Intelligent Children?

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Interestingly enough this book has caused a stir regarding the level of intelligence that children really have. I must say for my part I agree with the author's assessment. I think children are smarter than most adults give them credit for. In fact, I merely think of children as little people; for that is who they really are. A lot of people act/talk differently around children "condescending to their level." I, on the other hand, talk differently when I am around adults-adults wear masks-and plainly when I speak to children. I have to craft my words when I talk to adults when I am around children all I have to do is be myself.

I know that I am "grown up," but I don't "feel" grown up. I think/feel the same as when I was a child-child defined as younger than 18yrs old. Adults make such sharp distinctions on what it is to be adult. Drinking coffee, dissociating with children, getting into debt; these are some of the telltale signs of adulthood...I practice none of these (I know these are not the same for everyone but these are my example of why I do not "feel" adult).

And...I am an adult. I can start a sentence with "and" if I want to. "Being an adult is having the ability to make the choice." Well, I had the cognitive ability to make that choice when I was 5-and many other choices growing up.

I'll admit that I have matured, but my theories have not drastically changed. I am still the same creature philosophically and theologically-meaning I see the world through the same eyes as when I was a "child."

More admissions: God has put parents in authority over their children so what they say is right bottom line. Not necessarily right before God, but right for the child to obey w/o a divisive and questioning attitude. There is supposedly a recourse for children to call into question whether the parent's ruling is in accordance with God's law but usually parents make it very difficult to appeal.

My antipathy regarding this entire affair under consideration is the unjust, unfair, and unequal treatment of children. Jesus said "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them" (Matthew 19:14).

I believe that they must learn their place in humanity: as under authority and never autonomous.

I believe that they must learn their place in humanity: persons yet maturing.

Constitution Party

Whether you are a "Constitutionalist," a conspiracy theorist, or you enjoy reading dystopian/utopian sci fi stories on what the future could look like, you must admit that more Government bureaucracy is not good. More involvement in the affairs of the common citizen is bad. If you don't think so think "IRS."

America needs God. This is the work of the church, pastors, church planters, committees, missionaries and evangelists.

America needs its Constitution. This is the work of citizens, Constitutional lawyers, statesmen, and the Constitution Party.

America's Largest "Third Party"

"The Constitution Party (www.constitutionparty.com), the third largest party in the United States measured by voter registrations, is growing fast and is made up of Americans who believe a return to constitutional government is imperative." (Quoted from CP Email Update)

Dystopian Future II?

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Much like 1984, Brave New World is an eerie revelation of what life could be like without the restraint of the Holy Spirit in this world. In fact both accounts detail what may appear to be the undermining of Freedom in America. Not to sound like an alarmist or anything: Wake up, "don't you want to be free?"

Concepts:

Continuous war=War on terror.

Uneducation=Implementation of the "look-say" method of teaching students how to read. "No child left behind."

Conditioning=Government(public) schools

Happiness=Trading our freedoms for "safety."

Big Brother=Patriot Act legalizing internal surveillance to the extent that it does



If I think of more I will update this list.

Something Decent to "Fwd:"

The “ICE” Campaign

Recently, the concept of "ICE" is catching on quickly. It is simple and
important method of contact during emergency situations.

As cell phones are carried by majority of the population, all you need to do is store the number of a contact person or person who should be contacted during an emergency as "ICE" (meaning In Case of Emergency).

The idea was thought up by a paramedic who found that when he went to the scenes of accidents, there were always mobile phones with patients, but he didn't know which number to call. He therefore thought that it would be a good idea if there was a nationally recognized name for this purpose.

Following a disaster in London, the East Anglican Ambulance Service has launched a national "In Case of Emergency (ICE)" campaign. In an emergency situation, Emergency Service personnel and hospital staff would then be able to quickly contact your next of kin, by simply dialing the number stored as "ICE".

Please forward this. It won't take too many "forwards" before every body will know about this. It really could save your life, or put a loved one's mind at rest.

For more than one contact name simply enter ICE1, ICE2 and ICE3 etc.

A great idea that will make a difference! Let's spread the concept of ICE by storing an ICE number in our mobile phones today! Please forward to your all nearest and dearest.

(A decent forwarded email for once; deserves to be read by all.)

Dystopian Future?

Nineteen Eighty-Four By George Orwell

Quotes:

War is Peace
Freedom is Slavery
Ignorance is Strength

Big Brother is Watching You

Who controls the past controls the future:
who controls the present controls the past.

Until they become conscious they will never rebel,
and until after they have rebelled they cannot become conscious.

The problem was how to keep the wheels of industry turning
without increasing the real wealth of the world.
Goods must be produced,
but they need not be distributed.
And in practice the only way
of achieving this was by continuous warfare.

The command of the old despotisms was 'Thou shalt not.'
The command of the totalitarians was 'Thou shalt.'
Our command is 'Thou art.'

There are three stages in your reintegration...
There is learning, there is understanding, and there is acceptance.

Newspeak:

Ingsoc

Doublethink

Crimestop

Goodthink

Doubleplusgood Duckspeaker

Oldspeak:

According to the book, "War is Peace," referred to the condition of the state. Through a continuous war, no side would ever gain the advantage placing the citizens at the mercy of a wartime economy. Freedom truly is slavery of a sort. For true liberty to exist we as Americans would be enslaved to "Responsibility." In the book, ignorance of true liberty allows you to survive day to day. Big Brother, oh yeah, we live in a surveillant society.

Ingsoc=English Socialism

Doublethink=To think contradictorily in such a way as to accept anything.

Crimestop=To stop a logical train of thought before it becomes a thought crime.

Goodthink=Thoughts that agree with whatever the powers that be deem is "right."

Doubleplusgood Duckspeaker=Read the book and figure it out for yourself.

Love and Marriage

God created woman for man, saying "It is not good that the man should be alone" (Gen 2:18). In fact a man's true wealth can be seen in his family, for his "wife shall be as a fruitful vine...and [his] children like olive plants" (Psalm 128:3). Additionally, a man that has a family is fulfilling the commission of God to "be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion...over every living thing that moves on the earth" (Gen 1:28).

Some say that the Bible teaches that it is better that man should be alone for these days are evil, for Paul the Apostle said "I wish all were as I myself am" that is single. But it is clear when it says that "some will depart from the faith...who forbid marriage" (I Timothy 4:1-3). "But if you do marry, you have not sinned" (I Cor 7:28). And that if you, well, have a sex drive then "each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband" (I Cor 7:2). The fact is most people have a sex drive that God put there. Without it, the human race would perish on the earth. The reason Paul made such a statement was that in singleness he could devote himself entirely to ministry. But the truth is that God has not called all to be an apostle/missionary church planter. "For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ" (I Cor 12:12). Thus, celibacy is not for everyone. In fact, it is not for the majority to be celibate. In response to the statement "It is better not to marry" (Mt 19:10), Jesus said, "Not everyone can receive this saying, but only those to whom it is given" (Mt 19:11). So the Scripture is clear only some are given by God to be Spiritual Eunuchs for the sake of the Kingdom.

What others think

Altogether 36,322 have taken that quiz so far and like a poll it can tell us something about people.

• 37% of the quizzed were labeled interpersonal intelligence (mob/masses)
  
• 15% were intra personal (loners/thinkers)
  
• 14% musical intelligence (left brainers/artsy types)
  
• 11% bodily kinesthetic (hands-on type/brutes)
  
• 8% spatial intelligence (?/!)
  
• 8% linguistic intelligence (writers/speakers)
  
• 4% logical-mathematical (nerds/nerds)

(I inserted the parenthetical comments from what I think these types of intelligence are referring to.)

It would seem from everyday experience that most people really are a part of the crowd. They do not think entirely for themselves. Much of what they believe or 'know' has been told to them by another person who heard it from someone else. They are a part of "the masses". The masses will not stop being the masses either. No amount of education or information will change the way they relate to others and the world around them. Influence gets the masses to move though. Hollywood movies, pop icons, targeted advertising, 'news' media and Federal government (which includes government schools) are the prime movers.

Think about it, no really; don't just accept it because I said it, think about it.

Intelligence

A further development on my previous post is the idea of different types of intelligence. I have seen master memorizers first hand, and they are incredible. I am an analytical intellect. I have some memorizing ability but my strength lies in my ability to put things together and figure out how they work.

Now, I do not take these internet quizzes very often but this one proved interesting enough and validated my thoughts concerning myself ( not that I needed the quiz to prove anything to me). Here it is...

What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?

Intra personal Intelligence
Some people thing you're a loner, but you just like spending time in your own head with your own thoughts. You're attracted to the works of great philosophers. You've got an intense understanding of yourself, and wish other people were as self-aware as you are. The company of others can be a distraction and an irritant sometimes. You learn best when left alone to figure out the problem for yourself. You'd be best suited to a career as an academic, theologian, philosopher, psychiatrist, or writer.

I refer to myself as an analytical intellect, how about you?

Mind Matters

I enjoyed this article so I thought I would share it with any who might read this blog. I have supposed for some time now that we (people in general) give ourselves too little credit for the level of our intelligence. "For I am fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:14).

I have been in the Navy now for about two years. I have successfully completed my training in one of the military's toughest schools, academically. I have observed the intellectual growth of several different types of individuals in a harsh academic environment. I have seen young men and women of average intellect radically change their views of themselves after passing through this program. Before they joined the Navy, most of these individuals would never have considered that they could accomplish this much (what they can now look back on as history). No intellectual field is closed to a majority of these individuals. I, for one, stymied myself from the elite pursuits thinking I could never hack it. But now I realize that I could have...Or is it that after I have completed a year and a half of mental training that I am now ready for any academic pursuit known to man. All that I truly lack is motivation. And for those who have motivation; you can accomplish nearly all that you put your mind to.

I believe that we have larger mental capacities than we think. I think we have more intellectual ability than we will admit. Why would anyone want to be dummed down? With greater knowledge comes greater responsibility. In addition, we don't want to give up cable television. Because if we gave up television and games and such, we would spend our time in intellectual pursuits: classical education, self government (morally and politically), and Christian Theism. For some the intellect is harder to exercise than the body, for others vice versa. We should not neglect the conditioning of either. Although society places such a great emphasis upon our bodies we should place greater emphasis on our minds especially for those of us whose minds are renewed.

"...for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." I Timothy 4:8

A mind is a terrible thing to waste

GARY NORTH'S TIP OF THE WEEK


Gary North's Tip of the Week - January 13, 2007 Brain Training
===============================================================
 After I turned 45, my memory skills began to fade.  I
could not recall things as fast as before.  This is common
at age 45.  Fortunately, the Web has helped me compensate
in my writing.  Wiki is a wonder.

 A recent study reveals that there is a tremendous
payoff for simple mental exercising.  "The Washington Post"
(Dec. 20, 2006) reports on mental exercise vs. physical.

 If anything, the study suggests, there is a
 bigger payoff to mental exercise, because the
 brief training sessions seemed to confer enormous
 benefits as many as five years later. That would
 be as if someone went to the gym Monday through
 Friday for the first two weeks of the new year,
 did no exercise for five years, and still saw
 significant physical benefits in 2012. . . .

 Each of the groups being trained had 10 sessions,
 each lasting an hour to 75 minutes, and each
 session presented progressively more challenging
 problems. Compared with the control group, those
 who got memory training did 75 percent better on
 memory tasks five years later, those who got the
 reasoning training did 40 percent better on
 reasoning tasks, and those who got the speed
 training did 300 percent better than the control
 group.

 The study group was for people age 65 and older.  Some
were in their nineties.

 There was a warning that applies to me.

 To reap the benefits, [Sherri] Willis said,
 people need to get outside their comfort zones.
 For someone who likes to solve crossword puzzles,
 it is important to make sure the puzzles get
 harder with time -- or to start playing chess.
 Someone who hates to play games, she said, should
 find something else that stretches the mind.

          http://snipurl.com/braintrain

 I hate games.  I hate puzzles.  I also hate learning a
new piece of software.  But I'll do the latter if there is
a big enough benefit.  I hope that's enough.

 My tip: Learn a new program this year.  It can be
freeware.  Master it.  Put it to use.

 Then do it again next year.

Gary "Pumping Digits" North

==============================================================
Recent articles posted at www.garynorth.com

College

Is college necessary?

Growing up as a child in suburbia in the late '80's through the '90's, college was never a question. It was presupposed that everyone would go to college. In this presupposition it was assumed that higher education was the answer to a high paying job. It was also assumed that if you did not go to college that you had very low aspirations and that you were not normal (end result=peer pressure to send your child to college). But why am I using the past tense, for this is still true today.

Did you know about half of all college students fail to graduate with a degree? I wonder how they survive. What are they doing now? I for one am in the US Navy. I went to school at the behest of my parents, but for only three semesters. I did not have enough savings to pay for college, did not want to take out a loan for college, and was not interested in college at the time. I should not have been there without clear direction of what I intended to accomplish by going to college. Without clear direction it is a waste of time. I tried to redeem some of the time by holding Bible studies on campus to some avail. I also debated and was exposed to several types of individuals: "christian" cultists, cult-like Christians, atheists, pagans, wiccans, and new agers. I in turn exposed them to Biblical Christianity. May God's Word not return void. Now that I am in the Navy I am getting my degree paid for by the Navy. Through Thomas Edison State College I will get many credits for my Military training as well as transfer credits for my time in college. It is a distance learning degree and will cost me only the price of the books. For me college is not necessary to have a productive career. I am only one example of the proof that college is not necessary. I will summarize some more examples:

My brother-in-law started working full-time when he was 16 yrs. He is now a traveling campus preacher. He gets support from churches to spread the gospel on campuses across the nation and works during "off" times to supplement the gifts. He has no lack or "want" for which God does not provide. He is not a college graduate. His current vocation is what he wants to do. Not many in the private sector can say the same about their employment.

An acquaintance of mine owns his own construction business. As I told a young friend of mine: "Start working while you are young. Pick up a trade, learn it. Spend those "four years" learning your job while making contacts in the field you are working in. By the time college graduates are looking for a job, you will be applying for a business loan to support starting your own business. When the graduates are promoted to floor manager in some corporate entity, you will promote yourself to "CEO" of your own small business." That is what this acquaintance of mine did.

I know of a young man who straight out of high school started a franchise Subway. At 19 yrs old he owned his own business...If i am not mistaken, he is now attending college and is able to afford it.

Have you ever considered not going to college?

Now break the shackles of "common" persuasion and make up your own mind. If you want to go to college and you have a purpose to go there (id est to be a lawyer, doctor, engineer, et cetera), then by all means go to college. I must ask, however "What do you expect out college?". Do you think it is healthy for young, developing minds to be intellectually and morally assaulted? In our day and age education has been replaced by indoctrination into secular humanism (see also Thought Reform 101). And morality...Send young people hundreds of miles away from their God given guides: parents and you can imagine the results (see The Dorm-Key Ritual).

Also remember to stay out of debt and owe no man anything (Ro. 13:8). "Impossible," you say. Not impossible if you know where to look: cheap education. Seriously check out this link. If you are interested in this manual Dr. Gary North wrote, I can sell copies for $97.00 to anyone interested (it is in the purchase agreement that you can resell but it must be for $97). Email me at msdavis1984@gmail.com

Are there any alternatives to college?

College alternatives to traditional styles are online degrees or correspondence course degrees from fully accredited universities. There are also apprenticeship programs for trades (carpentry, plumbing, etc). Additionally you can start working right away for a job that trains their employees and offers degree programs (paying for a degree in their employees' field of work). That is sort of what I am doing. I went to college for three semesters but stopped because I ran out of money and I joined the Navy; the Navy is paying for my degree and my degree is related to my job field.

Draft edited, post in its 'finished' form.

Pets, Children, and Followers of God

After this day's work I get home and eat dinner and feed the dog and then...

Chase her all over the neighborhood because she ran...

She is a good dog. Problem is she is a dog. There is no reasoning with her. There is no way to get through to her that I don't want her to run away. She is selfish and willful. Much like a child 5 yrs old or younger. Training is important, conditioning is key, expectations are crucial. Above all is heart. Not the heart attitude of the one being trained but the one who is doing the training.

I am learning this lesson with "my" dog. I emphasize "my" because I have hitherto fore not owned the dog that was my wife's. I did not like the dog, very much as she did not like me for marrying her "pet". My wife thought that she had trained her dog sufficiently. I simply present the evidence that Lady, the dog, would not recognize my authority as the head of the house, or in dog terms "the top dog" (authority).

Everything she does is for her own benefit (selfishness). She only obeys when she has been conditioned to a specific response in a specific situation (id est She automatically sits when she is about to receive a treat; you cannot even get her to do anything else except possibly to lay down but that is the extent of her obedience.)

There being an unresolved issue, my strategy has been to be mean to her. This wasn't intentional. It was just the dominant dog, me, trying to show her who was in charge. It wasn't working. I decided to change my plan of attack since I didn't like being mean. I started being nice to her by giving her treats and even giving her some of my scraps from the table which she thoroughly loves. So on the basis of our tenuous friendship I would attempt to show her that she needed to listen to me. It hasn't started working yet. I need more tools: as in books on training. I don't know enough to accomplish my goal. When I attempted my training session with her she soon lost interest in obeying commands. But as soon as we were ready to go back in the house she readily sat down when I told her to do so. This action disproves the notion that she didn't understand what I wanted her to do when I said, "Sit" (willfulness).

Overall this has been a learning experience for me. I know that young children are very similar in mentality to this example that we have been observing. I have seen these authority issues, selfishness issues, and willfulness issues ( exempli gratia in my own childhood growing up). I also know that as children get older and their intellectual faculties develop it can become easier to work with a child through reasoning. Again training is important (this shows what is acceptable behavior), conditioning is key (this establishes acceptable behavior as the status quo), expectations are crucial (this shows the why behind the acceptable behavior). And again above all is heart (the attitude of the one administering the training is the premier character trait that will be passed on to the child in this whole experience).

To end with a thought provoking question: Do these negative qualities reflect the nature of your relationship to God: authority issues, selfishness, and willfulness?

Coram Deo.

Life

Ah well, I haven't posted in a few days. I'm getting ready for work right now so I'll post when I get back. For a quick recap of my "weekend": I work seven days straight with two days off. I am on rotating shift work with this cycle being broken only by a Training Week (630am-430pm) of four days in length with an accompanying four day weekend. I came off of the "Mids" shift (1130pm-730am) on Wed morning, staying late (1230pm) to take the DANTES administered ACT to raise my score from last year (and because it was >365 days ago Navy is paying for it). Just in case you were wondering: Days shift of which Day 1 starts this morning (Saturday) is 730am-330pm and Swings shift is 330pm-1130pm. So in order in the cycle: Days, T-Week, Swings, and Mids; three 7-day work weeks one 4 day work week and 10 days of "weekend". This is my cycle...I'm now used to it having been there for 8 months now with slightly <2 years to go.

Ciao.

Geneva Bible

If you want a taste of the Geneva Bible updated with modern spelling, et cetera you can download a pdf of Romans.

If you are wondering "Why use a version I've never heard of/Why use an older version/Is it better?" then read Marshall Foster’s “History and Impact of the Geneva Bible”.

If you are now interested in buying your own copy you can pre-order your own copy through Vision Forum.

I will order one pretty soon I think. Just determining if I want to spend the money on it right now. I currently own a KJV Greek-Hebrew Key-Word study Bible as well as an ESV New Reformation Study Bible.

Originals and/or facsimiles can also be purchased but are expensive from what I've seen and I'm not personally interested in going backwards in style of English, just too much work for a casual read.

Visit WWW.GREATSITE.COM to buy an original Geneva Bible, or facsimile:

1. A First Edition / First Printing of the 1560 Geneva Bible
2. Contains ALL 80 Books of the Geneva Bible, not just 66
3. Is printed in a much larger text that is MUCH easier to read
4. Is available in both a lower-cost hardcover bonded leather, AND a more expensive "heirloom-quality" hand-tooled top grain calf edition. It also comes with a FREE genuine Geneva Bible leaf and FREE FED EX AIR Shipping on every purchase.

LL Brown Publishing to buy a Facsimile of the 1599 edition.

Quoted from A Puritan's Mind.

That is all.

Covenant Children

Nix baptismal regeneration. Nix the idea that children are just simply heathen being raised inside the church. The question is, what is the state of the soul of Covenant Children. Why do children leave the faith of their parents? The trend in the Reformed denominations is that the children raised in these circles go astray. Today we have several ministries responding to this crisis. Focus on the Family, Vision Forum, and No Greater Joy ministries place great emphasis on the family and their role in bringing up children in the way they should go. Baptists in general place great emphasis on the family unit and personal piety. What are the Reformed Presbyterians doing wrong?

It is a world and life view issue that needs to be dealt with. Reformed Christian parents believe in the sovereignty of God. But how does this belief affect the way they live and think? I like the quote "Pray as if it all depends upon God, but live as if it all depends upon you". Now I may have slightly misquoted Mr Unknown Source but the idea is there. Now this quote as I understand it is not trying to pervade autonomy of man. But in light of the truth that God is sovereign and works through man, we must take action and if consistent with the Law-Word of God our actions are guided by God. We cannot sit idly by and allow our children to casually meander down the expressway to hell. Understanding that God turns the heart, we must do all we can do to steer our children towards God and a God-ward outlook. For in doing this God may use these actions to draw them unto himself. There will be more to follow on this subject, especially since I have my first baby on the way. Most of my current knowledge of children is based upon the Bible, my parents, other parents, observation, experience in aiding my parents with younger siblings and books that I have read. Very soon I shall add to the litany of sources: personal experience with my own children.

The reason I am cringing at this moment is that I am saddened by reports I hear of young men whom I once called "friend". One particular young man was raised in a reformed church (OPC, in fact), by parents who love the LORD, and was taught "critical thinking" through his homeschooling experience. His parents did not see the folly in sending him to a school halfway across the country with no one to be his taskmaster. This is an amended version of a conversation I had with a Christian friend about our old friend:

my Christian friend: you talk to [old friend's first name] recently?
groceryguy19: no
groceryguy19: how is he?
my Christian friend: i dont talk to him any more
groceryguy19: oh
my Christian friend: hes wasting his computer talents...thinking he has a future being in a band
my Christian friend: and hes a heavy stoner
groceryguy19: [old friend's first name] who?
my Christian friend: [old friend's full name]
groceryguy19: aw...thats a shame
my Christian friend: yeaah
groceryguy19: thats why kids shouldn't leave their parents for college...
my Christian friend: yeah....
groceryguy19: for this reason shall a man leave father and mother
groceryguy19: to cleave unto his wife

It pains me to hear this. Even if this were not true about my old friend it serves as an anecdote about what really goes on with covenant children who go astray.

Another young man whom I considered to be a good friend for a long time even after we fell out of contact is another example of "something missing" in the life of covenant children. He is also a rock band type and is certainly living it up. He apparently drinks alcohol to oblivion and cusses with no reticence or reservation.

Is that "something missing" God? I don't know. By all appearances the answer is yes. But God's election is sure and if they are of the elect God will one day call them from out of their sinful wickedness back into the light of his glorious grace. They will rejoin the covenant community of God but this time as heirs and not as followers of Jesus who were part of the multitudes hungry for the bread he would feed them with.

I hope and pray that they would seek God in sincerity and humility; and that God would show his love towards them and cleanse them with the blood of his son Jesus Christ our Lord whose blood was shed for the remission of sin. Amen.

First one is always a test...

At least for me that is the case and probably for many others. My goal in establishing this blog is first for my growth as a writer. I will try to write as often as possible. Secondly I will attempt to write on a topic that really piques people's interests and that few others really seem to want to talk about: religion. Lastly though certainly not last in importance I will do all I that do unto the Glory of God. My personal creed: Coram Deo.