Capital

Politics scare me… so does the internet, put them together and what have you got? Bibity-bobity-bad-news.

Explanation: I don’t remember WHY I did this, but for some reason I decided to “become a fan” of “being conservative” on Facebook. Yes, I realize now how horrid that sentence sounds. I cringe at the thought of having to proof read this rant because that means I will have to reread that sentence. I am tempted to blame Obama, but that’s cheap. I jump to extremes, so I suppose that is the best explanation. I “fanned” something as an over reaction, or perhaps because they had some kind of ad or post that resonated with me.

See, this is one of the enormous dangers of modern politics: one side will scare the willies out of you, but then the other side (who are just as scary) tries to mask their scariness by appealing to your fear of the other side. They both do this, so that those poor souls who are NOT fanatically loyal to one side or the other are left flip-flopping in between like some carp drying up in the sun, trying desperately to get back to the cool of the lake.

Now, for those of you who are familiar with the Facebook interface, I’m sure you have seen the “polls for science” that some of the fan pages and Facebook itself post. Well, the other day “Being Conservative” posts this:

The recent story about a homeless man braving a fierce storm to save an American Flag in distress got us thinking about how some others treat the flag. Please vote in the poll below.

Should burning the American flag be a crime?
a) Yes
b) No
c) Other

Allow me to fill in the “other” section:

What the heck!?!?!? Notice the spin that is put on this, you cannot answer this question negatively without feeling like a complete jerk. This is totally slanted, this is called sophistry… this is called “not being able to think for yourself.” Notice the usage of the words “braving,” “fierce storm,” and “distress.” This is no mere homeless man here, this is the arch angel Michael in disguise protecting the holy effigy of America!

Sarcasm aside, my point is this: protecting the flag with this kind of fanaticism is a fine practice if America is your god. You SHOULD worship and protect the honor of your gods. That’s the way we humans are wired. Question science? You’re a heretic. Blaspheme Allah? You get run through with a scimitar. Burn the flag? You are going to be stoned. This is the normal order of things; it happens all the time. I get all offended if someone insults my favorite song… so yeah, I have issues to sort out too.

So no, we should not be surprised at these kinds of reactions. Everyone needs something to worship, step on it and they will kill you. But this brings me to a very important theological point about Christianity. Many seculars believe that Christians embracing both the commands to not murder and to kill those who DO murder or rape or abuse other humans is nonsensical. Ah contrar, frater!

Based on the principle I already mentioned, it makes PERFECT sense. See, one of the basic tenants of Christianity is that we (humans) are created in God’s image, a gift that was not bestowed on any other creature (which is why PETA elevating animals above humans is ridiculous). As such, humans are made in the very image of the God I serve as a Christian, and as such, they are to be held in the highest respect and honor. Killing or raping and hurting a fellow human is to me what burning a flag is to a patriot, or insulting Darwin is to an Evolutionist, or denouncing Allah is to a Muslim. It is a capital offence, it is TOTALLY deserving of death. You have just defaced the greatest image in existence. Your death is the only option.

That doesn’t make this easy. Killing another human, even if they deserve it should NEVER be taken lightly. And killing animals or plants for the heck of it is akin to spitting on a painting by a great artist. I cringe when I see a fish flopping in the bottom of a boat or find a boy about to stomp on a bug. I am not advocating random acts of violence, I am merely trying to shed a little light.

Not so Glamorous

We all have something to fight for. Everyday, every morning, every night. There are some fights that change from day to day. A job for example may be difficult and you have to overcome the daily challenges that you face there. But jobs often change. One fight that we must fight everyday that we are alive is ourselves. Our own sinful natures that rear their heads at the most inconvenient times.

More often than not we simply want to give up that fight; the fight against self. But as a guy I know that us guys always want something to fight for. That can often take shape in odd ways. One of the most notable ways in modern American culture is by playing video games.

"Huh? What?"

Let me explain. The biggest feature of video game advertised to guys my age are the violent/shoot-em-up games. Halo of course is a wonderful example of this. The Doom games a generation before. Space Invaders the generation before that. Lots of shooting, explosions and flying bits of.... stuff. We're fighting off terrorists, aliens, zombies and demons from hell. And when the women in our lives whine and complain about how we are not fulfilling our duties as men we are confused. "We're fighting off armies for you, don't you see? Can't you understand?"

No, they don't. Because we are fighting for the wrong thing. As men, we are wired to fight. But because we are also wired for laziness, we often fight for the wrong thing; the thing that requires a minimal sacrifice from ourselves. Either that or after realizing that we are fighters, we target the wrong thing as the enemy. Instead of trying to fight the sin nature hidden in the deep dark corners of ourselves, we naturally assume that we ourselves could NEVER be the problem and that it must be those around us: the Church, our parents, the boss, the teacher, the Man, God.

It's time we all reprioritized. We want glorious, glamorous battles to fight. Like the dudes in the video games who can take on hoards of enemy monsters and come our unscathed. There in lies the other thing we long for, a fight without pain or sacrifice. I am very sorry, but that is not possible. There is often very little glamour in the battles we fight. Not only that, but there is blood spilt along the trail, there are broken bones and gnashing of teeth.

I say this as much for my benefit as for your's. But one last thing: we do not fight this fight on our own strength. We fight with the fists of God, the wounds of Christ, and the assurance of the Holy Spirit. And the Trinity does NOT grow weary.

JSTT

The Dilemma of Stand Up Comedy

I love stand up comedy. The whole goal of making people laugh is a very good one. We take ourselves WAY to seriously in America now-a-days, and plus, so many people are just downright depressed. (I know you cannot have true joy without Christ, but that is a topic for another time. And yes, I'm going to be like Herodotus and just die before I can actually come back and address something that I promised you all I would address).

But with stand up comedy going the way it is now, well, I am presented with an interesting dilemma. So much of the comedy scene is populated by downright dirty, smutty, vulgar jokes. Dane Cook is a great example. He certainly has a stage presents, he is one of the best paid comics in the world, but boy is he vulgar! "F***" replaces "like" as the standard verbal tick when he's on stage.

Then you have people like Jim Gaffigan. Clean, really funny... but then I started stumbling upon some of his more blasphemous routines and became very uncomfortable.

Even worse is Lewis Black, who is as vulgar as Dane Cook, and has all the passion of Richard Dawkins. Outspokenly Jewish, Black goes on to rail against the Old and New Testament and how evil the God of the Old Testament is. Blasphemy to the nth degree.

You're left with comics like Brian Regan holding the bag, as far as good family friendly comedy goes. He does an admirable job, but it's not enough. He's a good comic, but not an excellent one. But if he and his kind are not supported, we won't see many more, if any, clean comedians take the stage and make the masses laugh harder than they have ever laughed before.

Is there a need? Yes, I would say so. We need more really solid Christians playing the comedy circuits. If I'm so adamant about it, why don't I go? Fair question. Safe to say... I am seriously considering it. (Or would that be funnily considering....? Nevermind.)

In the meantime, here's a clean comic doing the routine I stole in my last post: "On a chair... IN THE SKY!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOtEQB-9tvk

In Christ, with laughter, though war,
JSTT

Never Fear, the Flobots are Here!

It is finally time for another review. I am sure that some of you at least have heard of the fad hip/hop group, Flobots. For those unfamiliar with the group’s sound and direction, I’ll give you a point of reference. They take the political-mindedness of Rise Against, and add the Biblical worldview and catchy beats of Christian rappers like KJ-52, and PAX217. Have you ever wanted your music to actually SAY something, and yet not twist the facts? Have you ever been sickened by what the church is becoming and how it is aiding a fallen culture instead of impeding it? Never fear, the Flobots are here! And if you look beyond the exterior, I believe that they have the quality and power to stay on the scene for a long time.

 

Here are the lyrics to the opening song:

 

 

"There's a war going on for your mind

Media mavens mount surgical strikes from trapper keeper collages and online magazine racks

Cover girl cutouts throw up pop-up ads

Infecting victims with silicone shrapnel

Worldwide passenger pigeons deploy paratroopers

Now it's raining pornography

Lovers take shelter

Post-production debutantes pursue you in nascar chariots

They construct ransom letters from biblical passages and bleed mascara into holy water supplies

 

There's a war going on for your mind

Industry insiders slang test tube babies to corporate crackheads

They flash logos and blast ghettos

Their embroidered neckties say "stop snitchin'"

Conscious rappers and whistleblowers get stitches made of acupuncture needles and marionette strings

 

There is a war going on for your mind

Professional wrestlers and vice presidents want you to believe them

The desert sky is their bluescreen

They superimpose explosions

They shout at you

'pay no attention to the men behind the barbed curtain

Nor the craters beneath the draped flags'

Those hoods are there for your protection

And meteors these days are the size of corpses

 

There's a war going on for your mind

We are the insurgents"

 

WARNING: "Mayday," "Stand Up," "Combat," and "The Rhythm Method" contain some profanity.

Stand out tracks: "There's a War Going on for Your Mind," "Stand Up," "Handlebars," "Rise", and (if you can find this b-side track online) "So Happy Together."

Final score: 4 1/2 out of 5

 

Until next time,

Scott