I've seen a Carman concert in the round

You know you are feeling tired and/or possibly getting sick if you find yourself unable to move from the couch while watching a Carman concert on TBN.

Deep thoughts

I hate politics.

That is all.

Nothing to fear, nothing to doubt

Ten years ago, when I was still in college along with my good friends Paul and Jake, we decided to drive from Redding, CA to Salem, OR to try to get seats to a sold-out Radiohead show during the tour in support of their album, OK Computer. To try to ensure that we were able to get tickets, we arrived at the Salem Armory quite early in the afternoon, so early that no one else had yet arrived for the evening show. We could hear the band rehearsing inside the venue, and of course we wished that somehow we could be a fly on the wall inside, listening unnoticed to one of the world's biggest bands rehearse. I don't remember how it happened, but one of us must have pulled on the door out of joking desperation, fully expecting it to be locked. We were surprised and shocked to find the door was in fact unlocked. Like giggling school-girls, the three of us immediately walked in without a moment's hesitation.

What we found was Thom Yorke playing a song by himself on acoustic guitar and several roadies playing Frisbee in front of the stage. An odd sight to say the least. An errant toss landed at our feet and a short man with spiky blond hair retrieved the Frisbee from us (it turns out this was not a roadie but the drummer for the opening act, Spiritualized). The expressions on our faces must have made us look obviously out of place, because after a few minutes a woman security guard in her mid-40s promptly ejected us from our pre-concert performance fantasy.

Now, ten years on, I went to see Radiohead again this past week with my wife Olivia (she likes Radiohead quite a bit). I didn't really know what to expect for the show since I really haven't been too big a fan of the band's most recent records, apart from their latest, In Rainbows. The show however, was nothing short of spectacular. The band was locked in and having a good time. Thom Yorke seemed to be comfortable in his skin, which if you are familiar with some of the lyrics he writes, may come as a bit of a surprise (I know it was to me). I felt that the newer, more ambient and electronic songs translated surprisingly well live, with many of the arrangements expanded to include an organic element which I deemed missing from the recorded versions.

Oddly enough, the band screwed up badly enough at both shows that they needed to stop a song and completely start it over; "The Bends" at the show in Salem and "Faust Arp" (they actually had to restart the song twice) in Seattle. The video gives a good feeling of the general mood of the band. In between the screw-ups Johnny Greenwood and Thom Yorke do an impromptu cover of Neil Young's "Tell Me Why" and drummer Phil Selway leaves a tip.

Imagine No Religion

I was greeted by this billboard earlier today after being bused into downtown Seattle from the 'burbs. At the risk of sounding reactionary, I was quite taken aback by the sight. My first thought was that in a country founded in part on the freedom of religion it was ironic that I would see an advertisement for a foundation that proclaims freedom from religion (is it just me or is freedom from religion not an inherent option within freedom of religion?).

The Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) website states that their purpose is to act as a "watchdog" for the separation of Church and State. A lifetime member of the FFRF is quoted as saying that the billboards intention is not to question any specific religion or faith but to proclaim that society can only reach its full potential through the scientific method. I would beg to differ. I infer from his words that religion (okay, not a specific religion, but religion in general? All religion?) gets in the way of progress. The FFRF website proclaims that

The history of Western civilization shows us that most social and moral progress has been brought about by persons free from religion.

Like Hitler and Stalin? Is this statement not an overt claim concerning the negativity of religion, that on a foundational level religion is mutually exclusive with what the FFRF deems as "progress"? Is the implied eradication of religion a means to this end ("progress")? Are the members of FFRF feeling threatened by the free choice of others to practice their respective religion?

I would imagine such a protest against religion is best seen in the context as a reaction against religious fundamentalism. A friend of mine has posted on this topic recently here. I can't help but wonder if the FFRF is unwittingly fostering its own brand of fundamentalism?

Perhaps this posting is an overreaction? Should I view such an organization as lending itself to the promotion of atheism and agnosticism as a viable worldview and nothing more? If the FFRF were simply promoting their worldview as viable, it would in no way threaten my own personal beliefs or even my choice to have a belief. What bothers me is not the overt language of promotion but the overt and implied disparagement of religious belief. Does this message not run counter to the "freethought" claim of the FFRF?

If the past 100 years of human history has taught us anything, it is that fascism can have an ugly, dangerous and conservative face bent toward evil masquerading in the name of "progress." I fear the direction in which our society is currently headed, our evil clown bent on progress at all costs has changed masks and tactics; he has traded in his conservative mask for a liberal one. The end result of "progress" remains but the means by which to achieve that end has changed.

I always wanted a pantry

Perhaps it is because in our current apartment the kitchen is incredibly tiny. Whatever the reason, as of Wednesday afternoon, Olivia and I will have to wait no longer; we will become the proud owners of a condo twenty minutes north of Seattle in Lynnwood.

It is a condo that looks like any other number of condos. Nevertheless, it will be our own condo and that is exciting. It also includes a pantry.

Priusville

Er . . . I mean Seattle.

My Hollywood Weekend Pt 2

While visiting my brother a few weeks back, we had a good conversation with one of his friends about Christianity and the spiritual life. This particular friend of his had been raised in the South and reared on Protestant Christianity. Both of his parents and were pastors and his family traveled around the nation together as a ministry. Now, he is married with a little girl (and a second on the way) and runs his own recording studio, which makes it difficult for him to attend church with any regularity.

As he was discussing his situation he made a statement (I'm paraphrasing from memory) that stuck in my mind: I look at my recording studio as a ministry that I have in which I can love other people. Does God really care if I go to church or not? I don't think so. What He cares about is that I love other people wherever I'm at and whatever situation I'm in.

To be sure, there's a lot that I can agree with in this statement. Nevertheless, I find it interesting that in this statement there is a dichotomy between loving others and attending church. In a sense, you could interpret my friend as saying that it is not necessary to attend church in order to better love others. Is it safe then to infer that attending church may make it more difficult to love others as well? Does that make any sense?

At any rate, I am genuinely interested in what any readers of this blog have to say about this subject (if you're interested). What do you think about this dichotomy? If it exists, how can it be resolved? What does it mean to truly love another?