Tag Archives: Mars Colony

Inherent doubt = innate curiosity….

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Ffolkes,

“True knowledge exists in knowing that you know nothing.”

~~ Socrates ~~

spacex-dragon-mars-3

Artist’s rendition of the SpaceX Dragon Descending to Mars

Image from Space.com


Good morning…. I’m not one for taking advice too often; as a doubting curmudgeon, it’s an occupational hazard, one I’m generally happy to avoid. However, I recently received one piece of advice I’d be willing to try out, if nothing else, as it sounds like it would work for me…. It goes like this: “Start the day with a smile. After that you can be your nasty old self again.” Sounds perfect, right?

Okay, so, I’m being snarky. Chalk it up to the hour; it’s tough to be nice at 0400, having been up an hour already. But, I’m not complaining, as it’s my own damn fault, for sleeping well enough to sleep through the time to take the pill that would have kept the dyskinesia from starting up, strong enough to awaken me, and prevent falling back asleep…. Bozoid tendencies DO tend to strike at inconvenient times; it’s the nature of the beast…. Let’s try something a bit different here, shall we?….

That was certainly different; a two day hiatus between paragraphs…. Looks like the new paradigm has arrived, and is configuring itself, in a manner of speaking…. Here we are again, only it’s the day after tomorrow, at 0230….. which just slipped through another little time-warp, to bring us up to the relative present, to wit, now, Thursday, September 24, at 1235, shortly after noon….. The intervening eight-plus hours have slipped into the mire, without incident, or reportable event taking place, so, we can go on from here, should I feel like buckling down to work. Since I don’t, let’s see what happens next….

I’m not certain I like this new paradigm; perhaps I’d best shoot for a paranykuhl, instead. As half a paradigm, maybe, the transition process wouldn’t be as complicated. Nor as hard on my physical being…. For those who aren’t keeping up, (which, no worries, includes yours truly….), it’s now Friday, at 0145. That’s in the A.M. For the past three nights, in this last month of titrating off opioids, it seems the pattern is to include insomnia, to go along with the regular bouts of dyskinesia, as my body complains/reacts to the ever-lessening supply of medicine in the bloodstream. A true joy it is…. NOT.

Wait…. What was that? What the….? We dropped another day, somehow. It’s now Saturday, the 26th; last I knew, it was Thursday…. Hmm…. I’d better get the Tardis checked out….. We’re dropping days like they’re bad habits; not good. Handy, but, not good….

No complaints, though. So be it. I gotta say, though, it’s getting tough to avoid homicidal fantasies…. Ah, well, fuck it. Let’s go dive for pearls, okay? I always feel better for it…. Luigi, help us out here, will ya?….

Shall we Pearl?….

“He that feareth is a slave, were he never so rich, were he never so powerful. But he that is without fear is king of all the world.” — E. R. Eddison, The Worm Ouroboros

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leeloo 1 019

LeeLoo in PK Mode


Rather than a video today, I’ve decided to show some pictures of my new familiar. As I’ve related, she showed up one morning a week or so ago, demanding to be let in the house, & emphatically informing me she would be moving in. She’s established herself as the soul of the house, and, little by little, we have been bonding, and learning each other’s habits & demands….

To give y’all an idea of her personality, below you’ll find pictures of her doing what she likes best, (like any cat, that, is, of course, sleeping….), as well as some shots of her playing and/or looking for trouble. She’s got a strong PK mode (that’s Psycho Kitty mode, for the uninitiated….). Oh, and, those crumpled up papers you see? Those are her prey; she is part Siamese, and has already learned how to fetch those papers for me to throw for her…. She also likes to sleep near my feet, or against my back, always wanting to be close… a true familiar…. Enjoy the pictures, ffolkes; LeeLoo’s a natural show-off….

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leeloo 1 025

Preparing to edit documents as I type


leeloo 1 016


Killing Paper Tigers


leeloo 1 022


In her favorite sleeping pose…


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Variations on the same theme….


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Checking out the shredding pile….


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The aftermath of destruction ~~ fatigue….


I’ll keep y’all updated on her progress, as we each explore the depths of our burgeoning partnership…. Here we go again, ffolkes; she’s just dropped her favorite piece of crumpled paper at my feet, and is staring up at me expectantly….. She wants to play fetch again…. wish me luck; this could go on for hours….

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Dont keep calm

“Say what you will about the sweet miracle of unquestioning faith, I consider a capacity for it terrifying and absolutely vile!” — Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

One of the most common characteristics of fundamentalist religious fanatics is their denial of the effects of humanity’s insanity on the world’s environment, especially as a cause for the climate changes we are witnessing every day. This inability to use their imagination has been one of the major factors in our inability to make any progress toward a viable culture, one which MIGHT enable us to survive our own stupidity. Alas, I don’t see it happening; nor did I see it last year, when I wrote this rant…. Enjoy! It’s all still completely valid and relevant, if not more so than when written….

From 2/18/2014:

http://www.sfgate.com/business/energy/article/John-Kerry-mocks-those-who-deny-climate-change-5239626.php

Wow…. I am, as much as I ever am, impressed, in a good way, by this statement from one of the administration’s most important lackeys…. I read what John K. said yesterday, or the day before, doesn’t matter…. and for once, the tenor and strength of the message, which is about the imminence of the environmental crisis we face in the near future, is nearly strong enough to get through to some folks, and any ffolkes who see or hear it will be encouraged, if somewhat bemused by this typical jump to join in the fight, onto a bandwagon they should have been driving TWENTY-FIVE FUCKING YEARS AGO, but, instead, act as if it’s a brand new model, which they, of course, claim as the first to seen driving in town….

Of course, so far, I haven’t actually SEEN any action on this by the administration, but, boy-howdy, when they decide to jump on the wagon, they do it with both feet…. He actually used the word ‘sacrifice’ I think, or maybe it was ‘danger’…. regardless, he made a good effort, for a first try, to get the message out there, that we have to act NOW, rather than later…. which is the most important key, if we are to have ANY chance to make any difference in the eventual outcome of events….

Personally, I don’t believe, not for a minute, that they’ll do enough, or be able to cut far enough into the influence of the corporate masters to make enough of a difference; no so far as to change the eventual outcome…. But, hey, they’re at least acknowledging that it needs to be done…. I just don’t think they can do it, not before they are blocked by those who hold the purse strings, and who are making a HUGE profit on global warming, as well as on the use of fossil fuels….

To be honest, I really don’t much feel like ranting today, even with the advent of good news about which to speak, or the importance of spreading the knowledge of the imminence of the problem…. I guess I’m in too mellow a mood, having slept long and well again…. Therefore, I’m going to finish this section with an old-school collection of pearls, to try to gain some perspective on this latest flip-flop by the political machine currently in power in Washington D.C…… Let’s see if SB has some good stuff in there for us today, shall we?…. But, hey, I know!…. Let’s let SB fire the shots randomly, so we can see some of the fat cat preachers do some dancing around, too, dodging figurative bullets alongside the politicians and corporate assholes….

“Capitalism did not arise because capitalists stole the land, but because it was more efficient than feudalism. It will perish because it is not merely less efficient than socialism, but actually self-destructive.” — J. B. S. Haldane

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” — George Orwell (1903-1950), “Animal Farm” 1945

“I don’t know if God exists, but it would be better for His reputation if He didn’t.” — Jules Renard

“We know what happens to people who stay in the middle of the road. They get run over.” — Aneurin Bevan

“Circumstances rule men; men do not rule circumstances.” — Herodotus

“The beauty of religious mania is that it has the power to explain everything. Once God (or Satan) is accepted as the first cause of everything which happens in the mortal world, nothing is left to chance…logic can be happily tossed out the window.” — Stephen King

Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand.

~~ William Butler Yeats, “The Stolen Child” ~~


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Comedy_Tragedy

Funny Bones

Dreaming the way home, lost, unseen,
from the dance, where
he felt so free, and clean.
Sorrow couldn’t find him there.

Waiting, filling up the hours, hoping,
some connection can be found
keeping busy as bees, coping.
Love creeps in, without a sound.

Fat days, skinny nights, passionate
visions of semi-conscious entities,
cannot seem to fully illuminate
or hide our innermost frailties.

Resolute, find the perfect sense, codify
simple rules with every breath
never waiting, anxious to modify.
fear nothing in life, not even Death.

~~ gigoid ~~


Written 5/13/2013.

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pearls_3

    It’s a bit esoteric, if not downright obfuscatory, but, it will do nicely, I think. It fits in well with the tentative nature of the rest of this mess…. Enjoy, ffolkes….

For a true master,
Sitting on a throne
Is no different than
Sitting on dirt.

~~ Deng Ming-Dao ~~


“If you’re ridin’ ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it’s still there.” — The Cowboy’s Guide to Life

“Don’t try to have the last word. You might get it.” — Lazarus Long

“A good place to start is where you are.” — Charles Wolf, Jr.

“No harm can come to a good man in life or death.” — Socrates

“By doubting we come at truth.” — Cicero

“We fear things in proportion to our ignorance of them.” — Titus Livius

“Indeed, what is there that does not appear marvelous when it comes to our knowledge for the first time?” — Pliny the Elder — Natural History, Book vii, Sect. 6

“Subtle and insubstantial, the expert leaves no trace; divinely mysterious, he is inaudible.” — Sun Tzu

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It’s only taken five or six days to complete this Pearl; ah well, so much for the best-laid plans. I don’t seem able to find any part of me that cares much; I’m still fighting my own battles, and can’t find any spare angst, or much of a shit to give. So be it. It’s done, and, at this point, that’s all that matters…. I’ll see y’all in a day or three, ffolkes. I’m making a little progress, so, there’s hope…. Ta for now….

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

The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

dozer3


À bientôt, mon cherí….



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Paradigm shift scheduled in D.C.; film at 11….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“It’s getting harder and harder to act weird.” 


~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~


Mars ISS2


International Space Station 2, orbiting Mars ~~ Artist: Ville Ericsson



Image from Space.com




Good morning…. Coming up with a justifiable reason might be problematic, but, evidence doesn’t lie; that means, sadly, no further dallying will be tolerated. It’s a shame, too, as we’re really, really good at dallying. Furthermore, the fabrication of reasons, of all categories and strengths, is sort of an avocation with us, (Luigi has his certificate already; who knew?), which means we could have come up with the correct one almost in our sleep, had we had any….


No, wait, that’s a lie. Don’t want y’all to think we’re falling into the habits displayed so frequently by our Beloved Ruling Class, now, would we? Nope. But, no worries, we didn’t do it; the lie was merely for the purposes of distraction; I actually did sleep, oddly enough, for the unheard of period of six FULL hours. Perhaps that’s why we’re so flippant thus far today; it matters little, since it’s gotten us two paragraphs deep into the intro, without breaking a sweat…..


That cover, officially pulled now, we will fold neatly, and, place right over here for later. Now, where was I? Oh, right. Okay, so, I’ve got a Pearl here for ya, but, it was put together yesterday, mostly, while I was battling some pretty fierce arthritic pain, to go along with the oppressive weather (got up to about 96ºF, & no A/C….), so, I can’t be entirely sure of the quality of any of it…. It looks okay, though, so, we’ll go with it, and trust to the process, which has proven itself to be up to the task many times…. sort of.


All that aside, where it belongs, it’s time to quit fooling about; we have no boats anyway, so, we are unable to fulfill Mr. Toad’s most excellent advice. (20 pt. bonus for knowing the reference) It wouldn’t have mattered anyway, as we don’t have time to spend on such frivolity now. We have oysters to harvest! Luigi, fire that puppy up, and get us outta here; I can hear the sirens coming up the drive….


Shall we Pearl?….


A thousand cups of wine do not suffice when true friends meet, but half a sentence is too much when there is no meeting of minds.” — Chinese proverb


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star-trek-renegades




Star Trek: Renegades ~ Scene from official movie


Screenshot Image via Space.com




An independent group of young filmmakers has created an entire movie based on the Star Trek Universe. It isn’t an official movie, made in Hollywood, but, an independent effort. I’ve watched the first few minutes; it’s excellently done. (Gotta love Admiral Checkov as a major character) I’m saving the rest to watch on my upcoming long flight, and really looking forward to it…. I managed to grab a copy, which will hopefully still be up on You Tube by the time you try to watch it…. It’s free to watch, so, enjoy!….






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Star Trek: Renegades






















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We the People...




    Since I was up so early (0300…) I’d intended to see if I had a rant on tap in my head…. It doesn’t seem to be happening, so, we’ll go with a pretty decent politirant from last year. It is, of course, all still completely relevant, as our Beloved Ruling Class has no intentions to make any changes on its own. But, that’s a rant for another day; for now, let’s consider this:


From 5/21/2014:


Today’s rant comes to you courtesy of a couple of news articles, to which you will find links below…. It helps me if y’all read the article(s) first; then, my comments make more sense…. I also feel compelled to comment here; I find it very disturbing, though not particularly surprising, that many of the articles about the chicanery, and, illegal, immoral activities in which our government and police forces are engaged, are to be found only in foreign news sites… The sites in this country seem to ignore/pass over much of what is obvious to other countries, tending to softball any criticism about the people in power here…. I’m assuming that is because they are afraid of retribution; why else keep silent? It certainly is not to their advantage to do so, in the ultimate sense….


Any who, please go ahead & read them, after which, I’ll show some excerpts, upon which I’ll comment, as to the key points to be found…. Hopefully, my comments will make themselves obvious, but, to be clear, the excerpts will be in quotation marks; comments are not….









“On Monday, Occupy Wall Street activist Cecily McMillan was sentenced to three months in jail and five years of probation, after she faced down a maximum sentence of seven years in prison for her conviction of assaulting a police officer. Her supporters, unsurprisingly, feel the sentencing is excessive – especially given her testimony that the officer in question first grabbed her breast – but it’s also clearer than ever that McMillan’s conviction will have a chilling effect on the future of serious activism.”


“The most famous example of this is probably NYPD deputy inspector Anthony Bologna, who pepper-sprayed peaceful female protesters during an OWS march. In 2013, the district attorney’s office announced that it would not prosecute Bologna – and the NYPD docked him just ten vacation days and reassigned him to Staten Island.”


A large number of people are surprised when they see articles such as this; I can only figure it’s because they are really, really stupid, (sorry, I calls ’em as I sees ’em….). I make that assessment due to their implicit trust in the police forces in this country, for the simple reason they assume, in complete error, those entities are to be dedicated professionals, with integrity, honor, and compassion for others; they actually believe that bullshit. They have a hard time when an article like this comes out; if they paid attention to anything outside their own narrow world, they would see such event happen, pretty much, every fucking day, in every state in this country.


Yep, every damn day, I go through the news, and there is ALWAYS at least one, often more, article reporting (often with video evidence) another cop gone rogue, or some piece of corruption exposed, or another forcible rape by a sheriff deputy, or some other example of one of the BRC’s faceless myrmidons abusing the power of authority that comes with their job…. EVERY DAY ffolkes, and that is NOT an exaggeration; look at it yourself…. If I can find at least one article about a corrupt cop every day, how many do you think there actually ARE? A LOT, wouldn’t you guess? I would….


Except, it’s not a guess… My estimate is that at least half, & most likely more than half, of the assholes wearing a badge in this country are totally unqualified to carry a gun to enforce the law, because they are they type of person who will abuse that power…. Way, way more than half is my actual gut feeling, but, we’ll be conservative, & keep the estimate there at 50%…. Believe me, when it comes to corrupt cops, half of them is MORE than enough…. Especially when the other half generally refuse to acknowledge that fact….


My question is: how can any intelligent citizen think that these people could be trusted to use their weapons ONLY in defense of the law, if they were the only ones allowed to carry them? Do you think that most police would show integrity, or would they abuse their position, using their weapons to control and intimidate citizens, rather than protecting them? I’m sorry, but, I just don’t think they are any more trustworthy than the average citizen; in fact, I would wager serious money on them being far less honest, and far less honorable than the average joe on the street, and that is a fact….. Hell, they can’t even bring themselves to use their turn signals…. what makes people think they’ll not pull the trigger?….









“Christie, who says he is still considering running for president and will decide his political future later, recently said the lane closings would be “a footnote” by 2016. But his prediction last week came the same day his former campaign manager contradicted Christie’s timeline of the bridge scandal…..Political operative Bill Stepien said Christie misspoke Dec. 13 when he told reporters he had received assurances that no one close to him knew about the lane closings.”


Misspoke? Misspoke? What the fuck does that mean, if not “he lied”? As far as I can see, it can’t mean anything but that, but, this guy, Stepien, remember, is a “political operative”, and, as such, has been extensively trained to use the English language in ways no other sane person would think to do…. He is obviously pissed off at Christie for making him fall on his sword, but manages to still try to minimize the key fact of the matter, to wit: Christie was involved…. his governing style encouraged that sort of thing; it’s clear that he knew about it, and he lied about it….


This particular brouhaha, in fact, is one of the easiest issues to understand, as history has shown us that we can, for sure and for certain, count on one characteristic of politicians to be a fact…. WHATEVER a major politician says. especially regarding their own guilt or innocence, about ANYTHING, is going be an outright lie…. It’s knee jerk for them; they have no other behavioral response to fall back on, so, in such instances, when they are accused of ANY wrongdoing, they deny, deny, deny…. If pushed to the wall, they will say that the person they scapegoated, fired, had lied to them, which, as we know, is a crock of shit….. If they hadn’t trusted the idiots, they wouldn’t have been where they were….


Two things bother me about issues of this nature…. One, the lies that are told by the perpetrators of such acts are reported as if they have validity; the media doesn’t even TRY to point out any discrepancy in fact, or suggest any alternatives to accepting it as truth…. when, in truth, they KNOW it all to be a crock…. Second, people in the public read this crap, and believe it…. They have no clue, and are unwilling to believe, that they are being lied to at every turn…. If they do that, they would have to first admit their own FUCKING STUPIDITY….


Sorry, I get a bit worked up when I think of how gullible the average American is; it makes me ashamed of what the forefathers foresaw for this country, to see that the corporate assholes have won…. They’ve taken over all three branches of the government, and the majority of people in this country have no clue they are nothing more than slaves….


The average American is no longer an educated, honorable citizen of a democracy, who watches the government with cautious regard…. Mostly they are grossly overweight couch potatoes, carrying fifty extra pounds from eating all the crap the corporations want them to eat, locked into their own brand of indulgence, stupidly believing everything a talking head on their TV tells them, making them extremely easy to lead around by the nose, as they give up their legacy of rights to unprincipled, immoral, INSANE assholes with more money than common sense, or compassion, ignoring and/or denying as much of what goes on around them as they can…. It’s a wonder we aren’t all wearing collars….


Just wait, though, that day will come, if the monied elite have their way…. They sure as hell haven’t shown any inclination to share any of what they’ve usurped stolen from everyone else, nor do they exhibit any willingness to change their nature from being predatory, so, I’d wager they’ll just keep on doing what they’ve been doing, and continue to do, which is lie, cheat, and steal to and from everyone else, always seeking to maintain and extend their control over the rest of the world…. while the sociopathic assholes they have trained as their puppets and myrmidons, whom we call politicians, preachers, and policemen, continue to run roughshod over the rest of society….




So be it.


gigoid has spoken….


“Jesus died too soon. 

If he had lived to my age he would have repudiated his doctrine.”


~~ Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche ~~




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Comedy_Tragedy




    It’s been quite a while since I used anyone else’s work, aside from a couple of bloggers whose work impresses me. So, here is a classic poem, from the man I consider the best American poet. Period…. Enjoy, please; it’s pretty hard not to like this man’s work…. It’s a long poem; to save some time, I only posted the first verses, the beginning stanzas only. I’ve included a link at the end to Poetryfoundation.com, where you can read the rest….






Song of Myself


I Celebrate myself, and sing myself,

And what I assume you shall assume,

For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.


I loafe and invite my soul,

I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.


My tongue, every atom of my blood, form’d from this soil,

this air,

Born here of parents born here from parents the same, and 

their parents the same,

I, now thirty-seven years old in perfect health begin,

Hoping to cease not till death.


Creeds and schools in abeyance,

Retiring back a while sufficed at what they are, but never

forgotten,

I harbor for good or bad, I permit to speak at every hazard,

Nature without check with original energy.


~~ Walt Whitman ~~


    You can read the entire poem, in the version published in 1892, here:


http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/174745




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Yin-Yang-symbol-sun-and-moon




    This is a strange pearl; it doesn’t, at first, seem as if it’s going anywhere specific, but, manages somehow to create a lesson worth some attention…. I hope you enjoy it; it’s a pretty good one….




The modest front of this small floor,

Believe me, reader, can say more

Than many a braver marble can,–

“Here lies a truly honest man!”


~~ Richard Crashaw ~~

~~ Epitaph upon Mr. Ashton ~~


—————–


“If water derives lucidity from stillness, 

how much more the faculties of the mind!  

The mind of the sage, being in repose,

becomes the mirror of the universe, 

the speculum of all creation.” 


~~ Chuang Tzu ~~


—————–


“Any idiot can face a crisis.  

It’s this day-to-day living that wears you out.” 


~~ Anton Checkov ~~


—————–


“Curiosity will conquer fear even more than bravery will.”


~~ James Stephens ~~


—————–


“It is the ability to choose which makes us human.”


~~ Madeleine L’Engle (Walking on Water) ~~


—————–


“When you come right down to it, all you have is your self. 

Your self is a sun with a thousand rays in your belly. 

The rest is nothing.”


~~ Pablo Picasso ~~


—————–


“It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.” 


~~ Antoine de Saint-Exupery ~~


—————–


“No one can see their reflection in running water.

It is only in still water that we can see.” 


~~- Taoist Proverb ~~


—————–


“The Magician of the Ivory Tower brought his latest invention for the master programmer to examine.

The magician wheeled a large black box into the master’s office while the master waited in silence. 


“This is an integrated, distributed, general-purpose workstation,” began the magician, 

“ergonomically designed with a proprietary operating system, 

sixth generation languages, and multiple state of the art user interfaces.  

It took my assistants several hundred man years to construct. Is it not amazing?”


The master raised his eyebrows slightly. “It is indeed amazing,” he said.


“Corporate Headquarters has commanded,” continued the magician, 

“that everyone use this workstation as a platform for new programs.

Do you agree to this?”


“Certainly,” replied the master, 

“I will have it transported to the data center immediately!”

And the magician returned to his tower, well pleased.


  Several days later, a novice wandered into the office of the master programmer and said, 

“I cannot find the listing for my new program.  Do you know where it might be?”


“Yes,” replied the master, “the listings are stacked on the platform in the data center.”


 — Geoffrey James, “The Tao of Programming” ~~




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Contrary to all precepts of scientific endeavor, we’ve finished. Not only finished, but, done. And, just in time, I might add. The myrmidons seem to be somewhat persistent today; I can hear the sirens coming right here to the oyster beds…. How convenient we will be gone when they arrive; funny how that worked out, isn’t it? Ah well, we’ll worry about all that later; once y’all have exited the premises, we can break out the heavier artillery. Of course, we’re not allowed to tell you what it is, but, trust me; you’re safe…..See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes. Count on it….




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


The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Magic bullets engender dilatory responses….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture.


Just get people to stop reading them.”


~~ Ray Bradbury ~~


Mars colony2


Artist’s rendition of Life in the Mars Colony



Image by Ville Ericsson via Space.com




Good morning…. Remember Alice’s White Rabbit? That’s me, all over. “I’m late, I’m late, etc….” The date with which I’ve tasked myself is not, perhaps, as important as the Rabbit’s, though, ’tis to me, but, that’s one of those points we are wont to call moot. Well, some of us are. But, I digress, which, as y’all have previously seen, isn’t unusual, or particularly helpful.


Ah, well, so much for the intro. I had hope honesty, even if coupled with fantasy, might work; alas, ’tis yet another plan gone awry. This, of course, leaves us in the lurch, and though Lurch was one of my favorite characters, it’s not the place a nice blog likes to find itself. Therefore, with powers vested in me by the leasing of the Tardis, I declare this intro complete…. Luigi, you know what to do…. The rest of you…. look busy.


Shall we Pearl?….


“He who fights the devil with his own weapons, must not wonder if he finds him an overmatch.” — South


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Jerry


Jerry Garcia





As a Deadhead in good standing, (I’m all registered as a user at Dead.net), I receive periodic emails from the remainder of the band, which has now morphed into the Dead & Company, now beginning a tour to live up to the band’s historic live reputation as improvisational wizards, along with the newest band members, taking the place of, but, never replacing Jerry and the others who have passed….


The Garcia Family started a non-profit foundation, with the purpose of bringing music to the children and people of the world. They’ve just released a song, with people from all over the world singing “Ripple”, one of the Dead’s iconic songs, with cameo appearances from several big musical names, such as Jimmy Buffet, and David Crosby. I’ve included it as today’s video, so, enjoy!…..







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Ripple | Playing For Change | Song Around The World    































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Sandclock .jpg




    Since I’m late, you know what’s going to happen now…. Here’s a short little mini-politireligirant that spilled out in the intro, from the archives….


From the intro on 6/10/2014:


I am frequently (adjective TBA) (Okay, we’ll use “bemused” for wont of anything more accurate….) to learn something new about people, especially myself….. In the process of checking my bank account online, to see if my SS allowance had been deposited, I became aware of the power of certain feelings, engendered by the mere presence, or absence of resources… In essence, just the mere fact of having a significantly useful amount of money to use is enough to stimulate feelings of extreme relief, almost a giddy joy, which is probably a reaction to NOT feeling the stressful worry that goes along with NOT having enough resources on hand….


In today’s world, most of us are only one or two months worth of paychecks from living on the streets, so when our bank account gets too small, it’s a source of constant stress….. Especially when food becomes scarce…. Of course, only the middle and lower classes of society are subject to this process, but, hey, that’s you and me, ffolkes, so it’s not as if you don’t know whereof I speak….


The most difficult feeling with which to cope, for me, is the one that comes to me when I realize that our BRC, our beloved rulers, and their corporate masters, along with their counterparts in the priestly hierarchies, don’t ever have to feel any of that…. They are already rich enough to have passed beyond the level where a month or two of income reduction, or shall we say, reduced profit, because that’s closer to the truth of the matter, won’t have any significant effect on their lives, and certainly wouldn’t cause them to lose their place of residence. In point of fact, they’re rich enough that they don’t have to even THINK about that issue at all…. I would guess that is a very powerful feeling in itself….


Now, I know you’re thinking to yourselves, “there he goes again, ranting in the intro…”, and you’d no doubt be right. I didn’t intend to start off this way, but, having gone to look at my account, it struck me pretty hard how wide the gap has grown between the rich, and the rest of humanity…. The income differential grows larger each minute, as the system of thievery of the middle classes, and the parasitic assholes who reap the rewards of that theft, continue their pillaging of society without ever slackening pace…. rushing us all along the road to extinction with gleeful madness…


Such ranting has become less than profitable for me, and seems to keep some folks away, which is part of the reason why I’m looking around for new ways to interest my readers…. I hate feeling this crap, and hate the fact that the world is set up in such a way as to allow the rich and powerful to do pretty much whatever they want, and the rest of us suck hind teat…. SIGH….


It just makes me want to go out & buy that gun I keep promising to obtain…. But, I know that soon after doing so, I’d have to keep one of the first rules of gun ownership, to wit: If you are going to keep your gun loaded, then only pick it up when you are prepared to fire it….. My only problem with that is the difficulty in CHOOSING a target; there are a LOT of them out there that are worth one of my bullets…. It’s all the more attractive as I think about how GOOD I’d feel after taking down a couple of those assholes who have more money than morals…. tempting, indeed…


For now, though, I’ll content myself with that, and get on with today’s business, such as it is…. At least this will keep me from SPENDING all that money for a few hours….


Note from 2015:


Nothing’s changed much in the past year, has it? In fact, things look a bit less stable than even that short time ago…. Ah well, tomorrow’s another day….


“Obsessed by a fairy tale, we spend our lives searching for a magic door and a lost kingdom of peace.” — Eugene O’Neill


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Comedy_Tragedy




    Yep. It’s mine, from the past….






When life calls, ready or not….







Memories are all we have sometimes

to keep our sanity intact,

with learned phrases and subtle rhymes

lessening life’s vicious, vibrant impact.


Presently all seems composed and intent

in stark contrast to hollow day,

forlorn patchwork emotions of unheralded bent,

fill up night’s bower, leaving hell to pay.


Such vigorous and elevated temper

brings us rare moments to ponder,

filled with lessons all need to remember

lest base perception lose valued wonder.


Laugh loud when entropy sticks fast

leaving shameless anger in its wake.

Let bygones pass quietly into the past

reaping only what is left to take.


Final words of wise imagination

tell us living well’s the best revenge, it appears

ever eluding choirs and congregations

finally finding home, never buried in tears.


~~ gigoid ~~




Written 9/10/2012.


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pearls_3




    Naturally, we go once more to the archives to save our sorry ass….


From 6/13/2014:


Naturally, saving time means old-school…. I’ll be good, though, and find some fresh pearls, instead of pulling one from the archives… Aren’t I nice? Especially for someone still half-way buried in sleep…. Let’s see what happens; this could go several ways, so I hope it finds a good path…. I never quite know what to expect when I push Smart Bee to hurry…. sometimes it comes out well, and sometimes, well… it comes out, which is the BEST thing that can be said of it…. Let’s hope for better than that….


“Memory: what wonders it performs in preserving and storing up things gone by or rather, things that are!” — Plutarch


“We ought never to do wrong when people are looking.’ — Mark Twain


‘The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am.” — Darth Vader (Star Wars)




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.) ~~




“Hearts will never be practical until they are made unbreakable.” — The Wizard of Oz


“After being asked by a waitress if he wanted his pizza cut into four slices or eight: “Better make it four. I don’t think I can eat eight pieces.” — Yogi Berra


“The death of God left the angels in a strange position.’ — Internal documentation, programmer unknown


Well, it does show some of the effects of hurrying, but, it’s really not bad at all…. Makes a couple of good points, I think…. No worries, either way, it’s done…. so be it….


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Done. I’m not sure at all how it came out, and simply don’t have time to care. This is it, ffolkes; WYSIWYG. And, I’m outta here. See y’all tomorrow…. maybe. Ah hell, who am I kidding? I’ll be here, come hell or high water…. or, the NSA, those clandestine a-holes….




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


The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….





					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
An affair to dismember….

			
						

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Ffolkes,




“The more I learn, the less I know.”


~~ Smart Bee, stealing Truth from history ~~


Mars colony


Mars Colony



Artist’s rendition by Ville Ericsson via Gizmodo.com




Good morning…. Fabulous! What’s fabulous? Oh, nothing, really. It just sounded like a good word to start with today. Whenever I see it, I hear it in my head in the voice of Ricardo Montalban, of Corrrinthian Leather fame…. I guess a lot of ffolkes will think of him as Hervé’s sidekick on Fantasy Island, but, I remember him for that Cadillac commercial, and his sheen of lizardly schmooze…. Fabulous!


So. How’s it going? Me, I’m fabulous. Got a good five hours sleep, in only two sections, last night, so, I’m pretty much good to go for the day…. Too bad it’s only 2 AM; I’d kinda hoped to make it at least to an hour when a restaurant opened up, but, it looks like I’ll be cooking my own, unless I want to wait…. and, why the HELL am I talking about breakfast, when I’m still half-groggy, & still short of the required quantity of coffee to obtain/acquire/achieve some degree of coherence? To listen to me babble, one might think, well, I don’t even want to know….


That’s because I’m an Amurrican! I don’t want to know…. anyfuckingthing, if it makes me think at all…. God knows I’m not trained for it….


Oops, no ranting in the intro…. Hmm…. Now what? Hey, I know! How about we just get started? I know, duh, right? Okay, we’ll do that, since nothing else seems to be presenting itself as an alternative…..


Why look! Here’s that #4 we left here a couple days ago. We’ll use that. Hold on, ffolkes, #4 can get a bit bumpy….


Shall we Pearl?….


“As scarce as truth is, the supply has always been in excess of the demand.” — Josh Billings


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bedknobs




Image from the UK Telegraph via Google Images




I’m in the mood for silly; I don’t suppose it’s too hard to understand, given the hour and my state of mind. I’ve always liked this movie, with which I became very familiar during the time my kids were growing up; it was one of their favorites…. Terrible acting, of course, but, the story holds it all together. The song “Portobello Road” is part of what gave me the urge to go there when I visited London…. They’re right; you can find ANYTHING on Portobello Road…. Enjoy this little foray into sheer fantasy, ffolkes; you’ll need it to get through today’s rant….






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Bedknobs & Broomsticks

















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Dont keep calm




    I’m still working on the epic rant begun yesterday; it’ll be a doozy. For today, here’s a pretty thick one from early last year…. It’ll be a good warm-up for the new one in a day or two….


From 4/5/2014:


“In God We Trust.”  I don’t believe it would sound any better if it were true.” — Mark Twain


Boy, it sure wouldn’t, would it? But, you can add that particular phrase (“In God….”, etc.) to all the others coined by the snakeheads, and the BRC, to justify their social interactions, all of which serve THEIR ends, not yours…. Having the populace believe the above makes for a very easily manipulated group of people, all of whom are primed to believe whatever they’re told, by someone on TV wearing a suit with a flag pin, or up in the pulpit…. Now we’re supposed to believe them when they talk to us about spying, and lying, and generally being the assholes they cannot help but be…. ( Hmm, a bit awkwardly phrased, but you get my drift, right?…)



http://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/Senate-committee-OKs-release-of-CIA-torture-report-5375716.php


Following this line, in summary of the most critical of the information contained therein, I have copied an excerpt from the above article, a brilliantly obscure statement of compliance (?), kinda sorta, from some guy who works at the CIA. That critical excerpt, taken directly from the above, is this:


“CIA spokesman Dean Boyd said his agency would “carry out the review expeditiously,” but suggested the process may be difficult.”We owe it to the men and women directed to carry out this program to try and ensure that any historical account of it is accurate,” Boyd said….”


That’s right, that’s what he said, right out there in public, where it was recorded by numerous reporters…. This person, this… Boyd person, is the mouthpiece spokesman for the CIA, an agency whose very existence, (its raison d’etre, its excuse for being part of our world at all), is to provide intelligence (in the form of information, a task that does not necessarily require significant levels of IQ in its operatives…. Flexible morality, yes, but, not IQ points….) from outside the borders of the USA, by inhabiting, and exploiting, the world of shadow, the battlefield of covert operations in other countries, using techniques and methods of operation based on illusion, misdirection, misinformation, and lies…. This is common knowledge, and not subject to debate…. look it up in their charter documents….


This Boyd person, and I use the term loosely, by making this statement, obviously expects us to believe that his agency, whose very existence is rooted in lies and the spread of misinformation, is ready, and willing to give us, or anyone else, an ACCURATE picture of what they’ve been up to? I don’t know about y’all, but, I’m insulted….


In fact, I can’t recall at the moment anything more egregiously untrue, or as insulting, since Nixon’s “I am not a crook!” back in the 70’s…. Or, maybe, Shrub, Senior’s “Read my lips… no new taxes.”….. Since the sheer illegitimacy of both of those statements has long been a forgone conclusion, no longer a matter of debate, I’d say it’s a fair assessment to make of this particular little piece of verbal bullshit…


http://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/Cuban-Twitter-heads-to-hearings-in-Congress-5375669.php


Then, searching further among the headlines of BS we are supposed to buy into, we come to the LATEST of the clandestine shenanigans our beloved Barry, and his “transparent administration” has been up to in the last few years…. Without bothering to actually TELL anyone, some government lackeys, encouraged by the “Arab Dawn” phenomenon in the Middle East, an event whose roots were nourished by the social networking capabilities of Twitter and Instant Messaging technology, decided to attempt to foment rebellion in Cuba among the youth of that country, by deliberately setting up a social network of their own, using it to not only encourage dissent, but, also, (they like to multi-task…) to gather information about the users in Cuba…


Well, I’m shocked…. just shocked, I tell you…. What a surprise, eh? To think that our Beloved Ruling Class here in America, land of the FREE (white Christian minority) would stoop to such egregiously deceitful and deliberate influencing of public sentiment to further their own interests, why it just makes me feel so….  slimed…. Which is how the Cubans must have felt when they found out it was all a sham…


Boy, there’s sure nothing like going around the world making new friends and influencing people, right?…. Christ on a crutch, what the fuck were they thinking? Have these assholes become so blinded by their own sense of entitlement they can’t see just how STUPID that is? Apparently not, which is what will come out, I think, in these hearings…. More stupidity, that is….


It’s all a big clusterfuck, just another example of entitlement gone wild and crazy, making the pundits and elected assholes at every level believe they can be as stupidly obvious about their self-serving avarice as they wish, and nobody will ever care, or catch them at it…. which is a concept, given today’s world, that is not only easily seen as more than just a little stupid, it approaches the level of severe mental retardation…. Having spent a lot of time, (3+ years), taking care of people whose average IQ hovered around 4, I can testify that this sort of belief is about the only sort of which they are capable…..


They’re all a bunch of smarmy, self-serving, avaricious assholes…. and THAT, my friends, is me being NICE!….. I merely used a bit of vitriol, with only one questionably unwarranted word of insult…. I COULD have been extremely nasty, turning viciously vulgar, without breaking a sweat, or becoming at all disconcerted…. Yep, I could have said, fuck them all, really hard, right in the ass, (unless, of course, they LIKE that….); then, kick their sorry asses right down to the lowest levels of the hell they so richly deserve…. but, I won’t say that….


gigoid, the dubious, has spoken.  So be it….


“…. I’m IMAGINING a sensuous GIRAFFE, CAVORTING in the BACK ROOM of a KOSHER DELI –” — Zippy the Pinhead


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Comedy_Tragedy




Accentuated Lessons


Bold statements of calculated intent

Become common rule of the malcontent.

Avarice assumes such attractive wear

Beguiling deception, illusory and fair.


Grasping and pulling with ghostly hands

Legally proper in all the signatory lands.

Seeking and finding each vulnerable soul

Anguish as payment for exacting the toll.


Wraiths of commerce’s invisible dead guards

Still haunt the dreams left in sad empty yards.

While absentee nobles sit in stiffly elegant splendor

Served by sad-faced detainees in abject surrender.


Escape from reality is illusory at best

Often we falter and fail its daily test.

Only when focused on inner strength

Does peace stay with us for any length.


Peace lies within, always…..


~~ gigoid ~~




Written 9/27/2012.


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Yin-Yang-symbol-sun-and-moon




    Today’s final pearl is a groovy little collection of pearls describing many of the more valuable qualities of a human being…. Well, a human being as I see them, anyway…. You could call this a Lazarus pearl, as it begins and ends with some very basic wisdom from the Eldest…. Pay heed, young paduans!….


“Beware of the “Black Swan” fallacy.  Deductive logic is tautological; there is no way to get a new truth out of it, and it manipulates false statements as readily as true ones.  If you fail to remember this, it can trip you – with perfect logic.  The designers of the earliest computers called this the “Gigo Law”,  i.e. “garbage in, garbage out”.  Inductive logic is MUCH more difficult – but can produce new truths.” — Lazarus Long


“Our strength grows out of our weakness.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson


“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


“A man cannot be too careful in the choice of his enemies.” — Oscar Wilde, “The Picture of Dorian Grey”, 1891


“If you cannot find peace within yourself, you will never find it anywhere else.” — Marvin Gaye


“Common sense is the knack of seeing things as they are, and doing things as they ought to be done.” — Josh Billings


“It is neither wealth nor splendor, but tranquility and occupation, which give happiness.” — Thomas Jefferson


“We are the miracle of force and matter making itself over into imagination and will. Incredible. The Life Force experimenting with forms. You for one. Me for another. The Universe has shouted itself alive. We are one of the shouts.” — Ray Bradbury, “G.B.S. – Mark V”


“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.” — Robert A. Heinlein, The Notebooks of Lazarus Long


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Without going too far into how it may have occurred, it is clear we’re done. At any rate, there is something appropriate in each section, so, I guess that counts. For what, we shall not speculate, having reached an age where we know better. Since I can’t think of any more nonsense to throw around, I suppose I’ll go try to find something to do for the three or four hours until the rest of the world around here gets going. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes; as has been amply demonstrated, resistance is futile….




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


The *only* duly authorized Computer Curmudgeon.


PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.


“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch








dozer3




À bientôt, mon cherí….

					

		
		
	


				
					
	

		

						
Save those last few multicolored polynomials….

			
						

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Ffolkes,


Reeling from an overabundance of hyper-oxygenated brain cells, I awoke, in severe confusion. Since quitting the consumption of nicotine via the avenue of cigarette smoking, (I’m wearing the patch to titrate myself off the bloody things….), I’ve been sleeping better, due, in part, to the decrease in my coughing, and, in part, from increased oxygenation while sleeping. It has, however, presented a different conundrum for me to deal with, which consists of a period of confusion and concomitant mild fear when I wake…. I can’t say as yet just why I wake up confused, but, I do, and the mild fear is a reaction to having to face the world in that state…..


Actually, that’s all a load of BS, and I’m just talking through my hat, which is marginally better than talking through my ass…. I did  start wearing the patch, and have stopped smoking the cigarettes; it has also lessened my coughing, and increased my oxygen, thus improving the quality of my sleep…. The rest of it is all made up, just to practice two writing skills, one being sentence construction (major fail there…), and, sounding sincere and reasonable…. I think it came out alright on that part, even though it’s all just crap, in terms of facts and reality…… The sentence structure, such as it is, needs work to sound less pompous, and more ‘user-friendly’, to borrow some tech-speak….


So, how’re y’all doin’? For me, it’s been a quiet time of late, just learning the ins and outs of this new relationship, and dealing with the difficulties and issues that life and reality brings us all to deal with… For us retirees, thankfully, there is less of it, and the time limits aren’t usually so critical as when we were younger…. which is a good thing, because we move slower now, and need longer to get things done…. We have the advantage of a greater degree of foresight, and usually, a greater degree of organization and time management, though, so it all evens out for the most part….. I wasn’t sure if I would, but, I’m really enjoying being retired, now that I am more financially comfortable. The perks and advantages to being older seem to be greater, thus far, than the disadvantages, which are mostly due to the physical issues involved in the aging process we all go through…..


There, that’s done… I’m counting the above paragraph as my daily portion of bitching and whining about getting old, even though it’s more positive than not…. Consider it a gift….    🙂   Now that is out of the way, there’s nothing holding us back from getting on with today’s post, which, given the disruptions to routine that have already occurred, and the alterations already made in the background, where you wouldn’t notice, promises to be, shall we say, unique? Well, different, anyway, and, hopefully, entertaining, if nothing else….. I see that we’ve again reached the proper amount of vacuous nonsense for stimulation, (or is that simulation?…) of the cortical processes we pursue each day….


Shall we Pearl?…..

_____________________________


Isaac Asimov    The headlines I read every day show me absolute proof of Mr. Asimov’s assertion, as the power of stupidity in human affairs continues to direct, no, drag us, ever closer to our own self-destruction as a species. Ignorance, and the resulting fear of the unknown, is the single most powerful issue, in my estimation, in the struggle for existence in which we are now engaged. Moreover, by its very nature, that issue, and its power, is working against  our continued presence on this planet in a way that almost guarantees its success (though, in fact, if properly channeled, it could, instead, be a powerful motivational tool for survival….). It (stupidity/ignorance) does that by appealing to what every human alive has, and will give in to every time it is invoked, to wit: our own personal self-interest…..


No matter how ethical, or moral, one considers themselves, they are still making their decisions in life, about everything, based on their own self-interest. This colors every aspect of what we perceive, for it determines, in advance, how we will employ those perceptions to act. Our self-interest considers, first, what WE want to make ourselves happy, and it is only those with the will and the intelligence to subdue this impulse who can bring themselves to act out of true charity, or selflessness, thinking first of what will benefit all, rather than just themselves. Any other acts of that nature are, when examined closely for motive, performed because they somehow improve the person’s own position, either in the real world, or in the world in our minds…. Remember, ffolkes, those are two separate things, entirely, and should not be confused as being the same thing (though that is what everyone tries to do…. make the outer world conform to their inner image of that world….)


Now, I realize that it’s a bit early for philosophical discussions of such a subtle, and deep, subject…. But, this issue is what I consider to be the primary operational factor in how the world is, quite frankly, going to hell in a handbasket…. Human nature is the very thing that is killing us, and will continue to do so as long as the most fearful and ignorant among us are allowed, and even encouraged, to continually act in their own self-interests, because those little indulgences are going to end up killing us all, all because the greedy and avaricious assholes who are in charge of the world’s resources are immoral and unethical enough to feel no moral dilemma, at keeping the rest of the ignorant masses under their control, for the benefit of THEIR own self-interests….


They, the BRC, the corporate masters, and their myrmidons, the churches, the police, and the armed forces, are the ones who have no ethical compunctions against making people afraid, so they can fan those fears, promising deliverance, if only they will give up their independence, and allow others to think for them. This system gives them everything they want…. power over others, power over money and resources, and control over everything they see, so that it all is working in a way that fulfills and enhances their self-interests…. It matters not at all to these monsters that the rest of mankind suffers, or that eventually the path they have chosen will kill ALL of us; it matters not, because their sense of entitlement does not stretch to include the concept of their own demise; they don’t think they are subject to the same laws as the rest of us, and tend to forget that they, too, are subject to the laws of physics…. laws from which there IS NO APPEAL…..


I’m a smart guy, and I’ve seen this building up through all of my life, due to events that have taken place throughout mankind’s relatively short (cosmically speaking) history on this planet…. I also am smart enough to realize that it’s all coming to a head, because physics cannot be ignored, and the physics of the situation here on Earth says that drastic changes are coming, in terms of planetary weather, and atmospheric, and oceanic chemistry, and those changes are going to be more than we are (currently…) able to cope with, either in a physical sense, or a cultural sense…. In other words, she’s a gonna blow, so we’d best be ready to jump….


I’m personally hoping that a Martian colony can be established before I, or my children and grandchildren, get swept up in the maelstrom to come…. If so, and they would take someone of my age, I would grab my grown kids, my grandson, and Patricia, and her kids, and be off to Mars, in a heartbeat….. Otherwise, I need to figure out another way to get the world to make the inner changes needed to alter the path we are on, or, quite simply, we are all going to die…. Maybe not today, and maybe not in the next 50-100 years…. But, the physics says that it WILL happen, ffolkes, so, I’d advise y’all to at least think about what you might do when it does…..


Okay, I’m done being a doom sayer for today…. Today is a good day, or will be, if I have anything to say about it…. Oh, you say you need proof of all I’m asserting here? Okay, this should make it pretty clear…. This is a real law, I checked….


“In Lexington, Kentucky, it’s illegal to carry an ice cream cone in your pocket.” — Smart Bee


(Okay, so I didn’t really check, but, it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest to find this to be true in fact…. We’ve all seen sillier examples that ARE true….)

_____________________________


After such a somber rant, I feel the need for something soothing to my spirit; it’s hard to be serious for so long…. Well, it is for me…. Besides, if we take the view of a solipsist, all of this. (Life, the Universe, and Everything….), is perfectly under our control, and we can change it anytime we wish, right?….. Right….




Soliloquy Of The Solipsist


I?

I walk alone;

The midnight street

Spins itself from under my feet;

When my eyes shut

These dreaming houses all snuff out;

Through a whim of mine

Over gables the moon’s celestial onion

Hangs high.


I

Make houses shrink

And trees diminish

By going far; my look’s leash

Dangles the puppet-people

Who, unaware how they dwindle,

Laugh, kiss, get drunk,

Nor guess that if I choose to blink

They die.


I

When in good humor,

Give grass its green

Blazon sky blue, and endow the sun

With gold;

Yet, in my wintriest moods, I hold

Absolute power

To boycott any color and forbid any flower

To be.


I

Know you appear

Vivid at my side,

Denying you sprang out of my head,

Claiming you feel

Love fiery enough to prove flesh real,

Though it’s quite clear

All you beauty, all your wit, is a gift, my dear,

From me.


~~ Sylvia Plath ~~


_____________________________


I’m not sure what stimulated the rant above, but, it felt good to get all that out, if nothing else…. So, I’ll indulge my own self-interest at this point, (as if that isn’t what I’ve been doing now for over a million words, a couple thousand of them daily for over two years….), and go to an old-school pearl, that is, at the very least, fresh, if not excitingly unique and perfect…. Hell, it may end up being perfect; that’s the nice thing about going in cold, you never know…. This one will be as random as I can make it, as I’m not setting any parameters, except that I like it, and it goes somewhere…. I don’t care where….  Enjoy!


“Nothing’s so weird that no one’s done it.” — Smart Bee


“I’m sorry. I’m not allowed to argue any more.” — Smart Bee, speaking for gigoid…


“It is a terrible thing for a man to find out suddenly that all his life he has been speaking nothing but the truth.” — Oscar Wilde


“An idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.” — Elbert Hubbard (1856-1915)


“You can play with my mind if you let me play with yours..”– Smart Bee, speaking for gigoid, again.


“A good place to start is where you are.” — Charles Wolf, Jr.


It is the heart afraid of breaking

that never learns to dance.

It is the dream afraid of waking

that never takes a chance.

It is the one who won’t be taken

who cannot seem to give.

And the soul afraid of dying

that never learns to live.


— Bette Midler, The Rose

_____________________________


One of my strongest skills is rationalization; as someone who posts every day, when possible, I have to be flexible in what I allow to go out, because, believe it or not, I do have some pride in what I do here…. Very little, as I’m a pretty good judge of literature, as opposed to litterature, and my own efforts goes back and forth between the two…. Let’s see what has been wrought today, shall we…. I can’t be sure, but, it’s pretty close to good, or a reasonable facsimile thereof, so, I’m taking it, and I’m gonna run with it…. Like I’ve said before, a number of times, I’ve done worse….  😆   Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you….


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


dozer3