New Orleans Devestation

While Katrina was a category 5 and dropped a significant amount of rain, the majority of the devestation came from the flooding. There were two primary forces which contributed to the flooding:

1. Storm surge
2. Broken Levees (see Picture #1, Picture #2, Picture #3)
   

The levees prevented floods in the past from devestating New Orleans. However, once the levees broke, getting the water out of New Orleans became the larger problem. The water continued to rise days after the huricane had passed due to water feeding into the New Orleans "bowl" (see submerged neighborhood) from the compromised levees.

It is very challenging to prevent large amounts of water and gravity working together from causing utter desolation.

A secular article on homeschooling

Wow! A secular article on homeschooling. I have heard and seen the media report on homeschooling in the past. But, I believe this is one of the fairest assessments that I have seen to date.

ABC News: What Does 'Back to School' Mean?

Sprouted Bread

The Food For Life Bread Co. provides a great alternative to ordinary baked goods.

My favorite is the Genesis 1:29 bread. I admit, it is an aquired taste... there's no added sugar. Look at the bread closely, you'll see the diference. We also get their hot dog buns, and I'm going to try the english muffins soon.

It is especially good eaten with warm butter in the morning.

I have seen their products at Whole Foods and other health food stores.

Morning Dedication

Compassionate Lord, Thy mercies have brought me to the dawn of another day. Vain will be its gift unless I grow in grace, increase in knowledge, ripen for spiritual harvest. Let me this day know Thee as Thou art, love Thee supremely, serve Thee wholly, admire Thee fully. Through grace let my will respond to Thee, knowing that power to obey is not in me, but that Thy free love alone enables me to serve Thee. Here then is my empty heart, overflow it with Thy choicest gifts; here is my blind understanding, chase away its mists of ignorance.

O ever watchful Shepherd, lead, guide, tend me this day; without Thy restraining rod I err and stray. Hedge up my path lest I wander into unwholesome pleasure, and drink its poisonous streams; direct my feet that I be not entangled in Satan's secret snares, nor fall into his hidden traps. Defend me from assailing foes, from evil circumstances, from myself. My adversaries are part and parcel of my nature; they cling to me as my very skin; I cannot escape their contact. In my rising up and sitting down they barnacle me; they entice with constant baits; my enemy is within the citadel. Come with almighty power and cast him out, pierce him to death, and abolish in me every particle of carnal life this day.

Taken from The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, edited by Arthur Bennett

Healthy Hamburgers

Before getting to the recipe, a word about the quality of beef or any kind of cattle meat.

The primary differentiating factor is grass vs. grain fed cattle. The issue is the modern American diet is too high in Omega-6 fatty acids. But beef has not always been so high in Omega-6 fat. It was only with the introduction of grain fed cattle. In contrast, grass fed beef has a healthier balance between the Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids. So the moral of the story is to always buy grass fed meats. Just remember that grass is always better than grain!

Now for burger recipe:

Horseradish Hamburgers
1 lb ground grass fed beef (may substitute bison or buffalo meat)
2 Tbsp prepared horseradish
1/2 tsp Spike vegetable seasoning
3-4 grinds fresh black pepper
Shredded chedder cheese

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients except the cheese.
2. Form into 1/3 pound patties.
3. Grill at a medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes
   on each side or until browned.
4. Sprinkle chedder cheese over the patties.
   
5. Serve immediately.

Yield: 3 servings

The Importance of Understanding Secular Philosophy

One of the major challenges that we have today in the culture war is the absence of context in the mind of the modern conservative thinker. While there still exists some vestiage of ethical foundation, the modern conservative is merely batting at the air because he does not have the full context for philosophical discerenment. I believe the modern conservative has lost his /her context because they have unknowingly succombed to the existential idea of exalting the here and now, while pushing aside the past and ignoring the future!

To become more effective thinkers in this culture war, we need to understand the history and theories behind these philosophies to effectively engage in intelligent conversation.

Two ways for exploring philosophy are to study:

1. categories of thought
2. people that prompted these categories
   

The purpose of this table is to break down these categories of thought and provide a table to match up these original thinkers with their ideas. And also to provide a timeframe for context. I encourage the reader to explore these different ideas and the outcomes that proceed from taking them to their logical conclusion.

Category	Philosopher(s)
Existentialism	Søren Kierkegaard, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Friedrich Nietzsche, Edmund Husserl, and Martin Heidegger
Humanism	Julian Huxley, John Dewey, Albert Einstein and Thomas Mann
Pragmatism	Charles Sanders Peirce, William James, John Dewey, and George Herbert Mead
Positivism	Auguste Comte
Religious Pluralism	Several contributors during the course of history
Hedonism	Epicurus, John Stuart Mill
Liberalism	To be added at a future time.

Reading List of Historical Books

Herein lies a schedule for the reading of historical books.

• The Histories by Herodotus (441 B.C.)
• The Peloponnessian War by Thusydides (400 B.C.)
• The Republic by Plato (375 B.C.)
• Lives (Volume I and Volume II) by Plutarch (A.D. 100-125)
• The City of God by Augustine (426)
• The Ecclesiastical History of the English People by Bede (731)
• The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli (1513)
• Utopia by Sir Thomas Moore (1516)
• The True End of Civil Government by John Locke (1690)
• The History of England by David Hume (1754)
• The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1762)
  
• Common Sense by Thomas Paine (1776)
  
• The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon (1776-88)
• A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft (1792)
  
• Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville (1835-40)
• The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels (1848)
  
• The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy by Jacob Burckhardt (1860)
  
• The Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. du Bois (1903)
• The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism by Max Weber (1904)
• Queen Victoria by Lytton Strachey (1921)
• The Road to Wigan Pier by George Orwell (1937)
• The New England Mind by Perry Miller (1939)
• The Great Crash by John Kenneth Galbraith (1955)
• The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan (1959)
• The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan (1963)
• Roll, Jordan, Roll: The World the Slaves Made by Eugene D. Genovese (1974)
• A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous Fourteenth Century by Barbara Tuchman (1978)
• All the President's Men by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein (1987)
• Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era by James M. McPherson (1988)
• A Midwife's Tale: The Life of Marta Ballard, Based on Her Diary, 1785-1812 by Laurel Thatcther Ulrich (1990)
• The End of History and the Last Man by Francis Fukuyama (1992)
  

Grilled Chicken Sandwich

It is easy to make a grilled chicken sandwich (GCS) and not too difficult to make a good one. But to make a great GCS there are few things to consider. First of all, the bread has to be fresh, moist, and whole grain. Next chicken needs to be seasoned or put in a marinade. Finally, use spread with a flavor that complements the marinade.

Here's a great GCS recipe, but I encourage you to explore and come up with other variations.

Ingredients
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/4 cup fresh rosemary, finely chopped
Whole Grain Buns

Marinade:
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt

Dressing:
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions:

1. Pound chicken breasts to a uniform 1 inch thickness.
2. Cut each breast into two equal parts.
3. Combine marinade ingredients together in resealable bag.
4. Add chicken pieces refrigerate for 15 minutes.
   Remove chicken from marinade, drain and coat with chopped rosemary.
5. Refrigerate for another 10 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, combine mayonnaise and olive oil.
7. Grill chicken pieces for 5 to 6 minutes per side or until done.
8. Assemble into sandwiches with dressing on top.

Yield: 4 servings

TV possibilities for 2007/2008

These TVs look like they will be a very cool technology with other applications beyond one-way communication. I see people hanging these on the walls with electronic art on demand depending on the mood. And not only art that is motionless but also animated with audio. Imagine a Hawaiian waterfall, Blueridge Mountains, or the Shenandoah River with all the teeming wildlife.

Cheaper, More Efficient NED TVs Could Replace Plasmas, LCDs

Secret Worlds: The Universe Within

At first, the link below (from Florida State University) made me feel insignficant and small. But after thinking about it a few minutes, I came to just the opposite conclusion. I guess it depends on a person's worldview.

I believe we are a special creation and unique in spite of the vast expanse. The Bible says God created planet Earth special, and He made it to be inhabited. While the other bodies in the heavens declare His glory.

That is why the secular humanists are feverishly in search for life in outerspace. Because they know their theory of evolution does not hold water unless life is found elsewhere in the vast Universe.

Have you ever thought about the word Universe and what it means. Breaking it down, the word Universe means "one word". It was by the power of God's spoken word that He created the Heavens and the Earth.

Secret Worlds: The Universe Within

The Goal of Education... or should it be something else?

Ultimately, our goal for education is comprised in one word, righteousness. We seek to do that by teaching our children in the culture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4).

However, education is not really the best word to describe our mission, because education primarily connotes an academic spirit. To be more precice, our modus operandi for teaching is not only acadmic but also concerned with topics of a moral nature. To be more precise, it is really a matter of discipleship.

So then, we have three objectives from which our discipleship proceeds. They are called the three G's.

The child needs to know:
1. Who God is.
2. What God requires.
3. What God has done.

Here's how the three G's manifest in practical terms.

1. Who God is. This concerns teaching the child that God is a real being from which we can relate and have a personal relationship similarly to how they do with their parents. Just as our children were born from their parents, even more so, God is the sovereign creator who made the first man and woman that ever lived... The first parents.

2. What God requires. This is about learning obedience. We need to understand that God demands righteousness through His law. But there are two forms of law. There is the letter of law, and the spirit of the law. The letter of law is basically understood through the Ten Commandments. But the law is also realized in spirit; that is through the Fruits of the Spirit. Both aspects of the law should be taught in order to fully appreciate what God requires of us. To better explain, a person can follow the Ten Commandments in a rigid, cold way, and be in full compliance, but still violate the spirit of the law. It is not enough to be technically righteous, but also righteous in heart with the fruit of love holding preeminence.

3. What God has done. This is basically the academic form of education. Since God is sovereign over all creation, this is about teaching what God has done through history (i.e. nations, conquest, the redemption, etc...), creation (sciences - mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology, geology, etc...), language studies (English, Latin, etc...), etc...

The Distortion of Lawlessness

In converse to the previous post on The Legalist Distortion, this post presents the other extreme of the ethical continuim. In philosophical categories, the concept of lawlessness is expressed by the term antinomianism. This word comes from the Greek word for law which means nomas. So, antinomianism is the belief system comprised of no law.

This term can be further deliniated in three different ways. These are:

1. Libertinism
2. Spiritual Gnosticsm. Using the "leading" of the Holy Spirit to justify that which violates God's law.
3. New Morality

Greek Vegetable Dip

This is a really good yet very healthy recipe for vegetable dip. It has a Greek flair which comes from the garlic and yogurt ingredients. It works well as an appetizer before lamb, fish, or chicken. For vegetables, I recommend carrots, cauliflower, cucumbers, or broccoli, but others will probably do as well.

Ingredients
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp celery salt
1/4 cup organic sour cream
1/2 cup organic plain yogurt
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
parsley flakes or dill weed for garnish

Directions
1. Mix all the ingredients (excluding parsley or dill weed) together in a medium sized bowl.
2. Pour mixture into serving bowl.
3. Sprinkle parsely or dill weed over dip for garnish.

'Extinct' Ivory-Billed Woodpecker Found in Arkansas

"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The ivory-billed woodpecker, long feared extinct, has been rediscovered in a remote part of Arkansas some 60 years after the last confirmed U.S. sighting, bird experts said on Thursday."

"Several people have seen and heard an ivory-billed woodpecker in a protected forest in eastern Arkansas near the last reliable sighting of the bird in 1944, and one was captured on video last year."

Click here for the full article.

The Benefits of Blackstrap Molasses

I recently purchased some molasses to try out in my milkshakes. I was surprised to find out the nutritious value this forgotten all natural sweetner has in it.

For instance, it is loaded with vitamins, minerals and trace elements naturally present in the sugar cane plant and is a good source or iron, vitamin B6, potassium, calcium and magnesium.

Click here for recipes.

The Geneva Bible

The Geneva Bible is not well known even among commited Christian believers. I was not aware of it until a few years ago. But history reveals that it once had a much brighter spotlight.

"This was the Bible read by William Shakespeare, by John Donne, and by John Bunyan, author of Pilgrim's Progress. It was the Bible that was brought to America on the Mayflower and used by Oliver Cromwell in the English Civil War."

For more information, check out the The Geneva Bible entry at the Wikipedia.

Smoothie Recipes

Here are some smoothie recipes I have picked up lately.

Beam Me Up Banana
2 bananas (frozen)
1 cup of strawberries
1 cup of vanilla rice milk
2 cap full of Vanilla Extract
4 tablespoons of Grade B Maple Syrup
1/10 teaspoon of nutmeg

Lots-a-Fruit
½ cup of sliced strawberries
2 apples peeled, cut and with seeds removed
½ cup of blueberries
½ cup of peaches
¾ cup of natural apple juice
¾ cup of natural orange juice

*Make sure the juices are not from concentrate

Gettin’ My Grove Back
1 cup of natural orange juice
1 cup of sliced strawberries
2 mangos peeled and with seeds removed
2 tablespoons of Grade B Maple syrup
1/3 teaspoon of Cinnamon
¼ Tablespoon of vanilla extract
1 cup of crushed ice

Morning Quickie
2 Frozen Bananas
1 cup of sliced frozen peaches
1 cup of natural apple juice
½ sliced strawberries

What’s Up Doc!
6 carrots
1 apple (remove seeds first)
1 celery stalk

Liver Lover
3 carrots
½ beet
1 cup of parsley

Vampire Killer
1 Handful of parsley
4 carrots
2 celery stalks
3 cloves of garlic

Blood Builder
6 carrots
6 spinach leaves
½ cucmber
1 tomato or 2 stalks of celery
½ beet
4 springs of parsley

Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple Cider Vinegar has significant health benefits. I strongly recommend looking into creative ways for introducing this ingredient into your diet.

A healthy tonic before bed:

• 1 T Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 T Clover Honey
• 8 oz water

Be sure to wash your mouth with water afterward, because the vinegar will eat your enamel if left on your teeth.

Also, I recommend the Bragg brand of organic vinegar. It the benefits of natural unfiltered richness not found in the common store brands. You can purchase Bragg vinegar online OR go to your nearest Whole Foods grocer.

Great Books Academy

This is a compelling article for introducing others to the notion of pursuing the Great Books of Western Civilization.

"The tradition of the West is embodied in the Great Conversation that began in the dawn of history and that continues to the present day. Whatever the merits of other civilizations in other respects, no civilization is like that of the West in this respect. No other civilization can claim that its defining characteristic is a dialogue of this sort. No dialogue in any other civilization can compare with that of the West in the number of great works of the mind that have contributed to this dialogue."

- Robert M. Hutchins

Click here for the article.

Antiquities of the Jews

This quote comes from a book, by Flavius Josephus, entitled Antiquities of the Jews. Josephus was a Jewish historian that today is still held in the highest regard by both Jewish and Christian historians.

"Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man; for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day."