The concept of karma is nice – that if I do good, I will receive good and if I do evil then I will pay for it. Justice. Who doesn’t like that idea?

But karma is just a fanciful idea; life really doesn’t work that way. And I believe we should ALL be thankful that it really IS just a fanciful idea and not a reality?

To believe in karma is to believe that the victims of 911 deserved what they got – that they all did something to make those men fly planes into a building. Or that Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold only shot students that in some way deserved it. That any victim gets what they had coming to them because of their past actions.

The reality is that bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people. There is NO correlation. Think Princes Diana got what she deserved? Or Steve Irwin? Mahatma Gandhi – Martin Luther King Jr. – Abraham Lincoln – Cassie Bernall and countless others? I don’t.

So you’re saying there is no correlation — that I can be evil and still have a good life? Yes, it’s possible, but not probable. I believe that we are not punished for our sins, but by our sins. That if you do wrong and still have a soul that it will eat away at you. But, technically speaking, you can do wrong and still not receive what you deserve. I believe this is called Grace.

Grace is an amazing concept — some might even say divine. It is the gift to receive that which we DO NOT deserve. I must admit, that doesn’t sound like anything a human could come up with…

But doesn’t Grace, unlike karma, let people off the hook? Yes it does. And how beautiful is that – there’s an element of Grace that karma lacks; that of love. The pop singer Bono tells it like this, “Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I’ve done a lot of stupid stuff.”

But then why should we do good if there isn’t any incentive? By incentive you mean like going to heaven or to stop the cyclical reincarnation cycle? I don’t believe that doing good works adds points to an invisible scoreboard where if we obtain enough points it will at some point swing the pendulum in our favor and we will then get into heaven or achieve nirvana. No, I don’t think there’s a scoreboard; and thank goodness for that because if there was, I’m afraid we would ALL fail. But, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t still do good…

I think that ‘most people’ – religious or not – would agree that humans are amazing creatures with exceptionally developed minds giving us an impressive range of intelligence. Because of this we have the ability to distinguish right from wrong. So because we have this ability we should use it.

So you’re saying that I should do what’s right just because I know what’s right? Yes, I am.

Now I would like to address a few more issues that I had after reading a recent blog post by Jonathan Fields. But first let me say that I am not trying to bash Jonathan here – I simply take issue with some of what he said in his post and feel compelled to address some of his comments.

Jonathan tells us that karma is, “Simply put — the energy you put out into the world eventually reflected back onto you.” So really it’s about saving your own ass, is it? It’s not about treating people kindly because it’s the right thing to do? But, because you don’t want bad things to happen to you – or because it really would be nice to stop that never ending reincarnation ferris-wheel and get off, wouldn’t it?

Jonathan also says that one of the benefits of receiving good karma is that it “positions you as a leader, a philanthropist, a visionary, a mentor and massive-success story” Yeah, that’s exactly why you should treat people kindly — so YOU can become a hero…

Jonathan would like us to believe that Buddhist teacher Michael Roach’s philosophy’s about karma are sound because, after all, his New York diamond business makes an impressive 9-figure income. To that I say the thickness of a man’s wallet is no indication of how sound his theology is.

Jonathan then ends his blog post with giving us three case studies. Each of which ends happily ever after with the person becoming a financial success. There’s nothing like treating people kindly and just waiting for financial success to come… But how do you explain all those poor devote Hindus and Buddhists? Are they not being “good enough”?

Look I’m sure that Jonathan Fields is a very nice guy and is compassionate towards others. That’s a wonderful thing and I want to encourage everyone to be compassionate towards others. Ultimately we have to look at the underlying motives behind the idea of karma. Are they only self-serving?

Let me conclude – I believe we should treat people with kindness because it’s the right thing to do. Period. Rich or poor – Hindu, Buddhist, Christian or otherwise – you know how to treat people, so do it.

The guy may be a bit of a freak, but hey, I listen to a lot of music done by freaks, so he’s no different there. The reality is the guy was damn talented. He’s got an excellent voice, maybe one of the best voices in the biz and he was a pretty good writer too. Unlike many pop stars George Michael did actually write his music.

I also like the fact that for a pop star he includes a lot of brass and funk in his music, similar to Prince, another freak that I dig.

I would highly recommend you pick up his greatest hits album, “Ladies & Gentlemen”. It’s good and fun to play at parties.

[ play Too Funky ]

Those thin mints are like crack! Last year I ate an entire box in one day… I can’t help it – they are too good!

This year I am already through my first box of thin mints and started on my second. God help me…

Next year I am putting a sign on my door, “NO GIRL SCOUTS ALOUD!”

Not to mention they are like Nike sweatshops. My buddy said his daughter sold 200 boxes and all she gets in return is a badge and a key chain! Are you kidding me!

So what have you guys ordered from those crack pushers in pigtails?

If any applications automatically popped-up on my screen when I turned on my computer I would be SO PISSED!! If you are an application, you better not come up until I tell you to come up or you can say hello to my little friend!

Allen Iverson is one of the greatest basketball players of all time and next to MJ might be the most exciting player to watch play the game. In addition, I believe that he may be one of the greatest athletes of all time; the guy has super fast twitch muscle fibers
and I really enjoy watching him ball.

Having said that, I think this was a very bad trade. Who’s going to play the point for the Nuggets now? Boykins? Earl Boykins is not a point guard. Anyone who looks to shoot first and pass second can’t be your point guard. So that means AI will have to be your point guard. It’s not that AI can’t be the one guard, but I think he’s better in the two spot. But unless you want to stunt J.R. Smith’s growth, you can’t play him at the two.

You also gave up TWO FIRST ROUND picks in the 2007 draft. One of the deepest drafts in years. Good luck getting Greg Oden now.

Lastly, you now have three major bank players: K-Mart is so expensive Donald Trump wouldn’t touch him. Next you have Carmelo Anthony; well at least Melo is worth the money; when he’s not serving a suspension. And now you have AI, who is going to make $17 million this year, $19 million next year and $20 million in 2008. This leaves the Nugs little room to acquire anyone else in the future.

If you wanted to fill seats then this was a good move, if you want to win a championship then this was a bad move. Oh well, I guess I will just sit back and watch AI do his thing like everyone else.

1. The perfect day (according to me) would start at around 5:30am with a nice mocha latte. I would get in a round of 18 on the golf course, either Fossil Trace or Arrowhead would be real good.
Later that night the wife and I could meet some friends for some good mexican food and cervezas. And Finally, end the night at a jazz club listening to some cats play. Ah, that would be heaven to me.

2. The best book I ever read, ‘Ishmael‘ by Daniel Quinn. Favorite movie, ‘It’s a Wonderful Life‘. To me this movie just symbolizes life. You never know what impact your life has and who it effects until God unfolds it all for you in the end. Favorite album, Bob Marley ‘Exodus‘; this is a masterpiece of an album.

3. I am currently working on revamping my website ‘Search-This‘. I am moving it over to a WordPress CMS instead of the one I rolled several years back. So look for it in Q1 2007.

4. I have been married eight years and now have a lovely 6 month old daughter Sofia. She is the greatest thing to ever happen to me in my life. Yes, even better than my iPod.

5. I make my living at a small retail software company where me and two other guys are building a kiosk application. Hopfully, our application will get installed in 2007!

I guess that makes 5 things, so I’m done, if you want more it will cost you

I now will tag: Ben, Hubs, and Steve.

While Sir Elton John’s statements may surprise many, they don’t surprise me. I have heard nonbelievers point out all the horrible atrocities done in the name of religion many times before. It’s an easy target. History is littered with men cloaking themselves in religion and using it as a conduit to achieve their own objectives. You see it everyday on the news.

What the news rarely shows and what most people never see is all the good the church does. I am willing to bet that if the media actaully did take the time to look, they would see that no other organization gives more and to more people than the American church. No other organizaion, not the government, not the Red Cross, not Bono, not comic relief, nobody, has given more to aid the victims of hurricane Katrina than the American church.

When 9/11 hit my church had a blood drive the next week to get blood to the people who needed it. I’m sure that churches across America did the same. But, there was no mention of it. Again, I’m sure that the contribution the American church made to the victims of 9/11 would dwarf all those made by all other organizations combined.

Churches around America right now are raising money and putting together Food Drives to ensure that less fortunate people have food for Thanksgiving and Christmas and clothes and blankets for the winter ahead. And all those Salvation Army stands you walk by on the way to the mall; well the Salvation Army is an evangelical Christian organizaion founded in 1865.

Most of the ‘Rescue Missions’ around the cities of America, like The Denver Rescue Mission are Christian organizations designed to provide food, shelter, counseling and hope to those that are less fortunate. In fact, almost all of the shelters that take in the homeless, that provide meals to the hungery, that provide counseling for the addicted and hope for the hopeless are all backed by the American church.

So while many people are quick to point out where the church has failed no one and I mean no one has ever pointed to the church as the place that does good. You may not believe in God, but trust me, you don’t want to see a world without those that do.

2 to 3 liters a day!! My God, I would be living in the bathroom.

[ more here ]