Riverwood Presbyterian Church

Miscellaneous

Living Up To The Stereotype

by Clay Staggs

If there’s anything I wear on my sleeve more than my Republicanism, it’s my love of all things Apple. I am a serious fan of the Mac, iPod, etc. Being such, I am, predictably, disinclined toward Microsoft, and have been known to speak of them in less than flattering terms.

All of that said, really, I could never have made up anything this good. You have to have instructions to get the box with the Vista upgrade discs in it open. Really. Read all about it here. Or, if you’d rather go straight to the source, the instructions are posted on M$’s own website here.

I. LOVE. IT.

Let the flaming begin……

Miscellaneous

How Far We’ve Come

by Clay Staggs

Glenn Reynolds cites to this post on the Classical Values blog. It recommends a book that looks really interesting on the pioneers who crossed the Rockies, and has some, um, interesting, observations about the role of wives in those pioneer days.

Suffice it to say that much has changed. I’ll leave it to any commenters to say whether for better or worse.

Miscellaneous

Beam Me Up, Scotty

by Clay Staggs

I always liked the Star Trek TV shows and movies. Not in a put-on-Spock-ears-and-go-to-a-convention way, but I was a casual fan. The owner of this house, though, takes Star Trek geekdom to, well, warp speed.

Miscellaneous

Those Little Things Mean A Lot

by Parker Johnson

There is a prevailing thought in our society that one must be a pastor or employed by a ministry in order to help further the Kingdom. We often think that because we are not good public speakers, don’t have the gift of teaching, or are employed in the “secular” job market that we are inferior to those who spend their days in study and preaching. In response to this, I would like to explore some of the research I conducted this summer.

This summer I had the opportunity to serve in Cambridge, England, where I interned with Christian Heritage, a rather small ministry. Among my other duties, I was required to research some aspect of English Christian history and I chose Admiral Sir Charles Middleton, a naval administrator of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. While he did indeed do some pretty amazing things, such as giving Nelson his final instructions before the Battle of Trafalgar, arguably Middleton’s most important contributions came not because of his influential position as a naval administrator, but through his kindness and generosity to others.

I refer to his involvement in the abolitionist movement in Britain beginning in the 1780’s. One of the most influential things that he did in his entire lifetime was simply to open up his home to friends and strangers alike. Among the numerous guests of his house, Barham Court, were Thomas Clarkson and William Wilberforce. You will undoubtedly know who Wilberforce was, but Clarkson was just as important to the abolitionist movement (he is the one who produced those drawings of slaves packed in ships like sardines). Through simply opening up his home to these two gentlemen, Middleton helped influence all of Britain. For example, it was during one of Clarkson’s visits to Barham Court that he dedicated his life to the cause of slavery. Also, Middleton opened up his home to Wilberforce and his group of abolitionist friends when they were preparing for his first appeal to Parliament for legislation to end the slave trade (which, by the way, lasted three hours!).

During the four-decade long fight to end slavery, Wilberforce, Clarkson, and others used Middleton’s home for rest and planning. While Middleton made many more contributions to help end the slave trade, by opening up his home to others, he helped end an evil institution throughout the British Empire. We shouldn’t worry when we feel incapable of doing profound things for the Kingdom; it is through our weaknesses that the Lord often uses us. Furthermore, you never know how the Lord will use those “simple” things such as just opening up your home to others.

Miscellaneous

Unverschämt

by Clay Staggs

That’s the best word I know to describe the sentencing of Lynne Stewart to only 28 months in prison. I use the German word “unverschämt” because it lacks an English translation that conveys the exact combination of disgust, unconscionability, obscenity, and brazenness that it indicates. (For a full list of words that it may be translated as, go here.)

Stewart had defended Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, who was ultimately convicted of conspiracy to blow up the World Trade Center in 1993, and other sundry terrorist activities, including the assassination of the president of Egypt. Apparently after his conviction, she passed messages from him to his followers in Egypt (and who knows where else) giving instructions to his followers, ultimately earning her own conviction for lending material support to a terrorist organization.

The federal courts have sentencing guidelines that provide a fairly standard sentence for convicts. The federal sentencing guidelines on Stewart would have indicated a 30 year sentence. The Clinton-appointed judge on the case, though, was persuaded to depart radically from these guidelines because of the defendant’s years of service to the poor and disadvantaged (many of which have been more political radicals than economically downtrodden). Making matters even worse, the judge released her without bond while she appeals.

I think this is utterly outrageous. This woman’s conduct indicates that she is a danger to innocents in this country and others. This judge ought to be ashamed of himself. I am a strong believer in grace and second chances, but I don’t think that means signing onto a suicide pact. She needs to be behind bars so that she can’t do any more damage than she’s already done.

Why is it that the most educated people in our society fail to grasp even the most basic concepts? This woman’s punisment should not be a function of how many pro bono cases she’s handled. It’s a matter of life and death. I wish we had judges that could, you know, get that.

Miscellaneous

Cloudy Days

by Clay Staggs

Today is a cloudy and cool day at the beach.

This has somewhat frustrated my plans for laying in the sun and doing nothing. Instead, I’ve been forced to stay inside and do nothing. However, that doing nothing part is pretty good wherever you do it.

It has been wonderful to take a break from my busy life to recharge my batteries a bit. Here’s wishing all of you a great and restful weekend.

Miscellaneous

Free the Hops

by Clay Staggs

I really enjoy good beer. I learned today that there is a group of like-minded folks out there who are attempting to get the Alabama Legislature to repeal a couple of restrictions that keep most high-end beers out of the Alabama market. The group is called “Free the Hops.” Their website is here. (Hat tip to Kris Sodergren for pointing them out ot me.)

I recommend visiting the site. It is truly fascinating what all is illegal in Alabama. And, if you’re so inclined, join up. Cheers!

Miscellaneous

This Just In….

by Clay Staggs

Apparently a team (yes, a team) of researchers have determined that celebrities are more narcissistic than the public at large. See the full story here (if you must).

What passes for academic studies (and news) never ceases to amaze me. It reminds me of the year that I was at NYU. Kimberly worked for one of the university’s departments that was doing a study to determine the reasons that housing costs were so high in Manhattan.

Yeesh.

Miscellaneous

On the Lighter Side

by Lowell Urban

Wow, my head hurts. After reading the posts written before me I am not sure I have much to contribute to the wisdom of the ages or these pages. I am a simple man and I do not often have motivation or energy to ponder theology, literature, politics, or Christian chaff. I do know that if you feed your Golden Retriever puppy too much he will vomit on to your newly cleaned carpet. (Perhaps I should borrow a “Christian” t-shirt to help me clean it up!) Still, I do believe it important to dialog about such things. Even so, my posts shall prove to be of a more personal nature.

Last night I was putting my youngest daughter to bed, and we were playing her favorite game. In this game, I walk into the room and pretend I do not see her hiding under the covers like she has done for countless nights before. I sit on her bed and bemoan the prospect of waiting for her to return so that I may kiss her goodnight. She lies perfectly still until I comment about the lump in her bed, and then I start to tickle her mercilessly. Eventually she manages to beg me to stop. By that time the damage is done. The day has ended with love and laughter. She always breathes the sweetest sigh when it’s all over.

My question is this. When is the last time you were tickled? When is the last time you tickled someone else? I believe laughter to be one of the greatest gifts God has given to us. So, why is it as adults we tend to lose our “tickleability?”

Now, I know about personal space and sexual harassment, and I realize there is a time for everything. For instance, if the music minister was feeling kind of impish and decided to give the Pastor’s ribs a poke during the Pastoral prayer, well…probably not a good idea. But there are other people and more appropriate places. What about your good friends? What about your parents? What about your spouse? Couldn’t you tickle them? I could be wrong, but I think a good tickle might just make their day.

Perhaps you are afraid of the verbal or physical response of the would be “ticklee.” I understand. On more than one occasion my oldest son has retaliated to my tickling with a very painful blow to my arm. So, if you can’t tickle anyone else or you are too afraid to try, I hereby grant to you personal permission to tickle my daughter Hannah. You’ll love it when she sighs!