Pug dogs don’t count as flammable items….

Posted on June 25, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
Today, this blank screen holds no fear for me. That is not to say that I have discovered a way to overcome the issue of what to write for the intro every morning; that seems to be a problem with resistance to solution stronger than my creative urges. No, indeed, I see no way out of that particular conundrum, given my history thus far as a blogger, and my insistence on posting every day, regardless of whether or not I am ready to do so. However, today, there are only four days left before I leave to travel again, and no fear can push through the excited exaltation that infuses my spirit at the thought of once more pursuing, and catching hold of, a dream….

Hmm…. it seems that even the absence of fear is not sufficient reason to make this intro any easier to write. Now that I’ve begun the day with a personal note, choosing a direction to take seems like the next logical step. Sadly, I haven’t a clue as to what that direction might be, or even what it could be. I’ve arisen late, and refreshed in both body and spirit (for a change), and I hardly know what to do with myself. I’ve got all this energy, and nowhere to put it yet… which is probably why I continue to babble away, just as if I had something worthwhile to say. “Just look out the window…” you say? Well, it’s worth a try, I suppose….

Well, I looked…. In at least one respect, it was good advice…. by changing my viewpoint, I did find new potential subject matter within purview. Several objects I saw could be turned into at least a short discussion, but, I am not sure how interesting a description of the faded wall of the next house would be, or whether or not I could find a metaphor for the catalog of stuffed animals in the window that would be entertaining or instructive enough to warrant the effort. It’s a good idea, but, too late, I think, to save this particular opening foray against the day’s challenge. In fact, there may not be anything at all to be done about this one; it seems to have died an ignominious death before it ever lived…. It certainly doesn’t seem to be getting anywhere, does it?

Oh well, that’s okay, it’s happened before, and will, no doubt, happen again in the future. Perhaps one day I’ll find my niche, or my template, or whatever it is that will serve as a consistent way to open each day’s post. Perhaps not, in which case, we all will have to learn to deal with whatever I come up with… which, I suppose, is a pretty good metaphor for how to approach life… We have to learn to deal with reality, whatever shape it takes, so learning to deal with an intro section actually shouldn’t cause too much trouble for us, as long as we can translate the metaphor into real action… Piece o’cake, yes?…..

Shall we Pearl?

“A lotta cats copy the Mona Lisa, but people still line up to see the original.” — Louis Armstrong
_____________________________

Of late, I’ve been reading the news online, and in newspapers, and have noted a disturbing trend in what is reported. It is disturbing in several ways, most significantly in its clarity regarding the admissions made by government officials about their own activities….. It seems to me that the powers that be, at almost every level, from local government, to state, to federal, and all the way into the shadow government, consisting of the true rulers of mankind, the ones who control all the politicians and banker-types, telling them what can and cannot be allowed, are no longer trying to hide from the public, but are being seen and reported more often.

Normally, they make at least a token effort to cover up any potentially harmful acts on their part, such as theft, or outright lies, either ignoring questions put to them on those matters, or issuing denials spun in such a way as to imply fault in the question, or merely distracting the questioners with personal attacks; they have, and utilize, a number of effective techniques to spin things so they come out looking good. But, all of a sudden, in the last couple of months, they seem to have given up, at least partially, trying to hide their chicanery, and allowing what appears to be criticism, of what the elected officials have done or said, to appear in the news reports….. Here are two examples of what I mean…

“U.S. officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the case.” — from SFGATE, 6/24/2013
Link to entire article: http://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/NSA-leaker-Snowden-expected-to-fly-to-Cuba-4617974.php

The above was excerpted from the above article, not just because it seemed to me to be the most accurate assertion in the whole report, but, also comes in as the most ironic statement, situated as it was. as the last sentence in the article.

“The deal calls for Loncke and three other plaintiffs representing the class to receive $9,000 each, with the others splitting $639,000. Their arrest records would be sealed and destroyed. Their attorneys would receive $350,000.”
Link to entire article: http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/1-million-payout-in-Oakland-mass-arrests-4619816.php

This one simply astounded me… The lawyers received 33.3% of the total settlement!!! I know it’s rude to use so many exclamation points at once, but, I went into shock, with my mouth dropping open wide when I read that line, which was also the last line in the article (Hmm…. Is there a cynic loose in the SFGATE web editing offices?….)

Now, this points up two distinctly different issues, of course, but the fact that the articles both contained statements that imply criticism of the BRC is significant. In the first, the BRC overseers didn’t bother to keep the last statement out of the article, even though it clearly states that, not only is the government engaging in illegal or immoral activity, but is also not afraid to talk about it…. The officials spoke, probably admitting to an illegal act on the part of a government agency or official, but did so in direct violation of their own rules….

I know that this particular phrase has been used in the press for a long time, to indicate two things…. One, that the reporter has found out something bad going on in our government, and has managed to trick the administration into admitting it; and, two, some unknown official has bravely taken the side of the people to get the information out…..

Neither one of these is usually true…. The reporter is a shill, reporting whatever their contact tells them to report, and doesn’t give a shit about the people, as long as his or her name is at the top of the report…. Second, the official isn’t on anybody’s side but their own, and are deliberately feeding the reporter what the powers that be wish him to report, which almost guarantees it is a lie, plain and simple….

In the second example, I’ve italicized the significant line…. The lawyers in this case are the only ones who benefited by the verdict, obviously… What disturbs me is that they don’t even care that people are aware of how badly they have ripped off everyone involved….

Allowing the lawyers to make that much off the misery of the participants, misery of which they are a prime cause, is reprehensible enough, all by itself…. But, to publicly report it shows how little respect for the public that either the lawyers, or the ruling classes have for the general public…. They know that nobody can do anything about the way they have things set up, so they no longer care about showing their hands….

The BRC controls Congress, it controls the Courts, it controls the Executive Branch, and, most importantly, it controls the media…. Anyone who believes otherwise is whistling in the dark, and needs to reexamine all they believe about their elected officials, or, for that matter, reality. We are being lied to, and cheated, and having our rights taken away, one by one, under our very noses.

The assholes responsible are even trying to convince us all that it is for our own good, that allowing restrictions to rights is the only way to “protect” us from those evil terrorists…. Terrorists who would not even exist, were it not for those self-same immoral acts that cause resentment and anger….. which is the intent…. The more angry and resentful people are, the easier they are to control… Think about it….

I see that this has grown rather long, and still has a lot of room for expansion… There is no lack of available data to support all I’m saying today, everywhere I look… on liberal sites, on conservative sites, neutral sites, all of them are full of examples, both of how we are being screwed, and of how little it is being hidden any more. They don’t care, ffolkes, and they aren’t going to change…. I’m tired of ranting, even though it is rather self-sustaining, anger-wise, so I’ll cut this short here, and just say this, to the American public…

Wake up! It’s our only chance at survival, and more importantly, the only chance for survival for our children….. Too many of them are already indoctrinated to believe whatever they are told on TV, and that control is insidiously and steadily creeping into the internet…. Eventually, it will kill us all, if we allow it….

“HELLO, everybody, I’m a HUMAN!!” — Zippy the Pinhead
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I’m not sure what to think of the above rant…. It’s a bit disjointed, and lacking in discipline, due, I think, to the amorphous nature of the subject under discussion… Precise definition of the human spirit is, to say the least, difficult, and fraught with danger, of inaccuracy, and of obsession. In light of that, I offer this, a poem I wrote a while back, that points out a method by which we can, at least, not become overmastered by reality….

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 ~~

_____________________________

I’ve ranted myself out, and don’t even have the energy to pull together an old-school pearl…. so, we’ll dip into the archives for one from 2012… enjoy!…..

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

Caution: Old School Pearl Ahead. Gird Your Grids For A Big One…..

“Two babies were born on the same day at the same hospital. They lay there and looked at each other. Their families came and took them away. Eighty years later, by a bizarre coincidence, they lay in the same hospital, on their deathbeds, next to each other. One of them looked at the other and said, “So. What did you think?” — Steven Wright

A monk said to Joshu, “I have just entered this monastery. Please teach me.”
“Have you eaten your breakfast?” Joshu asked.
“Yes, I have,” replied the student.
“Then you had better wash your bowl.”
— Smart Buddhist Bee

“TAPPING? You POLITICIANS! Don’t you realize that the END of the “Wash Cycle” is a TREASURED MOMENT for most people?!” — Zippy the Pinhead

“I’ll get you my pretty, and your little dog too!” — Wicked Witch of the East

“Don’t underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.” — Pooh’s Little Instruction Book, inspired by A. A. Milne

There, that should do it…. I’ve made this as clear as mud, obviously…. Don’t worry, though, it won’t be on the test…. In fact, it won’t even count toward graduation, not that we care about stuff like that…. But, it does make a good point, yes? Nod your head…..
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It all feels disjointed, somehow. Everything seemed to come out in fits and starts, and I couldn’t seem to keep track of direction…. Probably getting the mushy-brain, pre-cruise brain syndrome, where all I can think about is how good it will feel to walk on that ship….. Ah well, gotta stay focused for another few days…. Let’s see how this came out….. Well, not too bad, all things considered… It will have to do, for I’m not doing it over….. Try not to hold it against me, okay?…. Thanks….. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Even tax codes are tasty with hollandaise….

Posted on June 24, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
“With chattering teeth, wheeling eyes, and muscles tensed, as if in anticipation of a blow, he sits before the object of his reasoned fear, aghast at the level to which feverish apprehension rises uncontrollably. Sheer unbridled terror rules over all courage, bringing the morbid, deathly paralysis that comes to all in such straits. Yet, we see his face harden, and fill with purpose; he reaches up to the table, sets his hands upon the magical keys, and begins, despite, or even because, of his fear…..”

And so begins another day here at ECR, where even the panic inspired by the vision of a blank white screen cannot overcome my unyielding dedication, my purposeful, yet idiotic need to blather out all that is in my head each day. No matter how much sleep it costs me, no matter how little money I make from it, and no matter what anyone says, I will have my way, and will have my say…. If nothing else, it is important, to me, to keep my string unbroken, if a bit frayed. Goodness knows why, but, asking the universe to answer any ‘why’ questions is futile, so we shan’t bother with it…

Not everything in this universe needs an explanation, which I find to be a soothing thought, all in all. It certainly helps me out quite often, as I tend to not worry about the stuff I can’t change, and finding explanations for everything I do gets tiresome very quickly….. It is only other people who wish for us to be up front about motivation, and I’m happy to say, I don’t live by their expectations or desires. That may sound a bit callous, but, in fact, it is not, as I certainly afford them the same courtesy as I demand…. Thus, in my view, and in that respect, the scale is balanced.

I find myself wandering a bit far afield this morning, delving into such a rather abstruse and delicate trend of thought, and I’m wondering if I am quite up to handling it with the required alacrity. My savoir faire, as it were, is not always at its strongest in the mornings, and I’m fairly certain that, if I continue in this vein, I’ll hurt myself…. Since I have no intention of taking any chances of missing my embarkation on Saturday next, (and certainly not because of a failure of savoir faire….), we’ll go on to something a bit less dangerous, from a literary, or even physical, standpoint…. Of course, given the material that usually ends up being presented here, even that may be asking a bit much…..

Oh, well, hell…. Shall we Pearl?…..
_____________________________

“Thoughtcrime was not a thing that could be concealed forever. You might dodge successfully for a while, even for years, but sooner or later they were bound to get you.” — George Orwell, 1984

As the story about E. Snowden, the NSA whistleblower, unfolds in the news, I am struck by how the US government is reacting in such a way as to PROVE the accusations that were made, of not merely spying and illegal mining of data from its own citizenry, but of doing so without any oversight, or any legal recourse for its victims. Even Saint Barack has shed the hooded mantle of secrecy, and is not only admitting that the spying is going on, but is trying to legitimize it in the eyes of the public. At the same time, the legal arm of the government is preparing to bury this young man with a conscience, for blowing the whistle on how far the powers that be have gone, in their quest for absolute control over society.

In the book from which the above was excerpted, 1984, George Orwell painted a vision for us of how things might be, if ever the general public gave up all power to the government…. At the time of its publication, almost all of the things in the book that showed how that worked were not present in real life, except in secret…. However, if one looks at the book now, just about every technological technique used to monitor the populace of the world, is now in play in our world…. Big Brother is now watching us, and if he doesn’t like what we are doing, well, that’s OUR problem, and they will make sure that we are aware of that….

I really want to rant about this today, but, for some reason, my mind is refusing to cooperate… It might have something to do with the fact that this whole scenario makes me almost incoherent with anger…. Anger directed at the government, and at all the lying politicians, and cowardly judges, and and all of the other assbites who support them, such as the police, the churches, and, sadly, the ignorant and afraid among the citizenry…. I would like to take them all and just shake some sense into them, but, I happen to know they are immune to such treatment, their minds having been indoctrinated into blind obedience before they reached the age of reason…..

“A doctrine insulates the devout not only against the realities around them but also against their own selves. The fanatical believer is not conscious of his envy, malice, pettiness and dishonesty. There is a wall of words between his consciousness and his real self.” — Eric Hoffer

What is most infuriating to me is that the people ALLOW this all to take place…. The politicos put out all their lies and illusions, and the people buy into them, without ever examining any of it for truth, or even relevance…. In the last presidential election, over 48 million people, who otherwise might be considered relatively sane, went out and voted for a man who lied to them consistently for six months. 48 fucking million! That is an incredibly large load of stupid, ffolkes, and makes me afraid all over again….

Fortunately, there were enough other ffolkes who didn’t fall for Mitt the Twitt’s line…. They did, however, fall for the line of a man who is, perhaps, even more dangerous, for he is adept at diverting attention away from what he does in secret, by performing public acts that seem to prove he is aboveboard…. which he is not…. I was, at first, encouraged by the election of a black man as president, hoping it signaled a weather-change in society, but, there doesn’t seem to be much difference, ultimately, in what he has done, as opposed to any other president….

If he was at all different, we would not have had the NDAA signed while the nation’s attention was diverted by a holiday; that happened right after he won the second election in 2012. If he actually intended to fulfill any of the campaign promises he made, he would have done so by now, but, Guantanamo is still open, people are still being detained and questioned in prison camps overseas, where we cannot observe them, and drones ARE being utilized inside American air space, to spy on our own citizens…. Don’t even bother to try to deny any of that, because the proof is all over the news and the internet…. Moreover, he isn’t denying any of it, as he now knows he cannot be stopped, having fooled everyone into compliance, and secured his position until 2016….

I guess I did end up ranting… anger will do that…. I HATE being lied to, by anyone, but, I hate it the most when I am lied to by elected officials. I don’t know why I hate it so much, except that it has been going on for my entire life, and it is a direct contradiction to the way it is supposed to be. We are, theoretically, supposed to elect the candidates who demonstrate the most honesty and integrity, but, due to the extreme gullibility of the public, we always end up with the candidate who is the most convincing liar, instead…. It drives me crazy, for sure, but, some might say that is a short drive…. I don’t care, I’m too pissed off to worry about it….

“The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning ourself.” — Friedrich Nietzsche

“I love my country too much to be a nationalist.” — Albert Camus
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I’ve left the selection of today’s poem for last, though I found the little excerpt by Cowper earlier, and included it for its relevant beauty…. What I found can only be described as appropriate…. it is strange, disturbing, and esoteric by intent, thus making it the perfect counterpoint to what comprises the rest of today’s effort…. Not that what I’ve created isn’t strange or disturbing; I suppose it is more of a type of trim, than a counterpoint… Whatever it is, I hope you enjoy it, if only for its oddity….

There is a pleasure in poetic pains
Which only poets know.

— William Cowper (1731-1800) — The Task, Book ii, The Timepiece, Line 285

Father Death Blues

Hey Father Death, I’m flying home
Hey poor man, you’re all alone
Hey old daddy, I know where I’m going

Father Death, Don’t cry any more
Mama’s there, underneath the floor
Brother Death, please mind the store

Old Aunty Death Don’t hide your bones
Old Uncle Death I hear your groans
O Sister Death how sweet your moans

O Children Deaths go breathe your breaths
Sobbing breasts’ll ease your Deaths
Pain is gone, tears take the rest

Genius Death your art is done
Lover Death your body’s gone
Father Death I’m coming home

Guru Death your words are true
Teacher Death I do thank you
For inspiring me to sing this Blues

Buddha Death, I wake with you
Dharma Death, your mind is new
Sangha Death, we’ll work it through

Suffering is what was born
Ignorance made me forlorn
Tearful truths I cannot scorn

Father Breath once more farewell
Birth you gave was no thing ill
My heart is still, as time will tell.

~~ Allen Ginsberg ~~

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All things considered, it’s been a good morning…. This isn’t to say it hasn’t been without its difficulties, but, I’m trying really hard not to be a whiner, so we’ll pass over all that, and get on with it…. Here is a seven-star pearl for your delectation, lovingly selected over the last hour from Smart Bee, who has been a bit off, but, came through in the end. The point of this pearl is related to the above rant, but, not so’s you could tell at first glance…. Don’t sweat it, it’s all good stuff, even without the point, and who wants a point that’s all belabored, anyway, right?…. So, make sure you have your chopsticks, the protective bib provided for your convenience is in place, and you should be able to get through it without any new laundry bills…..

“You can best serve civilization by being against what usually passes for it.” — Wendell Berry

“All things come round to him who will but wait.” — Henry W. Longfellow (1807-1882) — Tales of a Wayside Inn, The Student’s Tale

“Against those skilled in the attack, the enemy does not know where to defend. Against the experts in defence, the enemy does not know where to attack.” — Sun Tzu

“What matters today is not the difference between those who believe and those who do not believe, but the difference between those who care and those who don’t.” — Abbe’ Pierre

“If you make people think they’re thinking, they’ll love you; but if you really make them think, they’ll hate you.” — Don Marquis

“I don’t necessarily agree with everything I say.” — Marshall McLuhan

“The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.” — Eden Phillpotts
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Having thus sharpened my wits as far as possible on the whetstone of virtual wisdom, and, convinced I can do no more damage, I will take my leave, once I’ve checked this over for typos, etc., a statement of intent which you are, no doubt, grateful to hear….. Okay, well, that took a while, but, we’re all good to go now…. Having once more defeated the forces of Murphy, if only for a time, I bid thee a fond adieu… Oh, yeah, only five days to go, four, if one looks at it right, and y’all won’t have me to kick around any more…. Just kidding…. Nixon pops up at the weirdest times; I just meant we’ll be off to Alaska on Saturday, come Hell or High Water…. Any who…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Susceptible to diverse therapeutic models….

Posted on June 23, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
Oh, hello there…. come on in, but mind your head on the doorway there…. We’re doing a bit of remodeling, made necessary by an incident that took place late last night. There I was, sleeping peacefully, until about 3 AM, when all of a sudden, every piece of loose paper in the apartment burst into flame, WHOOSH, and I found myself frantically spraying water from the sink all over the place, alternated with beating out licks of flame on every surface…. A real nightmare, for sure, but without the benefit of being asleep….. It’s a real mess, but, I managed to get all the flames out before any of the walls or anything else got involved, so, I’m forced to assume the attitude of “it could be worse”. Which, of course, it very easily could have been, had it actually occurred…

No, that’s right, you heard me correctly…. I’m lying again, or, as we authors like to call it, being creative….. For the life of me, I couldn’t think of anything to start with today; the only thing I could come up with was this little bit of prevarication, which I justified as being acceptable only with the greatest reluctance…. I don’t really enjoy lying, as it challenges all I was taught as a boy by my father, but, how else can one make fiction, if not by a form of lying about reality? Any new story, or any idea that hasn’t been already used, is, from one viewpoint, a lie, because it doesn’t exist in reality. Even though I know this, it doesn’t help to keep quiet those voices we have in our heads, put there by our parents in our infancy. I don’t know about y’all, but the voices in my head can be quite insistent, and annoying….

I know, I know, there are medications for that, but, these voices aren’t psychotic in nature; I actually heard them, utilized by my parental units, stating whatever advice or warning they were trying to convey, at one point or another in my youth, so the medicines wouldn’t prevent them from making themselves known. Of course, most of what they say is a repeat of stuff we already know, so it’s not hard to just let it go by without getting worked up, or feeling any guilt, which, when dealing with stuff our parents gave us, is an occupational hazard…. I am SOOO glad I got rid of guilt in my life; I can’t tell you what a difference it has made….

Well, all of that is certainly….. well, it’s done. It’s words in a row, all of which are relatively connected to the ones nearby, which makes for a more pleasant appearance, as well as helping it to make whatever sense it may possess…. In this case, not a lot…. In fact, practically ALL of this intro section, thus far today, could be considered as sheer drivel, were it not for the need to keep some dignity on board. In looking back over what I’ve written so far, I can only hope that I haven’t gotten any of it on any new clothing items, and that nobody takes it seriously…. Even for me, this one is pretty loose, so, please, be careful handling it… it might not have a lot of sharp edges, but it WILL leave a stain….

“One cannot make up stories; one can only retell in new ways the stories one has already heard.” — Carolyn Heilbrun

Shall we Pearl?…..
_____________________________

— Bother! said Pooh, as time unraveled around him.

Boy, don’t you just hate when that happens? I know I do…. and, these days, I feel like time is definitely becoming looser, and less likely to stay in its proper form. This may have to do with how close we are approaching our demise as a species, or with the constant barrage of insanity that continues to be displayed every day in the news…..

Some days it is impossible to keep up with all the stupidly insane, absolutely bonkers stuff that pours out of the mouths of pundits and politicos, preachers and police spokepersons (silly damn word….). It seems to me that government, as we know it, could do with a sense of humor…. Currently, there just isn’t anything funny about what they’re doing, in almost every arena, and I, for one, could do with a break from their implacable stupidity…..

I had intended to rant here, and to some extent, that will hold true…. I suppose the above paragraph could be counted as rantlike, but it needs some direction before it will come close to drawing any blood; I try to make sure it will at least cause a wound that will scar up, or what’s the point? However, at this point, there is just too much to choose from among the issues that are in the public eye right now…..

The Supremes are taking up the question of gaiety, and whatever they say will certainly cause consternation in one camp or another; the Feds are proving their complete lack of a sense of humor, by bringing charges (a euphemism for ‘persecuting’….) against the whistle blower who is hiding in Hong Kong, who had the audacity to tell the truth in public without their permission; civil wars are happening in the middle east again, and even the players can’t tell who’s who; another public circus is being played out in a Floridian court of justice (is that an oxymoron?…), where a paranoid racist murderer is being protected by the system….. I wouldn’t be surprised to see an article about penguins today, just to counterbalance all the disturbing shit being broadcast everywhere….

I can’t keep up with all of it; it’s getting crazy out there, ffolkes, and getting there faster all the time…. Any who… Since I can’t keep up, and can’t decide on what subject I should rant, we’ll try some cosmic Judo, and use my own weight against me…. We’ll go old school, and see what happens… These quotes are…. well, they are what they are, and they say whatever it is they’re going to say…. Deal with it, and enjoy….

“If you call a tail a leg, how many legs has a dog? Five? No, four. Calling a tail a leg doesn’t make it a leg.” — Abraham Lincoln

“Be patriotic – question authority.” — Bumper Sticker

“An ethical man is a Christian holding four aces.” — Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) (1835-1910)

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

— William Butler Yeats, “The Stolen Child”

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

That’s it, I give up…. Smart Bee is being a butthead today; this pearl took an inordinate amount of time to put together, for so little result…. but, it works, so we’ll get on with the rest of today’s effort, and consider it all a wash up to now….
_____________________________

Between what I see and what I say
Between what I say and what I keep silent
Between what I keep silent and what I dream
Between what I dream and what I forget:
Poetry.

— Octavio Paz (1914-1998)

Honorable Request

Days, filled to a brim with fluff and time, pass
dimly into memory, bit by combative bit,
ever mournful, yet loud with life and sass,
only in dream do we meet, and dance, and flit.

Souls, spinning ’round in gleeful wonder, comply
as they must, never given a reason,
somberly proper, yet limber and quite spry,
dancing on to greet each bright new season.

Storms, angered by apathetic care, rage
proceeding into ministerial glare, unknown,
clothed in colors, purified solely with sage,
past an infinite future, already flown.

Life, plumbed to its depths and secrets, keeps
flowing with currents, strong and fairly found,
love stands, asking release, as it slowly weeps,
seeking refuge unasked, to stay honor bound.

~~ gigoid ~~

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Section one today turned out to be a bit strange, which, while not unexpected, did screw the format up a trifle. I don’t have a rant left in me, beyond what I’ve already done, and SB is being wonky about giving me what I need… So, I’m resorting to the archives, where I found this little religirant, not too long, and quite fitting, given what has gone before…. Plus, it’s done, and I don’t have to worry about being more creative (not that I lost a lot of sleep over that….)…. Any who, here is a pearl from mid-2012 sometime…..

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I don’t have an attitude problem–it’s supposed to be like this. — Smart Bee

I like this. It’s what I’ve said to any number of folks who have challenged me regarding my intransigence in the face of ignorant behavior. I am always tempted to add, “I am an American citizen, and it is not only my right, but my duty to challenge authority,” mainly because I believe it to be absolutely true, thought not an attitude currently favored by most of society, more’s the pity…. We’d be a lot better off if more folks took their duties as citizens more seriously….

“I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the Roman church, by the Greek church, by the Turkish church, by the Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church.” — Thomas Paine

All of our founding fathers were convinced that only an educated populace had a chance of maintaining the freedoms they secured for us. They knew firsthand how unscrupulous churches and governments, working hand in hand, had oppressed and subjugated the people for centuries, and they were determined that it should NOT happen here. So they engineered a system whereby each citizen has the opportunity, and the right, to a complete grounding in basic knowledge, in order that they could make informed decisions regarding the laws with which they would be living….

“The Church hates a thinker like a criminal hates the police.” — Smart Bee (So do politicians…)

For over 200 years now, the beloved ruling class and their hidden supporters, the prelates of the churches and synagogues, have been repeatedly and subtly attempting to undermine the purpose behind educating people, trying to limit the amount spent on education, or luring people into believing the nonsensical alternatives that religion offers in lieu of independence of thought, thus minimizing the effects of the education received outside their influence. They (the politicians and priests/preachers….) continuously bombard the public with lie after lie, until the lies are accepted as truth, just because there is nothing else offered. They then use those lies to further confuse the public as to what is really happening, and go about their business of stealing and grabbing power wherever they find the opportunity….

“I’m completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. My idea is that these two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both of them together is certain death.” — George Carlin

So, my attitude is not the problem…. the problem is that not enough of us have this attitude, and the PTB have virtually no competition in their fight for our attention; there is nobody allowed on the political stage who is singing a different song than the one approved for public consumption by those who control such matters…. Hell, we’ll know we’re making progress if even one such person ever gets the chance to even speak…. meantime, all we can do is to have those of us who know our duty keep plugging away, calling them out for their lies, and making as much noise as we can, to try to draw some attention to those places where it isn’t appreciated, but needs it the most…..

“Every sensible man, every honest man, must hold the Christian sect in horror. But what shall we substitute in its place? you say. What? A ferocious animal has sucked the blood of my relatives. I tell you to rid yourselves of this beast and you ask me what you shall put in its place?” — Voltaire
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I’m exhausted…. That was the toughest Pearl in quite a while… I hope it reads well enough to pass muster; I’d hate to have to go back and start over….. Well, it will do, I suppose… It may not be Ibsen, but it’s at least Art, or Frank, or Earnest…. especially the last. Plus, it contains no misspelled words, at least according to SpellChecker, and we all know how infallible that is….. Ah well, I have no pride left, so…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Such splendid toast deserves marmalade….

Posted on June 22, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
‘Tis a sad commentary to note one’s entire life boils down to one moment, and in that moment, one realizes that the greatest skill one has developed is the ability to dither, or blather, or, as they used to say, to speak piffle….. Disheartening, to say the least; I had hoped for something a bit more dignified, or at least more useful. Piffle, as it was called in the previous century, is only useful to those who speak it, and to those who understand and appreciate it…. Most of the rest of society views piffle somewhat askance, as they have no idea either what is said, or what it may mean…. which, ultimately, is their loss…..

Of course, I can’t claim to be anywhere near as good at it as, say, Lord Peter Wimsey, from Dorothy L. Sayers’ novels; her books tend to intimidate as much as educate, as I believe she wrote with the Oxford Dictionary at close hand. Every page she wrote was filled with demonstration of a writer who loved the English language, one who seemed to use ALL of it in her writing. In my most egotistic dreams, I write only half as well as she did, for I don’t ever expect to be able to match her expertise, or her originality. Only someone with such a strong love for, and full understanding of, the language of their birth, could use it in such a way as to make it both ironically humorous, and at the same time, pointedly insulting, or laughingly charming, or quietly inspirational.

SIGH…. To my everlasting regret, I can’t do that, not as well as I’d like. It is a constant disappointment to me that I cannot; it’s one of the few skills in my life that I can say truthfully that I have been unable to master, once I tried. Perhaps, before I pass on to the next dimension, or whatever happens after we die, I’ll get closer to writing better piffle; I hope so. If not, well, I can always go back and read more of Ms. Sayers’ work, though I believe I’ve already consumed all of her Lord Peter stories…. They are the kind of books one can read over and over, finding something new every time….

All of the above is what could be called a distraction. I wrote it as a sublimation of the desire to whine about the intro again, hoping to distract both y’all and myself from the fact that this section once again is filled with material that has no real connection to anything, other than as a means to pass the time until my brain kicks into gear sufficiently to start writing something more nourishing to the mind. There may be those among you who would point out the lack of ANY material here that meets that standard, but, I don’t expect them to speak up; they’ve been threatened about doing so, and have assured us of their silence in this matter….

Of course, I can’t expect that threat to hold them off forever, so it’s probably better to just get on with the business of the day…. According to the stats I’ve seen recently, very few readers will see this anyway…. My number of followers keeps growing, but the number of Likes per day continues to drop…. I’ve averaged about four Likes per day for over a week now, though stats indicate my following is up to 270….

I don’t much care if ffolkes don’t always Like what I write, but, it’s a bit disheartening to think that no one at all cares to read it…. But, it doesn’t really matter, since I don’t much care one way or the other about fame, or money…. only about sanity (my own…), and sanity is the reason I write…. Not that what you see here is particularly sane by normal standards, but those aren’t valid here without permits anyway…..

Shall we Pearl?….
_____________________________

“The rights of one are as sacred as the rights of a million.” — Eugene V. Debs, US labor leader.

(Note: Debs received one million votes in 1920 as candidate for US President, while serving a 10-year jail sentence for having said in June 1918: “Wars throughout history have been waged for conquest and plunder…the master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.”) — Smart Bee

This has been sitting around for a couple of days, since I found it in SB. It’s the perfect beginning for a politirant, and the news of late has provided a number of interesting side notes to this idea, so I find myself in the position of being compelled to rant, which is the best attitude to start with….

The recent news has shown a number of items concerned with the revelations just released a few weeks ago, when a former NSA contractor spilled the beans about how the US government has been spying on its own people, collecting personal data from phone records, mercantile records, and from review of emails and other data mined from the internet… The revelations, of course, are in the process of being denied and/or devalued by that government, who are trying to convince the public that the spying is “transparent”, and that the information is NOT being collected to investigate American citizens…. This, of course, is a bald faced lie, and anyone who believes it deserves anything that happens to them….

The government of this country is in the hands of people who are controlled by the corporate masters of society, sometimes willfully, most times without their complete knowledge. They (the corporate masters…) don’t give a SHIT about the rights of anyone else, so the above statement that got Mr. Debs in trouble is shown to be perfectly true. The people who control society don’t believe in the sacred nature of rights, for anyone who isn’t them, so it can be said that the rights of one are as sacred as the rights of a million, because to the 1% (a number that is actually far larger than the number of real masters of society…. that’s probably closer to .001%…..), neither one is sacred at all….

What disturbs me a lot of the time is that there are still a lot of people who believe that, of the choices available in the political spectrum, one side or another is better, and showing support for one of them will direct matters to a more favorable (for the people) resolution…. The fact is, neither the Republicans, nor the Democrats, nor any of the Independents who are in office, or trying to get into office, have any interest at all in doing anything other than establishing their own agenda as the one used by society. Those agendas have nothing to do with helping the general public; they are designed to benefit only those who ascribe to the correct philosophy. No matter which political party or entity you choose, you’re going to get screwed, in the final analysis.

“The art of government is the organization of idolatry.” — George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

If you still think that Barack Obama is going to help the common man, well, I suggest you listen to the crap he is putting out right now about this surveillance. Remember, too, that he signed the law that killed the Bill of Rights, on New Year’s Eve of 2012, the infamous National Defense Authorization Act, which makes it legal for the government to arrest citizens without a warrant, to hold them in an unknown place, without any oversight or review of rights, and try them in a secret court, without legal representation. It authorized the use of drones in a domestic fashion (which they continue to lie about, and say they aren’t using them…. when reports from all over the country provide relatively incontrovertible PROOF that they ARE using them….), and, most assuredly, authorized the illegal wiretapping and internet data mining that is currently going on, even though it has been exposed.

We may as well begin referring to the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution as the Bill of Former Rights, because, face it, ffolkes, you don’t have them anymore. I’ve heard it said that they are not rights, anyway, as a right is something nobody can take away from you…. More accurately, you have no rights that you are unable to defend…. and the government has slyly convinced most people that they don’t want those rights anyway…. Look how many formerly intelligent people are jumping on the bandwagon about gun control, forgetting all that our forefathers cautioned us about, when they warned about the possible encroachment of big business and the churches into the workings of government…. Jefferson, Madison, Adams, Mason, Franklin, all of them mistrusted the corporate interests and the preachers, having suffered much at their hands, and they tried to warn us against listening to them….

But, what happened to Eugene Debs back in 1919, when he was sent to prison (in direct violation of the right to free speech….) was not the first indicator that things had regressed, and the trend toward government takeover of the rights of US citizenry has continued right up to today. The recent revelations about spying, you will see, will be quashed, and ignored by those in power, as there is now nothing we can do to stop them from doing whatever they want…. According to the laws we let them slip by us, it’s all legal ffolkes…. We are screwed, and the only good thing I can see about it, is that, due to global warming, climate change, and the imminent destruction of the human species by our own pollution, we won’t have long to put up with it….

Books are burning
In the main square, and I saw there
The fire eating the text.
Books are burning
In the still air
And you know where they burn books
People are next.

— “Books Are Burning”, XTC
_____________________________

The above rant, you may note, was cut short, due to my rising blood pressure; I came very close to losing it due to outrage there near the end. I’m so PISSED at our government, and the crap they’re pulling, it’s hard to keep it from spilling out into other areas…. Poetry will often soothe this kind of angst, and Emily does it quite well… This is a plaintive poem, and not particularly soothing…. It does, however, engage the mind in something other than the shenanigans I can’t stop, even if that which it brings for us to engage is no less serious, just more personal…. Any who, enjoy…. I did….

There’s a certain slant of light,
On winter afternoons
That oppresses, like the weight
Of cathedral tunes.

Heavenly hurt it gives us;
We can find no scar,
But internal difference
Where the meanings, are.

None may teach it anything,
‘T is the seal, despair, —
An imperial affliction
Sent us of the air.

When it comes, the landscape listens,
Shadows hold their breath;
When it goes, ‘t is like the distance
On the look of death.

~~ Emily Dickinson ~~

_____________________________

Old school, old school…. I’ve ranted, and have Emily in place, so it must be time for an old school pearl, to finish off the day’s effort with a flourish…. I’m not even going to try to figure out any point, though I’m sure there will be one… This one is dedicated to the concept of fun, which I often forget to promote when in ranting mode…. So, I should probably warn you not to put too much effort into figuring this one out; it could cause severe brain function loss, and I’m not going to pay for the nursing bills during the recovery stage….. Otherwise, have fun with it….

Euripides says,–
Who knows but that this life is really death,
And whether death is not what men call life?

— Diogenes Laertius (c. 200 AD) — Pyrrho, viii

“We are like butterflies who flutter for a day and think it is forever.” — Carl Sagan

“Nothing unreal exists.” — Kiri-Kin-Tha’s Law of Metaphysics

“The common folk have many sayings, all about it being darkest before the dawn and clouds with silver linings and suchlike. We in the magical trade like to express our opinions of these matters somewhat differently. A lifetime of experience will have taught the average sorcerer that no matter how hopeless the situation seems, no matter how painful and fraught with danger his options may be, no matter how close he may be to an indescribably hideous death and perhaps even eternal damnation, still, the good wizard knows, it can always get worse.” — The Teachings of Ebenezum, Vol. XLVI (General Introduction)

“If only I had known, I should have become a watchmaker.” — Albert Einstein

“If you can spend a perfectly useless afternoon in a perfectly useless manner, you have learned how to live.” — Lin Yutang

Honour and shame from no condition rise;
Act well your part, there all the honour lies.

— Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — Essay on Man, Epistle iv, Line 193
_____________________________

Today’s Pearl will possibly come to be known as an example of an average Pearl, if such can be defined. An intro, a rant, a poem, and an old-school pearl; all perfectly fresh (but for the poem, which stands on its own merit…), and none of it possessed of anything resembling normalcy. It isn’t genius, I’d guess, nor is it an example of any overt cognitive deficits, necessarily…. Given all that, let’s see how it reads….. Hmm, it seems I was right, and wrong, too… It’s actually pretty good, and may even lead to further ranting in the not so distant future, provided the news doesn’t let me down (and when has THAT ever happened?….). After some tweaking, I can pronounce it “done, and done well”, with no shame or trepidation…. Well, it COULD use a bit more humor, but, hey, I try, and funny can be a tough row to hoe at this time of the day…. and now I’m blathering again…. I’ll go now…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Calls to adjourn are always in order….

Posted on June 21, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
For the first time in a coon’s age, I slept like a baby last night. That isn’t to say I woke up every few hours to eat, or get my drawers freshened, or to play, as my own son liked to do at 3 AM; in point of fact, the opposite is true. I slept more deeply than usual, and didn’t even awaken myself to turn over more than twice, falling back to sleep easily…. This is good, as in a normal night, I’m up and down most of it, and struggle to get back to sleep once awake. So, it’s a nice feeling to wake up refreshed, at an hour that approaches what the rest of the world observes…. Strange, but nice….

It might have to do with being in love; I find myself to be quite giddy at times, and spend a lot of time figuring out ways to spend more time with her, rather than figuring out how to pass the time with myself. Or, it could be that my aged old bod has finally gotten over the stress and fatigue that has plagued me since my return from Europe…. I tend to go with the first reason, as it makes me feel better to think about that, than it does to consider how old I’m getting…. Not that getting old has prevented me from wanting to act like a youngster, one with unlimited energy, provided by the strong drug that is Love…..

My only problem, as I see it, is how I can use these feelings in my writing…. Oh, sure, I could just start talking about my lady; I have enough in me that I could easily write a few thousand words in celebration of the beauty I see in her, or about how much I admire her gritty resolve in dealing with the crap life has thrown her way, or the kindness of her spirit, or how much I appreciate having someone to talk to who understands me, and seems to like me anyway. I could, no doubt at all, spend the rest of my life voicing how I feel about her, and intend to do so, to her….. I don’t think, however, that would be of much interest to other folks, or even ffolkes, after the first ten thousand words or so… Even sweetness and light can be overdone…..

I could use my feelings metaphorically, I guess, which would fit in appropriately with the rest of what goes on here…. and, in sooth, may end up doing that at some point…. But, I have a small problem with writing about my feelings in this area, which has to do with privacy issues, not with literary ones. Our relationship is OUR business, and putting it out on the street, so to speak, is not only egotistical and tacky, but could, conceivably, be dangerous.

When writing about personal issues, it is too easy to give away information that COULD be used against me, or even worse, against my paramour. I am nobody’s fool, and I’m well aware there are dire wolves (as opposed to most wolves, who are strong, loyal, and honorable….) who mine the internet for information that can be used for nefarious purposes…. I have no intention of ever drawing their attention, or giving away any information they can use against me…. I know what you are thinking, as it occurs to me as well…. Some of those dire wolves work in Washington D. C., and are supposedly using such information to protect me….

I say to that…. Bullshit! If you believe what the politicos, on both sides of the political fence, are saying, that the process is “transparent”, and the information gathered isn’t being abused, well, all I can say is that I am sorry for you…. They are lying about this, just as they lie about everything else they tell us, and anyone who believes otherwise needs to have their medications checked, because they aren’t working….

Hmm…. how did I get from being in love in paragraphs one and two, to ranting against the machine in paragraph four? Oh, okay, I see where I turned left, when I should have gone straight on…. Oh well, at least I got an intro section out of it, which is a good thing, I think…. We’ll have to see how the rest of this goes, starting as I do with a full bucket of energy, rather than a leaky one….. Shall we Pearl?…..
_____________________________

I’m in the mood for an old school pearl, and, as I am still driving, and diving, that’s what we’ll do…. This pearl’s direction, and any point it makes, will be determined as randomly as I can make it. The first pearl I find will give me the basic idea, and we’ll see what else Smart Bee can come up with in the same vein…. Generally, I find these to be the best type of pearls, both for me, in that they pretty much write themselves, and for you, as they are the least obscure, and most easily translated into reality, or, into something that can be used in real time…. Enjoy!….

“Don’t worry about avoiding temptation — as you grow older, it starts avoiding you.” — The Old Farmer’s Almanac

“All things considered, insanity may be the only reasonable alternative.” — Smart Bee

“Anyone without a sense of humor is at the mercy of everyone else.” — William Rotsler

“A gentleman is one who never hurts anyone’s feelings unintentionally.” — Oscar Wilde

“The difference between solitude and loneliness is the quality of the company we keep.” — Smart Bee

“How ridiculous and unrealistic is the man who is astonished at anything that happens in life.” — Marcus Aurelius

Ooh! Ooh! I just had a great idea, prompted by something SB came up with…. So, here is the deal… The six quotes above delineate the main thrust of the idea being presented, but, it is at a cusp, and could complete at least two different thoughts… Below you will find two more pearls, either of which would be a fitting close to the concept as it is… Your mission, should you etc., etc…. is to choose whichever one suits your fancy to complete the pearl for today…. Or, choose the other one, I don’t care… either one works, and I hope you’ve enjoyed this little pre-breakfast mental challenge….

“I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they’ve always worked for me.” — Hunter S. Thompson

As half in shade and half in sun
This world along its path advances,
May that side the sun ‘s upon
Be all that e’er shall meet thy glances!

— Thomas Moore (1779-1852) — Peace be around Thee
_____________________________

On mornings like this, (which is a damn lie, as this morning has never been done before…. but, call it literary license, and we can go on….), I tend to go with a classic poem, from one of history’s more famous poets. Today is no exception, in spite of my recent stats on readership….. In other words, I hope you enjoy it, but, since almost nobody will read it, my sentiment will fall upon empty ears, or some such metaphor for zero…. I like it, though….

Being the sucker for romance that I am, and in deference to the delicacy of feelings I expressed above, I went to find a love poem, and found two…. Unable to decide which to use, I give you both…..

Who Ever Loved That Loved Not at First Sight?

It lies not in our power to love or hate,
For will in us is overruled by fate.
When two are stripped, long ere the course begin,
We wish that one should love, the other win;

And one especially do we affect
Of two gold ingots, like in each respect:
The reason no man knows; let it suffice
What we behold is censured by our eyes.
Where both deliberate, the love is slight:
Who ever loved, that loved not at first sight?

~~ Christopher Marlowe ~~

The face that launch’d a thousand ships

Was this the face that launch’d a thousand ships,
And burnt the topless towers of Ilium?
Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss.
Her lips suck forth my soul: see where it flies!
Come, Helen, come, give me my soul again.
Here will I dwell, for heaven is in these lips,
And all is dross that is not Helena.
I will be Paris, and for love of thee,
Instead of Troy, shall Wittenberg be sack’d;
And I will combat with weak Menelaus,
And wear thy colours on my plumed crest;
Yea, I will wound Achilles in the heel,
And then return to Helen for a kiss.
O, thou art fairer than the evening air
Clad in the beauty of a thousand stars;
Brighter art thou than flaming Jupiter
When he appear’d to hapless Semele;
More lovely than the monarch of the sky
In wanton Arethusa’s azur’d arms;
And none but thou shalt be my paramour!

~~ Christopher Marlowe ~~

_____________________________

I had intended to rant here, and even had a beginning quote all picked out…. but, my angst disappeared somewhere, and the quote I chose deserves full outrage to drive it, so I’ll save it for tomorrow, or the next day. For now, I found this perfect pearl from an archived post, from back in August of last year…. It’s an excellent pearl, of its type, and should bring today’s effort to a good ending…. Smooth, if not short or simple…. Enjoy!….

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

This pearl consists of a series of statements from Smart Bee (meaning they were found without attribution….). The statements form an old-school pearl, all pointing in a particular direction…. the test is to see where they lead you, and whether or not that is where they will lead others…. At the end, there will be one last pearl, which generally is the best indicator of where the rest have been pointing…. just let your mind go, and allow the pearls to point the way….

Definition of Terror: A female Klingon with PMS. — Smart Bee

If you can believe ten impossible things before breakfast, then you should join: The Church of Counterfactual Belief. The Church of Counterfactual Belief has been set up to cater to all who don’t allow demonstrable truth to get in the way of their beliefs. In addition to creation science and the flatness of the earth, the following beliefs have been certified by Pope Duane as Church dogma: that there is a hole in the Earth at the North Pole from which UFOs come. That pi equals precisely 3.000. That sex can be enjoyed only by blacks and homosexuals. That Billy Joe Wilson (Hoopla, Miss.) has successfully squared the circle. That Harry Truman is still president, and doing a fine job. That pi equals precisely 22/7. Several other important counterfactual beliefs are presently being studied, including Reaganomics, A.I., and that the moon landings were done in a Hollywood special effects studio. These will be the subject of a forthcoming Papal Bull… — Smart Bee

You will be surprised by a loud noise. — Smart Bee

Don’t need to be born again – Did it right the 1st time. — Smart Bee

When a person brags about his ancestors, the best part of him is underground. — Smart Bee

You buttered your bread, now lie in it. — Smart Bee

“Well, it’s no use your talking about waking him,” said Tweedledum, “when you’re only one of the things in his dream. You know very well you’re not real.”
“I am real!” said Alice, and began to cry.
“You won’t make yourself a bit realer by crying,” Tweedledee remarked: “there’s nothing to cry about.”
“If I wasn’t real,” Alice said- half laughing through her tears, it all seemed so ridiculous- “I shouldn’t be able to cry.”
“I hope you don’t think those are real tears?” Tweedledee interrupted in a tone of great contempt.

— Lewis Carroll, in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

Okay, I lied…. the last one isn’t a Smart Bee quote. But, it still points the way to the desired end point, so it will do quite nicely for our purposes. We may now return to our regularly scheduled program….
_____________________________

Well, regularly scheduled or not, we’ve reached an end point, and no blood yet….. Bonus…. Let’s see if it floats, and, if so, whether it will stay afloat…. Okay, not too shabby at all. Good enough for the loose standards we use here, anyway…. Maybe today I’ll get more than one or two readers, and they’ll enjoy themselves half as much as I did in writing this, with abundant energy, and a, most likely, sickeningly positive attitude…. Ah well, Murphy is, I’m sure, hanging about somewhere, and will make his presence known in good time…. In the meantime…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Striving for retail dominance in a wholesale world….

Posted on June 20, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,

Shhh!…. Quiet! Don’t make a sound….. I’m writing this in stealth mode, so please, don’t, whatever you do, read this aloud. I’m trying to avoid letting Murphy know I’m up…. When I booted up this morning, I found that he had left a calling card, of sorts, when I discovered Smart Bee had once again started its funky corrupted file activity, refusing to de-minimize from the task bar. Murphy, the asshole, has left me with this glitch a number of times in the past, always bringing the Pearling process to a halt, as I have to then waste time uninstalling and reinstalling the program. But, I got that done quickly and silently today, and have somehow managed to get started without any further nonsense from him…..

Which, of course, brings us back to the usual difficulty encountered at this time of day, the Mystery of the Blank Screen, and the ongoing struggle to fill that screen with something worthwhile. Operating in stealth mode should, one would expect, eliminate at least some of that struggle’s drama, but, I find that it has no more inherently interesting subject matter than any other style I’ve tried to use. I’m not sure what I expected, but, I didn’t expect to still have to look so hard for stuff to write; apparently, Murphy’s influence extends further than anticipated, all the way into stealth mode, and beyond….

Oh, well, such is life in the blog world, I suppose, and, since I’m prohibited from whining about it, we may as well just get on with the rest of today’s business…. It will be another struggle, but I’m kind of getting used to that, so, let’s try to give Murphy a little bit of a shock, and just ignore his machinations, as much as we can…..

I don’t know about y’all, but I can ignore with the best of them, having long observed how most of the American public uses Denial as their most favored attitude, for any and all information that is unpalatable. I mean, look around you…. I can’t even count how many people in the American public there are that actually trust politicians, even to the extent of believing what they say, but, there are a LOT of them, and if that isn’t Denial, then I’m missing something…..

Before this turns into a very quiet rant, we’ll go on…. All things considered, I think that would be best. And, since I’ve blathered enough for TWO intro sections, we’re legally good to go…. Shall we Pearl?…..

“Paradoxically though it may seem, it is none the less true that life imitates art far more than art imitates life.” — Oscar Wilde
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Below, you will find one of the oddest pearls I’ve ever picked out…. Apparently, stealth mode does odd things to my inner brain, which controls all of my writing, connected as it is to my reasoning skills output collector….. Whatever…. The point is, this pearl has a very odd point, but one that, if used as intended, can actually increase your level of inner peace, and add to your positive karmic balance….. It may be a bit obscure, but, well, any pearl that starts, and ends, with Zippy can’t help that…. and, just in case it escapes your regard completely, I’ve added two extra pearls, making it a seven-star pearl, and much more amenable to translation….. Buena suerte!….

“.. I don’t understand the HUMOR of the THREE STOOGES!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

“There are many intelligent species in the universe. They are all owned by cats.” — Smart Bee

“There’s a kind of freedom that comes from being completely screwed, because you know things can’t get any worse.” — The Freshman

“Whatever you may be sure of, be sure of this: that you are dreadfully like other people.” — James Russell Lowell

“I think I am an overnight sensation right now!!” — Zippy the Pinhead

See? I told you it was special…. Here then, are the Rosetta Stone keys, to help with the actual statement of today’s point…. or, if nothing else, the final straw that convinces you that I have completely lost touch with anything close to Reality…. Six of one, …..

“It is annoying to be honest to no purpose.” — Ovid [43B.C. – A.D.18]

“I loathe people who keep dogs. They are cowards who haven’t got the guts to bite people themselves.” — August Strindberg

I love it when a plan comes together…. and, if this isn’t enough to convince you of my strangeness, well, then, nothing will…. If this is the case, I would like to suggest you seek professional help, before it is too late…..
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“Poetry isn’t obscene, it’s per verse.” — Smart Bee

Well, no, it’s not, except in those cases where perversity is the intended state…. See “The Devil’s Dictionary” by Ambrose Bierce for numerous examples of how perverse poetry can be… One must remember that poetry is, after all, an expression of human spirit, and will at times assume ALL human characteristics, of which both obscenity, and perversity, are well known to be present in numerous persons….. Especially those involved in public demonstrations of their nature, such as politicians who legislate morality after each sado-masochistic episode, or preachers who spout off, giving sermons about morality after talking on the phone to their mistresses…. SIGH…. People are strange, it’s true…. Ah well, rather than rant, let us rhyme…. In keeping with this theme, here is a poem of mine, written fairly recently, that demonstrates not perversity, nor obscenity, but, a bit of pensive laughter at myself….

“Being generous is inborn; being altruistic is a learned perversity. No resemblance …” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s “Time Enough For Love”

Fine and Good, Good and Fine

A pig in a poke’s got nothing on me,
cuz I’m as confused as a man can be.
This ol’ world’s got me spinnin’ around
cussin’ and spittin’, a penny for a pound.

Forty ‘leven times since I was a kid, well,
I’ve fallen in love, ‘least too close to tell.
Every damn time, it all went to crap,
Forty ‘leven times I’ve felt like a sap.

‘Course, each time it happens, I forget the last;
why not? I’m havin’ such a blast….
Livin’ in each moment, filled with joie de vivre,
’til it’s all gone away again, nothin’ left up my sleeve.

Don’t want y’all to think I’m sad or blue,
life’s full of sorrow, lots for me, and/or you..
T’other side of that coin, we can be glad,
is joyful love, and that ain’t at all bad.

My road’s been littered with parts o’my heart,
each one colored with trust, which isn’t always smart.
Yet, long as I don’t lose my connection to joy,
I’ll find my own true love, and be a happy boy.

It’s been some kinda fun, even when I’d take a fall,
and doin’ it over makes no sense at all, at all
Day after day, I keep on keepin’ on, as it’s said;
Guess I’ll keep on doin’ that ’til I’m dead.

‘Nuff said….

~~ gigoid, tongue firmly in cheek…. ~~

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“Americans like to talk about (or be told about) Democracy but, when put to the test, usually find it to be an ‘inconvenience.’ We have opted instead for an authoritarian system *disguised* as a Democracy. We pay through the nose for an enormous joke-of-a-government, let it push us around, and then wonder how all those assholes got in there.” — Frank Zappa

Wow…. I’ve seen this before, and, I believe, have even used it to illustrate a point in a rant, sometime in the distant past. Upon reading it again, however, I see that it is not merely a good point, but could easily be construed as an accurate and complete statement of the general thrust and content of almost all of my rants about the BRC, and the situation we Americans face with such an unprincipled mass of idiots running the circus in Washington, D.C. These three sentences politely, and accurately, describe the situation we find ourselves a part of, and could be used, almost without editing, for a mission statement for the most of the rants on this blog….

Yesterday, and the past few days, I’ve been baiting the NSA and FBI, deliberately using as many of the key words they search for in their (formerly) clandestine theft of data from the American public, which they justify by using the magic phrase, “national security”. I have not had any contact from any of them, but have little doubt that my blog is being watched for signs of possible threat to their paranoid fears. I figure as long as they’re watching me, it may keep them from more mischief with someone else. I also figure I’m fairly safe, as I don’t actually say or do anything that is even marginally dangerous, beyond the danger inherent in merely telling the truth…..

Today, I’m going to once again shock everyone, and NOT rant about this…. I’ve said it all enough recently, and don’t want to continue to beat on a horse that is, if not already dead, is in critical condition…. This is not to say that the issue is resolved; far from it. I just think that what Frank said above is succinct enough to make the point today, and don’t really want to take away from that by belaboring the point. I know, it is unusual for me to limit my output like this, but, hey, if I can’t change my own policies, who will?…. It’s not as if I don’t intend to rant again….

For now, though, we’ll let what Frank gave us make our point, and hope that letting y’all off the hook for another thousand words of my prattle will count for a positive note…. I imagine, sometime in the next few days, something will happen out in the BBR to draw my ire again, and cause me to let out my ire on some deserving public figure, or agency…. History is on my side in that respect, as it never takes long to find some part of the government screwing somebody over, or some politico making some stupid remark. In fact, it often comes to having to pick and choose from a significant number of issues to find just one that needs discussion…. It’s a fertile field for plowing, for sure….

Now that I’ve managed to spend five paragraphs in a discussion of peripheral issues, I’ll call it a day…. Stay tuned to this station for future rants, hopefully as succinct as the three sentence indictment that prompted today’s outburst of intellectual flotsam…. You never know when it might be something you need to know, or consider, for your own welfare…..

“.. I’m IMAGINING a sensuous GIRAFFE, CAVORTING in the BACK ROOM of a KOSHER DELI –” — Zippy the Pinhead
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“Remember what the dormouse said… FEED YOUR HEAD…” — Grace Slick

Sorry ’bout that last section…. I don’t know about y’all, but sometimes when I start writing, it’s much like how one feels imagining oneself to be caught in the water draining out of the tub, spinning uncontrollably in a clockwise direction, then finally, when dizzy and half-drowned, one is swept, nay, ignominiously sucked down the drain, lost forever in the pipes draining to the distant sea…. Well, okay, so maybe that’s just me….

I’ve been at this for over two hours now, and have NO idea what I wrote, for the most part…. I’d better go check it out…. Well, it seems okay; it is certainly appears much more organized than it felt while composing it. Given the nature of the beast, I’ll take it, and run…. To reiterate, ’nuff said….. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Nobody leaves without cleaning the flues…..

Posted on June 19, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
The words you are now reading are the advance guard of the second team, since my first effort this morning was so bad, I just trashed the two paragraphs I spent twenty minutes struggling to put down. Now I’m faced with this really, really blank screen, and not a single clever phrase or compelling vision to be found. I’m not going to complain, but, y’know, fuck Murphy, right in the…. well, I’ll not go there, in case there are any PG-13’s in the crowd lined up to read this…. Hah!…. Like THAT’S ever going to happen!….

As I awoke today, bemusedly staring up at the ceiling, it occurred to me that it is now down to single digits….. Time, that is…. Specifically, the number of days left before I leave again to pursue my travel dreams, has reached single digits…. Only nine days left until my lady and I board the Grand Princess for 10 days of scenic glacier cruising up the inside passage to Alaska. This, of course, brings me great delight, though it does little to help with my immediate difficulty. I could, I suppose, spend this intro crowing about that, but it seems tacky, and would only add to the guilt I already feel for stepping outside my usual policies regarding conspicuous consumption…. So, I won’t mention it any further, beyond this brief acknowledgment….

However, this is a good time to go over some housekeeping notes re: the upcoming trip…. I don’t foresee encountering the usual issues with connectivity on this trip; the ship has Wi-Fi, I’m sure, and we’ll never be all that far away from civilization in that respect…. Plus, the ship is set up to deal with American electrical devices already, so I don’t have to worry about charging or power issues. The only issue I expect to face is how to budget the time…. I will be with a companion, with whom I intend to spend virtually all my free time, or, as much as is possible, and won’t have the same amount of time available to write as on the last trip, when I was alone….

My plan, for now, is to concentrate on posting the pictures and scenery we’ll be seeing…. I plan to take a lot of photos, and will be uploading as many as is practical each day, here on this blog, as another travelogue of the trip. I’m hoping to see some pretty incredible country, and the glaciers are supposed to be amazing to view, so, hopefully I’ll get a lot of good shots to share with y’all. As might be expected, I doubt that I’ll do much ranting, as the impetus for such vitriol just won’t be present…. If it is, I’ve made a serious error….

So, nine days from now, I’ll publish a final send-off post, on the morning of the day we embark, whereupon I’ll spend the next week and a half indulging myself and my lady, and, no doubt, enjoying every minute of it, not counting those odd nanoseconds when guilt may intrude, only to be laughed into submission…. In the meantime, I suppose it’s time to get started here, as I can now start working on the list of ‘stuff to get done before leaving’, including packing. (I confess…. I’ve been 3/4 packed for almost two weeks now, and just need to put in the last minute stuff that isn’t back from the laundry….) It’s a tough job, but, somebody’s got to do it, and it may as well be me….. Shall we Pearl?….

“Fill’d with fury, rapt, inspired.” — William Collins (1720-1756) — The Passions, Line 10
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It’s one of THOSE mornings, you see, so things may get a bit stranger than usual. Here is a seven-star pearl, that just sort of composed itself…. It has a decently sharp point to it, with another perfect ending note from our old pal Zippy, so, please, be kind, and don’t hurl any epithets until you have proceeded on to section two…. He gets offended, you know, if he hears them, and I have a hard time getting him to come back, as his plaintive statement at the end surely indicates….. Any who, it’s good advice, all in all, so, enjoy……

“You don’t have to worry about me. I might have been born yesterday…but I stayed up all night.” — Smart Bee

“A right is not what someone gives you; it’s what no one can take from you.” — Ramsey Clark

“On hot days, drink lots of water and lay under a shady tree.” — Things We Can Learn From Dogs

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” — Albert Einstein

“Besides the practical knowledge which defeat offers, there are important personality profits to be taken. Defeat strips away false values and makes you realize what you really want. It stops you from chasing butterflies and puts you to work digging gold.” — William Moulton Marston

How dieth the wise man? As the fool.” — Smart Bee

“I am NOT a nut….” — Zippy the Pinhead

Well, neither am I, though I am often accused of being a soufflé, or, more often, and more accurately, a Bozo…. and that’s good enough for me!…..
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I don’t know about y’all, but poetry often saves my sorry ass from going places that aren’t good for me to go…. Other times, it just makes me smile, which, mostly, comes to the same thing….

I’ll Get One Tomorrow

Barber, barber, come and get me;
Hairy torrents irk and fret me.
Hair and hair again appears;
And climbs like ivy round my ears.
Hair across my collar gambols;
Down my neck it wayward ambles.
Ever down it trip it tickles;
Yes, where it trips it tickles.
Barber dear I wish I knew;
Why i do not visit you.
Why I grudge the minutes ten;
In your smiling den.
Why I choose to choke on hair;
Rather than to mount your chair.
Men no busier than I;
Weekly to your office hie.
Men no busier than myself;
Confront the armory on your shelf;
Men no wealthier than me;
Gladly meet your modest fee.
And for a fraction of a dollar;
Keep the jungle off their collar.
I alone am shy and flustered;
Solitary, cowardly custard.
Shaggy as a prize angora;
Overrun with the creeping flora.
Barber, barber, you’re in luck;
The bell has rung, the hour has struck.
Sloth strong, the hair is strong;
I cannot stand it any long.
Barber, barber here I come;
Shake up the odorous bay rum.
Bring on your shears your scythes, your snippers;
Bring on your crisp electric driers.
Employ a dozen extra sweepers;
Bring giant harvesters and reapers.
I warn you a bumper crop;
Waits to overwhelm your shop.
Barber, barber, be verbose;
Be anything but clip me close.
Leave me razored, leave me scissored
Leave me hairless, as a lizard;
Barber, barber, single and scald;
Barber can’t you make me bald?
I will be the happiest of men;
And never think of you again.

~~ Ogden Nash ~~

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A thousand fantasies
Begin to throng into my memory,
Of calling shapes, and beck’ning shadows dire,
And airy tongues that syllable men’s names
On sands and shores and desert wildernesses.

— John Milton (1608-1674) — Comus, Line 205

In the normal course of events on any particular morning around here, I try to keep faithful to some degree of consistency of format. In that regard, this section would be fated to become a rant, targeting the Beloved Ruling Class, or some other societal bane that has most recently aroused my ire. Today, however, I’m feeling too mellow, and too at peace with the world at large…. Probably has to do with being in love…. I am a not-so-secret romantic, at heart, and tend to let my attitude reflect my inner state, unless called upon by the rules of curmudgeonry to display some crustiness, or unless reality gives me reason to put on the crankypants we all wear at times.

Since I don’t feel up to ranting, I’m going to try something totally new, for me…. I’m going to shut up….. Not forever, just for the day….. I figure that, for once, I’ll go by the old show biz adage, to always leave ’em wanting more…. though I’m not entirely certain that would apply here. Nonetheless, I’m going to let this die a peaceful death for today, and spend the extra time it gives me to plan my day in a bit more detail…. The more planning time I put into such activities, the greater the chance of successful outcomes…. So, as they say in Text World…. TTFN …..

“Doth not the sun harden the clay? Doth it not also soften the wax? As it is one sun that worketh both, even so it is one Soul that willeth contrarieties.” — Akhenaton
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Being reluctant to examine too closely what I produce, lest any influence by a muse should be frightened away, I won’t go over this one too heavily, other than to proof it… I have the feeling that, if I did, it would all just go “poof!”, and I’d have to start over….. Makes me shudder just to think of it…. Hence, in sooth, to proof, or not to proof, that is the question. Whether to tempt the arrows of fate, or let a word be misspelled….

Oh, wait, that’s Will’s line…. Never mind….. Alright, that’s it…. When I find myself using Will’s work, even as a joke, I know I’m done….. Before I can do anything even more damaging to my reputation as a reasonably intelligent person, I bid thee adieu….. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Tasteful displays of chain mail crafts….

Posted on June 18, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
Calamitous noise greeted me today, as what sounded suspiciously like Irish bagpipes assaulted my ears from outside the window, so sharp and harsh, it seemed as if all the banshees of ancient legend were holding congress in the yard….. Plaintive, chilling notes tried to tear out my heart with penetrating cries of anguish, inexorably pulling me to the window to see what was causing the hullabaloo. I shall never forget the sight that met my gaze, now etched in my memory forever….

There, in the narrow space between buildings, stood a…… Okay, here’s the deal….. This started leaking out as I sat down to begin today, and seemed pretty cool at first. As I continued to put down the path to the strange vision in my mind’s eye, it began to fade away. like fog in a strong breeze, leaving me right where you see, lost, and red of face… For the life of me, I can’t think of anything strange enough to keep it going, so, I’m leaving it to y’all to do that…..

Feel free to leave a comment, if you have something that might work, and don’t mind sharing the idea….. Conversely, you can do what I plan to do, which is to put it out of my mind, forever, and get on with the rest of today’s effort….. I have the advantage of knowing that whatever comes next couldn’t possibly be as lame as this…. Well, I suppose I can’t say that, either, but, I can definitely guarantee it will….. well, shoot…. Now that I think about it, I can’t guarantee anything but correct spelling, so, we’ll just leave it all right there, and get on with the rest of today’s business, ‘kay? ‘Kay!….

I promised not to whine any more, and I won’t…. but, I will say this…. This daily posting stuff isn’t as easy as it looks from the outside…. The Big Blue Room has once again laid demands upon a portion of my time today, so I’d best get on with this, or it won’t get done…. I don’t know what might happen if I let it go; I’m having a hard time envisioning a day without being able to experience this relief at the outset. I do know that it would jam up my feelings, a state of emotional constipation, as it were, and would probably send me right into total curmudgeon mode.

While that’s a comfortable skin for me to wear, it does tend to alienate others, which tends to complicate life rather than simplify it….. So, I’ll just put it on for long enough to rant, or find an appropriate old Pearl, thereby assuaging any potential build-up of undue angst or anxiety…. Showing one’s asshole face to the world can be fun, but only if let out on deserving recipients, and I don’t plan on hanging out with any of those today, thankfully….

Okay, enough rambling for one morning…. it’s almost 6:30 and I have yet to create a single pearl. Dithering won’t get it done, so….. Shall we Pearl?…..

“You come from far away, with pictures in your eyes.
Of coffee shoppes and morning streets and the blue and silent sunrise.

But night is the cathedral where we recognize the sign.
We strangers know each other now as part of a whole design.”

— Suzanne Vega, Gypsy
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“A little sunlight is the best disinfectant.” — Justice Louis Brandeis

In the past few days, I have been ranting, albeit mildly, and without specific target, beyond some telling shots at a large group of humanity, and the moral flaws displayed thereby…. My intent in producing such rants is very aptly stated above by the good judge, showing again that someone can always say better what we try to say ourselves. But, that doesn’t detract at all from the veracity of what I’ve written, or the need for the light to be shined on those parts of society that most need it…. to wit: the actions of our Beloved Ruling Class, and their owners, the Corporate Masters…. with the complicit support of the Priestly Hierarchies, and, the blindly obedient horde of myrmidons dedicated to following the dictates of the ruling classes, the Police and Paramilitary Wannabes….

Of late, there has been a lot of talk bandied about the internet, regarding the personal data being stolen (no other word for it….) by the government, as authorized by Presidential Executive Order, (a concept I am not sure was ever mentioned in the Constitution…), in its insane, paranoid pursuit of terrorists, and terrorism…. In fact, by writing those words here, I am guaranteeing myself an audience, because they are two of the key words used by Prism, the data mining software in use by the NSA, FBI, and, no doubt many other less well publicized agencies, to mark any communication for further review, with the intent of examination for terrorist tendencies or sympathies…

So, just by mentioning the subject, I know I will have at least one NSA geek, or an FBI agent, who will be reading over whatever I write today…. Actually, the foregoing sentences contain at least eight words that are on the extensive list of such words that will gain their attention, so I guess I’d better make this good…. 😆

I am proud of what the NSA contractor did; I agree with his own assessment of his action, as intended to be of benefit to the American people, not as an act of treason, and applaud his courage in the face of knowing he would be subjected to vilification by the ignorant, and prosecution by those in authority. It is very easy these days to label an act such as this as treasonous, given the recent (mostly successful) attempts by government agencies to justify their paranoia. Since 9/11/2001, (See? Another key item for them to target…. I don’t know if I’m brave, or stupid…. or just old enough not to care one way or the other….), it has become the fashion for politicians to wrap themselves up in the flag, and inflame the fears of the common man about terrorism. This includes the naming of anyone who protests the loss of their rights as ‘treasonous’, ostensibly for placing America in danger, by exposing the clandestine gathering of information by government agencies… or, in simpler terms, by shining a light on things that are going on in the dark….

“Well, if crime fighters fight crime and fire fighters fight fire, what do freedom fighters fight? They never mention that part to us, do they?” — George Carlin

No, they don’t ever mention that…. nor do they mention ANY of the stuff being done out of sight of the public eye. I hold it to be a very dangerous policy to allow government agencies to operate in the dark, to make legal a great number of actions which, if performed by any citizen, would cause intense public outrage, and which, in truth, are ethically, morally, and, most importantly, Constitutionally unlawful. Every one of the rights supposedly granted by the Bill of Rights has now been restricted, in favor of illegal searches and seizures, loss of privacy, rampant police intimidation, and a government that believes it can do whatever it wants, as long as it is in pursuit of “national security”….

Sorry, but, I’m not buying any of it…. But, then, I have suspected for many years that the government of this country has been hiding the biggest part of what they do from the public, for a very long time…. Remember Dwight Eisenhower? He was that President who, back in 1954, sent thousands of American troops to Vietnam, to act as “advisers” to the brave soldiers of South Vietnam, who were fighting their own “war of independence” against the ungodly Communists in the North (right next to Red China, don’t y’know?…)…. Of course, when good ol’ Dwight did this, he didn’t bother to inform anyone; he just sent them over, and ignored the whole issue in public….

Since that time, almost sixty years ago, the government of this country has pursued a policy of “what the public doesn’t know won’t hurt me” in almost every area of national and international involvement. Whenever there is too much clamor from that public about such clandestine activities, or too much light begins to shine on one or more of the shenanigans always taking place somewhere, there is, oops, some kind of terrorist attack, or another shooting at a school, or a plane crash, or an earthquake, or anything at all, some manufactured, others just serendipitous calamities that are part of our natural world…. Any of these will do to distract the public eye away from whatever it is that has been exposed….

I have always wondered a bit about the timing of the attacks on the WTC and Pentagon in 2001…. They seemed to happen right when there was a strong push in the news to investigate the election results of both 1996, and 2000, results that had the Junior Shrub in office, rather than the greener candidate, Gore. In both those elections, there were critical glitches in the vote counting process in key states, oddly enough, the two states that provided the key electoral votes to get Bush elected, despite having lost the national popular vote, twice (Florida in 1996, and Ohio in 2000….) Any who, all of that was very close to coming under intense scrutiny, when, all of a sudden, we are attacked, by an unknown terrorist group (strangely enough, a group whose leader was a member of the Saudi Royal family, who are close friends of the Bushes….)

After the attacks, there was a singularly lackadaisical attempt to ascertain the culprits; none of the information gathered on them ever examined where the money to finance the attacks came from, an omission that is contrary to ANY professional investigation…. On TV police dramas, in the news, and, in the minds of any intelligent person, it is always made clear that finding the guilty will include, if not exclusively use, “following the money”…. It is basic criminology to find out who paid for it when a crime of such a large scope is committed. The very lack of effort in that direction makes one wonder, just a bit….

Well, I’ve now discussed the issue long enough to have used just about every key word in the program that mines data for the National Security Agency, so, we’ll see whether or not any of what I’ve discussed is enough to get their attention…. I think I’ve also managed to mention just about every conspiracy theory out there for anyone to see, ….. If any official response is generated, we’ll know just how badly things have gotten, when a free citizen of this country can potentially become a target for police and security agencies of the government, merely for exercising the right of free speech…. In a way, I suppose you could say this is an experiment, designed to gauge the degree of paranoia that is so obvious in our BRC….

I’m letting it go now, both to get it done, and because it is such a depressing subject…. I think I need some poetry, to soothe my soul…..

Teacher: “Bart, give us an example of a modern-day paradox.”
Bart: “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.”

— Bart the Genius “The Simpsons”
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“What a lumbering poor vehicle prose is for the conveying of a great thought! … Prose wanders around with a lantern & laboriously schedules & verifies the details & particulars of a valley & its frame of crags & peaks, then Poetry comes, & lays bare the whole landscape with a single splendid flash.” — Mark Twain

A Spirit Passed Before Me [From Job]

A spirit passed before me: I beheld
The face of immortality unveiled–
Deep sleep came down on every eye save mine–
And there it stood,–all formless–but divine:
Along my bones the creeping flesh did quake;
And as my damp hair stiffened, thus it spake:

‘Is man more just than God? Is man more pure
Than He who deems even Seraphs insecure?
Creatures of clay–vain dwellers in the dust!
The moth survives you, and are ye more just?
Things of a day! you wither ere the night,
Heedless and blind to Wisdom’s wasted light!’

~~ George Gordon Lord Byron ~~

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“I’m late, I’m late, for a very important date….” — The White Rabbit, in “Through the Looking Glass”

Well, I’m not, but I do sympathize, having once, like all of us, been subject to the whims and demands of others….. Now that I am not, I can pretty much do as I like, so, I do…. which means I get to make this an old-school pearl, just because I can…. Not only can you not stop me, I don’t think you would be that unkind, so, I’m going for it…. I’m not sure what form it will take, but I do know the initial find is a damn good one, so the rest should be fine…. Enjoy, and, if you find you cannot, well, just ignore it, or go back and read the poem again…. that’s the best I can do for you, without resorting to drugs….

“When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other.” — Chinese Proverb

“The world is not to be put in order, the world is order incarnate. It is for us to put ourselves in unison with this order.” — Henry Miller

“For one human being to love another human being: that is perhaps the most difficult task that has been entrusted to us, the ultimate task, the final test and proof, the work for which all other work is merely preparation.” — Rainer Maria Rilke

“People always get what they want. But there is a price for everything. Failures are either those who do not know what they want or are not prepared to pay the price asked them. The price varies from individual to individual. Some get things at bargain-sale prices, others only at famine prices. But it is no use grumbling. Whatever price you are asked, you must pay.” — W. H. Auden — Smith College Commencement, 1940

“Faith in a holy cause is to a considerable extent a substitute for lost faith in ourselves.” — Eric Hoffer

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

“We have come to a place now where our search for Truth must no longer be for the rewards; it must no longer be our seeking a creed to follow, but it must be our living a life.” — H. Emilie Cady

Okay, well, that kind of turned on me, but, don’t worry, I’m not seriously injured, and the bleeding will stop soon, I’m sure….. Y’all be careful there near the end, it’s kind of a tricky little jog in the path….. And the point is kind of sharp, too….
__________________________________

There…. A generous portion of plain speaking, some fine poetry, and a bit of obscure mental gymnastics, all for the bargain price of… well, it’s free, so it’s even more of a bargain….. Now, all I have to do is see if it is palatable, too…. Well, it’s edible, if not palatable…. But, I’d suggest having some antacids on hand…. With no further ado, I bid thee adieu…. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Building euphemisms on a budget….

Posted on June 17, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
Powerful images often parade through my mind in the early morning, images I try to set down into words. I’m not always as successful at it as I’d like to be, but, occasionally, I get it right. When I do, there is no better feeling in the world, aside from an orgasm, which, as we all know, is commonly used as a benchmark for such events. Currently, that particular unique category of event is absent from my existence, but, as I recall, from the halcyon days of my youth, it feels pretty damn good, so, you’ll get the idea….

Some day, perhaps, I’ll finish one of the stories I’ve begun here; over the past two-plus years I’ve probably written 50 or so opening paragraphs for stories that crossed through the waiting room in my head, some of which were, in my humble opinion, not too shabby at all. I’ve yet to complete any of those tales, however, for a compelling reason, having to do with economic factors. Now that I’m retired on disability, any income I make from working, a category into which the writing and selling of stories falls, is to be reported as income, and would be taken out of whatever I make on disability.

So, unless I can make a sale of a book worth more than a million dollars, it isn’t worthwhile for me to enter the market at all, because all I make would be subtracted from my disability checks, and I’d be right back where I started, depending on the market for my work to keep me alive, for the rest of my life…. Since I just spent two and a half years in near poverty in the process of securing my disability income, and am tired to death of working to survive, it doesn’t make economic, or physical, sense for me to try to write for my money…. Not without a guaranteed contract of some kind that would make moot any money I would make from disability benefits….

Besides, I don’t write for fame, or money, or any of the common reasons people write…. As I’ve stated in the past, this process is designed to keep me in a state of ‘relative’ sanity (qualifier required by law….)…. I say relative because, as you know, staying close to sane isn’t part of my lifestyle; what most would call sanity, I call boring, and boredom has been banished from my existence. I refuse to be bored, especially by Life At Large; to admit boredom is to admit one is tired of what is going on in one’s own head, and that I will never do…. Bully for me, right?….

So, rather than try to make any money at this, I write for fun, and for release…. I write to express all the outrage I feel at the ongoing, dangerous antics of the Beloved Ruling Class, otherwise known as Pundits R’Us, comprised of sycophants of the Corporate Masters, and the Priestly Hierarchies, along with those ever-amusing public servants, the Police and Paramilitary Wannabe’s, all of whom, by their total lack of ethical compass, provide me with endless fodder for my angst, fueling my sense of injustice and need to rant on a daily basis. It’s actually quite an easy task, what with the amount of crap that spews out of their mouths every day….

Now that I’ve thoroughly explored such a thrilling subject, I will show mercy, and get on with the day’s missive. I’ve meandered and blathered enough for TWO intro sections, but, don’t worry, I won’t subject you to two posts at once…. Just consider it a bonus, and for goodness’ sake, don’t report it on the customs list of items to declare before entering or exiting the country….. I pay enough taxes without adding in customs duties…. Shall we Pearl?…..
__________________________________

Okay, I’m amused…. It’s been a while since I saw this particular little piece of nonsense, and I’d forgotten how amusing it is…. So, just to start the day out right, I’ll put it in here, as a kind of peace offering for the above ramble…. No thinking required, and if you need to feel morally justified about reading this, just pretend that you’re only doing so because you intend to use each line as an ANTI-cultural shock infusion, and can’t be held responsible for any of its shortcomings as literature…. Hell, half the folks you say that to will believe it, and the other half will ignore you, so, all is good…. Just enjoy, ffolkes, it’s pretty good advice, taken as suggested, with a shitload of salt….

Deteriorata

Go placidly amid the noise and waste and remember what comfort there may be in owning a piece thereof. Avoid quiet and passive persons unless you are in need of sleep. Rotate your tires. Speak glowingly of those greater than yourself and heed well their advice, even though they be turkeys; know what to kiss and when. Consider that two wrongs never make a right but that three do. Wherever possible, put people on hold. Be comforted that in the face of all aridity and disillusionment and despite the changing fortunes of time, there is always a big future in computer maintenance … Be assured that a walk through the ocean of most souls would scarcely get your feet wet. Fall not in love therefore; it will stick to your face … Reflect that whatever misfortune may be your lot, it could only be worse in Milwaukee. You are a fluke of the universe; you have no right to be here, and whether you can hear it or not, the universe is laughing behind your back. Therefore make peace with your God whatever you conceive him to be–Hairy Thunderer or Cosmic Muffin. With all its hopes, dreams, promises, and urban renewal, the world continues to deteriorate. Give up.”

~~ Tony Hendra ~~

Hell, I gave up years ago….. Entropy is alive and well, and coming soon to a theater near you…
__________________________________

Over the last six months, I have been falling into love, slowly and beautifully, with my neighbor, Patricia…. I’ve been reluctant to share a lot of it, as it is, of course, private, and I don’t want to put that sort of thing out on the street, so to speak…. Though I write a lot of personal revelations, I don’t intend to put ALL of my feelings out there for review by the public, even if it is limited to the few ffolkes who stop by to read my always-longer-than-expected pieces…. Also, she is a very private person, and I’m not going to share HER stuff online at all….

But, I have to confess, I am enjoying the process, even as I take it super-slowly, to make sure neither of us is making a mistake about our feelings… So far, so good…. In keeping with the spirit of good feeling I have in this respect, here is a poem from one of the acknowledged masters of romantic poetry…. and look, it’s a love poem! What do you know about that?….. 🙂

Air And Angels

Twice or thrice had I loved thee,
Before I knew thy face or name;
So in a voice, so in a shapeless flame,
Angels affect us oft, and worshiped be;
Still when, to where thou wert, I came,
Some lovely glorious nothing I did see.
But since my soul, whose child love is,
Takes limbs of flesh, and else could nothing do,
More subtle than the parent is,
Love must not be, but take a body too;
And therefore what thou wert, and who,
I bid love ask, and now
That it assume thy body I allow,
And fix itself to thy lip, eye, and brow.

Whilst thus to ballast love I thought,
And so more steadily to have gone,
With wares which would sink admiration,
I saw I had love’s pinnace overfraught
Every thy hair for love to work upon
Is much too much, some fitter must be sought;
For, nor in nothing, nor in things
Extreme and scatt’ring bright, can love inhere.
Then as an angel, face and wings
Of air, not pure as it, yet pure doth wear,
So thy love may be my love’s sphere.
Just such disparity
As is ‘twixt air and angel’s purity,
‘Twixt women’s love and men’s will ever be.

~~ John Donne ~~

“What is a poet? A poet is an unhappy being whose heart is torn by secret sufferings, but whose lips are so strangely formed that when the sighs and cries escape them,they sound like beautiful music.” — Soren Kierkegaard, in Either/Or
__________________________________

“Nevertheless, in the system of Copernicus there are found many and great inconveniences; for both the loading of the earth with a triple motion is very incommodious, and the separation of the sun from the company of the planets, with which it has so many passions in common, is likewise a difficulty, and the introduction of so much immobility in nature, by representing the sun and stars as immovable, especially being of all bodies the highest and most radiant, and making the moon revolve about the earth in an epicycle, and some other assumptions of his, are the speculations of one who cares not what fictions he introduces into nature, provided his calculations answer.” — Francis Bacon, Descriptio Globi Intellectualis, 1653

In his time, Frank Bacon (Oh…… no wonder he went by Francis!….), was considered a learned man; even now, he is regarded as one of the brightest minds of his era…. which does not go far toward explaining this statement. As is patently obvious, according to what we now know, Frank is talking with his head firmly planted up his ass; every one of his objections to Copernicus’ work is WRONG. We know now that the Copernican system of physical construction of the solar system, and all the stars and galaxies, is the closest to reality, when compared amongst all of the ancient ideas on the subject.

No, Frank was being a coward here…. He was afraid of the churches of the time, as well he might have been, for the churches of the middle ages were notorious for their intransigence when it came to what they defined as heresy…. So, Frank, being the mealy-mouthed opportunist that he was, dutifully issued this condemnation of Copernicus’ theories, to satisfy the priests, and get on their good side…. I have a feeling that he KNEW he was being a bald-faced liar in this instance…. it’s too wordy, and too UN-scientific in nature to disguise his lack of truth, and gives me the impression that he would have found it difficult to state this aloud, with a straight face….

“Appearances deceive and this one maxim is a standing rule: Men are not what they seem.” — Harvard

The point I’m making here, or trying to make, is this: People lie…. They do it for a lot of reasons, but, regardless of whether it is justified, or not, by whatever standards one chooses to apply, they still lie…. Mostly they do it for reasons that are not particularly public minded; humanity, as a rule, finds it hard to act other than in their own self-interest, even when acting honorably. It is the rare man, or woman, who makes their decisions based on the public good on a consistent basis….

This, of course, is merely my observation, but, I think it’s fairly accurate, given my age, and how much I’ve watched people for my entire life. Most folks act in their own self-interests FIRST; they may act otherwise AFTER they are satisfied they’ve achieved their own ends, but, it will be an afterthought, and may also be designed to benefit themselves more than anyone else…. There are very few who act with honor in this respect, and I don’t exclude myself from this; I’m no saint, to be sure…. But, I think that Truth is more important to me than to most of the people I see out in the BBR, and that, I think, causes me to have a clearer view of reality than those who color it with their own preconceived notions of right and wrong, with right being what is good for them, not for anyone else, necessarily….

“He who would distinguish the true from the false must have an adequate idea of what is true and false.” — Smart Bee

How often do we meet someone who even attempts to find out the truth? Most people, from what I observe, tend to just accept whatever they are told, preferring the abrogation of responsibility for their own opinions to having to spend the mental effort to find out what is true…. It is an all-too-human characteristic to want to have someone else take the responsibility for all of that; thinking takes effort, and most folks aren’t willing to put forth that effort, no matter how often they are told they are being lied to, even if the telling comes with proof…. They prefer to let anyone who appears on TV show them, preferably with lots of bright, colorful pictures, just what they should think and feel….

SIGH…. I’m depressed now. This is an issue that burns my ass on a daily basis, because it is not amenable to resolution, at least, not any easy, peaceful resolution. It is the very nature of humankind that allows this kind of chicanery; this has been true for all of our history, and will remain so until our untimely demise, somewhere in the not so distant future….

I wish I could entertain hope for enough changes in society that we, as a species, would conceivably stand a chance of survival, but, given the stubbornness of even the most average person in resisting any kind of cogitation, I don’t hold out a lot of hope for it, not in the long run. Humans aren’t going to stop acting in their own self-interest, and it’s a damn shame there isn’t much that can be done…

“What is man’s chief enemy? Each man is his own.” — Anacharsis (f1. c. 600 B.C.), Scythian philosopher — Quoted in Stobaeus, Flor., II, 43
__________________________________

Such is the life of an itinerant dilettante…. Sorry ’bout the depressing rant in section 3; sometimes the human race just annoys me. However, since I am a fully cognizant member of that species, my annoyance has no real meaning beyond its effect on me, and, concomitantly, on what I write…. Hopefully, the depressive nature of the above discussion isn’t catching, and won’t spoil anyone’s day…

It won’t spoil mine; like most of us humans, I’m really quite adept at denial, and I don’t mean the river in Egypt….. (Sorry, couldn’t resist…..) On that silly note, I bid thee adieu for another day, and hope you have a day filled with love and light, regardless of the weather….. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

Terrified outbreaks of uncontrolled shrugging….

Posted on June 16, 2013 by gigoid

Ffolkes,
As he sits down to begin, no angels sing, no thunder rings out, the earth remains still, and silent. Only the steady tick of the mantle clock breaks the quiet, until, slowly at first, then picking up the pace, he begins to type, words that have struggled to come forth from earliest memory. Like penitent soldiers, they line up on the page, tired, dusty, line after line, turned out from where they commonly hide, to face the light of day, and the harsher light of regard….. No promises of genius, no hope of publication, no real purpose…. just words, in a row, cast up in denial of repression, and hope of redemption….. Another day dawns, bringing, as always, trepidation, layered thinly with unreasoning hope, challenging all to arise, and survive another day…..

Well, I guess Hemingway doesn’t have to worry much that I’ll be challenging his reputation for powerful prose…. I can’t say the above stinks badly…. In fact, it isn’t bad at all, just rather lacking in direction, which isn’t surprising, since it has none to speak of; none was required, nor desired. All I wanted were some pretty words strung together in a reasonably rational order, just to draw y’all in, and perhaps, give a glimpse of something darker, and deeper, than is first seen… In that respect, it worked okay, I suppose, and, it has the added advantage of being done… Done deals are much handier than stuff left undone, for sure, wouldn’t you say?…. Rhetorical question, obviously, so don’t bother to reply….. unless, of course, you’re the type of reader who talks back to what you read…. in which case, feel free….

Yada, yada, yada, blah, blah, blah…. If this is the best I can come up with, I may as well start mailing this in…. coming into the office doesn’t seem to be working out for me…. Oh, wait, right, I’m not going in to any office…. SIGH…. Oh, well, I didn’t like having to go, anyway, so it’s just as well, I suppose, that I don’t have to go in anymore. I have a feeling that, in spite of the nasty, rude method used to force me to retire before I was ready, the actual state of retirement was the right way to go for me… As it turns out, my body was done with work; flogging myself to continue toiling away would probably have ended up being a bad idea, prolonging my misery, and making it even harder to deal with the physical aspects of getting old.

Now, I have things exactly the way I like them, with the added advantage of a secure, adequate income, an advantage I did not have, or even seek very hard, during all my previous years. Even when working, my necessary outgo always seemed to exceed my income; now that I’ve reduced my needs and wants to the bare minimum, the amount I’ve managed to retire on is entirely adequate to meet those needs, and still have enough to save up to travel on a regular basis. As long as I’m careful, I should be able to live long enough to see all the places I’ve dreamed about seeing all my life….

I almost feel guilty that things have turned out so well for me…. but, then I think back over the last three or four years, (or, in further retrospect, the last 25 years….) and realize that, hey, much of it has been a miserable time, and any good things happening now can be seen as the Universe acting to balance things out…. Karma is asserting itself, I would guess, and all I can say is, it’s about damn time… I don’t claim, even in my most feverish dreams, to be the best man alive, but, I’ve always tried my best to be honorable, to do my duty and hurt others as little as possible; that has to count for something, right?….

Okay, you can stop laughing now… I didn’t really expect an answer, but there’s no need to be rude, either….. Just kidding, it’s all good….. I should know better than to ask for that kind of feedback; nobody enjoys feeling dumb, even me…. This intro section, I think, is getting completely out of control, and needs to be given the three finger salute, soon (Control-alt-delete…). Sorry ’bout that, it’s what happens when I get too much sleep, and try to write with a clear head…. I wasn’t paying close attention, and this section turned into a ramble of massive proportion, covering far too many subjects in way too few paragraphs (or, too many, relative to your viewpoint, I suppose….)…. I’ve hardly left any room for normal pearls, whatever those might be.

I think I stop talking now, and see what kind of mischief Smart Bee has in store for me…. Shall we Pearl?…..
__________________________________

Well, this is taking a long time, but, so far, it seems to be worth it…. I had to be firm, but Smart Bee finally came up with the first five pearls below, which hang together well, and make a very strong point about living well, or at least living, as opposed to ignoring life as it goes by… Then, as if by magic, the last two came forward, shyly asking to be included…. When I added them on, I was amazed, at how well they fit, and how they enhanced the given concept…. Of course, all that might be just my weird sense of humor, but, hey, it works for me….

“It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters in the end.” — Ursula K. LeGuin

“By space the universe encompasses and swallows me up like a dot; by thought I encompass the Universe.” — Pascal, Pensees, n. 265

In pride, in reasoning pride, our error lies;
All quit their sphere, and rush into the skies.
Pride still is aiming at the blest abodes:
Men would be angels, angels would be gods.
Aspiring to be gods, if angels fell,
Aspiring to be angels, men rebel.

— Alexander Pope (1688-1744) — Essay on Man, Epistle i, Line 123

“From out of all the many particulars comes oneness, and out of oneness come all the many particulars.” — Heraclitus

“Truth can be a dangerous thing. It is quite patient and relentless.” — R. Scott Richards

See what I mean? Now, let the mind drift, with only that thought to anchor you to reality for the moment…. then, take in the two aphorisms below, and either grin, or guffaw, in acknowledgment and glee… I did, so I thought you should have the same opportunity….

“The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish, and when the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten. The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits. When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten. The purpose of words is to convey ideas. When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten.Where can I find a man who has forgotten words? He is the one I would like to talk to.” — Chuang Tzu

“If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” — Baruch’s Observation

Bang! It takes an accurate blow to drive in a nail with one clean strike…. Okay, put down the hammer now, I didn’t mean it…. calm yourselves…. Here, here’s a poem to look at, just give me the hammer, and I’ll put it away….
__________________________________

If you weren’t able to tell, I’m in a sort of odd mood today…. That, in and of itself isn’t all that odd, and isn’t a problem, but, it does affect the content herein, and nowhere quite as much as in this section… To go with today’s ambiance, I offer the following gem from one of my favorite contemporary poet/artists…..

Tryin’ On Clothes

I tried on the farmer’s hat,
Didn’t fit…
A little too small — just a bit
Too floppy.
Couldn’t get used to it,
Took it off.

I tried on the dancer’s shoes,
A little too loose.
Not the kind you could use
for walkin’.
Didn’t feel right in ’em,
Kicked ’em off.

I tried on the summer sun,
Felt good.
Nice and warm — knew it would.
Tried the grass beneath bare feet,
Felt neat.
Finally, finally felt well dressed,
Nature’s clothes fit me best.

~~ Shel Silverstein ~~

__________________________________

Below you will find one of my favorite rants, regarding the events in 2001 that have caused many of the restrictions placed on freedoms we, as US citizens, formerly held, restrictions with which we now live, and regard as normal…. I see this as evidence of the accuracy of what is written below, and supports its validity today…..
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Necessity is the plea of every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.” — William Pitt (1759-1806) speech on the India Bill, Nov. 18, 1783

I had not intended to start with a political rant, but this just came up, so here we go…. This is as true today as it was in 1783, perhaps even more so. Since 9/11/01, when those fanatic idiots carried out their insane delusions of grandeur on the world stage, the “necessity” for Homeland Security has been the watchword of the political pundits who unfortunately are in charge of the legislative and executive branches of our government. Bill after bill after bill keeps coming down the pike and bulling their way through into becoming law, or even worse, is created by executive order, without the benefit of review by Congress, useless as that may be.

The entire incident that happened that day was blown completely out of proportion by the media. Yes, it was a tragedy, in which something over 3000 American lives were lost, in three separate incidents. The videos of those planes hitting the buildings in New York must have been replayed a thousand times before noon, all over the country, until every American who had access to a TV was informed of what had occurred….

The American media, and the political machinery that manipulates it so effectively, then proceeded to flood every channel with the after-effects, making sure that the sorrow and fear of every person they could find willing to speak of it on camera was put on the evening news, and ensuring that no rational, dispassionate examination of the events would take place. Before the first day had passed, the national reaction had been whipped to a frenzy, stirring the fears of every paranoid in society, and making it seem as if the entire nation was filled with anger and vengeful righteousness. Though I didn’t join in the paranoia, I could feel it happening all around me, as normally intelligent people became so angry they lost all sense of proportion, or for that matter, all sense of truth.

In the ensuing years, whenever the politicians have wanted to distract the nation from what they were actually doing, all they needed to do was mention the word terrorism, or national security, to immediately put attention off of them, and onto the pitiful group of fanatical Muslims they blamed for the attacks (completely ignoring all the reasons those same politicians had provided those fanatics in the first place, reasons designed to stimulate an attack….). And thus, the Hunt for Osama bin Laden was on!

In this country, as a result of those attacks, approximately 5000 American lives were lost (that figure is larger than the actual number, purposely…. it is near enough to correct to make the point…). At this time, in the quest to find Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan, over 50,000 Afghani civilians have been killed. In Iraq, which we somehow decided to invade, even though they had nothing to do with 9/11, well over 250,000 civilians have died to soothe our national pride. In that same period, we lost another 1000 or so soldiers in fighting and bombings. And, as a side effect, the US Bill of Rights has been effectively eliminated, by Executive Order, disguised as Homeland Security (June, 2013 — Now authorized by what is so laughingly called the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012…. signed by President Obama on New Year’s Eve of 2011, while everyone was partying, not paying any attention to their so-called “rights”…..).

“Hatred is the coward’s revenge for being intimidated” — George Bernard Shaw

So, what is my point here? My point is this…. those pathetic fanatics killed more than they had ever been able to kill, one time. Since that one time, our country has killed over 300,000 civilians in retaliation; you can call it what you like, I call it schoolyard revenge by bullies. It has caused every politician in this country to wrap themselves in the flag, not to proclaim their patriotism, but to manipulate the unreasonable fear they created in the public to keep them from realizing the truth of the matter.

That truth is this: we are in no real danger from Al Qaeda, or from any other splinter faction terrorist group, nor have we ever been in any real danger. They may be able to pull off stunts such as this one occasionally, but for the most part, the world has gotten pretty good at either catching them in hiding, or stopping their plots before they actually carry them out. Governments have a LOT more resources than terrorists, no matter how rich they may be personally.

No, the pathetic, desperate people who become terrorists are created by those same political pundits who are reviling them and hunting them down. They are not a real threat to anyone, as they don’t have the wherewithal to perform more than one act of violence at a time; they cannot wage a war, they can only try to act as guerrilla forces, at best. Mostly, they are just sad schemers, planning glorious deaths, that ultimately have no meaning, other than to provide the Western politicos another unreasonable fear to use against the American public, in order to continue their raping and pillaging among their own people.

The entire issue is one that is repugnant to me; I have watched in horror, not as terrorists have been hunted, but as the rights of the American people have been taken away in the name of “security”. Security from what? We don’t need more security from terrorists; those techniques for dealing with it are well-established, and effective, as they employ the very same methods used by the fanatics to achieve their ends. No, we need more security from our own pundits, who have utilized this tragic events for their own benefit, to the everlasting regret of every true patriot….. bloody assholes, every one of them…..

“I have formed a very clear conception of patriotism. I have generally found it thrust into the foreground by some fellow who has something to hide in the background. I have seen a great deal of patriotism; and I have generally found it the last refuge of the scoundrel.” — G. K. Chesterton, The Judgement of Dr. Johnson, Act III

So be it…. gigoid has spoken….
__________________________________

Well, there you go…. Such as it is, it is done, and I’m glad, as it took a supreme effort this morning to stay on track…. Not sure why, but, it no longer matters, as long as it proofs okay…. Which, in fact, it does…. I will reiterate…. So be it. Y’all take care out there, and May the Metaphorse be with you…..

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

Which is Why….

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

gigoid

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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gigoid

Exploring Consensual Reality

Tag Archives: Philosophy

Pug dogs don’t count as flammable items….

Even tax codes are tasty with hollandaise….

Susceptible to diverse therapeutic models….

Such splendid toast deserves marmalade….

Calls to adjourn are always in order….

Striving for retail dominance in a wholesale world….

Nobody leaves without cleaning the flues…..

Tasteful displays of chain mail crafts….

Building euphemisms on a budget….

Terrified outbreaks of uncontrolled shrugging….

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