Ongoing Evolution foibles
Last night I stayed up way too late to watch "inherit the wind", a movie version of the Scopes Monkey Trial. The movie is just as up-to-date today as it was then. Interesting how the arguments really don't change. After watching the movie, I'm ready to do a bit more research in the actual history of the trial. It was hard to tell what was Hollywood and what was fact. In the movie, "Matthew Harrison Brady" aka William Jennings Bryant, was caricatured as a loudmouth, tent-revivalist, politician. His theological acumen was pretty shallow. The people however hailed "him" as their champion rather than HIM as the champion. This pride led to the downfall of the case. Because Brady claimed to be an "expert" on the bible, he took the stand as a witness for the defense. "Drummond" ~ Darrow nailed Brady with basic logic, but part of the trap was Brady's bad theology. Darrow asked him what the bible thought of all the "begatting", brady said the bible called sex -original sin. This is nothing further from the truth. Brady also tried to rationalize the bible which is not the point.
Brady further lost the case because he had "Bad form" In a fight, it is considered bad form to mock your opponent. Brady, & the townspeople did a discredit to their case by mocking evolution rather than evaluating it on its (lack) of merits.
Interestingly enough, I find the same case could be argued today but in reverse. The school systems have so deluded themselves with evolution, that science classes are entrenched in it. The Scopes case was NOT about whether evolution was right or wrong but rather whether it could be taught. Why then is it unacceptable to teach creation or even mention it today? I believe b/c the scientists know, explicitly or implicitly, that the 2 theories are about faith. As such, only one can be true and therefore only one taught. The battle is not about science but rather faith.
IF the evidence is examined, I believe it is no more delusional to believe in Creation than evolution. Neither can be proved conclusively as fact (though both sides would have you believe otherwise). Each side can stand across the battlefield from each other with taunts - WHere are the fossils? How can there be evening & morning without a sun? There are of course other consequences, if you have such a flexible/horrid hermeneutic at the beginning of the bible, what will you do with the really hard stuff? However at the end of the day, I'd much rather be a creation of an Almighty God, than a monkey - how is it even a question?
Recent Reading
Books of late.
Peace like a River – Leif Enger http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0802139256
Recommended by a friend, good read, fairly quick – unpredictable turns for a family.
The book reminded me of
Brothers K – David James Duncan http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/055337849X
Not the Brothers Karamazov but definitely analogous points. Story of a Northwest family in the late 50’s….
Secrets of Barneveld Calvary http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0801057558
Meals to GO
How far does your food travel to get to your plate? In reading confessions of an organic homesteader http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1931498245 She lists an interesting measurement - What is the average distance of your food? Maybe you could call it miles per meal? I like it because it doesn't get all idealistic - BE ORGANIC, BUY Produce from Local farmers. A coke from a local bottling plant doesn't come that far. But the miles per meal does encourage you to know where your food comes from and think smartly. It encourages you to eat local which is also good for your soul & body. Tunes you in to local patterns of nature, keeps you in sync with what is happening in your environment. Good stuff
Meals to GO
How far does your food travel to get to your plate? In reading confessions of an organic homesteader http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1931498245 She lists an interesting measurement - What is the average distance of your food? Maybe you could call it miles per meal? I like it because it doesn't get all idealistic - BE ORGANIC, BUY Produce from Local farmers. A coke from a local bottling plant doesn't come that far. But the miles per meal does encourage you to know where your food comes from and think smartly. It encourages you to eat local which is also good for your soul & body. Tunes you in to local patterns of nature, keeps you in sync with what is happening in your environment. Good stuff
Agrarian Dreams
I’m 32, will I continue to live my dreams? I’m reposting this as I just screwed up and deleted it. Leading a family isn’t easy. I think I’d like to lead my family into building our own house. Seems like a daunting task as there’s a lot about construction I don’t know. But envisioning working together to lay a stone wall, a central fireplace of stone or Russian ceramic stove. The reality never seems to work that way. Where do you buy land that you can pay in full? Do you have to move out to no-where’s-ville? Or is it just delusion and the kids would hate it anyway.
But there does seem to validity to moving out of the urban setting for a simpler pace of life. Not more restful. Agrarian-ism is hard work but honest work. And agrarian work is in sync with natural patterns. But how do you do that? I like TV, I like ez food. It seems much easier to just work an extra week, then stop in at PCC rather than planning a brood of chickens. But do I want to remain captive to an employer? I want control back over my time, leaving on a trip with the family spontaneously – being home in the afternoon for….Tea…. Agrarian thinking reduces the overall family cash requirement. We could homeschool in the city – there are great things, museums, racial diversity, and architecture. But do I really want my kids to “grow up fast?”
How do you make that transition, it feels so huge. Well I read some Gene Logsdon recently and got some more hope. Living At Nature’s Pace http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/189013256X Gene argues (like Wendell Berry – “Jayber Crow” & Joel Salatin “You can Farm”) that the post WWII organizational machine totally messed up farming by making it bigger & bigger. This threw off the natural balances. Gene points out that pre WWII farms were family oriented, diverse, kept profits up by keeping costs down. The key to keeping costs down? Let animals do the work (no external resources required aka tractors & gas). Use resources that exist on the farm. What grows easily – GRASS.
If you can grow a lawn/plant a garden, you can be agrarian. Move 20-50 minutes away to 1-10 acres (whatever you can pay off as much as you can) get some chickens & turkeys but keep your day job. Begin building a few fences as you observe the plants & patterns on your land. Keep your day job. As your kids grow, let them take on projects – a small cow, a couple sheep, training a Shetland pony to pull a cart, plow. – Remember Almanzo Manning was breaking oxen when he was 9 – NINE years old. Keep your day job. BUT you could be getting closer to taking a job that provides less cash – BECAUSE you have less needs!!!
One hard consideration for me is community. Eric so & so described in “Better OFF” http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BOB31U that the problem with the back to the land movement of the 70’s was that it was distorted by American “independentism” or hippy communism. The independents went out to the woods like pioneers but got lonely. Hippies built communes but didn’t think like pioneers. Eric researched his MIT masters in sociology & Technology by living in a “minimite” community for a year. The past we are nostalgic for, the simpler life isn’t lived alone but the work is shared, shared with others. Principles shared, experience shared - these fuel the passions, not achievements or trophies. So I think we can do it but this needs to be a family commitment. We don’t need to rush, just plan step by step toward gaining control back over our time and reducing our cash requirements without losing quality of life.
Just finished a book
Just finished a book. Read it from beginning to end in one sitting. It was interesting but had the opportunity since I was flat on my back. Mostly cause I’m an idiot. Filling in my driveway, I was lifting sand over my head. All of a sudden, I felt a flash in my back in the half bent over position. Put the sand down and thought “this is how middle-age guys on TV look when they throw out there backs”
Was able to bite through it until… my 2 yr’old was falling off a chair face first. Not a question – had to catch her. Bang Back gone the rest of the way. So I begin diving into “Peace like a River”
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/087113795X Good book, very similar to the Brothers K. I like the books that have a respect for Providence. Things happen for a reason but often not what you expect.
A little bonus about living in the Northwest. After not having much reduction in pain, we called the dr. on call. Instead of listening for 2 seconds and prescribing drugs, the dr. listened. He, then asked a couple key questions about the symptoms followed up with “what homeopathics do you have around the house?” His suggestion – start with the homeopathics for reason x, y, & z. If you need stronger medicine don’t hesitate to call. What a nice twist. This approach fits so well with my philosophy in many areas. Simplest solution for the problem, start with the cheapest & work to more expensive.
