There seems to be two sides to the argument over whether the crisis championed by ex-US Vice-President Al Gore is real. I've been pondering a brief commentary on this subject for some time, but never really had a supporting argument one way or the other.
How about now?
Most of the regulars here at The Stream know that I'm a bit of a footy fanatic. No, I don't have an obscure personal fetish - I love the beautiful game: football, or soccer if you must. Whilst reading some quick updates on the sport courtesy of Fox Soccer, I came across this statement at the end of an article noting the cancellation of two Carling Cup games today:
Meteorologist Stephen Davenport of the MeteoGroup said the
country (the United Kingdom, that is) could be witnessing "one of the coldest winters of the last
100 years.
Oh really? According to Al Gore, we're in the midst of a global warming crisis and the UK is experiencing perhaps their coldest winter in a century? Makes one wonder.
I can personally attest to the fact that it's not warm in the Sunshine State - Florida - for the uninitiated. My gratitude to weather.com for the image below, showing current temperatures across the US at 3:20 EST.
That's right; in the middle of the afternoon, it's 40 degrees and sunny in northwest Florida - at least where I am. And that cute phrase that the Weather Channel likes to use? Feels like 34.
34?!? In the middle of the day? When it's sunny? For heaven's sake, it's only 58 degrees in Miami. I don't think they even own jackets in Miami. Unless you count those thin cotton ones like Crocket used to wear.
I bet it wasn't 58 the day they shot this promo.
It may be an inconvenient truth that we need to wake up and light the furnace - the earth has warmed and cooled for thousands of years; it's kind of the cyclical nature of things. Gore may have A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis, but I'm more concerned about a plan for me to stay warm tonight at my son's soccer game. Forecast temperature at kickoff? 35 degrees (feels like 28).
Maybe Mr. Gore can come watch the game in his guayabera and loafers - no socks of course - apparel befitting the dangerously warming climate we'll be playing in. Of course, if he gets chilly, I'll offer him my foot warming pads - I'll be (mostly) snug under two pairs of long johns, two shirts, two pairs of socks, a hooded sweatshirt, two pairs of gloves and a wooly hat.
I'll be drinking the hottest coffee I can find but I'll be sure to offer Al a nice cup of iced guarapo, since he'll be warmer than the rest of us.
Anybody else worried about being too warm tonight?
Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that
reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and
not be scattered over the face of the whole earth."
This article on CNN highlights the inauguration of the (latest) tallest building in the world. The newly-renamed Burj Khalifa is a cloud-scraping 828 meters high - that's more than half a mile tall.
There are several interesting facts in the article about the previously-named Burj Dubai, starting with the new name. The majestic tower is named after Khalifa Bin Zayed, the president of the United Arab
Emirates -- and ruler of Abu Dhabi, the Emirate that let about $10 billion out of Dubai's debt balloon.
Reliant Stadium, home of the NFL's Houston Texans pays a cool $10 million a year for the naming rights to that edifice. Not that having his name on Dubai's latest paean to capitalism was the sole benefit for Sheikh Kalifa, I'm sure.
Having lived in Dubai, I was there for the birth of the construction boom in the mid-to-late 90's. My wife and I lived literally a stone's throw from the site of the first real showpiece on Dubai's construction skyline: The Burj al Arab.
Nowadays, after the Palm, the World, a new golf resort sponsored by Tiger Woods and countless other high profile projects, one has to wonder about the wisdom of reaching so relentlessly for the stars. I have applauded the Maktoum family - the rulers of Dubai - for their foresight and industry in turning Dubai into the business and tourism hub it has become. However, there has to be a limit doesn't there?
So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city.
I've had a few songs running around in my head lately. Maybe it's the ringing in my ears...
It's rare that I like live versions of songs that have really grabbed me from a studio release. Many bands seem to think that we all crave the improvisational stylings they sometimes bring to popular tunes when performed live. I have a word of advice for any famous musicians/bands/singers that might stop by The Stream: don't.
As with any rule, there is always an exception. And in this case - two. I first heard Shaker Song when I listened to the debut Spyro Gyra album: Spyro Gyra. Did I mention I typically don't like remakes either?
A few years later I happened to catch another of my favorite bands, Manhattan Transfer, singing - you guessed it - Shaker Song. After getting over my initial umbrage (old habits can be hard to break), I decided I loved it! Here's a live version of Shaker Song performed in Japan circa 1986...(takes a moment to load, please e patient)
Anyway, back to Shaker Song. For those who don't remember the original version from Spyro Gyra, here's a chance to listen - no flashy video - just great music...
This is just a small example, from the seemingly infinite jazz universe that we live in, of tremendous music. Enjoy - and happy new year!
Culture [Kuhl-cher] - noun 1. The quality in a person or
society that arises from a concern for what is regarded as excellent in
arts, letters, manners, scholarly pursuits, etc.
School days. Ah. Fond memories of hanging with my friends, playing sports, pranks, girlfriends, getting good grades without studying too hard. My first concert, the thrill of doing things I wasn't supposed to, jumping off the second floor balcony of the Bilmar Hotel in 11th grade to avoid hotel security. No need to say why they were knocking on our door.
I keenly remember standing in assembly, the Catholic priest who was our school chaplain intoning...something. I'm a little embarrassed to admit the extent that my friends and I made fun of him and the hymns we were supposed to be singing. If God wasn't so forgiving, I'd be doomed for sure.
I'd gone to Sunday school and church as a kid growing up - back in the day, when we had to wear a suit and tie. But that was a lifetime away from military school and peer pressure and, well, fun.
Thirty years later, I'm a Sunday school teacher. I could dwell on the irony of that but I have a more important point to ponder: Why are kids leaving the church today?
More specifically, young men and women in their mid-to-late teens and even early twenties are departing the church in droves. In fact, Over 60% of children who grow up in the church will leave it as young
adults according to Already Gone, a startling book by Ken Ham and
Brit Beemer. The cause?
Sunday school syndrome.
Ham and Beemer are finding through extensive research that instead of strengthening the faith of young people by solidifying the Bible's historical authority, Sunday school is teaching that the Bible is more about inspiration and morality than authenticity and reality.
How much time to young people spend in church? How much time do they spend in school? How much time do they spend in front of the television or with ear buds firmly implanted in their heads, listening to music? How much time do they spend on social networking sites or otherwise surfing the Internet?
I would hazard a guess that the time spent in church, or in church-related activity is far less than the rest. In fact, I believe that, similarly to the premise of Already Gone, church plays a part in the disconnect of young people from God. And I readily admit that I've been an enabler.
How many times have you invited someone to church? Did that suffice for your outreach duty? According to Matthew 28, Jesus didn't ask us to go and invite people to church - He asked us to go and make disciples. Big difference. In college and professional sports, recruiters go and scout out talent, inviting them to come and play at a particular school or for a particular team. It's up to the coaches to take that talent and mold it into a winning team. I have a sneaking suspicion that most Christians - evangelical or not - are more recruiter than disciple-maker.
But if each of us fails to take our personal knowledge of God - gained through regular study of God's message to humanity and how it (and He) has changed our own lives - and share it with someone, helping them mold that knowledge into their daily life, we are blowing it - big time. I even found a video for a church that admitted church was boring - except for theirs.
At the end of the day, what are we up against? We're up against our culture. We live in the age of reality shows and instant gratification. Oh yeah, I hear that our youth today are the most giving generation of all time - and I've met some young people that awesomely fit that bill. But I also heard a report on NPR this morning that highlighted the emergence of charity for profit. Everything from the pink ribbons to the timing of donations to take full advantage of our tax laws. The new charity is I'll give...as long as I get the best return from it.
So what's the answer? How do we fulfill Jesus' command to us in Matthew 28? Do we turn to culture? Do we make ourselves the anti-church?
I wrestle with how worldly we should be in reaching out to young people. Faith in God is a serious thing. That doesn't mean we can't have fun - heck, the knowledge that I will have eternal life and spend that time in the most amazing place in the universe is pretty exciting, if hard to conceptualize in our culture. One example of - at the risk of...something - a godly secular song is U2's 40
He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.
He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.
Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.
This article on MSNBC opines that Tiger Woods will never recover from the marital infidelity scandal he is currently embroiled in.
I am disappointed in Tiger - no doubt about it - but to say that he will never recover is naive. The media-consuming public has a notoriously short memory. The article mentions Kobe...what about Ted Kennedy? Holy cow, he was responsible for the death of a woman and he came out of that to serve forever on the Senate, with distinction. Listening to the endless eulogies after his death, I wouldn't be surprised to hear that Mr. Kennedy is going to be put forward as a candidate for sainthood. But we're not talking about the honorable senator from the great state of Massachusetts.
We all get mad when our idols let us down. That is more an indictment on us than on the object of our misplaced idol-worship. Tiger will be back - he is too good of a golfer and too strong mentally. Will he be as loved? Probably not. But within a year, maybe two at most - he will be tearing it up again.
Either that or your looking at the next Howard Hughes...I could be wrong - I'm not perfect either.
When I was younger, I used to watch Saturday Night Live. Of course, that was back in the days of John Belushi, Dan Akroyd, Garrett Morris, Bill Murray, Steve Martin, Laraine Newman, Gilda Radner and many others. Heck I even watched it during the tenure of Dana Carvey - who can forget the classic Church Lady line, "Could it be...SATAN?"
I also enjoyed Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood as Eddie Murphy took an icon and turned him into a deadbeat tenant.
Saturday Night Live has made fun of just about everything, from Chevy Chase mugging on Gerald Ford to Dan Akroyd tearing down Jane Curtin during the news, to Phil Hartman's "The Real Reagan" skit.
What I'm trying to say is that nothing was sacred when it came to SNL writing and performing parodies and skits. But now, even Hollywood is making noises about SNL going too far. What heinous tear-down could have elicited such a reaction?
First of all, let me apologize for the poor quality of this video - and for the film crew cackling in the background - even they thought a skit about Tiger getting his comeuppance at the hands of his wife was funny.
As the article notes, what seems to have flipped everyone out is that Rihanna was the musical guest on the SNL this week. You may remember that Rihanna suffered a domestic violence issue with her then-boyfriend Chris Brown.
I'm conflicted here. As I've gotten older, I've thought that a lot of what SNL does is distasteful and offensive. So what's the difference now?
A friend of mine sent me a link yesterday to a site hosted by Xerox Corporation. Of course, I thought, any company whose name begins with X can't be bad, right?
Our men and women have been deployed overseas - in harm's way - for many years and it's crucial that they understand just how much each and every one of us appreciates their service. From the cooks in the mess tent to the nurses in the hospital facilities to the mechanics in the motor pool to the ones ducking as bullets ricochet all around, we owe our heartfelt and eternal gratitude.
Go to Let's Say Thanks, pick out an original post card design, select a short message or create one of your own, and let a soldier, sailor, airman , marine or guardian know that you appreciate their service. If the link above doesn't work for you, copy and paste the one below into the address bar of your browser:
http://www.letssaythanks.com/Home1024.html
Politics doesn't matter. Whether you agree with our past, present, or future foreign policy or not is irrelevant. Take a moment and let our troops know you support THEM.
I guess it's appropriate that as I write this, The Andy Griffith Show is on CBS. I kind of like TAGS, but don't watch it regularly. The Dallas-Oakland game just ended, so it was on.
In fact, I don't watch a lot of TV anyway, which is why I missed the American Music Awards the other night. Fortunately, I have every traditional and web-based media outlet and blogger on the planet to tell me what I missed: Adam Lambert having faux-sex on prime time television.
It's a far cry from Mayberry to the modern AMA's. A crying shame in my book. Mr. Lambert is free to live his life as he pleases and appears to be doing so. Fortunately he doesn't call or write to ask what I think.
Before people get upset that I might be focused on the orientation of his display, hold your horses. I wasn't thrilled when Britney and Madonna decided to give each other an oral exam a few years back at the MTV video awards. What people do in the privacy of their own homes is none of my business. But what they do on national TV should be everyone's.
My displeasure - to quote an anthem from the 1970's - is like so much dust in the wind. Popular culture will continue to plumb the depths of depravity in the name of creative freedom. But that doesn't mean I have to like it.
What do you think about the direction our culture is headed?
I don't normally get too preachy on The Stream - opinionated yes, preachy, not so much. Some may feel like this post crosses that line but I have to post it - sorry.
I'm reading the book of Jeremiah as part of my daily devotional and this morning it
struck me (as I read chapter 24) that the people who were captured and carried off into exile were the
ones God was going to save. Imagine yourself as a resident of Jerusalem
in a time of siege. The armies of Babylon are at the gate, the city is
nearly surrounded, there's some crazy guy wandering around hollering
that God is punishing you for your sins and worshiping false gods.
The city is in chaos, people are wondering where God is - why is He letting these foreigners come and destroy the city dedicated to His name?
Jeremiah 24 has the answer, but is it what we want to hear?
How many of us would willingly let the armies of Nebuchadnezzar take us
captive? How many of us would instead, take our families and what few
possessions we could carry and flee to neighboring lands? How hard
would it be to convince our families that it may sound crazy, but we
need to go into exile? That giving our lives over to the King of
Babylon - the enemy - is God's plan to save the remnant of His people.
How hard is it today to do things that seem to go against the wisdom of the world?
Do we, as believers, have what it takes to make the really hard choices that our faith will someday demand?
That is what our pastors are here for. That is why small groups/Sunday
School exist. We have to prepare ourselves - Paul reminds us in Romans
12:2 - Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test
and approve what God's will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will.
...but instead, it's awesome! because I was able to meet some tremendously talented people last night - some that I have known for years, but have never met!
I attended the monthly meeting of the Written Remains writers group in Newark (pronounced New - Ark, so I'm told), DE.
Honestly, I've been slacking in the writing department for the last several months, with this humble blog amounting to the most creative writing I've done in ages. But last night, able to sit with my friends and fellow writers, well, I felt nothing less than inspired.
We enjoyed the aromatic atmosphere and ambiance of Panera as stories were discussed and dissected, knight-warrior's motivations were unpacked, and zombie redneck girls were sympathized with.
The highlight of the evening was finally getting to meet - live and in person - Sherry Thompson, author of Seabird and the soon-to-be released, epic follow-up, Earthbow.
Thank you Joanne for helping make it all possible and thank you to Justynn Tyme and la jeune fille de dressage for a most memorable evening. I wish you all continued success in your creative endeavors and hope that our paths will cross again.
Until then, bonne santé, bonheur et la bénédiction de Dieu sur vous tous.
I'm a "lightly" published author who is dedicating more and more time to writing - of all kinds - in an effort to increase output, and of course, quality!
