Occam slipped.
I return from my blogging hiatus to announce the public launch of Stack Overflow, a programming Q & A site designed by Joel Spolsky and Jeff Atwood. It’s a wonderful idea implemented well, and I am excited to see how it evolves as time goes on.
(Please, please God, let it replace all those experts-exchange links in Google…)
I’ve been asked by a couple people why I post the Declaration of Independence, in its entirety, with the last line emphasized, without any commentary, every July 4th. Part of it is quite simply tradition, but as to how it started, why that last line is bolded, and why there’s never any commentary - there’s a bit more to that. So as I sit here sipping a Sam Adams and listening to Johnny Cash, I’m going to try to explain my thoughts on why I love calling myself an American.
First off, I’m a strong believer that you can and should take interest in your country. I love America. I really do, and I don’t mean that I love everyone in it or that I agree with everything it does, but that I love the concept that is America. At least, the concept it represents to me. Almost a century and a half ago, a bunch of men got together - just men, not statesmen or generals, not yet - and decided that they had had enough. Years of oppression forced on them by the oversea British government had finally crossed the line and they decided it was time to do something. That it was time to be free men. And they talked to their families, their neighbors, their churches, and the word spread. People were fed up and decided to do something about it. So on this day, 232 years ago, a lawyer from Virginia named Thomas Jefferson put into words one of the most incredible statements in all of history.
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the Powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, having its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. Such has been the patient suffrance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the meantime exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavored to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their acts of pretended legislation.
For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from Punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offenses:
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighboring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally, the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with Power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever:
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizen taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connection and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the Protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
Just added links to blogs of a couple good friends, Brian Aaby and Leanna Jackson.
Brian is an ex-youth pastor and mentor of mine living in Washington, where he has just started up a small company called Youthmark. Youthmark seeks to provide youth ministers and youth groups with the training, resources, and experience necessary to minister to those around them. His blog is about both his efforts getting the business up and running, as well as his day-to-day life.
Leanna is… well, I barely know where to begin. She’s one of the most joyful people I have ever met and a source of constant inspiration and joy of my own. She’s been through a lot and managed to somehow keep being that joyful person. We met through an online music community about eight years ago, and have been friends ever since. Now that I have finally found her blog, so I’m passing it along to share it with all of you.
In other news, my new job is actually rather interesting and certainly keeping me very busy. It’s a bit of an odd job for sure, and not what I’d expected, but interesting. Hopefully those leaving for a long holiday weekend today will have a good, and safe, weekend.
DC V. HELLER: AFFIRMED.
Hallelujah, there’s still at least 5 people in power who think the Constitution means something. It’s kind of sad that I’m so overjoyed by such a simple affirmation of what is already there in black and white but we’ve just been going down the wrong path for so long…
For those not following this, DC v. Heller, it’s a case brought before the Supreme Court challenging the validity of the DC gun bans. However, their affirmation of the 2nd amendment extends far beyond DC: Chicago, New York, and other cities and states have similar laws in effect that are now ready for striking under this decision. Here’s the affirmation, straight from the decision released by the Court:
The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditional lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home.
Emphasis mine, but look at that! Three of the biggest anti-gun arguments I hear every day shattered in one fell swoop! Thank GOD for those justices right now. I feel like going outside and doing a happy dance.
For those wanting to know more, here are some great related links, which can then be followed for yet more links:
To quote Prester Scott: “We won. The Constitution won. Liberty won. Common sense and rationality won. It’s a fine day in America.”
There’s actually more to what we did, and what I believe, than what I put in that last post. I’ve incorporated those ideas further into this outline, and rearranged some of the old ideas as well. Expanded thoughts are below the cut.
Purpose Statement:
Worship is form of expression and communication to God from believers. It is therefore personal and individualized while remaining solidly truthful and pleasing to God.
Three Principles For Worship:
Purpose Statement:
Worship is form of expression and communication to God from believers. It is therefore personal and individualized while remaining solidly truthful and pleasing to God.
Four Principles For Worship:
I wrote this three years ago, as a guideline for our worship team at my old church. I think it’s a rather concise statement of my beliefs on the nature of corporate worship. I thought I’d post it here as an example of what I believe on the subject, as well as to get feedback.
The question: in Acts 1-2, what are the apostles feeling and fearing now that Jesus is gone? How do they react? This is a long one, so I’ve hidden some of it behind a “more” tag.
The initial reaction to Christ’s resurrection seems to be that the political victory they have desired has now come (1:6) but instead they are told that the political power was not yet coming (1:7) - instead, they would receive the Holy Spirit and become the witnesses of Christ to the world (1:8). We can see that m any of Christ’s followers, while seeing him as a teacher, also saw him as their (potential) political and military leader as well, expecting him to restore Israel to its former power and glory, expelling Rome and its armies, and freeing the nation.
For many then, this must have come as a huge disappointment, perhaps disillusioning them to the other teachings of Christ. And so the initial fallout starts - first with the political zealots who saw Christ as a purely political leader. Those who remained at this point had to shift their focus away from all of that onto the spiritual implications of what they were told. They were to receive power, this Holy Spirit, and they would use this power to bear witness of his deeds and words to the world. Of note is that Christ immediately covers all ground here - he starts with Jerusalem and Judea, the provinces near where he was, where many of his followers had been or came from. He starts by saying in your own houses and neighborhoods, then goes to Samaria - geographically close, but culturally very different - and then adds “and to the end of the earth.”
He has just taken these people out of their comfort zones. He’s said that the power they now have will take them to places they’ve never been, to places they don’t want to go, but would still be there and working even in their own homes. This would have different effects on different people, and thus I suspect that the apostles and his other followers all reacted differently to the news. Someone like Thomas was probably trying to process what it meant, what he would have to do, while Peter was thinking of where he would go. But what’s interesting here is that the first thing they do after hearing this news is not to talk about it, or immediately go act on it - instead, they return to the place where they have been staying, about a mile away, near Jerusalem, and the remaining apostles (along with about a hundred other Christ followers) meet in an upper room and elect a new apostle.
So Rachel just jumped up another 3 notches in my book. Apparently she’s become a fan of Battlestar Galactica just a few short weeks after I did. I seriously am hooked on that show.
Broke out Civiliaztion II again, played a couple rounds, forgot how fun that game can be. Now if only I can find my Civilization 3 disc… or maybe I’ll just spring for Chronicles…
And in the Reiser trial, Hans Reiser was found guilty of first degree murder. I’m still thinking too many things don’t fit for this to be as cut-and-dry as it seems, but, the jury seems to think he did it. Hopefully his kids end up okay.
The Suns looked and played like champions tonight. Can they come back from a 0-3 start? It’s unlikely, but a guy can dream, right? Shaq, Bell, and Diaw all played world-class basketball. It was fun to watch.
Been listening to a lot of different music lately, stuff that I haven’t listened to in a while. It’s been kind of a pick-me-up, just hearing some of that old, familiar music. Jars of Clay, David Crowder, Jennifer Knapp. Also on the more high-energy side, Sonata Arctica, Machinae Supremacy. Anyway, its good to keep variety in your playlist.
Also, I got to talk to Heathir for the first time in… a while. It was good getting to talk to her again, I’ve missed her.
I’ll hopefully be posting a new study in the next day or two, after I get to talk to Brian. It’s been a kind of busy couple days, and I’m fighting off an irritating cold, so I haven’t been writing much. See you all soon.