Ron Paul for President

Ron Paul on Government Bailout

This is why I wish I could vote for Ron Paul on November 4. The federal bailout of the financial crisis in America is the continual death of a free market economy that we claim to love so much. The reality is that America is increasingly becoming a bigger slave to their lenders. This is not freedom, debt is enslavery, how can we be so foolish?

Rome is burning, anybody concerned?

Does sadness have a place in the Kingdom?

Tyler Durden:

Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who've ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God ---- it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy ---- we don't need. We're the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War's a spiritual war... our Great Depression is our lives. We've all been raised on television to believe that one day we'd all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won't. And we're slowly learning that fact. And we're very, very pissed off.

WHEN YOU'RE DEPRESSED..
You feel sad or cry a lot and it doesn't go away.
You feel guilty for no real reason; you feel like you're no good; you've lost your confidence.
Life seems meaningless or like nothing good is ever going to happen again.
You have a negative attitude a lot of the time, or it seems like you have no feelings.
You don't feel like doing a lot of the things you used to like-- like music, sports, being with friends, going out-- and you want to be left alone most of the time.
It's hard to make up your mind. You forget lots of things, and it's hard to concentrate.
You get irritated often. Little things make you lose your temper; you overreact.
Your sleep pattern changes; you start sleeping a lot more or you have trouble falling asleep at night. Or you wake up really early most mornings and can't get back to sleep.
Your eating habits change; you've lost your appetite or you eat a lot more.
You feel restless and tired most of the time.

Are you even allowed to lament when the AIDS epidemic is sweeping across Africa wiping out entire villages?


Are you even allowed to lament when there is genocide still present in Darfur?

A friend sent this to me today, and for that I'm thankful. A passage from Psalm 27:

7 Hear my voice when I call, O LORD;
be merciful to me and answer me.
8 My heart says of you, "Seek his face!"
Your face, LORD, I will seek.
9 Do not hide your face from me,
do not turn your servant away in anger;
you have been my helper.
Do not reject me or forsake me,
O God my Savior.
10 Though my father and mother forsake me,
the LORD will receive me.
11 Teach me your way, O LORD;
lead me in a straight path
because of my oppressors.
12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
for false witnesses rise up against me,
breathing out violence.
13 I am still confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the LORD;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the LORD.

I'm just sitting here and waiting, Lord.

peace,

Collision at the Coliseum

I updated this post reflecting back now below:


OH - IO!!

Alright, well here we go again. THE Ohio State Buckeyes find themselves in another huge spotlight game coming off of 2 embarassing performances in the past couple National Championship games. By the way, we get tons of smack for that, but I was just wondering where your teams were when we were in the championship game? just checking ;)


So, Chris "Beanie" Wells may or may not play cuz of his toe injury. I'm not sure if that's going to be the difference maker anyway.
Here is my breakdown:
- Can Ohio State overcome big plays early to keep the L.A. Coliseum crowd from being a factor? Nope, they didn't
- Boekman or Pryor at QB for the Bucks? I think if Pryor plays a lot then the Bucks are in trouble and desperate. If Boekman plays the majority of the game it means we're in control of the tempo and momentum. Buckeyes got desperate
- 2 great defenses with lots of playmakers, who will force the most turnovers? USC did easily
- Execution, Ohio State cannot afford to leave any points on the field. Down 14-3, chance to make it 14-10 going into halftime had TD taken back cuz of holding penalty then missed Field goal.

My prediction:
Even though there are 2 great defenses, I see a lot of big plays in this game so it won't be so low scoring.
The Ohio State University Buckeyes 28
University of Southern California 27

We lost big time!

have a blessed weekend,

The Stick gods?

Jeremiah 10
The Stick Gods
1-5 Listen to the Message that God is sending your way, House of Israel. Listen most carefully:
"Don't take the godless nations as your models.
Don't be impressed by their glamour and glitz,
no matter how much they're impressed.
The religion of these peoples
is nothing but smoke.
An idol is nothing but a tree chopped down,
then shaped by a woodsman's ax.
They trim it with tinsel and balls,
use hammer and nails to keep it upright.
It's like a scarecrow in a cabbage patch—can't talk!
Dead wood that has to be carried—can't walk!
Don't be impressed by such stuff.
It's useless for either good or evil."

6-9All this is nothing compared to you, O God.
You're wondrously great, famously great.
Who can fail to be impressed by you, King of the nations?
It's your very nature to be worshiped!
Look far and wide among the elite of the nations.
The best they can come up with is nothing compared to you.
Stupidly, they line them up—a lineup of sticks,
good for nothing but making smoke.
Gilded with silver foil from Tarshish,
covered with gold from Uphaz,
Hung with violet and purple fabrics—
no matter how fancy the sticks, they're still sticks.

10But God is the real thing—
the living God, the eternal King.
When he's angry, Earth shakes.
Yes, and the godless nations quake.

11-15"Tell them this, 'The stick gods
who made nothing, neither sky nor earth,
Will come to nothing
on the earth and under the sky.'"
But it is God whose power made the earth,
whose wisdom gave shape to the world,
who crafted the cosmos.
He thunders, and rain pours down.
He sends the clouds soaring.
He embellishes the storm with lightnings,
launches wind from his warehouse.
Stick-god worshipers looking mighty foolish,
god-makers embarrassed by their handmade gods!
Their gods are frauds—dead sticks,
deadwood gods, tasteless jokes.
When the fires of judgment come, they'll be ashes.

16But the Portion-of-Jacob is the real thing.
He put the whole universe together
And pays special attention to Israel.
His name? God-of-the-Angel-Armies!

draw your own conclusions.

peace,

Tropic Thunder 2 thumbs up

Saw this flick with Johnson and McGillivary last night and it is ridiculous and hilarious at the same time. One of the best satires on the entire movie industry I've ever seen. It pains me to say this but Tom Cruise's part was my favorite as he portrayed a middle-aged Jewish movie mogul, amazing. Do not bring the kids, but see this movie if you just need to laugh at things you probably shouldn't be laughing at. I'm looking forward to my second showing sometime in the future.




On another note, I have to propose a new MAN Law. As I mentioned earlier, Glenn Johnson and Paul McGillivary were out last night. We try to get together every other Monday evening typically for Starbucks and conversation but last night we opted for dinner and guy movie. We met for dinner at Red Robin, Paul and I gorged ourselves on chicken/burgers and fries and Glenn came late. He had already eaten so all he ordered was a "Hawaian Hearththrob Smoothie". And the it came, a spiral glass filled with a pink smoothie topped with cherries and pineapple. MEN can not order tropical pink smoothies out with other men for dinner, with your wife maybe if you're splitting it with her, but not as your only order at a table of guys. That's a MAN Law. Johnson, your Man card has been suspended until further notice. I couldn't help but ask our female server if she had ever seen a man order in such a way and she responded, "never". In his old age, Johnson is transforming into his boyhood idol, George Michael. Please, Glenn, snap out of it and wake me up before you go go. MAN LAW! (rant over)

Fly Eagles Fly, on the road to Victory!

Since the Bengals have decided to not even compete this year and the owner is ready to throw us into another decade of vomit-inducing play and decisions, I'll have to check back in with them next August to see if they want to be a real NFL team. For now I have no other choice but to pick back up on my Philly roots and give the Eagles first place in my football heart again. Typically for me each season its Bengals first, Eagles second, providing the Bengals field an NFL team. Since we havne't done that this year, it will be Eagles first now.

So let's let the fight song rip:

Fly, Eagles fly, on the road to victory
Fight, Eagles, fight! Score a touchdown one-two-three
Hit 'em low, hit 'em high,
And watch our Eagles fly
Fly, Eagles fly, on the road to victory
E-A-G-L-E-S, Eagles!

Thomas Merton speaking to Me

A few quotes from Thomas Merton that struck me on my sabbatical time.

Re: The Spiritual Man

In all that he does he acts freely, simply, spontaneously from the depths of his heart, moved by love.

Re: Not having a Mentor

Naturally, one who has sought direction and not found it will not be held responsible for its lack, and God Himself will make to the soul what is wanting to it in His own way.

Re: The Care of the Director

His first duty, if he wants to be an effective director, is to see to his own interior life and take time for prayer and meditation, since he will never be able to give to others what he does not possess himself.

That's the good stuff, still chewing on them.

peace,