11 August 2009

Gaia Online's New MMO

The following was first posted to Gaia Online on 27 October 2008.

When the Gaia MMO was first announced I was really excited about it. Currently Dungeon Runners is the only quality classless MMO I know of so I was glad to see another one being developed and was really looking forward to beta testing it.

But then the name was announced. Not only does "zomg!" sound stupid to nearly everyone over the age of eight, it's also offensive to those of us who serve the God that that phrase so irreverently references. I'm not easily offended but for me that was just one straw too many coming from Gaia.

For a site that claims to be kid-friendly there is an appalling amount of slutty avatar clothing, sexual innuendo in the comics, and other questionable content on Gaia. "Zomg!" is just one too many for me.

For details visit Gaia Online

Loving a Prodigal

The following was first posted to Gaia Online on 8 August 2008.

The story of the prodigal son from the Gospel of Luke has recently manifested in my family. After many years of running, our prodigal has finally returned to the family and appears repentant (details are private family business that I'm not going to post to the Internet).

We are now faced with a choice: we can celebrate his return and give him our love and support as he tries to put the shattered pieces of his life back together or we can act like the prodigal's selfish brother and shun him.

As disciples of Jesus our choice should be clear but far too often the free will that God gifted us with becomes a curse. Our selfish need to be right or to seek revenge or compensation stands in the way of healing. Instead of welcoming our prodigal home with love and forgiveness we are inclined to turn him away with righteous indignation.

Someone once said that we are the sum of the choices we make. In this case my choice is to stand by our prodigal no matter what he may have done or what wrong choices he may have made. That doesn't mean that I approve of his actions; only that I love him anyway. If God can unconditionally forgive me for all that I've done in my life, how can I possibly refuse to do the same for my own family?

The High Price of Gas

The following was originally posted to Gaia Online on 15 September 2008.

Anyone who has taken high school level economics should know about the law of supply and demand. Yet whenever we the people hear that gas prices might be going up we rush out and buy up all we can thus guaranteeing that prices will skyrocket.

Do you go out and fill every gas can you have whenever there is a hint of a fuel shortage? If so then YOU are partially responsible for high gas prices. Think about that the next time you want to gripe that the government or big oil is jacking up gas prices.

Eco-friendly SUV?

The following was first posted to Gaia Online on 2 October 2008.

I recently a TV commercial advertising some Chevy hybrid Suburban Assault Vehicle that supposedly gets the same mileage as a 4-cylinder car: 21mpg city. They're kidding, right?! 21?! My 6-cylinder truck gets 18 city and my wife's old 6-cylinder car got 23 city.

Even worse is the Cadillac Escalade hybrid commercial I just saw: 12 city / 19 highway.

The stupidity surrounding Suburban Assault Vehicles has reached epic proportions when a 12 or even 21 mpg hybrid is considered to be eco-friendly.

Fortunately for some of us our self-esteems aren't tied up in other peoples' opinions. Some of us have enough self-worth to buy the vehicles we need instead of the ones society tells us we should drive.

But then again some of us also care enough about the planet and other people to actually obey the speed limit. I guess not everyone can be intelligent, selfless, and self-confident.