More Poli-TRICKS Another Dr. Rock Editorial

Sarah Palin gave a speech a few days ago.... did u watch it or hear it.... well if you did... check out this editorial from Dr. Rock!

Chief, I listened to the speech over and over
She said "our national leaders are sending them out on a task that is from god. That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for. That there is a plan, and that plan is God's plan"
I don't think that I have taken anything out of context. I just don't think that anyone should be invoking some type of higher power plan as a reason for war or killing people. Does she have a secret phone line to God? Al Qaeida thinks it does too. Lots of religious groups think that they have the direct connection. In my opinion, people who can't separate their religious beliefs from reality should never be in power. Charles Manson thought he was the second coming. Jim Jones convinced hundreds of people to commit suicide under the guise of religious beliefs.

Fanaticism is exemplified (in my mind) by people who are willing to do what I call irrational things in the name of a being that they can never say with 100% certainty exists.
Any or all of the people on this e-mail list can call me crazy, but how can there be so many diverse religious stories and beliefs, and everyone thinks that they are right?

How can Jews and Palestinians kill each other in the name of a God that they both claim is loving, almighty, and all good?

If God exists, and he says love thy neighbor, etc, why do people kill their neighbors, over land?
It seems to me that fanaticism comes in many different shapes and colors. It may come from something as simple as the person who gives money to a church or religious cause when they really can't afford it. No harm done except to that person. The other extreme is someone who is willing to die, or worse, kill, in the name of a religious belief.

It seems to me that the 9/11 hijackers were of that mentality. 70 virgins? Come on! What about the female suicide bombers? What are they getting? Would any woman want 70 virgin men?
That's what makes me nervous about Palin. I don't know her well enough to say that she is merely devout and would not do something irrational with the mix of national security and her beliefs.
When you say that a war has God involved, and taking sides, I think you contradict your own premise for God's existence and purpose. Either you got it wrong, because God really favors one type of people over another, or you are not adhering to the very principle that you espouse. I don't believe in God, but I was taught that he loves everyone equally.

If the president of Iran seems irrational because he says that in the name of Allah, that Israel should be wiped off of the face of the earth, Gov Palin is also irrational to suggest that young men and women, christian or otherwise, from the US have the backing of God to go to another country and kill it's citizens.

It's not a trivial issue. One huge clogged artery in a president John McClain, and we have a president who thinks in some ways just like the "terrorists" that we are fighting against
Just something to think about.
Dr. Rock

DR. Rock 's Editorials

I know i know its been awhile...(LOL for everything) but we are back .... now its been awhile since any of the Doctor Rock's Editorials have been posted...don't get mad at the Doc... get mad at his poster...(me) !...Now that's out of the way... He is raising a very important point .... Iraq Wants Us OUT... (us is the U.S. for some people a little on the yellow bus ) LEAVE A COMMENT!

All politicians are flip floppers. Thats the nature of the job. My question is: Why is John McCain is being called a war hero? Did he rescue a platoon? Did he dive on a grenade? Is it because he was a prisoner of war? Is it because he was tortured? I would never minimize a person's military service, especially if they were a POW, and certainly not if they were tortured. If you endure that type of treatment, and don't break, you ARE an American Hero.

But where did the cameras come from? Why do we have footage of John McCain as a soldier, and in captivity? Who was filming? Why would there be cameras in a Vietcong POW camp? Was he a celebrity or something? Were other soldiers filmed? Many soldiers were held in POW camps, but they weren't filmed. Is that why he is a war HERO? Because he got filmed? Think about that, why was he filmed? Was he connected even then? Do we think of him as a hero because we have footage of him as a POW?

I knew some people who were POWs in Vietnam. I don't know if they were filmed. Many are dead now. Some are homeless schizophrenics. Maybe they could run for president on the "war hero" platform.

What about being a POW makes you qualified to lead the country, especially when, by your own admission, you don't know much about the economy? I'll bet that inspires a lot of confidence in those who have lost their homes to foreclosure.

Why should I vote for someone who wants to keep us in a fucked up situation for 100 more years?

Bush started extending tours, bringing back soldiers that had left the military. If we stay for 100 years, who's next, non military 49 year olds with torn achilles tendons?

I have nothing but respect for people who volunteer or were drafted to protect our country. The Iraq war was stupid to start, mismanaged since, and has no end in sight, but Vietnam was worse. 56,000 Americans lost their lives in that stupid war. 4000 in Iraq.

The Vietnam War was started by a democrat, and continued by a democrat, so stupidity crosses the isle. It was ended by a republican. The party affiliation doesn't matter. I have nothing but respect for president Kennedy, but Vietnam was a dumb decision, and I would not have voted for his ass if he ran for re-election after that decision.

I just think that as smart as the American people are, only a small handfull are really smart. They become politicians, doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc. The rest wear coveralls, drink cheap beer and get brainwashed by the "smart" people. They drive tractors, eat hotdogs, and watch Jerry Springer on TV.

The smart people manipulate the dumb fucks, and make them believe that preventing the spread of communism is worth dying for (Vietnam) (WTF?), that weapons of mass destruction are a threat to us from a country many miles away, and they make us feel unpatriotic when the lies and vitriol is cloaked in declarations that these issues are important to the United States. "Lets fight'em over there, so we don't have to fight'em over here!! What the fuck are you talking about? The smart people have fooled your asses so bad!!

So all of you uneducated, uniformed, flag waving, fuckheads keep believing the crap that the smart people give you.

As Charles Manson said "I have stayed dumb". Some people can't help staying dumb, because they are exactly that, dumb. It's a genetic thing, you wouldn't understand. You wouldn't want to be able to understand. And you certainly wouldn't want to admit it if you realized one day, "hey, I'm dumb as shit". If you do understand, you are probably dumb.

The rest of us have an obligation to get off of our tractors, put down the fucking latte's, take off our overalls, stop watching "American Idol" (puleeeaasee!!) and pay attention to the bullshit that we are being fed.

Oil prices have more than doubled in the past year. Bush and Cheney are oilmen. So while you are trying to figure out how to drive to work, keep your lights on, AND feed your kids, they and their kids will never have to make those choices, for generations to come.

Open your eyes and stop believing in those assholes. We pay the price in lives and money. They just get rich.

PLEASE COMMENT... DR. Rock wants to hear!

Editorial- Religion- Whats your take...?

Well this is a post that definately got me talking in my office... check out Dr. Rock.... (props Dr. Rock)

First, let me say that I grew up in a very religious family full of Baptists. I went to church regularly, spent a moment on the choir of Gospel Tabernacle Church on Walbrook Avenue, and worshipped my grandmother who was a lifelong member. It was not unusual for our home to be filled with gospel music on any day, especially when the extended family was around, although usually it was after a night of hard drinking.

As I grew older, I began to question some of the things that I read in the Bible, and some of the things that I had been taught to believe
For instance:

1. Why, given all of the miracles that are touted in the Bible, are no miracles happeninng today, if they happened in the past? Why is no one walking on water, parting a major sea, etc?

2. Why are there so many religions? Everybody can't be right. Not to mention people are willing to kill other people and fight wars over religious beliefs.

3. I'm no expert on any particular religion, but why do most talk about love and the greater good, but then hate, mistrust, and wars develop over religious beliefs? How could the Ku Klux Klan be a christian organization?

4. Why is it that we refer to the beliefs of ancient Greeks, and Norse people as myths? These people believed that there were multiple gods, i.e. god of fire, god of love, etc. It occured to me that one day our beliefs, i.e. in Jesus Christ being the son of God, and there being a supreme being will be referred to as myths. After all, the Greeks certainly believed in their gods.

5. I started asking myself, why do we believe in any God, and in any religion? The theory that I came up with is that man is weak and has an inherent fear of what he doesn't understand. That coupled with a strong desire to explain things that he doesn't understand led to religion. I can visualize some primitive man seeing lightning strike a tree and starting a fire. It probably scared him to death, and he explained it by the fact that some greater power was responsible for it.

6. It was easy to see the hypocrisy of the churches that I attended growing up. All of the actors falling out into the isles, raising their hands, shouting, and basically making fools of themselves. There were the preachers who were the worst actors, screaming and hollering, pounding the podium. What made me laugh the most was the passing of the plate. I contributed as a child, but I wondered where that money went. Was God broke? Why did the plate come by two and sometimes three times? Did it cost money to believe in God and to worship him?
I later came to realize that it cost money for the pastor to drive his Mercedes Benz, but also to sponsor some of the good things that the church did, i.e. youth programs, etc.

7. I may be wrong, but I used to believe that, priests, pastors, preachers etc had some connection to God that the rest of us didn't have. I couldn't get up to the pulpit, pick a verse, and tell you exactly what God meant by it. The pastor was teaching me, I wasn't teaching him, and neither were any of the other parishoners.
If my assumption was right, why did all of these men of God with this connection to God feel the need to make connections with little boys? Was that all right with God?. Why would $600 million dollars make it go away? Did God say that money would make things even? More hypocrisy

8. If the Bible is the word of God, why do the rules change? At one time women couldn't be pastors in the catholic church and homosexuality was an abomination. Why is it more acceptible now? Did God change his mind? Did he put out a new book? Where is it, Borders Bookstore?

9. If God is so good and all powerful, and I've heard people give him credit for all types of good things, especially when a patient who is doing poorly, suddenly improves, why does he let bad things happen? People often say "God is good" when something good happens, but what about when Susan Smith pushed a car into a lake with her two childern strapped in and they drowned? Did those kids deserve that? If God exists, and is so powerful, how could he let that happen? A few years ago a few hispanic kids in the Park Heights area had their throats slashed. I asked the same question. Why would God let over 3000 people, many of whom I'm sure were good people and believers, perish in the World Trade Center tragedy? Why would he let 17 million people die from a flu epidemic? Surely, they all could not have been sinners and evil people. I could go on and on. I have yet to hear "God is bad". I have heard tragedies like this explained as "God has a plan". What plan? A plan to let disabled people drown during the Katrina tragedy? A plan to let people go hungry and die from disease in Chad and the Congo? There are more merciful ways to die, if God plans for people to die.

Once a family told me that God had a plan, and that a miracle was going to happen to heal their loved one, because I was just a man. They didn't buy my pessimistic prognosis for their loved one or the fact that it was my hands, not God's hands keeping him alive. I proposed undoing all of the machinery and medications that I was managing, and seeing if God was going to intervene. Needless to say, they weren't willing to gamble on God's hands.

I believe people have been taught, sometimes brainwashed into believing that some all powerful being exists, despite that fact that that there is no evidence to support this idea. We weren't born believing in God or Jesus, anymore than were are born believing in hating people of other races, or speaking a certain language. We are a blank slate when we are born, hence the reason that you can teach a child to believe in Jesus, Muhammed, Bhudda, or whomever you like. People have been taught these things from infancy, and so they believe it.

Despite my disbelief, disdain is probably too harsh of a word. I really have a hard time sitting through funerals, because I have to hear a sermon. I don't say grace before I eat, and I don't pray. Organized religion does have some benefits, I will admit. I know people on a personal level that would be sociopaths if not for their belief in God and their involvement in church. Many churches are sincere in their efforts to positively affect their communities, and give people a mechanism to play a role in that way. Those are all good things that organized religion brings to the table. Theres more, but those are the concepts that immediately come to mind.

I am a scientist by training. I need proof of things. To me the greatest proof is in repoducibility. I believe that everytime I cut my arm, I am going to bleed, and I can prove it because it is reproducible. I have yet to have any of my prayers answered.

I can't say with 100% certainty that my viewpoint is right, or that the Bible is a fictional story, or that God is a myth, but nobody else can say with 100% certainty that I am wrong. They might believe, but they can't prove it.

Let me end by saying that I do respect a person's desire to believe whatever they want as long as that belief doesn't hurt anyone else.

Dr Rock

Exclusive- DR. Rock Editorial - BARRY BONDS

...( Thanks Dr. RocK)

OK, so now Barry Bonds is finally indicted. If he perjured himself its hard to deny that he committed a crime. It's hard to believe, but he could go to jail for this. But the bigger story is the use of steroids in sports. I really don't care if he or other athletes used steroids. There are a couple of things to consider for you baseball purists.

1. If Bonds used steroids, and so many other players used steroids, i.e. Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Brady Anderson, Jay Gibbons, Rafael Palmiero, etc. the list goes on and on, isn't the playing field level? Do you really have an advantage if everybody is using?

2. What can you conclude about the players who used steroids and did not become superstars? I'm talking about the minor leaguers and marginal players who got caught. These folks didn't get bigger, stronger, better. Heck, most didn't even make it to the major leagues.

3. If Barry Bonds' home run record deserves and asterisk next to it because Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Babe Ruth didn't use steroids, don't most records broken and set in modern times deserve an asterisk next to it? Ruth, Aaron, Frank Robinson, etc didn't work out year round either. They couldn't afford to. They had to get offseason jobs to support their families. In addition, the benfits of weight training and year round workouts were known or well accepted in the past. I wonder how many home runs Willie Mays would have hit if he hit the weight room regularly like Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and most modern day major leaguers. The most Ruth did was 12 oz curls. Besides, maybe Ruth and other players used steroids. How do we really know if they used steroids or not? After all, not many people hit 660 home runs.

4. Bonds has never flunked a drug test.

5. Look at the difference between the head size of a young Barry Bonds and an older one, and a young Roger Clemens, and an older one. In fact look at the difference in the size of the head of your own father when he was 22, and now (if he is 50 or over).

6. Steroid use was not against baseball rules or even illegal, when Bonds and McGwire were accused of using them.

7. Should taking steroids really be a crime? Who is the victim here? It's certainly not like robbing a bank or murdering someone.

8. Steroids do not improve hand-eye coordination. Anyone who has played baseball knows that it takes a lot more than strength to hit a baseball 400 feet. If that were not true, then a lot more steroid users would be jacking up 40-50 home runs per year.

Rafael Palmiero's swing is what allowed him to hit 500 home runs. Besides, did he even look like a steroid user? At least Bonds is buff. If you use steroids and you don't work out, you get zero benefit, ask any bodybuilder.
I would like to think that my federal government has more important things to do with its time and my tax dollars than to get involved in a sport. How about hunger, education, war, the environment, genocide in Darfur. It reminds me of the witch hunt for Bill Clinton. The man got a blowjob, and people wanted to crucify him. I'm not advocating lying under oath or cheating on your wife, but lets be real, and lets remember the things that are really important.