De dónde vienes y adónde vas?

Génesis 16 nos cuenta la historia de Abram, Sarai, y Agar quien era la sierva de la yerma Sarai. Sarai llegó a tratarla mal hasta que Agar huyó. Más tarde el Ángel del Señor le habló diciendo, “de dónde vienes y adónde vas?” Lo interesante es que la interrogación salta las preguntas más obvias de “dónde estas” y “qué haces.”

En un sentido, la interrogación propuesta es muy reveladora del enfoque divino. Cristo vino para llevar al mundo de un lugar a otro sin dilatar en la jornada . En otras palabras, nuestra ubicación y nuestra ocupación son de menor importancia con tal de que vayamos ganando terreno en nuestros caminos.

Sin embargo, Agar respondió “estoy huyendo de mi señora” al cual el Ángel dijo que regresara a Sarai. La respuesta de Agar responde sólo en parte a la pregunta puesta. Ella si contesta la primera parte, “de dónde vienes,” pero en vez de decir adonde iba, ella identificó lo que hacía. Así es para todos nosotros, si andamos sin idear primero un destino, andamos sin dirección y sería mejor quedarnos en dónde El Señor nos hubo puesto anted, y esperar que el espíritu nos imparte un plan y un destino.

Human Life is Sacred: What the death penalty, abortion, birth control, and 9/11 can teach us about the intersection of homicide and suicide

Intersection

For a couple of years now I have come to believe that the death penalty should not be enforced. By this, I am not saying that the death penalty should not exist or that the death penalty should be abolished. On the contrary, there are acts that are so heinous that justice demands a sentence of death! However, once pronounced, humanity must step in and commute death to life imprisonment…unless the offender consents.Show more ›

Happy Holidays, Mr. President

President Trump is making an issue of saying “Merry Christmas” instead of “Happy Holidays.”

So here’s the thing: when I was an adolescent, I too made an issue of saying “Merry Christmas” and that begs a comparison to President Trump’s petulant soapbox (i.e. is he playing a political angle or just acting immaturely?).Show more ›

Famous People I Want to Meet

I would love to meet President Clinton whom along with President Reagan and Margaret Thatcher I have long regarded as the best post-WWII world leaders.

I would love to meet Richard Gere whose method acting has made him my man-crush for at least a decade.

I would love to meet Rod Stewart because of his clear passion to entertain others and the joy he finds in bringing joy to others.

I would love to meet Phil Collins because of his astounding talents and his ability to (re)invent himsel, his life, and his career.

I would love to meet Sarah Michelle Gellar and David Boreanaz because they were so perfect for their character roles. I also want to meet Charisma Carpenter because she was just super hot!

I would love to meet Madonna to better understand her life and professional evolution.

A Quick Note on Sex & Gender

Sex and gender are not the same things. Biological sex is defined by anatomy and genetics. Gender, however, refers to the manifestation of physiological sex. People with congruent biological sex and manifested gender are termed cisgender. A person whose biological sex and manifested gender are not congruent may be (over broadly) termed transgender, but that does not necessarily mean that a transgender person intends to undergo medical sex reassignment or live as a different sex. More appropriately being “trans” simply means that the person transcends binary gender much in the way that the periodic table contains transitional elements (D-block). The transmetals can have simultaneous metal characteristics and nonmetal characteristics and also alternating metal characteristics and nonmetal characteristics. To continue this analogy, transgender persons have external characteristics of one sex and internal characteristics of the other sex. Genderfluid persons have alternating internal characteristics and constant external characteristics.

Gender does influence sexuality but gender is not determinative of sexuality. In actuality, there are three components at work: Gender Identity, Gender Expression, and Sexual Orientation.Show more ›

On Clear Communication

I guess I should warn you, if I turn out to be particularly clear, you’ve probably misunderstood what I’ve said. —‍Alan Greenspan

I know you think you understand what you thought I said but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant. —‍Alan Greenspan

The End of Net Neutrality Won’t Be An Apocalypse

Net neutrality is a good thing, but its demise won’t be the apocalyptic threshold that many “Chicken Littles” prognosticate. There are just too many money-grubbing attorneys chomping at the bit for a juicy class-action suit. Then too, there is also the US Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Consumer Protections Bureau on deck to intervene if the existing laws and court rulings are violated.

Around 100 years ago, the Mann-Elkins Act of 1910 legislatively declared telecommunication networks to be common carriers subject to Congress’ authority to regulate interstate commerce. In 1974, MCI sued AT&T in federal court for violating Mann-Elkins after Illinois Bell (at the time a wholly-owned subsidiary of AT&T) severed all of MCI’s network interconnections. MCI won a $1.8 billion judgement (which was upheld, though reduced, in 1983 by the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals). But ever since the 1970s, telecommunication providers cannot (lawfully) deny network access to a party that is willing and able to pay for the service nor can telecommunication providers charge dissimilar access rates to competitors. In fact, MCI’s initial 1974 victory over AT&T was the very thing that led to the federal government’s antitrust action that resulted in AT&T’s unprecedented breakup.Show more ›

Skirted Gallery (updated)