I really like gadgets.  I work under the assumption that modern technology can, as my infomercial obsessed son says, "make your life easier."  Very rarely has this been the case however and technology designed to free you from burdens have a tendency to add a whole host of brand new burdens in their place.  Take the PDA for example.  I bought a Handspring visor and later updated to a Pocket PC a few years later.  Outside of an outstanding grocery shopping program on the Handspring visor (that I could never duplicate on the Pocket PC), I spent much more time fitzing around with the PDAs and never found them to make me more organized OR save any time.  I eventually went to a Hipster PDA that is based on 3x5 cards that actually works well for me.  I also bought  nifty little digital recorder last year that I never got into the habit of using and I am not sure that I have ever played anything back on the device.  I would make "notes to self" and recorded a couple of lectures, but I never listened to them!  When my daughter got an IPod for Christmas, I snagged her old sandisk MP3 player, but since the only time that I listen to music on headphones was at coffeehouse while I worked on my laptop, the MP3 player was redundant and did not sound nearly as good as my big sennheiser over the ear, 1970s style headphones plugged into my laptop housing my entire music collection.  I think I spent more time picking out a selection of songs to fit on the limited space of a MP3 player than I did listening to the player.  I cannot listen while I ride my bike or run because I like to hear if I am about to be hit by a car.  This goes double for a deployment.  If I go overseas, I want situational awareness at ALL times.

However!  My Dad bought me a Garmin c330 GPS navigation device for Christmas and it has been the most useful device that I have ever owned outside of my laptop.  Between living in a new town (a large one at that) and traveling all Illinois for the National Guard, this little device has saved me hours of being lost and searching aimlessly for addresses.  The unit itself is not a fancy one with all the bells an whistles, but perhaps that is the beauty of the c330.  I just turn it on, punch in the address and away I go.  It also has a trip computer that lets me record just how long it takes to get to my parent's house and the armory for weekend drills.  The ETA predictions are really close and I usually arrive within a minute of the predicted time even on a four hour trip.  This device is also fantastic to have when you are married to a women with absolutely no map-reading skills.  My wife and I rarely fight, but all of our biggest fights in the last few years have been during trips when we are lost.  The only complaint that I have about the unit is that the Maps are from 2005 and most of the Starbucks in our area are not in the computer!  I have also noticed that many the businesses are not up to date, so you need to get an address of the net before you go on a trip.

In the last two weeks of campaigning, Huckabee has played exclusively to his Evangelical base and instead of establishing himself as a man that can lead the greater whole of the nation, he has alienated himself from groups of people that had begun to support him despite his history as a Baptist minister.  Huckabee is not running for pastor of the United States, he is running for President of The United States and a President needs to be able to represent people of all stripes.  I am convinced that Huckabee can do just that and I am convinced that his record in Arkansas proves that he can operate effectively in a pluralistic situation, but he has got to tone down the religious rhetoric or he will never get the nomination.  Again and again in this blog I have pronounced that legislative changes in the United States will not advance the Gospel!  You can put a Ten Commandments monument on every corner, you can make abortion illegal and you can institute prayer in school but it will not advance the Gospel without Christians who preach the Word, the Holy Spirit who makes it effectual to the heart, and Christ, who's sacrifice makes reconciliation with God possible.  If you are going to preach, then preach, if you are going to be a politician then be a politician who is guided by the Word of God, but does not use religion to hit the various hot buttons of evangelical voters.  Forgive the cliche, but Huckabee is literally "preaching to the choir" in these past few weeks.

Believe me when I say that understand completely that it is impossible for a preacher like myself, or Mike Huckabee, to make some sort of artificial divide between my faith and my politics.  I also understand the temptation to receive an Amen from a supportive crowd, but Christian leaders must put themselves right in the middle of those who oppose them and convince them of the strength of their position.  Huckabee did this when he made a comment during one of the early debates to the Log Cabin Republicans (a group of pro-homosexual Republicans).  Huckabee had the strength of character to stand firm on his position on gay marriage, yet he still called upon that group to vote for him despite their differences.  Huckabee also stood by his more humane stance on immigrants during this early debate, but like every other Republican candidate (John McCain included) he joined in the mad dash to be the candidate who was "toughest" on immigration.  Huckabee did more to represent Christ in these early debates than he did in the last few weeks of Constitution changing rhetoric.  My advice for Mike Huckabee in the upcoming weeks is this: 

Gov. Huckabee,

Be who you are in Christ and not some caricature of an evangelical Christian leader.   Keep addressing the issues that make traditional evangelical conservatives nervous.  Remind us that being a Christian is also about caring for the poor and downtrodden and that being a Christian means that we should seek social justice and racial reconciliation.  As a Republican you should offer an alternative way to achieve these lofty and sacred goals without big government and instead show us a smart Government that spends taxes effectively and responsibly.  Demonstrate that you can operate in a bi-partisan atmosphere because of your faith in Christ, not in spite of your faith.  You can remain faithful to the Gospel without taking the term "bully pulpit" too literally.  The American people are weary of the divisions between "red" and "blue" and appealing only to evangelicals creates greater divide.  I remember well the flash in the pan campaign of Pat Robertson in 1988.  Thankfully, you are not Pat Robertson and can be a President for all Americans, not just Christian Americans. 

P.S. Give us a more cohesive and comprehensive approach to international relations.  As a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, I need to have great confidence in my Commander-in-Chief!

I Like Mike!

J Kent Kroencke

U.S. Army Officer,  Seminary Student, Former Pastor and Political Commentator

I found this blog from another Chaplain Candidate who is attending the Chaplain school in South Carolina.  This fellow is in the first 5 week phase which is essentially all the things that one would learn in Basic training minus the weapon training (I am not keen on shooting people, but I sure like firing neat weapons).  I tried to get out of the first five weeks since I have been through basic and AIT, but since I have not been to basic since George Bush senior was the brand new president, I have to go through this stuff all over again.  I don't think the left foot and right foot are any different, we render salutes the same way and a road march is still a road march, but I am sure that there are a few new things to teach an old dog, so off I go in June to experience the Ft. Jackson confidence course,  rappel off Victory tower, and everyone's favorite, the gas chamber.  Chaplain Dave's description of the gas chamber is right on the nose.  The last time I went through it, I held my breath the entire time (even through my name, rank, social, etc) but instinctually took a breath about 1 foot from the exit!  At this point every gland in your body starts oozing and you feel like your lungs are on fire. 

On a good note, I will be doing PT 6 days a week and should be in pretty good shape by the time I get home.  Before now and then I need to take my fitness to the next level.  I have lost 55 lbs since last year at this time, but that will not be good enough.  I need to lose about 20 more lbs (so I can pass the weight without being taped) and I certainly do not want to be put in the remedial PT section that they always seem to have in these schools.  No short bus for this soldier!  In addition to the health aspects, they will be paying me very well to attend this school this summer, so it will enable me to concentrate on school in the fall instead of working.  The more time I spend on duty, the more I want to get through my MDiv as soon as possible so I can be a "real" chaplain (to quote my less than tactful father).  As many of you soldiers will understand, but civilians will not, I want to take my turn at deployment.  Even though I have an important job back here when my unit deploys, I still want to go and do my tour.  I have been assured by the Chief of Chaplains that we will all get our chance and I am sure that the geopolitical situation is not going to change between now and 2010.

These are my three choices for President in the proper order.  My support for Huckabee is well documented,  McCain is a natural second choice for a candidate who is both "compassionate" about his conservatism and uniquely qualified to be the Commander-in-Chief (more so than Huckabee, I will admit).  But one might ask why Obama would be my third choice when put up against Romney or Guiliani.  Obama certainly does not approach my requirements on many policy issues and is a Democrat, but there is a strong argument for voting across party lines in this circumstance: Barack Obama is Black and I believe that a black President would be beneficial for America in many ways.

It has been a long held conviction of mine that our issues with race would be much further along if the Federal government would have done more to ensure the enfranchisement of black Americans after the end of reconstruction.  During the reconstruction era following the Civil War,  African-Americans had a level of representation in government that exceeds even modern times.  The protection of their right to vote enabled black politicians an opportunity to represent their continuants and this would have led to a quicker integration of former slaves into the over-arching culture of America instead of isolating them as a second class population.  It is undeniable that this exclusion led to an ever widening chasm between the races.  Other oppressed minorities, like the Irish and the Italians, were able to establish political representation and within a few generations the Irish and Italians were fully integrated into the melting pot.  Just 100 years after the Irish were living in New York ghettos, the Irish had a president in the White House.  Granted, the Irish and Italians had the advantage of being able to blend in physically.

Now that the fundamental protection of civil rights are in place, that last and most difficult mile cannot be accomplished by direct legislation, but rather by self-identification of African-Americans as part of the greater whole.  An African-American Presidency would have a tremendous impact on both white and black America.  For the black youth of America,  Obama would provide a role model of incredible value.   Obama's message would be that a black man can be the leader of the entire nation, not just Black America.  In this way Obama would move past the era of Jesse Jackson and Rev. Al Sharpton.  The Jesse Jacksons, Malcolm Xs and Al Sharptons of the world have their place in securing political advancement, but the Jesse Jacksons has always been about the politics of division.  Obama is the next stage of real racial reconciliation.

I would much prefer to have a black Republican President (No, not Alan Keyes!), but I believe that the positive effects of Obama would outweigh many of the policy differences that I have with Barack Obama (not that he has expressed specific policies at this point in the campaign.)  Besides, I do not think that Barack Obama would be legislatively effective and this is acceptable to the conservative mind-set.  Hillary Clinton was absolutely correct in her identification with LBJ the other day.  Clinton has the mad legislative skills to do some real damage over a four year term.  Obama's inexperience would be crippling for a first term and would not significantly improve until a second term in office.  I also understand that many of the issues that divide me from the Democrats are not under the direct purview of the Federal government. 

An additional note about the primary race:  A statistical four way tie on the Republican side and no clear winner between Clinton and Obama makes for an incredibly interesting race to watch.  Heavily contested primaries are good for the political discourse of the nation.  The finer points must be discussed to differentiate between candidates of the same party.

This week was an eye opener for me as a Chaplain and a pastor.  Two important things happened this week.  First, we received traumatic event management which involved working through real life scenarios that face soldiers and their families.  Second, we were able to have some face time with the majority of the the Chaplain Corp and build important relationships that we are going to need in the upcoming years. I can say without a doubt that this was the most productive week that I have ever spent in the military.  The Chaplain Corps has a specific mission and we are working that mission continually.  The atmosphere of the National Guard has changed considerably since the early 1990s.

From a ministry point of view I was able to take away some significant and formative questions that I must answer in the months to come.  I say that I take away questions and not answers, because I was forced to recognize that there are some decisions that I need to make as I enter into further training this summer at Chaplain school.  I must discover an operational ethic that can reconcile the needs of soldiers with my theological perspective.  This week's conference forced me to look at the demarcation between the ministry and psychological sciences.  I am not a psychologist, I am a pastor and I need to find a model of counseling that fits that calling.  Soldiers have the need for both so I have to "know my lane and stay in my lane." 

Ethical questions about war and specifically the kind of war that we fight in the modern world played an important role in our discussions this week.  One of the missions of the Army Chaplain is to be a moral and ethical advisor to the commander and to soldier.  There is a wide gulf between having a well reasoned ethic in times of peace and safety and being able to successfully applying this ethic in an atmosphere that is best described by the acronym VUCA.  VUCA stands for volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.   There are no easy answers to whether or not a soldier should use deadly force against people that are not traditionally viewed as combatants (such as American civilians during times of domestic crisis).  One of the scenarios that we addressed was the use of force to keep a population contaminated by the radiation of a dirty bomb contained until they have been decontaminated.  The soldier is put in the horrifying position of acting against thousands of people to save even more from the danger of radiation poisoning.  One might think that a bit of utilitarian calculus can make this a easy choice, but the fallout of this action on the individual soldier can be devastating.

One of the most important aspects of the conference was the time that I spent with fellow chaplains and specifically those whom I will be ministering with during a time of deployment.  I will be state-side since I am not yet school qualified, but my mission will be and currently is, ministering to families.  Just one week away from my family caused a great deal of stress for my wife and kids.  What happens to the family of a soldier who is gone for a year?  How will I best minister to these families trying to make it day to day without their loved ones?  What are going to be my major challenges in the months ahead?  Fortunately I am going to be drawing on the collective experience of the entire group of chaplains that I met with this week. 

Finally, I was absolutely amazed at the kind of Esprit De Corps that was found in this group of chaplains and the willingness to assist each other in their missions.  Gatherings of Baptist ministers can often turn into competitive and uncomfortable events.  It is unfortunate that our denominational dealings cannot display the kind of unity that I saw this week at the conference.  I have seen this among Baptist now and again, but  certainly not often enough.  I am not one for compromising doctrinal purity for the sake of unity, but this is not to say that Baptist cannot cooperate in the face of these differences.  It is not true theological differences that separate us Baptist, it is ministerial jealousy and territorialism that splits us!

I am in Chicago for the next 5 days to attend our state Chaplains Conference.  I am hoping that there will be some good training and get an opportunity to meet the chaplains that I know only through email.  The more that I serve, the more that I know that I did the right thing in taking a commission in the Illinois National Guard.  I have had the opportunity in the last few days to concentrate on getting the battalion's Family Readiness Groups up to speed and heading in the right direction and it is fantastic to operate in the capacity that I am suited.  I even made a house visit to a potential Family Readiness Group leader and had a great time visiting and "pastoring."  You can take the man out of the pulpit but...

Later on this evening I will be posting more political analysis about last night spectacular primary in Hew Hampshire.  This is the best Presidential race since 1980 and I am turning back into a news junkie when it comes to the candidates.

Two separate occurrences over the last month illuminate the way that the Clintons view the world and how they see themselves in relation to the American people.  In Hillary Clinton's attempt at a Christmas commercial she is shown wrapping gifts like universal health care and universal pre-K school to be given to the American people.  Chris Matthews was quick to recognize that this was indicative of how Hillary views herself as the one who will be giving all of us little people these wonderful gifts.  Is the President of the United States a servant of the people or a benevolent ruler doling out gifts to her subjects?!  If there was universal health care it would be the American people, not Hillary Clinton who will be paying for it.  One might think that this analysis is a bit of hyperbole, but take a look at Hillary Clinton's concession speech after the Iowa Caucus.  In the speech, Clinton says, "I wrote a book some years ago called "It Takes a Village to Raise a Child" and in it I have a chapter that I titled "Every Child Needs a Champion."  I think that the American people need a president who is their champion and that is what I intend to be."  Are "We the People" a collective child to Hillary Clinton?  I could not believe what I was hearing or that no one seemed to pick up on it.

As expected, Mike Huckabee has won Iowa, but by a far greater margin than recent polls might have suggested.  After he was declared winner and made his victory speech, Mike Huckabee spoke to Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann and made some statements that will clarify once and for all that I am not supporting Mike Huckabee because he is a former Baptist preacher, but rather because his message does, in fact, "resonate" with this particular voter.  As a matter of fact, I am voting for him despite the fact that he is a preacher.  If a reader carefully examines my blog over the last year they will see a pattern emerge of a conservative Christian who wants to apply biblical principles to a wider range of issues than have been traditionally been addressed by "the Christian right."   The Democrats have high-jacked issues such as "hunger, poverty, disease and the environment" (A Huckabee quote from the link below) and the Republican party has failed to address them effectively.  There are Republicans who are poor, who want to have a sensible energy policy, who struggle with health care,  who are concerned with how our country is viewed abroad, and all the while, they are evangelical Christians who are unashamedly devoted to Christ. 

The old guard of Christian right leadership is out of touch with my generation of Christians. This is clearly indicated by the endorsement of Guiliani by Pat Robertson.  Rather than hammering on the same hot button issues (like taking Under God out of the pledge) it is time to present a broader spectrum of Christian thought to the political realm.  The old guard of Christian leaders have marginalized themselves in the national debate by staying in lockstep with the Republican party on health care, poverty, the environment and foreign policy.  To be a Christian is not necessarily to be a Republican (although this is the party that, I believe, still best represents my views as a Christian) the Biblical view of the world cuts across party lines. The Biblical world-view also cuts across racial lines and in the same way that Christians are called to take the Gospel to "all nations" so too the Christian politician needs to take their message to a wide range ethnic groups and not just the same group of middle-class white Americans that have traditionally been the backbone of the Christian right.  This country is in desperate need of some unity, but this unity does not have to come at the expense of our faith, but rather it comes by the authentic living of that faith.

I believe that Mike Huckabee shows the greatest potential to be the kind of Republican who can cut across party lines to address the issues that have been traditionally championed by the Democrats.  All of the "he is a liberal" attacks that have been levied against Huckabee by Romney have failed because there are many of us recognize that the liberal charges are actually Huckabee's willingness to buck the party line for the sake of finding political solutions to some of the problems that faced the State of Arkansas.  Pay careful attention to Huckabee's appeal to voters who disagree with him.  I see Huckabee trying to be a person that can be reasoned with by a wide range of people regardless of political persuasions.  Romney is trying to re-invent himself as a right winger when what we need is a true centrist candidate.  Huckabee is a centrist and there is also similar movement on the Democrat side of things with Barack Obama.  The similarities between the two campaigns was not lost on Mike Huckabee according to his statements in the video link below.   Huckabee's and Obama's victories tonight send a message that the red state/blue state divisions are finally being challenged and we need a more nuanced approach to public policy instead of a party-line rhetoric that has dominated politics since 1992.

Take a look at this nine minute video clip and tell me what you think...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/22497190#22497190