts.

The Center for Advanced Conservative Studies is said to be working to determine if TDS is indeed responsible for liberals laboring to undermine, either willingly or unknowingly, everything President Trump intends to accomplish on behalf of the American people during his presidency.

Many fear we may not arrive at a viable cure for this debilitating disease until the 2018 midterm elections.

But seriously folks, at what point will liberals be willing to set aside their intolerant hatred of President Trump on behalf of the American people? For progressives, it isn’t about improving the livelihood of millions of Americans; it’s about destroying one man – Donald J. Trump!

Case in point: It appears liberal Democrats will be unwilling to vote for tax reform and lower taxes for the American people, despite the Tax Foundation reporting that taxes cost Americans more out-of-pocket than they collectively spend on housing, clothing and food – combined! What an audacious disregard for the American taxpayer!

Ironically, this past Sunday was the anniversary of former president Reagan signing into law his successful Tax Reform Act of 1986. This was the second major law he signed reforming the tax code for the American people. It was a time when Republicans and Democrats came together to work for all Americans.

Now, over 30 years later, President Trump seeks to live up to his promise to historically reduce taxes and simplify the burdensome tax system for millions of Americans. In a speech to the Heritage Foundation, President Trump outlined his new plan along with highlighting a few substantial successes he’s already had on behalf of Americans.

“In the nine months since I took office as president, we have removed intrusive, job-killing regulations at a record pace.” Trump said. “We are leaving lopsided international deals that hurt America, like the Trans-Pacific Partnership and Paris Climate Accord. We have unleashed American energy by ending the war on coal and approving major projects like the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines. And earlier this month, I signed an executive order to take important steps to free our people from the grip of Obamacare.”

The president went on to share that unemployment was at a 16-year low, wages are rising, manufacturing confidence is higher, the stock market is soaring, and GDP growth has climbed to more than 3 percent – a feat never achieved under his predecessor.

“The optimism has returned – the sun is once again rising over America,” the president proudly proclaimed.

But even as President Trump works on behalf of hard-working families, those infected with TDS are choosing to allow the hatred of one man to supersede their love of country.

So, given the American people are coming off eight years of liberal oppression, I’m confident patriots won’t rest until a cure is found for this progressive disease.

For now, President Trump’s successes are offsetting this liberal disorder.

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Mark Caserta: GOP establishment in lockstep with Democrats

20 Oct

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Mark Caserta:  Free State Patriot editor

Oct 20, 2017

 

GOP LOGO

No matter what moral, ethical or political perspective we espouse, we’re eventually exposed by actions that openly offend us. Unfortunately, for many Americans, that’s where we find ourselves with some members of the so-called GOP establishment.

It would seem that many in the Republican Party are in lockstep with liberal Democrats in choosing to demonstrate their resentment of President Trump by impeding him from returning America to greatness.

I’m confident this rebuke of the voters’ authoritative mandate given in the last few election cycles will be the undoing of the Republican Party, unless it institutes a course change soon. Continuing down this path could result in an aggressive push for a viable third political party by millions of Americans weary of representatives being more interested in personal victories than in constituents.

I admit, early in the Republican primary, I was concerned about a Trump presidency. At one point, I would’ve chosen any of the other GOP candidates as our presidential nominee. I suppose I had my own pre-conceived notion as to what it would take to steer our nation away from the debilitating path of progressivism under the Obama administration.

But, as more Republicans expose themselves to Americans as being more concerned with personal vendetta and power over public service, the more I’m convinced Donald J. Trump was the only man for the 2016 presidency.

Honestly, does anyone believe we needed another politically correct politician negotiating with other politically correct politicians? Where has that gotten us the past few elections? In many regards, we haven’t seen a true champion for the American people since Ronald Reagan.

But President Trump is becoming the people’s champion by proving he isn’t concerned with political correctness or bowing to special interest groups. The only political debt Donald Trump owes is to the American people by fulfilling his promises.

Now, I realize that fulfilling a promise is an abstract concept for many politicians. But for a man who realizes integrity and honoring one’s word is prerequisite to success in life, President Trump is willing to do what it takes to make it happen, despite being burdened by a feckless Congress.

Last week, frustrated over Congress’ failure to repeal and replace Obamacare, President Trump signed an executive order making it easier for people to purchase affordable healthcare and restricting the Obamacare mandates.

Several news outlets, including The New York Post, reported the president as saying, the order “directs the Department of Health and Human Services, the Treasury, and the Department of Labor, to take action to increase competition, increase choice, and increase access to lower-priced, high-quality health care options and people will have great, great health care.”

Despite what corrupt politicians would have you believe, this isn’t complicated.

Politicians apply for a job. We hire them via an interview process. Do good work, great! Do poor work, goodbye! Anything more is political pandering.

Here’s an ironic bottom line worth remembering for Congress. President Trump is giving you more opportunity now than voters will in 2018.

Time to clock in. You’re very late for work.

 

 

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

 

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Mark Caserta: Winning with Trump is good for America

13 Oct

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Mark Caserta:  Free State Patriot editor

October 13, 2017

 

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Despite the constant barrage of negativity from the left and a fervent liberal attempt to portray the Trump administration as being in “chaos,” the number of wins President Trump is having for the American people is truly astounding.

And he’s just getting started.

Forget for a moment that all liberals espouse is formularized Russian collusion, a nonsensical focus on the Trump family and exacerbated stories maligning Trump’s “political incorrectness,” and let’s look at the successes our president is having on behalf of Americans.

President Trump hit the ground running with his “America first” agenda giving voice to those who felt completely suckered by the Washington “swamp.”

In under a year, Donald J. Trump has returned the United States to prominence as the most powerful and respected nation in the world. Converse to the prior administration, our enemies now fear us and our allies are beginning to trust us.

Thanks to an aggressive new strategy led by President Trump, ISIS has been effectively engaged and is on the verge of total annihilation along with their aspirations of a global caliphate, per U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis.

“ISIS is on the run and they have been shown to be unable to stand up to our team, have not retaken one inch of ground,” Mattis told reporters during a briefing in Baghdad. Mattis went on to say the defeat of ISIS is now imminent and he is confident U.S.-backed Iraqi forces will finish off fighters in their last remaining strongholds.

Via Trump’s leadership, the administration has successfully created international unity in applying pressure on North Korea’s nuclear proliferation aspirations. This unity includes an unprecedented partnership with China in applying economic sanctions on the rogue nation.

And the significant reduction in the number of illegal border crossers between the U.S. and Mexico is “nothing short of miraculous,” according to National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd.

“As far as the Trump administration’s efforts on immigration, this is something they campaigned heavily on,” Judd said in a C-SPAN interview. “At six months, where we are on meeting those promises, we are seeing nothing short of miraculous.” Judd went on to credit Trump’s “rhetoric” as being a significant deterrent to illegals.

Bringing jobs back to America was a cornerstone of the Trump presidential campaign. During his first week in office the president met with leaders of some of the nation’s unions and top manufacturing companies. Today, CEOs and other leaders from more than two dozen companies make up President Trump’s Manufacturing Jobs Initiative which plans to create 25 million American jobs over the next decade.

As President Trump strategically reverses the Obama-era “job killing” EPA regulations, we’re now seeing jobs return to our area. Wage earners will once again be able to step out from under the government umbrella and into the workforce.

And securing a conservative Supreme Court is simply icing on the cake.

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Mark Caserta: We need to see people through God’s eyes

7 Oct
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Mark Caserta:  Free State Patriot editor
October 6, 2017
bible 3

At times in life, it’s beneficial to look beyond issues that will eventually pass and search for purposes which have eternal connotation. Indeed, there are daily quandaries needing addressed, but not forgetting that Jesus called Christians to be a “light unto the world.”

I was driving home from church last Sunday, when scanning the radio, I came upon a pastor whose message dealt with the obstacle of “religion” in society. He was relaying a story about an incident in their sanctuary, years before becoming a much larger church.

“We were a much smaller church at that time, probably around 150 members,” the pastor said. “At that size, we pretty much knew everyone, so it was easy to recognize a visitor. I recall during my message, one morning, a young man entered the back of the building, a bit disheveled, pants drooping, wearing a ball cap turned sideways.” The pastor perceived this young man had entered the sanctuary with some trepidation, maybe even some fear.

He continued. “When the music began and everyone stood to worship, the young man initially didn’t stand. He seemed uncomfortable and out of place. But, eventually he stood with the others.”

A few minutes into the singing, the pastor said he saw an usher approach the young man, which made him feel good. He had hoped someone would reach out to make him feel comfortable. After watching a brief interaction between the visitor and the usher, he was puzzled to see the man, with a discouraged look on his face, turn and leave.

After service, he was anxious to learn what had happened. He was burdened for the lost and was disappointed the young man had left. As he approached the rear of the church, he inquired of a friend, who had been near enough to hear the conversation, what had happened.

His friend told him the usher had said, “Excuse me, but I’m going to have to ask you to remove your hat.” The young man didn’t understand. He asked, “Why?” The usher responded, “Because you’re in a house of worship and it isn’t respectful.”

The pastor was heartbroken.

I was moved by this story. I was angry at the usher and hurt for the young man who had likely entered the church seeking hope and maybe a friend. He’d taken a step of faith toward a new life, but was coldly stripped of the opportunity – because of a hat.

In Mark, Jesus said, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

How many souls have we kept from Heaven because they didn’t “meet our requirements”? How many sinners seeking the Truth have been rejected by manufactured doctrine?

We’re not called to judge and narrow the path to righteousness. We’re called to share the Gospel.

 Jesus loves this young man so much, he died for him.
Let God change their lives!

So, is your church door open to all, or only those who pass inspection?

I pray God will help us see people through His eyes – not our own.

 

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Mark Caserta: Our planet in peril from progressives, not global warming

29 Sep

me

Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot editor

Sep 29, 2017

 

The myth of “man-made” global warming may be the largest progressive hoax ever perpetrated on mankind. The climate may be changing, but it’s not because of your SUV.

John Coleman, a former television weather forecaster who worked in the meteorological field for over six decades and pioneered the use of TV weather forecasting elements such as onscreen satellite technology and computer graphics, agrees.

“Global Warming is a SCAM.” Coleman wrote in a 2007, widely-reproduced essay on global warming.

“It is the greatest scam in history. I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long-term scientific data back in the late 1990s to create an illusion of rapid global warming.

Coleman asserts in his essay that like-minded scientists “jumped into the environmental circle” manufacturing a false consensus designed to support and broaden “research” propagating the “totally slanted, bogus global warming claims” to steer huge research grants their way.

Mr. Coleman isn’t alone. Reputable scientists, as well as hundreds of meteorologists, openly refute the idea of manmade global warming or “anthropogenic global warming,” with some very solid research available online.

One such well-known scientist is founder of the Creation Museum and The Ark Encounter, creationist Ken Ham. A 2014 column in Salon, by Lindsay Abrams, shares Ham’s views.

“Yes, the climate is changing, but it’s not a result of human activity.”

“Starting from the Bible, we know that there was a global flood a few thousand years ago that completely changed Earth’s surface and climate, and that the earth is still settling down from this catastrophe,” Ham said in a blog post. “So, we should expect there to be some variations in climate change, but this is not alarming and is not the direct result of modern human activity.”

Yet, environmentalists seem less concerned with facts than they do perpetuating a myth that lines their pockets with grant money, compliments of your tax dollars.

But recently, in a refreshing show of leadership, President Trump saved Americans millions of dollars by reaffirming his intention with the United Nations to fulfill his campaign pledge to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement.

Given the fraudulent nature of man-made climate change, The Heritage Foundation correctly assesses the top reasons for U.S. withdrawal.

The Paris Agreement is highly costly and would do nil to address climate change. If carried out, the energy regulations agreed upon by the Obama administration would destroy thousands of American jobs.

Withdrawal is good for American energy competitiveness. “We’re seeing jobs coming back,” according to a spokesman for the National Mining Association. “We’re seeing mines open in states from West Virginia, Kentucky, all the way to Pennsylvania. We’ve seen coal production coming back about 20 percent year over year ” since President Trump was elected.

Yes, earth’s climate is changing – it always has. But mankind’s activities haven’t overwhelmed or significantly impacted nature’s order.

Our planet isn’t in peril from mankind, only from progressives who would seize control of your money under the guise of environmental austerity.

 

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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