11.12.09
Posted in Movie commentary at 5:28 pm by Administrator
Okay, so I thought I should blog about something other than yarn and food this time. . . I’m still in the midst of reading Sven Lindqvist’s book A History of Bombing, so I will reserve comment until I’m finished or near finished. I’ll explain why if I ever get to that post. But along the same lines, my boys and I have been watching a video series called Firepower. It’s an interesting four part series about the latest in defense and aerospace technology that is no longer classified. We’ve only watched about two discs so far. According to the back of the disc it states:
This 4 disc set includes 20 half-hour epidodes:
Assault from the sea
Artillery strike
Battle Tanks
Missile Copter
Special Ops: Wings
Royal air Force
Airborne Assault
Strike Fighters
War on Wheels
Mirage Jet
Combat vehicles
Armor force
Desert War Games
Armored Vanguard
Destroyer
Warship
Test Pilot
Wild Weasels
Strategic Air Power
Stealth Jets
It’s amazing to see the advancements that have been made in our military. I haven’t yet seen the space stuff, so can’t really comment on that, yet. While watching this, I couldn’t help thinking about the cost of all this technology, the damages to life and the environment as a result of this technology, and where do these mad geniuses come from that are able to think up all of this stuff? I couldn’t help joking ask Brian and my boys if these things were really thought up in the minds of geniuses here, or did they get the information from beating up those Rosewell crash aliens? LOLOL Yeah, you know, the Terminator reverse engineering stuff starts to look logical, ha!
I have heard it quoted that of all the money in the world spent on military, the U.S. spends more than half. Proportionately, the U.S. is that much ahead technology-wise and supply-wise of all the military in the world. At least that is what we are lead to believe. The idea that the U.S. spends that much on military is staggering to me. But as I watched this Firepower DVD series, which showcases the variety of weaponry and vehicles used by our military, I can understand why so many billions of dollars is spent. Not that I agree that it’s a good investment, but that all this gadgetry is so darned expensive that it could easily run into the billions of dollars to engineer, construct, operate, and maintain. For instance, there was a section on the Stealth Jets. One B2 cost over half a billion dollars to build. “ONE” jet. I don’t think that’s counting training the personnel to fly it, maintain it, fuel it, and what happens when it gets shot down or is downed by accident? How many of these things does our military have? And that’s only “one” model jet. They have many, many more, including land terrain vehicles and sea vessels. Speaking of training crew, one model jet called the “Spooky,” operates with a 14-man crew. They need that many men because the Spooky has mounted guns fixed to the sides–three or four men are required to operate one gun. According to the video, they practice every day. Another jet called the “Spector” is outfitted with a Howitzer. . . All that fuel and spent ammunition/bombs/missiles or whatever projectile they happen to be using must cost a pretty penny daily just to train. It’s no surprise our country is so heavily in debt.
I can’t deny that these military crafts and gadgetry are impressive. I’ve always enjoyed watching James Bond movies particularly for the gadgetry. What 007 fan didn’t love Q Division, aka Quartermaster, aka Q? But at the same time I can’t help thinking about the writings of Sven Lindqvist, particularly when he asked “who do they use these weapons against?” The ugly truth is that real military equipment is not used with as much percission as the 007 movies. It’s not only the “bad” guys that get blown away. In real life many hundreds and thousands of innocent men, women, and children have gotten blown away as a result of these inventions. With today’s technology, the person pulling the trigger doesn’t even have to be close enough to see his victims. He never has to see their pain and suffering, their limbs tore apart, their blood and guts gushing to the ground, their deaths, or their life-long injuries. I have to ask myself what kind of a world do we live in where these actions are what makes our heroes? And I understand more and more that the Bible rightly states that our world is in the bosom of the evil one.
And then there’s the issue of “who comes up with all the stuff?” Whoever they are, they are brilliant, even though I think they have to be pretty detached to humanity to some degree to feel it’s okay to develop these things for the express purpose of war (or extremely naive to think that only the opposing armed military will be victims of these weapons). I’m personally not fond or agree with the “ends justifies the means” logic. Also, I can’t imagine that these brilliant minds are only Americans. So I looked up which countries build and develop these military aircraft. In relation to all the world, it’s really just a handful of countries that build these. Aside from the U.S. countries like Russia, Germany, France, England, Japan, etc. engage in manufacturing and development of these technologies. Then they sell them to other countries to use. . . What makes them different?
Okay, it appears I’m out of blogging time again. . . grrr. I’ll probably continue on with a rant on this another time, heheh. For now, must dash. Matty wants to visit a particular store which closes in a couple hours. Need to beat traffic. . .
Marlakins
P.S. So far I’m giving the DVD series Firepower a thumbs up. Still haven’t seen it all, but it’s pretty good so far. . .
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08.17.09
Posted in Movie commentary, Uncategorized at 4:50 pm by Administrator
My boys and I just watched District 9. Now that movie combines the types of themes that interest me–social issues (such as class struggles), government issues (such as secret programs and weapons development), personal relationships, alien sci-fi, action with a lot of boom boom, and even a touch of humor. But before I recommend this movie to anyone, I will say there is a “lot” of violence and foul language. There is also a lot of logistical problems–i.e. why the aliens got there, why they didn’t put the humans in their place (so-to-speak) given their superior weaponry and strength, but as far as I’m concerned those problems are not the story, so I’m okay with ignoring those problems. The story was the interaction between the humans and the aliens when they are forced to live with each other. My son, Andrew, pointed out that his studies on Africa really helped him to appreciate this movie more. I couldn’t agree more. I think that’s why I also appreciated the movie because it just fit right in there with my readings on Africa, early colonialization, and racism. The way I saw it was a story of intolerance and misunderstandings resulting in unfortunate circumstances. The rest of the movie was dressed up with sci-fi and action. Essentially, I saw District 9 as a modern-day version of The Watermelon Man, but dealing with a larger scope of beings (aliens and humans) on hyper-drive testosterone.
I don’t want to give away any spoilers on this one, so I’ll just say that I give it two thumbs up “provided” the blood and gore and foul language isn’t an issue for the viewer. I think the story was innovative and used actual concepts of how there is often more than two opposing sides (I was reminded of the warlords in Africa and even China and how there’s always some who will take advantage of the weak). Often there is a web of complications and levels of struggle, and District 9 was an excellent reminder of how in real life things aren’t always so clear as black and white. Today, just as in times past, the answers or solutions to our life’s struggles are not so simple as black and white, but rather are entangled in all sorts of shades in between. Much like our current political system we so loosely refer to as right and left (Republican and Democrat, liberal or conservative), we must realize that there is so much in between.
Marlakins
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07.26.09
Posted in History, Movie commentary, Uncategorized at 12:28 am by Administrator
For anyone who likes stories of unsung heroes, I recommend the movie, The Children of Huang Shi. Many of us are all too familiar with the horrific results of war, but we should also know and remember the heroic actions of those who are or have been brave enough to preserve and value the lives of his fellow man in the face of eminent danger and even death. In the story of The Children of Huang Shi there are several unsung heroes who manage to save the lives of about 60 Chinese children during the Japanese occupation of China during the 1930s and 40s. While there were several heroes involved, the story focuses on one particular man, George Hogg.
Before I praise the movie too much, I do want to comment that like many other movies based on true stories, the “real” story was greatly altered. From reading an article at the Times Online titled, The Long March of a Forgotten English Hero, it is apparent that the movie embellished quite a lot while at the same time leaving out quite a lot. The main story, however, remained intact. And that story was of an Englishman named George Hogg who cared for about 60 Chinese school boys who, I gathered, were orphaned possibly as a result of the Japanese occupation of China. Hogg was able to develop discipline and order amongst the boys, and later, to keep them safe from the ravages of war (such as being recruited by the enemy), Hogg decided to move the whole school to a safer location about 700 miles away. He and his boys traveled 500 miles on foot and by carts, then were able to obtain a few old trucks to complete the next 200 miles to their new destination.
One of the interesting aspects of Hogg’s story is that according to the Scriptwriter, James MacManus, he discovered Hogg’s story just by accident. MacManus happened to be in a Beijing bar when he overheard a conversation wherein a man was complaining about a statue being errected of an Englishman in an remote town of Shandon on the Mongolian border. This statue was in memory of an Englishman who died in 1944. No one in the embassy had heard of George Hogg, but through a little research MacManus was finally able to locate someone who did know Hogg. From there Hogg’s story unfolded, and MacManus found that Hogg “was an outstanding Englishman who fell in love with a foreign people and devoted his life to their betterment. What he did made him deeply and widely loved.”
At the end of the movie is a segment wherein some of the real-life “Hogg’s boys” speak about him. These boys are now in their 80s, but remember Hogg very well and with much fondness. Two of the brothers said that they didn’t know when their birthdays were, so when Hogg died, they used the date of Hogg’s death as their birthday. This story reminds me of the documentary film I watch on Nanking because there were also a few other foreigners such as John Rabe, Robert O. Wilson, and Minnie Vautrin who risked their lives to help the Chinese. Through their bravery, they were able to save hundreds of lives. I still remember the readings from their diaries such as how they had to “bluff” their “braveness.” That is, when the soldiers would come, they would be so scared, but they had to “pretend” that they weren’t and would even shout down the soldiers to leave the premises. I can’t imagine doing that, but there are real live people who have done such things. I admire those who have the resolve to do what’s right in the face of danger. I am reminded of the Bible and how we are told to care for the helpless such as the orphans and widows and those in prison. I used to wonder about visiting “prisoners.” I’m seeing more and more that there are many who have been imprisoned for political or religious reasons, not because they were criminals or had committed any crimes. Just as John the Baptist, the Apostle Paul, and many others were imprisoned for their beliefs or just because they were foreigners, that type of thing still happens today. I am reminded of some of the stories I’ve read and heard from the Veterans Against the Iraq War. It shows me that even today there are still innocent prisoners who need comfort and brave people to help them out. And I am reminded of Matthew 25:34-40:
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: 36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. 37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? 38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? 39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? 40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
These heroes who helped these children and the hundreds of others have acted kindly towards God, as God said, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” What an amazing thing. I’m sure God, who sees all, has not missed them.
Two thumbs up for The Children of Huang Shi. I know it’s quite embellished, however, artisticlly it blended the events of the day into the story to help give a feel of the climate of the time. Hogg and his boys lived during a very hard time in China where their people were being brutally massacred by the hundreds. To understand the situation in which Hogg lived and died helped to emphasize his devotion and the depth of his sacrifice.
Marlakins
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07.16.09
Posted in Book Reviews, Church Issues and Bible Interpretations, History, Movie commentary, Uncategorized at 12:05 pm by Administrator
I’m currently in the middle of reading a book by Scott Peterson called, Me Against My Brother: At War in Somalia, Sudan, and Rwanda. I recently finished the first section, which is on Somalia. Peterson devotes nine chapters to Somalia and starts off describing for his readers what it’s like in Somalia and then explains a little about their history, which helps to explain why they are the way they are–warlike and suffering from hunger. Peterson documents how the rest of the world came to know of the mass starvation that Somalia was experiencing as a result of the feuds between the warlords. The subsequent UN and US “aid” to Somalia, then the misunderstandings, which later resulted in a “worsening” of the situation in Somalia, to finally the departure of both the US and the UN from Somalia. Talk about an eye opener. This helped me to understand a little more of Africa that has been hard for me to comprehend when seeing all the starvation in the media.
Like the Congo and other parts of Africa, there were attempts to colonize and subjugate the Somalis. But unlike much of Africa, the Somalis have never been fully colonized or subjugated due to their resolve to be independent. Their cultural and religious beliefs are so deeply ingrained in the Somali tribes, which includes extreme loyalty to their respective clans and an extreme resolve for “revenge” that much in-fighting amongst Somalis resulted in the starvation of their own people. I am reminded of the importance of the Bible scripture to “not let the sun go down on your anger.” This is a problem that the Somalis have and which they carry for years and through “generations.” Their lust for revenge will never end until they learn to “not let the sun go down with their anger.” This coupled with man’s tendency for greed perpetuates warfare amongst them. The misunderstanding of Somali culture and religion by the UN and the US, according to Peterson, escalated the already existing conflict in Somalia during the early 1990. The early attempts to colonize Somalia by the Italians introduced the more modern and lethal weaponry that today allows the warlords free reign over the masses.
There is no such thing as “gun control” in Somalia, and weapons are sold in their market places like vegetables with rounds dangling in strips along their “storefronts,” various weapons lined up like candy, and grenades showcased by the wheelbarrows. There are no restrictions or limitations to weapons “demonstrations,” as machines guns are randomly fired right in the market place, no doubt one of the causes of injury and even deaths from stray bullets. All families are believed to be “armed” and even as the injured civilians are admitted to the hospitals for wound treatments, they bring along their guns for protection. The “Wild West” still exists in Somalia, but from the descriptions given by Peterson, is much more lethal. He may be right in that I have never heard that the old wild west villains ever caused mass starvation and didn’t cruise along the streets in “technicals,” trucks with mounted machine guns and other weaponry.
The original intent of the UN and US intervention in Somalia during the early 1990s was said to be relief and was prompted by the graphic images of the starving women and children through the media. In an effort to give the Somalis relief, the UN and the US sent in tons of food and other supplies. Unfortunately, and to the dismay of the UN and the US, just giving aid was not as simple as expected. The food and supplies were being intercepted and stolen by the truck loads by the various warlords before it could reach the needy civilians. As the UN and the US realized this, they tried to negotiate with the warlords, but as Peterson asserts, the misunderstandings of the Somali culture only fueled the fire as the US took sides with “one” of their warlords. Mistake after mistake culminated into what we know today as Bloody Monday. Several grave mistakes were made, one was siding with one of the warlords, then turning on him. Another, although done with “seemingly” good reason was not “equally” disarming the competing warlords. The explanation was that the UN and the US didn’t want to disarm them because they did not want to come across as a mission to colonize, but just relief. Which is a good reason, but backfired when the miscalculation was made of taking sides, then turning on one of their most powerful warlords, Mohammed Farah Aidid. An example of how the US sided with the warlord was by attempting to disarm rival warlords while leaving Aidid’s weapons intact and thus it became evident to the rival warlords that Aidid was immune and thus untouchable. This greatly strengthened Aidid and raised more strife amongst the clans. So while at first the US was warmly welcomed in Somalia, later the US became the target enemy of Somalia not only by the Somalia militia, but also the Somali citizens as was evident on Bloody Monday in October 1993. All this because of “misunderstandings” between the UN, the US, and Somalia.
As I read Peterson’s account of the events that lead to Bloody Monday (one of the 1993 conflict in Mogadishu), I recalled watching years ago the movie, Black Hawk Down. I thought it was an incredible story, but didn’t quite understand why things in the movie were happening. It was just crazy fighting. But now that I’ve read Peterson’s explanations, it made a lot of things fall into place and so I rented the movie, Black Hawk Down, again to see if the movie really did make sense and I just didn’t get it at the time. It was claimed to be based on a true story, which always grabs my attention. I think the movie Black Hawk Down was made based on a book called Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War by Mark Bowden. I will have to eventually read that book to see what Bowden’s take was on the Somali conflicts. Anyway, as I re-watched the movie, I felt that it really was misleading because there was not adequate explanation of the Somali culture and history to understand why the Somalis, both militia and civilians, were going ballistic. The movie portrayed their strife as incomprehensible. In Peterson’s book, Me Against My Brother, he makes evident that the UN and the US really were carelessly stepping on the Somali toes, so to speak. They encouraged peace talks, then inexplicably fired at their elders’ assembly. The UN and the US did not work in harmony, and even within the US military there was discord. That combined with Somalia’s long history of revenge and propensity to fight to the death was dynamite. Dozens of US soldiers’ lives were lost and many injuries also were sustained. Amongst the Somalis, hundreds of lives were lost as well as more injuries. The result of that conflict was the evacuation of the US forces. The Somalis, as in times past, once again repelled the foreigners.
There are quite a few noteworthy aspects to discuss regarding Peterson’s nine chapters on Somalia. One such aspect is the role of the media. We all know that our media is censored. While it’s true that there are some good reasons to censor parts of our media, the down side is that we never get the full coverage. For instance many images of war never make it in print because they are just too graphic. The result is that we often don’t fully appreciate the horrors of war and the destruction it causes. The US military casualties are often hidden or the numbers purposefully obscured to avoid demoralization of the folks back home. Likewise, any US military defeat is downplayed. The 1993 Somalia conflict is an example of that as the military often would not admit defeat, but rather claimed that operations were successful, completed as planned and expected. Civilian casualties were grouped and classified as combatants. Blunders were justified as “routine” tactics and/or ignored. Another form of censorship that became evident to me while reading Peterson’s book was not from the media, but from the military and government themselves by their “prepared” speeches. The information relayed to the press often were sprinkled with inconsistencies, omissions, and outright lies. It’s no wonder that so much misinformation is spread when not only is the media censored, but when misinformation is purposefully released to make certain issues, missions, and events look under control or with a different purpose. Even the Somalis quickly picked up on this.
There was another matter of personal conflicts and non-cooperation within the the UN, the US, and within the US military. According to Peterson, there were issues with the unwillingness to share intelligence information. A good reason for that was to avoid leaks to the enemy, while bad reasons also existed that involved jealousies and arrogance. As a result, the mission carried out by the Delta Rangers called the Battle of the Black Sea, and what the Somalis call the Day of the Rangers was shrouded in secrecy. When the mission went awry, and the Delta Rangers needed help, the military back at base didn’t even know what was going on. This resulted in taking half an hour to assemble rescue teams to go out and retrieve their men. A mission that was supposed to only last one hour lasted over 15 hours of heavy artillery fire. By this time the Somalis were so angry at Americans that not only were the Somali militia after “any” Americans, so were the civilians who were armed and also itching to take a crack at the downed Americans. The scene reminded me of the movie, Escape from New York, but worse.
The mission and events were so complicated that it’s impossible to write all about it in one blog entry. I do realize that I should also read other books from other perspectives, but so far, I do recommend Scott Peterson’s book, Me Against My Brother: At War in Somalia, Sudan, and Rwanda. I’ve just barely started reading the portion on Sudan. . . oh my. . . It certainly gives me more food for thought and encourages me to be more considerate of others and situations that I’m not ordinarily familiar with. It also gives me more insight into the role of religion in our world, the differences and similarities of religions, and the benefits and the disadvantages of religions. It highlights for me the dangers of arrogance, and as usual, it magnifies to me the importance of Jesus’ teaching that we must love one another as He has loved us. Not as anyone loves, but as “Christ” loves.
Marlakins
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05.22.09
Posted in Movie commentary, Uncategorized, knitting and crocheting at 9:26 pm by Administrator
Today we headed out to the Grove to watch the movie, Terminator Salvation. Being that we’re long-time fans of the Terminator series, we had to go see this one on big screen. I just love the surround sound when you can feel the ground rumble with all the explosions, hehehe. Not that I would like to be a in a “real” battlefield, but watching it in the movies makes for okay entertainment.
Now that I’ve watched it, I have to join in on the critiqing, right? Before watching the movie I noticed that some people were giving it an “A” rating, while others were giving it a “D”. Hmm, I thought, what gives? People seemed to either love it or “kinda” hated it, ha! Now that I’ve seen it, I think I understand why. . .
First of all, let’s start with the good things. There was lots of action–chase scenes, terminator encounters, and of course guns, guns, guns, and weapons. Well, maybe it was just “guns” and “weapons,” since really it was rather tame in that respect in comparison to other movies. So if your thing is watching things go boom, then this is a movie for you. The part where Kyle gets behind the wheel and drives. . . eh, that type of scene seemed to belong more in an Indiana Jones sequence, not in the Terminator, although it was funny when Marcus kicked him out of the car afterward. However, as far as storyline, well, I think it was a bit lacking. It had good parts like Marcus’s character–the terminator who didn’t know he was a terminator, oye–but strangely Marcus was more captivating than the expected heroes, John Connor and Kyle Reese. Aren’t we supposed to be routing for John Connor and Kyle Reese? Well then I think their characters needed more charisma written into their scripts or something because it was lacking in my estimation. And while we all know that the storyline for the Terminator is pure fantasy (and that’s part of the fun of this story), it does get distracting when there’s just too much fantasy like the heart transplant. . . eh, it’s hard to get it around my head when in this day and age organ rejection is pretty much a guaranteed complication in the transplant world. You can’t pull the wool over my eyes on that one, bud. No tissue typing or worries about tissue rejection? Come on. . . John needs to be in tip top shape to fight in the next two sequels! I can’t imagine him stopping off at the pharmacy from time to time to get his immunosuppressants. Why did they do that to John? The part in The Rock where Nicholas Cage injects himself in the heart to deliver the anti-toxin serum was much more believeable even if unlikely.
As far as the storyline making sense, why was Marcus chosen? Maybe they’ll disclose that in part II? Who was that doc that had him “sign” for his consent? Why bother with a consent signature if he was going to be executed anyway? Like Cyberdine would let a little thing like a “signature” hold them back from getting the tissues they wanted from a jail bird on death row. And why did they bother writing in the script that the doctor or whoever that bald lady was had cancer? Was there any relevance in the movie to that? Or maybe they just like bald women? And Marcus kissed her why? Marcus walks for miles and miles and co-incidentally walks in to Los Angeles and finds Kyle, of all people! Well, I suppose they had to meet somehow. . . And who is that little girl? And why can’t she speak? Now, I liked Blair. But again, I found her character more likeable than John Connor and Kyle Reese, too. Oye! What gives? The heros don’t exude hero-ness in this movie. I wanted to like them, I really, really did. So that was a bit of a let down. I hope part II is better. I likely would still want to see it, but “please,” better script, okay? Given the action and the so so storyline, I can see why the movie got such varied reviews. It left me scratching my head a bit, too.
So moving right along. . . since movie theaters tend to be chilly inside, I had a chance to test out my new caplet! Which co-incidentally, while I was making it, I made a discovery–the real cause of global warming. . .
I actually finished it some time in the beginning of this week, but didn’t get the buttons until yesterday. These buttons were from International Silks and Woolens.
Here’s what the completed caplet looks like.
Aaron took another picture because my hair was covering the collar (not to mention my hair was messy, too, ugh), so he tried another shot which turned out to be a slightly different angle of the caplet. Matthew said it looks like Little “Orange” Riding Hood. I like it because it’s long enough to feel like a little blanket, but not so long that it interferes with my hands. The other ponchos I’ve used have been too long and get in the way with using my hands, so this is nice for me. I may just make a couple other styles like this length for variety.
I didn’t know until I got home and uploaded the pictures that the details of the caplet didn’t really show up. It’s hard to tell in the above pic that there is even a collar or any lace work at all. So, I thought I’d try to take a closer up shot.
The buttons are a tad large, but I preferred them to the next smaller size which might later cause me grief if they ended up slipping out of the holes too easily. So I went ahead with the larger buttons. The yarn I used was Paton’s Classic Wool, paprika color. It took three skeins using size 9 and 8 US circular needles. The pattern was from a book called Wrap Style by Pam Allen and Ann Budd. The pattern is the Lace-Edged Cardigan with Collar Caplet on page 57.
While I’m on the knitting update, here are the green socks I made for Andrew that I was too lazy to upload on my previous knitting update.
These are Aaron’s legs, not mine. Thought I’d mention that since now he’s starting to grow leg hairs! I try not to let my leg hairs get that long. Tee hee.
And finally here are some baby hats that I’ve been making. I thought I was going to give charity knitting a rest, but I figured that I could still do some newborn hats in between projects since they’re so small. Actually these are quite small since Stitches from the Heart supplies hats for preemies. So I whipped up these quick little things.
The pattern for this is very basic. I used worsted weight yarn on 7 US circular needles. These caps are started from the top-down and knitted in the round using the Magic Loop method. To start, CO 6. Knit in front and back of each stitch–12 stitches. Knit next round. *K1, increase 1* repeat from * to * to end of round. Knit next round. *K2, increase 1* repeat from * to * to end of round. Knit next round. *K3, increase 1* repeat from * to * to end of round. Knit next round. Continue in same increase progression until you reach either 6 or 7 knits in between increases. This should make the hat about 12 or 13 inches in diameter depending upon the size of yarn and needles used. Once the proper circumference is reached, knit even rounds for about 7 or 8 rows. Switch to 1×1 rib for about 7 or 8 rounds. I like to use the invisible bind off to finish. And that’s it!
The other thing I’ve been working on is reading. I did eventually get Frank Schaeffer’s book, Crazy for God, from the library and am about half way through. I’m glad I decided to read it before commenting because it is an eye-opener. I personally thought his dad, Francis, had a stroke of genius in him and never really bothered to look any further as to what his person was like or what his life was like. Actually regardless of what his person or life was like his books such as The God Who is There, and Escape From Reason and many others are still very insightful and do impart some truth. So it’s really disappointing to read some of the stuff Frank reveals about his family. My original goal was to find out why Frank converted to Orthodox, so I have been researching more and, wow, this has been an eye-opener. While so far Frank’s book doesn’t say exactly why he converted, I think I’m getting hints already. I hope to comment on Frank’s book when I’m done reading it. I have been reading other comments/reviews on his book, too, to get a better feel of what’s been going on, which have also been very insightful to me. Now with all that said, I think I’m gonna go continue reading Crazy for God.
Toodles for now.
Marlakins
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01.05.09
Posted in Book Reviews, Historical Trivia, History, Movie commentary, Uncategorized at 8:41 pm by Administrator
So five days into the new year, and I still feel like I’m scrambling to get organized. . . Hence no blog entries, heheh. Maybe part of it has to do with my urge to rearrange some of the furniture in the house. While shuffling furniture can be time consuming, and it does tend to make a mess for a while, it also ends up quite nice as all the dust bunnies get uncovered and swept away and lost things end up un-lost. Ah, and isn’t that a refreshing feeling to sit in a freshly cleaned room? Tomorrow I think I’ll work on getting the Christmas lights down. But I digress. . . There were several things I thought to blog about, but never got around to doing it. We did some movie marathons, so I could have played Siskel and Ebert for several movies. We watched Kung Fu Panda, Hancock, Get Smart, The Happening just to name a few. As the new year rolled in, I thought of my friend’s hometown tradition of jumping into their bay on the first of the year, so that reminded me of more of the pictures I took at the Isle of Man and London that I still haven’t finished posting up, and we’re supposed to be taking a trip in a couple weeks. With all the turmoil going on in Gaza and other parts of the world, I certainly had some thoughts on those, too. But then the boys and I just finished reading Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and I really appreciated her insight to the nature of man and the structure of our society. In particular, American society and Christian values. I read Uncle Tom’s Cabin in high school, but re-read it again with the boys recently. Yes they are old enough to read on their own, but I like to read as a family sometimes, and it also helps to stir up more thought and discussion about things like morality, customs and values, history, etc.
I’m assuming everyone is familiar with Uncle Tom’s Cabin as I believe it is considered one of the American Classics we all were required to read in high school. If not, very briefly, the story was written in 1852 when slavery in the United States was still legal in the south. The star of the story is Uncle Tom, but through his travails, we see the lives of those around him and how slavery affected them all; slaves, slave masters, and non-slave owners alike. Stowe gives insight to the viewpoints of each character. At the very end of the book Chapter 45 titled “Concluding Remarks” deals with the veracity of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Apparently, after it was written, Stowe received many letters inquiring as to whether the story of Uncle Tom was real. The answer to that was,
“The separate incidents that compose the narrative are, to a very great extent, authentic, occurring, many of them, either under her [Stowe's] own observation, or that of her personal friends. She or her friends have observed characters the counterpart of almost all that are here introduced; and many of the sayings are word for word as heard herself, or reported to her.”
Being that the most prominent way slaves were treated in “my” mind were images taken from the movie “Roots,” Uncle Tom’s Cabin showed a bit of the different ways slaves were “managed” than I had realized as well as philosophical views from those who approved of slavery vs. those who did not approve of slavery. I particularly appreciated the views of Augustine St. Clare and his cousin Miss Ophelia. While I don’t want to spend too much time on the various view points, one discussion did interest me. In the story St. Clare is a southerner who owned many slaves, while his cousin Miss Ophelia was a northerner who did not agree with slavery. She came to live with him to help manage his estate, and while there her interactions with St. Clare expose one of the troubles of the aboliting slavery. In particular, now that slavery was legal and fully established into society, what was to be done now? It’s easy to just complain that certain things are wrong and look down on those perpetrating the acts. But it’s generally not as easy to “fix” as one might think. St. Clare fully saw the injustice and cruelty of slavery, but he pointed out that just abolishing slavery would not solve the huge problem that the slave trade produced, that is, if all the slaves were freed, who would help them get on their feet? How would they live and get education? Many of them were kept low and uneducated for the very purpose of dominating over them. Even the Christians, according to St. Clare, were not willing to take up the cross to help these slaves themselves. Sure they were willing to send off a few missionaries to convert the heathen Africans, but were they willing to take in and help a slave in their own home? As it turned out, Miss Ophelia was just the type of person St. Clare was alluding to of those who speak out against injustices such as slavery, yet did not want to get their hands dirty with the work required to fix the problem. She later changes from that position and succeeds in helping Topsy. It’s easier to send out a missionary or two to do the work that most people are unwilling or even detest doing. As history has shown us, St. Clare was right to the degree that even after slavery was abolished in the United States, prejudice made it very difficult for the negro to succeed in American society. Many schools did not allow black students, various employers did not hire black employees, even the various associations did not allow blacks such as the American Medical Association. I’ve seen pictures of separate drinking fountains for blacks and whites. Different restrooms were built for black and whites, and even designated seats at the back of the buses for blacks. Rosa Parks went down in history books as she broke the rules by defying the rule for a black woman such as she to sit in the back of the bus, which helped shape the future of blacks in America. Even 50 years after the abolition of slavery, blood banks kept black blood separated from white blood, and it even became an issue in the military for blood transfusions for the soldiers on the battlefields. It was a long hard road taken by America that resulted from their early acceptance of the slave trade. And today, about 150 years after the abolition of slavery through the 13th Amendment, the first black President was finally elected. (Course I realize there are those who think that Obama isn’t even black, but rather Arab; but for all practical purposes, he is accepted as a half black man from a white mother and a Kenyan father, which would commonly be known as mulatto). By the way, I do find it odd how if a person has any percentage of black, they are generally considered black rather than their white bloodline. I guess it must have something to do with “purity.” A bit of an arrogant concept, but there you have it. I found recently that there’s a term called “blasian.” I found it while looking up “quadroon,” which is the term for a mixed black and Latin American. Apparently, the name for a mixed Afro-Asian is called a blasian. Took me 44 years to learn that, ha!
Okay, well I better wrap this up soon as I still need to finish knitting Matty’s blanket. . . but I had to mention something else I learned just recently, and that is regarding Alex Haley’s story Roots. Since the boys and I were reading Uncle Tom’s Cabin, I thought they might be interested to watch the movie “Roots” with the all-famous Kunta Kinte and the Lord Legioner. Brian reminded me that books are better to read as movies always adulterate the stories. So I did a Google online, and what did I find? A link to an article called, “The Celebrated ‘Roots’ of a Lie.” It turns out that Alex Haley’s book Roots was a fraud! Oh my! And all these years I thought it was based on fact! Apparently, Haley “plagiarized” from a “white” author named Hal Courlander. Courlander’s book was called, “The African” published in 1967. I checked my library catalog and now have it on hold, heheheh. Anyway, it is said that Courlander took Haley to court over the matter, and Haley admitted he plagiarized from Courlander’s book. The case was settled out of court with a hefty settlement given to Courlander. What gets me is that this apparently was done quietly, and people like me never heard that Roots was all bogus! Well, I guess it’s a good way to start the year. . . be cautious of what you believe. Search it out if you really want to know the truth of things.
Happy New Year!
Marlakins
Follow Up April 29, 2009:
I have since read Hal Courlander’s book, The African, and I’m currently reading Alex Haley’s, Roots. My original intent was to find out if Haley really did plagiarized from Courlander. While I’m still not finished reading Roots, I am currently at chapter 105, page 495. The book is 587 pages long. So far, I find that Haley’s book, Roots, is quite different from Courlander’s, The African. I don’t see much if any out right plagiarizism so far. If anything, the closest to plagiarism might be the portion of the ship ride from Africa to America. There were “similar” scenarios like how the Africans were communicating with one another as they lay chained next to one another in the cargo hold. Other than the ship transport portion, which is really a very small portion of the whole book of Roots, I am really reluctant to say that Haley “plagiarized” from Courlander. I suppose I could re-check out Courlander’s book and read them side by side at those sections, but really both books are very different. When I finish reading the whole of Roots, I think I will make another post in case there are any other areas of the book that seem similar to Courlander’s. But again, these books are pretty different, and to call Roots a “fraud” based on the idea that Haley plagiarized is out of line as far as I’m concerned. I would definitely say that a lot of it may have been embellished as I don’t think it’s likely that all the details of Kunta’s “thoughts” and feelings as well as all the other characters thoughts and feelings were likely conveyed through the two hundred years. So, my opinion is that Roots could be classified as a historical fiction. The characters may have really existed, but I’m not sure all the small details are true to life.
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12.11.08
Posted in Health-related--Natural Alternative Treatments, Movie commentary, Uncategorized at 6:30 pm by Administrator
The other night the boys and I watched Wall-E. My sister had seen it in the theaters and told me that I would like it. While it is a kiddie movie, I did enjoy it. Not only was it cute and funny at times and had an actual plot, but there was also an overall message in the end–we need to take care of our world. I know that all this “green” stuff these days tends to get politically charged and overdone, but really, why can’t we just look at the practical side of it and take care of our environment? I don’t consider myself a tree hugger or anything. I do use my share of plastics and drive a gasoline powered vehicle and all, but I do have concern for our environment. There’s no need to live in our own filth or destroy the world God has made for us.
For those who haven’t seen Wall-E, basically the story goes that the earth is so polluted that the people built all these robots to clean up the earth. In the meantime, the people of earth fly off into outer space while the robots do the cleaning. Originally they plan to stay out in space for about 5 years while the cleanup goes on, but before the 5 years is up, they find that the toxic level on the earth is so great that they can’t go back. Thus the earthlings spend 700 years cruising space, periodically sending probes back to earth looking for signs that life is sustainable again on earth so that they could return.
In the movie there were a couple of toxic storms that would blow through. I’m not sure what those are all about, but I can see how life on earth really has suffered through careless productions and disposals of toxic substances. To give examples of that, there was an article titled, Prozac Ocean: Fish Absorb Our Drugs and Suffer for It by Nai Bai. While I have read of something like this about 3 or 4 years ago, I don’t seem to find a date on this particular article. However, the comments below the article are dated December 2008. Here’s a short clip from the article:
“In the U.S., more than 200 million prescriptions for antidepressants are given out every year. A lot of the contents of those pills eventually end up in our water supply, either from patients’ excretions or from pills flushed down the toilet. Since water treatment plants aren’t designed to remove pharmaceuticals, we’re effectively medicating our streams and rivers.”
Now I find that a bit disturbing particularly since I’ve been working on regaining my health naturally. What I have found that it is an uphill battle because our environment is full of toxins from the air we breathe, the water that we drink and bathe in, to the foods we consume. Many of our foods are highly processed with countless additives that only a century ago were non-existent. The air we breathe is polluted with many other hazards such as fuel emissions, out gassing from building materials, plant chemicals not only on our produce, but on our lawns and neighbors’ lawns, and industrial chemicals. Our government even mandates chemicals to be added into our water supply such as fluoride, which many feel is a hazard to good health. And now we find that we are even unintentionally polluting our own water supply by the drugs we consume. It’s an uphill battle to improve and preserve our health, especially since all around us we are being exposed to toxins each and every day. We’re pretty much wallowing in our own filth. The difficult part about it is that there are so many people who thrive from, and defend tooth and nail, our current system of modern advancements no matter what the consequence to our environment. People who raise concerns for the preservation of the land and seas are seen as “tree huggers” or “nature fanatics.” I guess it’s too much to want fresh air and clean food?
This also brings to mind nuclear waste. I will say that I’m glad Obama (so far) doesn’t seem to champion nuclear power as a first alternative to fossil fuels. But what has disturbed me is the lack of appreciation for the dangers of nuclear waste (as evidenced by McCain’s campaign to build “45″ new nuclear power plants, yikes!) A few years ago I read a book called G.I. Guinea Pigs: How the Pentagon Exposed Our Troops to Dangers More Deadly than War by Micheal Uhl. Uhl not only wrote about the nuclear tests performed that exposed our troops to nuclear radiation, but also how the nuclear tests exposed civilians who lived in areas near the testing grounds. Cancer rates increased in some of those areas, and many died as a result. Yet, nuclear radiation is still downplayed today. And more often than not, our environment is contaminated without our knowledge. An example of this is something I stumbled upon recently of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory. According to Wiki, this laboratory was a “once prolific rocket and nuclear reactor test facility located 30 miles (48 km) north of downtown Los Angeles, California“ I’ve lived here most of my life, but I’ve never heard of the place. There are many residential home near that area who potentially are exposed to whatever is being tested there. I bet many of the residents don’t even know or understand the possible dangers to their health. Before we take for granted that they have “safety” procedures and precautions in place, let us not forget Hanford. Wiki shares some of the environmental concerns that cropped up with Hanford.
“By 1957, the eight plutonium production reactors at Hanford dumped a daily average of 50,000 curies of radioactive material into the Columbia.[44] These releases were kept secret by the federal government.[4] Radiation was later measured downstream as far west as the Washington and Oregon coasts.[45]“
These are just a few examples of the health hazards around us. So many of us just want to live in a clean, healthful environment. Unfortunately, we are at the mercy of those large corporations and government mandates that oftentimes ignore our concerns in favor of their own agendas. But I am a firm believer that God hears us, and sees all. Long ago at the writing of the book of Revelation, I believe the elders were also concerned about the earth and the effects to us as they were recorded to say in Rev 11:18:
“And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.“
The bold face was added by me. But I do think that while the Bible tells us in Genesis that we are to “have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth,” I don’t think that meant that we were to “destroy and pollute” the earth. We are to be good stewards of the earth, and plundering it and polluting it is not being a good steward. As a result of reckless irresponsiblity and lack of respect for the earth, many of us are suffering with poor health. Hopefully Wall-E’s message to take care of the earth resonates well with the younger generation, so that they will learn to value the world that God made for us.
Marlakins
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11.19.08
Posted in Book Reviews, Movie commentary, Uncategorized at 6:48 pm by Administrator
Last night Brian and I watched the latest James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace. I know that there have been discussions regarding the new Bond as to whether Daniel Craig makes a good Bond or not. As a long-time 007 fan who has watched every single Bond movie, my personal opinion after I watched his first appearance in Casino Royale was that Craig was the best Bond yet. Sure he was a bit, well a lot, rougher than the other Bonds, but it brought an intensity to the character that none of the others ever brought. This Bond actually had feelings despite all his rough and tumble, fast cars, gadgets, jet setting, weapons, and women. Can you even imagine Bond “thinking” of quitting MI6 and retiring with “one” woman? Well, that happened in Casino Royale. That just was not the Bond I had grown up with! However. . . Casino Royale had all the makings of a Bond movie complete with fabulous scenery and style. I came away completely impressed with Casino Royale and a new fan of Daniel Craig. The other Bonds were handsome and clever, but Craig was intense. So last night I was anxious to see Quantum of Solace, but somehow, I left feeling a bit speechless. I suppose Casino Royale was just a really hard act to follow, but I don’t think that was what made me come away from Quantum of Solace a bit numb. It had all the makings of a Bond movie, but I think the “depth” of the plot was hard to clearly express on the big screen in two hours. Perhaps in trying to be realistic, it made the plot a bit elusive as just in real life, the web of connections runs too deep and too large.
I will say that there were a couple things that struck me in the movie as it just happens to coincide with the book I’m currently reading called Waltzing with a Dictator, the Marcoses and the Making of American Policy. For instance, there is reference in Quantum of Solace that the government, be it British or American, will wheel and deal with dictators so long as they get what they want out of the deal. Ordinarily little people like me were taught that the western world promoted democracy and would not support Communists or Dictators. In Waltzing with a Dictator Raymond Bonner explained how I’ve been mistaken and that the U.S. fully knew that Marcos was going to declare martial law using trumped up charges of Communist threat in order to hold on to his power rather than for the good of the Filipino citizens. The U.S. knew that Marcos was plundering the wealth of the Philippines, and the U.S. ignored human rights violations of the Marcos regime because Marcos allowed the U.S. to do what they wanted in the Philippines such as allowing the U.S. military bases, Subic and Clark, to continue operating and harboring nuclear-powered warships at Subic and planes with nuclear weapons at Clark. There were also economic reasons that aligned with U.S. businesses in the Philippines. The largest 200 corporations in the Philippines were at least 40 percent U.S.-owned. The Philippine high court restricted the right of foreigners to manufacture raw materials, including oil, but Marcos (though clearly at this point showing obvious signs of a dictator) overturned that, which made the U.S. businesses very happy and thus ignoring any civil rights violations (this is similar to some of the claims I’ve read about our current war in Iraq). What Bonner alludes to is that spreading Democracy in the world is not the primary concern of the U.S., but rather the primary concern is that U.S. remain the top dog in whatever its interest may be, be it militarily or economically. Bonner quotes a memorandum written by George Kennan who was the U.S. Secretary of State in 1947. This is what he wrote:
“. . . we have about 50% of the world’s wealth but only 6.3% of its population. This disparity is particularly great as between ourselves and the people of Asia. In this situation, we cannot fail to be the object of envy and resentment. Our real task in the coming period is to devise a pattern of relationships which will permit us to maintain this position of disparity without positive detriment to our national security. To do so, we will have to dispense with all sentimentality and day-dreaming. . .
“. . . We should dispense with the aspiration to ‘be liked’ or to be regarded as the repository of a high-minded international altruism. We should stop putting ourselves in the position of being our brothers’ keeper and refrain from offering moral and ideological advice. We should cease to talk about vague and–for the Far East–unreal objectives such as human rights, the raising of living standards, and democratization. The day is not far off when we are going to have to deal in straight power concepts. The less we are then hampered by idealistic slogans, the better.”
Bonner continued to write:
“Kennan concluded that in the Pacific U.S. policy should concentrate on ensuring that two countries ‘remain in hands we can control or rely on.’The countries were Japan and the Philippines. American policy , Kennan urged, should be shaped to allow for Philippine independence ‘in all internal affairs but to preserve the archipelago as a bulwark of U.S. security in that area.’
“That policy was, in effect, put into practice a few years later when the U.S. waged a secret counterinsurgency war and thoroughly meddled in Philippine domestic politics. . . ”
The Philippines wasn’t the only country where the U.S. subverted democracy in the name of democracy. This goes beyond whether the current President was a Democrat or Republican. It made not difference as the policy was the same. The CIA also bribed members of the National Assembly in Vietnam to ensure the passage of favorable legislation. Consider also Nicaragua with the Sandanistas and the Shah of Iran just to name a couple more. So yes, Quantum of Solace touched on that aspect that even our governments are corrupt, but fortunately there are still good guys (or maybe the holy spirit, heheh) that manages to keep all hell from breaking loose. Maybe one day, but not quite just yet.
The second comment that struck me in Quantum of Solace was that the bad guy today is the good guy tomorrow or vice versa. I’m paraphrasing there, but that’s the idea and I think there’s a measure of truth to that in the way our governments run today as in the past. The U.S. helps to promote leaders and deals with leaders regardless if they are dictators, when it benefits us, but then vilifies them later when they no longer fit our purposes. Apparently that’s not a new trick, but only another aspect of human nature and those who seek power and prestige.
So bottom line, the web of connections in Quantum of Solace didn’t seem fully exposed, but I suppose because it was just too big? And so I was left feeling that the movie wasn’t quite complete. But it seems that’s how real life is and why often times we don’t see the whole picture. We get bits and pieces, and mingled in there are things that appear to be conspiracy theories, or perhaps even tidbits of truths. Even when I read The Bounty, the True Story of the Mutuny on the Bounty, the web of connections to the mutineers was so extensive that it almost seemed never ending. But anyway, for the action and adventure, I give Quantum of Solace two thumbs up.
Marlakins
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06.10.08
Posted in Movie commentary, Uncategorized at 11:06 am by Administrator
Last night I watched a video rental called, Nanking. The caption on the cover reads, “The True Story of How a Few Brave Souls Saved the lives of Thousands.” I have read a bit about the Japanese invasion of Nanking in 1937-38, and also read about how there are Japanese today who deny the truth of what happened there, instead claiming that the accounts of what happened were gross exaggerations. What I didn’t know about was this group of about 15 Westerners who stayed behind and helped to save the lives of thousands of Chinese.
The film is a documentary, which includes historical pictures and live footage of the city prior to and after invasion, interviews with survivors of the Nanking invasion, some Japanese soldiers who participated in the campaign, and actors who read sections of the diaries of the 15 Westerners who stayed behind to help in whatever way they knew how. I’m blogging about this because I am touched by the bravery and resolve some people have to do what’s right. I am encouraged that there are people who have such fortitude to risk their own lives to help and protect others. In a world so rife with violence, hatred, and greed, there have always been a few who have stepped forward to uphold goodness and decency. They are the ones who not only act out and embody goodness, but who also expose evil. I think that is consistent with the Bible as stated in Ephesians 5:11:
“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” (KVJ)
The New King James Version says:
“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.”
I checked out the Blueletter Bible site to check on which word (reprove or expose) was a better translation for the Greek word in that passage. Just for fun, here’s what the passage looks like in Greek:
(By the way, Brian thinks that the Byzantine Textform is better than the Stephens’ Textus Receptus, but I would have to scan a copy of it, and it was easier to lift a copy of the above from the BLB site).
The page which shows the KJV in comparison to the Greek version can be viewed at the BLB site, but I’ve just copied the word that was used for reprove/expose.
The Greek word shown in its root is elegcho. The following is the definition of that word according to BLB.
1) to convict, refute, confute
a) generally with a suggestion of shame of the person convicted
b) by conviction to bring to the light, to expose
2) to find fault with, correct
a) by word
1) to reprehend severely, chide, admonish, reprove
2) to call to account, show one his fault, demand an explanation
b) by deed
1) to chasten, to punish
Seems to me that both the KVJ and the NKVJ are pretty right on with their translation of the Greek word elegcho even though they both use “seemingly” different words (reprove and expose) . The meaning is still preserved when the context is understood.
So back to my original thoughts on the documentary of Nanking, since I sometimes struggle with my purpose in life and with whether or not I’m useful to anyone, I figured the least I could do was try not to participate in evil and also expose evil as we are told to do in Ephesians. I want to expose things for what they are and not whitewash events by glorifying war as an excuse to a means to bring about good. If I can’t personally help individuals, then at least I can acknowledge their plight. If the atrocities that occurred in Nanking were real, then I don’t want to minimize it and shove it in the forgotten past. I want to show and teach my kids good, yet my kids need to be aware of how evil men can be. They need to know what kind of world they live in since oftentimes we are immersed in lies and deceit. Even I need to remind myself of that because I often find myself incredulous of it all. Brian is repeatedly telling me of how naive I am and how trusting I tend to be. It’s something I struggle with. My mind knows one side, but my heart hopes for another. And in the midst of it all, I am blessed and encouraged when I learn of people who have withstood and prevailed against evil. I am in awe and admiration of the 15 people who risked their lives to help the Chinese. It is believed that in the end, they helped save the lives of about 250,000 Chinese. I often wonder from where does their fortitude come? I’m reminded of the saying in the Mulan cartoon, “The flower that blooms in adversity is the most beautiful and rare flower of them all.” Eh, not sure if I quoted that exactly, but the gist is there. . .
Happy Tuesday,
Marlakins
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