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// August 7th, 2015 // Comments Off on // Daily News

GOP debate: Winners, losers, and then there’s Trump

CNBC.com

At the beginning of this year, Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus announced his vision for a “sound debate process”, cutting the number of GOP stage gatherings to nine. It was all an effort to make sure that the eventual nominee didn’t get excessively bloodied in a dragged-out primary process, as many thought Mitt Romney had been in 2012.

But the GOP’s best laid plans didn’t exactly get off to a smooth start, as the candidate roster swelled to 15, including one particularly difficult fellow named Donald. Thursday night’s doozy of an opening debate, hosted by Fox News, proved it might not be get any easier for the RNC. That said, by the conclusion of the hour and a half affair, there was definite movement.

Here are the winners and losers — as well as the man who makes conventional losing, winning.

Winners

John Kasich: The Ohio governor and former Fox News personality, who barely snuck into the primetime debate line-up, likely gained the strongest foothold from his performance in front of a home-state crowd. Kasich proved the deftest of the debaters at answering difficult questions, winning warm applause for his explanations of expanding Medicaid in his state and for addressing same-sex marriage.

Marco Rubio: The Florida senator, who seemed to have been slipping into oblivion in recent months, clearly studied for the test Thursday night, coming away as the prohibitive Mr. Policy. Not only did he find a way of turning the conservative corner on immigration reform, he made some of the night’s more substantive remarks on the economy.

Read MoreGOP presidential hopefuls spar in fiery first debate

Hillary Clinton: The State Department e-mail scandal only was invoked once — ONCE! — and Trump absorbed most of the night’s ire. That’s about as good as Clinton could have hoped for. Back to the drawing board for the RNC.

Losers

Jeb Bush: It started bad even hours before the debate began, when the Bush campaign accidentally posted its attack plan online. But that was the only evidence of an attack plan for Bush, who played it safe like the front-runner he currently isn’t. Despite receiving the most questions (eight), Bush seemed to do the least with them.

Ben Carson: The neurosurgeon delivered the best line of the debate, noting that he was the only candidate to have removed half a brain, then adding: “Although, if you’ve been in Washington, you would think somebody had beat me to it.” Unfortunately, it came at the very end of the debate, after he had been all but ignored.

Trump

Donald Trump has to be graded on the scale of the parallel universe his candidacy exists in, which seems to reward obstreperousness, crassness, disdain for the media, disdain for his fellow candidates, and a commitment to not giving the derriere of a rodent. Despite a number of pre-debate reports harbingering a kinder, gentler Trump, the man delivered what everyone — his supporters, his detractors, the media — was looking for. And until Trump drops out of the race, it’s all a win for him.

Today’s Inspiration

The Invitation

by Joyce Meyer – posted August 07, 2015

What I have forgiven …has been for your sakes …to keep Satan from getting the advantage over us; for we are not ignorant of his wiles and intentions.
– 2 Corinthians 2:10-11

Suppose we receive a package from an overnight carrier.

After we open it, we stare at a beautiful, oversized envelope, with our name written on it in exquisite calligraphy. Inside, the invitation starts with these words: You are invited to enjoy a life filled with misery, worry, and confusion.

Which one of us would say yes to such an outrageous invitation? Don’t we seek the kind of life that keeps us free from such pain and distractions? Yet many of us choose such a life. Not that we blatantly make that choice, but we sometimes surrender even temporarily to Satan’s invitation. His attack is ongoing and relentless-the devil is persistent! Our enemy bombards our minds with every weapon at his disposal every day of our lives.

We are engaged in a warfare, a warfare that rages and never stops. We can put on the whole armor of God, halt the evil one’s advances, and stand fast on the Word of God, but we won’t put a complete end to the war. As long as we are alive, our minds remain Satan’s battlefield. Most of our problems are rooted in thinking patterns that produce the problems we experience. This is where Satan triumphs. He offers wrong thinking to all of us. This isn’t a new trick devised for our generation; he began his deceptive ways in the Garden of Eden. The serpent asked the woman, Can it really be that God has said, You shall not eat from every tree of the garden? (Genesis 3:1a). That was the first attack on the human mind. Eve could have rebuked the tempter; instead, she told him God would let them eat from the trees, but not from one particular tree. They couldn’t even touch that tree, because if they did, they would die.

But the serpent said to the woman, You shall not surely die, For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing the difference ‘between good and evil and blessing and calamity (vv. 4-5). This was the first attack, and it resulted in Satan’s first victory. What we often miss about temptation and the battle our enemy levels against us is that it comes to us deceptively.

Suppose he had said to the woman, “Eat of the fruit. You’ll bring misery, anger, hatred, bloodshed, poverty, and justice into the world.” Eve would have recoiled and run away. He tricked her because he lied and told her what would appeal to her. Satan promised, “You will be like God. You’ll know good and evil.” What a marvelous appeal to the woman. He wasn’t tempting Eve to do something bad, or at least he phrased it in such a way that what she heard sounded good.

That’s always the appeal of sin or satanic enticement. The temptation is not to do evil or to cause harm or bring injustice. The lure is that we will gain something. Satan’s temptation worked on Eve. And when the woman saw that the tree was good (suitable, pleasant) for food and that it was delightful to look at, and a tree to be desired in order to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she gave some also to her husband, and he ate (v.6).

Eve lost the first battle for the mind, and we have continued to fight for it since that time. But because we have the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we can win and we can keep on winning.

Victorious God, help me resist the onslaughts of Satan, who attacks my mind and makes evil seem good. I ask this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Thursday August 6, 2015

// August 6th, 2015 // Comments Off on Thursday August 6, 2015 // Daily News

US layoffs surge to 105,696 in July on military cuts: Challenger

CNBC.com

U.S. job cuts soared to a nearly four-year high in July as the military announced plans to reduce troop and civilian workforce payrolls, according to outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
Employers based in the United States announced 105,696 layoffs last month, the first time monthly reductions exceeded 100,000 since September 2011. A year ago, U.S. companies announced plans to cut 46,887 jobs.
The Challenger report comes a day before the Labor Department’s crucial July jobs report. A weak report would make it less likely for the Federal Reserve to announce its first interest rate increase in nine years at its September meeting.
Read MoreUS private sector jobs fall short in July
July’s reductions bring the year-to-date total to 393,368 cuts, a 34 percent increase from the period last year.
The Army accounted for more than half of the total with 57,000 cuts expected over the next two years.
“When the military makes cuts, they tend to be deep,” Challenger CEO John A. Challenger said in a statement. “With wars in Afghanistan and Iraq winding down and pressure to cut government spending, the military has been vulnerable to reductions.”
The technology sector also contributed to July’s announced job reductions, with computer and electronics companies announcing 18,891 layoffs in July.
Microsoft’s decision to close its Nokia division resulted in 7,800 job losses, while Qualcomm said it would hand out 4,500 pink slips. Intel also announced it would shed 3,180 jobs.

Today’s Inspiration

The Path of Forgiveness

by Joyce Meyer – posted August 06, 2015

And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him and let it drop (leave it, let it go), in order that your Father Who is in heaven may also forgive you your [own] failings and shortcomings and let them drop.
– Mark 11:25

Why me, God? was the cry of my heart for many years. Because of my wounded emotions from a lifetime of suffering, I lived in a wilderness of self-pity and unforgiveness. It was a huge problem that kept me from fulfilling the plan of God for my life.

Many people are hurting terribly and are crying out for help, but they aren’t willing to receive the help God has to offer. It is amazing how often we want things our way. When someone hurts you, you feel they owe you something, yet Jesus wants you to let it go. No matter how much you may want His help, you will receive it only when you become willing to do things God’s way.