The (in)famous bamboo nertowk has been hyped for years.  Too bad most of these high profile chinese ex-pats dream of staying and becoming Americans.  Although, I would not mind a bi-polar world, or one where China leads.  I would LOVE to see what these so-called humanists/progressives would say about China’s empire.  After all China does not give a u-know what about people’s rights.  A couple of Tianamen squares and they would clamoring for US intervention.  I know that Chavez and Evo would not mind, after all they also do not believe in individual freedom.  Heck, Evo has been advocating that the government is above any individual.May be Jim can enlighten us on how the Thais and the rest of Indochina feel about being under the US influence vs. being under China’s thumb.

Let’s take these one at a time:1. “You walk into a Christian church and there are hard wdoeon pews.” True. But many mainstream non-denominational Christian churches have movie theater style comfy chairs thank God!!2. “And Catholics, by the way, don’t make things better by adding all the rituals of standing up and sitting down, a particular torment for bored children.” Sorry all you Catholics, but he’s right. Jesus never commanded ANY of the rituals found on Sunday morning in a Catholic church.3. “And the fellow up on the cross looks none too comfortable either.” Sorry Christians. He’s right again. I don’t think Jesus ever wanted to be remembered this way. He’s probably thinking right now, “Geez. Instead of scaring the Hell out of people, literally speaking, I’M scaring the hell out of people, figuratively speaking.4. “But the Buddhist temples. No hard wdoeon pews, only open space and faded red carpet. No priests in uncomfortable collars or ministers in uncomfortable shoes, monks in loose-fitting orange robes and bare feet. Not only do they let visitors to the temple take off their shoes as they enter (Can you imagine an Episcopalian doing such a thing!?), it’s required.” Once again, Christians, Jim is right. Every reference to “the church” in the New Testament does not refer to a building or place but rather to the followers of Christ. No Christian “church/building” was even built until after Constantine legalized Christianity and it became another religion. The early Christians met in the home, relaxed by the fire, ate a feast, sang some songs, and let the kids run free. No uncomfortable ministers or ministers AT ALL, for that matter. I would dare to say that many in the home in those days took their shoes off!!!5. “And the Buddha. He’s not being tortured on a wdoeon cross. He isn’t hanging uncomfortably. He is happy as can be in bright gold twenty feet high in what looks like a comfortable pose with his legs crossed. In a contest between a deity who supposedly died for our sins (before we were born and committed any, a confusing notion) and another who just wants us to relax, breath and here silence, Christianity has tough competition in the world.” Buddha could certainly be happy because he was not called to die for the sins of the human race, which is like a virus that goes back to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil vs. the tree of life (a metaphor for the human race choosing the tree of knowledge rather than life, i.e., Jesus). It’s complicated. But the Buddha did not claim to be God. Jesus did, however. Why did God visit the planet through a virgin, live on the planet for 30-something years, die on a tree, and then ascend into the heavens??? God became a human being so that humans can become God in nature (remember all that stuff about love, joy, peace, meekness, etc?).6. “And also, from what I can tell, Buddhists don’t go door to door either, trying to convince people. It reminds me of something I saw painted on a wall in Cochabamba. “Si Dios existe, porque tanta propaganda?” If God exists, why so much advertising?” Christians always say, “If a house were burning down and people were inside wouldn’t you do everything in your power to save them?” I think a small population of Christians actually ENJOY walking around, knocking on doors on their day off, getting yelled and spat at, ridiculed, etc. and the ones that do enjoy it need some serious counseling! As for advertising, Jim’s right. No less than a few evangelicals are lining their pockets with adverting (that is, proselytizing) money. If Jesus were still on the planet in human form, he probably would react the same way he did when he visited the Temple to find all those merchants making money in a place where they should have been worshiping God.OK. Moving on.