Category Archives: Secular News

Can We Mourn About The Florida Tragedy Properly? Please!!!!

The thoughts and prayers of all of us at the Ed Boston Podcast Network go out for everyone affected by the tragic situation today in Florida.

Here are some thoughts I have on this topic in general.

After giving some thought about this situation and how it will be reported on and reacted to, I came up with the following.

  • The story will change so many times so the early story will not be the final story.
  • The kid will be called mentally ill (seems to me that one would have to be to open fire inside of a high school).
  • Liberals will blame guns.
  • Conservatives will throw up the 2nd amendment (which you know I’m all for).
  • None of the above will bring those precious lives lost back or heal the wounds, both physically and mentally, of everyone who were victims.

All the while – where is the grief for all those affected? The bodies are barely cold (some haven’t even been removed from the building) and you know that every side of the equation is doubling down right now instead of giving respect to those who have passed, those that are injured, those that survived, and all of their families and friends.

For once, can’t we put aside all of the things above that  I listed and just take the time to properly mourn another horrible chapter in American history.

God’s blessings and comfort to those who need it, and may the healing power of Jesus Christ be with all who have been injured.

New Feature: Let’s See What Countries Listen to the Ed Boston Podcast

While the United States, Great Britain, and Canada would be the obvious choices for the leading places that listen to the Ed Boston Podcast, there are literally listeners from dozens of different countries around the world.

In a new feature, we will give a short shout-out to a different country that we have listeners from every few days, with a little background on each place we list.

Some places (like today’s feature) are very interesting to us, and show the power and reach of the World Wide Web. We take it very seriously that the Gospel of Jesus Christ we preach is able to go places that we would never personally be able to go.

With today’s post, we will highlight Sri Lanka. The really surprising aspect of Sri Lanka being on the list is that it currently is the #4 country for listeners. The rankings change pretty regularly, but we would have never guessed this country being #4.

From Wikipedia:

Sri Lanka is the 58th most populated nation in the world, with roughly 21,444,000 people, and an annual population growth rate of 1.14%. Sri Lanka has a birth rate of 17.6 births per 1,000 people and a death rate of 6.2 deaths per 1,000 people. Population density is highest in western Sri Lanka, especially in and around the capital.  Sinhalese constitute the largest ethnic group in the country, with 74.8% of the total population.

Sri Lankan Tamils are the second major ethnic group in the island, with a percentage of 11.2%. Sri Lankan Moors comprise 9.2%. Tamils of Indian origin were brought into the country as indentured laborers by British colonists to work on estate plantations. Nearly 50% of them were repatriated following independence in 1948. They are distinguished from the native Tamil population that has resided in Sri Lanka since ancient times. There are also small ethnic groups such as the Burghers (of mixed European descent) and Malays from Southeast Asia. Moreover, there is a small population of  Vedda people who are believed to be the original indigenous group to inhabit the island.

Languages

The distribution of languages and religious groups in Sri Lanka, 1981

Sinhalese and Tamil are the two official languages of Sri Lanka. The Constitution defines English as the link language. English is widely used for education, scientific and commercial purposes. Members of the Burgher community speak variant forms of Portuguese Creole and Dutch with varying proficiency, while members of the Malay community speak a form of Creole Malay that is unique to the island.

Religion

Sri Lanka religiosity (Pew Research)
Religion Percent
Buddhist
70%
Hindu
13%
Muslim
10%
Christian
7%
Other
0.04%
Source: Census of Population and Housing, 2011

 

Introducing The Night Owl Country Band

On Friday Night, February 2nd, Amy and I had the privilege to attend a concert by Nashville recording artists, the Night Owl Country Band. I’ve been friends with Matt Lee, Brett Denney, TimDooley, and Steve Pardue, for a few years now and I’ve watched their band get better and better – up to the point of signing a record deal with a Nashville label.

The band has performed on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry, and this coming week, the band will be back in Nashville to record a brand new album. I’m excited and anticipating what they have in store for us.

Proud to know these guys and call them friends, and soon I will be calling them “friends of the Ed Boston Podcast Network” because I plan to have one or more of them on our program.

Check out the photos I posted here.