Pastor Paul's July 12 Federated Flash Article

Dear Friends in Christ,

Chris Baker is a student at Garrett Evangelical Seminary in Louisville. He wrote this for his Facebook page and it is currently making the rounds on the interwebs. I haven’t found anyone who has said this in such a sound theological manner so instead of trying, I will use his words. To clarify, derailment is the act of using a counterargument or counter assertion to derail a conversation from the original point:

I saw yet another ‪#‎AllLivesMatter‬ derailment this morning, and it made me want to scream. Or, rather, it made me want to scream this: 

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When, in the Beatitudes, Jesus says, "Blessed are the poor," you don't shout "Everyone's blessed!" When Jesus says "Blessed are the hungry," you don't shout "Everyone's blessed!" When Jesus says, "Blessed are those who mourn," you don't shout "Everyone's blessed!" You don't, I hope, because you understand that Jesus declares these people blessed precisely because they never have been. Their society never blessed them. The proverbial powers that be never blessed them. Their neighbors never blessed them. No one blessed them. No one considered them blessed, worthy of blessing. Their lives, in other words, never mattered.

I hope, too, that you understand what happens next in the Gospel of Luke. The blessings are followed by curses. Woe to the rich, who have enriched themselves at the expense of the poor. Woe to the full, who have engorged themselves at the expense of the hungry. Woe to those who are laughing now, in the face of the grief and misery of others. Jesus has flipped the script. Out is in. In is out. Down is up. Up is down. And ‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬ precisely because they haven't, and in your derailment they still don't. Biblically and theologically speaking, that's some dangerous ground you're occupying.

Now for what he doesn’t say, all lives don’t matter. He’s saying that according to the Gospel of Luke, the powerless will be blessed and those who benefit at the expense of those who are oppressed, woe unto them. Ready for the big curse, if that includes some police, if that includes some politicians, if that includes some corporations (who are “persons” under the law) then so be it. Woe unto them.

I hate to bring up the Jackson 5 here, but this is the problem of “one bad apple.” Sometimes all it takes is one person to cause a broad brush to be used. It’s one of the greatest horrors, but it’s true. Pastors understand this too. With sexual abuse, financial abuse, and other abuses of power I can be suspect.

In the Beatitudes, Jesus blesses those who have never been blessed. Those who have blessed themselves, well, woe unto them. I thank God for the Messiah who has blessed us so that we may be a blessing.

I am not here to curse woes unto people who have done well. The nation of Israel was blessed to be a blessing. Through Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah, the Christ, we have been grafted into that vine. We have been blessed, but if we are not a blessing then Christ will ask what we have done with our blessing. This is a question worth asking. This is what our society needs to ask.

Oh, and maybe when the people who have not been blessed are, that will be a blessing to all people.

See you in Church, Paul

We pray for police, military, and all others who voluntarily put themselves in harm’s way in service to others.

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

John 15:13

Public Faith and Tim Tebow

I have never posted anything about Tim Tebow as a collegiate, professional, or post-professional human being. Today I felt it was about time because of what I read from the Orlando Sentinel on msn.com.
The article titled "Tebow Hate Reaches New Low" deals with his recent plane trip from Atlanta to Phoenix where he comforted a woman and her friend with prayer as her husband laid dying from a heart attack on a Delta flight. Really that's the whole story. All you need to add it the heroic action of the Delta flight crew as they tried to resuscitate the man. Add too Tebow taking the woman and her friend in the car waiting for him to the hospital and waiting until the doctor gave her the bad news.

The author of the Sentinel article, Dan Whitley, said he was reading the comments about how Tim Tebow had reacted and what he had done. They were about 60% positive and about 40% negative. The 40% were telling the world (via the Interwebs) how Tim Tebow imposed himself upon a situation and put himself in the way of a heroic rescue by a Delta flight crew causing readers to become physically ill, a condition the author calls "Tebow Derangement Syndrome."

Well, no, he didn't get in the way. If he had the flight crew or a Federal Marshall would have put him back in his seat. Second, the woman could have sent "Ol' Time Religion Timmy" back to his seat if she were so inclined, she did not. Finally, if Tim Tebow was a media whore, he would be exploiting this, not me.

I think what Dan Whitley says about commenters says it quite well:

If all that makes you want to throw up, it says a lot more about you than it does Tim Tebow.

.Public faith is a dicey thing, for believers and non-believers alike. For the devout of either ilk it really doesn't matter though. Non-believers are just fine being the 40% trolling articles saying prayer is worthless, the man died anyway. What the non-believers don't know is the comfort Mr. Tebow brought to the widow. Nor the help he gave putting his faith into action by taking care of the luggage and taking the woman and her friend to the hospital.

His quiet departure also speaks volumes. He didn't even offer up the good old,"Hey, this is a difficult time, give them a little space and I've got a try-out with the Cardinals (or whatever he was doing in Phoenix--I have no idea what he was doing in Arizona)."

Never been a real fan, but never been a real detractor either. Heisman Trophy winners just never seem to translate into the pros, so, oh well. My opinion of this, he had the faith and the confidence in his faith to do something and the resources to do a little more than that. Isn't that what we want professional athletes to do? Isn't that what we want men to do?

The Relaunch of "Rock and Roll Devotional"

I am happy, overjoyed to announce the relaunch of Rock and Roll Devotional.

It's a blog I started about five or so years ago. Over the years I have had at it in fits and starts. To date, I have about 250 posts written, so I need only about another 115 more to complete the year. Over the past week or so I have actually written four new posts to debut over the year. Some will make an appearance soon, one will debut Christmas Eve!

Another important addition is that this is the first time I will update the blog since my new diagnosis. It will be a chance to compare how I wrote before my new diagnosis and now. You may not notice the difference because you may not remember the older posts... as for me, well I'll see the old and the new; and it excites me.

So, I hope you take the time to check it out. The updates are scheduled to come online at 12:30 Central Time daily. If you like it, take the time to make a note. If you don't take the time to make a note, because that's the only way I can make it better.

If you like it, please click your favorite share button on the social media site of your choice.

God bless y'all, and enjoy!

Snark, my Sense of Humor, and American Politics

Dear Friends,
Those of you who know me at all know I have a tremendous and vast sense of humor. I find all sorts of things funny and look to find humor in every situation, usually successfully. Those of you who know me well know that from time to time my sense of humor can be snarky. Or sarcastic. Or downright dark. I try to keep those down to a minimum. I tend to keep that part of my sense of humor out of my professional life.

Side note: Those who know me socially are asking "That's a minimum?" My best answer is "Yes, now imagine what I self edit... Now imagine what I only share with my wife... " This is when we all nominate the wonderful Marie for sainthood.

The reason I haven't updated this blog recently is because I haven't had much to say, and the things that I thought I might share were best self edited. Readers who have experienced recent postings, especially the "Lies my father/mother told me" series, are wiping their brows in gladness. This is one of the few times the phrase "thank you for not sharing" is appropriate. It's not a proud moment, but still.

I will never lose my sense of humor. Nor will I lose every element of my sense of humor, but here's something very important-- I am sick of the level of snark I have seen in the past ten years. Let me make this very clear, if I've had it up to here with snark it's probably drowning mortals. What pushed me over the edge? The current debate on the Affordable Healthcare Act.

I find much of it disingenuous. Before President Obama was inaugurated Congressional Republicans publicly declared their goal over "the next four years is to make President Obama a one-term president." While the strategy didn't work that doesn't prevent its continuation.

But don't let Congressional Democrats off the hook. They're just as bad, nobody has cornered the market on "disingenuous." The party of my inclination is just as able to brew a tempest in a teapot. The reason I don't list any is that I have read so many Facebook posts and memes about how Democrats impede government sending America into poverty that I don't need to. If you disagree with my politics you have your own laundry list.

Important point! I don't hate the people who disagree with me! I need the people who disagree with me! People who challenge me and what I believe give me perspectives that challenge what I believe and make my beliefs stronger. You may make me either affirm or change what I believe, and either way it still makes me stronger, not weaker!

But the level of snark from both sides of the Congressional aisle don't challenge me. They now disgust me. As for me, on this day, I believe there's enough blame to go around. Again, enough blame to go around. As Shakespeare said, "a pox on both of your houses. Both of your houses!"

About fifteen years ago my father had an epiphany in Missouri state races. All of the men running for office, Democrats and Republicans both, were acting like idiot blowhards. The women on the other hand were measured and constructive. Today I look at Michelle Bachman and Hillary Clinton and wonder what happens once you reach a certain point. It's the Peter Principle of American Politics. I despair this once workable solution is now improbable.

If you want to accuse me of being snarky right now I want to plead "not guilty" but will probably settle for "no contest." I'm trying to express myself without going over the edge right now (and on a second reading too out things that were too close to the edge of snark for my comfort), but that is the tight rope I now choose to walk. That's the abyss I'm not going to throw myself into anymore, God help me.

So friends, please know that my sense of humor will remain sharp. My stories will still be funny. My puns will still be flowing like a river. And I seek to quit wasting my time and yours on snark, especially political snark. Now that's a load off my chest.

Love you all,
Paul

Toby Keith Presents "An Easter Pageant"

This post is being written in the style of my Rock and Roll Devotional blog, but for obvious reasons I felt it belonged here more than there. At any rate, hope you enjoy. By the way, this is an appropriate selection for Maunday Thursday into Good Friday.


Luke 22:20

And he did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.”

and 20:41-42

Then he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Red solo cup, I fill you up
Let's have a party, let's have a party
I love you red solo cup, I lift you up
Proceed to party, proceed to party

"Red Solo Cup" by Toby Keith

Jesus often spoke in expressions, metaphors and similes, that describe things in more poetic ways than you would see in a more cut and dry prose. People call the Bible "Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth," but I think of it less as a technical manual and more of a divine work of art. Art has many, many more and deeper levels of meaning than a computer software manual.

Jesus calls the cup used after dinner "the new covenant in my blood." Establishing a new covenant, a covenant that completes and encases all prior covenants made between the Lord and all creation, Jesus seals his word not with the blood of any common sacrifice, but with his own. He knew by this time that his life would be coming to a horribly painful death soon, so declaring the new covenant by the cup poured out for us was an important act. The cup was the vessel that he used to help the disciples understand this new covenant.

While Jesus knew his time on this earth in this earthly incarnation was short, he did not have a death wish.In this case, the cup he asks his father to take was not the cup of the covenant, but the cup that held his fate. He prayed that if there was any other way possible may the Father take the cup from his Son's hand. Alas, it was not to be. The cup could not be taken. Jesus understood that this was God's will. He knew that only he could take the cup, take this fate, for all creation.

As time passes this evening we celebrate Maunday Thursday, the Christian celebration of the institution of the Lord's Supper. Luke's words from the institution of the supper are found in the first half of Luke 20. This is where we find the cup of the covenant.

Later in the evening, after the supper, Jesus goes to Gethsemane where we find the other passage listed in this devotion. This is the very moment between the events of Maunday Thrusday and Good Friday when Jesus is arrested and crucified. We go from celebration to horror in the time it takes to fill and empty a cup. But without these events there can be no resurrection. Without Good Friday there can be no Easter.

So let us revere the sacrifice Jesus made, the ultimate sacrifice. Hold dear the Lord as he pours out his blood from the cup of the new covenant and drinks the cup of his fate which will lead to his death and set forth the wheels of history unto his resurrection.

We need to love that cup. We must honor the sacrifice made by that cup. We get to celebrate the gift of God's grace, the gift of eternal life, the gift of forgiveness of sins. For that friends, let's have a party!

(By the way, I don't think Jesus would have been a fan of the debauchery in this video, the main reason I put this post here instead of Rock and Roll Devotional. But I am sure he would love everyone in it and hope he would get a chuckle out of it too.)

Facebook Has Marked "Rock and Roll Devotional" as Abusive!

Well gang, this is it, I am now an enemy of the Facebook state...

Facebook's Dire Warning

Since you can't read the text, let me share what it says. I have been warned by Facebook: "You are trying to post content on Facebook that has been marked as abusive. You may request to have this block lifted from Facebook by contacting us below. Please note that we're unable to reply to every bug report at this time, but we may contact you for more details about the issue as we investigate the report."

Well, I honestly don't know why this warning has come to pass.  So if you want to check out today's posting, check out  today's entry at Rock and Roll Devotional. The whole blog can be found here.

Facebook, saving people from hate speech since 9:30 this morning.

Voting on the Will of God

This is a section of the sermon I preached today titled "His" on Matthew 6:24-34. This section deals with Matthew 6:33 and its role in the Presbyterian Church (USA) during this round of voting on amendments from the General Assembly.  I guess in a way when we vote on the amendments, in essence, we will vote on the will of God.  As true as this is, let us come together in discernment. 

This leads us to one more matter that we must examine on account of this passage, discerning his kingdom and his righteousness. The best example for me to bring up today is the biennial root canal that is the General Assembly of the PC(USA). This is a place where good Christian men and women come together to discern God’s will for the denomination and for the whole Body of Christ. As is the norm when good Christian men and women come together to discern God’s will, people will often reach opposite conclusions regarding the best way to strive for the kingdom of God and his righteousness. 

What I find distressing is not that we disagree. I’m distressed when we insult and revile another in God’s name. I have seen fear and shame and anger do their level best to overwhelm love. Often people are so blind to their own words that not only is grace lacking, but so is confession that no one person has had all the answers since the guy on the cross. 

Yet as we strive for the kingdom of God and his righteousness together, we are able to discern God’s way and wisdom for our lives. In Committees, in Session and in Presbytery and in General Assembly, we are more apt to discern God’s wisdom than when we work alone. When we hear the opinions of others, especially when we disagree, we are more likely to learn from one another. 

Next weekend, this feast of discernment makes its way to Dallas where Grace Presbytery will vote on the amendments sent by the General Assembly to the presbyteries. So now, let us pray not for a side to win the day, but that as a Presbytery we strive for his kingdom and his righteousness.

Well, I said it, so it's time for me to own it.  Recently on this very blog, I posted a pretty snarky group of remarks to a letter sent by a group of Presbyterian Men who are mostly (43 our of 45) "big steeple" pastors.  Frankly, I regret the way I said what I said.  I don't regret my intent, but I do regret my execution.  There were other posts that made the points I wanted to make so much more eloquently.  I wish I could find them so I could share them.  Alas...

Still, let us pray for discernment for the whole denomination and for the whole church as we approach the mercy seat of God to do the work of the denomination.  Let us be holy.  Let us be holy together.

How About the 2011 College Football Season!

This from ESPN.com's Brian Fremeau was published January 14:

We know, it's early.

But with the 2010 season officially wrapped, we can't help but take a look ahead at what 2011 will bring.

You know what I say, RESIST! Stop it! Stop it right now! Just one week after Auburn beat Oregon in the NCAA BCS Championship Game there is someone who wants to predict the 2011 season winner.

Enjoy it while you can Tigers. But at least you got a whole week to revel in the glory. At this rate I bet the 2011 champ won't get to celebrate at all. I'm guessing the 2012 champ will be crowned about Thanksgiving weekend this year.

Ration after the Irrational

Some of my friends have been trying to make sense of the violence of this weekend. Shoot, I gave it a shot in yesterday's sermon myself. Still, there is a danger in all of this.

These acts yesterday were the acts of a man with real mental trouble. I am not fit to diagnose, not will I ever be called upon to judge his mental health. But after hearing some interviews and seeing his YouTube videos, he did not seem to be in perfect mental health to me.

So when people of good conscience try to make conclusions beyond his actions, there will be some lapses.It's inevitable! What Jared Loughner did was beyond reason. Some political rhetoric in the Cable News Sphere and the Talk Radio Sphere and the BlogoSphere and the Twittersphere and whatever other else spheres are out on the other side of civility too. But to connect the two, trying to create a relationship that says one causes the other is perilous at best.

Friends, don't try to make sense of the acts of a killer. It's not going to help. What we must do is take responsibility for our own actions, our own speech, and our own images. Which reminds me, this isn't the first time a "peace sign" has been replaced by the Mercedes-Benz logo, but can we try to make it the last?

And That's All I Have to Say About That, The Coda

Yeah, I realize it's a stupid heading title, but alas, it fits. Since this is the coda, you should read the next post first.

Over the past eight hours or so, something that I have noticed missing from the sermon piece is that I speak of a Jewish woman, a woman whose faith is important to her, and use it in a Christian context. Literally, I take her shooting, I take her story, and put it in an a-Semitic setting.

I say a-Semitic instead of antisemitic because I neglect it entirely! My writing is completely without reference to her faith and that's what the prefix a- means, without.

So, how can I talk about what has happened to this woman and put it in a Christian context?

First, John 4:22 (references here) reminds us "salvation comes from the Jews." Any Christian who takes an antisemitic stand fails to remember this most basic of all truths, salvation comes from the Jews.

Second, my denomination, the Presbyterian Church (USA), has made a statement that the Jews have always had a special relationship with the Lord, further saying that this relationship did not end with the life of Jesus of Nazareth.

Finally, what happened in Tucson transcends denomination, it is a tragedy of at least national proportion. If I split the hair in my sermon too finely by not mentioning Representative Giffords' faith, I apologize.

It was an oversight, not a slight.

Tucker Carlson Backpedals as the Defense Comes in for the Sack

A few days ago, pundip Tucker Carlson said that Michael Vick should not be a football quarterback but should have been executed for his dog fighting crimes. To this I wrote on facebook:

First, I believe what Michael Vick did to cause his incarceration was deplorable. The length of his incarceration is up for debate, some said it should have been longer, BUT Michael Vick did the time he was given. Having said that, does Tucker Carlson believe that everyone who has ever been in prison should be executed, never allowed the opportunity to make amends? If Michael Vick is treated like this in the media.

Oh, "pundip" is a word I've invented, it's a portmanteau of "pundit" and "dips..." well you get the picture. Feel free to use it at will, there are many pundips out there on both sides of the political aisle. Back to Tucker...

As posted on Huffington Post, Carlson is backtracking from his statement. He says, "This is what happens when you get too emotional."

As for me, I've quit watching TV news for just this reason. "Reporters" and "Analysts" are too emotional. There is no reporting, not anymore. There is rhetoric and there is posing, but there isn't any reporting anymore. Give Carlson this credit, he indicted himself for the crime of all Cable TV pundips, but he still doesn't get it. He says,

"As a friend of mine told me, 'a convicted child molester doesn't get to adopt kids'" Carlson responded. He quickly added that he wasnt comparing Vick to a child molester.

Sorry Tucker, you don't get to drop the "child molester" bomb and follow it up with saying you aren't comparing him to a child molester. You did. Here's the FoxNews feed--

Keep backpedaling Tucker, by the way, I'm not buying that pump fake.

Til Death

The New York Times has a column called "Vows" where Debs and their Fraternity President betrothed's tell stories of meeting and courting with cute stories and quippy anecdotes. Not last Sunday.

Here's the story of Carol Anne Riddell and John Partilla as found in the New York Times.

To me, here is the quote of the article: As Mr. Partilla saw it, their options were either to act on their feelings and break up their marriages or to deny their feelings and live dishonestly. “Pain or more pain,” was how he summarized it.

Another good quote: I did a terrible thing as honorably as I could.

Today, Yahoo reports Mr. Partilla "has some misgivings -- about agreeing to let the Times profile him." Still, they say they were honest with each other and their spouses. As soon as they declared their feelings for each other they went to their spouses--they didn't go off and have a tawdry affair, and Mr. Partilla is proud of that.

I think he's setting the bar kind of low on pride here.

This is kind of like the flip-side of Meatloaf's "Paradise by the Dashboard Light." In that song, the man proposes so he can get physical release. In this case there are two divorces so the new couple can get release, you fill in the blank about what kind of release.

So what do we learn from all of this? Nothing our mama's didn't tell us growing up and we forgot while watching Springer, "Keep your dirty laundry off the line!" The happy couple wanted "one honest account" of their relationship to date. They didn't think of it as dirty laundry, but many comments on the NYT web page seem to differ. I guess they didn't have a tawdry affair, but was what they had-is what they have-so much different?

I believe being proud that as they discarded their vows they did it above board is not enough.

Editor's note: Cases of abuse and abandonment are different from what's going on here. That's a whole different ballgame.

Then again, what do I know...I'm a child of divorce and lies about divorce. My sisters have both been divorced and I have been married 13 years after not getting married until my mid-30's. If you get it, please share. Not just the reason for the divorce but the reason for sharing, I'm kind of stumped.

New Word Alert!

You read it here next (not first) yesterday: Blognore, it's my new word. In truth it has existed online since April 2006, or that's where I found it in a google search. Hence, I must give credit to the oldest citation of "blognore" I can find on the Internet, the Deep_Thoughts blog by The_Girl_From_Ipanema.

Blognore, verb: "to ignore something by not blogging about it."

Example, Mike Tyson said he could understand Chris Brown hitting his girlfriend, R&B singer Rihanna. Does the universe really require additional comment on comments this stupid from someone who abused his wife and did time for rape? I say no. Chris Brown-Dummy. Mike Tyson-Convicted Dummy. I blognore you. Next.

This is the way I use to blognore. Of course, by creating this example, I have effectively not blognored. Darn it! To blognore properly, no one can ever be really sure you have blognored at all.

T_G_F_I uses the verb to mean "to ignore someone and/or the work of someone in the blogosphere." Another wonderful definition. Her blog uses this context:

Gaurav,
You are a horrible fellow! I will "blognore" you. Yes, doing better, thanks for asking.

This can lead to other great words like, blognorance.

Blognorance, noun: The quality of knowledge and information created by the blogosphere.

Example: Me commenting on Middle East peace policy and its ramifications in world oil markets would add significantly to the quality and quantity of blognorance in the world.

Just for more useless information, this morning the word "blognore" generates eight hits on Google, "blognorance" gets 157 hits. Together we can make this happen!

Miracles and Lurking

Let me draw your attention to the "Live Traffic Feed" box from Feedjit on the right hand side of your screen. This little add-on allows everyone to see the source of traffic to a particular website. In the last week or so, I've gotten a lot of hits from a thread on politicalcrossfire.com.

It may not be polite to lurk, but I have and have loved the comments found on this thread.

First of all, I love you people. There is some passion in this thread that I miss. You folks are great.

On another note, the discussion has taken a turn into the arena of "miracles." I like this take on miracles which comes from a sermon called "Here's Your Sign." The illustration below references the Peabody Award winning Futurama episode “Godfellas” by Ken Keeler.

"Futurama" is a television show produced by the creator of “The Simpson’s.” It’s about a man, Philip J. Frye, who was accidentally frozen in a cryogenic lab at midnight on December 31, 1999 and thawed 1,000 years later. In the episode titled “Godfellas,” Frye’s best friend and roommate, a robot named Bender, is accidentally shot from a space ship’s torpedo tube while it’s traveling at maximum velocity. Since Bender is moving faster than the ship’s top speed, there is no way to catch up and rescue him. Bender floats through space until he passes through an asteroid field and accidentally accumulates a microscopic civilization on his stomach (or what passes for a stomach on a robot), which declares him God, and worships him despite his constant inability to provide for their needs.

After the civilization that lived on Bender destroyed itself, he was distraught. Then he found an eternal omnipotent presence, the cartoon equivalent of the god of the universe. Bender shares his lament with the greater power. He says that no matter what he did, he could not help them. He did something, it didn’t work. He did nothing, and that didn’t work either. Then Bender learned the lesson of quality miracles from the being, “When you’ve done something right, people won’t be sure you’ve done anything at all.”

I like this, do we need heavy handed miracles or a Lord who prefers to steer us gently? I like the Lord that works so gently we won't be sure God has done anything at all. As for me, I prefer relationship to manipulation.

BTW, that "Homeland Security Since 1492" t-shirt is great!

Bixby, Bixby, Look Who's Sixty!

This is my attempt to add 20 years to "Lordy, Lordy, Look Who's Forty" yet do it without success.

Happy Birthday Dan Krotz. By the time you read this, anyone reads this for that matter, it will be too late to warn you of the unexpected Birthday Party. Congrats and hooray.

For those of you who do not know Dan, he is a wonderful man, a great friend, and a spur to intelligencia everywhere. He's smart, well read, and wickedly funny. If you think this is a bromance, well, my wife would just say "duh."

He's also committed to the economic development of people all over the world. He has helped establish markets (from macro-and-micro-economic to farmer's markets) from Africa to the Berryville Square. He's a good neighbor around the corner and on the other side of the planet.

If you get the chance, read his on-line novel Coffee with John Heartbreak. It's a very funny and insightful look at the particular and sometimes peculiar small town life of Berryville, Arkansas--with a little bit of crime drama and an appearance by the Holy Spirit.

Also, if you are looking for a good book or antique, checkout Sow's Ear Antiques on the Berryville Square or online. Dan and Susan are happy to hear from and help out everyone who comes into their store--both virtual and brick and mortar.

God bless Dan! Happy Birthday!

Blogolicious

I discovered this blog this morning while going over my morning coffee. It's the sort of thing that is designed to appeal to the sports/pop-culture people in their late 20's to mid 30's. It's on ESPN.com and is written by Paul Shirley. The archive is found here.

Shirley's claim to fame is that since 2002 when he graduated (?) from college, he has played with 13 different teams! He has been on 3 NBA teams and 10 others. He has played on at least three continents and in more jerseys than you can find at Dick's Sporting Goods.

His stuff is funny. It may be a little too young for me. Most of the musicians in the bands he talks about in his latest music post are younger than my driver's license, but I can still appreciate the writing.

Enjoy.

The Return of Sportsmanship

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a Texas High School girl's basketball game that ended with a score of 100-0. I took the coach to task and said that he should not be fired because after all, if we fire him how will he ever learn? The teacher of this lesson just came out of a game in the upper Midwest.

A couple of weeks ago, Milwaukee Madison High School played DeKalb High School (Illinois) in Milwaukee. Be sure to follow the link below and read the whole article, but here are the salient points.

• The mother of one of the Madison prep stars, Johntell Franklin, was seriously ill. The Madison coach asked Johntell if he wanted the coach the cancel the game, Johntell said no, let them play.
• The coach set up to play. He did not put Johntell's name in the scorebook. This is important for those of you who do not know basketball rules.
• The game was played, but it started a couple of hours late.
• Johntell came to the game during the second quarter. But he didn't feel like he could be a spectator, he suited up because he wanted to play.
• Coach put Johntell into the game.

This is where the rules take effect. If a player enters the game who is not in the scorebook, it is a technical foul and the other team gets two free throws. When Johntell entered the game, the foul was called.

Well, DeKalb didn't want it. They all knew what was going on and nobody on the DeKalb team wanted to accept the foul--not the players and not the coaches. When DeKalb tried to reject the foul, the referees said they could not do that. Rules are rules.

The Madison coach was dejected, knowing two easy points were going to hit the board. He had his team huddled around, so he almost missed it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the DeKalb shooter roll the ball off of the ends of his fingertips rolling gently past the end line. The second time he watched it happen.

The DeKalb coach came to terms with the fact that his team would get the two shots. He did not come to terms with benefitting from another's grief. The DeKalb coach asked his players who was going to take the shot and then told him, "You know you're going to miss it, right?"

If you win 100-0, you'll win a basketball game. Missing these two shots has made the sports world take notice that sportsmanship is not dead. There are more important things.
For the number of times I have heard and read this story, there is one thing I have not heard reported. Who won.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article can be found at this link.

So Good to Be Back

Dear Friends and Readers,
It's good to be back online again. When the ice storm hit, we had a power surge which fried a line or two in the computer's operating system. That took a week to fix after the week it took for the ice to melt and the power to return. Then just to put an egg on the corned beef hash of fried computer-the modem went down too.

It's time to face the facts, I need a better surge protector.

Well, thanks to the First National Bank in Berryville's computer repair service and my ISP sending a new modem I am finally back online. I hope to resume my old blogging schedule and hope to hear from you all again soon.

Peace be with you all, Paul

Blogland Coincidence

Yesterday and the day before were wonderful days of coincidence here in my little corner of the internet.

Saturday--this blog and Time Loves a Hero both had 129 postings each. Since I update this blog daily (or try to) and Time Loves a Hero gets updated weekly, both of them got an entry on Sunday. So yesterday, both blogs had 130 entries each.

Today, Fat Man officially has more entries than Time Loves a Hero. If this is what passes for momentous in my life...

It's Always a-Little-Somethin-Something

Marie found a blog on FanHouse about a company denied the opportunity to put a print ad in the Super Bowl program. It was an ad for a website called AshleyMadison.com. Their pitch was a scantilly dressed woman hovering aluringly over a football with the tag line "WHO Are You Doing After the Game?"

As far as I can tell, this is not a hoax. The company's web site says that since 2001 they have set up halves of married cuples for a-little-somethin-somethin on the side. Their slogan says it all, "Life Is Short, Have an Affair."

They even have a guarantee! This comes from their website:

Under the AshleyMadison.com Affair Guarantee Program, (the "Affair Guarantee Program" or the "Program") if you don't find someone within the initial 3 months after purchasing the "Affair Guarantee" Membership Package, we'll refund you $249, being the amount you paid for participating in the Program (the "Refund").

First of all, this is not a promotion for the services of AshleyMadison.com. If you're thinking of having an affair, tell your spouse. When your partner asks for a divorce, you'll be able to beat the rush and find that someone new.

Second, and here's the genious, buying an ad in the Super Bowl Program gets your "product" into say, 100,000 programs, many of which won't be cracked open because collectors want unblemished spines. What's the use of buying the ad space with that kind of exposure.

But by applying and getting rejected, the company now has all the free publicity it wants. People are talking about it, yes even little old me. That's genious.