Just thinkin'

   I was reading the obituaries today (as I do daily) and thought to myself "I don't know any of these people". I don't know why I think I should ... in a metro area of over a million people ... other than, I lived in a town of 2000 for over 20 years where everyone knew everyone (just about). My mind runs in funny directions at times.
   I have resigned my Chaplain position with VFW Post 549, as I have difficulty making time for the Saturday meetings because of duties here at our Casita with Hilda and associated stuff. I will really miss the position, but hopefully I can return to some sort of action with the Post in the future.
    I am trying to get some household chores done today. Already finished the laundry (3 loads) and visited the grocery store, readied the meat for tonight's dinner, etc. Tomorrow is my "Poker" morning, Thursday I take her for a haircut and Friday is a work day.
    I am constantly amazed at what drivers on our streets do and what else they attempt besides driving. It is getting where nothing they do startles me ... I am getting jaded at their capacity for stupidity and lack of concern for any other living beings. And the pedestrians are as bad as the drivers, just not as mobile or as large. 
   I am still studying (various things) as time permits. I am in the middle of three rather large books at the present time, History / Politics / Religion ... strange bedfellows huh? I just finished my second U.S. Constitution course on line with a 92.7%. Not bad for an old fart with fast approaching Alzheimers. 
  My doctor says my A1C (diabetes sugar level) is highly elevated so I have to cut back on sweet stuff and carbohydrates. No Problem ... right? The items that are high in carbohydrates are beer and bread. I LIVE on bread (Bagels, English Muffins, toast, et al).
 

Sunday mornings are my time for thinking, and playing on the computer, studying and other 'alone' activities. I had written something down (probably years ago) that someone had written and I was re-reading it and thought that I would post it.
The Rules for Being Human 
1. You will receive a body: You may like it or hate it, but it will be yours for the entire time you are around.
2. You Will Learn Lessons: You are enrolled in a full-time, informal school called life. Each day in this school, you will receive the opportunity to learn lessons. You may like the lessons or you may think them irrelevant or stupid.
3. There are NO mistakes, only Lessons: Growth is a process of trial and error ... experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiments that ultimately "work". 
4. A lesson is repeated until learned: A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it ... then you may go on to the next lesson. 
5. Learning lessons DOES NOT end: There is no part of life that does not contain lessons. If you are still alive ... there are lessons to be learned.
6. "THERE" is no better than "HERE": When your there becomes a here, you will simply obtain another 'There' ... that will again ... look better than "Here".
7. Others are merely a mirror of you: You cannot hate or love anything about another person unless it reflects to you something that you love or hate about yourself. 8. What you make of life is up to you: You have all the tools and resources that you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours. The answers lie within you. All you need to do is ... Look ... Listen ... and Trust.
9. You will forget all of this: Unless you stay focused on the goals you have set for yourself, everything you have just read won't mean a thing. 

 Especially for 'my son' Sam Adams, all my other kids, Lee Ann ... and for ME!!

I have never had strong views about human evolution. But in recent years, I got a chance to look at hundreds of articles making claims for it. A summary of what I learned might be useful:

1. Real (and imagined) "human evolution" is now so integral to our culture that demand outpaces authenticity. The disappointing history of Sahelanthropus, Orrorin, and Ardi, all hailed in 2001 as human ancestors, attests to the frustrating search for missing links." Sediba, another supposed ancestor, fared no better in 2013. A science writer at ‘Wired‘, not known for intelligent-design sympathies, derides the ceaseless buzz as "ancestor worship." One outcome is that many "separate species of human ancestors" may never have really existed and "may now have to be wiped from the textbooks."
2. There are signals in the noise! As it happens, they are not the signals many hoped to receive. The half human creature we were originally seeking continues to elude us. From surprisingly early periods, we encounter special respect for the dead and a sense of the divine, along with familiar artifacts and organized activities.
3. Early human religion seems like a 747 built in the basement with an X-Acto knife. No one predicted anything like the Gobekli Tepe find in Turkey: It consists of about twenty stone wall circles (only a few of which have been excavated). Two megaliths face each other in the middle of each ring. The rings are also surrounded by huge, T-shaped stone pillars, some adorned with carvings of dangerous animals. The tallest pillars are about 16 feet and probably weigh seven to ten tons. All of this is done with Stone Age techniques. No one knows for sure what prompted this enormous sacrifice of piety because, of course, no documents survive from nearly 12,000 years ago. Some think that the dramatic appearance of the star Sirius near the moon caused people to wonder. For sure, no animals wondered much or for long.
4. The field is infested with competing trivial explanations. Barbara J. King explains at NPR that human religiosity was primed by the meaning-making, imagination, empathy and rule-following of other primates (primates with whom we shared a common ancestor in the past, or those common ancestors themselves). Other primates never built anything like Gobekli Tepe (or even a village shrine). But such events must nonetheless somehow be accounted for by our kinship with them? In other recent accounts, we are also told that human behavior stems from lower testosterone levels 50,000 years ago. So why did such a fall in hormone levels (by accident, we are expected to suppose) never lead to great achievements in any of the many other thousands of life forms? In yet another account, telling stories makes us human. If what makes us human is simply a description of some things humans can do, we are not looking at an informative explanation.
5. No one seems to want to confront the obvious difficulty: If chimpanzee behavior was any use in understanding human attainments, why did those attainments never happen for chimpanzees? No one wants to accept the obvious fact that humans are different. On top of that, the claim that humans are chimp-pig hybrids has been taken seriously. No, this isn't a feminist denunciation that men are pigs. It is a literal but impossible claim. But it is still "science," according to naturalism.
6. There is also a constant need for different human species that died out, leaving only ourselves, evidence for which would support Darwinian theory. "Flores Man" is an example. Supposedly, a new diminutive species of humans (discovered in 2004) arose, flourished, and died out from earlier than 18,000 years ago: To get a sense of the breadth of positions in the controversy, see "Is the Hobbit's Brain Unfeasibly Small ?" (maybe not); "Compelling Evidence Demonstrates that 'Hobbit' Fossil Does Not Represent a New Species of Hominid"; "Researchers offer alternate theory for found skull's asymmetry" (malformed individual); "'Hobbit' Was an Iodine-Deficient Human, Not Another Species, New Study Suggests." The latest article I'm aware of charges that "Homo floresiensis" is an invalid species classification, and the principal skeleton may have been of a woman who suffered from a genetic disorder, Down syndrome. It hardly sounds like settled science to an observer.
7. The original "new species" was the "not-quite-modern-human" Neanderthal (first noted in 1856). The accepted Darwinian interpretation of humanity requires a long, slow transition from a rodent-like primate to us. No one has observed anything of the kind happening. But, fortunately, Neanderthals weren't around as a distinct people group to complain about what was said about them … so for many decades, they stood in for the not-quite-moderns. Current humans have some Neanderthal genes and it is unclear that the group lived differently from the rest of ancient mankind. So any decisions about them are bound to be political or theological at this point. Commenting on a dispute over a supposed human ancestor, Smithsonian paleoanthropologist Richard Potts told the Wall Street Journal, "Evolution is wonderfully messy." Few would dispute it, but a multitude of conflicting speculations does not add up to progress. Maybe that is too challenging a way to put the question. How about, it comes down to what we can responsibly believe. More to the point, who are we? One thing's for sure: There is no reason, based on any of the above, to abandon a typical traditional religious or

philosophical teaching on the origin, let alone the honor and dignity, of human beings. If anything, the sheer vacuity of claims made on behalf of "modern science" (not, in this case, to be confused with actual science) suggests the opposite.

I read this a few years ago … interesting don’t you agree?
(I also read two translations of the Koran about 7 years ago, and there are at least 17 passages teaching true believers to kill infedels, if they cannot convert or inslave them ~ and it is no sin to kill either slave or infidel. There is also a passage that teaches that anyone who believes Jesus was born of a virgin and is the son of God is a demon and a servant of the devil. Islam is not a "peaceful religion."!  Read your history!)

This is a true story and the author, Rick Mathes, is a well-known leader in prison ministry.
The man who walks with God always gets to his destination.  If you have a pulse you have a purpose.

   The Muslim religion is the fastest growing religion per capita in the United States, especially in the minority races!!  Last month I attended my annual training session that's required for maintaining my state prison security clearance.  During the training session there was a presentation by three speakers representing the Roman Catholic, Protestant and Muslim faiths, who each explained their beliefs.
   I was particularly interested in what the Islamic had to say.  The Muslim gave a great presentation of the basics of Islam, complete with a video.
  After the presentations, time was provided for questions and answers.  When it was my turn, I directed my question to the Muslim and asked:  'Please, correct me if I'm wrong, but I understand that most Imams and clerics of Islam have declared a holy jihad [Holy war] against the infidels of the world and, that by killing an infidel, (which is a command to all Muslims) they are assured of a place in heaven. If that's the case, can you give me the definition of an infidel?'
  There was no disagreement with my statements and, without hesitation, he replied, 'Non-believers!'  I responded, 'So, let me make sure I have this straight. All followers of Allah have been commanded to kill everyone who is not of your faith so they can have a place in heaven. Is that correct?'
   The expression on his face changed from one of authority and command to that of a little boy who had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.'  He sheepishly replied, 'Yes.'
   I then stated, 'Well, sir, I have a real problem trying to imagine The Pope commanding all Catholics to kill those of your faith or Dr. Stanley ordering all Protestants to do the same in order to guarantee them a place in heaven!'
   The Muslim was speechless! I continued, 'I also have a problem with being your friend when you and your brother clerics are telling your followers to kill me! Let me ask you a question:  ‘Would you rather have your Allah, who tells you to kill me in order for you to go to heaven, or my Jesus who tells me to love you because I am going to heaven and He wants you to be there with me?'  You could have heard a pin drop as the Imam hung his head in shame.
    Needless to say, the organizers and/or promoters of the 'Diversification' training seminar were not happy with my way of dealing with the Islamic Imam, and exposing the truth about the Muslims' beliefs.  In twenty years there will be enough Muslim voters in the U.S. to elect the President! I think everyone in the WORLD should be required to read this, but with the ACLU, there is no way this will be widely publicized, unless each of us sends it on! This is your chance to make a difference...
    Please, for Christ's sake, send it on!