Interesting Links and Stories

Granted, these are not the most recent, for most of them have been out for a couple of days now or more.

1) Religion And Sports Eloped
All of my readers know that I like to talk about my faith from time to time on this blog. And people who know me know of my own personal love for sports and competition. Basically, I'm a dude that is buds with Jesus. But the closest I have come to letting the two meet is a short 10 second prayer before I dig into my 5 dollar hot dog bought from RayRay if I'm at Turner Field or Juan if I'm at Shea Stadium. If anything, I try to separate them as much as possible, feeling like I'm cheating one with the other. You don't understand what I mean? Ask any self-respecting church-going male what goes through his mind on Sunday mornings during the fall. With only one game per-week of the most exciting 3 hours that determine your mood for the next 7 days, can I just hold church on my own during halftime next to the Budweiser and Cheetos? Yet, in a mark of either utter insanity or incredible genius, sports franchises has begun adopting "FAITH DAYS" as promotional days for baseball games. It hasn't reached the major league stadium yet, though it will, as the Braves have planned out three already this season, with one coming in July. My two sides are fighting back and forth as we speak. I think it is great for Smoltz and Christians in the Georgia area...using this as one of the greatest evangelistic platforms erea. But for some reason, the only thing I feel more strong about than the separation between church and state is the separation between church and sport. Blame it on Fireman Ed and his J-E-T-S chants.

2) It's all about the he said, she said
Amidst the president's low approval ratings and the disappointing Iraqi war that has made Republicans look like Chicago Bull fans (where the hell are they now?), the newest fear has been the war hawking administration's signs of entering Iran. They have more to lose now with a depleted and demoralized military and a widening credibility gap between them and US citizens. Yet, after this interview with Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, he got me riled enough that I wanted to punch him. Maybe not send the children of strangers to die for him, but I'll at least punch him.

3) Gay Superheroes
New York is close to being the second state after Massachusetts to legalize same-sex marriages. President Bush has begun to push the agenda for an amendment banning same-sex marriages. My conservative and Christian friends cannot imagine how you could break such a religious and God-created insitution in a way that goes against his holiness. My liberal friends cannot believe that there are people who not only think this but think this and are in power, being the 21st century and all. I, myself, am stuck in the middle. But let's raise up the controversy a little bit. After reading this article with the newest old superhero returning as a homosexual, this will be the gayest movie to hit the screen since...well X-men 3 or the lesbian hit, Daredevil, between leading ladies Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner.

4) Movies and Babies
This story regarding a woman and her soon to be demonic child is initially quite laughable. Who actually thinks that the date of your son's birthday will affect the way they will turn out to be? The last time I heard this nonsense, Cleo was entertaining me in junior high school with her informercials after BET: Uncut. But then, I thought about how I would feel if my son was born on 06/06/06, and I stopped laughing. In fact, I stopped smiling. Who would've known that a Julia Stiles movie in which she doesn't dance on top of tables will actually have such a profound effect on my life?

5) Farting Problem?
Many people, and by people I mean women, have said that I use too much male bathroom humor in random areas throughout my blog, and in response, I will agree. The fact is that in almost every moment that I question the existence of God, the one of the 16 farts a day (average for men is 16, average for women is 15) proves to me there must be a creator of this wonderful thing called farting. I'm inserting the embarassing and hilarious moments of farts throughout history, during the "I Have a Dream" Speech or when Socrates was busy thinking about little boys. In any case, for those who want to hear not only the talk of farts be stopped, or the farts themselves to case, check out this link regarding underwear that can stop the smells from affecting your loved ones. Thanks to WL, I received this link thinking it was another one of those prank sites, but after further discovery, this thing is actually legit. I'm even tempted to go on a fart-fest-fast by buying this piece of material and wearing it around with nothing else on for next Halloween.

6) Your Greatness, Das Hasselhoff
Finally, for your own listening pleasure, please check out this great video with the one...the only...David Hasselhoff. (Thank you to AJ for sending in this video to me).