This is a photo I took a while back. I just picked this one to edit because I thought it would give me the effect I wanted. Today as I listened to the news, I was terribly disappointed and angry when I heard about the Pastor in Florida who is planning to burn the Koran on 9/11. He claims to have received a message from God to go through with this distasteful act. When I think about the act itself, and its disgrace, I think it would be a slap in the face to everyone who enjoys a life of freedom. Being free to worship as we please is a right, and no one should dictate how we believe. That is a very personal matter, and it should be up to the individual. I believe we have been making progress during that last several years in healing hearts across the globe, and then to have someone announce such a hateful act, it's only going to stir up more hatred. I fear that before long, all the progress that has been made so far in pulling people together will end up going "Down The Drain." I wish the media would pull the plug on this guy and refuse to cover the story. They should refuse to give him any attention.
As an added note, I want to also say that even though my beliefs may differ from others, I still have an obligation to love others and respect them for who they are as a person. To do or act otherwise would be a contradiction and make me a hypocrite.
this is a fabulous photo.
I didn't hear about this until my friend i'm talking to now told me about that. He told me that it's in Gainesville. I think it's disgusting. A slap in the face to everyone trying to enjoy their religious freedom.
Rick, I completely agree, the media should pull the plug on this guy. I've been reading about this for several days now and it simply sounds like this "preacher" has been bad news for a very long time, having been ousted from a church he ran in Germany for stealing funds. It amazes me to no end what one can try to pass themselves off as these days...It disgusts and brings me great sadness to think a "Christian" would do such a thing. When asked "What would Jesus do?" this guy stated that Jesus would say, "Let them burn!" I find that to be the most ignorant statement I may have ever heard. UG! SO angry about this. As far as your photo, very meaningful and perfect for your caption!
Beautifully said & photographed! It's been weighing heavily on my mind also & I have been working on a photo idea myself. I, too, am saddened & repulsed by that man and his platform. The mayor as well as other Gainesville religious leaders have come out in protest of his proposed actions.
My prayers are that he will not go through with this, but that if he does something good will come of it somehow and that no one will be harmed as a result of his despicable actions.
You are a good man, Rick.
agreed. love how you chose to convey your feelings through this photo. while he does have the freedom to do what he chooses, sometimes we have to choose to curb our own liberties for the good of the whole. what he's doing is disgraceful.
what guy... what story... we have the power to not listen to loonies... you know your slide picture a few days back was great... and the effect is neat in this one too...
I agree wholeheartedly with your caption. you are such a wise man. I really look up to you as a good influence in my life. I always read your captions everytime I get the chance.
really neat photo too btw. neat effect :)
My son lives in Gainesville but I promise you, the rest of the population isn't all intolerant. It's a college town (U of Florida) and as a result I think a lot of the people are more tolerant. All it takes is one jerk to give The South and Christianity a bad name. I think he is the one who should go down the drain. (BTW, terrific shot and, as usual, thoughtful comments)
I don't think it is the right thing to do at all. But I, on the other hand, don't feel they should build on the 9/11 site if they were friends with the us and wanted to keep peace. I feel sad that a man of God would want to do this burning. It doesn't look or feel right for sure. But the more I read revelations, the more I see that these things are going to happen to bring us to the place we will ultimately be. Now that that was clear as mud. Great shot Rick.
Fab picture Rick & your words echo my thoughts.
What a sad, misguided person this man is. Shame, shame, shame upon him. What he is doing is against everything Jesus taught.
I have shared your picture & words of wisdom on my facebook page, I hope you don't mind..
Great shot Rick! I can feel the emotion that you poured into your words in the photo - great together. I agree with you 100%. It is our freedom to choose what we believe.....and to disgrace others, and their beliefs does NOT sit well with me. It is something that I will never understand. Because, there are so many people out there, who can live in peace, and respect others....and they arent getting the media attention. Not that they want it, but give the good people the lime light. really.
I think that misguided zealots cause a lot of people to "flush down the drain" all spiritual thinking and teachings. I wonder how loud this minister would be yelling if the Muslims somewhere were planning to burn a stack of KJV Bibles. And if he wants to remove Korans from the market why can't he just buy them and burn them without the public attention?
Perhaps because the public attention is what his "vision" is really all about.
Great picture. Love it. I guess if burning the flag is allowed why not then burn anything. Effigies are burnt in other parts of the world. These type of protests are designed to get to the point. They challenge our core beliefs. I don't agree anytime anything is burned out of anger and frustration.
Great shot! Too bad people and the media follow these loonies. I wonder what would happen to these types of stories if the media didn't follow them. Do you think their little story would implode?
How marvelously well said with a perfect illustration! I agree with you that the media should take the spotlight off of this man and his little flock. It would go unnoticed if they would!
this is such a cool photo, Rick!! I love the editing! And I completely agree with your caption - we should respect the others and their believes, love is the answer, not hate!
That would be helpful if people like that were ignored by the press--but unfortunately, the press would have absolutely nothing to do--they make a living off of reporting "bad news," it seems.
Well, considering that bit of news--which I haven't heard until now--this shot is quite fitting.
Wow, this is awesome, Rick!! I wholeheartedly agree! I think he's just doing it for attention and it's disgraceful. Everyone should be able to practice whatever religion they want to, or none if they don't have any. I think burning books is a sin, no matter what books they are.
O my goodness! I was reading your caption and I couldn't agree more! The media should cover worth while story's and this guy just needs to stop. I heard about that on the news and I was so disappointed. (Although I don't know why seeing as how the worlds going anyway,) but I wasn't that surprised that someone would pull a stunt like that. What's the world coming to anyway?!
Haha, when I was reading your caption, I was mentally shouting "YES!! YES!! I AGREE!!!
And I think that the leaders of America need the slap in the face. They need to wake up and realize that they have the power to accomplish good and evil. Which I fear they already have realized the ladder.
This caught my eye on the popular page. It really fits your story - so well said! I really love your work. (noticed the butterfly made the popular also)
I've even been to Lebanon! My aunt & uncle live in Lititz (Luther Acres). familiar?
not religeous its all mumbo jumbo to me but what ever gives you comfort..but some are not comforting but scary and in your face..i say put the in your face and scary down the drain what ever it may be
I like this photo. Will have to try a drain photo one day when I'm so inspired. Also agree with your sentiments particularly about the media not giving the man any attention. Funny how they'll verbally condemn it but still give it heaps of write up globally
Great great photo! Perfectly matched to your insights. There certainly are some fruit-loops in this world aren't there? We have had some coverage of this guy here in Aus. The media is incapable of rising above a story like this in order to ignore him.
In a way I wonder if it's more dangerous to leave him operating in the shadows. The coverage certainly highlights his lunacy & the fact that people don't agree with his insane antics.
this picture is very fun and swirly. thank you for the nice comments on my pictures. i did have a lot of tests this week. on my spelling test i got a 105%, on my class constitution test i got a 101%, on my bible test i got a 100%, on my government test i got a 100%. i like school a lot, and i like my teacher. when i'm done painting ginger i will post it on 365 and if you want me to paint your dogs i will do that for you. on my rainbow picture do you mean the seal of the holy spirit when we ask Jesus in our heart?
Well stated, Rick. I think the only way to fight the media is to stop watching anything that is sensationalizing the issue. What I get tired of is all the speculation in the news. How is that news? I rarely watch anymore and actually feel less stressed. Head in the clouds? Yeah, a little.
I didn't hear about this until my friend i'm talking to now told me about that. He told me that it's in Gainesville. I think it's disgusting. A slap in the face to everyone trying to enjoy their religious freedom.
My prayers are that he will not go through with this, but that if he does something good will come of it somehow and that no one will be harmed as a result of his despicable actions.
You are a good man, Rick.
really neat photo too btw. neat effect :)
What a sad, misguided person this man is. Shame, shame, shame upon him. What he is doing is against everything Jesus taught.
I have shared your picture & words of wisdom on my facebook page, I hope you don't mind..
Perhaps because the public attention is what his "vision" is really all about.
The pictures is very very good.
Well, considering that bit of news--which I haven't heard until now--this shot is quite fitting.
I think I heard that he changed his mind?
Your photo is an amazing effect :)
Haha, when I was reading your caption, I was mentally shouting "YES!! YES!! I AGREE!!!
And I think that the leaders of America need the slap in the face. They need to wake up and realize that they have the power to accomplish good and evil. Which I fear they already have realized the ladder.
I've even been to Lebanon! My aunt & uncle live in Lititz (Luther Acres). familiar?