Halloween at the Barcroft's

Shadow being Halloween-y

What the Heck is This?!

Shadow and Shadrack (Pumkin-g)
A young lady neighbor was walking around our lake...
and saw Shadow sitting beside Shadrack the other day.
She told me when we met on our respective ways around
the lake...Lori suggested I take a few pictures. Shadow was
almost cooperative, but we were successful!
Happy Halloween!

Aarp

Or maybe the title should be AARP? The organization would probably prefer the all upper case letters...Already I digress.

A couple of days ago the AARP magazine came with it's usual doom and gloom content. I am sure that the editors don't think of their magazine as a doom and gloom publication, but that is how it always appears to me. I read it anyway, even though after, I am pretty much depressed.

One of the titles on the cover, was 'Does Religion Still Matter'. Which is what I intended to be the subject of this blog. It turns out that article is merely a poll taken of various age groups and how 'Religion' falls in those age groups 'things that matter'. Most of us Seniors ranked 'Religion' very important and highly important. No surprise there. We are getting to the age where our friends and neighbors are dying, so naturally we are beginning to think about 'What's next?' Sometimes 'Religion' seems to have the answers.

Lori says that defining 'Religion' would take a whole blog and I would agree with her. I believe as well, that whatever definition I would have would not satisfy everyone, and maybe not anyone. In fact, I think that 'Religion and 'Faith' are often confused, and the word religion is often used when the word faith is meant. Lori also says that 'Farming' is a 'Religion'. I have to agree with her on that also. It might even be a 'Faith'. Another digression I fear.

My first thought after reading the headline was that of course 'Religion' is important! Why would anyone ever think otherwise? Why would anyone even ask the question? Of course, I was confusing 'Faith' and 'Religion'. In fact, I don't go to church, do not want to go to church, am not going to ever be a regular church attendee. I don't know what churches have evolved into exactly, but they seem to be the embodiment of 'Religion'. The formal trappings, so to speak, the political body of Faith? I feel this is correct. It often appears that the Christian Churches do not even follow the teachings of Christ, but rather of Paul. Still another digression! Get with it Bill!

I believe 'Faith' is important and still matters. I am not so sure that 'Religion' ever did matter. I like the old gospel songs, most of them. I like to sing them so people can hear the message. I had faith that every time I planted seed corn that corn would grow. I saw miracles every day, even when others did not. Every child ever born is a miracle as are those still not born. I have faith. I do not have religion. Religion is when faith is packaged in a neat one-size-fits-all container. When that happens, changes occur that may not be for the best. Because one size does not fit all we have 'denominations'. We go from one to the other trying to find one that does fit. The denominations seem to feel that no one can enter heaven that is not of their denomination. As if any of us have a clear idea of what God is thinking! The whole 'political' aspect of Religion just makes me cringe! Just in Christianity there are way too many categories to try to label. Religion would, I think, cover other beliefs as well, the Buddhists, the Muslims and the whole raft of other beliefs there are in this world.

Does religion still matter? I think faith matters, religion does not matter at all.

Heatlh care #????

GOP's Snowe says she will back the Health Care Bill as long as it does not include a 'Public Option'....Meaning evidently that the rest of us will not get what she has, namely Government subsidized health Care. I wonder what her reasoning is? Common People are not deserving of publicly funded health care but Senators are? Even Senators who make much of being conservative? Inquiring minds would deduce there is a double standard at work here! Marie Antoinette said 'let them eat cake', and she was beheaded...Would being voted out of office be a too severe punishment?

Hmmm?!

After publishing my last Blog, Google as usual, opened another page. This page had advertising on it offering me a Free! copy of Sarah Palin's new book! Wow!

So does that mean my last post is a Conservative post? At least one guy at my table would be aghast to think that I was a Conservative! Smiley face here!

Peace Prize

My turn to weigh in on our president winning the Nobel Peace Prize!

The general consensus around the table at McDonald's has been one of shock and awe. We are a conservative bunch in general. Our first reaction, is 'What?'! Some of us, are only a little more chagrined that a black man won that prestigious award, than we are that a Democrat won it! As if, ex-president Bush could have ever been in the running! We're talking a Peace Prize here remember! It is important to remember that it is a Peace Prize!

My feelings? First, I am proud that an American won the Nobel Peace Prize, not an European. Heaven forbid that a person from an 'emerging' country win it! (Wait, that is not the tangent I want to pursue!) I would think that we as Americans should be glad that one of our own won! I am!

We could argue that our president was not qualified to be considered. He had only been in office something like 11 days when he was nominated. I personally, do not know the criteria the Nobel Peace Prize committee used to determine the qualifications of a candidate. Irregardless, I am surprised that Mr Obama was nominated. I do not feel that he had had time to show any leadership or peace-ship qualities at all. Obviously the committee did.

I don't believe his being black or white or even a Democrat should be considered by anyone. Those attributes have nothing to do with whether or not one is qualified. Nor should his or any candidates religion, how he feels about health care or of any of those personal considerations that are being used to divide us as a Country, be considered. They are not germane.

How does Mr Obama's winning that award affect me personally. Not at all! Nothing in my life has changed at all from before we knew that he was the winner! No more, no less money has come into my life. I believe my wife still loves me. My kids are still my pride and joy. I have not been drafted nor sent home from the war. I can think of nothing that has changed for me or of any of my friends really, because that award was rewarded. Well, maybe one fellow at our table at McDonald's has become somewhat more ornery...but he was pretty ornery before actually, he has had a rough life since the Democrats won the last election! He has elected to let that affect him, so that is his own problem. In actuality nothing for him has changed either.

So other than being proud to be an American, I would say that the Nobel Peace Prize is a Non-issue. It just plain does not matter! It is a media event...if event is defined loosely. It is smoke and mirrors, a magic act, and we should just be entertained by it and Not Get All Worked UP about it at all.

My favorite subject???

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zORv8wwiadQ

Maybe not global warming...but it is something to think about and talk about...see also http://johnwphipps.blogspot.com/ I apologize for the jumping around you will have to do. I still have not figured out how to add these to my blog. It would make it longer though if ever I do.

Some of my own thoughts. In the video the guy sounds pretty convincing, doesn't he? I would find fault only with that he has not made the cost of false but we did do something about GCC (or whatever global warming is today) as high as it could be, while he made sure all the bases were covered on the opposing situation. I think the cost would be higher and catastrophic in either case. Life as we know it will end either way. I don't know what the guy in the video does for a living, but he Sounds like an insurance salesman. I have heard preachers that are pretty convincing as well, so maybe he is an insurance selling preacher? OK, maybe not. My point is that he seems to be making sense while you are listening to him. Thinking about what he said later, though, you can see some difficulties in his reasoning. I'll bet he could argue the other side of the debate as well.

I would have to agree with John Phipps about the fact that it is difficult to 'believe' in Global Warming when here in Michigan we had about the coldest summer I can remember. It does not seem logical that cold weather would be the result of Global Warming. I have some difficulty thinking that both droughts and excessive rainfall would be linked as well. Somehow, my mind can't work that way. So do I believe in Global Warming? Not today I don't. As far as I am concerned this has been a cold year, so it doubtful that there is Global Warming.

That is not to say that I think doing all we can to do away with pollution is wrong. Polluting our environment is extremely self defeating. Letting pollution exist because it cheaper is wrong. It is wrong whether or not Global Warming exists. We don't need to believe in Global Warming to know that pollution is harmful.

Do we all pollute? Yes! Could we all make a positive impact on pollution. We could try, and if we all did, that would make a difference. A difference has been made during my lifetime, in fact. Here in Michigan, there are gold finches again. This bird's numbers had fallen dramatically since the 1950's. Now there are a lot of them again. That is just one example.

Was there cost involved? Most likely there was. Did we pay it? Evidently. Should we continue? OH yes! Will it affect Global Warming? I don't know, but it doesn't matter, it should happen whether or not Global Warming exists or not! Global Warming is a 'political' debate. Pollution is a real thing. So fighting pollution is something needed. INM(NS)HO

Evolution

Scientists have discovered 'Ardi'. Which appears to be the skeleton of a forbearer of humanity. Older than Lucy is the information that appeared the other day. I read an account of the scientists' findings. It seems to them that both chimpanzees and humans descended from a common precursor. There is a whole lot more information available and I am sure that you can look it all up on line and get the whole picture. I would were I you.

I am not going to get into the controversy about Evolution vs Creation. I feel that has been done to death. My concern is about this new information is that once again we will be bombarded with that controversy. Once again, we the people will be divided according to still another demarcation! This controversy which has been quietly simmering for some time, will once again boil over. It will pit people against one another over opposing viewpoints. We will begin to judge each other over whether or not that person 'believes' in 'Evolution' or in 'Creation'.

We are already being lined up on one side or the other of too many issues! There's the whole 'Christian' and 'non-Christian' thing. There is a whole bevy of 'political' issues; Republican or Democrat, Red or Blue, Conservative or Liberal, and even dividing lines within these categories. I am sure there are other divisions we could consider.

I am not concerned that there are divisions, however. What keeps me awake nights is the vehemence, the anger, and the hate being spewed between one side and the other of whatever line is being considered. Now it seems that debate cannot be made without insults, swearing and in general disparaging the opposing person. The person, not the viewpoint is being cursed, called names. This in turn leads to the opposing faction doing likewise. No meaningful debate can be made. No points are being considered about the original issue. It does not make sense to me that if you and I disagree, you are stupid, or that I am stupid. We disagree for what ever reason, we may never agree on that subject. But the ranting and raving going on now between factions is never going to solve the problems. If the 'winner' of a debate is not the one with the best facts, but is the one with the loudest voice, the most anger, or the most hateful, civilization is going to stop existing. We are becoming little more than animals. We are ceasing to be Adults.

It is time to stop the madness! It is time to be civilized Adults again!

update

I called a computer repairman finally. He picked up the laptop Wednesday. He called this morning and said it is repaired! OK I can hardly wait to find out What Was Wrong!