Saturday, November 27, 2010

When all the grow-ups had died . . .

. . . or were imprisoned, . . .

North Korean hostilities toward the South, the West and all things NOT fully "Korean" have never truly abated as anyone who has followed or cared about that small (tiny would be insulting) nation - "the keeper of the original legacy" - certainly should know by now.

. . . while the younger, stronger patients had been running the asylum . . .

In last week's artillery exercise, however, the world saw a decidedly self-directed destructiveness, though the South seemed unfazed, mostly.

. . . and rat had replaced all other meat as the gogi to gorge upon . . .


Hence, a less common, possibly more-close-to-the-truth conclusion might be made.

. . . combined with either gruel (of who knows what), a few grains of boiled rice and the occasional, treasured banchan gathered from makeshift, covert gardens;

Not only has North Korea revealed its "military first" politics, once more, but the truly evil, occasionally dormant root has become clearly visible.
The adults, two to three generations,(at least) have been beaten down, subsumed and virtually consumed by the spoiled child mentality of a thought system (Juche) not only completely at odds with most of the modern world, but with its own culture and indeed, itself.

. . . suddenly, one day, a few of the local children who had been keeping the artillery polished for the next visit of The Dear Leader, grew bored.

What self-centered, angry, outburst can the world expect next?
Are there any Parents, yet left in the house?

The End . . . and/or beginning.

Copyright © 2010 pajamadeen.com

For balance (or hope?), some interesting reading on the death of American grow-ups (North Koreans and other Axis of Evil minions not allowed) can be found in Diana West's (2007) book, conveniently and aptly titled, The Death of the Grown-Up: How America's Arrested Development Is Bringing Down Western Civilization.
I recommend it.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

A variable speed of light

What if the speed of light is not (or has not been) constant?

Apparently such an idea has been tossed about over the last decade or so.
The implications, particularly in the area of cosmology (and ultimately theology), of a variable speed of light seem to be fairly staggering.

A 2003 article in the Christian Science Monitor states:

"At the heart of Einstein's elegant equation, E=MC², is the constant speed of light. Indeed, the mind-warping special theory of relativity allows time and space to bend, but light, Einstein insisted, must remain traveling at 186,000 miles per second, throughout the universe, for all observers.

"Whoa!" cries João Magueijo, a young theoretical physicist. This iconoclastic professor at the Imperial College in London has the courage, or some may say the audacity, to challenge that key component of Einstein's deeply ingrained work.

In short, Magueijo claims that some of the most complex mysteries about the origin of the universe can be solved if we consider that light may have traveled much faster at the Big Bang than it does now. In other words, the speed of light is variable.


So, maybe . . . E≠MC²?

And God (in some primal form, at least) has slowed down (just a bit or for just a while)?

Or perhaps, the speed of light is constant, but only for God and His angels?

For as Einstein himself purportedly said:

"Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind."

Maguejo's postulation (formulated as he teamed with Andreas Albrecht in 1998) and other musings have been showing on the Science Channel since May of 2008.

A colleague of his has referred to VSL as "very silly."

Whatever the case, his book, Faster Than the Speed of Light: The Story of a Scientific Speculation may be worth a look.

Unfortunately, like many great ideas, time remains a major factor.
Maybe even, The Factor.

Wake me when we (as a yet, peopled planet) get to Alpha Centauri . . .

Alpha Centauri A and B resolved over the limb of Saturn, as seen by Cassini–Huygens

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

God and Confucianism

A much persecuted Islamic sect, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, has brought forth this interesting view of Confucianism.

Contrary to much popular belief and some concern, Classic Confucianism is apparently, indeed - of God - according to some research and the perspective of the late Mirza Tahir Ahmad.


Mirza Tahir Ahmad (December 18, 1928 – April 19, 2003)

His thoughts on Confucianism (and other religions) have been made into the book, Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge and Truth.

Granted, as the author originally wrote (circa 1987), that while today "few followers of Confucius have a clear belief in any Divine existence," nevertheless, "they believe in the world of spirits and souls, and some even practice ancestor worship."

Moreover, he wrote in this apparently well-referenced chapter:
"Examining the early texts upon which Confucianism is founded, there is no doubt that this religion [too] is squarely built on a sound belief in the existence of God. It owes much of its philosophy and wisdom to revelation, rather than to the contemplations of wise men.

Sadly, deviations from original purpose and intent seem not to be unique to Confucianism.


Confucius, by Tang Dynasty artist Wu Daozi (680–740)

If such were the case, the Laogai (also often referred to as gulags) of China, North Korea, Vietnam and Myanmar would simply stand alone.

Yet, there have been and remain so many others.

Why?