The Sanctuary Movement

     "Sanctuary once meant a holy place, or a place of refuge. 

     "The American sanctuary movement rewards criminality and endangers innocent citizens. Its history began in 1971 in Berkeley, California, when officials declared Berkeley a "City of Refuge" for draft dodgers. President Nixon was winding down the war in Vietnam. In 1985 the city passed a resolution obligating city "employes not to violate established sanctuaries," etc. 

Sean Davis, CEO The Federalist

     "These actions violated U.S. immigration law. War refugees seeking escape could be safe in Mexico, Venezuela or Columbia. They did not qualify for asylum here.

     "2021. The Biden administration threw federal immigration laws out the window. It federalized sanctuary city efforts, erasing the border and inviting anyone into the U.S. Migrants arrived, often with the aid of drug-cartel coyotes. Coached by lawyers from non-government organizations, they made claim, then released into the U.S. on their own, to appear in court years later. Ho hum.

     "What started as care for refugees in one city, became a global industry involving national governments, criminal syndicates and hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars a year. Every institution involved had a political or economic incentive to ensure a flow of migrants into the U.S. The immigration-industrial complex became a self-perpetuating machine. 

     "The second Trump administration reestablished secure borders and has attempted to begin deporting those who entered illegally. But efforts have been opposed at every turn, often violent, even when deporting the most dangerous illegal immigrants. Much of this involves state and city officials in the sanctuary movement. 

     "The U.S. Department of Justice calculated that 12 states and the District of Columbia - nearly a quarter of the country - had become sanctuaries. Albuquerque, Boston, New Orleans, Newark and Philadelphia have been designated as sanctuary cities. Cities and counties across the country - more than 200."

Continued tomorrow

 

Legal Battle - Two Victories

     Jack Phillips is a Colorado baker who fought his case to the U.S. Supreme Court...and won. As for his other victory...

     "Phillips was driving home from work in 1979 when he says God came into his car. He felt a presence so strong it was if another person was sitting next to him. 'Everything was good' in his life, he said, 'but when God came into my car...He convicted me of my sin. All the good things I was doing...weren't enough.'"

     "He remembers arguing with God, telling Him he could clean up his life, become a better person, and then become a Christian. But God said, No you can't. Phillips eventually surrendered, and 47 years later he still becomes emotional when he retells the story."

     "His wife Debbie also became a Christian, and their lives immediately changed. They attended church, volunteered in ministry, homeschooled their children, and oriented every aspect of their lives. When they started their own custom cake business, they decided to honor God with it." 

     "Phillips knows his case led to a reinforcement of religious freedom and free speech. He knows that generations of people around the world have followed Christ faithfully without First Amendment protections." 

     "Those things are important," he says. "But they'll be gone sooner or later. They don't matter. What matters is our relationship with Jesus and His desire to have a relationship with us. That's why He made us." 

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 Author of 835 Opinions

     Justice Clarence Thomas became the second-longest serving member of the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year. 

     President George H.W. Bush nominated Thomas to the court in 1991. During his 34 years on the bench, Thomas had authored 835 opinions by the end of June. His most cited majority opinion was a case involving discrimination in the workplace. 

Bekah Bernhardt, WORLD magazine

     Most of his majority opinions have involved economic disputes. He famously authored a court opinion in 2022 that upheld a right to bear firearms in public. Thomas also wrote a concurring opinion in the case overturning Roe v. Wade. During a speech, Thomas reflected on the meaning of the Declaration of Independence and how it has shaped his life and legal perspective. 

     He said, We should not forget that the Declaration established the principles that produced - despite all our imperfections, our miscues and our tragic mistakes - the freest, wealthiest and most powerful nation in the history of the world. 

     It (the Declaration) provided the moral principles by which Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King would criticize the institutions of slavery and segregation. 

     If Thomas, 77, remains on the bench until 2028, he may replace Justice William O. Douglas for longest Supreme Court career. 

                                                      We can learn much more on the internet   

What Never Fails?

     "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs." 

     "Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."

😌

     Recently, we blogged about loss of family 40 years ago. In my brokenness I took a large sheet and crayon, wrote from 1 Corinthians 13, and hung it on a wall in my apartment. I still love these verses. A few days later God's incredible love fell on this broken-hearted father. 

😌

     "But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears."

     "Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." 

     "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." 

                                     Written by the apostle Paul 

Washington Passes the Buck 

     We don't enjoy this, but maybe we need to know more truth in our politicians. 

     White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt - soon to leave Washington for a different work...mother of three children...listed nine examples of Democratic officials describing the president as fascist, dictator etc. For the record, in government it is possible to lie big time, but impossible with three independent branches - for one branch to serve like Marxists. So far. 

     President Trump has escaped three assassination attempts. 😟

     Many Republicans and Democrats blame each other for problems. A number of citizens in both parties think some violence could be acceptable. Our Constitution and many laws are designed to settle every case without the need for violence. Conservative and liberals blame each other. America wasn't formed for political parties. That lasted for eight years, until George Washington's terms ended.  

     Many lawmakers have received death threats. Can't they sustain policy criticism without personal criticism? "Boy, that's a problem in a free society," said a retired professor at George Washington U. 

     Sen. Cory Booker suggests, "Every American needs to choose whether he or she will add to the toxicity or be a healer." Sen. Thom Tillis calls "violent political rhetoric a bipartisan affliction." In the past several years he has received death threats over voicemail and threats to his home. Still, he rejects the presumption that toning down the rhetoric means not responding to intimidation tactics. "We just have different ideological worldviews." 

     The WORLD news reporter who wrote this memo said, "I can find as many examples of Republicans and conservatives saying (expletive) they shouldn't say as I can liberals." 

               Jimmy

 America Through the Years

                       Historian John Gordon on economic values. 

What enabled American economic flourishing?

     Simply freedom. People were free to take risks. 

America has been lucky?

     We're blessed with incredible geography. We front both the Atlantic and the Pacific. In 1940 the U.S. Army was smaller than the army of Belgium. 

How is the U.S. a different kind of world power? 

     We are the most powerful country because of wealth we created. We didn't take it. 

What else made us unique?

     Here, fortunes quickly get dispersed. None of the families of the Gilded Age are on the Forbes 400 list today.

The Wealth of Nations. Why is that important? 

     When power is distributed under the rule of law, you can create much more wealth. Individuals can do more creative things with wealth than governments can. 

What do people miss about economic history?

      The Bernie Sanders of this world seem to think if somebody gets richer then somebody else has to get poorer. Who is poorer because Jeff Bezos is so immensely rich? The whole country is much richer thanks to his bright ideas.

What concerns you about the U.S. economy today?

     The size of the national debt. In 1974, Congress passed the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act. The debt immediately began to spiral out of control. The money has been spent on getting senators and congressmen reelected. 

What makes you hopeful?

     I'm an optimist by nature. I'm not a very religious person, but the U.S. does indeed seem to have someone watching over us. 

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Exceptionally Rare 

     A woman in her twenties in Israel has made a full recovery after surgeons removed her entire sternum and sections of several ribs to extract an exceptionally rare tumor - one described in only 20 some cases worldwide. 

     Our friend in Israel, formerly of Pittsburgh, sent this article to us.     

     To rebuild her chest, surgeons designed and implanted a fully customized 3D-printed chest cage made from PEKK, a high-performance carbon fiber polymer used in the aerospace industry. It's the first procedure of its kind performed in Israel. 

     The implant was designed specifically for her anatomy, mimicking the strength and flexibility of natural bone while allowing surrounding tissue to gradually integrate with it over time.

     "Rare cases require creative solutions," said Dr. Yury Peysakhovich, head of thoracic surgery at Beilinson Hospital. 

     "The patient was discharged after several days and is recovering well. Israeli medicine, once again pushing the boundaries of what's possible," said a spokesperson for the hospital. 

                                  This story stands alone.