Too Smart? Too Good? Too Bad?

Ok, I admit to it, I love to think about weird things, and I take inspiration from what most folks would consider odd sources. One of those sources is bad Science Fiction. I admit to liking science fiction, and I consider it to be one of the best mediums for expression, it allows freedom and thoughts that would be strangled out in any other genre.

The other day a theme of some SF hit me and it made me stop and think. This "Thesis" if you will was this:

"Any sufficiently advanced society will depend on technology, advancement, and overwhelming scientific knowledge to it's own demise. A society such as this will forget to think, forget creativity, and begging to die, not to live."

That is sort of my take on this theme; and i think that today we have plenty of examples. However I wanted to explore this thought more before trying to show examples.

I believe that this shows a sort of intellectual arrogance, a sense that once we have THIS we can handle anything with out having to think about it. It is a way of removing thought from the equation of problem solving. This will lead inevitability to rote answers and formulaic responses to every situation, no matter how odd or out of the ordinary. If X is the answer to every question, then what is the point of trying to understand anything? X

The concept of "understanding your way out of a problem" is basic to almost any decision that is made every day. Unless you take the time to consider the ramification of a decision you will very rarely make the correct one. Before you can make a correct decision the whole problem must be understood, including the more subtle problems, often this category involves people emotions, reactions; likes, dislikes; mood, and hidden issues. DO NOT think that I am saying that political correctness is the point. Absolutely not! All political correctness does it to mask the real thoughts, emotions, and opinions in a vernacular of pure banality. If you want to be honest, PC thoughts and words will probably not convey the full extent. No language is good at fully conferring thoughts from one person to another, but to artificially confine the language to a preselected and sensitivity tested subset of words is to only chop off 50% of the ability of a language. If you restrict words, the net effect is to restrict thoughts. Political correctness is slowly and surely killing this world, and every brain in it. If we try and reduce the whole of human interaction and thought into 25 categories, and you can only use positive, affirming words, just how accurate do you think you can get across the point, "I hate it when some dumb jack hole drives so badly he almost killed me!" The words we are restricted to will naturally lay out the channels of our thoughts.

See that aside was not as far afield as you thought huh?

What is the solution for this degradation of thought in the world. Easy, ask each person to do some. When problem solving becomes a basic skill, just like language and walking, it will be improved. My theory is that most folks are scared to make a decision, any decision. everyone is always told the consequences of a bad decision, and after enough of those messages it is easy to understand the reluctance to make any decision.

Now that i have wandered all over the place, he is how it ties together. If you allow any thinking to be done for you, any at all, you have surrendered the right to decision making. Once this is done on a societal level and it becomes a cultural imperative to allow some decisions be made for you, there is no recourse except for the solitary rebel who stands up and yells at the top of their lungs "I have a brain and I am not afraid to use it!" When someone rebels against the cultural and societal decisions it allows for thought again. When a cultural Knowledge is challenged it requires everyone to make a decision about that knowledge and that is the point; at this point a person can go from a walking zombie, reminiscent of Orwellian future, into a complete person.

I use the term knowledge very purposefully, this is the commonly held opinion that is so common and so accepted that to challenge it seems silly, because if you have never questioned it you have never really thought about it. Only when the spotlight of independent thought is brought to bear can we really see. On example of this is the whole marriage debate, what does it mean to be "married", and what are the specifics of it?

All of this decision making talk, and personal responsibility, and challenging talk goes back to the initial premise. That is that when you allow anything, society, others, or technology to take the decision out of the loop, then the person who makes the decision is similarly pointless. When the fall back is "Use the equation", "Follow the formula"; "Standard response # 3 (We are too busy, and will get to you when we can)" becomes the only thing, and there is no decision making involved, you might as well program a computer and eliminate the waste of oxygen.

For every person there is a decision made very early in life, that has echoes all the way down the years. That decision is weather to trust the formula or to derive it yourself. To put it another way:

Are you going to do your own thinking, or not?
Do you have the courage to make your own decisions, or will someone else make them for you?
Do you trust your own mind enough to follow it?

Can we be too smart? Yes! when we forget how to think and we know how to recite. When problem solving requires a calculator, not a brain. When thinking is too hard so just let the computer do it. When the old ways are forgotten because they are too hard to learn, not like we will ever have to understand the way out of a problem.

Who is the most valuable person alive? The one with the ability to make a decision.

My Spring Sprung a Leak

Ok, so here goes. My spring has been interesting as all get out.

I have gone through the process of getting AC contractors to replace my AC unit outside, so as summer approaches I might be able to survive. I learned a few things while my AC was out. First thing is that when you consider that any heat you make has to be cooled somehow you get very good at noticing and eliminating heat sources. I went without cooking inside, cool meals, one light at a time, everything i could to reduce the heat i would have to exhaust somehow. The second thing I discovered is that my house is well set up for open window ventilation, saved me on a few occasions. If anyone ever needs help or advice on AC contractors, let me know, someone else ought to benefit from my learning too.

I also have to deal with a "minor" bit of damage to my truck. A woman at work figured that my nice, clean new passenger door needed to have some of her truck's paint on it, and a dent would look good there too, so yeah. It is going to be a pain to get fixed, and it is going to be interesting on how this get taken care of.

Found out a few weeks ago that our pastor, Adam, is leaving Foundry to go to a great new opportunity. This is tough for me, as he is not just a pastor, but i wonderful friend. I know that this is on God's will, but it still hurts. I know that i will still see him and be in touch, and I will still have a Friend in him and his wonderful wife. I do fear however that without such a wonderful pillar, that my faith will start to waver a bit, and that scares me.

Life is just being very interesting these days, and I am not sure I am all that comfortable with the course it is taking. I am used to being able to if not hold the wheel and steer, that to at least know the course and destination. Right now, I am in an area where I can't see the course, and I don't know the destination. I really hate this feeling of being lost, but i think this is something i need to work on, the idea of "Trust".

I am very hopeful that everything will work out and life gets to an even keel. I have a feeling that things will be slightly off kilter for a while yet to come. Just keep me in your prayers, and I will keep you in mine.

Hope all is well, leave a comment or something, it is always fun to know who is reading.

Life, and other similar things

Ok, so life is FREAKING insane these days.

I am so tired of dealing with everything it makes me want to scream, and I would; however most of my windows are open as my Flipping AC is busted and I gotta cool the place of a bit. Thank the lord that the days have been mild for Texas, and I am close to having a fix available.

BTW, for all you folks out there in houses, or looking to buy, let me make a recommendation. Find folks who are fix-it types, hang out with them, and ask if you need help. I have found that by listening and asking questions you can learn TONs about everything. Like today, I got someone to drop the quote on service just be taking a photo of my AC unit's nameplate and reading it, the refrigerant was the cheaper kind. Asking where it was helped me get a better quote. Other things to know about are folks who can give hints on repairs, replacements, plumbing, electrical, etc.... One of the big ones that I trust my sister and a few other folks on is decorating. I have a guys taste and that is saying something. I have a decently decorated house with a few bright spots, but i have not repainted or anything.

Other than the AC and all the joy that goes with that, life has been insane. It is like a trip on a river......... in a barrel...... of snakes........ over a waterfall. I have been trying to take some time off for myself, and to relax. I have only found things to fill that time up with and make sure that I have more worries to deal with. Someone please help me!

Ah.... I am such a drama king sometimes. Life is actually good, and it might be getting better soon. matter of fact, after recent events, getting worse would be an accomplishment, and that is not a challenge. I am glad I have such wonderful parents, who when I am going off the rails will help bring me back and calm me down. Friends who care alot, about Me. Places I belong and I can feel important in, and needed. A church group that will accept and love me for who i am, no matter what.

Screw it, I am going to try and be positive:

I don't have a busted AC system, I have a house with great natural ventilation.

I don't have a house that is tough to keep up, I have a house, and I love it.

I don't have a church that I have to go to, I have a place that loves, and cares, and totally gets me.

I don't have annoyances, I have moments to let Jesus show. Like on the phone with a person having a day worse than mine, just taking 30 seconds to say howdy and ask how their day is, apparently it makes some folks happy.

OK, enough vent-rambling, it is dinner time.

Read and Respond

Ok, here goes, for those joining this transmission recently I am prone to post some of my thoughts and opnions. I always welcome comments and would like for exeryone to be respectful.

So here goes.

So the other day I was thinking to my self again (I seem to be the best conversationalist i can find, I am not arrogant either, how dare you say that). I was reading a wonderful book and the author had a conversation between two characters. One of the people was thanking another for a kind act and wanted to know what prompted the act of "altruism", to which the answer was for reasons that a) did not need to be said, and b) "altruism" is merely a term for selfishness with camouflage.

I do not think that services done for another are necessarily termed "altruism", but i do believe that the term "Altruism" is over used and poorly used at best, and may be nothing than a verbal phantasm on the other hand. I intend to state an opinion here and back it up with what arguments and reasoning work for me, if you disagree, I am welcome to your input, but be polite please.

The first step in this sort if discourse is to normally lay out and define the terms involved. Altruism I would define is action with the sole intent to do good for another, there are no other motivations allowed, there should be no allowance for other reasoning, otherwise it is filling a need or desire of your own and is not valid altruism. I think another definition that needs to be stated is "selfishness" or "self interest", these I would define as having any benefit for the performer, if you do something due to the fact that it makes you feel good, or important, or anything like that it has some element of selfishness in it.

My opinion is that "altruism" is merely a smokescreen for people, it is a work that folks use to mask true intentions. Sometimes "altruism" is a way of saying, "I felt good knowing that what pass off as pocket change is a weeks money to another person". Other days it has the sense of "I know that i did something good today, and I am glad I could do that". Both of these are cases where I think we are throwing clouds of dust in the way. In my opinion, doing something that would help to enforce your own sense of importance and position is the height of selfishness and self promotion, but often it is the end result of "altruistic" acts.

Is the intention of a sports star to feed needy people at the soup kitchen, or clothe them with a donation, or is it to serve out a probation, send a fine to someplace to get recognition, or to show that despite their other action they are actually a much better person than some of their actions bear out? So often I have seen reporters show up to some football player working at habitat for humanity, or a soup kitchen and the player drops everything to talk about how great they are and what all they get out of helping out. This to me send the wrong message, "help out, it is all about how you feel at the end of the day". What message are we really sending when that is the end result.

I have seen this answer given in many churches too, and it saddens me. The "pitch" for the work project, or nursery help, or anything at the church. The pitch always includes the clause, ".... and you know at the end of it, you will feel good about doing something nice".

I think that when someone who claims Christianity, the answer for why the do something the only good answer is "This is my service and sacrifice to God." That being said, I think that honesty is still the best course in most cases. So if asked, give the honest answer to your intentions, I hope that mine can always be "My service and Sacrifice to God is to do this for You."; I fear that more often than not I let "Altruism" be my smoke screen for saying that I get to feel superior or better due to my actions, and that is why I am out there.

The basic premise for anyone that read this far: Be honest, with yourself most of all. Let your good works be of God, the only instigator of good in this world. If you do "good" and have intentions other than Obedience, be honest, say that you know it is what you are supposed to do, and you get a good feeling out of it, bu by no mean let the impression be given that your actions are totally pure in that case, the intentions matter.

I know this probably makes little sense, I wrote it over the course of several days, so it is a bit disjointed.

Leave a comment and let me know what you think, I might just have to write a disagreement with my self later.

Craziness

So yeah, I have been away for a while, and it has been really difficult to sit down and write some. I know i need to get better about it, but everyone knows how the whole holiday season can get.

I am well these days, busy with work and church, stuff at home, and all of that. My life is boring, and I am always tired these days. I have really been encouraged these past few weeks by some of the youth at church, I actually was there while they stayed on topic and discussed the lesson of the week, it was pretty cool.

I got to go riding this weekend at Terry Hershey, it was a freaking blast. I am glad I went on Saturday, as today looks like it is the start of a new ice age for Houston. Riding was sort of interesting this week, I got to show a whole group of guys the trails and lead them around some. I got to be the "'ol guy" who knew the trails and really got to show off some riding too.

Soon I hope to be posting a more philosophical ranting, something that came to me a while back and I really need to get out, but i want it to be right also. It will be about the concept of "altruism". Stay Tuned, and as always leave a comment or hit a link.

New Photo Site

http://picasaweb.google.com/matthew.d.campbell


Go check them out.

Trip update

Ok, So I am a horrible person, and I have not given a trip report with photos yet. I know have promissed this soon, and I still intend to do that.

My life has gotten majorly busy the last wqeek or so, and I really want to take enough time to get the update just right.

Merry Christmas,

Trips

So My company is sending myself and 2 other Engineers to Oregon for a meeting at a customers site this week. I am sorta looking forward to it, but also somewhat apprehensive, this is a big trip and my first for the company.

Well, I am trying to stay healthy, got a bit of a cough but dealing with it.

Stay in touch, leave me a message, it is always good to know who is stopping by and saying hello.

I will let ya'll know how the trip goes.

Allergies

SUCK!


No really, I hate allergies. they are killing me today.

Well it is getting to be that time of year, holidays. Commercialism and greed at it's best.


Some folks know that I am not a huge fan of this season, and it is just that fact, that this time of celebration, family, and reflection has turned into a slice of what is wrong about all of America. No longer do people want to sit down to a nice Thanksgiving dinner, watch some football and enjoy thier family; it is now a time to wolf down a low fat, low cholestrol turkey sandwich with folks you hate but are related to, go to bed early so you can hit the Friday morning sales good and early. I love that people now pay hundrudes of dollars to get thier homes professionally lit for Christmas so that they can prove that they are better than thier neighbors. I decorate my home, but simply, and it is not professional or even noteworth, but it is my celebration of the Birth of Christ. I put up the tree, with lights, and decorations, but not many ornaments. I put it up for the symbolism, nopt impress anyone.

BTW, I have a new blog toy, look all the way at the bottom, it is a pretty cool way for me to see where folks are look from. I think i know who it might be from NY, and Texas is the only other dot. But hit that ahd take a look, and also please leave comments, it makes Matt a happy person.

Remember that what you do this season might show folks a little more about yourself than you realize. Make sure that your actions really do reflect your views, and also think about what your actions might tell someone about you.

Later Folks,

Things I Hate

So I really really hate time changes. I don't mind the time change itself, but about 2 or 3 weeks later I really hit a wall and just get totally run down.

I think today is that day, I was totally wandering throughout the day, and I have just felt rundown all day.

I am not sure why this always happens around now, but boy does it bite. Feels like bad jet lag only no reason for it. Like wanting to go to sleep at 6 pm, that is not me at all.

Anyways, just felt like sharing that little bit.

Old Dog, New Tricks

Ok, so anyone who knows me knows that I have alot of passions, sci-fi, reading; football, college football; A&M football, food and cooking. Cleaning was no where in that list.

So realize this fact when I show and tell you what I did.

I washed my truck and then waxed it. I actually took the time to clean something.

I just wanted to say that, pat my self on the back a bit.

Checkout the photoblog at some point, I will try and have pics of the 'Ridge up.

Conesquences

A Wiley Coyote Culture:

I was eating dinner alone last night and I happened to be people watching as is my way when eating alone. I was also taking the time to read through my Sunday school book and it happened to use Mr. W. E. Coyote as an example, so it connected in my mind.

What I heard was the World Series on TV and the guys in the bar area talking about the pitching, hitting and coaching. I also heard several tables of folks ordering food, and chatting.

I heard one guy telling the waitress that he misordered and that she should take it back and get him what he wanted. He then told the waitress that he would not pay the extra for the swap, as he thought that a good customer service would simply accept the change with out comment or compensation. His wife also wanted a margarita, but was not pleased with it, and did not want pay for it.

One couple was chatting about how their friend, who had cheated in his marriage, should be welcomed back with out comment. Their reasoning about that was that the marriage was "through good and bad, health and sickness" and the man compared the bad decisions to a sickness, and there fore it should be excused without comment.

I think this is people taking a look at life like it is a cartoon, you can make bad decisions, run right off a cliff, and have no consequences. The new one concept that everyone wants to avoid in these days is "accountability". I have never had a problem with accepting the consequences of my bad decisions, and there are plenty of them. In the Road Runner Cartoons the coyote always had a hair brained scheme to catch the elusive prey and it never seemed to work out well for him. When he fell, crashed, blew up, ran into a wall, got crushed by a rock, or otherwise was exposed to something that should have mutilated him, he walked away to a funny sound and came right back after the commercial, there were no consequences to his actions. The Coyote was never accountable.

The culture we are in is the Coyote, a goal is identified and every hair brained idea is entertained, and there are no considerations to the consciences. People will pursue the prey to the point of ignoring the environment, or even if they are running right off a cliff. When people in this pursuit fail, they expect to fold up like an accordion and walk away squeaking. When this happens and people do not bounce right back, when thy are held accountable to the consequences, they hate the world and blame God for the unfairness. What is referred to by Americans as unfairness is actually fairness.

Thank God for forgiveness, but that does not prevent consequences. In bible study we talked about confession, and how it is a spiritual discipline. Forgiveness requires repentance to be effective, in that term is the concept of compensation, renewal, repair of the breach.

I think that this world needs to have more repair, more forgiveness, and more acceptance of accountability.

Leave your thoughts, weather you agree or not, I would like to know what the ones who read think.

Pictures, Photos, and Pics

Photos,

I love to take pictures, as almost anyone who has seen me in the past few years has noticed. Last night I found a scene that I had to capture, and it makes a very strong impression on me. I added some of my thoughts under the series of pictures. Let me know what you think.

My Photo Blog!

New Stuff!

OK, I know I am a very bad person for not keeping this thing more up to date. I need to get better about it.

Life has been freaking crazy recently. I have a new vehicle now, a 2007 Honda Ridgeline. And I know what a few of you are thinking, a pickup truck built by Honda?!? YES! and it is a damn good one at that. If you can get over your ego for a minute, and thinking analytically about your driving habits, the Honda Ridgeline is one of the best pickup trucks on the market. It is well thought out, superbly engineered, well designed, and has the strength and capacity to handle most any task that is required. No, I can not tow a house with it, or go rock crawling, or have 450 ft.-lb. of torque, but honestly who does in an every day vehicle?

The same day I had to trade in my old F-150, which by the way was a great truck for 9 years, and I am very impressed with it, I went to my 10 year highschool reunion. That was a blast if you ask me. I got to catch up with some old friends, and to start to connect with some folks I one recgonized. It was interesting to see how a few people never changed one bit, and how a few were totally different. It made me laugh that the whole time, the old highschool cliques reformed, the brains in one corner, drama folks in another, Football players in front of the buffet, and the other groups you could think of. I was able to move through praticaly every group and catch up with a lot of people, in high school I was a very quite guy, never spoke much, and to have some folks comment on how I was so talkative now, was kinda refreshing. I have changed, not personality, or marital status, no kids still, no big life changing events yet, but I was a more open, friendly, conversational version of the Matt that folks used to know.

I also do not have my old roommate anymore, he has moved on to his dream job in Austin, and I am totally thrilled for him. For over two years now he has wanted to get a job as a full time firefighter somewhere, and in the last year or so, he got his heart set on Austin. Well he is there now and I would like to ask that folks pray for him, that he finds a good Christian environment somewhere there and stays true to his faith. I know how hard it can be to keep that when you have a big move, and also, this is Austin folks. Not that I have anything against my hometown, but it is not the place that is most conducive to a Christian life.

the other thing going on is that at church we have been working on a production of "The Music Man", and opening night was last night. We had a few oops', and a few improvisation moments, but all in all it was a good night. I am running the follow spot, and for those of ya'll who don't know what that is, the follow spot is the one that highlights the center of attention. It is a tough, critical job with a bit of regard and respect. The job of follow spot is stressful as any, especially for a perfectionist like me, but it went fine and I need to remember that the purpose is not really to make profit off of tickets etc... But to introduce people to a good performance in the house of God, and maybe just maybe influence one heart to show up on Sunday, if that happens all of it was worth the time.

Well I am sure that there are tons of other things I could share, but I will try to write them down in more posts soon.

Have a great weekend all!

I have been a bit out of the loop recently, computers have been a bit on the cantenkeraous side. I have to replace a hard drive on my laptop, reinstall the OS and the go about rehabbing it so that it is useful once again.

Other than that, I went to Colorado with the Family, the drive went well actually, considering it was 16 hours one way. The wedding went well and it was successful, someone actually got married that night. I enjoyed the time up there.

I am very happy to report that my Roomate got his dream job in Austin. So he will be moving there soon, and I am very glad that his career is headed in the direction that he wants.

I will try and post more soon, and also in the photo blog.