A Dream Fulfilled

We've been refurnishing the lounge of late. It was in quite a disastrous state, and upon pointing this out to our landlord, he magnanimously sprung the money for an entire new paint job and fixing several other aesthetic issues with the room.

So, with fresh paint, things were looking pretty good. But the walls were looking lonely and forlorn. So I started out on a quest. Just yesterday I was telling a friend "Ideally, I want a tall ship under full sail, dashing it's way through green waves." It was my dream...

Only to walk into the first charity shop I tried to see a beautiful, proud ship marching across green seas under full sail! It was the right size, for a bargain price! And I love it!!! It's almost like it found me. Like it wanted to be brought home and exalted into the place of honour in our home. (My roommates may never forgive me for unilaterally eternally installing this in our living room, but that is for another time.) Now I need a name. That it ought to be an "HMS" ship goes without saying. But what should be the second part? HMS Dauntless? HMS Pride? HMS Whimsy? (That last in honour of The Bloggess who brings whimsy to most of what she encounters) Yes. I think the HMS Whimsy it will be. Also because then people might think of Lord Peter Whimsey, who is the creation of Dorothy Sayers, who was basically an Inkling. So that's awesome too.

It has been raining like crazy off and on today, and since I had my bike downtown, I had to walk it home with the picture precariously balanced on the handlebars, and I managed to make it all the way without getting rained on at all.

The universe got angry at my luck (not only of finding the picture, but getting home without getting wet) and it sent a hail storm in reply. But I'm safe at home now! (At least, until I head out for evensong in a little bit!)

Two Easter Sermons

I heard two Easter sermons yesterday. One was chaotic: it involved a spontaneous play with people drawn from the audience playing different "witnesses" on Easter morning. Because the actors had no idea what was going on or where the play was going (or even which Gospel account was being drawn from) it was awkward and drawn out, and the point was weakly made and ill-defined. Sometimes it was even hard to hear what was being said over the crying babies and fighting toddlers who were kept in the service, and made it sound more like the middle of a food court, than a church service.

The other sermon could not have been more different. It was eloquent and logical. It used beautiful images and funny stories and was, overall, tightly argued. The points were strongly made and were fairly convincing. The church, moreover, was silent and attentive, and the preacher made the most of his polished craft to draw everyone along.

Yet, for all their dissimilarities, the two sermons shared more than they differed. Both were trying to do something entirely foreign to the purpose and meaning of Easter: they were both trying to prove scientifically that the most logical explanation for the empty tomb accounts in the Gospels is that Jesus rose from the dead.

Let me explain why this is a problem: Dead people don't come back to life. It is impossible. And as Sherlock Holmes said "How often have I said to you [Watson] that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?" Sermons or apologetic arguments that try to prove that the resurrection happened end up supporting the skeptic's case, since it is never more logical to think that the impossible has happened rather than the very implausible. A fainted, beaten man, without water or food moving an incredibly heavy stone and then overcoming a crowd of guards? Still more probable than the dead being raised. The disciples stealing the body and then refusing to deny the story under torture and execution? Still more probable than the dead being raised. Actually, any story at all, no matter how improbable, is more probable than the impossible story that we have: that the dead are brought to life, and that the crucified Jesus is the risen Lord, conqueror of death, and the locus of the hope of the world.

So let's not try to prove it! Proclaim the impossibility! (Madeleine L'Engle called it "the Glorious Impossible") Revel in the fact that the wisdom of God looks like foolishness to men, and let the people work out for themselves how to deal with their scientific concepts and logical dissonances once they realize they have just met someone who they thought died two thousand years ago! For Easter, at least, let us put aside the weak excuses we tell the world to try and make us look clever and logical, and simply celebrate that the impossible has happened. If I look like a fool for doing so, then I look like a fool. Like David, I will gladly say "I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes."

Christ is Risen!
He is Risen Indeed!



...Let's party!!

Work piles up...

So, in the last month or so I've been up to Oxford and Cambridge and will be heading out to Fareham soon too! Oh, I also moved houses, painted a room, and so on. The move has been great: it is a much easier bike into the university, and now I am not nearly so physically exhausted all the time. Also, my roommates make good food! :)
Life is settling into a rhythm, and I am enjoying myself.
I am still, of course, making all sorts of cultural mistakes, but you do learn. My biggest (common) mistake is that I still refer to my pants as, well, pants. But here, "pants" means underpants and "trousers" is used for the outer-leg-garment. So, you can imagine the awkwardness when I say something like "Let me show you the new pants I just got" or "Hang on, let me just change out of this skirt and into some pants, and I'll be right with you for the walk...". Really, I have to work on that one!
Other than that, I'm mostly just working away.

The After Christmas

I wrote this about two weeks ago, but never got around to posting it...

***

It is funny, starting up again after the Christmas break...
The closest analogy I can think of to my experience of last semester is getting pegged in the head when fencing.
For those of you who do not know, I did rapier fencing for several years, and because of the heavy construction of a rapier blade, much of the force of a blow gets transmitted down to the end of the blade, rather than simply bending the blade sideways as it would with an Olympic epee or foil.
Getting hit is never much fun, and always hurts, but getting hit hard in the head is absolutely the worst. Your head snaps back, there is a burst of pain, and you end up completely disoriented. You stand there, dazed and confused trying to remember what in the world just happened. You don't know where you are, who you are, or what just happened. And within an instant you have to push all that aside, and throw yourself back into the fight to protect yourself, while most of you is still not quite sure just what is going on.
And, of course, because I'm way shorter than most of my opponents, my head was a fairly easy target, so I spent more than my fair share of time dazed and confused after being cracked in the head before I learned to keep my guard up really high!
I feel like I spent most of last semester getting smacked hard in the head by various things, and I think I went through a lot of it dazed and confused. And right now I'm warily eying this next term (my opponent?) keeping my guard high and really hoping I don't keep getting smacked in the head all this term too!
I guess it might be lucky that I tend to find the challenge of figuring out how to engage in the fight well somewhat energizing? I know I have better strategies, and now that I have the beginnings of a community here for support as well, I think over all, things will be much better. Well, the fight is about to begin, so: Bring. It. On.

Christmas in London

Well, I'm in London now, settled into Muswell Hill for the Christmas season. What a term it has been!
I'm staying with friends Jim and Amber here, along with their adorable two year old son Caleb. This morning we were talking about creation, and said "In the beginning, God created...?" to which Caleb replied "Boogers!"
I think there has to be some way to work this into my dissertation.

We also walked around Highgate woods and learned the difference between holly, ivy and oak leaves. "Ivy climbs trees like...?" "Monkeys!"

Also, I have been having to review my dinosaur names because of a new bucket of toys: dimetrodon and parasaurolophus don't roll off the tongue like they used to!

Merry Christmas all!

Things I heard in Exeter

Things I heard walking home from the University:
-the squeal of brakes and click clack of wheels as a train pulled into St. David's station
-the call of swans as they glide along the river
-church bells in the distance ringing out vespers
-fiddle music emerging from a window and the clomping of feet doing Scottish dancing
-a whistle from the conductor as another train takes off

OK, so what I heard in Exeter is not a real update. The basic story is that I am doing really well, and settling in, and looking forward to Christmas in London.

Many thanks to all who have sent letters, cards, packages, e-mails and prayers. You have sustained me more than you know, and I am so thankful!

Remember, Remember....

To update one's blog! Sorry, I've been absent of late!

Tonight was bonfire night, which normally means fireworks. But in the village of Ottery St. Mary's it means lighting barrels full of tar on fire, hoisting them up onto one's back, and then running around the village through tightly packed crowds. It is hard to believe that much awesome can happen in one place!

Plus, they had the largest bonfire I have ever seen. I don't have a clue how any building in that village is insured against fire. See pictures here.

In other news, settling in is going well. I am really enjoying it in many ways, though I am so far from home.
Yesterday I was at Tesco's buying groceries. I always try to be kind to cashiers and waitresses, and engage them in a little conversation. This particular woman had apparently been waiting all day for someone to ask how she was doing, and she launched into a long and enthusiastic narrative. Unfortunately, I couldn't understand a thing she was saying!! She was going so fast, and using so much slang, and had such a strong accent! So there I was, looking (I'm sure) very earnest, and trying to smile warmly and nod appropriately and sympathetically while the terror of having no idea what I was agreeing to grew behind my eyes. That was the second time that day that I had no idea what the person I was talking to was saying. The other time, it was important that I understood, and I had to ask three times before I caught the meaning!
I mentioned this ongoing issue to someone, and their response was "Yes, it seems so funny and old-fashioned to us the way you speak so slowly." Thanks, guy. That really helps the confidence.

Work is going well, things are picking up, and I'm starting to get to know my way around town. Next weekend I will be in London. Looking forward to it!

Pictures Up

For those of you who wanted pictures, the photos from my walk about the neighbourhood today have been uploaded here:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150800540920022.734000.530385021&l=28b17899cc&type=1

Thought for the day: If I don't understand the terminology you are using because we use a different name in Canada, saying it slower and louder will not actually help. Please think of a synonym and try again.

Non-bitter thought for the day: I love public foot paths.

First day of exploration

I went to the University today and discovered that while many things are new, bureaucracies everywhere are just the same. So, I played the old "I'm sorry, I can't help you at this building, but if you walk across the campus to this other building they may be able to help you there" game, until it got tiring. Luckily, I am almost done! In favour of my day running around, I am trying to register almost two weeks before everyone else is, so there are no line ups anywhere.

After that, I took a trip into town to try and find a bicycle. After three different bike shops, I found one that sells used bikes. But they are fresh out, and will get back to me by the weekend.

Also, I passed a fancy dress shop, but apparently that means costumes, and not fancy dresses.

I forgot to take my camera with me, so no pictures today. Hopefully tomorrow! Other than that, things are great.

Leaving London

I've had a great week here in London, and head off to Maidenhead tonight to go to Exeter (via a day in Bristol) tomorrow.
It was really interesting this week... London was not the place I had expected. I didn't see the evidence of the riots, people were super helpful and friendly, and Muswell Hill feels nothing like a huge cosmopolitan city. It has gorgeous woods nearby, with ancient oak trees and beautiful paths. And then, the mailman came by the other day with a package for our next door neighbours... but they were not home, so the mailman delivered it to our house instead, with a note left to the neighbours that it was here. Not what I expected... but awesome.
All in all, this has been a great interlude. Now, off to Exeter!

The Linnean Society

*Written the day before yesterday*

So, I went to the Linnean Society today. For a meeting. Yup, that is the same meeting where Darwin and Wallace first presented the idea of evolution to the world on July 1, 1858. It is also a place where Darwin and Wallace stare down at you from now-famous portraits.
The meeting was really interesting for a lot of reasons. Here are just some of them:
-I've almost always talked about science and the pursuit of science from a Christian perspective. It was fascinating, and a bit somber, to hear high level discussion about the purpose of science with no higher metanarrative to appeal to for common ground. This really stunted discussion in ways that were totally alien to me. Actually, even in fairly common ways, there were problems that were unfamiliar. For example, a big deal was made by several people about the necessity of not creating a huge distinction between organism and environment, because both are part of a bigger system. They kept saying how even the word "environment" was problematic because it excludes the observer (us) from it as well. In my head, I was thinking, "In a Christian context, we just call the whole thing 'the Creation' and are done with it. Totally not a problem."
-At one point in the meeting, the moderator asked "Is there anyone here who does not agree with the basic theory of evolution?" and absolute silence prevailed. Afterward, a young German scholar, knowing I was a theologian said "Why didn't you speak up?" I ended up on a familiar topic (being a Christian and accepting evolution) from a completely different side than I am used to!
-I also realized I just don't know a lot of about science itself. A day full of unknown terms and graphs of impressive but also impregnable data left me quite exhausted. I really AM a theologian, apparently. Apparently, my questions are theology questions too.
-Victorians knew how to build awesome buildings. Apparently, we have forgotten. And if we had gates like these to go through on the way to learning, we might be more impressed with it.

*Written today*
Yesterday, I went through the British Museum, which was as awesome as always. I am amazed, though, that the best museum in the world can also manage to have the very worst gift shop. OK, so there is one cool gift shop, but everything in there was over 100 pounds, and that was not helpful! But the "average joe" one was not cool.
I also met a Canadian woman, identified by her MEC bag. That felt good.
This is a great country though, and I am really enjoying being here!

I think I am starting to settle in here too. At the very least, I am starting to look instinctively to my right when I am crossing the street. Apparently, all those months in Thailand of training have not gone entirely to waste, since it took me at least a month and a half to get used to the change of direction there!
Tomorrow, I begin the journey out to Exeter, so keep thinking of me, as I finally finish this "transition period" that I count as starting July 28th when I left for Chicago!

Arrived

Well, I'm here now. Most of me does not believe I am here for real, but then, I am only in London and not out to Exeter yet, so there is a valid sense of "not being here for real." Either way, it is very nice to have come and found Jim, the long-time Anglican studies chaplain at Regent, who just arrived to start on his PhD about a month ago. He and his wife and 2 year-old son are hosting me in North London (Muswell Hill) which is really nice.

I went to get a converter plug for my computer yesterday, and definitely managed to get the wrong one. So, I finally have power for my computer, and thus also for my iPod, which is great.

Also, my one pair of jeans ripped on the plane. I knew they were going, but figured that simply replacing them in Edmonton was too easy. I said to myself "Self, it will be a good excursion for you to shop in England." I didn't expect to have to do it on the first day though! So, with some direction from Amber, I found a bunch of thirft shops, and managed to get a great pair of jeans for cheap (£7) and they were even hemmed to the right length, which NEVER happens. So that was quite a gift.

Today I am just hanging around the neighbourhood. Tomorrow, I will head out on a proper downtown London adventure. I am trying to decide between the British museum and a walk around the downtown core. I'm guessing the museum will win out... but we shall see!

The best conversation ever...

Person #1: Do you know what is absolutely amazing?
Me: No. What?
Person #1: Cell phones! It is amazing that I can pick up the phone and call my sister across the world in like 3 seconds! Amazing! In fact, it is the power of God! And do you know, people don't understand that! The power of God! There is no way human technology could do something that fast!
Me: Yeah, it is pretty cool. Although, I believe the radio waves and electricity move at the speed of light, so there really is more than enough time for the signal to go around the world...
Person #1: No way! It is the power of God! No humans could do that!!
Me: Well, I suppose I would say that God has put regularities in the world that could account for cell phones... That is the power of God...
Person #1: No way! No way human technology can account for that! Do you know what else?
Me: No...
Person #1: Airplanes! People say airplanes fly by... metaphysics... and stuff... but it is the power of God! And people just don't understand that! Nobody could make one fly by itself.

At this point I'm standing in absolute awe of this person... unsure if I can hold back the laughter that is slowly killing me inside.

Me: So, what about birds? Birds fly naturally.
Person #1: Birds! Birds are light! Airplanes weigh thousands of pounds! There is just no way... and people don't understand this!
Me: Umm... OK.
Person #1: Have you met "Person #2"?
Me: No. Hi, Person #2! How are you?
Person #2: Good, I guess.
Person #1: Now, Person #2 needs a wife! (to me:) Are you married?
Me: Umm, nope.
Person #1: Ah, well if it is the Lord's will for you to be single you better get used to it, OK? No point fighting with God.
Me: Ummm... OK.


*Later*
Person #1: Do you know your strength is?
Me: Nope.
Person #1: You really love the Lord. That should be a strength of every Christian, but it really is for you. I know that you are unsure about this whole PhD thing, but you are not supposed to worry about it. God will take care of it, and of you.
Me: Umm... OK.
Person #1: Bye!

Recent Work

The muse of inspiration has not been visiting here often of late, but I have been writing for some other folks. Three articles for BioLogos kept me busy. Here they are:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

And then there is this one over at Michael Buttrey's blog, which is part of an ongoing discussion on metaphysics. Now keep in mind, this last one was written mostly facetiously to annoy a couple of my close friends who think nominalism is the forerunner of Satan. So take it with a grain of salt!

The Christian Year

This is from John Keble, one of the men from the Oxford Movement. This is a poem he wrote for the second Sunday in Advent. Enjoy.

And when these things begin to pass, then look up, and lift up your
heads; for your redemption draweth night.  St. Luke xxi. 28.

Not till the freezing blast is still,
Till freely leaps the sparkling rill,
And gales sweep soft from summer skies,
As o'er a sleeping infant's eyes
A mother's kiss; ere calls like these,
No sunny gleam awakes the trees,
Nor dare the tender flowerets show
Their bosoms to th' uncertain glow.

Why then, in sad and wintry time,
Her heavens all dark with doubt and crime,
Why lifts the Church her drooping head,
As though her evil hour were fled?
Is she less wise than leaves of spring,
Or birds that cower with folded wing?
What sees she in this lowering sky
To tempt her meditative eye?

She has a charm, a word of fire,
A pledge of love that cannot tire;
By tempests, earthquakes, and by wars,
By rushing waves and falling stars,
By every sign her Lord foretold,
She sees the world is waxing old,
And through that last and direst storm
Descries by faith her Saviour's form.

Not surer does each tender gem,
Set in the fig-tree's polish'd stem,
Foreshow the summer season bland,
Than these dread signs Thy mighty hand:
But, oh, frail hearts, and spirits dark!
The season's flight unwarn'd we mark,
But miss the Judge behind the door,
For all the light of sacred lore:

Yet is He there; beneath our eaves
Each sound His wakeful ear receives:
Hush, idle words, and thoughts of ill,
Your Lord is listening:  peace, be still.
Christ watches by a Christian's hearth,
Be silent, "vain deluding mirth,"
Till in thine alter'd voice be known
Somewhat of Resignation's tone.

But chiefly ye should lift your gaze
Above the world's uncertain haze,
And look with calm unwavering eye
On the bright fields beyond the sky,
Ye, who your Lord's commission bear
His way of mercy to prepare:
Angels He calls ye:  be your strife
To lead on earth an Angel's life.

Think not of rest; though dreams be sweet,
Start up, and ply your heavenward feet.
Is not God's oath upon your head,
Ne'er to sink back on slothful bed,
Never again your loans untie,
Nor let your torches waste and die,
Till, when the shadows thickest fall,
Ye hear your Master's midnight call?

What's the point?

Ok, I have a confession to make. It my spare time (which is not very much just at the moment) I've been watching "The Vampire Diaries". I don't know if it is just a Twilight knock off or not, but this is what I don't get: the vampires are "good". I think the trend started with Angel from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"--you know, the soft, good natured, sensitive guy who just happened to suck human blood to stay alive. Then came "Interview with a Vampire" and who can't sympathize with Brad Pitt? Then Twilight came out, and vampires could stand in the sun and be beautiful instead of be burnt. And in the Vampire Diaries, as in Twilight, the "good" vampires are "vegetarian", that is, they eat animal blood instead of human blood to stay alive. They sleep in beds, not coffins. They don't drink human blood. They can eat garlic and stand in the sun... like I said in the title: What is the point? What is the point of having a vampire show if the vampires are not actually vampires? I feel like we need a little Bram Stoker's "Dracula" to remind us that vampires are supposed to be terrifying creatures of the night who prey on human life without remorse or pity. They are supposed to inspire terror, not teenage angst! Argh...

Ok, rant done. Of course, the simply solution is: ignore Twilight hype and stay away from bad TV. Point taken.

Machiavelli, Power and the Princess Bride

Augustine once famously pictured the state as a lawless pirate. Like a pirate, governments use coercive force to get their own way. Unlike a pirate, the state is powerful enough to do so without any bad consequences. Except for divine grace, the evil effects of the state would overwhelm mankind. Thankfully, divine grace intercedes and makes governments tolerable.
When Machiavelli wrote The Prince in 1513, he basically agreed with Augustine and took the theory one step further. Governments, according to Machiavelli, are entirely based upon power. All states are pirates. Especially the “good” ones. The trick is to appear to be good and virtuous on the outside, but be bad and manipulating on the inside. In fact, the more vicious you are in reality, the more important it is for you to appear pious and peace loving. Once you’ve fooled the majority of people, they will happily support you. Furthermore, even if you are pious and peace loving, you ought to learn how to be savage and dishonourable in order to survive. Thus, Machiavelli redefines virtue for the modern world: Virtue is the combination of abilities that allows you to survive. It has nothing to do with being good or moral, only with using force well. Machiavelli also points out that all the states which have survived have in fact already been doing this, whether they realized it or not. If you unmask even the most virtuous state, he says, you’ll find... a pirate––ruthless, corrupt, and power hungry.
This empirical observation has been oft repeated in books of political theory ever since. Yet one contemporary book powerfully challenges the Machiavellian thesis. William Goldman’s The Princess Bride (1973) contends that Machiavelli did not probe deep enough into the heart of humanity. In Goldman’s novel we are presented with the cruel Dread Pirate Roberts. He is a man who never allows prisoners to survive. He can out-fence and out-wrestle the greatest fighters on earth, showing his mastery of coercive force, and he can “go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line” and live to tell the tale, demonstrating his adeptness at manipulation and intrigue. Truly, this is a depiction of corrupt humanity in all its bloody glory. Yet, when the Dread Pirate Roberts is unmasked, the reader is shocked to discover that beneath the rapacious exterior lies the love-stuck, virtuous Wesley who gently whispers “As You Wish.”
Is this the death of Machiavelli? The virtuous state conceals the swashbuckling pirate, it is true. But is that the end of the story? Perhaps beneath the savage mask of piratey coercion lies the softly beating heart of True Love. Thus do we find layer upon layer.
With the empirically demonstrated link between the drop in number of pirates and the increase in global average temperature (see graph below), it is an environmental imperative that we do all that is within our power to encourage further political involvement, especially amongst apathetic Canadians. More politics means more pirates. More pirates means cooler global climes. We can save the planet and, thanks to the Goldman thesis, rest secure that the increase in piratical political activists will be under-girded by love. Huzzah!

Of Cosmic Miracles

I've been trying something new lately.

Autumn is coming here in Vancouver, and you can feel it. No really, you can! It drops down from the sky and smacks you in the face and stays with you for hours as your body heat slowly dries up the damp. In short, the rain is back.

We've been spoiled this summer with an excessively sunny season. It has been hot, dry, and cloudless nearly all summer. It was so bad that trees were dying because these BC folks have forgotten (as you do when you live in a rain forest) that if there is no rain you actually have to water trees to keep them alive.

Anyways, the rain is back, and people are complaining. So I've been trying something new. Every time someone looks annoyed and mentions "it's raining again..." I let a glazed, dreamy expression settle over my face with a half-smile, as if I'm remembering how my first crush made me feel when he smiled at me. Then I mumble "Yeah, isn't it great?" Typically I get a really weird look in response, wondering whatever could I mean, that this cold, wet, and gloomy reality is back. If they ask a question, they are in for it...

"It's a freaking cosmic miracle!" I explain "The very thing we need for life, liquid water, which is only liquid within fantastically small temperature ranges, is FALLING FROM THE SKY!... This is like better than money, or BBQed pork (for all you Lamb readers out there), or gold, or... or... pretty much anything! (although actually, beer would be pretty cool falling from the sky, though everything would be pretty sticky...). Pure water is falling from the sky for free! Do you know how rare this is? It's awesome!"

By this time, they are usually smiling quizically and saying "I've never thought of it that way" and they walk off with hopefully a little more gratitude in their hearts for the miracle they have just witnessed.

Random act of kindness for the day: check!

School begins again...

I always feel like September is a time for new birth. New life. It is the real New Year in the student calendar. It is a time to recommit to devoting oneself to study. You make promises about how much you'll accomplish, and hope that you'll last just a little longer than last year before breaking them.
Everyone comes back from the summer, rested, renewed, and excited. New people come, and you always know that there will be new friends and old friends, and joyful meetings and boring repetitions of answers to the same three questions over and over and over again.
New paper, new books, and sharp pencils. Everything is made new.

Did I mention that I love September and the start of school?

This year, I am looking forward to a couple of things in particular. I am in a seminar that will be amazing. On political thought. I've spent the last couple weeks immersed in Aristotle's Politics and it was been amazing.

I am also looking forward to Anglican communion and mid-day prayers at the college. I think the loss of my daily communal prayer time has been one of the greatest losses of my summer. The structure of prayer is vital for my undisciplined self, and those daily refocussings help me to get out of myself. Especially the communion liturgy.
I always thought that liturgy would be boring, but I find that coming to the same words when you can be in such different places is a great gift. Some weeks I am bored, others I am distraught and stressed, others I am joyful. But the words remain the same, and so each week is like seeing it from a different perspective. Then, after, we go for lunch and talk about theology, politics, personal lives, the Anglican church, and whatever else.

I'm glad that school is starting again. Please, remind me of this in early November.

Torture and the Brave New World

I remember reading Frank Herbert's "Dune" series, and being somewhat morbidly impressed by the "pain box" which could cause unbearable pain without leaving any mark. Now, this has become a reality. The Silent Guardian has been produced to impose unbelievable pain by slightly microwaving pain nerves at exactly their most sensitive frequency. Can this really be considered by police forces?
The maker insists that there is no permanent damage, and that no one will stand more than a second of the agony. The plans for this, the very thought of it should be banished from the human mind. In today's world, the only apparent rule for torture is "don't leave a mark". This inflicts unbearable pain, and yet the person will never be able to "show" it later. Even worse, it is not limited to one particular spot on the body, but can encapsulate the entire body in agony, like being dipped in a pot of boiling oil, but without death to bring relief.

Of all the demonic inventions, I have yet to see anything that can equal this in its potential for injustice, cruelty, and hate.

At the moment, the beam is not held for long, and it seems that a little movement from the beam's path relieves the burning feeling. But it is just to use such a thing? What if (when?) it is abused? It could, indeed, save lives. But at what cost?