RT @ We Need a Social Media Czar

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A couple months ago, a friend called me very concerned to let me know that a co-worker’s travel itinerary was inadvertently being broadcast over the public Internet. Turns out that he was simply Twittering the happenings of his vacation. It wasn’t that long ago that there was public outcry over our loss of privacy. Now – we’re broadcasting it.

Social Media is more than the latest fad.  It’s changing the way the world communicates.   Soon virtually every person on the planet can communicate with every other one.   But then again, do we have anything interesting to say?  I know I certainly don’t, exemplified by this most current social media I’m writing now.

Where’s this all going?  No one is in charge; it’s just sort of happening.  And we’re going happily along for the ride.  Take the latest craze on Twitter.  My friend, Liz, was tutoring me this week on how Twitter works.  Something about RT (for Re-tweeting) and an @ symbol (still don’t know what that’s about). Read more »

He Just Stood There – And Changed the World

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Tank ManIt’s been twenty years since we saw the power of one human being with resolve.  One man had one of the biggest impacts in history as a solitary person.  And we have no idea who he is.

At this time in 1989, after a pro-democracy Chinese official died, 100,000 people gathered in the famous Tiananmen square to mourn Hu Yaobang and protest the oppressive communist government.

That is until the government decided on June 4 to squash the movement with brute force.  The Chinese army swept in and although no one is sure, it’s believed up to 3,000 protesters were slaughtered.

One man saw the bloodshed and did something that no one could believe.  It’s as if the entire world watched with disbelief while people gathered around television sets in homes and stores to see one of the most amazing acts of courage recorded in human history.

He just stood there. Read more »

Boy oh Boyle, We Just Looked in a Giant Mirror

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By now you’ve seen it. Everyone has. The supposedly plain-looking Susan Boyle who was mocked and jeered by the audience as she walked out susan-boyleon stage to realize her dream of singing before a live audience. It was on the popular show, Britain’s Got Talent, and we soon discovered that she could sing like any star of Les Miserables. The crowd was in shock and then cheered wildly. Everyone passed it on as a heart warming story and moved on.

This video is powerful – there’s no doubt about it. But for a very different reason.

The story isn’t Susan’s singing. There’s countless people who can sing as well or even better than she does. The real story has to do with low expectations. Before we get all indignant at the audience, if you or I were there, we probably would have had the same reaction. But it was like all of society got a chance to look in the mirror and we saw how homely we are.

It sort of reminds me of that movie, Beauty and the Beast. There’s a prejudice that we don’t even realize we’re doing that’s a result of our learning to navigate through life. We can very quickly make judgements on our surroundings based on very little information. But that skill can often, and tragically, be wrong. Now that we’ve heard Susan and seen our reaction, we have to wonder, who’s the beauty and who’s the beast? Read more »

The Second Most Beautiful Girl I’ve Ever Seen

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I can remember it like it was yesterday. There before me, amid the chaos and a room full of people, was the second most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen. She had beautiful skin. She had gorgeous blue eyes. She had ten fingers and ten toes.

Maybe I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me start from the beginning. You see, it all started with a little pink stick.

Well, the stick itself wasn’t that special, but a small cross on the stick and what it represented. My wife sat on the cream-colored love seat in the family room, looked at the stick and said hesitantly, “I think it’s positive ”. That was followed by disbelief, and then elation. We hugged each other, and ran to the grocery store to get three more kits each of different brands. Just in case, you know. And one after another, each elicited the same jubilation. Read more »

Fireproof Trailer – Never Leave Your Partner Behind

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Should be mandatory viewing for every married couple, people who may be married or those who know someone who’s married. Read more »