Irony

I feel surrounded these days by situations that are ironic.  

Here are four examples:

Teslas

Many of the so called “progressive elites” were early adopters of electric cars, especially those made by boy genius Elon Musk, the Tesla.  

I saw lots of “jokes” online about electric cars placed by people “on the right”. “Drill Baby Drill!,” was not a call for buying an electric car. 

On the other side, some wealthy “Environmentalists” gave the impression of looking down their noses at people not able to afford an electric car or those who stubbornly stuck with their Internal Combustion Engines. Of course these purchases by wealthy “environmentalists” along with heavy government subsidies made Elon Musk the wealthiest person in the world.  Musk is now able to “Buy” anything or anyone he wants. 

Now things have changed.  

Elon Musk has bought himself a politician and the ability to control his own taxes and get all the government contracts he wants.  He also has leverage over any competition.

In response, lefties have re-named the Tesla as Swasticars (Swastikar in German).  Anyone now driving a Tesla (and especially the cyber truck) is ridiculed and despised for their support of Musk.

And all of a sudden, the far right is not so much against electric cars.  In fact, some have even promoted them.

If this is not ironic, I don’t know what is. 

IRS

It is hard to imagine any business owner saying, “Let’s not collect all the money owed to us by our clients. We can save money by eliminating our Accounts Receivable Department” 

And yet, that is what many Americans are saying about the IRS, the government’s accounts receivable department.  It is typical of people to dislike the tax collectors. Many people get mad at the IRS when in fact it is Congress, not the IRS, that sets the amount of taxes to be collected. 

The irony is that some of the very same people who rail against governmental budget deficit spending (A position I happen to like in principle) are at the same time strong supporters of gutting the IRS by eliminating the very people who would collect the revenue needed to help balance the budget.  Meanwhile, the national debt continues to grow as spending exceeds decreasing revenue.

Veterans

 “Thank you for your service…you’re fired.”

The Marines who died in Belleau Woods in WW1, most of whom were buried in the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in France, were not “suckers.”  Their actions in that terrible battle was a turning point in WW1.  They literally saved Paris.  The French awarded the Marines the Croix de Guerre for their bravery.  The Germans, who fought them, are believed to have referred to them as Devil Dogs, a term U.S. Marines cherish to this day.  

Congressional Medal of Honor winners who happen to be non-white, Native Americans (e.g. the code talkers) and women buried in Arlington Cemetery have had their military achievements minimized by the DOD.  Most of these veterans have passed away, and obviously all of the service men and women in Arlington and other cemeteries around the world are dead.  So who is going to stand up for them?

Some Americans think they are patriotic because they stand for the National Anthem, proudly display their flag, and they speak reverently about the sacrifices of our Veterans. 

Other people who never before spoke up for the military (some even protested against the military) are now recognizing the contribution of veterans. 

The irony is that the modern day successors to those fallen Marine heroes (as well as members of all of the services buried in National Cemeteries like Arlington) are now commanded by a draft dodger who not only has said disrespectful things about yesterday’s fallen heroes but has also overseen the significant reduction in services to Veterans served by the VA.  The commander-in-chief was picked by some of the very same people who claim to be Patriotic Americans but yet they are silent as veterans are both disrespected and denied benefits that they earned. 

 Christian Values 

“Do as I say, not as I do”

I can’t remember where I heard this quote first. It could have been a Marine drill sergeant at Parris Island, or it could have been related to parenthood.  

Regardless, the quote comes to mind when I hear some self-proclaimed “Christians” rail against immigrants, other religions, or people who are not like them.

Did God really create all people?  The US has about 4% of the World’s population which is now estimated at over 8 billion. Of this 4% in the United States about 2/3 say they are Christian and only about 41% of Americans identify as White Christian.  

Even all Christians (the largest religion), which includes much of Europe and North America , and almost all of South America and smaller numbers on other continents, account for only about 31.6% of the world’s population.  What about the other 2/3?  Did God create them as well?  Are we not all God’s Children? 

Meanwhile some who call themselves “Christians” do not follow Christ’s example of feeding the poor, healing the sick and loving one’s enemies.  Quite the contrary, many are searching the Bible for stories that seem to justify their cruelty to those who are not like them.  They also oppose efforts to feed the poor around the world. 

One can find anything they want to find in the Bible stories to justify their behavior. Listening to and following Christ is something else all together.  It was then, and it is now.   Many self-described “Christians” are not following Christ’s example.

The irony of course is that many of the teachings of Christ are being followed more closely by people who are not Christian at all.