EleCivil
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Posts posted by EleCivil
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Southern Baptist preacher's kid, chiming in.
(Give it a bit to warm up - I've heard fast, revival-style arrangements of this one that very much fit the stompin' and clappin' kind of thing you're going for.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNQXQKflJNA
(Originally an "African-American church song", but this was in EVERY white, Southern Baptist church I've ever been in. If you wanted to show that a character is more "liberal" for 1970, have them use this - it was released in '67, and for a church to play anything less than 25 years old is rather radical.)
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Religion is an opiate to control the masses.
I like to think of it as "The Old Sky-Cake Dodge":
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Doesn't scare me too much. Remember that time Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 was released right before the '08 elections, and everyone was certain that there was NO WAY the goofy, bumblin', war-monger cowboy would beat the boring yet intellectual war hero, especially after such a routing at the box office? And then he did?
There's a good 30% on each side that thinks "their man" can do no wrong, and will vote for anyone with an ® or (D) next to their name. Those are the people going to see films like this.
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That headline is outstanding.
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I never went to a Battle Cry rally when I was a kid (I think I was 18 by the time they started), but there were a lot of similar groups. Dress up the Bible with a lot of (generic) rock music, lasers, sports. Throw in a bunch of talk about fighting, war, battle, us vs. them. It takes some serious mental kung-fu to convince yourself that Christians are a persecuted minority in America, but they manage to do it. Add qualifiers like "Real, Bible-believeing, Evangelical Christians" - things that are all defined in the head of the definer - and say that the rest of those "so-called Christians" are just pretenders, working against the cause.
Even at my most hardcore religious phase, this stuff left a bad taste in my mouth. All flash, no substance...and when you're dealing in answers to the ultimate questions, I wanted substance. "Let's all shout and watch lasers!" didn't appeal to me as much as "Let's look at the original Greek to see if this could be interpreted differently!"
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The original comic from xkdc.com:
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When I saw the topic title, I thought "Man, it would be cool if that was a Les Mis parody."
I was not dissapointed.
I must say, it's hard to NOT get a little amped when I hear that song.
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One of the lead actors in The Wire, Dominic West, is a Brit, and they did a hilarious episode awhile back where he has to pose as an out-of-town Brit in Baltimore who's looking for a prostitute. So the actor was faced with the role of being a British actor, playing a tough American cop, who has to do a (very bad) fake Cockney accent with a hooker. It was absolutely hilarious when you know the inside story. The guy's American accent is flawless.
Jimmy NcNulty is a brit? Wow. Like you said, flawless.
I can't speak to the show's realism when it comes to the police/drug dealing plotlines, but in season 4 they start to show what it's like in an inner-city public school, and it's dead on. You know all those "teacher movies" like Stand and Deliver, Freedom Writers, etc. that show an upper-middle class white lady going into an urban school? None of them really captured it the way The Wire did. That sense of isolation, frustration, seeking and clinging to small victories, sudden explosive violence - it got it all right. If you want to know what modern public education REALLY looks like, watch The Wire season 4.
I'd also recommend it from a writer's standpoint - a lot of us write about school-aged characters, and The Wire is very realistic in depicting what it's like to be a child in poverty being raised in and around gangs. Having worked with a lot of kids in that situation, I'm glad this show had the guts to show what's really going on.
Also from a writing standpoint, check out this scene (Warning: Profanity and some nudity, not safe for work):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sNZ7ulO1RQ
This one short scene reveals the characters' relationship in a way that you couldn't do with a paragraph of exposition. "Show, Don't Tell" at its finest.
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I saw this video the other day, and thought I'd share. A vlogger, The Nostalgia Chick, compares/contrasts Orson Scott Card and Chick-fil-A.
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Yeah, but they'll prove their claim by quoting from the bible, and where will that get us?
In no part of the Bible does it say to use political force to coerce non-believers into acting like believers. If you go by the Bible, that's completely backwards - the idea is to convert to Christianity first, THEN you'll start acting Christ-like. Passage after passage speaks of how none are righteous, and simply acting right and following the rules aren't what gets you into heaven.
But then again, we're back to playing in their yard. The Bible says some things are sinful. Yes, but there are no bullets in that gun. What is the Bible to a non-believer? It's an appeal to an unproven authority. To a non-believer, quoting God is quoting a fictional character. God says "Homosexuality is an abomination." Mr. T says "I pity the fool". One of these quotes is from a spiritual force that has not been proven to have ever said it, let alone exist, and it suggests that the supreme creator despises His own creations. The other is from a man who most definitely does exist (He's even on camera saying it! Many, many times!), and it suggests that one should have sympathy for the ignorant. Out of the two quotes, I would prefer to follow the second.
(Though I think I'm preaching to the choir here. Er, so to speak.)
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...That's not to say I don't like the cartoon, however.
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I always hated the argument about whether or not sexual orientation was a choice. It really doesn't matter - since when was it acceptable to descriminiate against someone because of their choices? Even if it's a choice that involves something you don't personally agree with?
Even though we know it's BS, let's pretend that tomorrow, science proves conclusively that homosexuality is a conscious choice. ...So? It still hasn't been demonstrated that it's a less ethical choice than heterosexuality.
Christianity is a choice - one that I don't agree with - but I still think Christians should be allowed to marry each other. Even gay Christians.
When someone pulls the "Homosexuality is a choice!" card, and we respond with "No, it isn't. Here's the science," we're agreeing to play in their home field, so to speak. It's like we're saying "Sure, we're SINNERS, but we didn't CHOOSE to be sinners!"
No. I'm not having that argument. The argument needs to be "Is it morally wrong to love someone of the same gender?" All of these side issues - whether it's a choice, whether it's "natural", etc. - are things pulled out by the other side to distract from the real argument, because they have no valid, reasonable way to support that argument.
I'm not playing your game - you're making a claim about my morals. Now prove your claim, or step out of my way.
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I searched for "Spud" on Netflix, but the closest I got was "Spader". But that reminded me of how awesome James Spader is, which put me in a good mood. It was certainly not a loss in my book.
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Watched the trailer. Had no idea what was going on. But then I read the synopsis of the novel this is based on:
The novel consists of six nested stories that take the reader from the remote South Pacific in the nineteenth century to a distant, post-apocalyptic future. Each tale is revealed to be a story that is read (or observed) by the main character in the next. All stories but the last are interrupted at some moment, and after the sixth story concludes at the center of the book, the novel "goes back" in time, "closing" each story as the book progresses in terms of pages but regresses in terms of the historical period in which the action takes place. Eventually, readers end where they started, with Adam Ewing in the Pacific Ocean, circa 1850.
(source)
Sounds interesting.
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NYC City Council asks NYU to kick out Chic-Fil-A.
Meanswhile, Sarah Palin posts pictures of herself and her family at Chick-Fil-A.
The next battle in the culture war will be faught on a battlefield of fried chicken. There's something distinctly American about that.
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I think I can sum up that first one with just one scene. Let's try:
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CROSSOVER:
Law and Order/Narnia, with Meta-Commentary as a Plot Device
(Open on alley in New York City. Two a.m. Two drunken REVELERS stumble into alley, bickering.)
REVELER 1: "I'm tellin' ya, ya ain't never BEEN with a women until ya been with a Turk. PURE dee-light!"
REVELER 2: "Aw, you're full a- hey. Hey hey hey. Wait a minute."
REVELER 1: "What? What?"
REVELER 2: "There's somethin' back here. It...oh, god."
REVELER 1: "What is it?"
REVELER 2: (Turning to look at REVELER 1) Call the cops.
Cut to black. <SFX: CLANG CLANG>
(Same alley, later that morning. The sun is up. Several CSIs and BEAT COPS mill about, collecting evidence and securing the area. Detectives LOGAN and BRISCOE enter.)
LOGAN: "What do we got?"
CSI: "Multiple stab wounds around the face and groin. Homicide. I think."
BRISCOE: "You think? What, did the guy trip with his pocketknife open? Over and over again?"
CSI: "No, not that. He was definitely murdered. The '-cide' part is obvious. It's the 'homo'..."
LOGAN: "Let's not get personal, now."
CSI: "The victim wasn't human. He seems to be half human, half goat. Driver's license says his name was Mr. Tumnus. A faun."
BEAT COP: "The correct term is 'Capricorn-American.'"
LOGAN: "Half human, half goat? God, some of the sick things you see."
BRISCOE: "Didn't take you for a bigot, Logan."
LOGAN: "Just because two things CAN be crossed together doesn't mean they SHOULD. Things have their own natural habitats. Their own...realms. I'm not saying Tumnus deserved this, but there was a time when things like this stayed in the closet, you know?"
BRISCOE: "Wardrobe, actually."
LOGAN: "What?"
BRISCOE points, indicating the suit TUMNUS is wearing.
BRISCOE: "Our Capricorn-American friend had a fine taste in clothing. Let's find out what wardrobe he crawled out of."
Cut to black. <SFX: CLANG CLANG>
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Another good one:
Your challenge is to write crossover fanfiction combining Pokemon and Les Miserables. The story should use possession by Satan as a plot device! -
This site gives you a randomly generated terrible idea for fanfiction. Anyone up for the challenge?
I got...
Your challenge is to write crossover fanfiction combining Chronicles of Narnia and Law & Order. The story should use some sort of meta-commentary about how terrible this idea is as a plot device!
I'm going to have to do this.
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Using their airtight logic, anything can be blamed on gays.
Crazy guy shoots people. AFA: "It's because there are gays. Some people are gay, and some churches are too nice to gay people, so God made a dude shoot random people. Hey, it's all part of His plan."
Economy plummets. AFA: "Too many gay investment bankers staring at each others' dividends all day. Disgusting."
Car crashes up 10%. AFA: "Gay tires only hugging each other, not the road."
AFA President loses house keys. AFA: "Probably stolen by a degenerate gay."
Bullied gay teen commits suicide. AFA: "We try to reach out, but clearly, homosexuality is a destructive lifestyle."
(I may have made up a couple of those in the middle.)
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Boston's Mayor is now pledging to fight attempts by Chick-Fil-A to put franchises in Boston.
“Chick-fil-A doesn’t belong in Boston,” Menino told the Boston Herald on Thursday. “You can’t have a business in the city of Boston that discriminates against the population. We’re an open city, we’re a city that’s at the forefront of inclusion. That’s the Freedom Trail. That’s where it all started right here. And we’re not going to have a company, Chick-fil-A or whatever the hell the name is, on our Freedom Trail.”
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I think when you apply to be a "Christian" business you get to put one of those little fish thingys on the back of you car. Then put the sign in the yellow pages that you are one, hoping some other idiot will pay you twice what the job is worth.
There are various groups that compile "Christian Yellow Pages" - Business directories with only Christian-owned businesses, so that the devout can be sure they aren't giving money to people with different beliefs (Also, there's the implication of "Hey, a Christian mechanic wouldn't cheat you! Not like one of those heathen mechanics that lubricate engines with the blood of the innocent.")*. Shepherd's Guide is a big one.
*But really, the blood of the innocent is a LOT cheaper than oil, so it's Lucifer Motors for me.
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If electricity is no longer available for 15 years, the majority of people in the industrialized countries will die during that period.
[...]
Cool, 'eh?
Reminds me of this book - it takes place after an unknown phenomenon changes the laws of physics so that fast-releasing energy sources (combustion, electricity, etc.) no longer work (ex. you can set gunpowder on fire, but it just slowly burns instead of exploding).
Most people do die within the first couple months - riots break out in the cities, failing refrigeration causes stored medicine to expire, starvation, disease, etc. It mainly follows three groups that try three different ways to survive-
The Bearkillers - A group that was in a plane that crashed in the woods when the event happened, leaving them isolated. Their leader is an ex-Marine who knows how to survive in the wilderness, so they end up becoming a wandering tribe of hunter-gatherers, working as mercenaries, fighting off cannibals and scavengers in exchange for food and supplies from the encampments they pass.
Clan MacKenzie - A nature-worshiping Wiccan clan that manages to escape the city and begin subsistence farming in the middle of nowhere. They end up creating a farming community based on Wiccan principles, showing how the sudden loss of technology can cause a resurgence in religious belief systems.
The Protectorate - A history professor and Renaissance Faire enthusiast takes over a big city, using his knowledge of medieval leadership and sword fighting skills to recruit the local gang members into an army (and kill off all opposition). He installs himself as a feudal lord called The Protector, and attempts to build an empire through conquest.
Really fun “What If” kind of book. I recommend it.
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"And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God." - Matthew 19:24
So...are these guys going to going to be giving all their profits from this thing to the poor, or are they planning on getting that camel through the needle?
Quick background - when I was a kid, I was a faily hardcore Christian. Like, my idea of a fun weekend was to read the Book of Revelations and try to match it up to current events to predict the apocalypse. Sunday school, church, Wednesday night church service, church youth groups, Vacation Bible School, etc. - I lived and breathed Christianity, to the exclusion of everything else.
There were two Christian bookstores in my hometown - One was a tiny, rundown shack owned by an elderly couple. It was always dusty and dark, and the only way to know it wasn't an old toolshed was a small sign outside that said simply "BIBLE." They dealt in books, and only books. Every Biblical translation you could think of, as well as apologetics, interpretive analyses, etc. There was even a stash of "serious" literature that they kept behind the counter, that they would only give to you if you asked for it by name. When I went in there with my Dad, it felt like we were secret agents passing information across the enemy lines - an apt metaphor, since I was raised to believe that "Real Chrisitans" were a small resistance movement hiding in The Devil's territory. Point being, it was taken seriously - "This is important, and it needs to be treated with dignity and respect."
The other bookstore was a huge, brightly lit, and covered with advertisements for a local Christian radio station. There were a few pop-religion books, two or three kinds of Bible, and a MILLION pieces of random junk with crosses or Bible verses painted on them. Christian breath mints, Christian bookmarks, Christian yo-yos, Christian cup holders, videos and action figures of Christian super-hero "Bibleman." Generic Christian rock playing over the speakers. Everything marked up, more expensive. Setting foot in there felt...wrong. Even at eight or nine years old, it freaked me out. It just seemed so insincere. This stuff they were selling didn't have anything to do with the religion I believed in - it just took a bunch of Dollar Store merch and slapped Christian symbols on them. It took something that I deeply believed in and turned it into a gift shop.
Now, I'm no longer a Christian, but stories like this still rub me the wrong way. They're taking something serious - the search for ultimate cosmic truth - and turning it into a quick cash-in. They're taking Jesus and slapping him on a consumer product like Superman on a lunchbox. No dignity. No respect.
...Also, I hear that once the battery on this thing dies, it take three whole days before it recharges.
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Wanted: Mouthpiece for bigotted ideology. Must be able to memorize and repeat party line. Thinkers need not apply.
Seriously, "non-cognitive elites" cracks me up.
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Seriously...this is a joke..right?
in Laughs & Limericks
Posted
What.
No.
What!?
I'm out. There's...there's just too much stupid.