The Rise And Fall of Power

Persian Short Sword, Bronze ca. 800 B.C.

I like history, reading about history, yes, but seeing the left over pieces of history that have managed to survive the ravages of time which sit behind glass cases in museums, this is fun for me. I have been able to purchase a couple of interesting pieces of history for myself over the years. One such item is a bronze Persian dagger sized sword covered in a thick green layer of oxidation, the certificate of authentication sporting a date of around 800 B.C. During the time at which this dagger was forged and used, the Assyrian Empire ruled in what is now Iraq and Iran. What became of this powerful empire you might ask? Well, after several centuries of various rulers from Babylonia and Assyria, the Empire was eventually conquered by that Macedonian General Alexander the Great. The Empire Alexander had fought for several years to build crumbled when he died at a young age and his conquests were split between his four generals. Though the Greek cultural revolution changed life in the known world for centuries to come, the various empires which Alexander's generals and their descendants ruled were also eventually conquered by the infamous Roman Empire. Can anyone see a trend here? I do, very much, the rise and fall of power, armies, nations, cultures, they all come and go. I am reminded of this each time that I look upon this corroded hunk of forged metal nestled on it's display stand. I can't help but think upon the situation of the United States of America. There is a foreboding sense of gloom that can be felt in the air. Sometimes it is so thick, it is nearly palpable. The slow spiraling decline in power, influence, stability, everything seems to be on the brink of collapse. Is there a good ending to this little story? Yes, a fisherman wrote several centuries ago "All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever" (1 Peter 1:24-25). The word of the Lord will always endure, what he says will come to pass, and I can always place my trust in this.

Not Another Blog!

From my 2009 trip to France, the Bayeux Cathedral

I was reading that there are some 150 million or more blogs out there in the internet world. How could another blog add to this growing ethereal community? I have been asking myself this question for some time now, while considering content, focus and direction for a possible blog of my own. I clicked and dragged over many an article sporting the title "blogging tips for beginners" or "50 tips for starting a blog." My perusal also included web searches for other blogs with content and focus in my fields of interest. It seems that Solomon was correct when he wrote "there is nothing new under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 1:9), imagine that! Thus I decided that even though I may not contribute in a meaningful or significantly impactful way to the blogosphere, I can at least share some of my thoughts, and the thoughts of others. The blog title Argumentum Ad Nauseam appears strange as a description of blog content, and perhaps better describes my condition after a long and turbulent airline flight. Argumentum Ad Nauseam is a technical term used to describe a logical fallacy in which an argument (right or wrong) is repeated over and over again until hopefully it is accepted by the hearers as true. I thought this an appropriate phrase to describe the content of this blog. It may not have anything particularly new, groundbreaking, fundamental, cutting-edge or even newly interesting. But it will reveal my thoughts on an eclectic selection of topics which I often think and read. Though most of what I may say has already been said before (thus the title). So, what to expect from this?

• Light discussions on philosophy and history
• Reviews of books I am reading, including text books
• Reflections on Greek and Hebrew languages
• Biblical topics, Christian life and History
• Aviation, mostly from the perspective of helicopter maintenance

Most of this will be filtered through my own Christian paradigm and will often relate to my faith in some way. I originally wanted to title the blog Fides Quaerens Intellectum, (faith seeking understanding) a term from the medieval theologian and philosopher Anselm (ca. 11th century) but this was a popular blog title (understandably). This Latin phrase best describes the motivation behind my life, reading and world view. Hopefully this will spark some engaging conversations.

[EDIT: I have changed the blog name (obviously) to The Textual Mechanic as it appears to me to be a much catchier name than my previous title. It also describes better my circumstances as my career as a Helicopter Mechanic intersects with my passion for textual criticism of the New Testament, canonical studies, and Biblical Studies in general.]