Rev. Joe’s Random Thought # 9,215
yeah I know you did not ask!
We spend most of our life in anticipation, in looking forward, in dreaming of the future. Suddenly we crest some vaguely defined ridge or mountain and we are looking backwards. Some of us are regarding the past with regret, some of us with satisfaction, and most of us with a some combination of the two.
Rev. Joe’s Random Thought # 7,518
yeah I know you did not ask!
I have a dream that before I die I will have an original idea or at least an original thought.
Rev. Joe’s Random Thought # 3,672
yeah I know you did not ask!
Our perceptions are so colored by our biases, our experiences, and our limited senses that it is highly unlikely that most of us ever really see reality. Perhaps our wise men are the ones that truly get occasional glimpses of reality.
Acceptance and Tolerance
A comment to me recently started me thinking about what is the difference between acceptance and tolerance. The comment was this:
“To me homosexuality is not acceptable behavior. Why are Liberals trying to force me to accept this? I feel discriminated against.”
One definition of acceptance is — the action or process of being received as adequate or suitable, typically to be admitted into a group. Another is — favorable reception; approval; favor. Tolerance is defined as — the ability or willingness to tolerate something, in particular the existence of opinions or behavior that one does not necessarily agree with.
Even a cursory glance at the human race gives the impression of great diversity among its members. This is truly amazing when you consider that if you were to pick two random individuals and sequence their DNA there would be a Continue reading “Acceptance and Tolerance”
“No Gays Served”
On the Daily Show last night they played a clip from Fox News where they compared the situation in Indiana in regards to the so-called religious freedom act to forcing Jews running a bakery to serve Nazis.
My response to that would be:
First and foremost you are not comparing apples and apples. Nazism was a political movement that as part of their core philosophy incorporated racism, anti-Semitism and the extermination of all inferior beings (physical deformed, mentally handicap, etc.) as defined by the Nazi party. Homosexuality is just another common expression of human sexuality. Any moral repugnance is more an expression of a person’s religion or culture. It is no worse or better than heterosexuality, just not as common. To say a person is gay, is no different than saying they are black or blonde or Hispanic. It is simply a characteristic of a person.
While at one level I believe we should be able to do business with only who want to, there are so many areas of life where this is not true now. We cannot choose on the basis of color, ethnicity, religion or gender who we rent or sale a house to, who we serve in a restaurant, who we hire, who we accept into a school and many more things. What the Indiana law is attempting to do is codify a religious belief to allow discrimination against a specific minority. One way to marginalize any group is restrict where and what they can do. I do not find that morally or ethically justifiable.
Really in the long run what is the difference between a sign that reads “Whites Only” or “No Coloreds” and one that reads “No Gays Served”?
Mrs. Wolowitz
I stopped by REI in St. Louis on the way home today. As is my custom when I go there I took a swing through the men’s clothing to see if there was anything on sale that I 
absolutely could not live without. There was not.
As I was strolling through the department I noticed a man of medium height, slender build, bald head and fortyish in age. He was trying on Outdoor Research hats, not an uncommon sight in REI. I am few strides past the man when I hear a loud, nasal, female voice with a very pronounced Jewish accent say, “You’re going to Brooklyn, why do you need Gore-Tex?”
Thinking that I would be the one to finally see Howard Wolowitz’s mother I leisurely made a u-turn by a rack of pants. Imagine my disappointment when instead of Mrs. Wolowitz, I see an attractive looking woman who appeared to be about 10 years younger than the man trying on the Gore-Tex hats.
I like Maude Adams
My father had a little ritual that he did almost without fail. Folks would be talking about anything, and someone would say, “I like xyz.” Of course folks being folks someone else would say, “I like abc,” or perhaps, “I like xyz too.” And so it would go around the room. At some point my father would pipe up with, “I like Maude Adams.” He always thought this extremely hilarious, but it did have the effect of causing a lull in the conversation.
I have found myself doing this from time to time, much to the consternation of my bride who has a tendency to reply, “No you don’t.”
I came across a quote the other day from Maude Adams. So I went looking for a picture of her. Turns out she is stage actress who lived from 1872 to 1953. She appeared in numerous Broadway productions. Here is a link to the Wikipedia article on Maude Adams. She was also a very beautiful woman and from that perspective there is much to like about her. Having found that, I began to wonder about the origin of the phrase, “I like Maude Adams.” I found a couple difference references. One was in a 1950 movie, The Happy Years, based on a book by Owen Johnson. I found the following posted on an online movie board: Continue reading “I like Maude Adams”
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
In current parlance this novel could be called a bromance adventure story. It is also historical fiction. In researching the movies I came across 2 terse summaries of the story. Appended to the 1973 movie was:
“A young swordsman comes to Paris and faces villains, romance, adventure and intrigue with three Musketeer friends.”
The summary attached to the 2011 movie goes a little deeper:
“The hot-headed young D’Artagnan along with three former legendary but now down on their luck Musketeers must unite and defeat a beautiful double agent and her villainous employer from seizing the French throne and engulfing Europe in war.”
A little more comprehensive plot summary would be along these lines. A young man from Gascon, D’Artagnan, goes to Paris to seek his fame and fortune. Continue reading “The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas”
The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
I reread this novel recently after having seen the play. Part of my interest in seeing the play was to see how they adapted the novel to the stage. The relationship between Christine Daaé and the Phantom is portrayed in the popular perception as a beauty and the beast romance. My reading of the novel did not leave me with that feeling.
The plot is this. The two current managers of the Paris Opera House are tired of being blackmailed by the Opera Ghost aka the Phantom of the Opera aka Eric. They pass the reins onto two new managers, Armand Moncharmin and Firmin Richard. The Opera Ghost continues his blackmailing ways, but the two new managers initially think it is a practical joke either on the part of the exiting managers or their other co-manager. There are a series of incidences and disasters that change their minds.
There is the Opera Ghost who is obsessed with Christine. He becomes her musical tutor in a cryptic manner, but Christine thinks he is the Angel of Music sent from heaven Continue reading “The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux”