AllTheseThings

Colson on Blogojevich (and Finding Christ)

CNN, somewhat surprisingly to me, ran this interesting piece from Chuck Colson.  Colson recounts--in light of the Gov. Blogojevich situation--his own experience facing prosecution and prison.  The crash from the heights of power to the depths of confinement helped crush his pride, and introduce him to Christ. 

Here's a preview:

If Blagojevich is guilty, the best thing that could happen to him is to be tried and convicted.  He's going to have to reach rock bottom -- just as I did -- before he will be able to escape his own prison of pride, self-delusion and self-righteousness. But that's a transformation we can never accomplish on our own. I can vouch for the fact that human pride is simply too strong.

Colson also describes the problem our society, and how it pushes materialism and worship of self.  He also details his own conversion, and finding a common view with Solzhenitsyn on the value of prison.

Interesting stuff,

Thomas More

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I’m with Stupid ↔

I have come across very few articles in scientific journals that have made me laugh out loud, and even fewer I’ve felt inclined to share outside of work, but this one was an exception. The piece carries the attention-grabbing title “The Importance of Stupidity in Scientific Research”. In it, the author (a scientist himself) audaciously calls highly-trained individuals on the cutting edge of medical research “stupid”. What’s more, he says their stupidity is inherent (gasp!) but also entirely appropriate (fall on the floor in shock…..). These delicate geniuses don’t take kindly to such bold insults.

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The beauty of this pithy opinion piece is that the author is exactly right. Scientists engaged in original research are pursuing the unknown, tiptoeing gingerly down every avenue until they find solid ground: support for a hypothesis pulled from thin air, conceived over morning coffee. How might these cells work? What does this protein do? Hmmm…….we have NO IDEA. Let’s imagine some possibilities and put them to the test!! If you think it sounds like shooting in the dark, you would be right, but that’s the nature of original research. It’s also the foundation of some of the biggest discoveries in medical research. The easier option would be to play-it-safe and try to duplicate research that someone else has done or tweak a system that someone else has already established. There’s less risk of failure (feeling stupid) but also less risk of making any significant impact. 

So what was the author’s purpose in pointing out this elephant in the room, (or maybe the lab)? I don’t think it was to embarrass all of his colleagues and produce a deep depression across the scientific community. Instead he says it’s the scientist’s level of comfort with his “stupidity” or ignorance that is the key to his success. If he can accept this necessary fact of research life it will continue to drive him to test more of his theories, take more risks and keep going when the failure rate is high and the temptation is to give up is strong.

I think this philosophy can be applied to many areas of life, especially for those who live their lives with faith in an all-knowing Creator. See if these statements from the article ring true with you:

“The crucial lesson was that the scope of things I didn’t know wasn’t merely vast;
it was, for all practical purposes, infinite. That realization, instead of being discouraging, was liberating.”

“The more comfortable we become with being stupid, the deeper we will wade
into the unknown and the more likely we are to make big discoveries.”

Compared to a sovereign God, we are all ignorant and stupid. (If we think anything other than this then we have made ourselves god). But, I don’t think God intends for his realisation to be discouraging or paralysing. I think, as the author states, it’s intended to be “liberating”. We do not need to strive to prove or maintain an appearance of superiority to sustain our egos. Instead, we are free to explore, to pose questions, to devise tests and discover the truth about our world and it’s creator. So, I might expand the authors conclusion and say that feeling stupid is important, not just for science but for a full life of any kind.

So go ahead, embrace your ignorance! Make friends with it and let it motivate you to explore all the avenues there are to explore.

Philomena

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If the BCS Decided History...

BCS DECLARES GERMANY WINNER OF WORLD WARII, US Ranked 4th

After determining the Big-12 championship game participants the BCS computers were put to work on other major contests and today the BCS declared Germany to be the winner of World War II.

"Germany put together an incredible number of victories beginning with the annexation of Austria and the Sudetenland and continuing on into conference play with defeats of Poland, France, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands. Their only losses came against the US and Russia; however considering their entire body of work--including an incredibly tough Strength of Schedule--our computers deemed them worthy of the #1 ranking."

Questioned about the #4 ranking of the United States the BCS commissioner stated "The US only had two major victories--Japan and Germany. The computer models, unlike humans, aren't influenced by head-to-head contests--they consider each contest to be only a single, equally-weighted event."

German Chancellor Adolph Hiter said "Yes, we lost to the US; but we defeated #2 ranked France in only 6 weeks." Herr Hitler has been criticized for seeking dramatic victories to earn 'style points' to enhance Germany's rankings. Hitler protested "Our contest with Poland was in doubt until the final day and the conditions in Norway were incredibly challenging and demanded the application of additional forces."

The French ranking has also come under scrutiny. The BCS commented "France had a single loss against Germany and following a preseason #1 ranking they only fell to #2."

Japan was ranked #3 with victories including Manchuria, Borneo and the Philippines.

A little humor for your Friday, H/T to MBMc.

Thomas More

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When I was hungry, you fed me.

Last night I was manning the dessert and coffee table at a fundraiser. As people arrived they helped themselves to the treats, chatted and then slowly made their way into the church sanctuary for the concert. The music began, but I stayed at the dessert table out in the courtyard, greeting the late-comers. I didn’t mind at all. The doors to the sanctuary were wide open and I could hear almost everything .

I’d been standing there about 20 minutes when a homeless guy wandered into the courtyard and sat down about 10 feet away from me. He was bundled up against the sea breeze in a hooded sweatshirt and pushing what I think was a stroller with his few belongings in them.

It was pretty obvious that he could use a cup of hot coffee and some dessert so a few of us made him up a plate of goodies. He was very grateful.

“Is this a church?” he asked
“Yes”
“A Christian church?”
“Yeah”.

He nodded his approval, maybe more for the coffee and brownie than for the surroundings. But as he sat and ate he kept peering towards the sanctuary door, towards the singing and scriptures projected onto the back of the stage wall.

5 minutes later the brownie was pronounced “very good” and the coffee was ready for the road. He stood up, gathered his belongings and took one more long look into the sanctuary. One of the scriptures caught his eye.

“That’s what Jesus said!!” he exclaimed.
“What’s that?”
“When I was hungry, you fed me”.

He took a long look at me. I raised my coffee cup to him. He waved and headed off into the night.

How often does someone approach us with a need and we can satisfy it that easily? He was hungry, and there I was, standing behind a table laden with free homemade desserts and hot coffee! I didn't even make any of the desserts! It doesn’t get much easier than that.

 God lays out a feast for us too, and invites us to the table to have our needs met. He’s done all the work and all we have to do is approach. Then he gives us the opportunity to invite others to share in the feast. What a privilege!

Philomena

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Happy Obama Day!

This time of year tends to prompt the debate about everyone's favorite holiday.  Christmas and Thanksgiving always have a battle for the lead.  Some occassionally remember to throw Easter a nod, and some revert to childhood form and name Halloween.

It looks like there'll be a 'change' (that we can believe in) in all that.  The sagacious county commissioners of Perry County, Alabama have created a new, paid, county holiday:  Barack Obama Day!

The vote was 4-1 for the holiday (which, I assume, will be celebrated as close to Christmas as possible, given the similarities between the two honorees.)  The lone hold out, a Democrat, was worried about the fiscal impact on the impoverished county.  Good to see there are some fiscally conservative Dems in Dixie.

I have tried to think of something witty to write about a holiday for a part-term U.S. Senator, who has not been President for a minute, but I think this story covers it.

Amazing,

Thomas More

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