It's Black History Month. Since I am not in school I am not forced to read anything about black history. However, racial relations are important to me and the racial divide has become icnreasingly close to my heart in the last several years. MLK Day is a big day for me. February is big too. This year I'm completing a project I planned for last year. I'm reading a few books...

• The Negro Church in America by Franklin Frazier (just read it and it was a delight)
• The Black Church Since Frazier by Eric C. Lincoln (just started today)
• A Stone of Hope by David Chappell (not the comedian)
• The Autobiography of Malcolm X; As Told to Alex Haley

I'm excited about this. I will plan to read these all this month. After this weekend I should be done with the first two and started with the third. The fourth is pretty thick and I'm not sure I care to read the whole thing. We'll see. If I fix my computer then I'll end up watchign some movies and documentaries I've saved on my Netflix account (Malcolm X, Lean on Me, Glory, and The Color Purple). I recently watched Martin Luther King Jr.; A Man of Peace in a Time of War.

What are you reading, watching, doing to learn more about black history? What books or movies would you suggest for those who want to learn about black history?

My computer is still busted. It may be time to get a new one (this will require saving money since I have not been doing so). Lacking internet and typing ability has been a bit of a blessing this week.I've been reading more, something I'm happy to be doing again, and it has been very good for me.

I've been reading some books by Elie Wiesel (Day, Dawn, and Night). He is incredibly negative and obsessed with dead. He essentially tells the reader the has been dead for some time through his self-reflecting main character in the fiction pieces. I believe it. The books are taking a toll of my soul it seems. I'l be glad to end the series tonight. Perhaps I will find something uplifting to read next before beginning some bigger projects.

I'm working a lot this week. Well, a lot in comparison to the weeks and months prior. I have about 20 hours at one job (usually I get 10 or 12) and the typical 10 at my other. I'm excited to finally quit the janitor job and work 30-40 at the pizza job. It's not glorious work but it is consistent and it suffices.

The only day I don't work both jobs this week is the night of my Home Community. I've missed them and getting to be a part of the gathering would be great. Except I am beginning to recall the leader telling me it isn't happening this week. Hmm...

Finally, I'm going to be gardening again this season and I have an exceptional amount of room in the backyard in which to invest. I'm quite pleased with this. I'm deciding what to plant. I need to do some research on when to plant and how to protect my delicious growing investments.

I'm behind the times and learned only minutes ago about this news story: Gunsights' biblical references concern US and UK forces. Let me give you the short version of the story.

Trijicon (U.S. manufacturer owned by some Christian guy) makes gunsights for the U.S. and U.K. military. On their sights are the markings "2COR4:6" and "JN8:12" which appear after the stock number.* The military is upset because they were unaware of the markings during their purchase and are concerned about offending people. Others are concerned that if soldiers are captured their Muslim enemies will use the inscriptions against them and thus claim the scriptures are a threat to the safety of soldiers.

A Trijicon spokesperson told the BBC ,"Our effort is simple and straightforward: to help our servicemen and women win the war on terror and come home safe to their families. As part of our faith and our belief in service to our country, Trijicon has put scripture references on our products for more than two decades. As long as we have men and women in danger, we will continue to do everything we can to provide them with both state-of-the-art technology and the never-ending support and prayers of a grateful nation,."

The Trijicon website states, "We believe that America is great when its people are good. This goodness has been based on biblical standards throughout our history and we will strive to follow those morals."

*2Corinthians 4:6 - For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
John8:12 - Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, "I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life."

Are the concerns of the U.S. and U.K. military legitimate? Should Trijicon stop marking weapons with New Testament scriptures? Why or why not? Is this something the military should know about before giving a manufacturer 66 million dollars on weapons for a year?