Sowing Abraham's Seed -- Keith Plummer has a suberb post on the influence of Abraham Maslow. Most people only know Maslow's "Hierarchy of Needs" and have never been exposed to his larger body of work. While he is not the only one to blame for our "felt-needs" culture, I agree with Keith that it is shocking how "influential and pervasive this perspective on human nature and behavior is among Bible-believing Christians."
The Hound of Dublin -- I’ve always liked the band U2 (more in theory, perhaps, than in reality), especially Bono who when given the opportunity, can sound like an Irish Josh McDowell. But I appreciate him even more after hearing Oasis rocker Liam Gallagher whine about Bono’s "boring" attempts to convert him to Christianity. While I'm not usually a fan of such agressive evangelistic efforts, I'll make an exception when the target is an obnoxious Brit who acts like he's John Lennon and thinks he's "god."
Abortion in Bizarro World -- "It's a familiar sight," says Dawn Eden, "activists chanting slogans and bearing signs, attempting to speak to pregnant women as they enter a clinic." But a closer look reveals that the protest isn't that that the clinic provides abortions but rather because it doesn't offer that "choice."
Holy Hinn-ema -- Sure it's an old clip. But who ever gets tired of hearing Benny Hinn's wife preaching about lifeless, backslidden Christians needing a "Holy Ghost enema... right up your rear end"? Not me.
The Fourth of July and Christian Apologetics -- I haven’t been by Gnu’s blog, The Wildebeest's Wardrobe, in ages. But if his recent post on the Declaration of Independence as a model of a cumulative case argument is any indication, I’ve been missing out. (HT: Parableman)
Stamp of Stereotypes -- Bill Wallo has an enlightening post comparing the controversy over Memín Pinguín, a comic character from Mexico, and Little Black Sambo. Should offensive racial stereotypes be tolerated if they are not intentionally racist?
Exaggerating the features of a particular ethnicity is the hallmark of a racial stereotype: it pulls from the common perception that these are the characteristics, albeit clearly exaggerated or exploded into caricature, of the group in question. It would be hard to say that Pinguin is anything but a racial stereotype. The question, really, is whether or not he is a racist stereotype as well. Stereotypes aren’t themselves automatically evil, and there may be a kernel of truth within them (some Arabs are terrorists, and many white guys can’t dance, and some albinos are evil dudes). Indeed, having identified a stereotype for what it is, we can often play with it or off of it, humorously recognizing the cliche for what it is. Stereotypes are often fodder for comedians, many of whom take great delight in skewering our perceptions - both of others and of ourselves. But this is also true: once you recognize a stereotype as such, you are hard pressed to ignore that fact.
Excellent point. Whether Pinguín is an intentionally racist caricature or not, the Mexican government cannot pretend that the images aren't demeaning and offensive.
(Oh, and contrary to what Bill says, albinos are always evil dudes.)
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Maslow:
As an experimental psychologist, it's always amazed me how much traction Maslow gets. He was really more of a philosopher than a professional psychologist; after all, the guy had no data, really. And his "theory" is about as much a theory as Freud's "theory".
Ponder this: no one has ever established that the hypothetical construct self-esteem has any reality. No test of self-esteem has ever produced anything, as far as I know from the literature, that goes beyond weak correlations with meaningful and observable behaviors. If that's not the case, please update me with references.
As one of the first psychophysicists approximately said, if you can't measure it, it's not science. Or as Paul Fitts (another experimental psychologist) appproximately said, if the x-axis has no effect on the y-axis, why bother?
posted on 07.13.2005 8:59 AM2
Bono
I'm from Ireland and I remember a radio interview conducted with Bono and another member of U2 just before the millennium. The question asked concerned what would they do if the millenium eve was the last night in history and they knew it.
I think it was the Edge who said he'd have an absolutely massive party and invite all of his friends and go out in the biggest bang possible.
But I remember what Bono said. I remember it because of the absolute sincerity in his voice when he spoke: "I'd spend the whole night getting right with God, repenting and praying for my family and friends."
Bono might want to make the world better but at least he is doing it for the right reasons
posted on 07.13.2005 1:16 PM3
Mexican Stamps
Okay, they sure do look a little Al Jolson to me. But the artist's intent would have to be weighed in. I would want to wait until I heard what he had to say about his inpriration for this character.
Whether Pinguín is an intentionally racist caricature or not, the Mexican government cannot pretent [sic] that the images aren't demeaning and offensive.Demeaning to what demographic of Mexican society? Is there any identifiable Mexican group of which this character could possibly be a caricature? Some immigration of blacks from the Caribbean, perhaps? If not, the argument against it becomes weaker, IMHO. And "offensive" is a very subjective term. Is it legitimate to be offended on someone else's behalf? What if that person is not offended himself? I'll admit there are some things which are patently offensive, but there is a huge gray area here.
Or is it legitimate for a segment of the US, say, to be offended at what has no innate offense in the social currency of Mexico? That may be a bit of a stretch, esp. if the point above yields no native or immigrant Mexican group serving as a referent for the character, so it winds up being a mere character, but not a caricature. (Now, if you discover that the artist just doesn't like blacks, regardless of his own country's ethnic profile, you do have a problem.) Just how mindful are we to be? Should artic scientists not wear parkas with fur-edged hoods, for fear of being misunderstood as demeaning Eskimos?
Looking at the third stamp, I wonder if the Mexican Newsboys union is offended because they think it puts them in a negative light?
Maslow and Being Self-Absorbed (er, Self-Actualized)
I work in education, and I see that the whole concept of self-esteem, when it is taken to be a psychological reality, only works to the destruction of whomever it is foisted upon. I refuse to use the term, preferring self concept, about which one can at least make objective statements, instead of implicitly valuing the need to pump up egos. In my world, I see a strong corelation between a positive self-concept and achievement, but the mantra of the Self Esteem Cult has the cart before the horse. They say:
High self-esteem yields achievement.But what is actually true is the obverse:
Achievement yields a healthier, more positive self-concept.I encounter many students with huge egos and shameful grades. And since they're taught never to feel shame or guilt about anything (causes low self-esteem, don't you know?), there is little incentive to change. posted on 07.13.2005 5:31 PM
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I agree that those stamps are just plain wrong. Bizarrely wrong. More wrong than Speedy Gonzalez.
posted on 07.14.2005 12:51 PM5
People at,
I'm passing the word.
Everybody should read the information at website www.revelatorium.com. The site is jammed packed with something for everyone no matter what their faith or level of spiritual enlightenment.
Bless,
Cliff.
posted on 07.22.2005 1:03 PM