I'd heard about the surge in gun sales, spurred by fears that a Democrat-dominated government will place new restrictions on gun. I just saw it in person at the Fort Wayne Gun & Knife Show.

I collect bayonets, which is why I go. Picked up a Peruvian Model 1909 bayonet, with a long, slender blade. Most of these were made for the German army (the model 1898, including a wicked sawtooth edition), but the Germans made a version for Peru, too. And now I have one. Beautiful bayonet, which I proudly made room for in my bayonet case.

But back to guns. As I entered the coliseum exhibition hall, I immediately realized this was the largest crowd I'd ever seen. Really thick, especially around the gun sellers. Lots of camo outfits.

I eavesdropped on a couple guys talking about the handguns they carry day-to-day. They switch between guns, depending on the day, where they're going, and what they're wearing.

Posted at 01:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Swampland has a fun discussion about who will replace Alan Colmes on Hannity & Colmes, since Colmes is leaving at the end of the year. Can't blame him, since Hannity hardly lets him talk.

Swampland contributor Karen Tumulty, the Time reporter, has a playful mischievousness. She invited readers to submit possibilities to take the place of Colmes.

Over 120 people have commented thus far. I got a kick out of comments suggesting that, for the sake of diversity, Fox hire one of the following:

• A middle-aged white guy.
• A young hot blonde.

Posted at 02:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

That's Jordi. Sleeping on my shoulder. A handful. Make that two.

Posted at 09:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here's a quote from Perry Noble, which I found on Tony Morgan's blog:

"Christians use prayer for an excuse for inactivity."

Sometimes, that is so so so true.

Posted at 08:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I gave the doctor some blood a few weeks ago for a routine test (and wrote about it). Turns out my potassium was low, and he started me a pill. A big ol' honkin' pill that usually starts dissolving in my mouth before my throat muscles finally agree, "Okay, let's do this."

(My wife's potassium was low, too, but all she had to do was eat a banana every day. Oh, to be so fortunate.)

Yesterday, I went back to give more blood, to see if this pill was doing any good. Now, I don't like giving blood. I always grow faint afterwards, and have to sit there for a while with my head between my knees. It's very un-macho.

So I was not looking forward to going back yesterday. But alas, I pumped out the requisite red stuff, and didn't feel that any substantial amount of lifeforce had been drained from me.

I put on my sweater and coat, and promptly left. This has never happened before.

What a man.

Posted at 12:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Yesterday I skipped church to play in the Highland Open table tennis tournament. Highland is over by Chicago, right on the Indiana line. I played last year and did pretty well, gaining about 100 points in my USTTA rating.

This year--not so good. I played several guys with higher ratings that, had I played well, I could have beaten. Should have beaten. But I'm out of practice. Haven't played much this fall. And it showed.

I played in three categories. Lost to the persons with higher rankings, and beat the persons with lower rankings...except for that Asian gal. She beat me 3-1, and that's gonna cost me in points.

My brother Rick played, too. He took second place in the under 1350 category (his rating was around 1311). But in another category, he was dismantled by a tiny Asian girl whose future probably includes second grade. She was intense. But Rick still managed to take home a trophy, while I basically slunk away in embarrassment.

Got two spring tournaments, in March and May. I'll be ready for them.

Posted at 09:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My brother Rick, who works at Indiana University - South Bend, says their enrollment is doing great. That always happens in an economic downturn, as people lose their jobs and enroll in college to retool for a different career.

CNN has an article about the explosion in Chinese students attending US colleges. We have 4000 colleges and universities, far more than anywhere else in the world, and our schools are top-notch.

In the past year, the number of Chinese undergraduates has jumped at a number of schools:

• Kansas State: from 65 to 199.
• Ohio State: from 20 to 115.
• Purdue: from 127 to 290.
• Michigan State: from 95 to 327.

Duane Nellis, Kansas State provost, commented, "There is a whole emerging middle class of Chinese, well over 300 million, many of them with one-child families who are interested in sending their son or daughter abroad with higher educational experience."

Think of the opportunities for evangelizing China through these well-educated, leadership-calibre young people? We can't send missionaries to China, but they are coming to America for several years. At least some will return as Christians. Neat.

Interestingly, the number of Americans studying abroad reached an all-time high of 242,000 in 2007.

Also worth noting: India still leads the pack in sending students to the US. China is now second, followed by South Korea.

Posted at 08:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Jack and Suzy Welch, in BusinessWeek (Nov 17), cited three reasons Obama won. I already discussed the first two: clear vision and execution. Here's the third.

3. Friends in high places. "From the start, Obama had ­support from the media, which chose to downplay controversies involving him. Meanwhile, after the primaries, McCain began to take a beating."

Welch then talks about having the support of your board. "Every time you try to usher in change, some people will resist. They may fight you openly in meetings....But in the end, if your board has your back, defeat can be turned into victory. That's why you need to start any leadership initiative with your 'high-level friends' firmly by your side, convinced of the merits of your character and policies."

This, obviously, applies to pastors. Cultivate supporters. Don't just plunge into an initiative, convinced of its merits and that, therefore, everyone will just happily tag along. Lone Ranger preachers don't do well at any size of church.

"You may have winning ideas," Welch concludes, "but you need much more to win the game."

From my denominational perch, I've certainly seen many situations in which a pastor had the right ideas--a good vision for the church--but flopped in trying to implement it. Welch is saying that John McCain had good ideas, but that wasn't enough. Even Ron Paul and Dennis Kucenich had some good ideas, and they can rest content on the righteousness of their ideals.

But to bring about true change, you must be more than a one-trick pony.

Posted at 08:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kiefer Sutherland, about filming the 24 prequel in Africa using African child actors: "Back home, you can't see kids going 10 minutes without looking at their iPods or game devices. Here, the kids were blissfully running around between takes playing with a rock and a stick. I waned to go home and throw away all my kids' computers."

Posted at 10:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jack and Suzy Welch, in BusinessWeek (Nov 17), cited three reasons Obama won. I already discussed the first one: clear vision. Here's the second.

2. Execution. "Obama's team made few mistakes. From the outset, his advisers were best in class, and his players were always prepared, agile, and where they needed to be. McCain's team, hobbled by a less cohesive set of advisers and less money, couldn't compete."

Welch says Hillary Clinton tried to win "the old-fashioned way"--by going after the big states. "You can't just beat your rivals by the old rules; to grow, you have to invent a new game and beat them at that, too."

Is your church finding new ways to reach today's people? Or are you still trying to reach people with methods of the 1960s, or 1980s?

Okay, nothing original there.

But consider this: what might constitute a "new game" when it comes to the church? To advancing the Great Commission?

You can point to the emergent churches, with their candles, community, flattened hierarchy, narrative, conversation, holistic faith, and other mix-and-match traits. But do they go far enough to constitute a "new game"? Or is it just a matter of playing the Star Wars edition of Monopoly?

I guess I like the example of churches like Granger, NewSpring, Quest, Lifechurch, and others that focus laser-like on reaching lost people. They have many of the trapping of Church As We Know It, but are playing a different game than I've ever played.

Tomorrow: Having the Right Friends

Posted at 08:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jack Welch and his wife, Suzy, do a regular column in BusinessWeek which is full of wisdom, particularly regarding management. Their column in the November 17 issue is titled, "Three Reasons Obama Won."

They begin by saying that in their view, McCain's economic platform "made better sense for business, especially in terms of free trade, tax policy, and job creation." But at the same time, they are hopeful about the Obama presidency.

They then cite three things Obama did right. Pastors can take these principles to heart, because they can apply as easily to church life.

1. Obama presented a clear, consistent vision, which Welch calls "the granddad of leadership principles." "If you want to galvanize followers, you simply cannot recast your message. Nor can you confuse or scare people....Over and over, he painted a picture of the future that excited people. He also set a perfect example for business leaders: Stick to a limited number of points, repeat them relentlessly, and turn people on."

Does your church know what it's about? Do you try to provide a full slate of ministries, or do you focus on ministries specific to the mission you've identified?

Lesson 2 coming next.

Posted at 12:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This is what happens when Pam takes the day off. The kids own her.

Posted at 11:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Charlie Cook, political analyst, in BusinessWeek (November 17): "Watching McCain was a bit like watching a ballplayer seven or eight years after their prime. In 2000, John McCain was at his optimal performance level. McCain 2.0 was more ideological and very different from the McCain we saw in 2000. He wasn't as effective a campaigner, and he tried to change his brand."

Posted at 09:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

GraphJam makes me laugh a lot. Here's one from today.

Posted at 08:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yesterday, while traveling to Columbus, Ohio, I punched my XM Radio preset for Fox News and listened to the morning show. I was surprised to hear positive (but not glowing) reports regarding President-Elect Obama. No cheap shots were being taken. The coverage was truly fair and balanced. Though I've been totally turned off by the partisanship of FoxNews (as I am by the partisanship of MSNBC's evening line-up), I enjoyed listening to Fox News yesterday morning.

Had FoxNews adopted a new tone?

I reflected on that. Rupert Murdoch now owns the Wall Street Journal, plus numerous other business interests throughout the world. As a businessman, he stands to lose big bucks if Obama can't reign in the financial crisis. He needs to see Obama succeed. There is no win for him in seeing another failed presidency. Could that be behind this non-partisan reporting?

And then I remembered.

A few weeks ago, I had changed that preset to CNN.

Posted at 08:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Here's an excellent piece by Mark Sanford, the Republican governor of South Carolina, called "Conservatives didn't Lose the Election, GOP did."

This quote capsulizes much of the article: "Republicans have campaigned on the conservative themes of lower taxes, less government and more freedom -- they just haven't governed that way. America didn't turn away from conservatism, they turned away from many who faked it."

Posted at 01:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Gus, only a few months into his reign as the World's Ugliest Dog, has died of cancer at age 9. Gus, a Chinese crested, had one leg amputated because of a skin tumor, and he lost an eye in a cat fight. The prize money from the contest went toward Gus's radiation treatments.

So young. So much to live for.

Posted at 07:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I finally finished Newsweek's post-election, behind-the-scenes story of the presidential campaign. I always find this interesting, with fascinating background and insider information embargoed until after the election. This seemingly book-length report took me three days to finish.

Here are some of the things I learned:

• The Obama campaign was very disciplined from the beginning, with very little of the sniping and backstabbing common in most campaigns. There were only a few stumbles along the way.
• The Hillary Clinton campaign was filled with drama queens and kings, and was pretty much a horrible mess.
• The McCain campaign was run a lot better than it sometimes seemed. They were just short of money and perpetually behind.
• McCain wouldn't allow criticism of: Obama's lack of military experience, Rev. Wright, Michelle Obama.
• It was unfair to label Steve Schmidt as a Karl Rove disciple. In reality, he wasn't anything like Rove.
• During his short tenure in the Senate, Obama did some things that rightly upset McCain (and even Ted Kennedy).
• Cindy McCain really really hated Karl Rove, blaming him for the rumors in 2000 that their adopted daughter, Bridget, was conceived via a black prostitute. When asked if she would stab Rove in the back if he walked by, Cindy said, "I would stab him in the front."
• There's a lot more to the Sarah Palin clothing spree. She and Todd have very expensive tastes, and can't resist free money. The campaign did a good job with the spin, but, "Privately, however, McCain's top advisers fumed at what they regarded as Palin's outrageous profligacy."
• The innovative Obama campaign broke new ground when it comes to mobilizing voters, turning supporters into volunteers, fundraising, using the internet, nationwide campaigning (as opposed to targeting key states), and grassroots organizing.
• Whereas candidates always gain weight during a campaign, Obama actually lost weight. He's very disciplined.
• McCain and Palin continually frustrated their staffs. They wanted to do their own thing, which created problems in presenting a consistent message. McCain held his impulses in check pretty well, but Palin did, indeed, go rogue in the latter days.
• Palin wanted to say some words during McCain's concession speech, but was told no.
• When it comes right down to it, there's not much more that McCain could have done. This was just a Democrat year.

Posted at 10:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

L-r, from lower left: Pam, Spencer (Pam's nephew), Jodie (Pam's sister), Kelly and Jim (Pam's brother), Steve and Barb Berkey (Pam's mom). Smile! (click photo for a larger view)

We had Pam's family over last night for an early Thanksgiving meal, while Pam's mom, Barb, and her husband Steve are in town from California. They're staying with us for ten days or so.

As I finished carving the Butterball turkey, I felt the onset of vertigo. Miniere's Disease likes to surprise me. So while everyone else at their turkey, mashed potatoes, dressing, corn and green bean casseroles, and much more, I was laying beside the toilet with the world spinning around me.

A couple hours later, I trudged out and joined everyone. They were still seated at the dining room table, carrying on. I don't imagine I looked all that great, but was at least functional. And I managed to snap a photo of everyone (except for the four nephews playing games in our basement).

Posted at 08:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Judging by my lack of posts this week, I, like most Americans, have breathed an extended sign of relief that the Campaign That Would Not End has, indeed, ended.

Pam's mom and her husband arrived from California last night. They'll stay with us for 10 days or so. Shortly, our house will be inundated with the families of Pam's brother and sister, as we celebrate an early Thanksgiving. A Butterball turkey is in the oven.

I did some running around early today. Lots of people out shopping. I guess it's...Christmastime?

Posted at 04:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Outstanding, classy concession speech by John McCain. Just what you'd expect from him. We'll be left to always wonder what a McCain presidency would have been like.

But as the pundits point out, it was a Perfect Storm against him. The unpopular Bush, the War, and then the Wall Street crash, plus a charismatic new face trumpeting change--it was too much to overcome.

11:40. Time for bed.

Indiana still hasn't been decided, a fact that is astounding. Have to find out in the morning, I guess.

Posted at 11:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Election night is always an exciting night. Not looking good for McCain, electoral-college-wise.

I'm following a map on USAToday.com. Mouse over a state, and see the results to that point. Very nice. I imagine other sites have the same thing, but I've not found them yet. This one shows the total popular vote to be very close--within 16,000 votes nationwide. That's very interesting.

Posted at 09:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pam and I got to the polls about 6:15, and the line was already very long. Took us an hour, I believe.

I noticed only five blacks in our polling place. We live in a decidedly white section of town. A young black woman and her daughter--maybe fourth grade, somewhere around there--stood in front of us. For all I know, she could have been a McCain supporter. But I let my imagination run.

This election is hugely meaningful to the black community, in a way I cannot possibly fathom. I imagined that woman wanting her daughter to come with her, so she could experience history being made. That's what I imagined. If that wasn't the case with that woman, I'm sure that story does play out among millions of black Americans across the country. It doesn't mean Obama is the better candidate. It just means his candidacy carries deep meaning to the country. We've come a long way.

I voted for Obama. In every other case (except with one councilwoman) I voted for Republicans. Including Mark Sauder, our Congressman. I believe we need to hold Congressmen accountable to their promises. He ran, in 1994, partly on term limits--three terms and you're out. Now he's running for his eighth term. On principle, I intended to vote against him (even though he's a genuine Christian and even a member of my denomination). But the Democrats need to help me out here by running someone who is at least halfway credible. I couldn't send Sauder's idiot opponent to Washington, so instead, I voted to send a very good man back to Washington...even though it means not holding him accountable. Oh well. Life is complicated.

Although I voted for Obama, convinced that he is what our country needs right now, I retain these reservations:

• He's woefully lacking in experience.
• He's lacking in the knowledge and wisdom that life experience brings (though he's obviously a very quick study, as is Sarah Palin).
• When Michelle said she was proud of America for the first time, I think that's what she actually meant. They've spun her words this way and that, but I'm not sure this is a woman who, deep in her heart, at a visceral level, loves my country the same way I do.
• I wish Obama's voting record was less liberal.
• I'm concerned about the appointment of judges, not just to the Supreme Court, but to other courts.
• I believe strongly in divided government, and dislike the idea of one party controlling the White House plus both houses of Congress.

Posted at 03:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Studs Terkel died. He mastered the "oral history" form of writing. He would take a subject, then interview people who could address the subject from life experience. And he would just let them talk. His books gave tremendous insight into everyday America and the life of the common man.

Terkel was a listener. He didn't interview aggressively. He just sat down with people and let them talk, and then masterfully edit a mass of material into a fascinating whole.

His books typically had simple titles, with subtitles that explained what the book was about.

• Working: People Talk About What They Do all Day and How they Feel About What They Do.
• Race: How Blacks and Whites Think and Feel About the American Obsession.
• Hard Times: An Oral History of the Great Depression.

Posted at 08:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was delighted to come across the movie "All the President's Men" last night on TCM (Turner Classic Movies). That's a fabulous movie. I sorta came of age during Watergate, and have read a number of books about the scandal, so it has particular interest to me. Plus, being a trained journalist, I'm fascinated by the inner workings of this historic case of investigative journalism.

I was not so delighted that the airing included all of the profanity, including a number of F bombs. A sign of what's to come throughout the TV spectrum, I suspect.

Posted at 07:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pastor Tim, via Facebook, asked people to answer, "What factors should shape who/what we vote for as Followers of Jesus living in this liberal democracy?"

An interesting question, and he received some interesting replies. I wrote a response. I decided to post it on my own blog, with some additions since I wrote the original piece. Follow the link below.

A number of issues have nothing to do with faith, and how I view them aren't necessarily shaped by the fact that I'm a Christian. But there are, indeed, some issues with clear faith implications.

The Poor
The poor, the powerless, the disenfranchised--these people were constantly on Jesus' mind, and he talked about them and advocated on their behalf all the time. So this is important to me. Though I've been a Republican all my life, Republicans do a dismal job on this issue. They've always sided with the rich, which is totally unbiblical.

Trickle-down economics basically says, "We're going to give extra money to the rich, to make sure they stay rich. But hopefully, some of that money will make it back to the poor." Jesus never advocated anything like trickle-down economics. (You could also argue that Jesus never advocated anything regarding economic policy.)

During the past 8 years, the gap between the rich and poor has expanded. We've seen a redistribution of wealth, with the wealth going from the middle and lower classes to the upper classes through various tax breaks. Not too long ago, middle-class people regularly retired at 65, and most companies provided healthcare. Now, middle-class people are working into their 70s, and companies are finding ways to NOT provide health coverage. Meanwhile, the rich remain secure in their increasing wealth.

There is no biblical justification for this. Obama won't continue these policies. Would McCain?

Abortion
I'm anti-abortion, which means I should vote for McCain...I guess. This issue should definitely matter to Christians. From a pragmatic viewpoint, though, it seems clear to me that neither candidate, once in office, would end up doing anything, good or bad, regarding this issue. It'll be left to the states to decide (which is all repealing Roe v. Wade would accomplish). So I view it as merely an issue for political posturing at the Presidential level. I could be wrong about that.

Gay Marriage
I'm against it. So are both candidates. But again, the states are taking the lead in this matter, and the nationalwide recognition of gay marriage may be unstoppable. Perhaps the only thing to be done at the national level is to prevent a Constitutional amendment.

However, since we do live in a pluralistic society, we need to allow tolerance for various things. One, to me, is partner rights in civil unions. This does not mean I'm okay with homosexuality. It just means I'm cognizant of the society we live in, and of what is needed to make our society work. We are a diverse collection of people cooperating to maintain a civil society.

Talking to Your Enemies
Jesus says that if we have problems with someone, we should go talk to them. Directly. From a biblical standpoint, it makes sense to talk to and negotiate with folks like Iran, Korea, Libya, Russia, Cuba, Venezuela, etc. What can be gained by not talking? That's just a Cold War mentality. We all understand the preconditions argument, but McCain's stand still seems unduly hardline, and that worries me in today's world. I can't imagine Jesus saying, "I don't like you, so I'm not going to talk to you...unless you first do this and this and this."

War and Peace
For many decades, my denomination's Discipline has contained this statement: "We positively record our disapproval of engaging in voluntary, national, aggressive warfare." I agree with that. Iraq most definitely doesn't qualify. We didn't need to go there, and at this point, staying in Iraq means zilch for our national security. In fact, it just means all of our forces are focused on the other side of the world, and wouldn't be available in a case of true national security.

At the same time, I believe America needs to be willing to come to the aid of persecuted people and distressed situations. Like Darfur, Bosnia, and Somalia, for instance. That's something God expects of a righteous people. But as long as our military and national resources are mired in Iraq, we're stretched too thin to do much anywhere else. I favor, as a nation, being prepared, ready, and able to intervene on behalf of people who need our help. But that can't happen as long as all of our eggs are in the Iraq/Afghanistan basket.

The Religiosity of Candidates
Presidential candidates always describe themselves as persons of faith. That their faith is a very important part of who they are. They know how to play the appearance game. When, late in the campaign, John Kerry began talking about how important religion was to him, it came across as totally fake, and he lost any chance of getting my vote.

At the Saddleback forum, Rick Warren asked each person, "What does it mean to you to believe in Christ?" Obama's answer began, "As a starting point, it means I believe in — that Jesus Christ died for my sins, and that I am redeemed through him. That is a source of strength and sustenance on a daily basis," and then he elaborated. McCain began, "It means I’m saved and forgiven," and then he told a story from his POW days. Obama came across to me as the one who was saying more than words, and who actually knew what the words meant. I'm not sure McCain could have explained, "What exactly do you mean by 'saved and forgiven'? Plus, Obama's the one who actually attends church regularly (say what you want about his church--at least he goes.)

The Candidate's Marriage
What is the candidate's own marriage like, and his history in marriage? Were there infidelities (or rumors thereof)? Divorce? Carter and both Bushes get high marks in this area. Obama seems to have a great family. McCain's is a little harder to get a handle on, since the family has been divided so much between Arizona and DC, but it seems solid to this outsider. When asked about something he regretted, or a major personal failing (I forget the setting), McCain mentioned the failure of his first marriage.

Frankly, I like what I see with all four candidates. But the "what I see" can be misleading. Exhibit A: John Edwards. (Meanwhile, the Clinton marriage remains impossible to explain.)

Torture
When US intelligence officers are torturing an 18-year-old guy who got swept up in an Al Queda attack in Afghanistan, trying to get him to talk about things they probably know already; or when US intelligence officers are forcing a detainee at Guantanamo to wear pink women's underwear to humiliate him...God is looking down. Do you think God approves of what he sees? Would Jesus have been an active participant? In these situations, I see God's heart going out to the mistreated person. Please show me, biblically, that God is on the side of the US intelligence officers in these cases.

Fortunately, both candidates oppose torture. McCain has been very forceful, a leader in combatting the Bush Administration on this issue. I suspect, and hope, that very soon after either of these men becomes president, we see an end to Guantanamo, secret CIA detention facilities, and the hypocritically immoral and horrid rendentions.

My world (especially work) is dominated by Republicans. I am flummoxed that so few Republican Christians are disturbed that the United States tortures people to obtain routine information. This should outrage Christians, as it outrages me. It just shows how easily our political leanings overrule our sense of humanity, justice, and righteousness.

Climate Change
By continually spewing vast amounts of carbon into the atmosphere, mankind is changing the planet entrusted to us. The science is undeniable. George Bush has continually thwarted any action against global warming, thereby wasting eight crucial years. Fortunately, both McCain and Obama intend to actively fight climate change. I can't imagine that God enjoys seeing us, in our greed and self-interest, destroy what he created for us, and for his own pleasure.

Capital Punishment
George Bush took glee in executing people when he was governor of Texas. The New Testament shows me nothing that would indicate God favors capital punishment. Consider Tmothy McVeigh, the unrepentant Oklahoma City mass-murderer. There was no rejoicing in heaven over his execution. But if he were still alive, whiling away his days on death row, the possibility would remain that he might find Christ. And then, there would be rejoicing in heaven.

I don't favor anything which decreases the possibility of rejoicing in heaven. (And don't tell me, "Well, he snuffed out over 200 people, ending the chance for nonChristians to find Christ." God doesn't think like that.)

Capital punishment isn't an issue in this election. But it's an issue that I, as a Christian, care about and monitor.

Religious Freedom
This isn't an issue, either. But it's one to watch. In our pluralistic society, we must ensure religious freedom for all faiths (unless they advocate child sacrifice or something else whacko).

Justice
God always seeks justice. He hates seeing people treated unfairly. Hates seeing the rich become richer at the expense of the poor. Hates seeing guilty people go unpunished, and innocent people suffering for the sins of others. Hates seeing the "little guy" cheated, misused, or abused.

Enough. Those are some of the issues that shape my political thinking. I'm okay with people taking different approaches.

Posted at 02:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

The current New Yorker magazine has an interesting article about Sarah Palin. Nothing earth-shaking, and nothing particularly positive or negative. Just a "here's some background you haven't heard yet" kind of piece.

After becoming governor, she learned that some conservative pundits were taking Alaskan cruises. She invited them to the governor's mansion in two different batches, 3-4 at a time. Bill Kristol was in the first group, and became very enamored of Palin. He subsequently regularly promoted her name as a VP candidate, long before McCain won the nomination.

Dick Morris was in the second group. He talked to her specifically about being a VP candidate, and gave her advice.

The article shows that Palin has a lot of the good qualities (and please, I say this in a good sense) that served Bill Clinton well: personal charisma, charm, great relational skills, smart, listens to people, and a very quick study on issues. Plus the quality behind courting these pundits in the first place: ambition.

Posted at 06:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

For the 10th year, Anchor offered a maze to trick-or-treaters. We used to create the maze in the basement. But the past two years, we cleared out the sanctuary and put the maze there. This year's edition featured a huge black spider sprayed with neon colors that Terry Leatherman dropped on unsuspecting maze-goers. Not that it necessarily frightened them. I watched as a few people came through. One said, "That's cool." Not exactly what Shelob, with fangs gleaming, wants to hear. Terry told me one guy just said, "That's lame."

Pastor Tim stood outside the church, passing out candy and inviting people inside for the maze. As one middle school girl approached the church, Tim asked, "Are you Hannah Montana?"

She said, "No, I'm a pimp, and these"--pointing to two guys dressed as girls following behind her--"are my ho's." Yes, it takes me back to my own innocent days of...junior high?

I took a picture of all three in front of the church.

Downstairs, we had hotdogs and lots of crockpots filled with soup, plus various desserts. This is always quite popular, and it's a good opportunity to get acquainted with neighborhood people.

My brother Rick says both of his kids won prizes at school for their creative attire. Cameron wanted to go as Jesus carrying the cross. "So we dressed him accordingly, complete with cross, blood, and crown of thorns." How cool is that?

Then there's the eight-grader in New Jersey who dressed like Jesus, and was sent home from school because it was causing a disruption. The kid wasn't doing it as a religious statement, but because classmates had told him his long hair made him look like Jesus. So he decided to dress the part.

Posted at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)