But, we don’t have him at hand to ask, so, we’ll have to struggle on, while actively resisting the urge to howl the fire and spit the wind. For sure, and for certain, that would drive off any remaining Gentle Readers I may have accumulated in the recent past…. It probably wouldn’t fret some of them, but, they’re old hands at this, and expect these outbursts of angst in the intro on occasion…. It’s a well-known factoid one can, in time, get used to the volcano in the back yard; one acclimates, so to speak. But, for any newbies, or those who worry, try not to do so for long, as it will wear you out long before I return to any sort of coherency…..

But, then, you knew that, didn’t you? Sure, you did. Don’t try to kid me; I’ve been around the block more than twice; I know what a pile of doggy doo-doo smells like. So, wipe your shoes, and come on in; it won’t hurt, I promise. If you know anything about me, if I can’t keep a promise, I won’t make it. Even in the deepest depths of my darkest dreams of personal hell, that wouldn’t change. My personal critic/teacher, who still watches over my shoulder in my mind, would NOT have allowed any such abrogation of duty…. Dad was tough, but fair. Didn’t say much, but, never had to, to get his point across….

Now I’ve wandered around in my own head, rather indiscriminately, I’m afraid, perhaps we should wander down the page a bit further, to a point we can gracefully slide out of this reality, where weird shit seems to pour out of my head, into our alternate, temporary fantasy reality, where Guido just happens to be waiting, politely, as always, for us to get ourselves organized, choose our beverage, and take our seats. Since all that is checked off, we can be on our way to, well, who the fuck knows? If I did, I’d probably have mentioned it some time ago….. Oh, well; hang on, it’s gonna be one of THOSE days. ffolkes….

Shall we Pearl?….

In 2011, it was, apparently, the 50th anniversary of the recording release of “House Of The Rising Sun”, by Eric Burdon & The Animals, a British band who followed in the wake of the Beatles, Rolling Stones, etc. (My memory says 40-some years, but, it’s hazy for that period…. go figure….) The band became something of an icon of the era, with around 15 or 20 #1 hits….

I’ve embedded the 2011 performance by the band commemorating the song, and, I can honestly say, it rocks. The second link is to a play list with most of their hits on it, with a number of other excellent video selections, not all from the 60’s & 70’s, & not all this band…. I hope you enjoy this retrospective of an iconic tune, which scandalized all the politically correct of that era, by speaking/singing about the perils of those who frequented the the finest brothel in New Orleans during its heyday…. with all the attendant emotional impact such music can carry…. Let’s see how the boys have held up over the years, shall we?….

Ah well, such is life in Amurrica today…. I’m tired of ranting about all that has gone wrong in this country, and in the world at large. Rather than harp on it any further today, I’ve collected a nine-star pearl for your perusal, with a graphic meme from the internet to close the grouping, each of which can be seen as an expression which defines for us most of the reason(s) WHY our national persona has turned into an asshole of such immense proportions…. Some are forthright, clear statements of obvious truths; some require some thought (go figure, eh?). All of them have contributed some way to the mess we now observe, all around us…..

If you disagree with any of them, feel free to say so…. That’s what a true Patriot of this nation does, you know…..

“The discovery of America was the occasion of the greatest outburst of cruelty and reckless greed known in history.” — Joseph Conrad

“Money by right means if you can; if not, by any means.” — Horace (65-8 B.C.)

“I … reject the argument put forth by many fundamentalists that science has nothing to do with religion because God is not among the things making up the  universe in which we live. Surely if a necessity for a god-concept in the universe ever turns up, that necessity will become evident to the scientist.” — physicist Ralph Alpher, Theology of the Big Bang, Religious Humanism, Vol. XVII, No. 1 (Winter 1983), pg. 12

“St. Augustine tells the story of a pirate captured by Alexander the Great who asked him “how he dares molest the sea.” “How dare you molest the whole world?” the pirate replied: “Because I do it with a little ship only, I am called a thief; you, doing it with a great navy, are called an Emperor.” — Noam Chomsky, Pirates and Emperors.

” In truth, there never was any remarkable lawgiver amongst any people who did not resort to divine authority, as otherwise his laws would not have been accepted by the people; for there are many good laws, the importance of which is known to be the sagacious lawgiver, but the reasons for which are not sufficiently evident to enable him to persuade others to submit to them; and therefore do wise men, for the purpose of removing this difficulty, resort to divine authority.” — Niccolo Machiavelli

“Law stands mute in the midst of arms.” — Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 B.C.)

“Most legislators are so dumb that they couldn’t pour piss out  of a boot if the instructions were printed on the heel.” — Savvy Bee

“I believe there is a limit beyond which free speech cannot go, but it’s a limit that’s very seldom mentioned.  It’s the point where free speech begins to collide with the right to privacy.  I don’t think there are any other conditions to free speech. I’ve got a right to say and believe anything I please, but I haven’t got a right to press it on anybody else….. Nobody’s got a right to be a nuisance to his neighbors.” — H.L. Mencken

(Hint: Think Main-Stream Media…. Fox, MSNBC, ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, etc.)

Hmph…..

“A detective story generally describes six living men discussing how it is that a man is dead. A modern philosophic story generally describes six dead men discussing how any man can possible be alive.” — G. K. Chesterton, A Miscellany of Men

“He knew that insofar as one denies what is, one is possessed by what is not, the compulsions, the fantasies, the terrors that flock to fill the void.” — Ursula K. LeGuin, _The Lathe of Heaven_

“The work of an unknown good man is like a vein of water flowing hidden in the underground, secretly making the ground greener.” — Thomas Carlyle

“He made one of Antipater’s recommendation a judge; and perceiving afterwards that his hair and beard were coloured, he removed him, saying, “I could not think one that was faithless in his hair could be trusty in his deeds.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Philip

“Almost everything you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.” — Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948)

“Time is only an illusion produced by the succession of our states of consciousness as we travel through eternal duration, and it does not exist where no consciousness exists in which the illusion can be produced; but “lies asleep.” — H. P. Blavatsky (1831-1891)

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Okay, then. Thanks to the Tardis I have on loan from the Doctor, it’s done. Since it is, I had this idea I should go post it. I wonder why I didn’t think of that before? Ah well, I guess I was busy. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; it’s just one of those things we’ll all have to deal with, as it happens….