I came here from Moffitt’s blog.

Good comments. But there is a place for hacking, and for being rude. There’s plenty of it in the Bible, but it is reserved for those who are under the Covenant, or within earshot of it, and should know better. But it takes wisdom (and holiness) to be able to dish it out.

I have written on this:
http://www.bullartistry.com.au/wp/2009/04/08/when-is-it-ok-to-be-rude/

Sometimes there is love in mockery.

i’m almost constantly amazed at the ability of people to laugh in the face of those with opposing beliefs. some JWs did it to Darv and I on our doorstep once. I watched a video tonight where a Unitarian laughed openly at a Trinitarian while getting a vox-pop of his beliefs on the Trinity. Then this… And I know I’ve been tempted once, when listening to a humanist debate a Christian, revealing his enormous misconceptions about Christianity. God help us… we are those who are called to love, and there is no love in mockery.

I have no mind for politics or strategies but I believe with all my heart that the first step to a solution is to say, “I am the bad guy” instead of looking to blame others…but you knew that already.

I think this lends itself to putting yourself in the other “side’s” shoes which is always a good start to finding a solution.

It would be beneficial if there was some wider recognition that we don’t all actually agree on what the “problem” is. Broadly, the Catholic church sees the modifiable cause of AIDS as being non-monogamy and lack of abstinence in the unmarried. The health community sees the modifiable cause as being lack of safe-sex practices and sexual health awareness.

If either approach to stopping the epidemic gained 100% compliance, it would work. The problem is that such compliance is a fantasy, and then you are left with the question of what is a better solution with, say, 30% compliance.

From a materialistic and utilitarian perspective, the safe sex/sex ed approach is clearly more effective. However once the moral imperatives (to which the Catholic Church is subject) become involved in the discussion, the disagreement of premises between the two camps explains completely the discrepancy in approaches.

Why is this discussion of premises not happening? We can address these things if we really want to.

I have a friend, let’s call her ‘Lindsay’, who says she’s an atheist but seems to be a bit more agnostic. Every now and then she says to me “How can a God who is supposed to be loving and just let people suffer?” and then uses her granddad and my father as examples of people suffering due to death and suffering until death.

The example is ridiculous because both my dad and her granddad were old and frail and if death is the inevitable at that age then this isn’t surprising. But then she brought up cancer (it always seems to be cancer) and starvation and poverty. And for ages I’ve been trying to figure out how to explain it without resorting to a Bible verse because she’s just not going to care about that.

But it’s so obvious: Passion for change. If you didn’t see suffering in the world, if you didn’t see the effects of someone’s evil insolence or abandonment, you’d never feel a need to fight for something, to help someone else in need. Even personally, pulling yourself up from the dregs of a terrible situation to prove to yourself that you are worth it is a passion for change.

and secondly: personal growth. anyone looking back at their lives would more-often-than-not see their own character building growth and definition not from things that were the happiest (unless it was something like parenthood) but from the worst possible moments in their lives. And I mean freaking awful moments. Not petty shit like getting all pissed because you didn’t score 100% in something or other and “Oh my GOD. Someone yelled at me today because I was being a whiny bitch”. I’m talking possibly-near-the-pits-and-will-stay-with-you-for-a-very-long-time.

Anyway, after this I said to her that even though we may have everything at arm’s length in this country and poverty stricken countries are just that – which people do you reckon are the ones who are genuinely happiest?

that went on a bit, sorry about that.

Hope you’re doing fine, Joel!