Angles & Deus

No it's not a typo. Yes, this rant is semi-inspired by the movie- Angels & Demons.

I watched it last night. I'm not a fan of Dan Brown's books and while I am a conspiracy theory buff, his writings are poorly researched and referenced even as works of fiction.

Nevertheless, his portrayal and perspectives on the catholic church are mostly spot on.

My position as a lapsed catholic notwithstanding, I feel that Dan Brown's and subsequently the director Ron Howard's depiction of church and religion are something that have been hallmarks of why so many turn to atheism.

Religion in its man-made forms are so flawed and so prone to justifications that all the rites and traditions for our salvation (and subsequent secular benefits to the needy & hungry) are so heavily shadowed by the evils and divisions it encourages.

What really gets my goat is the religious war-cry: "God's will!" Lapsed though I may be, I do subscribe to the will of the Father. But I'll also extend this disclaimer: "Reliance on God's Will is NOT AN EXCUSE for common sense and logical reasoning to take leave."

I winced inwardly at one point during the encounter between this lady (catholic I assume) and a supporter of stem cell research.

Supporter: "Why do you deny the right to save lives of the sick and dying?"
Catholic lady: "We can't play God!"

That point and counterpoint provides a neat summary of this conundrum. We are interpreting God's Will from a human angle. The entire bible has been interpreted from a human angle. Even if we take at face value the perfection of Logos (The Word), our interpretations of Logos are far from it.

Human Angles & the Will of Deus: a top down philosophical and logical look at things:

• God gives us the ability to reason. (For you fundamentalists and literalists- You really think Adam and Eve could have taken the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge that belonged to an omnipotent and omniscience deity if He really didn't want us to have it?)
• God gives a free will- the power to make choices.
• With sentient and independent thought- Humans begin to conceptualise philosophy and begin scientific inquiry into how the world works. We want to touch the face of God (the divine).
  
• God is everlasting & eternal.
• The Bible/Torah/Quran is one book. Written from perspectives of humans. (Hands up how many took dictation from a tutor or teacher and still got the written work wrong somehow.)
• Just for fun: Sum of present human knowledge is in over 20 volumes of encyclopedias.
  
• Humans presume that whoever Deus/God is, He/She NEEDS our help in "fixing" the world.
• Religion begins to divide humanity because we each interpret holy writings in accordance to our own beliefs as we try to "fix" the world.
• Each sect of religion is the TRUE ONE.
• The premise that if one individual's version is the TRUE, it also holds true that all others are therefore false.
• "God has spoken to me!" or alternatively "It's God's Will!", we must convert/cleanse/save, the unbelievers/infidels/heathens.
• We give birth to the Spanish Inquisition/Salem Witch Hunts/Modern day fundamentalist terrorism/whatever horrors committed in the name of God

My contention is that you don't need religion to act in accordance to morality and good conscience, for example:

Cloning

• Human angle on Morality: Who's responsible for that new life? Who takes priority- the original or the clone?
• Human angle on Good conscience: We should therefore ban complete human replication in good conscience. We however, retain the knowledge to duplicate healthy organs for replacement in the host to save lives.
• What Deus says through Religion: Ban it all. We shouldn't play God.

Then what the Fuck (pardon the french)? Should we nuke ourselves back to the stone ages? Discard all medical advances in health and technology?

Consider for a minute that for all of THE BIBLE'S "perfection", nowhere has the omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent God EVER dictated to us how we should behave when it comes to controversial new technologies like stem cell research and cloning.

Neither has God said, "In time, the atom will lead to terrible destruction in your distant future, thou shalt not conduct atomic research."

If anything, the pursuit of science and discovery is one that God has encouraged and pre-ordained. Adam and Eve satisfied their curiousity by eating of the fruit. As sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, we satisfy our curiousity by continuious pursuit of the fruit of knowledge (science).

What God is looking for is the maturity to exercise that discovery and power responsibily and with the intention to benefit the rest of mankind.

Take this allegory:

• Noah, go build the ark to save lives, a flood is coming.
• Here are detailed blueprints and construction plans for the ark based on principles of physics and how wood is less dense than water (engineering/science for Godsakes- no pun intended).
• God didn't go: Noah, a flood is coming. Come, take 2 of each animal and walk onto my giant God-hands. I will keep you safe while I cleasnse the world of the nephilim.

Ignoring the story of faith against a mocking audience, the fable also tells the story of an inspired farmer (also the first drunk and possible inventor of wine- Go read the Bible again), with no prior knowledge of boat building technology and understanding of physics, built a vessel that was no only capable of long voyages but of sufficient bouyancy to keep thousands of species afloat.

Not to mention, the technology that would prevent the animals from conducting their "circle of life aka food chain" behaviors that would cause them to eat each other.

Anyone that claims God is against science and progress is out of their mind.

Breaking News: Shanghainese Woman freaks out when boyfriend refuses to buy her a car

A woman goes hysterical after her male companion refuses to buy her the car.

I found the original on youkou (a Chinese Youtube copy). I couldn't find a unadulterated version on youtube.

Translation:
Man: The car doesn't suit you
Woman: It does suit me!
Man: It's like this each time we go shopping. I'm not buying this car for you!

The woman then jumps into and drives the car up and down the showroom, ignoring her now frantic companion and salesman.

Finally he caves.
Man: Stop! Stop! I'll buy it! I'll buy it!

Something to live by

How much is that doggy?

I'm a cat person now... but it still doesn't stop me from appreciating one of God's handsome doggies :)

My personal favorite- the Border Collie Rough Collie aka Lassie

Why PAP will always win

As taken from the ST forum page, letter in full available here.

The Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA) and its president, Ms Lee Bee Wah, conveyed refreshingly clear thinking in their courageous decision not to nominate Liu. It is crucial not to recognise the wrong individual or for the wrong reasons.

- Lim Pueh Joo (Mdm)

Hi Mdm Lim Pueh Joo,

Thanks for the letter and I hope you continue to enjoy your estate upgrading programs and impositions on your civil liberties. We need more stalwarts like yourself as a bulwark against rising sentient thought in this country.

We need automatons that will take all our words at face value and regurgitate them as if it were personally held opinion and God given fact.

Thanks for your eternal support.

Best Regards,
Opinion Engineering Executive
Ministry of Public Relations

From TODAY Online: MP had no empathy

It started with Member of Parliament (MP) Seng Han Thong being set on fire. Then came MP Denise Phua who was threatened by a rag-and-bone man. Recently, MP Cynthia Phua was subjected to a display of violence by a constituent.

Although these incidents are disturbing and a cause for concern, I wonder whether the constituents are solely to be blamed.

Allow me to relate my personal experience.

In February 2001, my older son died in a naval accident whilst serving National Service. In that year, my younger son was due for enlistment. A friend, a very active grassroots member, suggested that I approach my MP, for help in exploring the possibility of getting an exemption for my younger son. I was reluctant but he went ahead to fix an appointment for me at the Meet-The-People Session (MPS). I subsequently relented and he accompanied me there. It was in March 2001. That was my first appearance at a MPS, and it was to be my last.

I waited until midnight before I could meet the MP. Prior to this, he was given the case paper which detailed the objective of the meeting and the circumstances of my case.

When I entered the room, his first remark was “Yes, what can I do for you?”. There was no attempt at offering a word of sympathy or condolence. I then related my situation and said that both my wife and I were very traumatised.

His next remark “What traumatic, after two months, you won’t be traumatic?”. With that, I decided to end the meeting. And with that, my respect for him hit ground zero. I was too stunned and grief-stricken to react. Someone who was less-controlled and less-measured than me could have flown into a rage and become violent.

MPs are elected or appointed to serve the constituents. People who attend the MPS are those who have real problems and need help. In a lot of instances, they are stressed, distressed and troubled. What they need is a caring soul, a helping hand, a gentle voice, and words of hope and encouragement. To dispense these, MPs need good interpersonal skills and a high EQ. Arrogance, a patronizing, chiding and belittling attitude, aloofness and lack of empathy will only trigger acts of rashness and violence. Many of our politicians have a high IQ, some are scholars. However, a high IQ is not the only attribute needed in a political career. A high EQ is equally, if not more critical, especially when it comes to dealing with the constituents.

In my case, I would have felt good if my MP could have been a warm and caring person. If he could have been empathetic, consoling and helpful. All these qualities can only come from the heart, not from the mind.

How many of our MPs can stand up and be counted for this?

The stress test

After a full day of use comprising:
-continuous calls
-regular smses
-reading eBooks during commutes
-google maps when I got lost
-web surfing & emails between meetings

I was 1/4 batt by the time I got back to the office. Throw in music and video and I'm guessing flat before day's end.

The good news?
With USB charging, it took 1hr to get back to full :)