The Executive, The Legislative, and the Omnipotent Branch

Once again, our judges are making laws. Believe it or not, the legislature no longer legislates the law these days. The real power in our society does not rest in our hands or even the hands of the governors or presidents we elect, but in the hands of some pipsqueeks with black robes.

This is only a drop in the bucket.

Thoughts Benedict

And now for some personal venting… brace yourself.

1. “Sick” is going around bigtime in the Johnson kingdom.  I was diagnosed two days ago with sinusitis and was given antibiotics.  I have had it since Friday when I went to my job’s site medical to get some cold medicine.  I had fever, chills, headache, body ache, and sore throat.  I stuck it out at work though, but it turned out to NOT be a cold.  I also had pink eye (which is now cured thanks to my sulfur eye drops.
2. Marcela was diagnosed with the same sinusitis a couple weeks ago, and then she got sick in her digestive system the day before yesterday.  She has been coughing hardcore for the past two weeks.  The cough that we now both have is driving us both NUTS.  I feel like I am going insane.  :(  My little Marcela said the same thing.  Prescription cough medicine is doing very little to help.
3. Whatever stomach problem she had, I now have.  I went to work this morning at 5 AM, and left fatigued due to coughing all night and doing other things all night.  I RARELY miss work.  I can endure a cold, but stomach problems really get me.
4. I went to bed at 9:30 PM and when I got out of bed at 4 AM, my dinner from the night before was still in my throat.  I have been asleep all day trying to let it go. Thank you Lord, I am feeling quite a bit better right now.
5. Kelly and Kourtney were sick all day Tuesday, and now McKenna is sick with the same stomach problems. My dad called out of work today with stomach problems, and I just found that out when my mom (who is also sick with the stomach problems) came by my house to bring me Emetrol.  WHAT’S GOING ON?!?!

Now that I have that off my chest I can get on to my thoughts…

• 2 major disasters have struck Asia in the last week.

1. Between 100,000 and 250,000 are dead in Burma due to a cyclone and flooding, with more death on its way due to the communist/military regime that will not allow outsiders in to help.
2. China’s Sichuan Province was hit with a magnitude 7.9 earthquake and more than 15,000 are already dead.  Government officials (who are only a little more open than the Burmese Junta) estimate that about 20,000 more are buried under the ruins of their homes, schools, and businesses.  I have seen some of the video of the actual earthquake and it is unbelievable.  The pictures and videos of the rescue and recovery are heartbreaking.  Lord help them.

• Breakfast with Trav and Chris on Tuesday was great.  We talked about blogging and expand our internet empires.  Chris is trying to say that he is subsidizing my web traffic with his blog.  LOL I still can’t get him to enter the Twitter world yet, but I am working on it.  But I did get some hints on how to increase traffic.  I found out that Saturday is usually the slowest traffic day for Trav and Chris.  I guess due to my top 5 it is a little bit of a boost for my Saturdays.
• I just bought a Wii entertainment system, and it was delivered today.  Unfortunately, I am too sick to even open it up.  But if anyone is interested in getting a beat down in boxing, or whipped in tennis, or something like that, let me know and we will arrange for it to happen.  This weekend I will open the box and set it up.
• I’m going to get my stuff together and go to the production and music meeting today at the church office. If you are there, forgive me in advance for looking like garbage.

Deep Thought 5/14/08

“Children need encouragement. So if a kid gets an answer right, tell him it was a lucky guess. That way, he develops a good, lucky feeling.”
-Jack Handey

I’m only 33?

Yesterday, I celebrated 33 years outside the womb at my favorite Thai joint.  I had a great time hanging out with Trav, Kelly, my mom, my dad, Kourtney, McKenna, Blake, and Marcela.  I had a great time!

I know it’s not that old, but it’s not exactly that young either.  I can say I feel like I have gotten plenty out of my 33 years so far, but I have a lot more to get done!  Congratulations Mother!

“Around the horn” and “Through the hoop”

The Marlins have a lower team salary than some individual players’ salaries in the league, however, these young guys are doing the unthinkable. They’re in first place in the division, and have now won 6 in a row. On two occasions I have been burned as a fan of the Florida Marlins. The fire sale in 96 was within days of the first championship. That hurt really bad. Then after a few years, this team puts together another great run, wins another championship, and one after another pieces of that championship are traded away for young and cheap talent. Here we are again, in first place with some decent talent. They just signed Ramirez to 6 years 70 million. I am sure that he won’t be a Marlin much longer, but maybe we can find some way to squeeze out a championship.

As for the NBA, the Celtics have yet to win a single road game. Can they win a championship without winning on the road? I don’t think so.

I admit, I would love to see a return of the greatest NBA rivalry ever with the Celtics taking it to the Lakers, but the Lakers are now tied 2-2 with the Jazz out west, and the Celts can’t win on the road.

The Pistons have shown an ability to win without Billups and that really is a good sign if you are a Piston’s fan. If they get rolling, they can challenge in the east. With the help of some bad calls and a bit of choking from Orlando, they squeaked out a 90-89 win on the road to go up 3-1.

The Spurs are back on track with a solid win against the Hornets. The series stands 2-2, but the Spurs have to win one in New Orleans to take the series. It’s a tall order, but I have faith in Duncan, Manu, and TP.

Sunday Life Pointe Talk Soup: Mother’s Day Edition

By Marcela Johnson

Well Phil is confined to his duties at Turkey Point again so it has fallen to his better half to keep his blog going. So, here it goes…

Today’s service rocked! Life Pointe really knows how to celebrate. Both services were full of enthusiastic people joining us in honoring women.

The lobby was decorated with roses in honor of “Momma’s Day”…  and there’s no other way to a woman’s heart (besides God of course) but through chocolate… and there was plenty of it! Women who attended Life Pointe today were greeted with chocolate fountains where they could dip strawberries, bananas, apples, oranges, marshmallows, and other yummy treats. The cafe section was equally appealing with a variety of bagels and different flavors of cream cheese in addition to Ruby Red grapefruit juice and the traditional Starbuck’s coffee. In addition, all women were serenaded with a live band in the lobby. What a day!

Bill and his band “The Messengers” did a great job leading in today’s service with the following songs:

1) It’s All For You- was upbeat and got the crowd going.
2) Psalm 1:15- was catchy and people were bopping to the beat.
3) Grace Like Rain- was sentimental but turned rock-ish.
4) Forever- was very lively and got people moving.
5) Word of God- was a slow tempo song, people were worshipping in the spirit as they sang.

The biggest shocker of all today was Pastor Travis. He wowed the ladies by dressing up all “spiffy” in a gray suit and tie. What a treat!

The message to today’s service was “Whose Side Is God On Anyway?” which continues with the Fortune Cookie series. Basically the idea is that God is on our side if we allow Him to come into our lives and take over. Even if we don’t accept His salvation, God is always calling us to Him. If we are ashamed of God now, He will be ashamed of us in Heaven. So, don’t tick off “the guy upstairs”… He is trying to help!

After service, the ladies were spoiled further with a gift from Life Pointe: either a mug with kisses or a book with a sachet of chocolate. Ode to all mothers… IT’S YOUR DAY!

For another perspective on Sunday morning at Life Pointe, be sure to try some Salad.

Saturday Top 5: Funny Songs

These songs make me laugh, smile, and sing along. So here are my top 5 funny songs.

5. Keep Your Hands To Yourself - The Georgia Satellites. It’s a funny song with a good message and an annoyingly catchy tune that I have found myself humming a time or two. A little bit Country and a little bit Rock and Roll.

4. You Be Illin - Run DMC. In the Golden Era of Rap, when all the most popular rappers were happy and talking about shoes, clothes, cars, or their girlfriend, this song was the jam back!

3. Cotton Eye Jo - Red Nex. This song doubles for funny and annoying and could easily have made the list a few weeks ago. In any case, hillbilly square dance meets house music in this totally off-the-wall song.

2. White and Nerdy - Wierd Al Yankovic. This parody of a popular rap tune “Riding Dirty” by Chamillionaire is almost too true, in my case. Wierd Al had a lot of hilarious parodies and originals that would be a good fit for this list, but the message in this song is just too legit to quit.

1.This song made #1 partly because of its history in my house, growing up in the church, partly because my dad’s love for this guy’s music rubbed off on me, and mostly because it is just hilarious. The video makes it even funnier. So here is the choir of the Pascagula First Self Righteous Church backing Ray Stevens singing “The Mississippi Squirrel Revival”.

I had to stretch myself a little so that I didn’t pick only Ray Stevens and Wierd Al songs. Nobody writes a better parody song than Wierd Al and nobody writes songs about humorous southern culture better than Ray Stevens. Rap and Country music are apparently very funny to me.

Can you imagine 500,000 people?

Fill 6 stadiums about the size of Dolphin stadium (roughly 85.5 thousand capacity), think about all those people. Now, imagine that about one of those six stadiums full of people is wiped off the face of the earth in a flash killing over 80,000 people. Now imagine the other 5 stadiums full of people, they are locked in with no way to get out, and armed government troops blocking the entrances to keep people from getting in to help them. They have no food, no water, no medical attention, and nearly all have been infected with various diseases from the lack of sanitation. It’s a horrible thought.

About 230,000 people died in the South East Asian tsunami of 2004. That was mind-numbing just to consider. The cyclone that struck Burma’s Irrawaddy Delta region could double the death toll from the Tsunami of 04. In Labutta, a town of about 80,000 people, there are only about 200 known survivors. The town was washed away by the 12 foot storm surge from the cyclone. The area where the town once was is still under water. One source even states that as of this moment, 200,000 people are already dead or dying.

The most sickening thing is that there are thousands of people trying to help, and nations like Great Britain trying to give aid (about 5 million British pounds worth), yet the Burmese government is blocking it.

To read more on this unbelievable story, click here.

Fried Thoughts

• I have the day off today.  Marcela and I made a list of things to do for today so I will make it productive unlike Monday.
• Monday I had the day off and wasted it sleeping and watching TV.  I felt so guilty, and I didn’t even really enjoy it.
• I have reached a different thought process in my life, totally different than about 4 years ago and before.  I hate sleeping, I hate wasting a day, I hate being couped up in my house.  I want to get out and do something whether it is productive or not.  I just don’t like to waste time sleeping.
• Today I will pay bills, visit the bank, get a haircut, do some grocery shopping, and one or two other things outside the realm.
• I have a cold or something.  It’s some fever (I think it’s broken now), headache, sore throat, cough, stuffy head, and a little fatigue.  I actually hope it’s a cold, that way I know it will be gone in a day or two.
• Orlando finally took one.  They have to take one in Detroit to have a shot.  If not, Detroit will most likely be up against Boston for the East finals.
• Kobe was awarded the league MVP, and LA won their 6th straight.  He’s predicting that LA will be playing into June.  I can’t really disagree with him at this point.
• San Antonio is in deep.  They are going to need to do something really special to make it out of the semi’s against the Hornets. I am a true Heat fan, but my second team is the Spurs (if you are allowed to do that). I’ve been a big fan since the early days of the Admiral David Robinson.  But Tim Duncan and Toni Parker are just class acts.  We will see if they have the stuff to pull this one out.
• I got a pat on the back at work and some certificates to the cafeteria for going to night shift for three weeks.  THANKS!  I feel so special.
• I’m still tweeting.  Chris, what’s up?  Are you coming or not?
• I’ve been listening to Dave Matthews Band quite a bit lately.  Groovy.
• Hillary is not going to quit until someone has the necessary votes even though the pundits say it’s over.
• It’s kind of funny to me to see the party of Al Gore and the FL recount, the party of all the fuss about one man one vote, and the party which claimed that they are against the disenfranchising of thousands of voters to turn around and disenfranchise HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of voters in Michigan and Florida.
• Someone needs to remind the DEMOCRATS that they are supposedly the party of DEMOCRACY.  The super delegate system is not democratic.  It is completely elitist.
• The Democrat candidate is going to be determined by party officials and elite party members, not the rank and file Democrats who voted in the primaries.

Where did we get off track, America?

Today, I don’t think I will produce a silly quotation from Jack Handey. In light of super liberal Barack Obama’s big win in NC which has most pundits believing that the race is over in the Democrat party, and also in light of John McCain being a somewhat liberal Republican senator with the nomination sealed, I decided to drop a quote on you from one of our founding fathers.

Thomas Jefferson said,”That government is best which governs the least, because its people discipline themselves.”

It seems to me that not only do our people not discipline themselves, we also do not have a government that governs least. Where did we lose the way? FDR? LBJ? We hand out money either in cash assistance or various programs like Head Start, AFDC, food stamps, medicaid, medicare, Social Security, and soon-to-be Universal Healthcare to almost anyone who applies. We throw the guilt trip on anyone who is in opposition to wasteful spending in the form of these socialist redistributions of wealth. Their proponents accuse opponents of hating the poor and harming the children. If you oppose high taxes, you are accused of favoring the rich. The class warfare has begun!

Neither McCain nor Obama will govern in accordance with the above quote. We can count on more taxes, more spending, more programs, more government noses in our business, and there is not a lot we can do about it. Unfortunately, I’ve been left with the reality that I am voting for the one who will do the lesser amount of damage to the nation, rather than the one who will get this mess turned around.