Insomnia: Blogging Points

I've always had difficulty sleeping on hot nights, so I'm just going to express a few thoughts and then try going to bed again.

High Socks and Stirrups on Baseball Players:

There are many female baseball fans who love high socks on baseball players, they think high socks make ballplayers look hotter. I, however like high socks because that's just way a ballplayer should look. A baseball player with high socks and stirrups was the image etched into my mind when I was a little kid. Also, since there has been a mini-revival on the practice of wearing stirrups, I'd like that to come back in wider use. Barry Zito was a pioneer in this field but is now just wearing long green socks now, he needs to go back to stirrups.

The Iraq War and the President's latest remarks (OMG! I'm going political!):

First thing's first, the United States should have never invaded Iraq in the first place. I have always believed that only soft cultural power can create lasting peace. The end of the Cold War was an example of that.

America won the Cold War not by the strength of our military, but by the strength of our economy and culture. At the end, all of the Soviets and the other Eastern Bloc countries wanted to be like Americans and drink Coke, eat at McDonalds, wear blue jeans and listen to rock music. To effectively combat terrorism, one must also eliminate the reasons why people choose to become terrorists. People become terrorists because they feel that they have no other options and their situation is very dire. A big reason of this is the totalitarian regimes in the middle east and the poverty of the average Arab. We must give the people out there a viable and better alternative to terrorism. I feel that the United States is failing in this respect.

That being said, I actually do agree with my president for once. We must stay in Iraq until the job is done. Look, we shouldn't have been there to begin with, but due to American actions there, we created a big mess. We can't leave Iraq a mess. If we abandon Iraq, then Iraq will become a terrorist state, just like what happened to Afghanistan after America abandoned it during the Cold War. Remember, bin Laden was once on "our side" against the Soviets in Afghanistan. If this happens to Iraq, the blood of countless innocents will be on our hands, in addition to the blood of those who have already died.

Liberal Atheists ragging on Christianity:

Whenever an Atheist goes off belittling the Christian Faith I am deeply offended. Often times they say such things like, "Don’t Christians have churches and homes to decorate with the Ten Commandments? Is their faith so fragile that they fear they will stray if not reminded of it constantly?" Always implying that God does not exist and all those of his who worship Him are fools. This is my response.

Yes I am a Liberal, I voted for Howard Dean in the Primaries last year and I have voted Democrat since I my first election at age 18. I also happen to be a Roman Catholic. A Liberal Atheist who consistantly derides religion and mocks the faithful is no better than a Conservative Fundamentalist who tries to impose a Christian morality on all Americans, Chrisitan or not.

We're supposed to be the better ones.

I don't walk up to Atheists and say they're going to hell for not worshipping God, so please don't come up to me and criticize the way I worship.

Remember, Dr. Martin Luther King was an ordained minister and a Christian. The Abolitionists who tried to free the slaves were Christian.

If you wish to mock Fundamentalist Christians you can say they are straying from Jesus' teachings that promote Peace on Earth or being a good steward to God's Creation. I still maintain that I am more Christian than many of those Fundamentalists out there and that being liberal and religious aren't mutually exclusive.

On the Ten Commandments and the recent Supreme Court decision:

I could see how the court would swing both ways. The Ten Commandments display can be construed as an establishment of a religion. However American Legal Code is based on older legal codes, such as English Common Law, Justinian's Code, or even much older laws such as the Law of Hammurabi or, the Ten Commandments. The descision is right, it's case by case and dependant on context.

If it's a plaque with all of the commanments written on it especially the first one ("I am the LORD they God...") then yes, it's illegal becuase it does promote a religion. But if it's more abstract with the tablets with just the Roman Numerals combined with another display of other ancient legal codes, then I can't see the problem with it. The display shows the evolution of the law, from it's beginnings to the present day.

That's it, I'm done, I'm sleepy now.