Bloody Brits

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUCH! 
You have got to be kidding me.


Brit Woman Bites Off Man's Testies...


First of all, she must have been extremely angry.


But how in the hell did she get into position to bite them off if they were fighting? I mean COME ON. 

You decide

Please. Just watch the video. I believe one of these guys is an a-hole. You decide who the schmuck is...

I feel like I am watching a middle school student argue with his science teacher.  I suppose Dawkins goes on these types of shows to demonstrate there is nothing to hide from, but it is hard to watch...

Feeling It

A bit of a rant...

What happens when people who cannot normally show feelings, communicate them properly, or don't know/understand their feelings hit their tipping point? It seems like we are all guilty of this at some point. And if we live another week or so, it seems we will all be guilty of doing it again. However there are many people that I have encountered which seem to live in this state of immature feeling appropriation (SIFA)--can't show, communicate and/or don't understand their feelings.

I am a good listener. Not only am I confident about this, I have had many people validate that core belief about myself. One of the things that happens when you listen to people is that people begin to trust you. I personally have never asked someone "Hey, will you trust me?" It just happens. When people trust you, you become safe. Which is really cool because when people feel safe, I get to talk about/listen to important things rather than the trivial day-to-day mindless chatter, like "Weather sure is hot" or "Those [pick a sports team] did not do well."

However, one of the most frustrating things in my life is when there is a person in continual SIFA who finds me safe enough to begin their journey to become unSIFA. What tends to happen is an avalanche of anger, well-thought out monologues which last way too long, and a general breaking down into self pity and judgment. That is not the frustrating part for me. The problem is the person, almost always, still has no desire to become aware of the problems they have with feelings. So there is this great release for them, only to begin building the tension back up because they have not learned. Even more frustrating is the significant amount of time spent listening to the release because I know that in a couple months (if not weeks) time it is just going to happen again and usually for the same reasons against the same people.

Tech vs. Humanitarian

Before I share this clip, I must make  some disclaimers. Combined they are shameful, yet honest. In 1998 when I first entered the IT sector, I had a job which blended PC-based designs with Apple-based designs. It did not take long to detest the business model of Apple. It was a fantastic high-end product but was one of the most monopolistic companies I had ever even known about. Back then there were 2 other companies who were allowed to make clones (Mac OS on non-Mac hardware). But even that was short lived and Apple tightened its belt so that Apple was the only one selling its own stuff. So that is the first disclaimer. I have not been, nor will I ever be a huge fan of Apple. We need their presence in the IT field because the push the market and drive innovation, but I don't like their company model.


The second disclaimer is probably where the shame comes in. During the GFC, Apple's stock was at a paltry $90 US/share. I decided to make money for my retirement account by buying into the company. Some people will think "Who cares, you made money?" but others, who are like myself, wrestle with the culture of the companies they support and that matching their own ethics. But I saw the money and took it. Because of that, I am just another greedy cog in the wheel which is spoken about in this ZDNet video. I did not like the culture of the company, but I didn't care because I saw the $$ potential.


So it is with some amount of shame that I share this from ZDNet. It is about a performance which highlights the tension between great technology and abusive ethics (or lack of ethics)...


http://www.zdnet.com.au/first-hand-from-foxconn-339323354.htm

Pride and Prejudice...When Christians Speak part 2

Along with the arrogant pride that seems dominant among evangelical Christians (EC), prejudice is another word that comes to mind. Check out the definition from dictionary.com: "an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason." From an external perspective, it seems as though most ECs are extremely prejudice about their beliefs.

I suppose, for me, the biggest factor is the whole "I am right, you are wrong stance." that ECs have. Before I or they open our mouths, a typical EC has already formed an unfavorable opinion AND feeling about what I believe because it is not what they believe. This is often done without any thought, knowledge or reason. SO by definition an EC is prejudice against what I believe.

This attitude puts me on the defensive, because the pride and prejudice is an offensive technique. It seems like it is designed to proactively preserve the ECs own belief system without having to sort through the beliefs, knowledge and/or reasoning of other people around them. And because I am now on the defensive I too get caught up in emotionally responding to an EC rather than being able to sort through the dialog with reason and understanding.

Before an EC reads this and says "Well you are prejudice for thinking this about Christians," I have Christian friends who do not have the pride and prejudice which is carried by so many main-stream Christians. I have very good and open dialog with those people.

So I want to make a deal with ECs. Leave me out of your life and I will keep mine from you. I don't want to converse with someone who already has a predetermined mindset and is unwilling to take in new information just as much as you don't want to converse with someone who thinks you are ignorant for believing in something equivalent to Santa Clause. Deal? 
 

Pride and Prejudice...When Christians Speak

I find it irritating when an evangelical Christian (EC) speaks about their belief system. Actually it may be when most of them speak about anything they are passionate about (however that is probably a tad judgmental). It isn't the fact that they are speaking their mind. I like when people appropriately say what they are thinking and feeling. It IS the facts that many of them speak of certainties of which they have never thought through and that they believe what they are saying is universal truth. These two attitudes are usually accompanied by anger for anyone who disagrees or argues against the EC's position.


Having been a Christian it is an odd thing, this ignorance and misguided confidence. Jesus himself, the one they are following, warns against this in Luke 18. "To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable..." The parable is of a man who thinks he knows everything and a man who is just glad to be there. Jesus condemns the know-it-all. Another guy, Paul who is credited for writing a large section of the New Testament says in Philippians "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others." (Grant it this was said in the context of being nice to other Christians, but I believe the attitude continues to those of us who don't believe in that stuff.)


So let me define what I mean by ignorance. It means lack of knowledge. In this case it is specifically a lack of knowledge due to a refusal to entertain or listen to other data. So a person is NOT ignorant if they are a Christian. In fact I have been around some amazing Christians who can out think me in seconds. The ignorance is when a fundamental belief is held and major life choices are based on that belief however the person has never weighed other information that might influence or change that belief.


The first term that came to mind while I was reflecting on this issue was pride. From Definition.com (which I found very satisfying and articulated what I was thinking): "a high or inordinate opinion of one's own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in bearing, conduct, etc." The word that stood out was superiority. There is an undercurrent (if not openly admitted and visible current) of superiority when a typical EC speaks about their passion. I don't mind when a person deservedly feels superior. Some people are just better than I am, even at the things I am really good at. But this superior attitude ("I know the TRUTH and you need to believe it like I do.") coupled with the ignorance is just flat out dangerous. Just read some of the EC blogs and articles and it doesn't take long to hear the drumming beat as the ECs prepare for war. War against people like me who don't believe like they do and I don't even want a war, I just want left alone.


Then there is prejudice... to be continued....