all things are wonderful until they become popular.

there appears to be an internal struggle as one watches the things he/she likes become endorsed by the public eye. they become popular, more and more people read/watch/listen to them and then shout their endorsement from the rooftops...or their Facebook/twitter. for example, when the Montreal-based operatic folk rock wonder Arcade Fire emerged (no pun intended) David Bowie apparently bought a stack of Funeral and gifted his close friends with them. now, its almost too cool to be into their musical style and Win Butler's neo-gothness.

i remember reading Joshua Harris' I Kissed Dating Goodbye and thinking it was quite wonderful. now, a few years later...i still think it is a good book but i am frankly rather annoyed with how people have elevated the ideas presented in it to the level of sacred scripture. yes, someone out there probably thinks Joshua Harris is the sage of our times or something like that. i think its quite apparent that Harris never meant the book to become the completion of every good little american christian's library--which is why i get annoyed.

and then there is the Don Miller; perhaps the latest celebrity on the Christian non-fiction stage. after Blue Like Jazz everyone decided that this man who hangs out at Reed College was the most amazing creature on the earth. (don't get the impression i dislike Miller--i think Blue Like Jazz is ingenious, i just want to remind people that he's a human that's probably going to die of lung cancer).

and then there is Coldplay--the band that has redefined hype. many people will hear me ranting on about how i dislike Coldplay, well that's frankly not quite true--Coldplay is fine. i just pretend i dislike them because they are so popular and i'm tired of hearing about Chris Martin becoming the next Bono (yes i have my own fan cult that believes in the immortality of Paul Hewson...i can't decide if "jk" is appropriate here or not)

so why do i have this disdain of the mainstream? probably something to do with adolescent rebellious behavior no doubt. the hippie idea of going against the flow. the ideology of not letting the consumerist machine define what one spends one's hard earned money on. what is the worth of paying the money for the pleasure of status conferral?...it is nonexistent.

someday i will learn not to attempt to write late at night. until then, you have me always.

slaves to our intellect

In the 21st Century it has become required for almost any type of job to possess more than a high school diploma. Added to that is the fact that college is pressured on every person in the Western society. As a college student working on my Associate of Arts I am required to be "advised" each quarter to help me along my chosen career path. Every session with the adviser involves being asked "what do you plan to do after getting the AA". My response for the longest time was "I don't know"...and sometimes even "I might stop college after I'm done". The latter response is considered the most foolish choice one could ever make. I am then ushered to look upon the chart depicting the statistics of the incomes earned by various degree-wielding persons. The message is clear. The more money you spend probably getting brainwashed in a "higher institution" the more money you will make afterward.

Its all worth it isn't it? America's middle name is money - not freedom. Somehow, someone decided that the occupants of the world will not reach their full potential without an education. Whatever education means.

Not that I dislike college necessarily. I just cannot bring myself to believe that my ultimate fulfillment as a person will be found by going to college and getting a degree. Many life lessons are not taught by people titled professors and many things cannot be experienced in a crowded dorm. Have we forgotten all these other aspects to life? Or have we all become so intoxicated with accumulating more and more knowledge to the point where we are slaves to our intellect and no longer have the time or energy to enjoy something as simple and undefinable as a starry sky? Are we too busy building a modern tower of Babel?

"I will try to fix you"

It's been a while since I've written a blog post...so here is a smattering of stuff. You can call it what you want to.

I finished a sorta biography [Come Be My Light] about Mother Teresa today. When I picked out the book I was not expecting a book full of letters from her to her confessor & bishop about a variety of things--but that being said it was an alright book. Reading this book really motivates me to pick up my copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church again. Not that I enjoy reading the CCC--its the doctrines that intrigue me (such as the guiding capabilities of the virgin Mary and the infallibility of some man titled 'the pope'--no disrespect intended)

I also picked up to books from the library today, Lord of the Flies and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I developed interest in the first mentioned through Stephen Christian (if you aren't familiar with him--fix that) and the second was recommended to me by a dear friend (you know who you are).

Musically speaking, I'm listening to Coldplay right now. Because, to be completely honest I do have a soft spot in my heart for their song "Fix You". Other than that....I'll stick to U2. Speaking of U2, I just bought quite a few songs by them from Amazon.com the other day. I'm still ticked that the only way to get my hands on "Window in the Skies" is to buy an entire hits album or other artists karaoke versions of U2 songs. Seriously, that's so dumb.

If this was an incredibly boring blog post....I'm sorry....I will try to fix you. (heh heh)

oh, how i would loathe to be a leader

Americans are truly a fickle group of people. We elect a man to be our president, some of us insisting that said man is a "savior" and then everyone decides to hate him when he doesn't do everything he promised during his campaign within the first month of being in office.

But then, there were the people who hated him before he was even elected. Yeah, the Republicans. (And just so you all know, the above illustration is a screencap of a Facebook app that I found while on one of my friend's profiles.) I've also heard rumors of a private method of brightening up your day. Try creating a folder on your computer, label it "Barack Obama" and then proceed to place said folder in the trash can. Oh, and most importantly, for long term results, do this everyday--it'll make you feel so much better! I feel giddy already [sarcasm].

I remember the night before the 2008 election, my family received a forwarded email from some influential pastor (I could be wrong on the exact occupation of the emailer) who disclosed that he had spent ___ number of hours on his knees praying that somehow Obama would not win the election. He felt that God had given him his request so he proceeded to email everyone on his contact list telling them the great news of how righteousness shall prevail, in the end McCain shall win. Obviously, McCain lost, Obama won. Ironic eh? I really wonder what happened to the man who felt so sure that God had answered his prayer? What was his reaction the next day when he was told/heard/read that Barack Obama was now the President of the United States....and McCain was defeated?

I shall be forever amazed at vehement words and degradation President Obama has received from fundamental Christians. It's as if the bearer's of the name of a peaceful yet shocking man who lived a very long time ago have completely forgotten everything He ever said about treating one's enemies. No, I won't quote the exact chapter and verse for you because I want you to think about going and finding said passages. Please, dust off the book you tell the world you follow and acquire a practice of forgiveness.

Mess of Me

What can I say, I love the shredding.

you enjoy violence?

A good deal of the people I know are enraptured with movies. Movies of all kinds--chick flicks, comedy, horror, musicals, etc. In the circles of fundamental Christians that I used to frequently associate with I encountered the attitude of disdain for movies which exhibited strong sexual overtones (basically, many sex scenes and the like) but at the same time there was much talk of gory details of violence. Sex was not to be discussed--it was looked down upon as immoral, not to mention an awkward conversation topic--but violence was fair game. So much so, that it has even been proclaimed: "Whether you should see R rated movies depends on why they are rated R. If they are rated R because of sex--don't see them. If they are rated R for violence or crude language--no big deal."

The reason sex in movies is seen as "wrong" by many a group of Christians in completely understandable! In fact I would for the most part readily agree. To watch two actors engage in sexual relations on camera awakens desires, and most of the time (if not all the time) portrays an unrealistic outlook on sex and love in general.

But how is violence any different? With all the special effects (such as cars flying through the air, actors performing stunts, etc) put in to pump adrenaline and other emotional responses does it not portray an unrealistic outlook on violence? Car chases, duels, near death escapes, torture, execution--yes these are real life subjects, but I highly doubt they exist as they are portrayed in films!

And for those who profess the Christian faith, do we truly think we are doing ourselves a favor by watching such behavior? Do you really think you are building an attitude of love as you cheer your favorite protagonist on as he/she shoots down the "bad guys"? Is it not probable that what you take into yourself from the media you are exposed to will influence the thoughts you think and the way you live your life? Paul tells the Philippians: "whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things" (4:8). Can we rightly call such glamorous violence virtuous or praiseworthy?

In his book The Sacred Art of Questioning Everything, David Dark points out that when we are more offended at the "perversion" of Hollywood because of nude scenes and movies about gay people than we are about "people being blown up, starved to death, deprived of life-saving medicine, or tortured" we do not fully understand perversion. You like violence? I suggest moving to Darfur and living in a refugee camp. There, and many other places in the world, you will experience true violence that has been stripped of any Hollywood glamor.

I Using a Minotaur To Gore Detainees a Form of Torture?

Is Using A Minotaur To Gore Detainees A Form Of Torture?

this is possibly the funniest thing I've seen in a really long time.