By Carrie K. Hutchens
Being right, while being wronged, can be expensive in Missouri! Ask Gary and Cynthia Stocklaufer, the young couple that went to court to adopt a relative's son only to have the child taken from them. Taken from them because someone within the system decided that Gary was too fat to be a father. He "might" get sleep apnea. He "might" develop diabetes. Oh those almighty "Mights"! What if all adoptions were based upon all the "mights" that are out there? (Full Article)
My daughter Karissa was baptized this morning, so today's a special day for us. 
Karissa gave her life to Jesus Christ when she was about five years old, but we waited a while before letting her get baptized because we wanted to make sure she understood what she had committed to when she was five, and to make sure it was genuine. It's not to say that someone can't understand what being born again is at that age, but when you're dealing with the vocabulary of a 5-year-old, it can be difficult to be certain.
But she's been after me for some time now to get baptized, so after discussing what it means with her, her Mom and I finally talked with the church leaders and she was baptized today at nine years old.
She's not perfect (she has too much of her dad in her to be perfect), but if she holds fast to her growing faith, she's going to have a great life ahead of her, in this world and in the one to come.
Her baptism is a public profession of her inner faith, so thanks for letting us share this special day with you all.
I see Anna at DakotaWomen isn't thrilled with today's poverty potty break at the South Dakota Potty Break.
JAR at SDPB had written about his displeasure (as a taxpayer if nothing else, presumably) at seeing people on taxpayer-funded food stamps buying a bunch of junk food.
Anna responded:
I mean, I disapprove of yuppies in SUV's using three parking spots and going into Hy-Vee to buy a seven dollar cup of Starbucks coffee and crates of bottled water that just come from a tap anyway, but I manage somehow not to post my contempt for them on the internet.
Today's Argus Leader features a compelling article about the men of the USS Indianapolis who endured 4 days in the water after their ship was sunk in the final days of World War II.
This story has regained attention recently with this month's Discovery Channel airing of "Ocean of Fear: Worst Shark Attack Ever."
One of these heroic survivors, Ed Brown, is from Sioux Falls.
The article is long, but it's an interesting and gripping story.
I took a potty break this morning at the South Dakota Potty Break and noticed that he and I share some of the same observations about poverty and what America's poor often look like in the real world, without looking through the rose colored glasses of liberalism.
There are a handful of people who through whatever reason (major medical problems, freak adverse circumstances, no-win occupations like the small farmer, etc.) who have hit poverty without exercising counterproductive behaviors to put themselves there. I'm not talking about these folks.
But the vast majority of the "poverty stricken" got where they are because of self-destructive behaviors (substance abuse, gambling, etc.) or a simple lack of ambition. I grew up poor (the son of one of those struggling small farmers) and saw plenty of relatives who were the self-destructive and unambitious kind; I'm no stranger to poverty.
When liberals take money out of one person's pocket against their will and give it to these irresponsible, self-destructive people, they're not only robbing the first person, they're also enabling the second person to continue with their unproductive behavior. They'll never rise out of poverty if we teach them that their bad behavior will be compensated for, and there will always be saps out there who will hand them sustenance with no education or requirement to do better.
Sometimes the only way a person can realize that they need to change is when their destructive lifestyle becomes completely unsustainable. Thanks to liberal "compassion," many people in this category never reach that stage that brings about change.
So liberalism ends up creating and perpetuating more of what they claim they are working against.
Private charity where individuals connect with individuals and lifestyle changes are required...that's the only hope for those who simply don't understand the value of being responsible.
Today's was a productive potty break.
