coComments related to BlogRodent

This is one of the funniest th

2009-10-19T17:55:55.570+02:00

This is one of the funniest things I've read in a long while. At least the Gremlins should ply you with strong dring before messing with you. It wouldn't hurt so much… Rich

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:05:05.090+01:00

I hardly know where to begin, so many of you have sent me encouragement and kudos both here and via email, it's dizzying! I am warmed by the onslaught of well-wishing, and it tells me that I was in more folks prayers than I realized. I am humbled and pleased even while reminding myself of Rick Warren's mantra: "It's not about me...." @slw: Thanks for the kudos! It's hard to know what God's best is in every situation except to recognize that it's important to be joyful and content in all situations. Not easy, but it's certainly easier in context: my travails are nothing compared to what they could be. I have learned to count my blessings, friend. @Kyle: I don't know anything about Z's Latin textbooks, though I do know we've published an English, Greek/Hebrew, Latin triglot Bible. I don't know if that's still in print though or not. If you're serious, though, send an email to Verlyn Verbrugge and ask him. He's the in-house editorial expert on ancient languages and if he doesn't know where to find a great Latin textbook, he'll know who does know that answer. @Michael: Thanks, Mike, for your continued prayers, that pumps me up! I second that Amen. @Travis Johnson: Dude, if you have a book idea, let me know. I'll pass it along to an acquisition editor or give you a contact. Honestly, if you have a good idea, you should start working it out. Write a book outline, write your first chapter, and flesh out a proposal -- who your audience is, what you have to say, and why you think you're the guy to say it. If there's the slightest chance for interest, getting that done will be a huge help. I can't say that being the "new guy" gives me any cred at all, but who knows? @tmzydowicz: Resurrected Todd! Thanks for stopping by and thanks for lending your kudos! After looking over your blog, I can see you are well acquainted with difficult situations -- probably more than I am! I do, indeed, have much to be thankful for. I am in relatively good health, I have lovely children and a sweet bride, and to top it off, I have a great job! Praise God! I, too, pray that this is where I'm supposed to be. But I also recognize that wherever I am, that's where I'm supposed to do whatever God gives me, too. He'll lead me on if I need to be elsewhere. I just hope he lets me pay some bills first! @Carl Thomas: The advance is in the mail. I'm sure you're be as delightful to work with as your book was easy to write. :: grin :: @Clay: Bro, thanks for your excitement by proxy! I sure miss working with you and my fellow CTI peeps, but especially you and those long, rambling post 5 pm conversations about everything from typography to cameras to dogs to children to ministry to theology to sports. Well, never sports. But, everything else! And congratulations on your 10 years at CTI! Wahoo! Did they give you a celebration? What's the bling for the 10-year mark? A clock? I shall always cherish my wood Post-It holder... PS: I hope it's either more than 10 years at the Big Z, or that it leads to a truly phenomenal ten years somewhere else. Otherwise, if I get laid-off ten years from now, I'm blaming it on you! @Don: Thanks for the kudos, Don. I'll trust that you don't mean it when you wish me luck, right? Blessings, brother! Blessings! Not luck! :: grin :: @Tim Heard: Thanks for the kudos! I have already passed your feedback on to the HR folks at Zondervan. Whether they appreciate it or not will be hard to say. I can say, however, that I found the employment page easily enough about 9 months ago. I set up a tracker to watch the page and email me the instant anything changed on it. That's how I knew about three job openings the day they were published. A truly motivated job-seeker will find those pages. A motivated and knowledgeable job-seeker will figure out ways to monitor those pages and act on new positions. (Incidentally, I was interviewed for all three positions that I contacted Zondervan about -- I guess they got tired of me bothering HR!) I had several employers in my tracking file: I was watching for jobs at Zondervan, Tyndale, Baker, Group Publishing, GospelCom, my denominations district offices in Illinois, InterVarsity Press, LifeChurch.tv, Regent University, Saddleback Church, Willow Creek, the Willow Creek Exchange, and more. And on each of those sites I never bothered scanning the page for the employment link: I always used Google to search a site with queries like employment|career|jobs site:zondervan.com. Saved me the hassle of searching. Of course, not everybody uses that strategy when searching for job pages. But I learned a long time ago that most companies don't have a clue how to design pages for usability. That's something the job-seeking handbooks need to point out. At the end of my first full week at Zondervan I can report that things are, indeed, going well. I think, anyhow. It's been non-steep meeting after meeting after meeting, sometimes with as many as seven hours of meetings in a day. So, I've had very little time at my desk to work on figuring stuff out or even assimilating what I'm hearing. But on the other hand, it's been great because I'm getting a very broad overview of the Zondervan culture and I'm totally immersed in that process without having to worry about being productive in my first week. I have a mentor to help me out (assigned to me, but he's a great guy, and he's a smart editor to boot), I had four of my five lunches in the first week paid for, I never ate alone in my first week, and I've met with HR four times to touch base in my first week. I've probably spent 15 hours with my manager in this time, and another 15 hours meeting folks from vice-presidents on down to various secretaries. It's been dizzying, but comforting at the same time: the Zondervan work culture is family-like, but still unlike any other place I've worked. It looks to be a very good fit for me. Thanks, again, friends, for all your support. I mean it when I say I appreciate it. You can't know how much... Regards,

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:05:02.273+01:00

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:04:57.281+01:00

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:04:53.636+01:00

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:04:51.340+01:00

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:04:49.387+01:00

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:04:47.333+01:00

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:04:45.625+01:00

I hardly know where to begin,

2008-03-16T08:04:42.816+01:00

I graduated from Highland High

2008-03-03T05:16:14.403+01:00

I graduated from Highland High in 1986, left for college, and have only been back for visits since. Used to live on the cordner of Zuni and San Pedro where my parents managed a nursery/plant shop. I miss the red-tinged sunsets bouncing off the granite mountains. :: sigh ::

Thanks, Simple Shot!

2008-02-25T19:27:52.029+01:00

Thanks, Simple Shot!

Man, that sure brings back mem

2008-02-24T11:30:25.181+01:00

Man, that sure brings back memories! Great shot of my long-missed hometown... Rich --

Be sure to test your page down

2007-08-31T18:32:19.957+02:00

Be sure to test your page download speeds via WebPerf.org or some similar tool. Your mileage may vary. I tested this on my site for about three months. You're right, the bandwidth was cheap. Unfortunately, it turns out my user experience is better delivering the files off my own server rather than via Amazon, amazingly enough. However, if you're on a shared host that is overloaded and slow, this could dramatically improve your page download speeds. At the very least, it's probalby a cheaper way to host podcasts and large media files than through your own server. Rich BlogRodent

Thanks, guys!

2007-08-26T04:12:49.333+02:00

Thanks, guys!

It was great to find this arti

2007-07-12T02:17:04.685+02:00

It was great to find this article! I'm presenting at the Internet Ministry Confence in September, and this is the topic of my presentation. Even for corporate (and especially for ministry) bloggers, it's all about the relationships. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

I'd never heard of the network

2007-07-12T02:05:32.848+02:00

I'd never heard of the network your forming and will have to research this to learn more about it. I like what you've written here. Thank you for honoring me by mentioning my PneumaBlog network. I really appreciate it. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

While I suspect the whole text

2007-06-22T19:40:12.210+02:00

While I suspect the whole texting process is a little distracting and obtrusive, it does communicate one thing effectively: This pastor wants to be contemporary. It raises this question for me, though, how is this an improvement on passing around the bucket for folks to put slips of paper into, on which they have written their question? Benefits: There's no technology gap. Everyone from kindergartners to grandparents could participate. Lower distraction risk: people won't be peering at their neighbor's using this new-fangled texting thingie. And there's no risk the cell-phones will go off if someone forgot to put it on vibrate or silent. Teens won't be texting each other during the sermon under the cover of "writing the pastor a question." More anonymity: guests won't feel like they're giving away too much information if they have a question. Church memebers might feel awkward asking a really tough question knowing that the quesetion could be associated with their ID. Less anonymity: If someone wishes, they could sign their name. Sometimes "old school" works better, I think.Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Is there a way I can use a que

2007-06-08T07:44:06.757+02:00

Is there a way I can use a query or a bsuite function to automatically build my meta keywords tag? Rich BlogRodent Posted June 8, 2007 at 1:42 am

Hey, Dan, I blogged on this a

2007-05-29T07:10:54.888+02:00

Hey, Dan, I blogged on this a wee little bit tonight and in the course of my analysis, I discovered not only this post but also an interesting results: Pentecostal bloggers mention the Holy Spirit more frequently than the rest of the blogosphere. No surprise there, really, but perhaps all is not lost within the overtly charismatic/Pentecostal portion of the church which is more intentional about its pneumatology. Check it out: Ranking the Divine: The Holy Spirit and Search trends Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Thanks for the follow-up and c

2007-05-15T09:58:03.993+02:00

Thanks for the follow-up and clarification Dan, I appreciate it, and I appreciate you. For most bloggers I wouldn't give a fiddler's fart (thank you Frank McCout!) whethey they link to me or not in whatever fashion, but I view your inclusion of my PneumaBlogs badge an honor. The thought that I might have been guilty of what annoyed you troubled me. But no more! Thanks, again. Rich BlogRodent

Comment by Rich Tatum 2007-05-

2007-05-14T12:21:19.795+02:00

Comment by Rich Tatum 2007-05-14 06:19:50 Dan, just discovered this post in my feed reader and am slightly dismayed. I am on one hand grateful that you didn’t mention my PneumaBlogs aggregator and listing in your post, but I have to wonder if you’d rather I take you off? On the other hand, you still host the PneumaBlogger badge in your sidebar, so I assume you might be okay with it. When I first started blogging only two years ago I wondered who my fellow Pentecostal and Charismatic bloggers were. At the time, there were no P/C blogrolls or OPML files, so I started linking to them in my blog’s link list. Then I thought, why not offer my list to the world? And I fiddled around until I created a page with the evolving list of pretty-much hand-picked bloggers. I’ve tried to cull the uninteresting bloggers, but a few are still on there. I don’t always have the heart to remove somebody once listed unless they’re inactive or clearly just cat-blogging. Now the PneumaBlogs page has grown to include not only an aggregator, but an OPML file, anRSS feed of the latest additions, and a Google search tool. My intent in creating this is now to provide a service. I’ve seen that others, like Amy Wellborn at GentleWhisper has gotten at least a few readers from discovery via my PneumaBlogs page. I’d like to think you might have gotten a couple readers, too, but it’s hard to tell. Currently my list is at about 140 bloggers. I’ve got a few more in my inbox for consideration. The list could quickly grow unwieldy, but I’m still committed to maintaining it, and managing the information. I’ve never required any of “my” bloggers to host a blogroll. If they wanted to do so, it’d be fairly easy to figure out how to do it. I’ve also never required anybody to host a badge or button, but I provide one if they wish to host it. The only requirements for entrance are orthodox Pentecostal/Charismatic theology and practice, and a consistent non-cat-blogging approach to writing. And the blog must appeal to me. I suppose that makes PneumaBlogs different than other “blogrolls,” and so maybe that exempts me from your ire. I hope it does, anyhow. And I hope I’m one of the okay bloggers, too! Regards, Rich BlogRodentPneumaBlogs

In a flush of inspiration due

2007-05-07T10:13:30.130+02:00

In a flush of inspiration due to this new stats tracker from Automattic, I wanted to blog on it, but I thought I should also mention some of the other stats tracking packages I use, so I mentioned a few others. I also linked to this post as a useful review of Andy Skelton's release. If you're interested, check it out here: "Blog Stats: Get your info-jones on with weblog traffic metrics" Regards, Rich BlogRodent

As others have noted, all one

2007-04-11T13:56:17.667+02:00

As others have noted, all one has to do is check out the ISP's service offerings. Most of them offer at least WordPress as one of it's "one-click install" tools. That's all it required for me two years ago, and I knew nothing about PHP, databases or CGI at that time. Also, WordPress has a few hosts they recommend, which will certainly offer the support needed to get up and running. And I wouldn't be surprised to find anybody could get a blog going within literally three minutes if they had an account on one of thes hosting providers. WordPress Web Hosting Rich BlogRodent

Rich Tatum says on: April 11th

2007-04-11T13:54:55.197+02:00

Rich Tatum says on: April 11th, 2007 at 6:50 am Thanks to your encouragement, I’ll start Digging a few of my non-niche items with broader interest to see if they experience any sort of digg effect. Like you, I’ve found StumbleUpon to be a great tool for promoting content. It doesn’t get “demoted” for being self-serving when I post a review of my own content, as I have seen happen on Digg. For what it’s worth, you may enjoy my article along these lines: 39 Tips to Improve Weblog Traffic and Visibility Which I have dug here. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Peter, this cracks me up. You

2007-04-08T08:16:58.040+02:00

Peter, this cracks me up. You are either wickedly brilliant, or you have way too much free time on your hands. Sign me up for the Egal Litare tribe, please, if you ever track down it’s sacred tribal scroll of members. Rich BlogRodent

Peter, this cracks me up. You

2007-04-01T23:05:17.453+02:00

Peter, this cracks me up. You are either wickedly brilliant, or you have way too much free time on your hands. Sign me up for the Egal Litare tribe, please, if you ever track down it's sacred tribal scroll of members. Rich BlogRodent

By the way, just a note … You

2007-03-28T21:07:53.952+02:00

By the way, just a note … Your blog post is proof that social networking sites like StumbleUpon.com actually work! I favorited my blog post on the "39 tips" and immediately saw traffic start to arrive. Then, just yesterday, I created a $20 promotion campaign with StumbleUpon, which guarantees me 100 visitors a day until I use up my bank. StumbleUpon generates very targeted traffic, which I like. So far the experiment has proven successful. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Thanks, Matthew, for the link-

2007-03-28T21:05:10.498+02:00

Thanks, Matthew, for the link-love and the very kind words! I especially appreciated the fact that you took the time to really read the article and interact with it … more bloggers should do the same! I thought about expanding some of these tips to explain better why they work, especially the SEO section, but it was already a far too-long article as it was! Anyhow, I hope the links in the SEO tips section will lead folks to great resources to further help them along this line, since SEO tips can take up several full-length articles themselves. Thanks, again, for the great write-up! Rich. BlogRodent

Great observations, Dustin! Th

2007-03-26T20:24:03.392+02:00

Great observations, Dustin! Thanks for sharing them. I've used Alexa data for competitive trend analysis but I've always provided the data with a couple caveats: first, the data is not representative of the general internet population, but only of a small subset: Alexa toolbar users. What that really means is anybody's guess because I'm not aware of a sociological study of Alexa users. :: grin :: And second, any traffic trend analysis is only as good as the aggregation of the trends themselves, and the trends say nothing about individual user behavior. Watching server logs and traffic analysis charts is about as effective at determining what users want from your site as measuring shopping behavior by analyzing the wear on the tiles in your shopping mall. It shows trends, not much more than that. But people can't wrap their minds around that — they see numbers, and numbers mean reality, so the data must mean something relevant, right? Problem is, trend analysis only goes so far in telling us what we need to know: what promotion strategy has the best long-tail impact? What strategy produces the greatest conversion of visitor to loyal reader? Why did they leave the site? Did they bookmark the site, and will they return? How are the numbers impacted by corporate and ISP proxies? So on, and so on. Some of this can be gotten at with more complicated user interaction / logging, but that's not cheap, and it could be "intrusive." Again, great article. Write more! Rich BlogRodent

Hi, Casey, I'm running WP 2.1.

2007-02-22T14:31:05.742+01:00

Hi, Casey, I'm running WP 2.1.1 and SimpleTags along with bsuite ... but I'm not getting the bsuggestive related posts offering. Is there still a conflicted between SimpleTags and bSuite? Is there a pop call I can explicitly reference in my page file? Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Thanks, LJ. And thanks for the

2007-02-05T01:34:49.295+01:00

Thanks, LJ. And thanks for the cordial dialog, it's refreshing and much appreciated. I understand the lack of posting. Since losing my job in November, my posting rates have plummeted, mainly because if I have to choose between working at my computer to earn money versus playing with my weblog, I chose the former. My babies' gotta eat. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

LJ, First, with a sidebar:

2007-02-04T13:11:55.782+01:00

LJ, First, with a sidebar: Thanks for the film recommendation, I'll look for it the next time I'm in the documentary section over at BlockBuster. I suppose documentaries don't have to have conflict to be interesting, but I'm not sure that it's a "story" then, at that point. Story-tellers (and some documentarians are that) seem to fare better with audiences when there is an identifiable protagonist wanting something, and an antagonist standing in the way. Modern lit, though, seems to attempt to test that theory, which is probably why I don't read much of it. Offhand, I can't think of a film I've ever seen without conflict of some sort. I'll have to think on that some more. As to whether I took offense at anything you wrote, no. Not at all. That you worried about this at all is probably testimony to my lack of skill in writing. Sorry. Perhaps I came off too stridently? But, no — no offense felt here, and I also did not feel you were disrespectful. In fact, I count it an honor that you felt motivated enough to point out what you considered to be an ethical flaw in my posting. Regarding my claim that there is a difference between the phrases "a conflict of belief" vs. "a conflict of conscience" (and whether or not Grady used the term in the way that I understand it): I agree this has become an argument of semantics. All I can do is shrug and say, words mean what they mean. Maybe Grady doesn't know the distinctions between the words. In my way of thinking all matters of conscience are necessarily matters of belief, but not all beliefs are matters of conscience. And, when it comes down to it, beliefs and conscience are not the same. I, for one, don't think Grady mis-spoke — she envisioned a particular type of conflict that she felt the film needed, and that conflict was fittingly supplied by Mike Papantonio, who attacks Fisher and all Evangelicals not on the grounds of mere beliefs, but on the grounds that what we are doing to children is evil, that what we are doing to the environment is evil, that our faith is bullying and more than mistaken or incorrect, that it is morally empty. But, regardless, whatever type of conflict Grady and Ewing wanted, why quibble over definitions? The film needed conflict of whatever sort, and Papantonio apparently fit the bill. We could argue over whether I have misinterpreted Grady and Ewing, but my basic point here is that Grady and Ewing's choice of arena for the conflict they introduced is restricted to one bigidea: Evangelicals are dangerous and evil. The balance they achieved — forget whatever they sought — the ballast they used to counterpoint to the faith, beliefs, and practices of Fisher, et al, was to set them against Mike Papantonio's diatribes. By the way, I hate to stoop to citing definitions, as if that ever settled a debate — but too often debates continue simply because the participants are talking past each other using the same words with different meanings. In what way to you differ from my view that beliefs and conscience are not the same? I fear we are both using these words in far different ways, and I just cannot see my way past this. Belief consists of what one thinks to be true. Conscience consists what one thinks to be morally good. Beliefs inform conscience, surely, but they inform conscience in the way that, say, facts inform wisdom. You wrote:

However, knowing the way in which you interpret the quote, I can understand how your context does make sense.

I appreciate that. Wouldn't mind if you noted that in your blog, as well, to sort of blunt the very pointy end of your post! :: grin :: And thanks for saying that I seem very reasonable. I assure you, I'm only acting. In real life, I'm a obstinate cur. You're welcome to dialog here any time ... especially when you disagree with me. Like you, I do enjoy dialog. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

LJ, Thanks for your comment.

2007-02-02T03:04:36.009+01:00

LJ, Thanks for your comment. It's clear you've read up on the documentary and spent time reading too-lengthy my post, for which I am grateful. Thanks for taking the time. I unapologetically admit that my view is biased. I am "inside" the Pentecostal movement, I'm "inside" the Evangelical movement, and I'm "inside" Christianity. Despite that, my insider view is my own and nobody else's. If anything I write resonates with you or other readers on this blog, then I'm happy to have found a kindred point of view. But I am not foolish enough to believe that my point of view is the absolute truth. Only God has that view. I welcome disagreement if only because it fosters dialog and provides an opportunity to be grow in knowledge and wisdom. But from my point of view Grady and Ewing have crafted a film with a clear message, and it's a message many of those "outside" either Christianity, Evangelicalism, or Pentecostalism have reacted to with anger, fear, and venom. Maybe that's not the message Grady and Ewing intended to deliver, but it's the message that has been inferred, regardless. Just see some of the commentary from the blogosphere, which I mentioned in my comment to Buck. You state that I have misinterpreted Grady and Ewing's point of view, committing the very same error that I accuse them of in my post. And you state that I edited around their comments to satisfy my own agenda. Perhaps you are correct. However, the quote you cite from Scott Feinberg's article states that the directors felt there was "no conflict of conscience" on the part of the children or adults in the film (emphasis mine). You interpret that to mean that there the lack of conflict is simply "one of belief." And there, I respectfully disagree. To state that there was no conflict of conscience as, Grady stated, is to say that the characters in their documentary never questioned whether what they were doing and saying was morally and ethically correct. This is not a conflict of mere beliefs, but a conflict over right vs. wrong. A conflict of conscience is vastly different than a conflict of beliefs. You might believe that the hypothetical Starbucks we intend to meet at on Friday at noon is located at the corner of First and Main streets, and I might believe that it's located at the corner of Second and Main. One of us is right and one of us is wrong, butthis is a conflict of facts, a conflict of beliefs. It's not a conflict of conscience. To state that the film needed conflict (and every good story does, indeed, need conflict), and then to identify the necessary conflict as a moral conflict may in fact reveal something telling about Grady and Ewing's own beliefs on the matter. And, true to the quote, the protagonist they provided, Mike Papantonio, gives us exactly that, for Papantonio believes that not only is Becky Fischer and her crowd are factually wrong, he believes they are evil. Then to use Papantonio as the effective voiceover for the film ... well, that's telling as well. Papantonio stands in for the reasonable thinking person, and it's through his perspective that the events in the film are ultimately filtered. He becomes the interpretive lens for the meaning behind the documentary's content. To further buttress my point that Grady and Ewing weren't thinking of mere conflict of beliefs, as you state, I only need to point you to the scene where Buck's son openly describes his lack of faith and his doubts. (See my exchange of comments above with Buck here and here.) I've stated over and over that I take Grady and Ewing's assertions that they actually like the subjects of their film at face value. I believe they do like them. But I remain convinced that Grady and Ewing have ultimately crafted a film that portrays Fischer, the camp, and Evangelicals as doing something to children that is quite simply wrong. And, frankly, the fact that Becky Fischer thinks this film is the best thing since sliced avocados means nothing to me. Again, thanks for posting, I appreciate it. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Thanks, guys, for your great s

2007-01-30T10:07:32.497+01:00

Thanks, guys, for your great suggestions. I apologize for not updating the list lately, but I'll get around to it (my freelancing work doesn't really leave me much time to work on the site like I want to, sadly, but I haven't forgotten you. You're all in my queue.) Rich BlogRodent

Dan, You should consider popp

2007-01-21T14:18:31.434+01:00

Dan, You should consider popping this question into your LinkedIN Q&A box, and see what your network has to say. Rich. BlogRodent

Hey, Wild Willy, I've long con

2007-01-15T15:28:41.535+01:00

Hey, Wild Willy, I've long considered setting up a Linux install, and if I don't get Mac Intel laptop with Windows running via Parallels, I might just set up something like with Ubuntu. Rich. BlogRodent

Jeremy, I am seriously conside

2007-01-06T07:50:44.144+01:00

Jeremy, I am seriously considering giving Opera a try. I've heard many, many good things about it. I'm just hooked on my current bevy of FF extensions and I'm already peeved at still having to rely on MSIE for some sites. Like I really need another browser? But, who knows. The plugin library for Opera is growing. So maybe I'll give it a try soon. Rich BlogRodent

Aye, Keith, that's why I write

2007-01-05T13:57:57.785+01:00

Aye, Keith, that's why I write, "Okay, it’s not that old...." Rich.

Duane, thanks for commenting.

2006-10-02T02:17:12.034+02:00

Duane, thanks for commenting. I do hope, with you, that these children continue as the prayer warriors they seem to be shaping up to be. Rich BlogRodent

Oh, yeah. There's a ton of hit

2006-09-29T04:47:47.607+02:00

Oh, yeah. There's a ton of hits if you search via Google. I was interviewed on Tuesday by MSNBC's "The Most" for three minutes on this affair. When I have it ready, I'll post it online for you guys to see. Becky Fischer showed up on CNN last night against Mike Papantonio. She was on "Good Morning America" yesterday, as well. Yeah, this thing is getting all kinds of play. And through it all the directors are saying, "We're objective! We're objective!" And Magnolia is saying, "Why are all these Evangelicals distancing themselves from this movie? It's a documentary. It happened. Deal with it." And every single MSM introduction to the film focuses on the same tired cliches. Army of God. Extremism. Militant children. Brainwashing. Martrydom. Potential for violence. And why, ow why, oh why are all the babies crying? It's a circus already. Rich BlogRodent

No, Carl, I haven't. Christian

2006-09-29T00:13:25.832+02:00

No, Carl, I haven't. Christians can only be libertarians, didn't you know that? :: grin :: I certainly think it's possible to love and honor and obey God and be both liberal in philosophy and democratic in politics. However, in interviews about this documentary, Grady and Ewing have self-identified themselves as "a couple of liberal democrats from New York" and their comment was made in light of how they are "outsiders" to what they filmed. It seemed an important distinction to Grady and Ewing to make. Though, perhaps I should simply have gone with "secular liberal." Or, pagan. Rich BlogRodent

Thanks for your comments, Will

2006-09-26T12:04:42.960+02:00

Thanks for your comments, Will, and thanks for the compliments, too! I don't think I took a position on Global warming in my commentary except to say that Mike Papantonio's point of view is incorrect. While there may be some segment of Christianity that cares not one whit for the Earth, that position does not color all of Evangelicalism. I cited sources to the contrary. As for my own views on Global warming? I'm not sure they're relevant here--and anything I say must be preceded with the caveat that I'm neither a researcher of the field, nor a scientist. But I'm happy to say I'll always chime in with an opinion where none is warranted. I think the Earth is getting warmer. It must: we're at the tail-end of an ice-age, after all. In fact, we're still in an ice-age (note the polar ice caps.) But Earth's cyclical temperatures are exactly that: a cycle. And in this cycle, it's still heatin' up. Do humans contribute to global warming? Yes. And sometimes in unintended ways: The vast warrens of cow lots with all their methane-producing steer contribute a significant amount of warming by themselves. (Something that could be ameliorated with grass-fed cattle, I've read.) Yes, autos, industry, and technology all contribute to global warming. But I suspect it would be happening anyhow. I'm actually far less concerned about global warming than I am our dwindling supply of fossil fuel, which is finite and limited. Unless we come up with effective alternatives, we'll be facing a global darkeing and global famine long before global warming bites us in the keister. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Thanks, Rose-Marie. I think yo

2006-09-25T04:17:33.553+02:00

Thanks, Rose-Marie. I think you hit the nail on the head. Most of the criticism I've received on my piece over at Ministry Today (thanks for your support) I think revolves around people simply not "getting it," they see themselves in this trailer and video, and they really don't see how it maligns them, the children, and Christ. I don't know what to attribute it to except a lack of sophistication. To put it nicely. Rich. BlogRodent

Oh, and Marc, too. (Sorry!) R

2006-09-23T08:14:27.825+02:00

Oh, and Marc, too. (Sorry!) Rich BlogRodent

Thanks, Glen! When I told Mar

2006-09-23T08:13:21.211+02:00

Thanks, Glen! When I told Mark Moring, editor for the Christianity Today Movies channel that my weblog article was more than 6,500 words long, he asked me, incredulously:

"Do visitors to your blog actually read something that long?"

You and Oengus are my two data points for an affirmative reply. It makes me happy. Rich BlogRodent

You were right on the button,

2006-09-22T07:06:17.875+02:00

You were right on the button, Oengus. Of course, that much could be seen from the trailer. I suppose that much could even have been inferred from Michael Moore refusing to pull it from his film festival. Rich BlogRodent

Wow, I finally read the whole

2006-08-14T09:18:00.242+02:00

Wow, I finally read the whole comment thread here. I am short on time, so I have only a few things to say. Dan, Dave, Lynn, Common Swift, and others, thanks for your contributions, I really appreciate it, especially since I wasn't paying attention to this post during my hiatus. Edith, cut it out. This is an Pentecostal blog. Plus, this is a blog where I intend irenic dialog to carry on. I appreciate that you come from a nominally Pentecostal background, but the Oneness/UPC tradition teaches unorthodox doctrine, and I don't abide it here. Discussing the merits of your doctrine is one thing, but using it to pummel my commenters is something I won't allow. I'm letting the current posts, as they stand, remain. I'm not interested in rebutting your theology, Edith, I simply don't have the energy for it right now, and it won't change your point of view. But this is not a forum for you to proseletyze your point of view. And as for browbeating my readers: again ... cut it out. I'll try to get around to reviewing the questions and comments here later and posting a compendium of observations. Thanks, everybody, for your patience. Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Peter, I'm not totally sure I

2006-08-14T01:39:26.258+02:00

Peter, I'm not totally sure I understand what you mean. I'm not intending to cast aspersions on non-Pentecostals and I don't claim that Pentecostals are more "holy" or less "flaky" than non-Pentecostals. However, since we are generally outnumbered by non-Pentecostals, your claim might be true in a loose sense. But, on the whole, I do find that Pentecostal sin gets sensationalized by the media more frequently. But that's just an impression, not one I can easily back up with data. (It may be that I'm simply more sensitive to these reports because I am Pentecostal myself.) At any rate, the dialog here isn't actually furthered by making ourselves look good by making others look bad. Could you expand on your thoughts more in that regard? Regards, Rich BlogRodent

Fr. Sparks, thanks for your co

2006-08-14T01:23:41.873+02:00

Fr. Sparks, thanks for your comment! I agree with you, the proper use of semantics places the A/G (or any faith) in the proper relationship to the word which describes it. At least, for those who know the difference. But for most, the word "cult" has one meaning: whacked out people who aren't orthodox Christians. For them, even writing, "The Assemblies of God cult" would still denote all the negative cultic baggage that some Wikipedians evidently want to assign us. Thus, my lengthy diatribe. I probably could've shortened my conclusion to say, "The A/G cult is not a cult, but some elements do exhibit cult-like behavior. Not all cults are truly cultic." But where's the fun in that? :: grin :: By the way, may God bless you, keep you and your men safe, and give you wisdom as you prepare for deployment. Regards, Rich BlogRodent