signs of the impending apocalypse #31

Magnum Ice Cream, a subsidiary of Unilever foods, is marketing a new line of ice cream, based upon the seven deadly sins.

for those of you disconnected from a Catholic upbringing, this means the new yummy flavors are:

sloth
greed
envy
vanity (pride -- depends on your catechism teacher, I suppose)
gluttony
lust
wrath

nothing like a double dip of gluttony in a waffle cone with sprinkles.

another fine american product

(via presurfer) you can go to slycraft and purchase a white surrender flag to be sent to Saddam's Republican Guard.

God bless America.

question of the day

have you prayed for these people today?

Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. - Romans 13:1-4

and for

"But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven - Matthew 5:44-45

one point of disagreement

I've seen two instances -- one in print and one on television, regarding what I believe to be improper conduct toward flags. In the print, it was the raising of the US flag in place of the Iraqi flag in one location where we had gained control. In the other, it was the taking down of the Iraqi flag at a destroyed outpost. In the print, it was reported that the US flag was later lowered. In the television report, the Iraqi flag was said to be taken as 'a souvenir' (NOTE: henceforth, I am boycotting this French word, and from now on using the English alternative 'remembrance').

I understand and agree with the removal of their flags (and even the raising of our own) if it serves some sort of tactical purpose, but cringe a bit if it is being done 'just for show.' Flags are powerful symbols, and use of those symbols should be well-thought out and deliberate. If these actions were appropriately purposeful and were misreported by news media (not a far stretch, imho), then shame on them, for perpetuating negative stereotypes. If not, we need a couple of C.O.s chewing some tail.

from the warfront

this email, forwarded to me from the mom of one of my former youth-group students, currently serving in Kuwait:

Well well well...This is a crazy place... But I want you all to know I'm not scared, and I am comming home. Please don't worry about me. We listen to the "downloaded" radio from cnn and it's crazy to hear how they make it sound to you guys. Don't get me wrong, this is war... I have seen a few things that don't care to see again. But I have no fear, that may sound crazy but god is with me, and I know that he will take care of me and his will, will be done. I can't wait to come home I miss you all and I love you all with all of my heart. Remember, don't be scared for me, I am kinda enjoying that fact that we are actually doing something over here, it was kinda getting bored.... Besides this just makes it so I can come home sooner... I love you all thanks for your support... I love you again...

please remember to pray for him and his young wife back home stateside.

thanks.

proverbs #69

a man of cruelty is God's enemy.

no big surprise

I'm a

Republican - You believe that the free market will
take care of most things, but that the
government should be there with moderate
taxation to provide for national defense and
enforcing morality. Your historical role model
is Ronald Reagan.


Which political sterotype are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

what're you?

sung to the tune of and the walls came tumblin' down

is saddam dead or injured?

this indeed would be the democrats' worst case scenario.

american idol? nevermind

I wasn't able to participate in the 3rd round audition because my Java application was too new. I was informed I could try again if I unloaded all existing versions and downloaded an old version.

as fun as all that sounds, I decided it wasn't worth the effort.

so my impending brush with fame will be delayed yet longer.

reliving the past

Kelli just opened up our sewing machine for the first time since our 2000 house fire, to make new pillows for the children.

Its smoky smelling and soot-covered.

amazing how simple sights and sounds invoke such unpleasant memories of loss.

american idol? maybe not

I've made it to the third round of try-outs for 'the ark,' the ship of fools' upcoming web-based competition. I've got two trials (I'm posing as 'Daniel'). Winner of this little adventure receives a little over a thousand duckets.

I'll let you know how it goes.

proverbs #68

"one of these days" is none of these days.

proximal irony

from the cellar, two examples of unfortunate juxtaposition of advertising & news, and one of two unusual posts paired by coincidence.

A dictator's nightmare

hickory dickory dock
saddam is watching the clock
the clock strikes eight
oops, too late
now his head is on the block.

proverbs #67

hypocrisy is the homage that vice pays to virtue.

just so you know

[stiff upper lip]my life will in fact go on, should it be determined that conducting the Oscar ceremonies is not in our nation's best interest, come Sunday evening. [/stiff upper lip]

sung to the tune of a little less conversation

Saddam & Sons, Inc. is down to 20 hours before a fire of Serious Consequences begins to fall from the Baghdad skies.

signs of the impending apocalypse #30

Pepsi is the choice of the end generation!

Revelation revealed on every can of the beverage endorsed in various times, to varying degrees of success and notoriety by:

Michael Jackson
Madonna
Britney Spears (that should be good for a few random hits)
Faith Hill
Haley Joel Osment, or whatever the name of that curly-haired girl is.
Beyonce Knowles

a MOST misused adjective

"christian"

Today, I drove past a Christian arcade.

hmmm, I thought to myself in italics, what does a arcade have to be to in fact be 'Christian?'

Is it one where all the games are saved?
Or where they simply follow the ten commandments?
And if they be Christian, were they predestined to be, or are they so of their own free will?

I understand the mind set that compels us to slap on the "Christian" name brand on every product, activity, attitude, and motive we possess. But I find we are wholly mistaken and incredibly misdirected when we assume that something be Christian simply because Christians partake or initiate it.

But then again, that's just the opinion expressed on one Christian blog.

proverbs #66

our worst enemies are the friends who have failed to find us profitable.

does this qualify

as must see TV?

the today show is about to air a colonoscopy...

...live.

I think I'm going to set aside my Raisin Bran.

number of the day

65

that's the percentage of people, according to an MSNBC/WSJ poll, that support the president going to war.

I'm not surprised that 88 % of Republicans are in agreement, but what surprised me is that 49% of dems now do.

which leads me to ask, from which alternative universe do the dems draw their definition of "support?"

Talking heads like Daschle, Pelosi, Gephart, Kennedy, Leiberman, etc., etc., ad nauseum have for weeks maligned our president's leadership, labeling it with terms like "total failure." Then, when he exhibits the fortitude they will never comprehend, much less possess, they have the audacity to say "we support our troops. We support our president."

It's ALMOST enough to make me want to cuss. or puke. or cuss while I puke.

And these same folks wonder why they can never make headway into the military vote. I'm so glad that men and women smart enough to see through their political harlotry are the ones fighting to liberate the Iraqi people from tyranny and to bring safety to America in the process.

BTW -- for those of you (52% according to the poll) worried that this war action may encite terrorist reprisals -- we were under the spectre of terrorism when we still had yet to engage the enemy. Don't you remember two mighty towers falling from the sky? Or a bomb being detonated against one of our warships? Or the destruction of our embassies? Or the circumvention of other horrible attrocities by Al Quaeda simply by the providence of God? By taking the war to them, we prevent these acts of anarchy and murder. It's just harder to monitor the progress of our safety because it is only measured in the day-by-day experience of nonviolence being perpetrated against us, a quantity that is far too easy to take for granted.

proverbs #65

tall trees catch much wind.

proverbs #64

courage consists not in hazarding without fear, but in being resolutely minded in a just cause.

why don't you say how you really feel?

from WSJ best of the web (apologies to my sensitive readers about the words to follow)...

The Washington Post, reporting from Kuwait, quotes Marine Lt. Gen. James Conway, who has a better sense of America's political pulse than the Dems do:

Conway told his troops not to worry about peace protests at home, pointing to a poll showing that 71 percent of Americans want to get the Iraq situation resolved now. "When we invade Iraq," he added, "that'll go up to 91 percent. And you know how I feel about it? Piss on everybody else."

test

seeing if my email-send program is up and working again.

be one in a million

to pray for spiritual renewal/revival in our country.

is this a coinkidink?

that upon news of the US/UK/Spain decalaration of the UN's irrelevance, that our stock market has jumped over 200 points?

there's no place like home

[deepbreath][aaaaahhhhh]after 16 days away, I'm back in my domicile, with Kelli and the children.[/aaaaahhhhh][/deepbreath]