Godly Muslims

A link to read about the culture wars. By Peter Kreeft, a talented theologian.  The excerpt below is sticking firmly in my mind, because it says so eloquently what I keep thinking to myself.

"Who is our enemy?... 

Not Muslims, who are often more loyal to their half-Christ than we are to our whole Christ, who often live more godly lives following their fallible scriptures and their fallible prophet than we do following our infallible scriptures and our infallible prophet."

The Perfect Computing Device

So, Ken has made a couple comments about wanting a laptop for himself lately.  He really likes the laptop that he bought me back when Julie was born.  (It plays WoW faster than his desktop does.)  The truth is, I think he likes my laptop better than I do. It's kind of a monster of a laptop (which is part of why it is good for gaming, I think). I've been thinking lately that I wish I had something a little more portable, so I could easily take it with me to prayer group meetings and other places.

So that got me thinking about what I really want in a computer/laptop/device. Here's my (impossible) device:

1. It should be as small as an iPad, so that I can hold it up with one hand while nursing Julie.

2. It should be as durable as an iPad, so that I can stuff it in my purse/diaper bag without worrying about it or wrapping it up.

3. It should have a keyboard that allows me to touch-type (and doesn't give me tendinitis).  A keyboard that is detachable from the main screen would be acceptable and probably even preferable; I can't two-handed type while nursing a baby anyhow, so I would only need a touchscreen for that portion. But the keyboard would also need to be durable, and able to be stuffed in my purse. And the screen portion would need to stand on its own while I two-handed type.

4. It should allow me to play WoW.

5. It should allow me to create and save documents.

6. It should allow me to do both video chats and gmail chats. (Which means it has to have a camera in it.)

7. It should allow me to do all regular internet stuff: email, blog, facebook, online comics, etc.

8. It should allow me to read ebooks on it.

9. It should not require me to have or use any other type of computer in order to accomplish or access any feature.

10. It should take pictures.

11. A USB port, for use with flash drives in particular, would be nice, although not really needed.

12. It should play netflix and hulu and other TV/videos.

So the iPad does have a docking keyboard, although I have no idea if that keyboard is durable or not.  But it still fails on 4, 6, 10, 11, and maybe 9.  Regular laptops fail on 1 and 2.  Smartphones fail on 3, 4, 5, and maybe 9. (Although there might be some exceptions to 3 and 5?)

So basically, the iPad is really close, bu if I want to play WoW, there's no way around getting a decent laptop. And there's simply no way a laptop is ever going to be small and light enough for me to hold in one hand while nursing Julie, and it very probably is not going to be small and durable enough to stick in my purse on-the-go. Maybe 10 years from now my ideal device will be available.

Sex Ed

There's a couple things that have me thinking about sex ed lately.

One of them is OMSI.  There's a "Life Science" exhibit there which includes diagrams of inner body parts, reproductive organs included.  They have a whole display of babies at different stages of fetal development (which creeped me out when I discovered that they were actual preserved pre-1940s babies and not just replicas).  I kind of hurried the kids past the part with the reproductive organs that looked like it might go into some details about conception (albeit with scientific language that goes way over the kids' head).  

The second thing that has me thinking is Kyrie's First Communion classes.  I'm trying to do some Religion Lessons in our homeschooling now and then to make sure she understands the prayers she has to memorize and the topics they talk about (as well as introducing Elijah to it).  We discussed the 10 Commandments... and when she asked me what "Do not commit adultery" means, I was at a loss.  I really want to discuss the Apostle's Creed with her too (that's one of the prayers she has to memorize); but it has the same issue, with its "conceived of the Virgin Mary".

The thing is, my instincts are very firmly of the opinion that I should just be straightforward about it and tell them, in basic terms, what sex is.  I could then explain what adultery is as easily as explaining what murder is.  I wouldn't have to worry about Science Exhibits.  I could share with them the miracle that is the Virgin Birth in a simple but meaningful way. 

But Kyrie and Elijah are only 6 and 8.  First and second grade.  That is, by the standards of everyone other than me, way too early for kids to know what sex is.  Ken certainly thinks they shouldn't know, and I'll abide by his resistance.  But I don't really get it.  How can we think kids are old enough to learn the Apostle's Creed, but not old enough to understand all of it?  

Links That Have Been On My Mind

According to the German-based relief agency “Aid to the Church in Need,” fully 75 percent of all acts of religious intolerance in the world are directed against Christians. [Source]

 Craziness.

I saw this awhile back: http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/3365.aspx

And then this: http://imgur.com/NhC4m

My first thought was "Turnabout is fair play", although that is usually meant to express the more-or-less opposite sentiment.  Although those links may paint a rosier picture than reality.  Coptic Christians are concerned that Mubarak could be replaced by someone worse, for example: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703439504576116222399438428.html  Perhaps not unlike how the Christians have suffered in Iraq after the dictator Saddam was taken out.

Oh, and here's another cool link, unrelated to the other ones: http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=27100

Prolife Quote

"Call me “antiabortion” all day long, folks.  Abortion is the kind of thing that the prefix “anti” was invented for."  [Source]