A Christian Viewpoint

The Last Jihad by Joel C Rosenberg

This is the first book in a series. It was written just prior to the 9/11 attack. The author shelved the book for a year. In 2002 he brought the book to the publishers and it went into printing. Why the delay? Because what he was writing about was a work of fiction that almost came true.

We know the history of what happened on 9/11 and what the US did in response. That the war on terror did not stop until it included Iraq. In this story, written before the US went to war in Iraq, Joel wrote this story. It is interesting to see how he thought the war on terror was going to unfold.

If you want to know one possible scenario, what could have happened if the US didn’t invade Iraq when it did, then this is a good story.

I quickly read through the book. It is was quite enjoyable. I recommend it.

Last night, as Linda was preparing for bed, I went to straighten the sheets and the blankets. I started on my side to tuck in the blankets under the mattress at the foot of the bed. Then I carefully lined up the sheet with the blanket and smoothed it down. I then go around the bed and do the same on her side. As I headed for the hallway I have to pass a large mirror on my left. I took a quick peek at myself.

Now I usually go about the house shirtless. You see it is too hot in the house for me but perfect for Linda. I say this so you can understand what happened next.

As I passed the mirror my attention was drawn to a dark area on my side. I stopped and lifted my arm. Now my eyesight isn’t too good but I did notice a dark discoloration. I sidled up closer to the mirror. It looked like a very large bruise yet I don’t remember injuring myself. Perhaps it was a bleed under the skin for some other reason. I was getting concerned.

I drew closer to the mirror. O my, was that dirt? How on earth did that happen?

Closer still and the truth was revealed. It was a shadow caused by my ribcage. Now I know I was loosing quite a bit of weight but I never thought I would see my ribcage again.

So, I go to bed happy knowing that there is a body beneath the store of fat I have been carrying for twenty years. Lucky me! 😉

Hamas, everyday, said hello to Israel by launching a number of rockets into the nearby towns and cities. For seven years they said hello this way. Just think, this is the way they honour a ceasefire. I know that last ceasefire was only for six months. Why did they decide to end it and not merely extend it? Oh, they have a host of reasons they give. Most of those reasons, if not all of them, are hogwash. The reason they fight is because they hate. Hate knows no bounds and will suffer no insult.

Israel, everyday, took care of the wounded. Sometimes they tried to take out the attackers. Sometimes they succeeded. Sometimes they didn’t. Once in awhile they killed or injured non combatants. There were apologies and displays of sorrow when then hurt the innocent. They wanted to keep the ceasefire going. They were willing, begrudgingly, to suffer the losses caused by a handful of Hamas good morning rockets. Yet instead of the continuing bad peace Hamas up the attacks by a ten fold increase. For this reason Israel attacked. Though Israel is causing a lot of damage and deaths, it is limited to Hamas targets. Sadly, they still kill innocents in the crossfire. They sorrow and apologize and will try to help when the battle is over. They fight because they are angry at intransigent men who do not know the way of peace. They fight because the have to, not because they like to.

Over all I think it is sad. The Israelis pulled out of the Gaza strip, unilaterally two years ago, in the hopes that there may be a respite from violence. It was the perfect opportunity for Hamas to show how they can care for their own people. How they could begin to build a just society. How they could control the violence toward Israel. If they would have even done that in part, without rockets being launched, Israel could have become a very helpful friend. Alas Hamas did not take the opportunity. They dug tunnels, they smuggled in weapons, built rockets to kill Israelis. In the fighting now happening Hamas even kills or wounds in the leg Fatah Palestinians when they get in the way.

Perhaps if Hamas were merely angry with Israel peace may have some prospect of becoming a reality. But they are hate-filled people and sadly Israel must do what it is doing. If they succeed. If Hamas is defeated. Then perhaps the Palestinians who remain, and are only angry with Israel, can begin moving toward a peace.

The Secret Trial of Robert E Lee by Thomas Flemming
publisher: Tom Doherty Associates

This is the kind of book I enjoy reading… historical fiction. Take a subject. Mix in some historical figures. Weave a story surrounding this event. In this case we are taken to the 1860’s at a time just after the US Civil War. In history, when Robert E Lee surrendered the Northern Virginia Army at Appomattox to general Grant all of Lee’s soldiers were given amnesty for things done during the war. This story proceeds from the standpoint that there was a secret trial of Robert E Lee for treason and various war crimes including the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

In this telling of post war politics there is much information woven into the story. You can begin to grasp the true reasons behind the war. It is also a good view of what elements on the yankee side tried to do following the war. I have been reading bits and pieces about this historical era for decades and find it a true history. The “trial” never happened but the rest of the history did. It is the first book I have read about that time period that reflected my knowledge of those events.

Thomas Flemming is a historian as well as a writer. He weaves a pretty good story laced with historical facts. This is a recommended read.

So November came around and was almost over when I thought… “hmmm, I haven’t read the bible yet this year.” Oh I read small passages from time to time but READ the bible as a whole? I usually like to read the bible trough once a year from start to finish. When I use to work I would read during my lunch hours. Not working and suddenly I don’t have the time, or should I say don’t make the time. So over the last decade my reading was more or less a feast or famine approach. Oh, I’m into the feasting part and will finish in the next week. Yet for ten and half months it was famine then one month of feasting… and that made for a leanness of the soul. Perhaps next year I’ll get back to regular meals and steady growth. But as for now… pass the bible and cram another gospel into my spirit.

😯

So I was lying in bed somewhere between conciousness and sleep. I had a late night dream just before waking. Israel was pointing its military (air) towards Iran. I heard the call of a crow and it was flying east. I got these words:

Caw! Caw! O house of Saud! The crows are calling and they are flying east

Just a dream or a bit of prohecy? I have no idea. Will Israel strike out against Iran? Will there be a religious call in Saudi Arabia to enter a sectarian war with Iran?

It is a “twilight’s last gleaming”, an “Edge of Reason” thought.

I’m going back to bed, roll over, and hopefully get a few more hours of sleep.

So I take my bike out for a ride. It was nice ride out towards King’s Forest. I don’t really go all that far because my back is in bad shape. It wasn’t long then before I decide to turn around and head back home. I like bike rides. I get to see places that I normally wouldn’t go to.

So as I get closer to home I decide to travel through Gage Park. Just skirt the northern section where all the flowers are laid out in large plots. Today I see police officers and several vehicles in the park. I thought they were there as part of some practice maneuver. Not quite. They were getting ready to handle a real emergency.

I was stopped by one of the officers and informed that I had to make a detour around the area I was travelling through. You see, someone set up something in the trees. I was told that they are treating this odd looking device as a potential explosive threat. I rode around and grabbed my camera and took a long range shot of the device.

Guess I will have to wait for the news tonight to find out if the device was a working bomb. What kind of a person would put such a device in a public park? Even if it turns out to be something else… it takes a weirdo to do such a thing.

A few weeks ago I was listening to a TV program from Canada Christian College. The topic for the evening was a discussion on the movie “Expelled: no intelligence allowed” starring Ben Stein. They were talking about the hypocrasy of the education establishment that supports freedom of thought… intellectual inquiry… scientific research… yet at the same time automatically throw out any idea of intelligent design or even its discussion.

The scientific community now suffers from the same narrow-mindedness that was once heaped upon the Christian who believed in the biblical creation account. Christians on a whole have grown in their understanding of science by embracing scientific discovery. Yet today the scientific community… actually those who fund them… will not tolerate a different point of view. Intelligent design does open the door to further discussion and further exploration life.

Sadly, the scientific community has become so narrow minded that they are impeding the progress of discovery. They must bend themselves so far that they end up looking up a dark tunnel expecting to find the truth. They should stand up straight and look about the grand universe God has given us. Solomon said that it is the task of man to understand the world around them. That takes ideas and differing views. Science seems to have forgotten that.

Here is an image of the modern science teacher in a university seeking the origins of life…

I got an occular migraine happening right now. At least that is what the optomitrist called it when I explained the symptoms. There is no pain associated with the experience. What happens is that your vision changes and it looks like you are looking through one or whole bunch of small prisms. General shapes and even smaller objects are easy to make out but the finer stuff, like reading print, is almost impossible.

I was over reading dougie_g’s blog when it came on. Almost impossible to read anything. I decided to write this up just in-case others have had the same experience. It isn’t serious and it goes away after a time. I guess I am making a public service announcement. Anyone else ever have this problem and how did it affect you? Curious to compare notes.

Apologies if there are typos… can’t see well enough to know if I got everyone of them.