Paraprosdokian

From My Perspective - - -

The English Language, Sentence Structure and Use of Nuance can be both challenging and humorous. This is the case with the use of the Paraprosdokian. It is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to reframe or reinterpret the first part. It is frequently used for humorous or dramatic effect.

Examples of Paraprosdokian (Taken From Patriot Humor/The Patriot Post) - - -
In A Proverbial Sense, it is stated:
As the tree falls, so shall it lie; As a man lives, so shall he die; As a man dies, so shall he be; Through all the aeons of eternity.
In Sentence Structure, some possibilities are:
• Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
• I want to die peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather. Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.
• Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.
• If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong.
• War does not determine who is right -- only who is left.
• Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
• The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
• Evening news is where they begin with "Good evening," and then proceed to tell you why it isn't.
• To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism. To steal from many is research.
• A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. My desk is a work station.
• How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire?
• Dolphins are so smart that within a few weeks of captivity, they can train people to stand on the very edge of the pool and throw them fish.
• I thought I wanted a career; turns out I just wanted pay checks.
• A bank is a place that will lend you money if you can prove that you don't need it.
• Whenever I fill out an application, in the part that says "If an emergency, notify:" I put "DOCTOR."
• A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
• Always borrow money from a pessimist. He won't expect it back.
• Hospitality: making your guests feel like they're at home, even if you wish they were.
• Money can't buy happiness, but it sure makes misery easier to live with.
• Some cause happiness wherever they go. Others whenever they go.
• Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.
• Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

A Biblical Example of Paraprosdokian can be gleaned from Ecclesiastes 11 (NLT). Verse 3: When the clouds are heavy, the rains come down. When a tree falls, whether south or north, there it lies. Verse 4: If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done. Verse 8: When people live to be very old, let them rejoice in every day of life. But let them also remember that the dark days will be many. Everything still to come is meaningless. Verses 9-10: Young man, it's wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it. Do everything you want to do; take it all in. But remember that you must give an account to God for everything you do. So banish grief and pain, but remember that youth, with a whole life before it, still faces the threat of meaninglessness. A Verse that has always elicited reflection – although simple, it is also profound – and causes one to reread it is I John 5:11-13, “This is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. No Paraprosdokian here – just basic Truth! Consider these things with me!

So - What's Changed?

From My Perspective - - -

Political Campaigns always employ clever slogans that can become the mantra for an election season and/or for the office attained. This was true in the most recent United States Presidential Campaign when signs displayed and chants echoed: Change You Can Believe In. A frustrated follower recently allowed that rather than it being “Change You Can Believe In” the administration has set out to “Change What You Believe In”! There is a world of difference between those two statements. The rhetoric and partisanship in recent months is producing a nation that is floundering and displaying that it may have lost its way. There is an increasing and growing doubt among the populace and major divisions throughout the citizenry. If the nation fails to make a course correction, we could easily plunge over the inconceived and ignored precipice.

On September 16th, 2010, Neal Boortz wrote and asked on his website: "Change that matters." How did you like that? That's the new slogan of the new-and-improved Democrat Party. They took the data from Obama's focus groups during the election, saw that liberals really liked the word "change" and then adopted it as their new party slogan. Is this what Democrats believe will carry them to the election? A new slogan? Let's talk about some of the changes that the…administration and the…party have made to the lexicon.

• "The War on Terror" became an "Overseas Contingency Operation."
• "Welfare checks" became "tax cuts."
• "Illegal immigrants" became "undocumented workers."
• "Economic stimulus" became "investments."
• "Global warming" became "climate change."
• "The Bush tax cuts" became "the Obama tax cuts for the middle class."
• "Freedom of speech" became "hate speech."
• "Protecting our borders" became "racist."
• "The financial sector" became "greedy Wall Street fat cats."
• "Unions" became "struggling middle class Americans."
  

They can change the language and lexicon all they'd like, but the fact is that the…solutions haven't changed. How about some policies that encourage the private sector to grow and maintain jobs…”

From the early days of this nation, concern was always expressed that we guard against division and strive for unity. We are reminded by an entry in The US History Encyclopedia: "United We Stand, Divided We Fall," was a favorite toast, in varying forms, of political orators from Benjamin Franklin to Abraham Lincoln. It gained currency after John Dickinson's Liberty Song was published on 18 July 1768, in the Boston Gazette. The work contained the lines:

Then join in hand, brave Americans all—
By uniting we stand, by dividing we fall!

The slogan regained widespread usage three-quarters of a century later when the popular writer George Pope Morris's "The Flag of the Union" appeared. The poem quoted the sentiment as given above, from the motto of Kentucky, which had been adopted in 1792. Gaining new currency during times of national crisis, the phrase was most recently a popular slogan after the attacks upon the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on 11 September 2001.

When Jesus Christ was criticized by the Pharisees, Matthew 12:25 records: “Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.” The Message Translation records: “Jesus confronted their slander. A judge who gives opposite verdicts on the same person cancels himself out; a family that's in a constant squabble disintegrates…” As it was then – so it is now. We would do well to embrace Psalm 60:11-12 (NLT) as both our focus and prayer: “Oh, please help us against our enemies, for all human help is useless. With God's help we will do mighty things, for he will trample down our foes. Consider these things with me!

Pogo and The President

From My Perspective - - -

Pogo had it right regarding the assessment of Who and What The Enemy is – “We have met the enemy and the enemy is us!” In his News Conference on Friday, The President – or was it The Professor - made use of the phrase: “We've got to be clear about that…” Regrettably, at the end of the day, some things are Clear As Mud. Let’s take the Declaration of Independence. His reference pertained to the building of a Mosque near Ground Zero of the Terrorist Attack on September 11th, 2001 on the World Trade Center – and he said: “"This country stands for the proposition that all men and women are created equal, that they have certain inalienable rights…And what it means is that if you could build a church on a site, you could build a synagogue on a site, if you could build a Hindu temple on a site, then you should be able to build a mosque on the site." The point here is that the citation given by the President is inaccurate. The Declaration of Independence States: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness…”

The significant phrase is: “They are endowed by their Creator…” There is only One Creator – Elohim – who made Heaven and Earth and all they contain. It is not Allah or any derivative thereof. The name of God - Elohim - is the plural of El and is the first name for God given in the Tanakh: “In the beginning, God (Elohim) created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1)...

The News Conference also had comment about the burning of the Koran by a Florida Pastor, when the President indicated: “Koran Burning Would Cause Profound Damage…” The President went on to say: "The idea that we would burn the sacred text of someone else's religion is contrary to what this country stands for. It's contrary to what this country was founded on - adding that such rhetoric is the best imaginable tool for recruiting al Qaeda, and endangers U.S. troops…Defense Secretary Robert Gates called the Florida pastor this week to convey how dangerous his decision would be to U.S. troops serving abroad…”

It’s too bad there wasn’t a follow-up question that included that an inconsistency is obvious from a report by Jake Tapper, ABC News: “Bibles sent to soldiers in Afghanistan for distribution to locals were unceremoniously disposed of: On May 5, Army spokeswoman Major Jennifer Willis told Reuters that at Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan the Bibles…were, in fact, collected by the chaplains and later destroyed. They were never distributed." Christian Broadcasting's David Brody says "the Bibles were burned because the rules on the base say that all garbage is burned at the end of the day. But just asking here; if the U.S. Military seized a stack full of Korans, would they be burned? Do you think that might cause a little outrage in the Muslim world?"

In Psalm 11:1-5, we read: “In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to my soul, Flee like a bird to your mountain, for behold, the wicked bend the bow; they have fitted their arrow to the string to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart; if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord's throne is in heaven; His eyes see… the children of man. The Lord tests the righteous, but His soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.” The questions are: Are the foundations of this country being destroyed? Is the acknowledgement of God – Elohim – being blurred and gradually being removed from the thoughts of the citizenry of this nation? Are “Christians” anywhere near being as devoted as Muslims when it comes to Prayer on a daily basis? If Elohim is The Creator and the basis for the declared statement – “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights” – why aren’t we dogmatic in that belief and public in our acknowledgement of Elohom? Have we become ashamed and afraid to represent both The Light and The Truth in a society and nation whose foundations are in process of being destroyed? Is it possible – we have met the enemy and it is us? Consider these things with me!

Labor Pains

From My Perspective - - -

Did you know? - - Do you remember - Labor Day and Labor Pains? Wikipedia states: “The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883. In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, as originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a workingmen's holiday on that date. The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country. Through the years the nation gave increasing emphasis to Labor Day. The first governmental recognition came through municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886. From them developed the movement to secure state legislation. The first state bill was introduced into the New York legislature, but the first to become law was passed by Oregon on February 21, 1887. During the year four more states — Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York — created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment. By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 other states had adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on June 28 of that year, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.”

Newt Gingrich commented that rather than observe Labor Day today we should observe Unemployment Day. Labor Pains are currently felt in several sectors and entire industries have moved their primary production to other countries. One of the greatest benefactors currently is China. Meanwhile, unemployment in our nation has been persistently higher than desirable – currently at 9.6% - with no indication of significant change in the immediate economic predictions. Richard Wolf, in USA Today for 8-30-10 wrote: “Government anti-poverty programs that have grown to meet the needs of recession victims now serve a record one in six Americans and are continuing to expand.
• More than 50 million Americans are on Medicaid…That's up at least 17% since the recession began in December 2007. The program has grown even before the new health care law adds about 16 million people, in 2014.
• More than 40 million people get food stamps, an increase of nearly 50% during the economic downturn.
• Close to 10 million receive unemployment insurance, nearly four times the number from 2007. Benefits have been extended by Congress eight times beyond the basic 26-week program, enabling the long-term unemployed to get up to 99 weeks of benefits. Caseloads peaked at nearly 12 million in January
• More than 4.4 million people are on welfare, an 18% increase.
As caseloads for all the programs have soared, so have costs.
• The federal price tag for Medicaid has jumped 36% in two years, to $273 billion.
• Jobless benefits have soared from $43 billion to $160 billion.
• The Food Stamps program has risen 80%, to $70 billion.
• Welfare is up 24%, to $22 billion.
Taken together, all of these Programs cost more than the total Medicare program.”

What is a Christian response at a time of recession and need – when Labor Pains are a reality? Proverbs 28:27 (NLT) states: “Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing. But a curse will come upon those who close their eyes to poverty.” An important principle is shared in II Corinthians 8:13-15 (The Message), “This isn't so others can take it easy while you sweat it out. No, you're shoulder to shoulder with them all the way, your surplus matching their deficit, their surplus matching your deficit. In the end you come out even. As it is written, Nothing left over to the one with the most, Nothing lacking to the one with the least.” We never should be blind to the needs of others nor tone deaf to the cry for help. Giving money is not always prudent - but anyone can share a meal, or an item of clothing, or provide transportation, etc. It is basic sensitivity to need, as well as an opportunity to share with others the love of Jesus Christ. Consider these things with me!

If Worms Forgot How To Wiggle

From My Perspective - - -

What would it mean if The Worm forgot how to wiggle? Is there any reason for that to matter? Would it cause the Worm to be classified as an endangered species? Should there be a government-funded study to ascertain what happened to The Worm’s Wiggle? Would Fish still be enticed to seek the bait on a hook if there was no wiggle in the worm? Do we need to know if a Worm should wiggle or wriggle? Part of any study would find that – “Worms can be divided into several groups: (1) The flatworms. They have a flat, ribbon- or leaf-shaped body with a pair of eyes at the front. Some are parasites. (2) The threadworms, round-worms, and hookworms. Threadworms may be microscopic, such as the vinegar eelworm. They are found in damp earth, moss, decaying substances, fresh water, or salt water. Some roundworms are also parasites. The Guinea worm, for example, gets under the skin of the feet and legs of people living in tropical countries. (3) The segmented worms, with bodies divided into segments, or rings. Among these are the earthworms and the bristle worms of the sea. Also, there are hundreds of thousands of species that live in a wide variety of habitats other than soil.”

There are all kinds of Wiggling that can occur outside of The Worm Family. Yesterday (09-02-10), in a White House Press Briefing – “Liberal radio host Bill Press asked press secretary Robert Gibbs to denounce Glenn Beck’s attacks on the president’s “committed Christianity.”
BILL PRESS: Robert, over the last four days, Glenn Beck has criticized the president for believing in liberation theology, which he calls a Marxist form of Christianity. Two questions, Does the president, in your knowledge, even know what liberation theology is?
ROBERT GIBBS: I don’t know the answer to that. I will say this, Bill, um, a crude paraphrasing of an old quote, and that is, people are entitled to their own opinion, as ill-informed as it may be, but they’re not entitled to their own facts. The president is a committed, mainstream Christian. I don’t, I have no evidence that would guide me, as to what Glenn Beck would have any genuine knowledge as to what the president does and does not believe.
PRESS: So this is a Marxist form of Christianity?
GIBBS: Again, I can only imagine where Mr. Beck conjured that from.
The double-ignorance of this exchange is impressive. How can Bill Press suggest that Barack Obama is ignorant about anything? They're defending Obama now by suggesting he's uninformed about progressive strains of Christianity? For his part, Gibbs is stonewalling athletically to assert there's no evidence that any Obama opponent could assemble to assert Obama's church of two decades, Trinity United Church of Christ on the south side of Chicago, embraced "black liberation theology" and its leading light, James Cone. In defending Obama, the liberal magazine The Christian Century acknowledged: There is no denying, however, that a strand of radical black political theology influences Trinity. James Cone, the pioneer of black liberation theology, is a much-admired figure at Trinity. Cone told me that when he's asked where his theology is institutionally embodied, he always mentions Trinity. All of this is classic wiggling and writhing.

The contentious companions of Job raise a question and share an observation. In Job 25:4-6 - “How then can a man be righteous before God? How can one born of woman be pure? If even the moon is not bright and the stars are not pure in his eyes, how much less man, who is but a maggot-- a son of man, who is only a worm!" The bridge is established between the Maggot and the Worm – both lingering over the wasted and decaying body of either the righteous or unrighteous. In a different consideration, the Lord is speaking to His people. Isaiah 41:11-14 – “All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you will be as nothing and perish. Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob, O little Israel, for I myself will help you, declares the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.” Lowliness before God should not become a method or wiggling device before man! Consider these things with me!

Blinders and Ear Plugs

From My Perspective - - -

Blinders are used on most race horses for two basic reasons: (a) to prevent distraction, and (b) to keep the horse focused on the immediate goal, namely – The Finish Line! There is a similar purpose with Ear Plugs: (a) to prevent any interruption of concentration, and (b) as much as possible, to minimize a startling sound that could alter a thought process. Ear Plugs also are beneficial to minimize unusual and piercing sounds. Ear Plugs are helpful if one is exposed to a high decibel and/or percussion experience. Without them, there would be a risk of Hearing Impairment.

On a purely cultural and societal level, there are considerations that cause one to be blind to the obvious and tone deaf. Such a one cannot allow himself to comprehend responses to what is occurring, while making a choice to block out any counsel, advice, or sounds that offer anything that is an alternative to a determined course. When this occurs – a person refusing to see or hear the obvious – it can be referenced as several differing things, but more than likely it is due to Arrogance. It has been diagnosed and defined in response to this question: What is arrogance?
• Arrogance assumes that because you can't imagine how something can be done, you can declare without reservation that it's impossible to do!
• Arrogance does all the talking and none of the listening.
• Arrogance rejects advice, simply because someone else said it or because your mind is already made up or you don't want anybody else to get the credit.
• Arrogance stubbornly refuses to change one’s mind when it knows it is wrong.
• Arrogance spouts off without reservation and is focused on the “I” rather than the “We”.
• Arrogance is an unwillingness to consider the possibility of making the 360-degree turn in any matter or at any time.
• Arrogance is the demonstrated body-language that allows – right or wrong, “I” am right.
This, in fact, is a misuse of a Blinder and/or Ear Plugs.

Proverbs 4:23-27 gives a guideline for the maintenance of spiritual commitment and integrity: “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm. Do not swerve to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.” The Message Translations is: “Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that's where life starts. Don't talk out of both sides of your mouth; avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip. Keep your eyes straight ahead; ignore all sideshow distractions. Watch your step, and the road will stretch out smooth before you. Look neither right nor left; leave evil in the dust.”
Wiki-Answers has an interesting response to a question that was posed: “Do people look left or right when they lie?” The answer given is: “The basic idea is that when a person looks to the right they are constructing an idea and when they look to the left they are recalling something that has actually happened. Since a lie is essentially a mental construction, people will often access that part of the brain when trying to come up with a lie and will look to the right.”
The Message translates a portion of The Sermon on the Mount – Matthew 5:33-37 – "And don't say anything you don't mean. This counsel is embedded deep in our traditions. You only make things worse when you lay down a smoke screen of pious talk, saying, 'I'll pray for you,' and never doing it, or saying, God be with you, and not meaning it. You don't make your words true by embellishing them with religious lace. In making your speech sound more religious, it becomes less true. Just say yes and no. When you manipulate words to get your own way, you go wrong.” A way that words can be manipulated is by use of a teleprompter. It keeps one robotically scripted. It also prevents one from ever looking another straight in the eye, and serves to prevent the listener from being able to ascertain sincerity and the integrity of the speaker. Can you visualize Jesus Christ needing a teleprompter? Consider these things with me!