Disappointment and hope

Yesterday morning JR (from Beavercreek Nazarene) talked about our own disappointments in God, and perhaps in how we relate to him or how we perceive him through some of the events that take place in our lives. He did a quick overview of death being defeated, which really got me thinking about the constant struggles we have on a daily basis as believers encountering hardships, conflict and disappointment.

Then I remembered about an article I wrote a few years back on the difficulties we have as Westerners in understanding the words of Jesus. God's "judgment" came to mind right away. The difference between East and West are dramatic. In the West we see judgment as retributive, vengeful, something to be feared and avoided. The Jews saw is as the equivalent of righteousness (Isaiah 51) "My righteousness is near, my salvation is gone forth, and my arms shall judge the peoples."

I will repeat what I said on the EPIC blog here: I think this theme of disappointment, judgment and righteousness could be tied together into a very powerful image of where we are today as believers. As death has been defeated, we can say with confidence that our feet are standing within the gates of the New Jerusalem, longing for God’s judgment and protection every day.

19 Jul, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 0 -

iPhriday: Stimulus money at work

A new turn-lane was paved in front of my office building today...with the freaking telephone pole left where it was before!!!



09 Jul, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 1 -

The Anatomy of the State

This essay by Rothbard is dully appropriate to be posted on the 4th of July, when so many Americans celebrate the State and celebrate a sick and distorted sort of "freedom" without fully understanding that they are in fact embracing a Statism of the worst kind, benevolent when worshiped, violent when opposed.
The useful collective term "we" has enabled an ideological camouflage to be thrown over the reality of political life. If "we are the government," then anything a government does to an individual is not only just and untyrannical but also "voluntary" on the part of the individual concerned. If the government has incurred a huge public debt which must be paid by taxing one group for the benefit of another, this reality of burden is obscured by saying that "we owe it to ourselves"; if the government conscripts a man, or throws him into jail for dissident opinion, then he is "doing it to himself" and, therefore, nothing untoward has occurred. Under this reasoning, any Jews murdered by the Nazi government were not murdered; instead, they must have "committed suicide," since they were the government (which was democratically chosen), and, therefore, anything the government did to them was voluntary on their part. One would not think it necessary to belabor this point, and yet the overwhelming bulk of the people hold this fallacy to a greater or lesser degree.

Read the entire essay here: http://www.lewrockwell.com/rothbard/rothbard62.html

04 Jul, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 0 -

Penn Jillette on Christians

Penn Jillette gave a short interview to Vegas Weekly where he talk about Christians in surprisingly good terms...in an unsurprisingly Penn-like way:

You do go after Christians, though … Teller and I have been brutal to Christians, and their response shows that they’re good f****g Americans who believe in freedom of speech. We attack them all the time, and we still get letters that say, “We appreciate your passion. Sincerely yours, in Christ.” Christians come to our show at the Rio and give us Bibles all the time. They’re incredibly kind to us. Sure, there are a couple of them who live in garages, give themselves titles and send out death threats to me and Bill Maher and Trey Parker. But the vast majority are polite, open-minded people, and I respect them for that.

You can read the entire interview here.

24 Jun, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 3 -

So, what exactly is a Freedom Outlaw?

Tim Martin sent me a link to an article by Claire Wolf and I just had to share it; it goes along the same lines of thinking with my own take of State control anymore -- if the State breaks or opposes natural law with statutes, just ignore them and live your life in freedom anyways.

A Freedom Outlaw is (loosely) somebody who cares so much about freedom that he or she will go after it regardless of any laws or regulations blocking the way. Will go after it personally. Not petition for it. Not write letters for it. Not vote for it. But GO for it.

You can read the entire thing here.

08 Jun, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 0 -

When Government Becomes Criminal

It has been a while since I've posted anything here, but this was due to campaigning/elections and simply busy family life. Also I've started to blog on a regular basis for the Greene County Herald - things related to local politics and issues will stay there and I will try to contribute on a more regular basis here with relevant material.

Elections went well - I did not win, however I did receive nearly 25% of the vote, which is not bad for a first attempt coming from an unknown with little money and name recognition. My opposition to the City of Xenia's tax levy likely cost me a substantial number of votes from government employees and unions, however principle won and the levy which was backed by unions lost by a little over 100 votes. More Xenia residents now get to keep more of their income and property as a result of my efforts.

You can read my latest entry titled When Government Becomes Criminal.

18 May, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 0 -

April 24th Xenia Tax Rally

XENIA, OH -- Stopxeniatax.com and local Tea Party activists and supporters are working on wrapping up the final details on a planned tax rally for April 24 in downtown Xenia. The rally will be a "call to arms" for all Xenia and Greene County residents to stand up to out of control regulations, government abuse, tax increases and political corruption, regardless of what political party a candidate or issue belongs to.

With music and free food, speakers will outline the principles of freedom and liberty found among Tea Party supporters, and will bring to light the constitutional principles which many supporters of the Tea Party count on when considering candidates and issues in an election. A particularly contentious local point is that of Issue 7, a tax levy placed on the May 4 ballot by the Xenia City Council. After the Xenia city manager hired political consulting firm Avakian Consulting in order to help with the passage of the levy, they were sued for fraud, misappropriation of funds and violation of election law. The lawsuit was dismissed on April 14 on a technicality, and so far no decision has been made to appeal.

"What started as an off-hand comment made to a friend is now becoming a reality," said Virgil Vaduva, founder of stopxeniatax.com and Republican candidate for the primary race for Greene County Commissioner. "This rally will shine the light of truth on the dark deeds of back-room politics here in Xenia and in Greene County," said Vaduva.

Local area residents involved in organizations like the Dayton Tea Party, Xenia Liberty Group and Ohio Open Carry are helping out with the planning of the event, and a number of Xenia residents volunteered their time to help organize the rally and provide logistical support for it. "The response to the call for the rally was strong and folks are excited to be part of this - I hope the whole city shows up!" said Virgil Vaduva.

Speakers will take turns sharing the steps of the 1902 Greene County Courthouse in Xenia, which dons a stained-glass window featuring a blind-folded woman holding the justice scales and the inscription "The safety of the people is the supreme law." A full list of speakers will be released later on as it is being finalized.

The rally is tentatively planned for April 24, at 4:00 PM.

17 Apr, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 3 -

He doesn't fit the mold...

Jamie and I were speaking today about how I make the worst target for anyone trying to put me in a mold and attack me on a political or personal level:

- I have been called a liberal "left field" guy because I am building a strawbale house, yet I carry a loaded Glock 17 everywhere I go and can shoot a decent grouping with my .308 Steyr from a couple of hundred yards.

- I've also been called anything from liberal or moderate to conservative crazy guy. Which one is it?

- I manage very complex information security environments for a living and can run a chainsaw as well as a logger.

- I've been called "greedy" because I am against taxation, but last year we gave more than half of our possessions away to charity and people who were really in need of everything from clothing to furniture, electronics and many other things.

- Probably I'll be called "bragging" now that I wrote about it...

- I read and agree with Murray Rothbard but I am running for office.

- I am a Preterist but believe the future holds a huge promise and potential for mankind!

- I listen to Neal Boortz, Rush Limbaugh and NPR.

- I have many "emergent" friends but read Lew Rockwell too.

- We attend a Nazarene church, a Church of Christ expats church, and I love Eastern Orthodox theology.

- I've been called "conservative" because we homeschool our kids but "liberal" because I have tattoos.

- I smoke premium cigars...usually you can find me once a week at The Wharf in Beavercreek, but also work out almost every morning at Urban Active.

- I am a liberal because I have cool tattoos but a conservative because I can translate from the Greek New Testament.

Added after Tim's comment:

- I'm an old-earth creationist, which makes me a liberal, but I believe the Bible...which makes me a conservative?!

04 Apr, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 6 -

Schaeffer Cox in Hamilton, MT

A few days ago a home-made DVD showed up in my mailbox from Tim Martin...it sat on the kitchen counter until today when we decided to throw it in the DVD player and see what it was all about. Well, I could say that what was on that disk was one of the most paradigm shattering and liberty-inspiring speeches I have ever heard. I liked it so much that I immediately uploaded the whole thing to Vimeo to make it available to anyone willing to listen and learn how a 20-some year old, homeschooled kid from Fairbanks Alaska is shattering the current understanding of government by the people to a million pieces, and how he is inspiring people all over the U.S. to reclaim their freedom without anger, frustration or voting for or against the right or wrong people.

Schaeffer Cox in Hamilton MT from Virgil Vaduva on Vimeo.



06 Mar, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 3 -

Local paper takes sides, interviews Xenia City only

A couple of days after Dayton Daily News published the article about my suit against the City of Xenia, the Xenia Gazette jumped on the story by only interviewing Ron Lewis the City's Attorney, and failing to contact me and get any feedback from me regarding the current situation the City of Xenia finds itself in, namely in violation of Ohio Election Law and misappropriation of public funds.

The Gazette story quotes Ron Lewis saying he
...did not know the legal rational behind Vaduva’s lawsuit, from what did know the suit seemed, “completely without merit.”

Of course it seems without merit when the other side is not interviewed. The complaint is fully posted here for the benefit of the general public, which should be able to analyze the evidence and decide the merits of the case firsthand, not based on Mr. Lewis' comments.

The Gazette also spins the story by portraying me as some "anti-tax," anti-city-improvements opportunist seeking out campaign votes; which brings me to ask the question: If the City Management thinks that my actions will bring about votes, does this mean that they believe the general public is opposed the their proposed tax levy? If the answer is yes, then their actions go against the general public's interest, if no, then they are playing games attempting to mis-direct voters from the real issue and the merits of my complaint.

I am hoping that the end of this argument is in sight after the recent entry posted on StopXeniaTax.com -- the City of Xenia has a lot of questions to answers, the biggest being, why a Washington DC political campaign consultant and an ex Bill Clinton staffer is on its payroll?


05 Mar, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 3 -

Xenia Sued for Fraud, Misappropriation, Violation of Election Law

From stopxeniatax.com:
Today a lawsuit was filed in the Greene County Court of Common Pleas against the City of Xenia, City Council and City Manager for various violations of Ohio Election Law, violations of Title VII of Ohio Revised Code, Fraud and Misappropriation of Funds.

I hope Xenia taxpayers get the message and wake up from the sleep they are in...

02 Mar, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 4 -

The Absurd and Evil Yoke of Income Tax

Just posted a new entry on my campaign website on income taxes:

http://votevirgil.org/blog/the-absurd-and-evil-yoke-of-income-tax

22 Feb, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 2 -

Mom, ABC Stole my Picture!

News Channel 9 in Chattanooga (an ABC station) apparently has no problem appropriating pictures which do no belong to them. Dan Lehr who is a blogger and newscast producer for WTVC NewsChannel9 wrote a blog entry in which he used a picture of my tattoo, picture which I created and posted here on my blog in a post back in 2005.

I just now happened to notice this by accident, although it apparently happened back in 2008. The irony is that the WTVC website is linked to a user agreement stating
The Service is protected by copyright, trademark and other intellectual property laws of the United States of America and applicable international intellectual property laws.
You gotta love the media. The issue is that I would not care if a small blogger asked to post a picture of my muscular and finely sculpted tattooed arm, or if the post linked back to my site, but this is an ABC station, come on! These are the people that sue everyone else for copying their materials!

20 Feb, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 2 -

And so it starts

Dayton Daily news started reporting on the local primaries yesterday; it will be interesting to do this and see what happens. This year will be a very weird year in politics everywhere, and campaigning with no money will be a lot of fun. Whatever happens, I am sure I will learn a lot.

Greene County

At the county level this will be the first election in decades where Auditor Luwanna Delaney’s name will not appear on the ballot. After 48 years working in the office she announced last year she would not seek re-election, but may run for another countywide office.

Delaney is supporting her deputy David Graham, who has worked for her for a decade after spending 10 years with the state auditor.

He faces Beavercreek Republican Dick Gould, a real estate broker and certified public accountant in the primary.

County Commissioner Alan Anderson, who is finishing his first term, faces a primary battle with Virgil Vaduva, a Xenia information security manager.

Vaduva said he has relationships with area Tea Party members and wants to see more fiscal constraint by county officials, he said.

Anderson beat Commissioner Marilyn Reid in a 2006 primary and said he was “prepared to go again.”

The winner will face Democrat Joshua Guy in November.

You can read the whole thing here

20 Feb, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 1 -

Good things come...

...to those who wait

Dilbert.com

06 Feb, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 1 -

Tim King on The Ooze

Theooze.tv did an interview with Tim King yesterday, which is definitely worth watching.

From the site:
If we believe that God is reality, a presence, the unnameable, who dwells in mystery beyond us, then we can believe that we are “beyond our belief system.”And we can celebrate together with others of many different belief systems. On the other hand, if we have a conversion mentality that believes we have to convert people to our belief system, then it is as if we’ve drawn a line and said, “We can only fellowship with you if you come over to our side.”
What are your thoughts?

07 Jan, 2010 | Virgil | Leave comment - 92 -

Being "too clean" leading to health problems?

I ran across an interesting article on the disappearing of microbes that have been human "allies" for a long time. I asked myself this before when shopping for soap - nearly everything out there is "antibacterial" but nobody is asking what are the implications of being "too clean" or can a human be too clean to begin with? Some good points are made and examples given:
The vanishing gastric Helicobacter pylori bacteria, for example, have been facing eradication in the U.S. and other developed countries in large part from antibiotic use. Although this bacteria's demise has been pegged to some positive outcomes, such as a decrease in the incidence of gastric cancer, shrinking its populations can also increase the risk for various reflux diseases by upsetting the regulation of hormones and pH levels.

You can read the entire article here.

29 Dec, 2009 | Virgil | Leave comment - 1 -

Wake up, American

All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing. – Edmund Burke

Exactly twenty years ago today, on December 21, 1989, the Communist façade of Romania cracked, and the entire country erupted into an anti-communist revolt that changed the lives of millions of people, many who are still alive today. Granted I was only a teenager, I count myself among those who were present, eyewitnesses to an epic battle between political ideologies, armed men, and ultimately good and evil.

Not too far north from where I grew up, in Bucharest, a few days before Christmas serious clashes between armed groups ensued, with most casualties being innocent bystanders, even women and children. It was discovered later that within the span of a couple of weeks, mass-graves were created where hundreds of people, victims of the clashes, were buried by the authorities in an attempt to hide their actions.

Soon after, I moved to the United States, fortunate enough to experience life without the consequences of recovering an entire nation from the depths of Communist destruction. But even here I am constantly reminded of how frail liberty is, that even in this greatest country on earth there are constant attempts by politicians to undermine freedom, to constantly minimize the individual’s freedom while expanding the government’s size and power.

It does not take a history buff to recognize that the world we live in is in a constant state of flux, that from a human perspective, without care and sacrifice the world tends to slowly disintegrate into chaos, disorder, violence and tyranny. Consequently we can recognize that it takes real and tangible human sacrifice and intervention to obtain and maintain freedom. The reality is that a majority of the world is wickedly evil, that tyrants run most countries, and that freedom-loving nations are in minority.

So far, America has been a sort of aberration, a freak nation…abnormal but extraordinary nation, breaking the historic trend of tyrannical nations ruled by fear and violence, by putting human freedom at the very center of its existence. This in itself is unnatural in the context of entire human existence. Of course a price had to be paid for that freedom, just as Romanians paid their own price in ’89.
Corpses

But it has become clear to me that it has been too long since Americans had to fight and pay the ugly price for freedom, and forgetting the sacrifice paid to be free is no worse than choosing tyranny. It has been too long since Americans have preoccupied themselves with something more than excessive consumerism and material wealth, neither being connected with the principles of true freedom of the individual.

Looking back through pictures of what happened in 1989, one thing caught my eye in a manifesto printed back then; it was a list of demands made by the people, starting with free elections, freedom of speech, freedom of travel, with the last item on the list being “better living and better food.” The people of one of the poorest countries in Europe at that time were less concerned with food and quality of life than freedom of speech. Could Americans learn a lesson from the demands made by Romanian revolutionaries in 1989?
Flier from Romania, 1989
Revolution flier

During the 1989 revolution in Romania, the Romanian flag was often displayed with a cutout, a hole in the middle, the place where the communist insignia was once printed on the flag. The flag that was once the symbol of tyranny and government abuse has again become a symbol of freedom. The song Wake up, Romanian, which was once the national anthem in the 1800s was again restored, replacing the communist-era anthem. During the revolution, tens of thousands of people were singing:

Wake up, Romanian, from your deadly sleep
Into which you've been sunk by the barbaric tyrants
Now, or never, your fate renew,
To which your enemies will bow to.

Just a week ago I met a fellow Romanian in Columbus, Ohio; it was the first time I met this man, but as soon as I mentioned to him the political situation here in the U.S. his response was, “Remember…we lived through it…we can recognize Communism from 2 miles away. Americans would not recognize it if it stared them in the face.”

Wake up, American, from your deadly sleep.

21 Dec, 2009 | Virgil | Leave comment - 0 -

Meteorite points to possible life on Mars

Compelling new data that chemical and fossil evidence of ancient microbial life on Mars was carried to Earth in a Martian meteorite is being elevated to a higher plane by the same NASA team which made the initial discovery 13 years ago.


Scientists say micro-fossils of bacteria are nested with tiny crystal magnetites that provide additional evidence for life

Sources tell Spaceflight Now that the new data are providing a powerful new case for the Allen Hills Meteorite to have carried strong evidence of Martian life to Earth -- evidence that is increasingly standing up to scrutiny as new analytical tools are used to examine the specimen.

Read the entire article here


27 Nov, 2009 | Virgil | Leave comment - 1 -

20 Years Later

Has it been 20 years already? To think I was there just a few months later...



My thoughts today don't really revolve around the fall of the Berlin Wall as much as they are about where we are today, 20 years later. I have a few quick points to make about where we are today and what I think the future holds:

1. Less than one generation later, many people are already forgetting the horrors of socialism and communism in Eastern Europe. Some even want to go back to that reality. American Christians are buying wholesale into the Kingdom of this World's ability to solve problems, readily rejecting the reality of the Kingdom of Heaven. How is this possible?

2. Those of us who did experience these horrors are speaking up and warning others not to repeat them and get on the slippery slope leading there; we are often being ignored or looked at as weirdos, or nutjobs.

3. Americans are mostly oblivious to history and seem to be bent on repeating it. Many, including President Obama seem to operate under the impression that pacifism will deal with evil effectively and summarily. This is wrong. Evil does not respect truth and cannot be pacified.

4. History is being re-written before our eyes; the name of Ronald Reagan is ignored completely when discussed in the context of the end of the Cold War and all credit is being given to Gorbachev. This is wrong and inaccurate.

5. Many Americans want freedom without any responsibility, leading to the creation of a society which is calloused and indifferent to the needs of those who truly live in poverty and are in need of help; then they become upset when politicians try to solve the problems through government welfare.

6. Consumerism rather than thriftiness and responsible spending has become the norm by which many of us live today: spending beyond our means and getting into substantial debt. This is destroying families and marriages, and in conjunction with irresponsible government spending will most likely lead to a total economic collapse.

7. As crony capitalism is confused with free market capitalism and an artificial backlash is being created against private enterprises, the federal government is slowly being replaced by a class of elite wealthy bankers and lawyers who are using their positions to manipulate markets and economies. Through indebtedness and the pushing of the idea that owning a house is a right and a necessity, a new Serfdom class has been created in our society, where most of us work our entire lives to pay off debt and interest payments to this new politico-eonomic wealthy class.

8. True Constitutionalism has been largely abandoned and is unheard of in the public arena. Communist ideology is slowly being accepted in the U.S. under the umbrella of compassion and care for others. Entire cities and states have now become centers of wealth redistribution. Some Christians are cheering on this injustice rather than opposing it.

9. The Church seems to be more focused on maintaining a status quo in word and deed, spending ungodly amounts of money on buildings, salaries and infrastructure while letting the government step in to attempt to cover the basic needs for healthcare and food for others.

10. Civil disobedience is likely to pickup steam and become a reality in the U.S., with Americans learning the meaning of suffering for their principles. Hunger and work strikes were the means by which freedom was fought for in Eastern Europe, and may show up here in the future as well.

It may sound a bit too critical, but what are your thoughts on this?



09 Nov, 2009 | Virgil | Leave comment - 9 -

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