Wait... What?
March 29, 2012

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Music Association: Genesis - Misunderstanding





Movie Review
Hugo (2011) by Martin Scorsese
March 28, 2012

Recently while watching the movie Hugo in spectacular 3D, I had the feeling I had seen it before.

I get déjà vu a great deal. (Didn't I just say that?!?) And Hugo is something of an homage to silent films; I got that, but there was something else.

Then it hit me.

I got a big, goofy grin on my face.



I realized where I'd seen this before.

This was the pilot of Moonlighting.


Moonlighting was the TV show that launched the career of Bruce Willis. The Moonlighting pilot was all about a watch that didn't work, just like Hugo was about an automaton that didn't work. David and Maddie form a partnership to solve the mystery, like Hugo and Isabelle. They get in trouble and are chased, standard stuff. Their nemesis is a well-dressed bald man with white hair on the sides played by Robert Ellenstein (Moonlighting) and Ben Kingsley (Hugo).



And the main character winds up holding on to the arms of a giant clock.


Here's Harold Lloyd in Safety Last, Cybil Sheppard (stand-in) in Moonlighting, and Asa Butterfield in Hugo. This shot from Safety Last (1923) was only about a block from where the Eastern Columbia Building went up in 1930, which was the cliff hanger location for the Moonlighting pilot.

I've enjoyed all three movies. I recommend the trilogy.

I seem to be the only movie reviewer on the 'net that made the Hugo - Moonlighting connection... at least, at this time.

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Music Associations: The Four Seasons - Let's Hang On (To What We've Got); Babys - Isn't It Time; & Pink Floyd - Time
Movie Associations: Safety Last (1923); ABC Sunday Night Movie: Moonlighting (1985); & Hugo (2011)







The Trouble with the Golden Rule
March 27, 2012

A key plot-point of my novel is the unintended consequences of being anonymously nice.

The kindness of strangers can be very influential.

It's something I do, whenever possible. And it can leave people with this "What just happened?" look on their faces. I've spotted people going back through the motions of what they did to see if that nice thing would happen again.

Not that you should make a leap of logic and decide that all Minnesotans are nice. Minnesotans can walk on water, we drive on water (half the year), but Minnesotans are not all nice. If they were, my random anonymous acts of kindness wouldn't seem so unusual.

I have a deep understanding and kinship with the title character of Amélie Poulain (2001) by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who becomes wrapped up with her anonymous acts of kindness, guided by her immense heart. A domino effect of karma zips through her world due to her simple-yet-significant acts.

The problem I have with both karma and the golden rule is the focus on the reciprocity of the thing, sort of "do good because it will come back to you." No. That's not why I do good. It's not recycling. I don't need or expect a return gift. I'm not looking for attention or name recognition. It's not like the key line of Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls, "I just want you to know who I am." I don't. It isn't about me. Forget me.

The key to life is not some Golden Boomerang.

Most religions preach the Golden Boomerang:
►  Ancient Egyptian (Maat) -- Do to the doer to cause that he do thus to you.
►  Buddhism (Udana-Varga 5,1) -- Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.
►  Christianity (Matthew 7:12; Luke 6:31) -- Whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them.
►  Hinduism (Mahabharata 5,1517) -- Do naught onto others what you would not have them do unto you.
►  Judaism (Leviticus 19:18) -- Love your neighbor as yourself.

Taoism preaches a step further:
►  Taoism (Tai Shang Kan Ying P’ien) -- Regard your neighbor’s gain as your gain, and your neighbor’s loss as your own loss.

Islam preaches a step further:
►  Islam (Quran 13:22, 23:96, 41:34, 28:54, 42:40) -- Return evil with kindness.

The trouble with most of these rules is the reciprocity, that gift for a gift (as Hammurabi might say).

The other problem, probably the biggest problem, is the inconsistencies of the religions. They fail to practice what they preach.

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Music Associations: Culture Club - Karma Chameleon & Ratt - Round and Round  "What comes around goes around."
& Jill Jackson - The Golden Rule Song  "It’s just the Golden Rule, the olden Golden Rule; do, do unto others, as you want them to, do, do, do unto you."







Turned Water Into Wine
March 26, 2012

Years ago, my father turned water into wine. It might have been a miracle, I don't know. I didn't see it happen. He wanted to show me how he did it, but I didn't see a practicality to it. I was unimpressed.

Here's a tip for you: If someone turns water into wine, be impressed. Even if that someone is related to you.

One of the reasons I was unimpressed was that it had been done before. I knew water had been turned to wine by Jesus. And I was unimpressed because I was raised to be an independent thinker.

Now I'm trying to take the pieces he told me and put together how he turned water into wine.

Googling "water into wine" leads to magic tricks using sodium hydroxide or sodium carbonate with phenolphthalein to turn water red. But there is a giant difference between turning water red and turning it into wine.

One of the things my dad said -- he really wanted to show me, not tell me -- is that he started with wine. Starting with wine to turn water into wine is something other than miraculous. Also trying it several times before getting it right sounds kind of not-miracle-like.

He started by taking cheap wine and boiling off much of the water. "The result," said my father the non-drinker, "was good." Essentially he turned the wine to brandy.

Reminds me of a joke. How do you make holy water? You boil the hell out of it.

Jesus Turns Water To Wine
Biblically, here's what happened. According to John 2:1-11 (~69 CE), Jesus, his mother Mary, and his disciples were at a wedding in Galilee's Cana. They ran out of wine. Mary essentially tells Jesus to do something about it. Jesus basically says, "No, it isn't time." Mary wins. There are six empty 20-30 gallon ceramic jars. Imagine six ceramic kegs.  Hopefully they were sitting right next to a spring or an aqueduct. Jesus had the jars filled with water. The contents were then sampled and declared "good wine." This is a parable of a wedding, representing the new life. The good wine is Christ's message. The bad wine is the teachings of other prophets. And Mary is the feminine, the encouragement, and the rejuvenation. A parable teacher is teaching a message; the event may have occurred or may not have occurred; the message is the key.

Historical Background
According to a 1919 book by Charles Simmonds, "the word 'alcohol' is derived from the Arabic al-koh'l... indicated a dye or stain in the form of fine powder, and afterwards any fine powder. Exactly how the word came to be applied to the spirit obtained from wine is not very definitely known..."

Galilee (as part of Judea, part of Syria) was part of the Roman Empire, and the Roman Empire had a 20% tax on wine, fruit, and olive oil and a 10% tax on grains. There was no tax on mysterious powders.

Wine powder would be easy to transport and would avoid Roman taxes. 

Residue
My father mentioned creating a residue that he scraped off and crushed into a powder. Powdered wines are available today, usually for backpackers.

I've heard of dry wines before, but that's the driest.

But could wine powder create wine that would impress a wedding crowd? The Bible used the Greek word oinos; this was wine not grape juice or Kool-Aid. Many a punch bowl has been spiked with grain alcohol (not powdered alcohol). Grain alcohol plus the wine powder could turn water to wine

My father probably turned wine to powder, then mixed the powder, water, and some high proof alcohol, like grain alcohol, to re-create wine.  Jesus did the same thing... or performed a miracle.

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Music Associations: Jefferson Starship - Miracles & Johnny Cash - He Turned Water Into Wine






Book Review
The Evolution of a Western God: 30,000 B.C.E. to the Now by Maurice Webster
March 23, 2012

The Evolution of a Western God: 30,000 B.C.E. to the Now by Maurice Webster is a journey through the origins of religion and science.

This is a scholarly ride from pre-history to the present, the history of monotheistic, western religion and science, where they met and where they diverged.

The book explores paths other history books fear to tread, leisurely crossing related scholarly disciplines without regard to their traditional boundaries. Most students of religion take one narrow path of study. They stick to that path without regard to parallel and intersecting paths of other religions, math, science, and the environments that caused changes in the course.

Chaim Potok's Wanderings - History of the Jews and Richard Friedman's Who Wrote The Bible are great works of religious history, but both take narrow paths, compared to Webster's Evolution of a Western God.

This is a road less traveled but not traveled alone. Behind the scenes (and emerging from behind the curtain here and there) is a love story, a story of how the author and his (late) wife read and explored these concepts for nearly fifty years, before Mr. Webster put it in print.

The books they read and the lectures they attended are thoroughly annotated, inviting readers to share the complete journey.

The journey is assisted by artwork from the author and others.

Evolution of a Western God addresses the foundation of western beliefs -- where they're steering us and where they've left us adrift. That's half the point. It's a concern for where we're going.

Math Problems
While Evolution of a Western God shows math's role in the divergence of religion and science, I will take it a step further.

Religious groups that divide should instead be providing the moral and ethical views that will unite, that will lead to peace. Religion is not meeting its expectations.

In 1550, the world had 500 million people. In 1804, a billion people. In 1922, two billion people. In 1959, three billion. In 1974, four billion. In 1987, five billion. In 1999, six billion. In 2011, seven billion. You see where this is headed.

All because of Genesis 1:28, where God said, "Be fruitful and multiply." Okay, we've done that. I think we can check that one off. 

Each year, deforestation clears the equivalent of Panama (about 30,000 square miles). About half (48%) is for subsistence farming. The nutrient poor soil is quickly depleted, leading subsistence farmers to be continually on the move (burning & depleting, burning & depleting). A third (32%) of the deforestation is for commercial agriculture. Fourteen percent is for logging and five percent for fuel wood.

In the other part of Genesis 1:28, God said, "Fill the earth and subdue it." Okay, okay, the Earth is subdued. It yields. It gives up. Uncle already. We're losing our air filter.

And Now Back to the Book Review
Read The Evolution of a Western God: 30,000 B.C.E. to the Now by Maurice Webster. It brings religion up-to-date.

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Music Association - Sam Cooke - Wonderful World








The Science of God
March 22, 2012

Imagine staring into a telescope or microscope only to find another eye staring back at you.

For centuries, scientists have looked for God. They've searched the world, the microscopic world, the stars, the human body, our DNA, and reasoning.

Famous Scientists and God
René Descartes (mathematician, scientist and philosopher; 1596-1650) used circular logic in his Meditationes de Prima Philosophia that God exists.

Isaac Newton (astronomer, physicist, mathematician, and alchemist; 1642-1727) said in his Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica that the "beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets, could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being."

Albert Einstein (theoretical physicist 1879-1955) is often quoted as saying, "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind." Einstein did not believe in a personal God, but in a "God who reveals Himself in the harmony of what exists."

The Survey Says...
Half of scientists (51%) surveyed by Pew Research in 2009 say they believe in God or a higher power, while 41% say they do not. In 1914, psychologist James Leuba surveyed 1,000 U.S. scientists about their views on God. He found the scientific community evenly divided, with 42% saying that they believed in a personal God and the same number saying they did not. [source: LA Times]

A 2005 University of Chicago study found 76% of doctors believed in God and 59% believed in some sort of afterlife. Another 2005 study (Rice University) found two-thirds of scientists believe in God (or at least two-thirds of the 1,646 research university faculty members surveyed). [source: LiveScience]

Feynman's Imaginary Panel of Experts
Richard Feynman (physicist, 1918-1988) imagines a panel of scientists and spiritualists discussing questions of science and religion in a chapter of his book, The Pleasure of Finding Things Out.

He questions the imaginary panel why a student of science might come to doubt his religious beliefs. He runs through some cruddy (my word, not his) answers he imagines getting from the panel, and then suggests a difficulty in welding science and religion together:


Feynman says that religion "tells us how to behave in life in general, in a moral way.  It gives answers to moral questions; it gives a moral and ethical code.  Let me call this the ethical aspect of religion... [People] must be reminded of the moral values in order that they may be able to follow their consciences.  It is not simply a matter of having a right conscience; it is also a question of maintaining strength to do what you know is right.  And it is necessary that religion give strength and comfort and the inspiration to follow these moral views... I don't believe that a real conflict with science will arise in the ethical aspect, because I believe that moral questions are outside of the scientific realm."

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Music Association: The Script - Science and Faith



© Calvin & Hobbes by Bill Watterson, 1991. Couldn't find which of my twelve Calvin & Hobbes books this was in, so I linked it to the collected works.







Religious Comedy
March 21, 2012

George Carlin edited the Ten Commandments down to two: "Thou shalt always be honest and faithful. Thou shalt try real hard not to kill anyone... unless they pray to a different invisible man than the one you pray to."


Sam Kinison said, "It all goes back to Jesus. He didn't even know he was the son of God. As a child, his mother told him, 'You're the son of God. When you were born the angels came, the stars stood in one place, the wise men brought gifts, and the whole world's been waiting for you to come and do great things.'  Jesus said, 'Really? Me? Are you sure?'  Joseph's walking around going, 'Yeah, you had better be the son of God, I'll tell you that. You had better be him, little mister. And you better be the only son of God.'"

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Music Association: Delta Goodrem - God Laughs






Take a Seat
March 20, 2012

When you sit in an audience, do you tend to sit on the left or on the right? (Or left of center or right of center?)

A study conducted years ago said that left brain (analytical, objective) people sit on the left. Right brain (intuitive, subjective) people sit on the right. Like all sociological studies, it was packed full of generalizations. I consider myself analytical for some subjects and intuitive in others; where I sit tends to follow that model, based on what the subject is.

Take religion, please.

Imagine you are simultaneously stepping into a church, a mosque, and a temple. It is possible that people seated on the left have more in common with people seated on the left in other places of worship, than those seated on the right in their own place of worship.

I know, it's heresy to imagine -gasp- common beliefs amongst religions -- too often hell-bent on destroying one another.

[I shouldn't have said "hell-bent." I apologize. I should have said," H-E- two, tall, religious icons... bent."]

So looking at a map of the religions of the world, you might see this:


Or else, the world looks more like this:


We aren't all the same, but we are more alike than different. And religions are not as uniform as they think they are.

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Music Associations: John Lennon - Imagine & REM - Losing My Religion











Drinkin' In The Green
March 19, 2012

Drinking in the green on St. Patrick's Day, I could taste the clover.

Not clover actually, more like chlorella, spirulina (arthrospira), and blue green algae (really taste the algae), barley and wheat grass, broccoli, spinach, parsley... all mixed with 2 ¾ apples, ½ banana, ⅓ kiwi (really taste the kiwi), and ⅓ mango.

Eat your heart out shamrock shake.

Literally. According to a 2001 Virginia University study, "daily dietary supplementation with chlorella may reduce high blood pressure, lower serum cholesterol levels, accelerate wound healing, and enhance immune functions." Sounds ♥ friendly. [Oops, I accidentally hit the ♥ key instead of typing out "heart," which is understandable here, but if I hit the ♣ key instead of typing out "shamrock," somebody might have thought, "What's a clubs shake?!?"]

The Green Machine was a great St. Patrick's Day drink. But it could use some clover.

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Music Associations: Joan Jett - Crimson and Clover & Beatles - Penny Lane "It's a green machine."









Taste O' Luck
March 17, 2012


When I was a kid, I used to find scores of four-leaf clovers. People say that four-leaf clovers are a lucky find, but not what to do with them. Some people save them. To me, if four-leaf clovers are lucky, then to carry them around is like the death of luck or it's like luck in storage. Luck shouldn't be kept in storage. What's it going to do, earn interest?

Four-leaf clovers should be eaten. They're tangy. I've never eaten ordinary clover leaves, so I don't know if all clovers are tangy or if it's the luck that makes them tangy. All I know is that four-leaf clovers are tangy. And I'm lucky.

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Music Associations: Faith Hill - Lucky One
& John Fogerty - Fortunate Son





Whiskey Mist
March 16, 2012

Everyone has their problems. I distract bartenders.

Noticing tattoos on some of his fingers, I commented on them while he was pouring. He glanced at his fingers. The whiskey hit the rim of the shot glass, spraying a whiskey mist across the bar.

"What if you had a tattoo of liquid measurement lines up your finger?" I asked. "You know, one ounce, two ounce, three ounce..."

He laughed a bit, spraying more whiskey around.

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Music Association: Metallica - Whiskey In The Jar

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