Oh look. Another blog about stuff. Wonderful.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

I am the straw man

Hey gang. It's been awhile. I have something I need to say. I thought I could just play it cool, turn the other cheek, and move forward. But alas- no dice.

I know I'm not perfect, and I'll even go so far as to admit that I don't know everything. I never claimed to have the inside truth scoop. I started this blog as a means to share my thoughts, feelings, opinions, and beliefs. Not so that I could start a thought revolution or brainwash the masses...rather, I just needed a forum where I could process out the inner workings of my brain and share some of myself with the world. PG, of course.

Additionally, I will even admit that yes, I possess a certain level of naivety. By and large, I have lived a sheltered existence. There are experiences that I have not partaken of- for better and for worse. I cannot claim to have walked through many of the tribulations and trials that others have.

But I don't think that should disqualify me from speaking my mind. I am a human being, and I have experienced things that other people have not. They are my experiences- no one else's. And I try to fill in the blanks by talking to others about their experiences, and reading about the experiences of others. It's not feasible (or even possible) to know every single human experience that there is. That's why communication is so important. That's why I feel that this blog is important. I feel that I have things to share with everybody. No, they won't pay off your credit card, fill your gas tank or solve world hunger. But that's not what I'm selling, anyways.

In terms of being inexperienced-I don't think that the lack of experience is an automatic disqualifier. Look at Samuel. Or Timothy. And those are just a couple biblical examples off the top of my head. Again, I'm not saying that I'm absolutely, 100% positively correct and above reproach. Because I know that I'm not. But don't disqualify the words I write or the things I say just because they come in a package that doesn't look like the one they show on T.V.

Yes, I am somewhat of an idealist. So was Jesus. So was Martin Luther King, Jr. Of course they also dwelt firmly in reality. And I strive to do that- I do. I feel that I'm pretty pragmatic, for the most part. But I don't think that we should just blindly accept reality because it's the way things are. Without the pursuit of high and noble principles- aren't we just reduced to animals? Struggling to survive on the bottom of the hierarchy of needs? Sure, the world functions in reality- but it changes because of dreamers.

I guess what I'm trying to say is- this blog is me. It's me, putting myself out there. My heart on the screen. I don't ask you to blindly take what I say as gospel. I want to raise questions. Sure, there are often times when I just want to score some good laughs. And sometimes, I might make ridiculous pop-culture related lists that really serve no purpose other than cluttering up cyber-space. But there are times when I dig deep into those parts of myself where I have wrestled with serious issues, and I try to present those issues to you so that you can wrestle with them yourselves. I want us to grow. And I don't think we can really truly grow unless we are willing to put our innermost beliefs and ideas to the test. If we just reject opposition out of hand- then we still might become more secure in our own beliefs- but we are robbing ourselves of a chance to experience something wonderful- a chance to encounter truth.

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