I was somewhat dismayed today by a BBC News article on Sunday's televised Miss USA competition. During the contest Carrie Prejean - Miss California - was asked for her views on same-sex marriage by one of the judges, celebrity blogger Perez Hilton. She replied, "We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage. I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offence to anybody out there, but that's how I was raised."
Those aren't words I have a problem with. As the transcript clearly shows, Miss Prejean wasn't attacking anyone; she simply stated her personal opinion in a polite and respectful way in response to a direct question.
No, what bothers me is the reaction she got.
Hilton said he was "floored" by Ms Prejean's answer, which, he said, "alienated millions of gay and lesbian Americans, their families and their supporters". What!? I'm sorry Mr Hilton, but just because an individual differs from you doesn't give you grounds to say their identity alienates a whole section of society. I'm white, but I don't feel alienated because America chose a 'black' president. I'm heterosexual, but I don't feel alienated because someone else chooses to be gay. I'm a Christian, but I don't feel alienated when other people disagree with my views.
Mr Hilton, and those who hurried to agree with him, clearly have a problem here. Their rhetoric is far more reminiscent of a petulant, pouting child in a primary school playground than visionaries seeking to lead the ignorant from darkness into light. Campaigners for gay rights have spoken out passionately for many years against bigotry and intolerance, yet here we see them committing the very same sins they have condemned in others for so long. I'm afraid that rather undermines the credibility of your comment, Mr Hilton.
Needless to say, Miss California didn't become Miss USA, but in my view she still left the contest a winner. "It did cost me my crown," she said after the competition, "but I wouldn't have had it any other way. I said what I feel. I stated an opinion that was true to myself and that's all I can do."
What should she have said, Mr Hilton? Would you have given her more points if she'd prostituted herself for the crown and told you what you wanted to hear? What kind of a judge would that have made you? Integrity used to be prized, a precious diadem of virue crowning any young woman's character. But when people trample it underfoot to further their own agenda in the midst of a beauty pageant that's the ugliest thing you could ever hope to see.
Tuesday, 21 April 2009
Sunday, 19 April 2009
Is Global Warming Just Hot Air?
As someone with a scientific and engineering background one of the things that really gets my goat is when so-called experts publish just one side of a story as if it were the whole truth. Politicians and social activists love black-and-white statements because they can use them to motivate people. But ask any engineer who understands the topic and he'll usually shake his head and say, "I'm afraid it's not that simple..."
Global warming is a case in point. We the public are fed a regular diet of sea-level rise, irreversible climate change and man-made meterological catastrophe. "Global warming is a reality and it's all man-made," our leaders scream. "We must all fly less, pay more for our petrol, reduce our carbon footprint and use less plastic bags." Plastic bags? That's just one example of how a side issue gets tacked onto the main argument and whipped up into a campaign bandwagon for political ends. Yes, plastic bags pollute the environment and endanger wildlife. But they don't cause global warming any more than any other manufactured product does.
The truth is, the whole issue is not as simple as the green machine would have us believe. Yes, there is some evidence that things are changing, but there is also a host of evidence that this could well be just part of the natural cycle of things and far less man-made than we have been led to believe. For example, you might remember recent reports by 'experts' that the Antarctic ice sheet is melting on an unprecedented scale and that as a result we are likely to suffer catastrophic sea level rises of up to six metres by the year 2100. Only last week the Australian Environment Minister Peter Garrett echoed this, insisting that global warming was causing ice losses throughout Antarctica. "I don't think there's any doubt it is contributing to what we've seen both on the Wilkins shelf and more generally in Antarctica," he said.
Unfortunately, he's a politican; and what you won't have heard about is the other information recently released by the Head of the Australian Antarctic Division's Glaciology Program, Ian Allinson. He reports that sea ice losses in west Antarctica over the past 30 years have been more than offset by ice increases in the Ross Sea region, just one sector of east Antarctica. "Sea ice conditions have remained stable in Antarctica generally," Dr Allison says. He also says there is no evidence of significant change in the mass of ice shelves in east Antarctica nor any indication that its ice cap was melting. "The only significant calvings [icebergs breaking away] in Antarctica have been in the west," he said. And he says that even those might not be unusual. "Ice shelves in general have episodic carvings and there can be large icebergs breaking off - I'm talking 100km or 200km long - every 10 or 20 or 50 years."
Interesting eh?
Ice core drilling off Australia's Davis Station in East Antarctica by the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Co-Operative Research Centre shows that last year, the ice had a maximum thickness of 1.89m, its densest in 10 years. The average thickness of the ice at Davis from the 1950s until now is 1.67m.
Want more? A paper to be published soon by the British Antarctic Survey in the journal Geophysical Research Letters is expected to confirm that over the past 30 years, the area of sea ice around the continent has expanded. And let's not forget the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research's report, prepared for last week's Antarctic Treaty meeting in Washington, which noted the South Pole has experienced "significant cooling in recent decades". How come they never mentioned that bit on the news?
The reality is, the whole global warming question is not as simple as it's made out to be and there is a wealth of information that doesn't fit in with today's political and social agenda so it's simply not reported. We need to be careful not to blindly swallow everything the 'experts' tell us, because the facts show that sometimes what they're telling us isn't science - it's propaganda.
Global warming is a case in point. We the public are fed a regular diet of sea-level rise, irreversible climate change and man-made meterological catastrophe. "Global warming is a reality and it's all man-made," our leaders scream. "We must all fly less, pay more for our petrol, reduce our carbon footprint and use less plastic bags." Plastic bags? That's just one example of how a side issue gets tacked onto the main argument and whipped up into a campaign bandwagon for political ends. Yes, plastic bags pollute the environment and endanger wildlife. But they don't cause global warming any more than any other manufactured product does.
The truth is, the whole issue is not as simple as the green machine would have us believe. Yes, there is some evidence that things are changing, but there is also a host of evidence that this could well be just part of the natural cycle of things and far less man-made than we have been led to believe. For example, you might remember recent reports by 'experts' that the Antarctic ice sheet is melting on an unprecedented scale and that as a result we are likely to suffer catastrophic sea level rises of up to six metres by the year 2100. Only last week the Australian Environment Minister Peter Garrett echoed this, insisting that global warming was causing ice losses throughout Antarctica. "I don't think there's any doubt it is contributing to what we've seen both on the Wilkins shelf and more generally in Antarctica," he said.
Unfortunately, he's a politican; and what you won't have heard about is the other information recently released by the Head of the Australian Antarctic Division's Glaciology Program, Ian Allinson. He reports that sea ice losses in west Antarctica over the past 30 years have been more than offset by ice increases in the Ross Sea region, just one sector of east Antarctica. "Sea ice conditions have remained stable in Antarctica generally," Dr Allison says. He also says there is no evidence of significant change in the mass of ice shelves in east Antarctica nor any indication that its ice cap was melting. "The only significant calvings [icebergs breaking away] in Antarctica have been in the west," he said. And he says that even those might not be unusual. "Ice shelves in general have episodic carvings and there can be large icebergs breaking off - I'm talking 100km or 200km long - every 10 or 20 or 50 years."
Interesting eh?
Ice core drilling off Australia's Davis Station in East Antarctica by the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Co-Operative Research Centre shows that last year, the ice had a maximum thickness of 1.89m, its densest in 10 years. The average thickness of the ice at Davis from the 1950s until now is 1.67m.
Want more? A paper to be published soon by the British Antarctic Survey in the journal Geophysical Research Letters is expected to confirm that over the past 30 years, the area of sea ice around the continent has expanded. And let's not forget the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research's report, prepared for last week's Antarctic Treaty meeting in Washington, which noted the South Pole has experienced "significant cooling in recent decades". How come they never mentioned that bit on the news?
The reality is, the whole global warming question is not as simple as it's made out to be and there is a wealth of information that doesn't fit in with today's political and social agenda so it's simply not reported. We need to be careful not to blindly swallow everything the 'experts' tell us, because the facts show that sometimes what they're telling us isn't science - it's propaganda.
Tuesday, 7 April 2009
Little Things
I've had a rotten cold for the last few days. It came out of nowhere; I went to bed feeling fine then woke in the night thinking, "My throat is on fire!" The rest, as they say, is history.
Everyone knows these things are caused by viruses, and a biochemist friend of mine told me a few things about them. Apparently a virus is a fragment of DNA that can infiltrate the resident DNA in a cell, effectively hijacking it to perform its own evil will. I often ask my friend if he's found a cure yet for the common cold but he replies that it's not that easy. Even though a virus is just a shred of DNA the part of that shred that causes us problems is smaller still and mutates constantly, making any classical drug obsolete the moment it is designed. The challenge is to find a way to target the stable 'carrier' part of the virus DNA - without killing everything else in the process.
It's sobering to think that a six-foot-one 13 stone alpha-male in superb physical condition (okay, that last part might be a slight exaggeration) can be brought low by a foe so small you'd need an electron microscope to see it, but I can assure you it's true. So often it's the smallest things that cause our biggest problems. Thoughtless words and actions can be the wedge that splinters a marriage. Just a little compromise with sin can explode to destroy your credibility and wreck your destiny. And how many times has spiritual laziness and indifference left me wondering what happened to the presence of God?
There is an old proverb in Yorkshire which says, "Take care of the pennies, and the pounds will take care of themselves". Success as a Christian does not come by mission statements, strategic plans or great visionary intentions. It is achieved daily, amid the cut-and-thrust of life by a series of seemingly insignificant decisions to do the right thing.
Everyone knows these things are caused by viruses, and a biochemist friend of mine told me a few things about them. Apparently a virus is a fragment of DNA that can infiltrate the resident DNA in a cell, effectively hijacking it to perform its own evil will. I often ask my friend if he's found a cure yet for the common cold but he replies that it's not that easy. Even though a virus is just a shred of DNA the part of that shred that causes us problems is smaller still and mutates constantly, making any classical drug obsolete the moment it is designed. The challenge is to find a way to target the stable 'carrier' part of the virus DNA - without killing everything else in the process.
It's sobering to think that a six-foot-one 13 stone alpha-male in superb physical condition (okay, that last part might be a slight exaggeration) can be brought low by a foe so small you'd need an electron microscope to see it, but I can assure you it's true. So often it's the smallest things that cause our biggest problems. Thoughtless words and actions can be the wedge that splinters a marriage. Just a little compromise with sin can explode to destroy your credibility and wreck your destiny. And how many times has spiritual laziness and indifference left me wondering what happened to the presence of God?
There is an old proverb in Yorkshire which says, "Take care of the pennies, and the pounds will take care of themselves". Success as a Christian does not come by mission statements, strategic plans or great visionary intentions. It is achieved daily, amid the cut-and-thrust of life by a series of seemingly insignificant decisions to do the right thing.
Monday, 23 March 2009
The Tomb that Speaks to the Living
In the quiet of Westminster Abbey in London, tucked away among the final resting places of generals, kings and statesmen is the grave of a young woman named Mary Beaufoy. I found this memorial years ago while exploring the Abbey and the memory of it, along with the photographs I took on that day, have remained with me ever since.
The reason? This grave speaks to the living.
Mary Beaufoy was the only daughter and heiress of Sir Henry Beaufoy, of Guyscliffe, near Warwick, and the Hon. Charlotte Lane, eldest daughter of George Lord Viscount Lansborough. Standing there in the Abbey's stillness, looking at this tomb, it isn't too hard to imagine how the hopes and dreams of Sir Henry and Lady Charlotte were bound up in this one precious child. She would have been their laughter, their joy, and the quiet confidence that one day their title and lineage would pass to another. But Mary died on July 12, 1705, aged just 28, and their hopes died with her.
Such was the impact of this tragedy, and yet through her grief and loss Lady Charlotte resolved that her daughter's death would not be in vain. The tomb she commissioned at the hand of the famous woodcarver Grinling Gibbons bears a striking message, one which stopped me in my tracks all those years ago and one which I pray will speak to you too.
This is what it says:
"Reader! whoever thou art, let the sight of this tomb imprint on thy mind that young and old, without distinction, leave this world; and therefore fail not to secure the next."
The reason? This grave speaks to the living.
Mary Beaufoy was the only daughter and heiress of Sir Henry Beaufoy, of Guyscliffe, near Warwick, and the Hon. Charlotte Lane, eldest daughter of George Lord Viscount Lansborough. Standing there in the Abbey's stillness, looking at this tomb, it isn't too hard to imagine how the hopes and dreams of Sir Henry and Lady Charlotte were bound up in this one precious child. She would have been their laughter, their joy, and the quiet confidence that one day their title and lineage would pass to another. But Mary died on July 12, 1705, aged just 28, and their hopes died with her.
Such was the impact of this tragedy, and yet through her grief and loss Lady Charlotte resolved that her daughter's death would not be in vain. The tomb she commissioned at the hand of the famous woodcarver Grinling Gibbons bears a striking message, one which stopped me in my tracks all those years ago and one which I pray will speak to you too.
This is what it says:
"Reader! whoever thou art, let the sight of this tomb imprint on thy mind that young and old, without distinction, leave this world; and therefore fail not to secure the next."
Sunday, 22 March 2009
What a Waste of Time
Do you like wasting your time?
Hebrews 11:6 describes what is possibly the biggest lost cause of them all, and yet one into which otherwise intelligent people have poured huge amounts of time and effort down through the ages. The verse says "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."
Many seek to prove or disprove the existence of God by their intellect, by clever philosophical argument or logical reasoning. Some point to the natural world or the laws of science while others turn to history and comb ancient texts in dogged pusuit of a secret clue.
But all this is a complete waste of time. If we're going to "come to God" as the verse says, if we ever hope to approach that place where God can be found and seen, then there's only one way and that is to come by faith. The writer is very clear, "he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." Notice the word "must." Your arguments won't bring you to God and neither will they prove his non-existence. Science, nature, and all the intellect and philosophy of man will equally get you nowhere. Even religion is a waste of time. Unless you're willing to exercise faith your search will be in vain.
This upsets some and frustrates many more, but that's the way it is. You see, if God really is God then His position gives Him the right to make the rules. And He's decided that only those who are prepared to approach Him in humble faith are going to find Him. "Humility," as a wise friend of mine often says, "is what gains entrance." It's your ticket to the door, it places your name on heaven's guest list. The humble soul stops trying to evaluate God, to disprove God, to analyse God, and simply worships Him. It makes sense if you think about it - if we could understand God, categorise Him and explain Him then by that very act we've reduced Him to the level of our own intelligence and discovered that after all He's no wiser than us. But the glory of the true God is as far beyond the grasp of our feeble human understanding as quantum physics is beyond the reach of the average family dog. If God truly is God, then we can never figure Him out. But what a glorious truth it is that while we could never reach Him by our own efforts God has provided a way for us to find him, a way so simple that it can be mastered by the lowliest peasant or the youngest child.
Stop wasting your time. Approach God in simple, humble faith and you'll find that He's more than willing to make Himself known.
Hebrews 11:6 describes what is possibly the biggest lost cause of them all, and yet one into which otherwise intelligent people have poured huge amounts of time and effort down through the ages. The verse says "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."
Many seek to prove or disprove the existence of God by their intellect, by clever philosophical argument or logical reasoning. Some point to the natural world or the laws of science while others turn to history and comb ancient texts in dogged pusuit of a secret clue.
But all this is a complete waste of time. If we're going to "come to God" as the verse says, if we ever hope to approach that place where God can be found and seen, then there's only one way and that is to come by faith. The writer is very clear, "he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." Notice the word "must." Your arguments won't bring you to God and neither will they prove his non-existence. Science, nature, and all the intellect and philosophy of man will equally get you nowhere. Even religion is a waste of time. Unless you're willing to exercise faith your search will be in vain.
This upsets some and frustrates many more, but that's the way it is. You see, if God really is God then His position gives Him the right to make the rules. And He's decided that only those who are prepared to approach Him in humble faith are going to find Him. "Humility," as a wise friend of mine often says, "is what gains entrance." It's your ticket to the door, it places your name on heaven's guest list. The humble soul stops trying to evaluate God, to disprove God, to analyse God, and simply worships Him. It makes sense if you think about it - if we could understand God, categorise Him and explain Him then by that very act we've reduced Him to the level of our own intelligence and discovered that after all He's no wiser than us. But the glory of the true God is as far beyond the grasp of our feeble human understanding as quantum physics is beyond the reach of the average family dog. If God truly is God, then we can never figure Him out. But what a glorious truth it is that while we could never reach Him by our own efforts God has provided a way for us to find him, a way so simple that it can be mastered by the lowliest peasant or the youngest child.
Stop wasting your time. Approach God in simple, humble faith and you'll find that He's more than willing to make Himself known.
Thursday, 12 March 2009
The Silent Minority
One thing that seems to characterise today's society is the abundance of groups determined to impose their agenda on everyone else. Without really pausing for thought I could name several, all of which demand quite agressively that I accomodate their beliefs and uphold their practices and yet become strangely upset if I in turn ask that they respect mine.
One thing that particularly troubles me in all this is what I call the terrorist paradox. Here in the UK we're no stranger to terrorism having lived with the IRA for half a generation, and yet we have a settlement today in which former enemies have come together to form a power-sharing government. That's good, and I'm glad the peace finally came. It came because people on both sides put aside their guns and rhetoric to talk; both the government and the terrorists meeting on middle ground and moving forward together for peace. And what's interesting is the way in which these leaders have now risen up with one voice to condemn the recent murders by the 'Real IRA' - acts that some of them supported and even committed before they became politicians. Again, I'm glad they spoke out; but I worry that in the wider context of our society we're setting a pattern here.
It seems that in today's world if you live quietly as a reasonable, law-abiding citizen, respecting the rights of others and never forcing your agenda on your fellow man then your voice is ignored by a political system that has more pressing things to think about. But if you step over the line and make noise, if you break the law and throw bricks at Policemen, if you kill and maim innocent bystanders, damage property and commit that most British of crimes, "disturbing the peace", then after the outrage and condemnation have run their course someone will eventually decide to sit down and talk with you. Make yourself a thorn in society's side and sooner or later your demands will be heard. And not just heard; in the fulness of time you'll probably be brought in from the cold and given a leadership role.
We live in a world where only the loud are listened to; and there are many who understand this and are prepared to be as loud as it takes. It's a shame our governments and leaders can't find the time to equally engage the quiet. I don't see anyone offering to bring the young, carers, refugees, ordinary people of quiet and dignified faith, single parents, the elderly or the homeless into the political establishment; rather, I see them increasingly marginalised. We face big problems today, and there are many who have much to contribute but because they either have no voice or have a moral compass that prevents them from stamping on others, they are ignored.
There are rumours that Obama might be about to talk to the Taliban. If he does then it's further evidence, should more be needed, that in today's warped politics there are now two routes into public office: the ballot and the bomb.
One thing that particularly troubles me in all this is what I call the terrorist paradox. Here in the UK we're no stranger to terrorism having lived with the IRA for half a generation, and yet we have a settlement today in which former enemies have come together to form a power-sharing government. That's good, and I'm glad the peace finally came. It came because people on both sides put aside their guns and rhetoric to talk; both the government and the terrorists meeting on middle ground and moving forward together for peace. And what's interesting is the way in which these leaders have now risen up with one voice to condemn the recent murders by the 'Real IRA' - acts that some of them supported and even committed before they became politicians. Again, I'm glad they spoke out; but I worry that in the wider context of our society we're setting a pattern here.
It seems that in today's world if you live quietly as a reasonable, law-abiding citizen, respecting the rights of others and never forcing your agenda on your fellow man then your voice is ignored by a political system that has more pressing things to think about. But if you step over the line and make noise, if you break the law and throw bricks at Policemen, if you kill and maim innocent bystanders, damage property and commit that most British of crimes, "disturbing the peace", then after the outrage and condemnation have run their course someone will eventually decide to sit down and talk with you. Make yourself a thorn in society's side and sooner or later your demands will be heard. And not just heard; in the fulness of time you'll probably be brought in from the cold and given a leadership role.
We live in a world where only the loud are listened to; and there are many who understand this and are prepared to be as loud as it takes. It's a shame our governments and leaders can't find the time to equally engage the quiet. I don't see anyone offering to bring the young, carers, refugees, ordinary people of quiet and dignified faith, single parents, the elderly or the homeless into the political establishment; rather, I see them increasingly marginalised. We face big problems today, and there are many who have much to contribute but because they either have no voice or have a moral compass that prevents them from stamping on others, they are ignored.
There are rumours that Obama might be about to talk to the Taliban. If he does then it's further evidence, should more be needed, that in today's warped politics there are now two routes into public office: the ballot and the bomb.
Tuesday, 10 March 2009
Perspective
People are more important than things.
Friends have more value than funds.
And eternity is more significant than this short, fleeting life.
Friends have more value than funds.
And eternity is more significant than this short, fleeting life.
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