Is It Bad?

That I love that gas prices are in a free fall?

Because seriously, $1.93 for gas? I haven't seen that in forever. It's quite amazing. It might have actually been a bit higher when I started filling my own tank.

I love it!

So, we're less than 24 hours away from TV on the Radio! Actually, 20 hours to be more precise. I'm super excited. You have no freaking idea. I know what I'm going to be wearing, when I'm going to go to the venue to wait for doors to open, and of course where I'm staying for the night!

Also, my cousin is preggers. Haha. It's pretty awesome actually. I need to call her tomorrow and congratulate her. I'm really happy for her.

Life is pretty good at this point.

This May Come Back to Bite Me in the Bum

But, I've made an Obama Victory playlist. And while I was making it, I stumbled upon a Mixtape called Yes We Can, which is just a whole bunch of rappers rapping about Obama. So awesome right? Right!

It Is 1:20 in the morning

Do you know where you children are?

I love those commercials. Amazing. But better yet was the Clavin and Hobbes strip that parodied it.

But anyways, I'm about to go to sleep, but I decided to update this sucker.

I'm super excited for Thursday! TV on the Radio concert, remember? I'm super psyched for this thing. It's going to be amazing. Anyways, I'm also excited that my buddy (Hey, Rapture) gave me a place to crash before and after the concert. So this week is going to be good.

Except for Saturday, which I've decided will be the day I do my Defensive Driving class online.

In other news, my roomie sometimes get on my nerves. Especially since he has a poor grip on logic, yet believes his logic is perfect and inscrutable. Also, he's judgmental and somewhat of a homophobe. But whatever, he's kool most of the time. haha

Goodnight!

I just found this and thought it was funny

Conclusion

Charles Darwin was a tragically mistaken man who drifted from a childlike trust in One who helped him run to school on time into an abyss of hopelessness and agnosticism. While the spiritual journey of a Christian is a journey out of darkness into Christ's marvelous light, that of Charles Darwin was a slippery slide out of Gospel light (although not saving spiritual sight) into the sheer "blackness of darkness for ever."

Darwin's unbelief, like that of so many people today, had its roots in a mind which first rejected the revelation of God in the Bible and then was unwilling to accept the revelation of God which God Himself has given in nature. This religion of revelation, of the Bible, of the Lord Jesus Christ, will keep us tuned to truth, hope, and life in God, and away from evolutionism, humanism, and atheism, only as we allow it to exercise its power in our hearts. The tragedy of Charles Darwin is that he never did.

Note the use of words like "tragic" and "abyss of hopelessness..."
:)

I've Recently Realized

just how many of my posts are rants.

So, in the efforts of bringing diversity to this blog, I will....

I can't think of anything reasonably interesting to say that would not turn into a diatribe.

So in lieu of anything actually interesting, I'll just get back to work.

Actually I'll start working. First up, finish my Oldboy essay. It's coming along pretty well. I'm going to make it better for the final draft, including entering a perceived criticism and rebuttal section, and maybe more insight into the chauvinistic attitudes pervading existential art.

Then I get to read 80 pages of drivel for my History class. It's not that I don't care about the Trail of Tears, it's just that the book is boring. Plain and simple, right?

After that, a healthy amount of proof practice for Logic. Proofs are the hardest thing I've ever encountered (at least in that class). They're tough, and it takes both a good deal of memorization and creative thinking. In a very related story, I sat staring at a proof on my last quiz in that class, and came to an impasse. What I realized after he took the quizzes up was that I had done one of the rules wrong (I gave the problem a wedge signifying an 'or' statement, or a disjunction, instead of the needed dot that signifies an 'and' statement, or conjunction) and had I done it correctly, the answer would have been simple after that. I was one step away from rocking that problem to it's core. But I digress.

I have quite the busy night ahead of me, and so with that, I bid this blog adieu.

The sheer number of philosophies out there means that almost all of them are flawed.

Think about it. It is not possible for many philosophies to all be logically sound. If one is sound, the others cannot be sound. And if two philosophies are sound, they're redundant and only one of those philosophies is needed.

Now, that isn't to say that almost all philosophies are invalid. They may be valid (the conclusion must be true if all the premises are true) but they are still unsound (one or more of the premises are untrue.)

Question is...which philosophy is sound?

I posit that existentialism is the only sound philosophy.

Why? It'd take an entire book to tell you that, and really, I don't have the time right now.

But maybe when I write my thesis!

On Christianity

Hmm, I've been wondering a few things lately. Obviously, as referenced in the title, one of those things is Christianity. Mainly in the idea of gay activists who are also Christians. I, personally, believe the two are "morally" mutually exclusive. I'm not saying that you cannot be a Christian and a gay activist, but I am saying that you cannot profess that the Bible is infallible and still work towards the goal of homosexual tolerance and/or marriage.

Take this quote as the starting point:
"Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor practicing homosexuals nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." - 1 Corinthians 6:9-10

Obviously, from the mouth of Paul himself, there are people who cannot inherit the kingdom of God even if they believe in Jesus. This is contrary to the common idea in modern Christianity, but this is not my actual point. What I am trying to say is that a true Christian is supposed to be a disciple of Christ, correct? And a disciple is one who lives by Jesus' example and tries to bring the truth of Jesus Christ to others, right? Now, that would mean that a true Christian cannot in all good conscience condone the "practice" of homosexual acts. This would mean that a true Christian cannot truly work towards the tolerance of gays, without being in contradiction to the very text they find infallible.

Basically, that is what has been on my mind. This isn't the only thing, but it is one of them.

Also, I've heard someone say that it was difficult to reconcile the goal of tolerance of gays with the Bible, because although everyone sins, gays live their entire lives as sin. I think that you can make an analogy between that and working towards gay rights. Seeing as working for gay rights is not a single instant, but an entire mindstate, the Christian working towards said goal is living a life of sin as well.

Tuesday

I've found that although Tuesdays are my busiest days, I don't ever do anything productive. I'm in class from 9:30 to 12:30, then have an hour and a half break, class from 2-3, then a forum at 3:30 to 4:30, time off then Baylor Democrats from 7-8 and Bearobics Hip Hop at 8:15 to 9:15.

So, between 9:30 in the morning and 9:30 at night I have about 4 hours of "free time." Now, with this free time, I can easily get a good start on my homework for the night, instead of waiting until all my "commitments" have been attended. But what do I find myself doing? Nothing. Well, today I got something notarized, but that was just in the time between me finishing my test, and the time the actual class would have been over. And I bought a shirt. Online.

Why do I do things like this? Maybe because I just don't care? I care. But not enough to start early. I know I can get things done later, and so I enjoy my time now. But if I were to work now, I could enjoy myself later. Decisions, decisions.

In other news, I'm all set for TV on the Radio!! They're coming into Austin next Thursday and I will leave Baylor as soon as class gets out, drive down to Kaitlin's place, and crash there til the concert. When the concert is over, I will make my way back to her place, and I'll probably stay there until about 7. She has graciously allowed me to stay there and now I'm super excited about this concert!

Oh, and ASA is horribly unorganized. ASA being Asian Students Association. It took us two whole hours to complete a video that is going to be at most, 50 seconds. It was a lot of fun though.

Oh! I've gained a bit of new respect for Dante the Poet. He, like Plato before him, writes with an esoteric sense. This means he writes certain ideas for the masses, but for the intelligensia, he has a deeper hidden meaning. Apparently, this is for the philosopher's own protection and also to keep society from going completely ape-spastic. According to my Great Texts professor, the bigot, Dante's hidden idea might be that he's not a Christian and that Christian ideals are not the true way to life, but instead the life of reason is to be preferred. Makes me want to really read the Divine Comedy closely to see what else I have missed. Oh, and I also didn't miss that my GTX professor was big-upping himself for being able to read into Dante's hidden meaning. He considers himself a part of the few, obviously.

You Just Have To Get To Know Me

So, since I get bored, like any normal human being, I got on facebook and pretty much just looked at people's profiles. Most looking at their "swag" section, which is what movies they watch, what music they listen to, who shows they like, etc. And I've always found a person's "About Me" section to the most interesting. My own says, "I'm Stan," as I am a man of impeccable wit (and self-deprecating sarcasm). But it's interesting that a good number of people say something along the lines of, "I'm blahblah but if you get to know me I'm really fun (or outgoing, or anything else positive)." Now, I wonder if this is true. Or I wonder if people tell them all the time how stuck up and elitist they are, and to counter that idea, they tell strangers they're this way, but you "just have to get to know me."

I doubt that it's the case as stated above, but I do really wonder why people put that on their profiles. Do we fool ourselves into thinking we're a certain way, and then actually put it out to the world for all of man to know? In this age of internet socail netowrks, I believe the idea of putting your best foot forward has taken itself to the extreme. But who knows, maybe I'm looking into this too much. Maybe I'm actually the weird one for finding it amusing to look at people's facebook profiles (I am). Maybe I should get a better hobby (I should).

Political Saavy

There are some categories that you can fall into that make you cool:

Moderate (leaning a bit to the left or right)
Independent (Usually you're leaning to the left with this one)
Apathetic (Oh, you're a hipster now!)
Libertarian (Oh come on, we all know this won't happen)

Basically, people say that they are these things simply to either avoid a long, drawn-out conversation on politics, or simply to seem cool. It's like how people, when asked what music they listen to, say, "Everything really, except for country." They know what people want to hear. And people don't want to hear that you're actually a part of a political party. It's too divisive, too polarizing.

First moderates. Now, really I have nothing wrong with a moderate. There are some people who actually are moderate. I accept that. But when all your ideals fit with one side or the other, you're not a moderate. You're a liar. If you don't support the war, want universal health care, support gay marriage, and want to tax the rich, let me just be the first to tell you, you're a liberal. You don't have to be a democrat, that's ok, but just know that you're a liberal. There's no need for denial. On the other hand, if you support tax decreases across the board, a smaller government, you're against abortions and same-sex benefits and you want sex-ed to be abstinence-only, you might be a red...conservative. Excuse me.

Now, independents. Really? You can't just say you're a liberal? Really, we know you are. I would be willing to put money on the guess that at least 80% of "independents" vote democrat. Are you afraid that people won't like you because you vote democrat? Or do you think it'll allow you to make fun of the democratic party without making fun of yourself? Come on now.

Apathetic. Really, apathetic? You really don't have any care on any issues? The government is gonna screw us either way right? You're the reason that our government is able to screw us. So thank you. Really, the fact that you allow just whoever wants a public position have it is the reason you don't like the government. You think you have no power right? Oh course, it's because you don't exercise the right to vote that you hate the current situation of the government. So really, get out and vote. The government was made to serve the people. You are a person. It's there to serve you.

Now, libertarians. I'm pretty sure this is just the political equivalent of the fabled "hipster." Seriously, do you really believe that this will work? Heck, I'm not wasting my time on you. Here's a Slate article for you guys: http://www.slate.com/id/2202489/

Thanks for letting me rant. Remember, get out and vote.

Oh, and for next time, those of you who have those apathetic friends, you can actually get them to vote. Remember, your apathetic friends think they're the cream of the crop, they have all the answers. They think they're so cool. Just show them how stupid that idea is. I did it. Now my friend is voting. For Obama. Yay!

Next time, a rant on the electoral college.

Not really. haha

maybe....

Oldboy

Oldboy is an amazing movie. It's purely astounding, really. But at the moment, I hate it. I can't stand the thought of it, but yet I still love it.

What is the reason for this love/hate feeling I have for a movie?

A 2100 word essay on its existential themes. Although I believe it is the perfect existential movie, I just don't feel like writing that much! Though, to be honest, I'm 912 words into it. So I'm almost halfway done. I just have to keep pulling themes out of my behind.

Oh, and then I have to rewrite it because currently it sucks.

I've recently realized how many of my friends buy into the idea of quietism. They are quick to discourage any discussion on ideas as futile because you can't change another person's mind. Does that matter? Must we accept the world as is, ideas as set, unchanging, and stubborn? I would disagree. There must be the ability to change ideas since people switch allegiances every day. What would the point of presidential debates be if minds can't change? What would be the point of political, philosophical, or really any type of discourse if we're all set in our ways? Actually, what is the point of any conversation be if we're so stubborn. The purpose of conversation is to change the other person's perception of yourself, always trying to get them to understand you just a bit more (I don't count the unneeded social mouthings of "small talk" in this idea of conversation. Small talk serves no purpose and is better off unsaid.).

So, to the audience, to the world, to all. Quit staying in your state of quietism. The ability to change minds is there, you must simply grasp at it.

On Our Economy

My roommates and I came to the consensus yesterday that "We're screwed."

I'm avoiding watching Destinos

If you know what Destinos is, you know why. If you don't know what it is, imagine a Spanish soap opera. Now imagine that it was made for educational purposes.

Basically Destinos in a nutshell. I don't like it because mainly, it's boring. Also, half the episode is review and I'm usually watching these things in a long row, so the review becomes redundant for me. And then there's the issue of parts of some episodes having nothing to do with the storyline. At all! One of these such segments they flash back to what I think was Mexico where the story started. The whole point of this segment was to talk about time. TIME! I can almost accept it when characters are naming articles of clothing because it's just a little filler between segments. But this filler was had none of the characters who were a part of the ongoing storyline. They were kids whose names I can't remember. Why? Because they were introduced once, in the second episode. And they have no coherent place in the show.

I've "decided" (and of course by decided I mean I currently hold this idea as having some weight for the future) that if I stick with this whole Honors Program thing, my thesis will be my own original philosophical doctrine. Existentialism shall be its basis. Not simply a rehashing of Sartre and Camus' ideas but taking their initial theories and coming to my own conclusions from the abscence of God and man's freedom.

Also, just to keep it in mind, here is a running list of great minds(very loose) who were/are racists/sexists/anti-semites/homophobes/etc?

And for future reference, what word would encompass all those above?

James Watson
Martin Luther
Frank Sinatra
My Great Texts professor :( I had so much repsect for him too...

I'm glad that Elvis' influence and popularity decreases with every passing generation.

If tomorrow you found out your favorite author was a racist, especially against your own race, would it be acceptable to still enjoy his works? Could you justify still enjoying and/or identifying with his writings if he had that way of thinking?

Could you still enjoy the works of a painter if they turned out to be racist/homophobic/an anti-semitic/whatever you'd like.

Could you enjoy the characters of an actor under the same conditions?

If you could do it for one and not the others, what is the essential difference?

So I was hoping for some bit of a respite, but alas, I am not that fortunate. Actually, if I managed my time better, I would get it. But I'm not at that level yet, so busy busy busy I shall stay.

I must:
-finish my essays for existentialism (technically they're pretty finished, I just need to cite my quotes, and in one case add quotes).
-read for existentialism.
-read for Great Texts
-decide if I'm going to let my advisor pick my classes or if I'm going to have some say in it...
-learn to prioritize.


I wish I had time to read for fun. :(

Birthday's are pointless

I think Jehovah Witnesses are just cheap or broke. That's why they don't celebrate holidays.

Just kidding.

Anyways, a few things on my mind:

-Why do Christians support capitalism? It seems contrary to their savior's message.
-I got TV on the Radio's first album "Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes" on vinyl today and the back of the last record is just a funky design. I wonder what would happen if I tried to play it...
-Why isn't existentialism today's philosophy of choice? It should be.
-I hope I don't eat all my lemonheads in a day...
-Can Camus' philosophy be reconciled with Sartre's philosophy? I think so.
-Can I get this essay done if all I'm doing is screwing around?