Corpuscular ambiguity, gift wrapped….

Posted on June 13, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

How does it feel?
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown?

~~ Bob Dylan ~~

Need more proof?….

Hajime…. Whatever you find here today should be taken with a measure of reserve; the conditions under which my life has proceeded for a couple of days now have been rather stressful, in the sense my own mind has been consuming itself, with some relish, I might add. Not the pickle kind, either. I am unsure as to the reason for such a meltdown, but, it hardly matters at all, as the end result is just as miserable, no matter how it came to be. And, regardless of why it happens, the answer to getting past it is always located in the same place, to wit: inside my own mind/heart/being.

At this moment, I do feel a bit better, as I just hung up after talking with an eminently rational friend, who lives in England. Having spent much of yesterday in a funk, wandering the house, annoying the cat and desperately casting about for distraction from my own thoughts, I needed some rational conversation before beginning this task. We chatted for almost an hour, and I feel much more connected than I did beforehand. Yay, me, and thanks to my friend for being a friend; it may have given me enough balance to be able to finish this, with, possibly, some grace and style. Of course, that would be a first, so, let’s not get excited yet.

In fact, let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves at all; for a change, we’ll try to show some forethought, and tact, by making this introductory section an actual introduction, rather than yet another opportunity to blather. There’s been enough blather in the last few days. Instead, I’ll get on with this, as best I may, so we can all get on to bigger things. (Note I did not say better; we try to maintain a small degree of hope….) Some of it was already done, thankfully, so, we might even get this posted at a reasonably appropriate time. Or, close, anyway.

I won’t even use any tricks. We’ll just go on, leaving this section to fend for itself. It’s really rather a simple technique; all I have to do is say this….

Shall we Pearl?….

” If you see a man approaching you with the obvious intention
of doing you good, you should run for your life.”

~~ Thoreau’s Law ~~

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Cakehole Presley

Image from twitter.com via Google Images

Today’s musical selection is a band from the British Isles, specifically Cardiff, Wales. Fronted by Chris Ridgeway, one of the most talented singer/songwriters in today’s musical world, their music is raw, intense, and political, which hits all the right notes for this old hippie…. Thanks to Lady P. for the referral…. Make sure you listen to their song written for the 2015 election in Britain, called “Don’t let the bastards grind you down….” Brilliant!…

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Cakehole Presley

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https://youtu.be/2L_SfIpzE80?list=PL64CE9B8E7A91CF7E

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While speaking with my friend this morning, I made a statement regarding religion(s), which I’d like to repeat… I said, “The entire concept of religion has been humanity’s most egregious obstacle to ever achieving our true potential; all of them need to just GO AWAY!” The more I look at what is happening in the world, the more firmly I believe this. With the concomitant other delusions under which society suffers, to wit: money and government, religion has done nothing for us but keep us from finding any real truth, about ourselves, or reality…. If you don’t agree, I can only invite you to say so, in the comments, or, via email, and we can discuss it at length. For now, here is a relatively short, but cogent discussion of this from a few years ago….

As you can see from the material below, this is not a new idea for me. So, if you wish to discuss it, bring some strong arguments; I’ve been thinking on this for a while, and know whereof I speak…. I hope you enjoy this, or, alternately, I hope it makes you think…. Don’t worry, it may hurt, but, it won’t actually hurt you in any permanent way….

From 6/15/2012:

“Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” — Genesis 1:28

Is it any wonder that our society is falling apart? Given the above, I think that any doubts one may have about who and/or what is responsible for the mess in which we find ourselves are pretty well dispelled. This decree of Entitlement is taken seriously by every priest, every preacher, and every politician who ever trod American soil (the phenomenon is world-wide, but for now let’s just concern ourselves with our problems here at home….). Did you ever hear a clearer statement of justification for hatred, bigotry, and prejudice? If you can answer yes, I’d be interested in hearing it, as this is just about as clear an expression of elitism as any I’ve ever heard….

Perhaps it is just me, but I find this to be disgusting. It is a clearly false assumption, based entirely on hearsay that was uttered by men who wanted to have control over others, and wanted to establish in the minds of those others the idea that God gave them the right to do so. I’m not sure just how they got everyone to believe them, to buy into the delusion, as it seems completely obvious to me that it is a lie of major proportion. But, they did, and for well over two millennia this idea of Mankind being the Lords of Creation has led us down a primrose path, straight to the edge of extinction…. The efforts of sages, philosophers, and clear-thinkers throughout the ages has not been sufficient to convince the majority of Mankind that our entire societal make-up is based on a lie, in spite of the simple fact that it is true….

As long as the majority of people in this country, or any other, for that matter, accept this lie, this entitlement, then the changes necessary to survival for our species are never going to happen. This sort of separation from the remainder of the Circle of Life is what will keep us from ever becoming part of that Circle. Our species will not survive, if we do not choose to join the rest of reality; we cannot survive alone, and every action taken to divide us from the other inhabitants of Earth pushes us further down the path to extinction. It pisses me off no end to know that this inevitable end is all because the majority chooses to embrace a lie, a delusion, rather than having the courage to face the universe as we are….

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Unbidden, treasure unfolded…

Taken by surprise, Psyche sits numb
Amidst tall phrases worn of elder time
Seeking a not-new place from which to come
No shiny new horizon, nor altered paradigm.

Sudden regrets shape dreams as times maintain
Shades of memories bring poignant clear sight
Visions of duty, each chosen wild campaign
Shouts echoing clamors to enfold the night.

Arisen from less than eternal havens of sleep
Facing moments created in torment and pain
Destiny weighs upon those chosen to keep
As the sparrow flies now to sever the twain.

Faded pathways lead away, hazy and long
Burned out verges, so long unknown
Images of yesterday, clear and strong
Bleed into today, though t’is but my own……

~~ gigoid ~~

6/13/2012

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Naked Pearls

Notes on Life at Large

*******

“To be alive is to take risks;
to be always safe and secure is death.”

~~ Edward Abbey ~~

*******

“Know that joy is rarer, more difficult,
and more beautiful than sadness.
Once you make this all-important discovery,
you must embrace joy as a moral obligation.”

~~ Andre Gide, “Fruits of the Earth “~~

*******

“A heart is not judged by how much you love
but by how much you are loved by others.”

~~ The Wizard of Oz ~~

*******

“All teachings are mere references.
The true experience is living your own life.
Then, even the holiest of words are only words.”

~~ Deng Ming-Dao ~~

*******

“How you do anything is how you do everything.”

~~ Zen proverb ~~

*******

“Be not diverted from your duty by any idle reflections the silly
world may make upon you, for their censures are not in your power,
and consequently should not be any part of your concern.”

~~ Epictetus ~~

*******

********************************

Considering my state of being at the start of today’s effort, it can be considered a victory to find myself here at the end, finished. So, I will do so, with some satisfaction. Beyond that, deponent sayeth no more, lest fate be tempted to take it all away. Rather than torture y’all, and myself, any further, we’ll go on, with my good wishes for y’all to experience a bountiful day. I will, however, warn y’all of my imminent return, tomorrow, same time, same place, relatively speaking. (The planet will be in another part of space, as will the solar system, the galaxy, and all the rest….) with yet another offering at the altar of self-abuse. See y’all then, ffolkes; I’ll be greatly surprised if you don’t….

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Abrupt motions of cryptic intent….

Posted on June 8, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold,
it would be a merrier world.”

~~ J.R.R. Tolkien ~~

Random Government Building, Belfast, Ireland

Hajime…. The Pearl you’ll see today is a rush job, the natural result of being incredibly late in starting today. Since the reason has to do with the amount of sleep I got, (for a change, plenty), my only response is to feel the rush, without the urgency, because, hey, sleep, right? I could have arisen at a usual hour (3 or 4 AM), but, was able to turn over and sleep until I was done, an event of major proportion around here. Yay for me, and now we’re done with the excuses.

I’ll warn y’all now; I have no idea what will happen below. I’ve got zilch finished, so, it will all be the quickest work I can devise, whether from the archives, or, forced out of SB with no mercy. I’ll use the whip, if necessary, but, it WILL get done. So be it. To assist with this goal, the intro will be as truncated as I can make it. How truncated will it be? Just this much….

Shall we Pearl?….

“And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane
by those who could not hear the music.”

~~ Friedrich Nietzsche ~~

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You guessed it. We’re going default for music, just because we can. I’ll pick one with a nice picture, and be done with it. Abondanza!….

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Classical Music

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https://youtu.be/tAkHdB77u2c

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As intimated in the intro so strongly, we’re hitting the archives again today for our ranting material. I don’t know yet what kind it will be, but, we’ll try for a bit of either humor, or snark. Let’s see what we can find today….

From 2/24/2013:

“Virtue is more to be feared than vice, because its excesses are not subject to the regulation of conscience.” — Adam Smith

This is so true, I want to shout it out from the rooftops…. It is the kind of insight that leads to jokes like “Lord, protect me from the works of thy followers.” which are so prevalent in our society. We’ve all witnessed the excesses of fanaticism at times, and, I’m sure, have suffered indignity of some sort at their hands at some point in our lives. Nobody escapes it, as such fanaticism is like having roaches; they are impossible to completely eradicate. Of course, there are methods of killing roaches that are foolproof (placing them in a complete vacuum, for example), but it means killing off the entire species , and the rest of us would doubtless find objections to that scenario…..

“It is hard to be brave, when you’re only a Very Small Animal.” — Piglet, Pooh’s Little Instruction Book, inspired by A. A. Milne

These simple minded fools who become fanatics, whether it is over their country, their religion, their race, or their collection of plastic flamingos, all suffer from the same lack of courage as Piglet describes here. In their case, it isn’t because they lack the ability to be “larger”, like Piglet, but because their minds see themselves as “small”, in relation to all they don’t understand, and this gives them the same sense of constant fearfulness that comes with never knowing when some larger creature will notice you, and eat you, or not notice you, and crush you under foot, with careless indifference….

“Again, our observations of the stars make it evident, not only that the earth is circular, but also that it is a circle of no great size. For quite a small change of position to south or north causes a manifest alteration of the horizon. There is much change, I mean, in the stars which are overhead, and the stars seen are different, as one moves northward or southward. …All of which goes to show not only that the earth is circular in shape, but that it is a sphere of no great size: for otherwise the effect of so slight a change of place would not be so quickly apparent. Hence, one should not be too sure of the incredibility of the view of those who conceive that there is a continuity between the parts about the pillars of Hercules [the strait of Gibraltar] and the parts about India, and that in this way the ocean is one.” — Aristotle, De Caelo, Fourth Century B.C.

As a consequence of all that fear, most of the folks who assume fanatical stances refuse to see, or perceive, as much as they possibly can, and this includes reading, or watching, or listening to things that challenge the truth of what they have chosen to believe. The things they DO choose to believe never challenge them to think, or to go outside their comfort zone in any way; any such suggestion is viewed with anger, mistrust, and fearful rejection, no matter how nonthreatening it may be to normals…. If it doesn’t fit into their narrow little view of things, it is evil, and not to be trusted, in their minds, or what passes for one….

As the quote from Aristotle shows, mankind’s knowledge of the natural world has grown beyond the guesses and speculation that are rampant in the ancient writings about religion, and, thankfully, most of the world is able to understand, and accept the facts in question. It is only those whose fear of the universe is such that they cling to outdated, misguided systems of belief that, though they offer comfort to their preconceptions and misapprehensions, have nothing to do with the real world on any level. And, damned if they don’t get upset, and violent, when those misapprehensions are challenged in any way!…. Idiots….

Sorry, I get disgusted sometimes, especially when I think about those assholes who encourage the idiots, i.e., the priests, preachers, and other members of the priestly hierarchies…. I regard them as the WORST of humanity, in complete lock-step and purpose with that other group of reprehensible semi-humans, the BRC, or 1%, as they’re known these days in the news. The entire purpose of the religious institutions on this planet is to provide behavioral control of the population to the ruling classes, under the guise of religion, by manipulating the masses of believers into following whatever dictates the ones in power may come up with, in order to receive their heavenly rewards…. I swear, it’s the biggest, longest running scam in history….

I’ve already gone a bit overboard here, and really haven’t begun to roll with my indictment/rant yet. Since this is the last pearl for today, I’ll stop here, and just say this…. There are a lot of really stupid people on this planet, as well as a great many good, intelligent, compassionate ffolkes…. but, the money, and the power, reside with a very small number, with representatives from both groups, and as far as I can see, most of them are bat shit crazy, in the sense that they don’t care at all about any of the rest of humanity, as long as they get theirs….. We, the intelligentsia, are perhaps the only hope left to the world before it is too late…. Only if enough of us rise up and throw their sorry asses into the pits will we have a chance of seeing another millennium on our calendar…. THAT is a fact, not a guess; the evidence is there for anyone to see….

So, wake up, ffolkes, and folks, because the day is coming when you will wish you had listened to people like me…..

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This poem is either the first, or second poem I wrote in 2012, after a 35 year hiatus from writing any at all. I hope you enjoy it….

A Failure to Germinate

Marking the days in elements of sad disarray
only holds me thrall, as I laugh while I may.
With cold, hard hands so impatient and cruel
pulling me to this vale of tears, a pathetic old fool.

Feelings sit silent, cast in shadows and light
breaking forth to implicate such vengeful might.
Just below the surface they patiently hide
to sally forth bravely, colors bright as they ride.

Tears and pain transform valued assets in hand
while comfort and serenity retreat to a far land.
Bold, bright patterns of hope garnish my ruinous state
until reality enters, full of disdainful portions of hate.

I sort out the illustrious measures of vision gone mild
only to find them transformed, now vicious and wild.
In my deepest desires I find myself calloused and cold
with faithless advocates whose souls have been sold.

My search finds little to support any hope of relief
far too much time has passed to bolster such belief.
The sad becomes real, and real becomes unfounded
until flights of such fancy are all dead, and grounded.

Nature has informed me of the newly hatched crime
of which reality boasted proudly, time after time.
The last answer we think of is always the best
as we come to terms with fate, our hope at rest.

~~ gigoid ~~

9/27/2012

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Naturally, Smart Bee goes on strike, just when I need it most. Go figure. Fortunately, for me, I’ve got archives, and a lot of ’em, to boot. Here’s one now….

From 2/23/2013:

“I represent a sardine!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

At this point, after reading that line, you might just be wondering if I’ve slipped my leash again…. and, you’d be justified in that thought. However, rest assured, I’m perfectly sane, if somewhat metaphorically, so it’s all good, right? Right…..

Now, such a bald statement from our old pal is liable to make one think at first that he is either kidding (not bloody likely….), or he is currently having hallucinatory delusions of being a seafood lawyer, or fish solicitor, as my British friends would say. While both of those are possible scenarios, similar in nature to Zippy’s previous episodes of verbal gymnastics, neither is correct in this instance, as I happen to know that he is teaching a lesson in metaphorical manipulation, or, as it is commonly known, lying his ass off, to keep you preoccupied while he is doing something else he doesn’t want you to see, or know about…. He’s tricky that way….

I suppose he might be trying to tell us he is a theatrical/literary agent of some sort, and has a sardine who a) has written the next best seller, entitled “The Truth About Tuna”, an exposé of the fishing industry, b) has a voice like Pavarotti, c) juggles three seahorses while riding a motorized wheelchair, or d) paints incredibly lifelike pictures of cruise ships, from an underwater view…. He might, if that is what he meant, but, it isn’t…. It is all just a distraction, a hullabaloo to draw your attention away from his real purpose, which has to do with several cases of motor oil, a rag-time band, two Senators, and a motel out on Route 666….. You really don’t want to know, now, do you?

No, really, ffolkes, I had a reason to show Zippy’s little gem off today, and it was really a good one…. So, it’s really too bad that, by the time I finished with the second paragraph above, I completely lost track of whatever it was I had to say about it….. That, of course, is embarrassing, but not as much as having to turn tail, right in the middle of a pearl, or what SHOULD have been a pearl, and go old school, just to save my ass from complete well, asininity (what else?….)….

So, here is what Smart Bee came up with, and taken together, the pearls all DO have a point…. just don’t ask me what it is, because even if I knew, I don’t think I can be trusted today to say it correctly, or even interpret it accurately…. So, you’re kind of on your own…. Don’t worry, they’re all safe, just pointed a little….Enjoy!….

“Look under enough rocks and you’ll find _something_ slimy” — Smart Bee

“And gentle Dulness ever loves a joke.” — Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — The Dunciad, Book ii, Line 34

“Don’t edit reality for the sake of simplicity.” — Smart Bee

“No people do so much harm as those who go about doing good.” — Mandell Creighton

“A thief believes everybody steals.” — E.W. Howe

“I have a feeling that at any time about three million Americans can be had for any militant reaction against law, decency, the Constitution, the Supreme Court, compassion and the rule of reason.” — John Kenneth Galbraith

“My way of joking is to tell the truth. It’s the funniest joke in the world.” — George Bernard Shaw

Well, there you have it, such as it is…. Ta then, luvs…..

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Having managed to hit the golden mean for today, I’m going to be as succinct as I can here at the end. It may be the quickest Pearl ever created, but, it’s not bad, considering. I’m going to trust the process again, & go get it posted before I lose my nerve. Y’all have a good one, ffolkes; I’ll be back tomorrow, hopefully with some fresher material. You may count on two things; one, I’ll be here; two, I’ll be here…. Sounds solid to me….

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Indefatigable purveyors of subtle untruths….

Posted on June 5, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“I can handle reality in small doses,
but as a lifestyle it’s much too confining.”

~~ Lily Tomlin ~~

Sunset off the coast of Ireland, May, 2013

Hajime…. To get the possibility of whining out of the picture, I’ll just say, tough morning. My laptop, which holds the means for producing Pearls of Virtual Wisdom in its innards, froze big time first time out of the gate today; it froze so hard, it wouldn’t even shut down until I forced a hard reboot. Then, I took a chance and had it restarted normally. All seems to have turned out well, aside from losing whatever work I’d already begun. C’est la fucking vie, as they say in the poorer quarters of any French megalopolis. Me, I’m ignoring reality as best I can, for today, if I allow it any slack at all, I’ll end up in jail…. So be it.

The Pearl you’ll find below changed shape on me, thanks to the reboot. We were compelled by time constraints to go default for our musical selection. In addition, you’ll find both the daily rant, and the poem, came from the archives again. The final old-school pearl is fresh, but, only because it was the only part done when I got up to begin. Such as it is, so shall it be. I have neither the time, nor, the inclination, to spend more time on it, as the whole starting over thing has me in a nasty mood. In fact, it pissed me off so bad, I’m having trouble maintaining any sort of pleasant demeanor; it’s hard when all I want to do is scream and start laying about me with the nearest sharp implement.

To avoid any such unpleasantness, we’ll go now. In fact, we’ll go, now…. Watch this….

Shall we Pearl?….

“A thing derided is a thing dead;
a laughing man is stronger than a suffering man.”

~~ Gustave Flaubert ~~

Side note: Though I can see and understand the truth of what Gus says here, in my current state, my only reaction is, fuck you, Gus… Oh, well. So much for intelligent discourse, eh? Onward, ffolkes….

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We’re going default today. I had thought to have more time, but all of it got eaten by a frozen computer this morning, requiring a hard reboot, and, starting pretty much over from scratch, as the hard reboot lost all my work. SIGH…. Murphy lives. The music should help…. I’m hoping, anyway. Enjoy, ffolkes, it’s six hours of great stuff….

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Classical Music

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https://youtu.be/g54-_icmfo4

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I had a great start for a rant, but, it all went away with the hard reboot mentioned above. Here is a pretty decent rant from a couple years ago to take its place for today…. I hope you enjoy it; it’s a bit long, but, I thought it said what it had to say fairly succinctly. You can decide for yourselves, as always…. Abondanza!

From 10/2/2014:

“How many lawyer jokes are there? 3, the rest are true stories.” — Smart Bee

I had intended to find some more true stories to share with y’all about lawyers, but, instead, let’s examine the creature as it exists in reality…. Now, I, personally, know a lawyer, and, since he no longer works as one, having recovered, in my mind, both his sanity, and his honor in the process (don’t tell him though, I get the impression he’s still a bit ambivalent/unsettled at how it came about, so, we don’t discuss it…), I feel absolutely no qualms whatsoever claiming him as a friend…. He’s gotten to the point he laughs at some of the jokes now….

He is an intelligent person, of course; no other kind would be my friend for so long (Over 30 years now…), or be able to put up with my own level of insanity…. In my case, of course, that was used to AVOID ever studying law, beyond what I felt necessary to know for my own protection…. I’ve always maintained there are only two kinds of lawyers who come out of law school, no matter which it may be.

The first kind intends to help people find their way through the maze of laws, allegedly designed to to allow them to live safely and with dignity; these lawyers, those with actual morals and ethics, serve justice, and the intent of the law…. Like my friend, they often end up leaving the field, or, sadly, at times, doing the Darth Vader, by turning to the dark side….

The other type is different sort of creature; their purpose for studying law is to find an angle to work, in order to further their own personal goals, which center around money, and power….. These lawyers may end up helping some people, but, at a cost those people can rarely afford comfortably. Mostly, this sort pad their bills with absurd charges, that puff up legal fees until the courts step in, to set regulations as to how much they can charge… whereupon, they merely find another method to get around the definition of “services rendered”….

Of this second type, a certain percentage actually, over time, become so enamored of the process of acquiring money and power, they figure out the only logical course to take, if they wish to continue their upward progress (in their eyes….). So, they mutate, and become politicians (an old Greek word, from “poly”, meaning “many”, and “tics”, meaning “small, dirty, bloodsucking parasites”….), because as legislators, they are allowed to vote themselves the keys to the treasury, calling their motivation “public spirit” and/or “the call to leadership”…. Often the mutation actually begins during school, as all the nutrient factors are present there, and a certain type of sociopathic personality takes to such things naturally, as it serves their purpose so well….

Excuse me a moment, I need to curse….

Okay, I’m back…. see, I can be nice, & not subject y’all to my forays into French colloquialisms…. However, in point of fact, they’re all (all the elected officials at the national level, to be specific….), fucking crazy, loony as a mass of mixed leopards, wolves, vipers, cobras, hyenas, rhinos, hippos, and, oh, a tiger or two, all slithering, strutting, blundering, screaming, locked in a confined space, each displaying the worst characteristics of their perverted, all-too-predatory natures…. And, all of whom are convinced of their own right to tell everyone else how things should be…. I mean, they should know, cuz Jesus told them so….

Yep…. Think about it, ffolkes, and, you, too, folks…. Of the 455 people at the top of the American political heap… (That’s 1 President, 1 VP, 12 Supremes, 100 Senators, 340 Reps at the House, & 1 Armed Forces COS….I think…. He isn’t elected, but, otherwise, I’m missing somebody….), (unless I lost track of how many Reps there are…. that changes at times…)…. Regardless… it’s a small number of persons, considering they make the decisions for so many…

So, ask yourself these questions…. How many of those are lawyers? How many are male? How many are white (Caucasian, or close)? How many are of a faith OTHER than Christian?…. I think you can see the point here…. no matter what the actual numbers may be, when counting the token women and persons of color they’ve allowed to join them, for the show of apparent diversity, it isn’t enough to make any difference in the real agenda that will be forged by those people…. It WILL be according to the white, male, Christian, legally trained (i.e., avariciously self-serving) point of view….

As another point of difference between them and the rest of the population: All of them, every single one, is a millionaire, or more (except perhaps for a few Reps, newbies not yet adept at playing the lobbyist’s for their treats and financial breaks….) Yet each and every one of the named politicians, less-than-500-people, with an average income over a million dollars a year, has better health care, better retirement arrangements, and better wages than anyone else in the country, all voted in by, who else, but, themselves….

Plus, just for good measure, for the great and glorious service they have done for the country, and all the sacrifices they must make to come to Washington, live like movie stars, and decide which lobbyist they should let take them to dinner tonight, why shouldn’t they get those benefits, not just while in office, but, for the rest of their lives?! Whether they are ever elected again or not…. Pretty good deal, eh?…. Wish I’d a thought of it….

And people wonder why I often talk about buying a gun….. I only have four things left to say about lawyers, and their mutated state, politicians….As usual, other people have said it better, so, as is my wont, I turn to them, with these final words upon which to meditate….

“If it weren’t for lawyers, I think we could have invented a universal symbolic representation of reality.”– Smart Bee

(technically, it’s not a joke; it’s merely an observation….)

“It’s possible to fight intolerance, stupidity, and fanaticism when they come separately. When you get all three together it’s probably wiser to get out, if only to preserve one’s sanity.” — Adam Dalgliesh, in Devices and Desires, by P.D. James.

“The dread of evil is a much more forcible principle of human actions than the prospect of good.” — John Locke (1632-1704)

“The measure of a man’s life is the well spending of it, and not the length.” — Plutarch (46-120 AD) — Consolation to Apollonius

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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 ~~

9/27/2012

********************************

Naked Pearls

All we need to know….

*********

“I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together!”

~~ (The Beatles) I Am The Walrus ~~

*********

“One cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach.
One can collect only a few,
and they are more beautiful if they are few.”

~~ Anne Morrow Lindbergh ~~

*********

“The world is full of cactus, but we don’t have to sit on it.”

~~ Will Foley ~~

*********

“It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.”

~~ Sir Edmund Hillary ~~

*********

“Small is the number of them that see with their own eyes,
and feel with their own hearts.”

~~ Albert Einstein ~~

*********

“…the wise man looks into space,
and does not regard the small as too little,
nor the great as too big;
for he knows that there is not limit to dimensions.”

~~ Lao-tzu ~~

*********

“The unexamined life is not worth living to a human.”

~~ Attributed by Plato to Socrates, Apology ~~

*********

“The earth does not belong to man; man belongs to the earth.
This we know.
All things are connected like the blood which unites one family.
All things are connected.
Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons of the earth.
Man did not weave the web of life;
he is merely a strand in it.
Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.”

~~ Chief Seattle, 1854 (c.1786-1866) ~~

*********

“Be excellent to each other. Party on, dude.”

~~ Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure ~~

*********

********************************

At the moment, the only positive note to what has occurred here this morning is, its done. Thank whomever you like for small favors, eh? Moreover, I’m going to show all the perspicacity I can summon, to say, thanks for stopping in, & we’ll try to do better tomorrow. On those wimpy notes, I will bid thee adieu for another day, with the usual caveat, to wit: I’ll be back. On that you may rely, with perfect confidence…..

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Madras pants in seasonal colors….

Posted on May 24, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“A fire eater must eat fire even if he has to kindle it himself.”

~~ Salvor Hardin ~~

~~ from Foundation, by Isaac Asimov ~~

Alaskan Taxicab

Hajime…. As I begin today’s post, several, no, many things are running through my head, most of which are unprintable, thanks to the reappearance of Murphy in this process. I’m trying to ignore his usual tricks, including the bloody mess in the water closet, so, that’s the last we’ll speak of it. It’s just depressing, anyway. Instead, I’ll jump right into some light housekeeping, in a manner of speaking, so we can get on with the rest of today’s mess, such as it may be.

I’ve been home from Texas for three full days now, but, still haven’t fully recovered from either the jet lag, or the near-complete exhaustion into which I drove myself, in order to do what I had promised to do. I completed my vow, but, with a slightly reduced degree of my usual excellence, due to a number of factors, led by the difficulties presented by my own reduced physical abilities, which tended to complicate all the rest. That, of course, is an obscure reference to getting old, a wall against which I am still banging my head too often. But, it got done, and done to a turn, so, all is well, with a good time had by all.

I have managed to put together a Pearl, complete with a fresh rant-like discussion. A new poem is leaking out, but, hasn’t quite gelled enough to finish, so, we’ll outsource there today. In some ways, I’d call what we have today a standard Pearl, not too shabby, but, not blindingly bright. So be it. It’s going to take some time, I think, to get back to our normal (hah!) routine, but, with Leelu’s help, we can do it. Perhaps my decision to return to Facebook will complicate matters, but, it’s good, I think, to take ourselves out of our comfort zone now and again, and, it certainly won’t hurt me to socialize a bit more….

All that said, to our usual lack of purpose, and, the obligatory lack of clarity, I’ll get this slow on the toad, so we can all get on to something more productive, if less fun. I suppose I should issue one or more of our usual warning/disclaimers, but, I’ve decided, from now on, y’all are on your own in that respect. If y’all don’t have a clue by now how it goes around here, well, you’ll just have to deal with it as it is, for, we have done all we can do to prepare you sufficiently to protect yourselves…. In short, welcome to reality…..

Shall we Pearl?….

“The stupid are deaf to the truth;
they hear, but think that the wisdom applies to someone else.”

~~ Heraclitus ~~

********************************

It’s been a while since posting at all, so, naturally, Murphy has stepped in with his usual precise timing, to throw a spanner in the works. First day back, & I find myself late, and rushed to get it done…. Hence, our default musical choice, again chosen for the picture which drew my eye…. Enjoy, ffolkes….

********************************

Classical Music

********************************

https://youtu.be/v83uhOqSHu8

********************************

“In the arena of human life
the honors and rewards
fall to those who show their good qualities in action.”

~~ Aristotle, Nicomachen Ethics (4th c. BC) ~~

Though he lived more than 2500 years ago, Aristotle is still regarded as one of humanity’s greatest minds. There are points in his writings which indicate certain fallacies, but, most, if not all, may be attributed to the time in which he lived, for no man, or woman is free from the prejudices or assumed facts with which he is raised, and lives his life. Given that caveat, his thoughts on ethics, morality, and philosophy remain one of the standards by which excellence in thinking is judged.

If we can assume the validity of this aphorism, it clearly indicates how our modern world, so full of conflict and strife, has reached such a dangerous point in our journey toward developing a mature culture, able to survive into the unknown future. If we may define ‘human life’ as those parts of culture which best describe humanity’s hope for that future, then the culture we have been manipulated into accepting has nothing to do with being truly human, for all the honors and rewards go to those who display our most destructive characteristics, such as lack of compassion for others, the ability to deny their own responsibility to the species at large in favor of personal gain, and the use of their imagination for self-service, rather than for humanity at large.

Thus it is clear to me, because we have denied the ethical, human side of our nature, we have become a culture which is slowly, but, inevitably, heading for self-destruction. Moreover, thanks to the part of our modern culture which encourages dependency and mental laziness, almost all of those who will die in the imminent chaos are completely unaware of the danger, or their own part in bringing it to their own lives. As long as those who control the media, especially television, most of the world will go to their deaths without ever knowing of their peril at all…..

“It has yet to be proven that intelligence has any survival value.”

~~ Arthur C. Clarke ~~

I’ve written on this subject previously, as you know; some might say I’ve beaten this poor horse to death. But, given the absolute cluelessness of the general public on this planet, I would think some repetition might be necessary. In fact, given that same reluctance to use their minimal powers of reasoning, some serious pounding with a two-by-four piece of pine might also help it sink in, thought that remains a question. The need for the masses of humanity to WAKE THE FUCK UP is greater now than ever, I think; it’s also completely unlikely to happen….

When I returned to my online haunts, I checked in at chuq’s blog, where a lot of the discussion revolves around politics, and foreign policy, with a bunch of our current election news thrown in for discussion. I’m going to let y’all off easy today, by ending today’s rantish piece with my comment from the first post I saw…. It’s a good summary of how I’m feeling, politically, these days, so, we’ll go with it, and leave it at that for now…. As y’all know, I’ll probably come back to this again, because it’s all I can do….

“SIGH…. After seven days of completely ignoring politics, I can only say how ‘odd’ it all seems with a bit of perspective. I am reminded of the old joke about, “but, if you do, it only encourages them!”

The only way left to defeat the corporations, who are the real enemy (governments are merely the tool with which they distract us), is a complete boycott of their systems, returning to barter as our form of economics, which places value on human effort, not on illusions, ideas which do not exist in the physical world. If we didn’t pay our taxes, they wouldn’t have anything with which to threaten us, would they? How would they pay their myrmidons to arrest us all?

Capitalism must go, so must governments, and religion. Together, they have been used, as tools of manipulation, to direct the entire world for the benefit of just a few, disregarding any moral considerations in favor of their narcissist, sociopathic selfishness. It’s time for them to go away, and leave the rest of us be…. That includes all the Democrats, all the Republicans, all the Popes, and Imams, and Prophets, and ALL the bankers…. along with all the other assholes who sell their souls to the corporations, so they can be part of the elite….

…. may they rot in their own version of hell, instead of giving it to everyone else…. & you can tell ’em I said so.”

So be it.

gigoid has spoken….

********************************

A Book

There is no frigate like a book
To take us lands away,
Nor any coursers like a page
Of prancing poetry.
This traverse may the poorest take
Without oppress of toll;
How frugal is the chariot
That bears a human soul!

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

********************************

Naked Pearls

Instructions for Life

*******

“Only the actions of the just
Smell sweet and blossom in the dust.”

~~ James Shirley — Contention of Ajax and Ulysses, Sc. 3 ~~

*******

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow.
Learn as if you were to live forever.”

~~ Gandhi ~~

*******

“The closing of a door can bring blessed privacy and comfort
— the opening, terror.
Conversely, the closing of a door can be a sad and final thing —
the opening a wonderfully joyous moment.”

~~ Andy Rooney ~~

*******

“As threshing separates the wheat from the chaff,
so does affliction purify virtue.”

~~ Richard E. Burton ~~

*******

True wealth is measured not by what you accumulate,
but by what you pass on to others.

~~ Larry Wall ~~

*******

“I leapt headlong into the sea,
and thereby have become better acquainted with
the soundings, the quicksands, and the rocks,
than if I had stayed upon the green shore,
and piped a silly song, and took tea and comfortable advice.”

~~ John Keats ~~

*******

“Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth,
so virtue appears from good deeds,
and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind.
To walk safely through the maze of human life,
one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue.”

~~ Buddha ~~

*******

********************************

It’s late, but, it’s done, as well as I can do it, given the current status of reality. So be it. As noted, peripherally, above, all we can do is all we can do. Since it is patently clear we’ve done all we can do, I’ll quit pounding on the poor wee beastie, & allow it to expire of its own accord. As is my habit, I’ll try again tomorrow, with, presumably, fewer issues with which to deal. Hope springs eternal, as they say. See y’ll tomorrow, ffolkes; that’s the only warning you’ll receive…..

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.

“Do unto your data that which you can undo.”

PLEASE STOP READING THIS MESSAGE NOW.

“SCRAM!!!!!!!!!!”- Oscar the Grouch

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Unmercifully twisting of virtual reality….

Posted on May 19, 2016 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“A fish never thinks about water until he’s out of it.”

~~ Robert Penn Warren ~~

Gaia ~ Earth

Image from https://eyesofodysseus.wordpress.com/2016/05/15/weird-wallpapers-happy-sunday/

Hajime…. I did not post anything yesterday, for the first time in a couple of blue moons. To make up for it, here is today’s effort, put together while traveling and coping with reality. I shan’t try to predict how it may come out, but, it’s done, and will soothe my sense of guilt at missing my own deadlines…. Moreover, this will be all the intro you get, as I’m still coping with that reality. Watch how easy it is when we don’t fool around with it…..

Shall we Pearl?….

“Life at its noblest leaves mere happiness far behind; and indeed cannot endure it. . Happiness is not the object of life: life has no object: it is an end in itself; and courage consists in the readiness to sacrifice happiness for an intenser quality of life.” — George Bernard Shaw, Letter, Dec. 1900,

********************************

Image from youtube.com via Google Images

Today’s selection is a rock and roll legendary jam session from 1970, with the two best guitarists playing at the time. It’s simply outstanding, a long, incredible melding of the talent of two of the geniuses of the instrument. Almost completely improvisational, and, damn, if ain’t just plain fucking good…. Enjoy, ffolkes; it doesn’t get any better than this….

********************************

Duane Allman & Eric Clapton
Live Studio Jams 1-6
1970

********************************

https://youtu.be/9u_HmIg6V4M

********************************

Image from https://talesfromtheloublog.wordpress.com/2016/05/16/fresh-monday-anti-illuminati-memes-that-will-soothe-your-aching-bones/

I was going to include some comments on this thought from George, but, time, circumstance, and, reality have precluded any such addition. However I would venture to say, given the state of the world today, y’all can easily imagine what I might have said. So, please, do so, and, I’ll try for a rant in a few days, when I return home from my trip….. See, I can be nice….

********************************

Pensive early and late…

Endings aren’t always a new beginning
I’m sad to say.
Sometimes it’s just an ending
there’s always a price to pay.

Still, it’s only money, he said
watching it piss away
Did everything ‘cept meet Fred
‘n had a good time the whole way.

Even the bad stuff turned out well,
life lessons are just that way.
Knowing what’s right, you can’t always tell,
we don’t always know the right things to say.

I’ll take all the hard times, without complaint,
learning isn’t always easy to take.
Kindness, patience, and compassion without restraint,
are still the best decisions we can make.

~~ gigoid ~~

5/26/2913

********************************

Naked Pearls

Winning Ways

*******

“There is no road or ready way to virtue.”

~~ Sir Thomas Browne ~~
~~ Religio Medici, Part i, Sect. lv ~~

*******

“The true”value of a human being is determined
by the measure and the sense
in which he has attained liberation from self.”

~~ Albert Einstein~~

*******

“One isn’t necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential.
Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency.
We can’t be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.”

~~ Maya Angelou ~~

*******

“It is dangerous to make man see too clearly
his equality with the brutes without showing him his greatness.
It is also dangerous to make him see his greatness too clearly,
apart for his vileness.
Is still more dangerous to leave him in ignorance of both.
But it is very advantageous to show him both.
Man must not think that he is on a level either with the brutes
or with the angels, nor must he be ignorant of both sides of his nature;
but he must know both.”

~~ Pascal, Pensees, n. 418 ~~

*******

“We are not rich by what we possess but rather by what we can do without.”

~~ Immanuel Kant ~~

*******

“One lives but once in the world.”

~~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe ~~

*******

“I’ve wrestled with reality for 35 years,
and I’m happy, Doctor, I finally won out over it.”

~~ Jimmy Stewart in Harvey, 1950. ~~

********************************

Well, that will do it, I think. I’m still coping, and have little to say, other than, thanks for dropping by, and, we’ll be back to our usual schedule by Sunday, or Monday, latest. In the meantime, I’ll post if I can, or re-blog if I am pressed for time. Either way, I’ll be back eventually, so, please bear with me until then…..

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Switch over to the Itsy Bitsy network…

Posted on March 14, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

No slave is ever freed, save he freeth himself.

~~ Smart Bee ~~

Artist’s rendition of Mars One Colony outpost: picture from Space.com

It won’t do. It simply won’t do…. Unless, of course, it does, in which case, we have no opening…. SIGH. Well, ffolkes, I seem to have done it again…. Here I am, clueless as to how to begin, again, with a large amount of blank white covering the screen, and, my mind’s inner vision…. I wouldn’t want to put any blame for this anywhere it doesn’t belong, but, pretty soon, I’m going to have to assign a scapegoat of some kind, to get rid of all this angst; at least, then, I’d have something to feel guilty about….

I must say, though, I’m not much into guilt, having decided long ago it’s a pretty useless emotion, based generally on misconceptions of entitlement having nothing to do with the real world; only our own false ideas of how we DESERVE to be treated can cause us to ignore that which will not change at our command. Moreover, the whole deal becomes doubly useless when one considers one is experiencing guilt, anger, or other inappropriate frustration, over something we never had any right to demand in the first place….

Having thus far managed to avoid any such nonsense here on ECR, I think I’ll just use another facet of the human condition, one we ALL have practiced to some degree, to wit: total denial of reality in favor of one of our delusions…. It’s a common practice for us homo bozoidus’ to dump all the blame for what happens in our lives onto damn near anything, or anyone, other than ourselves; anyone who says they haven’t done this is, quite simply, a liar. We ALL have practiced such denial, at one point or another in our lives, if only to protect our own egos from the depredations piled upon it almost every day by our culture; denial of having done so is futile. It doesn’t make you a bad person, merely human….

And, goodness knows, we humans have our flaws…. But, the intro isn’t really the place to go any further into such matters. In fact, we’ve pretty much used up all the available space with my wandering around this concept, without ever really nailing it down. SIGH….. I suppose that’s what happens when I try to use the gestalt method of getting my thoughts down…. Sometimes it works; other times, not so well…. I will leave it to y’all to judge how it worked out, because I must now get us out of here, before we get stuck here for the rest of our allotted time…. In fact, look!…. It’s good ol’ #4, just sitting there, wagging its tail, waiting to take us out of here….

“Captain, I sense… a PLOT DEVICE!” — Smart Bee

Nah! Couldn’t be that!….. But, we’ll use it anyway, okay? Okay….

Shall we Pearl?

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

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Photo from http://www.markknopfler.com/gallery/tracker/

Got a bit lucky yesterday…. I subscribe to Rolling Stone’s email newsletter, for just this reason…. Mark Knopfler, the virtuoso of Dire Straits fame, is about to mark the 30th anniversary of “Brothers In Arms” with the release of his latest album of new material. It’s called “Tracker”, as related in the Rolling Stone article interviewing him ahead of the new album’s release in a few days. They are allowing people to share it, so, here it is….. It is GRAND, to say the least….

***********************

Mark Knopfler: Tracker

***********************

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJ1fPXv2cuEwRv6lCtWm2efm5LfuxkaOv

***********************

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“God is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnibenevolent- it says so right here on the label. If you have a mind capable of believing all three of these divine attributes simultaneously, I have a wonderful bargain for you. No checks, please. Cash, and in small bills.” — Lazarus Long

From 8/15/2012:

“It is not the possessions but the desires of mankind which require to be equalized.” — Aristotle

Life is tough, but not as tough as it used to be. It’s been a long time since we humans had to actually go out and be responsible for our own survival, a pastime that, up until about 2500-3000 years ago, was pretty much a full time occupation for the majority of people. Very few folks back then could be spared to sit around doing nothing, using up resources that were acquired by the others of the group; everybody had to pull their own weight, or they starved…..

But once the species figured out farming, and how to produce food more efficiently than having to go out to find it, life got a lot easier, at least from a physical standpoint. Farming kept folks from needing to move around so much to look for food, so cities began to form, and civilization began to organize into its various strata….. beloved ruling class, priestly hierarchy class, warrior class, and, of course, the patsy class, also known as the worker bees, or peons, depending on one’s particular degree of sliminess….

To look at what Aristotle says above, one might think it speaks to the upper classes, suggesting that, perhaps, if they wanted less than they have, which is more than they need, then there might not be as many folks who want only enough to survive, but can’t find even that. It isn’t as if they don’t have enough…..However, thanks to the priestly hierarchies, who act as the protector of the ruling class, the less fortunate are lied to, and are told that THEY are being tested, and not to want more…. The priests have them all convinced that all they should want is just enough, in reward for which they will be compensated IN THE NEXT LIFE! It’s one of the most egregious scams that has ever been perpetrated on the masses, and continues today….

“Most of the dogmatic religions have exhibited a perverse talent for taking the wrong side on the most important concepts in the material universe, from the structure of the solar system to the origin of man.” — George Gaylord Simpson

The problem now becomes this; almost all the available resources of the planet are used up… only by drastically reducing the total number of people can the species continue to survive…. and, we all know who is going to get the short end of THAT stick, don’t we? Once people realize that the available resources needed for the species to survive are being hoarded and manipulated by the powers that be, all to favor themselves, the unwashed masses are going to be, shall we say, less than happy with the beloved ruling class, and even less happy with the priestly hierarchies who prop them up. It will be Mother Nature’s way of saying “you wouldn’t play nicely with others, and now you’ll have to pay the price for that failure….” Of course, she would probably make it sound less pompous than I do….

Being able to control one’s desires is a very valuable skill, and one worth learning, for certain. But when the desire is the simple desire to survive, it is not one that either can, or should, be eliminated…. For many centuries, the beloved ruling class and the priestly hierarchies who are in league with them have been lying to the general populace for their own benefit; history, even when written by the winners, makes that very clear.

“History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon.” — Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821)

Soon, they will have to come to terms with that treachery, as the planet’s resources, and its ability to support our form of life, are reduced to where we can no longer grow enough food, or breathe the air due to the addition of carbon monoxide…. When the general public realizes that the PTB are the assholes who have put us in this position, I don’t think they are going to be very happy about it…. and my only hope is that they don’t take so long to come to that conclusion that it is too late to make the needed changes…. which is a distinct possibility…. Small hopes are better than none…..

“Jesus is coming, everyone look busy.” — Bumper Sticker

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It’s been a long while since I posted this poem; it’s always been one of my favorites, as has the poet himself….. Enjoy, ffolkes, this is humanity at its best…. Well, in the twentieth century, anyway….

À Bas Ben Adhem

My fellow man I do not care for.
I often ask me, What’s he there for?
The only answer I can find
Is, Reproduction of his kind.
If I’m supposed to swallow that,
Winnetka is my habitat.
Isn’t it time to carve Hic Jacet
Above that Reproduction racket?

To make the matter more succinct:
Suppose my fellow man extinct.
Why, who would not approve the plan
Save possibly my fellow man?
Yet with a politician’s voice
He names himself as Nature’s choice.

The finest of the human race
Are bad in figure, worse in face.
Yet just because they have two legs
And come from storks instead of eggs
They count the spacious firmament
As something to be charged and sent.

Though man created cross-town traffic,
The Daily Mirror, News and Graphic,
The pastoral fight and fighting pastor,
And Queen Marie and Lady Astor,
He hails himself with drum and fife
And bullies lower forms of life.

Not that I think much depends
On how we treat our feathered friends,
Or hold the wrinkled elephant
A nobler creature than my aunt.
It’s simply that I’m sure I can
Get on without my fellow man.

~~ Ogden Nash ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I didn’t mention it above, but, I AM rather late getting this done, so, you get another fine archive entry in lieu of a fresh pearl…. deal with it. And save the complaints; the judge isn’t listening….

From 10/1/2011:

Well, that took for-frigging-ever….I can’t remember the last time I had such a frustrating dive. But, then, since Murphy seems to live in my pocket, I should have known; I have lots to do today, & didn’t intend to spend so much time on the process of picking out today’s offerings. I was forced to make three separate dives, each one more barren than the one before. If I was doing this for pay, I’d have to dock myself. Ah well, s’okay, I’ll just pull out the old rescheduling software, as issued to me at retirement; all will be well.

Five minutes later, he came to his senses, after fixedly staring off into the distance, with that vacuous expression that tells you, for sure, something shiny has caught his meager attention. It was nothing, really, just another of those little trips to the edge of the universe and back to which I am prone, particularly when pressed for time. But, it has left me again without inspiration, and, it is too early to apply perspiration to the problem; I haven’t eaten yet. Poetry is out of the question, & it’s way too early for a conversation with James or John. I’ll have to resort to flaming bonhomie, then, hope for the best. Remember, ffolkes, it’s all in the timing, and the little twist of the wrist at the end…..

“Nobody ever complains that you are treating them like a child when you listen to their stories, encourage their dreams, and tell them how special they are.” — Callan Williams

“I bid him look into the lives of men as though into a mirror, and from others to take an example for himself.” — Terence (185-159 BC) — Adelphoe, Act iii, Sc. 3, 61, (415.)

His head,
Not yet by time completely silver’d o’er,
Bespoke him past the bounds of freakish youth,
But strong for service still, and unimpair’d.

~~ William Cowper (1731-1800) ~~

~~ The Task, Book ii, The Timepiece, Line 702 ~~

“AAAEEEYYYAAAAAEEEEEYAAAAAA” — Johnny Weissmuller (And he means that literally…..)

One spring morning Descartes was strolling in a suburb of Paris. A local tavern owner recognized him and asked, “Would you honor me by tasting the new excellent wine I just received.” “I think not,” said Descartes, and disappeared.” — Smart Bee

The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal Name.

~~ Lao-Tzu ~~

~~ Opening lines, Tao Teh Ching

Sometimes, I amaze even myself. All in all, it came out splendidly, I think. Now I can get busy with a clear mind….y’all take care out there…..

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rather than make any egregiously idiotic comments here, I’ll use this sterling opportunity to rest on my laurels, withered though they may be….. I will also stop any further harassment for today, leaving you, not in the lurch, but, rather, in the nick of time…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes….

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Hmm…. Soft pillow. Whose is it?….

Posted on February 20, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“The strongest of all warriors are these two — Time and Patience.”

~~ Leo Tolstoy ~~

Home, Sweet Home

Home. We all associate home with certain emotions, most of which, if we are lucky, are good feelings. The picture you see is mine, taken not long ago, as I stood at the entrance to the Big Blue Room, that huge room outside the place where my computer resides. I can’t say the picture sends shivers of pleasure skimming up and down my spine, but, it does offer a fairly comfortable and secure place to write, so, I am content. Plus, since the picture is mine, no attribution is required….

Today, that’s a bonus…. I’m exhausted, I think. I’ve felt weird/bad/odd for a few days now, with pain a constant companion, thanks to Kaiser’s intransigent ignorance and corporate dispassion. Strange, unpredictable weather hasn’t helped my arthritis at all, and, in fact, is probably responsible for the unrelenting shoulder-ache I’ve experienced ever since the temperature dropped. However, I note I have entered a whining space, which is not on our agenda, so, we’ll move on to more productive blather, as soon as I can free myself from this paragraph.

Whew! Almost got stuck there…. I guess all of the above is yet another feeble attempt at levity in a pre-coffee state. Oh, I’ve had a few sips, but, these days, in such a constant state of fatigue and angst from fighting battles with governments, corporations, and my own body, it takes more than a few sips to get past the blurry stages into a relatively alert phase. In fact, if y’all will pardon me for just a few moments, I’ll deal with part of the problem…. Be right back….

There, that’s a little better….. No, you don’t want to know. Since I’m back, and relatively awake, if not competent and coherent, I think I’ll take this opportunity to get us out of the intro in a more timely fashion than is generally the case. I see an opening coming up just ahead, in an unusually rock-free passage; we’re going for it, while we have the chance. If y’all would kindly make sure you’re securely fastened into your seats, we’ll be on our way to the pearl beds, to begin today’s dive…. Hang on, ffolkes….

Shall we Pearl?

“Ah, gigoid, I see you’ve decided to go psycho. Godspeed.” — Oddly enough, this is all I remember of a dream I had last night….

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Funny look in his eyes, don’t you think?

Whenever I need a break, from almost anything, nothing works better than a session of listening to Mozart, to provide relaxation with stimulation, completely energizing, like a good session of yoga, or meditation, or performing a perfect kung fu form…. No matter how long it lasts, one has more energy afterward than when they began…. In my mind, it’s more proof than needed to show how important music is, as an essential part of our universe, to which we all have a direct connection, if only we allow it to remain open….

***********************

The Best of Mozart

***********************

http://youtu.be/Rb0UmrCXxVA

***********************

Yep. Him again.

Dresses a little funny, y’think?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“If Patrick Henry thought that taxation without representation was bad, he should see how bad it is with representation.” — Smart Bee

Today’s rant promises to be epic, I think. We are going to try to deal with some pretty heavy material, exploring subjects very personal to me, with some strong opinions and thoughts I can no longer keep to myself…. This one may cause me to have to pull a Houdini, (don’t fret, if you don’t understand, there’s no harm, and no foul…), but, it all needs to be shared with whomever will listen, because it concerns ALL of us in the modern world, in every country on the planet…..

You see, the assholes, whom I have lumped into a group I call the Beloved Ruling Class, (just a touch of irony, don’t y’know?…), have managed to extend their insane corruption of human institutions, ensuring those essential fields of endeavor are molded to serve THEIR needs and interests ahead of anyone else’s, to the one human occupation which cannot afford to suffer ANY deterioration in ethical standards…. We can no longer afford to trust DOCTORS, for they have been enslaved just as surely as everyone else not of the monied elite…. If you can’t trust your doctor to tell you the truth, to whom can we turn, but ourselves?….

First, to begin, please read the following article by an alert young man named Mike Adams, on The Natural News web site (the first link is the blog post where I found the article, the second is to the actual article…), to get a very clear picture of exactly what I’m talking about today…..

https://talesfromthelou.wordpress.com/2015/02/19/backfire-how-the-vaccine-industry-lost-the-propaganda-war-alienated-the-public-and-stirred-up-suspicion-of-the-entire-medical-profession/

http://www.naturalnews.com/048665_vaccine_propaganda_public_suspicion_medical_profession.html

Excerpted from the article:

“In a document the A.M.A. warns cannot be cited by anyone without “written permission from the A.M.A.“, the organization warns about the disastrous consequences of the medical profession losing the public trust:

Withholding pertinent medical information from patients without their knowledge or consent may also have negative long-term consequences for the medical profession. The patient-physician relationship is founded upon trust, because patients must rely upon their physicians to provide the information needed to make a properly informed decision. Lack of candid disclosure can compromise this relationship if patients suspect (or later discover) that information is being withheld from them. Thus, individual physicians’ purportedly benevolent acts of deception risk undermining not only individuals, but also public confidence and trust in the medical profession.”

Gee…. ya think? It’s unfortunate in the extreme very few doctors seem to either comprehend this principle, or, use it as a guide for making decisions, especially since one would logically/reasonably assume they know the risk of lying to their patients, ostensibly having discussed it in medical school at one point or another…. If not, such a school of medicine is one whose graduates would not be high on MY list of doctors to trust. I tend to prefer to know all the facts, not just what someone else thinks I should know, tending to get irritable when lied to, whether by deliberate omission, or by ignorance of the truth. For anyone I will consider as MY doctor, either one is unacceptable.

As is usual, for me, this rant is being written in spurts of mad, furious typing, while my hands are still capable of moving, then a break to let them, and me, recover; after a bit, I begin to type again, once I’ve determined the point in my arguments I’ve left the missive…. It’s a bit hard to find the thread sometimes; today it’s almost impossible, as I awoke with numerous challenges to start the day, including a shoulder and arm completely numb from the elbow down to the hand, to go with the general malaise that afflicts me almost all the time now…. There are times when it all seems unlikely I will ever be free of it…. a feeling which, while not completely unfamiliar, is one I don’t particularly enjoy…..

That said, I’m going to have to abandon this rant in mid-shout, so to speak, as I simply can’t type any more today…. From this point, it will be all cutting and pasting, or short blurbs to fill in space. It’s just too hard to keep up a steady rhythm of typing when my left hand is half-numb, sitting at the end of the painful piece of wood that used to be my arm. I’ll fill in the last portion of this section with an old school pearl, to save my ass from feeling a complete failure….

Enjoy, ffolkes, and remember; your doctor is no longer a free person; they are enslaved just as thoroughly as are we all, so, it makes sense to keep an eye on them, as well as to use them as little as possible…. These days, going to the doctor could kill ya….

The hungry sheep look up and are not fed,
But, swoln with wind and the rank mist they draw,
Rot inwardly, and foul contagion spread.

~~ Milton, “Lycidas” ~~

“King Arthur and his armored goons of the Round Table functioned as the Politburo of a slave state: Camelot. Of all who have written on the Matter of Arthur, from Malory to White, only Mark Twain understood this. But Mark Twain was a great writer.” — Edward Abbey

“From the standpoint of any sane person, the present problem of capitalist concentration is not only a question of law, but of criminal law, not to mention criminal lunacy.” — G. K. Chesterton, A Case In Point, The Outline of Sanity

“Freedom is a hard-bought thing – A gift no man can give.” — Smart Bee

“All authority is quite degrading.” — Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

“Science transcends mere politics. As recent history demonstrates, scientists (i.e., doctors) are as willing to work for a Tojo, a Hitler, or a Stalin as for the free nations of the West.” — Edward Abbey

“Hence these tears.” — Terence (185-159 BC) — Act i, Sc. 1, 99, (126.)

——————————–

Just in case anyone out there was starting to feel comfortable about how things in the world are going, articles like this one appear to burst your bubble….

http://www.wakingtimes.com/2015/02/18/all-the-creepy-ways-big-brother-is-watching-you/

Now do you wonder why I’m dubious? I don’t….

“Is it any wonder that my mind’s on fire?” — gigoid, upon completing this pearl

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

SIGH…. It’s all so DAMN depressing, isn’t it? I guess we’ll go with a classic; nothing else works as well to dispel my ugly moods….. Of course, ugly is not something that will ever disappear from life will it? Ah well, at least we have poetry….

Solitude

Happy the man, whose wish and care
A few paternal acres bound,
Content to breathe his native air
In his own ground.

Whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread,
Whose flocks supply him with attire;
Whose trees in summer yield shade,
In winter, fire.

Blest, who can unconcern’dly find
Hours, days, and years, slide soft away
In health of body, peace of mind,
Quiet by day.

Sound sleep by night; study and ease
Together mixed; sweet recreation,
And innocence, which most does please
With meditation.

Thus let me live, unseen, unknown;
Thus unlamented let me die;
Steal from the world, and not a stone
Tell where I lie.

~~ Alexander Pope ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today’s final pearl is one I don’t really remember putting together…. It seems to be a collection of comments on either human nature, and the struggles with Reality in which it engages so often, or, a look at Life through filtered lenses, definitely NOT rose colored…. Either way, it works for me… Just don’t make any attempt to use this one for anything other than food for thought; any interaction with actual Reality may bring unintended consequences, not to your liking…. No worries, though, even THAT wouldn’t be too harmful, just embarrassing, and messy…. Enjoy, ffolkes, it’s pretty simple today, in truth….

“Sometimes I think the surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us.” — Bill Watterson, cartoonist of Calvin & Hobbes

“When we contemplate the whole globe as one great dewdrop, striped and dotted with continents and islands, flying through space with all other stars all singing and shining together as one, the whole universe appears as an infinite storm of beauty.” — John Muir, American Naturalist (1838-1914)

“When the first baby laughed for the first time, the laugh broke into a thousand pieces and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies.” — from Peter Pan (1904) by James M. Barrie (1860-1937)

“One of the best ways to measure people is to watch the way they behave when something free is offered.” — Ann Landers

“With two hearts do people live; a small one of deep softness, the other of steel. And kindness is too often a shield, generosity too often a sword.” — Kahlil Gibran

“Is you first responsibility to yourself? The question is misleading; that is, it misleads the person who takes it to heart. It’s like asking, must you shift your weight in order to walk. Of course you must, but anyone who concentrates first on shifting his weight will not walk well.” — Hugh Prather

“Virtue is the golden mean between two vices, the one of excess and the other of deficiency.” — Aristotle (B.C. 384-322)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It is not without a bit of surprise I find myself at the end of today’s post. When I started, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to finish it in the style to which you’ve been accustomed to finding here each morning. I was right, too. But, it will have to do, because I am sure as hell not going to do it over. In fact, I’m dumping y’all right here, and getting on with my day, such as it will be…. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes…. Well, I’m hoping, anyway….

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Stealing candy from babies is trickier than it seems…. Ask any Senator…

Posted on February 17, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.”

~~Buddha, paraphrased ~~

I would comment upon the most excellent picture and opening quote from the Buddha, but, it seems Murphy has picked today to reassert his bully persona; he KNOWS how much I hate it when he fucks with my coffee…. He must be pissed because I’m making changes which will make things harder for him to fuck with me at all; he might be getting his shots in while he can…. Whatever the reason, it pisses me off no end when I have to clean up a mess, complete with coffee grounds, before I even get a chance to drink any of it….. SIGH….. Assholes are everywhere these days….

They’re everywhere I look, anyway. Can’t seem to turn around these days without bumping into some sort of reminder of how such asininity becoming the norm in today’s world, obnoxiously pushing its way into every part of our lives. The restrictive measures society is taking to ensure the profit margins and safety of those who hoard all the resources for themselves are becoming Orwellian in nature, with the government trying to take over almost every facet of our lives…. for our own good, naturally.

Maybe this is why Murphy is so happy these days. The evil attitudes, and shockingly violent, repressive nature of what is taking place all over the world, as incident after incident of insanity is portrayed, to keep the public in a state of panic, so the elite may go about securing ever more power, and money, and control over the rest of the world, regardless of the suffering, and pain, and misery they cause, seem to be coming to crescendo, almost as if the species is beginning to realize just what kind of irretrievable mess we’ve created for ourselves, and the danger of extinction every one of us, including the assholes, will be facing in the coming SHORT time until it is too late….

Well, that was fun, wasn’t it? I’m not sure what prompted such a vitriolic rant so early, but, there it sits; we’ll all have to deal with it as best we may. What that means for the rest of the Pearl isn’t clear, nor may it ever be. Clarity may be well beyond our capabilities at the present time, so, I wouldn’t count on any improvement. Our only saving grace is in the very fortunate happenstance of having completed virtually all of this one yesterday, and the day before…. Lucky for me, I’ve been so worked up I can’t seem to stop writing…. At least it allows me to maintain a reasonable semblance of sanity….

Well, I think so; how about y’all? Have I been any less crazy? Or more? Who knows? Moreover, who cares? Not me, and certainly not the Asininnies; they’d just as soon people like me spend as much time in that state as possible; keeps me out of their hair…. Ah well, it’s all pretty futile, both in imagination, and in Reality, so, since there is little point in belaboring such an issue, let’s see if we can’t find a path out of this dark, boring place we’ve come to, and get the hell out of this intro…. I don’t like it anymore….

Shall we Pearl?

“Every day should be passed as if it were to be our last.” — Publius Syrus (42 BC) — Maxim 633

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I’ve heard about this experiment before, but, hadn’t thought about it in a while. It’s a pretty clear explanation of one of the most effective tools used by those in power to keep the “monkeys” distracted, and busy in their cages, doing exactly what they are supposed to do, produce, while being manipulated into passive submission to custom, never knowing at all why they are doing what they do….. Pay attention, ffolkes, you see this every day on TV…. You didn’t even know you were being molded while watching, did you?….. Well, guess what? You are…. One of the basic reasons I don’t watch it at all anymore; I got tired of watching bullshit fly….

***********************

5 Monkeys

***********************

http://youtu.be/KZeiSKnhOBc

found at:

https://talesfromthelou.wordpress.com/2015/02/15/five-monkeys-or-how-we-are-kept-in-mental-cages/

***********************

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“History, although sometimes made up of the few acts of the great, is more often shaped by the many acts of the small.” — Mark Yost

This statement, while true in one sense, is not completely accurate in the modern world. Unfortunately, in today’s world, the few of great power have manipulated the many, many acts of the small to serve their own interests, with no regard for the welfare of those they manipulate. They do this with the aid of the ostensible leaders of society, who are also under the spell of lies they believe to be true.

These leaders, puppets themselves, act as the educational, administrative, and enforcement cadre for the real Beloved Ruling Class, those privileged elite who teach, organize society, and impose order upon each generation of new human drones, following the example of generation after generation of their ancestors. In truth, each generation offers up their freedom and dignity, for the promise of a chance at their dreams, which they can never fulfill in this life, but, are promised as reward, given to them after they die, in exchange for submitting themselves to the beliefs they are told….

In addition to the pundits, and the preachers, who control the parents, even more control is added by the tacit, unwitting complicity of the communications media. In today’s world of radio, TV, and computers, with the unlimited possibilities of the Internet, they become the front line for the monied elite, spreading the outright untruths, and reams of misinformation necessary to deliver their messages of manipulated truth, across the entire globe, within moments, pulling ever more people into their web of lies…. all with the unwitting help of people who believe they are doing the right thing, by telling what they believe to be true….

To be persuasive, we must be believable.

To be believable, we must be credible.

To be credible, we must be truthful.

~~ Edward R. Murrow ~~

Ah, Ed, such a fine sentiment, and very good for a reporter to believe, since any reporter who buys into this will always be popular, both with the public, and with the leaders of the political and religious worlds, all of whom dance to the tune played by those who control the money and resources of the world, the bankers, as they were called by Thomas Jefferson. Now, we call them “corporate persons”, the relatively small group of completely amoral, avaricious, sociopathic families who have, throughout the history of mankind, corrupted every level of society, convincing them to adopt the lies they have passed off as the truth, for millennia.

The first group, the public, with their gullible, misplaced trust in those in authority, (based on their desire to not think, or take responsibility for their lives… to take the EASY way….), will like such a reporter very much, often listening solely to him as their favorite source, (which they did for Mr. Murrow), for they will feel they can trust what he tells them; they firmly believe he tells them the truth because he believes it to be true, or he wouldn’t say it. If he tells them Commies are not to be trusted, they will refuse to wear red; if he tells them they are in danger, they submit to further loss of their freedom, in the name of security….

The leaders, will love such influential mouthpieces, because he will be one of their most effective tools of manipulation, for they do not abide by this credo at all, except to recognize how powerfully people will believe it, in their desire to remove the fear of the unknown fostered by those in charge. The manipulators simply follow the precept as far as the last word, then, instead of truth, they say exactly what they know will produce the effect they desire, whether it is remotely true, or not. For their purposes, if it is not true, so much the better, for it confirms their control of the media, the so-called political and political leaders, AND the public, to do their bidding, without ever realizing they are being controlled.

( If you want to know part of the reason those in power are able to achieve their ends so easily, read this graphic infogram: https://i.stack.imgur.com/MyQki.jpg) (Or, watch the video, above….)

I’m done. I’m burnt. To finish this off properly, (well, properly for this blog…), here are some pearls which speak to one part or another of the above discussion/rant/indictment/whatever it was…. sort of. I think. If not, well, forget the whole thing. Nobody’s really listening, not so’s it will make any real difference in what happens out there in the Big Blue Room, anyway….

“You were born into a society which spelled out with brutal clarity, and in as many ways as possible, that you were a worthless human being. You were not expected to aspire to excellence; you were expected to make peace with mediocrity. Wherever you have turned, you have been told where you could go and what you could do ( and _how_ you could do it) and where you could live and whom you could marry. I know your countrymen do not agree with me a about this, and I hear them saying, “You exaggerate.” — James Baldwin,_The Fire Next Time_, 1964

“Are we at last brought to such a humiliating and debasing degradation, that we cannot be trusted with arms for our own defense? Where is the difference between having our arms in our own possession and under our own direction, and having them under the management of Congress? If our defense be the _real_ object of having those arms, in whose hands can they be trusted with more propriety, or equal safety to us, as in our own hands?” — Patrick Henry

“Gun Control – the belief that government, with its great wisdom and moral superiority, can be trusted with a monopoly on deadly force.” — Smart Bee

“A right delayed is a right denied.” — Smart Bee

“We’re not doing it for money, we’re doing it for a SHITLOAD of money!” — The American Dream, rephrased to more closely resemble Reality….

“There is no crueler tyranny than that which is perpetrated under the shield of law and in the name of justice.” — Montesquieu, 1742

Bigot? Fundamentalist? Love guns? The Republicans want YOU!” — Smart Bee, being downright vicious, but, pretty accurate, all things considered.

“When once infidelity can persuade men that they shall die like beasts, they will soon be brought to live like beasts also.” — South

“We are here and it is now. Further than that all human knowledge is moonshine.” — H. L. Mencken

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As I’ve previously mentioned, I think Charles is one of the finest poets to come out of the Twentieth Century…. His poetry is so real, it hurts….

Alone With Everybody

the flesh covers the bone
and they put a mind
in there and
sometimes a soul,
and the women break
vases against the walls
and the men drink too
much
and nobody finds the
one
but keep
looking
crawling in and out
of beds.
flesh covers
the bone and the
flesh searches
for more than
flesh.

there’s no chance
at all:
we are all trapped
by a singular
fate.

nobody ever finds
the one.

the city dumps fill
the junkyards fill
the madhouses fill
the hospitals fill
the graveyards fill

nothing else
fills.

~~ Charles Bukowski ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hmm… As I constructed several of the pearls you have seen in the last few days, I collected a few extra pearls, & saved them in one file location for later use. When I came to work on this section, I found the following seven stars, each a pearl in good standing; together, they speak to us of Life, at Large…. Go figure…

“It is not worth an intelligent man’s time to be in the majority. By definition, there are already enough people to do that.” — G. H. Hardy

“I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me.” — Fred Allen

“Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe. And what do we teach our children in school? We teach them that two and two make four and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are?” — Pablo Casals

HUMAN: The human being either evolved from the biologically very similar ape, or was created along with the rest of the world in a six-day creative spurt by an anonymous god. The human body is a wonderful thing. Well, most of them are. Humans have one mouth and a limited number of genitals, which is probably just as well. — Daniel Bowen’s TOXIC CUSTARPEDIA

“Humans hardly ever learn from the experience of others. They learn – when they do, which isn’t often – on their own, the hard way.” — Robert Heinlein, Time Enough for Love

“Change cannot be avoided….Change provides the opportunity for innovation. It gives you the chance to demonstrate your creativity.” — Keshavan Nair

“As long as you live, keep learning how to live.” — Seneca

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I don’t know. I’m not sure any more. But, since it’s the only thing currently working to save my sanity, I guess I’ll keep on doing this, at least, until I can figure out whether I can get the same sort of relief from hunting. I’ve never been one to enjoy it, but, it’s almost time, I think, to take it up, as has always been my plan…. We’ll see; big changes comin’, one way, or t’other…. Count on it, ffolkes…. Meantime, y’all stay alert out there, not just because the world can use all the lerts we can find; it could save your OWN butt….. See y’all tomorrow….

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Seven good reasons….

Posted on February 16, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west;

people create distinctions out of their own minds

and then believe them to be true.”

~~ Buddha ~~

The View Outside the Door Into Summer

(Thanks to Clifford D. Simak)

Alright. Admit it! You have no idea who I am!

But, then, the reverse is also true. Since we’re on even ground, perhaps we can just drop the whole matter, by agreeing to move on to some sort of mutually agreeable task, rather than such a controversial, ultimately unproductive interaction, which can only end badly. It’s way too early in the Pearl to even consider such a possibility; we’ve got a long way to go.

We also have seven good reasons to find….. Today’s title keeps niggling at my brain; I HATE that. As most of y’all are aware by now, the titles of these posts have no meaning, at least, not to me, and not in relation to whatever I write here. I merely string together words which make a compelling, funny, or somehow eye-catching title, with no intent to ever connect it to the blog post. Some days, such as today, the words I came up with, while exactly what I needed, seems to stick in my head, until I figure out why…. Very distracting, when one is trying to cudgel one’s brain into coming up with something more coherent than ‘ugh’, or Red’s favorite all-purpose word sound, ‘meh’….

It’s also a big waste of my time, efficiency-wise, as I’m usually trying to figure out just what to put in this section, my biggest challenge of all of those I’ve come to use as part of this blog. The ironic part of all this is, no matter how hard I try, or what I do, I still need an intro section, just to get to the rest. It is both logical, and real, ffolkes. You can’t start without a beginning…

One might think I’d finally gone off the deep end, wouldn’t one? One might be right about that. But, then, one can never tell, can one? Or, even two…. On that silly note….

Shall we Pearl?

“Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.” — Pooh’s Little Instruction Book, inspired by A. A. Milne

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leonard Cohen is a truly iconic artist. When young, he made his initial impression on the public with what the public took for comedy, but, was actually philosophy in disguise. Later, he began to sing, and write songs and music to be sung; in this he also achieved a rather unique distinction, as a singer/songwriter distinctly unlike anyone else. Here is a compilation, made by You Tube, of his early comedy works, with some music mixed in.

As usual, following the link gives the Gentle Reader the option to choose their own videos to watch of his, as there are literally hundreds of related videos listed with each one playing on screen. Enjoy, ffolkes, he’s a REAL human artist, who made it his own way…. A true Singer, in the Samuel R. Delaney tradition… (See the S. R. Delaney story, “Time, Considered as a Helix of Semi-Precious Stones”)

***********************

Leonard Cohen Standup Comedy

***********************

http://youtu.be/cgiflcf4klM?list=RDcgiflcf4klM

***********************

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay, everyone out of the gene pool!

Y’all know, since I harp on it nearly every day, I’m pretty sure we humans don’t have a lot of time left, to find some way to avoid falling prey to the same issue to which so many other forms of life, (including, possibly, our own…), have succumbed to in the past, to wit: we just don’t have what it takes to survive in this universe. Since I’m not presently inclined to, yet again, preach to the choir in a fresh rant, here is one from the archives, which clearly demonstrates I’ve held this opinion for some time now, along with a great deal of evidence to support my theory/opinion…. Enjoy, ffolkes… If nothing else, it’s a good way to stretch those mind-muscles for a few minutes…. maybe more than just a few….

From 2/8/2014:

This pearl will be displayed in the new format I’ve been working on as a change of scene around here…. These are headlines from SFGATE, a news web site I use as an average news collector, as it tends to display a fairly even grouping of the world’s and nation’s news, without TOO much bias, though certainly not without any…. The headlines I’ve included below, viewed as a big picture, are, as we can see, downright fucking crazy in how they portray the insanity so prevalent in today’s society…. Here then are more indications we are currently living through Heinlein’s “Crazy Years” here in America…. My comments, as always, are parenthesized for clarity….

http://blog.sfgate.com/energy/2014/02/07/tesla-driver-blames-fatal-crash-on-new-car-smell/

(I’m pretty sure I don’t need to make too many comments about this guy, or about how typically asinine he is, in as he cluelessly exhibits not only his selfishness, but, also his stupidity in public, without any idea of how ridiculous he sounds or appears to others….. “New car smell?” As the justification for running over a pedestrian? I suppose, in one way, it’s a perfect example of both the corruption so prevalent, and of the lack of any sort of system of ethics at play, in the lawyers who took the case to bring suit, as well as in the sense of entitlement that the average American asshole feels, to think that they can escape any consequences for their actions by finding a loophole in a law, or some weird psychiatric justification for acts that were at best, stupid, and at worst, deliberately, carelessly, and, feloniously, ignorant….)

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Elderly-woman-slain-in-Oakland-home-invasion-5215511.php

(Again, no comment is necessary to make any clearer how sick our society has become, when there are people in the world who can actually perform these kinds of acts, without any compassion, or any connection to how another person feels…. I didn’t read the article, as I’ve seen its like too often to need to put myself through that again… I already know, having dealt with them for many years, the depths to which the human psyche can sink in its pain and reaction to a lifetime of abuse by the world…. It still doesn’t excuse any of it, or justify it, to understand why it happens…. But, it sure does make me want to go out, buy a gun, and start picking off some of the names, on my own personal list of those the world would be better off without….)

http://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Russian-TV-shows-doctored-video-of-Olympic-rings-5214936.php

(More comedy from Russia and their current dictator, Vlad “Glad Impaler” Putin, trying to convince the world that hey, nothing wrong here, move along, nothing to see…. when, in fact, almost everything the world is seeing in Sochi points up another issue that the Soviet government has screwed up in its repressive attempts to maintain the status quo….. which, after all, is the ultimate purpose of any dictatorship, or essentially fascist government…. or ANY government, for that matter…. Democratic, Republic, Monarchic, no matter what form government takes, its bottom line priority is to maintain the status quo, to ensure the people stay out of the government’s way as they plunder, steal, and cheat…. The video to which the article refers is merely the latest symptom that shows exactly how the world’s society at large, and, Russian society in particular, is falling apart at the seams…..)

http://www.sfgate.com/news/crime/article/SAC-Capital-ex-trader-convicted-of-insider-trading-5211174.php

“A monied aristocracy in our country … has already set the government at defiance.” — Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)

(Whoops, gosh, look here! A stock trader cheated! A bank(er) was involved, a large, shadowy, amorphous corporation was involved, a government agency screwed up their job, a rich businessman profited, and the poor scapegoat is the only one to go to jail…. Have we seen this story before? Isn’t this a rather familiar scenario over the last, oh, 120 years or so? Why, yes, yes, I believe that’s so…. I can remember seeing stories exactly like this one 50 years ago, back in the 50’s and 60’s, as well as many from history that would be classed as clones of this one…. But, the media has to present each one as if it is some sort of big surprise…. SIGH…. It’s almost too easy for me, when they act this stupid….)

http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2014/02/07/senate-judiciary-republicans-blame-a-lawyer-adegbile-for-a-client-abu-jamal/

(Oh, right, this one…. This is SO STUPID!!!! So stupid, it caused me to go momentarily insane, with my fingers flashing out four exclamation points without conscious control, just to vent my frustration…. You know, it’s completely possible that commenting on this story could turn into a rant….

The Republican Party has become a conglomeration of some of the stupidest, most hidebound fools I’ve ever witnessed, even in American politics, and remember…. I was there when we had both Spiro Agnew and Richard Nixon to push around, so, I KNOW about corrupt, greedy, amoral politicians….. This current group in the House, and the Senate, as well as spread throughout all the state’s houses of political machinery (chicanery?), are among the stupidest and most viciously ignorant that I’ve ever seen….

This particular set of idiots involved in this article are perhaps some of the most egregiously ignorant of the lot, and show the extent of how much the conservative mind has turned to mush over time, especially when dealing with issues that are, essentially, non-partisan in nature…. It seems to me that finding the most balanced people to be judges, or attorney general types, would benefit BOTH sides, more so than choosing biased people, who only make things worse for everyone…. Of course, I’m not stupid, I have no investment in pursuing my own agenda in this issue, nor do I desire to use the issue for any political gain, so, perhaps that would color my perceptions…. I certainly hope so….

Please note, I am certain, and have seen proof of the fact, that the Democrats are no brighter, in toto, or even, on average, but, somehow, they don’t seem to publicly stick their foot in it quite so frequently as the GOP pundits. I can’t blame the media for that, entirely, as they obviously have no more claim to intelligent design in their actions than do the politicians. Each of the political parties that dominate this country’s bureaucracy (it long ago ceased to function as anything else….) feels the media favors the other; that’s a typical reaction for a creature that suffers from paranoia, and the political scenario attracts schizophrenics like flowers draw bees…. (Actually, it would be more accurate to say that politics attracts the psychopathically insane like shit draws flies….. but, I won’t say that….) (Oh…. whoops….)

Nonetheless, it seems to me that BOTH of the parties that are currently ensconced in the halls of Congress in Washington have been taken over by a bunch of really, really selfish, more than stupid in their deliberate ignorance, rich, white, old men, with the random woman, African-Americans, Asian-Americans, and Latin-American tokens thrown in here and there to provide proof of our “diversity”….

The funny thing about those politicians of color or gender…. when they talk, they SOUND EXACTLY like a rich, white, stupid old man, no matter whether they are young, female, black, yellow, or brown…. Next time Ted Cruz puts out a sound bite on TV, close your eyes and listen…. He will not be distinguishable from any of his peers…. Note also, the terms to describe the token members of Congress deliberately set them apart as being ‘different’ Americans than the others, don’t they? They sure do, and that’s just fine with the old white dudes, as it provides camouflage for their inherent racism and bigotry, making them appear as if they welcome input, from those parts of society THE SILLY ASSES DON’T REALIZE ARE NOW IN THE MAJORITY IN THIS COUNTRY!…..

It’s too bad, really, and frustrating for those of us who can understand what is going on…. Intelligence is the only factor in our makeup that enhances our chances to survive, especially in the oncoming crisis in the environment of our planet, even though such intelligence has never proven its worth as a survival tool… These idiots are continually, and continuously, displaying behavior that is counter-productive to that survival…. and they don’t even have the wit to know it. In fact, most of them are so insanely wrapped up in pursuing their own agenda they refuse to even listen to anything that doesn’t fit in with their own preconceived misconceptions….. Idiots, every one of them….

Okay, that’s enough…. I could conceivably spend a very long time at this…. I’ve got a long litany of complaints about government, and those who indulge in that particular vice…. But, I’m getting worked up, and that’s making me tense, and that makes my back hurt…. So, for my health, I’m calling a halt to this rant…. (For my health…. right…. Can you see my skeptical expression?….) Since the entire rant, short as it may be, is in parentheses, I can do that without any permits, or even any hand signals….

gigoid has spoken…. So be it…..)

“When I think over what I have said, I envy dumb people.” — Seneca

Well, you know what they say…. Ignorance is bliss…..

Final note from 2015: Here is a fine, quite fitting closing pearl for the above rant…. (which is an interesting rant, in and of itself; the section below the last link used is completely parenthesized! What a brilliant concept! Once encased in parentheses, one may say anything at all, while enjoying perfect exemption from all standard rules…. of grammar, punctuation, syntax, logic, rationality, AND, common decency! Bonus!….)

Don’t open your eyes, you won’t like what you see;

the devils of truth steal the souls of the free…

don’t open your eyes, take it from me.

I have found you can find happiness in slavery…

~~ Nine Inch Nails, “Happiness In Slavery” ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This poem is one I first wrote as random piece of prose, which came to me, unbidden, one day as I sat in front of the computer, trying once again to find something in my mind with which to begin a Pearl; that’s why it doesn’t rhyme. I think, even without the rhyme, it speaks of a vision that arose out of my inner eye, directly from my spirit….

Stray Cats

The veils that billow and fold
between dreams and reality
may sometimes part,
showing the visions of one to the other,
blending, bleeding as one,
only to bring us up short,
closely jammed against immovable fate.

Still, we keep our watch,
seeking to find the vision
that brings with it the mark of reality’s regard,
a humble mind, and a compassionate heart.

Events of broad impact draw us away again,
distracting with shiny glitter and tinny music,
leaving our feelings raw and bruised,
the victim of universal disregard.

Now, in the twilight of years, the music is fading,
and the glitter has all gone, yet,
the memory of visions remains sharp and clear,
melancholy reminders of reality’s promises,
unkept…..

~~gigoid~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today’s old-school pearl is one of my favorite types, because Smart Bee gave me quotes suitable for expressing my own thoughts and feelings on the subject at hand. Today, it will show you the path my mind followed to arrive at the set of beliefs I hold today, regarding what I consider the oldest scam in human history, otherwise known as creationism, or, the One God Fallacy….

“A man devoid of religion, is like a horse without a bridle.” — Smart Bee

“The history of the rise of Christianity has everything to do with politics, culture, and human frailties and nothing to do with supernatural manipulation of events. Had divine intervention been the guiding force, surely two millennia after the birth of Jesus he would not have a world where there are more Muslims than Catholics, more Hindus than Protestants, and more nontheists than Catholics and Protestants combined.” — John K. Naland, “The First Easter”, Free Inquiry magazine, Vol. 8, No. 2

“The major contribution of Protestant thought to the knowledge of mankind is its massive proof that God is a bore.” — H.L. Mencken

A religion is a cult with an adequate army” — Smart Bee

“Anybody who wants religion is welcome to it, as far as I’m concerned — I support your right to enjoy it. However, I would appreciate it if you exhibited more respect for the rights of those people who do not wish to share your dogma, rapture, or necrodestination.” — Frank Zappa, “The Real Frank Zappa Book”

“Authority has every reason to fear the skeptic, for authority can rarely survive in the face of doubt.” — Robert Lindner

Wearers of rings and chains!
Pray do not take the pains
To set me right.

In vain my faults ye quote;
I write as others wrote
On Sunium’s hight.

~~ Walter Savage Landor (1775-1864) ~~

~~ The last Fruit of an old Tree, Epigram cvi ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All I can say at this point is, it’s a damn good thing this got done yesterday, mostly, or, it wouldn’t have gotten done at all. On that cryptic note, I’m outta here for another day. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, given a fair wind and a favoring tide….

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

Contrary to all the research, it squeaks….

Posted on February 12, 2015 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

“Doing it the hard way is always easier.”

~~ Murphy’s Paradox ~~

“Oh, you said Tokyo! My bad…”

If the picture I took, above, is any indication, in the field of aerotechnology, the human race has made some startling advances since I last checked. The airplane, or jet, or whatever it was, to make a trail like that, had to be moving at least 2-300 mph. I was not aware we possessed the technology to make 90º turn at that speed. Oh, perhaps we have drones that will do it, but, the forces involved would make it hard for a flesh and blood entity to remain conscious, or alive, at the end of the turn. Kinda makes me wonder what we aren’t being told…. again.

Ah well, the intro isn’t the place for such conjecture, I suppose. I just keep stumbling across little pieces of evidence like this, which indicate there are a LOT of things those in charge are keeping from the public. A small item like this, when added to the visit from officialdom I received a couple of days ago, tells me a lot. Sometimes, to hear the music, one must pay close attention to the silences between the notes…. This is not something the mundanes of the world will ever realize, or, even consider, so, it becomes the DUTY of those of us who CAN make out the melody to make sure the orchestra is playing the tune on the program, and not one of their own choosing….

With that said, I will go on to bigger and, well, different things, with the full realization that very few people will ever see this, or even know they are clueless. SIGH…. It makes me want to cry, in sorrow, for all the folks out there who are being ushered down a path to their own destruction, never even knowing they are drawing closer to the edge of a bottomless pit with each step…. Hell, most of them aren’t even aware they are up and moving! They sit and watch their 60 inch TV, thinking what they see is Reality, when all it is would best be described as the mental equivalent of cotton candy, which they continue to stuff into their obese mouths, only to feel what they’ve eaten disappear into thin air, much like their dreams of a life worth living….

It’s a sad, sad world these days, ffolkes, and there are only a few people who are even aware that we are all in trouble, because, nobody in charge WANTS to know (there’s no profit in letting the public know….), and nobody who is going to die thinks it is real…. Some days, such as today, I’m convinced our species is not worthy of surviving…. not if we allow a few idiots to send the rest of us to hell right along with them, as they pursue their insane dreams of power and madness…

I think I’m depressing myself. I’m going to stop now, and go write something else, hopefully not as much of a downer. It will be hard, though, as almost everything I perceive these days, out there in the Big Blue Room, is enough to depress a clown on Prozac….

Shall we Pearl?

“A talent is formed in stillness, a character in the world’s torrent.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It might be a futile attempt, but, if this doesn’t improve your mood, or mine, well, it’s too damn late for us…. Enjoy, ffolkes. This is what life COULD be like, if not for all the assholes in the world….

***********************

Cute Dogs And Adorable Babies: Compilation

***********************

http://youtu.be/ilMzs1UHEmw

***********************

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It is entirely possible I will rant no more…. Ffolkes, it’s all gone. Whatever it was that held this world together is broken; we have gone completely and irrevocably insane, as a species, a culture, and, mostly, as individual human beings, a term that, from what I can tell, really has no meaning in a very real sense. Not for long, anyway. I am now convinced, even if a way IS found, to save our sorry asses from killing ourselves, and everything else here, or, at minimum, turning the world into a real life version of Dante’s Inferno’s vision of Hell, nobody would even turn off the TV to listen….

I tried to read the news today, oh, boy…. Ten thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire, it said…. along with a slew of other headlines, each displaying as much sense as these classic lines from the Beatle’s epic song, A Day in the Life. I sometimes use a news reader program that collects news articles from hundreds of sources, so I can pick and choose what to read by perusing the headlines in each category. I’ve been avoiding it, using just the articles and news I pick up in the little time I can spend each day on the blogs of my friends, and the email notifications I subscribe to from my most favored sources.

Well, there are also the emails I subscribe to from the people I feel need watching, like the White House, etc. “Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.” is an aphorism all warriors are taught in the cradle. (Well, this warrior was, anyway. If not, they probably would have been better off if they had…) Not that the folks in the White House are necessarily my enemy, but, I certainly don’t trust them to look after MY interests very well. They’ve already proved, on too many occasions, no such intention exists in their world view; not if the emails I’ve received from them in the past seven years are any indication. As a matter of long-standing policy, I accept a lot of what I consider spam, just so I can see what they’re saying to all those who support them blindly…. Good intel, in my book…

As for ranting, daily doses don’t seem to get me much of anywhere that can actually help, other than to a place where I am not so pissed off all the time, simply as a result of the catharsis of writing. Plus, I have had some recent clues come to my attention which have made me reconsider my openness to a small degree. I expect you’ll note a few minor changes in what you see here, beyond the usual lack of regular structure to be expected in a place where we play with reality as if it were playdough, or even better, magic slime. Yeah, that’s the ticket, reality as magic slime…. Hey, anything would be better than the reality in which we all are currently trapped, right? Right….

Oops. I guess that could be considered ranting; I’d best be careful, as I’m not yet used to my new paradigm. Hell, I haven’t even named it yet; can’t change your paradigm unless you have a name for the new one. It just doesn’t work, they are like a vector in mathematics; the direction is required for it to have any real meaning…. Same with a paradigm; you gotta know its true name, or the magic won’t work….

So much for logic, eh? But, logic won’t hold up under the inundation of insanity, greed for power, and general loss of all sense of proportion, or dignity I saw in just a little part of today’s mainstream news…. You see, I only got half-way through ONE news site before I was overcome by a sense of utter futility. Every other article I stopped to read stimulated either amazed disbelief, or tears, from feeling both sorrow, and laughter, when confounded by reports of the antics of the latest form of cosmic vermin, we naked apes, as we caper about the planet, pretending we have a clue….

There are only two things left to say on this subject; consider them well. They MAY be the last of their kind….

“America!! I saw it all!! Vomiting! Waving!

JERRY FALWELLING into your void tube of UHF oblivion!!

SAFEWAY of the mind –”

~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Inside, I’m already SOBBING!”

~~ Zippy the Pinhead ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have a new poem, but, it isn’t quite ready for me to cut a vein open, and let it leak out. We’ll have to go with another of mine from the archives, to keep from spreading the blame for this…. Here is one I wrote back in 2013, that seems to go right along with the ranting section for today…. Enjoy, please, and remember, ffolkes… Metaphor is my thing….

A Dubiously Soft Morning

Idiosyncratic images, clamoring for regard,
fill up the white, white screen on which I view
my life, never seeing, nor invited to sup
ambrosial remnants of anything new.

Still, yet almost in motion, allegory sails away
bobbing gently, quick and easy to find,
signs of one happy child, seriously at play,
blissfully immersed, focused joy in mind.

Formidable cries of outraged simple justice
echo plaintive relevance, in half the time.
Maladaptive infants, destined for hospice
salvage an only child, daring to sing in rhyme.

Creativity equals unquestioning farce,
often reaching for absurdity, brazenly afire.
Instead, a blow is felt that no joy will soften,
accepting the price, added to the cost of desire.

~~ gigoid ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I’ve never gone for titling Pearls, or pearls, either. But, for this one, if I were asked to give it a title, it would have to be, “The Rise and Fall of Homo Erectus”

We shall never cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

~~ T. S. Eliot ~~

“Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It’s the transition that’s troublesome.” — Isaac Asimov

“Everything is simpler than you think and at the same time more complex than you imagine.” — Goethe

“Nothing is easier than self-deceit. For what each man wishes, that he also believes to be true.” — Demosthenes

“Expedients are for the hour; principles for the ages.” — Henry Ward Beecher

“If a man could pass through Paradise in a dream, and have a flower presented to him as a pledge that his soul had been there, and if he found that flower in his hand when he awoke – Aye, and what then?” — Coleridge, “Anima Poetae”

Like leaves on trees the race of man is found,–
Now green in youth, now withering on the ground;
Another race the following spring supplies:
They fall successive, and successive rise.

~~ Alexander Pope ~~

~~ The Iliad of Homer, Book vi, Line 181 ~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If I didn’t know, for sure and for certain, I’d say this was getting easier. But, since I do know, I’ll use the gift horse technique, and merely say I am glad it’s done, & be done with it. Not for nothing have I achieved such an advanced age, one none of us ever really considers, until it smacks us dead in the face…. On that uplifting thought, I think it would be best if I leave now. See y’all tomorrow, ffolkes, provided the powers of evil have not yet discovered my hiding place…. Be alert. The world needs all the lerts we can find….

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

À bientôt, mon cherí….

gigoid

Ned Moore, aka gigoid, is a 70 year-old, (!!!… When did that happen?….), retired dilettante, who would rather read than eat, most days. His first blog, "gigoid’s folly", has been emailed out to folks he knows for about 18 years now. He still considers it his best defense against angst, and the ever-present specter of sheer insanity..... Due to rigorous curmudgeon training requirements, he has discontinued his Facebook presence, but still indulges in the occasional Twitter session... In essence, he's socialized, but, not overly sociable; all labels and stereotypes are forbidden in his presence... and he doesn't care what anyone thinks about that..... In fact, he doesn't want to talk anymore.... If you feel you MUST contact gigoid, his email address is: alphagigoid@gmail.com You can go read now.... Go on, beat it.... gigoid, the dubious

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