Posted by Ryan
March 7, 2009
I started reading Perelandra by C.S. Lewis today. In the second chapter the character Ransom says something I find extremely interesting.
Haven’t you noticed how in our own little war here on earth, there are different phases, and while any one phase is going on people get into the habit of thinking and behaving as if it was going to be permanent? But really the thing is changing under your hands all the time, and neither your assets nor your dangers this year are the same as the year before.
– Perelanda, C.S. Lewis
Then, I read this post, How far away is your emergency? by Seth Godin, and marveled (mainly because I wanted to use the word) that Godin illustrates exactly the point Lewis was talking about.
It’s amazing that people have so much time to fret about today’s emergency but almost no time at all to avoid tomorrow’s.
A glimpse at the TV and internets shows one talking head after another angsting about today’s economy. These are the same people who needed to devote entire hours to mindless trivia nine months ago when they could have done an enormous amount of education about avoiding this mess in the first place.
…
They say the best time to look for a job is when you don’t need one. And the best time to invest in a new Purple Cow is when you’re still milking the old one. Move your emergency back in time and you’ll be amazed at how far your money goes.
– Seth Godin
It’s important to remember that our present circumstances are not permanent. Tomorrow’s emergencies will be different from today’s and we ought to keep that in mind so as not to be surprised and, more importantly, so that we’ll be prepared when the changes occur.
Posted by Ryan
November 18, 2008
Space is big. Really big. You just won’t believe how vastly hugely mindboggingly big it is. I mean you may think it’s a long way down the road to the chemist, but that’s just peanuts to space.
– Douglas Adams
The vastness of space has fascinated me for a long time. And by a long time I mean at least 3 weeks.
Okay 3 weeks is a gross underestimate. I’ve been fascinated by space for a really long time. I bought this telescope 8 years ago? 9 years? 10? I don’t really remember. I bet I could find out, but I’m not going to today.
So we know that the universe is vast. Hugely vast. Bigly big. Thinking about how big it is makes my cares feel so small and insignificant. But, they are significant. Even if we care about something we shouldn’t care about, the very act of caring about it makes it important.
Caring about something simply means means that action needs to be taken. If that action is to stop caring about it because it shouldn’t be significant, then it’s probably a pretty big deal. Little things add up. If our lives are full of the mundane and what we deem unimportant, that’s significant.
If you recall from my post on Saturday, I woke up really late. I worked until about 10:30 PM. I was bored. Tired of being indoors. Still not happy about having slept in. I wanted to get out of the house. I went for a drive.
I didn’t have any specific destination in mind. I just started driving. I ended up in American Fork, UT (about 15 miles away). I stopped at a McDonald’s and bought an M&M McFlurry. Yes, very unhealthy. I made it even less healthy by requesting Oreos be added. Yeah, I know. It was a total sugar overload and so not worth it.
After ordering, and just before driving up to the window to pay, I noticed something interesting on that little screen where they show you your order. It was photo of this guy:
Not really though. What I saw was this: “Extra Salad Dressing 0.25″
25 cents for Oreos? Ok, sure. That’s fine. I thought it was funny they charged it as Salad Dressing. I wonder if anyone in McDonald’s upper management ever looks at trends. “Why are so many people buying salad dressing with McFlurrys? Should we market this?”
When contemplating the vastness of the universe, and then 25 cents for extra salad dressing (I choose Ranch) on a McFlurry at a McDonald’s in American Fork, Utah (located on a tiny little rock floating in space), it feels markedly ridiculous to think for a moment that those 25 cents matter. And yet they do.
This realization is mind boggling. How is it that the sheer mass of the universe (and perhaps multiple universes) is not more important than the needs of one individual, or even 25 cents?
The vastness of the universe does not supersede my individual cares, nor yours. And, of course, vice versa. Or, are the ‘cares’ of the universe as a whole made up of the sum of its parts?
Is it possible for the collective needs of a society to supersede the rights of any individual?
Posted by Ryan
September 23, 2008
Looks like there is hope on the horizon.
[Yesterday], U.S. Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) announced his opposition to the $700 billion plan proposed by the Bush Administration to bailout Wall Street.
- DeMint Opposes Wall Street Bailout
