Tag Archives: Isis

Twisted versions of a flawed Reality….

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Ffolkes,

“History doesn’t repeat itself — historians merely repeat each other.”

~~ First Rule of History ~~

horses

    Last night, as Orion chased his prey across the winter sky, slowly, majestically pacing toward the Western mists, sword shining at his belt, bow drawn, I thought of my children, and my grandchildren, so young, so innocent of the world, and the life they will have to face in the coming years. My thoughts, because of what I know to be true, were dark, and fearful, not for myself, for I have had my share of years, filled with equal parts joy and pain, but, for them, knowing how much of the pain they will have to know, before they have much chance at a great deal of the joy that can be found…

Still, I have hope, that I can persuade them, in my remaining time here, to look to the sky, to find a way to the stars, where they may have a better chance of feeling some of the joy I’ve felt, but, on another world, or moon, or asteroid, or…. If they can find a way to leave the Earth, they will see, and experience, what I’ve dreamed of all my life, hopefully finding their joy in the satisfaction of surviving against all odds, by their wit, and courage…. as well as in the pride of fulfilling the destiny for which our species, I believe, was ever destined…. Not by design, but by serendipity….

Or, perhaps, by accident…. Who knows, for there is no evidence we humans have ever found, or deduced, or surmised, to suggest we, and all the vast universe, are a creation, of an entity so powerful, we could, by the mere definition of such a creature, never have the slightest chance of ever understanding exactly WHAT it was…. Whatever it, or they, or she, or that word we don’t or can’t ever know, IS, in truth, I’m pretty sure it doesn’t concern itself with, or much care what we might think of all this…. I would guess, without ever knowing one way or another, such a creature most likely figures we’ll just enjoy it, try to figure out how it all works, playing with it as best we can without breaking it…. but, as I said, who knows, and, who cares?

There…. I think THAT should do for an opening section…. We’ve covered some rather maudlin hopeful wishes for a future for humanity, we’ve encouraged the conquest of space, we’ve explored a bit of philosophy and religious theory, while simultaneously mocking intellectualism AND spiritualism, in the same breath…. Not bad for off the cuff, eh? Not just that, but, it’s all PRE-COFFEE! That, in itself, is a miracle, beyond all belief….

And well you shouldn’t believe it…. because all of that last part was a deliberate LIE!… I had coffee before I started….

I’m practicing…. I decided to run for a local office, just to pass the time until Armageddon, which, according to my calendar, should be just around the corner, say, May, or April of next year…. maybe sooner. Hard to tell yet, as there is still a LOT of societal inertia to overcome before the revolution can really get rolling….

Hmm, I see we’ve retreated a bit from reality again. It happens whenever I write this much without the benefit of either rhyme, or reason…. SIGH…. I suppose I’ll have to either move the schedule up, or apply one of those old emergency closings, which cause so much havoc to our budget… No, we’ll be patient, because I see an opening right over there…. Wait for it…. wait…. hold on, almost….. THERE!…. Hah! Fooled you again! We’ve been parked for five minutes….

Nyah, nyah, nyah….. See, Paul? I AM still crazy, after all these years….

Shall we Pearl?

“He should not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond

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I’m up very early today, and not in the best of moods, due mostly to my reaction to the blackmail I’m being subjected to by my HMO. To say the very least, I am NOT a happy camper today…. So, we’ll go with funny, to take a bit of the edge off…. When one wants funny, who better than a comedic genius, such as these two men….

Jonathan Winters & Robin Williams

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“The ignorance of the working-class and the superior intelligence of the privileged class are superstitions — are superstitions fostered by intellectual mercenaries, by universities and churches, and by all the centers of privilege.” — George D. Herron (1862-1925)

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Today, I will be ranting vicariously. Below you will find a number of links. Each will take you to yet another example of the Insanity in which the world is currently engulfed. Each one is another piece of evidence showing how the pressure of environmental stresses, under which all the life forms on this planet exist, have increased beyond our ability to either stop, or even comprehend, bringing us ever closer to becoming a Real Life example of the old experiment we all remember….

You know, the one where the rats are left in a cage they cannot escape, without the means to stop reproducing beyond their natural limits, outstripping their food supply, whereupon they begin to turn on each other, exhibiting self-destructive, irrational behaviors, complete with vicious, deadly, INSANE violence, ultimately leading to death for them all…. Not the most appetizing image for breakfast, but hey, none of it is anything we can avoid…..

I don’t know about y’all, but, I would prefer to at least see where the fatal blow is going to come; it does give me at least a chance to duck, and cover…. If it’s all too much to deal with, just consider each link as a pearl, and skip down to the poem…. which, naturally, exposes one to the risk of being considered a wimp, if only in one’s own mind….

Special thanks go out to Lou and the gang over at Tales from the Conspiratum, my favorite source for examples from around the world, of just how crazy things have gotten….

http://talesfromtheconspiratum.com/2015/01/20/isis-plans-on-killing-hundreds-of-millions-in-religious-cleansing-german-embed-reporter/

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/01/19/police-radar-see-through-walls/22007615/   

http://talesfromtheconspiratum.com/2015/01/20/inequality-isnt-inevitable-its-engineered-thats-how-the-1-have-taken-over/

http://www.naturalnews.com/048322_financial_collapse_Federal_Reserve_global_economy.html

http://talesfromtheconspiratum.com/2015/01/20/proof-elites-control-democracy/

Oh, hell, that’s enough. I don’t want to depress y’all any more than necessary. I’ll just say this…. Of the five stories I chose today to highlight some of the crazy shit happening all around us, none have any good endings, either real, or implied. Some of it may seem like hyperbole, or jumping at shadows, but, frankly, anyone who can’t see what is happening isn’t paying attention, or is deliberately denying reality. It is that simple, ffolkes. We MUST start to act now, if we are to have ANY chance of surviving into the next century. That is not a statement I make lightly; I’ve made a study of the issues, and it ALL has gone farther toward BAD than almost anyone will admit, in public, or, in private….

Which, I should say, describes WHY we are having these problems at all, now doesn’t it?

To change the mood a touch, so we can go on with a clearer mind, if not a happier heart, here is something a little lighter….. Lou is also good at finding this kind of stuff, too….. At the other end of the spectrum of human existence, we have the following example of a few of humanity’s OTHER qualities….

http://talesfromtheconspiratum.com/2015/01/20/the-meaning-of-life-explained-by-3rd-graders-443/

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Today’s poem comes from my usual source, but, with a bonus. After the text version, of this all time classic, copied from Poem Hunter dot com, (which just happens to fit in with today’s theme perfectly), I’ve included a link to, and a video version of the poem, as displayed on the YT clone site, Daily Motion, with a link to the page provided as well….

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

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.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on that sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

~~ Dylan Thomas ~~

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Nine excellent pearls, all for y’all…. Take them as you will…. That is what they are for, after all….

“If this material is offensive to you, and admittedly it will be offensive to someone, then you should take time out to contemplate this truth.  Seriousness is the refuge of the truly shallow!” — Smart Bee

“Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad.” — Euripides

“The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend.” — Henri Bergson (1859-1941)

“As a matter of cold fact, a lot of people have no use for you because they can’t use you.” — Smart Bee

“In an insane society, the sane man must appear insane.’ — Spock

“He who has the courage to laugh is almost as much  a master of the world as he who is ready to die.” — Giacomo Leopardi

Gutta cavat lapidem non vi, sed saepe cadendo. [Drops of water hollow out a stone – not by strength, but just falling often.] — Smart Bee

“As for life, it is a battle and a sojourning in a strange land; but the fame that comes after is oblivion.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, ii, 17

“”Bury me on my face,” said Diogenes; and when he was asked why, he replied, “Because in a little while everything will be turned upside down.” — Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Diogenes, vi

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Having completed most of this Pearl yesterday during appropriate breaks from misery, and arisen very early, thanks to the gift of tardive dyskinesia (one of those “gifts that keep on giving”….), I’m done, and it’s still shy of 0430…. SIGH…. Now I get to wait for the rest of the world to wake up to get anything marginally useful done…. So be it…. Provided I’m not ensconced in hospital from the stress and fatigue building up over time, I’ll see y’all tomorrow…. Watch out for them “corporate persons” y’all; they’re getting pretty fierce….

Y’all take care out there,
and May the Metaphorse be with you;
Blessed Be, dearest Carole, Mark,Theresa, & Richy
and everyone else, too…

When I works, I works hard.
When I sits, I sits loose.
When I thinks, I falls asleep.

Which is Why….

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

gigoid, the dubious

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

Kowabunga!


À bientôt, mon cherí….


			

			
								

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Twelve reasons to spit, rather than swallow….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“Look beneath the surface; let not the several quality of a thing nor its worth escape thee.” 


~~ Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-180 AD) — Meditations, vi, 3 ~~


11-8-2014 002 (2)


     To look at this piece of furniture, you wouldn’t believe it to have any particularly extraordinary qualities, beyond a simple functionality and inoffensive appearance…. By using Marcus Aurelius’ advice, however, we find a peculiar aspect of its existence which may not be explainable by any normal means…. I got the chair at a thrift store, as part of my thus-far-never-ending quest to find a chair that is suitable to sit in for the time I need to be in front of this computer, to compose, to read, and to otherwise multi-task, in short bursts when I can sit for a while without having to squirm, or get stiff… In trying it out in the store, it seemed to be a bit low, but, otherwise might work well for a time….


Well, as it turns out, it IS too low to type comfortably, but, is quite comfortable for watching a video, such as one of my Sherlock Holmes stories, or for reading the news, if no great amount of mouse work is needed…. Unfortunately, the chair also seems to be so comfortable, whenever I’ve sat in it for more than 5 minutes, I start falling asleep, sitting up, which will always give me a stiff neck, from dropping my head forward when I drowse…. This has happened five times now, without fail…. It’s getting to the point I’m beginning to believe the chair has been infused with some kind of magic cannabis cream, or just plain magic, to cause it to turn into a sleep chair, rather than an office chair…


It’s okay, though, I don’t mind having one spot where I know I can get drowsy; the way my sleep pattern goes, I can use all the spots like that I can find…. It’s also given me another intro section, without the need to go off on anyone’s religion, or take a side trip to the land of Odd, (which isn’t far away, in my head…), or even find some actual introductory remarks of a literary nature…. All I had to do is engage in some minor hyperbole, with a dash of stretching the truth of its effect on me, and there we were, two paragraphs down, and running strong….


Of course, right about HERE, we will start to see it fall apart, as my imagination begins to tire, having not yet consumed sufficient coffee, or sugar, to fuel such a complicated, stressful task as this has turned out to be…. I also suspect, if I want to be able to finish this out, without resorting to marginally legal acrobatics, I’m going to have to end it now, before it grows any hair…. The fuzz is already too thick for scissors, and my lopping shears are all dull from using them on my cacti….


It is, no doubt, a good thing the opening to the real world is right over there; we seem to have made good time…. This is what happens when we are lucky enough to start with a decent run at the wall; it doesn’t draw any blood, and we get where we need to go with less fuss, and less chance of litigation, which always pleases my lawyers….. Oops, sorry, got to talking and almost missed the turn…. Hold on ffolkes…. today’s missive could be a bit of a tough roe to hoe…. not to mention the possibility of cloning that is always a risk on Sundays…. (bet you didn’t expect me to remember, did ya?….)


For now, though, it is enough to know, we’re on our way, and nothing the government can do will stop us now….


Shall we Pearl?


“I was contemplating the immortal words of Socrates, who said… I drank what?” —  Shared by Chris Knight (Val Kilmer), Real Genius


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Today’s video is a political cartoon from Mark Fiore, who makes brilliant short animated videos commenting on current world and national events…. I could not figure out how to embed the video, without joining a web streaming site, which I didn’t wish to join…. But, just follow the link below, and you can see this one, which is another outstanding observation regarding the recent midterm elections…. I won’t ask you to enjoy it, but, I will ask you to watch, and reflect on the information it has to impart….







Oh, heck…. Here, here’s a video for your morning laugh….




Adults Taste Baby Food



































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“For some reason the little Senators make us laugh.” — Smart Bee


“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 t heir oppressors in Church and State.” — Thomas Jefferson, [letter?] To S. Kercheval, 1810









Oops…. It seems there is a bit of snark going on between the delusional leaders of one of the more delusional religious organizations, and the political representative their particular group managed to land in the Senate…. It all makes a pretty good example, for me, of how the separation of church and state has been quietly eroded to the point the religious group feels comfortable in making public their influence over their flock members who inhabit the halls of government, using the blackmail of guilt and threat of excommunication to try to force their desires to the forefront of the political agenda.


Now, the bishop of the church, in this case, is in trouble, for bringing it all into the light of day, more than any other reason…. I doubt very much the other church elders had intended for their influence to be outed in that manner, so, they will publicly chastise him, but, in the end, won’t really do much to him, other than muzzling his mouth by moving him to some position not accessible to the media for comment…. Having the Senate majority leader as a church member is a position those leaders will NOT jeopardize for any minor bishop’s cluelessness…. They’ll sacrifice him faster than Pontius Pilate gave up Jesus…


“I have short-term memory loss, though I like to think of it as Presidential eligibility.” — Paula Poundstone







I think I’ve become more angry at this president than any other since, well, I guess the Junior shrub made me maddest, but, then, Bill Clinton was a Bozoid of major proportion, too…. In fact, I think, in my entire life, there is only one man who was elected to the presidency who managed to garner my respect, without making me angry for having to listen to constant, unrelieved lying, or plain stupidity…. and that President (the ONLY one for whom I will capitalize the title….) was probably the LEAST effective of all the twentieth century office-holders, because he spent his entire time in office being neutralized by a Congress held by the opposing party….


His name was Jimmy Carter, and though I don’t usually admire preachers, he is the only HONEST politician I’ve ever seen at that level… the ONLY one…. and, he is the only president in the last century who didn’t made a career out of dishonesty, cheating, and public theft… and I mean the ONLY one…. Every other president, from the beginning of the last century, to the latest rogues elected in this century, has lied to the American public, almost without pause, from the first time they opened their mouths on national TV….


I had hope when Barry was elected; I didn’t know much about him, and some of what he said promised some hope of reform, in at least some areas…. But, he has been one of the greatest of my disappointments, as he has lied the MOST, of any president in recent memory, which is quite a feat, given the past few presidents…. It was unexpected that Obama would be a worse liar than either of the two Shrubs, but, he has proven time and again he is NOT going to tell the entire truth to the American people, especially about his clandestine activities, spying on his own citizens without compunction, and with impunity, thus far…..


“A politician is a man who stands for what he thinks the voters will fall for.” — Smart Bee


If I were the type to use religious expressions, I’d thank God for Edward Snowden, a man I believe future generations will regard on the same level as Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and Nathan Hale, as one of our greatest patriots…. It pisses me off no end that Barry the O continues to bad-mouth him, as well as refusing to acknowledge his own culpability, as do the rest of the 455 kidnappers of the American Dream, who inhabit the halls of Congress, the White House, and the Federal courthouses…. I accuse them all of treason, not lightly, and not in fun…. Assholes, every damn one of them, only concerned with increasing their personal power, and lining their pockets with our money…..


I know this is the ranting section, so such vituperation isn’t out of place here…. However, this morning I’m a bit on edge, and typing is getting harder every day, so, I’ll leave my rant at that point, which, some would say is quite enough…. It isn’t every day that I accuse the entire government of the US of treason…. but, as I’ve mentioned before, I’m not one to keep from calling a spade a spade, nor am I one to suffer fools gladly….




But we, who name ourselves its sovereigns, we,

Half dust, half deity, alike unfit

To sink or soar.


~~ Lord Byron (1788-1824) ~~


~~ Manfred, Act i, Sc. 2 ~~




Our government, long ago stolen by corporate and religious influence, to work the will of those who prey on the weak and ignorant, depending on their gullible trust in authority to allow them to lie, cheat, and steal without consequence, has now gotten to a point where they don’t even bother to hide what they’re doing very hard…. They don’t care any more, as they know that nobody has the means, or the wit, to turn against them…. They have fooled 98% of the population into believing them, in whatever they say, and know they won’t be disturbed during their cleaning out of the public’s pockets…..


Bah, humbug! I’m pissed….. and there isn’t much I can do, except this…. So, having done this for today, I’ll leave it here for now…. Stay alert, ffolkes, and call them a liar when they lie… Maybe there is still a chance, if a couple more Ed Snowdens come forth, and tell the people how much they are being fooled, and screwed….. Until then, I’ll keep yelling at them, and about them, as often as I can….




Who could imagine

That they could freak out in Kansas

Who could imagine

That they could freak out in Washington D.C.

Everybody’s clean, it can’t happen here, no, no

And they thought it couldn’t happen here

They were so sure it couldn’t happen here

It can’t happen here


 ~~ Frank Zappa ~~


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On a day such as this, it’s gotta be Bukowski…. He’s the only one real enough to suit my crusty mood….






hello, how are you?


this fear of being what they are:

dead. 


at least they are not out on the street, they

are careful to stay indoors, those

pasty mad who sit alone before their tv sets,

their lives full of canned, mutilated laughter. 


their ideal neighborhood

of parked cars

of little green lawns

of little homes

the little doors that open and close

as their relatives visit

throughout the holidays

the doors closing

behind the dying who die so slowly

behind the dead who are still alive

in your quiet average neighborhood

of winding streets

of agony

of confusion

of horror

of fear

of ignorance. 


a dog standing behind a fence. 


a man silent at the window.


~~ Charles Bukowski ~~




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Today’s old-school pearl came together in a rather fractured fashion; nonetheless, it came out well…. Well, it came out, anyway…. I’m not altogether certain the point it is trying to make is one of particular import, other than to each of us on an individual level…. I guess you should just let it flow over you, and if it feels right, let it flow through…. Otherwise, just take it all as good advice for living a life that makes some kind of sense, on a larger scale than the merely personal…. Hmm…. I suppose that may be asking a bit much of an obscure seven-star pearl, but, we’re like that around here….


“Integrity has no need for rules.” — Albert Camus


“When the need arises — and it does — you must be able to shoot your own dog. Don’t farm it out — that doesn’t make it nicer, it makes it worse.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s  “Time Enough For Love”


“In poverty and other misfortunes of life, true friends are a sure refuge. The young they keep out of mischief; to the old they are a comfort and aid in their weakness, and those in the prime of life they incite to noble deeds.” — Aristotle


“As a rule, there is no surer way to the dislike of men than to behave well where they have behaved badly.” — Lew Wallace


“Lampis the shipowner, on being asked how he acquired his great wealth, replied, “My great wealth was acquired with no difficulty, but my small wealth, my first gains, with much labor.” — Epictetus (c. 55-135 A.D.)


“The world has taken on a thickness of vulgarity that raises a spiritual man’s contempt to the violence of a passion.” — Charles Baudelaire




How lov’d, how honour’d once avails thee not,

To whom related, or by whom begot;

A heap of dust alone remains of thee:

‘T is all thou art, and all the proud shall be!


~~ Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — To the Memory of an Unfortunate Lady, Line 71 ~~




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Once more, I’ve pushed beyond my zone of comfort to get this done…. Oh, don’t worry, I’m not saying it makes me special, or that any admiration is due; I’m just glad it isn’t toxic, or overtly offensive to anyone but a preacher, a politician, a corporate snakehead, a pimp, or a myrmidon…. They, of course, may choke on it, as far as I am concerned…. For now, I’ll just bid thee adieu, until tomorrow….


See ya, ffolkes, and remember what Tommy Toilet always says… “Always wipe thoroughly, kids! Rectal itch is NO PICNIC!”© (R. Crumb, 1966, or so….)


Sorry, couldn’t help myself….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest  Carole, Mark, and Theresa…

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


Sometimes I sits and thinks,

   and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid, the dubious


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


Kowabunga!






À bientôt, mon cherí….







		
	
					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Two parts fantasy, one part reality; mix lightly for best results…

			
						

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Ffolkes,


When I first began this version of gigoid’s folly (the original title of my blogging efforts….Now, of course, we dignify it, as Exploring Consensual Reality….), here on WordPress, in the latter half of 2011, I had already been sending it out via email for many years, first in computer school, then at work, once the state hospitals and developmental centers (where I was mainly employed for many years….) finally embraced computers…. At Napa State Hospital, where I was a program secretary, then, the Executive Assistant to the Executive Director of the Hospital, I sent it out every day to about 300 or so people, in its prior incarnation…. It was formatted a bit differently, but, you’d recognize it, mainly because of the pearls….


All this is merely a lead in, designed to give me an opening to speak in a certain direction…. Over the course of the three or so years at this site, now with my own domain, I’ve learned quite a bit, about the process of writing, and about the necessary issues involved in publishing a daily blog of this sort…. because it’s different than what I did before. The difference is one I can’t explain, exactly, but, it mostly has to do with how the material is, first, organized, and secondly, presented…. either of which, should they become corrupted, can obviously corrupt the remainder….. Yes, even this process is subject to both entropy, and Murphy’s less-than-welcome attentions….


At this point, you’re probably asking yourself, “Now what’s he trying to pull?”….. I can’t blame you for that; I’ve got priors, I know…. But, today, my blather has merely served to get us down this far on the screen, to fill the space between up there, and down here, with something worthwhile, or, at minimum, distracting enough to keep the gentle readers from realizing we’re just wandering in a circle again….. Yep, I’m totally out of ideas to begin today, so, I thought this might work to keep y’all busy and distracted from realizing we’re again sans material for an intro…..


I’m not sure if it’s legal, or not, nor do I much care, at this point…. I’ve already gone too far…. We’re committed, and there’s no going back now…. not for me…. Y’all, of course, can bail whenever you like, but, I’m hoping you’ll stick around long enough for me to get to at least one part of today’s effort…. Not that there’s anything special planned, I just like to know that SOMEBODY will read what I write, if only for the ego-stroke I get from seeing more visitors…. I don’t write to be a popular blogger; it’s still mostly to get this crap out of my head…. But, it’s nice to know others like it, occasionally….


Look at it this way…. How many other blogs do you go to where you can find almost a thousand words on NOTHING MUCH, in the beginning, before even approaching anything resembling a subject for discussion or dissection? Not many, I’m sure….. And, who would be so honest about spewing BS? Nobody, that’s who…. I’m fully aware of what I’m doing, but, I also know it won’t harm anyone, unless they try to argue with it, at which point they usually discover how WRONG they are, to attempt any sort of critical analysis of material that is evidentially solid, such as the material generally presented here, whereupon they slink off to lick the figurative wounds to their respective egos…


Oh, look! I believe I’ve done it again…. Wandering, rambling, blathering about very little…. to look at it, and to think about it, one might think it would be pretty much useless…. but, one more time, we’ve managed to get far enough into the morass to find our way back to reality, where we are now legally allowed to call this an intro, and get on with the day’s business, such as it may be…. What do you know about that?….. Huh.


I’ll stop the sarcasm now, and get on with it….. Sorry, ffolkes, but, some days, it just POURS out, and I can’t do anything about it, but type…. and carry on with what I do in place of prayer….


Shall we Pearl?……


“Everything in excess! To enjoy the flavor of life, take big bites.  Moderation is for monks.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”


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In this section, we have been running a new style pearl, (there’s that royal ‘we’ again….), with pictures to go along with whatever quotes and/or comments I come up with…. The latest incarnation involves a new subject of interest, the Wise Old Pine Cone, who has been kind enough to allow me to photograph his wanderings around town, to record his interactions with people, and the environment, as he wends his way around the town….. Yesterday, I posted the photos of when I accompanied him to the local ball team’s night game, which came out fairly well….


Sadly, the Wise Old Pine Cone, by the time we left the ball park, had consumed WAY too many brewskis, and has yet to get out of bed…. He’s pretty small, and a few beers really do a number on him; I’ve seen him stay in bed for three days after a bad session with wine, and beer isn’t any better for him…. He’ll be alright, but, he’ll be out of action for a day or two, so, we’ll have to find something else for this section….. Let me think….


Okay, you’ve convinced me…. I’ll rant….


“There is nothing a man can do to guarantee success, but there is nothing that can defeat him if he won’t give up.” — Greg Praino


Well, perhaps I won’t rant today; it doesn’t mean I’m giving up, but…. I just went to look for a rantable headline from the news…. Of the eleven headlines on the world news page, eight were about various bombings, battles, or other war activities, mostly in the middle east, where the Islamic sects are all fighting to see who will become the sole arbiter of the Muslim future….. never realizing how silly and counter-productive they are being, in terms of survival…. But, then, most people engaged in war are not in a very intelligent frame of mind, anyway….


(And, how can a Muslim extremist group name themselves after an Egyptian goddess over seven thousand years old {Isis}? I thought they hated ANY other religion…. Ah well, stupid is as stupid does…)


The point is, I couldn’t decide WHICH subject to rant about…. There are plenty of wars being fought, none of which make any sense…. There are  governments still robbing the people, or oppressing them unmercifully; the churches are still butting into everything, as is their habit…. I see where the Pope is trying to be a mediator between Israel & Palestine (good luck with that!….), and now, the Presbyterian Church is doing SOMETHING over in Iraq, or Iran, to get involved with that whole mess…. what a bunch of idiots!…


Cars and factories are still streaming carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide into the air by the hundreds of millions of tons, every day, so pollution continues unabated, and climate change keeps changing, so, we can kiss our asses goodbye, once we figure out how long we have…. Religious fanatics and fundies of all varieties continue to wage their holy wars, blaming all that is wrong in the world on anything but their own actions…. Bankers and politicians continue to work together to steal everything that isn’t nailed down from the public, all enforced by paramilitary police forces, blindly obedient myrmidons with guns, and really bad attitudes, due to their completely unwarranted sense of entitlement regarding their psycho/sociopathic need to be seen as authority figures….


All of the insanity I’ve previously commented upon here continues, relatively unabated, as the world skips merrily down what it BELIEVES is the garden path, completely oblivious, calmly seated in a handbasket, never even wondering why it is getting so bloody hot…. And people wonder why I rant….


I found no particular headline to get me started, but, as can be seen by the above, none are really necessary for me to find my anger about the state of the world…. My anger is based in the realization that NONE of it is necessary; if people would take responsibility for themselves, and stand up to the assholes who are oppressing everyone who puts up with it, we could fix this broken puppy….


I’m a realist, though, and, as far as I can see, realistically, it ain’t gonna happen…. so, I’ll pick a few pearls, to make how I feel about it clear, and be done with it for today…. I’m mad, but, so mad, I don’t even want to talk about it any more….. Here, take these…. No worries, you’ll live; there are only five of them….


“I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts.” — John Locke


“All I know is just what I read in the Congressional Record. They have had some awful funny articles in there lately. As our government deteriorates, our humor increases.” — Will Rogers


“I have never found, in a long experience of politics, that criticism is ever inhibited by ignorance.” — Harold MacMillan


“Look for a tough wedge for a tough log.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 723


“You know how dumb the average guy is?  Well, by definition, half of them are even dumber than THAT.” — J.R. “Bob” Dobbs, ripping off George Carlin, who made that point YEARS before Bob finished puberty….


There you go, ffolkes…. a pointed, bitchy, but accurate, five-star pearl….. Let’s go on, shall we?….


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Sometimes, I don’t even know why I like a poem…. but, then, I don’t have to know…. enjoy!






Brown Penny


I WHISPERED, ‘I am too young,’

And then, ‘I am old enough’;

Wherefore I threw a penny

To find out if I might love.

‘Go and love, go and love, young man,

If the lady be young and fair.’

Ah, penny, brown penny, brown penny,

I am looped in the loops of her hair.

O love is the crooked thing,

There is nobody wise enough

To find out all that is in it,

For he would be thinking of love

Till the stars had run away

And the shadows eaten the moon.

Ah, penny, brown penny, brown penny,

One cannot begin it too soon.


~~ William Butler Yeats ~~




I know, I know, it doesn’t even rhyme…. oh well, I suppose there’s no accounting for taste….. which is something one might say in response to most anything, if you think about it…. But, I don’t want to think about it…. so, I won’t…. so there…. Now that I’ve finished being two years old….


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It’s a strange morning; it must have something to do with it being the weekend of the Pirate Festival here where I live…. Things always get a bit weird when everyone in town is walking around in big hats, with patches over their eye, going “Yar!”, or “Aye, matey!”…. It seems to do something really different to the local ambiance, making it okay to be as odd as one wishes…. In light of that, we’ll go with an old-school, parameter-less pearl, to provide the proper strange finish to this very odd Pearl…. Let’s see what SB can come up with today….


You may be capable of great things,

But life consists of small things.


— Deng Ming-Dao


“Take a straw and throw it up into the air,–you may see by that which way the wind is.” — John Selden (1584-1654) — Libels


“I am quite sure that (bar one) I have no race prejudices, and I think I have no color prejudices or caste prejudices nor creed prejudices.  Indeed I know it. I can stand any society. all that I care to know is that a man is a human being – that is enough for me; he can’t be any worse.”– Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) (1835-1910) — Harper’s Magazine, September, 1899


Don’t it always seem to go

That you don’t know what you’ve got till its gone?


— Joni Mitchell, “They Paved Paradise”


“If people bring so much courage to this world the world has to kill them, so of course it kills them. The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave…” — Ernest Hemingway, “A Farewell to Arms”


“Excellence is an art won by training and habituation.  We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly.  We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.” — Aristotle


“If ever you had to kill someone, could you do it?” — Turlough, TERMINUS


Wow! I guess Aristotle is right….. and, in my opinion, so was Mark Twain….


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Without even going back to look, I know this one is going to haunt me at night, unless I can completely block out the memory of today, & pretend it never happened….. which will probably be worth the effort…. I’m not even going to think about it…. I will, however, be back tomorrow…. See ya, ffolkes….




Y’all take care out there, 

and May the Metaphorse be with you;

Blessed Be, dearest  Carole, Mark, and Theresa…

and everyone else, too…


When I works, I works hard.

When I sits, I sits loose.

When I thinks, I falls asleep.


Which is Why….


—

Sometimes I sits and thinks,

and sometimes,

I just sits.


gigoid the dubious


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