The Long Claw of the Law

Major disclaimer: I know next to nothing about politics. And I don't generally like to talk about politics. But this is a politically-oriented post. So be nice to me, even if I don't share your views. Because you want me to be nice to you despite your views, right?

I read an editorial today in my school paper. The writer said that he thinks the Christian Conservatives have too much of an influence on the Conservatives and are evil for "forcing" their beliefs on the nation.

Now, here's something that might shock a few of ya. I do kinda agree with him. I think there is some degree to which the Chruch should avoid trying to permeate itself through the government. It could be counter-productive to our mission of bringing others to Christ. In fact, that's the main reason why Thomas Jefferson wanted a "separation of church and state": to protect the church.

Still, to think how far that term, "separation of church and state", has come. Now, we use it to attack the church, not protect it. Also, "separation" has become much more, well, separate. A lot of America just doesn't want Christianity to have anything to do with the government.

However, the truth is, it's separation of church and state, not separation of church from state. Because you can't do that. Christianity just had way too many undercurrents in the government from the start, and it's going to take a lot more than the legalization of abortion and gay marriage to change that.

I'll come back to this point later.

It seems like the editorial writer wants to make sure that no religion's beliefs--in other words, no one's beliefs at all--to be forced upon others through the government. Which seems fine and all for most people, except... why does he want to force upon others through the government his beliefs about whether others should force their beliefs upon others through the government? (Paradoxial? Yeah, I know. )

Government and law is all about morality. It's about having a set of rules, based on beliefs about how humans should behave, to run a country in the best possible way. The only way to have a no-morality, no-enforcing-beliefs government is, well, anarchy. And though there are people out there who think that anarchy is the best, I'm sure that most people who don't want the enforcing of beliefs don't want anarchy either.

True, most laws are those that most people agree upon, like no murder. Still, there are those who believe that murder isn't wrong. And remember, morality isn't decided on majority rule. The government doesn't take polls to see what the majority of America believes on a certain issue and then make laws accordingly; otherwise, I have a feeling our country would be a lot different than it is now.

Laws are based on others' morals and beliefs. That's life. If you don't like it, I hope you don't believe that suicide is wrong.

Really, we Americans should be glad that they have the privelige to vote that we have. We get to have some say as to which people get to enforce their beliefs. Of course, that means that we play a part in enforcing our beliefs on others, but hey, the other option is not to vote, and y'all know what happens then. Seriously, that's why I say that church and state can't be separated from each other: the majority of Americans are Christian or share many Christian beliefs, and as long as they're voting, Christianity's beliefs are being channeled into the government and its laws.

Heh. Come to think of it, most of the people that are going to read this are also Christians. I'm really ranting to no one inparticular. Oh well. Rant over.

Survey...

Yeah, this didn't come out too well... just ignore the input boxes.

TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF - The Survey
Name:	Frank
Birthday:	March 29 1988
Birthplace:	Shanghai, China
Current Location:	The State of Mass Confusion/Case Western Reserve University
Eye Color:	Brown
Hair Color:	Black
Height:	5'3"
Right Handed or Left Handed:	Right, working towards ambidexterity
Your Heritage:	Of course, my parents moved from America to China! Yeah... um no. Chinese.
The Shoes You Wore Today:	Sneakers. Without shoelaces. I hate shoelaces.
Your Weakness:	I'm Lightning/Water, so I'm quite weak to Plant.
Your Fears:	Bees, cheese, the deep-freeze
Your Perfect Pizza:	One with no cheese.
Goal You Would Like To Achieve This Year:	Straight A's!
Your Most Overused Phrase On an instant messenger:	I see.
Thoughts First Waking Up:	Sound is alarm. Begin conscious thought processes. Open eyes.
Your Best Physical Feature:	A birthmark the shape of Alaska.
Your Bedtime:	Really, really late.
Your Most Missed Memory:	Living in China
Pepsi or Coke:	RC Cola of course! ...No preference.
MacDonalds or Burger King:	Chicken Selects or Chicken Fries? Eh, no preference again.
Single or Group Dates:	I'd rather eat a bunch of dates than just one.
Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea:	Does it come in raspberry?
Chocolate or Vanilla:	Chocolate to eat, Vanilla for ice cream.
Cappuccino or Coffee:	Decaf?
Do you Smoke:	Ham.
Do you Swear:	Do words like "darn" count?
Do you Sing:	Yes. Badly? Yes.
Do you Shower Daily:	No... (I really don't like my college's bathroom's showers...)
Have you Been in Love:	Yes. With humans? Yes. With other things? Yes. With God? Yes.
Do you want to go to College:	Hold on. I'm in college... do I want to go to college? Ack! That's too hard of a question!
Do you want to get Married:	Sure.
Do you belive in yourself:	Well, if I don't believe in myself, then that means I don't believe that I exist, which would be an existential dilemma. So yes, I belive in myself.
Do you get Motion Sickness:	Unfortunately, yes. (I want to read in the car!)
Do you think you are Attractive:	Nope, my N-S domains are all over the place.
Are you a Health Freak:	I want to become a doctor... so yeah.
Do you get along with your Parents:	There's a long story behind this, but... no.
Do you like Thunderstorms:	When I'm inside, yes. When I'm outside... RUN!!!
Do you play an Instrument:	Piano and Alto Sax, baby.
In the past month have you Drank Alcohol:	Nope. I'm a health freak, after all.
In the past month have you Smoked:	Nope. Not even ham.
In the past month have you been on Drugs:	Yes... called Lord of the Rings, Narnia, NarniaWeb, Tales of Symphonia, music, White Rabbit, Swedish Fish, and being at college.
In the past month have you gone on a Date:	It's hard to balance on those small fruits!
In the past month have you gone to a Mall:	I believe so. I go there more than is healthy for a guy. But what can I say? They're so... mazelike.
In the past month have you eaten a box of Oreos:	Not yet... but once I'm finished with my Swedish Fish, that package of Double Stuf Oreos goes next.
In the past month have you eaten Sushi:	Yum... sushi. And yes.
In the past month have you been on Stage:	Nope, sadly... when does Drama Club start?!
In the past month have you been Dumped:	By girls? No. By garbage trucks? ...I wish.
In the past month have you gone Skinny Dipping:	Nope. And why do I see some variation of this question on EVERY survey? Geez, you're all like dirty old men or something...
In the past month have you Stolen Anything:	Well, in Tales of Symphonia, I used Colette to steal stuff, namely Pellets. "I'm no thief! The enemies just give me items!"
Ever been Drunk:	Nope.
Ever been called a Tease:	???
Ever been Beaten up:	Oh yes... by the Ktugach, Kilia, Magnius, Kvar, Kratos, Yggdrasill, Pronyma, Volt, Yuan and Botta, Celsius, assorted Coliseum people, Yggdrasill again, Kuchinawa, and Mithos. And I haven't even tried Abyssion...
Ever Shoplifted:	I definitely do not have the human strength to lift a shop.
How do you want to Die:	I'd like that to be a surprise.
What do you want to be when you Grow Up:	A doctor... who also writes stuff.
What country would you most like to Visit:	China
In a Boy/Girl..
Favourite Eye Color:	Purple
Favourite Hair Color:	Light green
Short or Long Hair:	Randomly changing
Height:	Both taller and shorter than me
Weight:	She shouldn't care
Best Clothing Style:	Completely modest (I belive now you know why I will never find the perfect girl)
Number of Drugs I have taken:	See related question
Number of CDs I own:	Too many to bother counting
Number of Piercings:	Let's see... I believe I've had about 14 shots in my life.
Number of Tattoos:	Zero. Heh.
Number of things in my Past I Regret:	Too many for me to be worried about, so I didn't count.
CREATE YOUR OWN! - or - GET PAID TO TAKE SURVEYS!

Viruses and Hurricanes

Last night, I did what was probably the stupidest thing anyone can do save jumping into a pool of lava. I decided to click on a link someone had AIM'd me, except she didn't explain what the link was.

You guessed it. It was a computer virus.

In the mayhem that followed, my computer's memory got eaten up and my audio device was disabled. I was able to partially eliminate the virus, but the damage is still there (although it looks like most of my computer's memory is back).

This got me thinking... that this virus attack was a lot like Hurricane Katrina.

A hurricane can quickly sweep in and do tons of damage, leaving shortly thereafter for those affected to deal with the results. However, the cities affected can recover. They can get rid of the virus that is the destruction of their town. (Obviously, they can't get rid of the hurricane.) They can overcome the troubles and return to something resembling normal life.

Yet the virus isn't completely gone. There will always be destruction that can't be fixed, that doesn't want to be fixed. The memories will still remain. And the people that died aren't going to come back.

This is life: to optimistically look towards the future, but also to remember the troubles of the past. On one hand, we can't just wallow in our past, to just use it as an excuse for inaction. (Tales of Symphonia fans: think Presea and Regal.) On the other hand, we can't just run away from the past, trying to just fix everything up as a cover-up. (Think Zelos, Sheena, and Kratos.) Finding the right balance between both can be difficult, but if you can do that, with God's help, you can overcome any obstacle in life.

And please... keep praying for Katrina victims. (Prayers for my computer would also be appreciated.)

Fanfics!

I have an account on www.fanfiction.net now!
http://www.fanfiction.net/u/891766/

There, I have lots of ideas... few of which will actually be implemented, I shouldn't wonder...

Oh well. At any rate, keep your eyes peeled for some of my fanfics. (Narnia fanfics will probably also appear in the Guild.)