A Good Review

I've received many nice comments on my books. Then there are times when a reader really connects with the stories I portray. 

My first book, "A Time And Place, The Making Of An Immigrant" exposes the hard times a family has without a father, the bread winner, in the home. My father was sent to the Russian front in 1944 and never returned. Missing In Action, they said.

This prompted me to write a novel Red Solstice imagining my father was not killed but had a chance to make a new life, such was allowed under Communist Rule.

Here is a summary of why I wrote the book:

Red Solstice is a unique work of fiction because of the relationship of the author with the main character and the time and setting of the story. The anxiety of not knowing what happened to his father weighed heavy on the heart of the author for decades. This, coupled with the experience of immigrating to the United States as a teen and flourishing in American freedom, contributes to a personal investment and passion for the story seldom found in today's fiction.

The main character is the author's father, who was thrust into service by a desperate Third Reich, from which he never returned to his family.  Missing in action.  Red Solstice tells the tale of this soldier—his suffering, desperation, and indomitable spirit. In so doing, the novel communicates a sharp warning that complacency and dependency on a political system can lead to tyranny.

The following comment by a reader highlights the essence of the novel.

Dear Mr. Beisser,I just finished reading “Red Solstice”,a remarkable book, very moving. I could not put it down, it was fascinating, thrilling, very emotional. There are so many truthful facts--- Russia, the poverty, secrecy, dominance --- a lot of it so true. Coming back to Germany, adjusting to a new life – what a challenge!Then at the end --- Berlin, the wall, the terror --- I remember so much of it.It is a wonderful story and definitely could have happened.What you told abut Russia,I heard from my Dad who was a POW in World War I  in Murmansk, and he escaped after 2 years, walking home almost all the way!----Both books have brought back so many memories,good and sad. I am very happy to have met you, and was able to read these great books.Please, stay in touch! Friederike

To download or order Click here: BOOKS

This Beats Chicken and Fries

In Munich a snack is served on a wooden plank. Not that they don't have any dishes, but to bring the food down to earth. Food on a wooden slab automatically makes it local. It eliminates from your brain words like "processed", or words like "vacuum packed". When you see food on a wooden plank you don't worry about a little stamp that says "Best before a certain date."

What do you think about that? Lipsmacking beautiful! A culinary master peace! Look at the complimentary colors! Van Gogh would have savored this! The health nuts would be awed until they discovered the heart of the offering.

Starting on the left, crisp lettuce enhanced with a dab of pimento cheese joyfully pricked by a few pretzel sticks. An array of sliced accompaniment of red and green onions, tomatoes, and the famous Munich beer radish, sprinkled with Feta Cheese keeps pouring on the mouth smacking enticement.

Now, on the right side of the wooden platter is where the proteins hit the cheese. There is sliced smoked ham and local Wurst piled on top of headcheese. The chunks of pig snouts, tongue and jowlels are waiting to be devoured with buttered rye bread chased with a hunk of pickle. Deeply smoked and dried Landjager provide an increased sensation to the already feverish tastebuds. Of course, under all is an ample layer of sliced cheeses to what we call in German "to close the stomach." 

 To make a COMMENT on Facebook Click here   Scroll to this post.

AMERICA

We just came home from seeing the movie AMERICA. As an immigrant I could not help but cry on several points that were brought to light.

I've been here almost sixty years. In those years our country has changed. Has it changed for the better?

I'm not a scholar on history, but I've lived long enough to know that this country is dying. Not only is it dying spiritually but also in heart. So many folks are clueless about their own history. Clueless as what is going on, and what is pushed in the media, and in their schools and universities.

There is a pervasive underhandedness in our Government that Hitler would have been proud of. A slow dismantling of the free spirit so vital to the building of this country. This dumbing down, and the culture of dependency, is now after 50 years coming to fruition.

God has become Santa Clause. The worship of self is supreme. Freedom has become to mean free stuff. Capitalism is now a dirty word. Economics (not taught anywhere, except as an elective in college) is a non issue. Who needs economics when there is no downfall of spending more than you make. Why make a budget? Government is there to send you a check when you get in the hole. For that matter, why work at all? There are too many millionaire that need to cough up more.

Even my own family has no time for factual documentaries like the film "2016". Or the movie "The Last Once Of Courage". I will recommend to see the movie AMERICA. But, I know what I will hear, "No time, too busy, everything is fine."

Everything is not fine. We have been dumbed down for too long. Our last Great Hope is still alive. One country, under God, indivisible, with justice for all. . . Is it?

To make a COMMENT on Facebook Click here   Scroll to this post.

The Washington Butterflies

The Washington Butterflies. What a beautiful, politically correct name for a football team.

You must admit that nobody will be offended by the name. Just think there are enough attributes to the butterfly so every player on the team would be able to emulate at least one.

I can see the football team's players want to flutter like butterflies. Happily dance like them. Butterflies float in the breeze. They are endowed with beautiful colors. They tenderly land on flowers as not to hurt them. Butterflies are not aggressive. They don't need protective gear for they all love each other.

Wouldn't you want to pay $75 to see a football team with an attitude that matches their politically correct name? THE BUTTERFLIES––gentle, soft, all loving.

What fun to sit with people all dressed in pinks and purples, slathered with sunscreen and sipping only 8 oz size drinks.

DO YOU KNOW WHY THEY CALLED THEM THE WASHINGTON REDSKINS in the first place?
Because it is an honor to be called a Redskin.

The American Indian is fearless. He has proven to withstand whatever nature throws at him. The American Indian is a warrior. He is strong, cunning and aggressive. He is tough, rugged and resilient.

A football team named The Indians is a refection of their prowess. It is a man thing––after all, we are talking about a man's game.

Racism

Racism

I think our government is the worst offender, and perpetrator of this farce called Racism.

Every government form you have to fill out asks of your race. I have started to enter “American” and no one has ever challenged me; yet.

After all, If just one of my ancestors, back in the 1700s, were to be a Chinese, would I be an Oriental. According to our government I would be. I base this on the fact that no matter how long ago a person who had an African ancestor, that person is always registered as Black. I know many so called Blacks who are whiter in skin color than my folks back in Germany and they are still referred to as Black in this country.

This is a game. A vicious game by politicians to keep animosity stirred. The point is, if you are in a so-called Minority there are benefits due to you. All you have to do is keep that “Chip On Your Shoulder” and you qualify.

Would it not be nice if all American citizens simply be called Americans. Then all other classes could be identified as either Visitors, Guest Workers, Illegals, etc.

One of the fallouts of keeping racism alive is the dumbing down of white men. Just notice, whenever a commercial needs a jerk in the add, it is always a white guy. Whenever a commercial needs a clueless guy, it is a white guy. Whenever a fat slob is needed, it is a white guy. If fat kid is pointed out, it is always a fat white kid. It even goes to the extent of showing a white guy breaking into a house on a Home Security commercial. You know why the ad agencies choose whites. They can’t cry “Racism.”

So, I challenge our government to call all Americans “Americans” and do not classify anyone by race.

Just think, if the Media were not allowed to call, or differentiate, simply by color of skin. Or, if it were illegal while taking a survey, or a census, to ask your race? The Government would be able to lay off a gazillion folks who just play with those numbers. 

It would shut up the race mongers and keep them from stuffing their pockets. It would mend the division of Americans. It would keep politicians from catering to certain folks while antagonizing others. I think America would be a better place if describing the looks of people by race were illegal.

To make a COMMENT on Facebook Click here   Scroll to the post "Racism"

Ear Buds vs Tree Buds

In the past I've made statements like, "I remember when one could hear a bee buzz twenty feet away and could not see it. Today one can see a bee three feet away and cannot hear it."

It is not only the drone of incidental noise in the air that contributes to not hearing, but also loud music, home entertainment, and being self-absorbed in gratifications.

"Stop and smell the roses," has more than one meaning. I know one can bend over and smell a rose, but does anyone see it for its beauty. The same for running, stop, take a deep breath and actually commune with God's creation.

A jogger may run right past blooming dogwoods and simply say,"Ah, nice white." Then just keep moving on.

As we run through life we miss the beauty that is free to see and enjoy. We run with our head down afraid to make eye contact as not to be forced to engage in a greeting, and Lord forbid, a conversation.

Look what one can see if we only slowed enough to walk:

All of a suden we see a painting, a composition, hear a tune in your heart. You have switched from self to something outside of yourself. Realizing you say, "What about that!"

Gee . . . you've stopped running. Now you've made eye contact with nature, a non-threatening image. An image one can easily smile at. You feel free - at ease. You realize this is what is missing in your life. "Be still and know that I am God . . . Ps 46:10" The Scripture says.

Uninhibited, you will want to get close. You will absorb something into your soul that has not entered for selfish reasons. You are open. "Speak to me," you say. 

So is it with God. Quit running, dismantle yourself, and listen.

Relationships

A Point Of View

Being in a relationship could have and does have various meanings.

As I look back just a few decades, I see the secular influence now on our culture. I do not travel, as one would say, in a world where new and crude words are used. I hear enough, however, to make me cringe at the ease of which the media and the younger folks use foul and suggestive language.

Homosexual, lesbian, are proper english words to describe the associated behavior. Why has the country stopped using these descriptive words and substituted the word gay in its place? We all know why. Gay means happy, joyous, carefree, bright and showy. The true meaning has been bastardized to suggest that this lifestyle fulfills all the former meanings of the word. Our culture cannot name a girl Gay any longer. One can still pervert the truth, but can not refer to a person as a pervert.

I'm afraid the word "relationship" has become the new word to cover or hide a more deviant behavior that may be offensive to the older, (narrow-minded) folks.

Children in their early teens are referring to being in a "relationship." To a parent what does that mean? Is it an on-line relationship? Are the kids having sexual relations? A girl does not date a boy any longer, they are in a "relationship." Dating is old fashion. Relationship is now the accepted word for "anything goes."I have nothing against teens dating, hanging out, communicating and enjoying each other's company. I do not like the word "relationship" because of its connotations.

What does the term relationship include? Certainly it includes simple dating. It also includes co-habitating and homosexual experimentation. It is a convenient cover or umbrella, symbolizing inclusion and acceptance in the progressive culture.

Thank God our laws attempt to protect our children by prosecuting child molesters and child rapists. Although some of our States' courts show just a wink and a smile to such vile behavior. "Just part of a relationship."

As the culture progresses toward Hell, I'm sure the term will include group relationships, animal relationships and any other perversion that may creep out of the slime pit.

Remember Safe and Free?

.

REMEMBER SAFE AND FREE?

Do you remember when the words safe and free could be used interchangeably?

Remember when children went out to play for the afternoon and the only instruction they were given by the parent was to be home by supper time.

Those were the days when child molesters and perverts understood their position in society. When our culture found such behavior repulsive. When it wasn’t a joke or fashionable to step out of the closet and swoon with likeminded beings.

Yes, children could play all day and be free. Free of predators who have sunk so low in their lust to carry off children.

Remember when the truth didn’t depend on the situation?

Remember when stealing was an understood act and not an available item to rip off?

Remember when adultery was the destruction of ones integrity and not a fling or an affair?

Remember when gay meant having a joyous and merry time?

Remember when a relationship was among businesses? Now relationships start innocently in middle school, but the term also includes devious behavior, such as same sex, groups, and your cute potbellied pig. 

Coming back to my point.

We are now a society where not only our possessions are no longer safe, but our children are subject to being snatched from us at any moment. We hold on to them tight. Our eyes never leave them. We bolt the door, check on them during the night.

Yes, we are no longer free, weather child or adult. The child is not free although it does not know it. The adult is not free because they know it.

The fact of my lament here was driven home to me in a recent visit to my local gas station. 

I was pumping gas when another car pulled up to do the same on the other side of the pump. A lady in her late twenties pumped ten dollars worth into her tank. After she hung up the nozzle, she opened the rear door and unbuckled her child from the safety seat. She picked the two year old up and carried him into the convenience store. Within seconds she returned, having paid her bill, placed the child back in his seat, latched the boy tight, slid into the driver’s seat.

Before she drove off I asked her if she unlatched the child because she felt it was not safe for thirty-seconds while she stepped into the store. She said, “Yes, I didn’t want to leave him out here alone.” 

The young mother and I agreed that we are living in a wicked world.
.

Evil, What is it?

.

Our inner being, our human spirit, can perceive, analyze, and make a willful decision.

By nature we can conclude extremes and total opposites.

We live with light and darkness. We know light dispels darkness.

We know there are undisputed truths, not situational ethics, that can never be overcome by lies.

We know instinctively hate can never eliminate love, but expressed love can, and always overpowers hate.

We use the word Evil, but what is it?
What defines something as evil?
What is the basis of our judgement to call something evil?
What do we have to compare to make evil so repugnant?

If we just throw the word evil out there, and don't know the absolute opposite, we ourselves, are in the realm of evil. Our human spirit is willfully excluding the absolute opposite of evil––which is Holy.

At this point God is rejected.

The world admits to "Intelligent Design" because evolution admits it has no beginning. The world however, does not admit A Beginning who is Holy. The Word says He is Holy, Holy, Holy. God is all powerful, all knowing, everlasting. He is Truth, Love, and Justice. He is the opposite of absolute Evil.

Don't call something or someone evil unless you know the true God. What you are doing is admitting your own capabilities and dominance of the evil in you.

Choose today whom you will serve. We all have a Master. We cannot serve both. We will either love the one and hate the other!
.

Economics Extended

.

The reason I feel compelled to harp on economics is not because I want to lecture on your personal budget, but set in motion a thought and a scenario which has happened in history over and over again.

When we as a country move away from free enterprise, upon which this country was founded, we can move in two directions: to the right, or to the left.

We can move to the right of the political spectrum with less government and less taxes, less intrusion and fewer dictates. We could go further to the right until most of the laws of the land are removed. And even more to the right until all the laws to govern the people have disappeared and all government is gone. At that point, knowing the basic wickedness of humankind, we would wind up in anarchy and undoubtedly be suppressed by the most brutal force or person. Simply, some individual or a power will always find a way to viciously dominate.


We can also move to the left with more government, more laws and dictates to ever more squash and suppress the free enterprise system. This path is sly and deceptive. It first begins with taxation and redistribution. High taxation stifles the free spirit to take chances and get ahead, create self reliance and personal wealth. Taxation also funds welfare to tease and hook the idle. (By all means, I'm not talking about Social Security or other safety net funds.) By hook I mean masses will become dependent on government. We all know human nature, it is always nice to get free stuff.

The second part of this deceptive drift is the suppression of job creators by dictating rules, in the guise of a cleaner and greener environment. This decrease of jobs adds more folks to the unemployed and under-employed count, and you guessed it, more folks looking for help from the government. Then the progressives also add massive amounts of government jobs. To add even more folks on the take, they remove the requirement to prove recipients actually are looking to get a job. They make work disability benefits more easy to receive, and therefore add tens of millions more on the dole. The deception continues. Now add all these programs together and you have masses that will suckle from the government until the milk runs dry.

However, to the smiles of the Socialists, dependency translates into votes. When dependent people outnumber the ones that generate the wealth which pays the taxes, you have a Socialist in power. And with the dependency voters in the majority, who of them would elect a leader who promises to reduce the freebees?

The problem with this setup is that soon the supply of moneys taxed will not be enough to support the idle. So, the government has to do one or two things, print more money, or borrow it. Both are bad. Printing more money reduces the worth of it. It reduces the buying power of the money you have earned and or saved. It buys less, because inflation has eaten up its value.

The government then is also forced to borrow money to keep the piglets fed. This is more cost to the folks that pay taxes. (We all have heard of the $16,000,000,000,000 debt we now have) This debt, owned a lot by the Arabs and Chinese, amounts to around $50,000 for each person living in the USA. Including every baby, man, woman and senior citizen. (It also counts the ones who do not pay any income taxes. . . your share of the debt just doubled.) Just think, we have to pay this debt back! Most likely our children will suffer for that.

Reasonable people know this trend can not be sustained. In the end the government collapses. Riots and thievery takes to the streets. Chaos and anarchy looms. The Socialist is now relegated to clamp down and suppress. This is called Communism.

Communism is responsible for well over 100 million corpses in the last century. Starting with the Bolsheviks in 1917. The latest research claims that Mao Tse-Tung was responsible for over seventy million deaths, and Stalin alone may have killed 60 million people in the USSR alone.

Like I said, the pendulum of basic economics can swing either way. The country was founded on a careful balance of it being at the 6 o'clock mark. (After all, this is why there is hardly anyone in the world that would not want to come to this country.) The closer we can stay at that 6 o'clock point, the longer this country will last.


See previous posts with the American flag as the symbol.

Also, please consider down loading my novel RED SOLSTICE on Kindle, or go to my website fxbiii.com to purchase a hardcopy. The novel exposes totalitarianism during the post WWII era.





  

Deceptions

I recently gave my grandchildren a quick quiz. I said:

"In an athletic competition runners are competing in an event that requires the participants to run around the track for ten laps.

"At a point in the race the lead runner just crossed the point to start his seventh lap. How many more laps has he left to finish the race?"

Knowing that all my grandchildren want to prove how smart they are, they all spouted, pretty well at the same time, "He had three laps to go."


Now let us look at this in another way.

If I had asked the children the same question differently, the obvious answer would have been different.

Here is the same race, but worded differently:

"In an athletic competition runners are competing in an event that requires the participants to run around the track for ten laps.

"At a point in the race the lead runner had just completed his sixth lap. How many more laps has he left to finish the race?"

I know all would have said, "He had four laps to go."

Did I deceive the children with the first question? You bet I did.


A while back our president said he wants to end the Bush tax cuts for the rich, and extend it for the middle class for another year.

I'm amazed that no one asked the president, "What happens to the middle class taxes after that one year extension?"

In every statement by politicians there is wording that can be interpreted and expounded on to arrive at different conclusions.

A smart voter can pretty well see through the muck.

As an American that has gotten a hold of the American dream I'm leery of terms like "Hope and Change."

As a Christian I know where my hope is; it is not in government. The term "Change" pricks my interest and I immediately begin to question. 

As I analyzed the deeper meanings of "Change" during the last three or more years, I found exactly what I feared. I found that I do not like the "Change" that has deceptively been promoted. I have sensed a sly plan to dismantle the dominance of the United States of America in the world, toward a nation which flows and dissolves into an equalized partner among the other nations of the world. In other words, a underhanded move toward a One World Power with one currency, one religion, and eventually one Ruler over all. A world where all wealth is equally distributed, all revolts are crushed, and free speech is squashed. After all, isn't that the aim of the United Nation?

I'm not saying this will happen within a couple of years, I'm simply warning to look at the direction the country is moving under the current administration.

Now that the "Change" has been exposed, the term "Forward" has arisen to sweep along the masses that have become accustomed to the bait (benefits).

Deception is as old as the devil himself. Deceptions are continually at work, but one can not readily perceive them. They are like the termites which are eating away at the mighty oak of our freedom, the one last hope of mankind to be a free people.
.
  

Scarlet O'Hara

.

My Symbol Of Wisdom

Scarlet O'Hara-Hamilton-Kennedy-Butler, -- quite a name, quite a woman!

I just finished reading the epic story, "Gone With The Wind",  based around the time of the Civil War. The book, and its more than 1000 pages, brought to life people and their human traits. It also depicted a time in history to which most folks can not relate or even imagine.

The focus in the book is on Miss Scarlet. A prissy, flirting, and exceptionally enticing young maiden to whom the young men are drawn like flies to honey.

From this young maiden begins to flow a spirit and a determination, coupled with deception and underhandedness, which equals only the strongest willed human character.

Miss Scarlet's resolve and perseverance reveals a mindset, one that I as a man can hardly fathom. I have been around women, beginning with my mother, all my life. Although my mother was, and had to be, a strong minded woman. She or anyone else in my life could not be compared to Scarlet.


I like to read classic literature. Literature which uses the english language in a picturesque and descriptive way. Although the newer writings flow much more rapidly, like the staccoto rhythm of rap music, they often fail to reach the soul of human emotions and value.

By trying to understand why I prefer the classic writings, I came to a sentimental conclusion. I deeply believe that the love I have for this country makes me want to grow ever closer to its values and freedom by ever learning and comprehending more of its language.

.

Big Bird = .oo1%

.

Big bird, the lovable character of the government funded radio and TV corporation, politely has asked to be removed from the political fray.

Good for Big Bird.

What started it all was the statement the presidential challenger made during the debate. Mr. Romney simply stated that he would remove the government subsidy to the above mentioned corporation. His premise, the American government should not be a sponsor, or have control over the free flow of news and information. History has proven that the first step to establish a dictatorship is to take over the airwaves. There is a long list in recent history that proves this process was accomplished by Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Saddam Hussein . . . and as recently as Hugo Chavez.

The whiners on the left, as well as the clueless media, chuckle because the percentage of the subsidy is only .001% of the total government's budget. The point still is, the government should not have its fingers in the free enterprise system.

Of course the left don't get it. They think that government can do the job better than private enterprise.
Just like they think they rescued Government Motors by loading them up with a $29,000,000,000.00 debt. Just like they think that Amtrak, as well as the Post Office can run forever on an ever increasing annual shortfall. Just like the government's new health takeover will never run in the black.

The sad thing is, nothing run by the government has to be profitable; efficiency is not a requirement.

Only competition improves efficiency which translates to lower costs to the consumer.
.
    

We Built It From Scratch

.
Only in America.
I'm overwhelmed how our business has grown. Our sons have hung in there during these tough years of an economic slowdown. They were wise not having extended themselves to a point were payments could not be made. We had to cut some labor force and reduce hours to stay solvent and strong. 

Gradually though, things are starting to look up. Still, it is wise not to jump into investing in new equipment at this time. The healthcare situation is very unsettling. The never ending new regulations and pending tax increases will keep the lid on major expansions.

We have begun to hire workers with specific skills. Yes, skills! We do not care how many college degrees one has, it is the skill in a trade that is marketable right now.

Tens-of-thousands of jobs are waiting to be filled with skilled people. When will it sink in that vocational education and apprenticeship programs is what industry needs? 

Below, I will show some photos of our plant I took recently. You tell me if good looks and knowledge in astrology are a necessity to run a plant full of machines and equipment.

Who is going to learn to run these multi-million-dollar printing presses?

Who is going to cut, fold, stitch, bind and mail these hundred of thousands sheets of printed paper?
  

Who is going to set-up, maintain and repair the equipment?

Who is going to learn and master the communication between computers and machines?

Thousands of skilled tasks are under the roof this massive industrial building called Bison Printing.

When will Moms and Dads realize that over 70% of all the young folks in this country do not graduate with a (marketable) college degree. 

Look the kid in the eye. Maybe he or she would like to learn a skill and save you from the college loans hanging on your back for the next ten years.

GOD BLESS AMERICA

.

Economics Or Brainwashing

.

I venture to say there are millions of people who do not know what economics is. - Maybe some science about the eco system, maybe even a theory that talks back to you. . .

It is obvious that the progressive thought in academia over the past thirty years has purposely chosen to keep the public uninformed or outright dumb on the subject of economics.

Some may say we teach budgeting in middle school . . . great, give me a break!

Nowhere in the twelve years of public schooling is economics, as a subject, taught in a substantive manner. Why? Because, capitalism, or a free society, when unleashed is a powerful self-driving force. This force steers a person to independence, at which our current climate scoffs.

You may say I'm far out on the matter, but I say a lack of spirited drive toward freedom and self enrichment generates a populace who is more easily led and more dependent on a social network for help, or even total support.

What are the world's economic systems? Communism, Socialism, and Capitalism. Ah, but the word capitalism has been demeaned to refer to excesses, greed, and the taking advantage of the middle class.

Even 40 years ago in my college days, when I took several economic courses, capitalism was relegated to be a byproduct in back of socialism and communism. I remember questioning the over emphasis on the worlds failing systems, when I, an immigrant, wanted to hear and learn about the new world and how it came to be the driving force of freedom and personal achievement . . . the envy of the world.

I have seen totalitarianism. I have lived under socialistic rules. I have witnessed the masses fleeing communism. So why are we not proud of capitalism? Have you also been brainwashed by a left-leaning education system and liberal media?

I hate it when reporters stand to interview the so-called average person about an economic or social matter and then proudly report on the evening news the different opinions. Note! They never say they had to interview thirty folks to get one opposing view. But during the news-hour they let us assume the country is divided down the middle by simply presenting both views.

One can see all around what the dumbing-down of the masses has done to the American Spirit. It makes me want to cry to see how the mindset of "I have it coming to me" seems to grow at such an alarming rate.
.

MORAL RELATIVISM

.

MORAL RELATIVISM

Moral relativism claims that morality is a matter of cultural or social preference. A matter of ethics and even personal opinions. 

This mindset translates that there is no such thing as absolute truth. 

So, if absolute truth does not exist, it makes sense to those who promote such beliefs that no one has the right to condemn another person’s beliefs. In such a world one must never condemn another’s attitude, or even their actions. Thus, one person’s morality is another’s liberty.

Moral relativism is an empty philosophy. In its purest sense, it simply attempts to allow all human being to do what they want without fear of guilt or punishment. Such an approach to morality is diametrically opposed to the Christian faith. 

Scripture, the Word of God, the bible, is filled with moral absolutes. Commands that show God demands specific behavior from mankind, His precious creation. His Word also clearly states that He will punish the disobedient.

Moral behavior based on prevailing situations and opinions are introduced by the devil himself. A way to entice the selfish human nature to do what seems right in their own minds. A way to draw mankind closer to the pit of hell.

So, what is truth? God is Truth. Jesus said: “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; and no one comes to the Father except through Me.”  John 14:6

The apostle Paul warns us:

“For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places.”  Ephesians, 6:12

. 

We Built Our Business

.
   History of B&B Printing and Advertising, now Bison Printing, Inc.

   A 40 step history on how one can achieve success in the USA.

  1)  Started the business in our home basement.
  2)  Put up sign in cow pasture five miles outside of town.
  3)  Sought churches as our first customers.
  4)  Went to Harris Printing to borrow his folding machine.
  5)  Went to Harris Printing to borrow his stitching machine.
  6)  GROSS income the first year: $8,000.
  7)  Lived on savings.
  8)  Got a part-time job as a mail carrier.
  9)  Started to do negative work for Piedmont Label Co.
10)  In 1980 bought Depot Street building. Made payments with savings.
11)  Began renovations on Saturdays.
12)  I became a plumber, an electrician, a carpenter, a sheetrock guy, and a painter.
13)  Moved business to town.
14)  Got a loan to brick the exterior of the building.
15)  Started office supply business to draw people to printing.
16)  Bought larger presses. Made payments with savings.
17)  Bought adjoining Locker Plant (defunct frozen food storage place).
18)  Gutted and renovated the new space on Saturdays.
19)  Sharpened my plumbing, electrical, carpentry, wall hanging and painting skills.
20)  Moved equipment into renovated Locker Plant.
21)  Renovated a portion of the first building to lease to Arthurs Business Service.
22)  Bought four-color press and more binding equipment. Made payments with savings.
23)  Each of the 7 people working for B&B Printing earned more than we did as owners.
24)  More of our capital pumped into equipment and delivery trucks.
25)  My wife and I packed a lunch EVERYDAY.
26)  First son joined the business straight out of Virginia Tech.
27)  Bought adjoining building to Locker Plant.
28)  More renovations on Saturdays.
29)  Moved heavy equipment again to new building.
30)  Second son joined the business two years after graduating from VT.
31)  All aspects of business upgraded to new digital technology.
32)  Now three buildings jammed with employees and equipment.
33)  Third son joins the business, graduate of Radford University.
34)  Together, the whole family eats their daily sack lunches.
35)  My wife, Emily, died.
36)  We purchased 40 acres of industrial land on the outskirts of Bedford.
37)  My sons and I designed layout of a new 50,000 sq ft industrial plant.
38)  Three families mortgage their assets to make payments on this $1,000,000 project.
39)  Over the last ten years, over $3,000,000 worth of  new equipment has been added.
40)  Nearly 50 families depend on their income from  Bison Printing, Inc.

After twenty years of practically taking no time off, our sons insisted we take a lengthy vacation.
Did the business fall apart while we were gone? No.

We built our business, because this is America!  Praise God!

.

Coping with the Aftermath

.
Coping with life's unexpected struggles and calamities should almost be a welcome part of living.


First it teaches that we are not in control.
Then it shows us exactly what kind of a sap we are by believing we have it all figured out.
When an upheaval disturbs our comfort we have choices to make. We can either whine and complain, or we can rig, improvise, engineer, contrive or cobble together a temporary solution. After all, we are Americans.


Being able to live in a country where we have the freedom to invent and expand our ingenuity is a blessing. Just think of the billions of people around the world that have been stifled so long by oppressive governments that their willingness to improve is replaced by dependency.


I'm deeply encouraged by the generosity and willingness of neighbors, friends and family to help one another during these last suffocating days. The power outage and oppressive heat has truly brought out the American spirit. We are a compassionate people, and I'm sure an improvising bunch as well.


Before the heat struck, Carol's blooms stood tall and glorious.

Then the power failure. Just like all our wimpy friends we "suffered" without air conditioning. We packed up the frozen stuff and dragged it to the cabin which reportedly had power.

Once settled in and in bed for the night, a vicious lightning storm hit the area. We got sapped. No power. After a day of borrowing a neighbor's generator, we dragged all our food back to Bedford, which had restored power.

While in Floyd, we toasted our waffles on the grill and brewed our coffee directly into our cups.

Then for sure, before heading back to Bedford with bags full of frozen food, I had to take a dip.

Ahhhhhhh . . . .
.

Psychology vs A Skilled Trade

.

Nowadays, you hear about the lack of available jobs. However, I recently read that there are hundreds of thousands of jobs to be filled, if only the applicants had a skill.

Here, I could get into why Germany is and has been an industrial power, but the answer is simple: APPRENTICESHIP.   Read my book.

When I first came to this country, people then, and still today, hold there nose when one mentions a "Trade School". The simple reaction to the word Vocational School is, "My precious child is going to college!"

I ask you to read the statistics and see that nearly 3/4 of young folks do not graduate from a college. And even if the HS graduate gains a degree what MARKETABLE SKILL did the child gain? And further more, ponder this, what did it cost the parents? Or how much of a student loan has he or she hanging around the neck when the real life begins and they are looking to find employment?

The following is a true story which has played itself out over the last twenty-five years.


Back in the early 80s, I asked the then Bedford Educational Center's principal to send me a fellow who'd be at work everyday and wanted to learn a trade. (BEC is a high school trade school / Vocational School)

Twenty years later the man still worked for us. He was head pressman, operating a million dollar printing press, and making over twenty dollars an hour. When he first started, he bought himself a functional truck and began saving toward the purchase of a good sized piece of land. A few years later, after paying off the land, he had a large pond built on his property. With pond and land payed off, he had enough collateral to apply for a construction loan to build him a log cabin.

The man was an exemplary employee, steady as a rock, and so was his income. Week after week, year after year, he took home a paycheck; . . . for over twenty years. Three weeks vacation, retirement, holidays, overtime. . .

His house is paid off. . . No mortgage, . . . no student loan payments.

When the man turned forty years old, he quit his job. A total shock to the company.

The reason was, he did not want to work shift work. Although he had seniority, we could not give him preferential treatment. Everyone in the plant was asked to work shift work.

He left on good terms and we still speak and kid around whenever we meet.

He now works part time, days only, for ten dollars an hour; happy with his life. He grows a big garden, hunts all he wants, fishes out of his pond, looking ahead to see when he should cash in his retirement.

                                            Thank God for America!


And then there was the dude with a psychology degree driving a delivery truck in downtown Newark.


.

A Blemish in Floyd County Virginia

.
Do you think fake flamingos in the yard are beautiful?

Do you think a painted truck tire on each side of your driveway is purdy?

Do you think a hot dog stand every five miles along the Blue Ridge Parkway would be an improvement?

Do you think a windmill on top of Half Dome at Yosemite would add to its grandeur?

Do you think a tattoo of swamp grass on a man's bald head would do the trick?

I found this sign taped to the door. "The stoplight" sure makes it easy to give directions

  
What do you think when a perfectly beautiful and natural county, like Floyd Virginia, adds a traffic light to its only town that has over five-hundred residents?

THEY DID!!!    Mind you! And now this traffic light is the one and only proud light in the entire county!

                                            "We've moved up in the world, you all!"
.