World Class Challenges & Solutions

Sometimes it's hard to keep up with the news. Especially outside of the US. So, in an effort to expand our international knowledge-base, here's a quick quiz.

1. What event recently happened in Pakistan and how many people were affected?

On Easter Sunday a suicide bomber detonated a bomb in a public park in Lahore. 69 people were killed and another 340 were wounded in the attack. A branch of the Taliban claimed credit.

A high percentage of the people killed or injured were children and mothers.

2. Are the Taliban, Al-Qaeda and ISIS branches of the Muslim faith?

No, they aren't.

While Taliban, Al-Qaeda and ISIS members may regularly claim affiliation with particular branches of the Muslim faith, they are not sanctioned. In fact, each of these three groups are political organizations that exploit religious prejudice as a reason to further their own agendas.

3. How many refugees are there currently, worldwide?

According to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNRA), there are close to 60 million refugees across the world. Half of them are children.

The UNRA reports that, globally, one in every 122 humans is either a refugee, internally displaced, or seeking asylum. If this population were a country, it would be the 24th largest in the world.

4. What are the top global crises currently?

According to World Vision the top global crises in 2015 were:

Syrian refugee crisis
Nepal earthquake
Iraq displacement
West Africa Ebola outbreak
South Sudan conflict
Somalia drought
Central America drought
Central African Republic violence

5. What global challenges should we be focusing on?

In 2004 Danish political scientist Bjorn Lomborg gave a TED Talk. That year he convened the Copenhagen Consensus which focused on which global challenges we should be addressing. He convened another Consensus four years later.

Back in 2004, Lomborg suggested that the top four challenges that would be most affected by financial help were: HIV, malnutrition, free trade and malaria.

Lomborg started off his TED talk mentioning that there is a difference between setting priorities and prioritizing solutions. His opinion was that we should be focusing on the later rather than the former.

It's interesting to watch his TED talk, given twelve years ago, and see how far we have come.

How can we help?

There are numerous reputable organizations that provide help internationally. Here are four of them:

Preemptive Love Coalition (helping children in the middle east)

World Vision International (faith-based, poverty-alleviation)

Doctors Without Borders (serving in war-torn and other emergency situations)

Charity Water (providing the gift of sustainable water supplies)

What do you think? I welcome you to leave your opinion!

Photo Credit: www.hubpages.com

What would your mom say about Donald Trump?

If you had a mom who was nurturing, kind, compassionate and loving, here's what she would say to you about Donald Trump.

He's rude.

Remember when your mom washed your mouth out with soap when you used a swear word? She reminded you that what comes out of your mouth is an indication of what's inside you. Meaning that how you think, deep down, usually expresses itself, sooner or later, in how you treat people.

It's rude to call someone ugly or stupid or a loser.

He's unkind.

Back in the 1940s there was a Disney movie, Bambi, about a fawn growing up. In the film, Thumper (a rabbit) admonishes Bambi: "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." (Here's the clip.)

It's really good advice.

Mr. Trump has said lots of unkind things about many people. In fact, 90% of his tweets are unkind. The other 10% are brags about himself. Speaking of which...

He's a braggart.

The Bible wisely tells us it's better to keep quiet and be perceived as smart than open our mouths and prove that we aren't.

Take a look at any of Mr. Trump's victory speeches to date and you'll get a very good example of what this looks like.

He lies.

Remember how your mom responded when she caught you telling a lie?

None of us had to learn how to do it. And some of us are better at telling lies than others.

Here's a few lies Mr. Trump has told: He doesn't know anything about David Duke or Duke's affiliation with the Klu Klux Klan (he knew Duke as early as 1999). He's going to build a wall between the US and Mexico (a president can't do that) and make Mexico pay for it (how?). That blacks murder most whites in the US (blatantly not true).

Here's a US News & World Report article on this trait.

He's a bully.

Bullies threaten.

Your mom wisely advised you to steer clear of them.

Mr. Trump's campaign slogan is "Make America Great Again."

On the surface it may sound semi-reassuring. But if you examine it, you'll find it actually consists of a lot of thinly-veiled threats. Like Mr. Trump's insistence that he will expand the use of waterboarding and other forms of torture, send more troops to the Mid-east and further bomb their already crumbling countries and put a short leash on the media who disagree with him.

None of those things will help America.

Having a president who is rude, unkind, brags, lies and is a bully won't do any good for our country or any other nation.

In fact, a few of our allies across the world have been  wondering what's gone wrong with America when we have someone like Mr. Trump as a front-runner for his party's nomination. (Not to mention that rudeness, unkindness, bragging, lying and bullying aren't condoned by any positive-thinking religion, including Buddhist, Christian, Jewish or Muslim.)

Finally, just for fun, here's some really great tips on how to be nice to people.

Have a great day everyone! And be good to your mom!

Photo Credit: www.circleofmoms.com

Miracles from Heaven: A movie review

Miracles From Heaven is a film that forces you to make a choice.

It's based on the true story of Annabel Beam, who suffered from a chronic intestinal disorder. Until she fell 30 feet down a hallowed-out tree, headfirst.

She not only was lifted out of the tree with no significant damage, but after the fall, she no longer had the disease.

Annabel's recovery happened in December of 2011. She's been symptom free ever since.

The film is based on her mom's (Christy) book of the same name.

It stars Kylie Rogers as Annabel and Jennifer Garner as Christy.

Before I saw the film, I had a bias which needed to be addressed. Garner tends to play emotions one-dimensionally full-tilt. But in the case of Miracles from Heaven, she works that to her advantage. In fact, her performance is razor sharp. We see Christy as a caring mom who is anguished over the pain her daughter is enduring.

So Garner's pain becomes ours.

As you might expect, the relationship between Christy and her husband, Kevin (played by Martin Henderson) becomes strained almost to the snapping-point. Henderson does a fine job portraying a person who remains resolute in his faith, despite any outward reason to keep it.

But the true gem of the film is found in Kylie Rogers who gives a solid performance as Annabel. Her upbeat nature shines through. But so does her struggle with physical pain. During one of her frequent hospital visits, Annabel tells her mom: "I want to die so I can go to heaven..."

Far from seeming melodramatic, this moment is captured beautifully.

Although there is a post-accident, post-recovery scene, where Christy addresses her church family, she offers no in-your-face answer for her daughter's healing.

Rather, you are left to ponder the source of Annabel's good fortune.

It is plain that the Beam family believes Annabel's recovery is a miracle from God. But the viewer isn't hit over the head with that conclusion.

Was Annabel's recovery miraculous? Or was her nervous system physically re-set when she fell 30 feet head-first down a hallowed tree?

The film wisely leaves the decision up to you.

Other noteworthy performances: Queen Latifah does a fine job as Angela (a waitress who befriends the Beams) as does Eugenio Derbez as Dr. Nurko (the chief physician who cared from Annabell at Boston Children's Hospital).

Here's the trailer.
Here's an interview with Christy & Annabel Beam.

Photo credit: www.forbes.com

Social Change and the Bible

The Washington Post recently ran an article spotlighting the rise in populist authoritarian political parties.

One of the main points of the article was that this sort of thing happens whenever a sufficient number of a country's citizens feel threatened by change.

The changes could be in ethnic make-up (diversity), economics (wage equity) or a host of other things.

The bottom line is that change can cause a person to be anxious. As in: I don't know what's coming next and I'm afraid.

Sometimes the anxiety comes from a perceived lack of control over the outcome.

Catherine Woodiwiss, writing in Sojourners Magazine, mentioned the likelihood of increased intolerance in reaction to greater diversity. Woodiwiss quoted Dr. Jennifer Richeson, a MacArthur 'genius grant' recipient and professor at Northwestern University.  Dr. Richeson said pushback against diversity could result in "the increased erosion of progressive, race-related social policy."

A few years ago I attended a convocation put on by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation on diversity. The keynote speaker was Dr. Manuel Pastor, professor of Sociology & American Studies of Ethnic Diversity at USC.

One of Dr. Pastor's main messages was that big demographic changes were taking place in the United States, and within a few decades, the now-majority would no longer be so.

Dr. Pastor's area of expertise is on the study of economic, environmental and social conditions that low-income/minority folks are facing. His keynote message reflected this focus.

As he discussed trends, Dr. Pastor used examples to show that change can be good. Like the development of Social Security (guaranteed income for retirees) and Medicare/Medicaid (national health for seniors and low-income individuals).  At the time of Dr. Pastor's presentation, the Affordable Care Act was being considered but was not yet law.

In referencing these illustrations of significant social change, Dr. Pastor pointed out that what benefits low-income groups ultimately benefits everyone.

His message was hopeful.

By helping the least of us, we are actually helping us all.

The bottom line of Dr. Pastor's keynote address strikes a strong chord with Judeo-Christian thinking, at least it should.

It should if we remember what the Bible has to say about treating the poor. (See 1 Samuel 2.8,
Job 29.12, Ps. 34.10, Ps. 82.3, Isaiah 61.1, Daniel 4.27 for a few examples.)

Again and again we see God portrayed as a fierce defender of the poor. Even to the point of a prophet (Daniel) cautioning a ruler to give justice to the poor.

One of the best examples of this sort of thing is found in Isaiah 58.10:
"If you extend your soul to the hungry
And satisfy the afflicted soul,
Then your light shall dawn in darkness
And your darkness shall be as noonday
The Lord will guide you continually."

And it's noteworthy that when Jesus was handed the scroll during a service at the synagogue in his home town of Nazareth, he spoke from Isaiah 61:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me
Because he has anointed me
To preach the gospel (good news) to the poor..."

Proverbs 14.21 sums it up: "It is a sin to belittle one's neighbor, blessed are those who help the poor."

In the US each new social change (like Social Security, National Health, Child Labor laws and worker safety legislation), has initially been met with a backlash. Opponents called such improvements undemocratic and socialistic.

But rather than being dismayed at actions to include the least of us in decision-making and social equity, we can take heart that it's actually a very faith-filled thing to do.

Photo credit: www.myjewishlearning.com

Chris Rock, the Oscars and Diversity

Chris Rock recently hosted the Oscars, drawing attention to the lack of black actors among those nominated.

Right out of the gate, his opening monologue blistered that obvious oversight, calling the Oscars "the white people's choice awards."

He continued: "If they nominated hosts,  I wouldn't even be here. And ya'all would be watching Neil Patrick Harris right now."

Rock was funny, brash and painfully truthful. He did a stand-up job at skewering the fact that there were no black actors nominated. But he also begs the follow-up question that diversity goes beyond one particular color.

In fact one of the skits during the Oscars involved Rock introducing a group of Asian-American kids on stage as junior accountants, using them to make fun of a stereotype among this group.

I'm not sure of Rock's reason for being part of this unfortunate bit, but it wasn't funny. And it ultimately was counterproductive to the argument that he had been making.

The bottom line was that he scored no points by stereotyping another group in response to a massive slight on the part of the Oscar nominating committee towards his own race.

Diversity needs to be inclusive, or it isn't diversity.

This is simply how diversity works.

Especially in the US these days, some candidates for national elected office make no bones about showing their extreme lack of understanding of this issue.

Some candidates seem to think it's socially acceptable to belittle ethnic groups. But candidates that puff themselves up at the expense of others aren't worth our vote. Including those who court the attention of Christian-leaning folks, while encouraging us to hate each other.

I recently read a very powerful post by an evangelical who attended a rally of the front runner for their party. The writer was not a supporter of this candidate, but wanted to get an understanding of why others were supporting the party's front runner.

The evangelical was frightened at the sheer force of the hatred in the crowd and how the candidate stoked it.

From the writer's perspective, the candidate could have cared less about the people in the crowd and in fact, spent most of the speech talking about his own accomplishments while freely ridiculing his opponents. It was painfully obvious, from where the writer stood, that the candidate's supporters were woefully mistaken if they thought the candidate had the slightest bit of empathy for them or would care about their welfare if elected.

Please don't take my word for it. You can go to youtube and take a good look at any of this candidate's victory speeches to date. They all show a complete lack of empathy for anyone except the candidate.

While this front-runner is causing extreme embarrassment among his party's establishment, the second-in-line is not much better, and possibly worse. (The second-runner led a misguided attempt to shut down the federal government a few years back. As a result this candidate could find only a single senator who will endorse him. Making one wonder: If this person becomes his party's candidate, how is he going to build any sort of consensus to overcome legislative gridlock within his own party, let alone all of Capitol Hill?)

The bottom line of it is that diversity helps promote empathy. And in a multi-ethnic country that seeks to remain civil and functioning, it's necessary.

It's noteworthy to add that the evangelical who wrote the post about visiting the leading candidate's rally ended by calling for faith (as in God) to lead the way towards hope. After considering the alternatives, I'd have to cast my vote for faith and hope as well.

P.S. In case you missed it, here's a clip of Rock's opening.

Photo credit: www.personnel.ky.gov

Super Tuesday Thoughts

Super Tuesday 2016 is now history.

Regardless of how the results made you feel, it may be helpful to consider the following:

1. If you are looking for politicians to make the world a better place, you are going to be disappointed.

I live in Michigan. Right now one of the biggest cities in the state is reeling under a water crisis. The infrastructure that brings water to the residents of Flint is broken. In fact, it's been bringing lead-tainted H2O into town for over a  year.

It's nothing short of a disaster when a city can't guarantee water that's safe to use.

It took citizen attention to get the issue on the dashboard of state government.

2. Beware of politicians who say they are going to make our country great again, without offering specifics.

On the surface, it sounds patriotic and uplifting. But a nation is only as good as the people who live in it.

And you could always ask: "Great again, compared to what?"

No country's history is unblemished.

Any person running for national office who alludes to an untarnished past isn't telling you the truth. A country grows by admitting its faults and correcting them, not by ignoring them.

Not to mention that platitudes don't solve challenges, but specific, realistic action plans do.

3. Ignoring something is very close to ignorance.

The two words share the same root.

If you take a look at common factors that indicate a good standard of living, the United States isn't in the ballpark with the rest of the world anymore.

For instance, according to the World Health Organization, the US health system ranks 37th.

Fifteen year-olds in the US ranked 34th in math and 28th in science worldwide compared to their peers, according to the Pew Research Center.

And the US didn't make the top 10 countries in the Global Well Being Index put together by Gallup-Healthways (most recent research done in 2014).

Ignoring this reality by offering hollow appeals to patriotism won't fix the situation.

Meanwhile, the US does rank ninth worldwide in the percent of its GNP spent on the military, (which could explain why it rates so low in health, education and well being).

4. Watch out for politicians who say they are going to "work hard" for you.

What's their motivation to do so? What is their accountability record on fulfilling promises? Do their actions indicate they truly care what happens to you beyond election day?

If you're evangelical and need a scriptural reference for this, the Bible cautions to take a good look at the fruit that a tree is bearing (Matt. 7:17).

Take the time to get beyond campaign slogans to examine each candidate's track record before casting your vote.

5. We can't afford to be politically lazy.

It may sound like I'm trashing all politicians. But I'm not.

What I am saying is, particularly in this election year, we have a lot to consider. We can't afford to blindly endorse a candidate simply because they make us feel good about ourselves. The same goes for candidates who use slogans and slander to avoid intelligent and reasonable discussion of a plan for our country's future.

As always, I welcome your comments!

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