Food for Thought

Well, it's week eight out of ten (add one more for finals), which means it's stress-making time. So I won't be around here very much. But here are a couple of things I wanted to share. They're both very interesting.

So I can't even remember what I was doing online, but I stumbled upon an old episode (2005) of This American Life entitled "Godless America." I love TAL, but sadly don't listen to it regularly like I used to. I usually find it interesting, thoughtful, and sometimes provocative. In the first half of this episode they examine the constitutional and historical cases for secular and religious governments. In the second half, Julia Sweeney, a former Catholic, reads the Bible and tells us what she found there. Just as a caveat, I think it's pretty funny, but Sweeney didn't decide to read the Bible in mockery--she went in all earnestness, but eventually lost her faith.
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/290/Godless-America

In my 568 class last week, we watched a TED Talk by Jane McGonigal called "Gaming Can Make A Better World." It's interesting, and she may have some valid points, but I take issue with her central thesis. She talks mostly about World of Warcraft, which I have never played, but I have played enough video games to know that they function like crack--there are a lot of rewards and gratification. The real world doesn't work that way. Also, if you die in a game, you just start over. If you die in the real world, well... So obviously the stakes aren't as high. McGonigal talks about the "blissful productivity" exhibited by gamers. Blissful, sure, but I, along with every mother in America, am not sure about productive. Chris Hedges would probably say that people retreat into games because living in the real world is very difficult and can be highly depressing. The dice players in Greece, or wherever, were not solving hunger, they were ignoring it. Will gaming save the world? Probably not. Could it help solve some of our problems just a little bit? Maybe. Give it a gander, and you tell me.
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/jane_mcgonigal_gaming_can_make_a_better_world.html

Well, I believe all of you are done with school for the summer, or have completed yet another degree. Congrats! Think of me stuck in school while you start firing up your barbecue grills.