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The_Follower1
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Name: Christopher
Birthday: 12/19/1983
Gender: Male
Interests: Learning what life is all about from the Only One who really knows, journaling, guitar, piano (only when no one else is around), hiking, camping, backpacking, some classes at OCU, down-time on campus between classes, good QUALITY films, traveling, photography, Greek, history, meeting new people, deep meaningful conversations, seeing the beauty in creation - especially people, trying new foods, coffee houses, and other stuff.
Occupation: Student
Message: message me
AIM:  baize777
MSN: c_baize@hotmail.com
Member Since:
2/20/2005
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| I plan on making a longer entry this week upon finishing my classes on Wednesday. I am graduating this Saturday, and I have a special OCU attribute post in the works. I am having a graduation party/open house this Sunday (May 7th) at the Outer Courts Cafe in Vincennes, Indiana from 2-5pm. We will be serving free Latte's and some incredible desserts. It should be a pretty good time. It will give everyone an opportunity to see the new coffee house that I have spent much time helping to open, and to see where I will be spending at least the next several months of my life. I hope some of you can make it. The coffee shop is the second storefront from the corner of Main and Second streets. If you are going down Second street away from the VU campus, towards the Memorial, turn right on Main. There is a big iron gate out front, but as of yet there is no sign posted outside. It's super easy to find. I hope to see some of you there.
I will update for real soon. I just wanted to get this post up for immediate viewing. Bye now. | | |
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http://www.drawahouse.com
I didn't bother putting up the personality info stuff they told me from my house drawing. It was way off anyway. I liked my house though. I called it Le Chateau de Baize. And yes, that is me on top of the wall with a big sword.
Quote of the day: What was incurable desperate blindness has been bound up on all sides by lovingkindness - Sandra McCracken | | |
| Here is something I wrote for my Senior Sem class a few weeks ago. I was assigned the task of arguing this point: Capitalism in American affects the poor in Latin America, thus liberation must be a concern for Christian missions in the area. I'm not saying I totally stand on the thoughts in this paper, but there are some challenging points to the matter that demand attention. Read on if you are interested.
It is no secret that America is engrossed in the system of capitalism. As a country, we are in a race to the top to control the wealth of the world. Our country has become the driving force behind this increasing movement to economic globalization. As a nation, we become wealthier and wealthier, and consume resources at an increasing rate every year. The United States currently imports more than 70% of its goods. If the rest of the world consumed natural resources at the rate Americans do, it would not be long before the Earth was nothing more than rocks and obese people.
As citizens of this country, we enjoy the benefits of being at the top of the global world. Nearly every family owns its own house with comfortable heating and air conditioning; a fully furnished bedroom including a television set for every member of the family; a garage filled with multiple cars, one for every member of the family over the age of 16; a kitchen with a refrigerator, freezer, and cabinets full of food and every appliance imaginable. Even most of the poor in this country do not live without many of these “essentials.” We thank the Lord for his provision, and go join into the river of capitalism that carries us towards an even more comfortable lifestyle; and we never think twice about the implications of our actions.
Capitalism is based on the idea of free trade, where everyone has “equal opportunity” to sell or purchase goods through any means he wishes. While this idea sounds good on the surface, it is actually incredibly destructive to many living in the Two-Thirds World. Tom Sine, in his eye opening book Mustard Seed Versus McWorld, talks about the threat this system of free trade has upon the economies of poor nations. In Haiti, for example, the local poultry industry is being destroyed by American competitors. America’s preference for white meat chicken over dark meat has produced thousands of pounds of chicken legs that cannot be sold in the United States. Free trade laws allow U.S. companies to sell these chicken legs at incredibly low prices in Haiti, and other countries. The local companies cannot compete with the U.S. companies, causing unemployment and an even greater level of poverty in these countries. The U.S. companies believe they are doing the poor nations a favor by selling them food at a low price.
Sine points out that the laws of free trade also put local sellers at a disadvantage. The economies of Latin American countries are becoming increasingly dependent on the export of national resources to support themselves. Higher industrialized countries like the U.S. use these resources to produce more profitable goods, which are sold back to the nations from which the goods came at a higher price. For the lower income country, the result is a loss of its natural resources, and a loss of money.
This problem is not one that can easily be fixed, and the U.S. government is leading the way in making the situation worse. The standard prescription given to poor countries to help their economies is this: Educate your people, reduce inflation, open your economy to free trade and investment, and watch your gross domestic product soar. This prescription is only causing the gap to widen between the rich and the poor. Those in the poor countries who are benefiting from free market economics are using their wealth to become even wealthier and more powerful. The example set by the United States is being followed in poor Latin American countries, as well as poor countries around the world.
The system of capitalism is based on the ideas of greed, and therefore can never truly be used for the benefit of the poor. It will always be destructive. One of capitalism’s founding theorists, Adam Smith, writes in Wealth of the Nations that greed must be the driving force behind the success of capitalism.
This system of greed, though seemingly inherently evil, has been embraced by the Church. We join right in the race to the top with our multi-million dollar structures, never ending building projects, state of the art sound and light systems, and increasingly comfortable salaries. Sine notes that the religious right in the United States has consistently supported legislation to cut back humanitarian aid to the world’s poor, offering no explanation as to how this advances a pro-life, pro-family agenda. As the church sits back silently, and even supports this legislation, the United States has become the leader of the world wide trend in cutting back humanitarian aid. This will mean increased hardship for the poor of the world, specifically Latin America.
Taking this stance puts the United States in a dangerous place. In Ezekiel 16:49-50, God reveals the reason for the destruction of the city of Sodom. “Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy…therefore I removed them.” Micah 6:8 says, “What does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” James warns the world of the misuse of riches in the opening verses of chapter 5: “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure! Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts. You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.”
Surely this message from James is a timely one for the church today. We must take a stand for the liberation of the poor in Latin America. We must not allow the government to continue oppressing the poor and paying them pitiful wages for their goods and labor, which was specifically addressed in verse 4 of the last passage. The Church must stand up and speak on behalf of the oppressed. This is the benefit of the separation of Church and State, as Campolo notes in Adventures in Missing the Point. The Church must speak to the state with a prophetic voice, just as the prophets did in the Old Testament. Jesus himself did this at the beginning of his ministry. He declared that he was bringing “good news to the poor,” and “freedom to the oppressed.” It is obvious that there is oppression taking place in Latin America as a direct result of capitalism in America.
There are many things the church can do to help directly. Sine teaches that in order to battle the ongoing crisis of poverty in Latin America, the church must work on a microeconomic level. The church can start small businesses in areas of poverty, and teach the local people trades that will allow them to be self supporting. The church must encourage local communities to develop a high level of self-reliance, so they do not have to be so dependent on the goods of bully economies like the United States. The church can help by providing education for the poor, especially female children. We can undertake land reform projects to give families a secure means to support themselves. On a larger scale, the church can move for reform in economic policies regarding free trade. We can sponsor organizations that lobby for fair trade economics, which aim to protect the poor by providing farmers fair prices for their goods, and prevent the sell of necessary goods at an inflated price. As individuals we can purchase fair trade goods when available, such as coffee, tea, and clothing. There is much the church can and must do in order to liberate the poor in Latin America. It is evident that we cannot rely on the government to do this for us. God gave the Church the assignment of caring for our poor neighbors, thus no other institution can accomplish this task for us. Capitalism will never alleviate the suffering of the poor. People of faith and compassion must take the reigns, and usher in God’s Kingdom to the poor in Latin America. | | |
| Congratulations to me! Today I am celebrating my Quad-Centennial Xanga birthday! Yes, exactly 400 days ago I joined Xanga. I know that is probably a small accomplishment compared to the years many of you have been doing this, but I was excited when xanga told me it was my 400th anniversary, and I wanted to share with you.
So....what to talk about......
I've been thinking pretty much nonstop about my huge paper due in two days, again in two weeks, and again in a month. I've reached this strange area beyond the realm of stress. It is a dangerous area. It involves complacency, boredom, and even skipping class to avoid my professor. The good news is, I'm no longer stressed beyond belief. The bad news is, the stress might have helped me finish the paper, which I am really having trouble doing now. I've prayed a lot about this, and the Lord has assured me that I will be fine, I will graduate, and I will finish. I guess that means I shouldn't stress. Yet I know somewhere in all this mess, there will involve a great deal of work for which I have to muster up some discipline. If not, I could face an "F" on my transcript and re-take the class this summer with a MUCH easier professor. I would prefer to just pass it this time.
In other news, the coffee shop opens a week from Friday. I am very excited/nervous. This friday is my last day at Family Video (again). This is the second time I've quit, I wonder if they'll take me seriously this time and stop calling me.....I doubt it. I'm really not as anxious to quit this time. Sure, getting called in every day I have off can get annoying, but I was actually beginning to like the job again. I have had the opportunity to build some really great relationships with people there. I've questioned if I'm doing the right thing by leaving to work in a Christian coffee house. Isn't the idea behind being a Christian to work in the world alongside people? I've got ample opportunity with quality relationships at Family Video. Plus I get paid more, am up for a raise, and am able to get off when I need to. The coffee shop hasn't even opened yet and already a lot is being expected of me. I'm just graduating college, and want to be free to explore new opportunities. I don't want to feel like I'm tied to a business. I am already struggling with feeling tied to a church through a ministry position that I don't want to do anymore. But that is another story that I might share another time....maybe.
Wow, I am totally a downer aren't I? Forgive me. I'm doing okay. The Lord still reminds me of His faithfulness. My confidence in that has not waned. There is also an amazing young lady who lets me call her every day and see her about once a week. She's pretty much the coolest person in the world. Don't tell her I said that. She might get a big head or something....
So there you are. This could be my last update before school gets out. April will be quite a demanding month. It is my last month of college, and the first month of a new business I am taking part in. Pray for me, if you think about it. I love you.
P.S. you guys got up to 20 e-props last time! It's just like old times! Keep it up please... | | |
| So I had a wreck last night on the way home from Bloomington.
Don't worry, I lived.
I was driving on....45 I think....this hilly semi-curvy dark wooded road. I came over a hill and a slight curve and noticed some kind of obstruction in the road. I slammed on my breaks, but I knew it wouldn't be enough. The road was too slippery and the downed tree was too close. I hit the tree hard....or rather it felt like I hit it hard. I was totally fine, but I thought my car was destroyed. I tried to back up, and found that my car moved just fine. I turned around and decided to go back a couple miles to a gas station to assess the damage and see if I could drive it home. Two vehicles passed going the direction I had just came from. I blared my horn, turned on my caution lights, and flashed my brights at them. I think they got the idea.
I pulled into a dimly lit closed gas station parking lot and got out to look at my car. To my surprise and utter excitement, there was very little wrong with it. Apparently that old honda plastic bumper filled with styrofoam held up pretty good. There were only a couple cracks, and it was shoved back a little. There was no other damage done to the car anywhere. I sat down on the wet pavement and thanked the Lord for his goodness. It was the first time in a while that I had really meant it.
Last night was the third time I have wrecked a car. I have owned 4 cars, and wrecked three of them. Every time I have had a wreck, I have been the only one in the accident. Thus, my insurance has never gone up. I know three wrecks sounds bad, but I am seriously not an unsafe driver. Just crazy things happen to me. Okay, the first wreck was totally my fault. I ran off the road, lost control of the car, and smashed into a guardrail, totalling my car. This was on the third day I had my license. I was just a bad driver. I have since made the same mistake that caused my wreck and have been able to correct it. This is further evidence to support my belief that people should get their learners permit at 16, and not get their license until they are 18. Seriously, how many of you had a wreck at the age of 16? Yeah, that's right....
The second wreck was last February on the ice. I ran through a really slippery place and started fishtailing. I went off the road and into a small ditch, destroying the front grill piece of my car and shattering my bumper. It was pretty much unavoidable, just like the enormous tree across the road last night.
I know this sounds strange, but I think my wreck last night has actually help me deal with the stress I've been under lately. I'm not nearly as stressed out today as I have been. I've got the whole day today to go to class and do research for my paper due Monday. I'm beginning to get used to this, and that doesn't sound near as dreadful to me as it used to. It's kindof relaxing actually. It's funny, when I do my homework, it helps me to relax, because I'm not stressed out about it. When I sit down to watch a movie, I can't relax because I'm constantly thinking about homework. I wonder if those feelings will carry over in two months when I graduate. Will I still stress out and feel guilty when I watch movies and take some down time? God, I hope not.
Well I'm off to class. Later taters | | |
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