The FaithWalker\u2019s Daily is a quick review of key news stories of the day from the perspective of a conservative Christ-follower living in, but not of, the world.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
- \n
- \n
Sandy Super-Storm Bill Stuffed with Pork<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The Basics \u2014 <\/strong><\/h4>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/billintheblank\/files\/2013\/01\/USDA_ARS_Meishan_pig-Cropped.jpg\")
<\/p>\nProminent Republican Governor\u00a0Chris Christie and key GOP Representatives created a stir with harsh words for Congress and Speaker Boehner in particular after the House failed to act on a $60 Billion aid package to help those affected by\u00a0Super-Storm Sandy after passing the fiscal cliff bill early New Year\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n
Dig Deeper:<\/h4>\n
- \n
- Via The Washington Examiner<\/a>: Several lawmakers threatened not to back Boehner for speaker in the new Congress, which convenes Thursday. At least one Republican threatened to become a Democrat.<\/li>\n
- Via The Weekly Standard<\/a>: But one of the big objections to the bill was that Senate Democrats had filled it with pork spending by expanding the bill to include all areas affected by other storms to buy key votes.<\/li>\n
- Not to worry, via Hot Air<\/a>, looks as if they\u2019ll get it all in and pass the pork so they don\u2019t look uncaring.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
A Few Thoughts\u2026<\/h4>\n
Typical of\u00a0Washington, find someone in need and leverage their pain to get money for your own cause. I\u2019m all for helping those in need, but when most of the money \u2014 which we don\u2019t have anyways \u2014 goes somewhere else, haven\u2019t we become hypocrites? In the name of\u00a0helping the poor, we enrich our own political storehouses.\u00a0I suspect Jesus would have employed that h-word here.\u00a0 And maybe, just maybe, if they weren\u2019t raising our taxes, we could give more to charity to help those in need around us in the first place.<\/p>\n
Never underestimate the\u00a0ability of caring politicians to give away other people\u2019s money.<\/h4>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
- \n
- \n
Making Sense of the Fiscal Cliff Deal<\/h3>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The Basics \u2014<\/h4>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/billintheblank\/files\/2013\/01\/global-debt-clock-snapshot-public-debt-per-capita-29-Oct-2012.png\")
<\/a>Congress passed and President Obama signed into law a bill that would raise taxes on 77% of\u00a0Americans and increase the national deficit by almost $4Trillion over the next ten years.<\/p>\nDig Deeper:<\/h4>\n
- \n
- Via Fox News<\/a>: \u201cHouseholds making between $40,000 and $50,000 will face an average tax increase of $579 in 2013, according to the Tax Policy Center\u2019s analysis. Households making between $50,000 and $75,000 will face an average tax increase of $822.\u201d<\/li>\n
- Not surprisingly via FoxNews<\/a>, \u201cfiscal cliff\u201d is high on the list of words most people want banned from the English language.<\/li>\n
- Wall St., NASCAR, and corporations do well with extras in the bill according to The Huffington Post<\/a>.<\/li>\n
- But The Christian Post <\/a>makes a good point that the Bush tax cuts just became permanent for most Americans.<\/li>\n
- No conservative should miss hearing from Congressman Paul Ryan (voted yes) and Senator Rand Paul (voted no) on The Hugh Hewitt Show to start the New Year last night. Transcripts here.<\/a><\/li>\n
- Good succinct summary of the deal.<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
A Few Thoughts\u2026<\/h4>\n
I know we\u2019re all exhausted by this endless, nauseating saga. So I won\u2019t say much here. Bottom line, spending just went up. Deficits just went up. And nothing was done about the real problem \u2014 the spending. \u201cThe prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.\u201d (Prov. 22:3)<\/a>\u00a0I\u2019m thinking we\u2019ve got the suffering part pretty well in\u00a0sight at this point. It seems we have only our \u201cin deep trouble\u201d model and then our \u201cin really deep trouble\u201d model in stock.<\/p>\n
Will that be cash or charge?<\/h4>\n
<\/h4>\n
- \n
- \n
Fiscal Cliff Bill Rushed through Congress without Being Read<\/h3>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The Basics \u2014<\/h4>\n
Although it\u2019s hardly news anymore, the bill which narrowly averted the fiscal cliff and raised taxes on most Americans barely got a glance before being passed through both houses of Congress as our leaders continue to lead by crisis.<\/p>\n
Dig Deeper:<\/h4>\n
- \n
- Via CNS News<\/a>: Senators got thee minutes with the 154-page bill.<\/li>\n
- House violated its own pledge <\/a>to post all bills for thee days prior to voting.<\/li>\n
- Michael Auslin at The National Review <\/a>rightly notes that a hail-mary government won\u2019t cut it. \u201cAd hoc government cannot survive, especially if it eats away at and replaces long-established custom, represented by a written constitution.\u201d<\/li>\n
- Nouriel Roubini at The Financial Times <\/a>is right that we have not yet realized the cost of\u00a0a growing welfare state. I disagree with him as to that welfare state being right and necessary:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Neither Democrats nor Republicans recognise that maintaining a basic welfare state, which is right and necessary in our age of globalisation, rapid technological change and demographic pressure, implies higher taxes for the middle class as well as for the rich. A deal that extends unsustainable tax cuts for 98 per cent of Americans is therefore a pyrrhic victory for Mr Obama.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\u00a0A Few Thoughts\u2026<\/h4>\n
I hate to say it, but Roubini is on to something here even though I disagree with his statement that the welfare state is necessary. It will cost more \u2013 from everyone. The perception of safety and security always costs something \u2013 in this case freedom. The loss of the use of one\u2019s own earned money is in fact a loss of freedom and the pursuit of happiness as understood by our Founders. I\u2019m reminded of God\u2019s warning to the Israelites when they demanded a king like all there neighbors. He warned them that the new government would tax them heavily. Now, as we strive to be like all our neighboring socialist Western countries, the same high tax bill is due.<\/p>\n
If you don\u2019t have time to read it, you can\u2019t be blamed for it. Right?<\/h4>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
A Few More Stories You Might Hear About Today<\/h3>\n
- \n
- Al-Jezeera buys Al Gore\u2019s cable tv channel<\/a>. Wonder if there was any aid for that purchase in the Super-Storm Sandy bill. Time Warner drops the channel immediately from its lineup. The Left predictably complains.<\/a><\/li>\n
- Man jailed in Florida for stealing\u00a0a $1.29 Honey Bun <\/a>by stuffing it in his pants. The new economic normal?<\/li>\n
- Brace yourself. New Mohammed cartoon book due out.<\/a><\/li>\n
- Need hope for the future? Check out Passion 2013!<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
<\/h4>\n
A Little Something to Grow Your Faith\u2026.<\/span><\/h4>\n
Who you become Is determined by how you pray. ~ Mark Batterson<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
To receive The FaithWalker\u2019s Daily<\/em> in your in-box each morning, simply put your e-mail in the \u201cSubscribe\u201d box in the upper right.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The FaithWalker\u2019s Daily is a quick review of key news stories of the day from the perspective of a conservative Christ-follower living in, but not of, the world. \u00a0 Sandy Super-Storm Bill Stuffed with Pork The Basics \u2014 Prominent Republican Governor\u00a0Chris Christie and key GOP Representatives created a stir with harsh words for Congress and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1084,"featured_media":1655,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[294,295],"class_list":["post-1646","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-faithwalkers","tag-fiscal-clif","tag-sandy"],"yoast_head":"\n
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The new economic normal?<\/li>\n
- House violated its own pledge <\/a>to post all bills for thee days prior to voting.<\/li>\n
- Via CNS News<\/a>: Senators got thee minutes with the 154-page bill.<\/li>\n
- Not surprisingly via FoxNews<\/a>, \u201cfiscal cliff\u201d is high on the list of words most people want banned from the English language.<\/li>\n
- Via Fox News<\/a>: \u201cHouseholds making between $40,000 and $50,000 will face an average tax increase of $579 in 2013, according to the Tax Policy Center\u2019s analysis. Households making between $50,000 and $75,000 will face an average tax increase of $822.\u201d<\/li>\n
- Via The Weekly Standard<\/a>: But one of the big objections to the bill was that Senate Democrats had filled it with pork spending by expanding the bill to include all areas affected by other storms to buy key votes.<\/li>\n
- Via The Washington Examiner<\/a>: Several lawmakers threatened not to back Boehner for speaker in the new Congress, which convenes Thursday. At least one Republican threatened to become a Democrat.<\/li>\n