Glittering Jewels of Colossal Ignorance part 3: (Don't Go Breakin' My Heart!)

I'm a big fan of Elton John's music. For as long as I can remember I've liked and listened to him. Crocodile Rock is still one of my favoirite songs.
However, for some silly, silly reason, he decided to talk about the internet and how bad it is for music.
Now usually when someone, especially a musician, talks about the intertubes now-a-days, they are running down illegal downloads and such. That's not the case with Sir Elton however.
He's talking about how music today sucks COMPARED TO THE 70'S!!! Wow...that's huge right there. Apparently, because people are online and using technology and, apparently, not communicating, music is suffering.
Here are some of his quotes:

"We're talking about things that are going to change the world and change the way people listen to music and that's not going to happen with people blogging on the internet."
"I mean, get out there -- communicate."
"Hopefully the next movement in music will tear down the internet."
"Let's get out in the streets and march and protest instead of sitting at home and blogging."
"I do think it would be an incredible experiment to shut down the whole internet for five years and see what sort of art is produced over that span."
"There's too much technology available."

Um...huh?
Maybe someone should send Elton an Internet or two so that he can figure out that more people are communicating more than ever, because of Technology and specifically because of the internets.
He is also quoted as saying: “I am such a Luddite when it comes to making music. All I can do is write at the piano.” So, Elton...if all you can do is write music, maybe, just maybe, you should stop talking about things that you don't know about. Maybe.

Glittering Jewels of Colossal Ignorance part 2

Ok, so, I think if you spend much time at all watching/listening/reading the news you find some people doing some things that make you scratch your head and go "hmmmmmm".
The latest among a long line of people who should win the Darwin Award is this lady from California who died from drinking too much water.
However, that doesn't really make her a Glittering Jewel of Colossal Ignorance. It just makes her stupid.
No, the GJCI is her family. They are filing a WRONGFUL DEATH lawsuit against the radio station for KILLING THEIR DAUGHTER. The local police are looking into filing charges against the radio station (DJ's?)
Now, I'm not sure about whether or not a crime was committed but to sue someone over this seems utterly ridiculous.

Think about this. You sign up for a contest to win a video game (No Wee for a Wii or something like that). You decide to drink water and not go to the bathroom for a week in order to win this. Now, I realize that no one really thinks that drinking water will kill you, but wouldn't you think that, after you start feeling bad, you do a little research, realize that you can die from this and give it up????
I would. I would also think, if I'm one of her parents "Gee, my daughter was a moron for doing this!" Not "Gee, my daughter was duped and someone is gonna pay!".

I also understand that she had three children that need to be taken care of and if they win the lawsuit those kids will be helped. But, shouldn't the mom have thought about those three kids before she did something that COULD KILL HER?
I'm sure the game she wanted to win was for those kids, but that's hardly justification.

At some point, people are going to have to start to take responsibility for their actions and ought not be able to push that responsibility off on anyone else.
She signed up for the contest.
She got sick
She either didn't do research or did do research and ignored it
She died.
No one forced her. From what I read, no one lied to her.
Does her family deserve any money because she was an idiot?

Or, am I just being mean?

Glittering Jewels of Colossal Ignorance part 1

This is the first installment of a rant that I'd like to go on. As mentioned in an earlier post, I don't particularly like morons. Morons, idiots, jerks...that kind of stuff really gets on my nerves*. So on the GJCI posts, I'm going to point out people or instances of these that I see.
It pains me that the first group that I will pick on here is Christians. But this is like family, I can pick, but you can't. No really...I get very frustrated with Christian bashing, some times (a lot of times) it's called for. The people who are "Leaders" of the large Christian organizations nationally say and do dumb things that make others of the faith seem as insensitive and stupid as they. Things like Jerry Falwell coming out and saying that the September 11th attacks were a result of God's wrath on a sinful group of people. I don't believe that....can't find it in the bible.
That's just an example, not today's topic.
Today's topic revolves around Keith Ellison (D-Minn). He's the first Muslim elected to congress. He's got a bit of a problem. You see, when "they" swear you in to Congress, you know, to protect and defend the constitution, they make you swear on the bible. Well, Mr. Ellison has a bit of a problem with that. He's a Muslim. He don't believe the bible. He would like to swear on the Koran.

Now, here's where people ard displaying themselves as Glittering Jewels of Colossal Ignorance: People are upset with him over this. They are mad. How dare he not SWEAR ON THE BIBLE?!?!?! Why, that's, that's, unbiblical or something. How dare he? Doesn't he know this is America? Home of the Brave and Land of the Intolerant.
What is really ignorant about the stand that these people are taking is that this: Matthew 5:34 says, and I quote: "But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne:"

Now, we can get all scholarly on this and discuss context and all, but you can't get around it. A Christian shouldn't need to swear. Yes should mean yes and No should mean No. By that same standard, asking someone who is a Christian to swear on the bible to something is asking the go against the Word of the bible to do so. Asking a non-Christian to be bound by the bible is just dumb ('nother rant for 'nother day).

Anyway, it just seems stupid to be angry at someone who doesn't believe in the bible to swear an oath on said bible when the RED LETTERS in that same bible say, Don't Swear An Oath.

Elbow.
And.
Send.

*Hypocrisy Warning! This does not mean that I'm not a moron, an idiot or a jerk at times....when I am, I don't like me either.