It is Spring again and now that the rain has ceased, the pollens are released and my allergies assert themselves with full force.

No, this is not a narcissistic blog about my struggle with hay fever. I want to use the metaphor of allergies to express some direct thoughts on the current stae of affairs in the the public square of the USA.

I am allergic to

• “Conservatives” who talk about reduing debt and government waste while missing the opportunities to do so.
• “Liberals” who want “justice” but have no firm princples upon which to define the word itself.
• Educational leaders who call for parental generosity (endless fund-raising), involvement and responsibility while undermining all of these with politically correct campaigns to rewrite history and redefine anthropology and morality in the name of diversity.
• Church leaders who reject the teachings of their traditions while reaping all the financial rewards of the their clergy status. A special shame on Epicopalians such as “Bishop” Spong who should start their own separate religion instead of sponging off of the leagcy of faithful, orthodox Christians.
• Global business leaders who care nothing for borders, national sovereignty or the conditions of their workers.
• Politicians who still, after 40 years of failure, do not understand that you can not maintain an indefinite welfare state and wage a serious war at the same time.
• Denominational leaders who call upon their faithful to be witnesses in the world while urging their withdrawl from public schools.
• Secular, Western elites who love to villify anything Jewish or Christian while insisting for special respect for the Islamic way of life.
• Muslim leaders who preach hatred and violence in their mosques while claiming to be for peace when they speak to the press.
• All who claim history is nothing but the stories of the victors, while they selectively use history to push ideological agendas.

Well, it is time for another pill for the sneezing. Stay tuned…I have a feeling that my next article will contain more items to awaken our allergies…

There are remedies – like facing the truth and creating sacrificial solutions.

The challenge of illegal or “undocumented” aliens/immigrants will not go away. Global agribusiness and other service industries enjoy cheap labor and radical political forces are thrilled to watch a borderless environment emerge that will undermine the American Empire.

No one is seriously talking about the deeper issues affecting the future of our nation.

What does citizenship mean? When is a law no longer a law because no one will enforce it?

If we “normalize” the current 11-15 million undocumented workers, what systemic changes will be in place to prevent another crisis with millions more in a few years?

The cohesion of a culture – even a very diverse one – rests on shared values, vision and virtues. Our Founders knew this and generations since have been falling short and striving to achieve the equity and justice rooted in moral and spiritual values.

How do we move forward with compassion and conviction, with opportunity for all and upholding the rule of law, and with a clear pathway to citizenship?

Here are some first thoughts:

• We must distinguish three levels of participation in American socirty and the rights and responsibilities of each.
• “Guest Workers” need to be registered, seasonal and treated well; however, they are not year-round, permanent residents and must exit and re-enter in an orderly fashion.
• “Resident Alien” status can be expanded, but it must include proper documentation, taxes and learning English. Failure to participate in the larger educational and social fabric of our culture undermines the harmony-in-diversity we long to achieve.
• “Citizenship” should be an achievable aspiriation for many, provided they have learned the language, history and values associated with America.
• Employers must be accountable to register all workers and be in compliance with immigration and labor laws. All the protections for American workers must apply to guest workers and green card holders. Without this, nothing will change.
• We must be very clear that borders matter and enforcement must be consistent and fair. We do not need to establish policy based upon historical guilt for 1848!

The presence of millions who will work for substandard wages and live in poor housing may help some of the poverty across the border, but the only real winner is global capitalism. The losers are American workers and ultimately our entire culture.

There is much to be done. Blanket amnesties and huge fences are not the answer. Moral courage and a quest for cultural cohesion must win the day or the American Experiment will be another casualty of world history.

Here we go again. Radical Muslims calling for Israel’s destruction – or deportation back to Europe.

Here we go again. Well-meaning leftists (including many of Jewish lineage, if not practice) calling for “balance” and ” fairness” in how we see the Middle East. Israel should remove her security fence (though bombings are way down) and give back all land that is not part of the 1949 truce lines or the 1947 partition – then maybe the Palestinians will believe them and come to the table.

Some church groups even call for divestment of investments from Israel, even though they are not sponsoring terrorism!

Here we go again. The UN sponsors a day of remeberance for Palestinian martyrs and unveils a map of Paestine without Israel!

We live in the Information-but-Ignorance Age. How quickly we forget our history! Here are some reminders:

• Jewish men and women have a claim on this Land that is older than its current Arab occupants.
• During the 19th and early 20th century Jewish settlers legally purchased land from the Ottoman-led landowners. Very few Arabs were disposessed if they were willing to partner with their new neighbors.
• In exchange for an alliance during WWI, the British promised support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine, with Jew and Arab living in peaceful coexistence.
• By the 1930s, this promise proved hollow and the British stopped allowing Jews to emigrate to their Mandate in Palestine in significant numbers.
• At the height of the Holocaust in 1942-45, the nations of the world turned their backs and refuse to open their doors to desperate Jews.
• Finally, in 1947, the UN, with the approval the the USA and USSR, offers a partition of this Mandate, with a Jewish (Israel) and Arab (Trans-Jordan, now Jordan) State living side-by-side.
• By 1948, the new State of Israel is besieged by armies from all the Arab States. Cries of “Jihad!” and “Death to the Jews!” thunder throughout the”Arab Street”. Israel tries to calm her Arab populace, but thousands flee, with the promises of a short exile and return to the land when the Jews have been “thrown into the sea.”
• Israel achieves a truce in 1949, and defends herself in 1967 and 1973, with the final Yom Kippur War almost resulting in an Arab victory.
• By 1978, Israel and Egypt make peace – the Sinai is returned and a pathway forward for another Palestinian State is forged.
• The Oslo Accords of 1992-1993 offer an emergent Palestinian State 97% of the West Bank and the Gaza. Nobel Prizes are awarded, but Arafat’s duplicity and his ultimate aim of Israel’s destruction stalls any progress.

Again and again Israel has shown forebearance, relocated settlers, offered terms – and all it does is embolden the enemies committed to her destruction.

We need a new leader for the Palestinians. A leader must arise from the ashes of failure and unequivocably commit to 1) Israel’s right to exist securely and is full diplomatic relations with her neighbors; and 2) an end of terrorism and a williness to partner with Israel to devolp the economies of the region.

Israel is not perfect. She can be politically paranoid and her reactions to terror overdone at times. But Israel’s moral and political superiority must not be ignored – it is a model of freedom and diversity in a region bound by conformity and enslavement.

Let’s take time to get the facts and pray for peace. Let’s refuse to buy the drivel proferred by the Islamofascists and Holocaust deniers.

Let’s choose life and support Israel – AND a new Palestine that will be her friend.

The Gaza Strip is in flames again. Iran is making noises about nukes. President Bush wants authority to protect us from terrorists and the Democrats fear the loss of civil liberties in the process. The 9th Circuit Cout in California truncates parental control over sex-ed for seven-year-olds. Govenor Terminator is terminating any attempts at fiscal restraint and the US-Mexico border does not exist. Meanwhile our children in college can take courses in aberrant sexuality and graduate without ever hearing about Aristotle.

OK – things are mess. What can one person do? Plenty!

British writer J.B. Phillips once commented that we need to unlearn some things before we can properly learn the truth of any matter. Whether the topic is God or politics, economics or parenting, Phillips argued that getting”unfocused” for a moment and then refocused with the right questions is crucial.

Before we set out to “solve” the many problems of our age, perhaps we need to “unplug” from the “organs of anxiety” and get our mental and emotional footing. I am not suggesting we all retreat to Amish farms or Luddite communes. Many of us have jobs that plug us in all day to the Internet and other media. In order to parent well and be relevant to our neighbors, we need to stay abreast of the world globally and locally.

So how do we “unplug” a bit? How do we “unfocus” so we can tune in to what matters?

In the spirit of David Letterman, let me present to you the Top Ten Ways to Unplug in 2006. These are presented as preparation for plugging in the right way. Here we go:

10. Turn off the TV. Start with one evening a week and gradually withdrawl until the only time it is on is for special, intentional programming. You will be amazed at how much more mental and physical energy you have – not to mention time!

9. Turn off the computer – unless you must correspond, do research or engage in business. Stop trolling the web and please stop forwarding the latest rumors and scams.

8. Turn off the iPod and listen to reasonable decibel-levels through a stereo while you read, work or converse. Maybe someone in the family will talk to you if those buds are out of your ears.

7. Turn off the car radio (OK, you can listen to me each Thursday on KSFO!) once in a while and enjoy some silence.

6. Turn off the negative voices of despair that rob you of hope and joy. I am not talking about a denial of pain or a refusal to get help for serious needs. For most of us, the nagging negativity keeps us less productive and it has no foundation in truth.

5. Refuse to participate in any kind of gossip. If a conversation turns sour, confront it gently and walk away if the others refuse to change the subject. Resolve to deal with people directly and with their best interest in mind.

4. Turn away from the magazines and tabloids that litter the supermarket checkouts and shelves. Enough said.

3. Unplug from toxic people – or at least put strong boundaries on time spent with those who bring you down. You may not be able to avoid some challenges and even negative people deserve attention. It is not selfish to stay positive – you are more good to God and the world if your attitude is hopeful.

2. Stop recreational shopping. Only buy what you need when you need it. You will have much more money and time for the fun and important things!

1. Finally, unplug from self-centeredness and choose to see your life as a thank you to God and a service to others. The paradox is that we are happiest when bringing delight to others!

Do you notice that when you unplug in these ways you are in fact plugged in to what really matters?

At first glance, my tag-line, “Messenger to the Thoughtful” appears to be one more PR ploy or elitist label. In fact, the opposite is true. “Thoughtful” does not mean a Mensa IQ, vast education, or brilliance possessed by a few uber-intellectuals. My aim in using the term is to create a community of inquiry that will pause and reflect rather that pontificate and react about the central issues of our day.

The most difficult virtue for many to master is self-control, especially control of the tongue. The Stoic philosophers considered mastery of words a sign of virtue, a demosntration of inner self-control. St. James commented that the tongue is the human eqivalent of a ship’s rudder or the match that sets a dry forest ablaze. Maturity is marked by the words we use.

Today’s Information Age opens avenues of commerce and communication that startle the imagination and foster hope. The downside is that anyone (including me) can publish their thoughts and create “knowledge” that may or may not be valid. Add to this the “edutainment” we are subject to on radio and TV, with instant analysis from experts and we have a recipe for domination by demogogues. Reasonable, reflective voices are drowned in a cacophony of egocentric, ideology-driven claptrap.

Advent is a great moment to pause and be thoughtful. For Christians, this is the season of waiting and welcoming Christ the Lord, who is the final and full message of God’s love. For Jews, Hanukkah is a moment to remember the Providential preservation of a faith and a people in the midst of oppression and subversion.

From these two traditions, all thoughful people can mine some precepts that will increase integrity and the impact for good. For Christians, the challenge is to let the Good News win out over ideologies and philosophies that subvert the power of the Incarnation. Jesus (to borrow C. S. Lewis’ great phrase from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe), is “not a tame lion.” Dr. Peter Kreeft of Boston College reminds his students that Christ will not fit into the boxes of conservative or liberal, pure capitalist or Marxist, ot any other constructs.

For those who are Jewish or God-fearing, moral monotheists, the miracle of Hanukkah is preceded by spiritual and military courage. There is a time to resist evil, both personally and nationally. A small band of Maccabees routed a larger force led by the sinister Antiochus IV.

Here are some starting points for an “Advent of Thoughtfulness”:

• The Sovereign Lord worshipped by Jews and Christians is the “God in search of man” (Abraham Heschel). Compassionate communication and service is the hallmark of true faith.
• The great enemy of sound morality and theology is ideology – any terms that end in “ISM” have the potential to subvert the power of real piety. One can be conservative or liberal leaning; however, conservativism and liberalism can take on a life of their own and blind the adherent to deeper insight. Listen to liberal or conservative talk shows and chart how ideas are presented: most often, opponents are presented in the worst possible light and then irrationally trashed. This is not a way forward for civil society.
• St. John told his readers, “Brothers and sisters, let us not only love in word or tongue, but is deed and truth.” Concrete service to those who can not return the favor is the source of true moral authority. The Salvation Army is a church – an evangelical (gasp!) one – yet its record of service to all people is unsurpassed. What an example for all of us.
• An Advent of Thoughtfulness requires a common commitment to “First Principles”, transcendent ideas that are foundational for the freedoms we claim and enjoy. The Founders of the USA knew that liberty rested on a moral citizenry. May I suggest that we no longer wink at extramarital sexuality, runaway consumerism, spirituality-without-sacrifice and parentless children.

Each day gives us the opportunity to choose a better future. My prayer this Advent Season is that we will choose the glory of God and the good of others over our self-centered proclivities.

Right now there are millions of unreported acts of kindness and love taking place. Let’s join this band of brothers and sisters and begin a real revolution: exchanging animosity for humility, ideology for theology and talking heads for helpful hands.

Merry Christmas! I will write again as 2006 dawns, unless events compel me to speak out.