Month: March 2009

Come on, Thomas… Let’s Go

I’m trying to talk my pal Thomas Whitley into heading down to Florida to see the launch of STS 125 on Tuesday May 12, 2009. The shuttle program is rapidly coming to a close, but this one is especially important since we are performing the final servicing to the greatest science experiment of all time:

NASA – STS-125: The Final Visit: “It’s a mission to once more push the boundaries of how deep in space and far back in time humanity can see. It’s a flight to again upgrade what already may be the most significant satellite ever launched.

And, for the space shuttle, it’s a final visit to a dear, old friend.

The STS-125 mission will return the space shuttle to the Hubble Space Telescope for one last visit before the shuttle fleet retires in 2010. Over 11 days and five spacewalks, the shuttle Atlantis’ crew will make repairs and upgrades to the telescope, leaving it better than ever and ready for another five years – or more – of research. “

To quote Jerry Maguire, “Who’s coming with me?” Road trip??

Mass Consumerism is the Problem

Tremendous piece from Geoff Mulgan in Prospect Magazine detailing a possible future for capitalism as a tool, rather than a master, in the US and around the world:

Cover story: ‘After capitalism’ by Geoff Mulgan | Prospect Magazine April 2009 issue 157: “It’s an irony that so many of the measures taken to deal with the immediate impact of the recession, like VAT cuts and fiscal stimulus packages, point in the opposite direction to what’s needed long term. But there are already strong movements to restrain the excesses of mass consumerism: slow food, the voluntary simplicity movement and the many measures to arrest rising obesity, are all symptoms of a swing towards seeing consumerism less as a harmless boon and more as a villain. “

Technology (Twitter, blogging, Facebook, etc) are the tracks (pun intended) for the delivery of a growing social conscience that mass consumerism is to blame for our current economic and societal ills.

The incessant marketing to children, the dumbing down of education into a mush of preparation for a consumer-future and the focus on bigger/stronger/better/faster are finally meeting their match with the growing realization that this is not the best way for humans to live.

At least I hope so.

And I hope the church stands at the center of this growing conscience and points to a better future that is not reliant on the wheels of marketing or the engines of corporate shackles.

Cosmos Now on Hulu

Cosmos
, my favorite TV series and book of all time, is now on Hulu.

Hulu – Cosmos: “In 1980, the landmark series Cosmos premiered on public television. Since then, it is estimated that more than a billion people around the planet have seen it. Cosmos chronicles the evolution of the planet and efforts to find our place in the universe. Each of the 13 episodes focuses on a specific aspect of the nature of life, consciousness, the universe and time. Topics include the origin of life on Earth (and perhaps elsewhere), the nature of consciousness, and the birth and death of stars. When it first aired, the series catapulted creator and host Carl Sagan to the status of pop culture icon and opened countless minds to the power of science and the possibility of life on other worlds.”

Part of my ritual of closing ceremonies during my time as an 8th grade science teacher was reading a passage out of my dog-eared and well-worn copy of Cosmos.

“The Cosmos is all that is or ever was or ever will be. Our feeblest conemplations of the Cosmos stir us – there is a tingling in the spine, a catch in the voice, a faint sensation, as if a distant memory, of falling from a height. We know we are approaching the greatest of mysteries.

The size and age of the Cosmos are beyond ordinary human understanding. Lost somewhere between immensity and eternity is our tiny planetary home. In a cosmic perspective, most human concerns seem insignificant, even petty. And yet ourspecies is young and curious and brave and shows much promise. In the last few millenia we hav emad the most astonishing and unexpected discoveries about the Cosmos and our place within it, explorations that are exhilarating to consider. They remind us that humans have evolved to wonder, that understanding is a joy, that knowledge is prerequisite to survival. I believe our future depends on how well we know this Cosmos in which we float like a mote of dust in the morning sky.

Those explorations required skepticism and imagination both. Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never where. But without it, we go nowhere. Skepticism enables us to distinguish fancy from fact, to test our speculations. The Cosmos is rich beyond measure – in elegant facts, in exquisite interrelationships, in the subtle machinery of awe.

The surface of the Earth is the shore of the cosmic ocean. From it we have learned most of what we know. Recently, we have waded a little out to sea, enough to dampen our toes or, at most, wet our ankles. The water seems inviting. The ocean calls. Some part of our being knows this is from where we came. We long to return. These aspirations are not, I think, irreverent, although they may trouble whatever gods may be.”

I cried every time I read that out loud to my students, and still do.

Thank you, Hulu.

Baptists and Muslims Meet in Jordan

Good to read…

Baptists and Muslim Scholars Meet in Jordan on EthicsDaily.com: “(BWA) A number of Christian and religious groups were convened by the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) at the Kempinski Hotel in Amman, Jordan, on the morning of Thursday, March 19, to discuss common interests and to review plans surrounding the official opening and dedication of the Baptism Center in Bethany beyond Jordan.”

Hopefully this will lead to a fruitful dialogue between (moderate to progressive) Baptists and members of the Muslim faith.

Rock Salt Crystal Deodorant Really Works


This is a post a little out of the ordinary, but I really have been infatuated with how well this product works…

A few weeks ago, I was running low on deodorant and decided to look around for a less-commercial option that would deliver the same results.

I came across Rock Salt Thai Crystal Deodorant Stone
and was immediately skeptical.

However, after a month of using the rock salt deodorant only (instead of the commercial stuff I had been using since a teen), I can only say it really really works.

I’m not a huge guy and I’m not a constant “sweater” but I do have a pretty active lifestyle with school, preaching, speaking, etc… after a Sunday morning, my shirts and undershirts were normally pretty drenched (more from nerves than heat) in the past. However, I’m dead serious when I say that this stuff really keeps things dry.

So, if you’re thinking about making a switch to something more natural and something more effective than the pricey deodorants, I couldn’t recommend the crystal stone more.

And for only $2.26 (my stone has lasted me a month and it looks barely used so far) in this economy??? Forget about it.

Jessica Lea Mayfield and Bible Days

During the holidays, before the Avett Brothers show here in Asheville, I got to catch a set by Jessica Lea Mayfield as she opened for the Avetts.

If you haven’t heard of her, you will. Her music is tremendous.

Jessica Lea Mayfield on MySpace Music

I can’t recommend “We’ve Never Lied” enough (you can listen on the link to her MySpace page above). “Bible Days” is a close second, and all of her songs (especially live) are powerful and moving.

Here’s a link to her album With Blasphemy So Heartfelt
on Amazon.

Great music.

CBF of NC General Assembly and Twitter

The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina is having its General Assembly this weekend in scenic (?) Fayetteville, NC.

My pal Thomas Whitley and I are planning to attend and, of course, we’ll be sending out Twitter updates.

Interestingly enough, the CBFNC has caught wind of the Twitter phenomenon and its power for bringing groups together both on location and remotely (as evidenced by every tech conference now relying heavily on Twitter for backroom chatter).

So, there are a few additional folks you can follow for CBFNC Gen Assembly news (besides Thomas and myself who both tweet way too much anyways):

Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina Twitter-ers

Amazing times we live in, folks.

But seriously, if you’re not on Twitter, you’re missing out (whatever your vocation, occupation or addiction).

Twitter Sanity

Twitter Followers

Scott Jangro and I are recovering from an interesting experiment in which we followed back everyone who followed us. Sounds pretty simple and easy, right?

Well, it is an easy task to click “Follow” under a person’s avatar, but it is a much more difficult thing to give away a sense of sanity on Twitter.

Jangro explains it incredibly well:

Does anybody really think that anyone with thousands of followers is reading anything but a select list of tweets? What’s the use of an army of followers who follow everybody back? Especially at the expense of having to follow them and ruining twitter for yourself. Neither cares about what each other has to say. It’s just a game of who has the biggest, uh, Twitter.

I’ve cut down from the 4,500 or so people I was following back to the 100 or so folks that I am actually interested in or care about. Twitter is completely usable again on my Touch, on the web, on my mobile and on the desktop via TweetDeck.

So, it’s all well and good to follow everyone who follows you if you are looking to gain more followers on Twitter. However, doing so comes at a cost of usability of the service (much more than the cost of losing a few bots as followers as shown in the chart above).

Talking Futurisms, Podcasts, and Ethics

I chatted with Andrew Wee on his Friday Podcast this week about a number of topics.

Here’s his show notes:

– How he got involved in online marketing and his quest to become a Renaissance man.
– How he has “given up marketing”
– Ethics and morals in affiliate marketing
– What inspires him to podcast
– The origin and direction of his Thinking.fm podcast network
– Monetization options for podcast network owners
– One of his favorite podcasts and why it works effectively

Head over to Andrew’s site and give it a listen. I always enjoy talking to him, and it’s always amazing to me that we can do a podcast together even though we’re on opposite sides of this pale blue rock.

Here’s the mp3 for your downloading pleasure.