Columbine Student's Father 12 Years Later

This was forwarded to me via email and I think everyone should read it. Please read this speech and pass along this page to your friends and family.

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Guess our national leaders didn't expect this. On Thursday, Darrell Scott, the father of Rachel Scott, a victim of theColumbine High School shootings in Littleton, Colorado, was invited to address the House Judiciary Committee's subcommittee. What he said to our national leaders during this special session of Congress was painfully truthful.

They were not prepared for what he was to say, nor was it received well. It needs to be heard by every parent, every teacher, every politician, every sociologist, every psychologist, and every so-called expert! These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal. There is no doubt that God sent this man as a voice crying in the wilderness.. The following is a portion of the transcript:

"Since the dawn of creation there has been both good & evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers.

"The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used.. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Association. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart.

"In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA. I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA - because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent

I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy -- it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this room. Much of the blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my feelings best.

Your laws ignore our deepest needs,
Your words are empty air.
You've stripped away our heritage,
You've outlawed simple prayer.
Now gunshots fill our classrooms,
And precious children die.
You seek for answers everywhere,
And ask the question "Why?"
You regulate restrictive laws,
Through legislative creed.
And yet you fail to understand,
That God is what we need!


"Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, mind, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual presences were present within our educational systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact. What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honor God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs -- politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private liberties. We do not need more restrictive laws. Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts.

"As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America , and around the world, to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to communicate with Him. To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA -- I give to you a sincere challenge.. Dare to examine your own heart before casting the first stone!
My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!"
- Darrell Scott

Great interview about the events in Libya

I applaud CNN for actually doing an interview with a legitimate source and wish this information were more widely disseminated.  This is a black on the Obama administration that no one is talking about.  When Romney brings it up, he's criticized for "politicizing" a tragedy.  I don't think the Obama Administration should get a free pass just because it's election season.

Thomas Peterffy - Freedom To Succeed

Visualization of the US debt

Great site:

Scary facts of the Obama Administration

SOME WILL APPRECIATE THIS AND SOME WILL NOT. HOWEVER,ALL OF IT IS TRUE. After three years of Obama ... Here's your change! January 2009 TODAY % chg Source Avg. Retail price/gallon gas in U.S. $1.83 $3.44 84% 1 Crude oil, European Brent (barrel) $43..48 $99..02 127.7% 2 Crude oil, West TX Inter. (barrel) $38..74 $91..38 135.9% 2 Corn, No.2 yellow, Central IL $3.56 $6.33 78.1% 2 Soybeans, No. 1 yellow, IL $9.66 $13..75 42.3% 2 Sugar, cane, raw, world, lb. Fob $13..37 $35..39 164.7% 2 Unemployment rate, non-farm, overall 7.6% 9.4% 23.7% 3 Unemployment rate, blacks 12.6% 15.8% 25.4% 3 Number of unemployed 11,616,000 14,485,000 24.7% 3 Number of fed. Employees 2,779,000 2,840,000 2.2% 3 Real median household income $50,112 $49,777 -0.7% 4 Number of food stamp recipients 31,983,716 43,200,878 35.1% 5 Number of unemployment benefit recipients 7,526,598 9,193,838 22.2% 6 Number of long-term unemployed 2,600,000 6,400,000 146.2% 3 Poverty rate, individuals 13.2% 14.3% 8.3% 4 People in poverty in U.S. 39,800,000 43,600,000 9.5% 4 U.S. Rank in Economic Freedom World Rankings 5 9 n/a 10 Present Situation Index 29.9 23.5 -21.4% 11 Failed banks 140 164 17.1% 12 U.S. Dollar versus Japanese yen exchange rate 89.76 82.03 -8.6% 2 U.S. Money supply, M1, in billions 1,575.1 1,865.7 18.4% 13 U.S. Money supply, M2, in billions 8,310.9 8,852.3 6.5% 13 National debt, in trillions $10..627 $14..052 32.2% 14 Sources: (1) U.S. Energy Information Administration; (2) Wall Street Journal; (3) Bureau of Labor Statistics; (4) Census Bureau; (5) USDA; (6) U.S. Dept. Of Labor; (7) FHFA; (8) Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller; (9) RealtyTrac; (10) Heritage Foundation and WSJ; (11) The Conference Board; (12) FDIC; (13) Federal Reserve; (14) U.S. Treasury

Why America is NOT the greatest country in the world, anymore.

This video evokes a multitude of emotions for me.  How about you?

Info Sheet on Romney

I received this as one of those FW: emails and did not research this line by line but it appears to be true.  This is obviously slanted in favor of Romney but the format taught me more about him in two mins than hours of watching CNN.  Enjoy.

Subject: Records since birth

  Personal Information:

His full Name is: Willard Mitt Romney

He was Born: March 12, 1947 and is 65 years old.

His Father: George W. Romney, former Governor of the State of Michigan

He was raised in Bloomfield Hills , Michigan

He is Married to Ann Romney since 1969; they have five children.

Education:

B.A. from Brigham Young University ,

J.D. and M.B.A. from Harvard University

Religion:

Mormon - The Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints

Working Background:

After high school, he spent 30 months in France as a Mormon missionary.

After going to both Harvard Business School and Harvard Law School simultaneously, he passed the Michigan bar exam, but never worked as an attorney.

In 1984, he co-founded Bain Capital a private equity investment firm, one of the largest such firms in the United States .

In 1994, he ran for Senator of Massachusetts and lost to Ted Kennedy.

He was President and CEO of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.

In 2002, he was elected Governor of the State of Massachusetts where he eliminated a 1.5 billion deficit.

Some Interesting Facts about Romney:

Bain Capital, starting with one small office supply store in Massachusetts , turned it into Staples; now over 2,000 stores employing 90,000 people.

Bain Capital also worked to perform the same kinds of business miracles again and again, with companies like Domino's, Sealy, Brookstone, Weather Channel, Burger King, Warner Music Group, Dollarama, Home Depot Supply, and many others.

He was an unpaid volunteer campaign worker for his dad's gubernatorial campaign 1 year.

He was an unpaid intern in his dad's governor's office for eight years.

He was an unpaid bishop and state president of his church for ten years.

He was an unpaid President of the Salt Lake Olympic Committee for three years.

He took no salary and was the unpaid Governor of Massachusetts for four years.

He gave his entire inheritance from his father to charity.

Mitt Romney is one of the wealthiest self-made men in our country but has given more back to its citizens in terms of money, service and time than most men.

And in 2011 Mitt Romney gave over $4 million to charity, almost 19% of his income.... Just for comparison purposes, Obama gave 1% and Joe Biden gave $300 or .0013%.

Mitt Romney is Trustworthy:

He will show us his birth certificate

He will show us his high school and college transcripts.

He will show us his social security card.

He will show us his law degree.

He will show us his draft notice.

He will show us his medical records.

He will show us his income tax records.

He will show us he has nothing to hide.

Mitt Romney's background, experience and trustworthiness show him to be a great leader and an excellent citizen for President of the United States .

You may think that Romney may not be the best representative the Republicans could have selected. At least I know what religion he is, and that he won't desecrate the flag, bow down to foreign powers, or practice fiscal irresponsibility. I know he has the ability  to turn this financial debacle that the current regime has gotten us into. We won't like all the things necessary to recover from this debt, but someone with Romney's background can do it. But, on the minus side, He never was a "Community Organizer", never  took drugs or smoked pot, never got drunk, did not associate with communists or terrorists, nor did he attend a church whose pastor called for God to damn the US. 

Pastor's Radical Anti-Gay Remarks

I love the remarks made at the end of this clip by Rev. Gaddy.

Open Mic in Pakistan

Really interesting perspective.  Usually American's just form our opinions based only what our preconceptions or on media coverage.  This is a great clip from real people who are living through our foreign policies every day.  After watching a few of these clips, the overarching feeling around the world seems to be that we need to mind our own business.  I really love this idea from CNN.

What's your opinion on stand your ground?

"When Jeb Bush signed Florida's Stand Your Ground law, it was the nation's first. Half the states now have the law, or one like it, on their books. Sometimes called the "Make My Day" law, it allows people to use deadly force to defend themselves against attack -- at home or in public -- without fear of prosecution or civil liability. Supporters see it as leveling the field, their opponents as a call to vigilantism." - CNN

I'm all for gun rights and for people to have the right to defend themselves, however, there needs to be a relatively strict criteria around when you're allowed to shoot someone.  My biggest issue here is the ambiguity.  Of course you should be allowed to defend yourself but when, and to what degree?  Does the law apply differently to a 25 year old male who's 6'2", 250 lbs than to a 75 year old lady?  It probably should but there needs to be some very clear definition around when you can pull a trigger.

I think this comes down to education.  As a CCW card carrier I think the initial training I had to go through was very good and adequate.  However, under the laws of my state, I won't have to take another class for 10 years!  It's been 3 and I have already forgotten much of what was taught.  If I'm going to be licensed to carry a concealed firearm in public, I feel a responsibility to keep myself educated on it's appropriate use.  I hope others feel the same way.

Why live in the U.S. and refuse to learn English?

"Grits" = News??? Really?

It makes me sick that the media thinks the general public is so stupid that that we need full productions about candidates talking about grits. Soldiers are dying in a war and we're doing reports about an off handed comment Romney made about "grits." Disgusting.

Sarah Palin - Bane of the GOP

Why couldn't she just be a flash in the pan and go away? It's getting embarrassing.

Obama Chides Governors for Education Cuts

I applaud them!  Why would we want our Federal Government involved with the education our youth?! They can't even get social security right.  If you want to protect our children's future, leave it up to state, and local governments and allow the private sector to distribute curriculum through the use of technology.  More importantly, put the responsibility for our children where it belongs, on the parents!

Source article

GOP Considering Pulling a Rabbit Out of a Hat?

According to CNN, some members of the GOP are considering introducing a new candidate for their primary and having an open convention format.  Considering the momentum of Santorum and Romney, do you think that's a good idea?

Contraception Controvercy

Is contraception, in terms of insurance, a religious concern, a political concern, or a health concern?

Same sex marriage ban repealed in Cali.

Pretty good clip if you need to be brought up to speed on the decision in California to repeal Prop 8.

Political Ad attacked as racist

Anyone else think we're being a little overly sensitive here?  It's not wrong to point out the fact that our jobs are going over seas.  China, in particular, has been accused of stealing jobs by artificially controlling their currency. The ad isn't about Chinese Americans, it's about the Chinese.  If another country doesn't play by the rules of international commerce, I don't think it's racist to raise awareness of it just because they're not white Americans.  Your thoughts?

Gingrich Just Won't Quit!

At what point does it become unhealthy for the GOP to keep up the infighting?

Super PACs explained

Should Super PACs be outlaw'd so that candidates can be held accountable for their own campaigns?