Kei Cars

Japan has a class of vehicles called "kei" cars. Thankfully they have nothing to do with the old Chrysler products of the same name. Kei means "light". These are very small cars produced mostly because the government offers tax breaks because of their ecological friendliness. How small are they? Frankly they're rollerskates, 11.15 feet long and 4.85 feet wide. Think of a car smaller than a Mini with a turbocharged engine no larger than 660cc. That's 0.66 liters if you're bad at unit conversions. Most weigh under 1800 lbs. They're totally tiny.

Some of these cars are imported into various parts of the British Commonwealth, including Canada. They're probably most popular (outside of Japan) in Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. This is because those countries all drive on the wrong sides of the street just like the Japanese. You can't get them in the US. Don't even try. Sorry, ludicrous amounts of federal regulations exist to prevent Americans from importing fuel efficient small cars from somewhere else.

And yet I'm intrigued. Some of the designs are downright fascinating. Now trying to cram a family vehicle into this small footprint seem fraught with peril. But this might not suck if all you want is a small commuter car for one or two people.

Take the Honda Beat for instance. It is a little mid-engined convertible. Now take that car (quite literally that exact car), stretch it a bit and drop in a bigger engine. Now you have the MG TF which is the most popular sports car in Britain and for good reason. The Daihatsu Copen and the Nissan Figaro also have a big of style and performance.

I really think that small may be the untapped future of American automobiles. Right now we have lots of mammoth V8s, but few small, light, quick two-seater fours like the MG or the Lotus. I really think there is a sweet spot in the market for a small, sporty, fairly inexpensive, two-door that doesn't do much but does it well. But maybe that is just the guy that spends an hour and a half a day commuting doing the talking.

Holy Crap!

This armed robbery happened at my supermarket on Friday. Time for me to invest in that CCW permit.

Don Knotts, Comedy Genius

A friend and reader linked me to this post about the Christian nature of Knotts's comedy:

One by one, Mr. Knotts mocked the pretenses of the comic actor who often has his eye on nobler pursuits. In the nervous man, he reveled in the discomfort that most comics tend to pass off as indignation or savoir-faire. As Barney, he satirized swagger and self-importance. Finally, on "Three's Company" in the late 70's and 80's, he sent up the comedian's hypersexuality, which is often his pride.

Knotts was reliably ahead of his time. He (along with Andy Griffith and others) are also Christian's from the old silent majority school that Ronald Reagan also espoused.

Christian Compassion

One of the Thinklings is discussing the softening of evangelical attitudes toward homosexuality. While individuals like Brian McLaren are taking a lot of credit and (in some circles) blame for this, we are really coming to the end of a pretty long road.

I remember my first experience with realigning relationships started when I was a teenager in a PCA church in Wilmington. A prominent member of the congregation was gay and had been struggling with leaving that lifestyle with the help and support from our excellent Assistant Pastor. We had an evening service on the subject one summer in the early nineties.

I remember them expressing that what most gay people need isn't a lecture on sexual morality. What they need more than anything else is Christ. To do it the other way around is to put the cart before the horse. The wisdom of that statement seemed incredibly well founded to me then. A recent study of 1 Corinthians has shown it to be biblically founded even now.

Moving Day

Amybear and I are moving her into her apartment, which will be our apartment once we get married. Hence the light blogging today. Her parents have managed to finagle a lot of free but definitely not cheap loot for us. If you come to visit you can easily distinguish what is what by the quality.

In a side note, we bought lunch for everybody from McDonalds. Am I the only one that looks at a typical fast food meal only to have the the theme song to Aquateen Hunger Force spring into my head?

Fundamentalist Athiests

There is a such a thing. I have met them. It is scary. Physics Geek links to a list of ways to recognize the phenomenon.

Death of an Enzo

More on ,this story from Greg Costikyan:

Stefan Eriksson, former executive for Gizmondo, apparently crashed his $1m Ferrari while street racing on the Pacific Coast Highway. Eriksson apparently left Gizmondo last October when Aftonbladet (a Swedish newspaper) revealed that he was convicted in 1993 and 1994 on counts of financial fraud and counterfeiting, and was at the times considered the brains behind the Uppsala Mafia, a local criminal gang. (Sweden has a Mafia? Who knew.)

Yes the Swedish mafia exist and are operating in the US, here they are doing intensive weapons training.

Ok I'd Buy This

From the makers of Rollercoaster Tycoon and Sim-Everything, it's MegaChurch. See how easy it is to be just like Joel Osteen! Via: Rev Ed.

Rangers Lead the Way

From McQ at QandO:

In June 24th of 2004, a young Ranger with the 75th Ranger Regiment was greviously wounded in Iraq when, on his second tour, the humvee he was riding in was attacked. After exiting the vehicle after the explosion and attack, Ranger Kanaan Merriken passed out and was unconscious for 11 days.

Merrikan had been airlifted to a hospital in Germany where surgeons had worked desperately to save his life. His carotid artery has been severed by shrapnel and part of the left frontal lobe of his brain had been damaged. The damaged portion had to be removed in a crainiotomy. He also had shrapnel wounds all over his body, a retinal hemorrage in his left eye and loss of hearing in his left ear.

Merriken was given a medical discharge. He didn't take it. In fact he fought to have it repealed in court. In November, Merriken completed the Ranger Indoctrination Program for a second time. He is now back serving with the 75th.

I'm a civilian, you can't force me to salute. But Kanaan Merriken, I salute you.

Dobson Does Something Right

I'm not normally a fan of James Dobson and his political machinations. He's generally too old guard for me. But a bill he is supporting in Colorado is actually pretty good:

A controversial bill under consideration in the Colorado Legislature, which is supported by Dr. James Dobson and Focus on the Family Action, would facilitate certain contractual obligations or legal arrangements for any two "unmarried persons who are excluded from entering into a valid marriage under the marriage laws of this state."

Meaning that this law can be used to streamline gay couples sharing parental rights or other legal arrangements. It could also be used by close family members and other groups. Joe Carter has this to say:

Some conservatives and libertarians may see no need for the government to expand the definition of civil unions in any manner. But the political reality is that the change is inevitable. The issue is no longer when civil unions will be recognized but what form they will take. (The Colorado bill is competing with a domestic partnership proposal from Democratic lawmakers.) By desexualizing the issue we preserve the government’s purpose (a social institution that brings stability to our society) without endorsing behavior that many of us consider immoral.

Exactly. I'm not fan of homosexuality in general or gay marriage in particular. But gay couples are adopting and raising children. I'm not insensitive to the problems this creates. If we don't react in a way that allows both Christians and homosexuals some flexibility, then we are likely to get something that has no flexibility shoved down our throats.

There are essentially two models of Christian involvement in government. The first is to embrace big government and use it to try to foster or even impose godly behavior on the governed. In short, turn the gigantic government machine that the liberals built against them. It is tempting, but it isn't biblical. In Corinthians, Paul says that you can't expect or require that non-Christians behave like Christians. Without the Holy Spirit to do so is little more than tyranny. I am many things, but not a tyrant.

I believe we need to embrace a form of limited civil government where people may do what they like contractually, but where the government and the legal system cannot impose support for behavior that citizens consider immoral. We need to dismantle the monster liberals have built and bring many social issues out of the halls of government and back into the public square where they really belong.

UPDATE: A response to some comments:

You want limited government but only if it agrees with your moral compass.

No what I want is a government limited so that it cannot force me to act against my own moral compass. I really don't care if gay people want to get married. I do care if I am forced to support their lifestyle with my taxes, etc.

Maybe they don't want to support my lifestyle either. If that means some things I want don't get government or contractually supported because other people have problems with them, then I'm fine with that. I'm more than willing to support them myself with my non-tax dollars, especially when limited government means I will have more non-tax dollars I can use to support those charities.

What Problem does adopting children create exactly? What is getting shoved down your throats? What flexibility do Christians need from the government?

Adopting children causes huge parent/guardianship problems for gay couples. Often only one member of the couple can be listed as a parent or guardian. If that one dies, the child's other parent may be in a custody battle with their deceased partner's family for the child. It happens, it sucks, and I sympathize. Also, a civil union or marriage would probably make it a lot easier for gay couples to get health benefits and the like from people who have no moral problems with homosexuality. This is also useful for raising kids.

On the other hand if gay marriage is considered marriage, there is no option to deny gay couples coverage on moral grounds. The civil institution of marriage is a pre-existing legal construct with pre-existing contractual issues. If no differentiation is made, then all those pre-existing issues can be rammed down the throat of conscientous moral objectors in a court of law.

On the other hand if gay marriage is legally different than straight marriage, then it has to be re-legislated by the states and feds. Gay marriage can't just piggy-back on the immense body of pre-existing legislation. You can't use gay marriage to force people to do what they want. The difference is that if gay marriage is a "civil union" then a Christian healthcare provider (and there are several) can say "No we don't cover you, but try Blue Cross" instead of being told "You cannot deny me coverage by state law."

Death of an Artwork

Authorities were investigating the circumstances behind a spectacular crash on Pacific Coast Highway that destroyed a rare Ferrari Enzo that experts said was worth more than $1 million.

Poor car. Dumb driver. But he's lucky. If he had been going 100+ in a lesser car, wrapping it around that telephone pole probably would have killed him.

If there are any Enzo owners in Delaware who need a driver to get them home from the bar, give me a call. I'll get you home safe. Honest.

Not About Whales

John the Methodist has some issues with Jonah.

I really like Jonah. Jonah is the biblical equivalent to "Ring Around the Rosie" or "Alluetta". Everybody knows "Ring Around the Rosie" as a childrens song with a fun little dance. Like the Hokie Pokie except shorter. Fewer people realize that it is about everyone dying from the Black Death. The "ring around the rosie" is a description of the buboes cause by the Plague. Similarly Alluetta sounds like a cute french song, but is actually about plucking a bird's feathers so you can eat him.

Jonah is like that. We teach it to children as a story about a man that was scared and ran away. Then he got eaten by a fish, spit up, and everybody lived happily ever after. This is the cartoon version of Jonah you'll see in Veggie Tales and in Sunday school lessons. But it isn't the real story. The real story of Jonah is about the adventures of a Jewish bigot.

The reason for the mis-interpretation is that Jonah doesn't tell you why he ran away until the last chapter. God initial told Jonah:

Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.

But Jonah runs, why? Most people just project their own insecurities on him. But was he actually scared? No. Jonah has this to say in Chapter 4:

That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, O LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.

In other words, the Assyrians are a horrible people. I wanted them to be destroyed. I didn't want to give them the opportunity for repentance by bringing your word to them. Now kill me.

Then Jonah goes up on a hill overlooking the city and waits for God to destroy it. But that doesn't happen. God attempts to teach him a lesson using the vine and worm, a lesson about the value of the lives of the people of Nineveh, but we have no evidence that Jonah actually learned it and repented from his own sins.

Speed Skating Feuds

Ok if I were Shani Davis, I would have competed in the pursuit. If I were Chad Hedrick, I wouldn't be mouthing off so much. But I'm neither. For further thoughts, look to Matthew at Physics Geek, Jesus Freak.

What bugs me most about this whole situation is all the "first African American to get the gold" business. What happened to Vonetta Flowers winning the gold driving women's bobsled in 2002? Does she not count because she's a woman and competes in a team sport? Davis is only an icebreaker if you start liberally applying qualifiers like "individual" or "male" in front of "African-American."

I can respect Davis's drive and performance. But the truth is that the story the media wants to tell really isn't there. But they're dedicated to telling it anyway. Which is what has made Davis's interviews so entertaining for me and frustrating for reporters like Melissa Stark.

Shotgun Gate Part Deux

I promise that this will be the last shotgun gate post until the next one...

Via Geek with a .45, some science nerds are looking at 28 gauge shot patterns from various ranges. They start with patterning boards and move to chickens, etc. It is an interesting post and they have great pictures.

The problem is that we don't know what choke Cheney was using and the choke can have a huge effect on pattern size. The guys at My Science Project guessed modified which is probably the best choice. But if Cheney was shooting full, I expect the pattern to be significantly different.

An Emerging Endeavor

The Delaware conservative blogosphere was knit a little closer this weekend. Several of us; Hube of Colossus of Rhodey, Ryan of Jokers to the Right, Steve of Blogolution, Paul Smith Jr., the Mark Levin Fan, and myself; got together Saturday for dinner and discussion. It was good fun and we'll be doing it again, possibly on a regular basis.

Sometime during the night, we realized we had a potential opportunity staring us in the face. Delaware is a small state. We have a weak (at best) mainstream media in the News Journal. Even our state government has a small town feel. A loud but small group of people can make a difference. But wait! We're a loud but small group of people. Why don't we make a difference!

Our first step is the formation of the Delaware Conservative Bloggers Alliance (DCBA). The new blogroll and graphic will be appearing to the left once I get off my lazy butt and put it there. The second step is the creation of Delaware 2006, a new group blog focusing on issues and people involved in the 2006 Delaware elections.

Odd facts about the Alliance:

• Unlike the Rebel Alliance in Star Wars, we are not modeled on the Viet Cong in any way, shape, or form.
• Oddly enough a lot of us are current or former comic book fans. Some even know people in the industry.
• Our blogging platforms are diverse. Blogspot is the most common because we're cheap and it's free.
• We're religiously diverse. I'm Baptist, Paul is Catholic, Hube is also Christian, and Steve is Jewish. Good for us.
• We're a political big tent too, although we're all to the right of Mike Castle.
• If you want to see what big nerds we are Hube and Paul both have the picture posted. I'm the guy who's ball cap is covering up the fact that he badly needs a haircut.

Stay tuned for future developments.

UPDATE: I misreported Hube's religious background as atheist/agnostic. Sorry about that Hube, I was misinformed. While Hube isn't big on organized religion, he's also Christian. I don't anticipate any friction there since I'm Baptist and therefore practice one of the most disorganized religions in the world.

Gearhead Alert

Ever wondered what makes an engine go? Autoblog has not one, but two pieces covering the engine design of two big V8s. The first is a comparison of Chrysler's 5.7 and 6.1 liter hemis. The second compares the supercharged 5.4 liters found in the Ford GT and Shelby Mustang 500. Pay no attention to the brand bigotry in the comments over there.

Blogging Around the World

Last night my small group entertained (sometimes literally) Brenda Herhei, a missionary operating in Hungary with Pioneers International. Brenda is one of several people from my church's singles group to transition into full time missions. She was there to ask for support and I intend to give her some. If you wish to, contact me and I'll hook you up.

Brenda does church planting on a team in Petofibanya, a small ex-mining town in Hungary built by that country's Communists a while back. It is a blue collar town and a fairly unpleasant place to live. The people there have had rough lives.

Where does blogging around the world fit in? Well the Mercers, Allen and Sharon, also came out of my church and are some of the original members of the team. The interesting thing for you guys is that they blog. Within the last year their team's work has really born spiritual fruit. A small group study which has been unattended for three years has recently taken off. They have two many people for one group now and have multiplied. God is doing amazing things and their blog is record of it.

I wish more missionaries could do this. Unfortunately, many of my church's missionaries operate in Muslim countries where even admitting to being a missionary at home or on the internet can get you lynched.

Republican Leadership

Instapundit turned me on to a discussion of John Shadegg's place in Republican Party internal politics:

Aside from beefing up the new leadership’s "reform" banner, Shadegg would serve as a valuable conservative temperature gauge. Who knows better how limited government conservatives will react to a piece of legislation than one of their own?

The whole article makes me sad. The Republicans are learning and getting back to where they should be. Still why did it take them so long to get concerned over the lack of small government conservatives and how did the party of Reagan get itself into this position in the first place.

Gun Registration

It seems the Canadians are scrapping it because:

One former Mountie called the registry "totally useless" because criminals don't register their guns.

"They've wasted $2 billion on what should have gone to front-line policing," said Dennis Young, parliamentary assistant to Saskatchewan Conservative MP Garry Breitkreuz, a gun-registry critic.

"They've targeted law-abiding citizens instead of the 176,000 people (with court convictions) who have been prohibited from owning guns."

Several US states with registries have come to similar conclusions. Gun registry is very expensive and not especially useful for actually solving crimes, mostly because criminals have an easy time avoiding it.

Bashing the Services

Joe Carter is bashing the Air Force with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek. That is his God given right as an ex-Marine.

Let me first say that I have the utmost respect for all of the groups that serve our country. The Army, Navy, Marines, and Boy Scouts all do an outstanding job and have my deepest admiration. The Air Force, being very similar to a military organization, gets my thanks as well.

Amybear's Dad was a Major in the Air Force before he retired and became a contractorsold his soul to the devil. That means you will never hear me bash the Air Force. Where Amy's Dad might see or hear it. But I will make fun of him for being a contractor as is my right as a federal employee.

I must say that when I'm watching Stargate SG1, the thing that taxes my suspension of disbelief the most is not that these guys are flying space ships or traveling to other planets. It is that Air Force personnel are supposed to be capable of being such badasses in close combat. Let's face it, the Air Force isn't exactly the combat arm for elite infantry. Just once I'd like to see a ton of Marines or Army Rangers come piling through the gate and save SG1s hide.

Der Hornen

This is what happens when you let Baby Boomers be President. I guess he learned it from (caution profanity) the best though. Doesn't anyone adhere to the guidelines of the Supreme Metal Council anymore?

Blogger Troubles

Blogspot has been giving me (and everyone else) a lot of trouble both yesterday and this morning. Even when I could see the blog I couldn't log on or post for most of it. We'll see how it goes.

If blogging is light today, keep in mind that it may not be my fault.

Bird Hunting Mechanics

Wizbang is describing what bird hunting is like and why Cheney didn't see Whittington until it was too late.

Anyone who has ever raised a shotgun to track a quail or pheasant would understand how the eye and the trigger finger are operating in different planes of space and time. When swiveling to track flushed game the information being processed by the eyes and the operation of the gun lag each other. With experience hunters learn to compensate for this disconnect (as well as for the physics of hitting a moving target) by leading the shot.

I find it perfectly reasonable to believe that Cheney may have seen a flash of Whittington right as he was firing or even a split second before - past the point where the brain can recall the impulse it has already sent to the hand to fire. Once the shot is fired all sorts of visual information from the periphery - information the brain had been blocking to concentrate on the flight of the bird - comes rushing back into the hunters view.

I don't bird hunt, but I have shot clays and Kevin Aylward's description of the mechanics of shotgunning are dead on. If you are shooting a bird, you are shooting the bird. You are focused on it. Not what is behind it (Whittington) or what is in front of it (your gun).

Stephen Hunter is also a bird hunter. His column at the Washington Post fleshes out a lot of details of birding from his own personal experience. It is well worth the read.

UPDATE: King of Fools linked to this pdf of Texas hunting accident records. There were 29 accidents in 2004 (the last year with data). 4 were fatal. That's slightly up from the all time low, but down significantly from when they started keeping records. The document has a profile for the typical accident and much of the description fits the Cheney case.

Big and Little Tech

Honda may be coming out with a turbocharged variant of their 1800 VTX power cruiser. The problem? The 1800 already has more than enough straight-line grunt. What it needs is better handling, which is what this package won't give it.

At first I didn't see the big deal with this little laser camera. But on second thought this is pretty cool. The laser projection process means you don't have to fool with image focus or expensive optics. Their proposed image quality is impressive enough to encompass home theatre projectors from even a relatively small unit. And it requires very little power, so you could incorporate it into a small electronic device and use it to create a big screen on any interior wall. This product is just packed with utility.

Shotgun Gate

The Press is apoplectic. The hilarious thing is that they are incensed, not because the VP shot someone and was irresponsible handling firearms, but because he didn't tell them about it until the next day.

Lets face it, this is Dick Cheney's business and Harry Whittington's business, not the American people's business. Do you really expect Cheney to come out on national TV and talk about how he serious injured a good friend? I wouldn't. I'd tell the press to suck it, because it is none of their business. Bill O'Reilly realizes this:

The veep's failure to come clean, says Mr. O, is because of his "well-known press phobia. . . . The vice president's hunting accident affects no one, means nothing, and the vice president's refusal to brief the press was predictable." O'Reilly did allow that "Dick Cheney's secret style hurts him."

Seems about right to me.

Lonely Valentines

Were you alone yesterday? Was it because you're stuck in a platonic friendship? Joelogon's guide to platonic friendships can help. Or give you a place to be bitter and brood. Maybe both.

I've had my share of platonic friendships. Far more of them than romantic ones, really. Most were my fault. Women reading this are probably thinking, "Fault? that makes platonic relationship sound bad." Guys reading this are thinking, "Of course it's bad! No guy wants a platonic relationship!"

Anyway usually I screwed up and put the relationship into the friend zone. Often it was because I lacked emotional sensitivity or any idea of what the girl wanted. Or maybe I played it safe and didn't pursue them enough, leaving the girl with the impression that I didn't care. Others were women who just weren't interested in me romantically to start with.

Amy and I got together shortly after I started grad school, although we met my senior year in college. Turns out a nice christian boy has that forbidden fruit appeal to those quiet Jewish girls. We've been together (meaning emotionally linked but often hundreds of miles apart) ever since. The wedding is in three months.

Yes, this should have gone up yesterday. But better late than never.

Too Common Tragedies

One of my shooting acquaintences was expecting his first child. Was is sometimes a powerful word. His wife miscarried yesterday. She is physically fine, but they are obviously distraught and will be holding a funeral for the baby thursday. Please pray for their family.

Unbiased Reporting

Dawn Eden received the following email from a fellow journalist:

Hi there
I am a reporter for Marie Claire magazine working on a lengthy feature about "crisis pregnancy centers" and I love your site. I am looking to talk with women who have been deceived by CPCs. I am wondering if you can help. Of course I wouldn't expect you to divulge their identity to me, but if you could pass along my information, I would greatly appreciate it.

Please feel free to call me any time day or night via email or cell phone at *data withheld*.

All the best
Siobhan O'Connor
Reporter, Marie Claire Magazine

One, she obviously has never read Dawn's site. If she had, she would realize that the most Dawn would give her is the finger. Second, does this sound like a well researched and unbiased article to you? "I'm looking for people with horror stories from Crisis Pregnancy Centers so I can publicize how bad the centers are." Granted we are talking Marie Claire, not the New York Times... er... Well ok this does sound like something the Times would run. But that isn't a good thing.

And yes I have done fund raising for crisis pregnancy centers in the past.

Mazdaspeed 3?

I make no secret that I'm a Mazda fan. I really really like my current Protege. It doesn't have amazing pickup, but it handles like a dream. I thought about buying the Mazdaspeed Protege instead of my car, but it was $5k more for 30 horses, a limited slip differential, and higher fuel costs because of the low-boosting turbo. I wasn't impressed.

Then they replaced the Protege with the Mazda3. I was a bit leery. The Mazda3 is built on the same platform as the Euro focus (but not the American focus which is the older design). I've driven a base model 3 when my car was in for service. The 3 is larger than the Protege, which makes for better interior room. But the base engine is the Mazda 2 liter in my car and the suspension is softer and less responsive. The end result was a slightly bigger, slower car that didn't turn as well. I wasn't impressed, but then again I'd never buy the base model. I'd buy the 2.3 liter sport model with 30 more horses and the suspension I like.

Now Mazda has introduced the Mazdaspeed 3. Well actually they introduced the Mazda3 MPS, which is the Euro version. It's the 5 door sportwagon variant of the 3, but with the same turbocharged 2.3 liter that is in the all-wheel drive Mazdaspeed 6. This is an engine that makes ~275 horses and 280 lb-ft of torque. But the 3 weighs 300 lbs less than the 6 and is just front wheel drive. It's scary. I have to wonder how this car compares to the Euro Focus rally cars kicking the crap out of everybody on the WRC.

Thankfully my Protege still has several years of life left in it, or I could be getting myself into real trouble.

Why Batman is Still Cool

Frank Miller is penning another Batman graphic novel. Thats a comic book for those of you who want to look down on the post-teenage men who buy such things. What is it about? According to Miller "Batman kicks Al Qaeda's ass." Via Michelle Malkin:

The reason for this work, Miller said, was "an explosion from my gut reaction of what's happening now." He can't stand entertainers who lack the moxy of their '40s counterparts who stood up to Hitler. Holy Terror is "a reminder to people who seem to have forgotten who we're up against."

It's been a long time since heroes were used in comics as pure propaganda. As Miller reminded, "Superman punched out Hitler. So did Captain America. That's one of the things they're there for."

"These are our folk heroes," Miller said. "It just seems silly to chase around the Riddler when you've got Al Qaeda out there."

Maybe now Marvel can follow suit and give Cap his balls back.

UPDATE: Hube, an even bigger comic nerd than myself, has similar thoughts and more of Miller's background for anyone not familiar with his work.

"Buckshot" Dick Cheney

Well as a Christian gun blogger, I'm wondering if people are expecting me to comment on the Texas Cheney-saw Massacre from over the weekend. Unfortunately, I'm not a bird hunter although my Grampy's 20 gauge could certainly do the job. I'm a target shooter and self-defense advocate, so my understanding of the safety ettiquette surrounding bird hunting is a bit weak. Here are comments from some others who know what they are talking about better than I:

Anybody in here an avid Quail hunter??? Guessing some have never hunted wild birds before. This is what happens when you leave the hunting party and go out on your own. Mr. Bob White isn't stupid, he'll fly right twards you, your buddy, your dogs, and any vehicle close by. That's why you hunt with everyone formed in a line perpendicular to the covey rise. That way when the bird doubles back you can bring the muzzle into your chest, turn a 180 and let em' have it. Also, you don't pick up birds until the rise is over and you don't pursue the next point until all the birds are in the bag. While I agree that the VP should have seen a man in the line of fire and pulled off, the Lawyer is definitely to blame for coming up from behind with birds still on the ground. Stop, drop and roll buddy!

Another:

It's an unspoken rule but when walking a line for birds we've always either helped search for the downed bird or held our position until the guy who left the line returns to his position. Now I know why. I've always thought it was because getting ahead of others put me at risk though, not the other way around.

A third:

I don't know how many of you hunt, but here's how it works. You walk a line as noted before. If someone is out of the line you wait. I admit I've gone on to the next point or gone after another bird, but when my partner is retrieving a downed bird but I sure as hell know where he is.

Whenever hunting I make it a habit to always know where everyone in the hunting party is. Anyone I hunt with does the same, or we don't hunt together. You can tell if a guy has his head on straight pretty quick just by watching him. If you see him checking you like you're checking him then its OK. That plus muzzle awareness makes a safe hunter.

If a bird goes over the line, or anywhere near my hunting partners/kids/dogs/etc its a no shoot. Like the earlier poster said IF the line is right and I know where everybody is a 180 to get the shot is fine.

This accident was 100% preventable and 100% negligent. The guy coming up from behind had no obligation to announce himself. That part about the guy coming up behind him and making it sound like he snuck up or something is complete BS. What's he supposed to do? He has to rejoin the hunting party.

When I lose contact with my hunting partners (behind cover, in a wash, etc) i call out to them and they to me. You just have to know where people are or don't shoot the gun. No little bird is worth risking shooting a person.

One other point. If these were late season wild birds and not planted birds it isn't surprising that they flew toward the hunters. Late birds do crazy stuff and seasoned hunters know that. That's why they're still alive. All the well behaved ones got shot already!

Finally:

Yes, mistakes were made by all. Cheney SHOULD have known what was beyond his target. His friend should have followed the correct protocol when hunting with a group. They didn't. Thankfully, no one was maimed or killed, no one lost their eyesight.

I agree with the last one. Cheney screwed up. Whittingdon also screwed up. Thankfully no one was blinded or killed.

Doom and Elizabethtown

Amybear and I rented these this weekend. We wanted ample movie supplies should we get snowed in (which we were.) Guess which one was her pick and which one was mine, I dare you.

DOOM

Not bad for a movie based on a video game. It was similar in quality to the Resident Evil movies. Worth the rental, but nothing special.

My biggest criticism is that the movie disregarded too much of the game's content. The imps weren't throwing balls of eldritch fire. They were just nasty zombies and close combat monsters. The main plot was changed from "human experiments in teleportation open the gates of Hell" to "scientists make a big mistake in genetic engineering." The change didn't really work for me. I thought a movie with space marines facing off against demons would have been a lot cooler.

The first person sequence is pretty cool though.

Elizabethtown

Good movie. Very good movie. Excellent cast. Orlando Bloom, Alec Baldwin, Jessica Biels, Susan Sarandon, Kirsten Dunst, etc., etc. There are a lot of other people you might recognize from TV and movies (like Bruce McGill and Judy Greer). Just go rent the darn thing.

Snow Days

Hube is happy because his school district has the day off. Amybear isn't so lucky. She starts her first day managing aftercare this afternoon and her school is only running 2 hours late.

We cleaned the cars off yesterday. It seemed like a good idea at the time. I did not want to have to clear 10 inches of snow off my car and another 10+ off the ground behind it so I could get out. So we cleared both our cars off. This morning they were covered in ice instead of snow. Just getting in was a pain because ice had worked into the door seals.

Fortunately by this afternoon when Amybear is going somewhere a little sunshine should have worked wonders.

Pictures

You may have noticed that my background images are broken again. A while back I was hosting my images on Roadfly, but they changed their policies. Then I moved to Photobucket, but they seem to be broken at the moment.

If anyone has suggests for where to go next, I'd love to hear it. Is there a way to get blogger to host my backgrounds without having them compress the hell out of them (like they do with pictures for posts)? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

UPDATE: My Photobucket account seems to be busted. I've made a new one so we'll see how that goes. I'm keeping an eye out for another solution.

Brief Blog Break

I took a couple days off blogging because things got busy. Amybear has a job in Delaware that starts Monday. We're going to be local for the first time in 5 years.

Because it starts Monday, a lot of arrangements have to be made. Plus I'm sick. So the last two days have been an interesting mix of getting stuff done, bank accounts established, etc. and being sick, grouchy, and/or medicated.

Opening Ceremonies

Amy and I watched it until she fell asleep. Then I switched over to the WWIIHistory Channel.

The Good Points: The Ski Jumper, the Ferrari, and fire. Lots of fire.

The Bad Points: Yoko Frigging Ono. Imagine? I'm sorry but I'm sick to death of people treating that song as if the deep secrets of the universe can be unlocked within. Imagine is John Lennon's vision of a secular humanist utopia. Go read the lyrics again if you don't believe me. This isn't something I can stand behind. This is some immature commie hippy's version of the future, not mine.

I was watching a Kathy Griffin standup routine. She talked about hosting a charity benefit in LA where Sharon Stone recited the lyrics in a similar manner as tonight's opening ceremonies. Kathy responded by reciting the lyrics to "You Ain't Nothing But a Hound Dog" by Elvis. Multiple members of the audience had paid her to do it via large contributions to the charity. There is hope for Hollywood yet.

Gun Fun

I've been looking into building my own AR15 for a little while now. Yes I said building. While some may doubt the stopping power of the military's current rifle, the engineering behind it is quite astonishing. With only some simple tools you probably have in the basement, you can turn a pile of parts into a safe, functional, and accurate rifle. I may make it a male bonding activity with my dad and brother.

This isn't something you can do with a typical rifle, I assure you. Most require a qualified gunsmith to do the final assembly. Installing a barrel on most designs is especially tricky and when done improperly you can have too much or too little headspace. That means the gun can blow up in your face. Not so with the AR. As long as a few parts are in spec, you'll be fine.

Now for those of you worried that gangbangers will be building assault rifles in their parents garages, don't worry. The first part you need is the lower receiver. (I explained this to Amybear as the gun's skeleton.) Where the state and federal governments are concerned, the lower receiver is the firearm and you need to go through all the relevant background checks just to buy the darn thing. So unless they can forge and mill their own receivers in their parents garage, you're safe.

The other great thing about ARs is that learning about it often constitutes work for me. Being a gun nut that works for the Army has a great symbiosis to it. Some great sites I found on the gun today? Ammo Oracle is one. It contains all you really need to know about 5.56 NATO and .223 Remington. B&T Ammo Labs also has some good information on terminal ballistic effects.

Passing It On

One of my coworkers is sick. She got it from her husband. He is much improved. Why? Because he has passed it on of course. You always get better after you have made someone else sick. It seems like this is the case at least.

I have to wonder if this isn't more than a coincidence? Would it be beneficial for diseases to operate on a cycle so that the gestation period (the period before you show symptoms) is similar to the time the average person actually spends being sick? Beats me but it seemed like an interesting idea when I thought of it a few minutes ago.

A Record of Prayer

To all the world this is a boring blue memo pad. You can get five of them for a few dollars at any supermarket or drug store. Yet inside is something precious. Every page is contains prayer requests, three years of them in all. This is the second of these little books I have filled. Now I need to get around to buying another. It is a good problem to have.

Now some of you are probably thinking that this is pretty cool. But those of you who actively prayer journal will realize that fitting three years worth of prayer onto 75 little sheets of paper is a pretty mediocre record. Three years of your prayer life would hopefully require a much bigger book.

Actually, I don't use this to record all my prayers. My little book is more of a set of prayer request reminders from the guys in my bible study. In theory I use them a lot to pray over the need of my friends and brothers. Unfortunately that probably isn't the case. My daily prayer life has tended to be pretty meager outside of corporate fellowship.

Recently, I've been convicted that I'm not spending enough time in personal bible study and prayer. I have met a lot of mature strong christians who have the same problems. It seems a lot of us have real trouble having times alone with God. We struggle with scheduling them and having them regularly. We struggle with what to do during them. We especially have trouble listening instead of just talking.

What about you? How is your prayer life? How about your quiet times? What are you doing to keep them fresh? Feel free to comment in the comments, that is what they're for.

Thats My Church

For better or for worse:

Opponents of embryonic stem cell research and cloning forced Delaware Senate Bill 80 to be “gutted” of its most important elements in order to gain passage in blue-state Delaware.

Several supporters, including sponsor Rep. Deborah Hudson, R-Fairthorne, said the bill’s references to embryonic stem cell research were removed because of a powerful lobbying and advertising campaign that opposed the bill.

The campaign Rep. Hudson referenced, “A Rose & a Prayer,” is a grassroots effort that involved Delawareans of many faiths. More than 2,400 Delawareans signed up for a total of more than 1,500 hours of prayer in opposition to SB 80. Also as part of the campaign, state legislators last week received more than 1,500 roses with cards from individual voters asking them to vote against the bill. In addition, it is believed that over ten thousand Delawareans contacted their representatives asking them to vote against the bill.

Supported by Christian ministers, such as Bowen Matthews of Brandywine Valley Baptist Church and Bishop Michael Saltarelli of the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington, A Rose and a Prayer created a dynamic grassroots network was instrumental in preventing the original SB 80 from coming to the House for a vote.

Mohammed Cartoons

It's hard to believe that European embassies are burning over this:


Fortunately there are voices of hope and sanity even in the Muslim World. I like Grand Ayatolla Ali Al-Sistani. He had this to say:

In Iraq, the country's top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, decried the drawings but did not call for protests.

"We strongly denounce and condemn this horrific action," he said in a statement posted on his Web site and dated Tuesday.

Al-Sistani, who wields enormous influence over Iraq's majority Shiites, made no call for protests and suggested that militant Muslims were partly to blame for distorting Islam's image.

He referred to "misguided and oppressive" segments of the Muslim community and said their actions "projected a distorted and dark image of the faith of justice, love and brotherhood."

"Enemies have exploited this ... to spread their poison and revive their old hatreds with new methods and mechanisms," he said.

Or in other words "I'm not happy with these drawings, but perhaps the way to make them disappear would be to stop confirming their prejudices by blowing people up and setting fire to things." What a guy.

Oh and if a Muslim out there is reading this blog and is offended, then my apologies. I'd also like to note that I'm an American and we have rights to self defense which secure our rights to free expression. Go bother a softer target.

God's Politics

Gaines is reviewing the book by that title from Jim Wallis. Long review made short: Wallis's criticism of the right for being stingy and the left for being godless are dead on. But the book has some serious problems with analyzing scripture. His recommendations are far more along the lines of a godful left than a holy middle. If nothing this shows the biases Wallis brought to the table.

I've been thinking about how the spheres of religion and politics are colliding in the US. 1 Corinthians 5:9-12 has this to say:

I have written you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world. But now I am writing you that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat.

What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside.

Once America was a nominally Christian nation. Perhaps then it was appropriate to live by Christian rules. But let's face it, that is no longer the case.

The Christian life is only possible through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. How can you require it from Spiritless people? To do so borders on tyrannical legalism. The church must hold itself to the higher standard, not the world.

Movies for Old People

Amy and I rented Must Love Dogs this weekend. She thought it would be your typical romantic comedy and I thought that would put her in a good mood. We were both wrong. Must Love Dogs is a romantic comedy, but for people approaching middle age. Both the protagonists are divorced with baggage. The acting is solid and it isn't a bad movie (although a bit dark), but Amy and I were definitely in the wrong demographic for it.

We also rented Transporter 2. Guess which of the two movies I picked out. The plotline was interesting, unfortunately it was in a movie about unbelievable stunts and explosions. I liked the original better. It was lower budget, but had a grittier more realistic feel to the movie. People got hurt, cars blew up. Transporter 2 just felt like one surreal CGI effect after another. The stunts are unbelieveable and the cars and heroes emerged unscathed. I guess I like my heros slightly scathed.

Mythbusters

I'm a big fan to the show. Although having done research professionally, I realize that what they do is not exactly at the level of a peer reviewed paper. Which doesn't actually mean much either, but what do you want?

Mythbuster's examination of the Star Wars movies came up at lunch yesterday. Suffice it to say that some of the effects are effects, but others could actually happen. For instance Luke wouldn't need force jumping abilities to survive the fall from the AT-AT walker in Empire Strikes Back. Snow really is that good at breaking your fall.

I believe they also showed that a lightsaber is both a beautiful, elegant, and horribly stupid weapon. A double-bladed lightsaber is doubly so. That Darth Maul fight scene looks great, but if you look closely you'll see that he always has one blade of his saber uncomfortably close to his body.

The WCM Method

More relationship wisdom from the desk of Scott Adams:

Forget about how much you know, or how smart you think you are, or how much extra information you might have recently collected. That will not help you. Instead, I offer you the only solution: The WCM Method.

WCM stands for Who Cares Most. If you want your relationship to have a chance, defer all decisions and interpretations of fact to the person who cares the most.

In practice, this will mean that women will make 98% of all the decisions and be “right” 98% of the time. Compared to men, women care more passionately about just about everything. Men mostly scratch what itches and call it good.

Yup that sounds about right.

Momentary Materialism

Amybear and I have spent a fair bit of time compiling our registry lists. Saturday was an extended trip through Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Today was a trip through the tool department in Sears. It is really fun to "buy" things for yourself without actually spending your own money. Almost intoxicatingly fun really.

Both stores also let you add stuff on the internet, which means I may not be getting much work done for a while.

Exactly

They're talking church government at the BHT. Michael Spencer highlights why I left the PCA:

I don't believe having to call the COM from the Presbytery in Lex to deal with a wild card pastor is one of them. I remain convinced that the relationship between congregation and pastor needs to be direct, and not mediated. I take with that all the nonsense that can happen, but if my pastor/elders start a mission without congregational permission or proper process, I want to be able to stand up in the monthly business meeting and ask what kind of luggage he prefers.

Emergent Homosexuality

Thinklings is covering Brian McLaren's answer to this question:

Do you personally believe that all sexual activity between two persons of the same gender is always a sin?

McLaren hems and haws for ten plus paragraphs. My answer?

I believe sex between two people who aren't married is a sin. It doesn't matter if they are gay or not. I also believe the covenant of christian marriage is only applicable between men and women because only a man and woman have the potential of bearing children together. Marriage in the civil sense is certainly up for debate since it would apply to an awful lot of non-Christians.

Now, just because someone is sinning doesn't make them a spiritual outcast. Everybody in this church has sinned and will sin. This is a congregation of fallen human beings. We're all screw ups at some level and we aren't going to turn anyone away.

Now McLaren wouldn't answer this way because he doesn't want to turn people away and because the couple asking him this question were engaged and unchurched so they were probably having sex outside of marriage as well. He goes on to say how he is actually being "pastoral" and that he learned this trait from Jesus himself. Perhaps he should reread the story of the Woman at the Well. In concludes with this passage:

He told her, "Go, call your husband and come back."

"I have no husband," she replied.

Jesus said to her, "You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true."

My my, how un-pastoral of Jesus.

Political Nicknames

I'd like to offer the following suggested nicknames for Delaware Politicians:

Senator Joseph Biden - Diamond Joe
Senator Tom Carper - Tommy Boy
Congressman Mike Castle - Big Mike

and finally:

Governor Ruth Ann Minner - Grandma Ruth

Feel free to use these in tongue-in-cheek discussions of Delaware politics.

The Republicans Get Boehner

John Boehner (actually pronounced Bay-ner) is the new House Majority Leader. It was an acceptable choice.

I actually cared enough about this race to write Delaware's only Congressman, Mike Castle. Now Mike Castle and I are not exactly on the same wing of the Republican Party. He's pretty liberal and I'm pretty, uh, not. I said I liked Shadegg and I hated Blunt, but if he voted for Boehner I'd understand. Just not Blunt. Please Good Lord Almighty not Blunt.

I don't know how Big Mike voted (it was a secret ballot), but I got my wish of Not Blunt so I have no room to complain.

The Gunnies

Countertop Chronicles has held the first ever gunblogger awards. The results are up but many of the original nominees are also very good and still worth a look.

I've been thinking about doing more gun blogging. To put it simply, the world doesn't need another conservative evangelical blogger, even one as ideosyncratic as myself. There are already plenty of us out there ranting about how stupid the Democrats are. However the gunblogging community could probably use a few more vocal Christians.

Nutjob 1 or Nutjob 2?

Was it Al Gore or the Unabomber who said:

Among the abnormal conditions present in modern industrial society are excessive density of population, isolation of man from nature, excessive rapidity of social change and the breakdown of natural small-scale communities such as the extended family, the village or the tribe.

You need to take the quiz to find out. I only scored 50%.

I'm a Little Bit Country

Well I'm still more Rock and Roll than Donnie at least.

I've started listening to *shudder* country music more often. I even own a couple of albums. I've started to realize I kinda like it. Amy isn't especially happy, but that's mostly because she thinks I'm turning into her dad.

But really it's Amybear's Dad's fault. He likes country. A lot. He has an excuse though, he's from the South. Well Richmond, but you can get sweet tea there so it counts as the South. He had a Toby Keith CD playing in his Lexus on the way to dinner last weekend.

Yes a southern Jew listening to "I Love This Bar" in his black Lexus. Truly he is a man of deep contradiction. Don't worry the CD before featured a lot of Hebrew. We won't be having a hora hoe-down at the wedding.

Anyway, I realized that TK could sing a catchy yarn. After "American Soldier" was followed by "If I Was Jesus", I knew I was buying the album. Here is the chorus and you might understand why:

Ooh and I'd lay my life down for you
And I show you who's the boss
I'd forgive you and adore you
While I was hangin' on your cross

Just wow. Let me just say I better keep Shock'n Y'all away from my copy of American Idiot. Bringing them together would be like matter and anti-matter. Someone could get hurt.

Observations on the Emergent Church

Several people have written on the emergent church lately. Michael Spencer has a piece about the many threads of the emerging church movement.

I thought “emerging” was an intentional effort to do church in a way that employs a non-traditional missional approach to reaching younger people in postmodern, western culture. Now it appears to mean “everything bad you can find in a Brian Mclaren book is embraced enthusiastically by everyone with a goatee.”

Long story short, the emergent church is like the Evangelical church. There isn't a single unified definition.

There is Emergent aka Brian Mclaren's group. Emergent is pretty weak theologically and it's orthodoxy might be a bit too generous. There is a lot of poor liberal theology there. A lot. John over at Locusts and Honey did a review of some of McLaren's writings a while back. I share his concern that McLaren's de-emphasis of the bible is not a good thing and will end up fostering more heresy than tolerance.

There are also various "emerging" groups who are trying to reach young people and the unchurched by updating their worship and spiritual relevance. In many ways these folks are doing good work. They are cutting away a lot of reactionary baggage from the evangelical church. That isn't unreasonable or even bad. But they are also often lacking in maturity, which I suppose they can only get in time anyway.

Travis Prinzi has a more practical tale about his visit to a local emerging church. I share a lot of his opinions. I have a lot of trouble with contemporary worship because it feels immature to me. I'm an adult and I want adult music. If you can't tell the thematic differences between "In the Secret" and "It Is Well With My Soul," then I'm really sorry for you. The comments made by some of the church's worship and pastoral staff demonstrate the emerging outlook. Whether you agree or disagree with that outlook is up to you.

A Glimpse of Amybears Wedded Bliss

I have to wonder if this is what our married life will be like. Except that it is unlikely that I will ever own an Xbox. Some broadband required for the clip. Thanks to my brother for the link.

Practical Preaching

Michael Spencer is giving preaching advice. He started with a suggestion about length.

"It is hard to imagine that, if the Sermon on the Mount really was a sermon, Jesus could have done it in less than an hour.

I'm not a preacher, but I've done the Sermon on the Mount as an exercise with my small group. It takes around 30 to 40 minutes depending on how fast you go. My senior pastor performed a dramatic recitation of the entire book of Mark once. It took less than two hours. But Mark is the shortest Gospel.

Really, the bible is surprisingly compact and concise. I have an audio Bible. Well I had an audio bible. It's on extended loan at the moment. Start to finish you are looking at 65ish CDs. So the whole bible takes maybe 80 hours to read out loud. That's a lot if you're doing it in one shot, but I listened to the whole thing in about three months of commuting.

Low Carb, High Fiber

I'm doing a low carb diet right now, as are Amybear and several of my coworkers. One of the weird nuances of the diet is that fiber essentially counts as negative carbs. So you can get away with eating some breads if they are high in fiber because the "net carbs" are still acceptable.

Several of us at work have come to the conclusion that this is not because fiber actually counts against carbs in your diet. We think it is to encourage all those Atkins dieters who are subsisting solely on beef and cheese to eat some fiber. Hopefully this will stave off other major gastro-intestinal problems, if you know what I mean.

Delaware Schools

Hube is a teacher. He's found some good news about improvements in Delaware schools. Hube thinks that this is thanks to Delaware's emphasis on standards-based education reform.

My wedding less than four months out now. Amy and I will probably be settling down in Delaware once we're married. We don't have kids yet, but we are looking forward to any improvements to the Delaware school system.

Happy Birthday!

Joe Cathey just turned 40 today. He claims that 40 is the new 20. Please be nice and don't correct him.

UPDATE: When it rains it pours. Joe's wife Nancy is expecting their second child.

Wedding Fun with Legos

Amybear found someone who's wedding cake is far geekier than normal, but is also unfortunately inedible.

What I found amazing was that the guy built the cake and designed the bottom two tiers to be sliced so that people could take a piece home as wedding souvenirs. The top tier was kept by the newlyweds of course.

Geocaching for Dollars

Unfortunately Delaware and Maryland have a good cell phone infrastructure, but if you live down south where cellular reception isn't very good, you might be able to make some bucks geocaching.

A company called Space Data found a way to make money by repeatedly launching weather balloons with cellular transmitters called SkySites, and charging what must be astronomical fees for getting your cell-on in the boonies. These eye-in-the-sky cell towers hover between 70,000 and 100,000-feet and provide coverage for a 200-mile radius on Earth- but the darn things only stay aloft for 24 to 48 hours before freefalling to the ground (or tree, or lake, or Grand Canyon). Once a balloon hits terra firma, or something close, it radios its location back to its successor in the sky, which then relays the data to the SkySite website.

Skysite then puts a $60 bounty on their old grounded cellular units. They paid out $93,000 in bounties last year. The highest paid bounty hunter made $10,000.

Unfortunately you can't just pick these things up, you have to go through Skysite's bounty registration process which is pretty extensive. They don't want people fighting over the bounties. But if you live in the South, it might be fun to try to find one. It would help pay for the hiking trip at least.

Paying Inattention

I catch myself doing things similar to this:

I also get myself into the “how are you” loop. It works like this.

Me: “How are you?”

Other person: “Good. How are you?”

Me: “Good. How are you?”

Other person: “Um…still good.”

That’s pretty much a signal that you weren’t listening and don’t care.

I have a daily pseudo-conversation with a security guard coming onto base. I show him my badge. He looks at it, waves me through, and tells me to either have a good day or to drive safely. I always answer "Thanks, you too" as I drive off.

But "Thanks, you too..." is only an appropriate response to "Have a nice day." It makes no sense whatsoever if the guard is wishing me a safe drive, because the guard is on foot. Oops. Sorry. Hope you weren't listening either buddy.

Sacrament of Communion

Thinklings has been doing a series on Church practices. They've come to communion. What are the who, what, when, and hows of communion at your church?

My church serves communion on the first Sunday of the month. The articles of communion are a little thimble cup of grape juice and small pieces of matzoh. We have a moment of silence to prepare for the sacrament. Generally a church member prays, the bread is served, then everyone partakes together. We repeat with the cup. You aren't supposed to partake of communion if you aren't a christian or aren't in the proper spiritual state.

Nothing spectacular there.

However at our contemporary services we sometimes do it differently. Anyway the way the service works is this: the articles of communion are set up on stands or tables at the front of the church. Ministers and other church leaders are positioned at each location. The Senior Pastor prays and people are invited forward at their own pace and can go to whichever location they want. The first people in line are served and partake of communion with the minister or leader. Then they turn around and do the same to the second person in line (a notecard with what to do is on the table). And so on and so on until the Ministers and leaders are served by the last people in line.

I don't know anybody else that does it this way, but it's great. I'm a traditionalist, but I would attend this service every communion Sunday if it didn't mean sitting through interpretive dance during the worship.

The Sacrament of Baptism

John asks How does your church perform baptism?

I'm Baptist, so in my church we immerse and we don't baptize children. The person being baptized has to be old enough to make a conscious choice in that direction. The person doing the baptizing must be an ordained minister even if they aren't a minister at my church. We have several ex-ministers who attend my church and have baptized their own children. You can't become a member of my church unless you were baptized by immersion as an adult.

Incidentally this is why I'm not a member of my church. I was baptized as an adult but by sprinkling in a PCA church. I have no desire to get re-baptized. I suppose its the once-saved always-saved Calvinist in me.

Approval Ratings

Bush's ratings have crossed into majority territory again. Instapundit had this to say:

I'm not sure why, but it seems as if he does better whenever John Kerry and Ted Kennedy get face time on the national news. The Democrats would be wise to let other people represent them.

I think this is especially true with John Kerry. Everytime Kerry makes an ass of himself people not only think poorly of the Democrats, but also think "Thank God he didn't win." I know I do at least.

The real reason for the uptick is that the Alito hearings are going well for the Republicans. The Democrats really don't have a leg to stand on, but they're hopping on their stumps as hard as they can.

There is the Abramoff scandal, but that has been focused congressionally. Bush accepted money from him, but it was the same money all the Democrats took as well. They won't be making a big issue of it.

Always Edgy

John had two good posts over the weekend.

Clicker training your wife is not a joke I would make. Probably because I'm not married yet. I was offended until I realized that his wife has been training him for far longer than he has been doing the same to her. If he just started training her he's way behind the curve.

Now Jihadi barbershop? I've seen pictures of jihadis. I don't think most of them know what a barber is.

Katrina Relief

My church has been involved with Samaritans Purse relief efforts in Kiln, Mississippi and in Biloxi. When I heard this I felt God tugging me in that direction. I'm not a preach-the-word street side missions kinda guy. But I can rip down drywall like maniac.

So it turns out that Samaritans Purse is well staffed in Mississippi and my church has a plethora of volunteers. This means that I am now the first alternate for a missions trip to New Orleans at the end of February. I have mixed feelings. But if they need me I'll answer the call.

Now I get to adjust my schedule for a tetanus shot and make time for the trip.

Fun with Power Tools

In the grand scheme of power tools, I never really thought of belt sanders as being much fun. Until now. Thanks to Michael for the link.

A Stretched Military

I expect much to do will soon be made about this statement from General George Casey:

"The forces are stretched ... and I don't think there's any question of that."

The article goes on to make this statement:

His comments are likely to fuel a debate inside the U.S. government over whether the United States can sustain the fight long enough to break the back of the Sunni Arab-led insurgency.

Now if someone were to ask me, is the Army going to have trouble sustaining the fight long enough to break the back of the Sunni Arab-led insurgency? I would probably answer yes. It would be a stupid answer and would probably be broadcast around the world as the Bush Lied! soundbite of the week. This is why I'm not a General or spokesman for the Bush administration.

If I was smart I would not answer "Yes". I would answer like this: Breaking the back of the insurgency isn't our job. Our job is to build up and defend the Iraqi government, military, police, and people so that they can defeat the insurgency themselves. In the long run, the Iraqis need to be able to be able to deliver peace and security for themselves. You sir, asked the wrong question.

Wedding Rings

Amy and I had ours enscribed with our wedding date and three initials. She has a list of other possible inscriptions up on her blog.

Palestinian Politics

Hamas has won big in the election. I'm disappointed of course. A lot of people are. I wish the Palestinians would wake up and look at their leaders for the corrupt men they are.

But there is a good part of this whole thing. The Palestinians have just institutionalized Hamas. First, now Hamas has to fix things. This may point out just how bankrupt the organization really is. Maybe. But I'm betting they'll just blame the US and the Jews for their problems. Second, we're really good at taking down institutionalized foes. A terrorist home state? Wonderful, now we know who and where to bomb. A thousands scattered foes are hard to hit, but in many ways an organized army is much easier. Palestine has gone from a state at peace with Israel, to one they can very conveniently declare war on.

UPDATE: David Bernstein has similar thoughts on the silver lining of the Hamas victory.

A Trick I Have to Learn

We have these printers at work, but I never realized how much fun they could be.

The Scarcity of Intelligence

CNN Money's 101 dumbest moments in business has some amusing entries. The list revolves around a lot of ethics scandals, housing bubbles, and of course the dot-coms. Oddly enough their list of the smartest moments this year only features ten things. Coincidence?

Things Nerds Do

Amy has said I can't own a motorcycle, but she never mentioned one of these.

Which Sports Car Are You?

I'm a Chevrolet Corvette!

You're a classic - powerful, athletic, and competitive. You're all about winning the race and getting the job done. While you have a practical everyday side, you get wild when anyone pushes your pedal. You hate to lose, but you hardly ever do.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

Well, umm, I guess it got a few of those superlatives right.

Fortune Cookie Wisdom

Grandfather say:

You are going to have a very comfortable old age.

In bed. Huh. That doesn't even make it naughty.

Weather or Not

This morning's commute was a strange one. When I left home it was wet and icy, but the sun was out. On the road I passed through rain and then some snow. At work it's sunny again. I think I've run the gammut of weather for the day. I think tonight we're getting frogs or locusts.

Anti-War Intellectual Honesty

I received We Were Soldiers for Christmas. I like the movie and I especially liked the commentary from Col. Moore. He said the story of the war was one of a dramatic dichotomy.

The American fighting man is one of the bravest, most gallant images in existence. He (and now perhaps she) is an embodiment of self-sacrifice, brotherhood, determination, and victory in the face of daunting odds. He is the hero and anyone who has served counts themselves in a proud company and a noble tradition.

But there is a counterbalance to that symbol of heroism. War is hell. It is dirty, disgusting, bloody, and costly. It exacts a physical, mental, and spiritual toll. It is not something to be praised. Because of the battle for landing zone X-ray, 79 families didn’t have their sons, husbands, and/or fathers return to them. War is an awful thing.

I think many protestors have really latched onto these concepts. Joel Stein hasn't. He has officially come out as anti-troops. That makes him intellectually honest. Perhaps the other war protesters are presenting an ideology that isn’t exactly rationally coherent. Perhaps, but that doesn’t mean those "oppose the war, support the troops" protestors are being dishonest with themselves.

I think there has been a real push from the right to impose a version of what the protestors believe onto the protestors themselves. Lets redefine the protestors as dishonest because the stance they hold is logically untenable. If my experience has taught me nothing, it is that people aren’t necessarily reasonable or logical. Some people really do believe six impossible things before breakfast. Most of these people are acting on their feelings and emotion rather than their reason. They feel the war is wrong and that war is hell, but they also feel that a grudging respect for the military fighting for what they, the soldiers, believe is right. War is still hell, but soldiers are still the heroes of their own narrative.

I suppose we might be entitled to some smugness because the pro-war stance is on a sounder philosophical footing. But I don’t think we are entitled to call those other people liars just because they haven’t worked out the incoherency of their own beliefs. Joel Stein might admit he doesn’t respect the troops, but I don’t think it necessarily follows that everyone else also believes the same and are attempting to deceive us.

Alito

The committee vote is expected to break down along partisan lines. From Michelle Malkin:

Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said he'd be "sorry" to see a party-line vote.

Speaking as one of his former constituents, let's hope Arlen doesn't feel so sorry that he votes with the Democrats.

Conservative Canada

The Conservatives are in and so the Conservative blogosphere is celebrating. And tomorrow when they sober up, the Canadian Conservatives will have to face the fact that they don't a clear majority and so they won't actually be able to do anything without a great deal of coalition building.

I'm half-Canadian, both my Grandfathers were born north of the border and both ended up eventually becoming US citizens. I suppose they saw 13 years of liberal rule coming.

Well good luck you hosers. You'll need it eh.

Everyday Epiphanies

Every once in a while, I see something that renews and reshapes my understanding of people. Here are two such instances.

The first was shooting this weekend. Several guys walked into the range. They looked like stereotypical street toughs. You get the occassional one of those at the range. The body language, the clothes, it was all there. Turned out it was their first time shooting. One had bought a .45 and a box or two of ammo. They all wanted to learn basic shooting. The Range Officer gave each of them instruction and I chatted with a couple of them as I reloaded. Turned out they lived a few miles away from me. They even rotated a couple girls (related to the gun's owner) from the minivan outside. I let the girls shoot a mag each from my .22 just in case the .45 was a little too much pistol for them. Sometimes looks are decieving.

The second was slighty later. I was in K-mart. I was only buying beef jerky and batteries. Honest. There was an Indian man in the detergent aisle talking on his cell phone in an language I don't know a word of. But yet I understood everything he said. His wife had sent him out to do some shopping and now he was calling her from the detergent aisle because buying "Clorox" turned out to present him with far more possibilities than he had previously imagined. It warmed my heart to know that deep down, all men are equally bewildered.

Educating English

A post over at Kim's place had me thinking about my own education. The discussion focusedme in on the quality of education in English classrooms. I must admit I have a lot of problems with how I was taught English when I went through public school 10+ years ago.

The first is that it tends to focus on books which are frankly quite dull. I remember reading a lot of critically acclaimed stuff in Junior and Senior High and thinking they were really boring. This was because I was reading stories by people like Sartre that weren’t so much novels as a philosophical statements. It was awful. And I read for fun, so I can only imagine what my jock classmates would have thought. There were a handful of enjoyable books every year. I remember liking Tolkein, le Guin, Dumas, Voltaire’s Candide, Treasure Island, etc. But still, if I hadn’t been reading on my own the lesson I would have taken was that most books are boring and suck. I think a lot of english education basically teaches our kids that reading is work and not at all fun.

The second problem is that a lot of literature is taught completely wrong. For instance many Dickens “novels” aren’t actually novels at all. They’re actually serials Dickens wrote for magazines that were later repackaged as novels. David Copperfield is one of these. That’s why it is long and meandering and I never got a sense that it was going anywhere. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen is a chamber novel. It is meant to be read aloud to your friends in manageable sections, so reading it straight through is painful. Most Shakespeare is painful to read off the page because you never understand the flow of the words, but if you read it aloud then the language and pacing starts to work its magic.

Third and most importantly, reading was more about a novel’s content than how it expressed those contents. What literary mechanisms is the author using? How is he/she accentuating important themes? Beats me. All Quiet on the Western Front was about WWI and the overall theme was war destroying the innocence of the youth. I don’t remember anything else. We wrote essays on thematic analysis. Who writes literary essays like that in real life? We never got to write fiction even though we had been studying fiction since kindergarten.

I don't think the English departments in most schools are necessarily bad. They definitely need to pick books for their audience and not just for their the level of comprehension but also the level of motivation.

Local Pro-Life Politics

Roe v. Wade's 33nd anniversary was yesterday. La Shawn Barber has had a good series of posts up on abortion. I'm not going to go on an abortion rant, but I will bring this whole thing home.

When I was a teenager I did fundraisers for Delaware's Crisis Pregnancy Center which has since changed it's name to A Door of Hope. The fundraiser was called the Alternathon, they held it at Lum's Pond, and I road my bike for 25-40 miles earning dollars per mile. Door of Hope no longer holds the Alternathon because the fundraiser was loaded with expenses that ate up their funds. Now they do the much cheaper "baby bottle boomerang" which is going on right now.

A Door of Hope provides services advocating abstinence and positive alternatives to abortion. They also provide basic pre-natal medical care (like ultrasounds) for women with financial difficulties.

AP and Army

Just once I would like the news services to get simple things right. For instance my Yahoo Mail showed this AP headline: "Army Officer Found Guilty in Iraqi's Death."

Now this is not a the-Associated-Press-hates-America post. This guy sounds guilty as sin and there is nothing wrong with publicizing it. No, my complaint is that the soldier in question is Chief Warrant Officer Lewis Welshofer Jr. Warrant Officers are not "officers" in the military sense. They are more like senior enlisted men. Even the lowliest lieutenant outranks the highest warrant officer.

If you are going to write a story, please have at least a passing familiarity with the background of the story. The Army's rank structure is a good place to start with stories involving the Army.

UPDATE: If you want some background on warrant officers, the Army is a good place to start. Michael makes a good point in that Chief Warrant Officers are recognized as a commissioned officers. But CW2+s are not commissioned officers in the traditional sense of leading units. They're technical specialists. I still think that using the term officer (which usually refers to a commissioned officer) is misleading.

Neener Neener Nader

Autoblog is linking to comments by Ralph Nader scolding Chrysler for irrational exuberance.

Nader said he couldn't believe that one of Chrysler's executives driven a "muscle car" through a plate glass window at Cobo Hall. The vehicle actually driven through glass was a new Jeep Wrangler. "It shows a high level of juvenile delinquency," said Nader.

Yes how awful that they would waste that glass showing how cool their vehicle is. Couldn't they just have done it by sipping tea or something? But that would probably waste tea.

Nader went on to criticize Chrysler's behavior as typical of domestic auto producers. Except of course that Chrysler isn't a domestic auto manufacturer anymore. For those that aren't aware, Chrysler is owned by the Germans and the board is 7/10 German. Of the three non-germans, one is Canadian. There is no Big 3 anymore, there is only the Big 2.

He also suggested:

Nader also suggested only half in jest that the auto industry ought to consider outsourcing executive jobs to India or China. The U.S. also might want to consider doing the same thing with Congress. "I guarantee I could go around the world and find 535 extremely honest legislators who would be willing to do the job for $8,000 per year," added Nader. "But that's never going to happen," he acknowledged because Congressmen and CEOs have far more job protection than the average worker in the U.S.

No only is this incorrect because Congress has to run for re-election regularly, but outsourcing congress? How the hell do you outsource jobs representing Americans in the halls of government to non-Americans? Either Nader is joking, senile, or has a warped view of the role of congress.

Need Some Cuteness

Are Osama's recent threats getting you down? Does the prospect of Roy Blunt becoming House Majority Leader fill you with dread? Well look at some cuteness to cheer you back up. Warning: Cute Overload may not be safe for some diabetics.

Gas Prices

Where are you going to fill up today? Well check out this site for where in your zipcode you will find the best prices. Don't say I never did anything for you.

End of the Spear

This is movie about the martyrdom of five missionaries attempting to spread the Gospel in the jungles of South America. The story itself was widely publicized by Elisabeth Elliot's book Through Gates of Splendor. Elisabeth Elliot is the wife of one of the deceased, Jim Elliot.

There is some controversy surrounding the film. Namely that Chad Allen, who plays Nate Saint and his brother in the film, is gay and a gay activist. Some people have real trouble with this. Reverend Ed doesn't and explains why. I'm not so sure.

If Chad Allen was just a gay actor I wouldn't really have a problem. I'm not a fan of his lifestyle, but if he does a good job in the movie, then ok. He's also a gay activist. That bothers me a bit, but I suppose he's allowed to advocate his lifestyle. It's a free country. As long as the movie is ok, I'm still willing to look the other way.

As part of his activism he produced and starred in the LA version of Corpus Christi. This is a movie that tells the story of Joshua, a gay man, and his twelve male lovers. The writer of Corpus Christi boasts in how blasphemous the play is.

Now I don't have an opinion about the film. I may still see it if I hear it's good. But now I very uncomfortable with this actor playing a Christian role. Yes, he's just an actor playing a part. But his actions have shown that he really doesn't get what is motivating the character he plays. Now he certainly isn't the devil shooting gay rays at me from the silver screen, but part of me wonders if I'm now condoning blasphemy by supporting this film with my entertainment dollars.

So I'm very torn. Part of me thinks that this movie could still be a great film and may be a great witnessing tool. Another part of me wonders what kind of witness I will really be if I go to see it. Is seeing the film going to be construed as supporting this guy's lifestyle and body of work? We've been working through 1 Corinthians in small group. Paul makes it pretty clear you need to think about this sort of thing.

The answer is that I don't know. I think protesting a film you have never seen based on hearsay is foolish. It is being proud in ignorance and exercising poor judgment. If the politics had never come up, there wouldn't be a problem. But now they have and there is. I think the Christians leading the charge chose poor ground to fight over. I don't think this is a worth the fight and I don't think there will be a clear winner in this round of spiritual warfare either way.

The New State Department

Condi's plans for the State Department are shaping up. Austin Bay refers to them as "(1) common sense, (2) critical to any sustained diplomatic effort but (3) especially critical when pursuing a reformationist foreign policy."

What are her changes? Condi intends shift the diplomatic corps away from Europe and the developed world and towards India, China, and the Mideast. In order to get diplomats out of their cushy Parisian offices, she intends to reward and promote those who take difficult positions around the world. She is also planning to restructure some of the management surrounding the State Department like the US Agency for International Development.

Expect to hear a great gnashing of teeth coming from State. This is going to require a lot more work from them. If someone wants to make a political issue of this, expect a speech like "Bush's reorganization of the State Department is abandoning our traditional allies like France and Germany."

Big Labor Gets Smaller

Autoblog has outlined the UAW President's plan for saving the Big 2. His plan is to end free trade, nationalize/socialize medicine, and then get a big government handout for pro-environment vehicle development.

Kind of highlights everything that is wrong with UAW (and US automotive) management doesn't it? My plan is to flush the UAW down the drain and start over using principles based on the foriegn manufacturers. I think I'll get what I want first.

Wedding Blogging

Amybear has a few new posts up at our wedding blog.

UPDATE: Question for the married guys, boutonnieres or no? Amy would like the guys to wear matching flowers. I'd just as soon not. It just makes me feel like I'm going to the prom.

Political Slant

Hube has an excellent breakdown that explains why I don't read comics anymore.

UPDATE: John makes the point that many of pop culture icons seem to be poor at reading and artistic comprehension. It's very true, but often the thematically inept are not the writers. They're artists or actors who aren't so much creating the work as reading their lines or drawing the pictures others are asking them too. They aren't paid for critical artistic analysis of their subject, they are paid to act and draw pretty.

What really annoys me is not that the writers are crappy or that the artists and actors are clueless. What annoys me is that the people running the business who are supposed to be evaluating their work as good or bad don't seem to be paying attention, either. I remember when they did the great Captain America switcheroo in the eighties. I have an Iron Man comic with "the Captain" in it. It was very very stupid and I doubt it sold comics. I remember when they were fiddling around with Superman in the 90s because their crappy writers ran out of ideas. How do hacks like Chuck Austen keep getting hired to work on comics? A while back Chuck went to DC from Marvel and a coworker and I celebrated. Mostly because the only DC superhero we like is Batman and we didn't care how Chuck screwed up the DC universe.

Influential Christians

There is a new list of the top 50 most influential Christians in America. Evangelical Outpost looks at the under-represented (Catholic clergy), the over-represented (televangelists), and how things break down. Thinklings relays this Michael Spencer quote:

When will American Christians realize that “leaders” aren’t appointed by God through book or album sales?

The Internet Monk has a point. The problem is that in a contest of influence, the man (or woman) who shouts the loudest wins. There are plenty of blogs with spiritual instruction superior to Joel Osteen. But many of them only have a hundred readers. As many a missionary has pointed out, you can't follow the Word if you never hear it. It stinks that many people will read this list as "The 50 Best Christians in America" when in fact they should read it as "The 50 Loudest Christians in America" but living in a fallen world is like that.

UPDATE: Matthew notes that at least Pat Robertson isn't on the list. Amen to that. Can we all stop paying attention to him now? Major media outlets this means you.

Limited Government

Al Gore's MLK day speech is turning a lot of heads and getting a lot of commentary on both sides of the aisle. The right is correctly noting that Gore never acted on any of this when he was in power.

The left is blaming this on those authoritarian right-wingers.

America needs a conservative of conviction and integrity to issue a call to defend the constitution. We have a lot of conservatives with conviction and a few who have integrity, but none, so far, who have been willing to rise to the defense of the constitution.

In my view, nothing demonstrates the bankruptcy of conservative thought in America more than it's willingness to achieve its goals by sacrificing the constitutional "checks and balances" that undergird our system of law.

They have a big point about the lack of conviction, integrity, and respect for the constitution from the American right. This doesn't mean they have any of those values, but in a way they aren't supposed to. Progressivism has never been about respecting the past. Conservatism is about conserving things, like values and essential limitations on government. This is what conservatives are supposed to be doing. It is a shame that the libertarians are the only real party calling for limited government.

The real problems is the position of limited government in politics. The left only wants limited government for the right. They want unlimited government for their own causes. But that is what the right wants too. We want conservative rights to advance our causes. Instead we really need is a whole lot of neither and to get the government out of the rights and entitlements business. I think that the conservatives are in a superior position to pursue this agenda, but we aren't and that is to our shame.

Still a Big Nerd

I'm getting a lot more old Penny Arcade jokes now that I've actually played WoW. This is especially true since I've been playing with my fiance. After waiting for 2 hours (no I'm not kidding) I was able to get on the server. Fortunately for most of that time I was watching CSI in the next room. We played, we leveled, we had an ok time.

Amy is still getting used to the differences between WoW and Fairyland, especially when you encounter monsters. In Fairyland you walk around the empty world map and various encounters pop up randomly. Then you have a clean turn-based combat system to resolve things. In WoW the monsters are wandering around the world map just like you. You can try to avoid them or you can set an ambush. The combat itself is dynamic and real time so you need to use your hotkeys and be on top of things. Plus new monsters can join in your fight or other characters can horn in on your kill. Oh and Fairyland is very cute.

It can be annoying yet very fun. When I was playing some last night at (time withheld to protect the guilty), I was hunting boars so I could cook up some tasty boar steaks. These bears kept showing up and kicking the crap out of my Hunter. I never knew dwarves were capable of being such good sprinters. I really need to learn trap skills so I can get unexpected opponents off my back long enough to kill their electronic butts.

But enough about me being a big dork.