A 4000 Year Old Conflict

Speaking of Ishmael and his descendents, the father of the Arab people:

Genesis 16:12 ...
his hand will be against everyone
and everyone's hand against him,
and he will live in hostility
toward all his brothers."

I think we should take a lesson from Israel over the past few days. One of their soldiers gets kidnapped, so what do they do? Do they make pleas via the local media? Do they make passionate appeals at the United Nations? Do they posture to the public as if they care while sitting idly by and do nothing? No. They mass troops and tanks on the Gaza border and start a destructive campaign of tactical brilliance. Gaza's only power station was knocked out early, many roads made impassable, and Hamas training camps bombed. Jets flew over causing sonic booms, shattering windows, in an attempt to warn them of what is to come next. Israel has not survived this long without learning a thing or two about its enemy. Militant Islam does not acknowledge or respect the leftist pipe-dream of diplomacy and negotiation, and even less Israel and their very right to existence. They have called for the destruction of Israel, and Israel has responded in turn; unequivocal, unrelenting force to push back the evil that seeks to destroy them. Will this result in the safe return of their missing soldier? Unlikely, but perhaps it will stop future people from being attacked. I find it odd... militant Islam has called for the destruction of America and all western civilization, yet we do nothing. The liberal taint has so infected us with fear from our own that we dare not respond to terror in the only way that makes sense, the only way it understands, its total destruction.

Am I really this old?

This Sunday evening I chose to stay up with some friends... all night. Maybe this is part of the "Try new and interesting things" mentioned in one of my previous posts. I thought that I would call in sick to work, or call in late, but then I remembered that I had to be there because we just moved floors for some renovation, and I had to make sure everything got moved and put together right. After showing up to work, so tired I might as have been hung over, I thought I would leave early. Well, it turns out that both of the guys in my team were already leaving early, which left only me to hold down the fort (we try to keep at least one person in the office to cover the occasional emergencies). So, I had to stick it out all day. I made it, all gruelling nine hours, plus an hour lunch, the hour commute home, which is where the story ends. I hit my bed at ninety miles an hour and slept for 14 1/2 hours. Well, I woke up at 6:30 to call work and tell them I'd be in by noon.

What a couple of days. This just proves 1) I am not young. 2) I should not pretend to be young. When I forget lesson one and two, I should remember 3) that I have other responsibilities that supersede my own temporary enjoyment that I should respect. Yes, I am an old, tempered piece of wood. But all in all, it was still fun, though I won't be doing it again any time soon!

Endangered Species

The American man has been hunted to the brink of extinction. In fact, it is rare to ever see one in the wild. Many people think they’ve seen one, some even believe to have captured one, but most people are easily fooled by his look-a-like, the male.

I knew the moment I wrote my post about Dr. Laura’s books how the post would appear. It sounds like I think the problems in relationships rest entirely on women and their problems. This could not be farther from the truth. Men have their own problem, one that robs them of their very nature, one even more dire than that of women. Men are no longer men. Yes, there are about three billion male human beings on the planet, about 150 million in America; but being a male and being a man are different. One speaks to anatomy, the other to behavior.

It started with the feminist movement in the latter-half of the last century. Men-hating women went about hunting their prey, the man, blasting him from the safety of purported oppression. The housewife was demeaned, the man demonized for making his wife stay at home while he explored the world in all its glory, leaving his wife to the mundane life of the home and family. So what happened? Men started to believe the lie, that being a man was something to be ashamed of, that he was guilty of this oppression. A new generation of males were born, but instead of being trained as men, were raised to believe that being a man meant oppression of women, brutish tactics, slow thinking, blood-thirsty, savage behavior. The young males were raised instead as little girls, to be quiet, thoughtful, sensitive children. Whenever a young male did not fit this mold he is diagnosed with a disorder, ADD, ADHD, or any host of other behavioral problems. The only problem is that this behavior is not a problem. NEWS FLASH! Boys and girls are different! We think differently, we learn differently, we desire different things in life, and even those things that we do have in common, we seek their fruition in completely different ways from the opposite sex.

The feminists however want everyone to believe that males and females are the same. Therein lies the problem. Women are told to strive like men, that they do not need a man to be complete. Men are demonized and told to stop acting like men. God created woman as a helper for man. A man needs his woman, just as the woman needs her man. Our very creation speaks to this mutual, complementary life. We do not need the gender-neutral equivalent of ourselves. Men and women are not in competition with each other. Each brings an invaluably unique position to a relationship. We are compliments to one another, not supplements to lacking character as the feminists rage against.

So to males, it is time to return to your heritage, time to reclaim that which has been taken, beaten down, demonized; your manhood. It is time to lead with strength of convictions, to stand for what is right, to love and support those in your life, most importantly your woman. Fifty percent of the population is born male, but unique equipment does not a man make.

Behind the Name

Eli Cush Graham, born June 19, 2006 at 11:56 PM to the proud parents Kevin and Rachel Graham.

Our God is truly amazing. Sometimes the simplest choices have results that can astound our small minds. Kevin and Rachel have named their first child Eli Cush (see link to the right). Unbeknownst to them, the name they have chosen for their child has depths beneath it that boggle the mind. You see, Eli Cush, is in fact an anagram for Chisleu. No, that is not baby talk, but rather Hebrew. Chisleu is the ninth month of the Jewish ecclesiastical year, answering to a part of November with a part of December. Thus the child is born in the ninth month. Eli was conceived shortly before November (likely), and his presence not confirmed until just before the month of Chisleu. Though God had been forming him for a month, it was here that his parents learned of this new life and began to cherish it.

The name Eli is shared by the priest who guarded Samuel as a child. Eli means ascension. It can also mean Lord in Hebrew or Aramaic. Jesus cried out on the cross, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” We are more familiar with, “My Lord (Eli), My Lord, why have you forsaken me?” Samuel was the son of Hannah, a child of promise, promised to God by his barren mother. Eli took charge of the child and raised him as a priest of God.

A son was given to a woman who had not yet born a son; her heart longed for a child. God was faithful and a new life was created out of her sorrow. It was with joy that the child was discovered near Chisleu, the ninth month, and nine months later that the child was born. Just as Hannah promised her child to God, so is this child promised to God, by virtue of his conception and name alike. He is to be of a royal priesthood before his Lord. His parents are now charged with the instruction of this child, the raising up, the ascension, knowing that with this new joy comes a great responsibility.

To God be the glory, Amen.

The Princess Bride

"My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

While watching the standard Saturday afternoon "B" movie with my father this Saturday I made the comment that nothing good came out of the 80's. The entire decade just seems like a pit, a black whole of despair. I mean really... just look at the hair and the music they churned out, it's just painful to remember. However, in 1987 an iconic movie was born, The Princess Bride. Last week I suddenly had the uncontrollable urge to buy and watch this movie. I had not seen it in years, but my joy of it has not diminished with age, as have so many things from my youth. This is proof that good movies can be made by Hollywood (though they seem to have forgotten this), without soft-core porn scenes, obscene language for its sake alone, and uninspired storylines that make you want to gag. The Princess Bride, with its tongue firmly planted in cheek, marks something that is seldom seen in the movie industry: true quality. For those of you that have not seen it, or have not seen it recently, I recommend getting together with a group of friends and watching it. The theatre is open at my house if anyone wants to watch it there, as I would be happy to watch it again.

A Second-Rate Blogger

I realized about a week ago that I had not posted in nearly a month. This highlights two things: 1) That I am probably not a very good blogger. 2) That my life has really sunken into routine, and must appear to the outsider (and admittedly, to the insider) as boring. What shall I do to remedy this problem? Who knows. Please place your suggestions in the drop box.


I have been reading a lot lately. My last two books have been by Dr. Laura, nationally syndicated radio self-help guru. I did not read these books because I needed self-help, but because so many people in my life seem to be in need of one thing or another. I have the desire to help, but find myself lacking the proper way to verbalize what they need to do or know. Dr. Laura gives me hope that there exist women in the world who are not insane, by definition. Does that statement make me sexist? Probably. But you know what, I don't care and here's why. Most people bring too many insecurities and deficiencies to relationships to make them work, male and female alike. Dr. Laura doesn't put all the blame on women (now that would be sexist), but she says that women usually are the worst. Her stance is that women have most of the power in a relationship, which like it or not guys, is the time-honored truth of life. But men by contrast, are simple creatures. We aren't very bright, at least not as the female would consider us. FYI, we don't take hints, suggestions, intimations, or clues well. If you want something, say it woman! But I digress... We as men crave only three things from marriage (and I will attest to this): admiration, acceptance, and affection. With those three things a man can be exactly what he can and should be in a relationship. If a woman will give her man those things, he will do just about anything she asks, instead of nagging, complaining, crying, introverting, gossiping, or any number of other flawed methods of goading to try and bully him into her persuasion. So, ladies, the ball appears to be in your court.

Suggested reading for the married, or those seeking it, (The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands). Dr. Laura is a smart woman, and entertaining if nothing else.

Next on the book list is either The Savage Nation, by Dr. Savage, or Prophetic Untimeliness: A Challenge to the Idol of Relevance, by Os Guinness.