The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1225452
B-2 Wednesday, March 25, 2020 The Press-Dispatch OPINION Submit Letters to the Editor: Letters must be signed and received by noon on Mondays. Email: editor@pressdispatch.net or bring in a hard copy: 820 E. Poplar Street, Petersburg A fter many years of using my faithful personal computer, final- ly quit after a total of 9 years of use. At first it started to get slug- gish, then the cursor started to jump places, and then highlight- ing, copying and pasting became impossible to do. So it was time to do something. I have three lap- tops which serve as a back up . So I called my tech support to service a two year old relatively new and quite powerful computer which I had rarely used. Then off I went to my tech support friend and had much work done to tune up the PC. I also had a new printer pur- chased and had it programmed as well. Now I feel like a new per- son because I don't have to strug- gle to plead for my old computer to please cooperate and not crash or conk out. My prodding for my old PC didn't work. It just would not give me the last ounce of it's strength. The screen would fade out, the round thingy that swirls would endlessly do it's dance and then it would be fol- lowed by a freeze. So, it was time to let it go —my old good faith- ful PC friend, who through my best tweak and trick just gave it's final last breath. Now that I have a newer device to play with, I did not real- ize how much faster and less anxiety provoking it is to use a good, fast computer. Well, there's always new shortcuts and new tricks I have to learn, but as time goes on, I'll feel confident I can tackle lots of the new soft- ware programs and challenges. It's a good way to prevent oldtimer's disorder from creeping in faster. • • • There are some things I have learned in life which I'm sure many of my friends experience as well. This being spring break for my grandkids, I had two to keep for a few days. Grand- kids are precious, you love them and want to pamper them. One of the things I'm puzzled about is why it takes me two hours to clean my house and it takes them two minutes to mess it up. We have about two hundred toys stored neatly and when they pull them out of the boxes where they are kept, it's game over. I call the process a tornado drill. Or a disaster drill. Now I have to ponder if I will be ev- er able to put them back into place. One of the things I've learned is not to share pen markers. There are lots of papers I offer for their use but somehow the markers end My Point of View By Dr. H. K. Fenol, Jr., M.D. New laptop, spring break and grandkids Minority View By Walter E. Williams Socialism's past Continued on page 3 Continued on page 3 Continued on page 3 Senator Bernie Sanders' call for socialism has resonated among many Americans, particularly young Americans. They've fallen prey to the idea of a paradise here on Earth where things are free and there's little want. But social- ists never reveal what turns out to be their true agenda. Let's look at the kind of statements they used to gain power. You'll note that all of their slogans before gaining pow- er bore little relation to the facts after they had power. Vladimir Lenin promised, "Un- der socialism all will govern in turn and will soon become accustomed to no one governing." That's Fried- rich Engel's prediction about "the withering away of the state." Len- in also promised, "Communism is Soviet power plus electrification," and "No amount of political free- dom will satisfy the hungry mass- es." Lenin's successor, Joseph Sta- lin, said, "Advance towards social- ism cannot but cause the exploit- ing elements to resist the advance, and the resistance of the exploit- ers cannot but lead to the inevita- ble sharpening of the class strug- gle." He also said, "Gaiety is the most outstanding feature of the So- viet Union," and that "Gratitude is a sickness suffered by dogs." Then there's China's Chairman Mao Zedong, who said: "Socialism must be developed in China, and the route toward such an end is a democratic revo- lution, which will en- able socialist and com- munist consolidation over a length of time. It is also important to unite with the middle peasants, and educate them on the failings of capitalism." Mao advised: "A com- munist must be selfless, with the interests of the masses at heart. He must also possess a largeness of mind, as well as a practical, far- sighted mindset." Cuban dictator Fidel Castro said: "Capitalism has neither the capacity, nor the morality, nor the ethics to solve the problems of poverty. We must establish a new world order based on justice, on equity, and on peace." He added, "I find capitalism repugnant. It is filthy, it is gross, it is alienating... because it causes war, hypocrisy and competition." Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez promised: "I am going to do my best to try to create a coun- try in which children are not living in poverty, in which kids can go to college, in which old people have health care. Will I suc- ceed? I can't guaran- tee you that, but I can tell you that from a hu- man point of view it is better to show up than to give up." Adding, "I am convinced that the path to a new, better and possible world is not capitalism, the path is socialism." His successor Nicolas Madu- ro said: "Fidel Castro represents the dignity of the South American continent against empires. He's a living legend: an icon of indepen- dence and freedom across the con- tinent." Bernie Sanders' statements are not that different from those of Lenin, Stalin, Castro, Chavez and other tyrants. Sanders says, "Let us wage a moral and political war against the billionaires and corporate leaders, on Wall Street and elsewhere, whose policies and greed are destroying the middle class of America," and "We need to change the power structure in America, we need to end the polit- ical oligarchy." Pursuit of the Cure By Star Parker Points to Ponder by Rev. Ford Bond Staying free and faithful in a pandemic What a difference a few weeks makes Two weeks ago Christendom was in the midst of Lent and pre- paring for Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Eas- ter. The global pandemic of COVI-19 has drastically changed our plans and has interrupted and changed the way in which will live for the next several weeks. How long will this coronavirus take to work out of the population? That is an unknown. This is our current reality. Our governor has shut the schools down effectively ending the school year. Restaurants, sports ven- ues, and all group activities have been curtailed. We are asked to loosely shelter in place, and be- ing somewhat quarantined is go- ing to last through early summer. The church has also been asked to close for the foreseeable future. Experts have told the church that no building can remain san- itized if everyone fans the doors including the pastor and any staff. The only time anyone is should be there is for recording services. There is no longer any point in trying to continue "business as usual." Church as we have "done it in the past" is probably gone. This quarantine has the ability to per- manently change the landscape in many ways. Churches that find ways to con- tinue reaching people digitally and virtually will come out of this intact; those that cannot inter- act electronically are in trouble, which means many small church- es are not going to survive this shutdown. The church must become cre- ative or it will miss an opportuni- ty to change the direction of the church and maybe make changes in ways it resisted or would have taken years to accomplish. If we take what has happened in China as a guide, we are talking a minimum of 12 weeks to pass the peak time of infection. That will put us to June. Whether one believes this Coro- navirus outbreak is overblown, or it is not as serious as described is out of touch with reality-we are liv- ing a historical moment. This fact forces all to consider our present situation. First, be assured that God is guiding us and giving us his divine guidance. Second, be the voice of faith and reason to those who may be anxious over this virus. Finally- DO NOT panic! The church as a whole wants all Christians to know that your health and safety is their priority. The decision to suspend church services and close the office is not taken lightly. Nevertheless, until the Lord re- turns and regardless of circum- stances, ministry and outreach does not stop. Christians are called to do min- istry by presenting yourself as a living epistle, and to be a witness to others. During time of uncer- tainty and panic, let us realize peo- ple are unsure of tomorrow-though there is no overwhelming physical threat. FIRST – Pray! The entire body public throughout the world needs your prayers. The apostle Paul re- minded the church to "PR AY WITHOUT CEASING" I Thessa- lonians 5:17. SECOND – Where possible help others through prayer and inter- vention. If you know of a shut-in who needs assistance, help them or call the church. As mentioned, ministry does not stop. THIRD – Be a "Good Citizen." We are called to live peaceably among the governments of the world. This means during this Coronavirus crisis to heed the ad- vice of the government. Finally but also importantly, the local church needs your continued financial support. The Church de- pends upon your generous finan- cial support to do ministry. All need reminded that this is a time of action and prayer. • Pray for your church and its members In the fight against coronavirus, 33 states have closed some 64,000 schools, affecting more than 32.5 million students, Education Week reports. Texas is waiving state testing requirements for school districts, New York is relaxing state require- ments for how many days a year schools have to be open, and, in California, the Los Angeles Uni- fied School District announced a partnership with PBS to put school lessons on television for students at home. The District of Columbia and Puerto Rico also have closed schools to help curb the spread of the new coronavirus disease, which health experts call COV- ID-19. Like other institutions, schools should implement social-distanc- ing policies. Keeping that policy in mind while trying to help needy students, some schools—includ- ing those in Ohio, Michigan, and New York—have begun providing pick-up breakfasts and lunches at designated places for eligible stu- dents. A rapidly flour- ishing market of on- line resources is be- ginning to meet the content needs of millions of students across the country. Numerous compa- nies such as Zearn and STMath are pro- viding their materi- als online for free during the coronavirus outbreak. Existing options such as Khan Academy offer a wealth of educa- tional resources for families navi- gating homeschooling for perhaps the first time. Prenda microschool is offering its coursework to fam- ilies for just $100 for the remain- der of the year. Here is a fantastic list of online learning resources that every fam- ily should bookmark on their com- puters during this pandemic. National School Choice Week has online resources categorized by content area. You can find on- line tools such as communica- tions platforms, math, social studies, English language arts, and for- eign language educa- tion. Be sure to check out "Daddy School" while you're at it. Also available are virtual visits to muse- ums, including the Na- tional Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the Guggen- heim Museum in New York City, and 2,500 other museums that have partnered with Google to make their art and virtual tours available online. The Met will offer opera perfor- mances online for free beginning at 7:30 every evening through March 22. When you have a chance, check out some 450 online courses available for free from Ivy League universities. Many of these online learning Continued on page 3 Continued on page 3 The coronavirus crisis presents challenges to us as a nation and as individuals. There are principles we should keep in mind. Let's remember how our nation works. We have a Constitution that assigns limited, defined powers to the federal government and leaves the rest to the states and individ- uals. Some governors, like J.B. Pritz- ker of Illinois, don't seem to under- stand this. At a time when political leaders should be inspiring confi- dence, Pritzker is attacking Presi- dent Donald Trump, accusing the federal government of being "com- pletely unprepared." He wants to lay blame for crowds and delays at O'Hare Airport on the president. President Trump acted with de- liberation, doing his job, shutting down flights from China and then Europe. As Americans massed back to their home country, air- ports were predictably backed up. The great Major General George S. Patton observed, "A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week." This exactly captures Pres- ident Trump's behavior as this cri- sis began to unfold. O'Hare Airport is owned and operated by the city of Chicago. Clearly, some functions there, such as customs, are federal func- tions. But overall operation of the airport is local, and rather than jumping on the president and play- ing blame games at a difficult time, governors such as Pritzker should step up to do their part. One thing we know is that this virus is most lethal in attacking the elderly. The rate of fatality among those ages 70 -79 is 21 times that of people under age 60. The fatality rate among those 80 and above is 39 times that of people under 60. One reason Italy has been hit hard is it has the oldest population in Europe, with 23 percent over the age of 65. In the U.S., there are large age variations among the states. Among the youngest, Utah has a median age of 30.5, and 10 percent of its population is over 65. Texas has a median age of 34.5, and 13 percent of its population is over 65. Among the oldest, Maine has a me- dian age of 44.3, and 21 percent of its population is over 65. Florida has a median age of 41.8, and 21 percent of its population is over 65. How can "one size fits all" work with such dramatically different lo- cal realities? The answer is that we should maximize local responsibility and decision-making. There are two other critically important things to keep in mind. One: Life is about surprise, the unpredictable. If there is anything predictable, it is that the unpredict- able will always be with us. It's why socialism and illusions about national planning are so bo- gus and always result in failure. And why freedom is so critical and important. Only through freedom is respon- sibility focused where it needs to be: on individuals. And freedom delivers maximum flexibility and creativity to deal with life's inher- ent surprises. Two: Faith is critical. It is faith that keeps us human. It is faith that binds together free, unique indi- viduals into one great whole cloth. This health crisis is precipitat- ing an economic crisis. With all eyes turning toward Washington, our business leaders must step up and take responsibility. I've been writing for years about my belief in free economy and the importance of earning a profit. With almost 50 percent of our youth now expressing misguided enthusiasm for socialism, it is crit- ical that business leaders behave thoughtfully and humanely in this crisis. The future of our free, capi- talist system rides on it. Clearly, there is a place for gov- ernment in keeping the econo- my moving and helping individu- als in distress. But business lead- ers should not just look to govern- ment. Heritage Viewpoint By Lindsey Burke We're all homeschoolers now