Gulf1 - C - Carolyn Abell

Military Benefits in Jeopardy

by Lt. Col. Carolyn Abell, USA, Retired

After a few months busy with getting married, moving from one home to another, planning for Christmas, and suffering a variety of illnesses, I am somewhat behind in my reading. In an effort to catch up, I opened my November issue of "Military Officer," the magazine published by the Military Officers' Association of America (MOAA) today.  Seeing an article entitled "Misguided Attack," with the catch line, "A White House proposal cites a goal to civilianize some military benefits" I immediately turned to that page.

Now I realize that proposing to reduce military benefits isn't exactly new news. But this article cited some specific cuts that I found appalling.

The primary target for pillaging was health benefits.  The administration proposes establishing an annual "enrollment" charge for TRICARE For Life members, to the tune of $200 per person. A cost index would increase this charge by an unspecified amount each year.

TRICARE pharmacy copayments would also be targeted for this slash and burn policy. The current copay of $5 for generic prescriptions would double, to $10, starting in 2013. In the out years, it would be raised until it reaches 20% of the cost of each prescription. For some medications which cost hundreds of dollars each, the proposed copay would rise exponentially.

The copayment for retail brand name prescriptions would go from $12 to 15% in 2013, and subsequently 30% of prescription cost. I have two medicines that fall into that category. For the one that costs $123, 30% would raise my copay from $12 to $37--more than triple.

Similar copay increases would apply to mail-order brand names and mail-order non-formulary prescriptions.

In addition to this proposed slashing of benefits in health care, the Obama administration is calling for an overall "modernizing" of the military retirement system, in order to make it more like the civilian system. Converting the retirement to a civilian-style 401(k) plan, while simultaneously delaying retired pay until age 57 or longer is another proposal for saving money.

As the authors of the "Military Officer" article so aptly phrased it, "This shows a shocking insensitivity to the radical difference between military and civilian careers...The whole purpose of the unique military retirement and health care package is to offset the extraordinary demands and sacrifices inherent in a service career."

Without these incentives, the services would find it increasingly difficult to recruit quality personnel who are willing to endure the rigors of intense training, deployments to war zones, and lengthy separations from their families.

According to my research, TREA (The Retired Enlisted Association) has informed its members of these same proposed changes.

I can think of many other federally funded programs more deserving of reduction than the Department of Defense, starting with the United Nations. This useless organization that is allowed to sit in New York, enjoying a tax-free status and continuing to receive millions of U.S. dollars every year, while they simultaneously vote for policies that oppose U.S. interests and jeopardize our security, should be cut off from all funding and relocated to Haiti.

The Obama family's frequent six-figure vacation junkets should also be targeted. The idea that they require two luxury jets to get to vacation spots, so that Michelle can depart Washington four hours before her husband, is waste and abuse in its most blatant. This has happened more than once. Their cavalier disregard for the prudent use of taxpayer money constitutes an elitist attitude of entitlement. (No wonder the NASCAR fans gave "Michelle Antoinette" a resounding booing at a recent appearance.)

I am sure you can think of many other federal programs that could use a good shaving.

And I hope that you are addressing these concerns to your representatives in Congress.

Complacency is something we simply cannot afford. With a Congress that is made up of only 20% veterans, our voice is being lost in the crowd. People who have never served in the military cannot possibly understand our background or our needs.

For officers, I highly recommend that if you are not a MOAA member, you join as soon as possible. They are one of our most dedicated voices on Capitol Hill, relentlessly pushing for the preservation of benefits and other military-related issues. I have been a lifetime member for many years.

Enlisted members, both active and retired, have a similar voice in TREA. Your support will enable them to continue to fight for your rights and benefits.

Copyright 2011 Carolyn Abell

Just an Old Rocking Chair

by Carolyn Abell

I’ve always loved rocking chairs. From as early as I can remember, there was something especially comforting about nestling down in one, swaying to and fro, just enjoying the rhythmic movement. I especially loved the ones that sat on my grandparents’ big front porch. Their weathered wood had sustained several generations of rocking – wearing shallow gullies into the old wooden floor where they rested. As far as I was concerned, they were much more desirable than the grandest throne of the richest king.

Years later, as a married woman expecting my first baby, I informed my husband that we had to have a rocking chair. You can’t possibly raise a baby without a rocking chair, I explained to him. So off we went to a local furniture store to make a selection. The wooden rocker we chose became an essential part of the nursery in our home. In the interest of comfort, I did yield to padding it with red corduroy cushions.

When my first son, David was born, I would lovingly rock him in that rocking chair. Sometimes it was just a few minutes, and other times we might rock for an hour—savoring the sweet bonding that occurred while we contentedly rocked back and forth.

Two years later when Sam was born, the rocking chair continued to play an important role. Sam was my insomniac child—often waking for long periods during the night. I held him and rocked him for an hour or more in the wee hours between midnight and getting-up time, singing to him or sleepily watching some late-night movie on television.

We also had a dog – a rather high-strung female vizsla named Sophie, who loved to chew things. One day I discovered that Sophie had gnawed the front part of the left rocker leg; a pile of splinters and wood chips on the carpet served as incriminating evidence. I was extremely irritated—but not enough to get rid of the chair. Though scarred and marred, it got packed up with everything else and shipped to Germany, as the Army decided that’s where they needed me next. The chewed-up rocking chair took its place in the living room of our apartment in Heidelberg, where I continued to rock Sam. David had learned to rock himself by then, and often climbed up into the rocking chair to happily pass some time.

Since then the rocking chair has made many moves, as we lived a couple of years in England, then back to various towns in Germany. In 1997, when I retired, the rocking chair was shipped with everything else to my home in Florida. Although the boys were grown and no longer living at home, I couldn’t seem to part with that chair and the sweet memories it held.

When Miss Kitty adopted me, she took over the rocking chair. Sometimes she would curl up and sleep on the seat; other times she perched herself up on the top of the back cushion, so she could make the chair move back and forth. Now that she is almost 14 years old, she still naps on the cushion, although now it’s a dark blue one. The original red set finally wore out and had to be replaced several years ago.

I’ll be facing another move shortly, as my new husband and I combine households. Both of us have to give up some things so that we can fit into the home we’ve chosen. At first I was going to surrender the rocking chair; it’s 34 years old, with a chewed up foot, and not as sturdy as it used to be. But the more I reflected on all those memories of babies and kittens and even that confounded dog, the more I realized I can’t part with it. Even if we have to stick it in the attic, my rocking chair goes with me.

Copyright 2011 by Carolyn Abell

You’ll Find it in the Bible

by Carolyn Abell

Several years ago I wrote about how the Bible should be taught as literature. The beauty of the language and the liberal use of descriptive figures of speech make it an outstanding example of great writing.

Reading through the Bible again this year has caused me to reflect on how many common expressions that we use every day actually originated within its contents  – especially the King James version.

For example, Psalm 8:2 reads “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings has thou ordained strength…” The phrase “out of the mouths of babes” has become a common phrase to describe words of wisdom or wit from a small child. A recent example of this occurred when my four-year old granddaughter was sick with an upset stomach. My son, her father, made her some toast with nothing on it, hoping she could keep it down. When she started eating it, he mumbled an apology for giving her dry toast. She assured him, “It tastes good, Papa. “How can you say it tastes good, honey? It’s just dry toast,” he said. “But you made it with love,” Ophelia replied.

In 2 Samuel 15:6, the writer talks about David’s son Absolom and his attempt to gain the throne by winning the hearts of the people with his charming personality. The verse ends with the clause, “So Absolom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.” The phrase “to steal one’s heart” has been used over the years since then, to describe the charismatic personality of someone who exerts great influence over someone else, especially in the case of falling in love.

It’s been used repeatedly in song lyrics such as Rod Stewart’s recording of “Maggie May,” in which he wails it several times in lines like “You stole my heart and that’s what really hurt.”

In Exodus 4:15, we find the phrase, “put words in his mouth.” A variation of this shows up again in 2 Samuel 14:3, “So Joab put the words in her mouth.” We often use this today to describe the act of telling someone what to say in a given situation.

Numbers 33:5 is where God gave the Israelites the instructions for taking the Promised Land. He warned them about getting rid of the current sinful occupants: “But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.” The phrase “thorn in the side” is repeated in Judges 2:3. Hundreds of years later, we still speak of a persistent problem, especially a person who irritates us, as “a thorn in the side.”

In Job 19:20, Job declares “I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.” This phrase is often used to describe a very narrow escape from a dangerous or undesirable situation.

Not only have we acquired these and other expressions from the King James Bible, but we sometimes use well-known Biblical characters as benchmarks for comparisons—both favorable and unfavorable.

We have all heard the expression, “the patience of Job.” Job’s model of trusting God for deliverance, even through his darkest periods of sickness and poverty, have led us to describe people who demonstrate extraordinary long-suffering as having the same patience.

“The wisdom of Solomon” alludes to the Biblical declaration that occurs in 1 Kings 4:30-31: “And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt. For he was wiser than all men.”

Another character with less favorable qualities was Jezebel. This queen, and wife of King Ahab, was a thoroughly evil person, known for painting her face in an effort to make herself irresistible to men she wished to manipulate. The term “Jezebel” is now used to describe a reprobate and immoral female, especially one who wears an excessive amount of make-up.

One of my father’s favorite descriptive terms for someone who drives fast was to say he “drives like Jehu.” Jehu was one of Israel’s kings, anointed by Elisha in the 9th chapter of 2 Kings. Evidently he was known for his fast driving. Verse 20 of that chapter describes a watchman telling his master, “The driving is like the driving of Jehu, the son of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously.”

You can probably think of other phrases, qualities, and concepts that are derived from the Bible. As President Theodore Roosevelt said, “A thorough understanding of the Bible is better than a college education.” The famed orator and statesman Daniel Webster put it even more succinctly: “Education is useless without the Bible.”
 
Copyright July 2011 by Carolyn Abell

Thank You, Vietnam Veterans

by Carolyn Abell

“No event in American history is more misunderstood than the Vietnam War. It was misreported then, and it is misremembered now. Rarely have so many people been so wrong about so much. Never have the consequences of their misunderstanding been so tragic.” – Richard Nixon from his book, “No More Vietnams”

Earlier this month the United States Senate declared March 30, 2011 as “Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day.” This particular date was chosen because on March 30, 1973, remaining U. S. troops withdrew from Vietnam under the terms of the Treaty of Paris.

In a resolution introduced by Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina and co-sponsored by five other senators, including Georgia’s Johnny Isakson, the Senate is encouraging Americans across the country to recognize Vietnam veterans for their sacrifice and to make them feel the gratitude of a country that sent them to fight. “It’s time they receive the recognition they have earned and deserve,” declared Senator Burr.

While Richard Nixon might have had his faults as President, the above statement about the Vietnam War is spot on. Largely due to intentional misreporting by anti-war press members, a number of myths and falsehoods were generated and have continued to be perpetuated about this war and the men who fought it.

Statistical evidence contradicts most of these lies. For one, the majority of Vietnam veterans declare they are glad they served (91percent), with74 percent saying they would serve again, even knowing the outcome.

In contrast to the popular notion that a great number of Vietnam veterans were drug users, a myth promoted by such movies as “Apocalypse Now,” information from the Veterans’ Administration indicates that there is no difference in drug usage between Vietnam veterans and non-veterans from the same age group.

The few isolated atrocities committed by American servicemen were blown out of proportion, causing the general public to wonder if they had evolved into savage and inhumane beasts reminiscent of the degenerate boys in “Lord of the Flies.” The truth is that while we had a few incidents, the North Vietnamese routinely committed such atrocities against our side—a fact that seldom got reported. Former service members such as Charles Henderson have documented some of the most heinous acts of torture imaginable inflicted on United States soldiers and Marines by a female North Vietnamese Captain, whose cruel and deviant brutality earned her the nickname, “Apache Woman.” Thanks to Carlos Hathcock, one of the most talented and self-disciplined Marine snipers of all time, “Apache Woman” did not live to make Major.

A 97 percent rate of honorable discharges among Vietnam veterans should quell any myths that they were largely lawless heathens.

According to a speech by Lt. Gen. Barry McCaffrey in 1993, 85 percent of Vietnam veterans made a successful transition to civilian life. General McCaffrey further stated that these veterans’ personal income levels exceeded their non-veteran counterparts of the same age group by more than 18 percent. He added that Vietnam veterans had a lower unemployment rate than the non-vet age group.

Another prevailing myth is that a disproportionate number of blacks were killed in the Vietnam War. Statistical evidence shows that 86 percent of the men who died in Vietnam were Caucasians. Only 12.5 percent were black, while the remainder were “other races.” These percentages were in direct proportion to general population statistics at that time.

A lot of people think, too, that the Vietnam War was fought by the poor and uneducated. In actuality, these veterans were the best educated forces our country had ever sent into combat, with 79 percent having at least a high school diploma or equivalent. Many had taken some college courses or even earned a degree.

The survival rate of Vietnam veterans was also much higher than in previous wars, thanks largely to MEDEVAC helicopters. Pilots of these birds flew nearly 500,000 missions, airlifting over 900,000 patients. The average time lapse between wounding to hospitalization was less than one hour. As a result less than one percent of all American wounded who survived the first 24 hours, became fatalities.

Perhaps the highest testimonial to the quality of our Vietnam veterans, is that so many former draft-dodgers and cowards now want to claim credit for military service they never gave. And there is no greater insult to the ones who actually served.

I think the average American appreciates the sacrifices of all veterans. There is nothing more noble and honorable than serving one’s country in the armed forces. Vietnam veterans answered the call to duty, and they continue to serve today with acts of national patriotism, community involvement and serving in elected offices.

Make it a point this Wednesday to thank a Vietnam veteran. Tell him “Welcome home.”

Copyright 2011 Carolyn Abell

Lest They Be Forgotten

by Carolyn Abell

Some of my readers have asked recently why I haven’t written any op-ed columns in awhile. The reason is that I am writing a book, and it is a very time-consuming undertaking, but also an incredibly rewarding one, and has truly become a labor of love.

Although I was born in Florida and spent most of my life in that state, six years ago when my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, we decided to sell our homes in Florida and move to Tift County, Georgia, where she grew up. She still had family in the area, and it just seemed that it would be easier to be near a family support network.

Right after my arrival, a group of history and genealogical enthusiasts announced in the local newspaper that they wanted to start the Tift County Genealogical Society. I attended the first meeting, and that’s how I became a charter member.

A guest speaker for one of our meetings was Rev. Dillard Ensley, from neighboring Cook County. Rev. Ensley has written several books on local history, and he showed us his most recent one, entitled “Great Was Their Valor: Profiles of Sacrifice.”  He wrote the book about Cook County veterans who had died in World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.  Also included is a section to honor those who had served as prisoners of war. When he finished his talk that day, Ensley presented the challenge to us to do the same thing for Tift County, and some of us decided to accept that challenge.

Two other members have assisted with the research, and I have been putting the book together. I volunteered to research the World War II veterans, and it has been one of the most richly rewarding experiences of my life. Thanks to a list provided by Ida Mae Williams in her book, “History of Tift County,” written in 1948, I had a start with names. In browsing through the microfilm newspapers from December 1941 through summer 1945, I picked up a few additional names that she had missed.

Through various methods, I have managed to locate family members and friends who either remember the men or had some keepsake from them. I’m so glad I picked the brain of Mr. Wilbur Dickens, a veteran who was in his 90’s himself, but vividly recalled his friend Garland Anderson, who sent him picture postcards from Hawaii, telling him what a paradise it was. Garland was killed when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. Last year Wilbur Dickens himself passed on to his heavenly home; but I had his memories and mementoes already recorded for the book.

The aging sister of one veteran has kept a scrapbook of her brother’s photographs and correspondence from World War II before he was also killed. She generously shared it with me, to copy and use whatever I felt would enhance Loyce Alexander’s chapter of the book.

I have discovered that many history lovers have been equally generous with their knowledge and research. There are web sites now dedicated to the memory of sunken ships or submarines and the sailors who drowned. Sometimes a person will publish photos and information he has managed to dig up about crew members and passengers, as well as the details of the battle that resulted in the ship’s sinking.

Air Force historians are another group with a wealth of information about bombers and other aircraft that were shot down during the war. Sometimes I have found several pages of information about the crew of a B-17, such as the one that was shot down over Holland with George Paulk as the radio operator. The crew were rescued by the Germans found them and arrested them as prisoners of war. A Dutch man named Jelle Reitsma has written their story in outstanding detail at a web site I found. Paulk’s nephew even has a hand-made American flag that the Dutch people made and presented it to him. A photograph of that flag will be in the book.

Pat Doss’s father was one of the older veterans who served in the Army. She still has the V-mails that he sent her, and proudly showed me photographs of a ship that was named after her father.

The book is not only helping me to understand history better; it has given me the unique opportunity to meet some of the most generous and kind-hearted people in this area, as well as others from as far away as Hawaii. Almost every time I have contacted a web master for additional information, he has been gracious and helpful.

Another side benefit is that the attempt to find personal mementoes has put some distant family members back in touch with each other. Just a couple of nights ago, a man from north Georgia told me his aunt, who lives here in Tift County had phoned him, to tell him I was looking for information about his father, who had been a POW. “That’s the first time I had talked with her in 40 years,” he told me. “It was great to be in touch again.”

My goal for the book is to preserve the memories of men who died too young—who gave all they could give for a cause they believed in. It is because of them that I sit here in a land of freedom and plenty. May they never be forgotten!

Copyright Carolyn Abell 2011

2010 in Retrospect

by Carolyn Abell

It might be easy to look at the negatives that prevailed during the past year. Unemployment has continued to rise. The local newspaper has several pages filled with home and business foreclosure notices, while the “Help Wanted” section has been temporarily shut down for lack of content. Even worse, the enemies of freedom in our own beloved country continue efforts to chip away at the fundamental rights established by the United States Constitution, with special focus on that hallmark of democracy: freedom of speech. I listened with open-mouthed astonishment recently as West Virginia Senator Jay Rockefeller publicly stated that he would like to see FOX News and MSNBC shut down.

In response to these negatives, however, I have seen a surge of patriotism and determination not demonstrated in this country since World War II. The voice of the citizenry rose to an assertive roar in the November elections, as “We the People” reclaimed a solid majority in the U.S. House of Representatives and regained several Senate seats. Similar victories were evident in state governorships and other state and local offices. People who had never before donated to political campaigns dug deep and offered their personal investment in America’s future. The realization that we put our money where our heart is, became a truism previously overlooked.

I watched with pride as Glenn Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally in Washington in August, drew close to a hundred thousand Americans. Ordinary, law-abiding, God-loving citizens just like me went there to demonstrate their belief in our country’s heritage and their faith in its future.

TEA Party patriots, in spite of malicious, unwarranted attacks from a liberal press and even from some elected Congressional representatives, have forged a solid bond of determination to reclaim our country. Enduring hostile, demeaning, and often vulgar assaults, and sometimes even false accusations, has only made us stronger and resilient as we focus on reclaiming our country. A slumbering majority has truly been aroused from its complacence, and we are working hard to reestablish the principles that made this country strong from its inception. We are speaking up and making our voices heard.

George Santayana said “Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness… Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to fulfil it.”  The most basic tenet of not forgetting the past, is to know what actually happened in the past. We have learned that a lot of the American “history” we learned in school had been rewritten by people who didn’t like the way it actually happened, so revised it to suit their own ideas. Now people like Dr. David Barton, a Christian historian who has dedicated years of study and research into our national documents, has made some enlightening DVDs in his American Heritage series, that faithfully reconstruct much of the historical setting of our nation’s foundation, including the fact that the vast majority of our founding fathers were deeply religious and unashamedly Christian—not deists, like some so-called “historians” would have us believe.

One of the most significant signs of promise in our country is the fight to stop wanton federal spending and demand fiscal accountability.  The sight of Greek citizens rioting in the streets is a harbinger of what could happen in this country if we don’t  eliminate unnecessary expenditures. Citizens’ demands for the prudent use of OUR money is a bold reminder to newly elected officials that we will not tolerate broken  promises. Their job is clearly established, and voters will be watching their actions for compliance.

Finally, one of the most rewarding things I noticed about 2010 was a revival of faith and overwhelming gratitude to God for His blessings. A political candidate who attended our local TEA Party meeting during his campaign made a statement that impressed me more than anything else he said. He was an Air Force reserve officer who had been sent for a tour in Iraq. In evaluating the many lessons he had learned from that experience, he said, “I used to be very quiet about my faith. But my experience in a war zone has given me new courage and pride in being a Christian, and I am not embarrassed or ashamed of it.”

He isn’t the only one who realizes that except for God’s blessings, our country could be another war zone. May we continue to praise Almighty God and rely on Him even more during 2011! 

Copyright 2010 Carolyn Abell

Some Afterthoughts about Thanksgiving

by Carolyn Abell

In the year 2000 my son David was serving in the Navy, and was assigned to a nuclear submarine stationed at Pearl Harbor. Although his “boat,” as he referred to it, spent about half the time patrolling the Pacific, I knew he was going to be home for Thanksgiving, and decided it would be a good time to visit him in Hawaii. When I phoned him to tell him my intentions, he was delighted that I was coming, and declared “Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday!”

I have thought about that statement many times, pondering the circumstances of his life that had led to his love of this special day. He and his brother grew up in England and Germany, so they weren’t exposed to much of the American commercialism surrounding Thanksgiving. For example, they had no idea that the Thanksgiving Day newspapers would be ten times their normal weight, bulging with commercial ads, enticing and luring customers to that biggest shopping day of the year: Black Friday. And I don’t think any of us realized that some Americans would get up at 3 a.m. Friday morning, to be the first ones in line at the mall.

We made sure, however, that we always celebrated the holiday with the traditional meal of turkey and all the trimmings. Having access to the military commissary made that possible, since turkeys, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pumpkins are somewhat hard to find in many countries.

Knowing the day was uniquely American, we usually invited German friends to celebrate with us. They enjoyed hearing the story of how we came to observe this day of thanks, as well as sharing in the traditional feast. Now that David lives in Germany, he has continued this practice of inviting his wife’s family and other German friends to Thanksgiving dinner.

When I moved to Georgia in June 2005, I learned that my Abell relatives in this area always gathered in Enigma, at my Uncle Jule and Aunt Edna Abell’s home for Thanksgiving. They put up folding tables and chairs, and as many as 25 or 30 of us might be there in a sort of “mini” family reunion. Everybody brought food, and there was always more than we could eat. We talked and laughed, and children romped and played ball.

In the summer of 2008, though, Uncle Jule went to live in Heaven. Although Thanksgiving wasn’t as cheerful as before, we still kept up the tradition of going to Aunt Edna’s house. That year, however, she announced that since she was 86 years old, she just wasn’t going to be able to continue hosting Thanksgiving. Without even thinking about it, I simply popped up with, “I’ll do it.  Everyone can come to my house.” So they did.

Last year was my first time as hostess, and I think there were only about 18 of us who assembled. Some had made other plans and opted out. But we had such a good time that the word got out, and this year I was expecting close to 30.

The holiday was tinged with sadness this time, though. On Sunday before Thanksgiving, my cousin Ron called to tell me that another cousin, David, had found his wife dead early that morning.

Gail was only 62, but suffered from several physical problems that contributed to declining health. We all loved her-- a kind, warm, and generous person who had fit into our family with perfect ease. We shared David’s grief over a profound loss.

Those of us in the area took food along with our love and sympathy, and attended a beautiful memorial service for her just two days before Thanksgiving. Her four younger sisters had driven up from Florida. Devastated by the loss of one they loved deeply, they clung to each other and shared tearful memories—sweet reminiscences of happy times and family love. At the end of the simple ceremony they turned loose a bevy of helium balloons, watching them until they disappeared into the heavens—symbols of loving thoughts and final hugs they hadn’t been able to give in person. 

David said he just wasn’t able to make Thanksgiving, and we all understood. His immediate family remained with him-- comforting, consoling.

Twenty-two other Abells—aunts, cousins, children, and grandchildren, many of whom had traveled from other states—joined me for the regular day of giving thanks.  We enjoyed a huge meal cooked by a dozen different members and brought together in a huge smorgasbord of mouth-watering, tantalizing deliciousness. Afterwards, everybody helped clean up, divvying up the leftovers (enough to feed another 20 people!) and taking them home to enjoy later, when they would relive and savor moments of family fellowship shared during our time together.

Our grand finale was to gather around the piano and sing hymns. After we had done everybody’s favorite, someone suggested a special song for Gail. A few more tears fell as we harmonized softly with “Swing low, sweet chariot, coming for to carry me home…”

copywrite 2010 by Carolyn Abell

Fly the Flag on September 17

by Carolyn Abell

September 17 is an important day for Americans. It marks the 223rd anniversary of our United States Constitution. Constitution Day is not a holiday, nor should it be. Holidays have too often evolved as a day of cook-outs and beach trips, of being off work, and scurrying to take advantage of sales at every major store in shopping malls. Too often the real significance of the day gets lost.

A law passed in 2004 makes it mandatory for every school that receives federal funding assistance to teach students about the U.S. Constitution on September 17. Spearheaded by now deceased Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, who was greatly concerned about the appalling ignorance of most Americans on our country’s basic organization and functions, the law mandates instruction to school students about the three branches of the federal Government and their basic functions, powers, and limitations.

The United States Constitution has endured longer than any other constitution in the world, and has been used by many other countries as a model for drafting their own constitutions.

An organization that has worked long and diligently to promote recognition and awareness of the provisions of our basic governing document is the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). Chapters of the DAR are involved every year in coordinating programs of recognition on Constitution Day. Schools, churches, and local governments celebrate and cherish this document of irreplaceable significance to our nation’s history and to its future.

Even though Constitution Day is not a holiday, it is a reason for Americans to fly their flags with pride and gratitude for a country that has been blessed in so many ways and for so many years by Almighty God.

There is another reason that September 17 is important this year, however. It happens to be POW/MIA Recognition Day.

The National League of POW/MIA Families was started in the late 1960’s by family members of missing service members from the Vietnam War. The League was formed and then incorporated on May 28, 1970 as a non-profit, tax-exempt 501[c] 3 humanitarian organization. According to their web site, “The League’s sole purpose is to obtain the release of all prisoners, the fullest possible accounting for the missing and repatriation of all recoverable remains of those who died serving our nation during the Vietnam War in Southeast Asia.”

More than 900 members originally listed as missing in action or prisoners of war have now been accounted for. 1711 more have not yet been accounted for. Thirty of those are from the state of Georgia.

In 1986 the League recommended that the third Friday in September be designated as POW/MIA Recognition Day. It is coincidental that this year the third Friday falls on September 17, which is also the anniversary of the Constitution.

On POW/MIA Recognition Day, ceremonies are conducted around the country in recognition of those 1711 who are still missing. In Georgia the main event will be held in Andersonville, where the Andersonville National Historic Site will mark the day of recognition in solemn ceremonies. This year the Moving Vietnam Memorial Wall, escorted in by the motorcycle group, Rolling Thunder, will be in Andersonville for ten days, furnishing a fitting and dramatic backdrop for this solemn occasion. Founded in 1987 for the purpose of raising awareness of POW, MIA, and Veterans’ Rights issues, Rolling Thunder is best known for its annual “Ride for Freedom” in Washington D.C. every Memorial Day week-end.

So now you have two very good reasons to fly the flag with pride and recognition on Friday, September 17. And while you are at it, say a prayer for God’s blessings on our nation and for the families of those 1711 still missing from Vietnam.

Copyright 2010 Carolyn Abell

Burning the Qur’an is Wrong

by Carolyn Abell

Last week I wrote about why I and many other Americans oppose the building of an Islamic mosque at the site of the 2001 destruction of the World Trade Center in New York. In opposing it, we don’t condone anything violent or retaliatory in nature. We just think it is insensitive and a sure step toward the Islamic goal of controlling this country.

This morning as I was running an errand in town, a friend saw me and asked what I thought about the church in Florida that intends to burn a copy of the Qur’an on September 11. In a brief discussion, we both agreed it is the wrong thing to do.

Dr. Terry Jones, pastor of the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, has been planning the event for several months. His web site enumerates “Ten Reasons to Burn a Koran.” Among the “justifications” Jones cites are passages from the Bible, the main one of which is Acts 19:18-20, which tells about people in Ephesus coming to know Christ. Some of these new believers had previously engaged in occult magical practices, and when they received and accepted the gospel of Christianity, they voluntarily burned their books of incantations in a large bonfire.

There is simply no parallel there with what Jones plans to do. He isn’t voluntarily surrendering something he and his church members formerly believed in. Their act is one of aggression and provocation, and will not result in anything positive for themselves or for anyone else.

General David Petraeus, who is leading the war effort in Afghanistan, has already urged them to abandon the idea, due to the sure retaliation against the military, which may very well result in loss of American lives. Jones told Chris Matthews on CNN’s “Hardball,” however, that he does not intend to give up his project for the General or for anyone else. The claim that it is to honor the victims of 9/11 is a lame and misguided excuse.

Another group of individuals who will suffer greatly from this will be the Christian minorities in Muslim countries. Many of them have already endured beatings and arrests, loss of personal property and businesses, and other forms of persecution for their decision to follow Christ. Hundreds of thousands have been murdered. I have personally written an appeal to the Dove Church to consider the violence that will befall these defenseless people if the church moves forward with its intended action.

One can only wonder what Jones hopes to achieve. Burning a Qur’an (or “Koran,” as it is sometimes spelled) will not do anything to change the minds of Muslims and make them like us more. It won’t cause any Islamic people who are in this country to leave. In fact, it will no doubt cause the more peaceable among them to hate Christians for this act of revenge. This isn’t what Jesus taught us. Although He told us to always stand up for the truth and to not be afraid to do so, He never directed anyone to deliberately insult or hurt someone who does not accept Him as Savior and Lord.Perhaps Pastor Jones forgot to read the passage in Romans 12:19. “Dear Friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God. For it is written, ‘I will take vengeance; I will repay those who deserve it,’ says the Lord.” (New Living Translation)  Similar scriptures abound in both the Old and New Testaments.

The New Testament teaches us to recognize evil and avoid being deceived by false teachers, but it does not tell us, or even imply, that we should employ acts of deliberate provocation. Even though Muslims routinely burn Bibles and desecrate United States flags, this is not a reason for us to descend to the same level of militant retaliation.

I’m afraid Terry Jones and his followers have become another misguided cult-type of organization that has deviated significantly from the teachings of Christ. In so doing he is giving more fodder to many liberals in our country who already put all Christians in the same category anyway and never miss an opportunity to scorn and ridicule all of us.

Copyright 2010 Carolyn Abell

Proposed Mosque is an Insult to Americans

by Carolyn Abell

In a recent opinion editorial published in “Politico,” Jim Wallis, author and self-described evangelical Christian, made a case for tolerance in construction of a mosque at Ground Zero in New York. Wallis, who says he is personal friends with Imam Faisal Rauf and his wife, vigorously defends their right to build a mosque at the site where 3000 people were killed nine years ago by Muslim jihadists. He implies that by opposing the construction of a mosque at what many Americans now regard as “sacred ground,” we are intolerant and not showing Christian love.

Like many people who have never read the Qur’an, Wallis calls true Islam a “religion of peace.” There may be some peace-loving members of that faith, but to declare it a religion of peace is a gross misstatement. Numerous passages in the Qur’an attest to the hateful and downright hostile nature of that document. Jews and Christians are referred to as “infidels,” “pagans,” “minions of the devil,” and “blasphemers.”  Followers of Mohammed are forbidden to even be friends with them (Qur’an, Surah 4:89).  In Surah 5:72-73, the language is very pointed, stating emphatically that “They do blaspheme who say: ‘God is Christ the son of Mary.’ They do blaspheme who say: ‘God is one of three in a trinity:’ for there is no God except one God Allah. If they do not desist from their word of blasphemy, verily a grievous penalty will befall the blasphemers among them.” Note the threat implied in those last few words. Many other passages of the Qur’an advocate similar invectives against anyone who is not Muslim.

In their book, “Unveiling Islam,” Ergun and Emir Caner, both of whom were raised in devout Islamic families, but who are now Christians, write about the jihadists who destroyed the World Trade Center towers and part of the Pentagon: “The terrorists were not some fringe group that changed the Qur’an to suit political ends. They understood the Qur’an quite well and followed the teachings of jihad to the letter.”

Like Wallis, I am an evangelical Christian, and I don’t want to be judged by the actions of a few who have distorted true Christian beliefs. But just suppose, for a moment, that some radical American cult, in a misguided “mission of Christianity,” had crashed an airplane into a mosque at Mecca, killing hundreds or perhaps thousands of worshipers during Ramadan. First of all, this would have set off world-wide riots and retaliatory violence against all Christians. If we had managed to live through that and if, years later, some Christian organization proposed to build a large Christian church and cultural center at the site as a so-called offering of reconciliation for what these murderers had done, do you think there is even a 1% chance of that happening?  I can’t think of a single Christian denomination that would even be so insensitive as to suggest it. 

Indeed, Christianity is a crime in most Muslim countries, where Shariah law is the law of the land. Christians are not only not allowed to build churches, but they are attacked, beaten, imprisoned, and killed every day by fundamentalist Muslims in Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia, Sudan, and other such countries.

I strongly believe in the freedom that our country offers to members of all faiths. As a Christian, I try to implement the teachings of Christ. But although He taught us to love our enemies, He did not teach us to be doormats of political correctness. He taught us to use discernment and to not trust the motives of those who deny His Deity. “Be ye therefore wise as serpents and harmless as doves,” admonished Jesus in Matt. 10:16.

The idea that because we are a nation of primarily loving Christians, we should accept this Islamic Mosque as a peaceful gesture toward a better relationship between Muslims and Christians is to assume that Americans are not only naïve, but downright stupid. A look at the history of Islam shows that they traditionally erect Islamic monuments to mark sites of conquest. An example is the Mosque al Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock, which they constructed on the Temple Mount of Jerusalem. Jews and Christians are not even allowed to go inside these structures. The proposed Cordoba House in Manhattan would be yet another monument to the triumph of Islam.

If they truly wanted to offer Americans a symbol of reconciliation, they should propose to sponsor a non-religious monument and perhaps a museum dedicated to the memory of those who were murdered on September 11, 2001. But a Mosque at the site is the ultimate insult to our nation, and I, for one, don’t believe it is intended to be anything else.

Copyright 2010 Carolyn Abell