Van Impe vs. the Oprah
Topic: God Help Us!

I happened to tune in to Bible teacher Jack Van Impe's show late last night, and heard him criticizing Oprah and her current New Age guru as false teachers. He showed a thick packet of information that he said was study materials put out by the guru, which Van Impe said he will be studying thoroughly and will report back on in a week.

I have seldom watched Oprah's show, but occasionally tune in to hear from one of her guests, like Bill Cosby or Dr. Oz. I have decided that Oprah must be one of the neediest persons in the world. Rich and famous as she is, she has sought out a series of gurus over the years to tell her how to live. Dr. Oz is one of these, and so was Dr. Phil.

She is also a compulsive eater. On several occasions when food was brought onto stage by some chef or dietician, I have seen her immediately start grabbing at it and stuffing it into her mouth.  She seemed quite rude, not asking permission, but diving in. It was also kind of funny, because she suddenly quit talking and was preoccupied by eating.

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Hell in a Handbasket
Topic: God Help Us!
In the news:

At least 1 in 4 teenage girls in the U.S. has a sexually-transmitted disease.  Teenagers no longer admit that oral sex is sex, and public sexual performances are becoming an increasingly popular activity at teen parties.  Almost 70 percent of black children are born to single mothers.  In the wake of the Eliot Spitzer sex scandal, some of the media elite are suggesting that prostitution be legalized:

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-oe-kelly13mar13,1,5719205.story

Modern American society lacks a moral compass, after decades of concentrated left-wing efforts to divorce Western culture from its Christian mores.

One may agree with Detta O'Cathain, Member of Parliament, who said regarding the recent abolition of blaspemy laws in Britain,

"The essential question is:  should we abolish Christian beliefs and replace them with secular beliefs? As long as there has been a country called England, it has been a Christian country, publicly acknowledging the one true God.

"Noble lords may cry freedom, but I urge them to pause and consider that the freedom we have today was nurtured by Christian principles and continues to be guided by them."

[http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/326603]

Lottery Tempts the Poor Most
Topic: God Help Us!

The Texas Lottery, along with parimutuel betting, was pushed through by one-term Democrat governor Ann Richards on the promise that it would fund education in the state.  Not only has it failed to live up to that promise, but a recent study of the lottery by Texas Tech University shows that the lottery appeals most to those who have the least, amounting to a regressive tax on the poor.

The figures are as follows:

$44.55 the average risked by players per month in 2004
$38.13 the average risked 2 years ago

GENDER
$48.65 males
$41.66 females

RACE
$30.76 whites
$88.98 blacks
$64.83 Hispanics
$72.73 other

EDUCATION
$62.55 non-high school graduates
$67.19 high school graduates
$42.28 some college
$26.82 college graduates

According to Brian Cannon, in charge of the survey at Tech, "Rates of participation are down.  So we have fewer people reporting having played, but they're actually spending more money when they're playing."

Gerald Busald calls the scratch-off game, "the crack cocaine of the lottery."  A professor of mathematics at San Antonio College, Busald has concluded that "There is a greater percentage of people who have a gambling problem with the Texas Lottery than ever before."

"The less education you have," says Busald, "the more you are spending.  The people who are supporting the Texas Lottery are those with the least amount of education and the least amount of income."

But seriously, didn't we know this would be the case going in?  Huh?

[Source:  Jeffrey Gilbert, "Those with Least Chance It Most, Texas Lottery Player Study Shows," in Houston Chronicle, February 1, 2005, pp. B1, B5.]

©2005 Paul A. Hughes