Thank you, God, for saving me from your lightning strike

How I've always wished I could get people to apply this kind of reasoning to me:

A Wichita man was hit by lightning on Thursday night just hours after buying three tickets in the record-setting $656 Mega Millions lottery, drawn on Friday. [...] "But for the grace of God, I would have been dead," Isles said. "It was not a direct strike."

But unfortunately for me and my secret desire to push a tiny boy into a river and then fish him out and have everyone call me a hero for the rest of my life, rationalizing at this level is reserved for deities, whether imaginary or earthbound.  Who was it who said of Obama, "Much like God—in fact, exactly like God—he's never held responsible for even his worst crimes and betrayals"?  Oh, right.

Comments

[Harpfool]

Great to see some words from you Mr Caruso!

Regarding the Futility Monster, may I quote back at you some of your words from the Comments to the post you link to at the end:

"...It's easy to think a blog is just the sum of its authors and commenters, but there are a lot of lurkers (some of whom I know about and/or know personally) and some postings are picked up in unexpected places (this one has already been linked from sources I've never seen before)--and those people often are not part of the choir. So postings that may look like old news to the more visible participants may actually be helping other people reading along to change their views. If I didn't believe that, I wouldn't spend a fraction of the time that I do writing this stuff."

Hoping that you might start spending even a fraction of the time you used to writing this stuff!

All the best.

[tom]

I've never commented before, but I will, just to say welcome back to you your own website John.

Sane voices and writing are so rare. John back writing seems like such a relief.

[Catherine]

Welcome back, John.

Not sure what the lightning strike guy was saying. It isn't as if he won the lottery, right, so his reasoning is that because he had bought the tickets, he was saved from lightning death. In any case, I see red when people use the "there but for the grace of God argument, because it implies that God keeps his grace from all the other poor people who died in the earthquake/tsunami/tornado/fire/etc. Makes me crazy, truly, the self-absorption.

[Rosemary Molloy]

The other thing that drives me nuts is hearing, say: "Yes, John was terribly sick, but God saved him." Presumably, God made him sick in the first place, so what's that all about? Then, of course, if John kicks off, it's "God saw how he was suffering and took him home to heaven." Aarg!

[Catherine]

Rosemary, so true, always an explanation for whatever atrocity, tragedy, etc.

John, were you sick? I thought you were just on vacation and wondered how you had the nerve to do that without asking us.

If you were will, glad you're better. There but for the grace, you know.

[John Caruso]

Only metaphorically.

[Jay]

Ditto above. Reading that old post and comment thread - Caruso you need to get back into it. You're a first ballot Hall of Fame blogger, the game needs you! (Hell, even if you just want to recommend movies... I really liked Keith.)

[Rosemary Molloy]

Oh, sorry, I was just using "John" hypothetically; didn't mean OUR John.

[Catherine]

My comment should read, "If you were ill," for god's sake learn to proofread.

[Barry Soetoro]

It was Gustav Fechner who said, "Of all miracles, the greatest is that anything exists at all."

[John Caruso]

By the way, thanks to everyone for the support; I really do appreciate it.