Comments on: it takes a train

By: Krystyn

Krystyn — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:55:53 +0000

That sounds like a Leonard Cohen poem.

By: Zak

Zak — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 22:47:11 +0000

Should\’ve disabled comments on this, Jeffrey.

By: Rick

Rick — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:38:29 +0000

Are they buddies?

By: Jimmy Boss

Jimmy Boss — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 09:45:36 +0000

Truth is a pathless land.

By: ABS

ABS — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 14:25:16 +0000

Annie Hall is one of my favourite movies. I am looking to see Whatever Works also by Woody Allen.

By: DN

DN — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 13:19:57 +0000

@DBT: I really don’t want to belabor this point since, as you pointed out, doing so doesn’t correspond to the intention of the lyric. The phrase ’shit happens’ doesn’t necessarily denote randomness, so I think your passages are not engaging it on its own terms. But it was the contention that people don’t change that got me (regrettably so; apologies for my flippancy). You quote a Psalm and a prophet; besides the interpretation issue, both have corresponding passages calling people to repentance/conversion: by definition a change about the person. So, without even getting into the technicalities of the economy of grace, ‘people change’. From a wide Judeo-Christian perspective, then, the phrase as a whole applies. Loosely, generally, as its structure and content suggest it would.

And, pardon my begging off, but I think to go further here is to hijack the thread pretty thoroughly with long posts (with likely no end in sight), providing hours of diversion for the interested parties (us) and general annoyance for everyone else. If you’d like to correspond elsewhere (via your blog, email, whatever) I’m sending you my email so that can happen. Cheers.

By: Richard Fink

Richard Fink — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:07:08 +0000

@adamw
Thanks. Annie Hall. Thought so but wasn’t sure.

By: D Bnonn Tennant

D Bnonn Tennant — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:46:38 +0000

@DN: what caricature? I simply picked particularly clear examples of the general principles within Christianity so as to best make my point. God's sovereignty and providence over human actions is a prevalent theme throughout Scripture. I am a Christian myself—you're welcome to examine my credentials at my "other" site. How would you treat the saying "shit happens" from a Christian perspective?

By: DN

DN — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 07:00:28 +0000

Okay, so I shouldn’t have been so glib there, but the selective quotation is pretty caricature-ish. Perhaps you’re keeping a hyper-strict distinction, but I don’t think it paints an adequate picture. Aaanyway, back to the show.

By: DN

DN — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 06:42:26 +0000

This is so incredibly not the place to go into it but, @ D Bnonn Tennant, you don’t know what you’re talking about.

@Berserk – Nice selection!

By: Lazy KB

Lazy KB — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 05:41:47 +0000

You have to take the bitter with the sweet.

By: AdamW

AdamW — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 04:42:03 +0000

It’s from Annie Hall.

By: Mark W.

Mark W. — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 04:17:36 +0000

Yes, but Jesus and Buddha would both say that “shit happens” because of wants and desires. Buddha’s solution was to try to eliminate all desire. Jesus would say to put them in the proper order.

By: Nagarjun

Nagarjun — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 04:00:47 +0000

Buddha and Jesus will also encourage you to ask, “Will this sh*t matter in 5 years?”

By: Richard Fink

Richard Fink — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 01:11:10 +0000

The scene is the main dining room of a Catskill mountain resort hotel. Two middle aged women are sitting next to each other as dinner is being served.
One of them turns to the other and says, “My god, the food here is terrible, isn’t it?”
The other replies, “It sure is. And such small portions, too!”

Life is like that, isn’t it? It’s full of pain and suffering but dammit, there just isn’t enough of it.

(Quiz: Woody Allen is a lot funnier than Buddha, methinks. Which movie is this from? I’ve forgotten. C’mon New Yorkers, help me out here…)