Anita Crane
Sunday TV special: 'Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger'
By Anita Crane
You've probably seen people driving around with the Ichthys Christian fish symbol smack next to an Obama campaign sticker on their cars. Maybe both messages are on your car. For Christians who don't realize the contradiction between these two forces, Coral Ridge Ministries has produced "Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger" and the two-part series debuts May 16 and 23 in the Coral Ridge Hour TV time slot.
This special isn't strictly about President Obama, but Robert Knight, Washington correspondent for Coral Ridge Ministries, explained why he thinks Christians should watch the program.
"A lot of good people voted for Obama for the best of reasons," said Knight. "He came across as a reasonably moderate candidate and the press airbrushed out his radical background, his radical views and the kind of agenda that they knew he would put into effect the minute he took office. And of course that's what has occurred. He has radically altered the relationship between government and its citizens, and he is turning us into subjects of an ever stronger central power in Washington, D.C.
"Make no mistake: Obama is a socialist," Knight said. "And the people with the Christian fish and the Obama stickers on their bumpers can be forgiven for perhaps not knowing at the time they voted for him, but at this point they should know that he's not what he appeared to be. They also need to know that they need to start opposing him and his agenda if they want freedom to be preserved in this country."
Indeed, many Christians apparently confuse charity and corporal works of mercy with government takeovers. However, progressive/big-government officials have little — if any — regard for our human and constitutional rights to life, liberty, private property and happiness. As Knight and his colleagues explain, Christ commands able individuals, not governments, to care for widows, orphans and the poor.
"The biggest misunderstanding is that socialism is somehow compassionate and that it leads to more equity and fairness," Knight added. "But the reality is that it always leads to coercion and despotism because it violates human nature and it goes against God's immutable laws of economics and morality. The evidence has been there for years, but it has been ignored by the mainstream media, educational institutions, Hollywood, and pretty much all the elite who have been instrumental in conveying societal values."
Jay Richards of the Discovery Institute appears in "Socialism" explaining that he was swept away by Marxism as a college student. After investigating its deadly results, he wrote a book exposing it.
Likewise, former Communists David Horowitz and Marvin Olasky discuss the hazards of socialism from doctrine to deed: including the 120 million persons murdered in the name of equality and social justice.
Even Rev. Al Sharpton unwittingly contributes to the Coral Ridge Ministries' special. In a Fox News clip, Sharpton states, "...Americans overwhelmingly voted for socialism when they elected President Obama."
One of the most moving testimonies comes from Kai Chen, who was born in China four years after Chairman Mao took over. He described the horror of China's Communist regime seizing families' private property, such as homes and farms. Many Chinese families were so desperate to survive that when their children died of starvation, they had to resort to cannibalism. Because it sickened the parents to eat their own children, families would swap the corpses of their little loved ones. Mr. Chen immigrated to the United States, where he is a Christian businessman who provides employment for his fellow citizens.
In "Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger," Coral Ridge Ministries enters Venezuela to examine the socialism of Hugo Chavez and his henchmen. The Chavez takeovers are remarkably reminiscent of Red China and a warning for U.S. citizens.
In this documentary, Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota says that the U.S. government has usurped 50% of our economy by seizing banks, mortgage companies, the largest insurance company, General Motors, and the healthcare industry.
Beyond the scope of the TV special, the irony of ironies in President Obama's "healthcare" law is that people without health insurance — people who can't afford it — will be subject to fines and jail sentences. How does this help the poor?
"Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger" features further analysis by Coral Ridge Hour host Jerry Newcomb; publisher and businessman Steve Forbes; Prison Fellowship's Chuck Colson; Bishop Harry Jackson, Jr. of Hope Christian Church; Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention; Wendy Wright of Concerned Women for America; Joseph Farah of WorldNetDaily.com; and Matt Spalding of the Heritage Foundation.
Robert Knight and other scholars wrote 10 Truths About Socialism, a complementary book for the TV special. To see the more about the programs and search for a station airing them on May 16 and 23, or to purchase the DVD and book, visit DangersofSocialism.com.
© Anita Crane
May 14, 2010
You've probably seen people driving around with the Ichthys Christian fish symbol smack next to an Obama campaign sticker on their cars. Maybe both messages are on your car. For Christians who don't realize the contradiction between these two forces, Coral Ridge Ministries has produced "Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger" and the two-part series debuts May 16 and 23 in the Coral Ridge Hour TV time slot.
This special isn't strictly about President Obama, but Robert Knight, Washington correspondent for Coral Ridge Ministries, explained why he thinks Christians should watch the program.
"A lot of good people voted for Obama for the best of reasons," said Knight. "He came across as a reasonably moderate candidate and the press airbrushed out his radical background, his radical views and the kind of agenda that they knew he would put into effect the minute he took office. And of course that's what has occurred. He has radically altered the relationship between government and its citizens, and he is turning us into subjects of an ever stronger central power in Washington, D.C.
"Make no mistake: Obama is a socialist," Knight said. "And the people with the Christian fish and the Obama stickers on their bumpers can be forgiven for perhaps not knowing at the time they voted for him, but at this point they should know that he's not what he appeared to be. They also need to know that they need to start opposing him and his agenda if they want freedom to be preserved in this country."
Indeed, many Christians apparently confuse charity and corporal works of mercy with government takeovers. However, progressive/big-government officials have little — if any — regard for our human and constitutional rights to life, liberty, private property and happiness. As Knight and his colleagues explain, Christ commands able individuals, not governments, to care for widows, orphans and the poor.
"The biggest misunderstanding is that socialism is somehow compassionate and that it leads to more equity and fairness," Knight added. "But the reality is that it always leads to coercion and despotism because it violates human nature and it goes against God's immutable laws of economics and morality. The evidence has been there for years, but it has been ignored by the mainstream media, educational institutions, Hollywood, and pretty much all the elite who have been instrumental in conveying societal values."
Jay Richards of the Discovery Institute appears in "Socialism" explaining that he was swept away by Marxism as a college student. After investigating its deadly results, he wrote a book exposing it.
Likewise, former Communists David Horowitz and Marvin Olasky discuss the hazards of socialism from doctrine to deed: including the 120 million persons murdered in the name of equality and social justice.
Even Rev. Al Sharpton unwittingly contributes to the Coral Ridge Ministries' special. In a Fox News clip, Sharpton states, "...Americans overwhelmingly voted for socialism when they elected President Obama."
One of the most moving testimonies comes from Kai Chen, who was born in China four years after Chairman Mao took over. He described the horror of China's Communist regime seizing families' private property, such as homes and farms. Many Chinese families were so desperate to survive that when their children died of starvation, they had to resort to cannibalism. Because it sickened the parents to eat their own children, families would swap the corpses of their little loved ones. Mr. Chen immigrated to the United States, where he is a Christian businessman who provides employment for his fellow citizens.
In "Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger," Coral Ridge Ministries enters Venezuela to examine the socialism of Hugo Chavez and his henchmen. The Chavez takeovers are remarkably reminiscent of Red China and a warning for U.S. citizens.
In this documentary, Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota says that the U.S. government has usurped 50% of our economy by seizing banks, mortgage companies, the largest insurance company, General Motors, and the healthcare industry.
Beyond the scope of the TV special, the irony of ironies in President Obama's "healthcare" law is that people without health insurance — people who can't afford it — will be subject to fines and jail sentences. How does this help the poor?
"Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger" features further analysis by Coral Ridge Hour host Jerry Newcomb; publisher and businessman Steve Forbes; Prison Fellowship's Chuck Colson; Bishop Harry Jackson, Jr. of Hope Christian Church; Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention; Wendy Wright of Concerned Women for America; Joseph Farah of WorldNetDaily.com; and Matt Spalding of the Heritage Foundation.
Robert Knight and other scholars wrote 10 Truths About Socialism, a complementary book for the TV special. To see the more about the programs and search for a station airing them on May 16 and 23, or to purchase the DVD and book, visit DangersofSocialism.com.
© Anita Crane
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