Shannon Warren.com

According to a study conducted by Jan Brueckner at U.C. Irvine, people who live in the suburbs “have more friends, better community involvement and more frequent contact with their neighbours than urbanites who are wedged in side-by-side.” Story by Shannon Proudfoot about this study.

MY EXPERIENCE IN THE ‘BURBS

I suppose this does not surprise me. As a high school student I lived in Clear Lake (an affluent suburb of Houston). During those years I came to know and love my neighbors.

The people who lived near my family supported me and my ambitions, sometimes with their checkbooks, but very often they would step across the line of gesture and make a real investment in my life.

Next door lived Ron, a “baby-boomer” approaching retirement, who helped me build half a dozen physics projects in his garage workshop. Imagine that, he took several of his Saturday afternoons off and helped a teenager with his homework. What’s more is that during our time in his shop it was clear that he really cared about me. He helped me learn woodwork and a little bit of what it means to be a good man.

Across the street there was Jim. I remember him as this really neat family man who would often take the time to encourage me and shed a little light on my path. While I was in high school, he always took the time to brag on my clean car or on what a good job I had done mowing the lawn. Those little complements amount to a lot. Later on, when I was a freshman in college he gave me great career advice. Because he worked for SUN Microsystems his advice meant a lot to me as a fish in Computer Engineering. Maybe he realized that I was asking him questions about SUN in order to daydream or even to land a job, but that did not seem to bother him. He liked me and did not mind breaking from his day to talk.

The list should go on and on because Ron and Jim were not alone in their support. Both of those guys have lovely wives who treated me as one of their own, often greeting me with a hug and a snack when I dropped by. I never lacked for a mom in the suburbs.

Not that my parents failed me in any way, mind you. No one has better parents than I have. No one. The reality is — sorry Ms. Dole — that it does take a village to raise a child.

As a high school student, my village was in the suburbs. The men and women at my church, in my school and living in my neighborhood did a bang-up job. I hope my life will honor their investment.

The study mentioned earlier reinforces my experience. Its results challenge the accepted idea that suburban life is a socially alienating notion. That notion has inspired everything from the Academy Award-winning American Beauty to Harvard professor Robert Putnam’s book Bowling Alone. Proudfoot.

It even provides a little math formula for calculating the value of low population density (10% decrease in population density = 10% increase in neighborhood involvement). Cute.

A PARTIAL ENDORSEMENT

I like the idea of a promoting healthy suburbs filled with people who care about one another. It should be said, however, that there are some traits of suburbs which I am less than enamored with.

Last year, I posted an applicable quote by Rich Mullins on this site. Rich is one of my heroes in life and ministry, so his quotes mean a lot to me. Here it is again:

Christianity is not about building an absolutely secure little niche in the world where you can live with your perfect little wife and your perfect little children in your beautiful little house where you have no gays or minority groups anywhere near you. Christianity is about learning to love like Jesus loved and Jesus loved the poor and Jesus loved the broken.

(Emphasis added).

Rich’s criticism of the tendency of church-people to be isolationists seems to identify everything which is wrong with the suburbs. If the suburbs stand for thinning out the herd so that we can get to know our neighbors, I like them. If they stand for indulging bigoted worldviews for those people forced to live near cities, then I hate them.

It seems to me that in reality the suburbs stand for both. That is, they allow people to live in a less crowded setting AND to hide from people in demographics alternative to their own. Consequently, I can see how there will always be a love-hate feeling toward them.

FINDING A BALANCED VIEW

Nonetheless, the distinction between virtue and vice lies in the heart of man. Human action is the same whether noble or ignoble; i.e., living in the suburbs looks the same whether for right or wrong motives.

As for me, I currently live one and half miles from downtown Houston. I suppose that I known my neighbors, but not very well. We are all too busy to make any lasting investments in one another. The irony is that for this chapter in my life (studying for law school all the time) I’m pretty-okay with the strange tension between nearness and isolation.

I guess I feel like I’m too busy to invest myself in everyone near me. I realize that this is a selfish way to live, but I think my neighbors have a similar feeling. We’re not rude or unconcerned, we just�?� well�?� busy.

A distinction needs to made as to the city’s benefits. I enjoy living in the city for different reasons than I did in Clear Lake. From my townhome I am five minutes from most of Houston’s treasures (MFAH, Hermann Park, Rice University, Minute Maid Park, the Zoo, Houston Grand Opera, etc.), many of which I attend on a regular basis. Not to mention how much stress I save by not commuting on I-10 or I-45 for eight hours a week.

In my view, a love of tolerance and diversity stand for virtue, and the city seems better able to nurture these than the suburbs. The tapestry of cultures in Houston are astonishing this city’s soul is made up of contributions made by a thousand different groups, our cuisine and nigh-spots are proof.

But this post is meant to give the suburbs their due. They are not void of diversity or cultural events, but knowing what the urban-setting does and does not provide seem to punctuate the suburb’s appeal.

I love the suburbs for what they are, a good place to raise a family and know your neighbor without giving up all urban conveniences. Provided that its inhabitants are not running from the joys of diversity they’re all right with me.

In conclusion, if you live in a suburb, why not walk next door and introduce yourself. I’ll try and do the same down here�?� that is, when my neighbors have the time.

I ran across this gem while studying the doctrine of defamation today. It was written by Justice Holmes who was dissenting (that is, disagreeing with) the majority vote of the Supreme Court. It was written way back in 1919.

The case arose because the Defendants had published pamphlets judged to be disloyal to the U.S. during a time of war. Although Justice Holmes believed the literature’s content had missed the mark he did not believe that censorship was appropriate.

In his concluding comments Holmes admits that �?? although insensitive �?? censorship is very effective.

Persecution for the expression of opinions seems to me perfectly logical. If you have no doubt of your premises or your power and want a certain result with all your heart you naturally express your wishes in law and sweep away all opposition. To allow opposition by speech seems to indicate that you think the speech impotent, as when a man says that he has squared the circle, or that you do not care whole-heartedly for the result, or that you doubt either your power or your premises.

Abrams v. United States, 250 U.S. 616, 630. (emphasis added).

He goes on to show the higher, better approach in what was ultimately dubbed the “Marketplace of Ideas”.

�?� But when men have realized that time has upset many fighting faiths, they may come to believe even more than they believe the very foundations of their own conduct that the ultimate good desired is better reached by free trade in ideas — that the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market, and that truth is the only ground upon which their wishes safely can be carried out. That at any rate is the theory of our Constitution. It is an experiment, as all life is an experiment. Every year if not every day we have to wager our salvation upon some prophecy based upon imperfect knowledge. While that experiment is part of our system I think that we should be eternally vigilant against attempts to check the expression of opinions that we loathe and believe to be fraught with death, unless they so imminently threaten immediate interference with the lawful and pressing purposes of the law that an immediate check is required to save the country. I wholly disagree with the argument of the Government that the First Amendment left the common law as to seditious libel in force. History seems to me against the notion. I had conceived that the United States through many years had shown its repentance for the Sedition Act of 1798, by repaying fines that it imposed. Only the emergency that makes it immediately dangerous to leave the correction of evil counsels to time warrants making any exception to the sweeping command, “Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech.” Of course I am speaking only of expressions of opinion and exhortations, which were all that were uttered here, but I regret that I cannot put into more impressive words my belief that in their conviction upon this indictment the defendants were deprived of their rights under the Constitution of the United States.

Id. at 630-631. (emphasis added).

The following is a short essay I wrote about “High Moral Character” for a scholarship application back in March. Even though I didn’t get the scholarship, I really like this essay.

In case you’ve seen it before, sorry for the repeat.  You are one of the very few who noticed it.  I hope that it will be more accessible over here with the posts.

How would you consider yourself of high moral character?

Speaking of oneself as a person of “high moral character” should be enough to disqualify that person from the designation. In the words of Chuck Swindoll, “pride is the only disease known to humans that makes everyone sick except the one who has it.” Nonetheless, I believe high moral character can be defined and sought after. Generally, a person of high moral character is someone who responds honestly and tenderly to the issues (both micro and macro) in his community and world.

Contrary to our highest secular hopes, our world is caught in a war on terror perpetuated by religious zealotry. To dey the significance of that war’s roots would be foolish and dangerous. Rather, a person of high moral character knows that it is a nation’s idea of God which defines its actions; i.e., “[t]he history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and man�??s spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God.” A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy 1 (1961).

Therefore, it is the role of a person of high moral character to seek peace through the elevation of the world’s concept of God by serving the poor and outcast. History’s great religious teachers agree. The Koran says, “righteousness is this: that one should�?� give away wealth out of love�?� to orphans and the needy�?� and for the emancipation of the captives.” 2.177. Judeo Christian scripture says, “bring the homeless poor into the house, when you see the naked, cover him, then your light will break out like the dawn and your recovery will speedily spring forth, then your Lord will be your rear guard.” Isaiah 58. Jesus told his followers to be like a Good Samaritan who shows mercy toward everyone, even his enemy, who is in need. Luke 10:37.

As a follower of Jesus, I believe that any nation or person who shows mercy toward the marginalized is a person of high moral character.

My efforts to live up to this standard are insufficient but are, nonetheless, earnest. I try and live a simple life of charity by giving time and money to noble causes. I personally supported many friends and missionaries in Southeast Asia during their tsunami relief efforts. After Hurricane Katrina, I volunteered at the Astrodome as the New Orleans evacuees arrived. Currently, I financially support the fight against A.I.D.S. in Africa, poverty in the dumps of Nicaragua, and illiteracy worldwide. To the homeless in Houston, I frequently reach out a helping hand by supporting homeless shelters, distribution centers, and service organizations.

Our communities and world can live as one. But to do so we must see God as a God of peace and charity. Though our battles in Afghanistan & Iraq seem to serve a short term purpose, I believe that the war on terror will not be won by warfare. Rather, peace and stability must be found in acts of kindness.

Finally, we must do more than simply talk about such acts of kindness. When discussing the Good Samaritan, Jesus asked his audience which person lived up the Jewish ideal to “love your neighbor as yourself”. His listeners were forced to reply that it had been their enemy, the Samaritan, who showed mercy toward the man who fell into the robbers’ hands. Jesus replied, “go and do the same.” Id. at 10:27-37.

It seems like the first day of a vacation should be marked by anticipation. As a child, vacations were a fantastic joy.

I was seven or eight years old the first time I went to California, my family took a vacation to Disneyland that summer. Something about this seemed overwhelming & wonderful to me. Maybe it was the years of hype which a child is exposed to or the satisfaction of having been somewhere which others had spoken so highly. Whatever it was that excited me, it worked.

I could hardly sleep the night before the trip. In retrospect, this is really odd since we were going to travel (standby) all day long the next day to California. But I could not see the path for the destination, so sleep was a bit scare.

When dad came to wake me up the next morning, he snuck into the room & leaned over to get my attention. Little did he know that I had dreamt about the Disneyland all night long, and in my hurry to get to the Magic Kingdom I sprung up from flat on my back, simultaneously head-butting him in the nose. Dad was understandably caught of guard, “Shannon, what are you doing?!”

“Are we going to Disneyland?”

“Yes, but why’d you jump out of bed like that?”

“Sorry�?� When do get to Disneyland?”

That day went on & on. We were bumped from flights & bounced from Lubbock to Albuquerque to Phoenix to the moon to LA. The planes were hot & crowded; when the flight attendant called our family’s name to be bumped one last time my heart was broken. We had to collect our things & leave the plane while everyone watched us.

“I’m never going to get to Disneyland.”

When we finally arrived in California it was too late to do anything productive (like go hang out with Goofy). I’m pretty sure we went to a neat restaurant, but not even that could distract me; I still had only one place on my mind.

The next morning we got up & walked to the front gate. Since we had a hotel across the street from the park we did not have to bother with parking. Instead we walked what seemed like an hour just to get to the ticket booth.

I remember that the main entrance has an obstructed view into the park. From the gate, all one could see was an embankment of bright flowers. I had no particular interest in flowers at the time, except even now I can remember looking at them. There was something about the California sun and those bright colors which made me feel loose & free. Like I was about to go into a place full of life.

Now here’s the most important part. Standing there, at the gate & behind the embankment, the finest moment of the trip was about to pass. Anticipation was about to expire. Whether the park lived up to the hype or not would no longer matter because my eyes would be opened to the reality of the place.

By the time we become adults we realize that Disneyland is nothing more than a well marketed amusement park with mediocre rides & over priced soft drinks. But a child still knows how to expect, to long for something. A child has not been broken of the belief that just around the embankment there lies a joy worth waiting for.

As the years have gone by I have hedged my expectations a bit. For example, when I go to Colorado Springs I know that there will be cool clean air & Pikes Peak, but I do not expect that my life will be changed by them.

Somehow — despite our expectations — these places do manage to change us. The difference, however, between the child and the adult is that of expectations not personal transformation. The child expects something unreasonable (lifelong happiness from an amusement park), and the adult is unwilling to expect anything for fear of disappointment.

In this way, adulthood seems to be more like a skill than a stage in life. Where the best “adults” are able to hide their emotions so as to not appear disappointed at any time. A well trained adult avoids the exposure of their thoughts to prevent the publicity of their naiveté.

Life in Houston has been rewarding of late. I work hard & play hard at school & church. I have friends & family that love me. My first house looks to be appreciating. Nonetheless, life is more that food, drink & shelter. It is more than academic progress & respect of peers.

When I moved to Houston in 1994 I had a Texas-sized chip on my shoulder. This boy from Lubbock was going to overcome my small-town past & conquer the big city. I left the wide open sky of West Texas for the pine trees & billboards of America’s third coast.

I guess that chip hasn’t ever come off my shoulder. Actually, I think I’ve become accustomed to having it around. The only thing is that somewhere along the line I became a third coast kid. I aggressively eliminated my small town accent & decided that a skyline was well served by a few skyscrapers.

Garrison Keller says that people from small towns work harder to pronounce French words correctly. Well, I do not know about French, but I took great joy that even the people in London could not tell what part of the U.S. I was from.

Tonight on my way to Waco I managed to come upon the crest of a hill at sunset. There were no clouds in the sky, no wild colors, no particular trick of lighting, but I was deeply moved at this new vista. I could see the full horizon at dusk and it made my heart sing.

Remember this, dusk is a sacred time for anyone from West Texas.

Ironically the very thing which draws criticism to the Great Plains, viz. flatness, is much loved by her residents. Flat open spaces make for a big sky. At dusk in West Texas you know your smallness. Looking around, the great dome presses down and nothing blocks your eyes from seeing into infinity.

Tonight, at the top of my hill, I could see the full horizon in every direction. Something about this very nearly brought me to tears. I was a child again, the sky was open.

This week I set out for the Rocky Mountains. Day one has taken me to Waco to see Jon & Christi Osborne at their new home. They have greeted me with joy and open arms and I suppose that if the whole trip were only to see that sunset & these friends it would have been worth it. But the path is much longer than that.

Day one is about remembering that life is not best lived inside the boundaries of safe expectations. In my case it would be safe to expect cultural richness in Santa Fe & world class snowboarding in Vail, but even these will fail me if I expect too much of them.

Rich Mullins said that if we look to our friendships for meaning and fulfillment we will ultimately destroy them. No human relationship can contain the breadth of life in even one human heart. Neither can a voyage.

But in Christ we come up against something which is entirely “other” from those things which disappoint. He is at one in the same time the answer to our questions and the questions themselves. In him we are free not to hedge our expectations.

Christ invites us to yearn deeper, to beg for more. He does not criticize us for expecting too much but, rather, too little. Or, that we’ve wanted things which will not satisfy.

When we open up our stories to His we experience life & that to the full. Not just “fire insurance” from Hell for ourselves or more balanced social justice for others, but a better life in the spirit of all the redeemed today.

So I’m called to open my story and trust that the well is deep enough for my greatest expectations. Christ will satisfy where others have failed.

This should give you some idea:

Two days ago I posted “Desktop Potential” bragging on Google’s new desktop search technologies, but I was unable to express all the joy this little program brings.

While data searching has been available for some time, Google’s utility does more than look for key words on a hard drive. Rather, it pulls together information which before had no logical order or recall-ability. In my case, the files on my hard drive chronicle virtually every part of my life. Whereas I am probably more digitized than the average computer user, the revolution of desktop search will effect all of us.

After my posting the other day, I remembered hearing a radio spot on The Engines of Our Ingenuity which addressed the importance of the information age.

In 1945 Vannevar Bush, a futurist, saw that our present day breakthroughs with stunning clarity. He predicted the information age would be the event that moved humanity forward, not the travel or power production which others were predicting.

Keep in mind it was 1945 when Bush said,

[Man] has built a civilization so complex that he needs to mechanize his records more fully if he is to push his experiment to its logical conclusion [without being bogged down by] his limited memory. [He must] reacquire the privilege of forgetting [all the] things he does not need …, with some assurance that he can find them again if they prove important.

Google didn’t invent data searching, neither is it alone in providing desktop search utilities. But in my testing, Google’s utility is the first to cleanly pull everything together. Their utility brings the promise of the information age to our milieu; i.e. our emails, photos, journals, research papers, schedules, task lists, eBooks, and even scanned documents are now indexed and at our fingertips.

I’ve been geeked-out all week!

So, kudos to you, Google, for your part in moving humanity forward.

This was behind the pulpit at Stephen’s church this morning. Both Tim & I really like it. It may be hard to tell, but people of every walk & area of life are following Christ.

I especially like the fact that a traditional congregation would put up a modern piece. Which is something I’ve seen done a few other places over the last couple years.

I wonder if art will become the new mark of a progressive church.

I don’t mind if it does, anything which gets us away from those poorly arranged modern songs is a welcome change. Of course, we will probably end up with churches full of bad art and music if this becomes a trend.

O boy, something to look forward to.

In the meantime, kudos to Fairfax Church on the excellent painting.

The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson is the only thing worth watching after 11:30pm.

Like the Daily Show, the Late Late Show was started by a different Craig, Craig Kilborn. I used to be a big fan of Kilborn�??s, but I never got past the feeling that he was a huge jerk. Nonetheless, he has worked on some cool stuff; e.g. Sports Center, Old School, etc.

As for the Late Late Show, the new Craig is brilliant. I do hope that America can get past (or grow to like) his Scottish accent. If they do, I believe Mr. Ferguson has a bright future on American T.V.

If you have a TiVo, record the show and tell me what you think.

I heard this poem (see below) on the way to work this morning. It reminds me of a book by John Eldridge, The Journey of Desire, which says, �??absolutely nothing of human greatness is ever accomplished without [desire].�?� The point being we must rise above disappointment and desire to live again.

“the cynical survive with,
their world so safely small.”

Despite what we may believe about it, sarcasm is rarely endearing. Most often it is used to keep people at bay or to hurt them. When we embrace cynicism we isolate ourselves from the joys found in sharing life with other people, what Eldridge called �??human greatness.�?�

Desire

I remember how it used to be
at noon, springtime, the city streets
full of office workers like myself
let loose from the cold
glass buildings on Park and Lex,
the dull swaddling of winter cast off,
almost everyone wanting
everyone else. It was amazing
how most of us contained ourselves,
bringing desire back up
to the office where it existed anyway,
quiet, like a good engine.
I’d linger a bit
with the receptionist,
knock on someone else’s open door,
ease myself, by increments,
into the seriousness they paid me for.
Desire was everywhere those years,
so enormous it couldn’t be reduced
one person at a time.
I don’t remember when it was,
though closer to now than then,
I walked the streets desireless,
my eyes fixed on destination alone.
The beautiful person across from me
on the bus or train
looked like effort, work.
I translated her into pain.
For months I had the clarity
the cynical survive with,
their world so safely small.
Today, walking 57th toward 3rd,
it’s all come back,
the interesting, the various,
the conjured life suggested by a glance.
I praise how the body heals itself.
I praise how, finally, it never learns.

Poem: “Desire” by Stephen Dunn from. New and Selected Poems 1974�??1994. © W.W. Norton, 1994.

While Dubya isn’t exactly popular right now, this Harris Interactive Poll (from the WSJ) shows something I wasn’t expecting, Americans don’t like congress.

Furthermore, the democrats - the very people who are pointing out the president’s low approval ratings - are only approved by 1 in 3 Americans.

How can a body of which neither side has more than a 40% approval rating continue to get elected? My best guess is that America picks the lesser of two evils every time they vote.

What do you think?

THE DOWNTURN in President Bush’s job approval held steady this month, with less than half of Americans saying he is doing an “excellent” or “pretty good job,” and 55% ranking his performance as “only fair” or “poor,” a Harris poll shows. Both the Republicans and Democrats in Congress also continue to have high negative marks this month. One third of those surveyed give Democrats a favorable rating, while Republicans fare only slightly better at 37%, according to the telephone poll of 1,015 adults.