James L. Paris's Blog, page 89

DNC Chair���s Order that Pro-Life Dems Go Elsewhere Causes Firestorm Inside of Party

Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez may have gone a bridge too far with his recent commandment that the party is fully committed to abortion rights, and that, essentially, any pro-life Democrats are persona non grata and need to go elsewhere.

According to reporting by the National Catholic Register, a number of high-profile figures within the party, who are themselves hardly in lockstep with the radical abortion agenda, are particularly worried about the prospects of the party in the face of such a position, particularly at a time when signature Democratic victories around the country have been in short supply.

Stephen Schneck, the outgoing director of The Catholic University of America���s Institute for Policy Research and Catholic Studies, as well as a pro-life Democrat, pointedly said that Perez���s statement ���is perhaps the stupidest thing I���ve ever heard from a DNC chair. A lot of people in the Democratic Party have a problem with abortion.���

���Perez wants to shrink the party even further,��� he said. ���That���s just political suicide.���

Rep. Dan Lipinski, D-Ill., echoed Schneck���s concerns about what Perez���s stance means to the party at large, saying that it makes ���no sense��� to alienate up to one-fourth of the base. Lipinski goes on to tell the Register that he is personally familiar with former Democrats who dumped the party precisely because there is no ���seat at the table��� for those with pro-life views.

And no less a figure than Sen. Bernie Sanders has managed to cross swords with the party on the issue of abortion. The Register reports that Sanders, while himself not pro-life, sees the issue from a standpoint of political pragmatism, believing that excluding pro-life views within the party will prevent it from winning majorities. Sanders has recently campaigned with Heath Mello, a pro-life Democrat running for mayor of Omaha, Neb., and was sharply rebuked for doing so by Ilyse Hogue, president of the abortion advocacy group NARAL Pro-Choice America.

Responding to the criticism, Sanders told NPR ���the truth is that in some conservative states there will be candidates that are popular candidates who may not agree with me on every issue. I understand it. That���s what politics is about.���

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large

This Reason, More than Any Other, is Why Americans File for Bankruptcy

It was not too many years ago that the dominant narrative about those who declared bankruptcy was that they ended up in dire financial straits by their own hand���as in, from overextending themselves in the realm of consumer credit; buying big-screen TVs, spending lavishly on vacations they could not truly afford, and then eventually suffering from what is still regarded by many as the personal financial death penalty.

One of the few silver linings to the financial crisis of 2008 is that because so many earnest Americans found themselves going through foreclosure, bankruptcy, and otherwise mired in a financial hell of one sort or another, perceptions about just what a ���typical��� bankrupt looks like thankfully began to change.

Well, an article appearing over at The Motley Fool details just what the number one reason is as for why people claim bankruptcy, and, sure enough, it has nothing to do with spending what you don���t really have on things you don���t really need.

The real culprit is medical debt.

The article cites data from the Kaiser Family Foundation that reveals over 25 percent of adults in the United States fight to keep up with medical bills, and that medical expenses are, indeed, the primary reason for personal bankruptcy filings in the U.S.

Additional information from The New York Times indicates that even insured adults are under the gun from medical expenses. Last year, the Times reported that a full 20 percent of insured American adults under the age of 65 had difficulty paying medical bills.

The good news, then, is that we���re not really a nation of careless spenders ��� many of us are doing the best we can with what we have. The bad news is that there is no easy answer to the problem���because the solution, when it comes right down to it, is, simply, to have more money.

No problem, right?

Getting more specific, the root of the problem (outside of the cost of medical care) appears to be the horrendous savings rate that characterizes much of America. Few people nowadays have anything socked away to cover sudden, unanticipated expenses, and now, with the cost of health care at astronomical levels and insurance doing such a so-so job (at best) of covering those costs, even a trip to the doctor for the annual checkup, with all of the lab work that accompanies it, carries with it the same financial impact as the transmission all of a sudden up and dying.

There is no easy answer; there is only one answer ��� get more money. If you don���t yet have a side hustle���that ���gig��� you do in addition to your regular job to help put more distance between you and financial uncertainty���then think seriously about getting one. It may not be easy to be rich, but there���s no reason to be broke, so if you are broke, or teetering on the edge of being so, just resolve that you���ll deal with it now, before you free-fall into the abyss.

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large

Evangelicals Remain Strong in Their Support for Trump

If evangelicals previously struggled to support Donald Trump, it appears they have worked through whatever conflicted feelings they may have once had.

As reported by The Washington Times, key leaders of prominent evangelical organizations throughout America are effusively praising the 45th President of the United States��� job so far since taking office. Additionally, the results of two recent polls suggest that ���rank-and-file��� Christian conservatives are still very much on board with Trump, as well.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony List, a pro-life organization that works to aggressively support the candidacies of female pro-life politicians, raved about Trump���s performance so far in the context of the anti-abortion advocacy, saying, ���Not only have there been several pro-life victories within the first 100 days of their administration, we are confident that pro-life progress will continue. This is a new era.��� Dannenfelser said, as well, that both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence are ���game changers��� for pro-life interests in America.

For his part, Ralph Reed, head of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, had this to say about the job Trump has been doing:

���Faith based voters who ushered President Trump into office last November ��� who were confident in his commitment to the sanctity of human life, and to his pledge to fill the Supreme Court vacancy with a justice who would respect the Constitution ��� are extremely pleased with his record of accomplishment this early into his presidency.���

Reed was also quick to point to results from recent ABC News/Washington Post and NBC News/Wall Street Journal surveys that reveal the president still enjoys the support of 70 percent of evangelical voters, and 52 percent of conservative Catholic voters.

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large

ESPN Anchor Says Overt Liberal Leanings Partly to Blame for Tough Times at Network

Even those who are not devoted sports fans surely heard about last week���s bloodbath over at ESPN, where nearly 100 staffers lost their jobs. While the layoffs affected personnel at all levels, prominent among those shown the door were on-air personalities very recognizable to regular viewers, including NFL analyst Trent Dilfer, NFL reporter Ed Werder, and popular baseball analyst Jayson Stark.

Because ESPN has adopted a decidedly liberal orientation over the course of the last few years, evidenced in a variety of ways, including the selection of transgender Caitlyn Jenner (the former Olympic champion Bruce Jenner) as the recipient of its ESPY ���Courage��� award a few years back, many observers are firm in the belief that it is this decidedly leftward turn that is at the root of the networks troubles; that viewers who tune in to ESPN for ���just sports��� had decided enough was enough, and that their abandonment of the network prompted the need for the layoffs.

Although that opinion has been strongly disputed by a number of people close to ESPN, with most touting the party line that the rise of Internet media and the monies paid to secure the broadcast television rights to high-profile sports leagues and events conspired to wreak the financial havoc with which the company is now dealing, one ESPN notable, Sportscenter anchor Linda Cohn, actually thinks the network���s new obsession with liberal politics may have played some material role in causing the financial turmoil.

As reported by Newsbusters.com, Cohn appeared last week on the Bernie and Sid Show on 77 WABC Radio in New York City, and said about the influence of viewers dissatisfied with the network���s political bent that it ���is definitely a percentage of it. I don���t know how big a percentage. But if anyone wants to ignore that fact, they���re blind. That���s what I meant about the core group that made ESPN so successful.���

Cohn���s last sentence was a reference to an earlier statement she made during the radio appearance in which she indicated that the ���core��� sports fan who was largely responsible for the network���s rise���has felt very out of place at ESPN in the wake of the network���s embrace of liberal politics.

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large

Benny Hinn's Secretive Finances And The IRS Raid On His Dallas Headquarters

The offices of televangelist Benny Hinn were raided this week - Jim shares why he is no fan of the televangelist. The Catholic church in Montana says it is going bankrupt to be able to pay sexual abuse victims, but Jim says their motives are entirely the opposite. Puerto Rico about to go bankrupt, how to find the lowest airfare deal in less than one minute, and Harvard says gender identity can change from day to day.

 

Simple Voice Test Reveals Hidden Medical Conditions

Sharry Edwards makes her first appearance on Jim Paris Live. She shares how she was able to diagnosis Robin Williams' medical condition with a simple voice analysis. She amazes Jim with an on-the-spot analysis of Jim's medical profile based on a 30 second recording of his voice. A tremendous new method that can uncover hidden health issues without expensive medical tests. Edwards also shares how to attend her free classes, and access her online training program. SoundHealthPortal.com

 

These Three Janitors Became Self-Made Millionaires

When you hear someone try to make a point about economic success, it is not unusual for them to reference the profession of ���janitor��� as the quintessential example of the professional totem pole���s lowest rung.

Well, CNBC.com has a pretty cool article at its site that tells of three guys who serve as amazing illustrations of the classic American success story by having risen from the ranks of that very profession to become self-made millionaires.

So how in the world did they do it? After all, we hear interesting stories of things like this happening���but are the truly real?

Well, they are in the case of the subjects at hand: Sean Conlon, Ronald Read, and Steve Hightower.

Conlon, an Irish immigrant, landed in Chicago with just 500 bucks to his name. He didn���t even have the luxury of starting out as a full-fledged janitor; he had to begin as an assistant janitor.

But he was motivated to do well for himself, and he did just that. He saved enough to buy himself an apartment, and, after he was settled in the United States, began selling real estate at night. That was his ticket to the big time. From there, he worked his tail off, and eventually became one of the nation���s top brokers.

In Read���s case, while he moved on from being a janitor, he never rose much past that professional station in life. In his case, he went about becoming a millionaire in a different way. He chose to live a parsimonious life���but became an active, life-long investor in the stock market. When he died at age 92 in 2014, his portfolio was worth about $8 million.

As for Steve Hightower, while he began his professional life working as a custodian, he now owns an oil and transport business. He is a bona fide mogul, with the company���s anticipated 2017 earnings expected to reach the $500 million mark.

In describing how he did it, and just how his own motivational system works, Hightower speaks not only for himself, but for basically all of the self-made successes out there.

���I started as a janitor. I started cleaning floors and toilets and doing those things that most people would never even dream of doing,��� says Hightower. ���I wanted more.���

���When people ask me would I ever have imagined I would be where I am today? Absolutely. Because if you don���t think that you can be great, you'll never be great. And I knew that I was gonna be great a long, long time ago.���

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large

China Bans Muslim Baby Names It Sees as Representative of Extremism

Clearly unconcerned with how they will be viewed in the context of the social justice arena, Chinese authorities in one part of that country have taken the extraordinary step of moving to ban a large number of baby names deemed to connote Muslim extremism.

According to Radio Free Asia, officials in Xinjiang, China���s westernmost province, have declared it to be illegal now for babies to be named Islam, Quran, Mecca, Jihad, Saddam, Medina, and Muhammad, as well as a variety of other names of Muslim extraction.

One official, speaking from a police station in Urumqi, the regional capital of Xinjiang, said that ���overly religious��� names are now banned, and that if there are any babies registered with any of the banned names, that they will be prevented from gaining access to the system that provides health care and education to local citizens.

Elaborating, the same official said, ���You���re not allowed to give names with a strong religious flavor, such as Jihad or names like that. The most important thing here is the connotations of the name ... [it mustn���t have] connotations of holy war or of splittism [Xinjiang independence].���

Even names of Islamic scholars are off-limits. When asked specifically about the possibility of a family member naming a baby with one of those, the government official responded, ���Get him to change it; it���s the sort of thing that [could be regarded as] promoting terror and evil cults.���

The Chinese government considers the issue of Islamic extremism to be so compelling in Xianjiang province because of the large number of Muslims living there. The Uyghurs, a Turkic ethnic group, comprise roughly half the population of Xianjiang, and the province directly borders several Muslim countries, including Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

 Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large

Grandma Pays For Trip To Disney With Grandson By Completing Online Surveys

Our team at ChristianMoney.com was moved when we read the story of a grandmother that came up with an amazing way to pay for a trip to Disney for her grandson and herself. She joined Swagbucks.com, a website that pays people to complete small tasks, such as taking surveys, watching videos, participating in focus groups, checking out free samples, and even browsing the Internet. They even have a mobile app that allows you to earn Swagbucks while you are away from your computer. I love the idea of having something productive to do while waiting in line at the grocery store, or being stuck in the waiting room at my doctor's office. 

Swagbucks says it has paid out more than $186 million dollars in rewards! Another way of earning with Swagbucks is through their 'cash back' program that can be used with retailers like Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, and countless others. You can even earn Swagbucks by inviting your friends to join. Well, I joined myself and inserted my own referral code in this article. 

How much money can you make? Well, it depends. For completing a task (such as completing a survey), you will earn the equivalent of between 1 to 15 cents. But, the easier points to earn are through the various cash back programs. For example, earn up to 7 percent cash back (in Swagbucks) from your Amazon purchases. Just like with couponing, there are those that make a little bit of money, and then there are others that make it an Olympic sport and earn significant sums. We would love your feedback. Please use the comments section below to share your own experience with the Swagbucks program.

Helping you make the most of God���s money!

James L. Paris
Editor-In-Chief ChristianMoney.com 
Follow Me on Twitter Twitter.com/jameslparis
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French Globalist Candidate Macron Booed by Le Pen Supporters During Hometown Visit

With the first round of the French election out of the way, the May 7 run-off has come to look very much like a mirror image of the 2016 U.S. general election. The race���s version of Hillary Clinton is Emmanuel Macron; viewed by many as a centrist (he refers to himself that way, as well), Macron actually enjoys the support of a number of leftist notables in France, and is an ardent pro-European and, relatedly, a staunch globalist.

His opponent, Marine Le Pen, is just as firmly entrenched on the other side of the political dividing line. Le Pen���s candidacy is essentially a ���France first��� effort (although she does not refer to it that way), in the way that President Trump���s run for the White House was almost entirely oriented on what he loudly and repeatedly proclaimed to be an ���America first��� agenda. Like Trump, Le Pen is interested entirely in the national interests of France and her citizens, and seems devoted to assuming that posture at the direct expense of the Eurozone, Muslims, and refugees.

Anyway, Macron was in his hometown of Amiens recently to meet with union leaders associated with a Whirlpool plant there. The plant is going to be relocating to Poland, and the workers are on strike over the impending move. As reported by Sky News, Le Pen showed up during the confab, clearly in an effort to upstage her rival, taking pictures with the rank-and-file and reiterating to all there her position as the pro-France, anti-globalist candidate. Le Pen said that if she wins the May 7 election, she���ll be sure to keep the Whirlpool plant right where it is, and said, ���Everyone knows what side Emmanuel Macron is on - he is on the side of the corporations.���

���I am on the workers' side, here in the car park, not in the restaurants of Amiens.���

Macron did make an appearance at the picket line after his meeting, but was roundly booed and jeered, with many repeatedly shouting ���President Marine!��� at the clearly-beleaguered candidate.

Le Pen called the Whirlpool plant a ���symbol of odious globalization, which leads to plants moving abroad, destroying thousands of jobs.��� For his part, Macron doubled-down on his own rhetoric, saying, in part, that an effort to reconstitute and fortify French borders would prove an effort that poorly serves the country.

Macron���s hometown has hardly been kind to him during this election cycle. Not only was he forced to endure an acutely chilly reception during his recent visit, but Le Pen actually received a greater number of votes from the Amiens residents than did Macron in the first-round balloting.

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large