DaVinci Strategy

Hugh Hewitt has some great commentary on the DaVinci Code at a site called The DaVinci Dialogue. Hugh suggests preparing for discussions on the topic strategically. He has some general good advice for winsome point making there as well. Worth a read.

Message to ECI: Be Careful

As a Christian, I’ve been following the Evangelical Climate Initiative (ECI) closely. Doug over at Stones Cry Out thinks most closely to me on this issue. You can see his postings and some comments by me here. Like it or not, the ads will be running soon.

Sure, Christians should be treating the earth well. God has called us to ‘fill the earth and subdue it’. I like the idea of nuke power, E-85 Fuel, and Bio-diesel. My company is huge into solar (I think we are #3 in the world and climbing fast). We need to be doing things that make sense, and continuing to develop new technologies. However, I’m not comfortable with a few things going on here.

Overall, I don’t think their statement is well worded. In point 1 it claims:

“those in the scientific community most seriously engaged with this issue that climate change is happening and is being caused mainly by human activities.”

1. The sentence is a little ‘run-on’.
2. Who is the ‘scientific community’? Atheists and others use the phrase ‘scientific community’ to lend credibility to their claims. Now this group of evangelicals is using the same technique.
3. Many in the ‘scientific community’ believe otherwise.

The ‘scientific community’ used to believe the earth had long cycles, global cooling was the problem, and that we were headed toward an ice age.

Now they believe the planet is warming, and have created a model to ‘prove’ it. Well, like most things, the global warming model is flawed. You can see some ponderings examples in one of my previous blogs here. Some other critiques can be seen here and here. (I’m sure there is other stuff, but I’m not going looking tonight). Of note:

Computer simulations, for example, indicate that over the past century the
"enhanced greenhouse effect" should have increased the temperature globally by
about one degree Celsius (or 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit). But, Baliunas notes, "the
actual temperatures have not cooperated with the computer models." Records
reveal a temperature rise of 0.5 degree Celsius over the past 100 years, peaking
before 1940. After that, the Earth's average surface temperature decreased until
the 1970s. Baliunas reminds us that was the time that doomsayers were warning
about an impending ice age! Since the 1970s the temperature has risen modestly
0.2 degree Celsius until now.
What is most significant about this brief
summary of global temperature patterns is that the warming of the Earth prior to
1940 must have been from natural causes, since more than 80 percent of the
manmade carbon dioxide has entered the air since the 1940s. No significant human
influence on climate existed in the early decades of the 20th century.

I’m a firm believer in data. Overall, I believe that the sun determines the temperature of the earth (Warmer sun, warmer earth, and vise-versa). Pretty radical, but you can read more here.

Also, I’m not comfortable with the spirit of the website. They seem very self-absorbed, relishing in the media coverage they are getting. On their home page, they link a video speaking of the ‘break’ from Bush. Are they delighted that they are scoring points against the president?

I liked Rick Warren’s book. However, today I’m disappointed he has cast his lot with these radicals. As I warn at SCO, he and the others are risking much. Sadly, the risk is unnecessary. I know that they could have put out a message saying ‘Take care of the planet’ without getting into bed with the extremists.

I’m not losing sleep over this. Overall, the cause of Christ will be in His will, not dependent on Warren or any of the ECI guys. Ultimately, I believe God will take care of the planet also, but that’s just me.

KSTP - Supporting the troops

The KSTP/ MidWest Heroes story is HUGE in the blogosphere. Being MN based, I can’t ignore it. The biggest blog that has been following closely is Powerline. You can see stuff here, here, and here. Make sure you go to MidWest Heroes site and check out all the videos. If you want even more encouragement, surf over to the parent site and check out the additional stories here. This woman is launching a personal jihad against KSTP. I hope she gets far. You can write Hubbard here.

I’ve been watching these commercials during the Olympics on KARE11. They are fantastic. KSTP was my favorite station, mostly because their radio station is pretty well balanced. I suppose Hubbard has a right to refuse these commercials. I have a right to make KARE11 my new favorite station. However, there is a portion of the story that bothers me. Hubbard says the allegation that the media doesn’t give the whole story isn’t true. Well, who better to tell the whole story than the soldiers themselves? I would claim they should be at least a part of the whole story. By blocking their story, Hubbard proves their point, and proves true that which he claims in untrue. I’m sure the irony is lost on the liberals, however. The other have is the Democrats. They loved the Sheehan protest and celebrated it as free speech. Now, they want to block the free speech of the soldiers and their families. It shows they do not defend freedom, but value political gain above all. This protest, however, will backfire on them. The Heroes message will go forward in power, and the hype behind the protest will only HELP send the message forward. Thanks Democrats and Hubbard. You’ve finally figured out how to help support our troops.

Gumbel

I had a long drive today, and listened to lots of radical right wing talk radio.  One story caught my attention involved Bryant Gumbel and some racist comments he made.  Apparently, the transcript was taken down from the HBO site pretty quickly.  I was able to find it and some comments posted here.

I’ve been watching some Olympics.  Like most people, I like some of the games, and not others.  However, you have to respect all the athletes involved.  I don’t like figure skating, bores me to tears.  Tonight, however, they showed the story of a poor Russian figure skater (Plushenko) who dedicated his life since age 11 to his sport.  His parents picked up bottles for money so that he could have lessons.    He won the gold by a huge margin.  This guy knows more about being a real athlete than Gumbel could ever dream.  

If Gumbel wants to slander the GOP, well, that’s no surprise.  It’s been open season on Republicans for some time.  If he wants to make racist comments, that’s another thing.  Lots of sports figures have made this mistake, and many have lost their jobs for a lot less than Gumbel’s remarks.  However, Gumbel showed enormous disrespect and contempt for some great athletes.  Athletes that deserve respect.  Gumbel has embarrassed America.  

1836

According to this article, the Houston soccer team, the Houston 1836, now must change their name. (Hat tip to Tongue Tied).

Sources told 11 News that after pressure from the Hispanic community the name “Houston 1836” will be changed. 1836 is the year Houston was founded, but it is also the year Texas declared its independence from Mexico. For many Mexican-Americans 1836 represents the year thousands of their forefathers lost their lives and their land.

This article, from when the name was announced, describes the name as the year the city was developed. Apparently, that fact doesn’t matter to the ‘offended’. Several other facts don’t seem to matter either.

When Texas declared independence from Mexico, it was ruled by Santa Anna. He was elected president, but declared himself dictator and was particularly brutal. He has been quoted as saying "......it is very true that I threw up my cap for liberty with great ardor, and perfect sincerity, but very soon found the folly of it. A hundred years to come my people will not be fit for liberty. They do not know what it is, unenlightened as they are, and under the influence of a Catholic clergy, a despotism is the proper government for them … ".

There is no shame in declaring independence from Santa Anna. Many of the people fighting for freedom in Texas were Hispanic, fighting side by side native Americans and people from every other heritage.

I’m not from Texas, but it seems to me that the year 1836 should be a proud year for anyone that values liberty. Now it looks like we have to change names of sports teams because people are ignorant of history.

End of the End of the Spear

A friend asked me about the ending of End of the Spear (angles, etc.). Here is an article by Mr. Saint from 10 years ago in Christianity Today describing the source of this information.

3 Cheers

I read a letter here regarding our military from a leader in Iraq. This is how many really feel. (Hat tip to SCO). It’s pretty enlightening, describing the liberation of a particular city, and how well we went about doing it.

Sounds like the troops involved are now coming home. I sure hope their homecoming goes like this. (Hat Tip to my old friend Lee). This is what they deserve. Something tells me that it won’t, simply because the average American is confused about the war. I hope the MSM picks up on the letter, and I pray that America will embrace its heroes.

World's Worst Council Member

I saw this over at Tongue Tied, called ‘Words Fail Us’. This guy wrote a letter describing conditions in his neighborhood to his City council member. The letter wasn’t well received. Instead of addressing his concerns or simply ignoring him, she took action against him. She declared the letter ‘racist’ and turned it into a public issue (It does not look racist to me – but I guess these things are open to interpretation these days). Apparently, the guy works for a construction outfit that does a lot of work for the city. After an inspirational call from the council member, the employer fired the guy after 27 years. The guy, faced with the label of ‘racist’ and the loss of his job, decided to take his own life. Some of the comments on this article are from people in the area and are insightful.

This council member neglected her duty to respond to the note. She took it personally, when I don’t believe it was intended that way. She overreacted to the note’s personal nature. She decided to retaliate. She abused her power in the retaliation. She did all this with disregard to the consequences. She is the world’s worst council member. She should be removed from office and prosecuted for her crimes.

Overall, this is a very sad situation. People really need Jesus.

Graduation rates.

Looks like the truth still doesn't matter to John Kerry. Either that, or it looks like Kerry really needs help from one of those math teachers himself.

The Oscars

I’m probably getting into trouble over at Stones Cry Out again. You can read it here.