To celebrate or not to celebrate...that is the question.

What a week it has been already...and it's only Tuesday! We've got a new majority government. The Canucks are still playing in the NHL playoffs. And, Osama is dead.

Don't get me wrong. I'm very pleased that Osama Bin Laden has been found and killed. I am, however, uneasy with celebrating it. For the most part, the various gatherings around the world have been fairly muted. Thankful people displaying their gratitude that justice has prevailed. Some of the celebrating has been a tad too celebratory, in my humble opinion. We often watch the news of people jumping up and down, chanting slogans, and praising the death of an enemy (or calling for the death of an enemy...often the President of the US). We think to ourselves, "those people are nuts", as we watch them celebrate violence.

For the followers of Jesus, we have two very clear instructions that pertain to this situation. One is to love our enemies. The other is to love justice. There is no denying that OBL was directly involved in terrorist acts that murdered many people around the globe. To state that a just judgment on him would have been the death penalty is accurate. (Some who are not in favour of the death penalty, myself included, may wince at this...but the statement still holds.) In this case, due process and a trial would have been expensive but worth the effort. Nevertheless, we can take comfort in the fact that he has met the end that his lifelong violence deserved. However, it's sad. Very sad. How much better it would have been had he come to his senses and renounced his actions and accepted his due discipline. He would have been better off for it.

We are better off for it when we come to our senses. We also remember that it any of us could have become depraved and murderous. We all have it in us. So, we remember the oft quoted phrase "but for the grace of God, go I", which reminds us to love everyone, even our enemies, because we could, very easily, be them if the table were turned.

God loves it when people come to their senses. We should too.

Joell

The Overtime Edition

I'm sure glad life isn't like hockey. Last night I was on an emotional roller coaster as my beloved Vancouver Canucks ended up in a sudden death (or sudden life for the optimists out there) game with last year's Stanley Cup Champions, the Chicago Blackhawks. To add even more suspense to an already heart stopping game... it ended up in overtime. Both teams' entire season rested on "next goal wins". Thankfully, there was "the big play" where the hero of the game intercepted a pass and shot it top corner over the goalie to win it for the Canucks. My heart remains unbroken (for now), but they have to win three more series in order to capture the Cup.

Photograph by: Mark Van Manen, The Province

There are 30 teams in the NHL... and for every team that doesn't win, there is the label "failure" awaiting. Sure, some of them did better than they did the previous year...and that's an encouraging sign... but for many others, the early season expectations ended up being disappointments. Out of all those teams, only one will end up with the label "winner". I'm sure glad God doesn't work that way!

In God's system, all who take the gift of grace end up being winners. We humans are not in competition with each other but, rather, our adversary is simply trying to keep us from hearing about "the big play". We just celebrated the greatest overtime winning shot that was heard around the world! Christ's death on the cross put the game of life into overtime... and the adversary thought he had the game won but, hallelujah, Christ arose, defeating the power of sin and death forever. It was sudden life for all of us!

So, regardless of which NHL team you cheer for (if any)... remember, that winning in life is possible for everyone when we put our faith in the "the big play" of the resurrection!

Walking to Rome - FAIL.

Click to embiggen

Why The Vancouver Canucks Will Make It To The Finals

Twitter is a wonderful place to watch the homers and the haters go at it. Here's a quick summary of their oft-repeated rants.

Haters

• The Canucks will not get past their nemesis - Chicago Blackhawks
• Luongo isn't that good in the playoffs
• The Sedins will disappear
• Manny Malholtra is out
• They feasted on the lesser teams to get so many points
  

Homers

• They have dominated all year ever with the most injuries of any NHL team
• Luongo is having a season year and Schneider is ready to go if needed
• The defence has been vastly improved from last year
• Their penalty kills and power plays have been awesome all year

And so it goes back and forth with even Theoren Fluery getting in to the mix on the haters side and suffering the wrath of Canucks Nation.

Still, Canucks fans were pretty excited last year and, frankly, they had a pretty good team. Had Chicago not knocked them off, they may have gone all the way. However, make no mistake about it, this is a very different team. Here's my list of why they will, at the very least, make the Stanley Cup Finals.

1. Defence. The revolving door on the blue line this season has exposed the amazing depth that the Canucks ...and the Manitoba Moose...have developed. The extras in the cast coupled with bona fide stars of Dan Hamhuis, Kevin Bieksa, and Sami Salo (for as long as he lasts) will mean that Vancouver has a solid back end... that can even take an injury, or two... or three.
2. Luongo. Last year he was overplayed, overstressed (thanks to being the captain) and undersupported by the defence. This year none of these are the case and, oh, there's that gold medal hanging around his neck which, in my books, gets any monkey off his back...and then some.
3. Faceoffs. Granted, a month ago this was a much stronger point but the loss of Manny Malhotra has dampened the impact a tad. Still, last year, especially against Chicago, they couldn't win a faceoff if their playoffs lives depended on it... and it did. Kesler has been schooled by Manny (#2 in the NHL) and is almost dominant with the 7th best percentage in the league. Henrik is now a respectable 38th in the league. Incidentally, Chicago has Jonathan Toews (8th) but nobody else about 50%.
   
4. Ryan Kesler. Perhaps more important than his strong faceoffs, if Ryan's newfound discipline and wrist shot. Both he and Burrows and taken their emotional tirades down by, what I figure, at least 75%. If Kes can retain his cool and his focus... he will provide the Nucks with the solid 2nd line that has brought them much success this season. Oh, and toss Maxim Lapierre into this mix too. Alain Vigneault must have some special sauce to keep him from going off the deep end... and it's helping.
   
5. Special Teams. Again, last year the team was not that special in this department. 1st in PP percentage and 3rd on the PK (yes, some say they would have probably finished in first here too had it not been for the string of no-purpose games at the end). Last season, the PK was 18th and the PP was as respectable 6th. They have obviously learned some good tricks and avoided some bad habits.
   
6. Goals for... and against. Yes, we've all seen high powered offensive teams hit the wall time and time again in the playoffs (Washington, last year being the most recent). Last season, who was right behind the Capitals in goals for? Yes, the Vancouver Canucks. Goals against last year? Canucks 12th. Capitals 16th. This year? You guessed it. Vancouver is #1 in both goals for and goals against. A dynamic 1-2 punch that will allow them to win in a horse race or a marathon. Incidentally, only Boston and San Jose were in the top 10 in both categories.
   

What can derail the Canucks?

1. Kesler getting hurt. By itself, not enough... but a serious blow.
2. Kesler-Burrows-Lapierre losing their cool.
3. Chicago getting Dustin Byfuglien back.... :)
4. The Sedins get zero goals.
   

To me, these 6 factors move the Canucks from "contenders" (like last year) to "serious contenders"... or a "really really gonna have a hard time beating them in a seven game series" team.

Joell

What a Gull-A-Bull

Thomas J. Watson was quoted as saying "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers," somewhere around 1943 when he was the head of IBM. This quote has lived in infamy for the past couple decades as computers pop up in every household (and now pockets and purses as well) around the world. The only problem with this quote is: he probably never said it. Researchers have tried, in vain, to find a document that supports that he said that phrase but there isn't even one.

The world has always been a safe place for bad information. Wars have been fought over events that never took place (anyone have a WMD lying around?). People have been imprisoned and even killed for saying things that they didn't say ("Let them eat cake"). Boycotts have been organized against companies that were not associated with whom people thought they were (Proctor and Gamble). Bad news has always travelled fast... and now, with the internet and satellite TV, it travels at the speed of light.

Last week, reports on the internet were that the rebels in Libya had taken the town of Sirt which, at that time, was essentially the last town before Tripoli. People were celebrating all over the world that Gadaffi's days were numbered. Turns out, it wasn't true. Today, the Colonel has almost taken back all of the cities and is tightening his grip on the holdouts.

Christians should be the least gullible people on the planet. The Bible tells us to be champions of the truth and to test everything before accepting it. This means that it's even kosher to question our pastors and teachers if we find some disagreement between them and the Bible (by the way, if you meet a pastor/teacher that isn't open to being corrected...or at least hearing a different perspective... run away). The head of the Church is Christ.. not the pastor, bishop, or some committee that meets in secret in New York... or Melville. The Word of God is Jesus as revealed in the Bible... therefore we use it as our "rule of faith and practice". The job of a pastor/teacher is to translate the truth of the Bible into today's language and culture (can you say "hermeneutics"). Not an easy task... I might add.

So, the next time you hear some newfangled idea, regardless of what sphere it happens to come from (health, theology, economics, politics, sociology, technology, etc) decide to take that information "under advisement" and then test it from the truth of the Bible... and your own common sense...before jumping in with both feet.

Joell
PS. Thomas Watson may have ended up being right by saying the thing he didn't say. We may end up with just 5 computers in the world.... 1. Facebook. 2. Google. 3-5... to be announced. Just some food for thought.

PPS. The Bible has been burned many times in many places around the world. While, it's a tad sad when it happens, there is no reason to be bothered because the book itself isn't sacred. The Word isn't a book...or 66 books (as in the Bible) rather Jesus is the Word... and the Bible reveals to us what/who that Word is. That Word can't be damaged by fire... or any other means of destruction.

Democracy Anyone?

Unrest continues throughout the Arab world today. Yemen, Syria, Bahrain, and Algeria are all dealing with mass demonstrations as we have seen in Tunisia and Egypt. Of course, Libya has ended up in civil war after the demonstrations were attempted to be put down by Gadaffi. Israel is also facing new unrest in Gaza and the West Bank. Do continue to pray that peace and freedom will prevail. However, both peace and freedom come with a cost and with risks.

So, what makes for a good democracy? Here are a few things off the top of my head:

1. Regular elections. Yes, we kind of hate them when they come too regularly (like here in Canada over the past decade) but, obviously, we need them. The best way to keep our leaders accountable is a free and fair election every so often.
2. Free press. Often criticized by politicians for being biased, the free press is crucial for letting the regular people know what the politicians are doing. Time and time again, a journalist breaks a story that exposes graft and corruption. Time and time again, too, the politicians try to suppress them in order to keep their jobs. The battle over Wikileaks is a prime example of this. Make no mistake about it: having the "truth" exposed may be uncomfortable at times, but it's crucial. Thankfully, most people have video cameras in their hands now (in their phones) which can, and does, expose abuse on a regular basis!
3. Strong judiciary. Everybody jokes about lawyers (see the joke below) but, without a well thought out legal system, those who abuse their power may go unchecked. The court doesn't have power to make the rules...but they have the power to enforce the rules (theoretically).
4. Honest police. In some places in the US, it's illegal to video record the police! That's a very bad sign! The ability to trust that the police have the country's best interest at their core is crucial in building a strong democracy. Most countries trying to become democratic often find the police subverting the people under the direction of corrupt politicians.
5. People who vote. Yes, if nobody actually votes (or very few do), the whole process becomes moot. If you don't vote, you really shouldn't complain about those who end up running the country!
6. A constitution. Yes, as boring as it sounds, every country needs a document that outlines the basic rules. And, in my humble opinion, those based on a judeo-Christian foundation are the most fair and stable. The rules have to come from somewhere... might as well get them from the One who made the rules of the universe!

There. Now don't forget to vote!

Joell

Do the Calgary Stampeders have a legitimate beef with the refs for todays loss?

Let's examine the questionable calls:

1. Illegal contact on an eligible receiver (3 times). Two times the Stamps player practically layed out the receiver. Thrid time he grabbed his jersey. Right calls... all three. Oh, and by the way. In the post game interviews the Stamps players kept saying "pass interference". They were clearly not.

2. Intentional grounding: Wrong call. There was clearly a Stamp receiver nearby... just because the ball didn't cross the line of scrimmage shouldn't matter.

3. Taunting: Good call. If he just does the flex thing as he walks by the Rider DB... then all it good. But he gets right into his face and does it... blatant and correct.

4. Fumble recovery, by the Riders, in the end zone. Correct call. A Stamp player (who should have just jumped on it instead of try to pick it up) kicked the ball into the end zone (the fact that it was kicked inadvertently is the same as if it had been knocked in any other way) . Since they put the ball into goal... there is no points awarded when the Riders recover.

5. Cate's fumble. Overturned and correct. Both his elbow and then his knee were clearly down.

Oh... and a couple more things. Just like the Riders did in the Grey Cup last year, Calgary took their time out early in the 2nd half. Turned out to be a huge factor at the end. And, Calgary missed a chance to challenge the Cate's touch down. I don't think he was in before his knee hit.

6. One call I forgot about. After the TD to Cary Koch, there was an unnecessary roughness penalty as the players rushed to congratulate each other. Dwight Anderson gave Dressler (I think) a wee shove as he ran past... which caused Dressler to slip and wipe out. On a regular field nothing happens and nobody notices. Still, the extra little shot was unnecessary and, actually, unlucky.

Eve - the Older Woman

Our buddies, the scientists, are continuing to come up with really neat discoveries that are not only pointing to a creator, but are constantly proving the historical records of the Bible. I've talked about how archaeology has, time and time again, confirmed the geographical details of the Bible (i.e., towns, locations, political leaders, etc.). Now, geneticists are discovering that "Eve" is older than "Adam".

Oh, wait a minute! What?

Well, it turns out that, through the discovering and mapping of DNA, you can backtrace who's related to who by the different markers that we all have in our DNA. As they have being doing this, they have come to the conclusion that all of us come from one female ancestor. They call her "mitochondrial Eve". However, as they backtrack the male line... they come up with a noticeably younger date, meaning, the "Adam" that we all descend from came along much later than "Eve". Now, on the surface, this is puzzling unless you read your Bible. It turns out that "Adam" is actually Noah! The Bible clearly states that Noah and his four sons were the only males that survived the flood. However, each of the sons had a wife who each came from different mothers (probably). Therefore, the female lineage would continue back to the real Eve... but the male lineage would "bottleneck" at Noah.

Now, how could the writers of the Bible (in this case Moses) not only know the universe came into existence out of nothing (the Big Bang) but also know that we humans came about from Adam and Eve, bottlenecking through Noah? This information would have been impossible for a writer to make up...and then just happen to be found to be accurate thousands of years later, unless it were coming from God himself.

So very cool. Read more about it here: http://www.reasons.org/blogs/take-two/happy-mothersdna

Joell

Dear Soup to Nuts fans

OK. I'm sorry. My blog has been neglected (don't bother counting all the "I haven't blogged enough lately" blog posts out there... there are millions) and I have nobody to blame but myself and that guy sitting over there. I am still posting but mostly to Twitter (please, don't hate me). Check it out here: http://twitter.com/jhaugan

I'll get back to here soon...my 8 years of sporadic blogging shall not be in vain!

Signs from the Eston Rink

My personal favourite.

Haugan Christmas Letter 2008-ish

Yes, at long last, it is here! This year's edition of the Haugan Christmas/New Years-ish letter for your enjoyment.

First if you want a hard copy mailed to you instead of this newfangled interweb pdf thingy then just email me and we'll mail it off (feel free to include an optional cheque for $500 to cover postage, ink, paper, copying, mocha cappacino's for the next 3 years).

We've got two versions for you to download... the high quality one is 8mb of goodness and the low quality one is 135k of goodness with grainy graphics (for those on dial up).

High quality version click here

Low quality version (for the bandwidth impaired) click here

If you can't get them to open then try right clicking on the link and selecting "save as" or "save target as" and save it to your desktop... then open it from there.

If you still can't get it to work then click here.

If you still can't get it to work then call someone to take your computer away from you and replace it with a fish tank.

If you want to read older ones (and why on earth would you want to do that) then please click here

I told you life made sense in Swift Current

How to Change a Tire Without Stopping

How to treat your enemies

The gang at xxxchurch.com show us how to treat those who are, technically, our enemies!

Refreshing our short memories. XP's woes worse than Vista's.

Vista is actually miles ahead of where XP was one year after it's release. Those of us who can remember XP was a disaster when it came out with huge security issues and compatibility problems. Vista has been a cake-walk in comparison. Give you head a shake and remember the "good old days"!

read more | digg story

Sarcastics Anonymous

My Trip to the Philippines.... 1986!

Just Won Baby!!!

It's a great day in Rider Nation. Congrats to the boys for a job well done. We may not have won pretty... but we won and that's the whole point!!!

You Say Saskatchewan is What?

Wait a minute... those extra 14 pounds aren't going to kill me?

So having a little of that "baby fat" hang around until you are in your 50's maybe ain't such a bad thing after all! Isn't great to live in such mixed messaged times! :)

Please take a few moments now for your daily devotional

Yes, it's the unofficial Franzl Lang Appreciation Week.

It doesn't get any better than this.

Darwin was Wrong - It should be Survival of the Community-est

How to Be a Hobo

Finally, an article for a career choice that many teenagers should consider considering their complete lack of initiative!

Finally, the Emergent Conference That Makes Sense

Blast from the Past: The Time Ryan Falls Off a Horse...and Doesn't Break his Arm

No Wonder I'm in Last Place in my NASCAR Pool

A rare two post day. WOO HOO.

NASCAR Coach Reveals Winning Strategy: 'Drive Fast'

The Internet Has Crashed!

Breaking News: All Online Data Lost After Internet Crash

Houston, we have gotten rid of Vista!

OK. So I installed Vista on my sweet LG S1 laptop (OK, it's not mine... but I like to think it is).
This list of problems forced me to go back to XP!

1. Somehow Vista sucks video signal out of the machine making our 100ft run of VGA cable from the projector suddenly too long. Vista magically sucks bandwidth out of the signal going out on the external video port. Weird. (Yes, I turned off all of the eye candy on Vista to no avail). The projector image was glitchy every 3 seconds or so... and, sometimes, Vista would go nuts blinking on and off trying to find the external monitor and then not finding it and then finding it... etc. When I put XP back on.... everything was fine again.
2. Video editing sucks. My Ulead software just wouldn't work (I have subsequently found some updates that I could have tried). Nero 6 just plain won't work (7 apparently does but I don't want to buy it). Windows Movie Maker looked promising but it won't accept MP4 videos! Unreal. So I installed some codecs to make it work and all exported video was garbelled and useless. I quit trying right there.
   
3. File transfer speeds were slower! Whether I was copying across the network or on the hard disk things were slower.... noticeably slower.
   
4. My webcam didn't work.
5. My office printer kept saying it was "unavailable"... I quit right there.

There are some things I liked too... but, unfortunately, these were game breakers. Now, do I try to send it back and get my Shipping and Handling back?

Houston, we have Vista!!!

Yes, it's true. My Vista disk came today.... 6 months (almost) after I ordered it. Next time I'm gonna walk and get it myself.!