My heart aches on behalf of the victims in Oklahoma. Once again, 14 years after an F5 killed 46 people, another horrible tornado has torn through Moore, Oklahoma.
I have lived elsewhere for most of my adult life and I was not born there, but I was raised in Oklahoma from the time I was a baby until I left for college. Growing up I was used to tuning into the TV when the sirens went off. I remember many times going into my sisters' closet to wait out the storm, hoping and praying that the tornado would not hit our house. A tornado never got too close to our house, but I have friends who had tornadoes hit within a half mile. I can remember my friend Cale (who, last I knew, lived in Moore) tell me about crawling in a bathtub with a mattress on top of him as he rode out one storm. If you grew up in Oklahoma, you have a story. Twister might have been over-the-top but there's enough truth in it to make most Okies recognize what was going on.
I don't understand why these things happen. I'm not just talking about a naturalistic explanation: Oklahoma has long been 'tornado alley' and there's just something about the way the topography meets the atmosphere that makes it where some places get nailed more often...I understand this. I'm more concerned about this spiritually...the two extremes, that God causes everything to happen (and though is directly responsible for this suffering) or that God has left the future open, and chooses to not prevent such things (or even that he cannot prevent such things), are not really great options. People of faith for thousands of years have asked these questions and have made some of the attempts at theodicy some of the most powerful expressions of faith. But we really don't know. Yet we have a Christ who takes all these things upon himself, and for that we can always be thankful.
One final thought: I'm lucky nobody reads this and cringe to make this political...but something that will come up in the next few days is how we, as a nation, pitch in to rebuild Moore. So, you would think that Oklahoma representatives and senators understand that as much help as Oklahoma often needs in things like this, they really don't have a clue. Just a quick bit of fact-checking shows that three of the five members of Congress from Oklahoma voted against helping the hurricane rebuilding in New Jersey. Both senators, the deplorable Tom Coburn and the even worse Jim Inhofe, voted against it. We sure don't want to waste money on those northeastern liberals, of course. I'm wondering how quickly the same people will be screaming for federal funds to help rebuild Moore, Shawnee, and whatever unfortunate places get blown away this year during tornado season. Once again the lesson is this: we must always hang in this all together. We're Americans. We help each other out...unless, of course, you are from the wrong party.
Monday, May 20, 2013
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Bad, awful thoughts...
Over the last few days I've seen a commercial for an upcoming movie called The Purge. It's not a movie I want to see at this point, since I see about 3 movies in theaters a year and never get caught up by DVD of other watchable movies. I don't like horror movies, and this probably would turn into one.
But the story of this movie has piqued my interest. In the quasi-dystopian future, life seems to be great. Unemployment is almost non-existent, crime has just about been wiped out. Society seems to be functioning well, but why? For 12 hours each year, there is absolute freedom...there will be no consequences for crime, for murder, for anything that somebody might do, and society purges itself of its most heinous elements all in a brief period of time. Kind of a cathartic, violent release.
I'm intrigued because, if I'm completely honest, sometimes the wicked side of me thinks, hey, this ain't a bad idea. Wouldn't our world be all better if the child molesters, drug dealers, rapists, and murders basically had open season on each other? Or go even further...what about the members of society who are, quite frankly, burdensome? The aged, the sick, the morbidly obese. Doesn't darwinism say that eventually the weakest of the species will die out, and isn't this what basically we have been preventing over the last hundred or so years of social safety nets? We see it all the time, that there are some humans who are breeding who really shouldn't be allowed to breed. We see it in hospitals in which the chronically sick are kept alive even as they soak up resources. We wonder if society might better be served if we just shot the child molesters rather than letting them live out their lives behind bars. Heck, just a little bit ago I saw at the grocery store a guy getting out of a car who must of weighed half a thousand. How much does his existence negatively affect my life?
Part of me really does want to see this movie...but as usual I'd probably be disappointed because of the lack of answers that are given (IMDB seems to indicate that it's basically a very personal story with few outside elements). I'd rather see the big picture...do people go through hospitals euthanizing patients? Do prisons turn into slaughterhouses? Do the most violent of our cities burn? Is most of the year dedicated to getting prepared for the purge? Is the fastest growing industry home defense? Is this all just an NRA wet dream?
Of course, in some respects we already seek to purge society of its vilest elements. We lock people away into prisons, mental institutions, and even nursing facilities, so we can forget about some whom we'd rather not think about. We then broadcast their lives on cable TV and call it 'reality'. We watch it and feel better about our good lives.
I'll be honest, there are only two things that keeps me from thinking that this wouldn't be a bad idea:
1)There's probably at least a few people out there who think that me (or my family or my other loved ones) ought to be purged. Admittedly, I'd be an easy target. I don't keep guns, and I'm nearly a pacifist. Anybody who wanted to kill me would not find it that hard to do. So maybe this ain't a good idea on a selfish level.
2)From a Christ-honoring perspective, in which we honor all, both weak and strong, this mindset is abhorrent. It is faithful, Godly people who have helped lay the foundation of our society in which we don't kill the guilty straightaway and we take care of the weakest of our society. Notice how most hospitals were started by Christians? Perhaps our society has forsaken some of the religious structures but the mindset of honoring all people still (grudgingly) remains. That's Christianity in action.
Indeed, I think that this is where grace comes in. By grace we recognize that others have a right to life and liberty, not just the most powerful among us. The Ayn Rands of our culture probably would love this movie concept unconditionally, because it is a way of life based solely on the selfishness we can maintain. It might make sense for a year or two that a society does this...but to what end? Ultimately it denies the absolute sanctity of life, and whatever short-term gains that others be purged will be quickly overcome by the long-term destruction of any culture that systematically purges the weakest among themselves. Catharsis might feel good for a short time, but eventually it's like a drug...if once a year, why not once a month? Once a week? Why not just abolish all forms of civilization? I'm sure some would love this, but only the strongest and most selfish will survive. Not sure I'd want to stay alive for that.
I suppose in the end our scared selfishness, combined with our innate Christian compassion, is the reason why the Purge likely will not happen in our culture, at least in my lifetime. Someday this movie might seem to be accurately predictive, but hopefully it is as spot-on about the future as the Jetsons.
But the story of this movie has piqued my interest. In the quasi-dystopian future, life seems to be great. Unemployment is almost non-existent, crime has just about been wiped out. Society seems to be functioning well, but why? For 12 hours each year, there is absolute freedom...there will be no consequences for crime, for murder, for anything that somebody might do, and society purges itself of its most heinous elements all in a brief period of time. Kind of a cathartic, violent release.
I'm intrigued because, if I'm completely honest, sometimes the wicked side of me thinks, hey, this ain't a bad idea. Wouldn't our world be all better if the child molesters, drug dealers, rapists, and murders basically had open season on each other? Or go even further...what about the members of society who are, quite frankly, burdensome? The aged, the sick, the morbidly obese. Doesn't darwinism say that eventually the weakest of the species will die out, and isn't this what basically we have been preventing over the last hundred or so years of social safety nets? We see it all the time, that there are some humans who are breeding who really shouldn't be allowed to breed. We see it in hospitals in which the chronically sick are kept alive even as they soak up resources. We wonder if society might better be served if we just shot the child molesters rather than letting them live out their lives behind bars. Heck, just a little bit ago I saw at the grocery store a guy getting out of a car who must of weighed half a thousand. How much does his existence negatively affect my life?
Part of me really does want to see this movie...but as usual I'd probably be disappointed because of the lack of answers that are given (IMDB seems to indicate that it's basically a very personal story with few outside elements). I'd rather see the big picture...do people go through hospitals euthanizing patients? Do prisons turn into slaughterhouses? Do the most violent of our cities burn? Is most of the year dedicated to getting prepared for the purge? Is the fastest growing industry home defense? Is this all just an NRA wet dream?
Of course, in some respects we already seek to purge society of its vilest elements. We lock people away into prisons, mental institutions, and even nursing facilities, so we can forget about some whom we'd rather not think about. We then broadcast their lives on cable TV and call it 'reality'. We watch it and feel better about our good lives.
I'll be honest, there are only two things that keeps me from thinking that this wouldn't be a bad idea:
1)There's probably at least a few people out there who think that me (or my family or my other loved ones) ought to be purged. Admittedly, I'd be an easy target. I don't keep guns, and I'm nearly a pacifist. Anybody who wanted to kill me would not find it that hard to do. So maybe this ain't a good idea on a selfish level.
2)From a Christ-honoring perspective, in which we honor all, both weak and strong, this mindset is abhorrent. It is faithful, Godly people who have helped lay the foundation of our society in which we don't kill the guilty straightaway and we take care of the weakest of our society. Notice how most hospitals were started by Christians? Perhaps our society has forsaken some of the religious structures but the mindset of honoring all people still (grudgingly) remains. That's Christianity in action.
Indeed, I think that this is where grace comes in. By grace we recognize that others have a right to life and liberty, not just the most powerful among us. The Ayn Rands of our culture probably would love this movie concept unconditionally, because it is a way of life based solely on the selfishness we can maintain. It might make sense for a year or two that a society does this...but to what end? Ultimately it denies the absolute sanctity of life, and whatever short-term gains that others be purged will be quickly overcome by the long-term destruction of any culture that systematically purges the weakest among themselves. Catharsis might feel good for a short time, but eventually it's like a drug...if once a year, why not once a month? Once a week? Why not just abolish all forms of civilization? I'm sure some would love this, but only the strongest and most selfish will survive. Not sure I'd want to stay alive for that.
I suppose in the end our scared selfishness, combined with our innate Christian compassion, is the reason why the Purge likely will not happen in our culture, at least in my lifetime. Someday this movie might seem to be accurately predictive, but hopefully it is as spot-on about the future as the Jetsons.
Monday, May 6, 2013
Farenheit 451, Legostyle
LEGO APOLOGIZES FOR CAT-CALLING STICKER
I love stories like this on so many levels. The fact that so many different outlets have this story (seriously, just google 'lego apologizes') makes me wonder what it takes to be a news editor these days. Really, this is news? Of course, people like me click on these stories so I guess they know what they are doing.
Love level one: The fact that somebody at Lego decided that it was a good idea to have a sticker on their set that said HEY BABE! I know that some of these companies contract work out to other companies, but something tells me that somebody really fell asleep at the switch when it came to inter-company memos. Then again, LEGO is a Danish company. I have no idea what seems funny to people in Denmark. Maybe Garrison Keillor will weigh on this as he's the only person I've ever heard of that's actually lived in Denmark.
Love level two: The fact that some father was so offended that he had to post this information. As parents there are occasionally things that really annoy us. We hate it when our kids are picked on or there are safety problems at school or the teachers aren't good. But Lego issues are what really gets this guy upset. Rich white people problems is what I've heard this called...I understand, he probably didn't intend for this to go viral, but could he have not have just emailed Lego and say, hey, this was a lousy idea?
Love level three: The fact that some people are so offended that this guy is so offended. One of the things I should never do is read comments on news stories, as they make me want to go into a dark room...but stories like this make me want to hear people's reactions. Most of them seem to involve people up in arms that 'political correctness' has taken over, that this guy just needs to man up and grow some.
In some respects I'm torn by this story, and that's why it fascinates me so much. Because I agree with the derision shown to this guy...people get so up in arms at these things? This is what people really complain about? But on the other hand I kinda agree with him. Do we really want to teach our kids that it is a good thing to 'cat-call' to women? With my kids I want them to treat people with respect, and I hope others do as well. Then again, I've seen many people who want their kids to grow up and be morons. They think it's good that their little boys are good 'ol boys who are rednecks or playas or whatever low-class culture they want to emulate. It really is a societal problem, and though I know we don't want to go insane about censoring ourselves, we do need to have some standards about how we deal with each other in civil society.
I love stories like this on so many levels. The fact that so many different outlets have this story (seriously, just google 'lego apologizes') makes me wonder what it takes to be a news editor these days. Really, this is news? Of course, people like me click on these stories so I guess they know what they are doing.
Love level one: The fact that somebody at Lego decided that it was a good idea to have a sticker on their set that said HEY BABE! I know that some of these companies contract work out to other companies, but something tells me that somebody really fell asleep at the switch when it came to inter-company memos. Then again, LEGO is a Danish company. I have no idea what seems funny to people in Denmark. Maybe Garrison Keillor will weigh on this as he's the only person I've ever heard of that's actually lived in Denmark.
Love level two: The fact that some father was so offended that he had to post this information. As parents there are occasionally things that really annoy us. We hate it when our kids are picked on or there are safety problems at school or the teachers aren't good. But Lego issues are what really gets this guy upset. Rich white people problems is what I've heard this called...I understand, he probably didn't intend for this to go viral, but could he have not have just emailed Lego and say, hey, this was a lousy idea?
Love level three: The fact that some people are so offended that this guy is so offended. One of the things I should never do is read comments on news stories, as they make me want to go into a dark room...but stories like this make me want to hear people's reactions. Most of them seem to involve people up in arms that 'political correctness' has taken over, that this guy just needs to man up and grow some.
In some respects I'm torn by this story, and that's why it fascinates me so much. Because I agree with the derision shown to this guy...people get so up in arms at these things? This is what people really complain about? But on the other hand I kinda agree with him. Do we really want to teach our kids that it is a good thing to 'cat-call' to women? With my kids I want them to treat people with respect, and I hope others do as well. Then again, I've seen many people who want their kids to grow up and be morons. They think it's good that their little boys are good 'ol boys who are rednecks or playas or whatever low-class culture they want to emulate. It really is a societal problem, and though I know we don't want to go insane about censoring ourselves, we do need to have some standards about how we deal with each other in civil society.
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