it was just going to blow away anyhow

Dad was never rich. But he did work hard for his money. When I was little, he worked rotating shift work at a cement plant in southwest Arkansas (see this earlier post). This meant that he worked the day/evening/graveyard shift every third week.

Paychecks were distributed on Friday mornings. When he worked the day shift or the graveyard shift his supervisor would hand him his paycheck. But on those Friday mornings when he worked the evening shift he would have to make the 8-mile trip to pick up his paycheck in the morning if he wanted it to be in the bank before Monday. Frequently he'd take one of us kids with him on the special trip. On this particular Friday morning, I accompanied him.

Inside the office building at the plant, there was an old-fashioned teller's window with a slot through which the office staff passed the paycheck to the employee. Just as Dad was reaching down for his, quite by happenstance, both the front and back doors of the office building were opened at the same time creating an amazing draft through the small slot in the teller's window. The wind blew his check through the slot and out the front door. Dad said something to the effect of "Oh well, it was just going to blow away anyhow" and turned around and walked out.

I think I chased the check down for him.

he had a dream

It's going to be an amazing election year. I can't stand election years. But, this one will be special.

Never before has an African American had a real shot at being elected president of the United States of America. Neither has a woman had a real shot at it either. This year a black candidate and a female candidate are legitimately capable of winning this whole thing. It's about time.

What's really cool is that either one of these folks could win (or lose) this whole thing based strictly on their merit--not on their skin color or gender. OK, yeah, I know it's more complicated than that. However, this year, perhaps, the majority become more moral than that. Perhaps this is the year that we can turn the corner on King's dream. Whether Obama wins or loses, I hope we can look back on it having forgotten the role that race played. Whether Clinton wins or loses, I hope gender has nothing to do with it.

Both Clinton and Obama are reaping the benefit of King's vision and dream. We all are. We must continue to make progress. We must judge others by their conduct and their character and not the color of their skin. It must be our dream--not just Dr. King's.

See this earlier post in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Please vote in my poll to the right.

hp handheld history on hp.com

Hey, it's time for another hp calculator post. You might recall this earlier post pointing you to the hp museum site. But hp has its own history page that's pretty good as well. Check out the hp calculator history and educate yourself a little bit. HP is the market leader in financial calculators and their scientifics aren't too shabby either. I like all of the pictures of different models that represent the different lines. I also like the fact that they didn't go overboard and try to display everything. It's well done.

Now, why do I still not have my very own 35s?

the case for religious extremism

Warning: extra long post.

Less than a month ago, Fouad al-Farhan, a Saudi blogger, was arrested for posts which were critical of religious extremism and is still in jail.

When I heard about this story, I thought of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s letter from a Birmingham jail, excerpted below.

But though I was initially disappointed at being categorized as an extremist, as I continued to think about the matter I gradually gained a measure of satisfaction from the label. Was not Jesus and extremist for love: "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." Was not Amos an extremist for justice: "Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream." Was not Paul an extremist for the Christian gospel: "I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus." Was not Martin Luther an extremist: "Here I stand; I cannot do otherwise, so help me God." And John Bunyan: "I will stay in jail to the end of my days before I make a butchery of my conscience." And Abraham Lincoln: "This nation cannot survive half slave and half free." And Thomas Jefferson: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal . . . ." So the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we be extremists for hate or for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice or for the extension of justice? In that dramatic scene on Calvery's hill three men were crucified. We must never forget that all three were crucified for the same crime -- the crime of extremism. Two were extremists for immorality, and thus fell below their environment. The other, Jesus Christ, was an extremist for love, truth, and goodness, and thereby rose above his environment. Perhaps the South, the nation, and the world are in dire need of creative extremists.

May we all be extremists like MLK Jr. May we emulate his peacefulness. May we emulate those that he referred to in this paragraph. May we answer his questions by being extremists for love and the extension of justice.

I hope that al-Farhan is released soon--he should be. I hope people of all nations and religions exhibit the kind of extremism modeled by King, Jr. Those of us who are Christians should take the lead.