diazbro

Sure I'm definitely willing to learn more to understand the impact that hormones, pesticides, and preservatives might have on us though please do not underestimate the sedentary lifestyle of the average american as being a key variable in the obesity trend. Its quite true that processed foods have problems but people are much more inclined to omit exercise now than ever. And certainly the youth are falling into a dangerous trap of thinking that its okay to play hours of video games while swilling 64 oz. cokes and eating crap. As any middle-ager knows, as you age it does become harder to get in quality exercise time. And it could be that injuries or the aches and pains of growing older makes it harder to exercise but most people can do some form of exercise. 20 minutes, 3 times a week is great if thats all you can do but most people won't even do that which is a shame especially since many of these people complain about their growing waistline. Worse, people complain about their weight increase as they sit there eating a pint of Hagen-Das ice cream ! I knew a lady who used to tell me that for her "exercise doesn't work". She said she had some thyroid condition. Okay so maybe it was true but then when you saw what she ate then you knew why she had a massive weight problem. I think if I had a thyroid problem I might try to make healthy food selections but she didn't. It was junk food and crap food. The trouble was that she didn't see anything wrong with it. Well she did but she felt like it was her source of comfort. She isn't alone. Some people like to drink a 6 pak of beer every night as a reward but it comes with a price and a growing mid section. Others might feel that "their sweets" are necessary for happiness. My point is that we do have issues with our major sources of processed foods. That is for sure. But we also have major issues with our willingness and interest in getting in better shape. Its like we as a nation don't care anymore and any time we see someone who is in shape we attempt to make them look like they have the problem as if they are some "fanatic" or "musclehead" even when they are just doing what we should be doing. In my mind, fitness is a gift that you give to yourself. It keeps lasting and your mate certainly thanks you for it. Whats not to like about it ? More years, more quality, better sex, and better looks. Notice I put the aesthetics last because the things before it are what people should be focusing on - added years with a better quality of life ! I'm not talking about getting out and "doing roids" or "getting ripped". I'm talking about taking control of your health. Thats a great thing to work torwards because its actually one of the few things we CAN control in our lives at least to a large extent.

Well the example of ministering as established by TWI doesn't mean much. Being angry with people for not running enough PFAL or WAP classes isn't what I would call ministering to people. I'll tell you this. Some of the churches I've seen growing up did more real ministering than TWI ever did. They actually helped people - Fed people. Conducted missions. Had mentoring programs. Sponsored young people in college. What did TWI do ? Taught us to be contemptuous of everyone who didn't want to take PFAL. Remember, they are all corpses and this includes your blood relatives - especially those who would try to talk you out of taking PFAL. I don't know how anyone who was ordained in TWI feels about their ability to minister to people. I'm sure there were some well meaning folks and they can tell their stories here. But the larger share of those who were ordained were promoting the TWI over and above anything else.

yes. googling a phrase of a song is usually always good. For some things you have to add in "lyric" as a search word along with the phrase but many times you don't even have to do that.

This is good news. Though Harvard has had a recent shakeup in leadership it is still the institution that always raises eyebrows (in a good way of course) when someone hears the name. Do not undersestimate the name value of an institution such as Harvard. Rightly or wrongly it will open doors that woulnd't be open otherwise.

VPW attempted to reach a point of humility very late in his life and the epitaph didn't really fit. VPW was many things but hunble wasn't one of them. An epitaph is supposed to sum up one's philosophy or approach to life or at least be a summary of what the person accomplished. In this case I view VPW's epitaph as a plea or a statement on what he wished he could have been because he certainly wasn't a humble man while living. And if the VPW fanatics start foaming with rage in reaction to such a comment I must remind them that VPW lied to us and willingly deceived many about the nature of his illness. Hell. The leaders wouldn't even admit that he was ill. They just claimed that the eyepatch was to provide some "relief". But as the head of TWI he could have been open and up front about his problem, and had he been, I'm quite certain that most would have been very supportive. But he avoided that and chose the path of deception to preserve the "teachings" in PFAL to avoid penetrating discussions on why he had cancer. After all it was VPW who taught us that cancer was a "devil spirit". VPW also taught us that "believing equals receiving" but for some reason no one criticized Vic for not having enought believing to get delivered. Now again, before the VPW suckups choke on their bile about this, I distinctly recall the death of my friend who was twice a WOW. All that most of the leadership would say (the ones who cared enought to comment) about him was "well his believing just wasn't there". Yet when VPW died they wanted to act like it was equivalent to the death of Christ. To this day it really makes me mad that there was and is a double standard. VPW was let off the hook and as far as most of his followers are concerned , he is sitting on the right hand of God in place of JC. But if a person on the field fell ill then they wanted to make it seem like that person was some kind of demon possessed reprobate who was too weak to get delivered. I take no joy in the death of anyone. But its a source of extreme displeasure for me that anyone would think that VPW died as some kind of supreme example of humilty. That would be a supreme joke. He loved the limelight and he couldn't get enough of it. I too wish "he coul d have been the man he wished to be". If that had happened I wouldn't be posting here now.......

A new David Koresch-like cult or just a "normal" everyday fundamentalist "church" seeking privacy ? See http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11328844/

*laff*. So this is why I learned to play guitar and joined a band ! In high school I had yet to fill out so I wasn't much interested in sports and at that time they only sport I really knew well was soccer so the jock route was out of the question for me at that time. I pursued other sports it in college though. Anyway because of that I was just one in a very long line of regular guys who were routinely "dissed" by the more popular girls in favor of the alpha male types. But once I started getting my rock band together boy did that ever change ! I couldn't believe it ! Girls everywhere ! The stuff hit the fan though when one of the cheerleaders ditched her b/f to come watch us rehearse and this gang of footballers came looking for her. It was like West Side story - the Jets and the Sharks ! It was just a bunch of posturing and shouting because the football guys soon realized that they weren't in the "right side of town" and they got nervous when some burly, tattoed,"institutional" types came out to greet them (friends of the band). Funny thing though was after all this blew over the football guys took a liking to us but I think it was only because they noticed that at our parties and gigs that there were lots of very pretty girls ! So Sudo. IF the dentist gig doesn't work out for you then get a band together ! *laff*

Errr well understand that many unmarried copies who have monogamous relationships (or strive to) would consider someone "stepping out" as being cheating. One does not have to be married to experience a sense of massive betrayal upon discovery that your significant other has sought the affections (physical or otherwise) of another.

Speaking only for myself, I have peace in my life whether or not I "forgive" VPW, LCM, or some other icon of the Way experience. My happiness is not a function of forgiving someone at all. I reject the characterization that if one doesn't actively forgive another then one must be full of rage and isn't at peace. In my experience that simply isn't true. There are people who have wronged me and I simply don't think about them. At this moment I might think of them because of the context but thats it. Yes. There are people whom I hope reap the consequences of their actions but I don't make it my life's mission to carry anger inside. I know people who claim to have forgiven someone else yet they still harbor negative feelings towards the person whom they allegedly forgave. As the kids like to say "whassup with that ?". Forgiveness between humans isn't some magic recipe for peaceful living. In my life the ONLY forgiveness that matters is that which God gave us. I certainly see the value in forgiving in another - that way two people can cultivate a better relationship and put aside the deeds of the past. And that can only happen at the right time. When both are ready. But , again, in my experience, those who are desperately seeking to be forgiven are typically just wanting to get off the hook for some past misdeed. I imagine lots of former Way leaders want to be forgiven but they'll have to do more than just ask for it as far as I'm concerned. Speaking in general here. I wonder how many people here would forgive a man who murdered their best friend or a family member. Or forgive a man who physically assaulted one of your children or spouse. I think that those who are preaching the forgive and forget approach would have a problem in these cases. But to deviate from that approach would be wrong - assumming one holds fast the "forgive and forget" concept. My point is that we can talk all week about whether or not LCM or VPW should be forgiven but if you attempt to generalize the idea to other situations , like those mentioned above, then it doesn't seem to extend so well now does it ?

I don't have a problem with forgiveness. I have a problem with people who INSIST that I forgive them as means to avoid the consequences of their actions. In my view God forgave us at a specific time and he did it so he could have a better more meaningful relationship with us. Seems to me that lots of people seek forgiveness just so they can forget about the wrong they've perpetrated on some one and not because they want to have a better relationship. After you "forgive" them they are off on their merry way and forget things. This is what I've seen with some former Way leaders - at least the ones who actually bring up the topic of forgiveness. And when they do they like to use the "Get over it" terminology a great deal as if I OWE them forgiveness on the spot or on demand. No way ! Thats BS of the highest order and no one should fall for that.

Well anytime there is an impossibly high standard its for sure that many , if not all, will fall short of it. Of course you have to wonder who set the standard and if they are actually capable of living by it. In the case of TWI I think there was an assumption that VPW was in fact living at the highest level "living the word" when in reality he probably wasn't even doing as good a job of that as a newly minted WOW who was living with 3 other twenty-one year olds who were crammed into an apartment in Boise. But no one knew that. All they knew was that the teachings and meetings had us believing that our journey to the so called abundant life involved taking all the classes, going WOW, maybe Corps, the Rock, the family nights, all twigs, etc until some magical moment when we were suddenly "living the word" and operating "All nine all the time". So in my view those who set the standards knew that they weren't living anything close to them yet used it to get control over people who though that there was some magic at HQ and those leaders who lived there. That was a trick of the worst sort. Its like the wizard of Oz. Anytime there is an impossibly high standard that no one can live up to there is disappointment as long as you are under the assumption that someone is living at that level - like VPW. But again he wasn't even close to the level he pretended to be.

Is there a way to post MP3s (or excerpts thereof) to this site ? Examples of playing I mean

I'd like to clear one thing up here at least as far as I'm concerned. I don't at all think that NOT forgiving someone of necessity implies that one is holding a grudge. There are people whom I've not forgiven and I seldom ,if ever, think about them nor harbor rage. At this moment they might float through my mind because of the topic under discussion but thats it. Of course there are people whom I've forgiven and those who have forgiven me so I'm not at all opposed to the concept. Its just that many times I see abusers who attempt to employ the concept of forgiveness to their benefit. They want it more than their victims wish to provide it and they (the abuser) frequently uses biblical refereneces to push the issue. Now is anyone who talks about the bible and forgiveness attempting to manipulate others into forgiveness ? No. Of course not but there are those who do and this is abhorrent. Its even worse than the original abuse because the perpetrator just wants to rest easier about things. As I mentioned in my previous post I acknowledge that God forgave mankind but he didn't do it immediately nor did he do it upon request. He did it when the time was right and not one moment before. Thats a precedent I think is useful. Give your forgiveness when the timing is right NOT when someone is pressuring you to give it. And again. don't fall for the trick of "if you don't forgive someone then you will be full of rage". Thats not true at all. It can be but its not a given. I'm not God so I don't think its my place to go around and act like it - "you are forgiven my son" especially when I haven't worked it through yet. Each party must benefit from this else its unbalanced.

Crash is indeed a good movie and when it came out , it was mentioned as being Oscar worthy. It was also mentioned that since it came out so early in the year that that would hurt its chances for a win. I don't know enough about the history of the Oscars to know if something like this is in fact true but when I recently heard that Crash was nominated I was thinking "wait, isn't that movie a couple of years old ?" but I was wrong of course. I realize that the judges aren't supposed to care about this type of thing but I've also heard that since this is an industiry sponsored event that they tend to push heavily whatever movie tends to have the most momentum at the time simply to insure that at least one movie attains blockbuster status well after the Oscars have waned. I'm not the movie buff or an Oscar's buff so if anyone knows if movies released early in the year tend to do worse at the Oscar's then I would like to know that.

Sorry. But I would dump both in a heartbeat for Salma Hayek.

This is entirely consistent with my early experiences with Twig. Very little formality and requirements in terms of structure and routine. Teachings were of a wide variety and sometimes we simply had Q&A sessions about anything - I mean ANYTHING. Music was optional and when we did have it we hosted any number of people who would show up and play songs and talk about their christian experience even if it involved other churches or alternative religions. Did this change over time ? Yes. To the extent that there was pressure to take classes, go WOW, and abundantly share. But I went to an awful lot of twigs even up until the early 80s and I found drastically different styles at work. Some were all about the "hot bible" while others were so laid back you were never sure if you had even started Twig yet. Some got real deep into word studies while others talked about general christian concepts such as how to represent yourself to the community. So I don't agree that Twigs were a franchise where one was exactly like another. Did it get like this in the mid 80s and later ? I don't know. I wasn't around but before that , it was the people in the Twig who set the tone and pace. In my mind it was this wide variety and respect for personal needs that made Twig so popular. It wasn't as judgemental and hardcore as it might have become later on which is why there was an abundance (no pun intended) of people who were excited about coming. My point is that it was the people who made Twig so successful. It emerged organically and grew without guidance from the "experts" even though at times HQ might attempt to dispatch people to "fix problems" (many which simply didn't exist but they had to give the Corps something to do). I would also like to point out that many of the late 60s and early 70s spiritual scene involved the concept of informal gatherings and meetings in places like parks, apartments, homes, etc. So it was hardly a stretch for people to warm to the idea of Twig.

Oldies, I have no problems believing that you followed any and all rules set down by anyone in a position of authority with TWI.

Ah once again that "logic" ! If YOU didn't see it., hear it, or read it then IT MUST NOT HAVE HAPPENED !

Ah so given the LAtin background I picked up the nylon string first and a great deal of it was spanish style classical (Torroba, Sor, Albeniz, Rodrigo). I spent hours with Giuliani's studies for the right hand. What a buster ! You could probably get a copy at the local library if you wanted. I spent many,many hours looking at he Segovia transcriptions of these guys' work but it was worth it - even though I didn't play those pieces very well. I greatly benefitted from my early study of classical. It gave me the discipline to persevere and even though I didn't stick with classical music, many of the concepts did. So it was a failry easy switch to electric guitar except that i had to immerse myself into a less rigid style of playing which at first wasn't so easy. I later learned to get comfortable with the idea of improvisation (drugs helped *laff*) but the chords and various grips I learned on classical made the physical transition a piece of cake. In tems of practicing, I was putting in about 3-4 hours a day but since I was so young I had the time to do it. It kept me out of trouble. So later when the guys in my first rock band were complaining about a 2 hour practice , half of which was spent drinking beer, it was hilarious.

Ah you are being modest. Berklee is a buster let me tell you. So many talented people walk through that place. I mean scary good ! At times you wonder why they are there. Seems like they could have any gig they want but of course jazz is the music of unemployment *laff*. There is more than jazz going on there of course. (You might want to look at their new online school at www.berkleemusic.com they've got some good stuff I hear). While you do learn a lot studying you learn the most hanging out and playing with others. Thats where you can steal all those great licks *laff*. I was greatly humbled by the experience. As I mentioned I only hung out for a couple of semesters. Lots of people did that. Take classes, ,meet people, form a band and then move on. I did the same but wound up going back to college to pursue a completely different course of study. Never stopped playing the guitar though. MI is good also. There are lots of great teachers there. One guy named Don Mock is absolutely fabulous. (Many of them are of course). I think that back in the earlier days of MI it was much more rock oriented but thats changed. I ran into lots of MI guys back in the early 90s who were into the speed thing - string skipping, sweeps, and taps and while it sounded okay it was really only impressive to me when executed by the top of the line players like Frank Gamable or Alan Holdsworth. I'm not so much into fusion but those guys are definitely kings of that area. Anyway as time went on I met a few more MI grads who were more well rounded so I think over time they have definitely expanded the cirriculum to involve many different styles and harmony. While I went through my speed demon phase (doesn't every guitar player) I cooled out on it and would like to think I took a different more mature direction. Sunn ! Now theres a name you don't hear much about these days. Those amps were everywhere throughout the 60s and early 70s. They did make a newer model I think. Or are you talking about the vintage stuff ? I've got the Line 6 POD and thats fine for portable stuff. I'll tell you an interesting piece of gear is the Electrix Repeater. Its akin to the Lexicon Jam Man and it lets you layer up loops of your playing - sort of like the old EchoPlex but with greater precision and more control over the loop. Very good for experimental playing or just practice. But its got lots of creative potential. I've seen them - the bose PA but haven't heard them in action. Obviously it would be great if systems like those did the job. Lots of people would jump right on in.

Oh great. Next people will be wanting to have sex in their homes......

Well their mission is to get as much attention as possible and I think extensive market research , as well as centuries of history, has proven that employing scantily clad women is a very good method to accomplish that. ! I would wonder ,however, if the these "models" are in fact card carrying PETA members or perhaps just hired for the publicity stunt.

I think that many way leaders want you to forgive them so they can rest easier about things they have done in the past. (e.g. "Whew - I don't have to worry about that guy anymore"). This approach is selfish and doesn't even begin to address the fundamental problems of disprespect. While I read the bible and even go to church on a semi-regular basis I've changed my view on forgiveness a great deal. I forgive only when I'm ready because if I don't provide forgiveness in a genuine, authentic manner then it is simply a hollow gesture and I'm just going through the motions. Ultimately nothing is accomplished. So in my view its better to arrive at that right place in time to provide the forgivness. After all, God waited for the birth of JC and his resurrection. Adam and Eve sinned yet God didn't immediately turn around and say "okay no problem. I'll just push the reset button and we'll pretend like it didn't happen". No. Far from it. There was a long process whereby this forgiveness was provided. I'm sure Adam and Eve deeply wanted to be forgiven but they and many generations following had to endure the consequences of their actions. It was only much,much later that mankind as a race received the forgiveness that earlier generations so desperately wanted. There is a lesson here somewhere and I think part of its meaning is that you give forgiveness when YOU are ready - NOT when the other person is seeking it or trying to bully you into it. They feel guilty and want to stop feeling that way so they come to you in a false way to get you to clear the debt so to speak. Sorry, I'll do it when I think its the right time. Its not like I'm sitting there imagining revenge scenarios or foaming with rage - far from it. I get on with my life no matter what. God forgave mankind when WE most needed it and not one moment before - so there is in fact the concept of "when" to forgive someone. This way when you do do it , then its very genuine and authentic.

Nice looking guitars. The Gretsch must have that buttery , mellow tone. Hook it up to a polytone and channel the spirit of Joe Pass or Herb Ellis (I think Herb is still alive though). I'm not really a jazzer but I've faked it for a number of years using Freddie Green style comping grips. The 3 note voicings that don't get in the way of anyone. The less you play the better they think you are ! *laff* Well not exactly but its hard for the band to get mad at you if you make THEM sound good during their solos. The only Gretsch I ever had was a Grestsch Country Gentleman like Chet used to play. Skinnier neck than the jazz setups but no less toneful. The Tele looks nice. I sold mine years ago and regret it. I only have the Strat and an acoustic for fingerpicking - a Takamine. I had the good fortune of studying at Berklee in Boston (just for a couple of semesters - a truly humbling experience) and saw that most of the best players there all seemed to have that one guitar from which they could get all kinds of sounds and tones. Of course that could simply be the student poverty lifestyle at work but once people started making money they did buy other guitars but it was funny - By that time they had gotten so used to one guitar that it became hard for them to switch ! Too funny huh. My big "problem" is/are amps. I'm very picky about them and even though I've had good experiences with the Fenders (vibroverb, Twin, The Champ, Bassman) and the Marshalls there is always a sound I want that I don't seem to be getting. This of course is not uncommon with guitar players. I have been having a blast with the software amplifier simulations such as Amplitube and Guitar Rig and these things are a total blast. They have a ways to go before you could ditch your amps for live shows but for recording they are not bad at all. I'm a big believer in minimal setups just because I don't like to have too many points of failure.

No you aren't out of your league at all. Its like haning around the barbershop and talking about things - in this case guitars. Lots of this stuff is just picked up through experience so its not like anyone is supposed to know this stuff. It can be addictive though - talking about guitars as opposed to playing them *laff*