"Zeitgeist," A Bunch of Dog Squeeze

If you Have 2 hours to spare, watch this video, if not, at least watch the first 30 mins.

"Zeitgeist"


There is a easy connection with the three segments of "Zeitgeist," the blatant hatred for any type of authority. Whether it be religious institutions, the government, or any entity that requires any type of submission. The creators of this film are very wary of Christianity because it requires submission to the authority of God. They don't trust what the government says because accepting what the government says means that you must put your well being in an institution that frankly, doesn't have a great track record for providing for the common man.

This film attempts to break down the basic need of Human Nature, belief. "Zeitgeist" attempts to shatter what we as humans hold most dear, the belief in our god(s), our trust in the government, and the idea that people are basically looking out for one another. However, if a 2 hour movie shatters everything you hold dear and you don't know what to belief anymore, how strong was your belief system before you watched the movie. Apparently not so strong.

Now for my opinions....

Part I: The Greatest Story Ever Told

Ok, so this entire part of the movie about put me to sleep. None of the 'evidence' given by the narrator was new information. Obviously the motivation of the filmmakers was to have the viewers question the existence of Jesus Christ, the foundation of Christianity, and most people's belief system. So why don't we look at some of this 'evidence?'

THE SIMILARITIES OF JESUS' BIRTH TO OTHER ANCIENT DEITIES:

-Born on December 25th
Most modern Christians today know that the birth of Jesus was not on December 25th. I've been taught since grade school that the date of December 25th was chosen to ease the transition for those who were converting to Christianity from other ancient religions, as well as other non-essential aspects of Christianity. Does it really matter the date on the calendar that we celebrate the birth of Christ? No.

-The cross not being the symbol of Christianity, but the Zodiac
Well this is just dumb. Why is the cross the symbol of Christianity? It wasn't some random symbol that the 11 thought of in the upper room on Pentecost. It comes from the Roman Empire's torture and murder device they used for criminals. The modern day equivalent of an electric chair or lethal injection table.

Basically, this entire section of the movie was a load of bull. The filmmakers used vague references and tricky visuals to try to confuse and cause doubt in the minds of the viewers.

Part II: All the World's a Stage

I'm not going to go point by point all that is wrong with this section because it would take too long, and frankly I don't have that kind of time.

The filmmakers are trying to make us believe that the U.S. Government was behind the attacks of September 11, 2001. I'm sorry, but it is really hard to believe this. All of the people that would have been involved, from the President to those that supposedly placed the bombs throughout the WTC Buildings, is a staggering number. There is no way that all those involved have successfully kept their mouths shut.

Part III: Pay No Attention To The Man Behind The Curtain

In all my research of the American Revolution (of which I have done quite a bit), never has the "prime cause" been said to be because of the British Empire outlawing the colonies to print money. The quote from Ben Franklin presented in the film came from the twilight of his life, when he was known to be senile and incoherent.

All the stuff about the income tax and the federal reserve is completely right (a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then).

So here's what we learned from "Zeitgeist:"

-Jesus Christ is the representation of the Sun God Horas and never existed.
-The Bush family throughout the last 100 years (3 Generations) has been Nazis, Communists, and supporters of Islamic terrorism for their own financial gain
-In the early 1900s, three men controlled the world's money
-If someone gains power and authority they are going to lie to you.


Irving_Kristol
"Democracy is not the equality of conditions, however, it is the equality of opportunity."

Religion's Effect on ALL of Us

Saying that comparing and contrasting the different religions and faiths that we covered last week is very difficult is a cop out, and I believe shows lack of insight and intuition. These religions, in regards to human nature, are all but entirely the same. When dealing with human nature, Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, et al, say the same thing. Do what we tell you is right, what you are conditioned to believe is a 'moral center,' or burn for it. While 'burning' is sometimes literal (Christianity), the punishment for not following the 'correct path' is not all the same.
Human nature is indeed a social construction, because religion is, and always has been a social construction. Whether we want to accept this fact or not, but all religion is based on social aspects of society. Judaism, for example, came about when one man (Abram) decided to leave his homeland and create a new society, a new social group that followed a certain set of guidelines (not written down until the 10 Commandments). How is that different than the Pilgrims leaving their own society, first to the Netherlands, then to the New World. Their motivation was the same as Abram's, to practice the society they wanted.
This is hard to understand in the modern context because of the intense focus on the separation of Church and State. But before the Great American Experiment, this separation did not exist. Religion and social aspects of life were connected at the hip.
But what does this say about human nature? Whether you are Muslim, Roman Catholic, Jewish, Baptist, Atheist, Hindu, or follow the teachings of the Buddha, religion HAS had an influence in the way that your social construction, your human nature works. I am not saying that this is a bad thing and all humans are wrong in this set up, because I absolutely fall under this as well. What I am saying is that religion has had a definite imprint on all the societies of the world since the beginning of recorded history. Not limiting itself to the religions mentioned previously, but ALL religions from all history.

The Sound of Silence... No Thank You

Today, as I was hanging out between classes in my room, I came to a realization. I hate silence. I noticed that in between shutting my XBOX360 off and turning the television back from input to TV, I freaked out a little. There was about 3 minutes of silence while I read something online and before I turned my TV back on.
Why do I feel this way? I don't even watch the TV about half the time it is on. Am I afraid to be alone with my thoughts? Am I scared that once I am alone I will forever be alone? I don't know. Even as I sit here, in a computer lab on campus, with no sound but the humming of computers and the tap, tap, tap of the keyboard, I feel like I could be doing something else. I could easily occupy my mind with my favorite music, or a television show I have never seen before.

'Nuff Said

The Human Condition: An Islamic Perspective

Coming from a Judeo-Christian background myself, I can easily relate to the human condition of Islam. In many ways, the three great monotheistic religions (Judaism, Islam, and Christianity) are very similar. Just as Judaism and Christianity, Islam believes in the creation of man from clay by Allah, followed by a fall from grace at the hands of Satan (in Islam, Iblis).
A uniqueness of Islam is the role of angels in the story. Allah creates man to be praised by angels, since humanity was made in the image of Allah. It was Iblis' denial to worship man that led to his banishment from paradise. The story of Adam and Eve differs in that their repentance for their first sin was forgiven, and therefore no original sin plagues humanity for the rest of time. Humanity now, is subject to the deception of Iblis in order to make them disobedient to God. Humans are charged with not repeating the mistakes of Adam and Eve, but all humans fail and sin because of the passion that Satan puts on them and their carelessness about the demands of the Quran.
Therefore, Islam calls for humans not to sin, and the sins that they do commit, as well as the good deeds they do, follow them until the time of Judgment. Those who follow Islam are charged with following the Quran, living a good life, and have a life full of good deeds. Allah puts these charges to Muslims as a guide to enter paradise. All of this shows the close similarities of the three great monotheistic religions.

Most of the world news from this week comes from the Caribbean. The 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck the island nation of Haiti has caused massive death and destruction. The world sections of the BBC and NY Times are showing the massive international efforts to give aid and relief to the Haitian people. This follows the Islamic perspective of the human condition. Allah calls for humanity, even if full of sin, to perform good deeds. According to Islam, two angels are assigned to each human, one one the right and one on the left. The role of these angels is to record both the sins, and the good deeds of each person. Therefore, Muslims should feel the call to help their fellow humans in need.
Along with the news from Haiti, the world news is full of war. While some religions permit the use of 'just wars', it would be hard to believe that the arming of Hezbollah that could spark an Israeli-Syrian war, along with the fighting in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Palestine/Israel, along with constant fighting all over the globe, could all be considered just wars. Therefore, someone with the Islamic faith would feel that all this fighting, killing, and destruction would not follow Allah's wishes. That these actions all over the world are stemming from passions spurred on by Iblis (Satan).

I believe that the Islamic perspective on the human condition has similar problems to those in all religions that offer eternal paradise and eternal punishment. Do humans do good and avoid evil because it is the right thing to do, or because they are afraid of fiery punishment that lasts an eternity? If this is the case, then all good done by the followers of these religions are doing good deeds for selfish reasons. This critique is not alone with Islam, it is in all religions. For those that do not have an eternal punishment, there is no motivation to do good and avoid evil. In the Christian denomination Calvinism, there are people called the 'elect' that are 'predestined' for heaven and hell. They believe that only certain people are chosen by God to enter heaven, and this decision is made at birth and cannot be changed throughout the lifetime. This brings up the question again of motivation to do good. If you know that there is no way to change your eternal status, what motivation do you have to do good? If I know that my eternal destination has already been determined, whether it be fire or paradise, I am going to be living it up, not worrying about doing good or helping others, not caring about what I do to others or myself.

But since these religions, including Islam, have a punishment set out for those who do wrong, there is great motivation to do good and avoid evil. Whether it be for selfish purposes or not, Islam still has its followers doing good deeds and avoiding evil.

Back to Action

Hello again!

I am starting this machine up again. Although it is because of class assignments I am really looking forward to the posts to come.
This semester I am in a Global Studies class on the Human Condition. This class involves posting comments to the class blog Destroying Humanity on topics ranging from religion to sexuality. We are supposed to post these comments anonymously, without the class knowing who exactly says what. This is in order to ensure that everyone in the class will post using absolute honesty. Anyone that knows me knows that I will be honest with you no matter what. So I will be commenting on the class' blog, and then reposting my responses here.

So enjoy this over the next semester, it should be fun and maybe we can cause a little debate as well. Feel free to comment on all of my posts, and I will try to respond to questions, or defend my views further throughout the week before the next week's assignment is done.

So Alone... And I Enjoy It!

So I moved back to Emory this past Sunday, a little less than a week before I needed to be back for Head RA training. I have seen a few people, even hung out with my Smalls, Stephen Rainey, but the vast majority of the time I've spent back has been spent alone. 

I've got to say, I normally enjoy periods of time alone. Whether it's just to sit and watch TV or to read, I've always cherished the time I have had to myself. But this has been different. Yesterday, for instance, if you don't count the times I went to the store (I don't because the only interaction I had was with the cashier) I was by myself for about 23 hours. 

These large chunks of time are a lot different than the occasional hour or two I used to get. There is only so much TV, so many hours of video games you can play (try not to pass out at that statement Dad) before you want to do something else. I have been able to practice my guitar more, finalize my graduate paper, and do a lot of work on this fall's Pledge Week. 

While I really am enjoying this time that me, myself, and I have spent together, I still can't wait until my friends, brothers, and sisters start arriving over the next two weeks. 

Sorry for taking so long to post... Shame on me...

Let's Shake Things Up

So as I was "Stumbling" across the Internet, something that I do very regularly, I saw this website that offers free guitar lessons for absolute beginners. Well that's me, an absolute beginner.

So I think when I return to Knoxville this week for what's left of the summer, I think I'm going to try this guitar thing again. I once tried my Freshmen year of high school, with total failure. But now I think it's time to try this again.

So whether I go to Guitar Center or Wal-Mart to get me very cheap instrument I don't know yet.

So I want to try something new and I like this idea...