Blunt opinion: Religion

A controversy over religion.  I have recently had a number of conversations regarding the topic of RELIGION.  I know, many of you are already disgusted at the fact that I'm even bringing it up.  Well, this is called BLUNT OPINIONS so I might as well be blunt.  My personal view is that I have no clue whether God actually exists and I would be willing to wager on the fact that no one, not a single person, not the smartest scientist or the most religious rabbi/priest in the entire world can actually prove that God exists OR doesn't exist.  This is what faith is based on.  The commitment to believing in something even when there is no proof.  

Personally, I like proof.  It makes me feel better knowing that someone has actually figured out why a plane flies or why the sun rises in the east and sets in the west.  To take this a step further, the absence of proof doesn't mean that something doesn't exist.  History is full of events that didn't make sense at the time but were in fact true.  The first people to realize that the world wasn't flat didn't have proof but that didn't make their observation or claim any less right.  But the inverse is also true and possibly even more important to remember.  The fact that you believe in something (no matter how much you believe in it) does not make it true.  In the end, no one knows.    

Personally, I don't believe that there is a God.  I find it hard to believe that there is something out there that is thought to be all knowing, all powerful, even "all mighty" that continually allows so much misery and pain on a daily basis.  A quick look through the newspaper will reveal the struggles people deal with on a daily basis.  Floods, disease, war, famine, rape, murder, theft, and poverty exist on almost every continent.  Doesn't all of this suffering create even a small bit of doubt in the most ardent believers?  And here's the real question that I have wanted to come to.  What is so wrong with doubting?  Isn't doubting what has enabled us to advance this far as a civilization?  Isn't it doubt that convinced the Wright brothers to try to fly.  Wasn't it doubt that convinced Christopher Columbus to try to find a new path to the Indies?  All I'm arguing is that doubting the existence of something that can not be proven isn't wrong but should be encouraged.  We might find in the end that this doubt can lead to a better result.  People come together when they are trying to solve a problem.  It takes teamwork, compromise, trial and error.  The exact opposite is the case when two parties firmly believe they are right and won't consider opening their mind to compromise or the fact that  "God forbid" they might be wrong (couldn't help myself with that one).  Just look at the Democrats and Republicans.  

Let's just consider for a second that God does in fact exist.  Lets also assume that I will be judged in front of a set of pearly white gates.  All of my life sins will be presented and compared with a much smaller list of positive life experiences. Lets just say, and I'm stretching here that only "good" people will be let into heaven while the rest will be sent to rot in a hell much worse than the ones created by movie directors and authors.  I'm talking about true pain and misery for eternity (think Event Horizon - where your worst fears haunt you).  I would hope that I am judged NOT on the fact that i believed or had faith in God but whether I actually led a positive life without creating undue harm to others.  Did I kill anyone?  NOPE.  Did i steal hundreds of thousands from poor and innocent people (a la Bernie Madoff)?  NOPE.  Was I a good friend to those that needed a friend?  Yes.  Those are the things that should matter.  Those are the things that I would like to hope this "all powerful and mighty" God will judge me on and not whether I believed or prayed to him.  So, regardless of whether I actually believe or not, I will continue to go about my life living in a positive manner.  I don't see murder in my future and with that I can rest happy knowing that if in fact i'm wrong and there is a God, everything will be just OK.  

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Blunt Opinions

I'm playing around with the idea of creating a space to openly make blunt, "characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion" observations, critiques, or statements.  


BE BLUNT...(bluntisms?)

Wearing sandals in a big city is disgusting.  Look at your feet at the end of the day and they will inevitably be black having picked up the dirt and grime of the sidewalks and streets.  Think about it before you put them on next time.


Stone should never be used as a verb.  It should be left as a harmless noun.  "Look at that lovely stone."  Once it is converted to a verb bad things tend to follow.  "To stone" is never followed by a positive clause...

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Why only Saturday and Sunday?

We have all come to enjoy the weekend.  The moment we finish work on Friday there is a sense of relief and excitement that the next two days are going to be something special.  The weekend is "our time" to do whatever it is we feel like without the guilt of work hanging over our heads or the dread of another early morning and possibly late night.  In some senses, we look forward to a late night (oh, how the meaning changes).  But who was it that decided we should get two consecutive days in a row on Saturday and Sunday?  I know there is a religious meaning but its meaning has to be deeper than that.  Did the Greeks and Romans take the weekend off?  Was there a council of elders that sat around and said, "one day doesn't seem like enough...and three days is just crazy.  Let's settle on two days."  Odds are this isn't how it happened either.  Also, the weekend must be a fairly modern concept.  Nomadic tribes and early farmers probably didn't have the resources to take two full days off.

The weekend is so ingrained in our thinking that we feel violated when a boss wants us to work.  After all, it is "your" weekend!

Let's take a step back and think about if there is a better way to set up a week.  Wouldn't it be nice to have Wednesday off?  It would break up the week and possibly even rejuvenate your mind and energy levels for Thursday and Friday.  While we are at it, why not add a day off every two days of work.  It can be a rotating calendar.  Two days on, one day off.  Productivity would explode.  There's no better motivator than a deadline and this system would create a deadline every two days.  There would be no room to procrastinate until Thursday when you are drained from meetings, sales pitches, reports, daily tasks, nosey coworkers and not to mention your actual LIFE.   But I might be getting ahead of myself here.  Let's get back to the joy of THE WEEKEND as we currently now it.

Without a doubt some of us will decide the best way to spend a weekend is to do nothing.  The sweet, sweet joy of sitting on a couch ignoring responsibilities is something special almost all of us have enjoyed at least once (while others will be blushing, realizing that is exactly how they spent last weekend).  The enjoyment takes on a new meaning when you have a busy life. It's like the yin to the yang of the high paced, always in contact world we live in.  It's that much better when life is busy and has you running on all cylinders.  So, take a load off and wait for next weekend.  Imagine what you might be doing or more importantly, what you might NOT be doing.

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Word Clouds - Tagxedo

Have you ever seen those word clouds and wondered how to make one?  Well, here's an easy solution provided by Tagxedo.com.  Simply create a .txt document or sync to a webpage or blog and you are done.  They make it easy to customize the shape, colors, font type and layout.  The possibilities are almost endless.  I created the one below.  It signifies my interests and experiences (as much as i could think of in 5 minutes...)  I picked the shape of the US to signify my unfettered love for AMERICA (just kidding).  I thought it was neat looking and makes me think of my life transition from the LA to Colorado to DC.

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The Next Step

An ode to to a special couple...every once in a while you meet two people you know will eventually get married. They seem to be perfect in the idyllic couple kind of way. Instead of making you noxious in an irritatingly flirtatious and fake sense, they exude a true sense of happiness when they are around each other. They manage to joke about the others faults not in a malicious way but rather in a "that's what makes them special" sort. These are the couples that you can't quite imagine apart. They are a couple. And you honestly hope they stay that way.

This is the case with my great friends Pat and Laura. I have known them for years. I have somehow always known they would end up together. And while it might be dating me a bit, freshman year in college was almost a decade ago. There was just some sort of genuine love for each other that you just don't see everywhere. It doesn't hurt that each of them individually is the kindest, smartest, down to earth, and caring person. Put them together and it's an almost unstoppable combination. Individually they are amazing, together they are perfect.

This is the first of my friends to actually make the plunge and I couldn't be happier for them.

Mazel Tov. That's jew speak for Congrats!

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The PIGS

Sometimes an acronym can exacerbate a problem.  I believe this is the case for the newly anointed European PIGS: Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain.  This group of countries, all part of the European Union have huge budget deficits weighing down on there economies which have not recovered from last year's economic meltdown.  Speculation is starting to spread that at least one of them could default on their loans as it is becoming harder and much more costly for them to borrow.  Combine this with the fear that Germany, currently the EU's strongest and most robust economy will not intervene if or when they do.

While an acronym should have no influence on investors and their investing decisions, I don't believe that is the case here.  Perception is as important as ever as the world economy tries to rebound from the worst recession in decades.  Most governments have tried to spend their way into growth which has greatly helped but what happens when they can no longer borrow?  Greece is in the worst shape of them all. But unfortunately for the "IGS" they will all be discussed whenever a conversation touches on Europe's troubles. It is just too catchy of an acronym for the pundits to resist.

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Mixed up Guacamole

• 2 Grilled sweet corn cobs - remove corn from the cob
• 1 Diced tomato
• 4 Diced Avocados - cubed and slightly mashed
• 1/2 to 3/4 Chopped red onion
• 1 grilled and chopped jalapeno pepper with the skin removed
• 1 diced garlic cove
• Cilantro - the more the merrier
• Lime juice - 3/4 of a lime or to taste
• Olive oil - one tbls
• Dash of cayenne pepper
• Salt and pepper
• Optional cucumber (b.c. I love cucumber)

Eat with Endive...or chips

Remove corn for standard guacamole

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