Hey everyone! As you may have seen with the last post, I've set up a new blog over on WordPress, designed to cover my religion angles specifically. It's called Suburban Messiah, which is a pseudonym I created for my solo music project denoting the fact that I'm just some random dude from the suburbs who likes to spout off his religious views like he's important.
As I continue to post miscellanies here on the Quail, I'll be hitting on my religion highlights as well, taking the Gawker Media format and posting the link to my homepage before pasting the entire article into the Quail page. This will remind you, or inspire you, to visit me over at Suburban Messiah for all your favorite Dan religious musings.
The same platform applies to the new blog as it did here: please approach me with any questions, suggestions or comments, and more than anything — enjoy!!
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Dan's New Blog: Suburban Messiah
Megachurch Number Crunching - What does it prove?
From Suburban Messiah:
Martin Marty, a longstanding noted Christian scholar (in fact, I read one of his books breaking down the use of mass media in Christianity — from 1961), recently wrote an article regarding the numbers game in modern American Evangelicalism.
Questioning a topic I pondered about a month ago, Marty explains that numbers don't really tell the story of what a church is doing and how it's affecting its congregation, no matter how many people are attending.
I don't think this is surprising, but as is mentioned in his article and in mine, Willow Creek, one of the most influential megachurches in recent history, has begun to question its mission. Seeing that numbers were the focus instead of ministry, the church decided to take a different angle. With the recent surge of corruption in the Evangelical ranks, I wonder if others will follow Willow Creek's model like they did originally.
Giant Magnetic Ropes Discovered Connecting Earth to the Sun
This is just like it sounds. In studying substorms that cause varying durations of the aurora borealis (the Northern Lights), a team of scientists discovered evidence of "giant magnetic ropes linking the Earth's atmosphere to the Sun and channeling solar energy to create the spectacular northern and southern lights shows."
Situated approximately 40,000 miles above the earth, these "ropes," which are described to be intertwined much like a hemp rope, comprise a width the size of the earth itself.
I don't pretend to know how to conceptualize this, or what it means as a discovery. My main response to the news was "neato." However, this article does a much better job of explaining the scientific side of this phenomenon. Let us know what you think, or what this might mean. I'm just laying it out there.
To boot, here's some more info on the aurora.
A Finals News Dump
Hello Pasty Quaildom! As we've made ourselves scarce for the past couple weeks, I've still been reading on the ol' series of tubes we call the Internets, and here are just a few of the things I've come across that fit the "miscellaneous" category. By shying away from my daily religion news dose (though be sure, I've had plenty of time to think about religion), I found a few other interesting articles.
-- First, Deadspin had a couple intriguing posts I wanted to reproduce. Big Daddy Drew, of Kissing Suzy Kolber fame, posted an article about why the NFL should adopt the NCAA overtime format.
To sum: “Q: But doesn't that dilute the sanctity of the game?
A: I thought about this as well. And here was my conclusion: FUCK THE SANCTITY OF THE GAME. Who gives a shit? Are there any fans of college ball who wish they had the NFL's overtime format? Or that they had ties back? No. The purity of the game is overrated. The whole reason these games are played is to entertain fans. And college overtime is kickass entertainment.”
I think you might agree that this is worth a quick, mindless read.
Second, Deadspin reports that everyone's favorite person that constantly speaks above 100 decibels, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith (see picture), has called for the eradication of the blogosphere. 
He says that "non-professionals" shouldn't be reporting on sports. There are so many ridiculous things to point out here that I don't know where to start. I'll let you draw your own conclusions.
-- On the political side, after the Romney ridiculousness last week, I've moved away from any Election coverage, so I don't have anything on that front. However, I do have some stuff on the Sean Penn acting like his opinion matters front. There's a transcript of his entire "major political address" that is well worth a read.
-- Finally, I have to work in my religion news. Here's an article re-posted on Dallas Morning News' religion blog, explaining that fictional religious people can, in fact, have intelligent and insightful things to say. This comes on the heels of a post I put up a couple months ago regarding a more realistic version of Christians in fiction.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Who Will Get 2nd Pick in the 2008 NFL Draft?
So, last night, while I was watching the pitiful Falcons lose their 10th game of the season, I started wondering what team will get the 2nd pick in the 2008 Draft?
For those of you who don't follow, the NFL ranks the teams from worst to best to determine the draft order for the following year. Miami has virtually wrapped up the 1st pick with their 0-13 performance this year, but there are 4 teams with 3-10 records in line for the second pick, and another three with 4-9 records. After doing some research, I found that the first tie-breaker will be based on strength of schedule.
Since exams are over and I have nothing constructive to do with myself, I decided to figure out the strength of schedule for each of the teams in the race for the 2nd pick. Here is what I found out (SOS = Combined wins of all past and future opponents to this point in the season):
Jets (3-10) – SOS = 109
- Remaining Opp. = @NE (13-0), @TEN (7-6), KC (4-9)
Falcons (3-10) – SOS = 107
- Remaining Opp. = @TB (8-5), @ARIZ (6-7), SEA (9-4)
49ers (3-10) – SOS = 100
- Remaining Opp. = CIN (5-8), TB (8-5), @CLE (8-5)
Rams (3-10) – SOS = 107
- Remaining Opp. = GB (11-2), PIT(9-4), @ARIZ (6-7)
Baltimore (4-9) – SOS = 107
- Remaining Opp = @MIA (0-13), @SEA (9-4), PIT (9-4)
Oakland (4-9) – SOS = 106
- Remaining Opp = IND (11-2), @JAX (9-4), SD (8-5)
Kansas City (4-9) – SOS = 106
- Remaining Opp = TEN (7-6), @ DET (6-7), NYJ (3-10)
Looking at this information, I have to figure that the 49ers (now without Alex Smith for the remainder) are the odds on favorites to have the 2nd pick. The Falcons will probably grab the 3rd spot, assuming they don't do something absurd like win out the season (This seems, um, unlikely now).
So what does it mean? Check here for ESPN's draft board, including a ranking of the top 100 players who are likely to throw their names in. Some highlights:
Darren McFadden, Glenn Dorsey, Matt Ryan, Brian Brohm, and Andre Woodson.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Meebo: The Future of Interaction on the Internet
A few weeks ago, we reported on Meebo, a browser based IM service, offering games that you can play against your friends. We even added a "Chat with TPQ" feature over on the side of the page.
Read/WriteWeb has an article up about how Meebo got to where they are, and where they are going from here. In a move that sets them apart from most other new social networking sites, Meebo has maintained control of their platform, only authorizing 39 out of 300 requests for applications. While Facebook's ad platform has not generated the results they expected, Meebo may have taken a step to avoid such a failure. Their recently announced partnership with Viedo Egg will offer video advertising in IM and chat windows, as well as alongside the games and other video content (including video chat).
Meebo will offers IM, chat rooms, video IM, and games all within a single browser window. And by including the video advertising in the same windows as these other services, they may have finaly found a way to make money off of Web 2.0.
Romney's "Faith in America": The Hangover
I mentioned in my post last night (includes complete video of his address) that I thought Romney's speech needed to cover his Mormon religion moreso than contemplating "Faith in America," as he did.
Well, Christianity Today checks in on that very tip, explaining "What Evangelicals Heard in Romney's Speech." 
Echoing my speculation, David Neff, the author, explains, "According to a Pew poll, 36 percent of evangelicals say that they are less likely to vote for a candidate who is a Mormon (compared to 25 percent of all Americans). Republicans know that this kind of evangelical resistance must be overcome in order to win a presidential election."
Of course, polls are always sketchy footholds, but it demonstrates that a much larger percentage of Evangelicals, to whom Romney was speaking directly in his address, are skeptical of his religious affiliation.
Neff outlines several places where Evangelicals can jive with Romney, based on the overarching, non-committal comments he made about "religion," which, by itself, was never actually defined. Granted, he was speaking to a group of people that already has pretty firmly in its place a definition of religion, but as someone with a non-traditional definition of the term, and a swing vote, I'd like to hear at least one candidate come out for some type of religious pluralism in America — isn't that kind of what freedom of religion is all about? To live justly and "freely" together is not only about "tolerating" all religions — "tolerance," to me, implies reluctance and still suggests that the "tolerator" is superior to the "tolerated — but also, I think, involves actually engaging with others of these faiths and trying to understand them as well.
But I digress. Neff explains, despite Romney's slick speechwork:
"Because of the iconic quality of the presidency, many Americans will feel discomfort with the mainstreaming of a marginal faith that a Romney presidency would represent. It's one thing to listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir or to elect Harry Reid or Orrin Hatch. It is quite something else to elect a Mormon President. Americans accept partisanship and diversity in our legislators. But the presidency is supposed to unite the nation, and for many, Romney's reassurances can't address the apprehension they feel in their guts."
Yes, this is only one viewpoint, but a strong influence in the Christian media at that. If my suspicions here are confirmed, we probably won't see Romney on the ballot next November.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
In HOPE of Truth - A Letter From George Campbell Defending the Georgia Lottery
This letter was sent to me by George Campbell, who many of you may know as the drummer in the nation's premier law rock band, Mikey Mel and the JD's.
Dear friends:
Please take the time to read this article. Over the last few weeks, reporters at the AJC have been trying to stir up a controversy that is based in neither fact nor logic. They have made statements tantamount to perhaps willful misrepresentations and, at best, gross negligence. At the heart of the issue is the business management of the Georgia Lottery Corporation – a state owned corporation, not a government agency. Like most industries in the 21st century, the lottery business is changing. It is no longer a high margin sales drive culminated in weekly drawings. Today, lottery revenue is primarily generated by scratch-off tickets, slot machines, and other instant-winnings type games, which are not high-margin. The pastime of sitting by the TV for the Monday night drawing is simply that – a growing relic of an ever changing industry.
The reporters of the AJC have made the bald assertion that the Lottery is somehow shorting the people of the State of Georgia. Yet, their evidence for this conjecture is not apparent. First, they claimed that remittances (money transferred to the scholarship fund) are too low as a percentage of sales. This fails miserably in the face of the irrefutable fact that gross profit, not profit margin, is the priority. Our children need more money, not higher percentages of sales. Fourth grade math students understand this concept. This baseless claim was quickly quashed by this Op-Ed article.
Now, they claim that the Lottery executives are overcompensated. This house of cards also falls under the weight of evidence: the lottery is a $3.4 billion business, which generated a record amount of (that’s right) gross profit for the HOPE scholarship this year totaling $843 million. Any business that would not reward its employees for such exemplary performance will immediately lose those people performing. Moreover, the highest paid executive of the Lottery, CEO Margaret DeFrancisco, earned only $500k, which pales in the face of other executive compensation plans. (The average CEO of a Fortune 500 company earned $10.8 million last year). Lastly, the AJC makes the misleading comparison of the Lottery salaries to that of Gov. Perdue and other state officials. As mentioned above, the Lottery is a corporation, and its shares are owned by the State of Georgia. Therefore, what state government employees make is entirely irrelevant. The reporters belie their own ignorance of the Lottery’s structure in making this comparison.
To conclude, the Georgia Lottery has generated record profits to award more money for more children to attend college and pre-k over the course of more years than any other comparable institution. There is no evidence under any set of facts to support this wild and imaginative witch hunt by the AJC. It is a shameful reflection on the integrity of the publication, and a blatant disservice to the people of Georgia. Therefore, I encourage you all to apply the facts, not the speculation, to this issue and decide for yourself. As you may know (or will discover from the Op-Ed piece linked above) my father is the Chairman of the Board of the Georgia Lottery. Thus, I am an interested party. But my interest is one of character and integrity, which I gladly place on the line in his defense. If you support these fact-based conclusions, please refer these Op-Ed articles to those you believe interested in the issue.
With my highest personal regards,
George A. Campbell, Jr.
3rd Year Student
University of Georgia School of Law
I, for one, am a lifelong fan (and occasional supporter) of the Georgia Lottery; they paid for 4 years of college for me. Not only that, but the programs guaranteed by the Georgia Lottery have raised the standard for post-secondary education in Georgia, and especially at my beloved University of Georgia, to a level that was unimaginable twenty years ago. The lottery has been an overwhelming success, and I, along with so many of my fellow University of Georgia graduates, am truly grateful for the opportunity their service to this state has allowed me.
Romney gives his speech on Religion
Below is the video of Mitt Romney's speech on "Faith in America," intended at least in some capacity to address his religion, Mormonism, and how that might affect his presidency, if he were to be elected.
The video is 20 minutes, I know, so I've included below one of what seemed to be the key themes in his speech. Basically, he seems to say that America is for religions of all types, as long as you believe in the Christian God.
Lifted from this article from Talk To Action, here's one of the quotes that sums up for me the address. Enjoy the article as well; it checks in with an thoughtful view on the matter.
Romney says: “We separate church and state affairs in this country, and for good reason. No religion should dictate to the state nor should the state interfere with the free practice of religion. But in recent years, the notion of the separation of church and state has been taken by some well beyond its original meaning. They seek to remove from the public domain any acknowledgment of God. Religion is seen as merely a private affair with no place in public life. It is as if they are intent on establishing a new religion in America - the religion of secularism. They are wrong.
The founders proscribed the establishment of a state religion, but they did not countenance the elimination of religion from the public square. We are a nation 'Under God' and in God, we do indeed trust.”
I think that this kind of comment works, if he weren't Mormon. It seems to me that mainstream Christians are LESS likely to vote for him than people who are agnostic or atheist. I would imagine that most Christians don’t really care if he talks about God. Heck, those “crazy Muslims” worship the same God as they do. They want to know if he renounces Mormonism in public matters. If not, he’s out.
On that front, The Washington Post checks in.
Bah!
You know...I think any organization which puts Beyonce Knowles and Rihanna up for "Record of the Year" should be wholly ignored.
Heisman Hopefuls '07
In case you've been under a rock, this year's BCS race was insane, if nothing else, and the final selection of LSU and Ohio State for the BCS Championship is not without controversy. I'd like to think of the BCS ranking criteria as much like the Electoral College: mysterious, ethereal, byzantine, and the correction of which is likely an exercise of futility.
Emerging from the fray this year are four standouts:
1. Colt Brennan of Hawaii
2. Chase Daniel of Mizzou
3. Darren McFadden of Arkansas
4. Tim Tebow of--ahem--that hated team to the south that shall remain nameless
ESPN has an insightful piece on the individual candidates' successes and reasons why they will/will not win the Heisman. Enjoy.
EDIT: Are there any members of the UGA--or any other college--team that you would support for the Heisman if you could?
Hours of Potential Amusement and Trenchant Commentary on American Human Rights Law
So I'm a sucker for a stoner joke and have wanted to marry Kal Penn since the first H&K. But in the middle of studying for a macroeconomics final, this is, indeed, genius. (And NSFW!)
Social Networking for All Species
So...do you like poke other dogs online?
[Insert "Papa Don't Preach" Reference Here]
There's a Lot of McDonalds in...Your Kids.
At first blush, I'm horrified. But thinking back, I remember getting Pizza Hut coupons for book reports in grade school. And those were awesome when I was a kid. (Then again, I used to love Dunkaroos and Fruit Roll-Ups, which you couldn't pay me to eat now.)
So is McDonald's program that bad of an idea?
Golden Compass Update!!!
The end-times draw near, as the storied-though-not-yet-released film, The Golden Compass, already has shattered religious beliefs of many and inspired Atheism in so many more.
Or, not really. However, I will see the movie this weekend so you don't have to, and I'll put my own two cents in with a review on Monday. If you happen to catch this epic over the weekend, please join the fray and leave your comments here.
Today, I have a pleasant, thought provoking, and (surprise!) neutral discussion of Philip Pullman's religious "agenda" with respect to the series of novels that inspired the film. Quite similar to the discussion I posted here the other day, the piece mentions the inextricable spirituality inherent in the book (and likely the film).
In other words, Atheism is not equated to devil worship; in fact, a true atheist would scoff at devil worship as much (if not more) than Christianity; that is, if one scoffed at all.
To pick and choose some key points from the article:
"[The Golden Compass] seems to [project] a very spiritual idea. It certainly reintroduces some aspects of God back into the picture. But does that mean that Philip Pullman is really telling a profoundly spiritual story?
Inferring others' motivations is problematic, because we can never really know what goes on in someone else's head. Even statements which apparently announce the motivation may be misleading, as I suggested in my previous article, especially when those statements are inconsistent. Nevertheless, someone's motivation arises out of their worldview, so reflecting carefully on the worldview helps to suggest what motivations are likely or possible."
Summarily, the author of this article suggests that even if Pullman meant to preach Atheism to children, interpretation is up to the reader or the viewer; clearly, there are many spiritual themes at work here, and the people that find this threatening simply fail to recognize that there are other metaphors for human (and universal) life than theirs.
There's nothing wrong (or unique) about trying to understand the world in a specific way (we're very methodical beings), and subjecting ourselves to other viewpoints often confuses the things we perceive to be true. Yet, attempting to ban others from having experiences that are different than ours seems rather like a lot of work for very little gain other than personal satisfaction that you're whitewashing the world (pun only partially intended).
Someone very close to me, who also happens to be a devout Catholic, had this to say on the matter:
"It's only a movie and there are bigger things in life that are more important. If someone does not like, they should not go and not send their kids. It does not interest me, so I will probably not go. Besides I am unimpressed by Nicole Kidman as an actress."
I don't have a specific problem with Nicole Kidman, but otherwise I couldn't have said it better myself.
ADDENDUM: If you're interested, here's an extensive interview with and article on Pullman from The Atlantic Monthly.
Aren't We at War with Eurasia?
A Ragin' Cajun' start to your day (though it's almost noon)
As you've probably noticed this week, we here at The Pasty Quail are immersed in exam and paper season, so our usual posting efforts have been slower and more sporadic than usual. However, we hope our well-informed (?!) insight on the random topics of the day are helping you through this tough time of year, whether you're in school yourself, or working and trying to push through the holiday season.
Today, we have the famous James Carville, noted political analyst, going off on the BCS College Football system, despite the fact that his alma mater, LSU, is a chief beneficiary of the debacle this year. Enjoy!
Confessions of a MySpace Mom on the Run?
Following up on Dan's lead, here's a short update on the Megain Meiers situation. The Drew family has skipped town and not left a forwarding address. The Meiers are divorcing, have filed restraining orders against each other, have accumulated a lot of debt, and are sharing custody of their 11 year-old surviving daughter.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Ooh...Good News for J.D.s.
