Have a Quiet Flight 

     What's that airplane with narrow wings and l...o...n...g nose?  

     The first "quiet" supersonic plane soared over California Oct. 28 on its inaugural test flight. NASA developed the X-59 on the mission to redevelop supersonic planes for commercial flights. 

     Supersonic planes can cover distances in half the time, but they cause thunder-like booms loud enough to cause property damage and hearing loss. So they say. 

     Our government banned civil supersonic flights over U.S. airspace in 1973. British Airways and Air France flew transatlantic commercial supersonic flights on the Concorde until 2003, phasing out the planes for economic and safety reasons. 

     President Trump lifted our ban on civil supersonic flight on the condition that they not create a boom audible on land. After eight years and $632 million, NASA's X-59 meets that requirement. The plane's shape is designed to reduce the sonic boom to a thump. NASA compares the thump to the sound of a car door being slammed. 

     Two other companies are developing their own commercial supersonic planes. 

      Here at Views we wonder, what's the hurry for trans-Atlantic commercial flights? We can imagine a military use for supersonic planes, maybe in our lifetime, or in 50 years, or never. Note: B-52s are subsonic, as are B-2s, stealth, not speed.

             Jimmy

       

 Author Unknown

"Lord, Thou knowest better than I know that I am growing older.

Keep me from getting too talkative and thinking I must say

something on every subject and on every occasion. 

Release me from craving to straighten out everybody's affairs. 

Teach me the glorious lesson that occasionally 

it is possible that I may be mistaken.

Make me thoughtful, but not moody; helpful but not bossy. 

Thou knowest, Lord, that what I want is a few friends at the end."  

 Welcome Revival 

     "Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds - John 12:24."

     The spiritual awakening among Gen Z reminds us of the Great Revival of 1904-1905. It spread across the earth, beginning at a small youth group meeting in Wales. 

     Drunkenness was cut in half, and many taverns went bankrupt. Judges had no cases of murder, assault, rape or robbery. Local police became unemployed in some districts. Many foul-mouth miners stopped using foul language, and horses which hauled coal trucks could no longer understand what was being said to them. 

     French philosopher Voltaire (1694-1778) predicted that Christianity would be forgotten within 30 years. The Spirit fell first in the cities of Yorkshire in 1791. It spread throughout Britain, and William Wilberforce nearly single-handed turned the slave trade. 

     No one wakes up in the morning and decides to back-slide. It happens slowly and unawares. 

     C.T. Studd (1860-1931): "Only one life, 'twill soon be past. Only what's done for Christ will last." Think Charlie Kirk. 

WORLD magazine

Battle for Nigeria's Soul 

And Somalia's Friend in Congress

     Islamic extremists want to drive half the population - Christians - out of the country...killing many in the process. Why should we care? 

     Local military commanders are Muslim. Local police commanders are Muslim. Government officials reportedly knew about an attack, but never acted to prevent it. There is a Muslim president and Muslim vice president. 

     Nigeria is about evenly split between Christians and Muslims, but the numbers are shifting. Nigeria's crisis causes international concern. But Nigerian authorities have denied that any persecution is happening. A nonprofit society claims Islamists murdered more than 7,000 Christians and kidnapped 7,800 others from January to August. 

     "If extremist Islamic ideology continues to spread," says an African journalist, "it will change the country. Terrorist sentiments will over time make Nigeria like Yemen...like Afghanistan." 

     Muslim sentiments in Michigan and Minnesota are not what our founders had in mind. Oh, wait - freedom for all.

     So, "Miss" Omar, Muslim U.S. representative in Minnesota, married four men recently, one of which may have been her brother, to sneak him into the US. Now with husband # 4, her net worth (not his) rose in one year from $65,000 to $30 million. We thought their governor was sad enough. Then he overlooked taxpayer money going to Somalia, presumably to keep the Somalian voter block in his pocket. 

            Jimmy 

Rare Earth Minerals

     You have some in your smart phone.

     Much has developed since the discovery of oil in the late 1800s. Now we're seeking, finding, using and negotiating with China over tons of "rare earth minerals." Each advancement in human activity comes with its problems. The global economy itself could be disrupted.

     The U.S. relies on China (our friendly enemy) for 70 percent of our rare earth imports. Many technologies wouldn't exist without them, including smart phones, electric vehicles, missile guidance systems and some cancer therapies. 

Heather Frank, WORLD magazine

     The minerals aren't rare, but discovering unique chemical and physical properties in concentrated forms is costly. These metals are critical to sectors of U.S. and global economies. We depend on them for clean energy, LED lighting, and military equipment. 

     China took over the market in the 1990s when U.S. companies began offshoring processing, in response to environmental restrictions here at home. Cheap labor and heavy government subsidization boosted China's output. China now controls over 90 percent of global refining and 60 percent of production.  

     Some companies - Toyota and BMW - developed technologies to reduce or eliminate need for rare earth. In July, the War Department invested $400 million in a company in Nebraska, the only U.S. site for mining. Nine departments of the War Department awarded $10 million in contracts. 

Any questions?

     

Knowing Jesus, not About Jesus 

     Knowing someone partially isn't the same as knowing them completely. Many believers - me included - have a similar relationship with Jesus. They've received Him as Savior, but they haven't fully received Him as deliverer, healer, provider and protector. 

     It's like having his phone number for emergencies but never really getting to know Him as a friend. When you face financial stress ... when you're sick ... when you are in danger. This isn't about replacing practical wisdom with spiritual platitudes. It's about recognizing that Jesus wants to be involved in every area of your life. 

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     In my late 40s, a husband, father, Sunday School teacher, faithful employee...my first wife wanted me out. That meant out of regular touch with our children. Already, my job and apartment were 50 miles or so from home. 

     I went into a stress like never before. Two months went by. I prayed like never before, without hearing anything back. Coworkers put up with me. My health was in decline. I prayed, asking - no - demanding Jesus tell me if He is really the truth. (be careful about demanding)

     The first Sunday night in January 1987, I opened my car door to return to my apartment - when the joy of the Holy Spirit came over me like a storm. I drove up the highway laughing, crying, and pounding the steering wheel. 

     That lasted three weeks, not so wild, and my happy/sad life went on for many months. Today, the kids and my second wife and I are all doing well. Thank you, Jesus. 

 About the Vowels 

     We have 31 state names that end with a vowel > a e i o. None end with u. 19 states end with "a." Twelve end in "e, i, o."  

     What drew us into this colossal study was a map of a Japanese "state." Every city and county name ends with a vowel. Is the whole nation like that? Tokyo is, and Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 

About Ineligible Names 

     Judicial Watch went to court, resulting in removal of over 5 million ineligible names from voter registration roles in Pennsylvania, Colorado, Indiana, New York City, North Carolina, Kentucky, Florida, West Virginia, and Missouri. JW is suing California, Illinois and Oregon over failures to clean it up.

     If this company didn't work to prevent voter fraud, who would? Apparently, the National Voter Registration Act doesn't get much attention in many states. Millions of voters are moving from one state to another for various reasons. Keeping records should be a full-time job. 

About the Day  

     "If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames."

                                   1 Corinthians 3:12-15."