Month: November 2025

Utopia? Or the Truth Working Its Power?

Roger Mitchell7 Comments

“A free republic requires citizens who can restrain themselves, tolerate disagreement, act with integrity, and recognize right from wrong. Without that, laws become hollow and institutions brittle.” — https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/americas-real-crisis-collapse-citizen

This quote was taken from an article cautioning us to not put our full trust in AI as a means of solving our problems. It is good as far as it goes, but I am going to rip it entirely out of context and address the deeper philosophical meaning buried in these two sentences. A free republic allows this and no one can complain that I did not recognize the author because you can click on the link and read it for yourself. If you want to.

Consider.

Isn’t the first part of this question a paraphrase of the Great Commandment and the one which is its equal?

“Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, ‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?’ Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second one is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.'” — Matthew 22:35-40 (NKJV)

If citizens restrain themselves, tolerate disagreement, act with integrity, and recognize right from wrong, then what need is there for laws, especially laws which are intended to control and regulate behavior according to what someone else thinks? Literally, every single law that has ever been promulgated has been enacted for one purpose–to control someone’s behavior in some way, yet Jesus says that the structure and foundation of these laws throughout history, myriads of myriads, is encapsulated in two short sentences: Love God with everything you have. Love your neighbor as if he were you.

So, I ask again, if citizens restrain themselves, tolerate disagreement, act with integrity, and recognize right from wrong, what need is there for laws? What need is there for governments which do not make people free by their rules, but seek to enslave them by constantly passing more laws which restrict human liberty?

Of course, some will say that this is only a theoretical exercise and people will push back declaring that I am trying to create an unworkable Utopian future, yet the fact remains that I, personally, do not need laws to tell me how to restrain myself, to tolerate disagreement, to act with integrity, to recognize right and wrong. I do not personally need government to order my life, to keep me under control, to keep my neighbor “safe” from my depredations and aggressions against him. Further, I do not need government nor laws to protect me from my neighbor who also keeps himself under control and recognizes right from wrong. Neither do you.

Let me ask you a question. Do you have need to be told how to live, how to restrain yourself, how to discern what is right, how to be known as a person of integrity, how to disagree with others? Well, do you? The point I am trying to make is that if you and I can live according to the Two Great Commands, then so can anyone. Everyone has the potential for doing so.

But, but, but…I can hear the sputtering now. We might be able to live that way with God’s help, but others won’t and they are the ones who need to be controlled and ordered. Imagine what the world would look like if criminals and wrongdoers were allowed to run amok without any fear of punishment or retribution, to which I would respond, like the world we live in today? And, of course, we could go back and forth in this argument forever without ever coming to some agreement, so I will just leave it there and move on.

What would be the condition of the world in 100 years (or 1000, the length of time doesn’t matter) if those who understand what the first sentence of this article really means AND spent their time, effort, and resources developing those traits and characteristics in themselves instead of working to pass laws to control someone else? Instead of trying to keep others down, what would happen if we actually lived the life as described in Jesus’ answer to the lawyer? Didn’t Jesus also say that, “You shall know the truth and the truth will make you free.”? And, isn’t it true that one of the things we are set free from is fear–fear of the unknown, the future, our fellow man, our own sinful nature, inclinations, and actions? If we truly wanted to be free, wouldn’t we work harder on ourselves to conform to His Image and less on a political party or ideology that we support and believe in? Isn’t it likely that the more we become like Jesus, the less we will conform to the world system, perhaps eventually abandoning it altogether?

Theory. All theory, you say. Pie in the sky by and by and completely impossible in this world. Yet, that is the way I am living now and, as time goes on and my life becomes more in tune with His Spirit, I fully expect to become more and more consistent with what I am promoting. Whether anyone joins me or not is irrelevant. I know my path and I will travel it unafraid, alone if necessary, and without any need or desire to exercise power and control over anyone else. But, then, I do not have to walk alone because the Spirit of God walks with me.

This is not to say I have arrived at sinless perfection because I haven’t. I won’t as long as I am alive. There will always be corrections to make, sins to overcome, hard places to smooth out, transgressions to be repented of and forgiven. However, I have put my trust and faith in the Word, which rules supreme over all law and I refuse to believe in the actions and institutions of Man.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such, there is no law.” — Galatians 5:22-23 (NKJV)

I repeat, against such, there is no law.

Final answer.

The Ghost of Jeffrey Epstein Lives!

Roger Mitchell2 Comments

When I got up from my late-afternoon nap a little while ago, I pulled up ZeroHedge to see what was going on in the world and was shocked, shocked, absolutely stunned, I tell you to see this article pronouncing that both the House (expected) and the Senate (completely out of character) had approved the release of the Epstein Files, and sent it on to The Donald for his long, drawn-out signature. What really blew my mind, however, were the margins in the votes, 427-1 (House) and unanimous (Senate).

Naturally, being the sort of person I am, I immediately started ruminating on the meaning of these lop-sided decisions and, being the suspicious, skeptical sort of person I am, latched onto the idea that one of two things had just happened:

  1. The Federal Government, as exemplified in its two august bodies, had just had a “coming to Jesus” moment and, henceforth, would be working for truth, righteousness, and the American Way.
  2. The American people were just snowed…again.

I have to hand it to Thomas Massie, a republican representative from Kentucky, who along with Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California, has been pushing and pushing for months to get this “list” published. Massie, for his efforts, has been subjected to serious “trouble” from the White House, but has emerged victorious. I think. Maybe. We’ll see. No telling what this will lead to. Nevertheless, take your victory lap, Mr. Massie. You have earned it.

On July 10, 2025, I posted an article, https://poorrogersalmanac.com/2025/07/10/officially-confirmed-epstein-didnt-kill-himself/, which included the paragraphs below.

“There is one other similarity between JFK and Epstein. The case is closed. Closed. Officially closed. There will be no more investigation, no more fact-finding ventures, no more questioning, no more publicity, no more “conspiracy theorizing”. The administration of Donald Trump and Co. has issued its last report and there will be no release of any files pertaining to the matter. In due time, it will all be forgotten….Except that it won’t be. There is simply too much about this that doesn’t pass the smell test. Anyone with a sense of reason, common sense, and a nose for the truth can discern that we have been lied to…again, this time with vehemence, bigly, as Trump would say.”

Which, once more, brings up the question: Are we being snowed again? Suspicious minds want to know.

  • While on the campaign trail, Trump vigorously promoted the promise that the files would be released as soon as he became president.
  • In February, 2025, barely a month after Trump took office, his AG Pam Bondi, declared that the “list” was on her desk, impatiently waiting for her review and release.
  • In July, 2025, barely four months later, the White House held their famous (infamous?) press conference during which it was averred, avowed, and aggressively asserted that “there was no there, there”. The List had somehow vanished, the evidence had been mysteriously flushed down the toilet, there were no witnesses to the alleged crimes, the whole thing was a hoax (a Democrat hoax to get Trump, mind you), and on, and on, and on…
  • In July, Massie and Khanna introduced their resolution named the Epstein Files Transparency Act, seeking to gain 218 co-signers which would force the House to take up the measure. Around that time, Trump declared war on Massie, vowing to “primary” him in 2026 with someone more “suitable” and unleashing a virtual river of vicious invective against him.
  • In early August, Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s girl Friday, was transferred from a high-security prison in Tallahassee, FL, to a low-security Federal Prison Camp Bryan in Texas, where she has received preferential treatment. Around the same time, it was revealed that Donald Trump had never, ever, done anything wrong with Epstein. Not even once.
  • Initially, Mike Johnson, the Republican Speaker of the House, resisted the EFTA resolution and refused to bring it up for a vote until it became apparent that it was going to happen, at which time he allowed it. It is noteworthy that Johnson also kept the House in a state of recess for months so as to avoid seating Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who was elected in a special election in August and who had sworn to sign on as the last needed co-sponsor.
  • Claiming “we have nothing to hide”, Trump caved in on Nov. 17 and gave his “blessing” to the vote, which was apparently the last straw on the camel’s back.

Something here is not right. It stinks to high heaven. Either there was nothing there to begin with OR there is something which TPTB are desperately trying to cover up. Considering that Trump and Team have been bouncing back and forth between two opinions, depending on who they are trying to please, it is not hard to believe that some VERY SERIOUS SHENANIGANS did actually happen, that Epstein had something to do with them, and that it will cause some extreme embarrassment on the part of some VERY IMPORTANT PEOPLE should the truth about the whole sordid affair come out. Larry Summers is only the first one to fall.

Final Answer: Let the truth be told and the chips fall where they will.

Random Thoughts

Roger Mitchell1 Comment

Reading Lew Rockwell this morning.

“I have written a number of articles for which I have received little response about the horrible mistake humanity has made by entering into the digital revolution and the AI it spawned.  These disastrous developments are now being institutionalized in all societies.  They bring the end of human autonomy, independence, control, objective truth, freedom, and awareness of reality.” — https://www.lewrockwell.com/2025/11/paul-craig-roberts/the-destruction-of-reality/

I have great respect for the insights promoted by Paul Craig Roberts, but no sympathy for the fact that he has received “little response” to his offerings. The fact of the matter is that, virtually wherever I have seen his postings, there has been absolutely no possibility to respond–no email address, no comments allowed, etc. It’s almost as if he is talking to the wall and then gets miffed when the wall just sits there. My advice to him: open up the channels of communication and you will be surprised at the response you get.

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“If people can’t make enough money to get by then they should get better-paying jobs. If people don’t like getting kicked around by an abusive status quo then they should climb their way into a socioeconomic strata that isn’t getting kicked around as much. If someone doesn’t like being the nail then they should become the hammer.” — https://www.lewrockwell.com/2025/11/no_author/in-capitalism-they-tell-you-to-become-the-hammer-if-you-dont-like-being-the-nail/

I respect Caitlin Johnstone for her tenacity. She sees things which are wrong and goes after them full-force, most especially the morally disastrous catastrophe happening in Gaza. Yet, I simply cannot align myself with her viewpoint on capitalism, which she routinely and often maligns without ever getting to the root of the problem. It is easy to blame “capitalism”, however, in our own way, every single one of us is a capitalist.

 “The fundamental premise of capitalism is that all exchanges of property between economic actors are voluntary. No one is forced to make an exchange against their will; and no one is forcibly prohibited from making an exchange with another willing actor. Freedom of association and freedom of contract are inherent to capitalism. Without them, whatever system is operating is not capitalism, whether supported by private business owners or not.” — https://www.lewrockwell.com/2025/11/tom-mullen/jim-crow-laws-were-anti-capitalist-and-the-free-market-killed-them-long-before-the-government-showed-up/

Capitalism, at its root, is the everyday acting out of every single individual using what he has at his disposal to make his own life better, whether financially, socially, emotionally, or spiritually. What Johnstone decries, yet does not distinguish, is that when power (force, violence) is brought to bear on society, there is no longer free capitalism, freedom of choice, but a contrived system in which individuals are no longer able to decide for themselves, but must submit to the will of others.

What is capitalism, indeed, if not the ability of one person deciding where and how to “invest” his own capital, regardless as to the amount, so that he reaps a reward at some indeterminate time in the future? Did not Jesus extol this practice, as seen in The Parable of the Talents, i.e, putting the money which has been entrusted to you to profitable use? (Matthew 25:14-30)

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“We tell ourselves that violence is like a coat that you can put on and take off when you choose, but that’s a tragically mistaken way of thinking. Violence works its way into your body, even into your soul. Then it festers there, eating away at your capacity for being human — your longing for loving, honest relationships; your care for yourself and others; and your deep connection to other living beings. Even worse, in a culture that glorifies violence and has made it into something sacred, such dynamics are excruciatingly hard for us to see clearly.” — https://www.lewrockwell.com/2025/11/no_author/military-moral-injury-violence-and-the-parable-of-the-guinea-worm/

An honest, soul-searching inquest into the repercussions of organized violence and our acceptance of it. 11/11 used to be known as Armistice Day, the celebration of the end of war, but it has transmogrified into the celebration of the worship of violence and those who practice it, without ever recognizing the consequences which follow such action, i.e., the destruction of our own souls.

The Stones are Crying Out. Can You Hear Them?

Roger Mitchell1 Comment

It has been reported that the toll from Donald Trump’s self-declared “war” on Caribbean fishing boats has now reached a total of 18 attacks, with at least 70 persons losing their lives because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Even though some (that is, a few) members of Congress are demanding that the attacks end (that is, until Congress itself can declare them official), there is no sign that Trump and his gung-ho henchmen (Rubio, Hegseth, etc.) will stop voluntarily. It is more than likely that the killings will escalate and multiply until the end goal of the neo-con White House and its puppet-masters is reached: a full-blown war against near or distant “enemies” who are unable to stand up against the military might of the US Department of War (that is, the highly profitable business model known as the “military-industrial complex).

In my lifetime, I have read a few books which have left a lasting impact, which I cannot forget, overlook, or ignore: Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, Solzhenitsyn’s Gulag Archipelago, Roth’s Choosing Against War, Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning, et al. There are pamphlets, essays, polemics, articles too numerous to mention, which have shaped my thinking in so many ways, bringing me to the point I am at today. When it comes to Trump’s “Fisherman’s War”, however, one stands out as extremely relevant and sounds a clear warning. The excerpt below is taken from it.

“Today, the stones still cry out. Every story of victims—whether nonviolent prisoners like those Steve Bannon met in jail, or casualties of wars we fuel in Israel-Gaza or Ukraine-Russia—haunts our collective conscience. Jesus tied the stones’ cries to Jerusalem’s fall in 70 AD, when Israel’s zeal for violence mirrored Rome’s and left both exposed as complicit in the same sin. America stands at a similar crossroads. Our politics, like Caiaphas’, justifies flesh-and-blood victims for “national security” or “progress.” We cheer Barabbas-types—leaders promising strength through exclusion or war—while ignoring the Lamb who redefines polis not as the victors’ club but as the refuge for the least of these.” — https://www.lewrockwell.com/2025/04/david-gornoski/the-stones-still-cry-out-holy-weeks-political-reckoning/

Caiaphas-type politics which demand that someone die. Barabbas-type leaders who prey on weak, insignificant countries, societies, and persons. Pilate-type rulers who could stop the carnage but are politically inclined to “go along to get along” and, therefore, impotent and useless. And, of course, there are the “huddled masses” which obediently provide the necessary background noise and support for such actions, all in the delusion that somehow blowing boats out of the water without just cause will make America safe and their own lives personally better and more prosperous. Oh, yes, the collective zeal for violence at the mainstream level does mirror that in Washington and, like the crowd which screamed out, “Crucify him, crucify him!”, urge and hector our own Caesar-like “leaders” to increase the tempo and pressure because all would be lost if we relented for even a moment. Whether our collective conscience haunts us or not is debatable.

And still, the stones cry out!

Well, yes, this is an obvious reference to the devastation and killing fields in Gaza, not the waters off the coast of Venezuela, but everything I have described above applies to this as well. This ought to raise the question which everyone has heard at some time or another: WWJD? What would Jesus do, indeed, about the situations in both locations where the powerful and mighty rain down violence, death, and destruction on the poor and helpless? Actually moving from theory to consequence, probably negative, is to rephrase the question. What will Jesus do? What will be Heaven’s response to these not-so-isolated instances of theft, murder, and injustice, all of which are occurring on our watch and often with our complicity and consent, both vocal and silent.

Why do the nations rage, and the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us break Their bonds in pieces and cast away Their cords from us.” — Psalm 2:1-3

And, the answer.

He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, and distress them in His deep displeasure… — Psalm 2: 4-5

My belief, informed by history and the warnings (both implicit and explicit) laid out in the Holy Bible, is that it will not be pretty nor comfortable. Many of us will probably express regret that we allowed the stones to cry out because it was easier than to raise a fuss ourselves.

Suffering, Endurance, and the Prize of Life

Roger Mitchell2 Comments

A little bit of background.

I read Bionic Mosquito. His posts, whether I understand them fully (sometimes I don’t), whether I agree with them or not (usually I do), are always worth the time it takes to read and think about. Recently, he has been posting a series of articles on the book of Job, from the Old Testament, which have helped me to see Job’s suffering (and his insufferable “friends”) in a different light.

At about the time this series started, I also began reading (again) Viktor Frankl’s book, Man’s Search for Meaning, and I recognized that the struggle Job went through is also the same thing which Frankl describes, namely that, unavoidable suffering is to be endured and that, by enduring it instead of becoming bitter or hopeless1, the individual actually becomes stronger, more spiritually satisfied, and fulfilled. This, of course, is not meant to say that suffering is inevitable, but if or when it does happen, it does not have to be the end of the world. In fact, the apostle Paul alluded to this when he wrote to the Philippian church that,

“…for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content; I know how to be abased, and I know how to about. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” — Philippians 4:11-12

The understanding I am gaining is that no matter what happens to me, it does not have to destroy me, but if I choose to allow it, can propel me to a higher level of understanding, bringing me closer to the ideal of Christ, Who endured all things, including the cross, because He understood that the glory set before Him was worth the temporary pain which the suffering brought about.

Why should I be any different than that? Or exempt from it? Suffering, in and of itself, does not result in godliness or holiness, but if responded to in the correct manner, can bring about a level of spiritual peace and power which cannot be attained in any other way.

The key here is that the suffering which cannot be avoided simply cannot be avoided. If Job had known what was about to happen to him, he might have been able to take steps to evade it. If we knew what the future holds for us, we would do whatever we could to mitigate the resultant pain. The ancient Irish saying goes, “If I knew where I was going to die, Begorra, I’d never go near the place.” Or, as Frankl says, in reference to suffering,

“…If it is avoidable, the meaningful thing to do is to remove its cause, for unnecessary suffering is masochistic rather than heroic.” — ibid

If you suffer because you cannot control your spending habits, always spending more than you earn and take in, then the thing to do is to change the way you live, to bring your lifestyle into alignment with your earnings capacity (and perhaps even slightly below that). For many people, however, it is easier to play the victim, to take advantage of someone else’s compassion and pity, but this is not the way to endure to the end nor the way to conquer a bad habit. Obviously, this is a simplistic example, but the principle holds regardless of the circumstance. If you can avoid unnecessary suffering by changing, then it is better to change, no matter how much it costs in the short run.

How should we respond, though, if we are hit with a bout of suffering which we can do nothing about, over which we have no control? Reading the book of Job, it is evident from the beginning that he could do nothing to alter or alleviate his situation, and was compelled to endure through it to the very end when his righteousness would be proven. Frankl has mentioned that being arrested and thrown into a concentration camp against your will may be nothing you can avoid or alter, but you always have the option to determine the way you will respond to it.

“…[E]verything can be taken from a man but one thing; the last of the human freedoms–to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” — ibid

Isn’t this what we should be aiming at?

  1. Job’s wife? Bitter and hopeless? Curse God, and die! Over the millennia, she has been held up as an example of a bitter, hopeless woman, yet I can’t condemn her. After all, she experienced nearly all the suffering that Job did, loss of wealth, children, etc., and probably a great deal of emotional health, which would be an enormous load for any woman to carry. I wonder, how would I respond if I had to walk a mile in her shoes? ↩︎