More Non-Reality Television...

Victoria Fall, Travel+Leisure, Facebook

Taking a rare Sunday night with some television and I viewed this ridiculous promo for a new 'reality' television show on A&E while watching Storage Wars.

I watched the return of Dave Hester on Storage Wars, a program I basically stopped watching months ago.

The show continues to decline. They need Barry Weiss back as at least he was funny and made it interesting as he searched through the lockers.

Entertainment Weekly, August 11, 2014

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'New reality show leaves online couples on deserted island'

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'Here’s the latest reality TV experiment: Take couples who have only “dated” over the Internet and have them shack up together for one week on a deserted island.'

I realize that dated here is in quotation marks as in "dated".

But even as one that is not primarily a dater, largely due to lack of Christians in British Columbia and Canada and the massive lack of at all theologically oriented Christians, whatsoever, but does socialize with persons of the opposite sex; any notion of dating over the internet is in my mind philosophically flawed. 

The idea of dating requires socially actually meeting which by definition requires in-person, offline interaction. 

Meeting online is not truly meeting in a full physical sense,

So called  'dating' over the internet, is in reality chatting at best. 

Online interaction can lead to meaningful offline interaction, but I certainly would not call it 'dating' in any context.

I will admit that Skype or video chatting does add much more socially to an online discussion than merely writing as at least there is a physical dimension as in viewing another person.

I have used video chatting in a work context and one can begin to know another person somewhat, admittedly.

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The show is A&E’s upcoming Love Prison, where cyber-couples get an extreme dose of offline romance, stripped of their electronic devices and living alone together in an island house. “The couples are forced to get to know each other the hard way,”

Reading this I once again think 'a sign of the times' in the 21st century. 

The statement to know someone 'the hard way' is a sign of the times.

In reality, if meaningful potential dating relationships are left in the online context it may seem easier than dealing with reality, but it is avoiding the reality of the need for human interaction and the trial and error attached.

Hebrews 11: 1 New American Standard Bible

11 Now faith is the [a]assurance of things [b]hoped for, the [c]conviction of things not seen.

From a Christian perspective, sometimes the difficult things in life are what are required to be done in many areas of life. 

A step of faith needs to be taken.

Reasonable faith, not blind faith, but a step of faith.

As Hughes discusses in his Hebrews commentary, the faith is not a blind faith, although things not seen, yet one can be convinced of their reality. It is 'enlightened and substantial' faith. Hughes (1990: 440-442

Faith and revelation work together. Hughes (1990: 442). 

Therefore what is unseen can be taken in faith to eventually occur because of what has already been revealed by God through Scripture and in life,

A&E said in a press release. “This social experiment will test the validity of online compatibility versus real-life chemistry.

Philosophically, I question the concept of 'online compatibility' as weak.

Online at best should simply be a way to meet persons, in all types of social contexts that one would meet offline for a potential meaningful social compatibility. 

This is not just the case with dating, it is also the case in business, employment and other.

When I was hired in corporate security the initial contacts were online followed up by offline in person, face to face meetings.

But, I certainly was not hired simply online.

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They have zero access to technology and must spend 23 hours a day indoors. Surprise interruptions keep them on their toes, and just when things may be going well, video interviews about their past reveal secrets both good and bad.”

HUGHES, PHILIP. (1990) A Commentary On The Epistle To The Hebrews, Grand Rapids, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

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