Day Cruise

What is a Youth?

2006-01-22T20:31:00.001-08:00

What is a youth? Impetuous fire.
What is a maid? Ice and desire.
The world wags on.

A rose will bloom
It then will fade
So does a youth.
So does the fairest maid.

Comes a time when one sweet smile
Has its season for a while...Then love's in love with me.
Some they think only to marry, Others will tease and tarry,
Mine is the very best parry. Cupid he rules us all.
Caper the cape, but sing me the song,
Death will come soon to hush us along.
Sweeter than honey and bitter as gall.
Love is a task and it never will pall.
Sweeter than honey...and bitter as gall
Cupid he rules us all

One YEAR!

2005-12-18T22:17:00.000-08:00

Daycruise.net has been around for a year now! First thing I've ever done that's last longer than six months. Amazing. Thanks for those of you who still visit to see if I'm still alive.

PS: The one year anniversary was in October.

Laughing and Farting

2005-12-18T19:20:00.000-08:00

Something embarassing that could happen to anybody. This certainly isn't me, but I've heard about this happening to other people.

Let's say you're standing next to your significant other. There are lots of other people, friends of hers or his. So, in this wonderful moment, someone decides to crack a joke. You laugh... really hard.. and you fart.

Can anything be more embarassing than laughter mixed with flatulance?

Perhaps... Some one has urinated in their pants before... publicly.

Has this happend to you? The best embarassing story gets a free Dippu tshirt, once they get made.

Oh, put them in the comments section, you can be anonymous if you want.

I don't want Bush to act like a Sikh

2005-12-18T18:47:00.000-08:00

I really don't. I'm sick of all these Indians saying that the best way to promote cultural unity is to have these sort of scenes. Go look at that picture and tell me if that doesn't make you sick. It's not that I have a problem with Sikhism. I love Sikh people! (cue video of Jerry Seinfeld: "Not that there's anything wrong with that.") But why does cultural unity have to mean that Paul Martin has to bow before a holy book? Couldn't cultural unity mean that he could just acknowledge the presence and influence of Sikhism without bowing before their holy book?

I swear

That Feeling

2005-12-18T18:34:00.000-08:00

I hate that feeling.

When you know there's something you want. You would do anything to get it, to just have it, to enjoy it.

The problem is... It looks a lot like it's not God's plan.

I've had to deal with some things in the past few days where I am coming to the realization. Some thing seems right and perfect to me, but I soon figure out that that I probably can't have it.

I don't know. I've been praying for a while and I'm very much in the dumps about it, but that's life.
I wish there were things I could do differently. I wish I could go back in time and change things.

But I can't. Things are how they are. I am who I am. There is no turning back now.

And everytime I'm thinking what I can't have, I have to catch myself from going into more despair.

The Scriptures say that David "encouraged himself in the Lord" I've quoted that scripture to so many people who've come to me when they are having the toughest moments of their lives. When they feel like they are completely alone in their problems and there is no one to help them. Now it's time for me to use that scripture. Time for me to turn to it.

Only one thing else to do..

Pray.

Ok Dude...

2005-12-02T19:08:00.000-08:00

...we get it already, "Somebody gonna get hurt" blah blah blah. Great.

Anyone else think Russell Peters is getting old really fast?

I did something unusual today..

2005-09-22T19:09:00.000-07:00

I work a night shift.

Let me rephrase that.

I work a late night shift. 7:30 PM to 8:00 AM to be exact. I work for a large company that requires me to wear a white mummy-like suit over my clothes before I head in to my work area. When it gets to around 6:15 in the morning, it comes time for me to take my last break. A little breather actually, when I head out and just hang out in the cubicle. At this point, I am so incredibly tired that I am hallucinating and talking to myself. This morning, something happened that really made me think the entire morning. I'm pretty sure I wasn't hallucinating...

I was done with my break and heading back into my work area when I noticed something unusual. I saw the most gorgeous girl that I has ever seen. She was standing at her locker and getting her things together. I think I must have been in awe for at least thirty seconds. Now please understand, this isn't lust or something. I really didn't feel like that. It was just amazing to see an absolutely beautiful girl. Then I walked on. I didn't stop and talk to her. I didn't look at her for another second. I just walked on. Usually, I would have stopped and said hello. I would have initiate something, not because I wanted a relationship but just because I enjoy talking to members of the opposite sex.

It just felt like there was no reason to stop and introduce myself to her. What had attracted me was her almost perfect beauty. Not something she had said or done, not any sort of personality. I would have loved to gotten to know her. But really, what's the point?

Here's how I plan to get married:

A. I meet a wonderful Christian girl, who I absolutely adore-- and we meet her parents and we meet our parents. They approve, and we get married.

B. My parents and family members find in their universal database a decent match for myself. A meeting gets set up-- the girl and I meet; we like each other. They approve, and we get married.

I sometimes wonder how it would have been if I were born in a different family. I sometimes envy my American friends who seemingly have no constraints on them as they go about their daily lives. The plethora of societal, cultural, religious values that come into my equation doesn't come into theirs. I have to consider all of the above mentioned values to even think about a girl that I meet. But then I take a look at my parents who just completed twenty-eight years of marriage yesterday. And I am amazed. How they got married is probably quite different from how my sister got married and how I will get married in the future. I don't believe they talked to each other very much before the big day. They sure didn't go on any romantic dates. But seeing them today really gives me confidence that committing choices like these to the hand of God would be a prudent decision.

Now, many young people out there would jump at me and accuse me of taking the traditional route. I agree. I am taking a very traditional route but with a twist. A lot of young people do not realize that the dating game in the United States is not what it was 40-50 years ago. Individuals courted rather than date. When one went out on a date with someone- it was understood that this relationship would be a long term deal. Too many young Malayalee teens look at the culture portrayed on American television today and falsely assume that the self-gratification lifestyle has always existed. They are wrong to believe that shows like "alienated", "Blind Date", "Fifth Wheel", or any other processed trash represents what America has been for the past decades. The problem that comes up when we discuss situations like this is that the parents don't realize it either. Parents complete outlaw dating just for the sake of dating without explaining the real purposes behind the set boundaries.

Now, I've talked a lot about dating here. But what do I really believe? Pastor K. Joy put it best at my sister's wedding (an arranged marriage, by the way) when he gave a great statement: "Don't spend your life looking for the best partner, spend your life being the best partner." Sometimes the downfall of dating is that we search around for someone who we think is right for us. We forget about our character and how much instruction and guidance we really need before we can make correct choices ourselves. We see life as a competition with the end goal being a victory with the trophy at the end. What if we were to be that trophy? If we identified things about ourselves that were not according to Scripture or the will of God? If we were to correct ourselves in different aspects of our lives, God will provide us with the right partner at the right time. I sincerely believe that your parents have to have a direct role in finding you your soulmate. Why make it hard on ourselves? God has given us guides on this earth to help us.

But Malayalee Pentecostals have a tendency which drives their children insane. Approving tradition for the sake of tradition. Having done the same thing for centuries doesn't necessarily make it the right thing to do or the only correct way to do things. Some parents apparently have a hard time adjusting away from this attitude. This is why they sometimes shun any thought of their child finding their spouse on their own.

I listened to Ravi Zacharias speak the other day about love and relationships. He gave what I believe is one of the most consequential messages in modern time about men and women. The talk was aptly titled: "The Will To Do: I, Issac, take thee, Rebekah" I encourage every young Malayalee teen to listen to this message. It will profoundly change your life.

Let me offer a quick conclusion. Malayalee teens and parents have been fighting the wrong battle and for the wrong reasons. It is time to stop looking at American or Indian traditions to find the answers and just look straight to the word of God.

I never did end up talking to that girl. I know somewhere out there, there is a woman that God has prepared for me. And God is preparing me for her as we speak. Perhaps my parents will find her, perhaps I will. Until then, I will not restrict God's vision for me. Rather, I shall do more to find His will and follow it.

Sorry about that rant- I know it isn't well organized but it was written over a span of a month at different times...

Quote of the Day

2005-09-22T06:40:00.000-07:00

"One of the people on the Lord High Executioner's list of expendables is 'The idiot who praises, with enthusiastic tone, / All centuries but this, and every country but his own.'"

W.S Gilbert

Forecast Calls For Sunshine With A Dash Of Showers

2005-09-12T06:45:00.000-07:00

It was getting dangerous.

My father had been urging me for weeks to wash my car. I had been reluctant, being quite lazy to actually go to the trouble. But when I drove my nineteen year old Volvo to work last Friday, I realized that I could see very little out that windshield when the light shone through.

It was getting extremely dangerous.

Thus, when I saw the $5.00 premium car wash sign at the Kaady’s off of T.V Highway, I was interested. I drove through earnestly. I had never driven through a car wash before. As the man motioned for me to drive up to the ramp, I relaxed a little bit. This was going to be a blast. I loved going through car washes, I had been through one many times with my father. I rolled up all the windows, put my car in neutral, and just leaned back.

I felt like I was going through a waterfall as streaming water splashed the car from all sides. Large industrial sized wipes cleaned up the windshield, allowing for me a view from the driver seat of the outside world for the first time in days.

I smiled; all was well.

The sounds of a car wash are the best part. One feels and hears dozens of different parts moving in unison while layers of dirt are swept clean off the top of their vehicle. The car continued to be moved along by the ramp—or was it the motions of the different tools in the car wash itself? I certainly had no idea.

Reverend Vernon McGee was on the radio. The man had been dead for years now, yet his messages still reached hundreds of thousands of people every year.

"Paul said to the Christians in Ephesus----"

I noticed the car had stopped. This was the drying process where the water was finally dried.

As I waited for the green light that would allow me to drive away, I felt something drop on my head. I looked up to see what seemed like a bucket load of water come straight through the ceiling and drench my face. It continued.

I raised my jacket to protect the instrument panel and the car itself. I was in total shock as I saw the puddle of water forming on the floor of my car and my lap.

Only one thought came to my mind at this time.

...

Darn! I forgot to secure the sun roof!

Hypocrite

2005-09-10T00:24:00.000-07:00

"ALL RIGHT!"

I winced. I hated when my friend was like this. The mention of the phrase "ice cream" would cause this fellow to fall into hysterics. My friend wasn't fat at all. He just loved ice-cream with a passion. Thus, when our company announced that it was giving ice-cream to our shift for doing such a great job of "not screwing up", he was certainly the most excited person there.

"Come on man! Let's head down there," he slightly nudged me in the direction of the elevators, "if we don't get there in time-- the others will finish all the ice-cream!"

I nodded and followed him to the waiting elevator.

"You know, I just hate it when they only have vanilla ice cream with some stupid chocolate syrup. It drives me nuts! It doesn't matter if they put the syrup on there, it's still vanilla ice cream, it always looks the same! Why do they have to be so cheap!?"

As my friend continued on his tirade against our company bosses for not providing him with better desserts, I leaned my head against the elevator wall and closed my eyes. We worked the late shift; 7:30 PM to 8:00 AM. We were the night warriors. Regular day shift stayed away from us, simply because they thought it odd that anyone preferred to work at night. I was tired, so tired that I almost forgot to walk out the elevator-

"COME ON!" my friend was outside the elevator, shouting so loud I could almost see the words in the air. Bold with a exclamation mark right after it.

I walked out and followed him to the cafeteria. It is about this time that I noticed that there weren't many other people trying to get ice cream. Maybe I was the only one with a gluttonous friend. I walked into the cafeteria and saw a long table set with, to my friend's dismay, vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup. My friend was already there and was serving himself. I walked into line and noticed a hefty fellow greeting everyone. That was one of the supervisors; he was standing at the front of the line greeting everyone by name. As he got to me, the rotund man beamed a heavy smile with sleazy teeth, looked straight at me and exclaimed.. "KARIM!"

Then slowly his eyes trailed down to my chest. The I.D card. I saw the wheels frantically turning in his mind as his pale-snow-white face turned bright red in dismay. I thought about this man's thoughts. Oh sh**.. This isn't Karim! This is some other arab guy!

This sort of moment in time is usually led by the adjective known as awkward. I stood there with a muddled look of anger and confusion. Rather than acknowledging his mistake, the man turned his head slightly to the next person in line:

"Hey Bob! How are the kids doing!?"

As I got the ice cream, I had a train of thoughts going through my head. I was angry, furious, enraged, livid, and any other adjective you could pile on there.

What an idiot. Man, I really hate this guy. Stupid white trash, thinks all of us brown people look the same. What a piece of crap. I bet he thinks I'm a terrorist too. I wonder if he even knows that India isn't in the Middle East. He's probably never even seen the outside of this Podunk small town.

I kept thinking angry thoughts as I headed over to a table next to my friend. I sat down and started eating. The burst of vanilla and chocolate in my mouth was not enough to stop me from thinking about this. I quietly finished my ice cream and headed back upstairs to continue working.

Upstairs, my friend and I saw Khoa, a close friend of ours, walking down the hallway. I extended my hand in a greeting, smiled and said "Hey Khoa! Long time no see!"

Khoa just glanced at me sideways as he kept walking up the hall. I reached my hand up to my hair and brushed it slightly to avoid looking like an idiot. Khoa had just ignored me. "I wonder what the heck is wrong with Khoa," I said as I looked at my friend.

My friend had the most ridiculous look on his face as he surveyed me head to toe.

"You idiot!"

He startled me, "Thats not Khoa! That's Tu Wong! Khoa is Vietnamese! Tu is Chinese!"

My mouth was open as I brought my hand down and looked at it. I stared down the hall at fading figure of another Asian guy: Tu Wong.

My friend looked at me with a smile on his face and said.. "You know, DeCruz, not all Asian people look the same."

I grimaced and followed him to our work area.

Three in the morning and a baby

2005-09-05T02:55:00.000-07:00

It’s almost three in the morning and I can’t seem to get any sleep. I decided I would write a little about the new joy that happens to be in our family. Many times, people have commented to me that I appear to be a very sardonic person. One who cares very little about others; a self-centered jerk. Many times, I tend to agree. Expressing love for another human being is a difficult thing for me to do. Or so I thought. I have been overjoyed this last week at the addition of a new born child to our family. If you follow Dippu.com, you would have noticed that I posted a few pictures of her right after she was born. Hannah P. John. (image placeholder)After she came to Portland, and I finally got to hold her after a month, I realized that I was capable of so deeply loving another human being. This precious life, so fragile and beautiful, I see her being so dependent on those around her. This little girl happens to be my newborn niece. I’m sure many of you have experienced this before: A new nephew or niece and absolutely being lost in their innocence. This little girl has the whole world ahead of her and she is already becoming a blessing in our lives. I see my parents, my sister, my grandma, and the rest of my family just feeling the same way I am. We endlessly thank God for this child. Yet, I think about other children... Those that do not have this sort of love given to them. I’m sure we’ve heard of crack babies (meth babies now) in the inner cities. These babies continuously cry because they were born with an addiction to crack cocaine. I wonder shows them the sort of love we show for Hannah. I saw people looting stores for baby formula in the south after Hurricane Katrina. I thought to myself, If Hannah mol were to be in the same situation- I would do everything in my power to make sure she never went hungry or suffered. When we see the suffering of others in no matter what situation they are in, we must thank God for his endless mercy and pray for those suffering. Excuse me, I must go. The baby is crying. (

Not Quite Sure What To Say

2005-09-03T04:12:00.000-07:00

It's been a while. Dippu has worked itself into a phenomenon of sorts. I've been writing posts daily on there. Pretty soon, I've realized that I miss my personal blogging. When I post on Dippu, I find that I censor myself quite a bit. I can't really handle that. I choose to be a bit sensitive on the combined blog because I am part of a team and I understand that people aren't exactly there to see my personal opinions. But here I am, back on Daycruise.net hoping to win back my old group of readers. I will definitly continue to write on the other blog, too many people have told me how much they love reading it. It can be a bit overwhelming. Expect Daycruz to be back to his old self and talking about everything again!

How I have forsaken thee!!

2005-04-21T21:43:00.000-07:00

Wow. Guys, I am so sorry! I just started a new blog with my friend Ashish. http://www.dippu.com And, I think I might post on there more than here. BUT, I plan on putting my posts on both sites. And that might work. But I want you to head over to dippu.com and tell me what you think.

Writing

2005-04-14T22:38:00.000-07:00

I write in chunks. I sometimes do not finish what I start. In my blog folder on my computer, there are about four different word documents that consist of about one sentence each. I'm one of those people who think that every thought would make a great book. So I sit down and start something never really coming back to it. I write being partially honest to myself. I do not have the guts to be brutally honest with myself when I write. This is why I admire honest writers who write just how they feel. I am not even talking about public blog entries such as this one. Just simple things on paper. I am sometimes afraid of being honest. This does not make for good writing. Even if someone else likes my stuff- if it's not honest to myself, it gnaws away at my conscience. As I said in my earlier post about West Coast bloggers, we are growing into a significant group of people that write our thoughts our and express our feelings to the world. I find this to be a great achievement. I believe a sign of intellectual progress occurs when one feels free to write and think and is appreciated for that feeling.

When I started this blog, I started it after starting many similar ones in many different places. Asian Avenue had me under the psuedonym "ImAznToo" (I got a few chuckles out of that). I have been Day Cruise on Blogeasy, Xanga, and currently on Blogger. I plan to stick to Blogger for a while. What drives me to write? I'm not quite sure actually. I wanted to be another Instapundit, another Captain's Quarters, or another Hugh Hewitt. But I soon realized that I wasn't really of their caliber. George Orwell said that one of the reasons we write is simply for the glory of our ego. We feel every word that we write is comparable to the best of Faust or Hemingway. I see my writing and I say I am closer to R.L Stine. That is not a good thing. I have vowed not to turn this blog into work. I don't want to make this something I have to do. Rather, I want to write when I feel like writing. I looked through my posts and I realized that every time I had a great post, it was when something triggered me to write in such a way. It was something emotional. Something that I had to let out. There have been times when someone has leaned over to me in class and said "Cruz, write something on ________" I usually nod, take out a piece of paper and just write.

Sometimes, I write to get out of my physical surroundings; during the worst of days, writing about someone achieves something important is very inspirational to me. I'm sure many find it humorous that I would be inspired by my own work. This would not be true if I did not write it for the specific purpose of inspiring myself. I wish to be inspired when I write. Some day, I hope to write something that inspires someone else. And hopefully when I do that, I will be honest with myself also.

Turning from the above, in a bit more important piece of information, I am planning on turning off my comments option. What do you think?

Sad.

2005-04-10T15:51:00.000-07:00

.....

Ladies and GentZ. turn up your sound SYTEM to the Sounds of CarLos Santana --- errr -- AKSA REMIX to Chacko Chundra-Ven"
ohh. Marykutty . Marrykutty....
she remind me of a the Kerala Story,
Growing up in Desi Harlem. She livin a life just like a Cinema star.
ohhhHhhh Marykutty.. Marykutty.."aiiiiya"
She fell Hard for the sounds of the Sitar
played by Chacko Chundra-ven...."
---ding...ching-- ching...ding ding ---

.....

That was from my friend Aksa's profile. Please pray for her.

West Coast Roundup

2005-03-30T22:22:00.000-08:00

I've decided to try something new on this blog. After this last weekend, I noticed that a lot of us got online and blogged about our feelings and such. I thought this was amazing. We have never done this before- this shows how much we have grown as a community here. Thus, I want to start the West Coast Roundup. When you write a post that you like or if you see one that you like- just email or give me the link to it. And I will post the link along with other cool posts here on this blog.

With that said- this last weekend, we had a tragedy happen here. I posted about it below. Ashish posted a poem he had written a while back when he faced troubles. Bobby talked a bit, being inspired byDale Fincher. Shannon also wrote today- and although she says it isn't very good-- I liked her post a lot. She spoke from Hebrews to put her point forth about faith in these trying times. Aksa wrote what was probably the most moving post with her pictures of the affected family. I have to say that I was really touched by her short post. UPDATE: Thanks to Bobby for pointing out my ignorance- I completely missed Jerry's great post on Xanga. I wish he would update his Blogger account more. But his post on Xanga is very good; he ends with a verse Take a look. YET ANOTHER UPDATE: Apparently I forgot about another blogger that wrote something about what happend on Sunday. Praisy has also written about her emotions after the tragedy. Thanks for pointing me in the direction, guys.

If you folks have any good links to good posts please send them my way. The only requirement to be in the West Coast Roundup is that the post has to be by a West Coast blogger. Thanks, folks.

Weeping Before God

2005-03-28T22:57:00.000-08:00

We always read or hear about traffic fatalities. I’m sure many of you have heard the traffic reports on the radio on your way to work or school. The radio announcers talk about how a certain road or a section of a highway has been closed because of a car accident. They provide information on detours and such. I’m sure some of us may have grumbled at having to be late for work or some important function because of such an accident. I know that in past debate competitions in high school, I have used some random highway traffic accident statistic to win a debate—and sometimes lost one because of it. I’m guessing you have heard about the accident on Sunday. As a loved one was taken away from us, we responded with plain sorrow. It only hit me when I read the online edition of the Dallas Morning News. It reported the details of the accident, and made sure to state that our loved one was the “35^th fatality on Dallas roads this year” Another statistic for any one reading the newspaper. For me- it was someone I knew. Someone who had given me Sunny Delights on many occasions at her home. I talk about traffic fatalities because it made me think about debates that I always plunge into with people. After Sunday morning, everything seems so vain. Silliness, really, that’s all it is… plain silliness. We argue about whether Canada is better than America or if taxes should be cut. We whine about light bulbs that don’t get bright in time or toilets that are way too loud when they flush. We seek joy in watching grown men throw around an object. We complain when the internet isn’t going fast enough. We really are pathetic. Everything we talked about- politics, science, money—it all is trivial when we “face the seriousness of death.”

This is it, folks. This is life and the end of it. Once again we face an infinite awesomeness of God amidst our massive pride and human selfishness. All we have that is not fleeting can be summed up in one word—nothingness. For so clear to me now and so vividly imprinted on my thoughts is the fact that we are but dust. I can honestly tell you without shame tonight that I wept before God. I tell you this without shame because it is what all of us need to do. Just weep before the Almighty. As we see that we live and we walk and breathe for he allows us to do so. I look at the city of Portland right now and I feel fear. Along with that fear, I have this hope in my heart that the Indians in this city—more specifically the Malayalees, will just come before God and weep. There are so many broken hearts in this city and in Dallas. We have got to get moving. Urgency would be an understatement in this situation. Let us put aside all of our differences, let us unite as part of the Body of Christ. I don’t know who reads this blog regularly- but I hope that people read this post. I pray that God touches your heart and causes you to look at yourself. Because all this has certainly caused me to look at myself.

I speak to all of the Malayalees who are reading this when I say- we have several choices to make as a community in this situation. Will we be vultures? Or will we be what God desires us to be? Sources of comfort- it’s really as simple as that. Let us pray.

I have stopped myself from saying the entire story- because I just don't think it's the right time. Some people might disagree with me putting this up right now but it's just on my heart right now and I wanted to share it.

An Interesting Week

2005-03-24T10:35:00.000-08:00

My friend from Nepal was in Portland for the past few days just to visit. My parents were definitely glad, not having seen him for about 10 years. He told me a very interesting story that made me feel a bit safer. I'm not sure how the readers will feel about this.

After the plane landed in Portland International Airport, Kurian (our friend) was the last person to get off the plane. As he was about to walk into the tunnel that's connected to the actual terminal (suggestions on what that's called?) He saw a man standing right behind a wheelchair. My friend was surprised, considering the fact that there was no one else in the plane and none of the air staff seemed to be disabled. As he moved forward, another man stepped out of the shadows, flipped open his wallet to reveal his id and said "Mr. Kurian James, we're Federal Air Marshals, we'd like to speak to you for a moment please." Kurian, went with the man and the man behind the wheelchair followed. They sat down and explained themselves..

"Sir, the reason we want to talk to you is because you were operating a video camera on the flight. We were wondering why you were doing that."

It is good to pause here and tell you that my friend looks sort of like a Middle Eastern fellow. Thus, we can see why they would be a bit wary of a man seemingly operating a video camera on a flight. My friend explained that he only took out the camera to take a look at it and that he did not take any video. The air marshals breathed a sigh of relief. Kurian offered to show them the tape just to make sure. They declined and explained that the stewardess had been a little nervous and had felt that Kurian had gotten video of her without permission. This was obviously not true. The air marshals apologized for the inconvenience and allowed my friend to go on with his day.

This little incident is good to know about. It tells me that the FAM is working. They are working pretty hard to ensure the safety of our country. Although it was a little inconvenient, Kurian told us that they were very polite in how they handled the situation. I would love to hear more comments and thoughts on this.

2005-03-19T14:26:00.000-08:00

messy room 2

2005-03-19T11:26:00.000-08:00

Messy Room

Canada Sucks. 'Nuff said.

2005-03-12T10:38:00.000-08:00

I really couldn't add more to this piece- it is so friggin hilarious. Read the excerpt below and then go read the whole thing.

This strain of nails-on-the-blackboard nationalism is most evident in the recent bestseller Fire and Ice, an Americans-are-from-Mars, Canadians-are-from-Venus study of the two countries' values by Canadian sociologist Michael Adams. Based on three head-to-head values surveys done over a decade, it shows Americans coming up short on matters from militarism to materialism. This is hardly news. But Adams pushes his luck, giving conventional wisdom a twirl by advancing that it is the Americans who are actually the slavish followers of an established order, while Canadians are rugged individualists and autonomous free thinkers.

Give Adams points for cheek. His is, after all, a country that didn't bother to draft its own constitution until 1982, that kept "God Save the Queen" as its national anthem until 1980, and that still enshrines its former master's monarch as its head of state. Her Canadian title is "Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom, Canada and Her other Realms and Territories Queen (breath), Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith." Maybe they should change their national anthem again, to Britney Spears's "I'm A Slave 4 U."

After suffering through Adams's book, I decided two can practice snake-oil sociology. So I spent three days on Nexis kicking up every comparison-survey and statistic I could find on American/Canadian values. I became so gripped with the subject I could have been mistaken for a Canadian.

This unscientific research quickly confirmed that Canadians are bizarrely obsessed with us, binge-eating out of our cultural trough, then pretending it tastes bad. Plainly the two things Canada needs most are a mirror and a good psychiatrist.

Though they don't know who they are, they know they're not us (roughly 9 out of 10 comparison surveys are done by Canadians), so they bang that drum until their hands bleed. Still, it seems there is almost nothing Canadian that isn't informed in some way by America. When the late Canadian radio host Peter Gzowski had a competition to come up with a phrase comparable to "American as apple pie," the winner was "As Canadian as possible, under the circumstances." In 1996, when Canadians were asked to name both the greatest living and the all-time greatest Canadian, 76 percent said "no one comes to mind." Another survey showed them to believe that the most famous Canadian was Pamela Anderson, star of America's Baywatch. When Canadians were asked to name their favorite song, they settled on one by a good Canadian band, The Guess Who. The song: "American Woman."

Several years ago, Molson beer aired a commercial featuring Joe Canadian, a regular beer-drinking Joe who went on a rant aboot what Canadians are and aren't (not fur traders or dog sledders; they pronounce it "about," not "aboot"). He became a media darling and a national mascot. Then the actor who played Joe moved to Hollywood to find work. When he returned, tail tucked between legs, even he admitted, "I think, yeah, it is a little sad that Canadians draw their identity not so much from 'I am Canadian' as 'I am not American.'"

Isn't that just plain hilarious?

Read the whole thing please...

Dude...

2005-03-05T01:10:00.000-08:00

Someone wanna tell me why I didnt think of this with Jerry's bunny Thambi? This guy has to be a genius..

Where I Surf

2005-03-04T23:22:00.000-08:00

Many people ask me all the time what sites I visit. I always seem to find something interesting on the internet. It’s because I see the internet as one of the most amazing things to happen to the world. The fact that we can create something of our own and put it on the World Wide Web is beyond astonishing. I’ve always done blogs- I started on Xanga about two-three years ago. Before that, it was Asian Avenue. But I believe that this current blog of mine is one that I will surely stick with. A new pattern that I have picked up from other bloggers is the concept of linking to something I see. This simple yet very important act connects all of us and gives us our daily dose of knowledge. I have created a list for you of the websites I visit daily. Sad to say, some of these websites I visit three or four times a day:

Drudge Report- After my departure from the routine of watching the world news programs every evening, I have resorted to checking the Drudge Report every time I am online. Matt Drudge’s penchant for finding the most interesting and unusual news always blows me away. I also love his old-fashioned tabloid style. Do I trust Drudge entirely? No. But it’s always enjoyable to see the flashing siren icon over a breaking news headline. When many of you wonder where I get all these weird bits and pieces of knowledge from- remember the Drudge Report.

Instapundit- A website I discovered through Drudge during the Rathergate scandal, this blog has absolutely changed how I write on DayCruise.net. Written by Glenn Reynolds, a law professor at the University of Tennessee, his writings and his links have given me a gateway to the rest of the world. His views on the role of government in society have influenced me a great deal. A very compassionate man, Reynolds tears to shreds any notion of a cruel Libertarian that people may have in their minds. If you want to be on this inside circle on the best conversations happening in America, visit Instapundit often. You will not regret it.

ESPN- Most people know about ESPN the sports network and many people visit the online website to check out sports scores and such. But a lot of us forget to take a look at the wonderful writers that work for this major sports entertainment company. Jim Caple, The Sports Guy, and many others provide entertaining and insightful commentary on sports, society, and life in general. I’m not saying going to this website will make you cool. But it sure will get you close-- If being cool meant knowing the top ten sports movies of all time. I’m sure someone can get a girl with that amazing fact. Not me, though.

BBC News- I visit it because it provides Indian news in a much better format than a lot of the Indian news websites out there. It also provides an international/European view of the world and the United States. Is it biased? Obviously, but that doesn’t stop it from having good writing. Their stories are always updated up to the minute, and always have some sort of international flavor to them. BBC’s international news is most likely the best international news outlet in the world.

India Uncut- A blog written by Amit Varma, who currently covers cricket for the Guardian, I stumbled upon this website during the tsunami tragedy two months ago. Varma toured the devastated areas in the aftermath of the Indonesian earthquake. I was absolutely moved by his writing on life after the tsunami. His vivid description of the victims and their stories was sharp and struck at the heart. He spared no details or punches and gave honor where honor was due, and ridiculed those who deserved to be ridiculed. But, on a lighter note, after the tsunamis this man’s writings continued to be at the top of my reading list every day. Another libertarian, he provides us with perspectives on the Indian government and society in today’s fast moving world. Another blogger whose ability for wonderful insight I greatly admire and sometimes envy.

Sepia Mutiny- This is a website I discovered very recently through the Indian Blog Mela. As far as I can tell, this is a blog written by a group of desi bloggers in the United States. If you are like me and always looking for news about Indians- this is the place to go. I check this blog often also. This time because it provides me with links to other sites full of bountiful desi goodness. I suggest every Indian wanting to stay a little in touch with their culture to check this site out.

impassioned imperfections- Long name? Yes, very much so. Absolute dribble? Absolutely not. Ashish’s blog is something I look at every day. His spiritual outlook is incredibly inspiring and his vision is something everyone should strive for. A humble guy who also happens to be a good friend- Ashish always happens to passionate about a cause. Me and him disagree on quite a bit of things, but we have a lot in common also. Read his blog to find the best and latest Christian insight and perspective on everyday happenings. Watch this guy, he will do great things for God someday. Watch his blog for now, and you will find interesting things to think about for the day.

If you think your blog should have been mentioned, tell me why in the comments below. To my fellow Indian bloggers in ortland other than Ashish, you know I love you, but I like Ashish’s blog a lot. He updates it way more than any of us do and he does a great job with it. So I think we should give him credit. If you guys updated more often and really let loose with your creative minds, I will definitely put you on my list of great blogs. Still though, I read all of you guys all the time.

Gizoogle Is The Shizzle

2005-02-23T23:15:00.000-08:00

If you don't like Gizoogle, you are deranged and deserve to be locked up. Here is how my site looks when fed through their program.

In beautiful California

2005-02-18T19:40:00.000-08:00

Yeah, California is pretty nice.. meh. You know how it is. I'm going out to get some Indian food. I bet the only place where Indians go to and not eat Indian food is India. If we go to Vancouver B.C it's Indian food, and you cant go wrong without eating naan and butter chicken in Manhatten. How bout the moon? I will place money right now that we will have an Indian restaraunt on the moon.

Yes, I know restaraunt is spelled wrong. But my stupid spell check isn't working. Please tell me how to spell it. I completely forgot. I'm smart. I SWEAR!

Holy Cow!

2005-02-16T23:42:00.000-08:00

Folks. We have found out what is wrong with Indian society. It's not fundamentalist Hindus who beat on their wives and eat rat dung to get closer to their gods. It's definitly not Laloo Prasad Yadav who has issues with development in poverty stricken Bihar. It's none of that, the problem with Indian society- according to these idiots below is..... you guessed it: Valentine's Day! I'm glad I can still laugh at these people...

Need To Get Away?

2005-02-14T19:21:00.000-08:00

You ever wonder how long it takes to just get in the car in San Fransisco and drive to New York? Well, thanks to Google, you can easily find out.

Thanks to Bobby for the link, if he updated his blog more often I would link you guys.. But you know... you know..

2005-02-14T19:05:00.000-08:00

On Ugly Babies

2005-02-08T10:02:00.001-08:00

Now, before any of you read this, please understand that I do not condone the ridicule of ugly babies. The question of babies and their visual appeal has bothered generations. But unfortunately, a lot of it has been kept underwraps. I am sure that some of you have visited new parents and inwardly grimaced at the sight of their offspring and shuddered at the thought of more on the way. Some of you might have read my title and just retorted that there is "no such thing as an ugly baby" Who knows? What I want to submit is past the existence of an ugly baby. I take it a step further by discussing the complex issues that arise with the birth of a "visually displeasing" child. Read on, and leave your comments below if you'd like...

One of the greatest challenges facing mankind today is the appearance of ugly babies. On the arrival of a visually displeasing child, the parents are left with very little options. If the parents themselves are ugly, they most likely have come to some sort of insane idea such as "real beauty is within us" Thus, these parents will continue to create for themselves a little fantasy where their offspring is a little better than ugly: this is what we call "manageable" But, obviously, it is foolish to assume that this is in fact reality. The child might be able to avoid fate for a few years, but once he or she enters into the community of peers, the shell created by the parents will be destroyed. The peers will obviously recognize that the newcomer is, in fact, ugly. This leaves a whole array of questions open to the reader but I wont try to answer them here. This issue of horrid looking babies brings up another valid point-- the birth of an ugly child in a family of beautiful people. This is surely an unfortunate event. The beautiful parents are left with a confused mentality in the face of this new obstacle to their progress. Naturally, they will question their own identity in a society where their child is less than pleasing to the eye. They will also wonder how the baby will grow up in a society. These parents will, in the early years, try to get around this unfortunate occurrence, but after failed attempts will settle the the notion of a "black sheep" in the family. The prospect of ugly babies in previously ugly families and of those in beautiful families leaves us with one last prospect. The appearance of a repulsive child and the relative ignorance of the family members. This is evidenced by the constant presentation of the ugly baby to guests at their home. The parents do not realize that their baby is ugly-- and the guests concede this notion simply to avoid hurting feelings. Thus the parents never realize this atrocious looking being in their midst and proceed to lifting the profile of their child in public and private encounters. This is akin to hanging the baby by a string over a group of jagged rocks. The baby will have to deal with those in the public spectrum who will continuously hound it when it reaches the discernible age in a community. So we are left with questions we must ask ourselves. How do we deal with this phenomenon, must we make an effort to remedy the birth of an ugly baby by focusing on the specific aspects of the baby that might be slightly more appealing? Or should we give up and accept that the parents have been cursed? We may never answer these questions as long as this species continues to exist. In the mean time, I urge you to reach out a helpful hand to ugly babies. Give them love-- as fake as it might be-- perhaps their childhood will be a lot better than what fate has destined for them.

A New Direction

2005-02-02T23:25:00.000-08:00

Those of you who have been following my blog escapades since Day 1 know that I have been one of the biggest supporters of our President and his policies. The parent of this current blog was whybushrocks.blogspot.com. Right there you see how passionate I was about this whole thing. But the election is over and times have already changed. I have departed from whole-heartedly supporting George Bush and now am criticizing some of his policies. The reason I am writing this post is to sort of give an overview of what I’m thinking about politics in general. It’s funny because my friend explicitly told me not to talk about Bush in my new post. Fortunately, this won’t be entirely about Bush.

Sometimes, I can be one of the most outspoken conservatives around. I consider myself a Republican. Lately, I have found myself taking different opinions on issues that are accepted as the party platform.Tonight, I’m taking a stance here that many of my friends will find astonishing. I am departing from my previously held view about homosexual marriage. This piece will hardly be sufficient to put down everything I feel about this topic, but I hope you will enjoy it. While I understand the religious right’s fight against the redefinition of marriage in the United States, I have found myself moving back and forth on the issue. After all, I am a Christian and I am part of this country’s social fabric. The government will do well not to ignore my moral framework when legislating laws. But the arguments against homosexual marriage are leaving me at a loss of opinion. I agree that homosexuality is a sin and thus I feel government should not make a stand on it. But I take the view that homosexuals, as a minority group, should be protected by the government in all levels. My friend Jensen countered my argument of “protecting marriage by denying homosexuals the institution of marriage” by saying that if all that held heterosexual Christian marriages together was the absence of homosexual marriages, then we were in real trouble.

What good is a marriage if the bonds would be weakened by homosexual marriage? I understand my fellow religious conservatives when they say that it isn’t just the individual heterosexual marriages that would be affected but any future marriages would also be drastically altered. I’m not sure if I understand this argument. Why would a personal union between spouses be affected by someone else? Before my friends start praying for the demons to come out of me, I assure my readers that I do understand some of the other arguments against homosexual marriage. For example, one of the arguments that have not been countered yet is: By allowing homosexual marriages to take place, we in turn would be opening the door for the legality of three persons or four person marriages. This worries me, and not without good reason. Imagine the children living in these households. Would it be possible for them to have a reasonable upbringing? What would become of communities where these sorts of relationships exist? What about the taxation and social services loopholes? These are questions that we have to answer if we intend to look at the letter of the law in homosexual relationships. We must first realize that it is not a simple answer- there are actually quite a few loving homosexual couples who ask that their relationship be legitimized by marriage. And religious conservatives do have a point as shown by my above example.

It is clear with President Bush’s state of the union address on Wednesday that he does not plan to give up a lot of political capital on the Federal Marriage Amendment. He spent around forty seconds on it. This does not mean that both sides of the issue will sit back and remain in atrophy. We will see a full fledged contest in this president’s second term. As for now, I remain without an opinion on this hot topic.

UPDATE: George "Burrito" Andrews at UCDavis instant messenged me to try and get me over to the right side again. He wants to stop my "confusion." He sends this interesting link to those doubting what those darn homosexuals are up to. Wow.

Moving.

2005-02-02T20:22:00.000-08:00

Finally I found the picture of this moving moment from the President's state of the union speech. Wow.

2005-01-30T13:26:00.000-08:00

the guys

Good times are coming around the corner

2005-01-21T09:01:00.000-08:00

"We are led, by events and common sense, to one conclusion: The survival of liberty in our land increasingly depends on the success of liberty in other lands. The best hope for peace in our world is the expansion of freedom in all the world. . . . So it is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world."

- George W. Bush

'Nuff said...

Justin's NBA Live '05 Dominance

2005-01-13T23:54:00.000-08:00

My friend Justin beat me at NBA live again today... We had a 7 game series.. He beat me in 6. I won the first two. I played as Houston while he played as Phoenix. This guy loves Steve Nash. I hear he even dreams about him. But anyways, Justin is just phenomenal at NBA Live. His dominance on the virtual court is unmatched as he dispatches opponents with relative ease. His keen eye for all aspects of the on-court game and tremendous pressure on defense makes any of his opponents go teary-eyed. He uses Amare Stoudemire and Steve Nash as his two-pronged weapon of offense and defense. After Justin systematically defeated me by about 40 points in game 6, he went on to destroy Terence in an exhibition matchup versus the San Antonio Spurs. Terence had to deal with 69 points from Stoudemire and 38 assists from Nash on route to a hard-fought loss. There will be another matchup between Justin and myself sooon, but until then this post serves as a testament to Justin's unmatched PS2 NBA Live 2005 prowess. I fear for the one who takes him on next.

Cheers

2005-01-06T22:55:00.000-08:00

Myself, Pastor Samuel, and Jerry. He took his glasses off!

2005-01-06T22:51:00.000-08:00

What a wonderful picture! Aren't you glad we didn't zoom in further?

Relief Fund Donation Request

2004-12-30T14:35:00.000-08:00

I have just talked to someone in Seattle about the affects of the Tsunami on Kerala. According to sources they have in the area, around 50 families lost their homes when the waters came in and swept them away. All the information that I have right now is that this happened near AAYIRUM THENGU, KOLLAM, KERALA. I will have more pictures and such available when I get them. For now here is the information directly copied and pasted from their site. IPA Seattle has decided to personalize the relief effort. Now they desperately need your help. Any sort of donations will help and they will provide you with a receipt for your trouble.

Here is the address information:

Please donate to

IPA SEATTLE

P. O BOX 23361, FEDERAL WAY,

WA 98093, U.S.A

PHONE (206) 242-6565

prayfor@ipaseattle.org

PLEASE MENTION THE GIFT AMOUNT DESIGNATION: KERALA EMERGENCY RELIEF FUND

ALL DONATIONS MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR US FEDERAL TAX EXEMPTION AND RECEIPTS WILL BE MAILED TO THE DONOR IMMEDIATELY.

If you need any more information- email me at decruzp@gmail.com or refer to the email given above.

IPA Seattle's post on this situation is right here.

I will have more updates as they are given. Thank you in advance for your efforts.

Sober

2004-12-28T17:31:00.000-08:00

I was planning on posting pictures from my past two days. But I just saw something very crazy. For those of you reading from Southeast Asia, I have to say that I feel your pain. And we mourn with you. The reason I am posting is that I am asking for a rise to action among the people who check my blogs regularly. We need to donate to the cause. The death toll after the earthquake two days ago is at around 50,000, and most people say it will hit 100,000. Those of us here in the West have to do all that we can. We need to dig into our pockets. Whatever money you can donate- I plead with you to donate it to the relief fund at Amazon.com.

I clicked on the donation link and then scrolled to the bottom to see the amount of donations. It is rising every second. I just saw the amount of money go from 120,000 to 426,000 dollars donated. If you are reading this right now. Go to amazon.com and donate. Lives and livliehoods may depend on it.

Peace.

New Round of Pictures

2004-12-22T01:21:00.000-08:00

Ok, went and hung out with the Indian crew tonight.. Or last night.. Took quite a few pictures, didnt come out very well. Still trying to learn about the digital camera and how to take better pictures. The best thing to do to view is to scroll down for a bit.. and then start with the picture that says.. Game night. Scroll up from there.

2004-12-21T23:14:00.000-08:00

After another win, Jerry gets congrats from the entire crew. The entire subcontinet was on your shoulders Jerry, and you pulled through. Good work!

2004-12-21T23:13:00.000-08:00

Here he is... showboating to the crowd!

2004-12-21T23:11:00.000-08:00

Game went back and forth until the Indian Sensation took over..

2004-12-21T23:08:00.000-08:00

Jerry's beautiful fans, right before the game- posing for a picture...

2004-12-21T23:07:00.000-08:00

On hand to watch the event, every single Indian in Portland..

2004-12-21T23:06:00.000-08:00

The night of the big game, Old Fogies vs the Whites. Star Player... Jerry from the Essence

Yea, It's Fake but still...

2004-12-21T13:44:00.000-08:00

Ok... so it's a fake, but still... wouldn't this be friggin hilarious?

So it's official.. hmm?

2004-12-21T11:31:00.000-08:00

You are 7% geek

OK, so maybe you ain't a geek. You do, at least, show a bit of interest in the world around you. Either that, or you have enough of a sense of humor to pick some of the sillier answers on the test. Regardless, you're probably a pretty nifty, well-rounded person who gets along fine with people and can chat with just about anyone without fear of looking stupid or foolish or overly concerned with minutiae. God, I hate you.

Take the Polygeek Quiz at Thudfactor.com

2004-12-21T11:12:00.000-08:00

I love this guy

Hmm.. Some people really need to read before they comment

2004-12-19T23:04:00.000-08:00

What is up with people not reading through the entire post?

Some people just act dumb sometimes...

"At 8:18 AM, Anonymous said...
It may have been given only partial news coverage because this "recent" broadcast from Gordon Sinclair was actually broadcast in 1973:http://www.snopes.com/rumors/shame.htm"As to why the "Shame" article has been as widely circulated in e-mail as it has been, Americans are delighted by pats on the back issued by non-Americans, especially in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. In the fall of 2001, the 1973 Gordon Sinclair essay, "The Americans" found its way into the online world where many took it for a recent reaction by a Canadian journalist to the horror that had just taken place....America is all too aware it is hated abroad, thus international reactions whose gist is "No, we don't hate you -- you're actually wonderful, and we recognize your goodness and thank you for it" are going to be quickly seized upon and held up for others to see. ""

Well duh... Look at my post.. I posted the freaking link to the guy's website.. You people are beyond help..

Words from a Canadian about America

2004-12-18T13:49:00.000-08:00

Found this online, thought Ashish, Bobby, and Princy might like to read it. If you wanna hear the audio version, go to this website: http://www.canadianaconnection.com/cca/gordonsinclair.htm

Widespread, but only partial news coverage was given recently to a remarkable editorial broadcast from Toronto by Gordon Sinclair, a Canadian television commentator. What follows is the full text of his trenchant remarks as printed in the Congressional Record:

This Canadian thinks it is time to speak up for the Americans as most generous and possibly the least appreciated people on all the earth.

Germany, Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and Italy were lifted out of the debris of war by the Americans who poured in billions of dollars and forgave other billions in debts. None of these countries is today paying even the interest on its remaining debts to the United States.

When the franc was in danger of collapsing in 1956, it was the Americans who propped it up, and their reward was to be insulted and swindled on the streets of Paris. I was there. I saw it. When distant cities are hit by earthquakes, it is the United States that hurries in to help. This spring, 59 American communities were flattened by tornadoes. Nobody helped.

The Marshall Plan and the Truman Policy pumped billions of dollars into discouraged countries. Now newspapers in those countries are writing about the decadent, warmongering Americans. I'd like to see just one of those countries that is gloating over the erosion of the United States Dollar build its own airplane. Does any other country in the world have a plane to equal the Boeing Jumbo Jet, the Lockheed Tristar, or the Douglas 10? If so, why don't they fly them? Why do all the International lines except Russia fly American planes?

Why does no other land on earth even consider putting a man or woman on the moon? You talk about Japanese technocracy, and you get radios. You talk about German technocracy, and you get automobiles. You talk about American technocracy, and you find men on the moon — not once, but several times - and safely home again.

You talk about scandals, and the Americans put theirs right in the store window for everybody to look at. Even their draft-dodgers are not pursued and hounded. They are here on our streets, and most of them, unless they are breaking Canadian laws, are getting American dollars from ma and pa at home to spend here.

When the railways of France, Germany and India were breaking down through age, it was the American who rebuilt them. When the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central went broke, nobody loaned them an old caboose. Both are still broke.

I can name you 5,000 times when the Americans raced to the help of other people in trouble. Can you name me even one time when someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don't think there was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake.

Our neighbors have faced it alone, and I'm one Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them get kicked around. They will come out of this thing with their flag high. And when they do, they are entitled to thumb their nose at the lands that are gloating over their present troubles. I hope Canada is not one of those.

Gordon Sinclair

How about them apples?

Seem Familiar?

2004-12-17T11:44:00.000-08:00

Just saw this at Transterrestrial.com- I wonder if Ashish can look at this and make a few connections... Read the excerpt and then go read the whole thing.

PARIS (Routers) Long-time critics of the Roosevelt administration declared themselves vindicated today, as the Germans began a renewed offensive yesterday in the Ardennes Forest, opening a huge hole in the "Allied" lines and throwing back troops for miles, with previously unimaginable US casualties

(Via Instapundit)

I'll have the second part up some time today.

Why America is America

2004-12-16T23:58:00.000-08:00

This is the first of a multi-part series I'm writing on America and why I love it so much. Leave comments if you'd like. Please keep it clean though. Thanks. Enjoy!

It's hard to explain why my family left everything and came to the United States. It's very easy to use the old cliche: "The American Dream" I suppose it was an dream for us, to leave what we had in India and get to a level of prosperity we thought we would recieve in America. But we never said that out loud, the fact that we were looking for prosperity or a land flowing with milk and honey. We, meaning my family, simply felt that America would be better than India. Sure, we had a pretty comfortable life and we were content with sporadic hot water in our two bedroom apartment, a trashy car, dirty transit system, a thousand cows every square mile, and and living in one of the most polluted parts of Old Delhi. The fact is, we were still better off than the majority of people there. So why leave all that behind and come to the United States?

It is a tough question and I think very hard to put into writing. But I guess it can be summed up as thus: We knew in the depths of our hearts that the United States was better. Everyone knew it. Sure, we all enjoyed bashing fat stupid Americans and rooting against Coke and Pepsi. But when it came right down to it, we drank Coke and hell, quite a few Indians could have used a lot of fat on their bodies. I remember being a child on a Delhi railway station and just seeing a skeleton on the platform. The issue was that this was not a skeleton at all, rather it was a human being, his or her skin seemingly being the only thing on the body. This poor creature's condition was just a small part of the masses of suffering flesh in the poverty stricken parts of India. I really don't remember how I felt about that sight, or what emotions were going through my head. I don't even know what the people who were with me did about that unfortunate soul's condition.

I mentioned Coke a few sentences ago. Here's the truth about Coke in India when I was growing up in Delhi:

I drank Coke maybe once a year. It was pretty dang expensive, and now, having tasted coke over here, it wasn't the greatest cola in the world. As a matter of fact, one thing I remember about the plane ride over to the U.S is the beautiful stewardesses and the wonderful Coke. I realized after about an hour of the 11 hour plane trip (11? Indians, correct me if I'm wrong) that the coke was unlimited, and it was free. About every half hour after that, during rerun episodes of the Golden Girls, I would get up and walk to the back and ask for a can of Coke. I always say that I got part of my gut because of all those calories on the plane ride. But here I was, a little kid who went along with my older friends in bashing America all the time, indulging in what I truly hated- America. Does it make sense? Sure it does, it was just plain better than anything else I had ever experienced.

I hear white Americans bashing this country all the time. I think it comes out of a sense of guilt. I think its the same sort of guilt that George Orwell talks about in "Shooting An Elephant". It should be Guilt with a capital 'G'. This is because almost all Westerners have it. "My ancestors raped your civilizations, so we'll destroy ours from the inside by eating away at it's soul." That sort of Guilt. I'm the sort of guy that lives in the present, so I don't get those types of people. Only those who have been here can really explain America, and even so we really dont get it right very often. America is a melting pot- or maybe a really diverse homemade pie. Different cultures come here and create for themselves a little corner to live in and to grow in. Take my culture for example; The Malayalees started coming here in the late fifties to sixties. Today, it is possible for a person of my native land to come to New York and live his entire life dealing with Malayalees for about 80 percent of the time.

But I digress, my real point is: Why do people come here? It's because they have taken so much crap wherever they were that they hope against hope that God above will give them solace here. America is everything that their home isnt. It's safe, the roads are actually going somewhere and there are signs on them that tell you where you are. You can go into the bathroom and turn on hot water. Or if you are really crazy, you can turn on cold water. And for those who are on the fence, both hot and cold water. You don't even have to open the door when you walk into a supermarket- they love you so much that they make sure the doors open for you. Heck, the fact that there is even a supermarket here is amazing in and of itself. You try looking for Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream in Aisle #9 at Abu Mohammed's Supermarket in downtown Oboto. Even better things about the supermarket await you; it has every imaginable thing you could want. Numerous amounts of Coke. And even various different kinds of food. You can bet money that you wont see any starving poor people here either.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I really could keep writing. But I want to give everyone a chance to read this. I'll have the second part for you tommorow. Until then, leave your comments and your own experiences.

Good day.

What if this happend to you?

2004-12-11T13:10:00.000-08:00

How important is your face to you? Ukrainian opposition candidate, Yuschencko before and after he was poisoned with Dioxin.

2004-12-10T19:21:00.000-08:00

George, on a regular conversation with his mother- notice the love.

2004-12-10T14:46:00.000-08:00

Well, we all knew it was coming soon, and here it is. The first gay divorces are now happening all across Massachusetts-- they cant even keep track of it because its listed as husband and wife on the old divorce papers. Here's the CNN story- read the excerpt below- Gay people are funny.

The first gay divorce case in Suffolk County, which includes Boston, was filed Wednesday by a male couple who exchanged vows on May 22, five days after same-sex marriage was legalized.

One partner was a 33-year-old religious educator from Boston, the other a 39-year-old professor based in Washington. Since then, the couple said in their divorce filing, "our interests have grown in different directions." Each man signed a settlement attesting that the marriage had "irretrievably broken down."

The most difficult part of the settlement appeared to be custody of their three cats, who will live exclusively with the professor.

But "in recognition of the emotional hardship of such relinquishment," the settlement reads, the professor agreed to provide his ex "with periodic updates, photographs, and any health-related information pertaining" to the cats.

I refuse to speak on this matter. Leave comments....

Free Ukraine

2004-12-07T14:18:00.000-08:00

I have just put up a banner on the sidebar of my blog, you can see it on the bottom right. It's a little button in support of the Orange Revolution going on in Ukraine right now. If you would like to support it- go to Tulip Girl's cool website and find out how.

Entering His Rest

2004-12-06T22:58:00.000-08:00

If you live in Portland- listen to Dr. J. Vernon McGee on KPDQ 93.7 FM every weeknight at 10:30- It was an amazing message tonight. Here's what I took down on my notes.

He spoke from Hebrews 3:8 and on. Here's the verse-

"Today, if you will hear His
voice,
8 Do not harden your hearts
as in the rebellion,
In the day of trial in the
wilderness, "

Dr. McGee said that one of the biggest sins was disbelief in God. The Israelites spoken about by Paul had been liberated from Egypt by God. Yet they had to wander in the wilderness for decades before they could even enter Canaan. Out of everyone that came out of Egypt, two people made it into Canaan- Joshua and Caleb.

It's difficult to picture that. I guess the best way to explain it would be if you went to college for four years- there were 10,000 students in your college- and out of those students, only your friend and yourself graduated from college.

Imagine that staggering number.

2 people.

Why? Because Joshua and Caleb were the only ones who stood against the rebellion and believed in God to take them into the rest of Canaan.

Belief in God is important when we look forward to the rest that awaits us.

When you have unbelief, it leads to another sin-
Turning your back on God.

The Israelites were so deep in unbelief that they actually longed for slavery with the Egyptians rather than rest in Canaan under God.

Some Christians today still walk after the world- we have been freed from the bondage of sin- yet we long for the slavery of the world. We fail to see the rest that awaits us.

I've mentioned that twice now "the rest that awaits us."

Are you aware of the rest that awaits you?

Coming up soon, Dr. McGee talks about how Christ is superior to Moses and Joshua when he goes into Chapter 4 of Hebrews.

Leave your comments please.

Yay for digital cameras!

2004-12-05T14:41:00.000-08:00

Took a LOT of pictures again with my Olympus digital camera. Scroll down to see more of them. I apologize in advance, because I am having so much fun with my Camera, you're gonna be forced to see all my pictures! YAY!

My favorite Indian girl in the entire world, Jenny.

2004-12-05T14:35:00.000-08:00

Little John and myself- looking clean on Sunday afternoon after Church. Don't you just love that clean shaven face? Mine, of course.

2004-12-04T22:43:00.000-08:00

Jerry holding on to me for a little too long. At the youth meeting Saturday night.

Funny Stuff Is Coming Slow

2004-12-03T13:44:00.000-08:00

This is why I am so against having liberals secede from the Union and joining Canada. How then could we find entertainment? They are doing group therapy in Palm Beach County, Florida for Post Election Stress. Here is an excerpt:

The first of several free noontime therapy sessions at the American Health Association in Boca Raton was designed to treat what mental health counselors have dubbed Post Election Selection Trauma (PEST). “If I had a cardboard cutout of President Bush, and these people wanted to throw darts at it, I would let them do it,” Robert J. Gordon, AHA executive director, told the Boca News after the session. “It’s no joke. People with PEST were traumatized by the election. If you even mention religion, their faces turn blister-red as they shout at Bush.” Although the meeting was closed to the press, AHA therapists obtained permission from participants to provide an anonymous transcript to the Boca Raton News. “I’m scared,” said one man. “Democracy is at stake and nobody is rising to protest this president.” “I want to be a patriot, but it’s impossible to be a patriot in an immoral war,” said another participant, a woman. “Bush is breaking up marriages and dividing families by keeping our troops in Iraq.”

Go read the whole thing- you don't wanna miss it.

Maybe We Need To Rethink Justice

2004-11-26T23:04:00.000-08:00

Just saw this L.A Times article by JoAnn Wypijewski, gives an interesting viewpoint on the Matthew Shephard incident a few years back.

It's a great article to look at for a different perspective.

Read the whole thing folks...

I'm thankful for..

2004-11-25T23:14:00.000-08:00

I'm thankful for..

1. Salvation, grace, mercy, love, peace-- the works.
2. Life
3. Family
4. Five dollar deal at Teriyaki Woo
5. Friends
6. Thanksgiving turkey
7. My trusty blog
8. National Review
9. Living in the greatest country in the world. United States- if you didnt know.
10. Turning conservative
11. Cafe Latte Cheesecake
12. Milton Freidman
13. The Apprentice
14. Watching the best fight in sports history.

Finally, I am thankful for who I am. I've been through a bit in the last few years. I've complained sometimes about the situations I've been put through. But now, as I look back, I thank God for the person I have become. I see weaknesses, we are human after all. But I see places where God has shown me mercy. I am humbled by the majesty of it all. The wonderous love of God is enough to make me speechless. And for those of you who know me, that is very hard to do.

Hope you had a great thanksgiving....

Peace.

No.. Not So Much

2004-11-24T21:33:00.000-08:00

You know that feeling you get sometimes when you realize you've done this something absolutely wrong and something that hurt your friend in some way but you're just not dang sure what you did?

No.. Not so much?

Well, I have that feeling right now. It is bad. Really bad. This entire weekend just might be really bad. I wonder if any one has any idea or advice for me on how to handle this...

No.. Not so much?

Well, what if this friend is someone you appreciate very much and you would be sad to lose as a friend? Did that make any sense?

No.. Not so much?

Is that phrase getting a little old? Well yeah. It is for me. I pray that Thanksgiving works out for me.

Stay Safe, all of you
I love you guys very much.

Don't be stupid like me

Happy Thanksgiving to all..

Revolutions, Essays, School, and the Works

2004-11-24T08:18:00.000-08:00

I love watching revolutions happen. Well, I only love watching revolutions when it's a free-market, pro-West individual leading the revolution against a former Communist, pro-Russian individual. If you have absolutley no idea of what I'm talking about, crawl out from under a rock and cruise on over to http://news.bbc.co.uk Ukraine is undergoing some serious changes right now. I'm excited.

I apologize for the long delay in writing on my blog. I had been busy with school. Ok, that's a lie. I really havent been that busy at all. I always came up with great things to write, but I always lose everything when I sit in front of the computer. I usually just start chatting on AIM. I need to break that habit!

Romano's Macaroni Grill has been good to me. Well, they have been OK to me. I didn't like being at the bottom rung of the ladder until about last week when I learned that most of the servers hate the hostesses with passion. I heard it's because most of them are seen as incompetent high school girls. That may or may not be true. I really don't care, because usually I'm extremely stressed out and yelling at the servers who don't get their order right or quietly eating my Cafe Latte Cheesecake after my shift is over.

I got a reply from that company in San Fransisco. They didnt accept my application. Sheez.

I have to go to PCC now. Last day before Thanksgiving. I'll definitly blog again today.

You happy Ashish?

Peace.

Some good funny stuff

2004-11-08T09:32:00.000-08:00

Just read another one of Jay Nordilinger's Impromptus on National Review Online. At the end he has a letter that he puts up from Cuba. These are jokes that Cubans say amongst themseleves and by doing so they are always in danger of being incarcerated. These are pretty funny..

A Communist stands on a street corner yelling, "Fidel delivered us from our chains!" A drunk stumbling by answers, "And our watches, rings, bracelets, and necklaces."

Before the revolution, people died and became skeletons. After the revolution: skeleton first, die later.

For the new year, Cubans will receive two rice sacks each. One to wear as pants, and one to wear as a shirt.

Fidel makes a speech and declares, "In Cuba, nobody goes to sleep hungry!" One disheveled man raises a hand and says, "Commandante, I haven't eaten in days. I'm very hungry." Fidel says, "Then, true to my word, you will not go to sleep!"

The teacher asks Pepito, "What systems are incompatible with the Communist system of government?" Pepito answers, "The digestive system and the nervous system."

Another teacher asks Pepito, "Tell me three benefits of the Communist revolution." Pepito answers, "Nationalized health care, education, and defense."
"Great! Now tell me three challenges the country faces."
Answers Pepito, "Breakfast, lunch, and dinner."

Still another teacher shows her class a photograph of President Bush and asks if anyone recognizes him. Absolute silence.
She continues, "Let me give you a hint: It is because of this man that we Cubans go hungry."
Pepito jumps up and says, "I didn't recognize him without his beard and uniform."

Have a nice day..

Post-Election Hangover

2004-11-05T10:24:00.000-08:00

Well- if you didnt know already..

George W. Bush won. And I am the happiest guy in the world. I really enjoyed seeing the downcast look on the faces of all of my professors. I was beaming like a nut. Four years of more Bush- I am so friggin excited. All the hard work everyone did on the campaign paid off. Some Dems are trying to re-do the whole 2000 thing and claim that all the votes weren't counted. I am so sick of this. GIVE IT UP. Please. Let it die- your party is done. We rock. I'll see you all in four years!

Sorry- that was quite juvenile, but it was my blog and I needed to do something about the election.

More blogging later! Peace.

Come on folks!

2004-11-02T13:03:00.000-08:00

Allright, I doubt anybody reads my site. I really doubt it. But I'm begging you, if there is anyone out there who hasn't voted yet, PLEASE go out and vote. Do it for our country (United States of America, if you forgot. We need every vote we can get. Our president, George W. Bush, needs your help to stay in office. If you havent filled out your ballot yet, go do it now.

The exit poll numbers you are seeing on Drudge are not true, Jonah Goldberg over at the NRO says that they aren't true. And I believe him. Please, just go vote and get your lazy bum friends to vote, then you will be satisfied that you have done your job.

GO.

VOTE.

NOW!

Important Day

2004-11-02T08:41:00.000-08:00

I dont know how to explain the feeling I have right now. I can't think of a more important day in our nation's history. Well, D-Day was pretty important I suppose. But today is the final day, we have got to use today to make a difference. We need to get out and vote. Our choice is simple.

Either we vote today for our president- George W. Bush. Or we vote for John F. Kerry.

It's a vote between our country and the U.N interests.

It's a vote for our future.

Voting for the president ensures that we continue the war on terror. Don't believe the hype- there is no real anger built towards the president. Even if it is, it is baised on false information. Voting for Kerry ensures that the war on terror will turn into the war on drugs- no clear wins. We have got to make sure that this nation holds on.

It is a glorious day.

Viva Bush!

Interesting Passage

2004-11-01T19:30:00.000-08:00

I just saw this over at the Indian Blog Mela-

Dilip D'Souza makes an interesting point at the end of this post on his blog.

Shannon is hilarious

2004-11-01T10:46:00.000-08:00

My conversation with my friend Shannon at around 3:30 in the morning on Sunday...

DC: Hey, so let me ask you a question, ok?

Shannon: Ok...

DC: What weighs more, a pound of gold or a pound of cotton?

Shannon: What? Um.... the pound of gold?

DC: Ok, lets do it this way, there is a 100 pounds of Jerry and a 100 pounds of DeCruz- what weighs more?

Shannon: Uh.. I dont know! How much is a pound??

DC: Ok, how about this one? How many pairs of animals did Moses take with him on the ark?

Shannon: 1...NO! 2!

DC:.........

Shannon: Shut up! We're done! I'm hanging up!

DC: No! Don't hang up! I'll stop!

Shannon: Ok ok, fine. Anyways...

DC: A plane crashes on the border of America and Canada, where are the survivors buried?

Shannon: Are the survivors dead? Would it be on the border of America and Canada??

Ok fine.. Yea yea- I called her and woke her up. It was at 3:30 in the morning. So I guess you can understand why she gave those answers. But it was hilarious though! Ahh I'm glad I can talk to her.

Check back later!

Time For A Crazy Monday!

2004-11-01T09:08:00.000-08:00

It's been wayyy overdue. It's been a long time since I've had a crazy Monday! I think it's about time. I have so much crap to do today it's not even funny.

I've started working at Romano's Macaroni Grill- so you'll probably hear me griping more about how I'm at the bottom rung of the ladder there and such.

I have a final project due in my HTML class which I havent touched till Saturday night, therefore I am in deep deep trouble.

I also have to work on my final project in Psychology 101. I am so behind I should be slapped.

And I am excited because the date is tommorow. We might have a new president in office and our country could be going down the sewer. But I think the American people will make the right choice and vote for Bush.

Have fun today, and stay safe!

VIVA BUSH!

more blogging to come later...

Quite An Array of Stuff

2004-10-27T09:22:00.000-07:00

Unlike Ashish, I really can't put in excerpts from my book on here. That's because my book is called "Not Even A Hint" by Joshua Harris. It's a book on lust and how to avoid it. It is a tough book to read, especially because it is so convicting. I suggest anyone, guy or girl, to go grab this book. Or just sit at the bookstore and read it. You will just be amazed at how well this piece of writing presents a proper walk with God.

One thing I have been dealing with is patience in everyday life. When you have experienced something better than what you are experiencing right now, it is very tough to go through current situations. The most excruciating thing to go through is worse when you have absolutely no idea where to turn. This is why I thank God for providing me with guidance and hope. Although it's hard to see when our current problems will end, it is always a good thing to yield it to God. I've always been one who sets blueprints. I will be the first to confess that I can be lazy at times but I have always done the job in the end. So when I set "blueprints" or goals, I intend to keep them. A good lesson that I've been learning in recent weeks is to allow my goals to be overtaken by God's ultimate plan for me. The Bible says that we wont be given anything more than "we can bear" so we know that whatever the situation is, we can get through it and in the end God's plan will be revealed. I do have goals of my own- I havent written my new set yet- but now more than ever, I am willing to wait on God to be the architect of my future. And you will not believe how hard it is for me to accept that.

When Pro-Choice becomes Pro-Life

2004-10-25T09:25:00.000-07:00

This is a great post- go check it out..

It'll make your day.

http://www.legendgames.net/myblog.asp?view=plink&id=277

Joyful

2004-10-24T20:48:00.000-07:00

Went to Bobby's church today for something called Glow. It's a nice little prayer service. They sang their version of a great hymn that we sometimes hear on Christmas. But hearing this song just makes an individual's soul just dance with joy.

Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee,

God of glory, Lord of love;

Hearts unfold like flowers before Thee,

opening to the sun above.

Melt the clouds of sin and sadness;

drive the dark of doubt away;

Giver of immortal gladness,

fill us with the light of day!

All Thy works with joy surround Thee,

earth and heaven reflect Thy rays,

Stars and angels sing around Thee,

center of unbroken praise.

Field and forest, vale and mountain,

flowery meadow, flashing sea,

Singing bird and flowing fountain

call us to rejoice in Thee.

Thou art giving and forgiving,

ever blessing, ever blessed,

Wellspring of the joy of living,

ocean depth of happy rest!

Thou our Father, Christ our Brother,

all who live in love are Thine;

Teach us how to love each other,

lift us to the joy divine.

Mortals, join the happy chorus,

which the morning stars began;

Father love is reigning o’er us,

brother love binds man to man.

Ever singing, march we onward,

victors in the midst of strife,

Joyful music leads us Sunward in the triumph song of life.

I love the line in the last paragraph here:

Ever singing, march we onward, victors in the midst of strife.

Powerful song sometimes reminds us of the hope that we have in Jesus Christ. It's a wonderful thing.

Thanks for droppin by...

Wow...

2004-10-24T16:52:00.000-07:00

Yeah, Europe is definitly heading in the right direction-

At least we all know England is..

Devil Worshippers having a rocking good time in the Royal Navy.

Great Weekend

2004-10-24T15:48:00.000-07:00

It's a great blessing to hang out with a close friend and just talk for a long time. My friend and I talked about many different things. We realized we were thinking along the same lines on a lot of different issues. One example was about our role in our future or in a ministry. It felt like we wanted to get past our ego and our pride as much as possible. Using myself as an example, in high school God blessed me with some great positions. So I always had people telling me "woah you should be a preacher, you should do this and that." It's a great thing to speak for God and to tell other people about God but sometimes one has to wonder if you are really doing what you are supposed to be doing. Sure, God has given all of us talents and we're supposed to use them for His glory. I believe we must also be willing to do things that just don't appeal to us. We must have an attitude like Jesus in that he had a heart of servitude for his brethren. Before his crucifixion, Jesus washed the feet of his brothers. He did this as an act of humbleness. I'm sure all of us would like to be doing awesome things for God, but He might also choose to put us in a position of servitude. We have to be prepared to do anything for God. Even if that means not being the the center spotlight and not being held up in a position of leadership before others.

The greatest thing about a Christian attitude towards leadership is that leaders are to be the first to serve. Like Christ, we must strive to wash the feet of our brothers and be willing to do what they need. God has brought my friend and I to this conclusion-

We are willing to hold captive our desires for the glorification of our Master. Our desire in the realm of the Kingdom to do mighty things and always be leading the charge. But sometimes God puts us in positions where we are not in those leadership positions. We do not see His will yet. But it is in those times that we wait on Him for guidance, wisdom, and protection. But until then we echo the words of David as written in Psalms 84.10:
Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

As I said last night, "Lord, I would be happy to sweep the floors in Your house."

Check back in soon!

Lawrence O'Donnell Loses it on MSNBC

2004-10-23T09:06:00.000-07:00

Wow check out this video from last night on Scarborough Country-

Why should we let idiots like these get on TV?

Get me on TV!

Go watch on Daily Recycler

Response to the Canadian!

2004-10-22T09:40:00.000-07:00

Maybe Ashish is right- perhaps the Christians have always been going against the flow. This also means standing in the face of evil. In his comment to my first article about his post, Ashish wrote-

So what would you say to all the martyrs of the faith from the early church until now? Would you tell them to stand for their faith or would you look for equal rights?

My point was not about the martyrs of the faith themselves. It was about the government ruling them. This government allowed or iniated the persecution themselves. Would it be wrong or right to make a law that says that those Christians would have to be protected? It is true that Jesus said that those who "live by the sword will die by the sword" but one must remember the righteous anger he showed when he stormed into the temple courtyards to drive out the shopkeepers. Jesus would have shown no qualms about protecting his spiritual brothers and sisters.

My basic premise is this- of course the Christian martyrs of that time could have done nothing. Jesus told us to turn the other cheek. But does that in turn not allow the government to create laws that protect some of it's citizens? Should Nero have been punished for burning Christians alive? If given the chance, should Christians make laws that protect people? That's what I'm trying to get out of this discussion- in the face of persecution, do Christians have basic civil liberties?

The Hitler question is this- knowing that he would kill six million Jews eventually, should we have tried to kill Hitler?

This is getting way too deep for me- time for Writing 121.

Leave comments if you'd like.

National Review Does The Right Thing

2004-10-22T09:15:00.000-07:00

Just saw this up on National Review-

In his bid for reelection, George W. Bush deserves the support of conservatives. His presidency has not turned out as anyone expected. The country was struck hard early in his term. He rose to the occasion. The terrorists had to be hunted down, and our defenses had to be strengthened: On these points there was a consensus. Bush took a fateful, and necessary, further step: The political culture of the Middle East had to be changed as well, lest it incubate more terrorists. Bush has overseen progress on all three fronts. Afghanistan is no longer a secure base for terrorists. Saudi Arabia and Pakistan seem to be responding, ever so slowly and inadequately, to American pressure to side with us in the war on terrorism. The Pakistani nuclear bazaar has been shut down. Libya has agreed to dismantle its nuclear program. Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq is no longer a threat to our interests in the region, and the country has begun to take its first halting steps toward decent self-government. Law enforcement has gotten new tools with which to investigate and deter terrorist plots. Bush has reduced the gravest threat we face, that of terrorists with weapons of mass destruction.

Read the whole thing- there is some really good stuff here.

Bush: 57- Kerry: 43

2004-10-21T21:58:00.000-07:00

The race has been decided folks. The hip-hop debate has George W. Bush winning by quite a few votes.

(Thanks to Instapundit)

UPDATE: Oops! Forgot to add the actual link in the post. Here ya go..

Hip Hop Debate- www.miniclip.com/hiphopdebate.htm

Hopefully you still are entertained.

Good Guy, but oh so wrong!

2004-10-21T16:17:00.000-07:00

Ashish has just put up a great post on his blog about war and Christianity. It's very interesting because Ashish and I debated quite a bit when the Iraq war was in it's initial stages. I was completely against the war as Ashish wasn't quite sure where he stood. He wonders aloud in his post about how Christians can support a war that kills innocent civillians. Ashish forgets that war is neccessary sometimes. His crucial error is in saying that there is no just cause in "illing anyone period."

Then I ask a cliched yet important question; Would it have been justified to kill Hitler? The man did, after all, murder six million Jews in Europe. Would it have been wrong of a Christian to kill or execute Adolf Hitler. My answer is simply no. Here is an excerpt from Ashish's post today-

"Let me ask you, what is a greater testimony of Christ's love? Is killing a person because he killed someone else just? Do two wrongs make a right? The Bible does not teach so."

Ashish is correct in claiming that the Bible does not teach us to make a right with two wrongs. But he forgets that the Old Testament clearly shows us situations when a killing of a human being was justified. Just read through the first few books in the Bible. There are quite a few situations in which the Old Testament require punishment- usually through stoning the offendor. My friend also brings up the case of the persecuted Christians and how they took all the pain and suffering and returned it with love. I pose this question to Ashish and those who take up his opinion: How was the government (if it were not so anti-Christian) supposed to react? Would they have been justified to put the persecutors of the Christians in prison? Or would that have meant not showing Christian love towards them?

Saddam Hussein, according to the evidence given to the United States by it's intelligence community and other international ovbservers, was a threat. He had been looking to make weapons of mass destruction and had used them before against his own people. In order to stop a greater evil from happening, America and her allies had to act- and act they did. If Hitler had not been appeased at Munich- all the death and destruction that happend would not have happend. We would have stopped him and a great evil through the Holocaust could have been averted.

Christians should not be excited about war- but we must solemnly be aware that it is necessary to create stability and peace in a world so sorely in need of it.

I think Ashish and I agree that Jesus Christ is the only answer in the end.

An Amazing Moment

2004-10-21T13:05:00.000-07:00

Unbelievable-

The Boston Red Sox just did something that has never been done in my lifetime. They defeated the hated Yankees 10-3. I think it is safe to say that the curse is done.

I just got out of my stupid math class where I did an entire sheet of problems without any trouble. God is granting me the ability to work out these math problems like I've never have before. That is awesome. It is a great feeling to finish an entire problem and be satisfied that you did the whole thing. It might seem foolish to all you math geniuses out there but for me it is a huge accomplishment. Maybe PCC won't turn out that bad after all.

Check out my friend Ashish's blog. It's very interesting with lots of insightful stuff. This man is going to do great stuff for God one day.

If you have any suggestions or anything, drop me a line at my email addy- decruzpulikottil@yahoo.com I look forward to hearing your constructive criticism and such.

I might blog again later today- I have to go get some clothes for my new resteraunt job.

Here we go!

An Incredible Dream

2004-10-20T22:00:00.000-07:00

I had an incredible dream pop up in my mind the other day. It was so interesting, unique, and powerful that I was amazed that it would even come into my mind. The dream did not come to me in my sleep or in an unconcious state. I thought of it as I usually think of other things. My mind works it's way into something. It's almost like the feeling an individual gets when he is cutting through a forest trying to get to an open space. I am at the open space- I think I know what I want my future to be. But it's all in God's hands. I have certain things about myself and my personality that I need to get rid of. I'm sure everyone has been through that before. I feel as if God has planned something for me that is bigger than I could imagine but I need to reach out and grab it and make it mine. My dream might be a long ways away- but I see it happening. Who knows what will happen tommorow?

"Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed." Proverbs 16:3

Game Seven Showdown

2004-10-20T13:19:00.000-07:00

It should be quite a game. Even professional wrestling couldnt script a storyline like this one. The Boston Red Sox, after being down 3-0 in the American League Championship series are back in it after being the first team in the postseason to come back and bring the series to a game seven. Game seven- for me, When someone says game seven, I always think of the NBA Western Conference Finals in 2000. Los Angeles Lakers vs. my beloved Portland Trailblazers. The Blazers' massive shutdown in the fourth quarter was so crushing and so humiliating that I found myself asking the questions that I'm sure many Portland fans were on that day. Does God care about sports? Do my prayers matter? Why couldn't Kobe Bryant twist his ankle and save all of us? Game sevens are an amazing moment in the sports realm. It's the end of the line-- the point of no return. One team will go home- the other will take the trophy. When it comes down to situations like that- we will see incredible acts of loyalty by fans from both sides. We'll see face-painters. We'll see chest-painters. We'll see superstitutious people who refuse to take a shower until after the game is over. I have only been a real Boston fan for about two years now. I became one after working at my company in Hillsboro.

Our entire office hated the Yankees and everything about them. I hated the YES network, I hated the stupid announcers and the stupid fans that they showed on there. I hated the stupid show on the YES network- Yankeeography- contstantly showing Babe Ruth homeruns and perfect games by the various pitchers over the years. I absolutely hate them still. My boss happend to spend time with the Yankees for about four days down in New York. He told me that he loved every single one of them after that. They were the nicest guys and absolutely fun to hang out with. I told him he sold out. I would always hate the Yankees. The Boston Red Sox appeal to me- simply because they remind me of the American rebels against the British Redcoats. If you don't believe me, take a look at Johnny Damon. The man looks like the perfect model of a rebel. Either way, we are gonna have a great game tonight. One that will go down in the history books. You know that any time a sports game affects Wall Street- that it's really a sports game.

Life at PCC

2004-10-18T13:04:00.000-07:00

Now that I am hitting 35 minutes in the library, I thought I would do a quick post about life at Portland Community College. As my friend Laura said, the night life at this campus in Portland is quite crazy! Well who are we kidding here, there is no night life. In fact, there is no day life either. Being here is like being in some sort of mystical blob- like a massive portion of jello. You feel stuck since you see folks who graduated from Century High 4-6 years ago. What the heck have you been doing for 4 years? There is a guy in my math class who happens to be pretty intelligent at math. But when it comes to just plain social behavior he has nothing. He graduated from Century four years ago (back when I was a freshman.) and went right into the service. Thus, he has been cut off from normal human beings for quite a while. Another girl graduated when I was a sophmore- she has been at PCC for three years all the while failing the math class again and again. This worries me. This entire situation reeks of the aura of failure. I hate this aura because even if you try to avoid it, sometimes it can cling to you. I am truley afraid of my future after being here for about three weeks. I worry that that I will become another individual who peaks during high school and then spends the rest of his life telling other people how great his high school years were. I'm sure the guy in the machine shop with a missing finger and a few missing teeth isnt lying and when he tries to convince his coworkers that he used to be a 'stud' in high school. Fortunately for me, I was never a stud. Hmm... maybe there is still a morsel of hope for me.

New Perspective

2004-10-18T09:36:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, when you are part of something significantly life changing for a friend, you change the way you look at things. You learn to appreciate what you have and your friend in need. This weekend was extremely different for me. I did some things that I have never done before. But it is great to see that although a man can not take anything from this world- he can leave behind a legacy that is longlasting. It is a great hope to know that this life is not all we have. That a future is ahead of us. But all of us have times in our lives where we see things in a new light and examine ourselves to see if we are living our lives the right way. I did just that this weekend. As my friend and I talked on Friday night, I discovered how much I was really focused on my goals and God. We have short amount of time on this earth, it is our responsibility to make sure that we use it to make a difference in the lives of other people and allow ourself to be used by God.

I suppose to summarize everything I have said thus far, I would have to ask my readers a question- Do you know where you are going if you happend to die in the next few minutes?

It's a simple question.