I had quite the surreal experience last night while eating dinner, watching MLB's All-Star game, and reading diary excerts of Rachel Corrie, an American pacifist who was killed in Palestine March 16 of this year while protesting the destruction of homes in Gaza. This strange combination could be deemed surreal on its own merits, but seemed exceptionally so at the time. Why? Well, a few things immediately come to mind.

One; Rachel's death reminds me that this world is fallen and that we're 'damaged goods', so to speak. While we clamor for justice as Americans, as Rachel was doing, and also for us, as Christians, injustice happens every day and we must come to terms with that. While we should not be complacent we should understand that our actions will have limited effect. What then, is our call? What is the appropriate action for us to take? In fact, what are we supposed to do, anyway? Here's a possible starting point: Sojourners. Be careful. Also, if you're interested in the movement for justice in the middle east from an ecumenical but largely Jewish perspective, pay the folks at Tikkun a visit. Click on the core vision link if you've an extra hour to spare. And, for those of you who didn't know, Cornell West is the man.

Two; what's so wrong with baseball? Everybody and their brother has been bashing the game over the last few years and it's easy to see why. The All-Star game, once something I dearly looked forward to, last night showcased all that's wrong with the game of baseball, namely escalating player salaries and use of public funds for privately held companies (i.e., stadium financing). It was nice to see a few kids in the stands but I suspect we'll see more and more gray hairs in the seats instead of kids with gloves over the next 20 years. Of course, there's still minor league ball.