Friday, August 17, 2012
Gun Control: What really ails us?
This summary is not available. Please
click here to view the post.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
What is Trust?
In nature invisible forces are in play without which the entire physical world ceases to exist. These largely mysterious forces act collectively to create the scaffolding upon which all matter, including you and me, is formed. Why these forces , and the laws governing them, exist is a matter of consternation for any thinking person, since without the laws, the forces either do not exist, or do not behave consistently and predictably enough to become the foundation for the entire cosmos. Conversely, without the forces, the laws remain invisible and unknown.
Nature's inorganic constituents are governed by the laws of nature and the forces those laws control. A rock perched atop a large hill will, when its footings are sufficiently eroded, obeys gravity's call and rolls down the hill, trussed and directed by an assemblage of physical laws. Likewise the moon obediently idles its way around the Earth day after day, age after age, never once contemplating a move to Venus's orbit. Nope. Around and around the Earth it goes, and will continue to do so until some other force dislodges it.
In the organic world - land of the living- things change considerably, especially as one ascends the pyramid of animal complexity. Simple protozoa can certainly react to stimuli in their environment, but it doesn't involve thought; just an off the rack operating system that aids in keeping the thing viable. Insects make 'decisions' as to which way to respond to a physical stimulus, (move toward it, move away from it). Birds and mammals must evaluate an array of stimuli in order to eat, reproduce, shelter and survive. But these stimuli all have one thing in common: they are without deceit. Light is light, dark is dark, movement is movement, water is wet, snow is cold, and so forth. The world which confronts life forms from amoebas to zebras is eerily simple, more of a 'face value' proposition, despite the myriad of difficulties inherent in their fight for survival.
But a funny thing happens on the way to the apex of the complexity pyramid. For there we are, iconic in our conspicuous place at the top, all of creation beneath our feet forged into some sort of organic pedestal upon which we resolutely bask in the glory of our free will and opposable thumb. From our vantage point, we witness the dullness of the amoeba, the creepiness of the arachnid and the silliness of the chimpanzee. We dissect them, grow them, study them, entrap and confine them. We make every creature subject to our collective will, either directly or indirectly as we seek to influence their survivability and ours. And they let us do it! It is nothing short of astounding. With scarcely a dissenting outcry, we subjugate every kingdom taxonomists have divined with little fear of revolt. It is but one facet of our free will on display - the desire to rule over the natural world - a desire that goes horribly wrong in the absence of an inner moral compass.
Any discussion of free will would have to be lengthy. But painting in broad strokes, we can illustrate it as the difference between merely walking across a deposit of limestone beneath the soil in blissful ignorance, versus quarrying that limestone and harnessing the laws of physics to turn it into cities. It is the force that has allowed civilizations to flourish and add layer upon layer of comfort and luxury to our existence.
On an intangible level we see that the entire domain of civilization owes its existence to a pair of linked intangibles existing only within the aura of free will: Trust and trustworthiness. The whole of human progress can be summed up as the effect of the promise, whether it be Pharaoh's promise of death to slacker slaves building his kingdom, or the promise of financial remuneration to architects, engineers, laborers and bond purchasers in exchange for raising a city. Since the majority of the actions required for civilization to come into existence are predicated upon promises, the critical element in the ascent of human civilization has been, and continues to be, trust. Trust comes into play because free will is in play. And where the free will of human beings is in motion, all bets are off, precisely because humans can -and do - choose to either reveal or obfuscate known truths. Unlike the environments of the rest of the animal kingdom, human interactions deal with words, spoken and written, which convey information that will force others to make a decision. It boils down to information being offered up as fact, or at the very least, theory with a probable outcome, and those encountering the information deciding to act on it by either believing it, or not.
Duplicity is the dark shadow cast by the corruption of man's free will. One need only scan the history books or the morning newspaper to come to terms with the ramifications of broken promises, blurred truths and outright lies. Duplicity is known by other names: deceit; guile; fraud; deception; hypocrisy; and trickery. Duplicity is the intent to deceive, and is always practiced as a means of self-gratification. It is the intentional abuse of trust through the issuance of a false promise. In this manner we find the world of lower animals to be less nuanced and more mechanistic than that of humans. A tree squirrel, for instance, leaves its nest and encounters a world comprised of finding nuts, remembering where he hid the nuts, and chasing girl squirrels up and down the nut tree. Squirrel society is overt and far less duplicitous than human society, simply because the desire to deceive is not wired into the squirrel and its environment. The human environment is a construct of intangible, interrelated relationships which ride the rails of truth and deception, sometimes intersecting with powerfully destructive outcomes. So if the promise is the currency, and thus ultimately the wealth of human society, duplicity is its cancer, and the arbiter of its demise.
Trust cannot be seen, touched, smelled, heard or tasted (and therefore, according to science, cannot exist.) No one will ever study a sample of trust in a Petri dish or under an electron scanning microscope. What then, is trust, this non-existent non-entity powerful enough to create the civilized world? What does it share in common with the invisible laws of nature and the forces those mysterious, supposedly self-existent laws create?
Maybe it is this: the things that ultimately make life possible, and rich and wonderful, invisible 'things' such as trust, love, compassion, and mercy, will never be identified by science and its narrowly focused searchlight of inquiry. (Pity that this has become the anointed alter upon which all truth is divined and bestowed upon the people.) But these invisible qualities ceaselessly resonate within us, invisible fingers strumming the strings of our heart or tapping across the keyboard of our soul, deep calling to deep, beckoning that we incline an ear of a different sort toward the melodious murmuring playing within.
It is a whisper we can trust.
Nature's inorganic constituents are governed by the laws of nature and the forces those laws control. A rock perched atop a large hill will, when its footings are sufficiently eroded, obeys gravity's call and rolls down the hill, trussed and directed by an assemblage of physical laws. Likewise the moon obediently idles its way around the Earth day after day, age after age, never once contemplating a move to Venus's orbit. Nope. Around and around the Earth it goes, and will continue to do so until some other force dislodges it.
In the organic world - land of the living- things change considerably, especially as one ascends the pyramid of animal complexity. Simple protozoa can certainly react to stimuli in their environment, but it doesn't involve thought; just an off the rack operating system that aids in keeping the thing viable. Insects make 'decisions' as to which way to respond to a physical stimulus, (move toward it, move away from it). Birds and mammals must evaluate an array of stimuli in order to eat, reproduce, shelter and survive. But these stimuli all have one thing in common: they are without deceit. Light is light, dark is dark, movement is movement, water is wet, snow is cold, and so forth. The world which confronts life forms from amoebas to zebras is eerily simple, more of a 'face value' proposition, despite the myriad of difficulties inherent in their fight for survival.
But a funny thing happens on the way to the apex of the complexity pyramid. For there we are, iconic in our conspicuous place at the top, all of creation beneath our feet forged into some sort of organic pedestal upon which we resolutely bask in the glory of our free will and opposable thumb. From our vantage point, we witness the dullness of the amoeba, the creepiness of the arachnid and the silliness of the chimpanzee. We dissect them, grow them, study them, entrap and confine them. We make every creature subject to our collective will, either directly or indirectly as we seek to influence their survivability and ours. And they let us do it! It is nothing short of astounding. With scarcely a dissenting outcry, we subjugate every kingdom taxonomists have divined with little fear of revolt. It is but one facet of our free will on display - the desire to rule over the natural world - a desire that goes horribly wrong in the absence of an inner moral compass.
Any discussion of free will would have to be lengthy. But painting in broad strokes, we can illustrate it as the difference between merely walking across a deposit of limestone beneath the soil in blissful ignorance, versus quarrying that limestone and harnessing the laws of physics to turn it into cities. It is the force that has allowed civilizations to flourish and add layer upon layer of comfort and luxury to our existence.
On an intangible level we see that the entire domain of civilization owes its existence to a pair of linked intangibles existing only within the aura of free will: Trust and trustworthiness. The whole of human progress can be summed up as the effect of the promise, whether it be Pharaoh's promise of death to slacker slaves building his kingdom, or the promise of financial remuneration to architects, engineers, laborers and bond purchasers in exchange for raising a city. Since the majority of the actions required for civilization to come into existence are predicated upon promises, the critical element in the ascent of human civilization has been, and continues to be, trust. Trust comes into play because free will is in play. And where the free will of human beings is in motion, all bets are off, precisely because humans can -and do - choose to either reveal or obfuscate known truths. Unlike the environments of the rest of the animal kingdom, human interactions deal with words, spoken and written, which convey information that will force others to make a decision. It boils down to information being offered up as fact, or at the very least, theory with a probable outcome, and those encountering the information deciding to act on it by either believing it, or not.
Duplicity is the dark shadow cast by the corruption of man's free will. One need only scan the history books or the morning newspaper to come to terms with the ramifications of broken promises, blurred truths and outright lies. Duplicity is known by other names: deceit; guile; fraud; deception; hypocrisy; and trickery. Duplicity is the intent to deceive, and is always practiced as a means of self-gratification. It is the intentional abuse of trust through the issuance of a false promise. In this manner we find the world of lower animals to be less nuanced and more mechanistic than that of humans. A tree squirrel, for instance, leaves its nest and encounters a world comprised of finding nuts, remembering where he hid the nuts, and chasing girl squirrels up and down the nut tree. Squirrel society is overt and far less duplicitous than human society, simply because the desire to deceive is not wired into the squirrel and its environment. The human environment is a construct of intangible, interrelated relationships which ride the rails of truth and deception, sometimes intersecting with powerfully destructive outcomes. So if the promise is the currency, and thus ultimately the wealth of human society, duplicity is its cancer, and the arbiter of its demise.
Trust cannot be seen, touched, smelled, heard or tasted (and therefore, according to science, cannot exist.) No one will ever study a sample of trust in a Petri dish or under an electron scanning microscope. What then, is trust, this non-existent non-entity powerful enough to create the civilized world? What does it share in common with the invisible laws of nature and the forces those mysterious, supposedly self-existent laws create?
Maybe it is this: the things that ultimately make life possible, and rich and wonderful, invisible 'things' such as trust, love, compassion, and mercy, will never be identified by science and its narrowly focused searchlight of inquiry. (Pity that this has become the anointed alter upon which all truth is divined and bestowed upon the people.) But these invisible qualities ceaselessly resonate within us, invisible fingers strumming the strings of our heart or tapping across the keyboard of our soul, deep calling to deep, beckoning that we incline an ear of a different sort toward the melodious murmuring playing within.
It is a whisper we can trust.
Tuesday, June 05, 2012
Left vs Right: A Common Denominator
A Facebook friend recently reposted an image from the Facebook page of a group called The Christian Left. Their mission statement reads, in part: "See, it wasn’t just Jesus’ birth, death, and resurrection that matter. It was his life too! The life he lived is a huge part of the deal, and he asked us to do a few things if you look at his words. Not only is what Jesus said the Word of God, but what Jesus DID is also the Word of God. Looking at the life of Jesus we see that Jesus made room for those cut off from the rest of society. Jesus put a name and a face on all who had been forgotten or pushed aside, even the dead. Jesus called us to carry our cross daily and follow him. That’s what Social Justice means."
I do not disagree with the above, in fact it's all good - at least until that last little statement on Social Justice. Here's why: Social Justice is an ideology conceived and advanced by man. Inherently it seeks to externally force society to behave in a certain manner, i.e. to compel all of society to manifest the social justice ideology (which at any rate would seem to be forcing to society to embrace tenants of a religious belief, but that is for another time). Jesus, on the other hand, makes it quite clear that the first cause of society's ills lies inherently in the heart of man, in his sin nature. This sin nature will result in eternal separation from God if not redeemed by a personal belief in Christ as the only atonement before God for our own sin. To foist Social Justice upon a society is to blind members of that society to their inherent personal need of Christ's redemptive work, and falsely encourage a salvation by works attitude.
Adherents of the Christian Left/Social Justice ideology are no less hateful toward their detractors as the those claiming to be of the Christian Right are towards them. That is how we know an individual member or an entire 'faith group' has lost its moorings in God and joined the political fray: the love of power obscures the light of love. All of politics is but a field of battle upon which the illnesses and indiscretions of the human heart are laid bare. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" Jeremiah 17:9
The cinematic productions of J.R.R Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series cast a superlative portrayal of the darkness - and its effects - that inhabits the heart of man. Our God-given free will, imprisoned by sin, continually aspires to elevate self will, refusing to take a knee of submission before the throne of God.
"So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members." Romans 7:21-23
Paul finally asks, " Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!"
When we remedy the first cause - the heart of man - society will be just.
But honestly, that whole 'first cause' issue doesn't seem to be very high on any priority list, Left or Right. Perhaps because it involves something far more difficult than simply taking a stand against what ails society. It is coming to terms with a deeply personal defect of a non-material nature, the latter of which we have been re-educated to believe does not even exist.
I do not disagree with the above, in fact it's all good - at least until that last little statement on Social Justice. Here's why: Social Justice is an ideology conceived and advanced by man. Inherently it seeks to externally force society to behave in a certain manner, i.e. to compel all of society to manifest the social justice ideology (which at any rate would seem to be forcing to society to embrace tenants of a religious belief, but that is for another time). Jesus, on the other hand, makes it quite clear that the first cause of society's ills lies inherently in the heart of man, in his sin nature. This sin nature will result in eternal separation from God if not redeemed by a personal belief in Christ as the only atonement before God for our own sin. To foist Social Justice upon a society is to blind members of that society to their inherent personal need of Christ's redemptive work, and falsely encourage a salvation by works attitude.
Adherents of the Christian Left/Social Justice ideology are no less hateful toward their detractors as the those claiming to be of the Christian Right are towards them. That is how we know an individual member or an entire 'faith group' has lost its moorings in God and joined the political fray: the love of power obscures the light of love. All of politics is but a field of battle upon which the illnesses and indiscretions of the human heart are laid bare. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" Jeremiah 17:9
The cinematic productions of J.R.R Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series cast a superlative portrayal of the darkness - and its effects - that inhabits the heart of man. Our God-given free will, imprisoned by sin, continually aspires to elevate self will, refusing to take a knee of submission before the throne of God.
"So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members." Romans 7:21-23
Paul finally asks, " Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!"
When we remedy the first cause - the heart of man - society will be just.
But honestly, that whole 'first cause' issue doesn't seem to be very high on any priority list, Left or Right. Perhaps because it involves something far more difficult than simply taking a stand against what ails society. It is coming to terms with a deeply personal defect of a non-material nature, the latter of which we have been re-educated to believe does not even exist.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Gun Control
Last week we learned that the current DOJ head Eric Holder is on the record in 1995 seeking to instigate a campaign within the education system that would effectively treat guns with the same repulsion usually reserved for cigarettes or illegal drugs (the former, of course, receives government subsidies for the production of its key ingredient.)
Of course the right to own a gun is a specific positive liberty delineated by the Constitution of the United States, and mind you the Constitution is a RULE BOOK - a set of restraints upon the government's power and authority - and we are a nation governed by laws, not by the whims of a powerful elite. But it really doesn't feel that way, does it?
In the video , Holder states that a school board should daily espouse an anti-violence or anti-gun mantra. “Every day, every school, at every level,” he stated. Holder himself calls this approach “brainwashing.” “We have to be repetitive about this,” Holder said. “We need to do this every day of the week, and just really brainwash people into thinking about guns in a vastly different way.”
OK... so I have a Question: If this type of indoctrination is perceived as being so potentially effective at curbing gun violence, i.e. a behavior, why is it not being applied to Sex Ed classes? Just what are the effects on the lives of teenage moms, and their children, the aborted babies, and the costs to society? They are tremendous and self-propagating. Teenage pregnancy is crippling to the futures of both the mother and her child(ren). And the economic costs to the nation in cash outlays for food, housing, and medical care do not stop with that mother and her children; 22% of daughters of teen mothers go on to become teenage mothers themselves. And so on and so on. Just think of the change we could effect in society if teen pregnancies, and even young adult pregnancies, were eliminated?
Social, educational and financial costs of teen pregnancy (from www.teenhelp.com)
The most logical approach would be to combine gun control education with sexual control education. Brainwash those hormone-ravaged boys about the dangers of unholstering their factory-issued 'piece'... and then, as a society and as part of government policy, hold THEM accountable financially for the babies they produce. Word might get around that sex is a wee bit more expensive than even Sandra Fluke would lead us to believe.
Of course I jest. Because everyone knows that Sex Ed is not about hammering home the dangers and the unintended consequences of sex outside of a mature and committed relationship, of the inappropriate, careless use of one's 'piece'. And the powers-that-be in congress - and they are present in every congress - can't bear the thought of young men being held responsible for the life they've created... no no no, let Uncle Sam raise your child... you just run along and be more careful next time, and in the process creating a generation of 'boy-men' with no expectations placed upon them whatsoever and ill-prepared to become real men.
No, Sex Ed takes aim at teaching kids how to handle sex 'safely', so that they do not have to forego pleasure, but can be trained to minimize the risks. Yet when it comes to firearms, the same crowd in favor of teaching kids how to 'safely' engage sexually instead demonizes guns to the point of suspending students for drawing pictures of guns during class time or wearing novelty T-shirts with gun related themes. Gun illustration , T-Shirt .
So why not either train children and youth in the public education system as to the correct and safe way to handle firearms, and the responsibilities and consequences of using a gun, while we are simultaneously teaching them those very same lessons regarding their sexual behavior?
Or, conversely, if the route continues to be the demonization of firearms, then the demonization of inappropriate sexual encounters should likewise be taught.
For the life of me, I cannot see the difference. Well, except for that pesky little part about the Second Amendment.
In the video , Holder states that a school board should daily espouse an anti-violence or anti-gun mantra. “Every day, every school, at every level,” he stated. Holder himself calls this approach “brainwashing.” “We have to be repetitive about this,” Holder said. “We need to do this every day of the week, and just really brainwash people into thinking about guns in a vastly different way.”
OK... so I have a Question: If this type of indoctrination is perceived as being so potentially effective at curbing gun violence, i.e. a behavior, why is it not being applied to Sex Ed classes? Just what are the effects on the lives of teenage moms, and their children, the aborted babies, and the costs to society? They are tremendous and self-propagating. Teenage pregnancy is crippling to the futures of both the mother and her child(ren). And the economic costs to the nation in cash outlays for food, housing, and medical care do not stop with that mother and her children; 22% of daughters of teen mothers go on to become teenage mothers themselves. And so on and so on. Just think of the change we could effect in society if teen pregnancies, and even young adult pregnancies, were eliminated?
Social, educational and financial costs of teen pregnancy (from www.teenhelp.com)
- The United State spends $7 billion each year due to the costs of teen pregnancy.
- Only one-third of teenage mothers complete high school and receive their diplomas.
- By age 30, only 1.5 percent of women who had pregnancies as a teenager have a college degree.
- 80 percent of unmarried teen mothers end up on welfare
- Within the first year of becoming teen mothers, one-half of unmarried teen mothers go on welfare.
- The daughters of teen mothers are 22 percent more likely than their peers to become teen mothers.
- Sons of teenaged mothers have a 13 percent greater chance of ending up in prison as compared to their peers.
The most logical approach would be to combine gun control education with sexual control education. Brainwash those hormone-ravaged boys about the dangers of unholstering their factory-issued 'piece'... and then, as a society and as part of government policy, hold THEM accountable financially for the babies they produce. Word might get around that sex is a wee bit more expensive than even Sandra Fluke would lead us to believe.
Of course I jest. Because everyone knows that Sex Ed is not about hammering home the dangers and the unintended consequences of sex outside of a mature and committed relationship, of the inappropriate, careless use of one's 'piece'. And the powers-that-be in congress - and they are present in every congress - can't bear the thought of young men being held responsible for the life they've created... no no no, let Uncle Sam raise your child... you just run along and be more careful next time, and in the process creating a generation of 'boy-men' with no expectations placed upon them whatsoever and ill-prepared to become real men.
No, Sex Ed takes aim at teaching kids how to handle sex 'safely', so that they do not have to forego pleasure, but can be trained to minimize the risks. Yet when it comes to firearms, the same crowd in favor of teaching kids how to 'safely' engage sexually instead demonizes guns to the point of suspending students for drawing pictures of guns during class time or wearing novelty T-shirts with gun related themes. Gun illustration , T-Shirt .
So why not either train children and youth in the public education system as to the correct and safe way to handle firearms, and the responsibilities and consequences of using a gun, while we are simultaneously teaching them those very same lessons regarding their sexual behavior?
Or, conversely, if the route continues to be the demonization of firearms, then the demonization of inappropriate sexual encounters should likewise be taught.
For the life of me, I cannot see the difference. Well, except for that pesky little part about the Second Amendment.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Economics 101
Previously I have written about Economics (What is an Economy?), but the good folks over at EconStories.tv have made econ education about as fun and entertaining as can be hoped for. Artfully produced and suffused with humorous caricatures of both the Keynsian and Austrian theories of economics, EconStories.tv two rap videos about Keynsian vs Austrian economics succeed at introducing viewers to the premises of these two great competing theories of economics. What isn't humorous, however, is the implications of each.
The first installment is titled Fear the Boom and Bust. Fear the Boom and Bust
The sequel is titled Fight of the Century. Fight of the Century
Which way will you choose? More 'top down' or, 'bottom up'?
The first installment is titled Fear the Boom and Bust. Fear the Boom and Bust
The sequel is titled Fight of the Century. Fight of the Century
Which way will you choose? More 'top down' or, 'bottom up'?
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Good News: "All You Need is Love"
Ah, those Beatles. What couldn't they answer about Life's multiple dilemmas?
I've been reading Timothy Keller's book titled Counterfeit Gods. It is a fascinating look at what motivates the human creature to elevate other forms of 'dust' to the status of idols. At the core of his discussions is the built-in capacity for worship which we humans possess.
He quotes from C.S. Lewis at one point, and I have gone to Mere Christianity to expand the quote more fully.
Lewis writes:
"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not prove that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing. If that is so, I must take care, on the one hand, never to despise, or be unthankful for, these earthly blessings, and on the other, never to mistake them for the something else of which they are only a kind of copy, or echo, or mirage." (Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis).
The Beatles weren't so far off course with their hit song - since love is a requirement for the human spirit to thrive. It may be safe to say that love is the common ground in the human experience. We have a capacity to love, and a hardwired need to be loved. Lewis is saying the reality of this powerful desire points to a probability that love exists, outside of ourselves and of humans in general. And that is why we crave it. We are designed to receive love. And we endeavor to give love, to, in fact, love others, because we are made for love.
The popular secular culture of our society, and many that have proceeded us, is bent on pursuing romantic love as the ultimate fulfillment, as the defining reason for our existence. And yet at every turn, human love disappoints, because human love flows from conflicted human beings who battle an unrelenting impulse to see 'self' elevated. Keller writes about Ernst Becker's book The Denial of Death, which explains the "various ways secular people have dealth with the loss of belief in God." He continues, " Now that we think we are here by accident and not made for any purpose, how do we instill a sense of significance in our lives?.... We look to sex and romance to give us the transcendence and sense of meaning we used to get from faith in God."
There's a reason we love. There's a reason we desperately need to be loved. Love is the currency of our souls. Love is not a contrived thing, though we do disfigure it greatly. Love exists apart from us, and is the outflow of a self-existent, loving God.
That's the Good News in a nutshell.
.
I've been reading Timothy Keller's book titled Counterfeit Gods. It is a fascinating look at what motivates the human creature to elevate other forms of 'dust' to the status of idols. At the core of his discussions is the built-in capacity for worship which we humans possess.
He quotes from C.S. Lewis at one point, and I have gone to Mere Christianity to expand the quote more fully.
Lewis writes:
"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not prove that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing. If that is so, I must take care, on the one hand, never to despise, or be unthankful for, these earthly blessings, and on the other, never to mistake them for the something else of which they are only a kind of copy, or echo, or mirage." (Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis).
The Beatles weren't so far off course with their hit song - since love is a requirement for the human spirit to thrive. It may be safe to say that love is the common ground in the human experience. We have a capacity to love, and a hardwired need to be loved. Lewis is saying the reality of this powerful desire points to a probability that love exists, outside of ourselves and of humans in general. And that is why we crave it. We are designed to receive love. And we endeavor to give love, to, in fact, love others, because we are made for love.
The popular secular culture of our society, and many that have proceeded us, is bent on pursuing romantic love as the ultimate fulfillment, as the defining reason for our existence. And yet at every turn, human love disappoints, because human love flows from conflicted human beings who battle an unrelenting impulse to see 'self' elevated. Keller writes about Ernst Becker's book The Denial of Death, which explains the "various ways secular people have dealth with the loss of belief in God." He continues, " Now that we think we are here by accident and not made for any purpose, how do we instill a sense of significance in our lives?.... We look to sex and romance to give us the transcendence and sense of meaning we used to get from faith in God."
There's a reason we love. There's a reason we desperately need to be loved. Love is the currency of our souls. Love is not a contrived thing, though we do disfigure it greatly. Love exists apart from us, and is the outflow of a self-existent, loving God.
That's the Good News in a nutshell.
.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Dad Sayings
Been thinking about my Dad, and some of the many 'sayings' he had. He didn't lecture with them... more like he subtly taught with them. As sentences, they were simple and to the point, which no doubt contributes to their effectiveness as teaching agents. Many will be familiar to people of my generation, such as:
"If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."
"There's no such thing as a free lunch."
"Buyer beware."
"When the going gets tough, the tough get going."
"A fool and his money are soon parted."
I probably muttered silently to myself on more than one occasion upon hearing these, even innocuously offered as they were. But they stuck. And they taught me real lessons about life, and about human nature. And while everyone of them is still true today, because human nature does not change, I am stunned by their disappearance from the American lexicon, and their demise as inheritable wisdom. The greatest gift we pay forward to the next generation is not material or monetary in nature, it is the accumulated wisdom of the ages. Wisdom equips us to engage the world.
Consider:
How much of the Housing Crisis could have been prevented by listening to my Dad say, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."? Or for that matter, "A fool and his money are soon parted."
How many politicians would be patently unelectable if "There's no such thing as a free lunch" were the standard grid through which the electorate filtered political speak?
What would Food Assistance Program enrollment figures look like if people confidently embraced, deep down, that "When the going gets tough, the tough get going", secure in the knowledge that they can in fact manage their own destiny?
Maybe we need to believe more in ourselves, our own abilities and gifts, heed more of the wisdom collected in the lives of our family members and close friends, and through that process rely less on sweet sounding promises offered from the lips of strangers.
My Dad passed away in 2000. But the lessons he learned from his life - and it was not an easy life, are his bequest to me. I count them amongst my greatest treasure.
Thanks Dad!
"If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."
"There's no such thing as a free lunch."
"Buyer beware."
"When the going gets tough, the tough get going."
"A fool and his money are soon parted."
I probably muttered silently to myself on more than one occasion upon hearing these, even innocuously offered as they were. But they stuck. And they taught me real lessons about life, and about human nature. And while everyone of them is still true today, because human nature does not change, I am stunned by their disappearance from the American lexicon, and their demise as inheritable wisdom. The greatest gift we pay forward to the next generation is not material or monetary in nature, it is the accumulated wisdom of the ages. Wisdom equips us to engage the world.
Consider:
How much of the Housing Crisis could have been prevented by listening to my Dad say, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."? Or for that matter, "A fool and his money are soon parted."
How many politicians would be patently unelectable if "There's no such thing as a free lunch" were the standard grid through which the electorate filtered political speak?
What would Food Assistance Program enrollment figures look like if people confidently embraced, deep down, that "When the going gets tough, the tough get going", secure in the knowledge that they can in fact manage their own destiny?
Maybe we need to believe more in ourselves, our own abilities and gifts, heed more of the wisdom collected in the lives of our family members and close friends, and through that process rely less on sweet sounding promises offered from the lips of strangers.
My Dad passed away in 2000. But the lessons he learned from his life - and it was not an easy life, are his bequest to me. I count them amongst my greatest treasure.
Thanks Dad!
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Dreamer or Doer?
Two young boys were out inspecting their community in the aftermath of a powerful hurricane. Devastation and disorder greeted them at every juncture, every turn. As they drew near to their favorite beach, they noted the near complete obliteration of "Harley's", their favorite snow cone and snack shack. For a moment they stood in silence, each inwardly recalibrating their own 'reality' compass. As they approached the debris heap, Ned kicked through the debris, his thoughts darkened and overwhelmed by the loss of so much that had been familiar. Zeke drifted off to the edge of the rubbish pile that had once been Harley's, and began digging in the sand and rubble. After several minutes, Ned urged Zeke to leave, but Zeke declined. Ned bid him goodbye, not caring to gaze any longer upon the jumbled heap that had once been the symbol of so many fond and glorious memories.
Zeke nodded, and kept at his digging. He used shattered lumber to drag the sand smooth. He found one gallon plastic buckets that had once held flavoring for snow cones, and five gallon containers full of pretzels and sand. Zeke worked for hours, until his concerned parents showed up to check on his well-being. This is what they found:
Zeke nodded, and kept at his digging. He used shattered lumber to drag the sand smooth. He found one gallon plastic buckets that had once held flavoring for snow cones, and five gallon containers full of pretzels and sand. Zeke worked for hours, until his concerned parents showed up to check on his well-being. This is what they found:
We are not defined by the circumstances that life hurls at us; rather it is our response to circumstances that defines us.... some would even say, shapes us.
Monday, January 23, 2012
The Tea Party: In the Crosshairs
What follows is a comment I posted on Facebook after this cartoon showed up on my page. (I've tidied up the passage a bit for the blog).
"You will get very little argument from Tea Party folks about this cartoon. The Tea party supporters strongly maintain that Lawmakers need to be forced to live by the same laws they pass for the People. As it is, we are rapidly becoming feudal, and the more money we send to DC, the more empowered are our lords. Instead, why not keep more of the money in the states, where we have better access to our state level 'representatives' and a bigger voice in how our money is spent... and not spent. When money goes to DC, it simply becomes fodder for the unending power grab, a vehicle for passing out goodies to other states for projects that 99% of the people in the US couldn't care less about nor benefit from. But you can bet it benefits the politicians big time, because these favors aren't forgotten. And these are conservative and liberal favors. I can't control what a NY or CA U.S. Congressmen vote to spend money on, but I can get the attention of my representatives at the state level. We need to quit labeling each other and denigrating one another based on political beliefs... because it is pure bigotry to do so. As citizens we need to share ideas amongst ourselves that work toward solving these problems instead of bickering and backbiting like a bunch of highschool girls, and terminate our fantasy that our political system and its instruments will suddenly 'see the light' and find their way to doing the very hard things that need to be done. The system is corrupt (and broke).... and the best way to cure it is to starve it down to a controllable size. If you like the status quo and the crony capitalism, then by all means, raise taxes and send more money to DC so the politicians can continue to feed your tax money to the corporate bandits, the 'too big to fail' financial entities, car companies, etc. Its just not my cup of tea.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Presidential Paybacks
There seems to be complete agreement among citizens, politicians and media muppets that our nation's finances are on life support. Liberals want to raise taxes. Conservatives want to reduce spending. Neither will fix the problem, not even in combination. But while we're riding this fantasy train through a wonderland that believes this problem can be fixed with a few temporary policy changes, lets add one more means of bolstering the country's bottom line: presidential paybacks.
By now everyone realizes (or should) that 'serving' as President of the United States is, upon leaving office, an express, one way ticket on the mother of all gravy trains. Between 2001 and 2010, Bill Clinton earned a cool $75 million in speaking fees. George W. Bush has hit the $15 million dollar mark since leaving office in 2009. Clearly this money should go back to the country's coffers, since had it not been for the citizens of the country electing them, neither would by any stretch of the imagination be earning such outrageous incomes today. Considering how much treasure was spent on Clinton and Bush for protection and travel during their combined 16 years in office, maybe a little Presidential Payback is in order. I propose that all such speeches be taxed at 95%, with the money going straight back to the White House budget to fund the protection and travel expenses of whomever the current president is. The same will hold true for Obama when he leaves office. Obama will of course opt for an even higher rate of taxation on himself, given his views on redistribution of wealth, and the responsibility of those to whom the opportunities afforded by this nation have been especially generous.
By now everyone realizes (or should) that 'serving' as President of the United States is, upon leaving office, an express, one way ticket on the mother of all gravy trains. Between 2001 and 2010, Bill Clinton earned a cool $75 million in speaking fees. George W. Bush has hit the $15 million dollar mark since leaving office in 2009. Clearly this money should go back to the country's coffers, since had it not been for the citizens of the country electing them, neither would by any stretch of the imagination be earning such outrageous incomes today. Considering how much treasure was spent on Clinton and Bush for protection and travel during their combined 16 years in office, maybe a little Presidential Payback is in order. I propose that all such speeches be taxed at 95%, with the money going straight back to the White House budget to fund the protection and travel expenses of whomever the current president is. The same will hold true for Obama when he leaves office. Obama will of course opt for an even higher rate of taxation on himself, given his views on redistribution of wealth, and the responsibility of those to whom the opportunities afforded by this nation have been especially generous.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)