Something Not to Laugh About

Something not to laugh about


If they know of him at all, many folks think Ben Stein is just a
quirky actor/comedian who talks in a monotone. He's also a very intelligent
attorney who knows how to put ideas and words together in such a way as to
sway juries and make people think clearly.

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS
Sunday Morning Commentary.
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Herewith at this happy time of year, a few confessions from my
beating heart: I have no freaking clue who Nick and Jessica are. I see them
on the cover of People and Us constantly when I am buying my dog biscuits
and kitty litter. I often ask the checkers at the grocery stores. They never
know who Nick and Jessica are either. Who are they? Will it change my life
if I know who they are and why they have broken up? Why are they so
important?

I don't know who Lindsay Lohan is either, and I do not care at all
about Tom Cruise's wife.

Am I going to be called before a Senate committee and asked if I am
a subversive? Maybe, but I just have no clue who Nick and Jessica are.

If this is what it means to be no longer young. It's not so bad.

Next confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it
does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful little
bejeweled trees. Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don' t feel
discriminated against. That's what they are: Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, "Merry Christmas" to
me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a
ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and
sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all
that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach
house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is
the Menorah a few hundred yards away.



I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't
think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think
people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around,
period. I have no idea where the concept came from that America is an
explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution, and I don't
like it being shoved down my throat.



Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from
that we should worship Nick and Jessica and we aren't allowed to worship God
as we understand Him?

I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too.

But there are a lot of us who are wondering where Nick and Jessica
came from and where the America we knew went to.


In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this
is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny,
it's intended to get you thinking.


Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane
Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this Happen?" (regarding
[Hurricane] Katrina)

Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She
said, "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for
years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our
government and to get out of our lives.

And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out.
How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we
demand He leave us alone?"

In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings,
etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered,)
complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK.

Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The
Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor
as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when
they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we
might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said
an expert should know what he's talking about and we said OK.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why
they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill
strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure
it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why
the world's going to hell.

Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the
Bible says.

Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like
wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people
think twice about sharing.

Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely
through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school
and workplace.

Are you laughing?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to
many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what
they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of
us than what God thinks of us.


Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard
it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process,
don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

It's an interesting thought but I don't think Ben Stein is out on the internet pounding out emails to spread the word.

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Yeah, I got it a year ago (thats when it came out) and I sent it out to everyone I know...and this morning it came back to me from my Dad.

+1

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The blog: Tofuball's Worklog

Read The Bible - it's the Word of God.

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS
Sunday Morning Commentary.
"Following diatribe"

I think that says that he WAS pounding out emails to spread the word

Nicely Done

Citing itself as a source of it's own reliability doesn't work :P

so, suddenly the world has gone to shit within the last few unspanked generations, give me a break. People have had no morals and no empathy for a long time. Also, most people who don't believe in god continue not believing in god when a disaster strikes or anything bad happens.

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Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance

i argue that these things have always been prevalent in society.

the only difference now is they are no longer hidden from view.

the other major difference is groups in society are trying to change how these things are perceived morally. homosexuality is obvious. cheating and divorce is also quite 'normal' these days.

that's not to say it was better in the old days. in the old days people cheated on each other but maintained a facade of marriage.

i would say it's simply always been bad.

I agree^ Things have always been bad, but only recently the ignorant have actually had to face things like homosexuality, and now, because of their close-minded views, believe the world is going to shit, when in actuality they are just now realizing things that the rest of the logical world has known about; and accepted these practices into society years ago.