Monthly Archives: September 2011

Marmosets in plaid waistcoats…..

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Ffolkes,
It’s a strange morning….nothing seems to want to settle down in my head long enough to get it on screen. Even the usual bits of nonsense or profundity aren’t happening, nor is any new character popping up demanding I write their story. I could write a story about Noah, or a memorial for my Mom, but I would indubitably start crying halfway through, and I’m just not in the mood for grief today. So far today, the only agreeable activities I’ve taken part in were my first few sips of coffee and picking out the Pearls for this issue. There is something soothing to my spirit about the picking out of each day’s offerings. I think it probably has to do with the Pearls themselves. By taking each into my consciousness and considering it according to the criteria my mind has developed (I don’t know what the criteria are, as I just observe the process, without taking an active part), there is an uplifting, wholesome side-effect that leaves me feeling, if nothing else, better than I had been. I guess it makes sense; happiness is contagious, and mere contact with thoughts that produce the higher emotions can infect the spirit with positive germs. Just like when you’ve got the Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie-woogie Blues, and the only cure is some Good Lovin’!
Now I’m proud…..the above paragraph, complete with cute nonsensical conclusion that, despite its nonsensical nature, provided a logical end to a series of loosely connected thoughts that were heading precisely nowhere, with one short line that brought the entire mess to a much-needed end. I’m also encouraged, as serendipity seems to be in the neighborhood, so who knows what good things might be encountered today, even if we weren’t looking for them? In any case, I’ve babbled long enough, and should probably go do something constructive…..please enjoy today’s Pearls, if only for their positive germs…..

“Is not life a hundred times too short for us to bore ourselves?” — Friedrich Nietzsche

“To fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy’s resistance without
fighting.” — Sun Tzu (fl. c. BC 500)

Of all forces acting on man, change is the most beneficial and the most cruel.–unknown

I feel like one
Who treads alone
Some banquet-hall deserted,
Whose lights are fled,
Whose garlands dead,
And all but he departed.
— Thomas Moore (1779-1852)
— Oft in the Stilly Night

“In prosperity our friends know us; in adversity we know our friends.” — John Churton Collins

An it harm none, do what thou will. — Wiccan Credo

A fine looking group, think you not? A good omen for a new day….. y’all take care out there….

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.

gigoid

Dozer

Kowabunga!

Wicked barbarian hairstyles with peach highlights….

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Ffolkes,
Back in dark ages, during the hippie era in Berkeley, I was fortunate enough to be able to attend an exhibition of art at the San Francisco Museum of Art in Golden Gate Park. The showing I attended was highlighted by a collection of the paintings of Vincent Van Gogh.  During my walk through his visions in oil, I stopped to look at one of his self-portraits, and received a revelation, or perhaps epiphany. In any case…as I stood looking at this small painting, covered with the extremely thick, bold strokes common to his works, I thought at first that it was a good piece of work, but I didn’t see what all the fuss was about his paintings, which were often simple and without pretension, scenes of everyday life. Then, for some reason, I stepped back from the portrait I was observing, to a distance of about 12 feet from the painting. When I reached a certain spot away from the painting, his eyes came to life. Literally. Alive. The entire portrait no longer had brush strokes that described a face; it WAS a face, and his eyes looked right into my soul. I could feel all of his feelings through his eyes; the anguish, the pain, the genius, all of it came through as if I was looking at his reflection in a mirror. In that moment, I was given a gift, for which I will always be grateful. I had seen beauty in its most basic form; with bold strokes Van Gogh made his vision of life come to life, and it was then I first came to understand genius, and how it can show Reality to those of us who cannot always see what people like Van Gogh see through their unique vision.


Since then, I’ve been fortunate enough to have seen many things that are beautiful, both in the works of man, and in nature itself. It was a grand awakening, of a side of my own soul that previously I had not known, and I have always been grateful for the impulse that took me to SF that day. Seeing true beauty, as seen through the eyes of a genius (I know, three times, but its the best word I have on that subject), has shown me how to find it in other places, and has enriched my life in uncountable ways. So if you ever get the chance to see his work, or the sculpture of Renoir, or hear the music of Mozart and Bach, take the chance. You won’t regret it…..


All this leads me to today’s Pearls, many of which were created by men of genius, and bear the unmistakable sign of beauty that only a few people can show us……beauty is as necessary for life as is oxygen. A soul that cannot appreciate it is a stunted soul, and not fully human. These were all chosen because they touch Reality, and show it back to us, and bring us to beauty….

“There are worlds out there where the sky is burning and the sea’s asleep and the rivers dream; people made of smoke and cities made of song. Somewhere there’s danger, somewhere there’s injustice, somewhere else the tea’s getting cold. Come on Ace, we’ve got work to do…”
— The Doctor, Survival [Last lines of last episode]

‘Friendship should be more than biting time can sever.’ — T. S. Eliot

I see the lights of the village
gleam through the rain and the mist.
And a feeling of sadness comes o’er me,
that my soul cannot resist.
A feeling of sadness and longing
that is not akin to pain,
And resembles sorrow only
as the mist resembles rain.
— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), The Day is done

“Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind.
To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue.” — Buddha (B.C. 568-488)

Yet each man kills the thing he loves,
By each let this be heard,
Some do it with a bitter look,
Some with a flattering word,
The coward does it with a kiss,
The brave man with a sword!
— Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), The Ballad of Reading Gaol

It is alleged that when Einstein and his wife visited the Mount Wilson Observatory in California, Mrs. Einstein pointed to a particularly
complex piece of equipment and asked its purpose. Their guide said that it was used to determine the shape of the universe. “Oh,” she
said, not at all impressed, “my husband uses the back of an old envelope to work that out.”

That is probably enough for one day; don’t want to consume too much in one sitting. Today, I’m going to hunt beauty…y’all take care out there…

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.

gigoid

Dozer

Kowabunga!

Walking in Jezebel’s gardens….

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Ffolkes,


Picking out today’s Pearls turned out to be a marathon. Just couldn’t find the right stuff to lead off a lazy Saturday. So, we’ll have to wing it…. Hmmm…..nothing is rising to the surface. Even stirring the contents briskly has nothing sticking to the spoon. I suppose we could take a few moments here for an advertisement disclaimer, but, it being Saturday, I don’t much feel like diving back in to the oyster beds to find where I left it. I could go nonsensical; that’s always fun. But Lewis Carroll did that already, and I don’t much feel like trying to out-Jabberwock a dead author. I suppose I should find a newsworthy event to share, or comment on the current political scene, but I also don’t feel like putting on the necessary high-top boots for wading around in that filthy pool. It stinks, also, and I’m out of nasal plugs. Well, this means we will be going to last resort tactics, and saying just this; today’s Pearls are being brought to you by your generous donations, and by a grant from the Idiosyncratic Corporation, makers of fine eccentric philosophies, which come complete with a full line of optional accessories……

I stared into the abyss. The abyss stared into me. Neither of us liked what we saw.

“Adulthood, one could say, is when it begins to occur to you that you may not be leading a charmed life.” — Adam Phillips

And Katerfelto, with his hair on end
At his own wonders, wondering for his bread.
‘T is pleasant, through the loopholes of retreat,
To peep at such a world,–to see the stir
Of the great Babel, and not feel the crowd.

~~ William Cowper ~~

~~ The Task, Book iv, The Winter Evening, Line 86 ~~

“Beware the man of one book.” — St. Thomas Aquinas

“Stupidity cannot be cured with money, or through education, or by legislation. Stupidity is not a sin; the victim can’t help being stupid. But stupidity is the only universal capital crime; the sentence is death, there is no appeal, and execution is carried out automatically and without pity.” — Robert A. Heinlein — Lazarus Long

WARNING:  The Meaning Of Life Is Subject To Change Without Notice.

Whoa, there big fella! Whew! Almost couldn’t get it to stop…..’tis a fine day for nonsense, don’t you think? Have fun with it, and y’all take care out there….

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.
gigoid
Dozer

Pockets full of mint jelly….

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Ffolkes,
The young man’s adventure will have percolate for awhile; my creative juices are a bit dried up just now…. I once read an article that discussed the effects of stress, and how certain seminal events can put one’s level of stress through the roof. Events that were named in this category included major job stress (nasty boss, gossipy co-workers, not having a job, getting fired, etc.), death of a relative or close friend, divorce or other relationship stresses, moving, economic stress (poverty, etc.), medical issues (cancer, etc.), and a couple others I don’t recall. The author assigned a numerical value to each type of event, and a high score in a short period of time was, he contended, a short road to depression, or other mental disorder if not recognized and treated. It was a well-thought-out premise, with plenty of statistical support for his argument. I can only say that I found it convincing, but not totally accurate in its predictive function, i.e., he really had no idea what the stress did to people in a realistic sense, and seemed to not really have a feel for how much people can really take before they break. Nonetheless, it was a good yardstick to determine how much stress one has in one’s own life.


So, I went ahead and marked down how many of the events mentioned I had experienced in the last year. It turns out that I have had EVERY ONE of the above listed events to deal with in the last year. I got forced out of my job, and make half of what I made while at work. At the same time as that was happening, the woman I had loved and lived with for 10 years decided she no longer wanted me around. For six months I fought with the State bureaucracy over my retirement. Then, just as my income dropped by 50%, my Mom got sick, and I spent 6 weeks performing 24 hour nursing care, and spent my entire savings to purchase the materials needed. I missed going on a cruise I’d looked forward to for months in order to nurse her. Then she left, and I was left to deal with my geriatric dog, and barely enough money to eat with for the next few months. Then my dog died. My Mom had a stroke, and went into the hospital and died there without ever really waking up. This whole time, my own medical issues continue to dog me, sucking out my energy, and alternating bouts of severe pain in my back with bowel problems that leave me feeling like I am wading through molasses.


Now let’s be clear here….I’m not laying this out to garner sympathy; I know there are many people out there suffering the same kinds of issues every day, and there are still others who are worse off than I am (like having all this to deal with, and NO retirement check to count on coming in every month. Small as it is, my check is more than a lot of folks in this country have, thanks to our beloved ruling class). What I am going through is, of course, a result of my own karmic burden, and there is scant blame that can be placed elsewhere than right here inside my own head. But, as I read the news each day, I am struck again and again with how badly our society here in America has fallen into disarray. The absolutely outrageous crap being spouted of late by the Republicans who wanna be Prez has been not merely ignorant, but actively stupid. I shudder to think about how things will go if any one of them manages to pull the wool over enough eyes to get elected. I am of the firm opinion that anyone who wants the job of President of this country is literally insane. Not figuratively, literally. The desire for that much power is insane, period, and anyone who wants it should never, ever be elected. Mean-spirited, spiteful, and deliberately ignorant, the zealots of the world have grown to such numbers that reason, truth and compassion are being buried under cries of hatred and fear.


Today’s Pearls each contain a piece of wisdom about society, at least if examined from around a corner. But each one of them is something I believe firmly, and will, I hope, help to understand and deal with the insanity currently serving in place of society…..enjoy!….

“No excellent soul is exempt from a mixture of madness.” — Aristotle

“Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious.” — Oscar Wilde

“History has the relation to truth that theology has to religion — i.e., none to speak of.” — Lazarus Long

“But a short time elapsed after the death of the great reformer of the Jewish religion, before his principles were departed from by those who
professed to be his special servants, and perverted into an engine for enslaving mankind, and aggrandizing their oppressors in Church and
State.” — Thomas Jefferson, [letter?] To S. Kercheval, 1810

Existing order thrives upon ignorance and lies.
Objective truth and individual reason are feared above all.

“Humanity has in the course of time had to endure from the hands of science two great outrages upon its naive self-love.  The first was when it realized that our earth was not the center of the universe, but only a speck in a world-system of a magnitude hardly conceivable…  The second was when biological research robbed man of his particular privilege of having been specially created, and relegated him to a descent from the animal world.” — Sigmund Freud

I find your faith in reality rather amusing.

Actually, I had trouble limiting myself to only seven today; history has a lot of examples of men and women who observed the world through clear eyes, and all of them were distrustful of zealotry, with good cause….I could go on in this vein for a long time, but y’all probably have stuff to do, so I’ll leave this here….wherever here is…….y’all take care out there, and beware the ignorant and zealous….

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.

gigoid

Dozer

Kowabunga!

Dancing the tortellini tango….

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Ffolkes,
With a loud ‘POP’! a running young man appeared out of thin air on a round platform, which sat in solitary silence upon the top of a moderately large hill. The young man stopped running as soon as his feet hit the platform, and he came to a halt near the edge. From his vantage point on the platform, he could see across the small valley below to the sheer-sided, massive mountains on the far side. A small, intensely white orb was setting behind the mountain, and the lengthening shadows spoke of the approaching night in silent harmony. As he watched, lights began to appear down in the valley, lighting the windows of what appeared to be a small village of perhaps eight or ten buildings. More yellow than white, the lights blinked and danced in the still cooling air, and gave promise of welcome. The young man stood for a moment, gazing down, then turned and walked rapidly to his right, where a small vehicle sat waiting. Inside he could see the profile of a young woman with long, flowing hair, black as the oncoming night. She turned to face him, and offered a brilliant smile, which lit her whole face, changing her appearance from merely attractive to blinding beauty. “Welcome home, Ari,”, she said, “I’m glad you’re here. You’re just in time to help us celebrate.” The young man, whose face had remained grim, gave a small smile, and breaking his silence, said, “Thanks, Lina, it’s good to be home. Has everyone else arrived?” “Yes,” she replied, “you’re the last, as usual.” His smile returned, and he settled back into the seat as the car began to move, following the road which seemed to appear before them magically as it moved. (to be continued….)


Hmm….interesting. It seems our young man has fallen into an adventure of some kind. I suppose further episodes will tell us the rest of the story….I’m as befuddled as you are, as this is just coming out by itself, without any kind of plot line or plan. Kinda fun, actually! We’ll see where it goes from here….. Well, brain freeze…..since nothing else even remotely entertaining is coming to mind, I guess we will proceed to the meat of the program. Today’s offerings are my favorite type of aphorisms; succinct, pithy, and deep as a 1000 year-old well. It takes a good grasp of language to persuade so much truth to reveal itself in one line, and these folks demonstrate their mastery well. A couple of them, specifically the poem  (or part of one) and the last line were included just because of the picturesque structure and brilliant use of words to build strong images in the mind. Even if one doesn’t know exactly the point they are trying to make, it feels good just to read them. Or maybe that’s just me….well, anyway, enjoy!…..

“Although a cloth be washed a hundred times, how can it be rendered clean and pure if it be washed in water which is dirty?” — Nagarjuna (c. 100-200 A.D.)

“Hateful to me as are the gates of hell, is he who, hiding one thing in his heart, utters another” — Homer (c. 700 B.C.)

Do not go gentle into that good night
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light
— Dylan Thomas

“The only problem with seeing too much is that it makes you insane.” — Phaedrus

“Far more crucial than what we know or do not know is what we do not want to know.” — Eric Hoffer

“Forward goes the vanguard of the lunatic fringe,tickling the death clowns of normality.” — HealNorm

“tickling the death clowns of normality.”  Absolutely brilliant! Brain on, and engaged; proceed with the day….and y’all take care out there…..

 

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.gigoid

Dozer

Kowabunga!

A swift passage to melancholy…

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Ffolkes,
I once read an article or essay somewhere that made the claim that when we cry or feel deeply sad over the death of a loved one, we are really crying for ourselves, not for the departed. In at least one respect, that is true; the person who has passed away is no longer suffering, and presumably has gone on to a better place, so in truth we ought to be happy, not sad. But we are sad, because it hurts to know that one in whom we have placed our trust and love will not be around anymore for us to be with, to talk to, to enjoy. So in that sense we are crying for ourselves, in lamentation for lost love. But, unlike the author of the piece I was reading, I believe that is okay. It is, if nothing else, a completely human reaction to feel pain at a loss, and to a certain extent our reaction may be called selfish; no one can deny that selfishness is purely human. But it is more than merely selfish, because humans are never just one thing at a time. We also feel our loss in other ways, and with other feelings. There is relief, for the ending of whatever pain the loved one may have been experiencing. There may be guilt, too, for taking the presence of the loved one for granted, or for not telling them they were loved. All of these differing reactions, and the many more I haven’t mentioned, only prove our humanity more, for in spite of what some would have us believe, we are not simple creatures. The relationships we build throughout our lives are held together with a myriad of feelings, all relating to the other person and the time we have shared with them. Our feelings don’t occur alone; there are always more than only one, for when they occur, they engender other feelings, which will then cause another, and another, and so on.


These thoughts, and a million more, have been circling around in my head for about a day now, since my brother called yesterday to let me know that our mother had passed away at about 1:00 pm. It was not unexpected; she was 90 years-old, and had been in the hospital for a week after suffering a massive stroke. I am sad, of course, and will miss her very much, but in truth, I don’t think it has really hit me yet. When my father passed away, 20 or more years ago, the full reaction didn’t come until weeks later, and I have the feeling that in this instance, it may be some time before I can grieve fully. It’s just so hard to accept their absence; there is never any real belief they are gone until one day, all one’s feelings just crash in at once. So, I have that to go through yet, which is okay by me. I have enough problems just now, and can’t really afford to fall apart at present.


Today’s Pearls were picked out before I heard about my Mom, and so have no particular point in light of that. They are. however, well able to make their own point…..

“A ‘No’ uttered from deepest conviction is better and greater than a ‘Yes’ merely uttered to please, or what is worse, to avoid trouble.” — Mahatma Gandhi

“He who is most slow in making a promise, is the most faithful in the performance of it.” — Rousseau

“Here I am in the POSTERIOR OLFACTORY LOBULE but I don’t see CARL SAGAN  anywhere!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

“If you never assume importance you never lose it.” — Lao-tzu

“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little death that brings total oblivion. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and
through me and turn my inner eye to follow its path. When the fear is gone, there will be nothing. Only I will remain.” — The Litany Against Fear (Frank Herbert, -Dune-, 1965)

Before you speak, just remember that you will not be asked to explain what you did not say!

Such a fine group of Pearls really deserves some witty or profound remark in response, but I’m afraid that may be asking too much of my Muse today, so we’ll have to make do with this…..y’all take care out there….and don’t forget to tell the people you love that they are appreciated. Ya never know when they might not be there any more to tell…..

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.

gigoid

Dozer

Kowabunga!

We now have superior blankets….

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Ffolkes,
The grim-faced young man watched in silence as the light of the morning sun spread across the green grass of the park, watching dispassionately as the tall trees awakened to absorb the life-giving rays. In his mind’s eye he saw the running children and dogs, the nannies pushing carriages, the teens with boom boxes blasting out the latest hits, the old men playing chess, that would gradually populate the empty space that only he occupied now. He almost wished he could join them, but he would be long gone before any of those carefree people gathered. With only a small sigh for what he no longer could claim to be a part of, he turned and made his way along the path leading to the small lake in the center of the park. As he approached the water he did not slow his pace; instead he began to run directly at the shoreline. He picked up speed and at the precise moment he reached the water’s edge he gathered himself and leaped into the air out over the water. But, instead of crashing fully-dressed into the calm surface, he vanished, gone, as if he had never been. No one witnessed this astonishing event, and, for the sake of their sanity, it was just as well. (to be continued…)


Well, that felt good….we’ll see what happens to the young man in the next episode; your guess is as good as mine as to where he went. In the meantime, I will now return to our regularly scheduled program, after a word from our spon…..oh, wait. Sorry, I forgot. Nobody sponsors this stuff, though I wish they would. Oh well…..so, today’s Pearls are once again an unusual group, but they do have a point. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to deduce that point. Don’t fret if it doesn’t come easily; you won’t be graded on this. But, it’s good exercise for the old grey matter, and the point isn’t particularly obtuse. Maybe a little…..enjoy!

Be true to your work, your word, and your friend. — Henry David Thoreau

“Guard with jealous attention the public liberty.  Suspect everyone who approaches that jewel.  Unfortunately, nothing will preserve it but
downright force.  Whenever you give up that force, you are inevitably ruined.” — Patrick Henry, Debates In The Virginia Convention

“Man is a rational animal who always loses his temper when he is called upon to act in accordance with the dictates of reason.” — Oscar Wilde

Quis custodiet ipsos Custodes? [Who guards the Guardians?]

Thou wast that all to me, love,
For which my soul did pine–
A green isle in the sea, love,
A fountain and shrine,
All wreathed with fairy fruits and flowers,
And all the flowers were mine.
— Edgar Allan Poe

“Few people have the imagination for reality.” — Goethe

Now, was that so terribly painful? It was? Oh….well, sorry, but I guess it’s just another short proof of the old saw about getting what you pay for, n’est pas? For the nonce…..y’all take care out there…..

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.

gigoid

Dozer

Kowabunga!

Subliminal toast….

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Ffolkes,
It seems that my computer has developed some idiosyncrasies. I usually don’t turn it off very much, as I run a program that crunches data for a couple of cloud computing projects, one from UC Berkeley called SETI@home, and one from the American Physical Society called Einstein@home. But I decided to give the computer a break a couple nights here recently, and now it seems to want to find little things to do that annoy me. This morning my word-processing, database, and project program, Open Office Suite, wouldn’t open from the taskbar button; I had to work around it by using an already created document to open a new doc. Then Firefox, my internet browser, wanted to update itself for the sixth time. Just goes to show that our inanimate objects tend to take on human characteristics the more we use them. As I spend probably more than 10 hours a day working on this little machine, it has no doubt taken on some of my curmudgeonly traits. Ah well, as long as there is a work-around…..c’est la vie!
Today I have gathered a group of Pearls from some of history’s finest minds. Some were included simply for the beauty of the writing, others for the power of the ideas being presented. All are worth reading and contemplating, and should provide everyone with a good feeling or three with which to fortify their attitude for the day. If not, well, I’d have to say you really aren’t trying hard enough…..enjoy!

“Nature, whose sweet rains fall of just and unjust alike, will have clefts in the rocks where I may hide, and secret valleys in whose silence I may weep undetected. She will hang the night with stars so that I may walk abroad in the darkness without stumbling, and send the wind over my footprints so that none may track me to my hurt: she will cleanse me in great waters, and with bitter herbs make me whole.” — Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) — “De Profundis”

“When a stupid man is doing something he is ashamed of, he always declares that it is his duty.” — George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), “Caesar and Cleopatra”, Act III

“I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it.” — Thomas Jefferson to A. Stuart, 1791

“Moral certainty is always a sign of cultural inferiority. The more uncivilized the man, the surer he is that he knows precisely what is right and what is wrong. All human progress, even in morals, has been the work of men who have doubted the current moral values, not of men who have whooped them up and tried to enforce them. The truly civilized man is always skeptical and tolerant, in this field as in all others. His culture is based on “I am not too sure.” — H.L. Mencken

The other shape,
If shape it might be call’d that shape had none
Distinguishable in member, joint, or limb;
Or substance might be call’d that shadow seem’d,
For each seem’d either,–black it stood as night,
Fierce as ten furies, terrible as hell,
And shook a dreadful dart; what seem’d his head
The likeness of a kingly crown had on.
Satan was now at hand.
— John Milton (1608-1674)
— Paradise Lost, Book ii, Line 666

“A wretched soul, bruised with adversity.” — William Shakespeare (1564-1616), The Comedy of Errors — Act ii, Sc. 1

I love these lines, “black as night it stood, fierce as ten furies, terrible as hell, and shook a dreadful dart!” And good old Will, he must have spent some time on the streets, or at least in a state of poverty, to be able to describe so perfectly in one line how it feels at the end of the day…”bruised with adversity.” Bruised indeed….. y’all take care out there….

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.

gigoid

Dozer

Kowabunga!

Any old garage would do…..

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Ffolkes,
Everyone and his uncle’s brother’s cousin’s wife’s boyfriend will be writing their own take on 9/11/01 today, so I will limit my own response to the following:  Be patriotic – question authority. — Bumper Sticker   ‘Nuff said!….oh well, gotta say this too….. get over it!!! Learn to play nice and terrorism won’t be an issue any more…..
Okay, so maybe I will have a couple of points to make…..the part of the entire terrorism issue that bothers me the most is the absolutely idiotic response that one gets from most Americans when asked about the events of that fateful day. I call the reaction idiotic for a simple reason; because it is. No one seems to have any idea ‘why’ we were attacked, nor do they care. The act itself becomes the focus of attention, and the motivation is ignored. This is idiotic, for sure and for certain. In order for events like these to be prevented, the motivation of the perpetrators becomes paramount. How can you expect to be able to stop this kind of fanatic activity, if you don’t know why it happened to begin with?
It was obvious to me from the moment I first heard of the attacks that they were carried out by fanatic zealots; only those with a sense of martyrdom would have been able to carry out a mission that assured their own deaths, whether victorious or not. Faced with this kind of insanity, it seems obvious that determining motivation would be the most important detail needed to be able to find them; any competent hunter can verify that. And the motivation is so obvious anyway! But no one in our country is willing to accept the FACT that our own actions were responsible for the hatred felt by the misguided fanatics who carried out the attacks. Yes, us. It’s our own damn fault they hate us, for they are only mirroring the disdain we show to their beliefs. As I said above, if we would learn to play nicely, and quit acting the part of the bully, the other kids in the sandbox wouldn’t be ganging up on us.
But, there are very few Americans left who can be honest with themselves, much less with anyone else. Our leaders have indoctrinated us well to accept anything they say, whether it is in the same neighborhood as truth or not (usually not; they lie to us without shame, constantly). When I first heard about the incidents of 9/11, my first impression was that the whole scenario very much resembled the events one only heard about during the cocaine wars in South America in the 1970’s. You may or may not recall that G. Bush Senior was in charge of the CIA at the time, and was pretty clearly responsible for the growth of the drug cartels, and for the strengthening of the drug trade here. (A very damning book on the subject was written, called “The Cocaine Papers”) I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he was found to have been the real mastermind behind the attacks on 9/11/01. His son’s presidency was in trouble in the summer of 2001. There were a lot of investigations going on into the chicanery involved in the hijacking of the voting system by the Republicans, and these investigations were getting pretty close to showing how the American public had been fooled into believing that the election was clean, and free of manipulation, when in fact the Republicans had been successful in hiding their manipulation of the results in at least one state. That state just happened to be the pivotal state; if Gore had taken that state (which, in reality, he did), instead of Bush, he would have been elected, and the world would be a different place.
What better time for a terrorist attack, to distract the public from the chicanery with a terrible loss of life, and make certain that those allegations would never be looked at again? No, it wouldn’t surprise me at all, because the whole scenario had GHW Bush written all over it. I wonder what would happen if somebody followed the money…..it’s also somewhat curious that there has been no real investigation into that aspect of the affair. We were told (by those who lie to us on a daily basis) that it was the Taliban who was responsible, and so we set off on a world-wide hunt for the bad guy. Several trillion dollars later, we are still trying to find them all. We managed to kill Osama bin Laden, and wasn’t it convenient that he died before he could be questioned, or make any public statements? Very handy, that…..
Whew, I should know better than to start a rant so early in the morning. Now my sense of outrage is fully stimulated, and it is NOT directed at the Muslims in the world; it is directed at the political tyrants present in EVERY government in the world, and especially our own,who will say and do anything at all to maintain their own status quo. These power-hungry zealots (yes that term does apply, to Catholics, Christians, Muslims, and every other religion fighting over who has the most powerful imaginary friend) are the ones who are responsible for the events of that fateful day, and I for one would like to see them punished for all the heartache and sorrow they have so callously pushed upon the rest of us.
Enough for one morning….if you have comments, questions, or whatever, feel free to respond. Dialog is essential in seeking truth….meantime, enjoy this morning’s offerings, and think good thoughts for all those who died ten years ago. Let us make their deaths worthwhile, by seeking out the truth, and by not allowing hatred to hinder the quest for peace…..

“Virtue is but heroic bravery, to do the thing thought to be true, in spite of all enemies of flesh or spirit, in despite of all temptations or menaces.” — Albert Pike (1809-1891)

O Lord, grant that we may always be right, for
Thou knowest we will never change our minds.
— Old Scottish Prayer

“Basing our happiness on our ability to control everything is futile.” — Stephen R. Covey

No words suffice the secret soul to show,
For truth denies all eloquence to woe.
— Lord Byron (1788-1824)
— The Corsair, Canto iii, Stanza 22

If a person deceives you once, shame on that person. If a person deceives you twice, shame on you! For of all hard things to bear and grin, the hardest is being taken in.

Well, this one should start a conversation or two……y’all take care out there……

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.

gigoid

Just Dozer

Kowabunga!

Bemused and befuddled….

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3

Ffolkes,
In all the literature I’ve read over the years, a lot of different authors have painted a picture of the life of those living in poverty. The intent of these pictures is to create in the reader an empathy for the plight of the economically challenged (this phrase, while politically correct, bears no real resemblance to the actuality of being poor, and as such, is inherently evil.  It doesn’t describe the reality; it puts another barrier between the real world and the meaning of the written word. This makes it easy to deny the reality, removing any true connection to the feelings involved….). But the empathy created is tempered by what is not painted into the picture. For the last nine months or so, I’ve been introduced to the life of the under-funded, and can state unequivocally that two important pieces of the experience of being poor in this country are missing from the usual descriptions.

It has been said that a hungry man is never bored; I can tell you from first-hand knowledge that this is true. Not knowing where the next meal is coming from keeps the mind focused on the search for food/money, and creates a state wherein one cannot afford to spend time on the luxury of boredom. What is missing here are the feelings that accompany that focused state, to wit: a constant, low-grade fear, always present in the background, causing the stomach to jump, the heart to beat faster, and the mind to spend precious energy to keep the fear at bay. This fear increases the urgency of everything; having to constantly turn the mind to finding the means to acquire money/food adds a flavor of desperation to every act, and every perception. Former activities that brought relaxation are no longer sought out, there’s no time for them. Never relaxing has a cumulative effect, and the cycle spins faster and faster, contributing even more anxiety to the system. I often feel as if I’m one of those little hamsters on a spinning wheel, a wheel that has no way to stop, and no way to get off…..


The other part that most descriptions of the state of poverty seldom mention is the sense of bone-deep humiliation that goes along with having to ask for help or charity. I can say without hesitation that this is perhaps the worst part of having to struggle to get by, probably because all my life I have been fairly successful, at least to the extent that money and food were not primary issues. Having to ask for a loan from a friend or relative is possibly the most embarrassing and humiliating experience that I have ever had. Just sitting here writing about it has me tearing up; one of the more unwelcome side effects of post-traumatic stress syndrome is how powerful emotions can surface at the slightest provocation, causing even more embarrassment, and making competent, effective action even more difficult to carry out. Self-confidence is not abetted by feeling humiliated, and self-respect becomes non-existent.


The only way I have found to lessen the despair and fear is to try to remember that things could be worse. Difficult as it may be, and I assure you it is, finding positive notes in the song of life currently being played always helps lessen the sense of dread that is my constant companion. Diving for, and reading, pearls of virtual wisdom helps too; contact with better minds than my own is uplifting, if only for the sense of hope that can be kindled by reading something inspirational, or an idea beautifully expressed. True beauty heals merely by its touch…..I went diving for pearls yesterday, and found a lot of good quality stuff; here are a few of them……

“Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst.” — Thomas Paine

All nature is but art, unknown to thee;
All chance, direction, which thou canst not see;
All discord, harmony not understood;
All partial evil, universal good;
And spite of pride, in erring reason’s spite,
One truth is clear, Whatever is, is right.
— Alexander Pope (1688-1744)
— Essay on Man, Epistle i, Line 289

“The world has achieved brilliance without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants.  We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing than we know about living.  We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount.” — General Omar N. Bradley (1893-1981)
(And he ought to know….)

“Children today are tyrants.  They contradict their parents, gobble their food, and tyrannize their teachers.” — Socrates (470?-399 B.C.)

“I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence.” — Frederick Douglass

Never be boastful; someone may come along who knew you as a child. — Chinese Proverb

An odd group, but mine own…..May you always walk in beauty…..y’all take care out there…..

—
Sometimes I sits and thinks,
and sometimes
I just sits.
gigoid
Dozer

Kowabunga!