After my last post, I wanted to re-commit myself to shorter blog posts and also to avoiding politics unless I can laugh at it. I mean, let's be realistic, I can't stay away from politics, it's physically impossible for my brain to ignore it. But in the past week, I'm pretty sure I offended half of my ward (not with the post, but with other Facebook debates), and I found out that people know me as someone who gets heated up about politics simply to pass time. And as I alluded to in the last post, I'm so sick of politics, so I'm not going to rack my brain with it anymore (that's probably a lie, too).
People who read this think that I am a negative person. I'm really not though. I'm actually very positive. I created this blog as a way to complain because I don't complain in real life. Also, have you ever read a positive, happy blog? Boooring. You know what I'm talking about: "My life is so great because I am married to the most perfect human being ever and we have gorgeous, well behaved children who get straight A's and wrote full symphonies at age 9, blah blah blah" boring. Let's face it, negativity in blogs is funnier. I also started this blog because all the negative feelings I bottle up during my day keep me up at night and this is a good outlet. For example, considering how mad I was last week at the passage of the healthcare bill, I slept very well on that Sunday night because of that blog post. I actually slept better that Sunday than I did on Tuesday, the day the bill was signed into law. So, proof that this is healthy for me.
Anyway, I'm getting lost in tangents. I want to write shorter blogs about strange things that I experience or think about. More like a stand up routine, or like The Soup (show on E! that makes fun of television shows. If you don't watch it, do. It's hilarious) But you'll find out that I'm a little slow in talking about things as I see them, which leads to what I wanted to talk about today.
In November of last year, Playboy Magazine featured nude drawings of Marge Simpson. I personally have nothing to say one way or the other about it, but a certain Christian activist group did. I tried to find the original article that I had read months ago, but after searching tirelessly (2 minutes) for it, I gave up. Never fear, I remember the important things. This Christian group was in a tiff because Playboy slandered the image of a housewife, mother of 3. I laughed pretty hard when I read this. First of all, I don't know if Marge Simpson is the perfect model of a Christian mother anyway, so get over it. Also, as a fellow Christian, I find it much more awful that 18 year old girls are walking out of high school, skipping college and heading right into the Playboy mansion, where they take off their clothes and have their picture taken for millions of creepy men to look at for millions of dollars, and then are sleeping with an 84-year-old millionaire who will just replace them in a year or so anyway. But, that doesn't bother this particular activist group. Apparently, young women are allowed to offer nothing but smut to society, but when a FICTIONAL, cartoon mother of three appears nude in a magazine we have to put our foot down. I don't condone it, but seriously, maybe you could use that energy to fight for something that is, I don't know, real.
I almost forgot my disclaimers. You know, all of my blogs have them. I think that it's good for Christians to stand up for what they think is right, but I mean, c'mon. I appreciate your concern, but you need to adjust your aim a little. You have to use some common sense, and use love, not hate, man (groovy). And secondly, I apologize for saying that Marge is not a model of a good Christian mother (even though I think it's true). I love the Simpsons!
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
Pearls before swine.
Yes, here comes another political blog, but this one is a little different. And I have been thinking about it for a while, so don't think that I wrote this all in response to the despicable vote by congress for healthcare today, although I am beyond words with disgust. Maybe I'll write about it later, but I could probably write a whole novel about it, so I probably won't. It's not like I have that much time on my hands.
I am tired of many accusations that Republicans get for their views. "You are fighting against Obamacare even though you know it's for your own good." "You hate the country", "you are finding excuses just to start a war", "you are purposely sabatoging progress," "you hate the planet because you don't have a Prius", "you deny scientifically factual evidences of evolution". Democrats think that Republicans are stupid. Did it ever cross their minds that we weighed the options of Obamacare and our opposition to it is ACTUALLY BACKED UP WITH LOGICAL REASONING? But then it gets worse. Once all those myths are debunked, it just comes down to one thing. We must just hate black people. It doesn't happen to me as often as I make it seem, but I still get that accusation. Let me just say very clearly that I HATE racism in all forms. If I told someone that I voted for McCain just because he was white (which isn't true, by the way) I would be lynched. Yet, many, many, MANY people have told me that they voted for Obama, JUST BECAUSE HE'S BLACK. How is that not racism? But I digest . . .
I realize that it's not just the democrats. Republicans do it too. This is why I don't want to put myself in either of those groups. Just as an example I'll use the healthcare bill that was passed today. The only consolation that Republicans are taking now is that in November all these Dems will lose their jobs. I don't give a freaking crap about that! It's not a party game. In all honesty, if this bill was supported by more than half of the American people, even if I still opposed it, I would be okay with it passing, because that's how it works. I don't care what party has a majority, I care about them upholding the voice of the people. The party is not what makes good politics. Corruption exists in both parties, and I really don't believe that having a Republican majority in today's senate would be that much better. Again, I digress, that's not what this blog is about.
I say often that my religious beliefs dictate my political views. Obviously it's all opinion, and people who disagree with me, even if they belong to the same religious community, are just as valid with their political views as I am. For me, my religion is virtually the ONLY reason that I became interested in politics at all. I am going to attempt right now to explain to all of you how this system of belief works inside my own brain. So yes, this is not only a political blog, it's a religious blog. Two of the touchiest subjects in one, how lucky for you. If you aren't interested in either one, leave now. It might be educational somewhat for any of you reading this who know nothing about my religion. I am going to talk here as though you understand all the terminology, but in case there are people reading this who don't understand, I am going to put a short glossary of sorts at the end of this. Also be warned, this is probably going to be long. I was going to break it into two parts, but I figured I'd just drop it all out there at once.
It's absolutely important for you all to know that my views do not reflect the doctrine, teachings, or political stance of the LDS church.
I finally came to a big realization: I am so sick of politics! I feel like I am constantly being lied to. I spend a lot of time verifying information that I hear before I accept it as truth, but it is getting harder and harder to determine. Some of you more seasoned U.S. citizens (old people) are probably saying to yourselves, "So, what's new?" I realize that I sound a little naive at times because I'm young. I also know that I am about as old as most people are when they come to the same "politics suck" conclusion, so it's nothing new. Getting on with it:
Our founding fathers were tired of living under strict European rule. They had many different ideas about what government should be. They believed in having a limited government, rather than the total goverment rule that they lived under in Europe. The government told them what to believe about God (a universal religion, if you will), yet many of them had differing views, and they worshiped in fear of having the government powers seize upon them. So, they left in search of a new land where they could establish a free, limited government. Eventually, they established the Constitution. Among other things, the Constitution gave everyone the right to worship God in any way they chose, which included the right to not believe in God at all. Even with that said, the founding fathers felt that they were inspired by God in the creation of the Constitution.
Benjamin Franklin said, "We have been assured in the Sacred Writings, that 'except the Lord build the House, they labor in vain that build it.' I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without His concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel." If you didn't know, Babel was part of the large Assyrian Empire, no one thought it could be destroyed, it was.
The LDS religion also feel that the founding fathers were inspired by God. Freedom of religion was essential for our church to be restored, allowed to flourish, and grow.
Doctrine and Covenants (hereto referred as D&C) section 101, verses 79 and 80 is a revelation from God through Joseph Smith. He says, "It is not right that any man should be in bondage one to another. And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood." Wise men are, of course, the founding fathers.
These next scriptures highlight the church's stance on secular laws. It is appropriate to note that we don't believe that any wordly government is perfect, but until Christ comes again and establishes that perfect system, we are encouraged to be law abiding citizens.
"And that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind (D&C 98:5)." "Befriend . . . that law which is the constitutional law of the land (D&C 98:6)." "I, the Lord, make you free, therefore ye are free indeed; and the law also maketh you free (D&C 98:8)."
D&C 134: 6 " and that to the laws all men show respect and deference, as without them peace and harmony would be supplanted by anarchy and terror." 7: "We believe that rulers, states, and governments have a right, and are bound to enact laws for the protection of all citizens in the free exercise of their religious belief; but we do not believe that they have a right in justice to deprive citizens of this privilege, or proscribe them in their opinions, so long as a regard and reverence are shown to the laws and such religious opinions to not justify sedition nor conspiracy."
So obviously according to LDS modern day scripture, the Constitution of the United States of America is absolutely valid, inspired, and sacred while simultaneously maintaining our freedom to choose for ourselves, which is essential to God's plan.
The LDS Church encourages it's members to be politically educated and involved. They don't, however, tell us how to vote. This is confusing to some people that I have talked to. Why would they care so much if they don't care who you vote for? That question usually comes from people who have the theory that the church is trying to take over the world. But, just as I'm pointing out right now, because we believe in the sacredness and divinity of the Constitution, it's absolutely important to uphold it. John Taylor, third president of the LDS church told us why it's important to be politically involved to uphold righteous principles:
"We have got to establish a government upon the principle of righteousness, justice, truth, and equality and not according to the many false notions that exist among men. And then the day is not far distant when this nation will be shaken from center to circumference. . . (Now here's the kicker) When the people shall have torn to shreds the Constitution of the United States, the Elders of Israel will be found holding it up to the nations of the earth and proclaiming liberty and equal rights to all men, and extending the hand of fellowship to the oppressed of all nations." Elders of Israel can mean leaders of the church, Priesthood holders. But, I feel that in the context of this quote it can mean anyone who is a true follower of Christ. That is not church doctrine, mind you.
Here's another example why we should be politically involved, from Abraham Lincoln (by the way, I can't believe that Barack had the audacity to quote Lincoln during his speech to push healthcare through yesterday. Honest Abe would never condone this bill.): The Gettysburg address, Lincoln says that the country is made BY the people, and FOR the people. That's what a republic is, it's the people's voice, and we want our voice for righteous principles to be heard and hopefully heeded. Government officials are not our masters, they are our servants (remember how they are called "Public Servants"?). They are supposed to carry out the voice of the people. This is a whole other blog that might never happen, but I'm just going to briefly mention that the founding fathers never wanted a democracy. They abhorred democracy, and they built a republic. A republic that gradually transformed into a democracy. Moving on.
D&C 134:1-3 "We believe that governments were instituted of God for the benefit of man; We believe that all governments necessarily require civil officers and magistrates to enforce the laws of the same; and that such as will administer the law in equity and justice should be sought for and upheld by the voice of the people of a republic, or the will of the sovereign."
Section 109 of the D&C contains the words of a prayer that was offered by Joseph Smith as a dedication to a temple that was built in Kirtland, OH. Joseph Smith said later that the prayer was given by revelation. D&C 109:54 says, "Have mercy, O Lord, upon all the nations of the earth; have mercy upon the rulers of our land; may those principles, which were so honorably and nobly defended, namely, the Constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever." There should be special emphasis on the phrase "honorably and nobly defended".
D&C section 98, verse 10 says, "honest men and wise men should be sought for diligently, and good men and wise men ye should observe to uphold."
D&C 98:9 "Nevertheless, when the wicked rule the people mourn."
D&C 101:85-90 "Thus will I liken the children of Zion. Let them importune at the feet of the judge; and if he heed them not, let them importune at the feet of the governor; and if the governor heed them not, let them importune at the feet of the president; and if the president heed them not, then will the Lord arise and come forth out of his hiding place, and in his fury vex the nation; and in his hot displeasure, and in his fierce anger, in his time, will cut off those wicked, unfaithful, and unjust stewards, and appoint them their portion among hypocrites, and unbelievers."
That last scripture really scares me in today's context. 65% of Americans either opposed the healthcare bill, wanted a revision, or were undecided. In this last week when the Obama administration made it clear that they were going to ram this unpopular bill through, political leaders were literally flooded with mail, e-mail, phone calls, etc with an overwhelming plea to vote no! Here in the Bay Area, even! That's gotta tell you something, when Berzerkely is siding with Republicans. A congressmen here in California openly said that they just threw away all the letters they got pleading him to vote no. And I'm not talking about a few letters, we're talking about 40,000 +. His reason for discarding them? It's too distracting while making this decision. Yeah, I can imagine that receiving 40,000 letters could be distracting. So, with respect to that last scripture I quoted: We have importuned at the feet of the judge, the governor, and even the president. And we were not heeded.
To change gears a little, but still in illustrating how far this country has deviated:
George Washington said, "There is no practice more dangerous than that of borrowing money; for when money can be had in this way, repayment is seldom thought of in time, the interest becomes a loss, exertions to raise it be dent of industry cease, it comes easy and is spent freely, and many things [are] indulged in that would never be thought of if [they were] to be purchased by the sweat of the brow."
Compare that to what Joe "Clueless" Biden said, "we have to go spend money to keep from going bankrupt." Compare to what Obama is saying about his healthcare plan, that somehow spending 2 trillion dollars a year is not going to raise the deficit. We are already in the state that George Washington said we'd be in that last quote. Check this out.
I hate that the world is trying to take away consequences to our actions. Obama says that people who have pre-marital sex should not be "punished" with a baby. Pro choice groups are upset that people are CHOOSING life. And now abortions are funded by the government. No consequences to our actions anymore. Marijuana is being legalized in California, because if you can't beat them, join them. We live in a time when everyone is looking for a free handout. People feel that they are entitled to everything, they feel like they deserve to have things given to them, with virtually no work on their part. They are indulging in things that never would be thought of if it was purchased by the sweat of their brow.
Our nation that was built by our forefathers on the principles of righteousness. The right to freedom of religion also gave people the right to not believe in God at all (I have several friends who don't believe in God, and they are good people, so please don't think that I believe otherwise). The nation was built as a way to escape European government, a system that the Obama administration now, ironically, wants to emulate for some reason (I don't care what you say, healthcare in France, or Canada, or England, or ANYWHERE else is not as good as the healthcare in America, as imperfect as it is. In fact, they all come here for serious health issues.). To take it a step further religiously, a country that was built so that the ideas of God could advance, flourish, and be easily accessible to all for worship in how, where, or what they may, however with one stipulation: That when this people began to be prideful and discount the existence of deity, it would fall, just as many great nations of the past fell in the same manner. How many times was Jerusalem destroyed? If you don't know about the fall of Constantinople and the entire Byzantine Empire, look it up. No country is too big to fail. The Constitution is BY the people, FOR the people. When the people choose wickedness, the government unrighteously seeks for power and seeks to become the master, and the Constitution is corrupted, or as John Taylor put it, "torn to shreds." And when it's torn to shreds, the corrupt leaders don't listen to the people, as shown today in congress. And the Republic turned Democracy is no longer a democracy, it's a dictatorship. This system of government has NEVER worked in the history of the entire world.
Sometimes, I feel like I don't want to waste my energy fighting for the sake of the country, because our religious history has predicted a dramatic end. Why fight the inevitable? I suppose it's to prove our commitment to God and righteous principles. I'd die for that cause, because the inevitable is also that it's going to get much, much better right at the moment that it seems like humanity would be wiped off the planet, and made extinct.
If you don't see the crap that Obama is doing, you either live in a very deep cave, or you are so in love with him that you applaud him every time he takes a dump. Or maybe you think he's so far ahead of everyone else that the brilliance of his strategy will only be apparent in retrospect. That's what he's trying to get you to believe from the sound of his speeches. I just have to say also that I'm pretty hard on Obama. He is arrogant and pompous, but I can shake him off. However, when I hear Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid speak, words can't describe how much I despise them. "You have to vote for the bill to find out what's in it." Really, Nancy? Sorry, but I'm not willing to spend 2 trillion a year on a mystery box that I can't even open for four more years. By the way, if we have to pay taxes on this health bill immediately, but don't have coverage until 2014, how are we supposed to pay for healthcare until then? 1 for the price of 2 is not a good deal either, in case you didn't know.
Did anyone else notice during the political craziness this past week that the Shi'ite Iranians and the Sunni Taliban joined together to grow their army? Why? "Our religions and our histories are different, but our target is the same -- we both want to kill Americans." Hmm, maybe we should pay attention to that.
Read this, Barack
LDS - short for Latter-Day Saint. The entire name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We believe that it is the same organization as the primitive church when Christ was on the Earth complete with prophets and apostles, which we also have today.
Joseph Smith - The prophet who was called in 1820 to restore Christ's church as described (briefly) above. We revere him as a prophet just like prophets in the Bible.
John Taylor - The third prophet following the death of Joseph Smith and second prophet Brigham Young.
Doctrine and Covenants - A book of modern day revelation as received by modern prophets. Mostly revelation to Joseph Smith as he was restoring the church, but other prophets have added revelations as they receive them. We regard it as scripture.
I am tired of many accusations that Republicans get for their views. "You are fighting against Obamacare even though you know it's for your own good." "You hate the country", "you are finding excuses just to start a war", "you are purposely sabatoging progress," "you hate the planet because you don't have a Prius", "you deny scientifically factual evidences of evolution". Democrats think that Republicans are stupid. Did it ever cross their minds that we weighed the options of Obamacare and our opposition to it is ACTUALLY BACKED UP WITH LOGICAL REASONING? But then it gets worse. Once all those myths are debunked, it just comes down to one thing. We must just hate black people. It doesn't happen to me as often as I make it seem, but I still get that accusation. Let me just say very clearly that I HATE racism in all forms. If I told someone that I voted for McCain just because he was white (which isn't true, by the way) I would be lynched. Yet, many, many, MANY people have told me that they voted for Obama, JUST BECAUSE HE'S BLACK. How is that not racism? But I digest . . .
I realize that it's not just the democrats. Republicans do it too. This is why I don't want to put myself in either of those groups. Just as an example I'll use the healthcare bill that was passed today. The only consolation that Republicans are taking now is that in November all these Dems will lose their jobs. I don't give a freaking crap about that! It's not a party game. In all honesty, if this bill was supported by more than half of the American people, even if I still opposed it, I would be okay with it passing, because that's how it works. I don't care what party has a majority, I care about them upholding the voice of the people. The party is not what makes good politics. Corruption exists in both parties, and I really don't believe that having a Republican majority in today's senate would be that much better. Again, I digress, that's not what this blog is about.
I say often that my religious beliefs dictate my political views. Obviously it's all opinion, and people who disagree with me, even if they belong to the same religious community, are just as valid with their political views as I am. For me, my religion is virtually the ONLY reason that I became interested in politics at all. I am going to attempt right now to explain to all of you how this system of belief works inside my own brain. So yes, this is not only a political blog, it's a religious blog. Two of the touchiest subjects in one, how lucky for you. If you aren't interested in either one, leave now. It might be educational somewhat for any of you reading this who know nothing about my religion. I am going to talk here as though you understand all the terminology, but in case there are people reading this who don't understand, I am going to put a short glossary of sorts at the end of this. Also be warned, this is probably going to be long. I was going to break it into two parts, but I figured I'd just drop it all out there at once.
It's absolutely important for you all to know that my views do not reflect the doctrine, teachings, or political stance of the LDS church.
I finally came to a big realization: I am so sick of politics! I feel like I am constantly being lied to. I spend a lot of time verifying information that I hear before I accept it as truth, but it is getting harder and harder to determine. Some of you more seasoned U.S. citizens (old people) are probably saying to yourselves, "So, what's new?" I realize that I sound a little naive at times because I'm young. I also know that I am about as old as most people are when they come to the same "politics suck" conclusion, so it's nothing new. Getting on with it:
Our founding fathers were tired of living under strict European rule. They had many different ideas about what government should be. They believed in having a limited government, rather than the total goverment rule that they lived under in Europe. The government told them what to believe about God (a universal religion, if you will), yet many of them had differing views, and they worshiped in fear of having the government powers seize upon them. So, they left in search of a new land where they could establish a free, limited government. Eventually, they established the Constitution. Among other things, the Constitution gave everyone the right to worship God in any way they chose, which included the right to not believe in God at all. Even with that said, the founding fathers felt that they were inspired by God in the creation of the Constitution.
Benjamin Franklin said, "We have been assured in the Sacred Writings, that 'except the Lord build the House, they labor in vain that build it.' I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without His concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel." If you didn't know, Babel was part of the large Assyrian Empire, no one thought it could be destroyed, it was.
The LDS religion also feel that the founding fathers were inspired by God. Freedom of religion was essential for our church to be restored, allowed to flourish, and grow.
Doctrine and Covenants (hereto referred as D&C) section 101, verses 79 and 80 is a revelation from God through Joseph Smith. He says, "It is not right that any man should be in bondage one to another. And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood." Wise men are, of course, the founding fathers.
These next scriptures highlight the church's stance on secular laws. It is appropriate to note that we don't believe that any wordly government is perfect, but until Christ comes again and establishes that perfect system, we are encouraged to be law abiding citizens.
"And that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind (D&C 98:5)." "Befriend . . . that law which is the constitutional law of the land (D&C 98:6)." "I, the Lord, make you free, therefore ye are free indeed; and the law also maketh you free (D&C 98:8)."
D&C 134: 6 " and that to the laws all men show respect and deference, as without them peace and harmony would be supplanted by anarchy and terror." 7: "We believe that rulers, states, and governments have a right, and are bound to enact laws for the protection of all citizens in the free exercise of their religious belief; but we do not believe that they have a right in justice to deprive citizens of this privilege, or proscribe them in their opinions, so long as a regard and reverence are shown to the laws and such religious opinions to not justify sedition nor conspiracy."
So obviously according to LDS modern day scripture, the Constitution of the United States of America is absolutely valid, inspired, and sacred while simultaneously maintaining our freedom to choose for ourselves, which is essential to God's plan.
The LDS Church encourages it's members to be politically educated and involved. They don't, however, tell us how to vote. This is confusing to some people that I have talked to. Why would they care so much if they don't care who you vote for? That question usually comes from people who have the theory that the church is trying to take over the world. But, just as I'm pointing out right now, because we believe in the sacredness and divinity of the Constitution, it's absolutely important to uphold it. John Taylor, third president of the LDS church told us why it's important to be politically involved to uphold righteous principles:
"We have got to establish a government upon the principle of righteousness, justice, truth, and equality and not according to the many false notions that exist among men. And then the day is not far distant when this nation will be shaken from center to circumference. . . (Now here's the kicker) When the people shall have torn to shreds the Constitution of the United States, the Elders of Israel will be found holding it up to the nations of the earth and proclaiming liberty and equal rights to all men, and extending the hand of fellowship to the oppressed of all nations." Elders of Israel can mean leaders of the church, Priesthood holders. But, I feel that in the context of this quote it can mean anyone who is a true follower of Christ. That is not church doctrine, mind you.
Here's another example why we should be politically involved, from Abraham Lincoln (by the way, I can't believe that Barack had the audacity to quote Lincoln during his speech to push healthcare through yesterday. Honest Abe would never condone this bill.): The Gettysburg address, Lincoln says that the country is made BY the people, and FOR the people. That's what a republic is, it's the people's voice, and we want our voice for righteous principles to be heard and hopefully heeded. Government officials are not our masters, they are our servants (remember how they are called "Public Servants"?). They are supposed to carry out the voice of the people. This is a whole other blog that might never happen, but I'm just going to briefly mention that the founding fathers never wanted a democracy. They abhorred democracy, and they built a republic. A republic that gradually transformed into a democracy. Moving on.
D&C 134:1-3 "We believe that governments were instituted of God for the benefit of man; We believe that all governments necessarily require civil officers and magistrates to enforce the laws of the same; and that such as will administer the law in equity and justice should be sought for and upheld by the voice of the people of a republic, or the will of the sovereign."
Section 109 of the D&C contains the words of a prayer that was offered by Joseph Smith as a dedication to a temple that was built in Kirtland, OH. Joseph Smith said later that the prayer was given by revelation. D&C 109:54 says, "Have mercy, O Lord, upon all the nations of the earth; have mercy upon the rulers of our land; may those principles, which were so honorably and nobly defended, namely, the Constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever." There should be special emphasis on the phrase "honorably and nobly defended".
D&C section 98, verse 10 says, "honest men and wise men should be sought for diligently, and good men and wise men ye should observe to uphold."
D&C 98:9 "Nevertheless, when the wicked rule the people mourn."
D&C 101:85-90 "Thus will I liken the children of Zion. Let them importune at the feet of the judge; and if he heed them not, let them importune at the feet of the governor; and if the governor heed them not, let them importune at the feet of the president; and if the president heed them not, then will the Lord arise and come forth out of his hiding place, and in his fury vex the nation; and in his hot displeasure, and in his fierce anger, in his time, will cut off those wicked, unfaithful, and unjust stewards, and appoint them their portion among hypocrites, and unbelievers."
That last scripture really scares me in today's context. 65% of Americans either opposed the healthcare bill, wanted a revision, or were undecided. In this last week when the Obama administration made it clear that they were going to ram this unpopular bill through, political leaders were literally flooded with mail, e-mail, phone calls, etc with an overwhelming plea to vote no! Here in the Bay Area, even! That's gotta tell you something, when Berzerkely is siding with Republicans. A congressmen here in California openly said that they just threw away all the letters they got pleading him to vote no. And I'm not talking about a few letters, we're talking about 40,000 +. His reason for discarding them? It's too distracting while making this decision. Yeah, I can imagine that receiving 40,000 letters could be distracting. So, with respect to that last scripture I quoted: We have importuned at the feet of the judge, the governor, and even the president. And we were not heeded.
To change gears a little, but still in illustrating how far this country has deviated:
George Washington said, "There is no practice more dangerous than that of borrowing money; for when money can be had in this way, repayment is seldom thought of in time, the interest becomes a loss, exertions to raise it be dent of industry cease, it comes easy and is spent freely, and many things [are] indulged in that would never be thought of if [they were] to be purchased by the sweat of the brow."
Compare that to what Joe "Clueless" Biden said, "we have to go spend money to keep from going bankrupt." Compare to what Obama is saying about his healthcare plan, that somehow spending 2 trillion dollars a year is not going to raise the deficit. We are already in the state that George Washington said we'd be in that last quote. Check this out.
I hate that the world is trying to take away consequences to our actions. Obama says that people who have pre-marital sex should not be "punished" with a baby. Pro choice groups are upset that people are CHOOSING life. And now abortions are funded by the government. No consequences to our actions anymore. Marijuana is being legalized in California, because if you can't beat them, join them. We live in a time when everyone is looking for a free handout. People feel that they are entitled to everything, they feel like they deserve to have things given to them, with virtually no work on their part. They are indulging in things that never would be thought of if it was purchased by the sweat of their brow.
Our nation that was built by our forefathers on the principles of righteousness. The right to freedom of religion also gave people the right to not believe in God at all (I have several friends who don't believe in God, and they are good people, so please don't think that I believe otherwise). The nation was built as a way to escape European government, a system that the Obama administration now, ironically, wants to emulate for some reason (I don't care what you say, healthcare in France, or Canada, or England, or ANYWHERE else is not as good as the healthcare in America, as imperfect as it is. In fact, they all come here for serious health issues.). To take it a step further religiously, a country that was built so that the ideas of God could advance, flourish, and be easily accessible to all for worship in how, where, or what they may, however with one stipulation: That when this people began to be prideful and discount the existence of deity, it would fall, just as many great nations of the past fell in the same manner. How many times was Jerusalem destroyed? If you don't know about the fall of Constantinople and the entire Byzantine Empire, look it up. No country is too big to fail. The Constitution is BY the people, FOR the people. When the people choose wickedness, the government unrighteously seeks for power and seeks to become the master, and the Constitution is corrupted, or as John Taylor put it, "torn to shreds." And when it's torn to shreds, the corrupt leaders don't listen to the people, as shown today in congress. And the Republic turned Democracy is no longer a democracy, it's a dictatorship. This system of government has NEVER worked in the history of the entire world.
Sometimes, I feel like I don't want to waste my energy fighting for the sake of the country, because our religious history has predicted a dramatic end. Why fight the inevitable? I suppose it's to prove our commitment to God and righteous principles. I'd die for that cause, because the inevitable is also that it's going to get much, much better right at the moment that it seems like humanity would be wiped off the planet, and made extinct.
If you don't see the crap that Obama is doing, you either live in a very deep cave, or you are so in love with him that you applaud him every time he takes a dump. Or maybe you think he's so far ahead of everyone else that the brilliance of his strategy will only be apparent in retrospect. That's what he's trying to get you to believe from the sound of his speeches. I just have to say also that I'm pretty hard on Obama. He is arrogant and pompous, but I can shake him off. However, when I hear Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid speak, words can't describe how much I despise them. "You have to vote for the bill to find out what's in it." Really, Nancy? Sorry, but I'm not willing to spend 2 trillion a year on a mystery box that I can't even open for four more years. By the way, if we have to pay taxes on this health bill immediately, but don't have coverage until 2014, how are we supposed to pay for healthcare until then? 1 for the price of 2 is not a good deal either, in case you didn't know.
Did anyone else notice during the political craziness this past week that the Shi'ite Iranians and the Sunni Taliban joined together to grow their army? Why? "Our religions and our histories are different, but our target is the same -- we both want to kill Americans." Hmm, maybe we should pay attention to that.
Read this, Barack
LDS - short for Latter-Day Saint. The entire name of the church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We believe that it is the same organization as the primitive church when Christ was on the Earth complete with prophets and apostles, which we also have today.
Joseph Smith - The prophet who was called in 1820 to restore Christ's church as described (briefly) above. We revere him as a prophet just like prophets in the Bible.
John Taylor - The third prophet following the death of Joseph Smith and second prophet Brigham Young.
Doctrine and Covenants - A book of modern day revelation as received by modern prophets. Mostly revelation to Joseph Smith as he was restoring the church, but other prophets have added revelations as they receive them. We regard it as scripture.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Shared Firsts
I apologize for my previous outburst about the State of the Union. That's not how I wanted my blog to start out 2010. Come to think of it, I'm not sure how I wanted my blog to start out 2010 . . . (whenever you see those three dots you should imagine me looking up and to the left in a thoughtful manner). I usually set goals at the beginning of every year, but it's just because it's a convenient time to do so. A new year has never really meant anything to me. I like how my aunt put it. She said (in paraphrase) that new years is a great excuse to get time off work and party, but all it really means is that it will take months to train myself to write the new date on everything. This new year is slightly different for me though, as I look at what's ahead of me this coming year. I'm not going to bore you with details, but I'll just say that some things this year will actually force me to grow up! I've avoided it pretty dang well for the past 25 years, but it looks like I've gotta do it.
By the way, I don't really apologize for my previous outburst. I meant it, and I stick to it!
Here's something short for you to remember me by:
I have several nieces and nephews and I think they're all great. I hope that my kids are just like them. Until then, I'm competing to be the favorite uncle. So, I always find ways that I can relate to them. I hope my sister, Sarah doesn't mind me using her daughter Owyn to illustrate my point right now.
Recently, my sister posted some pictures of my niece Owyn. One picture showed Owyn sporting a small ponytail, with the caption "Owyn's first ponytail."
How cute, right? I commented by saying "I can get my hair into a ponytail about that size right now." In sisterly fashion, my siblings lovingly called me a hippy and other things. I didn't take offense to anything they said (we make fun of each other a lot), but I just got the feeling that they didn't believe me. So, check this out:
This is MY first ponytail!
Just an FYI: I realize how gross I look with a ponytail, so I don't ever leave the house like this.
By the way, I don't really apologize for my previous outburst. I meant it, and I stick to it!
Here's something short for you to remember me by:
I have several nieces and nephews and I think they're all great. I hope that my kids are just like them. Until then, I'm competing to be the favorite uncle. So, I always find ways that I can relate to them. I hope my sister, Sarah doesn't mind me using her daughter Owyn to illustrate my point right now.
Recently, my sister posted some pictures of my niece Owyn. One picture showed Owyn sporting a small ponytail, with the caption "Owyn's first ponytail."
How cute, right? I commented by saying "I can get my hair into a ponytail about that size right now." In sisterly fashion, my siblings lovingly called me a hippy and other things. I didn't take offense to anything they said (we make fun of each other a lot), but I just got the feeling that they didn't believe me. So, check this out:
This is MY first ponytail!
Just an FYI: I realize how gross I look with a ponytail, so I don't ever leave the house like this.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
State of the Union.
I just watched a rebroadcast of Obama's state of the Union address. I didn't watch it when it aired on primetime, so I watched it at 1 am. Problem is, now I'm so upset that there's no way I'll be able to sleep unless I vent a little! I'll try to keep this light:
There are several things that I notice in all Obama speeches that seriously upset me. First of all, he comes out with the most arrogance I have ever seen in any man. He comes to the pulpit already saying "you're welcome".
For example, he talks about how he's continuing to push for healthcare. This bill, he claims is going to save us a bunch of money and decrease our national debt. Let's do math on the White House calculator: Take a 12 trillion dollar debt + 787 billion stimulus + 20,000 per clunker + 1 trillion for healthcare . . . carry the 1, then add gumdrops and rainbows. Oh, I understand now. Obama then has the nerve and arrogance to tell us that universal healthcare is for our good and will benefit us. Hm, last I saw, the approval rating for healthcare was scraping 35%. Wow. No one wants it, but THANK YOU, Barack! Thank you so much for pushing for something that we don't even want, I guess we're too RETARDED to make this decision ourselves. Thank goodness you are smart enough to understand that we don't know what we want.
Obama seems to condescend to his audience. Whenever someone yells some snide comment from the audience (which I also think is stupid, by the way) he always snaps back with something like, "look it up." Yes, Barack, I know that your intelligence is so superior to mine, thank you. He acts like a bully when people disagree with him.
Oh, and way to go for pushing aside the victory in Massachusetts like it was nothing big, even though a major issue for Brown's campaign was that he would VOTE NO ON HEALTHCARE. And people still voted for him . . .
I am so, so, so angry every time Barack blames our problems on the previous administration. Even if you believe that it's true, get over it! You have to man up. YOU are in charge now! You can't blame everything on Bush. You can't hide behind that excuse when your approval ratings drop faster than any president in U.S. history. I can't even explain enough how much this makes my blood boil. It's like he thinks he craps gold, so whenever something goes wrong it couldn't possibly be any fault of his. If I hear him blame someone else for problems in his administration again, I just might punch myself in the face.
Yes, this was the light version. I may regret this and delete it by tomorrow morning, so count yourself lucky if you got to read it. In other words, "you're welcome."
Is it 2012 yet?
There are several things that I notice in all Obama speeches that seriously upset me. First of all, he comes out with the most arrogance I have ever seen in any man. He comes to the pulpit already saying "you're welcome".
For example, he talks about how he's continuing to push for healthcare. This bill, he claims is going to save us a bunch of money and decrease our national debt. Let's do math on the White House calculator: Take a 12 trillion dollar debt + 787 billion stimulus + 20,000 per clunker + 1 trillion for healthcare . . . carry the 1, then add gumdrops and rainbows. Oh, I understand now. Obama then has the nerve and arrogance to tell us that universal healthcare is for our good and will benefit us. Hm, last I saw, the approval rating for healthcare was scraping 35%. Wow. No one wants it, but THANK YOU, Barack! Thank you so much for pushing for something that we don't even want, I guess we're too RETARDED to make this decision ourselves. Thank goodness you are smart enough to understand that we don't know what we want.
Obama seems to condescend to his audience. Whenever someone yells some snide comment from the audience (which I also think is stupid, by the way) he always snaps back with something like, "look it up." Yes, Barack, I know that your intelligence is so superior to mine, thank you. He acts like a bully when people disagree with him.
Oh, and way to go for pushing aside the victory in Massachusetts like it was nothing big, even though a major issue for Brown's campaign was that he would VOTE NO ON HEALTHCARE. And people still voted for him . . .
I am so, so, so angry every time Barack blames our problems on the previous administration. Even if you believe that it's true, get over it! You have to man up. YOU are in charge now! You can't blame everything on Bush. You can't hide behind that excuse when your approval ratings drop faster than any president in U.S. history. I can't even explain enough how much this makes my blood boil. It's like he thinks he craps gold, so whenever something goes wrong it couldn't possibly be any fault of his. If I hear him blame someone else for problems in his administration again, I just might punch myself in the face.
Yes, this was the light version. I may regret this and delete it by tomorrow morning, so count yourself lucky if you got to read it. In other words, "you're welcome."
Is it 2012 yet?
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Christmas List
Oddly enough, after my last, rather self-righteous blog about social network political arguing, I've had some of the best online debates in my entire social networking career. I was thinking about posting one here for everyone's reading pleasure, but I don't think you all find it as entertaining as I do.
I also received a lot of "hints" that I write way too much. I know that I have a tendency to write a lot, especially in this venue when I have no restrictions. It's lovely. But, since I'm feeling generous this holiday season, here's a short blog. And Christmas-y too!
I decided to make a list of things that I actually want for Christmas that I didn't put on my real list, because I won't get it anyway. Here goes:
- No more medical condition that is aggravated by lack of sleep, yet is treated by a medication that lists insomnia as one of it's side effects. ("I have a brain cloud" - someone name that movie and I'll let you go buy yourself a candy bar)
- 2 Nobel Peace Prize revokes (Al Gore for his attempt at playing God by controlling the climate, and Obama for his good intentions that are turning out to be hollow)
- Less ADD
- A Lakers loss
- More mind stimulating t.v. (since I'm going to be sitting in front of it anyway)
- New upstairs neighbors who don't rearrange their furniture at 2 a.m. at least 3 times a week
- New Downstairs neighbors who don't have a beefy surround sound that is turned up so loud that I can actually tell which t.v. show they're watching (usually "The Office")
- New across the hall neighbor who doesn't offer me weed in exchange for the one time I let him borrow my blender, almost a year ago.
- New down the hall neighbors who don't decide to smoke on my patio because the view is better.
- New complex managers who don't consistently lose our rent check, then threaten to evict us for not paying rent, then don't apologize when they find our check, then send us a bill for a late rent fee until we remind them that they lost our check.
- New apartment security guards who actually give a crap about something.
- Tranquilizer darts for the cat, and night vision goggles to see her since she often decides that playing with wads of paper is most fun during the middle of the night.
- Real teeth and a gum line that doesn't recede no matter how much I floss (another medication side effect)
- More energy
- The ability to never have to sleep ever (Do you know how much I could accomplish in the middle of the night? I mean, I already accomplish most things in the a.m., but I feel it the next afternoon)
- Less losers with their own reality shows, just because they made a homemade sex tape once.
- Self cleaning house.
- Less anal retentiveness for things that don't matter, more for the things that do.
I know what some of you are thinking. Why all the negativity? All I can say is, if you want to see people wishing for world peace, watch the Miss USA Pagent. Not only do they wish for world peace until it's nauseating, but they do it in bikinis! God bless America.
And here is my biggest inspiration for most philosophies of life:
Merry Freaken Christmas and Happy Festivus for the rest of us. (I'm not being sarcastic . . . seriously, Merry Christmas.)
I also received a lot of "hints" that I write way too much. I know that I have a tendency to write a lot, especially in this venue when I have no restrictions. It's lovely. But, since I'm feeling generous this holiday season, here's a short blog. And Christmas-y too!
I decided to make a list of things that I actually want for Christmas that I didn't put on my real list, because I won't get it anyway. Here goes:
- No more medical condition that is aggravated by lack of sleep, yet is treated by a medication that lists insomnia as one of it's side effects. ("I have a brain cloud" - someone name that movie and I'll let you go buy yourself a candy bar)
- 2 Nobel Peace Prize revokes (Al Gore for his attempt at playing God by controlling the climate, and Obama for his good intentions that are turning out to be hollow)
- Less ADD
- A Lakers loss
- More mind stimulating t.v. (since I'm going to be sitting in front of it anyway)
- New upstairs neighbors who don't rearrange their furniture at 2 a.m. at least 3 times a week
- New Downstairs neighbors who don't have a beefy surround sound that is turned up so loud that I can actually tell which t.v. show they're watching (usually "The Office")
- New across the hall neighbor who doesn't offer me weed in exchange for the one time I let him borrow my blender, almost a year ago.
- New down the hall neighbors who don't decide to smoke on my patio because the view is better.
- New complex managers who don't consistently lose our rent check, then threaten to evict us for not paying rent, then don't apologize when they find our check, then send us a bill for a late rent fee until we remind them that they lost our check.
- New apartment security guards who actually give a crap about something.
- Tranquilizer darts for the cat, and night vision goggles to see her since she often decides that playing with wads of paper is most fun during the middle of the night.
- Real teeth and a gum line that doesn't recede no matter how much I floss (another medication side effect)
- More energy
- The ability to never have to sleep ever (Do you know how much I could accomplish in the middle of the night? I mean, I already accomplish most things in the a.m., but I feel it the next afternoon)
- Less losers with their own reality shows, just because they made a homemade sex tape once.
- Self cleaning house.
- Less anal retentiveness for things that don't matter, more for the things that do.
I know what some of you are thinking. Why all the negativity? All I can say is, if you want to see people wishing for world peace, watch the Miss USA Pagent. Not only do they wish for world peace until it's nauseating, but they do it in bikinis! God bless America.
And here is my biggest inspiration for most philosophies of life:
Merry Freaken Christmas and Happy Festivus for the rest of us. (I'm not being sarcastic . . . seriously, Merry Christmas.)
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Rainbows and Stickers and Ponies and Myspace!
Hello, Blogdom! I'm sorry to have neglected you for so long. I was away from the land of Blogdom on a business trip to Reality. Actually, I've checked out of Reality for quite some time now, but getting back on the blog train is hard sometimes. I have received mountains of fan mail, filled with urgent wishes that I again grace you with my wit and beautifully constructed sentences. As one fan stated, "your words are like the air I breathe."*
*I have never received any fan mail, and I'm pretty sure that no more than 8 people (at best) even read this.
I have been thinking about things I do now, that I once thought I would never do. Let me expound on a few:
I never thought that I would ever join an online social networking site, yet many of you are here because my Facebook status beckoned you here like a melodious mermaid. The way I saw it before, social networking sites were an outlet for ego-driven people to inflate their self image for . . . who? Other ego-driven people on the same site, doing the same thing. People I knew, on Myspace in particular, spent the majority of their time on their own profile page making sure it looked good for their friends. But, their friends never saw their profile page because they were too busy making their profile page look good. It's like a hamster wheel of narcissism. I never wanted to join the sites, because it reminded me of talking to a girl that you're on a date with who spends the entire time doing her make-up in a compact mirror when all you want to do is have a conversation.
Then you get the "friend padders", the ones who will arbitrarily add people to their friends list just so it appears as though they are actually popular. And the people they are requesting to be friends with are just as insecure as them, so of course they will accept. It benefits both parties. But, seriously, who really has 3,000 friends?
So why did I join the world of Facebook, you ask? Well, after moving 1,000 miles away from home, I soon discovered that it was a great way to stay in contact with really good friends and especially my family. But, I still have encounters with the people I was just talking about. I finally cracked down on it and deleted some "friends". One day, I was reading the status update of one of my Facebook "friends" when I realized that I had no idea who that person is. I checked her profile page and discovered that she had well over 3,000 friends. I don't remember requesting her friendship, and I don't remember accepting her request to be my friend. I commented on her status the following: "I just realized that I have no idea who you are. I don't want to look stupid if you happen to be a long lost cousin of mine, but my memory is failing me. Please tell me how you know me, and if you don't know me, I'm going to respectively exclude you from my personal life." Ok, I didn't say those exact words, but pretty close. She never responded, I deleted her. I hardly ever request friendship anymore because I'm pretty much friends with everyone that I'm actually friends with in real life. Occasionally, I get the friend request, and it's often from a person that I know, but I only know them from some obscure recollection and I hardly would give them a courtesy smile on the street. I usually neither accept or ignore their request so that it leaves them in a sort of Facebook purgatory.
I did my own experiment. I created another Facebook account with a fictional person, and I started randomly sending friend requests to complete strangers. Within a day, I had hundreds of friends. But, facebook has a rule against requesting too many people within a certain period of time, so I lost interest quickly. After some time, I decided to go back onto my made up person's account and see what was happening in made-up land. A funny thing happened: My made up character had about 20 friend requests of his own! And these requests were from the stereotypical social networkers whose profile picture is a photo of a mirror reflection with them wearing skimpy clothing (if they're females) or with their shirt off completely (if they're males). I thought it was hilarious. I accepted their friendships and came back a few days later, and had a few more requests! I finally decided that enough is enough, and I started to ask the requesters if they had any idea who I was. Most of them responded by using very obscene language and insulted my mother. Real classy, right? But they didn't know that my fictional person's mother died while giving birth, so the joke is on them.
Status updates on facebook seriously get out of hand. I don't need to know every inane thought that you have. I don't need to know how long you just pooped. I don't really care what you had for dinner unless it's really unique. Let's be creative here! I especially hate the melodramatic, yet ambiguously depressing statuses, like "When will my life no longer be a living hell?" To me, it seems like a cry for attention, and Facebook just isn't the venue for wrangling attention, because most everyone is preoccupied with their own attention grabbing frenzy. And now that you can update your status from your phone, it has become even more senseless: "I'm on a date with my wife and we are having dinner at a nice restaurant right now. -Via Facebook for Blackberry-" Well, I bet your wife would love it if you put your phone in your pocket during your dinner date. Maybe she's doing her make-up or something. Then there's the status like, "I just broke my arm!" Well, then get off the freaken computer and go to the doctor! I'll admit, I abuse this one a lot. Sometimes I'm embarrassed by my status updates, and I often use them for self-promotion or for single sentence political blogging. But, hey, it got you here, right? Luckily I don't have a Facebook app on my phone or else I'd really embarrass myself. But at the same time, the Facebook home page feels like a giant room where everyone is yelling and trying to be heard over everyone else, so I know that my statuses just get lost in the crowd.
Speaking of self-inflicted embarrassment, I never, ever thought that I would start a blog. To me, a blog was a means by which self-proclaimed political revolutionaries tried to recruit anyone who would help them push their ideals and fight against "the man". I hate to admit that I have blogged about political issues which is the very reason I hated blogs in the first place. And just to warn you, I have been cooking up one very good political blog that I will undoubtedly unleash on the world very soon. Yeah, usually my blogs are written in one night, but this one is actually taking some time and thought! I can't help it, sorry. Actually, I am trying to convince myself not to do it. One thing I learned when I was a writer for my high school newspaper was that when you write about politics, no one reads your article. And I know some of my high school friends are saying to themselves, "Mike was on the high school newspaper staff?" My point exactly. Actually, once I realized that no one was reading my articles, I wrote this completely insane, tin foil hat conspiracy article about UFO's which got quite a bit of attention. Now my high school friends are saying, "Oh yeah, he WAS on the newspaper staff!"
The next one I absolutely hate to admit, but you were bound to find out sometime soon anyway. I . . . have . . . Twitter. Yes, Twitter. The stupidest social networking site to come into existence so far. Let me attempt to save my dignity: I realized that Twitter is a good business tool when used right. I use it to follow businesses who are going to be releasing certain merchandise at any minute. I follow bands who can update me on new music. And most valuable to me is that I follow certain politicians who are making very important decisions concerning my future. If any of you out there have twitter, do not follow me, because I won't ever tweet. I didn't join so that I could tell you where I am and what I'm doing every second of the day. I did it to stay informed on issues that are important to me. I don't even want to know what other people are doing. I was following one of my favorite musicians. One of his tweets was "I'm taking my kids to school." Woo hoo, you and millions of other people. Delete. Seeing Twitter in light of business, and being one who is currently working on opening a business myself, I saw it as a way to eventually keep my future clients informed. So, yes I have Twitter, but I still don't quite understand it. I mean, what was the motive behind it? "Let's take the most annoying thing about Facebook, and make it the ONLY feature on Twitter." Anyway, one of my friends has already found me on Twitter and is following me. I won't name any names, but his name rhymes with Hike Maycock (don't worry, Mike, I think you're the only one that reads my blog these days). I have to admit also that I have tweeted before. One of the politicians that I follow is Barack Obama. I don't really know why I decided to follow him, I think it's because I like being upset all of the time. Or perhaps I secretly hope that he will invite me to one of his many cocktail parties at "The House" one of these days. But, I think I already blew my chance for that because I've tweeted some pretty mean things to him. Well, not mean, but, you know, "listen to the people, we don't want your stupid Obamacare," or "Barack, stop spending money" sort of things. Just trying to get my voice heard, which is a very difficult thing to do with this administration. Oops, there I go again, I'd better stop. Anyway, I really don't think that my tweets will ever be seen by Barack eyes anyway, so it's futile. Besides, if I want to enjoy a beer with Barack, all I have to do is appear to mistreat a black guy. But, on the plus side, I've picked up the lingo quite well, right? "Tweets" and such.
Anyway, the thing that always bugged me and still bugs me about all these social sites, is the amount of time one spends on them. Just so you know, I'm not singling anyone out except myself (but if you're feeling guilty perhaps you should think twice!). The reason a lot of these things bother me is because I find myself spending precious time doing them! I'm like a bug who can't resist the blue light of the bug zapper. Yes, I am guilty of indulging my life a bit on Facebook. I've done my share of stupid status updates. I've spent irreplaceable time doing quizzes, then passing them onto my friends (and I hate it when that happens to me, by the way). I've blogged about radical political conspiracies and hate-mongering. I've used the word "tweet". It's embarrassing, but there you go. My ambivalence is shooting myself in the foot, but as the saying goes, if life gives you melons, you just might be dyslexic.
*I have never received any fan mail, and I'm pretty sure that no more than 8 people (at best) even read this.
I have been thinking about things I do now, that I once thought I would never do. Let me expound on a few:
I never thought that I would ever join an online social networking site, yet many of you are here because my Facebook status beckoned you here like a melodious mermaid. The way I saw it before, social networking sites were an outlet for ego-driven people to inflate their self image for . . . who? Other ego-driven people on the same site, doing the same thing. People I knew, on Myspace in particular, spent the majority of their time on their own profile page making sure it looked good for their friends. But, their friends never saw their profile page because they were too busy making their profile page look good. It's like a hamster wheel of narcissism. I never wanted to join the sites, because it reminded me of talking to a girl that you're on a date with who spends the entire time doing her make-up in a compact mirror when all you want to do is have a conversation.
Then you get the "friend padders", the ones who will arbitrarily add people to their friends list just so it appears as though they are actually popular. And the people they are requesting to be friends with are just as insecure as them, so of course they will accept. It benefits both parties. But, seriously, who really has 3,000 friends?
So why did I join the world of Facebook, you ask? Well, after moving 1,000 miles away from home, I soon discovered that it was a great way to stay in contact with really good friends and especially my family. But, I still have encounters with the people I was just talking about. I finally cracked down on it and deleted some "friends". One day, I was reading the status update of one of my Facebook "friends" when I realized that I had no idea who that person is. I checked her profile page and discovered that she had well over 3,000 friends. I don't remember requesting her friendship, and I don't remember accepting her request to be my friend. I commented on her status the following: "I just realized that I have no idea who you are. I don't want to look stupid if you happen to be a long lost cousin of mine, but my memory is failing me. Please tell me how you know me, and if you don't know me, I'm going to respectively exclude you from my personal life." Ok, I didn't say those exact words, but pretty close. She never responded, I deleted her. I hardly ever request friendship anymore because I'm pretty much friends with everyone that I'm actually friends with in real life. Occasionally, I get the friend request, and it's often from a person that I know, but I only know them from some obscure recollection and I hardly would give them a courtesy smile on the street. I usually neither accept or ignore their request so that it leaves them in a sort of Facebook purgatory.
I did my own experiment. I created another Facebook account with a fictional person, and I started randomly sending friend requests to complete strangers. Within a day, I had hundreds of friends. But, facebook has a rule against requesting too many people within a certain period of time, so I lost interest quickly. After some time, I decided to go back onto my made up person's account and see what was happening in made-up land. A funny thing happened: My made up character had about 20 friend requests of his own! And these requests were from the stereotypical social networkers whose profile picture is a photo of a mirror reflection with them wearing skimpy clothing (if they're females) or with their shirt off completely (if they're males). I thought it was hilarious. I accepted their friendships and came back a few days later, and had a few more requests! I finally decided that enough is enough, and I started to ask the requesters if they had any idea who I was. Most of them responded by using very obscene language and insulted my mother. Real classy, right? But they didn't know that my fictional person's mother died while giving birth, so the joke is on them.
Status updates on facebook seriously get out of hand. I don't need to know every inane thought that you have. I don't need to know how long you just pooped. I don't really care what you had for dinner unless it's really unique. Let's be creative here! I especially hate the melodramatic, yet ambiguously depressing statuses, like "When will my life no longer be a living hell?" To me, it seems like a cry for attention, and Facebook just isn't the venue for wrangling attention, because most everyone is preoccupied with their own attention grabbing frenzy. And now that you can update your status from your phone, it has become even more senseless: "I'm on a date with my wife and we are having dinner at a nice restaurant right now. -Via Facebook for Blackberry-" Well, I bet your wife would love it if you put your phone in your pocket during your dinner date. Maybe she's doing her make-up or something. Then there's the status like, "I just broke my arm!" Well, then get off the freaken computer and go to the doctor! I'll admit, I abuse this one a lot. Sometimes I'm embarrassed by my status updates, and I often use them for self-promotion or for single sentence political blogging. But, hey, it got you here, right? Luckily I don't have a Facebook app on my phone or else I'd really embarrass myself. But at the same time, the Facebook home page feels like a giant room where everyone is yelling and trying to be heard over everyone else, so I know that my statuses just get lost in the crowd.
Speaking of self-inflicted embarrassment, I never, ever thought that I would start a blog. To me, a blog was a means by which self-proclaimed political revolutionaries tried to recruit anyone who would help them push their ideals and fight against "the man". I hate to admit that I have blogged about political issues which is the very reason I hated blogs in the first place. And just to warn you, I have been cooking up one very good political blog that I will undoubtedly unleash on the world very soon. Yeah, usually my blogs are written in one night, but this one is actually taking some time and thought! I can't help it, sorry. Actually, I am trying to convince myself not to do it. One thing I learned when I was a writer for my high school newspaper was that when you write about politics, no one reads your article. And I know some of my high school friends are saying to themselves, "Mike was on the high school newspaper staff?" My point exactly. Actually, once I realized that no one was reading my articles, I wrote this completely insane, tin foil hat conspiracy article about UFO's which got quite a bit of attention. Now my high school friends are saying, "Oh yeah, he WAS on the newspaper staff!"
The next one I absolutely hate to admit, but you were bound to find out sometime soon anyway. I . . . have . . . Twitter. Yes, Twitter. The stupidest social networking site to come into existence so far. Let me attempt to save my dignity: I realized that Twitter is a good business tool when used right. I use it to follow businesses who are going to be releasing certain merchandise at any minute. I follow bands who can update me on new music. And most valuable to me is that I follow certain politicians who are making very important decisions concerning my future. If any of you out there have twitter, do not follow me, because I won't ever tweet. I didn't join so that I could tell you where I am and what I'm doing every second of the day. I did it to stay informed on issues that are important to me. I don't even want to know what other people are doing. I was following one of my favorite musicians. One of his tweets was "I'm taking my kids to school." Woo hoo, you and millions of other people. Delete. Seeing Twitter in light of business, and being one who is currently working on opening a business myself, I saw it as a way to eventually keep my future clients informed. So, yes I have Twitter, but I still don't quite understand it. I mean, what was the motive behind it? "Let's take the most annoying thing about Facebook, and make it the ONLY feature on Twitter." Anyway, one of my friends has already found me on Twitter and is following me. I won't name any names, but his name rhymes with Hike Maycock (don't worry, Mike, I think you're the only one that reads my blog these days). I have to admit also that I have tweeted before. One of the politicians that I follow is Barack Obama. I don't really know why I decided to follow him, I think it's because I like being upset all of the time. Or perhaps I secretly hope that he will invite me to one of his many cocktail parties at "The House" one of these days. But, I think I already blew my chance for that because I've tweeted some pretty mean things to him. Well, not mean, but, you know, "listen to the people, we don't want your stupid Obamacare," or "Barack, stop spending money" sort of things. Just trying to get my voice heard, which is a very difficult thing to do with this administration. Oops, there I go again, I'd better stop. Anyway, I really don't think that my tweets will ever be seen by Barack eyes anyway, so it's futile. Besides, if I want to enjoy a beer with Barack, all I have to do is appear to mistreat a black guy. But, on the plus side, I've picked up the lingo quite well, right? "Tweets" and such.
Anyway, the thing that always bugged me and still bugs me about all these social sites, is the amount of time one spends on them. Just so you know, I'm not singling anyone out except myself (but if you're feeling guilty perhaps you should think twice!). The reason a lot of these things bother me is because I find myself spending precious time doing them! I'm like a bug who can't resist the blue light of the bug zapper. Yes, I am guilty of indulging my life a bit on Facebook. I've done my share of stupid status updates. I've spent irreplaceable time doing quizzes, then passing them onto my friends (and I hate it when that happens to me, by the way). I've blogged about radical political conspiracies and hate-mongering. I've used the word "tweet". It's embarrassing, but there you go. My ambivalence is shooting myself in the foot, but as the saying goes, if life gives you melons, you just might be dyslexic.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
The Internet: One of the world's most intelligent inventions is being taken over by morons.
Today, when I should have been working, I was looking on Craigslist for surfboards. I came upon this listing:
"ok all you cheap sucks,,ive got the deal you are looking for,,iam quiting surfing,,too many geek-kooks,like you,,,yes you,,messing up even the hard to get to surf spots,,so nows is your chance to own some surf history,,buy a old surfboard from me ,,,feel good about being GREEN,? cause your recycling some plastic crap,,i get your cash,,which is really holding you back from true enlightment,,so heres the deal,,,i give you a crappy old surfboard,,you give me money,,its just money,theres more in the trust-fund,,/moneymarket-fund mommy and daddy give you every month,,so bust loose,,impress your freinds,,if you have any?oph do i seem bitter,,,yes iam?!! but that is not the point,,you really want to give me your $$,,it will make your meaningless life seem worthwhile for a short time,,,then ill sell you another peice of plastic ,which you will admire,like you have found the fricking HOLY GRAIL,,see its a win -win deal,,you feel better about your sad life,,,i walk away with cash,,call NOW-NOW"
So, before I move on, I wish to mention that the only changes I made to this was to take out all the expletives (my mother reads my blog, so . . .), but even in doing that, I never added or took away any other words, which just goes to show that the expletives were sprinkled in this ad willy-nilly in the first place, and taking them out made no difference whatsoever. Besides taking out some colorful language, this ad is exactly how I saw it, cut and paste, voila! Now, I wish to point out some subtle nuances that you may have easily missed. First off, I am a big stickler for good spelling. This person (who shall remain nameless since I don't know his name) always spelled "I am" as one word: "iam". Not even an apostraphe anywhere in that paragraph. Whenever I saw that, I always wanted to pronounce it like "aim". Also, this guy obviously never learned the old rhyme: " 'i' before 'e', except after 'c'." Now, I could spend hours picking on his misspellings, but I'll let you do that so that I can move on. But first, I want to pick out just a couple other hilarities from this post. I like that there are no periods anywhere. Also, what is "true enlightment," as opposed to "true enlightENment"? I love it how he says "do i seem bitter?" And then he says "yes iam?!!" He adds the question mark as though he's not sure himself if he's actually bitter or not. Obviously, the Holy Grail comment is hilarious, but my absolute favorite nugget from this posting is this line: "feel good about being GREEN,? cause your recycling some plastic crap (note the "your" instead of "you're")." That line takes the cake! Sadly, the surfboards really were ridiculously cheap, but I wasn't sure if this guy was joking or not, so I never called. Even more sad, I wouldn't have had enough money to buy his ridiculously cheap board from him anyway, and he probably would have made fun of me, to my face, for hours.
Many of you who know me well know that I love to debate. But, when I debate, I completely disconnect myself from any emotion and attempt to tackle topics with pure logic. What took me some time to realize is that not everyone can disconnect their emotions that way. Consequently, I have lost some friends, or upset missionary companions in the wake of a debate because I was coming off as caloused or insensitive. Seriously, I feel bad about it, but I never realized I was doing it. I'm more careful now. So, I want to make a disclaimer to any one of my friends that might be reading this. I only get into those types of debates with people that I am comfortable with. If I'm not completely comfortable with you, I'm not going to debate with you about subjects that are important to you, because I am honestly conscientious of your feelings, and the last thing I want to do is offend you. So there are a few of you out there (and you know who you are) that I will rip into verbally with no mercy, but, in all reality, it's just cheap entertainment for me. Debating stimulates my mind, and it feels good sometimes to dislodge my hunky mass of a brain and allow it to wander. Sounds lame, but it seriously feels like my brain is getting some fresh air after being locked away in my thick skull.
So, where am I going with this? Well, like most of my blogs, I am about to reveal some very embarrassing secrets about myself.
This is how nerdy I am: Sometimes, I will get online, either to a forum or a chatroom, and I will find people to debate with. This all started out when I realized that there wasn't really anyone close by that I could have a battle of wits with, so, like a shut-in, I turned to the captivating light of the LCD screen. I first tried to find where the smart people were. I figured it would be good for me to take a verbal lashing and lose epically, you know, to make me stronger. But, the more I looked, the more I realized that smart people must have more fulfilling lives than me, because I could only find people dumber than I ever could have imagined. And then it became a sport!
This is where I really do sound like I'm calloused and insensitive. But, here goes anyway! When I go into a chatroom, I will usually sit there for a few good minutes and observe. I pick the dumbest person I can find, but not just any dumb person. I pick the dumb person who thinks he knows everything. You know the kind I'm talking about! I'll take one sentence this person says, and come back with a rebuttle. It doesn't even matter if I agree with the guy or not. I've debated on the pro side for things I'm actually con about many times. I've even debated trivial things, like: Peanut Butter; crunchy or smooth? Now, I'm not mean, or insulting when I debate. All I do is present logic, facts, and try to turn his own words against him. And it's hilarious to watch their frustration build! I know that I've had a monumental victory when they start insulting me, which is a very fleeting indulgence, because it usually happens in less than a minute after the debate began. I can't think of one time that I actually had a calm, intelligent debate with a stranger online, it always explodes into a mushroom cloud of hilarity.
Most often I just go to forums and find a comment someone posted that I disagree with, post my rebuttle, and wait several hours before they find it and rebut back. It's a much slower process, but much more funny. And I just have to say that the dumbest people I've ever debated with online are YouTubers. Before all the YouTubers get offended, just know that I'm a YouTuber also (in fact, I spend way more time there than I want to admit). But, YouTube is fun, because you take people who can't even complete a coherant sentence, and they critique a video, and of course every single person who ever watched that video thinks that they are an expert on the subject. I'm convinced that the smart people just bite their tongue, but not me, I like to dive in head first! I hate it though, when I'm leaving a genuine comment on someone's video, and I ask them a question like, "oh, I like that video effect that you did. How did you do it?" and next thing I know, I get a reply to my comment that says, "You [expletive expletive] stupid [expletive]. It's just a video filter! I can't believe you're stupid enough to not know this stuff!" But, I love the comments that leave out most vowels, like "ur stpd. i wsh tht u wld drv of a clff n drwn n a vlly of tmto juce." What I really like about YouTube and many other forums, is that people can vote to give you thumbs up or thumbs down on your comments. When I'm in a week long, 10 comment debate with someone on YouTube, all their insulting, incoherant comments have mostly thumbs down, and all my calm, logical comments have thumbs up. It's a good feeling, really, to know that people are rooting for me! Is it wrong that I get so much joy out of this?
The other thing I like about online debating is that I can change personas. I've been a whole range of ages, I've been a woman before, Atheist, a Kobe fan, Obama supporter, cat-lover, gay, religious "Sex in the City" viewer, whatever. Again, I ask, is this wrong? Usually when I'm pretending to be what I'm not, I do it as sort of an infiltration tactic, like a spy. For instance, if I say I'm an Obama supporter, I will usually say something like, "I voted for Barack, but I regret it," and then I list all the reason why an Obama voter should regret their vote. Really, it's a ripping good laugh.
Seriously though, if you want a good laugh, you should just go to YouTube and read video comments. Although, I don't recommend it because people say horrible, horrible things.
One more quick disclaimer to my debating friends: It's never been my intention to debate until I break you down like I do to the morons on YouTube. Most of you put up with my debates, in fact, because you have valid points, and it actually is an intelligent experience for me. But, if I see any frustration, I try to back off. But, also, sometimes when I see comments or postings or whatever, I just can't help but comment! Seriously, it's an addiction.
So, that's me: the provoker. I like to stir the pot, because I get bored so easily. One day, I'm going to try and explain to you all what it is exactly that is wrong with my brain, but for now, iam tired.
"ok all you cheap sucks,,ive got the deal you are looking for,,iam quiting surfing,,too many geek-kooks,like you,,,yes you,,messing up even the hard to get to surf spots,,so nows is your chance to own some surf history,,buy a old surfboard from me ,,,feel good about being GREEN,? cause your recycling some plastic crap,,i get your cash,,which is really holding you back from true enlightment,,so heres the deal,,,i give you a crappy old surfboard,,you give me money,,its just money,theres more in the trust-fund,,/moneymarket-fund mommy and daddy give you every month,,so bust loose,,impress your freinds,,if you have any?oph do i seem bitter,,,yes iam?!! but that is not the point,,you really want to give me your $$,,it will make your meaningless life seem worthwhile for a short time,,,then ill sell you another peice of plastic ,which you will admire,like you have found the fricking HOLY GRAIL,,see its a win -win deal,,you feel better about your sad life,,,i walk away with cash,,call NOW-NOW"
So, before I move on, I wish to mention that the only changes I made to this was to take out all the expletives (my mother reads my blog, so . . .), but even in doing that, I never added or took away any other words, which just goes to show that the expletives were sprinkled in this ad willy-nilly in the first place, and taking them out made no difference whatsoever. Besides taking out some colorful language, this ad is exactly how I saw it, cut and paste, voila! Now, I wish to point out some subtle nuances that you may have easily missed. First off, I am a big stickler for good spelling. This person (who shall remain nameless since I don't know his name) always spelled "I am" as one word: "iam". Not even an apostraphe anywhere in that paragraph. Whenever I saw that, I always wanted to pronounce it like "aim". Also, this guy obviously never learned the old rhyme: " 'i' before 'e', except after 'c'." Now, I could spend hours picking on his misspellings, but I'll let you do that so that I can move on. But first, I want to pick out just a couple other hilarities from this post. I like that there are no periods anywhere. Also, what is "true enlightment," as opposed to "true enlightENment"? I love it how he says "do i seem bitter?" And then he says "yes iam?!!" He adds the question mark as though he's not sure himself if he's actually bitter or not. Obviously, the Holy Grail comment is hilarious, but my absolute favorite nugget from this posting is this line: "feel good about being GREEN,? cause your recycling some plastic crap (note the "your" instead of "you're")." That line takes the cake! Sadly, the surfboards really were ridiculously cheap, but I wasn't sure if this guy was joking or not, so I never called. Even more sad, I wouldn't have had enough money to buy his ridiculously cheap board from him anyway, and he probably would have made fun of me, to my face, for hours.
Many of you who know me well know that I love to debate. But, when I debate, I completely disconnect myself from any emotion and attempt to tackle topics with pure logic. What took me some time to realize is that not everyone can disconnect their emotions that way. Consequently, I have lost some friends, or upset missionary companions in the wake of a debate because I was coming off as caloused or insensitive. Seriously, I feel bad about it, but I never realized I was doing it. I'm more careful now. So, I want to make a disclaimer to any one of my friends that might be reading this. I only get into those types of debates with people that I am comfortable with. If I'm not completely comfortable with you, I'm not going to debate with you about subjects that are important to you, because I am honestly conscientious of your feelings, and the last thing I want to do is offend you. So there are a few of you out there (and you know who you are) that I will rip into verbally with no mercy, but, in all reality, it's just cheap entertainment for me. Debating stimulates my mind, and it feels good sometimes to dislodge my hunky mass of a brain and allow it to wander. Sounds lame, but it seriously feels like my brain is getting some fresh air after being locked away in my thick skull.
So, where am I going with this? Well, like most of my blogs, I am about to reveal some very embarrassing secrets about myself.
This is how nerdy I am: Sometimes, I will get online, either to a forum or a chatroom, and I will find people to debate with. This all started out when I realized that there wasn't really anyone close by that I could have a battle of wits with, so, like a shut-in, I turned to the captivating light of the LCD screen. I first tried to find where the smart people were. I figured it would be good for me to take a verbal lashing and lose epically, you know, to make me stronger. But, the more I looked, the more I realized that smart people must have more fulfilling lives than me, because I could only find people dumber than I ever could have imagined. And then it became a sport!
This is where I really do sound like I'm calloused and insensitive. But, here goes anyway! When I go into a chatroom, I will usually sit there for a few good minutes and observe. I pick the dumbest person I can find, but not just any dumb person. I pick the dumb person who thinks he knows everything. You know the kind I'm talking about! I'll take one sentence this person says, and come back with a rebuttle. It doesn't even matter if I agree with the guy or not. I've debated on the pro side for things I'm actually con about many times. I've even debated trivial things, like: Peanut Butter; crunchy or smooth? Now, I'm not mean, or insulting when I debate. All I do is present logic, facts, and try to turn his own words against him. And it's hilarious to watch their frustration build! I know that I've had a monumental victory when they start insulting me, which is a very fleeting indulgence, because it usually happens in less than a minute after the debate began. I can't think of one time that I actually had a calm, intelligent debate with a stranger online, it always explodes into a mushroom cloud of hilarity.
Most often I just go to forums and find a comment someone posted that I disagree with, post my rebuttle, and wait several hours before they find it and rebut back. It's a much slower process, but much more funny. And I just have to say that the dumbest people I've ever debated with online are YouTubers. Before all the YouTubers get offended, just know that I'm a YouTuber also (in fact, I spend way more time there than I want to admit). But, YouTube is fun, because you take people who can't even complete a coherant sentence, and they critique a video, and of course every single person who ever watched that video thinks that they are an expert on the subject. I'm convinced that the smart people just bite their tongue, but not me, I like to dive in head first! I hate it though, when I'm leaving a genuine comment on someone's video, and I ask them a question like, "oh, I like that video effect that you did. How did you do it?" and next thing I know, I get a reply to my comment that says, "You [expletive expletive] stupid [expletive]. It's just a video filter! I can't believe you're stupid enough to not know this stuff!" But, I love the comments that leave out most vowels, like "ur stpd. i wsh tht u wld drv of a clff n drwn n a vlly of tmto juce." What I really like about YouTube and many other forums, is that people can vote to give you thumbs up or thumbs down on your comments. When I'm in a week long, 10 comment debate with someone on YouTube, all their insulting, incoherant comments have mostly thumbs down, and all my calm, logical comments have thumbs up. It's a good feeling, really, to know that people are rooting for me! Is it wrong that I get so much joy out of this?
The other thing I like about online debating is that I can change personas. I've been a whole range of ages, I've been a woman before, Atheist, a Kobe fan, Obama supporter, cat-lover, gay, religious "Sex in the City" viewer, whatever. Again, I ask, is this wrong? Usually when I'm pretending to be what I'm not, I do it as sort of an infiltration tactic, like a spy. For instance, if I say I'm an Obama supporter, I will usually say something like, "I voted for Barack, but I regret it," and then I list all the reason why an Obama voter should regret their vote. Really, it's a ripping good laugh.
Seriously though, if you want a good laugh, you should just go to YouTube and read video comments. Although, I don't recommend it because people say horrible, horrible things.
One more quick disclaimer to my debating friends: It's never been my intention to debate until I break you down like I do to the morons on YouTube. Most of you put up with my debates, in fact, because you have valid points, and it actually is an intelligent experience for me. But, if I see any frustration, I try to back off. But, also, sometimes when I see comments or postings or whatever, I just can't help but comment! Seriously, it's an addiction.
So, that's me: the provoker. I like to stir the pot, because I get bored so easily. One day, I'm going to try and explain to you all what it is exactly that is wrong with my brain, but for now, iam tired.
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