5 reasons for imperialism.

There are 5 reasons for imperialism.

1. Political (nationalism, to be the most powerful country by ruling many other countries). 
2. Economical (to use other country's resources, recieve cheap labor, have a market for their goods. i.e. Africa). 
3. Religious (to spread their religion. i.e. missionaries) 
4. Idealogical (believed that their race was better and had to civilize other people by teaching them. i.e. The White Man's burden) 
5. Exploratory (people wanted to explore new lands for mapping, etc.)

Those are the 5 reasons for imperialism.

3 common misconceptions that people should know the truth about.

At a conference in Philadelphia earlier this month, a Wharton professor noted that one of the country's biggest economic problems is a tsunami of misinformation. You can't have a rational debate when facts are so easily supplanted by overreaching statements, broad generalizations, and misconceptions. And if you can't have a rational debate, how does anything important get done? As author William Feather once advised, "Beware of the person who can't be bothered by details." There seems to be no shortage of those people lately.

Here are three misconceptions that need to be put to rest.

Misconception: Most of what Americans spend their money on is made in China.

Fact: Just 2.7% of personal consumption expenditures go to Chinese-made goods and services. 88.5% of U.S. consumer spending is on American-made goods and services.

I used that statistic in an article last week, and the response from readers was overwhelming: Hogwash. People just didn't believe it.

The figure comes from a Federal Reserve report. You can read it here.

A common rebuttal I got was, "How can it only be 2.7% when almost everything in Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT  ) is made in China?" Because Wal-Mart's $260 billion in U.S. revenue isn't exactly reflective of America's $14.5 trillion economy. Wal-Mart might sell a broad range of knickknacks, many of which are made in China, but the vast majority of what Americans spend their money on is not knickknacks.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics closely tracks how an average American spends their money in an annual report called the Consumer Expenditure Survey. In 2010, the average American spent 34% of their income on housing, 13% on food, 11% on insurance and pensions, 7% on health care, and 2% on education. Those categories alone make up nearly 70% of total spending, and are comprised almost entirely of American-made goods and services (only 7% of food is imported, according to the USDA).

Even when looking at physical goods alone, Chinese imports still account for just a small fraction of U.S. spending. Just 6.4% of nondurable goods -- things like food, clothing and toys -- purchased in the U.S. are made in China; 76.2% are made in America. For durable goods -- things like cars and furniture -- 12% are made in China; 66.6% are made in America.

Another way to grasp the value of Chinese-made goods is to look at imports. The U.S. is on track to import $340 billion worth of goods from China this year, which is 2.3% of our $14.5 trillion economy. Is that a lot? Yes. Is it most of what we spend our money on? Not by a long shot.

Part of the misconception is likely driven by the notion that America's manufacturing base has been in steep decline. The truth, surprising to many, is that real manufacturing output today is near an all-time high. What's dropped precipitously in recent decades is manufacturing employment. Technology and automation has allowed American manufacturers to build more stuff with far fewer workers than in the past. One good example: In 1950, a U.S. Steel (NYSE: X  ) plant in Gary, Ind., produced 6 million tons of steel with 30,000 workers. Today, it produces 7.5 million tons with 5,000 workers. Output has gone up; employment has dropped like a rock.

Misconception: We owe most of our debt to China.

Fact: China owns 7.8% of U.S. government debt outstanding.

As of August, China owned $1.14 trillion of Treasuries. Government debt stood at $14.6 trillion that month. That's 7.8%.

Who owns the rest? The largest holder of U.S. debt is the federal government itself. Various government trust funds like the Social Security trust fund own about $4.4 trillion worth of Treasury securities. The Federal Reserve owns another $1.6 trillion. Both are unique owners: Interest paid on debt held by federal trust funds is used to cover a portion of federal spending, and the vast majority of interest earned by the Federal Reserve is remitted back to the U.S. Treasury.

The rest of our debt is owned by state and local governments ($700 billion), private domestic investors ($3.1 trillion), and other non-Chinese foreign investors ($3.5 trillion).

Does China own a lot of our debt? Yes, but it's a qualified yes. Of all Treasury debt held by foreigners, China is indeed the largest owner ($1.14 trillion), followed by Japan ($937 billion) and the U.K. ($397 billion).

Right there, you can see that Japan and the U.K. combined own more U.S. debt than China. Now, how many times have you heard someone say that we borrow an inordinate amount of money from Japan and the U.K.? I never have. But how often do you hear some version of the "China is our banker" line? Too often, I'd say.

Misconception: We get most of our oil from the Middle East.

Fact: Just 9.2% of oil consumed in the U.S. comes from the Middle East.

According the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the U.S. consumes 19.2 million barrels of petroleum products per day. Of that amount, a net 49% is produceddomestically. The rest is imported.

Where is it imported from? Only a small fraction comes from the Middle East, and that fraction has been declining in recent years. So far this year, imports from the Persian Gulf region -- which includes Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates -- have made up 9.2% of total petroleum supplied to the U.S. In 2001, that number was 14.1%.

The U.S. imports more than twice as much petroleum from Canada and Mexico than it does from the Middle East. Add in the share produced domestically, and the majority of petroleum consumed in the U.S. comes from North America.

This isn't to belittle our energy situation. The nation still relies on imports for about half of its oil. That's bad. But should the Middle East get the attention it does when we talk about oil reliance? In terms of security and geopolitical stability, perhaps. In terms of volume, probably not.

A roomful of skeptics
"People will generally accept facts as truth only if the facts agree with what they already believe," said Andy Rooney. Do these numbers fit with what you already believed? No hard feelings if they don't. Just let me know why in the comment section below.

Artist statement examples. How to become successful at what you love to do.

Nobody wants you to be an artist.

It’s for a lot of reasons. Some come from a good place — they think, hey, we want better for you. The life of an artist is hard. Be a bricklayer, a doctor, a ROCKET LAWYER, something, anything. Art is how you lose. Art is how you die. Don’t be an artist, because we don’t want to see you struggle, starve, and go mad. Pay attention to artist statement examples.

Some of the reasons come from a deeply cankerous place: jealousy (“why do you get to fritter away your hours MAKING ART and I have to sell toilets?”) or misunderstanding (“art isn’t work, it’s just lazy piffle for lazy losers”) or alien menace (“ART GIVES HUMAN BEINGS HOPE AND IT MAKES THEM MORE RESISTANT TO HOSTILE TAKEOVER FROM EXTRATERRESTRIAL FORCES”). Some governments don’t want artists because art is truth, even when couched in illusion or deception. Some schools don’t want art because how do you test art, and everything is about the test, goddamnit. Want to get a mortgage? Tell them you’re an artist and ha ha ha oh shit.

Art is a hobby, art is a waste of time, art is a thing you do when you’re in elementary school or in the retirement home. It isn’t a life. It isn’t a career. FUCK YOU, NO . It’s all bullshit, of course, because nearly everything demands art. Advertisements. User interfaces. Logos. The whole Internet is made of WORDS and IMAGES. It starte ARTING d off looking dog-ugly, like something a self-aware bank ATM would shit into the world — but then it became a thing of elegance and design (er, mostly). It became a thing of art, collectively.

Artist statement examples matter more then you think.

I worry very little about the result of what I’m doing.

Note: what I mean is not that I care nothing for the quality of the result. I care very much about my own level of satisfaction with the thing I’m writing. It’ll never be perfect, but I want it to be good. But the key here is that I want it to be good because I want to be happy with it.

I don’t care if you’re happy with it.

And the “you” in that equation can be, well, really anybody. The nebulous Audience. Or reviewers. Or publishers and editors. Or other authors. I don’t worry about because I can’t worry about it. I don’t know what you want. (See earlier comment: I am not you.) I don’t know what the market is doing. Chasing the market is like chasing starlight: by the time I find the star that made the light, I remember that light travels slow and that star is already dead. I don’t know what reviewers want. I don’t know what reviewer I’ll get. If I sit down and I go to write and I carry with me the baggage of expectation — if I sit there and try to imagine what every single potential interaction with my book will be like — then I’ll probably freeze up. I’ll soak my shirt with blubbery fear-weeping and sadness-snot. I’ll make a low keening sound in the back of my throat like a ferret pining for its ancient ferret homelands.

The key there is: I cannot be pinned by expectation.

Some people think outlining a book robs the book of its magic. Some people think the business kills the joy of making words and creating art. But for me, the great thing that will siphon the joy out of what I do — the pesticide that murders the butterflies flitting about in the dark shrubbery that is my heart — is expectation. Not my expectation. But yours.

And now we come full circle because once again, I say:

Nobody wants you to be an artist.

Not the people who love you. Not the people who hate you. Not the people who don’t know one whit about you. Nobody wants that for you or your life.

I want you to think about that for a moment.

I want you to focus on that for a moment.

Take the idea like a pebble or a pearl, tuck it in your mouth, swirl it around.

This is what that does for me:

When I sit down and I start to write, I take a secret thrill in what I’m doing. Because this is forbidden territory. This is verboten. Everyone has built a fence of expectation around what I’m doing and yet, here I am, having climbed the fence. I’m making art and the world doesn’t want me to make art. I’m in a secret garden stealing your vegetables. I’m traipsing about someone’s home in the dark while they sleep. I’m mixing potions. I’m making monsters. I’m tap-dancing on the edge of a cliff, and the world can watch me kick off my shoes, pirouette, and lift both middle fingers in the air with a smugly self-satisfied look on my big beardo face.

Let me distill this down for you:

How do I survive my anxiety and the business and the expectations and still make art?

FUCK YOU, that’s how.

(Not you specifically! I’m sure you’re lovely.)

Don’t think I should be making art? FUCK YOU.

Don’t think I can finish this book and do it my way? FUCK YOU.

Think this is a waste of time? FUCK YOU, it’s my time to waste.

My anxiety wants to scare me away? FUCK YOU, I won’t be run off, Mighty Anxiety Snake!

Those two words — FUCK and YOU — form a glorious act of defiance, an empowering gush of confident magma in your chest that you can vomit all over reality’s face. Reality doesn’t want me doing this? Reality expects me to conform? HA HA HA HAVE MY ANGER-MAGMA, AND ALSO, FUCK YOU BIG, SUCKER.

So, when it comes time for you to sit down —

And start to write —

Or start to paint —

Or doodle or design or color or whatever it is that you do —

And you start to feel the Mighty Anxiety Snake coiling in your bowels —

And the weight of expectations pressing the air out of your chest —

And you start to look too far down the road and imagine all the potholes and broken bridges —

And you start comparing yourself to everyone else —

Extend one middle finger.

Then the other.

Scream FUCK YOU in a great profane yawp.

Then get to work.

Forget perfection. You can’t control success. You aren’t anybody else. You are you. It doesn’t matter if anyone believes in you. Let their disbelief charge your batteries. You can believe in you.

Focus on today. Not tomorrow. Not next year. Make something. Create something. Act in defiance of reality’s accord. Spit in the eye of any who expect you to do differently.

Relish in the unmitigated thrill of doing what nobody wants you to do.

Nobody wants you to be an artist.

But you do, so fuck them.

Winning, Losing, and Participating. The hell with a trophy.

Ah, that common refrain.

You shouldn’t just get a trophy for participating.

When everyone gets a trophy, nobody wins.

If everybody is special, nobody is special.

Second place is last place.

And on and on.

It’s a criticism pointed at millennials. Or, wait — Gen Y. No! Wait. Gen X.

SOMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY SOMEONE DECIDED THAT YOU ONLY DESERVED A REWARD IF YOU ACHIEVED TRUE APOTHEOSIS. YOU ONLY GET THE GOLDEN CUP IF YOU SLAUGHTER THE OTHER TEAM AND WEAR THEIR SKIN AS A CAPE AND TRANSFORM INTO THE GREAT BEAST WHO WILL DESTROY THE WORLD. THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE CHAMPION, HIGHLANDER. EAT YOUR WEAKER FOES. REMAIN STANDING ATOP A HILL OF INFINITE CARCASSES.

Except, that’s kinda horseshitty, isn’t it?

When did we become so cynical about participation?

So sour-faced about people who are doing stuff?

This is usually aimed at children — or the environment around children (meaning, parents, schools and other institutions), and it is aimed very squarely as a criticism, but let me tell you something as the parent of a five-year-old: getting a child to participate in something can feel like a Herculean task. Just getting your kid to sit down and DO THE THING THAT IS PRESENTLY BEING DONE can feel like the completion of an epic quest. You’d have an easier time stimulating the prostate of a galloping bison. Getting children to do the thing is difficult for an unholy host of reasons. Maybe they’re scared of the other participants. Or scared of failing. (Or scared of what you’ll think of them when they fail.) Maybe they’re bored. Could be that they don’t understand what’s being asked of them, or instead that they’re obstinate and would much rather do the OTHER THING instead of THIS THING. This only gets worse as a kid gets older because kids gather a lot of baggage about doing things, and sometimes that baggage is weighted with the (arguably capitalist) rhetoric of success and failure: you either WIN or you LOSE, it’s either PASS or FAIL, you’re the CHAMPION or you’re a SUCK-FACED SHITBABY. And teenagers kinda figure out that game, and they check right the fuck out. They stop participating, in part because it’s not cool, and in part because I think teenagers are actually surprisingly good at smell-testing bullshit. They can detect these cultural shenanigans, and so they cynically give the middle-finger to the entire process and they piss off somewhere to get drunk and grope each other.

But doing stuff? It’s how the world works. It’s what makes the world happen. Participation is pretty much everything. Winning is a narrow selection without much meaning. Most of life is just showing up and doing the work — whether that’s work with family, or school, or friendships, or a proper job. Show up. Do the work. Do the best. Be the best you. And if you do that? That’s amazing. Because most people don’t actually dothat.

So.

When I was a kid, I did soccer afterschool. I hated it. Fuck soccer. Fuck everything about soccer. Fuck practice and the drills and the coach and any of the kids who liked soccer. I was young — this was elementary school — and even then the focus was on leagues and getting better not to get better but getting better to win. It was a competition.

Now, to be clear, there’s nothing inherently wrong with competing. At a certain level, that’s what you’re in to do, and why you get involved. But at that level, at the elementary school level, the purpose is — or should be — different. The purpose is, hey, here’s how you work on a team. Here’s how you follow instructions. Here’s how you exist as a physical being who moves his body around in the world instead of sitting in front of a television. Here is how you participate.

But that’s not how they treated it.

I didn’t get an award for participating even though that’s the whole point of me being there. Everyone should’ve been hopping up and down because HEY HOLY CRAP YOU’RE HERE ON THE FIELD AND YOU’RE SCARED AND YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING AND THAT’S EXCITING AND DAMNIT IF IT’S NOT A VICTORY JUST FOR SHOWING UP AND PUTTING IN THE TIME. Doing a new thing! Being present! Partaking in the task at hand! I wanted to feel good for that, not for enduring an onerous afterschool program driving me to be an elementary school soccer champion and by the way did I mention I fucking hate soccer. I would’ve been happy with a participation trophy — and no, I wouldn’t have gotten confused thinking that somehow it was equal to actually being the winner, because winning still feels like winning. Kids aren’t confused by participation trophies. They’re not idiots. Yet we disdain participation because it is expected.

The disdain of participation is tied in with our disgust surrounding failure. Participation is barely above loserdom, and many associate the two (remember: second place is last place). But that’s not how the world works. Or, more importantly, it’s not how the world needs to work.

As a writer, I meet lots of aspiring writers who want to write but are, for various reasons, afraid to do so. They’re afraid they’ll get it wrong. They look so far ahead they see a world where they won’t be able to accomplish the thing, so why bother? They have the desire to do the thing but are somehow afraid to participate for fear offailing and not winning.

Except, there is no winning.

There exists a sliding scale of various milestones, sure — cascading victory conditions that open up, but this is less like WIN THE GAME AND GET THE GOLDEN TROPHY and more like PLAY YOUR CHARACTER IN THE RPG SO YOU SECURE MORE EXPERIENCE POINTS TO BUY COOL UPGRADES TO YOUR LIFE. Writing doesn’t come with a golden cup. It’s not like once a year one writer gets to shed her carapace and emerge as J.K. Rowling to become the temporary headmaster of Hogwarts’ School of Storytelling Magic. Further, failure is an essential part of what we do. I wrote five books before I got the sixth one published. I wrote countless unfinished books in and around those first five. Life is constant failure. I’m sure I fucked up the first sentence I ever tried to write. I’m sure I shitted up the first paragraph. I have one of the first stories I ever wrote in elementary school, and newsflash: it is about as entertaining as watching a turtle fuck a hot jockstrap. (Actually, that might be pretty entertaining.) Failure is a critical state. My son does things all the time, and most of those things he does poorly — then he does them better, and better still, until he succeeds. And you might say, THERE, TA-DA, HE WON, and that’s true.

But I didn’t chide him for trying all the while until he got there.

Every time he tried and failed to write his alphabet, I didn’t play a fart sound buzzer and boo him from the bleachers. I did not merely champion him upon success, I cheered him for trying. For doing. For participating. Because that’s how you get there. And it’s the hardest part!

My writing career has been all about participating. Participating when it was hard. Participating when I did not know what the floppy fuck I was doing. Participating when other people told me not to bother because I was going to fail, because it was an impossible career, because I would make better money if I just dug ditches instead. Why try when you might fail? Doesn’t participation just lead to failure anyway? Why bother at all?

Participation has been my everything. And rejection has been vital to that. Rejection is a battle scar. It’s proof I’m in the arena. It’s some Viking-level shit. It’s two gladiators showing off their injuries: “I GOT THIS ONE WHEN I FAILED TO UNSEAT THROMGAR THE INCONTINENT FROM HIS WYVERNOUS TIGERWOLF. I LOST THE FIGHT THAT DAY, BUT I HAVE THIS COOL-ASS SCAR TO SHOW FOR IT. AND I LIVE TO FIGHT AGAIN.” Rejection is a sign of doing the thing and surviving. You know who doesn’t ever get rejections? People who don’t participate. Most people write a novel once every never, and if you’re writing a novel — or doing whatever the thing is that you wanna goddamn do — then that is a victory worth celebrating.

Here’s the thing: we say, we shouldn’t reward people for the bare minimum, and when we say that, we mean participation. But participation is not the bare minimum. Observing? That’s the minimum. Watching instead of doing is about as low as you go. The kids on the field kicking the ball? They’re doing shit, man. That’s awesome. Good for them. The parents in the stands decrying the trophies those kids will get for participating? They’re fucking spectators. They’re only bystanders, not doing a good goddamn thing except placing their own proxy hopes and dreams on their little genetic champions.

I cheer my kid when he tries a new food. I cheer him when he draws, or reads, or does something he’s afraid to do. I cheer his participation in life, because that’s what matters. That’s all we have. Winning is hollow. Getting to the end of the road only happens by walking it. Participation is its own special victory, and fuck anybody who says different. Double-fuck you if you hate on your own kids for not coming home with the win. Huzzah to adults for participating, too. You vote? Good for you. You participate in a charity? Fuck yes. You DO THE THING THAT MUST BE DONE? Have a lollipop, you wonderful person, you.

Get shut of the illusion that winning is everything, participation is nothing, failure is the end.

Perfection is the enemy. Failure is more important to us than victory. You will fail a lot more than you win, and you learn a lot more when you lose — you don’t improve through victory. Victory is a plateau. You improve by capitalizing on your loss.

Be present.

Participate.

No, it isn’t the only victory. Yes, it’s only a small one.

But it’s a victory just the same.

We all die. Nobody wins that contest. Life is not The Hunger Games, man.

But we are all here. We can all chip in. We can all do the thing.

Participate, and don’t be made to feel small for doing so.

GO DO THE THING. And celebrate doing it.

The 5 most important traits of extremely creative people.

Creativity geeks are…

ACTIVE LISTENERS: Look, I like to talk. I’ve been guilty of waiting for the other person to stop talking so I can talk again, and forming what I’ll say while the other person is talking. That is not active listening. But it seemed to me that when attendees were in conversation, they focused intently on whatever was being said by another, and then taking a moment to process that input before responding in a way that directly addressed that input.

OPEN TO POSSIBILITY: If one is to encourage divergent thinking—unexpected leaps that are a cornerstone of creativity—then one must be open to the unexpected. But as I observed conversations among attendees with varying backgrounds, I sometimes heard someone say something that clearly didn’t jibe with the other’s experience. We are all human, and I could see on the listener’s face a moment of “Now, wait a minute.” But what would follow that was a face of reflection, and then usually the response reframed in the form of a question, such as “That’s interesting. So are you saying FGH is really like PQR?” It allowed the possibility to discover common ground and have both parties grow from the conversation.

PRECISE COMMUNICATORS: “Words have power” is a mantra in the creativity community. Words can empower, and they can constrain. For example, in brainstorming sessions, individuals are encouraged to ask “What might I do with XYZ?” instead of “What could I do with XYZ?” A minor difference, perhaps, but “might” goes beyond limits toward possible action. Another example: In my workshop I made the mistake of referring to brainstorming “rules.” “Guidelines!” a creativity veteran said from the audience. I had at the start of my workshop encouraged audience members to add their own wisdom, and she did so. And she was right; the last thing you want to do when brainstorming is impose limits, and rules are, by definition, limits.

GENEROUS: I don’t mean just in terms of money, although a number of people participated in the silent auction that funds scholarships to allow college students to attend. And I don’t just mean in terms of time, although everyone there had other responsibilities they had put aside to be there. What I really mean here is generosity in terms of sharing personal wisdom. In conversations between sessions and over meals, I frequently saw veteran creativity geeks volunteering insights to others that they clearly are paid to deliver in their day jobs.

EMPATHETIC: I’m not a mind-reader, so I can’t say for certainty that my fellow conference attendees were practicing empathy, i.e., actively putting themselves in another’s metaphorical shoes and walking their path. But the fact is that while most of the presenters were leading workshops they often conduct for Fortune 500 businesses and enterprising start-ups, many of the attendees were there for far more personal reasons, seeking to self-actualize or resolve a life problem. The degree of sensitivity I saw from the workshop leaders in these situations was admirable. But that fits with the broader philosophy of generating a creative environment; you aim to create a place of complete trust.

I think these characteristics often can be found in practitioners of creativity, i.e., the artists and inventors with whom I interact in my professional and personal life. But one can be a talented painter and also, well, a selfish jerk. That’s their prerogative; their art is their own, as is their manner of interacting with the world.

But I don’t think a jerk would last very long in the creativity community. The lessons they teach–active listening, positive reinforcement, forming trust–are also how they choose to live their lives.

There are many paths to creativity. These creativity geeks have collectively settled on a set of rules—sorry, guidelines­—that couple with a common language to facilitate creativity for their clients and readers of their books. That wisdom reflects their personalities. And individuals with those personalities make for delightful company over a three-day weekend in sunny Florida.

Do you have someone in your life who geeks out on creativity? Do you? What characteristics am I leaving out?

Jesus following Christians need to listen up

You may have heard that a bunch of born-again idiots tried to sneak a gay-hating app into our App Store, and we pulled it, and now the wingnuts are protesting. See coverage on Catholic News Agency and Newser and ABC. Katie says I should just say nothing and let the whole thing fade away, which is what we usually do whenever organizations try to use our popularity to stir up “controversy” and attract attention for their causes. (Yes, I’m talking to you, Greenpeace.) But this time I just can’t hold back. I’m sorry, but there are a few things I’ve been wanting to say for a long time now, and this trumped-up “spat” gives me a chance to say them.

Dear faux Christians,

First of all, it’s my store, and I’ll sell what I want, and I will not sell what I don’t want to sell. That’s my definition of freedom — I’m free to do whatever the hell I want with my store.

Second, your “religion” is a myth. It’s bogus. Jesus did not die and rise from the tomb and ascend into heaven. Okay? That. Did. Not. Happen. God did not take the form of a little bird and fly down and impregnate an unwed teenage virgin girl so that she could give birth to a half-human half-divine man-god. Immaculate conception, virgin birth, raising people from the dead, walking on water, loaves and fishes — great stories, but correctly filed under “fiction.” The sad fact is, what you call “faith” is a form of mental illness. It’s amazing enough that so many of you are running around in your mental case dream world. But it’s simply unacceptable when you start trying to impose your delusions upon the rest of us. Cynical politicians may feel the need to humor you and kowtow to your demands. I, however, do not.

Third, while Christianity is completely a myth, it would be useful if you actually understood the myth that you purport to be building your lives around. The sad fact is that you do not even understand the philosophy you claim to espouse. I do not know if you are intentionally misunderstanding the myth, or if you are just stupid and/or poorly educated. But your beliefs are not, in fact, Christian. Heck, if you’re a Roman Catholic, your entire organization is not Christian. It’s Roman paganism with the name of Christ grafted onto it. Ever seen the Vatican? Please explain how that jibes with anything Christ ever said or taught. Or here’s a fun exercise. Go to Rome, and visit the Forum, then walk across town and visit the Vatican. Wait for the bells to start going off in your head.

Protestants moved in the right direction when they figured this out and broke away from Rome. But over the centuries they too have been corrupted, and in the last fifty years the nutso born-agains have twisted everything up and what they call their “religion” no longer has anything to do with anything Christ ever said or taught — it’s about using Christ’s name to gain secular power. Let me explain. Jesus Christ did not preach hate. He did not tell people to oppress other people. He did not ever say that he hated gay people. He did not tell his apostles to run for political office after he died so they could change the laws of Rome.

I’m not even a Christian, and even I know this stuff. So let me take a moment to explain some of it to you.

There was a story about a Good Samaritan. Have you heard of it? Do you understand it? The message isn’t that you should help strangers. That story is about violating taboos. The Samaritans and Jews weren’t strangers to each other — they hated each other. Like, seriously hated. Like, Jews weren’t supposed to talk to Samaritans or they’d be unclean and need cleansing or something. But wait, there’s more. One of the guys who wouldn’t touch the beaten Jew was a priest. The other guy was a Levite — meaning, a big deal super-duper high-class extra-holy Jew. You know why those two guys walked by the injured Jew and didn’t help? Because it was considered unclean to touch a dead body, and they figured that if they tried to help the guy and the guy turned out to be dead, they would be defiled. So they walked by.

Do you get it now? Jesus, your big hero, was saying that if you have some rule or conventional wisdom that causes you to do harm to people, violate the goddamn rule. You probably cannot understand how shocking this story was when Jesus told it. Because this was really, really shocking. First, he’s saying that the priests and Levites are jerks; and second, he’s saying that Samaritans, the skankiest, nastiest, grossest, most reviled people in that part of the world, were better than priests and Levites.

Continuing in this vein, check out the story about Jesus asking a Samaritan woman to pull him a bucket of water from her well. Again, total taboo breaking. First of all, he’s not supposed to talk to a woman in public. Second, he’s definitely not supposed to discuss theology with a woman. Third, he’s not supposed to drink water from a well that belongs to a skanky old Samaritan. Fourth, the woman is described as being a bit of a whore. Fifth, oh yeah — did I mention that she was a Samaritan?

Taboo breaking happens all over the place in the Jesus myth. (And let’s be clear. This is all a myth. But it’s actually an instructive myth, if you understand it.) Jesus heals a woman who’s suffering from menstrual flow; she touches his robes. This makes him unclean. Does he get pissed off? No, he blesses her and calls her “daughter.” He heals the son (or possibly servant) of a centurion. He heals people on the Sabbath.

Or let me digress to the story of the Prodigal Son, which you presumably also do not understand, despite your claim to be Christians. The point of that story is not that it’s great to forgive sinners like the younger son who asks for his inheritance, leaves, squanders it, and then returns in shame after tending pigs (a Jew tending pigs — get it? ) and falling on hard times. No, the point of that story is the older son. He’s the dipshit who thinks he’s such a great, obedient, law-abiding, straight-arrow goody-goody, and who gets all pissed when Dad celebrates the return of the younger son, and complains about this, because — pay attention — he’s a hypocrite. He follows the rules, and does everything he’s supposed to do. But you know what? He’s the bad guy in this story.

So let’s move on and return to our discussion of hating the homos. Let him who is without sin cast the first stone? Ring any bells? Or how about this: Judge not, lest ye be judged?

Oh, and here’s one that you even put on your own Manhattan Declaration document, which is ironic because you don’t seem to understand what it means and in fact what you’re doing is the exact opposite of what this statement intended: Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s. In other words, do not become entwined with the state. Focus on the next world, not on this one. Or, to be more blunt: Stay the hell out of politics, you boneheads. If a state or federal government wants to marry gay people, that’s their decision. Leave it alone. Go say some prayers.

Yet somehow you’ve twisted this around and interpret it to mean that you should impose your will onto others by passing laws that would force other people who do not share your beliefs to be bound by the rules of your Bible, even though (a) your Bible is fiction and (b) you’re not even interpreting the fiction correctly.

It’s bad enough that you’re hateful bigots. But to dress up your hate and bigotry as an expression of Christianity? That, my friends, is pure evil. If you want to go around hating people, fine. Go for it. It’s stupid, and pointless, but whatever. Go hate people. Just don’t go around saying Jesus told you to do it.

So, listen up. You can’t put your bullshit in my app store. I’m sorry. But I won’t let you use my store to spread your hate. I don’t want any part in the spreading of your phony religion, either. There is no God. There is no heaven. There also is no hell, which is too bad, because if hell did exist, you would surely be spending eternity there, with red-hot pokers up your butts. And nothing would make me happier.

How to write a blog that will be great. Basic things you have to do to succeed.

So you want to write a blog?

That’s wonderful, nowadays it’s very easy to get a website up and running in a matter of a few hours. Which can also be a bad thing.

If you are serious about becoming a successful blogger, then you need to get started on the right path. A wrong move now, can become a serious issue later on.

We’ve laid out a Blogging roadmap for you.

Blog 101: Setting Yourself Up for Success

Becoming a professional blogger is not going to happen over night. However, someone who has drive and is focus will find it a lot easier to build a blogging career.

You don’t need to reinvent the blog.

The rumbling onion is full of useful well written information.

It will take you some time, but all you have to do is read and take action.

What To Blog About

Your blog niche is going to be the most important part of your new journey. You don’t just want to write about anything.

Just writing won’t make your blog successful.

Your writing needs to be great.

The easiest way to set yourself up for remarkable content… is to pick a topic that you are truly passionate about.

If you are not passionate about your topic… you will be fighting a difficult battle. You won’t give your blog a chance to be successful.

Once you have a good topic… you’ll next need to find a domain name.

Your domain name is extremely important, since most of the time it will be the first point of contact that your audience will have with you. So you should put thought into this before you even write a blog.

Your name needs to be memorable, easy to spell and it should give people an idea of what your website is about.

Most importantly, try to include one of your keywords in the domain name… so it you are blogging about guitars. Your domain name could be something like AmericanMadeBluesGuitars.com.

I want you to read this post, Your Options for Grabbing a Good Domain Name it goes into detail on how to grab a good domain name.

You’ll even learn a few insider tactics that will insure that your domain name isn’t a dud, we’ll tell you which types of domain names to avoid and how to find premium domain names.

Once you are settled on your new domain name, your next step is to register it and to grab yourself a hosting package.

WordPress Hosting: Do It Right, From The Start

The hosting game is extremely competitive… when you have heavy competition, you as the consumer win.

If you are new and really want to understand hosting make sure to hosting check out our hosting guide which will show you the difference between Shared Hosting, VPS hosting, and Dedicated hosting.

If you are Lazy we also have reviewed the top 3 hosting companies. You’ll find what we discovered, before you buy your domain and pay for hosting.

This guide will save you from future headaches, and show you that hosting for your new WordPress site is actually very affordable.

Once your hosting situation is set… your next move is to actually install WordPress.

Installing WordPress

Not too long ago, installing WordPress was somewhat of a pain.

You had to configure files, upload folders, generate passwords… and so on.

It took awhile.

But fast-forward till today, and installing WordPress is just a click away. Especially if you picked one of our top 3 recommended WordPress hosting companies.

If you need some hand holding… that’s okay. We all do at some point. I want you to take a look at this post: WordPress Installation : What to Expect.

You’ll learn a few different ways to install WordPress.

Once you’ve installed WordPress, you’ll see that have access to a dashboard. It can get a little overwhelming.

WordPress Beginners Guide

You’ve installed WordPress, and you are staring at it’s backend… or the dashboard.

The dashboard is the command center of your WordPress blog. You’ll be able to manage everything from here.

Right from the start, let’s get your blog set-up correctly. I want you to read this post: Installing WordPress and Setting Permalinks and set up your permalinks correctly.

This will help you out in your SEO efforts… because your post title will use keywords instead of the default numbering system that the default instillation of WordPress uses.

Then visit our handy guide: WordPress Guide For Beginners.

This guide will show you the ins and outs of your dashboard. You’ll learn specific WordPress terminology and most importantly… how to write your first a post.

Once you are familiar with how the WordPress backend works, you’ll want to make sure you are using WordPress Pages Like a Pro.

Now that you know how to create content for your site… let’s get to the fun part.

We are going to talk about WordPress Themes.

WordPress Themes

Your WordPress theme is very important… you’ll get to express your self-creativity. But more importantly, if your theme is poorly coded it will harm you.

The search engines have many factors that they take into account when they are ranking websites and some themes just flat out miss most of these factors.

Free Themes

Many people when they are just starting out decide that they want to use a free theme instead of a premium theme.

While free themes can be great lots are junk.

If you are planning on going with a free theme, we suggest you check out this two column theme called: A Dream to Host.

A Dream to Host has all the features you would expect in a high quality free theme including, custom background, custom header images, custom menus, and even Google analytics support.

Premium Themes

Now if you plan on taking your blog to the next level you may want to look at getting a premium theme such as Thesis, Genesis, or Headway. Each of these premium themes are much more robust than any free theme you will find but that comes with a price tag.

Each premium theme has a loyal following and their own pros/cons. Do make sure you do your research before you buy below you will find our reviews of each.

Thesis Theme ReviewGenesis Theme ReviewHeadway Theme Review

We also went into a ton of detail comparing Thesis Theme vs Genesis Theme a while back.

Premium Theme Quickstart Guides

Wrapping your head around what each theme can do can be confusing so make sure you check out our quick start guides.

Thesis Theme Quickstart GuideGenesis Theme Quickstart GuideHeadway Theme Quickstart Guide

If you still trying to figure out what theme is right for you check out this post we did on: Blog Design – Where to Get the Best WordPress Themes.

Now that you are up to speed on themes let’s talk about your logo.

Logos: Getting A Good One

Logos are important… the better they are, they more memorable your brand will be.

Just think about the golden arches, or the swoosh… I don’t even have to say the brand names. You instantly recognize them from their logos.

In How to Get a Good Logo we talk about the different options that you’ll have, from the free route to hiring a designer.

You’ll learn a simple way to find free artwork and options on customizing it. It’s a pretty cool way of designing your own WordPress Header.

Did you know that you can actually have a crowd of professional artist competing to create your logo?

In CrowdSPRING Offers a World of Artists at Great Prices, we review a creative method to having a group of artist submit their logo ideas for you.

Logos are fun, along with your sites design it showcases your brand personality.

Now let’s talk about reach… we’re talking about social media.

Social Media: Grab Your Name Before It’s Gone

Picking up your name across the Social Networks is something that you must do. Not only will it protect your reputation, shady marketers have been know to look for unused brand names.

Everyone can be a target, not just large multi-national brands.

But the other reason, is to expand your brands reach. If you have a presence where your target audience hangs out, then it’s only reasonable to think that they have a greater chance of finding you.

We show you the social media properties to register, and how to go about doing it on: Register Your Username on Social Media Sites.

Don’t forget to also take a look at KnowEm Review: How Much is Your Username Worth?

This service let’s you check to see if your user name is available across a multitude of social networks… a time saver in anyones book.

Once you’ve registered your social media accounts — make sure you empower your community to share your website with their friends

Content Is King

Your content, your writing is what is going to give you a fighting chance over the big boys.

If what you write is just blah… then don’t expect to actually make a living from blogging.

Copywriting 101 Series:

To bring you up to speed we created a 7 part Copywriting 101 Series.

Bad content… is bad for everyone. Make sure your content doesn’t stink.

Copywriting 101: Essential Tools of a CopywriterCopywriting 101: Writing With AuthorityCopywriting 101: Repetition is Not a Bad ThingCopywriting 101: Thinking StrategicallyCopywriting 101: Be PersuasiveCopywriting 101: 7 Deadly Traps Copywriters Fall Into

 

Beef Up Your Writing:

If you are still looking to take your writing to the next level make sure you check out these other popular copywriting articles.

You, A Three Letter Power WordBecause, a Power Word Because It Says So!Why – A Simple Power WordHow to Make Your Writing InterestingWrite Like You TalkTransparency in Copywriting

Timeless Core Content

The main goal of your writing should be that it will become more and more valuable as time goes on.

Most blogs are about the moment… they focus on fashion, breaking news, gossips and the such.

Unfortunately that type of writing becomes old news, pretty much as soon as it is published. We don’t want that to happen to us.

Don’t focus on that type of writing… focus on creating something with substance.

Take a look at Core Content Defined and Examined. We go into detail about what core content is, it’s importance and specific strategies to develop it.

Read What’s in It for Me: 7 Types of Timeless Core Content… and reread it.

This is important… this will make your site and writing remarkable.

Remember, your content is going to separate your from the rest of the pack.

While you are working on creating your core content… you should also think about your writing style.

Checkout this great guide on Typography: Typography Basics – Some Fundamentals for Body Copy.

You’ll also want to learn how to keep your readers attention… with so many distractions popping up online today you won’t want to passup on this important subject.

Grabbing Your Readers Attention.

It’s important to write what your readers want. Once you learn what your audience wants and expects from you… everything becomes much easier.

Make sure and read What Readers Want: A Guide to Converting Readers With Short Attention Spans.

Put the tactics to use… remember we are moving towards your goal of becoming a pro blogger. Learn how to do it right, from the start. How to write a blog is not hard as you may think.