Spudlets

September 30, 2002

Stanley Kurtz has a good article about our need to invade Iraq and take care of Saddam. A nuclear device in Saddam's hands can spell big trouble, whether it is here in the US or in the Mideast. He doesn't care if we have the capability to obliterate him and his country, just as long as he gets first-strike, so our nuclear deterrent strategy is not relevant in this situation.


+++++

Louder Fenn is back (wanted to make sure he was over his blah-blah's before announcing) and waxes eloquent about living in the Midwest and cider. We have plenty of cider here in Tarheelandia, and he helped get my tastebuds yearning for a cup of some fresh-pressed apple squeezins!

Posted by MarcV, 2:51 PM link

Mon. Morn. Prog. Week4
- Is it just me or does it seem like there is a "dearth" of good place-kickers in the NFL? You would think that there are enough strong legs in college football (and soccer) where someone with a little determination could make a decent living (half a million $$ and up) by making field goals. There's no way Carolina should have lost to the Packers, but someone could not make a chippy shot. The Panthers controlled that game, and they were a pass-interference penalty away from winning it despite the bad kicking. Green Bay is finding ways to win but their injuries to starters should be catching up to them soon (come on, anytime now! How about a week from today?)
- The big bad Lions beat up the Saints? Didn't see it, but I wonder if New Orleans was a little over-confident, because they seemed to have the guns to shoot down the Lions.
- Looks like Steeler (as well as Bear - separate byline again!) fans may feel fortunate to get to the play-offs, rather than worrying about hotel accomodations for Super Sunday in San Diego.
- Speaking of the Bolts, they gave notice yesterday that they are for real, and shut down the Patsies in the second half. Has there ever been a hometown Super Bowl team? The Ravens showed a few years ago how a monster defense can take you to the big dance.
- Is Oakland that good or Tennessee that bad?
- Cincinnati is looking into being reclassified as I-AA, to give them a chance at some type of playoffs.
- Jekyll and Hyde Chiefs came to play and pasted one on the Fish. Poor Wannsteadt. Boo hoo.
- If Denver wins tonight, the remaining unbeatens will all be in the same division, AFC West: San Diego, Oakland, Denver. The NFC South, predicted "weakest" division, has three teams tied at 3-1 (and dangerous Atlanta at 1-2 that was very close to being 3-0). Who'd a thunk it?
- For those who picked the Rams to go bigtime again this year (like a certain Spud predicting 13-3): whoops! Is the magical Martz touch missing - and can the Rams be competitive without the Warner/Faulk juggernaut? They have been fairly lucky with the injury bug the last few years, but it seems to have bitten them pretty hard now.

Posted by MarcV, 9:48 AM link

PC Patrol
Foxnews has some pretty good snippets on their weekly PC watch. For Jesse Jackson getting upset about some things said in that "Barbershop" movie, get over it! You're a public figure (by choice) so deal with it. I guess his little feelings get hurt when it is supposed to be one of his "brothers" that is bad-mouthing him.

I can see where this next item could be offensive to some, but I wish I had seen the commercial rather than just hearing about it in the column:

Burger King pulled a television commercial that poked fun at students in community colleges after it was deemed insensitive by some officials of that sort of school, reports the AP.

In the ad, two students are shown chatting with a talking menu, which decides they probably don't have a lot of money and likely never will because they attend a junior college.

Numerous junior colleges and community college officials complained that the ad implies that community college students don't receive a quality education.

Wellllll, it's not so much about "quality education" than the kind of job graduates of juco's can expect. If someone thinks they are going to be pulling down +$40k/yr with a basic junior college degree, then I would question the quality of the education. What juco's can do well are give students a "niche" degree, learning a trade that a university may not typically offer, but one where a student could make a comfortable living with some hard work and initiative.


Posted by MarcV, 9:47 AM link

September 29, 2002

Wow - 449 hits yesterday, and all because I mentioned those rascally Irish Travellers! If you are here for that, try this post. This has two links: a site that explains the Travellers, and one maintained by a "pro-Traveller". Yeah, they might seem like gypsies, but show them some love, even if they don't seem to lead a "normal" life.

Posted by MarcV, 7:38 AM link

Picks Week 4
A little delayed, but they are in before kickoff. Most of the prognosticators have similar picks, with a few going out on a limb for upsets. Vegas' closest line is 3, so no real "pick-em" games this week. Chargers-Patsies is supposed to be the game of the week, but I don't see SD having a strong enough team to stop the Patsy march. Enjoy the gridiron clashes!

WEEK 4 KEVIN SPUD JASON BYRON AUSTIN pts Vegas
CAR at GB GB CAR GB GB GB 7 GB
CHI at BUF CHI CHI BUF BUF CHI 3 BUF
CLE at PIT PIT CLE PIT PIT PIT 6 PIT
DAL at STL STL STL STL STL STL 12 STL
HOU at PHI PHI PHI PHI PHI PHI 20 PHI
MIA at KC MIA KC MIA KC KC 3 MIA
NO at DET NO NO NO DET NO 7 NO
NYJ at JAX JAX JAX JAX JAX JAX 3 JAX
NYG at ARI NYG NYG NYG NYG NYG 3 NYG
TB at CIN TB TB TB TB TB 7 TB
NE at SD NE NE NE SD NE 3 NE
TEN at OAK OAK OAK OAK OAK TEN 7 OAK
MIN at SEA MIN SEA MIN MIN SEA 3 SEA
DEN at BAL DEN DEN DEN DEN DEN 7 DEN

Posted by MarcV, 7:22 AM link

September 27, 2002

I think I got brushed with the stupid stick myself. Looks like RMoss will be getting two misdemeanors and will play Sunday. So much talent, so very misguided ...

The Prognosticator's Table of Predictions should be up tomorrow - too much work-stuff today!

Posted by MarcV, 4:44 PM link

That Ole Free Will
David Heddle asked for some explanation from these Arminian folks explaining how people choose God. We've been through this wringer before, and I got an urge for a response. I did reply yesterday, but the ISP, or YACCS, ate my comment (no really, it did!). Actually, this is the question that touches on human existence and awareness: why am I here, what is my purpose, is their something more after I take my last breath?

Is there no resisting God if He chooses me for whatever reason He may have, or do I actually have a choice of following Him? What makes me so special for salvation, and how did I get to this point - by my efforts or by some heavenly decision? Let's go to the source, Heddle's query:

I would, however, like to ask what I think is one of the more difficult questions for the Arminian view: Why do some people, of their own free will, choose God while others reject him? We all agree that there can be two people with similar backgrounds, both can hear the same gospel message, and yet only one of the two responds positively. The one who chooses God does so because at that instant he wants God more than he doesn’t want God. Why?

Is it because one person just happened to have the right combination of personality, experiences and education-- that one has gifts the other does not possess? Is that not some form of natural election? Or divine election through secondary causes?

Is it because one person recognizes his need for God, while the other doesn't? Is that not a humble, righteous act? Is he not then dependent on his own righteousness? Does he not then have something, namely his righteous humility, of which he can boast?

Is it because God has given more grace to one than to the other? No, that would be no different from the Calvinist doctrine of divine election.

Free will is very difficult to reconcile with an omniscient/omnipresent/omnitemporal God: If he knows the future and has complete power to change anything, then he already knows who will be joining Him in heaven. This may be blasphemy, but I believe that God does not know who will accept His call, because that is part of what love is. Most of us who are married would be hard-pressed to describe in detail why our spouses chose us (and why we chose them), when they had their pick of many others.

The Creator gave a small bit of Himself to each of us, hoping that we would turn to Him by choice and not force. It started in the garden of Eden, where free will gave rise to original sin. Eve and Adam took the step forward and rejected God's command, in their feeble attempt to be more like God themselves.

God still loved them and they loved Him. He loves us today despite our rebellious nature. It is His pleasure to create the environment and give the "clues", and then see how his children reach out to Him. Why does one man choose and the other does not? God does not need us, he desires us. We do not necessarily "need" God for our life on earth, so it would follow to me that He welcomes those who reject the world and give their lives to Him. I'm still not answering David's question ...

When we get married, we (are supposed to) surrender our mating desires to only our spouse, forsaking all others. When we have children, we surrender our hearts to that helpless infant (well, that happened to me!). By surrendering to God, we wipe away our selfish tendencies (feelings of superiority, boasting) and rely on Him. How that "internal switch" gets turned on one person and not another is the big question, but I suppose our time would be better spent showing people the positive effects of throwing the switch.

Jeffrey Collins had a good response to acknowledging God:

So, for me its really a choice. I can take the resurrection and with it all the other improbable things that come with it. On the other hand, I can reject anything from any faith. Because I've seen the resurrection so well defended, I choose the former.

In the end, we take the resurrection and God's calling by faith, that there is more to life than a brief existence with digestion by worms as our last evidence of "being".

PS Is there a "Heddle the Greek" in the house? You're still welcome to prognosticate.
PPS I tried not to use scriptural references - otherwise you can read the book of Romans for more detailed explanations and good stuff!


Posted by MarcV, 4:41 PM link

September 26, 2002

More Cohen Scourges
Charles Austin has two good scourges (link for second one here) of Dick Cohen's feeble attempts at bad-mouthing the President's war effort. I usually do not reproduce my comments from another site here, but I got worked up (a little) and wanted to share:

I thought there was a rule out there that when someone starts using Hitler's name in an argument, that the person would automatically be nullified from participating. Dick apparently gets paid for breaking rules, let alone stepping outside the boundaries of propriety.

This liberal game of comparing war with Iraq to WWII or Vietnam is crude and asinine, and should be labelled for what it truly is, trying to defeat the President in foreign affairs. No matter how much Daschle pounds his shoe on the lectern and cries foul, either you support the war against terrorism or you're hurting the USA.

Yeah, yeah, it's the American way to challenge any war effort and have the luxury of freedom to do so. We do not have to support the people who would try to cut the legs out from the President and what he is trying to accomplish. I hope the Democrats pay the price at the election booths in November.

You can talk about peace and your reservations of sending our military to a far-away country, but until Bush is voted out, he needs our support in foreign affairs, and comparing this situation with Germany/Hitler is wrong.


Posted by MarcV, 10:31 AM link

What's up with Randy Moss? This might not be a nice thing to say, but it almost seems like he got hit with the stupid stick and went back for seconds. I guess this is just the result of another "super" athlete being so coddled and "glorified" that they feel like they can do just about anything they want. I wondered if a felony conviction would make his contract void (he's in the second year of an 8 year $75M), so that the Vikings could get rid of him if they so desired, but I have a hunch he may get probation. His past (prior convictions) may come back to haunt him, though.

Posted by MarcV, 10:31 AM link

September 25, 2002

Irish Travelers
No, it's not a new "boy" band from the Emerald Isle, but a designation for a group of people that could be thought of as modern-day gypsies (check this for background, and this for their "website" [links via NRO's Corner]). They are in the news because the Toogoods (lady who got caught on videotape beating her daughter) identify themselves as Travelers. Here's a description from one source:

In some ways, the Irish Travelers are like the anti-Amish. Both groups are tight-knit societies with a specialized dialect, but, whereas the Amish stress simplicity and modesty, many Travelers love expensive trucks and flashy clothes, and their preferred method of paying for things is a wad of $100 bills.

The question is, where does that money come from? I'm sure there are many upstanding citizens among the estimated 10,000-plus Irish Travelers in the United States, but more than a few Travelers have been involved in some ugly escapades.
...
Madelyne and John Toogood have three children--and apparently they're being brought up as Irish Traveler children. Perhaps those of us in the outside world can't even begin to understand what that means. But, from what we do know about the lifestyle and from what we've seen of Madelyne Toogood's parenting skills, a foster home sounds like a pretty good place for little Martha.

NO NO NO!

This is a dangerous attitude: because a family does not live a normal life (house, 2 parents, white picket fence, etc.) that kids are in some type of danger and would be better off under the care of the government. I won't repeat the Florida fiasco, where kids were unaccounted for in foster care over several years. I will repeat rule #1 for foster care: REUNITE FAMILIES. That was stressed during my training in foster care, to help families get to the point of being able to take care of themselves, as well as guarding the hearts of the foster parents, because letting go of the kids can be difficult.

There will always be that element of doubt about Mrs. Toogood's ability to parent, but Martha is her daughter, and we as a society can not rip them apart unless the situation is extremely severe and damaging to the child. Yes, Mrs. Toogood's daughter needs to be taken away while the authorities sort things out, and the family will probably disappear once the daughter is brought back. That is the price we pay for freedom and maintaining the sanctity of the family.

Those folks who have kids know how they would feel if someone threatened to take away their children. I hope that we don't see a renewed effort for more government intervention into family life because of these recent events.

Posted by MarcV, 11:36 AM link

September 24, 2002

Week 3 Results
Three prognosticators beat Vegas this week, while some did not. Arizona disappointed me this week, but they did come close against a tough Charger defense. This weeks picks will be sent out shortly. If anyone else wants to join in, just e-mail me.

WEEK 3 KEVIN SPUD CAR BYRON JASON AUSTIN pts Vegas WIN
CAR at MIN MIN MIN MIN MIN MIN MIN 6 MIN CAR
CLE at TEN TEN CLE TEN TEN TEN TEN 4 TEN CLE
DAL at PHI PHI PHI DAL PHI PHI PHI 9 PHI PHI
IND at HOU IND IND IND IND IND IND 12 IND IND
KC at NE NE NE NE NE NE NE 9 NE NE
NO at CHI NO CHI CHI CHI NO CHI 1 CHI NO
NYJ at MIA MIA NYJ NYJ MIA MIA MIA 6 MIA MIA
BUF at DEN DEN DEN DEN DEN DEN BUF 9 DEN DEN
SD at ARI SD ARI ARI SD SD SD 2 SD SD
GB at DET GB GB GB GB GB GB 8 GB GB
SEA at NYG NYG NYG NYG NYG NYG NYG 6 NYG NYG
WAS at SF SF SF WAS SF SF WAS 9 SF SF
CIN at ATL ATL ATL CIN ATL ATL ATL 7 ATL ATL
STL at TB STL STL TB TB STL STL 2 STL TB
11 9 6 11 11 8 10
Season 0.543 0.609 0.500 0.786 0.543 0.522 0.500

Posted by MarcV, 10:19 AM link

Mother of Martha
Foxnews has an interview with Mrs. Toogood, the mom caught on videotape beating her daughter Martha. I wasn't sure about posting on this, but after reading the interview, it confirms a few hunches that I had had about the situation. The initial reports were right in that she tried to return something at the store, but was not able to do so. I had a hunch that the daughter was acting up in the store, and the interview confirmed that.

Before seeing the videotape clip myself, someone else who had seen it before me gave the impression that she thought the child was seriously injured and was worried that the girl could be dead. After seeing the tape, it looked like a mom who had lost her temper and was out of control, but was not giving the child "serious" punches, that she was slapping her out of frustration.

Before I go any further, I do not condone what she did and agree that it was correct to take Martha away from her until social services can sort out this mess. She will probably be in foster care for at least six months, with supervised visits to home for a few months after that. My heart goes out to the dad who will be without his little girl, the two brothers who are missing their sister, and the rest of the family that will have to endure the media blitz. I pray our Lord and Savior will be in the midst of that family, to heal the aching of their hearts and to shield them from as much pain as possible.

Mrs. Toogood is not a monster, just a mom who has trouble dealing with frustration. Her daughter will feel worse effects than the physical force her mom used against her. She is at an age, 4 years old, where she is starting to assert herself, yet still clings to some "baby" ways. No matter how much counseling she gets, she will still feel like it is her fault that she can't see her mommy. It is also an important transition time, where a child can develop maturity and be confident enough to start going out on their own (i.e. visiting friends, shopping in different parts of a store away from the parents).

It is also nerve-wracking for the parents, because there is a part of you that does not want to let go, that is scared to death of something going wrong. After reading the interview, that fear was going through Mrs. Toogood's mind, with Martha running off in the store and the mom not having enough confidence in her daughter to let her go. Every one of us has a breaking point, and by the grace of God most of us don't take it out on our kids. She did:


VAN SUSTEREN: Why do you think that -- why do you think you did do that? Why do you think you reacted so strongly?

TOOGOOD: I don't know. I don't remember, like -- I don't know. I don't know. And I -- at the point, I knew I was mad, and I knew I was enraged, and I knew I went too far. But I didn't know -- I didn't know -- look, I didn't know it was that bad. I can't explain it to you. I guess you -- I didn't know -- I was unaware of -- I didn't know. I just didn't know. I didn't know I did that, no. I would never even think I would -- I knew I went too far, but I didn't even -- I didn't know. I didn't even think I did that, no.

VAN SUSTEREN: Does this happen often?

TOOGOOD: With -- Martha -- no, Martha's very (UNINTELLIGIBLE)

VAN SUSTEREN: She's very what?

TOOGOOD: She's very less than (ph), you know, spanked . Martha don't really get much in the house, no. She -- she kind of runs everything. I really don't discipline Martha very much at all.

It sounds like you have a "princess" in the house, but her mom expects her to toe the line in public when she never has to do so at home. This is confirmed later in the interview, when she worries about the care that Martha will receive and wants her to be with grandparents:

"...And you know, I know -- you know, I know she'd be brushing her teeth every morning and every night, you know? I know she'd have her blankets that she likes. And I know she'd be ruling the house, like she likes to do. You know, she likes to vacuum. She likes to pick up things. You know, that's what she likes to do. She likes to tattle. You know, she likes to make sure she -- them are the things that Martha likes to do, and I know Martha would be doing them." [Underline added]

That's the real tragedy, and it happens in many other homes. Kids who set their own boundaries don't know how to handle themselves when they get out in the world and find others who set boundaries for them. That is another factor for seeing older kids in foster care. Some parents find themselves with older kids who talk back and don't have respect for parental authority, because it was not earned and developed, so parents give up on the kids or try to enforce "old-fashioned discipline" too late.

High-energy, hard-headed kids can be a difficult challenge, but love can conquer all, even boiled-over frustration.


Posted by MarcV, 9:37 AM link

Bears-Saints
Did not have good vibes before the game. With three defensive starters out, things looked shaky considering the Saints were confident coming in with Brooks. Da Bears were up by 20, only to let them score two quick TD's before the half (second on a turnover from a ball bouncing off the facemask on a kickoff return), then still not take advantage of scoring opportunities in the second half. Well, maybe this will help wake up the team and improve their focus.

After Buffalo this Sunday, Green Bay on a Monday night game will be followed by an off-week. Buffalo has been fairly impressive, and Bledsoe has supposedly been playing "hungry" (for the playoffs). Green Bay gets the red-hot Panthers before mixing it up in Champaign with the Bears. After being nearly embarassed by Detroit, there's no telling how they will play against the Panthers, and then what kind of mood they will be in for the Monday night game against da Bears.

Favre has been a Bear killer (saw him live at Soldiers field the year that GB won the ring), so you never know with him in the lineup. Not wanting to look too far ahead, da Bears could be 4-1 going into their bye week, with Detroit and Minnesota after the bye. They then get into the triple threat crunch of Philadelphia-New England-St. Louis (OUCH!).

Most of the top QB's in the league will be facing da Bears: Culpepper, Vick, Brooks, Bledsoe, Favre, McNabb, Brady, and Warner for the first ten games. Not an easy road on the quest for the ring!

+++++

MNF - Wow. Who'd a thunk that the Rams would be 0-3 and the Panthers 3-0? It seems like a few factors are messing up the (former) greatest show on turf: Faulk out, lack of depth at running back, missing Az-Hakim, O-line weakness, Ram's D giving up big plays (Warner's thumb?). Once teams stop the Ram's running game, they seem to be getting to Warner quicker and more effectively than the last few seasons. Their rookie running back Gordon looked good, but they waited three quarters before finding out.

The Bucs looked OK last night, but I'm still not impressed. They are dangerously thin at linebacker, and the secondary is past its prime. Their pass rush is decent, but Sapp can only play about half the game (the rest of the time he's gasping for air). Brad Johnson does not seem to be the guy who will lead them to the promised land. He's a steady hand, but not enough of a factor to give them an edge on close games.

We'll probably be able to catch up on some sleep next week when Denver visits Baltimore Monday night. Let's see if Madden can fill about three quarters with interesting anecdotes during this potential snooze-fest.

Posted by MarcV, 7:59 AM link

September 23, 2002

Mon. Morn. Prog. Week3
- Who dat Saints? The rumble with da Bears will need its own byline.
- There's only a couple of seats left for the Panther's Super Bowl Bandwagon, so hurry on! I was tempted to pick them for week 3, but thought that they would come back to earth. Coach Fox shaped up the D in a hurry, and the O has a respectable running attack. When they get Foster back from injured reserve, they may surprise some of the big boys in the next few months. Watch for Minnesota to implode and/or hold a fire sale. They have two super-talents, Culpepper and Moss, that can't seem to get along. I don't know their contract situations, but I would dangle Moss to Houston, Cincinnati or Jacksonville for some draft picks. As mobile as Culpepper is, you don't necessarily need a burner like Moss to have an effective passing game (but Moss could put big numbers up if he ever gets his head screwed on properly).
- Now that Atlanta finally has a W, let's see how far they can roll with it.
- The Packers are in trouble with their D (as noted last week) if they can't contain a weak Lions squad starting a rookie QB.
- Seattle, Cincinnati, Houston and Detroit seem to be the lead contenders for #1 draft pick for next year.
- Arizona, my NFC dark-horse team, just seems to come up short when it counts.
- 49'ers offense is not as good as people thought, but it's still early.
- What's up with the Jets? So much talent, so little displayed...
- If Denver can get homefield advantage in the playoffs, the thin air will make it very difficult for anyone to grind it out with them.
- I can't give Miami any love (curse of the Wannestadt), but they along with the Patsies and Denver seem to be the AFC teams to beat, with Oakland and maybe the Steelers close behind.
- Philly is starting to get things on track, and they along with the Saints seem to be the NFC teams to beat, with da Bears close behind. We'll see about the Rams after tonight, and I still can't decide about the 49'ers or Tampa Bay.

Posted by MarcV, 9:36 AM link

Winged Victory
The following article was in the New York Times new service, but I found it somewhere else on the web. I reprinted the whole thing 'cause it's extry funny (some comments interspersed):

JERSEY CITY, N.J. -- It was meant to be a dignified tribute on Sept. 11: a flock of doves soaring past Lower Manhattan's altered skyline. There was only one problem. Those weren't doves. They were pigeons. And many of them couldn't fly. During the memorial service here last week, many of the birds plunged into the Hudson River, smacked into plate-glass windows on office buildings and careened into the crowd. One perched atop the hard hat of a construction worker whose company had helped clear ground zero.[Where's SuperChicken when you need him?]

Since the ceremony, animal rights advocates and others have been trying to rescue the birds and roast the organizers. For their part, organizers said they had tried to hire a company to conduct a professional bird release, in which trained doves or homing pigeons would soar high in the sky and then return to their owner's roost. But the pros were already booked for 9/11 this year. So the organizers turned instead to a Newark poultry market and bought 80 squabs, not knowing that the weak-winged birds would have trouble flying.

Despite the problem at the memorial, which was first reported Wednesday in The Jersey Journal, one organizer said that most of the birds are better off now than they would have been had they remained at the poultry market. "Without a doubt it beats what could have happened to them," said Guy Catrillo, an organizer of Jersey City's 9/11 Memorial Committee. "They were squab; they were soup birds. I like the idea that I helped these squab get another chance."[Finally, a champion for squabs! Squabs rule!]

Animal advocates, however, said that second chance may have come at too great a cost. "I don't know how anyone could be so short-sighted, especially for 9/11," said Ellen Goldberg, a teacher at the Raptor Trust[Don't raptors eat squabs?], a non-profit bird hospital in Millington, N.J., that is treating two birds released during the ceremony.[Anyone that can come in and donate squab blood would be greatly appreciated.]

It all began, Catrillo said, when he started calling the handful of New Jersey companies that offer professional bird releases. "They called me looking for birds for their ceremony," said Lisette Hall, owner of Doves for Love, a company in Somerset, N.J. "They wanted our doves. We were all booked, but they were desperate for birds. They said, 'Well, please call us if you have any last-minute availability.' "

Catrillo said the Jersey City organizers went to the poultry shop. They took delivery of about 80 birds on Sept. 10, just hours before the 8 a.m. memorial service.[Sounds like someone in serious CYA mode was hoping for a miracle.]

"We were going to release the pigeons during the unveiling of the 9/11 memorial," he said. "The pigeons were supposed to fly." Instead, the birds, which Goldberg said might never before in their young lives have spent significant time outside their cages, turned the ceremony into a blur of feathers and confusion.[Why hasn't there been video tape on the newscasts about this?]

Catrillo said he had seen several in trips around Jersey City. "I saw one today who lives by a hot-dog cart," he said. "I tried to catch him. But he flew away. Pigeons are natural survivors." And despite what he called "snide comments" about the release, Catrillo said he already had plans for next year's memorial service. "I'm going to release monarch butterflies," he said. "But I'm sure there's some group somewhere who will say that that's the wrong thing to do, too."

Just make sure they're not domesticated butterflies that have never flown before!


Posted by MarcV, 9:35 AM link

September 20, 2002

Pigskin Prognostications Week 3
Thanks and a tip of the blogging hat to Mark Byron for supplying me with an Excel worksheet with macro that allowed me to publish the table. I tweaked the code a little myself, and may still do more as time and interest allows. Below you have the four prognosticators that have given their predictions for now. If you are a little tardy, you can still get them in by gametime Sunday to be included in the final results table (published Tuesday). About three close calls according to Vegas, and five blowouts. Vegas did not do so good last week, so let's see how the professional gamblers do against the bloggers.

WEEK 3 KEVIN SPUD CAR BYRON pts Vegas
CAR at MIN MIN MIN MIN MIN 6 MIN
CLE at TEN TEN CLE TEN TEN 4 TEN
DAL at PHI PHI PHI DAL PHI 9 PHI
IND at HOU IND IND IND IND 12 IND
KC at NE NE NE NE NE 9 NE
NO at CHI NO CHI CHI CHI 1 CHI
NYJ at MIA MIA NYJ NYJ MIA 6 MIA
BUF at DEN DEN DEN DEN DEN 9 DEN
SD at ARI SD ARI ARI SD 2 SD
GB at DET GB GB GB GB 8 GB
SEA at NYG NYG NYG NYG NYG 6 NYG
WAS at SF SF SF WAS SF 9 SF
CIN at ATL ATL ATL CIN ATL 7 ATD
STL at TB STL STL TB TB 2 STL

Posted by MarcV, 1:12 PM link

Saw on the news last night that the hurricance in the Carribean (Isidore? know it begins with an I) has put the western part of Cuba under a hurricane warning. They are predicting 20 to 30 inches of rain to fall over two days! I'm curious to see how Fidel Castro and company deal with this potential catastrophe, and what the US response will be. Perhaps this could be a turning point of Fidel "humbling" himself to the yanquis, and agreeing to the changes that would normalize relations with the US. Well, you can always dream (or at least be optimistic). They said on the news that more will be known on Sunday for the future track of this storm. They are already giving it a potential of category 4 hurricane, so Cubans may not be the only ones to suffer.

Posted by MarcV, 11:16 AM link

Legalized Murder
This is a difficult post to write, as abortion is uniquely gender specific. Men can have whatever opinions they want, but in the end it is the women that have control and can simply say, "Until you can get pregnant, you just would not understand..." I understand that there is a life growing inside an abdomen that cannot speak for themselves, yet should be given a chance to live, a precious baby formed in the image of God. This is also difficult for me, since the same woman that gave life to my (adopted) son supposedly got pregnant a few months later after giving birth to him, but chose to abort. My heart grieves for that lost life, considering how much joy my son has given to my wife and me, and how much joy that baby could have given us or somebody else.

What prompted this was a post from Susanna over at Cut on the Bias from a few weeks ago (that I'm starting to catch up on). She wrote very beautifully about the right to life, and I admire her for speaking out. I'm guessing that for women there is more pressure to "toe the line" for women's rights, that once you have a reputation for being strongly anti-abortion, about half the women you meet will not like you (especially if you are in a university/college or large urban center). We have exchanged an e-mail about this, and here is part of what I wrote to her:

It is frustrating to me how people can casually kill an unborn baby. One aspect I did not see in the comments from your post was the idea of responsibility. The baby just doesn't spontaneously pop into the womb - we know how that life was concieved. Some in our society want to give the easy way out for "mistakes", but if you are going to do the "recline", then you gotta do the time (9 months). In the past communities had built up a sense of shame to those who got pregnant out of wedlock, but now it's not PC to speak out, let alone be disappointed in them.

It was probably a little harsh of me to say that people "casually kill", because I don't know what goes through their decision process. In regards to responsibility, Susanna wrote back: "As for the issue of responsibility, that always crashes on the shoals of "but accidents happen" or "they're just kids" or or or. There's always an excuse. Too sad." Yes, it is too sad.

For the excuse, "If we outlaw abortions, then that will greatly increase the number of children in foster care, and we can't take care of those in there now", all I can say is WRONG. After participating in the system myself, you see very few kids under 5, and they are usually in sibling groups. Most parents love having babies and toddlers, but unfortunately some don't have the skills and patience to deal with older children. Those parents will either physically abuse them or neglect them, but it may take years before social services can catch up to them and get the kids out, followed by more time to investigate and come to a resolution (therapy/counseling or taking the kids away permanently).

The number of kids in foster care has nothing to do with legalized abortion. If anything, the more families that do adopt infants may be more inclined to adopt older kids later. There are many couples that strongly desire to adopt infants, and the current supply is way below the demand. That is why couples will go to China or Bosnia, spending +$20k for the chance to adopt an infant. For every couple that does go abroad for adoption, I would conservatively estimate that there are at least 10 other couples that would like to do the same but cannot afford it.

Well, this was supposed to be an anti-abortion post, and I have gone off on a tangent. This country has plenty of room for more babies, so aborting a baby just because a woman does not want a baby is a tragedy, and I hope someday that can change.


Posted by MarcV, 11:09 AM link

September 19, 2002

A Place to Lay Our Head
Saw this in the Odd News section, and it touched my heart in a funny (strange) way:

Man dies after 25 years in bus shelter

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australians are saying farewell to a German-born homeless man who has died after living for 25 years in a Sydney bus shelter. Karl Kulper died last weekend after living in the brick bus shelter close to Saint Vincent's hospital in the inner city suburb of Darlinghurst for more than a third of his 66 years.

"In memory of Carl (sic), resident of this shelter for 25 years who passed away 14/9/02, God Bless - Vinnys," read a note from the hospital's emergency department, placed among roses and orchids left on the blackened bench where Kulper lived.

The heavily bearded man's death made the front page of Australia's only national daily paper, The Australian, on Thursday. It was suspected that the man died of natural causes, it reported.[Is death natural?] Hospital social workers said they believed that after Kulper's wife and child died he no longer felt the need to lead an orthodox life. Hospital staff and locals would buy him coffee and give him cigarettes and send postcards addressed to "Karl at the bus stop outside St Vincent's" when they went on holiday.

"Every morning he'd be sitting outside waiting for us to open...he was a very private person but very polite, we knew he was German but didn't no anything much about him really," said Winifred Campbell, a waitress at Una's Cafe where Kulper celled in each morning for his breakfast bacon sandwich. A memorial service was held at the shelter on Thursday, to be followed by the funeral on Monday.

There but for the grace of God go I. If something should ever happen to my wife and child, I wonder if I would be another Karl. 25 years ... every day wondering where your next meal is coming from, hoping it's not too cold that night.

For most of us living in any town of appreciable size, we have homeless people, and despite the best efforts of liberals to give them money and conservatives to outlaw them, we probably always will. Don't know how difficult Karl had it at first, but he had a pretty good setup for a homeless person: his own bench/shelter, a biscuit in the morning, and healthcare right around the corner. People can wrestle with the age-old conflict of whether to give someone a fish (fed for a day) or to teach them how to fish (so they can take care of themselves). Karl didn't want to fish.

MATTHEW 25:37 Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40 "The King will reply, `I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Jesus Himself said that He had no place to lay His head. He relied on the kindness of others. Karl relied on others for 25 years. Some may not have considered him to be "contributing to society", but he was a somebody. A memorial service at the bus shelter ... I don't recall seeing where Jesus got a memorial service after His death, but I pray that we make up for it each day by giving ourselves to Him. Some folks around Sydney gave a little bit of themselves to Karl and it kept him going for 25 years.

Government programs to help the homeless are useful, but we fool ourselves into thinking they are the answer. It's up to each community, and each person in that community, to feed-clothe-shelter the "least of our brothers". Lord, help open our eyes to the needs in our community, and take away the timidity and selfishness we can feel that prevents us from helping.


Posted by MarcV, 8:37 AM link

September 18, 2002

Not much to blog about today. You have to wonder if consumer confidence will ever get the stock market jump started (Dow below 8200). We just seem to be treading water, if not sinking a little deeper.

Otherwise the Iraq/war stuff is interesting, and things seem to be playing out slowly yet steadily. For a good summary of the UN resolutions broken by Iraq and the evidence that everyone seems to crave, Larry Kudlow at NRO took off his economics hat and put on his political hat for this piece. Different folks will have different evidence needs, and I don't like seeing civilians being killed, but attack-Iraq seems to be very close and necessary.

Posted by MarcV, 2:46 PM link

September 17, 2002

I had kind of felt like I had been left out, but I finally got my offer today from a Mr. Christopher Williams to help him recover a fortune left in a bank account. Yeah, my first Nigerian scam letter!
+++++
James Lileks had a funny on the Backfence today. He asked readers how things would be different if men had babies, rather than women:

In a similar vein, this from M'loo:

We'd have 18 years of paid maternity leave beginning at the first sign of morning sickness.

Yes, yes, men are wimps. We can't take discomfort. Blah, blah. Listen, ladies, childbirth may be painful, but it happens once or thrice a lifetime. Whereas every day men deal with the fact that a fast-moving object may strike them right there, right in the region of Groinistan. Could be a car door, a briefcase in the elevator, a midget with a sneezing fit. You never know. And yet we venture forth each day.

Finally, someone has spelled out the fear that men face each day as they go out into the world: MUST PROTECT GROINISTAN! (Isn't that one of those countries bordering Afghanistan?)

I can just see a woman (like my wife?) reading this, rolling her eyes, and thinking, "Yeah, a man would think that, the center of their existence" and wonder how men can accomplish anything. Women must think men are so simple. Well we are, just give us a decent hot meal, lazy-boy in front of the TV with remote control, someplace to "relieve" ourselves (doesn't have to be all that clean) and a comfy place to sleep and we're happy. Almost reminds me of my bachelor days ...


Posted by MarcV, 12:41 PM link

Big Bully
Victor Davis Hanson went and visited the OpinionJournal (rather than NRO's) site and left another goody on our war effort and explaining things much better than I could ever hope to. He described Saddam Hussein as a bully. It's something that I had not thought of before, but makes sense (maybe it's obvious to everyone else?). Typically bullies bluff more than they punch, but Saddam has punched before and he'll punch again. The question is how long do we wait before he tries a nuclear punch.

Mr. Hanson also discusses the ramifications of our success in Afghanstan:

...the easy destruction of the Taliban and dispersion of al Qaeda have rendered militant Islamic fundamentalism impotent in the eyes of the world--with sobering effects on a supposedly volatile Arab street that so often puts a premium on power and prestige rather than on reason and justice.

Trying to go ahead in our war on terrorism has met some resistance, but Mr. Hanson has a response to that:

Indeed, our strong and successful reaction to Sept. 11 has placed sworn allies, not just us, under scrutiny--as they embarrassingly juggle the desire for continued American military protection with their own glaring reluctance to pursue enemies as deadly to Europe as they are to us. The greater amorality in this war has arisen more from inaction than from our use of force.

I'm thankful for folks like Mr. Hanson who rise up and articulate our necessary course of action.


Posted by MarcV, 12:39 PM link

I'm still having trouble publishing the table I generate in a spreadsheet to the website, so I'll ask Kevin to reproduce it again. I may include the table when I send the pick sheet out next week. Again, if anyone else is interested in joining the fun, please let me know and I will send you this week's picks.

Another week of upsets made it difficult to rise above average, although a certain tater-picker went out on a limb for a few underdogs. Here is the list for prognosticator standings:


Spud
11-5, 0.594 season

Sarge
8-8, 0.500 season

Austin
7-9, 0.500 season

Kevin
7-9, 0.438 season

Jason
7-9, 0.438 season

Vegas
5-11, 0.313 season


I have included the Vegas picks as a reference, and all of our prognosticators did do better than the "professionals".

Posted by MarcV, 11:30 AM link

Post-Modernism
Several folks (Bene Diction, Bobby Allison-Gilmore (Didn't know AG Ashcroft was a big fan of the show - eh, go figure!), Jason Steffens, Illinigirl) were kind enough to give a link to my Simpson's post from last week. Someone else, Iggie at christianity.blogspot, reproduced my post at his site. It was a long one, and part of me is humbled, yet another part wonders if this was OK to do. Well, it is free ice cream, and once a post is out anybody can do anything they want with it, and he did credit me with the post, so maybe I am reading too much into it.

The christianity site is one of those collaborative efforts, where they seem to favor the new "style" of home-church and post-modern worship. (Ya gotta like the term "post-modern" - it implies something that is just happening. Can anything be newer than post-modern?) I had looked into this at the WhatIsChurch website when I was "between churches" a few months ago. It's interesting to see young people challenge the status quo and what type of things they come up with to express their faith in new ways. It's in the Bible to sing to the Lord a new song (Psalms?), yet it is part of human nature to honor tradition and stick with what seems to be good and works.

Even us Pentecostals will typically have a set worship procedure, but pastors will occasionally mix things up just to see what will happen. Considering the amount of preparation for the music ministry, the collection of tithes, and the support services (nursery/children's church), many pastors end up on a schedule. They also notice how we react if they happen to be going over some implied time limit (gotta beat the Baptists to the restaurants!). It has to be frustrating for pastors to preach on the importance of our love relationship with Jesus, keeping God at the center of and #1 in our lives, yet we get squirmy if we have to sit in the pews for an extra fifteen to thirty minutes.

I have been to churches where time is a secondary consideration, but they tend to be smaller churches. Part of post-modernism deals with wiping away expectations of what a worship "service" should be, and instead trying to follow where God is leading us. I can see the appeal of this, but don't think it would be consistently orderly once you get past a group size of 30 or so. In addition, once a group gets that large there is a desire for a dedicated "four walls and a roof" structure, because you would run out of room at someone's house.

The main question is what does God expect from us? The phrase "mercy, not sacrifice" comes to mind (Hosea 6:4-6):


What can I do with you, Ephraim? What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears.

Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
I killed you with the words of my mouth; my judgments flashed like lightning upon you.

For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.

God is not interested in our rituals, but our heart's direction. We are encouraged to not break the habit of meeting together, and when you get like-minded people praising and worshipping God with you, it can be something that transcends the worldly. It's not up to me to question whether someone should go to a particular church, or home-church for that matter, that's the Holy Spirit's job. I continue to listen for His still small voice and go where He leads me.


Posted by MarcV, 11:16 AM link

September 16, 2002

Oh yeah, curious to see how Fun and Gun does against the Philly bad-boys. I thought this would be an easy one for the Eagles, but their D is not as strong as last year. If they can get pressure on Matthews, watch Shane fold quicker than a souffle at a Fourth of July fireworks show. I think I might enjoy seeing Spurrier slam his visor to the ground, then his clipboard, then his headset, then anything else he can get his hands on if the Philly D suffocates his offense. Hey Sarge, the Skins may have a tough time getting to .500 at the end of the season, but at least you have the Hokies!

Posted by MarcV, 9:20 AM link

Mon. Morn. Prognost. Week 2
- What's up with the Rams and Steelers? I had a hunch the Rams would be having problems this year, but I thought that this might be the Steelers year for the Super Bowl. Supposedly Pitt. is past their two toughest oppponents this year and should have an easier schedule, but they need to show more if they want to put together a string of W's. For the Rams, they are starting to come back down to earth, with teams keying on Faulk and not letting Warner have time to throw. Their defense is also feeling the effects of free agency and injuries, even if Lovey Smith is some type of coaching genius.
- My two dark horses, Arizona and Denver, did OK, although the Cards aren't as strong as I had thought. If Denver can keep things patched together, the combination of strong running game, tough D and veteran receivers will take them far, if Griese is not knocked out (Oakland is in a similar situation). Arizona D is questionable, and they still don't have a running game.
- The NE Patsies are for real. Last year they seemed to be an above average team over-achieving (nothing wrong with that), but so far this year their D is dominating and the O is getting the job done. The mix of confidence and teamwork they have going for them will make it very difficult for their opponents.
- Miami and New Orleans are looking better than I had predicted, while Phil. and Tenn. are doing worse than predicted. Green Bay and Minn. have some serious problems on D. I don't see how some folks picked Tampa Bay to dominate, and so far they look average.
- OK everybody, there's still room to jump on the Carolina Panther Super Bowl Bandwagon! How this motley crew scraped together two W's this early is incredible, although it looks like Detroit and Baltimore will be duking it out for the #1 pick next spring (thought Houston was a lock for that). Things will start getting ugly in the Motor City, as they have just opened up a new stadium and desperately need to put heinies in the seats, after suffering through several losing seasons and Barry Sanders saying sayonara. Things in Seattle also may get ugly fast.
- Picks will be up tomorrow morning (I hope) after the Mon. night game. If you can stay awake, count how many times Madden makes an obvious point (be sure to leave your socks off, as you will need your toes for counting). For those in the pool, a certain tater-head went out on a limb for a few picks and came back with some fruit!

+++++

Urlacher vs. Vick
Went and splurged so I could see my beloved Bears at an undisclosed watering hole/restaurant. While da Bears are still on track for 19-0, there could be trouble ahead if the O-line does not pick it up a notch. Miller usually did not have time to make good throws, and had a few dropped as well. Atlanta kept handing the game to them, but da Bears didn't seem interested in closing them out.

Vick is very talented and will take the Falcons far. They are probably the most dangerous 0-2 team besides Pittsburgh and St. Louis. Atlanta just does not seem to have any other weapons, with a weak running game besides Vick and no big-play receivers. Bsides being fast, Vick is also quick (yes, there is a difference), making him very difficult to catch.

You usually do not get a 1-on-1 match-up in the NFL because of the team play, but yesterday was an exception. Da Bears made Urlacher the "spy" on Vick, and all of the Atlanta offense goes through Vick, so you had both making great plays. Ray Lewis may be as fast as Urlacher, but the only guy with that size as fast as Urlacher that I can think of may be Dick Butkus in his prime (before his knees went). At times, Urlacher would appear to be out of a play, but then come from out of nowhere and chase Vick down. It was fan-tastic! And that leap he made over a running back to get to Vick, whew!

Posted by MarcV, 9:13 AM link

September 14, 2002

Hey, someone took my blog and translated it to German! Same old posts, different words. Anyone else have this experience? I found out by checking on the referrer log, clicking back on an address that started out with an IP number rather than a URL name.

Posted by MarcV, 5:43 AM link

I try to stay optimistic about da Bears each week, but the Falcons and Vick (and injuries to the D) have me a little concerned. I hope we can bust out on offense and just outscore them, chewing up clock and keeping Vick off the field. I think that is what Green Bay did to survive, and maybe da Bears can do it too.

Posted by MarcV, 5:41 AM link

September 13, 2002

It's da Pits
A certain marsupial blogger 'fesses up on what he was reduced to doing after a shower, and touched on something that I must come clean on myself:

"Powder Fresh," eh? Whatever. I see that this product is in the form of a Soft Solid, the application of which gives me a much greater understanding of the ad slogan, for you see, "Made for a Woman" assumes an American woman who shaves her armpits. Soft solid (which is really more of a thick liquidy powder) just sort of gets all balled up and sticky when met with the hirsute he-manliness for which I am known far and wide. Imagine spackling a badger.
But spackle I did, and am now thoroughly in touch with my feminine side. She's ugly as sin and big as a barn, but at least she smells good.

The SECRET is out! Yes, I too was confronted with this grave circumstance, when my trusty supply of "scent-be-gone" applicator fell off of the "advancer" screw a few weeks ago, and the supply had dipped below the plastic sleeve. My "better half" uses the unscented variety, but I swear it has a girly smell to it. So for the sake of those who would have to endure me that day, I used girly deodorant. Does it take a real man to admit that?

Fortunately, since I do my best thinkin' around shower time, I was able to remember to check for long curly hairs on the applicator, as that would be a dead give-away to someone that her personal supplies had been tampered with. I did find one and took appropriate action. Inquiring minds now want to know: did Possum Man perform a similar search-and-destroy mission?


Posted by MarcV, 1:27 PM link

Faith in Homer
For a radical approach to evangelism, some folks are using The Simpsons. This story in FoxNews details how a British Christian group has sponsored a Ned Flanders Day, featuring the band Ned Zeppelin, while churches here are using a study guide based on the book The Gospel According to The Simpsons by Mark Pinsky (~$6).

"There are so few shows where family members go to church," said Antonia Coffman, the show's publicity director. "The Simpsons go to church and it's intertwined with the irreverence. But at least they go on a regular basis."

This kind of attitude is troubling to me, because it implies that going to church takes care of your "duty", that it somehow makes you good.

I used to watch the show when it first came on, but not for the last several years, usually because my wife makes faces and rolls her eyes at some of their antics. I didn't like the show well enough to fight that battle, so I let it slide. It's a touchy subject, of using something that is worldly with Christian "tinges" to bring people to fellowship. Do people think of Ned Flanders when they meet me?

"He's flawed and he has his crisis of faith and he is a goody-two-shoes, but he's a good exemplar of the best of Evangelical Christianity," Pinsky said. "He lives his faith. He believes in the social gospel, taking care of people, loving his neighbor literally."

Ship-of-fools.com, an England-based online Christian magazine, conducted a poll looking for the most recognizable Christian of the year in 1998 and 1999: Ned landed in the top five both times. "The Archbishop of Canterbury barely figured," said Steve Goddard, co-editor of the magazine.

According to the article, despite all of the crude behavior, the Simpsons foster a spirit of love and family, that everybody is accepted in the end. You always run the risk of losing the message when you try to insert subtle Gospel lessons in a "worldly" show, but I guess it can be worth the risk if it touches those who have an aversion to organized religion.

Jason Santos, a 29-year-old youth minister who just moved from Lombard, Ill., to Bonn, Germany, and has used Pinsky's book, said the show's greatest contribution is that it brings faith to a generation wary of organized religion.

"It's one instance where you can have spirituality in a show and have teenagers not object to it," he said. "The way Generation-X and younger people conceptualize their spirituality, they don't identify with organized religion, but more with icons of pop culture."

And though they might not know it, millions of viewers are being treated to Christian lessons as they watch Bart torture Principal Skinner and Homer down mugs of beer at Moe's Tavern, according to Pinsky.

"You can find God in the funniest places," he said.

God can even cause something good to come out of The Simpsons, it's just difficult for me to see it. Apparently others have, and if it can bring some to the throne and turn people towards Jesus, then hallelujah. There's alot of filth coming out of TV, movies and the Internet, but they can also be used for good occasionally. Mark Pinsky has his own site, and he offers this explanation:

As a journalist, I have covered religion in the American Sunbelt, from Orange County, Ca., to Orlando, Fla., for the better part of 15 years. The current cultural disconnect in this country over faith and values, which began in the 1980s and was manifest in the 2000 presidential election, is such that I can think of few groups with as little in common as committed evangelical Christians and hardcore fans of The Simpsons. Many of the former are no more likely to watch the show than they would be to turn on a boombox and dance naked in front of the church ­ which Homer actually did when he thought he was the lone survivor after Springfield was wiped out by a neutron bomb launched by France.
Dedicated fans of The Simpsons, I have learned in researching this book, miss very little of what goes on in the series, and they analyze the show's minutiae with the intensity of committed Talmudists. There are Web sites devoted to religion in the series and to Springfield's pastor, Reverend Lovejoy, yet I suspect that even the fans may not have noticed the consistent fabric of belief that the show's writers and producers have been weaving over the years.

If this little book can in some way create a common ground for these two groups ­ and the many between them ­ I will be happy.

I missed that episode about the neutron bomb, but I found myself chuckling (and visualizing) about it while reading the description. Well, The Simpsons will be around in reruns for the next few centuries, so we might as well learn to live with them, and maybe use them for our (and the Lord's) benefit. My 4 year old is a little too young for them now, but maybe in a few years we can enjoy them together and use the episodes to discuss things about faith and life.


Posted by MarcV, 9:24 AM link

Joshua Claybourn has been taking on the atheists by discussing ethics the last few days. I tried to add my two cents, and I don't think it was worth even that much. At one time I bordered on agnosticism and "worshipped" at the altar of science and logic. Now, the idea of atheism is so foreign that it is difficult for me to refute.

The comments from the "godless heathen" on Joshua's site were interesting, as well as the passion they had defending their belief in not believing. I noticed a few trends:

- Atheists want to understand how man works/functions (enhancing their "self-realization"), while Christians want to know God and how they can be more like Jesus.
- Without the self-realization, atheists think that man can easily fall into the trap of assignings gods to things in life that cannot be controlled (i.e. weather, nature, fertility), keeping mankind in darkness. Christians give control to God.
- Christians take things on faith, while atheists are from the show-me state.
- Atheist believe that men are good and have some type of built-in moral code enhanced by centuries of "refinement", while Christians believe in original sin, the inherent wretchedness of man, and the need for God to deliver them.

I've probably made a few assumptions and oversimplifications, but hopefully I have come close. The big question is how do you witness to them? My first inclination is to reach for emotion, trying to relate the joy and peace that is a result of having a personal relationship with Jesus, but some atheists look at the emotional response as a weakness, and not logical (ala Mr. Spock).

This struggle has been going on for a couple thousand years, and will go on for awhile longer. I pray that the Holy Spirit will give me patience as well as boldness, guiding me to reach one heart at a time.

Posted by MarcV, 9:21 AM link

September 12, 2002

I just read the John Madden rundown for week 2, and he writes like he talks. After reading his "analysis", I felt like asking for my ten minutes back. How can someone say so much and not say anything?

I saw that Monday Night Football got its lowest ratings in years. Although both teams were not from "big market" media centers, you would think that the first game featuring two top echelon teams would have drawn better numbers. Hard to say if MNF is shaking off the Dennis Miller effect, or if Madden is driving them away. He really does not add much to a game. Summerall is looking like a genius considering the way he set up Madden each week for the past umpteen years.

Madden has been around so long that he has become an icon. He may need to seriously consider retiring, and maybe the public will remember him at his peak, rather than what he has sunk to now. Yeah, that's a little harsh, but MNF is prime-time and should have the best announcers. And don't get me started on his eyebrows ...

Posted by MarcV, 3:42 PM link

Website Appropriateness
Found a site the other day (that I will not link to) that was disturbing. A woman set up a "humorous" site that put down Christians and mocked Jesus. At first it looked tongue-in-cheek, but after a while you got the impression that someone was angry with Christians and knew enough lingo and doctrine to attempt a disparagement of the faith. It may have been subtle, but it looked like blasphemy to me.

It's reminiscent of how Michael Moore tries to skewer conservatives, except she tries to ridicule Jesus rather than George Bush, although she probably tries to put Pres. Bush down too. It's hard to say if her site is worse than a blatant satanic site. Even harder to pray for her, but the Lord expects it from us.

Posted by MarcV, 8:50 AM link

September 11, 2002

There for a reason
As each of us in our own way reflect and pray on what happened a year ago, some might ask themselves, "What would I do in that situation?" Many have asked about God's involvement, and I flip-flop between: God gave us this world so we are responsible for whatever evil occurs, or trying to understand God's purpose to this tragedy. We will have times of hardship (that's in the Bible), and I believe God is interested in our reaction to adversity.

One inspirational response was chronicled in Focus on the Family magazine. Al Braca was trapped on the 105th floor with no way out, except the windows.

Some people on the 105th floor had made a last call or sent a final e-mail to a loved one saying that "a man" was leading people in prayer. A few referred to Al by name. The Bracas learned that Al had indeed been ministering to people during the attack. When he realized that they were all trapped in the building and would not be able to escape, Al shared the gospel with a group of 50 co-workers and led them in prayer.

This news came as no surprise to Jeannie [his wife]. For years, she and Al had been praying for the salvation of these men and women. According to Jeannie, Al hated his job; he couldn’t stand the environment. It was a world so completely out of touch with his Christian values. But he wouldn’t quit. He was convinced that God wanted him to stay there, to be a light in the darkness. To that end, Al freely shared his faith with his co-workers, many of whom sarcastically nicknamed him "The Rev."

"They mocked him," Jeannie recalls, "but when horrible things happened in their lives, they always asked Al for prayer."

He prayed with them and shared the importance of having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

I pray that my faith is strong enough to do what Al did in that situation, but you never know until it happens. Thank God for the people who put their faith in action, no matter the circumstances.


I am reading the book of Amos now, and some verses seem to apply (Amos 3:6-8):


When a trumpet sounds in a city,
do not the people tremble?
When disaster comes to a city,
has not the LORD caused it?

Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing
without revealing his plan
to his servants the prophets.

The lion has roared--
who will not fear?
The Sovereign LORD has spoken--
who can but prophesy?

Posted by MarcV, 10:11 AM link

Reason and Faith
Michael Novak at NRO has his (about) monthly column out, where he reflects on last year's events and the challenges we face. He frames the conflict as one where the Muslim nations have basically been neglected for over 50 years after WWII, so that the seeds of liberty and democracy have never had a chance to flourish. The terrorist attacks caused a crisis point, where now we have to face up to the fact of doing something about the Muslim world.

We also are in a new paradigm, where we are moving away from gray areas and better defining evil and good.

Indeed, a deeper point was grasped. Civilization arises from a grasp of the distinction between good and evil. Intellect is capable of recognizing that difference, and of giving arguments to support its judgments on the matter. Reasonable humans may disagree, but as long as they hold to their mutual respect for evidence and argument, they can continue to converse, and to make some progress in doing so. The minute they say, "It's all a matter of preference, and we'll have to settle it by force," civilized argument ends.

When the terrorists strike us and try to kill as many "infidels" as possible, we not only have to defend ourselves, but think offensively by crippling their ability to murder innocent people.

The two towers that our country stands on, that the terrorists cannot destroy, are reason and faith.

The U.S. Founders took comfort in the consonance of Scripture and reason in supporting the cause of liberty. Even Tom Paine, the least orthodox among them, wrote in the Revolution's darkest days that he was "not so much of an infidel" that he believed the Creator would abandon them, just when they had committed themselves to the liberty He taught them.
As Alexis de Tocqueville pointed out in luminous passages in Democracy in America, this confluence of the spirit of liberty and the spirit of religion in the American experiment is of great importance to the human race.

Amen, and amen.

He then goes on to challenge us to take this time to link together the three great monotheistic religions, and to "...search out a way toward democratic habits of mutual respect, while using both faith and reason in the service of human liberty." The roots of the Islamofascists run deep, and they will not be easy to pull out nor be replaced by democracy. We are treading new ground:

...the preoccupations of the 21st century are going to have to plunge down to a rather deeper and less familiar level than that: to questions of liberty and dignity, in the light both of reason and revelation.

Posted by MarcV, 10:10 AM link

September 10, 2002

Are you in the 94% club? Lileks waxes eloquent on blogs, so let him explain:

I’m not saying the blogs I read are good because they’re trivial. They’re not. But most good blogs I read display no sense of limitation; they’re not constrained by the need to be Important every time they approach the mike, so they develop a sense of personality much quicker than a newspaper columnist ever can. In 94 out of 100 cases this means the work is crap, but in the 6 out 100 it means you get the sort of column newspapers will never run. Or could. Or should. No matter how casual you dress for your newspaper job, you still can’t help feeling as if the paper itself is a tuxedo. At the very least you stand up straight.

If the "good blogs" put out 94% crap, what about the not so good blogs? Well, this might be crap, but it's my crap!!!!

I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me (well, at least two or three who keep my site meter spinning)! That's the beauty of the blogosphere - the free ice cream may not taste all that good sometimes, but the price is right. Until they pry the keyboard from my dead, cold fingers (or I can't afford it) I'll keep on shoveling out the crap.

[Note: just saw that Possumblogger is in the 94% club - any other takers?]


Posted by MarcV, 12:26 PM link

Take It to the (I)Max
For those who like the really big screen, Imax is starting to get serious about showing full-length movies in the big spheres. This month they are showing Apollo 13 (Tom Hanks/Kevin Bacon in space), but the push now is to show recent/new releases. Star Wars II - Attack of the Clones is now being "retro-fitted" for presentation at Imax theaters according to this article.

Toronto, Canada-based Imax also said Lucas' Lucasfilm Ltd. will use Imax technology to remaster the film for Imax screens. The company, best known for spectacular nature and science documentaries it produces itself, says its new Imax technology makes theatrical films as sharp to watch on Imax screens as on normal movie screens.
In November, Imax sees its first simultaneous release of an animated film, The Walt Disney Co.'s "Treasure Planet." Disney has had success re-releasing animated movies like "Beauty and the Beast" and "Fantasia 2000" on Imax.


I imagine that ticket prices will be $10-15, since the nature/science films they show now (under an hour) run $7-8. What film would you like to see in the Imax?

Ben-Hur would be spectacular, but long. I would love to see Blade Runner and Harrison Ford's bloody mouth 4 stories high! How is it that he gets the livin' tar beat out of him, and he still keeps getting up? Oh yeah, it's Hollywood. For now they say that traditional 35 mm films do not have the image quality for Imax, but films that are digitally made can be transferred over.


Posted by MarcV, 9:26 AM link

I like this:
SUGGESTION FOR BUSH'S UN SPEECH [Jonah Goldberg]
Here's how Bush should begin his speech to the UN on Thursday...

"Let me explain why we bombed Iraq yesterday...."

Posted by MarcV, 8:38 AM link

Tues. Morn. Pigskin Prog. 1
Unless it's da Bears, I rarely can make it through a whole Monday night game. From what I saw last night, Slash is not the answer in Pittsburgh. I saw the stat from last year, how he threw a few intercepts in the first game, then only had three more for the next thirteen games, then messed up at the end of the year. He's very talented, but he will not take the Steelers to the promised land. The team is loaded with talent, but can go only as far as the QB takes them.

I'd like to see them get a Chris Chandler-type QB, with Slash and Randle-El split out on each side. You'd have triple threats on each side of the field. If called and coached properly, it could spread a defense so thin that it would be easy pickings. Maybe next year, after Randle-El gets his rookie mistakes behind him.

Otherwise, looks like parity is still king in the NFL. The pre-sesason chosen dominators, St. Louis - Pittsburgh - Philadelphia - Tampa Bay, were not very impressive, and a couple of bottom-feeders, Carolina and Houston, came out with W's. This may be another year where injuries to key players can make or break seasons.

It was good to see them strap it on and play sixty minutes of starters. This week will have some tough calls on pigskin prognostications, considering what went on the first week. I have asked Kevin over at Ideas, etc. to post the table of picks results while I try to conquer Blogger. One lucky picker is above, 2 are below and the rest are at even .500 for the first week.

Posted by MarcV, 8:36 AM link

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