Inspiring Minds Monday ~ Claiborne

Shane Claiborne chooses to live a life that many of us cannot. To simply put it, he lives...simple. He is the author of books such as "The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical" and "Jesus for President".




He is also a founding member of the Potter St. Community, formerly known as The Simple Way community. Even though he chooses to live a simple and humble life, living well below his means, he is a revolutionary and a radical. There are a couple of events I would like to share with you that Shane has been a part of.

Jubilee on Wall Street: At approximately 8:27am Monday morning (October 21, 2002) on the steps in front of the statue of our first president taking his oath of office, a man dressed in black, holding a megaphone, stepped out. He proclaimed news of another way of doing life, in stark contrast to the example shown on Wall St. As he proclaimed, “Let the Celebration begin!”, a Shofar, or ram’s horn, was blown, ushering in the ancient Torah tradition of Jubilee. Seemingly out of nowhere, bills began to fall and three banners were unfurled reading: “Love.” “Stop Terrorism… Share” and quoting the forefather of the nonviolence and alternative economics movements, Gandhi, “There is enough for everyone’s NEED, but not enough for everyone’s GREED”. At the same time, about two-dozen pedestrians emptied their pockets and bags of thousands of dollars of coins. Both homeless and professionals alike scrambled for nickels, dimes and quarters while others stood back and watched astonished that thousands of dollars were littering the corners of Broad and Wall Streets. You can read the rest of this article here.

$100 Dollars to 100 People: I read a book by Rick McKinley who is the pastor of Imago Dei community in Portland, Oregon. The book is called "This Beautiful Mess" and he writes about Shane in part of his book. This isn't how it was written in the book exactly, I'm just remembering what it said from memory. One day, Rick received a $100 bill with the word "LOVE" written on it. It was from Shane Claiborne. Shane had sent 100, $100 bills to 100 people and Rick was one of the recipients. Rick carried the $100 in his wallet, waiting for the right opportunity to use it. He went to the store to buy some things one day, but all he had was the $100 bill. He thought about paying for his stuff with it, but because Shane had written "LOVE" on it, he knew he couldn't use it just to but a few things for himself. He ended up giving it to a single mother. I'm not sure what the other 99 people did with their $100 bills, but I hope they were as thoughtful as Rick.

It's obvious to see that Shane could be living a comfortable life, yet he chooses to live in what many of us would call poverty. I had seriously considered becoming a part of the Potter St. community at one time, but then a bunch of my friends started talking about getting something like that started here in our own area. We want to take a trip down to Philadelphia to check out the Potter St. community and see how they do what they do, living as a true community. By that I mean getting to know your neighbors, treating them as family, borrowing things from each other. For example: why should so many people who live so close to each other each need to own their own lawnmower? Why not own one together as neighbors. Yes, it is easier said than done. But that's why we need to get over our greed so that there is enough for everyone's need. What if the lawnmower breaks? Everyone can chip in to get it fixed which would be much less expensive than owning your own lawnmower.




There is a DVD called $imply Enough. It is a study/action guide and it covers a variety of topics such as money, food, lifestyle, and justice. We went through this study last year at Valley Mosaic. It features Shane Claiborne and Tony Campolo discussing these different topics. Tony was one of Shane's professors at Eastern University. Below is the trailer for $imply Enough.





You can find out more about Shane and The Simple Way here.

Freakin' Funny Friday ~ Justice is More than Blind

I try be a good law abiding citizen. But there are just some laws out there that are just too dumb to follow. If I want to hum while walking down the street, I will. If I want to take a lion to the movie theater with me, I'm gonna do it! And if I want to carry an ice cream cone in my back pocket, don't try to stop me!!

What the heck am I talking about. I'm talking about dumb laws. You can find a bunch of them by visiting dumblaws.com. Many of the laws found on that website are laws that probably aren't necessarily enforced, but they have never been abolished, so they are still in effect.

Also, many of the laws featured at dumblaws.com were passed many years ago and are based on religious beliefs. Some of the laws have been passed because someone did something really stupid, so a law has been passed to prevent it from happening again. Kind of like the sign we had at Blockbuster video when I worked there that said, "Gift cards cannot be used to purchase gift cards." That sign would not be there unless someone tried to do it. So go check out dumblaws.com, and to get a sampling of what you'll find on the site, I'll list one law from each state below. Enjoy!

Alabama: Putting salt on a railroad track may be punishable by death.
(But railroad tracks taste so bland without salt.)

Alaska: Moose may not be viewed from an airplane.
(...and if you look to your left, no wait, MOOSE!, don't look!)

Arizona: A decree declares that anyone caught stealing soap must wash himself with it until it is all used up.
(Oh man, I shouldn't have stolen that case of bulk soap from Sam's Club)

Arkansas: The Arkansas River can rise no higher than to the Main Street bridge in Little Rock.
(Try telling God that.)

California: It is illegal to own a green or smelly animal hide.
(I agree with this one.)

Colorado: It is unlawful to lend your vacuum cleaner to your next-door neighbor.
(I guess being a selfish neighbor is a requirement in Colorado.)

Connecticut: In order for a pickle to officially be considered a pickle, it must bounce.
(Uh yea...how is this a law?)

Delaware: No person shall pretend to sleep on a bench on the boardwalk.
(But it's so much fun to pretend to sleep while you're at the beach. What else is there to do?)

Florida: Women may be fined for falling asleep under a hair dryer, as can the salon owner.
(But officer, I was only pretending to sleep, it's fun! Although I did get arrested for pretending to sleep one time in Delaware on the boardwalk.)

Georgia: If you want to read your favorite book in public to your friends, do it before 2:45am.
(Gee, Stanley, I'd really like to hear how "To Kill a Mockingbird" ends, but it's almost 3 in the morning.)

Hawaii: Coins are not allowed to be placed in one's ears.
(But how else am I supposed to show off my shiny new pennies?)

Idaho: It is illegal for a man to give his sweetheart a box of candy weighing less than fifty pounds.
(Guys, if you have a sweetheart that requires 50 pounds of sweets at one time just coat a 50 pound rock with chocolate or a candy shell, she won't know the difference.)

Illinois: The English language is not to be spoken.
(¿Que?)

Indiana: Baths may not be taken between the months of October and March.
(That gives a whole new meaning to "Trick or treat, smell my feet" and by the time Valentine's Day rolls around you probably wouldn't want to be anywhere near the one you love.)

Iowa: Horses are forbidden to eat fire hydrants.
(There must be some pretty messed up horses in Iowa.)

Kansas: If two trains meet on the same track, neither shall proceed until the other has passed.
(Yea, go ahead, read that one a few more times and maybe you'll be as confused as I am. My brain hurts.)

Kentucky: One may not dye a duckling blue and offer it for sale unless more than six are for sale at once.
(I swear, I am not making these up.)

Louisiana: It is illegal to rob a bank and then shoot at the bank teller with a water pistol.
(They couldn't just leave it at "It's illegal to rob a bank"?)

Maine: It is illegal to park in front of Dunkin Donuts.
(Parking in rear, which is the same place those donuts go when you eat them.)

Maryland: It is illegal to remove a public building by writing on it.
(What the crap does that even mean? I'll write on this building, then they'll have to move it, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!)

Massachusetts: Tomatoes may not be used in the production of clam chowder.
(Shouldn't that be more of a preference than a law?)

Michigan: No person shall throw an abandoned hoop skirt into any street or on any sidewalk, under penalty of a five dollar fine for each offense.
(That's hoop-law!)

Minnesota: A person may not cross state lines with a duck atop his head.
(Sorry ducky, I'll have to carry you in my arms from this point forward)

Mississippi: It is unlawful to shave in the center of main street.
(But my wife is hogging the bathroom and this seemed like the second best place to trim my whiskers.)

Missouri: Minors can buy rolling paper and tobacco, but not lighters.
(Yea, because we all know that fire only comes from lighters.)

Montana: Worrying squirrels will not be tolerated.
(Leave that squirrel alone, he already has self-esteem issues)

Nebraska: It is illegal to go whale fishing.





Nevada: Everyone walking the streets is required to wear a mask.
(That sounds like a fun law! I'm moving to Nevada!)

New Hampshire: In cemeteries it is illegal to: get drunk, picnic, enter at night, and enter by one's self if that person is younger than 10.
(If you are under 10 while getting drunk at a picnic at 11pm by yourself, you are in BIG trouble!)

New Jersey: You cannot pump your own gas.
(I lived in Jersey for a year and the gas station attendent will seriously freak out if you try to get out of your car. They're afraid the gas station will blow up or something.)
New Mexico: Idiots may not vote.
(It's a good thing I'm a moron.)

New York: The penalty for jumping off a building is death.
(Thank you captain obvious.)

North Carolina: Bingo games must not last over 5 hours unless it is held at a fair.
(..........B...................................................
.....................................8.........................
................................................................
.......G.......................................................
....................................48.........................)

North Dakota: It is illegal to lie down and fall asleep with your shoes on.
(Mom, stop making laws!)

Ohio: If one loses their pet tiger, they must notify the authorities within one hour.
(Oh man, my tiger got away. Well, I'll finish watchin' my show and then I'll call the authorities.)

Oklahoma: Dogs must have a permit signed by the mayor in order to congregate in groups of three or more on private property.
(Ironically, there is a sign outside the place where they have to get the permit that says "No Dogs Allowed".)

Oregon: It's illegal to walk down a sidewalk and knock a snake's head off with your cane.
(A Machete is much more effective.)

Pennsylvania: It is illegal to sleep on top of a refridgerator outdoors.
(Yup, sounds like something a Pennsylvanian would do.)

Rhode Island: It is considered an offense to throw pickle juice on a trolley.
(Where else am I supposed to throw it?)

South Carolina: Horses are to wear pants at all times.
(Horse.....pants.....huh....)

South Dakota: It is illegal to lie down and fall asleep in a cheese factory.
(If you're going to do that, then go down the street to the pillow factory.)

Tennesee: It is illegal for a woman to call a man for a date.
(Take that Sadie Hawkins!)

Texas: It is illegal for one to shoot a buffalo from the second story of a hotel.
(Sorry, you'll have to go up to the third floor if you want to do that.)

Utah: It is illegal not to drink milk.
(Lactose intolerance, shmolerance! Drink your milk!)

Vermont: Women must obtain written permission from their husbands to wear false teeth.
(I feel bad for widows with no teeth.)

Virginia: Spitting on a sea gull is not tolerated.
(But it was really annoying me, it kept on saying mine? mine? mine?)

Washington: You may not ride an ugly horse.
(That's mean.)

West Virginia: Whistling underwater is prohibited.
(Not to mention impossible.)

Wisconsin: If one is thought of as offensive looking, it is illegal for him to be in public during the day.
(Go on, get out of here, and take your ugly horse with you.)

Wyoming: Junk dealers may not make any business transactions with drunk persons.
(Or was it drunk dealers may not make any business transactions with junk persons? I can't remember.)

That's all, see you next week!

Deep Thought Thursday ~ Gimme, Gimme, Gimme

I've never understood the concept of being selfish, even though I have been selfish many times throughout my life. In fact, I've spent a large amount of my life being selfish and not even knowing it. I didn't realize that I was being selfish with my time. I used to be a real loner. Part of it was due to the fact that I have Social Anxiety Disorder, which God has helped me overcome by leaps and bounds. And it's something that God and I are still working on. But the other part of my loneliness was due to my selfishness. There was a time when my friends wanted me to go out with them but I would rather stay at home playing video games and watching movies. I did like to go out and have fun, but sometimes a friend would want me to run some errands with them and I would think to myself "I don't want to waste my time with this person unless we're doing something fun." I'd rather stay at home and race a car or slay some huge beast all from the comfort of my recliner. What a waste.

Over time I've learned that doing the simplest things with people, like spending time with them while they run errands is a great way to connect. It's not always as easy to connect with people when you're just having fun with them. I got myself into this daily routine where I would have to do certain things everyday and that interfered with my social life, not that I had much of one anyway. That was a dangerous place to be, to be stuck in a routine, same thing everyday. But it was comfortable, why knock it?

A good friend of mine gave the message at church this past Sunday since our pastor is on a mission trip. He talked about getting too comfortable with the everyday routine. He had become too comfortable in his life as well, so he changed a few things up. He said we need to take an adventure. It could be a big one or a small one, but just do something different for a change. Approach God in different ways. I thought it was a great message. So after church, instead of going out to eat like we usually do, my girlfriend, her little boy, and I went to the grocery store and bought some things so we could go on a picnic. It was a lot more work than just going out to eat and I probably spent more money than I would eating out, but it was so rewarding to sit in the shade of a tree somewhere away from town and just enjoy ourselves. Plus, there was enough leftover food to last that I could take to work the rest of the week. So I really spent less money than eating out in the long run.

Anyway, to get back to the subject of selfishness and why I don't understand the concept of it. There are people out there who live only for themselves, "Me, me, me, mine, mine, mine. I'll take whatever I want when I want it, no one can stand in my way to get it!" I imagine that this is the phrase that constantly repeats over and over again in the mind of a selfish person. What is the point of serving only yourself? How can someone like that even have a true relationship with others? If you spend your life serving others, then most likely others will serve you back. But we should not serve others expecting anything in return. If we do that, then it is still selfish to do something just to get something.

Christians tend to fall into this trap as well. How many have done things for God expecting a reward from him. We cannot approach God as if we're his pets and he's dangling a Snausage over our heads waiting for us to do a trick for him.




I know it's besides the point but sometimes we misjudge God's will for us. He throws us a Beggin' Strip and we yell "It's bacon!"




Okay, that's enough of the God and dog treats analogies. Gotta get back on track.

In the book of 2 Samuel in the Old Testament, King David is on the roof of his palace when he sees a woman bathing. He sends someone out to find out about her. He finds out that her name is Bathsheba and she is married to Uriah, a soldier in David's army, but it didn't stop David from taking her for himself. She became pregnant to David, so David decided to send Uriah to the front lines of battle so he would be killed. This is where selfishness can lead us sometimes. The story goes on:

The LORD sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, "There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him. "Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him." David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, "As surely as the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to die! He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity." Then Nathan said to David, "You are the man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave your master's house to you, and your master's wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. Why did you despise the word of the LORD by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.' (2 Samuel 12: 1-10)

Even though David was king he could have had Nathan killed for revealing David's selfishness and humiliating him. But David was humble, he knew Nathan was right and he realized what he had done was wrong. Nathan reassured David that God would forgive him, but there would be consequences to David's decisions.

I think community is the key for living selflessly. Letting your neighbor borrow things or even giving things away. So get to know your neighbor, and I'm not just talking about the people who live next to you. There is a great song by Derek Webb called "Rich Young Ruler" which has a message of generosity by truly giving. Perhaps I will talk about that song in another post. It relates to the rich young ruler story in the Bible. I'm not going to type it all out (i.e. copy and paste), but you can find it here.

So many celebrities and financially wealthy people find out the hard way that having everything really means nothing when it boils down to it. Sure, financial security must be nice, but it doesn't even come close to filling that empty space inside. Following Christ seems to be the thing that works for me. I'm not sure what else to say about selfishness other than it's just not worth it.

Artsy Fartsy Wednesday ~ Ad it up

I don't have a particular artist in mind for today's post. I found some clever designs and ads though that I'd like to share with you today. As a graphic designer, I find these designs and ads to be very inspirational. These particular pieces make use of their surroundings in creative ways. These designs incorporate things like buses, lamp posts, benches, mirrors, elevators, and even grass. Here's what I'm talking about.

Those first two were pretty clever, but it gets better than that.




As if flexi-straws weren't fun enough.




This is a sign for Benjamin Moore Paints. Under that it says "We'll match it." At first I thought this picture was taken at just the right angle to show how the sign matched the sky. Then I realized the sign is an open frame. Duh.



Very clever Hoover ad. I think Hoover vacuum cleaners really suck. If you think about it, that's a compliment. *Rimshot*




This reminds me of the scene in the movie "Roxanne" where Steve Martin was holding up cards with different noses on them when he was thinking about getting a nose job. I wonder if that's where they got the idea for this cup.

How much did they pay that guy to ride in the trunk of a taxi with his hand hanging out of the back? (Yes, I know it's a fake arm, sheesh!)





Gimme a break, gimme a break. Break me off a piece of that...uh, bench?





See, they've made the stripe with Mr. Clean on it whiter than the others, and below is a look at the same thing from a different angle:




HA! Sorry, I couldn't resist.


Here are some interesting ads and designs on buses:



Ready to quit?



Those are fun.



Just when you thought it was safe to get back on the bus. The next two are just bizarre and creepy.



Bizarre.



Creepy.


These last three are some of the most creative ads I've ever seen.



Excellent!



Brilliant!!



Superb!!!

See how the glass of milk is on the elevator enclosement and the Oreo cookie is on the elevator. When the elevator comes down it looks like it's dunking the Oreo in the milk!

I would love to have a job where I was allowed to be this creative. Maybe someday, Maybe someday.

Story Time Tuesday ~ Work, Work, Work Edition: Ink, Paper, and Rubber Bands

I thought I would start a series here on Story Time Tuesdays. I'm calling it the Work, Work, Work Edition, but I'll probably shorten it to WWWE starting next week. That's one more "W" than WWE, so no lawsuits Vince McMahon. Yea, I'm sure he reads this blog. I've been working since I was 13 and I've had many jobs in the past 17 years. No, I never got fired, I just got bored. I was a paperboy for my first job and I've already shared the best story from that job in an older post. But there are some other stories and memories from that job that I will tell you about today.

My very first day it took me five minutes to deliver my first paper. It was the Sunday morning paper and I had trouble rolling it up and getting the rubber band around it. It didn't take long to figure out that I needed to put rubber bands on all the papers before I delivered them. I had 80 papers to deliver on my route, it was one of the largest routes the Williamsport Sun-Gazette had for the Jersey Shore area. I had to make a few trips back to my house to get more papers because those suckers weighed probably 2-3 pounds on Sundays. Fortunately after that Sunday, my parents and other family members agreed to help me on Sunday mornings by loading all the papers in their cars and helping me deliver them. I greatly appreciated that especially because we had to get up at 5am to get started.

After getting more attuned to my job I found that I didn't need to use rubber bands for the smaller papers during the week. We had to pay for our rubber bands. All I had to do was fold it so that one side tucked into the other and when I tossed it on someone's porch it would automatically unfold, right there on the doormat.

There were three sections of my route. I had one section in town near my house, another down the road in a housing development where all the rich people lived who tipped well at Christmas time, and an apartment complex for the elderly. In each section of my paper route I knew at least one person who was kind enough to offer me a nice cold drink in the summer. One lady made the best iced tea ever! There were a few of my customers that I could sit with for a few minutes and chat when I needed a little rest.

During the winters of 1993 and 1994 our area had two of the biggest blizzards in over 100 years. Those just happened to be the two years that I had my paper route. I couldn't believe the delivery truck actually showed up to drop the bundles of papers off at my house. I was thinking, "It's the end of the world and you want me to deliver papers?!" I did it, and most people weren't expecting to get a paper that day. I got a little help from my family too which was nice.

I usually delivered to the rich housing development last because the neighborhood kids were usually doing something fun like playing baseball in the summer and having snowball fights in the winter. I finished there so I could join in the fun. I delivered to the apartment complex for the elderly first. One reason was because there was this one guy who got pretty upset if his paper wasn't there by 5pm. After 5 he stood outside, waiting for me. One time I was late and there he was. He had a few nasty words to say to me and lectured me about being late. I apologized and before I kept on going I told him "Merry Christmas". He just looked at me and said "Go to hell." That was harsh. Then one day he was outside, but I wasn't late. He was packing up a few things in his car. He told me he was moving. The song "Celebration" by Kool and the Gang started to play in my head. But then he did something I never expected. He apologized for giving me such a rough time and shook my hand. He said that I was probably glad he was leaving. I told him he wasn't such a bad guy after all.

Another time I was delivering to the apartment complex and I saw one of the elderly residents sitting in his car with his eyes closed and his head down. I thought he was dead. So I went to one of the apartments and knocked on the door so someone could come down and check on him. Somehow a large group of people came out and were all standing around the car. One of them knocked on the window of the car and the guy woke up kind of startled to see a bunch of people standing around his car. He said he was just napping. Strange place for a nap.

So that was my first job, I enjoyed it even though it was nothing like the arcade game.

Inspiring Minds Monday ~ Spurlock

Last Thursday I talked a little bit about Morgan Spurlock and said that he was worth talking about later on down the road. Well, it's later and as I was traveling down the road I saw Morgan hitchhiking so I decided to pick him up. That last sentence was completely metaphorical for those of you who are still thinking to yourself "Duh, what?"

I've never been interested in watching documentaries until I watched Super Size Me. The thing I like about Morgan's documentaries besides the humor is the fact that he brings some issues that are generally unknown to light and encourages people to think differently about what they think they already know. His documentaries for the most part remain unbiased, in other words, he's has his opinion on things but he doesn't try to get other people to think like him. When he did Super Size Me, he wasn't out to shut down McDonald's and the other fast food restaurants. He was simply spreading awareness of what's out there and what can happen to you if you're careless with your diet.

I've seen three of Morgan's documentaries and I look forward to see what he has in store for the future. I'm going to talk about each of the documentaries I've seen.





The first one I saw, of course, was Super Size Me. Morgan documents himself eating nothing but McDonald's food for 30 days straight. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He made a rule that if the cashier asked him if he wanted to Super Size his meal then he had to say yes. He also made a rule that he had to try everything on the menu at least one time. Not all in one day of course, but throughout the 30 days, and he could not eat anything but McDonald's food.





He spoke with his doctor before doing this and he was strongly advised not to go through with it. But he went through with it anyway. By the end of the first day he became sick. Blah.





This documentary wasn't just about him eating McDonald's for thirty days. Morgan approached the public school systems and learned that many times the schools will buy very unhealthy food to serve in the cafeteria just to save money. Not to mention all the soda and snack machines that are found in schools. Some schools though have gotten rid of the soda and snack machines and have a much healthier food selection in the cafeterias. They found that students perform much better in these schools, mentally and physically. He interviewed some people, including Don Gorske, a tall, skinny, lanky, Guinness World Record holding, Big Mac enthusiast who has eaten well over 23,000 Big Macs since 1972. That averages out to 2 Big Macs per day. That guy must have some kind of freakish metabolism, but the one thing he never does is order the fries.

Don Gorske

By the end of the experiment, Morgan gained 24 pounds, a 13% body mass increase, and suffered from mood swings, sexual dysfunction, and liver damage. It took him 14 months to recover and get back to his original state of health.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The second documentary I saw is called "What Would Jesus Buy?" Morgan didn't star in this one but he produced it. The star of this documentary is a character named Reverend Billy. And he is quite a character.





Reverend Billy is the stage name and character created by activist Bill Talen. He takes on the persona of Reverend Billy and goes out with his crew "The Church of Life After Shopping" formerly known as "The Church of Stop Shopping" He looks like the stereotypical TV Evangelist with the big hair, even bigger mouth, and the attire to go along with it. Even though I don't agree with all of Reverend Billy's tactics, I do appreciate his attempts to make consumers aware of what major corporations and mass media are up to. Reverend Billy and the Church of Life After Shopping also bring up issues such as economic justice, environmental protection, sweatshops, and the Iraq war.





Overall, I like the character Reverend Billy. I think he's misunderstood because many people think he's just another crazy street preacher and don't realize it's just a character. He has a great message to share about consumerism.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The third documentary is one I mentioned last week called "Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?". Morgan stars in this one. The documentary starts out with Morgan talking about his unborn son and the dangers of this world. He figures that if he's going to make this world a safe place then he's going to have to do what the US military hasn't been able to do yet; find Osama Bin Laden and bring him to justice. Sounds ridiculous, I know, but that isn't what the film is really about.





Morgan starts out by taking a survival class in case there is a threat of danger while he travels. As he travels to different countries in the Middle East he finds that the common people of those countries are a lot like you and me. They're not all anti-American. In fact many people of those countries have a positive outlook on America and some just don't have an opinion about America. The ones who think America is a selfish, fat, wealthy country think that way because partially that's all they see in their news media, and partially because it's true. America makes up less than 5% of the world's population, yet consumes 25% of the world's resources. On average, one American consumes as much energy as 2 Japanese, 6 Mexicans, 13 Chinese, 31 Indians, 128 Bangladeshis, 307 Tanzanians, or 370 Ethiopians. (Those last few facts were not covered in the documentary but I wanted to throw those in there.)





Throughout the documentary Morgan askes random people where Osama is. Nobody knows and almost all of the people he askes could care less about Osama and they don't want to have anything to do with him. Many other people he interviewed basically said that Bin Laden's fundamentalist view of the Islamic faith is way off and that people who follow the true Islamic faith are very peaceful people and do not try to kill or hurt others that do not follow Islam.





But like I said before, it's only the extremists and the wackos of a particular group that make it onto our television sets. It almost seems the thing that has happened with Islam in the Middle East is the same thing that has happened with Christianity in America. Things get distorted beyond recognition.





I won't tell you anymore about these documentaries. I suggest going out and renting these films. They're filled with humor, interesting facts, and things that will make you aware of what's going on in this world. Plus, you've gotta love that handlebar mustache.

Freakin' Funny Friday ~ CCE: Jesus Junk 2: Electric Boogaloo

If you didn't read last Friday's post, go back and read it here. This will be a continuation of last week's post. There is a convention called ICRS (International Christian Retail Show) held every year. Personally I think if Jesus went to one of these shows he'd be flipping tables left and right. A lot of this junk is created just to make a buck or two off God. So anyway, here's more Jesus Junk:

If you like...



...then try...

For best results, use holy water

If you like...



...then try...

What happens when the batteries start to die and Jesus's voice gets really low? That would be a little scary. Plus what the heck does p&h stand for? Don't tell me it stands for prayer and handling.

If you like...








...then try...

I can't even begin to explain how wrong this is. By the way, did Answer Me Jesus get stuck in a load of white laundry with a red sock or something?

If you like...



...then try...

This just gave me a great idea! I'll make floaties that have Matthew 14:22-34 written on them! I'll be rich, ha ha ha!

If you like...



...then try...

Communion gets a little messy in there. Forget about passing the offering plate.

If you like...



...then try...

Baby Jesus just let me know my SpagettiOs are ready

After looking up all of this stuff I found a few more items that made me say "What the crap?!"

Is he playing keep away?

Ummmmmm....



There's something very Billy Madison-ish about this.







Ready for this last one?








Are you sure?









Okay...











What...in...the...world...is...that?

I hope you enjoyed today's post. I think this will be the last of the FFF:CCE posts, but Fridays will still be freakin' funny. See you next week!