A bunch of links – February 25, 2009

How to play games in 3D… with the old Red/Blue glasses. Pretty cool.

More “Stuff Christians Like” – you single Christians out there take note – build a better Christian dating resume.

Stuff White People Like – everywhere I turn I’m reading about how essential a “moleskin” is – from Lifehacker to Mark Driscoll, they’re just a more expensive version of a notepad. With a leather cover. What’s with that? Here’s my favourite quote:br”Much like virtually everything else that white people like, these notebooks are considerably more expensive yet provide no additional functionality over regular notebooks that cost a dollar. ”

The Browser Wars heat up – I use Firefox 3.1 at work, and Chrome at home – so I’m not going to change for the marginally faster Safari 4 – but if you’re using Firefox 3.0 I would suggest you get a hold of the 3.1 beta. It’s better.

This is something I’ve often thought would be a useful Facebook application – a skills bartering system. Or something like it. Where you earn points for doing favours for people – it’s not exactly the same idea, but it’s close.

Another thoughtful piece from Barney Zwartz – this time on the question of “who God really is” – and with particular reference to the idea that science and rationalism should be used to test God. brAn analogy – for Ben:

“All the major religions regard God as supra-natural , and if such a being is not discernible by natural means, then obviously the empirical measurements (science) that have served us so well in the natural realm have no role to play. Science can measure and investigate only the natural realm.

The demand that God, if such a being exists, reveal “himself” to scientific investigation is a category error. It’s like demanding a sculptor carve a statue from steam and, when he can’t, saying that his art doesn’t exist.

There is no “evidence” for God in the sense that science can unequivocally endorse because no other explanation is possible. But “reason” doesn’t end with science: there are a multitude of reasons to believe in a God, a multitude of arguments, some of which go back millennia. ”

And a summary of the argument:

“My point is this: those who are determined to reject God will see him nowhere; those who are determined to find him will see him everywhere. Those who are genuinely open to either possibility can weigh up the arguments. To pretend that there are none, as do some of the militant atheists (a term used to distinguish them from the vast majority of non-militant atheists) is simply dishonest.”

Great piece by The Age’s religion editor Barney Zwartz on Danny Nalliah – the best quote:

“As a young Christian exploring the denominations, I met many Pentecostals who claimed to prophesy ( “Thus saith the Lord …”) and was struck by how unfailingly God’s word through them precisely mirrored their own obsessions.”

This is very, very cool. Upload a photo, a message, and pay $2.49 – and a postcard will be made and posted to people anywhere in the UK, US or Australia.

More on the slow and painful internal demise of the Liberal Party.

A cultural argument for teaching Bible stories in schools.

“[Andrew]Motion, Professor of Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London, is convinced that the imagery and grandeur of Biblical stories is vital for students of English literature. He says they have influenced story structures ever since they were first written down, and that great writers from Milton and John Donne to TS Eliot cannot be truly understand without biblical influences being taken into account.”

Two weeks ago I threw somebody into a pool. Complete with mobile phone. This would have been handy then.

I don’t like U2. I never have. They’re a poor man’s Radiohead and make music that your grandma would listen to.

That’s my rant. Actually. I tell a lie. I did like them for a little while… But then I decided there was better, more interesting music out there to listen to.