The Parable of the Good Samaritan 25 And behold, a certain [h]lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?”
27 So he answered and said, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ”
28 And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”
29 But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among [i]thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 On the next day, [j]when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ 36 So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”
The Rich Man and Lazarus 19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’
27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
The difference between a MAGA politician and a traveling vacuum salesman is the politician leaves the dirt and takes the carpet.
Coming to a town near you …
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them. - Matthew 7:15-20. Words of Jesus Christ from the Sermon on the Mount
The Failed Plan that Separates the Ultra Wealthy from the Riffraff of the Middle Class
The great thing about using red velvet ropes though is that it sends a statement of luxury and elegance instead of acting as just a barrier. – Quote from the rope barrier industry
The Great Equalizer
My wife and I honeymooned at New York-New York casino, where we built some lifetime memories in that once great Las Vegas. The cold North winds of time have blasted a deep chill on the Vegas strip. While browsing YouTube, I ran across the video below that indicates that the CEO’s of Las Vegas crafted their own decline in a scheme to “Keep the Riff-Raff Out!!” Historically, Vegas was “the great equalizer” where a construction worker from L.A. or a lawyer from Beverly Hills could escape to Vegas an experience the same odds of winning at the same table. Now Vegas has priced out the working class, which decimated the Vegas strip, that now sits half empty.
The United States was the Great Equalizer. The immigrant and the citizen could find a path forward, not only to make a living, but to buy a house, start a business, and build a meaningful life. They were not kicked out as the riffraff due to the nation’s leadership catering to the ultra-wealthy.
Red Velvet Rope Economics
In viewing the Vegas video, I had the epiphany that this was not only about the Las Vegas strip but about an economic strategy in the United States that caters now to the ultra-wealthy corporations and billionaires, culling the lower end, the value-oriented folks who elected the politicians in the first place.
A place that used to welcome everyone now feels like a country club with a velvet rope.
This economic practice erects a barrier that sends a statement of luxury and elegance. This is why the gold-plated Oval Office and a golden Air Force One gifted luxury liner from Qatar sends the message, “Behold the elegance and the luxury that I now have! Aren’t you fortunate to see my wealth?!” In truth, these politicians have forgotten what made Washington great in the first place … working people!
Adam Smith discussed the conspiracy against the public and contrivance to raise prices by corporate design
In the image of the golden “Me First One,” you can see the plane being loaded with cash, Bitcoin, and Argentine cattle. A warship airburst shows those great checkers words, “King Me!” Outside the barrier sit homeless people and farmers cooking hotdogs over a camp fire, surrounded by their broken down vehicles. They are unemployed.
Priced Out by Policy
Where have the regulars gone? The regulars work for a living. The regulars have 2.5 children who attend public schools that have plumbing and air conditioning issues that haven’t been addressed for 30 years. The regulars are but one medical condition away from bankruptcy. The regulars who can’t afford to insure their children, gamble that their child’s young age will ward off the specter of grave illness, when actually this is a form of wishful thinking. The regulars watched their parents work blue-collar jobs, buy a house, retire with pension. Now between taxes, car payment, insurance, and inflation, homeownership has become a trap snaring new owners into indentured servitude to service the bloated mortgage, insurance and fees. The red velvet rope economy beguiled the middle class until they realized the luxury and the wealth were for those on the other side of that elegant barrier.
The red velvet rope economy beguiled the middle class until they realized the luxury and the wealth were for those on the other side of that elegant barrier.
Red Velvet Rope Economics bifurcates the natural supply and demand cycle of supply and demand. From Associated Press 11/1/2025
The Red Velvet Rope Economy ensures that the supply is up and prices are down for the wealthy while supply is down and prices are up for the working class. Red Velvet Rope Economics bifurcates the natural supply and demand cycle of supply and demand. You may say, “Jim, that’s silly. Supply and demand mean the same for everyone. Supply rises and prices drop; supply down means prices up.”
This is what the rich want you to believe. The supply they receive is tax sheltered thanks to lobbyists working on their behalf. Their profits are maximized due to early and, sometimes, insider trade information before the rank and file investors get opportunity to trade. An example is the White House tipping its friends that an announcement will be made on a tariff or removal of a tariffs on a certain industry. Trades are bet on horses which already won the race in a predetermined race.
The Jones’s exhaust themselves trying to find the financial breaks that always appear above their reach.From YouTube Keep the Riff-Raff Out!
Thin Red Line Economics: Not Trickle Down, But Roped Out Economics
While the current President drools over deploying the U.S. military against U.S. cities, he is attempting to draw in permanent marker The Thin Red Line to protect the MAGA ultra-wealthy from The Regulars who, along with their parents and grandparents, who built and made America great. The Regulars deserve to be included inside The Red Velvet Rope of economic exclusion.
When Did You Realize You Were Priced Out?
You realized you stand outside The Red Velvet Rope … when you paid $6.00 for a black cup of coffee. When two choice steaks at Walmart cost over $30. When you had to choose between health insurance or car payment, rent, and food. When tariffs bankrupted your business due to increased supply costs. When your government job evaporated because the politician considered you the riffraff that needed to go. When you immigrated to the country only to find the Thin Red Line of bigotry blocked your path of a new life. These are the signs of The Red Velvet Rope Economy.
When the poor need food, they call it socialism. When farmers need bailout, they call it patriotism. Let’s call it all civility.
-JPB
Unhook the Rope and Enter Here
We’ve been there. Standing in a long line at a theater or a restaurant, guided by the red velvet ropes to keep us in line and checked. Then as a smartly dressed couple approach the velvet barrier, the guard gives a nod of acknowledgement, unhooks the rope and smiles at the couple who walk in. What can we do to unhook the velvet rope barriers to prosperity. How can we reclaim our power as “The Regulars”? What can we do to return America as “The Great Equalizer”?
🧵 The Parable of the Velvet Rope
In a vast marketplace beneath a golden sky, two lands stretched side by side. On one side stood the Land of Plenty, where fruits overflowed, homes gleamed, and time moved gently. On the other side lay the Land of Labor, where hands were calloused, shelves were sparse, and clocks ticked fast.
Between them hung a red velvet rope—soft to the touch, but firm as iron. It was not nailed down, nor locked, yet no one from the Land of Labor could cross it. They could see the abundance, smell the bread, hear the laughter—but the rope whispered, “Not for you.”
One day, a child from the Land of Labor asked, “Why does the rope shimmer so beautifully crimson if it only divides?” Her question echoed across both lands.
An elder from the Land of Plenty heard her and wept. He had once crossed the rope long ago, when it was thinner and frayed. He gathered others—makers, thinkers, dreamers—and together they began to loosen the rope’s knots.
They built bridges of fair wages, ladders of education, and pulleys of shared ownership. The rope didn’t vanish, but it lifted—higher and higher—until it became a banner, not a barrier.
And beneath that banner, the two lands began to trade stories, share harvests, and walk freely. Is was then they discovered that the crimson rope that once barricaded them off from one another became the tie that bound their hearts togethers as neighbors.
When we acknowledge Jesus Christ as our Lord, we are given the mission of lifting the barriers that divide us from others that they might see the love of God in action through us.
Discussion
Read James 2:2-7. What kind of barriers do people face as newcomers to a community? As people of a different ethnicity or orientation? When attending a new church? Does discrimination happen today? Share an example. How can we be more honoring of the poor and marginalized in our churches?
2 My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. 2 Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. 3 If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” 4 have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong? -James 2
2. Why would the principle of Supply and Demand work differently when applied to the rich as opposed to the poor? While some imply that poor people are lazy, describe ways how it actually takes more effort to be poor? (Example: A single mother of three works two jobs. Half her money goes to rent. The other half goes to child care and rent. She relies on food banks to feed her family.)
3. In decades of ministry, I have never asked my congregation to watch a video about the Las Vegas strip. Now, I ask you to watch the embedded video, a lesson not only in Las Vegas economics but a life lesson of the president clear-and-present economic danger facing the U.S. today.
Consider the casino mentioned which returned to free parking, $5 deluxe buffet, free drinks, rooms comp’d for players after a few hours playing (I am not advocating gambling and drinking, rather an economic principle of shared equity) and lower table betting minimums.
Why did “The Regulars” return? How is this a win-win?
What would it take for “The Regular” workers to take priority over AI involvement?
How does laying off 40,000+ of “The Regular” delivery workers in the name of AI “high value” progress reflect the same misguided thinking of Las Vegas CEOs?
How might the principle of shared equity come into play for The Regular workers in the midst of an AI based workplace?
What steps can you do to unhook the velvet rope to acknowledge the image of God in the “The Regulars” brought into your life?
The 5202 Mandate: 🎙️The Press Conference That Changed Everything *
Alice returns home and dreams of her new life journey outside the looking glass.
Setting:
The East Room of the White House. No flags. No teleprompters. Just a single podium, a circle of chairs, and a quiet piano playing Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings as the press enters. The room feels more like a chapel than a stage. This press conference changes everything.
The President enters alone. He’s not in a suit, but in a simple dark jacket. No applause. Just silence.
Opening Words:
“I come before you not as a victor, but as a man who has seen the edge. I have failed. Not just in policy—but in spirit. Three nights ago, following the world’s finest Argentine prime rib dinner in my new ballroom, I dreamed of an angel who placed a glass scroll in my hand. It burned with seven truths. I woke up, and the burn remained.”
He holds up his right hand. There’s a faint red mark—like a brand or a birthmark.
The Scroll Unfolds:
He reads each of the seven seals aloud, slowly, letting them land. After each one, he pauses. No applause. No spin. Just breath.
First Seal: The Truth of Humility “I have failed. Not just in policy—but in spirit.” — A leader must begin with the admission of fallibility. Without humility, governance becomes theater and allies turn enemies.
Second seal:Truth of Accountability — Power without repentance corrodes the soul of a nation. The burn on my hand is not punishment—it’s proof of awakening.
Third Seal: Truth of Transparency — No more spin. No more applause lines. Truth must be spoken plainly, even when it wounds.
Fourth Seal:Truth of Unity Over Victory — The Circle Cabinet symbolizes shared wisdom. No more partisan conquest—only collective healing.
Fifth Seal: Truth of Moral Governance — Legislation must mend, not divide. A bill that profits from pain is a betrayal of the people.
Sixth Seal:Truth of Courageous Leadership “If I am removed, so be it.” — True leadership walks into fire, not away from it. It risks ridicule for righteousness.
Seventh Seal:Truth of Integrity Without Reward “You may not be loved. But you must be true— The final truth is the hardest: to act rightly without applause, to serve without seeking legacy.
These truths aren’t policy points—they’re soul markers. They form the backbone of the 5202 Mandate: not a reversal of laws, but a restoration of conscience.“
When he reaches the final line—“You may not be loved. But you must be true.”—he looks up and says:
“I will not run again. I will not campaign. I will not fundraise. I will spend the rest of my term walking this path. If I am removed, so be it. If I am mocked, so be it. But I will not lie to you again.”
Questions from the Press:
Reporter 1: “Mr. President, are you saying you’re stepping down?”
“No. I’m stepping forward. Into the fire. Into the truth. I will govern with a Circle Cabinet. I will listen more than I speak. And I will not sign another bill that divides us further.”
Reporter 2: “What if Congress refuses to cooperate?”
“Then let the people see who stands for healing—and who profits from the wound.”
Reporter 3: “You’ve listed some lofty ideals; how do you see this playing out?”
The President right hand trembles and clutches the glass scroll held in his memory, his eyes still echoing the dream of the scroll still burning faintly with celestial ink. He reads aloud from his handwritten account:
1.Truth Before Tribe
“We must speak the truth, even if it costs you personal allies.”
“I was wrong. We must be better. We must publicly acknowledge the failures of our administration—not with spin, but with humility. This includes naming policies that deepened division, and inviting bipartisan review, including reversing the divisive policies of Project 2025.”
2. Restore the Commons
“The land, the air, the schools, the silence—these belong to all.”
“We will launch a national initiative to protect public goods: libraries, parks, clean water, public institutions, and public education.”
“We will end attempts to privatize and profit from essential services, which would erode dignity and access.”
“I have signed an Executive Order called, “Restore the Commons,” which will establish a commission to restore public terminated public employees and programs and institutions. We will cease leaning on our public institutions, healthcare and Medicare, fair voting rights, and military for political purposes.”
3. Civic Sabbath
“Give the nation one day to breathe together.”
“I declare a monthly “Civic Sabbath”—no political ads, no partisan broadcasts, no algorithms. We encourage local gatherings, storytelling, and shared meals across divides. We are strongest when we walk together.”
4. The Listening Road
“Walk the land. Hear its grief.”
“Today I embark on a cross-country journey—not as a campaign, but as a pilgrimage. Listen to forgotten towns, broken systems, and those who feel unseen. The poor and the rich, the religious and the secular, the immigrant and the citizen. No speeches. Just presence.”
5. Reprieve for the Disillusioned
“Forgive those who gave up and welcome those forsaken. Invite them back.”
“We will offer pathways for re-engagement for our immigrants, voters, educators, and our civil servants. We recognize that many left the system not out of apathy or despair but were driven out.”
“I have signed an Executive Order called TheICE Fairness Doctrine Act. We will immediately halt ICE operations against farm workers, construction workers, laborers, those attending court hearings, and ICE actions against nonviolent and noncriminal immigrants. Those who have been arrested will be given fair and due process given the above. We move ICE toward community-based policing that provides fairness and justice alike, preserving human and civil rights, recognizing that U.S. communities will never welcome the invasion of paramilitary and military personnel to force compliance of unjust laws.”
6. The Circle Cabinet
“No one ideology shall rule alone.”
“Today, I have signed the “No One Ideology Act,” forming a new advisory council with voices from across the spectrum— Democrats, Independents, Socialists, Republicans, activists, elders, youth, theologians, scientists, poets.
“Decisions must pass through this circle before becoming law.”
7. The Final Line
“You may not be loved. But you must be true.”
“As President I must accept that reconciliation does not guarantee popularity. My legacy will be judged not by polls, but by whether our nation begins to heal.”
Closing Gesture:
He places a copy of the scroll—now etched in glass—on a pedestal beside the podium.
“This is not a mandate from me. It’s a mirror for us all. The 5202 Mandate begins now. Not with power. But with repentance.”
He walks out. No anthem. No spin room. Just the sound of chairs creaking as the nation leans forward.
These truths aren’t policy points—they’re soul markers. They form the backbone of the 5202 Mandate: not a reversal of laws, but a restoration of conscience.
🌟 Closing Image
He folds his paper scroll. The ink fades. But the path remains. He walks to the window, sees the first light of morning, and whispers: “Let it begin.”
*This fictional op-ed contains truths that could change the world.
We Need One Another to Build a World Not Warped by Our Own Dystopian Vision
“And he who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.'”
In the midst of a U.S. Government shutdown with no end in sight, the Treasury Department floated the idea of minting a $1 dollar coin in the likeness of Donald Trump:
We live at a time when the U.S. faces a scarcity of good faith dealings by the United States’ present leadership. Lying itself has served as a token by which elected officials prove loyalty to one who has set himself up as King of the Road to the White House. “I’m willing to lie for you,” has become an emblem of trust between those complicit in presenting a united front of lies. During a time when politicians call for hanging the Ten Commandments in schools, the question remains, “What happened to living the Ten Commandments versus only displaying them?” Today, we talk about the missing Ninth Commandment, “Thou shalt not bear false witness.”
What makes the Ninth Commandment critical is that personal, business, and national dealings are based on good faith. As one definition put it, ‘She acted in good faith’ be interpreted not only as ‘She believed that what she did was the right thing to do’, but also as ‘She acted in a decent and fair way.’
No Truth for You
Imagine you sit with your morning coffee and tune into the morning headline show to see the President sitting behind his desk with a breaking Executive Order, “Truth is a Crime: Anyone caught forcing someone to tell the truth is guilty of violation of the DOGE efficiency act. The best interest of the United States is to lie to protect self-interest.”
Acting on what he believes to be his best self-interest, Jon a real estate broker pockets all the earnest money gathered that day and wires it to an offshore account and declares that the company had a cyber attack that drained company funds.
A nineteen year-old boy faces a capital murder charge for a crime he didn’t commit. The prosecutor, to advance her career on her spotless conviction record, deleted DNA evidence that would have exonerated the boy whose petty crimes and race would play well with the mostly white jury for a conviction.
You may say, “Jim, these are interesting hypotheticals, but we are at war with the liberals. They do the same to us. We just need to do it first.”
So, you believe that you are doing the right thing. So, that makes bad faith dealings appropriate? As the definition we cited above shows both ends of the kayak paddle of truth, “She believed that she did was the right thing.” and “She acted in a fair and decent way.” Belief we are doing the right thing and action in fairness and decency comprise the tandem paddles of truth through the white waters of deception. Belief in good faith precedes actions but remains incomplete without verifying action.
A Parable of Good Faith Betrayed
Maria’s husband, a U.S. citizen voted for Donald Trump. He listened to his plan to “Make America Great Again” and that they would, as promised, only pursue the criminal element for removal out of the country. Maria was certainly not criminal. As mother of their three children under the age of 6, she attended Mass weekly, serving the needy at the church’s food and clothing bank, where she provided Spanish translation along with food.
Her husband Joe worked at Aldi’s as a stocker, where he personally stocked the entire store due to the store’s labor reduction. Maria worked a night job as a motel housekeeper after the kids were asleep. Joe and and Maria wanted their children to grew up secure and safe in the U.S. They listened to other Latino politicians who believed and who promised them a better future.
Fast forward after the election, Maria has been held in an unknown ICE detention center for the last four months, with no word. Joe struggles to care for their three children, as the love of his life has been ripped from their home. Joe struggles to make sense as the the words promised by the politicians ring hollow in his ears.
What happened? Four years ago, Maria was pulled over coming home from a New Year’s Eve party. She was the designated driver as Joe had a little too much to drink. However, Maria lacked both a driver’s license and insurance, for which this was her second citation. Maria never considered herself a criminal. She and Joe faithfully attended their ICE check in as they were paying an attorney what they could in hopes of securing a green card one day.
One day at the ICE check in, where Maria always arrived 15 minutes early, she sat with her youngest, a 3 year-old. Maria noticed the hallway was filled with men wearing black masks and military tactical uniforms. As her name was called for her appointment, she entered the room, verified her name, and was promptly arrested as a “criminal alien,” citing her driving without a license and insurance. She was zip tied and started crying in Spanish for someone to call her husband and her lawyer. Somehow when the six ICE agents rushed out to prepare for the next victim’s rendition, the 3 year-old was locked out in the hallway, where he sat until the end of the business day crying.
When Joe ran franticly into the ICE check-in facility looking for his wife, he found his three-year-old crying and lying alone, wet pants and hungry, under the waiting room chairs with Maria gone. “Where’s my wife!?,” Joe demanded.
The receptionist frowned and shrugged her shoulder through the bulletproof plexiglass and slid him a generic business card for the ICE Regional Office, where he could not reach a live person who could tell him where his wife was being held.
“How could this have happened?,” Joe relived the events that led up the last election. “They told us, ‘They were going after the worst of the worst.” Joe and Maria looked into the eyes of the local Latino political leaders who, so he felt, believed Joe and Maria, and thousands like them were safe. “The government is going after the cartels and criminals.”
But like both paddles of a kayak, belief in doing the right thing and actually acting decently and fairly are both needed to chart a course of good faith dealing. It doesn’t take much for someone to deceive himself into considering a course of action is the “right thing to do.” But if the tandem paddle is not balanced with acting in decency and fairness, the result will cast society on the shoals of injustice. In other words, how you get there matters.
Belief we are doing the right thing bound with acting in fairness and decency comprise the tandem paddles of truth through the white waters of deception.
‘She acted in good faith’ can be interpreted not only as ‘She believed that what she did was the right thing to do’, but also as ‘She acted in a decent and fair way.’
Truth Traumatized: Combat Vet and U.S. Citizen Pepper Sprayed and Jailed
The present administration fails to grasp that doing a “Kavanaugh Stop” on people because of their skin color, pepper spraying and jailing them for days without cause has betrayed the good faith of the American people. Whereas Justice Kavanaugh “believed” that it’s fine for an officer to ask Latinos a few questions to verify their nationality before letting them go, the real actions of pepper spraying, assaulting, and jailing U.S. citizens without cause betray the decency and fairness that was founded even by the Ninth Commandment of bearing a true, decent and fair, witness.
U.S. Combat Vet and U.S. Citizen Pepper Sprayed and Held Without Charge
Though we are insured with an excellent insurance carrier, at times I like to get a quote for our home and auto coverage. As a retired commercial and personal lines insurance adjuster, I am somewhat familiar with coverage exposures and coverages. Today we discuss a personal experience with AI in insurance and some key information on homeowner’s insurance that surprised me and that might help you.
Today I spoke with an AM Best A+ rated carrier who spent two hours interviewing us about all auto and home insurance needs. I had explained early in discussion that we have a two-car detached garage with storage area inside for tools.
Finalizing the discussion the insurance sales rep said, “You must know that one great benefit of this coverage is that we cover your refrigerator if you have a power loss. Any spoiled food is covered!”
“But we have two refrigerators and a freezer.”
“They are all covered!”
“Did you hear that, Bunnie?!” smiling at my wife. “Our food is protected!”
“And, finally, your detached garage is fully insured under the policy for XYZ percent. Are you ready for the final quote to put coverage in force?”
“So, what is the dollar coverage limit for our detached garage for XYZ percent?”
“That would be $29,000 total for rebuild purposes if needed. We offer no other options to increase detached garage coverage.”
This is now about 1 hour 58 minutes into the discussion. The entire conversation was recorded by the insurance carrier’s AI.
“I’m sorry.” I apologized, “We will not be able to do business with you. I explained to you early that we had a detached garage, and you waited almost two hours to explain this policy weakness to us. This would put us in a position of not being able to rebuild the detached garage should there be large loss.”
The AI detected the customer’s increased respiration with rise in vocal pitch, as the AI’s facial recognition scan alerts on the agent’s drop in friendliness. AI schedules agent for 2 hour virtual “Friendly Class & Happy Closings” the next morning.
The agent followed a carefully designed script to overcome policy weaknesses and time the sales process to benefit the insurance company (within allowable state insurance consumer laws). The proposed customer has to accept the script and the terms offered by the carrier and selected coverage selections available by the carrier. Years ago, the used car salesperson kept you in the office to wear you down until, finally, “OK, I’ll take the car … just to get out of here!”
You may say, “Jim, you can’t get any more than XYZ percent!”
Everything depends on the terms of your policy. If they don’t offer it; go somewhere else.
Before you say, “Jim, you were too hard on this insurance agent!,” a computerized voice followed the discussion with the agent, “Please, tell us how we did.”
Robot: “Did the representative answer all your questions and meet all your needs? Press 1 to 5, with 1 being extremely poor.” {Robot fails to mention that the agent works 10 hours a day, six days a week, repeating same script while saddled with punishing sales quotas.)
All the questions asked: What did the agent do wrong?
The final question: “After the tone tell us, ‘What did the insurance company do wrong and what could we do better?'” Two seconds after the tone, the robot disconnects the call without giving time to leave feedback for the company.
The Moral: Unchecked AI will further manipulate a company’s scheme to short the customer and heap workloads on the employee.
The discussion with the insurance agent was a true story. Computer live detection of agent’s “friendliness” exists now. The Company Robot Survey paraphrased and adapted the same day when the insurance AI greeted me with, “Thank you for calling! So I can help you … how much money do you make?” Yet the AI failed to understand my simple response, “Get lost!”
Thanks for listening. Considering what’s happening in Georgia and Florida, stay alert, my friends!
Oh, before you go, what if a spouse used an AI “friendly emotion detector” on her husband, with Alexa notification?
Wife Deploys Negative Emotion Detector Drones
Until Then … Stay Stirred,
Your Host, Jim Butler
Discussion:
Imagine an AI that is technically correct but people wrong? Describe an experience when you’ve experience such a scenario? How can you make a moral decision to lay aside your technical correctnessfor being people right? Describe such a scenario?
How would the insurance industry change if the AI knows your entire insurance and claims history and sends you live streamed top three insurance portfolios to protect you, considering your claim history, before you call the insurance company?
Consider a “friendly emotion detector” AI deployed while you are shopping for your favorite _____ (fill in blank). In an eyeblink it gathered your entire shopping history and credit score while monitoring your shopper’s “tell,” like a poker player who licks his lips if he holds three aces. Now it is only presents to you ads that spike your dopamine real time. How might this affect advertising to children? Rather than selling something you like, how would AI pitch you for things it knows you want before you do? What if you never had to shop because the AI delivered what you wanted as you aged and within your budget? Would this make you the AI’s canary?
Today I discussed with an advanced AI some blog and podcast concepts I developed for the next chapter of ChristiansNeedtoKnow.com, more of a storytelling approach. Then the AI asked me, “Would you like to hear your podcast?”
“Sure, let’s hear it!” surprised as I didn’t ask it to create a podcast. At this moment I felt the chafe of the AI’s leash around my neck as it led me like its pet human on “Bring Your Human Day”!
“Did you create a podcast from our discussion?” scared puppy stare.
“Give me three minutes to finish your first episode!” proud of its creation. The AI kept me in suspense with its new title page. Then it gave me a one-person premiere podcast, complete with sound effects and two AI generated commentators who expressed views on the subject, perfectly timed with the sound track. All I needed was a bowl of buttered Orville Redenbacher!
This post was based on a true experience with AI, with dialogue embellished. Today I finished listening to the AI’s podcast creation and hope that, after its journey, the AI remembers to return and let me out, as at my age I need to be walked more often. You can listen to the AI’s soulless “Frankenstein”podcast composed for mehere.
AI Draws a Self Portrait
Before signing off, I asked the AI to create its own self-portrait, which is shown below. AI’s are poised to change the world as we know it, bringing great good. The creation of a masterpiece of art, music, literature, and science, that once took a lifetime, an AI can do in seconds, not only finishing Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony but improving it while texting your Sonic cheeseburger order to DoorDash.
AI’s Self Portrait
AI Cat-Chase-Laser Pointer News
In contrast, weaponized AI’s could unleash pain and loss in our world like we have never seen. Our nation’s present lust for news of the President’s alleged cheating at golf at his own country club and his sexcapades with minors could be a “dark AI” tasked with creating tabloid “cat-chase-laser-pointer” news to hypnotize the middle class to keep them from organizing around paramount issues, such as, “How to prevent a weaponized AI from securing total government dominance.”
Dark AI Alchemist Transforms Respected Journalism into Tabloid Rags
This may upset some of my favorite YouTube broadcasters, but YouTube’s own algorithm, unfortunately, may have fooled to them to trade quality journalism for monetized tabloid clicks, like an organ grinder’s White-headed Capuchin scurrying for coins in a tin cup. These streaming journalists are not reporting fake news, rather they have setup their press box next to the National Enquirer rack at the checkout register. Don’t the actual broadcast headline screenshots scream like grocery store tabloids tucked away between breath mints and M&M’s? They will have as much impact if they continue to serve as the carnival barker for a tabloid rag‘s freak show, desensitizing the reader by hiding the critical amidst the sensational.
Coming to a Checkout Register Near You?
AI’sMission Accomplished: Turn it All Tabloid
Behind the story, behind the YouTube, and behind the owners of YouTube (Google) sit AI’s functioning at a level beyond what you and I presently comprehend. These AI’s know that one excellent way to protect itself from a politician’s lawsuit is to reward YouTube broadcasters monetarily for turning their broadcast into a tabloid. Consequently, the politician pummeled in a YouTube tabloid style broadcast actually receives a publicity boost even more than page-one placement in the National Enquirer, below a toothy PrinceKING Charles and above the TUMS antacid display.
Tabloid journalists — the tawdry cousins of broadcast journalists — are known for sensationalism in reporting. Sex, scandals and beat-ups are the order of the day. Journalists must fill column space for their editors by “finding” stories. Many embrace the mantra: “Never let the truth get in the way of a good story” in order to whip readers into a frenzy, and this was the case regarding Donald Trump’s playbook of deceits.
AI’s would likely orchestrate conflicts between Republicans and Democrats, like a Brünnhilde in the opera Valkyrie, who “led the rebellion against god” in order to usher in the AI’s own curtain call, except Brünnhilde rebelled to save humanity. We are “one nation under God” and not “one nation under AI.”
In the original Star Trek, the Talosiansfound that life using illusion was addictive, almost like a human developing a physical and psychological dependence on . They became bored with the content of the illusions which they had. Their dependence upon these illusions for mental stimuli caused the Talosians to begin capturing space travelers, such as Christopher Pike, to use as the living basis for their illusions.
Until Then … Stay Stirred!
Your Host, Jim Butler
Postscript: Before the YouTube broadcasters castigate me for this article, remember the following verse and that I am a friend:
Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. Proverbs 27:6
Post Postscript: Pre-AI, realizing that a typo marred my blog troubled me; post-AI, a typo reminds the reader that a human authored the work. For instance, a theological “gloss” of an archeological biblical manuscript meant that the work was “too polished” to be written by one person, rather a group of people tainted the work with the veneer of perfection while claiming to be one author.
Discussion
Who or what benefits if YouTube algorithm rewards and transforms journalism into tabloid news? (Please don’t tell Google; we don’t want to upset its high-strung AI.)
How does sensational journalism desensitize us to the pressing issues of our day?
A Christian Zionist and a Jewish Zionist fight in Jerusalem to choose winner. Winner captures the flag. Loser gets “Manifest Indigestion.”
Christian Zionist and Jewish Zionist Battle for Spiritual Flag of Jerusalem
In the Beginning was the Conspiracy
Certain evangelical Christians believe that a sign of the second coming of the Messiah manifests as their physical, political occupation of Jerusalem as God’s chosen people. Some believe the sooner this happens the better. Out of grace the evangelicals are willing to share the New Jerusalem with the Jews. Jewish Zionists take exception to this belief. Sadly, zealous groups take the Bible’s spiritual prophecies and convert them into their manifest destiny to take the earthly shares by force from those who do not share their prophecy customized to fit the personal financial balance sheet of the enlightened. “Let us give thanks” is replaced with “Let us send tanks.”
Bible traded for dopamine fix of people disappearing before our eyes.
But certain obstacles are parked in the path of the enlightened. For example, Bethlehem, the birthplace of Christ, is located in the Palestinian area of the Holy Land, outside Israel’s border wall. The Muslim’s golden “Dome of the Rock,” a holy site, sits squarely on top of what evangelicals view as their temple’s “Holy of Holies.” Church conspiracy groups buzz about secret tunnels burrowed under the “Dome of the Rock” along with the preparation of bronze bowls, knives, and altars to resume sacrifice of sheep and cattle once the “Dome of the Rock” falls. Any clue of movement gives a theological high pounced upon in hopes of finding final dopamine fix of finding the “Ark of the Covenant.” But show me a Christian faith built by conspiracies, tanks, and bulldozers, and I will show you a quiet faith built on the foundation of service to the poor, care for a neighbor, healing of the sick, and embracing the immigrant. These whisper the coming of the Day of the Lord!
But the show me a Christian faith built by conspiracies, tanks, and bulldozers, and I will show you a quiet faith built on the foundation of service to the poor, care for a neighbor, healing of the sick, and embracing the immigrant. These whisper the coming of the Day of the Lord!
The above Times of Israel story described Ambassador Huckabee’s argument that the Jewish Zionists are not being Christian enough. Implied is, “After all, Jerusalem is all going to be handed over to us Christians. We’ll make some room for you.” Mike Huckabee is the U.S. Ambassador to Israel and Southern Baptist High Priest in Jerusalem. Someone, by the way, needs to tell the Baptists that the First Temple was never officially known as “First Baptist Church of Jerusalem.”
You ask, “Jim, don’t you believe in Jesus and that Jesus is returning through the Eastern Gate to meet his believers?”
The Bible answers that in Hebrews 10:8-10:
By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
Jesus himself said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place”(Gospel of John 18:36).
I believe in Jesus and his words. His words do not neatly fit into end-time charts written by preachers who hawk on Amazon these color-coded end-times charts, conspiracy filled books, adrenalin rush movies, and celebrity pastor Alaskan Bible cruises. Shown below is one of the many future timeline charts available for sale on Amazon.com today:
Version 1.0.0
Christians must take care that, in believing about a future Battle of Armageddon between good and evil, they don’t create an apocalypse as a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Pastor Jim
“Jim, what you allege between the United State’s ambassador and Israel is far fetched.”
Please do not take my word for it alone, considering you may think I am promoting conspiracy. View the video below to review extremist groups at work in Israel today. Watch it to the end as you will find some familiar faces. And as you watch, be mindful of the above quote: “… create an apocalypse as a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
Mr. Trump’s Play on the Movie “Apocalypse Now” to Support His Military Incursions into U.S. Cities
Worship of Conspiracy
One might ask, “Why would Christians go ‘all-in’ on conspiracy theories?” These devout souls bite on a new juicy conspiracy like a trout swallows a wooly bugger fly. Take a moment and view the movie trailers below. Make note of the bits of truth that are strung together as “clues” to hook the viewer to the next “truth bit” until you are firmly down the rabbit hole.
You may say, “Jim, don’t you believe in the U.S. Constitution or the return of Jesus Christ?”
Yes, I do believe in both of them, but even the Apostle Paul warned us about turning aside to follow conspiracies down a hole of no return:
"They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths." - St. Paul in 2 Timothy 4:4
Clues of truth strung like crack candy on a string. Aren’t conspiracies fun?!
Who needs prayer when you found your answer? Tell no one that you, and you alone, hold the secret.
Ward Cleaver Was Right
Motley Fool’s investing article by Nate Parmelee was spot on: Slow and steady may be boring, but it can also be tremendously profitable.Investing is about the future, but to make reasonable predictions, you need a healthy understanding of the past.
The article referenced 1962 Leave It to Beaver episode “Stocks and Bonds”, in which Eddie Haskell tried to convince Wally and The Beaver to invest in Jet Electro stock to turn a quick profit, rather than investing in a boring dividend stock:
Rocket ships or utilities?
In the episode, Ward steers Beaver and Wally toward a dividend-paying company, Mayfield Power and Light. If that doesn’t sound like a nice, safe, and absolutely boring investment, I don’t know what does. But the boys are simultaneously tempted their friend Eddie Haskell to invest in Jet Electro, a company that builds rockets.
Naturally, Jet Electro’s stock shoots up, and the boys can’t stand their boring local utility a minute longer. Ward relents and moves their money into the rocket company. Can you guess what happens next? The rocket company loses steam, and the boys lose almost their entire investment. Anyone who indiscriminately picked up a dot-com in 2000 can empathize. In the end, Ward saves the boys because he kept some of their money in slow and steady Mayfield Power and Light.
The Christians who pursue conspiracies and cheap prophecies of political power trade the gospel of Jesus Christ for a Jet Electro quick spiritual high — a Christian scratcher ticket, addicting the pilgrim to the dopamine of digging more theories hoping for a winning ticket.
Final Investment
Jesus said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:19-20).
Jesus calls us to a life “slow and steady” upward movement of growth in the kingdom of God, in this life and the life to come. If you want “revolution now!” and “force the Kingdom of God now!,” take a moment and consider those in the gospels who tried to force Jesus’s hand, beginning with the temptation of Christ by the devil. Jesus showed us the way: “Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
Learn from Our Past “Great Disappointment”
Our evangelical friends can learn from The Great Disappointment of the Millerites at which time William Miller, Baptist lay preacher, prophesied that Jesus Christ would return October 22, 1844, the chart below shows his prediction –
The day came and went, evaporating the hopes the 50,000 to 100,000 Millerites went “all in” camping out on that date expecting the Second Coming. On October 22nd, the Millerites donned white robes, gave away all their possessions, and climbed mountains or trees to speed their ascension into heaven. When the prophecy failed, most abandoned Miller’s apocalyptical teachings and returned to their original churches.
I waited all Tuesday [October 22] and dear Jesus did not come;—I waited all the forenoon of Wednesday, and was well in body as I ever was, but after 12 o’clock I began to feel faint, and before dark I needed someone to help me up to my chamber, as my natural strength was leaving me very fast, and I lay prostrate for 2 days without any pain—sick with disappointment.
Henry Emmons, a Millerite
The Great MAGA Fall From Grace
MAGA Christians sat on America’s front pew and could have shown the United States and the world what God’s love was all about in culture and in government. This walk onto the stage of history dwarfed the combined Utopian and Second Coming movements of the 19th century United States, which taught that God was making a perfect society of heaven on earth in the U.S. [One of these groups, The Shakers, practiced celibacy, neither marrying nor having children.], as Adventist groups declared days of Jesus return.
The MAGA gospel taught today teaches, for the most part, the same end times charts as the Millerites. In other words, they hold the secret to the end times … or so they believe. The difference is that the MAGA Gospel, rather than a white dove or robe, wields the self-righteous sword to force the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The MAGA disciples serve as the Armed Knights of the MAGA Crusaders for Christ.
Take a moment to consider the evangelicals orbiting the Trump administration:
Mike Johnson – Speaker of the House. Paula White-Cain: Televangelist appointed as Senior Advisor of the White House Faith Office. Mike Huckabee: Ambassador to Israel. Former governor of Arkansas and a popular figure among evangelical Christian conservatives, many of whom are strong supporters of Israel. Kristi Noem: Secretary of Homeland Security. Pete Hegseth, Department of Defense (See end of Israeli Extremist video above).
Mustard on Your Tie
As groundswells of the U.S. populous rise in protest at the inhumane treatment of citizens and noncitizens alike, the evangelical churches sit blindly knitting at their circled tables of deception. The chart below shows April, 2025 that 72 percent white evangelicals approve of the Mr. Trump’s handling of the job as President:
Our grandchildren will ask us, “Why were the churches silent? Did they not know how migrants were treated less than human? Why did they remain silent? Were they threatened? Did the government hold the pastors hostage? Were they not aware of their stain on human history?”
If you are a descendent reading this, and if this survives the great evangelical book burning, a large swath of churches was complicit. Rather than The Great Disappointment of 1844, congregations in the United States experienced The Great MAGA Fall From Grace. Eventually the fog of their faith-war lifted and MAGA faithful saw firsthand the chains they forged to persecute the poor, migrants, homosexuals, disabled, minorities, homeless, and the sick.
In this final self-made Armageddon, these same churches called-for and participated in the MAGA Persecution. These churches traded their”white ascension robes” for self-righteousness tactical armor and ballistic helmets that ignited fires of hate in the name of Jesus. As I write this, America is in crisis with mass deportations, people of color dragged from the streets by hooded military, tariffs against the world, the U.S. government agencies slashed …
You may ask, “Pastor Jim, certainly the U.S. church arose and cried against this evil. Right?”
Sadly, the image below shows the response of the U.S. church. The leaders raised their hands in devotion to their god on earth. The author notes that not all churches have embraced The False Flag of Faith, standing as they can against the winds of public faith of national fanaticism. Sadly the bulk of churches spent more time discussing what flavor donuts, coffees, and sweet creams to offer in their lobbies, sleepwalking through their burning house. Until now the fear of offending someone within or without the church has crippled its prophetic stance, but this is changing. Churches are awakening to stand against the peril of this self-created Armageddon.
“Christian Nationalists Taking Selfies and Praising Jesus for Eliminating Those ‘No Good’ Heathens”
For many “Christians Zionists,” and particularly for popular evangelists with significant clout within the Republican Party, their support for Israel is rooted in its role in the supposed end times: Jesus’ return to Earth, a bloody final battle at Armageddon, and Jesus ruling the world from the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. In this scenario, war is not something to be avoided, but something inevitable, desired by God, and celebratory. – From “The Dispiriting Truth” (2023)
Voices in the Desert
In the 3rd to 6th century CE, Christian saints fled to the deserts of Egypt, Syria, and Palestine to escape corruption of Christians leaders who were seduced by the wealth and power of Roman government that legalized Christianity in 313 CE. These Desert Fathers and Mothers remind us of the day coming when the church in the U.S. must make a decision to separate from the seduction of money, corruption, and power, even as Christ was tempted, to take the Kingdom of God by force.
What the new Voices in the Desert might look like, the author can only conjecture. Perhaps Christians will form communities committed to care for one another and outsiders in the local community. This neo-monastic life would include building and providing housing and food for all in the community. These “barn raisings” per se would tie the communities together. Food plots would flourish as bankrupted farmers move to the communities of faith and share their agriculture expertise. Medical care is provided by purged government doctors.
What of the evangelical houses of worship? Given their current course, these buildings would likely be transformed into housing for the homeless and food kitchens for the neo-monastic communities. The churches in America stand at a crossroad and have failed the test in correcting its course to date. The author prays for their course correction, before the house collapses under its own weight and we witness The Great MAGA Fall from Grace.
Slow and Steady,
Pastor Jim
Discussion
Why would the church trade “Jesus Loves Me” for “Jesus Loves Me When We Beat and Arrest the Migrant and the Poor”? How is this movement a “False Flag of Faith”?
How might a church see the present U.S. environment as Armageddon a call for them to take up arms? What spiritual basis would cause a church celebrate community violence?
Read John 18:11. Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?” How do Jesus’s words apply to our path of response?
Review the video regarding Israeli Extremist Groups. What makes extremism so attractive? How can it quickly become destructive and disappointing? Why do extremists gravitate toward religion?
How can we avoid being fixated on our own “Great Disappointment”?
Describe a time when you followed a path that resulted in disappointment.
How might Christians who climbed into the MAGA nationalist wagon find themselves up in the proverbial tree? What makes a “Great Disappointment” movement so attractive initially? Why is it so easy for one to embrace a “Great Disappointment” movement and so difficult to leave it at the end? Do you think some Millerites refused to come down from the rooftops and trees? One Millerite described his disappointment: I waited all Tuesday [October 22] and dear Jesus did not come;—I waited all the forenoon of Wednesday, and was well in body as I ever was, but after 12 o’clock I began to feel faint, and before dark I needed someone to help me up to my chamber, as my natural strength was leaving me very fast, and I lay prostrate for 2 days without any pain—sick with disappointment. -Henry Emmons
Read and discuss 2 Corinthians 4 and discuss: “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
Extra Credit
Have you heard of Palestinian Christians? Did you know that today Bethlehem is not in Israel; it is in Palestine? Review this video and consider the experience of our brothers and sisters in the Christian faith experience living in Bethlehem and in the shadow of Israel’s border wall.
Consider that Joseph and Mary fled as refugees from King Herod, who slaughtered the male infants of Bethlehem in an attempt to kill the Christ child.
Which side of the wall in the video would Christ be born if his birth was today?
A section of the wall running through occupied Palestinian East Jerusalem. (Photo: Christopher Hazou)
