Flourishing

Institute for Faith, Work, & Economics has good article about what is enough for human society to "flourish" economically in the sense of the biblical word "shalom:" "a rich state of affairs in which natural needs are satisfied and natural gifts fruitfully employed."

It requires that economic choices of customers and businesses be free and un-coerced. And then more is required:

• a culture of creativity - because that's how wealth is created and it's a joy to develop the potential God puts into every one of us
• a culture of voluntary generosity - un-coerced giving that employs human creativity to figure out how to give effectively & wisely to the poor
• a culture of virtue - because goodness and good choices are vital to every human endeavor

(the Ten Commandments series will resume on April 17)

Kidnap $

(cont'd from yesterday)

You know that last summer ISIS took the city of Mosul in northern Iraq, where much of the Christian minority lived. Thousands left everything and fled, some going west into northern Syria where other minority Christians live ~100 miles across the Iraq border.

In that region of Syria, at least 150 Christians were captured and kidnapped by ISIS in raids on villages at dawn just a few days ago. A journalist claims in this video that the victims may be held for ransom (see yesterday's post).

They're in the hands of ISIS now and they need our prayers.

ISIS money

"ISIS makes between $1 million and $2 million each day from oil sales," according to a report from CNN. 

When they took over areas of Syria and northern Iraq (6 million people), they also took over oil refineries and wells. Another source of their income is to kidnap individuals and hold them for ransom, which both Sweden and France may have paid. Kidnap victims from Japan and the U.S., whose governments did not pay ransom, were slaughtered.

Other income is generated by looting, stealing, and "taxes" aka extortion.  And "In June 2014 the group raided several banks in Mosul and stole an estimated $500 million . . "

God-given

You've probably heard that American society is more polarized today than it used to be. Well, we as a people were divided in our opinions right from the start, but today it's not just politics that divides us - but our "worldview," how we see the world. 

Regarding worldview, we Americans used to be more on the same page. Thomas Jefferson was not controversial when he wrote in the Declaration of Independence, for example, that all people are "endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights." He maybe was not Christian, but he did believe in God and that God wants us to be free. Most Americans believed that.

In 21st century America, that basic concept is not so common,  and is mocked by many elites. Instead, the foundation of our rights is thought to be in flux all the time, depending on what political correctness declares.

Our human rights are secure and fundamental if they're given by our Creator. But If Uncle Sam [read: the government] creates rights, then Uncle Sam can take away rights at will.

(see the follow-up post here)

News from two fronts

(For background on terrorist wars in Iraq and Nigeria, click on those countries under Labels)

In the African country of Nigeria, Boko Haram has finally been defeated in at least one city. Nigeria's military was able a couple of days ago to drive them out of Baga in the north. Pity the unfortunate people trying to live where these attacks take place:

• on the one hand, there is a brutal and ruthless extremist group, 
• on the other hand, there is a military that is ill-equipped, often unpaid, low in morale, coping with corruption.

Canon Andrew White is no longer in Baghdad, Iraq, but is still their designated pastor emeritus, and he stays in touch with his church and the humanitarian effort he used to direct. In Mosul, which was conquered by the Islamic State last summer, conditions include the lack of electricity for months, and the need to filter or boil water to make it drinkable. Checkpoints, armed soldiers and arrests set a nervous tone.

Offended

Students at Sewanee University, according to an opinion piece in the school's newspaper, were treated to a convocation talk that was, in the writer's opinion, "one of the most offensive and disgusting" ever.

So what did the speaker promote that disgusted this writer -  hatred of minorities, censorship of books, police favoritism, terrorism? 

No, the speaker's talk urged a climate of respect for other people's opinions, free debate of life's big questions, the classic liberal education. Oh, and he actually mentioned Jesus in the closing paragraph. Maybe that's what the letter-writer can't tolerate.

The author of the student piece may see him/herself as tolerant & open-minded. If that's the case, then the writer is seriously Un- Self-Aware.

Speaker Eric Metaxas says, "Is it too much to ask people to listen politely to those with whom they disagree? I hope not."

(Note: the Ten Commandments series will continue on April 17)

Still going

You have probably heard that millenials, current young adults, have quit going to church in significant numbers. But many still do go to church and continue in Christian practice and belief. Why?

A new study seems to have found the most predictive factor:

"For millennials who grew up attending church, having a strong Christian faith and practice today is linked to the quality of their relationship with their parents."

The usual disclaimer still applies of course - millenials (like all humans) have free will and may make a different choice in spite of a good relationship with Christian parents.

If you're a parent, or simply know a teenager, do your best to build an engaging and positive relationship. 

Hyperloop cont'd

(2nd of two)

It's been dreamed of before as a "pneumatic railway" dating back to 1812 in Britain, and by rocket pioneer Robert Goddard in 1912.  Along with the engineering challenge, political help will be needed to go into and through local jurisdictions.

But, surprisingly, cost is not much of a problem compared to California's fast-train plans. The cost to build a hyperloop between LA and San Francisco is estimated at $6 billion, while the proposed fast-train will probably cost the state about $80 billion: it would be cheaper.

photo: techtimes.com

"Basically, the system would work like those old pneumatic tubes that were used to move messages using air pressure in banks . .  "The Hyperloop design uses a combination of low air pressure and magnetic acceleration to get people from LA to SF in just about 30 minutes,"  . .  It would produce its own electricity from solar power."  The trip from LA to SF is about 400 miles.

Hyperloop

(first of two)

Some friends of Elon Musk, millionaires & billionaires among them, have gone public with their plan to create the "hyperloop" - yet another idea intended to change the world. And now they have financiers and politicians jumping on board.

It's transportation of cargo or passengers moving in a tube at hundreds of miles per hour. At one time not so long ago it really was science fiction, but now it's being funded and designed by serious people.

To get the idea, go to this link and look at the graphic complete with a diagram of the tube.

Hard thing

Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations was published in 2008 by teenagers, and this (different) teenager below is an example of that very thing.  He's giving his TED Talk at the age of 17, about how he came to invent a unique new prosthetic arm.



Prosthetic arms already exist, but at a cost of something like $80,000. Easton started experimenting with motors, software, neural sensors, 3D printing in his bedroom, trying to find a better solution - trying to make a better product at a better price.

 Educating himself in a variety of ways, he accomplished his goal. His net cost (I'd guess this figure did not include necessary labor) was $400.

5th of Ten

Parents give society its next generation. They may do a good or bad job in that role, but this commandment tells their children to honor them. Interesting, it does not command those children to love their parents.

Reuseable

(2nd of two)

It's expensive (~$70 million) to go into space when you need a brand new rocket every single time. If the same rocket can be used twice, that cuts the cost in half.

But think about the obstacles that must be overcome - enormous pressure and heat of course, plus a very tricky landing. Last month SpaceX failed in the attempt to bring a rocket back to earth safely because it ran out of hydraulic fluid.

See the animation below of how the concept is going to work later this year when SpaceX launches Falcon Heavy, and watch the rockets turn around to head back to the pad and land intact:

SpaceX

(first of two)

In addition to Tesla Motors, Elon Musk has another super-ambitious project: his privately-owned company with this mission: "to revolutionize space technology, with the ultimate goal of enabling people to live on other planets."

SpaceX is the first private company to ever return a spacecraft from low-earth orbit (2010), which only governments had done before. In order to make humanity "multi-planetary," vehicles will need to make roundtrips into space - and that's what they're working on.

www.collectspace.com

Today (6 p.m. ET) SpaceX is going to launch a satellite and then make "a second attempt to precision-land the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket on a custom-built ocean platform of the DSCOVR satellite from Florida." You can watch the launch here.

Groundhog

Groundhog Day was a week ago. We own the movie, "Groundhog Day," and I have to recommend you see it. Imo, it is comedian Bill Murray's best role ever. And this, in a story that focuses on almost nothing but development of the "hero's" character.

Character growth is never on anyone's list of funny topics, but here it's hilarious.

What makes this a good film? Beyond the humor, it may be that the story offers hope if you feel  trapped in your circumstances, hope that you could actually change your own story, you could maybe move forward.

New nuclear

America's first nuclear plant in 18 years will start up in 6-12 months. Work has started & stopped since 1972, but construction is now complete, and it has passed important quality and safety tests including regulation updates after the 2011 Fukushima tsunami.

Construction safety features include 18"-thick doors that are tornado-proof, and "five sets of portable emergency equipment are maintained nearby" in Memphis TN. The "reactor vessel" has steel walls that are nine inches thick - yes, 9-inch-thick steel walls.

Its energy output will equal the capacity to power 650,000 homes - free of carbon emissions.

from RealClearEnergy.org

4th of Ten

That commandment to "remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy," that's kind of insignificant, isn't it? No, watch as Dennis explains the benefits of keeping the Sabbath Day -  benefits for everyone who follows it.

AI worries

Check out my previous posts about artificial intelligence here, here, here, and here. Many people are enthused by the development of it, but some big names have become nervous about the future of human interaction with forms of AI.

Now the names of Stephen Hawking,  Bill Gates, and Elon Musk can be added to that last group.

Musk, founder of Tesla and SpaceX, donated $10 million to a research program to keep AI beneficial to humans and not evil. (I'm curious as to what kind of research they think would keep something good as opposed to evil.) 

Says Gates, ""I agree with Elon Musk and some others on this and don't understand why some people are not concerned."

Gloves off

Looks like the gloves have come off in the dispute between Houston pastors and their mayor Annise Parker over a proposed gay rights ordinance.

Civility is hard to maintain.

Reliable

What would it be like to live in a society where everyone had integrity, where you could believe everything they said? A revolution of good relationships and creative productivity. 

Forbes' thought of the day (yesterday, that is):

"Confidence is the foundation for all business relations. The degree of confidence a man has in others, and the degree of confidence others have in him, determines a man's standing in the commercial and industrial world." -  quote from William Boetcker

Stamped on

What are people doing as economic misery in Venezuela gets worse? Mary Noriega has been bartering with her neighbors to get the basics. She says, "this is super bad." Hospitals can't do surgeries because they lack drugs, says the NY Times.

Many people like Mary supported the socialistic "revolution" of Hugo Chavez in 1999, but it didn't turn out well. She says, “the other day, I found a Chávez T-shirt I’d kept, and I threw it on the ground and stamped on it, and then I used it to clean the floor. I was so angry."