Many years ago a group of country and western artists, including Johnny Cash and his wife June, got together and made a tribute ablum, depicting the life of Jesse James in music. For what it was, it was pretty good. One of the songs discuss the news about Jesse, being ambushed and left for dead by some Union soldiers, getting nursed back to health by his cousin, and the fact that he was getting hitched to her. The tag line to the song was, "Have you heard the news, boys? No, give us the news."
Thus, today's journal entry asks, "Have you heard the news, boys?"
Some of it you probably have. Some of it you I highly doubt, especially that which pertains to some very local concerns. Local as in where I live, which is Syracuse, N.Y.. Perhaps you won't even care about it. That's okay. I still plan to vent on items large and small, and give you the news. So, if need be, just deal with it, dude, deal with it.
But it won't all be local stories. Promise. So let's buckle up and take a ride.
I'm a 1986 graduate of Syracuse University. This year's edition of the football team was 0-3 going in to yesterday's game against the mighty Huskies of Northeastern, a school which is in the FSC or FCS or whatever it is now -- it used to be Division I-AA.
Wow. What a story. A D-I program beats a I-AA school.
I won't go into the details. And I suppose a win is a win is a win. But since the Orange performance should really leave the team tinted red as in blushing for how sub-par it was in terms of dominating an opponent, all it really did is continue to expose how bad this team is.
Greg Robinson now has 8 wins as a college head coach. In 4 years.
He won't be here next year. There's not much point in firing him now. Let him finish the year, instead of dumping this debacle of a team off on any other coach, even one of his assistants.
Greg's a great guy, or so they say. I believe that. He just hasn't been what we hoped he'd be as our coach.
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Speaking of local sports, our Triple A ball club, the Syracuse Chiefs, have signed a new multi-year affiliation deal with the Washington Nationals. At one time Syracuse was the farm club of the Yanks, but Syracuse has been with the Blue Jays since their inception. The last few years haven't seen too many winning records for the Chiefs, and management feels perhaps Toronto doesn't use their farm system to develop players in such a way that there can be winning at every level.
They had hoped to woo the Mets, but New York went with Buffalo. The Nationals did everything they could to make their case, including sending one of their owners and the GM to tour our facilities. They were very complimentary in public, and seemed to be sincere. The Marlins had shown some interest, but for better or for worse the powers that be voted unanimously to align themselves with Washington.
Let's hope it's an interesting affiliation.
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I love how the Dumocrats < Yes, it's a mis-spelling; and your point is...? > seem desparate to tie Dale Sweetland to George Bush. But then again, they're trying to tie everyone to Bush. Now there's an original campaign strategy.
And then Dan Maffei's sickly sweet "can't we all just get along ad" comes out in which he claims we aren't Democrats or Republicans at the gas pump, suggesting that if they can just put party bickering aside they can solve that problem. And of course he'll help with that.
Apparently Danny boy thinks we aren't smart enough to figure out that it's been his party who have done everything in their power to block real relief at the gas pump, without offering one iota of the inkling of an idea that you might be able to suggest something we can do to solve the problem, other than being obstructionists to progress and leading all that bickering. The Democrat party -- sorry, gang, they are anything but "Democratic" -- are the party of DON'T. ''
Sadly, we normally have to suffer through with them representing us here in New York.
Then there's Mike Arcuri. He's got this cute commercial where he's cutting, cutting, cutting: cutting his lawn, his son's hair, and claiming he cut's lots of taxes, finally saying he approves the message because he ""never met a tax I didn't want to cut."
Right. Like he's cut all the taxes he claims to have cut.
Hey, Mikey, the party of the Donkey is the original tax and spenders, and nothing they've done -- or griped or moaned about -- tells me they'll do anything any different now.
Unfortunately too few in the GOP stand out as real tax cutting small growth limited government types any more.
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Hey, Pakistan, how's it feel?
They've just suffered a terrible terrorist attack, and we should never wish that on anyone, but their new President, ""Mr. Bhuto" [I know that's not his name -- just his identity] was in such a rush to demonstrate his independence from Washington that he was quick to condemn the cross-border raids by American commandos coming across the border from Afghanistan to hit Al Qaida militants in safe areas on Pakistan's "sovereign territory."
Maybe this will help him reconsider the need to let the good guys get the bad guys?
Doubtful.
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Our church pianist is a messianic Jew. Yesterday I attended shabbat services at his synagogue. It was interesting to say the least. I really appreciated how they honored the Word of God, and their unique style of worship, which seemed to have a lot of freedom and emphasis on Jesus. Can't fault them for that! Very Jewish, and a bit more charismatic than my liking, but the sermon would have been well received in our church as it was in their synagogue. A rewarding experience. I'm really glad I went.
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I love listening to Ravi Zacharias every Sunday morning at 8:30 on our local Christian radio network of stations. He's great. Right before Rave each week they broadcast R.C. Sproul's weekly show.
The last few weeks he's been highlighting philosophical foundations of western civilization. I couldn't bring myself to listen today. The last few weeks when I have listened I can't recall one reference to Jesus, and there was a distinct absense of teaching which would help build me up in Christ and lead me into a closer relationship with Him, or even challenge Christians in any area in which we need to be challenged.
My reaction after last week's show? What a waste of resources. And even if you give him the benefit of the doubt that he's saved, which I believe he is, he'd be hard pressed to give you that benefit. He believes in and teaches personal, pre-temporal election.
I still have a hard time understanding how he can really convince anyone they need to get saved. If you truly believe what he believes, there's nothing we could say or do which will change the outcome for that individual, because unless God had chosen you, personally, in time eternal in the past, you might as well get used to really, really hot climes.
So I suppose what's the point in trying to help the elect get closer to Christ and have a burden for the lost? The lost can just go to hell, I guess. No need in wasting time on minor matters like that when you can talk about Plato and Aristotle and philosophical mumbo jumbo, right?
Yeah, maybe it's not a fair representation of all he believes. But then again his theology isn't a fair representation of what God believes, in my humble opinion. So I consider us even.
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What IS this world coming to? We've recently had a member of the military and his wife arrested for sexually abusing and raping children as young as 16 months and as old as 13 years. 16 months?!?!?
I guess this is how sick sick can be.
Then there's the 56-year old man who beat his 80-year old mother to death with her own crutch.
http://wcbstv.com/local/far.rockaway.son.2.821021.html
When you devalue life the way we have as a society and culture, you reap what you sew.
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How should we react to the Ray Boltz bombshell?
Prayer, for him, his wife and his family.
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Charlotte Dennett thinks if she's elected Attorney General for Vermont she would have jurisdiction to prosecute the President for murder concerning the way on terror.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080919/ap_on_el_st_lo/prosecuting_bush_2
The Progressive Party candidate ought to have her head -- and law degree examined. Let's see, are they really offering those in cracker jack boxes these days? That is, if she has one.
But of course, the good folks of Vermont will probably elect her.
Wow. The syrup isn't the only thing which runs really thick up there, eh?
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If any Republican had called the Veep candidate for the Dumocrats "disabled" -- totally ignoring the fact that Gov. Palin has a new born which could be called "disabled," although one who the Palin's rightly observed is a blessing from God -- he or she would have been tarred and feathered by now, at the least, and perhaps lynched for good measure.
http://wcbstv.com/campaign08/congressman.charles.rangel.2.821541.html
And someone like Charlie Rangel would have been leading the charge with the torches and rope.
Of course, his tax problems would have caused the Dumocrats to call for any Republican in the same spot to be impeached, and all that good blah blah blah. But not Charlie boy. He'll even get to keep his Chairmanship of Ways and Means.
Oh, yeah, those JackA... err, DONKEYs... really know all about reform, don't they?
But of course, the fact that he doesn't pay his proper taxes in 2004, 2005 and 2006, because he didn't properly report all his income, isn't his fault. It's not like he violated the public trust. Just ask him, he'll tell ya!
No, it's a guerrilla war the Republicans are waging, just to smear the Dems, and these facts are really just insinuation and half-truths.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080919/ap_on_go_co/rangel_ethics
I'd say what a putz, but that honor goes to everyone who's voted for him more than once.
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Not that I'm the first to sling names. The "Black's Against Obama" are really just "Aunt Jemimah's" according to their critics, and Gov. Palin is a bunch of things I'll refrain from reprinting here, according to the wonderful and talented and gracious Sandra Bernhard.
Well, she's all those things if you are having a bad trip on acid and magic mushrooms.
http://www.breitbart.tv/html/178233.html
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I suppose some are saying, "Boy, Bro. Tim, you're not being very nice today, are you?"
And posting on a Sunday of all things!
Guilty as charged.
Once in a while I suppose you just have to keep it real.
Well, I'll post this later, when I help my daughter figure out a resume to use to apply for a job.
In the meantime it's off to church for a concert tonight.
Thanks for spending a few days. I hope the blast of my vent wasn't too horrendous to take.
Blessings,
Timotheus, your brother in Christ
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