Don't hate me but...

I have not updated this in two weeks, and this was after I (kind of sort of not really) promised to update it weekly. So in an effort to make up for my lack of writing I will... well I'm not going to do a blessed thing, but I thought about it, I really did. All 15 of my regular readers are sincerely thanked for pretending to care for this long. So without further ado I will delve into my latest and greatest rant.
Today in a sad and ultimately useless attempt to be relevant I will be discussing politics... because, why not? It is my (totally correct) (oh and humble) opinion that they are the single most divisive issue in the world (or my world at least) at the moment. Let's face it we all have that one friend who seriously will not shut up about how (insert adjective here) (insert politician here) is... like ever. Be it in the news, online, or in person it seems the only thing that keeps politics from coming up is celebrities getting arrested for drag racing and whatever their poor misguided fans then tweet in response. So let’s argue for a minute here, whether or not you agree with the political ideals which make the most sense to me or not is not the issue, and as far as I am concerned should never be. I want it on record that if I EVER get combative in a discussion about politics you have my permission to slap me... repeatedly, until whatever has come over me gets tired of it... then slap me again for good measure.

Why? Because we ( I ) need to get something straight... that person we are yelling at... yeah them... WE AREN'T GOING TO CHANGE THEIR MINDS, well not like that anyway. And even if we could are the things that any of us are arguing about worth alienating those around us over? Yes I get it they support such wicked, and morally depraved people and policies... oh the humanity! They must be stopped! Alright so maybe you aren't that dramatic (out loud anyway) but honestly when I listen to these conversations I can feel everyone around me internally (or externally whatever floats your boat) seething at the perceived folly of their counterpart’s views.  As one topic of conversation… errr team death match high school politics, leads to another inevitably news outlets come up… and boy does that get ridiculous. Here’s a recap, blah blah blah Fox is biased, blah blah blah so is CNN, blah blah blah we hate each other now. And just like that all hope for civility is destroyed in one fell swoop, because clearly the “mainstream media” is covering politician x’s scandal more than politician y’s and etc. etc. etc. we all hate each other. Sense a trend yet? Because I do, and it disturbs me that we all think politics will actually solve anything.

Listen to me and listen well because I will only be 17 for so long and after that I can’t guarantee that I will still know everything. No politician or party can or will fix this country, or any country for that matter, and no amount of violence will bring us the change we need. If we want to see our nation or even our neighborhood change for the better we don’t need to just vote for our favorite candidate, we need to invest in the lives of those around us. The mission of the church is and always will be to change hearts, so why now the fixation with changing laws? Yes many of us feel we are helping others by doing so, and maybe you are, but nowhere in the Bible does it command us to legislate our morality (and I maintain that it can’t be done). If anything we are assured that the government will disagree with us, but that we are to submit and love others unconditionally. Do we then allow the laws to be the standard of what we teach as acceptable? Of course not, so why should we make a reputation for ourselves as hateful and uncaring mobs when we could be helping those in need?
Should you vote? There is no good reason not to, but be careful! Don’t get so caught up in looking towards political saviors that you ignore the teaching and message of the ACTUAL savior. If you don’t know where I am coming from I urge you to read the passages below. For the sake of brevity I am just listing the verse(s) that speak most directly to my point, but please read the entire passage on your own, we don’t need any more verses being taken out of context. As always feel free to disagree and let your opinion be heard in the comments section below.

Romans 13:7
Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
1 Timothy 2:1-2
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.
Matthew 5:43-58
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?

Argument in 3..2..1...

So... does anybody else remember how I made that new years resolution, well I do, and I would like to say that technically I have not broken it... yet, I didn't actually specify a starting date. So I guess this means I am supposed to say something deep and thought provoking now... that's a lot of pressure guys, which means I am going the opposite direction (sorry, not sorry).

In lieu of any serious introspective thoughts today I am offering some very random and possibly boring thoughts I had on Tuesday. I chose that day because something very interesting happened, it was deemed too cold to go to school; I am just going to let that one sink in while I inform you that there was ice on the inside of my bedroom window. So naturally I will be taking this opportunity to lecture my imaginary audience about energy efficiency and insulation because you know everybody just loves to talk about that. Of course I'm not going to do that, none of you thought I was going to do that (right? you do still expect a tad bit more excitement then that don't you). Instead I will be filling you in on the current state of television.

Now I know what you are all thinking, "here comes another rant telling us about how TV used to be better and how now it just makes us dumb" and I disagree, I maintain that TV has always been making us dumb. Here's why, because although a lot of people will agree that it has gotten more brazenly inappropriate since (insert meaningless "landmark" in openly "dirty" television) I believe that what we watch isn't the problem so much as why we watch. Mark my words, I am not saying watch whatever you want, if anything I am cautioning you to do the opposite.

A quick perusal of the offerings of cable TV will demonstrate what I mean. Almost without fail the most watched shows rely heavily on themes that as Christians, heck as decent people we should be nothing if not wary of. Even the most innocent of shows now features multiple innuendos tucked away in each episode, why? Because they can, and because nobody is going to do anything about it, and I am not going to lie I LIKE watching TV, so who am I to tell everyone not to watch it? But regardless of how innocent it may seem it has struck me that we should not be so readily entertained by the morally degraded actions of our favorite characters. If you would not condone your children carrying out the actions you see on TV then why would you sit down in front of the idiot box and watch them play out for an hour? The hyper-sexual  crap that we stream into our houses at 1080p at prime time isn't the only problem. Even the shows that make a genuine effort to stay family friendly need a gimmick of some sort, because we all know that only the shows aimed at the lowest common denominator make money, and so there we sit watching shows that have plots which can be summed up as "ha-ha look at the silly rednecks" (I am looking at YOU Duck Dynasty). I know I am going to take flack for insulting the "role models" on that show but it is a clear example of a network taking advantage of the odd system we have where famous+Christian= infallible. And if you really examine the show most of the story line revolves around them doing some ridiculous and staged stunt that makes us laugh because... well at least we aren't dumb enough to do THAT! So I am joining the chorus of "boring" old guys with nothing to do and issuing a statement that will almost certainly be misapplied.

When you are watching TV just think about what it is you are buying into, is finding out if your two favorite characters will end up together really that important? Or perhaps this is the guy  who really wants to be a millionaire? Maybe you just HAVE TO KNOW how Sherlock survived his fall, and if it is that important to you then go ahead, but be wary, because nothing devours productivity and dulls your wit faster than letting the idiot box dictate how you spend your time. Television certainly isn't evil in and of itself, but the tendency it has to control our time, and steer conversation shows that it is more important to you than you think.

My final thought is to simply say this... think about how nice a good bookshelf would look in place of that TV.

The Bandwagon has Been Joined...

Cue up the trumpets and fan fare its 2014!

And here I am writing my "year in review" post a full 72 hours after everybody else... yay. So as the last of the confetti gets swept away and we all prepare to re-enter the hum-drum of everyday life lets make our collective half-hearted promises or "resolutions". Mine will be 1920x1080...

I apologize, that pun was cheesy and uncalled for (I regret nothing). 

I have been having a hard time coming up with resolutions, and according to the internet I should take either one of multiple paths.

1. just give up and don't have any, this has the added benefit of letting you mock the readily apparent stupidity of other's plans without being a hypocrite. (I like this one it offers instant reward with minimal effort, with the minor side effect of appearing to be a total jerk)
2. Go the opposite direction entirely and choose an unrealistic one (for instance joining... and actually GOING TO... a local gym) all the while foolishly posting your decision all over the internet. (bad plan everybody)
3. choose an easily attainable and seemingly worthless goal that you are certain to reach and can later look back at with a sense of accomplishment... be it somewhat mitigated by the ease of your task. (for instance if I vowed to spend 20 extra minutes a day watching TV, I could do it, but who would be proud of that feat?)
4. I could actually uphold the original intent of the concept and set a difficult but achievable goal that will make me a better human being and/or teach me a lesson along the way, but who does that anymore?

And with all that in mind I will proceed to promptly ignore it all. Why? because reasons... and stuff, and because if I happen to break a few rules nobody who reads random blogs on Google is going to care, which brings me to my first one.

• I will try* to post weekly updates on this blog so that those few who actually read this faithfully will at least have something to look forward to when they wander over to this web address occasionally.
• I will try* to find a bit of emotion** in my daily life aside from the overwhelmingly powerful feeling of "meh, whatever" that currently dictates my writing and leads to such unfiltered rants as this.
• And finally I will try* to start proof reading my posts rather than sitting down for ten minutes and posting the result, because apparently writers don't just submit the intellectual equivalent of their half chewed food and call it a day (my bad).

* try indicates a concerted effort when I am up to it, and in no way constitutes genuine work or any use of the word for what it was intended 

** emotion includes indifference and in no way commits the author of this blog to actually change anything

So that's all folks, I am deeply sorry if you were hoping for some kind of emotional wrap up or half finished lesson because there is literally nothing in this paragraph but mindless filler I don't even know what I'm saying, wow this is a long run on... are you seriously still reading this? Yeah the post is over, go back to stalking people on Facebook, crawling through your twitter news feed, or whatever the heck it is you do people do. Wait! you're still there? cool (I am taking your silence as a yes) take a second to share and comment you lout. (pretty please... I won't throw baseless insults at you without knowing who you are anymore!I am a changed man I promise)