Blogging is actually kind of fun, audience or not. It’s a good way to acknowledge our thoughts rather than fighting them.

The assignment is incomplete, but at least I got something out there. Oh well, it’s my nature to wait until the last moment, and it looks like I shot myself in the foot. Time’s up!

Thanks for introducing me to blogging Dr. Strangelove! I know I’ll get a low grade but I hope you can still enjoy the posts I did make. Maybe I’ll actually keep doing it, I don’t care if I’m shouting in the desert. I know He’s listening.

In his book Empire of Mind, Michael Strangelove described the Internet as a place where one can express themselves without constraint. That is, for the most part, true. Not only can anyone pour all their thoughts out of their mind, but everyone basically gets an equal voice. Is this a good thing? Yes and no.

We’ve seen some good and some bad come out of that. The anonymous nature of the internet has encouraged despicable behaviour. As we speak, the net is crawling with immoral people using the Internet to further their own selfish goals.

On the flip side, the Internet can be a forum for worthy content, whether it’s music, ideas, films, games, etc.

What is the best case scenario for the Internet in the future? Is it best to leave it as is, which is essentially a free-for-all with some controlled environments? Or is it best to have to whole thing controlled by one or many organizations?

I would tend to believe that having it controlled by responsible people would be best. The only issue is knowing where to draw the line, since morality is apparently relative these days…

Source:

Empire of Mind by Michael Strangelove

A little common sense would tell you no, it’s a lie. Yes, religion was the justification used for a lot of wars, the most obvious example being the crusades. Could we then say that religion itself, or more foolishly God, is responsible for wars?

The truth of the matter is, men are responsible for wars. They might be misinterpreting or even exploiting religion to further their cause. However, anyone who truly follows any decent religion wouldn’t be starting wars, because the basis of any good religion is to love your neighbor as yourself. I won’t bother quoting scriptures to prove my point, it’s common knowledge.

Communication isn’t always done using words. Indeed, Michael Strangelove always shows up to class wearing a communist or anarchist shirt. I’ll admit that at first I found it childish for a man his age to actually believe in these ideals, but as it turns out he was wearing the shirts as a gimmick.

Granted, communism and even anarchy would be wonderful in an ideal world where there is nothing but pure love between men. However, not everyone is without sin. Actually, we are all sinners. Capitalism works off our greed, and will continue to be the best economic system until men realise who they are.

Did we forget the two greatest commandments according to Jesus Christ? They can be found in the book of Matthew.

You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.

and likewise,

You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2022:34-40;&version=50;

Source:

The Bible

This is truly one of the best uses for YouTube. Aspiring musicians of all types get to upload their pieces for the world to listen to. In this case, the person behind this music regularly uploads compositions created using FLStudio, a program to create music digitally. This musician from the Netherlands obviously has talent.

Some YouTube musicians have already made it after using the Internet as their launching pad. An example of that is esmeedenters (also from the Netherlands), a female singer who caught the eye of the big boys and is now signed to a major label.

http://www.youtube.com/user/esmeedenters

Another example is SouljaBoy and his self-made debut single “Crank that” which topped the Billboards. He actually used a demo version of FLStudio to create ‘”Crank That”.

http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/retrieve_chart_history.do?model.vnuArtistId=933832&model.vnuAlbumId=1081652

The Internet allows people without any support or exposure to put their creations out there. It isn`t necessarily about who is more popular, but who has something interesting to share.

Why is it that more often than not, the most ignorant and bland among us are the loudest? Not only are they loud, but they are arrogant in their ignorance. Enter the “amazing” atheist of YouTube. This guy somehow gets thousands of views for each of his video logs. Judging by his recent log, “God’s Comfort”, the man has no idea what he is talking about.

He is an atheist alright, he rejects the notion of God with quite a bit of emotion. My problem with this guy is the notion of God he is rejecting. He sees God in a very primitive fashion, in this case as a radiant gentleman living on a cloud.

I would suggest that the “amazing” atheist start researching some basic theology. Somehow, I don’t see that happening with all the dough the man is making off his ignorant logs. Ignorance is indeed bliss, isn’t it?

Unfortunately, the “amazing” atheist represents a growing trend in the richer countries, which is to ignore religion and God. After all, who needs God when we have nice homes, fast cars and enough food to get fat? Doesn’t anyone find it interesting that religion is still very much alive in poorer countries?

http://www.adherents.com/largecom/com_atheist.html

The debate surrounding God’s existence and religion is much more complex than the “amazing” atheist would have you believe.

In his book Empire of Mind, Michael Strangelove points out that rarely will you find an individual who is truly content. Indeed, our purpose is seemingly to acquire more and more products to fill that void most of us feel at times. Whether consciously or not, we move from one pleasure to the next with a burning desire to escape what we perceive as reality.

It’s a sad merry-go-round without an end. To escape, some turn to religion, philosophy and/or meditation to essentially see reality in a different light and appreciate life for what it is.

Buddhists call it enlightment, while Christians call it Heaven (finding God and reuniting with Him).
We’ve all felt bliss or that glow at one time or another, where nothing could break us away from that inner joy. It is that state of mind that we unconsiously seek when we greedily go from one pleasure to the next.

While that inner joy is difficult to find at times, the secret to finding it isn’t so secret at all. One must surrender to the moment (or God for the religious), which is all that there really is. In other words, let go, accept and allow the moment to be what it is.

As Jesus Christ said according to the book of John:

“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” – New King James version
Sources:

The Empire of Mind by Michael Strangelove

The Bible

It’s a discussion about the on-going conflict in Palestine.

In Palestine, the natives (Palestinians) are getting evicted out of their homes and are isolated into small pieces of land by the Israel forces. They cannot flourish or expand and are under the control of unfriendly soldiers. They live in tents without basic necessities such as running water, electricity, education, etc.

Meanwhile, the most fertile pieces of land are given to the Jewish communities. They get subsidized homes, running water, electricity, education, trash pick-up, etc. Basically, they get everything an average middle-class American gets today. Why is this injustice happening? The root cause is fundamental religious beliefs. If you read the Bible, the land known as Palestine is a God-given gift to the Jews. Of course, there is more to it then that. There are many factors fuelling the violence and injustice. Many players are involved, including the good old United States of America.

Sources used:

-Occupation 101: Voice of the Silenced Majority – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupation_101
-Pity the Nation: The Abduction of Lebanon by Robert Fisk State
-Power and Politics in the Making of the Modern Middle East by Roger Owen
-Islam & Politics in the Contemporary World by Beverley Milton-Edwards
-One Country by Ali Abunimah

This video was made with Rami Haidar and Emeka Olisemeka.

Enjoy the video!

I am a student at the University of Ottawa, and I’m currently in my second semester. I created this blog for one of my classes (New Media).