“The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it.” — Terry Pratchett, “Diggers”

I too have noticed this…. there is a certain type of personality in this world who just cannot keep themselves from butting into everyone else’s business. They can generally be spotted easily, as they are often sporting bruises or other evidence of their unappreciated behavior, like splints or casts. That, or the color of their nose; it’s usually stuck somewhere it doesn’t belong, and most of them show evidence of that nasty little habit by the degree of brown matter smeared around the nasal area.

Humanity has given these folks labels, of course, it’s one of those things we do…. nosey parker, busybody, cockatrice (no, wait, that’s something else…scratch that one), backseat driver, butt-in, buttinsky, eavesdropper, fink, fussbudget, gossip, intermeddler, intruder, meddler, newsmonger, rubberneck, scandalmonger, sidewalk superintendent, snoop, snooper, tattletale, troublemaker, yenta, and the most annoying and dangerous kind, politicians.

As can be seen by the number of ways we have come up with to describe these rampant fools, this behavior is obviously not rare, but rather a frequent irritation. Most of us have come up with our own methods to deal with this kind of ass holiness, and otherwise don’t fret about it much, as one can’t change human nature. My own preferred method involves the eye for an eye concept. Whenever I hear that someone is spreading tales about me, I just smile and start a rumor about them. It doesn’t matter if it’s true or not, and I find that in this case, making up stuff about them is not only turnabout’s fair play, but immensely satisfying, and extremely effective. I suggest you try it yourself next time you one of these misanthropes crosses your path…..

“The correct way to punctuate a sentence that starts: “Of course it is none of my business, but –” is to place a period after the word “but.” Don’t use excessive force in supplying such a moron with a period. Cutting his throat is only a momentary pleasure and is bound to get you talked about.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”
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“If we can put the names of our faiths aside for the moment and look at principles, we fill find a common thread running through all the great religious expressions.” — Louis Farrakhan, 1993

Repetition does not establish validity. — Souder’s Law

Here is a truism I think we all wish some folks would learn to understand. It seems to be a common belief among modern politicians and demagogues of all sorts, that the more times they state their ignorant ideas to the unwashed masses, the more people will believe it. It annoys me no end to hear the same tired nonsense repeated from coast to coast, on every network, on every TV, day after day, until I want to bite the nearest idiot.

A perfect example of this is the entire “Birther” controversy over the current President’s qualifications for the job. There are entire networks, and websites galore that trumpet this idiotic nonsense over and over, insisting that all the evidence to the contrary is just a conspiracy to pull the wool over their eyes. Seemingly, they are incapable of understanding that the wool is part of their own costume, that they refuse to accept any evidence that doesn’t support their insane fears.

In my mind, this particular characteristic is so firmly entrenched in so many people, it has become one of the primary reasons bringing humanity ever closer to signing its own death warrant. And its a sure bet that those folks who buy into such idiocy will be whining and complaining all the way to Hell, with plaintive cries of “why didn’t someone tell me?”, or “it’s not my fault!”, never realizing that they have done it to themselves. Unfortunately, they will be taking the rest of us along for the ride, much to our chagrin……
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Having so much sleep at night has me pretty well discombobulated (love that word!); I’m having a bit of trouble deciding what to write about. I’ve come up with a temporary solution…..below are some pearls I’ve gathered in recent dives, and all have something important to convey to the reader; good advice for living, so to speak. I’ll let them speak by themselves, and leave any conclusions as an exercise for the Gentle Reader…..

“Philosophy removes from religion all reason for existing. As the science of the spirit, it looks upon religion as a phenomenon, a transitory historical fact, a psychic condition that can be surpassed.” — Benedetto Croce

“Self-improvement is a dangerous form of vanity.” — Alan Watts

“But my dear man, reality is only a Rorschach ink-blot, you know.” — Alan Watts

“Suppose that we are wise enough to learn and know and yet not wise enough to control our learning and knowledge, so that we use it to destroy ourselves? Even if that is so, knowledge remains better than ignorance. It is better to know even if the knowledge endures only for the moment that comes before destruction than to gain eternal life at the price of a dull and swinish lack of comprehension of a universe that swirls unseen before us in all its wonder. That was the choice of Achilles, and it is mine, too.” — Isaac Asimov, The New Hugo Winners

“In science, “fact” can only mean “confirmed to such a degree that it would be perverse to withhold provisional assent.”  I suppose that apples might start to rise tomorrow, but the possibility does not merit equal time in physics classrooms.” — Stephen Jay Gould

“He who has so little knowledge of human nature as  to seek happiness by changing anything but his own  disposition will waste his life in fruitless  efforts.” — Samuel Johnson (1709-1784)

See? Well worth what you’ve paid for it, don’t you think?……
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“Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is man’s original virtue. It is through disobedience that progress has been made, through disobedience and through rebellion.” — Oscar Wilde