M Squared

In the HS boys small group , we've taken a break from Blue Like Jazz and to watch and talk about 24 . Our discussion has focused on the moral dilemmas faced by individual characters. Although part of the show's appeal is the ongoing real life struggle to counter terrorism, it hasn't really come up in our discussion. I think that's (in part) because this season of 24 deals with Russian separatists rather than "Islamist extremist". At any rate, I think most of the time we think of counter terrorism as it's portrayed on 24. IOW, the prevention and reaction to terrorists (as directly as possible) by law enforcement or the military. What about the bigger picture? Aren't you forced to deal with the problem continuously by only treating the symptom? IOW, shouldn't we focus on the reasons that people become terrorists in addition to the terrorism. It seems to me that without addressing the former we're going to be fighting the latter for a long time...

We've been reading this book by Donald Miller . It's about his life and faith. What's the connection to Jazz in the book? So far, Miller hasn't talked about this theme very much (at least not explicitly). In the beginning of the book, he mentions that Jazz does not " resolve " for him and that similarly he thinks God does not resolve. What does it mean to resolve? resolve v. tr. 1. To make a firm decision about. 2. To cause (a person) to reach a decision 3.-8. [...] 9. Music. To cause (a tone or chord) to progress from dissonance to consonance. 10.-14. [...] Looking at the 9th definition related to Music, Miller suggests he hasn't found a progression from dissonance to consonance in his experience with God. dissonance n. A harsh, disagreeable combination of sounds; discord. Lack of agreement, consistency, or harmony; conflict Music. A combination of tones contextually considered to suggest unrelieved tension and require resolution. conso...

This is the first (of many I suspect) lame posts. But you have to start somewhere...