Don’t Get Consumed….

Today is a weird day. It only comes once every four years. So, I thought I would put out a totally weird post that I have been holding on to for some time. It starts with a quote from a not-so-well known person. Don’t get consumed by all the negativity in the world. Lighten up once in a while  — January 11,2012  RJ Walters Now I’m not getting a big head here (at least not too much) by quoting myself. I just thought this should be said by someone. It just seems so easy to get totally down with all the negativity … Continue reading Don’t Get Consumed….

God’s Dwelling Place

Source: God’s Dwelling Place – QuakerQuaker. There is no such thing as a sense of integrity that acknowledges the measure of light I have within me while at the same time ignoring the corresponding light within my neighbor. As that light is as constant within him or her as it is within me, there is no reasonable way or appropriate time to withhold the integrity my neighbor deserves as much as me. Nor are we to be honest and truthful with some and not with others because of such vain differences as race, gender, age, income, and sexual orientation. God dwells … Continue reading God’s Dwelling Place

A Point of Perspective….

Killing someone without government permission is wrong!!  I guess it is just a matter of how you look at things in the world. I ran across the statement above recently and was dumbstruck by it. But after thinking of it a while I realized that from a military and a capital punishment perspective this is how we justify killing the “bad guys”. If the State says its ok to kill then you are justified in doing it! This has to be the primary mentality that allows a military sniper, which by the way is the fastest growing sector of our … Continue reading A Point of Perspective….

Cracking the code: Why yuor barin can raed tihs

Source: The Body Odd – Cracking the code: Why yuor barin can raed tihs. For emaxlpe, it deson’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod aepapr, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer are in the rghit pcale. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit pobelrm. It is funny how we can read this above sort of thing. It is even funnier how I can read my own handwriting a day or more after I have written it. We use context to pre-activate the areas of our brains … Continue reading Cracking the code: Why yuor barin can raed tihs

‘Star Wars’ universe getting a lot bigger…

‘Star Wars’ universe getting a lot bigger – USATODAY.com. I am a Star Wars junkie, I freely admit it. I find it fascinating to take a peak of a possible future scenario that doesn’t end with us polluting the world beyond livability. I enjoy movies like “Soylent Green” and “Mad Max” but would rather believe we have a rosier future than they portray. Call me a wild-eyed dreamer if you want; I really don’t care. I have recently watched all the Star Wars movies in high def and I usually see an episode of “The Next Generation” or one of … Continue reading ‘Star Wars’ universe getting a lot bigger…

Another Flash in the Pan….

I see the Republicans have yet another “front-runner”! This time it is Rick Santorum. This makes every one of the eight or so wannabes that has moved to the front of the pack. But when that happens they soon seem to fizzle out like a flash in the pan. They get on the front burner of public attention and the heat becomes too much for them. Maybe Mr. Santorum will be different but I kind of doubt it.  He has his flaws just like all the rest of them. The Republicans want the “perfect” candidate, at least according to their … Continue reading Another Flash in the Pan….

Book Review – Letters from a Skeptic

In my three year journey of studying current day Christian organizations I read many books that inspired me. So, in the coming weeks I will be re-blogging some of the posts from my blog at RedLetterLiving.net . I will limit these posts to just things that inspired me in this area. I will NOT be revisiting things that let me down. Here is the first review of a book by Gregory Boyd. He is indeed a profound writer on things pertaining to Christ. <<<Post from August 13, 2009>>>: I just finished the book Letters from a Skeptic by Greg Boyd and I … Continue reading Book Review – Letters from a Skeptic

If You Can’t Be Good….

If you can’t be good, be different. – April 29, 1928  Will Rogers Can any of us really be good for any extended period of time? I don’t think so. So, that leaves just one alternative; being different.  All of us at times want to stand out from the crowd.  None of us want to be vanilla flavored.  Teenagers in particular go to extremes to be “different”. So much so that they end up looking and acting like all their classmates. That is the ‘catch 22’ of trying to be different when you really aren’t.  If everyone wants to be … Continue reading If You Can’t Be Good….

Scientists invent lightest material on Earth. What now?

Source:  Scientists invent lightest material on Earth. What now? – latimes.com. This is a fascinating article about a new material. The picture at the right says it all. It sits peacefully on top of a fluffy dandelion.  And proudly it was invented by a U.S. institution at CalTech.  I just hope that some U.S. firm can manage to take this concept into a usable stage. It seems that many of these types of things have to leave the country lately in order to find practical applications. Being a retired engineer my mind leaps to see all the practical uses. What if the … Continue reading Scientists invent lightest material on Earth. What now?

Head In The Sand….

Most of my life I have prided myself of being aware of what is going on in the world. I often cite the words of Thomas Jefferson who said a democracy depends on an informed electorate.  But, much of my life has also been spent being a contrarian. I am always looking at the majority opinion on things and then looking at opposing views to see if maybe they make more sense.  Sometimes these two philosophies collide; I think that is what happened here. What I am about to say now seems to go against the very grain of my life … Continue reading Head In The Sand….

This Life or the Afterlife??

Source: This Life or the Afterlife – QuakerQuaker. I don’t spend much time worrying about where I will be after I die. Instead I try to spend my time just concentrating on the words of Jesus as found in my Bible.  By his words he shows us how to live a God pleasing life. Yes, in spite of what several current Christian denominations say, I believe it is possible to please God by doing, or at least trying to do, what he told us to do. God, unlike what some say, does not just view us as worthless pieces of snot who can do nothing … Continue reading This Life or the Afterlife??

You Want To Be A What??

Source: Young Women Go Back to School Instead of Work – NYTimes.com. “Today young girls are told they can do anything, go into any occupation. But if boys express any interest in traditionally female occupations, they get teased and bullied,” Ms. Coontz said. “Lots of guys are not understanding what’s happening to traditional low-income or middle-income male jobs.” Jobs in the male-dominated manufacturing industry and in other sectors involving manual labor have been, and still are, in structural decline. These careers can also be hard to maintain indefinitely because youthful strength eventually fades. And now many manufacturing workers do not have … Continue reading You Want To Be A What??

Tolstoy and Christianity….

After watching the ending of a movie about Leo Tolstoy the other day I got interested in his life and writings. It surprised me to learn that he like Thomas Jefferson had written his own version of the Bible called the “Tolstoy Bible”. He again like Jefferson believed that the Christian church had strayed too far from the words of its founder Jesus Christ. I also learned that much of what Gandhi practiced come from Tolstoy’s writings.  Here are some words about that from Wikipedia: Tolstoy’s Christian beliefs centered on the Sermon on the Mount, particularly the injunction to turn … Continue reading Tolstoy and Christianity….

The Practice of Exclusion…

I have been thinking lately about the words of Jesus and how he interacted with those he came across. Except for some of those in the religious establishment I couldn’t find any instance where he chose to automatically exclude from his saving grace or the wisdom of his teachings. He treated men and women pretty much the same; he welcomed all to his ministry. The poor and marginalized seemed to be special targets for him to reach out. He just wasn’t one to exclude anyone, even tax collectors and Roman soldiers. The sick and the lame were often the center of … Continue reading The Practice of Exclusion…

Many say ‘So What?’ to God, religion, atheism

Source:  Many say ‘So What?’ to God, religion, atheism – USATODAY.com. It is no secret that those who claim to be “religious” in the U.S. has been shrinking every decade for more than 50 years now. But in the last ten years the people who check “none of the above” have been increasing almost exponentially. Here are some statistics from the above article: •44% told the 2011 Baylor University Religion Survey they spend no time seeking “eternal wisdom,” and 19% said “it’s useless to search for meaning.” •46% told a 2011 survey by Nashville-based evangelical research agency, LifeWay Research, they … Continue reading Many say ‘So What?’ to God, religion, atheism

Peace Requires Strength and Conviction….

Source:  Three Queries on Peace – QuakerQuaker. The author of the post above is David Madden. Please click the source above to see the entire post.  There are not many words in the source post (I will likely exceed his word count in just talking about it)  but they do inspire me. As is obvious from the link David is a Quaker and this article is based on Quaker thought and values. There are three points of peace brought up in the post. I will briefly mention the first two and then will have some personal thoughts on the last … Continue reading Peace Requires Strength and Conviction….

Cleaner Minds….

What we need is cleaner minds and dirtier fingernails. – February 28, 1928  Will Rogers This quote came to mind recently while I was reading an article on the USA Today website. As usual the comments at the end of the article were 95% dissing either the author of the article, the content, or other commentors.  I seldom wander below the bottom of most articles for this reason but for this one I was inclined to put a comment there. It would have been a constructive criticism. But after a quick review of what was already there I decided my … Continue reading Cleaner Minds….

Future of Technology – Foldable electric car debuts in Europe

Source:  Future of Technology – Foldable electric car debuts in Europe. The concept is based on the electric CityCar created by researchers at the MIT Media Lab, and commercialized by a consortium of automotive companies in the Basque region of Spain…. The MIT Media Lab envisions the cars finding a home in car-share programs where members drive any available ride around the city and parking at widely distributed charging stations.   The cars have a reported range of 100 km (62 miles) per charge, making them well suited for in-city driving in compact European cities already accustomed to small, fuel-efficient vehicles. … Continue reading Future of Technology – Foldable electric car debuts in Europe

Military Giants…..

The U.S. lately seems to have fallen into the logic that a massive and overwhelming military is necessary to maintain our country’s security.  History has proven that logic faulty again and again but we seem unable to learn that lesson.  Lets go back to David and Goliath. Goliath was the big military giant with all the current day military weapons and David was just a kid with a slingshot. We all know how that one ended. Let’s use that analogy and compare it to where we are today. If we take any other countries military capabilities and compare it to ours and … Continue reading Military Giants…..

The Happiness of Not Having Things….

“Frugality is one of the most beautiful and joyful words in the English language, and yet one that we are culturally cut off from understanding and enjoying. The consumption society has made us feel that happiness lies in having things, and has failed to teach us the happiness of not having things.”  – Elise Boulding The above words by Elise Boulding have a very deep and spiritual meaning to me. The very core of our capitalism here in the U.S. is about having things. Without our constant desire to have more than we have our very way of life would be … Continue reading The Happiness of Not Having Things….