At Patheos: NRA: I need a new car

Fred Clark has posted a new post, NRA: I need a new car, at Patheos.com.

This week Fred writes about pp. 8-12 of Nicolae: The Rise of Antichrist

Excerpt:

This question of anxiety and fear of a futureless world, and how such views affect one’s ability to plan for the long-term also seem pertinent with regard to the followers of apocalyptic “Bible prophecy” teachers like Tim LaHaye. It seems to me that if it’s 1995, and you’re reading Left Behind and believing every word it says about how Jesus is coming back very, very, very soon, then you probably don’t much care that your city’s water mains were built 90 years ago and were originally intended to be replaced after 50 years. They’ve made it this far, you probably think, so they should last until Jesus comes back, right?

[Fred Clark, NRA: I need a new car, June 15, 2012, posted at Patheos.com]


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Comments

[Firedrake]

"This reminds me of when we were first married. Flames, wrecked buildings, corpses everywhere. How glad I am to be serving Great Cthulhu!"

Billions of dollars are just longhand for "lots", I think. Back when LaHaye and even Jenkins were growing up, that was still true.

When I first met the RTC disdain for environmentalism, it was very much coupled with the idea that God was coming back soon, so there was no need to worry about keeping up the whole stewardship thing.

[chris the cynic]

“This reminds me of when we were first married,” Buck said as Chloe snuggled close to him.

“What do you mean ‘when we were first married’? We’re still newlyweds!”

"I mean the very moment we married.  Remember?  You, me, your father, Amanda, Bruce, and 43 words to describe the whole thing.  You looked at me and said-"

"I wish we had an author who wasn't Jerry Jenkins."

"Doesn't this feel exactly like that?"

"Yeah, I guess it does."

"So, what do you want to do?"

"I was thinking of maybe seeing if we could head down to NORAD, boot up the WOPR and avert World War III."

"That sounds like a good plan, but I feel Jenkins turning back this way."

"Please, no more misogyny.  Please, no more misogyny."

“Shh!” Buck said quickly. “What’re they saying about New York City?”

Chloe turned up the radio. “… devastating carnage everywhere here in the heart of Manhattan. Bombed-out buildings, emergency vehicles picking their way through debris, Civil Defense workers pleading with people over loudspeakers to stay underground.”

-

Buck was waved at, pointed at, and hollered at by traffic cops, and he was honked at and obscenely gestured at by other motorists.

Suddenly one of them got out of her car and stood in front of the Lincoln.  Buck slammed on the breaks and the car came to a stop a few feet in front of her.

"Hi, I'm obscenely gesturing motorist number 23."

"Hi, Obscenely 23," Chloe said warmly.

"I know I'm not supposed to matter, but the thing is... I'd rather live and it seems like yours is the only car that's allowed to get through traffic."

"Hop in," Buck said.

He could feel the pressure of the narrative saying that he shouldn't be helping people.  He could feel the story crying out that he wasn't supposed to care.  He knew that Jerry Jenkins would be shocked and outraged if he knew about this act of basic human decency.

He was not deterred.

-

“So what’re you gonna do, buy a tank?”

“If it wasn’t so conspicuous, I just might.”

Buck corrected himself, "Weren't.  If it weren't so conspicuous.  I went to school for a long damn time so that I could properly use the subjunctive, but no, I'm written by some idiot who doesn't understand a simple contrary to fact conditional."

"I feel your pain." Chloe said. "When was the last time I got to use my education?"

"You know, if it's all the same to you, I think I would like a tank," Obscenely 23 said.

"Really?" Chloe asked, "Because the gas mileage is kinda crap."

"I don't think this is the kind of story where those details matter, so if you could drop me off at the tank store I'll pick one up," Obscenely 23 said.

"No problem," Buck said.

[TRiG, who has lost his login details]

And chris continues to be all kinds of awesome.

[Steve Morrison]

Disqus won't let me comment over there. Would someone please post this link: http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/07/wtf-fake-vaccination/ in reply to Ursula L's recent comment? Briefly, the conspiracy theories about polio vaccines being some kind of Western plot started years before the deceptive operation in Pakistan, and health workers are furious about the latter precisely because it lends color to the conspiracy theory.

[chris the cynic]

@Steve,

I have posted that for you.

[Steve Morrison]

Thanks!