>From Jed: > Stirling Allen wrote:
>> . . . I walked by a group of younger people milling about outside an >> establishment (some kind of party). I pulled up a chair, stood on it, >> and started saying, "May I have your attention, please. I would like >> to tell you about some hope that you have for Athens." >> >> But then two security guards came up to me and escorted me >> away because I was interrupting a party. > > He made a spectacle of himself. What a jerk. > What an embarrassment. It's only an embarrassment in the eye of the beholder. I'll just bet'cha that Sterling never felt a twinge of embarrassment by his actions. I suspect he only felt an immediate sense of frustration - of being thwarted by the authorities after all Sterling wanted to do was spread the "good news" to his flock. I suspect few of us would feel the urge to attempt to proselytize in the obnoxious manner that Sterling had done. But that's because most of us don't possess a "sense of mission" that Sterling's possess. In a sense, that is the cross Sterling must bear in his lifetime. It seems pretty obvious to me that Sterling's motivation was not done out of a sense of malice or for personal gain, such as at the expense of those he wanted to proselytize to... well except for the fact that his obnoxious behavior ended up temporarily interrupting the proceedings of a dinner party he decided to "crash". It was done because Sterling, behaving like the "free energy" evangelist that he is, sincerely wanted to spread the good news as he perceived that good news to be. If Sterling is to be faulted, it is that some of his public actions lack subtlety. His lack of discrimination will unfortunately cause him to appear to behave like a zealot in the eyes of many. FWIW, Jed, I know damned well that you were once accused of behaving a "zealot" too! In any case, such actions doesn't make Sterling a jerk in my book. Just an occasional bull in a china shop. So, when Sterling comes knocking at the door, just make sure you know where your chinaware is. And then just sit back and watch the show. ;-) Regards Steven Vincent Johnson www.OrionWorks.com www.zazzle.com/orionworks
