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Sports Aggression: BYU vs. University of New Mexico (Ladies' Soccer)

11/7/2009

I had a sports psychologist professor in university who specialized in sports aggression. I wonder what he would say about the BYU ladies’ soccer game against the University of New Mexico on Nov. 5, 2009.

I played a lot of high school sports and college basketball. I’ve seen a lot of aggressive play, but nothing I experienced comes close to what happened during this soccer game.

BYU’s Carly Payne had a slugfest with NM’s Elizabeth Lambert. During the game Lambert moved in close behind Payne. Payne did not take kindly to Lambert being on her back so she gave Lambert a subtle no-look, reverse Bruce Lee elbow punch. Lambert responded with a Karate blow to the back.

During another play while Payne was chasing the ball, Lambert came in from behind with a “You’re going down, sucker!” slide check.

During another play Lambert delivered a Kung Fu sideways punch to Payne’s face. Nasty.

And just to prove that Lambert was taking on all comers, she took down BYU’s Cassidy Shumway by yanking on her pony tail.

I know what my sports psychology professor would say. He would invoke the Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis, which is that people get aggressive when they are frustrated from reaching a goal (BYU was winning during all this). Then he would say, “Where was the referee?!” The ref made no calls during these rough plays. Fortunately the league did not miss the rough play. It suspended Lambert indefinitely. Hopefully she will learn her lesson and return a better player.

Now that you’ve seen the still shots, watch the full video.

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The Great Pyramid: A Monument to God?

11/5/2009

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The great pyramid at Giza is the last wonder of the ancient world left standing. It is a magnificient structure that baffles the mind. Who built it and why? Egyptologists say it was built by Egyptians in 2560 BC for a pharaoh named Khufu (aka “Cheops” in Greek). I think that the Egyptologists are wrong.

It was not built by Egyptians and it was not built for a pharaoh named Khufu. (In case you were wondering, I don’t think it was built by little green men from space, either.) I think it was built by a righteous people as a monument to God.

I agree with one thing the Egyptologists say about the pyramid, that it was constructed around 2560 BC. I have no reason to doubt that the dating technology used on the pyramid is accurate. But I doubt their claims about who built it and why.

If the pyramid was completed around 2560 BC it could not have been built by Egyptians, although they probably helped. An understanding of mathematics was required to build the pyramid, yet the Egyptians lacked an understanding of mathematics prior to 2000 BC. Consider the following:

1. The first century AD historian Josephus Flavius and the Book of Abraham tell us that when Abraham entered Egypt (circa 2000 BC), the Lord instructed him to teach mathematics and astronomy to the Egyptians.

2. Joseph Smith wrote that “the learning of the Egyptians and their knowledge of astronomy was no doubt taught them by Abraham.”

3. “Clear [Egyptian mathematical] records began to appear by 2000 BC citing approximations for π and square roots. Exact statements of number, written arithmetic tables, algebra problems, and practical applications with weights and measures also began to appear around 2000 BC, with several problems solved by abstract arithmetic methods” (Source: Wikipedia). So ancient Egyptian mathematical texts did not appear until 2000 BC.

If the Egyptians had in fact built the pyramid in 2560 BC, then when Abraham arrived in 2000 BC they would have pointed to the pyramid and said, “You’re too late, buddy. We already know that stuff.” Note also that the emergence of mathematical writings in 2000 BC agrees with the estimated date for Abraham’s arrival (2000 BC).

Egyptologists also claim that the pyramid was built for a great Egyptian king named Khufu (2589 – 2566 BC). The evidence suggests otherwise. If you were to build a pyramid of that magnitude and precision for a king, wouldn’t you put the name and drawings of the king all over the inner walls? And wouldn’t you place a sarcophagus for the final resting place of the king in the largest chamber? Well, none of those things were present in the great pyramid.

Archeologists did find a lidless empty stone box in the main chamber, but it is not large enough to be a sarcophagus. And the walls are completely devoid of markings, with one exception. In 1837 an English Traveler named Howard Vyse blasted his way into sealed air-space chambers above the main chamber with gun powder. In an obscure air-space he discovered the misspelled name “Khufu” hastily written on a wall. I say that it was written by an illiterate worker who wanted to leave his mark. Others say that because Vyse was under time constraints from the local government and interest from his financial backers was waning, he wrote the inscriptions himself to revitalize interest in his work.

So if it wasn’t the Egyptians, then who built it and why? My favorite pick is the pre-apostasy Chaldeans/Sumerians who were descendents of Shem. Other theories are that it was Melchizedek, Job, or the pre-flood people.

Finally, if the pyramid was not built for Khufu, then why was it built? A magnificent structure of that magnitude built without markings by a righteous people? Sounds like a bit like a temple, or better yet, a monument to God.

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Sports Aggression: BYU vs. University of New Mexico (Ladies' Soccer)

The Great Pyramid: A Monument to God?

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