"People can become so morally weak that they lose their free will. We are not dealing with a small matter but a apocalyptic life and death struggle that has already begun. Yet in the midst of it, there are many, who still go on living their lives as though nothing had changed.
I am convinced that it is still best that I speak the truth, even though it costs me my life. If we hope to reach our goal some day, then we, too, must become heroes of the faith. Discipleship to Christ requires heroism. May God accept my life in atonement not only for my sins, but for the sins of others as well.”
Franz Jägerstätter, Executed in Brandenburg Prison, August 9, 1943
“Although I know well, Margaret, that because of my past wickedness I deserve to be abandoned by God, I cannot but trust in his merciful goodness. His grace had strengthened me until now, and made me content to lose goods, land, and life as well, rather than to swear against my conscience.
And, therefore, my own good daughter, do not let your mind me troubled over anything that shall happen to me in this world. Nothing can come but what God wills. And I am very sure that whatever that be, however bad it may seem, it shall indeed be for the best.”
Thomas More, From the Tower of London to Margaret Roper
"The fact that the foolish person is often stubborn must not blind us to the fact that he is not independent. In conversation with him, one virtually feels that one is dealing not at all with him as a person, but with slogans, catchwords, and the like that have taken possession of him. He is under a spell, blinded, misused, and abused in his very being. Having thus become a mindless tool, the foolish person will also be capable of any evil and at the same time incapable of seeing that it is evil. This is where the danger of diabolical misuse lurks, for it is this that can once and for all destroy human beings.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Letters and Papers From Prison
Stocks were showing some volatility again today, and managed to hold on to some gains into the close.
Gold and silver moved higher.
The Dollar was largely unchanged.
Continue to expect volatility driven by the coronavirus and the US national elections.
It's gotten quite chilly here. The garden has all been harvested and taken down. The compost pile is full and cooking away.
I was out cutting up large tree branches earlier that had come down in the storms and winds that blew through here. Now Dolly and I are snuggled down under a warm blanket.
With the clocks turned back now, it gets dark here around 5 PM or so.
Have a pleasant evening.
