Brandywine Books
Journalist Loosed on Unsuspecting Public
This being Free Speech Week, it's appropriate to set a reporter free.
NY Times reporter Judith Miller was released from federal detention yesterday after she promised to testify before a grand jury today.
She says, "I am leaving jail today because my source has now voluntarily and personally released me from my promise of confidentiality regarding our conversations relating to the Wilson-Plame matter." The "voluntarily and personally" part come from her disbelief that the public release of her pledge was coerced. Her NY Times editor says, "At the outset, she had only a generic waiver of this obligation, and she believed she had ample reason to doubt it had been freely given. In recent days, several important things have changed that convinced Judy that she was released from her obligation."
All of this says to me the NY Times figured out how to cover themselves before the grand jury, which in case you forgot, holds confidential hearings. Nothing is known about grand jury testimony unless someone leaks it. This whole investigation is odd, because it started over a media drum-beating for
Robert Novak to reveal his source, charging he jeopardized non-secret agent Plame's life by releasing her already released name.
Ms. Malkin quotes from
a fistful of articles on this, including
The Corner's John Podhoretz:
I hope some day somebody writes all this down, because the whole story is unbelievable. Miller never writes a story about Plamegate, but insists she must keep her sources secret, even though the name of her primary source, Cheney chief of staff Scooter Libby, has long since been a matter of public record -- and has publicly released her from her pledge of anonymity. She decides to go to jail to protect the principle of source anonymity, and is only weeks away from being sprung (because the grand jury she was refusing to talk to will go out of business in October) before she abandons her stand on principle and decides to talk. And all this in relation to a matter that may well not have been a crime to begin with. Weird wacko crazy bananas.
It's just as crazy bad that the NY Times is playing the observer in all of this. It's their reporter, and in a sense, their source and credibility. They could clear up matters. Or (as some suggest) would clearing up matters reveal that the confidential source is themselves? - phil
Today
Today, a co-worker and I discovered you can't change the shipping address when ordering from one of our favorite technology vendor sites. We were baffled at the time, but we assume there's a good reason to prevent users from shipping an order to anywhere they want. Can't imagine what.
Also today, I work in an office building which has a good-sized pond between it and the four lane access road built to service the Walmart American Dream and Yogurt Emporium next door. We have three recent ducks and regular flock of Canadian geese most of the year. Recently, we have been blessed with 9-10 dozen fuzzy brown ducks. I didn't count, so that could be a high estimate. Earlier today, I saw three children timidly approaching the ducks. Their car was across the parking lot, and they didn't want to get closer than halfway to the pond. The older child, 11 maybe, had bread crumbs. When the ducks flocked towards them--waddling, no wing-flapping occurred--the children freaked. Maybe the new ducks have fangs. Maybe they are just 'wild' animals. But those kids scampered back to their car, screaming "Let me in!"
So, what'd you do today?
Adventures in Bad Theology
Challies reviews
Invitation to Solitude and Silence with this:
Had I been the editor, I might have suggested [a subtitle] a little more appropriate. Perhaps "A Textbook in Eisogesis" or "Constructing Complex Theology From Non-Supporting Scriptures." And really this book is an adventure in poor use of Scripture and unsupported statements.
She's a Witch, Ban Her!
Remember, it's
Banned Books Week, so do your part and ban some worthless book today. For just a little bit more on this,
turn the page.
A Public Service Announcement (void where prohibited)
Where to Find Your Cup of Tea
Looking for a tea room or respectable establishment which offers real tea, not a coffee service's orange pekoe blend? Perhaps, this handy
tea map will help. If you're in my part of this beautiful country, stop in at
The English Rose for British biscuits and jams with a steaming cup for restoring your tissues. It may be a bit girlie, but think of yourself as Rudyard Kipling away from the jungle and you'll make due. If you want a different atmosphere, go to
Greyfriar's on Broad Street, between Lupi's Italian pub and "All Books--Used & Rare Books, Fudge, Yogurt, and more."
I'll See Your Meme and Raise You Another
Today, Kevin passed on this
meme:
- Go into your archive.
- Find your 23rd post (or closest to).
- Find the fifth sentence (or closest to).
- Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.
I don't understand why I posted the way I did two years ago, but the posts confuse me a bit when trying to count them. Here are two candidates for the sentence requested by the puny meme god:
- "Milan Kundera once observed, 'The heavier the burden, the closer our lives come to the earth, the more real and truthful they become.'"
- "Maybe his book will sell as well as hers."
Which you do you like better, eh?
Now, let me suggest this simple meme?
- Find a blog you don't read.
- Go to the third post down.
- Quote the second sentence from that post along with these instructions and with links to the blog and post.
- End your post with "Thanks to Collected Miscellany" with the link.
Here's my submission:
"I didn't get it finished-finished until this morning." from
The Crochet Dude.
Thanks to
Collected Miscellany.
Since You Insist, I'll Fly Out
Here's a second Monday post in light of William Faulkner's birthday, September 25, 1897. A page on the
Ole Miss website records this story:
While working for MGM Studios in Oxford, MS, Faulkner received a directive to fly to New Orleans to work on dialogue for a picture called Louisiana Lou, which was being filmed there. As Faulkner says, "I could have got on a train in Oxford and been in New Orleans eight hours later, but I obeyed the studio and went to Memphis, where an airplane occasionally did leave for New Orleans. Three days later one did."
Wish Your Publisher a Happy Monday
"It's easy to become a publisher but difficult to remain one." - Michael Joseph
"Publishers are demons, there's no doubt about it." - William James
(from
a book of quotations edited by James Charlton)
Christian Retailers Coordinating Data
By the end of this week, hundreds of stores in the Christian Booksellers Association (CBA) will begin submitting their sales information to the CBA's new, free, data service, CROSS:SCAN. CROSS (Christian Retail Official Sales Statistics):SCAN will enable the stores to analyze what is selling throughout the CBA, greatly improving their ability to deal with increasing competition.
"Retailers will not have access to store-specific or group-specific information, but only a fully aggregate picture that will show what products are moving, which will better equip them for inventory decision-making. CROSS:SCAN will identify fast-moving products, and products that have made significant jumps or declines in sales in the previous week,"
according to the press release.Will this encourage CBA member store to synchronize their inventories, essentially eliminating variety, or will this give each store the freedom to push select local interests, knowing it has stocked the popular sellers already? And when will these stores begin to herald Brandywine Books as their blog friend for life? I should print bookmarks and distribute them throughout the southeast.
- phil
Who Is This Jeeves Guy? They Ask
Armavirumque passes on the news that search engine
Ask.com will phase out their leading character, our man Jeeves, citing user confusion. "What's more laughable," Armavirumque asks, "that people aren't acquainted with Jeeves, or that, faced with this debilitating 'confusion,' it doesn't occur to them to
use the search engine to investigate?"
So I typed in "Who is Jeeves" in the Ask search engine. Fourth down is an About page from Ask itself. "Our man
Jeeves is a dignified and noble fellow, to be sure, but even he lets his, ahem, hair down every now and again." Now, if you think to follow the
P.G. Wodehouse link at the foot of most pages, you'll learn that the author created the character and everyone loves him. But if I was totally ignorant of Jeeves identity, know he was a great butler would be enough for me. I'd assume Ask.com created him, and that would be the end of it. What's the confusion? - phil
Authors Auction Naming Opportunities for Benefit
Several authors are giving eBay users the opportunity to bid on having their names put in upcoming novels. It varies a bit with each author, but that's the gist. The money will go to The First Amendment Project (FAP), a legal defense group which I hope defends all infringements on free speech, free press, free religious exercise and gathering, not just liberal ones. The most recent example I found on FAP's site is a defense of a political artist whose printing company destroyed or rejected a couple offensive compositions regarding Bush and Abu Graib. But maybe FAP defends more than the reprehensible. If you don't care to bid on placement in a book, you can donate $35 to receive an FAP "Generate Degenerate Art" thong.
But back to the authors. Bidding on several authors has already ended. One person won placement in Stephen King's next zombie thriller, Cell, with a donation of $25,100.
Dave Eggers offers: "The winner will be featured in a strange illustrated story I'm working on called The Journey of the Fishes Overland. The winner, or someone of her/his choosing, will be encountered by the traveling fish in question, as they travel over land. It could also be a family, a house, an address, whatever. I get to decide why the fishes see this person/place, and what's said by/to or done by/to the person/place. This story will be finished and published in the fall. The name/s have to be tasteful and be undisruptive to the narrative. I reserve the right to refuse using a name I find offensive."
- phil
Did the Lord Teach Us Nothing?
I like this passage from Lars' book,
The Year of the Warrior, in which the hero is talking to his blind friend, Helge:
. . . I told Helge about Eyvind Ragnvaldsson. "He says the world is an illusion, subject to shaping by those who've trained themselves in secret truths. It's heresy, of course--buut that knife passed straight through his body. I saw it. It jarred me, friend. I'll say this to you, and to no other living man: Suppose we misunderstood our Lord? Suppose He rose from the dead because He knew that the world of things is but a dream and so was able to impose His will on the dream?"
"That's easier to believe, I think, when you live by sight. For me, who must meet the world by ever barking my shins on it, it's hard to shrug off bodies so lightly."
"But suppose we can't trust any of our senses?"
"Then why believe what you saw Eyvind do? The knife that passed through him cuts both ways."
"You're right, of course. I never thought of it so."
"But it goes further. You must decide what you believe. Do you believe that our Lord spent three years with His disciples, and they learned nothing from Him at all? Absorbed not an inkling of His real teaching? If so, He was the worst teacher ever born. Can you really believe that?"
- phil
Quiz or something
David Bayly (Bai-lee) suggests you are not "cultured" unless you can answer
a variety of insipid questions. I'm sorry. They look like good enough questions to me, though there are two on the Beatles and that doesn't seem right. His first question drew me, so I present the opportunity for your to test your "culture" now.
1. Tell, within a dozen, how many books P. G. Wodehouse wrote. Shoot, make it within thirty…
2. Name the song playing on the radio when Duke’s Samoan attorney threw the grapefruit into the bathtub.
3. Fill in the blank, “I love the smell of _____________ in the morning.”
4. Tell what machine Toad fell in love with after being thrown from his caravan.
5. Name the Who’s original drummer.
6. Describe the procedure for trapping a heffalump.
Read on. I can confidently answer eight or so. To give you that edge you need at your next cocktail party or blog discussion, the answer to #1 is 96. I think. What is the story behind #2? I don't know that one. - phil
I Am The Nameless Simmons
Green dress on white silouette, Tom Wolfe's name, and on the back, reviews.
Charlotte Simmons in paperback has no title on its cover. Does this edition say, "Surely you remember this one from talk of the hardback," or does it say, "The girl is the title; do you really need words"?
"We are using Tom Wolfe's name as a brand, rather than the title of the book. He is an icon himself," said Tanya Farrell, publicity director,
tells Reuters. - phil
Today
Today, I was standing on my front walk examining the health of our
impatiens when a hummingbird joined me. It was a bit large and slow for a hummingbird, so I was able to get a good look at its beautiful green breast and needle bill.
What did you do today? - phil
Weather Related
"Thought and beauty, like a hurricane or waves, should not know conventional, delimited forms."
--
Chekhov
Samuel Johnson
Speaking of Shakespeare, note
Sherry's post on the second most-quoted author in the English language,
Samuel Johnson, whose birthday of September 18, 1709. She lists some details of his life and several quotes, though I think her first quote on wine could easily apply to blogging. Johnson said, "One of the disadvantages of wine is that it makes a man mistake words for thoughts." I'll say the blogosphere has the same effect on some of us. More thought, fewer words, as my Gaffer always says.
Another one I though Mark Twain had said. "I never desire to converse with a man who has written more than he has read." Maybe they both said it.
First Thing Monday: Kill Lawyers
They mentioned Shakespeare in the judicial confirmation hearings before the Senate last week, so I offer you some Monday humor from Shakespeare's
The Second Part of King Henry the Sixth, in which common men yield forth on noble matters. This quotation is taken from
The Oxford Shakespeare on Bartleby.com.
George Bevis. "I tell thee, Jack Cade the clothier means to dress the commonwealth, and turn it, and set a new nap upon it. "
John Holland. "So he had need, for ’tis threadbare. Well, I say it was never merry world in England since gentlemen came up. "
George. "O miserable age! Virtue is not regarded in handicrafts-men."
John. "The nobility think scorn to go in leather aprons."
George. "Nay, more; the king’s council are no good workmen."
John. "True; and yet it is said, ‘Labour in thy vocation:’ which is as much to say as, let the magistrates be labouring men; and therefore should we be magistrates."
George. "Thou hast hit it; for there’s no better sign of a brave mind than a hard hand."
. . . [John Cade, Dick the butcher, Smith the weaver, and others enter. Cade, a talor, delivers a message to the crowd, presenting himself as a noble captain who will take the throne of England.]
Cade. ". . . Therefore am I of an honourable house."
Dick. [Aside.] "Ay, by my faith, the field is honourable; and there was he born, under a hedge; for his father had never a house but the cage."
Cade. "Valiant I am."
Smith. [Aside.] "A’ must needs, for beggary is valiant."
Cade. "I am able to endure much."
Dick. [Aside.] "No question of that, for I have seen him whipped three market-days together."
. . .
Cade. "Be brave, then; for your captain is brave, and vows reformation. There shall be in England seven halfpenny loaves sold for a penny; the three-hooped pot shall have ten hoops; and I will make it felony to drink small beer. All the realm shall be in common, and in Cheapside shall my palfrey go to grass. And when I am king--as king I will be--"
All. "God save your majesty!"
Cade. "I thank you, good people: there shall be no money; all shall eat and drink on my score; and I will apparel them all in one livery, that they may agree like brothers, and worship me their lord."
Dick. The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.
Cade. Nay, that I mean to do. Is not this a lamentable thing, that of the skin of an innocent lamb should be made parchment? that parchment, being scribbled o’er, should undo a man? Some say the bee stings; but I say, ’tis the bee’s wax, for I did but seal once to a thing, and I was never mine own man since.
Do You Buy Through Blog Ads?
Some blogs have a advertising on them, and many of the ads I see are for books. Have you ever purchased a book through one of these ads? Have you ever bought a book because you saw one of these ads though not by clicking through it?
- phil
Horror: When Evil Comes
Were we talking about Christians writing horror stories the other day? Looks as if Melanie Wells is following that line of thought with her book,
When the Day of Evil Comes. Watch the trailer through that link and hear of "a special gift for you." Amazon's uber-reviewer
Harriet Klausner calls it "very scary." - phil
Which Cover Is Approved?
Forward, a book design blog, points out a change to the cover art on
After You've Blown It, a book on restoring one's relationships with God and others after sin. This is the
original cover from
Parable.com. Here is the
revised cover on Amazon. Some say the original cover has sexual overtones. Others think that's a stretch. Get the details on
Forward's blog. And please forgive me if this is below the excellent tenor of subject matter published here at BwB. At least, I have avoided discussing
certain books. - phil
* I have now learned that the publisher sent the offending cover art to a few vendors before it was fully approved. It was corrected or improved before release, so it was never the cover on the printed book. Apparently, the vendors use that first cover art submission for their sites and don't check for corrections or changes when they get the books.
Today
Today, I heard the rain falling beyond my window when the storm stopped by my neighborhood for a couple minutes this evening. I love the sound of rain, and I wanted to open the window to listen; but I didn't. What did I have to do more important? I don't remember now.
What did you do today? - phil
Poetry's Butthead and How to Cure It
Arma Virumque is praising the new direction of
Poetry magazine. In this light, I'm considering a subscription. I should read it online for a bit first probably.
This month's
editorial describes the process for reviewing poetry books. Readers, or at least those who write the editors, are a little irritated at some of the recent reviews. One letter-writer says, "In their own spirit, I need to say that [the reviews] seem like the work of cheeky young narcissists who elect negativity at the expense of informed analysis, substituting shallowness for depth, attitude for understanding." The editors say they have a few reviewing rules which culminate in a clearly expressed opinion. They believe there has been some pretty sad poetry reviewing going on, so established these rules a couple years ago.
"Not only was there a great deal of obvious logrolling going on (friends reviewing friends, teachers promoting students, young poets writing strategic reviews of older poets in power), but the writing was just so polite, professional, and dull."
No more descriptions without judgment. Bring in reviewers who believe readers may want to read good poetry in their free time. Positive and negative reviews "not only give some ballast and context to the critical praise, [they] also [are] a gesture toward treating poetry as a public art in the same way that films or novels are, both of which are routinely and fiercely argued over in the mainstream media. . . a service to serious readers."
Of course, this reviewing policy causes us great conflicts and disappointment at times. Anyone who has followed the magazine over the past two years can't help but recognize that we are often in the position of printing negative reviews of poets whose work we have published extensively. . . .
Omnibus reviewers are the most difficult reviewers to find and the most difficult to keep. This is mostly due to the climate of the times, in which established poets almost never say what they think about a range of new books and often lower the boom on younger poets who do. Still, we believe it's a fight worth fighting. Poetry is not served by protecting it like some endangered species; quite the opposite, in fact. There are all kinds of signs that a much larger audience for poetry exists in this country, and there are also signs that poetry itself is, to paraphrase D.H. Tracy's (positive!) review of Glyn Maxwell's latest book, trying to pull its head out of its behind. Here at Poetry, we're doing everything we can to encourage both of these developments.
New Memoir on the Writing Life
Jonathan Yardley praises Lynn Freed's new
memoir which deals mostly with the writing life, saying it's on par with O'Connor's and Welty's books on writing--essential. The review is inspiring; the memoir probably is too. Here are some quotes:
Freed knows, contrary to what the writing gurus would have their acolytes believe, that not everyone can be a writer, that writing is hard, that talent is necessary, not to mention "long years of practice and a ruthless determination to succeed."
She discovered that too many writing students, aided and abetted by their professors, knew little about "the literary canon" and instead were steeped in "contemporary fiction, particularly that which has emerged from writing programs like [their] own."
Talent is the naked emperor of writing programs.
Nothing seems to make a writer stupider than thinking. Rational intelligence has little bearing on fictional intelligence; it can make one forget the contradictions inherent in life, the constancy only of surprise.
Go read the rest.
Should Christians Make Horror Films or Books?
I missed this post before, but it came to my attention after Lars' recommendation of
Emily Rose yesterday. Warren Kelly, blogging on World's Cinema Veritas, asks ,"
Why aren't there more Christians making horror movies?" He suggests the genre is honest about the spiritual world and would allow boldly Christian themes. Why do Christians avoid it? Because it's unpleasant and doesn't work with feel-good stories.
Warren quotes from
an interview with the director of
Emily Rose. Here's another part of that interview:
. . . there was a line in [Walker Percy's] Lancelot that said, "'Evil' is surely the clue to this age, the only quest appropriate to the age. For everything and everyone's either wonderful or sick and nothing is evil Â? God may be absent, but what if someone should find the Devil?" It really started to resonate with me, that this was the genre where a Christian could connect with mainstream culture, and there was potential there to not preach to the choirÂ?not even preach to the culture, but connect with the culture. And that is certainly what I have been trying to do with a lot of my work. And in the case of The Exorcism of Emily Rose, I was very committed to not making a movie that was intended to give spiritual or religious or metaphysical answers to the audience. I really just wanted to make a film that was going to provoke the mainstream audience to ask themselves what they believe, and cause them to come away from the film provoked to think about and discuss spiritual matters and spiritual issues that I think are profoundly important.
The interviewer asks, "How do you avoid what some might consider a fascination with evil?" The director answers that he tries to maintain a balance between eating too much and eating too little scary material.
So, are horror movies a great Christian film genre as the director and the blogger suggest? I don't think so. I know the genre can be broadly defined. While growing up, I thoroughly enjoyed
a BBC series which I learned afterward was sci-fi/horror. So I have no problem with broadly defined horror, and I probably wouldn't mind, if not actually appreciate,
Emily Rose.
(The Sixth Sense, edited for tv, wasn't bad.) But Hellraiser or Elm Street? The violence and gore of horror films is what is so repelling. Even with an intelligent story, like perhaps
Silence of the Lambs has, many of us would dislike it without seeing it. Could heinously violent film carry a redeeming message of hope? Sure it could. You may even be able to see how it could be done in terms of existing stories like
Se7en or
Saw. But did you see
To End All Wars? What a powerful story! If Christian filmmakers are to be encouraged to focus a bit on evil to draw in a secular audience, I vote for the tangible evil in stories like this over the sensationalized spirits in horror stories.
But really this subject is a step beyond most Christian films. We aren't sitting on dozens of strong Christian movies, asking why more of them aren't horror stories. We're still wondered where the strong Christian movies are.
Love in the Afternoon
In mind for a brief love story afternoon reading
that horror movie review? Look into "
Midafternoon Apocalypse" by
J. Mark Bertrand at
The New Pantagruel. I just read it and enjoyed it. Here's a line I loved:
Stella's lips invited comparison to the texture of fruit, split open, veined, wet. When she smiled, you always took it as an invitation, though it mostly wasn't. She granted my theory a smile so inviting that my head dipped forward to meet it, but she turned away.
Bravo, Mr. Bertrand. May the Lord continue to bless you. - phil
I Dedicate This Book to Merlot Who Stayed With Me to the End
Here's a Monday thought from the book
Electronic Principles, by Albert Paul Malvino. The dedication,
according to this site, reads:
To Joanna,
My brilliant and beautiful wife without whom I would be nothing. She always comforts and consoles, never complains or interferes, asks nothing and endures all, and writes my dedications.
Book News
Read up on some brief book news over at Collected Misc. I'm trying to blog chatty news posts on news that more author oriented, gossipy in a way.
This week's turned out to be thriller/mystery themed.
Last week's was mostly philanthropy themed.
What do you think of the style of these posts? Is the chatty voice good or does it sound weird? - phil
Comparing Heros
Mark Olson has an idea for bloggers to write on the similarities and differences of David and Achilles. He says:
For example, for next week I was thinking we could write on the openings. To compare and contrast the Iliad’s immortal opening cadences to the more subtle (tender?) vignette of Hannah giving up of Samuel, her firstborn, to the Temple.
I don't think I can join in, but perhaps you would like to. - phil
Hedges: Loving Your Marriage Enough to Protect It
Books on marriage ought to be short and practical. I believe there is much need to explain why a person should want a happy marriage. Every married person wants a happy marriage; but he chafes at the selflessness needed to accomplish it. If he reads a marriage book, he should find sound advice on opening himself up, creative ideas for daily love, and Biblical rationale for honoring God by honoring his marriage vows.
Hedges fits this bill to a degree. It takes a few chapters on the need for hedges; but because this is a different angle on marriage than many enrichment books take, the explanation is probably warranted.
We live in an oversexed, immodest culture. Many of us may believe God made us to live with a certain percentage of lust, that the female figure should be demystified for our better health. I say vive la mystère. In part one of
Hedges, Jenkins tells several stories of adultery and how small, perhaps innocent, words and touches can break down healthy barriers between men and women. He explains how flirting works, regardless of person’s intent, and how powerfully we can deceive ourselves. Understanding self-deception is Jenkins’ most valuable message here.
In part two, he describes the barriers he has used for years to avoid lust and the appearance of it. He doesn’t argue that every reader should follow his example to the letter, but he urges us to plant the hedges which, according to our personalities and weaknesses, will accomplish the same goal—to hold your heart to the love you committed on your wedding day.
This updated edition of
Hedges includes a study guide for group discussion and a DVD of Jerry Jenkins addressing this topic. - phil
Bodum Vacuum Coffee Maker
I hear that home coffee brewers all a flutter over the coffee offerings at Cooking.com. It could be marketing hype, but if you're exited about coffee, take a look at
Bodum's Santos Electric Vacuum Coffee Maker which sucks the heated water up from the pot into a vacuum container to steep in your coffee grounds then releases it back to the pot. You can watch a demonstration
on this page.
Today
I dressed my two-year-old while she slurred out the theme to Winnie the Pooh--basic melody and a few of the vocables.
(Actually, I did this Sunday morning, but memorable observations don't always come to me on Thursdays.)
I also learned that I had put the ice cream I made this weekend in the refrigerator instead of the freezer--a shame because it doesn't taste the same once it's melted.
So, what did you do?
Hedges: A 3s Review
I think JMR on
World's Zeitgeist blog said blog reviews ought to be three sentences long. He may have a point, so in this post I wish to present my 3s review of Jerry Jenkins'
Hedges: Loving Your Marriage Enough to Protect It. It's good.
No, that can't be my review. I need three sentences on the book itself. Though I wonder if I could inspire bloggers to unite in a full blogging day of three sentence posts, posts on anything of course but no more than three sentences, which would be hard for anyone, requiring more thought for the post than actual blogging unless the cute among us resort to stringing phrases and clauses together into something somewhat like a sentence and I have no doubt some would try.
But enough silliness. Here's my 3s review.
I would recommend Jenkins' easy-to-read
Hedges for any small group discussion on marriage enrichment. It has sound advice on avoiding temptation and guarding your first love which many couples should consider in this oversexed world filled with broken families. The study guide and DVD make this material all the more practical for your schedule.
I'll give you another, traditional review soon. How do you like the 3s review concept? Shall I keep it around? I think I'll write one on
The Next Place in a week or so.
Cyan World's Myst Series Teaches Reading
The best-selling PC game ever and my long-time favorite is Myst by
Cyan Worlds. (If you've ever wondered, my Yahoo! email address, dnifriend at yahoo.com, is based on the games' culture.) Now I've learned that a British teacher has been using
Myst to teach his kids to read and think creatively for the past six years.
After playing the game in class with teacher, he "asks them to write about, describe, and explore through words, what they encounter and what they might mean."
The BBC reports the teacher discovered the games during a personal trial:
Tim's first exposure to the peaceful worlds of Myst came after he was diagnosed with a central nervous system condition. Hence the walking stick he uses which doubles as a flute. He used to be extremely active and missed walking until a friend recommended having a stroll through the virtual landscapes of Myst.
The children now create their own videos, against backdrops of the games' landscapes, complete with soundtracks they compose on real instruments as well as computer-generated sounds.
His results are top-notch, increasing his students' achievement rates to 93-100%.
Overturned: Big Idea Acted Properly in Distribution Case
Last month,
an appeals court overturned a ruling against Big Idea Productions, makers of
VeggieTales and 3-2-1 Penguins, which forced the company into bankruptcy last year. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with Big Idea lawyers' original argument in a lawsuit brought by its former distributor, Lyrick Studios. You can read
the full, inside story here. In short, the court ruled that Big Idea and Lyrick were still negotiating a contract and were working together without obligation, either party able to leave at will. Lyrick's lawyers argued that their communications constituted a binding agreement and sued Big Idea for $11 million over breaking that agreement when they began to distribute through Warner Music. Under the first judge, Big Idea and its creditors lost and eventually the company was sold to Classic Media. The creditors appeals and won a reversal.
Big Idea founder
Phil Vischer said, "What really hurt about the bankruptcy was that the guilty verdict reached by the lower court made it appear that we had done something wrong, that Big Idea's collapse was a moral or ethical failing. The fact that a higher court threw out that conclusion took a big weight off our shoulders."
"To have a judge acknowledge that we did, in fact, act with integrity in our business dealings with Lyrick feels pretty darn good," he said.
Remind Me What Real Life Is Again
Since I get my most substantial news from the funnies, I learned this morning about a video game simulation, "Nintendogs." If you are new to this game too, you can watch a glowing review
with footage on Gamespot.com. It's a pet-ownership simulation. You choose a puppy to love on, train, and take to dog contests. I don't think you have to leave it on all day, because the reviewer says it favors short gameplay; but if you don't want a live dog in your house, you can know have a pretty realistic looking simulation on your TV screen.
Have you ever felt bad about reading, thinking you should do something real or that you are putting off real life by reading? Put them away. Has anyone accused you of this? Never again. "Nintendogs" is what putting off real life is all about. Growing plants in your window sill better than this. Listening to difficult orchestral music, calling or visiting friends, making or learning to make good food perhaps in order to share with friends and family is better than pretending to pet a cute puppy on your TV. Of course, these things may be better than reading certain books too. Even better than blogging. Sometimes.
But "Nintendogs" is probably an easy target, and I'm sure there's a place for it just as there may be a place for thoughtful, active people to watch "The Bachelor." I don't know that there is; I'm just guessing. - phil
Read, Talk, Act, Repeat as needed
Here are some Monday morning thoughts from Mason Cooley.
"Reading about ethics is about as likely to improve one's behavior as reading about sports is to make one into an athlete."
"Families in which nothing is ever discussed usually have a lot not to discuss."
"Readers transform a library from a mausoleum into many theaters."
"Unlike life, when books become meaningless, they are making a point."
Bearing the Light
World's September 3rd cover story is on Christians in Hollywood. In a place which seems to be so hostile to Christian thinking, can a God-fearing believer do a good job as a production assistant, writer, actor, or associate producer? Yes, in fact they can even pull-off a profile on Hugh Hefner. Not that the assignment was easily accepted at first:
As a Christian who opposed everything Mr. Hefner stood for, Ms. Covell was appalled. "When I complained to Jim [her husband] about the assignment, he reminded me that working with Hugh Hefner is exactly why we are here. He suggested that we start praying and that I talk to my producer, Rick, to see if we could approach the project from a different perspective."
To her surprise, she discovered that Rick too was a Christian who did not want to do this story and had talked to his pastor about it. "His pastor told him he couldn't turn down this assignment," Ms. Covell said. "Someone was going to do the story, the pastor had said, and if Rick turned it down, it would likely be done as a standard puff piece. This was an opportunity to really dig deeper into why Hugh Hefner became the man he is."
The story delved into Mr. Hefner's early life and spiritual background. It culminated with an interview in which the icon of sexual promiscuity told about being raised by harsh, distant parents who never told him they loved him. "His mother never hugged or kissed him, he said, because of her fear of germs." In the opulent Playboy Mansion, surrounded by Playboy bunnies, the interviewers brought Mr. Hefner, clad in his black pajamas, to confess that "he's still just a little boy trying to find love." They exposed his futile attempt to substitute sex for love and the pain behind the Playboy facade, the God-shaped vacuum in Mr. Hefner's heart.
Read the full article here. - phil
Does God Have Explaining to Do?
John Piper released an article yesterday which scolds NPR's Daniel Schorr for natural myopia. On August 31,
Schorr argued that if God did create the world, then what is his reason for horrible storms like Katrina. "The designer has something to answer for," Schorr said.
"No, Mr. Schorr," Piper writes, "you have something to answer for, not God. God answers to no man. Come, Daniel Schorr, take your place with Job and answer your Maker: 'The Lord answered Job [and Daniel Schorr] out of the whirlwind and said: "Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. . . . Who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb, when I made clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band, and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors, and said, "Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed"?' (Job 38:1-3, 8-11)."
Piper's full article is here, but let me quote a bit more. It's good stuff.
Whatever judgment has fallen, it is we who deserve it--all of us. And whatever mercy is mingled with judgment in New Orleans neither we nor they deserve.
God sent Jesus Christ into the world to save sinners. He did not suffer massive shame and pain because Americans are pretty good people. The magnitude of Christ's suffering is owing to how deeply we deserve Katrina--all of us.
Our guilt in the face of Katrina is not that we can't see the intelligence in God's design, but that we can't see arrogance in our own heart. God will always be guilty of high crimes for those who think they've never committed any.
Disaster Relief
I thought to point out a New Orleans ministry which has been doing some of the hard work of reclaiming that city for the Lord and will need a lot of help, but I see that
The Jollyblogger has them covered. Yesterday, disaster relief held the blogospheric focus for philanthropy. Did anyone contribute as a part of that focus? We have not yet. My church is sending a busload to a sister church in Mississippi to join them in their community efforts, and our leaders have given a few thousand to
Mission to North America's disaster relief work, which I mentioned yesterday.
The New Orleans ministry is called
Desire Street, and they report that will remain operational for as long as they can: "Our staff members are almost all accounted for and are living with friends and family from California to Florida, but most remain between Houston and Atlanta. Many staff evacuated with youth from the community and will serve as surrogate families for the time being. We are working hard to locate everyone and provide them with resources."
from "Abide With Me" by H. F. Lyte
ABIDE with me! fast falls the eventide,
The darkness deepens: Lord, with me abide!
When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O, abide with me!
Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see:
O thou who changest not, abide with me!
Not a brief glance I beg, a passing word;
But, as thou dwell’st with thy disciples, Lord,
Familiar, condescending, patient, free,
Come, not to sojourn, but abide with me!
. . .
Thou on my head in early youth didst smile;
And, though rebellious and perverse meanwhile,
Thou hast not left me, oft as I left thee;
On to the close, O Lord, abide with me!
Today
Early in the morning, I moved my portable patio umbrella next to the house so that the stiff winds wouldn't knock it over. They knocked it over anyway and onto an exterior faucet, which broke, gushed, soaked, and called for immediate fixing before I went to work. I'm blessed to have a dad skilled in all manner of things, like broken pipes.
What did you do?
