Blogcritics Author: Lennie

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Movie Review: United 93

Lennie — Mon, 1 May 2006 00:13:00 EDT

I went to see United 93 today. It was very well done. They captured the essence of the day perfectly. The stunned silence as the FAA and Military were watching on monitors and TV screens reflected the way multitudes of Americans reacted that day.I remember where I was. I heard the news on the radio of the first plane right before I dropped my oldest child off for school. I told them to tell the teacher that a plane had just crashed into the World Trade Center. The teacher could get more news later. I went back by the house before going to work to tell my wife. I walked in and she told me she watched another plane fly into the other World Trade Center tower. I didn't believe her at first. I thought it was a replay of what I heard on the news. It was not. I will never forget that day. At work, nobody was working. Everyone was either on the internet or watching a small TV that had been setup. We actually had a time of prayer for anyone that wanted to pray that day. We all watched in disbelief and horror as the towers crumbled. Several people were frantically trying to contact friends in New York and a contract writer that worked with our company. Everyone we knew there was safe, although the writer was not able to contact anyone for a couple of days.You could feel the tension and emotion of the passengers as the slowly found out the news of the other planes fate. The movie played down the "Let's Roll" drama, but still captured the heroic and selfless act of the many passengers who came together that day to take a stand against the evil that had penetrated our country.The terrorist had chosen the most opportune time to attack us. We were lethargic and totally unprepared for the events that took place that day. The film portrayed this very well. When the film was over, the audience sat in complete silence for several minutes before starting to leave the theater. One person did leave about half way through the showing, but the remainder were silent throughout except for one line. If you don't want to know what that is quit reading now. That line was "Screw the FAA. Get those planes over New York."This movie was like reliving Sept 11th, 2001 all over again. This movie will be too soon for many and not soon enough for others. Listen to interviews with family members of United Flight 93 who don't think this was too soon. If you don't want to relive September 11th, don't go see this movie. If you want to see what ordinary heroes look like, or want an in depth look at what may have happened on United 93, then please go see this film. You will be filled with emotions as you watch it. It will fill you with sorrow, anger and pride, mixed together in a film that every American should buy and replay when you yourself, your children and grandchildren grow complacent in the normalcy of safety in your everyday life. This story needs to be remembered and retold for many years to come -- the story of how ordinary people may one day be called upon to act selflessly for others.

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Movie Review: Ice Age: The Meltdown

Lennie — Sun, 2 Apr 2006 07:34:30 EDT

Ice Age: The Meltdown is an accurate title. The franchise is melting down with this movie. The story developed slower than the ice melted. It was choppy and inconsistent. If their target audience was first and second graders, they hit their target with all the potty humor. Of course they did take shots at the global warming crowd and anti-evolutionists.Blue Sky spent much more time on the animation and effects than they did the story. The animation was well done. There was plenty of slapstick humor that kept you awake and even laughing at spots. There were also a few good moments, but they were few and far between. Most of the water scenes were fantastic, but the final dam break was very uninspired and disappointing. It was not as realistic as the previous shots.Overall, I would recommend this movie only if you have kids under age 10. The younger kids will still love it because of the potty humor and slapstick style. For my wife and I, it did not meet our expectations after the great job on the original Ice Age.

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Book Review: Global Deception by Joseph A. Klein

Lennie — Sun, 26 Mar 2006 09:49:25 EST

Global Deception: The UN's Stealth Assault on America's Freedom by Joseph A. Klein was a very intriguing read. All the conspiracy theorists will love reading this book because it proves everything they say is correct. All the new world order people who read this book will hate having their hidden agendas exposed. Everyone else will need to watch the events around us and at least be more skeptical of how and why the United Nations operates.Joseph Klein lays out the plans and schemes used by the UN and its allies to make themselves look as if they do not have an agenda while continuing that agenda unabated. The UN creates or has supporters create Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO). These organizations are then free to do as they please and do not have to live under the same rules as government organizations. It's a globalist dream scenario. You get full access, UN status authority, and no accountability.The evidence Klein presents is very compelling. It covers many topics including the Kyoto Treaty, humanitarian aid based on GDP, etc. He includes 17 pages of reference notes at the end of the book so you can further research his findings.This book puts on full display the need to reform the UN before the United States and every other country in the word loses its sovereignty to a globalist government unaccountable to the voters and citizens of their country. Thankfully, Klein ends the book with suggestions on how the voters in the US can help keep the UN from gaining authority over our Constitution. I would recommend anyone interested in the politics of the US to read this book. Whether you believe the facts as presented in the book, you will be better equipped to discern for yourself future actions and events undertaken by the UN.

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Book Review: Connecting With Your Kids by Timothy Smith

Lennie — Sun, 22 Jan 2006 14:01:56 EST

I have enjoyed reading this book. It is very timely. Most families today keep very busy, including mine. There is always some place to go, some more work to do. Another cause to stand up for.The book is broken down to describe each of the 4 personality types, Cruiser, Walker, Runner and Biathlete. Below is a brief chart (p. 141) of each type: CruiserWalkerRunnerBiathlete SlowLikes DetailsOrganizedIndustriousAnalyticalMakes List SteadyLikes RoutineLoyalPatientThoughtfulAvoids ConflictConsistent FastLikes PeopleInvolvedIntuitiveInfuentialTakes RisksCreative Fast and StopLikes VarietyStrategicBoldLeadsCuriousCompetitive Tim is very insightful into the different types of personalities in families. I know my family has a mixture of these personalities. His insight is helping me understand and be more considerate of other members of my family. It is easier to understand then when you know why they act in certain ways.Tim not only talks about the different personality types, he goes into ways that you can identify your families heartbeat. Once you know your heartbeat it makes it easier to regulate the activity for each person. This allows everyone to be included and your family will run much smoother and happier.There are questions at the end of each chapter for discussion within your family. Tim gives many suggestions as well for each type or person. These are very helpful. I recommend this book to all families. Read this book and you may discover things about yourself and your kids that will benefit you for your life and theirs. As Tim puts it in one section, we need to stop the crazies. We don't have to pass them on to our kids.For more book reviews, please visit my website

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Book Review: Help Mom! There are Liberals Under My Bed

Lennie — Sun, 22 Jan 2006 05:58:17 EST

I had seen an ad for this book and couldn't wait to read it, and my hopes were met: It was a fun read. The book is written for kids and describes a dream two young boys have about liberals who tax, regulate and finally take control of their lemonade stand. The caricatures of the liberals were exaggerated. They taxed the boys at 50%, bought dustpans for the shoeless children instead of shoes, forced the boys to give broccoli with their lemonade, put up a picture of a big toe instead of Jesus, and reduce the sugar in the lemonade to protect children's teeth.The conservative boys' actions were also exaggerated. They prayed every night, saved money for shoeless children, hung up a picture of Jesus, and were earning the money themselves for what they wanted.This book gives you an opportunity to discuss several issues that are important and are very different for liberals and conservatives. Each difference is highlighted making it easy to discuss these topics with your kids. ConservativesLiberals Public FaithYou should be able to freely express your faith in public.Faith is private and you should not display it overtly in public. TaxationLow taxes to encourage entrepreneurshipTax everyone including small businesses. Charity/Helping DisadvantagedThe individual has the responsibility to help others.The government should take care of everyone. Self RelianceWork hard and earn money for what you want.Don't work hard, the government will provide for you. Personal ResponsibilityMake your own choices. You are responsible for the consequences.The government should regulate businesses to protect people from themselves. Everyone should debate the topics and decide which is right. I am sure the debate about this will be different as well depending where you fall in the political spectrum. There are no absolutes in politics. There are absolutes in life however.Both of my kids read the book and thought it was very funny. We have had several discussions about what being liberal and conservative means. It was a good discussion. It will be a good lesson for your kids as well. For more book reviews, please visit my website.

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Why God Allows Bad Things to Happen

Lennie — Thu, 22 Dec 2005 23:56:47 EST

Do you ever wonder why God allows bad things to happen? Do you wonder why He allowed the Tsunami just about one year ago? What about Hurricane Katrina? The earthquake in Kashmir? What about suicide bombers? Murderers? Rapists? Fires? Auto Accidents? Or birth defects? I am sure there are many other circumstances that have come into your life or those around you that has changed your life forever. If this describe you, then I highly recommend this book, Brokenness: How God Redeems Pain and Suffering by Lon Solomon. It will help give you an understanding of God uses this pain suffering for His purpose. If you are going through a time like this, then ask God for the strength to carry on. Feel free to email me as well and I will gladly pray for you.Lon Solomon is the pastor of McLean Bible Church in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. In this book he relates his personal experiences of his daughter was born with a rare disease that causes thousands of seizures. These seizures have left her brain damaged and totally reliant on others for her care. He relates how the struggles he and his family faced through this experience taught him how to truly rely on God. Lon explains how God used this process, which he calls brokenness, to show him how he relied on himself instead of God. He reveals how God took all of his personal plans and discarded them. Lon finally got to the point of knowing that God is in total control. He learned that he must rely on God for everything. His ministry has flourished and God has blessed it mightily. It is now larger than even Lon had planned. It is also tremendously more effective now as well. We may not understand why things happen, but God does. God plans our lives and uses them to further his Kingdom in a way that glorifies him and not us. Lon walks us through why God breaks each of us who wants to truly serve Him. He explains that God must break us so he can fully use us. I'll use Lon's words to describe why we must be broken: We all recognize that a branch can only bear fruit when it is experiencing the vine's free flow of sap. Christ uses the botanical truth to teach spiritual truth, declaring that, in the same way, we as followers of Christ can bear fruit only when we have the free flow of sap of the Spirit through our lives. Lon goes through the lives of several people who were broken and then saw their influence and ministries flourish. These examples are D.L. Moody, Moses, Peter, Jacob, Isaiah, Abraham, Job, Paul, Joseph and several others. These examples will encourage you when you realize what each of these men lost and then what they were given by God when He could freely use them.Brokenness is just over 130 pages long with 6 chapters. It would also be a great book for a Bible Study group. Each chapter has questions that lend themselves to serious discussion and introspection.You can read reviews of other books at my website, CrossBlogging.

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Movie Review: The Chronicles of Narnia

Lennie — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 00:39:00 EST

I'm finally getting around to doing a review of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. I took the family to see it last Saturday. My children are 7 and 10. I had them read the entire set of Narnia books before attending the movie. I wanted to give them chance to see what there imaginations would picture before the actual movie. It also told me they were ready to see the movie. We all loved the movie. I thought it was pretty true to the book. I thought Aslan was not the awe-inspiring character that he could have been. The animation on him was spectacular, but the voice and his presence in the scenes was played down. Lucy was perfectly cast. She had that wide eyed innocent quality that played very well. The scene where Tumnus and Lucy meet for the first time sets the stage for the movie. It showed the trusting innocence of a child meeting someone different than her for the first time that carried throughout the movie.The witch was also very well done. You could see the tension within herself as she forced herself to be nice to Edmund.Tumnus set the expectations for all the other characters of Narnia. He was done very well. I loved all the creatures they created. Their quality met and exceeeded my expectations.The battle scenes, the sacrifice of Aslan were done in ways that would not be scary to most kids 7 year olds or up. You parents can determine whether you think your kids would be scared by wolves and other creatures that are out of the ordinary. I am going back again soon. My 7 year old is planning a Narnia birthday party at the theater as well. This movie is a great movie to take the entire family to.For those of you in the Chicago area, Wheaton College has the most compresive collection of C. S. Lewis memoribilia in the world. They have his desk, table and most importantly the actual wardrobe that inspired The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.Please visit my site for other reviews.

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Book Review: The Fallacy Detective

Lennie — Fri, 2 Sep 2005 20:47:22 EDT

This is the second book I have read from the Bluedorns. The first was the The Thinking Toolbox. The Bluedorns sent me this book to review. It is titled The Fallacy Detective and was written by Nathaniel & Hans Bluedorn.They again have done a wonderful job of laying out fallacies in a way that is easy to understand. It is broken down into 36 lessons, so you can 1 per day if you wish. The problems they have at the end of each section are great, and build on each other. Don't forget to try out the Fallacy Game they provide at the end of the book. You'll have a blast while learning.I have been using this book to watch my own writings and the comments I receive on my blog so I will improve. It has been very helpful. I read a section a day and then try to apply it to my writings and questions from commenters. I have learned to recognize many of the fallacies quickly, and not get drawn into the traps that others are trying to set for me. I don't always succeed at that, but I am improving thanks to the Bluedorns. Keep up the good work, guys.I would recommend this book to all writers, politicians, whether you are a novice or an expert. There is always some little tidbit of knowledge to learn. I have learned a lot. I would stick to the recommendation on this book that it be read or studied by teenagers and above. Most younger kids would not understand the differences between the fallacies. Please visit my website for more book reviews. Edited: PC

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Book Review: Scalia Dissents

Lennie — Fri, 2 Sep 2005 20:34:14 EDT

I have just finished reading Scalia Dissents by Kevin Ring. I bought this book myself because of the upcoming confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Nominee Judge Roberts. I wanted to see what Scalia's judicial philosophy really was since he was being used as the model for picks by President Bush.This book has commentary by the writer, interspersed with the actual writings of Supreme Court Justice Scalia. I now know why everyone touts Scalia as a brilliant man and jurist. I can only hope that Judge Roberts' judicial philosophy is similar.Ring lays out the Scalia philosophy in a manner that is easy to read and understand. He points out how witty and prophetic he is in his writings. He does this with Scalia's own words. Scalia's philosophy can be broken down into simple terms. He believes in the strict separation of powers between the branches. He believes you cannot totally discern the intent, nor should you. You have to look at what is actually written in the law and the meanings of those words at the time they were written. He is a textualist. He believes that courts should not change the law even if it is a bad law. He believes fixing bad law is the job of Congress, not the courts. That does not mean you cannot overturn a bad law. You should only do that though if it goes against the Constitution. He is also a great believer in not using foreign law. The use of foreign law takes you out of interpreting our Constitution at that point. It also is circumventing the other two branches of our government. I have to totally agree with him there, and I hope Judge Roberts does as well.I highly recommend this book to those going into law, or who just want to understand how a judge at any level should think and interpret the laws they have to judge. It is an excellent book to read. Please visit my website for more book reviews. Edited: PC

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com

Best Video Ever?

Lennie — Sun, 21 Aug 2005 11:31:03 EDT

You have to watch this Bob Hope video clip. It is linked at the top of the my home page as well for convenience. (Hat tip: Extreme Wisdom for this.) This is probably one of the best clips I've seen about Democrats. Please pass it along.

For other book reviews or political views from a Christian Worldview please visit CrossBlogging.com