Foggy brain and Scientology. June 29, 2007

Picture: Scientology’s Official Cross.

Recent days have been incredibly exhausting trying to tackle several things. Haven’t had any interesting readings in almost 10 days which is a pity. I thrive on knowledge and learning which is also my prime source of entertainment. So, my brain is feeling rather dry. But well, I will charge it up again soon. lol.

Today (Friday) was a weird day here in Christchurch, weather-wise. Cold and rainy alll day. It is still raining after about 15 hours or more. We never had this much rain in a very long time… more like in months and months! I got no complaints as I like cold and rain, besides I got free heating in my place

 

As I said my brain did not have any brain food to be happy about but still for some reason Scientology again captured my imagination. I am interested in learning about most religions, ideologies, philosophies etc. and also the so called ”cults”: Mormons, Watch Tower folks, Freemasons, churches within churches, Christian Scientists and yeah Scientology is an interesting one. Recently, I read in the news that Germany again is sabre rattling with Scientology. German government is quite averse to Scientology and alleges the latter is involved with undemocratic and even criminal practices within Germany.

 

Allegations like that have been made against it all the time. Especially, that it is really into mind control tactics and ONCE YOU’RE in THERE IS NO EXIT. Scientology members – allegedly- are very aggressive towards any criticism. Some time back BBC’s flagship programme, Panorama did a special on the shady practices of Scientology. BBC’s star investigative reporter, John Sweeney traveled to U.S. of A to expose Scientology’s dark secrets. It was a great and controversial one.

 

Wherever Sweeney went to interview people who were- allegedly- hurt by Scientology, Scientology’s own spokesperson and a cameraman caught up and berated and even shouted Sweeney down. I found it rather humorous how Scientology would chase the reporter everywhere and then right on some spot emerge with their own cameras and all. In the end Sweeney who had shown saintly patience all the time, LOST IT, and cried and yelled at Scientology folks. Of course, Scientology posted the video on the internet saying how BBC’s biased reporter behaves like a maniac. Guess what? Thank your lucky star whole Panorama programme is available from BBC website from this link>> (PANORAMA, SCIENTOLOGY) Just watch it and let me know what you think.

 

More sinister still, If some member breaks away and gives away Scientology’s so called inner secrets he or she can expect retribution which may mean physical harm to the person and his or her family. Scientology also- allegedly- knows several personal details of its members’ lives and those secrets are often used as threat. Scientology- allegedly- keeps large files on many famous and powerful people detailing their shady secrets and sinful past life (since teenage!) that are- allegedly- used to blackmail them to forward Scientology’s personal agenda in all spheres of life.

 

Interesting huh ? Most people know Scientology because of the membership of stars like Tom Cruise and John Travolta. Both are staunch defender of their organization. I sometimes toy with conspiracy theories: what if Tom Cruise etc. have given very intimate secrets of their lives to Scientology and now they know they can either leave the church and destroy their lives or stay as Scientology’s respectable celebs. This is all the stuff, mystery novels are made of.

 

Interesting. And right now I found out that Scientology also has a presence in Christchurch. We have the Christchurch Dianectic (the Scientology’s equivalent of Christian diocese or parish) Maybe I should contact them and ask for information. Who knows maybe in 5 or 10 years from now I will be friends with people who control, threaten and run the world, SECRETLY. Muahahaahahah… Let’s allllll be Scientologists. …. Come on babes… *roars of evil laughter and ominous music*

How do you deal with Whingers and Moaners? June 22, 2007

Picture: BORRRRRINNNNNGG!!!! Leave me alone whinger.

This post asks an important question; two questions actually: Have you come across big whingers in your life that you had to deal with? What you think is or would have been the best way to deal with them?

Before I go further I would like to make it absolutely clear that like all of us I’m not a perfect human being, in fact I can be quite a pain to be with. I can be horribly stubborn, eternal pessimist with occassional over optimism… stuff like that. In short I am a despicable bastard. But before Lord’s angels throw me into hell forever I have definite positive points. I am a PROGRESSIVE. I like building people up. Last but not the least, when I don’t like people (which very often is the case) I leave them alone, rather than spending my time and energy to hurt them, burn with jealousy at their success and pray to Lord for their destruction (You would be surprised how many people actually do it!… written records can be found since the times of Psalmists in the Bible!).

I have dealt with one whinger with saintly patience, forgiveness, friendship, compassion and what I could call unselfish Christian brotherly love. I will draw a brief portrait of him as an introduction but following picture is actually quite like him when he is in his bad moods . He also has long hair like this, our lady of disgrace:

Moaner Lisa

So, how I got to be friends with such a classic case of a bitter moaner is simple. About 6 years back I started my serious forays into learning more about Christianity. That included reading of Biblical texts, meeting church leaders and memebers of different denominations, forming friendships with them, carrying out discussions, debates and sometimes having fights etc. LOL! About 5 years back while I was studying and doing an odd job over Christmas break to earn some cash I met this Moaner Lisa. He is a Christian and seemed really into it: been going to a popular church for years, owns nearly a hundred books on Christianity and related subjects etc. But he was also a sulky loner which made him more interesting for me because I would get entirely different perspective of Christianity from him. Well, as far as finding the Lord is concerned that’s entirely a different story. But I struck friendship with Moaner Lisa and over the years we have shared books, coffees, talks, chats etc. As for books and scholarship, his collection is a comforting facade that he likes to hide behind. He has hardly read ANY of the books he keeps on his shelves. If I ever picked up one of his books he would say, ”O! don’t open it completely it will leave a crease on the cover.” So, he keeps his books mostly for display purposes.

Sadly, Moaner Lisa has shown a consistent pattern of increasing whinging which has reached its culmination now. Under the crust of dove wings of Christian faith Moaner Lisa is- I am afraid to say- a BITTER AND MOANING person. Over the last years he has had marathon fights and rivalries with tons of people. He was fired from his job 3 years back for verbally abusing, threatning and physically assaulting an old co-worker. In his next temporary jobs all he did was to create enemies and pick fights. He absolutely loves the idea that there are people he really hates and they PAY HIM THE ATTENTION BY HATING HIM BACK. He also has imagined enemies that seem to come from his paranoia. Often when I used to visit his place for a coffee he would ask me to hush and listen to walls or ceiling or floor for signs of other tenants harassing him by creating noise: people chatting, playing video games, playing music, laughing, letting doors shut noisily JUST TO TORTURE AND TORMENT MOANER LISA. He keeps a thick Log that he bangs on the floor to intimidate his neighbours. One day, he said to me, ”My hands and wrists are sore because I banged the floor so hard and so long to shut those bastards up.”

Throughout the years I have talked to him sternly, I have used plenty of dry humor to tell him how horrible he is but to no avail. Interestingly he genuinely hates almost all his fewer friends too that include me. He hates all their little successes and is overjoyed by their failures: (job losses, personal failures, physical sicknesses or any other BAD NEWS) This is the greatest identifying sign of a Moaner: HE OR SHE HATES TO SEE OTHER PEOPLE HAPPY OR SUCCEED. I mean, once in a while, bit of short term envy is experienced by all of us but MOANERS , BURN WITH JEALOUSY FOREVER.

Recently Moaner Lisa achieved another exemplary feat: he was enjoying his holidays sipping away coffee in a cafe on a nice sunny day. His bike was parked outside. A bunch of teenage Urchins (belonging to non- White Maori race, native people of New Zealand that Moaner Lisa hates, especially the men) were strolling outside ( About 3 boys and a girl). These kids were sort of frolicking about. Unfortunately, one boy- much smaller and younger than Moaner Lisa- walked past the bike and for some reason ”kicked” it. Moaner Lisa shot up in fury and ran towards this guy, pushed him to the ground and started kicking him in the ribs mercilessly while the boy’s girlfriend begged him to stop: right in the city centre. There was a cop standing by who broke it up. Lucky, for Moaner Lisa Christchurch is about 90% White and this cop was White and Moaner Lisa is White too and the guy Moaner Lisa roughed up was a Maori living on the streets.

So, no official criminal charge was levelled against Moaner Lisa. When he told me the story I said it was hardly a Christian thing to do. How ironical, he gives tithe to his church, sometimes puts things in the church’s food basket and tells me proudly that his church gives food to poor people who live on the streets: the same people he mauls himself over cups of coffee. I really wanted to write more about him as it is all coming back to me in torrents. But really, it will become a MOANING blog itself if I do that. So, I will finish right here and curiously ask those questions again, especially How do you deal with a whinger? As for me, I am leaving him alone, more or less.

Psalm 80 June 14, 2007

Picture: Sunset in Newfoundland.

These are only the opening lines of Psalm 80

Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock!

You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
before E’phra.im and Benjamin and Manas’seh.

Stir up your might, and come to save us!

Restore us, O God;
let your face shine, that we may be saved.

[AMEN]

Televangelist Wisdom June 11, 2007

Picture: Thus spake the Bogeyman, ”OOOOooo…! Baby Jesus is gonna get ya…..!

I just came across Pat Robertson quotes while Googling for something. Many people have already heard them sometime but I really wanted to have them documented on my blog.

Convenient and imbecile Blaming games–

1.)

“Well, I totally concur.” –Pat Robertson to Jerry Falwell following the Sept. 11 attacks, after Falwell said, “I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way — all of them who have tried to secularize America — I point the finger in their face and say: “You helped this happen.” (From ABout.com)

2.)

(CNN) Friday, January 6, 2006 –

Television evangelist Pat Robertson suggested Thursday that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s stroke was divine retribution for the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, which Robertson opposed.

“He was dividing God’s land, and I would say, ‘Woe unto any prime minister of Israel who takes a similar course to appease the [European Union], the United Nations or the United States of America,’” Robertson told viewers of his long-running television show, “The 700 Club.”

“God says, ‘This land belongs to me, and you’d better leave it alone,’” he said.

3.)

This one cracked me up… one of my all time favourite Televangelist quotes:

“(T)he feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians.” –Pat Robertson (From about.com)

4.)

“I’d like to say to the good citizens of Dover: If there is a disaster in your area, don’t turn to God, you just rejected him from your city. And don’t wonder why he hasn’t helped you when problems begin, if they begin. I’m not saying they will, but if they do, just remember, you just voted God out of your city. And if that’s the case, don’t ask for his help because he might not be there.” –Pat Robertson, after the city of Dover, Pennsylvania voted to boot the current school board, which instituted an intelligent design policy that led to a federal trial

5.)

Playing the poor victim

“Just like what Nazi Germany did to the Jews, so liberal America is now doing to the evangelical Christians. It’s no different. It is the same thing. It is happening all over again. It is the Democratic Congress, the liberal-based media and the homosexuals who want to destroy the Christians.Wholesale abuse and discrimination and the worst bigotry directed toward any group in America today. More terrible than anything suffered by any minority in history.” –Pat Robertson

In defense of Ms. Hilton June 10, 2007

Picture: Ms. Paris Hilton (Sound bite: MOM!!! It’s not right!!!!)

To begin with, I HATE, all celebrity news especially when they appear all over serious media that are supposed to pay attention to serious issues and the news that matter and inform. Whenever I catch celebrity news headlines anywhere, I recoil in disgust, look away and kill the internet page, turn the newspaper page, flip the TV or radio channel. I often get the stares when people talk about celebrity lives and I shrug my shoulders, ”Umm I donno, and don’t wanna know.”

 

But Ms. Hilton stories have bombarded me from so many millions of sources that there was no escape. It has burned into my memory now. First of all I must explain why I am using rather respectful ”Ms.” before Ms. Hilton’s name. There are two reasons: 1.) I sympathize with her. 2.) I have an enormous respect for all the money she has.

 

So, feeling obliged to go with the flow, I also searched the internet to know about Ms. Hilton’s tumultuous past especially the saucy details of her sex videos. I also am embarrassed to admit that I actually came across pictures of Ms. Hilton performing fellatio on her lover. In short, it was a big thing (the controversy I mean). Though Ms. Hilton’s family and friends were outraged at the alleged leaking of sex video it only ended up making more millions for Ms. Hilton and catapulting her popularity among the ever so horny and hungry masses.

 

The recent event was of course about her trouble with the law and the consequent sentence of 45 days in jail. I knew I had to blog about it when I was at my right wing Christian friend’s home couple of days back. It was a chilly, foggy evening as Southern Hemisphere is in the grips of winters now. We were having coffee and chatting. The Tv. was on and there was a story about Ms. Hilton being released after 3 odd days in jail. My flaming Christian’s nostrils flared up, forehead got wrinkled with holy wrath and he growled, ”Bitch!! Bitch! There is no justice! Of course they paid tons of money to the corrupt officials. I hope she again breaks law. There won’t be second getting away from it. I hope she comes back! No one penalizes celebrities, they always get away!”

 

I calmly reminded him Mr. Mel Gibson does that sort of thing quite often and also yells at police officials when they arrest him, makes very objectionable Anti- Semitic remarks in the classic Catholic anti- Jew vein. I pointed out to him Mel Gibson was not jailed and it too was very unfair. My friend was mum and started talking about Ms. Hilton again.

 

I believe there is a bit of a prejudice, moral judgments, misogyny playing their role in it, especially as I compare Ms. Hilton’s predicament with that of holy Mel Gibson. So, I thought I would blog about this to say something that they, the people and their mass media are not talking about.

 

In the end, I do have some issues with Ms. Hilton though. I think she should own up to her folly bravely than cry in front of her mom. I don’t mean it as a joke, but when I really read about her heart cry in the court– ”Mom! It’s not right!”– it kind of pierced my heart. I mean we all have said the same words some time in our life. It makes it even more tragic when Ms. Hilton has to say this in public at the ripe age of 26. She is also wasting heaps of money, time and energy on lawyers, PR folks etc.

 

If Hilton empire pays me about $20,000 plus travel expenses, I would be very happy to guide Ms. Hilton through this ordeal, soothe and heal her wrecked nerves, shattered peace and broken spirit. Should anyone know someone inside the Hilton circle, get in touch with me. I have this overwhelming desire to do good. Besides, I’m short of cash.

Farewell Cindy Sheehan June 3, 2007

Picture: The anti-war mom realizes that she was a pawn after all.

Finally, Cindy Sheehan has ”resigned” from her unofficial post of anti- war mom. As much as I totally understood her grief and helpless rage at the war president, Mr. Dubya, I pitied the way Democrats and the so called pro Democrat Liberal media quickly turned her into an anti war poster girl. The poor woman was drained of her emotions, energy, time and whatever else she sincerely put at stake. In her own words: “I’ve been wondering why I’m killing myself and wondering why the Democrats caved in to George Bush. I’m going home now for awhile to try and be normal.” I am relieved that she finally realized that but wonder what took her so long!?

There is essentially one major difference between activists like Cindy Sheehan and the good old politicians. The latter know how to use the former and the former got no idea! Cindy Sheehan’s fragile and agitated emotional state was successfully exploited by politicians. She was brainwashed and was launched for this divine mission to bring about peace. She would not listen to the impassioned pleas of her family members who begged her to come back home all this time. Hmmmm…. better late than never.

Now, as for wars they take place for good business and propaganda. Also, to justify the existence of billions of dollar worth weapons industry, war ministries, departments etc. As for excuses, use what you will. I just read Khaled Husseini’s book the Kite Runner. It is an entertaining quick read that also gives you basic information about the modern history of Afghanistan. It also mentions how barbaric and anti- women, anti- civil rights Taleban are. Bravo!!!

Many American readers Love that kind of stuff. And this book becomes the BEST SELLER. Fine. But no one likes to remember that American tax payers paid billions of dollars- albeit inadvertently- into creating, arming and funding Taleban about 30 odd years back. But of course, that makes people uncomfortable and besides, Taleban were not supposed to kill Americans, only to massacre Afghans and Russians. It didn’t work out exactly as planned. Bad Luck.

The truth is, as above paragraph asserts, this war stuff is a sinister business and there are people who truly benefit from both terrorism and war on terrorism. Both feed each other and will continue to exist. Apart from that it’s good entertainment for media empires and all. There is no substance to it if you dig a bit under the surface. And it’s not about which political party is running the government. For devil’s sake Bill Clinton used to start carpet bombing Bosnia and Herzegovina and pharmaceutical plants in Sudan whenever media focused on his sex life inside White House. Someone screws the wrong person and the miserable folks in the third world have to pay for it with their lives. This world is so tragic that it starts to sound incredibly funny.