As most of you know I'm back in school now and loving it.  I had my first test today in my Argumentation and Debate and I think I did pretty well.  And my other classes are going well...well so far.

A few things that I've run across lately affected me and have made me wonder.

The first one was about an author (unfortunately I can't remember his name) who apparently comitted suicide and was found dead.  All I could think was "Is this the fate of all highly intelligent/gifted people?"  They achieve such high praise and get all these awards and commendations and people gush about what they do...but they still think nothing of themselves.

The second was actually a combination of a few things.  One of them was a post by a high-school friend made on 9/11.  It was along the same lines as my little rant about Virginia Tech, EXCEPT, his argument was that we should forget and move on (whereas my argument is that we should stop letting ourselves become desensitized, never forget).  And there were a lot of people that responded...most of them had comments along the lines of "yeah, we should just let it go and move one, no one's grieving anymore.  I didn't lose anyone so who really cares."  The second was The Closer's season finale.  The premise of the story was about a group of three boys who planned to top Columbine.  They had planned to blow up a shopping mall and then shoot everyone who tried to escape.  And all I could think was "Have we all gone crazy, has the whole world gone insane."  And that led my thoughts to the horrible realization that people like these (albeit fictional) boys are led to such acts by a total disregard for life.  The same insensitivity and disregard I (thought I) saw those people displaying in their comments to my friend's post.

I'm not so sure I like this new world I find myself in.

Is there hope, can we change?

This past year, one of the most successful activities we did in my English class was a unit on rhetoric and argument, complete with a class debate, a devil's advocate debate, and an argumentative essay. Each piece of this unit went over well. Students loved debating each other, they loved debating the character I portrayed (who argued in favor of a flat Earth), and they actually really enjoyed writing the essay. The most important piece of this, I felt, was that the essay and debate topics were not focused on them - they were big issues that concerned a lot of, if not all, people. Issues like abortion and capital punishment were popular, as were several other big, hot-button issues.

In looking at OpposingViews, I cannot help but shake with excitement at the possibilities that arise for our rhetoric unit. To begin with, imagine the modeling that can be done using this site: students can see exactly what experts on different sides of an argument say and, more importantly, how they say it. So many lessons in word choice, tone, and voice! Another possibility: examining logic and logical fallacies in different arguments. As a wannabe philosopher, I want so badly to teach logic and fallacies, but just can't find the time. Argument is about the closest I get to that, and this seems like a great opportunity to critique arguments for fallacies. Add to all of this the credibility of this site as a source for their papers - they'd be quoting experts on both sides of the argument - and we've got ourselves an amazing site on our hands. (Can you tell I'm excited yet?)

I am eagerly looking forward to sharing this site with students and using it in class next year.  And feel free to suggest other ideas for its use...I'm sure there are many!

Aber nun zurück zum eigentlichen Thema. Der negative Nebeneffekt an Comedy Central ist das was ab 24 Uhr dort geschieht. Money Express. Das ist der selbe Sender der auch schon bei VIVA läuft und wer weiß wo noch. Nun habe ich also die Wahl zwischen den unsäglichen Klingeltonwerbungen, wahlweise auch das Mangababe ( natürlich das neue), der Fun-Applikation Partner-Tracker (is das nich eigentlich illegal?) und dieser sehr dämlichen Werbung für das Horoskop per SMS (drei Halbstarke sitzen auf der Bank/Treppe/unter der Brücke und machen Werbung für Horoskope? Ok...). Was schau ich mir also an um nicht diesen Lamba-Schrott (Name geändert) sehen zu müssen und damit "Pseudo-Ganster-Stimmen-die-mir-sugestieren-sollen-das-der-Redner-höstwahrscheinlich-aus-dem-Ghetto-kommt-obwohl-er-nur-einen-Frosch-im-Hals-hat-Werbestimmen" aus dem Weg gehen zu können (mal ehrlich, die machen mir echt Angst). Mir bleibt nur der Geld-Express. "Finden sie Tiere mit 4 Buchstaben, deren 2. Buchstabe ein i ist!" Tiger steht schon dran. Hmmm, mir fällt nichts ein. Ich scheine aber nicht allein zu sein, denn seit 15 Minuten hat niemand mehr angerufen. Die Moderatorin berät sich schon mit ihrem Produzenten ob es nicht ein wenig zu schwer ist. Ich find schon. Naja, ich schalt mal einfach weiter. 

Es ist nichts drin im TV. Da erwische ich mich dabei wie ich mir Kanal Telemedial zurück wünsche. Aber im nächsten Moment schüttelt es mich schon und der Gedanke findet seinen Weg ins Freie. Nein danke, ich habe nun lange genug unter der Herrschaft von Thomas G. Hornauer gelebt und gelitten. Nun sind andere "Napoleon-Komplex-Inhaber" dran. Ich muss sie nur noch finden. 

Bis dahin werde ich wieder einmal meine kleine aber feine DVD-Sammlung quälen. Oder aber das TV-Gerät wird geschont und die Hi-Fi-Anlage wird mal wieder in Betrieb genommen. Ich habe mir nicht umsonst vor Ewigkeiten mal die Bar Lounge Classics gekauft. Zum Einschlafen gibt es akustisch eigentlich nichts besseres, außer dem Traumzauberbaum (das Original!).

Let us talk about a hot-button domestic issue. The price of gas at the pump. McCain wants to suspend the fuel tax and Obama wants to institute a 'windfall profit tax' on big oil. These are gimmicks, both are being dishonest. They both want to pander to the angry electorate. The only solution to the price of gas is the 'long term energy policy'. This policy is toxic to either side. The Republicans want to drill in the ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) province in Northeast Alaska and also start building new Nuclear Power Stations. The Democrats on the other hand want to rely on conservation, renewable energy and green technologies, meaning doing nothing. Both sides are rigid for the past 30 years and would continue to take the same positions for the next 20 years, without any solution.

The fact of the matter is that the price of oil is a function of supply and demand. We are talking about not only the domestic demand and supply, but the global supply of oil and gas as well as the demand around the world, specially in the emerging economies. Considering the stagnant supply in the domestic market, no amount of finger-pointing is going to help. Besides, the boogeyman  of "speculators" should be rejected and done with. This is the time Republicans and Democrats need to come together and put 'everything' on the table. All the Democratic proposals and all the Republican proposals have got to be a part of the 'American Solution', including everything. Failing this, the 'American Consumer' should be prepared to pay $4 to $5 per gallon at the pump for the foreseeable future.

Next November, before you go and vote for your candidate, ask yourself and your candidate, does he have the courage to negotiate a 'Long Term Energy Policy' with the opposition? If yes, ask the names of the opposition senators who would support his 'Comprehensive Energy Bill' in the Senate. Do you really believe Senator John McCain would have the required votes in the Congress? Do you really believe that Senator Barack Obama would have the required votes in the House of Representatives and the Senate to pass an 'Energy Bill'? If not, then you would rather have a 'George Washington' for President to pull us out of this mess.

In other suicide/homicide-inducing news, this week marks the beginning of super-mega-in-your-face-non-stop summer freshman orientation! Every summer until this one, this mass influx of fresh-faced little rugrats didn't really affect the peace and harmoniousness (*cough*) of the math department. Well, bend over, Abigail May, it's Summer 2008! The department has finally realized that ACT/SAT scores are not the best indicator of placement into math classes, so now all freshmen and everyone who is registered for their first math class at this university must take a math placement exam.

(I am only complaining about this new development because it means that I have to be in the lab absurdly early and absurdly late -- tests are given at 7:15am, 8:15am, and 7:30pm at least 4 days a week through the middle of July.)

This is actually a very, very, very, very, very good thing. I have been asking why the placement test wasn't the norm for about 2 years now. Every single semester I witness students' total lack of algebra skills and hear horror stories of how students have no problem finding the derivative of something like $latex \frac{\tan{x}}{x^8+\ln(x+4)}$, but say the answer to $latex 5x \cdot x$ is $latex 6x$. And don't even get me started on adding and subtracting fractions...

The placement exams have always been on paper, but this year they are trying out a new computer-based test. That's not a bad idea considering that lots more students taking the exam means lots more grading for a few unfortunate undergraduate or graduate math majors. Here's the catch: The system is almost as glitchy as Windows Vista. Before I go into specifics, let me give you an idea of what the test is like. There are two parts: Basic Algebra and Calculus Readiness; each part is 30 minutes long and is timed by the system itself. If the student goes over the allotted time, the system automatically quits the test. On one particularly frustrating day this week, the server decided to die, but ... wait for it ... the timer on the students' tests continued to tick away. By the time things were up and running again -- 20 minutes later -- students had about 4 seconds left before their times expired, even though they had only gotten to actually work on problems for about 7 minutes. I believe that debacle caused some incoming freshmen to change their minds about committing to this university. And, honestly, I don't blame them. Besides, there are too many people crammed into this town the way it is. Go elsewhere -- preferably some place where the roads are used for driving instead of as long, narrow parking lots. (Yeah, you could say we have a traffic congestion problem here...)

Es sind mal wieder zig Wannen mit 10 und 5 Euro- Scheinen gefüllt und schon wieder findet man keine Tiere mit nur 4 Buchstaben. - Esel geht nicht, Maus geht nicht und Hund geht nicht. Ruft doch endlich an, denn das Geld muss raus! 496999 von 497000 Leitungen sind offen, es kommt also jeder durch! - Und was passiert? Genau, ich komme schon wieder nicht durch.

Man kann mir erzählen was man will, aber ich weiß die können mich nicht leiden. Und schon wieder eine Sirene erschallt, die mir klarmacht das es noch genau 60 Sekunden sind bis der Hot- Button mal wieder zuschlägt. Die 60 Sekunden sind vorbei und, huch, entweder hat niemand angerufen oder es ist niemand durgekommen, weil wieder alle in der verhängnissvollen Leitung 13 hängen geblieben sind. Wie auch immer, der Moderator wird mal wieder ungehalten. - Das kann doch nicht so schwer sein. Welche Stadt wird hier gesucht? - Auf dem Bildschirm ist ein Ortsschild mit der "sehr" wirren Wortmischung - Fielebeld -. Hmm, welche Stadt kann hier wohl gemeint sein? Kiel? Berlin? München? Bremerhaven? Ja das muss es sein, Bremerhaven. Just in diesem Moment klingelt im Studio das allseits bekannte Telefon. - Wer ist dran? - - Ingelbertshausen - - Wie Ingelbertshausen? Ist das dein Name oder deine Antwort? - - Na Ingelbertshausen, was soll es denn sonst als Antwort geben? - Aha, Ingelbertshausen also, ok. Mal schauen wie der Moderator reagiert. - Ingelbertshausen ist falsch, nächster! - Haha, ich hab doch gewusst das es Ingelbertshausen nicht sein kann. Warum weiß ich auch nicht. Ich hatte da wohl die Ahnung das es das nicht sein kann. Also langsam wird es mir hier zu aufregend, also schalte ich weiter.

Ahhh, mein Lieblings- Comedysender - Kanal Telemedial -. Ich weiß auch nicht aber dieser Sender bringt mich immer noch zum Lachen. Vielleicht liegt es an Thomas, dem wohl unausgeglichensten Menschen der Welt, vielleicht aber auch an dem gesamten Konzept. Welches Konzept? Das Konzept dieses Senders liegt zum darin den Leuten das Geld aus der Tasche zu ziehen und zum anderen, sich unrhytmisch zu noch unrhytmischeren Liedern um eine Glaspyramide zu bewegen. Wer nicht tanzt wird gefeuert. Oder geteert und gefedert, da bin ich mir nicht sicher. Vorstellen kann ich es mir aber gut. Aber da mir im Moment nicht nach Comedy ist schalte ich weiter.

N24, mein Sender für die Nacht. Also meistens zumindest. Heute wird es wohl nichts. Heute läuft mal wieder eine Sendung über das dritte Reich. Ganz ehrlich, ich will das nicht sehen. Es war ein sehr dunkles Kapitel unserer Geschichte und sollte in keinster Weise wieder erhellt werden. Auch nicht durch Sendungen die zeigen wie die Nazis das erste regelmäßige Fernsehen erfunden haben. Es muss einfach nicht mehr sein. Wir haben heute noch genug braune Idioten die meinen, einer Zeit hinterhertrauern zu müssen, die sie keine 10 Minuten überleben würden. Also schalte ich weiter.

Eurosport, naja. Ich sehe gerne Sport. Aber keinen Fussball oder Tennis. Auch kein Poker. Also bleibt mir heute Nacht nichts anderes übrig als Musik zu hören und ins Bett zu gehen. Gute Nacht 

So I just got done reading this post and it took my breath away and gave me hope like you wouldn't believe, finally I find that there are people who are able to see beyond appearances to God's Grace that has the potential to exist in all of us.  My views on this started...oh I don't know, probably around the beginning of college a few years ago when I declared myself to be............Goth.  And Christian.  And I started surfing around on the web looking up exactly that, Christian Goths and found some breathtaking and beautiful ideas and people and I began to realize an interesting thing.

As the visual people we tend to be we have the penchant then to judge people based on how they look or act.  We never give them the chance to show us who they really are.  We see and we write them off, either as hopeless and lost or as worthy of our time.  Either way they get written off.  We put them in boxes and in so doing put ourselves and our God in a box.  It really started to eat at me, especially as I donned black clothes and corsets and people looked at me differently.  I started to think about what they would do if they found out that this little Goth was also a Christian.  Well, that's fairly easy, most of them would probably think I wasn't serious about it, that it was just something I grew up doing so that's what I called myself; Christian.  I may not always dress in black, but I still consider myself to be Goth.  And Christian.  And anymore I'm tickled pink (or rather black :D ) by the thought of how scandalized some people would be to learn that I was either and both of those things.

Anyway as I began to realize these tendecies of others (and myself) it led me down an interesting thought path.  One day as I was wrestling with the oft asked, never satisfactorially answered question of why bad things happen to us, I came to a startling thought (I won't say conclusion, because this question will never have a conclusion 'till we are dead) - we only ever get a one-inch view of the world.  We don't get to see the BIG picture.  We don't get to see how ever single action of every person ever acted in the past, present or future are weaved together to create a picture so amazing that if we were given just a glimpse of it while we were still alive we'd go blind. 

I don't like it when people say "everything happens for a reason," I think it's a trite and 'canned' answer and despite what the speaker may intend does not, in fact, give anyone hope.  So, although what I'm saying sounds remarkably like that it is far from it.  Shit happens.   And it sucks and it hurts and it doesn't make sense.  It may never make sense (until we are dead).  I guess what I'm saying is...Don't judge people because of how they look or act or whatever because you don't know them and you don't know what beauty they are contributing to The Picture or, by judging them, what (...) you are contributing.

So yeah, I hope you don't mind me linking to you NorEaster.  And to anyone else......keep being you.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080406/wl_afp/franceracismislamgraves

 Is this what we want to become - a nation of people who are so afraid of anything different that we wind up hating it and hurting others.  Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hatred, hatred leads to suffering (courtesy of Yoda and Spielberg).  It's true.  This atrocity was done out of fear and anger and hatred of a small extremist sect of one religion.  These were heroes.  They gave their lives for their country out of love and this is how they are repaid?  They should have given these graves the highest honor and respect.  Any and every soldier who breathes his last on the battlefield is a hero, regardless of his religion.

My heart expresses agony every time I think about 9/11, I still shed tears when I watch television specials on it or read stories about the survivors, I shed tears (pratically sobbed) when I watched the movie about the flight that went down outside of Washington D.C., those passengers were heroes, I still honor those brave men and women of the firefighter and police ranks who were the first in those buildings as well as the ones who responded at the Pentagon.  BUT I DO NOT HATE OR FEAR MUSLIMS OR THE ISLAM RELIGION!!!!!  I never did and I pray that I never do.

The things that took place at that gravesite in the above article should not have happened.  People forget to draw distinctions between our "enemies" and our friends.  They forget that they shouldn't judge others.  They forget that being a certain way doesn't make that person "like everyone else."  I hate blanket judgements and I extremely dislike it when people who have made blanket judgements decide to "teach them a lesson."

The only lesson we need to learn is Love.

Wer hat diesen Satz nicht schon einmal gehört? Ehrlich gesagt hängt er mir aus den Ohren heraus. Jede Nacht, auf fast jedem Sender! Selbst bei den großen privaten Sendern wie z.B.: Pro Sieben oder SAT 1! Muss das sein? Muss denn jede Nacht aufs Neue auf so vielen Sendern derselbe Müll laufen? Ich hätte nichts gegen Wiederholungen der Primetime bis zum Umfallen. Alles wäre mir lieber als DAS! Dort wo Wannen voll Geld und Geldpakete für nur einen Anruf, der dich 50 Cent kostet (natürlich nur aus dem deutschen Festnetz, Mobiltarife abweichend)zu haben sind, sitzen dann entweder übermotivierte oder stinksaure Moderatoren die 3-5 Std überbrücken müssen. "Ist denn das wirklich so schwer?" "Das kann doch nicht wahr sein?" "Ich geh hier gleich nach Hause!" "Das Geld muss raus!" Warum gebt ihr mir es dann nicht einfach? Doch, ganz ehrlich, es würde mich freuen.

Ich erwische mich immer wieder dabei, wie ich mich frage, wie man solch eine Sendung vorbereitet. Sitzen da 10 hochbezahlte Producer mit einem armen Moderator zusammen und überlegen wie man die Menscheit quälen kann, mit nur 4 Buchstaben die sich nicht überschneiden dürfen? "OLGA, gibt es schon. Nächster!" "HUND? Sag mal geht es noch? Kannst du überhaupt lesen? Das steht dort schon seit Anfang der Sendung! MANN, MANN, MANN!!!" Stimmt das steht dort schon ewig. Ich hätte da noch 200 mögliche Antworten, aber...

Ja, aber ich komm nicht durch! Dort sind 259.326 Leitungen offen und ich treff immer wieder genau die 3 Leitungen die NICHT offen sind. Manche würden das als Pech abstempeln. Ich allerdings, wittere dort eine Verschwörung allerhöchsten Ausmaßes! Ich denke die CEE- AY- EY sitzt dort hinter und zieht die Fäden. Ich denke, die wollen uns geistig so mürbe machen bis es keine Terroristen mehr auf diesem Planeten gibt, damit die USA endlich wieder lachen können.

Aber was wäre eigentlich die Alternative zu den "Ruf-hier-an-bevor-der-Hot-Button-zuschlägt-Shows"? Die ganze Nacht die Ludolfs? DSF Sportclips? (Mhhhm) Nein! Kanal Telemedial mit Thomas G. Hornauer (Erfinder des Erotikclips)? Das ist ein Sender, und was für einer. Es gibt Momente da kommt man einfach nicht mehr aus dem Lachen raus. Wenn dort solche geistigen Hochgenüsse wie: "Das Fernsehen macht ein Staubkorn zu einem Elefanten." losgelassen werden. Man sollte es zumindest einmal gesehen haben. Der Sender, mit dem teuersten Energieausgleich der Welt (kostet im Jahresabo: 500€), schaltet sich jeden Abend ab 21 Uhr auf die Frequenz vom KIKA.

Und denkt dran:  Das Geld muss raus! Nicht zögern, sondern anrufen! 01805.....

Hier noch ein Hot Button zum selbst drauf hauen.

In Iraq.  We slam the military, not only in the media, but on facebook, on myspace and in our little blogs.  We call them names we say they are murderers and not worthy of honor.  I say that they are heroes and that they deserve more honor than anyone else.  After seeing what the Vietnam war did to those men and knowing that the men and women of our Army today are going through the same sort of circumstances my estimation of those men and women have gone up.

I have always had respect for the Army, Navy, Marines, Navy Seals and Air Force.  My respect grew after I attended Army ROTC classes in college and it grew more when my own brother joined the Navy and just when I thought it couldn't rise more it did - after watching those men in Vietnam and hearing from the veterans.

Some of those men after watching fellow soldiers die and facing that constant fear and staring death in the eye everyday came home to such, such disregard, disdain, dishonor and actual hatred that they began to hate us.  One of the men said that he will never forgive US citizens for dishonoring him and all his fellow soldiers and I don't blame him.

So I for one choose to honor those men and women over in Iraq and all the veterans from every war - they are brave and honorable and deserve all the respect we can offer and none of our anger.  I will say that I don't think we should be in Iraq, I'm not sure I ever really thought we should but I support our soldiers 100%.  And I have never wavered and probably will never waver from that support.

And that's that.

(Prime Minister John Howard - Australia.  Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told on Wednesday to get out of Australia, as the government targeted radicals in a bid to head off potential terrorist attacks.  Separately, Howard angered some Australian Muslims on Wednesday by saying he supported spy agencies monitoring the nation's mosques.  Quote - "Immigrants, not Australians must adapt.  Take it or Leave it.  I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture.  Since the terrorist attacks on Bali, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Australians.  This culture has been developed over two centuries of struggles, trials and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom.  We speak mainly English, not Spanish, Lebanese, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian or any other language.  Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society Learn the language.  Most Australians believe in God.  This is not some Christian, right wing, political push, but a fact, because Christians men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation and this is clearly documented.  It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools.  If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of th world as your new home, because God is a part of our culture.  We will accept your beliefs, and will not question why.  All we ask is that you accept ours, and live in harmony and peaceful enjoyment with us.  This is Our Country, Our Land and Our Lifestyle and we will allow you every opportunity to enjoy all this.  But once you are done complaining, whining and griping about Our Flag, Our Pledge, Our Christian beliefs or Our Way of Life, I highly encourage you to take advantage of one other great Australian freedom - The Right to Leave.  If you aren't happy here than Leave.  We didn't force you to come here.  You asked to be here.  So accept the country you accepted."  Maybe if we circulate this amongst ourselves, American citizens will find the backbone to start speaking and voicing the same truths.)

Ok first a quick note; I don't know if this is true or not, rather I don't know if the prime minister of Australia actually said any of this, I'm just reacting to the message of the e-mail.  My heart burns reading this.  First of all how dare anyone speak this filth and secondly why would I want to circulate this to my own people and country so that we can become just as close-minded and nasty.

I honestly have so many thoughts piling up that they are actually getting jumbled and I'm having a hard time writing them.  I mean...how could he....it is just....grrr!!!!!

It just makes me want to punch this guy(or whoever), I mean here he is talking about how others need to learn to live in peace and harmony with the "dominant" group and man I'm a pretty patriotic Christian but if I heard this in the US I would seriously consider moving...to China.  How can we expect others to want to adapt and live in harmony with us when we are pretty much forcing them to accept our beliefs and our culture.  We always talk about how accepting the US is and how open we are and then we dare spread crap like this, it sickens me.

From the moment 9/11 happened I didn't understand the surge of hatred towards Muslims/Islams.  I didn't hate Muslims, I hated the men who did this...they weren't the whole culture and belief system.  And it just pisses me off that the hatred of the Muslim culture and belief system is predominantly coming from loving Christians who don't actually know anything about the culture and belief system, they are just laying down a blanket judgement and stereotyping Muslims.  No wonder the rest of the free world doesn't like us anymore; we are self-righteous, arrogant, know-it-all jerks.  We are ok with stereotyping everyone and then telling them they need to change or they're going to hell out of "love."

If you want to bring people to Christ how about accepting them for who and what they are (that's what Jesus did after all - and aren't we supposed to be following HIS example?) instead of telling them that they need to change everything before God will love them.  It's shit, plain and simple.

Another thing, this country wasn't founded on the belief that might makes right and group over individual stuff; it was founded on the belief/idea of freedom - freedom from religious persecution (any religion), freedom from conformity, freedom to shape the culture (even if that means no longer speaking english), freedom to practice your beliefs (as long as no one is harmed), freedom to embrace your culture (again, as long as no one is harmed), in other words, freedom to live.  And now here we are, 2008, and we want the Muslims to stop practicing their religion (because we have been given a perverted view of their religion), we want the Hispanics to all "go home" (instead of opening our arms like our founders opened their arms to our immigrant ancestors) and we want everyone to be just like us (as opposed to letting them be individuals).  It's disturbing and sickening and if this keeps up I will seriously consider moving...to China.

Man, every time I read that e-mail it pisses me off even more.  In fact just the opening of the guy's speech gets me.  It's stupid, of course we need to adapt not immigrants.  We as a nation, as a people will always be adapting and that's ok.  Now sure it would be nice if the immigrants would consent to learn our language but I understand the hesitancy.  They don't want to lose their culture and we make them feel like if they learn our language they have to accept OUR culture.

Back to the whole stereotyping thing - this is something that we as Christians should not tolerate but it seems like we are actually promoting it!  We look at all women who have had or are going to get an abortion and we say evil, child-killer, heartless bitch, We look at every Goth and say devil-worshipper, evil, homicidal maniac, We look at every person who doesn't fit our perfect world view and say evil, wrong, bound for hell.  Instead of actually getting to know the person inside or looking at the extenuating circumstances or trying to understand and heal the hurt.  No we just condemn and say there's no hope.  What gives us that right?  God said "judge not, lest ye be judged."  I say we should take that to heart.

That is just frightening to think about, with every person/group we stereotype and judge and condemn God looks at us and our hearts and finds us wanting.  What happened to the Love of Christ?  Jesus was a radical he sat with prostitutes and tax collecters, the scum of his culture and he loved them, he cherished them, he even said that he came for them...what happened?  We preach acceptance, we may even think that we are following Jesus but we have strayed so far from his message of hope and love.

What happened?

It's strange to me that no one ever wants to admit that Christianity has made mistakes or will continue to make mistakes...in fact if you ask me I believe Christianity is in the midst of one the hugest mistakes ever.  But it's like we all want to pretend that we are perfect and can do no wrong, that our shit don't smell.  Which is just stupid.  Admitting that we've made mistakes is what makes us relatable and amazing.  And trying to pretend we are perfect makes us hypocritical and untrustworthy.

In fact some of the most amazing Christians I've met are the ones who don't try to hide their faults...admittedly there is still some reluctance in embracing them, but they at least are willing to admit that they aren't perfect.  And, coming from the viewpoint of a person who isn't wild about church and thinks Christianity and Christians need a lot of work, not being perfect and not being afraid to admit one isn't perfect is the most refreshing thing ever.

Whenever you go to church you always hear people expressing wonder that their congregations aren't larger, that more people aren't "faithful" about attending, that so many people "fall away" from church...well hello?  This is one of the main reasons.  Non-Christians look at Christians and see fake-ness, people smiling and saying "we're all okay, nothing is ever wrong," like some sort of Stepford Church.  It's not real and wouldn't you know it people are smart enough to realize that.

And I know that's not the only reason, there are others...one other in particular grates me...I'll save that for another day though.  I do believe, however, that this is one of the big reasons.

In fact most of my knowledge of the conditions in Vietnam come from a book by Tim O'Brien called Things They Carried which is an amazing book and according to reviews I've read of it and my dad (who was around during that period in history, though thankfully never actually went to Vietnam) it is a very accurate picture.  And most of my knowledge of the WWII internment camps comes from the song "Kenji."

Does this worry anyone else?  I mean we're always told to pay attention in history class so that we don't repeat the mistakes of the past, but how are we supposed to avoid the pitfalls that would take us down those mistake-ridden paths when we know so little about the atmosphere that the original events took place in?  Or what led us in that direction?

I think about this all the time, my Grandmother (on my mom's side) was alive when JFK was assassinated and remembers clearly where she was when she heard the news...but I know so little about it except that he was killed and I've seen the pictures of Jackie Kennedy (-Onassis) that were taken directly afterward.  So when I think about 9/11 and how the people my age ((I'm 21)and older) remember it with such vivid detail and the history books that were printed afterwards started out with a whole chapter devoted to the events of 9/11 and by the time I graduated it had shrunk to one or two paragraphs.

How are my kids going to understand the poignancy and enormity of 9/11 when they know nothing about it?  How are my kids going to know how to avoid the mistakes we've made in the Iraqi War when they are taught absolutely nothing about it?

Maybe...

Yeah here's a rant/thought...what is it with people willing to degrade themselves on national television so they can have their fifteen minutes of fame.  Like that video that came out a few months back where some girl (?) is like crying and telling everyone to "Leave Britney (Spears) alone!"  And not only that, s/he had the stones to post it on youtube.  WTF!!  I just don't understand that sort of need for attention I guess.  And all the reality shows that have come out, it makes me sick.  Anymore it's all about who can be the meanest, sneakiest, most underhanded, devious person possible.  Ugh!  It really does say something about our society, not only that we're willing to be humiliated on national television, but that we're willing to watch and support it...and I'm not sure I'm comfortable with what it's saying.  Hey, I know, I'm guilty of it too...but not on a regular basis.  In fact the only reality show that I really "keep tabs" on (so to speak) is Beauty and the Geek.  And that's because it seems (or at least it has seemed in past seasons) to really be more about the people and the relationships than the people.  And it doesn't really seem to support the sort of underhanded, backstabbers that I see a lot of other shows supporting.

Ok enough justifying my reality television choice.  In the end it's all the same, it's all about people willing to be humiliated and willing to watch others get humiliated on national television.  So yeah, thus endeth the rant.

And as my brother said (at 3 in the morning) "Happy f---ing New Year's."

Oh wait here we are, "hope isn't something we do it's something we can have." Newsflash, extra, extra!!!  Read all about it, time to add hope to the unending list of things that we, as Christians, are supposed to strive after.  And man if we don't achieve hope we might as well write ourselves a one-way ticket to the deep, dark, down-there place.  And if that isn't enough "hope is also the confident expectation that God is willing and able to fulfill His promises to us."  Alright nothing wrong with that on principle...yeah I have confidence that my God is able and willing to fulfill His promises...but something doesn't sit right.  Where, oh where have I heard this kind of thing before?  Oh yeah, it's called "confession" and not like the Catholic confession...no this form of confession is claiming something as yours because it "says" in the Bible that you are entitled.   EH!!!!  Wrongo!!!!  And while I agree that our Ultimate Hope as people lies with God, I'm just not sure that I like how this pastor has presented it.

And here's another delightful thing..."As we begin the new year we need to spend more time with God (Sure we should always be looking to do that, no matter what year we're in) so on the back table is a one-year new testament Bible to help you fulfill that goal."  WHAT?  Okay nothing wrong with becoming more familiar with the Bible BUT spending time "in the Word" doesn't automatically equate to spending time with God of the Universe.

Anyway, I'm sure this will offend some people and I know it looks like I don't have anything good to say about this church......their music was awesome and even though I sound very angry in the above I will probably go back to this church.  As I said I didn't disagree with everything I just don't agree with everything and no matter what church I go to that will be the case.  So...whatever.

Pertanyaannya: Apakah teman Anda 5 hari lagi sudah sampai di Banda Aceh? Mengapa?

Kepada teman anda yang lain yang anda bertemu di rumahnya, Anda sodorkan tiket ke Denpasar, tiket ke Jakarta, tiket ke Medan kepada teman anda.

Pertanyaanya sama : Dua hari lagi apakah teman anda yang satu ini juga sampai di Denpasar atau Jakarta? Atau apakah 4 hari lagi teman anda sudah sampai di Medan? Mengapa?

Di kesempatan yang lain, anda bertemu dengan teman anda yang lain lagi. Pada hari ketika anda bertemu di rumahnya, hampir tak ada waktu teman anda itu untuk berbincang bincang dengan anda. Ia terlihat sangat sibuk.Anda hanya ditemani ibunya hampir sepanjang anda berada di rumahnya. Sesekali ia menghapiri anda dan meminta maaf kepada anda. Hanya dari penjelasan ibunya, Anda tahu ternyata teman anda ini akan pergi ke Ujungpandang karena ada Sessi Wawancara Untuk Formasi Manajer Wilayah sebuah BUMN. Ia harus sampai di Ujung pandang 2 hari lagi. Tidak Bisa Tidak. Bila dalam 2 hari itu ia tidak sampai di Ujungpandang, sirna sudah kesempatan itu. Anda tidak punya tiket ke Ujungpandang untuk anda tawarkan kepada teman anda itu. Bahkan dari ibunya juga anda tahu, teman Anda masih kelelahan karena seminggu ada hajatan di rumahnya.

Pertanyaanya : Sampaikah teman anda itu 2 hari lagi di Ujungpandang? Mengapa?

Langkah 1. Menemukan Kebutuhan Orang Lain

Orang mau melakukan kegiatan selalu dengan alasan tertentu yang sangat kuat. Kalaupun ada orang melakukan satu kegiatan tanpa alasan, hampir pasti akan berhenti di jalan. Alasan alasan yang ada akan bermuara pada apa yang dibutuhkan oleh orang tersebut. Kalau tidak ada alasan ke Jakarta, walau ada tiket ke Jakarta, untuk apa ke Jakarta?. Alasan tidak harus besar. Tetapi harus khusus dan ada urgensinya. Anda menawarkan upah sebesar Rp. 1.000.000,- untuk satu pekerjaan kepada A. A tidak mau melakukannya karena ia tidak menganggap uang Rp. 1.000.000,- itu penting baginya. Ketika teman anda menawarkan pekerjaan yang sama kepada B hanya dengan upah separuhnya, tanpa menawar B langsung melakukannya. Dan selesai. Ternyata, teman Anda tahu bahwa B pada saat itu harus membayar uang sekolah anaknya sebesar Rp. 400.000,-. Bila tidak, anaknya dikeluarkan dari sekolahnya. Sudah pusing tujuh keliling B mencari pinjaman kemana mana tidak ada. Ia hanya ada Rp. 100.000,- di kantong. Renungkanlah, bahkan ketika teman Anda menawarkan dengan Rp. 300.000,- pun B pasti akan dengan senang hati melakukannya. Anda tahu mengapa? Teman Anda menemukan Need dari B.

Membantu menemukan need seseorang bisa dilakukan dengan berbicara dari hati ke hati tentang daftar kebutuhan kebutuhan penting yang harus dipenuhi baik untuk kebutuhan mendesak, jangka pendek ataupun jangka beberapa tahun ke depan. Bila hal tersebut dapat digali berikut dengan alasan alasan yang sangat kuat, maka need seseorang dapat ditemukan.

Langkah 2. Menunjukkan Solusi Akan Kebutuhan Orang Lain Tersebut.

Solusi disini adalah solusi untuk mengatasi masalah kebutuhannya tersebut. Anda bisa menawarkan sesuai dengan kriteria kebutuhan yang mereka perlukan. Mendesak, jangka pendek atau jangka panjang. Ketika mereka merasa bahwa apa yang anda tunjukkan adalah solusi bagi masalah mereka, maka dengan senang hati mereka akan memperhatikan apa yang akan anda jelaskan.

Tinggal anda menjelaskan secara detail kerangka kerja dari solusi tersebut. Maukah orang tersebut melakukannya setelah mendengarkan penjelasan anda?

Langkah 3. Menunjukkan Nilai Lebih Dari Solusi Yang Anda Tawarkan.

Bisa jadi, selain solusi yang anda tawarkan, orang lain begitu mengetahui kebutuhannya - tidak semua orang menyadari kebutuhannya - sudah mempunyai cetak biru solusinya di kepalanya. bahkan bisa lebih dari satu. Bila anda masih menghendaki orang lain mengerjakan apa yang anda tawarkan, anda harus mampu meyakinkan bahwa solusi yang anda tawarkan mempunyai banyak kelebihan dibanding yang lainnya. Anda harus fair membandingkannya. Anda tidak bisa memaksakan kelebihan itu kepada orang lain. Kesadaran orang lain bahwa solusi anda lebih mempunyai banyak kelebihan akan memudahka orangt tersebut melakukannya sendiri tanpa harus anda menyuruhnya melakukan. Anda hanya menawarkan. Ketika orang lain merasa "Inilah jalannya", ia akan dengan sendirinya melakukan. Dengan pengorbanan apapun. Tetapi kalau anda paksakan mereka untuk mengikuti kemauan anda, jangan harap mereka bekerja untuk anda seperti yang anda harapkan.

Bagaimana?

Das war zu erwarten! Die erste Ausstrahlung der "Biber Lars Vegas Show" beim Quizsender 9Live floppte! Der Sender hatte technische Probleme und der Biber, der von Radiomoderator Ali Khan gesprochen wurde, hat die Anrufer, die per HotButton durchgekommen sind, nicht verstanden.

Außerdem nannte "Biber Lars Vegas" die falsche Gewinnhotline. Er nannte die Gewinnnummer von der von 9Live produzierten "Sat.1 Quiz Night". Nach einigen Minuten wurde die Show abgebrochen und Ali Khan hat an "Planet 9" mit Thomas Schürmann abgegeben.

They are scared because they are merely educated by their own selective devices. It's only Islam because the average angry WASP isn't going to dare to turn that giant mirror back upon themselves. The fear is from 9/11 and it remains because we have doubt. We don't know. And we only believe the most extreme versions. There's evidence to suggest it was indeed an inside job, what with the detonations on the lower half of the second tower, but it's not enough to fully convince me. However if it were uncovered total anarchy would occur in this country, eventually leading to a reform of dictatorship. I don't want that. The problem here is, when I see a dark skinned person, perhaps of Arabic descent, I don't get scared. I think they're scared. And why wouldn't they be with Americans hunting them down? Grouping isn't going to get to the root of any problem and I get scared for the future of this country if we can't understand racism is so prevalent.  It's more prevalent in society today than I think it ever was. The races have expanded, and now everyone different is bad. Not just whites being the assholes, believe it or not. We make assumptions, about a group of people, without even thinking, and that is indeed dangerous.

I can't see this world surviving if we can't learn to trust one another and embrace different culture. But we aren't talking. We're bombing. I'm only losing my generation to Vietnam Version 2.0, but do forgive me for whining.

~she~