Doubts About My Endorsement of Alan Keyes

I do have reservations about grassroots petitioning for Alan Keye's and I may even change my voting position. This based on some more thought about endorsing Alan Keyes. Some of the things he has said that were not true but he claimed they were. That's the way it is sometimes with people but it shouldn't be so. People with passion, feel the right way but are not right (and can be proven wrong). He needs to check his speech and facts. Some reasons why I have doubts:

1. In October, on Way of the Master radio, he said that Michael Medved was pro-choice and supports abortion rights (was pretty sure but not 100%), actually Medved said he doesn't support abortion (and isn't pro-choice). "Abortion's shades of gray"

2. He said on Hannity and Colmes that Mike Huckabee is good on social issues but practically a liberal on everything else. I know Huckabee is a conservative on other issues as I used to be a supporter of his more so... but maybe his record raises questions and Huckabee's justification don't satisfy him, but it's wrong to paint him as a liberal like that. You compare his policies on guns, the borders, Iraq war, and so on, Keyes is wrong, Huckabee is conservatively positioned. Huckabee may be more able to communicate to liberals better than most and may be more embraced by liberals because he is willing to look at compassionate solutions that may violate the conservative hard line (raising taxes in his state and giving benefits for some illegal immigrant children). He may be too weak as a conservative in some ways based on his long executive record perhaps but is he practically a liberal? I don't know, unless you take a snap shot of him that is not fair, in my opinion (see issues on mikehuckabee.com).

3. On Hannity and Colmes he said he is matching Ron Paul in the polls. I heard that Paul was 5% and Keye's was 3% recently. Actually I confirmed that in one poll he does match Paul but the poll data same is small and the margin of error eats into this number probably. On other polls Paul has more but those don't include Keyes in them. http://www.pollingreport.com/wh08rep.htm

4. Said in the debate against Obama about 3 years ago for the IL US Senate race, I thought he said that the black population was actually decreasing because of abortion. I looked it up and this wasn't true but maybe I heard him wrong. Compared to other races, they are not keeping pace, because of high abortion rates. Their birth rates are lower than whites and hispanics, so it's true that they will have less influence in the future because of abortion. This is a huge African American issue, which I agree with Alan about. Don't have a link to this yet.

A links to abortion statistics by race: http://www.worldmag.com/articles/10332
Quotes from a web site about the position in the debate: "Keyes was also adamant in his characterization of abortion as a "genocide" of black Americans, citing statistics alluding to a decline in the black population of the United States across generations as a result of abortion." from a unflatering Web site

5. Is a Roman Catholic but appeals to evangelical ideals. This is difficult for many evangelicals to accept perhaps as there are difference in the understanding of Salvation.

6. Also he is not popular in even conservative circles because of his approach and the focus he has. However he is respected by some important people (Levin and Hannity). For example, his behaviour in the last debate, he spoke our of turn and spoke out of anger and he claimed there was a conspiracy against him or the issues. I don't disagree with these claims and he got my attention but it has turned off others who otherwise would agree with him perhaps. Perhaps that's okay given his lack of ability to be on TV and has no funding for commercials. His unbridled passion, intellectual arguments, and many words may He also comes across as being extremely boastful or proud but I know his speech is backed by conviction, good understanding, and passion.

7. He can't possibly win any states and he's got in so late in the game, why waste a vote. Alternatively, I could start a prayer group to pray for revival and do other things like aggressive and effective forms of evangelism.


OK, so Alan isn't perfect but perhaps is the best by far. As Alan put it, if you vote for a winner you may be deceived by Satan to compromise for the sake of position or power. Voting on conscience is key (no pun intended).

I Endorsed Alan Keyes for the Republican Nomination

I have just signed the pledge to support Alan Keyes for president: "THEREFORE, I hereby announce my support for the cause of America's revival, and for ALAN KEYES as the PRESIDENT whose leadership will promote that cause."

I have known about Alan Keyes for years. Saw him speak in Washington DC on the mall for the May Day for Marriage rally about 3 years ago. Voted for him against Barrack Obama for the Senate Race about 3 years ago as well. Why would I do this, considering he is not a front runner, an obscure candidate to most, and even sounded like a mad man in the last debate?

1. As I shared on the AlanKeyes.com: "Alan is solidly right on with the issues. I was impressed by Alan Keyes on Hannity & Colmes tonight, learned about his stances on issues on Alankeyes.com and reviewed his recent Des Moines debate statements on You Tube. I am convinced that he has the knowledge, wisdom, passion, and faith to lead the country to renewal and revival."

2. Alan is better for the country than the others, as I see it, because he is more likely to lead us towards national revival and restoration, from a God fearing, moral perspective (that would have been respected in the history of this great nation). Previously I supported Mike Huckabee, even gave to his campaign. I believed that he was a decent choice, perhaps the best, among the remaining others but I seen him as weak and bending on some key things (worth of a blog entry itself, but on his few weaknesses I see in his character and policy). So I believe he may not be the right man for the race for the Republican nomination (I am in Iowa BTW). For Mike's sake, I am glad he's great he is surging in the polls and getting recognition and I do pray for the guy as a Christian brother.

3. Now I know that a vote for Alan Keys is like a vote for Mitt Romney, which is not ideal because I don't fully trust the guy based on what I've seen so far, but it he's at least better than Guiliani or McCain, in my mind, and hope in reality. Going with my conscious has a price to pay, but that price I'm willing to pay. BTW: Romney has really done poorly in my mind when he has been attacking Huckabee, because I don't think it's unnecessary, fair or wise to put down such an experienced, moral/good-guy, and respected former governor.

To learn more about Alan Keyes:

• Alan Keyes Web site
• Alan Keyes in the last Debate in Des Moines.
  
• Debate against Barrack Obama on You Tube
• Alan Keyes on Wikipedia (generally don't take a face value for controversial people and issues, but seemed like it was factual for him)
  

Our Civilization is at the Brink of Grave Peril

First of all, the threat of the eternal judgment of God for out wickedness and sin should be first of our concerns, for each of us as individuals and as nations. We all need to come to God through Jesus Christ for the forgiveness our our sins. If we don't, God will judge us and we will be eternally separate from God to an eternal in hell, because he is just and holy. Yet in his love and mercy, he provided a way out, that is through faith in Jesus. I urge you to get right with God, in the name of Christ. Here is a link for more help:
http://www.billygraham.org/SH_StepsToPeace.asp

My other thought for this blog entry: I wanted to comment on a grave and significant threat to our livelihood and the future generations' livelihood. Ultimately this threat could cripple and threaten the existence of our civilization as we know it. Islamic Jihadism. Former Sen. of Pennsylvania , Rick Sentorum, was interviewed by the Pittsburg Tribune-Review about this threat and what we can do about it now, to save many lives.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/today/s_484790.html

Some highlights:

• "This is a threat that is based on what I would argue is a corruption of a religion, for religious purposes and worldly purposes. ... In modern times we have never faced this kind of threat."
• "But I am not a Paul Revere. I am not just running around screaming, "The Islamafacists are coming!" What I am trying to do is put forth ideas and policy solutions on how we can stop this before it becomes an even more grave threat. ... Acting now could potentially save thousands of lives later."
• "... If we don't have this debate and we simply ignore the religious implications of this war, then we are destined to lose this war. And not just lose it from the standpoint of confronting it in the Middle East, but we are destined to lose it in our own public discourse and all around the world, particularly in Europe right now."
• "And the intangible sacrifice is not to be terrorized. It is not to allow the terrorist tactic to work. We are failing at that right now."
• Our energy situation is making things worse: "These folks use oil as a weapon. Chavez, Ahmadinejad -- both have been very clear that oil is a weapon. And the fact is that we are sending over 60 percent of our money out to foreign nations, many of whom -- although not most -- are hostile to the United States."
• Is congress helping to make us more energy independent? "mentioned during the campaign, just in Western Pennsylvania alone we drilled over 3,500 gas and oil wells last year. Thirty-five hundred! We go through floor debates to stop us from drilling less than 1,000 wells in all of Alaska for the next 25 years."
• Can we count on the media in this war? Look at Iraq: "I have always said that if World War II was covered like this war, I really, very seriously doubt that we would have ever won that war. Certainly, we might have been willing, when the losses got so high, to negotiate a compromise or negotiate some sort of surrender. The death that went on -- I always remind people that we lost more people in a couple of hours on D-Day that we have in the entire war (in Iraq)."
  

An Liberal who seems to be a Secular Athesis seems to get this threat right and cricizes other Liberals (Sam Harris talking to Tucker Carlson): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBOGQckaF0U

• Liberals instinctively make excuses for Muslim extremists
• Liberals must realize there are 10's of millions of Muslim extremists that are scarier than Dick Chaney
  
• While he does argue against dogmatism, which I don't support fully, he said liberals have dogma, if the poor people of the world were treated well and given enough economic opportunity they would be garenteed to be reasonable and tolerant. Clearly not true with Islam. Islam is kind of death cult.
  
• Studies say that support for suicide bombing goes up when you correct for literacy, and economic opportunity.
• We are not at war with all Muslims but we are at war with the idea that cartoonist should be beheaded for drawing Mohamed, women should be stoned for adultry, and converting away from the faith is a capital offense.
  
• Liberals on the side of those that don't support free speech (violence against the Pope for example and defending the violence against the cartoonists)
  
• "Liberals almost by definition do not know what it's like to really believe in God. They don't know what it's like to be sure that the book they keep by there bedside is the literal word of the creator of the universe and that death is mearly a passage to an eternity of happiness.... so they find it difficult to believe that anyone believes this stuff and so are motivated by the content of there religious beliefs. ". They are thinking it's just propaganda that no really why he blow himself up. While putting down our own religious, calling them loonitics, he says that they are in a better position to understand the people actually believe in this.
  
• Tucker said "The first people to be rounded up in this country would be the gay, the secular... almost like masochism or self hatred... "this idea that Western power is at it's roots is malevolent, this idea isn't serving us"
• While I don't agree with where Sam Harris may be taking the discussion to getting rid of religious dogma into a more secular society. I do agree that it's a war of ideas.
  
• Terrifying # of Muslims are sympathetic to acts of terrorism, not 1% or 0.5%. 1% is 14 million people but he's sure it's an order of magnitude or more larger
  
• Human beings first not Christians against Muslim against Jews... he argues... I think there is something to that, we are in a global community