The 2021 Chronicles: COVID-19, Politics, and Faith

By A. Glenn Rose

Common sense looks at how our faith interacts with daily events. The faith of a senior expressed when it encounters politics, COVID-19, racism, gun violence, and more.

We all have questions about what we see on the nightly news. Sometimes we actually get answers! Having the time to seek the truth is usually limited and may be just switchi

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Feb 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9781637697658

A. Glenn Rose

From a humble beginning in Appalachia to a full life with many twists and turns: at seventy-eight years of age, A. Glenn Rose has been inspired to share his insight, working his way through college to graduate with a degree in mathematics. Life experiences have given him an exposure to decades of world events. An IBMer for forty-plus years, the author served customers in government, universities, banking, manufacturing, and consulting, which has broadened his horizons. His faith was cultivated when he was a child, then tested through the teen years, and blossomed. He is active in his church, serving in many capacities over the last forty years.

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Dedication

The life of my wife and best friend keeps me motivated to reach out with a helping hand to others. Joy fought through stage 4C breast cancer without fear for the future. Our faith was the anchor that kept us positive and assured us that God was in control. Having defeated cancer, we moved forward, not without challenges as the result of side effects from chemo and radiation. I was privileged to have been her husband for over fifty-three years. The Lord called her home on December 6, 2018. Her concern for others never disappeared, even through all of the challenges.

Acknowledgments

Scripture verses are from the New King James Version.

Statistical data on COVID-19 cases, guns, and deaths are from internet searches of the CDC, FBI, and other government sources.

Thoughts—State of the Nation

I am taking this opportunity to document my thoughts and feelings about the events to follow this historic day, January 20, 2021. I cannot say that I am pleased with how we arrived at the dramatic change in political philosophy. History will judge if it was the best option for our nation. I know that my personal conservative view is not and will not be well received. Those given power to make policies that will negatively impact my life will attempt to silence my views.

This past weekend I viewed two classic movies with a message that is germane to how we all may be impacted. Some of the impact of the changes many have already been seen as they are already coming.

The first film was Fiddler on the Roof. It begins with changing traditions within the ethnic community. It ends with the entire Jewish community being found unwanted and given three days to pack up and leave. I find the rhetoric of many in Congress and the Senate disturbing. They are labeling people with prejudice and hateful accusations. Then they are suggesting that the government needs to take actions against dissenters and crush all ideas that do not comply with their view.

The second classic, Dances with Wolves, has a young idealistic soldier being shuffled around and sent to a remote outpost to simply get rid of him. He proceeds to evaluate his situation with an open mind. He looks to interact with the Indians without prejudice and in a friendly manner. All of his actions result in building relationships and work for the common good. Then the government, which had abandoned him, arrived with violence and prejudice, and their only thoughts were to judge and kill. I fear that the actions of the new ruling class will turn into the use of the government to kill dissent and the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution.

I pray that I am incorrect, and history will find that my fears were unfounded.

New Administration: Day Two

The information coming out of the new administration has quickly turned to label groups who are nonviolent and very much concerned about all of the citizens as domestic terrorists. The ruling class of elite intellectuals who now control the news and all social platforms have decided that we are not worthy of being human, let alone a citizen.

It may be a crime to demand that citizens be prosecuted to the full extent of the law but completely stop any actions against illegal immigrants regardless of their crimes. They have been given rights to our justice system that has found them guilty. We now have a country that selectively enforces laws but claims we are a nation of law. This, however, is not new, as many of those arrested for rioting last summer were given a free pass.

Changing directions, we find the use of science to direct policies. This is not new. It has, however, gotten completely out of control. Any dissent within the scientific community that goes against the desired outcome is labeled as false science.

If we go back and review all of the statements about COVID-19, we will find that many of the claims labeled as false were indeed correct. They were dismissed by politicians and medical advisers. They had an agenda to wield power over the country and use the crisis for political gain. It continues, as fear and control continue, along with the punishment of small businesses with draconian, unscientific rules that are not being relaxed. They are killing the tax revenue from the business that funds the government. Is it because the majority of those business owners are fiscal conservatives? There has been no evidence that their opening would result in the spread of the virus.

On another front, science associated with energy production and its use is being ignored. Within hours, executive orders were signed to rejoin climate accords and stop energy projects. The result will be a reduction of jobs, increased energy costs, and a weakening of our nation. The increased costs will have the greatest impact on the low-income workers and their families.

Transportation, heating, and food costs will increase as it becomes more costly for businesses to operate, and those costs are passed on to the consumer. The message projected by this administration does not bode well for an economic recovery from this COVID-19 pandemic. Science is now a tool to a political end, not the systematic evaluation of all scientific opinions.

Changes Are Rapid: Day Three

We were able, in the last four years, to see a major reduction in the number of individuals living below the poverty line. The new executive orders are adding more regulation and federal government control over businesses and individuals. Expanding food stamps and social programs will be needed as more people fall back into the poverty level requiring assistance.

The flurry of executive orders is too numerous to evaluate, but they do not bode well for a return to the economic expansion we enjoyed prior to COVID-19. Remember the Shovel-Ready jobs of the Obama administration. The new Green Energy jobs promised are just phantom jobs not being created fast enough to replace real jobs lost.

If the American companies could innovate without regressive regulations and taxes, the nation would rapidly move to green energy and an economy that would thrive. A larger and controlling federal government that can fumble the simplest tasks is not the answer.

Monday: Day Six

This week begins with caution and wondering if changes will be made to improve the lives of all Americans. Americans are doing life together, and most changes are slow to develop, and the positive or negative effects may be weeks or months away. The pundits, from all persuasions, will be ready with their forecast. Glowing, foreboding, catastrophic, progressive, and the adjectives will abound. The only sure things, as proclaimed throughout the ages, death, and taxes, remain constant.

The unknowns are how they will impact each of us. The initial item will be a stimulus check for many, but it is just debt that will need to be reclaimed in the future. Other policies are divisive and cause strife and violence that divide rather than improve doing life together.

Spending most of the weekend in positive and uplifting activities only to find, it’s Monday, negative cartoon in the inbox. Talk of impeachment, reprogramming of millions, increased surveillance, the rule of law for some, waves of illegal immigrants, COVID-19 claims and counterclaims, global warming, censorship by proxy by Big Tech, political corruption, and more abound. Yes, Monday!

The vision is for more government and has rhetoric needing more jobs in the swamp. All will pay. Look for tax increases which will be added to items we use daily, driving up prices for basic needs. The impact will be the most severe on the poor within our nation. Listen close; there is a call for all to be ready to sacrifice for the common good if we are to save the planet.

Trust in God and the promises in the Bible, the salvation through Jesus giving a future that is not temporal, but eternal. Thank Him for providing each day