When Choosing the Lesser of Two Evils Trumps Choosing Neither

To those still struggling (as I have this election in particular) with the question of how to vote if you're not comfortable choosing the lesser of evils because it still feels like choosing evil, consider that we live in a fallen world which regularly presents us with a choice between two evils.  Some choices, such as which route to take home during rush hour when you know both routes will tempt you to have unwholesome thoughts, may not seem as bad as this election.  Other choices involve much higher stakes.  If an intruder breaks into your home with plans to assault your spouse or children, will you choose to shoot the intruder or let him have his way with your beloved family?  Both options seem evil, but you can't just stand there refusing to choose either option because the perpetrator will certainly choose for you!  When given a cancer diagnosis, the choice between traditional chemo treatments vs. another non-FDA approved alternative approach will feel like a choice between evils. If you choose neither, cancer will ravage your body.  Whatever you decide or don't decide in any lesser of evils decision, let us remember that God could intervene at any time in any way he chooses.  Any choice, even a choice between two evils, that is ultimately decided by trusting in God's sovereign will and faithfully following His leading glorifies the Lord.  He sees the motivations and longings of our hearts which matter more to Him than the fact that neither choice is ideal.

"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." (Romans 12:2)

Let us humbly and honestly consider ourselves as we evaluate imperfect presidential candidates.  I asked myself, "Do I consider myself too moral to vote for a platform I know our country desperately needs to preserve democracy, the Constitution, religious freedom, and the very lives of persecuted people around the world simply because the candidate representing that platform offended us with something he said over a decade ago?  Have I no words in my past which I wish I could take back?" I most certainly do, and without Christ I am nothing.  The choices began to look different for me when I weighed the Trump's character in light of my own shortcomings.

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. (Romans 12:2-3)

Eric Metaxas reminded me of William Wilberforce and Dietrich Bonhoeffer who chose to immerse themselves in corrupt worldly systems so they could stand for what was right with the goal of freeing the oppressed.  God's word led them to stand for truth, justice, and life despite the evil they had to encounter in the process. So God's word has great power to bring about change even through corrupt human systems.

I was also reminded of the way God has used wretched men throughout history who He humbled and brought to repentance.  The more I learn from wise God fearing men who Trump has chosen as his advisors, the more encouraged I am that he is closer to repentance than he has ever been before.  I wrote more about how the hope of repentance influenced my decision here.

When Trump first won the RNC ticket, I considered a write-in as a way to voice my opposition to both candidates and to draw attention to the type of leader we truly want.  However, I reconsidered as I learned more about how much is at stake in this election. I live in a swing state where every vote counts, and write-ins are not even considered in my state, unless they are for Jill Stein. If I even want the opportunity to vote for a truly conservative candidate who upholds Christian values in the next election, the I have to focus now on battling the overwhelming corruption that is overtaking our country and plucking away are freedoms.  As sad as it is to admit, Trump is the only candidate with a chance of pushing back the stronghold of corruption in federal government apart from God's supernatural intervention. The more I prayed and learned (not from the media's propaganda machine but through Wikileaks and those with direct information), the more convinced I became personally that I must use my vote, the only earthly power I have, to help stop Hillary Clinton. 

Frankly, this election is not about me or my preferences. It's much bigger that my family and my own personal concerns.  When I consider the slaughters, the persecutions, the unstoppable corruption and outright treason throughout the federal government, the out of control violence and division, the economic crisis, the international crises threatening nuclear war, the freedoms (religious freedom especially) on the chopping block, the expansion of abortion into infanticide territory with Supreme Court Justices (Ginsberg especially) who support eugenics, new support for "post birth abortion" as they call it, the plot to divide Catholics, the attack on conservative Catholics and evangelicals which includes insistence that they change their beliefs about abortion, Hillary's desire to repeal the Hyde Amendment, Obama's attempts to force religious groups to pay for the abortion pill through Obamacare, lawsuits that resulting in fining Christian businesses for refusing to participate in gay marriage ceremonies, and new pressure to cater to Obama's transgender bathroom mandate, it's just all so much bigger than any of my personal objections to a man's temperament or past words. Judge me all you want, but the more I dig up information that clearly counters the mainstream narrative fed to the media by the DNC to smear Trump, the more convinced I am that I have to vote with the "deplorables" even if the DNC election rigging schemes (verified by Project Veritas Action) are not stopped. The vote and continued uncovering of the truth are all we have left in terms of human power.  But prayer is always our greatest resource, for the Almighty God has all authority and all power to deliver us.

Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the
majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O Lord, and this is
your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things. Wealth and
honor come from you alone, for you rule over everything. Power and might
are in your hand, and at your discretion people are made great and given
strength. (1 Chronicles 29:11-12, (NLT)

⁷ But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare...

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. ¹² Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:7, 11-13)

Addendum
As I have openly and honestly described my own struggle with this election dilemma, I am concerned that my words or opinions may have offended members of God's precious family of faith.  So I have issued and apology and an appeal for unity on the next blog posting found here.

What it Means to Be "Pro-Life" (Part 1): To Love the "Least of These" without Compromise

With Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton (HRC) as the major party candidates for the 2016 U.S. presidential race, American voters are facing a major moral dilemma. Both candidates have shown themselves to be arrogant, brash, deceitful, and self-serving.  Neither adequately reflects the values of his or her party. With Trump's past support of both Democratic candidates and liberal social issues, he seems more like the Democrats' choice for the Republican nominee than the Republican's choice, effected primarily through media steering and crossover voters. Conservative Republicans especially oppose him.  He has an erratic history on abortion issues, but he now claims to stand with his party's pro-life platform.  Yet, the disrespectful and crude comments he has made toward women, those with disabilities, Muslims, and illegal immigrants are making it difficult for compassionate, pro-life people of faith to vote for him with a clean conscious.

While Trump leans to the left of the Republican party platform, HRC leans to the left of the Democratic party, reflecting the anti-Christian, socialistic, "ends justify any means"  ideals of her mentor, Saul Alinsky.  Guided by Alinsky's book, Rules for Radicals, HRC's history of corruption exceeds any elected official before her, at least in the past century, although her husband's scandal list is certainly long enough.  Lies, scandals (22 biggest HRC scandals described here), and corruption have been the most consistent traits of her entire career.  In just the past few weeks, evidence has been brought forth to prove "pay for play" abuses of power as Secretary of State, high stakes bribery and fraud in the way she used the Clinton Foundation to accept large donations from American enemies with deplorable human rights practices and even 96% of her own charitable contributions (tax evasion) under the ruse of charity when almost all of the contributions were pocketed by her nuclear family, multiple counts of felony and perjury regarding her email scandals (full testimony here) putting every American at risk (at least one spy has already been killed).  Recent HRC email releases by WikiLeaks prove that she led the effort to arm ISIS groups in Syria, and lied about it repeatedly under oath even while letting four American patriots die in Benghazi to cover her misdeeds. Yet, justice has not and will not be meted against her because her corruption is so vast that those with the power to prosecute her refuse. Or perhaps she's just employing Alinsky's first rule.  Whatever the case, it's working to her favor.

“Power is not only what you have, but what the enemy thinks you have.”   Saul Alinsky, Rules for Radicals, Rule #1

Meanwhile, petty officers like First Class Kristian Saucier who committed much lesser crimes with no impact on national security and no impact on anyone's life whatsoever, are facing jail time.  Imagine how someone with such a heart of corruption will manage national security and utilize taxpayer dollars as POTUS.

Clearly, both candidates leave a bitter taste in the mouths of voters.  The two third party candidates are drawing more support than usual, but both are social liberals and pro-choice providing no good compromise for pro-life voters. Evan McMullin, just entered the race as a pro-life (from womb to tomb) independent candidate, but he entered the race so late, he may not even be on the ballot in some states.

Recently, there has been a push by self-described pro-life or "pro-lives" voters such as Rachel Held Evans to justify a vote for Hillary Clinton by upholding what they consider to be a more enlightened definition of the term "pro-life".  (View rebuttal to Rachel Held Evans' post from a Christian perspective here). Their definition is no different from what "pro-life" has always meant, at least to committed Christians, except for one tragic difference. They emphasize government support or aid programs that support life after birth as being more pro-life than simply opposing abortion itself. For liberal leaning pro-lifers, it is not just morally acceptable, but morally superior to support a candidate and party who are vehement activists for abortion at any stage, for any reason, and with taxpayer funding if that candidate has at any time in her life helped promote aid programs they like or need.  While I have no desire to discredit these programs which may very well be valuable, necessary, and effective (although efficiency, cost effectiveness, and sincere love or compassion are usually lacking when the government gets involved), I do want to point out that the key difference between this liberal view and that of more conservative pro-life voters is that they see these social programs as offsetting the crime of abortion which brutally and painfully dismembers the most vulnerable members of society.

⁴⁰ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ (Matthew 25:40)

This perspective says, "I can still be pro-life and vote for a corrupt pro-choice candidate if that candidate has ever been involved in social programs that matter to me or to those I love or empathize with most."

^"And [Jesus] said to them, 'You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.' " (Luke 16:15)

Unfortunately, those social programs, no matter how wonderful they may be, were not the primary issues touted at the DNC Convention. Making on-demand abortions at any stage of pregnancy convenient and available to all women in the US and abroad is the primary focus of the DNC, beginning with the repeal of the Hyde Amendment, as emphasized during the first day of the DNC convention. The first day of the Democratic Convention seemed less like an American political rally and more like a sacrificial worship celebration honoring Molech in which speakers and attendees celebrated the fact that they threw their babies into the fire (aka "aborted" them) in worship of the pagan god with the hope that the god would give them what they wanted, personal, short-term convenience.

"You shall not give any of your children to offer them to Molech, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord." (Leviticus 18:21)

Worship of Molech, Hillary, and/or oneself are allowed by the DNC, but Hillary insists that any religious beliefs that stand in the way of expanding abortion must be stuffed and silenced. Hillary, who has proven herself to be above the law, speaks as though she is deity, just like Lucifer himself, who Alinsky attributed in his book.

Abortion Activists attack Christians  (Source: Lifenews.com)

An Aside: Do the Unborn Have Rights?
HRC claimed that the "unborn person doesn't have any Constitutional Rights" according to Roe V. Wade, but the constitutionality of the Roe V. Wade verdict continues to be highly controversial.  Roe V. Wade uses an implied right to privacy not specifically enumerated in the Constitution (the 9th amendment refers these rights to the states and the people) but expressed in precedent cases to override the most fundamental and most valued human right upheld by people around the world throughout history, the right to life.  The Roe V. Wade verdict claimed that a woman's dominion over her body gives her the right to abort while contradicting the 9th and 10th Amendments and in some respects the 14th Amendment.  The Court denied the personhood of the fetus as a way of getting around the Due Process Clause and Equal Protection Clause.  However, medical advancements and ultrasound technology have removed the question of personhood from the debate.  Hillary admitted the unborn's personhood with this statement quoted above, but in so doing, she denied equal rights for all persons. HRC admitted the humanity of the unborn while insisting the right of the mother to choose is more important than the right of the baby in her womb to live. This perspective implies that the value of each individual life is relative such that some lives are more or less valuable than others.  This eugenics mindset is a recurring theme in liberal policy  just as it was the primary point of advocacy for Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parenthood who was highly praised by Hillary Clinton.  The rights of the unborn are still affirmed by English common law, fetal homicide statutes, Embryonic Law, and the ultimate authority on the law for Christians, God's word. (Psalm 139:13-16, Jeremiah 1:5) 

Even though Hillary Clinton's abuses of power are unmatched and despite having a lengthy history of corruption, deceit, fraud, bribery, scandals, treason, and perjury, people still support her.  She has connections to dozens of people (or possibly over a 100) who mysteriously died after becoming involved in efforts to expose her, but people still praise her.  And despite her extreme abortion activism, some pro-life voters still endorse her because they believe short term social programs, especially those they believe will reduce abortion rates, offset efforts to expand an industry that already kills a million babies a year.  This belief that they are taking the moral high ground is rooted in the assumption that pro-life conservatives are anti-abortion only and do not show equal concern for women or for any minority or marginalized people after they are born.  This perception that "pro-life" only means "anti-abortion" has been largely circulated by the left-leaning media, but the notion is false.  Compassionate, conservative Christians are not pro-life because they are anti-abortion.  They are anti-abortion because they are pro-life. We are for all life, regardless of race, ethnicity, sin struggle, economic status, age, or ability, and the goal of this blog series is to prove it! Unlike the progressive eugenicists, we view all human life as equally valuable.  We treasure both children and elders as gifts from the Lord.  We do not rank life on a worthiness scale, for we recognize that each and every life has been fearfully and wonderfully created (Psalm 139:14) for a perfect, divine purpose (Romans 8:28, Jeremiah 29:11). We are not just for life itself; we strive to equip and lead all people to a joyous, abundant life.

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly."  (John 10:10)

While my disgust with HRC should already be obvious, I am not strongly for any candidate; hence, my moral dilemma.  But I will oppose senseless murdering of innocent children until the day I die, not just for their sake but for the sake of the living, for how we regard the most vulnerable lives within our ability to protect them directly impacts how we value all life. 

This blog series is not seeking to create more political division, for America is certainly divided enough already. The BBC and Pew Research Center described American politics as "more like 'alien tribes' than rival parties....because hyper-partisan news and social media enables them to live in ideological isolation - they don't even have to try to understand it."  In the interest of bringing more understanding, I intend to counter this false assumption by describing the full meaning of "pro-life" from the perspective of those who are first and foremost Christians.  Biblical truth and personal encounters with God lead people like me to a more conservative political approach toward pro-life issues, but we are Christians first.  I hope that by showing how pro-life, conservative Christians care for mothers, families, children, elderly, minorities, and the oppressed, we can begin crossing political boundaries and working together to provide better solutions for more people instead of wasting time and energy bickering. (I realize this goal could prove difficult if HRC continues following Alinsky's model, for he insisted that all life is partisan, but I'm trusting not all HRC supporters feel the same way.)

In the interest of full disclosure, I should note that I am all of the following:

• a committed follower of Christ for over 35 years
• a devoted wife to one man for life through the Christian marriage covenant
• a busy mother of active young children
• a former volunteer at various crisis pregnancy centers
• a former volunteer and current "as-needed" adoption presenter for a faith based maternity home for women in crisis who choose not to abort
• the product of an unplanned pregnancy that occurred during Roe V. Wade deliberations who was born too late for legal abortion had that been a consideration
• a former orphan who lived in a foster home
• an adoptee via closed adoption with a personal testimony that screams of God's goodness, grace, and sovereignty

My life experiences have shaped my opinions just as every person's unique life experiences shape theirs.  I have done lots of research, however, and I will do my best to support my points with accurate data, verified testimonies, and reliable video footage.  I hope that by sharing this data and personal testimony, areas of mutual agreement can be found to curb political division and to establish more loving options, services, and support not just for mothers in crisis, but for all who suffer from the same types of trauma, heartache, and desperation which are often rooted in the same unmet need for unconditional love, acceptance, and the absolute truths which are uniquely fitted to fill the deepest longings of the heart and soul.

The next installment will look at loving ways pro-life Christians are addressing those deepest needs to prevent unplanned pregnancy and to support women in crisis both in their current situation and for the long-term.

ISIS vs. Secular Progressives

Upon initial observation, the way modern pop culture and mainstream media, which shall be referenced in this post collectively as "modern secular progressives", cower to ISIS seems extremely ironic.  The barbaric violence, hatred of gays, abuses of women, and power hungry imperialism that characterize this band of misfits seem so counter to modern liberalism that one would expect progressives to rise up against ISIS.  Yet, ISIS warriors still receive acceptance in Europe and North America, even after their acts of terror (or sheer horror) continue to escalate.  Why are such obviously racist, bigoted, homophobic, terrorist hate groups given asylum (or released from prison) and offered full entitlement benefits while peaceful, loving Christian families who put no burden on government doles or educational funding whatsoever are deported?

Does this public acceptance of our enemies by Obama, Hillary, the media, and those in elite progressive circles stem from fear?  After all, it is easier to bully a Christian who forgives "seventy times seven" and turns the other cheek than to bully someone who may detonate a bomb at any moment.  Appease the enemy is the mantra of progressive foreign policy even though we know how that worked out for France during WW2 and can see how it's working out for most of Europe where terrorist cells are harbored. 

-----------------------------------------------------

Update on 11/6/2016:  
Now we know that some of the motivation for being such a friend to ISIS came from the fact that the same governments that fund ISIS fund the Clinton Foundation.

•   $1 million from Qatar  
•   $5-10 million from Kuwait
•   $10-$25 million from Saudi Arabia

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A closer look, however, reveals some striking parallels between ISIS and secular progressives. When those parallels are exposed, the initial paradoxes seem less ironic, and ISIS looks more like a physical representation of some of the core ideologies guiding modern progressive (regressive) culture. 

Similar Enemies
While the ISIS enemy list is infinitely broader and longer than the enemy target list guiding modern secular progressives, both place Judaism, Christianity, and liberty (democracy, capitalism, self-government) at the top of their lists.

ISIS warriors refer to their enemies as "infidels" while progressives call their enemies by a wide array of expletives or unflattering terms (extremists, right wingers, homophobes, haters, bigots, racists, fundamentalists, etc.), but the real enemy for both groups is anyone who disagrees with their ideology or stands in the way of their goals. While progressive preach tolerance, they are just like ISIS in that they are only tolerant of those who share their self-centered views.  Anyone who disagrees or opposes them becomes an enemy target.

Similar Methods
ISIS primarily uses propaganda (videos, media headlines, etc.), violence, fear, intimidation, shock, emotional manipulation, deceit, and murder to persecute and destroy their enemies.  The grotesque, violent, and cruel methods ISIS uses to torment their victims (all while cameras are rolling to incite horror, shock, and fear across the globe with the internet as their message vehicle) are only rivaled by those of the ancient Assyrians described in the Old Testament.

With the mainstream media, younger generations, a compliant citizenry, academia, and a growing number of public education systems under its thumb, progressivism has been effectively spreading lies and propaganda for decades with the goal of indoctrinating all generations.  As exposed in the documentary, Expelled, and experienced by Christian conservatives on university campuses for at least the past three decades, liberal philosophies are forced upon students, not through violent acts, but through intimidation, bullying, and peer pressure. If you don't join the herd, you are pushed out. Professors who question progressive theories with scientific laws are denied tenure, and students who present valid arguments for alternative views are immediately silenced and/or unjustly punished.   Censorship at Harvard is so severe that students aren't even allowed to discuss non-liberal viewpoint in an ethics class or to attend certain classes if they hold pro-life views that may offend another student. Bible verses are deemed controversial and not allowed in class discussions.  U.S. flags are even viewed as offensive by some students and banned in dorm rooms.

Progressive pop culture icons like Miley Cyrus, Beyonce', Kim Kardashian, Lady Gaga, and Lena Dunham, in their desperation for validation and attention, force their obscene, immoral, nude, and/or shocking images into the minds and hearts of people everywhere through social media and deliver distasteful "performances" on stage or in front of video cameras to further deaden the sensitivity of the human heart to all that is profane.

LGBT activists have used bullying, legal powers such as the well-funded ACLU, manipulation, activist judges, and threats of financial ruin on small businesses to force not only tolerance of their new liberal moral code, but full endorsement of it, even by those whose freedom of religion should exempt them from violating their deep rooted moral convictions. While Hobby Lobby has been fighting it's religious freedom battles against Obamacare from day one of its inception, smaller business owners such as Sweet Cakes, Masterpiece Cakeshop, farm owners, and florists have not had the resources to win lawsuits by those who pressured them to provide services for gay weddings.  Hillary Clinton has pledged that if elected POTUS, she will force Christians to change their beliefs so she can enact her progressive liberal agenda.

While secular progressives may not be as violent as ISIS, progressivism does advocate abortion at every stage of pregnancy, and at taxpayers' expense. Abortion is just as violent as many of the cruel acts perpetrated by ISIS.  Abortion is excruciatingly painful for both the baby and the mother. ISIS warriors use a machete to dismember body parts, while an abortion doctor uses a scalpel, but the processes are very similar. Abortion clinics even sell these body parts for profit.

Abortion occurs far more often than deaths by ISIS.  In 2014, Planned Parenthood killed 327,000 babies.  Between June and December of that same year, ISIS killed approximately 2000 people, but their terrorist activities have grown considerably since that data was published.

http://www.priestsforlife.org/resources/medical/d-and-e.aspx

The partial birth abortion procedure is especially horrific in that the baby is delivered breach with the entire body except the head outside of the woman's body. As the body dangles or dances, the doctor uses scissors to cut a hole in the full term baby's brain and then sucks the brains out, killing the baby just seconds before full delivery is complete.  More details are provided at the preceding link, but I will refrain from posting pictures since they would make this post R-rated for violence.

There is simply no mercy in abortion.  This procedure is not used to save the life on the mother, for it actually puts the mother's life in greater danger.   Mothers in crisis pregnancy situations are lied to, manipulated at their most vulnerable points, and abused.  They will suffer consequences from their abortions for the rest of their lives apart from the healing, redemptive power of Christ.  Consequences will follow, whether in the form of later pregnancy complications, unexplained depression, relationship struggles, etc. Loving counseling is critical to healing a mother's heart.

Radical progressives offer similar disdain and disregard for human life if such life creates any inconvenience or financial burden, such as experienced by those possessing some perceived physical or mental impairment or by simply growing older.

Similar Motivations
What could possibly drive someone to join ISIS? Americans working in ISIS occupied countries have observed that young men are compelled by a desire for identity or purpose. Poverty and unemployment are huge problems in Arabic nations, leading to depression and hopelessness.  Joining ISIS gives them a reason, wicked as it may be, for living.  It gives them something to do instead of mourning their perceived insignificance in a coffee shop all day.  They think fighting will make them feel powerful when they are so overcome by their own powerlessness to change their circumstances.  ISIS provides a sense of belonging for those who feel all alone.  Others are motivated by feelings of anger, resentment, or hostility fueled by the bitterness that grows when past hurts are not forgiven.  ISIS fighters are allowed to rape and abuse the women they conquer and are often provided with a group of female captives whom they have made into prostitutes to feed the lusts of their flesh.  The promise of 72 virgins (the correct translation is grapes, not virgins btw) in paradise, though not explicitly stated that way in the Koran, is said to be the primary incentive for Islamic martyrs.  Hopeless, unemployed, depressed, possibly suicidal young men are easily enticed into joining ISIS, especially if martyrdom is like a "get out of jail free" card with sexual fantasies and sensual ecstasy to go with it.  Bottom line:  ISIS fighters are motivated by wounded feelings and carnal desires.

Extreme progressive ideology also appeals to sensual, sexual fantasy and to the emotions.  This new social order forces society to accept any and every deviant form of sexual behavior as normal.  Nothing is taboo anymore, so anything goes. Those who dare oppose such moral depravity and speak out for truth, justice, and virtue are verbally or physically abused by the progressive herd.

Progressive ideology is now opening doors for rapists, perverts, and pedophiles to gain easier access to women and children through the new bathroom law movements.  The smear campaign covering North Carolina's HB2 is a classic example of liberalism's use of deceit and force to ram their agenda even where the majority oppose it.  Based on a set of lies developed by the radical lobby group filing suit against North Carolina, the Human Rights Campaign, the Obama Administration is now threatening to withhold all education funding (holding children hostage) until N.C. repeals the law that is in every respects legal.  Lies, threats, manipulation, and threats of financial ruin are all at work in this progressive assault on the privacy and protection of women and children.

Progressives also uses name calling, threats, and other bullying strategies to keep the citizenry from using their brains to think critically, apply facts, or evaluate issues logically.  Secular progressives insist that people be guided by erratic, deceptive, irrational, easily offended feelings.  While they may not physically decapitate their enemies as ISIS does, radical liberalism does metaphorically decapitate their neighbors by insisting that truth is irrelevant and that feelings are all that matter.  The result is a society filled with headless bodies ruled by out-of-control carnal passions.  Unthinking, irrational, hate filled citizens will follow their progressive leaders anywhere, for they "feel like" their progressive government leaders know what is best for them, when in truth, the progressive powers only want to expand their dominion, like all the imperialistic dictators before them....and just like ISIS. 

Similar Malady
At the core of every person within each radical group, be it the new extreme progressive liberalism or the religious radicalism of ISIS, is an empty soul, longing to be filled.  Every human heart and mind seeks lasting satisfaction.  We all are born with a desire to love and to be loved, to belong to a community, to fulfill some greater purpose beyond ourselves, and to know that we have value.  Darwinian theory (fundamentally flawed as it is) reduced man's perception of his/her infinite, intrinsic, infinite value to nothing more than a cosmic accident, and it gave man an excuse to follow after his/her own carnal desires instead of pursuing God.  While ISIS warriors do claim to worship one god, they do not worship in spirit or in truth (John 4:24). They falsely believe that by fighting, they can have their cake (sinful desires) and eat it too in paradise forever with the martyr's free pass.  But nothing in this world can satisfy a soul that was created for Heaven.  Neither extreme progressivism nor ISIS's conquests will ever bring peace on earth or bring peace to the restless human heart.  Turning off the mind will not turn off the longings of the heart, for they are connected and must function together to accomplish anything of lasting value. 

Same Remedy
Both ISIS fighters and progressives have chosen the wrong enemy.  There is One who loves every human being with an infinite, unconditional, sacrificial love that is more than enough to satisfy the human soul.  His love is so great that he suffered a horrific death in our place, so we would not have to suffer the full penalty of our sins while receiving forgiveness for every wrong thought or action.  His power is so infinite that He defeated death and rose again, so that we too may be raised with Him if we trust Him for salvation and let Him lead our lives instead of enslaving ourselves to the lusts of our flesh.  He has a wonderful and perfect plan in motion that no one can hinder.  He equips each one of us uniquely to fulfill His purpose in that glorious plan He is unveiling moment by moment for the salvation of many and for His glory.  Instead of persecuting Christ and His followers, the remedy is receiving Christ as Savior and Lord and letting His love and peace fill each person to overflowing.  He gives abundant joy and peace to all who join His army of saints.  His love and forgiveness extends to all people, yes even to ISIS warriors, who come to Him in repentance and genuine faith. 

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. ² For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. ³ For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴ in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. ⁵ For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. ⁶ For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. ⁷ For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. ⁸ Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
⁹ You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. ¹⁰ But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. ¹¹ If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.....  

³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.  (Romans 8:  1-11, 37-39)