Category Archives: Current Events

Liberals’ solution for the poor is more welfare, but that will not work

November 8, 2011 – 9:10 pm

Milton Friedman’s solution to limiting poverty

Liberals like Michael Cook just don’t get it. They should listen to Milton Friedman (who is quoted in this video below concerning the best way to limit poverty).

New Video Shows the War on Poverty Is a Failure

Posted by Daniel J. Mitchell

The Center for Freedom and Prosperity has released another “Economics 101″ video, and this one has a very powerful message about the federal government’s so-called War on Poverty.

As explained by Hadley Heath of the Independent Women’s Forum, the various income redistribution schemes being imposed by Washington are bad for taxpayers — and bad for poor people.

Free Markets, Not Redistribution, Is Best Way to Reduce Poverty

Uploaded by  on Oct 3, 2011

The so-called War on Poverty has failed. Making government bigger and creating more federal redistribution programs has been bad news for taxpayers. But the welfare state also has been a disaster for the less fortunate, creating a flypaper effect that makes it difficult for people to lead independent and self-reliant lives. This Center for Freedom and Prosperity Foundation video shows how the poverty rate was falling after World War II — but then stagnated once the federal government got involved. www.freedomandprosperity.org

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The video has a plethora of useful information, but the data on the poverty rate is particularly compelling. Prior to the War on Poverty, the United States was getting more prosperous with each passing year and there were dramatic reductions in the level of destitution.

But once the federal government got involved in the mid-1960s, the good news evaporated. Indeed, the poverty rate has basically stagnated for the past 40-plus years, usually hovering around 13 percent depending on economic conditions.

Another remarkable finding in the video is that poor people in America rarely suffer from material deprivation. Indeed, they have wide access to consumer goods that used to be considered luxuries – and they also have more housing space than the average European (and with Europe falling apart, the comparisons presumably will become even more noteworthy).

The most important message of the video, however, is that small government and economic freedom are the best answers for poverty. As Hadley explains, poor people can be liberated to live meaningful, self-reliant lives if we can reduce the heavy burden of the federal government.

Last but not least, the video doesn’t address every issue in great detail, and there are three additional points that should be added to any discussion of poverty.

  1. The biggest beneficiaries of the current system are the army of bureaucrats that receive very comfortable salariesadministering various programs.
  2. The Obama Administration is looking to re-define poverty in a way that would expand the welfare state andincrease the burden of redistribution programs.
  3. The welfare reform legislation of the 1990s was a small step in the right direction because it eliminated a federal entitlement and shifted responsibility back to the state level. This success story should be replicated for programs such as Medicaid.

This last point is worth emphasizing because it is also one of the core messages of the video. The federal government has done a terrible job dealing with poverty. The time has come to get Washington out of the racket of income redistribution.

Related posts by Milton Friedman. Pay attention to posts about poverty or FREE TO CHOOSE episode on “Cradle to Grave.”

Friedman Friday” Free to Choose by Milton Friedman: Episode “Created Equal” (Part 3 of transcript and video)

Friedman Friday” Free to Choose by Milton Friedman: Episode “Created Equal” (Part 3 of transcript and video) Liberals like President Obama want to shoot for an equality of outcome. That system does not work. In fact, our free society allows for the closest gap between the wealthy and the poor. Unlike other countries where free enterprise and other […]

Free to Choose by Milton Friedman: Episode “Created Equal” (Part 2 of transcript and video)

Free to Choose by Milton Friedman: Episode “Created Equal” (Part 2 of transcript and video) Liberals like President Obama want to shoot for an equality of outcome. That system does not work. In fact, our free society allows for the closest gap between the wealthy and the poor. Unlike other countries where free enterprise and other freedoms are […]

Milton Friedman Friday: (“Free to Choose” episode 4 – From Cradle to Grave, Part 4 of 7)

 I am currently going through his film series “Free to Choose” which is one the most powerful film series I have ever seen. PART 4 of 7 The massive growth of central government that started after the depression has continued ever since. If anything, it has even speeded up in recent years. Each year there […]

Debate on Milton Friedman’s cure for inflation

If you would like to see the first three episodes on inflation in Milton Friedman’s film series “Free to Choose” then go to a previous post I did. Ep. 9 – How to Cure Inflation [4/7]. Milton Friedman’s Free to Choose (1980) Uploaded by investbligurucom on Jun 16, 2010 While many people have a fairly […]

Milton Friedman addressed the belief that inflation can cure unemployment, implicit in the Obama administration’s spending blowout

Ep. 9 – How to Cure Inflation [1/7]. Milton Friedman’s Free to Choose (1980) Cochrane’s Kinky Curves Posted by Jim Powell The doctrine that inflation can cure unemployment, implicit in the Obama administration’s spending blowout, goes way back. The modern version originated with William Phillips, a New Zealand-born economist who, in 1958, wrote a paper […]

Milton Friedman Friday: (“Free to Choose” episode 4 – From Cradle to Grave, Part 3 of 7)

 I am currently going through his film series “Free to Choose” which is one the most powerful film series I have ever seen. PART 3 OF 7 Worse still, America’s depression was to become worldwide because of what lies behind these doors. This is the vault of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Inside […]

Free to Choose by Milton Friedman: Episode “Created Equal” (Part 1 of transcript and video)

 Milton Friedman and Ronald Reagan Liberals like President Obama (and John Brummett) want to shoot for an equality of outcome. That system does not work. In fact, our free society allows for the closest gap between the wealthy and the poor. Unlike other countries where free enterprise and other freedoms are not present.  This is a seven part series. […]

Ernest Istook of the Heritage Foundation speaks in Little Rock on 6-22-11 (Part 2)

The third monthly luncheon with featured speaker Ernest Istook was excellent. First, we got to hear from Dave Elswick of KARN   who came up with the idea of this luncheon, and then from Teresa Crossland of Americans for Prosperity. Below is a portion of Istook’s biography from the Heritage Foundation: Ernest Istook Distinguished Fellow Government Studies Ernest […]

Milton Friedman Friday:(“Free to Choose” episode 4 – From Cradle to Grave, Part 2 of 7)

 I am currently going through his film series “Free to Choose” which is one the most powerful film series I have ever seen. For the past 7 years Maureen Ramsey has had to buy food and clothes for her family out of a government handout. For the whole of that time, her husband, Steve, hasn’t […]

The poor in the USA have best chance in the world to go up

I love Milton Friedman’s film series “Free to Choose.” In that film series over and over it is shown that the ability to move from poor to rich is more abundant here than any other country in the world. This article below reminded me of that that. Are Poor Really Helpless Without Government? By Michael […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Also posted in Cato Institute, Milton Friedman | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

Duggars expecting another baby (related links to Duggars)

November 8, 2011 – 2:47 pm

The Arkansas Times Blog reported today:

EXPECTING 20th: Michelle Duggar

  • EXPECTING 20th: Michelle Duggar

People magazine reports that Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar are expecting their 20th child this spring. She’s 45 and had a rough time with her 19th, Josie, born prematurely weighing 22 ounces

Link includes video to TLC, where the Duggar-based reality show airs.

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Related links with the Duggars:

Duggars expecting another baby (related links to Duggars)

The Arkansas Times Blog reported today: EXPECTING 20th: Michelle Duggar People magazine reports that Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar are expecting their 20th child this spring. She’s 45 and had a rough time with her 19th, Josie, born prematurely weighing 22 ounces Link includes video to TLC, where the Duggar-based reality show airs. ______________________ Related […]

Crowd at Occupy Arkansas pales in comparison to annual pro-life march

Demonstrators march through the streets of Little Rock on Saturday in a protest organized by Occupy Little Rock. (John Lyon photo) Occupy Arkansas got cranked up today in Little Rock with their first march and several hundred showed up. It was unlike the pro-life marches that I have been a part of that have had […]

Pro-life marchers turn to prayer

What Ever Happened to the Human Race? Jason Tolbert told a  story about pro-life marchers and their tactic of prayer: OWNER TURNS SPRINKLERS ON PRO-LIFE PRAYER VIGIL In July, I wrote about a new movement springing up in Arkansas that seeks to combat abortion not with violent protest, but with peaceful prayer demonstrations.  It is called “40 […]

Duggar’s first grandson born

TLC stars Josh and Anna Duggar with their newborn son — TLC I was walking at the Another Duggar Baby! Josh & Anna Duggar Welcome Baby Boy Yahoo News reported: The Duggar family continues to grow! Josh Duggar, 23, – the eldest son of Jim Bob and Michelle – and wife Anna, 22, welcomed their […]

Atheists confronted: How I confronted Carl Sagan the year before he died jh47

In today’s news you will read about Kirk Cameron taking on the atheist Stephen Hawking over some recent assertions he made concerning the existence of heaven. Back in December of 1995 I had the opportunity to correspond with Carl Sagan about a year before his untimely death. Sarah Anne Hughes in her article,”Kirk Cameron criticizes […]

Fox 16:Biased reporting on Marches

Rep. Tim Griffin and Lt. Gov. Mark Darr at the Arkansas March for Life in Little Rock from Tolbert Report. Go to Fox 16 website and you will read this story below and watch a video clip on both marches. What you will not read is the fact that only 150 people showed up for […]

33rd ANNUAL MARCH FOR LIFE:Little Rock Sun 2pm begins at Capital and Louisiana Streets

HALT:HaltingArkansasLiberalswithTruth.com President Obama on abortion Adrian Rogers (former President of Southern Baptist Convention): “I am not as afraid of the Communist, the Russians, the Chinese, as much as I am afraid of God.  If God be for us, who can be against us?  If God be against us, then who can be for us?  It […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Also posted in Prolife | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Johnny Majors speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 3)

November 8, 2011 – 7:30 am

I heard Johnny Majors speak at the November 7, 2011 Little Rock Touchdown Club. He talked about his respect for Frank Broyles and the great coach he was. He also said he saw a lot of those same great qualities in Derek Dooley.

Uploaded by  on Sep 3, 2010

Johnny Majors from Huntland, TN tried out for the UT Football team weighing 150 pounds. His Father, Shirley Majors his HS Coach,encourage him and then 4 younger brothers all to be Vols. Johnny Majors was the runner-up in 1956 for the Heisman Trophy to Paul Horning, on a loosing Notre Dame team. So much for Northern politics with writers.

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Majors: Dooley needs time

By Jeff Halpern

LITTLE ROCK — Johnny Majors played and coached at Tennessee and was an assistant at Arkansas. So when he sees the Tennessee Volunteers struggle, he knows what it is going to take for second-year coach Derek Dooley to turn things around.

Time.

Majors, 76, is retired and living in Knoxville, Tenn., and he understands where the Volunteers (4-5, 0-5 SEC) are at going into Saturday’s game against BCS No. 8 Arkansas (8-1, 4-1 SEC) in Fayetteville.

“The thing is, Derek Dooley inherited a program that was going downhill,” said Majors, the guest speaker Monday at the Little Rock Touchdown Club luncheon.

Majors said Tennessee’s slide began under Phil Fulmer. Lane Kiffin was hired to replace Fulmer, but Kiffin stayed for only the 2009 season before bolting for the head coaching job at Southern California.

Majors said he believes Kiffin would have stopped the slide had he stayed, but his sudden departure set the program back even more.

“Derek lost about a half a dozen players who either didn’t pan out or got hurt, and you can’t rebuild a program in a year or two,” Majors said. “It’s going to take at least three to four to be solid.

“So whenever people ask if Tennessee will be patient to give Derek Dooley the time to turn things around, I tell them they don’t have any choice but to give him time.”

Dooley, the son of former Georgia Coach Vince Dooley, is 10-12 overall and 3-10 in SEC games.

“He is intelligent and has a good background,” Majors said. “He worked seven years for Nick Saban at LSU and at the Miami Dolphins, so you know he has to be tough.”

Injuries also have been a problem of late. The Volunteers lost wide receiver Justin Hunter to a season-ending torn anterior cruciate ligament Sept. 17 in a 33-23 loss at Florida. Quarterback Tyler Bray broke his thumb in a 20-12 loss to Georgia on Oct. 8, leaving Matt Simms and Justin Worley to fill in.

Tennessee has had its moments this season. The Vols went into halftime tied 3-3 with Alabama before eventually losing 37-6. It held LSU scoreless in the first quarter but eventually were defeated 38-7.

“I told Derek after the LSU game that I know what he’s going through and have been there before, and that this, too, shall pass,” Majors said.

Under Majors, Tennessee was becaame of the premier teams in the country.

Tennessee went 116-62-8 from 1977-1992 and won three SEC titles with Majors as coach. Under Fulmer, Tennessee went 152-52-1, won two SEC titles and the 1998 national championship.

However, Tennessee went 29-21 overall and 17-15 in SEC games in Fulmer’s last four seasons, including losing seasons in 2005 (5-6) and 2008 (5-7). The Volunteers went 7-6 in Kiffin’s lone season, and they were 6-7 under Dooley last season.

“The thing I saw was recruiting went down the last few years under Fulmer,” Majors told members of the media after Monday’s luncheon. “I would work as an unpaid consultant for the East-West Shrine Game, and we would have at least 100 scouts and they would tell me that things were going down under Fulmer.

“It didn’t seem like they were doing a good job of evaluating prospects and had many discipline problems on and off the field and were beating themselves.

“You don’t win by accident, and you don’t lose by accident.”

While Majors didn’t mention Fulmer by name during his speech, it is no secret he and Fulmer, his offensive line coach from 1980-1988 and offensive coordinator from 1989-1992, do not get along.

Majors was forced to resign late in the 1992 season after the Volunteers went 2-3 following his return from heart surgery after Fulmer had guided Tennessee to a 3-0 start. Majors felt Fulmer maneuvered to get the head coaching job while he was recovering from surgery and that a promise was broken about a new seven-year contract.

When asked Monday about his relationship with Fulmer, he left little doubt about whether those feelings still lingered.

“I don’t need to go into that,” Majors said.

This article was published today at 5:08 a.m.

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Johnny Majors was a great quarterback for Tennessee.

Image Detail

 
By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

“Tip Tuesday” Advice to Gene Simmons (Part 18)

November 8, 2011 – 12:50 am

Below is an article on the show: (This came out several months ago)

Gene Simmons gets ‘whipped’ on ‘Family Jewels’

Amanda Edwards / Getty Images Contributor

Gene Simmons took his son Nick to Israel, where the KISS frontman was born.

By Randee Dawn, TODAY.com contributor

It seemed that “Gene Simmons Family Jewels” might end prematurely: After Simmons’ longtime partner Shannon Tweed stormed off the set during an interview, the couple seemed on the verge of breaking up.

But for Simmons (who remains with Tweed), it’s all in a day’s work on the show, now in its sixth season.

“I get a good a**-whipping every episode,” he told TODAY.com. “In a very real way, the show forces me to confront real issues that you may take for granted.”

He said seeing himself on the show has made him “more reflective” on his own behavior.

“It’s one thing to live through it, and another when you sit down and watch it,” he said. “This way I can see how (Shannon) feels about it, and how I come off. It’s like having a separate pair of eyes watching me. Usually we’re too busy being ourselves to see ourselves.”

In this week’s episode (“Blood Is Thicker Than Hummus,” airing Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET on A&E) though, Simmons ended up looking not just inside himself, but at his history. In the episode, Simmons, Tweed and their son Nick return to Israel, where Simmons was born. The musician, 61, had not visited since he emigrated with his mother at age 8.

“I came from a small town outside Haifa, which you can’t even pronounce or spell, but now it’s a modern place,” he said. “I remember hills and dirt roads.”

It was all a surprise planned by Tweed. “I knew nothing. We just went with the TV show because she thought I should visit my homeland. She also thought it was important for Nick to get a sense of where one of his parents came from. Shannon planned the whole thing – she was sneaky.”

Sophie, the couple’s daughter, was “stuck in school” and did not accompany them.

Tweed also engineered a family reunion: Simmons met a half-brother and half-sisters he never knew he had, and learned that his father, who left him and his mother when Simmons was around 7, had been married “as many as” six times.

“Who knows how many other kids he’s got?” said Simmons.

That’s all heavy stuff to show up on camera around the world, but the KISS leader takes it in stride.

“I don’t like it, but it’s necessary,” he said. “It’s important to get a sense of who came before you and why.”

Still, he added, “Celebrities – methinks they protest too much. When they don’t get attention, they complain. When they get too much attention, they complain. It’s just about complaining. I’m a lucky bastard, and anything’s OK with me. My hair’s all messed up in every episode, and I don’t care. I’m OK even if they visit me in the loo.”

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THE REASON THAT GENE IS GETTING BEAT UP ON THE TV SHOW EVERY WEEK IS BECAUSE HE STILL BELIEVES HE HAS THE RIGHT TO HAVE AFFAIRS.

My advice to Gene Simmons is very simple. Ann Wexler mentioned to him that there is a point where you have enough money and should turn your attention to other important things in his life like relationships. She implies that Gene is being selfish.

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Many times when a marriage is falling apart there is lots of selfishness that comes out in the open. It may be that a love of money is exposed or it may be a desire to satisfy carnal desires.

Here are some important points.  First, we are to be married and faithful to one lady. Gene has been having occasional affairs and deep down thinks he deserves the right to do this. However, that is not the plan that God has for us.

Second, we are to love our wife as Christ loves the church and that means we love her more than anything even money.

Brandon Barnard in his message “The Battle for Purity” at Fellowship Bible Church on July 24 said there were two paths. The path of impurity and the path of purity. Last time we looked at the path of impurity and today we want to look at the path of purity.

THOSE ON THE PATHWAY TO PURITY WILL PURSUE ALL PLEASURE IN CHRIST AND TAKE GREAT DELIGHT IN THEIR SPOUSE ALONE AND DRINK WATER FROM YOUR OWN CISTERN AND REJOICE IN THE WIFE OF YOUR YOUTH.

Proverbs 5:15-20 states:

15Drink water from your own cistern,
flowing water from your own well.
16Should your springs be scattered abroad,
   streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be for yourself alone,
and not for strangers with you.
18Let your fountain be blessed,
and rejoice in the wife of your youth,

19a lovely deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight;
be intoxicated[a] always in her love.
20Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman
and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?[b]

Adrian Rogers – [2/3] How to Cultivate a Marriage

By Everette Hatcher III | Comments (0)

Review of Carl Sagan book (Part 4 of series on Evolution)jh68

November 8, 2011 – 12:01 am

Review of Carl Sagan book (Part 4 of series on Evolution)

The Long War against God-Henry Morris, part 5 of 6

Uploaded by on Aug 30, 2010

http://www.icr.org/
http://store.icr.org/prodinfo.asp?number=BLOWA2
http://store.icr.org/prodinfo.asp?number=BLOWASG
http://www.fliptheworldupsidedown.com/blog

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This is a review I did a few years ago.

THE DEMON-HAUNTED WORLD: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan. New York: Random House, 1995. 457 pages, extensive references, index. Hardcover; $25.95.
PSCF 48 (December 1996): 263.
Sagan is the David Duncan Professor of Astronomy and Space Sciences at Cornell University. He is author of many best sellers, including Cosmos, which became the most widely read science book ever published in the English language.
In this book Sagan discusses the claims of the paranormal and fringe-science. For instance, he examines closely such issues as astrology (p. 303), crop circles (p. 75), channelers (pp. 203-206), UFO abductees (pp. 185-186), faith-healing fakes (p. 229), and witch-hunting (p. 119). Readers of The Skeptical Inquirer will notice that Sagan’s approach is very similar.
Sagan writes:
The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal is an organization of scientists, academics, magicians, and others dedicated to skeptical scrutiny of emerging or full-blown pseudo-sciences. It was founded by the University of Buffalo philosopher Paul Kurtz in 1976. I’ve been affiliated with it since its beginning. Its acronym, CSICOP, is pronounced Asci-cop C as if it’s an organization of scientists performing a police function Y CSICOP publishes a bimonthly periodical called AThe Skeptical Inquirer. On the day it arrives, I take it home from the office and pore through its pages, wondering what new misunderstandings will be revealed (p. 299).
Sagan points out that in 1991 two pranksters in England admitted that they had been making crop figures for 15 years. They flattened the wheat with a heavy steel bar. Later on they used planks and ropes, but the media paid brief attention to the confession of these hoaxers. Why? Sagan concludes, ‘Demons sell; hoaxers are boring and in bad taste’ (p. 76).
Christians must admire Sagan’s commitment to critical thinking, logic, and freedom of thought. He takes on many subjects in this book, and the vast majority of his analysis is exceptional. However, his opinions on religious matters are affected by his devotion to scientism. Sagan believes only that which can be proved by science is true. He disputes psychologist Charles Tart’s assertion that scientism is ‘dehumanizing, despiritualizing’ (p. 267). Sagan comments, ‘There is very little doubt that, in the everyday world, matter (and energy) exist. The evidence is all around us. In contrast, as I’ve mentioned earlier the evidence for something non-material called `spirit’ or `soul’ is very much in doubt’ (p. 267).
Science can only prove things about the physical world, and it cannot prove anything about the spiritual world. Does that mean that the mind and soul don’t exist? Of course not! First, we must realize that science is not the only way to truth. Even Sagan must admit that he must justify values like ‘be objective’ or ‘report data honestly’. Where do those values come from? They came from outside science, but they must be in place for science to work.
Sagan gives an illustration that contrasts physics and metaphysics. He shows that the physicist’s idea will have to be discarded if tests fail in the laboratory. Therefore, the main difference between physics and metaphysics is that the metaphysicist has no laboratory. This is a cute story, but can science answer the basic questions that underline all knowledge? Metaphysics is necessary for science to take place. It is not true that science is superior to metaphysics like Sagan would have us believe. The presuppositions of science can only be validated by philosophy. J. P. Moreland has correctly said, ‘The validation of science is a philosophical issue, not a scientific one, and any claim to the contrary will be a self-refuting philosophical claim’ (Scaling the Secular City, p. 197).
Second, the absence of scientific evidence for the soul does not mean the soul does not exist. Sagan himself states, ‘Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence’ (p. 213).
I was impressed with the way Sagan put his inner thoughts on the table. For instance, he comments, ‘Plainly, there’s something within me that’s ready to believe in life after death…If some good evidence for life after death was announced, I’d be eager to examine it; but it would have to be real scientific data, not mere anecdote’ (pp. 203-204). What kind of evidence is Sagan looking for? It certainly is not vague prophecies. He states, ‘Think of how many religions attempt to validate themselves with prophecy…Think of how many people rely on these prophecies, however vague, however unfulfilled, to support or prop up their beliefs…Yet has there ever been a religion with the prophetic accuracy and reliability of science? (p. 30). The answer to that question is yes. Christianity can point to very clear passages such as Isaiah 53 and Daniel 11 written hundreds of years before the events occurred.
While comparing science to religion, Sagan comments, ‘Science is far from a perfect instrument of knowledge. It’s just the best we have (pp. 27-28). Here Sagan is only half right. Science is imperfect, but it is not better than the Bible.’
The Demon-Haunted Worldis a thought-provoking book that I thoroughly enjoyed. Some of Sagan’s anti-Christian views come through, but on the whole, this book uses critical thinking and logic and applies them to the claims of the paranormal and fringe-science of our day.
Reviewed by Everette Hatcher III, P.O. Box 23416, Little Rock, AR 72221.

Other posts that relate to Carl Sagan:

Atheist says “It’s not about having a purpose in life..” (Arkansas Atheist, Part 1)

The Bible and Archaeology (1/5) The Bible maintains several characteristics that prove it is from God. One of those is the fact that the Bible is accurate in every one of its details. The field of archaeology brings to light this amazing accuracy. _________________________- I want to make two points today. 1. There is no […]

Ancient Sea Monsters (A Creationist point of view Part 3)

Leviathan: the Fire-Breathing Dragon: Kent Hovind [6 of 7] Everybody is trying to get info on this subject. Here is what the Bible has to say about it. Mace Baker wrote the aritcle, “Sea Dragons – The Institute for Creation Research,” and here is the third portion of that article:  Pterosaurs were the flying reptiles of the ancient world. Why […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Edit | Comments (0)Other posts concerning Carl Sagan:

Atheists confronted: How I confronted Carl Sagan the year before he died

In today’s news you will read about Kirk Cameron taking on the atheist Stephen Hawking over some recent assertions he made concerning the existence of heaven. Back in December of 1995 I had the opportunity to correspond with Carl Sagan about a year before his untimely death. Sarah Anne Hughes in her article,”Kirk Cameron criticizes […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Also posted in Atheists Confronted | Comments (0)

Johnny Majors speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 2) jh71

November 7, 2011 – 2:57 pm

Johnny Majors broke the streak of Alabama victories over Tennessee with this victory over Bama pictured below.

Image Detail

When Johnny Majors was introduced today at the Little Rock Touchdown Club, it was mentioned that he caused a stir back in 2005 with his previous visit to the Little Rock Touchdown Club. Here is an article from ESPN on that visit:

Updated: November 22, 2005, 9:15 AM ET

Associated Press

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Johnny Majors has made it clear in the past he was not happy with the way he left Tennessee. Majors was fired in 1992, and his assistant, Phillip Fulmer, succeeded him.

On Monday at the Little Rock Touchdown Club, Majors said he still has fond memories of Tennessee, but he drew a laugh from the crowd full of Arkansas fans when a took a small dig at Fulmer.

“I don’t pull against those players up there,” Majors said. “But I don’t have any regard for Judas Brutus, who’s coaching up there.”

Fulmer, the current coach of the Volunteers, was a top assistant to Majors when Majors underwent heart surgery in 1992, and took over the team for three victories while Majors was recovering. He was named head coach following Majors’ dismissal.

A call to the Tennessee sports information office seeking comment from Fulmer was not returned.

Majors spoke for about 45 minutes, entertaining the crowd with stories about his playing days at Tennessee, his years as an assistant to Arkansas coach Frank Broyles, and a head coaching career that spanned almost three decades.

Majors was a star running back at Tennessee during the 1950s, finishing second to Notre Dame’s Paul Hornung in the ’56 Heisman Trophy race. He went 184-137-10 as a head coach at Iowa State, Tennessee and Pittsburgh.

He led Pitt to the 1976 national title, then left a few days later to coach Tennessee. He spent 16 seasons there, but missed the first three games in 1992 while he recovered from heart bypass surgery. The Volunteers, coached by Fulmer, got off to a 3-0 start.

Majors unexpectedly returned and Tennessee lost three of its next five games. With three games left, the university said Majors would not return for another season. He later went back to Pitt.

Majors has returned to Tennessee’s campus only a few times since stepping down as coach, but he was there last month for a tribute to his 1985 team that won the Sugar Bowl.

“They’ve been great to me and my family for a long, long time since I went there as a freshman in 1953.” Majors said Monday. “I am not a bitter man, I am not an angry man. I am having too much of a good time living.”

Majors amused the Razorback partisans with his comments about Tennessee, but they appeared just as interested when he talked about his experiences at Arkansas. Majors became an assistant on the Razorbacks’ staff in 1964, the year Arkansas went 11-0 and finished ranked No. 1 by the Football Writers Association of America.

Arkansas shut out its last five regular-season opponents that year before beating Nebraska 10-7 in the Cotton Bowl.

“When they don’t score, it’s pretty hard to lose,” Majors said.

Majors became the coach at Iowa State in 1968, where his assistants included Jimmy Johnson, Jackie Sherrill and Larry Lacewell.

Lacewell, who went on to coach at Arkansas State, was in the audience Monday. Majors took the opportunity to needle him a bit.

“Larry Lacewell, Jimmy Johnson and Jackie Sherrill were on my first staff up there. Man, they had all the answers,” he said with a touch of sarcasm.

Majors went to Pitt in 1973, taking over a team that had won one game the previous season and eventually winning a national title. After a 16-year stay at Tennessee, he went back to coach the Panthers, trying to resurrect the program for a second time. But he went 11-32 in his second stint and retired at the end of the 1996 season.

Majors said he never forgot the lessons he learned from Broyles and the rest of the Arkansas staff, and he still has an obvious soft spot for the school and its supporters.

“There’s none better anywhere in the country than the Arkansas Razorback fans,” he said. “You have a stellar group here.”


Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press

Head coaching record

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs Coaches# AP°
Iowa State Cyclones (Big Eight Conference) (1968–1972)
1968 Iowa State 3–7 1–6 7th      
1969 Iowa State 3–7 1–6 7th      
1970 Iowa State 5–6 1–6 T–6th      
1971 Iowa State 8–4 4–3 4th L Sun 17  
1972 Iowa State 5–6–1 2–4–1 5th L Liberty    
Iowa State: 24–30–1 9–25–1  
Pittsburgh Panthers (Independent) (1973–1976)
1973 Pittsburgh 6–5–1     L Fiesta    
1974 Pittsburgh 7–4          
1975 Pittsburgh 8–4     W Sun 13 15
1976 Pittsburgh 12–0     W Sugar 1 1
Tennessee Volunteers (Southeastern Conference) (1977–1992)
1977 Tennessee 4–7 1–5 8th      
1978 Tennessee 5–5–1 3–3 T–4th      
1979 Tennessee 7–5 3–3 T–5th L Bluebonnet    
1980 Tennessee 5–6 3–3 6th      
1981 Tennessee 8–4 3–3 T–4th W Garden State    
1982 Tennessee 6–5–1 3–2–1 5th L Peach    
1983 Tennessee 9–3 4–2 T–3rd W Citrus    
1984 Tennessee 7–4–1 3–3 T–5th L Sun    
1985 Tennessee 9–1–2 5–1 1st W Sugar 4 4
1986 Tennessee 7–5 3–3 6th W Liberty    
1987 Tennessee 10–2–1 4–1–1 3rd W Peach 13 14
1988 Tennessee 5–6 3–4 T–6th      
1989 Tennessee 11–1 6–1 T–1st W Cotton 5 5
1990 Tennessee 9–2–2 5–1–1 1st W Sugar 7 8
1991 Tennessee 9–3 5–2 3rd L Fiesta 15 14
1992 Tennessee 5–3* 3–3* 3rd (East)* * 12* 12*
Tennessee: 116–62–8 57–40–3  
Pittsburgh Panthers (Big East Conference) (1993–1996)
1993 Pittsburgh 3–8 2–5 6th      
1994 Pittsburgh 3–8 2–5 7th      
1995 Pittsburgh 2–9 0–7 8th      
1996 Pittsburgh 4–7 3–4 5th      
Pittsburgh: 45–45–1 7–21 *Three early games and the Bowl game are credited to Phillip Fulmer.
Total: 185–137–10  
      National Championship         Conference Title         Conference Division Title
#Rankings from final Coaches’ Poll.
°Rankings from final AP Poll.

Johnny Majors
Majors in 2009
Sport(s) Football
Biographical details
Born May 21, 1935 (age 76)
Place of birth Lynchburg, Tennessee
Playing career
1954–1956
1957		 Tennessee
Montreal Alouettes
Position(s) Halfback
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1957
1958–1959
1960–1963
1964–1967
1968–1972
1973–1976
1977–1992
1993–1996		 Tennessee (GA)
Tennessee (backfield)
Mississippi State (DB)
Arkansas (assistant)
Iowa State
Pittsburgh
Tennessee
Pittsburgh
Head coaching record
Overall 185–137–10
Bowls 9–7
Statistics
College Football Data Warehouse
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
1 National (1976)
3 SEC (1985, 1989–1990)
Awards
All-American, 1956
2x SEC MVP (1955–1956)
Walter Camp Coach of the Year (1973)
AFCA Coach of the Year (1976)
Sporting News College Football COY (1976)
SEC Coach of the Year (1985)
College Football Hall of Fame
Inducted in 1987 (profile)
By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Houston Nutt will resign at end of season

November 7, 2011 – 2:51 pm

I am surprised myself. Take a look at this below from ESPN:

Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt will resign at the end of this season, the university announced Monday afternoon.

Nutt

Nutt

Nutt will coach the Rebels’ last three games this year, said athletic director Pete Boone, who also announced Monday he will step down within the next year.

Ole Miss (2-7, 0-6 SEC) has lost 12 straight Southeastern Conference games dating back to last season. The Rebels are assured of a second straight losing season under Nutt, who is 24-23 in his four years in Oxford.

Coming over to Mississippi from Arkansas in 2008, Nutt led the Rebels to nine victories in each of his first two seasons, including back-to-back Cotton Bowl wins.

Nutt, who is earning approximately $2.7 million this season, has a $6 million buyout clause in his contract, Boone said.

Chris Low and Edward Aschoff cover SEC football for ESPN.com. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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Johnny Majors speaks at Little Rock Touchdown Club (Part 1)jh70

November 7, 2011 – 2:00 pm

Below is a picture of Lane Kiffin with Johnny Majors.

Image Detail

Today Johnny Majors spoke at the Little Rock Touchdown Club. Majors told several revealing stories about his time at Arkansas from 1964-1968 when he was an assistant coach under Frank Broyles. One of the funniest stories concerned fellow assistant coach Jim MacKenzie who knew how to play Broyles at times according to Majors.

One such occasion the assistant coaches were being pressed into working long hours by Broyles during a time that Broyles thought he needed to see some progress with the team. Earlier the assistant coaches had been allowed to leave at noon and go fishing or play golf when the razorbacks had been winning almost all their games.

It was in July and Majors and some of the other coaches wanted to go play golf. Coach Broyles came into the room and asked how things were going. Coach MacKenzie asked Broyles what were the shots Broyles had on the first hole on Augusta when he got that 72. Broyles went to the chalk board and erased the plays and began to draw the placement of the ball on the first hole as he outlined the birdie he got .

By the time Broyles recalled the first 5 holes, he put down the chalk and said that it appeared we were all caught up around here and we should go play some golf!!!!

Johnny Majors

Over and over today, Majors talked about his respect for Coach Broyles. In this article below Johnny Majors lists the top coaches of all time and he includes Frank Broyles who hired Majors as an assistant.

Former Tennessee star, coach Johnny Majors says new Vols coach Derek Dooley will succeed if given time

Published: Tuesday, August 31, 2010, 7:00 AM

Derek Dooley may not have been the first choice to replace Lane Kiffin as head coach at Tennessee, but he was the right choice, said former Tennessee All-American and coach Johnny Majors.

The son of former Georgia coach Vince Dooley “knows how to coach,” Majors said, and he’ll get the job done if given the opportunity.

“I think he’ll do very well,” Majors said before speaking at the Cellular South 1st and 10 Club Monday night at Heron Lakes Country Club. “I think he was a very good pick. I’ve been an advocate of his the last two or three years since I’ve got to know him at a lot of coaching clinics.

“I’ve known him since he was a kid. … He’s got a good background, he’s intelligent, competent and … he’s learned a lot by osmosis, being around his dad and being raised up by his dad.”

The keys for Dooley are getting the time and power to turn around a program in decline, Majors said.

“It’s going to take time,” Majors said. “I think they’re going to have a very challenging struggle this year, very challenging — the most since I took over. It took us five or six years. … He’s got a tough job.

“People ask, ‘Do you think they’ll give him time?’ I tell them, ‘Frankly speaking, they don’t have a choice.’ … It’s been a mess for several years. They’ve had a tough time finding a president. They’ve had three presidents that didn’t last. So they need to learn how to hire the right person and stay with that person.

“They’ve got no choice. They’re going to have to tough it out. If you’ve got a strong back and strong spine and strong-minded, loyal person you’re working for (it’s easier). Its been a mess and they’re going to have to give him a chance to get it straightened out.”

Majors said he believes the Vols were headed in the right direction with Lane Kiffin, who led the program for one year before leaving for Southern Cal.

“Kiffin took over a bad situation,” Majors said. “After me, he took over the job in the worst situation it’s been in. No question about it. It’s been going that way, downhill, for 10 years at least, especially the last three.

“Lane Kiffin would have won there. He stopped the bleeding. He stopped a runaway truck. You don’t want a runaway truck, an 18-wheeler, going down the Sewanee Mountain. He got it braked and turned the cab sideways and was going to turn it back uphill. He would have won there, because they knew how to coach.”

Coaching drove Majors for many years, not only at Tennessee, but also at Iowa State and twice at Pitt, where he won the 1976 national championship. Before that, he was SEC MVP twice and runner-up for the Heisman Trophy his senior year.

“I don’t remember my first spoken word or my first conscious thought, but surely I can’t remember when I didn’t love football,” Majors said. “I think it’s a great game.”

Although it’s a different game than when he played or even coached, the best level of football, in his opinion, is still special.

That’s why he still loves to watch the game, why he loves watching other men coach the game, especially the great ones. One of those coaches is a Dooley mentor for whom he served as an assistant for seven years — Alabama’s Nick Saban.

“There’s no one that can coach ’em up any better than Saban can,” Majors said. “Intensity, focus, discipline, tenacious, clever, keeps his eyes on the bull’s-eye. He’s very demanding of his coaches and they have a great amount of respect for him. … Saban knows how to coach.”

Others on that list would include Frank Broyles, Vince Lombardi, Vince Dooley and Bear Bryant, among others, Majors said.

The College Football Hall of Fame member said he hopes Derek Dooley will make that list by leading Tennessee back to its glory years.

“Watching (Tennessee) practice, he’s made an impression on me,” Majors said. “He can coach. … But they’re going to have to give him a chance.”

McGill-Toolen’s E.J. May (defense) and Mary Montgomery’s Harrison Corley (offense) were recognized at the meeting as the Cellular South student-athletes of the week.

The next 1st and 10 Club meeting is on Sept. 20 with ESPN college football analyst Joe Schad as the guest speaker.

By Everette Hatcher III | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Johnny Majors to speak at Little Rock Touchdown Club: What is connection to Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long?

November 7, 2011 – 7:13 am

Former Tennessee Football Coach Johnny Majors is to speak at Little Rock Touchdown Club todayat the Embassy Suites hotel. Majors coached at Iowa State from 1968-1972, Pittsburgh from 1973-1976 and 1993-1996, where he led the Panthers to the 1976 national championship and at Tennessee from 1977-1992, where he won three SEC championships.

Image Detail

1976 Sugar Bowl National Championship – Pitt vs. Georgia

Did you know that Jeff Long and Johnny Majors have a close connection? Below is a story from the June 12, 2007 edition of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette:

Johnny Majors returning to his home again — in Tennessee
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
By Shelly Anderson, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

It was 1972. President Nixon made historic trips to Beijing and Moscow. The Oakland A’s made a splashy trip to the World Series.

And a man named Joe Mason (wink) made a little fact-finding trip to Pittsburgh.


Post-Gazette archives
Johnny Majors Former Pitt coach

Except that it was really Joe Majors, brother and confidant of Johnny Majors, an up-and-coming college football coach who was skeptical about pursuing a job with the University of Pittsburgh in a big city.”I would have never come to Pittsburgh if not for Joe,” Johnny Majors said yesterday. “He came in and scouted the area first. He said, ‘John, they’re ready to make a move. The drive from the airport to downtown Pittsburgh in November is not very exciting, but it’s the job for you. They want to get things done, and you’re the guy who can get it done.’ ”

So Majors, who always had preferred small college towns, interviewed with Pitt, took the job and in four seasons guided the Panthers to the 1976 national championship, recruiting Heisman Trophy winner Tony Dorsett along the way.

For Majors, Pittsburgh was love at first fortnight.

“I came here two weeks and I felt at home,” he said. “It was the easiest adjustment I’ve ever made.”

It’s a feeling that persisted, even when he left after that title season to return to his home state of Tennessee and coach at his alma mater, even when he came back to Pitt in 1993 for four rough seasons, and especially in the past decade while remaining in Pittsburgh and on the Pitt athletic staff.

Now, though, Majors and his wife, Mary Lynn, are going home once more.

In the past couple of weeks, they closed on a sale of their Oakland house — the one they bought from Pitt, the one with a wonderfully landscaped corner lot — and found a place in Knoxville, Tenn.

They’ll make the move before the end of July.

This uprooting is all about family.

Joe is gone. He died in January after a battle with cancer and heart problems. But Majors has a sister, Shirley Ann, and a brother, Bob, in Chattanooga and another brother, Larry, near Sewanee.

The Majors’ son, John Ireland Majors, and daughter, Shirley Ann, are in Tennessee, along with seven grandchildren, including Brandon, 20, who is in junior college after being raised in Pittsburgh by Johnny and Mary Lynn.

This is not about giving up on life.

“I’m in the fourth quarter of my life. I’m not ready to make the final play yet,” said Majors, 72, a Heisman Trophy finalist in 1956 and a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.

Although the move makes sense to him, it has caused a great deal of internal conflict.

“People say, ‘Why are you leaving?’ Well, I wonder myself sometimes. I’ve wondered a lot about it,” he said. “Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania are uniquely special. I have so many friends here, I’m talking about really, really great friends. And such a diverse group.”

Majors and his wife are determined to maintain strong ties here. They are considering renting a place so they can make frequent visits for football and basketball games and other events.

He will have to give up his seat on the Pittsburgh Symphony Board, but they’re keeping their symphony tickets. He’ll keep in touch with friends at the Pittsburgh Athletic Association and the Pittsburgh Field Club and with those at Calvary Episcopal Church. Mary Lynn no doubt will remain tight with those at the Garden Club of Allegheny County, where she served as president until about six months ago.

And, of course, Pitt will always be close to Majors’ heart.

“The University of Pittsburgh has been great to me twice,” said Majors, who has been a special assistant to the athletic director and chancellor since his coaching career ended after the 1996 season.

“I’m very appreciative and indebted to the University of Pittsburgh. I told [athletic director] Jeff Long, ‘I’m at your beck and call. I’ll do anything I can because this is a great school and a great town.’ ”

That includes what Majors has done best for the athletic department in recent years — shake hands, share a round of golf over some great storytelling and spread goodwill about Pitt.

Some might find it curious that Majors is returning to Knoxville after his bitter departure from Tennessee in 1992 following what many considered a coup by Phil Fulmer, one of his assistants. For several years after he returned to Pitt, Majors was reluctant to utter the word, “Tennessee,” instead calling it “the place I used to work.”

Those feelings have faded. Not that he’s necessarily going to hang around the Volunteers.

“I’m going to play that by ear,” Majors said. “I can say this: The athletic director [Mike Hamilton] wasn’t there when I was there, and he’s been very pleasant to me. I have some friends who still work at the university. I don’t have any animosity.”

Nor does Majors bemoan the state of the Panthers’ football program in the 1990s, when budgetary and other commitments at Pitt Stadium were lacking and he went 12-32.

“I can say I was not at my best,” he said. “But I’ve always said I felt like we — our staff, our families — could be remembered for leaving a program in better shape when we left than when we came, and they were able to go to a bowl game the year after we left.”

Certainly, Pitt was infinitely better, a national powerhouse, when Majors left the first time in the 1970s.

“The first four years I was here, I never had a more exciting time in my life,” Majors said. “They called when I needed them. I needed that opportunity.”

And now he needs to go home.

First published on June 11, 2007 at 11:22 pm
Shelly Anderson can be reached at shanderson@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1721.
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“Music Monday”:Coldplay’s best songs of all time (Part 9)

November 7, 2011 – 12:34 am

Coldplay

“Music Monday”:Coldplay’s best songs of all time (Part 9)

This is “Music Monday” and I always look at a band with some of their best music. I am currently looking at Coldplay’s best songs. Here are a few followed by another person’s preference:

My son Hunter Hatcher   has picked “life in technicolor II” as his 12th favorite Coldplay song. He noted, “This song was perfect for my iraq video i made from my first deployment. Soft and then here comes the hard drive!”

The song “Life in Technicolor II” have some lyrics in it that I have written about before. Did you notice these words in the song: “Time came a creeping, Oh and time’s a loaded gun.” Take a look: 
 

Back in 2008 I wrote a paper on the spiritual themes of Coldplay’s album Viva La Vida and I predicted this spiritual search would continue in the future. Below is the second part of the paper, “Coldplay’s latest musical lyrics indicate a Spiritual Search for the Afterlife.”

_____________________________

Death and the time cycle

Over and over in Coldplay’s latest music you see the theme of death and the time cycle brought up concerning the shortness of a person’s life. Earlier I quoted the song “42” that states “Life is so short” and in the song “Life in Technicolor II” (Prospekt March) : “Time came a creeping, Oh and time’s a loaded gun.”  Even more than this do you see death mentioned. The song “42” which I quoted earlier said, “Those who are dead” and the song “Poppyfields” (from Prospekt March) states, “People burying their dead” and later says, “I don’t wanna die on my own in a separate sky.” The song “Violet Hill” states, “When I’m dead and hit the ground” and in the song “Viva La Vida” “Revolutionaries wait for my head on a silver plate.” Needless to say I do not even have to mention that other songs like “Death and All his Friends”and “Cemeteries of London” also deal with death. Solomon had to grapple with the fact of his upcoming death.

Ecclesiastes 3:18-21

18 I also thought about the human condition—how God proves to people that they are like animals. 19 For people and animals share the same fate—both breathe[a] and both must die. So people have no real advantage over the animals. How meaningless! 20 Both go to the same place—they came from dust and they return to dust. 21 For who can prove that the human spirit goes up and the spirit of animals goes down into the earth?

There is another rock group that looked at the logical conclusion of man in the light of death:

In 1978 I heard the song “Dust in the Wind” by Kansas.  That song told me that Kerry Livgren the writer of that song and a member of Kansas had come to the conclusion that life  without God in the picture was like dust in the wind which was exactly what Solomon said in Ecclesiastes when he talked about life “under the sun.”  In fact, in the verses I just listed (3:18-21) Solomon says we are all returning to the dust and there is no reason to think we are going any where else with God out of the picture. Take a look at what Kerry Livgren wrote back in 1978:

DUST IN THE WIND

I close my eyes
Only for a moment and the moment’s gone
All my dreams
Flash before my eyes of curiosity

Dust in the wind
All they are is dust in the wind

Same old song
Just a drop of water in an endless sea
All we do
Crumbles to the ground though we refuse to see

Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind

Now
Don’t hang on
Nothing lasts forever but the Earth and Sky
It slips away
And all your money won’t another minute buy

Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind
Dust in the wind
Everything is dust in the wind

(Dust in the Wind)

Power reigns in this life and the scales are not balanced.

Solomon comes to the realization that powers reigns in this life and the scales are not balanced.

Ecclesiastes 4:1   Again, I observed all the oppression that takes place under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, with no one to comfort them. The oppressors have great power, and their victims are helpless.

Ecclesiastes 7:15

15 I have seen everything in this meaningless life, including the death of good young people and the long life of wicked people.

People that believe there is no afterlife must concede that Hitler will never face the due punishment for his acts. However, in the song “Viva La Vida” the evil king DID NOT MAKE IT TO HEAVEN. “I used to rule the world…Feel the fear in my enemy’s eyes…there was never an honest word and that was when I ruled the world, It was the wicked and wild wind, Blew down the doors to let me in, Shattered windows and the sound of drums, People couldn’t believe what I’d become.”

Later in the song, “For some reason I can’t explain, I KNOW SAINT PETER WON’T CALL MY NAME, Never an honest word, But that was when I ruled the world.”

This last part indicates to me that Coldplay realizes that evil individuals will be judged in an afterlife.

God reveals Himself in two Ways 

Lets take a look at the lyrics from the song “Cemeteries of London:”

God is in the houses
And God is in my head
And all the cemeteries of London
I see God come in my garden
But I don’t know what He said
For my heart, it wasn’t open
Not open

Romans chapter one clearly points out that God has revealed Himself through both the created world around us  and also in a God-given conscience that testifies to each person that God exists.
Notice in this song that the song writer notes, “I see God come in my garden” and “God is in my head.” These are the exact two places mentioned by the scripture.  Romans 1:18-20 (Amplified version)

18For God’s [holy] wrath and indignation are revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who in their wickedness repress and hinder the truth and make it inoperative.

19For that which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their inner consciousness, because God [Himself] has shown it to them.

20For ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature and attributes, that is, His eternal power and divinity, have been made intelligible and clearly discernible in and through the things that have been made (His handiworks). So [men] are without excuse [altogether without any defense or justification],(B)

I have shown what thought processes Solomon went through in Ecclesiastes and then compared them to the evident changes that are occurring with Coldplay. By the way, the final chapter of Ecclesiastes finishes with Solomon emphasizing that serving God is the only proper response of man. My prediction: I am hoping that Coldplay’s next album will also come to that same conclusion that Solomon came to in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14:
13 Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the whole duty of man.

14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.

Kerry Livgren of Kansas found Christ eventually after first trying some Eastern Religions. I remember telling my friends in 1978 when “Dust in the Wind” was the number 6 song in the USA that Kansas had written a philosophical song that came to the same conclusion about humanistic man as Solomon did so long ago and I predicted that some members of that band would come to know the Christ of the Bible in a personal way. You can hear Kerry Livgren’s story from this youtube link:

(part 1 ten minutes)

(part 2 ten minutes)

Coldplay – Cemeteries of London ( FULL VIDEO)

The brilliant video for Cemeteries of London. It’s the perfect mix between music and image, Coldplay sold around 8 million albums with Viva La Vida.

_________________________________________

Coldplay is my favorite band and I hope to have many more posts in the next few days. Here are some posts I have done up till this point:

Three things that do not bring lasting Satisfaction, (Coldplay’s spiritual search Part 5)

Coldplay – 42 Live Coldplay perform on the french television channel W9. I wrote this article a couple of years ago: The Spiritual Search for the Afterlife Russ Breimeier rightly noted that it seems that Coldplay is “on the verge of identifying a great Truth” and their latest CD is very provocative. Many songs mention […]

Are Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin looking for Spiritual Answers? (Coldplay’s spiritual search Part 4)

  CP I wrote this article a couple of years ago. Are Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin looking for Spiritual Answers? Just like King Solomon’s predicament in the Book of Ecclesiastes, both of these individuals are very wealthy, famous, and successful, but they still are seeking satisfying answers to life’s greatest questions even though it […]

Insight into what Coldplay meant by “St. Peter won’t call my name” (Series on Coldplay’s spiritual search, Part 3)

Coldplay seeks to corner the market on earnest and expressive rock music that currently appeals to wide audiences Here is an article I wrote a couple of years ago about Chris Martin’s view of hell. He says he does not believe in it but for some reason he writes a song that teaches that it […]

Will Coldplay’s 2011 album continue on spiritual themes found in 2008 Viva La Vida? (Series on Coldplay’s spiritual search, Part 2)

Views:2 By waymedia Coldplay Coldplay – Life In Technicolor ii Back in 2008 I wrote a paper on the spiritual themes of Coldplay’s album Viva La Vida and I predicted this spiritual search would continue in the future. Below is the second part of the paper, “Coldplay’s latest musical lyrics indicate a Spiritual Search for the […]

Will Coldplay’s 2011 album continue on spiritual themes found in 2008 Viva La Vida? (Series on Coldplay’s spiritual search, Part 1)

Coldplay performing “Glass of Water.” Back in 2008 I wrote a paper on the spiritual themes of Coldplay’s album Viva La Vida and I predicted this spiritual search would continue in the future. Below is the first part of the paper, “Coldplay’s latest musical lyrics indicate a Spiritual Search for the Afterlife.” Coldplay’s latest musical […]

The wait is over, Coldplay single “Every Teardrop is a waterfall”

Coldplay – Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall (Official) The new single – download it now from iTunes at http://cldp.ly/itunescp (except in the UK, where it will be released to download stores at 12.01am on Sunday June 5th). Written by Berryman / Buckland / Champion / Martin / Allen / Anderson. Produced by Markus Dravs, Dan […]

 

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Well I might get flack for this list but I’m still a fan so they get a list. This list was tabulated off votes and ranking from Coldplaying.com. Posted on Aug 2008.

Comments
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Viva la vida

Coldplay

Viva la vida (2008) [Single]

1) Viva la Vida 1765 points
Yellow

Coldplay

Yellow (2000) [Single]

2) Yellow 1685 points
Clocks

Coldplay

Clocks (2003) [Single]

3) Clocks 1635 points
A Rush of Blood to the Head

Coldplay

A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)

4) Politik 1565 points
The Scientist

Coldplay

The Scientist (2002) [Single]

5) The Scientist 1545 points
Fix You

Coldplay

Fix You (2005) [Single]

6) Fix You 1485 points
A Rush of Blood to the Head

Coldplay

A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)

7) Amsterdam 1470 points
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)

8) Strawberry Swing 1365 points
Violet Hill

Coldplay

Violet Hill (2008) [Single]

9) Violet Hill 1275 points
Don't Panic

Coldplay

Don’t Panic (2001) [Single]

10) Don’t Panic 1260 points
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)

11) Death And All His Friends 1255 points
Shiver

Coldplay

Shiver (2000) [Single]

12) Shiver 1165 points
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)

13) Lovers In Japan 1165 points
A Rush of Blood to the Head

Coldplay

A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)

14) A Rush Of Blood To The Head 1150 points
A Rush of Blood to the Head

Coldplay

A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)

15) Warning Sign 1125 points
Trouble

Coldplay

Trouble (2000) [Single]

16) Trouble 1095 points
X&Y

Coldplay

X&Y (2005)

17) Square One 1075 points
God Put a Smile Upon Your Face

Coldplay

God Put a Smile Upon Your Face (2003) [Single]

18) God Put a Smile Upon Your Face 1055 points
Speed of Sound

Coldplay

Speed of Sound (2005) [Single]

19) Speed Of Sound 1040 points
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)

20) Lost 1035 points
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)

21) Yes 1000 points
The Blue Room E.P.

Coldplay

The Blue Room E.P. (1999) [EP]

22) See You Soon 975 points
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)

23) Cemetaries Of London 955 points
In My Place

Coldplay

In My Place (2002) [Single]

24) In My Place 940 points
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

Coldplay

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)

25) Life in Technicolor 900 points
 
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