A very good piece of note...
Village of 100!
If Earth's population was shrunk into a village of just 100 people, with all the human ratios existing in the world still remaining, what would this tiny, diverse village look like? Phillip M. Harter, a medical doctor at the Stanford University school of Medicine, attempted to figure out. This is what he found:
57 would be Asian; 21 would be European; 4 would be from the Western Hemisphere; 8 would be African; 52 would be female; 48 would be male
70 would be non-white; 30 would be white; 70 would be non-Christian; 30 would be Christian; 89 would be heterosexual; 1 would be homosexual; 6 people would possess 59% of the entire world's wealth, and all 6 would be from the United States; 80 would live in substandard housing; 70 would be unable to read; 50 would suffer from malnutrition; 1 would be near death; 1 would be pregnant; 1 would have a college education; 1 would own a computer
The following is an anonymous interpretation:
Think of it this way: if you live in a good home, have plenty to eat and can read, you are a member of a very select group. And if you have a nice house, food, can read and have a computer, you are among the very elite.
If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more fortunate than the million who will not survive this week.
If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.
If you can attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death, you are fortunate, more than three billion people in the world can't.
If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of this world.
If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace, you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy.
If your parents are still alive and still married, you are very rare, even in North America.
If you hold up your head with a smile on your face and are truly thankful, you are blessed because the majority can, but most do not.
If you can hold someone's hand, hug them or even touch them on the shoulder, you are blessed because you can offer a healing touch.
If you can read this message, you are more blessed than over 2 billion people in this world who cannot read at all.
Have a good day...count your blessings.
B.G. ;)
Feb 19, 2006
Feb 11, 2006
My Valentine...
...knows when he has it good
...isn't afraid of raw emotion: his or someone else's
...shaves
...is in touch with his world and what's going on in it
...feels the fear and does it anyway
...doesn't take himself too seriously
...loves my kids
...brings flowers for no reason at all
...doesn't sweat the small stuff
...won't find excuses to get out of my family gatherings
...is educated
...gives a damn about his appearance
...knows how to cook
...thinks I'm amazing
...sings and plays guitar
...is patient and understands me
...takes pride in my successes as much as his own
...is the life of the party
...misses me when I'm gone
...looks for ways to better himself
...understands that I need my space
...isn't afraid of raw emotion: his or someone else's
...shaves
...is in touch with his world and what's going on in it
...feels the fear and does it anyway
...doesn't take himself too seriously
...loves my kids
...brings flowers for no reason at all
...doesn't sweat the small stuff
...won't find excuses to get out of my family gatherings
...is educated
...gives a damn about his appearance
...knows how to cook
...thinks I'm amazing
...sings and plays guitar
...is patient and understands me
...takes pride in my successes as much as his own
...is the life of the party
...misses me when I'm gone
...looks for ways to better himself
...understands that I need my space
Feb 8, 2006
Burning flags for sale
Can someone please help me understand what the f**k is going on in Islam? The people there are so unbelievably quick to anger and hate. I read with shock in the Globe and Mail yesterday that a local entrepreneur, eager to benefit from the opportunity, stocked up on Danish and Norwegian flags just as the outpouring of rage was beginning over the publication of caricatures of their prophet Mohammed in a Danish newspaper. This guy knew his people would be lining up to buy the flags so they could burn and destroy them to avenge themselves on the 'infidels' who had blasphemously mocked their faith. I can just see him, rubbing his scaly palms together and chuckling quietly to himself as he made sale after sale after sale. At over $10 US a pop, he is likely not selling as many flags as he could, but instead he is going for the top dollar. I wonder if he realizes/cares that he is totally exploiting his people for a buck.
Growing up in a peaceful, democratic country, I suppose I take for granted the lifestyle, freedoms and attitudes to which I am accustomed. In this country, when someone disses you or your religion, one is more likely to just ignore it and not worry so much about what others think and/or say. And as we have many different religious denominations rather than just one prophet, it is far more likely that there are going to be religious clashes from time to time. Take for example my former workplace in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Our office was a real diverse group of people working in a small environment. Staff would openly discuss their faith with one another, and on occasion there would be a disagreement as to which organized religion was the 'correct' one. Never ever did a riot break out over someone making light of another person's beliefs or choosing to denounce the doctrines of said faith.
We really are very lucky - those of us who live in North America and are allowed to practice our chosen faith (or no faith for that matter) without fears of repercussion or ostracization. However at the same time I realize that we need to do our best to understand our differences with other countries, and to that end I try to respect the beliefs of other cultures even when they make no sense to me whatsoever. But I have to draw the line here: any god who tells me that to redeem myself and achieve his favour I must strap 20lbs of plastique onto myself, walk into the middle of a crowded plaza and blow myself up is one whacked out god.
Sorry....
Growing up in a peaceful, democratic country, I suppose I take for granted the lifestyle, freedoms and attitudes to which I am accustomed. In this country, when someone disses you or your religion, one is more likely to just ignore it and not worry so much about what others think and/or say. And as we have many different religious denominations rather than just one prophet, it is far more likely that there are going to be religious clashes from time to time. Take for example my former workplace in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Our office was a real diverse group of people working in a small environment. Staff would openly discuss their faith with one another, and on occasion there would be a disagreement as to which organized religion was the 'correct' one. Never ever did a riot break out over someone making light of another person's beliefs or choosing to denounce the doctrines of said faith.
We really are very lucky - those of us who live in North America and are allowed to practice our chosen faith (or no faith for that matter) without fears of repercussion or ostracization. However at the same time I realize that we need to do our best to understand our differences with other countries, and to that end I try to respect the beliefs of other cultures even when they make no sense to me whatsoever. But I have to draw the line here: any god who tells me that to redeem myself and achieve his favour I must strap 20lbs of plastique onto myself, walk into the middle of a crowded plaza and blow myself up is one whacked out god.
Sorry....
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