Saturday I saw the movie Book of Eli starring Denzel Washington. I was impressed. I gotta say, I saw a preview for it about a month ago, and immediately dismissed it. I thought it looked stupid. But the girl I've gone out with a few times wanted to see it, so I asked her if she wanted to go see it with me Saturday night.
The movie takes place after a nuclear war, 30 years after actually. They called it "the flash" because of how bright it was, and many who were alive then are blind because of it, even if they escaped the bombs and radiation.
Denzel's character, Eli, explains that a year after "the flash" people began to emerge from the bunkers they had survived in, searching for resources. Water was now the most expensive resource. Many resorted to cannibalism to survive. It was very much anarchy.
Eli also explained that people burned Bibles after the flash. They apparently blamed religion for the war, as many do, even though much simpler explanations like greed and revenge usually are the cause, masked in religion. Eli found the last one. Now he travels west, protecting the book by killing.
It really was a great movie. Not only was the acting superb, but the plot was good and the movie really moved. It didn't really drag anywhere. The action was cool, and the videography was excellent. I highly recommend it to anyone.
There is the F-bomb in it a few times, but not excessively (many movies use it for the sake of using it). The action was great. It may be much for some, but just for a comparison, its not as bas as Gladiator (which I love).
The movie also had some great themes to it. Obviously you know I'm going to like him having a quest, fighting for something he thought was worth dying for. These themes are deep in my own heart.
There are more themes to, but reveal a little more about the movie (though I will try not to ruin it), so I'll let you decide if you want to read on.
*SPOILER ALERT*
He explains to the girl that the Holy Spirit (not called by name) led him to the book, and told him to go west. He is looking for the right place to share it. This made for an interesting thing, of him not getting hurt when first confronted by the bad guys.
There is also an interesting scene where he laments that he read the book every day, but failed to do what it says. He tries to change at the end of the movie.
The bad guy also has an interesting lesson. He rules a town through fear, reminding me of many old westerns were a cattle baron "owns" the town. He seeks the Bible so that he can use it to manipulate people into doing what he wants willingly. As he says, it will give him the right words. He uses all his power in attempt to get the book, and it costs him. A warning to all who seek to hold power over others and oppress them.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Pat Robertson, world's most vocal idiot
This week, there was a 7.3 earthquake in Haiti, virtually leveling the capital city of Port-au-Prince. Hospitals are gone. Within 24 hours of the quake, the Red Cross in Haiti was completely out of supplies. Haiti is the poorest country in this hemisphere. They have nothing to start with. Now, their buildings lay in ruins, and they have no ability to repair those hospitals and schools without help from the outside world.
God, help me to serve you in a way that will benefit the people of Haiti. I want to be your hands in that country. Help me not to just offer prayers, but be willing to obey.
In light of the great need (to help, I recommend working through World Vision or IDES; they are reputable and have experience in disaster relief), many are pulling together to help, as they should. Soon, people will make fake charities, preying on people's generosity. Over and over again throughout the Bible, God condemns those who do wrong to the poor (especially in the prophets, proclaiming destruction upon those who have done so. Read Amos). Amos 5:12 "For I know how many are your offenses and how great your sins. You oppress the righteous and take bribes and you deprive the poor of justice in the courts." (NIV) God PROMISES judgement on those who prey upson the poor. If that is you, you have been warned.
God, You will be faithful to your promises. Great and terrible will be your wrath on those who oppress the poor and refuse to repent. God, help me to turn from the ways in which I oppress the poor. Be gracious to me, teaching me and all who do this wrong to turn from our sin to your righteousness.
In addition to these warnings, let me know express my feelings about Pat Robertson. If you don't know, he said that the earthquake was a curse, because they supposedly made a pact with Satan to throw off the rule of Napoleon. So, to you, Pat, I say:
You wicked fool! How dare you, oh one of great senility, speak in such evil and ignorance! You blame the poor for being oppressed! You blame them for Satan's evil. Even if the pact was made, Ezekiel 18:20 says, "The soul who sins is the one who will die. The son will not share the guilt of the father , nor will the father share the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against him." (NIV) God would not hold them cursed for the sins of their fathers! Woe to you, who sits in your chair as if it were a throne, wearing your fine suit like a kingly robe. You drive a car as the Caesars drove chariots! You live in a mansion, like a palace of old! Woe to you, for you proclaim judgement and oppress the poor by your words. Worse, you lead others to follow you! Great will be your judgement when you stand before God. Repent!
For anyone else who would read this, do not hold Christians accountable for Pat Robertson. He is the violation of what we believe. He is a Pharisee, a hypocrit. He claims to hold to our religion, but does not practice it in any way. He is a blight, a disease. He causes my stomach to turn.
God, help me to serve you in a way that will benefit the people of Haiti. I want to be your hands in that country. Help me not to just offer prayers, but be willing to obey.
In light of the great need (to help, I recommend working through World Vision or IDES; they are reputable and have experience in disaster relief), many are pulling together to help, as they should. Soon, people will make fake charities, preying on people's generosity. Over and over again throughout the Bible, God condemns those who do wrong to the poor (especially in the prophets, proclaiming destruction upon those who have done so. Read Amos). Amos 5:12 "For I know how many are your offenses and how great your sins. You oppress the righteous and take bribes and you deprive the poor of justice in the courts." (NIV) God PROMISES judgement on those who prey upson the poor. If that is you, you have been warned.
God, You will be faithful to your promises. Great and terrible will be your wrath on those who oppress the poor and refuse to repent. God, help me to turn from the ways in which I oppress the poor. Be gracious to me, teaching me and all who do this wrong to turn from our sin to your righteousness.
In addition to these warnings, let me know express my feelings about Pat Robertson. If you don't know, he said that the earthquake was a curse, because they supposedly made a pact with Satan to throw off the rule of Napoleon. So, to you, Pat, I say:
You wicked fool! How dare you, oh one of great senility, speak in such evil and ignorance! You blame the poor for being oppressed! You blame them for Satan's evil. Even if the pact was made, Ezekiel 18:20 says, "The soul who sins is the one who will die. The son will not share the guilt of the father , nor will the father share the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against him." (NIV) God would not hold them cursed for the sins of their fathers! Woe to you, who sits in your chair as if it were a throne, wearing your fine suit like a kingly robe. You drive a car as the Caesars drove chariots! You live in a mansion, like a palace of old! Woe to you, for you proclaim judgement and oppress the poor by your words. Worse, you lead others to follow you! Great will be your judgement when you stand before God. Repent!
For anyone else who would read this, do not hold Christians accountable for Pat Robertson. He is the violation of what we believe. He is a Pharisee, a hypocrit. He claims to hold to our religion, but does not practice it in any way. He is a blight, a disease. He causes my stomach to turn.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Depression
I struggle with depression. Not serious. I have NEVER had a suicidal thought. I am not on medication, nor do I require it. But I do have depression sometimes.
Last week was one of those times. It had been years since my last bought of this type. Yet, there it was.
I picked up on the symptoms, late. Loneliness, over eating, trouble sleeping, quick temper. These are the symptoms I personally exhibit, though I imagine it varies from person to person. These symptoms, with a few others, all flared last week.
To make it worse, the dad of one of my closest friends passed away in the same week. I did not know the deceased, nor did I mourn him. So why did it make it worse? Guilt. I had depression and was sitting around feeling sorry for myself, while my friend lost his dad. I am close to my dad, as he was to his, so I cannot even imagine the pain. The guy was 48 years old, and died of the word that makes me sicker than any other, cancer.
My depression began because several, trival things went wrong. They were small. They didn't even make me mad, just frustrated. Then I had one relationship issue that was just a breakdown in communication, but still sent me into a spiral, much like the one years before. I thought I was over the one years before. I am certainly over the girl that started it (she didn't even enter my mind), but the insecurities, the things I found within myself remain. I am still vulnerable to the old hurts. My heart is still indefensable in the same areas.
Depression sucks. Its something we don't really talk about, but it sucks. Its more than a wieght being placed on you. Its like I have no energy, but cannot rest either. It is feeling like if you cry you would feel better, but have no tears (and yes, real men cry when they need to). For me, I do not want to eat, but am constantly hungry. I am constantly pissed, but at no one in particular or about anything in particular.
The good news is, I am doing better now than I was last week. I have found my strength again. I still feel vulerable in certain areas (a difficult thing for men to admit), but my will is being restored. I'm also getting over a cold, which health can also get a person down.
I wrote this, mostly to admit that people do get depressed, and there is hope to overcome.
Some simple suggestions I learned when I went to counselling with my severe bought a few years ago.
Last week was one of those times. It had been years since my last bought of this type. Yet, there it was.
I picked up on the symptoms, late. Loneliness, over eating, trouble sleeping, quick temper. These are the symptoms I personally exhibit, though I imagine it varies from person to person. These symptoms, with a few others, all flared last week.
To make it worse, the dad of one of my closest friends passed away in the same week. I did not know the deceased, nor did I mourn him. So why did it make it worse? Guilt. I had depression and was sitting around feeling sorry for myself, while my friend lost his dad. I am close to my dad, as he was to his, so I cannot even imagine the pain. The guy was 48 years old, and died of the word that makes me sicker than any other, cancer.
My depression began because several, trival things went wrong. They were small. They didn't even make me mad, just frustrated. Then I had one relationship issue that was just a breakdown in communication, but still sent me into a spiral, much like the one years before. I thought I was over the one years before. I am certainly over the girl that started it (she didn't even enter my mind), but the insecurities, the things I found within myself remain. I am still vulnerable to the old hurts. My heart is still indefensable in the same areas.
Depression sucks. Its something we don't really talk about, but it sucks. Its more than a wieght being placed on you. Its like I have no energy, but cannot rest either. It is feeling like if you cry you would feel better, but have no tears (and yes, real men cry when they need to). For me, I do not want to eat, but am constantly hungry. I am constantly pissed, but at no one in particular or about anything in particular.
The good news is, I am doing better now than I was last week. I have found my strength again. I still feel vulerable in certain areas (a difficult thing for men to admit), but my will is being restored. I'm also getting over a cold, which health can also get a person down.
I wrote this, mostly to admit that people do get depressed, and there is hope to overcome.
Some simple suggestions I learned when I went to counselling with my severe bought a few years ago.
- Talk about it. It helps to admit it.
- Do the things you don't want to do, like spend time with friends, get out of bed, etc.
- Excercise. It may not feel like it at first, but simple things like running can really help.
- Doing nothing won't solve the problem.
- Seek help. Family, friends, doctors. It really helps more than you know, if you've never gotten help before. It takes a little pride swallowing, but human beings are designed to be interdependant. Get help, and then later you can help others.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Chivalry
If you haven't figured out by the name of the blog, I love the ideals of chivalry. One of the primary tenants of the oath of chivaly was justice. Included in justice is the idea of helping the oppressed. This idea has been lost in America. In America, we have this idea of you get what you deserve. We oppress the oppressed.
This is true in politics. Republicans want to ignore the poor and help the wealthy get wealth (even if the idea is that the rich can create businesses, they exploit small business owners in favor of their mega-corporate sponsors). Democrats wish to profit off the poor, by getting them to vote for them, then giving them a pitance of welfare and elemenating all opporunities for them to get ahead. Look at the schools in the inner city, in the same areas that supply democratic voters. I was in one tonight, packing lunches so that these poor ghetto kids can actually eat on weekends. In the mean time, the rich school down the streets got grants for millions in an unnecessary remodel.
This is also true internationally. Americans spent 450 Billion dollars (Billion with a B) on Christmas every year. For 10 million dollars (Million with an M) every human being could have access to clean, sanitary drinking water. This would cut childhood fatalities in HALF.
The average woman or child in a third world country spend 5 hours A DAY getting water. And the water that they get is usually from stagnant bogs and pond, and is so disease ridden it is deadly. They are forced to make the choice of dying from lack of water or from drinking what water they have. How would you like to make that choice for you and your children? How would you like to choose from what you watch them die?
And because this is 5 hours a day, and they are very ill from what water they do have access to, they are unable to participate in what little educational opporunities are available to them. Bono said, "We can be the generation that no longer accepts that an accident of latitude determines whether a child lives or dies." Yet, despite the ability to do so, WE DO NOTHING.
Where is the justice? This is one night who won't stand for it. I have done what I can for now. I will try to continue to do more. I do not want to stand by while not doing what I can to provide justice for the poor. We have the ability to do so much. There is more to do than I can possibly do alone, but as long as there is no justice for the oppressed, I will do what I can.
Recommended resources: World Vision and Richard Stearns The Hole in Our Gospel.
This is true in politics. Republicans want to ignore the poor and help the wealthy get wealth (even if the idea is that the rich can create businesses, they exploit small business owners in favor of their mega-corporate sponsors). Democrats wish to profit off the poor, by getting them to vote for them, then giving them a pitance of welfare and elemenating all opporunities for them to get ahead. Look at the schools in the inner city, in the same areas that supply democratic voters. I was in one tonight, packing lunches so that these poor ghetto kids can actually eat on weekends. In the mean time, the rich school down the streets got grants for millions in an unnecessary remodel.
This is also true internationally. Americans spent 450 Billion dollars (Billion with a B) on Christmas every year. For 10 million dollars (Million with an M) every human being could have access to clean, sanitary drinking water. This would cut childhood fatalities in HALF.
The average woman or child in a third world country spend 5 hours A DAY getting water. And the water that they get is usually from stagnant bogs and pond, and is so disease ridden it is deadly. They are forced to make the choice of dying from lack of water or from drinking what water they have. How would you like to make that choice for you and your children? How would you like to choose from what you watch them die?
And because this is 5 hours a day, and they are very ill from what water they do have access to, they are unable to participate in what little educational opporunities are available to them. Bono said, "We can be the generation that no longer accepts that an accident of latitude determines whether a child lives or dies." Yet, despite the ability to do so, WE DO NOTHING.
Where is the justice? This is one night who won't stand for it. I have done what I can for now. I will try to continue to do more. I do not want to stand by while not doing what I can to provide justice for the poor. We have the ability to do so much. There is more to do than I can possibly do alone, but as long as there is no justice for the oppressed, I will do what I can.
Recommended resources: World Vision and Richard Stearns The Hole in Our Gospel.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Baby Its Cold Outside
There used to be a lot of talk about Global Warming. "By 2020, Boston will be underwater." -John Kerry. Melting of the polar ice caps. Holes in the Ozone. All caused by polution?
Not to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but political entities are not reporting all the facts, either to get reelected (Pelosi) or to make money (Gore). Bottom line is, its a load of crap.
In Tennesee, companies are allowed so many "credits" that represent the amount of polution they are allowed to create. Unused credits are allowed to be sold. Al Gore's business has and sells plenty of unused credits... to Al Gore! His house uses more electricity and creates more pollution than most small towns in America. He doesn't believe and doesn't follow the same rules he makes a buck off of, now that's the incovient truth!
Diane Saywer in an interview with Gore pointed out that meat processing plants are one of the big polluters in America, and quoted a scientist who said that any true enviromentalist would be a vegetarian. She then asked him if he would give up cheeseburgers. He simply said, "No." He should smell what he's shoveling, because it sure ain't truth!
Nancy Pelosi would also tell you that she cares for the enviroment and the poor. Yet she recently decided she could not fly in her private Gulf Stream jet anymore, because it had to refuel in Kansas City. Instead, she bought a Boeing 757, which gets half the fuel economy, but has larger tanks so it doesn't have to stop to refuel. Tell you what, you want me to believe this crap? Fly Delta like the rest of us.
Now many would try to convince you that I am some right-wing Republic tool, who believes that the moon landing was faked and Elvis went back to his homeworld, but I'm not. I learned recently that in northern Greenland, where the ice caps are melting, they have found Viking settlements dating back to the Dark Ages, showing that Global Warming has happened before. They also noticed that plant life in general has been growing better since the warming (gee, imagine that, its actually GOOD for the enviroment) allowing them to track similar patterns in history. This seems to be a thousand year cycle of warming and cooling.
Couple that with the fact that the earth has COOLED since 2000. That's why you don't hear Global Warming anymore. Its now called "climate change." As I said, I am no conspiracy theorist. I just heard about the global cooling and the Viking settlement discoveries and started to dig. I don't care what they can make money on, I want to know the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I dug and found this. I'll keep digging, and keep believing this until I find something else. Until then...
Not to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but political entities are not reporting all the facts, either to get reelected (Pelosi) or to make money (Gore). Bottom line is, its a load of crap.
In Tennesee, companies are allowed so many "credits" that represent the amount of polution they are allowed to create. Unused credits are allowed to be sold. Al Gore's business has and sells plenty of unused credits... to Al Gore! His house uses more electricity and creates more pollution than most small towns in America. He doesn't believe and doesn't follow the same rules he makes a buck off of, now that's the incovient truth!
Diane Saywer in an interview with Gore pointed out that meat processing plants are one of the big polluters in America, and quoted a scientist who said that any true enviromentalist would be a vegetarian. She then asked him if he would give up cheeseburgers. He simply said, "No." He should smell what he's shoveling, because it sure ain't truth!
Nancy Pelosi would also tell you that she cares for the enviroment and the poor. Yet she recently decided she could not fly in her private Gulf Stream jet anymore, because it had to refuel in Kansas City. Instead, she bought a Boeing 757, which gets half the fuel economy, but has larger tanks so it doesn't have to stop to refuel. Tell you what, you want me to believe this crap? Fly Delta like the rest of us.
Now many would try to convince you that I am some right-wing Republic tool, who believes that the moon landing was faked and Elvis went back to his homeworld, but I'm not. I learned recently that in northern Greenland, where the ice caps are melting, they have found Viking settlements dating back to the Dark Ages, showing that Global Warming has happened before. They also noticed that plant life in general has been growing better since the warming (gee, imagine that, its actually GOOD for the enviroment) allowing them to track similar patterns in history. This seems to be a thousand year cycle of warming and cooling.
Couple that with the fact that the earth has COOLED since 2000. That's why you don't hear Global Warming anymore. Its now called "climate change." As I said, I am no conspiracy theorist. I just heard about the global cooling and the Viking settlement discoveries and started to dig. I don't care what they can make money on, I want to know the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I dug and found this. I'll keep digging, and keep believing this until I find something else. Until then...
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Last Night-Skillet
Click here to hear "Last Night" by Skillet
The only way I know how to express my thoughts surrounding this is in a letter, to whomever I would marry (if I do).
Dear wife,
There is something about this song that speaks to me. It speaks to a desire in my heart. I want to be your hero. I want to rescue you, to make a promise to fight for you, beside you, forever.
I think this desire is in the heart of all men. We WANT to be the knight in shining armor. We want to fight for a King, a noble cause, a damsel. This desire speaks deeply to us. That's why we like movies where the hero rescues his beloved, because through that hero we live vicariously.
I want you to know, my armor has holes. Its kinda rusty. It doesn't shine in most areas. My sword is dull. My shield is scratched. My helmet, well, sometimes I don't see out the visor. Its not that I don't want to be better, I do. But...
I won't be the best husband. I'll work too much. I'll be tired when I get home. I'll just want to watch TV most of the time. There will be more times than I would like of you getting the leftovers of my time.
But I want to be a hero in your eyes. That's what men desire more than love, respect. To know that I'm a good man, at least in your eyes.
I also know that this somewhat comes from a weakness of mine. I have a tendancy to try to save others, to solve their problems. I enable them to need me. I will try not to fix you. Understand I will do so out of love, and a desire to be your hero. This does NOT mean you have to let me, to satisfy some error in my psyche. I only ask that you be understanding and gentle in correcting me.
With my love,
Knight
The only way I know how to express my thoughts surrounding this is in a letter, to whomever I would marry (if I do).
Dear wife,
There is something about this song that speaks to me. It speaks to a desire in my heart. I want to be your hero. I want to rescue you, to make a promise to fight for you, beside you, forever.
I think this desire is in the heart of all men. We WANT to be the knight in shining armor. We want to fight for a King, a noble cause, a damsel. This desire speaks deeply to us. That's why we like movies where the hero rescues his beloved, because through that hero we live vicariously.
I want you to know, my armor has holes. Its kinda rusty. It doesn't shine in most areas. My sword is dull. My shield is scratched. My helmet, well, sometimes I don't see out the visor. Its not that I don't want to be better, I do. But...
I won't be the best husband. I'll work too much. I'll be tired when I get home. I'll just want to watch TV most of the time. There will be more times than I would like of you getting the leftovers of my time.
But I want to be a hero in your eyes. That's what men desire more than love, respect. To know that I'm a good man, at least in your eyes.
I also know that this somewhat comes from a weakness of mine. I have a tendancy to try to save others, to solve their problems. I enable them to need me. I will try not to fix you. Understand I will do so out of love, and a desire to be your hero. This does NOT mean you have to let me, to satisfy some error in my psyche. I only ask that you be understanding and gentle in correcting me.
With my love,
Knight
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Beginning
I don't know what I want from this blog. I want it to be a blog without a face, just a perspective. I am a man of strong belief, conviction, spirituality. I am, what I am. No more, no less. I have a public job, which due to internal politics, requires me to be restrained. This will not be.
To those that know me, I think they can figure out who this is. I do not hide who I am, just my opinions. For this rest of you, I live in the United States. I have become disillusioned with the country of my birth. It irritates me that our President ran on a campaign of change, but everything he does that people complain about, he shrugs his shoulders and says, "Bush did it." WE DON'T WANT BUSH! I believe that both the House and Senate are corrupt. I also disagree with the politicians of both parties. I do not believe that the solution to our problems can happen by them. They got us into this mess. Now they should get out of the way and less us handle it, the way this country was intended.
You should also know that I am a man, and believe that gender differences are not incidental. I do NOT believe men are better than women. Most of my life I believed the opposite, but have lately come to learn that they are not unequal, but still not the same. I believe that all women have a beauty that has been stolen from them, men have a wild nature that we have been taught is bad. I also believe that most "men" are still boys who never grew up, never learned what it means to be apart of a bigger purpose, never learned what it means to put anything (including their spouses) before their own pursuit of pleasure, mostly through porn. As you can tell, I am passionate about these issues and will write on them frequently.
I believe that most race issues would be gone, except that political agendas separate and alienate us to keep us under their feet. And no, I do not intend to tell you of which race I am.
Well, I think this is a good start. I don't know if anyone will read this, but if you do I ask that any comments that are left be meant for discussion, not argument. The main differences being that in a discussion, you treat people with respect, disagreeing with the ideas, not belittling the person (many, especially in the political realm, can no longer do this). The other difference is in a discussion, you ACTUALLY LISTEN to the other person's point of view.
To those that know me, I think they can figure out who this is. I do not hide who I am, just my opinions. For this rest of you, I live in the United States. I have become disillusioned with the country of my birth. It irritates me that our President ran on a campaign of change, but everything he does that people complain about, he shrugs his shoulders and says, "Bush did it." WE DON'T WANT BUSH! I believe that both the House and Senate are corrupt. I also disagree with the politicians of both parties. I do not believe that the solution to our problems can happen by them. They got us into this mess. Now they should get out of the way and less us handle it, the way this country was intended.
You should also know that I am a man, and believe that gender differences are not incidental. I do NOT believe men are better than women. Most of my life I believed the opposite, but have lately come to learn that they are not unequal, but still not the same. I believe that all women have a beauty that has been stolen from them, men have a wild nature that we have been taught is bad. I also believe that most "men" are still boys who never grew up, never learned what it means to be apart of a bigger purpose, never learned what it means to put anything (including their spouses) before their own pursuit of pleasure, mostly through porn. As you can tell, I am passionate about these issues and will write on them frequently.
I believe that most race issues would be gone, except that political agendas separate and alienate us to keep us under their feet. And no, I do not intend to tell you of which race I am.
Well, I think this is a good start. I don't know if anyone will read this, but if you do I ask that any comments that are left be meant for discussion, not argument. The main differences being that in a discussion, you treat people with respect, disagreeing with the ideas, not belittling the person (many, especially in the political realm, can no longer do this). The other difference is in a discussion, you ACTUALLY LISTEN to the other person's point of view.
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