Science and Religion

Most people who are involved in the teaching of science in public schools are alarmed at how religious zealots are trying to infuse religion into science classes.

I believe in a strong separation between church and state and religious beliefs have no place in science classes.

I believe that science tries to answer the question "How?" The problem is that scientists deal with the evidence at hand when creating theories and the amount of evidence is constantly growing, so theories do change over time. Newtonian physics gave way to Einstein physics as relativity was discovered and understood.

Religion tries to answer the question "Why?" It is a question that science cannot answer and should not answer.

I don't have any problem with anyone's search for answers to questions that may never get quite answered. Your faith should be respected.

Upcoming albums that I'm interested in

Here are some soon-to-be-released albums:

1. Dolores O'Riordan: No Baggage (release 8/25). Lead singer for The Cranberries has her sophomore album.
2. John Fogerty: The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again (release 8/31). Singer-songwriter that was a significant part of Creedence Clearwater Revival and has transitioned to a solo career. The new album has a definite country sound to it and features guests like Bruce Springsteen.
3. Michelle Branch: Everything Comes and Goes (amazon.com says it will be released 11/10/09). After two high profile solo albums and an album as a part of The Wreckers, Michelle returns to the studio to produce a country sounding solo album.

I also have friendships with these independent artists who are working on new albums:

1. The Sugar Dames
2. Noush Skaugen

Cooperation

I cannot imagine the US winning a war unless we put away our differences and work towards the common good.

One of the most memorable scenes in the series John Adams which appeared on HBO was the scene with Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Ben Franklin hammering out the Declaration of Independence. Much of the document was Thomas Jefferson's but the words changed over the course of their sessions so that each one of their perspectives influenced the final outcome. I do recommend the series.

Everybody's Right and Nobody's Right

One of the better aspects of American politics is the shifting back and forth between political parties. I believe that neither party is perfect and it is necessary to shift the balance of power back and forth.

I also believe that this country works best when there is a divergent collection of opinions, but that the best is collected from the different components and a well rounded compromise is created.

Unfortunately, there has been a shift of lately that translates compromiser = loser. I think the win at all costs mentality is quite unhealthy for our society and our democracy.

Let's Start

This will be my first blog post for this newly created blog. I plan to discuss politics, travel, photography, music, or any other subject that I'm interested in discussing.

I will welcome comments from friends. Please note that I am rather open minded when it comes to politics, but I will simply not tolerate any belligerent or intimidating behavior. I don't claim to have all the right answers and I expect other people to be as equally tolerant. Otherwise, this cannot be an open discussion and no one learns anything.