TV: Sensationalism vs. Truth

April 24, 2009 by dave.

How does one get viewers for TV? It seems that sensationalism mixed with a few exaggerations does a great job.

“Big Love,” which purports to be a sort of documentary about polygamy and the “Mormons,” is a great example of the use of a hot topic, which when combined with lots of rumor and innuendo can lead to an exciting program. In this program, special mention has been made of the LDS (Mormon) use of temples in a highly inaccurate and inflammatory manner.

Unfortunately, when a some of the ideas and practices which one group considers to be sacred are distorted and made to appear almost obscene, one who realizes the truth must make a protest. For those who are willing to learn of the truth the following URL contains a very brief but factual account of LDS temple usage.

http://ldsmediatalk.com/2009/03/12/church-video-on-purpose-of-temples/

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Manly Love

February 22, 2009 by dave.

Manly Love

 

 

Oh come on, I said.

I do love you, I pled.

 

Remember the year ‘75?

A great time to be alive.

 

A MODEM for Mothers Day

And a printer for your birthday?

 

 

What more could you ask?

To what other task

Could I have committed

To win your love un-remitted?

 

Even the ribbing I took at work

Did not make me from my course shirk.

 

 

In ‘01 you’ve got to admit

The Embroidery Machine did indeed fit.

Over a diamond (well, moissanite) ring,

You did choose that sewing thing.

And through the years, my love still abounding,

In ‘08 you got the HDTV astounding.

 

 

Oh, my dear, she said,

I’m still glad I thee wed.

 

The MODEM did help me through school,

In my profession it was a great tool.

The Printer made my papers less a chore.

Before that I did them abhor!

The HDTV I adore,

Watching O’Reilly thrills me to the core.

 

 

So, all in all, I do agree

It’s possible you do love me …

 

 

BUT, flowers would have really been nice!

 

 

(Subject: Humor)

Written in response to a challenge to write a “love” poem …

 

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Our State Fair is the best State Fair

October 14, 2008 by dave.

Yesterday was very eventful.  We set out with four of our grandchildren to take in the State Fair.

Our first problem was that I, the one who never forgets, couldn’t remember closing the garage door.  This resulted in a loss of about 6 miles and 15 minutes.  Yes, the garage door had been shut …

Our second problem was going to the wrong grocery store to obtain reduced rate tickets.  Our informant stated the Tom Thumb was the place, but Kroger was the real place.   Another 5 miles and 15 minutes.

Our third problem was a blowout of the driver side front tire in the fast lane of the freeway (with no shoulder).  The tire was completely destroyed.  We were driving our 4 door truck in order to accommodate the four kids and two adults.  This truck seems to have a problem.  We have only lost one of the original tires by wear with two others; one by blowout (passenger side front) and one that went completely flat sometime during the night while sitting on the driveway because of (as we found later) a belt poking was through the inside of the tire.   So, there we were with a tire blown, our flashers going, people almost running into us before they realized they had to do something and I was trying to change a tire.  Fortunately a Good Samaritan in a really big truck came behind us, turned his flashers on also and helped (actually did most of the work), and I really would thank him personally if I had had the presence of mind to ask his name.  Fortunately my wife had the presence of mind to call 911 so that a police car came up with its lights flashing.  These policemen and women were extremely helpful and very supportive:  Thanks, Dallas Police!!  Well, it was a long and complicated problem, but, with the spare finally in place, the police stopped the freeway and we crossed 4 lanes of traffic to the access road and went to a tire store directly across the freeway.  Another hour lost on that fiasco.  I tried to contact our “road hazard” insurance people, but their response time would have been longer than changing the tire.

We finally made it to the fair.  The kids complained of all the walking, the heat, the congestion and etc.  But, they admitted that a good time was had by all, especially after the dinner (outside the fair where 16 oz. sodas were selling for $3 and the cotton candy for $4, which we bought anyway) at WhatABurger.  Of course, the rides and the guy doing tricks on the bike contributed to the fun also.  Finding a game where every kid won something was a great thing also, even if it did cost about $5 for each prize.  So, tired (there’s a pun there if you look for it) and hungry we faced the traffic and headed homeward.

I now remember why I hated going to State Fairs when our own kids were younger and vowed never to do it again.  I made that vow again, but will probably break it again if the grandkids ask … even though the youngest just had to use and caress several restrooms.

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Good Intentions — Bad Outcomes?

October 2, 2008 by dave.

The current financial crisis seems to have developed from some intentions that could have been good for many people.  It would appear that many members of congress and other organizations felt that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, being quasi-government institutions, could be used to aid less fortunate people in obtaining affordable housing.  This is quite a noble undertaking.  One with which no reasonable person could find fault without appearing either prejudiced or insensitive.

Unfortunately, certain things happened that caused many of the loans granted to go into default.  These happenings included a housing slowdown, some slowdowns in the employment sector, greed in the financial sector and apparent lack of oversight by management and / or government.

Obviously, there have been and will be many, many books, articles, blogs and other communications pointing fingers of blame and trying to determine:

• whether defaulting on loans led to the housing slump or vice versa,
• whether that job slump caused the housing slump or vice versa,
• whether greed in the form of huge salaries, etc. which gave many persons who could have exercised oversight a bit of blindness or did they just do such a wonderful job of getting mortgages out to everyone,
• whether the starry eyed ideal that every person should have the right to home financing led to some blindness as to the possible results of that action or it was the politically correct (i.e., it might lead to more votes in the upcoming election)
• or whether it was just the natural evolution of the capitalist system which obviously needs huge amounts of socialism to keep it on the correct path.

Those who have not captured the slant of the above rant will probably not appreciate the conclusion being drawn:  that is, that just because we have good intentions, it does not follow that pursuing those intentions without regard to the effects they may have is often very dangerous and leads to bad outcomes.

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Elections 2008—My Opinion

September 5, 2008 by dave.

It has been entertaining watching the candidates maneuver their way to the final selections: entertaining, but not very informative. At this point, I am not very happy with either party’s choices. From some of polls, this appears to be the case with many other folks.

I note that one candidate is a very smooth, slick professional campaigner. In my not-so-humble opinion, he has done little else in his political career than campaign and win, mostly by avoiding complicated or controversial issues. He has become the “Teflon Man” who has no bad (or good) sticking to him to have to hide or explain away. It appears he to wants to be president so that he can change things. Since he has no visible evidence of being able make any changes or even shown a desire to change things up to this point and has absolutely no executive experience, I have to wonder how, or even why, this will be accomplished. I suppose that his wife would now be a little more happy with her country if she were 1^st Lady, but that doesn’t make me any more happy.

The other candidate, a certified war hero and professional maverick, has not convinced me of much except that I would rather have him answer the White House phone at 4 AM than any of the others. He promises “change” like everyone else. But, what is to be changed and how will it be accomplished? Good luck on doing much with the Congress. They are hopelessly partisan and endlessly divided into squabbling factions. The Supreme Court is populated with unelected legislators and will remain so for some time—not much hope there either.

But, I will have to make a selection by November. Presently, I am of the McCain camp as I don’t see the alternatives as being very effective in the present world with its terrorists, extremists and powerful dictators. Much of my support for McCain is based on having lived long enough to recognize that militants, extremists, dictators and others do NOT behave in accordance with the hopes and wishes of the general population—not even left-wing liberals. Rather, they usually act only in self-interest. They often, extremists especially, march to the beat of some drummer that follows no logic or even basic human instincts.

I wish that there were other reasons besides having a “bull dog with lipstick” for a running mate to help me in my support. So far, I haven’t found many.

 

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Simple, But Effective

May 1, 2008 by dave.

It is amazing how effective simple communications can be. I well remember a very simple communication that took place in Rochester, New York early in the spring of 1973.

Rochester had been having a long spell of gloomy, cloudy weather lasting at least 45 days. During those days, the sun had not been able to pierce the clouds for a single moment. On that memorable day, the local newspaper, the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, placed on the right-hand editorial page a full page black and white photograph of a sunrise. The only text on the page was, “Lest We Forget”, written in huge type.

No more needed to be said. The message was clear and distinct. However, to someone who had not experienced those 45 days in question, the message was likely to be neither clear nor even meaningful.

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The Good Old Boys and the Deputy

April 23, 2008 by dave.

I’ve heard lots
of stories of the old style southern justice, but, here is one in
which I was actually involved. It’s sort of fun and may actually
represent exactly what is implied.

Some years ago,
I was the company representative that interfaced with a multitude of
safety related bodies—UL, CSA, OSHA, etc. Usually a representative
would come from one of these bodies to inspect a new product or one
of our production facilities, go over our documentation and etc.

On one memorable
occasion, two gentlemen in proper, for the time, gray flannel suits
arrived—one from Long Island and one from upstate New York. They
completed their necessary inspections and found that they had some
free time. They decided that they’d like to get away from the
Metroplex and see some real “down home” Texas life.

Therefore, we
headed for a nice little cafe I knew of which featured down home
cookin’. The cafe was located across the street from the courthouse
in a small county seat. We settled in for a some biscuits and gravy
along with CF (Chicken Fried Steak) and other goodies.

In the next
booth several good old boys were discussing items of great
importance—such as the value of certain knife. They were
apparently having a good time and greatly amusing my New York
visitors when along came a deputy, in full uniform including a Texas
Ranger style hat, from the courthouse across the street.

While I must
paraphrase what the deputy actually said, it went something like
this, “I need a quick jury”. The reaction from the “boys”
was negative. So, the deputy further offered, “It won’t take
long—all you have to do is listen for a few minutes and give a
guilty verdict”. The reaction was still negative.

By now, the eyes
on my New York visitors had grown very large with the whites showing
dramatically!

The deputy upped
the ante further, “Come on, it’ll be over in 15 minutes and then
we’ll go have a poker game”. That did it. They shuffled out
heading for the courthouse.

There was a lot
of silence from my visitors and I suspect that they were trying to
fit that experience into their own frame of reference. I sometimes
imagine that they were considering that the sheriff type featured in
movies like “Cannonball Run” just might have been closer to the
truth than they had ever imagined.

I have also
often wondered how often that story was told around the office water
cooler or copier when they got back.

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The Dog Next Door

April 17, 2008 by dave.

Because I have a good relationship with our next-door neighbors, I have the privilege of walking, jogging or running with their dog, Wylie. We’ve become rather good buddies. In fact should he see or hear us in our backyard, he comes to the fence to see what is going on.

I must admit that I often spoil Wylie by feeding him through the fence. He really enjoys the food and the attention. I really enjoy that fact that he forces me to exercise …

We have quite a symbiotic relationship.
Long live Wylie (and, of course, longer live me).

 

 

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The Day I Flew

April 13, 2008 by dave.

I was pedaling
furiously, putting all the muscle into the drive that a 12 year old
could muster, heading for the precipice. I was covering the ground
of the newly laid playground asphalt as smoothly and rapidly as
possible. I was breathing heavily, not only because of the exertion,
but also because of my excitement—I was going to fly!

I aimed for a
few feet to the right of the stairs and knowing that no one was
around to laugh if I failed, propelled myself over the edge.

Hardly a moment
later, I found myself lying on the lower playground near the drinking
fountain. My bike was a few feet away, one trouser leg was torn at
the knee cap and my knee lacerated. Musing on this singular
experience, I limped away, my thoughts scurrying to find a plausible
explanation to tell my mother.

* * * *

Did I go on to
become a pilot? No, I became a physicist so that I would understand
why I didn’t fly—I just fell—without style.

Sequel

Some months
later, the front fork of that bicycle broke, sending me into the
gravel along side the road right in front of the state prison. I was
quite a ways from home with a two piece non-rideable bicycle.

So much for
flying!

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Evolution—A Personal View

January 29, 2008 by dave.

I have recently read about 1100 pages describing in great detail the
dating and progression called, evolution, of everything from the
universe to life itself. It has been a very interesting read.

Very early in the treatise, it was pointed out how unfortunate it is that
some persons will only believe what they can personally conceive.
The authors then proceed to put down any view that differs from
theirs or of which they appear not to be able to conceive.

As the authors presented their idea of evolution, one is required to
accept the following caveats:

• No intelligence, creator or god is required nor even welcomed

• The laws of thermodynamics, specifically the laws oft quoted as getting
  something for nothing and all things tend towards disorder, must not
  be applied to organic substances; that is, according to the well
  known dictum, “electrons do not start fads,” must be amended to
  state, “except in organic systems.”

• Occurrences that would require unimaginable concurrent circumstances will easily
  occur if one just throws in millions and millions of years.

• If the learned can conceive of it, it will occur—and in their manner.
  

It seems to me that it really does take more faith (a naughty word to
many evolutionists) to believe that blind chance or, as some put it,
evolutionary pressure, and differing behavior for organic substances
lead to the creation of life than to believe intelligence, that is, a
Creator or God.

Evolution, the Theory of—some zealots have suggested changing “Theory” to “Law”.

To be fair, it must be noted that evolution in the sense of selective
breeding, survival of certain strains under changing weather and even
man-made conditions, and over generations of fruit flies is easily
demonstrable, however this evolution theory, sometimes referred to as
the “special theory of evolution,” has some problems when
expanded into the more far reaching “General Theory of Evolution.”

Charles Darwin conceived of his popular theory after coming to the conclusion
that the story of creation as found in the Bible could not be true.
It was necessary, he felt, therefore to come up with a theory that
explained creation in a scientific (no God or Creator) fashion.
Unfortunately, the understanding that many persons had of the Bible
creation theory at that time (and many still have) are not what the
scriptures actually state.

Some of the interesting but not scriptural ideas that most likely
influenced Darwin’s thinking include:

 

• God created everything out of nothing.

• God created the universe in 6 days consisting of 24 of our present hours
  each. Yes, 6 days, the 7^th was for rest.

• God, a being having no body, parts or passions created man in his own
  “image.”

Theories, Theories, Theories

Spontaneous Generation of Life

One item of great interest to me is that one theory of life that
scientists thoroughly debunk is the old idea of spontaneous
generation of life. People had noticed that when trash or something
similar accumulated, suddenly there were cockroaches and other vermin
about that obviously were not there before, so, life must have
spontaneously generated. We now can readily explain how this seeming
anachronism can come about and know that life does not spontaneously
generate. Why then do the Evolutionists preach their own version of
spontaneous generation of life? Well, it just so easy, just throw in
millions and millions of years and life generates itself so
effortlessly out of some organic molecules in a salty ocean being
struck with lightning.

What do the Scriptures Really Say?

• God created everything from nothing?
  D&C132:33 … The elements are eternal, … [link]
  Abraham 4:1 And then the Lord said: Let us go down. And they went down at the beginning, and
  they, that is the Gods, organized and formed the
  heavens and the earth. [italics added] [link]

• God created the universe in six 24hour earth days?
  Many religious scholars have noted that the word, “day,” has many meanings.
  Many now recognize that “day” often specifies an undefined space
  of time with some beginning and some end, for example:
  Abraham 4:5
  And the Gods called the light Day, and the darkness they called
  Night. And it came to pass that from the evening until morning they
  called night; and from the morning until the evening they called
  day; and this was the first, or the beginning, of that which they
  called day and night. [italics added] [link]
  A quite possible way of describing the creation of this earth would be that it occurred in
  six creative periods; (1) gather the materials and make the planet,
  (2) give it a pleasing form, (3) Set up the moon and stars, (4)
  plant flora, (5) set up the fauna and (6) put man on the planet.
  Finally, in the seventh period, rest for a while.

• God, a being having no body, parts or passions—what a concept! (Why
  does John say, “God is Love?” How could such a God be angry?)
  created man in his own “image?”
  Moses 6:9 In the image
  of his own body, male and female, created he them, and blessed
  them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created
  and became living souls in the land upon the footstool of God. [link]
  D&C 130:1 When the Savior shall appear we shall see him as he is. We
  shall see that he is a man like ourselves. [italics added] [link]

Strengths in the Evolutionist’s Views

 

• The Special Theory of Evolution (See Above) is readily verifiable.

• There are many fossils and other evidences to lend credence to their
  views.

• It represents the best thinking of many very intelligent persons.

Weaknesses
in the Evolutionist’s Views

• A lot of anachronisms [items out of time line order] remain
  unexplained. For example, young carbon dated wood fibers embedded
  in very old rock, the sedimentation of major rivers shows thousands
  of years of accumulation as opposed to billions or even millions.

  Not wishing to expand to 1100 pages, let this small sample
  suffice. A good many other examples can be found on the internet.

• No evidence exists that, as required by the theory of evolution,
  micro-evolutionary results can accumulate forever, leading to new
  species. Another way of saying this is that after breeding
  (selectively forcing evolutionary changes—that is, acting as a
  creator) a tremendous number of fruit fly generations, the latest
  generation is still are easily identified as fruit flies, not a new
  species.
  Abraham 4:12 And the Gods organized the earth to
  bring forth grass from its own seed, and the herb to bring forth
  herb from its own seed, yielding seed after his kind; and the earth
  to bring forth the tree from its own seed, yielding fruit, whose
  seed could only bring forth the same in itself, after his kind;
  and the Gods saw that they were obeyed. [italics added] [link]

• The Theory of Evolution requires uniformity in the processes so that
  accurate dating can be accomplished.
  Some scientists are now claiming that time is “slowing down”. What has happened in the
  past?
  Many theories even show that basic nuclear forces change /
  changed with time.
  It doesn’t take much thinking to realize that
  changes in time and basic forces of the universe can wreck havoc
  with any type of carbon or other dating techniques.

Where does all the above Leave Us?

Hopefully, it leaves us with a willingness to consider that the tale told in the
scriptures concerning this planet, earth.

Abraham 4:1 And then the Lord said: Let us go down. And they went down at
the beginning, and they, that is the Gods, organized and
formed the heavens and the earth. [italics added] [link]

 

Who Do You Think You Are?

As mentioned above science appears to make fun of the idea of the
spontaneous generation of life, but preaches the spontaneous
generation of, for lack of a better term, personality. Obviously, if
life is an accident of the universe, the sense of self-awareness that
I certainly have has no meaning. You, if there is a you, are just a
chance combination of neurons and “buzzing electrons” according
to one source.

I, personally, cannot accept that I am nothing but chance. So, I invite
you to consider accepting the following as I do. Therefore, again
calling upon the scriptures for greater understanding:

D&C 93:29 Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or
the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be. [link]

Abraham3:22 Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were
organized before the world was; and among all these there were many
of the noble and great ones;

23 And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the
midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood
among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he
said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before
thou wast born. [link]

 

So (not) Alone!

It must be obvious from the foregoing that I sincerely believe that
there is intelligent life in the universe and that we are not alone.
Those of us who have experienced contact with the spirit can attest
that it is just as real as the matter around us. Let me finish this
“rant” with a few more scriptural references:

D&C 131:7 There is no such thing as immaterial matter. All
spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure, and can only be
discerned by purer eyes;

8 We cannot see it; but when our bodies are purified we shall
see that it is all matter. [link]

Moses 1:11 But now mine own eyes have beheld God; but not my
natural, but my spiritual eyes, for my natural eyes could not
have beheld; for I should have withered and died in his presence; but
his glory was upon me; and I beheld his face, for I was transfigured
before him. [italics added] [link]

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