Did I say evil? Hmmm, this could take a while
Published 1 year, 6 months ago in My life.Viv thought this made sense. I think it makes some kind of sense.
Why are ipods evil?
In April this year a tsunami hit the shores of the Solomon Islands approximately five minutes after an 8.1 magnitude earthquake shook the islands’ coastal villages. About 30 people were killed and another 6000 displaced – a big deal but small cheese compared to THE tsunami of 2004.
Following THE tsunami an early warning system was put in place for waters surrounding Australia.
In April, as the Solomon Islands were swamped, OUR entire east coast was put on high alert.
There was widespread panic but in the end our tsunami was just a 22cm swell. You could have paddled in it, if you weren’t busy panicking. Over the next few days there was widespread criticism of the warning system.
Why were we chased off the beaches for no reason? Why couldn’t scientists tell us if there was a REAL tsunami coming, how big it was, how far inland it was going to reach and what time it would arrive?
The answer to those questions is: BECAUSE THEY DON’T KNOW. Despite spending many millions of dollars on whiz-bang technology to measure the earth’s activity, the planet remains largely unfathomable. We can’t predict the erratic behaviour of oceans, the weather, the atmosphere, or even other human beings with any great certainty. But most of us THINK WE CAN.
Most of us think we know a lot more than we actually do, that we can control a lot more than we actually can, that science and technology can provide solutions when, in fact, they can’t. We are ignorant of our ignorance and that, I believe, breeds complacency.
FOR THIS I BLAME THE IPOD.
When I can walk around with 7500 songs in my pocket – more than two weeks worth of continuous music IN MY POCKET – I am ENTITLED to think that the makers of this extraordinary piece of machinery have ALL THE ANSWERS.
If THEY have all the answers then I don’t need to search for them – I don’t have to seek solutions to climate change, poverty or water shortages, THEY will find them because THEY are capable of anything.
I can just listen to my evil little ipod and sun myself on the beach and run when they tell me to run and get really pissed off when it turns out they were wrong.
30 Responses to “Did I say evil? Hmmm, this could take a while”
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So, are you going to take this up with John Howard? Will he believe you? Is this like a form of power that will destroy our natural environment? Like nuclear power or something?
Yes… Celebrate all that is evil about iPods.
I reckon Ipods are evil because my husband can walk around with his and his 3500 songs and switch off entirely to my asking when the lawns will be mowed? dishes washed, dogs walked, paper brought in, vaccuming required, dinner needs preparing…..
But instant attention to what time the footy is being kicked, the golf ball whacked, the car race starting (must see the crashes!) and anything that happens to have a ball as it focus…. Ipod takes second place to a ball, preferably a small white one!
On the other hand he has stopped nagging about the length of time I may spend in a dress shop because with that thing in his ear…he doesn’t notice time either…..
i didn’t know it was thomas carlyle, i only knew the quote
The actual quote is:
“Who so belongs ONLY TO HIS age references ONLY poppinjays and mumbo-jumbos.'’
Carlyle was a historian so I guess it was more a reference to the importance of understanding history than to any ONE age. Still fits though. Even if the ipod isn’t actually evil - it is most certainly the “poppinjay'’ of this age.
it’s always good to learn something new
No one sends me to the Oxford reference library like you do viv
While scurrying to find the Carlyle quote, came across this entirely unrelated pearl that speaks of the necessity of violence/ evil.
“In Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed - they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love, 500 years of democracy and democracy and peace. They produced the cuckoo clock.'’
Orson Welles (1949)
Fossil,
Just in case you don’t look back my response to your last question on my nook follows:
Fossil,
I am still here, just haven’t managed to get on line for a few days …. work, family, etc.
Door to door, unlikely, but I am always ready to talk to anybody on a variety of topics, but Jesus is far more important than any of the others.
What I am doing is not evangelism, I am simply presenting the truth for any who wish to read it.
But let me pose you a question:
Around the world I see an increasing realization that there is more to life than the pure physical and emotional aspects, and many, many people are looking for a spiritual aspect -
unfortunately they are looking in the wrong places, and they are looking for something which will operate on their terms, ie their approach is basically self centred - or selfish -
But even that awareness of a need for something spiritual seems to be largely lacking in Australia ……
Why do you think that may be?
Is life too easy here?
Are we too isolated from the rest of the world?
regards
bill
fossil,
You are right, science does know a lot, but it doesn’t have all the answers - nor does it look like having them anytime in the next few millennia ….. and as for me, the more I know the more I become aware of how much I do not know ……. and yet I have become aware of God, not because I sought Him out, but rather because He sought me out, and if you probe deeply enough with any Christian, the story will be the same - many will acknowledge that they were seeking and God met them, but when they think back further they will confirm that God was seeking them long before they had any thoughts of seeking Him.
God is seeking, He has an invitation out to everyone on the nook, to everyone on the planet, but some will respond, some will not, but that is the fickleness of the human condition - by and large we are far to irrational and self centred to respond to God’s invitation - it is only by His grace and mercy that some of us have our ears, eyes, minds opened enough to firstly hear His invitation and then to respond positively -
By the way:
grace = being given something good which we do not deserve
mercy = not being given something bad which we do deserve
None of this is our doing, that is why no Christian has any grounds to be proud of the privileged relationship we have with the Lord - the relationship and all aspects of it are a gift from God which cannot be earned or bought it is freely given, freely received and to be freely shared with others - a bit radical in today’s world where almost anything can be bought or sold …..
Regards
Bill
I do think there is an awareness of a need for something spiritual amongst australians, I think that people don’t just look to the main stream religion though and that doesn’t necessarily mean they are looking in the wrong place or for something that will operate on their own terms; and those Australians that come from an non Australian background often already have their spiritual beliefs firmly in place.
thats a good one foss, I shall add it to my book of things that take my fancy.
Hey Bill, I’m getting to you - you strike me as a patient man.
Scientists may not have all the answers, but they do know some of them. They know that sometime in the not too far distant future there will be two tsunamis to hit our Eastern seaboard. One will come from an earthquake overdue on the West coast of New Zealand, that will really cause havoc in Sydney harbour and all the eatsern seaboard if the force is big enough, and the second is off the North West coast of America and Canada, that will make the boxing day quake look like a walk in the park. There have already been quakes in the North American area that have devestated parts of Japan and our north coast, the last one just 300 years to the day before the Boxing day one. The next one is now overdue!
Volatare, which scientific journal, newspaper article or google search reported that TWO tsunamis would DEFINTELY hit our eastern seaboard somewhere in the near future?
Sounds like supposition - guess work if you like. which is cool. It’s how most science is done I think.
And there WILL be a disaster of epic proportions somewhere in the world in the “not too far distant future'’.
Here’s one for you.
Below Yellowstone National Park there lies a super volcano. Catalyst ran a documentary on it in April 2005. http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/s1343737.htm
“If a super eruption happened tomorrow the consequences would be catastrophic. An area the size of a Continent would be completely devastated and there would be global effects for years afterwards.’’
During its “recent eruptive history'’ the Yellowstone super volcano has erupted “every twenty to thirty thousand years’’. It’s been 70,000 years since the last one.
Now that’s overdue.
Hey bill. It’s good to know that you’re always ready to talk on a variety of topics. You should join the fray more often.
I don’t see why talking ABOUT Jesus – about his earthly deeds and words – is MORE important than talking about the things that Jesus would clearly like us to attend to.
Looking after each other for a start.
I think it’s more important to talk about poverty and homelessness and ways of combating them, how to provide a safe and nurturing environment for all our children, how to make sure that everybody is connected and STAYS connected to their community.
If we attend to those things our “souls’’ will look after themselves.
People have always sought and they continue to seek spiritual enlightenment: some to a greater degree and with more success than others. We have sought it and continue to seek it in a variety of places, few of which should be thought of as “wrong’’. That’s plain arrogance. And there’s more than a hint of arrogance – and pride – in your assertion that “by His grace and mercy some of us have our ears, eyes, minds opened enough to firstly hear His invitation and then to respond positively’’.
Perhaps God sends out invitations in all forms and to all manner of parties. How you or I respond depends on the RSVP requirements of the invitation. Maybe you and I just don’t understand many of the ways that God seeks people out or the demands he places on them.
God is mysterious after all.
Fossil - did you have a makeover?
Yeah, I put on weight after all that comfort food.
Fossil,
If you find arrogance or pride in what I have written, you misunderstand me -
“I am just one beggar trying to tell other beggars where to find food”
spiritual food for which our hearts and spirits cry out in desperation within us.
You are right that all these other things are also very important and need to be discussed and many problems resolved, but the spiritual must not be ignored in the process. You are also right in that the person who is starving, or has nowhere to sleep cannot hear a spiritual message until their physical needs are beginning to be met.
It is not ‘either or’ but ‘both and’
But also our souls will not ‘look after themselves’ spiritual guidance is essential, as is knowing where to look for reliable and trustworthy guidance.
Regards
Bill
Fossil - it’s a good look. Nice to know how healthy you are with all that comfort food. Not sure about the beard though - a white beard justifies your name. Could you change your pic with a young stud as a funny contradiction - a joke?
Hiya foss, havn’t noticed you ’round much this last week, apart from your changed appearance, who is it?
Been working my proverbials off and you know how much that can hurt.
It’s Hemingway
Ahhhh….for whom the bell tolls. have you noticed how you’ve got two photos going at the moment.
What? No I haven’t. What 2 photos? Don’t tell me I’m developing a personality disorder now.
I enjoy changing my look, Fossil. It’s your turn now … how about that buff bod I suggested?
I like to grow into an avatar bunnyboy. Can’t let Hem go without at least one thoughtful post. Could be a while.
when you scroll through the posts on the Nook homepage your old photo is still on your post, while I’m here who was that photo of?
i think admin likes to play games with our posts to keep his mind intact in the wee small hours….. you know i’ve been wondering of late, your not admin are you foss?
The last head was George Orwell.
No I’m not admin - what have I done to make you wonder such a thing? - Not that there’s anything wrong with admin.
Animal Farm is soooo good & 1984, don’t know why I thought you were admin, my mind just has ideas at times.
Those two are standouts, probably Orwell’s best work, but if you’ve not read them Homage to Catalonia and Down and Out in Paris and London are also great. A few of his essays are fantastic - A Hanging, How the Poor Die, Shooting an Elephant, Notes on Nationalism and Why I Write are some of my favourites.
Hemingway - a Moveable Feast, Farewell to Arms, The Old Man and The Sea and The Snows of Kilimanjaro.
I will forgive your mind its strange ideas - Admin, phhha.
Let’s see the avatar bunnyboy emerge!!