One of my readers asked me to write more about football. I don’t have any rants saved up, so here is a bit of a quiz for you that I thought of while running today. Do you know the structure of the National Football League? 1 point for a correct region / name pair, 1 extra point for the correct conference, and a third for the correct division. To make it an even 100 points, an extra 4 for not mentioning any incorrect region / name pairs. Give it a try, then see comments for my attempt, the correct answer, and to leave your own pathetic try.
August 21, 2006
August 17, 2006
What’s the deal with the Church and homosexuality?
(apologies to Jerry Seinfeld)
Note: I started writing this post quite some time ago, and set it aside because I was not satisfied with it. I have chosen to edit and post it now in response to a question on another post.
My father, as part of his responsibilities as an elected officer of his church, recently received notification of an issue to be brought up at the national governance meeting and the following document.
An Appeal To Presbyterians And Congregations Within The Presbyterian Church (U. S. A.)
We are loyal Presbyterians who affirm the unique Lordship of Jesus Christ, the authority of Holy Scripture (our only infallible rule of faith and practice), and biblical standards for holy living. Therefore we seek to be a church that is faithful to the Word of God.
The marks of the true Church are the Word of God truly preached and the sacraments rightly administered. The passage of the recommendations of the Theological Task Force on Peace, Unity, and Purity of the Church will confirm the growing obscurity of these marks. Our drift away from constitutional integrity is equally tragic. This is increasingly apparent in judicial decisions that have affirmed the celebration of so-called marriages between persons of the same sex and the ordination of individuals in violation of our current standards.
Denying the truth of Scripture by endorsing and supporting ordination of those who are sexually active outside of marriage, to say nothing of bypassing constitutional process to do so, is not the Presbyterian way. These and other actions of the church are not only offensive, but they also violate our conscience, which is bound to the Word of God. In effect, the Presbyterian Church of which we are a part is departing from her own standards. In response, we believe that the denomination is being called back to faithfulness.
Accordingly, many Presbyterian officers and members have been watching with dismay the slide in our denomination away from biblical faithfulness and from sacramental integrity. We are preparing to offer a response to the present crisis, an alternative for both congregations and individual Presbyterians. We pray that the true and faithful witness of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) thus may be renewed under the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
We appeal to Presbyterians and Sessions, who, like us, are troubled by all of this, to remain strong in their faith and to remain active in their congregations. We will invite them to join us in further action following the June 2006 meeting of the General Assembly.
Many people believe that members of the mainstream church are homophobic or hate homosexuals. While there are “bad apples” in any group of people, I find this to be largely false. I believe it is possible to believe an action is wrong without either being afraid of it or harboring ill will toward those who perform it. Unfortunately, many religious persons have aligned themselves with political factions that would like to prevent homosexual couples from enjoying the social rights and priveleges granted by the state to heterosexuals. I cannot excuse these beliefs, but I believe I can begin to explain the rationale behind them.
“Think of the children” has been a sad but popular political mantra for some time. It is precisely this mindset that I believe causes people to advocate against gay rights. Much as I believe a child’s right to life trumps a mother’s right to choose, some people believe a child’s “right” to be raised by heterosexual parents trumps a homosexual couple’s right to marry. (Note that I would disagree.) The argument would be that children raised by homosexuals would lack the role models necessary for “proper” development. (Presumably, “proper” means heterosexual.) Given the number of children raised by single parents, I don’t put much stock in this argument. One might also argue that officially sanctioned homosexual unions would break stable social institutions, but that is not a good reason to deprive someone of their rights!
While I urge the church to vigorously defend the civil rights of homosexuals, I urge them to be equally viligant in preserving their beliefs and values. Among many other things, I believe this does include restricting church-sponsored marriages to heterosexual couples and preventing practicing homosexuals from leading churches.
There are two issues at stake here. The first is whether or not homosexuality is morally acceptable. I am of the opinion that if you call the canonical Bible God’s word, you must hold that sexual activity occuring between persons who are not both married to each other and of opposite genders is a sin. Furthermore, Jesus claimed that “if any man looks at a woman lustfully, he has already committed adultery with her in his heart”. I see no reason that this would not apply to two people of the same gender equally. Note that this does not mean that simply being attracted to persons of the same gender is wrong. Only acting on that attraction, either physically or in fantasy is a sin.
Some people would argue that a loving God would never instill in people a desire to do something that He detests. I couldn’t agree more! But that doesn’t mean we won’t have those desires. Personally, from the onset of puberty I have had a desire to engage in sexual activity with just about every attractive female I met. I didn’t ask to have these desires; they are just a part of me. Fortunately, I have enough self-control to have prevented myself from physically sinning with any of these women, although I fear I cannot claim the same with regard to my mind. By the grace of God, I now have a loving wife and a healthy outlet for my sexual desires. It is unfortunate that, as I see it, God does not provide such an outlet for homosexual attraction. There have certainly, however, been heterosexual people who have lived their entire lives without sexual contact, and I see no reason that a person who believes acting on his or her homosexual desires could not do the same. I would not want to have such a sacrifice to make, but we all have our own cross to bear, as the saying goes.
The second issue is whether or not a person engaged in a sinful activity should be allowed to lead the church. In this case, it may seem that homosexual activity is singled out as worse than some other sin. I don’t think that is the case. I think a person who struggles with their homosexual desires and occasionally falters would make a great pastor, as does someone who’s other sinful desires catch up with them from time to time. The problem with a practicing homosexual is that they either disagree with the church’s belief that homosexual activity is wrong or that they willfully continue in sinful activity. Neither is acceptable. No church would ask a person who was known to be having a (heterosexual) affair to lead them. Neither would they accept someone who made a regular habit of theft, lying, pride, etc. Churches do understand that their leaders are human, and that they will fall into sin as all people do. The expectation is that they acknowledge their sin, repent, and make their best effort to not sin again.
Thus, as I see it, the church does not uniquely persecute homosexuals looking for acceptance. Rather, homosexuals uniquely petition the church to affirm their behavior. The church should love the sinner but hate the sin, and I think that is exactly what they are doing when they refuse to ordain or marry active homosexuals.
I don’t know what the results of this letter were. I presume I would have heard if the church had separated, so I am guessing either an amicable decision was reached or the issue was tabled for the future. I don’t feel like I have explained this complicated issue very well, but at least I took a stab at it.
On Hogan and Gambling Addiction
I like to gamble,
A card table’s hard to pass.
But everytime I do it,
I always lose my … hey, hey, hey, yeah
Everything I do is bad for me.
All my nasty habits, they just won’t let me be.
This morning’s copy of The Morning Call includes a story on bank robber and former Lehigh student class president Greg Hogan, which starts on the front page and fills most of two more pages. In case the link becomes invalid, here is a brief summary of the article:
Greg Hogan was an over-achiever with an interest in politics, economics, and music. He was homeschooled by his mother until he was accepted at a private high school, where he excelled both academically and socially. He then came to Lehigh University, where he continued to perform well and was elected president of his class. Soon after starting at Lehigh, Greg began playing in low-stakes poker games among his friends and acquaintences. After some months, he started playing poker online, first for practice and then with actual cash. Despite interventions by friends and family, he continued playing for more than a year, alternating between occasional wins and frequent losses. To pay his debts, he stole from his family and overdrew his checking account several times. At various times he quit playing for a time, but eventually came back to it. By mid december he was in debt to all of his friends and housemates, as well as banking entities by several thousand dollars. While on his way to see a movie with some friends, he asked them to stop at a bank branch. He walked into the bank unmasked and handed the teller a note threatening that he had a weapon and asking for $10,000. He left with a little over $2000, went to the movie, and was arrested hours later when he arrived for an orchestra concert in which he was to participate. His wheelman and other friends had been completely unaware of the crime they had helped perpetrate. Hogan is to be sentenced today after having plead guilty to a felony robbery charge.
This comes after the U.S. House of Representatives recently passed bill H. R. 4411, The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2005. I noted with interest that fantasy football and other such games are specifically exempted, as Definition 1 E viii. Anyway, as a concerned citizen and occasional gambler, I have a stake in this matter.
The official reason for the House bill is that agencies have difficulty collecting online gambling debts, but that certainly is not the entire story. I imagine at least some of the drive behind this bill is to protect compulsive gamblers such as Hogan from being allowed to destroy themselves. I have little doubt that gambling addiction is a real problem. I used to laugh at the idea of (non-gambling) gaming addiction, but I’ve met two people who I would describe as addicts. In both cases, this addiction seriously and tragically disrupted their lives.
However, I do not support preventative legislation designed to protect addicts by restricting the actions of everyone. I personally get a great deal of enjoyment from both gaming and gambling. Like Hogan, I had a regular card game several times each week while I was in college. Some night I lost $5, some I won about the same. I did not keep statistics, but I would guess that in the long run I came out behind. However, my losses were surely less than the amount I spent on refreshments for these games. Unlike Hogan, I have never tried playing cards online. I don’t think I would find it very enjoyable, and I never saw playing cards as a way to earn money. I do know at least 3 people who did play online, following offers of free matching deposits as Hogan did. Each of these people eventually quit having either earned a small amount of money or lost the $100 or so that they had invested.
It should be noted that the House bill does not exactly ban online gambling. It allows the activity in the case that all participants reside in the same state in compliance with the laws of that state. But this is essentially the same, as it would be foolish for companies to cater to customers in only a single state. Maybe I could support a government crackdown on gambling if they weren’t so complicit in it themselves. Online poker is a game played by millions for both enjoyment and potential profit. State lotteries provide no such enjoyment and a much lower rate of financial success for players. I have a hard time seeing state lotteries as anything but government-sponsored stealing from the poor. There is a good reason private companies are not allowed to hold such events — not only because it would compete with the state, but because such events are blatantly unfair for all involved. Poker games at least give players a fair chance to use their skill.
I also do not think that addiction excuses crime. There are ample opportunities to seek professional help for problems. In Hogan’s case, it seems everyone around him was willing to help him break this habit. He chose to rob the bank because being able to continue playing was important enough to offset the risk, in his mind. I don’t think a rational mind could come to that conclusion, but that doesn’t excuse the actions. We would not give a robber a break because they only did so to feed their heroin addiction, and nor should we in this case. Interestingly, there was just a rerun of the “Class” episode of Law & Order: SVU, in which a college student attempts to use a gambling addiction defense to avoid prosecution for the murder of his debt-ridden partner. In the episode, this defense is unsuccessful. If justice is served, the same will be true in the Lehigh County court system today.
August 15, 2006
Teaching Experience
Through this summer I had an unusual and valuable opportunity to teach a course at Lehigh, CSE271: Programming in C & the UNIX Environment. I found the experience quite rewarding, but I am glad it is finished now. The process of preparation for a class is far more time-consuming than I ever imagined, although I definitely did not work in the most efficient manner possible. I found that I was most comfortable and (I think) effective when teaching at the blackboard without a strict script. I kept myself to the discipline of making slides, however, for the benefit of students who might not be able to make it to class or who wanted to later review what we discussed. There is quite a difference between knowing something well enough to do it and being sure what you are teaching is strictly true. Although I made a few typographical errors, I wanted to make sure my knowledge was of the latter type when making up slides.
I asked my students to fill out a survey at both the beginning and the end of the class, rating statements from 5 “strongly agree” to 1 “strongly disagree”. The results are summarized below:
| Statement | Avg. Before | Avg. After |
|---|---|---|
| I am a good programming in at least one general-purpose programming language. | 4.4 | 4.6 |
| I am a good C programmer. | 3.0 | 4.4 |
| I am a competant UNIX system user. | 3.0 | 4.6 |
| I am a competant UNIX system administrator. | 2.0 | 2.6 |
| I am competant at shell scripting. | 1.8 | 4.0 |
| I am comfortable performing interactive debugging of C programs. | 2.0 | 3.8 |
| I am comfortable typesetting text in TeX or LaTeX. | 1.0 | 3.8 |
| This course is important to being a good computer scientist. | 4.0 | 4.2 |
| This course teaches employable skills. | 4.6 | 4.8 |
| I know how to find information I don’t have about UNIX commands or C. | 4.6 | 5.0 |
| I understand how statements in a high-level language correspond to changes in the machine state. | 4.0 | 4.6 |
| I already know/knew most of what will be/was taught in this course. | 2.0 | 2.6 |
| I prefer to use techniqes such as pair programming over working by myself. | 2.6 | 2.8 |
| I am glad I took this course. | N/A | 5.0 |
Based on these statistics, I would have to rate the course as a qualified success. There was marked improvement in the three main thrusts of the course: UNIX usage (3.0 -> 4.6), C coding (3.0 -> 4.4), and shell scripting (1.8 -> 4.0). However, at the end of the course, students found that less of the material was new to them than expected (2.0 -> 2.6). Although all students were (apparently) glad they took the course, this would indicate some level of dissatisfaction.
At the end, I also asked the students to rate each of several activities that were part of the course from 5 “very helpful” to 1 “not helpful”. The results are summarized below:
| Activity | Avg. Answer |
|---|---|
| Slideshow lectures | 4.4 |
| Examples on blackboard / in terminal | 4.6 |
| Lab sessions | 3.2 |
| Programming assignments | 4.6 |
| Example solutions to assignments | 4.0 |
| Textbooks | 3.4 |
It seems that everything is helpful for someone. I suspect that few students actually did the reading assignments in the textbooks, which is frustrating. I suppose they need be no more than references if all important material is covered in lecture, but I still think they are (unfortunately) quite necessary. It seems that my effort in producing slides was appreciated, and will need to be continued in the future. I agree with the students that I did not handle the lab sessions well. They usually ended up being the last thing I prepared for a class, and that often meant just copying something that had been done in years past.
I also asked students for sections of the course that they felt we did not cover adequately, and got the following responses:
- gdb – I would have liked more instruction in it
- networking
- general knowledge on certain topics
- socket programming
- Perl & BASH scripting
Networking (aka socket programming) is decidedly outside the scope of this course. I did cover a very broad overview of this topic on the last day so students would at least know where to look for more information, but I believe it would be inappropriate to spend significant time on this topic when there is an entire course devoted to it. I strongly agree that I did not do an adequate job with scripting. Part of this was due to time pressures, and part to my own lack of knowledge in this area. It is probably the thing I would overhaul the most if offered the opportunity to teach this course again.
Similarly, I asked students for sections of the course that we gave too much emphasis to:
- C – the whole first two or three weeks
- general C syntax, control, etc
- LaTeX
- the beginning
- some of the intro material, like basic UNIX commands
I find this to be both true and a bit frustrating. I also felt as though we should have been able to breeze through the introductory material more quickly, and I suppose I should have based on the survey responses that professed a reasonable programming competancy. I was hesitant to not cover the basics, however, because a real understanding of them is essential before any advanced material can be understood. During the second week of the course, I sent this message to all students:
We had much difficulty interactively writing functions on the blackboard today. I can think of two possible explanations for this. The first is that we are not, on average, comfortable enough with the constructs of the language to do this. The other is that students are not participating out of boredom or disdain for the exercise. (I will admit, I have been known to fall into both categories as a student.) With no evidence otherwise, I must take the safe route and presume that the former is true. If otherwise, please let me know, and we will move along more quickly.
I received no response from this email, and students did not generally become more willing to participate in class, so I continued slowly moving through the introductory material. Perhaps a better solution would have been to plow forward and ask students who did not understand the early material to see me in office hours for remedial help. (On that note, I held office hours 12 times during the session, for 2 hours each time. I had someone show up exactly once. Several students did, however, frequently make appointments with me outside these scheduled times to discuss their work. I had specifically juggled my office hours so that they would work for everyone, but oh well.)
Finally, I asked for general comments and criticism that would help me to be a better instructor in the future. Responses to that were:
- I felt the first assignment was way too much work for the amount of new material that it had.
- more but smaller programming assignments
- I think you did very well and I enjoyed your course. I found it very interesting and learned a lot.
- It’s a summer course so it’s hard to judge. Usually summer courses are faster & easier (less programming)
- My suggestion is more programs in the upper-middle half of the semester & not one due after the finals week is over.
- You did an excellent job w/ teaching & were helpful/reliable when answering questions/concerns
Scheduling programming assignments was especially challenging. In retrospect, it would have been nice to do more and smaller things, but it was difficult to do so while including the later material. If we did not spend so much time on introductory material, of course, this would be easier. In general, I think scheduling programming-intensive courses during a 6-week mini-semester is a poor choice. A reasonable deadline for an assignment in a normal course would be a week or two. Translating that to the summer session, I would need to assign projects and have them due two days later. Unfortunately, that simply isn’t fair to the students. This is why I tended towards large assignments with at least a week between when the material necessary to complete them and the due date. I am not sure how I would restructure this in the future, but I agree that it should be somehow different.
Despite the work, this experience has only increased my certainty that I would like to teach as a career. It has been a very rewarding 6 weeks and, if given the opportunity, I will definitely do it again.
August 13, 2006
John Madden Quotes
If you’ve watched any football games narrated by John Madden, you know he has a knack for stating both the obvious and inane. In this column, I intend to archive those that I happen to hear. If it weren’t so funny, it would be very sad.
| 2006-08-13 | Cincinnati vs. Washington | [when asked about Clinton Portis's shoulder separation] “Well, a separation is when you get separation between the shoulder bones …” |
| 2006-08-13 | Cincinnati vs. Washington | [while discussing the notes in front of the halftime crew] “They’ve got more notes than the Declaration of Independence!” [which was a single sheet of paper] |
| 2006-08-13 | Cincinnati vs. Washington | [after confusing two players with the same last name] “What do they have, 5 Johnsons? They lead the league in Johnsons.” |
| 2006-08-20 | Indianapolis vs. Seattle | [discussing running strategies] “Stretch it, stretch it, stretch it, then cut it. Don’t cut it before you stretch it.” |
August 7, 2006
Sports And Sociology
I promised another post about professional sports, so I’ll start one during halftime of the Pro Football Hall of Fame game. This time I intend to write about some opinions I have held and hotly debated for a long time. Specifically, I will be explaining my devotion to local sports teams above others.
What is the purpose of professional sports? For many people, they provide entertainment. For a few, they provide a paycheck. But I believe they have a societal purpose as well. Some malcontents would tell you the societal purpose of professional sports is another “opiate of the masses”, something to occupy the minds of the citizenry and prevent them from thinking about more important issues. I think there is some truth to that; I certainly know more stats about the Eagles offensive line than I do my legislators. But that only explains why government and big business would be in favor of professional sports
Through all of recorded history, there has been one near-constant: war. We know of the feuding Greek city-states, the various empires that subjugated Biblical Israel, the territorial disputes between the Vikings, Saxons, Celts, Normans, etc in Northern Europe, and the successful conquerors: Alexander the Great, Charlemagne, Napolean, etc. More recently we have seen the thrust for power by Germany and her allies in the First World War, the unmaintainable reparations demands that followed said war, and the Second World War that was fueled (at least partially) by German anger at their unfairness. Since then we have had ideological disputes separating Korea and Vietnam, a failed attempt by Iraq to conquer Kuwait, and near constant fighting between Israel and her neighbors.
The reasons for war are complex, far beyond my understanding. Nevertheless, I believe there are two great societal needs that armed conflicts often fulfill. The first is a need to identify with the local community, be that the nation, town, religion, political ideology, or whatever. The second is to have someone who is other, who cares as fiercely for their community and who must be defeated. Obviously, this doesn’t always happen. The Vietnam conflict may or may not have fulfilled this need for the North and South Vietnamese, but it certainly did not cause unity among Americans.
Unfortunately, war is a rather unpleasant way to fulfill these needs. It certainly has economic advantages, but most reasonable people would agree that the cost in human life is never worth that gain alone. I believe that the popularity of professional sports teams has been an important part of making our societies civilized. While the world is still embroiled in conflict, I believe that armed conflict has become less and less common since the world wars. At least partially, I believe this is because citizens are less willing to support war because they have found another method of fulfilling these needs.
I identify strongly with the Philadelphia Eagles, the region, and the fans. I feel like I am a part of something. When the Eagles have a victory, I am not just happy for the players; I am happy for myself. In the end, the results of a game are totally inconsequential to my life, but they give me an opportunity to be part of a community united in one common goal. It is absurd to think that I would have any ability to affect the outcome of a game, but I still feel like I have contributed. If I do not watch a game, or wear my jersey, or visit businesses that support the team, I feel like I have somehow let the community down.
In a previous post, I’ve stated that I don’t really feel patriotic. I am glad to be a citizen of the United States, but I wouldn’t say I am proud of it. On the other hand, I am pround of being from south-eastern Pennsylvania. I love the culture: a combination of historical importance, religious heritage, agriculture, and hospitality. I love the food: PA Dutch meals of potatos, corn, macaroni & cheese, and other starches galore, delis that really know how to make a sub, hoagie, or whatever you prefer to call it, and of course cheesesteaks. I love the Eagles, and to a much lesser extent the Flyers, Phillies, and 76ers. I love the rabid, passionate Philly fans. Sports teams are a way of identifying with this region over others, of demonstrating to the world how great Philadelphia is.
This makes it very difficult for me to relate to sports fans who are fanatical about teams from outside their region. I have friends who are Steelers fans, an uncle who cheers for the Vikings, a father-in-law who stands with the Dolphins, and even (though I hate to admit it) some friends who consider themselves Cowboys fans. Obviously, I don’t hold this against these people, but at some level they seem like traitors. While the rest of the community is standing behind our warriors, they are aiding and abetting the enemy. I have a very special distaste for the Cowboys, because so many people became Cowboys fans a decade ago when they had such a good team. To me, this is the ultimate disgrace. You don’t pick a team just because they are winning. That is like the Vichy regime. I can’t imagine ever not being an Eagles fan. It has been a great last few years as they have won recognition as one of the top teams in the league, but I will still be with them if they go 0-16 this year. In fact, it is during those lean years that you have the best opportunity to experience solidarity with the members of your community, soldiering on through the difficult fights.
I have exaggerated a bit to make a point, but I suspect most sports fans will find more than a grain of truth here if they look into themselves. In the meantime, E-A-G-L-E-S Eagles!