Looks like it’s been a tough week for the economy. Wednesday, MSNBC.com reported that “Stocks end day down big amid Fed’s gloom”. Then again today we read, “Disappointing data darken economic outlook”. Oddly, that last report says:
Many economists argue that a recovery, slow but steady, is still intact. But growth forecasts are falling, and the odds of another contraction are rising.
Who are these “many economists”? I’m beginning to think they asked these questions on an ostrich farm, because I’m not sure someone doesn’t have their head in the sand.
Unemployment numbers recently weren’t all that rosy, either. The only reason there’s any growth at all statistically is because the official tally doesn’t count those who are underemployed or have given up totally. Yet, even with this statistical fudge, we read:
Meanwhile the painfully weak job market shows no signs of improvement. The economy has added a paltry 650,000 jobs this year and the official unemployment rate remains at a recessionary 9.5 percent. A report Thursday showed that first-time claims for jobless benefits rose in the latest week to 484,000, the highest total since February.
You know, I read the OT, and I see there were periods of time when Judah turned back towards God. He spared them temporarily from the impending doom because they humbled themselves before God. I keep wondering if something similar will occur in the US, but I am losing hope that this will be the case.
Why? Because even while this is going on, there is a constant downslide in morality. The ancient House of Judah sporadically repented. That means they turned away from their wickedness and towards God. Yet, even shortly after 9/11, shortly after Congress stood on the Capital steps and sang “God Bless America”, the Supreme Court was hearing a case about whether or not “Under God” was Constitutional. The gradual acceptance and legalization of immoral lifestyles continues. Lawsuits against anything that smacks of Christianity continue on while political correctness dictates that all other religions be given recognition (a hypocritical stance, if I’ve ever seen one).
The results of all of this?
- The US is engaged in a war it cannot win. It is a war without borders. Even if the threat is removed from Afghanistan and Iraq, there are plenty of other countries with hardline clerics willing to supply suicide bombers from their followers. The enemy is in our midst even, as “homegrown” terrorists are now a very real threat.
- The economy seems to not be able to pick back up. And, why should it? What do we even make in this country? Just about everything related to industry and IT has been outsourced to other countries. All that stimulus money? Much of it has been used to hire workers in foreign countries. We used to be the bread basket of the world, but much of our food is now imported. Again, what do we make in this country?
- Environmental disaster after environmental disaster. If it isn’t hurricanes taking out the Gulf, it is oil spills.
- The national debt keeps on climbing. It has become a house of cards that may tumble down at any moment. What if China tells us tomorrow that we need to repay all the money it is owed? Many of our mortgages are actually owned by foreign countries, including Germany.
- Speaking of mortgages, all that stimulus money went to help who? A bunch of CEOs, that’s who. Meanwhile, banks have become even more aggressive at declaring default and foreclosing on homes.
Q: How long can it go on like this?
Yet, are people turning to God in the wake of all of this? What will it take to get people to wake up? Why is no one stirring people up like they did after 9/11 to at least pay lip service?
Maybe it is because they have been taught He does not exist. Maybe it is because they really don’t want God in their lives.
Or, maybe no one is telling them loudly enough.