In a few days, an African American man will move from his private residence into a much larger and infinitely more expensive one owned not by him but by the taxpayers. A vast lawn, a fence and many security specialists will insulate him from the rest of us but the fact that this man will be residing in this house should make us all stop and count our blessings - it proves that we live in a nation where anything is possible.

Many believed this day would never come. Most hoped and prayed that it would, few of us believed we would live to see it. Racism is an ugly thing in all its forms, there is little doubt that if this man had moved into this house fifteen years ago, there would have been a great outcry - possibly even rioting in the streets. Today, we can be grateful and proud that no such mayhem will take place when this man takes up residency in this house.

This man, moving into this house at this time in our nation's history is much more than a simple change of addresses for him - it is proof of a change in our attitude as a nation. It is an amends of sorts the righting of a great wrong. It is a symbol of our growth, and of our willingness to "judge a man, not by the color of his skin but by the content of his character".

There is little doubt that the majority of us believe that this man has earned both his place in history and his new address. His time in this house will not be easy - it will be fraught with danger and he will face many challenges.  There will be many times when he asks himself how he ended up here and like all who have gone before him, the experience will age him greatly.

But I will not waste an ounce of worry for his sake - because in every way a man can, he deserves this. His whole life for the past fifteen years appears to have been inexorably leading this man toward this house. It is probable that in the past, despite all his actions, racism would have kept this man out of this house.   Today, I give thanks that I am an American and live in a nation where wrongs are righted, where justice matters and where truly anything is possible.

Who is this man? 

Congressman's Money

A thief stuck a pistol in a man's ribs and said, "Give me your money." 

The gentleman, shocked by the sudden attack, said "You cannot do this, I'm a United States congressman!" 

The thief said, "In that case, give me my money!"

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Dear God

A little boy wanted $100 badly and prayed for two weeks but nothing happened.

Then he decided to write God a letter requesting the $100. When the postal authorities received the letter addressed to God, USA, they decided to send it to President Bush.

The President was so impressed, touched, and amused that he instructed his secretary to send the little boy a $5.00 bill.

President Bush thought this would appear to be a lot of money to a little boy.

The little boy was delighted with the $5.00 and sat down to write a thank you note to God, which read:

Dear God,

Thank you very much for sending the money, however, I noticed that for some reason you had to send it through Washington D.C. and, as usual, those crooks deducted $95.00.

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Now this is thinking Outside-the-Box!!!

I came across this Associated Press story in the Arizona Republic. I wonder if this type of “outside-the-box thinking will help us here? Read the story below or you can get to it online by clicking here.

“May 5, 2008

La. warden says his prison has an unpaid guard: a black bear

By MARY FOSTER

Associated Press Writer

The way the warden sees it, the more than 400-pound black bear living in the middle of the sprawling Louisiana State Penitentiary is an extra layer of security.

"I love that bear being right where it is," Warden Burl Cain said Monday. "I tell you what, none of our inmates are going to try to get out after dark and wander around when they might run into a big old bear. It's like having another guard at no cost to the taxpayer."

The bear was first seen by an inmate crossing a road in the prison on Friday. It was taking a stroll near the center of the state's only maximum security prison, which is about 115 miles northwest of New Orleans. Most of the roughly 28-square-mile prison is run as a farm, but about 5 1/2 square miles is mostly untouched piney woods.

Prison workers measured the bear's footprints, which were six inches in diameter, Cain said.

"Every inch equals 75 pounds, so that would make it about 450 pounds," Cain said. "The wildlife people told us they think it's a big female they've been tracking for a while."

Prison officials believe they have eight to 10 bears on the grounds, said Gary Young, head of the executive management office at the prison.

Maria Davidson, manager of the Large Carnivore Program for the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries, doubts there are that many, but marvels that even one was spotted in an area of high activity such as the center of the prison.

"Bears are actually very shy, their tendency is to run and hide," Davidson said.

As for acting as an unpaid prison guard, Davidson doubts that the bear would provide much of a deterrent to a fleeing prisoner.

"We've never had a predatory attack by a black bear in Louisiana, to our knowledge, on pets or livestock," she said. "As for a bear coming out and rushing an inmate, I don't see that happening."

The prison, known as Angola, is isolated and has plenty of other kinds of dangerous wildlife, including alligators, rattlesnakes and wild pigs, Young said. The last recorded escape was nearly three years ago, and the inmate was quickly recaptured before leaving the grounds.”