When Knowledge Is Not Power

He knows but they don’t. Do they know that he knows?

One of my favorite phrases is this:

He who knows not and knows not he knows not: he is a fool-shun him.
He who knows not and knows he knows not: he is simple-teach him.
He who knows and knows not he knows: he is asleep-wake him.
He who knows and knows he knows: he is wise-follow him.

Very pregnant and meaningful words that can be applied to our everyday lives.  We all know someone who thinks they know more than they do.  Probably our bosses?  Or even us?  It is kind of harsh to call such a person, or you, a fool but let’s not mince words here.  If you go around acting like you know everything but really know little, you have to admit, that’s foolish right there.  Then there’s the silent type who offers little because they are  unsure of what they know.  He knows that he knows not.  Such a person makes a perfect scholar and as the phrase say, we should teach him.  He is simple.  That makes sense as we sometimes look at the quiet person as a simpleton.  As another saying goes, ‘It’s better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt.’  Unfortunately, many of us would rather chance it.

It is often said that knowledge is power but I think it should be ‘knowledge in use is power’.  You can’t be powerful if you are not using your knowledge, right?  It’s like the world’s strongest man lying in bed all day.  What use is his strength?  This is the HE who knows and knows not that he knows.  This person is asleep and needs an awakening.  He’s like a leader falling asleep.  He has to be awaken so he could lead those who don’t know where they are going.  Once he realizes that he knows, he becomes wise.

The bad news is that those who know and know that they know are usually vain, proud and self-righteous.  (Well so much for the above phrase).  They are worse than the fool who does not know he knows nothing.  Putting this all into context in regards to the real world, we can safely say that we have an over-abundance of fools, too many simple minds, a lot of sleepy heads and a short supply of wise men.

Confused?  Don’t worry too much about it. Just my take.

Related articles

• Knowledge may be power, but.. (jcholman.wordpress.com)
• A summary: Knowledge into Action (knowledgetranslationoxfordblog.wordpress.com)

 

Can’t Blame The Youths

If you spend time on Facebook or have an email address, I am sure you have seen forwards or ecards comparing the kids of today to those back in the day.  ”When we were young we played with sticks.”  or “We played outside until it was dark.” But is it really a fair comparison?

In ‘the old days’ we did play with sticks and a bit of imagination but that was only because we had no alternatives.  When we were kids, we were never bombarded with the technology that the kids these days are bombarded with.  Why would we stay in and play video games when there were no video games?  We chose instead to do our homework simply because our options were limited.  Some of us were lucky if we even had a TV to watch.

As kids, we probably did play outside until it was dark but then perverts and pedophiles did not roam around looking for prey.  Those were the days.

Yes, many kids are addicted and even obsessed with their electronic toys and this is not a good thing but it is the beast that we created.  Now we must learn how to make it work for us.  It’s not necessarily a bad thing.  Or is it?

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Friday Fodder: Declining Moral Values

There are many differing opinions on the reason for the decaying of moral values in our society.  One thing that is mutually agreed upon is that it is indeed decaying.  Or declining.  Some say it is just scriptures coming to past.  Others blame it on television. Maybe it is all the above and then some.  For me, one of the major reasons is parenting.  Moral values go hand in hand with parenting.  Proper parenting ensures that values are instilled in our children.  If we fail to do that, then they grow up barely able to discern right from wrong.  Then they make their own laws.

It’s interesting to note the differences in the problems that schools in the 1940′s faced compared to schools in the 80′s.  Just a 40 year gap.  Astounding!  In the 40′s, the major problems were truancy, running in the halls, talking in class, and chewing gum.  In the 80′s, the problems included teenage pregnancy, violence, stealing, rape, bringing knives and guns to school, drug abuse and vandalism.  And that’s in the eighties!

The students still run in the halls but now they run with guns.  They still chew gum and chew out their teachers and talk back to them.  Yes, I put the blame squarely on the shoulders of parents.  But…but…we can’t control what our kids become when they grow up.  This is usually our whiny and pathetic excuse for our failure to provide our kids with the proper tools to grow into men and women with morals.  In truth, we are too lazy, ill-equipped to teach or just bad parents.  Yeah, there is such a thing.  But how about television? So many bad shows out there and their friends are also influential.  Gimme a break!  No excuses!  Some of us do suck at parenting.

Yes,  sometimes we do our best as parents but our kids still veer off the track.  You can’t be blamed in that case, but when I see so many instances of parents who have apparently thrown in the towel, allowing their wards to do as they please, we have a problem and it’s us.

Then there’s the justice system that seems powerless to do anything to curb youth crime.  Too  young to show their faces in the media.  Too young to name them.  Too young to punish them.  Punish the parents instead if they try to punish their own kids.  Protect the kids at all cost!  Even if that cost is morality.

Just my take.

Related articles

• Did religion help give primitive civilisation certain moral values? (secularnewsdaily.com)
• R.E.S.P.E.C.T and what it means to me.

Facebook Fights

Why do people use Facebook as their battleground?  I have read some statuses that were so disgusting that I was ashamed for the person who wrote it.  Seriously folks, why would anyone use Facebook, Twitter or any other social media to attack another?  It’s coward and weak.  Tell them I said so.

I don’t care who you are, if you use Social Media to sling mud at an old flame or old friend you are feuding with, it’s unclassy.  Plain and simple!  And there’s a bunch of us ‘classy’ people who think so too.  If you have a problem with your ex, please keep it between the two of you.  Other than a few gossipers, the rest of us really don’t care to to see your dirty laundry waving in the air.

Last week, one of my Facebook friends who I always thought of as a respectable person, ranted on his status about someone who was apparently giving him grief.  His choice of adjectives muddied his intelligence.  I was shocked and disappointed.  A few days later, another good friend, same thing.  His target was a female and he called her the name of a female productive organ.  His tirade was laden with such descriptive words.  Again I was disappointed by the lack of self-control shown by these people who I thought would know better than to stoop to such a low level and reveal an ignorance previously unseen.

If you feel the urge to berate someone on Facebook, please rethink.  It’s actually not cool and you don’t sound tough.  Some may say it’s downright pathetic, but it’s my take so I won’t say that.  Seriously though, if you can’t say anything nice, say nothing.  There’s an old saying attributed to Abraham Lincoln that goes, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”  You have a problem?  There’s the ‘unfriend’ button or better yet, use the ‘message’ button and let them know how you feel.

Thanks to Facebook, I now know who my smart friends are.

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• Withdrawal From Stupidity (identifyingjohndoe.wordpress.com)

But I Love Celine Dion! Oh, And Rita MacNeil Too!

A few days ago, I was reading the comments on a blog about Justin Beiber’s ‘dissing’ of Anne Frank.  I am sorry but I had no prior knowledge of who she was and had to hurriedly do a google search.  A neat story indeed.  I sided with the Beibs on this one.  Maybe she would have been a Belieber.   But back the comments.  One blogger, obviously a Canadian, said he didn’t like the fact that Beiber was from Canada as Canada is done apologizing for Celine Dion.  Double ouch!

Which brings me to the question, ‘Why do so many Canadians not like Celine Dion?’  She’s a true Canadian icon.  The woman can sing.  My humble opinion of course.  Well and the guys at Caesars too.  Arguably one of the greatest singers in Canadian history.  With the few genuine celebrities we can call our own, we should be proud of Celine Dion.

To understand this phenomenon, you must understand that us Canadians suffer from a sort of inferiority complex, maybe as a result of living in close proximity to the United States.  The self-proclaimed master of the universe.  We hate our sports teams, preferring to support US teams.  I am a fan of the Washington Capitals even though we have our own NHL team in the city.  Even our Canadian born players choose to play in the US than stay in Canada.  According to us, CFL sucks. NFL is the way to go. Our high school and even university basketball games are not worth televising because it can’t compete with NCAA. Our television shows? Well that’s another story.  Why do  you think we own illegal satellites?  We have tried mimicking American reality shows like ‘So  You Think You Can Dance’ and ‘Canadian Idol’ to name a few, but the ratings were so low that they were cancelled.  Who really wants to watch Canadian Idol with some Canadian judges when there were real celebs like Randy Jackson and washed-up Paula Abdul judging American Idol?  A no-brainer for sure eh?  I think our winning idols played a few gigs at malls then went back to whatever they were doing in relative obscurity.  Apparently the Canadian Idol judges tried to copy the antics of their US counterparts.  I am guessing they were never told to ‘be yourselves’.

So, we are an apologetic nation.  We say sorry, whether we mean it not.  We think the grass is greener on the other side of the 49th parallel.  We know more about the US Presidents than we know of our own.  Harper who?  We think Justin Beiber is one of Canada’s biggest embarrassment.  I am not a Belieber but I disagree with that sentiment.  We hated the late icon Rita MacNeil.  Such a sweet and honorable woman.  We diss Celine Dion. Awesome pipes and great concerts.  And there’s more but you don’t have that much time.

While we are apologizing to the States for invading them with our ‘watered-down talents’, they accept our apologies and give us Kardashians, Britney Spears, Honey Boo Boo and whatever they could dredge up from the society’s also-rans. So who should apologize?

It’s just my take, what do I know eh?

Related articles

• Trailer Park Boys and Rita MacNeil (*Coarse Language*) (reflectionsonlifethusfar.wordpress.com)
• Celine Dion – The Quantity A single Singer (celinebagsonline1.wordpress.com)
• Celine Dion can hold a hell of a note, and end a date just as crazy (lorenserritella.net)

 

How Sorry Are You Really? And Are You Really Praying For Me?

I watched the caller’s number on my phone as it rang on my desk.  I knew who it was, it was a co-worker.  I wasn’t too busy to take the call but it was someone I just wasn’t in the mood to talk to right then.  The next day, I emailed the caller to let her know I got her message on my answering machine.   I started with, “I am sorry I missed your call…”  Then erased it.  Why?  Because I wasn’t really sorry.  In fact, sorry was the last thing I felt.  So I changed it to, “I missed your call…”  Much better!

Now how many of you can relate to that?  Someone call on you for help and the first words you utter are,  ”I am sorry but I can’t help you.”  Or the classic, “I am sorry but I’ll have to hurt you.”  If you are sorry and you haven’t hurt me yet, then why don’t you just forget about hurting me?  That way, we both win.  I don’t get hurt and you have no reason to feel sorry.   How about the generic auto-reply message on your phone?   “I am sorry but I can’t come to the phone right now.”   If you are too busy to take the call,  you are either ignoring the caller on purpose, in which case you are not sorry, or playing with your kids, still not sorry, or cleaning your house, etc.  Nothing there to be sorry about.  Busted!

“I am praying for you…”  I am guilty of using that cliché myself.  It’s the first thing that comes to mind at the time of a disaster.  Boston Bombing for example.  A lot of my friends’ statuses promised prayers and thoughts.  Mine did too but I am happy to report, I kept my word and did offer up prayers and thoughts.   It’s a bit funny to see some of my friends who are professed atheists saying their prayers are with the victims.  See the confusion a tragedy can cause?  Atheists calling on God and Christians losing their faith…

So how about we bring back the true meaning of ‘sorry’ and try not to say sorry unless we mean it?  Don’t be sorry about the bombing, unless of course you are the bomber.  If you are like some of my friends and offered up thoughts and prayers to the victims of the Boston Bombing but got too busy to follow through, it’s not too late.  Send up some prayers to the Big Guy.  If you are an atheist, then you could…er…hmm… Just think happy thoughts.

Just my take.  I am sorry if you don’t like it.  Praying that one day you will…

 

 

Thursday Thoughts: William Wilburforce

English: Portrait of a Gentleman (Mr. Wilberforce) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

My Thursday thoughts are about a great man, William Wilburforce.  Who is he?   Well William Wilburforce, and Englisman, was a powerful champion in the fight to abolish slavery, not only in his country of England but also worldwide.  He fought hard for the freedom of slaves and was a leader in the campaign.   On a side note, he also created the first Society For The Prevention Of Cruelty To Animals.

“Wilberforce has long been viewed as a Christian hero, a statesman-saint held up as a role model for putting his faith into action.  More broadly, he has also been described as a humanitarian reformer who contributed significantly to reshaping the political and social attitudes of the time by promoting concepts of social responsibility and action.”  (Wiki excerpt)

Now as we, or you, celebrate Black History Month, Mr. Wilberforce’s contribution to the advancement of black people should be a part of black history.  I must remind you though of my apathy towards the continued celebrating of Black History Month.  I feel it has no place in this day and age and is anti-progressive.   As a black man, I share the pride of the accomplishments of black people.  Because we are striving to eliminate racial barriers and see each other as just fellow humans,  I see these celebrations as ‘us against them’.  I see them as barriers that serve as speed bumps on the road to the eradication of racism.

Back to Mr. William Wilberforce…Black history would not be complete without the inclusion of people like Wilberforce.  His name should be spoken of in the same breath as Martin Luther King’s.  Granted, he was English but his aim was to secure the freedom of slaves across the oceans.  Because of him and other non-blacks like him, us black were able to get to where we are today.  Without them maybe we wouldn’t have had King or Obama or me.

And that’s my take…

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Poking Becomes Serious On Facebook

Remember when poking your friends on Facebook was innocent and carried no intent or purpose?  Well that was so last year.   There’s now a new Facebook app that allows users to pick which friend they want to ‘poke’ and if said friend agree to their subtle request, ladies and gentlemen, we have a sex match!    Mama mia!

Let me weight in on this as you expect me to.  When I first heard about this, I thought it was a joke.  No way!  How could they?  Well way.  And they not only could, they did.  Remember when things were sacred?  Not saying that I’ve never had meaningless sex, yes I have. So sue me.  Just kidding, don’t sue me.  But seriously, an app to set up sexual encounters with your Facebook friends?

I can imagine this conversation between a couple.  ”Honey, what are you doing?”  ”Oh nothing, just on Facebook.”  The wife comes running up.  ”Why are you going through your friends’ list?  Think I don’t know about that new app called ‘Bang with  friends’ that you can hook up with your friends with?”  ”Babes, I am just deleting some friends.  Cleaning house.  I don’t have that app and never will.  You are all the woman I need. I love you.”   “Honey, I think it’s time we cancel our Facebook accounts.”

Yes, Bang With Friends app is here.  A user, from the comfort of his bedroom, can let Jessica know he has harbored sexual thoughts and pent-up lusts over her.   Should she decide that she shares his feelings somewhat, they can get together and see if the sparks fly.

Why am I not vehement in my objection to this?  Well maybe because nothing like this surprises me anymore.   Love, marriage and sex are not what they used to be.  Self respect is fast disappearing.  It’s appalling to say the least.  It’s degrading but I am so desensitized that I can see the humor in it.   I am sorry if I say it’s funny but it’s my take, remember?  Must I always remind you of that?

Anyways, to each his own.  If consulting adults feel like poking their friends, knock  yourselves out.  It’s happening with or without the app.  The app just puts in more in our faces but it’s been happening while we snooze.

 

Related articles

• Facebook’s Poke app becomes unpopular in a hurry (tuaw.com)
• Banging My Facebook Friends or FILF
• http://ibnlive.in.com/news/new-facebook-sex-app-lets-you-bang-with-friends/369747-11.html

Amazing Grace

Music of Grace: Amazing Grace (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A few days ago, while listening to a Christian Radio, (chvn 95.1 fm),  the song Amazing Grace started playing.  For some reason, I found myself pondering the song and  the origin.  This is one of the most recognizable of all songs,  religious or otherwise.  I think even the devil sings it.  It is so popular that I’m sure many if not all of us,  sing it from memory without really paying much attention to the lyrics.  Here’s a little blog about the man behind the song and its origin.

English man John Newton,  was the songwriter of this historic song.  For such a deep and soul baring song, one would think that he must have been a deeply devout christian, testifying to the saving grace of God.  Well sort of.

John was forced into military service and later, on his own volition, became a slave trader.  Apparently, he had one of the worst sailors’ vocabulary that his captain had ever heard.  (He was the most profane man the captain had ever met). In other words, he cursed like a sailor and more than a sailor.

John Newton was not always religious, even though his mother tried to instill it in him.  In fact, he denounced God at one part in his life.  It took a near-death experience for him to return to the fold.  (He cried out for God’s intervention when the ship he was on was caught in a storm).  That incident marked a turning point in his life and one that he would remember for the rest of his life.

Contrary to claims, Newton did not write the song in a moment of clarity while on a slave ship.  In fact, after his conversion he continued to dabble in slave trading and only gave it up after being ill.  He wrote Amazing Grace some years after his last voyage.

Amazing Grace is a strong song.  It speaks volumes about God’s love and his forgiveness.  This blog is not to take anything away from John Newton or to judge him in any way for his participation in one of the darkest era of humanity, (Although I think he should have given it up after he found God but maybe his conviction and conversion was not fully completed).  He left us with a great song.

Years after hanging up his slave trader hat, Newton joined forces with abolitionist William Wilberforce in his fight against slavery.  For such a person like John Newton, it would have taken an amount of saving grace to redeem him from what he was.  A bad boy, a slave trader and a man who turned his back on God.  It must have really been an Amazing Grace that saved a wretch like him.  And me.  And you.

Amazing grace, how sweet thou art…

Related reads:

http://www.texasfasola.org/biographies/johnnewton.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Newton

My Greedy Ex Is Back!

Have you ever been in a relationship with someone you loved, when out of the blue, they say,  ”Honey, I think we should take a break.  I need some space to sort things out.”?  At first you are heartbroken but as time passes, you start having fun enjoying the single life with your new-found freedom.  You have regular dates but nothing too serious and have your entire summer planned out.  Then again, out of the blue, she (it’s usually a girl) shows up.  ”Hey honey, I missed you.  I think I am ready to be with you now.”  Yep, how convenient.

So obviously, she was not having as much fun with the separation as you were.  For her, the grass wasn’t greener on the other side.  Unfortunately, you had made plans that did not include her, so her showing up throws a wrench into the mix.  Yes, you love her but you are just not ready for her at this time.

Well if you understand that scenario, you will understand my mixed feelings over the news that the NHL and the owners have ended their labor dispute.   This means that they would play the remaining 48 or so games instead of scrapping the entire season.  I guess they figured that a half year’s revenue is better than no revenue.

I am an avid hockey fan so I should be pleased if not excited about having some games this season, right?  Well not really.  You see the thing is, I have since moved on.  I made plans that did not include sitting down for a few hours watching hockey.  I have home renos and family stuff.  Maybe I am not that avid I guess.  I was hoping that they would have called the season and made plans for next year.  But no, here they are with 48 or so games to tantalize us.

I am also unhappy that millionaires are taking the sport out of sports with their greed for more millions.  At the end of all this, we the fans are the losers.  Not the overpaid players and not the fat cats who own them.  Lost revenue has to be recouped and I’m sure it won’t be done by a decrease in someone’s pay.  No sir, we will pay. Just watch.

And honey, I’m sorry but you just can’t show up when you feel like it.  You are toying with my emotions here.   What am I gonna do now? I have already made plans  and I just can’t fit you into my schedule right now.

Just my take.