Archive for the ‘General’ Category
Remembering God’s promise
In my youth I recognized the rainbow as a symbol of learning (my preschool’s logo included a brilliant rainbow, surrounded by many happy children). I also became acquainted with the story of Noah. “When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth” (Gen. 9:16, ESV). The rainbow is certainly a “universal” symbol, employed by activist groups, civil rights organizations, and political movements, but when I see the rainbow, I want to remember what God remembers: his lasting covenant with humanity.
I now offer the “Genesis 9:16″ bumpersticker at Gen916.com. I make no political statement, but a statement of faith. The rainbow is a sign of God’s promise to humanity, a symbol of grace. That is all.
© 2010, Mark Adams. All rights reserved. For inquiries press here.
Sinead O’Connor discusses church abuse scandal
When Sinead O’Connor tore up a picture of the pope on Saturday Night Live many years ago, I felt that demonstration was excessive. Now, after many years of revelations, I’m not so sure.
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Here op-ed piece in the Washington Post is here. She writes, “Despite the church’s long entanglement with the Irish government, Pope Benedict’s so-called apology takes no responsibility for the transgressions of Irish priests. His letter states that “the Church in Ireland must first acknowledge before the Lord and before others the serious sins committed against defenceless children.” What about the Vatican’s complicity in those sins?”
© 2010, Mark Adams. All rights reserved. For inquiries press here.
Dreaming on ice
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Inspirational.
© 2010, Mark Adams. All rights reserved. For inquiries press here.
iPad: Essentially a big iPhone
Apple may have revolutionized the “smart phone,” but it’s not doing much for the tablet. iPad, at first glance, seems nothing more than an oversized iPhone — see Apple’s announcement here. It looks like an iPhone (only larger) and acts like an iPhone (runs apps from the app store). One would think a device capable of running video could also run software such as Office or iWork, but that does not seem to be the case. It can, apparently, connect to a keyboard, so why can’t it function as a laptop? Perhaps it can, but right now Apple is presenting the iPad as a big iPhone.
© 2010, Mark Adams. All rights reserved. For inquiries press here.
Dictionary banned for unmentionable entry
This is a difficult story to follow.
When I first heard about “it” on the radio, the announcer described “it” simply as a type of “sex act” — the announcer did not elaborate. Apparently editions of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary had been pulled from classroom shelves when parents complained about an entry dealing with that sex act. The parents did not feel it was age-appropriate for fourth- and fifth-graders.
(The Menifee Union School District in southern California ultimately restored the book to library shelves, offering students an alternate dictionary, if they so chose to use it.)
You can read about “it” at MSNBC.com, but if you want to read the entry, you’ll have to ask a fifth-grader. MSNBC did not quote the entry.
(Here’s a link to the online edition of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary press here –note: it describes a sex act.)
Fox News quoted the entry, but most news agencies have not. John Weeks, of the San Bernardino Sun, wrote a cute essay about the “banned” book, but he did not quote the entry. Instead, he very prudishly wrote:
The Menifee Union School District has pulled from the classroom all copies of Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary because it contains words about the human body and human bodily activities that some of the parents and teachers of Menifee say are not “age appropriate” for young students.
One wonders, then, if the entry is not appropriate for the general public, is it appropriate for fourth- and fifth-graders?
© 2010, Mark Adams. All rights reserved. For inquiries press here.
U.S. to consider adoption program for Haitian orphans?
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© 2010, admin. All rights reserved. For inquiries press here.
Aid, children, hope
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Stories of bottlenecks are endlessly frustrating to read, but here’s an interesting perspective: “Imagining a Haitian-scale disaster in the U.S.”
© 2010, Mark Adams. All rights reserved. For inquiries press here.
