Are You There Controversy? It's Me, Bailey.

Firstly I believe that the key to a good post is a good title. Titles are the first thing you see, it's supposed to hint at the content, and intrigue the potential reader. Obviously, this one is a play on the book "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" and is also controversial. Based on the context it's probably about religion.

Spoiler alert, it is.

Because who is better to talk about a concept that has been around since the beginning of humanity than some 16 year old with a blog?

Pretty much anyone, really.

But that doesn't mean I won't insert my two cents.

Thought I'd lighten the mood before the heavy controversy.

 So, there are many views on religion, from the extremes of atheism to the overzealous "Jesus freaks out in the streets" written about by Elton John in Tiny Dancer.

Careful who you call a freak, buddy. (Just kidding I love you)

But at its most basic. it's all the same.
And I don't think anyone is wrong. And just because One religion says one thing that doesn't mean another religion saying another religion is wrong. Because it's all the same idea. Explaining how and why we are here.
"But Bailey, Jesus isn't a bald fat guy or a six armed goddess."
And to that I say:
"You're right, but you're missing the point."
Now I'm not the first person to think this, I got this philosophy from Community creator Dan Harmon. Harmon described religion as: "a connection to the unknown, not the answer to it."

I like to think of all of this as an internet modem.

And don't worry, science is also included in this. We still don't know why the big bang happened. We have theories, but no solid evidence or answer. I mean, science says we have atoms, and religion doesn't say we don't. Science doesn't explain what made atoms, not really. But religion offers an explanation.You need a balanced diet. You can believe in both without wither being entirely wrong.You shouldn't put all your eggs in one basket, in my opinion. As was written by Michael Crichton in The Lost World:

“A hundred years from now, people will look back on us and laugh. They'll say, 'You know what people used to believe? They believed in photons and electrons. Can you imagine anything so silly?' They'll have a good laugh, because by then there will be newer better fantasies... And meanwhile, you feel the way the boat moves? That's the sea. That's real. You smell the salt in the air? You feel the sunlight on your skin? That's all real. Life is wonderful. It's a gift to be alive, to see the sun and breathe the air. And there isn't really anything else.” 

Whether you agree or not it makes a lot of sense. We may always be wrong in the long run.

Now back to that internet modem thing.

Let's say all of life's mysteries and the unknown are like the internet. We see the effects of it everywhere, from the existence of life to a Facebook message, but you can't hold either thing in your hands, but you know they exist. You cannot hold life any more than you can a gigabyte of data, you can hold a vessel containing them but you cannot hold either without its vessel.

Now that you get that comparison think of ideas like science or Christianity as a modem/internet provider. Your internet provider gives you a modem to connect the internet. Science and Religion give you a way to connect to the unkown. They aren't the unknown or the internet themselves, they just give you a way to connect. They can't (as of 9/10/2014, support net neutrality) tell you what you can and cannot  see or experience because of the internet. They can't tell you that you aren't allowed to change ISPs or use another every once in awhile. That is a persons choice, it is their right to choose how and what to believe in, or what ISP to use. Just because your parents believe in it and the people around you do doesn't make it right. Be an independent thinking human being and use the brain your god gave you and think for yourself. Just because your parents are catholic doesn't mean you can't be a Buddhist. Just because they use Comcast doesn't mean you can't switch to FIOS.

Now, it's not right to discriminate because some people use other ISPs or believe in other religions. It's not right to have a superiority based on yours. You're not better than anyone for what you use/believe. A church sign once read: "God likes loving atheists more than hateful Christians."

There's irony if a homophobic sports fan is singing"We Are The Champions" before a game.

Don't hate on people for what they believe in because you believe in something else. Don't hate gay people because your religion isn't down with two dudes getting it on. It's none of your business and as long as they don't discriminate against you for liking the opposite gender it's all good, man. Your life shouldn't revolve around if another person likes the pole or the hole, it doesn't change your life.

Back to Elton, him loving men in no way changes how good his songs sound. Or his place in music history.

Basically what I'm trying to say is love everyone, don't be a dick.

That's it, that's something every religion can get behind. Right?


I think Pope Francis is really a huge supporter of this. He really is an admirable religious leader., especially when there's a good chance the more moving and shaking he does the more likely he is some zealot with a gun will come and put an end to his time as pope. I  mean no disrespect by this. I really enjoy this article discussing his best quotes. He's an open minded guy trying to bring Catholicism into the 21st century.  How can you not love him? He gives out Joyrides on the Popemobile!

How can you not just like the guy? He just seems like a cool dude.

This isn't the 12th century, the crusades are over, did you not see the third Indiana Jones movie? The time for wars over religion should be long behind us. I think we have come far enough as a species to know that that shouldn't matter, that's no basis to judge people. Judge them on their character. It's 2014, get over yourself.

No one is more right or better than anyone else due to their beliefs. All you are doing is looking at the same world through different colored glasses.

As always, I love you all, no matter what you believe in. Or who you love.

Also, if you wanna see action hero Jesus fight zombies check this insane Spanish short-film out.

Again, if you want to reach me and tell me I'm wrong and all about your sexual relations with my mother, tweet me @TheBailey_Fox or email me at bailey.f98@gmail.com.

Peace out,
Bailey S. Fox

The Unfocused Rants and Ramblings of Bailey S. Fox

So yeah, I still use this thing. between my secret project (More details soon) and school and whatnot I've been away for almost a month. I've had a lot on my mind so I feel like barfing it out onto the internet. So this is going to be a rather unfocused and long shotgun burst of thoughts. Instead of one main topic it will be several shorter mini rants. So sit back and relax as I hit you lovelies with my thoughts at point-blank range.

Loving, Hating and The Rest
So there are several people I interact with on a regular basis that don't like me. It's a fact of life, there will always be people in life who don't like me, and I've come to accept that. But sometimes I have trouble. There will people I look up to who cannot stand me. And it hurts, it does, and sometimes in my efforts to get them to like me I further alienate them. 

Heh, get it? Alienate? Aliens? 

It creates this endless whirlpool of blah feelings. I have this thing where I want to be liked by everyone but I don't want to conform or change to suit people's liking. I want to be me in all my emotionally unstable eccentric glory. And some people love it and some people hate it. I appear to be a man of extremes. No middle grounds. There also seems to be two ways of liking me. Liking me despite all my flaws or because of them. It all depends on perspective.

F**k Your System
I am not a fan of uncompromising rules life is too unpredictable and unique, too full of what ifs to have rules without exception. But the exceptions can not be set in stone due to the people who will exploit the loopholes for selfish gain. I also hate bureaucracy, I'm working on a project and I want to use the school as the place to film that. But the amount of hoops I've had to jump through to get a "We'll let you know" is irritating. (If any school board members are reading this please still let me film my project, pretty please) I think there should be standards and guidelines that should be judged on a case to case basis of sorts. Because sometimes when people are allowed to make their own choices they make better ones than when told what to do. For a species that prides itself on being individuals we shouldn't create uniform judgements. 
Disclaimer: Don't misunderstand what I'm saying. Things like murder and rape are inexcusable and should always be punished.

The Common Core
Speaking of standards and uniformity The Common Core are a set of standards for students in grades K-12. I had to write an argument essay for class (I got a 93 on this paper. It wasn't "Source based enough") The essay can be found here.

Perpetual Ray of Sunshine
(Note: This is a late addition to the blog and was written after the original posting) I think it is very important to be a positive person. The irony of this being this whole blog post according to my girlfriend was "Pessimistic and depressing" (<3) and the sense of humor I often use is a more sarcastic, dark and cynical one, I honest to god try to be a positive person. It's too hard going day to day expecting little to nothing. There is often the philosophy of "If I expect nothing than I can't be disappointed." but then why bother doing anything. If you expect nothing than there's no reason to do things, the hope for fun and joy is gone. The reason I do things is for enjoyment. And if I go around expecting nothing then what's the point? If I have to lower my expectations to none to enjoy an event then what's the point of doing it? If you expect not to like a movie and don't really want to go see it then don't go see it. Don't go around lowering your expectations. Go find things that fulfill and meet your expectations. You only get one life, spend it enjoying things. Don't work jobs you hate with people you hate. Happiness is more important than money. Don't have a job that makes you miserable because it pays more than one that makes you happy. Happiness is always worth it. 

In Conclusion
 People aren't going to like you, but that isn't the way to define yourself. No matter how much it hurts when someone doesn't like you or likes someone better remember the ones who love you. Define your life by you and the people you love and who love you back. Be loving, accepting and forgiving. Everyone has their flaws and people put up with yours, you have no reason not to put up with theirs. Systems suck but it is the world we live in. And I suppose that it's better than all out anarchy. Always question authority. Being curious, independent and intelligent are some of the most important traits to have and to use. Being in a position of power does not make someone right. I have nothing really to say about the Common Core that I didn't already write in the essay so incase you didn't go check it out. (Yay shameless self promotion)

As always thank you for reading. I love all of you dearly. Any questions please email me bailey.f98@gmail.com or tweet me @TheBailey_Fox. Also if you haven't seen the video of Randy Newman singing "Let it Go" Please watch it. I'll post more regularly once school ends.

<3

Bailey S. Fox