The Oklahoma Tomcat 14349

In this video blog I talk about a rock band, The Dirty Unkuls and play two of their songs.

I than talk about the $1.1 trillion spending bill that was passed and how I feel about it.

Last, I talk about the police shooting protests.

Listen to my blog at http://goo.gl/qhzNsE

Riots And Helping Out The Homeless

White police officers shooting blacks seem to be the big news lately.  Because of a few people that use racism to make money and gain power, protests and riots are occurring.  I talk about these riots in my latest video blog and I also give an idea of how we can help out the homeless without aiding in their bad behavior.  

Immigration and lawlessness

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHw1g3mJaGo&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Say "no" to the Expatriate Terrorist Act and "yes" to the Constitution

On this evening's show, Travis Pope and The Oklahoma Tomcat talked about Ted Cruz's bill that would strip citizenship from any American that fights with ISIS (AKA ISIL). While this sounds like a good bill, Travis Pope and The Oklahoma Tomcat disagrees with it. Article III Section 3 of the Constitution already gives Congress power to deal with treason:

"Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court.

The Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason, but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture except during the life of the person attainted."

Notice that it says that "Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason." Ted Cruz's bill would take this out of the hands of Congress and that would be wrong. Lets tell the Senate to follow the law of the land. Contact your Senator and tell them to vote no to Ted Cruz's bill and vote yes to Article III Section 3 of the US Constitution.

To listen to our show, go to http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicaltandt/2014/09/20/isis-ted-cruz-and-the-liberal-collective

ALS, Love, War, and Helping Others

I know a lot of people who refuse to do the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge or donate any money for research because they are against Embryonic Stem Cell Research.  I totally understand because I am also against Embryonic Stem Cell Research.  I have just uploaded a video blog to let Christians know that there are medical research institutes that do not use embryonic stem cells and how they can help find a cure for ALS and promote research without the use of embryonic stem cells.  I also talk about Iraq and helping out people in other countries.

Rioters don't love

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  How is everyone doing?  Things are doing good here.  I have been busy with work and a new internet radio show that I am co-hosting on called Political T&T.  I still have a lot of improving to do on the show.  I can't wait til we start getting people calling in because it is hard to talk for 2 hours without having different people commenting back or disagreeing.  I know there are people who may be shocked that I have trouble talking for 2 hours but remember, when I am talking to people in person, they talk back. lol  The radio is much different than talking to people in person. I do give radio talk show hosts a lot of credit.  The job is a lot harder than it appears.

I have come across a lot of liberals who support the rioters in Ferguson, MO.  Don't tell me that they are protesters and have the right to protest either.  The people who are stealing, destroying property, and hurting people are not protesting.  They are rioters and they don't care about Mr. Brown at all.  They hate the people in Ferguson, MO and hate everyone who doesn't think like they do.  They only are about one person and that is them self.  Anyone who supports riots, hates their neighbors because this type of action takes away other people's rights.  The people who is having their things stolen and destroyed has nothing to do with the officer who shot Mr. Brown.

Listen, I am all for peaceful protests.   Even if I don't agree with what you are protesting, I will always stand for your right to protest PEACEFULLY.  But the minute that you start taking away other people's rights, you will become my worst enemy.  I can never support hate towards other people and that is what rioters are doing.

Take care and God Bless,
The Oklahoma Tomcat
Co-host Political T&T

A wife's day off

Greetings in the name of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ. How are y'all doing? I pray that this blog finds y'all in good health and spirits. Things are going good here at the Jones household. I miss the cooler weather that we had last week, but I am grateful that the summer hasn't been as hot as last year.

Today, my wife got a day off from the house. She left for the day to do whatever she wanted while I took care of the kids and the things around the house. It is something I have been wanting to for my wife for a long time but have never had the opportunity. I know that being a stay-at-home mom is the hardest job in the world and it is a job that doesn't offer a day off. You don't even get a sick day when you are a stay-at-home mom. The problem is, with our lifestyle, Saturdays is the only day that I have to be able to get the thousands of projects I have piled up done. But this weekend offered a perfect opportunity for me to tend to the kids and my wife to have a day off. I did have a few things that I wanted to get done, but I would be able to do them while the kids played outside.  Lol, yea right. Well, my wife left the house this morning after breakfast and I kicked the kids outside. I got a few things done but nowhere near what I wanted. Normal children are high maintenance, but an autistic child is very high maintenance. But you know what? It did turn out to be a great day after all. After lunch I tried to do some laundry and my daughter wanted to get the slip and slide out. I was getting irritated because I knew I would have to stop doing what I needed to do to help her. Now for those who don't know, we do laundry by hand. So it isn't like I can put the laundry in the washer and than help her. But she promised that she can set it up herself. I knew she couldn't but I said OK. Sure enough, she didn't know how to set it up and I had to stop the laundry and help her. After it got set up, she started ... kind of slipping and sliding. I had to laugh. My daughter would run and then gracefully fall onto the slip and slid. This made it so she couldn't slid very far. While this was going on, my autistic son was wanting me to push him on the swing. I was getting nothing done. But my heart was softening and I started thinking, 'What is more important?' So I teased my daughter about how she slides and decided to show my daughter how it's done. So I started slip sliding with her. Than my son started to join us. Oh, he was having a time of his life. It really turned out to be a good day.

As parents, we often let our busy schedule and busy days take over our life. Our families lifestyle really keeps us busy. The only electricity we have is two solar panels to charge our cell phones and our laptops. We do everything the old fashioned way. This does take more time. But we do need to keep in mind what is important and make sure we always make time for it. There is nothing more important than family. We need to make sure that we set time aside for family and just have fun. Even if it means to set a chore aside for later.

Well, it is getting late and my wife has returned from her day out. It is time for me to make time for her. Y'all have a great day.

Take care and God Bless,

The Oklahoma Tomcat
www.twitter.com/oktomcat

An amazing speech by an amazing woman.

Here is an amazing speech by an amazing woman of great faith.  Everyone should listen to this speech and sharing it with others.  If you have a child going through rough times, sharing it with them.

What she says in this speech is 100% true.  God puts us where we are for a reason and He uses our flaws and weaknesses to help others and glorify Him. It is easy for someone who looks great and has no problems to say, "God is great."  We don't pay much attention to them when they say how God did great things for them.  But when a person who struggles through life talks about how great God is and focuses on the great things He does for them and encourages us to put faith in Him, we tend to listen.  Here is a  person who has gone through so much hurt and pain.  How can they be so strong, positive, and happy?  When they reply, "I am not.  What you see is God's strength in me", that is powerful.  Doesn't that make you want that strength?  That is one of many reasons why God uses the weak.

If you are picked on because of a weakness you have, let it go.  Know that God created you for a reason and He is using that weakness for good.  Know that you are cherished and loved by Him and He is in control.  If this woman can get through life by relying on God, so can you.

Remodeling our house

We live in a very old house that needs to be remodeled. I plan to make a video of some of these projects that I will be doing and posting them.   My wife wrote a big titled, "Frugal Remodeling" that talks about the remodeling we will be doing.  It is going to be a lot of work but will be well worth it. The part I will love is that I can customize our house and even get a little creative if I want.

Please take the time to read my wife's blog and I will keep y'all updated. Take care and God Bless.

Love,
The Oklahoma Tomcat
www.twitter.com/oktomcat

An alternative to the Affordable Care Act

For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. - Psalm 139: 13-16

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  How is everyone doing?  I pray that this blog finds everyone in good health and spirits.  Things are going great at the Jones family household.  Things are working out great for us.  I am no longer an Over The Road truck driver.  I now drive in the Shawnee, OK and Oklahoma City, OK area for Ball Pipe and Supply Company in Shawnee, OK (http://www.ballpipeandsupply.com/).  So far, I like the job.  The best part is that I am home every night and on weekends and my checks are about the same every week.

My wife and I had to make a very difficult decision when the Affordable Care Act took affect.  Do we go against what we believe is a sin and keep our insurance or do we give up our insurance and become uninsured.  Insurance itself isn't a sin. The problem is that under the Affordable Care Act, everyone has to pay for birth control pills and the morning after pill through their insurance.  Everything that Paula and I have read in the Bible says that birth control pills is a sin because birth control pills can cause  embryonic abortions and we believe that life begins at conception. The bible is very clear that we are not to endorse sin in any way shape or form.  This includes paying for things that are wrong.  

The biggest thing we had to look into is how to pay for medical costs.  Something we came across is Healthcare Sharing Ministries.  This isn't insurance, but members of the ministry help pay for medical bills.  There are a number of them out there.  After looking them over, we decided to join Samaritan Ministries ( http://samaritanministries.org/).  An added benefit to Healthcare Sharing Ministries is that they are exempt from the Affordable Care Act and we will not have to pay the penalty for not having health insurance (Sec 1501, page 148).  

We really love Samaritan Ministry.  First, we will not be paying for other people's birth control pills, morning after pills, accidents due to drunkenness, or any other non-Biblical lifestyles or actions.  The other thing is that the money we pay actually goes to another person's medical bill.  One month a year, we send the money to the organization to cover operation costs.  The other 11 months, we send the money to a person who needs money for medical costs.  It feels good sending money directly to an individual who needs it rather than to a corporation.  We are also given the opportunity to pray for the person in need because we have their name and the problem they are having.  This is what Christians should be doing, helping one another out personally.  We should not be looking to the government or companies to help out those in need.  We should be united and help out people our self. 

When Obamacare was first made law, I didn't see any good in it at all.  But once I joined Samaritan Ministries, I saw how God can take something bad and turn it into something good.  If the Affordable Care Act was not made law, I would have never thought of joining a Healthcare Sharing Ministry.  Discovering Healthcare Sharing is a true blessing and I recommend that every Christian look into it. If you are interested in finding out more about Healthcare Sharing, goto http://www.healthcaresharing.org/hcsm/.

Well, I have to go for now.  Take care and God Bless.

The Oklahoma Tomcat
http://twitter.com/oktomcat

GOVERNMENT CAN AND SHOULD GET OUT OF MARRIAGE

Oklahoma Considering Separation Of Marriage & State (VIDEO):     http://tiny.cc/140218d

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  How is everyone doing?  I pray that this blog finds everyone in good health and spirits.  I am currently in Winfield, KS on my way to Abilene, KS.  I just got back on the road after taking three wonderful days at home.  Monday was the anniversary of Paula and my wedding.  We have been married eight wonderful years.  It is so hard to believe that we have been married that long.  It feels like we just got married. Loving her is so fun and easy.  I love her to death.

Today, I want to talk about marriage.  I have asked people many times, "Why get married?"  "What is marriage?"  and many other questions like that and it is amazing that no one has been able to answer it.  Here is a better one, "Why should government be involved?"  I have posted on facebook, twitter, and even briefly blogged that government should be out of the marriage business.  I was so happy when last month, Oklahoma law makers started talking about getting state government out of marriage.  I back this idea 100%.  Marriage is a private and personal matter.  Who is government to grant people permission to marry anyway?  Are they some kind of moral compass when it comes to marriage?  What does it matter anyway if the government tells a couple they can't marry?  If two people wants to live as a couple, they will do it with or without the government.  So, it isn't like the government is stopping anything.  Government has hurt marriage by making it a public and legal matter.  Today, most people look at marriage as nothing more than a contract or a way to get more benefits.  Because of this, people get married for the wrong reasons and end up getting divorced.  There is absolutely no reason government needs to be involved in marriage.  People can and should get married in their own way using whatever ceremony they want and having whoever they feels has authorization to marry them.

To make my point about government making marriage nothing more than a legal matter, I heard someone making the case as to why marriage has to be regulated by government on the radio today.  I guess this issue has gained in popularity nationally.  The person said that if two people get married without government, has children, shares money, and gets a divorce, who gets the children and the money if one person is a Catholic and the other becomes Atheist?  They were both Catholic when they got married but now the other has changed to atheist.  Everyone, raise your hands if you know two people who live together, have children, and then separate.  What did they do when they separated and didn't agree on money, house, or kids?  Go to court, right?  Why can't that happen when two people get married privately?  There really isn't any difference now between a legal marriage and two people who live together as if they are married.  Those of you who are playing house and have children, if you two separate, you will have to go through the same thing as two people who divorce.  So really, we will not have to change anything when it comes to divorce if government gets out of marriage.  The only difference is that people will not have to ask for the government for permission to divorce because government will not recognize the marriage.

When it comes to benefits, government shouldn't be promoting marriage in any way shape or form.  People shouldn't be rewarded by the government for getting married.  Marriage should be personal and the reward should only be the marriage.  If a couple is only getting married for the financial or other physical rewards, they shouldn't be getting married at all.  They shouldn't even be living together because that isn't true love.  Married people shouldn't be treated differently by the government than single people either.

If you support government getting out of marriage, please contact your repressentatives in Washington and in your state. If you have any questions, feel free to comment the questions in this blog, on facebook (oktomcat), or on twitter (oktomcat).  Take care and God Bless.

Love,
The Oklahoma Tomcat

FROM FREEDOM TO BONDAGE

Amy grew up with good parents who cared for her and taught her good morals and respect. She was a straight A student and stayed out of trouble.  When she graduated high school, she left home and went off to college where she continued to do very good.  While in college, she met a handsome and charming young man named Bill.  He was polite, funny, and always complemented Amy.  Oh the complements.  Bill poured out complements to Amy all the time.  He told her that he looked up to her and told her that she is a very smart woman.  He put her on a pedestal and treated her like a princess.  It didn't take long before Bill and Amy was a couple.  They spent all their free time together and Amy knew she had found her dream man.  She loved him with all her heart.  After graduation they both got good jobs, got married, and bought a place together.  Bill didn't want Amy to have to worry about anything so he took care of all the bills and finances.  He even got a very good job and told Amy that she didn't have to work outside the house.  He took care of everything for her.  She was living a dream.  Shortly after having their first child, Bill told Amy that he wanted to move to a different state and away from their friends and family.  Amy didn't feel comfortable about moving to a place where they would have to start over and were they wouldn't know anyone.  She also didn't like that he would be leaving his job.  But she loved Bill and trusted him, so they moved.  Amy was busy with the child and things in the new house so she never had time to meet new people.  She felt that she had no support or help.  Shortly after moving, Bill was pointing out every mistake she made and started making her feel bad.  Slowly, she started feeling worthless, like she couldn't do anything without him.  He was even criticizing her and undermining her in front of their child. If she told the child to do something, he would tell the child not to do it and that his mom was stupid. One day Bill got home and Amy didn't have dinner ready.  He got bad and slapped her. This was the first time he hit her.  She was shocked and started to cry. He apologized and told her that he had a bad day and he will not hit her again.  It wasn’t long though before he got mad at her because he found a dirty plate and threw the plate at her.  The hitting and yelling started becoming a regular thing.  Hope came to Amy though.  She found out that she was pregnant and she began to think that the baby will change Bill.  That didn’t happen though.  With the new child, Bill became more controlling and abusive. Amy now felt that this life was all she had.  She felt that she couldn’t leave because she needed Bill to take care of her. She feels that she can’t do anything without her husband.

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  How is everyone doing?  I pray that y’all find this blog in good health and spirits. I am currently at Alco in Pawhuska, OK.  I have to deliver here tomorrow morning and have two more deliveries after I am done here.  After I have made all of my deliveries, I get to go home for a 4 day weekend.  YAY!!!

I have been wanting to do this blog for a very long time.  Recently, a few things happened that finally pushed me to write it.  One thing was when my wife called me and suggested that I write a blog along this topic.  It shocked me because I never told my wife about my plan to write the blog. That was a sign to me that I need to write this blog.

The story I told above is based on stories I have been told by some of women I knew who were abused.  I made the names up and I generalized the story, but the steps that led to the young women becoming abused are the same in every case I have heard.  When people hear that volunteered as a child advocate and have worked with abused women, they often ask why anyone would remain in an abusive relationship. Some have even said that there is something wrong with a person who willingly remains with a spouse who is abusive.  It is easy to question why someone would stay in an abusive relationship when we either have never been in one or don’t think we are in an abusive relationship.  That is correct, I said “if we don’t think we are in an abusive relationship.”  It is possible to think you are not in an abusive relationship and yet be in one.  To tell you the truth, the majority of us are vulnerable to abuse.  We just don’t want to think we are.

Those that want to control others and “own” them are actually extremely smart.  The method of control I describe in the story above is actually the most common methods used.  Controlling people will not just go up to someone and say, “I am going to control and abuse you.  If you don’t let me, I will use force to make you.”   It is a process that requires patients and knowledge of human nature but the victim will become a willing slave and won’t fight it. Most victims never even report it or try to leave the relationship. 

This form of control and abuse is not new.  It has been used for many years and around the globe.  It is so effective because we all have a huge flaw.  That flaw is human nature.  It is human nature to want to be loved, taken care of, and to have no responsibilities.  We are willing to give up freedom for security.  It is this part of human nature that some people take advantage of.  First, make the person feel special and gain your trust.  Make them believe that you care about them and that you are looking out for them.  Once trust is established, take away their ability to do things on their own by providing for them.  Give them the things they need to survive, like food, shelter, and clothes so that they don’t have to provide for themselves.  Next, make the person feel that they are worthless and that they can’t survive without you.  Attacking their self-esteem is very important because it is what will make them dependent on you and will lock them into the relationship.  Once this is done, you can do anything you want to them.

Individual relationships isn't the only place where this method of control and abuse is used.  Cults use this method all of the time.  Think about it, a cult depends on people JOINING so they never use force to get their victims.  The only difference is that they are doing it on a larger scale and need to make sure that everyone is convinced that they are looking out for the groups’ best interest. Another place where this method of control and abuse takes place may shock y’all.  It is in governments.  That is correct; dictators use this method to gain power.  Take a look at history.  While some dictators have used wars to take control, most have come into power without the use of weapons.  They get into government and then convince the people that they are looking out for their personal interest.  Many of these dictators are even voted into power by the people and even re-elected time and time again. See why I say that the majority of people are vulnerable to abuse?  This is why I don’t look to humans to take care of me, I look to God.  Take care and God Bless.

Love,

The Oklahoma Tomcat.

www.twitter.com/oktomcat

Everyone Can Afford To Homeschool Their child

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  I pray that this blog finds everyone in good health and spirits.  Things are going pretty good for my family and I.  I am currently in Salina, KS.  I was unable to get home this weekend because I got stuck in an ice storm in Minnesota and now need to make up for lost time.

Today, I want to show everyone who wants to homeschool their children, how they can afford it.  There are several costs that need to be considered when deciding to homeschool.  The one huge one is loss of income if both parents are currently working.  To effectively homeschool, one parent must stay at home.  Yes, you could schedule the homeschooling around your job. But if you work full time, will you have the energy and be able to focus on your child's schooling?  If you can't afford to be a stay at home parent now, I recommend that you take a look at your finances so that you can see where you can cut back on your expenses.  Of course, be sure to talk to your spouse before making any changes.  You may not be able to quite your job and homeschool now, but you can work on cutting your expenses so that you can stay home and homeschool a year or two from now.

For those of you who can afford to stay home, the rest is easy.  I scheduled the timing of this blog for the beginning of the year because I recommend using your Child Tax Credit for buying the books and material your child needs.  The Child Tax Credit is about $1,000 per qualifying child under 17 years old.  The amount depends on the household income.  The cost of homeschooling varies greatly depending on how much your willing to do, your knowledge, and what your child needs.  It is reported that the average homeschooling family spends $900 per child per year.  I can tell you that you can get a real good curriculum that has everything (teacher guide, work books, text books, ect) for subject for that price.  You will be outfitted with everything your child needs except pencils, paper, and crayons (which you can stock up on throughout the year).  You can get a complete curriculum for as little as $300 or you can get a list of what your child needs to learn for the year and go to a book store (like Mardels) and get the books yourself.  You can also get used curriculum or utilize your library.  Buying the individual books (new or used) or going to a library is much cheaper, but it requires more research on your part.  Make sure you find out what your child needs to learn for the grade that they are in. Another advantage to using a curriculum to consider is that if you stick with the same curriculum every year, the price isn't always the same.  You may pay $300 - $900 one year, but may only have to pay $191 the next.  This is because some of them have multi-level material that can be used for more than one grade level.  But as you can see, even if you buy a curriculum for $900, you still haven't spent all of your Child Tax Credit. Finding curriculum for less than $900 is very easy too.

I can hear it now.  "But I need that money for other things?"  What do you need it for?  How important is your child's education?  First, that Child Tax Credit is being given to you for your child.  It isn't even really yours.  You didn't earn it and it isn't a right.  So, whatever you need it for, I hope it is for your child's need, not yours.  I personally can't see any greater need than my child's education.  My wife and I agree that our children's education is the top of our priority list.  It is very important that our children grow up with all the tools to be independent and successful.  Raising a child is 100% the parent's responsibility.  It isn't our neighbor's responsibility, it isn't the community's responsibility, it isn't the government's responsibility, it isn't even the school's responsibility.  It is our responsibility.  Part of raising a child is educating the child.  Life is going to be hard for our child as it is.  Our children are going to have to make lots of decisions that can lead to success or failure .  There will also be lots of obstacles in their way.  We want to make sure that one of those obstacles will not be our failure to raise them correctly.  That is why we are willing to use that $1000 on our child. It is also why we make sure we live in a way that allows one of us to stay home while the other goes out and works.

By using the Child Tax Credit to buy either the curriculum or the books needed to homeschool, you will ensure that you always have the finances needed to homeschool your children up to the age of 17.  While your children are young, save money for you child's Junior and Senior years (or more if you will be funding collage).  Be sure to keep your eyes open for sales or deals throughout the year for the small things like paper, pencils, pens, crayons, art supplies, ect.

Well, I will go ahead and end this blog and get it posted.  I pray that this blog was helpful.  Take care and God bless.

Love,
The Oklahoma Tomcat
http://twitter.com/oktomcat

references:
http://www.hslda.org/default.aspx
http://store.hslda.org/what-your-child-needs-to-know-when-p69.aspx

Proverbs 22:6

Deuteronomy 6:7

Psalm 127: 3-5

http://www.hslda.org/earlyyears/Costs.asp