I once had an economics professor in college that made one statement that stuck with me long after the meaning of GNP and fungability slipped from me.
“Economics is a dismal science. ”
No matter our efforts, we cannot escape the realities of a finite world.
I believe religious debate without faith is also a dismal process. We attempt to approach it much like the old 60 minutes segment – Point-Counterpoint. Unfortunately many of us take the Saturday Night Live approach when our faith is lacking– “Jane, you ignorant slut.”
Saturday, January 9, 2016
Secularism?
I never really gave the concept of secularism much thought. In my younger days, I always thought of it in terms of separation of church and state which I agree with in its basic form . But secularists have pushed far beyond that now and continue with surface only arguments intended to strip the world, or at least our little part of it, of the Christian religion.
Christianity seems to offend the secularists, agnostics and atheists at a much higher level than other world religions. That shouldn’t surprise anyone. Not only is it an easy target since you are less likely to be killed due to a Christian’s principles of faith, it also evokes the most hatred because it requires the most from you. It requires you to struggle against all those human failings that keep us in this difficult world we live in. It is an easy target because it has a long human history and a turning point. Any human history is filled with those failings – destruction, greed, jealousy, fear and murder; all things that are so easy for secularists to target as justification to remove Christianity from public consumption.
Secularists often point to wars and violence perpetrated over religion as justification for their efforts. I contend that wars are fought for all the aforementioned human failings and the name of religion is invoked only to make it palatable to the participants.
As best I can tell, secular humanism is based upon the concept that religion does more harm than good and that discarding the chains of faith is liberating and an intellectual pursuit. Lack of faith in a higher power is without question, liberating. It liberates us from the pangs of conscience and responsibility. According to secularism, men are undesigned, unintended and totally responsible for themselves and their existence.
As such, Christians have allowed secularists to define Christianity in the modern world - to twist its principles and to meet the display of human weaknesses in its history with cries of hypocrisy. Christians are being abused by a re-definition of their own faith.
In today’s world:
Thou shalt not kill – means thou shalt not defend yourself or your faith against those who seek to destroy it.
Judge not lest ye be judged – now means that a Christian must be tolerant of everything that the secular world deems acceptable regardless if it offends you or your beliefs or that you perceive that it is destructive to your society.
Turn the other cheek – now means – do not challenge my actions or my beliefs
Love one another – now means that you must accept me and celebrate me as I am regardless if my actions are destructive or in contradiction to your faith.
Yet hypocrisy runs rampant (another human failing) I recently listened to a secular humanist in a radio interview - a very pleasant fellow interviewed by a NPR host who didn’ t have the desire nor the intellectual where with all to offer any serious questions. The interview did yield something however. This fellow admitted that secularists had a strong desire for a moral code and a yearning for some small meaning of life. Where did that come from? His goal through his writing is to establish some rules or goals for secularism that included love of mankind and a responsibility to society. Kind of sounds like religion doesn’t it? Just without the responsibility.
Christianity seems to offend the secularists, agnostics and atheists at a much higher level than other world religions. That shouldn’t surprise anyone. Not only is it an easy target since you are less likely to be killed due to a Christian’s principles of faith, it also evokes the most hatred because it requires the most from you. It requires you to struggle against all those human failings that keep us in this difficult world we live in. It is an easy target because it has a long human history and a turning point. Any human history is filled with those failings – destruction, greed, jealousy, fear and murder; all things that are so easy for secularists to target as justification to remove Christianity from public consumption.
Secularists often point to wars and violence perpetrated over religion as justification for their efforts. I contend that wars are fought for all the aforementioned human failings and the name of religion is invoked only to make it palatable to the participants.
As best I can tell, secular humanism is based upon the concept that religion does more harm than good and that discarding the chains of faith is liberating and an intellectual pursuit. Lack of faith in a higher power is without question, liberating. It liberates us from the pangs of conscience and responsibility. According to secularism, men are undesigned, unintended and totally responsible for themselves and their existence.
As such, Christians have allowed secularists to define Christianity in the modern world - to twist its principles and to meet the display of human weaknesses in its history with cries of hypocrisy. Christians are being abused by a re-definition of their own faith.
In today’s world:
Thou shalt not kill – means thou shalt not defend yourself or your faith against those who seek to destroy it.
Judge not lest ye be judged – now means that a Christian must be tolerant of everything that the secular world deems acceptable regardless if it offends you or your beliefs or that you perceive that it is destructive to your society.
Turn the other cheek – now means – do not challenge my actions or my beliefs
Love one another – now means that you must accept me and celebrate me as I am regardless if my actions are destructive or in contradiction to your faith.
Yet hypocrisy runs rampant (another human failing) I recently listened to a secular humanist in a radio interview - a very pleasant fellow interviewed by a NPR host who didn’ t have the desire nor the intellectual where with all to offer any serious questions. The interview did yield something however. This fellow admitted that secularists had a strong desire for a moral code and a yearning for some small meaning of life. Where did that come from? His goal through his writing is to establish some rules or goals for secularism that included love of mankind and a responsibility to society. Kind of sounds like religion doesn’t it? Just without the responsibility.
Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Isn't it great to live in a country where we enjoy the privilege of Ivy League educated media that can tell us what they think we should think about what they think the candidates think.
"It is increasingly obvious that there remains an invasive prejudice to sincere intellectual pursuits and education. I would like to know what horrors in an "Ivy League" education exist. It is not the education that assaults our sensibilities, it is the individual person doing so. Assaults to logic and reason are constantly being launched by those with good, mediocre, poor, and no education. Being educated necessitates an understanding that our thought process is not the only acceptable one. Remember the words of a sage of communication, Pogo: "We have met the enemy and he is us"!
You seemed to have missed my point in pursuit of another. No one intimated the “horrors” of an Ivy League education or education in general. We should all be so fortunate to obtain or desire an Ivy League indoctrination. However, I’m sure that the oncoming drive for free college tuition won’t apply to these schools as we all need a few elitists.
I was more specifically reacting to a news commentator who had the clairvoyance to determine a debate candidate’s feeling about his own debate performance and then speculate with significant certainty as to the public’s expected response. Maybe “Ivy League education” was not the proper term. The “Beltway” or “Media Elite” may be less offensive to the sensibility of some. (I refuse to use the term “Main Stream Media”)
My point, which I may have put too succinctly for some, is that those who choose to think for themselves should always question the talking head media’s “clarification” of what we just witnessed whether that media is MSNBC, CNN, Fox News or the New York Times.
It is interesting to observe how you were able to take a comment about the media and their attempts to shape public opinion and turn it into a condemnation of education.
Education is not unlike other human pursuits – education for the sake of education, religion for the sake of religion, government for the sake of government and yes, (as sacrilegious as it may be)even art for the sake of art without the higher purpose of fostering wisdom serves little except to keep us occupied and segregated. When we turn these pursuits into sacred cows, the ultimate result is bad art, bad government, bad religion and yes, bad education.
I do agree with you on several points. We live in a time of the glorification of ignorance. We could discuss the causes and effects at great length but that will have to wait for another day. The Pogo cartoon character was a bit before my time but that ol’ possum was dead on. In a free society, the enemy is always us.
I’ll finish with a quote from Pogo’s pal, Howland Owl, who said – “Don’t take life too seriously, son. It ain’t nohow permanent.”
"It is increasingly obvious that there remains an invasive prejudice to sincere intellectual pursuits and education. I would like to know what horrors in an "Ivy League" education exist. It is not the education that assaults our sensibilities, it is the individual person doing so. Assaults to logic and reason are constantly being launched by those with good, mediocre, poor, and no education. Being educated necessitates an understanding that our thought process is not the only acceptable one. Remember the words of a sage of communication, Pogo: "We have met the enemy and he is us"!
You seemed to have missed my point in pursuit of another. No one intimated the “horrors” of an Ivy League education or education in general. We should all be so fortunate to obtain or desire an Ivy League indoctrination. However, I’m sure that the oncoming drive for free college tuition won’t apply to these schools as we all need a few elitists.
I was more specifically reacting to a news commentator who had the clairvoyance to determine a debate candidate’s feeling about his own debate performance and then speculate with significant certainty as to the public’s expected response. Maybe “Ivy League education” was not the proper term. The “Beltway” or “Media Elite” may be less offensive to the sensibility of some. (I refuse to use the term “Main Stream Media”)
My point, which I may have put too succinctly for some, is that those who choose to think for themselves should always question the talking head media’s “clarification” of what we just witnessed whether that media is MSNBC, CNN, Fox News or the New York Times.
It is interesting to observe how you were able to take a comment about the media and their attempts to shape public opinion and turn it into a condemnation of education.
Education is not unlike other human pursuits – education for the sake of education, religion for the sake of religion, government for the sake of government and yes, (as sacrilegious as it may be)even art for the sake of art without the higher purpose of fostering wisdom serves little except to keep us occupied and segregated. When we turn these pursuits into sacred cows, the ultimate result is bad art, bad government, bad religion and yes, bad education.
I do agree with you on several points. We live in a time of the glorification of ignorance. We could discuss the causes and effects at great length but that will have to wait for another day. The Pogo cartoon character was a bit before my time but that ol’ possum was dead on. In a free society, the enemy is always us.
I’ll finish with a quote from Pogo’s pal, Howland Owl, who said – “Don’t take life too seriously, son. It ain’t nohow permanent.”
Post 42
The vote on Initiatives 42,42A is over whether we like the result or not. Groups, media and individuals in support of school funding would be better served to stop demonizing those who didn’t vote their way. Stop calling folks - racists, ignorant and the spawn of the devil because they didn’t agree with you.
There’s a lot of work to be done to improve education in Mississippi. Alienating the folks whose votes you may need in the future is probably not a good idea and maybe even be an indictment of your own educational views. Regroup, rethink and come up with a plan that addresses the issues that 42 did not. You might be surprised with the results.
There’s a lot of work to be done to improve education in Mississippi. Alienating the folks whose votes you may need in the future is probably not a good idea and maybe even be an indictment of your own educational views. Regroup, rethink and come up with a plan that addresses the issues that 42 did not. You might be surprised with the results.
Rinse - Reboot - Repeat
Computers have come a long way since 1980. My first introduction to computers was in college. That was so long ago the computer had a pull start. It was the size of a 1956 Buick and was programmed with punch cards. It took a stack of cards about 2 feet tall just to get the monster to add two plus two. We would “program” a set of commands that looked something like this:
D:/ GO TO F
D:/ IF F LOOKS GOOD GO TO G
D:/ LOOP G 4 TIL F LOOKS BAD
D:/ IF F = 2 WE GET SOMEWHERE
D:/ REPEAT LOOP G ONE GAZILLION TIMES
D:/COPY LOOP G AND REPEAT UNTIL MAIN FRAME CRASH
D:/UPON REBOOT REPEAT PROCESS TIL SECURITY REMOVES PROGRAMMER
D:/ IF F = 2 ADD H IF H = 2 ALSO
D:/ IF H NOT = 2 DIVIDE H BY 2 TIL H = 2
D:/ IF H = ODD NUMBER FORGET IT
D:/IF F = 2 AND H = 2 AND SUM = 4 COMPARE TO STANDARD ANSWER OF 4 ONE GAZILLION TIMES OR TIL MAIN FRAME CRASH
D:/ IF STANDARD ANSWER = 4 AND MAIN FRAME REBOOTED EAT PUNCH CARD
Not much programming for most of us to do now. We just have to figure out how to delete our browsing history and change our FaceBook password.
D:/ GO TO F
D:/ IF F LOOKS GOOD GO TO G
D:/ LOOP G 4 TIL F LOOKS BAD
D:/ IF F = 2 WE GET SOMEWHERE
D:/ REPEAT LOOP G ONE GAZILLION TIMES
D:/COPY LOOP G AND REPEAT UNTIL MAIN FRAME CRASH
D:/UPON REBOOT REPEAT PROCESS TIL SECURITY REMOVES PROGRAMMER
D:/ IF F = 2 ADD H IF H = 2 ALSO
D:/ IF H NOT = 2 DIVIDE H BY 2 TIL H = 2
D:/ IF H = ODD NUMBER FORGET IT
D:/IF F = 2 AND H = 2 AND SUM = 4 COMPARE TO STANDARD ANSWER OF 4 ONE GAZILLION TIMES OR TIL MAIN FRAME CRASH
D:/ IF STANDARD ANSWER = 4 AND MAIN FRAME REBOOTED EAT PUNCH CARD
Not much programming for most of us to do now. We just have to figure out how to delete our browsing history and change our FaceBook password.
Recipe for Disaster
Thanksgiving is almost here. There will be a lot of food available for most of us. Our dogs get some fine treats over the holidays. Turkey carcass is by far their favorite.
Cooking a turkey is really not that complicated but it does take time. In the last few years, frying the Thanksgiving turkey has become popular but not something that I have attempted. My friend Mark almost burned his house down when he set a grease fire in his garage while attempting to deep fry a Cajun turkey. His mistake was pretty typical. He had a little too much turkey, a little too much grease, a little too much beer and not enough of a pot.
Our cooking problems are minor when compared to that but we do have one issue. We have had to throw out a lot of Tupperware over the years. There are only three of us in the house and leftovers present a problem for us. We don’t know what to do with them.
I grew up on the farm in a big family. When we finished at the table, we didn’t have any leftovers and if we did it was because nobody liked the dish the first time around. So I have a natural aversion to anything that isn’t fit to consume completely the first time it’s put in front of me. Couple this with the fact that leftovers tend to creep to the back of the refrigerator shelf and hide behind expired milk cartons where they hope to survive long enough to mutate into some malevolent life form. We usually clean out the fridge before they become seriously dangerous but only after they stain the bowl and start to eat through the plastic in an attempt to free themselves. Since last New Year’s Day, we quit taking the lids off of leftover containers if any unnatural growth is exhibited, as I had a rather unsettling experience with a casserole left over from the previous Thanksgiving. It had expanded to twice its original size and I still swear it took an aggressive posture by pointing a couple of asparagus spears at me. Nowadays, we don’t take any chances. We just toss the whole thing – bowl and all.
But except for leftover mutation, I never considered cooking around our house to be a life threatening experience – until I picked up the mail a few weeks ago. One of Tracy’s favorite magazines for recipes arrived. Just inside the shrink wrap was an urgent warning in bold print “Potential Fire and Explosive Hazard”. It caught my attention. The warning stated that following a recipe previously published in their magazine could result in a fire hazard or even cause an explosion. A corrected recipe was attached.
It really wasn’t necessary.
In our library of cookbooks, there are enough non-lethal recipes that we won’t find it necessary to resort to this one. And even though they might add a spark to our mealtime experience, I believe we can live just fine around our house without exploding dinner rolls.
I don’t know if anyone has been harmed or maimed by this recipe. I assume the warning was just precautionary. It’s beginning to look like everything even recipes will have to soon carry a safety label to limit liability. Maybe a generic label that can be applied to any food product or recipe is the answer:
“Do Not Remove This Tag Under Penalty Of Law! Caution!! Tag is not edible.
Do not use this product in a manner inconsistent with its design. Do not attempt to prepare, cook or consume this product while standing on the top two rungs of a ladder or while blow drying your hair in the shower or tub. Excessive consumption may cause drowsiness so do not drive or operate heavy machinery. We assume no responsibility for weight gain or flatulence from product consumption. If food allergies, fire or explosions result from the use of this recipe, discontinue use.”
Hope ya’ll enjoy our holidays- read your recipes closely and watch out for those leftovers.
Cooking a turkey is really not that complicated but it does take time. In the last few years, frying the Thanksgiving turkey has become popular but not something that I have attempted. My friend Mark almost burned his house down when he set a grease fire in his garage while attempting to deep fry a Cajun turkey. His mistake was pretty typical. He had a little too much turkey, a little too much grease, a little too much beer and not enough of a pot.
Our cooking problems are minor when compared to that but we do have one issue. We have had to throw out a lot of Tupperware over the years. There are only three of us in the house and leftovers present a problem for us. We don’t know what to do with them.
I grew up on the farm in a big family. When we finished at the table, we didn’t have any leftovers and if we did it was because nobody liked the dish the first time around. So I have a natural aversion to anything that isn’t fit to consume completely the first time it’s put in front of me. Couple this with the fact that leftovers tend to creep to the back of the refrigerator shelf and hide behind expired milk cartons where they hope to survive long enough to mutate into some malevolent life form. We usually clean out the fridge before they become seriously dangerous but only after they stain the bowl and start to eat through the plastic in an attempt to free themselves. Since last New Year’s Day, we quit taking the lids off of leftover containers if any unnatural growth is exhibited, as I had a rather unsettling experience with a casserole left over from the previous Thanksgiving. It had expanded to twice its original size and I still swear it took an aggressive posture by pointing a couple of asparagus spears at me. Nowadays, we don’t take any chances. We just toss the whole thing – bowl and all.
But except for leftover mutation, I never considered cooking around our house to be a life threatening experience – until I picked up the mail a few weeks ago. One of Tracy’s favorite magazines for recipes arrived. Just inside the shrink wrap was an urgent warning in bold print “Potential Fire and Explosive Hazard”. It caught my attention. The warning stated that following a recipe previously published in their magazine could result in a fire hazard or even cause an explosion. A corrected recipe was attached.
It really wasn’t necessary.
In our library of cookbooks, there are enough non-lethal recipes that we won’t find it necessary to resort to this one. And even though they might add a spark to our mealtime experience, I believe we can live just fine around our house without exploding dinner rolls.
I don’t know if anyone has been harmed or maimed by this recipe. I assume the warning was just precautionary. It’s beginning to look like everything even recipes will have to soon carry a safety label to limit liability. Maybe a generic label that can be applied to any food product or recipe is the answer:
“Do Not Remove This Tag Under Penalty Of Law! Caution!! Tag is not edible.
Do not use this product in a manner inconsistent with its design. Do not attempt to prepare, cook or consume this product while standing on the top two rungs of a ladder or while blow drying your hair in the shower or tub. Excessive consumption may cause drowsiness so do not drive or operate heavy machinery. We assume no responsibility for weight gain or flatulence from product consumption. If food allergies, fire or explosions result from the use of this recipe, discontinue use.”
Hope ya’ll enjoy our holidays- read your recipes closely and watch out for those leftovers.
I hate national politics but sometimes you have to say something. I just saw Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy's Twitter post maligning fellow politicians' comments about prayers and thoughts for the victims in California. A propaganda site thinly veiled as a journalistic endeavor picked up on the post and added their voice to the call for more gun control. I won't promote them by naming them here but for what it's worth:
No one's being honest here- it's much easier to drink the koolaid than think for ourselves. Gun control and access to guns are not the issues. If it were - California, Connecticut, Chicago and Washington, D.C. would be the safest places in this country- they are not. While you may not like that statement, if you are honest, you must admit that it’s true.
We have a cultural issue –a responsibility issue - a hate issue – a respect issue - that permeate all aspects of our society and Senator Murphy’s Twitter comments and this so-called journalist’s propaganda yield a perfect insight – “you don’t agree with me so your thoughts and prayers are worthless - you lazy bastards!”
No one really knows what’s in the hearts of these politicians – whether it’s Murphy or Bush. Twitter is a pretty feckless way to issue such statements but our pathetic, mindless, sound bite driven culture demands it.
Those on the left always search for the easy and mindless answer and it’s always wrong. Those on the right do exactly the same thing. There is no dialogue and no trust because of comments such as Murphy’s or the daily bellowing of men such as Trump.
From a personal standpoint, I would be ok with certain aspects of gun control except that I am afraid. I don’t fear being shot in a Sandy Hook event, a terrorist attack or random gun violence. I fear you. I fear our government. The lies, the incompetence, the appetite for power, the nanny state mentality and most of all - that long slippery slope we are all careening down while we try not to spill our sweet syrupy koolaid.
I'll keep my guns and deal with the consequences of allowing others to keep theirs because the alternative is even more frightening.
No one's being honest here- it's much easier to drink the koolaid than think for ourselves. Gun control and access to guns are not the issues. If it were - California, Connecticut, Chicago and Washington, D.C. would be the safest places in this country- they are not. While you may not like that statement, if you are honest, you must admit that it’s true.
We have a cultural issue –a responsibility issue - a hate issue – a respect issue - that permeate all aspects of our society and Senator Murphy’s Twitter comments and this so-called journalist’s propaganda yield a perfect insight – “you don’t agree with me so your thoughts and prayers are worthless - you lazy bastards!”
No one really knows what’s in the hearts of these politicians – whether it’s Murphy or Bush. Twitter is a pretty feckless way to issue such statements but our pathetic, mindless, sound bite driven culture demands it.
Those on the left always search for the easy and mindless answer and it’s always wrong. Those on the right do exactly the same thing. There is no dialogue and no trust because of comments such as Murphy’s or the daily bellowing of men such as Trump.
From a personal standpoint, I would be ok with certain aspects of gun control except that I am afraid. I don’t fear being shot in a Sandy Hook event, a terrorist attack or random gun violence. I fear you. I fear our government. The lies, the incompetence, the appetite for power, the nanny state mentality and most of all - that long slippery slope we are all careening down while we try not to spill our sweet syrupy koolaid.
I'll keep my guns and deal with the consequences of allowing others to keep theirs because the alternative is even more frightening.
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