paul is dead!
Posted on October 23, 2007
Filed Under Stephen Christian |
i love conspiracy theories, i am yet to buy into any one of them as of yet; but nonetheless they entertain me to no end. the illuminati, jfk, i even have a good friend from a very relevant band that is into the conspiracy that 9/11 was planned by the government. though i don’t agree at all its always interesting to me to hear another side of the story.
my favorite has to be the the apollo moon-landing hoax theory that suggests that some or all elements of the apollo missions were faked by NASA, i.e. we didn’t really land on the moon, it was all just a sound stage with actors and such. but i once heard one of these theory that actually made me think.
i was in high school and one of my teachers who had fought in several wars and was well versed in politics and government actually told me that he believed the conspiracy that the national football league was actually put together by the US government. he said they did this to take our minds off politics and government goings-on so that they (the US government) could do what we want and the US citizens would be so busy (sidetrack by sports/games) that they became oblivious to what was really happening around them.
i am not saying that is true by any means but that does beg the question ‘what have i wasted my time on that could have been used on things that actually matter/improve my life?’
for example if i took all the time that i watched TV in my life and tried to learn a language i would probably have learned the majority of them by now. if i could take all the time that i have watched movies and instead devoted it to helping build houses with habitat for humanity my community would be a better place to live in. if i took all the time i have spent watching the ‘government instituted sports’ (including the nfl) and devoted them to learning/being an activist in the government i wonder how much change i could have implemented by now.
now for the balance: i don’t think we should alleviate entertainment (after all my job is in the entertainment industry) but i think there should be a limit, keeping oneself accountable to the time they spend doing such activities as noted above. figure out where your time and money is spent and that is your priority in life. make time for yourself, this world can be overwhelming at moments (hence my daily escape to coffee’ shops) but also take time to make a change, not only in this world but in your own life.
but for the time being i am going to devote myself to figuring out if paul is dead, (the theory that states paul mccartney of the beatles died in 1966 and was replaced by a look-alike while clues were hidden in songs and album cover art.) i personally think its true and hope to prove it to the world.
-stephen christian
modesty.blogspot.com
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My grandmother still thinks that no one has ever been on the moon. Nothing anyone can say can convince her otherwise. Of course, she still doesn’t put her money in the bank because she thinks there will be another Great Depression and she has yet to learn how to drive, even at 83. That said, family get-togethers are more fun when you have a grandma who seriously believes no one has ever walked on the moon.
Great thoughts… however I must point out the misuse of the phrase “begs the question.” The correct phrase is “raises the question.”
Good thing it’s a blog and not an essay! Haha, zing! Just kidding. But hey, good read. I love conspiracy theories as well. My cousin has quite a few: Zelda is an attempt at neo-Nazism (I can’t explain…), Courtney Love is an alien and sucked the soul out of Kurt Cobain, and that brown & blue M&M’s (but not the other colors) are chemical agents to a government tracking device. Fun right?
I appreciate your blog - interesting thought put in an interesting context. I think this is a chain of thoughts that we all go through a whole lot. I just spent 2 1/2 hours watching “The Frighteners” thinking the whole time about how I should turn it off and do some homework (now I’m writing this post instead of doing my homework, ha!) I think it would difficult to suddenly decide, for instance, to stop watching t.v. and spend the extra time learning a language. I imagine it’s more about becoming immersed in something your passionate about and the rest will take care of itself. Unfortunately, I think I’m still looking for my passion so I guess I’ll just continue watching Peter Jackson flicks and writing in blogs. Thanks for the post.
Stephen,
Excellent article. I feel I need to do a much better job in handling my time. I am a pastor, and at times, I feel like I take the time God has given me for granted. I pray that I can be better.
I also pray for you and your band. Keep up the beautiful music, and God’s blessings to all of you.
I found it interesting that you mentioned your daily escape to coffee shops…becuase when you asked us to look where we spent our money, because aside from rent and groceries and all those other necessities, my “get away” time to read, write and work on things is at my favorite coffee shops. And also where I most consistently spend money.
Anyhow, all this is very interesting to me. I learned the hard way that distraction breeds mediocrity, and that it’s hard to break away from it many times. Thank God for His grace.
(Sorry, that sounded a little repetitive. Unintentionally.)
I too love conspiracy theories, and actually have a few of my own that I whole-heartedly beleive. And yes, I agree that we are too distracted. We are a generation that has been raised on distracions. We are media-soaked and everyone of us seems to have chronic ADD. It results in way too many apathetic people who get more excited about their favorite sports team winning the playoffs than they ever get about people moving forward with a cure for AIDS or cancer. Great blog, man.
Here’s a couple of good Einstein Quotes relative to this post:
“The pursuit of truth and beauty is a sphere of activity in which we are permitted to remain children all our lives.”
“…one of the strongest motives that lead men to art and science is escape from everyday life with its painful crudity and hopeless dreariness, from the fetters of one’s own ever-shifting desires. A finely tempered nature longs to escape from the personal life into the world of objective perception and thought.”
Thoughtful Post!
fascinating thoughts.
i have really been thinking about priorities and escapes and the reality of time a lot lately. it is ever consuming. so complex for our simple minds. its rad to know that someone else is thinking through those things too. i have an old teacher that truly believes she was abducted by aliens (no joke), and will retell the story with great verve and passion if you bring the topic up…. quite entertaining. i love theories. they make for a great laugh.
I liked this. It made me step back and view my own priorities, and I realize that where I place my money is the greatest indicator of where my highest priorities lie. One thing that this helped me to realize is that although culture and media can be a gift, and often an escape from the difficulties of this world, there needs to be an equal balance of both escape, and action. If we allow our selves to escape the world too often, we will most likely start to lose the things that are truly most important. The freedoms of media and rich culture are only available in a thriving society. Too often today I see my generation indulging in media, and using it as an escape, while their world around them and the thriving society they rely on slowly crashes. Their grades slip, they fail at their jobs, and their money is wasted. How long will an overly media indulged culture survive without anyone to stand for truth, or fight for justice, or against injustices. I love media and culture, but I also need to love my world, and I need to find time to for both. Thanks Stephen for being from what I can see, a model of this life style.